#With the way things are going I might not be able to watch season 7 until October 😑 if it ends up being worth watching 🤔

[psink]

Translation of the interview with Kamiya Hiroshi (Kusuo's VA) and Nojima Kenji (Kuusuke's VA)

The TV anime "The Disastrous Life of Saiki K: The Final Chapter" will air as a year-end special program on the TV Tokyo network on (friday) December 28th from 7:35 to 8:30.

The January issue of PASH!, which is now on sale, features an interview with Kamiya Hiroshi-san, the voice actor of Saiki Kusuo, and Nojima Kenji-san, the voice actor of Kuusuke Saiki. We’re releasing a preview ahead of tomorrow’s broadcast. 

Amidst the busy end-of-year, good grief, a world-involving sibling fight…? We spoke to Nojima Kenji-san, who plays the older brother Kuusuke, and Kamiya Hiroshi-san, who plays the younger brother Kusuo, after they had just finished recording about the truth of the matter!

―― Please tell us how you felt when the decision to make the Final Chapter was made. Kamiya: I was very happy. Even if you want to adapt every episode from the original work, it’s not always possible to do so. But with this series, everything fell into place. I think the biggest reason we were able to adapt it all the way to the Final Chapter was because of the fans’ wishes, and for that, I’m incredibly grateful.

Nojima: I had heard that the Final Chapter would be made, but I was wondering about what form it would take, and it turned out to be a two-part year-end special. Could people really sit through an hour of this work?! What kind of focus would they need to watch it? I was a bit worried about that (laughs). But I’m sure that “The Disastrous Life of Saiki K” will deliver dense content that makes you lose track of time again, in the way only it can. 

―― Compared to other anime series, “Saiki” has about 2 or 3 times more dialogue per episode, right?

Kamiya: I had vaguely noticed that, but… Nojima: You didn’t want to know, did you? (laughs)

Kamiya: Certainly, for a 30-minute anime, it takes a lot of time to go over the script. Even when watching the DVD to check it, I thought “Hm? Is something wrong with the machine?”, because it felt like it was playing fast-forward (laughs).

Nojima:  I’ll be honest now, but on the day I first participated in the recording, I actually went into the recording without finishing all the checks.I checked the script at home and then immediately went to the studio. I was calculating in my mind the timing to start reading the script to record whilst still keeping my role preparation fresh. 

But, the amount of lines was beyond my imagination, so I couldn't finish the preparation… This was something that shouldn’t have happened, but honestly, I got through the latter half [of the recording] just with concentration (laughs). But, since I was able to maintain the momentum from the first half, I’m glad I was able to bring out a good sense of raw feelings. Kamiya-san, how was your first recording?

Kamiya: I already can’t remember, but when I re-watch Episode 1 now, I think the pace is still slow. It’s gotten gradually faster since entering season 2. In season 2, Director Sakurai was probably broken as the pacemaker (laughs). Nojima: Ahaha, I see. It's like a live band where the rhythm gradually speeds up, and you keep going without knowing the original pace.

Kamiya: Exactly. 

Nojima: Since you can’t keep up by just listening to the lines as words, you have to listen to the partner’s tone and match it. It might be similar to a music session.

―― In the Final Chapter, the relationship between Kusuo and Kuusuke seems to be a highlight. What do you both think about these brothers?

Nojima: The reason they can fight so much, do terrible things, and act recklessly is probably because, ultimately, they’re brothers. In a different case, it would have ended in a complete fallout, wouldn’t it?

Kamiya: That’s true. After all, what Kuusuke is doing is almost criminal. Nojima: Ahahahaha.

Kamiya: What I found especially dangerous about what Kuusuke did was the story of making the elderly villagers wear powered suits. The way he disguised it as caregiving while completely using them as his own puppets was seriously dangerous. Nojima: It’s surely his own sense of justice. I wonder if it’s an antithesis to how we should handle the aging society going forward (laughs).

―― Kuusuke’s obsession with Kusuo is also quite dangerous, isn’t it?

Nojima: Kuusuke has a very strong desire for approval, wanting to be recognized by Kusuo above all else. Challenging him to fights is, I think, a distorted expression of that. But I believe it is also an expression of his love and his desire to be loved back.

Kamiya: Kusuo probably thinks Kuusuke is a troublesome person, but Kusuo is also at fault. Although Kuusuke is a genius, he worked hard to create the control device for Kusuo to help him control his superpowers, didn’t he? Kusuo should be grateful, but he doesn’t express it. “Thanks, big brother. I can’t live without this” - it would’ve been nice if he could’ve said that, but Kusuo doesn’t understand the feelings of those without [superpowers], so that didn’t happen. There was also the sense of taking it for granted because they're family, but thinking how this resulted in that difficult brotherly relationship is quite sad.

―― That’s deep.

Kamiya: Although Kusuke knows he’ll lose, he keeps challenging Kusuo to fights and enjoys the process, which shows his malicious side. He’s also quite twisted. So they’re both equally to blame. From an outsider’s perspective, their relationship can be summed up with one phrase "they’re just just not honest with each other”.

Nojima: Despite that, there are also times when they rely on each other.

Kamiya: It’s complicated. That’s why even in the Final Chapter their relationship will likely be depicted. 

―― Finally, could you give a message to the readers who are waiting for the broadcast? Nojima: I was worried about how much Kuusuke would appear, but he ended up having a lot more screentime than I had expected, so I was satisfied. I have no doubts that the viewers will enjoy it as well!  Since the story’s pace is fast, please acquire the ability to not blink while watching (laughs), and surely, you will be moved to tears in the end. There are emotional parts, but more than anything, I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for cherishing and enjoying this series for so long!

Kamiya: The TV anime is finally reaching its conclusion. For those who are watching for the first time, it might be difficult, as the story keeps quickly progressing whilst you’re wondering “what is this?”. But there is a scene at the beginning that reviews past episodes and introduces the characters, so I think you’ll understand what this series is about. That said, since it’s a gag anime, I hope you can enjoy it without thinking too much.

As for the highlights for the Final Chapter, Kusuo finally moves [his mouth] and speaks for the first time. You might be wondering “What is this person saying?”, but it’s exactly as it sounds (laughs). Please watch the main story to uncover the truth behind it. I’m sure you’ll be surprised.

[stuckyevanstanfan]

logging into tumblr a few minutes after the episode and I'm so confused about the reaction posts I'm seeing... during the episode people were talking about how Buck wanted Eddie's attention, then at the end he is kissing Tommy? Were the live reactions during the episode misinterpreting Buck's motivations, and his desire for Eddie was actually his desire for Tommy all along? Or did the episode make it seem like he wanted both of them?

[absolutebl]

This Week in BL - Taiwan has one show, but that's all they need

Organized, in each category, with ones I'm enjoying most at the top.

April 2024 Wk 1

Ongoing Series - Thai

Two Worlds (Thurs IQIYI) ep 4 of 10 - I don’t say this often but I LOVE this love triangle. The longing gazes = chef's kiss. I like that we are finally getting flashbacks to Tai’s side of the love affaire. This show remains highly engaging. So pleased for MaxNat.  

Deep Night (Thurs iQiyi) ep 5 of 8 - More lesbians! Yay! Meanwhile, when our leads make up they make out! (Yes I’m proud of myself.) I think this might be BLs first rooftop sex scene. We’ve reached new heights, BLabies. (Yes I’m proud of that too.) Anygay, basically a soap opera at this point, I'm not thrilled but I don’t mind.

"Do you apologize for being straight?"

City of Stars (Fri iQIYI) ep 10 of 12 - It was lovely. Very well done celebrity leaving the closet ep. Nice ensemble work too. Next week is doom! As expected. 

Only Boo! (Sun YouTube) ep 1 of 12 - New main couple for GMMTV in an idol romance about a boy who dances good and a food stand vendor. It’s fine but overly very pulp feeling for something from GMMTV. I'm a little concerned.

1000 Years Old (Thurs iQIYI) ep 8 of 12 - meh.

To Be Continued (Sat C3 Thailand grey) ep 7 of 8 - Never turned up on my usual sites. So will have to wait until next week. 

Ongoing Series - Not Thai

Unknown (Taiwan Tues YouTube & Viki) ep 7 of 11 - Qian was, indeed, the one who couldn’t let go. This show is fucking fantastic. It's the best thing I'm watching right now by a mile.

Jazz for Two (Korea Gaga/grey) eps 3-8fin - The bully and the blue-haired drummer side pairing were great. I hated the father. Hated him so much. Our main tsundere seme was a bit too tsundere for me. I was v annoyed by the time he finally softened. I'm amused by all the ways they finagled boys kissin-but-not-kissing in the first half of this show. 2024's "pan around the back of the head" has now become a "dipping of the brolly." We did, however, eventually get an okay kiss.

Honestly?

This was basically what I wanted from Given and didn’t get. So I’m pleased. The music still wasn't great, but you can skip those bits. A solid enemies to lovers BL, where the sins of brothers' past haunts the present. Great optics, decent chemistry, and a tidy script even if tsundere characterization went a bit extreme in some cases. 8/10 RECOMMENDED trigger for suicide

Love is Better the Second Time Around AKA Koi wo Suru nara Nidome ga Joto (Japan Weds Gaga) ep 5 of 6 - We got the past betrayal in detail and it was decently bad. Bitterness understood. Too soon to live together! The BL U-Haul strikes again. I do like their weird curry passive aggressive argument. This is an interesting show. Do I LOVE it? No. But I think I like it.

On a not-really-related note: adoption, including adult adoption, is actually pretty common in Japan (comparatively). It's often tied to business scionism.

My Strawberry Film (Japan Thurs Gaga) ep 8fin - It all turned out to be a tragic GL in the end. Not BL = not my problem. No rating. I will forget its existence right about… now. 

Love is like a Cat (Korea Mon Viki) eps 1-2 of 12 - Okay, weirdly kinky with the head scratching. Not much has happened and I’m not wild about what has. 

It's done, ready to binge, but I suck

What Did You Eat Yesterday Season 2 AKA Kinou Nani Tabeta? Season 2 (Japan Gaga) 10 eps

It's airing but...

We Are (Weds GMMTV iQIYI) ep 1 of 16 - University ensemble BL featuring PondPhuwin, WinnySatang, AouBoom, MarcPawinPoon - basically the good kind of messy gay friendship group (so more My Engineer and less Only Friends). Looks a bit like the Kiss series but everyone is queer. I'm IN but I need my other computer and I'm traveling as usual. So I'll get caught up next week and probably won't regularly be able to watch this one.

Graduation Countdown (Taiwan YouTube) - It's too much for me to keep up with 2 minute verticals, I don't have that kind of TikTok endurance training.

A Secretly Love (Thai Sat WeTV grey) 10 eps - Completed. Worth watching?

Lady Boy Friends (Thai WeTV grey) 16 eps - reminds me a bit too much of Diary of Tootsies only high school. Not my thing. DNF unless it turns a corner and is truly amazing.

Kiseki Chapter 2 (Sun iQIYI) 6 eps - It’s so boring DNFed at 2.

Close Friend Season 3: Soju Bomb! (Weds iQIYI) 6 - The problem with situational comedy BL is it must be situational, comedic and a BL. This show gets 1 of 3 claims correct. 33% is not a passing grade. Dropped at 3.

In the news

Takumi-kun Series 6: Nagai Nagai Monogatari is getting the undeserved honor of Furritsubs. Follow them for details. Tip 'em if you like 'em. (Will I watch it? Oh, probably. Damn it.)

Then Next Prince turned out to be a trailer only. Word on the webs is we will be lucky if we get it this year. It’s BL Princess Diaries. Jimmy has a new pairing (that boy from Night Dream) which is... interesting. All in all, this show does not look good. Pretty but not good.

Next Week Looks Like This:

4/11 Gray Shelter AKA Gray Currents (Korea ????) 4 eps - SooHyuk is only just surviving and reunites with YoonDae, an old friend. They end up living together. One of the leads is played by Choco of Choco Milk Shake.

4/12 Living With Him AKA Kare no Iru Seikatsu (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - Kindly Ryota goes off to uni only to find his new roommate is his childhood bestie, Kazuhito. Kazuhito doesn’t have a girlfriend and Ryota tries to help him figure out why, they fall in love along the way. Same director as Old Fashion Cupcake.

Still to Come in April

4/18 At 25:00, in Alaska AKA 25 Ji, Akasaka de (Japan Gaga) 10 eps - Yuki lands his first starring role in a BL drama alongside superstar Asami (previously his senior at uni). Said superstar suggests they form a sham relationship until filming concludes. As they actually begin to fall in love, the spotlight begins to burn. I think I've seen this before (joke) and also the trailer doesn't inspire confidence.

4/26 My Stand-In (Thai iQIYI) 12 eps - adaptation of Chinese novel "Professional Body Double" by Shui Qiang Cheng. Stars Up (Lovely Writer) and Poom (Bake Me Please) directed by the same team as KP (not a recommendation IMHO - my biggest criticism of that show was the clashing directing styles). This one looks well complicated, lemme try: Joe is a stuntman for famous actor Tong. Joe falls in love with Ming but Ming sees Joe as nothing more than a Tong-replacement. After learning this horrible truth, Joe dies. Joe then wakes up in the body of another man also named Joe. He manages to rebuild the same life as before—with the same people eventually re-meeting Ming. Ming wants Joe back but Joe doesn't understand why. But Ming seems to know what's going on and wants to give him some kind of explanation.

I'm exhausted just trying to describe the plot.

Knock-Knock Boys (Thai WeTV) - 4 college friends conspire to help their friend lose his virginity. Familiar faces like Seng (yes, Billy's previous partner) and Best, news here.

Upcoming BLs for 2024 are listed here. This list is not kept updated, so please leave a comment if you know something new or RP with additions.

NOTE: It looks like one of my personal favorites of last year Unintentional Love Story is getting a spin off!

THIS WEEK’S BEST MOMENTS

See City of Stars & Unknown.

(Last week)

Streaming services are listed by how I (usually) watch, which is with a USA based IP, and often offset by a day because time zones are too much work.

The tag BLigade: @doorajar @solitaryandwandering @my-rose-tinted-glasses @babymbbatinygirl @babymbbatinygirl @isisanna-blog @mmastertheone @pickletrip @aliceisathome @urikawa-miyuki @tokillamonger @rocketturtle4 @blglplus @anythinggoesintheshire

If ya wanna be tagged each week leave a comment and I will add you to the template. Easy peesy.

[bicheetopuff]

(Ch. 336)

You know, this panel has always made me a little curious. Every other time we saw Izuku sparring with Katsuki (before the war started at least), he’d use blackwhip to defend himself, hence ‘catch-a-kacchan’ so I found it weird how Izuku didn’t even try to grab Katsuki. For like 100 chapters prior to this, he used blackwhip for everything and would eventually just leave it out incase he needed it quickly kinda like how Hawks utilized his feathers (when he had them) so I kinda just made a mental note about how weird it was that Izuku chose to evade instead of defend when he easily could’ve.

I also found it weird how quickly Izuku wanted to change the topic along with the distress on his face. I thought it was just a cheap and ooc way of explaining Todoroki’s new power quickly but, since it’s now confirmed that Izuku has PTSD about Katsuki’s sacrifice, what if Katsuki’s cluster move triggers that trauma response too?

The next time we see cluster used with Izuku present, Izuku actually does respond with blackwhip.

(Ch. 404)

He doesn’t use it in defense though, he uses it in almost possessive way by securing their hands together with it. But also, he doesn’t speak for this entire chapter. It could be explained away by the side effect of using gearshift and him not being able to breath but before now, he’s been more focused while in distress and was also speaking just fine before. Though, in these panels, and through the entire chapter, he seems almost delirious and in shock. He’s not even reacting to the lack of oxygen anymore.

He even starts ignoring Shigaraki in these moments. He’s stunned and mesmerized but now I’m starting to question whether he’s amazed or scared out of his mind for what might happen. With that uncertainty, all that I can say confidently is that he’s distracted.

(Season 7 ep. 4)

Arguably after chapter 404, he stops thinking straight and, honestly, gets a little sloppy. A few chapters after this, is when gets danger sense stolen and starts getting truly injured. He makes the decision to give away OFA and loses his arms. He reverts right back into his “I don’t care what happens to me” mentality that his class has been trying to get him to grow out of for a while.

He wasn’t mentally prepared for something to go wrong in this fight. He wasn’t mentally prepared to be pulled away, leaving Katsuki with Shigaraki. I thought it was just iffy writing that he’d mentally regress after Katsuki woke up instead of before but, it honestly makes a lot more sense now. He cared about what happened to himself because he needed to stay alive to ensure Katsuki’s revival. Once Katsuki woke up and he watched him fight AFO, he started being reckless again. He went back to viewing himself as nothing but a vessel for OFA because he believes OFA is the only thing that can beat AFO, hence why he trusted the vestiges when they said “we can fight him from the inside” (which I think was a silly decision. It’s noble in theory but it amounted to nothing because Izuku can’t win in this regressive state of self sacrifice anymore. Or at least, he shouldn’t since it’s such a big part of his arc.).

And now, with the most recent chapter with most of his classmates present it seems like he’s regretting that decision because he’s being reminded that people care about him. They showed up to support him regardless of already being hurt because he can’t win on his own. Eri mutilated herself to help him and if that doesn’t tell him that fighting without the intent of not dying is stupid, idk what will.

(Ch. 421)

He was about to just throw himself back into the fight with the same mindset as before if Aizawa didn’t stop him. He looks frustrated because he realizes the weight of what he’s been doing and how looking up to AM and the previous vestiges shouldn’t be his role models right now considering all of their fates. He’d just be continuing OFAs curse like Katsuki’s been worried about for a hundred something chapters.

In conclusion, this post was very unfocused but I can’t wait to see Izuku kick ass and for Katsuki to show back up because with the impact he’s had on Izuku, I DESPERATELY need them to talk. Most of this post may have very well been a stretch but, let me be delusional please.

[ronancexists]

Hi everyone. I haven't been able to stop thinking about Hazbin Hotel since it came out. I just wanted to get this thought out there and share it with people to see if anyone else has been thinking about it or if it's just me.

So, we all know that Alastor has made a deal of his own, but we don't know with who. I know a lot of people theorize that it's Lilith, and I did too until I watched season 1 again, specifically episodes 7 & 8.

In episode 7, Alastor and Charlie finally make a deal. Alastor told Charlie that the exorcists can be killed, and return, she's going to owe him favors of his choosing in which she doesn't have to harm anybody. I was surprised he didn't want Charlie's soul, but considering she is the daughter of Lilith and Lucifer, Alastor probably didn't want to take the chance of incurring Lucifer's wrath in that way instead of the petty way he did in episode 5.

At first, I was thinking maybe he didn't want it because of a deal he made with Lilith where he couldn't harm Charlie and that's why he's invested in the hotel and in helping her, but then the lyric where he says "she's filled with potential that I could guide" suggests maybe he didn't want Charlie's soul because owning her soul wouldn't be helpful to him in accomplishing whatever he's plotting. Maybe he just really needs her and her power, and by owning her soul, he'd diminish her power. Kind of like with Husk.

Then, in episode 8, the finale song, Alastor has a line that goes "The constraints of my deal surely have a back door." That line in particular is what got me into analyzing Alastor and everything he's done so far. Him saying, or I guess singing, that could possibly mean he didn't make a deal with Charlie to hold it over Lilith. It means he still hasn't figured out a loophole to the deal he made, and I know a lot of people who are on board with the whole "Alastor and Lilith made a deal" theory think the reason he wanted to make a deal with Charlie was to use it to get off of Lilith's leash. But that line he sings could mean that he wanted Charlie to make a deal with him for another reason and that he still has a lot of work to do in discovering a way he could get out of his own.

After all, we are all well aware of the fact that all the songs serve a purpose in moving the story along. Not to mention that they're all freaking bangers. Which is why that lyric has started this whole "What if..." thing with Alastor and the leash Husk revealed he's on.

That being said, it's definitely not a coincidence that he and Lilith were both missing for 7 years, and the fact that Zestial said in episode 4 that there are rumors Alastor "fell into holy arms" suggests that Alastor might have indeed figured out a way to get to Heaven, and perhaps he did meet Lilith while he was there and struck a deal with her.

I'm open to either one of these theories, but I do think it would be kind of neat if I was right and that it turned out Alastor didn't make a deal with Lilith at all, instead it was with somebody else. Maybe someone we've already met, or maybe somebody we haven't.

But regardless of what happens, I love this show and I can't wait for season 2!

Please let me know what you guys think. This thought has been niggling my brain for a while and I just needed to get it out somewhere.

P.S.- A list of things I want to see in season 2 and beyond:

- CHARLIE AND VAGGIE CHARLIE AND VAGGIE CHARLIE AND VAGGIE CHARLIE AND VAGGIE CHARLIE AND VAGGIE CHARLIE AND VAGGIE

- As in kisses, cuddles, adorableness, (maybe even a sex scene considering they did an entire episode with Angel & his pornos), Vaggie carrying Charlie as they fly around Hell

- Not to mention an ENTIRE SONG sung by the two of them. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely ADORE THE SHIT out of the reprise of ''More Than Anything," but these two need a FULL fucking song together

- More of Carmilla and Vaggie bonding and being badasses together

- Angel and Husk becoming a thing

- Learn more about what Lilith and Alastor have been up to while they've both been gone for 7 years

- What Heaven is going to do now that Adam is dead and the Extermination failed

- Also is Heaven or Emily or Sera or ANYONE even gonna ADDRESS the fact that Vaggie was revealed to be a fallen exterminator angel in episode 6?!?! Like I'm sorry but Adam dropped that fucking bomb and the only reaction they showed was Charlie's and nobody even like asked what had happened or why Vaggie was cast out?!?! I'd really like to see something, ANYTHING, that acknowledges this very big reveal to Heaven actually fucking happened lmao.

- Lilith's reunion & explanation to Charlie and Lucifer

- More of our Short King being his nerdy, powerful self

- Lute & Vaggie being toxic exes and/or getting a duet together (a girl can dream lmaoooo)

- Sir Pentious and his adventures in Heaven

- Emily and what she comes up with to help Charlie because she is the true Angel up in Heaven

- Sera getting a fucking kick to the face (or multiple) for letting the Exterminations happen and for all the other hypocritical shit that's been going on

- Everyone's reactions when they find out Sir Pentious has been redeemed

- Niffty being Niffty

- Alastor's plans and what he wants Charlie to do for him because of the deal they made

- Angel & Husk getting out of their respective deals with Valentino and Alastor

- Valentino dying a slow, agonizing, shitty death for what he's done to Angel

- What Keekee being the key to the hotel really means

- More fucking bangers to add to my playlist :)

That's all I can think of for now. If I think of anything else I'll add it on :)

[oonajaeadira]

For the Love of Fic Joel Miller

It's been a time in my world. Busyness and writer's block has been troubling. I think a lot of it stems from just feeling behind in general, so I thought I might launch into a catch-up campaign for myself ... in reading fic.

And I had a lot of this fella to catch up on.

So hold onto your butts, my friends, because herein lies the fics I loved in my several weeks of just. reading. Joel. <3

Spinner by @insomniamamma Joel has such a caretaker streak in him that being observant and taking to a neuro-divergent reader rings so true. I love a huddling-for-warmth tale--I do so enjoy a good cuddle with a gruff broad man.

The Reason for the Season by @prolix-yuy Now here's a fun idiots-to-lovers take where one of the yearners is our Joel. When Ellie has questions about old traditions, he takes her to the other idiot--a school teacher with a warm smile and some yearns of her own. Aka you. I very much enjoyed this tale of finding the many varied and true meanings for the Holiday in all its forms.

Please Mister Please by @grogusmum Hazel imagines Joel as a kindred lovely soul, one that has a song of his own that brings sorrow, just like yours does you. But is seems he has a better song in mind....

Carpe Diem by @boliv-jenta I love that fic writers want nothing ore in the world than to tell Joel he's going to get taken care of and doesn't have a choice in the matter. I'm so glad this one afforded him the chance to actually speak and grab the moment...even with a little help from a friendly weed...

Year of Small Joys: A Quiet Night In by @keldabe-kriff I'm in love with this little slice of post-apocalypse life. It gives me hope that even if the world falls apart, there will still be the chance to find the quiet somewhere, and with someone...

Simple Pleasures by @julesonrecord Listen. i don't care if the info trail goes cold or not. If it means getting off with Joel--even this cranky, somber version of him--I already consider my self lucky.

Able by @ladamedusoif I have no doubt that a cane would come in handy during an apocalypse, and for many reasons. It's fun to watch Joel realize it too, and to walk the reader through one of the things he knows--a full-blown panic attack. Disabled reader represent!

Snooze by @tightjeansjavi Short. Sweet. Quiet. A soft drabble of everything I want--now that Joel is safe and sinking into a domestic life, he loves him some naps. And with naps comes warmth and lazy days, and a big ol' bear of a man to cuddle with.

Mine by @secretelephanttattoo I really really love this beautifully written meditation on Joel and Tess' relationship; how they share intimacy and how they won't. It's heartbreaking and beautiful and so very real.

When His Eyes Open by @undercoverpena A beautiful train of thought from Joel as he opens his eyes to find you awake next to him, thankful for what you represent in his life. It's so soft and wonderful. It's a drabble, but I could read a whole multi-chapter fic of this.

.

BY @something-tofightfor

Birthday Kiss #7: Joel Miller If I was stuck at the end of the world, I'd be thankful to have a Joel Miller to find me in the early hours, knowing exactly where I'd be and exactly what day it was, just to sing me a Happy Birthday.

Smutsgiving Feast 2023: Turkey - Joel Miller It's Thanksgiving in Jackson and Joel's been helping you get settled in after a traumatic past. Everything you need is here--family, an invitation, Joel carving a perfect turkey with his sleeves all rolled up...and perhaps there's more going on upstairs later....

Snow and Mistletoe (series) Rachael loves Christmas and I always look forward to her holiday fics since the coziness always comes through so strong in them. This series is no exception by far. A no-outbreak fic where you own a music store and Ellie's your niece and Sarah's her best friend and the two girls pull a parent trap on you and Joel in the very best way. It all unfolds against a backdrop of different holiday gatherings--social, work, family--and all of them sweet and beautiful and enticing in their own way. The season may be over, but this zinged me back in time a couple of months and I'm not mad about it. In fact, I'm thankful for it.

.

BY @missredherring

Wrong Until You Make it Right A yearning Joel is always good in my book, but the earnest way he years after his plus-sized coworker here is so very juicy and sweet. I love to see him watch a lady do what she does best.

J.M. + "Tell me what you like" I think if I was stuck at the end of the world and asked Joel Miller to read to me because I had no glasses and he said yes, I might die of happiness on the spot.

Warming Up Joel deserves a good teasing, which is a little of what he gets for sleeping in while you go outside to shovel and then return to his furry, heated body to warm up. and, of course, maybe get a little recreational. After all, nothing warms up cold hands like all the bits and pieces of a Joel Miller.

A Flower in February I really love this story. Rachel does a good job of placing you firmly in the QZ with all of its bleakness, giving you one spot of color--a crocus in the snow. After a spot of bad luck with some bad people, Joel's there to set things right--well, as right as it can be. And I'll take it, because in the world of TLOU, it's everything.

.

BY @ezrasbirdie

Observations This is so so sweet. Neuro-D reader is so observant about not being accepted or invited to be part of groups, it breaks my heart. But Joel sees her. Worries about her. Likes her. And he's getting better at pasta.

Sticky This one left me a mess. Maybe not as messy as the toy reader gives him to play with while she's gone or while she's on the phone, but I may have had to wipe the drool off my chin...

Crystal Now this one was made for me. Here we have a witchy reader and Joel has a lot of thoughts about her. Surprise though, because none of them are negative. They're curious and wondrous and endearing. He's bewildered by the hanging herbs and the rocks and oils, but they make her happy and that's all he asks. Sweet man.

Sparks Fly Two words: eating ass. That's what falls out of reader's mouth under the influence and perhaps that's a good slip because there's gonna be plenty going in her mouth--and Joel's--later on. And it's gonna be hot like fire.

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BY @blueeyesatnight

There's a Word for It As Blue says in her notes, this is where she lives. As in, it's what she does best. This here is a no nonsense meditation on Joel and Tess and how they met and how they functioned. There may or may not have been a word for what they had...it was many words. And they're all here in order, comprising this fic.

Trimmed This fic hit something deep in me, the way it uses memory is really lovely and really feels steeped in canon. The little things we share with someone, not worth mentioning to anyone else, hard to put into words how meaningful it is to you personally or maybe you don't know until they're gone...or until a familiarity with someone else triggers it...

Trouble This is a masterclass in examining Ellie and Joel after they return to Jackson. It weaves in and out of their shared POVs, examining their feelings about who they've become, how they justify Joel's actions and words, who they are to each other, how far they can trust one another, and maybe how tainted that love is. But it's still love all the same. It's amazing and packs a really good punch.

Honest Mistake A short and sweet trope reversal where Joel makes an honest mistake and instead of retrieving Tommy from a situation, kidnaps a boss instead. I love the way the brothers' relationship comes out in the dialogue.

Trying This fic broke my heart a couple of times. Blue imagines the Joel of beforetimes and then bridges the gap to Tess. The man just keeps at it, over and over....because its' what he knows. It makes his arrangement with Tess and actual heaven and I thank her for it.

I Like My Girls A Little Bit Older - (Over the Hill pair) And I like that Joel likes it. He certainly has a type and the reader in this fic has a real sassy, no-nonsense attitude that can meet Joel's in a pretty good dance. And that last sentence may be a spoiler for this story...maybe...

I Know Just What You're Saying - (Over the Hill pair) I love that when Joel is having trouble understanding a teenage girl, he has the foresight to go talk to someone what WAS one once. And that he cares enough to ask for the biiggest favor...and that the reader has no choice but to give it to him.

I Thought I Could Be Someone - (Over the Hill pair) There are so many forms of grief and some of them come out of nowhere from sources you never even knew. Blue does beautiful job in finding that moment here, all wrapped up in an unexpected softness from Joel. This is my favorite of the series yet.

Just Like Heaven - (Over the Hill pair) This brought me back to being a teenager, that "does he like me or want to keep me at arm's length" feeling, that "should I kiss him or is he gonna kiss me" feeling. Of course I get the ending I'm hoping for though! Blue is not gonna leave us hanging when it comes to Joel Miller.

That Summer Seemed to Last Forever - (Over the Hill pair) I still don't forgive Blue for this one. How dare she make me love so bittersweet? That's not to say it isn't beautiful and artfully done. Grab yer hankies, all.

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BY @morallyinept

O' Christmas Tree by @morallyinept This is a precious, delicate story, one in which Joel loves so deeply and hurts so much that the thought of losing you--a real possibility since you've been very ill. But he'd do pretty much anything to see you smile, even if it means facing down a day int he cold to bringyou something to warm your heart.

Northern Lights Imagine camping with Joel. Sharing a sleeping bag. Under the aurora. Hand stuff in the wild has never been so sweet and hot.

Saviour Harsh and heartbreaking and real, this Joel is almost beyond help and I love the way Jett so beautifully details the many little deaths of a survivor. Angst to spare here, but true to character all the way.

Adoration Imagine you are married to no-outbreak, breast-man Joel. Happy. Loved. With a lump. I'm so awed by this fic, that Jett takes a very common nightmare and examines it, never sugar-coating, never denying the difficulties. It's a hard process and maybe I cried. But then there's Joel and his beautiful, steady consistency. I've never been more in love.

Home I can't imagine the love of my life just disappearing one day...but Jett can. Don't worry though, there's a happy ending waiting for you.

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BY @maggiemayhemnj

Happy Tuesday There's no need for Valentine's Day if there's a Happy Tuesday. I love this take on a couple who know how sappy they are for each other but make a joke of subverting the sap. A no-outbreak Joel who's still 20 years on, 20 years in love, and 20 years loving it. Which is exactly how long I'll be loving these two.

A mini Happy Tuesday interlude (Spring prompt: Bees) - (Happy Tuesday pair) Maggie's damn good with a drabble, but even better with a good ending line. I smile every time.

He Sees You - (Happy Tuesday pair) If this is what goes through Joel's head as he watches you assess yourself in the mirror, then that man is in L O V E love.

Breakfast Is Served - (Happy Tuesday pair) I would do anything to be able to cook well, if only to be able to make biscuits for Joel Miller so we can sit at the table with messy bed head and use breakfast as Sunday foreplay.

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[rattkachuk]

💛 mattdrai after the scf

💛 reunion kiss / relief - ao3 link !!!!!

It’s a late summer in Ontario, and golden sunshine filters through the curtains through one of Connor and Lauren’s many guest rooms, bird song accompanying the breeze through an open window. Leon is sunburnt and its a few days out from Connor’s wedding, and with the amount of events and activities he’d been a part of as one of the groomsmen it was almost enough to make him feel as tired as he was during hockey season. He had to allow himself an hour or so to just do nothing but mindlessly scroll Instagram in the quiet of his room.

He’s pretty sure everybody staying here is doing the exact same thing, there’s some faint voices from the dock on the lake, someone might be watching TV out in the living room, the doorbell rings (probably another McDavid-Kyle family member) and Leon hears a single set of footsteps go to answer the door. It’s all muffled background noise and several minutes pass without Leon thinking much of any of it, until a text pops up on his screen from Connor.

Connor: hey. don’t be mad. he wouldn’t take no for an answer and he rly wants to see you.

There’s no time to process before there’s a gentle knock at the door.

Leon’s fight or flight kicks, seemingly cancelling each other out so he feels like a deer in the headlights and can do nothing but sit still on the bed. “Yah?

The door handle turns and Matthew is standing on the other side. Fucking perfectly endearing smile on his face, and Leon feels his heart twist.

“Hey,” Matthew speaks first, a duffle bag slung over his shoulder as he rocks back and forth on his feet in the doorway.

Leon blinks, finally finding words, “What are you doing here?”

“Uh. Connor’s wedding?”

“Connor didn’t invite you.”

“I was supposed to be your plus one.”

Leon bites his lip and gives a slight shake to his head before making himself get off the bed, walking over to tug Matthew in by the elbow of his sweater—a Puma sweater that Leon had been missing for months now.

The door clicks shut and Matthew lets his bag fall to the floor, “You don’t want me here?”

“Matthew. I don’t know.”

“Okay…well, you haven’t answered a single call or text from me since June, and I already had the tickets booked, if you didn’t want me here you should have fucking said something. How am I supposed to…I don’t know what to do either, this is new territory for me, too, y’know? But I can’t keep waiting around. I need you to talk to me, Leon. So, I'm sorry if this is the only way I can get a conversation with you.”

Leon walks away to create distance between them, going as far as the walls of the room will let him as he buries his face in his hands. His chest hurts while his head is swimming, and an ache that hasn’t left since that final game 7 buzzer surges to the surface and it makes him feel sick. Underneath it all, there’s the bitter taste of regret like bile in his throat. He wasn’t there for Matthew. Wasn’t able to be a normal fucking partner and celebrate with him because he was too busy nursing one of the worst pains he’d ever felt. Something so gnawing and deep that left him feeling empty most days, and so distant from those he loved. So distant that even with Matthew here in front of him, it's hard to look at him.

When he turns back towards him, there’s tears in Matthew’s eyes and he’s not even trying to stop them as they track down his cheeks.

“I’m not sorry for winning,” Matthew tells him, voice thick.

“No. Matthew. You shouldn’t be,” Leon sniffs and takes a minute to choose his words before continuing, “You deserved it, you deserved every second of it. It just. It hurts. You know?”

“I do know,” Matthew looks towards the ceiling and laughs, dry and devoid of any real humour, “This whole time I just kept thinking about how special it would be to celebrate this whole fucking with you, and I can never do that because I know exactly what it feels like.”

“Fuck.”

“Fuck,” Matthew agrees with pursed lips.

Guilt raises it’s hand for a turn in Leon’s sea of emotions, bustling to the front of the line as he thinks about Matthew’s unanswered texts in his phone. The strings of ‘I love you’s’ from that week of partying with the cup, the ‘just checking in’ and ‘i miss you’s’.

“I’m sorry I haven’t answered you,” Leon says, looking down at his feet as the shame burns hot on his neck, “I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to be what you need. I still don’t know if I can be or if…if we…”

Matthew is the one to close the distance, his hands on Leon’s shoulders causing him to look up with a shock.

“Hey. Stop. I just need you, Leo. I don’t need you to be anything more than you have been, not right now,” Matthew moves a hand to the side of Leon’s face, and there’s desperation in his blue eyes, “We’re getting through this, though. And we’re doing it together now, okay? Come on.”

Something drains from Leon a little as he watches Matthew’s eyes, and the ache under his skin grows. Grows until he feels like he needs to pull away again, hide in some dark corner of the world where Matthew can’t find him until he can fix himself, but then Matthew’s hand gives his shoulder a gentle shake and a different sensation starts to dull the hurt. The touch spreads some rays of warmth to his soul like the forgiving sunshine that curls around them both.

There's a new feeling that he can place almost instantly. Relief. He thinks that maybe the cure for all the hurt and the pain was the exact thing he was avoiding. It was Matthew, of course it was.

Leon kisses Matthew, slow and quiet and different than it had ever been before. He pulls him into his arms and Matthew sighs against him, the lines of their bodies pressed together. Matthew had always carried some infectious energy, always able to crawl under Leon’s skin and make a home there with his smug smile and caring heart. It seeped into him now, making Leon feel the warmest and most content he’d been all summer.

When he pulls back, Leon hides his face on Matthew’s shoulder while the other runs his fingers through Leon’s hair.

“I’m glad you’re here,” Leon breaths quietly against Matthew’s neck.

Matthew’s arms tighten around him, “Me too. We’ve got this, yah?”

Leon nods, and he believes him.

[stephsageek]

So, like most unhinged people on the internet (content creators), I had a visceral creative reaction to something I love, namely, The Umbrella Academy. I definitely have a love/hate relationship with some of the writer's choices, but I will always love TUA. I do plan on creating some fanart, but that'll take a while since my style can be labor intensive. I also have a billion story ideas swirling around in my head, including an extension on the show's canon ending where all the Brellies and Sparrows are reincarnated, and another that explores Five and Lila's 7 years on the subway, to another that will be about the 6 years between s3 and s4. Here's is but a taste of one them:

"Much Longer Than Six Years, Five Months, and Two Days"

Summary: Some people believe an affair starts when two people cross the line and become physical with one another. Five and Lila knew better. Looking back, this ‘thing’ between him and Lila had begun much longer than six years, five months, and two days ago. If either of them had been capable of being honest with themselves, they might have been able to admit, it had started from the very beginning.

This is my take on all the years Five and Lila have known each other from the beginning of Season 2 to the events of episode five of Season 4 of The Umbrella Academy. It will be told from alternating POV’s. None of these characters are mine, nor any quotes from the show itself.

Chapter 1: Day One

Five stood across the street, tucked behind the corner of a building observing his brother and some unknown woman, sitting in a car and watching the Texas School Book Depository of all places.

It had taken pathetically little effort to locate his brother.

It had taken Five a few minutes of searching his memory to realize the significance of said building and when he did, he had squeezed his eyes shut and rubbed a tired palm across his face.

Lee Harvey Oswald.

Was Diego really that eager to get arrested again? Did he really think his hero complex was going to do anything besides get his ass thrown in prison or worse?

Fuck that. I spent way too much time and energy just to find your God damn corpse again, ya knucklehead.

Five sighed, trying to focus on listening to them talk, gauging whether or not he needed to step in before the no-brained-wonder could get himself into trouble.

“All right, here’s the plan: Oswald finishes his shift at 4:30 p.m.”

Five rolled his eyes. Is that numbskull fucking serious? What’s he gonna do? Grab ‘em and drag ‘em into the car?

“Once he walks out those doors, we force him into the front seat.”

Five smacked his forehead.

Beside Diego, the woman was biting her nails.

Five furrowed his eyebrows as he watched her. Who the hell is that? And why the hell is she with my idiot brother?

Five tilted his head as he considered her.

He had to admit, he could understand why his brother was hanging around her. She was very pretty.

He narrowed his eyes.

‘Very pretty’ can be very useful to someone who knows how to use that to their advantage.

Especially around blithering morons with ‘mommy issues.’

Five tried to focus on what they were saying, straining his hearing from where he was observing them.

“You’re gonna pin his arms, I’m gonna cut off his trigger finger and tell him he has 24 hours to exit Dallas.”

That’s your plan? Five thought incredulously. What the fuck is that gonna do? What if he’s ambidextrous, ‘ya idiot?! Five found himself blown away by his own sibling's ridiculous logic.

“That’s your plan?” the woman spoke his thought out loud, her tone mirroring his own bewilderment.

“You got a problem with it?” Diego countered with an edge to his voice, indicating his displeasure at his lame-ass plan being called out.

“Well, why don’t we just kill him?” the woman wondered.

Exactly! Why complicate things? Five found himself silently agreeing.

“What?” Diego questioned, his expression shocked and judging.

Five’s mouth twisted in annoyance.

He didn’t know why Diego was acting so surprised, acting as though the umbrella academy hadn’t killed a room full of bank robbers when they rightfully should have still been in middle school.

Five didn’t enjoy killing—never had. But if Diego was going to sit there and act all high and mighty while planning to kidnap a man and cut his finger off, Five was gonna belt him on principle alone.

He listened as the woman clarified that the whole reason they were even going after Oswald in the first place was because Diego thought he was going to shoot the president.

When Diego confirmed this, she replied simply, “Put a bullet between his eyes. Problem solved.”

Five found himself nodding. Clean, simple, straightforward. It’s how any professional worth his salt would approach the problem.

Five paused.

It was not, however, how any sane, rational human being would approach the problem.

It was how an assassin would solve the problem.

Five lifted an eyebrow, his instincts kicking into high gear.

How very convenient for some beautiful mysterious woman to somehow take an interest in his shaggy-headed brother, who had at one time had no more exalted words to say about the woman he had purported to love than she, ‘had great legs’ and a ‘cute butt.’

How very strange that this same woman would have the exact same instincts Five had when it came to solving problems when he had been trained for the explicit purpose of murdering inconvenient individuals since he was a toddler.

The Commission, he thought grimly. It has to be.

“Oh, no, no, we’re not going to kill a man before he’s committed a crime,” Diego argued.

“That’s stupid,” the woman said the same thing Five was thinking, so simultaneously Five thought he’d spoken the words out loud himself.

Five pursed his lips.

He wasn’t sure who this woman was, but at least she wasn’t a moron.

Five found himself snorting at her comments about Diego being ‘an open book written for very dumb children.’

He was inclined to agree.

Okay, so she’s mildy amusing, smart, and pretty.

Five rolled his neck.

Alright. Enough dicking around. Let’s go say ‘hi,’ to Diego’s mystery woman.

Five was fairly certain that this broad was a plant. Someone sent by the Commission to keep eyes on him and had apparently seen fit to do so by using bargain batman.

Well, there's only one way to find out for sure. I'm gonna have to keep an eye on her. At least she's nice to look at.

[mmimagine-40]

Pup pt. 7

Alpha!Steve Rogers x Omega!FReader

Warnings: Talks of abuse , being forced a pound, strong cursing towards a person, talks of guns being pointed at reader.

----------------------------------------------

Brock growled as he watched from the woods as Y/n. Standing far enough away to not be noted as he watched them with binoculars. His wife was being helped and held close to this alpha. Watching them as the Alpha helped her back into his house. The grip on the binoculars was tight as they even cracked like they were going to break under the alphas grip.

Brock wanted to just forget Y/n. She was worthless anyways. He tried to play the nice guy. As his family is getting looked in hard about some shady business. He needed to make sure Y/n trusted him to not tell about the ways of the group. Its why he held off mating her after their marriage. He tried to warm her up and get her to agree to the mating. But she was holding out too long. Brock had needs and this omega was holding out on him. He was losing his temper. Finding his relieve in other omegas. His breaking point was finally her heat came and she refused to have him around her. Locking herself in a room and denying his claiming attempts. He snapped, yelling at her and trying to hold her down. But she got away and got out of the house running. He was going to let her till his father yelled at him to go after her and drag her back here. Now he's been out here for months trying to get this fucking omega back. But she always got away.

Grumbling again he garbed his state out stuff as he headed back in town. It was time to do something about this alpha who was holding his wife from him.

Unknown to Brock there were eyes on him watching him. Watching as he stormed away. A set of beta eyes as he was scoping out the forest after getting reports of hunters in the woods while it wasn't any season for hunting. The beta watched as the alpha walked away back towards the town. Before he backed up and headed back to the ATV. He graded the radio as he paged into the sheriffs office. "This is officer Maximoff. Paging for Sheriff Wilson.".

"Sheriff Wilson Speaking. What you got Pietro?"

"I have eyes on that Alpha you said to keep a look out for. Spotted him outside of Rogers property. Seeming to be watching or stalking the property. He just cleaned up and headed back to Town."

"Good work Maximoff. Finnish your route and head back.".

-

The two days Sam sent the Maximoff twins off to town to check out if the town heard or saw this alpha around. "Got what did y'all get?". Sam asked as he sat down at his desk looking for the small file he started after Steve informed him about the alpha that might become a problem in town. "Most of the town people have seen him. Said he's been walking around asking about an omega. To the description that Steve gave us. He also has been asking about Steve. But most of the towns people said they gave him no information as he seemed very sketchy about the omega.". Wanda read out all the information she wrote down that she got from different towns people. "And I talked to Old Man John. He said that the alpha was asking about the closest store to be able to buy some camping equipment." Pietro also said as he read the reports he got. Sam nodded as he made quick notes about everything. "Good Work you two. Lets keep a close eye out for this guy. I'm not liking how this is sounding.". Sam said as he finished the file before putting it away. "Pietro head back into town doing rounds. Keep an eye out for him and an hear out if anyone has an problems with him." Sam dismisses them both. Pietro heads out to do this rounds. As Wanda makes her way to the desk. Filing reports and doing check up on certin things.

When a bit later she hears the dig of someone walking into the sheriffs office. She looks up smiling to greet the person. Her smile almost flutters as she sees the Alpha but she keeps herself composed. Trying to hold back her shivers as he walks over to the desk. She can just feel he is bad news. "Hi , welcome to the sheriffs office. How can I help you?". Brock smiled sadly at her. "Hi , I was wondering if the sheriff was in or there is an officer I can talk to?". Wanda nodded as she turns to face him more. "The Sheriff is in. I can go get him for you. But can I ask what this is about?". "There is an alpha in town I'm afraid is holding my wife against her will". Brock told her as he looks down very distressed. Wanda slightly pouted playing up being sad for him as she told him she will get the sheriff for him. If he wanted to take a seat while he waited. The smile falling as she turned away. The alpha tried to pay up the vicitm but the anger was still pouting out of him. Poking through the distressed feeling smells he tried to play out.

Wanda walked over to Sam's office knocking lightly before walking in and shutting the door behind her. "Sir He's here". Sam's head looked up at her surprised. "He? As in Brock Rumlow? the alpha that Steve told us about?". "Yes, said he's here to talk to you about an alpha holding up his wife". Wanda informed him. Sam nodded as he gestured for Wanda to go. "Tell him I will be with him in a second I need to make some calls.".. Wanda nodded as she headed back out. Putting the smile back on her face as she told Brock that the sheriff will be with in a bit.

Sam quickly called Steve. Informing him about what is happening.

--Meanwhile--

Y/n was starting to feel better a little bit. The meds were helping and she was getting use to the crouches. Even helping out Steve were she can. Like sitting and cutting up veggies for dinner and so on. Right now her and Steve were packing and going through his office as he was turning it into a bedroom for Y/n. Even though she said not to. He thought it would be good anyways. She had somewhere to stay till she was back on her feet and then he would have a spare room for friends and family. Plus he didn't use the office anyways. Which was made evident as the office mainly only had packed up boxes. Mostly with stuff like old pictures and stuff Steve just hasn't found a place for.

"Whos this?" Y/n asked. She was sat on a chair as she helped Steve go through some of the stuff to figure out where he would store it. When she came across a compass with a picture of a pretty brunette in it in his desk. Steve looked over as his heart fell a bit seeing the compass. He moved over as he gently took the compass and looked at the picture. "Her names Peggy." Steve said as he sadly smiled at the picture. "Shes...an old friend.". Y/n looked up at him as her eyebrows fall in a sadden look. She can see that look on Steve's face that girl was something more. A look of a deep love. One described in those old romance books. "Just an old friend?". Steve looked back at her as he closed the compass and set it down. A confused look as his eyebrow was raised. "Oh come on Steve. Friends don't look at Friends like that.". Steve sighed as he turned away to sort out some other stuff. "Yes... I was in love with her. .. We were high school sweethearts. She was a Beta but I didn't care. Never been an alpha to care about that shit. I thought she was the one. My one and only. But she moved away. Back home to England as she went to a university over there. so we broke up not able to handle the distances". Y/n softly from sadden for Steve as he seemed to have really loved this girl. "Why didn't you ever go after her?". Steve stopped as he looked down. Only knowing each other a few days. But it seems y/n could read him. Able to tell he wasn't one to give up like that. Especially on love.

"I did.". Steve said softly as he moved to face her again. Leaning back on a smaller shelf behind him. As he crossed his arms sighing as he looked down. "we kept in contact. I worked hard in college and took all the classes I could to graduate early. And once I did I bought a ticket and headed off to England. But when I got there I was too late.". "Too Late?" , Y/n asked watching him. "She moved on. Found a nice beta guy. He was in school working to be a veterinarian. Real nice guy. Treated her like a royalty. What she deserved. She felt bad not telling me. But seeing how she looked at him.... I knew. She moved on. and fell in love with an amazing guy. So I let her go. Headed back home and tried to forget her.". Y/n nodded as she watched the emotions go through Steve. After a moment Y/n spoke up again. "Do you still love her?".

Steve's head snapped up as he looked at Y/n. His eyes ran over her face. As he tried to pick up on her emotions. seeing how she felt about it. But she looked a bit relaxed. Happy to see that Steve was happy. And a little bit sad for Steve's heartbreak. He smiled softly as he looked at her. Caught himself as he noted he wasn't really focusing on her feelings about the situation but more wanting to see her be jealous almost. "No....Not anymore.".

Y/n tries biting back the smile as Steve looks at her. That look that he had when looking at her. It was a soft warm look. One that looking into maybe everything feel like its okay. like a warm , safe place.

There go back to working on cleaning out the room when Y/n excused herself to go to the bathroom. While she was gone , Steve's phone rang. Steve looked confused to see Sam calling him. "Hey Sam what's up?". "Red Star". Steve's heart drops as he used to code name They made up. Steve looked out the door to see Y/n barley getting to the bathroom. A bit slow on the crouches. He softly closed the door before he told Sam to talk as the coast was clear. "Your Alpha guy. Brock. He's here in the office. Asking to talk to me. Apparently he is trying to spin the story that his wife is being held against her will. I haven't fully talked to him yet. That's just what Wanda got from him. But I wanted to call to warn you as when I go out there, I have duty as the sheriff to take this serious and check it out.". Sam warned Steve. "I understand Sam. Thank you for calling me...I have an idea to throw him off. But I don't trust that he won't get upset and do something stupid.". Steve told him. "Don't worry about that I'm having Pietro come for back up along with Bucky. Just keep an hear open, i'm sure we will be up there shortly.". "Alright, thanks again Sam.". Steve said before hanging up with Sam. He sighed as he tossed his phone the side as he hung his head low , shaking his head.

"Steve? ..Everything okay?" Y/n asked as she walked/limped back into the room. Steve sighed again taking a sec before looking back at her. Knowing he needs to tell her. "Y/n.. Something happen or is going to happen i need to prepare you for.". Y/n's eyes scrunched together confused at Steve's very serious face as he helped her to sit back down in the chair. Steve crouched down to be face to face with her. "Brock went to the sheriffs saying I am holding you against your will." "What?" Y/n asked as her heart fell as she started to get scared. Steve took her hands trying to clam her. "He's spinning a tale that I'm holding you against your will, The sheriff is a buddy of mine. He told he was there and that he will have to come here to check on you and hear from you that you want to be here. Now I don't trust that Brock will take that and he will try something... So I have an idea to get him to act out and get arrested. But I need you to trust me." Y/n nodded as she took a deep breath trying to clam herself as she listened to him. "I trust you Steve" Steve softly smiled at her as he gently strokes her hands as he holds them. "The fake mark I gave you the other day.... let me scent it up again as it will seem like I just mated you. Which will probably piss him off.". Y/n nodded as she looked down nervously. Steve watched her trying to read her. "I don't have to if you don't feel comfortable.". Y/ns eyes snapped back up to Steve's. "No! .. sorry no, that's not.. I'm not uncomfortable about the fake mark...Its just....I'll have to face Brock won't I?". Steve fights back the smile as he want's to beam hearing her almost, excitement to have his mark on her , even if it was fake. He looked down composing himself. "Yes, but I'll be by your side the whole time. I promise". Y/n looked down for a second thinking before looking back to Steve nodding. As she agree to it.

Steve pulls back from Y/ns neck as he rebite the mark softly and scenting it. trying to hold back his alpha growl as he hers her softly whimper under him. Thoughts again filling his heads of her as a mate. Finally pulling back as he hears a knock at the door. The scents of Sam and that alpha Brock at the door. He looked at Y/n who looked a bit scared but once she looked back at Steve as he still held her face she calmed down nodding that she was ready. Steve told her to stay there till he called her.

Steve made his way to the door taking a breath before he opened the door. Smiling at Sam. "Sheriff , Hi. What can I do for you?". Sam nodded as he stood on the porch of the cabin Brock was stood down the steps of the porch. looking very pissed off as he looked Steve up and down. "Evening Steve. Sorry to bug you but this gentleman here said that his Wife is being held against her will here. So I need to check in. Is someone named Y/n Rumlow or Y/n L/n here?". Steve nodded as he called for Y/n. Who used the crouches to walk over. Setting them to the side as she leaded on Steve a bit. Asking whats going on with a slight smile. Trying to act like she doesn't see Brock. Who at this was fumming. "Evening Ma'am. Are you Y/n?" Y/n nodded as she looked at the Sheriff Sam. He was an alpha. But had the sweetest and kindest smile and look in his eyes. "Well ma'am I have a Mr. Brock Rumlow who said he is your husband and that you are being held against your will. Is that true?". Y/n's eyes cut back to Brocks. Normal his look would scare her a lot. Knowing what he can do to her. But stand next to Steve and meeting the people like Bucky and Nat. She felt more powerful to be able to get away from him. "No I'm not being held against my will. Mr.Rumlow is my ex husband. I am trying to get a divorce from.". "A divorce! Like hell! We arn't getting a divorce! You are my wife! You are mine! Even if you whored yourself out to this alpha you are still mine! Now lets go Y/n!" Brock growled as he made his way up the stairs and over.

Sam turned and pushed him back. "Mr. Rumlow! Back down now!" Brock growled as he push Sam down the stairs as he reached back into his back of his pants. Pulling out a gun as he pointed it at Y/n. Demanding her to come with him now if she doesn't want to really be hurt. Steve pushed Y/n Behind him as he stared Brock down. Who just smirked. "Even better I'll kill you and that sheriff and take mine Omega back." But as he said that he could hear the sounds of guns cocking behind him. He turned as he sees the sheriff standing with a gun pointed at him. Along with a Beta and an Alpha next to him pointing shotguns at him. As he was distracted Steve stepped in twisting his hand back to take his gun and pointing it back at him.

Sam cuffed the Alpha and walking him to the cop car as he read him his rights as he had Pietro take both Steve and Y/n's statement.

After some time Pietro got all that he needed letting Y/n and Steve go. "Pietro, Send the file to Tony Stark after everything is filed"

_--------------------------------

I know this was long! I just couldn't stop writing this part! I hope you enjoy. If you wish to be on the tag list for this story please let me know. As well as I am thinking of having Tony , Peter and Pepper in the next one. What do you think they should be? My idea is Omega Tony and Peter and then Alpha! Pepper. -MM

[unnecessary-dinosaurs]

Ok! I watched Chaos Theory! I have a lot of thoughts! There were things I liked a lot and things I wasn’t a fan of. I generally liked it but came away slightly underwhelmed. If you haven’t watched it yet please go do so!!! Support the show and the wonderful crew that put it together!!!

SPOILERS BELOW THE CUT

WHAT I LIKED:

-MATEO!!! I literally loved him so much. A fantastic, simple character that doesn’t overstay his welcome or detract from our main characters. Great motivations and realistic backstory. Yeah. I really liked him. Yeah.

-Yasammy! Obviously they were amazing. They got to be cute and bubbly and gay but also their argument was so real and believable. Neither one of them is completely in the wrong. They are just two flawed people who’ve been through more than they can handle on their own. They need each other but not always in the way they might think. They were such a highlight this season. Can’t wait for more of them.

-This whole show just feels like a dramatic step up in visual storytelling from CC. The sets are beautiful and intricate, the lighting and textures are fantastic, and the directing is just really great. There are some really creative shots and transitions, and overall it just feels like more confident directing and storyboarding all around. (I specifically remember episode 7 being really great visually. Super fun stuff.)

-All the dinosaur action was great. Like next level shit. The way they keep finding creative ways to use these animals for action and suspense is very impressive. The raptors are genuinely scary. The Allosaurus and Pachyrhinosaurus were personal favs.

-Unlike Dominion, they actually showed what living in a world with dinosaurs is like- how people are adjusting to this new way of life, adapting to the presence of these animals, and keeping themselves safe. Totally what I wanted to see from Dominion, and Chaos Theory did it better within a single episode.

-There was some very well crafted suspense throughout this season. The mystery does a great job of constantly keeping you pulled in. Every time a question is answered, five more are asked.

-The darker tone is definitely welcome. The characters are older and they’ve experienced a terrible loss. The weight of the new world weighs on them and the audience in a very tangible way.

-This one isn’t really constructive but like. I just love Darius so much. He’s so perfect.

WHAT I DIDN’T LIKE:

-Unfortunately I thought the character writing was significantly weaker than any season of CC. It was genuinely impressive how they were able to make me not care much about these versions of Ben and Kenji, my absolute favorite characters in CC. Before the characters felt like real, living people. Now, they just feel like fictional characters to me. Really good characters, yes, but still just characters. Maybe I’ll go into further detail about this in a future post. But yeah, overall it felt like the characters took a backseat this time around.

-I’m so sorry but I absolutely could not stand the new VA for Kenji. I’m sure he’s trying his best but he sounded uninterested and half-assed most of the time. Brooklynn’s new actor was… fine? Didn’t care for her either but she didn’t bug me the way Kenji did. Let’s start a GoFundMe to pay for Ryan to come back.

-Ok. Yeah. Not a fan of Darius being in love with B. Like, ok. It makes sense and it fits the plot well. But it just seems unnecessary. Darius can be devastated by her loss without it. Ehhh maybe they’ll handle it well in future seasons but. No. Not for me.

-Also didn’t like Daniel Kon’s death. I liked that they brought him back, but killing him felt undeserved. Like, he was the main antagonist for the first show, but you just kill him off in a random episode six years later? I think he deserved a little more reverence rather than reintroducing him for one episode and then quickly killing him for shock value once he’s served his purpose.

-WHY DID THEY GIVE BEN A GIRLFRIEND THAT BOY IS GAY AS HELL NOOOOO

[tua-five]

Season 2 Episode 10

Today's episode starts off sad. A painful reminder that Ben is gone.

Reginald was cruel enough to blame it on the kids, but at least had the decency to let them have the day off.

I also love it shows that each and every one of them affected the timeline. Even Klaus. How he was named and knew the connection (probably through last name), I don't know. And of course, they think Five was being held hostage and then Five says he does feel like it sometimes.

Which brings another thing to attention. The news specified "hostage" not kidnapped. Kidnapped requires moving the victim, whereas hostage does not. However, that has nothing to do with my point. Hostage also requires the attention of a 3rd party. So they believed that they held Five hostage in order to do something or get something. What exactly did they think that was? I really want to know how far the conspiracy theorists went.

The siblings all had a lot of balls to tell [Viktor] that they won't help [him] and Harlan. For the first time, [he's] asking for help. Admitting that [he's] scared. And they tell [him] they have other priorities. They tell the one who literally keeps ending the world no. Good choice. Also, little do they know that it literally WILL be their priority in just a few measly hours. They make up for it by all joining in the car. That was really sweet.

And wow, I forgot that Ben told [Viktor] to tell Klaus that he was too scared to go into the light. That it wasn't his fault. I almost started crying again.

The only thing I can think of, is Diego should've shut his dang mouth. I mean, I know it would've happened anyway, but still. Diego saying there's 7 of the siblings and 2 of them. Oh yeah, you're right. See what I can do? Boom. A billion commissioners. Idiot.

I am proud of Diego, however, with the bullets. He's never done anything like that (assumably), and it's a lot at once, too. He did it to save his dumb brother that everyone believes got themselves into this mess.

There's a lot going on here, and I'm writing as I watch, so it's a little difficult to find the words to voice my thoughts on this. I'll try my best.

[Viktor] being able to calm Harlan, being able to go into the little bubble that was created, is impressive. It might not seem like it, but it actually really is. That I'd such a huge energy force. Anyone else would probably be dead.

Lila being able to mimic everyone's powers is way too overpowered. And somehow, without practice with any of the powers, she's already stronger and can master them. Despite Five being too tired to blink, Lila was still able to.

Klaus being about to hit the ground, but being caught by ghosts. Another show of his powers and how great they can be.

And of course, Five being the dumbest most idiotic person and pushing a 300-pound Luther out of the way of falling bricks. Luther literally survived a chandelier being dropped on him without a scratch. However, I do know that Five doesn't truly know that, so fine. But still. His love for his siblings makes him dumb.

Another thing about Five. He was too tired to blink with Diego, but then he goes and fights Lila, blinking around the room. There's 2 logical reasons he's able to do this. 1 being, he's had enough rest that he isn't tired anymore (though 2 minutes barely feels like enough time), or 2, he's running on adrenaline now. Out of fear. For himself and his family. He sees Allison dying, thought Luther was going to die (supposedly) by the bricks, etc. He's mad and confused, and he's afraid. He won't admit it, but he is. I'd like to believe it's the latter. That he's running on adrenaline. It just makes more sense.

Okay, hold on..

It seems I have remembered things wrong..?

The siblings are just now figuring out that Lila is "one of them". Klaus says, "Eh, but there were only 7 of us." Somenwhere somehow, my brain went to the hargreeves siblings knows that they are 7 of 43 gifted children born on the 1st of October 1989 from women who were not pregnant when the day began. I assumed that Reginald Hargreeves told them so. However, here, the siblings say that he never told the full truth. That they should consider the possibility of there being more of them out there. Meaning they didn't know about the other 36 children.

I went back to the first episode. To rewatch Sir Reginald's speech after the bank heist. And he says, "Our world is changing. Has changed. There are some among us lifted with abilities far beyond the ordinary. I have adopted six such children. I give you the inaugural class of The Umbrella Academy." So here, he hints that there are more "powered" people out there. However, the siblings now seem to not know that. So Reginald, either gaslit them, and/or they blocked that out. They're kids, so right now, all they're thinking about is the hundreds of people in front of them. The news cameras. The people they just saved and those they killed. The victory of their assumed first mission.

Can we talk about the amazing lines in just 30 seconds?

Luther saying "Love shouldn't hurt this much." Diego saying "I know what it's like to love dangerous people. Difference is... they love me back." Him saying that they can be her family if she let's them. Lila pausing to look at the others, and they all smile at her!! Like they truly will!!?

And then, dang, I did not remember The Handler just killing everyone so quick.

What's so sweet is Lila saying, "They're my real family." To the one she's called mom for so long. She's calling them family after she just tried killing all of them.

It's also sad how I'm sure Five is using his very last energy to go back in time. "Seconds. Not decades." He's dying, a gun pointed st his face, and his father's words echo in his head. And he uses that.

So much can change in a matter of seconds.

He saves his family with the last ounce of hope and will he has. Successfully.

Oh, and may I just say. With how accident prone and apocalypse prone, the siblings are, they should've known to take an extra briefcase. Just in case, ya know?

Cause yeah. "Shit" is right.

Gif collection!

[fountainpenguin]

Riddle watches New Wish - Post #5

They're so cute...

OH, she set them up!! Here we go!

Wanda making squeaky toy noises when Cosmo hugs her is all I've ever wanted.

"We're real, all right! ... Real fairies. Not real humans."

BUDAWHAAAAAAAA-? Thank you Cosmo for just confirming elastic skin, which has been one of the most important headcanons in my worldbuilding. I did not expect you to do that for me, but... thanks?

Pfft, Wanda changing her legs.

ERG??? Is that you?

Okay, there's that "We've been retired for 10k years" implied time travel bit; I think I remember that from the story bible + early convos with my friends, so at least I came prepared to expect that.

This is either time travel - which plays perfectly into my established "Cosmo ate a time key during dinosaur times and has been running around through time unsupervised for ages" headcanon anyway, LOL - or they're flat-out lying to Hazel, seeing as the audience already knows Timmy is confirmed as a recent godkid, so... Hm.

SLDKFJSD I love how the guy who accidentally sent his baby stroller down a steep hill is wearing a #1 Dad hat. "My expensive stroller! ... I mean, my baby!" - Yeah, we're still in FOP. All the parents are terrible here.

Setting her up as loving french fries and then turning her into a fly who found french fries was clever.

Cosmo once again being so close and yet so far to his mark. Good to see him back!

Me when I return my would-be murderer's daughter, who is a bug.

I AM SO GLAD that even in 10,000 years, Wanda's small talk skills have not improved far beyond "I'm Human McRealPerson" and "My husband is a grilled cheese sandwich" from back in the day, sdlkfj. That's my girl!

oh no, the Venus flytrap gift they brought over is about to go so wrong.

Yep, she's still goin'. Talking about the carwash.

GIRL check your fingers.

OH MY GOSSSSSSH, he's dressed for a classy party in Fairy culture. Cosmorella? We thought you were dead!!

... That's an ant? I would've guessed tick.

It's a guy ant? Buddy, are you sure you're supposed to be foraging?

Let's go!!

SDLKFJSDKLFJSLKJF noooo... No, no, no, no, no... Not the thing I use to symbolize memorials for the dead, c'mon!

It IS an accurate item for a Fairy house- these were all over the place in Fairy World during the old show, AND in that color, though you usually see more than one "wand" per pot.

I'm super impressed the artists studied the old interior design customs. Huh.

Cosmo lives here. Also, BABY!!

OOH, I'm excited that Cosmo and Wanda's window overlooks Fairy World because it's kind of a portal. I did something super similar with a rat cage in an upcoming Frayed Knots scene, where Anti-Cosmo and Wanda are godparenting together during school. Nifty!

He even confirmed it's a spell on the front door! Wow. Somehow, Past Me nailed that.

"We can choose which world we go out into!" -> /Me with my 'fic where Kevin Crocker is confused that Shirley's Pizza Parlor has an exit on the other side that goes to Retroville.

Cosmo: We lived in Timmy's fishbowl for 20 years. Wanda: It was 7.

You are both wrong- it was like 68 <3 But honestly, I forgive you for not wanting to tell Hazel time was frozen for 50 years. I don't think she'd like that. Actually, I don't think she was born yet, because my vision is time freezing at the end of Season 4, and Dale was rescued in Season 2, so... Yeah, she wasn't born. Still, you don't wanna just drop that on someone.

That's actually very funny that Cosmo and Wanda are struggling because they're out of practice during their retirement.

THERE'S THE SIGN!! Way to go.

Oh, and the credits are done in a similar style to the old ones? Even the colors? That's so cute! That's also nice that Hazel's VA was a story editor too- That probably helps with the passion and vision.

That was cute. I liked it. Huge relief to see something well-researched and made with love after "Fairly Odder" was a struggle for me.

I've got a little more time tonight, I might be able to get one more episode done before bedtime.

[fromxxthexxashes]

"I think it's almost a feeling of searching or uneasiness, not necessarily with Eddie, but within himself," Stark, 32, exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting season 7. "And it's easier sometimes to put that onto somebody else than have to do the self-reflection and self-interrogation of, 'Hey, what am I actually feeling here?'"

.

"I think once you watch the episode, you actually realize it's not necessarily that he just doesn't quite understand what he's feeling," he said. "And this jealousy [with Eddie] is the way that it manifests itself, but it's not necessarily the root cause of his unease."

.

"And I think that's kind of the story that we're able to start to tell here, is that Buck isn't consciously aware of the thing that he's looking for or what's lacking in his life," Stark shared with Us. "And as he hopefully starts to discover that it's this cathartic, liberating feeling of just being able to ease into it and breathe out this big sigh of relief at last."

.

Everything we’ve been given in terms of promotion, interviews, and plot really feels like Buck is going to figure out he has feelings for Eddie in 7x04, and will grapple with what that means in 7x05. The episodes that follow might follow Buck as he tries to figure out more about who he is and his sexuality, and what his feelings for Eddie might mean for their friendship. Does he want to pursue that potential relationship? Does he want to go out into the world and dive deep into a part of himself he’s only just discovered or acknowledged for the first time?

This really does feel like Bi Buck is finally incoming this season, and that makes me so excited. Seeing a Bisexual character in such a massive show will be such a big deal. I think it will be such a beautiful storyline for Buck.

(Maybe by the time the finale roles around Buck will confess, and then when s8 starts up it begins with Eddie grappling with Buck’s confession and his feelings for Buck that he doesn’t understand fully. I literally can’t wait for the storyline of Eddie undoing years of repression and accepting himself and his sexuality).

I think the rest of s7 and the first half of s8 would be a great span of episodes to stretch out some angst, sexuality discoveries, and some not actually unrequited love.

Maybe I’m still delusional, but it really feels like something has shifted this time. I’m so excited to see where this all leads.

[olreid]

riverdale is.. schrodinger's show? ??

lol re tags on this post i assume? this is actually alfie @hypokeimena's phrase #alfiepilled and literally just means that he does not watch the show but does watch us watch the show and so always at any time any plot point or series of events is possible because riverdale exists in a state of totipotency right up until the moment of viewing the footage to see what actually happened which again he crucially never does.

HOWEVER i have adopted this phrase into my own riverdale lexicon because i think it helps to get at something which is usually kind of difficult to articulate about riverdale's method. riverdale, more than your typical tv program, IS a show where anything can happen, and that quality has not changed or diminished over the course of its run. typically, in tv, as you build out the world and the characters, you become better able to predict what will happen next; the window of probable events grows smaller, even if only slightly. people pair off, foreclosing other relationships; they pick a career, choosing one life over other possible lives they might have lived. even shocking plot twists are operating under a set of basic rules that govern how the setting and the genre operate such that the overarching parameters of what is possible in the world don't change. but not so in riverdale! it's not committed to the sanctity of its own canon, which frees the team up to create a show that reminds me more of a collage; different narrative pieces get swapped around to see what kinds of meanings they might produce with very little preciousness about continuity or canonicity compared to other programs. different storylines are repeated by filtering them through new genres to see what emerges. season 7's premise is a perfect example of this!

the other thing about riverdale that makes it schrodinger's show to me is that it is always operating on multiple registers of reality simultaneously, so that any number of things might be happening at once depending on how you're reading it. for example, in the season 3 g&g plot, many episodes are framed by games of g&g that precisely mirror real-world events going on concurrently in town, e.g. jughead accurately describing archie's prison break as it's happening even though he's not physically there. maybe this is just an extradiegetic narrative device; maybe particular characters are omniscient or psychic in some way; maybe the game itself has powers that allow it to shape the world or the story; maybe riverdale itself only has a certain number of pre-set stories that it can tell. the list could go on. the point is that all of these are equally likely; riverdale does not privilege realism or groundedness, really the opposite, but neither does it often confirm for certain that something supernatural is happening. rather, the viewer is left to interpret for themselves; to choose between these options if they want, or perhaps instead to hold them all simultaneously. indeed, riverdale never forces you to pick, to narrow it down; in riverdale, more than any other show i've ever watched, you can have everything you want, and you can have it all at once, because there is no definitive reality, which means everything is pretty much equally (un)real. the cw is pioneering quantum television and we're here to witness it! what a time to be alive!!!

[oracleofdiscord]

just realized i've never shared my Garmadon Lives AU idea with you guys

it's something i came up with while watching season 5 with @destinysbounty

you know how in season 5, sensei garmadon is trapped in the cursed realm by unbreakable chains? it got me thinking - what if there was a way to break those chains, but it was just beyond what an individual (like lloyd) could do and instead needed to be more of an act of fate?

basically the premise for this au is that morro isnt content with just possessing lloyd, but instead finds a way to actually steal his powers/destiny, becoming the green ninja

but a version of the green ninja who's never actually...fought the Ultimate Battle from the prophecy. and garmadon was kind of a key part of that battle

so destiny itself causes the chains to break in an attempt to set the Ultimate Battle back up for morro to fight, which means that lloyd is able to successfully rescue his father when he goes to the cursed realm

so sensei garmadon comes back! i was picturing him coming back fully because he physically went to the cursed realm, body and all, but i could also seem him coming back as a ghost although in that case i'd need to rename the au

so lloyd and sensei garmadon go to confront morro together (basically the chase-through-the-realms fight from the end of the season), and the fight being 2-against-1 helps balance out the fact that now morro has the green ninja's power

they're able to take lloyd's power back during that fight, and the rest of the season pretty much plays out the same as the original

now, i haven't really decided how this changes season 6 (probably not much) and season 7, but i have absolutely thought about how season 8 exists in this universe.

the sons of garmadon still exist, and harumi is still their leader. but rather than wanting to bring garmadon back from the dead, she wants to bring garmadon back to his old evil self

basically, she thinks this version of garmadon is weak (pretty sure that actually is something said in Garmadon Rulez!) and wants him to go back to what she sees as his stronger self

she still ends up hearing a voice from the mask, but rather than lord garmadon's voice, it's more a general personification of the evil magic in the mask. it promises that it can help her restore the version of garmadon that defeated the devourer

rather than a resurrection spell, harumi gets her hands on a spell that can essentially re-awaken the darkness in an oni's heart

(the reason i say specifically an oni's heart is that i'm picturing the spells being from the same source, and it's all oni-related magic. and also for another reason we'll get to later.)

although having garmadon around and actively trying to stop her once the truth is revealed does make things more difficult, she succeeds in the end, turning sensei garmadon back into lord garmadon

(i'm picturing that playing out in the same order as the resurrection - it's assumed she failed, she gets taken to prison, but then the spell does in fact start working)

from there, everything plays out pretty much the same as in the actual show, with one exception:

surprise! this is also a Mystake Lives AU now!

basically, instead of getting killed when she gets caught by emperor garmadon, she gets the same spell used on her, turning her evil

however, after the oni trilogy, she basically does the same thing as garmadon of going off on her own adventures and vanishing, rather than enacting any grand evil plans

so in season 11, during that part in the ice chapter when sensei wu and p.i.x.a.l. are trying to reach the ninja but don't have enough traveler's tea, they decide to try and track down mystake to see if they can convince her to help

this turns into a little adventure of its own. they do eventually find her, but are unsuccessful in convincing her to help them

however, there are some hints that they might be starting to get through to her and the evilness induced by the spell isn't neccessarily permanent, foreshadowing garmadon's arc during crystalized

and also leaving mystake as a possible future character because it's what she deserves

[charlotteharlatan]

A list (non-exhaustive) of why the 1941 flashback scenes are haunting both me and The Narrative, Part 2:

(link to Part 1)

6. There are additional scenes that point to 1941. The Ritz scene from S1ep6 where they toast “to the world” also echoes the S2ep4 1941 scene, because these are the only two instances where we see Crowley and Aziraphale “cheers” to something with their drinks and then take a sip at the same time - they are also the only two instances where they both consume the same substance at the same time.

(To contrast, look at the Rome flashback from S1ep3, in which they also “cheers” but only Crowley takes a sip of his drink afterwards. In fact, if you watch the entire Rome flashback, there’s never a time when their sips synch up.

I could go off on a whole other tangent about the peculiar significance of “ingesting substances” within Good Omens and how it serves as a direct metaphor for acquiring knowledge/losing innocence, vis a vis Eve and the apple, and Aziraphale with the ox rib, but that would be adding at least a few more paragraphs.)

There’s another element that famously features in the S1ep6 Ritz scene, a piano cover of “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square.” If we operate on the assumption that we’re meant to link these two events as well, then an inference that the song also played a role that night in 1941 now seems less like a leap, and more like a logical step.

7. We also can’t leave out the context clues within the S2 1941 scene itself. I’ve already mentioned the gramophone and the wine, but there’s another element in the scene’s background that seems to be hinting at something:

The lamps. Despite the candles on the table, there are lit lamps in the background. Again, the background is out of focus, but the lamps seem to be human figures, and they appear as though they might be dancing couples. Why have these lights turned on if you have candles lit? Our attention is meant to be drawn to these light fixtures in this moment; it’s possibly more foreshadowing.

(Of course, you could also turn it the opposite way and say the audience is meant to ask: why light candles when the lamps work just fine, for which there is very little explanation other than Aziraphale was actively trying to create romantic ambiance. Which would only add to the suspicion that something more may have happened between them in 1941 that the first two seasons left out.)

8. Chronologically speaking, the next time we see Crowley and Aziraphale together after 1941 is in 1967, when Aziraphale pops in on Crowley in the Bentley. One of the most striking things about the 1967 scene is that the emotional tone has shifted rather dramatically from what it was like at the end of the S2 1941 scene.

There’s awkward tension between them; every line of dialogue carries heavy hidden meaning. The repressed longing is palpable. Crowley is subdued and cautious, and Aziraphale is avoiding Crowley’s eyes and speaking in a stilted voice.

It could just be the subject matter that’s making things awkward - the holy water had been a matter of major contention between them - but there seems to be much more to this tension. We pay a lot of attention to “you go too fast for me, Crowley,” and we should (especially given that when Aziraphale is actually able to look directly at Crowley in this scene, he keeps glancing at his mouth), but there are other bits of dialogue that are important there too.

Crowley offers to drive Aziraphale “anywhere he wants to go” and Aziraphale turns him down. But from information we received in S2, we now know that the bookshop was literally across the street. We are being implicitly told that Crowley is offering a whole lot more than just a drive home, but we are also being primed to recall the last time Crowley actually did give Aziraphale a ride home, the last time they were in the bookshop together. Every context clue is contributing to the sense that we are missing something. The 1941 scene still feels incomplete, like there’s one last installment of it, which sets the stage to revisit it in S3.

9. Returning to the 1967 scene, after Aziraphale hands over the thermos of holy water, Crowley asks whether he should say thank you. Aziraphale responds with a grimace disguised as a polite smile and a rather curt “better not.”

This contrasts to 1941, when Aziraphale attempts multiple times to express gratitude to Crowley for saving him and his books, and for coming through for him at the magic show, including that rather suggestive moment in the Bentley where he insists “there must be something I can do for you…in return.” Why is the idea of expressing gratitude so loaded and weighty, when only twenty years ago (not that long, for them) Aziraphale insisted upon it? Gratitude has always been complicated for the two of them, but now that complexity feels compounded.

It gives extra interest to the moment Aziraphale thanks Crowley for removing the paint stain from his coat in S1ep2. And of course, we know what happens just a bit later in that same episode.

The Wall Slam, which echoes The Kiss, in that Crowley is the one to close the distance between them in both cases, taking Aziraphale by the collar.

It’s interesting to note that there have also been other times when Crowley gets into Aziraphale’s personal space. In the first two minisodes in S2, there are two separate instances of Crowley getting into Aziraphale’s face after the angel accuses him of goodness.

It happens in Job’s courtyard in S2ep2…

…and in the graveyard in S2ep3 after they (well, Crowley mostly) save Elspeth.

This is another of their patterns - Aziraphale acknowledging the good in Crowley, casting doubt on his evilness in a way that gets a rise out of the demon. At first it was unintentional, but Aziraphale tries to bait Crowley in this way multiple times throughout the series, possibly as a way to get physical closeness with him that he doesn’t get otherwise. The time in Job’s courtyard wasn’t intentional, but the time in the graveyard definitely was. Just look at Aziraphale’s pleased, indulgent expression when Crowley is telling him off.

Sometimes this tactic is successful, sometimes it’s not. One could argue that the Wall Slam was an instance in which he was very successful, even more so than he bargained for.

And: he attempts the same thing multiple times in 1941. He does it immediately after the church gets bombed, in the Bentley afterwards, and during their candlelit date. Crowley doesn’t really rise to the bait though. He gets a bit snappish, he dismisses and denies, but he doesn’t get into Aziraphale’s face - and my read of this scene is that you can see Aziraphale’s frustration that it isn’t working.

Aziraphale can be very stubborn when he’s decided to do something, and if he keeps pushing this particular button of Crowley’s to get the response he’s seeking, well. It wouldn’t be the first time. I could definitely see him trying this tactic one more time if we do get a continuation of 1941 in S3, and it potentially working.

There may be a part three to this, as I have a few more related items to discuss. (Shocker, I know.)