#a little shippy over here(sorry) but imagine

[notsoevilmagistrate]

REJECT JARED LETO AS PAUL! Reject tradition! Jared’s an ass honestly, and even though I love him as Paul, I say there’s something better.

Consider the musical, CONSIDER!!!

Consider Drew Moerlein, that’s all I gotta say.

[ferdieinceladoncity]

I have two million circling thoughts about 'milagro' and no confidence that I can get them out of my head, but it was so intensely interesting I feel like I have to try.

First of all, the most "this was quite obviously written by a man with little to no care or understanding of Not being a man" episode that I have seen so far. To the point that it smacks me over the head. No woman would act like this: you would run, so so far, the second a guy like that entered an elevator with you.

The scene in the church is incredible in terms of how it was acted. The resigned realisation of "god, he's that kind of creep. That's the kind of man he is. He's infatuated with me." the way she starts to cry, overwhelmed with the emotion of it all- the fear, knowing she's in very real danger. It hit me right in the gut.

I do understand what they were aiming with in terms of her character and her infatuation with Padgett. It's not news that Scully is a little bit fucked in the head (as kind as I can put it) and morbid curiosity drew her to his apartment (and, putting her possibly in the running for Stupidest Person ever, self destructive tendencies or not, drinks something he makes her) but the whole scene is almost *too* much. Like. Scully. You cannot be doing this. Possibly the actual scariest/most infuriating scene in the x-files that I've seen.

Then again, I keep yelling that there's no way any woman would be foolish enough to act like this, but she's not a very normal woman. Sorry, it's true. She runs headfirst into these moments of possible self-destruction stemming from her own severe insecurities over whatever her relationship is with Mulder, the circumstances and uncertainty and longevity of which would probably drive *me* a little crazy, especially off the tail end of all the drama of season 6, Diana and all that. I'll do this, I'll get myself into this awful situation, and maybe you'll have something to say about it.

To that end, I'm at odds with wether this is really so 'out of character' or not. I hate to see it. But it makes sense. We can't all be perfect and we certainly can't all make good choices.

Mulder in this episode (because I feel like I should dedicate a paragraph to him even though he's not front and centre) disappoints me a bit. I have at this point read a lot of other reviews of this episode on Tumblr and reddit and heard people praise how "protective" he was, "jealous" was a word used, and generally a lot of focus on the shippiness of this episode, to which I can't agree. He infuriated me just a little. I appreciate that he was down to slap Padgett in the cell and I appreciate that he went to the effort of stealing letters to find his name and all, yet when Scully first talks to him about Padgett after the church scene, telling him he's the one who gave her the milagro and he was frightening, all he has to ask is "do you think he's the killer?" not "are you okay" or anything of the sort. Yes, I know Scully's not the kind of person to really appreciate that. She can hold her own, or she'd like him to think so. Still. From *my* perspective, and this is *my* write-up, and *my* Tumblr blog. And I think it's a bothersome thing to say. Also, I roll my eyes at mulder referring to sex as "the naked pretzel." What's with this guy and censoring himself like he's writing a tiktok comment? Actually, between this and "the wild thing" back in genderbender, maybe he just has some crazy hang-up about referring to scully having a sexual encounter (real or imagined) in a serious context. Interesting.

...That paragraph ended up being longer than my other ones. Loss for feminism on the post that I specifically started because I was fuelled by feminism.

"Agent Scully is already in love" should be for all the world a gleeful revelation and I was quite excited to see it, as I'd heard about this scene long before (MSR gifsets was what drew me here in the first place. I'm shallow like that.) But scully has been so kicked around this episode, stripped of privacy and dignity in every sense and this has been exposed to Mulder and everybody else, that it only makes me sad, because I do wish that Padgett would stop talking to her completely and stop getting around in her head like this.

The end scene just kills me, where the killer breaks in and grabs at her heart. She claws at Mulder's back when he embraces her with such fierce desperation and what I can only assume is a very, very deep well of regret. She doesn't shy away from him caring for her: she needs it.

[blanche-elizabeth-devereaux]

Hey there... Another more or less idea similar Idea I had, if you like it... At least on the "Arthur running and crossing paths with Albert".

But like, it it's less shippy, and more crack fic... Basically Arthur is running from Pinkertons, passes Albert and climbs a tree; and Albert lies straight into the pursuer's face saying that "no, he hasn't seen no outlaw running around, unfortunately he has broken his glasses and he's almost blind without them".

Yesterday someone I don't remember the name of added to the idea of putting someone else of the Gang too, so basically it would be Arthur and John jumping into Albert's wagon. The Cops would ask Albert if he saw anyone, John would point his gun to the photographer's head from inside the wagon and Arthur would have his little heart attack at seeing that, but Albert would lie straight to the cops with something like "Oh my, outlaws, here? I'm sorry, sirs, but I haven't seen nor heard anyone passing by"

The heartwarming part of it would be the Pinkertons offering like half the price of Arthur's head in exchange of any possible location while Albert is just there, angrily hissing "excuse me, sirs, but I haven't seen no one passing by, so I'd be eternally grateful if you gentlemen would allow me and my wagon to go on our way, for if there is outlaws here, I have no desire to get myself involve in it"

That being said, I'll be rooting that someone will get inspiration from the original anon's prompt, since I'm affected by the incurable creative's block

Yeah, I talk about Anon as if I'm not her... But, ye know, heteronyms worked wonders for João Pessoa

love it. love love love it 😍 tbh it's so Them™ that I can almost see it as another mission?? like having to press keys & peek over the side of the wagon or options to intimidate vs charm Albert, etc.

also, I headcanon that Albert has a great ability to lie under pressure (like disturbingly good) as a result of growing up around polite society subtleties, so him having a verbal spar with a Pinkerton fits perfectly. I like to think Arthur's surprise would almost break him out of his outlaw facade 😂

(and imagining the fight Arthur would have with John for pointing a gun at Albert PLEASE)

[thetarttfuldickhead]

Ive got this image of Roy kissing Jamie on the head and idk if my brain wants it to be shippy or big brother, little brother kinds way, but in whatever case I Need That

Hey, nonny, do you have spyware installed in my brain? I’ve literally been thinking about this exact scenario for the past few days, trying to hash out what it might look like and what precedes it and what sort of kiss it is.

I have severaly vague ideas that are none of them fully realized and all of them more fluffy wish-fulfillment than anything else. Thought I might get around to ficcing one of them properly one day, but that’s unlikely to ever happen, so have three roughly sketched snapshots of head kisses from my fevered imagination: 

I. Hurt/Comfort

Eventually there comes a day when Jamie snaps and channels the Jamie of yore and just goes for everbody’s throats with bared teeeth. Roy misses the dust-up but arrives for the aftermath with the entire team and Ted looking a little shell-shocked.

“What the fuck happened here?” Roy demands. Ted explains, and hastens to add that clearly something must be wrong for Jamie to behave like that and could Roy please go check on him?

Roy finds Jamie in the storage room and the moment he enters Jamie whirls on him, terrible smirk plastered over his face. 

“Oh, what a fucking surprise, Timid Ted sent Roy Kent to do his shouting for him, that’s a real—“ 

Roy ignores the drawling venom (and ignores the way it makes his stomach drop and twist with the memories of oh so many other confrontations between the two of them, back when they truly did loathe one another). He stops in the middle of the room and fixes Jamie with a carefully neutral look. 

“Jamie,” he asks, very calmly, “do you need a fucking hug?” 

For a moment, nothing. Then Jamie laughs, and it’s an ugly thing filled with scorn and jagged edges. “Oh, you’d fucking like that, wouldn’t you, big man Roy Kent, riding in on your white horse, going to— ”

And still Roy doesn’t raise to the bait. He takes a step closer. No aggression to the move, just determination: the unmoveable object to Jamie’s irresistable force. “No. Jamie, do you need a fucking hug?” 

So close, he’s standing. So steady, his voice. In the face of that resolute peace Jamie’s rage can’t help but dwindle and wither. He closes his eyes. Jerks his head once for yes. 

And Roy wraps his arms around him and holds him, and holds him, and holds him until the tension starts to bleed out of Jamie’s body and he rests his head on Roy’s shoulder. They stay like that for a little longer, but then Roy gently moves his hand to Jamie’s shoulders, pushing him back slightly so that he can look at him. “Feeling better?” 

“Yeah.” And, with a quick glance to Roy’s face, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not really me you need to apologize to.” 

“No, yeah, I know. I will.” 

Roy looks at him for another moment, just looks. Sighs, maybe; eventually gives a little nod.

“Good lad,” he says, briefly pulling Jamie in again to place a kiss on his forehead, before putting a hand on his back to guide him back out into the world. “Don’t fucking let your father make you think any different.”

If Will is huddling in the corner for this one? Your call, gentle reader.

II. Affection

Say that Roy and Keeley are in Jamie’s childhood bedroom because they want to check on him. I’m thinking that Something Has Happened that concerns Jamie – probably something to do with his dad at the next Man City match – but the immediate situation has resolved itself and Roy and Keeley are just getting back together and had this whole fancy dinner planned and Jamie said he was fine so they head out for their big date.

And it’s lovely, really it is, only they’re both preoccupied throughout the meal and eventually one of the just blurts sorry, I’m really excited to be here with you but I can’t stop thinking about Jamie – yeah, me too – we should go check on him – and so they’re off to his mum, and maybe Jamie’s out buying milk and for some reason his mum has Keeley and Roy wait in Jamie’s old bedroom and when Jamie finally does show up he is understandably surprised to see them.

“I though you went on a date,” he says, closing the door behind him.

And they explain that they were, they are, but they were worried about him and just wanted to make sure he’s okay. 

Jamie is okay. Scored two goals against City, and wasn’t nearly as bothered by his dad’s antics as he’d thought he be, he’s just dandy.

Having eventually convinced them of that, he pauses and cocks his head. Does that quizzical little face with his lips pursed. “It’s a bit weird, you two coming to check on me in the middle of your date, innit?”

Keeley shakes her head. “Jamie, it’s not weird. We care about you.”

Jamie raises his eyebrows at this, throwing a teasing look Roy’s way. “Yeah? You care about me, Roy?”

And Roy rolls his eyes and shakes his head, scoffing the way only Jamie can make him scoff, because of course Jamie would fucking ask. 

“Come here, you fucking twat,” he says and Jamie grins at that as he crosses the floor because Roy is smiling through the bark, and Roy still has one hand in Keeley’s but his free arm he slings around Jamie’s shoulders to give him a tight hug while pressing a firm kiss to the top of Jamie’s blonde hair. “’Course I fucking care.”

(This one’s not unsimiliar to another [shippy] scenario I sketched recently. I tend to ponder all sorts of minor variations of the same theme, though usually I settle for just one to inflict upon the rest of the world.)

III. And a Shippy One to See Us Off

The boys are celebrating something – not winning a game, I don’t think, because they’re not on the pitch, they’re somewhere off alone. In the locker room after everyone’s left, maybe, or out during an early-mornings training session? Doesn’t really matter. They’re alone.

Jamie’s phone goes off, he picks it up, listens for a bit, nods and yeahs and goes “thanks, man, that’s fucking great” and when he puts his phone away he doesn’t say anything at all at first. Looks a bit dazed, and after a minute of that (well, more like a second, ‘cause Roy Kent is not a patient man) Roy demands to know the fuck’s going on.

“I’ve been called up for England,” Jamie says, and he sounds dazed too, like he can’t quite believe it. Sneaks a glance at Roy, as if checking is this real, is this happening?

For a moment, Roy says nothing. Then he says “fuck”, and then they’re both screaming and jumping up and down and holding each other and somewhere in all that Roy just pulls Jamie close and smacks a kiss on the top of his head.

It’s completely unthinking, but it immediately gives them both pause – and it takes them by surprise how it actually makes them go still. If you’d asked them before, neither would have thought a silly little peck on the head would be anything to take notice off; they’re footballers, yeah? They’re tactile. But still they go, and they glance at each other and both of them find their eyes drawn to the other’s lips.

“Oh,” Roy says. Bless his heart, would you believe he’s just figuring it out? But to be fair, so’s Jamie.

A moment, teethering, each of them holding their breath, waiting to see what happens next.

Roy swallows. Jamie tilts his head to the side and slowly, slowly – giving Roy all the time in the world to punch him or run off or go back to jumping up and down like nothing’s happened – he reaches out to put a hand on Roy’s neck.

Roy doesn’t punch Jamie. Roy doesn’t run off. Roy doesn’t go back to jumping up and down. He leans in, ever so slightly, lips parting.

“Yeah?” Jamie asks, just to be sure.

Roys nods, once, sharply. “Yeah.”

Jamie kisses him.

---

Yeah, nonny, I need that. You need that. Everybody needs that! I mean, Jamie and Roy certainly fucking does.

[subzeroiceskater]

Yuletide 2024

Running against the clock here so putting this placeholder post. The letter itself should be here and completed in a day or two, unless something happens and I can't update on time, so here's 2023's letter. My tastes haven't changed at all.

Yeah, some stuff happened.

Thank you for taking on this pinch hit. 🙇

Special 2024 Request: “Bechdel test”

I was originally post at the end with the fun little graphic but it’s probably better to put upfront. I know most of my requested characters are male and from overwhelmingly male-dominated fandoms, but I’d love if the story could pass the Bechdel test. Pull up some canon female or make up some original characters for the story at hand. I love all the characters I requested but I’d love for some ladies to get some love, too.

If you feel this just can’t work with the story that you want to write, that’s fine. Optional details are optional. For these exchanges, the story I’m waiting to read is the story that only you can write, after all.

My tastes haven’t changed from 2023’s list so if you need some ideas in general, that’s a good starting point.

Rockman | Mega Man Classic

Sorry, Tundra Man is my dearly beloved character and I’m still starving for fics about him. I’d just be happy to read a mostly solo fic about him. I wrote a whole bunch of words about him on the previous list so check that out!

But I’d also love some fic where he plays off another Robot Master. The story I’m imagining is him pairing him off with one of the other three.

Bounce Man - He’s my second favorite of the Mega Man 11 bunch and he’s sweet and cute and underrated in my opinion. I’m leaning toward something cute and shippy with Tundra but platonic is more than fine. I do believe their respective backstories is ripe for interesting character exploration.

Cut Man – I just think he’s neat. As an older and more established Robot Master, he’d probably be more familiar to fans and in-universe, he’s a Light Labs bot. What would one of the first earliest sentient robots have to talk about with an arctic explorer-turned figure skater? Did Cut happen to meet him by chance while at Dr. Light’s lab? No, seriously, what WAS Tundra Man doing, having his checking up over there when he’s a—

Bright Man – Cossack robot! Bright’s my favorite of the Mega Man 4 Robot Masters and I will never get enough of Tundra Man and Cossack Robot Laboratories stories and associations. What would Bright have to say about the newest canon member of the family? Maybe Kalinka (and Roll) is there for some adventures?

If you could somehow come up with a story featuring all four characters, that’d be amazing, obviously, but the story I’m imagining something intimate and revealing between Tundra and other character. I’m guessing most people would want to write sweet and heartwarming moments but I’m not opposed to some sadness.

Advance Wars

Jess x Jake is my OTP since forever and there is nothing for them and at this point, I’ll take anything. Anything. ;_;

No, no, backup, backup. Advance Wars recently had a remake come up last year, Advance Wars: Re-Boot Camp, but I’ll politely ask you to ignore that. Jess does appear there but I’ll be honest, I’m not a fan. I’ll instead ask you to take cue from the Nintendo DS 2005 release, Advance Wars: Dual Strike, technically the third game in the series. Jake and Jess both appear there and is my basis of my eternal fandom and shipping of them.

I went on more in my post last year but my take on them is a teacher-student relationship, gentle and lowkey. The story I’m imagining for them is something as quiet and lowkey, the moment and spaces in love and war, maybe realizing they’ve fallen in love and never finding the right moment to say it outloud. Jake has to deal with rebuilding with his homeland and Jess, she’s a commander from another country—how could they really work. But they love each other deep down. Now what?

Or you know, they could be geeking out tanks.

Colin is also there.

(Colin is completely optional in this story request but I do love him so much. He’s sweet and earnest, and funny!)

About the “what’s the airport again” meme: I’ve said before but I made it clear that I love jokes and have a weird sense of humor, and I can see how a well-meaning author might use that to drop a so-funny reference in a fic, thinking I might love it. I won’t. I’m sorry, it’s just so unfunny to me.

Famicom Wars

This is Caroline’s profile.

This is Billy Gates’ profile.

This is Yuan Delta’s profile.

Read all that? Good. That’s all the information the game provides you. Go wild.

Super Famicom Wars is the enhanced Super Famicom/SNES remake of the original Famicom Wars, featuring new maps and for the first time in the series, playable Commanding Officers. There was still no campaign or story for the game, so all the possible info for the characters are just based on their profiles, sprites and maybe music (you can change the music of any CO, it’s just each CO has an associated track, unofficially, their “theme music”). Yuan Delta has a bit of an interesting and fun history to him but it’s very missable.

So why did I request Caroline x Billy Gates as a ship? It’s honestly based on nothing, haha! Over the years I just sort built of this fun rivalry ship between a smarmy billionaire and wild-child lucky girl who face each other over and over again, on the battlefield and off. In-game, Billy’s monetary advantage tend to steamroll any other character but in-universe, I like to imagine that Caroline sometimes wins with her luck.

The story I’m imagining is an encounter between with lots of…uh, Foe-yay? A Mr. And Mrs. Smith kind of faceoff (I’ve never seen the film though…), Spy vs Spy, my perfect rival kind of deal. Caroline and Billy as two battle-happy rivals who clearly are attracted to each other but would never want to admit it, and the only thing worse than losing to each other, is actually losing each other for real. They’re each other’s perfect enemies and they’d want to keep wanting to fight each other, forever if possible. Maybe it’s an actual military battle where they’re hired/convinced to fight for a country as freelance COs; maybe it’s a battlefield over something more mundane like they shopping for dinner in a supermarket (why would a billionaire be slumming with the poors…unless…). Maybe they’re rival shippers on A03.

Like Colin, Yuan Delta could also be there. (I really like him! And it would be fun to see him in an actual fanfic.)

Go wild!

The airport joke again: yeah, so Re-Boot Camp kinda implied Caroline could be Nell’s mom, which I’m ambivalent about. That was actually my headcanon way, way back that Caroline is Nell and Rachel’s mom (and their Billy is their unknown dad, drama!) but I didn’t like actually being made canon, somehow. A well-meaning author could be thinking it be fun to put that airport meme but I’d just dislike it.

Smiling Friends

Hey guys, before you scurry out of here and go full swing on your Yuletide assignments, I’d like you do to read my request about someone. That’s right, it’s him, my favorite character, The Boss! I loved watching him in season 1 and pumped my fist for every drop of new lore that season 2 had for him. I enjoy the juxtaposition of his adorable voice, sweet nature, and how he’s mostly a good boss and father, with how utterly dark and deranged he can get. He’s just really fun to watch and I’d just love more that.

I think Mr. Boss might be a harder kind character to write about, but the story I’m imagining is one where it showcases why Mr. Boss is the head Smiling Friends by him taking the lead of making someone smile. The episode “Frowning Friends” showed how formidable Mr. Boss truly is, being able to make his competition smile after threatening to kill them, so what is he like in a more normal case, whatever the meaning of normal is in the Smiling Friends universe. Exploration of canon moments could be good too, like what he was up to whenever he was off screen in any episode. Go as sweet and fluffy with as you like with just the barest hint of dark or maybe full weird and dark with just the glimmering of sweet. This is the Boss, after all.

I don’t have any ships for this series but if you like pairing any of the rest of the boys (Charlie, Pim, Allan, Glep--Smormu and Taylor whenever they were around) together or keep them with their canon relationships, that’s good with me.

Just kind of a heads-up: I’m one apparently few people who have no idea of who Zach Hadel was or whatever he was up internet-wise so any references to him or Sleepy Cabin or whatever a Tomar is would be lost to me. You could still put them but I probably won’t get it, haha. I have watched and enjoyed Michael Cusack’s YOLO series (Crystal Fantasy and Silver Destiny, looking forward to Rainbow Trinity) and Bushworld Adventures.

Once again thanks for writing for me this Yuletide. I’m kinda expecting whatever my story to be more on the light/sweet side on things, but YOLO/Bushworld Adventures/Smiling Friends is a good benchmark for how weird/dark you can get, if you want.

Sidenote: I’ve been having some health issues so I fully expect to edit this a bit later in a day or two. There’s a much better version of this letter I’ve been imagine posting with drawings and I want to get on that level but this is all the relevant information and would be mostly unchanged except make for better words. I’ll be removing this note when that is done. Sorry about all this.

[dontbotherwiththepronunciation]

Are there other Theon ships you like?

EDIT: I am sorry for this lateness anon. I thought I had posted this back in September (around the time I was getting survey related asks) shortly after it was sent but I just found it on the queue while searching for something else. Sorry. It was very sweet of you to ask so I feel abad about not realising I didn't post it any sooner.

I have weird feelings regarding ships in this fandom so most of the time with "ship" I just mean "I want to see them interact in emotionally intense situations of conflict, affection and resentment" but here are the ones I could think of in which some sort of romance/attraction/affection is part of my preferred dynamic.

Theon/Jeyne (already explained it here. Basically it's just that I am really into circumstantial affection, codependency and the themes of accountability for past misdeeds and irredeemability vs redemption. I like it at best when it's not outright shippy but ambiguous and open to interpretation. I always recommend Girl On Ice (and I won't stop now) but also I honestly feel that Little Brother, although the focus is truly on Asha and her anxiety over her entire situation in the end of ADWD, has probably my favourite post-adwd dynamic for them and it's even more ambiguous in a very tongue-in-cheek manner that I appreciate.)

Jon/Theon (Similar feelings about circumstantial affection but without the same themes. Like the idea of the two unwelcomed somewhat unwilling members of Winterfell being some of the last remainings of it. Also prefer it as something ambiguous and open to interpretation but with slightly more antagonistic feelings between the two. I like Jon but he'll be ultimately relieved to know Theon actually just killed the Miller's boys and that is not necessarily a good thing for me (although I understand and won't blame him for that possible reaction). I admit to being picky because I disagree with some popular takes about Theon having bullied Jon or them hating each other and I also am very strongly against Stark romanticism which often appears in fics focused on them.)

Theon/Barbrey (Everyone thinks I said this as a joke but I actually mean it. Their conversation during the Turncloak chapter made me cry like a child when I first read it and I haven't been the same person ever since. It completely rewired the way I perceive things. I like relationships that grow not out of love but hatred and feelings of mutual hurt originating from similar issues. I like the idea that she might at some point be the one to fully take the Stark goggles off him. Also prefer it as ambiguous rather than straight up romantic. This is one of my favourite fics ever and it sometimes makes me cry. Canon divergent ADWD where she takes him away from Ramsay and Roose (also "Arya" gets saved anyway, don't worry))

Theon/Kyra (Prefer it as horror from Kyra's side but mixed with the possible former feelings of teenage love they might have had. They seemed emotionally close and I can imagine she might have felt more for him than he ever did for her. That's interesting for me given what happens later on during ACOK and that she still tries to save him from the Dreadfort. I like the idea that when he kissed her on the other side of the river she could only feel fear and indignation)

Theon/Patrek (one of the more wholesome ones here and to be honest it only started really interesting me once Patrek was used as a leverage against his father and they literally tied a noose around his neck. I like it a lot more than I express. I like to think that the anger Patrek might have felt towards Theon at that point was somewhat mitigated or that it will be mitigated now that he has been on a similar position. Preferred daydreams involve small one-night reunions when Theon finally gets to go to the Islands and has to stop at Seaguard where Patrek is. Strange type of meetings between people who were very happy and close during a brief time that was violently and abruptly cut get to reminiscence about a past they feel conflicted about. I like to think their relationship would be re-contextualised given Patrek has been used against his father now).

Theon/Baelor (Absolutely no canon foundation which is weird given I am who I am but I have such a desire for a gap filler where the two get to interact during Theon's time in ACOK and Theon is able to see this somewhat well-adjusted version of himself that has even turned into a figure of influence and just feels completely irritated and hateful by the situation.)

Theon/Falia (Been ruminating on this for a long time now and she could embody aspects of the Kyra to his Theon and he the Euron to her Falia so yes enjoy it a lot. Although I've only seen it written once and it was in a post-ados ambiguously hopeful fic. Really liked it. It was very sweet. However on a long term not I'd really like her becoming a strange type of second chance for what he had with Kyra and him a second chance for what she had with Euron. Horny on main ironborn comes to take the castle of the feudal lord whose lands you live in and takes you, a lowborn woman who seems rather willing, to live there for a while and sleep in the bed of said feudal lord. Things change suddenly and you find yourself physically and sexually abused by someone you trusted.)

Sexual relationships I do not ship but read anyway because of interesting dynamics

Theon/Ramsay (It has to be fully non-consensual, full horror and as canon-compliant as possible. If I see Theon referring to him as "master" I am out. Also I'm finally coming to terms with the fact that erotically written stuff triggers me so it's difficult. Implicit rape/non-con mixed with the horrors of depersonalisation and contradicting feelings about whether he deserves any of what happened to him or not are very welcomed though!)

Theon/Cersei (Talked about it here. People take it as comedic and I see why and it makes me laugh but it only caught my attention once I started thinking more seriously about it and I weirdly enough I can somewhat enjoy it as long as the characterisation isn't purely hedonistic-cringe-fail-milf-hunter. Something I think could be interesting is if the marriage were to take place after Theon had spent a significative amount of time at the Dreadfort but hadn't gone through a drastic change in appearance and thus was not visibly weakened and hurt. Anyway, go read Broken Cage! The Cersei POV voice is perfect.)

Open but not fully into it

Theon/Tris (theoretically I think I'd like it and it fits into themes I enjoy. Both of them at some point pursue(d) Asha due to misreading who she really is and are questioned in regards to whether they truly fit to Ironborn culture (they do!) by the same woman who looks down on them a little. So yeah could be cool! but until now what I've perceived of it is basically "Theon gets a wholesome boyfriend who is kind of wholesome in canon too and isn't romanticised by fandom so he doesn't fell ooc!" and that's very nice and makes me happy for him but it's not very interesting to me.)

Theon/Jory (There was this really good fanfic back in 2017 Russian fanfic website and it has sadly been lost to humanity but it was good.)

Theon/Brienne (Irl friend proposed it as a joke but pre-ramsay he fits her type as snarky, fashionable, mockish young man and it could be interesting because he would be a tremendous asshole and would probably emotionally scar her. That's all I have to say.)

Theon/Meera (Quite surprised at how no one has developed anything complex based on his not very-pure-thoughts back in ACOK and their connection to Bran. Could be interesting.)

[myreygn]

Demon Slayer or atla for the shippy meme?

why not both! :D

¸¸♬·¯·♩¸¸♪·¯·♫¸¸¸¸♫·¯·♪¸¸♩·¯·♬¸¸

KNY

lowkey otp: uzusane!! i think i just started shipping them because i liked them individually and wanted to throw them together but i read some really good fanfics and they grew on me so much, pushing my rarepair agenda til i die!

highkey notp: giyutan and uzuzen, i just don't like the thought of these 20 something year olds meddling with teens. giyuu in my head is like a brother to tanjiro and tengen and zenitsu have an extremely entertaining dynamic but it doesn't read ship to me at all.

[softly] don’t notp: i'm getting kinda hooked on rengiyuu, i just thought about it because i needed to put some characters into an incorrect quote but ever since they've just been on my mind.

highkey otp but i’m scared of saying it because it’s not a very popular choice: NEZUSEN! and no this is not a typo, i'm talking about nezuko and senjuro. this comic by one of my favorite fan artists got me intrigued and i love the idea of them getting together some time post canon when they're all grown up, like a really nice reunion story would be so cute.

highkey otp and anyone on my tumblr knows it: it is so cruel that you'd make me decide but i think. and i hate to do this because it means i can't mention all of the other options but i think i have to go with sanekana. there's so many demon slayer ships that are so near and dear to my heart but sanekana is just. idk man. they're everything to me.

¸¸♬·¯·♩¸¸♪·¯·♫¸¸¸¸♫·¯·♪¸¸♩·¯·♬¸¸

ATLA

lowkey otp: agaiiiiin so many options... i have to say yueki, yue and suki. idk i just always have them in the back of my mind when i think about zukka and come on they would make such a kickass couple.

highkey notp: tokka. i think toph's little crush on sokka is adorable but they're siblings your honor i'm sorry.

[softly] don’t notp: this is my time to come clean and tell you that i never truly got over my maiko phase. not entirely, at least, like i have other ships that i definitely prefer but they're just hnnngh i cannot sit here and pretend like "i love zuko more than i fear you" means nothing to me.

highkey otp but i’m scared of saying it because it’s not a very popular choice: i need you to stay with me. this started off as a funny idea from a shitpost but. jetkojin. jet zuko and jin. i loved jin so much, i would've loved to see more of her and just imagine throwing her into the already spicy jetko mix, like we all love some jetko right but now make it POLY. marvelous experience.

highkey otp and anyone on my tumblr knows it: maileemaileemaileemaileemaileemailee- i feel like my life is more peaceful ever since i have accepted them as my otp, they're everything to me and i could not be happier.

[ultravioart]

Relationship dynamics + a Ram x oc ship for my Mr. Support Omnic Deep Sea Welder oc (name pending), here are the ideas below: LONG text again, sorry lol. Color meanings: Does not get along, Suspect but sympathetic, friendly, and shippy.

Sombra: As per usual deep hacker shenanigans, she was able to figure out that this rogue omnic blowing up factories actually used to be human/have a family/is now an omnic running a human brain simulation of a real brain scan. (Insert some Sombra ARG 'hack the planet' vibes of her trying to figure out the big conspiracy, why would Vishkar meddle with human sentience/ai tech???) The oc is still very suspect of sombra, disliking the idea she could hack him at any time. Sombra's favorite animals are deep sea creatures so I can absolutely see her asking my oc for any pictures he's snapped of deep sea friends lol. My oc comes off as cold and stoic (leaning into the unnerving nature of the depths:tm:, of the unreadable retro-monster mystique of deep diver suits, and of his serious commitment to saving what he can of earth) but my oc would actually love discussing flora and fauna with enthusiastic participants. I doubt he would go out of his way to capture and show her pictures, but I can see him being all (squints) 'why didn't she hack me to access the pictures, is she toying with me by asking for permission?' only realize 'oh she respects my autonomy as an omnic... and human.' so there's that! I can see Sombra as being kind to him just as she is kind to Sigma. Less of a shallow "i pity you" and more of a well natured "well, someone needs to be nice to his guy"

Sigma: I think they have interesting conversations lol. Isolation has driven my oc's personality to be a bit unnerving to most humans, and I definitely think the depths have some kind of omnic influencing ai/signals down there controlling things like the Kaiju-bots. So I imagine venturing into certain underwater areas has made my oc second guess what he was seeing and hearing while in the middle of the oceanic dark abyss (again, my oc's human simulation saves him from complete control over his omnic systems). Weirdly enough, I think the two of them have this... understanding. Sigma definitely speaks in riddles, but my oc would get some of it, and even respond. Sigma has seen things, and while I think you could take Sigma's comment about the Iris as a joke or nonsense, I genuinely think he has seen it. So Sigma and my oc get along fairly well, with my oc treating Sigma like he had with his own aging grandparents when they team up. Outsiders are very wary of these two's convos lol, so the oc rarely discusses in depth with Sigma unless they are alone where they can talk freely. I don't think my oc would like Doomfist's philosophy. Yes, pressure can lead to adaptation, war has lead to incredible advancements in technology/medicine, but every person should be given a fair chance and a fair fight. My oc believes each species deserves a right to exist without extreme/stressful artificial measures placed onto them--we share this planet, 'playing god' with life that humanity arrogantly deems "lesser" is wrong. Adaptation is not about superiority, adaptation is simply a species fitting a role "good enough" and misconstruing nature's function lends to humanity's tendency for valuing false superiority over the reality that we share this planet together, we do not conquer it. So my oc loathes that conceited view and obsession with superiority, but Talon lends a very useful hand when it comes to taking down certain targets the oc wishes to stop, so he joins up for those missions, and those missions alone. Doomfist thinks little more of the oc than an asset, since he sees him as an omnic with a peculiar motivation, but that omnic certainly creates results. Oc absolutely feels pity for Widow, with Sombra's comments he learned of her real condition. What is worse, to destroy what you hold dear, or to have the capacity to care about it stolen from you?

Moira is a no-no, she uses animal testing and unethical experiments on humans which is entirely barbaric considering the tech the ow world has, and my oc avoids her. Thankfully she doesn't know his human nature, so she doesn't bother with him much, if at all. My oc see's Reaper in the same light as himself, and almost wishes he could connect with a fellow lost soul, but due to having to keep his human half secret, he never connects outright with Gabe, only offering small pieces of advice. Reaper dismisses it all, who needs life lessons from a robot (oof). Still, my oc is less annoying to Reaper than most omnics because at least he's quiet. Ramattra: oooooooo boy this one is a doozy! I originally wanted to make a offshoot omnic oc to ship with Ram bc yehaw Ram is a rizzler and I really like his character (cough cough very similar to Legends General Grievous), but this oc got kind of out of hand LOL so... yeah. Here we are! My oc hides his human side from Ramattra, not in so much that he is worried Ramattra would hurt him/his family, but that Ramattra would not trust him anymore, due to having a 'human weakness' (aka my oc is willing to sacrifice anything for his family, even if it meant going against Null Sector). The two have a peculiar relationship. Since Ramattra doesn't know about my oc's dual nature, he presumes my oc picked up all these human gestures from a pa as a repurposed butler omnic, who denied any semblance of omnic culture. My oc knows little to nothing about omnic culture, which leads to a lot--and I mean A LOT-- of hilarious misunderstandings between two. As stated in my other post, my oc loved traditional Sama-Bajau boat carving, among other sculptural work, and in turn took up pride in his repairs and welding work with his current omnic state. Because of this, my oc sees panels, wires, plates, clean welds, etc. as objects and craftsmanship to be proud of, not inherently intimate parts. Any semblance of personal space is lost on him when repairing omnics since well, he presumes omnics don't have "personal space" when needing repairs. Omnics are efficient right? That must mean they want an efficient repair. The fact he can actually repair parts of Ramattra that Ramattra couldn't otherwise fix without completely replacing, isn't lost on him though. My oc knows it's a unique skill and he uses that to levy agreements in collaborations to target specific polluting/destructive factories/facilities around the world that imprison omnics. Meanwhile, Ramattra is having a near systems reboot when my oc starts casually plugging in and offering to run diagnostics during a repair LOL. Beyond the amusing and sometime jarring momments, Ram is fascinated by my oc's unusual perspectives about things and... unique behavior. It's unlike anything Ramattra has seen in another omnic (he's human Ramattra, of course he 'isn't like the other girls'). Speaking of, since Ram's VA had been notably casted for two prominent MLM roles in the past, I headcanon Ramattra as aro-ace with a preference for masculine or neutral partners. (Ramattra could possibly be demi-romantic, if not aromantic? Idk how the whole "Iris-sentience-wash-over" thing works, because Aurora may have been alloromantic considering some omnics are romantic or open to romantic relationships. I think for now I'll just have an aro-ace partnership preference for Ram regardless.) For canony stuff, it's mostly just like, quips. More one sided than anything lmao. During repairs the Oc is all about roasting humanity as a whole until Ramattra directly makes some one off comment how all humans are (insert negative thing) to his presumed omnic repairman. And... Silence. Oh, the welder didn't like that comment. Alright then. This... is awkward. Maybe he should--Wait, why is he digging around in those wires--by the Iris, does this welder have no shame?!?! GAh--(meanwhile the oc is just speedrunning repairs because he is done with this convo, not realizing he's breaking omnic taboos lmao. Be gentle with those wires man, it's not fun to have sensory functions flicker.)

Anyway, lmao, I think the two get along really well, surprisingly so. Ram is surprised by how warm my oc can be considering my oc is usually stoic and quiet. Once you get to know him though, he has a jovial soul, and a passion for justice. Ramattra finds himself open to understanding more human perspectives though my oc (oc lies, and says it's things he had learned while being around humans before the crisis. In reality it's the oc's own life experiences). Thanks to Ramattra, my oc also finds himself loosing distain and prejudice against omnics/his omnic body due to his whole ordeal with being transferred into an omnic body and then rejected by his human community/family (and ON TOP of that, then rejected by other omnics when they had learned of his human nature). As he spends more time with Ramatra, he finds himself proud to be omnic, he is a part of a unique form of life unlike any other, crafted by organic life itself, and he wishes to use this gift to preserve the planet for future generations of all life, organic or omnic. Ramattra to, finds himself taking into consideration the impact of his actions on the organic life around him. Ramattra thinks that while humans may be organic, humanity had subjugated and abused all other organic life, omnics are just one of many victims to humanity's insufferable grasp.

other tid bits:

Bastion: This is more so aligned with "in game" noncanon lines heroes might share, but my oc would adore that Bastion is caring for Ganymede, who is a part of an endangered species, and wishes Bastion the best. :') If Bastion ever needs vet help, he's your guy.

LifeWeaver: We do be hating Vishkar out here. My oc would be very happy that LifeWeaver broke away and is pursuing ethical actions, along with trying to help conservation of nature. Technically my oc is also wanted by Vishkar, being Vishkar property himself (being a refitted hard light using omnic built and funded by Vishkar, after all).

I also think my oc would have complicated feelings about the animal experiments on Winston and the like. I think my oc would find it unnecessary and cruel, considering most animals in space projects were used for no return missions, or worse simply just tests to see if humans could survive in such conditions. Winston and fellow crew may have not been the ones sent on such missions, but one of their future members certainly would have been.

[twstinginthewind]

I had some ideas

[ sing ] — sender sings a love song to receiver❝ the sound of your voice is like heaven to me. ❞ - Imagine given Carol is often a bit selfconcious about her singing but does it actually well she tried to sing something for him given he plays ukulele to share this with him.

❝ promise you’ll always be here for me … ? ❞

This one would make April very happy

[ pin ] — sender pins receiver underneath them

Okay this one seems fun as if it happened during parcour with Sindren and Bobby

Softer shippy prompts

Punch was struggling.

He hit the back button on the cd player again, and picked his ukulele back up. The introduction to the song played through, and he strummed along easily enough. A, E, B minor, D. Same through the verse. He hummed along to the melody as he played, and then as the chorus came, his hands stilled. What was that chord? He squinted at the cd player, as if that would help.

His fingers played across the strings, trying to find the chord, when it suddenly clicked. Oh. It was... right. He laughed, and triumphantly strummed out along with the chorus. Yes! He took a moment to scribble the sequence out - F#m to G three times, D, E - and pressed the back button again. He was going to nail this.

His door opened behind him, and Carol let herself in. She grinned as she realized what he was working on - that was one of the older songs from her world he was learning! Was he hoping to surprise her with it? Well, she could give him a surprise, too. As he strummed past the instrumental bridge into the second verse, she took a deep breath, and started to sing along.

Spinning on that dizzy edge, I kissed her face and kissed her head.

And dreamed of all the different ways I had to make her glow

"Why are you so far away?" she said. "Why won't you ever know

"That I'm in love with you, that I'm in love with you."

Punch's strumming faltered, and he turned in his chair, red-faced. His mouth opened and closed a few times, and Carol laughed.

"Just Like Heaven," she said as he recovered. "You're learning that one, huh?"

"I thought it was nice," he said sheepishly. "And the name is accurate."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," Punch replied, reaching out a hand to take hers. "The sound of your voice is like heaven, to me."

And then it was her turn to go red.

---

"Uh-huh, yeah! Okay. Okay! Okay, Momma. Geez. Haha! Yeah." Joker covered the receiver end of her phone, and mouthed a silent sorry to her girlfriend as her mother chatted away. She made a few more noncommittal sounds in response, waiting for a space in the conversation. Finally, she was able to interject. "Momma! Yes, I know. Listen!! April's over, and I'm being ruuuuuude if I stay in the call. Yes, mmhm! Yeah." She rolled her eyes. "Momma says hi, April. Yes, Momma! Okay. I'll call you again on Friday, okay? Love you too. Say hi to Pops for me. Okay!! Byeeeee."

"Ughhhhh!" She groaned as she hit the button to hang up. "I love her, but what a pain in the neck sometimes! Moms, am I right?" She gave April a conspiratorial grin, which faded as soon as she noticed the stricken expression on her girlfriend's face. "Oh, oh geez. Oh, hon, I'm so sorry. I—"

April shook her head. ".... no. It's. It's okay." She gave Joker a wobbly smile. "If anything, I'm a little jealous. You've got it all so... so normal."

Joker dropped her phone onto the bed and wrapped her arms around April's waist. "Hey. Hey, we've got a lot of time ahead of us. We can make our 'normal' your new normal now, if you want?"

April buried her face into Joker's shoulder and nodded, mumbling something. Joker could just make out a few words. "... promise you'll always be here for me?"

"I promise, April." Joker stroked her smooth green waves. "I promise." She heard her phone's text message tone, and saw a new message from her mother, reading can't wait to meet this sweet girlfriend of yours! She sighed. "And for better or worse, you might have the rest of my family with you, too."

---

Bobby felt the short shock of his head hitting the roof tiles beneath him, and gritted his teeth.

"Fine... fine." He opened bleary eyes and looked at the beaming face of his opposition. Sindren grinned back at him, looking triumphant. "I'll admit it, all right? You win."

"I'm the better super hero, huh?" She giggled, loosening her grip on his shoulders and letting him sit up slightly. A look of concern crossed her face as he rubbed the back of his head. "Oh no! Did I knock you down too hard?"

"No, it's fine, babe," he said, wincing slightly as his fingertips grazed over a bump. "I knew what I was signing up for."

Sindren pouted slightly, and helped him up with an apologetic look, keeping him close to her. "It wasn't exactly a fair contest, though; I've been training so much longer than you have, and— whoa!"

Bobby chuckled. Her non-apology had given him an opportunity to strike back. While she was busy monologuing, he was able to apply a bit of leverage, and knock her back down onto the rooftop. He let his hands rest on her shoulders, pinning her down, and gave her a cheeky grin. "... I think I can keep up, though, Sindren. Just sayin'."

[seyaryminamoto]

my school works are piled up this past few weeks (graduating tingz) and i just started reading the deadlock novel it feels like i'm reading a sokkla fic every time Mcashe has a scene because they just give off the vibes skskskskksksks. BTW, what's your top5 fav scenes from the novel? PS: I'm smiling like an idiot while reading the novel ughh i hate myself

I KNOW, RIIIIIGHT?! *-* and don't hate yourself, my anon friend, I spent the whole novel smiling and laughing and losing my goddamn mind because I was having the time of my life xD enjoy this beautiful content as best you can!

I mean, frankly, Reunion already had all the Sokkla vibes I could've wanted/needed to ship these two like FedEx and I always knew I wasn't getting off this ride anytime soon. But gosh, this book... it gave me everything I wanted and MORE! Their dynamics are soooo similar to Sokkla team-up dynamics, two power couples kicking ass and taking names... oh, I just love it so much. I probably will end up reading the book a third time soon x'D

As for my favorite scenes, damn, this is tricky xD

KEYCHAIN! HE MADE HER KEYCHAIN!! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!!! God, it's just amazing how the book explains the "vintage" look for Ashe's hoverbike the way it does, and that they literally built it together *screams!!!*, but then he gives her that keychain for her birthday present, and the implications!! THE IMPLICATIONS!!! He gave her a keychain she's held onto for TWENTY YEARS?!?!?! Ships in the OW fandom have sailed far and wide with less than breadcrumbs: we literally have been granted a boon from the GODS with all this extra context for the little things in Reunion xD

Ashe going to hell and back to save her kidnapped BFF-for-whom-she-totally-doesn't-have-feelings-yeah-yeah-sure-Jan. I love the fact that McCree is, in a way, Ashe's damsel in distress and not the other way around xD Of course, it's what you'd expect from an Ashe-centric story, but it's still an amazing sequence, all around. Gotta highlight how she loves the way he smiles like a madman when they have that shootout at the end, and how he worries so much over Ashe's injury when he took an even worse one than she did (the Sokkla vibes in that particular situation were SO STRONG! I SWEAR!).

"Jesse McCree, are you trying to make me say you're handsome?" "Am I?" ... do I need to say more. That FLIRTING. These two were on fire already and they'd only known each other for like... weeks, at this point? x'D He has no sense of moderation, he's soooo into her and doesn't hide it at all. Ashe is so busy trying to plot all the crime and Jesse's practically like a shojo heroine, "oh I can feel it, this is how my love story begins!", basically xD

Finally I pick a not-McAshe scene... to bring up the one where Ashe picks up the Viper on her last moment in Lead Rose Manor. That moment was just... POWERFUL. The feeling of epicness in that scene just overwhelmed me when I was reading it xD

The ending of the book :'D the fully formed Deadlock Gang ready for business, down to the explanation for the Est. 1976 in the logo... *sobs* the fact that so much about the character design choices in these two characters is a shoutout to the past they share is just... *gross sobbing* oh, I just love it to pieces, I'm not even sorry.

Ashe's bike race to save B.O.B. x'D that whole situation was bonkers but I looooved how fierce she was about protecting her one and only buddy while growing up (AND THAT JESSE BLUSHED WHEN SHE TAUNTED HIM WAS JUST THE CHERRY ON TOP!). I appreciated learning more about the Omnic War and its consequences, how Ashe reflects on having escaped it practically untouched in virtue of her money and societal privilege while her new friends all faced many hardships to survive. But I can't help but also love that, however uneasy others could have been about the Best Omnic Butler, Ashe was so fiercely loyal to B.O.B. that she nearly broke Julian's nose herself over his ridiculousness x'D That's HER big omnic buddy and she's not about to lose him to anyone, not her shitty parents, not a bet in a race, NOTHING! (and it's so cute that B.O.B. is just as loyal to her, too *sobs*)

Ashe grabbing McCree's arm to explain things to him on their first heist and him being all "you gonna leave that there?" and only then does she realize her hand's still on him x'D what a McCree line, and he was absolutely enjoying the attention, he doesn't even pretend otherwise.

Everything poetic McCree says or does... meanwhile Ashe's like "um yeah I don't care about poetry I want money", right until his poet soul totally smashes her square in the heart with the KEYCHAIN!!! But damn, I swear I thought McCree would hold back a lot more, and yet there he was, saying things like Calamity was brilliant and mysterious... you could practically hear B.O.B., Julian and Frankie going "I can see what's happening..." in the background xD

The conversation about what they wanted to do once they were loaded with all the cash they could possibly want. That one was a real number on my heartstrings. It ties up to what I said earlier with Ashe finally being in touch with people who are completely removed from the ridiculous social circles of her parents and her school, people who really lost a lot in the war. But where Julian and Frankie seem to look at the past a lot, I loved that Jesse is basically just thinking about the future. The fact that he says he wants to chill out in a farm and that this is what he wants in life... many, MANY, shippy wheels have turned in my head since I read that <.< maaaany...

WHEN JESSE NEARLY FALLS AND ASHE CATCHES HIM!!! UNDERRRATED AS HECK!!! The fact that he's taunting her about fear of heights, then he nearly plummets to his death because ironies are beautiful xD and Ashe pulls him back to safety only to say that she's not afraid of heights but afraid of ~FALLING~??? I mean, okay, sure, maybe I'm reading too much into that line... or maybe I'm not <.< either way, the truth is I just love how absolutely broad of interpretation that scene and that DIALOGUE are :> ehehehe.

Oh, their first encounter. The fact that it's so cute and fun, and that it's this low in the list tells you how GOOD this book was x'D "You've got an awful lot of grit for a rich girl," first words he spoke to the love of his life xD then how they talked and laughed together about the crazy stories he shared (she was crying of laughter for the first time in her life! precious girl!), and then how she sat in the car thinking about the strange feeling she was left with after meeting him... they seriously had a meetcute in prison, how can a ship get any better? xD

WHEN HE COMES BACK TO HER WHEN THEIR FIRST HEIST GOES WRONG!!! That Ashe expects him to just leave after she falls off their getaway vehicle, but Jesse saves her and goes "pfft that's just not my style", basically... *sobs* without realizing it she ends up picking up that particular philosophy of his, saving her friends no matter the cost...! Honestly, though, the fact that every time something like this happens it hits Ashe like a truck racing downhill with no brakes because she's NEVER been cared about by anyone but B.O.B. and she's completely new to friendships and bonding with people... and in the mean time, Jesse immediately is "ride or die" with her because that's how he rolls... beautiful relationship dynamics between characters who influence each other for the better are just beautiful :')

A silly one here: Jesse enjoying the good life in Lead Rose. That description of him looking like a marshmallow in the CHAISE LOUNGEEEEE!!! (the one he references in their in-game interactions *CRYING SO MANY TEARS*), was just too cute to bear x'D Ashe just jumping back into work mode... while he was just thrilled to be a marshmallow in a towel xD

... So, um, I went overboard because I love this book a little too much for my own good :> what can I say? When things I love are good, I go wild xD There's probably more scenes I loved, but these... thirteen? XD are the ones that came to mind.

I think one of my favorite things now is reexamining Reunion with all this extra context in mind. The first time I watched that cinematic I, of course, fell in love with these two outlaws because how could I not? But while subsequent rewatches revealed a lot of things I didn't pay enough attention to the first time around, the book has done even more than I could imagine possible for a short that was already as shippy as could be xD

Ooookay so, shippy ramblings about Reunion, coming up! (simply because I have to put these down SOMEWHERE XD and your ask was a good idea for that, anon!)

First off, Jesse very much staged the whole rodeo in Reunion. He sent the tip to Ashe, he wanted Echo's crate specifically. He thought they could work together, basically, despite knowing it was entirely possible that those hopes wouldn't pay off. This train, according to the wikia, was a government train, so Jesse is very much telling Ashe to give a finger to the government for all he cares, all he wants is one (1) crate.

Ergo, Jesse, for all his "nice guy bountyhunter" deal, doesn't disapprove of Deadlock's actions. If anything, he counts on them to be exactly what he needs in order to get what he wants. He practically trusts Ashe to pull off the train heist disaster perfectly and only steps up when it's time to collect Echo.

Then the wacky shoot-out happens, it's veeeery charged (the UST is so thick, I swear...), and Jesse wins. He ties up Ashe, floats her off on the payload with the rest of the gang, and he sets Echo free. He's helping her out very nicely and everything, but the context in question is... he received the recall notification thingy XD Winston called him back to Overwatch, and Jesse...

... Jesse doesn't want to go back.

Jesse says "they want me", and the displeased tone of his voice, paired with the look on his face when he says that line, speak for themselves.

That, in my humble opinion, isn't the sequence of expressions you'd expect from someone who intends to return to the group where he thrived, had the time of his life and found his true calling. To me, he actually looks irritated about the recall (the sequence of expressions during that line is much better when you watch the full thing x'D), as though he REALLY doesn't want to return. He's not against Overwatch, I'm not quite saying that, otherwise he wouldn't have set Echo free and told her to go back at all... but this isn't remorse. It's not "Oh, I'm not good enough for Overwatch anymore". Nope... this is "My time with them is over and I don't plan on going back unless I have no choice", as far as I can tell.

If OW2 does bring him back into the fold and he's a perfectly chill and happy guy about it, I'll seriously be surprised. I mean, he could have set Echo free and, once his business is over, returned to Overwatch with her, he could have been in the Paris cinematic if he'd done that...

But he's not there.

Which outright says he didn't do that :> oops.

Basically, I think Jesse's reaction in Retribution (where he's markedly the most morally correct one of the bunch, and he's the former outlaw :'D) tells you his displeasure with Overwatch ran very, very deep. And someone can very easily say he felt the same way about Deadlock and that's why he left them for Overwatch... but that's conjecture. His displeasure with Blackwatch (and, in consequence, Overwatch), however, is FACT. And the previous conjecture falls flat pretty quickly considering he's perfectly fine with Ashe's train heist, even sets it up himself, from what the story suggests, so... how ~appalled~ was he over her choices and actions? Not appalled at all, if you ask me, and after you read Deadlock Rebels, you actually understand why: Jesse trusts Ashe.

From the first moment she enters the same prison block he's in, he's drawn to her. He wants to impress her, he absolutely enjoys her company and making her laugh (just as much as she enjoyed laughing at his wacky stories), and he's plain thrilled that she comes back for him when she does. Ashe manages the gang with inexperience but she's always willing to improve, and you see Jesse sticking with her through thick and thin, supporting her at the best and worst times alike, always putting his faith on her and constantly watching out for her (he protected and shielded her from attacks with his own body sooooo many times *sobs*). Ashe starts out intending to keep most profits for herself, and Jesse doesn't care much at first... but then she starts to share profit equally between their team. She works on her own bike herself, her own ride, and she plans and solves problems as best she can, to a point of even going overboard with planning too much. She's wild, reckless and takes insane risks... and this guy loves every second of it. The matter of morality regarding the actions of a criminal gang is, of course, something to think about... but as far as the book goes, Ashe mainly targets her own family, their specific brand of bullshit, and in the process she ends up helping lots of people and even saving lives that might not have been saved otherwise. I'm not going to put my hand on the fire here and say Deadlock never ever did anything absolutely wrong to people who didn't deserve it... but for a criminal gang? They're honestly the most wholesome one the OW team could have come up with, if you ask me.

So where you see Jesse is very much antagonistic with Reaper/Reyes, where he loses his temper with the guy's choices, he doesn't ever do that with Ashe. Overwatch ARE supposed to be the good guys... so how weird that Jesse McCree, reformed outlaw, ends up so disappointed with these guys when he was actually thrilled with Ashe's managing of their gang, as far as we saw. So much so that, when it came down to it, Jesse McCree, 20 years later, still counts on Ashe to give him a hand (without her full awareness) with a little operation to help out an old friend of his. Also worth pointing out: he doesn't want to fight at all, while Ashe, of course, does. Deadlock for life, is what Jesse said... and he's not Deadlock anymore, hasn't been for who knows how long. Worse yet... his tattooed arm is gone. It's like all his ties to Deadlock have been severed.

And even so, he came to Ashe and hoped she wouldn't want a shootout with him. Even when he knows she might be beyond unforgiving because of the betrayal (he has seen directly how outraged she was about a certain someone betraying her in the book...), Jesse goes back anyway and hopes it won't come to this.

THE IMPLICATIONS, MAN!!!

Carrying on: Echo is surprised that Jesse shows no intentions of going back to Overwatch. She asks him what he's going to do... and what does Jesse say?

He puts his cowboy hat back on (the symbolism in this short, I swear...), and when she asks him what he's going to do, he tells her "I've got some business to attend to."

THE MUSIC PICKS UP.

AND THEN HE CLIMBS ON THE BIKE HE BUILT WITH ASHE.

YOU GET A DELIBERATE CLOSE-UP TO THE KEYCHAIN.

THEN THE CAMERA PANS UP TO FOCUS ON THE PICTURE, TORN AND TAPED BACK TOGETHER, THAT ASHE CARRIES ON THIS BIKE, A BIKE WHICH, LET'S BE REAL, IS BASICALLY A MCASHE BABY CHOPPER/HOVERBIKE HYBRID, AND AS SHE PUTS IT LATER, IS...

HER

BIKE!!!

When Jesse says he has business to attend to, he could pick up any bike he wants (since it'd stand to reason that the other guys Ashe came in with would have bikes of their own). He could escape on horseback for all we know xD so there are lots of options... but no. He takes HERS. Right after saying he has "business to attend to".

Look, I could be wrong. I could be dead wrong. I can absolutely be digging around and going INSANE because nothing I ship EVER gets this much content.

But we literally get a guy saying he has "business" to take care of, and the cinematic focuses exclusively on elements that, even BEFORE Deadlock Rebels, all point towards Ashe?! You could easily say that taking her bike is just the final nail on the coffin, his last trolling idea to mess with his one true love... but that picture is right there. That picture, with them in their youth. The picture, btw, was bigger than just them: B.O.B.'s hand is there. The top of the picture is uneven, suggesting Ashe probably tore it to shreds in a fit of rage... and then specifically put together THEIR PART. And then she taped that to her bike's dashboard. Meaning, she carries the goddamn memory of Jesse with her EVERYWHERE SHE GOES. And she does it WILLINGLY.

Which, in turn, answers why Jesse expects MAYBE Ashe wouldn't go full-on hostile when they meet: this trolling cowboy knows exactly what he means to Ashe. He's not surprised when he sees that picture on the bike. He doesn't toss it away, which he could have, if he were saying "we are history now, forget it gurl" (and let's be honest, what a dick move that would have been @_@), he doesn't flinch after noticing and then goes "yeah, no, I'm picking another bike".

NOPE. The familiarity with which they talk, the way he hopes she'll just let him walk away, the fact that she DIDN'T change the keychain and bike in all those years and he's not even SURPRISED...

Jesse knows how much she loves him, point-blank. He's completely aware of it... and he's very much okay with it.

So much so... that I'm something of a 90% sure that the business he intends to deal with is ASHE HERSELF.

And no, I don't mean he's going to go on another shootout with her... I mean, evidently, that Jesse wants to come home. That he's tried the life of Overwatch, and he's decided to leave it behind. He's turned bountyhunter now, vigilante, pretty much... but he comes back to Ashe all the same. He's come back for the first time in who knows how long (going by Ashe's expressions and sarcasm with the "you promised you'd write" line, it miiiiiiight be they haven't seen each other since he got recruited into Blackwatch), and he expected a peaceful encounter, no less.

A good question to ask here is... what did Jesse hope would happen, if the encounter HAD been peaceful? He would've released Echo, sent her away to her business, and stayed behind anyway because he had business to deal with. Which business? :'D why... the business that would've been standing right in front of him.

There's no other, logical reason why this cinematic would put Ashe and McCree's picture into focus right when McCree says what he does to Echo. There's no other reasonable choice why McCree would turn his back on Overwatch quite so firmly. We know he had two important ties in his life: Overwatch and Deadlock. And Overwatch stole him away from Deadlock for a VERY long time. Well over half the time Deadlock has been in operations, as far as I can tell. He picked Overwatch over Deadlock once before... and now, it seems he's picking Deadlock over Overwatch instead :')

The follow-up short, Roadtrip, doesn't do anything to change my mind. The trolling jerk, Jesse McCree, hovers past Ashe's payload, where she's just... complaining, as she hovers xD going by what I know of the game and that map, the payload may just be en route to the gang's hideout, so that, I'd say, could explain why she hasn't climbed off it or escaped in any way (which she reasonably would have, if Jesse was trying to, I don't know, send her and her people to the authorities).

My point here is, however, that Jesse is headed the same way the payload is. If his destination is the same one, he'll beat it there for sure. Maybe, yes, he'll go away and drive well past the hideout... but maybe that's exactly where he intended to go.

Maybe, in the end, Reunion is about a man who's finally coming home :D

In addition, goes without saying, Ashe's rant about how everyone falls to pieces over Jesse showing his "stupid mug" (uh-huh, stupid, ANGELIC mug, we know what you really think, girl xD) ends with her saying she should have "put a bullet in him the minute he showed up".

Which begs the question of why didn't she.

Then, of course, she says she hates McCree when he drives past her while listening to some really ridiculous honky-tonky-sounding music x'D I cannot even help but imagine him deliberately picking that radio station or whatever it was just to annoy Ashe when he drove beside her, and so that she can get extra pissed when she retrieves her beloved bike, turns on the music and it's just more honky-tonky stuff x'D but anyway, the thing is she shouts after him, tells him that's her bike and says she hates him. B.O.B. wordlessly speaks for us McAshe shippers by giving Ashe the most "sure, Jan" side-eye in the history of side-eyes, and Ashe notices and is outraged enough to knock B.O.B.'s little hat right off his head again.

Again... this is renowned outlaw Elizabeth Caledonia "Calamity" Ashe, sitting on a payload, groaning about the guy she once very much had feelings for (and that doesn't even begin to cut it, if you ask me x'D) and for whom she tooooootally doesn't anymore, that picture on her bike doesn't MEAN that, OBVIOUSLYYYY!!, and so, she sits up, complains and doesn't do much of anything to get out of her current situation, right? :>

So, summing up my current understanding of EVERYTHING, thanks to Deadlock Rebels and my obsessive rewatches of Reunion + Roadtrip:

Jesse deliberately sought out Ashe so she would indirectly, unknowingly, help him set Echo free from the government's clutches.

Jesse hoped for a peaceful encounter despite knowing he might not get one.

Jesse has no intentions of returning to Overwatch but was willing to perform one final act of service for them by releasing Echo so she'd go give Winston and co. a hand.

Jesse is NOT surprised to see that Ashe: 1. Didn't change bikes at some point in the twenty years since they built it. 2. Didn't swap the ignition key for a button, the way she says she thought to do it in the novel until he gives her the keychain. 3. KEPT THE POETIC AF KEYCHAIN, despite resenting Jesse for his betrayal. 4. KEEPS A PICTURE OF THEM IN THEIR YOUNGER YEARS PASTED ON HER BIKE'S DASHBOARD.

Jesse claims he has business to deal with: he doesn't clarify said business verbally, but every shot after he says those words focuses on elements related to Ashe... and then, along with the novel's context, it's elements related to their BOND. Everything in that shot, EVERYTHING, is connected to the two of them. Elements that weren't shown before or during their shootout, and that are only introduced in that final moment when McCree is off to deal with his "business".

Ashe doesn't climb off the payload or stops it (which, going by how McCree simply pressed a button, and Ashe isn't immobilized in the least, she easily could have done it too if she had wanted to). Suggesting that, wherever the payload is heading, it isn't anywhere dangerous for Ashe and her crew, ergo, she is 100% sure McCree isn't trying to screw her over by turning her in to the authorities or so (or, at worst, she's completely confident that, even if he is going to do this, she'll be able to get out of it easily).

Jesse drives in the same direction the payload is headed. Another hint that suggests he might intend to head to the Deadlock hideout and that, whatever business he has left to deal with, it involves them.

If his intent ISN'T to go to the hideout... Jesse is still guaranteeing that Ashe will come after him by stealing her bike, the 18th birthday gift he gave her, and the picture she keeps of them. That he takes that very bike practically serves as painting a target on his back for her to hunt down, and he KNOWS IT.

In short: Jesse will have plenty of business with the Deadlock Gang in his future, and going by how pleased he seems to be when riding the bike, he's perfectly happy to handle that business on his terms, whenever he wants to handle it.

Extra tidbit: there's nothing in Deadlock Rebels about Jesse's smoking habit, something he definitely did pick up at some point while in the gang because, hahaha, he IS smoking in the picture Ashe keeps of him :> Which makes me wonder why, of all pictures Ashe chooses to keep on her bike's dashboard, she picks one where he's smoking.

Then, it makes me wonder about the fact that Jesse deliberately starts smoking when he's standing right in front of her (and then he winks at her!). He tosses that cigar after things get kind of dangerous for him because B.O.B. does something, and then... then he goes back to smoking.

RIGHT WHEN HE'S CLIMBING ON THE BIKE.

Like... seriously...

*unintelligible fangirl screaming*

I could be looking too deeply into this. I know I could be. Maybe Blizzard just wants me to go CRAZY with little symbolism and hints charged with SO MUCH MEANING that maybe don't have as much meaning as I thought it did...

... But man, I've sailed into the depths of the shippiest oceans for many ships that have gotten actual breadcrumbs from canon. I've gone wild over ships that have zero opportunity to become a thing in canon continuity. I've written a nearly 3M words story based on a ship that is just UNEXPLORED AMAZING POTENTIAL and ngl, I love exploring it myself, so I don't even begrudge canon that much for not giving it to me anymore.

But the fact is, no ship in OW, as far as I've seen, has remotely as much content, hints and strong ties as McAshe does -- at least, no ships between heroes. We had a cinematic that was CHARGED with significance, with little gestures, with even the smallest facial expressions that carried soooo much more meaning than whole episodes or even seasons in TV shows. And then? We got a novel. A full novel depicting their origins and exploring their dynamics, how tight their friendship was, and how some strong feelings were certainly brewing there, even if neither one was ready to act on them yet (as far as we saw...).

Finally... I'll say I did start working on a Sokkla Western AU ages ago because the idea I had for one was pretty amusing. Then Reunion dropped, and I said "Why would I need to finish that story anymore when the Sokkla Western AU is RIGHT HERE?!"

And that's it, I will stop rambling now because this got insanely long x'D but thank you very very much for giving me this chance to go WILD on everything I can see, within all those canon hints, with these two *-*

[fonulyn]

So my partner is amazing and let's me ramble about RE to them whenever I want to, and even sat down to watch Vendetta with me when I bought it, so the other day I was like explaining Leon and Chris' characters (bc my partner knows how much I love them both lmao so of course that's what I was talking about), and we have both come to the conclusion that Leon is a bisexual disaster, and Chris is a homosexual. The running joke is that Leon is also just generally a whore, out there living his best life, and Chris is the kind of gay guy who no one expects to be gay bc of stereotypes and his habit of never really talking about himself, but he also was never really in the closet about it, so he's surprised whenever people are surprised to learn that he's gay lolol but in all seriousness Leon is not only bisexual, but he's the type to fall in love easily despite all of his background and trauma related to betrayal, so his heart is almost continually broken, either bc he's betrayed or he loses whoever it is he's found himself in love with (and sometimes both i.e. Krauser, and Ada at the end of RE2), either through death or just leaving bc he knows he can't stay/can't be with whomever. As for Chris, maybe I'm reading into it wrong, but despite all of the like, romantic connotations they try to put into some of his games (which I don't. Really see? Like there was some in the first game with Jill but I just cannot see them together like that, neither seem interested in one another like that. And of course, Jessica, who I can't stand, and who Chris is supposedly totally oblivious to? Like she thinks he didn't notice her flirting in RE revelations, and Parker is like "is it that, or is he maybe interested in someone else?" And the assumption there is that he means Jill, but again, I don't see it? Even in that game! But that line of Parker's always makes me think "yeah, he's more than just interested in someone else, he's playing for a whole nother team entirely!" lmao. And I haven't seen much for 5 but I'm sure it's there between Chris and Sheva, and then for 6 from what I understand there really is hardly any talk of Chris in regards to any women at all? 8 has nothing, as well, and the DLC for 7 is just another "Chris loses his entire team in horrific fashion yet again" side plot, so nothing there either), he never seems interested. He's always focused on the task at hand, not letting emotions get in his way, and like, some could argue that that's why he doesn't show interest or why Capcom doesn't create more romantic lore around him, but if they really wanted to Make Sure he was straight and Make Sure everyone playing these games knew that, I imagine there would be some one line little hints in the games of him talking about how he can't let himself get distracted, or in his line of work there are no happy endings or what have you, but. There's none of that. Bc he isn't forcing himself not to be interested, he isn't purposefully focusing on saving the day so he doesn't have to get hurt knowing he can never have whichever high potential for a dope ass protag female character who's constantly sacrificing herself to save him bc what better purpose could they serve, right Capcom?, he's just. There, doing his job and trying to save whoever he can, not getting distracted in anyway whatsoever by any of the women in his life, romantically at least. He still cares way too much, but it never comes off as romantic to me in pretty much any way. Also the note he leaves in his STARS locker in RE2remake, Claire being like "this doesn't sound like Chris at all!" Is funny to me bc like, I don't really remember so correct me if I'm wrong, but she doesn't elaborate on WHY that note doesn't sound like Chris lmao is it bc he's respectful to women at all times and doesn't ever objectify them, probably hates when other people do? Or is it bc he would never be interested in women in this way ANYWAYS, the man is so gay, he must have left this note so that Claire would know something is Up, bc her brother is Such a homosexual.

Anyways sorry, I just wanted to ramble/get your opinion on this. Over-analysing RE is actually really fun lmao

haha not gonna lie, I opened your ask in the car on the grocery store parking lot and tried to read it on my phone, and gave up squinting at the small screen halfway through :'D now that I'm back at my laptop though, lol, all good :'D

first of all I'm happy you have someone to ramble to even though they aren't into the thing themselves! :D I regularly rant about RE fandom things to my brother haha and he listens patiently although he isn't in the fandom at all, he's only played the games and that's it. but he still listens to my shippy rambles lol.

as for your thoughts? makes sense to me tbh. I definitely headcanon Leon as a bisexual disaster most of the time, because it does seem fitting. maybe it's partly because I think he's absolutely breathtakingly stunning and it'd be a shame to deny anyone that, so, naturally he wouldn't care about such trivial things as gender, pfth, love is love.

also Leon falling in love easily? absolutely. too damn easily. c'mon this is a man who gets attached to anyone who shows him even the tiniest amount of basic kindness in the matter of minutes. he canonically forms attachments with Claire, Ada, Krauser, Helena, Buddy and JD (JD 😭)... whoever else am I forgetting? but this is the guy who meets someone and would die for them five seconds later. so. it tracks.

and you know what, I can 100% see Chris being only into men. because like. I don't see the romance there either when he's interacting with the women in his life? okay, sure, I could imagine something there between him and Jill if pressed seeing the way he so single-mindedly wants to save her and then holds her in the scene after they get that thing off her chest. maybe. but even there it doesn't really feel super romantic to me, personally.

in the first game with Jill there's not... a lot of romance I don't think? sure she falls asleep against his shoulder in the evac helicopter but i mean, i've fallen asleep against a friend like that? not an indication of romance? they're clearly important to each other! i am not trying to diminish their importance to one another at all! they'd die for each other and they'd do anything it takes to protect each other and i do think their relationship is compelling but... i don't really see anything inherently romantic in it.

and Jessica, yeah, Chris is 100% oblivious to her advances. it is implied in the game that he's into Jill instead but other than that there's again zero actual romantic interaction between Chris and Jill. I was actually talking about this with my brother, who said the same, like there were so many chances in Revelations to put something romantic in there between Chris and Jill but there just. isn't? anything? except for Parker's comment. which is why it felt so damn out of place? (and like my brother would've wanted to ship Chris and Jill, he was kinda bummed about this i feel :'D) so interpreting it to mean he's not interested in women at all would actually make more sense lmao.

as for RE5, I've played it twice (with my brother lmao do we see a theme here) and honestly I don't remember anything in the game that would've insinuated anything more than solid partnership between Chris and Sheva?? if someone who's more familiar with the game wants to correct me on this, then please! but at least off the bat I can not remember anything so I think they actually didn't try to even hint at romance for them?

and in RE6 Chris is way too focused on killing "Ada" to have any thoughts about anything else :'D so no. no mentions in there regarding him and any women. at all. not even hints of Jill which is so incredibly weird (and stupid tbh) bc she was made to be so important to him in RE5 and then doesn't even get a mention in RE6? (/shakes fist damn you capcom! the characters exist outside the games they're in!)

I think that's pretty much the main difference between Chris and Leon tbh. Chris sees the job at hand, and he knows it'll help, he knows it'll save people and it'll make the world safer and he's so single-mindedly focused on the job that he sees nothing else. while Leon sees people, for the better or for worse, and he is willing to take detours if it helps even one person in the meantime. like in RE6, Leon willingly ignores the task at hand to go help just about anyone. Chris doesn't want to pause even when pressed bc he has an end goal in mind.

and bear in mind, I am not trying to say this somehow makes Leon better or Chris better or anything. they're both doing this to help. they both have their heart in the right place. they both care. but they're just so different! their personalities, and their way of dealing with things is different! I feel Chris is really target oriented and wants to get the job done. while Leon's easily distracted from it, because of all the damn feelings :'D

but yeah. i love them both, and i think it's really damn fascinating how they're both the good guys, the heroes of the franchise, but they both take to things so differently.

i don't know if any of this makes sense, I think i rambled too :'D but hey-o, it was fun lmao.

and hey no need to apologize at all!! always feel free to shoot me a message if you wanna chat!

[franniebanana]

CQL Rewatch - Ep 23

Seriously, how useless are these two right now? The puppets all dropped dead around them, yet none of them run up to help Wei Wuxian. I think we saw Lan Wangji running, but he just had dramatic close-up shots for the first few minutes as well. Like, stop looking dumbfounded and stop just providing facial reactions to things, and get up there! Act like you're in a war, gdi! They're reacting to seeing Wen Ruohan stabbed, which I chose not to cap for obvious reasons.

So even though I knew the story from the book, I still think this moment is pretty cool when they reveal that it's Jin Guangyao who has stabbed Wen Ruohan literally and figuratively in the back. The last time we saw him, poor Nie Mingjue was getting the crap beat out of him by Jin Guangyao, so seeing this here--like, ooh! Double-double-cross! Triple-cross!! It's fun to see a twist that doesn't make you groan! Because, of course, you want to root for Jin Guangyao because he's a bastard and has always been looked down on everyone. Now you see that he was not a villain at all, and he was actually helping the good guys by double-crossing Wen Ruohan! Of course, we know he really is a villain and all, but most of that really doesn't come until later in the story haha.

I do enjoy the light parallels here between Lan Xichen and his brother. We see both of them willing to give their best friends the benefit of the doubt and protect them from those who are less willing, let's say. And both of them are even willing to stand up to other people they know and trust. Nie Mingjue is one of Lan Xichen's closest friends, and we see Lan Wangji stand up to his own uncle. If you're looking at CQL without the romance angle (which, why would you?), this parallel is a bit more striking. You basically have two sets of bosom friends. Obviously one set crumbles at the end, but there are definitely a lot of parallels and comparisons to make. And sorry, for a show that couldn't have any gay characters, they sure made it seem like Lan Xichen and Jin Guangyao had a thing for each other (even though neither of them is gay in the book, mind you). A weird sort of change--I don't even ship them, but their early scenes seemed very shippy. Maybe it's my American lens, I don't know.

But speaking of weird changes, allow me to go on a tangent. Wen Qing's role expansion doesn't bother me, not really. I kind of say it does, but it's not really the expansion that gets to me. It's the fact that she was going to be a love interest for Wei Wuxian that bothers me. Wei Wuxian is gay. He's gay. Lan Wangji is also gay--if not gayer. Her being a love interest for either one of them means they are no longer gay. Bi, maybe, but what that would have done was erase their canon sexuality. It would have also turned their relationship into that horribly tropey brothers-in-arms or whatever name you want to give it--basically JUST FRIENDS who want to defend each other's honor. You can certainly read CQL that way, but if you are, I don't think you're paying attention to Wang Yibo's performance at all. And if you're not paying attention to the second lead, then why are you watching this show at all? So, changing their sexuality changes the whole show (which already is so tropey, from what I understand) into something so derivative, I wouldn't even want to bother watching it. One of the things I think you take away from CQL is Lan Wangji's, frankly, undying love for Wei Wuxian. If he goes and has a fling with Wen Qing at any point, that cheapens his character dramatically in my opinion. Lots of people can say this better than me, and probably have, but I'm very grateful to those passionate fans (and to Xiao Zhan and Wang Yibo) for helping to change the script from the original drafts, which were frankly no better than a junky harlequin romance, having Wen Qing passed around like a piece of meat, which is so far from her character in the novel, and definitely a disservice to her.

Not gonna lie, it's adorable to think that Jiang Yanli and Lan Wangji have been talking over the past few days, maybe having tea together, while Wei Wuxian is in a coma. I feel Lan Wangji was a very calming presence for Jiang Yanli, because she was probably very worried and fretful over Wei Wuxian. I like the idea of him playing the guqin for Wei Wuxian, and then having tea and a quiet chat with Jiang Yanli before leaving. Also very cute that Wei Wuxian is half-heartedly trying to badmouth Lan Wangji, by calling him boring and uninteresting, but he can't even get through the sentence without smiling to himself. Obviously he's loving the idea that Lan Wangji has been at his side every day, worrying over him and slowly doing his part to nurse him back to health.

I love his expression here: shock and relief and joy, all mixed together upon seeing that Wei Wuxian has woken up. Obviously he knew he'd wake up eventually, but he didn't expect it so soon and I don't think he expected his heart to be in his throat and to be so indescribably happy to see Wei Wuxian awake.

Wei Wuxian, of course, can't really meet his eyes, and Jiang Yanli makes a swift exit (she knows what's up--these boys need to talk). And Lan Wangji just has love in his eyes: Heart-guang Jun. I mean, imagine how he must be feeling right now. He had just gotten Wei Wuxian back from what seemed like certain death, finally reconciled, and then Wei Wuxian is in a coma! He must have been terrified of losing him again. It's probably all he can do right now to not hug Wei Wuxian.

I seriously love everything about this scene. I love the colors, the cinematography, the longing glances Wei Wuxian gives Lan Wangji, the way Lan Wangji quietly scolds him while still playing the guqin because he's a professional. But really, I just find this scene very pretty and moving and emotional. I enjoy seeing Lan Wangji getting to take care of him and even more that Wei Wuxian lets him and puts up with it. I think most of us are quick to retort a good old, "I'm fine" when asked how we are, but in this case, Wei Wuxian is not fine, and he has no ground to stand on if he's trying to prove that. It's hard for Wei Wuxian at this point, though, to really lean on anyone, even Lan Wangji who is his best friend. He certainly can't lean on Jiang Cheng for reasons I don't think I need to go into again. He kind of leans on Yanli, but at the same time, he can't (and doesn't wish to) burdon her either. Lan Wangji is really the one person he should be able to lean on and seek comfort from, but he feels awkward and uncomfortable, because of the dark spiritual energy and giving up the sword, and Lan Wangji's crusade to help him.

"Who is good and who is evil?" Wei Wuxian is struggling with a moral dilemma: is it right to round up the Wens and kill them/hold them captive? The Wens did horrible things, after all, and this is the reality of war. Of course, we've just seen Lan Xichen struggling with it as well. Why capture the women and children and elderly, who have nothing to do with the war? He's only met with the fact that it's not just the male cultivators who are dangerous. Still, his mind is only placated by the lie that the people will just be interrogated and sent to a labor camp--then cut to the blood on the floor. So Wei Wuxian is not only struggling with what the Jin Clan and other clans are doing, but he's also thinking about his own deeds--how many people did he kill? How many did he brutally murder in the name of revenge? Because of the things he's done, is he good or evil? Is good and evil so black and white? Does it just depend on whose lens you're viewing it through?

Lan Wangji looks at Wei Wuxian with all of this knowledge and doesn't know what to think. He's afraid of what Wei Wuxian has become, afraid he'll end up like Wen Ruohan--he's afraid of losing him entirely. But the situation is not black and white, and good and evil is not so easily defined. You can only know once you know that person's heart, and Wei Wuxian isn't really letting Lan Wangji in anymore. He's trying to convince him with his words, but that is simply not good enough.

I think if Lan Wangji hadn't stopped him here, Wei Wuxian would have played that flute and tried to end all of the Jin "hunting party" (sorry, that was a little dark). His emotions were already high after the conversation with Lan Wangji on the cliff, and we've already seen him feeling disturbed by how the Wens are being chased and rounded up. I, for one, wouldn't have complained if Jin Zixuan's cousin bit the dust earlier. I think his name is Jin Zixun. Is that it? See, even I don't remember him.

I love how even though they are far apart, this scene still feels very intimate. It's very moving, and the music and the cinematography help to cultivate that feeling. I like how Wei Wuxian perks up when he hears Lan Wangji pluck the first few notes, and Lan Wangji does the same when he hears the sound of Wei Wuxian's flute. I feel like they are spiritually connected here as they play this haunting duet. And I think it's a connection they haven't felt for a long time. There has been so much tension between them for so long, and this scene feels like a big sigh from both of them. While I still feel like there is tension present, there is a bit of a release here--at least, that's how I feel as a viewer.

Ah, yes, the awkward period where Jiang Cheng has become leader of the Yunmeng Jiang Sect, wants to control Wei Wuxian, but doesn't know how. He's new at this, so I can't blame him for being a bit awkward as he figures out what he's supposed to be doing. As a young man, he basically nagged Wei Wuxian for doing inappropriate things, but now when Wei Wuxian misbehaves, Jiang Cheng is in part responsible for that behavior. At some point or another, the two of them grew up. Wei Wuxian's misbehavior isn't precocious anymore--it's serious and it has consequences, and just as in Gusu, Jiang Cheng sees that those actions are a reflection of the Jiang Clan. Only now, they aren't just a reflection of the clan, they're also a reflection of Jiang Cheng, himself, and his leadership (or lack thereof).

And speaking of awkward...Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji have some...unresolved...stuff to deal with. But God forbid they actually talk right now. How can they? They're at this stuffy banquet that neither one of them want to be at. I feel for them both. Wei Wuxian is hurt because he thinks Lan Wangji doesn't trust him. Lan Wangji feels terrible because he wants to help Wei Wuxian, but the latter won't really let him in and allow him to do so. I feel myself just on pins and needles during these scenes with all these glances, but at the same time, I love it because DRAMA and ANGST! And they're just so in love lolol.

Nie Mingjue has to be that guy that always wants a certain table. The waiter leads him over and says, "Is this table okay?" expecting the answer to be yes, but nope--not Nie Mingjue. He'll request a different table. XD

I love this little conversation--it's like they're both measuring each other up. I think they each have a healthy distrust of the other. Although Wei Wuxian has always been kind to Jin Guangyao, I don't think that discounts the whole demonic cultivation thing in his mind. He knows Wei Wuxian is smart and clever and, most importantly, capable. And as for Wei Wuxian, I don't think the ease in which Jin Guangyao manipulated Wen Ruohan is lost on him.Essentially the downfall of this great cultivator and enemy of all the other clans was due to one man: Jin Guangyao. I think Wei Wuxian is thinking the same thing I am: he's extremely clever, devious, and potentially dangerous if you get on his bad side. His rise to power within the Jin Clan is kind of amazing. His estranged father admits to Nie Mingjue and Lan Xichen that Jin Guangyao is his son, his station has improved drastically in a short amount of time. He sure as hell is dangerous.

Jiang Yanli can hardly contain her excitement when Jin Guangshan brings up her former engagement to his son. Just kidding, of course. I'm kind of horrified for her that he's bringing this up now in front of all these people. It feels very much like he's pressuring not only her, but also his son to get engaged again. First of all, Jiang Fengmian and Jin Guangshan agreed at the time to let the children decide whether they wanted to get married or not. Second, if you're going to talk about this, at least do it in private! Third, this is not letting the kids decide. God, this would be humiliating! And I also totally expected Jiang Cheng to speak for his sister here, so I'm glad he didn't do that. It's really none of his business either.

Lol! The weird cutoff here! Who's speaking??? I don't know!!! I mean, obviously, it's Wei Wuxian, but it's like they don't expect us to recognize his voice hahahahaha.

Other episodes: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | Or just check out the #CQL Rewatch hashtag

[lilxxbrainrot]

I'm sick so I'll write self indulgent scenarios ok?? Ok

❗❗Long ass post. I'm sorry❗❗

So... Some hcs of how I imagine some FMA couples would act. As always, feel free to add something, or to share your own headcanon

This are intended as romantic/non-platonic. It is shippy content.

Also I'm sorry, idk how or why but I changed the narration style midway. 😂

EdAl

Of course when Ed gets sick he tries to brush it off. "It's nothing Al, stop, I'm alright." He's not. He has a fever, an ugly cough that already made his throat soar, and oh gawd he feels so damn tired.

"Brother, you are NOT okay! You're all pale and sweaty. Please go back to bed, you need to rest." Al is worried; he knows just how stubborn Ed can be, and how careless he is with himself, so he needs to take care of him, or else no one else will.

"Yeah yeah, I'm telling you I'm fi-oh fuck" suddenly, Ed got a coughing fit that left him on his knees, grabbing his stomach with one hand, using the other to cover his mouth when he jerked, feeling the need to throw up but (barely) managed to avoid it.

"Brother!" Al hurries and helps Ed to get back on his feet, glaring at him. "I. Told. You. Now you rest, and I'll make you some tea, ok?" his voice gradually became softer, as so did his expression. They walked together to the (cough their) bedroom and he waited for Ed to get comfortable before leaving the room. He returned with a warm cup of ginger and lemon tea he offered his older sibling.

Al sat on the bed, by Ed's side, watching him drink his tea while caressing the blonde's cheek and playing with his bangs, a tiny smile on his lips as he did so.

"Wha'chu smiling for?" Ed asked with false annoyance.

"I just like being able to take care of you once in a while, the same way you always take care of me. I love you, brother" that took the older off guard, which made him blush furiously, but soon he found himself smiling too.

"What you say? You're always taking care of me, Al. I'll be lost without you." They both smiled at each other, their faces slowly getting closer and closer, when Ed... sneezed.

"Oh brother! Ugh, that was disgusting, your germs are all over me!"

"Hey! I didn't do it on purpose! And you never complain when we-"

"Shut up! I'm not kissing you until you're not sick anymore!

"But- but Aaaal!"

AlEd

As soon as Al wakes up today, he realizes that he is sick. It's just a cold, but his head feels like it's about to explode, he can barely manage to keep his eyes opened, so he decides to just sleep a little bit more. When he wakes up he'll grab some light breakfast, a tea, and take some medicine.

Or at least that was his plan.

As soon as Ed realized it was late and Al wasn't up yet, he knew something was wrong. Al had a routine, he always wakes up before Ed, so it was in fact weird he wasn't in the kitchen making breakfast, or reading something in their living room.

Ed walked to their room and found his younger brother still sleeping; it looked like he was having a little bit of trouble breathing. Silently, Ed approached him and touched his forehead to confirm his suspicion: Al was sick. He had a fever.

Al immediately woke up, blinking a couple of times until his vision focused on the other male. "Oh, brother, good mo-"

"Al! You're sick, how are you feeling? Do you need something? Are you hungry? Should I bring you some tea?" Al couldn't help but laugh; Ed always exaggerated things, specially when it came to Al.

"I'm alright brother" it's just a little cold, ok? Don't worry too much"

"Of course I worry! You stay there, I'll bring you something to eat and a tea, worry not, your big brother's gonna take care of you!"

Ed did as he said, brought Al some cereal and milk (he had no time to cook something, ok??) and some random tea he grabbed, it didn't really matter since Al loved tea in general.

"Thank you brother" Al mumbled quietly, sitting on the bed so he could eat.

Ed sat down on the floor besides the bed, and started reading a book. "I'll stay here Al, if you need something, just say it, 'kay?"

Al beamed as he moved his hand towards his brother hair, but Ed was faster and grabbed Al's hand; he moved his face so he could kiss it. He didn't have to look at the younger boy to know he was blushing, and that made Ed smirked.

They spent who knows how much time like that, just enjoying each other's company, holding each other's hand, until Al fell asleep and Ed let go his hand.

EdRoy

Today, Edward is sick. He is coughing and sneezing almost nonstop. "S'just a cold, nothing to worry about." Who does he think he's fooling?

The guy is practically shivering although it's freaking hot. His skin looks pale, a thin layer of sweat covering it. So he does have a fever, thought Roy.

"Fullmetal, are you alright?" he asked the boy, concerned voice. Of course, Ed just shrugged as if that was an appropiate answer.

"F'course, why wouldn't I?"

Roy said nothing. He just got up from his chair, walked towards the door to the exterior office, and closed it. He then directed his steps towards Ed, putting his hands over the boy's shoulders, depositing a kiss on his head, which made Ed's cheeks instantly go red.

"You're sick, Ed. You must be tired; you go rest on the couch. I'll be right here if you need anything, alright?" the older man asked, gently touching the blonde's cheek to know just how much fever he really had.

Ed mumbled something that sounded as "don't go all sap you bastard" but did as told. That was enough proof that Ed wasn't feeling well. He got comfortable on the sofa Roy had in his office, falling asleep almost immediately.

Roy smiled watching him, looking all adorable and stuff. He then asked his men to bring him something so the obviously-not-small man could eat after he woke up.

RoyEd

"Edward, I really am sick, I can't go to work today"

"I don't believe you. You are just trying to ditch work again, ain't you? Lazy ass bastard" Ed said, a grin on his face as he poured himself a cup of coffee, his back facing his lover.

Roy let out an exaggerated gasp. "It hurts to know you think so poorly of me" he said, with an obviously fake hurted tone. Ed snickered, then abruptly stopped when he felt Roy's arms hug him from behind, his chest pressed to his back. He really was sick.

"Oh fuck so you were not kidding, you're hot."

"Well, thank you." ok, that one was Ed's fault, he had phrases that really poorly, although it was no lie.

"Oh you know what I meant. Now you go to bed, I'll make some tea and, where do you have the medicines?" he asked while pushing the older one towards their bedroom so he could go and rest some more.

"In the bathroom. Could you please call-"

"Yeah yeah, I'll call Hawkeye, don't worry, she won't shoot you. Probably." Ed laughed again as he felt Roy shiver at the thought. "Now you wait for the tea, and then you sleep. " Ed bent over, trying to give his boyfriend a little peck on the lips, but he moved long before.

"No Ed, you'll get sick too. You get pretty irritated when you get sick, you know?"

"Oh please, I don't catch colds that easily, ok? I'm not as weak as you so kiss me already or I won't be taking care of you today."

(A few days later)

"So... You don't catch colds that easily, right?"

"Shut up, bastard." said Ed, before sneezing.

(...)

Gah, I meant to write some EdLing too, but I cAN'T STOP SNEEZING and I got tired.

I should be writting my fic for the secret santa exchange, but here I am... Ok thay's it.

[artsy0wl]

How You’ve Grown

I have quite of few fics over on AO3. And if there is one thing people seem to enjoy there are my Tim and Ra’s centered stuff. They aren’t so much shippy as they are angst, but I digress. This is not one of them. Rather Tiny Tim meeting Ra’s after getting separated from his mother and meeting Ra’s again as Robin.

Rain drops blended with tears as a lost six year old boy wondered the streets of Gotham. Young Timothy Drake had wondered off from his mother and was unable to find her. It didn't help that he got lost in a crowd of people as it started to rain.

No one seemed to notice him as he tried to ask for help, too caught up seeking shelter. After several minutes of futile searching, Tim found himself sitting on a curb in tears. He was scared, not intending to get separated from his mother, and he didn't know what to do.

Rain stopped hitting him, Tim looked up confused. A man wearing suit was leaning over him. His arm was stretched out and his green cape was shielding Tim from the rain. Blue eyes observed Tim intently. Tim was about to run, scared because the man was a complete stranger, when the man knelt in front of him.

"What are you doing out here alone, little one?" The man gently asked.

Tim said nothing, to weary to reply. He gave the man a pout, looking away from him. The man didn't seem too affected by it, but Tim's lack of response was troubling. Tim was still trembling, clearly afraid.

"I believe I asked you a question."

"Mom says not to talk to strangers." Tim stated.

The man smirked. He was amused by the child's response.

"That's true. You should never talk to strangers, especially in this city, but you kind of defeated the purpose by telling me that."

Tim was puzzled by the statement. The man's words had a point, but Tim only explained what he had been taught. That shouldn't have counted.

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Ra's. What's your name?"

Tim giggled with a hand hovering over his mouth. Ra's looked at him curiously and thankful that Tim's tears seemed to stop.

"I'm sorry." Tim apologized. "Your names just kind of funny."

Ra's wasn't offended, actually amused by his statement. Tim was but a child after all. Hearing a name out of the norm could be considered odd.

"I suppose it is. It's not very common I'll admit."

"My name is Tim." Tim introduced.

"Short for Timothy I'd imagine."

Tim nodded.

"Which brings me back to my original question. What are you doing out here alone?"

Tim's eyes started to water again. He began recalling why he was here in the first place. Small hands tried to whip Tim's tears away.

"I lost my mom." Tim whined. "I didn't mean to."

Ra's watched the child with sympathy. Getting separated from a parent at such an age was terrible and frightening. And in a city like Gotham, that was never a good thing. It was too dangerous.

"I'm scared." Tim sorrowfully admitted.

Ra's placed a hand on top of Tim's head. His hand softly brushed through the coal mess that was Tim's hair. Tim looked up at Ra's.

"It's okay." Ra's promised, using a sleeve to help wipe Tim's tears away. "We'll find her."

Tim locked eyes with Ra's. Ra's' eyes were so comforting to him. They told him that Ra's wanted to help. Tim lunged at Ra's, wrapping his arms around him as best as he could. Ra's was a little startled by the gesture, but it wasn't completely unexpected.

"Thank you."

They retraced Tim's steps starting with where Tim realized he had lost sight of his mom. Tim recalled stopping there after chasing after a squirrel. He led Ra's in the direction that he followed the animal from. They backtracked to a clothing store that his mother was buying some summer clothes from.

With that being the area he had last seen his mother, they decided to start looking there. They looked at obvious areas, like parking lot and benches and didn't find her. Everyone they asked didn't know either.

"It's hopeless." Tim pouted, ready to cry.

Ra's crouched down to Tim's level.

"Don't say that." Ra's calmly requested. "We'll find her."

~

Ra's entered the nearest precinct, a bundle in his arm hiding beneath his cape. After another half hour of searching, they had come up empty handed. All the while, the rain didn't seem to let up. He could hear the commotion of the station, but his focus was on the officer who was loudly talking with someone on the phone.

"No, no, no!" The officer denied. "He's a six year old boy with black hair and blue eyes. Thank you for your contribution."

The officer hung the phone up before stressfully pinching the bridge of his nose. It was then that he noticed Ra's.

"I believe I have someone of value." Ra's announced.

Repositioning the cape, Ra's revealed Timothy sleeping peacefully in his arm. He had complained about being tired and Ra's couldn't help but pick him up. But when Tim fell asleep, Ra's knew there wasn't any reason to disturb him. Which lead him to shielding him from the rain.

"This is Timothy Drake." Ra's introduced. "I found him wondering the streets looking for his mother."

The officer looked at Ra's suspiciously. He was about to make a comment when someone rushed towards them. It was a woman, shocked by the sight.

"My baby." The woman gasped.

Tim's eyes slowly cracked open, stirring from his slumber. He blinked a few times before looking around.

"Mom!" Tim happily named.

Tim started to squirm, prompting Ra's to put him down. Tim ran over to his mom, who lifted him up and hugged.

"Don't you ever run off like that again." Tim's mom lectured.

"I'm sorry." Tim apologized.

His mom looked at Ra's. His stature was a little discomforting and his presence was suspect.

"Ra's helped me." Tim stated. "We looked everywhere to find you."

Her face softened as she saw the honesty in Tim's eyes. She approached Ra's.

"Thank you for finding my son." She replied. "I hope he wasn't too much trouble."

"He was wonderful." Ra's praised. "Missed his mother, but very well behaved. Promise me you won't do this again."

"I won't." Tim promised.

~

This wasn't how Robin planned to spend his first night of patrol splitting up from Batman. He was hog tied on the floor of a warehouse that he was trying to survey. Batman had told him about their target, the League of Assassins, filling Robin in on how dangerous they were. He only agreed to let Robin do some recon on his own so long as he stayed out of sight.

Unfortunately, he was ambushed by several assassins right as he got a good view of the group. Robin knew there was a reason why they didn't kill him, more than likely to get to Batman. He just didn't expect to get caught so soon, not that he planned to.

Robin was being dragged along, with the intent of being brought to their leader. Their grip was strong and rough. While the concreate floor chaffed Robin's legs.

"Master." The muscle of the group greeted, tossing Robin in front of him. "We found the little bird."

With his hands bound behind his back and his legs no better off, Robin lied on the ground uncomfortably. All he could do was watch and wait for the reveal of their leader that he knew very little about. Eyes widened in shock behind his domino mask as someone stepped out of the shadows.

Memories of a man who once found Robin now stood in front of him, showing no sign of aging. And now, this man's secret came to life. As the leader of the League of Assassins no less.

Ra's said nothing as he approached Robin. His expression was one of unsurprised remembrance. It was unnerving.

"What are you doing out here alone little one?" Ra's greeted, kneeling in front of Robin.

Robin didn't answer, not wanting to give the man the satisfaction of knowing that he knew him. Ra's grabbed Robin's collar, forcing him to sit up, as he inspected him.

"My, how you've grown Timothy." Ra's noted.

Robin still refused to acknowledge his observation. He didn't want to show the panic for Ra's' knowledge that he had.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Robin denied. "I don't know who you're talking about."

"Really? Why don't we test that?"

Ra's' free hand pinched a corner of Robin's domino mask. And though bound, Robin tried to squirm away. However, all it did was help Ra's loosen his mask. Ra's acted in one swift movement, removing the mask and tossing it aside. Blue eyes frantically bounced around the room, trying to avert Ra's' attention. It didn't work as Ra's forced Tim to look at him.

"Was that so bad?"

Tim glared at Ra's.

"I can't say that I'm surprised. After all, not too long after Bruce Wayne took you in, another Robin soon followed. Unsurprising given Richard and Jason were before you."

Tim was stunned that Ra's seemed to know the identities of Batman as well as his predeceasing Robins.

"But this isn't about them."

"This is about your crimes." Tim hissed, referencing the reason behind his presence.

A malicious chuckle rang through Tim's ears.

"Only partially. This was meant to get the Detectives attention. Separating you was a bonus. I wanted to see how you've grown and might I say, you've impressed me. I can see you accomplishing great things."

Crashing erupted causing their reunion to be interrupted. Batman stormed the room without hesitation. The first thing he noticed was Ra's and his grip on an unmasked Robin.

"Let him go Ra's." Batman ordered.

"Fine." Ra's complied before bringing Tim close enough to whisper something to him. "I'll be watching little one."

Ra's released Tim, tossing him back like a ragdoll. He stood up, facing the caped crusader.

"I wish I could stay longer Detective, but I have other business to attend to."

Without warning, Ra's threw a smoke bomb and disappeared. As much as Batman wanted to go after him, he knew his ward needed his help. Pulling out a Batterang, Batman cut the ropes binding Tim's hands and feet, allowing him to finally move and sit up.

"I'm sorry." Tim apologized, rubbing his wrist.

~

The rain delicately tapped the window as the skies wreaked of grey darkness. Tim was sitting on the windowsill watching the weather. It had been two days since the incident with Ra's and neither he nor Bruce talked about it. Tim got his lecture, but it was left at that. Bruce didn't even ask, or even suspect, if they had a history, which Tim kind of wish he did.

"You okay?" Bruce asked entering his room uninvited.

Tim remained silent, keeping his sights set on the outside world. His mind was focused on reminiscing as Bruce approached him.

"I wandered of." Tim recalled. "I was six and wanted to chase after a squirrel. I did, but unfortunately, I lost sight of my mom. I wandered the city until I bumped into him. He introduced himself, and I thought his name was funny. He was so nice to me and helped me find my mom."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" Bruce asked, taking a seat on the windowsill.

"It had been a while. The memory faded. I didn't even know he was the leader of the League of Assassins back then, and he's probably the one person I didn't research when I found out your identity. Seeing him triggered memories of a man who helped me and now he is an enemy. It's confusing."

Bruce could understand the sentiment. It had to be troubling knowing that someone kind from his childhood turned out to be a criminal.

"He didn't hurt you did he?"

"No. He just commented on how I've grown and the fact that he'll be watching my progress."

Bruce placed a hand on Tim's shoulder to comfort him. Ra's found another individual to try to take advantage of. Something Bruce would never allow.

"I'm familiar with the sentiment. Not that I'll let him near you to do anything. I know this may be puzzling to you, but know that he won't hurt you. I won't allow it."

[xxx-theartofsuicide-xxx]

Musical fans getting pissy over seeing shippy content in the fandom is like if teenagers walked into a bar and complained about seeing people drinking alcohol. Like, you are invading a space where people have the right to do what they want and demanding that they modify their behaviour to make you feel less uncomfortable. In my opinion, musical antis are the worst kind of antis, as they consider themselves more relevant (they’re not). They need to get off tumblr and go back to their sad little “Alex brightman and Eddie perfect are the best” circle jerk. (sorry for the rant but I really needed to get that off my chest and I think of you like the fandoms cool older cousin who we can all bitch with)

p.s. I hope you have the most perfect wedding imaginable, you truly deserve it

Of course you can bitch with me. I have nothing to lose and balls the size of Texas, I will say whatever tf I want with impunity and you should too. Are musical antis even still a thing? I've not been around with regularity bc wedding planning, but I mean. Haven't heard of any drama lately and I prophecized awhile back that their time in this fandom was always doomed because they don't actually like it here. They don't like Beetlejuice, the franchise or the character, and the majority of them were broadway bootlickers that cling to the fandom of any running broadway productions.

With the musical's closure and Brightman's exit from social media (gee wonder who made that happen lol), it feels very much to me like the end of their short-lived era.

Here's some of my favorites from my engagement shoot 💕

That hunk of man bout to be my husband 🥵 Im over the moon

[jerichomere]

MBS EPISODE EIGHHHHT

weak. I hate to say it but I could feel it in my heart from the start. It had good moments but this episode just didn’t bring it home. I’m going to break this up into my usual notes and then some general evaluation. Notes: What is the deal with curtain and food? He has so many weird scenes with meals.. there’s probably some hidden meaning here but I don’t know what it is And they didn’t get to chuck-root the school :((((( Constance? Wants to pour acid on curtain’s feet Haha I liked Kate’s little “Nyoope” when the recruiters found her Martina redemption and the fighting tetherball team, sure Jackson and Jillson get even more unhinged. they terrify me We got Kate yeeting Constance up the tower, but her bucket had a built in rope motor somehow WE GOT KATIE-KAT but we didn’t get Sorry it took me so long And Milligan’s still moody instead of joyous Go Constance, break the thing, yay Number Two and Rhonda had some real shippy energy in this episode and PLEASE they are SISTERS Two more close profile shots of curtain in this episode, one where he is physically shorter than Milligan but dominating the interaction, and one where he’s physically looking down at Reynie but Reynie’s getting to him. Reynie has a heart to heart and curtain passes out. That’s different. Sticky even said, “it’s anger” and he was like “no, it’s vulnerability” oooooookay then. The whisperer is not an intercom/loudspeaker. sheesh. So the kiddos leave and the twins talk, resolving nothing, then curtain escapes REYNIE AND MISS PERUMAL NO COMPLAINTS HERE *sobs* Kate and Madge at the end <3 Constance refuses adoption!?!?!?!??! And no age reveal obviously rip Sticky’s family redemption he’s going to the totally not made up Boatwright Academy now Mr Benedict is like, I love you all, no snowball fight, the end. SIKE Curtain, SQ, and a totally real engineer lady are on a BOAT. You know, I felt bad for the engineer this whole series, as she is portrayed as kind of doing the technical work hoping it’ll be used for good, while curtain abuses its practical application, but her mood really shifted in that last scene. She was like heheh hey guy that I know is definitely is evil, howabout this mysterious blueprint... are they really trying to set up the sequel. Some tree branches will have to get pretttty bent.

Evaluation: keep reading! (sorry it gets long)

To recap what I’ve said from the start, I think the casting is fantastic but the tone is wrong. The darker, more saturated filter, the isolating camera shots, and very understated music make things colder and stilted. This is a constant throughout the whole series. The book was warm, messy, and full of charm, which I didn’t feel watching the show.

characters were.. compromised? Mr B starts off with a LIE about test winners going to Boatwright Academy. That undermines EVERYTHING he does from then on. “Regrettable but necessary” DOESN’T cut it. He’s also just so anxious and jittery instead of his gentile, kind, strong book self. Just from the show, they didn’t frame his genius very well. He seems more like a fool. Not really confidence-inspiring. In the same way, Being directed to cheat is one thing, but Reynie should NOT have lied to SQ to manipulate him into seeing the forest or whatever. Yeah reynie felt bad about it and SQ called him on it, but this is like the core values of our protagonist team, the strong love for truth. Also, I feel like in the show Reynie’s leadership isn’t highlighted. Like, everyone else has their thing but you almost wonder why he’s framed as the main character. The girls got bonding and the boys got bonding but there was hardly opportunity for him to really bring the team together into a cohesive unit Also, as much as I love Number Two’s life of crime (because it’s funny), she too should have that love of truth, but instead regularly does unlawful things. AND they never explained her eating, and even stopped having yellow clothes :( Additionally, the side story of her and Rhonda’s friction (entertaining I suppose) also really changed the character dynamic. In the book, the adult team was unwavering and wise, a sturdy basis for the perilous missions of the children. But their internal strife, while adding drama, makes them seem unreliable and less absolutely good and trustworthy. And I think trust and integrity are key parts of the book’s solid narrative. Constance’s refusal of the adoption felt wrong too. She was like, “Respectfully decline, but. I’ll stick around here.” I think they were trying to keep going with her contrariness, but it just comes across as foolish pride? Constance is a LITTLE GIRL. She DESERVES a FAMILY. SHE DESERVES A LOVING PARENT (and two wonderful sisters). Yeah family doesn’t have to be by blood OR lawful paperwork, but her actions in this scene really just. cuts off the feels at the knees. We KNOW she’s strong and independent but that doesn’t mean she HAS TO BE or even necessarily WANTS to be all the time. Over the course of the series we see her warming up to people, a kind word here, a little smile there, but this adoption refusal is.. harsh. Then we’ve got Sticky. Yes, he struggles with the comfort of the whisperer. And he overcomes it. BUT in one of the earlier episodes, they had him fighting with the team, defending the whisperer, dismissing his friends... and I count this as betrayal. It may be extreme on my part, but I think he went too far. The Society is the Society. In the book he bested his fears for them and with their support. Yeah he desperately wanted to just give in but he had PRINCIPLES and knew why he couldn’t. His honor, his responsibility to stop curtain, and his loyalty to his friends got him though. But in the show he just dumped them. And then was like, oh oops jk I’m back. (I knowwwwww the book has the privilege of being able to explain characters’ thought processes and emotional states, while shows have to work with more tangible actions and words but stilll I did not Like That) And finally, curtain wasn’t smart. He had hired people doing all the work. He just used it to his ends. Less evil genius and more manipulating creep. But this? I’m more ok with. As an villain, he got the job done. But this makes him less of a foil for Mr Benedict and more of an antagonist, if that makes sense. In the book they never knew each other, but were both alone in the world and greatly smart, and they chose verrry different paths. Whereas in the show he and B were always kind of opposites, warring in motivation and method from the start.

Let’s talk about the boss battle (such as it was). I said it was weak and I meant it. The book is heart pounding. There is so much going on, and so many people in play, the narration jumping all over the place in real time, all culminating in that clash at the top of the tower. Now, the show... the highs weren’t the highs. It felt more like checking off story points. Kate and constance outside - check. Resist the whisperer to stall for time - check. Milligan reveal - check. Reynie starting to figure out narcolepsy triggers - check. Constance shouting then you are the greatest fool of all - um, no, that didn’t happen. Constance defeating the whisperer - check. Curtain escapes - check. We got zero action. No good fights. I know Emmy Deoliveira is a kid and I’m not mad at her for not being able to do action sequences or run with Constance piggyback. But there was almost no physical conflict on-screen, and that’s Kate’s real time to shine. Also they had Number two and Rhonda in the tower ready to fight and then they just didn’t. All this build up for nothing. Furthermore, and I think this is the biggest problem, there was no momentum. Yeah they cut from scene to scene, but the music and tone cut scene-to-scene too. So there was like, dramatic music, Kate’s ready to fight! Get hyped! and then cut to absolutely silent, mr curtain staring at someone. feel mildly disturbed. and then cut to Rhonda and Number two being friends and ready to fight! Aww! And yay! Get hyped! And then cut back to Sticky sitting in a chair, dead silent. It goes on like this. The music, the urgency, should have carried throughout, building in intensity and desperation as the kids come together and curtain unravels more and more and then BAM! curtain down and OH NO! the whisperer and finally Constance’s “I... DON”T.... CARE!!!” and then the madcap escape from the island. Watching, I just couldn’t get swept away. Storywise, they tied it all up and logically it made sense but the emotional culmination just wasn’t there. It was over and done too quick. It fell flat. I didn’t feel the struggle, the suspense. And then they gave us a fabricated Mr B and Curtain conversation that didn’t really help anything. And then the falling action had some nice moments but as I mentioned, the things with constance and sticky kind of made it feel less relieving, joyful, and sweet. I know a snowball fight is elaborate to set and film but I would have loved to see it.

Final thoughts I can’t help but love the kids. I’ll say it again, I sure liked this casting. And for all the changes they had to make, the original central plot was there, and most of the characters were recognizable even with all the alterations. So I did have problems with some of that underlying integrity, as well as the overall tone and execution, but I also laughed at the little funny things, jammed to the title theme, and was excited to see this, my favorite book in the world, get more recognition. I can’t imagine how hard it would be to adapt a work of prose into an audiovisual medium, and considering how outlandish the book sometimes got, they gave it their best shot. I didn’t love it but I can recognize the accomplishment. In terms of faithful and well-made adaptations, on a scale of Percy Jackson to Harry Potter, I’d give The Mysterious Benedict Society a 6.5/10.