#and the fact that i love the batch so much??? and i've NEVER seen them b4 now in their show bc they were in another show prev too

[pigeon-ponders]

just finished s1 of the bad batch and. yeah

i really enjoyed it. i'm not too into star wars and i know jack shit about the story. but my brother is super into the franchise and w/ s3 out now i decided to try watching it again for the THIRD time (everytine b4 i just couldn't get into it)

i will not lie i only got thru it bc of tech. i saw another middle aged man, w/ a receding hairline, wearing circle-shaped glasses (goggles in his case), who is a dork and immediately latched onto him. i love him

[blueparadis]

a concept:

tattoo artist kaeya having a thing for u, his regular client rosaria's cute little roommate, who is the exact opposite of her. he feels bad for touching himself to the thoughts of u but he can't help himself bc he likes u so much

❝ INKED SECRETS ❞ + KAEYA ALBERICH !

+. CWs —» tattoo artist au + modern au, f!reader, fluff, light angst with comfort, some canon elements, love at first sight, mention of cigarette smoking, bad relationships, hookups, stranger to lovers, smut ( fantasies, m-mastarbation ) ; word count — 2k.

+. NOTES —» thanks to my beloved yoru ( @anantaru) for helping me and beta reading this otherwise i would've opened the gates of kaeya-brainrot; also, thank you for being patient. This ask was almost a month old and I know this was supposed to be short but the thing is kaeya is the one who had me invested in genshin impact. However, surprisingly I've never thought of writing about him so thank you for your muse. I loved writing this so fucking much. Thank you. Tattoo artist kaeya shall live forever in my mind. If you wanna check more of my writings, click here.

Kaeya Alberich. The name of the mystery man who would always be the talk of the topic for Rosaria. He was more familiar to you than your roommate ever was. You two shared a room yet you could never read Rosaria but she was thorough with you; maybe that is why you two clicked. Every one of your friends considered it a mystery how a sunflower like you would ever survive in the company of a moon. Everyone including Kaeya. He had his own proportion of confusion every time Rosaria talked about you. 

Kaeya knew how you looked, talked, and liked to eat ice cream in winter. Not only that, your favorite colors, bits and pieces of your small dreams were known to him. And all because Rosaria wouldn’t stop with the constant blabbering about you whenever he directly hung out with her, emphasizing the fact that you were nothing but an angel in disguise. Kaeya had to endure all of it, every bit of you that Rosaria seemed to find alluring. At moments like this, one could say that they exchanged personas since Kaeya was a guy of smiles and chitter-chatter while Rosaria was quite the opposite.

True, the friendship between Kaeya and Rosaria was another talk of Mondstadt’s inhabitants, but they both did not seem to react as people expected, as people thought they should. You would, barely, call them lovers. While Kaeya enjoyed different takes of his customers about Rosaria, she, on the other hand, brushed those petty rumors off, with just a glance keeping her stoic persona. 

But, among all these happenings, Rosaria had the front-row seat of the chaos that was about to unfold. She had her beauty salon just above Kaeya’s tattoo parlor. They have been working together for at least five years. Rosaria had her shop on rental and the five-storied complex was owned by none other than Kaeya Alberich himself. 

Anyone who wanted to go to her parlor had to cross Kaeya’s floor; hence, no one slipped past the grip of his galactic eyes. He knew the regulars of her shop and had an immense influence on them. He believed it was his charms while Rosaria begged to differ.

But she was just being professional, clearing non-financial tabs that she owed to him, for bringing the immense influx of customers to her salon. Sometimes, it worked both ways, but whenever they fought, the elders of the locality had more spice to flavor the rumors that had just started sedimenting.

January, the prime of winter, of snow and the freezing cold, Kaeya laid his first glance at you. Warm and alluring: you were every bit of beauty that Rosaria spoke of, in fact, now that he had finally seen you in person, he thinks Rosaria fell short of speaking of your angelic aura. 

“Hello, I have a parcel for Rosaria, could you please deliver it to her? I would have done it myself if I wasn’t in such a hurry.”, you kept the package on my desk, “Thank you very much, Mister . . .”, you looked at his batch that reads Kaeya Alberich, “. . . Thank you so much, Mister Kaeya Alberich.” And before Kaeya could say anything back, you fled out of his sight like a bird.

He watched you get into a cab holding the package in his hand, barely registering what you asked him to do. His mind had drifted far off to all those times when Rosaria was talking about you. He checked his watch and smiled to himself. Oops! Rosaria’s smoke break was ruined since he joined in with the package you had left for her, with many questions.

For a tattoo artist, Kaeya seemed the least bit invested in its antics, yet he had a steady influx of customers, mostly because he is very professional and dedicated to his livelihood. He pays special attention to his regular customers, sadly, you weren’t one of them, not yet.

Still, he would stand and smoke at the corner of the entrance so that he could watch you go like the wind to meet your roommate with a package in hand. He would notice the color of your dress, the matching nails, shoes, and every little detail thinking how flawlessly sexy you looked. 

But he abruptly stopped the second he had bruised his fingers with the cigarette burn. Fortunately, it was his left hand but with his line of work, he needed both. 

Today, during the lunch break when Rosaria told him that y/n wanted to have a tattoo, his blood rushed to his cheeks and ears. He did not think you’d be interested in tattoos or piercings. He definitely did not see the next blow coming. “Yep. sure.”, he supplied, coughing back the lump in his throat. Of all the parlors you could choose you had to choose his. What in the lord’s fuck was going on?

The day came faster, faster than he had anticipated. Needless to say, it did not go like he thought it would. It was safe to say he was more nervous than you were. “Are you sure about this?”, “Ya’know it’s gonna hurt, right?”, “Should I use some anesthetic on the area?” His questions wouldn’t stop and you were trying your best to stay as patient as possible It is true, part of him was nervous but another wanted to spend and enjoy some time with you.

“And done!”, Kaeya playfully mused as he wiped over the work of ink, careful enough not to accidentally graze his fingers over your inner thigh but of course, he did want to.“y/n” he spoke, his tone low but clear enough for you to hear, “so, how many tattoos do you have now?” Kaeya shifted in his chair as he intently watched you normalize your heightened breathing

“Didn’t you keep count?”, 

“nine”, he said, letting out a breathless laugh. “which means you dumped your ninth partner.” and he was not wrong. Of all the regular customers he had, you were his favorite because you had an amusing story to tell whenever you had visited his parlor. He would listen to you the moment he was finished with his handiwork.

But this one in particular, was quite a different story. You never told nor was he allowed to ask about the guy you dumped, ever. Part of him wanted to console you, and tell you that good things take time but another part of him was too afraid to lose you, realizing it was unprofessional of him to offer any form of painkiller against a situation like that. Because on any other occasion, his usual customers weren’t as chatty as you were. 

He never thought of a case where it might be the opposite. With that, he thought that you, of all people, being dumped by someone was utterly ridiculous, because who wouldn't want to date someone like you? He knows he would, after all, and if he could, he would make sure the ninth tattoo is to be the last tattoo on your body.

“What about you?”, you asked, swinging your legs in the air while sitting on the bed. “For a tattoo artist, you are awfully blank.” 

“It’s somewhere. . .”, he started, “wait I’ll rather show you . . .”. and when you, in a sliding second, unexpectedly flashed him, his hands immediately found their way crawling at the hem of his turtle-neck.

“Wait. wait. Wait. stop. Just stop.” kaeya panicked as you partly opened your eyes. He crossed his arms over his chest while your eyebrows jumped and stayed intact for seconds. Pin-drop silence and then both of you simultaneously laughed. Some might think it’s corny, and maybe you did as well but it doesn’t matter, what matters is that you were smiling right now. 

That’s good. That’s really good. 

Kaeya checked his watch as you left his place to run upstairs, checking to see if Rosaria was done with her chores; after all, she was almost approaching the closing hour of her shop so she should’ve been done by the time you had arrived at her place. Fifteen minutes, fifteen minutes before you and Rosaria would come out of the elevator to go home;  maybe he could if he’d finally stop thinking about it in such an unhealthy calculative manner.

Yet, well, there was just one problem. His ears felt hot, his mind was restless and he couldn't focus on a single task. Generally, it took ten minutes to close his shop and he does it every day, all alone so if not his mind, his muscle memory should be functioning properly. But all he desired to do was to touch himself and relieve himself from the agony of months boiling in his core.

June, the prime time of summer and ice cream. Kaeya slides his right arm under his vest while grazing his lower belly, eagerly thinking of the last time, but eventually, his arm ends up slipping into his pants, his fingers clamping around his length, and finally, a soft groan escapes from his mouth. The tip of his tongue kisses the corner of his lips as he takes out his cock which was coated with warm white fluid, at the tip pre-cum.

For a moment, he is surprised, and then he suddenly is not. There is a crescent formed along his lips as he taps the tip of his cock, smearing the reddened end with its pre. “Oh fuck. This feels so much better.”, he groans, mumbling to himself, thinking why he didn’t do this way sooner.

He palms his member, a little harder, this time trying to imagine how it would feel to be sheathed by your gummy walls. He started to pump his cock as his pants slipped, now clustered at the bottom of the chair while his legs were trying to give as much space as possible by spreading them further apart.

With half-lidded eyes, he checks if you had locked the door before leaving or not. You did not and the thought of you walking onto him turned him so bad that he thought he might cum right away.

The moment he closes his eyes he could see you, your calloused fingers around his cock and now he is pumping his cock rashly, the hem of his vest being buried in between his teeth, muffled moans escaping his mouth as the squelching noises had gotten louder and louder.

His other hand gradually made its way towards his nipples, pinching and circling around them thinking of your lips instead. “Oh fuck.”, he hisses as his toes curl, his hips bucked up with a force as he thinks of how euphoric it would be to have your soft lips wrapped around his cock, to have your puffy lips on his, to have your boobs tightly pressed against his bare chest, pronounced nipples grazing against each other while Kaeya’s cock is hitting your sweet spot with precision, blessing his ears with the prettiest desperate moans from you.

He squeezes his eyes shut as his hands move up and down his swollen cock, hitting his girth with calculated thrusts. He paces up as he feels his orgasm approaching, huffing and panting, not caring how vocal he has become until the coil at the core of his flat belly snaps, making him dizzy, his hand movements sloppy, and his inner thighs gradually closing, relishing in the high he had just experienced.

Kaeya’s chest rises up and down frantically as he finally opens his eyes, watching the spurs of milky white fluid all over the floor and his study desk. A heavy sigh leaves his body as his breathing normalizes. “Fuck . . .”, he mumbles throwing back his head before closing his eyes and thinking of you, again. He takes a few deep breaths to relax before cleaning the mess.

Yet, when he suddenly heard the footsteps, his heart sank. He regrets touching himself while thinking of you, he regrets not saving himself for you, he regrets chasing love so fast, so insanely that he almost lost his hope for finding the one. 

“Hey Kae-ya, you done?”, you asked, opening the door, “Rosa is gonna be late today. So, I’ll stay and help her. I’m going out to buy some food, you wanna come with me?” You let your exhausted body lean against the door frame while Kaeya remained silent. 

It just made him crazy how blatantly you ignored him, his magnetic affection for you, and the truth was, he cannot even blame you for that. He has always enjoyed this feeling, to like you in secrecy. The more you are unaware of his emotions, the greater chance he has to be around you. Kaeya does not ask for much, just a few more days till he musters up enough courage to finally ask you out.

—

@tokyometronetwork

[jedi-hawkins]

"Strap in, kid. You're not gonna want to miss this view." - Sgt. Hunter

I've seen a few others make a tribute post for the batch and I felt some words pulling at my chest.

I was a latecomer to the fandom, I binged season 1 & 2 in July of last year and it's been a wild ride since. I've laughed and cried and everything in between. It's hard to even articulate what this show means to me.

I began my Star Wars journey like many others, with the original trilogy at some point in childhood (you could consider me a zillenial). I liked them, but I was much more of a Harry Potter nerd at the time, my head was at Hogwarts. The prequels, however captured my heart. I don't remember when I first watched TCW, but it's very clear my heart belongs to the times of the Republic.

Like things often do, other fandoms have faded out of my peak interests, Harry Potter, Hunger Games and Maximum Ride to name a few, but any time I've come back to Star Wars, it feels like coming home. A galaxy far far away so vast and full of hope and love and grief and sorrow.

The last year has been far from easy. For the last few years, that feels like all we've been saying, huh? But in all seriousness, I really did loose myself in the past year, but oddly enough, Star Wars was a constant for me, it was an escape. I joined tumblr right after I binged season 1 & 2 of The Bad Batch and immediately fell in love with the wonderful world of fans and writers and artists here.

At first, I was a lurker, just a name that popped into the reblogs, but I began interacting more and more. I've brushed on this with a couple people (so sorry for repeating myself), but it was actually through reading fanfiction, that I came to terms with the fact that I needed to leave a 2.5 year relationship. It's not that I 'fell out of love' with them or anything, I just realized I didn't trust them as much as I should, I didn't want to share as much as I should, I wasn't being fulfilled in the ways I needed. And for that, fanfic authors, I thank you. Please never stop creating.

I also learned a lot about myself, get ready cause I'm about to get cheesy.

Hunter, you brought me a lot of comfort. I saw how heavy the wellbeing of your squad weighed on your shoulders. How you sacrificed and starved yourself, mentally and emotionally for their safety and benefit. I've lived that more times than I can count and with you, I didn't feel quite as alone in that experience. Even though we never talked, and we never will, I feel like you saw me. Crosshair, you healed some of my faith in humanity. That people can change, they can see the error in their ways and turn against a system they just sort of slipped into. You reminded me that healing isn't linear, and that's okay. You reminded me that courage and bravery aren't the absence of fear, but they are going and facing the mountain despite every atom in your body telling you to turn the other way. Echo, you reminded me it's okay to leave a group if your goals don't align. That it's not always an "in or out" situation. They can still be your family, people you rely on and who can rely on you even if you're not sharing bunks or meals anymore. You also reminded me that no matter how dire a situation is, or how grumpy you may be, a little humor goes a long way. Wrecker, you reminded me that people's perception does not define who you are. You can be big and gentle. you can love explosions and destruction and still be very intuitive. You can take some time to process things and still be skilled and intelligent. You reminded me to take joy in the simple things, a Lula, some Mantel mix, an ice cone. Things are always a little better with a full belly. Omega, you brought back some of my childlike innocence. You approached the galaxy with wide eyes full of wonder and always gave people the benefit of the doubt. You never lost hope. Even though you had to grow up too fast, you didn't let it break you, you still opened your heart to anyone who would see it. Tech, dear Tech. You reminded me to never dull myself or apologize for being authentically me. That my interests and skills are a good thing, no matter how niche they are. That I shouldn't be embarrassed or feel annoying for my knowledge or my eagerness to share it. You reminded me that love and humor and kindness and connection come in all shapes and sizes.

I've also made friends in this fandom at a level I wasn't even expecting to. I've made connections beyond the galaxy of Star Wars and found love and support in amazing ways. I was pulled to create more than I have in a long time, writing, drawing, hell even building my own server.

For sake of not clogging people's notifications, fighting with Tumblr's tagging bugs, and inevitably forgetting to tag someone: You all know who you are. Three M's, Havoc Marauder.

I began writing this tribute post before I watched the finale, and I'm finishing it after the finale. I'll end my ramble with this:

Dee and Michelle, thank you for bringing these characters to life over the last four years. You two really were the heart and soul of this project and your voices will forever ring true as Clone Force 99. Filoni, thank you for creating the concepts for this wonderful show that has become such a big part of so many people's lives. Brad, thank you for the immense work you've put into the show, your direction will not be forgotten. Jen, Joel, KinerBros, and Noshir (The Four Horsemen), y'all are a bunch of trolls and I hate you for it. I'm sending you my therapy bills. (I mean thank you for your work too, but you've been playing with my emotions for the past three months so forgive me if I'm a bit bitter)

It has truly been an amazing view. I don't plan on going anywhere, the fandom is just getting started, I am on the edge of my seat for all the wonderful fan creation that are yet to come.

CT-9901 ~ Sergeant Hunter ~ Havoc 1

CT-9902 ~ Tech ~ Havoc 2

CT-9903 ~ Wrecker ~ Havoc 3

CT-9904 ~ Crosshair ~ Havoc 4

ARC-1409 ~ Echo

Omega ~ Havoc 5

Clone Force 99 ~ Signing off 🫡

[fullscoreshenanigans]

Wait wait. You said 9 PPL are aware that Isabella is Ray's bio mom. Who are these 9?

And do you think Emma and Norman would figure out this fact all by themselves later?

[Related posts]

This is something that Shirai recently confirmed in the 8th anniversary Q&A on the Yakuneba community website, specifically here in the second batch of answers released.

I love how exact he is with this answer without elaborating at all lmao

With the way it's translated, I'm unsure if "know" means everyone who ever knew this information or characters who are alive at the end of the story and are aware of it.

These ones are for sure:

1. Ray 2. Jessica 3. Matilda 4. Scarlet 5. Sienna

So that leaves four others.

If it's characters who are alive and people can mean anyone, then the Grace Field Demon Boss might count since his fate is unknown after chapter 177. The last we hear about him is that the royal demon guard arrested him after his head was lobbed off.

I also default to Mike Ratri knowing as the head of the Ratri clan with access to the database containing all the information related to the cattle children:

(Chapter 7 | Chapter 22)

I talk about this here, too, but it seems like Krone brought a dossier with information about the plant #3 children with her in order to confirm the veracity of Ray's bait note implicating Isabella's assistance in their upcoming escape due to knowing Ray was her biological son. If Krone had access to information like that, I don't think it's out of bounds for Mike to have it as well. Even if he isn't aware of it at the time the children arrive in the human world, if he's a point of contact with the cast to help them settle into the human world initially, I wouldn't be surprised if delved deeper into information regarding children of note like the full score trio.

If we're including characters who have died, then the list looks like this:

1. Ray 2. Isabella 3. Grandma Sarah 4. Krone 5. Jessica 6. Matilda 7. Scarlet 8. Sienna

With the ninth person being up in the air, though as of right now I settle on Mike for angst in my own silly little headcanons and AUs.

Interestingly, there's also this line from the second chapter of the mystic code book:

"The farm authorities didn't want Isabella to suspect that Ray is her biological son" makes it sound like this was common knowledge among the upper ranks of headquarters (and something I like angsting about in posts like this one. If Isabella is off limits from being eaten due to being the youngest and most capable Mom the farms have ever seen, then eating her son is theoretically the next best thing).

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 1 and Chapter 7 Q&As)

But again, I'm not sure how much of this is tied up in the translation and how much of this is Shirai being potentially contradictory after a decade of being involved with this story.

Do you think Emma and Norman would figure out this fact all by themselves later?

I appreciate how you word this because I'm of the mind there is absolutely no way in hell Ray would ever willingly reveal this information to anyone without prompting from outside forces until his very late teens/early twenties at the earliest (see here for an extremely indulgent AU of mine that incorporates a throughline they discarded in S2 where Isabella goes after the kids as an extreme version of an outside force).

(Mystic Code Book Chapter 6 Q&A)

If he has any say in the matter, he's taking this information to the grave.

However, that doesn't mean Emma and Norman can't discern things on their own. After the events of the escape arc, if a fanfic author runs with the idea that Emma and/or Norman picked up on this but remain quiet on the subject because that's Ray's secret to keep or reveal (something I've seen before), I think it's reasonable, though I think it's less likely for Emma to rediscover after losing her memories and assuming she never regains them.

I'm also someone who likes to overthink about this panel from chapter 174 and Norman's incorporation in it. It could easily just be due to knowing Ray had a unique relationship with Isabella due to being her spy for years…but why not throw more angst in with him knowing the extra layer of gravity in this exchange between the two as another reason for his knowing and somber expression? (You could also extend this to Emma, but I focus on Norman just because we can see he's looking back at Ray whereas Emma's still looking in the general direction of Isabella). He had over a year in Lambda to reflect on his time at Grace Field and pore over all the oddities he noticed between Isabella and Ray but chalked up to other things at the time…and isn't that so incredibly like Ray to keep that kind of conflict and pain to himself, either to spare others or because he loathes pity. There's a sad fondness tinging the thought.

I also like to entertain the idea of Peter and Norman interacting more because it's one of the least explored protagonist and antagonist dynamics in the series. Even if it isn't prompted by having a familial connection with Norman that I touch upon here:

This is already long but a tangentially related conversation to this eventually comes up with Peter asking about Emma and Ray. On the surface, it's to connect with Norman and learn more about his life at Grace Field, but the ulterior motive is to see if there's any information he can glean about these kids to find and capture them quicker. Norman will give it to him for having the tact not to slip and refer to them by their numbers like he's sure he wants to do, but he's still incensed at their names in his mouth. There's also the chance that Peter might reveal a crumb of information himself about their status (because Norman can't see why he would be asking unless he had something to gain from it, so that has to mean their escape was a success and they were all alive. The alternative would kill him), so he entertains the conversation. --- #also it might seem counterintuitive to kill Emma and Ray if he wants to engender love for him in Norman #but the sentiments are Norman would have eventually outgrown them anyway so it's fine and he'll get over it lol

The full score trio are kind of like celebrities among demon nobility and humans at headquarters.

(Chapter 1 | Chapter 80 | Chapter 76 | Chapter 152 | Chapter 156 | Chapter 159)

So I could see Peter asking Norman about them to gain information, and maybe one of the things he brings up is Isabella's connection with Ray, possibly bringing up the note if he somehow managed to be privy to that information (maybe Sarah told him, maybe he stumbled across the note in Sarah's office during the transfer of power from her to Isabella as Grandma since Isabella most likely came across it among the treasures Sarah collected over the years, like the embroidered map of headquarters in the second light novel/Krone's bonus chapter, lots of contrivances to work with) to both see how Norman reacts to it and as a means to evaluate how trustworthy Isabella is in her new role.

Something I imagine for that earlier mentioned Isabella Raids the Bunker AU, but I think it's transferable to other scenarios as well, is Ray divulging that secret to Norman in light of the circumstances, and Norman revealing he put the pieces together because he had a lot of time to think at Lambda, citing a few instances that made more sense to him because of it, and in an echo to their exchange in chapter 13/S1 episode 5, Ray responds with something along the lines of "I really can't get anything past you, huh."

Norman's intelligence is one of the many reasons he's fond of and cares for him, how capable and attentive it can make him, but there's bittersweetness and grief tinging those words due to the situation in general and at the thought of him having been obvious about things back at the house that all circle back around to him loathing the idea of pity directed at him when roughly sixty of his siblings at Grace Field plant #3 suffered a worse fate under Isabella's care, a few of them as a direct result of his choices.

It's the self-loathing that makes his mind interpret his friends looking at him with pity when what they're offering him is understanding, compassion, and love.

[rallamajoop]

Cultic Iconography in Resident Evil Village

As the kind of nerd who loves all the creepy artwork you can find decorating Miranda-shrines around the village (like, just check out that one of the half-skeletal Miranda hovering in the graveyard and just tell me that isn't metal AF), I was on the lookout for the original image assets while poking through the game files. I'm hardly an expert on Catholic or Orthodox iconography (plenty of which is creepy enough just to begin with), but I adore how you can see all those elements being twisted and appropriated by Miranda's cult. You'll find these six pictures plastered all over the village in various combinations.

So you can imagine how thrilled I was to find a whole extra batch of unused artwork in the same set!

Lest you doubt these were all meant to go together, they all hail from the one big compilation file ‒ I've just cropped them out separately for ease of viewing. For all I know, maybe some of these were used somewhere in the game and I just never caught it (and if you have spotted any, please let me know!)

But taken at face value, our unused images consist of one picture of the megamycete, a 10-winged-madonna figure (why limit yourself to just 6?), a side profile of Miranda herself (possibly excluded because it shows off a little too much of her real face?), two images of dead crows, and (strangest of all) a man holding a goat head.

That last pic especially stands out ‒ and not just because I could (and, indeed, now have) legit write you a whole essay on just the significance of the goat's head motif as a protective symbol in the village (seriously, it's everywhere from the Goats of Warding to the symbol on the shield of the Maiden of War statue), so I'm going to be all over any new example. But who the hell is that guy carrying it? No other image centers anyone but Miranda herself as an object of worship. This looks more like someone's taken a generic pic of the likes of St Francis of Assisi hanging out with some animals (it's a theme, you can look it up), then just cut the poor animal off at the neck for added creep factor.

So do we take it that this guy was, at some point, meant to be another key figure in Miranda's cult? Or was generic-saint-with-animal-plus-extra-squick all they were really going for? Was it drawn before the writers made Miranda the cult leader? Or could this even have been intended (as the goats themselves seem to be) as some in-universe, pre-Miranda relic of an earlier era?

Also interesting: he appears to be holding one of those ornate staves you can also see in the fire and skeletal images of Miranda above (and can also find in the field near Luisa's early in the game, before they're all replaced by charred, semi-crucified corpses). Did that symbol predate Miranda too? Fascinating, either way.

Those two crow pictures may be even more intriguing still. I'm sure we all remember that spooky batch of dead and/or hanging crows Ethan discovers at the start of his descent into the village, but thereafter nothing like that is ever seen again. Given that Miranda herself is so closely associated with crows, it's reasonable to wonder if this very-literal murder-of-crows was in fact some act of heresy by an unbeliever, deliberately hidden out in the woods.

But if images of dead crows ‒ including one hung in the very same position ‒ were at some point intended to appear alongside other images of Miranda-veneration, then presumably veneration was always the intent for those dead crows out in the woods. Suffering is, of course, a key part of the stories of so many saints. And perhaps crows are sacred only in the same way that the goats are: ideal candidates for ritual sacrifice.

Much as I love all the concept art you can already unlock with the game, I'd pay good money for a proper artbook going into all this kind of design work. There's clearly so much more that went into the concept art stages of this game that I'd love to hear more about.

And while we're at it, here's a nice big version of the standard winged-fetus symbol too:

[whatitshouldvebeen]

Speaking of asks though I’d love to request a Johnny fic where the reader is completely aware that she’s being manipulated, and that nothing but bad will come of associating with Johnny. Except her saviour complex gets the better of her, and not wanting to waste the amount of effort she’s already put into the relationship, she pushes on with the mindset that she can be the one to change something inside him, only to be completely wrong and at his mercy, regretting the fact she ever thought of this man as fixable.

Johnny is of course making fun of her the entire time, finding her perception of him completely out of touch and naive, shaming and humiliating her. You can definitely make it smutty too should you want. 😳

Curiosity Killed the Bunny

Johnny Slaughter x you

Contains: degradation, no y/n, gaslighting

Sorry for taking so long on this one, I had an idea for it forever ago but I had to wait for them to release Johnny's Shack so I didn't get to it until now, I hope it was worth the wait 😈

••••

“Always knew you were a lil ditzy. Didn't think you were full-on stupid, though,” Johnny teased, grinning down at you. Your wrists were in one of his hands as he pressed you against the beverage fridge in the ‘Last Chance’ gas station. Drayton Sawyer cleaned the countertop, trying his best not to look curious.

“I just wanted to see where you worked!” You protested, trying to keep your voice low to keep from drawing attention. You had secretly followed Johnny here after he'd spent the night at your place.

But the moment you walked into the gas station, Johnny cornered you, as if he’d known you were following him all along.

“Told ya not to worry about my job, sugar,” he leaned in, his lips inches from yours. “Now you're really in for it.”

“Johnny,” you breathed in his exhale, cigarettes and iron. “Is something wrong? Let me help you.”

You knew there were plenty of things wrong with Johnny; how manipulative he was, his secretive nature, and that he was struggling to commit. But something told you not to give up. Someday, there would be a breakthrough.

You could still save him.

Johnny had left your house this morning with his mind elsewhere. He barely kissed you before he left to who knows where. You'd had enough with the secrets.

“Dumb little bunny. You can't do shit to help me. Best you manage is addin’ to my problems,” he said, sneering.

Your brow furrowed, the urge to protest growing stronger. “You've barely tried to trust me! Six months and I've never even seen where you live!”

A trucker stared at you two from across the gas station, quickly averting his eyes when Johnny glared over his shoulder.

Johnny turned back to you, drawing even closer, his grip on your wrists tightening. “You wanna see where I live, hm? Well, I guess I don't got a choice but to show you now, do I?”

Your next batch of complaints died in your throat. “W-wait, you mean it? I can see your home?”

“Now that Uncle Drayton has seen you, he'd think it were improper if I didn't.” He tilted his head, his smirk growing.

You wondered why Drayton would want you to go home with Johnny, but you were too elated to worry about logistics.

Johnny released your sore wrists and took you by the waist, leading you back to his truck.

Finally! Was this the breakthrough you'd been waiting for? Was Johnny finally opening up? You didn't want to get too ahead of yourself, but you felt proud as you hopped in his truck, and he took off down the dirt road.

It only took fifteen minutes before you pulled up the long gated driveway lined with sunflowers toward a beautiful home.

“Wow, Johnny! Your home is beautiful,” you said cheerily, holding his hand over the console.

He mumbled a response and continued down the drive, stopping outside of a brown shed with bull horns hung over the doorway.

Johnny turned the truck, which rumbled to a standstill, and then opened your passenger door, helping you down to the gravel.

Much to your surprise, he headed for the shed and opened the door, waiting for you.

“Oh,” you tried to hide your flustered expression, feeling stupid. Johnny laughed and smacked your ass as you entered his shed.

“Thought my ma's place was mine? Ya really are a dumb little bunny, ain't you?” He chided.

“Sorry, I just-” you trailed off, your eyes flitting around the shed. A ratty couch covered in beer bottles and empty cigarette boxes, a kitchen piled high with unwashed dishes, and far too many freezers greeted you.

Johnny's fingers caught your chin, pulling your attention to him.

“You’ll have plenty of time to look around later.” His hand trailed down your chin to your neck with a loose grip. He kept drinking you in, an inkling of regret in his eyes.

“You just had to stick your nose where it don't belong,” he said under his breath, his dark gaze intense.

“I just wanna help you, Johnny. If you'd let me see your place earlier, I coulda kept it clean for you.”

“You will, Bunny. You'll keep it nice and clean for me. And you'll make my dinner. And clean my clothes,” he said, smiling. But his smile was… off.

“Do you want me to move in?” You asked.

“In a sense,” he said.

“Why are you lookin’ at me like that, Johnny?” You asked nervously.

“Cause I'm tryin’ to figure how you stay alive with so little brain function.”

You flushed with embarrassment. “You don't need to be so rude,” you said, averting your eyes.

“Will it make things more clear if I do this?” Johnny let go of your chin and walked over to the front door. He proceeded to lock three locks, and then padlock the final one, draping the key around his neck by a silver chain.

“Is there something dangerous outside?” You asked, your eyes growing large.

Johnny barked a laugh. “Sort of. You see, my uncle Drayton don't take well to me keeping girls around. My ma neither.”

He saunters back over to you. “I was doing well keepin’ you a secret, but well, now that Drayton has seen me with you, he'll be wanting meat.”

“What?” You asked, your throat running dry.

“My uncle Drayton is famous for his BBQ. And for good reason. After all, he uses the freshest meat,” he said, coming to a stop in front of you. You were still standing by the wall beside the front door, which he pressed you against.

“What does that have to do with me?” You asked anxiously.

“Young, supple little bunnies got the most tender, sweet meat,” Johnny purred. “Just can't get enough of it. I keep hunting down naïve little rabbits, and he cooks ‘em up and sells ‘em at the station.”

“Rabbits? You're talking about rabbits, right?” You asked.

“Ditzy little bunny. I could scoop out half your brain and you might be better off.” He gripped your ass, pulling you against him. “You're the meat. Or you should be. I tried to keep you out of it honey, but you just had to get curious.”

“Drayton eats people?” You squeaked, horrified. “Wait, he feeds people to people?!”

“Mmhm. I catch ‘em, we butcher ‘em, Drayton cooks ‘em. Nice lil system we got goin’. And you should be next on the table.”

You gasped, all the blood draining from your face.

“But don't worry, sugar. Johnny won't let that happen. The moment you walked into the gas station, I hid your face from Drayton. All’s I gotta do is find another girl who looks like you to take your place.”

“This can't be happening,” you groaned, feeling sick to your stomach.

“Hey, hey now,” Johnny soothed, caressing your clammy cheek. “I got you, bunny. As long as you stay nice n’ quiet and don't leave home, I can keep you alive.”

“I c-can't leave?” You asked, your lip trembling.

“If my ma sees you, she'll kill ya herself. Na, it's better ‘f you stay right here.”

“I'm gonna be sick,” you said, pushing him aside and running to the sink. Your vomit coated the old pots and dishes, adding to the already rancid smell.

“Now, bunny,” Johnny said as he placed his hands on your hips, “remember this is all because you didn't listen to Johnny. Because you thought your dumb little fantasy of saving the bad boy was gonna come true.”

You whimpered, your entire body trembling as you dry heaved again.

“Now, I'm gonna be the one saving you, baby girl. All you gotta do is behave, and be a good girl for me. Can you do that?”

You stared at the vomit-coated sink and wondered if the rancid meat in the pan swarmed with maggots was human.

Johnny spun you around, pressing you against the disgusting sink.

“I said, can you be good for me?”

You shook in place, terrified and frozen.

Johnny slapped the dumb expression off your face, replacing it with one of anguish as you fell to the floor, hitting your head on one of the cabinet knobs beneath the sink.

“Answer me, dumb little bunny,” he snarled, kneeling down and forcing your gaze up to his by gripping your hair.

“Yes! I c-c-can! Please stop!” You sobbed, cradling your cheek.

A malicious smile unfurled on Johnny's face.

“I Caught and killed plenty of pets before, but never kept one,” he said. “I promise I'll try my best to take care of you, baby. Keep you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed,” he said happily.

You couldn't hear him, your ears were ringing so loudly. And still somewhere in your dumb little bunny brain, a little voice shouted- “I can still fix him!”

[morethansky]

***TBB SPOILERS**

Realized I never wrote up my thoughts on "Into the Breach," which was the first episode I've liked since "Extraction"!!! Probably because all I could think about was Echo for 72 hours afterward.

This episode gave me such Rebels vibes, and that's truly the highest compliment I could pay any Star Wars media. I present my case:

There's an objective laid out from the start that is a small but crucial piece of the larger plot. The beginning of the episode presents this problem, and by the end of the episode, that specific problem solved.

Everyone is competent, and every character gets to do something vital to the mission. Whether it's a small thing doesn't matter; it's the fact that if that character wasn't there to do that small thing, the mission might be screwed that matters.

The action is meaningful—it conveys something about the characters while also driving the plot forward—and there's suspense that ratchets up the tension. And then to diffuse it, there's humor, and each joke is funny, but it's not overdone.

Infiltration episodes are such a Star Wars staple, and it's a real shame that TBB hasn't had more of them. They tried to make up for it by putting THREE infiltrations into this episode lmao. The fact that they show one long-term infiltration, one short-term infiltration, and one super short-term infiltration is very clever and makes the writing feel cohesive and dynamic, something this show hasn't always been able to achieve.

Also important, they do both a space/flight mission and a ground mission (two of each, technically), which is something that always helps make an episode feel like it's set in the GFFA and not just, you know *cough* Space!Louisiana. Or Tatooine scene #700.

There's also some nice storytelling going on with the environment—they go from being outside on the cloud city (free) to inside a space station (trapped with enemies), and for Omega, inside a cell (in which she actually enters another cell, visually—her bunk). The wide outdoor shots make the close, indoor shots feel much more claustrophobic, which is exactly the atmosphere these particular indoor settings should be giving off.

Other thoughts and meta:

Daytime Tantiss is a good sign! Forecast: Not death?

Prison Break Omega is just such a good vibe, and this would just be so fucking cool...except we've literally already seen her escape once this season??? And it was already really well done??? This is like the flip side of my complaint that Omega was too helpless in the first season, and it was annoying how she constantly needed to be rescued. Now she's too competent and is always escaping lol. It just really, really cheapens the dramatic effect either escape could've had.

Needless to say, the Batch's driving purpose once again being that they're struggling to rescue Omega is just. I'm tired. If there are going to be two major captures and two major escapes this season, at least one of them needs to be a narrative flip!!! The Batch rescuing her at the front end of the season and Omega escaping herself at the end, or vice versa, would've made it much less repetitive (and stopped cutting the Batch off at the knees in order to show Omega's competency). Omega even gets captured in the same fucking way—she gives herself up in "Plan 99" and "Point of No Return"! Ughhhhh

Okay I swear I actually like this episode lmao, I just. Editor instincts.

Thinking about how Omega left Lula on Pabu and has essentially left Straw!Lula to Eva, and how it shows that she's shed her need for comfort and is now ready to provide that comfort to other children, which is very lovely. But I'm also worried about Lula and Tech's goggles being on Pabu, because there are only three thematic options here: Everyone returns to them (sanctuary), everyone leaves them behind (leaving the past behind), or Omega returns to leave more items, say a bandana or a Firepuncher (memorial). The link between Lula and the goggles is actually not that natural (unless you're a Techwrecker shipper like me :D), so I've been pondering this choice a lot.

The symbolism of everything inside Tantiss being in the shape of the Empire cog and every character within its walls being a cog of the Empire is so heavy handed...and I am here for every moment of it!!!

Truly did not expect Rampart to stick around for so long. He's going to be a main character in the finale at this point?? I like how he's like a Kallus foil here—despite being scapegoated by the literal emperor he's still loyal to the regime and takes such pride in it. A very Jennifer Corbett & Brad Rau–esque character.

The way that when Echo came down the ramp I literally said, "Oh, thank god."

Hunter and Echo doing the clone hand clasp (and not wrist clasp, you'll note) isn't as emotional given that we already know how strong their bond is at this point, but it's still nice to see this visual callback to the Batch respecting Cody so much despite him being a reg that Hunter would use this hand clasp to greet him. It's a great shorthand (ha) for Hunter's feelings, since he is particularly suspicious of outsiders, and Echo is now fully "one of his."

I really love the mirror of the scene when the Batch is in the cell on Kamino and they escape by breaking into the wall—Omega effectively does the same thing here. These are the satisfying kinds of repetition, rather than entire arcs!

Every time I think about the Tech-is-the-mustachioed-doctor theory I giggle. It would just be. So anticlimactic?? But absolutely hilarious.

The costume change is so unnecessary, buuut I'll be first in line to buy the variant figures! Also it's nice to see some canon clone armor painting after writing and reading so many fics about it!!

I really like Hunter sensing Rampart plotting and how it brings his powers even closer to Jedi precognition.

Not too much Crosshunt in this ep, but I like how in both shuttle scenes, Crosshair stands in a position that blocks Rampart from getting to Hunter in the cockpit (while Wrecker blocks Rampart from getting to the exit).

Not particularly significant, but I like the visual detail of Hunter, Echo, and Crosshair bracketing Rampart in a triangle and it looking like they're his bodyguards but them actually forming that position because he's their prisoner.

The way I screamed when Rampart tries to get Echo to say "sir" and he just says, "I don't think so." Echo did not go through everything he's gone through up to this point to take anyone's shit!!! And the way Rampart just takes it and looks down all ashamed is peak comedy to me. Even he sensed that he was treading on dangerous ground there. (Just for a second think about Fives on Umbara and how he refused to take Krell's shit from the very start...)

The commandos being on this space station (that's orbiting Coruscant??) makes me very sad because it kind of foreshadows a dark ending for the Tantiss arc by showing that the commandos are spread all over the galaxy. So even if they rescue all the commandos from Tantiss, it still wouldn't save all the others. In which case, writing wise, it feels way more unlikely for them to save the commandos on Tantiss at all.

Wrecker tapping his foot while scrolling through the comments on his AO3 account is very cute. Also in the last episode the mining foreman was on his datapad like a phone and I thought it was supposed to convey that he was lazy lol but maybe this sort of thing is just going to show up in SW a lot more now haha

The lieutenant demanding to know where the captain is is kind of silly because wasn't he the one to let him go inside?? Why would he be back at his ship? But I love me the Rebels-esque gag of knocking him out on the ship.

Everyone is screaming about Crosshair having faith in Echo getting them through, but I would also like to contribute the fact that Crosshair says, "You can't go alone." A very poetic line of dialogue because being alone in the Techno Union is what the Batch saved Echo from being, and it's what Crosshair chose to be for two and a half seasons of this show. Not wanting to be alone again was also what made him turn against the Empire! We also see this anxiety in the previous episode, where he (in that very ridiculous reveal) admits he doesn't want to go back to Tantiss (and be alone again).

ECHOOOOOO!!!! About fucking time they gave him another action feature!!! I rewatch that opening sequence in "Tipping Point" constantly. And not only that, it's a very character-driven action feature for once!!! We see him showcase what it means to be an ARC trooper and also what it means that he's "part-droid." A test I like to consider when I gauge the quality of action-ensemble media is, Could any other character have done that? In this case, the text is very loudly telling us absolutely not! Also the way he exudes confidence about it ("But I can") is also just. Super hot, 10/10

Tbh the Echo feature felt so out of place for this show that at this point I was suddenly filled with terror that he was about to die. Thank god he did not, but he's still separated from the others by the end, so it's not out of the question for something terrible to happen in hyperspace, and I do not want it!!! But altogether that was a badass third act and a very good episode!

[laughhardrunfastbekindsblog]

I've seen referenced several times a paraphrased quote attributed both to DBB and to Jen Corbett of Bad Batch that the show's creators ultimately decided to kill off Tech because they couldn't make season 3 work otherwise.

Hmm.

I rarely read interviews from creators about a storyline because I prefer to let the story tell itself and let the interpretations come as they will based on what the narrative itself presents. But in this case I looked up the quotes/interview simply because I had to know how in the blazes they came to the conclusion that a storyline HAD to involve Tech (or any Bad Batch member, for that matter) dying.

I have... thoughts. Lots of thoughts. RESPECTFUL thoughts, because I truly do think the writers/directors of this show are absolutely BRILLIANT (which is partly why I had such a difficult time during season 3 and it has taken quite a bit of reflection to come to terms with it... But I needed to come to terms with it because I love it so much I want to enjoy all of it in the future!) But fair warning: if you prefer not to read a post if the post's author isn't 100% in agreement with the show's creative choices, then this might not be the post for you.

Reference: https://www.starwars.com/news/brad-rau-jennifer-corbett-the-bad-batch-season-3-interview

Quote #1: “When we first started this show, we had hoped that we could get three seasons to tell this story," executive producer and head writer Jennifer Corbett tells StarWars.com. "We kicked Season 1 off with Order 66 and the team trying to figure out where they fit in the galaxy. We knew Season 2 was going to be a little bit darker, because we knew that the team was going to lose in some way. As the season progressed, it became clear that the way for them to lose is to essentially have the team be fractured. That's what happens when we lose Tech, and then also with Omega being taken by the Empire.”

I find the choice of words here - particularly "fracture" and "lose" - to be interesting. This is the quote that made me realize my original (starting in season 1) hopes for where the themes of the show would conclude had apparently never been in line with what the show was aiming for. The show's definition of the team "fracturing" and "los[ing] in some way" apparently had to include death and only came in the season 2 finale; whereas I considered the team to be "fractured" within the first 10 minutes of the pilot episode - as soon as Order 66 came through and Crosshair was susceptible to the inhibitor chip, the team was broken. And they weren't ever truly whole in the first place, given that Order 66 occurs before they meet Omega. For me, the team lost big time as soon as the show started.

So, while I went through the entire show (yes, I kept hoping Tech would come back in season 3) hoping the themes of family and never leaving family behind would conclude in at least one instance of this little clone family being whole and truly united again - considering the fact that they were broken since "Aftermath" - I realize now this hope was nigh impossible to fulfill given that the show didn't consider the team fractured upon Crosshair's departure and therefore felt the need to not only break it apart further, but break it permanently.

Quote #2: “There were a lot of conversations that went into that [killing off Tech], and we even tried to talk ourselves out of it many times, because he's such an important character to the show, to all of us and the crew, and we know he is important to the fans,” Corbett says. “But what we're showing in Season 2 is that the galaxy has changed and the Empire is now very powerful in the early years. So we were trying to be logical in the sense that, the Batch keeps putting themselves in these positions and, ultimately, there has to be a time when they do lose."

I can respect this decision, though (as I stated above), the entire show pretty much involves the Bad Batch losing in one way or another and personally I don't care for the idea that the only real way a team can lose (read: "stakes") is if death is involved. But that's just me, and I can get over this personal hang up.

Quote #3: Throughout, they’ll feel the loss of their brother. “It affected a lot of the logistics,” Brad Rau, executive producer, says. “The very mathematical logistics of how we normally would have the team operate was massively different without Tech there. But emotionally, the most important part, the way that the loss of Tech affected Omega, Hunter, Wrecker, Echo, and Crosshair, even throughout the whole season was, I wouldn't say heavier than we expected, but was definitely very heavy.”

I'm gonna be blunt: when first watching season 3, I felt the emotional impact of the loss of Tech for most of the squad was sorely lacking, and this is the main reason why I kept hoping right up through the epilogue that Tech would somehow show up.

Every. Single. Allusion. To. Tech in season 3 hit like a ton of bricks right to the gut. @eriexplosion described it extremely well (paraphrasing) as picking at a wound and not letting it fully heal. After some reflection following the series finale, I came to the conclusion that this might be because the Tech mentions were meant to show how the Batch - Crosshair in particular - were still feeling about the loss, and (in hindsight) it seemed that Crosshair felt deep guilt and pain over Tech's death all the way through season 3. (Heck, I now see Crosshair having a moment to honor Mayday early on but never truly honoring Tech as yet another indication that, while Crosshair felt grief over Mayday, he must have felt even deeper grief compounded with guilt and remorse over Tech that led to him essentially avoiding the subject.) So I guess it turns out my conclusion fits the original intention of the creators.

Thing is, since we don't ever see any actual catharsis or healing for any of the Bad Batch members (Omega is the closest we get to it, and even that's a stretch), this aspect of the show does NOT land well for me - really, many times during season 3 it came across that the only real impact Tech's absence had on the team as a whole was that Hunter had to deal with datapads and decryption was harder. (There have been fan comments that if Tech had been around in season 3, the entire storyline would have been wrapped up in two episodes (and I actually rather agree with this) - but this headcanon/focus still only emphasizes Tech's role/function on the team, not his impact as a brother.)

Again, upon reflection I am quite willing to give the narrative the benefit of the doubt and say the excruciating emotional pain inflicted with every Tech mention was intended to show the impact of the loss on his family; but it was SO difficult to watch season 3 when this wasn't made clear from the get-go. And given that (based on reddit discussions I've seen) half the audience seemed to think the Bad Batch had long since moved on because "stoic soldiers/they have other priorities" while the other half thought the Bad Batch hadn't moved on and were avoiding the subject, I truly do think this ended up being a murky point - and it shouldn't have been.

This is where we get to the hill I will die on and my ONLY major criticism of the show: if Tech "had" to die and stay dead, there should have, at bare minimum, been a scene - even if it came at the end of the finale - where Tech's entire family finally had a chance to meaningfully acknowledge and honor Tech, even if it was brief such as Crosshair had with Mayday. If there had been any moment before the finale for any of Tech's brothers to honor and/or memorialize him, the contrast between that cathartic moment versus how the topic had been treated before/by his other siblings would have been more than adequate to cement early on the idea that the squad was still feeling the loss of Tech as an individual and a brother, thereby clarifying the show's intentions. And a moment for Tech's ENTIRE family (and friends) to honor him, even if it came at the end of the finale, would have closed out the dangling plot thread of Crosshair still feeling guilt and grief over Tech.

Anyway, while this interview didn't much change my own conclusions of how season 3 played out and what could have been done better, I am glad I read it since it provided at least a modicum of clarity as to what the show's intentions actually were - even if those intentions didn't always clearly come through in the narrative.

[gilded-moon]

flown the coop (but the birds fly home)

Summary: Omega has been gone with the Rebellion, and now she returns with news. Luckily for her dads, it's good news. They aren't sure they could take much else.

A/N: Hi! This is the first Bad Batch fic I've ever written, so I hope you guys like it! Adult Omega has my heart. Anyway, enjoy! (word count: 977)

Warnings: none!

It had been four months since Omega had left to join the Rebellion. Four months since Hunter had let his little girl fly away without him. It had hurt, deeply, but he was used to the pain now.

She’d kept up contact very well. They know Omega was safe and happy in the Rebellion. Well as safe as someone who fought the Empire could be. In her last call, Omega had told them that she was coming back for a few weeks before leaving again.

Nothing could quite describe how happy they were to see her again. Even Crosshair had managed a rare smile when Omega had announced her return. In fact, Wrecker had been so excited about her return that he had woken them all up at the crack of dawn to get ready for the small party they’d arranged.

It made Hunter laugh.

They were all currently waiting at the cave dock for Omega. She’d said that she would arrive in the afternoon, and it was currently two.

“Is she gonna get here soon?” Wrecker asked, straining his neck to look for approaching ships. “She said the afternoon!”

Hunter slapped his shoulder. “She’ll be here soon, Wrecker. Just give her a little bit of time.”

“Well I miss her! And I bought a lotta Mantell Mix for her.”

“I’m sure she’ll love it.” The faint humming of a ship made him turn. “I think I hear her. That sounds like the Mini Marauder.”

Crosshair squinted at the horizon, toothpick rolling in his mouth. “It is. I see her.”

The ship circled around the bay a few times before slowly flying into the cave and landing. Omega waved from the cockpit as the ramp lowered. Hunter waved back. When Omega finally exited the ship however, she wasn’t alone.

A Togruta woman who was nearly the same height as Wrecker walked off with her. The Togruta had pinkish-red skin and headtails striped with gray and white. Her eyes were a bright green, and she smiled at them as she stopped at the bottom of the ramp.

Omega ran over to Hunter and squeezed him tightly. “I’m back! I missed you so much.”

He returned the hug. “Hey kid. I missed you too. Who’s this?”

She smiled a little awkwardly and grabbed the Togruta’s hand. “This is Caisin Monki’li. She works for the rebellion too. We met when I went for my first mission, and now um…she’s my copilot. And my girlfriend.”

Caisin waved. “Hello,” she said in an accented voice. “Omega talk about you much. It nice to meet you.”

Wrecker scratched his head. “Girls can date girls? I never thought of that.”

Omega rolled her eyes. “Yes Wrecker.”

“Oh. Congratulations!"

Caisin winced at his loud voice.

“Oh sorry,” he said at a quieter volume. “I didn’t mean to be loud.”

“It okay. You seem much nice. Sorry my Basic not so good.”

“Mine ain’t great neither. Nice to meet ya!”

“Nice to meet you too.”

Crosshair inclined his head. “Hello.”

Caisin inclined her head in return. “Hello…Crosshair I t’ink?”

“Yeah. That’s me. So you want to date Omega then?”

“I do.”

“What do you do for the Rebellion?”

“I spied for a long time. My aunt used to be Jedi. I follow her path. Now I help Omega.”

“You can protect her?”

“Very well.”

“Provide for her?”

“I can.”

“You won’t ditch if things go wrong?”

“No. Honor is very important. That great dishonor. I will stay.”

Crosshair hummed and shrugged, the closest thing to a verbal approval he would ever give.

Omega and Caisin looked to Hunter next. He thought back to all the times he might have lost Omega, all the times that she might have lost him. The time when she had asked what dirt and grass and trees were. For so long, he’d seen her as a child that needed protecting. For so long, she’d been a little girl that needed her family.

But she wasn’t that little girl anymore. She knew so much about the world now, and she was more well traveled than even he was. Omega might have been that little girl once, but she had grown up a long time ago.

Hunter smiled and clasped hands with Caisin. “Welcome to Pabu.”

*

“Hi Hunter,” Omega said as she sat down next to him with an ice cream in both hands. “I brought you one.”

He chuckled and took it. “Thanks kid. So how has the Rebellion been treating you?”

“Pretty good. I’ve been flying supply missions and even got in a few scrapes. They love the Tech Turn.”

“I’m glad. He’d be proud of you, you know. You’ve come a long way since Kamino.”

“That’s all because of you. I couldn’t have done any of that without you. All of you.”

“We didn’t do any of this Rebellion stuff for you.” He gestured to Caisin who was arm wrestling with Wrecker. “Are you happy with her?”

Omega smiled though her cheeks flushed pink. “Yeah. I think I love her.”

Hunter ruffled her hair and returned the smile. “Good. That’s all we ever wanted for you. To be happy and choose how you want to do that. If that’s with her, we’re with you all the way.”

“It is. I…I want to marry her someday. Not yet! We both need more time. But someday.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “I’m glad I sat with you guys at lunch that day.”

Hunter watched as Caisin cheered, having won her arm wrestling match with Wrecker. Crosshair even clapped her on the back with his flesh hand instead of his metal one. Echo had also sent along his congratulations and promises to visit when Hunter had messaged him about Omega’s news. Even if it was unexpected, it was good for everyone.

“Me too, kid. Me too.”

[redwolf17]

Cake-pocalypse: Return of the Frosting-ing

Some of you may recall I've mentioned being busy with a cake-pocalypse. Well, here's the end result. I made both of these cakes, from scratch, for my parents' 50th anniversary party last weekend. Now that it's over, I thought it'd be fun to do a post about it, because while there's tons of popular baking shows, it's not a topic everyone necessarily knows about.

So, what goes into making cake for approximately 100 people?

Step 1) Baking the wedding cakes

A) The tiered cake was based on a photo of my parents' original wedding cake. To replicate it, I needed four tiers of vanilla cake, which meant eight layers of cake, two for each tier.

Fun fact: I learned how to bake from my mom, who is a talented home baker. I made my first cake by myself at age 9, and then gradually expanded my skills through years of practice. And when I say my mom is talented, I mean it; she's made wedding cakes for at least half a dozen friends and family over the years. It was only right that I use my mom's favorite wedding cake recipe for the batter; I think I ended up using 6 batches to make all the tiers, plus 2 dozen cupcakes to use up extra batter.

B) Once the cakes had cooled, I wrapped them in plastic wrap and put them in the freezer overnight. This firms up the cake's "crumb" or structure, making it easier to work with. By this point, it was late Sunday night; baking the cakes had taken almost all day. What with work and errands, I didn't resume work on the cakes until Thursday night. After partially thawing the cakes, I leveled each one by cutting off the tops where the cake had domed. This is a crucial step to make sure the cakes will stack properly; you don't want them tilting or toppling over.

C) Now that the cakes are leveled, they need their base coat of frosting. I used SO MUCH buttercream for these cakes CRY The trick is to frost them while they're still cold from the freezer, so the crumbs don't get into the frosting as much. Even so, every cake needed two coats of frosting, first the crumb coat, then, after a trip back to the freezer to set the frosting, a second coat to hide the crumbs stuck in the first coat. At this point, I was done (for now) with the wedding cakes, because I was NOT going to try to transport a completed four tier cake, which meant I couldn't stack/decorate them until the day of the party.

Step 2) Making the sheet cake

A) My entire day Saturday was spent baking, and it began with making the 12x18 chocolate sheetcake. It took three batches of cake batter; my favorite chocolate cake recipe is from Sally's Baking Addiction. I used the sour cream version, which is sturdier and thus would hopefully travel better.

B) Once the cake was baked, it took a loooong time to cool. You NEVER frost a warm cake, because the icing will melt and make a huge mess. Side note, this cream cheese frosting recipe is the best I've ever seen, and the coffee version I made by adding espresso powder turned out delicious.

C) After carefully chilling the cake in the fridge (it barely fit), I covered the entire cake with a chocolate glaze. The combination of chocolate cake + coffee cream cheese frosting + glaze comes from the Yule logs my mom makes every year, and which my dad and the rest of my family really love.

D) I draw a lot of practice grids and decoration ideas when I was first planning the cakes. I ended up deciding to do a pattern of frosting swirls with espresso beans, plus piping the message in the center. Since it is VERY hard to fix fuck ups, I practiced my calligraphy and my balloons on a piece of parchment paper before I put a piping bag anywhere near the cake. Once the buttercream had set, I painted it with a mixture of edible gold-colored pearl dust and vodka. Amazing stuff, a friend who has a home bakery recommended it. It was around 1am when the chocolate cake was done, and went back in the fridge to keep safe until the next day.

Step 3) Piping roses

While the chocolate cake was baking and cooling, it was time to work on decorations for the wedding cake. Buttercream roses are a pain in the ass, but since the original cake had them, this cake needed them too. Bless my niece, who served as my assistant for about 3 hours. My initial attempts at dyeing the frosting came out way too garish, but she tweaked them into the lovely shades of crimson and green you see here. She also held the flower nail so I could make my first 20 or so attempts at the roses using the Wilton technique. The buttercream was NOT cooperating at first; we had to add more powdered sugar to stiffen it, and then we had to keep putting the piping bags in and out of the fridge to get them to just the right consistency for piping. After my niece left, my bf held the flower nail for another 30+ roses. My hand and my arm were killing me by the end, but I was really worried about not having enough to cover the cake. Also, more practice meant better roses.

Step 4) Assembling the tiered cake

A) Sunday morning was D-Day. We got to the venue 3 hours early because I knew I'd need every minute to assemble and decorate the tiered cake. Each tier sits on a cardboard cake board, but that's not enough support. To counteract the inevitable peril of gravity, the center of each tier is filled with straws. These hold up the tiers above so they don't smush the cake below.

B) Once the tiers were stacked, I piped a swirl of vines, as close to the original cake as I could manage.

C) Then, very, very carefully, I stuck the buttercream roses on using a dab of fresh frosting. You have to work quickly; the buttercream roses are firm when you first take them out of the freezer or fridge, which means you can pick them up, but if you take too long, your fingers will melt the petals. I was terrified about placing roses on the vertical sides of the cake, but thank god, none of them fell off. Once the roses were in place, I added leaves to the vines and beneath the roses.

D) A close up of the final result. I finished literally 1 minute before the party was supposed to start, at which point I had to carry this from the venue's kitchen to the table where it would sit; my bf went in front of me to shoo people out of the way.

Step 5) Dealing with leftovers

a) Oh god, leftovers! The chocolate cake got demolished, as did the vanilla cake, once we sent some slices home, but there were still leftovers. Why? Because the way a tiered cake is served, you cut slices from the outside ring, but NOT from the center round which is stuffed full of straws. So... what to do with all that extra cake?

b) Well, if you pull the straws out and re-frost, then you've got three perfectly nice cakes. I already had plenty of extra frosting and roses, lol. My students were quite happy to take all this cake off my hands, though I only had enough slices for the first half of my classes.

c) However, I also still had SIX CUPS of cake crumbs from the offcuts which I'd cut off the cakes when I leveled them. Crumbs + frosting+ a dip in chocolate = cake pops! Massive, massive cake pops, lol, I used my biggest cookie scoop. The second half of my classes got these beauties, and a couple coworkers finished off the extras.

And that's it! God willing I won't make a cake again for quite a while, lol, this was exhausting.

[questforgalas]

My thoughts on TBB Season 2 finale

It's a long one so strap in if you enter

First, before I get started, I wanted to say that this has been such a fun season to watch, and the interactions I've had with everyone in this fandom has made my Wednesday and weeks since January so delightful. I know hiatuses see a lull in activity, and some people are going to need to step away for a bit, but I just wanted to say thanks for being such a warm and open environment (at least the little corner I've found myself in). Here's to fingers crossed that the panel at Star Wars celebration in just a couple weeks brings us confirming great news!

Love ya all. Mama Tay is here with blankets and ice cream for the Tech babes if you need it. My man is unconscious on a torture table and my babygirl is a captive so we can all cry into the containers together

I'm able to watch the episodes at 8am EST every week, it's my little weekly routine I look forward to, so I've had a couple hours to process my one watch through of the finale episodes, and, just, wow.

Warning, "The Breaking of the Fellowship" just started playing on my playlist so who knows where this is about to go lol. Let's go to feelings town

The Bad Batch Season 2

I have not been quiet about how much I love season 2. Out of 16 episodes, there are maybe 2 that could be written off, but put them anywhere in season 1 or any TCW season, and they'd be some of the best episodes, which only adds to how well written and well done this season was.

I'm a Crosshair girl, not just in a "heart eyes spindly toothpick" sort of way, in fact that really didn't develop until halfway through season 1 - which my therapist definitely doesn't need to analyze - but his personality and his subtle devotion to his squad sucked me in from the beginning. So even with how little we had of him this season (granted, what we did get was some of the best television I've ever watched), this season is up there for me.

The character development for all batchers but especially Omega, Tech, Echo, and Crosshair was intriguing and dynamic, and that's not to say Hunter and Wrecker didn't have their moments either. They did, they were just much more subtle. We saw a lot more of Hunter's enhanced senses at play and Wrecker's knowledge, not just fascination, of explosives, but that pales in comparison to the other four.

The universe expansion was everything to me. We don't have anything depicting the rise of the Empire. We've never seen it's take over and the effects that rippled across the galaxy. We've only ever seen the afterwards, so to get this eery and terrifying depiction is exactly how I'd expect the galaxy to feel during that time, and I really applaud the creators on being so detailed with it.

The Finale Episodes

Wow. Just, wow. Admittedly, I had two reactions to these episodes.

The first was as the Crosshair fan who's put a lot of my emotional stability on this group of animated misfits, and that reaction hated these episodes. Not because I didn't think they were done well (getting into that in a second) but because I latched onto the Bad Batch's dynamics as a family since TCW and I so deeply in my soul to the point it's almost a wound in my heart want them back together again. I fell in love with the TCW Bad Batch, and I want that dynamic back so I've been rooting for it since "Aftermath", and every time we were given crumbs of a possibility that could happen this season, I devoured them and clutched onto them like they were my lifeline. So yes, from that perspective I hated these episodes.

Now, from the Star Wars fan taking a step back from my fanon - holy freaking shit. I laughed. I cried. I sobbed. I oooo'd. I cheered. When they stopped "The Summit" in the middle of the action, similar to how they broke up "Spoils of War" and "Ruins of War", it hit me that we weren't getting the reunion I desperately hoped for, and I took a minute to grieve that, went into acceptance, and then dove into "Plan 99".

Again, were there points throughout both, especially "Plan 99", that I was going "oh I hope this happens" or "ok annnnnd now!"? Yeah, absolutely (cut to Omega waking up at Cid's and me going "nice this is when they reveal it was all a bad dream and Tech's gonna walk in in 3..2..1..."). Did I have 4 other endings in my head halfway through the episode? 1000%. But it's not my creation, and based off of what we were given all of season 2, it all made sense to me. Even the things that made me have to pause for 4 minutes while I sobbed into my hands.

We are set up for an extremely action packed, spy/political thriller filled, intriguing season 3, and that wouldn't have happened if the season didn't end the way it did. If it was all tied up neatly in a bow, then there would be a lot more doubt, in my mind, about 1. if we'd even get a season 3 and 2. what the heck it was going to be about.

I'm not going to get into individual character analyses, but I thought everyone was in character. There was not a moment in either episode I thought "huh that doesn't really fit does it?" All of them were on brand in my opinion, and I again encourage people to take a step back and separate fanon from canon.

So why the emotional impact?

One of the things I've really had to process and think through is why this finale was staying with me like it is. I mean, I've been a Star Wars fan since 1999. I lived through watching Revenge of the Sith in theaters. I, like many of us, watched "Victory and Death" at the beginning of a very dark time in the world. I gripped the edge of my theatre seat watching Rogue One, praying they made it out like I hadn't known the end of their story for 25 years. But none of those endings stayed with me the way TBB finale is.

Sometimes something stays with me for an hour, maybe more, but I've never had any show have a finale where throughout the day as I thought about it, I burst into tears in varying degrees, and I can feel that being the case for awhile. Honestly, I haven't put my finger fully on it yet, but I think one of the reasons why is because all of those other endings I mentioned above - ROTS, Rogue One, TCW - and really any Star Wars media so far, has not had such a sorrow filled ending in such a dark period of time without us knowing the story after already.

ROTS we knew the outcome of that 20 years before. Rogue One even longer. TCW was filling in the gaps of a story long concluded. The Mandalorian is set in a time when it's supposed to be peaceful and the galaxy is mostly living in the light, so even when Mando and Grogu are separated, it's sad to witness the pair be apart, but there's no umbrella threat that makes the separation dangerous.

We are in the darkest period of time that we as Star Wars fans know in TBB. That is the point of the series - it's not just about these clones and how they cope post war. It's we the fans seeing how terrifying the Empire is beyond just the two sith lords running it. The inner workings and how easily they squash hope within their own government. We as the fans are meant to watch the Batch and love the family but be terrified of what can be waiting for them around every corner.

And that's not to mention we have no idea what the fate of the clones is. First off, the events of A New Hope are 20 years away. Rebels and the Obi-Wan Kenobi show are the only medias we have depicting the time between ROTS and ANH, and they barely scratch the surface. Rex is canonically confirmed to survive to Return of the Jedi, and we have Gregor and Wolffe in Rebels, but where the heck are the rest of them. We don't know. We literally don't know, and we're now left to speculate what that could possibly entail for the clones (especially the Batch) on any given day, let alone when we're left with two of them as captives of the Empire and one "dead". It is, in my opinion, one of the most devastating endings to a Star Wars media because of the terror it can hold.

Tech's Fall

Why yes, this would be the part I had to pause the show for and sob over for 4 minutes.

Tech has been my second favorite member of the Batch since they were introduced in TCW. This unapologetic, enthusiastic nerd who knows what he likes and hyperfixates on it spoke to me on levels, as I know he did for many of you - especially after "The Crossing" (I personally cannot relate to the ND connection, but was really happy to see the community joyous over the moment).

I, like many of you have already said in your thought posts, had the growing pit in my stomach each time they developed his character. The constant-optimist in me latched onto the possibility that just once they wouldn't pull that shit on us, but obviously that wasn't the case.

Tech and Crosshair's sacrifices punch me in the gut. Both of them are to save their family and give their family a chance. To have Wrecker and Tech bicker back and forth even up to the last minute like brothers do, and then the fucking awful shot of Wrecker watching his brother fall knowing he did it so they could have a chance. As a sibling, I couldn't handle it (I've actually started crying again now writing this). If I was Tech and that was my family, I'd do the same thing. If I was Wrecker watching that in front of me, I'd be on my knees screaming.

The scene was shot chaotically to make us, the viewer, feel panic and feel the gravity of the situation the Batch was in while seeing tiny moments when maybe they could pull it off, maybe Tech is moving faster than we think, maybe the car will come online and speed away, all to keep us hanging on while feeling the pressure of the environment they were in to then watch the fall and feel anything but relief, just like the Batch.

Now, onto what's keeping me hanging on

Is Tech Dead?

No, and I'm blaming Echo for this, but I do not think he's dead. And I do not think that takes away from his sacrifice either.

First of all, this is Star Wars. Unless you see the body, they ain't dead. @jealous-sloth77 even made the point of Darth Maul in their thought post. My dude was cut in half and fell down a supposed never ending shaft, but came back with the v-neck of all v-necks and a 200 step revenge plan, then literally became the cockroach of Star Wars.

Let alone the direct parallels to Echo Tech's fate could have.

So stay with me on this for a second, and I may be giving Filoni and Corbett and Rau a little more credit than they deserve, but follow me here.

Echo's blown up at the citadel in Season 3 of TCW. Not season 6 and then reappears a season later. 4 seasons of separation, and given the cancellations and renewal breaks, you're talking literally 10 years in between his death and his revival, which narratively makes no sense to me. And don't get me wrong, I know the Dominos were a fan favorite and Fives and Echo were a fun pairing, but all in all, Echo appeared in five episodes? Maybe six before he's killed off? And only 3 of those was he a "main" character. Compared to many other clones and characters, that's not exactly a recipe for "bring the fan favorite back 10 years later". So that makes me think that Echo coming back, especially the way he did, was setting the ground work for something. Now hang with me here.

In Mando S2E1, Mando kills the Krayt dragon by going inside of it, a monster who's stomach is literally full of acid, and blows it up from the inside out, dramatically coming out pointedly covered in the krayt acid showing that it has no affect on beskar. Then 2 minutes later we get the cameo of Boba Fett in the sunset, a character who last we saw was swallowed by a monster, supposedly digesting in stomach acid. Then in Book of Boba Fett, we see that because of his beskar armor, he survived the sarlacc, etc, etc. My point is, Star Wars has recently developed a habit of setting long-con explanations in various medias. Planting the seed you could say. So it's not far fetched to theorize that they brought Echo back from a ship explosion that we were made to think nothing but his helmet survived so they could set the ground work for other characters to be dramatically saved/scavenged and "brought back to life".

I mean, this is the world of Palpatine clones so, it's not out there.

That's not to mention the scene of Hemlock bringing Tech's goggles to Ord Mantell and making a point of mocking his death in front of them. Hemlock's entire purpose is to unlock the cloning techniques of the Kaminoans, and suddenly the literal genius is separated from them, assumed dead. If I'm an evil-scientist like Hemlock, I'm figuring out anyway to make sure Tech's alive.

So yes that's a long-stretch plan that gives Corbett, Filoni, and Rau a lot of credit for potentially thinking multiple seasons of plot lines through at the beginning, which, honestly, would be a good strategy considering the time period they're navigating around so I don't think it's that crazy to consider.

However, the main fact that I'm latching onto that Tech's not dead is the same fact that I've latched onto ever since "Aftermath" to tell myself Crosshair will be back with the Batch someday, and that's because it narratively makes no sense in context to how the Batch were introduced to us to keep them separated.

Think back to TCW S7, when the Batch are introduced. That was 4 episodes highlighting a tight knit, unique, family unit who all complimented each other to round out an unbeatable unit. Their sibling dynamic was the main focus of that group and is what made me fall in love with them, and it made no sense to me that they separated that dynamic within the first 10 minutes of the first episode and now to further separate it by taking Tech away.

I feel this so strongly in regards to Crosshair and Tech. I was sad when Echo left, and I was confident he was going to be with them again, but his departure didn't hit me the same way as Crosshair's and now Tech's. It just does not make sense to me to have the OG 4 separated permanently given how they were presented to us. It would be one thing if they went all in on the "Crosshair's evil" route and semi bait-and-switched us, but given his evident loyalty to the Batch and clear, long path of him being back with them someday, it really would not make sense to me for them to "swap one out for the other". That, in my opinion, would be lazy writing, and with how much love and care the creators have shown this series, I cannot fathom them throwing in the towel like that.

Unfortunately until the new season, I'll sadly have to accept the fact that he is gone and in our eyes right now, he's dead. And that hurts. It really does, but boy, am I grasping onto this last analysis like it's my tether over Mustafar

Love ya all. Mama Tay is here with blankets and ice cream for the Tech babes if you need it. My man is unconscious on a torture table and my babygirl is a captive so we can all cry into the containers together

[sleepingsun501]

Omg I am absolutely inconsolable about tbb 😭 BUT I haven't been able to stop thinking about the parallel to echo's "death" in tcw.

I've seen your posts talking about this too and while this might just be a coincidence...I can't let it go that Tarkin was present for both incidents (the citadel and it's his compound in Plan 99).

I mean it's very possible that it's a coincidence because I mean it is Tarkin and this is his area within the Empire but a small part of me is almost hoping his presence was intentional 🫢

Oh, Nonnie ❤️❤️ believe me, I’m right there with you. I cried my eyes out.

But yes, to me it feels far too much like Echo’s “death.” All we got when Echo “died” was a shot of his scorched helmet, and now all we get is a shot of Tech’s cracked goggles? And Tarkin being there for both incidents makes these parallels feel deliberate. Also, golden rule of Star Wars deaths: no body, no proof. If the writers wanted us to know for sure he was dead, they would have killed him onscreen like they did with Fives, Waxer, Satine, Steela, Kanan, etc.

I hope you don't mind me using your ask for this, but I had to get all this out of my head. Below are my continued ramblings about why I think Tech is alive 👇

Something I’ve noticed the fandom talking about is that only the eyeglass part of the goggles was broken. If Tech had been crushed by the falling car, those goggles would be crushed as well, and there would be blood on them. The strap was intact and there was no blood on them, and we know the animators aren’t afraid to show blood. Hemlock could have just cleaned them up a bit, but that would’ve taken away the shock value they had on the Batch, so I don’t think that’s likely. So, I think he probably hit something on the way down that broke his fall and just happened to break the eyeglass part of his goggles.

Way back during their introductory episodes in season 7 of TCW, Hunter mentions that Tech records everything. The goggles now feel like a plot device. I hope we see that Tech did record something showing he’s alive on his goggles for the rest of the Batch to find.

Hemlock would have had to take Tech’s helmet off to get those goggles off of him, dead or alive, so Hemlock is lying about the goggles being the only thing he could “salvage.” I also refuse to believe that the flimsiest part of Tech’s armor would be the only thing that survived any kind of impact, and Tech’s helmet has never just fallen off either. I would love to hope that Tech just smacked his face and broke his goggles in the fall, and just limped away and left them somewhere for the Empire to find, hoping the Empire would believe he’s dead and something carried his body off.

Also, Hemlock is a sadistic mad scientist (for lack of a better term). Mad scientists don’t just leave bodies lying around. Tech being an enhanced clone would be fascinating to Hemlock, and there’s no way he’d leave Tech’s body or even body parts if Tech was dead. If Tech is alive, then there’s absolutely no way Hemlock would’ve left him there. He would have seen Tech as Imperial property and as a new test subject. Hemlock also seems to know a great deal about Clone Force 99 in general, too, so he would know how smart Tech is. If Tech survived that fall and did get picked up by the Empire, Hemlock would be doing everything he could to get Tech on his side as an asset. As much as I don’t want to think about Tech being winter-soldiered, I think it’s very possible.

To go along with that, giving the goggles to Hunter and saying “this is all I could salvage” feels like an attempt by Hemlock to throw the Batch off the trail. Hemlock knows Hunter would come after Omega, but he doesn’t know what the Batch thinks happened to Tech and would be doing whatever he could to deter them from searching for Tech’s body.

For anybody saying “Tech couldn’t have survived that fall and he’s just dead,” that is entirely possible, I won’t deny that. I would like to point out a fun historical fact: during WWII in 1943, an American airman named Alan Magee was shot down over France. He was ejected from his plane at roughly 22,000 ft, and he proceeded to fall 4 miles before crashing through the glass roof of the St. Nazaire train station which broke his fall. If that dude could survive that, I think Tech could survive this.

Especially because we don’t know what Tech landed on. Could he have landed flat on his back and died instantly? Yes, I won’t discount that as a possibility. But I think it’s much more likely he landed on some kind of slope or in some trees that would break his fall, and if he was able to get his speed under control, then he would probably manage to be ok—like Hunter was when he fell down the mountain in season 1. While I doubt he landed in some water, if he managed to right himself in the air so he landed feet first, crossed his ankles and arms, and managed to throw something to break the surface tension of the water first, he could have potentially been ok.

And let’s look at all the other times people have survived extremes in Star Wars: Rex got shot in the chest and lived, Hunter fell down a mountain and lived, Echo and Gregor both got blown up and were presumed dead until they made their comebacks, Maul got cut in half and fell down a shaft and lived, Obi-Wan survived his fall, and I’ll include Palpatine in here too for the hell of it.

I’m also gonna say, we should have seen this coming with all the character development and emotional growth we got from Tech this season. Was I afraid this would happen? Yep. Did I hope it would go another way? Absolutely. I still think there was a better way to go about this unless the writers have something up their sleeves for season 3. We’ll have to wait and see.

But, whether you ship Tech and Phee or not, his little romantic subplot was left so wide open you could drive a semi through it, and on top of that, it just doesn’t feel like this is where his story ends. Tech has proven time and time again how durable, capable, smart, and strong he is. He has almost drowned saving Omega, been in crash landings, been crushed, has fallen, and survived how many battles with impossible odds.

This is also the same man who had his femur fractured in the second episode of the season. The femur is one of the most weight-bearing bones in the body, and there is no way he should have been able to put any weight on that leg at all. Not only that, he managed to effectively fight with his leg in that condition, too. Truthfully, his passing out from the pain at the end of that fight was the most realistic part of the injury. So, this also establishes that he has an insane pain tolerance. Plus, thanks to Star Wars medicine, he was up and around with no problem a few weeks later. It also makes sense that Tech, being more or less the team medic, would have at least some kind of medical stim somewhere in his gear or backpack and that if he survived his fall, he would probably be able to fight through the pain enough to temporarily treat himself.

So, to me, it doesn’t seem like a fall, even a large one, would be enough to take him out, and it really feels like something is missing. If they did this to prove he was willing to do anything for his family, including die, it’s redundant because we already knew that and we didn’t need that reiterated to us. It makes it feel even more like a fake-out, and his story feels incomplete. Those are all the reasons I think he’s alive.

[mooonjin]

Imma rant rant a sec. I never seen a Clone fic (or fic in general for that matter) where the reader is masculine but not a dude, and I even experience body and gender dysphoria sometimes bc of it (especiallywhen the reader is thin with long hair).

So if you don't mind helping a sad she/they masculine nb person out, could you right a Hunter or Tech x Masc!Reader fix where they save their man and he falls even more in love with them

Falling For You

Notes: hi anon!! first of all terribly sorry you had to wait for sososo long and second of all i hope this is kind of what you had in mind? thought captive x rescuer or whatever suited it and ALSO hope i did the masc thing okay !!

Pairing: Hunter x masc!f!reader

Summary: During a mission for Cid's client, the Batch is separated from their Sergeant and with quick thinking, you were bound to get him back. That was the seed for a new relationship.

Warnings/Tags: imperials, no y/n mentions, only one mention of your pronouns (i think) ⁠— tell me if I've missed anything!

Hunter had found himself separated from the Batch during a dangerous mission on a remote Imperial outpost. Another one of Cid's crazy clients that needed the groups help. Unfortunately, the "remote" outpost was, in fact, not remote as Cid specified. This resulted in Hunter's separation, pretty much fending for himself whilst the group trudged to the Marauder for a swift and hopefully safe pickup.

As he navigated the dingy corridors, there were several blaster fire echoing in the halls only a few blocks down the outpost. He was being hunted and being hunted fast. Every corner he turned, his head pounded, his sense constantly filled with energy that didn't seem to stop waning.

His instincts were sharp but there was an often thought that the odds were stacked against him.

"Keep low, these damned troops are always on our tails." Echo said sternly as the group, minus Hunter, ran down the dim corridors to find the Marauder.

"I am having difficulty tracking the Marauder with the rising energy from this outpost. Whatever Cid's client needed is certainly out of our reach."

Great, another problem. As you were running, you couldn't stop thinking if Hunter was alright. Obviously the Sergeant is capable of handling himself but his recent capture on Mt Tantiss didn't help these thoughts disappear. You had to swallow any response to do something foolish in order to go help Hunter. 

The sounds of alarm echoed throughout the outpost as Imperials gave chase, their footsteps pounding against the creaky, metal floors. Hunter was panting but keeping pace as blaster bolts whizzed past him. His enhanced senses allowed him to anticipate the movements of the pursuing stormtroopers, narrowly avoiding their shots and grenades.

He was also worrying about you and his brothers.

As you and the Batchers ran through the corridors of the outpost, you were nearing an eventual 100m vicinity to the Marauder. Worry settled like a heavy stone in your mind. You gave the group a proposition.

"I'll go get Hunter, we'll regroup on my comm signal." You said hastily, quickly dashing around a corner before anybody could protest.

"D'she really just leave?" Wrecker's confused voice spoke up.

Hunter found himself in another tight spot. Literally. With broken hallway doors, Hunter's way out grew thin. The constant noises of blaster fire continued to echo as Hunter maneuvered through the corridors and away from the Imperials, to no avail. 

Ultimately, he was cornered, the heavy footsteps of Imps surrounding him. Hunter attempted to calculate his next motive, the chance of being gunned down increased as more and more Imperials gathered like vultures. 

Many troopers ordered him to unarm himself, the growly, modulated voices ringing through the halls. He tightened his grip around his blaster before eventually dropping the gun to the floor, kicking it over with both hands in the air. 

The troopers tightened their encirclement around Hunter, grabbing both his wrists to cuff them. As they were about to move out, a sudden commotion echoed through the corridor. 

Then out came two rolling smoke bombs.

The canisters gave a quick hiss, spinning in circles as the air immediately filled with dense clouds of obscuring smoke. Three troopers guarded Hunter as blaster fire had erupted almost a second after, in an attempt to shoot down the sudden presence.

You.

You swiftly rolled into the clouds of smoke, pulling out your DC to gun down the three troopers surrounding Hunter. One of the Imps put up a fight but with a quick kick to the stomach and a trip to their ankle, they fell to the ground, a blaster hole sizzling on their back.

Hunter watched your agile figure take down the troops, caught in a trance. 

"It's good to see you." You unfastened the cuffs, in hopes not to waste time before the clouds began to dissipate. Multiple voices faded in and out, orders being thrown all over the place all because of your successful chaotic rescue.

Hunter was in hypnotised as you unfastened his cuffs. He looked at you through his drooping curls, admiring your facial features. The way you carried yourself with a quiet confidence, your every action purposeful and precise, left him in awe.

"Where are the others?" He rubbed his wrists before grabbing his DC off the ground to start shooting. The smoke clouds eventually disappeared, everybody being able to see everything as clear as day once again.

You grunted, taking down a troop, "Heading to the Marauder, we're regrouping on my comm signal."

Hunter gave a small smile amidst of the dangerous action, grinning at your consideration to come and rescue him. He was captivated by your aid and your selflessness. A tender affection blossoming, even in the middle of such a situation.

The two of you began your run to the extraction point as you leaped over fallen debris and ducked under busted pipes. You sprinted, briefly turning your head back to shoot at the tailing Imperials who were determined to capture you both. 

"Coming up on the extraction point, Tech!" You commed.

The corridor behind you was filled with white crusted Imperial armour of troopers, swarming the trail like hungry ants. Blue blaster fire flying past your heads, one actually hitting your shoulder.

"Agh!" With a grunt, your armour hissed at the burning shot. Hunter was quick to use himself as a meat shield from any other oncoming blaster fire that could affect you. He knew you could push through, he knew how strong you were and right now was not the time to stop and rest.

"You're okay, keep going." You could hear his deep, modulated voice behind you, causing you to form a small grin despite the pain.

The distant sound of engines grew louder as the both of you finally came up to the landing pads. 

With Hunter still running behind you, you grabbed his gloved hand, almost dragging him towards the Marauder. An evident blush on Hunter's face, although being hidden under his helmet. In the howling moments of escape, the two of you ran hand in hand towards the shuttle.

The stairs lowered, Crosshair standing with his rifle aimed at the Imperials trailing the two of you. He was your cover as the two of you boarded the Marauder. 

The shuttle was quick to leave the outpost, immediately entering hyperspace. You panted, blushing as you looked down to find your hand clasped in Hunter's. Embarrassed, you gently retracted your hand, taking your helmet off. 

You hissed, sitting down as Tech came over to inspect the blaster shot. Hunter took off his helmet, giving you a kind smile and a small nod of affection. He stole glances at your strong figure, still admiring your act of saving him from the wave of Imperials.

His heart became entangled in a web of admiration as you were being patched up. He'd like to think you took the shot for him, boosting the thought of unexpected love.

-

Post-Notes: currently constructing my masterlist and getting through all my requests!!

~ ~ ~

@elsastoes @nekotaetae @lokigirlszendaya @imalovernotahater @backyard-bear @namesmox @jiabeewrites

my taglist form!

[renton6echo]

Day 1 of 30 Days of The Bad Batch

Season 1, Episode 1: Aftermath

Alright. Let's dive into, probably, my favorite episode of the series so far. It's just such a great opening to the characters and the story. What a way to open a series right at Order 66. I just knew we were in for such a rollercoaster from the start of this show. Really, Order 66? That's where you're starting off the show? Force, have mercy on us all.

The biggest gem of this episode is that it's the only one we get where we get to see Hunter, Echo, Tech, Wrecker, and Crosshair just be a squad together. If I had my wish, I would have liked to have seen more of that before Crosshair and the rest of the batch split off. It was harder to see what the loss of Crosshair did to the team on an emotional and military tactics level. We didn't get much in the way of their team dynamic apart from Crosshair just being known as the surly, grumpy one. While I do love all the theories around how it was likely Echo who stepped into the role that Crosshair had like like being the peacekeeper between Tech and Wrecker's, it would have been nice to see more of that so we had an idea of what the Batch lost.

I've put my live musings of the episode under this thread for the sake of my followers. Sorry, not sorry!! Ya'll knew what you were getting into following me 👀

Not sure if anyone else is interested in doing this but if you're also re-watching TBB before the season 3 premiere be sure to tag all your musings in the #30 Days of The Bad Batch so I can read them!!

@floundrickthewayfarer @saturn-sends-hugs @the-bi-space-ace

First off, Captain Grey, I wish we had gotten to know you more before your chip activated because you seem like a sassy and salty man. I'm sure you and Rex swapped lots of stories.

Wee Kanan. I remember watching this the first time and having just finished Rebels. I saw and heard Kanan and literally said, "Oh, shit. Please no!! This is so mean." Good times. Good times.

So at what point did they realize they could use Echo's scomp as a melee weapon? It is so badass.

Oooff. That shot of the large canyon separating Kanan and Hunter that symbolizes the break between clone and Jedi *chefs kiss*

I really wish we had more scenes take place in TBB's barracks. So many fun details to dissect.

Will never get over Tech's matter-the-fact "My exceptional mind." Legend.

LOL. Echo's put-out expression when Wrecker notes how ugly Palpatine is! I've never noticed that.

Wonder how well the clones are informed in intergalactic politics. Echo seems to have a real knowledge of the larger political nuance more than the others. He is the first to openly question clones as soldiers of the Empire versus the Republic. I assume the Kaminoans would not have spent a lot of time educating clones on political structures and more on just being compliant with the system they were born into. For most clones, the transition from republic to empire is more or less just a name change, but Echo clearly takes issue with the implications.

Battle simulation time! Honestly, I could watch a whole series of clones just bantering and comming each other in battle. Such a fun, creative way to learn about characters and see them interact with each other. Wrecker and Tech sniping at each other is the best thing ever.

ALSO, Hunter why you whistling at them? You got comms for a reason you dramatic punk.

The implication that Crosshair also cried after seeing a fully stocked armory is just...I need that footage.

I never noticed that most, if all the weapons the Onderon insurgents have are Republic-issued.

Omega liking the batch's smelly barracks? Yeah, she's one of them.

Freaking Tarkin. I'm assuming he was just going to fry all their brains to make the whole batch compliant. Ugh. Poor Crosshair.

Oh, Shock troopers. Worst jobs with the worst rap. Do you think we will get to see Commander Fox in the last season? 🤞🏽

"You were down!" Echo has the best sense of humor.

[nancypullen]

September Eve

Ahh, September. She's on her way and there's so much promise in the month. I love it because it's my birthday month, but more than that, this will be the month that tips us into autumn. Our forecast is anything but autumnal, there's a heatwave heading our way, but I refuse to budge from my place of September joy. The sweetest grandgirl in the word has started kindergarten. School won't start in earnest until Tuesday (after Labor Day) but she had her phase-in day this week and she loved it. Her parents prepared her beautifully, covered every base they could think of, and I think they were far more nervous than she was. On the morning that they took her to school she hopped out of the car, chirped "Good morning!" to the police officer directing drop-off, and proceeded inside to run the show. She is a force. She may look like a fragile fairy princess, but she is confident and brave. What a girl! Upon graduating from preschool she was given the superlative "Most Likely to be Famous". When I asked her yesterday what the best part of the day was, she replied, "Dramatic play." I hope she remembers her Grancy in her Oscar speech someday. As for Grancy, I've been busy, busy, busy getting things ready for Artisans on the Choptank.

I need to get a pair from that last batch on the ears of a local cheerleader. That's free advertising. I should make a few pairs and send them to the high school. Today's mail brought my banner, all the way from China.

I'll steam those creases out and it will go on the front of my table. I've got an orange tablecloth so it will look like this.

I'm not sure that my wares will go over well in this area. I haven't seen a single woman in big earrings or any sort of statement jewelry. In fact, I don't think I've even seen a woman with lipstick on. I'm hoping that people from other counties will visit the event because these Denton gals are not a foo-foo bunch. I am definitely a fish out of water. Did I mention that I finally got my hair cut last week? Is anyone at all surprised that I felt like putting crime scene tape across the door of the salon afterwards? What that woman did to me should be illegal. You know that I've never been bashful about posting photos of my hair disasters here. This is so ugly that I will not put a picture on the internet. My hair had gotten very long. I knew that as a woman of a certain age that I should probably lop off a few inches. These are the photos I took as a reference.

I was looking for layers, a length that just brushed my shoulders, nothing too crazy. I also chose cuts that I knew would work with my mass of hair.

This is what I came out with. Not kidding.

The first layer on the photos I gave is sweeping, soft, and about cheek bone length - at the very least eye-level. She cut the top so short that I am walking around with a cloud of hair on top. It's awful. Thankfully my hair grows pretty fast, so by our October vacation I should be able to calm that top poof. I still can't believe what she did. I had even taken a photo of my hair before blow-drying to show her how curly it is. I should have asked to see her license because I think she might be a dog groomer. I may have received her signature cut.

And while we're on the topic of my hair, I'm just not in love with the white. I've tried it. I've tried it for a long time. I just don't love it. It still doesn't feel like me. I'm really leaning toward coloring again. I couldn't go dark, that ship has sailed for me. It would be as unflattering as the white. A medium or dark blonde would work. I have so many friends who have gone beautifully white or gray, and they've raved about the freedom of it. Honestly, I haven't felt that - I mean, not keeping up with roots, etc is nice, but it's not like I devoted massive amounts of time to it. I don't know, I'm on the fence. If I do color I'll certainly do it myself. Most salons here charge $100 for color! I can ruin my own hair for much less, thankyouverymuch. We'll see, there's no rush. It's not like anyone sees me, thank goodness. I'll stew on it awhile. I think at the heart of the issue is that I just don't feel vibrant with white hair. I look tired. I've started noticing women my age and older that are not gray and they look kind of fabulous. Then I look at my friends who have gone white or gray and they look fabulous too (I'm looking at YOU, Dina!). I suppose it's different for everyone, like red lipstick or a pixie cut. There are certainly more pressing problems in the world, so I'll think about that tomorrow. Fiddle-dee-dee.

My dinner timer just went off so it's time to take out the taco pie and spread a little sour cream on top and sprinkle it with shredded lettuce. Mickey is going to be a happy boy. I'll be back tomorrow, maybe with better hair. Doubt it. Sending out tons of love. Take what you need and pass it on. Stay safe, stay well. XOXO, Nancy

[victoria--ft-9801]

Just a list... mess? Jumble? of thoughts on the happenings in The Bad Batch lately. Spoilers from TBB episode 11 season 3 and stuff up to then. They're mostly about Crosshair, but anyone who wants to talk about anything else is fine, too.

>So one of my cousins told me that he thought Crosshair was "Faking his hands shaking because he's still loyal to the empire." And "It was his choice from the beginning. His chip never worked, just like his brothers didn't."

...that's not true... right? Like, this

Is too acute of a tremor to be faked, and he didn't miss the shot because they were shaking. He missed because the ship accelerated, and he didn't have enough time to take aim. See?

Guys, please tell me this isn't true. Please, please, tell me it's not true.

And we only have 4 more episodes! How much more can go wrong for these guys?!

The facts just don't add up. If Crosshair wanted Omega captured for the empire, he wouldn't have helped her escape at the beginning of the season. I mean, I'm not super pick-apart-every-detail, but as far as I know, there hasn't been anything hinting toward him being fake.

>On a different note, I saw a post a while back, pointing out the potential significance of Crosshair being the only Bad Batch member with the same armor they wore in season one. I've run dry of ideas/theories, but does anyone have a guess as to why/its significance?

>I've heard many theories about CX-9 (I think that's the name, at least) and how he might be Tech, or Cody, etc... and by far my favorite... or least favorite thing I've seen basically pointed out that if CX-9 is Tech, Tech has destroyed his home, the Maurauder, almost killed Crosshair, hurt Wrecker, helped the empire capture Omega, and hunt his brothers. This is sad, but... if CX-9 is Tech, it's not the Tech we know.

> Finally, I think we all agree Hemlock should die, and regardless of whether or not Disney decides to show it, how do you want him to die? Should one of his experiments (either human or of other nature) go AWOL and kill him? Should Hunter or another. Member of The Bad Batch kill him? Should Emerie have a Crosshair moment and shoot him because he's being cold and mean? Tell me what you think- actually, maybe I'll make a poll. Give me what you think so I have stuff to make a Poll with!

>If anyone has any theories, I'd love to hear/discuss them because I'm into that kinda stuff. No matter how crazy or abstract.

(PS: This was my first time posting, so let me know how I did and how I can be... better, I guess?)