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xbunnybunz · 3 years

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WEAK HERO UNIVERSITY (3/?) [READER X WEAK HERO]

Summary: I know you assholes are crying now that the first season of Weak Hero is over. But you’ve got other things to focus on, like where the fuck you’re going to live after getting kicked out of your old dorm. Luckily, you’ve found one last open room on the other side of Weak Hero University. What could possibly go wrong?

Genre: Romance, Humor, Slice of Life

Date: 7/12/2021

You’re dully unaware of how many people are allowed into a cramped dorm room before it becomes a fire hazard, but you are almost completely sure that the rule has now been broken.

Gray pushes through the mass of bodies wedging themselves between your bed and the desk, a damp, cold rag in his hands.

“Let me see.”

You grit your teeth and stare up at the ceiling, holding back the urge to toss yourself out the window. Of course this would happen, you don’t even know why you’re surprised! It was just your luck to completely obliterate your toe in front of cute guys you had just met.

You reach down towards your sock and then freeze, eyeing them wearily.

“Wait… You guys aren’t like, feet people… Right?”

Eugene furrowed his eyebrows and looked to everyone else. “What do you mean? We all have feet.”

Gerard made a face, or well—as much as a face as you can see, and you fluster, immediately regretting asking the question.

“Shit. Never mind. That was a stupid question, just pretend I didn’t say anything.” What? No one can blame you, too many years on deviantart would make anyone paranoid!

You hook your fingers onto the elastic of the sock and pull it off your right foot.

The moment your sock comes off, both Ben and Alex rattle your eardrums with a shriek. Alex covers his eyes and Ben dramatically falls onto his knees beside the bed.

“The whole thing is purple, Ben, you dumbass!” Alex cried, peeking out from between his fingers. “She’s going to need to amputate her toes!”

Ben clasped his hands together in front of you, bowing his head to the floor. “I’m so sorry! I’m terrible! I’ll take full responsibility! I’ll even give you my toes!”

“Uhm, you guys—” Eugene lifts a shaky finger but is interrupted by the earth-shattering slap Alex lands on the back of Ben’s head, eyes teary with emotion, “Dammit Ben, no one would want your big ugly goblin toes!”

Absolutely flabbergasted at their reactions, you flinch back, eyes wide as Ben clasped both his large hands over yours, bottom lip quivering.

“Please forgive me (Y/N)! You’re too pretty to be missing toes!”

What the fuck does that even mean?!

Mind working in overdrive and face burning hot, you swallow and try to stutter out an explanation, nearly going cross-eyed at the insane amount of pressure suddenly thrust upon you. Did Alex just give Ben brain damage? Did Ben just call you pretty? Were those two things related? What the hell was going on!?

Gray pulls a sobbing Ben off of you, lips pressed into a thin line.

“You two are freaking her out. You need to calm down.”

“But—!” Ben starts, voice trembling, “Her toes! I crushed her—!”

Gerard sighs, turning his face away from the scene, clearly too tall and cool and in need of a haircut to be suffering from secondhand embarrassment. “You guys… That’s just nail polish.”

Ben turns to Eugene for confirmation and Eugene rubs the back of head sheepishly, an awkward smile plastered on his face. “I tried to tell you guys.”

Alex approaches Grey, peeking over his shoulder and almost sounding a bit disappointed. “Wait, so… We don’t need to call an ambulance?”

Grey shakes his head, no. His pale hair catches the light and you suddenly notice how incredibly pretty he is. “It won’t be necessary. But we still might need to speak to the Hall Assistant…”

A slender hand reaches up and delicately turns your foot towards him, revealing a nasty reddish-purple bruise forming just under the ball of your feet.

The group behind Gray cringes back simultaneously.

Alex lets out a low whistle, clicking his tongue. “That one’s gonna be hard to walk on, (Y/N).”

Eugene sighs, eyebrows knitting together. “Yeah, last time I got something that bad, I needed to use a wheelchair for a week.”

“Dude, wasn’t the wheelchair because Teddy accidentally threw a coke bottle at your crotch?” Alex asks.

Eugene turns to him sharply, whispering something reminiscent of “girls” and “not now” while gesturing to you avidly.

“We’re going to need to get ice.” Grey says, ignoring the arguing in the back.

He lowers the damp rag onto your foot. You wince and flex all the muscles in your leg, trying not to contort your feet in pain. Lavender eyes meet yours and you begin to wonder if you had misjudged him for side eyeing your ziplock baggie of waterlogged notes. “How are you feeling?”

Well, to be honest you were feeling pretty damn good right now. You’ve never had so many attractive guys paying attention to you at once, even if it was because of a fucked-up foot. You, one. University? Zero!

Of course, you weren’t about to say this. Instead, you gulp, wiggling your toes just to make sure nothing was broken.

You turn to Grey with doeful eyes. “Well, everything is still connected. I think I’ll be able to walk, maybe with some… Extra support?”

He lifts the damp rag off your foot and contemplates a bit, placing a finger under his chin.

“Why don’t you try standing up?”

He moves to give you some space and you swing your legs off the bed, moving quite feebly to put on a show and hopefully getting the world’s hottest crutch out of it.

Unfortunately, you were so preoccupied with putting on an act that you forgot which foot was actually injured. You place all your weight onto one foot before you realize you’ve gone and fucked yourself and feel the shock of pain immediately.

Your knee gives out, sending you flailing like a circus monkey on a tricycle, except you weren’t a circus monkey on a tricycle because at least those were cute, you were just a clumsy buffoon with one foot, too lazy to pick up her own belongings and finally paying the price for it.

“Shit!”

You’re entirely prepared to just give up life and become a fully concussed vegetable at this point, but instead of the sweet embrace of death, you get the sweet embrace of a himbo instead. An arm catches you by the waist before you can hit the floor and pulls you back up to his chest, the scent of a woody cologne punching you in the face.

When you look up, you’re met with Ben’s gaze. His reddish brown hair and chocolate eyes are a lot more overwhelming up close, and it doesn’t help that you suddenly recall him calling you pretty while he snotted over your bed. You stiffen like a board.

“Uhm. Hey.” You say, definitely not awkwardly at all.

He flusters, tips of his ears turning red. He swallows thickly and his adams apple bobs up and down.

“Hey.”

He averts his eyes and looks anywhere but at you, doing what you think is an attempt at whistling nonchalantly. It was in no way nonchalant. In fact, you weren’t sure if he even knew how to whistle, he was kind of just blowing spit out of puckered lips. With both of you distracted, neither of you realize his grip was becoming slack with his inattentiveness.

“…Ben.” Grey warns, albeit softly, but alas, he’s too late and too damn quiet.

He drops you like it’s hot and everyone else watches in horror as your head connects like deadweight with the metal frame of the bed, a loud and resounding “CLING!” bouncing off the walls and reverberating in the room like a haunting testament to assured braincell loss.

Your vision swims and darkness begins to bleed into your periphery. The last thing you hear is Gerard’s voice echoing in your brain,

“Hey man, is that my shirt you’re using as a rag?”

#weak hero university #weak hero x reader #webtoon weak hero #weakhero #weak hero #reader insert #fanfiction

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cblgblog · 3 years

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So my issues with Irondad are well documented at this point, starting from their very first scenes. Specifically the utter tone deafness of Peter’s recruitment, by both Tony and the writers. Tony starts the movie being blamed for the death of a 20-year-old kid who was in the wrong place, wrong time in Sokovia. That accidental death that can be put down to negligence on his part, is pivotal to what happens next. So pivotal he uses it in his pitch for why the other Avengers need to sign the Accords.

Tony, midway through the movie, deliberately brings a 15-year-old child into this conflict. A child he blackmails into going with him, because if you don’t, I will tell your aunt.

Charles Spencer was an innocent civilian, wrong place, wrong time in Sokovia. He died. That tears Tony up, as it rightfully should. And yet, in the midst of his crusade about following laws and accountability, he lies to May Parker about taking her 15-year-old nephew out of the country and into a warzone. Ignoring some well-established laws about child soldiers.

Tony blackmailing a child who’s had his powers for 6 months into participating in this conflict makes no sense. Ever. It especially makes no sense in the context of Charles Spencer and his mother. Yet neither Tony nor the writers seem to comprehend this. Which is why Irondad has been bullshit from the start. Blackmail and kidnapping are not sweet, father-son moments, even if you ignore the fact, as the MCU wants to, that Peter had a father already, in Ben Parker. He has a loving adult parental figure in May Parker. Both of whom cared about him before he had spider powers that might be helpful to them.

All of this, I’ve said before, so have others. And then I realized that I actually hate Irondad more than I thought. That Feige and co. mishandled it even more than I thought, and why? Because of this.

We know the story. Peter was, supposedly, this kid Tony saved at the Stark Expo in Iron Man 2. Started out as a fan theory, and then was confirmed that yes, this is true, this is exactly what we intended.

Now, we know Civil War had different writers/directors than Homecoming or FFH did. We also know that, for all the lip service of, ‘It’s all connected,’ we know that the creatives in these different franchises do not always talk to each other, and that they often blatantly contradict each other.

Taking all that into account, acknowledging that…the dumbasses at Marvel did not think up the idea of Peter being the Iron Man 2 kid. They heard the theory, thought it was cool, then took credit for having meant that the entire time, yes, that was totally us.

We know this because it is never mentioned in canon. All those Tony and Peter interactions, all those times of yes, Mr. Stark, I just want to be like you, Mr. Stark, and Peter never mentions that? When Tony takes he suit from him in Homecoming and Peter says that he just wants another chance, wants to be like Tony, would he not mention that hey, you saved my life, Mr. Stark. You saved my life and I just wanted to be like you, and now I can be, now I can save lives like you, just please give me another chance.

If the Iron Man 2 theory were true, would he not say that? In FFH, when he’s all guilt-ridden, I didn’t save him, would he not mention that hey, he saved my life before I was Spider-man, before I was special, before I was anyone?

Now I know what you’re thinking. The Iron Man 2 thing isn’t that big a deal. It’s not a crucial thing. And you know what, you’re right. It isn’t, it’s just always annoyed me, in an eyeroll way, that the same people who couldn’t count properly between 2012 and 2017 (8 years later flashing in giant letters across our screens means that Homecoming was meant to take place in 2020), that these same people who let something so blatantly timeline breaking get through then took credit for a kind of cool, kind of clever fan theory. It’s annoying.

I’ve now realized, however, that it is far more than annoying to me. Because TPTB at Marvel did not think of that idea for themselves, but if they had, and if they’d run with that idea? If they had, it would’ve made Peter’s recruitment in Civil War so much more fucked up than it already is, but so much more interesting. So, so, so much more interesting.

I’ve talked about why Spidey’s own movies (as much as you can call them that given the level of Tony infiltration) prove that the theory isn’t true. Now let’s go to Civil War. Different writers, yes, but let’s talk anyway about why we can tell from CW that Peter was not that kid.

He gets home. May is like, look who it is, Tony Stark. Not, look who it is, the hero who literally saved your life. When Tony locks himself in Peter’s room with him (still fucking gross, Jesus Christ), Peter is just, nope, I got no idea what you’re talking about. That’s—no, I’m not a superhero, no. He’s defensive. He’s apprehensive. He’s trying to figure out what fresh hell this is. He’s trying to hide stuff from Tony. If this is the guy who saved him at the Stark Expo, why this reaction? Why not, oh my god, you saved my life, I thought I’d never see you again, not, not up close I mean. When Tony asks him to do a thing, why is it not, well yeah, duh , you saved my life, where do we start? Or even, okay, I don’t really wanna do this, but, you saved my life, I owe you?

So, nobody wrote a fucking word of any of Peter and Tony’s interactions under the theory that he was the Stark Expo kid.

But what if they had?

Tony shows up at May’s place. He does not know who Peter is, in relation to their “meeting” before. He’s expecting to have to do some level of smooth talk to get in here but, nope. May’s just, oh my god, you saved my boy’s life, come in, come in!

We don’t know for sure that Peter was orphaned by the time of the Expo, but if we base it on comics and prior films, he likely was. Most versions seem to have him fall under Ben and May’s care between 2 and 6. O1’ birthday means he would’ve been around 9 at the Expo. So, more than likely, Ben or May or both were the ones there with him. They may credit Tony with saving their lives as well.

So, Tony starts the movie being called out by a grieving mother. Going down this route, we’re at the midpoint…and here’s a different mother telling him how great he is. How he saved the most important thing in her life. How if Ben were here (May’s wearing her wedding ring around her neck btw, you can see it in the scene), Ben would say the same thing. Shake his hand. Hug him.

Now, Tony’s got a sharp ass mind, when it’s not clouded with booze or drugs or the like. Since he wasn’t wasted at the Expo, there’s a good chance that, given some details, he remembers saving this kid. He remembers how small this little boy actually was. He remembers how light this kid was when he grabbed him. It was a few seconds in a long ass night, that he hasn’t thought about in years, but to May Parker, it’s everything.

So maybe at this point Tony’s rethinking this. He’s remembering that little boy, realizing how young he still is. He pulled that boy from danger. And now here’s this woman who invited him into her house, told him how her husband just passed recently, things have been hard, especially for Peter but God, he’ll love to see you. Maybe Tony’s rethinking this, coming up with a way out, when Peter shows up. And then, aw hell. The kid’s just a mess of excitement and shock, possibly tears…okay now it’s just gotten harder to make an exit.

Let’s pause here to say that May Parker is not fucking dumb (“Cut the bullshit. I know you left detention. I know you left the hotel room in Washington. I know you sneak out of this house every night.”).

May is not dumb. Letting the 50-year-old dude go into her nephew’s room with him, alone? Arguably dumb, even if it is Iron Man. Letting him grab the kid for some Stark…thing, and take him wherever Tony said he was taking him on 12 seconds notice? Even more arguably dumb. CW as it’s written dumbs down May’s character for the sake of an already questionable plot point. Especially since she literally says she’s not a fan of Tony in Homecoming. Yes, her comment there comes after the “internship,” her noting Peter’s distraction and stress because of it. But still, it’s fucking weird that she’d let this man take her kid out of the country, alone, in CW. It makes her dumb for the sake of plot.

But if Stark saved Peter’s life not so long ago? It at least makes a bit more sense. He’s a hero. Peter literally wouldn’t be here without him. Why would Tony hurt him now?

So, back to the scene. Peter’s probably less paranoid about showing his stuff to Tony. Probably not spilling everything himself, but when Tony notices things, Peter’s probably less panicked over it, more willing to confirm. Yes, he’s got these powers, okay? And he hasn’t had them for long, but he’s trying to do good, like Tony. He’s trying to do the right thing, like Tony.

Now, this kid has such literal hero worship going, and he’s so damn inexperienced, he admits that. And Tony’s still got Charles Spencer’s mom in his head. He’s dead, Stark. And I blame you.

Can Tony really take this kid—actual minor kid younger than Charles was—take him and put him on the field against the goddamn Avengers? That woman out there with the dead husband and the ring around her neck, what’s he going to say if Peter gets hurt, or worse? Sure the kid obviously has skills but, can he risk another grieving mom?

So, maybe Tony’s rethinking this. Maybe he can still get out of this, improvise a Plan B. But then there’s a text from Nat or Ross. Where are you? We’ve only got a few hours, what’s the play?

Special circumstances, nobody in that group is really gonna fight to kill…it’s special circumstances, and he can keep the kid mostly sidelined.

This time, he doesn’t have to blackmail Peter. He doesn’t have to threaten to expose his secret. Peter’s willing, either because he genuinely wants to, or he feels he owes Tony a debt. So there goes the dick factor of Tony literally blackmailing a child. And the lack of questions Peter seems to ask about what he’s fighting for, the acceptance of vague answers, that’d also make more sense in this context.

In this version, Tony is both more and less of a dick. He’s doing less active threatening and manipulation…but he’s also being doubly manipulative. His genuinely good deed gives him an easy in with the Parkers. He’s playing on the credibility of an earlier, at least somewhat better version of himself. One who saved Peter Parker and hadn’t yet ended Charles Spencer.

Look, I won’t lie, I legit don’t know what I’m saying anymore, except that Marvel sucks for taking credit for a thing that they definitely do not have credit for. Which isn’t particularly new for them, and wouldn’t particularly matter if the thing they took credit for (and didn’t do anything with) could’ve offered some interesting story possibilities.

#anti tony stark #anti irondad #iron man 2 #peter parker #may parker #kinda fuck marvel though really #spider-man #civil war

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eruanna1875 · 3 years

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“Hope the stories are cool.”

At the half-murmured words, Ben turned to their source in the passenger seat beside him, brow furrowed. “What was that?”

Riley, staring out the window of Patrick’s weird-smelling car at the night around them, seemed surprised at the question. “Hm?” When he looked at Ben, however, it was clear he hadn't realized he'd said anything aloud until that moment. “Oh! Uh—" He shrugged it off with a nonchalant grin, turning away again. “Uh, nothing. Sorry.”

Oh, you’re not getting off that easy, Ben thought. “What’d you say? What stories?”

Riley rolled his eyes. “Ben—”

“No, no,” he interrupted, before a snide remark could be made, “I heard ‘stories’ and ‘cool’. Now, what cool stories were you talking about?”

Riley gave him perhaps half of a death glare, and for a moment, Ben thought he was going to ignore the question. But then he sulked back against his seat, and seemed to give in. “Well—” He scoffed, eyes on the ceiling. “Ours, I guess. I mean, we just stole the Declaration of Independence, Ben! The Declara—do you have any idea what this means?”

Ben frowned: maybe he was avoiding the question after all. “Yes, I think you've given me several ideas of the things this could possibly mean.” Besides, I thought you’d be worried out at this time of night, he added mentally.

“Yeah, but I'm not talking about going to prison, and Ian shooting us, and Abigail doing a lot more than slapping and shouting if we screw it up. She’ll probably… I dunno, impale us with those pointy heels or something.” He picked up an old neck pillow (he’d knocked it off the seat when he first climbed up front), and put it in his lap. “You know, maybe that’s why the spy chicks in the movies wear them all the time—if you can get used to running around and doing all those acrobatics in them, they can double as a lethal weapon.”

“Well, what are you talking about, then?” Ben pressed before the conversation could get too far off base: Riley could easily and resourcefully use the smallest sidetrack to avoid a topic he didn’t want to talk about. Kid was practically an escape artist.

“I’m talking about America. They're not gonna let us off with a simple little life sentence. They're gonna have us pegged even after we're dead.”

Ben bit back a comment about him watching too many ghost hunter shows, opting for the simpler, “How do you mean?”

Riley turned to fix blue eyes firmly on Ben; eyes that, to his surprise, he now saw were grounded in a gravity greater than worry. “Ben… whether we win or not, we’re gonna be locked up for basically the rest of time. Why?”

He leaned in closer, and spoke with such certainty, Ben had to suppress a shiver.

“Because we’re going to be in all the American history books for basically the rest of time. Do you understand that, Mr. History Buff? Kids are gonna be learning our names in the future. Your name, my name, maybe even her name—and unless something crazy happens, like really crazy, then…” He sighed, and plopped back against the seat. “Then even if we keep the Declaration away from Ian, we're gonna be the ones they remember stealing it.” He looked back up. “You know that, Ben?”

It took a moment for Ben to find the voice to reply. When he did, he let it out with a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding, blinking a few times. “Huh, yeah.” He sat back, stunned, as the full weight of it befell him. “Yeah...” he whispered again.

The fact was, he had thought of it. From the moment he determined to undertake the task, he’d been aware of it. But throughout their escapades and machinations, he had kept it as just that—a fact—an awareness at the back of his mind. He hadn’t thought about it. Not until that moment, in an empty parking lot in the middle of the night. Not until Riley decided to be seriously, deeply right.

And… he wanted to tell him that. He wanted to tell Riley just how dead-center his aim had been. He wanted to confess to him the sudden fear it had struck in his heart. But somehow, he couldn’t. What somehow it was, he didn’t know. But it kept his voice from him.

He started to tell himself he just didn’t want to worry him further, especially with the way things were now, but he knew that wasn’t it. Riley was the one who started this particular concern anyway. It wasn’t a matter of trust, either. This was his best friend—Riley knew things about him even his father didn’t know, and Ben would have willingly put his life in his hands. There were times when he’d had to. And there were times that Riley’s life had been in his hands, his alone, and they both knew it. And for all he knew, that could’ve been what stopped him from saying those words.

You’re dead right. We’ll never be forgotten. And it terrifies me.

Ben’s highest hope, even beyond the actual finding of the treasure, had always been to become a part of history. Just like his ancestors. Just like the Founders. Just like the men who had been his heroes since he was a boy. And throughout his adventure, there had been many times when he had thought to himself, you’re continuing that story. This is the same old tale Grandpa told you, but it’s not over. It’s going on, in this exact minute, and you’re the one carrying it now.

The thought had given him purpose, over all those years. But now, he could not help but wonder what his part in that history would be. Would he be a hero, like those men of history, the knights (official or not) that he had always looked up to? Or would he be the one to bring it all down when he failed?

But, whatever the reason, he couldn’t say all that to Riley. He couldn’t say anything at the moment. So the moment was filled with silence instead, a weighty, waiting silence, on the precipice of what tomorrow might bring. The burden of history, both written and as yet unwritten, was for him in that moment almost physical.

“That wasn’t the story I was talking about when you heard me, though.”

The breaking of the silence almost startled him. Ben glanced up at Riley, confused and close to bewildered. For a moment, all he could manage was, “Then… what—what were you…?”

Riley also looked up, and seemed to notice something strange in his hushed tone. “Oh. Sorry.” What was there to apologize for? “It’s just, I accidentally had, like, a lot of thoughts, while you and Abigail were talking. That stuff was part of it, but it wasn’t the main thing.”

He fell silent a moment, but Ben gestured him on, almost insistently. If there was more, even if it was worse, he felt he had to hear it. What could Riley have possibly meant?

Riley hesitated, then looked down and began fidgeting with a loose string on the neck pillow in his lap. “You were telling her the story. About the treasure, and how you got all that history from your grandpa.”

Ben’s ears perked up: anybody talking about his grandfather got his full attention.

“And I got thinking about it, and I just…” He shrugged. “I wondered about, y’know, what if that’s us someday? What if… what if we’re the ones some cool old guy tells his grandkids about? I mean, I know he still might think it’s bad, but at least grandpas and textbooks don’t really tell stories the same way. I assume,” he added, with a glance at Ben for confirmation.

To his own surprise, Ben felt a smile tugging at his lips. Something in that homier view of history—despite the continued possibility of failure—put him more at ease, as if he were still listening to old yarns at his grandfather’s house, slowly losing the fear of the storms outside. The cloud of heaviness that had been on him began to dissipate. Even the night around them seemed less dark.

Ben breathed a chuckle. “No, you’re right. They really don’t.”

“Yeah, so he’d be telling like a grandpa, not like some bored guy in Milwaukee having to crank out school material! Right? And then, like, he says,” and at this, Riley briefly put on the persona of an old man, complete with motions and raspy grandpa voice, “‘Come here, m’boy, let me tell you the story of the Templar Treasure,’ and the kids go huddle up in front of him with those ginormous eyes little kids always have, because apparently the smaller you are the bigger your eyes look, and he tells ‘em the whole thing, right up to where your grandpa told it, and then—and then he tells about us.”

There was a noticeable pause, as if it even took a little of Riley’s breath away. He smiled softly, almost in awe himself. “He tells about us.”

A few seconds passed before he noticed the gap of words, which he immediately jumped over to continue his own tale. “And—and maybe there’ll be this one kid who actually thinks about it and is like, ‘man, this Ben guy was nuts! He just goes, oh let’s steal the Declaration of Independence, and expects everybody to be totally fine with it? How could anybody deal with such a crazy guy?’ And the grandpa would be like, ‘Well, shucks, I always knew you were a smart kid.’”

At this, Ben laughed. Really laughed, clear and from the heart. How in the world could Riley complain and fret about their plans so heavily, and yet paint the future with such lightness that you could laugh at it? All the time he’d known this kid, and he still couldn’t quite understand him. But he didn’t mind. And, for the moment, there seemed nothing to fear. The weight was gone.

But Riley wasn’t finished. “Oh, but you know he'd still get pulled into it, the same way your grandpa pulled you in—the same way you pulled me in—and end up thinking it's the coolest thing ever, of course. I mean, who wouldn't, if they tell it like a Gates tells it? You guys don't skimp on the history stuff, especially family history. That’s what bought my ticket for this whole… train of thought... thing... in the first place, you and Abigail and all your history nerd talk the whole way here.”

Ben reeled back, taking false offense. “Oh, nerd talk, is it?”

“One hundred percent, man, and don’t you forget it. And it’ll still be nerd stuff when you’re the subject boring another average guy like me to sleep in the back of the car.” Riley threw his hands in the air with an air of finality. “And, who knows? Maybe one of those cute little grandkids gets all inspired the same way you did, and wants to go find a treasure and fight bad guys and figure all kind of crazy puzzles, and, heck, probably decides to go be a knight and stuff, just like u—”

He bit his lip, checking himself. But Ben took note of his near-words. Riley quickly continued on a corrected course.

“You. Just like you,” and he shoved his arm with a smirk, “Mister Sir Benjamin Franklin knighted-at-age-eleven Gates. You and all your Templars and Crusaders. ‘Cause I mean, what kid wouldn't think a guy smart enough to steal the Declaration of Independence, and crazy enough or brave enough to try to save it from the bad guys, was totally awesome?”

Ben was unvoiced. All his mouth could manage was a speechless smile, as he looked at his young friend. He felt like he’d just heard a little brother tell him he was his hero. And… maybe, in a way, he had.

But it didn’t take long for Riley to notice the smile. The moment he did, he covered his tracks with a roll of the eyes, hoping to pretend he hadn’t said as much as he had. “Except for the kids who actually have the misfortune to know you, I mean.” And on “know”, he chucked the neck pillow at Ben’s face, nailing him squarely.

“Wha—they have the misfortune?”

“Yeah, you know, studies show, the coolness-craziness ratio really gets skewed over time, especially where little kids are involved.”

Snatching the pillow from where it had fallen, Ben grinned and replied, laughter in his voice. “Well, maybe they should ask you to tell the story, then. You seem to have it pretty well mapped out.”

Riley gave him a look. “If I live to have grandkids, I might. And if that pun was actually intended.”

Noticing suddenly how the thought had come out, Ben considered it. “It is now.”

“Thought so.”

As he studied the young snark, another thought lit up Ben’s mind. One that simply could not be left under a bushel. But he did hide a growing grin behind his hand, as he prepared to speak again.

“But you know,” he mused, acting thoughtful, “I’m a little surprised at you, Riley. I mean, you left out one of the key historical figures involved in the story of the Templar Treasure. And he’s not one I thought you’d forget, either, let me tell you.”

“Oh great, here comes the history lecture.” Riley turned to him, eyes firmly planted on the ceiling just above Ben’s head, looking like a teen braced for a parental scolding. “Fine. Who'd I miss?”

“The other knight.”

At his confused look, Ben leaned back, gesturing with a bit of storytelling flair himself. “Riley Poole: computer genius and sole source of common sense, fellow treasure protector against the forces of evil and Ian Howe.” Then, as Riley gaped, Ben launched into a series of smaller voices (although he barely tried to sound like a child, let alone the three to four he seemed to be acting out). “‘Tell me more about him, Grandpa! Oh, he's such a funny guy, I like his jokes! How ever did he put up with that crazy Ben? That guy couldn’t have got anywhere without Riley!’”

Riley stared at him for a few seconds. But then, to Ben’s surprise, his mouth snapped shut, and the jaw behind it seemed, for a second at least, to clench. “Come on, Ben, not cool,” Riley muttered, jerking his face the other way. “I was serious.”

Ben felt a twinge of guilt at the almost angry reaction: Riley thought he was being mocked. But before he could feel so (mistakenly) betrayed he cut himself off from anything Ben had to say—a situation Ben really, really hated—he settled a hand on Riley’s shoulder. This earned him a rather cross glance. But, seeing past the glare, he looked his young friend dead in the eyes, with a small, sincere smile.

“So was I.”

The glance lengthened into a full-on stare. “Wait, you—”

Ben could see the exact moment that the words fully sank in. The irritation became stunned surprise, and that turned to a swelling, glowing pride. It wasn’t a joke. Ben meant every word. A smile twitched at his lips. Then the swell burst, short and sudden, in a laugh like a firework. “Wow.”

And it pleased Ben mightily to see it. The sight of those blue eyes lighting up with real joy, with no hint of sarcasm, was rare. And he was doubly happy, because he was also telling the truth. Truth in every single word. Including one word in particular. One that required a little testing. Ben paused, taking the moment in a bit longer, then lifted his eyebrows, almost humourously. “Unless, of course, you’d prefer to drop the knight part…”

“No!”

Ben nearly laughed again at the eager speed of the answer. But Riley, upon realizing the same, nearly stumbled over himself to cover up with, “Um, no, no, that’s fine. The knight part… the knight part works. D-don’t worry about it.”

“Who’s worrying?” Ben grinned, hopes fulfilled. Ever since he’d told Riley about his boyhood knighthood (and truth be told, he’d never really dropped the title, at least in his own mind), he’d found it easier and easier to think of the two of them as fellow knights. But he never said that. He didn’t want to push a title on someone else if they might think it a little childish. That was why he’d needed a test, which Riley had passed with eagerness.

And yet, pleased as he was by that eagerness, it suddenly hit him how easily it could be snuffed out. The nearer they got to the treasure, the greater the danger would grow. He was sure of that. They’d already been through some real perils, and they’d escaped without injury, but how long would it be before they wound up in front of Ian’s gun again, with ever-dwindling negotiables? The old weight began to creep back over him.

“You are.”

Ben looked back up, confused. “I’m what?”

“Worrying.”

Is it that noticeable? “Oh. Am I?”

At that, something inside Riley seemed to crumble, something he tried very much to hide. “Oh.”

Ben furrowed his brow, definitely worried now. What happened? Did I say something wrong?

He started to open his mouth to ask, but Riley seemed to steel himself, taking a breath and lifting his head. “Yeah, and you know, I totally get it,” he said, quickly and in something of an apologetic tone, “it’s a personal thing from your childhood, it feels weird letting somebody else take over it. I get it. The knight part is your thing. So if you don’t want me tacking it on,” he raised his hands in surrender, “it’s fine, I won’t say anything else about it.”

“What?” This was it? After all the—he still felt out of place in Ben’s life? He still felt like he was being just a burden, a tagalong?

“What?”

Ben sighed and shook his head. “You’re not taking anything over. Knighthood is meant to be passed from one to another. And it’s too important a promise to tack on to just anybody.”

“Tell that to Jagger.”

“Too important for me to just tack on, then.”

Riley seemed reluctant to accept acceptance, no matter how many times he’d received it. “Really?”

“Trust me. You’re good. That wasn’t even close to what I was worrying about.”

He let out a quiet breath of relief. “Okay.” The pause wasn’t long, however, before he glanced back up. “But you were worrying, though. That was definitely the Ben Gates worry face.”

“I have a worry face?”

“Ehh, it’s rare, but I know it when I see it. I mean, it’s you. Worrying.” Ben conceded the point with a shrug. “So why?”

“Why?” Ben hesitated, taking a breath, but his mind made itself up quickly. No more. Riley had opened up to him; it was high time, however his friend reacted, he did the same. He slowly let out his breath. “Because I think we’re gonna need the knight part pretty soon. We’re probably coming up on some… well, some pretty difficult chapters of that story, if you know what I mean. And, if I’m gonna be honest,” and at this, his voice dropped, “I’m a little afraid to know the ending.”

Riley stared at him for a silent moment. Ben wasn’t quite sure what he was hoping for next. Hope I didn’t say too much. But then Riley nodded, slowly at first. “Wow. Yeah, I mean, me too, man.” His nodding sped up. “You know, maybe I will keep the knight part after all.”

Ben smiled, relieved, though he wasn’t sure why. “Sounds like a good idea.”

“Yeah.” Riley was quiet only a moment more before he scoffed. “You know, it’s all fine when you’re just hearing about the dangerous stuff the heroes go through. You don’t really think about how threats to your life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness actually feel.”

“Yeah, sorry about that.”

“But hey,” he shrugged, “at least those future-kids are gonna have a heck of a story. I mean, for them, we’re probably coming up on the best parts!” He laughed at his own words, but still grimaced slightly.

Ben smiled. Again, the complainer held the candle in the dark. And in that moment, Ben knew he was glad to have him on this… adventure, or whatever it could be called, no matter what happened. Riley really had been the common sense, the genius, the light (shaded in sarcasm though it was), throughout the whole thing. And Ben was sure he truly couldn’t have gotten this far without him. But he knew they were about to head off into more trouble when they got to Philadelphia tomorrow, very possibly of the life-threatening type. He had to make sure Riley was okay with facing it down.

“Sure you still wanna be a part of it?” he asked, nodding toward him. “It’s a big responsibility.”

Riley tapped the red, metal, tube-like container hanging on Ben’s seat. “I know.”

Ben nodded. “You’re right. There is a very big responsibility to keep the Declaration safe. We have enough danger just from that. But the duty of the Templars, the Freemasons, and the family Gates, now, that's all on me. Not you or Abigail or anybody else. I know I pretty much dragged you into this from the beginning, and if you’d rather stay out of the line of fire, I… wouldn’t mind letting you—”

“Oh no you don’t, Mr. Gates,” Riley interrupted, grinning widely and pointing threateningly, “you made me a treasure protector, same as all your Templars, Freemasons, and family Gates! And I promise you, I’m not about to let you write me out now!”

That’s a good enough promise for me. Then, attitude restored, Ben responded in a tone of dry humour. “Well, then, in that case, I dub thee Sir Riley.” And he smacked him on the shoulder with the neck pillow.

Sir Riley seemed to take offense to the smacking as a personal challenge, and snatched the pillow away. Ben could see a glint of war fire in his eye. However, before battle could be engaged, his eye caught a sight that was becoming pleasantly familiar, to him at least. He laughingly held up a hand.

“Okay, hold up, hold up, Abigail’s coming back.”

“Oh joy,” Riley deadpanned, a little disappointed in the forced ceasefire. Then, with a thought, he smirked at Ben. “You think even she’d be okay in a story? Like as a character?”

“Abigail?” Ben considered her qualifications for such a role. And he found he couldn’t help but smile; smile at her deep passion for history (close akin to his own), her unflagging determination, and of course, her absolute refusal to ever shut up. “Could be.” He chuckled softly. “Could be…”

He looked up to find Riley giving him a very pointed look, so Ben ignored him and glanced out at her instead. As Abigail crossed the parking lot, he pondered her a little longer. “Wonder if she thinks we're the heroes or the villains.”

By the time he noticed Riley’s movement, the window was already halfway rolled down. “Good question.” Riley stuck his head out the window and yelled across the parking lot, “Hey, Abi, do you think we're the heroes or the villains?”

Still halfway across, she stopped to give him a look and shook her head. “It’s Abigail to you, and for the record, I still think you’re lunatics.”

“Well, I knew that!”

“I mean for yelling across the parking lot.”

“Well, if we're stating things for the record, you're yelling too.”

Abigail simply rolled her eyes and resumed her walk. Riley laughed again. “Guess we’re gonna have to call off the Second Revolutionary War, huh, Ben?”

“Oh, you’ll probably break the truce at some point.”

“Keep on your toes, old man.”

Riley smiled, but fell silent as he did so, staring at the dashboard. In the moment before Abigail came up to the car, his voice returned. “So… just to be clear…” He took a breath before he spoke again, and looked up at Ben hopefully when he did. “Knights?”

Ben practically beamed as he nodded: he could finally say it was true. “Knights.”

Riley held up his fist, and they sealed their eternal covenant of knighthood and brotherhood with a knuckle-bump.

A moment later, the passenger door opened. “Also, you took my seat, Bill.”

“Sir Riley, actually. Nice to meet you, milady.”

---

Well, happy Independence Day, folks! Thanks for reading, and doubly so if you've stuck with me all the way through to the end here!

This is my first National Treasure fic, but my second Lord of the Rings fic (the first is ancient and in hiding somewhere). Since NT is so patriotic and honoring of America's history and forefathers, I figured I'd post this today.

The inspiration came from two things: firstly, that fanfiction I posted about a few weeks ago, and secondly, from the story scene in The Two Towers. The kids had the movie on, and I jumped in right around there. And maybe I just had NT on the brain, but that scene just suddenly struck me as very fitting for Ben and Riley. Who are awesome, by the way.

So I wrote up a (much shorter) first draft that day, and edited it over the next several weeks. And now it's done! And I'm rather pleased with it, for my part.

It's also on fanfiction.net and, for the first time for any of my fics, AO3, if you want to check that out too.

Again, thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed, and happy Independence Day!

#my fanfiction #national treasure #ben gates #riley poole #abigail chase #lord of the rings #happy independence day

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redrascal1 · 3 years

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Why being permabanned from the JCF was one of the best things that could have happened to me

Ever since TFA I’ve been contributing to SW forums, because it’s interesting to see other’s opinions and also a source of information. Naturally not everyone agrees with you, so I’ve often crossed verbal swords. I quit one forum after being ‘warned’ for defending myself against a Kylo hater rather than reporting him; largely because I’ve never liked the idea of reporting anyone...it just isn’t me. I’d rather stand up to them instead.

Everyone is entitled to like or dislike a fictional character or ship, and entitled to argue the point. But I do not think I have ever come across such toxic hatred for a fictional character and those who like him as I have on the Jedi Council Forums.

I have been accused of ‘sexism’ for saying I didn’t like the way TROS ended with Rey as a perennial virgin( ironically I personally am, and likely to stay that way as I’m asexual...) because I found it unnatural (including myself in that) as Rey had shown a deep desire for family and children. By having her embrace the tired old ‘space monk’ code of the Jedi she is forever denying herself that. I have had the weary old ‘promoting the sexual abuse of women’ rubbish aimed at me because I was a reylo - until they destroyed Rey and reimagined her as a horrible judgemental prig. All this I’ve experienced before so I’m used to it...but what I really find disturbing is the attitude of Finn fans. And two Finn fans in particular.

I’ll call them A & J. Both are women. One confirmed white, not confirmed by the other. And their behaviour towards anyone who likes Kylo - even those who aren’t reylos - is nothing short of bullying.

A is a huge Leia fan. If you have the audacity to point out that the character was a neglectful mother, which Carrie herself confirmed (’ I never should have sent him away’; Leia’s own words) then immediately A accuses you of rampant sexism, and ‘how DARE you ‘demonise’ Leia like that!’

You are then attacked for saying a mother should not have a career (I never said that) and that Kylo was an ‘overprivileged brat’ who deserved ‘everything he got’ for the way he treated his ‘wonderful, heroic parents.’

A has chosen to ignore the fact that during the promotion for TFA, the cast actually stated that Han and Leia were less than stellar parents. Heroes, unfortunately, often are. Leia was focusing on the rebuilding of the Republic and Han was uncomfortable around his son because he was FS. Neither Harrison or Carrie, both parents themselves, were unhappy with this. It’s stated in several ‘canon’ sources. Which A has chosen to ignore, insisting that Bloodline pointed out Kylo as a ‘happy, normal’ child when that was what Leia believed him to be, despite not being around enough to know what he actually felt.

And not one mention of how it was TROS who truly demonised Leia. Whereas both the previous films showed her failures as well meaning mistakes, TROS showed her as a woman who chose not to train her own son when she was capable of doing it herself. It assassinated her character beyond repair and I often wonder if Carrie would have agreed with Leia being portrayed like that if she was still with us.

What worries me is that A is married and a teacher by profession - and also a mother, in real life. And she made one of the most disturbing comments I’ve read, that it’s a ‘good thing’ for women to put their careers before their children as it shows them ‘they are not the centre of your universe’.

We are entitled to like/dislike fictional characters.....but I’m really spooked because this comment by A has nothing to do with SW but is her personal view on real life. And I don’t think any parent, male or female,should put their careers before their families.

And ..then there is J, a dedicated Finn and JB fan. Again, her own choice. But does she really have the right to accuse anyone who doesn’t like either of being a card carrying, knuckle dragging white supremacist?

She accused me as ‘putting the white character before JB’s role as ‘black male lead’ because I simply said the ST ‘should have been Ben’s story’ in a Finn thread. Later, I was permabanned for mentioning Kylo in the same Finn thread - despite other posters often mentioning Kylo, Rey and Finn in threads devoted to other characters. But it isn’t just me. Anyone - anyone - who says the slightest negative thing about JB, such as calling him out on his horrible SM posts after TROS, is accused of racism. Anyone who criticises the Finn character is seen as racist. And although yes, I agree Finn was poorly handled in TROS, I can’t help but get angry when they accuse Rian Johnson of ‘destroying’ the character’ in TLJ when he gave him his own story arc and love interest and did a damn sight more with him than Abrams, who saw him as a lovesick groupie whose role was to follow Rey around shrieking her name every five minutes.

Most of all, I am heartily sick and tired of them accusing AD and Kylo of ‘taking Finn’s rightful role off him’

Excuse me? Kylo had nothing to do with it, he was established as the villain and it certainly wasn’t AD’s fault. He simply played the part. Finn was on the ‘other side’. If his character was reduced it’s down to the survival of the Poe character (some fans, to their credit, have also said this) who was slated to be killed off but wasn’t. But if anyone ‘stole’ anyone’s thunder it’s Rey - she was meant to be the main protagonist of the ST, not Finn. Kylo was the ‘villain’. Finn had more screen time than Kylo did in all three of the films.

Boyega is simply mad that he wasn’t Rey’s romantic love interest, despite DR herself stating the characters were meant to be ‘just friends’. He wasn’t interested in the fact that Finn had two beautiful ladies interested in him, he wanted to ‘lay the pipe’ with Rey. And this lies at the heart of his dissatisfaction with his character’s direction. but is has nothing to do with AD or the Kylo character. Finn fans refuse to accept that as the blood descendant of the OT characters of course Kylo/Ben had to have a major role in the ST. Finn was never conceived as a ‘lead’ character, and it is both spiteful and unfair for JB and his fans to assume it’s because of his ethnicity.

I’m not the only one who has been targeted by J...she has driven three posters to my knowledge off the JCF, one who isn’t even a Kylo fan, with her endless spurious accusations. Yet she gets away with it....because A is a major supporter. And A is a moderator.

As for me, I tend to have a stubborn streak and although I repeatedly told myself engaging with the toxic fantatics permeating the JCF isn’t good for me, I just couldn’t stop. I just had to repeatedly defend Kylo and AD from the increasingly nasty comments, despite it doing nothing for my mental health and personal happiness. So, when I was finally permabanned for once again mentioning Kylo in a ‘some other character’ thread, I’m actually relieved, because I’m now ‘off’ the site. I still read it just to see how the other posters are getting on, and I’ve noticed most of those who like Kylo and even AD are disappearing.

A and J are bit by bit destroying anyone who doesn’t share their opinions and driving them away, reducing the forum to a tedious one character love fest. In short, anyone who doesn’t agree with them isn’t welcome. So much for freedom of speech.

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transhawks · 5 years

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Guide to Writing Hawks

Be physically expressive! Hawks is extremely gesticulate; this is one of the first things we learn about him. He uses his hands to talk just as much as words, that zipper movement from him to Endeavor, to the way he shrugs and waves his hands around when talking to Endeavor and Tokoyami. Some of his gestures are also downright unusual and add to general sense of offbeat charm - he shouldn’t be rigid or stiff when talking, generally, especially with an ally. He’s a dynamic, expressive character - don’t let a simple ‘said’ suffice for a sentence he probably emphasizes with body languages.

His pupils change size. Something interesting for other characters to note is Hawks’s eyes and their tendency to change size. The factors seem to be emotional and while there isn’t a very solid explanation as to it (besides basic biology), this is noticeable in some panels and anyone talking to Hawks might even note it.

Hawks has a very offbeat sense of humor and there’s a pattern of people wondering if he’s genuine or mocking them. Hawks has left a few characters rather taken back with the things he’s said, even admitting he doesn’t “like holding back”. This lack of seeming care for a seriousness of a moment or topic(or maybe he does care a lot) both surprises people and somewhat offends them because it comes off as him mocking them (and he may very well be). Basically Hawks, with most people, keeps everyone on their toes by saying things that others might not want to say or find impolite or improbable. He’s not the type to generally hold back; and that makes him a mixed bag to interact with, especially if your character is straight-laced.

He can and does get thrown off his groove! Hawks isn’t just aloofly carefree; things do bother and get to him. He’s more likely to show this sort of thing in private, alone. But once he’s thrown off, his usual aloofness fades and he shows more negative emotions, which usually doesn’t happen. He’s more likely to make ‘fiercer’ faces, more likely to be less gesticulate, and stiff.

Hawks has a bit of an independent thing. While Hawks seems to make great support in battles, it seems his natural inclination is actually to be a lone act. He went to take care of the small noumu mostly by himself in the High End fight, and he clearly doesn’t wait for his sidekicks or intern to dispatch villains with him. He’s on his own time, and so something to keep in mind is that he’s more likely to be an independent in a plan.

Hawks has a dialect and you shouldn’t be afraid to localize it - as long as it’s used sparingly! Hawks generally speaks standard Japanese, but he’s used his local dialect twice in the manga, one when seemingly taken aback and amused by Endeavor, and once in a more contemplative moment to himself. The dialect is called Hakata-ben and generally, when shows up in manga or anime, American localization choose to portray it as something a bit ‘country’. This is a little difficult given the most common dialect in Animanga is Osaka-ben and either localized as Southern(Texan) or Brooklynese. When Hakata-ben shows up, the American translators might go for something a bit more Appalachian and rural, even though Hakata/Fukuoka is definitely a city. Keep in mind to a Japanese ear (and other characters) who hear this would definitely associate a more rough/working-class background with this sort of dialect. Whatever you might choose when writing, just remember this is generally something he uses sparingly compared to other characters with a dialect, but also that as a child he would most likely spoken primarily in the dialect.

Hawks is incredibly observant and thoughtful - and so much of this is through his senses, even if he’s also seemingly intuitive. But this is never apparent right off the bat. Remember that Hawks has been shown to have very good eyesight and hearing, and that one of the major functions of his quirk is feeling/hearing vibrations through feathers. He has an excellent scope of his environment most times. He’s basically an information sponge, and is shown to hunt for more info using lots of different ways (also a sign he’s incredibly resourceful). But all of this is something that people never seem to expect from him until they’ve seen all of it in action - and even then he does so much with ease that it’s hard to tell how much work he puts into his actions.

Hawks is....quirky. And not in the quirk way! He hides his mouth when embarrassed or called out; doesn’t really care for social norms, and also likes to banter during fights. He happily admits to being a bird! He’s an oddball! Don’t be afraid to write him as one!

He really loves food. He kept talking about it on his meeting with Endeavor, asked to finish his food, mentioned cooking techniques in his banter. No wonder his favorite thing is chicken. EDIT AS OF 9/11: Hawks has a confirmed sweet tooth! In fact he finds the brewed coffee like mud has a preference for cheaper and sweeter canned coffees, even mentioning he just wants something sweet!

Most of all, Hawks is written as a character who thinks deeply about himself and the society he’s rose to the top of, and his place in it. He does care about other people - his first question is about casualties from his infiltration mission, he also doesn’t see an issue with lending a hand. He even treats his hardworking intern to a night flight! This isn’t done without second thoughts; he clearly expresses dissatisfaction with his life as it is, which is why he wants to change the society that makes it so. He yearns for a world where heroes have more free time. Any writer can take that in so many directions; but there should be an acknowledgment of some sort of dissatisfied yearning when you write Hawks. Whether you choose to delve into his circumstances and portray it as a tragedy or not, he’s a complicated character with an ambiguous and self-aware air about him. Treat him as such.

#hawks #bnha hawks #hawks bnha #hawks mha #bnha #meta #this was written because I saw a post about people having trouble with him #of course other people might have different takes on him #this is my personal one though

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aion-rsa · 4 years

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Cruella: Does Every Villain Need a Sympathetic Origin Story?

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Clearly this isn’t your parents’ Cruella De Vil. This isn’t even your Cruella De Vil. However, there is something fiendishly charming about seeing Emma Stone charge into a ballroom and light her black and white dress on fire, revealing a chic red number beneath that would do Scarlett O’Hara proud. If fashion is a statement, Cruella is here to say the villain has just arrived!

Yet one can’t help but shake the certainty that by the time we actually learn the plot of Disney’s Cruella reimagining, Cruella will be in anything but black and white, or fiery red. Rather Cruella is obviously posturing to take a sideways approach to an old classic. But then again, that increasingly feels like the only direction these Hollywood redos know: the sympathetic origin story for an iconic villain.

To be clear, we’ve only gotten a glimpse of Stone as the new Cruella, and she looks absolutely fabulous in a black leather coat and cane, purring, “I’m only getting started, darling.” There’s a wildness about this interpretation befitting our current era where Harley Quinn is the hero of her own story, and Wade Wilson now leads a Disney franchise. Nevertheless, when I watch Cruella on the edge of tears in the trailer, barking defiantly that she is CRUELLA—and seemingly embracing an unfair reputation that other characters may be placing on her—a nagging question persists in the back of my head: Do we really need a sympathetic Cruella De Vil?

The trend of supervillains getting intellectual property-expanding sob stories is nothing new, be it at Disney or anywhere else in Hollywood. Maybe 25 years ago when folks liked their villains big and outlandish—think Glenn Close in Disney’s previous live-action remake of 101 Dalmatians—it was novel to see the antagonist become a tragic protagonist. But like everything else with modern blockbusters, that all changed a long, long time ago with something called Star Wars.

Back in 1977 when the original Star Wars movie was released, many audience members left the theater giddy about the world George Lucas created. In a galaxy far, far away, every pop fantasy of the mid-20th century—Wizards! Knights! Princesses! Samurai! World War II ace pilots!—was thrown into a massive cauldron that seamlessly blended these elements.

Luke Skywalker’s galaxy felt like a real place of exotic, lived-in locales, all of which captured that dirt-under-the-fingertips, tactile quality so rarely seen in fantasy stories. Sure the characters might be archetypes, but they came with histories which gave their fantasy space battles human density. Old Ben Kenobi fought in the Clone Wars with Luke’s father Anakin, who was “a gifted pilot.” But what exactly was a clone war? And why was there more than one of them? Also, what did a Jedi’s “more civilized age” look like for Luke’s papa?

For more than 20 years, no one knew the answer to those questions, which made them all the more intriguing, and the “lore” of this fantasy evermore mythic. Then came Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, the first modern blockbuster prequel devoted to filling in the gaps left by a beloved classic’s mysteries. That movie’s problems are numerous, but at its core the most persistent, lingering issue may still be the reveal that Darth Vader was once a blonde haired little boy with the emotional range of Beaver Cleaver. Of course everyone knew in the abstract sense Vader was once a child… but did they ever really want to see it?

Additionally, did anyone really want to learn Anakin Skywalker’s reason for turning to the Dark Side is because of a bratty streak that followed him into adulthood? Probably not.

Nonetheless, all three Star Wars prequels made massive amounts of money and rather than becoming cautionary tales of what happens when you attempt to explain away all the mysteries of a beloved character, they were the first steps toward a modern staple of media regurgitation where seemingly every mug, pug, and thug would get their own sympathetic redo.

Since then, we’ve learned on screen that Spider-Man’s arch-nemesis Venom, is really a well-intentioned bloke caught in a bad romance (with his alien space buddy), Batman’s arch-nemesis the Joker is really just a Travis Bickle clone with mommy issues, and Maleficent, the reigning empress of badassery in the Disney Villain canon, was really just a woman scorned by Sleeping Beauty’s toxic father. Even Hannibal Lecter became a victim in Hannibal Rising, and the Wicked Witch of the West starred in the most popular Broadway musical of all time… where it turns out she was the hero in a conspiracy with the Scarecrow to pull one over on Dorothy.

To be clear, some of these spinoffs and reimaginings work quite well. Even if I personally am a bit chagrined at Todd Phillips’ Joker being nominated for Best Picture, Joaquin Phoenix’s sad sack killer clown created the space for a riveting performance that reminded mainstream audiences that movies can still be for adults. In another comic book movie, Magneto’s heartbreaking backstory in the Holocaust was expanded in 2011’s X-Men: First Class, which made an already relatively complex supervillain just that much more compelling in Michael Fassbender’s hands.

Overall, however, this approach has left something to be desired. And to get back to Cruella, her remix as a misunderstood tragic heroine appears to owe most of all to Maleficent. In 2014, Disney made a killing when they cast movie star Angelina Jolie as their very best big bad, a character so evil in 1959’s Sleeping Beauty that she was willing to knockoff a princess simply because no one sent her a party invite. That’s cold. And it’s wickedly entertaining. Hence why Maleficent scared and captivated generations of children.

Some characters are just too good at being bad.

The marketing of Maleficent leaned into this with a melancholic cover of Sleeping Beauty’s Tchaikovsky-inspired theme song, “Once Upon a Dream.” Now in a minor key, the new version sung by Lana Del Rey promised a scarier, more menacing version of the story, which was then confirmed by Jolie’s wonderfully devilish laugh. The big bad was finally going to have her day at the ball.

But when the movie actually came out, we learned that Maleficent was an enchanted fairy who’d been wronged. In the end, she didn’t hate Elle Fanning’s Princess Aurora. In fact, she loved the little royal and tried to save her from the curse she herself cast in a fit of justified anger. Ultimately, the sorceress adopts Aurora as the daughter she never had after disposing of her now abusive father. That’s certainly an interpretation. I guess.

It also proved massively successful in the short term, opening at a staggering $175.5 million in its opening weekend worldwide, and grossing $758 million total. Those numbers also exclude merchandising and home video revenues. If you want to know why we’re getting the punk rock Cruella, look no further.

However, did a lot of folks really like Maleficent? It made all the money in the world based on that devious marketing campaign that promised a shocking tell-all about Disney’s closest approximation to Lucifer, but by the time a sequel limped into theater five years later, relatively few seemed to still care about the misunderstood, freedom fighting warrior fairy Jolie played. Maleficent: Mistress of Evil ostensibly continued the good fight but flopped at the box office with a cume of $491.7 million, barely more than half of what its predecessor made. (Don’t cry for Disney though, as Avengers: Endgame, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and remakes of Aladdin and The Lion King in the same year made Maleficent 2 look like a clerical error.)

What this whole sputtering franchise reminds us though is that some characters are better left bad, and the mystique of the unknown is an end unto itself. While I enjoyed Phoenix’s take on the Joker, there is little argument the character was even scarier with a PG-13 rating when he manifested out of thin air, like Beelzebub, in The Dark Knight. Or to take a step away from just villains, was Han Solo really any cooler when you learned how he got his name in Solo: A Star Wars Story? Or could you have gone your whole life without knowing thanks to The Hobbit movies that Gandalf and Galadriel were kind of, sort of, just maybe friends with benefits?

The allure of Cruella De Vil is right there in her name: She’s a cruel devil. How could she not be when her entire ambition in Disney’s classic 101 Dalmatians is to skin puppies for their fur coats? Finding out she used to fight the power before hoarding it may make a lot of money, but it doesn’t make her necessarily more compelling.

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downwardfalling · 5 years

Text

the world is moving

“Did it hurt?” Tony reaches over with his right hand, a piercing red silhouette in the night, and gently grazes the swollen skin.

“Oh,” Peter blinks twice. Then, “No.”

- Or, Peter and Tony’s relationship in five acts, as told through bruises.

Read on AO3 :))

;;

Act I

The length between the tip of Tony’s pointed dress shoes and the threshold of Peter’s hotel door is simply a single footstep. And yet, Tony stands on one end, struggling to cross the distance. Peter’s fourteen, his more rational side reasons, and has already been spiderman for a couple of months at least. He should know how to treat a black eye.

“Mr. Stark?” Peter looks surprised to see him when Tony finally works up enough nerve to knock on the door. His worst worries are confirmed. Half of Peter’s face is swollen, marred by a bruise that encroach on his otherwise youthful features.

“In the flesh.” Tony gives something of a wan smile as he brushes past him.

“Wha-what are you doing here? I mean, not- not that I don’t want you here, of course.”

Tony doesn’t know how to answer the question without seeming like he cares too much, so he doesn’t. “Are you enjoying the hotel?”

“Oh, uh, yeah, it’s great.” Peter pauses for a moment. Then, more quietly, as if sharing some great secret, he adds, “There’s even a TV in the bathroom, Mr. Stark. The bathroom. ”

Steve must’ve hit his head one too many times because he hears awe in Peter’s voice, and worse, finds it reassuring. But even sleep deprived and beaten, Tony knows the real reason why, as much as he refuses to admit it. The fact is, he messed up bad, and Peter saw the repercussions: Tony’s life work– his friendships, his career, his family– fell apart, loud and rickety like an unoiled machine. A part of him feared that Peter would finally see him for who he is. Not a hero. A fuck up. That same part of him is glad that Peter doesn’t. It’s selfish, but he puts it in the back pocket to unpack later.

“Thank you so much for this, Mr. Stark. It’s really great. I haven’t even been on a plane before, and now I’m fighting with the Avengers in an airport. I mean obviously, I would rather be fighting with the Avengers and not against the avengers, but you can’t win them all.“

Tony swallows hard, fighting back affection that Peter seems to command without knowing. He’s just too young. Too good. “No problem, kid. Do me a favor, and sit on the bed over there.”

Peter sits on the edge, clasping his hands neatly on his lap in front of him. He smiles, genuinely (teeth, gums, and all), even though he has bruised flesh under his left eye that forces it halfway closed. His right eye shines with reverence and youth and excitement that, along with affectionate, makes Tony sick to the stomach with guilt.

“You need ice,” Tony croaks, quickly turning away to hide whatever emotions he was uncareful enough to let show.

Peter either doesn’t notice, or doesn’t point it out. “Hm? For what?”

“For your face.”

“Oh.” He gingerly presses his fingertips against the skin under his eye, as if he had just remembered the bruise that had been the source of Tony’s penitence since he first saw it forming in the car ride back to the hotel.

Tony hands Peter the bag of ice. “Keep this on for a little while.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Peter presses the ice to his eye and leans back to rest against the headboard. “Oh, by the way, Mr. Stark, I just wanted to let you know that you were super badass today.”

“Oh?” Tony snorts, sitting on the edge of Peter’s bed after his curiosity wins out over his better judgement. “How so?”

Peter grins. “Well, you’re always kind of badass. But seeing you in person today was on another level. And more importantly, seeing you fight for what you believe is right and what you believe would be the best for other people.”

“Oh,” Tony frowns, unbelieving and unused to receiving so many genuine compliments at one time. “You think so?”

“More than think so. Know so.” Peter presses on passionately, as if he somehow sensed Tony’s doubt. “My uncle Ben used to love Harry Potter, and he would always say that it is the quality of one’s convictions that determines success, not the number of followers.”

Peter leans closer to Tony, clenching his fist against his chest to show how strongly he believes in what he’s saying. “You’re a really good person, Mr. Stark! That’s why you will always be badass, even if Mr. Captain America doesn’t think so anymore.”

Tony blinks, trying to stave off sweet relief and the beginnings of tears that came with it. “Wow, kid. Are you always this…?” He makes a roundabout gesture with his hands, as if it were sufficient enough for his lack of a better word.

“Honest?” Peter offers.

Tony scans Peter’s face, looking for some hint of sarcasm, or some form of mockery, because there’s just no way someone can have so much faith in him. Instead, he sees what he’s seen all along, youth, and reverence, and just pure good. Tony has to get out of here fast before Peter gets himself into something he doesn’t want to be in.

“I should get going now.” He gets to his feet as Peter blinks at him in confusion. “Rest, and keep that ice on for at least another ten minutes.”

“Will do!” It’s the last thing Tony hears before he’s out the door.

The distance between Peter’s hotel room and the tip of Tony’s shoes had only been a single footstep. When Tony crossed it, he had unknowingly crossed a fine line. But as he walks to his hotel room, shaking his head, he vows to stay away. Because he destroys everything he touches. and the last thing he wants to do is destroy Peter.

;;

Act II

“Who knew shattering your leg would cause severe internal bleeding? Weird, right?”

“Pete, please stop talking, or I swear to Jesus himself, you will regret it.”

“Yessir,” Peter salutes, and for two seconds, looks like he actually considers listening to him. “But wow, I can’t feel my entire right side.”

“That’s it.” Tony says, stepping around Bruce to make threatening eye contact with him. “When you’re better, you still won’t feel your leg. Why? Because you won’t have a leg. And why is that? Because I will have ripped it right out of its socket.”

Peter’s eyes start to droop, the likely effect of the medication they had given him when he first arrived. Quietly, he mumbles, "That’s just cold.”

Bruce stops to remove his hands from the IV on Peter’s arms and places them on Tony’s shoulders, slowly guiding him backwards and out of the room.

“Hey, buddy, I think you should step out for a bit. Get a breather. Maybe even a cup of water.”

“What, why? I’m fine.”

“No, you’re hysterical.”

“No, I’m not"

“Yes. You are.”

Tony looks over Bruce’s shoulders and sees nurses frantically working around Peter’s bed. Peter, finally asleep from medication, looks peaceful and blissfully unaware, even when his right leg is mangled enough that pieces of his bone pierce through the skin, and the majority of his thigh is black from severe internal bleeding. Tony isn’t privileged enough to be spared from the sight. His stomach churns uncomfortably, and it makes him lightheaded. He looks down, and his hands slightly shake from adrenaline.

“Yeah, I could use a cup of water,” he finally relents.

“Good, I will let you know when we’re done.” Bruce pats him on one shoulder. He must see the reluctance on Tony’s face because he adds, “He will be fine, Tony,” and then shuts the door.

In the time he was locked out of the medbay (which he owns, Tony bitterly points out to himself), he had the time to get not one, but six cups of water. He could have gotten more, but had been too busy making an internal list. The first thing he had to do once Peter was out of surgery was strangle him. Then, he’d call his scary, yet attractive aunt, and suffer the consequences of Peter’s actions, while May coddles Peter through phone, and promises to visit straight away after work. Finally, he’d strangle Peter again, lovingly this time, and force him to promise to never pull a stunt like this ever again, only for Peter to break it, at most, three months later.

Bruce finally steps through the sliding glass doors as Tony tries to figure out the best way to break the news to May. “Alright,” he says, taking off his gloves. “He’s all fixed up.”

Tony gets off the chair he had been sitting on for the past three hours, and furrows his eyebrows. “As easy as that? No permanent bone damage?”

“As easy as that. His healing factor is really quite something else.”

“Don’t tell him that, or he might get more creative next time.”

Bruce rolls his eyes, but steps aside to let Tony through. “You can see him now. Be gentle, he just woke up.”

“Oh Brucie Bear,” Tony sighs, patting Bruce’s shoulder as he steps by. “What am I if not gentle?”

Peter had nearly fallen back asleep in the time he was left alone, and Tony, seeing him slowly nod off like the kittens in the cat videos Peter forces him to watch, feels all the previous agitation and anger leave him, as quickly as air deflating out of a balloon.

“Hey Pete,” Tony whispers. His fingers hover hesitatingly over his forehead, but eventually, he reaches to brush Peter’s fringe out of his eyes.. “How are you feeling?”

“Hm?” Peter squints at him, pushing up on his elbows. “Oh, hey, Mr. Stark. M’fine.”

“Wow, and the press calls me a dirty liar,” Tony says drly, leaning over to help Peter sit upright against the pillows. “You wanna tell me what happened?”

Peter winces. “Not particularly, but I’m guessing if I don’t, you’ll go through Karen, and I have some pretty embarrassing footage I don’t want you to see. Shit. Shouldn’t have said that.”

“No harm done,” Tony says, his voice laced with faux comfort. “I’ve already seen them. Your impression of Thor is really cream of the crop. Absolutely spot on. I’m sure Thor would agree. You know, once I show it to him.”

Peter gasps, pressing his hand to his chest. “You wouldn’t.”

“Oh, but I would if you don’t tell me who did this to you.”

Peter groans into his hands and sinks further into his pillows, deliberating his options for a few moments.

“Ugh, fine,” he eventually concedes, embarrassment too large a price. “But you have to promise me you won’t commit first degree murder.”

“No can do. Thou shalt not lie, and all that. Besides, I don’t think you should worry too much about what happens to him when he nearly tore you to shreds.”

Peter glances down at his tightly bandaged leg in a disappointed frown. The turn of his lips create harsh lines around his mouth and between his brows that make him look wrought with fatigue, and years beyond his age.

“Yeah,” Peter mutters, a bit breathless. “He really got me good.”

Tony places a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Pete,” he says gently, leaning down to make eye contact. “I know that you think you have to do this all alone, but you don’t. Whoever hurt you is dangerous, and deadly. You could’ve died, Peter. It does not make you weak to ask for help.”

Peter reaches up to grip the cuff of Tony’s button-up, tugging on it until Tony sits on the edge of his bed. He doesn’t make an attempt to move after that, simply clutches the fabric tightly between his fingers, wrinkling the material where it disappears underneath his fingertips.

“He calls himself the Green Goblin,” Peter whispers, many minutes later. “He’s large, and strong and…and scary.“

“Okay,” Tony says, nodding his head. “Thank you for telling me. We’ll figure it out together. Maybe I can even threaten Rhodey into helping. Not that I would need to. He’s putty in your hands.”

Peter laughs, releasing his grip to press the back of his hand against his mouth. “ Mr. Stark,” he says, giggling. The lines on his face disappear to reveal the youth and naivety that Tony will always associate with Peter.

“It’s your stupid cat videos,” he says, smiling, pleased with his laughter.

“Thank you,” Peter whispers. His hands fidget for a little, until finally settling to fiddle with the loose seams of the blanket. “And I’m sorry if I scared you.”

Tony grunts. “Why do you always thank me for doing nothing? And yes, but you’re always scaring me. I’m only just a little used to it by now.”

“Really?” Peter’s voice pitches. “Because it didn’t seem like it. At least from what I remember.”

“You probably don’t remember much. You were all delirious with the drugs.”

“But seriously. I really want to thank you for agreeing to work with me. Showing me the ropes, and all that. I haven’t… completely figured out how to handle all the superhero stuff yet, if you can’t already tell.” Peter gestures to his leg. “And there’s no one really better to show me how than you.”

Tony smiles, satisfaction settling in his body, warmly. Peter is always so startlingly sincere with his gratitude and admiration, and Tony has only gotten used to taking the compliments and thankfulness in stride rather than succumb to doubt.

“Thanks buddy,” he pats Peter on the shoulder. “Let’s see if you think that once I force you to call your Aunt.”

;;

Interlude.

“Hey,” Peter leans against the door. He shifts his weight from foot to foot and it makes him look small, and vulnerable and unsure.

“Come here,” Tony whispers, lifting his bed sheets. Peter stops playing with the hem of his shirt, and slowly walks over. He slips into the bed, and leans his back against the headboard, brushing his shoulders against Tony’s own.

He doesn’t say anything, and Tony doesn’t ask him to. Together, they sit in silence. Tony takes the time to contemplate life, and death, and chance. Peter, he assumes, thinks the opposite: war, and renewal, and luck.

Finally, Peter asks, “Did it hurt?”

“The snap?”

“Yeah.”

“No,” Tony lies.

Peter shifts side to side. He doesn’t believe him, and for a moment, Tony waits for Peter to lean away and call him a liar. Instead, he presses his head against Tony’s left shoulder, and, in doing so, reveals the large, blue bruise that blemishes his temple.

“Did it hurt?”

“What did?”

Tony reaches over with his right hand, a piercing red silhouette in the night, and gently grazes the swollen skin.

“Oh,” Peter blinks twice. Then, “No.”

They settle back into silence. Tony presses his cheek against Peter’s hair. They look across Tony’s room, past the leather armchair, past Morgan’s bunny from where it was abandoned on the floor, past the wall. They look ahead.

Tonight, they pretend that everything is fine. Tomorrow, Peter will help Tony dress the burn wounds on his right side, and Tony will press an ice pack against Peter’s temple. Tomorrow, they’ll heal.

;;

Act III

“Morgan, honey, what do we say when we do something bad?”

Morgan tilts her head and squints her eyes, thinking hard. “Shit?”

“Morgan!” Pepper presses her hand to her chest, aghast. She turns to Tony, lifting her finger accusingly. “ You.”

“I have no idea where she learned that, Pep. Scout’s honor.” Tony replies, trying to school his face into indifference. A futile attempt when Morgan twists to face him on her mother’s lap and gives him a small smirk that is the consequence of weekend sleepovers with Natasha, forcing Tony to hide his grin behind his hand.

“You were a boy scout?” Peter, who is holding a bag of peas against his head on the couch next to him, looks up with just a hint of a smile playing on his lips.

“No. He wasn’t.” Pepper gives Tony a glare over Morgan’s head, her eyes narrowed to a squint that meant she was only seconds away from sending Tony to the couch tonight, and shifts Morgan gently onto his lap. “You caused it, you deal with it.”

Tony leans over and presses a kiss to the top of Morgan’s head as Pepper walks down the hall, and out of hearing distance. Morgan giggles, and turns around to return it on the cheek. “What did I tell you before? Those are only Mommy’s words.”

Morgan nods seriously, looking as if she was hearing God himself dictate the eleventh commandment. “Mommy’s words,“ she repeats.

“That’s my treasure.”

“Treasure? She nearly took my life!” Peter scoffs, but with an undertone of care and affection that Tony hears more and more often when Peter talks to and about her. She’s going to grow up to be very spoiled, as clear when he thinks back to this morning– she had coaxed Tony into giving her yet another banana for breakfast, and after she finished, left the peel by the doorway for Peter to trip on when he finally got out of bed at noon.

“Petey,” Morgan says, reaching out to group three of Peter’s fingers in her hand. “I’m sorry.”

“Aw M, of course–”

“I should have known you weren’t smart enough to avoid it.”

Peter’s face goes slack, and Tony can read the shock on his face from the way his eyebrows disappear into his hairline and how his mouth falls slightly ajar. He slowly turns towards Tony, and narrows his eyes in the same manner Pepper had done just moments before.

Tony shrugs his shoulders. There was only one person capable of teaching impressionable, five year old Morgan such wyrness, and opposed to popular belief it wasn’t him. It was Peter.

“Morgan, that wasn’t very nice,” Peter warns threateningly. “Now you have no choice but to suffer my wrath!”

Peter reaches over to tickle Morgan’s stomach. Morgan shrieks, and falls off Tony’s lap and onto the couch in a fit of laughter.

“Noooo,” she cries. “I’m sorry, Petey! I’m sorry!”

“No can do, M.” But, Peter relents anyways, and leans down to give Morgan a peck on the cheek, even as he simultaneously presses peas against the bump on the back of his head. Tony changes his mind. She is already spoiled.

“Alright,” Tony says, playing peacemaker. “Now that this is settled. Let’s hit the lake!”

Morgan gasps, sitting upright on the couch. “The lake!” She cheers, already running to grab her flip flops.

“How is it that she’s the most adorable and cutest yet most evil person I know?” Peter sighs dramatically, placing the peas on the coffee table, now warm. He gets up off the couch and offers Tony a hand.

“You’re too little too late, Pete,” Tony says, groaning softly as he lets Peter pull him to his feet. “I asked myself the same question when she shat on my hand five years ago.”

“Petey! Dad!” Morgan runs by, now with her hair in a ponytail and with flips flops in hand. “C’mon let’s go! I want to take the boat out!”

“Coming, pumpkin.” Tony straightens his back, joints cracking loudly. “Ugh, that can’t be good. I’m getting too old for this.”

Peter laughs, patting Tony’s shoulder as he brushes past him. “Let’s go, Old Man. Before you hit the hay.”

Later that night, after Morgan fell fast asleep from a long day boating around the lake, and Pepper had dozed off after arguing with investors from Hong Kong, Tony does end up on the couch, but in his own volition. He’s nursing a cup of hot chocolate when Peter ventures into the living room.

“Hey,” he says, sitting down next to him. “What are you doing here? I thought old men slept like logs after their evil daughter connived them into speeding ten circles around on a boat.”

Tony snorts. “I could ask the same about older brothers.”

Peter looks content, and the sight of it unravels some knot that had been building at the pit of Tony’s stomach. It hasn’t been too long after the large and dramatic stand-off against Thanos, and a part of him had worried about life after. Life with both Peter and Morgan, but no Iron Man.

“How are you feeling?” Peter asks, eyes shifting across his face, as if he were searching for signs of distress. “Is it the nightmares again?”

Tony chuckles, and reaches over to brush back Peter’s hair. It’s gotten long, and if possible, even more curlier. May has been going on about having it cut, but for now, Tony counts it as a small blessing.

“Nope,” he says. “Another day scotch free. I think we should celebrate. Three months, a new record.”

“Oh,” Peter says, leaning back into the couch, his posture much more relaxed. “Then what are you doing out here?”

“Just enjoying the silence of the night. God knows we don’t get enough of it around here.”

Tony throws his arm around Peter’s shoulders, and Peter sags against him, cuddling into Tony’s side. Inside his bedroom, Pepper is dreaming of investment meetings, and new punchlines to throw at misogynistic corporate leaders. Down the hall, Morgan sleeps soundly.

Everything is as it should be, even if the only piece missing is Iron Man’s signature red and gold hues, tracing shapes into the sky like Earth’s brightest star. Tony has everything he needs right here.

;;

Act IV

“Tony,” Peter groans, pressing an ice pack onto his cheek, where a bruise was black, and blue and blooming around a long gash that reached from his upper cheek to chin. “Please stop pacing, and sit with me.”

“No,” Tony quips, but sits on the chair next to the medbay bed anyways. “I’m too busy trying to figure out why you felt the need to keep this from me.”

“Because you get all crazy? Like right now?”

“It’s me, ” Tony replies, leaning forward in his chair and ignoring Peter’s remark, looking all types of the tormented soul he is and will always be. “You used to tell me everything. And now you’re off on secret missions with Shield–”

”–yes, because that’s what secret means–“

”–or taking down whole New York crime syndicates by yourself, making friends with that human embodiment of a tabloid Johnny Storm, or worse– sneaking off to go to a party . It’s like I don’t even know who you are anymore.“

A look of understanding comes across Peter’s face. Like he’s just realized this is about more than Fisk’s underground Mafia work, more than even the illegal multiverse experiment that had been one spilled beaker away from tearing the universe into two. It makes Tony miss the years right after the Snap, miss when Peter’s first instinct would be to call him, before he had left for college, became war torn and world weary, and for whatever reason, decided that Tony simply wasn’t needed anymore.

“Tony,” Peter says, more gently this time, reaching his hand out. Tony takes it, holding it tightly in his own as if should he let his grip slack for even just a moment, Peter would break into a million pieces of dust, unmendable and gone, but never forgotten– just like he did on Titan, just like he does over and over again in nightmares that continue to plague him even years later.

“I’m always going to need my old man.” Peter jokes, but his face says otherwise: lips pressed together in a small smile, eyes bright with the beginnings of tears and something else. Love, Tony will amend, months later, thinking back to this memory as Peter hands him the invitation to his wedding.

“Then why didn’t you tell me? I could’ve helped you. Called for back-up, tracked him for you, Iron Man–”

“–is out of commission.” Peter’s eyes drift to Tony’s right arm, red and metallic, a synthetic replacement for the original which had been tragically incapacitated by the Snap.

“How am I supposed to help you if I don’t even know?“

Peter drops the ice bag to reach over and lay his hand on top of Tony’s, cupping it tightly between both of his own. “I don’t need Iron Man. I need Tony Stark. Tony who might not be there for the battle, but will always be there for me in the aftermath.”

Peter doesn’t say anymore, and he doesn’t have to. Tony has since learned the art of reading into the unsaid.

;;

Act V

Peter grips Tony’s hand too hard, and it creates fingerlike bruises on his skin.

“I can’t do this, Tony,” he says, using his other hand to wipe at his face. “I can’t. I just can’t.”

“Yes, you can,” Tony gives Peter’s hand a reassuring squeeze. Peter doesn’t bother to squeeze back, too busy looking down the hallway, eyes shifting left and right in search of the nurse.

“Do you think it’s done? Why hasn’t anyone come out yet? Do you think something went wrong? What if–” Peter’s face goes slack, and he slumps down on the chair, finally letting go of Tony’s hand to run them through his hair. “I think I’m having a breakdown.”

“Oh hey. You’re not that bad. If it makes you feel better, I vomited on the nurse twice before Pepper popped Morgan out.”

Peter gives Tony a long look and proceeds to groan. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

“I don’t know. Do you feel better now?”

“Not particularly. But I am more distracted. The image of you vomiting is equally too familiar and hilarious.”

Tony smiles and lovingly pats Peter’s cheek, now less flushed from his previous outburst. “Then my job here’s complete.”

Peter returns the smile, and looks contemplatively at his hands. “Do you think MJ will be mad at me for not being with her?”

“Michelle? Probably not. She’s a strong, independent woman. And I’m pretty sure she’s the one who told you to leave after you started to freak out.”

“Ugh,” Peter grimaces, most likely reliving the memory. “I’m just not sure if I’m ready yet. To be a father.”

Tony reaches over to brush back Peter’s hair from his forehead. When Peter took over Stark Industries two years ago, he had gotten into the habit of gelling it back. It was one of Tony’s greatest losses. Today, he relishes in the fact that Peter left it undone, too in a hurry to get to the hospital in the middle of the night. His baby, who no longer looks it, is all grown.

“Do you know what’s the most important part of parenting?”

“No?” Peter slumps in his chair, saddened by his own ignorance.

“The answer’s more obvious than you think: love, and honesty and respect. Being emotionally open, loving your kid, and letting your kid know that, but also, somehow respecting their boundaries.”

Tony’s words do nothing to appease Peter. If anything, he’s more discouraged and sinks further into the uncomfortable waiting room chair.

“It’s a learning curve, but I’ll let you in on a little secret. Peter, you’re the most honest and affectionate person I know. Before I met you, I don’t even think I was capable of saying I like you, nevermind love. And look at me now, I spend all my time with you and Pepper and my baby Morgan who’s got me wrapped around her small yet powerful finger.”

Peter laughs, his eyes looking suspiciously watery. “Don’t worry. She’s got us all in her evil clutches.”

“My point is,” Tony continues, chuckling softly. “You’ve taught me all of these things about parenting, just by being yourself. I have so much faith in you, there are not enough words for me to even describe it.”

Peter looks as if he’s about to break into pitiful sobs, but the nurse steps out of Michelle’s room, smiling brightly as she calls Peter’s name, and saving him from what would’ve been inevitable seconds later.

“Oh god, I think I might vomit.”

“Oh no. Vomiting during labor only needs to happen once in history.” Tony jokes, feeling as if he might vomit himself. He pushes lightly on his shoulders. “In you go, Pete.”

The room is quiet when they walk in. Michelle is propped up against some pillows, simultaneously exuding tire and glowing with the newfound joy of motherhood. In her arms, swathed in light blue blankets, is the baby, sleeping comfortably.

“Oh my,” Peter chokes, approaching the side of the bed. “He’s just so tiny.”

“And yet he took so long to come out,” Michelle says, lids heavy as if she were on the brink of passing out. “Do you want to hold him, Peter?”

Peter hesitates for a few seconds, but reaches down shakily, and gently lifts the baby off Michelle’s arms. “Oh wow,” he says quietly, adjusting the baby’s blankets with one hand. “Hi there, baby. It’s me, your dad.”

Slowly, he turns towards Tony, tears making their way down the side of his face. “Look, Tony. It’s my baby. He’s beautiful.”

Tony looks down at the bundle, and indeed, burrowed between the creases of the fabric, is a baby boy with the beginnings of Peter’s hair, his nose, his ears, and if he looked closely enough, maybe his smile.

“Hey there, Beautiful,” Tony’s voice cracks. “You got a name yet?”

“Say hi to Grandpa, Ben. Benjamin Anthony Parker.”

;;

End.

The hospital room is dark, mostly lit by the dim yellow light that emanates from the small lamp next to the bed. Michelle is sleeping quietly, and beside her, still wrapped in baby blue blankets, is Ben. Across the bed, is a long, grey ottoman sofa. On one end, May is sleeping with her head tucked on Pepper’s shoulder. On Pepper’s other side is Morgan.

Tony watches everything from the other end of the couch, and tucked into his side, is Peter, exhausted but still clinging to the last dredges of consciousness.

“Are you still worried about fatherhood?”

Peter looks up at him with glassy and wistful eyes. “No. I have the best role model.”

At that, Tony smiles, content. He has all he needs, and then some, right here.

#marvel #irondad #peter parker #tony stark #baby fever #iron family #spiderman #iron man #this is me and my love for found families #please enjoy!!!!#irondad and spiderson

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bisexualstevierogers · 6 years

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You’ll Be In My Heart (Hargreeves Siblings X Teen!Hargreeves!Reader)

Fandom: The Umbrella Academy Pairing: Hargreeves Siblings X Teen!Sibling!Reader (familial only) Word Count: 2,230 For: @ineedmorefanfics who gave me the amazing prompt: “The Hargreeves X Teen Sibling Reader. You passed away when you were 14 or something like that and when Klaus throws the bowling ball for Ben it goes through him but Y/N catches it and you're like "Klaus look! I did it!" And and Klaus is like "Yes you did. I'm so proud of you Y/N." And all the siblings can see you and they start crying and maybe when they go stop Vanya when Klaus conjures Ben he also conjures Y/N. You go and run up to Vanya and beg her to stop and you stop her and it's a fluff ending?” Author's Note: Unless I missed anything, the reader's gender is never mentioned! I tried to keep it as gender-neutral as possible, although it is heavily implied that __y/n__ is closer to Vanya and Allison than the others 💕 This was SO much fun to write and I really hope you all enjoy it! Disclaimer: I did use some dialogue from the show in this fic, and I do not claim to own it! It was just easier to use actual dialogue for some of it than to make it all up (:

You sighed as your brothers argued, flicking your gaze between them as they took turns speaking.

“I can't talk to the person I love, people still don't take me seriously. I want to be numb again.” Klaus said, exasperated.

You agreed that Klaus should stay sober, he had been doing so well up until now, but you also couldn't blame him. Your other siblings had always and would always continue to treat him like he was a child.

“You're a colossal wimp.” Ben said, deadpan, and you smacked him.

“Hey, knock it off.” You said sharply, and Klaus blew you a kiss.

“Thanks, __y/n__, I knew I could count on you.”

You shook your head quickly. “Oh no, I'm on Ben's side.” Klaus frowned at your words. “I just don't think it's fair to call you a wimp. You're not. You've been through so much, and I know it's hard, but you need to stay sober.”

Klaus sighed thoughtfully, and you thought you had gotten through to him before he resumed his frantic search.

“Hey,” Ben said, snapping his fingers to get Klaus’ attention. “Life isn't supposed to be easy. Life is hard. Bad things happen. Good people die.”

Klaus glanced between you and Ben before rolling his eyes. “Wow, playing the dead card again, huh? You need new material, bro.”

“He was talking about Dave.” You chimed in softly and watched as Klaus’ eyes softened.

“You know, we're tired of seeing you wallow in self-defeat.” Ben explained.

“Well, then avert your gaze.” Klaus said harshly.

“You're better than that.” Ben said, and you nodded in agreement. “And Dave? He knew it too.”

Klaus sighed. “Yeah, you're right. You're right. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.” Klaus’ voice was small, and his shoulders hunched in defeat.

“Thank God.” Ben said in relief.

“I'm so proud of you.” You said warmly, and you watched in confusion as Klaus’ face fell.

“Psych!” Klaus shouted, surprising you and Ben as he threw the pills in his mouth. He cackled in triumph.

Ben growled and swung his fist at Klaus instinctively. You gasped in shock as Ben's fist connected with Klaus’ cheek with a loud smack. The pills clattered to the floor.

“Owww,” Klaus whined, bringing his hand up to his face before he realized what exactly had just happened. You and Klaus looked at Ben in amazement, while he studied his fists. “You just Patrick Swayzeed me.” Klaus said in disbelief.

“How did you do that?” You asked, reaching out to Klaus’ bruising cheek and blinking tears away when you actually felt Klaus’ warm skin underneath your palm.

“Uh, I didn't. Klaus did. I think.” Ben murmured, and you all shared a look. This changed...everything. Klaus being able to communicate with the dead was one thing, but being able to make the dead tangible again?

Klaus was absolutely more powerful than any of you had ever thought.

-----

“Hey, you know guys, uh, maybe I could help.” Klaus suggested, after much encouragement from you and Ben.

“Now is not the time.” Luther said dismissively, and you narrowed your eyes at your brother.

“Was he always this big of an asshole?” You asked Ben, and Ben chuckled.

“Yes.”

“No, let him finish.” Diego disagreed. “He saved my life today.”

“Really?” Ben said, rolling his eyes, and Klaus glanced at him apologetically.

“Is that true?” Luther asked, and you and Ben both nodded insistently even though you knew your siblings couldn't see you.

“Yeah. Yeah, I did...take credit for it. In fact, the real hero was Ben.”

You felt your heart sinking as your siblings looked at Klaus with varying degrees of unamusement.

Klaus hurried to continue. “Today...listen. Today, he punched me in the face.” Klaus gestured to the bruise on his cheek. “And earlier at the house, he was the one who saved Diego's life, not me.”

“You are unbelievable, Klaus.” Luther said, and you felt your blood boiling.

“You want proof, is that it?” Klaus asked, motioning for Ben to stand up. You moved to stand behind him, just in case. “All right. I'll give you proof. All right, it's showtime, baby.” Klaus picked up a bowling ball, hefting it in his hands with a pleading look in his eye.

Ben crouched slightly and prepared to catch it. You watched as Klaus chucked the ball at Ben, frowning when it went through him.

You blinked in surprise as you felt it land in your hands. The gasps from your other siblings let you know that you were visible to them.

You looked down at the pink ball curiously before grinning from ear to ear. “Klaus, look! I did it!”

Klaus’ mouth was open in awe. “Yes you did.” He moved over to you, took the ball from your hands, deposited it back on a ball rack, and drew you into a tight hug. “I'm so proud of you, __y/n__.”

“I thought you said Ben punched you.” Luther said, his face pale as he took in the sight of you. You looked the same as you did on the day you died, down to the bullet wound on your stomach.

“He did.” Klaus agreed. “ __y/n__’s been around too.”

“How is this possible?” Diego asked as you made your way over to Allison.

“Dad said I had only begun scratching the surface of my powers. I think there's a lot that I haven't figured out how to do yet.”

You smiled at her and wiped the tears from her eyes, watching as her lips spelled out the shape of your name over and over again.

“Hi, Alli. I missed you so much.” You murmured before pulling her into a hug. She clung to you tightly, and you could feel her tears dripping onto your uniform.

After a few moments you pulled away so you could greet your other siblings. Ben pouted that you were getting all the attention, so Klaus piped up as you made your way over to Five.

“Ben really did save Diego, though.”

“Ben's here too?” Diego asked curiously.

“Ben is always here.” Klaus answered and pointed to the seat beside him. Diego, Luther, Allison, and Five waved at him. Ben beamed. “He's waving back.”

“At least I'm still older than someone.” You said, nudging Five with your shoulder and grinning at him.

Five scowled fondly. “I'm 58. I just look 13.”

“Oh, I know. I heard the story. But I look older so I don't care.” You wrapped your arms around him in a tight hug, which he begrudgingly returned, before walking over to Diego.

You were surprised when he pulled you into a hug, lifting your feet off the ground. “It's so good to see you again.”

You smiled as you felt tears pricking at your eyes. “It's good to see you too. I missed you all so much. It's so hard being able to see you and not talk to you.”

Diego set you down, and you strode over to Luther. He still looked shocked that you were visible to him.

“__y/n__, I mi-”

“I don't want to hear it until you listen to me.” Luther's mouth snapped shut at the authoritative tone in your voice. “This goes for all of you, but especially Luther. Stop doubting Klaus. Stop belittling him. Listen to him. And start respecting him. He's done more than enough to deserve it.”

Klaus let out an “Aw!” and blew a kiss in your direction.

“You're right.” Luther agreed. “Klaus, I'm sorry for doubting you.”

“Me too.” Five chimed in.

“Me three.” Diego said, nodding.

Allison raised her hand in agreement.

You grinned. “All right, now that that's out of the way…” You wrapped your arms around Luther's midsection. “I missed you too.”

You disappeared from his embrace suddenly, and your siblings looked around worriedly before they realized that Klaus had passed out in his chair.

“It must use a lot of energy.” Diego murmured, walking over to him and checking his pulse just to make sure. “We'll let him rest for a bit, then get him some nachos or something. Should bounce back pretty quick.”

“Did someone say nachos?” Klaus asked groggily, his head pounding.

Diego grinned and clapped him on the shoulder. “Coming right up.”

-----

You heard your siblings all gasp as Klaus conjured Ben, and Ben's tentacles emerged and began beating the shit out of the masked men.

Trusting that Ben had that covered, you prayed Vanya would be able to see you as you made your way down the center aisle. Judging by Diego's curious “__y/n__?” as you walked by him, you were currently visible.

You had always been closer to Vanya than you were the others, and you hoped that would help you in convincing her to stop.

You didn't want anything happening to her or your other siblings. Being dead, quite frankly, sucked, and they all deserved to live long, happy lives.

“Hi, V.” You said softly, and Vanya's eyes were filled with confusion as they met yours.

“__y/n__? How are you here?” Her fingers never stopped moving on her violin, but they did slow down.

“Klaus learned a new trick. Cool, right?”

“Yeah.” She agreed, and you could see the tears glistening in her eyes. You had missed your best friend more than anything, and you knew she felt the same way. Vanya seemed to come back to herself more as she glanced behind you. “Is that Ben?”

“It is indeed.” You confirmed, chuckling. You gently placed a hand on her arm. “V, you need to stop playing.”

Some of the steel returned to her gaze. “This was supposed to be my moment. I just wanted one good thing for myself. I wanted one thing I could be proud of.”

“Hey, hey, I know. You should be proud of yourself. You sounded amazing. You-” You paused, sensing Luther walking down the aisle behind you. “Sit down, now.” You said sharply, using your powers to get him to turn around and take a seat. “You've caused enough trouble already.”

You scowled as you saw Diego and Five moving towards you and Vanya next. “I'm handling this.” You insisted and made them both sit down next to Luther. Luckily, Klaus, Allison, and Ben knew that you had everything under control, and took a seat next to their siblings of their own accord.

“I hate having to mind control them.” You said, frowning, before turning back to Vanya. “I know that this must be scary and confusing for you, but if you stop playing and put your violin down, we can help you. We'll help you learn to understand and control your powers.”

“What if they can't be controlled?” Vanya asked, and she was sobbing openly now, tears streaming down her face. “What if I'm just a monster?”

You cupped both of her cheeks in your palms and forced her to look at you. “Vanya, you are the kindest one out of all of us. You always have been. You are my sister and my best friend, and I know without a doubt that you could never be a monster. There’s too much goodness in you for that to happen.”

Vanya's shoulders dropped suddenly as all the fight drained out of her, and her violin clattered to the floor. “I'm sorry. I'm so sorry.” She murmured, tucking her face into your shoulder like she used to do when you were younger and she was upset.

“Hey, it's gonna be okay.” You soothed, wrapping your arms around her and hugging her tightly. She trembled against you, and you felt your heart break. Vanya had never deserved any of this. All Vanya had ever wanted was to be included, and even after finding out she had powers, she had still been pushed away.

“Get over here,” You said, waving your siblings over. “And tell our sister that you love her and that we're gonna figure this out.”

“I, for the record, never wanted to lock you up.” Klaus said, always using humor to make others feel better, and wrapped his arms around you and Vanya. “And I love you so much.”

Vanya chuckled through her tears. “I know and I appreciate that. I love you too.”

“I didn't either!” Diego said as he and Allison joined the group hug. “I love you too, V. So does Alli.”

“I didn't even know that was going on, but I wouldn't have wanted to either.” Five said and stepped into the large embrace with Ben. “I love you.”

“I also love you!” Ben said cheerfully, and Vanya smiled.

“It is so good to see you, Ben. I love you.”

You all looked over at Luther, who was shifting uncomfortably. “I messed up, Vanya. I wasn't thinking straight and I should have tried to help you understand what was going on instead of locking you up. I'm sorry.”

Vanya gave him a soft smile. “I'll forgive you as long as you forgive me.”

Luther smiled and wrapped you all up in his big arms. “Deal. I love you.”

“I know.” Vanya said, positively flourishing with all the kindness she was receiving from her siblings. At last, Vanya felt accepted and included and loved.

You knew helping Vanya understand and control her powers wouldn't be easy, but with the family finally reunited and working together, you were sure you would figure it out.

End. <3

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truthbeetoldmedia · 5 years

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The Toxicity of Kylo Ren and Reylo

It’s no secret that the newest villain of the Star Wars franchise, Kylo Ren, is a polarizing figure. In fact, there’s a large fanbase that don’t think of him as a villain at all (despite confirmation from cast and crew). If you take issue with that statement, look at the marketing: it’s Rey, Finn, and Poe at the center of the franchise. Not Kylo. Instead, he’s framed as a misunderstood underdog that is undeserving of the criticism he faces.

Now, that’s not to say that Kylo Ren can’t be appreciated as a character. It’s completely possible to appreciate him as a character and not as a person — after all, thinking someone is interesting or well-written isn't an endorsement of their behavior, or a claim that they deserve the benefit of the doubt.

People can be drawn to characters for all sorts of reasons. A lot of people enjoy rooting for the villain simply because they’re a villain. You can appreciate a character's potential, or their personality. It could even be as simple as thinking Adam Driver is good looking, or appreciating his portrayal of Kylo, with that being the reasoning for being drawn to that character.

Despite all of this, there’s an interesting (and troubling) phenomenon happening with people who have decided to “stan” Kylo Ren — not his potential as a villain, or because Adam Driver is talented, but the character himself, so much so that there is a fundamental misunderstanding (or willful ignorance) of his actions and motivations.

I’m not apprehensive to call this kind of fanservice toxic, because that’s what it is. There’s something really unnerving about stanning someone who has commited genocide, runs labor camps, and has direct, not-at-all subtle parallels to Nazism.

Ignoring Canon

The main theme here is that Kylo is somehow “misunderstood,” and not only that, but deserving of a full redemption (and a girlfriend in the form of Rey, but I’ll get to that in a bit). The narrative and what we know about Kylo in canon is a stark contrast to how fandom sees him. There’s this image of him as a down on his luck, unloved, victimized person who has been wronged by the people in his life, which simply isn’t true.

Kylo is the ultimate example of privilege. He arguably has the coolest parents in the world in the form of Han and Leia. He was, at the time of his turn to the dark side, being taught by Luke Skywalker (his uncle). From the get go, he had the support and resources that we rarely see someone have in the Star Wars universe.

And for those who like to counter with the argument that Han left Leia and is somehow a deadbeat dad — he did so after Kylo killed the entire group of Jedis Luke was instructing and abandoned his family willingly. You can dislike that decision all you’d like, but it had no bearing on Kylo’s turn to the dark side.

A more fitting criticism would be towards Luke, who admitted that he sensed something disturbing in his nephew and briefly thought about killing him. I’ll admit that this is fair enough, but for Kylo to react with murdering numerous Jedi students and then immediately joining the space fascists? I’d say this side of him has been lurking under the surface for a while.

Also consider — was Luke wrong? Dude literally built a device specifically to commit genocide.

This romanticization of a hard life that never existed is even more disturbing when you consider that there’s another character whose backstory fits this narrative: Finn.

Finn’s storyline is what certain fans desperately want Kylo’s to be. Finn was kidnapped at a very young age, forced to become a stormtrooper and was embedded in the hateful doctrine that Kylo is such a fan of. Despite being raised in that toxic environment and being indoctrinated with propaganda from such a young age, Finn — of his own volition, before he met Rey or Poe or anyone else — made the decision to resist and break free of the Empire.

He did this because he felt it was morally correct, at great risk to himself and his well being. He’s been in that environment for his entire life, so he knows exactly what happens to traitors. Despite all of this, he does it anyway.

Unwanted and Unearned Redemption

There’s also this strange need to advocate for Kylo’s redemption, something that is very clear he doesn’t deserve or want.

I’ve noticed a lot of fans who are desperate for his redemption call him Ben — his given name — which is both hilarious to me and makes no sense. He literally chose to change his name to Kylo Ren. He doesn't want to be Ben anymore, and he’s made that very clear.

Leia and Han clearly wanted him to abandon his position in the First Order and come home during The Force Awakens. During his showdown with Han towards the end of the film he’s given a shot at redemption, which he rejects violently by murdering his own father. After this happened it was speculated that this was a sacrifice Kylo had to make to rise up in the First Order, or to prove to Snoke his loyalty to infiltrate the First Order better and ultimately turn against it.

This was pretty easily disproven in The Last Jedi when he also attempts to kill his mother, Leia, who barely manages to survive. At the end of that same film, he’s also responsible for the death of the definitive hero of the franchise, Luke Skywalker.

If the theory about Kylo proving himself to Snoke was true, the tendency to murder his own family (and consequently the people offering him redemption after all he’s done) would have ended with Han.

After all of this, he’s given yet another chance to redeem himself, this time by Rey. He turns down this opportunity like he did the others.

As mentioned before, even without his violence towards those who want to help him, his actions are enough to completely eliminate the possibility of redemption. He’s overseen and advocated for genocide. He’s a member of an actual fascist organization. At this point, there’s no plausible way that he could be redeemed, nor should he be.

Romanticizing Abuse

This leads me to the discussion surrounding Rey and Kylo, or “Reylo,” an incredibly convoluted and twisted way to look at romance.

Reylo fans desperately need Rey to be the one to “save” Kylo, a textbook example of an abusive and toxic relationship. This is the Star Wars version of “She can change him,” making Rey the bearer of Kylo’s emotional labor when he has no interest in changing at all.

It’s not Rey’s responsibility to bring about his redemption. A true redemption needs to happen organically, of his own volition, and not because he’ll get rewarded with a girlfriend if he does. And, let’s be honest, it’s not a realistic expectation. If he only changes for Rey and not because he realizes that genocide is morally wrong, that’s profoundly disturbing and also selfish.

Here’s some advice: if someone says they’ve changed only for you and because of their love for you, that’s a red flag. They aren’t changing for reasons that are morally correct, or for anyone’s benefit; they’re changing because their feelings and their feelings alone matter. If Kylo changes because he loves Rey, that is a self serving act for his benefit only.

Further, what happened to Kylo torturing Rey in The Force Awakens? He kidnapped her, holding her captive, and entered her mind without consent. That’s as clear a metaphor for abuse you can find, and that’s not even my only example.

In The Last Jedi, Kylo attempts to persuade Rey to join him on the dark side. He tells her that she’s “nothing,” but not to him. To him, she matters. This is very commonly touted as a romantic moment, but the emotional manipulation is more than obvious.

Kylo doesn’t care about Rey. He says she’s “nothing,” that none of her friends care about her, that she’s worthless to them. By tearing her down then building her up by saying that she’s not nothing to him, he’s enforcing the idea that the only way she can have significance is with him.

I don’t even mean “with him” in the romantic sense — he pretty transparently only wants her on the dark side for her power. Kylo is a terrible jedi, and he’s witnessed Rey’s prowess a number of times. He only wants her power and skill, not her as a person.

He murdered her father figure, Han, in front of her, and nearly killed her best friend, Finn; he’s tortured her and manipulated her — it’s never been more obvious that he doesn’t care about her at all.

If anyone knows anything about abusive relationships, this is the first thing that abusers do. They alienate their intended victim from their friends and family, ensuring that they alone are the only source of comfort. It ensures that if things ever get bad, the victim has nowhere to go and no one to turn to but right back to the abuser.

What message would it send to little girls and boys if Rey were to end up with Kylo after all of that? Deal with his violence and manipulation long enough and he might change? If I have to spell out why that’s dangerous, I don’t know what else to say.

In addition — what does this say about how people view Rey? Do you really want her to be with someone who has tortured her, betrayed her, and manipulated her? The answer is that people who want Reylo to be together only care about Kylo, not Rey.

Toxic Masculinity

Despite these specifics, the general acceptance of Kylo’s behavior is surprisingly rampant in fandom. His actions aren’t simply excused, but romanticized. He has obvious anger issues, control issues — that scene in the beginning of The Force Awakens when he lashes out and destroys the control panel with his lightsaber? That may as well have been a shot of an abusive, angry man throwing around furniture and punching walls because he has no emotional control.

Sure, people like Kylo. They’re allowed to. But there’s a clear difference between liking a character and blind endorsement of that character's actions. I know plenty of people who like Kylo as a character, but the difference is if they meet someone like Kylo in bar or see one of his outbursts, you’d call the fucking cops. You wouldn’t ship him with your best friend. That's the dividing line here.

Kylo Ren is a direct parallel to real-world men who lash out because they’re filled with anger and frustration that’s turned into something truly ugly. They lash out at the people who are willing to help, all because they feel themselves robbed of things they think they deserve. Kylo wants power, he wants control, and he cares about nothing else.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker hits theatres internationally on December 19, 2019.

#Star Wars #The Rise of Skywalker #Kylo Ren #Reylo

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blackjack-15 · 5 years

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The Force of Nature and the Cackling Madman: What Hux Should Be (and What ROS Won’t Be)

Warning: two mentions of the leaked/newish pictures. They will have spoiler warnings bracketing it, along with the appropriate tags connected to the post. You’ve been warned.

INTRODUCTION

With RoS mere months away, this meta really can’t be delayed any longer before it becomes moot, so here we go!

TLJ was a lot of things — some good, some bad — but what it wasn’t was surprising (unless you count just how shockingly bad 90% of Finn’s storyline was). This is generally a good thing in movies nowadays, where surprises come not from clever writing, but from enormous missteps in the writing or the desire to feel clever by putting in a twist that isn’t foreshadowed, or even just by breaking the rules of your universe.

Ignoring all but the main storyline — which is about Rey and Kylo Ren and their obstacles/conflicts — TLJ didn’t bring any surprises, but instead followed on the lines that TFA set up. As this is obviously the storyline that’s been hashed out from the start and is the point they’re building to, it’s thus safe to say that RoS is simply going to do the same, and follow the lines that TLJ set up.

SPOILER WARNING BEGINS

(Side note: this is why, when the absurdly stupid tuning-fork-lightsaber of Rey’s showed up in the first looks at RoS, it was immediately obvious that she was going to be able to “break” off half of it to give to Kylo when his saber is ultimately gone/self-destructs. Not only does the spoiler picture all but confirm this, but it’s also the obvious trajectory from the two fighting over a lightsaber in TLJ and breaking it in half.)

SPOILER WARNING ENDS

Anyway, with this framework in mind, and with the knowledge that every Star Wars media since the OG trilogy is in some way an adaptation of the OG trilogy, let’s examine what this means for the villain.

TERROR AND STAR WARS VILLAINS

There’s really no getting around the fact that one of the weakest facets of any Star Wars movie — yes, the OG trilogy is included here — is the villains that accompany them. A few SW video games fare a bit better in this, but most follow the movies’ path. This isn’t shocking — Star Wars is a Hero’s Journey, and in a Hero’s Journey it’s the presence of a villain, not the nature of the villain itself, that’s the important part — but it is crucial to understand.

Darth Vader is by far the most iconic and scariest villain that Star Wars movies can boast of, and for those born after 4/5/6 came out, he’s not really that scary, because those viewers go in knowing who Vader is and that he’s (at least partially) redeemed through his sacrifice. The greatest contribution that Rogue One made to that viewership is the scene with Vader at the end, where he is legitimately an object of terror as he was when 4/5/6 were first out.

This leads to a discussion of Palpatine-as-villain in RotJ, where the best that can be said for his status as terror-inducing villain is that at least he has Vader to do most of the heavy lifting for him. As a villain, Palpatine is just not scary. Maybe it’s the makeup, maybe it’s the fact that he gets thrown out like a sack of garbage to his death, maybe it’s the cold ham delivery he gives to what should be properly menacing lines.

Darth Maul’s visuals in TPM alone are scarier than all of Palpatine in RotJ, and, before it’s brought up, Palpatine is even less scary than that in the prequels, so I’m not even considering that part.

The thing that most Star Wars villains have in common (aside from Tarkin, who is my person favorite movie-verse villain) is that they’re forces of nature; they have the force and/or use lightsabers, they’re larger than life and beings of immense power and reputation, and they’re there to sort of loom over movie, causing overwhelming-yet-non-specifc terror to motivate the plot in a “avoid the bad guys” sort of way.

This is especially obvious in the prequel movies, where Darth Maul (ignoring his awesome visual effect), General Grievous, and Count Dooku are all basically meant to Stand There And Look Menacing, rather than having anything about them that’s actually interesting.

And here’s where the interesting things in the sequel trilogy begin.

WHY SMOKE SNOKE?

There was never any way that Snoke was going to live past TLJ, just like there was no way that Hux wasn’t going to survive TLJ. Remembering that the sequel trilogy is in a lot of ways an adaptation of the OG trilogy (as all Star Wars movies are), TFA was trying to get you to think of Snoke as Palpatine — an overlord that survives until the last bit of the last movie and Hux as Tarkin — the non-Force user who is Evil and all but dies b/c he’s too smug and petty.

But neither one of those things were actually true. Because that would position Kylo Ren as the Vader analogue, and all of TFA is dedicated to showing just how wrong that assumption is.

Because Kylo’s not Vader, Hux isn’t Tarkin, and Snoke isn’t Palpatine. Thus, Snoke has to die, because we can’t go into the last third of the trilogy with competing big bads (and no, Kylo and Hux don’t count there, either — Kylo isn’t a big bad at all, unless you think that the Big Bad Villain’s job is to fall for a British honeypot with a lightsaber).

I’ll admit, I was a bit smug when Snoke died and left only Hux alive and kicking out of the Three Bad Guys (as Kylo/Ben isn’t even pretending to be a bad guy anymore), because that’s what I had predicted — a fake-out with a Palpatine-style, force-of-nature villain only to reveal that the real Big Bad was with us all along — a mortal; a cackling madman: General Hux.

PLOTTING WITH PALPATINE

When spoilers first indicated that Palpatine would instead make yet another appearance in a Star Wars film, I was optimistic. Optimistic not in the “hey the Rebels will totally win” sort of way; no, optimistic in the “these kind Jedi will definitely free the slaves and not just take the kid because They Must Deal Kindly With Illegal Slavers”. AKA misplaced optimism rather than genre-savvy faith in the heroes to prevail.

Because actually bringing back Palpatine would be a stupid move all the way around, I tried to figure out why they’d advertise it and not try to hide the bad idea in a Secret Twist.

So here’s where we get the interplay between the Force of Nature and the Cackling Madman.

In a world where the Force exists, it’s easy to imagine that those without it feel rather powerless — or at least overshadowed — when near those who do wield it. Certainly, that’s true for most of Tarkin’s council, and true of Hux.

Over and over again in TFA and TLJ, we see Hux trying to prove that he’s every inch Kylo’s Equal. Even after Snoke’s death, he uses no deference to the new Supreme Leader and repeats his commands so he can believe that the First Order soldiers are following him.

Hux’s scene in TFA where he’s commanding the troops shows Hux at his finest (and most evil); apart from any Jedi/Sith/Force influence, he is himself to a glorious extreme: the Cackling Madman.

THE CACKLING MADMAN

I don’t use this title to say that Hux is insane (though he’s clearly a bit off) but rather to show the difference between a villain like Hux and a villain like Palpatine. Unlike the Force of Nature villain, a Cackling Madman is usually present over the entire story, seen as a person rather than as a shadowy figure, and is allowed to fail and succeed at multiple times during the trajectory of the story, rather than only failing at the very end when the heroes triumph.

In short, Star Wars has never had, in the movie-verse, a Cackling Madman as the main villain. The prequels play at it for about .5 seconds with Senator Palpatine, but he’s still the Force of Nature, ultimately, just pretending to be a Good Guy.

As the sequel trilogy, is, once again, and like any other SW media, an adaptation of the OG trilogy, I was really excited for this shift in formula — it would play on audience expectation that Snoke would just be Palpatine 2.0, only to reveal — with the proper set up, as shown in TFA and TLJ — that the true villain was there all along, just unnoticed for what he was.

THE FACADE OF THE FORCE

So where would the intervention of Palpatine go in this shift from the formula?

Hux as the ultimate Big Bad would know that he would need the support of a powerful force user — or, at least, the appearance of support of a powerful force user.

And, in the Star Wars universe, you could do worse than to claim the support of (in the EU) the eternally clone-happy Emperor. Hux’s only problem is that the Emperor is dead, and thus not really up to supporting a ginger with dreams of Ultimate Power.

So any support would have to be a facade. And how is Star Wars uniquely equipped to handle facades?

We’re talking holograms, baby.

Holograms of a weakened yet still powerful Emperor — maybe missing a hand or something, a few attacks “directed” by the Emperor meeting wild success, manipulation of the Holograms to say Hux’s name and offer support of him as his Preeminent General or whatever, and Hux has the galaxy at his feet.

IMAGINE MY DISAPPOINTMENT (SPOILERS HERE AGAIN)

And then the spoiler pictures of Palpatine came out and — disappointment was prevalent, but I wasn’t surprised.

The big problem with the Sequel Trilogy is that it has one well-plotted plot line — the main plot line with Rey and Kylo/Ben — and then every other plot line is pretty much left up to the whims of the moment. It’s especially evident in Finn’s TLJ plot line, but it’s present to some extent in every other plot line throughout the two movies currently out.

What Hux should be is the danger lurking in plain sight; the villain seen but not understood, and the evil present but not accounted for. That alone would add a dimension to the Sequel Trilogy that it’s lacking right now — and lacking even more with the advent of Palpatine’s return. Not only would it acknowledge its freedom as an adaptation to play with audience expectation, but it would demonstrate something that both it and the Prequel Trilogy lack: trust in its audience.

THE ULTIMATE CONCLUSION

What RoS should be is a movie that delivers something new but still authentic to the Star Wars universe. Ultimately, that’s all it would take to please the majority of its audience, because those who are watching the ST without having seen any other Star Wars media are few and far between.

The shame is that what RoS will be is a movie that (wrongly) doesn’t trust its audience to consume nuanced media, and instead tries to placate them with false advertising (trying to give off the air that RoS will be a trio movie with Finn, Rey, and Poe when everyone knows it won’t be) and with the return of old characters and the descendants of old characters. It’s like adding blue flashing lights to an old snow globe and declaring that you’re recaptured lightning in a bottle.

#star wars #star wars spoilers #rise of skywalker #SWROS #SWTLJ #SWTFA #star wars meta #my meta

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dealingdreams · 5 years

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Okay TROS thoughts...here we go. I’m putting them all below the cut in case somehow you’ve avoided spoilers

so general thoughts...i didnt hate it nearly as much as i thought i would so thats pleasant but im gonna break it down more

things i liked:

Adam Driver. just Adam. Fucking. Driver my dudes. This is like a backhanded compliment because JJ is so fucking lucky Adam was cast because the emotional depth of the film rested literally all on his shoulders for me. I only felt the weight if he was acting in a scene.

I’ll admit im biased but I did adore the interaction between Finn and Poe. Their bickering amused me and the tenderness between them was wonderful...I think Oscar played Poe a bit jealous as well which i liked.

the Reylo scenes to me where beautiful. Ben never lied to her, she tried to deny it but she knew he never did. I loved that he was kinda guiding her, protecting her, loving her, and antagonizing her all at once. I loved how soft their kiss was, their smiles are literally the light of my life. Rey’s face when she healed him. Ben just staring at her as she tells him she did want to take his hand...just chef’s kiss

I loved the saber fights. Ben’s fight at the beginning was hot as fuck...and his fight as newly redeemed Ben Solo was even hotter somehow.

I enjoyed the fight scenes between ben and rey! how often ben just let her walk away, and despite that one scene which i will mention below...i like i even tho rey was rather aggressive idk...it didnt really feel like she was trying to hurt him much either? i just think they had a lot of chances to kill each other and didnt take it...so i like that

i knew she was looking at ben in that clip i knew it...she only makes that soft face at him

I always enjoy stupid ass C3PO jokes for some dumbass reason

Han and Ben’s scene was heartbreaking and beautiful. Again tho JJ is fucking lucky to cast Adam cause recycling dialogue from TFA wouldnt have worked at all had Adam not been so fucking amazing

the save chewie hall blaster scene was fun

i liked how fucking dramatic children ben and rey were with that damn ship lol...no im gonna force pull it...no im gonna...what dorks

while i didnt like the entire way the force bond was used i did enjoy seeing it still strong and growing

confirming canon soulmate reylo was a highlight

ben’s hair looked bomb

finn’s outfit was cool

Jannah was beautiful (please correct me if i misspell her name)

dark rey was glorious tho

that new little droid is literally me so i adore it

that sith cave thing was really fucking cool looking

the visuals of the film were most of the time stunning

sooooo...now to what i didn’t like:

I think this first one is the most obvious for those who know me but...Ben’s death just feels so utterly useless to me. especially when they gave him a metaphorical death earlier in the film. i feel extremely hurt and betrayed. Disney has gone out of their way to make us sympathize with Ben Solo. They’ve revealed more and more of his past...how alone he was, the abuse he suffered from snoke and palpatine. just fuck...they just kill him...the moment he realizes he’s free and loved they end his life....literally WHAT THE FUCK. it’s a chicken shit way out of a redemption arc honestly. Not letting u just breath after his death was also so horrible. We barely got to see Rey mourn, we got a split second of it then it jumped to another scene...another second of her looking sadly at her sabor to have the moment interrupted

tag on to above but...they didnt have him as a force ghost cause Disney is intentionally keeping where he is ambiguous so they can sell more shit which pisses me off so much

thats not how the force works

there couldnt have been that many sith could there??? cause like there can only be 2 at one time....fucking rule of 2 so how the hell were there that many

palps being like...see i actually want you to kill me...is ridiculous

rey palpatine is the most idiotic thing i have ever heard. Rey being a no one from no where was such an amazing thing. Just anyone can be strong in the force...you dont need royal blood to make you worth something....then they just retcon that??? the fuck I MEAN THE FUCK.

Finn does nothing but worry about Rey the whole film. I know folks dont like his storyline in TLJ and while i understand that and do think it could have been written better i still adore it because Finn grew. He grew from just caring about a small group of people to caring about an idea to caring about something bigger than him. I didnt see any growth in his character in this film. His heroics were beautiful to see and I enjoyed seeing his heart but that was John’s acting more than the writing it think.

sidelining rose was fucking disgusting

the trio felt forced to me

the leia scenes didnt work for me honestly and they mostly just made me sad

bringing in lando now felt weird

ive wanted force sensitive finn for a while but didnt feel right

why the fuck have finn want to tell rey something but never do...ugh i hate storytelling like that

they never explained how palps is back...he just is

rey stabbing ben felt odd to me. i loved the moment when she healed him, and i know technically her anger and darkside was coming out and she acted on instinct...nevermind that even before leia called out to him ben coudnt follow thru with the killing blow.

....i’m sure i’ll think of more as i get angrier

anyways over all...id be lying if moments didnt make me laugh or smile...if i didn’t feel a sense of nostalgia and enjoyment for 80% of this movie. The thing is that even with so much of it being enjoyable to me it still felt void. An action movie, with new characters, a confusing plot and very minimal emotional depth.

The emotion hinged soooo much on Adam or me. The biggest reason for that aside from that fact that Ben Solo is one of my all time favorite characters, is that the things Rey is dealing with in the film are directly related to her being a palpatine...and i HATE THAT. Like straight up wanna fling it into the sun.

Rey never needed to be related to a force royal bloodline. She should have been allowed to remain strong because she was just strong. Kylo’s equal in every way, not because she was the granddaughter of a sith which btw you can’t inherit force powers. Retconing something so touching and unique from TLJ was just...fucking idiotic. All to please the loud but small misogynistic fandom that thought a woman couldnt be that strong on her own so she must be related to someone

The biggest thing....tho is killing Ben. it felt so unnecessary and just...i feel so betrayed. The interviews leading up to the film got my hopes up that i was worried for nothing. I always thought they’d kill him, because cinema seems to not know what to do with characters has tragic as him without just killing him in the end. we already got a redemption = death plotline in this franchise...why couldnt we get a redemption = life instead??? My friend who doesnt even like sw that much...tros was actually the 2nd sw fim she’s ever seen...thought it was unnecessary as well and agrees with me a lot about my feelings despite not having the same intense emotional attachment to him as me. She for a moment thought they’d be together at the end but nope. Its just...pointless to me now, the sacrifices han, luke, and leia made to reach Ben are for nothing. Their deaths...pointless...Ben means so fucking much to me. I’ve never felt such an intense emotional bond with a character before so im just hurting so fucking much right now.

Rey taking the name Skywalker isnt hopeful or cute its a slap in the face honestly...and it’s just weird!

The last Skywalker died loved and held by the woman he loved and that is beautiful to me. He died happy and a hero thats a balm at least...but to not let him be the one to kill palpatine...after everything EVERYTHING he put him and his family thru was another just fuck...i wanted justice for him and he just got thrown away

Ultimately...Ben and Rey are soulmates and their force bond was severed. Palpatine didnt take that from them because he couldnt have...again not how the force works....but JJ used that bond to be a battery???? the fuck...but ultimately hes forcing Rey to live the rest of her days with a gaping wound in her soul. a wound unable to be filled and will be with her for the rest of her life...thats so fucking tragic to me. you give rey someone who is her equal, who understands her, and you take him from her and force her to be alone for the rest of her life?? and we are supposed to not see that as a tragedy? Her being fineishness at the end of the film seemed like direction from either the writing or in the moment, but just further proves he didnt bother to even understand the lore he was using. Force bonds were considered i quess legends in the current SW canon but Rian brought it back...so it’s back. and well

"A bond between two living beings is not something easily broken. It is not a choice… it is like breaking a feeling. Like turning away from the Force. To break a bond, your feelings would have to change, or one of you would have to die—but even then, the bond wouldn't go away, it would simply… it would simply be empty, a wound."―Master Zez-Kai Ell[src]

and .... the only way to break it was to turn away from the Force, as Surik did on Malachor V. So basically it all came down to creating a wound in the Force”

sooo yeah...im pissed i’d give this movie a 1 1/2 out of 5

thank you for those who have read my rantings! I hope at least some of this made sense

#tros spoilers #ben solo #kylo ren #reylo #musing

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bluesfortheredj · 6 years

Text

You’d been on opposite sides of the room for the last hour, and stolen glances were not cutting it any more. The day before, you’d both finally admitted your feelings for one another, and all you wanted to do was be with each other on your own to really explore your affections. Gwilym had apparently been venting his feelings to Ben for a few months before this, and finally he’d snapped, telling him to get it together and tell you because he knew you felt the same way. Poor Ben, he’d been on the receiving end of the both of you pining after the other for weeks on end, and you were pretty sure he was as relieved as you were when Gwilym finally spoke to you about how he felt.

Now, there was a huge crowd separating you, and there was no way you could be unprofessional and leave, especially as this was for the film you’d all just completed. It was frustrating, but you could only hope that it would make the reunion later on that little bit more special. As you continue to look up at Gwil, then back to the person in front of you, you feel an arm snake around your waist, making you freeze up.

“Hello stranger,” a familiar voice whispers next to your ear. You turn to see the one person you’d hoped wouldn’t be here, and your face falls.

“Sorry, I’m a little busy right now,” you reply, moving to the side and out of their grip. They take the hint and leave, but never stray too far away from where you are, even when you move on to the next gathering of people you had to talk to. As you start to converse with the group, you can’t help but notice Gwilym eyeing the man who had just approached you, and when he looks over at you, you give him a reassuring smile, hoping beyond hope that he knew it was nothing.

The guy truly was nothing, well at least now anyway. He’d been something at one point in your life, but that was a good couple of years ago now, and had since been nothing to you after he cheated on you with someone who you’d actually considered a friend at the time. Unfortunately the cliché of the ex boyfriend turning up and casting a shadow over your evening was coming true for you right now, and it couldn’t have come at a worse time, especially with your blossoming feelings towards Gwilym. Your ex was part of the press, though, and you knew it was one of those inevitable things that would happen one day, being as you were apparently breaking through as an actress now, but not today.

“It was wonderful working so closely with the guys,” you gush to the woman asking you questions, “I couldn’t possibly pick a favourite!”

“Who would you say you grew especially close to, then?” she asks, going in at a different angle.

“That would be between Gwilym or Ben,” you reply, instinctively glancing over at Gwilym.

“We’ve heard how Gwilym was your knight in curly wig when he caught you as you almost fainted on set one day...” she prompts, and you laugh that the story had finally come out.

“Yes,” you chuckle, “he was a gentleman!”

“And he carried you to his trailer?”

“Ha! Did you hear this from Joe?” you giggle, “he carried me part of the way, but I insisted on walking most of it... He was being over protective.”

“He must care about you a lot...”

“I’m pretty sure he would have done the same for Ben, Joe, and Rami as well!”

She continues to ask more and more invasive questions, and you manage to skirt around them just enough to give them a hint of something, but never confirming anything. When you’re free from this group, you start to walk towards Gwilym finally, but that same familiar face from earlier appears right in front of you.

“Can I talk to you now?” he grins, grabbing your arm and pulling you towards the bar. You yank your arm free from his grip when you get there, and give him an angry look as he orders two drinks.

“I’m not drinking tonight,” you scowl, pushing the drink away from you and grabbing a bottle of water from the side instead, “what do you want?”

“To ask questions, like every other reporter here.”

“How about you go ask the guys? They’ve got great stories from on set,” you say bluntly, then turn to leave, but again his hand stops you.

“I’d rather ask you. I’ve already spoken to dear Gwilym over there.”

“Don’t ever touch me like that again, Jamie,” you growl, pulling yourself free once more, “and don’t you dare bring him into this.”

He wasn’t the nicest of guys, which was something you hadn’t found out until a few months into the relationship, and it was looking as though nothing had changed in the last couple of years.

“He’s a nice guy, told me all about when you almost collapsed on set and he saved you by wrapping his strong arms around you to stop you falling. What a hero, eh?” he smirks, “no wonder you’re head over heels for him.”

You wanted nothing more than to lift your now balled up fist and smack him right in the face, but as your wrist twitches, Gwilym slides his hand down your arm and tucks you into his side.

“Hello again,” he says, looking straight at Jamie, “how’s everything going over here?”

“Fine, absolutely fine, was just finishing up some questions with (Y/N),” he smiles, that sneering smile that made your skin crawl.

“Great, so you won’t mind if I steal her away then?” Gwil smiles, turning you both away and finding a quiet corner for you to talk, “what was that?” he asks, his eyes full of concern as he bends his knees slightly to be at the same level as you. He brings a hand up to stroke your cheek gently, and you can’t help but fall into him, sliding your arms around his torso underneath his jacket so you could be completely enveloped by him.

“Woah, what did he do?” Gwilym asks, his arms holding you tightly against his body as he rocks gently from side to side, “you’re worrying me. What happened?”

“I’m sorry, I’m being stupid,” you mumble against his jumper.

“No you’re not. Tell me what he did,” he replies, his voice growing harsher with each word. You pull back from him, but keep your hands on his sides, as he does with you, then explain the history between you both, and the fact that he was a little overzealous with the arm grabbing tonight.

“Stay there,” Gwilym instructs.

“Gwil, no-”

“Stay there,” he repeats, straightening up his jacket and doing up the single button at the front before walking off to find Jamie.

“Hey, can I have a word?” he says, storming up to Jamie when he finds him, and pushing him out of the room.

“Is there a problem here?” he asks with a smirk.

“You know there is. Don’t fuck around, mate. You’re not big, and you’re not funny. If you don’t leave right this second, I’ll personally make sure that you will never get a job like this ever again,” Gwillym says, maintaining a calm exterior, and keeping his voice low and steady.

“Really? All because of her? She’s not worth it, trust me,” Jamie shrugs. As much as Gwilym wants to retort with something scathing, he resists the urge, and instead laughs at him, then watches as he walks out of the building. When he’s out of sight, Gwilym rubs his face with his hands and takes a deep breath before making his way back through the crowd to you.

“No bleeding knuckles, it’s all good,” he grins, waving the backs of his hands in front of you. You laugh, reaching up to hold his hands, then bring them down to his sides.

“You really didn’t have to do anything. I didn’t say it because I wanted you to-”

“I know, I know! But I can’t have anyone thinking they can treat my woman like that,” he sighs, “and I’ll do whatever I can in my power to protect you.”

“Funnily enough, someone described you as my knight in curly wig earlier,” you giggle, “and I quite like my new title of your woman.”

“Did they?” he laughs, “well, glad I kept the wig then! And I’m very glad you like the title, I hope it’ll stick for a long while,” he shoots you a wink, and you melt into him once again, oblivious to the crowded room around you.

Request: Can I get uhhhh some protective gwil x reader imagine??????

@painthatiusedto @winnielinleigh @queenslandlover-93 @excellentbecca @ametaphorbrian @peachllobotomy

#gwilym lee #gwilym lee x reader #gwilym lee fanfic #gwilym lee imagine #gwilym lee fluff

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takaraphoenix · 6 years

Text

And considering I now saw Into the Spider-Verse, let me also talk about that!

Nicolas Cage as Spider-Man Noir... was... a decision. It definitely was one and whoever made it probably thought it was genius, but... uh... I mean... *waves hand around vaguely*

It completely threw me off the movie every time he talked because I kept seeing Nic Cage’s face before my inner eye. I legit hate hearing celebrity voices in animated movies... And, like, most of the time it matters not to me considering the voice cast in German is different and most of those stars are not people whose German dub voice I’d recognize. Like, Chris Pine’s Peter Parker. Nope, zero amount of recognition there. Nic Cage however, getting his regular voice artist to do him here too... it threw me off every time Noir opened his mouth.

And while I like Noir and I get that him, Spider-Man and Peni Parker made for the most visually interesting take in this crossover... Eh.

It was the Miles-Peter-Gwen movie. All else were literally just extras and I... I genuinely believe the movie would have benefitted by reducing it to only those three too. After all, it’s INTO the Spider-Verse. An introduction. Three different alternate realities would have sufficed for an introduction, the others just made it feel overcrowded a lot and they also had nothing real to do. When Peni’s robot died, I was supposed to feel something, considering how much time they spent on that moment, but I didn’t because I don’t care about either the robot or this random girl I have never even heard about.

And considering it was not just the introduction into the Spider-Verse, it was also very vitally so the introduction of Miles Morales, his first real time to shine beyond the comics and the Spider-Man cartoons, a bit trimming of the Spider-Hedges would have really been good there, in my opinion.

I really hate Gwen’s hair. It was so pretty before the stupid hair-cut, damn it.

I also love Gwen though. And the Gwen-Miles dynamic. Bummed out that they already confirmed that of course will it be a romance between The Male Lead and The Female Lead. Like. Come on. Her thing was that she doesn’t make friends and now Miles became her first friend... but worry not since she is A Girl and he is A Boy, they of course have to get a romance going. *groans*

Seriously. Straight people can be friends with the opposite sex without forced romance! It’s a thing! Hollywood should try it some time!!!

Peter was... I mean... Honestly, they coulda just killed his MJ off, it would have been better than this high-level metaphorical bullshit “I didn’t want kids but she did! So we broke up and now I have two Spiderlings to train and suddenly I DO want kids!”. Seriously. The fact aside that it’s one of the most ridiculous bullshit things I can imagine, getting married to someone despite having entirely opposing life-goals... you talk about where to live and whether you want kids before you get fucking married?? Like? You do?? And that he’d change a stance he has had supposedly all of his life just because he spent a whole two days with two teenagers is insanely stupid.

I absolutely love Aunt May and that they went to her and not MJ, even though it makes little sense considering both Peters had already moved out and been married, like, you’d... you’d keep your Spider Cave conveniently close and not have to go to your aunt every time?? Especially since MJ knew about his secret identity?

Wilson Fisk was a brilliant villain in this! I loved his motivation through the movie. That he actually had a solid motivation and not something hand-wavey that comes apart. Like, he didn’t care if the city collapses, he just wants his family back? Good. Also this... twistedness of blaming Peter for the fact that they saw Wilson’s true nature and couldn’t handle it. Damn. Reminded me that Wilson Fisk really was the one thing I loved most about DareDevil...

Uncle Aaron. The villain. I knew that, like, I knew that Miles’ uncle was a villain. I was curious how it would play out in the movie. The fact that he was going to spare Miles was a huge relief, but... killing him off was a cheap cop-out and also too reminscent of Uncle Ben, especially since before dying he still had enough time to give a whole “You’re a good person, the best of us”-spiel. I would have preferred he survives and we actually deal with the consequences of a hero and a villain loving each other and how or if Aaron would have been willing to change his ways for his nephew.

There was definitely too little of Miles’ mom. I mean, I’m glad she’s alive and we didn’t get the usual “at least one parent dead”-thing and I hope we will see more of her and Miles’ dynamic in the next movie, but overall there was too little of her for my taste.

I absolute love Jefferson. I love-love-love Miles’ dad, he is awesome. He nails the tired dad trying to dad and to police officer. They had a great arch with each other and I am itching for the big reveal of Miles’ identity.

That being said: Somehow, I had different expectations for that. I’m not even sure where those expectations came from, but I was expecting Miles to drag homeless!Peter home and for them and Miles’ parents to figure shit out together and Spider-Gwen joins in. Like, that was what I expected of the movie when I went in.

And now to the actual star of the movie: Miles. I love him so much? I was so eager since hearing he was going to get his own movie! I loved him in Ultimate Spider-Man already and also in the new Spider-Man cartoon and each time, Miles gets a different dynamic with Peter, which is one of the most fascinating things about it. Now, right now I am very obsessed with the best friends who explore their spider-powers together, so I was curious to see this new dynamic to it. And, mainly, it’s like Iron Dad and Spider-Son next generation and I love it (also does that make Tony Miles’ Iron Gramps??). The slightly exasperated but fond mentor.

And Miles was so good. Not understanding everything at once, but continuously trying his best - always trying his best. Being an artsy little nerd. Being so embarrassed by his dad, but also still loving him.

His dynamic with Peter and Gwen and May was so good - his family-dynamics too though! Him with his uncle, his role-model, the one to support him when he was being a particularly misunderstood mopey teenager, but also his mom and dad.

What I’d love to see in the next though would really be some Miles and May interaction. She has a Spider Cave in her backyard, he is a fledgling spider with no idea how shit works. I want Aunt May to mentor him some. Please. I need this in my life??

And I need his parents to find out and his mom to have more screentime!

To sum it up: I absolutely loved the movie - yes, I did have some complaints, but that doesn’t mean I love it any less, nothing is ever perfect - and I am dying to see what Spiders the future holds and what the future holds for Miles!

The only serious complaint I’d have would be the intro. There was... There was no need to make it 100% flashy quick lights? Have? Have they ever heard of seizures triggered by intensely flashy shit like that? And it’s really not like they needed it. It really surprised me and was already uncomfortable on my eyes, I don’t even wanna know just how many people with an actual medical issue walked into this movie unknowingly and had a seizure in the first two minutes. They should have really either put a warning up before the movie started, or just... not... do the unnecessary quick flashy light intro?

#Into the Spider-Verse #Phoe's Random Movie Rants #Spider-Man #Miles Morales #Marvel

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roxannepolice · 6 years

Note

Your character analysis for IX makes so much sense that I’m nervous and feel like I’m indulging reylo too much. I’m losing confidence in their relationship ending unambiguously. It seems like her arc is going to be very separate from his.

Ok, so… I’m actually surprised? What I wrote boils down to Star Wars are gonna go big or go home and we came to a point where it can be interpreted as they gonna go small, chaste and proper?

Sis/bro in waiting, don’t worry they gonna go BIG! All of my disagreements with usually accepted reylo predictions boil down to how they gonna get triple wedding with Finnrose and Poe tearfully giving BB-8 as a bashful bride to BB-9e instead of faking their deaths, living in an exile or waiting for prison sentence to finish! Because those endings? They aren’t likely to happen, just as Kylo Ben isn’t getting an individual redemption and Rey isn’t a static character.

The fact that the fandom or actually entire audience is so freaking keen on making Rey a static beacon of light is what probably baffles me most. Because tbph, if Rey is the character we’re repeatedly told in a way forbidding any questions that she is, then she is a pretty boring character, not because of being “overpowered” but because of having no serious moral struggles (we’ve seen her faced with temptations - but not dilemmas). Audience is sexists as hell is questioning her skills and what is also sexist is lack of proper female villains in the main SW movies but I think what people don’t want to put their finger on is that Star Wars have never given us characters who simply are good, always, regardless of their backgrounds and circumstances - on the contrary, they’re very keen to show how nurture affects the grown up character, I would actually say it’s one of the features that makes this fairy tale stand out, the characters seeming just good or just evil being fairly well up in their years. Rey stayed good in a harsh life of a scavenger on Jakku? Wheeeelp, Anakin also stayed good in a harsh life of a slave on Tattooine - it’s transition to the comfortably poisoning life of a jedi knight on Couruscant that lead him to become Darth Vader. Obi-Wan was a paragon of jedi training gone right, Padmé had a loving nurturing family, same for Luke and Leia regardless of whether they were farmers on a desert or royals on Alderaan, Han’s lack of family shows - as do the strong primal social groups of corellian underground he lived in, Finn formed relationships as positive as one can have in a totalitarian military organisation and Kylo Ben needed to be groomed for two freaking decades before his messed up but loving background gave in.

So no, I’m not buying Rey being an infallible maiden of light that also happens to be a master psychologist Padmé and Obi-Wan weren’t (you know while I totally agree there’s much symbolism to her being a scavenger, can we all agree human psyche is a teensy bit more complicated than starships?). Nope. I actually have this pet theory - while it seems pretty clear that Kylo Ben’s story is what Darth Anakin’s would have been if we were watching OT knowing PT, could it also be that in Rey we’re getting a surprise dessert of near-repetition of Anakin’s fall without anticipating the fall? I really think she could turn out to be a character tailored to make the audience feel the same near-blind hope that Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan had for Anakin and OTrio had for Ben. A near-blind hope that instead of helping fulfill that hope made them destructively pose for someone they weren’t.

light side my ass

But that’s exactly why this effed up yin yang will come together. I think that while everyone keeps pointing out yin yang symbolism in reylo, fewer reflect on its actual implications - black dot, white dot and the fact that yin and yang change places the moment you spin the disk. Which brings me to another point I’m in disagreement with majority of reylo meta writers: I really don’t think you’ll turn-you’ll be the one to turn implies they’ve seen the same vision of mutual hae. Their body language is too anguished/defensive for that. Basically, a you misinterpreted-no, you misinterpreted situation is too obvious for neither of them to think of it - if they have seen a mutual hae. And since databank confirmed they have both seen some future and Rey speaks of a solid and clear vision which dismisses the possibility of them seeing an abstract act of turning as one youtuber tried to interpret, we’re left with either deconstruction trope (f*ck prophecy, to quote Jaime) or them having seen the other one acting in a way implying allegiance to the side they currently don’t belong to. And since TLJ made their political stance pretty clear…

The thing is, the last act of TLJ saw both Rey and Ben having their sand castles destroyed - for Rey it was admittance of denial (denial, not hope, I don’t care how much material will insist on calling it hope) she’s lived in for some 15 years that did nontheless keep the darkness in her controlled, for Ben it was Luke’s sacrifice blowing another huge hole (next to the one Han’s sacrifice created) in the sand castle of lies Snoke built around him to keep the light away. And neither of those idiots acknowledges the implications. Also, may I strip away the surface of but he’s in charge of a dark side organisation and she’s the hero of a light side organisation! and rephrase it into he’s responsible for loads of people he holds no grudge against and she’s a highly pressurised member of a minor but desperate paramilitary organisation.

The bottom line is, if my predictions/analyses can make one pessimistic, consider that I try to take as little for granted about those movies as I can, assuming practically only some happy ending, consitency of general messages (is bendemption obligatory? no. but if we held Anakin to the same standards, then he didn’t get redeemed either. and considering that Lucas actually stated somewhere that the idea is that he got redeemed through his children then I say his children f*cked up allowing Anakin’s shadow to be used against his grandson - thus, it depends on Ben getting a hae to complete Anakin’s redemption and actually make the central message of the saga real I will finish what you started indeed) and psychoanalitical symbolism (like really, whenever you doubt hae as hell reylo just read Jung; I also recommend Mozart’s Magic Flute which is swarming with conscious/unconscious, light/dark, male/female symbols and guess what there’s actually an adaptation that, albeit tounge-in-cheek employs Star Wars esthetic). And I still arrive at the same basic conclusions as the writers with more optimistic, sure and static premises. So if I say we’re gonna get an angsty af life-and-death reylo duel where she actually kills him with his silent consent then I also mean gurl gonna channel all her love/light and pain/dark combined into healing him and then while the dark princeling tries to come up with a spontaneous thanksgiving paslm, the scavenger princess gonna grab his shirt and suck those plump lips till they both run out of breath. And porgs will be throwing flowers at them.

#reylo #asks #episode ix speculation

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