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talesofafangirlwithadvr · 4 years

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June Picks!

And just like that we’re at the end of yet another month. I seriously do not know where these months are going. I think they’re going by faster now since we’ve been socially distant. I hope everyone is staying safe out there and can enjoy the start of summer while also being smart. It’s good to know we can always escape into TV and movies at home. Without further ado, here’s my monthly wrap up.

You know spoilers are coming....

DC’s STARGIRL

I gave some quick thoughts a few weeks back when the first episode of the latest DC TV show premiered on the CW. I really liked this episode and it got me pumped for the series, but since then I feel most of the episodes have dragged for me. Because this show has the DC streaming service feel, it makes you want to binge all the episodes, which is something you can’t do when CW airs it on a weekly basis. Most of the action occurs at the beginning or end of the episode, which serves as a great cliffhanger, which works well in this streaming format. Due to this format, the middle can drag...a lot. Going in I didn’t know much about Stargirl or the JSA. (My main knowledge comes from that special the Justice Society had in that one Smallville special all those years ago. There it was a bit of an overload of heroes, unlike here.) I love Pat and Courtney’s relationship. Every episode they bond more and I especially liked when she was complaining to him about how the other teammates don’t listen to her. He understood that really well. I am also just loving Luke Wilson as Pat. I think he works well for the role. Feels believable. I’m ALWAYS a fan of a new generation of heroes. While it was slower getting the team together, now that we have the core group I am especially excited. The latest episode (6) was one of the strongest for me and I am very excited to see this up and coming team train and get stronger. I’m also interested in learning more about the villains. I think it’s interesting how we are also meeting a lot of the villain’s kids who seem to not know their parents’ true identities. I wonder if we’ll be able to turn any of them. (Feeling it for Icicle Jr.) For our team, I’m really loving how it’s three girls and one boy. I think that’s a dynamic we don’t often see, especially in a group of superheroes. I’m still working out who to ship, but I’m really loving Rick. Can’t wait to continue watching. I hope we get more of these epic stance moments.

LEGENDS OF TOMORROW

Let’s continue on this superhero thread with another one of my favorites, which wrapped up its 5th season (crazy it’s already the 5th!) at the start of the month. I’ve said this before and I will continue to do so, Legends is THE BEST SHOW IN THE ARROWVERSE. It has been the most consistent and that’s not only because of a strong cast, the freedom to do basically anything they want with the plot and also being a mid-season show. I think where the Flash and Arrow often get tripped up is having too many episodes to fill, which forces story lines to be dragged out and filler episodes. With a 13 episode season you don’t get that. WARNING I’m going to jump into season 5 spoilers now!!

So, some of my overall thoughts for this season:

The Wave-rider has always been a revolving door for characters. This show probably has the most turn-over than any other show I watch. And it works, but for this season especially it felt like a lot of coming and going as I look back.

It was sad to see Ray leave. Not only is he one of my favorites, but he was one of the core crew that was left. He brought great humor and heart to the show. I loved his bromance with Nate over the seasons. I wish he could have come back for the finale. While I like that he left with Nora (because they are adorable) it just felt too fast (and that was with me knowing how many episodes he had left).

Charlie’s exit. I know she had a large part of the plot with her sisters, especially in the second half of the season, which means she’ll be missed even more next season. When she said she was staying in the finale I was like WHAT! It just felt so sudden and I didn’t see it coming.

The lack of Sara on the ship this season made me feel like she had other projects in the works. When she became blind I was like op this is it for her character. Now of course, I see how that worked into the overall story line, but with her abduction at the end of the season (meaning another absence) I’m curious if she is working on other things. I do love seeing Ava at the helm though. She makes a great captain. I just wish the two could be co-captains on the screen more often in future seasons to come. It hurt me too much to see Ava’s reaction to when she knew she was going to lose Sara.

At first I REALLY missed the original Zari. She’s the one we knew for a few seasons and now she was gone. That’s the main reason why I had difficulty liking Behrad right away. I do appreciate that they didn’t drag out the plot of discovering something in the timeline had changed. I liked how Nate had some memory and got that message from Zari. When Zari 2.0 showed up I missed our original Zari even more, but the more episodes she was a part of, she grew on me and I suddenly was worried to lose her. I was completely fine with having both Zaris on the Waverider (ha, ha, ha, but seriously). I think Tala did a great job of bringing two different incarnations to the character and seeing how Zari would have grown up if she didn’t have such a tragic backstory.

I can seriously go on and on about this season, but I think it’s best to leave for another post.

THE 100

If you follow me or have read other posts on my page you know I’m a 100 fan. If I’ve had strong feelings about an episode (positive or negative) you will probably see a reaction post. I haven’t watched this past week’s episode yet, so this will mainly relate to the first five episodes of season 7. I’m having a love/hate relationship so far, which honestly I’m not shocked about. The first few seasons of this show were definitely the strongest, but I’ve remained a loyal fan and supported it throughout. When the first episode of season 7 aired a few weeks ago, I instantly felt it wasn’t going to be a strong ending. I kept saying that the true ending happened when our characters went on the ship to look for a new planet and “ended book 1.” Since then the feel of the show has shifted and that’s especially true with this final season. It’s always been a sci-fi show, but now with the anomaly and this jumping multiple portals and planets it feels VERY SCI-FI. Like at times I don’t 100% understand how what they’re doing is possible. But I’m okay with that. I’ve watched Doctor Who and felt the same way and still had a good time. Going into this season, I thought the anomaly plot was going to be the one I disliked the most. But for me now it’s what’s saving this season. I am loving that story line over the one we’re having at Sanctum (where they are FAR too many new characters that I don’t care about). I absolutely LOVED the Octavia/Dioyza/Hope backstory episode. There were so many great parallels to Octavia’s own childhood and I was able to appreciate how much her character has developed. After seeing this episode, I instantly grew to really like ‘adult’ Hope as well as her dynamic with Gabriel and Hope. (It hurt me so much when Echo killed the man who was helping them get back.) I can’t wait for Hope to find her mom. (I saw pictures of the three of them together again, so I know it’s going to happen.) Speaking of not liking new characters, I DO like Levitt so far. That could be mainly for the fact that he’s also a fan of watching the 100. I was NOT expecting to see Bellamy at the end of episode 5. It brought me so much joy. I hope we don’t have to wait so long for the next time. (Because, come on-we know he’s not really dead.) I am upset that Bob is barely in this season. It’s not fair to him or the character. Even thought the Sanctum plot is bothering me I am loving the scenes Murphy is in. Talk about character development. He better make it out of all this at the end. I also enjoyed Raven’s story line with the radiation. I agree with a few people’s posts I saw about her not having a large plot last season and not being the Raven we know. I’m happy to see her being one of the main characters again. We might not get the ending we deserve, but I hope it’s one that isn’t horrible.

MARVEL RE-WATCH

What’s one way to spend your quarantine/social distancing? Why ranking all 22 movies in the MCU and then re-watching all of them (one a day) and re-ranking them with your new thoughts. With seasons ending early and less being on TV now was a fantastic time to do this. (Plus, I knew a few other people doing it so I felt inspired.) For some of these films, I think I had only seen them a few times and it was hard to remember what happened in certain ones over others. (I kept thinking stuff that happened in Captain America Civil War was actually in Captain America Winter Soldier.) I really enjoyed the experience and highly recommend it, whether you’ve watched these movies a countless amount of times or only once. Watching them in order of their release really made me appreciate all the Easter Eggs and planning that went into it. I longed for some movies and was not excited for others (I’m looking at you Guardians Vol. 2). It also made me feel a deeper connection to Iron Man (which made the ending even tougher-and I knew what was coming). The nostalgia was strong and I’m so happy to be a part of this fandom.

Sneak peak at my re-ranking that is still in the process:

Top 3)

Avengers Infinity Wars

Avengers Endgame

Spiderman Far From Home

Bottom)

Guardians Vol. 2

Thor the Dark World

Iron Man 2

AVATAR THE LAST AIRBENDER

Avatar was released on Netflix this month and something in me said now was the time to watch it. (That’s right, I haven’t watched it before). The hype for this series is crazy! I remember it being on Nickelodeon as a kid, but I had never watched it. I didn’t know much about it other than the main character had an arrow on his head and was the last airbender. (Yep, so not a lot.) Currently, I’m still very early in-I think about episode 9-but I already feel very invested. I like that the episodes are only about 25 minutes long. They’re quick watches, which allows me to watch a bunch without feeling guilty. After watching the first two I already felt like I wanted to learn more about this world and its characters. I think it’s really interesting how the elemental bending is used and how some characters can do it while others can’t. I also like how the avatar gets rotated within each bender and how the one before Aang was a fire bender seeing as how that is our main opponent in this first season. Coming into the show I was told by a friend that this is some of the strongest character development he has seen. That was such high praise and I cannot wait to witness it for myself. One of the reasons I love watching TV/movies and reading is because of the characters. I love bonding with them and feeling like I know them. I can already hypothesize who will change the most (my mind automatically goes to Prince Zuko), but I’ve been really good about spoilers, so that way I can witness it myself. Because I’m still so early on I can’t say much, expect that I’m enjoying it and will keep you posted on how my journey with Aang, Katara, Sokka and Zuko go.

VIOLETTA SEASON 2

I was ECSTATIC when I found out that season 2 of Violetta had FINALLY come to Disney Plus. It had felt like FOREVER since I had finished the first season (of 80 episodes. You know a show is good if after 80 episodes you’re like where is the next season of 80 more episodes!), but it was really only a few months. It feels great to be back at the Studio with Violetta and the crew. There’s a few new faces this season both with the students and the faculty. It always takes adjusting with new seasons/characters, but some of these characters I really don’t like. I know that’s good because you’re not necessarily supposed to like them, but I really want some of them gone. (I’m looking at you Jackie.) But with a show that has so many episodes, a lot of the story lines often get dragged out, so I don’t know when that will be. Again, Violetta has found herself in a love triangle (just like every other teenage girl, lol). This time Diego opposes Leon and is much different than Tomas in season 1. Where Tomas was passive and always wore a face of uncertainty/confusion, Diego is bold and won’t take no for an answer. At times I feel he borders stalker territory.

So far, I’m up to episode 20 and am getting more into it. I was missing out on the performances/ songs and now there’s starting to be more, which has me excited. I’m hoping not to watch this one as fast because I know most people say it is the best one, plus who knows when season 3 would appear on Disney Plus. For anyone unfamiliar with my first post about Violetta earlier in the year should check it out if they’re looking for a telenovela full of drama, misunderstandings love triangles, angst and music that will get stuck in your head. Definitely worth the watch!

WORLD OF DANCE

My favorite dance competition TV show is back and I could not be more excited!! There’s just something about World of Dance that puts me in such a good mood and I can’t wait for Tuesday nights. I’m just upset at myself that I watch the latest episode too soon and then have to wait another week. This season the judges switched it up by coming to the contestants last audition with the producers...or so they thought. I loved seeing their reactions when they walked into the room and Ne-Yo, Jennifer Lopez and Derek Hough were there. It was priceless. While I don’t have a dancing bone in my body, I still am able to appreciate this talent and love watching the contestants perform. What I really like about this show is the range of ages and types of dancers from soloists, duos, trios and groups. I like how each competes within their group until the final episode when they have won their category. The talent is already so strong as they finished the call backs (which was a new feature this season too). Some of my favorites are below. I can’t wait to see what happens for the rest of the season. I just hope the pandemic didn’t interrupt the filming. You can catch up on all episodes by watching NBC on demand!

AND LAST BUT NOT LEAST....

BEECHAM HOUSE

Ending strong with yet another Masterpiece Classic, Beecham House. This series, which aired earlier in the UK, premiered about two weeks ago here in the states on PBS. While I’ve heard that there will not be a second season and the outrage of that makes me worried for how this season will end. (After watching Sanditon earlier this year you really don’t know what to expect.) Despite knowing this already, I will continue to watch the show and enjoy what we have. Which I am so far. While only the first two episodes have aired, I already feel very invested. The first episode, specifically, leaves a lot of questions unanswered, which is understandable because they want to draw you in to watch the show. I was making a lot of speculations, but refrained from going into too much spoiler territory. (Surprisingly, I’ve been good! That’s impressive for me!) Some of my questions have already been answered in the second episode (but of course, there are more to go) and I was happy how I guessed. There’s so many characters and it feels like we’re gaining more with each episode. Despite, there being so many, I am able to keep up and like seeing new characters interact with one another. I also enjoy seeing a lot of familiar faces from Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol) in a very different kind of role compared to Downton and Leo Suter who has been in a lot of my recent Masterpiece watches (Victoria, Sanditon). I love how he plays such a different character in each project he’s in. Really shows his range. With four more episodes to go I can’t wait to continue learning more about what’s going on in Beecham House and what their futures will be. I don’t know if the US numbers will help a chance for a second season, but I hope so!

Speaking of my previous Masterpiece watches: I really enjoyed World on Fire overall. It ended with some big cliffhangers and I am very excited it got a second season!!

What are you watching? Any requests of what I should tune into next?

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thebisexualdogdad · 4 years

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Legends of tomorrow for the fandom thing

· the first character i ever fell in love with: Ray Palmer the precious boy

· a character that i used to love/like, but now do not: Sara has always been iffy for me

· a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not: i guess avalance? I'm just bored with them

· my ultimate favorite character™: Zari

· prettiest character: Zari or Astra

· my most hated character: I don't think i hate any of the main characters

· my OTP: Steelatom or zarlie/zamaya

· my NOTP: Sara and Snart

· favorite episode: Here I go again

· saddest death: Snart

· favorite season: season 4

· least favorite season: season 1 in which the fandom does not speak about

· character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate: don't hate her per say but Sara

· my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: John is a wild ride

· my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: Behrad

· my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: don't have one

· my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship: i still want more of John and Lucifer

#ask game

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avasharpe · 5 years

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Sugar and Salt

Chapter: Two of ?

Summary: When Sin is bullied on the bus ride home Sara meets with their teacher Ava. The two butt heads on the best possible course of action, but later realize the other might not be so bad.

Fandom: DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.

Relationship: Sara Lance/Ava Sharpe.

Characters: Sara Lance, Ava Sharpe, Kendra Saunders, Sin, Amaya Jiwe, Zari Tomaz, Behrad Tomaz, Kuasa, Aldus Boardman, Mona Wu, Nora Darhk, Mick Rory, Quentin Lance, and Laurel Lance.

Chapter Rating: General Audiences.

Additional Tags: Bakery and Coffee Shop, Teacher AU, Mutual Pining, Parent-Teacher AU, Non-binary character, Trans Character.

Read at AO3

Read at FFN

Special thanks to @canaryatlaw for editing this for me.

……………………………………………………………………

Sara bounced from one foot to the other and rubbed her arms. It was an unusually cold day for early March in Star City, dropping below the average 40 degrees to 33 degrees. There was frost on the trees and the plants along the sidewalk of the apartment building when she saw Sin off on the school bus from the bakery that morning, although it had melted when the sun chose to shine that afternoon.

Sara checked her watch again, yep, the bus was late. A whole ten minutes late. She’d been pacing in and out of the small foyer to the steps and the sidewalk, before deciding to just stick it out on the curb. She could wait inside the entryway for the bus to pull up, but she felt the need to sit out on the sidewalk and freeze because she missed her kid that damn much.

It was Monday, so not her usual day off as the bakery and cafe was open on weekdays, but an entitled asshole had come in to pick up their online order of cupcakes and had insisted on a discount they didn’t have. The role of kicking them out usually fell to Amaya and Sara, and Amaya was out delivering a wedding cake leaving Sara to deal with them alone. It didn't go well. It was one of the few times that she was thankful her dad was a cop. Quentin had dropped everything to rush over to the shop after that asshole got violent and took a swing at her.

After Amaya got back, she insisted Sara take the rest of the day off and go spend some time with Sin. Sara tried to switch with Kendra and pick up the kids, babysitting until four when they closed, but they all but pushed her out of the shop and told her to go home. Her plan was to take Sin to the skate park then, rent that new superhero movie, pop some popcorn, and settle in for a quiet night.

Finally, the yellow, number thirteen, Glades Elementary school bus turned up the street and stopped in front of her, the doors swinging open. Sara smiled as she saw Sin’s black pants and matching converse at the top of the stairs, her little punk rocker. The bus driver Mona, stepped out of her seat behind them with her hand on Sin's shoulder. As she followed them down the stairs, Sara's smile fell when she saw Sin step off the bus.

Their usual happy face was somber, with red eyes that sparkled with tears. Their hands were straight at their sides and clenched into fists. Sara rushed to them, kneeling down to their level and placing her hands on their shoulders.

“Sin what happened?” Sara tried to keep her voice even, but her heart broke at the sight of them crying, and her mind rushed to the worst case scenario.

Sin didn't even look at her. Instead, they stared down at the ground then, they quickly brushed off Sara's hands and ran past her, up the stairs and into the apartment.

Sara stood up in disbelief and looked at Mona with pleading eyes. “What happened?”

“Some of the other kids were bullying Sin.” Mona said, then quickly added. “I stopped it as soon as I noticed it happening and pulled the other kids to the front of the bus.”

“Do you know what it was about?” Sara asked, still in disbelief. Nothing like this had ever happened before, not even when Sin had come out as non-binary over the summer.

“I'm not exactly sure, but the girls were calling them unintelligent. They used the R word. I radioed the school to let them know what happened and they'll probably want to meet with you tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Sara said. Still in disbelief, she started to turn away.

“Sin’s a great kid, so I don't know what they're talking about,” Mona said, giving her a small smile.

“Thank you,” Sara said nodding, with a tight lipped smile of her own.

Mona let her go and she rushed up the stairs and into the apartment building, not bothering to take the elevator to the third floor. The apartment door was left swinging open in Sin’s haste, and Sara quickly closed and locked it. She headed over to Sin's room and grabbed the tissue box along the way. The door was closed and Sara hesitated, knocked under the letters that spell out Sin’s name, painted Black with silver spikes.

“I’m coming in,” Sara announced when she heard no response and opened the door to see Sin sprawled out on their bed face down sobbing with their backpack and shoes still on.

“Oh baby,” Sara sighed, walking forward and sitting on the bed next to them. She leaned down and wrapped her arms around them, backpack and all.

“They.. they called me stupid... and… and… dumb... and...” Sin said through tears, their voice shaking.

“I’m so sorry baby. They should've never said that to you. You didn't deserve that.” Sara whispered in their ear.

“It's all her fault!” Sin yelled.

“Whose fault honey? Tell me, it's okay.”

“Ms. Sharpe.”

“What?” Sara was shocked at Sin’s revelation. Although she had only met the 4th grade teacher a few times before on orientation night, parent’s night, and stuff, she really seemed to care about her students. Sure she could be strict, but she was kind and Sin had always come home from school happy, going on about how great school was.

“Come here” Sara said, pulling Sin up. She wiped away their tears and slipped their backpack off, leaving it on the floor. “Why don’t we grab some ice cream from the freezer and you can tell me the whole story, okay?”

“It's too cold,” Sin whined.

“Then we’ll make hot chocolate, with the big marshmallows.”

“On the stove, like Papa Quentin makes?”

“Of course!”

Sin nodded and Sara pulled them up, carrying them out into the hall. Sin barely weighed 60lbs, but they weren't a toddler anymore. Sara specifically worked out just so she could still do this, even if the times she did had become few and far between.

Sara set them on the counter, then got to work pulling out the chocolate chips and the double boiler. They made the hot chocolate with extra big marshmallows and once they got settled on the couch with their favorite mugs, Sara waited for them to start.

“I didn’t do my math homework from this weekend,” Sin admitted with defeat. “I just don’t like it, it’s too hard!”

“Okay,” Sara said, choosing to ignore the admission in favor of hearing the whole story.

“Well, Ms. Sharpe has this hour at the end of the day for us to work on homework and stuff, and she talked to me about it. She showed me how to do long division, but I just didn’t get it. Then she said I would have to go to the special ed class, because I’m re….”

“Sin,” Sara said softly stopping them there. “You are not the word that the kids on the school bus called you. Everyone struggles with math at some point. I know I did. You are capable of anything and we can figure this out together. I promise!”

Sin nodded, drawing strength from Sara and sitting up straighter. “Will I have to go to the special ed class?”

Sara knew her kid, and she knew that with a little extra help Sin could catch back up to her class.

“You will remain in your class with your friends and I’ll try and work things out with your teacher.” Sara assured them, “In the meantime, I’m gonna help you with your homework and we’ll get it done together.”

“Us against the world?” Sin asked with a smile.

“Us against the world,” Sara said, matching their smile and holding out her fist. Sin enthusiastically fist bumps her, making the explosion noise afterwards.

……………………………………………………………………

Sara paced back and forth in the hall, holding her phone to her ear, waiting for Kendra to pick up. She caught Sin looking over at her from their spot at the kitchen table and sent them a smile and a thumbs up, before turning back to the dark green walls. She didn't know why their landlord wouldn't let her paint, even with the extra floor lamp Sara had squeezed in by the door, the dark hallway was never lit enough.

“Hey you,” Kendra said, finally picking up and enthusiastically greeting Sara.

“Did you know that she has them doing long division with three digit numbers?” Sara whisper yelled into the phone.

“Umm,” Kendra hesitated before Sara heard her yell at Carter. “Honey, is Hector doing three digit long division?”

Sara didn't hear his reply, but a second later Kendra gave her an answer. “Yes.”

Sara sighed and rubbed her forehead. “Why didn’t I start helping her out when it was just division?”

Kendra chuckled, “If it makes you feel better I can’t do it either and I thought Laurel was helping Sin with their homework?”

“Yeah apparently they were telling Laurel that I was helping them, so they were giving both of us the runaround.”

That night Laurel was planning to head out with friends so it would be just the two of them. Sara was hesitant to move in with her sister after she and Nyssa were forced apart two years ago, but Laurel helped her out a lot. She was always there for them. Sara tried to return the favor by doing more than her fair share of the housework and making sure Laurel didn’t drown herself in work.

“Well at least you're helping them now,” Kendra said, and Sara just shook her head.

“Not by much, It’s been an hour and we’re only halfway through this worksheet that was supposed to take twenty munites.”

“Why don’t you come over now and Carter can help you two get a hold of it?”

“Thanks, you're a lifesaver,” Sara said, grabbing her coat and Sin’s from their hooks. “We’ll be there in five and can we come over tomorrow as well? I’ll bring dinner.”

“Yeah, sounds good. So what clued you into the fact that Sin was lying about who was helping them with their homework?”

Sara sighed, leaning up against the wall. “Sin came home in tears today after a couple of kids were bullying them on the bus. Apparently, they overheard Ms. Sharpe telling Sin they might need to go to the special ed room for math help.”

“What? She said that?” Kendra said in disbelief.

“I know right! How dare she tell Sin that before even consulting with me!” Sara tried to keep her voice down, but she was just so angry. “I have a meeting with her tomorrow morning so I’ll let you know how it goes.”

“Okay, see you soon.”

“Yeah, thanks again.”

“No problem.”

Sara hung up and then walked back into the kitchen. “Hey so I called Auntie Kendra and she said that we could come over and Uncle Carter is gonna help us get your homework done.”

Sin nodded and gathered their papers in their backpack, Sara pulled on her coat and held out Sin’s coat for them to put on. Sin ran out the door and down the hall pressing the button on the elevator as Sara locked the door behind them.

“Mom, how come I have other aunts and uncles?” Sin asked once Sara had joined them waiting for the elevator.

“What?” Sara asked, still thinking about that last math problem.

“You know like how Auntie Laurel is your sister, and Aunt Lisa was Dad’s sister, but Auntie Kendra and Uncle Nate, they aren’t related to us?”

“Well,” Sara said, putting her arm around them and leading them onto the elevator. “Auntie Kendra, Uncle Mick, and the others became my family when I was in college and when I had you, they became your family too.”

“Were they Dad’s family too?” Sin asked.

Sara smiled, but she felt a familiar pain in her heart. Talking about Leonard, Sin’s father and her then-boyfriend had gotten easier since he had died six years ago.

“Yes, your Dad and Uncle Mick used to get into all sorts of trouble.”

“Really?”

“Yes, like there was this one time…”

……………………………………………………………………

Sara walked the halls of Sin’s school with Sin by her side that morning. She felt confident as she went over what she was going to say to Ms. Sharpe in her head. The night before Carter had walked her through the steps on how to do long division. They were able to get the homework done in time to be in bed at a reasonable hour. Working with Carter had solidified Sara's belief that Sin just needed a little extra help.

Now all Sara had to do was talk to Ms. Sharpe and things would be taken care of. Sin could go back to class without being bothered and Sara could spend the rest of the day knowing her kid was happy and taken care of. Sara hesitated at the door to Sin’s classroom, peering in the window to see that Ms. Sharpe was sitting at her desk. She had to be civil about this if she wanted it to go anywhere. She felt Sin squeeze her hand and looked down, so she gave them a smile and squeezed Sin’s hand in return. Then she took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and plastered her fake customer service smile on her face.

Sara would never admit it but, she kind of had the hots for Ms. Sharpe. She was tall, with soft blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and an oval face that had soft features. Not usually Sara’s type, but then again she never really considered herself to have a specific body type, she was bisexual. However, she did like people who were confident and passionate, if not a little wild. These days she just wanted someone who was kind and treated her and her child with respect.

“Hello, Ms. Sharpe, I'm Mrs. Lance, Sin’s mother.”

Ms. Sharpe stood up and straightened her white button up shirt and buttoned her suit jacket. “Mrs. Lance, a pleasure as always. I didn't know you were bringing Sin along.”

“They are the reason we're here,” Sara said, placing her hands on Sin’s shoulders and leading them over to Ms. Sharpe’s desk.

Ms. Sharpe gave her a tight smile, and Sara knew that most teachers prefered to have meetings without the children present, but nonetheless she gestured to the thankfully adult-sized chair in front of her desk. “Please have a seat, Mrs. Lance and then why don't you grab a chair as well Sin.”

While Sin grabbed a chair from the nearest desk, Sara took a moment to look around the classroom. The morning sun peeked in through the blinds, casting its glow over the desks. They were pushed together in groups of four at the front of the classroom, facing the projector and white board. The side of the board listed the schedule, as well as the topics for that day's lessons. There had been talk of getting smart boards, but Sara knew it wasn't in the budget; regardless, Ms. Sharpe worked well with what she had. In the back she had child sized comfy chairs with a floor lamp that looks like the one they had in their apartment hallway surrounded by wooden bookshelves.

It wasn’t like the classrooms of Sara’s childhood, there were no bright colors or boards filled with the same kids projects, colorful maps and bright alphabets. Instead, there were lots of plants, succulents and other little house plants lined the shelves, there was one palm tree in the corner about halfway to the ceiling.

There was a large map of the U.S. in greens and browns, and a list of words were organized with magnets on the left whiteboard that Sara had seen some of the kids use many times. The other wall was filled with artwork and each child's abstract picture was unique with different colors, styles, and shapes. The way it was displayed on the wall was more alike to a parent putting their kids pictures on the fridge than an overt display of work. The only bright and colorful things were fish in the large tank at the back of the room. All in all, the classroom looked homey.

“Well, let's get right into it,” Ms. Sharpe began, once they were both seated. “I’ve been informed that Sin was verbally assaulted by Cassandra Savage and Freydís Eriksson on the bus ride home yesterday. I've spoken with both the girl's parents and with the principal over the phone this morning and rest assured it will not happen again. I've moved Sin’s desk away from the two girls and Mona has agreed to keep the kids separate while they're on the bus and when she’s helping in the classroom. Going forward, I will be keeping an eye on the situation and I will not let it happen again under my watch.”

“That's good,” Sara said, letting go of some of the stress she had and partially relaxed back into the chair. “When can we expect an apology from the girls?”

“They will write an apology and present it to Sin this afternoon.”

“They’re gonna be at school today?” Sin asked, suddenly timid.

“I thought they’d get suspended?” Sara asked.

“That's not the school’s policy. We believe in having the children face up to what they have done, with more appropriate methods, such as the apology letter and a true understanding of why what they did was wrong. Not a vacation from school. Kids like Cassandra and Freydís will benefit from being here more than at home.”

“Having a tough home life doesn’t excuse their behavior,” Sara said.

“I'm not excusing it. I'm telling you why, and what I'm doing to try and help everyone.”

Sara huffed. “That makes sense, but you really shouldn't be openly talking about your student’s home life like that.”

“I never said anything about...” Ms. Sharpe started, then paused and gave Sara a look like she wanted to continue, but instead, she took a deep breath and straightened her jacket again.

Sin tugged on Sara’s arm and gave her a nervous look, “Mom do I have to go to the special ed classroom?”

Sara wrapped an arm around them and tugged their chair closer to her and whispered to them. “No, it’ll be okay.”

“You have nothing to fear Sin, this class is a safe place for you.” Ms. Sharpe said, having assumed that was what they were whispering about.

“Yeah, about that,” Sara started, taking a less than amused tone. “Yesterday Sin said that you wanted to place them in the special ed classroom after they struggled to finish the math assignment that you gave them.”

“I said that…”

“Why would you say that without talking to me first?” Sara demanded.

“Let me explain.”

“Oh please do!”

Ms. Sharpe looked away from Sara to Sin, who still sat at Sara’s side, leaning into her and gripping her arm, while bouncing their leg.

“Sin, Miss. Nora is in the library setting up for today, I’d bet she’d love your help!” Ms. Sharpe offered.

Sin looked up at Sara, who just gave them a squeeze and turned back to Ms. Sharpe. “Anything you want to say to me you can say to Sin.”

Ms. Sharpe took a deep breath before speaking. “I believe Sin may have Dyscalculia. It’s a learning disability like Dyslexia, but it involves numbers rather than letters. It’s characterized in children who have difficulty organizing and memorizing numbers and other math concepts, even telling time can be a struggle. I had a few examples of Sin’s work that highlights these aspects if you'd like to see.”

She held out some of the math work Sin had done and Sara took it from her and quickly glanced over. “I believe Sin would benefit from going over to the special education classroom or getting some extra math time with one of our Paraeducators like Mona, for the last hour of class and receiving some extra guidance in this area a few times a week.”

“Sin doesn't have any learning disabilities.”

“I know this is hard to hear.”

“I know for sure!” Sara said. “After their father died, I took Sin to therapy to help them. The therapists noticed something just like you did and thought it would be wise to have her tested as well. We went through the whole process and nothing came of it. The school should know about it, Sin’s teacher knew and we kept the school in the loop. What we did find was that Sin just started making more mistakes when they felt nervous. Which isn't so unusual for any kid.”

At that point, Sara was surprised that Ms. Sharpe gave her a confused look. “I never saw or heard anything like that when I went over Sin’s file at the start of the year.”

“Well I'll have the paperwork sent over to you,” Sara said, with more malice than was necessary.

“Well, I'd be happy to read it,” Ms. Sharpe said, giving Sara every ounce of sass right back to her.

“Great.”

“Great. I think we're done here,” Ms. Sharpe said standing up and offering her hand to Sara.

Sara remained seated and she could feel Sin glanced over at her but there was one more thing she wanted from Ms. Sharpe.

“I believe you owe me and my child an apology, especially since your words were the reason Cassandra and Freya were bullying them.” Sara said, raising an eyebrow at her.

Ms. Sharpe clenched her teeth, but nonetheless looked down. “I didn’t know that’s why they were bothering you Sin.”

Her words were sincere, then she looked back up, looking them in the eye. “I am sorry for what I said to you in front of the other children. It should have been discussed in private.”

“Thank you,” Sin said, standing up and offering her hand for Ms. Sharpe to shake. Sara’s eyes bugged out as they did so, they had done the mature thing and forgiven Ms. Sharpe.

“Of course,” Ms. Sharpe replied with a smile that Sin returned.

Sara decided to do the right thing and shake Ms. Sharpe’s hand as well. She stood up and went to leave with Sin.

“You could stay if you wanted to,” Ms. Sharpe said. “I usually open up my classroom for the early kids right about now.”

“We’ve still got a half hour or so and I figured we could play on the playground. That sound fun to you kiddo?” Sara said.

“Yeah,” Sin said excitedly, grabbed her arm and raced ahead of her.

In the hallway Sara put her arm around Sin’s shoulder, giving them a side hug.

“I'm really proud of you holding your hand out to shake your teacher’s hand and accepting her apology. That's what I mean when I ask you to be the bigger person sometimes.”

“Thanks Mom. I'm proud of you too, you stood up for me.”

“I am always on your side,” Sara said. Then she switched to her ‘monster Mom’ voice wrapping her arms around Sin and swiping them up in a hug. “Because I love you so freaking much.”

“Mom,” Sin complained, trying to sound angry at her. “You're ruining my hair.”

“Right, sorry,” Sara said, returning to her normal voice and setting them down.

Sara grabbed the compact mirror from Sin’s backpack and held it up so they could fix their hair. Sin ran their fingers through it, styling their short black hair into a spiky swept back style. Their Uncle Nate had helped them cut it and learn to style it when they had first cut it short. Sara was grateful for friends in their lives who were there for both of them like family.

It was almost time for school and there were several kids in the hallways milling about and talking with other teachers and kids. Sara figured she could play on the playground with Sin for a few minutes before sending them back into the classroom. However, once they got outside, they hesitated instead of running towards the playground as they usually did.

“Mom, do I have to go to school today?”

Sara followed their line of sight to where Cassandra and Freydís were playing on the playground.

“I think we could take a mental health day and spend it at the skatepark if you wanted to?”

“Can we?” Sin asked in a way that made Sara's heartbreak as she heard the pain and need in her child's voice.

“Of course,” she said, putting her arm around them again and leading them over to the car.

……………………………………………………………………

The second the door closed behind Sin and her mother, Ava slumped back into her chair. In her ten years of teaching, she had never had a parent come after her like that, although there were several who had been particularly terrible. Parents never wanted to hear about their child's potential disability or struggles in class. She wished they were more open about it, as they were only hurting the child they were so desperate to protect.

But maybe Ava was wrong, maybe Sin didn't have a disability like she thought. She sighed and looked over Sin’s homework again, as she looked over the little mistakes the child had made. It could have simply been because they were stressed, or there could be something more to it. Honestly it could go either way, and Ava would have preferred to have a more professional opinion, but without Mrs. Lance's approval, she knew she would never get that answer.

Ava looked up at the clock on the wall. School wouldn't start for another hour and the majority of her early students wouldn’t be there for a couple more minutes and they probably wouldn't mind hanging around in the halls or on the playground. She grabbed her keys and locked her room but, before she headed over to the library, she peeked in the classroom of her grade neighbor and brother, Nate Heywood, to check on her son Gary. She smiled when she saw him completely absorbed in one of his adventure books. Nate saw her and waved her in, but Ava declined with a shake of her head, not wanting to disturb Gary during his favorite pastime.

She turned around and headed down to the hall, quickly finding Nora among the shelves as she put away the books that had been returned the previous day. The library was mostly empty, save for a couple of students in the reading nook around the corner.

“Hey,” Nora said when she saw Ava approach her.

“I just got the tongue lashing of a lifetime from one of my student’s mothers,” Ava whispered to her.

“Oh?” Nora said pausing. “What for?”

Ava looked around, all of the bookshelves were no taller than her rib cage and the other kids over at the reading nook could easily overhear them.

“Let's go to my office,” Nora said, putting the book away and wheeling the cart down the aisle.

After being seated in one of Nora's comfy chairs, Nora brought Ava a cup of tea and waited for her to start.

“Okay, so I said something to one of my students about introducing them to Ray so they could get a little extra help understanding math. My plan was to have Ray drop by at the end of class if he had some extra time to give her a little extra tutoring, with their parent’s consent, of course, but now that's never going to happen. And just to be clear that was all I said, nothing more, but everyone knows that Ray is one of the special ed teachers. So some of the other children in my class overheard what I said and on the bus ride home yesterday they started teasing this child.”

“Oh that’s terrible,” Nora said, tilting her head. “But that's not your fault.”

“I know!” Ava said, raising her voice a little, but it felt good to talk this through with Nora and get all her emotions out. “So this child goes home in tears and tells the parent that it's my fault because they thought I wanted to have them placed in the special ed classroom, which is something I would never do; it's much more helpful to have the kids stay in their own classrooms with their peers.”

“Um hum,” Nora nodded, having heard both Ray and Ava discuss the benefits of such on multiple occasions.

“So I got a phone call about what happened on the bus and I set up a meeting with the parent through the online appointment system the school has and they came this morning. We all sit down and at first, it goes great. I tell them how I'm handling the bullying and everything's going great until this mother insists that I apologize to their child for what I said. She won't even let me fully explain myself, she just insists that it's all my fault. So I just tried to explain why I wanted them to get some help from Ray, and I pulled up some of the child’s work to try and show the parent that maybe their child should be tested for a learning disability. And the parent just goes off insisting that it's because the child just stressed about math, which I guess is a possibility, but I've been observing this kid for months I think they could really benefit from at least a little one-on-one time with either Ray or Mona.”

“Did you get a chance to explain to the parent about all of this?” Nora asked.

“Oh no, she just got so defensive saying she already had her child tested, but that was years ago, things change, new things come to light. Anyway, I think what I'm going to do is just try and give this kid a little extra one-on-one time during my study hour at the end of the day. I'll just keep observing them and helping them and if things don't improve, I’ll meet with the parent again at parent-teacher conferences in April.”

Ava finally let out a breath and slumped back into her chair. “Thanks for letting me rant a little.”

Nora giggled, “It was more like a lot, but I'm happy to listen.”

“At least none of the kids are getting bulled for being queer,” Ava said taking a sip of her tea for the first time. “I feel like I could handle that, I mean I am a trans woman and a lesbian, I’ve faced my fair share of homophobes.”

Nora giggled, “Yeah I remember that time we were at the department store, buying clothes with Gary and that lady kept flowing us around and whispering, ‘lesbians can’t raise a son.’ in that confused and angry tone and you just spun around and laid into her. I thought she’d die of embarrassment.”

“Yeah, that felt pretty good.” Ava looked up at the clock, realizing that she had fifteen minutes before school started. “I should get going.”

Just then Mona peeked in like she usually did after she had parked her bus to the depot and returned to the school for her shift as Paraeducator. “Hey, I'm glad I caught you both, are we still on for book club tonight after school? Also, the secretary told me to tell you that Sin Lance won’t be in class today. ”

“Thanks Mona,” Ava said. She should have known that Mrs. Lance would pull her out of class that morning, but she was glad that she at least had Sin’s trust back and could help her student further.

She returned to her class after checking on Gary again to find several of her students waiting for her in the hall. They all greeted her with big smiles and happy hellos, and she gave them all hugs or high fives as she let them in the classroom, smiling as they all filtered in and went to their desks. This was why she got into teaching, because she loved watching all these little kids learn and grow, and the joy they admitted whenever they accomplished something, filling her with pride. Apart from being a mom, to her, it was the best job in the world.

……………………………………………………………………

Sara and Sin had rushed home to the apartment to grab their skateboard and head out to the skatepark. By the time they got there, all the high school students had left and they enjoyed the freedom of the empty skatepark. Sara had been riding a skateboard since middle school, and when Sin was three years old she put them on a board and her toddler had taken off. If it was up to them, they would have never gotten off.

After spending the morning going up and down the pipes and riding along the rails they grabbed some lunch at Big Belly Burger, calling Laurel beforehand and agreeing to meet her at Quentin's precinct.

“Papa!” Sin called out the moment they stepped off the elevator, running in between the cops and detectives towards Quentin's office. Most of her dad's coworkers were used to Sin’s antics and just smiled as they ran past them.

Sara followed behind, choosing to walk through the bullpen and leaned up against the door to her Dad’s office.

“Shouldn't you be in school, you rascal?” Quentin playfully asked as he had Sin wrapped up in a bear hug.

“Mom said I could take the day off and we went to the skatepark,” Sin answered as they pulled back.

“Oh did she now?” Quentin asked looking up at Sara. “Hey kiddo.”

“Hi Daddy,” Sara said, walking over and leaning down to give him a hug as well as depositing the bags on his desk.

“Yeah, it's cuz Cassandra and Freydís were mean to me on the bus yesterday,” Sin said quietly, looking down at their hands.

“Oh, I'm sorry to hear that,” he said, he still had his arms around Sin and gave them an extra squeeze.

“We worked it out with their teacher this morning,” Sara said, sitting in one of the chairs across from him. “But they just didn't want to go back yet.”

“Hey, hope I didn't miss much,” Laurel said, appearing in the doorway and dropping her purse and herself into the chair next to Sara.

Sin immediately ran from her place at Quentin’s side to hug Laurel, who gave them a tight squeeze.

“There’s my favorite Niblet,” Laurel said, using the gender-neutral nickname for Nibbling she had started using when Sin came out.

“Auntie Laurel, I'm your only Niblet.”

“Yes, and therefore my favorite,” Laurel said bopping their nose as they both giggled.

“You know ever since I had a kid, I always feel like you guys love them more than me,” Sara said with a pout.

“That's not true,” Quentin insisted.

“Yes it is,” Laurel said, with a sly smile.

“Rude,” Sara replied, waving her finger at Laurel.

“Be nice,” Quentin said, while Sin just giggled. “You know for Christmas I think the only thing I'm going to ask for is for a whole day where my daughters don't fight.”

“That's completely unrealistic,” Sara said.

“Yeah that's not going to happen,” Laurel added, before the two of them burst into laughter.

Quentin and Sin joined in laughing and they all dug into the burgers and fries Sara had brought.

……………………………………………………………………

“I don't want you to go to work tomorrow!” Sin whined as they stood at their desk in their classroom.

Sara took a deep breath, closed her eyes and counted to ten before responding to Sin. This was the argument that they had been having ever since Sara had told her yesterday that they would be opening the bakery and cafe on Saturdays.

“Saturday is our day!” Sin insisted.

Sara opened her eyes and kneeled down so that she was at Sin’s level, putting her hands on their shoulders. “I know. I know you don't want me to go to work. I know you want me to just stay home and hang out with you all day long.”

She poked their stomach trying to get them to giggle while using an exaggerated voice, but Sin didn’t respond as they usually did. Sara tried to keep smiling, but she was at her wits end. They had been fighting all day yesterday, and this morning Sin had dug their heels in and wouldn't let the issue go. Sara thought that driving them to school and dropping them off herself would help so that they could spend some extra time together, but clearly it hadn't worked.

Sara looked around and spotted a glitter jar on one of the shelves. She quickly ran over and grabbed two, brought it back and handed one to Sin. “I know you’re mad, so take all your anger, push it into the jar, and shake it out.”

Sara shook up the jar as hard as she could, watching as Sin did the same. They shook the jars for a few moments and then Sin stopped to watch the glitter in the bottle spin around. After several minutes they looked up at Sara.

“Do you have to go to work Saturday?”

“I do kiddo, and I'll drop you off at Aunt Zari’s around the time you would go to school in the morning, but before I leave we can try to go to the skate park.”

Sin still looked disappointed and their face scrunched up, as they shook the jar again so hard Sara thought it would break.

“Do you know why?” Sara asked, just wishing she could take some of the hurt feelings away.

“No,” Sin said, as they stopped shaking the bottle and continued to gaze into it. Like it held all the answers to their problems.

“Because your aunts and I are not just making pies and cakes, we’re helping the Wedding Fairy,” Sara said in an absolutely serious voice, it was a thing they said around the bakery quite often especially as of late, as it was an epithet for over the top brides and mothers. However to the kids the wedding fairy was very real.

“Really?” Sin asked, looking over at her.

“Yeah,” Sara said with a smile on her. “You see, wedding fairy needs some extra help making some special treats for some special people, her kitchen is just too small to try and do it all this year.”

It was partially true, they were swamped with June and May weddings and all the last minute wedding planners flooding them with orders. With the wedding season rush kicking into gear as spring approached and the bakery and cafe being so popular, they had to add an extra day to their schedule if they wanted to be able to take on the new orders. Amaya hated turning people away, especially if they were cute couples in love. It would only be until spring break and summer, and in an effort to avoid the insane cost of childcare, they were alternating Saturdays so that one of the four of them could watch the kids.

The business had always made just enough money for everyone to live comfortably. Amaya’s hope was that with the extra orders, everyone would be able to splurge that year. Sara agreed to it because she wanted to be able to afford a good summer vacation for Sin. Of course, Sara didn’t tell Sin any of this, as she didn't want them to worry about money.

“The wedding fairy isn't real.”

Sara turned around to see Cassandra Savage standing next to them, but before she could say anything Ms. Sharpe approached them. “Yes she is and I'm sure she's very thankful to have Ms. Lances’ help.”

Cassandra sneered and looked like she was about to say something else but Ms. Sharpe led her away, talking to her on the other side of the room.

“Why can't I help the wedding fairy?” Sin asked, with curiosity rather than disappointment.

“You can! How about tonight you and I work on thank you cards for all of the orders!”

Sin thought it over and nodded. Sara sighed in relief and smiled, then leaned up and kissed Sin’s forehead.

“Have I told you that I love you and that you're the best kid in the world?”

“Yeah, you say that every day,” Sin teased, rolling their eyes.

“Well I mean it every day,” Sara teased her back, then tucked a stray strand of hair behind their ear. “Are you going to be okay today?”

“Yeah,” Sin said, with a somber nod.

“You want me to go or stay a little longer?” Sara asked, her eyebrows knitting together, she couldn’t help but worry, especially when it came to Sin.

Sin looked around before answering, they still had a few minutes before class started and most of the kids were already there milling around. Sara looked around as well and saw Hector wave at them from his desk. They both smiled and waved back.

“You're picking me up today, right?”

“Yep.”

“Okay,” Sin said and then took off their backpack and walked over to talk to Hector.

Sara smiled and watched them for another minute before heading out. She stopped in the doorway, realizing that she was still holding the glitter bottle.

“You can take it if you want to,” Ms. Sharpe said, catching her at the door. “I'm sure Sin would love to have one at home.”

“Thanks,” Sara said.

“I keep the bottles around for situations like this and I'm glad you were able to use them. You handled that really well,” Ms. Sharpe replied.

“Thank you,” Sara said, surprised at her genuine words. The two had been exchanging petty notes and words since their meeting a week before.

Ms. Sharpe gave her a genuine smile before turning back to her classroom. Sara took one last peek at Sin, who was laughing with Hector before leaving. She looked back over at Ms. Sharpe who was talking with one of the other students, maybe Sara had her pegged wrong, maybe she should give the teacher another chance.

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Legends of Tomorrow: Zari Tarazi’s Journey to Find Her Best Self

https://ift.tt/3uTxXpi

Legends of Tomorrow is hands down the weirdest, most bonkers show in The CW’s Arrowverse. It’s also one of the bravest, grounding its zaniest plotlines in rich character work and fearlessly trusting its audience to come along for the ride. Few superhero shows would have ever attempted the full-scale transformation that turned flannel-loving hacker Zari Tomaz into stylish social media maven Zari Tarazi, jettisoning a character that fans had known for years and replacing her with a version that was not just a stranger, but who initially seemed to be the antithesis of everything that had made the previous incarnation so appealing.

Yet, Legends ultimately pulled off the switch in style, using this second iteration to explore central truths about who Zari is through a very different lens. And according to actress Tala Ashe, the heart of Zari’s journey hasn’t actually changed that much just because this incarnation of the character loves stilettos and juice cleanses.

“I think sometimes people forget, [Zari 2.0] is the same person,” Ashe tells Den of Geek. “This is a being of the same soul. Understandably, what sometimes gets a little lost [because] they are, especially aesthetically, very different. But they come from the same place.

“And for me, as an actor, it’s been really an interesting meditation on nature versus nurture. Their nature is the same in spite of [the fact that] they have very different circumstances.”

Those different circumstances are on full display in season 6 episode 3, “The Ex-Factor,” an hour that sees Zari harness her social media influencer cred to compete against an alien warrior on a futuristic reality singing competition called Da Throne. (There are truly days where trying to describe this show feels like a fever dream.)

But, of course, the story isn’t really about Zari’s singing chops — though she does take to the stage in full glittery pop star regalia – it’s centered on the question of what kind of person she wants to become.

“Where we find Zari at the beginning of the season, in general, is in that kind of awkward, somewhat painful place of growth that I think a lot of us experience where she is not quite secure in her authentic self,” Ashe says. “This episode challenges [her] – is this, the old world of 2045, the one that I fit in and belong in? Or am I growing towards [becoming] this other person?

“I don’t think she’s particularly happy inside of [that influencer persona], but it’s the devil she knows. She knows how to play that part and be who people expect her to be.”

“The Ex-Factor” shows us just how far this incarnation of Zari has come since her early days on the Waverider by literally forcing her to confront the life she left behind. From her manipulative DJ ex to the superficial BFF/assistant that he cheated on her with, Zari’s life in 2045 is full of reminders of a person she no longer feels that she is – or wants to be.

“What we get to see in this episode is the discomfort of her stepping back into this life that she’s in some ways outgrown,” Ashe said. “She’s evolved and [is] evolving.”

A big part of that evolution is thanks to her romance with fellow Legend John Constantine, a relationship that Ashe herself laughingly admits “doesn’t really make sense on paper.”

“Yet, kind of against all logical odds, what we get to see and what I think Zari has an inkling about in this episode, and even more as the season goes on, is that actually, he’s someone that she can be herself with,” she says. “And that is everything to someone who has been playing a part so intensely for most of her life.”

Truthfully, it’s hard to imagine a better match for Zari than a man who will not only willingly humiliate himself for her in public but set her ex’s head on fire at the same time. The pair finally make their relationship CatChat official this week, after John joins her onstage on Da Throne for a rocking anthem that celebrates loving someone you always thought you shouldn’t.

“Being able to go head-to-head with each other is attractive to both of them,” Ashe says. “There’s many classic tales of these kinds of couples coming together. But it’s interesting to think about how different [this relationship] is from Zari 1.0 and Nate. [This] Zari kind of needs someone that gives her a little bit of fight. And I think John does as well.”

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But just because these two crazy kids have admitted that they care about each other beyond a part-time fling doesn’t mean that things will be easy for them from here on out. Life on the Waverider is never simple, as evidenced by the fact that Legends’ marquee couple, Sara Lance and Ava Sharpe, are currently facing an extended separation thanks to one of them (Sara) having been kidnapped by aliens. But it sounds as though, at least for the moment, Hellstar (cutest ship name ever, btw) will face more everyday sorts of problems.

“I think neither of these people knows how to be in a relationship, really,” Ashe explains. “We’re going to get to see them move beyond [their] obvious physical attraction. They really care about each other. [But], when things get complicated on the Waverider – as they always do! – then things [between them] get complicated, especially with John’s story. [What happens] inherently pushes them to a more serious place in their relationship, with the stakes of what’s going on.

“And I think, by the end, these are two people who are, for better or for worse, in a real, complicated relationship and it gets very, very tricky.”

Yet, to hear Ashe tell it, Zari’s journey toward her true self is still in its early stages. “As with Zari 1.0, it’s a journey of trying to step into vulnerability when that’s [a] really scary [thing to do]. It’s scary to both Zaris. Fundamentally, both of them are guarded in lots of ways.”

This is particularly true for the current incarnation of Zari, who has had to carve out a life for herself in the shadow of a predecessor she never knew, but that all her colleagues – including her current boyfriend – remember.

“Zari 2.0 is very much grappling with this season where she kind of feels like the lesser Zari, the less cool, chill, tough Zari. And she knows there are people on the ship that would prefer in some ways for Zari 1.0 to be there,” Ashe says. “That kind of comes out in [her and] Behrad[‘s] relationship too – [he’s] a constant reminder is that she’s there because 1.0 sacrificed herself. I don’t know if impostor syndrome is the right word but [she’s] trying to feel like she deserves to be there.”

Even though season 6 just wrapped filming last week, Ashe is already looking forward to exploring more aspects of what makes Zari – in all her incarnations tick – as the series goes on.

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“I was emailing with our showrunner this week about what we’re cooking up for season 7 because I think we can push that even further with where Zari 2.0 goes and what the facets of Zari – of umbrella Zari – are that we haven’t seen yet. And that’s very exciting to me.”

The post Legends of Tomorrow: Zari Tarazi’s Journey to Find Her Best Self appeared first on Den of Geek.

from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/3eRC6V5

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angrypedestrian · 5 years

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THE TIME IDIOTS EPISODE 415 TITLED “Never Take VC Funding From a Demon” MY THOUGHTS:

Jokes on you! All VCs are demons!

Anyways a little shameful self promotion right here at the top because it’s my liveblog and I can do what I want! I just posted a nate/zari fic that involves mild smut and me misremembering the plot of Jurassic Park!

I did not get to rewatch the episode before this, which i normally do so this previously on is honestly buck wild because I do not remember any of this happening

Oh fuck I do NOT have the emotional capacity for baby Zari

You can’t just DO THIS to a person PHILLIP

OH FUCK YOU NERON RAY

also behrad’s age is, uh, a very loose concept, isn’t it

phil: i guess aren’t we all a loose concept in a way

shut the fuck up phil no i don’t want some of your weed

the power is in the palm (er) of your hand jesus christ

OH MICK YOU WOULD ALSO LIKE RAY BACK AND WOULD GET HIM BACK VIOLENTLY???? HMMMM

gary is not as stupid as I think we all think

Ohhhhhhh I smell the rise of an new ot3!!!!! Imagine the sexy and ALSO angsty possibilities

angsty cause charlie has amaya’s face and i guess nate and zari are never gonna reckon with THAT unless we make them

so!

Nora is.......very hot like this

her strut gets her this week’s Neal McDonough Memorial Can Get It Award

Jane Carr deserves better than this

the third nipple is somehow even worse than all the previous nipples combined

but also obviously the previous demon nipple WAS possessed because now gary is back to caring way too much about people who don’t treat him particularly well

but also gary hasn’t learned to read a room and this is why we’re all in this situation

it’s a two way street gary!!!

GARY STOP CARING ABOUT CONSTANTINE he is a DICK to you

that does not mean he cannot do better, just, be mad at him for a while jeez, he deserves it

also this does not mean i am against them fucking it out eventually!!

God Neray’s outfit is so fucking bad

You know how we know ray is evil now? a black shirt with a red tie

a hallmark of true evil and also middle school boys

which, same thing

you guys are wearing bullet proof vests for...what?

this is very confusing

Also why does Zari have weird fake bangs in

altho i guess we should consider it a win that it doesn’t look horrendous

good job keep of the wigs

GARY YOU HAD YOUR OWN D&D GROUP

you have friends! why are you like this!

We can tell gary is back to normal cause his hair is curly again

GOD adam has such good hair

this is not an ideal first time for sara to read a book

ava: well now she’ll never do it again THANKS GARY

i did cackle out loud at it’s like plan a but with less people

that was an actual intentional funny joke!

progress!

LIKE A PLAN Z

fuck OFF PHIL

pffftttt this reconstituted arrow set

gotta save up for that dragon next week!

that flask ain’t enough whiskey John

the fairy godmother’s wand is literally a toy they found at the dollar store

you can feel the malice (ha!) in gideon’s voice when she says captain green

just kill him gideon

SOMETIMES YOU JUST HAVE TO LOOK PAST AGE

that is a DIRECT mixen/marlie callout!

i do like that brandon has really leaned into playing neron. it took a few eps to get there but he did it!

uh, wouldn’t it be safer to keep the egg on the ship? under a heat lamp? away from a scary demon?

Hey fellas is it gay to know everything your husband likes and dislikes and tell it to your girlfriend who is carrying your egg child?

no, i’m serious. i literally have no idea. is it?

and yeah ray loving tech events is pretty bad!

this is the lowest rent conference room they could find

and they literally projected the visuals when they filmed so it looks like garbage?

this scene looked terrible

But also this is pitch perfect of a tech talk

the very controlled pointing? the cadence? SO PERFECT

this club seems like it is trying to recreate the one from Constantine: The Hellblazer

which, that two page horizontal spread is one of my favorite sequences in all of comics

this scene...does not capture that

but they got some black light body paint!

It was on sale!

I want us to meet a demon proctologist

is that a viable career path?

stop saying triumvirate

STOP TOUCHING GIDEON THAT IS RUDE

good meta joke with the standing around all day guys

we get it

boy howdy that cgi wolfie shift does not get any better, does it?

SHE’S NOT A WEREWOLF

seriously what the fuck is up with zari’s hair this episode

gary: you know what?

ava:

sara:

gary: not enough MEN here

ava: oh thank god

B team becomes the A team!

nate: where did you find my costume? i thought i lost it in a dumpster in the 70s!

that is a very good look for nora

brandon saying “ah my love” to jane carr while courtney is right there and THEN she takes nora to her girlfriend is perfect

just *chef’s kiss*

THIS HOUSE IS NOT IN DC

it’s in Virginia, I can tell you that right the fuck now

Zari reading the fine print is literally the first smart thing anyone has ever done on this show

ever

...gary in the steel costume is kinda working for me

hmmmm...

welp don’t have time to unpack that!

NO GARY NO

oh NO

this is very BAD

i’m speaking only very specifically to mick as you probably could all guess

fuck this ZARLIE is so GOOD

GODDAMMIT fuckin GHOST FRIEND

mmmHMMMM a FRIEND

remEMBER when zari told AMAYA about BEHRAD?

I DO

GODDAMMIT

i am so sad and also vibrating at the speed of SOUND

I just wish when the writers conceived of a new character, they would just...create their backstory then and stick to it

behrad being 6-8 (????) years younger than zari makes no sense???

i don’t know why this particular character backstory bugs me so much, probably just because i love zari to the moon and back

i want better for her backstory!!!

i want CONSISTENCY goddammit!

oh you morons you left the dragon egg

this triumvirate scene is shot very cool!

and i dig the lighting and color work!

when legends does horror cinematography they do it so well!

i wish they did it more

oh i take it back those wings are bad

there was no need for them!

the scene was doing just fine without them!

but this other demon looks great!!

shit was that from the nbc show?

is that why it looks good?

this actor playing shape shifted agent charlie is great

we didn’t get enough of nate in that perm tbh

nick could’ve played that for way more jokes

FUCK

the DARKWU

damn they are in LOVE

NO ONE WANTS TO PLAY SETTLERS GARY

ONE

is gary an exempt employee? probably! so he wouldn’t get overtime

i can almost guarantee he’s exempt

but good on legends for letting its many teen viewers know their labor rights!

i have an IWW tattoo this is important to me!

KNOW YOUR RIGHTS KIDS

YOU SAID RIP’S NAME TWO EPISODES IN A ROW

i am force ghost len crawling his way up from hell like exCUSE ME YOU RANG

tabitha’s new get up is simultaneously very cheap and also excellent

good on legends for getting their bit actors the opportunity to get another payday

that marilyn deserves it

i like how a requirement of being fairy godmother is the getup

oh no it’s the gnome

that gnome is gonna fuck something up and i am READY

...well that was disappointing. why bother animating him if he wasn’t going to fuck things up!!!

sara: those were the most beautiful final words i’ve ever heard. rip nora

god i WISH a monster would attack dc

it’s what we deserve

oh yeah they just took a bunch of nbc show footage for that montage

well i’m glad they got footage from a show with a budget

astra being a demon apprentice now or whatever is some good good shit

i wish i had half her ambition!

there won’t be a stupid beebo this time mick, it’s gonna be a DRAGON

zari how the fuck do you forget a dragon egg

she’s just so sad about charlie!!!! because she LOVES her

also do you just uh, not remember that whole dragon egg thing now?

or yet?

how the FUCK does this work

no i can’t think about, that’s how phil wins

NEXT WEEK: DRAGON TIME FUCKERSSSSSSSSSS also uhhhhh i guess zari’s whole past is probably gonna change!!

whoops!

#legends of tomorrow #legends of tomorrow spoilers #the zarlie in this ep was such a gift #so charlie BETTER survive next week PHILLIP #the time idiots #my thoughts as i have them

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siphen0 · 4 years

Text

What’s up everyone! Welcome to Beyond The Panel. Coming at you today with talk about DC’s Legends of Tomorrow “Zari, Not Zari”! If this was the week after Ray and Nora’s farewell, feelings would have still been tender after that one. However, we had a break from the Legends, and more time to process everything which happened. Still I thought they did an amazing job, and then some too for how they handled what a bromance is supposed to look like on TV. There’s nothing more real than two guys who have no problem expressing how much one’s friendship means to the other. More shows could take some queues from this!

That said, the show must go on regardless, and this week we were in for a treat. Well, that is most who are big fans of Supernatural. Who would have thought they would be so bold as to tie something with that? Not this guy, I don’t think most would have ever seen this as a possibility till now for an Arrowverse show. Either way, I was very excited to see how this would turn out.

Seeing how this episode was titled, “Zari, Not Zari”, of course this meant that they would now prioritize Zari coming to terms with all of these memories of the past Zari beginning to overlap. Up till now, it seemed like they were dodging these occurrences hard. With other things more urgent, this wasn’t something that you could truly take issue with yet. However, there was no better time than now for Zari to get to that stage where being on this ship long enough there would be no other option than to tackle this development headfirst. How this turned up was an enjoyable experience. For the patience we had in this storyline, they rewarded us with a proper exploration of what goes through Zari’s head when faced with this life she lived which seemed so much more promising than what she has accomplished in this one. This meditative journey she went on led her to an encounter that you didn’t actually think was possible, and yet it now was. It was heartwarming because at any point they could have decided to pull the plug on this Zari and give us the old one. Yet they were smart in their choice to allow this Zari the opportunity to evolve based on an understanding of what it means to be special.

This was also an important episode for me because since Behrad’s introduction, I have always felt that we needed to see more from the guy. Normally he was always just there. Had something goofy to say here, something witty there, and then was on his way. The last time he had a part of any true relevance was about three episodes ago. What we got out of Behrad this week was actually engaging and personal. Not just for the involvement he took in helping Zari through her remembrance of her other life, but for the way he at the same time stepped up as family to be there and ease her through everything that is difficult for this version of Zari to cope with. That said, it did suck that they had to somewhat use him as a plot device this time around, but that was something which could easily be overlooked for the impact he had on what unfolded here.

I was heartbroken with how this episode ended for Zari and Behrad, but you couldn’t have asked for more from Zari who they peeled all the layers back for. It felt nice to feel praise for Tala Ashe’s performance again as Zari.

Now to say that Sara, Constantine, and Charlie run into a problem they couldn’t have foreseen in British Columbia searching for another piece of the Loom was quite the understatement. I think we all knew the kind of trouble they were probably going to run into inevitably, though credit where it is due that you couldn’t have guessed this problem would turn out to be one of her sisters. They did not disappoint to make a statement proving Charlie right that these sisters of hers were not to be trifled with. I found the whole thing chilling because Charlie is not the kind to cower, and it usually takes someone pretty powerful to give Sara a run for her money. Having Constantine around made it no better when he is not the kind of guy to heed those kinds of warnings. This was a recipe for horror which kept you at the edge of your seat from beginning to end for this part of the storyline.

Obviously given the promo for this episode I have to say something about the fact that this is an episode of Legends where Supernatural exists. How this happened was quite genius. We knew the car would make an appearance, though everything else beyond that was a clever development. I don’t know who made the decision that Supernatural should exist in the Arrowverse, but that person deserves a medal for the entertaining approach towards it.

I was actually surprised that they had the room to still peel off and continue Rory’s story. This could have easily been one too many things they had going on, yet there was no denying the substance we got from the big guy trying to be a good dad. At this point there is no doubt some viewers who are ready to see the Rory who is ready to jump into the next big fight. However, like others this is his moment to begin bettering himself. Even when it has seemed like he reached that point before, that was not Rory as someone who was understanding something of real value. There is a difference between valuing someone who is your own blood over priceless items, booze, or a book. It also goes without saying that having Ava help out Rory worked too. This may have taken Ava out of the action, but you have to admire the way they are pushing her to fill that void there is that someone who goes out of their way to help others through their personal situations.

This episode was worth the wait in the end! Everything heartbreaking aside, it was awesome to see some major wheels turning in this story. Zari finally got herself to a point where she could start becoming the best version of who she is in this timeline, and now we know exactly what we are up against with Charlie’s sisters. DC’s Legends of Tomorrow “Zari, Not Zari” paid us in kind for the patience we had in everything that was building up to this episode.

DC’s Legends of Tomorrow “Zari, Not Zari” Review What's up everyone! Welcome to Beyond The Panel. Coming at you today with talk about DC's Legends of Tomorrow "Zari, Not Zari"!

#Comics #DC Comics #DC&039;s Legends Of Tomorrow #DC&039;s Legends of Tomorrow "Zari Not Zari"#Legends Of Tomorrow #Legends of Tomorrow "Zari Not Zari"#spotlight #the cw #TV

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firesoulstuff · 4 years

Note

For the fandom thing- Legends of Tomorrow

the first character i ever fell in love with: A little tricky for Legends considering the Season 1 cast was almost entirely spin-off characters, the only exceptions being Rip and Gideon. I’m going to say Jax. I really liked him on Flash and fell even more in love with him on Legends.

a character that i used to love/like, but now do not: I’ll say Ava. I liked her at first, and then with how toxic Avalance has gotten I’ve found that it’s herder for me to like her. She i just so clearly trying to force so many things. I think if the writers could just let her breathe and explore her as a character outside of a romantic arc I could like her again. People keep saying she takes Sara’s achievements and I agree, but my god give her some of her own achievements so that she doesn’t need to do that!

a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not: I don’t think there are really any Legends ships I went from loving to hating. I’ll say Constangreen. At first I was on the “Aw, they’re kind of cute” side but now they’re a hard no for me. John has treated Gary like garbage too many times, put him in danger, used him, and overall toyed with his emotions. They’re juts not right for each other. John needs someone with a little more of a backbone than Gary, and Gary I think needs to find someone who knows how to handle his sweetness.

my ultimate favorite character™: That is tough. I’ll say Mick Rory.

prettiest character: Amaya Jiwe

my most hated character: Rip Hunter. I’ve never understood the obsession with him. He’s arrogant, he does not think before he makes a plan, he’s reckless. He got a little better in seasons 2, but then he created the Time Bureau and effectively kidnapped Gideon, virtually gagged her, and locked her up.

my OTP: Captain Canary

my NOTP: Avalance

favorite episode: Abominations

saddest death: Leonard Snart!

favorite season: Season 2

least favorite season: Season 5

character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate: Rip Hunter. Seriously, someone explain it to me.

my ‘you’re piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave: Mona, I guess?

my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave: Zari 1.0

my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship: Mixen. Their age difference is not ok, but I still love them!

my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship: Behrad/Astra (give me season 6, I’m sure that’ll change)

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agentmarymargaretskitz · 4 years

Text

Please Don’t Come Back- Chapter 4

(Head’s up- temporary character death)

Behrad looks into Gary's past, Ava confronts Rip, and Gary returns to the Waverider.

AO3

Behrad glanced over at his sister as she slept on the little nest of pillows in the parlor. By now, Zari had to be deep into her vision quest. It was still crazy to think about how in another timeline, she’d been a Legend too. Then again, he really did need to re-evaluate his definition of crazy after the past few years he’d spent with the Legends. Maybe she could share some details about her other self when she came out of the slumber.

With Zari occupied, Behrad could get working on his secondary task. Ava had asked him to see if he could get Gideon to pump out some information on Gary’s past. She just didn’t have the same connection he did with the AI. It was actually worth getting stuck in a time loop…almost. But he had visited her in his dreams through her matrix and gotten to know her better since then. It probably wasn’t a good idea to sleep while Zari was out, but he could still talk to her awake.

“Hey, Gideon?” he called, stepping out momentarily to the bridge. “You there?”

“I am, Mr. Tarazi. What you need?”

“I need information on Gary Green, and nothing that’s been forged.”

Gideon paused before speaking again. “Mr. Tarazi, there is a command code to access that information on Gary Green.”

“Please?” Behrad pleaded. “I know you can override it.”

“Mr. Tarazi-”

“I’ll play Scrabble in your matrix with you,” Behrad offered. “Think about it. You, me, all those little tiles. You kicking my ass with words no one has heard of.”

“People have heard of those words,” Gideon huffed. “I…suppose I can grant you a window. But I have to warn you about what you’re going to find. There’s a reason Captain Hunter buried that information.”

Documents started to appear on the console screens in front of them. Behrad chuckled.

“You’re the best, Gideon.”

“I know.”

~~~

“What are you doing here?”

Ava tried not to look too surprised at Rip’s appearance, but she was kicking herself on the inside. If she’d just taken Gary’s file and run instead of debating grabbing her own, then she would have made a clean escape. Now she was trapped in a room with the man who had lied to her about her whole existence. If she didn’t play this right, he would get suspicious and use the memory flasher on her. Everything would be for nothing then.

“Director Hunter,” she nodded, not smiling as she pushed Gary’s real file under her arm. “Director Bennett asked me to get these file updates to be processed.”

Rip looked from his desk to the file under her arm. “Did he now?”

“Yes. I didn’t mean to barge in, but I had no idea when you were coming back.”

Rip nodded. “That’s understandable.”

“Great. So if you don’t mind, I’ll just get going!”

She started to move around to reach the door, but Rip side-stepped to block her path.

“Something that’s not understandable is that I saw you just a minute ago with Agent Green, preparing to go to a mission briefing,” Rip told her. “You can’t portal into offices of directors, so how did you sneak past me?”

“I was just-”

Ava caught the movement of Rip’s hand on the flasher and acted fast. She dropped the file and kicked him backwards, catching him off-guard. He fell against the desk, the memory flasher hitting the floor. Ava ran forward and kicked it away. Rip made a move to fight back, but Ava was ready. She grabbed the arm that was heading for her in a punch and attached a handcuff to his wrist. As he processed that, Ava dragged him over and handcuffed him to one of the stupid wall sconces he had in his office.

Rip looked at his situation with frustration and then back to her. “Who are you?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Ava Sharpe, or the twelfth version of her that you brought back from the future and programmed full of fake memories.”

The deflation in Rip’s shoulders was satisfying. “You’re from the future.”

“2020,” Ava went over to the door, keeping her eyes on him as she made sure it was locked. “I’ve come back for a little mission regarding a certain file that you redacted. Or were going to redact today.”

“Agent Sharpe-”

“Director,” she corrected, even if she hadn’t held that title in nearly a year. “I deserve some answers today. And I might have never gone to seek them out if I hadn’t decided to do a favor for someone.”

Rip didn’t seem surprised at the title. “Well, congratulations first off. I always had a suspicion this day would come. That you would want answers for your past.”

“I do,” Ava leaned against the back of a chair in his office. “Maybe I’ll get to ask a few. But I’m not here for myself. I can understand why my file was redacted.”

“But you still wanted to steal it and find out everything.”

Ava shook her head. “Not everyone is self-centered. I didn’t come for my file. I came for Gary Green’s.”

Something changed in Rip’s body language. It wasn’t major, but a look of fear entered his eyes briefly and he stiffened. “You’re here about Agent Green?”

“In my present, certain people are rising from Hell to return to Earth,” Ava explained, not exposing too many details. “Rasputin, Genghis Khan, Marie Antoinette, a bunch of others. Gary has this notion that his father could come back too.”

Rip went somewhat pale. “If I were you, Director Sharpe, I would hope that never comes to be.”

“Well, I’m trying to assess how big a threat he’d be if he does come back,” Ava sighed. “But you conveniently erased any details on his file that would be able to help me. So what’s the deal with Gary, Rip? Hell, why did you even hire him in the first place? I’ve had to save his ass half the time.”

A snort escaped her former boss. “You’d be surprised how often I’ve been asked that. He’s more capable than he lets on. His father practically trained him to be a child soldier.”

Ava frowned.

“That’s not why I recruited him. Part of it was…revenge. One last middle finger to his father for everything he did to me- taking his son, not that he cared about Gary anyways.”

“And what was the other part that made you recruit him?”

Rip sighed. “To keep an eye on him in the event he turned out to be just like his father.”

“Like his father?” Ava raised an eyebrow. “How bad is his father?”

“Director Sharpe, just take the file and go. At this point, you might as well take yours too.”

“No!” Ava snapped. “Not until you’ve given me a straight answer. For once in your goddamn life, stop avoiding the truth. Tell me now who Gary’s father is!”

“His name is Vandal Savage.”

The way Rip said the name made it feel like something had crawled down Ava’s spine. Everyone at the Time Bureau knew about Vandal Savage and what he had done. She had made a list of serial killers and all-around awful people who could have been Gary’s father, but Vandal Savage hadn’t been on the list. The name had come up, but she had doubted that he was a possible candidate. Ava looked at the file on the floor and picked it up to check. For once in his life, Rip was not lying.

“You think Gary could be the next Vandal Savage?” she asked, still working to accept it.

“I don’t want to underestimate the possibility,” Rip said. “His father trained him to be a killer. I would be a fool to assume Vandal Savage’s son didn’t have the same potential of evil. Those who are mentored by him go on to aid him in his activities or commit their own atrocities. If Gary ever does turn, then I plan to take him out myself. You should too.”

Ava laughed. “Gary wouldn’t…he wouldn’t.”

She couldn’t say that he wouldn’t turn evil. It hadn’t been a year and she’d completely forgotten. Gary had given into Neron’s influence and worked with him. She and the Legends had a hand in contributing to his fall, treating him like crap and using him as unicorn bait and not paying overtime. But it wasn’t like he had gone Damien Darhk evil, just a henchman really. The way Rip was looking at her…he knew something had happened.

“Go ahead and take his file,” Rip instructed. “Use it to make your own judgement. Take yours as well.”

Ava glanced back at where hers was still sitting on Rip’s desk. “I only brought Gary’s to be replaced. It’s too late to get mine.”

“I suppose you’ll have to leave it then. Maybe it’s for the-”

“Hold on,” Ava held up a finger. “I’m not done. You redact that file but make a copy first. Leave it somewhere on the Waverider. Think of it as way to make it up to the last eleven versions of me that you thought of as disposable.”

Rip looked regretful. “I’m not proud of that and you deserve to know the truth. I’ll leave the file in the room no one goes into. Now will you please let me go?”

Ava picked up his memory flasher from the floor and put into her pocket. Taking Gary’s file and making sure it was the unredacted one, she tossed Rip the key to his handcuffs. He managed to catch it as Ava started to open the door.

“You were a good mentor,” she told him. “But you don’t care about people unless they help you achieve your goals. You did it to me. You did it to the Legends. You probably did it to Gary too. Everyone who can help you gets used, and they leave you for it. And one day, you’ll have nowhere left to run and no one to help you. It’ll be a sad ending, but you brought it upon yourself.”

Rip stared at her as she opened the door and walked out. Ava exhaled as she strode towards the bathroom. She had always wanted to give Rip a piece of her mind for what he’d done to her. Inside the bathroom, she programmed the courier to take her back to Central City and Mick just a few minutes after leaving them. Hopefully, she’d still be able to see her favorite niece.

~~~

Behrad watched Atropos drag the golden thread from his chest. He had heard of people talking about their life flashing before their eyes, but now his life was being pulled out before his eyes. The Fate had her bone knife held back and was ready to swing down. No one was here to save him, but hopefully someone would come for Zari. This was it.

He was going to die without anyone at his side and he was going to die before he could tell Ava what he had found out from Gideon.

Behrad was going to die before he could tell her that Gary’s father was Vandal Savage.

SNIP

~~~

Stacey had tried to get him to stay another day, but Gary knew he had been gone long enough. He had to get back to the manor and get back to his magic studies, especially with his father’s return. The Legends were going to have to be notified that Vandal Savage was back at an Encore and after the Loom of Fate as well. He didn’t even have to tell them that the man was his father…yet. But it would better they knew before he found them and let that bomb slip.

After making sure protections were put on the house and its occupants, Gary drove the car that he’d rented back to the dealership. He then planned to portal back onto the Waverider first so he could tell Captain Lance and the crew. Before he did, Gary pulled out his phone. He hadn’t looked at it for days so he could get away from everything, but he’d missed a voicemail from John.

“Hey, Gary. It’s John,” he heard as soon as he pressed play. “We found the first piece of the Loom…”

Gary listened the message twice. His heart did sink when he realized that he had missed saying goodbye to Ray and Nora. Hopefully, domestic bliss was treating them well.

“I miss you. Just…let me or someone on the ship know you’re okay, right? Bye.”

Both times, Gary smiled at the last words. He had missed John while he was away. Whatever they were was murky and muddled, but he felt there was something there. Then again, he could just be reading into things too much. He probably hadn’t helped things with his own disappearing act. But he did want to see John again.

When he made it onto the Waverider, a chill traveled down his back. Something was off about the ship and he didn’t know what it was. As he started heading in a direction, he passed Zari storming away out of the med bay. Mascara was running down her cheeks, so something was wrong. Gary’s gut twisted fearing the worst.

“Zari, are you-”

“Not now!” she snapped, brushing past him.

Gary watched her go and peeked his head inside the med bay. His heart sank as he saw John lying on one of the beds, eyes closed. Oh no, no, no.

“John?”

John groaned and opened his eyes. “Gary?”

“Oh, thank goodness. I thought you were dead.”

John’s face fell as Gary entered the room. “Starting to wish I was instead.”

Gary shook his head. “No, don’t say that. Not after the last time.”

“You don’t know?” John sat up with a wince. “Gary, how long have you been back?”

“Barely a minute, but I did see Zari crying. Is she okay?”

“Hardly. Her brother’s dead.”

The world stopped for a few seconds as that news sank in. “What?”

“Behrad was on the ship with Zari when- Gary!”

He hadn’t realized he’d been falling until John reached out to grab his arms as his knees hit the floor. Gary could hear him telling him to calm down, but he was hearing his father’s voice swearing to find the Legends. His father had sworn to find the pieces and the Legends. With two of them in the same place, he would have easily taken the opportunity to kill two birds with one stone.

“How did he get on board?” Gary mumbled.

“He?” John frowned. “No, it was a she. Charlie’s sister, Atropos. She wanted the rings and nearly got them. Charlie and Sara got the rings, but she got away. She almost took me out too if Nate hadn’t found me.”

Gary sighed in relief not only because John was alive, but because it hadn’t been his father who had found the ship and killed Behrad. But he absolutely hated that he hadn’t been there. Behrad was not the one who should be dead right now. If he hadn’t gone off the grid for a few days, he could have been here and helped him, maybe even saved him.

“Strangest thing though,” John muttered. “I swear when I was bleeding out by the creek, someone was standing over me before Nate found me.”

The panic that had gripped Gary earlier returned.

~~~

Lachesis pushed the soul coin to the side when she was finished with the summoning. She started studying one of the other coins she’d recalled earlier while waiting. Even when the flames started to rise up and she heard the screaming, she just kept examining the coin and how useful they could be. When the intended soul finally appeared, Lachesis glanced up at him. As predicted, Vandal Savage was furious.

“What am I doing back here?!” he demanded, striding up to her table. “I was so close to taking out Constantine!”

“I know,” Lachesis told him, setting the coin to the side. She would decide on its usefulness later. “I don’t doubt you could have slaughtered the whole crew.”

“As if your sister wouldn’t have done the same.”

Lachesis narrowed her eyes. “Atropos has restraint, something that you seemed to have forgotten during your duration in Hell.”

The dictator scowled. “I was not known for leaving a job unfinished.”

“Except that wasn’t why I sent you to the surface. I would have called you back sooner, but Atropos required your assistance in finding Clotho. But now that you’ve returned, I’m curious to know how the family reunion went?”

A smirk slid across Vandal’s face. “Gareth refused my offer. He wouldn’t turn on the Legends, but that doesn’t mean they won’t turn on him. It’ll be inevitable, but it can’t hurt to speed things up. Should I make an entrance for them later?”

Lachesis smiled. “You’re getting your touch back. You’ll get your revenge soon enough, but first we need all the rings in one place. Clotho’s doing the dirty work retrieving them all, even if Atropos is collecting earlier than she should. Once she has all the rings, then your son will bring you back.”

“Gareth’s magic is powerful, but how will you convince him to bring me back?”

“Oh, I won’t be doing the convincing,” Lachesis gave a low whistle toward the shelves where she knew the hellhound lurked. “Marchosias will.”

The man across from her took a half step back as a growl came from the darkness. No matter the evil or bravery in a soul, the sound of a hellhound drove a spike into the fear of all. Lachesis watched as Vandal recovered himself and nodded in agreement. Lachesis picked up another coin and examined it. Yes, she would be a good one to bring back.

“You can go now,” she told Vandal. “If you’re still angry I brought you back so soon, there’s plenty of people to take it out on down the street.”

“Until we meet again.”

Lachesis glanced up as he started to open the door. “How much does your son know about what happened to his mother, Vandal?”

“What does that have to do with the plan?” he sneered.

“If you want him to stay after he betrays Clotho and the others, I need to know so as not to let the wrong details slip.”

“I told it him it was pneumonia. He was only six, he didn’t ask questions.”

Lachesis nodded. “I won’t mention the truth then.”

Vandal didn’t say anything else. He just walked out the door and closed it behind her.

Lachesis picked up the next coin in Astra’s stash. Jack the Ripper would be a fine addition to the souls she would bring back.

#legends of tomorrow #gary green #john constantine #constangreen #ava sharpe #rip hunter #behrad tarazi #vandal savage #lachesis #fanfiction

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firesoulstuff · 5 years

Note

For the Winter Prompts #70, Captain Canary Thank you!

70. “You’re perfectly welcome to kiss whomever you wa–”

Read on AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21672130/chapters/51815305

Sara knew coming to the Time Bureau’s New Year’s party was a bad idea, but apparently she didn’t realize just how bad of an idea.

She and Ava broke up less than a month ago, and ok, the wound is still fresh and she’s sure the rest of the team would’ve understood if she chose to take a rain check on the party. But she and Ava agreed they can still be professional, and that includes not going out of their way to avoid each other.

Good thing it doesn’t involve avoiding the bar.

Of course, she’s even alone here, because her drinking buddy Mick – great, she can’t even think of his name without snarling – in some truly bizarre twist of fate, has started hanging around with one of their previously dead allies which the Crisis managed to return to them. Her sister, to be specific. Her sister who is sober and she doesn’t know if Mick is trying to impress her or what but he hasn’t come near the bar all night and it is infuriating. With Mick around, no one else should ever be the most inhibited person in the room.

She, of course, feels like an awful person for thinking that.

She keeps sipping on her drink; a soda spiked with a fair amount of vodka. She’s looking to numb herself tonight, but tipping back shots of whiskey isn’t exactly the most effective way to convince everybody that you’re fine.

And, as she catches Leonard’s eyes across the room and he very quickly looks away, she is well aware that she is very much not fine.

He’s another one Crisis was able to return. It’s funny, at first she thought she’d lucked out. Two of the people most important to her who she’s lost back from the dead? There had to be a catch.

Turns out there was.

Neither of them has wanted much to do with her since getting back.

Laurel’s been a little better. At first she was the only one her sister would so much as look at. So much has changed since Laurel’s death, including the appearance of Earth-2 Laurel. Sara knows she’s changed too, a lot, but at first Laurel seemed ok with it. She asked all her questions and even boarded the Waverider when Crisis was over, but since then… Laurel seems more interested in the rest of the team than in her.

She knows that’s a good thing, and she isn’t so childish to be jealous. It’s just… she wouldn’t mind having some of her sister’s attention right now.

Especially with Leonard being back.

Unlike Laurel, he’s been avoiding her since the moment he returned. At first she thought he might need space, and he was clinging to Mick in much the same way Laurel was sticking by her, but now this is getting insulting. Mick with her sister more often than not, and instead of coming to her to gossip about it Leonard seems to have taken a shine to everybody but her.

When is an acceptable time to start on whiskey?

Currently he is across the room with Gary, talking about something or other, and she grimaces. She thought Gary would’ve annoyed him.

“Alright everybody!” One of the new Bureau agents – Archie, she’s pretty sure - says as he commanders a microphone Gary was abusing earlier. “It is officially one minute to midnight so we’re going to start the countdown, make sure you’re all near your special someone of the night. If you don’t have a special someone then, hey, I’m still looking for somebody to kiss!”

Great.

He doesn’t actually start counting right then and there, although Sara is sure he’s keeping count of the seconds. Speaking of seconds, she catches Ava’s eye for about half of one but then her ex glances away; a firm no. Fine, it’s better that way anyway.

“Thirty seconds everyone!”

Why is a time traveling organization even having a New Year’s party?

“Twenty seconds!”

She looks over at the bartender, “Can I get a whiskey, please?”

“Fifteen seconds!”

Ok, maybe it wouldn’t kill her to at least do a headcount of her team.

“Ten.”

Ray and Nora are over by a standing table, already wrapped up in each other and counting along with the rest of the crowd.

“Nine.”

Charlie’s got Zari talking over against the back wall.

“Eight.”

Huh, Behrad looks like he’s consoling Nate over something. Wonder what that’s about.

“Seven.”

Well, at least she won’t be the only person not kissing at midnight, but it still hurts that Mona’s over with Ava right now.

“Six.”

She almost face palms, watching John lead Archie into a closet.

“Five.”

Her sister and Mick getting closer, nauseating.

“Four.”

No. Gideon, Rip, do not go into that closet.

“Three!”

Oh poor Gary, he definitely noticed John and Archie’s little vanishing act.

“Two!”

On second thought Gideon, go ahead. Open that door. She wouldn’t mind seeing that particular mess unfold.

“One! Happy New Year!”

The cheer is echoed by everyone in the room, punctuated by whistles, music, and so many kisses. It seems like everyone found someone to kiss, even the most unlikely of candidates. She sees Mona drag Ava in for a quick peck, and it actually serves enough to make her laugh. Of course, the real sight to see is Behrad doing the same to Nate, except his is much more than a peck and might even border a bit on assault were it anybody else. Laurel and Mick, that’s something she isn’t going to think about until morning. Leonard and-

The amused smile vanishes from her face.

Leonard. She had idly entertained some hopes earlier today that he might want to kiss her at midnight, and when those were all tossed out the window rather quickly she at least took solace in the fact that he likely wouldn’t be kissing anyone, the same as her.

Likely, but apparently not definitely.

It isn’t a long kiss. Really, it’s probably only a second or two that their lips are touching, but it feels like it drags on forever.

Leonard and Gary. She never would’ve thought.

She tips back what’s left of her whiskey and leaves the glass on the bar; she’s had enough of this party.

“Ten.”

Great, the New Year’s countdown. Least that means he can leave soon.

“Nine.”

To tell the truth, Leonard isn’t sure why he even agreed to come to this party.

“Eight.”

He tried sticking it out with Mick, but his buddy was clearly genuinely enjoying himself, and he would hate to ruin that.

“Seven.”

Sara’s still over at the bar, nowhere near her ex.

“Six.”

Constantine is bringing the guy who started the countdown into a closet. Classy.

“Five.”

Maybe he could… No. Sara and Ava were together for almost two years. A month is too soon to... well, to make a move.

“Four.”

Lovely, Gideon’s got her eye on the closet too.

“Three!”

“Oh.”

The mutter is so quiet Leonard almost doesn’t hear it, but when he turns that poor love-struck idiot Gary is still standing nearby, eyes locked on the closet.

“Two!”

Ouch, poor guy.

“One! Happy New Year!”

He steps over to Gary, frowning amid all the other happy partygoers. That just isn’t right. He can be disappointed at midnight, but poor Gary who has probably never had a celebratory kiss in his life, doesn’t deserve that.

Gary looks up at him, looking more like a kicked puppy then any actual kicked puppy Leonard has ever seen.

“You want a kiss?”

“Uh…” Gary stammers, his eyes scanning Leonard’s face for any hints of sarcasm.

“One that means nothing.” He clarifies quickly, “Just for midnight.”

“Oh… Uh, sure. Th-Thank you. Uh-”

Oh for crying out loud.

He leans over presses a quick kiss to Gary’s lips. A little more than a peck, but he only lingers it for a second. Gary barely has any time to kiss back before it’s over, and when it is Leonard finds that the view over Gary’s shoulder has a perfect sightline for the bar.

And for Sara storming away.

Needless to say, he leaves Gary spluttering there in the middle of the room, and he’ll feel guilty about it later.

He moves quickly through the crowd, most people are still caught up in their own worlds anyway and too distracted to notice him. He does hear one shout in the distance and look over his shoulder to investigate, and man he wishes he could stick around because Gideon opened the closet door but… more important matters at hand.

Leaving the party room behind puts him out in the main halls of the Time Bureau. He doesn’t know these halls as well as he would like to, having been here only once before. He’s sure Sara knows of more places to hide around here than he does.

Click.

Or maybe not.

He hears the heavy sound up around a corner ahead, a sound that can only be made by a rather large and industrial front door being opened into a gust of wind. He picks up his pace and rounds the corner, and as he draws nearer to the Time Bureau’s main entrance he is able to see Sara through it’s glass windows; walking away.

He doesn’t even try to stop himself.

“Sara!” He calls after her, pushing the front door open. He’s surprised when she stops and turns back, and even more surprised when she stays there.

It’s cold out here. No snow, not in DC, but cold enough that she must be freezing in only that little gold dress with spaghetti straps.

“A little cold out here.” He drawls, and really, that’s all he’s got. He’s coming to the sudden and painful realization that he had no actual plan in chasing her out here. Nothing other than what? Assuring her there is nothing between him and Gary?

She shrugs, her arms crossed, giving him full view of the goose bumps that have appeared on her skin.

He shrugs out of his coat wordlessly, and when he holds it out to her she looks at it for a second, before finally she takes it.

“Thanks.”

They don’t talk while she puts it on and zips it up, her hands going in his pockets and damn, he really likes the sight of her in that jacket.

“So what?” She eventually asks, when they have been standing out here in the cold staring at each other for long enough. “First New Year’s back from the dead and you lose interest after kissing Gary for three seconds?”

Her words come with a certain… a pained venom, he’ll say. It’s a weak shot, and she is well aware of it, to the point where she scuffs her foot against the sidewalk and her eyes follow it instead of looking at his.

“Sara.”

“No, hey, it’s fine.” She insists, in a voice that is anything except for fine. “It’s fine, really. You’re an adult, you’re single. You are perfectly welcome to kiss whomever you wa-”

“Can I?” He interrupts, which he doesn’t exactly mean to do, but he can’t watch this betrayed pain on her face for one second more.

“Can I?” He repeats, stepping closer. “Because, nice of a guy as Gary is, he’s not my type, and I would very much like to kiss you instead.”

With his words his hands move to settle on her hips, and she responds by taking her hands out of his pockets and looping her arms around his neck, pulling herself closer.

“I’d like that too.”

He’s grinning like a cat as he leans into her, his lips pressing against the warmth of hers.

Hands down, best way to start the new year.

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