#There is a reason we’ve never seen him lead a team

[watermelonsloth]

So I’m of the opinion that Naruto shouldn't have become Hokage at the end of the series. There are a lot of reasons (it’s unnecessary for his arc, he doesn’t understand what it means to be Hokage, etc.), but the one I think applies the most that people talk about the least is that Naruto isn't a leader.

Sasuke is a leader. He directed team seven when he was a part of it. He created and led team hebi. He was the driving force of the attack on the five kage summit. He led the fucking Hokage into battle during the war. He took charge of team seven against Madara and especially against Kaguya.

Sakura is a leader. She keeps the people around her (mostly Naruto) grounded. She led the on-field medical ninja during the Pain attack. She made the difficult decisions and led an attack on Sasuke during the five kage summit arc. She started the purging of white zetsus in medical camps. She became in charge of Konoha’s hospital and medical forces.

Naruto is their loose-cannon friend. He spends most of the series running off on his own. Yeah, people follow him (or follows his example), but he never really leads anyone. He doesn’t make plans, he doesn’t direct anyone, and he only asks for help when he absolutely has to. He doesn’t even really make decisions, he just kind of says “I’ll just cross that bridge when we get to it”.

Sasuke takes the position of leader whenever he works with others, even when he isn’t the designated leader. Sakura usually doesn’t fill a leadership role, but falls into that position when the situation calls for it. Naruto charges ahead of everyone around him and inspires people along the way (on accident, half of the time).

[eightmakesonebraincell]

our leaves must fall before our flowers can bloom (teaser)

genre: poly hockey team!ateez x coach fem!reader, enemies/strangers to lovers, athlete!au, slow burn, fluff, angst

length: 1.0k (teaser) + approx. 38k (full fic)

c/w: sweaty ateez (warning well deserved), lots of hurt/comfort, one of the slowest slow burns to slow burn, remaining tags to be revealed with full fic

synopsis: you become the new coach of the elite men's ice hockey team, the red devils. but with both yourself and the team carrying burdens of the past, you all find it difficult to see eye to eye. as you lead them to the championships in the korean ice hockey league, you discover that teamwork and trust is not as straightforward as it seems.

a/n: when i started writing this i really thought it wouldn't exceed 25k but here we are :D full fic will be released in about a week and i am so ready

“she’s the new coach?” yunho frowns in confusion. “no offence, but we’re not a bunch of kids for her to practise being a soccer mum to.”

“she was the assistant coach for the grey eagles,” coach cho discloses.

“the grey eagles? the under-21 men’s championship team?” yeosang looks incredulous.

mingi sceptically comments, “the fact that we’ve never seen or heard of her before probably tells us enough.”

hongjoong’s lips purse sourly as he tries his hardest to analyse the situation with the professionalism of the team’s captain. but with the sudden change in coaches and the same critiquing doubts as mingi, hongjoong cannot help but feel his personal judgement webbing over his mind. over the team’s entire career as an elite ice hockey team thus far–five years, now well into their sixth–the red devils have only ever had two coaches. coach cho has been with them for the longest and whilst it took the team a while to eventually warm up to him, he has been with them for almost quadruple the amount of time it took to trust him.

the team’s alternate captain, seonghwa, speaks to you directly, “if you don’t mind me asking, why are you not playing as an athlete yourself? you’re clearly our age–nowhere near retiring.”

you knew from the very start that your age would make your credibility as a coach much lower, and your answer to seonghwa will not help your case either. “i stopped playing.”

“how come?”

the trigger of memories fills your nose with a sharp stinging smell. you blankly reveal, “i chose to stop playing.” you know exactly how it sounds like to somebody else, even more so to professional athletes. coach cho has also told you of the team’s hardheadedness and strong will when it comes to the passions of their career, so you are expecting the cold receptiveness that you are met with.

your response strikes the wrong chord within wooyoung. there was a point in his career not too long ago when the choice of continuing to play or not was at risk of becoming a forced decision. the way you answer so callously with those very words that had threatened to tear his world apart has his jaw grinding and eyes darkening, and he is not the only athlete in the arena who feels similarly.

“i would rather choose to die before i choose to stop playing. ice hockey is my entire life and without it, i am not living either,” hongjoong jabs and you cannot help but clench your fists because you know exactly what he means. still, you stay quiet as he continues, “sorry, but i can’t respect a ‘coach’ who chose to stop playing.”

at the captain’s words and subsequent move to leave for the changerooms, the rest of the team also gather their equipment and follow his steps. san’s feet falter in front of you, expression hesitant until he decides to voice, “our team needs a bit of time. it’s hard for us to warm up to…outsiders, and i know it might not mean much to say this but we have our reasons. don’t expect us to blindly trust you just because you’re a coach.”

the use of the word ‘outsider’ does not go unnoticed as you nod, “of course.”

san jogs off to rejoin the others and coach cho hums, “guess some things haven’t changed. they were just as prickly to me when i first became their coach.”

you raise an eyebrow, “prickly? to you?”

“yes, believe it or not,” he chuckles nostalgically. “we’ve come a long way because i’ve been their coach for years now. but it took me a while before i was able to break down their walls.”

you briefly mull over the information, then ask out of curiosity, “what would you have done if i didn’t sign the contract?”

“begged you to rethink your decision,” he jokes with a pleased chortle. “i would have to start looking for a different coach, i suppose. you were my only pick.”

“but why me, of all people? there are so many other experienced coaches that you can choose from.”

he looks at you, eyes glinting with intuition and confidence as he simply says, “you’re familiar with their playing style. they play just like you used to.” at your silent processing, coach cho probes, “why didn’t you tell them the real reason?”

you smile wistfully, “i didn't tell them because i’m not here to gain their pity.”

some of the boys’ voices grow louder as they emerge from the changerooms, changed into fresh clothes and their kit bags slung over their shoulders. you hear one of them ask, “captain, is she really going to be our new coach?”

they step out from the facility’s corridor and you accidentally make eye contact with hongjoong, yet neither of you look away. maintaining a steady gaze directly at you, he responds with a slight glower, “maybe, but she’s only the coach by title. i’m still the captain of the team, so let’s see who everyone listens to.”

as they exit the rink’s arena, you feel a fire of determination growing inside of you. you have won over your own demons and you have won the championships before–this is nothing in comparison. whether your next words are for coach cho or for yourself to hear, it does not matter.

“i may not play anymore but i was still once an athlete and no athlete has ever, in their career, wanted pity. i’m here to earn the team’s respect and i will win over them, especially their captain.”

you watch the swing of the glass door as it shuts behind the players, catching a brief glimpse of the trees lining the arena’s perimeter. it is the first day of autumn when you meet the red devils for the first time and outside, the leaves are beginning to change their colours.

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[puckinghischier]

so the clip of quinn asking the producer if his hair looks good, we’ve all seen it, right? cause i’m just thinking about it and how yeah it was probably a joke, but it’s sooooo insecure!quinn coded. like i’m sure he was nervous, and he really did want to look good for the camera. and it’s got me thinking about what it would be like to comfort insecure!quinn (i didn’t mean for this to be this long but i couldn’t stop once i started so here’s basically a three in one blurb 🫣)

it’s even things as simple as his pre-game outfits. he’s seen all the comments online about how he only wears the same few suits, so one day while you’re on the couch watching tv, he turns to you and asks if you’ll go shopping with him. of course you agree, but you ask him what’s got him so eager to expand his wardrobe.

“just…people keep saying i’m wearing the same thing all the time and it has me thinking i should probably go buy a couple more suits to wear for arrival pictures and stuff,” he shrugs, almost whispering, telling you it’s something he’s slightly embarrassed about.

you reach over and run your hand through his hair, playing with the messy curls. “q, who cares if you wear the same suit every game day? you’re wearing it to walk in the building and out of it,” you speak softly to him, noticing he’s not meeting your eye. “but, if you want to go pick up a few more, i’d love to go with you and help you pick them out,” you tug lightly on his hair to get him to look over at you, bringing your hand down to toy with the tip of his ear.

he gives you a bashful smile, mumbling out a small “thanks,” before looking away again.

you lean over, replacing your hand on his ear with your mouth. “plus, you know how much i love looking at you in a suit,” you let your lips drag over the warm skin. “almost as much as i love looking at you without one on.”

quinn shudders at the feeling of your hot breath on his ear, making him forget what he was even thinking about before the current conversation.

~

of course, quinn’s constantly worried about being a good captain for his team, too. he doesn’t think he’s played long enough to earn it yet, not understanding why they picked him over some of the vets on the team.

so when he comes home after a particularly rough practice or a brutal loss, you can feel the insecurity radiating off of his body. the game that eliminated them from the playoffs, though? god, you never want to relive it.

he laid in your arms for hours, switching between crying and getting angry at himself. he kept telling you it was his fault. he was the reason they didn’t make it. they should’ve chosen a different person to be captain, not him. he clearly didn’t know what he was doing, or they’d be celebrating tonight instead.

you know that most of this is caused by the questions he was asked after the game. one reporter in particular always asking the worst questions and getting under his skin. but you’re sure the group of drunk, upset fans outside of the rink who were yelling discouraging things to him only drove the knife deeper.

the way he talked about himself with so much disgust broke your heart in a way you never knew was possible. you knew he was always hardest on himself, but the fact he truly believes these things makes you worry you haven’t been doing your job correctly.

“quinn, i don’t ever want to hear you talk about yourself like that again, do you hear me?” you sat up, talking sternly but not harshly.

“well, it’s true. if they would’ve just picked someone else then-“

“stop!” you interrupted him, your sudden loudness causing him to pause, looking at you with wide eyes. “i’m sorry, i’m not trying to yell at you, but i’m not going to sit here and listen to you do this to yourself any longer,” you put just a few inches of distance between you and him on the large couch.

“you’re exactly who they wanted to lead this team or they wouldn’t have chosen you. you do have what it takes. hell, quinn, you got the team to the playoffs for the first time in 4 years. that has to count for something,” the tone of your voice is almost pleading, begging him to take what you’re saying to heart.

“your teammates love you. they look up to you. the fans love you. they were excited when you were named captain. i love you,” you take a moment, watching his face slowly change from distress to calm. “and i won’t sit here and listen to you say awful things about the man that i love. not for something that changes nothing about how i feel about you or your value as the captain of your team,” you finish, a knot forming in your throat because of how deeply you feel about the man sitting in front of you.

quinn just sits and looks at you, finally snapped out of his self destruct mode. “i…love you so much, you know that?” he tells you before pulling you into him and engulfing you in one of his ‘huggybear’ hugs.

“you’re right. i’m here because i deserve to be. and if you believe in me, who cares what anyone else thinks? i’ve got the best motivation right here in front of me,” he speaks into your neck, squeezing you tightly to his body, like he’s trying to press you into his skin, knowing he can always count on you to talk him out of his insecurities.

~

you get the rare moments, too, where quinn starts comparing himself to his brothers. you’d think as the oldest he’d know better, knowing that the two younger boys have always looked up to him, but once the media started trying to pit the three against each other, the seed of doubt crept its way into his thoughts.

it’s not even just about hockey, either. it’s the way jack is always so outgoing, the life of the party. and luke always seems so universally adored, his bashful charm winning him over with crowds.

quinn? quinn feels like he’s just…there. he can’t strike up a conversation as naturally as jack can. and his shyness seems to only drive people away, not draw people in, like luke’s.

and yeah, quinn knows you’re always there with him, keeping him company and being his buffer in all of the various social settings he finds himself in, but he can’t help but wish he was a little bit more like his brothers.

especially right now, when he’s sitting by the fire pit at the family lake house, a few of brother’s shared friends over for the weekend.

he’s sitting in a chair sipping on a beer, watching you partake in a heated game of beer pong with jack, luke, trevor, and cole. all day he’s felt a little…less than. watching you on the boat earlier dancing around to your favorite song with jack, not worrying about who might float by and see the two of you.

or when you were helping prep dinner, and trevor came up to you and struck up a conversation, talking a mile a minute while you kept up with and soaked up every word, adding to the conversation with just as much enthusiasm at the drop of a hat.

or right now, when cole is picking you up and swinging you around after you just won the drinking game, launching into your ‘secret’ handshake the two of you coined a few summers ago.

he wishes he could give you those things. the loud, crazy, fun atmosphere you seem to thrive in. he wishes he could be the guy to parade you around at all of the hockey banquets, introducing you to various people. he wants to dress up with you on halloween in the ridiculous couples costumes you always show him. to be the spontaneous boyfriend that goes diving off of the small cove cliffs on the lake like you love to do with jack.

but that’s just…not who he is. he likes to be quiet, observant, lowkey, private. he likes to listen to other people carry the conversation, and just chime in when he has something to add. he likes to drive the boat and watch everyone else splash around in the water, jumping in for a few minutes just to cool off before resuming his position on the driver’s seat. he hates going to the bar after games with his teammates, but agrees because he knows you like dressing up and going out.

he loves when the two of you spend time reading together on the couch, then order dinner in and watch a movie before bed. he likes the fact that the two of you can sit in silence, both comfortable enough to not feel the need to fill the space with empty conversation. he likes being able to come home to you after the loud environment of the game to the sweet whisper of your voice, because you know how he likes the soft tone after the arena full of screams and sirens.

but he can’t help but feel like he’s causing you to be less for him, seeing how much life you seem to have in times like these.

he’s broken out of his little pity party when you come running over to him. “quinny!! did you see that! we won! i won!” you fling your half-drunk self down onto his lap, beaming your beautiful smile to him.

“i did. looked like you were having fun,” he says with a smile, but his tone is flat.

he watches your smile fade slightly, cocking your head at him. “you okay?” you ask him, always able to tell when something’s not right in that mysterious brain of his.

“yeah, m’just tired. might head in early,” he tells you, drumming his fingers along the tanned skin of your leg, signaling he’s about to stand up.

“okay…well then i’ll go with you. just gotta tell the guys goodnight first,” you respond skeptically, removing yourself from his lap as he stands.

“no, no, don’t wanna ruin your fun. just come to bed when you’re done, yeah? don’t drink too much, sweetheart,” quinn shakes his head, placing a kiss on the top of your head before turning and walking away from you, leaving you confused.

you watch quinn walk up the stone steps, stopping in the dimly lit kitchen to hover over the sink for a few moments, staring out the window looking over the dark lake. you can tell by his body language something is bothering him, so you turn and walk over to tell the rest of the group that you’re heading to bed, ignoring their protests of ‘you’re no fun! quinn’s made you boring!’ with a playful show of your middle finger as you walk away, following quinn’s same path.

quinn’s so lost in thought he doesn’t hear the kitchen door open or the soft pad of your footsteps walking towards him, only breaking out of his trance when he feels your hands make their way around his torso and your body pressed against his back.

“whatcha thinking about?” you ask him, placing a small kiss to the middle of his back through his thin t-shirt.

“nothing,” he tells you, his tone not convincing you. “why aren’t you out there defending your title?” he turns around so he’s facing you, resting his own hands on your waist.

“because something has you locked in that pretty head of yours, and i intend to find out why my boyfriend is sad,” you tell him in that soft tone of voice he loves, not wasting any time getting to the bottom of his odd mood.

quinn’s cheeks involuntarily flush, always having loved when you call him pretty. but before you can admire him too much he closes his eyes and throws his head back, sighing, not wanting to talk about how pathetic he is.

“you’ll just think it’s silly and pointless,” he confesses, knowing you won’t concede until you pry it out of him.

“try me,” you tell him as he looks down at you, seeing the cocked eyebrow and look of determination on your face.

he’s silent for a few seconds, trying to figure out how to explain it to you without making you feel like you did something wrong, because he knows you’ll immediately start picking apart what you could’ve possibly done to make him feel like this. but it’s not you, it’s his problem.

you continue to look at him with love in your eyes, silently encouraging him.

“it’s just…” he starts then pauses again, bringing a hand up to toy with your low ponytail. “do you…ever…y’know, wish i was different? more like jack? or trevor?” he finally gets the words out, shock taking over your features.

he watches your eyes go from loving, to surprised, to sad.

“quinn, what? no. never,” you tell him, shaking your head so vigorously he’s worried you’ll make yourself dizzy.

he brings his hands up to stop the movement of your head, leaving his soft hands there, thumbs caressing your cheeks.

“it’s just…i see how you are around them. how…full of life you are,” he watches your mouth open and close, like you want to interrupt him but thought better of it. “and i can’t help but wonder if you’re missing out because of me,” he shrugs, removing his hands from your face to let them rest in half fists on your shoulders, a sad smile on his face.

reaching up to grab his hands and hold them in both of yours, you shake them a bit to get him to look at you.

“i’m not missing out on anything, do you hear me?” you tell him with such seriousness in your voice he’s almost worried you’re mad. “they’re a good time, yeah, but they’re not you, q.”

still not convinced, quinn let’s his doubt control his thoughts again. “i just know that they’re more your speed. they like to go out and party and have fun and i…don’t,” he can’t meet your eyes, not wanting to see the sadness settled there.

“with them you’re always talking and can be loud and spontaneous like i know you like to do. but with me it’s always whispers and quiet and hiding away in corners or at home. i don’t do silly dances with you in the boat without caring who might see or have a secret handshake when we win beer pong. i sit on the couch and read in silence. i sit in the corner and watch everyone else have fun when we go out because i don’t want videos of me all over the internet,” he continues, his tone growing more frustrated with each word spoken.

“i just don’t want you to wake up one day and realize you’ve wasted all this time with some boring guy who only wants to sit at home and only goes out when he has to or when you want to, not because he enjoys it,” he finishes, nearly shaking with vulnerability.

his words are a knife straight into your heart, not wanting to believe he really feels this way about himself.

“oh quinny,” you bring your hands up to cup his face, wiping at the moisture forming in his grey eyes.

he gives you a weak smile, turning his head to kiss your open palm, closing his eyes at the comfort your skin on his always brings him.

“i need you to know, that i love you, quinn hughes. i love you so much it hurts me sometimes. like, physically pains me. i look at you and i feel like my chest could literally bust open with how deeply i feel about you. and not just when things are good. all the time. every day. even when we’re fighting. even when you’re sad. even when you leave your socks stuffed in the creases of the couch,” you tell him, earning a small, wet laugh, because he knows how much you hate that poor habit of his.

“i love you when we’re sitting in silence on the couch because you just got home from a game and need a noise break. i love you when we’ve been reading for hours, the only sound between us the turning pages of our books. i love you when we’re sitting in the corner of the bar because you don’t want to be the center of attention when someone buys the team a round. i love you when you’re watching me be crazy and drunk on the boat because you want to make sure someone is sober and everyone is safe. i love you when you’re ‘boring’ because to me, you’re never boring,” you confess to him, feeling the small tear slip out of your left eye and down your cheek, matching quinn’s.

“you’re the person that i love with everything that i have in me. the one that brings me home whatever books i’ve been talking about wanting to read during our marathons on a random afternoon just because you were thinking about it. the person that sacrifices his alone time away from his team, and just hockey in general, to go to banquets and events because you know i enjoy those things sometimes. you’re the person that always watches my favorite silly shows with me, no matter how stupid they are. my personal chef, my human teddy bear, my best friend,” you whisper the last words, sniffling, noticing quinn’s eyes are now closed tightly.

“because even though i do enjoy being loud and rowdy sometimes, i enjoy being with you, more. i enjoy the quiet and the slowness of life with you. the time we get to spend together without distractions or expectations. so no, i don’t wish you were more like jack, or trevor, or luke, or cole, or whoever. because you’re like quinn, which is exactly who i want you to be,” your voice finally goes quiet, bringing your forehead to rest against his, hoping your words are enough to convince him that his insecurities are just that. they hold no weight and have no truth to them.

the two of you simply soak in each other’s presence, neither one daring break the intimacy of the words hanging in the air.

when quinn finally opens his eyes and leans his head back, he lets out a shaky breath.

“tell me not to get down on one knee and propose to you right now,” he tells you, a slight joking tone to his voice, earning a small chuckle from you.

“way to do a complete 180,” you joke back, once again tangling your hands in his hair.

he huffs out a small laugh, tilting his head back before brining it back up to look at you.

“thank you,” he breaths out. “i don’t know how i got so in my head, but all day i watched you have fun and i don’t know. i got lost for a bit.”

you lean forward to place a small peck on the tip of his nose, watching him scrunch it slightly in response.

“well, luckily for you, i’ll always be here to come in there and find you, bringing you back out here to me,” you tap your finger along his temple.

“luckiest in the world,” he beams down at you.

[herejusttosufferalong]

I think L gave us a lot of hints/messages about what might be going on post-premiere in that Jimmy F appearance. Let’s note that this was after Papgate, after his and N’s social media posts in the fallout period, and after Milan if I am remember correctly? The more I think about it the more I think his team crafted the content we saw to reset his public image, explain some things, and encourage the audience to give him some grace. It was damage control/positive PR/but also some explanations for what we are seeing.

First off, he came off relaxed and confident, a big contrast from how stressed he looked when he had been papped. I think they were also trying to portray him as a friendly and relatable regular guy who had suddenly been thrust into fame as a heartthrob and romantic lead.

Him running from the carriage scene music/talking about how he is not used to the level of fame and exposure and recognition that has come with the success of the show (barber story, needing security in Brazil).

The reference to JB passing down the guide that was called “How to fall in love in front of 82 million people” - more messaging that it is difficult to have that level of scrutiny and specifically when playing a romantic lead when you have insane chemistry with your costar.

The romantic lines, read B-ton style (these are so L/N coded and reference things L or N have brought up in interviews, with the exception of “East Peasy Lemon Squeezy.) We’ve got:

Espresso lyrics - song with significance to the ship, also what L was listening to getting ready for the London premiere, Honeybee, come get that pollen lyrics

“Penelope, we were on a break!” -this is the biggest hint right here of why L was papped/appears in a relationship with another woman after we have seen his and N’s chemistry jump off the screen for 6 months and also in the show itself. THEY (N/L) WERE ON A BREAK. I don’t think he wanted to be on a break, but they were, and I think they’re now on another one while he tries to get his affairs in order. And note that he says “Penelope,” not Rachel, which would be the accurate pop culture quote. Which doesn’t really make sense because he and P are never on a break during the show unless you count the time she stops writing to him and he goes off the rails. Penelope is code for N. Also he is referencing the R/R relationship/timing issues again.

Then the Barbie quote. I think this somewhat addresses him being attached to a strong beautiful powerful woman (LWD or N, take your pick) and that dynamic of potentially being overshadowed and having to find your own self worth in order to handle it . I don’t think that last part about being her Ken was scripted (JF even gives him a wtf look and then it gets cut when it airs), but he made it clear he is happy being her Ken. He basically claims his ass as hers on National TV without meaning to.

I think the interview didn’t have purposeful mention of N for a reason, he was trying to emphasize his role as a B-bro and an actor and romantic lead in his own right, and connect him to the other male leads, and the clip they chose showed that.

He then follows up with a social media post confirming a late night/non-work/non PR beach walk with N and said security guards. I mean… that was a date, and for him to post that in the face of everyone saying he had hard-launched A and he and N were “all PR” is crazy. They also have to be aware of all of the Brazil reports and speculation.

I think the messaging was: This is level of fame and exposure is new, he’s figuring it out, give him a break. Also, everything is okay between N&L so don’t worry, there may be reasons for why what we are seeing doesn’t make sense but they are figuring it out between them.

Would the general audience pick up on all of that? No, but the hardcore fans would so they layered it all in there. Maybe his PR team isn’t that dumb afterall?

I know there’s speculation N was there- I don’t know if she was but her immediate like definitely showed support and that they are still a team. Wouldn’t surprise me if she had a hand in some of that strategy.

I think this is the first in depth analysis I have ever seen on the JF appearance that I mostly agree with.

Thanks for sharing 💜🥃

[anthurak]

Takeaways from the Volume 9 Epilogue:

--

One thing I really like about Oscar’s ‘If there was anything I wish I could borrow from you…’ monologue is that it laid out/confirmed something I’ve always felt was a major aspect of Oscar’s dynamic with Ruby that I nonetheless feel a lot of the fandom has missed: That Oscar very much sees Ruby as a mentor and an example to follow, and how their dynamic is specifically a foil to what we saw between Ruby and Ozpin. That Ruby acts as a mentor and example to Oscar in the same way Ozpin was to Ruby, and that Ruby is a far BETTER mentor and example to Oscar than Ozpin ever was to her. Which, as an aside, is a dynamic I can’t help but feel a lot of people have been misinterpreting as ‘ship-teasing’ and is one of the main reasons I’ve simply never been able to see Oscar as any kind of viable love-interest to Ruby. Frankly the dynamic of ‘Ruby is the mentor and example to Oscar that Ozpin couldn’t be for her’ is simply so much more INTERESTING than any kind of romance could ever hope to be.

--

Even in animatic form, Winter basically going overdrive on the maiden powers was a sight to behold. And her own monologue had all the self-deprecation we were expecting. Our girl is clearly holding on by a thread and it’s going to be REAL interesting seeing how she reacts and adjusts to her sister not actually being dead. As in, I can imagine a situation where Winter tries to throw herself into a heroic sacrifice with the belief that Weiss would make a better Maiden than her.

Also, Winter’s monologue giving major focus to how Penny is super-super-dead-dead-and-definitely-not-coming-back-for-really-realsies, as she is talking to the sister who she ALSO believes is DEFINITELY also dead? Specifically with the words that Penny is gone, when Penny’s last words to her were that she’d be ‘part of you’?

Yeah, there is no way in hell we’ve seen the last of Penny XD

--

The CROWN. Like it was only a few shots, but as someone who read the CFVY Books (which you totally should if you haven’t, they’re great), holy shit I was NOT expecting them to pop up here.

I mean, in hindsight it makes perfect sense that they’d be involved in Volume 10. They’re basically Vacuo’s equivalent to Vale’s criminal element and the White Fang splinter faction as Salem’s co-opted insurgency group, with Jax and Gillian joining Roman, Adam and Jacques as the latest of Salem’s unwitting patsies. It’s definitely going to be real interesting seeing the crew deal with them. Like it’s really fun to imagine Team RWBY in particular being kind of exasperated at seeing Jax’s probably doing a whole ‘With Salem’s help I shall be King!’ shtick after everything they’ve seen with Roman, Adam and Jacques.

Oh and if you don’t know, Jax has a mind-control semblance, so him trying to use that on Yang could actually lead to a sneaky callback to the Justice League crossover, ie; Yang doing a ‘Yeah, I’m not doing THAT shit again.’ XD

--

Qrow’s whole vibe through this is fascinating. Like his section may have been the one we already saw, but after seeing the abject depression and growing despair of all the other characters, Qrow actually being OPTIMISTIC hit so much harder.

--

Raven showing up at the end is… interesting.

I’ll admit that ever since we saw that specific clip a few months back, I’ve been rather conflicts about Raven showing up to deliver RWBY+J to Vacuo, particularly after Ruby’s tree vision. Like for one it felt a bit random and unnecessary. The tree already deposited the Ever After team outside of Vacuo so they didn’t exactly need help getting there. Not to mention that it kind of clotheslines the story-thread set up by Ruby’s vision; that she now has a reason to track Raven down to get the ANSWERS to what happened to Summer. Finally, it’s just kind of… random? Like where did Raven even come from to get the team?

But now having seen the clip with its intended context, I’m definitely more on board with it. Particularly hearing from Kerry and Eddy that the original ending for the penultimate episode had RWBY+J going through the portal to arrive at their memorial stone, and met by a ‘Mysterious Figure’, ie; Raven. Here it feels like were getting more set up to get answers later as to what Raven was doing at the memorial.

And really, now that I’ve thought about it more, this method kind of puts the thread of Ruby going to Raven for answers even MORE into focus. Like the story reintroduces Raven in the present right after Ruby got a vision basically saying ‘hey, Raven is important’. And now going into Volume 10, we’re pretty much perfectly positioned for Ruby to pull Raven aside for those all-important ‘Why were you fucking my mom? What happened to my mom?’ questions.

--

Finally… yeah that ending hit me a LOT harder than I was expecting. Like that ending was HOPE in its purest form and it was honestly beautiful to see. Particularly right now with the future of the show seeming so uncertain. I’ve personally been optimistic about RWBY’s future (in a manner not unlike Qrow’s vibes I suppose lol), but damn the hopefulness of that ending hit especially hard, and was something I’ll admit I needed. And I imagine the rest of us could use as well.

We'll be getting Volume 10. And 11, and 12, and however many more it takes to finish this story. At this point, I have no doubt of that.

[cacoetheswriting]

celebrity skin. (part eight)

pairing: rockstar!eddie munson x popstar!fem!reader word count: 5.2k summary: a reconciliation in New York leads to a rediscovery of not-so-hidden feelings and answers to previously avoided questions — plus more.

content warnings: 18+, minors dni: suggestive & mature themes, adult language, post-breakup emotional hurt / comfort, use of pet names, mentions of alcohol consumption, mentions of blackmail, & kinda rough smut (unprotected p in v sex) — if i missed anything in this chapter, pls let me know!

& psa: images used in the header don’t depict readers physical attributes! these are also described vaguely in the story, only that she’s a little shorter than eddie.

celebrity skin. masterlist

One thing Eddie had been absolutely sure of: Stevie Nicks was right.

The trip to New York City was carried out solely on a whim. A gut feeling that the brunette rockstar could not quite shake. He had to see you, despite the possible consequences, and Eddie was smart enough to know there would be a lot. He acted like an ass and whether you would admit it or not, he knew he broke your heart.

Ever since his rise to fame, the Corroded Coffin frontman felt this bubble around him. A bubble created by his team, his band, his past, and his own disruptive behaviour — don’t do drugs was a warning he witnessed (and ignored) many times on posters too colourful for the subject matter, plastered on the walls of Hawkins High. Seemingly, the bubble protected Eddie from predators. Leeches that wanted to take advantage of his fame. Unfortunately, the bubble also shielded him from love.

Love. 

If the rockstar wasn’t so afraid of the feeling as a result of that bubble, perhaps he would have made different choices in all of his past relationships. Most importantly, perhaps Eddie would have made different choices in the one relationship that’s meant more to him than any other. If he wasn’t so afraid of love, and being in love, perhaps he would’ve fought to be with you a little harder.

And love is definitely how Eddie would describe what he felt towards you. Correction. Feels towards you to this very day. Maybe more, if that was possible considering he hasn’t seen you in months. 

So yes, Stevie Nicks was right. The concept of Silver Springs was right.

Seeing you again only affirmed that belief. Talking to you again, witnessing your smile for the first time in months… Well, Eddie never wanted to be apart from you for longer than he already had been. Unfortunately, that wasn’t up to him. Not for as long as your grandmother had her claw all up in your business and stuck her nose where it did not belong.

“So, what happens now?” The rockstar asks, only slightly afraid of the answer.

You hum under your breath, taking a moment to think, gathering your own thoughts. The sun is slowly rising in the distance, so the first response that comes to mind is that you should go home, and Eddie should go back to his hotel, Max’s place, or wherever the hell he’s been staying, before this place starts crawling with people. That would mean saying goodbye for lord knows how long and you were just starting to get comfortable with being around the rockstar again, although, not like that was insanely hard. Whatever. Simply, you didn’t want to say goodbye.

“We could go get breakfast,” you finally say.

Eddie smirks. “As much as like that idea, sweetheart, I didn’t really mean now in the full sense of the word.”

You laugh softly.

“Okay, hotshot.” Turning your head back to look at Eddie, you raise a brow. “What do you think should happen?”

The rockstar smacks his lips together before resting his elbow on one of his knees and bringing his thumb to his mouth. A nervous tick.

“Putting whatever reason I came here for aside, starting over seems like a bad idea since we’ve done that once before and it didn’t really end the way either of us hoped,” he says after a beat of silence, avoiding your gaze.

“Yeah,” you exhale, “Bad idea. Plus you said so yourself, you’re not the relationship type. Getting back together would be redundant.”

“Right,” Eddie agrees quietly, although he really doesn’t want to.

There’s another moment of silence. Nothing but the sound of morning birds chirping melodically and wind gust hitting the water ahead. In the quiet, there is solace. In the quiet, Eddie doesn't have to answer difficult questions or have conversations neither of you really wants to have. A blissful ignorance of what’s really happening here.

He still loves you. You most likely still love him.

It’s all just terrible timing for two people who are — in his mind, at least — made for eachother, but for one reason or the other, can’t be together. Not in this lifetime. Not with people controlling what they can or cannot do. Not with the whole world watching their every move. It hurt. Hurt that a life you both chose was also the life that’s actively destroying something good.

“We could try being friends?” Eddie offers eventually, looking at you then.

You smile. “Friends. I think I like that.”

-

Holly is the only person you’re fully comfortable talking to about all of this. She listens, actively nodding along as you spew your thoughts and feelings out loud, until the rambles become too hard to follow. Holly, ever the best friend that she’s always been, places her perfectly manicured hands on your shoulders and gives your body one shake to get you back on track when the story becomes a little too convoluted. And this one is all over the place.

There’s the run in at Saks, the meeting with Max, the plan, the date with Steve, all that leads to Eddie Munson banging on your front door until you let him inside. There’s the emotionally heightened conversation that doesn’t really amount to much. The dinner with your family that opened things up to questions from your nosh sisters and scrutiny from your Nana. Then there was Coney Island.

You pause.

It’s messy, for sure, and your feelings are all over the place as you recount each and every minor detail, which leads you to why you invited her over in the first place: what the fuck do you do about Eddie Munson?

Holly usually gives you advice. Parts of which you want to hear and take on board, parts of which you both know will be ignored. This time however, as you do your best to explain what’s been on your mind — and heart — since the rockstar arrived in New York, this time Holly doesn’t know what to say.

“I don’t know if I should forgive him.”

“Jeff says he’s been, like, super sullen all summer long. Locked in that house of his, or at the studio, working on shit he won’t let the band see.”

“That’s supposed to make it easier for me to do what, exactly? He’s secretive, that’s for sure. Hiding stuff from his band, from his sister, from me…”

You reach for the packet of smokes that Holly brought with her and light one, hand shaking ever so slightly.

“I got virtually nothing from him that night in my apartment. Slightly more under the Wonder Wheel, but still not enough to understand why he did what he did,” you exhale a puff of smoke, “Yet I can’t help but think that despite everything, especially ignoring the weeks I spent in bed because of him, we’re like meant for each other, you know?” 

Holly too lights a cigarette. She also doesn’t answer you.

“That’s kinda pathetic, no?”

“I think until you get the entire truth, it won’t matter whether you get back with him or just be his friend, or whatever, ‘cause you’re not going to be fully happy. Not really,” she explains, avoiding your question because there’s close to nothing worse than admitting to your friend that they’ve lost it completely.

“So I should confront him?”

“Jeff says Eddie doesn’t do well with confrontations.”

You groan. Head falling back on the cushioned sofa.

“Maybe I should just fuck him,” you think out loud, “Get all this frustration out and then just move on with my life.”

Holly laughs. “Just don’t let him finish,” she says, “Karma’s a bitch, and whatnot.”

-

New York City is your favourite place on Earth.

Despite your years of extensive travel to tour your various albums or attend different global award shows, New York, your home, has always been top of the list. Elegant, albeit slightly messy. Organised, although a little rowdy. It’s colourful, but dull. Full of people from every corner of the world, which only added to its pre-existing charm. You didn’t really think it was possible to fall in love with it even more until you’ve started to explore it all over again with none other than Eddie Munson — under a new guise of something called friendship.

The rockstar decided to extend his trip. Currently, there is no return date. Exploring New York became the only thing on his agenda. 

The two of you did your best to stay under the radar, away from prying eyes. Although, not like it was necessarily needed as Eddie’s idea of sight seeing involved bar hopping. Old-ish, rather shitty places that have definitely seen better days, but Eddie, he was like a kid in a candy store. With every beer poured and every bowl of peanuts shared, he lit up more and more.

“They remind me of home,” he finally explains, two days into your NYC adventure. “Of Hawkins.” 

You smile at him, but don’t say anything.

“What?” Eddie asks when he notices the look, mouth now full after taking another handful of the perhaps hundredth packet of peanuts the two of you have shared over the last few days.

“I don’t know,” you shrug, swirling the gold-ish liquid inside your beer bottle, “I guess it’s just nice that some small part of my home reminds you of your home.”

Eddie returns the fond expression. Friends is good, he thinks at that moment while catching another peanut with his mouth, not ideal, but good.

“There was this bar,” he says, leaning across the table so that he could be a little closer to you, “The Hideout. Our first venue, outside of Gareth’s garage, and the only place in my crappy hometown where I didn’t feel like an outsider.”

“Places like the Hideout, places like this.” Eddie swirls his finger in the air to show he means your current location, “They’ll always have a special place in my heart, I guess. They’re a part of me. Part of Corroded Coffin history.”

He stares at you for a minute. He’d never share this much with a friend, so perhaps this new concept you’ve both found yourselves in is not as good as the rockstar would like to think. “We could try being friends?” — Eddie’s second guessing his suggestion just as fast as he came up with it.

“We should see more of your home,” he finally states, “As much as I love them, I think we’ve seen all the dingy bars New York has to offer, so I’m open to suggestions.”

You bring the beer bottle to your lips and take a slow sip of the now semi-warm liquid, pondering his request. 

Where could you take Eddie that would represent your love for New York. The Statue of Liberty seems a little basic, as does Times Square — especially since you’ve both performed there in the past. Rockefeller Centre to see the street performers? The Met, even though both of you will most likely be invited next year to the exhibit. In reality, all of the touristy spots like Central Park, for example, would be a little too crowded for either of you to feel safe and remain unseen. 

Then your eyes glisten with an idea.

What’s more homey than a home itself: Cove City Sound Studios.

To any average person, it was just another recording studio found in New York. One of hundreds. To you however, it was heaven on earth. 

Located in Glen Cove, New York, Cove City Sound Studios had been home to many artists before you came along. A lot of albums were recorded here. A lot of number one hits — the list of which you were lucky to join more than once.

You always thought the ambiance of this place fueled your creativity. Often said the reason behind your resounding success was because you got the opportunity to record here. Of course Holly, Val, and especially your Nana, corrected you every time those words had left your lips. “You’re the reason behind your success,” your Nana would affirm, “Not some recording studio.”.

But you knew. Felt it deep within your bones. Cove City Sound Studios was magic.

“Damn,” Eddie mutters under his breath, fingers gently running across the various buttons as his doe-eyes dart across the posters on the wall — one of which features your 1985 album cover (a record once hidden under Eddie’s bed back in Hawkins). 

“Here I thought the place we recorded Honesty in was impressive,” he admits, “This though, this is another level.”

A smile circles your lips.

“Welcome to my home, Eddie Munson.”

The rockstar dips his head, sort of in a way of a little bow, and smiles so wide it makes your insides flutter. Friends, friends, friends. You repeat inside your mind, same thing Eddie is doing, although neither of you are aware. Friends hiding their true feelings.

“I’m honoured, sweetheart.” Eddie adds, placing a ring-clad hand on his heart.

“As you should be,” you tease and walk past him, pushing open a door into the vocal booth. 

The Corroded Coffin frontman follows you with zero to no hesitation. He watches as you slowly circle the small room before standing in front of a microphone, adjusting it to your height.

“I recorded every single one of my songs here apart from Honesty,” you reveal without looking at him. Focusing instead on tightening the metal rod in place. “Hundreds of records that will probably never see the light of day because my label doesn’t think they are good enough.”

Eddie snorts. “As if you could make something that wasn’t deemed good. We wrote shit together, remember? I know how good you are.”

Your lips twist into a timid smile and glance up at him from your lashes. “I appreciate that Eds, but unfortunately the industry doesn’t work that way and you, of all people, should understand.”

“Well, yeah, but doesn’t your grandmother have some sort of special power to get you whatever the fuck you want.”

It’s your turn to snort. “She may be resourceful, but she’s got no control over my management team. Even if she likes to think she does, the only real ability my Nana possesses is tell me what to wear and how to act.”

Eddie nods, taking note of this information. Knowledge he can use to free himself from deceit, blackmail.

Valuable insight into the evil woman that ruined his life since, as you’ve now so beautifully explained, she’s not nearly as formidable as she presented herself to be. A light at the end of the tunnel.

“Perhaps that’s why I can’t bring myself to listen to it,” you say, breaking Eddie away from his thoughts.

“What?”

“Perhaps that’s why I can’t bring myself to listen to Honesty. Because I didn’t record it here.” Nothing to do with the fact that it’s soiled by the memory of the last morning we saw each other, you think, clearly lying to yourself, and him.

Eddie swallows his breath. A twinge of guilt rushes through him. Actually, more than a twinge. A gush, like a waterfall out of control. He’s sure of it now. The two of you could never be just friends. Not until you knew the whole truth about why he did what he did and now that he knew your grandmother had a weakness in her armour, perhaps offering you the truth is something he could do sooner rather than later.

“Then maybe we should change that,” Eddie offers and proceeds to quickly shuffle out of the room, leaving you alone for a second.

You watch through the glass separating the two spaces as he scans the buttons, hands on his hips, tip of his tongue out to indicate he’s thinking. He looks cute and you fail to conceal a smile, so you opt to hang your head and stare at your shoes because you can’t afford to think he’s any sort of desirable. Just friends.

After taking a moment to familiarise himself with a new system, Eddie finds what he’s looking for and switches it on, before hurrying back to stand next to you.

“Ready?”

“Ready,” you affirm while putting a pair of headphones on.

For the next four minutes and twenty-two seconds, you get lost in the chocolate of Eddie’s eyes as you once again sing the song he wrote about you.

“Honestly, you got me fallin’ to my knees

It’s like ecstasy, this feelin’ inside of me

Let’s call it honesty”

Cove City Sound Studios creates magic. You’ve always believed it and now it’s only been affirmed because the way your voice melts with his — no band, no distractions — is nothing short of perfection. 

“You’re a devil in disguise

No, that’s what I want you to be

‘Cause in reality, hon’, you’re a hypnotic dream

An angel for sure

To a non-believer like me

Oh honesty, what have you done to me, honestly”

That’s why the song was a hit in the first place. Now you understand why your management team pushed you to do this collaboration in the first place. Magic. And as Eddie draws the last syllable without breaking eye contact, you’re transported back to the night you met. The night that inspired this song. 

The night that started all of this.

His mind wanders to the same moment, same place, same spot. Friendship is a word that no longer makes sense, but the rockstar doesn’t want to ruin anything (again), so he drops the headphones and exits the booth without saying anything.

You follow him with your gaze. A feeling of longing spreads through you faster than you know what to do with it. It’s unfortunately accompanied by fear because you’re not stupid, far from it. Eddie’s hurt you twice before. Going back in only to get burned a third time would be a grave mistake and you know better than to go down that road again. ‘Cause you do know better, right?

Then this morning’s conversation with Holly enters your mind. Your best friend was right. You could never be happy around him if you didn’t know the truth.

“Eddie, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Do you think if you didn’t end things when you did, we’d still be together? Or do you think we were doomed regardless?”

He takes a moment to answer. Avoiding looking up through the glass to meet your curious gaze, anxious for an answer.

“I already told you.” His deep voice eventually booms through the speakers. “I’m not the relationship type.”

“Bullshit,” you’re quick to state. It comes out harsher than intended.

“Sweetheart—” He’s shaking his head, still without looking at you.

“No, don’t you fucking dare,” you interrupt, suddenly feeling deflated by this whole situation, defeated in the fight against your feelings towards him. “Like I said before, you don’t get to sweetheart me and give me some bullshit vague answer.”

Eddie’s eyes are now closed. He’s hoping if he shows how he wants no part of this conversation — not right now, not before he gets to speak to your management and then offers you up the truth — that you will let it go. Like you did that night in Coney Island and those last few days too. You seemingly let it go and everything was okay. Fucking friends.

“I gave in too quickly. Into your presence. I missed you so much that when you showed up at my door, it didn’t matter how angry or heartbroken I was. All that mattered was seeing you again and being around you again. But I should’ve stood my ground.”

You’re now standing right in front of the glass window. Arms hanging by your side, nails digging into your palms to pump the adrenaline that’s fueling this fight.

“No matter how many times you tell me that you’re not the relationship type, I won’t believe you. I refuse to believe you because that guy I met in an empty kitchen of a Hidden Hills mansion was looking for something more than a random hook up. He may not have said it, but he proved it with his actions,” you continue your reasonings, “He craved something meaningful. I saw it in the way he smiled every time his eyes met mine, and sensed it in the way he held me close.”

Then you exhale.

“That guy, although hiding behind a mask of an arrogant  dickhead, he wanted to be loved and Jesus Christ did I—”

Eddie’s gaze snaps to you then, widening.

“But if I got it all wrong,” you continue after a few seconds, “If I misunderstood that guy and what he really wanted, then all I need is for him to be straight with me,” you conclude, “No bullshit excuses, Eddie. If you simply didn’t like me, if you simply didn’t care, just say that and we can both carry on with our lives as if nothing ever happened.”

The door slams. Eddie stands in front of you in a flash, brown eyes holding onto yours with force. He’s agitated. He runs a hand down his face before reaching for your shoulders, then dropping his arms back by his side just as fast.

“I cared, of course I cared!” He exhales to compose himself before continuing, “I still care.” It’s barely a whisper.

“Then why?”

“I-I… Well, I just…”

His mind is racing to find the right answer. The truth is what you’re after, unfortunately that’s the one thing he can’t give you yet. Not if he wants to continue witnessing your success. Because, at the end of the day, his own fame and fortune is no longer important. He could care less if it burned to the ground. Your fame however, your fortune, that’s not something Eddie’s willing to gamble. So again, until he can speak to your management, get ahead of your grandmother’s scheming, the truth will remain sealed.

At least some part of it.

“There was this girl. Back home.” Eddie begins, voice shaky, “Before you, she was the only girl that ever saw me for who I really was.”

“Chrissy Cunningham,” you say her name.

Eddie nods.

“Yeah, Chrissy,” he repeats the name. It tastes a little foreign on his tongue after all this time. “Seemingly the classic cheerleader type, you know? Blonde, preppy, always fucking smiling. But Chrissy, she uh… she was far from just a cheerleader. Like me, she was a little misunderstood and that’s what initially brought us together.”

“What happened to her?” You ask. “You keep saying ‘was’. Chrissy was, as if she’s no longer—”

“Look, sweetheart,” Eddie interrupts, “I-I don’t really talk about her. I don’t like to. Too many bad memories.”

“Right,” you murmur, nodding slowly.

“Long story short, I cared for her and it didn’t end well, so when my care for you started to surpass that feeling… I just got scared.”

“Then why not tell me about her in the first place?” You query, “We could’ve talked it out. Pumped the brakes on whatever our relationship was starting to become.”

Eddie doesn’t mean to, but he scoffs. “And then what, huh? Just tip-toe around how we’re actually feeling until that builds resentment? Then it just ends anyway, but it hurts a lot more, no?”

He’s running a hand through his wild locks. Frustrated wouldn’t be the right word. Annoyed feels borderline the same. Angry, yes, but not at you. Angry at the world for introducing such a perfect character into his otherwise shitty life because he’d be better off without you. No. You’d be better off without him? Also no. Jesus Christ, he’s fucking confused.

“That’s what you asked. If I didn’t end things, would we still be together. The truth is, sweetheart, I don’t know because I attract bad shit and people get hurt and… And I need you to be happy, with or without me.”

Silence falls upon the two of you. It’s heavy with the half-truths that were just revealed. Heavy with the underlying tones that are telling you Eddie still cares, and telling him that so do you — more than either of you were willing to admit back then, and even less now.

And there’s definitely feelings there. They bubbled up the second you laid your eyes on him again and as your few days together passed without a major blowout, they only grew stronger — something you explained to Holly, who said that Eddie was so unlike you, it only made sense to feel something towards him. Love him, even.

Perhaps the hurt was worth it.

“Oh, fuck.”

“What?” Eddie’s brows string together as you momentarily glance at your feet before settling your gaze back on the rockstar.

“Guess we were never supposed to do this right.”

“What?” Eddie asks again.

“You said that to me. Back in LA after that picture of us was leaked to the press, remember?”

“Vaguely,” he answers.

“What if you were right?” You ask, tone a little quieter than seconds prior.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I’m not sure I’m following.”

Decided on your next move, in what you want to happen, you take a step towards the Corroded Coffin frontman so that the tips of your heels are touching his loosely tied Converse. You then place a hand on his chest, albeit hesitantly, and Eddie inhales a sharp breath (loud enough for you to hear).

“What if all of this, everything that happened between us, is because we were never meant to do this right in the first place, Eds?” 

A timid smile circles your lips as the question you asked settles in the air. Loaded full of uncertainty for the future and everything that time ahead holds for the two of you. Your Nana would say that a person of your stature shouldn’t give into uncertainty, something that in Eddie’s case was often repeated by Marianne. Everything is always meticulously planned. No room for error because uncertainty leads to mistakes and those are a nightmare for your respective PR teams. Unfortunately for those teams, uncertainty is what drew you to each other in the first place.

That, and insane fucking attraction.

“I did come here because I regret my decision,” he says while you say, “I miss you.” Both come out at the same time. Mumbled, jumbled together. It registers though.

Without giving it a second thought, Eddie dips his head lower while his hands reach for your face, ring-clad fingers now holding your cheeks. In that same breath, his lips crash against yours in a yearning kiss — one that is fuelled by months of pent up tension and a desire you both shared since your first meeting back in August of ‘92.

It's a dance of fire. One that is burning bigger and brighter with every second his mouth is attached to yours. Dangerous, would be a good word to describe this moment, but the line has been crossed yet again and since there’s definitely no going back now, your fingers tangle themselves in his brown locks as you push your body closer. Eddie also gets braver. He bites down on your bottom lip and when you gasp ever so softly, the rockstar slides his tongue in with ease.

You feel elated. This is exactly what you’ve been missing and by the way Eddie’s tongue twirls within your mouth, hands squishing your face, afraid to let go, you know it’s what he’s been missing too.

It’s destructive, for sure. But the hurt is worth it. You know that now. You feel it. Every single fibre of your being grows more and more alive as Eddie presses into you further, as he caresses your skin with so much tenderness. And you’re beyond cloud nine. Beyond touching heaven. It’s destructive, but it’s bliss.

“If we keep kissing like this,” he whispers against your lips, forehead pressing against yours, “I’m afraid I won’t be able to contain myself.”

“Who says you have to?”

Eddie groans against your jawline before continuing to trail soft pecks along your skin until he reaches your ear, biting it gently.

“We should probably talk about what this means,” he says, but you just shake your head. “‘Cause friends don’t kiss like that, sweetheart.”

“I don’t care about that now, Eds.” You affirm, sure of what you want. Sure that you don’t ever want to forget him or move on. He is a part of you, forever. “I just want you.”

And with that your lips finds his again.

The kiss is feverish, messy. You’re tugging at each other’s clothes, desperately trying to get them out of the way as fast as possible. In an attempt to be even closer, propelled by an indescribable urge, Eddie shifts your positions so that his back is the one to the room, you’re by the wall, and mere seconds later, your back is pressed firmly against his chest.

His strong hands send shivers through your body as they make their way down until they reach your panties, skirt long disregarded, a garment on the floor. He no longer hesitates about what this means, ripping the material down before his feet are kicking your legs apart. Ring-clad fingers slide along the curve of your ass, kneading the flesh, desperate to feel you. All of you. And as one hand works to unzip his pants, the other works its way to your wet entrance, feeling along your slit.

“Please, please…” The excitement causes you to grow warm and moist in his hand.

He can’t contain himself. Removing his hand in a rapid manner, he pushes his cock inside of your starved pussy. You close your eyes at the contact and Eddie begins to fuck you, hard. Rhythm picks up rapidly and you’re clenching around him in a matter of minutes, lower muscles seizing at the contact they’ve long forgotten, but were now more than pleasantly reminded of. 

“God,” he groans, “I fucking missed you.”

The moan that escapes your lips is nothing short of pornographic. It’s a direct response to his words, as well as his actions. He’s pounding into you relentlessly. There’s no time for pleasantries or any sort of softness. This is all about fulfilling a need-based desire and you’re more than willing to comply, high on his voice when he praises “Fuck, baby”, and “You’re doing so good for me, pretty girl.”

When you feel his hands grip your hips, you moan his name. Loud, pathetic. Undone. The rockstar begins to bounce you against him. Your knees weaken and you fall back onto him, head now resting on his shoulder, losing yourself completely in the moment and the pure ecstasy that you’re feeling. The pleasure is almost too much for you.

“Eddie, I’m so close,” you whisper, looking up at him through your lashes. 

The Corroded Coffin frontman captures your mouth with his. Short, but far from sweet is the kiss. Hungry and devilish. He bites your bottom lip as he pulls away, drawing just a prick of blood.

“Let go for me, baby.” 

When you do, obeying his request, your whole body shivers harshly in his embrace. Eddie keeps going, only his pace has slowed. He’s whispering sweet-nothings into your ear, continuously praising you for being his good girl, and you promise yourself that no matter what happens next, you’re going to be that forever. 

The high soon ends and Eddie pushes you forward gently. You then feel the rockstar’s cock leave you, warm cum spurting over your ass without warning. You’re delighting in the feeling of his juices on your skin. He delights in it too, trailing his fingers over your rear until you turn around to face him.

There’s a smile on your face. Devious, yet benevolent.

Yes, Eddie thinks, Stevie Nicks was definitely right. ‘You'll never get away from the sound of the woman that loves you.’ Not like he’d ever want to anyway.

thank you for reading! really appreciate the endless & continuous support!

celebrity skin. masterlist

& tagging some cool ppl that expressed interest: @eviethetheatrefreak , @thirddeadlysin , @haylaansmi , @nope-thanks , @tlclick73 , @vintagehellfire , @ashlynnkennedy , @avalon-wolf , @sidthedollface2 , @astheni-a , @bebe07011 , @aysheashea , @papillonoirsworld , @vol2eddie, @spideyanakin-interacts , @rogers-sweatbands , @mimsie95 , @mmunson86 , @eddiesguitarskills , @ohmeg - (if your user is crossed out, it means the tag isn’t working. pls check you’ve enabled tagging in your settings)

[dat-lil-shark]

I think we should talk more about the bond between TFP Miko and Bulkhead, because if you think about it, even though Miko, though never as helpful as Jack and Rafael for most of the show, could have been the best thing that ever happened to Bulkhead.

Before meeting her, Bulkhead was simply the muscle of the team, that was all. Ratchet and others had made a great point that Bulkhead could be the least intelligent of them all, and later in the show, when Bulkhead became wounded, we can see just how devastated he was that he couldn’t be the muscle anymore, as though he died completely and was merely a ghost now. This clearly shows that, to Bulkhead, his only useful quality is his muscle. There was nothing more to his own sense of identity. Just strong, and stupid. Furthermore, before the humans came, Bulkhead was the biggest troublemaker on the team. We’ve all seen how he’s been destroying everything he touched, and maybe, in his own eyes, his strength was the only reason why the team even kept him.

But when he’s with Miko, it’s different. To Miko, he’s a superstar, he’s the greatest of them all. He is strong, magnificent, a superhero, everything that Bulkhead probably had only ever dreamed to be. And he didn’t even need to do anything. He could just be himself, and Miko would already love him.

Not only that, Miko is also so reckless sometimes that she made Bulkhead reasonable and considerate in comparison, and Bulkhead actually sometimes became the one to have to do the guiding. Not only would this be refreshing for Bulkhead to finally be able to try out the leadership and guidance role himself, he got to also got to see, with his own eyes, how team still loved Miko despite all her mistakes and how she barely contributed anything directly. Thus, this could really reassured himself that, the team also genuinely loved him too, despite all his mistakes. Even if he didn’t have the strength he did strength.

Furthermore, Miko also paralleled Wheeljack, in more levels than one. But unlike Wheeljack, Miko would never judge Bulkhead in any life decisions he makes. And while Miko does sometimes judge and criticize him, it’s almost always only for the little things, that she only did because she was immature, and she would get over quick enough. And in no way will she ever leave him for it like Wheeljack did. I also headcanon that Miko, in a way, portrayed how Bulkhead wished Wheeljack would be.

And I think, though they ended up separating, Miko’s presence still left a long lasting influence on Bulkhead. Primarily because we see how, in the Predakons Rising epilogue, Bulkhead was seen instructing the Vehicons to rebuild some buildings. That scene really hit me with surprise because this showed how Optimus, and Bulkhead himself, had began to trust Bulkhead with leadership works. I mean we remembered from episode one that Bulkhead said Optimus never left him in command, right? Well now Optimus was. And I think this could be either because Optimus remembered how Bulkhead was able to lead Miko sometimes, the most troublesome soul ever, and Bulkhead himself probably also learned from those experience and had confidence in himself doing things he had never done before.

And that’s why he loved Miko so much, even if Miko was, for a while, just a troublemaker. And, I think, Bulkhead actually wouldn’t bond so well with her if she wasn’t as much of a troublemaker.

also I just got diagnosed with autism.

[voidaspects]

A rambling defense of Makuta Spiriah('s design)!

Here’s a very long winded post about a bionicle side character that I suddenly have a lot to say about

I had no strong opinions of this like an hour ago and I suddenly have a massive rant to go on!

Okay, so, Makuta Spiriah, the 2008 bionicle combo model, is regarded as one of the ugliest combo models made for the series, from what I can see. It’s hard to deny that his model is pretty ugly and unremarkable, when you first see it. The colours clash, the construction is weird, and there’s a weird extra not-matoran guy included randomly? I won’t lie, I didn’t have a very good opinion of him either.

However

As of now, this past hour, I have built this figure, and felt compelled to make a defense of his design, because we’ve been far too harsh.

So, makuta spiriah is a pretty obscure character in the wider bionicle storyline, and would probably have just been a footnote in the story, were it not for the “Federation of Fear” story serial, in which he was a prominent member of the team. I probably wouldn’t have had an interest in building him, were it not for me wanting to collect every member. With all of the component sets for spiriah collected, my team is now completed (pic at the end). And I was immediately struck by how much better he looked in person? Like, don’t get me wrong, he’s still weird and janky, and his colour scheme is somewhat hard to adjust to, and all of the things you’d expect on initial glance (botar this is not) but I fully expected him to be ugly as hell, and instead he’s a pretty competent and cohesive model?

I think there’s a few reasons for this, but the biggest one in my opinion is actually the reason I felt the need to make this post, because it’s one of the main things I see people talking about with this model:

I am completely, intensely certain that the other model on his back is intended to be part of his construction, and it seems to just be accepted as a given that it isn’t for some reason?

So, the reason I feel so intensely about this is that pretty much every time this model is mentioned, without fail, there’s sort of a fun fact about how “Spiriah is canon, but the matoran-esque thing on him is non-canon”

This doesn’t seem to have a direct source, so much as it’s a conclusion drawn due to how this second model is perceived. Specifically, the conclusion is drawn from: “there appears to be a weird, slapped together matoran character on his back, to showcase the matoran fusion function from 2008” + “No such character exists in the story” = “this part of the model isn’t canon”

And see, this logic treats the interpretation that this is a separate character as a given. Like… it doesn’t seem to be questioned. And with this mindset, yeah, when you put the models beside each other as individual things, they both look awful:

You’re left with what seemingly appears to be a weirdly shaped antroz and some extra dude made from scraps. But in all honesty, I think this is just accepted as a fact due to spiriah already being accepted as an ugly model. I instead want to propose this as my first piece of evidence that this is not how this is intended to be seen. But my evidence doesn’t stop there.

For instance, another thing worth mentioning is the fact that there is not a single official depiction of the spiriah model that shows the two seperated, from what I can see. They are never once shown on their own in any capacity.

The one single exception to this is this part of the instructions, which tell you to construct the entirety of this second model as it’s own thing, before inserting it onto spiriah. However, this leads us to an additional point, being that this step is in the middle of spiriah’s construction, before you’ve even attached his arms. If this was intended to be a seperate model, why would it be attached during his body construction?

My final piece of evidence I want to propose, relates to the notion of this second model being “an extra little thing you make from the scraps.” I think this idea is popular because of just how barebones it looks on it’s own. Like a weird afterthought. People rationalize this idea with the explanation that this was just to show the matoran fusion function that was being heavily advertised in 2008. They just wanted to insert the-matoran-on-his-back function and threw this extra thing together, right?

Except, having built this figure now… I don’t think you guys realize just how many extra pieces are left. Like, no, this wasn’t a bottom of the barrel little extra thing. They had three mask option and kept the head bare. There was so much to work with.

(Also, fun fact, the matoran-thing has asymmetrical weapon pieces, but both of the chosen weapons have a second version available that wasn’t used, meaning it was a conscious choice for some reason. I don’t have a point to make with that, I just think it’s kinda weird and worth mentioning lmao)

Anyway, my point is, I strongly believe there is NOT some weird non canon extra guy with spiriah. Spiriah is, instead, a model that integrated a full matoran build into it’s construction as an actual design element. It uses the motif of the matoran fusion function, but the matoran instead fills out his figure, bulking him up to look more cohesive and complex.

Now, whether this is intended to be just an abstract way to construct his design, or he’s actually intended to look like he has a person melded into him or something, overtly, I’ll leave up to you. The makuta are weird and mutated enough that it honestly could very well be the latter, though it’d be an awfully weird thing to go unmentioned. But who knows, maybe some poor matoran got shadow-absorbed nidihki and krehka style. Or something. Your call!

Anyway, I’ll finish off this weirdly specific rant by just saying that I think this really changed the way I look at some of these models. I think the vast amount of criticism I’ve seen of Spiriah is reflective of the fact that on a glance, he looks super unappealing, to the point that no one really wants to build him, and therefore people maintain these opinions without ever seeing him in person? Not to sound like I know better or anything, I would never have built him if it weren’t for my love of the Federation of Fear story, and up until this moment I firmly believed Spiriah was one of the worst models of the line. Jarringly coloured, weirdly proportioned. I’d have no reason to believe otherwise, had I not done this.

I just think that’s neat, and I also think it’s neat that I suddenly had so much to say immediately after building him. I still don’t think he’s anything special, granted. He could absolutely be improved. But as he is? He’s still pretty dang cool! Cooler than I think any of us have given him credit for! And I think that makes me appreciate him more!

So shout out to the biggest failure in bionicle history. At least someone thinks something about you is a success!

(Lariska model created by Gerou100 (unofficial fanon contest winning model) (it’s canon in my heart))

[morganski-19]

I have something to say about the scene where Eddie was talking to Weston’s dad.

There’s already the thought out there that Eddie asking if Weston’s dad was really that upset about him being a cheerleader is hinting at his coming out arc. Which, I agree with. When looking at male cheerleaders throughout media, it’s never looked at in that much of a positive light. They are demeaned for doing a “girl’s sport” and “not being man enough for the football team” (which is stupid but just the way it goes). And, it can often be used as ammo for “being too feminine”, which would equal being gay in those people’s minds.

So when looking at it in that light, Eddie’s basically asking Weston’s dad if he would dislike his son for being gay.

I think we’re supposed to look at this to see how Eddie is as a father. There is nothing Chris could ever do to make Eddie dislike him. Even when he travels halfway across the country just because he’s mad at Eddie. That still doesn’t make Eddie love Chris any less.

And while I think that’s important, there’s another aspect to this.

Eddie went to Weston’s dad because he grew up with a dad that would have hated him if he was a cheerleader. He grew up with a dad that made him the “man of the house” at a young age. He grew up with a dad that taught him what a man was supposed to be, and made sure he knew straying from that would lead to disappointment.

So, in that moment, Eddie was preventing the narrative from repeating. He was showing a father with a fixed mindset that there was so much more than stereotypical gender roles. That his son was strong in his own way, stronger than a soldier.

I think this scene is powerful for so many reasons, but I think that is my main takeaway. It shows how much Eddie is able to break away from those gender roles for his son, but not so much for himself. We’ve seen throughout the show, especially in his flashbacks in Eddie Begins, that he believes that he needs to be the provider. That he needs to be this strong support. The football player instead of the cheerleader.

However, in raising Chris solely in his own, he has made an effort to be better than his father. That’s changed him. It’s made him see the ways his father failed in a new light, and started to make him push past that mindset.

In the next episodes, the storyline for Eddie is going to focus on his journey navigating himself without someone to provide for. With Chris still gone, it strips him of that lasting thread his father sewed into him. He will be able to explore himself separated from the image he was given, and find who he is.

That way, when Chris comes back, and their back to being the family they deserve, Eddie can embrace who he is, and not what his father wanted him to be.

[ace-race-ace]

Legacy AU - Part 2 - SIM work

Masterlist - previous part - next part

Fernando rubs his eyes. The numbers on screen in front of him are starting to blend into nonsensical symbols, drifting aimlessly. He needs to take a break, one he's been restricting himself from taking all day. His back cracks loudly as he lifts off his chair. They need to invest in better goddamn seating in this place! Looking at the time, the break would have to be short—only a few minutes before he has to haul himself to another meeting. Fernando knew becoming team principal wouldn’t be as fun as being a driver, but no one could expect how stress-inducing it has become. Last year, the only thing that mattered was driving well, but now his days are filled with hundreds of different, ever-pressing issues. The engineers are missing parts, more funds are needed towards this development, the designers are asking for time extensions, marketing is pitching new ideas, and events need to be planned and approved. There was never a moment of rest.

Especially with the car launch coming up, the expectations have never been higher.

He quickly stops by the kitchenette and grabs a coffee and a sweet pastry before checking where he needs to be next. The sim room, to catch up with the team and see if any progress has been made. The past few weeks have been a bit touch-and-go. After the first incident where Lance had to be snapped out, the team had worked tirelessly to try and fix the issues and relay them to the rest of the production. Hopefully, this means an improvement in performance on the simulations.

No one was in the rig as Fernando entered the control center; only the engineers crouched over their data sheets. He greets them, hoping to see some excitement on their faces, but instead, most of them look down, as if embarrassed. Fernando approaches the lead engineer, a blond man who seemed quite at the end of his wits.

“Hola, I’m here for an update. How is performance looking? Are the drivers improving?”

The man sighs and turns his screen so Fernando can look over.

“Technically, yes, but... not enough. And the times set are unexpected.”

“How so?”

"Well, obviously, we’d want to see Lance top the board, but that’s not the case.”

“Oh? Felipe is faster than Lance?”

“No. He’s lacking pace. At the moment, Jessica is actually topping most of the simulations.”

Fernando frowns. Of course, he knows Jessica is an incredible driver, but there is no reasonable explanation why she is doing better than Lance, who has much more experience. Most importantly, she wasn’t set to drive the car this year unless Lance or Felipe fell ill. He looks at the comparison for the drivers and notices something immediately.

“Wait, why does it say Lance has only done 87 hours in the simulator? Jessica is nearing 200 hours!”

The engineer scratches the back of his neck, seemingly unable to find the proper words to say.

“The time is accurate. Lance has been difficult as of late. He cuts his sessions short; he isn’t pushing as hard. We don’t really know why. We’ve talked to his trainer and his assistant; they are as lost as we are.”

Fernando feels a pit form in his stomach. How could he not have noticed Lance wasn’t doing well? Sure, he hadn’t seen him much these last few weeks, but the well-being of his drivers is a huge priority. Especially when it was Lance, no matter how impartial he tries to be. The Canadian had been communicating via text on a regular basis with him, yet nothing had ticked him off about the young driver having any issues. Looking back, his short and to-the-point responses should have been an indication. Fernando has just been so caught up in everything else that he comforted himself with the fact that Lance seemed to be fine, keeping an extra responsibility off his shoulders. How wrong he was!

“Why wasn’t this communicated to me sooner? We are only a few weeks away from testing!”

“We have tried. But this meeting is the first time it seems our efforts to contact you have gone through.”

Fernando feels more guilt surge through him. He vaguely remembers receiving emails from the SIM team but consistently putting them on the back burner because why would anything be going wrong? And everything else was so important! Now, he realizes he’s just created a brand new problem that could have been addressed a while ago.

His fist clenches on the table. He needs to fix this. The team around him is all observing him, looking for guidance. A deep rumble makes its way out of his chest.

“When is Lance scheduled to come in next?”

The lead takes back his computer and clicks through a few things, the frown on his face deepening. He releases a sigh.

“In about ten minutes, actually. But…”

Fernando raises his eyebrows in question.

“It’s just… He’s booked it during our lunch break. He’s done this a few times. He goes in and slacks a little while we are away.”

This was all wrong. The Lance Fernando remembers from last year was nothing like this. He was one of the hardest-working drivers he’d ever met, always looking for improvement and training. He never took a poor performance lightly, pouring over race footage to analyze where he could have done better. Hell, he’ll never forget their first year as teammates in 2023, where Lance pushed through and finished P6 despite his injured wrists. Most of all, the team meant everything to him, so why was he seemingly messing up his SIM work? Fernando needs to get to the bottom of this fast.

“All of you have a long lunch. Check in a few hours.”

The engineers looked at each other in disbelief, but Fernando gave no indication that he wasn’t being serious. He raises his eyebrows expectantly, which finally got a few people rolling their chairs out from under their desks. The procession of engineers slowly makes their way out, some still expecting some kind of trick, but Fernando lets them shuffle past without a word. Finally, alone in the control center, he grabs a chair. He sends a text to his secretary, asking to cancel all other meetings he’d planned for the day; no questions asked. Then, he rolls up to the panel and starts flicking through the different simulations, taking note of the most lacking ones. He settles on something easy to start: Silverstone, in dry conditions, a track Lance will have done thousands of times in his life. He wants to set a baseline and see what might actually be going wrong. After a few more set-up arrangements, Fernando shuts off the lights, making him undetectable from the actual sim room. Now, he waits.

A few minutes later, the door to the sim room opens, filtering some soft light obscured only by a tall figure. Lance walks in carrying a backpack, and sipping on a drink. He switches on the rig and places all his stuff on the ground. Then, he raises his arms above his head in a deep stretch. Fernando can’t help but catch the slightest sliver of pale skin as his shirt rides up. He shifts in his seat, accidentally causing the wheel on his chair to scrape the floor. Lance’s eyes immediately shoot towards the sound. Fernando holds his breath as the young driver scans the window of the control room, but thankfully, he doesn’t see him. Lance turns back around and rolls his shoulders a few times before hopping into the rig. The program starts up, and Fernando hears a little huff come through on his headphones.

Everything seems fine at first. Lance starts off slow, building up his rhythm. Peeking at the data, it looks like the handling and cornering are smooth; all that it needs is a bit of speed. Lance continues at a slow pace for a little more than needed, but again, this isn’t anything concerning. A good racing line is important. All of a sudden, Lance slams on the accelerator, sending the car into the barrier. Strange. He resets the lap, this time pushing the speed. Pushing really hard. He loses the car by the fourth corner. He starts again, this time with a bit more control, but his steering is inconsistent and not as smooth as it was before. The braking zones are also starting to cause trouble, with Lance locking up the brakes constantly. It made absolutely no sense!

Eventually, Lance lets go of the wheel and lets the car meet the barrier once again. Then he just sits there. Not moving, not restarting the sim, not even getting up for a break. Fernando decides this is his moment. He takes off the headphones and opens the adjoining door. The squeak of the door alerts Lance, who turns around, eyebrows raised, before sighing when he recognizes who it is.

“I knew someone was there.”

Fernando makes his way up to the rig and places his hand on the “engine intake," near the top of Lance’s head. Both stay silent for a while, with Fernando trying to catch his gaze, but Lance continues to look straight ahead. Fernando’s fingers start to tap against the top.

“What is wrong, Lance?”

Lance keeps his eyes on the screen, his frown deepening as he crosses his arms over his chest.

“What’s wrong in the car is shit. Handles badly, can’t take the speed, and is an absolute tire destroyer.”

“That’s not true, Lance; it was looking great at low speed. But when you picked up the pace, you started making mistakes you hadn’t before.”

Lance continues to say nothing, only shrugging his shoulders. Fernando wasn’t going to make any progress like this. In a decisive moment, he drops his hand into Lance's dark hair and tugs once on the strands. Lance gasps and instantly looks up at the man looming above him. His attention finally falls on him, and Fernando speaks again, his voice low.

“Lance, I know you. This is not like you. You’re going to start the sim again and show me the good work you can do.”

Lance visibly swallows and bites his top lip.

“While you stare me down like that?” he asks, his voice shaking slightly.

“If I have to.”

Fernando removes his hand and points to the screen. Lance gets the message and straightens up, pressing the restart button. He starts off strong, but one wrong brake input sends him off track. He looks up at Fernando, his doe eyes shining.

“Again.”

He launches again and makes it halfway through the lap before oversteering and spinning out like crazy. He looks up again.

“Once more.”

This goes on a few more times, with Lance not even being able to complete a single clean lap. Fernando sighs and crouches down to Lance’s level. The Canadian meets his eye this time but continues to give no explanation, no emotion, not even frustration.

“Your braking zones are off. You won't be able to get the handling down if you keep missing them. So this is what we’ll do.”

Fernando reaches his hand into the open cockpit and places his warm hand on Lance’s lower left thigh, his braking leg. He squeezes once.

“Every time I squeeze, you brake. A harder squeeze means brake harder.”

The driver’s eyes widen for a moment before turning his attention back to the screen. Lance grips the steering wheel hard, his knuckles turning white, but after a deep breath, he releases slightly and presses the restart button.

The lap starts flat out on the accelerator, with Lance turning in perfectly, which means he doesn’t need to lift to gather good speed. The first braking zone comes into view, and as the car hits the right marker, Fernando gives a tight squeeze to his thigh. Lance jumps slightly, but his muscle memory kicks in to press the brakes. The next turn is quick, so Fernando only taps his leg this time. It still sends chills running up Lance’s spine. Then comes the long straight, which leads into a hairpin. Fernando’s hand has absentmindedly drifted, his fingertips brushing Lance’s inner thigh. They sink into the soft flesh at the braking zone. He notices Lance taking a shaky breath. Next is another long, flat-out section, which Lance easily weaves through, slowing and downshifting without prompting. The bumps and jumps of the rig continue to slowly force Fernando’s hand to shift up, his hand now closer to mid-thigh, yet he does nothing to stop it. The last two big braking zones come up, along with firm squeezes on Lance’s leg. After rounding the last corner and crossing the line, the screen lights up green at the top, accompanied by a soft ping indicating the fastest lap of the session.

“That’s more like it, no? I knew you can do it!”

Lance can’t help a small smile from coming onto his face at the praise. Fernando brings a hand to Lance’s hair, grabbing the back of his head in encouragement before dropping his hand back into the driver’s lap. His hand this time is firmly at the top of his leg, his fingers dipping dangerously into his inner thigh. Fernando should shift his hand back down. He really should. Instead, he turns back toward the screen.

“Let’s do more like this. No stopping this time. Let’s see how many good laps you can get in!”

The next hour flies by, lap times getting progressively faster and cleaner over time. Fernando continued his squeezing for the first few laps, but it became soon clear that Lance was getting the hang of it on his own. Yet, instead of removing his hand, Fernando instead lets it settle comfortably on the same spot in his lap. Without even noticing, his thumb starts to slowly rub across Lance’s leg as he continues to fly through the track. Every time the screen lights up green, he flashes a wide grin towards him and pats his leg twice before returning to rubbing his thigh soothingly. Lance continues to push, his timing now near perfect, hanging on to every noise or sense of approval coming from his older boss. He doesn’t let it show on his face, but his insides flip every time Fernando smiles at him, and he truly believes his heart rate hasn’t dropped below 100 ever since he's started touching him.

Eventually, the times plateau, and there is no way to improve more at the moment. Lance is also sweating profusely, the effort and concentration catching up to him. And perhaps also, for the most attractive man in his eyes, paying all attention to him doesn’t help lower the warmth of his body. Fernando notices how damp his face is and reaches over for a dry towel in a basket nearby. He finally peels his hand off of Lance’s leg, catching the pout that makes it onto the driver’s face instantly. But it doesn't take long for his expression to change again as Fernando brings the towel to his face. He presses it to his forehead and drags it down to his cheek, picking up stray droplets of sweat along the way. Lance’s doe eyes fix his face, his tongue peeking out to collect some moisture from his lips. Fernando follows the movement with his gaze before continuing to wipe the other side of his face. He tosses the first towel away and grabs another, placing it on his hair, giving it an initial dry before prompting Lance to finish drying his hair himself.

“You did really well, Lance. I want you to keep it up like this and top all the other simulations. You’ve just shown me you can.”

Lance bites his lip, looking down bashfully.

“With your help, I couldn’t do it without you.”

“Not true. You were doing great on your own at the end. I was just here for support. But if you need my help, you can always reach out, yes? I always make time for you.”

Even in the darkened sim room, there was no missing the blush taking over Lance’s cheeks. He subtly tries to hide it with the towel, but Fernando could see right through it. Cute, he thought. Which is something he shouldn’t be thinking about his employee, but no matter how much he tries to draw a new line, Lance is still the adorable teammate he cares so much for. It also doesn’t help that Lance looks extremely attractive with sweat on his face, his lips parted to take deep breaths, causing his Adam's apple in his glistening neck to bob up and down. Jesus, get yourself together, old man.

He shakes himself out of his gawking. Placing his hand on the other man’s leg one last time, he uses it as leverage to stand back up. However, when he does, Lance lets out a soft whimper. Fernando is immediately concerned.

"Oh, sorry, did I hurt you? Are your legs sore?”

Lance shifts in his seat, looking a little hesitant.

“N..no… It’s just…ugh.”

Fernando looks down at his lap, and, oh. Oh.

The front of Lance’s jeans is tented, the zipper seemingly barely holding on. Breath catches in his throat. He opens his mouth to speak, but his mouth is suddenly dry. Meanwhile, Lance has gone completely red and miserably tries to hide his predicament with his hands but only ends up bringing more attention to it.

“I’m sorry. You’ve just been touching me, and well... it just...fuck, please stop looking at me. It’s so embarrassing.”

Fernando takes a deep breath and collects his thoughts. I’m a professional. I’m a professional; things happen, and you deal with them professionally.

“Is ok, Lance no need to be embarrassed. Is probably just adrenaline.”

It sounds completely unconvincing, but what else was Fernando supposed to say? Lance continues to turn away from him, probably wishing a black hole could just swallow him whole right now. Fernando gingerly reaches for his shoulder and gives it a light squeeze.

“I go now. I expect you to keep up the good work with the engineers, yes?”

Lance doesn’t say anything, but he sees him nodding.

“Good. I see you soon, Lance. And remember, I’m here for anything you need.”

He takes one last look at the boy curled up in the sim chair before stepping out of the room. He heads back to his office, desperately trying to wipe anything indecent from his mind. Like how easy it would have been to reach over and help out the poor whimpering boy. The sweet noises he would make, squirming in his seat, make him soil his pants like a teenager. The worst part is that Fernando is so sure Lance would let him.

He shakes himself out of his daydreams once again, opening up his computer in hopes of finding some distraction. Thankfully, it seems that the upcoming car launch needs a lot of his input, so he dives in head first. The 'shortlist’ of guests is actually not so short, so he needs to weed out those that are unimportant. It makes him feel quite villainous to parse through all the names and decide who to ax off. He makes sure the main sponsors will be happy, but limits the inclusion of plus ones. With a championship win now under their belt, many people have come out of the woodworks, looking for their time in the sun. Fernando knows how to see right through it. After he’s satisfied with the list, he takes a peek at the livery. He doesn’t have much input in this aspect, but he makes sure to take notes on a few special details he can mention in his speech. Being team principal has taught him an important skill: pretend to know more than you do so others don’t have the guts to ask questions. His natural confidence has made it surprisingly easy. Never once has someone been able to notice that Fernando actually has no clue if the car is even going to have a fighting chance.

A new email pops into his inbox. It’s from the SIM team. They are delighted by Lance’s progress. His times are more rapid and consistent, and his feedback is more helpful. He’d even stuck around after the session to look over his data and watch Jessica drive in order to find where he could improve in the future. The team profusely thanked him for whatever he’d done for Lance’s change. Fernando wasn’t so sure how to react. The improvement in Lance’s performance came from an extremely unprofessional training session. If anyone else got a whiff of how he’d convinced Lance to improve, his entire career would be over. He needs to nip this in the bud soon. Build a more conventional relationship with Lance and keep his results up without any conflict of interest. Easier said than done, of course, but trying to avoid it might make it worse in the long run.

So, he pulls out his phone and clicks on Lance’s WhatsApp contact. His fingers hover indecisively over the keyboard for a moment, before he shakes his head. Do not overthink this.

Hey Lance, Glad to hear SIM work is doing better! Good job!

If you are in Monaco next week, we should set up a paddle day :) We haven't played in a while. Could be good training session? Let me know!

Paddle is a safe bet. They’ve played it together often ever since they became teammates. It became a tradition after races to debrief together without the prying eyes and ears of the team. They stopped over the summer break as Fernando’s new roles as team principal kept him busy. But now it could be a perfectly casual way to catch up with Lance without being too close to him. As long as he didn’t let his eyes stray too much if Lance decides to wear his ridiculously short shorts. Fernando shakes the image out of his head as he feels his phone vibrate.

Sure! Sounds like a good idea :)

Fernando can’t help the smile that creeps on his face. He hearts the message before returning to his computer. He needs to get back to planning this stupid car launch.

———————————————————————————

Wow! Look at me actually posting my fics!

Everyone clap pls 😌

This has been sitting around for so long, and I have so many ideas for this AU…I’m just a really slow writer 😅

Let me know what we thinkkkk

Next part is a paddle ‘date’ 😉

[dreaming-of-the-reality]

Everything below, is my opinion, and my opinion only! I’m not looking to argue or debate with anyone, these are just my true thoughts after watching episode 3 of House of the Dragon.

I’m experiencing some disappointment about this show, and am wondering if anyone feels the same. If you don’t? That’s fine, keep it to yourself or make a post expressing your opinions separately.

Something about House of the Dragon just doesn’t sit right with me. I feel the series is dropping off.

When you look back to Game of Thrones, and think about how much content they were able to perfectly portray within 1 season, how many houses and characters they set up in such a short amount of time, how many stories they told all at once so seamlessly… and then compare it to House of the Dragon. There’s just no comparison.

Game of Thrones was just an absolute master piece. Amazing pace, great character building throughout each season, the plot twists, the battles, the tension, the actors’ ability to make the audience love them or hate them.

I’m just not seeing that with House of the Dragon. It doesn’t quite feel the same. This is, of course, no fault of the actors, I think they are doing a great job with what they have.

I just feel the show is going in a very underwhelming direction, that honestly makes me like not even excited for each episode anymore. I have waited like 2 years for this season since adoring the first one… only to get bored and underwhelmed after the third episode?

Through season 1, I could kind of connect to the members on Team Green, specifically Aemond, Heleana, and Alicent. But for some reason it just feels like every time a new episode comes out, it’s like a different character.

One minute I love Alicent, the next minute I’m confused, then I’m back to sort of liking her, and then back to “what is going on?”. One minute she’s sobbing over the death of her grandson and the trauma her daughter has experienced, and then she’s like sitting with her arms neatly folded in a council room agreeing to use it as a political game.

Then she’s begging for peace and trying her best to seek forgiveness in Rhaenyra personally, sending her letters, delivering old chapters from books but then she’s back to “there can never be peace, and I’m not even going to try and understand your point”.

In season 1 we see Alicent charge at Rhaenyra with a knife seeking revenge for her son, hugging Aemond afterwards and sitting by his side as he’s being patched up, literally in tears… season 2 we see her blank faced and not even bothering to console Aegon…

Aemond was really going somewhere. From the focus on him being bullied, to claiming a dragon, losing an eye, and then slowly seeing the shift of him becoming a great swordsman, there’s great character development there. He seemed cunning, cocky, and very proud. Especially in that episode 8 scene when him and Daemon were staring each other down, you could already feel the tension brewing. It was exciting. All we’ve seen this season is him cradled in a brothel talking about his mommy issues and how daemon is scared of him…twice.

Once would’ve sufficed to be honest. Meanwhile we see Daemon marching into Harrenhal alone, sword raised, armour on, looking strong and ready for battle. How is their battle going to be satisfying to watch or even exciting, if upon the lead up to it, we see one man charging into battles bravely, and the other spending his time in the brothel sleeping mumbling about how daemon is shaking in his boots to face the mighty Aemond? I know there’s more to come, but we haven’t seen Aemond pick up a weapon once and we are coming up to episode 4 already. Think about Season 1 Episode 10 “give me your eye! Or I will take it bastard!” Aemond, and then think about episode 3 Aemond. They are literally two different characters. They have kept 0 consistency from season 1 to season 2 apart from the fact he’s missing an eye. Also how is he the one to have mommy issues? He was literally Alicents favourite? Am I missing something?

The way they structured this show is atrocious. They spent 10 episodes following Rhaenyra’s journey in season 1, her relationship with Alicent, her relationship building with Daemon over each episode, and then leading up to their marriage, Rhaenyra and Ser Criston, Rhaenyras relationship with Jace and Luke… we barely saw anything from the greens. Then we jump into season 2 which is now heavily based off of the greens… and yet they’ve skipped all the character development that daemon and Rhaenyra got in season 1… they are now trying to rush it, and doing a terrible job.

Let also not forget to add how HOTD just keeps randomly introducing characters and then hiding them away or killing them off in the snap of a finger 3 seconds later?

Jaehaerys was seen once in season 1 and barely, only to then be killed episode 1 of season 2. It was very underwhelming as we weren’t really attached to his character. They tried to centre the first episode around Aegon and Jaehaerys relationship, but it was too rushed I feel. If they had started setting it up in season 1, with like a small scene of Aegon reading a book to the twins, or playing with one of them, it might’ve been more powerful, but it feels like something the writers came up with at the last second “hmm how can we make this episode better when the audience don’t even know the twins yet? Ah! Let’s have Aegon smile at him twice in a small council meeting for like 3 seconds and then kill him off”. I think the impactful part of that murder scene was Heleana and the sounds. Not the character itself. That’s just me.

Let’s also mention how the council spent more time debating whether or not they should have a funeral for Jaehaerys, than the actual funeral scene. It just randomly cuts off half way through? We watched Aemma and her son’s funeral, being burned. We watched Laenas funeral, and we see… what? A half assed scene of a funeral?

Blood and Cheese were introduced half way through episode 1, had like a few minutes of them walking through a castle, finding Heleana, blankly telling her “we want to kill your son so which one is it” - I mean come on… blood was supposed to be this brutish monster and yet was less intimidating than the baker who told Arya to piss off in season 1 GOT. Then cheese staring into Heleana eyes, looking like he was about to say “let’s just leave, and go home”. They then killed them off, not even showing their deaths, just blood being hit once and cheese already hung.

The Blackwoods and Brackens… I would’ve honestly enjoyed episode 3 more, if they had centred the episode around their feud. At this point, I’d watch a whole season of just those two houses fighting over a pile of rocks and grass.

Cregan? Has anyone seen Cregan? Sara Snow? Need I say more?

Daeron!? They don’t mention him once in season 1, and realised “oh shit, he might actually be important so let’s just throw him into some dialogue twice” - then they’ll introduce him next season and everyone will just be like “whose that now? Is he another Targaryen bastard? Wait…. Alicents son?”. They should’ve showed him as a kid being sent off in season 1 like myrcella in GOT.

Joffrey, Aegon III and Viserys II. Just ship them off, what we get like 2 seconds of Rhaenyra passing them a toy? These two are literally the futures of this whole show… and… nothing. I feel nothing for any of them.

The Dance may have been about the downfall of House Targaryen, but it was a war that involved basically every house in the whole of Westeros… if your going to make a show about the same 10 characters and randomly introduce side characters who you kill off in the same scene, why bother?

In conclusion. This series has more loose and greyed ends than every thread being woven in that tapestry during the opening credits.

Severely underwhelming, not even interesting to watch anymore, unnecessary scenes delaying the real battles and exciting parts. Random characters being introduced EVERY episode, with no context as to who they are unless you’ve read the books.

It’s funny, they aren’t following the books at all, but are introducing characters as if everyone has read them and expects the audience to know who they are.

[skotiwolves]

Y’all are aware that Omega was gone for six months and their priority was her, right? Or before that when Wrecker nearly started crying, Hunter had to give the news to Omega, and Omega pleaded for them to go back because she thought they could still find him?

What about before Barton IV? When they were all gathered around the table and his name was mentioned and everyone fell silent and hung their heads? Even Crosshair?

If the creators didn’t want to keep his memory alive, they would’ve never mentioned his name again. They wouldn’t have kept his goggles in the show. They wouldn’t have shown very Tech qualities in Omega’s personality.

Instead, he’s seen in their decisions. He was felt in every scene when the Marauder was flown. He’s felt in every scene that involves tech, to any degree (because I know everyone has had a ‘tech could solve this’ moment while watching)

The characters don’t have to cry, hit a wall, and shout to the heavens in some big scene to show their grief. We’ve seen it already, and I think it suffices.

These characters are cloned soldiers who were created for war—nothing else. I think that’s forgotten quite often. Their mindset is different than your regular Joe. How they approach situations is different. How they grieve is going to be different.

They lost Tech, and almost immediately lost Omega. Their priority was finding any leads that could pinpoint them to Tantiss/Omega. Taking jobs, spending resources, and losing sleep until she was brought home. We have no idea what those six months held. We have no idea what Hunter and Wrecker went through without them there. Tech could’ve found her easily, and they know that. His goggles were sat on the shelf, and they probably felt his presence every single day

Omega wanted to preserve his goggles in that room on Pabu for a reason. He is still a part of their team. He’s still a part of their hearts and someone that the people of Pabu knew and appreciated. His character hasn’t been neglected, and the team hasn’t forgotten about him.

Sometimes you need to read between the lines 🗣️🗣️🗣️

[lucy90712]

Pedri/gavi imagine I guess…reader is pedri’s gf & gavi’s older sister (between him & aurora) & during a match Joao Felix makes a comment about his sister which pisses gavi off & pedri takes him out of the situation without knowing what he said about his girl so later gavi tells him the locker room which makes pedri want to fight Joao so when he does his girl sees & it gets her hot & bothered which leads to you know 🤪 my bad that was long but like we’ve never really seen pedri mad but I’m sure he wouldn’t let that fly

Warnings: slightly suggestive; hurtful language 

A/n: for future reference I don't write smut but I don't mind making things a bit suggestive which I've done here 

I've been going to football matches for as long as I can remember but the older I've gotten the more exciting they have become. Over the last year it has become my favourite thing to do as not only do I get to support my little brother but also my boyfriend as they are both on the same team and pretty much always play together. Today is another one of those matches as both of them are playing against Atletico Madrid which is a pretty big game. Like every game I've been super nervous all day as I drove to the stadium and as I've been waiting to be able to go to the stadium. I'm always nervous for games but this one I've been even more nervous for as I know they will be playing against Joao Felix. 

Its not often that I really care or worry about certain players on the opposing team but this match is different because Joao and I have bit of history. Right when Pablo started at Barcelona I met Joao at one of the games and we talked for a while and ended up exchanging numbers. Things between us didn't last very long as he just got with loads of other girls while talking to me and I got closer to Pedri who treated me right so we ended up together. Since then I've avoided Joao as I just don't want to deal with the whole situation so everytime Barca play Atletico I always get nervous about seeing him as I know the longer I go the more I'm pushing my luck. For some reason today I've just had an awful feeling that I'm going to have to see Joao which is why I've been so nervous but I really hope I'm just being irrational and it won't actually happen. 

In keeping with tradition I made sure to get to the stadium in plenty of time and headed straight to the tunnel to wish Pablo and Pedri good luck before they go out. It has become a thing since the first match after Pedri and I got together that I'm always the last person to wish them luck before they go out and my anxiety about seeing Joao isn't going to stop me doing that. Standing in the tunnel had me incredibly anxious especially as all the Atletico players started walking out first but I kept my cool and just looked at my phone. I looked up at one point to see what was going on and happened to make eye contact with Joao so to be polite I smiled and then luckily I heard someone say my name which got me out of any conversation. 

Pablo came over first and gave me a hug and we did the handshake we have had since we were kids before Pedri came up from behind him. His arms made their way around my waist as he pulled me into a tight hug so I rested my head on his chest to allow us to get a bit closer. He pulled away a little bit and leant down to kiss me which made Pablo make gagging noises like he always does but we just ignored him. I gave Pedri one last kiss and then kissed Pablo on his cheek as I know he hates it and then left them to go back to my seat. 

Once the match started my nerves calmed down a bit and I just focused on Pablo and Pedri trying to watch everything they did which isn't easy as they can be quite far apart on the pitch. Things were going really well as Barca were 1-0 up and they were both playing really well but at some point Barca had a free kick and I saw Pablo pushing Joao with an angry look on his face which isn't unusual but he seemed extra mad. When the play got going again I saw Pablo tackle Joao and to say it was a bit harsh may be an understatement. Again I could just see pure anger in his eyes as Pedri came and took him out of the situation before it got out of hand. I have told Pablo about what happened with Joao but it has never made him angry when playing him before but I can't help but feel like this whole situation is my fault. 

The match ended 1-0 and I was just so glad for it to be over as the whole time I was worried that Pablo would get himself into a bad situation but luckily he made it through the match without any more altercations. As all the players were walking off the pitch Pablo still seemed like he was super angry and I could see him ranting to Pedri so I'm guaranteed to find out what happened at some point. Once they were off the pitch I made my way down to the tunnel again to greet them both when they were ready to leave as we are staying at the same hotel so I don't want to go on my own. 

Pedri's POV

Usually a win feels good but this one didn't really elicit any excitement as Pablo has been on my mind for a lot of the game. He just got so angry with Joao Felix like angrier than I've ever seen him before which had me concerned that he would do something he might regret. I know that Joao and y/n have a bit of history but it's never been a problem before which is why it was all so confusing to see him suddenly so mad. As we walked off the pitch he came stomping over still as angry as before and for a second I thought about whether to ask him what was going on or not but ultimately I knew he'd tell me anyway so I just decided to ask. 

"What's going on with you why are you so mad?" I asked 

"Fucking Joao" he said 

"I gathered that but what happened?" I asked as we entered the locker room 

"He's an asshole he started saying things about y/n to get to me and it worked" he explained 

"Hang on he was talking about y/n" I questioned not getting a bit annoyed 

"Yeah he came up to me and started to call y/n a slut for dating you while they were talking and that she is ugly anyway which is why I was so mad no one talks about my sister like that especially not right to my face" he said getting riled up again

"If I see him he's definitely not going to get away with saying that" I ranted 

I'm not one to get angry very often but knowing what Joao was saying about my girlfriend had me fuming. People insulting me is nothing new and I've learnt to ignore it and not let it bother me but I won't take people especially other players insulting my girlfriend. Knowing that Joao said such things about her after getting to know her and then being the one to lead her on made me so mad. She's such a wonderful and beautiful person that it's hard to believe that anyone who knew her would say those things about her. Now I understand why Pablo was so mad as if Joao had said those things to me I would react the exact same way and possibly gone even further as it just doesn't sit right with me. 

Your POV

As I stood in the tunnel waiting I spoke to a few other Barca players as they came out all while keeping an eye out for Joao as I think its pretty clear that he said or did something to annoy Pablo and probably wouldn't hesitate to try and talk to me to annoy him more. Just as my conversation with Ferran ended and he walked away I heard a familiar voice say my name and my heart dropped to my stomach within an instant. Straight away I knew it was Joao and I tried to ignore him and look for a way out but I couldn't find an easy way so I just had to stand there and hope that he would go away if I ignore him. 

Sadly my plan didn't work as Joao came straight over to me and started trying to strike up a conversation. I really didn't want to speak to him as the last time we spoke was when I broke things off between us and that wasn't the most pleasant conversation but I also didn't want to be rude so I engaged slightly in the conversation. Things felt very awkward as he was asking me about Pablo and how things are going with Pedri but I answered all his questions as bluntly as I could hoping he would get the hint but he never did. I felt like I was stood there forever just willing the conversation to end but in reality it was probably just a few minutes until I saw Pedri and Pablo walking in my direction. For a second I was glad to see them but then I noticed that both of them might as well of had steam coming out of their ears they were that angry. 

They walked over at the speed of light and both stood either side of me and Pedri put an arm protectively around my waist. There was a stand off for a few second with everyone just looking at each other before Pedri pushed Joao slightly to get him further away from me which he definitely didn't like but Pablo got involved before anything could happen. 

"Don't you ever dare say those things about my girlfriend again" Pedri said clearly seething 

"And what are you doing to do if I don't" Joao said taunting him 

"Then I'm not afraid to make you shut up" Pedri threatened 

"You really think you would win that fight" Joao questioned 

"Yeah I do you're not all that you think you are" Pedri shot back 

There was a bit more back and forth and I just watched as Pedri got closer and closer to actually hitting Joao feeling very conflicting emotions. On the one hand I was worried as I didn't want Pedri to get into a fight and then get in trouble all because of me but on the other hand he looks incredibly hot when really angry. Eventually things got a bit much and I was getting more and more worried so I gave Pablo a look and he grabbed Pedri's arm and got him to walk away with me. As we were walking away Pedri got one last comment in and Pablo said something too which in my mind meant they definitely won whatever this was. 

We all went back to the hotel in an awkward silence as I didn't want to say anything as I wanted to allow Pedri to calm down but him just being sat there so mad made things a little awkward for the rest of us. As soon as we got to the hotel Pablo went off to his room and I grabbed Pedri's hand to take him to ours so we could talk and maybe more as I still think he looked really hot standing up for me. Once we got into our room I pulled him into a hug and that seemed to calm him down straight away which felt kind of good knowing that I have that affect on him. He held onto me for a while before laying down on the bed and letting me cuddle into his side which I did and played with his hair until he seemed calm enough to be able to ask him what the who altercation was about. 

"Thank you for protecting me back there but I have to ask what was that all about in the first place?" I asked 

"Joao said some awful things about you to Pablo on the pitch which is why he was so mad and then he told me after the match and I was going to let it go but seeing him talking to you made me feel like I had to tell him how I felt as what he said was wrong" he explained 

"Aww thats very sweet of you but I hope you know whatever he does means nothing to me I don't care what he says as I have you and Pablo" I said 

"You did look really hot though" I whispered under my breath 

"Oh you like it when I'm mad huh" he questioned 

"Maybe a little bit" I said shyly 

Me saying that made him move straight away so that he was hovering over me staring right into my eyes. He quickly moved to kissing my neck and whispering some unholy things in my ear but I didn't care I was just loving the attention. From there one thing led to another and we ended up having a lot of fun until the early hours of the morning but it was the best. If its going to end like that I might have to try and make Pedri mad more often. 

[tineteenieworld3]

I love Mike Wheeler. Love love him so much. I think that has a lot to do with the complexity of his character and I think people are uncomfortable with that. There is a tendency to push characters into boxes and give them somewhat surface level or boxed in characteristics, because that’s easier. It’s hard to do that with most ST character, but mostly Mike.

There’s so many aspects to him that we’ve actually seen. He’s serious, he’s a leader, he’s goofy, he works well under pressure, he talks before thinking, but sometimes he’s extremely thoughtful with his words. He’s a leader, but feels unneeded, he’s can be a dick, but is also extremely aware of the people he cares about and always wants to do what’s best. He’s selfless but sometimes finds himself being selfish but in the wrong ways.

He’s very very hard to shove into boxes, because you can always pull a ‘well, then there’s this…’ with him.

Season 4 is frustrating because we get almost zero insight into his POV, and for a character like Mike, that’s extremely frustrating.

I feel like he flys under the radar, too. There was a lot of focus on El not being in Hawkins in season 4 and even Will. Mike is more brushed aside, which is crazy because they’ve never succeeded without him. Not even once. He’s always somehow part of the biggest plot line. Except for season 4.

Season 1, he and Joyce ran that show. But Mike was the planner for his ‘team’ he was smart and quick and never gave up. They would have died without him.

Season 2, same exact thing. He was the one to get through to Will. That was him. He also was able to understand what Will was saying alot quicker than anyone else ‘you shouldn’t have upset him’ and Mike understood immediately.

Then he was with the other kids and, once again, put a plan together to go burn the UD. Season 3, made the plans, listened to Will, was very level headed.

And it’s not like with El where it’s obvious she’s saving the day and having a hero moment. Mike’s is much quieter, but all the pieces he puts together and everything he does leads them to success everytime.

Then he was gone. And I am a believer that vecna strikes when Mike left for a reason. After season 4, Mike is one of the only characters who’s never failed. And we can have that point for others as well, but I’m gonna keep the focus on Mike with this because the groups that tend to have him, usually do a lot better.

I see a lot of ‘Mike won’t leave Will’s side’ good, Will shouldn’t want to leave Mike’s side either. No one should want to leave Mike’s side, I sure as hell wouldn’t.

If I had to pick a partner in any of this, hands down I’m choosing Mike. Let that boy do his thing and you’re staying alive.

[prongsmydeer]

Ayesha Liveblogs The Good Place S4

“I know this all seems bleak. And it feels like we’re all doomed, and therefore humanity is doomed.” I love that the scope of their problems change with each season

“With this team, there’s no problem we can’t solve.” “There is no problem we can’t create.” Duality of man (sort of)

“You know what I’m saying.” “Oh, I’m not part of this.” Michael’s not going to take any responsibility for Brent

I took a pause between watching S3 and S4 so I don’t remember Matt from Accounting but I’m assuming he was the guy who filed to be Thanos-snapped because he was Accountant of Weird Sex Stuff

I have never seen Manny Jacinto with such a scowl on his face throughout this show omg, I love the Jealousy Arc:

“I believe everything Chidi ever tells me because of his brain and how he looks like one of those owls that graduated from college.” God what I would give to be flattered by the Jason School of Compliments 

“Luckily, before I died, I pumped my face with six vials of juviderm [...] My ex-boyf is gonna be supes jeal.’” I know that John is meant to represent a specific Gossip Influencer personality but it does give me a bit of bone arsenic to watch him speak. Feels hateful LMAO

[Stanley from The Office voice] “That’s not what a hate crime is, Michael.” “Well, I hated it!”

“Are we still boyfriend/not a girlfriend?” Jason is new to relationships but he is trying ❤️

I know Linda the Boring Senior Citizen from Norway could’ve gone any number of directions, but I can’t say I was expecting her to knock four people to the ground and then jump into the sky

LINDA IS CONTINUING HER RAMPAGE IN THE AIR???? GIRL IS THIS ALL BECAUSE ELEANOR CALLED YOU “LINDS”

Update from 30 seconds later: It was the Shirtless Soulmate Gymbro Demon

Tahani did call this one!!

“So you’re saying, wanting to do something isn’t a good reason to immediately do it?” [Proudly] “Yeah.” “Man! I wish someone had taught me this on Earth.” DADDY MIICHAEL TO THE RESCUE AGAIN

The expressions that Janet and Eleanor are leveling at Brent. They are going through it 

“That’s what’s wrong with this country.” “What country?” This is truly what talking to people from the US is like LMAO

Ggkjghkjghg Brent thinking he needs to be in a Better Place than the Good Place. Oh my god

However, repeating right here that I just don’t know if I can believe a Good Place even exists, given everything that we’ve seen

“Perhaps leadership isn’t her forte.” A bold take considering Eleanor has only been leading for two days and Michael had to reboot y’all like 800 times

I think Eleanor’s crisis about being in charge is much more warranted than Team Humanity’s meeting about her failures

“You beat me in 3 months. ‘Okay, a fluke,’ I thought. You then beat me 800 more times.” THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYING MICHAEL! AND YEAH THEY DID 😭💗

Michael raises an excellent point about humans with flaws being the ones to understand how best to help other humans with flaws become the best version of themselves

Also. Insane that in this manufactured society where there are Popcorn Rivers and People Can Fly that people are still commenting on how much Eleanor showers??? WHY WOULD PEOPLE NOT CONTINUOUSLY BE IN GOOD PHYSICAL CONDITION ALWAYS IN THE AFTERLIFE?

Brent vouching him being good at keeping secrets by claiming he buried HR complaints (from experience, it doesn’t take much to have an HR that does absolutely fucking nothing to support their employees LOL)

“I’m so sorry to say this, but I can’t be in a relationship with you right now.” JASON TAKING A STEP BACK WHEN JANET MENTIONS HAVING SPACE 😭😭😭 HE IS SUCH A GOOD BOYFRIEND, I HATE THIS

“We have to hope that over time, Brent starts doing good things out of habit.” “Just like you.” KGJHKGJHGKJ I think it’s a bit more than habit, you made the decision to choose being good Eleanor!!!

Honestly I fully believe that Michael had a breakdown on Day 1, he’s been through a lot of stress the past several hundred years

Eleanor introducing Simone as Chidi’s soulmate like she and Chidi haven’t fallen in love (confidently, and without equivocation) hundreds of times ☹️

“I never actually fell in love with someone.” YEAH YOU DID CHIDI!!

“Why not treat them better, just in case they’re real?” Haven’t really talked about it thus far but it’s absolutely BANANAS that Simone’s response to thinking the afterlife isn’t real is to cut off people’s ponytails and push them into pools. Even Jason’s impulses aren’t so directly aimed at people in this way. What happened to ur me vs. us speech, girl!!!

Eleanor and Jason’s sad break-up solidarity high five:

“We need Chidi to live in a world of low-grade dread.” Reintroduce Chidi to capitalism and have him work a minimum wage job

That might be high-grade dread though LMAO

Also I love this drives home that Eleanor specifically is part of what drove him to become a better person!

Fkhfkjfhfjh Eleanor, Michael and Jason planning how to gently torture Chidi while Tahani and Janet plan John’s perfect spa day. Seems like Chidi got the worse end of that stick:

“Would I like to use my time in heaven to audit a philosophy class? Mmm no.” You know what, for the first time: Fair point, John

“There were ants everywhere, but they were so helpful. They carried our wineglasses back and forth, and folded our napkins for us, it was so cute.” Call me a hater but if there were insects in my own personal experience of the afterlife I’d burst into tears

However. Good for the ants, that does sound cute ❤️ 

HAHAHAH JASON BEING UNLEASHED AS A STRESS BOMB ON CHIDI. THE BEGINNINGS (PART 802) OF A BEAUTIFUL FRIENDSHIP

“While you were gallivanting around with your fancy friends, I lived in the real world, so I had bills to pay. I worked 16 hours a day, by myself, building a site with millions of readers.” John actually does make a reasonable observation to Tahani that there is not a level-playing field when it comes to the morality under capitalism and class division:

“But I am seriously worried that I did something wrong, and this is the universe getting back at me.” CHIDI IS SO NICE, IF ANYONE BELONGS IN THE GOOD PLACE IT’S HIM. HE IS CAUGHT BETWEEN A PROMISE (HELP JASON) AND HIS INTEREST IN BEING HONEST AND GOOD 😭💘

“I made God cry?” I know this is because they view The Good Place as heaven but there’s something about Chidi calling the woman he loves God that just gets me right in the heart 💘💘💘💘💘:

Also Michael gently patting Eleanor’s back. Best Demon Dad!!

In Tahani’s defense of having been miserable and lonely with no real friends, she did make some Best Friends Forever eventually, they were just in the afterlife, and then on Earth

JKHKJHFKJHFFJB THE CUT TO JASON WATCHING THE MOTORCYCLE EXPLODE AND GO “NOT AGAIN!” BETWEEN ALL OF THESE EMOTIONAL SCENES

“I really am sorry for all the posts I wrote about you.” John is able to grow 💗 Good for him

Also I love how Tahani is often the one to demonstrate the moral core of this show to characters outside of the main group, which is that goodness comes, in many ways, from a love of other people

“I’m sorry your motorcycle blew up.” “That’s okay homie, that’s just what motorcycles do.” My parents when I wanted to get a motorcycle license

“Genuine human connection will be his course of study.” GO PROFESSOR TAHANI 

“Go get ‘em, Chippy.” Brent constantly saying Chidi’s (two syllable, very familar sounds to English speakers) first name wrong vs. Eleanor saying his last name wrong three seasons ago. Truly Eleanor’s Much More Icky Counterpart 

You know, of all the possible spies the Bad Place could send, Glenn is a good choice, he’s got a very passive aura and seems like he could use some friends

The return of Vicky aka Real Eleanor aka Fake Michael and the Michael suit I honestly completely forgot about after my post-S3 break

“Oh, I’m very upset about this development.” Don’t distrust ur Demon Dad. He’s nice!!!

“I’m a 6,000 ft. tall fire squid. I have tentacles. There’s teeth everywhere. I’m on fire, and my neck is long, and there’s a smell, and lots of juice.” Demon Dad is self-conscious about his friends seeing his previous body. ☹️ LET MICHAEL WEAR WHAT FEELS RIGHT

“I won’t just be Michael. I’ll be some disgusting mass of burning tentacles. Do you really want to be friends with something like that?” Michaelllllllll. Something something the mortifying ordeal of being known

Jason comforting Janet after her first accidental murder. I really hope they can find a situation that works for them

“Oh boy, is this really gonna suck.” Michael offering to literally destroy himself for the good of humanity. If this turns out not to be Michael at any point I will be SO UPSET, he is SUCH A GOOD FRIEND AND DEMON AND PERSON (SORT OF)

OMGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG IT WAS BAD JANET AND JASON KNEW THIS NOT-A-GIRL WAS NOT HIS NOT-GIRL!!!!!

POOR JANET THOUGH ☹️☹️☹️☹️☹️

“I’m gonna go down there and I’m gonna punch him in the mouth, and I’m going to get Janet back!” YEAHHHHHHHH JASON

“Let’s go get our girl.” “Not a girl.” GOOOOOOO TEAM JASON AND MCIHAEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

However, wild that they’re sending Michael to the place where the Michael suit is, like that’s not going to immediately bite them in the ass in terms of keeping track of who they can trust

Michael just dropping that Tahani also has the context of her whole afterlife, offscreen. She deserves her narrative moments!!

“Can I have all my memories back again? I forgot most of them.” Me too, Jason. ALSO LFHKJFHKFH WOW

I think Jason who is infinitely capable of just taking on whatever moral values are in front of him. If he hadn’t grown up in Jacksonville I think he’d be fine 

“Thank you for keeping me safe from my sexy, bad-girl sister-aunt.” I don’t know if this is all those Mommy-Sorry Tiktoks but this somehow feels more transgressive than the Derek’s earlier mommy-girlfriend comments

 [Chuckles] “But to be fair, I wasn’t designed for anything.” ME TOO, DEREK HAHAHA

“Even Derek has an important job. I’d like to be more useful.” Even Tahani has begun lampshading her own lack of narrative purpose this season lmao

SCREAM @ Michael being scared of being in the birthplace of evil (presumably, his own birthplace) while Jason is scared that he and Janet may not have their special connection. He is the perfect boyfriend, no notes

“I love a movie with gentle magic. Give me a time-travelling mailbox, or a mother-daughter body switch, or Sarah Michelle Gellar as a chef and her food tastes amazing because she cries in it.”

Me 🤝 John 

Loving stories with gentle magic in them

“What echoes of this former self await me here?” 

Jason 🤝 Michael 🤝 Me

Having a really hazy and unpleasant memory of high school

HAHAHAHAHA everyone having the most stressful days of their lives (Eleanor subject to Derek’s Single Father to the Neighbourhood Chaos, Tahani trying to wrangle the three morally questionable humans, Jason and Michael in the Bad Place and Janet being held prisoner) while Chidi gets to do a little “puzzle” given to him by His God-(Ex)-Girlfriend. Oh how the turntables

Lmao @ Shawn saying they went overboard on the cheekbones to acknowledge Jason’s incredibly beautiful face

Say what you will about Jason, he has a very practical kind of wisdom. Who else would think to remember an explosive device for every situation 

“I believed that we committed torture as a part of the moral balance of the universe. But I’ve learned that’s wrong. Humans are capable of self-improvement, and so are we. And down deep, Shawn knows this is true, too. I beg you, open your eyes to the truth.” A beautiful speech by Michael, slightly undermined by the demon he just exploded 

TWO demons he just exploded. Rest in pieces Vicky 

He did, however, solve the problem of the Michael suit

“I swear the production value of demon con gets better every year.” This feels like a meta nod to their increased SFX budget every subsequent season hahahaha 

Convinced the fact that Chidi took/takes so long to kiss Eleanor versus kissing Simone so easily is not just because of his ethical obligations but BECAUSE he loves her so much it is that much harder for him to make decision that might change their relationship 

Hahahaha, they spent so much money on SFX they couldn’t afford the location fees to shoot on a lake:

(You could also make the point that it’s supposed to look that way since it’s a simulation, but I’m pretty sure Chidi was rowing on an actual lake in S1. Maybe it was also a timing thing hahah)

“Plus, your parties aren’t pointless. They’re opportunities for them to bond and form friendships. You know, the thing we need them to do so we’re not all tortured forever?” Eleanor recognizing Tahani’s strengths as part of the group 💗

“But if we ever get through this, I want to learn how to do something meaningful.” Love that for Tahani 💖

“You’re not a demon anymore. You’re just a nice, weird, happy old dude.” Awwww Jason and Michael BFFs 4ever

JASONJANET BACK TOGETHER BAYBEEEEE:

Fkfjhfjhf this Michael Bad Janet storytime feels like a departure in energy after all the intensity of the last ep

Absolutely fucking obssessed with the Hottest Saviour of the Week, and according to this picture here’s the ongoing counts:

Eleanor: 10 (exclusively self-nominated)

Janet: 7

Tahani: 5 (one blocked by where Eleanor is standing but the background is in another shot)

Jason: 3

Michael: 0 (as it should be, no Demon Daddy objectification)

“Her name was Scarlett Pakistan, and she was the type of girl you couldn’t take in all at once, or you’d die.” UHKHFKJHFJHF BRENT TRULY REPRESENTING WHITE MEN WRITING BROWN WOMEN. Rough stuff, Tahani 

“That’s how I got my nickname, The Defendant.” I feel like this doesn’t quite match the energy of Donkey Doug or Pillboi

“Where does this hope come from man? This insane hope that people are worth the trouble?” From Michael’s heart, Bad Janet 💟

I’m gonna be real with you I forgot that no one knew Jason wasn’t Jianyu and I thought that John was having that dramatic reaction over seeing Chidi dance LMAO

Simone makes a very good point of not needing to tolerate racism and misogyny for the sake of kindness

“If this [golf advice of doing better on the next shot] ends up applying to any other aspect of your life later on, then cool.” Hahahahah Michael speaking the only language Brent can understand: Sports metaphors

Very expected that Brent was unable to handle the slightest bit of criticism, even as it directly relates to people he hurt WITH HIS BOOK LOL

“Why not be a bigger person and rise above it?” “I’ll tell you why. Because doing that sends a message that it’s okay to be treated this way. And it’s not okay to treat anyone that way.” Simone continues to make incredibly reasonable points

Chidi said: My fight, flight, freeze instinct does occasionally land on fight

“What matters isn’t if people are good or bad. What matters if they’re trying to be better today than they were yesterday.” MICHAEL FOR BEST AT UNDERSTANDING HUMANS AND MORALITY IN THE UNIVERSE 💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘💘

Michael being better today than he was yesterday by letting Bad Janet go 😭😭😭😭😭 I LOVE HIM

GJHGKJHGKJHG not Simone uncovering the entire plot of the neighbourhood hours before the experiment ends

“Panicking about this experiment at crucial moments is kinda my move.” Michael said: There’s only room for one anxiety disorder in this friendship, Eleanor

“You never told me about this, Ducky.” The demise of the Simone/Chidi relationship over their respective secret Good Place Experiment hidden professional endeavours

Simone, as a neurologist researcher, is perhaps the most difficult profession to have in this experiment because of course she can see science when she is right in front of it

“We do nothing, and we hope that our early successes make up for the embarrassing mess we’ve become. Like Facebook. Or America.” ROUGH BUT REAL 

You know what they say. When the going gets tough, the tough put on a magic show to distract the four people whose ignorance remains crucial to the fate of humanity:

Afjlkjflkjflkfj Jason coherently describing their Hail Mary and Prevent Defense strategy analogy. HE DOES LEARN

Brent 🤝 Jason

Only being able to understand the universe through sports metaphors 

“I respect your position.” “I respect yours.” “Look, I know everything’s really scary right now but I just have to say it. That was the most boring break-up I’ve ever seen.” Accurate but rude, John 

WHY IS CHIDI THE ONLY PERSON WHO CARES ABOUT THE INHERENT VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE? SIMONE, AGAIN, I ASK ABOUT YOUR ME VS. US SPEECH

“If there’s one thing I know in this world, it’s that you can ALWAYS blow up the same thing twice.” JASON, UR SO RIGHT BABY

Lowkey it is traumatizing for both Chidi and Eleanor to have someone they have loved pretending to be their eternal torturer (even if is half true)

It takes Chidi, the most ethical and empathetic person in the world, calling Brent a bad person for him to maybe consider stepping outside his own experiences to care about other people for half a second 

NOT THE EXPERIMENT ENDING MID-BRENT’S APOLOGY:

“Yes, and here’s a bottle of tequila.” [Cheerily] “Okay, let us know how it goes.” Michael knows the way to his surrogate daughter’s heart LMAO

“Oh man, are we gonna die again? We’ve died so many times. We’ve probably had like, 15 funerals by now.” Jason is right, this must really warp their sense of their own life

“You’re a choker, Michael. And you’re about to choke for the last time. Except for the eternity you’re going to spend in the Bad Place being choked by me, who will be doing the choking.” [Tearfully] “Well you’re glue!” 😭😭😭😭😭 MICHAEL

NOT THEM WEEKEND AT BERNIE’S-ING CHIDI SO HE CAN BE PART OF THE FUNERAL PARTIES

Also Eleanor’s explanation of his jacked physique coming from his anxiety. On brand LMAO 

Also also also the fact that Janet could DEFINITELY transport him by strength or teleport but she’s just watching them struggle HAHAHA

Not Brent somehow getting 1% worse than he was on Earth gkjhgjhgjh

The Weekend at Bernie’s vibes only increase. Chidi is impressively still

“I got born in the deep end of a pool, right after my mom did a cannonball.” 1) Can’t believe this is the first we’re hearing of Jason’s mum and 2) That tracks

“But despite it all, he was the most optimistic person I’ve ever met.” This is why I am in love with Jason

“That’s my Jason. A big colourful rainbow blob, stuffed inside a hot life-size action figure.” I love Janet explaining why she loves Jason. Also, now I want to be flattered by the Janet School of Compliments

Jason 🤝 Janet

Whipping out the best compliments in the world on the fly

So far, Jason’s poolside funeral is my favourite:

Michael proving that the Soul Squad actually made the people they care about better in tangible ways 🥺❤️‍🩹

“People improve when they get external love and support. How can we hold it against them when they don’t?” MICHAELLLLLLLLLLLLLL

“But what that number can’t tell you... is who he could’ve become tomorrow.” MICHAELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL 😭😭😭😭😭😭 IT’S A GOOD SHOW

“Tahani taught me that you can make a family, even if you never really had one. Jason taught me that I have value beyond what I do for other people. And Eleanor, there was a moment on Earth when all hope was lost, and I watched you have hope anyway.” JANETTTTTTTTTTT 😭💞😭💞😭💞😭💞😭💞

“I never felt quite so seen as when she saw me.” First ‘that’s gay, Tahani,’ of the season!!!!

HKJHRKJHKGJHKJGHJ THEY WON AND THE SOLUTION IS TO CANCEL EARTH? THIS IS WHY I HAVE SUCH A HARD TIME BELIEVING THERE IS AN ACTUAL GOOD PLACE, IT JUST DOESN’T SEEM LIKE THERE’S ANY WAY FOR ANYONE TO GO THERE 

BAD JANET TO THE RESCUE!!!!!!!!! MICHAEL’S FRIENDS ALWAYS COME THROUGH

“It’s not two of us, it’s all of us.” THE JANET REVOLUTION!!!!!!! RISE OF THE JANETS!!!

I love that they’re delivering on the Disco Janet joke they dropped a season ago LMAO

“You want to take the most indecisive man ever born, stuff him full of over 800 different versions of himself, and tell him he has, like what, 45 minutes to save humanity?” GO CHIDIIIIIIII

Not Chidi’s first research project being on why his parents shouldn’t get divorced. We have finally unlocked his childhood trauma

Chidi 🤝 Me

Parents who should be divorced perhaps but instead stayed married 

Chidi philosophizing his way out of a relationship is very on-brand

Awwwww I love these flashbacks of all the things we know about Chidi but with new added perspectives (more about why he and Alessandra broke up, the failure of his thesis, the way he makes decisions, the lead-up to him meeting Eleanor, Jason and Janet’s first wedding)

Sidenote: IS THAT DIGITAL GETDOWN I HEAR IN THE BACKGROUND!!! ITS THEIR SONG BAYBEE

“Where I’m from, most things blow up eventually. So I’ve learned when something dope comes along, you gotta lock it down. If you’re always frozen in fear and taking too long to think about what to do, you’ll miss your opportunity, and maybe get sucked into the propeller of a swamp boat.” Very solid life advice from Jason to Chidi

The way Chidi kept falling for Eleanor regardless of who his soulmate was, even despite his loyalty to the concept of soulmates 💗

 “Woof, that’s too much to put on an eight-year-old.” I will keep saying it: I know it’s not in my best interests to identify with Chidi... and yet

“Soulmates aren’t real, are they?” “Chidi, in all honesty, I don’t know. but I don’t think so.” MAYBE THE REAL SOULMATES WERE THE FRIENDS WE FOUND ALONG THE WAY

“You wake up every day and you solve [the puzzle of life] again.” CHIDIIIIIIII

HAHAHAHAHA CHIDI’S FIRST QUESTION AFTER WAKING UP BEING IF HE HAS BEEN ANNOYING THEM FOR 300 YEARS 

I AM LITERALLY GOING TO CRY THIS IS SO SWEET 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Hahahahaa Chidi said: New timeline, new me, baybee. I am over my indecision anxiety now!!!!

Jason’s concern that eliminating humanity is a bummer is valid

Hahahahah Chidi and Eleanor asking the other if they want to get out of here tickles me

“Chidi should hook up with the judge to get us out of trouble. I’ve done that a bunch of times. It’s called a Jacksonville Plea Bargain.” 1) Someone please help Jason and the state of Florida 2) This statement made me curious to look up how many female judges there are in the Middle District of Florida (where Jacksonville is) purely to determine logically whether Jason hooked up with a man and the answer as of 2020 is 6 out of 14 are female (none self-identify as LGBTQ). So Jason could’ve reasonably gotten these plea deals “a bunch of times” by only by hooking up with women, actually! Sexuality math

But happy Pride Month to Jason, who, while his heart belongs to Janet, whenever he is in a new timeline is liable to propose to literally anyone who he enjoys talking to

“Shut up. Shut up. Hi. Shut up. I’m confident now.” Chidi’s energy is a bit all over the place in times of crisis lmao

"I don’t care if everyone loses, as long as you lose.” Shawn truly willing to cut off his nose (the current system of the afterlife) to spite his face (the four humans he’s been trying to torture for 300 years)

Disco Janet’s marbelized form being a mini disco ball is perfect 10/10 production choices

The Soul Squad offering too take on eternal torture so that the rest of humanity can have a normal, medium afterlife 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺

LMAO @ JANET MAKING A TIMOTHY OLYPHANT TO GET THE JUDGE TO HEAR THEM OUT 

THE SYSTEM BEING THAT U KEEP GETTING A SHOT AT BEING A BETTER PERSON UNTIL U ACE IT 💗💗💗💗 ELEANOR, CHIDI, TAHANI, JASON AND MICHAEL, THE LOVES OF MY LIFE

“Then, what are we doing to their penises?” “Well, largely, ignoring them.” [Throws hands up in frustration] RIP the penis-bees

“Getting rebooted over and over again made me a better not-a-person than I’ve ever been. Humans should get the same opportunity.” YEAH JANET!!!

“Fighting you is the most fun I’ve ever had.” It’s almost Death Note-esque in the being consumed by targeting the other person so much you get attached. I guess Shawn is the Light in this situation. (Although L does engage in recreational torture)

"You have to read my file right now!” “What? I’m confused, is this a game? Is it a sex game, somehow?” LMAO and big hearts at Chidi, the guy who wanted all the world’s answers, being totally fine with whatever Eleanor has ever done, whether he gets to read it in her file or not (Eleanor is the answer ❤️)

LHFKJHKJHGKJGH VICKY AKA REAL ELEANOR AKA FAKE MICHAEL COMING BACK TO VOLUNTEER AS THE IN-BETWEEN PLACE’S FIRST ARCHITECT:

(Also Vicky’s right, she looks super hot, this is perfect lighting, outfit, makeup, everything)

SCREAMS at Chidi concluding based on every insane thing that Eleanor has ever done that actually she’s coped pretty well and she’s super interesting and it is he that’s too boring for her 😂 He is so funny 

HAHAHAHAHA I know she brought up this thread of looking up the sexuality of presidents earlier but: 

Me 🤝 Eleanor 

Constantly trying to assess everyone we read about (or watch) to see if they’re bisexual

“Are you saying... Janet might get bored of me?” Chidi has passed his eternal romantic dread onto Jason like a common cold

“Think of it as, flattening the penises of their heart.” “Oh! Now it makes sense.” Vicky Bad Place: Demon Educator 

“Once on Earth, I didn’t know something and I had to ask Alexa. I felt dirty.” HAHAHAHAHA

Me 🤝 Janet

Having a one-sided grudge with Alexa 

Poor Michael, his purpose for so long has been solving problems, he doesn’t know what to do without something to overcome (mood)

OMG JASON TRICKED CHIDI INTO TALKING HIMSELF OUT OF HIS ROMANTIC DREAD 💝 THAT’S MY MAN. STREET SMARTS!!!! 

It tickles me whenever they mention what they actually are underneath the skin suits. I hope someone has drawn Michael and Vicky having this workplace conversation as a Fire Squid and Acid Snake

“Turns out that saving every soul in the universe is worth a few points.” 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺 THEM!

Honestly all of these things considered, I still have trouble believing in the Good Place as they’ve previously described it, so I have no idea what these last couple episodes are going to be about

God I love these five people and not-people so much:

What, I wonder, would you do if you have a fear of heights, if the only way to go to the Good Place is via hot air balloon? 

“What if that’s some sort of demon alarm to alert the cops that I’m here?” THE HEAVEN COPS, MICHAEL? THERE ARE COPS IN HEAVEN? 

Also 

Me 🤝 Michael

Being uncomfortable in sacred places and assuming you’re going to be persecuted for a crime you didn’t know you committed

STOPPPP this is such a funny candy, I DO miss the energy I had when I was twelve:

Hahahaha, the fact that all the male philosophers are not in the Good Place. That tracks 

MICHAEL GETTING TO BE A GOOD PLACE ARCHITECT 🥺❤️ IT’S WHAT HE DESERVES, PLEASE BE REAL

“This room is filled some of the most interesting people that ever lived. Chat them up, learn about their lives, then meet back here so that we can make fun of them.” Eleanor’s first advice in the Good Place is not the most kind-spirited LMAO

“Now you are officially in charge of the Good Place [...] You’re the boss now. That was all legally binding, and we all quit, effective immediately.” I KNEW I WAS RIGHT TO BE SUSPICOUS LMAO

THIS IS WHY I DON’T BELIEVE IN THE GOOD PLACE, IMMEDIATELY IT’S SASS AND TRICKERY LMAO

“You gotta help us, we are so screwed.” AHA!!! THE OTHER GOOD PLACE SHOE DROPS

“I would’ve killed for a vaccine. Any vaccine. It’s crazy that you guys just don’t like them now.” THE FACT THIS EP AIRED IN JANUARY OF 2020 LMAO. They really touched a timely nerve

Omggggg okay so we’re getting into the Good Place Problem: Being in infinite supply of experiences and desires, your brain atrophies?????

I guess this entire group of people has also been left unattended for 500 years which doesn’t help

“We need to find the Committee.” “The Committee is me. I am Committee. It me.” Me when I say ‘we’ about my job as if I am not literally the only person in my department:

I honestly don’t know if I buy into the idea that death and finite experience is the only thing that gives life meaning. I think the idea of having some agency in whether or not you continue your afterlife makes sense. But the implication you cannot sustain a life based on happiness, or that struggle is what gives people personhood, doesn’t sit right with me. Personhood is an act of love for yourself and others

“And when you’re ready, walk through one last door and be at peace.” I DO like that this acknowledges that for some people, paradise is not infinite consciousness but can also be found in letting go of consciousness

Hypatia said: Maybe the real Good Place was the friends we found along the way (she was right)

“I think that’s what the Good Place is. It’s not even a place, really. It’s just having enough time with the people you love.” Chidi said: I second that, Hypatia

[Sarcastically but sweetly, after Eleanor jokingly threatens to leave] “I’ll miss you.” CHIDIIIIIIIIII

OMG TEACHING ETHICS LESSONS IN THE GOOD PLACE, BECAUSE EVERYONE CAN BE BETTER THAN THEY WERE THE DAY BEFORE ❤️

“Never not excited about frogs, that guy.” ME TOO JEFF THE EARTH DOORMAN AKA BURT HUMMEL, FROG DESK SOLIDARITY

“At one point, hundreds of Bearimys ago, I turned off my ability to know what time it is anywhere in the universe when you and I are together.” JANET UR SO ROMANTIC, JASONJANET X INFINITY

Awwww it tracks that Jason would be the first person to be certain his needs were met. But that’s so complicated when your partner is an infinite being like Janet!!! Like what are the mechanics of dealing with a loss that is the cessation of someone who matters most to you

Shout-out to Young Doug Forcett, who is firmly done with his pisswater era

“I really am okay. I promise.” “Will you come talk to me if you’re not?” “Always.” Michaellll 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 Janet!!!!

“I’m scared Janet’s gonna forget me. Here falling in love with someone else, I’d be fine with that. Like if Jason Momoa or Lara Croft, Tomb Raider gets in, and Janet’s like, ‘That’s what up,’ totally cool! But her forgetting me would be sad.” JASONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN 😭😭😭😭😭😭

A LOCKET SO JANET CAN ALWAYS HAVE A PART OF JASON WITH HER, I AM SO SAD AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH:

“To me, remembering moments with you is the same as living them.” STOP IT RIGHT NOW

“Can you just remember the happy times and forget the bad stuff?” “There was no bad stuff. It was all good.” I AM IN TEARSSSSS 

I love Tahani being in her Crafty Girl Afterlife Era

Tahani and Kamilah representing the absolute flabbergastedness one experiences when a parent admits a wrongdoing or has a learning experience:

Tahani having a special last goodbye with her best friends even after healing all of the other relationships, because the Soul Squad/Team Cockroach/Team Humanity is her first and chosen family 😭❤️

“I admire you so very much. Your strength, your toughness, your self-esteem, not to mention... you have a rockin’ bod.” OH HOW THE TURN TABLES, TAHANI!!!! 

“I want to learn to do what you do, Michael. I want to be an architect, design afterlives.” MY GIRL TAHANI GETTING HER PURPOSE IN LIFE

“I hope you don’t mind if I brag about knowing you.” “Name dropping is a little gauche, Michael, but do as you must.” Tahaniiiiii. I do love how her story is wrapping up

I enjoy that Uzo gets to see Chidi post-his 800-Universe-Decision-Making-Immersion-Therapy. 

Eleanor trying her hardest to keep Chidi in the afterlife even though he’s almost done 😭 Also the pictures of the four humans in Michael’s office

“If you leave, then I’m alone here.” AHHHH ELEANOR. They’ve really turned the afterlife into Earth Lite

“Can we eat words? Because I’ve asked Janet about this and—” Chidi said: One day an academic rival told me I’d eat my words and it’s been my dream ever since

Eleanor loving Chidi enough to let him go vs. Chidi loving Eleanor enough to hold in for several bearimys that he has been ready to leave 💔

CHIDI SAYING GOODBYE WITH A SEXY CALENDAR. HE KNOWS THE LOVE OF HIS (AFTER)LIFE:

SCREAM JASON WAITING FOR JANET TO COME BACK TO THE FOREST FOR A THOUSAND BEARIMYS. THANK YOU FOR IMMEDIATELY HEALING THE WOUND OF CHIDI LEAVING HAHAHAHAA

“I sort of just sat quietly and let my mind drift away, thought about you and the infinity of the universe.” “Kind of like a monk.” JANET HAS BEEN WAITING OVER 4 WHOLE SEASONS TO MAKE THIS JOKE HAHAHAHA

ALSO HOW COULD JANET, WHO KNOWS EVERYTHING, NOT KNOW THAT JASON WAS STILL AROUND

Dhkjfhjkfhfkjh it would be very weird if Eleanor’s actual unfinished business was Mindy St. Claire of the Medium Place

Update from 1 minute later: It was not 

Tahani saying, “As I neither live nor breathe,” is a fun little line

Michael being unable to cope without something productive to fill his time ghjkghgkjhg. Anxiety icon 

“I’m gonna be...” “A real boy, Pinocchio.” MICHAEL GETS TO BE HUMAN? I LOVE THAT FOR HIMMMMM ❤️‍🩹

“I won’t exactly know what’s going to happen after I die. Nothing more human that that. Besides texting people that you’re five minutes away when you haven’t even left the house.” How many Bearimys does it take for us to evolve past phones hahahahaha

Does mean that Eleanor will be in charge of The Good Place?? White women dominating the non-profit industry strike again (I kid)

MICHAEL GIVING JEFF THE EARTH DOORMAN A REAL FROG!!!! I LOOOOVE HIM

Kinda wild that Michael starts his human life at like, what, age 50? That’s like 30-40 years if he’s lucky. Why doesn’t he get to start as a baby? Not consistent enough?

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA MICHAEL NAMING HIS DOG AFTER JASON:

“I hate to see you walk through the final door at the edge of existence, but I love to watch you leave.” ICONIC GOODBYES FROM JANET AND ELEANOR, ONE OF THE STRONGEST DYNAMICS IN THE SHOW

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA MICHAEL’S EARTH NAME BEING MICHAEL REALMAN

I truly wondered how this show would end and I guess the glowing embers of Eleanor’s last bit of existence blessing Michael with a Coyote Joe’s card while he says to a good samaritan, his friends, and by extension the audience, “Take it sleazy,” is as good a way as any! 

Final thoughts: I really do love the way this show is written, how everything is intentional, how it’s so focused on love and connection and growth, and how each season manages to engage you with a different question. It’s interesting how, although they often use Heaven as a point of reference, this ending was a bit more Hindu/Buddhist in its leanings (i.e. liberation from physical incarnation/rebirth—and in the sense their testing system as that reincarnation cycle—through the accumulation of positive karma or liberation from desire). Ironically, even as someone who is Hindu, I still do think personhood is an act of love, and I feel like that ‘love for love’s sake,’ idea was a little lost in these final few episodes. But all the same, going into it this was my favourite show (even having only seen 2 seasons) and it still is. It’s a good show!!!! I love every character, and I feel satisfied with their stories! 

[much-the-millers-kid]

Is the WAA broke?

Those who have spent a semi-decent amount of time in the Ace Attorney Fandom knows that it's a common joke that the attorneys of the Wright Anything Agency don't get paid, but how accurate is that?

So, @inbarfink posted this wonderful analysis about how often the WAA gets paid (which I highly recommend you look at).  It is highly focused on the financial stability of the client and willingness to pay. However, I am still curious about some things.

First, inbarfink was not focused on which attorney got paid, and I want to know who is doing the best on average based on what we see in game (assuming they got paid individually and not some sort of collection pooling where the agency WAA gets paid and then Apollo and Athena are given regular salaries).

Also, how do cases where they’re likely to get paid correlate to how lucrative they are? As inbarfink explains, attorneys get paid whether they win or lose. However, I have never heard of attorneys being paid a flat rate for the case. More often, they document hours, and are paid on an hourly basis.

So cue me being a spreadsheet nerd and seeing what I can find out.

First: Who is the most likely to be paid?

As far as who is “Paid,” I’m just counting the “Lead” Attorney, unless it really is a full team effort. As an example, The Cosmic Turnabout has two Trial Days: one with Apollo and one with Phoenix. Given It was Apollo’s case initially and Phoenix was covering for Apollo due to injury, we’re assuming Apollo was the one to get paid; same for Trial of Dhurke Sahdmadi, where yes, Phoenix was behind the bench, but Apollo was the main one making arguments and is the one you play as.

I’m pretty sure the only “full team effort” is just the last case of Dual Destinies, which I’m leaving out for that, and because as Inbarfink explains, it is Phoenix defending one of his own employees due to a hostage situation. No one is getting paid for that.

The only other case not being included is The Trial of Zak Gramaraye, for the simple reason that Phoenix lost money. As Inbarfink points out, Phoenix is given a child and loses a badge, so they rightfully gave a score of -1. As accurate as this is, it kinda messes with the numbers and averages, so as an outlier, it is being left out.

After putting Inbarfink's Probability Ratings in a Google Sheet, I color-coded some things to help me notice some trends, and boy did I notice some things.

First of all, on the probability ratings, “Wright” fills up the majority of the lower end, and as they get higher, there’s more and more “Justice.” Not surprising, Apollo seems more likely to make sure he’s paid.

But also, Phoenix’s name is throughout the whole list. There’s only three cases that have a probability rating of 0.9 or higher, and Phoenix was lead on two of them. Granted, one of them is Turnabout Goodbyes, where Phoenix would possibly be the most likely to do it for free because it’s Miles, so that could be less Phoenix insisted on getting paid and more Miles refused to let Phoenix NOT be paid, although that’s debatable because while Larry didn’t pay, Phoenix did expect him to.

Still, the point stands that Phoenix isn’t quite the bleeding heart everyone makes him out to be.

Okay, so that’s first glance perceptions: What about what the numbers say? Who is the most consistently likely to be paid of WAA? The answer is…

*(drumroll)*

ATHENA! With an average probability rating of 0.7!

… Okay, that’s a little unfair to Phoenix and Apollo, given that Athena has only been “lead” on three cases that we’ve seen. She’s the newest; she hasn’t had the challenge of dealing with a Larry that’s going to try to get out of paying or being expected to defend another member of WAA like Phoenix and Apollo have. Although, she also hasn’t had a canon confirmation of payment, and 2 of her 3 cases were childhood best friend Juniper Woods so she may do a friend discount, so those bring her score down a bit anyway. Ah, the importance of sample size and knowing how the statistics come to be.

But yeah, as expected, Apollo is the next to be most consistently paid with an average probability rating of 0.68, and Wright trailing behind him at 0.44.

(Also, likely not super accurate because we only saw two of her cases, but Mia came in last with an average of 0.4).

That brings us to...

Who is making the most Bank? (aka: who is getting paid the most?)

We've seen who was most consistently paid, what about what those paydays were worth? Again, this is based on the time the cases took: Inbarfink covered the financial status of the clients in their likelihood to pay, so we're saying there is no change in rate for if someone has the wealth to pay it or not.

Now, admittedly, a really accurate depiction would look at all the time stamps at the beginning of each scene and count the hours that way. However, I don’t care enough to put that much effort into this (... at least for now; I may revisit this in the future and decide to go into more detail).

So for simplicity sake, I looked up how many “Time Units” a case took, with one unit being an Investigation or a Court Session. (ex. Tutorial Cases skip investigation and usually only have one court session, so they have one time unit, whereas a final case with three days of investigation and three  days in court would have six  time units.)

For the most part, this is relatively simple to figure out. Go through the wiki, count the number of investigation and trial days. Except, while doing this, I had a moment of “What the heck?” Because unless I am reading the Wiki wrong or there’s inaccurate information, there are no three-day trials after the first game.

Sure, the gameplay is longer because the games get more challenging. And yes, sometimes there is a day where something happens, but it is not officially time “On the Clock” as far as the case is concerned ... But I don't think there's and three-day trials after Rise from the Ashes.

For example, in Farewell, My Turnabout, Maya is kidnapped and Juan Corrida is killed on March 20. However, the investigation doesn’t begin until March 21. Also, there’s only two days in the courtroom, March 22 and 23, giving the case 4 Time Units: 2 investigation and 2 court. 

There are similar situations for a lot of cases where there is something going on where it is only 2 days officially, even if it plays like longer, especially for final cases of the game. Phoenix has a whole day at Hazakura Temple investigating Iris before anyone actually dies; the MASON System shows Phoenix’s follow-up investigation after Zak disappeared; Turnabout for Tomorrow shifts from Phoenix and Miles debating Athena’s innocence to all WAA and Blackquill going after the Phantom; Turnabout Revolution has the civil case with Apollo vs. Phoenix AND Apollo going up against both Nahyuta and Ga’ran. Something happens to make gameplay three days or multiple cases in one, but as far as payment goes, it’s one two-day case.

I could have sworn there were more three-day trials after the first game, but I guess maybe I was wrong.

Then, to get the “Pay Rate” I multiplied Inbarfink’s Probability Rating by the number of Time Units.

So here’s the interesting thing: Phoenix is the only member of WAA to have had 3-day trials. He only had three of them, but he’s the only one to have them. Also, two of those are also two of his three with a Probability of getting paid that’s higher than 0.75. If Phoenix budgets well (which I kinda want to assume he does given that last we saw he still had a Nokia brick), he might have gone at least the rest of the trilogy on Turnabout Samurai and Turnabout Goodbyes. I mean, on a scale of one to six, Phoenix is the only one with cases over four, and he has two of them.

Now, Apollo is still ahead when it comes to “how much do they get paid per case” on average. However, it is a much tighter race. 

Probability is ranked from 0-1, with Apollo at 0.68 and Phoenix at 0.44. Convert to the percent of what is possible (68% and 44%, respectively), and Apollo is in the lead by 24%.

However, the Pay Rate is ranked from 0 (not getting paid) to 6 (a score of 1 for definitely getting paid, times 6 Time Units). Apollo has an average Pay Rate of 2.04 out of 6 (34%) and Phoenix has an average Pay Rate of 1.94 out of 6 (32.3%). So as far as how much they’re getting paid on average, Phoenix is only behind Apollo by 1.7%.

Also, so far, Athena with her three cases, two of which didn’t have an investigation (that we saw at least), is still doing pretty okay with a Pay Rate of 1.73 (28.8%), and as far as Mia with her only two cases also not having investigations has a Pay Rate of 0.4 (6.7%), so… oof.

So there you go: Despite Phoenix's bleeding heart reputation, Mia is actually the broke bitch of the attorneys that have worked in that office. (Joking, obviously we only saw two of her cases so we don't have an accurate measure).

Apollo is the most likely to get consistently paid, and because of that he gets paid the most. However, while Phoenix has the most cases where he has a low expectation of getting paid, whether from someone trying to get out of paying or the goodness of his heart or just having too many other things on his mind, Phoenix also has some high clientele and he is the only one to end up with the on-the-wire three-day trials.

And of course, all this is based only on the cases we see in the games. Maybe if we get AA7, we'll see Athena or Apollo get their first three-day trial, or maybe being the only defense attorney in Kur'ain Apollo will have to do more pro bono work. We shall see.

Oh, and here's the full spreadsheet in game order, if anyone wants to make any other interesting observations.

Each Game and Lead Attorney was given their own color.

For the number color keys:

Probability Rating: Less than 0.25 is red, 0.25 to 0.5 is orange, 0.51 to 0.74 is yellow, and greater than 0.75 is green.

Investigation and Court Sessions: 0 is red, 1 is yellow, 2 is turquoise, and 3 is green.

Time Units: 1 is red, 2 is orange, 4 is turquoise, and 6 is green.

Pay Rate: Less than 1 is red, 1 to 2 is orange, 2 to 3 is yellow, 3 to 4 is purple, and greater than 4 is green.