#all I can do now is hope and pray that arc 2 doesn’t get away from me

[hotcheetohatredwastaken]

currently how long are bdor and its prequel when combined wordcount wise

you brought up 200k and i am both terrified and intrigued. like thats impressive. i am in awe. i can barely put a sentence together much less that many

Okay let me give you a lay of the land. And before we begin, I just have to say that I am so, so sorry. I gave you such a wrong number.

BDOR Arc 1, as of its official word count right now, is 152,892 words. It’s completely written and ready to be published save chapters 15, 18, 20, 24 (12,000 word chapter that has to go 😱) ch 27-29, and then it’s pretty much smooth sailing (with a few minor edits in there and a few scenes to add) until ch 75-76, which need some tweaking, and then the final ch 78 needs a bit of an adjustment as well, and I may delete it completely. All of these chapters specifically mentioned above are in various stages of editing, but generally the story at this point is solid. The final chapter count will probably be 80-82, because there are a few beats that need to be hit that haven’t been, some characters to flesh out more, and lovely beta reader @needfantasticstories revealed some logic errors that I need to spin up some bullcrap to cover💀. I have 9,000 words of notes for things to change in pages, and about that amount of changes in google docs as well. So I’m estimating 160,000 words for the final product there, if not more.

Arc 2 is where it gets SO dicey. My word count in my final doc right now is 44,424. I have another 6,000 ish words of notes in pages to change/tweak scenes/general scene layouts. I have another 15,884 words that have been digitized but haven’t made it into the final document because they need editing. Add onto that about 30?? Pages handwritten that haven’t even made it that far. I usually get about 600-750 words per page, so let’s tally that up to a generous 45,000 since I write front and back. There is leeway of about 20,000 words in there too, because there’s a big chunk of time (heh) I am considering only hinting at happening, but I have written out in their near entirety.

The thing is, I’ve probably written about half of arc 2 with all of that.

So assuming I keep that 20,000 chunk, and assuming I double my word count as I think I will, the final tally here is nearly 110,000 already, which will probably grow to an estimated 200,000 if not more. I am working on cutting this down XD, so stay tuned. The main plot is generally solid, but there’s a LOT of little subplots I need to wrap up lol.

Prologue: this is a little side thing I meant to just be cute little scenes from Twi and Wild’s past and it got away from me. An official 28,424 words of this are written. I’d say I have another 15 handwritten pages (front and back counted, i should clarify) in various stages of editing, so let’s say a generous 11,250. The thing is, I have a LOT of ideas, and once I finalize arc 1 and arc 2, I’m going to have a lot of free time to dig into this while the other story comes out (I probably need to start updating multiple times a week if I want to get this story out before I turn 90 XD). So this number will most definitely grow, but for now it is an estimated 39,674.

Final estimated word count (if I did the math right and also didn’t underestimate my ability to purple prose), everypony?

396,174 words!!

Oh Lord I don’t think I’d realized before I tallied everything up that it was actually this long. I think this project has run away from me. I just wanted to play with my blorbos not write the next Ancient Greek Epic. What the heck. I need to go lie down.

Also just took 3,500 from the final count because I realized I had double counted a chapter sorry ignore that.

But yeah I am hoping to cut down arc 2, so maybe 350,000? That’s being optimistic in my ability to not be longwinded though.

[baronessblixen]

A prompt if I may ask for one, how sick does Scully have to get before she will admit she is sick? Cancer arc hurt/comfort please

I hope this enough hurt/comfort! There's definitely cancer arc angst. Wc: 1340. Tagging @today-in-fic and @xffictober2021

Fictober Day 2: Whispered Words

She's been on her feet all day, slicing and dicing, trying to keep up with Mulder. Same old, same old. Except it's not. Her muscles protest as she changes out of her scrubs. Her legs barely lift, and she stumbles, catching herself just in time against the lockers. She looks around, her cheeks flaming red, but she's all alone. She sits down to tie her shoes and when she leans forward, the slight headache she's been ignoring all day, presses against her forehead, reminding her of the unspeakable.

Mulder is waiting for her, roaming the halls restlessly like a caged animal.

"There you are," he says when he sees her, and she forces a smile. "Any anomalies?" He asks, cracking a sunflower seed. The sound is loud in her ears, and she startles.

"No," she says, "nothing abnormal." Mulder makes a disappointed noise. She can't blame him; they're stuck in this case, every lead a dead end.

"Let's go back to the office. There must be something we're missing." She tries to keep up with Mulder's long, athletic strides and finds that she can't. She should have kept on her sneakers. The heels squish her toes, make her slow and sluggish. Mulder stops to open a door and Scully, breathless, averts her face so that he doesn't notice. When his fingers come into contact with her back, right where they always do, at the tip of her tattoo, tears shoot into her eyes. Her glazed skin cracks and she winces.

Mulder, oblivious to her internal turmoil, removes his hand but the pain remains. Ahead of her, his form turns blurry. Every step is agony, like she's walking on coals. The heat spreads thickly, gathers in her stomach.

"Scully? Are you okay?"

How many 'I'm fine's’ are too much, she wonders as she stares at him, leaning against the wall. She's breathless, can't take in enough air. Her stomach revolts against everything and she prays silently like she never has before to please, please not be sick right here, right now.

"Hey." Mulder is by her side, crouching down to be eye-level with her. She doesn't want to look at him. She wants to tell him that she's fine. She wants to be okay.

"I'm- I don't-," she breaks up, sobs; she doesn't want to cry but her tears fall anyway. If she doesn't say it, if she doesn't admit she's sick, then she won't be, right?

"It's okay," Mulder says and touches her arm. "Do you- can you walk on your own? Do you need an ambulance? I'm gonna call-"

"Mulder, no." She puts her hand on his where it lays on her arm. "I just want to go home. Just... home."

He helps her out of the building and into the car. They're taking baby steps. One foot in front of the other as if she's just learned how to do it. Mulder is quiet next to her but his thoughts are screaming, piercing through her mind.

"What about work?" She asks once they start driving. Her tongue feels three times its normal size and it's a struggle to get the words out.

"Work can wait. It's not that important."

Any other day she would protest. Any other day she'd tell him she was better already. Today, though, she stays silent, accepts the fate her body has inflicted on her.

She leans her head against the cold glass window, watches the scenery pass by. It makes her nauseous. They drive past roadkill; a small fox, its life over before it's really begun. Scully closes her eyes against the pain, against the unfairness of it all.

She doesn't remember falling asleep but when she opens her eyes again, they're at her apartment building and she's in Mulder's arms.

"What are you doing?" She asks, her voice thick with sleep.

"Didn't have the heart to wake you," he says, his words in her hair, like new fallen snow. "How are you feeling?"

"Sick," she says, too exhausted to lie.

"We're almost there. Can you stand? I need to unlock the door." As if she were his grandmother's porcelain, he puts her down and opens the door.

"I can walk," she says quickly before Mulder can pick her up again. He follows her like a guard dog, watching her every move. She walks straight to her bedroom and collapses on the bed.

"Do you want me to call your mother?"

"What for?" She mumbles, feeling Mulder remove her shoes.

He doesn't answer right away but he's still there because she feels his hand on her ankle.

"Mulder?" She asks.

"To help you... get changed, eat something. Do you want me to call her?"

"No. I'm fine." As long as she doesn't open her eyes again. She will manage. Her clothes are loose enough to sleep in; she's done so before.

"Tell me if anything is uncomfortable." She hears Mulder's voice, but it doesn't register. The sound of a zipper tears through the silence and as cold air hits her legs, she realizes it's her own. Mulder is removing her pants. She should say something, stop him. But she can't. The words won't come. She shivers and Mulder mumbles an apology, quickly finding her pajamas.

"I won't look," he swears with a gentle smile that distracts her for just a moment. He opens her blouse, one button at a time. "Bra on or off?" He asks, glancing at her face. Only someone who's never worn a bra would ask that question.

"Off," she manages to say. Mulder nods, keeps his eyes on her face and takes her bra off. How often has she dreamed about Mulder undressing her? How many fantasies has she had? None have ever been like this. Not a single one. She’d scream if she had the strength.

He helps her into an oversized t-shirt that she's certain used to be his. Neither comments on it.

"Lie down," he says. "I'll get you your meds." Scully listens to him moving around in her kitchen and swearing once or twice. She can't move. Her eyes keep falling shut, too heavy to stay open. She fights it, fights everything. Somewhere in her apartment, Mulder is talking. She hears snippets, deducts that he must be talking to her mother. 'Tired' is one word, 'worried' and 'stubborn' are uttered as well.

"I'll take care of, Mrs. Scully. I won’t leave her alone," Mulder says close to her bedroom. Fresh tears threaten to fall. This is everything she didn't want. Nothing was supposed to change. She's a medical doctor and she should know better. This is only the beginning.

"I'll call you if anything changes. Bye." Mulder walks back into the bedroom and sets a cup of tea and crackers on her nightstand. He leaves again, returns with a small bucket, a towel, and another blanket.

"I hope you're not crying cause the tea tastes bad." She touches her cheek, unaware that she's started crying. "Do you need anything else? Do we need to call your doctor?"

We. Not her, we. She merely shakes her head no, not trusting her voice.

"I won't leave. Anything you need, just tell me. Okay? Anything at all." He touches her forehead, his fingertips gentle against her skin.

"Try to get some rest, hm?"

"Where are you going?" She asks him.

"The living- I can stay here if you want." She's too tired to fight it. She knows in half an hour, an hour tops, her limbs will feel as if they're freezing. She will shiver and there will be nothing that can keep her warm. Except... tonight, she wants to take. This disease is taking from her every day, chipping away at her life every passing moment. Tonight she'll, too, be outlandishly demanding.

"Stay," she whispers. "Please stay."

In the next few hours, she falls in and out of sleep, eats, drinks and gets sick. Repeatedly. Mulder is right there with her, never once leaving her side. In the morning, when she feels better, they don’t mention it. They never do.

[eyayah-oya]

Return to Me

Clone Ship Week | Day 6 | Post-Battle - @cloneshipweek

Cody/Rex

Rating: G

Warnings: mentions of Point Rain, canon typical violence, disgustingly cute happy ending

Ao3 link

           Geonosis was just as awful as every vod had ever described. It was hot and dusty, of course, but Cody didn’t really care about any of that.  It was the number of brothers he’d lost on the way to Point Rain, the hundreds more killed by the bugs and their weaponry, on top of all the droids that seemed to come in never-ending waves.

           Cody and the rest of the 212th were going to join General Mundi and the 21st Nova Marine Corps on the other side of the planet while Rex and his men worked with Gree and the 41st under General Unduli.  They would be taking on the enormous droid factory the next day, and Cody would not be able to help any of them.  He would have his own mission to run.

           There were hundreds of vod’e all over the fortified base they’d managed to find and set up camp in.  Brothers from all four battalions mingled and shared increasingly exaggerated stories.  Cody had spotted Corporals Fives and Echo talking to some boys from the 21st, and he’d seen the medics fussing over the injured vod’e and generals.  But there was no sign of Cody’s cyare.

           “Lieutenant!” Cody called to 2nd Lieutenant Jesse of the 501st.

           Jesse snapped off a sharp salute.  “Sir!”

           “At ease, Lt.  Have you seen Rex around recently?” Cody asked.

           Thinking for a moment, Jesse slowly nodded.  “I think I saw him over by the remaining gunships, sir. He was talking to General Skywalker about half an hour ago.”

           Cody nodded and clapped the trooper on his shoulder. “Thanks.  Make sure you take some time to rest, Lt.  We’re in for a rough campaign.”

           “Of course, sir.  You do the same and see if you can get Rex to sleep, too.”

           As Cody walked away, he chuckled to himself.  Little brothers were getting uppity.  At the start of the war, there was no way any trooper, let alone one from a different battalion, would have talked to him so casually.  It was a testament to how well the men of the 501st were relaxing around their Jedi and learning how to be something besides soldiers.  It was nice.

           Cody prayed to whatever gods watched over clones bred for war that Rex hadn’t gone back up to the Resolute already.  He needed to see Rex and make sure his cyare was alright. Too many vod’e were walking wounded, and even more were severely injured or dead.  As much as he knew it was a real possibility, Cody did not want to ever consider a reality where Rex marched on ahead of him.

           “Hey, Commander!” Commander Tano chirped from out of nowhere.  She smiled up at him with bright eyes that hadn’t been weighed down by war yet.  She still had hope and Cody prayed that she would never lose that.  Yet another thing he prayed for to unknown gods.

           “Hello, Commander.”  Cody dodged a pair of vod’e carrying a crate full of supplies and glanced down at Commander Tano.  “Can I help you with something?”

           “Jesse said you’re looking for Rex?  I know where he is!  But we have to hurry before my Master pulls him away again.”

           If Commander Tano was willing to help him find Rex, Cody was definitely not going to say no.  Especially after the massacre they’d just faced.  “Thank you, Commander,” he said, warm affection warming his chest briefly. “I appreciate it.”

           Commander Tano waved away his thanks.  “It’s no problem.  I get it.  Master Skywalker practically ran to Master Kenobi’s side as soon as we got here, and I know Jesse went to go find a batchmate of his from the 41st. Sometimes, you just need to make sure everyone’s alive.”

           “That is very wise, Commander,” Cody said.  He really shouldn’t be surprised, but in his mind, the Commander was just so young.  She shouldn’t have insights into how war worked, and why they needed time to recuperate after a bad battle, if only to reassure themselves that their loved ones made it out alive or to mourn the ones that hadn’t.

           There were far too many mourning vod’e.

           “I have a great teacher,” Commander Tano said with a warm smile.  “Rex said you taught him a lot of what he knows and he’s been passing some of that down to me.  It’s helped me in some tough situations, so I should be thanking you, Commander.”

           “No thanks necessary, Commander,” Cody managed to say without choking or giving away his emotions.  Not that it probably mattered since Jedi were attuned to the people around them.  Only General Kenobi had ever thanked him for anything, and Cody was convinced that his General would thank Ventress after she stabbed him with her saber.  Karking di’kutla jetti.

           “Anyway, Rex is over in that tent, hopefully taking a nap. Coric was threatening him earlier with sedation, so he might have followed through on that threat.”

           And with that, Commander Tano skipped away, most likely to terrorize some poor shiny who wouldn’t know how to deal with an overly friendly shiny Jedi Commander. Cody privately wished he had a holo of their flailing.  It would provide some good laughs in the future.

           Cody strode over to the tent Commander Tano had pointed out, and knocked on the frame.

           “Come in,” Rex called and something inside of Cody’s chest loosened.

           He undid the fastenings and stepped inside, taking his bucket off immediately.  Rex was sitting on the cot, a datapad in his hands, likely going over the initial casualty reports for the battle.  Most importantly, he was very much alive.

           “Rex,” Cody gasped out with a strangled breath.

           Rex jerked at his voice and then a second later, Cody had his arms wrapped around his cyare, breathing him in as he held on as tight as he could.

           “Cody!  You’re okay!” Rex said.  He pulled back to give Cody a sharp look.  “You are okay, right?”

           “Yes, I am.  I didn’t end up getting injured.  That was purely my General,” Cody said, trying for some dry humor but it fell flat in the face of their combined relief.  “What about you?  I heard you got thrown off a wall?”

           “Karking Fives and Echo,” Rex growled.  “General Skywalker and Ahsoka caught me, so I wasn’t hurt.  Nothing beyond a few bumps and bruises.”

           Cody ran his eyes over Rex’s body, as though that would tell him if Rex was hiding any injuries with the armor in the way.  Once he verified that there wasn’t any gaping hole or crack in Rex’s armor, Cody dropped his helmet to the ground and pulled Rex into a bruising kiss.  His cyare responded eagerly, clinging desperately to the hard, sharp planes of Cody’s armor.  There was no finesse, no sweetness in the kiss.  Just pure, heady relief and a desperation to prove that they really survived.

           Rex gripped Cody’s hair tightly with one hand, the other wrapping around his waist to pull him as close as their armor would allow. He sucked on Cody’s bottom lip and gently nibbled before letting go and pressing his head against Cody’s in a soft keldabe.

           “I was so worried when we heard that most of your gunships went down, including General Kenobi’s.  You’re usually flying with him.”

           “We decided to split our forces.  It was a really close call a few times, but we made it.  We both made it,” Cody answered.  He was shaking from relief at having Rex in his arms, alive and unharmed.  Nothing would ever be able to beat that heady feeling of overwhelming gratitude to whatever gods were listening.  They’d listened to at least one of his prayers today.

           “Stay alive tomorrow,” Cody demanded after a moment of just breathing each other in.  “That factory is going to be really dangerous.”

           “I know.  Gree is a solid vod, though.  He’ll have my back and I’ll have his.  Plus, we have the Jedi to help keep us safe.”

           Cody very carefully didn’t think about the many times General Skywalker had gotten men killed by doing something reckless or stupid. The R2 droid was not important enough to sacrifice his padawan, Rex, and three other men to General Grievous.  Out of four, only Rex and Denal had made it back, and Commander Tano had nearly been killed by Grievous when she kept Grievous from killing Rex, all for a droid.  Cody was skeptical, but he also had faith in Commander Tano and General Unduli and her padawan.  They’d protect the men while Skywalker handled whatever crazy idea he had.

           “We will be safe,” Rex said, giving Cody a shake. “While you’re off with the Marines, you should talk to Bacara.  They’re out of contact with most of the GAR.  Only Neyo and Jet can get through the blockades to deliver supplies and intelligence to Nova.”

           A frown carved the worry lines on his face deeper as Cody absorbed that information.  “I’ll talk to him.  See what we can do,” Cody swore.

           Rex nodded.  “Good.  He’ll keep you alive.  Bacara already told me he’s planning on sharing all of my embarrassing ARC training stories to you while you’re on campaign together.”

           Cody grinned.  “I’ve been trying to pull those out of Neyo, Keeli, Thorn, and Thire for ages now.  And Bacara’s the one to spill the beans?”

           Rex grumbled and buried his face against the crook of Cody’s neck.  “He said I don’t have enough blackmail material on him to keep him from blabbing. He also said I don’t scare him because, and I quote, “I’m as terrifying as a sleepy baby nexu cub buried in a pile of nip”.”

           “That—is strangely accurate,” Cody choked out, laughing at Rex’s offended growl.  “You’re a little prickly, but everyone knows you’re just a softy.  I mean, you’ve been teaching Commander Tano what I taught you?”

           His cyare shrugged.  “She’s in the middle of a war, and she doesn’t have the training we do. I don’t want to see her die when I could have prevented it.  Nor do I want to see my vod’e die because she makes a bad decision.  I’m giving her all the tools she’ll need to be successful and survive this war.”

           “You’ve adopted her.”  Cody couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it before.  Rex had always loved with all his heart, as evidenced by the numerous vod’e who loved him unconditionally.  Of course, Commander Tano would have made the list.  “If she’s yours, then she’s mine, too,” Cody said. “We’re in this together.”

           Rex finally peeked his head back out from where he’d hidden it against the small sliver of skin on Cody’s neck.  “Really?”

           Cody didn’t hesitate.  He nodded and bumped their foreheads together.  “I promise.”

           For the first time since their first kiss, Cody had the amazing opportunity to see Rex completely and totally flustered.  He blushed bright red, sputtering and coughing as he tried to find something to say.

           It took a few minutes for Rex to completely compose himself and then it was Cody’s turn to be flustered.  “Are you asking me to be your riduur?”

           “What?” Cody spluttered.

           For a second, Rex faltered.  But then he squared his jaw and firmed his spine as if he was facing the worst of odds in a battle.  “We are one when together.  We already do that, and have done that since we were cadets.  We are one when apart.  At this point, I don’t think there’s anything that could separate us, even when we’re fighting on opposite ends of the galaxy.  We share all.  We tell each other everything.  You said it yourself.  What’s mine is yours, too.  We will raise warriors.  We are raising Ahsoka together, since we share all.  Not to mention all of our men that we’ve both trained since this war started. If that doesn’t count, I don’t know what would.

           “So, are you asking me to be your riduur?”

           As Rex laid out each point, Cody found himself agreeing. He and Rex were already married, they just hadn’t said the vows to each other yet.  And honestly, there wasn’t a better time than now.  Cody would rather be married to the love of his life for a few hours, then never have married him and watched him die in battle.

           “Yes, Rex of Torrent.  I am asking you to be my riduur,” Cody said, determination in every cell of his body.

           Rex lunged forward and wrapped his arms around Cody, bringing their foreheads together.  “Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome, mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde,” Rex swore fervently, his whole heart bared for Cody to see.

           “Mhi solus tome, mhi solus dar’tome, mhi me’dinui an, mhi ba’juri verde,” Cody echoed the vow, offering Rex his heart with every breath.

           They shared the same space for a moment, pressing into the keldabe more firmly before their lips brushed together.  Like a firework had been set off in his bones, Cody tugged Rex into a passionate, over-whelming kiss that stole their breath away.  He could feel his heart swelling with the amount of love he felt for Rex, bursting out from behind the dam he kept on his emotions most days.  It rolled over him until the only thing he could think of was that Rex was alive, in his arms, and that they were now married.  What more could Cody care for in that moment?

           Eventually, air became a necessity, and they broke away from each other to breathe.  Rex gave a soft chuckle.  “You do realize that means you’re going to have to adopt Ahsoka, too, right?”

           “YES!  I get two dads AND Cody has to call me by my name now!”

           “Shh, they can hear you, Soka.”

           “Oops!  Everyone scatter!”

           Cody laughed.  His heart couldn’t contain the joy he felt, and he would carry that joy throughout the war as a hopeful flame for when they could all have peace again. But in that moment, he had all night with his riduur, and Cody planned on making the most of it.

[mindibindi]

Beyond disappointed in Ted Lasso. What were they thinking?!

The writing is a complete betrayal and insult to Rebecca’s character and Hannah’s skills as they’re being seriously underused. It’s also insulting Sam’s character.

Hoping someone pulls Rebecca’s head out of her ass tbh. Sam shouldn’t be getting caught in the crossfire of her looking for romance. I know he showed up at her doorstep but she still should’ve turned him away, and not even messaged him in the first place.

Hey, I'm with you, Anon, though we do seem to be in the minority. Sam is definitely not blameless here, he is also in the wrong. But if one of them is more in the wrong, it is Rebecca. I can't speak to whether her head has left her arse as yet because I have quit watching (at least for now). I hear she called it off with Sam in the most recent ep, though not because of any major crisis of conscience or because anyone in her inner circle expressed any reasonable reservations in response to her bad behaviour. And to be honest, I'm not sure we should need to hope and pray that Rebecca's precocious god-daughter, her slimy ex-husband, or the brutal British press will act as a moral compass on this ill-advised relationship. Both Rupert and the press have been set up to some extent as the villains of the piece. And a 14 year old should never have to school her elders on what is and isn't acceptable. Nora's needs have already been neglected by Rebecca for far too long.

If a moral position is to be taken on this, it needs to be taken by the show (because stance matters) and/or by its characters. But the show has for the most part depicted this relationship as ill-advised but ultimately hot, sweet, funny and romantic. As for the characters themselves, Sam has shown at least once that he has some moral backbone but seems to be adorably clueless when it comes to fucking his boss who keeps trying to set boundaries with him. Meanwhile, Rebecca's whole arc in s1 was about learning not to misuse her power for her own selfish ends. In season one, she misused her power within the club in order to exact revenge. In season 2, we have seen her misuse her sexual power, though I still cannot see to what end. I'm a bit at a loss as to what exactly she gets out of this 'relationship' but then I'm a grown woman so I have absolutely no interest in sleeping with a Harry Potter enthusiast barely out of his teens. I couldn't think of anything less sexy and more ick. I was certainly hoping for better character development for her this season.

As to what the writers were thinking, obviously I was not in the writer's room, but I would guess that they were thinking that any drama is good drama, people are stupid and fan devotion will trump any meaningful critique. In other words, they were thinking exactly how every other television writer thinks, despite the fact that this show posited itself as 'not like other TV shows'. This, to me, is where the blame really lies. Not with the characters or with the actors who are doing their best to sell this ludicrous turn of events. It must be noted, however, that both actors were completely blindsided by this relationship that had supposedly been so cleverly foreshadowed. Newsflash: if the people actually living these stories did not see this coming then you haven't foreshadowed shit. Sure, there were a handful of people that paired Rebecca with Sam but this does not constitute proof either. Fans have free-range to imagine and re-imagine characters. In some cases this may extend to imagining relationships between characters who have barely, if ever, interacted. There may be little to no evidence that these characters have even clocked each other's existence and some fans will still ship it. The existence of a handful of shippers does not legitimise such a problematic and divisive plotline making it onscreen.

But wait!, you might argue, this may not be a case of a popular show seeing just how far they can stretch fan devotion. This may not be a case of fan service to a handful of shippers. After all, the creators mapped out the entire three-season arc of Ted Lasso before they even pitched it to Apple. This was their brilliant plan all along! To which I would say: then maybe they should've rethought their second act based on people's strong reactions to their first. Ted Lasso was touted as the show we all needed in 2020. The writers and creators have all marveled at the chord it struck considering it was conceived prior to the pandemic and all the chaos it wrought. And while there is something to be said for having/sticking to a creative vision, there is also something to be said for being flexible and responsive to your audience and the cultural zeitgeist with which you're engaged. Season 1 of Ted Lasso told its story so gently, without creating distrust, division or unnecessary anxiety. It did not treat its audience like a gaggle of stupid lemmings to be led over a succession of narrative cliffs. THIS is what I mean when I say the show has broken with its brand. And look, this whole dark forest thing would be okay if the narrative arc was as well-crafted as s1. Season 1 gave us meaning, cohesion, comfort, sense in a senseless time. It was an almost perfectly crafted season of television. And I kept the faith for 6 episodes, despite the first half of s2 being pretty damn wobbly. But the follow-up to this stellar debut has been less than extraordinary so yeah, perhaps they should've thought a little harder about what made s1 so special before throwing it all out the window.

But wait!, I hear the faithful say, you don't know how things will pan out yet! Wait until the season is over and everything will make sense! But -- wearily and once again, I say -- we should not need to wait until the end of the season to understand what the hell is happening. By this point (over halfway through the season and show) we should have a v clear idea of the show's themes and the characters' arcs. And tbf, from what I can tell there are some fab things happening in other aspects of the show that I wish I could watch and enjoy. But my biggest fear at this point is that they are going to use Sam to solve Rebecca's childlessness. That, like Rupert (because the parallel cannot be avoided), she will become pregnant with a young fling and the show's attitude to this relationship will ultimately be: oh well, it was a bad idea and didn't work out for them but it was all for the best in the end cos who can be mad about a cute lil baaaayyybbbeeee??!! If they do go down this path then I will definitely be abstaining from the rest of the show. I will simply recall my repeated viewings of s1 with fondness tinged with regret at just how badly they fucked up a good thing.

Ultimately, Anon, I think this may be a case of there simply not being a diverse enough perspective in the writer's room. I am not saying that every single woman or every single person of colour will necessarily object to this relationship. I am simply saying that women and people of colour will be more sensitive to the issues of gender and race that are relevant here but that have not been fully or sensitively acknowledged in the writing of this plotline. Neither am I saying that Rebecca is the first woman to sleep with a man much (much, much, MUCH) younger than herself or indulge in an ill-advised relationship. But the comparison with Rupert both works here and doesn't because Rebecca is not being written like a white woman, she is being written like a white man. Realistically, only a white man can engage in this kind of hugely imbalanced relationship seemingly without any major moral qualms or societal ramifications. Not to put too fine a point on it, but this kind of relationship is reserved for all the Bills and Joes and Brendans and Jasons out there -- not for the Rebeccas and definitely not for the Sams. We are way beyond the point in feminism where we believe that liberation is simply the right for a white woman to behave as badly as a white man. The truth is that whatever wealth, power and privilege Rebecca has, the rules are different for men and women. She will not be treated the same as Rupert if and when this affair is uncovered. She will be treated far more savagely than Rupert ever was and Sam will be treated far more savagely than Bex was. This is not an argument for the equal treatment of these two relationships. It is an argument against how the relationship between Rebecca and Sam has been envisaged, i.e. through the wrong perspective. In writing from a 'neutral' white male pov, the show has invisiblised all the many issues activated by this storyline and revealed a blindspot that was always there.

As much as I loved and still love season 1 of this show, it has definite blindspots when it comes to representations of race and gender. There are at least two moments in s1 that stand out for me as being so obviously written by a man. Not necessarily because of what they do but because of what they don't do: what is missed, absent, unacknowledged. I was willing to overlook such minor failings in a debut season for many reasons. But s2 seems to have exacerbated these minor flaws rather than correcting them. And here I can't help thinking of Tina Fey speaking of the diversification of the writer's room at SNL during her tenure as co-headwriter. This notoriously male-dominated environment only began to shift and produce better work when a greater diversity of minds, voices and persepectives was allowed in the room. In this richer environment, she notes, different jokes played differently. Different sketches made it to air. Different perspectives were represented and different performers were celebrated. I can't help wondering if this plotline would have made it to air if there had been a female writer, a writer of colour or both further up the chain of command to challenge the ideas of the straight white dudes in charge.

One of the reasons I didn't think Ted Lasso was for me was that it centred a straight, white, cis-het, able-bodied man who rose to a position he didn't earn. That is just not a pov I would normally choose for myself, especially now that there is such a rich array of alternative perspectives through which to view the world. But I think the show won a lot of females fans with its first season largely due to its portrayal of Rebecca. She is the first person we meet. She is arguably the protagonist of s1. And while she would have been figured as a villain in previous pieces, the show never took that stance with her (because again, stance matters). Other elements like the depiction of female friendships, all centred around Rebecca, made this show female-friendly viewing. But imo, the major reason this show won over female fans (this one, at least) is because, in this post-MeToo, post-TimesUp era, it stood up and said: domestic violence is not okay, we stand with women and all victims of abuse, we will defend you, we know words can hurt, we know it can happen to anyone, we know all about toxic masculinity, we do not take this lightly and we will support you in your healing. Needless to say, this is how women hope men will act when they speak of their most difficult experiences but it is not how they always do.

The shift away from Rebecca this season has however meant that the white male experience is more centred than it was in s1. Rebecca's journey to recovery, health and happiness has been trivialised and sidelined, reduced to a highly questionable sexcapade. Meanwhile, we get overwrought manpain at every turn. We get Beard wandering around London (no, I haven't seen it and no, I don't need to. We've all been raised on white dudes thinking they're genuises when they have a figurative wank all over our screens). We get NO queer represention at all. And the only other female characters on screen are in care/service roles to men. The father/son, mentoring and toxic masculinity themes are all still there but they're no longer balanced out by ANY other competing perspective. One of the reasons I was okay with Ted failing upwards in s1 was that he used his power and privilege to lift up others. He was the one in service. He used his enormous privilege for good, as anyone with such privilege must. (Admittedly, it could be argued that this is just another version of a white savior narrative).

My point here is that I'm not sure that peeking behind the mask at the sad clown is as revolutionary as some might believe. We love it because it's familiar. But this is a narrative with a long and problematic history. Do I believe in tearing down toxic masculinity in all its forms? You bet. Do I believe that patriarchy traumatises men as well as women and every other minority in existence? I mean...nowhere near as much, but absolutely. Do I believe in men expressing their feelings and going to therapy? Wholeheartedly. But I am also aware that 100 or so years ago, we were in a very similar place with our narratives. Everyone is looking for a recapitulation of modernism and frankly, this might be an indicator of just that. Whenever women and people of colour have demanded rights and recognition, there has always been a resurgence of tales about just how frickin' hard it is to be a white man. Minority genders and non-white people have never in western history been as visible or vocal as they are now. So forgive me (or don't, I don't care) if I critique a show not only for centering fathers, sons, boys and men but for blindly and boldly writing one of its only female characters and one of its only black characters as if their gender and race just do not exist. There are many other power differentials at play in this relationship, including age, experience, wealth and position, but race and gender are the two that patriarchy is most invested in invisiblising. So I don't care how brilliant they think they are, I will not trust the writing of a bunch of white dudes trying to tell me that race and gender are irrelevant.

[thebluelemontree]

Hiya blue lemon it's me again. Do you have any criticism in the way GRRM wrote Sansa in book1/2? EX:.Sansa and Jeyne are BFF but we amolst never see the girls talking to eachother, and when JP is sex traffikced sansa just forget about her(we could have a scene where sansa try to find what happened to JP or at least grieve for her). Every time sansa appears as a non-POV in AGOT she's been mean and whe we have her POV she's mean for no good reason(SANSA III AGOT). >PART 1<

And the worst is why GRRM wrote sansa goin to Cercei to tell her the "Ned Plans", it's just bad writing, Cercei kill lady so Sansa going to her was OOC GRRM just wrote that to we hate Sansa And in the book it's not explained what "the Ned plans" was(And it was nothing imortant at all, and would make no difference at Ned's fate) so ordinary readers blame Sansa for Ned's death and GRRM does that too in book 2 Cercei put all the blame for Ned death in sansa nd "the Ned Plans" Your thoughts?PART 2

There’s a lot to unpack here. 

I get a sense that in the early books, George was not as comfortable writing female relationships as he was writing male relationships or even male-female ones. I mean, Catelyn has no female friends, no companions like Margaery Tyrell’s cousins, no fostering wards of her own, no correspondences with other ladies except that one letter from Lysa for plot reasons. This is just weird for the lady of two major houses. It is neglectful on George’s part to give most of the important social connections to men. This doesn’t mean he was totally inept at writing female relationships, though, and it does seem like he’s tried to improve upon highlighting the positive in later books.

By comparison, the positive side of the brotherly relationships are presented so strongly that it tends to smooth over the conflicts with many readers. Jon can feel envious and resentful of Robb, but the love and loyalty is always in the foreground. The conflict between Arya, Jeyne, and Sansa does have legitimate character arc and plot purposes, so this isn’t bad writing. It’s unfortunate that GRRM presses down so hard on the constant bickering and occasional nastiness, but he did write some positives (albeit they tended to be revealed in later books) and there are understandable reasons for the dynamics. It was not done in a totally unrealistic way. What’s depicted is a typical and relatable rocky period for that age group, and there was negative adult influence at play. It’s not a permanent feature of the sisterhood. It’s all there if you pay attention and you’re inclined to be charitable toward the mistakes of young girls.       

If a reader is already predisposed to see the bonds between male characters as more pure and more able to overcome the negative aspects, then they probably also view the bonds between female characters as inherently weaker and more fraught with conflict. Fandom misogyny is not GRRM’s fault. That sector of the fandom will always have contempt for girls for being girls, especially preteen girls. They will always hone in on their faults and belittle their virtues. 

I don’t think that is true that we hardly ever see Jeyne and Sansa talking. They are nearly always in each other’s company. There was real friendship between Sansa and Jeyne, because what George does do well with them, is realistically write the way girls cement their bonds. Young girls strengthen their relationship by communicating and confiding in each other. Sharing secrets, crushes, hopes, fears, and pieces of gossip builds trust and intimacy. Jeyne and Sansa do this all the time, even though they can have different opinions and disagree about a lot.  Yes, there is some one-sidedness in that Sansa socially outranks Jeyne and believes that makes her more mature and wiser than her friend. Jeyne is dependent on her closeness to Sansa as a highborn lady and future queen to rise successfully, so she’s not going to push back on Sansa’s dominance. This is also a reason Jeyne sometimes bullies Arya to supplant her as Sansa’s “sister.” When Sansa has something to share, she goes to Jeyne to talk about it. I think it’s hilarious that the girls have a debate over which castle Gregor Clegane’s head will get spiked. Sansa wants Jeyne at her side for these new and exciting events like the tourney. When things get serious and dangerous, they comfort each other. Again, this is not all George’s fault if some readers don’t recognize or value the way girls do friendships.  

It’s stated quite clearly why Sansa tries to not think about Jeyne or her deceased family members very often. It’s fucking traumatic and her survival while among her captors depends on mentally holding herself together. 

If only she had someone to tell her what to do. She missed Septa Mordane, and even more Jeyne Poole, her truest friend. The septa had lost her head with the rest, for the crime of serving House Stark. Sansa did not know what had happened to Jeyne, who had disappeared from her rooms afterward, never to be mentioned again. She tried not to think of them too often, yet sometimes the memories came unbidden, and then it was hard to hold back the tears. Once in a while, Sansa even missed her sister. By now Arya was safe back in Winterfell, dancing and sewing, playing with Bran and baby Rickon, even riding through the winter town if she liked. Sansa was allowed to go riding too, but only in the bailey, and it got boring going round in a circle all day. -- Sansa II, ACOK.

Following her father’s beheading, Sansa was in a suicidal depression for days. She wouldn’t eat, wouldn’t bathe, welcomed drug-induced sleep, and contemplated killing herself. If she thinks too much on those she lost, she falls to pieces. She can’t openly weep and mourn for “traitors” if her life depends on appearing to be loyal to Joffrey. Most of her grief is suppressed inside. This also includes asking too many questions she doesn’t feel psychologically prepared to hear the answer to. She was there when the decision was made to shuttle Jeyne off to Littlefinger; however, she has no idea this is going to result in Jeyne being sent to a brothel and worse. I would also keep in mind that even if she did ask, it’s not like Cersei or Littlefinger would ever tell her the truth. Why would they? Does she really want to hear lies and have to think about what the horrible truth might be when she can’t do anything about it?  When it comes to Arya, Sansa believes her sister escaped on the ship bound for home. She comforts herself with imagining that Arya is safe and free, and that’s enough to keep her going.  

And she prays and sings for Jeyne, wherever she is.

She sang for mercy, for the living and the dead alike, for Bran and Rickon and Robb, for her sister Arya and her bastard brother Jon Snow, away off on the Wall. She sang for her mother and her father, for her grandfather Lord Hoster and her uncle Edmure Tully, for her friend Jeyne Poole, for old drunken King Robert, for Septa Mordane and Ser Dontos and Jory Cassel and Maester Luwin... -- Sansa V, ACOK.

It’s only until later in the books that Sansa feels emotionally at peace enough to start remembering the good times with Arya and Jeyne without breaking down into tears. We can also see the conflicts weren’t always a thing, and the love was strong with all three.

Sansa began to make snowballs, shaping and smoothing them until they were round and white and perfect. She remembered a summer's snow in Winterfell when Arya and Bran had ambushed her as she emerged from the keep one morning. They'd each had a dozen snowballs to hand, and she'd had none. Bran had been perched on the roof of the covered bridge, out of reach, but Sansa had chased Arya through the stables and around the kitchen until both of them were breathless. She might even have caught her, but she'd slipped on some ice. Her sister came back to see if she was hurt. When she said she wasn't, Arya hit her in the face with another snowball, but Sansa grabbed her leg and pulled her down and was rubbing snow in her hair when Jory came along and pulled them apart, laughing. -- Sansa VII, ASOS.

It was most unladylike, but Alayne sound found herself laughing. For just a little while, as she ran, she forget who she was, and where, and found herself remembering bright cold days at Winterfell, when she would race through Winterfell with her friend Jeyne Poole, with Arya running after them trying to keep up. -- Alayne I, TWOW.

So it’s not even that the girls only bond through confiding. They run, play, and roughhouse with each other. It’s interesting that AGOT!Sansa tried to be so mature and proper, but now that she’s older, she’s remembering how good and freeing it was just to be a kid. But let’s not act like this part of the story is over. Jeyne is still very much alive and seems likely to run into Arya in Braavos. We can almost be 100% certain that Sansa will find out the truth about what happened to Jeyne and what Littlefinger did to her (and her parents), then watch out. Sansa will turn all that buried pain into a righteous fury at Littlefinger.  

Now as for Sansa being mean for “no reason.” Um... yeah, LOL. Sometimes she’s just a total unwarranted bitch to her sister, and it’s not meant to be a good look. Sometimes she’s superficial, insufferably immature and annoying, judgmental and prejudiced AND THAT’S OKAY. I mean, she sounds no better or worse than your average middle-schooler if they were of the privileged nobility. Guess what? Sometimes preteens are really like that. Sometimes siblings have ugly, knockdown drag out fights where they say horrible things to each other. Most will grow past those phases and still wind up just as loving and close. It’s realistic and believable. Sansa has flaws, but they aren’t deep moral flaws. She does an amazing job at growing, learning, and overcoming those flaws over the course of the books. In TWOW, she’s warm and affectionate with people, easy-going, nonjudgmental, and genuinely more mature than ever. She took the stick out of her ass and became a happier person for it. What’s the problem? What did you want her to be? Perfect? Unfailingly kind and loved by everyone all the time? She’d be a saint, not a multifaceted human being. Even with her occasional ugly side, Sansa is still a strong, smart, compassionate badass. I don’t care if some people don’t like her as she is written or if they vilify her with their misinterpretations or ignore her strengths. What bearing does that have on GRRM’s vision for her character? He never set out to write any character that the whole fandom would either unanimously love or hate.    

This is not bad writing. This NOT bad writing. This is GOOD writing.

*Sigh* Listen... this whole nonsense about Sansa being to blame for Ned’s demise has been going on since ASOIAF was written on clay tablets. You don’t have to listen to every stupid thing the fandom says about anything. It’s just factually wrong. End of story. This misinterpretation and reader inattentiveness is not GRRM’s fault, because he lays out all the details of everything that went down between Arya, Ned, and Sansa’s POV as it was happening. It’s totally understandable why an upset and frustrated Sansa would go to Cersei, the mother figure she implicitly trusts and admires. She didn’t go to Cersei to betray her father’s plans. She went to the queen to intercede in what she thought had to be some big misunderstanding, having no idea what was really going on or at stake. 

This is not OOC for her to go to Cersei after Lady’s death. The hand that killed Lady was her own father’s, a undeniable breach of trust that wounded their relationship. Ned just doesn’t really do a lot to deal with the emotional aftermath either. Ned and Sansa are very similar in turning a blind eye when confronted with unpleasantness from someone they love. Ned is also at that moment disillusioned with Robert’s failure to do the right thing after the Trident incident. He begs Robert in the name of their brotherly love and the love he bore Lyanna, and Robert turns his back on Ned anyway. Yet Ned immediately goes right back to believing in the best of Robert’s nature, despite all evidence to the contrary. Every sign points to this being a one-sided friendship with Robert being lazy, irresponsible, and completely selfish. Like father, like daughter. Sansa has a very hard time accepting that Joffrey and Cersei are not the people she thought they were, even when she’s seen some cracks. And since she can’t understand her father’s actions and the communication has been shot to hell between them, of course she runs to Cersei with her problems. Cersei can flip a switch and pretend to be kind, loving, and understanding. 

This is so typical of a teenage thought process:  “Dad just doesn’t understand and he’s making a big mistake. I don’t understand why he’s doing this. He doesn’t get how important this is to me. This will all work out if a sympathetic adult steps in and fixes it. Everything will turn out great and we’ll all be happy.” While Sansa is pouring her heart out about how it isn’t fair she can’t say goodbye to Joffrey, Cersei pretends to be that sympathetic mother figure that really understands her. How hard would it be then to pump Sansa for information? Like “Oh my sweet little dove. I know how much you love my son. Don’t worry. I’ll help you straighten this out. You said your father wants to send you away? How? When? What’s the name of that ship again?”  

And that line from Cersei’s POV is horseshit. Cersei is a liar and regularly lies in her POV to absolve herself of responsibility and force the blame entirely on others. In this case, Cersei is acting like she didn’t totally manipulate a trusting child to betray her.  We also know this is a lie because Ned was the one that told her himself of his plans to reveal the invest and remove her as queen. Sansa had nothing to do with that. All Sansa did was give Cersei information that allowed Cersei the opportunity to take her hostage before the girls could leave by ship. Cersei’s plans against Ned were already well underway. Sansa never came to her with the intent of knowingly betraying anyone, but she did have selfish reasons for going to the queen to complain in the first place. GRRM said himself that Sansa wasn’t to blame for Ned’s capture or death, but she did play a role in the events that transpired. That’s fair. All that makes her is a kid who made a not entirely innocent mistake, but a mistake nonetheless, which she immediately learned from. Does she trust Cersei or Joffrey again? Hell no.  

Relax, anon. It’s fine for her to not be nice all the time. It’s fine for her to have some realistic, garden variety flaws. It’s one of the most universal human mistakes to fall too hard and fast for the wrong person, act the fool over them despite all the red flags, only to realize you only saw what you wanted to see in them. And Sansa learned this lesson at eleven when some adults haven’t learned it at all. Relax. She’s a great, well-written, relatable character who has overcome most of these issues successfully.  

[elriell]

Answer to my LONG ask friend, posting it like this because I imagine it would be way to long or else! 

hi i hope you dont mind me asking, but perhaps any elriel meta will be willing to cover the whole berons alliance with the queen? because i think thats our winning argument in favor of elriels endgame. and i wish im not reaching or overthinking this lol.

why it will be our winning argument? becaue the whole beron pledged alliance to the queen dont mean anything just yet, it hasnt been flushed out yet (sarah left it open ended), and it will definitely be the main conflict in the next book just to set up the final book and war where all the sides has been established whos with who.

because in my perspective, elriels story really will trigger that conflict and rhysands warning in az pov is literally the set up for that conflict.

when i read acosf, i was thinking there is literally no point of beron making alliance with the queen aside him wanting to be the high king, more power, why would he do that when the queen is in the continent and him in prythian, other high lords will surely oppose him being the high king. thus its two (if the queen indeed would help him) versus six since koschei is still trapped in the lake. plus, his alliance is still a secret, surely other courts will learn of it, wont they?

now however possible consequences from elriel, beron perhaps will use the rejecting mating bond—the blood duel—as a reason to declare a war and have other courts against the night court or eris will finally dethrone his father and be the high lord. and with eris being the high lord, isnt that going to be one of the key topic for morrigans book? sarah also confirms morrigan book and she admits that she doesnt know what the novella is going to be, so its same to assume that mor will get a full novel.

fyi, i cant see lucien will challenge azriel though, he is decent and will respect elains choice, but beron as cruel as he is will surely do something sinister.

and i stumbled across an account on twitter and they compare elriels story to helen of troy and the set up of the trojan war is literally the same as elriel. also, beron reminds me of agamemnon in troy movie (2004), both of them want more power. there are a lot of similarities, imo, between elriel and the set up of iliad. in iliad there is also a duel between hector and achilles (this is me reaching lol).

thus, aside from elains connection to the dread trove, elriels conflict also has the logical conflict that tied to the whole overarching plot for the plot of the series to move forward toward the end, because like i said the whole berons alliance need to be addressed and in acosf it hasnt been addressed yet, at least not enough.

im really sorry if i come off as rude by asking this. i would do it honestly, but i dont have the confidence to post anything online (hence, im anonymous) and im not as convincing as the others in terms of flushing the arguments.

also, you are literally keeping me sane when all of elain antis trying their hardest to discredit elriels.

thank you❤️❤️❤️

Hi! I’m that anon who said that Elriel’s conflict with Beron could be the winning argument for our ship since they are tied closely with each other based on Rhysand’s warning in Azriel POV. If you decide to answer that question, would you mind if you answer this one instead? As I’m pretty much still stand on that point however I’d like to add and correct some statements that I think I don’t express clearly in my previous question:)

If you don’t mind, I’d like to post my theory here, anonymously, since I’m not confident enough to post my thoughts online yet as I’m afraid I’ll be judged harshly lol. And perhaps other metas such as you would like to elaborate more on the matter since I think it is a vital plot for Elriel’s book. It’s quite long, I do apologize for that:)

Like I said, Beron allegiance with Briallyn didn’t make any sense to me and it also took me by surprise when I read ACOSF. Why?

A. Briallyn lived on the continent and Beron is in Prythian. Wouldn’t it be better for him to seek an ally that is closer to him instead? We know that Beron wants to be an ally with her because he heard about her ambition. And I suspect that Beron wants to be the High King or kill Feyre since he knows that she has his power. But one thing for sure is that he wants more power.

B. If he indeed wants to be High King or kill Feyre then I don’t believe that the other high lords would comply with him. Therefore, Beron wouldn’t stand a chance against the other high lords and lady in Prythian since it is two (before the queen was killed by Nesta) versus six. Plus, Briallyin lived in the continent thus her allegiance was not something that he could hold on to, imo.

So obviously we know that Briallyn is dead and her allegiance doesn’t mean anything anymore. However, from her allegiance with Beron we now know that Beron for sure set to be the other villain of this new overarching plot alongside Koschei. And I also think that Beron would be the main villain for the next book because a villain as big as Koschei would likely be dealt in the last book.

Now, why is it tied with Elriel? I think Rhysand’s warning in Az’s POV explains it plainly, and I can’t help but think that it is a set up, a foreshadowing, of what would happen in the next book, especially since Koschei’s plotline is not foreshadowed enough in ACOSF and we only know of his onyx box which we get from ACOWAR.

If we acknowledge that Elriel is endgame and their story is next, then Beron surely comes to play in the next book. Their relationship will push the overarching plot one step closer to its climax.

FYI, I can’t see Lucien invoke the Blood Duel himself, he is a decent person so he will respect and understand Elain’s choice to be with Azriel since it is definitely where we are going in the matter of endgame. But, Beron, as cruel as he is, will surely make use of the situation to profit himself, to reach his ambition that is momentarily squashed with Briallyn dead.

These are possible results of what could happen with Blood Duel plotline:

1. Beron would ally himself with Koschei as Briallyn did before because he knows he is outnumbered if he declared a war against the Night Court.

2. Beron could convince other high lords in Prythian to go against the Night Court if Lucien was killed in the Blood Duel, I pray that it will not happen though Lucien deserve some peace and happiness with the woman who wants and loves him voluntarily.

3. Eris would rebel against his father's order for Lucien to invoke the duel, and Beron would be dethroned by Eris and he would be the next high lord of Autumn Court.

I personally lean more on number three, because with Eris being the high lord wouldn’t it be one of the key topics for Mor’s book? It is already confirmed that Sarah pitched Mor’s story as one of the books and she admits that she doesn’t know what the novella is going to be. So, it’s safe to assume that Mor will get a full novel, not a novella one. Seeing her sparse appearance and development we’ve seen of her in ACOSF, then it is also logical to assume that Mor will not be the next book main character.

In conclusion, Elriel needs to happen to address Beron's situation and bring the overall plot of the series a bit higher before it reaches climax in the final book. Is it also possible that Beron’s scenario still can be addressed without it being tied to Elain and Azriel? Yes, but, I will say it again, Rhysand’s warning is a clue, a foreshadowing, of what conflict will be covered in the next book. For an author to drop something as big as that but not happening is a lazy writing in my opinion.

In the previous question I also mentioned that Elriel’s story is kinda similar to Iliad. Their set up is pretty much similar to me, however, I don’t think Elriel’s story will end in tragedy since Sarah doesn’t like to read, write, sad endings.

I’m sorry if I come off as ordering you around, but I really appreciate it if you and other metas also put your thought in the whole Beron/Elriel situation since I’m 95% sure Elain book is next and Azriel will be her LI seeing there is no progress with her and Lucien yet.

And I still stand by my point, you and other Elriel metas keep me sane when all of Elriel antis trying their hardest to discredit all of Elriel’s interaction and feeling in order to make their ship endgame. Thank you so much❤️❤️❤️

Wowza! This has got to be one of the longest asks I have ever received, hahah, congratulations and thank you for taking the time to write it to me! 

I would definitely consider doing such a meta, I am working on my Elriel debunking one currently, chipping away at it slowly! It’s a big boy.

I definitely agree that it is a very important and key point because like you said Elriel will be the trigger that pushes this story forward, giving Beron the push he needs, and also it will give or potential for Eris to step in and also Lucien by proxy. It would as you said accelerate the whole plot.

I have said before and I will say it again, Elriel brings so much plot to the story and ties in so many different characters, that say Gwynriel for arguments sake, doesn’t. I have no doubts at all who are the next POVs.

Agree with literally every ounce of your first ask, they have all the ties. There is no point mentioning The blood Duel if it is never going to come in to play, whether they actually do it or get close too it has to happen now. And if that is the case then Elriel clearly has to happen to get there! I don’t think Lucien would participate because I think he would respect Elains decision but who knows...

I feel like their is potential for his hand to be forced by say Beron or someone else, like you said though all ties roll back to Elain. And her ARC. 

I am so sorry you don’t feel like you can post it yourself, because you clearly have some great well thought out perspective, and you are well spoken. I am sure the fandom would love to hear your thoughts from you, when you are ready of course. Until then you are always welcome to come here and share with me!!

Going to answer your second one separately because I didn’t read the second one first and now I see you said to answer the other one ahhhahaha

[georgiaswarr]

jimmy kaga-ricci part 1 (part 2 / part 3)

beautiful faces - declan mckenna

if there ever was a screen adaptation of iwbft i can 100% imagine this song playing while the boys are walking the red carpet at the wcmas, when jimmy is surrounded by stardom and “beautiful faces”. however, even though he has great ambitions, he is also pretty disillusioned by the world of fame, the power games, the fake friends and the stress - deep down he’d rather just stay inside and, for once, relax

i say a little prayer - aretha franklin

i like to imagine this as a song about jimmy’s love for rowan and lister, and how in relation to his faith, praying for them is one of his love languages

ashley - halsey

hoooooo boy, this song pretty much has jimmy’s entire arc shoved into 3 minutes; “standing now, in the mirror that i built myself / and i can't remember why the decision wasn't mine / but it seems i'm only clingin' to an idea now” - jimmy feeling like their original dream about starting a band, their childhood passion and wonder has been lost along the way, they’re only clinging to an idea “someday, when i burst into flames / i'll leave you the dust, my love / hope a bit of it'll be enough to help remember the / days when we came to this place / i told you i'd spill my guts, i left you to clean it up / i'm bursting out of the” - his dreams about breaking away; however, the fact that the line is sort of cut off abruptly shows how he isn’t quite ready to burst out yet, not until friday “is it really that strange if i always wanna change?” - rowan and lister don’t understand why he wants to leave the band “i told you i'd ride this out / it's gettin' harder every day / somehow, i'm burstin' out of myself” - in the second chorus we finally have that catharsis of him actually running away and deciding to do what makes him happy

humongous - declan mckenna

this is mostly about jimmy’s relationship to the media (including social media). he’s been very closely scrutinised for years now, and things like racism, transphobia, the j*wan photo, fuckin paul marks, even the bliss story have taken a toll on his psyche - and that doesn’t even begin to cover his paranoia that is strongly fuelled by the people constantly watching his every move. the line “do you care? / i'm big, humongous, enormous and small” sounds like a cry of despair - he’s made out to be this huge, untouchable god-like figure, while in reality he feels small and easily breakable, but nobody in the media cares about his real feelings

sweaters - blanks

jimmy and rowan wanting to have a chill evening and play splatoon or something instead of attending lister’s party

social - smallpools

same theme as sweaters. the “social” here could also be taken as part of the bigger picture of fame - “if you can hear this now / bow out, save yourself” could be jimmy warning others about the dangers of fame, so to speak

roaring 20s - panic! at the disco

rule of threes; jimmy feeling anxious at the party, surrounded by people he doesn’t know or care about, wanting to go home to his grandad, etc

lavish living - carey st

this song reminds me of the ark’s london apartment; first of all, it’s huge and lavish, as the title says. then there’s also several lines in the song that remind me of various scenes; “you're so upset so what's the point of me right now” - jimmy feeling helpless after the bliss story broke and not knowing how to cheer rowan up “met a fibber yeah you met him last month / he told you things and he said it wasn't love / you're so obsessed so what's the point of us // pull away from the party / i don't think that this is meant to be / but me oh my oh make me go crazy” - the party on tuesday, magnet making a move on jimmy, bicci undertones, etc

demons - hayley kiyoko

“it's creeping in, it's gonna get me by the end of the night / i'm sinking deeper, still, i'm reaching for the end of the light / burning in the lava / you can't go and pray this type of pain away” a song describing jimmy’s anxiety and paranoia

i spend too much time in my room - the band camino

stolen from @kindaorangey‘s jimmy playlist (+explanation), this song strongly highlights jimmy’s inner turmoil, him overthinking things, etc

hero - family of the year

“baby needs some protection / but i'm a kid like everyone else” jimmy didn’t ask to be worshipped. he often says that he doesn’t get why everyone looks up to him, “loves” him, etc when all he is is a normal guy

it ain’t me babe - nancy sinatra

similarly to hero, here we have jimmy trying to tell his fans that he isn’t their saviour, he isn’t the one they “want” and “need”

the archer - taylor swift

“i wake in the night, i pace like a ghost / the room is on fire, invisible smoke” you know on wednesday when jimmy comes back from his escape to the park and has a panic attack? this song feels a lot like that; it’s his mistakes and insecurities, the world and other people trying to tear him down, all of this culminating in him feeling unworthy, wondering “who could stay”, but then of course rowan is here for him, he could stay. in the end, however, the first line - “combat, i’m ready for combat” - is repeated, which in the context of iwbft could have a sinister tone - the worst is yet to come

midas - skott

this reminds me of jimmy wondering why the label, their management, and even lister and rowan actually want to go through with the new contract, why they want to be bigger and richer. there’s a lesson about the greed and capitalism of the music industry in there

some nights - fun.

“this is it, boys, this is war / what are we waiting for? / why don't we break the rules already?” fame feels like a war to jimmy by now, which is reflected by the joan of arc and the soldier motif in iwbft. on multiple occasions, he asks rowan and lister to just break away from all of it, rules and conventions be damned “so this is it? / i sold my soul for this? / washed my hands of that for this? / i miss my mom and dad for this? / no, when i see stars, when i s- / when i see stars, that's all they are / when i hear songs, they sound like a swan” once again we have jimmy’s realisation that fame isn’t worth it. he doesn’t see the glamour that everybody claims fame brings. additionally, the swan metaphor refers to the fact that swans only sing once, right before they die, which is in tune with the death motif in iwbft, everything feeling very close to the end additionally, @kindaorangey made some excellent points here

lifeline - we three

so far jimmy has mostly been going with the flow, not putting up much of a fight to get what he wants, letting other people “shiver, feel it, take it, break it, make it what you want and / lose it, choose it, find it , mind it, bruise it, use it how you’re gonna” - it being his life, basically. of course that changes on friday but i’m getting ahead of myself

sometimes - h.e.r.

“i had a plan, i had it mapped out / i knew where i was going when i left out / oh, you couldn't tell me that i wouldn't be there on time / i had some guarantees, i had a deadline / but now i know things change for better or worse / you could say that i'm the same, but i ain't adjusted to all the hurt” - once again, the theme of jimmy’s childhood dreams and hopes ending up worse than he imagined

[twdmusicboxmystery]

The Daryl and Leah Spoilers - Everybody BREATHE!

Okay, let’s talk about it. We’re gonna have to talk about it. The Crappiest Spoilers of All Time. (We’ll just abbreviate them CSAT, okay?)

Yes, I saw them. Yes, I spent most of the day yesterday talking about them with people. Yes, we went up and down and forward and back and right and left trying to figure out what the hell. Actually, I literally got 68 Asks about this yesterday. 68! Lol. I may have sarcastically told a couple of people it was 400. It wasn’t that high. But even when something big happens, I don’t generally get more than about 20, so this was a lot.

***Below I’ll be talking about all kinds of spoilers for 10x18! If you’re not someone who wants to know, stop reading now. You’ve been warned!***

Okay, let’s start by attacking this head-on.

Does this suck? Yes.

Am I happy about it? Obviously not.

Does it change my opinion about Beth’s return? Not in the slightest.

And in all seriousness, I’m not trying to make light of this. I totally understand how everyone is feeling right now and I feel the same. But if you’re doubting or losing hope, please keep reading. I really think the things I have to say after talking to people in the fandom literally all day yesterday will make you feel better.

So I’m going to talk about some things that are suspicious to me about this, and also about some reasons why, even if it’s exactly what it looks like, we don’t really need to worry. I’m also gonna give you a possible way this could actually be okay, but I’ll warn you that scenario is mostly head canon and not super likely to be the case.

Context

The first thing I’m going to point out is that we really, REALLY do not have the full context for this episode. CSAT are big, but there’s a lot we don’t know about what’s going on here. I have a thousand questions and we can’t really be sure of anything until we know the answers. Which we won’t until we see the episode.

And I don’t mean things that make me doubt CSAT are true. I mean like, what is Leah doing out there? Why did no one else ever meet her? Why did she disappear? Did she go on her own because she’s a jerk, or was she taken? Is the CRM involved? We simply don’t know.

These are just a few, and the answers might profoundly effect the way we view these events. So, I’m just saying there’s a lot we can’t be sure of and we should be taking these with a grain of salt. I’ll come back to these questions in a minute. 

The Psychology

So, my first reaction to this was that it’s not entirely unrealistic. Is it out of character? Yes, for sure. They’ve pegged Daryl as a character who wouldn’t do something like this, so it’s definitely out of character for him. I’m totally with ya on that. But I also feel like this isn’t a real relationship for him. What I mean is, it might be something of a rebound or an act of desperation on his part.

Think about what we know about this part of his life. He’s just lost Rick and is devastated. According to these same CSAT, Carol abandons him. AGAIN. I think he’s feeling very depressed and lonely and would reach out to just about anyone at this point. It doesn’t mean he’s in love with her. And yes, I know about the note he wrote to her, but I still think that can be explained by his state of mind. If he’s not feeling like he belongs anywhere else, and Carol has specifically told him she’s not coming back, why wouldn’t he go with someone who’s promising him companionship? I don’t like it, and I know it’s not what everyone wants to hear, but I do understand it.

I promise I’ll move onto happier things. Like this:

Patterns:

We’ve seen this pattern with A LOT of the TWD couples. They put one or both of them together with a small, short-term love interest. And that always happens RIGHT BEFORE they hook up with their soul mate. So, let’s review, shall we?

Carol had Tobin, and right after she left him, she met Ezekiel. Rick kissed Jessi, and only a month after she died, he and Michonne finally got together. Enid was with Ron when we first met her, but it was obvious Carl was meant to be her true love. You could even point to Abraham and Rosita. Their relationship was a bit longer and more established than these others, but the fact is Rosita wasn’t Abe’s soul mate. Sasha was. And now Rosita is with Gabriel, so…

My point is that Leah may be Daryl’s Jessie. Or Tobin. Take your pick. But the pattern is that this will be short term and he should be finding his true soul mate VERY soon after. Just saying.

Is This a Healthy Relationship?

Someone in my group pointed this out. CSAT says she asks him to choose between her and the rest of his life. I didn’t think much about that until one of my FB groupies pointed it out, but it’s really not cool to do that to him. It’s almost passive-aggressive. The way I see it, when you fall in love with someone, you want to get to know their family and participate in every part of their lives. If this was a true, committed relationship, she would WANT to go to Alexandria and meet his friends. She would WANT to help him in his search for Rick’s body. But that doesn’t seem to be the case.

So, in terms of how Daryl feels about her, well, loneliness is a different feeling than real love, and I’m not sure this is the healthiest relationship for Daryl to be in.

Scope, or Lack Thereof

The thing that I think most of the fandom is on the same page about is how out of character this is for Daryl. How out of left field this feels.

I’m mean, this is Daryl. Daryl Freaking Dixon. The writers know about the shipping wars. They know that no matter who they pair him up with—Carol, Connie, Beth, Leah, someone else—it’s going to be a huge deal. For them to do it like this just doesn’t make sense.

Now, I don’t think we have a definite timeline on this. We have two possibilities.

1)     I’ve seen some people say he’s sleeping with a complete stranger, which is very out of character for him.

2)     I’ve also seen posts that claim the two of them meet and develop a relationship over time. That would be less out of character, but it would also mean that the writers developed an entire relationship for Daryl in only one episode…and then took it away.

Does that seem logical to you? I just don’t buy it.

So, at the very least, if this turns out to be what it looks like on the surface—a real romantic relationship for him—I’m gonna say it’s not going to be a big one. It’s not going to be end-all, be-all of Daryl’s love life.

My Praying-This-Headcanon-Is-True-While-Also-Trying-Not-To-Get-My-Hopes-Up-That-It-Is Theory

All right, everyone. I honestly wasn’t sure I should even include this. I don’t want to get people’s hopes up about it. But the more I think about it, the more I think it’s a distinct possibility. 

So, @wdway said this first, and I kind of just glazed over it like, “Meh, probably not.” But the more I thought about it, and the more I talked to people and hashed things out, the more sense it made.

Let me go back to some of those questions I asked at the beginning. Why did no one else ever meet Leah when he was in a relationship with her? Yes, because they were out in the woods together, but it talks about him going to see Carol and going to Alexandria and looking for Rick, which is why she asks him to choose in the first place.

But if you have a sustained relationship with someone, why wouldn’t you introduce them to your friends? Why wouldn’t he have taken her to Alexandria with him? It’s really odd to me that this happened at a time when Daryl was completely on his own out in the woods and NO ONE in his life ever saw or met her.

(Once again, I have to point out that with how vague CSAT are, we can’t know for sure that no one else knew about her. Maybe when we watch the episode, it will show that someone did, but this is the vibe I’m getting right now.)

What else do we know about this point in his life? He’s deep in the throes of his grief over Rick, he’s withdrawn to his robotic, survival mode, which he always does when he’s lost someone close to him, Carol has just abandoned him, and he’s lonely. People who spend too much time alone DO tend to go a little crazy.

So, here it is:

Is there any chance this Leah woman…could be a hallucination?

Honestly guys, that makes WAY more sense to me than that she’s real. Because everyone in the fandom who’s saying this is out of character for Daryl is 100% right. Everyone who’s asking why the writers would do this is 100% right to be asking that question.

And let me tell you, it’s not just us asking it. The entire fandom is. Obviously, all the shippers. And while I’m sure there are some in the non-shipping fans who are glad Daryl is getting a love interest, even they think it’s a little weird. Cuz, you know, it is.

But this show regularly does hallucination story arcs, and Daryl himself even has a history of it. I’m just saying.

People have also suggested that it would sort of makes sense given what I said above about the “unhealthiness” of their relationship. Maybe her wanting him to choose was really more about his sanity and leaving the delusion behind. Again, just a thought.

Then there’s the suspicious timing of CSAT.

Suspicious Release of CSAT and Hype

While messaging with @monroelibrarian0626, she said something I hadn’t thought of that made a lot of sense. Does anyone else find it suspicious that they said we wouldn’t be getting screeners for several weeks and then literally two days later all these spoilers about Daryl’s sex life drop?

It’s not rocket science to know that tptb intentionally leaked these to drum up viewership. Everyone is totally going to watch to see what this is all about. But it also seems to me that they may be releasing just enough information to get everyone all hyped up and then it won’t end up being what it seems. Here, I’ll just give you part of my text message with her because she explains this point better than I do.

But yeah, I get that impression that she's not real, and that's really good promotion and hype for the producers to draw in more viewers. Don't miss it! Daryl is gonna have sex! And then, boom! You find out it's a hallucination. I remember with LOST, there was a preview for next week's show, and in it, the Korean guy, Jin, was shown saying, "It's going to be alright." And he didn't speak English then, in season 2, so it was like, OH MY GOD! And here, when the episode aired, Jin speaking English was part of Hurley's hallucination. Could be along the same lines! --@monroelibrarian0626

Doesn’t that just make a certain amount of sense? Especially given how out of character this feels for Daryl? No matter what you think of the writers on this show, they just really don’t betray the way they’ve set up their characters like this.

Now, once again, I’m really not hanging all my hopes on this. I’m preparing myself for the outcome of her being real and this being a real relationship for Daryl. Mostly because I don’t want to get my hopes too high. And I would suggest you all make your peace with that being the case. I’m just throwing this out there as a possibility. Even TD aside, given how out of character this feels, it would make more sense to me than that they’ve actually put him in this relationship.

It could also that once we actually see the entire episode, depending on what the other details of the story line are, it might be really obvious that she’s real and the detail will explain a lot of this away. That’s a real possibility. Once we learn about other parts of the episode, everything I’ve said here could easily go straight down the toilet.

Another outcome is that she could be a hallucination, but we won’t even know it because Daryl doesn’t. If he doesn’t realize she wasn’t real, the viewers might not be told that, either.

Other Things I’m Side-Eyeing

Check out this tweet, specifically the emojis he uses. Don’t you find those suspicious? Fish? A violin? A sunrise? Boat? Hourglass? Now, this guy got a screener. He’s not one of the writers or someone close to the show who would know the overarching grand plan, so I’m not suggesting he has some inside knowledge of Beth’s return.

But why would he use these emojis? There’s no reason for him to tie them to Leah. The only answer there can be is that he saw these things in the episode. He simply added them to the tweet as hints of what we can expect. And if all those symbols are represented in the episode, this is going to be a super heavy Beth-symbolism episode.

Not to mention, have you checked out Leah’s costuming in detail? Her boots are damn close to what Beth’s looked like. And sitting on the porch, the bag on her back looks a LOT like the one Beth carried in Still. 

I feel like she’s a Beth stand-in. And I think that will be true whether she’s real or not. Again, if we go with the Tobin/Jessi/Ron pattern, she’ll be a forerunner of Beth, so having Beth symbolism around her isn’t surprising.

But once again, this isn’t something we need to worry about.

And don’t even get me started on the damn cabin motif. I’ve been thinking about this since I did my 5x09/Tyreese post last week. I’m not going to go into details here because I don’t even have it all straight in my head yet, but it has some interesting ramifications for this Daryl/Leah situation.

So, pretty much everything that everyone is saying (including me) is pure conjecture until we actually see the episode. I know that’s probably not very helpful, but it’s the truth.

So, what’s my main point about this? It’s this:

I hope she’s a hallucination, but even if she’s not, it doesn’t bother me overly much. I mean, of course I’m bothered because I don’t like to see him in a relationship with her, but I mean I’m not bothered where Beth is concerned. It doesn’t change the fact that I think she’ll still be back, and this will just be a blip of some kind in Daryl’s story. And if she’s real, and it’s following the Tobin/Jessie/Ron pattern, Beth (his true soulmate) should be surfacing VERY soon thereafter.

So, we basically don’t know anything until we do, and I know the fandom is collectively losing its mind. I know this is going to be hard to get used to. But try to make your peace with it, in all its possible iterations. Try not to let it freak you out. Hold the line, TDers. Hold the line!

[justalittlebluetiefling]

Prayer circle for Travis to go on Talks soon so they can ask him a little more about Fjord's feelings. When did they start? When did he realize he was in love with her? Was it dying that made him act on his feelings more? Is he worried that other people may have feelings for her too? While we have to wait for his answers to this questions, what are your opinions on these?

Thank you for this, anon! It was really fun to sit down and think about this stuff and figure out where my head is at with these things!

Alright, first of all, yes. Travis on Talks please. I’d love for him to be on there with Liam for the next one. He deserves just one question about this, because he’s admitted it in game, which means he can finally give an answer that is mostly not trolling everyone.

Now. *cracks knuckles* LET’S DO THIS. This got long sorry?

1. When did they start?

It’s hard to pinpoint when his feelings started exactly, but we do know that something shifted for him during the Jellyfish Talk. He’s always adored Jester, but something about her confiding her real feelings in him changed the way he looked at everything she’s done.

However. 

I’m actually going to say that I think his feelings really started to develop during Uk’otoa Temple #2 (2x47). There’s that moment when she sits down to pray to the Traveler for Fjord’s protection and he’s listening and watching her do this and his face is just... soft. I’ve got receipts somewhere. Where are they? Eh, wait, Tumblr is weird about stuff showing up in the tags with asks that I put pictures in, never mind. 

ANYWAY.

Here’s Jester praying for his safety and he’s never really had someone who looks out for him the way she does. And she doesn’t want to go. She doesn’t want to leave him alone. And he’s so touched by this. He sits down in front of her and he tells her that it’s okay and she can leave, but she (and Beau) still waits for him as close to the door as possible while he’s down there. So I think that it was sort of a gradual thing over the whole pirate arc, but this was where it really clicked for him that shit, his feelings for Jester might be deeper than he thought they were.

2. When did he realize he was in love with her?

This one is easy. Although I do think this was another gradual thing for him, I think it really hit home during their talk at the forge when she sent a message to Vandran for him (2x72). It’s yet another example of how (almost in spite of her love of mischief) easily kindness and empathy come to her. She’s reassuring him over how vague Vandran’s message was. And okay, there’s this thing he says during this conversation. “I just don’t know if what I wanted before is the same thing I want now.” and “I feel like we’ve all changed. Me especially.” Okay, really though, this whole conversation is a lot. 

Fjord: There’s a part of me that wants to leave it all behind. Jester: Just go somewhere quiet and disappear, and hope that it never bothers you again? Fjord: Yeah.

And this is a big deal, because it’s showing him, once again, that their paths are aligned. They both constantly seem to be heading in similar directions and maybe they’re going to end up in the same place once this is all over. 

AND THEN HE TELLS HER HIS POWERS WENT AWAY FOR A WHILE. There’s that little way he hesitates when she asks if he would do anything to get them back. You can sort of see him scanning through this list in his head of things he doesn’t want to give up. Gosh I have a lot to say about this conversation and the way it pertains to their whole entire relationship in general. Like, he tells her so many things in this conversation. Everything he’s been holding in (his fears, his self-image issues, his thoughts on a new deity) just pour out and you can tell he’s been waiting to talk specifically to her about all this. This conversation is the catalyst that pushes him to decide to give up his fake accents and give up on Uk’otoa.

Okay, but here’s where I was really going with this. Near the end of the conversation, she says, “And we’ll do anything to get you away from Uk’otoa, okay?” And he just grins at her like a dork for a solid 7 seconds after she says that. Everything she is makes him so happy. She’s reaffirming that she’d do anything for him the way he knows he’d do anything for her and this reminds me a lot of how he told Beau he doesn’t want to ask about her feelings, because it just feels good. That look at the end of this whole exchange feels a lot like that italicized oh moment in fanfiction. 

3. Was it dying that made him act on his feelings more?

I... am not sure about this one. I’m not actually sure how much dying affected Fjord. That’s another question I’d like them to ask Travis on Talks. We know he wants more out of life, but I think that for a while, it felt like he was living on borrowed time and he really seemed like someone who was just doing whatever he could with the time he had left. Actually, I think he basically says this when he’s talking to Beau in 108, how he expected this to have an ending. To be an ending for him. And it hasn’t been.

So, hmm... I think that if dying affected the way he’s been acting with her, it’s minimal. I don’t know if he’s really had time to think about it. I think that he went from dying to thinking that he was going to lose Jester forever and I’m not sure any of that has really had time to settle in apart from just being relieved that neither of those things happened.

Actually, I guess I’d say that I think if anything is going to spur Fjord into action, it’s going to be the fact that he thought he was going to lose Jester. He was so desperate to keep her in that moment with the Moonweaver and I think he’s probably still dealing with the fact that he flung himself into the air over a volcano to try to convince her to stay. 

Also, his conversation with Beau was good. Maybe it helped him realize that him that pining after your best friend is all fun and games for a while, but the not knowing really sucks, so now, even though he’s scared, he does want to know. We all know how well Fjord handles not knowing. He spent 5000 gold on a Ring of Fire Resistance just to find out the name of the person it was on hold for.

4. Is he worried that other people may have feelings for her too?

This poor 7 wisdom half-orc. I don’t think it really occurred to him that he might not be the only one pining after Jester before Beau talked to him. He’s just not great at reading other people’s emotions. So I don’t think he was worried about it before, but I think he is now. That’s actually another thing that could have spurred him into action. Jealousy isn’t the prettiest emotion, but it’s definitely inspiring. We know he ultimately wants Jester to be happy and if that’s with someone who isn’t him, that would be fine. But maybe now he needs to know if he still has a chance at being that person for her the way she is for him.

That’s a big thing for him in this relationship. Reciprocation. She supports him, he supports her. She confides in him, he confides in her. She makes him happy, he wants to make her happy. 

Oh. Okay. So, I guess my opinion on this also has something to do with the way his face fell when she told the planar entity that she loves Artagan. Hearing her say that she loves someone else, even if it may not be in a romantic way, clearly shook him a bit. (I’ve got a lot of other thoughts on this, too, but I’m trying to stay focused.) He just finished telling Beau that he thinks he might be happier not knowing if her feelings for him have faded, but that’s clearly not the case. He was enjoying living in this world where she might. The possibility that she might not hurt. So, I think we’re going to see him do little things (or maybe a bigger thing) and trying to gauge her reaction with increasing frequency until he’s brave enough to say something. Or until she cracks and asks him what he’s doing. Whichever one comes first.

[ichika27]

TWEWY 11

Time to get to the final battles. (I forgot to take a non-spoiler screenshot)

Anyways, spoilers for the game below.

Inside the Shibuya River (the sewers, I guess), they find Minamimoto who couldn’t go forward anymore due to a barrier he can’t break. He then tells them where Konishi is (inside Beat’s shadow which the show had hinted last time) and the two reapers talk.

They make a deal: Konishi gets rid of the barrier and when Minamimoto becomes the new Composer, he’d promote her to Conductor. Minamimoto agrees and goes forward.

Our duo is now left to battle Konishi. (she looks like a furry-bait I wonder if a certain vtuber would think she’s hot lol).

They get transported to some kinda invisible platform in the sky where they proceed to fight. She’s pretty difficult to defeat though.

Beat, upon seeing Neku in distress and that they might lose, remembers Rhyme and how he couldn’t protect her. He resolves that he’d not let that happen again and attacks. This somehow lets him summon noise!Rhyme who immediately reunites with her brother.

Neku and Beat powers up Rhyme. I don’t think this powerup was in the game (I don’t remember much of this part). I do remember her pin being in use but this powerup, not sure. Pretty cool though.

Technically, Rhyme defeats Konishi feat. Neku and Beat lol. She might have become noise but she’s still badass.

I had to get this with the subs. Konishi, before she finally disappears, decides to tell Beat that Rhyme’s memories of her big brother is Beat’s own entry fee and not Rhyme’s. She says that maybe Beat wasn’t as important to Rhyme like he thought.

She then gets erased while Beat is having some sort of crisis asking himself what Rhyme’s entry fee might have been.

Shiki finally appears! She says Rhyme’s entry fee must be her dreams since Rhyme mentions not having any. (I don’t remember this detail completely but Rhyme’s entry fee being her dreams was just a popular fan theory back then as they never really outright mention it in game so this being included either meant it was right all along or they thought that the theory was okay and they should add it).

Neku and Beat realized that Week 3 is over, they won, and so Shiki’s back. Neku apologizes to Shiki as she became his entry fee and Shiki is surprised by this cause of the implications. Someone else pointed it out elsewhere that it’s strange that she’s surprised when she hasn’t disappeared yet when Neku was told that she’d be his entry fee. She disappeared in the game before Neku was told this so it makes sense she didn’t know in the original story. Did the staff forget or something? I mean, they kinda forgot they let Neku and Shiki have a keypin way back in Week 1 and then made Neku surprised that keypins existed in Week 3.

Oh and they also don’t visit Dead God’s Pad (the bar HQ of the reapers).

They find Minamimoto in the white void they’re now in and he’s impaled instead of crushed underneath a bunch of stuff like a vending machine. Is Joshua not capable of summoning vending machines in the white void?

The white void breaks apart to reveal The Room of Reckoning where they see Kitaniji waiting for them and he explains the Composer isn’t here.

Whose happiness though? Is it for himself? Cause Joshua doesn’t seem happy.

So Kitaniji tells them that the personality/mindset of those in Shibuya - like Neku’s and Beat’s - is going to be cause of it’s downfall so he’s gonna fix it.

And then he brainwashes Shiki using the red skull pin. It’s now a battle between noise!Kitaniji and Shiki vs. Neku and Beat. As if the game version wasn’t hard enough lol. They skipped battling them at Dead God’s Pad and just combined the first two battles by having Shiki be brainwashed after Kitaniji has transformed. The duo now has to face Kitaniji as some kinda giant snake plus a horde of Mr. Mews that can fly.

They win, of course, with a bit of difficulty since they don’t want to hurt Shiki. After the fight, the other two are passed out.

Kitaniji refuses to go down and in their exchange, Neku notices the timer on Kitaniji’s hand (which is earlier than in the game since they originally find this out when the whole truth is being revealed at the ending). He explains his plans using the pins.

Meanwhile, Neku gains an epiphany regarding the character development he had been getting throughout the Reaper’s Game.

Kitaniji slowly transforms in a gross way with his body slowly changing shape. They went out of their way to make it creepy.

Last battle with Kitaniji coming up next episode!

--

Joshua didn’t show up unlike in the game which makes this kinda weird. I always assumed Kitaniji got a more powerful form because he captures Joshua and hijacks his Composer powers but here, Josh hasn’t arrived and Kitaniji transformed on his own. He didn’t even capture Beat and Shiki so it makes me wonder if he just has another noise form.

Wait... does this mean the final battle would be Neku, Shiki, Beat (and Joshua if he arrives in the middle of it) vs. Kitaniji instead of just Neku (and then using some powers of the other three) vs. Kitaniji in the game? That actually sounds like a pretty exciting idea and they could showcase using multiple characters that will be the mechanic of NTWEWY (assuming that wasn’t their plan all along).

I wonder how Joshua will show up though? In the middle of the battle? Near the end when he’d join the four-combo attack? At the start and would go “No time to ask questions”? I’m excited haha. I though he’d appear in this episode though but I guess they’re gonna place the Composer reveal at the very end (even though they gave so many hints throughout Week 2 that Josh isn’t what he seems).

Oh my god... the finale is next week, isn’t it? I pray they’d use “A Lullaby for You” as the last ending song as they show the epilogue. I might end up crying if they did that. Are they gonna add Neku’s entire ending monologue? One of the things the anime does that I thought is nice is that they really make the dramatic scenes hit hard. How they’d animate Neku’s monologue might end up hitting me in the feels really bad if they do it right.

Are they gonna animate the secret ending? Gonna hurt me more by showing Josh is unable to be with Neku and the others? And before all of this... the final duel. We’re gonna see Neku cry next episode lol oh no.

I do hope Eri gets to be in the final scenes though. They gave her a bit more screentime in the anime so it’d be really cool if they show Shiki and Eri getting reunited. And Beat waking up to see his sister human again and they’re alive. They never showed those in the game so it’d be nice to end their personal arcs with those.

I’m excited and also sad. We all waited so long. It was a dream that TWEWY would one day get an anime and even a sequel but here we are. The anime is about to end and the sequel will come out next month. After all this time, it feels like it was just a blink of an eye and now it’ll be over.

*sigh* I should really save all of this for the actual last episode.

Either they’d have another episode for “A New Day” or they’re gonna have an OVA for that. Sad cause had that not existed, maybe there’s a possibility of “Another Day” getting an OVA. But then again, they took away tin pin for the main story.

Okay. That’s all for now, I guess. Next week is pain and also happiness. XD

[evabellasworld]

Storm of the Republic

Chapter 26

AO3 Link | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26

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Summary:  When Tup murdered General Tiplar during a battle, Anakin Skywalker and Captain Rex dispatched Ahsoka, Fives, and Yara to solve the mystery that was plaguing the Clone Army. Meanwhile, Senator Padme Amidala contacted Commander Fox, Commander Tori, Riyo Chuchi, and Dipper to help her continue investigating the death of Palpatine, suspecting that Dooku was behind the evil plot. But when Dooku send an ISB agent to stop them, the team had to race against time to search for the truth, which could alter the course of the galaxy.

————————————————————————————

“So, how are we getting inside?” Tori asked, sitting next to Fox in speeder. “Like, what’s the plan?”

Fox turned to her in a blank eye, his brows furrowed. “Do you ever pay attention, Tor? Like, are you always daydreaming whenever you’re being brief about something important?”

“You never even told us,” she crossed her arms as she tapped Dipper’s sleeves, catching the ARC Trooper’s attention. “Dip, please tell me what Commander Fox said about this stealth mission?”

Dipper lifted his shoulders, holding a datapad in his hands. “He only told us that Riyo and I were the ones who will sneak into the Chancellor’s penthouse and grab the files from there. You two were supposed to watch the speeder in case things go wrong.”

Pouting her lips, she focused her gaze towards the view of the city, which was much livelier than last night. There were people pacing up and down the streets, going about with their daily life, while the lights from skyscrapers and houses were lit. Tori couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

There were schoolchildren clad in uniforms rushing towards their classrooms while office workers had their blazers and blouses on, carrying their datapads and briefcases. This was like how it was 6 months ago, before the war came to the capital of the Republic, which the Empire tried to crumble with their iron fists.

As long as they were people fighting for the Republic, then it still exists to Tori, Fox, Riyo, and Dipper. Riyo saw the smiles on the citizen’s faces, which made her lips curled downwards. She enjoys seeing others happy, but somehow, she doesn’t share their sentiments.

Are they really content with their life? The former senator pondered, glancing at the little Rodian boy, who was enjoying his ice-cream underneath the sunny day, which reminded her of home.

Riyo misses the paddy fields on Pantora. Her father used to harvest a massive field of rice, and brought a sack of harvest for the entire family. It wasn’t much, but she enjoyed the rice that was grown just kilometres away from her village home. If her father was lucky, he would also bring some eels, which tasted juicy.

“So once Dipper and I got the files, does that mean we’re leaving Coruscant?” she asked Fox.

“Yes, dear, we’re bringing Senator Amidala with us after this,” Fox affirmed. “We can’t stay here for too long. It’s not safe for all of us here.”

“So, what do we do with the files? Padmé did suggested us to show them to the Imperial Senate.”

“I know she did, but the general’s order was to get the senator out of the planet and head back to base. It’s too risky to head into the Senate building. We don’t even know what’s waiting for us down there.”

“Foxy has a point,” Tori agreed. “This planet is under heavy surveillance. If we are caught, then it could compromise not only the location of our base but also the number of our army as well. We’ve lost so many soldiers in battle, and we can’t afford to lose anymore.”

Riyo frowned from their answers, making Fox sighed. “Look, I understand you want to help your friend, and I’m all for it, but we also need to think about us as well. I know it seems selfish, but we can’t always have it all.”

“I understand, dear,” she gave a weak smile. “Let’s hope our plans go smoothly. We don’t want anyone interfering with it.”

Dipper chirped. “Don’t worry about it. By the time the Imps realized it, we would already be long gone by now. I have a good feeling that we will successfully escape from Coruscant with ease.”

“Fingers crossed on that. I really don’t want to be interrogated by the Imperial secret police. From what I heard, no one made it out alive.”

“Speak of the devil, and he will come to you,” Tori scolded Riyo. “We don’t want any sort of trouble during this mission.”

It better not, Fox hoped, as he drove in mid-air, searching for Palpatine’s penthouse through his scope. He had been there many times before, and memorised every single room in his building, including the bathroom. He was in charge of security along with Thorn, which was important for him to know the building schematic. He never said his last goodbyes to Thorn, or spent their last moment together before the latter was gone.

On the other hand, he wasn’t particularly sad that Palpatine died, but if those files mean turning the tide of the war, then he has no other choice. I hope his misdeeds were recorded, so that everyone knows what a terrible man he was.

As Fox noticed the penthouse’s balcony from afar, he slowed down the speeder, driving away from the highway. “We’ll be arriving in 5 minutes,” he informed them. “Get into position.”

“Yes, Commander,” Dipper saluted, as he gave a wink at Riyo, who was clutching her hands together. “Don’t worry. I’ve done this kind of mission before. You’ll befine, Riyo. We believe in you.”

“May the Force be with all of us,” she prayed, as they arrived in front of the lobby, which was on the ground floor. With silence surrounding them, the former senator noticed plenty of overgrown weed between the bricks on the grounds.

No one was inside the apartments, except for the complete void inside. There were people here when the Chancellor was still alive. Did the Empire forced them out as well?

Fox and Tori glanced at them, giving them a nod. “Good luck, and be careful,” Tori said. “We don’t know what’s in there.”

“We will, commander,” Dipper acknowledged, as he gestured to Riyo to follow him inside the abandoned apartment.

As they stepped inside the lobby, both of them noticed the red carpet was torn, covered in fungus. The paint on the walls was peeled off, and the fluorescent lights were hanging on the ceiling, waiting to crash on the floor.

“It looks scary in here,” Riyo commented, glancing at the vacant receptionist counter. “What do you think happened here?”

Dipper observed many blast marks in the room's corner, clicking his tongue. “Whatever it is, I doubt the tenants here left voluntarily,” he replied as he turned towards the lift and pressed the button, much to her bewilderment.

“Are you sure this lift is working?”

Before he could answer, the lift door opened, with the background music playing and the golden lights working. “Well, looks like your question is answered, Ri. After you.”

“Thank you, kind sir,” she smiled and walked inside, pressing the button that leads all the way upstairs. “I’m surprised there’s still something working here. I wonder who switched on the power?”

Dipper felt uneasy as they arrived at the penthouse, which was well kept, despite no one living there for months. He felt the cooling air coming from the air-conditioning and the scent of nutmeg lingering, prompting him to draw out his blaster.

“Riyo, I don’t think we’re alone,” he warned her. “Stay closer to me.”

“Alright then,” Riyo bobbed her head, holding a blaster as well. “The files could be in his studies, but we have to be careful not to trigger the sensors.”

“That’s why I’m here,” he took out his Onderonian army knife, as he tiptoed towards the study room, where everything on the bookshelves were arranged in order.

Riyo remembered how the place was. She attended a party in the Chancellor’s penthouse, where many of her colleagues were there, along with close associates. There was champagne and wine, and she only had a sip of the sweet alcohol. She also had some cream puffs at the party, and offered them to Fox, who was in charge of security. He enjoyed the pastry, and Riyo would love to make them for him, when there’s a place to bake, of course.

“The sensors are on the top shelf. Maybe that’s where the files are.”

“Good eye, senator,” Dipper praised. “I’ll disable it for you.”

“Alright,” she took a deep breath, as she wore her rubber gloves, which won’t leave any trace of fingerprints. Riyo never done a stealth mission before, and she will not fail their team.

Stretching his arms, the ARC Trooper flipped the switch behind the small, black sensors, deactivating it. Using his screwdriver on the pocket knife, he slowly removed them from his shelf, tossing them aside. Riyo searched through every file from the bookshelves, starting from the letter ‘A’.

Audits for Coruscant, Audits for Alderaan, Banking Clan accounts, well, that’s a lot of files that start with the letter ‘B’. Bursary Market, Core World populations…

Dipper tapped his foot as Riyo was still searching through the files. He never thought it wouldn’t take long, but he was mistaken. He always thought anything involving paperwork was easy, but it was otherwise. Counting files from ‘A’ to ‘Z’ was quite a challenge for the both of them, and time is not on their sides. Now I understand why Commander Fox hated paperwork so much.

“The Death of the Young twins, Grand Army of the Republic Protocols,” Riyo muttered underneath her breath, wiping her sweat on her forehead. “Project Cyborg, Project Starfleet, wait, I think I found it.”

“You did?” his face lit up. “Can I see?”

“Yeah sure, the file was named The Assassination of Chancellor Palpatine,” she showed him. “It was pretty easy to find it, if you ask me.”

“Yeah, sure,” he groaned, his clammy hands still gripped on his pistol. “I still think this was too easy. I have a funny feeling something bad is going to happen to us soon.”

“We should head to the lift,” Riyo reminded, hiding the files underneath her blazer. “We can’t keep Fox and Tori waiting.”

[sweetmemories2606]

StingYu Angst (Birthday Fic)

In honour of the lovely @ship-ambrosia​'s birthday today, I have written this one-shot featuring Sting and Yukino's relationship.

Here are the details:

Title: Focus

Summary: Watching Dimaria nearly kill Yukino, Sting is reminded of the last time when she had been in danger and he had failed to protect her. 

Timeline: Tartaros Arc (flashback), Alvarez Arc.

Warning: This story is based on chapters 16-17 of my Royal AU, therefore it contains spoilers. 

Word Count: 2k

Link: Focus

Hope you enjoy!

                           ______________________

                              October 18th, X792

Sting was rushing through the castle with Macbeth and Erik, who had saved him after he was trapped in the dungeons by Zeref. They were supposed to be making a grand escape, but upon feeling Yukino's presence and sensing that she was in danger, Sting knew he had to go to her.

He stopped suddenly, surprising the other two, and removed the concealing spell which Macbeth had placed on him.

"What the hell, man?" Erik whisper-yelled.

"You weren't supposed to undo the spell." Macbeth muttered, annoyed.

"Yukino's that way." Sting pointed before giving them a firm look. "I need to see her."

"You can see her when we get to the ship." Erik told him.

"I am not..." He was interrupted by a yell that made his blood run cold.

"Yukino!" It was Juvia's voice and the moment Sting heard it, he knew that he had to get to that room. Now.

                          ______________________

They rushed through the corridor until reaching a wooden door. Sting could hear voices coming from inside, but didn't pay much attention.

His heart racing in his chest, he broke down the door effortlessly, only for his heart to drop into his stomach at the heart-wrenching sight before him.

Yukino lay helplessly on the floor, skin pale and her sky blue dress was quickly being tainted with blood coming from a wound on her stomach. So much blood. "Yukino!" He screamed her name, desperate.

"Sting..." She called him weakly, but her relief was clear.

"Shit!" Erik and Macbeth yelled, bringing Sting's attention to the other occupants of the room. He spotted Dimaria, who stood with her back to them, holding onto a bloody sword.

"What now?" She turned around to face them, looking bored.

"Of course it had to be you!" Sting yelled, filled with anger. Then his eyes widened once he finally noticed Juvia, who was crawling towards Yukino.

Realising that the water mage's wedding dress was also being stained with blood, he became worried for his friend too. I hope she'll be alright…

He watched as Juvia took Yukino's hand and squeezed it gently. "Yukino…I'm so sorry."

The celestial mage coughed, clearly struggling to breathe. "Juvia..."

Overwhelmed by fear and sorrow, Sting found himself frozen in his spot, watching everything unfold, and suddenly the room started to spin.

He tried taking in deep breaths to calm himself, but it was no use. Seeing Yukino injured like that brought up a distressing memory of another time when he had failed to protect her.

                          ______________________

                             One year before

"Seriously? That didn't do anything?" Sting said, frustrated.

Him, Rogue and Yukino had found themselves going against the most powerful member of Tartaros: Mard Geer, the underworld king. The trio had been unlucky enough to encounter him after they were freed from the Allegria Curse and a difficult, seemingly endless fight ensued.

"This is getting exhausting." Yukino breathlessly noted. After having summoned 2 celestial spirits simultaneously, she had fallen to her knees, drained. To make matters worse, neither Pisces nor Libra's attack seemed to have any effect on the demon.

"Maybe we should call for help." Rogue suggested while trying to regain his breathing.

After sending another ineffective attack, Sting frowned. "I'm sure everyone's busy fighting against the other demons."

"Even if you had help, it would still not be enough to defeat me." Mard Geer affirmed, smiling smugly. He stood in the same spot a few meters away from them from which he had not moved since the beginning of the fight.

In his arm he held a book which they assumed belonged to one of the nine demon gates. Yukino had tried to retrieve it while Sting and Rogue fought him, but none were successful.

"Won't this guy ever shut up?" Sting complained, rolling his eyes.

"We just need to work together." Rogue said.

After sending another attack, Sting turned to his best friend in frustration. "We've been doing that for the past hour. It's not working!"

Rogue gave him a stern look. "No, you've been distracted, Sting. That's why we're failing to strike him."

"Are you kidding me?" Mard Geer watched them argue in clear amusement, not bothering to attack, but Yukino decided to intervene. "Guys, this isn't the time."

Glancing at her, Sting became concerned at how tired and pale she seemed. "Are you okay?"

She heaved. "I'm okay, but I don't have much magic power left."

He decided to approach her and extended a hand. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't hurt you."

Yukino smiled and accepted his help. "Thank you."

They turned to Rogue, who watched them in frustration. "Why won't you two admit it?"

The celestial mage seemed confused. "Admit what?"

He gave her an obvious look. "That you love each other. I'm so tired of watching you ignore your feelings as if it will do any good."

"What the hell, man? Did you have to do this now?" Sting yelled in annoyance.

Yukino blushed as she stepped away from him. "This isn't… the best time."

"There is no right time." Rogue sighed. "If you wait any longer, you might never get the chance to tell the truth."

Sting knew he was referring to the possibility that they might not all make it out alive. A very real possibility considering they had been fighting Mard Geer for so long yet hadn't even managed to scratch him.

Though Sting still refused to believe that they could die, he realised this might be his last opportunity to tell Yukino how he felt.

Glancing at the celestial mage who looked at him with equal determination, he began. "Yukino, I..."

Suddenly there were vines everywhere, trapping him. He struggled against their hold, frustrated at the interruption. "What the hell?"

His gaze found Mard Geer, who smiled in satisfaction. "As amusing as watching you has been, I don't have all night."

"These vines are blocking my magic. I can't attack." Rogue noted in exasperation.

"Don't worry, I'll help you." Looking to his right, Sting was surprised to note that Yukino hadn't been caught.

"No, you won't." Mard Geer smirked in her direction.

"Damn it!" Sting kept struggling, to no avail.

"Humans always tend to fall prey to their emotions, while completely unaware of this weakness." Mard Geer finally moved from his spot and began approaching the trio.

"No, our emotions are what makes us stronger." Rogue said. "It might've taken awhile, but we understand that now."

""Is that so?" The demon raised a brow. "I suppose we'll see about that in a moment."

Sting's blood ran cold once Mard Geer briefly glanced at Yukino, who was trying to summon her spirits. "Let's see how strong you'll be after I kill your beloved."

"Don't you dare!" The dragon slayer yelled in anger, trying with all his strength to free himself. It was pointless.

A giant flower appeared out of nowhere and dived in her direction. Yukino tried to move in order to dodge it, but Mard Geer trapped her in place with more vines.

Sting and Rogue were powerless to save her, forced to watch as the flower moved towards her. Nothing could be heard aside from the latter's desperate scream of her name. "Yukino!"

                          ______________________

They had been miraculously saved back then by the arrival of Gray Fullbuster, who froze the vines with ease then broke them. His intervention was the only reason why Yukino hadn't died that day.

Focusing back on the present situation, Sting prayed that someone would intervene again and save Yukino's life.

Thankfully, Juvia was one step ahead of him. "Water-make: blood." She whispered the spell which he recalled worked as a blood transfusion.

She's risking her life to save Yukino. Sting realised and knew that he must do the same. Turning to Dimaria in anger, he threatened. "You are going to pay for hurting them!"

She stared at him with disinterest, not impressed once he activated dragon force or when Erik and Macbeth turned into their most powerful forms.

"I don't have time for this." Dimaria rolled her eyes in annoyance and Sting barely felt once she used her magic to freeze time.

                          ______________________

The next thing he knew, she was on the ground, unconscious, and Jellal Fernandes stood by the window. Though grateful that Jellal had saved them, the dragon slayer's attention solely was Yukino thus he rushed to her side.

Briefly apologising after nearly knocking Jellal down, he didn't stop until he had arrived in front of Yukino and Juvia. Kneeling down, he gently took his girlfriend into his arms. "Yukino, talk to me."

Realising how cold she was, he panicked. "No, this isn't happening." Feeling his blood run cold at the thought that he might've lost her, he leaned against her chest, praying there would be a heartbeat.

It was faint, but unmistakable. She is still alive. "That's it, babe. That's it." Sting lifted his head before pressing a kiss against her forehead, closing his eyes. "Thank you."

"Is she..." Hearing Juvia's voice, he turned to her.

"She's still alive." Bringing Yukino deeper into his arms, Sting glanced at her wound. "But there's so much blood."

"I'm so sorry." The water mage told him, eyes filled with tears.

Sting assumed she was blaming herself for what happened, so he was quick to reassure. "It's not your fault."

Juvia nodded, giving a thankful look, before turning back to Jellal. "Jellal...She needs a healer."

"You both do." The latter concernedly noted.

"I'm fine." She attempted to reassure, but was disproved by a groan.

Sting noticed that she looked much paler than before and there was a wound on her stomach which was bleeding. Not good. She needs help too.

"We need to go. Now." Jellal firmly said before turning to Macbeth. "Do you have enough magic to use your invisibility spell on all of us?"

It took him a while to answer. "I do."

"Good." Jellal nodded before approaching Juvia and kneeling by her side. "If you allow me, your highness, I will carry you until we reach safety."

It took her a while to answer and Sting assumed she must have mixed feelings about abandoning this wedding. He was thankful, though, that she seemed to realise that leaving was the best option. "Okay"

Jellal carefully took her in his arms then glanced at Sting. The latter nodded before standing, holding Yukino protectively against his chest.

He was ready to do whatever it took to get her back to the ship safely, no matter the challenges they might have to face. He would fight even Zeref if that's what it took to ensure they managed to live the life they had been planning.

Throughout their escape, Sting tried keeping his thoughts positive and fixated on their plans for the future. Recalling how his proposal had been interrupted, he reminded himself to do it again.

Upon wondering about her possible response, he couldn't help but to smile. Then once he thought about their friends' reactions, happiness increased. Rogue and Minerva would be ecstatic, having encouraged him to propose months ago.

Sting convinced himself this was what awaited them; that Yukino would be alright and they would get to start their lives together back at Sabertooth, surrounded by their friends.

This hope gave him strength even as he began to feel weakened; tired after being trapped for days then having used too much magic. He was immensely relieved once they arrived at the ship and quickly sat down with Yukino still in his arms.

Ignoring as the others settled, Sting glanced at his girlfriend. Her face remained concernedly pale, her body was colder than normal and there was still so much blood. However, what mattered most is that she was alive and he would ensure she stayed this way. I won't fail you again, Yukino, I promise.

[listless-brainrot]

jet lives au but make it jetru (pt 3)

so for this, considering that the next ep logically would be tales of ba sing se, and keeping this in mind, i think this would essentially replace aang’s tale (i’m sorry you funky little monk boy i still love you) which i don’t want to do but i’m writing this with this in mind

so may i present to you

the tale of jet 

(tw for descriptions of manipulation, this arc is messed up and i won’t mince words about it) (this is also one of the longer ones just because it’s specifically jet-centric)

pt 1 can be read here!

pt 2 can be read here!

-takes place during tales of ba sing se

-picks up right where the previous left off in terms of brainwashing jet

-since we aren’t given much on how it works exactly, a lot of this is headcanoning about the process

-going off of this, i headcanon that the brainwashing is only temporary, as well as subconsciously deep set, and takes multiple sessions to reinforce

-it starts off with jet being dragged to a cell, he appears to be in a tranced state, though when he’s thrown inside he briefly becomes aware of what is going on and begins struggling as they approach the door, unable to talk or move

-the dai li lock him up, leave him there and regroup, going to the area where they fight the gaang under lake laogai, and there they meet long feng

-long feng asks about the newest prisoner, asks for any details on him

-”there are none, sir.” “none?” “none. no profiles, no connections to speak of. the only thing we found on him was this passport.” “is it his?” “we don’t believe so, sir. background checks match it to no one within the walls.” "interesting. is he a citizen of ba sing se?” “he’d been living in ba sing se, but most likely snuck in illegally.” “with the passport, no doubt.” “it’s a possibility, sir.”

-long feng continues to press for details as he strides down the long, empty halls of lake laogai. he learns that he attacked a tea shop as well as its occupants, that witnesses fully believe that he’s crazy for calling them firebenders.

-the more he learns, the more a plan begins to develop in his mind, making him stop in his tracks entirely.

-a boy, with little to no connections to anyone else? a criminal, no less, who knows how to fight? he thinks about his current predicament with the avatar. the dai li may be watching, but would it be enough? the avatar being present is a threat in itself. 

-long feng dismisses the dai li, thanking them for their continued service. once they are gone, he heads back towards the cell, telling those guarding him to let him through.

-here, he finds himself met with an angry boy, with a wild mop of hair and wide, terrified eyes. he watches him scowl and begin to shout, angry words only deafened by the stone covering his mouth.

-bending the ground and forcing him into a sitting position, binding him to the rock, long feng approaches, taking the rock away, ignoring the flurry of confusion and insults that follow.

-”you can cease your infernal shrieking, boy. there’s no one around to hear you. in fact, there’s no reason for you to be shrieking at all.”

-jet doesn’t understand. his head hurts too much to fully comprehend the man’s words. all he knows is that he’s angry and scared. something about this man being here, though, makes him tense.

-”i have a proposal for you, jet. i have a little problem in my humble city that only someone like you can address. you are familiar with the avatar, correct?”

-long feng notes the way his eyes widen, though he says nothing.

-”to the rest of the world, he is their savior; perhaps, even, their god. but here, he is a threat. a real threat- bigger than any silly little firebender.”

-”if it comes down to it... you will be the one to eliminate him.”

-the protests were expected. after being beckoned, the two agents guarding the door enter, and the sight immediately sends jet into a panic. long feng tells the agents to brainwash him again, to make sure it sticks, and turns to leave as they close in.

-long feng is confident. confident that his plan is without fail, without flaw. no one is looking for him. who would miss a criminal?

-cut back to ba sing se, where haru is looking for jet.

-he’d been asking around for days now, and everyone refuses to speak up about the event

-he can’t seem to find any prisons, which is odd for the lower ring

-those who do simply say that the kid got what was coming to him. this rubs him the wrong way and unsettles him deeply

-he doesn’t dare go back to the tea shop yet. there’s always at least a couple dai li agents around, and he trusts them all about as far as he can throw them

-though, they are his only leads...

-he decides to try to find the guards from that night. or just some normal city guards. maybe they’ll be reasonable?

-however they react, he knows that something’s gotta help him find jet. bottom line is, he’s got to find jet, or at least what’s happened to him. this city is giving him the creeps.

-cut back to jet under lake laogai, training to fight the avatar. he hasn’t left the lake in days.

-he hates this. every single attack he makes doesn’t feel right, doesn’t feel like him. nothing feels like him anymore. and yet something in his mind makes him continue.

-long feng works with him specifically. telling him any possible attacks he may dish out, any loops he may throw him for. as if he were working with yet another dai li agent.

-by the end of it all he’s exhausted. he barely has any energy to fight back with. he can barely think of any plans to escape- they always take his swords.

-but he tries to rebel in the little ways he can.

-as he sits alone in his cell, he leans against the wall and whistles. loudly. the guards absolutely hate it. he doesn’t stop. bird call after bird call. seems like he’s learned a new one every day.

-as the guards bang against his door and yell at him to shut up, he smirks. he might be stuck here, but they’re also stuck with him.

-a part of him also hopes that they hear it. maybe they’ll recognize his signal.

-cut back to ba sing se, it’s late at night, and haru’s sitting with guards at a different shop, or perhaps a bar of some sort. he asks them about the kid they saw a few days ago, and tries to ignore how they all laugh at his demise.

-they don’t tell him anything useful- they don’t know where he went, either. so, he decides to ask about the dai li.

-these guards have a pointedly different attitude compared to those in the innermost rings, the main difference being just how grateful they sound.

-”crime’s always been difficult to stay on top of in the lower ring, but with the dai li here, it’s like it just disappears! makes our jobs easier,” “yeah, whatever they do, i hope they keep doing it- the reform work they do is incredible, it’s like you never knew they were criminals in the first place!” “i heard they’ve got this big reform facility somewhere. maybe it’s in the middle ring? they’ve got the money for it there; much more money than what we’ve got, anyway,”

-across from the shop, hidden in the shadows, a single dai li agent watches.

-haru is put off by all this glorification, and tries to ask if they know anything about this ‘reform’. again, they don’t. he comes up short once again. 

-not knowing what else to do, he figures he should start looking somewhere else. he thanks them all and leaves.

-as he leaves, he doesn’t notice the guards being approached by the dai li, nor the guards pointing down the alleyway he’s headed.

-walking alone, he feels this overwhelming sense of being watched. glancing over his shoulder, he catches a glimpse of the dai li agent in the corner of his eye. 

-he picks up the pace. the agent does as well. he’s being followed.

-something tells him to duck, and a stone hand flies right over his head. he only has a split second to react before another follows, nearly snagging his ankle. 

-panicking, he bends. anything to get him out of there.

-the agent is slammed into a nearby wall as haru rounds the corner, using the precious time he bought to try and lose the agent.

-conveniently, the tea shop is right there. however, there are other agents out there on patrol. despite running before, now, he’s got to be inconspicuous.

-just walking up to a door has never been so nerve-wracking.

-it’s past closing time when he enters, and both zuko and iroh are surprised to see him. he hasn’t turned up to work in a while. 

-he’s about to answer when he hears approaching footsteps outside, and he pushes past the two of them cleaning up shop, ducking behind the counter, not having enough time to slip into the back rooms.

-the dai li agent enters, accompanied by the other two on patrol. iroh stands behind the counter, wiping it down, fully aware of the boy hiding behind it as the agents ask if he’s seen anything suspicious.

-knowing his luck when it comes to being sold out by random old people, haru prays that iroh is different.

-to his surprise, iroh really is different, not only keeping him safe, but misleading the agents by telling them he’d snuck past to another shop.

-the utter camaraderie of the exchange is uncomfortable, with iroh treating the dai li with so much respect. luckily though, it’s enough to get them to leave.

-when they do leave, haru doesn’t move from his spot until they tell him he’s gone, and even then, his fear is poignant. he wants to talk, tell them what’s going on, but his words catch in his throat. iroh notices this, telling him to sit down and talk with them in the back rooms. they want to know what’s going on, too.

-mutely, haru accepts their offer. sitting in the back with a cup of calming tea, allowing it to steady his nerves as he tells zuko and iroh about his discoveries. about criminals disappearing, about them suddenly acting normal. they ask why he was tussling with the dai li, and he finally admits that he was looking for jet, and he’s starting to think that the dai li are more involved with his disappearance than he originally thought- he just thought they took him to a prison.

-all this talk about the dai li gets zuko’s attention specifically. if something is going on within the walls and the dai li are connected to it, maybe the city isn’t as safe for them as they thought.

-haru voices this, takin the thoughts out of zuko’s mind, and adds that, if something Is going on in this city, then it makes finding jet even more important.  he could be in danger.

-neither zuko nor iroh fully understand why he’s so desperate to find him. truth be told, haru’s not too sure either. but he still wants to try, especially since no one else will. he begins to speculate.

-”he said there’s traitors here, and he got arrested for it. what if he was right?”

-cut back to jet the following morning, leaving the lake for the first time in days, being escorted by the dai li back into ba sing se. his pupils are dilated and he’s in a daze.

-”what if there’s something important they’re all trying to hide from us?”

-they take jet to this tiny apartment, and begin telling him what he’s going to do. when they leave, he will believe that he’s been living peacefully in the city.

-”the dai li kept watching me- i was just asking about them, and they tried to get me, too. what if that’s why?”

-they hand him back his swords. if the avatar starts doing anything out of line, he’s to mislead them as much as possible.

-”they didn’t like me snooping around. they definitely have something they want to hide.”

-jet simply stands still and listens, nodding as the dai li wrap up their instructions. they tell him he won’t remember a thing about what he’s been put through- the brainwashing, the training. he will simply live the life they want him to.

-”whatever it is, i bet it’s got something to do with jet. and i’m going to find out what it is. i’m going to find him. no matter what it takes.” haru’s fear changes to determinism, and, despite his exhaustion, a fire blazes in his eyes; the same fire that blazed in katara’s when she told sokka and aang of her plan to get arrested for earthbending.

-they tell him he is safe here. always has been. this much he will remember.

-finally, the dai li leave. the moment the door closes, he snaps out of his trance, blinking, swords in hand. sheathing them as he looks around, he faintly recognizes where he is- this is his apartment. he’s been living here peacefully. for some reason, he feels an urge to leave and look for... something. he doesn’t know why, but he’s drawn to the barn that stands nearby. this is... his job? of course it is. he’s been working here. peacefully.

-nothing is wrong in ba sing se. he’s safe here.

[littlemisssquiggles]

🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹🌹

(1) i understand how the other feel about ozpins lies but I don't thi k how they act with Oscar is awful ,I hope he snaps at them ,and stands up for ozpin an himself

(2) I was hoping that oscar would some how thanks to ozpins memories ,would bring the people in the city of mantel together to fight the grim some how get them all to atlus,

(3) I was hoping that oscar would get a episode to him self were maybe a few days go by and he on his own but v8 going to b 2 episodes even if he did get time to him self for an episode or 2 I feel like I would get to see him do as much as I'm hoping 4

(4) like ur self I'd like to see ruby reaction to him maybe being maybe gone,I'd like to see Oscar feeling on losing the lamp an letting ruby down

(5) I think oscar should get gravity dust or wind to help him keep up with the others

(6) I now we're going to see Oscar with y,j, and r but i want him to be with Weiss and Blake

Uhm…since I already gave my answers to Points 2, 3, 5 and 6 in other RWBY response posts, I’m just gonna only answer Points 1 and 4 for this one to avoid having to repeat myself XD

 “…I understand how the others feel about Ozpin’s lies but I don’t think how they act with Oscar is awful. I hope he snaps at them and stands up for Ozpin and himself…”

Assuming that you meant that you think the way how the group treated Oscar back in Argus was bad and you’re hoping for him to go off on them, I don’t blame you for feeling that way anon-chan. Not to sound overdramatic or anything like that but V6CH9 is still considered my most despised episode of that season and RWBY in general and I’ll even toss in V6CH8 as well since I didn’t and still don’t like how the show basically had everyone stand idly by and allowed Jaune to walk across the room and slam Oscar into the wall.

And what was even worse is that no one dared to pull Jaune off of Oscar as he practically shook the kid while screaming accusations in his face for actions that weren’t even his. And the real kicker to me is that even when I rewatch that scene it just feels so out of character for the others to just let that happen. They all literally just stood there as Jaune wrongfully manhandled Oscar.

Sure we had Weiss attempt to stop Jaune but outside of that and Ruby barking at Jaune to back off of Oscar, nothing else was done. No one thought to step in front of Oscar and come between him and Jaune before the Arc boy could lay a finger on Oscar.

And what sucks even more is that even after watching what Jaune did to Oscar, NO ONE thought to check in on him and see if he was alright after such an ordeal. Instead Ren and Nora leave to comfort Jaune---Oscar’s accoster mind you----while the others divided to do other things. And yet one of them wasn’t making sure that Oscar was fine emotionally. Yet they all act surprise when they find him gone from the house?

Which makes the fact that all he did was leave to go shopping so utterly bad that it’s not even funny. I know it’s a meme in the Pinehead community (along with Oscar’s missing character development and the fact that he’s practically the pet gold fish of the hero team that they keep neglecting and losing each season yet he always comes back and still loves those silly bastards anyways) but I honestly hate that that’s canon. Anyways, I’m not here to rant about V6CH9. In respect to Oscar telling off the others for the way they treated him and Oz back in V6, I think it could be mighty swell for that to happen.

As a Pinehead, I am genuinely tired of this weird approach that the show has of having Oscar be perfectly complacent with everything that’s happened to him---even when he’s downright being practically abused to some degree. It’s not fun to watch as a fan of his character. Oscar has been through a lot since his introduction and outside of the dojo moment from V5 where he confessed his fears to Ruby, we haven’t really gotten any more moments of Oscar coming clean about his true feelings over his current experiences.

And NO I am not counting his speech in V6CH9 where the showrunners deadass had the audacity to have Oscar say to the hero group that he’s been contemplating about all that happened between him, Oz and the whole reveal of Ozma and the events of the Lost Fable despite never showing the audience scenes where we can see Oscar doing just that.

It is insulting at this point how poorly the CRWBY Writers have handled Oscar’s treatment in the show. While V7 was definitely an improvement (albeit except for that one episode where Double D Rivas downright forgot Oscar in the episode while all his so-called teammates and friends were up in Amity celebrating), it still doesn’t quite make up for the mistakes of V6 nor does it erase my disappointment for that volume in terms of how they handled Oscar’s side of the story.

All the more reason to hope for better things to be done for Oscar in V8. Like you, I would like to see Oscar speak up against the team and their past actions (especially with the mistakes they made with Ironwood and still have yet to take responsibility for), not necessarily in defence of himself since Oscar has been shown to be a selfless individual---always placing others before himself---but more so for Oz.

I want Oscar to be the one to mend the tethered bond within his team between the others and the other half of himself. After all, while two differing souls, Oz is still a part of Oscar especially once the Merge occurs. They may not be the same person but they are a part of each other and will come together to complete one another. Or at least complete Oscar since according to V5, Oz is the one meant to change with the Merge. Not Oscar. I mean Oscar will technically change but I’d still like to strongly believe that his soul will become the dominating personality and persona as Oz’s fades more into the background as it combines with his.

And while the other heroes may like and trust Oscar, they can’t favour only half of him. This is especially the case since Oscar and Oz are expected to become one entity at some point. So I’m hoping that before that happens, Oscar uses this time to get everyone back on the same page---burying the hatchet after all that transpired between the last two volumes and thus starting things anew with everyone having a clean slate.

This needs to be done in order for the heroes to move forward and work together since uniting against the common foe will be what helps not just them but all of humanity and Remnant. At least that’s what I assume. While I don’t necessarily need Oscar to go off on the other heroes, I would like it if it he did call them out for their past mistakes with Ironwood---mistakes that he unfortunately partook in encouraging---as well as their treatment of Oz, finally helping them to see the bigger picture and what’s more at stake. I’m honestly tired of the story having our heroes pin all the blame on Ozpin while making it appear as if RWBY were in the right despite doing the exact same thing that got Oz in trouble with them.

So for what it’s worth, I hope that’s addressed in the series and I hope it lends to Oscar aiding to patch things between the team and Oz especially now that he’s returned. The group and Oz need to reconcile and I’d like to believe that Oscar is the key to helping with that.

“…Like yourself, I’d like to see Ruby’s reaction to him maybe being gone. I’d like to see Oscar’s feelings on losing the lamp and letting Ruby down…”

Ooooh I’d love it if V8 kicks off with Ruby learning that Ironwood had ‘killed’ Oscar. That’s a scene I am literally praying would happen when the group split up and RWBN_P head up to Atlas or Amity Arena to confront Ironwood. I want Ironwood to just blurt it out like it meant nothing to him that he shot and killed a child---I want to see Ironwood basically treat Oscar as nothing more than another face for Oz---not even his own person despite promising him in the second episode of V7 that so long as Oscar was in Atlas, he would be safe.

And most of all, I want to see the reactions of everyone---Ruby and Nora especially---when Ironwood says with the straightest and most cold-hearted of expressions that he killed Oscar. If we don’t get a scene like that then not gonna lie anon-chan, I will be beyond disappointed. Because what’s the point of having Ironwood shoot Oscar to his death if it wasn’t going to be brought up at some point, ey?

Give me that angsty scene where either Ruby or Nora---most likely Nora--- get super pissed at the reveal of Oscar’s alleged death, thus sparking her to attack Ironwood and thus, a fight breaks out between RWBN_P and the Ace Ops, talks of negotiation completely out the window since Ironwood killing one of their own (Oscar) practically meant war.

I also wonder if Qrow being framed for killing Clover might also come up as well. Like imagine a scene where one of the Ace Ops accuses our heroes of treason after letting them know that Qrow was charged for Clover’s murder, much to RWBN_P’s surprise only for Ironwood to indifferently say something to the extent of the group being even in some way---Qrow allegedly killed one of his own (meaning Clover) while Ironwood killed one of theirs (meaning Oscar) and that’s how it’s revealed. Or something to that level. Who knows? All in all, I want that scene to happen and I really, really, REALLY want it to see Ruby’s response to Oscar’s alleged murder since she’s someone whose always protected him since the start. It’ll be even worse if she learns that her actions resulted in Ironwood killing Oscar for that added double whammy. That could be great storytelling and character-building-wise! Buuuuut we’ll see for next season.

As for Oscar being saddened over losing the lamp and letting Ruby down---well technically we kind of got a scene like that already last volume anon-chan. It was during the moment in the finale episode after JNPR 2.0 had managed to evade capture and were hiding away in the training room. While taking a breather, Oscar apologized for losing the lamp leading to Jaune trying to reassure him only for Ren to ruin the moment by bringing up the fact that the villains now have possession of the Lamp of Knowledge while the Staff of Creation was still in Ironwood’s grasps.

In that scene, the camera made sure to focus on Oscar’s troubled expression as Ren went on his tangent. As a matter of fact, it was Ren going off that made Oscar run off to go confront Ironwood in the first place as his way of trying to fix everything on his own.

I’m not sure if we’ll get to see Oscar apologizing to Ruby personally for losing the lamp after she entrusted him. However I think it could be a potentially cute Rosegarden moment if the first thing Oscar does when reuniting with the others is apologize to Ruby specifically for losing the lamp only for Ruby to disregard his apology completely and straight up just embrace Oscar on the spot; more relieved to discover that he was alive to even care about the relic. That’s something I’d like to see done for V8 but who knows?

~LittleMissSquiggles (2020)

[mybunnyparadenme]

Errr for the ship meme,,,,can we have 2 with bunny??? sry if i bother u i love your works!!

It’s no bother at all! Thank you for enjoying my works hehe, hope you’re ready for some angst!

2. things you said through your teeth

Everything was bathed in an unearthly neon glow, threads of blue-white electricity pulsing in the air sporadically. This was it, the heart of Professor Chaos' evil lair. Mysterion limped forward, his eyes locked on the only other person in the room with him. Chaos was standing with his back towards Mysterion, gazing up at a twenty foot tall super weapon that was almost ready to fire.

"Chaos, stop!" Mysterion shouted at him. His legs felt like they were going to collapse underneath him, but he willed himself to stay upright. He'd already come this far, fought too hard, to pass out now.

Chaos turned away from the machine, a wicked smile on his face. "I knew you wouldn't disappoint me. So glad you could make it to the end of the world, Mysterion!"

Mysterion shook his head, forcing himself to keep walking. "Turn off the weapon, Chaos. Thousands of people will die if you let that thing go off."

"That's exactly the point." Chaos said, looking at Mysterion like he was a child who needed everything explained to him. "It's a weapon of mass destruction, after all. You're in no shape to stop me, so just stand back and watch, okay?"

That wasn't going to happen. Yes, Mysterion was covered in injuries. And yes was struggling to keep standing. But he didn't need to fight with his fists. He had to appeal to the humanity that was still in side of him, buried underneath all the hate and anger.

"You're not a murderer, Chaos." He said, reaching up to pull his hood down. The smile on Chaos' face faltered for a moment, and Mysterion felt a spark of hope rise inside of him. "I know you. The thought of hurting others used to make you sick, remember? Shut the weapon down, you don't have to do this!"

Chaos scowled at him, balling his hands into fists at his sides. "You say you know me, but you're refusing to acknowledge that I want to do this! Working with Mitch Connors showed me that the world is full of monsters, and no amount of do-gooder bullshit is going to change that. This weapon is a mercy, Mysterion. I'm going to cleanse the world of its corruption, starting with that stupid little mountain town."

"Think about all the people who don't deserve to die like that, Chaos!" Mysterion said, desperation stealing away the deeper tone his voice took on when he was in costume. Panic clawed up his throat. His family was still in South Park, and half of the Freedom Pals had stayed behind to fight the Chaos Underlings that swarmed the town. Mysterion was their last chance, and he needed to get through to Chaos no matter what. "Those people deserve to have a chance to make the world better. Let them have a choice, please."

"It's kinder to let them die before the world ruins them." Chaos said, his voice devoid of emotion as he stared at Mysterion. "The weapon's almost ready to fire. You won't be able to get to me before I pull the switch."

No, no, NO. Chaos was turning away from him and Mysterion wouldn't be able to stop him in time. He ripped his mask off, letting his fear and sadness show openly in his eyes. "Don't do it Leo, I'm begging you!"

Chaos froze, electric sparks sizzling in the air around him as he slowly turned to face him again. His expression was full of rage, but there was something just underneath the surface there too, something that ached. His voice was shaky when he spoke, "I thought I told you never to call me that again."

"It's your name." Mysterion, no Kenny said as he took another step forward. He was almost halfway across the room. "Before you were Chaos you were Leo Stotch. You still are. And my Leo wouldn't fire that weapon, I know it."

"I'm Professor Chaos!" Chaos shouted, streaks of wild lightning shooting out in every direction, uncontrolled and deadly. Thankfully none of them managed to land a direct hit on Kenny. Chaos was glaring at him with raw hatred burning in his eyes. "Your ex-boyfriend doesn't exist anymore! There's only your enemy now, and it's high time I got rid of you!"

Kenny barely had time to dodge the arc of lightning that raced toward him, a black scorch mark burned into the space he had been in only a moment ago. He grit his teeth and forced his muscles to move despite the pain, to get him across the room and in front of Chaos as fast as possible. By some miracle he managed to make it a few feet away from the weapon without getting charred to a crisp, but Chaos was holding a crackling ball of white-hot electricity in his hands, aimed right at him. From this close there was no chance he would miss again.

"It's not too late for you to come back from this!" Kenny said, holding his hands out helplessly in front of him. Even if he couldn't block this, he wasn't going to give up yet. "You are not too far gone, do you here me? Come back to me, Leo. I love you!"

"No..." Chaos breathed, his hands trembling as he stared at Kenny. He shook his head, anger and disbelief warring on his face. "You're just saying that. You're... You're trying to trick me!"

"I'm not." Kenny said, hoping Leo could hear it in his voice how sincere he was as he took another step closer, now coming within arm's reach of him. "I swear I never stopped loving you, not even a little bit."

"What about all the times I tried to kill you, huh?" Chaos growled at him, the words coming out harsh through his teeth. "You're a liar, you hate me!"

Kenny remembered all the times Leo hadn't just tried to kill him, but succeeded. There wasn't any pain worse than being killed by the one you loved but still, he shook his head vehemently. "I could never hate you, Leo. Never."

"Shut up!" Chaos screamed. The electricity in his hands intensified for a heart stopping moment, then fizzled out into the air around them. He reached up and grabbed a large red handle, the switch that would fire all the energy gathered inside the weapon. "This is what's best for the world! I have to do this ! I... I have to..."

"Please." Kenny whispered as he reached up slowly, carefully, never taking his eyes off of Leo's. Their fingers touched, and the tension in his white-knuckle grip softened just a fraction. "There's always another way. Let it go."

What felt like an eternity of silence passed between them. This was it. This was the moment that everything would change, one way or another. Kenny swallowed hard, hoping that he'd done enough to save all the people he cared about, including Leo. There was no coming back if he pulled the switch, so he held his breath and prayed he'd done enough to save him.

Finally Leo's grip on the handle loosened, tears filling his eyes as he whispered, "Okay. I'll turn it off."

Relief flooded through Kenny's body, so strong he nearly collapsed. "Thank you."

Leo let go of the handle and pushed a button just underneath the switch. The weapon clicked and sputtered as all the energy gathered inside of it began to fade away. And just like that, the danger had passed, leaving only a harmless hunk of meta behind.

"I..." Leo murmured, starting at the once deadly machine in front of them. He backed away a few steps, his whole body shivering as tears began to roll down his cheeks. "What w-was I thinking? How'd I let everything get this far? M-Mysterion-"

Kenny closed the distance between them, wrapping his arms tight around Leo's shaking frame. Tears of his own started sliding down his face, and he had to bite back a sob when he felt a pair of arms wrap around him too. The two of them clung to each other tightly, crying so hard it was difficult to breath. They held each other like...

Well, like the world had almost ended.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry!" Leo was crying, sounding small and scared and helpless. There weren't any traces of Chaos left in his voice, and it hurt to hear him sound so broken. He hadn't sounded like this for a very, very long time.

Kenny started to rub soothing circles on his back, his voice soft and reassuring. "Let it out, sweetheart I'm here. You're going to be okay, I promise. No matter what happens, I'll always be here for you."

"You should h-hate me." Leo said, his voice muffled against Kenny's shoulder. "Wh-Why don't you hate me?"

"Because you did the right thing in the end." Kenny pulled back just enough to look into his eyes. He reached up to take the helmet off Leo's head, revealing his beautiful, tear-stained face. Kenny leaned in and kissed the ragged scar over his eyelid, smiling when he heard Leo gasp softly. "Because even after all this time, you never stopped being my Leo."

[chidoroki]

So, with release of ch181 this weekend, the manga is coming to an end. While I hope and pray desperately for a happy ending, there's still a lot on my mind. I can't help but think about some unanswered questions and just stuff I'm generally curious about. Most of these ideas may not be important now, so I doubt we'll touch upon the majority of them in the last 27 pages, but here's just some things I want to learn more about in the future (whether future anime seasons expand on them or from upcoming volume extras).

"Isabella's second weakness." What exactly did Ray write on the note that Krone found in ch22? Krone claims Isabella herself wouldn't know the contents of the note, much less tell Ray about it, yet Krone was able to look up if such information was true herself moments later and was convinced that it would cause the higher ups to lose trust in Isabella. I don't think it was about her being Ray's actual mother (because wasn't that disproven already?) so yes, I'm still curious.

Ray doesn't get enough credit for knowing exactly who was able to undergo a blood transfusion with Emma back in ch96, but when and how did he learn the blood type of everyone in his family?

What did Norman say to Ayshe in ch160 via demon language? Did he apologize? Regardless if he did or not, does she forgive him?

Speaking of demon language, how and when did Norman learn it? I know the boy is smart but damn, he was certainly busy those few years already.

Do the other children know Ray was Isabella's biological son or not?!

Will our precious mc get her memories back or am I gonna cry about this ending forever?

Why does Paula cover her mouth? Is she perhaps hiding a scar of some sort or does she just wanna look cool? There's an extra page in ch92 (i think) that shows her pulling down her bandanna as she eats with Adam but we don't get a clear view and it teases me so much!

Why is Emma's Goldy Pond outfit so powerful that it makes me smile and incredibly happy every time I see her in it?

Will our adorable boy Chris ever wake up???

Did Anna and the others ever find a cure for the Lambda crew's seizures? Are they okay now? Not to mention they also got pretty heavy injuries during the queen battle & at GF, so are they truly fine?

Just more in general about the "windmill girl" that saved Lucas.

Also more about how Yuugo, Lucas & their family escaped Glory Bell. Maybe more about Norman's escape from Lambda too.

Were Ayshe's dogs able to cross over to the human world too?

I know we probably won't learn this until season 2, or whenever the anime reaches the Goldy Pond arc, but what kind of music do they play to announce the start of each hunt? Or is it just a blaring alarm of some sort? ..Can you imagine if the sound is like a speed-up version of Leslie's song?

Where exactly was Emma in ch159 when she said she once imagined what dying was like? Was that after she returned from the 7 walls? Or while they were out looking for the temples and golden water? Perhaps one night during their trip to the capital demon city?

Will the last chapter make me cry happy or sad tears?

Any significant or clever reason as to why Emma went from three hairclips to two? Or is it simply because one just got lost during their travels?

RAY'S SCARF!! We know he got it during their temple & golden water search, but when exactly? Did he buy it himself somewhere? And why? To help cover his numbers or simply just stay warm? Or was it given to him? Did someone make it for him? And why blue? Tell me everything!

What exactly did Andrew talk to Phil about in ch100? Anything important? Or was that just to scare us readers?

Was the Grace Field plantation the only premium farm without artificial lighting?

What's the name of Emma's third father?? Old dude we've only known you for one chapter but you're such a kind person.

(edit): Demon god took away Emma's memories and id brand on her neck, but what about the other noticable features of her appearance? Is she still missing her left ear? Does she still have the scars from Lewis? Or did Demon god alter those too as a way to rid her from past memories?

I know my mind is all over the place right now so there's probably a bunch of other thoughts I'm forgetting about, but oh well. Y'all are welcome to add onto this too, or maybe answer something I completely missed and forgot about somehow. (yes im just trying to distract myself from thinking about the upcoming spoilers)