#after the whole ‘saving the world’ bs is over he settles a little + everyone knows by now that messing with Kurosaki is a ticket to hell

[acediaedeus]

petition for ppl to stop trying to deny Ichigo’s title as a delinquent on the grounds of him being a good student. you know delinquency and good grades aren’t mutually exclusive, right? you want to tell me Kurosaki Ichigo, THE Kurosaki Ichigo, a mix of 4 different races, can’t be a delinquent AND 11th in his school? yeah, you’re delusional.

no one’s gonna call you a delinquent just bc you have bad grades. a bad student? yes. but a delinquent? no, bc the definition of the word is ���someone who tends to commit crime, particularly minor crime”, and as far as I’m aware beating up ppl is a crime, even if they start it and even if they’re bad.

embrace the reality of Kurosaki Ichigo, saviour of all three worlds, being a dumbass teenager who’s face is known to every cop in the area. the responders for 119 calls know Ichigo’s voice by heart, he says “hi” and they just sigh and ask “how many?”.

this is also a kind of continuation to my post about Grimmjow being in shock when seeing Ichigo out of Shinigami robes, bc we all know he likely thinks of Ichigo as a do-gooder and a law-abiding human (derogatory) and so he’s not surprised when he comes to the Human World and fucking everyone from officers to doctors smile at the guy with exclamations of “Oh, it’s Kurosaki!”. he is significantly more surprised when Tatsuki tells him exactly why they react like that. he loves it and Kurosaki gains two points of respect from him, but he’ll never know.

[bartokthealbinobat]

Brandy's Recipe For Apocalypse Beans

Ch. 1 of Brandy and the End of the World

word count: 2095

tw: mentions of sa and rape, implied killing, death, desire to be killed, zombies.

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

A piece of something gritty scrapes against my teeth as I bite into the beans, hoping that by some miracle they'll be done already so I can eat. It's a disgusting sensation, and the beans still aren't ready. Just my luck.

As I wait for the food to finish cooking, my mind starts to wander back in time, the background noise blurring into nothing as pictures take over in my head.

The sky was blue when it happened. It seems like such a small detail, like something that shouldn't even matter, but to me it seemed so wrong. The whole world was falling apart and the sky had the audacity to be blue. To this day it makes me so irrationally angry, that the sky was so perfect and blue that day.

My mom had been busy when the wave hit us. She was out front messing around in her garden, it had always been her favorite place to spend time. She was so proud of the one massive pumpkin she was growing that year. I remember her calling it "round as a doorknob", a massive grin splitting her face in half. I'm pretty sure she was more proud of growing that pumpkin than she was of growing me. Not that it was a bad thing, my mom was one of those people whose happiness was infectious. Her smile made everyone around her smile too, and it always felt like her joy was there to be shared.

They got her first.

I don't like to talk about it much, you know? Everyone has a similar story. But I heard her yelp when the neighbor bit her out of nowhere. We were all a little worried, it seemed so out of the blue. Drugs, they had said, the same thing was happening in a few other places in the country and at first they attributed it to drugs. What a load of bs that turned out to be.

She was fine at first, there was no real difference beside the bite on her hand. The neighbor had been dragged away to be asked some questions but he was out of his mind at that point. I struggle to remember his name at this point, i think it started with an R? I don't really know, I do remember he had a constant stubble gracing his chin, and every day he would take his chubby little weiner dog out for a walk. I always wonder what happened to that dog, if anyone ever took care of it after he was gone.

After my mom got sick, she started to spiral. She had constant fevers, hallucinations, the works. And then she lost it, like everyone does eventually. She bit my dad a week after she had been infected.

By that point the scientists had a better idea of what was going on. A parasite was what they settled on, one that slowly took over control of your mind and made you do its bidding, infecting more and more people so they could grow. There was nothing they could do about it really, no cures that wouldn't kill you. So I left, when my dad asked me to, I ran.

Me and my dad had always been close. We had bonded over a shared love of bugs and odd history facts when I was little, and I was always happiest searching for little specimens in our backyard with him. He was soft-spoken and made the most delicious potato soup for me whenever I was feeling down. God how I miss that potato soup, he had never had the chance to teach me how to make it.

So as I walked away from the house that day, I glared up at the impossibly blue sky, memories of potato soup dancing on my tongue and tears pressing against my eyes.

I glance back down at my cooking, snapped back to reality with those same tears in my eyes. Shit, its burning.

I snatch my little tin pot off of the makeshift fire, frantically stirring to try and save the beans from a fiery death. Smoke curls up from the bubbling bottom of the pan, whipping across my face and clogging up my mouth and nose. I cough , choking slightly on the burnt smell. I sigh dramatically, staring up at the now-grey sky, cursing myself for thinking about all of it.

It serves me right, I should know better than to get stuck in the past. Looking back will get you killed in this world. The only way to survive is to keep moving forward, to focus on where you are right now and what you need to get done. I know this, I've known this for a long time.

I mean, the apocalypse has been going on for almost two years now, and I'm making rookie mistakes like getting all teary-eyed thinking about my dead parents? C'mon, I know better than that. But tonight... it feels like a night to remember. I'm somewhere safe, I have warm (albeit burnt) food to put in my stomach, and I know exactly what direction I'm heading in the morning. So as I choke down bites of crusty blackened beans, I let my mind wander.

I had settled in with a group for a little while, like most people did. It seemed natural, y'know? To have people with you during the apocalypse. They were mostly around my age, other kids that had been separated from their family for whatever reason, a few that had been straight-up left behind. I actually got pretty lucky with the group I had chosen, when the world is falling apart and laws don't apply any more, well, men tend to take advantage. I was one of the few that wasn't assaulted, and I credit a lot of that to my group. Our leader was a young woman named Charlotte, and she was our saving grace. She was tough, but fair, extremely realistic, and she kept us all safe and civil. She wasn't always the nicest, but by god Charlotte wasn't going to let any of us die or suffer. Once our initial group formed, she was absolutely ruthless about who was let in, and it pains me a little bit to think about how many people she turned away, but I understand why she did it all the same.

It worked though, we stayed pretty safe, and we only lost two to the parasite. Charlotte took care of that too. We all agreed that if anything ever happened, we would rather Charlotte take us out than spend that time suffering and risk infecting anyone. But still. I remember them crying and screaming, begging her not to kill them. I remember Charlotte's face after the first one, like something new had broken in her, but she didn't think it could've gone any other way. After that we were all a lot quieter, a lot more sober.

And when Charlotte's little sister caught the parasite? We all saw the terror written in her every movement. But she still did it.

She vanished for a little while after that one, and we never asked about where she went. I think that's when everyone really decided whether they were going to stay or go. I was one of the ones who decided to leave, I couldn't handle being part of a group anymore, despite the protection it gave. I know if I ever went knocking, Charlotte probably wouldn't take me back, safety concerns and all, but I think about doing it sometimes anyways.

I had left for a reason though, and I wasn't settling anywhere until I had completed my mission. My aunt is out there somewhere, and I can't stop until I know if she's alive or not. She's the last member of my family that I don't know about, except for some very extended cousins, and I don't really give two cow pies about them. So that's where I'm heading, up north, back home. I'm originally from up in Wisconsin, the suburbs of Milwaukee, and that's where my Aunt lives, the only one I've got. My family had moved to Chicago about 6 months before everything hit, in what I think was the biggest mistake of my parent's decision-making career.

At first I had wanted to stick close to home, it just felt safer. Hence the group and staying in Chicago, but eventually I realized that wasn't accomplishing anything. My best bet was to find Aunt Paige, to stay with the family I had left. That meant I wouldn't have to deal with anyone else. It meant that I would be safe, but I wouldn't have to see the look on Charlotte's face, that I wouldn't have to listen to one of my friends begging for their life. I couldn't do that anymore, I think it would've been the end of me if I ever watched it happen. So this was better. This way, I didn't even have to know if anyone caught the parasite, I could just imagine that they were all fine, that they were all happy and together. I knew that they weren't, but it felt better somehow to pretend that they would survive and be okay.

I know I'm heading north, that is my purpose right now. Head North, find Aunt Paige, don't remember. It had become my daily mantra, what I repeated in my head as I trekked through the abandoned streets, keeping to the shadows and trying to stay alert, trying to stay in the now.

A noise startles me out of my memories again, and I realize I've been frozen for a bit, a spoonful of beans paused right in between the pot and my mouth. I shake myself a little and shove the spoonful in, getting up to go check where that noise came from. I'm currently holed up in a little clock tower I broke into, the single stairwell barricaded off so no one else can get up. Still, it doesn't hurt to check that everything is still secure, and that I didn't miss anyone hiding up here.

I peer out of the little windows the clock is set into, checking for anything outside that may have made the noise. The sky outside is dusky, like a chalkboard that hasn't been properly cleaned. The light is dim enough that I can't see very well, shadows covering all sorts of spots where someone could hide.

I don't think the noise was coming from outside anyways, but one can always hope. I turn slowly, annoyance tightening my brow and fear prickling at the base of my neck. I did a bit of a rush job closing up the stairwell, what if someone got through? Slowly, I inspect my work from a ways back, keeping my distance from any possible threat that could be lurking there. I see something small dart across the piled-up debris, and I sigh in relief. It's just rats.

I'm holed up somewhere in the northern part of Chicago. You may be wondering where, in what part of northern Chicago, and honestly I am too. My sense of direction is absolute shit, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to make it this far, so don't even ask. I know I'm heading vaguely north, and although that sounds like an awful plan, I won't have a better one until I can get ahold of some sort of map. Even then, I probably still wouldn't have a good idea of where I am and how to get where I'm going. Don't judge, I'm figuring it out still.

At least wherever I am right now there are some streets heading almost exactly straight north, so I will follow those until they run out or I find a better way.

The streets outside seem the same to me as most parts of Chicago. There are some nicer buildings, some that look really old and fancy, and a bunch of apartments and stores jammed in between. There is a very limited amount of greenery, and definitely no wide-open spaces, and the air still smells of cigarettes, B.O., and chicken skins. Although, it's been so long that the smell is increasingly faint, and some days I wonder if I'm imagining it. Either way, I can't wait to get far enough that the smell vanishes and I'm finally out of the city.

I drift off slowly, thinking about that strange Chicago smell, and the likelihood of me finding any food leftover that I can scavenge tomorrow.

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

Author's Note- Hi there, Bartok speaking. I just wanted to take a second to introduce me and my book. Brandy and the End of the World is a work in progress, a story that ends up being about a girl and her dog facing the rest of the world. I started it just to force myself to write regularly, but now it has become more than just a project to me, in the words of my creative writing professor, this piece of work is my "damaged infant" so to speak. I was inspired by my own dog, a Belgian Malinois named Nyx who is the most important thing in my life, and a conversation I had with a friend about whether we could survive a zombie apocalypse. I hope you all end up loving Brandy and her crazy story as much as I love writing it.

-Bartok

Chapter Two

[the-pale-goddess]

Ethan & Tiffany: Endgame (HC)

A quick reminder: I've rejected canon Third Year completely, so mind that none of OHTY bs happens in my E&T canon timeline.

A/N: I tried my best to write every major fact down - hopefully the final product isn’t too messy or too boring, I’m new to the headcanon business and this isn’t even written in the headcanon form because I’m a rebel lol

Huge thanks to the lovely Anon who requested this HC and every single one of you still interested in E&T’s shenanigans, your support is the greatest gift I could ever receive! If you have some more specific questions about these two, feel free to hit my askbox anytime 💕

Now let’s check what’s in store for Tiffany and Ethan!

Children

Neither of them planned children in their lives; they were perfectly comfortable in the relationship they had—living together, advancing their glittering careers while supporting each other, slaying the game as the ultimate power couple.

But life has its ways, of course, and a week prior to their third anniversary Tiffany found out she was pregnant. The news sparked blind panic in the 30-year-old doctor; she thought her whole world fell like dominoes. Tiffany wouldn't intentionally start a family: she'd just started turning her dreams and plans into reality and she didn't even consider herself fit to be a mother (even though deep down she craved it).

She'd spent an entire week full of doubts, listing all her options, before she finally shared the news with Ethan. His reaction was surprisingly calm, considering his stance on having children. Based on the evidence gathered throughout the week, he'd already suspected pregnancy and did some calculations on his own.

They both agreed it wasn’t the best time—their busy schedules didn’t allow them to even reconsider the concept of starting a family. Nevertheless, the baby was coming, and their hearts filled with strange excitement. Having a baby on board seemed surreal at first, but after the dust had settled they felt oddly content about the unforseen circumstances.

E&T's world turned upside down the second their son was born. Raising a child happened to be the greatest challenge these two brilliant doctors had encountered. Luckily, they both relish a good challenge. Guided by the unexpected overflow of affection, they quickly settled into the alien routine of parenthood.

Nathaniel Jonah (also known as NJ, Nate) turned out to be a perfect blend of his parents' most prominent features & traits: Ethan's ocean eyes and stubbornness mixed with Tiffany's smile and warm heart.

Three years later, another surprise awaited. The most shocking thing about the second pregnancy was that it didn't happen sooner (they'd been exceptionally careless). Nicolette „Letty”, a spitting image of her mother, stole Ethan's heart from the start, bringing even more joy to their controlled chaos.

The fancy condo was too small for a family of four, so The Ramdams were forced to find a new home. They moved to a dreamy house in the Boston suburbs merely a month before their daughter was born.

The third one (for a change) received a proper invitation to this world. Tiffany wasn't the biggest fan of the idea of having another baby, but her window was closing (she was 38) and Ethan's palpable excitement tipped the scales. Everyone jokes Aine must be adopted because she's the most unproblematic angel, unlike her parents.

The family wouldn't be full without pets: Nettie (British Shorthair cat) & Hopper (English bulldog).

Marriage

Marriage was never on their agenda. Neither of them felt the need to make their relationship formal, it wouldn't change anything between them—they were already acting like a married couple. Both Tiffany and Ethan think there are more valuable symbols of love than some paper signed in the presence of everyone they know. Partnership they were in seemed like the most comfortable and obvious choice.

The topic resurfaced with the pregnancy news. Our good guy Ethan, our Mr Must-Do-What’s-Right, proposed to Tiffany on their third anniversary dinner, right after they discovered they were expecting. He did it because it made sense. Because it was convenient. Because it was a decent thing to do.

But guess what...Tiffany rejected the proposal. She didn’t want to marry out of obligation. If they were really going to jump into marriage, she wanted it to matter. Ethan understood her point of view, though it didn't stop him from jokingly annoying her on every given occasion that she rejected him.

He waited two years before popping the question again. This time she said yes.

Dr. Grumpsey was willing to agree on a lavish wedding if Tiffany would insist. Lucky for him, his woman hates big, conventional weddings and all that unnecessary attention around the reception. They're both very private people, so they planned the wedding they were actually excited about.

They eloped to Miami where it all started, exchanging vows to the accompaniment of the ocean waves, with little NJ by their side. The wedding reception was just three people enjoying their day at the beach.

As you may suspect, their friends and family flew into a rage when they found out the wedding took place behind their backs. Jackie's death threats were particularly disturbing, so E&T decided to throw an afterparty for their loved ones only.

Career

Tiffany saw her future in diagnostics and followed that path, balancing her personal goals with striving for improvement in patient care. The word about her accomplishments with one of the best diagnostics teams spread fast; shortly after her challenging yet successful residency, Doctor Addams quickly proved to be one of the most valuable and respected diagnosticians—not only at Edenbrook, but also statewide, and later nationwide. She cracked some of the toughest, most hopeless cases, saving lives of many patients considered lost causes.

During her first pregnancy, her career was already on high speed and the situation made her even more determined to keep it that way. She didn't want to sacrifice her newly established position and Ethan did everything he could to support her and her career development.

She remained a vital part of Edenbrook's Diagnostics Team under Ethan's leadership for a few years. Their minds combined gave spectacular results and above it all they truly enjoyed working together. However, when Letty was born sharing responsibilities at home and managing the time got significantly harder. With minimal hesitation, Ethan decided it was his cue to leave.

He'd been thinking about the change for much longer than he was willing to admit: over the years he'd accomplished everything he could dream of and Edenbrook had become more of a duty than a challenge. So he quit, leaving the team in the most capable hands of Doctor Addams-Ramsey.

For a year and a half The Ethan Ramsey was a stay-at-home dad, juggling family, research for his second book and setting up his clinic with none other than Tobias Carrick.

Ethan wasn't 100% convinced if starting the practice with Tobias would be a wise move, but the clinic exceeded his expectations. Apart from the great sense of accomplishment, he finally gained full independence at work. And there were no bloody interns to babysit anymore.

When little Ramdams got older, he approached Tiffany with a job offer; the best diagnostician in the country was the last missing link in his clinic. She let it marinate for a few years and accepted the offer at the launch of her second book, soon after Letty's 18th birthday.

____

If there’s a typo or a mistake somewhere...No, there isn’t kgjdkgjdk

Thanks for reading 🥰 I have a few exciting fics in the making (both AUs & canon) and I hope I’ll be able to finish them soon!

[mcyslarb]

CHARACTER INTRODUCTION

THE BASICS

NAME/NICKNAMES: May Parker

ALIAS: “Aunt May”

AGE: 50

PREFERRED PRONOUNS: She/Her

AFFILIATION: #teamspiderman (or, at this point #teamspiderpeople)

FACECLAIM: Paget Brewster

THE DETAILS

FAMILY: Her parents are deceased, she doesn’t have any siblings (that she knows of) and they lost Ben circa pre-Civil War, I believe. All in all, it’s mostly always just been her and Peter. What’s more of a dream team, anyways?

THREE FAVORITE THINGS: Thai food, denim jackets and her #1 nephew.

EDUCATION: A college graduate who spent more time looking cool than studying but she got by, thank you very much.

SKILLS: Being a kickass aunt is a skill. She can also get wine stains out of white dresses, knows pretty much all of Stevie Nicks’ discography, once tied a cherry stem with her tongue and was a two-time ‘if you can get it all, it’s free’ champion at some local diner.

WEAPONS: Just her lowkey fists of fury, huh.

ABILITIES: N/A (the stellar BS detector isn’t universally recognized, unfortunately)

THE QUESTIONNAIRE

IN THE LAST YEAR SINCE THANOS WAS DEFEATED, WHAT HAS YOUR CHARACTER BEEN DOING?

All in all, rebuilding her life and attempting to keep some semblance of normality and stability in Peter's life. The usual stuff, y'know. A roof, a curfew(ish), at least three meals a day that include some sorta vegetable. A lot of pretending that she knows what she's doing in the face of the world literally crumbling and then spitting everyone back out like it was nothing. No big, just another manic Monday in NYC. May's always been pretty good at rolling with the punches. Before Peter's parents died, she was more than settled on being the Cool AuntTM to the absolute max. She was going to sneak Peter his first beer, let him drive her car, not embarrass him when he brought a date around for family dinner but things changed, obviously.

So she rolled with it. Being so suddenly in the know and in the center of things though, she definitely felt a big need to actually do something. Be proactive. Help people; it’s what Peter did, it's what Ben would have done. Despite the lack of super-juju, she did her part where she could helping those whose lives were totally messed up by the ole snap-a-roo.

May absolutely insisted on knowing all the information she could afterwards too. I mean, remember when her kid literally went to space without calling? Yeah, samesies.

WHAT HAS YOUR CHARACTER LEARNED IN THE AFTERMATH OF THANOS, HIS SNAP AND EVENTUAL DEFEAT?

May already had her fair share of experience when it came to grief. She'd known loss, she already knew that permanence wasn't real and you could do every little thing right and still end up heart broken. You never know what the day is going to bring. But this was...a lot. In a way she was weirdly grateful that she'd at least dusted too because being left behind knowing that Peter was gone? That would have been one loss too much. Knowing that she was supposed to have protected him and that she had, undeniably, failed in that? It would have been heartbreaking.

Actually, it still kinda was. Even though they all came back, even though the heroes won and the bad guy was defeated, she still felt as if she had failed. You want the best for your loved ones, you want to keep them safe but what was she was meant to do in the face of something like that? I mean, sure, if she had been there... She definitely would have taken a swing at Thanos for even looking at Peter wrong but that's just the point: she wasn't there and that stuck with her. She was probably a lot more overprotective, insisted on almost constant communication and may have had a small, minor cry over a burnt lasagne (but, like, it wasn't about the lasagne).

Still, there is hope, isn't there? Even in the face of what, for her, was the literal end of the world... There was hope. There had been some wild solution to fix everything, even if it had come at a price. Despite the worst of odds, they still got saved. That was something at least, you know?

THE SAVAGE LANDS IS A NEW AND DANGEROUS PLACE, HOW IS YOUR CHARACTER COPING WITH THE NEW ENVIRONMENT?

Nope. Nope, nope, nope--- no, thank you. She's been a city gal her whole life, hasn't even been on a camping trip so there's no way she's happy about being landed in...wherever the hell this is. Knowing her luck, this will definitely be more Jurassic Park than Land Before Time, you know? If she can make it through the literally day without being eaten, then we can talk.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Headcanons;

May was the leather pants clad, motorcycle riding, tattoo her parents never found out about having kinda gal who you never would have imagined Ben Parker to end up marrying. Mostly because, well, she'd said on multiple occasions she wasn't the marrying type- unless there was some kinda Elvis impersonator involved. They were best friends since high school though, even went to the same college and just when she thought she couldn't handle having another bad boyfriend (or girlfriend), he finally fessed up about his F-E-E-L-I-N-G-S. The rest was, as they say, history.

Definitely felt too young to be a mom. Well, guardian. Aunt with responsibility. May had never considered kids before and she was scared to death when they first took Peter in. Ben was perfect as always and yes, she'd literally loved that little kiddo since the day he'd been born but it was still scary. What if she forgot to pick him up from school and he joined a biker gang? What did kids even eat? Did she really have to say things like 'do your homework' and 'eat your larb' outloud? Needless to say it all worked out in the end but despite faking it 'til she made it, she was 100% freaking out, lowkey, at the time.

Never dated for a long time after Ben. She showed up to a few dates (online dating... Way scarier stuff than raising a kid) but often ended up bailing or ghosting before they could even show up. Even now it still feels kinda off. Sure, she'll flirt and she has a beating heart but as for epic, true, soulmate, matching tattoo love? She feels like she had it. Done, dusted (poor wording) and that's just...how it is. No big.

Read a ton of blogs about how to handle raising a teenage boy and felt very confident in all she had to say, however ridiculous. Lucky she and Peter have always had a really open and honest relationship. She's always wanted him to feel like he could talk to her about anything. They were a team and it'd always be them against the world, no matter how weird things got.

Loves a two-tone double denim look! Loves some high-waisted jeans. Absolutely adores literally anything with stripes and she shan't be stopped. Always looks great, let's be honest.

Looks like a cinnamon, really is a cinnamon roll...until you try and mess with her spidernephew.

[jbuffyangel]

Crossing Lines: Arrow 6x14 Review (Collision Course)

Am I supposed to agree with the Newbies at some point? Am I supposed to be more conflicted over this OTA versus Newbies Civil War? Cause I'm not.

Let's dig in...

Original Team Arrow versus Newbies

Someone pointed out to me, in the midst of all my snarky tweets about the newbies, I have a bias and it's disgusting. Horror of horrors. 

Of course, I have a bias. This is an Olicity blog and I worship at the altar of John Diggle (re: see blog name). My bias is plastered everywhere. I'm not reporting fact based news. This is my opinion and it is framed by the things I like and don't like (re: see my pretty banner). I am super okay with my bias and hopefully everyone reading these reviews are too! If not, I'm sure there's someone out there who agrees with the newbies.

Somewhere. Moving on.

Cayden James is dead and Oliver thinks that's pretty shady because it is. There's no time to investigate because Star City is missing $70 million and Oliver would really like to pay the electric bill. Anyone else think it's a little odd Star City is on the verge of financial shut down because of $70 million? Isn't it supposed to be like Seattle or something? I'm not saying $70 million wouldn't put a hitch in Seattle's giddy up. I just feel like they should be able to absorb it better. Whatever. Government finance ain't my thing - other than giving them exorbitant amounts of our paychecks every week only to be charged MORE when we file our taxes.

I miss the days when Oliver was a billionaire. He could just cut Star City a check and bake cookies with Felicity and William. Yeah, that's right. FELICITY AND WILLIAM BAKED COOKIES. 

Source:  oliverfelicitygifs

This ranks high in the domesticated adorable scale. To be fair, I think William baked the cookies and Felicity did the science, math and physics part, but it was still cuter than all the cute in the world.

I love this gif. This man is stupid in love and is so happy to raise William with Felicity. Remember the days when Oliver thought he’d die alone? Now he’s all heart eyes over cookies. 

Source: oliverxfelicity

Felicity rocks her hacker goddess skills and gets Oliver the Corto Maltese security video, which shows the person who stole the money:

Source:  katie-mcgraths

Bl*ck S*ren. My kingdom for Arrow to burn that wig. I thought she had a bullet wound? When did she have time to go to Corto Maltese? You know what? Never mind. Best not to spend more time than necessary on her.

Of course, Dinah finds out Evil L*urel has all the money and we're off to the races. Oliver is adamant Dinah should not kill BS. 

Remember when Oliver used to break people's necks? Six years later, plus extensive morality lessons from John Diggle, an intelligent, beautiful and light inspiring woman to go schmoopy for, and an impressionable son has turned Oliver Queen into a freaking Care Bear. Tender Heart if you want to be specific.

"I don't trust you to do the right thing."

To his credit, Oliver states he's the last person to lecture anyone about murder, but he's not going to dwell on the obvious. Oliver is the only one who can kill people. Everyone else is a hard nope. Is Oliver being a hypocrite? Yes and no. Yes, because his policy on killing is harder to nail down than Jell-O. (He only kills when necessary and only if the Big Bad is super evil. I think?)

No, because Oliver has killed and knows what it can do to a person.  

In many ways, Oliver is the best person to speak about the consequences of murder.

Source: jamescarstairs

Settle down, honey. This isn't Quentin you are talking to. Oliver barely acknowledged L*urel when she was alive. He is certainly not blind with "the feels" over her evil doppelganger. Oliver just wants to pay the water bill.

Dinah: If you are going to threaten me Oliver, you better be damn sure you can deliver.

Honestly, it's like the noobs have amnesia because they act like they don't know Oliver Queen. 

Of course he can deliver, but sure snowflake throw the gauntlet. Noobs versus Team Arrow, Round 349,834.

Source: gothsmoak

Apparently, it is Dinah's first day out of the academy because she leaves a bloody shoe print in the alley where BS was shot. You are a lieutenant Dinah. Didn't anyone teach you how to control a crime scene? Lord, this is like working with Barry Allen right now. 

The footprint leads OTA to believe Dinah took BS. They break into the newbies bunker, and by break in I mean walk in with the lights shut off, which leads to the trading of words. Fightin' ones.

Dinah: Since when is our word not enough?

Part of this newbie amnesia thing means they forgot everything that's happened since 6x09. Everything from 6x09-6x14 is the reason why your word is not enough, Dinah. Can brain cells start to fire please? Be smarter noobs.

Rene throws Vincent's death in Oliver's face and Diggle rightfully points out if these impertinent toddlers listened to them in the first place Vincent might still be alive.

Source:  herostairss

Curtis flips his shiznit over Felicity hacking their system to search for Bl*ck S*ren's heat signature. Is there anything that doesn't get Curtis' undies in a twizzle these days?

Oliver: She's tracked all of you because we needed to know if one of you broke our trust. One of you did.

Ya hear that amnesia boy? THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! REMEMBER? Suck it Rene. Oliver says all of this in his growly Arrow voice, which makes it so much better. Don't ask me why. Growly Arrow voice makes everything better.

Dinah: You have already punished Rene for that mistake.

Rene is still testifying right? Can we get some clarification on that, show? I maintain kicking Rene off Team Arrow hardly equates to Rene sending Oliver up the river for life without the parole.

Dinah: You know it's just too bad he doesn't look like L*urel L*nce because if he did you would probably forgive him for murder!

Solid burn Dinah. I got nothing.

Curtis starts shrieking about OTA breaking into their bunker and finally annoys Felicity enough to tell him to shut his trap. GLORIOUS.

One of the reasons it's hard to be interested in the remaining villains is because the noobs seem to be campaigning for Big Bad. Rene adopts a fairly nefarious tone and talks smack about William. Man, Damien Darhk wasn't even that low.

Rene: Oliver wants to fight because that's how he solves his problems. That doesn't make you a hero. It makes you a thug. It's a real shame because he's going to feel so betrayed when he figures it out. You know who I'm talking about don't you hoss? William.

It's a little difficult to stomach Rene lecturing Oliver about fighting and parenting. This is the same man who left his daughter in foster care, so he could kill people like Damien Darhk just like the Green Arrow. Alright, his reasons were slightly more noble, but that's the basic gist.

Rene getting up in Oliver's face is all a ruse to plant a bug on him, which is also hard to believe. Felicity needs to wear the red dress for that to happen.

The newbies over hear OTA's conversation with Quentin, Thea and BS.Oliver agrees to help Bl*ck S*ren get out of the country in exchange for the $70 million. The only thing I agree with the newbies on is Bl*ck S*ren will never give the money back.

OTA ditches the bug and this is where things really escalate. Curtis says he can track OTA to Bl*ck S*ren's location if he uses the chip in Diggle's arm. 

It's going to hurt Diggle A LOT if he does.

Rene is almost gleeful when he says, "You act like that's a deal breaker hoss. That guy is the whole reason I got shot." It's difficult to determine if Rene knows Curtis is talking about physical pain. Rene immediately drew a comparison to his physical pain (i.e. bullet wound). However, Dinah tells Curtis not to worry about John's feelings. Dinah's reference implies Rene was merely speaking about emotional pain, but that could have been her misinterpretation. The waters are murky for sure.

What is not murky is Dinah's response when Curtis clarifies he's talking about physical pain. She doesn't hesitate, not even for a second, when she tells Curtis to find OTA. Perhaps, Dinah feels morally justified in her quest to kill Bl*ck S*ren. Perhaps, she even feels morally justified to hurt John physically because his lies about his injury put everyone on the team at risk. Rene was wounded after all.

However, John didn't make his choice with the intent to physically harm his fellow team members. He convinced himself that his presence as Green Arrow saved more lives than it cost. Rene's injury was a terrible consequence of John's poor choices, but it was not one he made deliberately.

The newbies are making a deliberate choice. They have full knowledge Diggle will be hurt, even severely. They know John will be unable to defend himself in the field. There are no questions. No what ifs, buts or maybes. The newbies know exactly what will happen.

Furthermore, their intent is clearly based on vengeance. Rene wants revenge for his gunshot wound. Dinah wants to kill Bl*ck S*ren as revenge for Vince. These are not noble pursuits filled with good intention. Rene is actually laughing about Diggle and gleefully congratulating Curtis on a job well done as they drive to the cabin, "I pity those fools now."

The juxtaposition between the two teams and their conversations prior to battle is quite telling. Dinah tells her team not to hold back. If they do then they will get hurt.

Source:  gothsmoak

Whereas Diggle worries about the cost of OTA's plan. Bl*ck S*ren avoids capture and they end up hurting the people who used to be their friends. Oliver counters with his own philosophical question, "Would John be asking these questions if the people coming after them didn't look like Rene, Curtis and Dinah?" Of course not, but John also adds, "But I have to wonder would we be doing this if the person they were after didn't look like L*urel?"

It's really not about that for Oliver, which he will make clear in a minute, but what matters is Diggle is the only one arguing caution. And that's after the newbies deliberately hurt him. Diggle tells Oliver they may cross a line they can't take back. Dinah tells Rene and Curtis to cross the line and not look back. It's a stark contrast between the teams. It's also very difficult to side with the newbies when OTA are the only ones debating morality.

The decision is already made for Oliver. He agrees with John they are about to cross a line they can't take back, but the newbies crossed it first. They crossed it the minute they deliberately hurt John. You do not mess with Oliver Queen's first wife. He will defend bae no matter the cost.

However, I don't think Oliver is only speaking about John. Rene's betrayal cut to the core for Oliver. He brought Rene into the fold, trained and trusted him. The newbies may feel they were treated "differently," but Oliver made himself vulnerable to Rene, Curtis and Dinah. He trusted them with his biggest secret. Oliver put his life into their hands and not just out in the field. They each have the power to take Oliver from the people he loves (Felicity and William). This is exactly what Rene did. His betrayal is as much a threat to Oliver's life as the newbies messing with Diggle's chip.

Oliver even gave Rene a second chance and he still left him high and dry. Curtis and Dinah had their own reasons for leaving the team, but they also sided with Rene. Neither of them have told Rene what he did to Oliver was wrong. In fact, Curtis defended it. They are complicit in the betrayal in that sense. If Dinah and Curtis can morally square outing Oliver Queen as Green Arrow to a prosecutor then how does Oliver trust them again?

And no, the threat of losing his daughter does not justify taking Oliver from his son. There were other options Rene chose to ignore - like telling Oliver and asking for help. Even if it did justify it, Rene should respect a natural consequence of choosing Zoe is forfeiting Team Arrow. But he didn't. Instead, Rene believed his choice should be consequence free.  He acts like a toddler whose favorite toy was taken away.

Of course, Dinah, Curtis and Rene have their own list of betrayals. Most of which I find inferior to the betrayal that kicked off this civil war. We have to remember how we got here, because it's important.

Source: oliverxfelicity

Felicity is furious Curtis hurt John and is ready to kick his ass. Oliver should have let her go. Mr. Terrific would have been on the ground in less than a minute. Unlike him, Felicity can throw a punch.

Curtis only lasts in the fight for as long as he did because of the T-spheres. The same T-spheres anyone can operate, which continues to bolster my why-do-we- need-Curtis-in-the-field argument. 

Source: dmichellewrites

The T-spheres ultimately don't matter. Oliver puts him down hard. Next?

Oliver knocks Rene down and warns him to stay down. Rene refuses and picks up an AX. Yes, an ax. 

Rene takes Dinah's instructions not to hold back to heart and swings at Oliver with all his might. 

I ask everyone to consider the bodily harm Rene would have inflicted on Oliver if any one of those swings landed. The injury would be bloody, severe, awful and very likely life threatening.

Source: olivergifs

Oliver defends himself. Plain and simple. He kicks Rene hard in the chest and sends him flying into a tree. This unintentionally reopens Rene's wound and he's rushed to the hospital. Rene's injury is life threatening, which requires recuperating off screen for while. This is fine by me. I need a looooong Rene Ramirez break. Perhaps a permanent one.

Curtis convinces Dinah not to kill BS by waxing poetic about how they formed a new team to be better than Oliver Queen. ARE THE WRITERS REALLY EXPECTING US TO BUY THIS? 

All the noobs have done is bitch about OTA, pitch hissy fits, act like hypocrites and try to kill BS. But sure kids, you are really living in the light.

Diggle and Felicity go to the hospital to check on Rene, while Oliver wisely stays behind. Oliver knows his presence will only create a more volatile scene. He does tell Diggle and Felicity to pass along his apologies.

Source:  gothsmoak

Curtis and Dinah believe Diggle and Felicity have lost the right to ask about Rene. They are done with them FOREVER. Lord, if only it were true.  

Let's run it down:

Rene was injured in a fight the newbies started with OTA.

Oliver warned Rene to stay down and he refused.

Rene escalated the fight to life and death by swinging an ax and Oliver defended himself.

Diggle and Felicity show concern for Rene and check on him, even though Curtis deliberately hurt Diggle's arm, Dinah hit an unarmed man with her staff, Rene almost shot Felicity and tried to kill Oliver.

The newbies tell Diggle and Curtis they don't have the right to ask how Rene is doing while Rene was gleeful over hurting John.

The newbies tell Diggle and Felicity, once again, this is all their fault despite Rene's betrayal being the catalyst for this entire conflict.

Oliver actually feels guilty about hurting Rene. He is sorry it came to that and Rene is in the hospital. I'm not hearing a lot of sorry from the newbies over hurting Diggle, 

Source:  gothsmoak

shooting at Felicity, Quentin and Thea

Source:  gothsmoak 

and swinging an ax at Oliver. And yes, I know Felicity jumped in front of Rene’s gun. By why did she do that? To stop Rene from shooting at an unarmed Thea and Quentin. This woman, who was paralyzed from a gun shot wound, threw herself in front of a bullet to protect her family. She has more courage, honor, loyalty and selflessness in her pinky finger than Rene does in his entire body.

Nor were the newbies debating the morality of crossing the line. They simply acted without remorse, believing the ends justified the means, and then blamed everyone else but themselves. It's getting difficult to tell the difference between the newbies and the villains.

Quentin Lance, Bl*ck S*ren and Thea Queen

Quentin has taken an extended vacation to Crazy Town, is keeping Evil L*urel in some cabin and is lying badly about it. Quentin used to be captain of the police department. That has to require some undercover work. You'd think he'd be better at lying, but nope! What's worse is Oliver's Spidey sense doesn't tingle. It says to me he's really preoccupied with this stolen money cutting into his son's tutoring time. This cuts into his sexy time with the wife by default. (Sure would be nice to actually SEE the sexy times.) Stick with me folks! I can always connect it back to Olicity sex.

Quentin pulls out the photo album (JUST PUT IT DOWN MAN AND STEP AWAY) 

and blah blah blahs to Evil L*urel about redemption. Yawn. Quentin lays all of Bl*ck S*ren's evil firmly on the dead father trope. Not everything a woman does relates to a man issue, show. Sometimes we just do stuff because we want to and it has nothing to do with the presence or absence of a man in our life.

Quentin doubles down on the "It's Not Evil L*urel's Fault" psychoanalysis and states, "My guess is that it's been a long time since you had a chance to decide what you want your life to be."

Really? REALLY? I’m drunk-Scott-Moir-yelling-about-Canadian-hockey annoyed. It's called free will Quentin and Bl*ck S*ren had it since the day she was born. There are plenty of people who grow up without a father who don't turn into serial killers. Bl*ck S*ren has been CHOOSING her life for a long time now. Bad things happening to you is not a free pass to do bad things to others.

Thea's Spidey senses does tingle (she really needs to be Mayor) and she follows Quentin to this remote cabin he owns. She placates Quentin and all his crazy, which is just beyond irritating. Can someone please tell this man he has gone round the bend? 

The only moderately enjoyable aspect of these cabin scenes was KC going all in with the camp. Her over the top villain reactions felt like a suitable balance to the lunacy of this Quentin Lance storyline.

Quentin offers to leave the country with Bl*ck S*ren. He's going to open up a little shop with her in Barbados, make straw hats together and save her soul. WHATEVER DUDE.

Seeing as how Quentin's character is in shambles,  I am in favor of this plan. Ship both Quentin and Bl*ck S*ren off and we can get back to a Lance free show.

Oliver believes Bl*ck S*ren will keep the money and she will kill Quentin the moment she is out of the country. It's good to see our lead still has some sense. But Oliver chooses to go along with Bl*ck S*ren's plan because he believes in Quentin. I don't think Oliver believes Quentin's plan will work, but he wants to show Lance the trust and loyalty he deserves.

Oliver and Quentin's relationship has been rocky no doubt, but in the end they forged something based on mutual respect and dare I say love. 

Quentin was prepared to go to prison for Oliver once. Oliver cannot take the little hope Quentin has left. No matter how ill advised. Is it a huge risk? YES, but Quentin eventually set aside all he knew about Oliver and chose to believe in him. Oliver is simply offering the same belief in return. He isn't choosing Bl*ck S*ren. Oliver is choosing Quentin Lance.

If you give Oliver loyalty and trust, then you will receive the same in return. Your problems are his problems. It's the piece of him the newbies never understood - particularly Rene.

The line of the episode, of course, has to be what Oliver says to Bl*ck S*ren:

Source:  olivergifs

HAHAHA!!!!!!!! I cackled. I cackled in an evil way.  

There is no love lost between Oliver and BS. He has his head screwed on straight. L*urel is dead and BS is not L*urel. Instead, BS is an annoyance Oliver wants out of his face. To be fair, this is how he used to treat L*urel when she was alive, but he's just more forceful about it with BS.

It's like the writers know exactly how we feel about BS and gift us with these scenes so we can abuse the gifs.  

In all my days, I've never seen a show throw shade on a character they created more than Arrow does with LL/BS. Things that make you go hmmm.

Quentin admits how badly he screwed up. Thea reassures Quentin he loves BS in the only way it matters - through the eyes of a father. It's a clunky line, but she's not arguing BS is dead L*urel. Thea is simply saying what Quentin feels for BS is beyond reason 

and biology. It's similar to the way Thea could never quite untangle herself from Malcolm Merlyn. Or how Malcolm Merlyn could rationalize every evil thing he did in the name of loving Thea. Or how Robert Queen loved Thea as his own even though he knew, biologically, she was not.  Thea is over identifying a little too much, but since her days on Arrow are probably numbered I’m going allow her some wiggle room. At least she learned something about fathers and daughters in the midst of all her daddy drama over the years.

Love is often unexplainable and it certainly isn't bound by biology. It doesn't make Quentin's actions rationale, healthy or right. He is merely acting from gut instinct, a love printed into his DNA, for a woman who wears the face of his daughter but is absolutely nothing like his daughter. The thin connection of hot sour soup notwithstanding. 

"I know how much we all wish she was like the L*urel that we lost. She's not."

This line from Oliver does feel like a final verdict (God willing) on Bl*ck S*ren's redemption. 

Quentin believed in Bl*ck S*ren time and time again. Time and time again, Bl*ck S*ren chose evil. There comes a point when unconditional love meets free will. Quentin's love for Bl*ck S*ren, no matter how irrational or misguided, doesn't change the fact that she rejects it. I don't believe unconditional love requires we be okay with everything a person does. You can disagree and demand better from someone while still loving them. At a certain point, Quentin has to accept the choices Bl*ck S*ren makes. His love doesn't go away, but it doesn't change who BS is.  Quentin is in the enabling BS. Hopefully, we move to tough love next.

Rather than redeem BS, Arrow doubles down on the evil and we end "Collison Course" with BS pretending to be dead LL. 

Source:  katie-mcgraths

Now THIS is a storyline I can get behind. This sounds fun. 

I am not here for more "Let's redeem kuku-for-cocoa-puffs" and dragging Quentin & Thea down with her. Also, there's no better way to snap Quentin out of his "She's L*urel" delusions than to have BS mess with memory of his L*urel and try to steal her life.

In a way it's giving LL fans what they crave. They want BS to be redeemed and to assume dead L*urel's life. So, it's like LL didn't die at all. It's still wonky logic because the two women are different people, but whatever. Arrow is delivering on that wish fulfillment, but with a twist. It will be Bl*ck S*ren pretending to be dead LL, which will continue to highlight how different these women are and hijinks will ensue.

I believe "Collision Course" presents a cross in the road. A definitive point where BS could have gone right, but instead went left. She could have chosen to be good and return the money, but instead she becomes an imposter. Quentin very clearly offers a path in which BS can be redeemed, living somewhere tropical as father and daughter, but BS goes another way. Oliver's line to BS is foreshadowing, which why there's emphasis on the shot.

Source:  olivergifs

What's the end goal here? I think there's one of three options. 1) Quentin dies and it's finally the trigger for Bl*ck S*ren’s redemption. She leaves town to lead a good life somewhere on a different Earth, but never to be heard from again (Oliver's wish).  2) Quentin and L*urel leave town together as planned in 6x14. 3) L*urel continues to be a villain and wreak havoc in a similar way Malcolm Merlyn did.

None of these options equate to BS becoming good L&urel, joining the team and being BC again. One, they have a Bl*ck C*nary on the team. Two, it lands Arrow back to square one with a character they exhausted and were done with. And three, a villain is the only way to make the character different. The minute BS chooses another path then I think she hits the road just like "Collision Course" laid out.

Stray Thoughts

They never treated you like equals Curtis because you weren't equals. Everything in your behavior now proves that.

Curtis' hologram image of BS was baaad. The show doesn't want to spend more money on this character than absolutely necessary.

I love Juliana Harkavy, but something about her performance was just off putting tonight. She needs to scale it back a little.

The fire department and the teacher's union were super snotty about the $70 mill. It's like they want to put out fires and teach children. Calm down folks.

Curtis taught Felicity to hack something? Give me a freaking break. Oliver's magical powers in Season 4 were easier to buy than that.

OTA was back in the van, which always gives me Season 2 nostalgia.

Dinah also doesn't know how to tail someone because she was 30 feet behind Diggle's bumper.

"I found something that can bury Queen." The new DA works for Dragon and what he has to bury Oliver is Roy. Roy confessed to being the Arrow and is supposed to be dead. If Roy is alive then it's all a lie and the new DA can convict Oliver of being both the Arrow and Green Arrow.

Is it ever up to the newbies to save the city? No. You serve a supporting role in saving the city at best. Get a grip.

Next week is Roooooooooy. Give me all the Theroy. I need to snuggle Colton Haynes.

Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me. 6x14 gifs credited.

[anikuru-blog]

レイン (Rain) - Chapter One

Fandom: Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academy

Pairing: Bakugo Katsuki/Midoriya Izuku, Aizawa Shota/Yamada Hizashi, Jirou Kyouka/Kaminari Denki

Summary:  It's been eight years since Class 1-A and 1-B have graduated, and once again the hero world has been thrown into chaos. A new killer is on the rise, and heroes are falling one after another. The killer has begun moving onto bigger and more famous targets, but the nation's best are unable to narrow down their mile-long list of suspects. As a last ditch effort, Advance, a hero agency created by Class 1-A, teams up with Mustafa's Department of Investigation in a last attempt to capture this killer before they can go after the top heroes. However, the case is difficult, the killings are inconsistent and the department head is less than cordial -- will the previous students of Yuuei be able to stop the murderer who overcomes all Quirks?

“A medium sized invisibility cloak…”

 No matter how many years passed by, he’d never forget that day under the overpass. He’d been so distracted trying to cheer himself that he hadn’t even heard the rattling of the sewer grate, not until it was too late. A chilling voice caught his attention, and as soon as he turned around, he was frozen in fear. He remembered how his stomach had dropped down to his feet, how his limbs had locked up as the monster, some horrendous mix between slime and dirty sewer water, slithered out of the opening. He couldn’t move, mind screeching to a stop as the villain- it had to have been -sneered down at him.

 When he finally got his wits about him, he tried to run. He dropped the book in his hand and made a mad dash out from under the overpass, but before he could even see the light of day he was grabbed around the ankle. The liquid spilled over his legs and up his waist, trapping his arms by his side. He tried to cry out, but the second he opened his mouth, the beast was shoving itself down his throat.

 “Don’t worry…” It murmured in his ears, shoving tentacles into his mouth, his nose even, suffocating him. “I’m just going to take over your body. Calm down, it’ll only hurt for a minute.”

 He thrashed and struggled, trying to rip the slime away from him, out of his throat, out of his body, but it slipped right through his fingers like water. Each breath pulled in more of it, filling his lungs until he was choking. Tears blurred his vision as he dug his nails into the slime but his limbs were already growing weak. He couldn’t breathe, couldn’t cry out for help, couldn’t do anything but squirm and struggle and pray that God, oh God, wouldn’t someone save him, please-

 “That’s it, just a little more.” It cooed, one tentacle brushing across his cheek in a terrible mockery of a soothing touch.

 His vision was fading, black spots blocking out the sight of the overpass. Was this how he was going to die? He didn’t want to die like this! He was gonna be a hero! He was going to save people! He was going to prove everyone wrong and save the day with a smile! He was going to go to Yuuei, he was going to meet All Might, he couldn’t die here! Oh God oh God oh God please don’t let him die, he didn’t wanna die, he wasn’t ready, someone save him, please, anyone-!

 Nobody came.

 That was eleven years ago.

“Okay, so lemme get this shit straight.”

 The entire room groaned all together, rolling their eyes at the blonde man at the front of the room. Even though this had been the fifth time he ‘needed to get things straight’, most of the occupants bore fond smiles, though that only irritated the blonde man more.

 “What?!” He demanded angrily, crossing his gloved arms in front of his chest.

 “Katsuki-kun, we’ve gone over this, like, seven times now.” A woman giggled. She had warm brown eyes and short cut brown hair pulled into a half ponytail, a black-and-pink mask sitting on her lap. The rest of her outfit complimented her figure nicely, a pink and black bodysuit with pink heels and gloves. “Weren’t you paying attention?”

 “Of course I fuckin’ was!” Katsuki snapped, face flushing with his irritation. He stood up from where he was leaning against the wall and shoved his hands into his pockets, eyes narrowed. “What I don’t understand is why we gotta work with civilians to figure this shit out! We can handle this BS ourselves!”

 “If it were any regular villain, then there would be no need for the Department of Investigation’s assistance, but this is hardly our run-of-the-mill ruffian causing petty trouble.” Another man said, adjusting his glasses. His blue eyes were dark with seriousness as he held a helmet on his thigh, brows drawn together. His outfit looked as if he had walked right out of the 17th century with his full body armor, but his blue undercut hair contrasted it sharply.

 “This guy’s killin’ heroes, man.” A red haired man said from his position just behind Katsuki, leaning against the wall. The solemn expression looked out of place on his face somehow, frowning as he crossed his arms over his bare chest. “And nobody’s got any idea who this guy is. There’s no evidence of who the killer is, all they can find tying the murders together is that red rope.”

 “Yeah, I know that, you dipshit, I heard.” Katsuki rolled his eyes at the man behind him, muttering an ‘idiot Kirishima’ under his breath. “Big heroes are being killed execution style and everyone’s confused about it, I got that, but why the hell do we have to work with a bunch of talentless hero rejects, huh? If we can’t fucking figure this out, what makes you think a bunch of dumbasses who had villains delivered right to their goddamn doorstep are gonna find our fuckin’ culprit?”

 “You’re thinking of the police, Katsu-kun.” The woman that spoke up was an odd looking one, with large eyes, a long mouth, and hair pulled into an odd looking ponytail. She sat crouched on the floor, decked out in an outfit of black and green. “Investigators specialize in finding criminals guilty of murders and gang activities and illegal trafficking rings, stuff along those lines. The police just arrest the accused. The department we’re working with specializes in investigating and assisting heroes, ribbit.”

 “I stand by my point, Frog Girl.”

 “Call me Tsu-chan.” She replied absent-mindedly, almost as if it was out of habit.

 “Look, Katsuki-kun, we can’t figure this out by ourselves -- and at this rate, we’re endangering more heroes by trying to.” The brunette woman said, her smile having disappeared.

 “The killer is going after lower ranked heroes, in the 200s or so, but there’s no telling when he’ll go for bigger targets.” Tsuyu said, raising a rather large hand to her mouth. “We could be the next ones dead in the streets.”

 Her blunt words silenced anything the others were going to say, a deadly quiet settling in the room as the occupants really processed what she had said. Although the killer had been drifting around the 300s at first, they had been building their way up to higher ranks and numbers, and there was no way to know when they’d start going after the top heroes. The most frightening part was that, regardless of ability, every victim was restrained and shot in the head. Strength quirk, speed quirk, body quirk, teleportation quirk, fire quirk, water quirk, flying or digging, it didn’t matter, they all died the same way; a bullet to the head. Nobody stood a chance against this killer, and nobody knew where they were, or who they were, or who they’d strike next.

 “Okay.” Katsuki finally said, breaking the silence. “Fine, I get it, whatever, but what the hell are we supposed to do now, huh?”

 “We need to meet up with the department head.” The brunette woman replied.

 The man in the armor looked up at the woman. “Uraraka-chan, do you happen to remember what his name was?”

 The serious look melted off of her face, replaced by a sheepish smile as she scratched at the back of her neck. “Ah, ahaha, no, I forgot, I’m sorry.”

 “Dammit, how the hell are we supposed to find him now?” Katsuki demanded, scowling.

 Uraraka bristled. “I know where he works! Just… not what his name was!”

 “Ooh, I know where he is!” A pink skinned girl called, dressed in a blue and purple bodysuit.

 “Thanks, Mina-chan, but we have that handled,” Uraraka said, smiling kindly as she ignored Katsuki’s irritated muttering. “Do you remember his name?”

 “Ah, no I don’t,” Mina replied with an embarrassed smile. “He’s just so… quiet, you know? The whole department just kinda fades into the background, I really only know where their building is, and that’s only because it’s down the street from Yuuei.”

 “Eight years since you punks graduated and you’re no different than first years.” A new voice grumbled.

 The members of the room all glanced back towards the door, erupting into different greetings as they saw the shaggy, black-haired man at the back of the room.The sight of the man lightened the mood of the room significantly.

 “Aizawa-sensei!” Uraraka greeted, grinning widely.

 “I’m not your sensei anymore, quit calling me that.” Aizawa said, frowning as he rubbed at his dry eyes.”Well, in any case, I’m supposed to take you to the department head, so hurry up and get your stuff together, I don’t want to wait for you.”

 Mina startled, her eyes widening. “Wait, we’re going today?”

 Aizawa didn’t bother answering her verbally, just leveling the pink skinned girl with a look that had her mouth snapping shut, her cheeks flushing in embarrassment. He then turned on his heel and ambled through the same door he’d come through, drawing yelps and cries from the heroes in the room as they scrambled to get their costumes and weapons together before racing to catch up with him. They all reassembled just outside the small apartment complex that they’d rented out as their headquarters-slash-home. Mina, Katsuki, Uraraka, Kirishima, Tsuyu, and Iida stood by Aizawa, waiting for the last members of their team to show up. A minute or so later, a man with half red and half white hair stepped out of an apartment on the second floor, leaning over the railing to call down to them.

“Yaoyorozu-san and Fumikage-san are still in Kitakyushu, and Kyouka-san and Kaminari-san are on an assignment with the Police Force, so it’s just us for now.” The man’s voice was as cool and calm as the ice he controlled, one blue eye sharply contrasting the brown iris on the other side of his face.

 “Whatever, just hurry up and get your ass down here, half and half!” Katsuki shouted. “We got shit to do!”

 “I thought you didn’t want to work with the Department of Investigation?” Uraraka asked, raising her eyebrows as her smile widened.

 “I don’t.” Katsuki scowled, glaring at her. “Which is why I wanna get this fucking bullshit over with already.”

 “Sure, sure.”

 “Although not for the same reasons, I must agree with Bakugo-kun,” Iida said. He looked up at the second floor, cupping his hands over his mouth. “Let’s be on our way, Todoroki-kun!”

 “Yeah, yeah, you don’t have to shout,” Todoroki said quietly. He jumped up onto the railing and hopped off, free falling down to the ground. Aizawa stiffened, but before Todoroki became a splatter on the pavement, ice formed into a slide beneath him and caught him, placing Todoroki safely on the ground.

 Aizawa relaxed, letting his hand fall back to his side. “You’ve gained better control of your ice.”

 Todoroki didn’t bother with an answer, just nodding stiffly as he joined the group. Kirishima, however, was more than happy to pick the dialogue back up.

 “Yeah, you should see him, sensei!” Kirishima said excitedly, eyes practically sparkling as he ignored Aizawa’s quiet demand that he stop calling him ‘sensei’. “He can make these big slides and shields and weapons and walls and columns and oh my gosh, sensei, he’s so cool-”

 “He’s like Elsa, from Frozen!” Mina shouted.

 Todoroki’s eyes widened, an offended look crossing his face. “I am not.”

 “You totally are!”

 “I am not!”

 “Says the one who can sing Let It Go better than all of us!”

 Todoroki’s cheeks tinged pink, and Aizawa couldn’t help the smirk as he took the helm of the group and started walking. It was pretty clear that that tidbit of information wasn’t exactly supposed to leave closed doors.

 “It’s true, ribbit.” Tsuyu said.

 “If you idiots start singing that fucking bullshit again, I’m gonna blow you all up into next Tuesday, I swear to fucking God.” Katsuki threatened.

 “The snow glows white on the mountain tonight, not a footprint… to be seen~” Mina started up, ignoring Katsuki’s threat. She elbowed Todoroki, but he just glanced off to the side, cheeks darkening.

 Uraraka sidled up next to him, grinning as she continued on. “A kingdom of isolation, and it looks like.. he’s the queen.”

 Todoroki still stubbornly refused to bend to their will, staring down at the ground as the girls continued to poke and prod at him as they walked through the city.

 “Nah, Todoroki-kun likes The Little Mermaid more, doesn’t he?” Kirishima asked, laughing.

 “I seem to remember him singing along to just about every song in that movie,” Iida said. Even he was bearing a teasing smile as Todoroki turned red, the ice covering the left side of his body steaming up a bit.

 “Look at this stuff, isn’t it neat?” Mina giggled

 “Wouldn’t you say my collection’s complete?” Uraraka asked, fighting back a grin as Todoroki stared down at the ground.

 “Wouldn’t you think I’m the girl, the girl who has everything?” Kirishima continued, poking Todoroki’s back.

 Part Of Your World was definitely less irritating than Let It Go, Katsuki thought with a grin. He cleared his throat and picked up the next lyric, determined to get Todoroki singing. “Look at this trove, treasured untold…”

 Todoroki flushed a darker red, but begrudgingly opened his mouth. “...How many wonders can one cavern hold?”

 Mina and Uraraka whooped and high-fived as they finally got him singing, but Kirishima was busy carrying the song on, singing as loudly and dramatically as possible. “Looking around here you think, sure, she’s got everything!’

“I’ve got gadgets and gizmos aplenty!”

 “I’ve got whoozits and whatzits galore~”

 “You want thingamabobs? I got twenty~” Tsuyu added in, grinning along with them.

 “But who cares?” Todoroki gained more volume and confidence as he went on, fighting down a smile. “No big deal, I want more~”

 “I wanna be where the people are!”

 “I wanna see, wanna see them dancin��!”

 “Walking around on those, what do you call them?”

 “Oh, feet!”

 “Flippin’ your fins, you don’t get too far~!”

 “Legs are required for jumping, dancing!”

 “Strolling along down a, what’s that word again? Street?”

 “UP WHERE THEY WALK!”

 “UP WHERE THEY RUN!”

 “UP WHERE THEY PLAAAY ALL DAY IN THE SUUUUUN!”

 At this point in the song, Uraraka couldn’t even sing through her laughter, vision blurring over with tears. Even Aizawa was grinning at their loud singing- though, their screaming and yelling could hardly be called singing. He glanced back and saw even Todoroki laughing and singing along, an arm looped with Iida’s, a look of utter contentedness on his face that Aizawa had only seen a handful of times in the eleven years he knew the kid -- but it seemed to come so effortlessly now. Kirishima had an arm slung over Katsuki’s shoulders as the two shouted the loudest- since when did Katsuki let people touch him like that? Aizawa breathed out a laugh. Kids were always changing.

 People in the streets stared at the group of noisy heroes as they laughed and screamed out lyrics, switching from one Disney film to the next. At some point, they did eventually get to Let It Go, and true to their word, Todoroki was singing every lyric, even throwing a few ice patterns along the sidewalk for effect. Civilians who knew the songs they were singing would join in for a few verses, while others laughed and parted for the group of heroes. Soon, Yuuei came into sight, and the heroes paused to shout a “PLUS ULTRA!” before picking back up with a dramatic rendition of I’ll Make A Man Out Of You.

 The Department of Investigation was just down the street, but as soon as Aizawa saw the department, he felt his smile drop.

 There were half a dozen police cars around the department with their lights on, and over twice as many police officers, grim looks on their faces as they darted in and out of the department, talking with investigators. A few minor heroes were scattered about the place, either helping or being interrogated. A group of investigators were talking amongst themselves by a police car, and amongst them was a lithe and tall man in a sweater and slacks -- the department head.

 As the group of heroes got closer, the department head turned around, green eyes immediately narrowing at the sight of them. Aizawa raised an eyebrow at the man, but he was focused on the obnoxiously singing heroes, upper lip twitching as his expression darkened.

 “It’s nice to see that you’re all having fun.” Though soft, the department head’s voice carried across the street, stopping the heroes in their tracks. The man’s expression was still twisted into one of irritation and even disgust, one hand on his hip while the other held a folder stuffed with papers and photos.

 “What’s got you all pissy, huh?” Kirishima asked, not picking up on the solemn and grave mood as he playfully shoved Katsuki’s head down.

 “While you heroes-” The word was almost spat out, almost as if it was poison. “-were goofing around, our killer struck again. Manual, the Normal hero, was just found dead in the streets two blocks from here.”

 If they hadn’t sobered up already, they were now. Kirishima abruptly let go of Katsuki, who immediately busied himself trying to fix his mask and hair. Tsuyu stepped forward, deciding that she’d introduce them all. That guy looked pretty pissed, and she didn’t want to risk anyone on their team accidentally making him angrier.

 “I take it you’re the department head. I’m Asui Tsuyu, and this is Ashido Mina, Uraraka Ochako, Todoroki Shouto, Tenya Iida, Kirishima Eijiro, and Bakugo Katsuki.”

 “Oi, shitty frog, I can introduce myself,” Katsuki said, readjusting his mask before he looked at her, eyes narrowed. He then opened his mouth and looked back over at the department head-

 Only for his face to go pale.

 The department head looked dispassionately at them, but when his eyes landed on Katsuki, his mouth opened a bit, only to curl back into a scowl. “Oh. It’s you.”

 Tsuyu frowned, looking up at Katsuki, but before she could say anything, that familiar look of rage crossed his expression.

 “‘It’s you’? That’s it? That’s all I fucking get?” Katsuki’s voice wasn’t loud and ear-grating like usual, but quiet, laced with such a dark anger that Tsuyu actually took a step back. “Eleven years and that’s all I get?!”

 “I don’t owe you anything, Bakugo-san.” The department head snapped.

 “Fucking yes you do! It’s been eleven fucking years, you idiot! Eleven! Where the hell have you been?!”

 “Given that you’re the one who oh so kindly encouraged that I, what was it that you said? Take a swan dive off the roof and hope that I’m reborn with a quirk in the next life?” Katsuki recoiled, the man’s sharp words cracking like a whip. “I find it surprising that you cared at all.”

 Katsuki opened his mouth, then closed it, then opened it again, utterly lost for words. His anger had been gone in a flash, replaced by some sort of… helpless frustration. “You- You were still-”

 “What, your friend?” The man asked, then scoffed. “Don’t kid yourself, Bakugo-san. We were never friends. You made that clear.”

 One of the other investigators stepped forward and placed a hand on the director’s shoulder, redirecting his attention. The man looked back at his colleague, who murmured something under his breath. The director sighed, then turned back to look at the heroes. His anger wasn’t gone, just hidden underneath an apathetic look.

 “I apologize.” The director said tonelessly, pointedly avoiding looking at Katsuki. “That was incredibly unprofessional of me. My name is Midoriya Izuku, and I’m the head of Mustafa's Department of Investigation.”

  Eleven years ago, in a crowd of reporters, an impossibly tall and muscled blonde man stood, garbed in cargo pants and a white t-shirt as he grinned and laughed, answering the questions frantically tossed his way. As he answered a question regarding the purse snatcher he had caught that morning, he couldn’t help but feel like something was… wrong. It curled in his stomach, a feeling of discomfort and anxiety. He felt as if there was somewhere he needed to be, something he needed to do…

 His mind flicked back to the slime monster he’d seen earlier. He really should go find it and take it down to the station before it could hurt anyone, but..

 These reporters were insistent…

Ah, it wouldn’t hurt. Surely someone else would handle the monster.

Crossposted from archiveofourown.com!

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11241609

[tracey1302]

Episode 602 - The Man in the Basement (aka #becauseIloveyou)

Woke up this morning and opened Tumblr.

First reaction.

Then...

Now I’m just at...

I know what you’re all thinking. Bloody sadist. How can you be so happy when the last scene of last night’s episode was possibly the most heartbreaking in Homeland’s history?

Answer: Because she loves him.

And we can see it. Now more than ever before. There’s no Jonas sex in between where she’s chatting some bs about going to a cabin. There’s no Saul on the sidelines, waiting for his answers. This is just the two of them.

We’ve even got the NYT on our side with this one...

“If there ever was a time for an “I love you” on “Homeland,” it was tonight.“You saved me.”“Yes.”“Why?”“Why? … Why?”

Thanks Judith Warner. I love you too. Obvs, more on this later.

So let’s begin...

I’d like to talk about this...thanks to wthomeland for the gif.

Not only do we have this gorgeous scene to come... they’re just spoiling us now.... but it’s the last shot in the credits. Homeland underlining their relationship/closeness/intimacy is absolutely 100% central to this season and to Carrie’s development. The running narrative through the credits is always about Carrie. ‘I missed something once...’ ‘Who’s after me?’ etc etc. Now it’s Quinn, saying ‘You saved me. Why?’ Can I get an OTP?

That’s not to mention that the whole shot looks like a darker version of the Titanic poster with Quinn/Carrie posed as Jack and Rose.

Just me? Okay, moving on...

Quinn is listening to some random anti-Communist rant on the radio that seemed like it was preaching the end of times. I can only assume that was what was behind Quinn’s random quest for canned food....

Little Frannie Mathison (bless her, what a sweetheart) is listening in, stating, ‘There’s a man in the basement.’ I actually thought it was kind of sweet that Carrie told Frannie that they had Quinn staying with them. And a lovely reminder from Carrie to all the audience that the two of them had met before, and that she liked him...ahhh 412. Those were the days.

‘Frannie took a shine to you.’ Oh that episode. THAT scene. Sigh.

Anyway, Carrie drops off Frannie with some friend and then goes to try and give Quinn his meds. I thought it was quite interesting to see that the door was locked. Presumably it can be locked from both sides? Quinn couldn’t get through last time because she didn’t want him up there (for obvious reasons from his antics the previous day) and now she can’t get back down? They will create these obstacles to their relationship moving forward.

She tries to get in to help.

And Quinn throws the mug.

Thanks Quinn. Real helpful. So Carrie asks Max to keep watch, or as Quinn later states, to ‘babysit’ him.

Freaking love Max, by the way. So glad to see him back.

I thought it was interesting that Max was brought into this episode because for me, it highlighted a couple of things.

1) How lonely Carrie really is. There aren’t that many people she can call on in case of emergency anymore. Saul, let’s not go there. Maggie... god knows where she is, probs still in Washington. Quinn... that completes our circle of friends.

2) How insightful Max is. Max knew Quinn before, which you sort of forget because their little tag team was so long ago. And I thought this scene was really touching.

Max says ‘He’s got this strange thing about you which isn’t helping.’

Carrie gets upset and says desperately, ‘I’m trying!’

It was a really weird but touching scene. It’s hard to read. I couldn’t tell whether he was just telling her the depth of Quinn’s depression, in case she didn’t already know. Or whether he was perhaps saying that she needed to do more to try and help him.

What is this thing that Quinn’s got with Carrie? 

The orderlies at the hospital mentioned that he gets agitated when she’s around. At the beginning of this episode, he just rejects her help and throws a mug at her.

I still obviously stand by the fact that he’s so proud that he doesn’t want her to see him like this but I also think he just genuinely doesn’t understand why she cares so much about him and why she’s helping him. He genuinely thinks he’s worthless. Now more so than ever before. Even before trashcan land in 505 - or was it 506? I forget because I try to block out Season Five wherever possible.

I also wonder, but I hope I’m wrong, it’s just a thought so don’t pounce on it. Perhaps Quinn, even in his current state, senses some guilt within Carrie and wonders why. Given the last scene and it’s poignancy, this isn’t a big thing, but it could come up. Who knows?

So her care frustrates him, even angers him. But then Max, bless him, asks him outright as to why he’s being such a dick to her? And he can’t really answer. He’s just angry at the world.

I also thought it was really sweet that every time the phone rang at work and it was Max, Carrie is asking after Quinn. So beautiful.

Yes, you’re getting Jeremy again.

Another thing I thought was quite interesting in this episode, which does play into my analysis of the final scene between Carrie and Quinn, is the conversation between Carrie and Saul.

Saul outright asks Carrie if she’s been working with Pres-Elect Keane. Which she has, so he was on the money there. But it was his... threat, that kind of disgusted me. When he says that it wouldn’t ‘play right’ if it was uncovered that she had been working with Keane. I thought this was way out of line and sort of...inhuman... even for Saul. But Carrie’s repulsed reaction to it shows show much she’s changed from this.

You see, Saul is such a company man now that the sanctity of human life seems to mean nothing to him. Just the fact that he came all the way down to Carrie’s place of work to effectively say, ‘I’ve sniffed you out. Don’t do it again,’ in a semi-threatening sort of way, just shows how flippant he is about everything, including people’s lives and livelihood. This is what the CIA appears to do to people, including Saul, including Quinn. And Carrie wants out. Or at least a changed paradigm...

Furthermore, is anyone else pissed that Saul hasn’t asked how Quinn is? He must know that Carrie is taking care of him, he’s in the CIA, for god’s sake.

Anyway, let’s come to the crux of it.... the scene. So Max is gone, and Carrie tentatively goes down to see Quinn. I thought the fact that he asked how her day was, was really sweet. He really carefully says the words, so as not to get them wrong.

She answers as Carrie would to old Quinn. That made me smile.

And then he asks what happened to him? This bit of the scene made me think that memory loss has been a thing. She goes back to two separate points in time before landing on the story that Quinn wants her to tell.

‘What happened to me...before this?’

I thought it was really heartbreaking how he gestures towards his body.

Carrie is incredulous that he doesn’t know what’s happened to him.

We are also quite surprised. We’ve watched that video as many times as Carrie has. If not more. Sara @hellyeahomeland said it best when she highlighted that there’s so much about this situation that we know, and Quinn doesn’t. We feel like we shouldn’t know if Quinn doesn’t. It feels intrusive and wrong.

Quinn tells us that he hadn’t wanted to watch it, until now.

This is heartbreaking and a huge step forward for Quinn. And very telling that he’s ready to take this step, but only if Carrie is with him. He doesn’t say this, but I would wager this is what he means. He’s finally got to a place where he is more settled (he looks more settled) and this is because of her. It took Max to call him on it but hey, he got there. He is now realising that he can rely on her, he can lean on her a little and it’s okay for him to do that. He doesn’t need to be so proud.

So we get ready to watch it again. I also loved Carrie’s moment of hesitancy and then he touches her, gently, to tell her it’s okay to play it. To tell her that he’s okay. That he’s ready.

This moment in itself is huge. Quinn finally confronts what has happened to him. He watches it and sees what everyone else has seen. His very public capture and torture at the hands of terrorists. The whole world has seen him throw up, wet himself and convulse as a result of the sarin.

Carrie tells him she ‘must have watched it a hundred times trying to find you.’ 

Carrie’s words here are so gentle, but she’s trying to tell him how much she deeply deeply cares about him. She also makes this whole thing about them and their relationship. I don’t mean romantic relationship (as obviously they weren’t involved at the time) but it’s all about her, trying to get to him. 

‘Those tiles. They are what led me to you.’

Her phrasing here. Me to you. Underlying sentiment, ‘Please believe I was doing everything that I possibly could to get to you.’

Furthermore, Carrie shares something that we actually didn’t know. Quinn flatlined in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. He was dead for three whole minutes. She chokes as though these were the longest minutes of her life. Which they obviously were.

‘You saved me. Why?’

Cue Tracey choking a sob over her brew.

‘Why?’

As I mentioned before, there are a few layers to this question from Quinn’s side... let’s unpack them.

1) Quinn doesn’t think his life is worth saving. He hasn’t cared much about his life since he got back from Syria. It all ended.... partly because he thought Carrie was rejecting him and partly because he had far too many intimacy issues to confront a possible relationship with her. So he ran away.

But especially now. He is brain damaged, paralysed down one side and heavily medicated. A shadow of his former self.

2) Quinn doesn’t understand why Carrie cares so much about him. What I would really like to know is how much Quinn remembers. 

Does he remember 412?

This may seem like a daft question, but given, as I say, Carrie recalls two explanations from the recent past before landing on what he wants to talk about, I think it needs asking.

Given the way he looks at her here...

I’m going for yes, he does remember. But a girl’s gotta ask.

In which case, how can he not know the answer before her response? Yes, two, three years have passed, but is he so far gone that he doesn’t understand why Carrie could possibly think to save his life?

Carrie is so mortified that he even asks, she says ‘Why’ twice!

I am sobbing at this point, FYI.

I feel like part of this answer, but not the juicy bit, which I’ll come onto.. is that she’s so horrified about his lack of care for his own life. This plays into what I brought up in the scene with Saul. She’s mortified that this is what the CIA does to people. Saving someone’s life is a no brainer. Especially someone you care about. Why is he even asking the question?

And then there’s the crux of it.

Why?

Because I love you.

How can you not know that?

Because you saved my life so many times and I never thanked you.

Because you call me on my bullshit, even when I don’t want you to

Because you came to see me in the hospital.

Because you protected my identity in Berlin, risking your own life to do so.

Because you told me how important my child was when I didn’t even know.

Because you made me believe that a life outside the CIA was possible.

Because you were my friend when I had none.

Because you believed me when no-one else did.

Because you said I was your light.

Because you loved me.

The letter hangs so heavy over this scene, I feel like it should be engraved on the wallpaper. But she can’t tell him that she knows that. And I don’t think he’s ready to hear ‘Because I love you.’ But she does do this.

She touches his heart. And that tells us everything we need to know.

Including Quinn, who appears to be fighting back the tears... it’s dawning on him that things have definitely changed in his relationship with Carrie. He doesn’t know the extent of it yet. But things have changed... they are deeper... and I think he might just be understanding how Carrie feels about him.

He’s starting to love again.. to feel feelings again.. meaning is coming back into his life. It’s so damn beautiful I could start crying all over again. This is a big deal for the Quinn of S5 and of S6.

And here’s the thing. I know I said in my review last week that I thought Carrie was confused about how she felt about Quinn. I don’t think she is now. The relationship is still very, very complicated, as I’ll discuss in a minute. But I think the fact that Quinn asked her the question, directly, carefully, honestly, made her confront a lot of feelings outright. I feel like everything crystallises for her in this scene, which is why she cries so deeply. Not that she suddenly realises how she feels about him right NOW, but nobody has asked her that before. No-one has asked her why she saved him, why she’s taking care of him.

And she can’t even answer it because it’s like she’s being stabbed in the heart by someone she loves. How can you even ask me that? How can you not know?

And to all those who say this scene is about guilt...I think we’d be silly to think she doesn’t feel guilty/complicit for what’s happened to Quinn. That is one reason she’s so upset, but it’s very small in the scope of the scene.

Because the scene isn’t about waking him up. What Carrie actually discusses is finding him, him flatlining in the ambulance and being gone for three whole minutes. What she is bringing up is this....

How she felt when she thought she’d lost him. How she doesn’t want to be without him. This is what she’s talking about. Saul doesn’t even come into it. The terrorists’ target has nothing to do with this. Waking him up has nothing to do with this.

But here’s the thing, folks. The further down this road they go, the more questions Quinn may ask. The more questions he asks, the more Carrie tells him. The more she tells him, the more he finds out. And pretty much Carrie’s worst nightmare right now (or later in the Season) is Quinn finding out that she and Saul woke him up and were pretty much responsible for his hemorrhage. 

Because that means keeping Quinn alive was about the mission. It wasn’t about what he means to her. And Quinn consequently might think that the relationship they’ve built from 602 onwards was about guilt, and not about love. 

When I think we can say, for definite now, that it is about love.

And the only thing that could rescue this situation, should it present itself? 

The letter. Carrie tells Quinn she read the letter.

I’m not sure that this is where it will go, we’re only at 602... but it’s possible.

But right now, I think we should lay back and look at this...

And look forward to some seriously cute Quinn and Frannie bonding. It’s gonna be a good season for us folks.

Over and out.