#and randall believed it (because he's selfish)

[justkillingthyme]

honestly i agree with your fags on the post abt randall. even tho im not a fan of him i think ppl are too hung up on his actions as a teen versus the issues with him in the actual present day story. it would be interesting to see more of your take on him bc i agree hes one of the more complicated cases even if my opinion on him is pretty negative

Cracks my fucking knuckles. I want to preface that my take on Randall is heavily influenced by someone else and that I haven’t played MM in forever. I’m going off my shit memory and vibes here.

Randall, as a teenager, is incredibly emotionally immature. He’s reckless, selfish, doesn’t take other’s feelings into consideration, etc. That much is true. Personally I think he has audhd which contributes to his lack of awareness on other’s feelings unless there’s an outright display. He’s passionate and wants to display and get others into his interests. He drags Hershel along on adventures, gives him puzzles, etc. We don’t know enough about their relationship to say exactly how this all started or anything, but Hershel notes in his journal that he does actually like adventure. Even if Randall is forcing him to come along, it’s not entirely one sided.

Hershel has his own problems with self expression and his identity, none too helped by The Trauma. He seems pretty weak willed, backing down when Randall presses, but we do see him speak up for Angela. He is capable of saying no and being stern, but he does usually go along with what Randall does. Because he likes it. He likes adventure and puzzles and exploring.

At first going to Gressenheller was a tribute to Randall’s lost future, but if he truly hated it, he wouldn’t act the way he does in the present.

I think Randall has a tough time with boundaries. Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile. That, I believe, can also be attributed to his childhood. (Disregarding conflicting information), Randall is an only child that grew up in a wealthy household. His father seems to be somewhat cold with him, and his mother (at least during MM), seems to be coddling in the way Angela and Henry turn out to be. He grew up with Henry as his best friend. Henry his servant who isn’t allowed to do anything but what Randall wants.

He’s got a one track mind, and everything else gets pushed to the side. Other people included. He doesn’t consider that Angela might be upset with him until she’s breaking down and comparing Randall to her brother. Even then, he comforts her just enough for him to return to his task. Hershel calls him out here, because he’s being an ass. Henry stepping in de-escalated the situation, but I don’t think he was planning on actually stopping post-Akbadain. Impulse control is at an all time low at 16-18 years old, and he hasn’t stopped attention seeking behaviors. Adolescents also have a personal fable, the belief that consequences won’t apply to him. He thinks that he will be the exception.

This again brings us back to his father. A good portion of Randall’s desire for greatness stem from feeling insignificant. He wants to prove himself, whether that be to his father or others in town, not mentioning that Dalston feeds into those feelings. His feelings on Henry (that his father likes Henry more) are totally fucked, but it’s just how he perceives it. He wants to be worth it, and he wants other people to see him as worth it.

I think even if he got out of Akbadain alive, the glory wouldn’t be enough for him. Once you attain your goal you’re always going to be dissatisfied etc etc. He’s the kind of guy to always want more.

I’m going to put the present day stuff in a rb I think. This was pretty long already

[lowkeyclowning]

ermm small little rant/talk about the collector movies because I have to talk about it I HAVE TO

imo Juan did a better job because he really captivated that interesting grotesque “spider” vibe; whereas Randall (though not his fault entirely) is more canine-esque(?) if that makes sense?

Juan being more (overly) expressive & weird while Randall stuck to the more uhh serious silent type ig??

I love how randall captured his anger though, and his irritability/frustration to things going wrong. I think he did a fantastic job in that regard.

I believe it is fact Juan had a better touch into Asa Emory as a character. In this interview i love a lot he explains he was blind for his character and that he did this on purpose, as well as making sure to be aware of lighting and such.

Now I do not agree that randall was in any way selfish or in the wrong for this role. I think it’s weird to look down on someone for accepting money handed to them. Randall didn’t even do a bad job,, his twist on Asa was just a little bland LOL

anyway this was me rambling I’m in no way a movie critic, I’m just extremely passionate about asa emory and the collection <3

[loupy-mongoose]

So like, how was child Lav selfish?

Is that like what modern day Lav thinks of herself from when she was a child? Cause that's probably not like exactly healthy?

Kids don't have the higher thinking to notice things and emotions from people even as a Mewtwo she was still mentally very young and only fully mentally matured recently so her frontal lobe and processing stuff wouldn't have been fully developed so like if course she wouldn't have noticed that Randall was sad?

And I assume Randall was like intentionally hiding his exhaustion and pain from her anyways? Unless he actively told Lav that he was not doing well mentally and was exhausted and tired in which case that's, still not Lavs responsibility as she's like a child and isn't responsible for Randall's mental stability? So even if she had been told she couldn't have comprehended it and it isn't exactly reasonable for her to think she was selfish for not having the higher mental awareness of how to deal with that information.

But I'm assuming Randall didn't like tell Lav dealing with his feelings privately and so that would've made it harder for Lav to even notice anything was wrong so how was she selfish? She was a kid a single child who needed mental stimulus and engagement because she was a kid and that's, normal and to be expected? So I don't get the whole selfish angle of it?

(I believe this is the post where this question stems from.)

I called her selfish because children are selfish. They have to be taught to not be. Lav was the same. She had to learn that other people are other people, and don't exist to serve her. (A lesson I fear is going untaught a lot these day. >:| )

She doesn't see her past self as selfish, necessarily, just... a child. It's more so that now she recognizes her childish antics were hard on him when he was already going through so much on his own.

She's been told that none of it was her fault, but there's still a tiny fiber of doubt in her mind, and has regrets about it all.

[adleryoung]

"This here plan is gettin too dang convoluted!" Burnside protested, brandishing her machete. "Just send me out to stab somebody. It'll be simple. I can just go out, gut everyone who gets in my way, save the dumb baker femme that you ain't never even laid eyes on nor spoken to so it's a wonder you care about her at all, an drag Didelphis back here for judgement. I'll get it all done in one night. There ain't a lowfolk born that can get the drop on me. The Ixies can bet on it."

"I don't like it," I objected.

"If you're so doggone worried about bein' Seelie, just remember it ain't Unseelie to stab somebody if he deserves it."

"No stabbing!" I insisted.

"Fine, I can slash instead."

"That's a bad idea," I persisted, "for the same reason that nailing headless torsos to trees is a bad idea. It may inspire fear but it also draws attention and will cause mass outrage that will spread and bring all the lowfolk on this island right to these woods, with torches and pitchforks. If it turns out this situation requires assassination, and I really hope it doesn't, it would have to be done cleanly, precisely, and secretly so it cannot be traced back to me or my coven. I do not want my organization associated with sloppy and wasteful mass murder!"

"You sounded almost like Ash for a second there," Burnside grinned as she lowered her machete. "All right, I can wait."

I scowled at Burnside for a moment, then directed my attention to the witches.

"All right, all right," I called. "If everyone could please focus and answer my question: Is Didelphis worth saving?"

"Um, no way," Gretchen declared. "She's trying to get us all killed. She's proven herself to be a mean and selfish old hag that doesn't care about any of us. Throw her under the ant-coach, I say."

"She was a pretty crappy coven leader," Petunia added. "She promised us dark power beyond our wildest dreams, but every meeting we would spend a few minutes looking at the same grimoire, and the rest of the night listening to her rant about baking and how much she hated Oonagh. Letting her get burned by an angry mob is probably karma or something. Nothing of value would be lost."

"I don't really like the idea of anyone being killed," Chloe shrugged, "but saving her would only give her another chance to betray us again."

"I'm disappointed with all of you," Rebecca scowled. "Didelphis must be saved."

"What? Why?" the other witches asked in chorus.

"Didelphis represents what all of us could end up being," Rebecca explained. "Especially me. She was a social outcast who spent so much time wallowing in her darker aspects that she eventually believed that was all there was to her. Think about it! She's actually proud of the fact that she's a hideous, mad crone. If I hadn't met Lord Randall, that's exactly what I would have become. I was on that path, but now I'm on a different one and I can hardly wait to share with you what I've learned. If we all get a chance at a happier life, then Didelphis should too. I volunteer to pose as Didelphis like our lord said. I know her better than the rest of you, because I always arrived for coven meetings early, and stayed late to help her around the house and maybe get more pointers on being a witch. I think I can imitate her mannerisms convincingly enough."

That wasn't good. I didn't want to risk my organization's most valuable member (next to Vernier of course) but it would be a mistake to blurt that out in front of the other witches. Plus, I was 99 percent sure Rebecca was an elf, so telling untruths would be a problem for her. It could damage her emerging magickal ability.

I was just about to say something, when an Ixie buzzed up to me and gave a salute.

"Sire, I have more information. There is in fact a ring-leader whipping the rabbit mob into a frenzy. They call him Parson. As best we can tell, he careth not if Didelphis's story is true. He seemeth to be doing this merely to strengthen his influence in the rabbit village. We have also learned that there will be a jury for the trial. Oonagh is popular enough in the town, they were willing to give her that much. If the rest of the coven cannot be found in two days time, then the trial commenceth without them."

Pretty suspenseful, eh? This seems like a good place to pause. I need to take a short break to moisten my throat. In the meantime, why not be like the Ixies and place bets on the coming sequence of events. How do you think I handled this situation? Did Didelphis survive? Did Oonagh?

Discuss among yourselves while I hunt down a decent bottle of wine.

[deanstead]

i never doubt he loves kim and i think he keep up this co parenting thing because he loves mack and wants to be always be near. my question was is he in love with kim? because he has not done or said anything to show he still is. i only brought up the house as example. the house is for both yes but more for mack. it does not prove adam is in love with kim. even sleeping on her couch too was for both but more for mack i felt. to be near her. what is something that he has done for kim and kim only?

everyone say adam told kim shes a good mother because he knew thats what she needed to hear and im agree but why couldnt he say both? its only few more words! “and i love you” or “and i love you kim” or “i love you kim” he can find strength and time to say “i love mack” and tell kim she is good mother but not add in i love you for kim? how do you think kim would have felt if adam had died? put yourself in her shoes. how would you have felt if you were kim? the woman who always have doubts if adam really love her.

i dont think those doubts ever went away. why else would she tell adam “you can meet someone, fall in love, want your own family?” adam did not deny it. he said hes not leaving but that was mostly for mack. what if mack went to the uncle? would adam still have stuck around? he has never fought for kim the way he fought for mack. i just dont think hes in love with kim anymore and i dont think he loves them equally not the way in greys anatomy derek loved meredith and their children zola, bailey and ellis equally or in this is us jack loved rebecca and their children randall, kate and kevin equally.

I think this has been mentioned more than once too so i’ll try to keep it short.

Flipside - if Adam had said he loves her and died? I don’t think that would be any consolation to Kim. In fact, it might have made her feel worse. Adam is in love with Kim but he doesn’t know where Kim stands in terms of her feelings for him. I feel it would have been more selfish for Adam to have put it on Kim without knowing how Kim would feel about it.

She told Adam about having his own family because they’re not in a relationship. Yes, they’re coparenting but they aren’t dating. Kim was just laying out facts. Once again, I don’t believe that Adam loving Mack doesn’t mean he is less in love with Kim. Loving a daughter and loving a partner are different dynamics in the first place.

Personally, I don’t think you can compare MerDer to Burzek because the dynamic is totally different. MerDer had an established relationship when they had the kids, Burzek isn’t really in a relationship. The dynamics are quite different.

[rametarin]

How about those addicts have some compassion and stop being a problem?

The reason they don't get actual genuine help is because they do not want to live in a reality where they have to keep themselves clean, pay for their own bad habits and hold down a job. They want a society that just gives them their crack pipe, or fentanyl, or methodone, and pays for their house, and buys them their food, and takes care of their kids, while they just do the modern equivalent of marinate in an opium den and occassionally squeeze out another sickly, drug poisoned baby they expect everybody else ("A decent, COMPASSIONATE society!") to raise, for them.

The, "Bourgoise" could never even imagine to plot such an inconvenience as a bunch of entitled assholes that expect everybody else, from working class to rich, to pay the tab for their fucking worthless lifestyles that aren't just harming themselves, but deliberately harming everybody around them. Where rather be contributions to society, they conspire to be burdens on the social safety net while caring about nothing but partying and fucking. Partying and fucking EVERYBODY ELSE could be doing more of, if not for society having more and more people that think it should be an everybody problem to finance taking care of the most selfish, worthless people on the planet.

It's not the billionaires that are leaving tens of thousands of hypodermic needles on the streets of San Francisco. It's not the billionaires shitting in the streets because they don't WANT to move somewhere that real estate can be bought and toilets can be secured safe from the muggers claiming they own property they do not legally own and trying to charge tolls to their fellow vermin.

I have family that are or have been nurses. Some of the most selfish, disgusting people on the planet are kept afloat and enabled to be the most selfish, disgusting people only because of this false, ideological compassion. People that won't stop having babies because they believe they're so important, despite being ugly pieces of shit with severe congenital recessive diseases that burden their kids with. One of these assholes, I've seen, caused two people be born with a muscular disorder that meant by the age of 6 they were trapped in their own bodies. One of the kids died because a crackhead rival of the asshole broke into his house and brutalized his son, the other died because she inherited the 'body shuts down at 12' disease.

And that asshole's babymama went out and syphoned gas out of their state-appointed nurses car. SYPHONED GASOLINE OUT OF THEIR STATE APPOINTED NURSES CAR. Refusing to be the source of the wealth the children are raised on and instead deciding to be a consumer of everybody elses hard earned wealth.

Miss me with that, "class disparity and injustice by the bourgoise." The disgusting masses of worthless shit that conspire to make themselves as worthless as possible and then open their mouths like baby birds for the time, efforts and surplus of everybody else do more damage to society than a million, billionaires could ever do.

For some reason we can't talk about how much those flailing, rag wearing muggers living out on the street subtract from society or the safety of our communities, but we can pretend Randall McOldblood living in his mansion is somehow stealing living space from people because he has empty bedrooms he's not using. We can't talk about how much money gets vacuumed up by assholes that think they're smarter than everybody else by virtue of getting to go without a day job while they find sources for their drug habits, but we can talk about how someone whom has a billion dollars, "didn't earn that money legitimately and shouldn't be allowed to have it."

How about this take: If all you do is smoke crack, do fentanyl or ketamine and harass people for change or mug them like a rabid animal, you should be taxed of your time and freedom by being put in a prison cell and society should make as sure you get clean of your habit, as it makes sure people are taxed of their income. Because making yourself a worthless, no-good sucker of public resources means maybe after a certain price point, society should consider ways to extract that productivity back out of you. Or, if not, you should be allowed to die.

The dude that invests a few thousand dollars and gets back ten thousand dollars and goes on to do that for a while, is not "stealing" from society. It is inarguable that if you're becoming such a collective burden by your own subcultures decisions that people you've never even met are being forced to pitch in JUST to enable your ass to continue to make lifestyle decisions that just take from other people, YOU ARE THE PROBLEM. Just having money and property is not hurting society, and simply having that (no dodging and saying the real estate moguls or tax cheats- they believe ALL property ownership and ALL wealth is harmful to the poor) does not mean they're stealing it from the poor. The poor are not entitled to something just because it exists.

i don't care if you live in new york city get normal about drug addicts sometime soon or jump in front of the trains

[medusinestories]

Black Sails, IV (S1, ep 04)

- Silver's horrified face when he finds out he's going to have to roast pigs is a Journey, starting with shock, then fake smiling, and then this horrified shuddery expression. It's just as interesting when they drop the dead pig at his feet and he clearly doesn't know what to do with it and also finds it disgusting. I can absolutely see where all the Jewish John Silver headcanons come from, especially since it's unlikely that a London urchin has never seen a dead pig and raw meat in general before.

- Here we have the first performance of Cassandra DeGroot: he knows that the bay they'd chosen to do the careening was too dangerous, and warns the crew. He's immediately countered by Flint, who has much more persuasive arguments to get the careening done fast but in a risky manner. (this whole thing reminds me of our current COVID/climate situation, where scientists get talked over by politicians, and people prefer listening to the latter because they seem to offer much better prospects than the “catastrophist” former)

- In this episode Billy is now quartermaster and he shows himself to actually be really good at disciplining the crew, something Gates, DeGroot and even Flint recognise. However, he also agreed to do the careening only because he's afraid to say no to Flint and allowed the men to have a fuck tent, which he feared would distract them - and it did, the two men who placed the rope on the wrong tree decided not to follow his orders and go fuck instead. This all weighs on him enormously after the disaster with Randall and Morley, who accuses him minutes before his death of already being in Flint's pocket. It's pretty clear that more responsibility doesn't do Billy's mental state any good.

- Morley's story about the Maria Aleyne gives some idea of a timeline, albeit a faint one. The incident took place "a number of years back", before Billy joined. This means that Billy is a somewhat new addition to the crew. We know that Randall was bosun when Billy joined. This also establishes that Lord Hamilton has been dead for several years, which now begs the question: who is the Lord Proprietor that Richard Guthrie is now in touch with? Did Thomas have a younger brother who inherited the Bahamas? Was someone new appointed? Was there a gap between Proprietors that allowed the pirates to establish themselves even more after Lord Alfred's death?

- I just adore the fact that Miranda actually went to stinking, violent Nassau because she was just too impatient to wait at home and wanted to be there when the Walrus came in and immediately hear the news of Lord Alfred's death. She is that vengeful and angry and I love her <3

- Speaking of which, this episode gives us the Passive-Agressive Sex Scene which makes so many people doubt of Flint's attraction to Miranda. Just look at Flint’s face: this man isn't uncomfortable or sad he is PISSED. He plays starfish and glares at Miranda all through it (while maintaining an erection all the same!). Miranda must be hella frustrated (or determined) because she manages to get off in spite of all of this (also, how uncommon is it for a sex scene to end when the woman climaxes rather than the man?) It's only when it ends that both Flint and Miranda are both shown as vulnerable and sad and reflective, with Flint reaching up to touch her but not quite getting there - imo because he's still angry but knows that she (and he) needs comfort.

- This leads into the argument over Meditations, and Miranda explicitly talking about Thomas and not wanting to forget him. The book hasn't been touched in a long time, confirming the idea that Miranda shared it with Richard Guthrie because Flint refuses to touch it. Her grief, her loneliness, are incredibly poignant in this scene, and we see Flint shift from bristling and stonily glaring at her, to absolutely melting (Toby's facial expression shifts here are just *chef's kiss*) and finally being gentle and tender with her. However, even though he promises to make things better, Miranda clearly doesn't believe him anymore.

- This brings in a big theme in the episode: betrayal from people you care for/trust. Mr Scott asks Eleanor not to do anything rash in order to get the Andromache’s guns, only to discover her Plan B: to kill Bryson if he didn't comply. In the meantime, Richard Guthrie tells (a very sceptical) Miranda that he can only support Eleanor and Flint, because he pretty much has no choice in the matter. He then proceeds to betray his daughter by making a deal with Bryson and with Mr Scott, who’s still smarting from Eleanor’s betrayal and who Guthrie tries to convince by saying that Eleanor's endeavour will lead to her death and Nassau’s destruction (considering what we later find out about Mr Scott, Eleanor’s safety is probably not be the argument that actually compels Mr Scott - but he certainly doesn't want the Navy searching the area and finding Maroon Island, and needs a stable Nassau to continue supplying his island).

- The Undercooked Pig scene and Silver's attempts at communicating with Flint will never not be funny. Silver looks so small when Flint glares him down, but that doesn't last all that long: once Flint has taught him how to cook the pork, Silver seems much more bold, asking Flint how he learned to glaze the pig, insisting that Flint should trust him and not Billy. This is also a moment where Silver shows that, unlike Flint, he is incredibly perceptive: he noticed that Billy is "straining at the seams" because of the lie he told. And while Flint spits a "there is no we" and calls Silver a rodent, it's obvious that Silver's words still have an impact on him. Their collaboration is sealed when Silver hands him the cleaver so that he can save Randall (and himself). When Flint returns the cleaver to Silver, he's ready to accept that Silver is actually on his side (albeit for selfish reasons) and listens to him for the first time.

- Max believed that she could charm Vane's remaining crew into being kind to her - and overall it seems to have worked. While again I hate this plot, it does give an interesting insight into how even the worst pirate crew is portrayed: most of the men are happy to comply with Max and get sexual rewards "for gentle obedience". Most of them, basically, aren't violent monsters deep down. However there's always one, in this case That Big Bastard (I'm sure he has a name, I just can't be bothered to google it), who clearly gets a kick out of torturing/raping people and hates the idea of a woman taking the lead.

- Fuck You Jack is another theme of this episode. Vane is high on opium and booze and has basically lost the will to do anything. Anne has been courted by several other crews, but Jack hasn't received any offers (note there's no loyalty to Vane here, Jack’s ready to leave, but nobody will have him) and nobody is willing to help him after the pearl cock-up. Then Noonan wants Max back, which Jack refuses because she's the only thing keeping the few members of his crew loyal - and Anne isn't on board with that, leading to her telling him to fuck himself. This, btw, might have crossed Jack’s mind considering the position she was in when he found her. I think it’s easy to forget that Jack is portrayed as pretty callous and happily willing to treat people like pawns too.

- When Richard Guthrie talks about Nassau, he describes it as a place "a place where she [Eleanor] matters, a place where you [Mr Scott] matter", and adds that a place like this isn't meant to last. Nassau, then, is currently an utopia where women and black people can have some semblance of power - and he doesn't believe that this will ever be allowed to exist because this kind of story never has a happy ending in their current society. But when Flint talks to Eleanor about their project, he's of the opposite view: people don't believe that it's possible, but when they succeed, they'll say it was inevitable. It seems Flint is firmly in the camp of "winners get to tell the story", and that the story will influence how the rest of the world sees them.

- When the Walrus tilts and squashes Randall, Flint stops Billy from intervening and rushes to rescue Randall himself - even though he knows the ship will be cut loose at any moment. He puts himself into incredible danger in this moment. Why? Theoretically, it could be for a manipulative purpose: to look good to the crew, or to get rid of Morley. But Flint seems genuinely involved in the struggle to save Randall, and he barely had time to think before he ran off. I feel that this is a rare spontaneous moment for Flint, where instead of thinking about his plans or his position as Captain, he just thinks like a person in an emergency who wants to rescue someone else. He absolutely could have died out there. And while Billy seems to suspect him of having killed Morley, I don't find that reading compatible with what we're shown of Flint trying to save Randall. True, he may have kicked/pushed Morley at the very last second, but we’ll never know that for sure.

- Back to the theme of people betraying their loved ones, we have Richard Guthrie getting back to Miranda, telling her he knows who she is and revealing the "Thomas went mad because Miranda and Flint cheated" story which he heard from Lord Alfred himself. So now Miranda knows that her identity has been revealed and that Richard could spread the story to, say, Pastor Lambrick (let's not pretend this didn't cross her mind, she keeps her identity secret for a reason). And then Guthrie offers her a way back to civilisation. This, right after a kid threw a stone at her, calling her a witch. This, after Flint has promised to make things better, even as he goes deeper into reckless/utopian plans of fortifying Nassau. Backed into a corner, was Miranda ever going to refuse, if she could be safe and have him be safe? And obviously, Richard Guthrie isn't doing this out of the kindness of his heart. He apparently figured out that Miranda was a way to get in touch with Pastor Lambrick and that ridding New Providence of Flint and winning over the “good”, normal inhabitants would be a perfect beginning to buying back his influence on the Island - the end goal being named Governor, of course.

- If there was any doubt that Vane’s tough guy thing is part of an act, his opium hallucination of Eleanor makes it crystal clear: "you're alone, you don't have to pretend with me". That is, pretend that he's not afraid and that he's not vulnerable. The hallucination also offers Vane an explanation for why Eleanor is how she is: like him she's afraid of appearing weak. He's actually spot on, a big problem in their relationship is that they're too alike and are struggling for dominance. Which is probably why Vane wants to overcome his fear and weakness, and regain power by confronting his old slave master (btw, nice parallel with Flint haunted by Miranda in S3). The scene where Vane kills Noonan also shows him in a very animalistic light - at first he's cornered and somewhat pathetic, beaten, throwing up, only saved by the fact that a gun misfires. Then he turns violent: quick, instinctive and relentless, deaf to Noonan's plea to leave him alive, even if theoretically it could have been profitable for him.

- I have to say, I snickered quite a bit when Pastor Lambrick sees Richard Guthrie and tells him "God teaches us not to cheer when someone stumbles, in your case I may ask his forgiveness". I mean, I really see his point. He leads a group of Puritans who are trying to make a life for themselves on this island. Historically, people who lived and farmed in New Providence were constant targets for errant pirates, who robbed, raped and killed a lot of them. This is what the Pastor is trying to protect his congregation from (and Miranda, since he doesn't understand why she's with Flint and is likely terrified that a pirate lives so close to his congregation, hence the spies he sends out). There's a bit of a parallel with Billy, where both Lambrick and Billy are presented as being very preoccupied with the well-being of the group they're responsible for, and both are presented as, well, Goody-Two-Shoes - (self-)righteous, loyal, honest, caring. Except they're both human, and sooner or later they falter.

[valiantarcher]

I have random and assorted thoughts on my Constance Savery reads over the past couple of weeks. I’ve categorised them by work (Magic in My Shoes, “The Waswytch Secret”, The Reb and the Redcoats, The Good Ship Red Lily, and Enemy Brothers) so those who haven’t read all of them have the option to (hopefully easily) scroll past the unread ones if they so desire. I have also put them under the cut due to length.

Magic in My Shoes: I enjoyed Sally as the narrator, and the premise was engaging even with me knowing the secret early in the book. I was a little surprised by the accusations of ill-nourishment and neglect against Aunt Persis, but in retrospect, I appreciate that realism - four growing children are not going to flourish off even generous portions for two of them. Which brings me to my main complaint - Tandy and his unwillingness to see gorging himself was selfish and wrong on many levels. Despite the thin excuse that he had been delicate and sickly at times in the past, I really expected Josset (with Laurence’s support) to put his foot down instead of continuing to baby him (after all, as someone remarked, triplets are all of the same age). Tandy didn’t ruin the story for me, but he made certain parts of it very irritating. I did love the plan involving ten-year-old Laurence becoming a schoolteacher and, when Aunt Persis declared that was nonsense, all the children bring up a moral tale with a six-year-old being so studious that she became a teacher as solid proof.

“The Waswytch Secret”: Given that it was in a collection of ghost stories (well, sort of - most had some sort of haunting element, if only a little, but I’m still not sure why “The Red-Headed League” was included), I wasn’t sure what to expect at first. It was thoroughly Savery, though, and an enjoyable read with an element of mystery. It felt slightly different from her novels, and I think that was due to the choice of one of the younger children as narrator.

Reb and Redcoats: This was a reread and I found it a pretty fun one this time around. Randal’s integration into and relationship with the Darringtons was charming. I couldn’t decide whether Tim Wingate’s inaptitude for stealth and secrecy was more irritating or amusing, but I swung towards the latter by the end, especially given his cheerful nature. My main gripe is that I still feel like the Patty switch was kind of cheating.

The Good Ship Red Lily: I struggled with this one a lot even past (or maybe because of) the tense start. Violet was a horrible child, and I loathed Ingram and disliked Sir Timon. Objectively, of course it’s good that there was reconciliation with Ingram and that he repented and asked forgiveness, but I could not make myself invested in it (though the tiny glimpses we had of it from Michael’s perspective helped a little). I enjoyed Toby as primary character a lot and especially appreciated his resolution to deny the pleasures when he felt accepting them would go against his conscience. I wasn’t very pleased with the treatment of Patience, though - Toby said the others didn’t join him in his denial because they were too young to understand; while that certainly makes sense for the younger ones (and Violet is a category in and of herself), Patience is a year older than him and - although not privy to all the knowledge and trust from their father that Toby is - was Toby’s confidant about plans to escape. She showed a lack of wisdom in following Violet up the chimney, but that could partially have been explained by her caregiving to the younger children. Regardless, especially since all knew about Ingram’s betrayal, I think Patience at least should have been given a reason for not seeing the pleasures as a betrayal of their father instead of being pushed to the side and under the general but false umbrella of “too young to understand”.

Enemy Brothers: Especially after The Good Ship Red Lily, I was afraid this one might not live up to the positive recollection I had of it - but it didn’t disappoint. I very much appreciated that, although Dym was the one who had a special connection with Tony, Tony belonged to the entire family and they to him. I know Tony takes it lightly at the end and chalks it up to their keenness for detective work, but James and Porgy cycling 60 miles after him and the German in the car was no small thing. And, while it bugs me a little bit that Ginger doesn’t recgonise Tony despite the marked resemblance to Dym, I’ll let it go with the idea that he thinks he’s familiar but his brain doesn’t provide the correct context while on ship. I have a new appreciation for Dym. On one hand, of course he is gentle and doesn’t take harm easily from Tony - he’s been searching for Tony for years and so he’s been choosing to love Tony for years. And, on the other, you can tell he still hasn’t forgiven Max’s Mutti for stealing Tony and just how much effort it takes for him to choose to tell Tony to still love her and that he will take him to see her after the war. I also appreciate the honesty that Dym had in discussing England’s past and how they were not always on the side of right but that this time, they were. Also, Dym was a bomber pilot! I don’t know the exact statistics, but this was an incredibly dangerous job. I’m sure it varied some between organizations and aircraft, but if you were on the crew of a US B-17 bomber doing runs, the odds were you would only make it halfway through the 25 runs (I believe that’s right for the year it was published?) you were supposed to before being killed, captured, or severely injured. Even if you beat the odds and made it through all those runs (as some did), you would have had multiple crewmembers who did not and so would not have kept your full crew together (Were there rare exceptions to this, crews who made it all together? I hope so, but I don’t know). At any rate, when Euphemia comments to Dym and his friends to leave croquet until the summer when it was warmer and the way they all looked at each other for a moment as if there was no certainty that summer would come hit hard this time. (Oh, I just found someone noting that the RAF flew night missions and had a higher casualty rate than the US bombers, though it did depend on the year, of course - if they weren’t in the worst year yet, they were heading into it.) And the moment when Tony finds Dym and comes up behind him, nervous and afraid, and whispers “Please, George, I’ve come back” is just wonderful. I think there’s an idea of fear and justice vs. love and mercy, along with the hope that the choice of coming back will make a difference, but I haven’t figured out how to put it into words. I’m actually kind of shocked this book has never been made into a movie or a mini-series, especially when WWII stories have been so popular in somewhat recent years. But perhaps the strong Christian threads have put producers off (...not that that’s stopped others from mangling or removing them from other works).

The Good Ship Red Lily and Enemy Brothers: Enemy Brothers feels like a kind of inverse of The Good Ship Red Lily. Both books deal with children meeting and spending time with family members (and because of kidnapping, no less) and making decisions as to where home is and who true family is, but the role of the family is drastically different. In Red Lily, the dapper uncle is the kidnapper. Ingram tries to act like he is filling the kind, wise, but fun adult role and the children do love him for that. However, he is directly and actively responsible for their kidnapping, for previous imprisonment of their father, and for the current attempt to capture their father. In Enemy Brothers, Dym is ostensibly in the enemy role (being English and responsible for Tony’s “imprisonment” in the White Priory), but his actions are kind, loving, and (mostly) wise. Even when Tony is hating him, he can’t deny there’s a magnetism around Dym that all the children, including him, recognise and respond to. It’s not quite that serious, but I am reminded of the exchange in The Fellowship of the Ring about the enemy’s agents seeming fair but feeling foul, while the good may look foul but feel fair. But where an understanding of Ingram’s true nature leads Toby to separate from him and his grandfather, a deeper understanding of Dym and his true character helps Tony to make the hard but right decision about his home and family. In both cases, repentance and returning bring about reconciliation and restoration, but Ingram is the one repenting in Red Lily, confessing and asking forgiveness of his brother. In Enemy Brothers, Tony is the one who comes back, finally seeking the brother who has sought him for so long. He doesn’t ask for forgiveness from his brother in words and indeed doesn’t need to because his actions speak so loudly of it, but is fully received with love and restored.

[not-wholly-unheroic]

Although I don’t like how Disney want to “justify” villains like Maleficent, Randall Boggs, Cruella, I want to see Hook’s prequel so bad! For me he’s truly the one and only villain that need to be redeemed, because he is a lonely depressed man with a tragic life. And people love him more than Peter, Wendy or Tink!

I would LOVE for Disney to do a backstory and/or redemption arc for Hook. I keep hoping Serena Valentino will add Hook to her Disney Villains book series (which I’ve thoroughly enjoyed so far).

The trick is, any story where the traditional villain becomes the protagonist has to be done JUST RIGHT to make it work. The thing that bothered me with Maleficent was how the retelling tried to make us like her by completely obliterating King Stefan’s character. Stefan did not deserve that kind of character assassination, and if you have to make the good guy look like a total jerk to make the villain likable, that’s honestly just lazy writing, in my opinion.

The thing I love about Peter Pan is that NEITHER hero nor villain is totally black or white. There is a lot of morally gray area where the two overlap, and it makes Hook and Pan both very likable and very human. Too often, people try to make the villain into an innocent victim to make the audience like them, and I think that honestly does the story a disservice. Hook is no angel. Let’s not forget, he DOES try to kill children...even children who have never done anything to him personally if they get in the way of his fight with Peter. He’s not a good person (though I fully believe he is capable of BECOMING one). We can like him as a character and sympathize with him without excusing his actions. That’s not to say Peter is completely innocent either. Regardless of the circumstances, severing a body part from someone and feeding it to a crocodile is...disturbing, to say the least. But the thing is...Peter is not just physically but mentally still a child, and there’s a reason why we don’t charge child criminals the same way that we charge adults. Even the most morally and emotionally mature twelve year-old in the world isn’t capable of understanding on the same level that an adult is. Peter SHOULD be held accountable for his actions...but we should also remember that Hook is the adult, here, and Peter is the child. And it’s the adult’s responsibility to take the moral high ground even when the child does not.

Peter is fun, adventurous, jovial, and daring...but he’s also irresponsible, selfish, cocky, and careless. Hook is short-tempered, violent, obsessive, and cruel...but he’s also charming, sensitive, intelligent, and has a sense of form. Neither is completely good or completely evil, and that’s what makes them so compelling. Give me a backstory for Hook that absolutely breaks my heart for him any day...but give me a story that keeps his flawed humanity.

[liron-ao3]

Three names and two rings

Claire Elizabeth has carried many names—Beauchamp, Randall, and, for the shortest time, Fraser. She has worn many different clothes in her 27 years of life from combat nurse aprons in World War II to fashionable lady's suits before the stones took her, to corsets and woollen skirts back in the 18th century.

Jewellery has always been a part of her life, may it have been her late mother's that she carried like a treasure, the trinkets of love that Frank had bought her, or the two wedding bands on her ring fingers.

Claire has enjoyed electricity and constant water out of taps. She knows what it means not to freeze at night, even though that's just a far off memory by now. Sure, the luxuries of Castle Leoch came close to what she was used to back in 1945, but sleeping next to an open fire, hoping that no one will attack you? She's not sure if she will ever fully adapt to that.

She stares at her two wedding rings, runs her fingers over the smoothness of the golden and the roughness of the one wrought from the key to Lallybroch.

She looks over the edge of Craigh na Dun, the one that swallowed Jamie, her second husband, as he walked away from her to give her the life he thinks she deserves. She can see the smoke of his fire rising from the valley. She knows that he'll still freeze tonight despite it.

The wind roars around her but even louder inside her head, making it hard to think.

What is holding her back? She knows there is a better life on the other side of the stones. There is peace, a future, food, modern conveniences—none of that is a reality here, and still, she hesitates to give in to the pull that the stone has on her.

She sways forward and backwards where she is sitting on the grass, like a leaf in the wind, unsteady and aimless. Never, not even in the first days thrown into this life of two centuries ago, did she ever feel this lost.

Anger grows in her chest. How could Jamie leave her like this? How could he not stay with her till the last second? Doesn't he know how much she needs him? What these few months at his side mean to her? What he means to her by now?

How can he send her back to a man who wears the face of his torturer? To a man who might love her, but never as fiercely as her Jamie, or as boundlessly. Frank is a good man, but he had dreams of a family, and Claire couldn't give him that. It broke something between them, she could feel it. If she never returned, he could find a new wife, one who could bear him children. Wouldn't it be selfish to take this away from him simply because she misses radiators and indoor plumbing?

But maybe she's just lying to herself, to not feel so guilty anymore. She's a bigamist, and while it hadn't been much of a choice, she doesn't regret it anymore. Not after telling Jamie the truth and him believing her. Frank would never believe a single word she would tell him about how she had fallen through the stones and time itself.

Jamie is different. He trusts her heart. He tries to grow with her while honouring the old ways of the Highlands. He's so gentle and kind, despite the scars and bruises he wears that prove his stubbornness and resilience, his suffering. Jamie puts her well-being over his own, her happiness over his. Maybe it comes from the kindness of his heart, or it's simply a logical consideration. Whatever it is, he loves her. And Claire loves him with a force she never loved a man with before, not even the one she married first.

Claire can still feel Jamie's strong fingers where he slapped her hand away from the stone. It's a grounding pain, dull and barely there. But wedding ring aside, this is the only proof that this is real. That they are real.

Claire isn't just an inconvenience for him, a wife he is forced to care about. He couldn't let her go, probably not even now. Why else didn't he turn to look at her one last time? It hurt too much. But Claire gets it. She feels the pain of separation, too.

If their roles were reversed, would she have had the strength to bring him here? To look at her spouse disappearing into thin air before her very eyes? No. Most definitely not. It must have taken all his strength to choose the way to Craigh na Dun instead of the short route home, to touch her by the fire last night, knowing it would be their last time together.

Claire would love him even more for it if that were possible. But she doesn't think it is. What she and Jamie have is unique, a gift by the heavens. There's no other explanation.

She gets up on her feet, swaying forward. If he loves her so much, then knowing she's safe 200 years in the future is maybe the minor evil to choose. But he didn't ask her if she still wanted to go back. So much has changed since she last climbed this hill to get to the stones. She's not the same anymore. Neither of them is. And if they are truly soulmates, their lives welded together by destiny, how could she ever leave him?

Claire turns away from the daunting stone and towards the smoke rising through the twilight. This is her fate, and she won't cower away from the harsh realities of life in the Scottish Highlands in the year of the Lord 1743. She won't leave Jamie behind, heartbroken and probably suicidal, ready to sacrifice himself for a lost cause. No. She will stay.

Maybe Jamie will be just as disappointed about her barrenness as her first husband was. But at least until then, she can make a difference and keep the man she loves alive.

[snowisflesh-blog123]

CALLOUT POST FOR @//snake-titties

now i’m not usually one for “”cancel culture” but this NEEDS to be said, this man is dangerous and i want people to be safe so please block him, click the read more for why

1. HE MAINS SCOUT IN TF2. this is super cringe, and he’s almost completely useless to his team because he only uses the boston basher despite having terrible aim. now i don’t fully understand kinning but if there’s a kinning(lite) he kinda did that with scout tf2

2. HE COLLECTS MINION MEMES. i shouldn’t have to explain this one, photo proof:

3. WHAT KIND OF NAME IS WOLFGANG? like is he named after a gang of wolves or something? leave some wolves for the rest of us, he could’ve just named himself wolf but he had to be selfish and take MUTLIPLE wolves.

420. HE THINKS RANDALL BOGGS IS HOT. randall literally k*dnaps children and is a capitalist pig in the monsters inc canon, he SAYS he’s an anarchist but can we really believe that when he’s willing to say that a lizard like randall is attractive?? plus his username talks about ‘snake t*tties’ and snakes don’t even HAVE booby muscles. this man seriously won’t shut up about titties and catboys what is WRONG with him

5. ONE OF HIS CATS IS AN AQ//UARIUS. if he’s willing to support and care for an aq//uari/us i think it’s pretty clear what kind of person he’s willing to hang around, plus he HIMSELF is a scorpio (i don’t know what any of the star signs mean but that’s bad right??)

69. HES PREJUDICE AGAINST PEOPLE WHO GET LOST IN IKEA. ‘there’s literally maps everywhere’ he says, ‘they give you hand held maps and there’s big maps that say YOU ARE HERE and there’s arrows on the fucking floor how do you get LOST, like i get that there’s no windows or clocks so it’s kinda confusing like a casino or something but there’s arrows. on. the. floor.’

10. HATES DOLPHINS. back in the day where he had an assassination classroom blog (2017 i think??) that he doesn’t want to talk about because he was an awful little man when he ran it, there was discourse about dolphins and he said they’re awful, here’s some of the memes used in the discourse, he made the karma one:

[clean-bands-dirty-stories]

The Talk - J.M.

A/n: So we’re only doing make readers now huh? HECK YEAH! This app needs more anyway. Keep in mind I DO non-binary and female readers, so you can ask for those too!

Request: “Hi 👋🏻 could I request a vera stone son reader x Jack Morton flirts with him but gets nervous when he see’s his mom aka the best grand magus ever. And maybe Vera sits jack down for the if you hurt my son they will never find your body talk. Thank you and your amazing and I love you ❤️” by anonymous

Word Count: 2600+

Masterlist

Vera Stone would swear to Pluto and back that she had no favorites, but everyone knew that was a lie. She had a soft spot for Jack Morton, and Y/n Stone, her son, had been the makings of her heart his entire life. Of course. What mother didn't favor her son over everyone else?

Unfortunately, Jack was having a hard time. After he'd gotten his memories taken, he had made friends with Y/n. His interest in Y/n had driven him away from Gabrielle and though they were playing friends, it was never a dating situation. When he got his memories back, things got a lot more complicated because Y/n wasn't just  part of the Order- he was the son of the Grand Magus. Things got progressively worse as Praxis became a problem and the whole world nearly ended. Again.

When Hamish was kidnapped, so was Y/n as they'd been together at the time. And though they'd gotten Hamish back rather quickly, the same wasn't true for Y/n. He was in the hands of Praxis and they weren't letting up on why they still had him. It wasn't until Salvador finally exposed what spell she wanted in exchange for Y/n that it really became what she meant by leverage. The problem was, even though her mom instincts were screaming, Vera knew she couldn't give these people this spell.

Then Vera did something really stupid.

She shot Salvador and killed her.

Alyssa had been at odds since her girlfriend had been sucked into the demon realm and her magic had been iffy. After Vera tore her down for not having magic and then it was exposed WHY she didn't, she felt betrayed. Vera had been bending backwards to protect Jack, Hamish, and Randall, but easily wrote Alyssa off for something that was Vera's fault. Not to mention she obviously had no care for Lilith. In her mind, Vera was worse than Edward Coventry and she wouldn't see reason. She didn't give her a chance to explain or fix her mistakes. In fact, the second Vera got the chance to do either, Alyssa disappeared with Praxis. Which left her on the side of those who were holding Y/n hostage.

During that time, Alyssa talked to Y/n a lot. The boy seemed fine with listening, watching her carefully as Alyssa went on and on about all of the mistakes of his mother and all those who had come before her. She had endless proofs as to how the Order was corrupt by power and selfishness, and Y/n stayed silent because... well she was right. In a way. Also he knew that arguing that people made mistakes wasn't going to get anywhere with her. Not to mention the book was magically enchanted to corrupt those in leadership... but he didn't talk about that.

It was when Alyssa began talking bad about the wolves that Y/n struggled to keep quiet.

"He's so self righteous and puffed up. Like he knows everything and does nothing wrong. Always has the right drink. Ever think he does it just because he's a drunk?" Alyssa would begin, rolling her eyes.

"He's trying his best," Y/n would reply immediately. It was the first time Alyssa had gotten him to speak. The first time anyone had. "And despite all the shit that would probably throw anyone else off, he's still a good leader and does what's right mot of the time. He's loyal and smart and hard working."

It was later when Alyssa tried the tactic again. She ranted about Gabrielle and Edward and the necromancer twins they'd dealt with a while back. She went on about names Y/n didn't know, and even his own mother. But the second she mentioned, "God he's never serious! He constantly goofs around and flirts and is a total idiot. He lets his emotions guide him and it makes him sloppy. If he used just a shred of logic he might actually get somewhere. Like his whole hatred of the Order even though they were the only ones with the resources to help them find Lilith. Even when some of us were really trying, he still refused to cooperate."

"To be fair," Y/n snapped. "We have a record of betrayal, power plays, and selfishness, as you've so generously bestowed upon me for the last while. He actually cares a lot and that's why he's so emotionally driven. Because he cares. Not enough people these days care. Not enough people these days FEEL and express and dare to stay upbeat in a world that takes anyone with a smile and seeks to destroy them with a deep rage. Like happiness is a sin or something."

The violent reaction to Alyssa insulting the Knights was unexpected. She never made herself talk badly about Lilith - she loved her after all, and talking bad about the possibly dead when that person was your whole world... terrible idea. She did however crack the case when she mentioned Jack to Y/n. "He has this hero complex that makes him so... annoying. He isn't the center of every problem. Not everything is about him. He doesn't have to save everyone. Not everything is Jack's Mission or something, you know? Maybe he should get over himself just a little."

"Shut the fuck up." Y/n's head was hanging forward, eyes on his lap. Before, he usually went on rants and berated Alyssa for talking badly about the wolves. What was it about Jack that made him not even be able to look at her? Was it that because his mother had trained him to never show weakness to the enemy, he was trying to cover up an especially touchy topic? Was it simply that he agreed with Alyssa enough that he had nothing more to say? Or perhaps he was nervous to expose something if he talked too much about Jack.

Whatever the reason was, Y/n had never acted like this before. He'd always been the professional, withdrawn kind of person. He was his mother's right hand. He kept to himself and rarely talked, if ever. He was quiet. A wallflower. People often wondered if he was capable of emotions at all, the same way they wondered about Vera. Except that he never got to the point that he was cracked enough to expose himself. Even when his mother faltered in her place of leadership to keep the Order and herself and everyone she cared about together at the same time, Y/n still held strong.

What was it about Jack Morton that he was always the weak spot in everyone's armor, no matter how tough or thick or well taken care of it was? He seemed to find cracks like a hungry dog hunting for food. It was kind of impressive actually.

Alyssa prodded at this weakness a lot. She mentioned Jack a lot. Every time Alyssa and Jack crossed paths, Alyssa would tell Y/n every detail of it. Force him to look at her as she said it. It was never a cruelty though. She could tell that he liked to hear it, and her act was from a point of curiosity only.

Then Salvador died and Alyssa rose to leadership. She tried people out to see if the fur would take to anyone, but it never did. Until...

Finally Vera broke. With the Tartarus Blasts threatening to coalesce into an Apocalypse Blast and wipe everyone out, on top of Alyssa taunting how close to making Y/n she was, Vera couldn't hold out anymore. So she brought him along to the exchange. Y/n came in, uninhibited and willing, but stayed by Alyssa's side. No one could place what exactly was wrong. He still nodded to his mother and seemed to be perfectly himself. He even rolled his eyes when Alyssa went on about her purpose, and got visibly angry when Vera told her what the spell actually did and Alyssa ignored her.

Yet, Y/n didn't act out against Alyssa either. He seemed to even be protective of her. Perhaps they were... dating? Or he had some feelings for her. Vera couldn't imagine Alyssa getting over Lilith like that but perhaps Alyssa had changed even more than Vera had thought.

It wasn't until Alyssa turned on Vera to kill her that Y/n made a move against her. "We made a deal," he reminded her. "Are you about to break your end?"

Exhaling sharply through her nose, Alyssa looked away. "She deserves to die."

"No she doesn't," Y/n snapped. It was the first time he'd defended his mother to Alyssa. It was the first time he could. "She made a mistake, but she's a good leader and she has a dream that a lot of people believe in." Y/n grabbed her shoulders. "I know you've been through a lot, Lys. I know you've been hurt by every single person you trusted or looked up to or anything along those lines. Betrayed. Left behind. Let down. I know how much pain you're in. You know I do." She sighed a little softer. "I also know that killing my mother will give you no peace, and you know it too."

Alyssa looked at him for a long time. "What, no speech about it's not who I am?"

Y/n chuckled at that. "It's not my right to tell you who you are. Only you can do that. But I'm telling you, revenge is a slippery slope, and we have a deal. Making an enemy of me will be bad for you now and in the future, if you somehow manage to escape. I can be an ally, and I would like to be. Not to mention that whatever you're looking for, you will not find in this."

For some reason, Alyssa believed what he was saying. Her lips curved in a frown. "Promise me you won't leave me, Y/n. Or betray me."

At that, the boy hesitated. "You know I want to stay."

She nodded. "I know that. But, we can be friends?"

Y/n smiled. "Anytime you need me, Lys. You know where to find me. We'll find Lilith, and we'll bring her home, and-"

It was that time that Jack Morton decided to join the party. He quickly caught them up on Lilith being back, but the whole demon situation going on with her. But he also told Alyssa she had to run. "I know how much you want to see her, Alyssa, but Midnight is coming here to kill you. He took over Gabrielle- what are you doing, Y/n?"

Alyssa had not moved a muscle. She didn't even seem worried. Y/n was removing his clothes, and that seemed to put her at ease. "Hello to you too, Jack." Y/n chuckled. "I would like to update you on how Alyssa and I here became friends." He pulled off the shirt he had after shedding the flannel he'd been unbuttoning, and kicked off his shoes. "She was looking for a champion. I needed to be able to get her out of here without killing people I cared about. We negotiated and then we talked and now we're super cool."

Jack's eyes went wide as Vera gasped. "You're-?"

"Yes," Y/n confirmed. He closed his eyes and felt the change take him. His body grew and widened until he was a wold. A werewolf. Alpha, of all of them.

"You're going to fight Midnight?" Jack demanded. "You could kill Gabrielle!"

"No," Alyssa corrected him, though she didn't know what had happened since she'd been gone that Jack cared about Gabrielle being alive or not. "Watch."

The doors busted open and there stood Midnight. The eyes of the two wolves locked and the temperature of the room rose about ten degrees. Jack groaned and clutched his hand over his heart. He shifted right there, whimpering on the ground. Midnight held, for a second. Another second. Yet another. Then he broke and looked away and Y/n stood tall and howled. Jack breathed in relief and Midnight took running off.

Alyssa was safe.

Both boys morphed back into humans. "I don't know who he'll go after, but everyone we care about should be safe, so no worries." He looked at Alyssa. "Go." She nodded and took off, alive and well. Jack cleared his throat, a wide smirk on his face. "What?" Y/n asked, eyebrows knitting in intrigue.

"You're whole take over there," Jack mused. "It was super hot actually."

Vera cleared her throat and it was then both boys realized they were naked and blushing, in front of Vera Stone who was Y/n's mother. Gross and awkward to say the least. "Sorry," Y/n dismissed. Vera glared Jack down and he seemed to become suddenly awkward and tense. "Mom, we're gonna head back to the Den to catch everyone up on the situation and check up on Lilith."

"And get dressed," Jack added in a rush. Y/n tried not to laugh at him.

"I'll be back later," Y/n told her.

That was new. His whole life, Y/n had always been second at the very best. Usually he was even further down the list, fine with living in the shadows because it allowed him to learn and live while dodging most stressors and dramas. He always relinquished dominance to his partner in a project, or the other person in the scenario, or his mother. Confident leadership was a good look on him. As much as his comment had bothered Vera, this role fit her son well and she couldn't say she wasn't proud. "Sounds good to me."

"Will you be okay?" Y/n asked gently. She hesitated then nodded and he returned it before looking at Jack. The boys both sobered before shifting back into wolves and booking it to the Den.

After everything settled and they started to get over shock and try and figure out what to do next, Jack took a second to pull Y/n aside. "What is it, Morton?" Y/n sighed.

"I'm just... I wanted you to know that I'm really glad you're back. Safe. I've been worried sick about you and with everything else going on- I mean I guess my worry is nothing against you being the one captured, but- Look I just-"

"I get it," Y/n reassured. He had a small smile on his face. "You know, bonding with Alpha helped me finally understand the power of being just a little vulnerable. Maybe we can figure this out... sometime? I doubt there will be a good time because it seems we're always facing some shit or another, but maybe we can get coffee some time around all the chaos?"

Jack smiled. "I would like that."

"Cool. See you tomorrow morning at 8am. Don't be late, Morton." With that, Y/n walked away.

"I won't!" He called after the boy.

The familiar sound of Vera clearing her throat sounded and Jack felt himself freeze and stiffly turn to face her. "Hey!" The word was long and high pitched in his mouth. Awkward and full of tension. He was never as afraid of her killing him as he was now.

"Let me get one thing straight," Vera snapped, pointing at him. "That is my son." That alone hit home. Jack knew better than most what having a son meant to Vera after she'd lost her daughter. "He has been through hell and I have had to do things I hate myself for to bring him home safe. I let loose self destruction incarnate to bring him home safely. Do not think for even a second that because I have some soft spot for you, that I will not be willing to gut you with my bare hands and teeth if you hurt him. My non-magic, non-werewolf, fingernails will carve you a new face. Is that clear?" Jack could only manage a nod. “Good." She stood straight. "Don't be late, Morton. My son cares a lot about punctuality." And with that she left.

Despite everything, Jack managed to find humor in the situation. No matter how much Vera Stone scared him, Y/n scared him more. He made Jack feel things that terrified him. Things he hadn't even begun to touch until since Alyssa. Things that had been warped and ruined for him because of Gabrielle. Things that he was now wanting for the second time in his entire life. Vera was scary, but Y/n? Y/n was terrifying.

Like mother like son I suppose.

[jesslupes]

okay so, i think that it’s understandable to dislike certain aspects of jack crawford, especially wrt the way he treats will in season 1 particularly. as my friend put it, when in my early days of watching the show i initially took issue with jack, he symbolizes evil in a bureaucratic sense (key word symbolizes, i am Not calling him evil as a person/character). we see this in the lack of care for will despite jack putting him in a position where he knows will is vulnerable. there’s a few instances, such as i believe in the angel episode, where he yells or gets mad at will for not knowing the answer. and in that same episode, will expresses thinking of quitting and jack guilts him into staying. when will experiences his “mental decline” as one episode synopsis eloquently puts it, he is pretty clearly not okay, and jack does seem to brush over it in favour of using will’s abilities to solve the cases.

however!!! beyond this initial dislike, there’s a tendency in this fandom to vastly oversimplify and misrepresent jack’s character, and reducing him to some kind of one-dimensional racist stereotype. part of the dissonance is bc of the dramatic irony in the show. though we know hannibal is manipulating will, jack has no way of knowing that, no one does. he thinks he’s sent will to a reliable psychiatrist, who has for the most part reassured jack that will is fine to be in the field. will himself has also said this to jack. we see will’s nightmares, his hallucinations, etc. but oftentimes he straight up says he’s fine, or pretends like nothing happened, even when directly asked about it by jack. there is literally nothing more jack can do in some of these cases to help will. jack’s motivations are also incredibly righteous and not once are they ever implied to be selfish or a product of his own amibition; it is repeatedly shown to us that jack wants to put will’s abilities to use and catch these killers because he genuinely cares about saving lives.

moreover, most of what i said applies only to season one. over the rest of the show, jack has some dramatic character development that makes him even more interesting and complex, and even a little more morally grey; for example, he goes against the orders of his superiors in the FBI to participate in entrapment, straight-up wants to kill hannibal rather than catching him and doing things the legal, procedural way, and excuses will killing and displaying randall tier. in season 3, he knows will made that call to hannibal and though he (very understandably lol) expresses his disappointment, he never actually turns against will or holds it against him. despite will repeatedly (and not very secretively) helping hannibal and committing dubious acts himself, jack still generally sticks by will and continues to have faith in him. he’s not narrow-minded, or overly angry, or any other caricature people like to paint him as, by any means whatsoever. the refusal by a lot of the fandom to recognize that is absolutely anti-blackness in action and it’s really awful to see jack portrayed like that, when in actuality he is such an intelligent, compassionate, complex, and dynamic character.

[takaraphoenix]

Now, to the positive about season 2 of The Order:

I CAN’T BELIEVE THEY REALLY DID MAKE LILITH A WLW. I remember last season after her kiss with Randall kind of jokingly saying “that’s not romance, that’s wlw and mlm solidarity”. And we essentially got confirmation that both Lilith and Randall are actually queer...? (I mean, the way Randall said “had to” after having kissed Hamish? That boy doesn’t just like girls, he also likes boys. And he definitely liked kissing Hamish.)

Lilith and Nicole were actually so cute? I got really afraid at first about the whole manipulation and fake-memory thing, but the way they came clear about the things they knew and what had happened with each other?? I really hope season 3 treats them better.

Holy shit I love Gabrielle now. I really didn’t like her in season 1, she was just the... annoying bitch character, on purpose. But this season, she’s really grown on me? I think I’m even relatively fond of the Gabrielle/Randall. That was a weird thing that happened but somehow, under the circumstances, really fit. I am really digging the idea of werewolf!Gabrielle, even if I absolutely hate Midnight and hate the way he is using her, so like... can we get a new hide for her maybe? Because kickass werewolf Gabrielle has to stay and Midnight that bitch has to go.

JAMES MARSTERS. I adore a sudden, unexpected James Marsters. Holy shit did that make me happy! This season was improved by 30% merely through him having been in it! (Me? A biased fangirl? It’s more likely than you think!)

I like Vera. Not in a “she can’t do no wrong” way, but in a “she is a hell of a gray character and it fascinates me”. Her motivations and actions and the balance between selfishness and trying to protect are really interesting. Really didn’t care much for her in season 1 beyond “hot villain lady”.

Overall, I did enjoy season 2. I was wondering where they would take it after season 1, especially with the finale, and I do think that plotwise they took it into interesting directions. I really do wish they wouldn’t have victimized their female characters so much, but I still enjoyed the season!

[iihappydaysii]

Jamie is attracted to Lord John, which makes him very confused and angry, in this essay I will… okay, but I’m actually going to write this essay, so buckle up.

Last night, I read Jamie talking to the others at Castle Leoch in Outlander about his experiences as a teenager with the Duke of Sandringham. First of all, the duke is disgusting and needs a very swift kick to the balls—but even so, Jamie doesn’t take the duke so seriously. He finds an amount of humor in it, even if it’s in part just how he’s chosen to deal with it. Also, Jamie is surrounded by men that, though they’re far from “allies”, they’re not being particularly hateful about it. Of course, all of this discussion occurs before the rape and torture Jamie experiences from Black Jack Randall. This filled in a piece of what I’ve been trying to understand about Jamie’s relationship with Lord John.

Before Lord John, the Duke and Black Jack are Jamie’s experience with—I strongly hesitate to say gay men—but Jamie sees a connection between these three men based on their attractions to men, however disturbingly they present in the Duke and Black Jack. The Duke preys it seems to be exclusively or near exclusively on young men. Claire upon meeting him says that it’s all the boys under eighteen that seem wary of him, as they’ve been warned (I’m increasingly glad that as far as we know the Duke got nowhere near young Lord John). Of course, we have Black Jack who is an 18th century version of a serial rapist/serial killer. Jamie experiences a horrific trauma at his hands. Not only did he rape and hurt Jamie physically and very, very seriously, he also found ways to make Jamie find pleasure in it. And thinking of Jamie’s casual reaction to the Duke’s inappropriate advances, it makes me think Jamie’s particular reaction to this form of torture isn’t based on a simple baseline homophobia.

A) Jamie feels guilt for getting “pleasure” out of it because he’s married and faithful to Claire. Also, how could she ever love him if he did (his thoughts)? B) What does it say about him that he could find any kind of release/pleasure at the hands of such a horrific man and in the midst of an incredible amount of pain? C) Later, after the rape and torture, if he experiences any attraction towards a man—as it seems he might towards John, I’ll explain more later—how can he ever know if those feelings only exist because of Black Jack? And, even if he can parse that out, he can’t stomach the thought that he shares anything in common with the Duke or his rapist.

Enter Lord John Grey. Jamie likes him, despite the fact that he’s the Governor of the Ardsmuir Prison, despite the fact that he once tried to kill Jamie. At first, there’s mistrust and contempt there, but eventually, they grow to like and respect each other and enjoy time spent in each other’s company. Dining together, swapping stories and playing chess. Given Jamie’s strong reaction to John’s simple touch to his hand (a death threat, followed by basically years of contempt). If Black Jack had never happened, I think, at worst, he would’ve given an 18th century “Sorry, man. I don’t swing that way.” John would’ve apologized and that would’ve been that. Jamie knows John is no real threat to him. Jamie has little that can be leveraged against him, as Black Jack was able to leverage Claire against him. Our sweet David Berry gives us a false impression of the size difference between Jamie and Lord John. He’s near a foot taller and physically dwarfs John. Not to mention, in the show, Jamie says defiantly to John (before their friendship) that he can do his best to torture him but there’s nothing he can do that hasn’t already been done. He doesn’t seem particularly afraid.

I’ve mentioned this before, but its mentioned in the Lord John series that John is actually pretty good at figuring out who’s into dudes and who isn’t. He’d have to be to survive long, doing what he does, especially as he doesn’t go to the brothels. He ‘gets it wrong’ with Jamie and it’s likely a mix between wishful thinking/strong feelings and simple misinterpretation, but John is smart and he senses something. So he acts on it in as gentle a way as possible (not knowing anything of what happened to Jamie with Black Jack, he won’t realize Jamie has been raped at all until he guesses it in that painful scene in BOTB, which I’ll discuss in a moment. Firstly though I want to mention some things that come later that relate to suggestion that Jamie is attracted to John in some way, beyond John believing so enough that he takes such a large risk. For one, Claire will end up sensing something between John and Jamie, enough that it bothers her and she recognizes it for what it is, at least what it is for John. For two, we know there’s a connection between violence and sex for Jamie, we can see it in how he is ‘in bed’ with Claire. Anytime John’s attraction to Jamie gets brought up, he responds violently, despite John not being any actual threat to him—something he knows for certain by the time John is saying “We were both fucking you”—and yet, how does he react then? Violence. (I can’t fuck you, so I’ll hit you. Two sides of the same coin for Jamie.)

Later, he’ll even admit to Claire that when he was falling apart after William was born that it was John who was able to put him back together again, and that he’s angry about it. He’s angry that John can touch his heart in that way.

Anyway, let’s rewind a bit, so we can discuss why exactly Jamie would be so angry about any possible attraction to John based on how he sees gay men (and how he believes he’d have to see himself if he were to accept the way John is able to make him feel).

The scene where John comes to Jamie for help figuring out what to do about Percy’s impending trial is where we can see this issue most clearly laid out. First of all, Jamie has a VERY strong reaction to realizing Percy was John’s lover.

I can’t in honor see him hanged for a crime whose guilt I share—and from whose consequences I am escaped by chance alone.

This is all it takes for Jamie to realize that Percy is John’s lover. Though John doesn’t directly state that, Jamie senses it, is smart enough to figure it out—and does not react well. (Also, the word Jamie uses is ‘catamite’, which is a term from ancient Rome and Greece that means ‘a boy kept for homosexual practices—and John corrects him to lover).

They begin to argue it at this point, basically the concept of whether or not men can be lovers. Jamie, whose experience is limited to the Duke and Black Jack, knows intimately that what those men experienced was not love, but selfishness and power trip to varying degrees. He’s projected that on to all men who experience attraction to men—a burden he would have to hang around his own neck as well—if he were to feel a similar (as maybe he did when John touched his hand in Ardsmuir… in that moment, before he pulled away.)

Only men who lack the ability to possess a woman or cowards who fear them—must resort to such feeble indecencies to relieve their lusts.

It’s an attempt to goad John, to insult him. It doesn’t particularly work as Lord John doesn’t possess any great deal of shame around his being gay and knows that isn’t true. He’s not afraid of women and could most certainly possess one if he wanted to. John doesn’t take the bait as intended and deflects to talking about love. What do you think love is?

He needs to keep his love for Claire separate from anything he could or could not feel for John and Jamie goes on to speak of one of his other experiences with gay men, though John doesn’t know that this relates to an exact experience (this can also relate to Black Jack because of Fergus). But I think Jamie, at this point, is pretty certain that John is no Black Jack. His negative reaction to Jamie (in a sense) forcing John to whip him Ardsmuir was a good example to him that John doesn’t get pleasure out of that. But still, if John has this attraction to men in common with Black Jack and the Duke, he must have others, right? So, he turns to accusing John of ‘preying upon helpless boys’.

Lord John threatens to physically fight him for that comment, which is very fair. It’s a horrible and gross accusation that he absolutely does not deserve in any way.

Jamie’s reaction to this is interesting. Armed or no, ye canna master me.

Of course, this is when John says something really motherfucking dumb without realizing the implications because he doesn’t know Jamie’s history of trauma.

I tell you sir—were I to take you to my bed—I could make you scream and by God, I would do it.

This conversation goes all to hell because John thinks he’s arguing against homophobia and what he’s really arguing against are fundamental beliefs Jamie now holds to protect himself against his trauma and any feelings he may or may not have for John. (and it just must really suck to be in love with someone who thinks such terrible things of you, through not fault of your own).

(Also a quick aside about Grey wanking after this, like it doesn’t make a hell of a lot of a sense in reality. Especially as we know Grey will be very angry about this conversation for a long time after. However, in a literary sense it goes to reflect that idea of violence as sex or violence as a way to express sexual attraction. If Jamie’s release of the sexual tension of that scene was the punch, John’s was this.)

Of course, they’ll rebuild their friendship slowly, over the years at Helwater and in Scotland. Enough so that Jamie will gift John with one of his most precious things—his son William. This time will end with an offer of his body in exchange for John to care for William (though it is a test to make certain John’s not a creep and if he is Jamie plans to kill him). John, of course, turns Jamie down because as Jamie will later say to Claire, “he would not take counterfeit for true coin”. This is the moment where Jamie separates John from Black Jack and the Duke. And, at least for a moment, is able to separate himself from them too. Enough that he does something he does not have to do, that there’s no real reason for him to do, he kisses John.

Grey felt the big hands warm on the skin of his face, light and strong as the brush of an eagle’s feather, and then Jamie Fraser’s soft wide mouth touched his own. There was a fleeting impression of tenderness and strength held in check, the faint taste of ale and fresh-baked bread. Then it was gone, and Grey stood blinking in the brilliant sun.

[narastories]

Blackbeard and Frank Randall

By Blackbeard I assume you mean Teach and not the other Blackbeard? lol I don’t really have a strong opinion on him nor do I have a bone to pick with him. Also, he's giant. I would have to have a very good reason to punch him in the face xD

So, this answer will mainly be about Frank Randall. I hesitated about answering this because it’s kind of controversial, but here we go- He gets a bit fat 0 on my want-to-punch scale. What it boils down to is that I feel so wretched sorry for the man, I don’t want to punch him at all.

Yes, if I could materialize in front of him where Claire gets back, I would probably shake him, maybe slap him a little and give him a firm talk about how to handle the situation better.

I have to admit I didn’t pay him a lot of attention when I first read the books - there is just SO MUCH in OL. Then Tobias Menzies happened and that bastard made me cry lol I can still count the actors on one hand who can make me cry, but that scene where Frank starts smashing things and then breaks down crying? I was bawling my eyes out. 😭

Overall just thinking about Claire’s and Frank’s relationship makes me miserable. They got married with the best intentions, completely naive, then a fucking world war happened, which, you know, changes people. Then they start to pick up the pieces with this other person who is suddenly a complete stranger again, they have trouble having kids, and then Claire fucking falls through time and disappears. Come on! And then she gets back, traumatized, pregnant, in love with someone else. I feel terrible for both of them.

I also think he gets judged a bit too harshly because of his ancestor...? I can see how wanting to raise Brianna could be considered a selfish move. On the other hand, it irks me so much that when it comes to Roger, for example, (or even John) it’s considered noble that he would raise another man’s child, but Frank is an asshole because he can’t have his own?

Then there’s the cheating part, which to me isn’t a strong enough argument to punch him. I mean he clearly got involved with women while Claire wasn’t there and yes continued afterwards too. But then again, Claire clearly wasn’t faithful either. And whether he believes the time-travel bit also complicates things. They should have absolutely talked about it like fucking adult. But like, and I’m terribly sorry to say this, but Claire wasn’t really softening that blow, was she? She clearly wanted to drive him away, and perhaps that would have been for the best.

I do want to slap him for not outright telling Claire that Jamie survived Culloden. But then just now I searched out his letter to the Reverend in Drums of Autumn where he talks about this, and about asking him to put Jamie’s gravestone there and I just feel like crying again. 

He should have moved on. Oh, absolutely. Claire actually could take care of herself, but he couldn’t know that of course. Deep down he also must have known that given the choice Claire would have run back to Jamie. And of course, she did. Claire found the love of her life. She had to go through some terrible shit and raise their child apart from him, but then she found him again. And Frank? What miserable fucking life he got? 😭

I just think it would have been nice if he could move on and be happy with someone else or at least go through the stones as well so that he could truly believe Claire and to maybe have some adventures on his own :P

Well, that was a rant... I’m sorry if this is unexpected or controversial, but this is the only honest answer I can give at this moment.

TL;DR Maybe he lied, cheated, was even selfish and I still don’t want to punch him.