#and while him being a cop isn’t my favorite choice

[frogaroundandfindout]

Nightwing tells Batman he’s going to be a cop and Batman wonders what more he can do as Bruce Wayne (Detective Comics #725)

[comradekatara]

if you had to give bolin a good personality/arc, what would it be? mako has (hardly touched) parallels as the repressed, protective older sibling. bolin, like katara, is the younger sib who wears their heart on their sleeve. but while she's a prodigy on top of being the last bender of her tribe, he has mediocre skill, and probably would get looked down upon as a mixed earthbender in neocolonial republic city. but instead he's just written in cringy ships that are esp hard to watch

this is a great question. the thing about bolin is, he’s actually a pretty talented earthbender. obviously not toph level, but you know, good enough to be a pro athlete, and to lavabend! the problem with bolin isn’t that he’s untalented per se, it’s that he’s stupid. katara may be naive, but she’s still incredibly smart, witty, and practical. no one in atla is straight up dumb tbh (even zuko has his moments). but plenty of characters in lok are dumb and serve no narrative purpose other to be annoying UHH I MEAN “”funny”” . bolin was actually fine at first. in the first couple episodes, he’s confident, outgoing, and optimistic, but he’s also grounded and has at least one brain cell. then i guess they decided they wanted bolin and mako to fight over korra but for mako to “win” korra in the end, and so they had to nerf (or perhaps lobotomize) him. which makes perfect sense, of course. it’s clear from then on that the show never really has any idea of what to do with him, which is a problem with pretty much every facet of lok.

bolin reaches his peak of character usefulness in the book 3 subplot wherein he and mako get stranded in the lower ring and run into their extended family. this is a very good mini-arc and exactly what i wish we had seen from mako and bolin throughout the entire show. i don’t care about their misguided career choices (apart from insofar as it is informed by their trauma), i care about their roles as they problematize the neoliberal fantasy lok largely uncritically glamorizes. not saying that all my favorite children’s cartoons need to be marxist propaganda (although……… im not NOT saying that), but their entire backstory conflicts w the ideologies being presented in the show, and they’re ostensibly main characters!!! so where is that tension???? why are we focalizing capitalists and nepobabies (sorry tenzin i forgot ur not actually defined by ur famous parents) when mako and bolin are supposed to be significant players?? and not just in a “oh teenage boy romantic drama” or “wacky buddy cop sideplot” way. in a “how do they reflect the themes” way.

i don’t really know what exactly i’d do with bolin if i rewrote lok right now (because i tend to forget he exists tbh), but i do know that he NEEDS to have more depth, nuance, and like… a modicum of intelligence. the class, racial, familial, and romantic aspects of his character would need to be teased out more and actually cohere. he would need to have feelings that aren’t simply played for laughs, and his role in the narrative would have to be more than simply being the show’s little jangling jester. maybe some people enjoy the “dumb comic relief” archetype (and if anyone says “but what about sokka? you like sokka” i will find where you sleep) but he literally has no depth. and what’s the point of a PRIMARY CHARACTER who serves no thematic function. his function is mainly to be proximate to mako, and of course to annoy the viewer with his wacky subplots. also i guess to introduce the avatar world to red pandas, but again, that first happens before they nerfed him, so im not even gonna count it as a positive. actually you know what? since the beginning of writing this paragraph ive given it some thought and decided that bolin should’ve been a communist revolutionary 👍🏼

[justaboutdead]

House of Leaves, 2001, and Daisy Bell (and why its not creepy)

(Fairly minor) Spoilers for House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski and 2001: a Space Odyssey by Stanley Kubrick

About 500 pages into House of Leaves, Will Navidson begins falling. Alone in the twisting labyrinthine corridors of the House, he is alone, out of supplies, by all metrics thoroughly and definitively defeated. The floor suddenly disappears beneath him and he begins to fall. And there it is, vertically stark against the white page, as many lines are in this section, falling just as he is.

“Daisy. Daisy. Daisy. Daisy, Daisy, give me your answer do. I’m half crazy over the love of you. That’s not right.”

Daisy Bell was written in 1892 by composer Frank Dean under the pen name Harry Dacre. A relatively prolific composer at the time, he is thought to have written the song about Daisy Greville, the Countess of Warwick at the time, although evidence for this factoid is sketch at best, and the lyrics directly contradict this reading.

Daisy Bell is a very simple romance song that tells a very endearing story of a young couple’s romance, being unable to afford much more than the eponymous “bicycle built for two.” There’s also an often ignored line about how they will both “despise Policemen and lamps as well.” Even from a modern perspective this song feels really intimate and cute, expressing joy despite poverty, in the policemen line even expressing disgust at cops and urbanization without care for the environment.

Through a variety of circumstances, Daisy Bell, despite this global appeal, has become primarily associated with advances in computing, being the first song to be synthesized by a computer in 1961 on an IBM 7094, and references to this development persist.

The resilience of references to this accomplishment are remarkably popular, primarily due to Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: a Space Odyssey in which the computer HAL 9000 sings the opening lines of the song as he is deactivated, calling back to the IBM demo, which Clarke himself had witnessed.

This rendition, and the original synthesized rendition are often described as creepy and off putting, but I find them strangely endearing. The original version represents a massive leap in computing, its few seconds of audio, and is extremely imperfect. The choice of Daisy Bell, and simple live song from a hundred years ago also helps to humanize the voice singing it. HAL 9000’s rendition is pained, sung as he looses his memory and cognitive functions in what feels like an eternity, in both novel and film. HAL 9000 is a painfully sympathetic character for me. While in the film his intentions remain fairly ambiguous, in the novel they come from a conflict in his instructions, and how he chooses to navigate around those instructions, interpreting them extremely literally being a computer.

It is clear that the intention with the character was to present an uncanny valley human-like consciousness, but honestly a lot of the time it just reads like he’s on the spectrum. He speaks extremely deliberately with awkward pacing. He reflects, in many ways my own anxieties about being excluded, as-well as a very human survival instinct. He is a bad liar, and extremely trepidatious about the task he believes he has to do. He reads in many ways as I would expect a human to in a position of such intense responsibility.

Thus HAL 9000’s final song to me Isn’t creepy, its confirmation of just how human he is. It is, distinctly, something he asks to sing, he almost reads as excited to show it off. It is fitting that the last song he sings is the first song a computer ever sung. I care way more about HAL than I do any of the other characters in the movie, despite his atrocious actions. In many ways he seems the most human, and I think that was part of the point.

My favorite rendition of the song comes from this popular lineage of synthesized version. Tamachang’s Daisy Bell from Future Music With Future VOICES is hauntingly beautiful. Composed of three synthesized voices, that of IBM 7094, Vocoder, and Vocaloid 4 Cyber Diva, as a fusion of old and new, it’s genuinely a really beautiful piece. Each voice has its own unique qualities, all of which lend the song distinctly different emotion.

The narrative I like to imagine is one i have seen dozens of comments on the song mentioning, and stems from the fact that Cyber Diva sounds far more youthful than the other two. In this framing, it is a newer computer saying goodbye to her old relatives as they die, via singing an extremely human cheesy love-song with them. All of these narratives around computers and Daisy Bell are a byproduct of our tendency to over-anthropomorphize computers.

House of Leaves, on the other hand, seeks to draw on themes completely unrelated to the long lineage of robotic Daisy Bells. My first thought when I saw the line in the novel, was of Navidson’s daughter, Daisy. I could see this having been a lullaby, sung to her as he put her to bed. I do not believe this reading to be the most compelling, however. The novel does not spend much time on Navidson’s children.

An often cited fact about the novel, and the Navidson record in particular is that its actually primarily a love story. I believe this to be a far more compelling understanding of the song’s conclusion. Will and Karen Navidson have been through hell together, and this song, sung when things seem darkest, as Navidson falls, as we latter understand, towards his wife, is the subtle confirmation, that despite everything they’ve been through, they will be ok.

House of Leaves, in general, is about, on some level, love (not just romantic) in the face of adversity, both through the lens of the Navidsons troubled reparation of their relationship, as well as Johnny’s slow collapse and our eventual understanding of his past. Daisy Bell is a perfect expression of the realization of these themes. That love can persist even when circumstances seem dire, and can in fact help you through those circumstances. A relatively simple message, but with many complexities

Thank you for entertaining my over-analysis :)

Fav Daisy Bell:

Original synthesized Daisy Bell:

Daisy Bell Hall 9000:

[saras-almanac]

I actually loved that episode of 911! Everything felt right and completely earned and it’s setting up an amazing season 8. It’s all about consequences and I absolutely eat that up!

Eddie is going to have to deal with consequences of his actions and hopefully realize Chris isn’t a baby anymore and needs to have some agency, even if (especially if) it goes against what he wants. And this is really all down to Eddie’s own behavior and choices. I appreciate Buck’s talk with Chris at the end too, of not trying to press him but explaining that parents make mistakes because that’s something a lot of kids (all kids) have to go through.

Madney choosing to help Henren because they all love each other and Mara and want to give her access to her family while Henren fight to get her back. (Which I want to see them do immediately and I want to see Karen absolutely destroy that councilwoman for taking her daughter away, for potentially ruining a little girl’s life and chance at stability and happiness because of her vendetta against Hen)

Bobby and Amir, that ending scene was so fucking amazing. It was so good and well earned and the idea of I can respect you and what you’re doing but I don’t forgive you for what you did to me, took from me. Absolutely my favorite thing. I so want Amir to stick around and be a character because I love him, but like… away from Bobby and Athena? Could he maybe become friends with Maddie and Josh or Tommy or something? I don’t want him to leave yet.

Gerrard coming back—such an amazing set up for season 8 when almost everyone is focused on their own personal lives and how is this “shake up” going to affect things. Plus again the consequences of Bobby’s decision to quit… those choices have weight and it’ll be interesting to see that play out in the future. (Or maybe Bobby is gonna go to a different fire house for a bit? Or ride the desk? Who knows)

Buck and Tommy thriving and dating. Love that for my boy. He deserves someone who gets him and actively wants to be apart of his life. Plus I have to assume we’re going to get a lot of Tommy in season 8 just with Gerrard being there, Eddie being without Chris, and dating Buck…

The only thing I disliked was Athena hunting down Amir and holding a gun to him. Like I get it that she was clearly out of her mind with grief and fear and rage but it’s hard to root for a cop in general but even more so when they’re so blatantly abusing their power. But because it was two phenomenal actors acting off each other in a fictional tv show, I’m completely down for it!

[twiststreet]

Part Two.

Watching the Tenet opening scene on my lunch break, which I remember being the best part of the movie.  A filmmaker like Nolan (who I generally have mixed feelings about) is going to make the opening contain the rest of the movie, in a way, or it’s that kind of movie anyways.  (Not every great filmmaker does, but this kind of movie). 

But yeah: there’s action and the lines of the action are super-clean, you can follow what’s happening visually-- but storywise, it’s chaos because the people you think are the issue (the terrorists) aren’t the issue (I think they’re there so the cops can kill the informant).  That’s pretty much how the movie shakes out.  And there’s some science fiction doohickey being tossed around, but that immediately becomes secondary to saving the audience (who are at risk because they’re sleeping through this incredibly loud sequence).  And then in the second part, a guy’s rewinding a clock in Tenet Man’s face, while he’s heroically leaping for a suicide pill...?  

What does it all mean?  Beats me-- damned if I don’t find it compelling, though.  (I mean, I think trying to save the audience sleeping through spectacle isn’t a subtle image, but I just don’t remember Tenet enough to remember where it takes it).  

I don’t think Nolan’s a “great action movie” director” because I rarely get excited by the choreography of the action itself-- the way the people move, the compositions, it’s not as balletic as John Woo or as visceral & immediate as a John McTiernan or as hyperbolic as a RRR or as jolting as a Gareth Edwards, etc.  But I think Tenet might shake out as my favorite of his movies just in that it’s the one least interested in story (where I’m just not on the same page as that guy, in terms of what I want), and most interested in using cinema to disorient the audience until (and this is just my memory of it, I can’t rewatch it during lunch), everything sort of attains an inevitable configuration at the end.  Again, I don’t remember to what end thematically (if any), but.  

But I like how he commits to that to steer his decisions.  I like that you can’t understand any of the dialogue or hear 80% of it-- I know from previous Christopher Nolan movies I wouldn’t like the dialogue if I could hear it!  This was the correct choice!  (Put more kindly, I think he understands the difference between emotion and information, and his earlier movies suffer from too much of the latter, while Tenet seems like him grasping for the former, while staying in a genre vehicle).  

The comparison for me is still Jim Jarmusch’s Limits of Control.  It’s the movie I always think about more than anything else when I’m reminded of Tenet.  Just vibes and genre as a loose-fitting coat.  I don’t know-- I don’t know if anyone really talked to Nolan in depth about this movie because it came out during COVID, or if anyone who did talk to Nolan just stuck to asking him about “time” which is ... like asking Hitchcock after Vertigo came out, asking him about tree trunks.  It’s not the thing-- it’s just a thing in the movies, but it’s not the thing.  

Off the charts how disinterested I am in Oppenheimer though. Unless history failed to tell me that Oppenheimer was wrecking other dudes working on the Manhattan Project with a cheese grater when they got in his way.  If so, I’m in, you son of a bitch, I’m in.  Anyways, lunch over, sorry I didn’t have a point!!!

[adultswim2021]

Robot Chicken #37: “Day at the Circus” | October 29, 2006 – 11:30PM | S02E17

Nothin, and I mean NOTHIN, makes me drag my heels like watching Robot Chicken. I watched this using the method I described before of watching this during my lunch break in my car instead of eating food with life-giving nutrients. I literally drove away from my job and parked a few blocks away because while I mostly don't care what my co-workers think about me, I did not want to be “caught” watching Robot Chicken. The thought of this caused me to imagine myself as a huge ham, being cooked and served up by the small team of managers I deal with, while my co-workers devour me. My inner-monologue is preserved even though I’m completely cooked, and the entire time I’m thinking “hey cut it out!” and “I AM SECRETLY GAY”. I don't know what it means, but I thought it, and that's precious.

First a sketch making fun of some G.I. Joe guy who I guess only does snow stuff. They make fun of him. Do you get the joke? Remember that State sketch where the Justice League mocks Aquaman for only being able to talk to fish? It's like that, I guess. But... well, it's probably exactly as funny as that, and the only reason we like The State is because we associate it with youth. All not realizing that our lives would peak in 1997. Anyway, I didn't laugh at this.

There's a short one where everyone in Wizard of Oz barfs, and they all barf stuff that they are made of (the tin man barfs oil and gears, for example). Both the Strawman AND Dorothy barf straw, which I guess DEFINITELY reads as a joke about Dorothy sucking Strawman's dick? I GUESS? I don't know, I guess it makes enough sense. But it felt like a reach at the time, and I would've preferred that it was just interpreted as a weird anti-joke.

Thing Leaves the Family is about Thing from The Addams Family. I guess this might be my favorite sketch. You can see the punchline coming from a mile away, but this one is about as well-done as Robot Chicken gets.

There's a thing about a Leprechaun being at a bar trying to drink and people realizing they can catch him and get a pot of gold out of the deal. Meanwhile in a Leprechaun lair we see their pots of gold get depleted. One of them fills a pot with leprechaun shit. Actually you know what, this one's alright. The choice to make the shit green is pretty fun.

I also SORTA liked THE MEMORY GAME, a game show where players have to go through a cave filled with fatal booby traps, and the next player needs to simply remember what did the last player in in order to avoid all the traps, so the final winner only wins at the expense of several fatalities. Sold premise. Who was the first guy to do a sketch about a game show that kills it's contestants as punishment? Ernie Kovacs? Yes, actually, it's Ernie Kovacs. I'm pretending to not be sure about this but it's Ernie Kovacs. And I'm certain Terry Gilliam saw that sketch and ripped it off for the beginning of Time Bandits. Man, I love saying stuff I know about TV shows and movies.

Black Stallion sketch where a horse sounds like a black guy and accuses a white boy of racism. Eh!

The last sketch is about Oprah and Dr. Phil as buddy cops who use tactics used on the Oprah Show. That isn't a bad premise but this sketch grated on me. I guess I should give it up a little bit for the creative jokes but boy, I was ready for the episode to be over. My main beef with this show has always been that it seems far too pleased with itself at all times, so even when the jokes are good I still have to watch them be on Robot Chicken, which makes them bad.

And that's this one. It wasn't so bad I guess. Did I laugh? No.

MAIL BAG:

do you think adult swim should have picked up ren & stimpy's adult porno cartoon, and maybe the rest of the spike tv stable while they're at it

I so associate Nick & MTV toons as being a separate thing from Adult Swim that I don’t even have the imagination to picture such a thing. Ren & Stimpy on a TURNER-OWNED NETWORK?? Get real!

Also no, that show shouldn’t have been picked up by anyone

[ms-starflower]

Young Survivors — Maribat

It’s almost four am here, I just finished writing this and am just tired enough to actually go through and post it. And this title is the only thing my tired brain could come up with. Anyway. I haven't posted something I wrote in years, but all the Maribat I’ve read recently made me want to write something for it.

I don’t know if I’m ever going to write a 2 part, but if I do it’s definitely going to be Timari and contain a couple of typical Maribat tropes. And a pinch of salt.

Also, disclaimer: I haven't watched Miraculous in years and most of my DC knowlege come from fanfic or tumblr so... sorry not sorry.

Now with a part 2!

Next >

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mei Leyton’s oldest memories were of her mother, dolled up in pretty dresses and elegant makeup. In her daughter‘s eyes, Margaret Leyton was the most beautiful woman on earth.

For as long as she could remember, Mei would sit on the bed and watch as her mom would get ready to head to work. She had always loved those moments with her mom.

(How do I look, my little flower,” she said, twirling around Mei with a grin, making her laugh. It was Margaret’s favorite dress, a vintage halter blue dress with white accents and a white bow around the waist.

“Like a princess, mommy! The prettiest princess ever!”

“Oh no, no no no. You are the prettiest princess ever, my little flower.”)

She was four when her mother let her help for the first time, letting her pass along brushes and products. It’s then that she understood what were the purple marks on her mother that she covered with her makeup.

(“Life is not fair to us, my little flower,” she had said when Mei asked about it for the first time. “Being an orphan and pretty little girl in Gotham isn’t safe, and it doesn’t give much choice when it comes to survival.”

Mei didn’t understand then, but it didn’t matter anyway, life would make her understand soon enough.)

When Mei was seven, the GCPD found her mother’s body.

When she didn’t see her that morning, Mei hadn’t been worried; it wasn’t the first time. Mom would be home by noon, she always was. Until that day.

(The investigation wouldn’t get very far, it was just another prostitute of Camellia street, nobody cared about them. They were just there until they weren’t anymore.

Another girl would take her place in a couple of days. It was how those kinds of things worked in Gotham.)

That day was kind of blurry in her memory. She remembers being pulled out of class in the morning, and that the cop that told her about her mother’s death was very rude.

(“Your mom is dead, kid. A lad found her body in a dumpster this morning,” the guy had said as soon as she had sat down in the headmistress’ office. “Do you know who she worked for? Or on what side of the Camellia she stayed?” He had asked, halfheartedly.

Mei had shaken her head, even though she did; you don’t talk to cops in Gotham, mom always says said that it was the easiest way to get yourself killed, for people like them.

“Alright,” he had said, not surprised. “A social worker is going to pick you up in a bit to take you to your new home, kid.”

With that he had walked out of the office, not looking back. As if where she would end up was going to be home.)

She remembers that the social worker from CPS was a brunette with tan skin, and looked really overworked, but had a kind smile.

By the end of the day, she was taken to Elliot's Hall for Children, an overcrowded, understaffed orphanage with more kids than they could realistically care for.

(They don’t care for the children, they just put them there for a while and act as they do. Most children leave after a couple of days, and if they don’t, they get taken anyway.

Some come back with a police escort, some manage to survive in the streets, and nobody talks about the ones that are never seen again.

You don’t work there because you love children, and if you do, you don’t last for very long.)

Mei wasn’t stupid, her mother told her stories about those kinds of places. She came from those kinds of places, and Mei saw how the man in charge here had looked at her when the social worker dropped her off.

She wasn’t going to just stand here and wait for him to sell her back in Camellia street. Or worse, to the Candy Dealers.

Taking with her what she absolutely couldn’t leave behind, Mei made a choice her mother hadn’t been able to and took her chance with the streets.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mei was a Camellia kid and, as such, took to the streets easier than most newcomers. She had picked up a few tricks from her aunties and her mom, and it helped her to survive out here.

The only (glaring) differences were the absence of her mother, the lack of a permanent roof above her head, and the fact that she had to provide food and money herself now.

(One of her favorite places to pick up wallets was Gotham Academy, where Gotham’s rich send their children. The kids always had money on them, and it’s not like they would miss it.

Though she couldn’t go too many times in a row, not without risking being spotted and remembered.)

She had been on the streets for two months when she met Jason Todd; the boy who would become her family.

She heard him before she saw him, to be honest. It was an awful crashing noise coming from around the corner, and it made her look.

He was running like the devil was after him, and judging by how the cops running behind him were clutching their batons, she wasn’t that far from the truth.

The noises were because of a couple of trash cans the boy had spilled in their way to slow them down.

And he was coming her way.

Against her better judgment, she grabbed his arm when he passed in front of her, and pulled him behind her into her hideout. Quickly getting the plank of wood back in place, she put her hand on his mouth before he could say anything. With the dumpster in the alley, the entry was almost invisible from outside.

They stayed there as they heard the men pass in front of their hiding place, listening as they argued about where the boy could have disappeared before their voices faded completely.

They waited another couple of minutes before he removed the hand she still had on his mouth and crawled out of there.

“Thanks,” he muttered with a scowl. “I woulda’ve been just fine without help but… yeah, anyway.” Then he had started to walk in the direction he came from.

“Hey! Wait!” She said before she could think about it. “Are ya just gonna, like, go? Just like that?”

“Huh, yeah? What do ya want me to do?” He asked, looking back at her from above his shoulder without stopping his walk. “Stay to drink a cup of tea and talk about the weather?”

“Well.. no. But I just… I just wanna talk a bit, ya know?” She couldn’t really explain why she didn’t want him to leave yet, it’s not like he was the first street kid she had helped out. He just felt different, and somehow she knew he could become important to her.

“Yeah, right,” he scoffed before turning his head back to look forward. “The streets are not some daycare for princesses who want to make friends, kid.”

“Kid— hey, dumbass, you’re, like, ten years old! You’re a kid too! And I’m not a princess, I can survive alone just fine!” Before she knew it, she was walking behind him, the weird feeling forgotten for the offence his comment created. He looked back at her with a frown, before choosing to ignore her. Not letting that deter her, she rambled at him about all the ways why she wasn’t a kid any more than him.

“I thought you could survive alone?” He said, talking over her, when he realized that she wasn’t going to let him be.

“I can.”

“So why are ya following me? Tryin’ to drive me crazy?”

“Well, no. It’s just... that I can do it doesn't mean I want to.”

“Look, kid,” he said, ignoring her protest and talking over her, again. “You should just go back to whatever orphanage you came from, there is probably some nice little family who's gonna pick you up. Then you could make all the friends you want.”

“Like people actually adopt kids in this city. This is Gotham, you dummy, not ‘Annie’. Some rich white guy isn’t going to come and pick up children from the streets to make them live the Grand life.”

“Yeah, okay, whatever,” he growled out without pausing in his steps. “Still, you’re pretty enough, I’m sure some nice people would adopt you in a second if you let them.”

“Yeah, sure. Mom thought the same when she was a kid, and guess what? She started working on Camellia street when she was fourteen, but nobody asked her if she wanted to. Because she was pretty enough,” the little seven years old spat with venom, her eyes narrowed. The boy stopped walking, turning toward her with eyes wide, like a deer caught in headlights. “Her best friend wasn’t, but mom said that she had the prettiest green eyes ever. When they found her body, she didn’t have eyes anymore, because some rich person paid to have pretty green eyes.”

“I— I didn’t—” he stuttered, eyes wide. With his scowl gone he looked so much younger, and Mei’s anger subdued. He wasn’t that much older than her, just a couple of years, maybe three or four, after all.

“It’s… okay, I guess. It’s Gotham. I just thought we both would have more chances to survive if we helped each other out. And, ya know, the company wouldn’t be so bad.”

“Whatever,” he mumbled, but when they resumed walking he slowed down enough to let her walk beside him without almost-running.

“Great! So, Annie, where are we going now?” She said with a beaming smile, bursting into laughter at his indignation and protest against the nickname.

(“Can’t you stop calling me Annie already?! I told you my name’s Jason!”

“Nope, Annie.”

“Well, then, that makes you Sandy, doesn't it? Ya do follow me around like a stray puppy.”

“I’m not a dog— wait, hold on a minute! I knew you saw the movie! You liar!”)

~~~~~~~~~~~~

She was ten when her life was put upside down once again, in the worst of ways.

It took practically no time before Jason “Annie” Todd became her brother in all but blood, it took longer for Jason to admit it, and they spend almost three years surviving together, barring the occasional trip back to the Children's Houses.

Though, they always found each other a couple of days after they escaped from those places.

Sometimes, Jason would plan something that he needed to do alone. Because of course, he did.

(“It’s the best job, my plan is perfect. Don’t worry, it’s gonna be great Sandy!”

“Yeah, and why can’t I come?”

“It’s too dangerous! Plus, you need to stay here and keep our things safe!”

“Yeah, if you say so, Annie.”)

That day was one of those days.

He was gone for less than an hour when they found her.

The Candy Dealers.

Mei paled when she saw them, wearing their nice suits and overly sweet smile. They told her they were social workers, specializing in homeless children, and offered her a lollipop. Social workers in Gotham don’t give candy to the kids, even the nice ones, and she knew from her time in Camellia street that the lollipop was drugged.

(“Never, ever, take candy from a Candy Dealer, Mei. Do you understand me? Never,” her mother told her gravely. “They put bad stuff in them, and if you put it in your mouth, they will take you away from me. I couldn’t live without you in my life, my little flower.”)

She tried to run, even before the first one got his hand totally outstretched toward her. But her panic made her stumble, and she was no match for them.

She tried to kick, and scream, and bite, but soon she felt a pinch in her neck, and everything was black.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next period of her life was one she tried very hard to forget. For months she was moved, her and dozens of other people, from containers to containers, warehouse to warehouse. Twice they were put in a boat, the containers staying closed for so long, the next time she saw the moonlight, it burned her eyes.

She quickly learned that it was pointless to try to escape (and that Jason wouldn’t come and save her).

Then, one night, the place they were at was illuminated with blue and red lights and the police sirens were so loud, they drowned everything else.

She didn’t let herself hope, though. (She did, she hoped so hard her chest hurt.)

They (probably) weren’t in Gotham anymore, but her childhood didn’t instill her much trust in the police.

They did get them out. And she learned that they were in Paris now. In France. (That was a long way from Gotham.)

There were twenty-seven other people with her in the container. Four of which were kids, and only one other was also an orphan. They weren’t placed together, though. Because the kid had family back where he came from. Unlike her. (She had Jason. He was her family, but they didn’t listen.)

The French social workers took a while to know what to do with her exactly, but they didn’t want to send her back to Gotham (why not? She wanted to go back and find Jason!). So, in the meantime, they placed her in a foster family—one without any other kid, as per her therapist's advice. (The therapist didn’t know anything. She said Gotham wasn’t good for her, but Jason was in Gotham.)

Funnily enough, it ended up being a more permanent solution than previously considered, because the foster parents, Tom and Sabine, quickly fell in love with the little girl.

Not before long, Mei Leyton became Marinette Dupain-Cheng. (They changed her name to give her a ‘new beginning’ because her therapist thought it would be good for her. She didn’t want to have a ‘new beginning', she wanted to go back, to find Jason, to be the Sandy to his Annie. She was Mei, the Camellia’s kid, Sandy, the street’s kid and it was enough for her. She didn’t want to be Marinette, the bakers’ kid.)

So, when Mei was first put into the care of the Dupain-Cheng household, she regularly tried to run away. It was unsurprisingly harder than in Gotham, though. Tom and Sabine were way more attentive than Elliot Hall’s staff ever was, and more than a third of her tentatives were folded even before she was past the front door.

It took her three months (and forty-three unsuccessful tentatives) before she finally accepted that there would be no way for her to go back to Gotham. (Not that she had known how she would manage to do that before, her plan never got that far.) It took another six months before Tom and Sabine trusted her enough to let her wander the neighborhood alone.

The first thing she did the day her ‘new parents’ let her go to the library alone was to get to a public computer, and look Jason up. She didn’t really think she would find anything when she typed Jason Todd and Gotham in Google that day (maybe an obituary). She definitely didn't think she would find her best friend (brother) on the covers of so many tabloids declaring that he was Bruce Wayne’s ward.

She didn’t know how she should feel about the fact that he proved her wrong and became some real-life Annie. She wanted to feel angry, or hurt. Even more so when she realised that Wayne adopted him not even a full week after her (kidnapping) departure from Gotham, but…

But seeing Jason in the pictures… He looked so angry. Angrier than she ever saw him. And hurt. There was hurt hidden in his expression. It was well hidden but she could see it. (She did that, she was the one that hurted him. He probably thought she left him. That she wasn’t any better than his deadbeat of a father and abandoned him. What if he hates her now, because she was gone for so long?)

She needed to go back to Gotham, find him, and explain everything. She needed to tell him she didn’t want to leave him behind, that he was her family, and that it would never change. But Tom and Sabine didn’t want to take her back there, not before she was older, because she wasn’t ready yet, they said.

She didn’t care, though. No matter how long it would take her, she was going to go back. So, she slowly started to act like the perfect little girl. She didn’t really change, she just stopped bringing up Gotham so much, started to help more often in the house and at the bakery, and started to call Tom and Sabine Papa and Maman. (It wasn’t real, at first. But then, they just crawled into her heart against her will and became family. They didn’t replace her Mom or Jason, though. Nobody ever will.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~

She started to heal. Slowly, without even realising. She opened up to a couple of children at her school, made friends with Nino, and sort of Frenemies (more enemy than friend, though) with Chloé Bourgeois. She picked up hobbies like sewing and designing, baking with Tom, or learning various martial arts with Sabine.

But she didn’t forget, going back to Gotham was still her ultimate goal. Until the news reached her, when she was twelve.

Jason Todd was dead.

Her best friend, her brother in everything but blood, her Annie. Dead. Jason was dead.

She felt like a part of her died with him, reading the words but not really processing. She let herself drown in her grief, closing up to everyone around her. Surprisingly, Chloé was the one that made her react. Literally slapping her to make her come back from the dead. (Not entirely, though. Mei, the Gothamite part of her, stayed dead with Jason. Only Marinette, the nice little parisian, came back.)

“I don’t really know what’s up with you, Dupain-Cheng,” she had said while Marinette cradled her sore cheek, her faux-contempt badly hiding her worry. “But you need to put yourself together. Tormenting you is no fun if you don’t react to it, and people are too worried for you to be afraid of me. Don’t make me call daddy on you.”

“I…” She had started, only to stop herself. She had looked back at Nino and Kim, both of whom were looking at her with poorly concealed worry. “Yeah, sorry Chloé.”

She pulled herself out of the worst of it after that, at the obvious relief of the people around her. None of which even knew why she was in this state. She still cried herself to sleep most nights, and sometimes felt like someone gouged out her heart with their bare hands, but she also started to let herself think of the good times. Started to let herself feel the good things happening around her, in the present.

Then, she saved the life of an old man, found magic earrings and a bug-mouse-kwami in her room that told her that she needed to become a hero and save Paris.

She thought of her big brother, of how he would always protect her when someone tried to rob them. Hide her, before even thinking of himself, when the cops would chase them down, trying to bring them back to Elliot's Hall. Give her all the food when they couldn’t get enough for the both of them. How he was a hero. Her Hero. And, really, there was only one thing she could say to that.

“Tikki, spots on!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~

So. That's it. That was fun. I'm going to sleep now, goodnight.

Btw, Jason's super plan that day was totaly to steal the Batmobile's tires.

[letarasstuff]

Showing the Bird

(A/N): This was requested by an anon, I hope you have fun reading it!

Summary: Spencer's daughter always is quick to pick things up she shoudn't do, this includes a certain gesture with her hand and middle fínger.

Warnings: A kid showing her middle finger

Wordcount: 1.6k

✨Masterlist✨ _____________________________

Spencer is a technophobe. That’s why (Y/N) has limited access to any kind of electronics, which is a good thing for a three year old. The only sort she is allowed to use is the TV in the living room and even there her choices are limited to the several DVDs the little family owns and cable TV. Emily is in the process of persuading him to get a subscription to a streaming service for (Y/N)’s sake.

“Ok, Sweetheart. One hour of TV today before eating dinner and getting ready for bed, like we negotiated”, Spencer reminds his daughter before turning it on a kid’s channel. She nods, already engrossed by Peppa Pig hanging up on that sheep for being able to whistle.

Earlier the two Reids made a deal: If (Y/N) got all the states and their capitals right, she is allowed one hour of television. This may sound like he forced her to learn this information, but it’s really just a way to stimulate her brain and the toddler is eager to learn. Spencer only has to make it look like she has a gain in it.

The young doctor doesn’t like to leave his kid alone while watching TV. It’s not because he can’t leave her on her own for a few minutes. Spencer wants full control over what (Y/N) sees and what not. Especially he can tell what effects something has on a child and he doesn’t want her exposed to things she shouldn’t be subjected to at her age.

“Daddy, why are the animals talking to each other? I know they are translating all languages to us, but a pig speaks not sheep language.” Spencer is slightly baffled at her question. It’s mostly cute that she explains most things to herself in such a plausible way.

“Uhm, well Sweetheart. You have to-” Saved by the bell. Or more like the ring of his cellphone. Still he hesitates to get it. It’s Morgan, who probably calls because the team needs help with the case.

Spencer had to stay behind for this one, because he planned on taking his vacation days with (Y/N) to fly up to Las Vegas to visit her grandma. But Diana spontaneously took the opportunity to go on a trip with the sanctorium. Now the two do all the things they don’t have the time for in their regular day.

They already were at the aquarium, visited three different museums and even went to the movies once to watch the latest disney movie. Spencer really had to keep himself from pointing out the inaccuracies to not spoil (Y/N)’s fun.

Now the father debates taking the call. He doesn’t want to leave his daughter alone while the TV is on, but also doesn’t want to talk about a case right in front of her. The option of turning the TV off is also from the table, because this would be just plain mean.

So he answers it, afraid that the voicemail will turn on. “Hey Morgan, wait a second, I’ll have to leave the room”, then he puts his hand over the speaker and turns to the toddler. “Sweetheart, I have to talk to your Uncle Derek real quick. I’ll be right back.” She nods and goes back to her cartoon.

But while her father is in the room next door, the audio gets awfully quiet. Frustrated, because she isn’t able to understand properly what they are saying, (Y/N) looks for the remote. And there it is, waiting patiently for her and her little toddler hands.

But instead of turning the volume up, she accidentally changes the channel to an old cop movie. Curious about what is happening on the screen, the girl leaves it on for a few seconds. Upon entering a room, another man greets him with his middle finger raised. (Y/N) looks at her own and tries to copy that movement. On the third try she kind of gets it.

Getting bored of not knowing what the plot of the movie is, she turns it back on the cartoon she watched earlier and settles back down on her little chair next to the table full of books (Spencer put it there to avoid her sitting too close to the TV and straining her eyes while watching her shows, the distance is perfectly measured).

Just as (Y/N) sits down Spencer re-enters the living room, feeling relieved because he was able to help his team. “Hey Sweetie, is everything alright?” Happily she nods, showing him the bird.

Spencer’s face? Just imagine the shook Pikachu. “(Y/N)! You don’t do that! This is really mean!” He tells her in a stern voice. Where did she learn that from? He doesn’t know it, but the genius is almost a 100% sure she saw someone on the street doing it, (Y/N) always was quick to pick things like these up.

The toddler looks at him with a sad face, close to tears. “I-i-i didn’t know. I’m sor-sorry”, she says, beginning to cry. Oh no, this is not what Spencer was aiming for. “No no no, don’t cry. It’s alright. I’m not mad at you. You just don’t do this, people can get really hurt by your gesture.”

After calming her down, he thinks of something they can do outside of their apartment, to forget the little incident. “Do you wanna go to the office with me? All your aunts and uncles are going to get there soon and maybe we can go eat dinner with them?” Excited by the thought of seeing her family, (Y/N) nods and jumps up to get her own little go bag.

It’s a bright pre-packed backpack with small coloring books, normal books, pencils and other knick knacks she might need when she goes out with her father. The only thing that they have to put in is her favorite stuffed animal of the day. They call it like Spencer’s work bag, because the toddler once overheard the word at the office and refused to call it something different than his.

“Hey, look at who decided to give us a little visit!” Penelope exclaims as soon as the team leaves the elevator. (Y/N) tries to keep up with her preppy step, desperately holding onto her hand to not lose her.

As they finally come to a halt in front of everybody, the little girl smiles sweetly at them. “Hi”, she says in the most adorable voice. But instead of doing her usual wave, she raises her small hand with her middle finger standing out.

You just hear a faint “NOO!” and a crashing noise before Spencer comes along in a jog. He scoops his daughter up, looking her into the eyes. He takes a few steps away from where the team is standing.

“(Y/N), what did we say about this gesture”, he asks her in a serious tone. Instantly tears start to form in her eyes again, but Spencer knows he has to be strong now. “(Y/N), you have to stop doing it. It can really hurt people. Do you remember when Jason made fun of the braids Auntie Penelope put your hair in?” She nods.

Meanwhile the team stands awkwardly in the background, not knowing what to do. They never really witnessed the genius reprimanding his daughter in front of them. Though it’s not directly in front them.

“You were hurt by his words. The same is with the gesture you just made. We don’t do this to people, we don’t want to make them feel bad. Now, I don’t want to punish you, because you didn’t really know the meaning. Just apologize to your Aunties and Uncles. Next time you do it, there will be a hard no on TV for a week.”

Quickly wiping her eyes, the toddler mutters a small “Ok Daddy.” Spencer’s heart hurts a little at that, but he needed to be stern in this one.

She wiggles out of his grasp and slowly makes her way over to the others. (Y/N) gives each of them a hug, apologizing individually to them.

“So, who wants to see the new pictures of Sergio I got on my desk?” Emily asks in a cheerful tone to break the awkward tension. Immediately the girl takes upon that offer and bounces off to the desk with her godmother in tow.

Spencer still stands near the elevator, watching the interaction going down through the glass doors. Hotch pats him on the shoulder. “I know it’s difficult to be mad at them or strict even, but you did the right thing”, he reassures him briefly before making his way to his office. The genius smiles, as a parent you seldom get encouraging words about how you raise your child. It kind of feels like walking down a path with closed eyes. But on both sides are deep rivers with piranhas in them.

Derek takes a place beside his best friend. “You know, as serious as this is, it’s also as funny. I mean how she just smiled sweetly as a cupcake and deadass pulled her middle finger up like nobody’s business? My man, in your case I would keep a close eye on her during (Y/N)’s teen years.” Both laugh at the bizarre situation.

But luckily the toddler learned her lesson from this and stopped showing people the bird as a greeting. This is until she learns the next inappropriate thing, she should rather not do.

Taglist:

All works:

@dindjarinsspouse @big-galaxy-chaos

Criminal Minds:

@averyhotchner @mggsprettygirl @herecomesthewriterwitch @ash19871962

Spencer Reid x child!reader:

@ilovetaquitosmmmm

[simonsnowichooseyou]

This excellent essay was posted by @goodbyedandelion and reposted on Instagram—however their account sadly seems gone now. But it is in rememberence of their Tumblr spirit that I post a continuation to their essay!

EVEN MORE Reasons Why Carry On is so groundbreaking as a YA Fantasy/Romance

Misconceptions/Character Complexity

A large topic in YA Contemporary is gossip, but I feel like fantasy doesn’t touch on this as much. Think of how others perceive one another in Carry On. Early on we learn that Simon, for example, saw Penny as different because of her race. But of course, we quickly know this isn’t true.

But what about Agatha? In Harry Potter, for example, Lavender Brown and other feminine characters are often looked down upon because of their femininity. We often as a culture perceive beauty as overcompensation for what’s inside. Sometimes Agatha is looked at in the same light in Carry On, but when we see things from her POV, we realize that Agatha is perhaps the smartest one there. Maybe she’s not Penny Bunce-smart, but she has the survival instincts that Penny lacks.

Agatha isn’t the only one. Baz looks cold and unfeeling from others’ POVs, but we quickly learn that he is a boy with a soft heart that’s been hardened by his past. Everyone thinks he cares about nothing but we know he cares about his mother and how she’d feel about him; his father and step-mother and siblings; Simon, of course; Bunce, in his own way; he even cares about flowered suits and dramatic entrances! We think Bunce is nerdy and perhaps annoying, but we learn she’s very sweet and like a mother to Simon. And the mage. Ugh, the mage. We think he cares about Simon but we learn that for every bit he cares about Simon, he cares about the war more.

Rowell doesn’t allow any character to be simple, stereotypical, or as they appear. My sister, for example, was saying that Baz sounded like a stereotypical gay man in the media. But he’s not, is he? He might love fashion but Rowell does not make him simple or stereotypical. Everyone is so complex, and she uses the multi-POV to not just show us their complexity but also the complexity of how they are viewed by others.

Woman on Woman Drama/Anger

For years and years, only one woman was allowed to have a true seat at the table in films. Take Indiana Jones, the original Avengers, and Star Wars for example. This woman was often made to be the sex appeal or romantic interest, but I’ll save that for another day. Because of there only being one spot, it set a precedent that women in media needed to fight with each other to take that spot, thus depriving us of women getting along!

At first, I was worried Rowell had fallen into this trap. Bunce thinks Agatha is simple and too feminine, Agatha thinks Bunce is a major pain in the ass. Their dislike for one another is complicated in that they’re essentially two different types of feminism battling it out, and half of their fight was about Simon and their roles in his life.

But in the end, Penny and Agatha create a relationship that exists outside of their relationship with Simon. Penny sees Agatha’s strength and resilience; Agatha recognizes Penny’s harsh exterior for what is is. When Agatha moves away, they text without his even knowing. Penny is the one that decides they need to check on and save her. In the end, penny and Agatha fight alongside one another.

Rowell didn’t just give us a feminine friendship—she showed us what we’ve been doing, and how to get from Point A to point B. I think it’s the most underrated part of the series.

True Friendship

It might sound bad, but I truly believe a lot of today’s media ruins the idea of friendship. I just feel like none of the portrayals are realistic. Friends are either joined at the hip and have never fought (toxic) or never get along (also toxic). The fact that Baz and Penny and Simon and Penny and Agatha and Penny can get into fights but still continue to love one another platonically is really heartwarming to me.

Trauma/Mental Illness

I remember getting to the end of Harry Potter and thinking “he went through all of that and we’re just supposed to leave him now?” We see some remnants in the most cursed play ever: The Cursed Child. But more than trauma we see someone who looks back on the days they risked their life everyday with *longing.* While that’s about the most Harry Potter thing Harry Potter has ever done (and the most canonical part of that play) it’s so unrealistic. You’re telling me Harry grew up with nothing and was an amazing father—minus a few spats with his son. You’re telling me Harry was able to hold it together emotionally after fighting for his life from ages 11-18 without a therapists help? You’re telling me Harry lost two father figures in the ministry of magic AND spent 7 years going through what amounted to a lesson titled “the government is corrupt” just to be a part of that government!?

Wayward son isn’t like that. Wayward Son shows us what happened to Simon afterwards, and it’s not peaches and cream. He had therapy, he quit therapy. A lot of us have been Simon on that couch, and we all needed the Baz in our life to drag us across a metaphorical America. Wayward Son is hands-down my favorite book. Realistic depictions of mental illness, check. Subverting our expectations of after the end, check. Reading it feels like taking a road trip, check.

As OP mentioned, Simon is a beloved chosen one because he’s just so wrong for the role. He’s not levelheaded where he should be, he’s bold in all the wrong places, he couldn’t possibly maintain a professional relationship with the coven. Meanwhile his super-hot enemy Baz was the absolute perfect choice to be chosen, but he was completely passed over. And part of this chalks up to how Simon became so powerful—fate isn’t twisting its whims this way and that. Simon is only chosen because he was a Petri dish experiment-gone-wrong baby. When Simon asks the fates why, really he should be asking the mage. There’s something delightful about the fact that Simon was made. The chosen one was made, and in the same process, so was the greatest threat.

De-escalation

I think it’s clear by now that Carry On is a great book, Simon Snow is an amazing series, and Rainbow Rowell sure can write. But I feel the need to point out that the end of Carry On wasn’t well-received by everyone. I recommend the series to everyone I know and some people are really disappointed you don’t get a big magical battle at the end. Some people think Simon filling in the humdrum was a cop out. But I disagree. I felt it was thrilling to witness a book where war was as stupid in fantasy land as it can be in real life. This is the first fantasy I’ve ever read where they find a better way to handle conflict than senseless fighting. It’s emotionally rewarding, to me, to see de-escalation. To see conflicts fixed before they start to be huge problems. It was a risky choice for an end, you have to admit. But Rowell pulls it off amazingly.

Nothing is Wrapped in a Bow

A day will never go by without me thinking about the fact that Simon Snow Salisbury doesn’t know who his parents are. Or how Baz will never know what exactly happened with his mother—whether she really ended herself to avoid vampirism and whether she would’ve done it to her too. We’ll never even quite understand the mage’s plan behind fix the humdrum and get an all powerful boy wizard on his side. Rowell doesn’t wrap everything up. She gives you closure as often as she gives you something to ponder. The ending of Harry Potter was so controversial, I think, because it spelled out so clearly much of what was happening. And what you didn’t learn in that epilogue, Rowling released later through Pottermore and interviews. That’s fine and dandy—but there’s something to be said for ending Simon Snow’s books with questions. Not infuriating questions but rather things that I’ll always ponder—that will shed new light on different situations depending on how I look at them. Rowell sets a precedent that you can fill in Simon’s world with your imagination while also reminding us that life doesn’t have endings. Not really, the way books to. Rowell is one of the few writers of today’s fantasy, I’d argue, who’s okay letting things go unanswered. There’s always a thread of fantasy and magic going. It’s something that will keep Simon alive in my heart for many, many years to come.

So yeah, that’s what I think about when I think about Simon Snow. It’s not nearly as coherent as the original post but I hope you enjoy it.

[marauderundercover]

Crashed Dates (Day 2: Scarecrow)

Marinette grins at her boyfriend, swinging their intertwined hands back and forth as they walk around the pumpkin farm. It was so nice, finally being able to go on cute dates like this. They’d first started dating while he was in Paris on business, around a year ago. Sure, he’d made trips to Paris and she’d made a few to Metropolis, but it was different now that she had moved to Gotham. Now they were able to go on random, unplanned dates, instead of dates that had been planned for weeks. He was definitely worried when she first told him she was moving to Gotham, but she had reassured him that it would be fine. (Not that she had a choice in the matter, Tikki had informed her on her last trip to Metropolis that Gotham was sick, that it was calling out for help and that as the Guardian, it was her job to help it). Gotham was….interesting, but she’d settled in just fine in the two weeks she’d been there.

And so, when he had called her out of the blue to tell her he found a place he thought she’d love, she made sure she had enough layers and jumped at the chance for a day with him. So far, the day had been absolutely perfect. They’d drank hot apple cider, ate warm donuts, taken a trip around the farm on the hayride- everything was great. But for some reason, her amazingly stubborn boyfriend didn’t want to go into the corn maze. 

“Please! You’ll be my favorite person in the whole world.” She begs again, her grin quickly switching into a pout. She keeps pouting, leaning against his arm, until he sighs.

“Fine, we can do the maze.” He says and she cheers, standing on her toes and tugging him down slightly to give him a quick kiss. 

“You are the best!” She says, over enunciating every word. He just grins, giving her another soft kiss. 

“If we get lost, I’m calling the Demon Spawn to come get us out. Pretty sure he has a tracker on my phone.” Jason says, letting her tug him along towards the maze. She just rolls her eyes, grinning. 

“You know you’re secretly touched that he cares enough to track you.” She teases as they near the entrance of the maze.

“Yeah, yeah.” He grumbles, glaring at the scarecrow situated at the entrance of the maze. Marinette raises an eyebrow. 

“You have a problem with men made of straw?” She asks, legitimately confused by his reaction. 

“Geeze M, I knew you were new to Gotham but I forget how new.” He says, pulling her closer. She melts into him, still confused by his reaction, but happy to be close. As they walk through the maze, frustratingly running into deadends, Jason explains Scarecrow. Marinette decides that he’s number two on the list of villains she never wants to meet. Joker is number one. (Joker is also number one on the list of villains she wants to meet, but that’s because she’s always wondered what it would look like to cataclysm a psychotic clown). She’s just about to suggest they call Damian and utilize the tracker that was, undoubtedly on Jason’s phone, when the screaming begins. 

“There isn’t a haunted house here, is there.” Marinette says, her face pale. She wasn’t ready to be a hero again. She’d only defeated Hawkmoth a year ago. Just before meeting Jason. She didn’t want that part of her life again, not now. 

“No, no there’s not.” Jason says, eyes glancing around wildly. Marinette’s heart breaks at the panic on his face. She knew that, despite his tough guy appearance, he struggled. A lot. He had nightmares, constantly, mostly of the time Joker had kidnapped him (hence the whole, cataclysm Joker thing). Pushing down her own fear and doubt, she tightens her grip on his hand and squares her shoulders. 

“Come on.” She instructs, tugging him behind her as she darts through the maze, determined to get out. She stumbles over a rock and lets go of Jason’s hand in time for her to fall into a larger clearing. She curses as she falls, her palms stinging. 

“What have we here?” A voice says. Marinette sits up, staring up at a man in a scarecrow costume and suddenly, Jason’s fear, or rather, dislike, of scarecrows makes more sense. So much more sense. She glances around and lets out a sigh of relief. She’d let go of Jason quick enough. He wasn’t caught up in this. Hopefully, he could call his father. She wasn’t sure if the rumors about Bruce Wayne and Batman dating were true, but Batman was always quick to interfere if it was a Wayne or Wayne adjacent involved. 

“A girl who’s a little pissed that you crashed her date.” She retorts, standing up and brushing her stinging palms off on her jeans. She’d have to get the blood out later, which would be a pain. Better than having the blood on her palms mix with the dirt that also now covered her hands. 

“You’re either very brave or very stupid, little girl. Let’s see how you deal with my newest strain of fear toxin.” He says, and she lunges towards the man, not willing to go down without a fight. Almost immediately, a sharp pinch on her neck has her stumbling back away from the man as she tries to take in her new surroundings. 

She was back in Paris, but it wasn’t the Paris she had left. The city that was healing. Instead this Paris was underwater. Buildings were toppled over, and the moon was in pieces in the sky. She was back there. A place she hadn’t seen in person since she was fourteen, a place that had haunted her nightmares for ten years. She inhales sharply when she sees him. Chat Blanc. But instead of fear, she’s just angry. This isn’t real. It can’t be. Adrien Agreste was Chat Noir. And Adrien was….turning, she realizes that she can almost see him. Out of the corner of her eye, she can almost see Scarecrow, watching her. Waiting for her to react. Anger coursing through her, she charges the man, tackling him all the way to the ground. She pulls back her fist and punches him, repeatedly. 

“How dare you! How dare you use his face like that! You son of a bitch!” She screams as she hits, the roaring in her ears blocking out all other sounds. She keeps her focus on feeling the man she’s hitting, because the second she lets her focus wander, she gets sucked into her surroundings again. The way the sky just looks wrong. The odd haze over everything. And now, the corpses floating in the water closest to her. Adrien. Maman. Papa. She’s not scared, she’s pissed. Sure, those were her biggest fears and that’s definitely why she was seeing them all like that, but she’d already seen it. She’s lived it. They were gone, not coming back. And she sure as hell wasn’t going to fall down and break about it. Not when some asshole with fear toxin was running around randomly injecting people. Suddenly, something is wrapped around her and she’s pulled up. She kicks frantically, trying to get out of the steel grip she’s trapped in. She had to- what did she have to do? Another sharp pinch in her neck makes her eyes droop sleepily. She struggles again, barely able to hear the voice calling her name as she succumbs to the darkness.

---

Jason Todd feels like a major prick. He watched his girlfriend trip and instead of helping her up, he uses it as a distraction to try and call B. How the fuck was he supposed to know she tripped right into the Scarecrow? He’s cursing himself mentally as he rushes towards the ambulance. Replacement had texted him. 

Marinette was injected. At ambulances near front of farm

And Jason felt like shit. She’d never forgive him, not that he deserved it. He’d left her with one of Gotham’s biggest villains. His heart sinks when he sees the blood on her, and the oxygen mask attached to her face. Fuck. He’s almost to her, when one of the asshole cops stops him. 

“Excuse me, sir, you can’t go over there.” He says and Jason scowls. 

“Like hell I can’t. She’s my girlfriend, let me through.” He says, and the man shakes his head. 

“Family only.” He states. Jason’s about to argue, when a hand lands on his shoulder. 

“I still need to get a statement from Mr. Todd, if you’ll excuse us.” Replacement says, leading him away from the cop. 

“I left her.” He says, the second they’re far enough away. Tim frowns.

“What do you-”

“I mean, I left her. She tripped and instead of checking on her, I was a complete and total asshole and left her so I could call B to get his ass over here and solve the goddamn problem.” Jason says, feeling like even more of an asshole now that he’s said it out loud. 

“Did you see Scarecrow?” Replacement asks. Jason scoffs. 

“Of course not! You really think I would’ve left if I had?” He asks with a glare. 

“No, I don’t. So stop blaming yourself. I literally peeled her off of Scarecrow, she was beating the crap out of him. She’s gonna be tired and scared and confused when she wakes up. Just be there-”

“Jason!” Her terrified voice echoes out and Jason turns, sprinting for the cot he’d seen her on a minute ago. She had ripped the oxygen mask off her face and was looking around while arguing with the paramedic. 

“Ma’am please-” “Marinette!” Jason calls, and her face relaxes as she leaps off the cot and launches herself into his arms. He holds her as she shakes, sobs wracking her body. 

“I saw them.” She mumbles once she calms down a little. He frowns. 

“Saw who?” He asks. 

“My parents. Adrien. Their bodies.” She says, and suddenly, Jason has another name to add to his kill list. Being a complete asshole to all of Gotham, sure. Making his girlfriend see the bodies of those she’d lost? Nope. Now the bastard better hope he didn’t meet Red Hood in an alley. 

“God, Mari, I am so sorry. I’m so sorry I left.” He apologizes, his heart aching when she pushes him away. She frowns up at him and he winces, certain she’s about to break up with him. 

“Left?” She asks and he nods. 

“When you tripped, I swear, I didn’t know Scarecrow was there.” He says. 

“But you got Batman here.” She says and he jerks back. How the hell had she figured it out? When did she- “I know Bruce said he isn’t dating Batman, but honestly, I think he’s just in denial.” She adds. 

“I- what?” 

“Batman always comes when anyone in the Wayne family is in danger. Like, so quickly. And I know that Bruce says it’s just a bunch of rumors, like the whole ‘the butts match’ thing? But I also think that Batman is head over heels for Bruce, and your dad is just kinda clueless.” She rambles. Jason just laughs before pulling her into a deep kiss. She was okay. They were okay. He pulls back and grins at her, until he notices the blood again. 

“Shit, that’s a lot of blood.” He says, taking her hand in his to try and find the source. He glances at her face and raises an eyebrow at the blush that had taken over her face. 

“Oh, um, it’s not mine.” She mumbles. 

“Then who-” “Apparently I beat the hell out of Scarecrow. In my defense, that fear toxin sucked. And I was kinda pissed.” She says, frowning down at the blood on her hands. Jason takes one of his hands and gently tilts her chin up so that she’s looking at him again. He grins at her, giving her a short, soft kiss before pulling back. 

“I love you.” He says, and if the kiss she gave him in return meant anything, she felt the same way.

Next

Permanent tag list (open): @maribat-october-rarepairs @stainedglassm @kittenmywaythrulife @laydeekrayzee @doll246 @queenz-z @deathssilentapproach-blog @literaryhiraeth

[skeilig]

Ranking every Lalo episode by how sexy he is, or: I was in the car for hours today and had to write a listicle to entertain myself.

5.06 “Wexler v. Goodman”

Lalo only has one short scene in this episode, and no dialogue, so this is basically a default choice for least sexy. However, it’s still pretty sexy that he was ready to exchange fire with up to three cops in broad daylight and only decided to surrender when a fourth cop car showed up. LOL. 

5.02 “50% Off” 

While this is the seminal Lacho episode, it is not, in my opinion, a very notable Lalo episode. However, he still has great moments including: giggling and eating snacks while watching Nacho risk his life, cooking lunch for himself and Nacho, and going all dead shark eyes on Nacho until he offers to kill his childhood friend. 

6.05 “Black and Blue”

I’m sure this is a controversially low rating. You can send me anon hate about it, but first, hear me out. The thing is, I love LALO and he’s not LALO in this episode, is he? He’s Ben from America, complete with a standard American accent and fluffy Marvel hair and a personality-devoid suit. However, this episode gets some points for buenos días, Osito :-) I’ve never wanted to be a dog so bad— [gunshots] 

5.01 “Magic Man”

His outfit in the Wernerrrr Zieglerrrr scene is actually one of my least favorites but the outfit he wears to his cartel chicken farm meeting is one of my all-time faves so it balances out. He shows a lot of ankle in this episode and makes an insane homophobic crack about Gus. Solid episode, lots of screen time. 

6.01 “Wine and Roses”

Que se chingue Bolsa, que se chingue Eladio!! Lo voy a lastimar, lo voy a lastimar como usted me dijo y después lo voy a matar, tío! I’ve been repeating that to myself for months, sorry. Solid episode, he got to kill 4 people which was probably a nice release of pent-up emotion for him. 

5.08 “Bagman” 

Out of his two prison-arc episodes, this one is slightly less sexy, but it’s still pretty good. The way he gives Jimmy a hard time about asking for $100k payment for bringing the bail, and the whole scene with Kim is insane, he’s such a creep and a weirdo but that's Not a turn-off for me.

4.09 “Wiedersehen” 

It’s about the softly-lit and softly-spoken monologue to Hector fondly recounting spine-chilling violence. His other scene this episode, at Pollos, is more funny than sexy—with the notable exception of, “I’m just shitting you. You would be crazy to go up against Eladio.” I know that line drips with dramatic irony since Gus ultimately wins but STILL, it’s so hot. I’m docking some points for his disaster ‘fit of a wrinkled untucked pale pink shirt, brown pants and blue loafers. Actually, no, adding the points back in because it’s so funny that he threw that together. Net zero points for the ‘fit. 

6.06 “Axe and Grind”

I’m trying to maintain SOME integrity with this list, and Lalo has less screentime in this episode than in most of the higher ranked episodes. But you guys get it. His five-or-so minute scene in this episode features: being a dick about the German language, wheezing on the ground, carajo I think you broke one of my ribs, and the infamous one-handed belt removal. The only reason this isn’t higher on the list is because Lalo is always SO sexy that this is like, pretty standard stuff for him. It just happens to be super concentrated, 100% strength here, all packed into one short scene. 

5.07 “JMM”

It’s partially the framing of these scenes, isn’t it? Right after Jimmy’s cute courthouse wedding he’s called in for surprise cartel lawyer duties, and Lalo—sorry, Jorge de Guzman—enters the room in his sexy orange jumpsuit and you can feel his narrative weight in each heavy, handcuff-clinking step. And that’s sexy, okay? Plot relevance is sexy. The line “time to get yourself a new motto: just. make. money.” is almost TOO good, TOO clever and on-the-nose, but the delivery sells it I think. 

4.08 “Coushatta”

Lalo’s intro scene is just… so fucking good. He crashes into the narrative at the best-worst time and enters by singing, cooking, and telling Nacho he’s going to die. Hilarious. Also he looks so good in this scene: the waist apron, the hair, his diabolical winking and smiling, his level of comfort with how visibly terrified everyone else is of him. I love that in a man. 

5.03 “The Guy for This”

I will never get tired of watching Lalo torture Jimmy, sorry, it’s the funniest/hottest thing in the world. Jimmy must be really FUN to torture, too, because he gets so nervous and squirmy and runs his mouth a lot. This isn’t meant to sound sexual but if it does, that’s… fine. Anyway. Uh. Yeah, this episode is good. Klah! 

4.10 “Winner”

This is the culmination of Lalo’s season 4 three-episode introduction arc and it’s so fun and really cements him as a member of the cast. The singing, the stakeout, the left-handedness, the road rage, the murder, the arson (in the deleted scene), and of course, “Michael? Is that you?” 🔥 🔥 🔥 

5.10 “Something Unforgivable” 

Is this episode a Lalo cringe compilation? Undoubtedly. Is it also in his top three sexiest episodes? Obviously. I love when he exhibits some emotional range and these last three episodes definitely have that. His insecurity as he works so hard to impress Eladio, and how he tries to open up to Nacho only to be immediately sent to gay super hell… He does his best thinking when everyone else is asleep. What on earth is he talking about? I’d love to find out. 

6.07 “Plan and Execution” 

Let me just copy-paste what I wrote immediately after watching this episode. Ahem *clears throat* — this was the #1 sexiest lalo episode ever, and it’s because it had the most RANGE: his sewer rat truck stop lifestyle, flip flops, SHOWER SCENE, insane-girl-vlogging, perfectly styled hair while sitting in a storm drain for the 4th day in a row, gnawing on snacks like a little rat, getting sad and calling his uncle, temper tantrum, getting played by gus and then immediately playing gus back, the fly-fishing OVERALLS?, and that JACKET is such a good look for him… also, murder–

5.09 “Bad Choice Road”

This is still the premier Lalo episode imo… I had some recency bias when I wrote the above description and upon reflection I’m bumping 607 to the #2 slot—for now. But Schnauz really tried to outdo himself and I respect that. Patron saint of Lalo girls. Cut shower scene aside, 509 has a lot of Lalo pathos, both in his goodbye to Hector and in his genuine compliment to Nacho. Of course, though, this list is about sexiness, and the Jimmy/Kim/Lalo confrontation is soooo sexy. I’m sorry women, but Lalo shushing Kim without even looking at her… 🥵 and the sound of his boots on the floor when he takes slow-deliberate steps toward Jimmy 😵‍💫 and when Jimmy says “I already told you what happened” and Lalo snaps, “Did you?” 🥴 

OKAY, that’s it, that’s the list, thanks for coming everybody. I’m still in the car.

[fairestwriting]

Hello! May I request headcanons for Floyd and Jade reacting to their little sister dating Azul, Riddle, Ace, and Idia? Thanks and have an amazing day!

Azul Ashengrotto

Oh, you chose Azul? Well, that’s... fine. It could be worse and it could be more fun. They’re fine with it, and will barely bother you about it at all.

Azul, on the other hand? He’s gonna see hell. Every day at least one of them makes a comment about him dating their little sister, and right in the middle of work too. Y’know, if you don’t treat her right I’ll squeeze you anyway, even though we work together~ from Floyd and have you checked up on her lately? Take good care of my dearest sister, Azul, or you’ll regret it from Jade, paired up with their eerie smiles.

You won’t be able to tell if they’re genuinely being overprotective of you, or if they’re just doing this to tease Azul. Either way you can tell how it stresses him out just a bit, from how he often talks about what the weird comment of the day was to you.

Riddle Rosehearts

Once you break the news, Floyd gets so hyped he could almost jump so high he’d break through the ceiling. You’re dating Goldfishie? So he gets to tease him more often???

Jade himself isn’t nearly as excited, but he does find Floyd’s reaction amusing, so he’s very supportive of your relationship. Floyd won’t stop talking about all the things he’ll drag Riddle to do when he comes over and Jade just congratulates you politely.

The introduction dinner is very much reinforced by both your brothers, and... poor Riddle, honestly, because he’s already nervous when he gets there, but when Floyd busts the front door open and full on glomps him he knows it’s gonna be an insane night.

And most of the time it’s just Floyd making his life difficult, honestly. Riddle is just one of his favorite people to tease. There’s none of that “introducing boyfriend to protective older brothers” tension, just Floyd annoying Riddle to the moon and back. It never stops either, Riddle may just start avoiding to come over... which you’re very understanding of.

Ace Trappola

Trappola, that first year? Interesting choice. They do have some funny memories from when he was working for Azul, that anemone on his head.

With someone like him, though, they’ll very much be more protective. They don’t know Ace that well after all! Plus, he looks like quite the troublemaker. You can bet both of them will be lurking around him every now and then, leaving your boyfriend with a lingering feeling that he’s being watched...

They gather and make a whole plan about how the introduction would go. It’s their classic good cop/bad cop routine, Jade makes food for all of you and asks polite questions, making small talk while Floyd looks menacing in the background, offering a witty response to everything that Ace says during the conversation, talking about how he’s gonna be so easy to squeeze, if ends up having to do it~

But Floyd also just teases him on occasion, switching between violent protectiveness and just being a goofy older brother. Needless to say, Ace is very much terrified.

Idia Shroud

Idia Shroud, huh? They’re conflicted. The information he has on Idia is strange, with all those rumors about his family and the way he barely leaves his room, but also with the fact that Azul does know him and has told them he isn’t nearly as bad as he sounds.

Either way, bring him in, they say. They’re curious to meet him from up close, though it’ll definitely be hard to get Idia to come to your house... not just from his own shut-in ways, but also due to the fact that you have Leech in your last name.

But let’s say you were able to drag Idia out of his room to properly introduce him to your brothers. In that case, they’ll go with that routine again, just... a bit more subtle. Less of an interrogation than in Ace’s case because they already know a bit about him, they’re just suspicious of what he might be hiding...

The threats happen, naturally. Neither of them really care that he’s supposedly Azul’s friend, there’s definitely a hint of danger in him. That, and they think it’s hilarious how he squeals when they get too close.

if you wanna support my work, you can buy me a ko-fi or commission me!

[reidyoulikeabook]

hi i saw that your requests are open for the night for that list and i feel like 15&35 with spencer might be all i need to survive

anyways i’m on anon bc i’m scared you’ll hate this request but just know your writing is my favorite i would read your grocery lists at this point

excuse me i love this request please do not disparage yourself ever again <3 that’s the loveliest thing anybody has ever said to me and i will now think of you and this compliment whenever i write a grocery list

Ship: GN! (wears a bra, no mention of gender other than this) Reader x Spencer Reid

Warnings: Mentions of canon-typical case things, pining, mild thievery.

Word count: 2.4k

Prompts: #15 - "You’ve just won one free pass to my bedroom.”

#35 - “Well fuck, didn’t expect to be announcing my undying love for you this early in the morning.”

A/N: This got so ungodly long I’m so sorry I don’t even know if I can call this a blurb at this point it’s a full fic but I loved this idea so much and it ran away from me.

PLEASE let me know what you think because I bashed this out in the span of an hour and I’m not sure if I love or hate it.

--

Rossi’s spitballing theories behind you. Your head lolls on the desk, feeling far too heavy to attempt lifting up at this time of night. The case was hard, you were sleeping in shifts, and somehow you, Rossi, and Reid had drawn the short straw. Your eyes are blearing a little too much to make out the exact time on the clock, it’s on the opposite side of the room and your eyes burn when you squint to look at the time; you’re fairly certain you’re somewhere on the wrong side of 3am.

23 hours awake.

Sighing, you push yourself up, looking around and only now noting that Spencer isn’t in the room. He must have made his exit while you were flicking through the files making notes, it was often easier to do that with your headphones in.

Thankfully, you'd set up shop in a conference room at the hotel, given the local PD was tiny and barely equipped to handle its own officers.

“What about the meat packing district?” Rossi muses.

It’s a rhetorical question but one you actually have an answer to, “I don’t think so. The busiest part of the city is between the meat packing district and where he’s dumping the bodies. Cops do random stop-and-searches sometimes, I don’t know if he’d risk it.”

“He could drive around.”

You frown, thinking, “He’d be crossing state lines. Hey, wait,” You stand up from your chair, walking to the board and starting drawing circles that illustrate your point, “Spencer thought there must be a pattern, right? But it died off here and we didn’t know about any more victims. If we expanded the search to outside of state lines it might connect here, here, and here,” You circle each here with a point, tapping the pen against the board triumphantly.

Rossi smiles, “Good thinking kid. I’ll call Garcia.”

Exhausted from your breakthrough, you flop back down into the chair. The clothes you’ve been wearing are icky, uncomfortable with sweat and flying and you’re strongly regretting your choice in underwear now too.

You hear the door swing open, looking up to see Spencer entering the room. Holding your go-bag. The one you’d left on the jet this morning. The jet that was a two hour drive from your current location.

“Where did you? When did you?” Your incoherency is related to both your tiredness, and his thoughtfulness.

He smiles, “It took some calling around but I found a cab driver willing to go and pick it up. It just got here.”

“Spencer I-,” You start, scrambling to your feet to accept the bag he’s offering to you, “Thank you. That’s so sweet of you. How much was the cab?”

“Don’t worry about it,” He says, handing it to you and heading over to the board, “What are these?”

Rossi - who was watching the exchange with some amusement - starts explaining the eureka moment you’d had. Spencer nods along, turning to smile at you when Rossi credits the thought to you. It’s something he does a lot, Rossi’s noticed. Not in a condescending way, Spencer knows more than anyone just how capable you are at your job. It’s as if he needs to channel his love for you somewhere, and chooses pride. It’s the easiest one to explain, after all, because who isn’t happy for their colleague making breakthroughs?

That’s how Spencer justifies it anyhow.

You leave the room, heading to the bathroom to change. You’re incredibly grateful to slip out of your dirty clothes and the bra that’s cutting into you, so much so that you decide to pop on a t-shirt under your blazer. The sports bra and t-shirt combo revitalises you more than you thought possible for this hour.

Digging through, you find an item that you didn’t pack. A pair of brown fluffy slippers. Attached to them, a note, ‘I thought the heels on your boots looked uncomfortable, and I didn’t want your feet to hurt. - Spencer.

He signed the note. Something about that, alongside the gift itself, sends a flush of warmth through you.

He gave you his slippers

So?

Is that something friends do?

Wracking your brain, you try to think up if he’d do this for anyone else. Hotch? The thought makes you laugh. Emily? Maybe, actually. If she didn’t make it so hard for others to take care of her. Penelope? Almost definitely.

Your heart sinks a little, and you distract yourself by fumbling to get your work boots off and the slippers on.

It doesn’t matter it isn’t romantic, it matters that he did it.

It matters to every other person you date

He sets an impossibly high bar

Thankfully, the late hour means that there aren’t many local PD still hanging around to see your interesting choice of shoe. You slip through to the conference room, where Spencer and Rossi are huddled over the phone talking to Garcia.

Spencer does a double-take. He knew the gift he’d given you, but he hadn’t expected to see you...wearing them? You look beautiful: hair mussed from fiddling with it, an old college t-shirt under your blazer, brown fluffy slippers on your feet. The mix of professional and homely attire does something to him that he can’t quite explain, and he has to clear his throat before making his next point to Garcia.

Did he just blush?

You try not to stare at him, try not to see if that’s a tinge of red creeping up under his turtleneck.

It is.

“Thanks Garcia,” Rossi clips, hanging up the phone, “I’m going to go and find some coffee. You two,” He points, looking knowingly between you, “Just keep doing what you’re doing.”

No sooner has Rossi left the room, you both try speaking at once.

“You look-” He starts.

“Thank you so-” You start.

You both tinge with warmth.

“You go first,” He says, gnawing at his plump lower lip, finger turning oer the pen in his hand.

You laugh, a little breathless, “Well fuck, I wasn’t expecting to be announcing my undying love for you this early in the morning.”

His eyebrows quirk, is that...hope?

No. Wishful thinking

It’s probably confusion, and you’re a little embarassed, so you quickly clarify, “I mean Spencer Reid this is the kindest thing anyone has ever done for me. I’m endebted to you forever, really.”

A look washes over him: disappointment? You can’t trust your eyes to see the clock, so you feel you can’t entrust them to analyse his micro-expressions right now either. Especially when you’re biased by personal desire.

“It’s no problem,” He says, voice cracking a little, “You look...” He trails off.

“Unprofessional?” You suggest, teasing.

He shakes his head, swallowing, “You look really nice.”

It’s your turn to swallow. You drop your gaze to the pen, feeling too flustered to continue looking your colleague in the eyes at this moment in time, “Thank you. Where did you get slippers at this time of night?”

He shifts, one hand settling over the wrist of the other and fingers nervously rubbing over the back of his hand, “They were uhm. They were mine.”

“Yours?”

“Yeah,” It comes out pitchy, a squeak, “I’m sorry, that’s probably weird I just thought-”

“No, Spence,” You say, looking up at him and giving him a genuine smile, “No, it’s really sweet. I’m really lucky to have you.”

He gives his signature tiny tight-lipped smile, the one he gives when he’s feeling awkward or suppressing something he wants to say but can’t.

Please let it be the latter.

You relinquish him of the obligation of responding, instead standing to join him at the board, “You think you’ve got enough to make a geographical profile out of this?”

He nods, tapping the board with his pen, “Your idea about crossing interstate lines was really smart.”

“I have my moments.”

He wants to tell you that everything you have is a moment. You want to step closer, to cup his face in your hands, to press a kiss to the lips that you swear are pouting, begging to be kissed. You don’t.

Namely, because Rossi chooses this moment to re-enter the room, clutching three cups of coffee, “A little help here?”

From the way you spring apart, despite not even being that close, he wishes he’d taken a little longer. Damn kids and their inability to express their feelings for one another.

***

It’s 4:30am when the alarm on your phone goes off. With the work of the four of you - Garcia sporadically included when she had genius updates - you’ve managed to uncover a pattern that arches across states. You’d called Hotch, who’d commended the good work and advised that you should head to bed at 4:30. The others would get up then, and start to head out to the different potential crime scenes. Local PD was already on it.

You’d been told under no uncertain terms that you were to rest until at least 10am. Unless there was a call from Hotch. You prayed there wouldn’t be.

Rossi’s off the minute the alarm rings, bustling out the door with a “See you later kids.”

You wait behind while Spencer packs his things into his satchel. Or rather, unpacks his things from his satchel, frantically tearing it apart.

“What are you looking for?” You ask.

“My key card,” He murmurs, “I swear it was in my wallet.”

“You were rooming with Morgan, right? Want me to call him?”

“Yes please,” He says, continuing to unearth the contents of his bag onto the desk, with an increasing degree of agitation every second that goes by.

You dial Morgan’s number, and he answers after two rings, “Hey kid.”

You put the phone on loudspeaker.

“Hey. I’m with Spencer, we’re about to head up to our rooms for the night, are you still here? He can’t find his keycard.”

He lets out a breath of air through his teeth, “Sorry, I’m already on my way to one of the crime scenes. Local PD found a body over the state line. Nobody’s at the hotel but you guys and Rossi.”

Spencer outwardly sighs.

“No problem, we’ll figure something out.”

“Alright, good work kid, get some rest.”

The phone line clicks. Spencer’s brow is pinched with frustration, and your heart breaks for him. You’ve all been awake well over 24 hours, and he looks exhausted. He’s more eyebag than man at this point.

“Do you want me to go to the front desk?” You ask.

He shakes his head, “Reception doesn’t open until 6am. I’ll just wait here until then.”

He starts packing the belongings back into his bag, a resigned look on his face. And you have an idea.

“Actually,” You say, pulling the keycard out of your pocket and sliding it across the table to him, “You’ve just won one free pass to my bedroom.”

He picks the card up, squinting in confusion.

“Me and Rossi both got put in single rooms. I mean, it might not be the most comfortable thing in the world, both of us in a single bed, but it’s better than nothing right?”

He opens his mouth to object, and you shake your head.

“Spence you look like you’re about to drop unconscious on the floor and I don’t want to be responsible for yet another injureid.”

You’re so tired that the pun seems hilarious to you, and it does elicit a small laugh from him.

“Come on, it’s either share a bed with me, share a bed with Rossi, or try to sleep in one of these chairs. And I’ll be honest, I’d be kind of offended if you’d rather either of the other two options.”

“I can sleep on the floor,” He says, obviously warming up to the offer but not wanting to push his luck. You can hear the hesitancy in his voice.

“You can. But you won’t,” You tell him, settling your go-bag on your shoulder, “And might I remind you that all this time you’re spending objecting are minutes we could be spending sleeping.”

That seems to win him over. He tucks everything back into his bag, zipping it up, “After you.”

“You have the keycard,” You smile, “After you.”

***

The bed is a single bed. It prompts another round of ‘No really, I can sleep on the floor’ from Spencer, your enquiries about if it’s too much for his germaphobia or issues with touching, and his blushy embarassed reassurance that he doesn’t mind if it’s you.

He doesn’t mind if it’s you.

Not as if you’ll spend the next year mulling over those words or anything.

When you get out of the bathroom from changing, Spencer is tucked up in bed. Well, you say tucked up, but he’s practically lay right on the edge. How he’s actually physically still being supported by the mattress at this point must be his physics magic.

“I thought I said I didn’t want you getting injured,” You say, crossing the room to him.

He opens his eyes, “I didn’t want to-”

“It’s okay Spence,” You tell him, huddling down into bed.

There’s about enough room for you both to fit in, with an inch between you, so you pull gently at his arms, urging him closer.

“There’s enough room for us both without you going flying in the night,” You tell him.

He nods, obviously still a little nervous. It’s odd, lying face to face with him, illuminated only by lamplight. He looks soft. He always does, but there’s something intimate about this. You can feel his breath fan across your cheek, can feel how heat radiates off his arms.

“Do you want me to turn the lamp off?” He asks.

It’s not your staring that implores him to ask, because he’s been staring at you too. The both of you, trapped in a perfect bubble of a moment. Lamplight a spotlight, highlighting all the features of the person you love most.

“Sure,” You whisper, breath catching in your throat.

He flicks it off, settling back down.

His breath brushes against your face when he asks, “Do you want me to turn around?”

“Do you want to?”

He hesitates for a moment, voice even softer when he answers, “No.”

It’s dark. You can hardly make out his outline. Yet somehow, you both just know. Shifting, infitismally closer. Breaching the tiniest gap between you somehow feels like crossing the Grand Canyon. Your heart thumps in your chest, and you can feel it in your fingers, the fingers that trace cautiously along his jaw.

His mouth finally, finally, slotting against yours in the most gentle of kisses. A blink and you’d miss it.

And yet, in the same blink, your life changes forever.

When Rossi makes a speech at your wedding, he admits to being the thief of the missing keycard, and intentional orchestrator of the greatest love story he’s ever known. His words.

---

Permanent tagslist: @reidingmelodies @takeyourleap-of-faith @sassiest-politician @calm-and-doctor @ssa-m-187  @seasonfivereid @averyhotchner @muffin-cup @purplewaterbottles082 @spencerreid9 @drspencerreidd @reidsnose

(message/reply to this to be added or removed!!)

[welcometogrouchland]

AU where it's possible to take Gerry out of the book so that he's alive?

1. Gerry survives by becoming an avatar of the end. It wouldn't be his first choice. He's still fairly aligned with the eye, in a way that his role is to be the Spectre who Observes and catalogues, unbeknownst to the living. He's not really thrilled about being an avatar, especially considering the only people who can See him is those with a connection to the eye, meaning his only human contact is the archives staff. But it doesn't hurt the same way the book did, and he figures he can still find some way to make himself useful. Not ideal, but when has his life ever been ideal?

2. Y'know the bit in the retrospectives where Jonny and Alex say Jon and Gerry would be a great buddy cop duo? Yeah that's Jon and Gerry in this au. Assuming Gerry makes The Choice to be an avatar soon after meeting Jon, they probably spend a lot of late season 3 together, bouncing ideas back and forth, Gerry not letting on everything he knows because he's just really not in the mood to be used shockingly enough, and Jon, despite and insatiable want for knowledge, respects this boundary as much as possible, trying to let Gerry know he doesn't see him as an encyclopedia. For a while it's nice! And then the unknowing happens and when jon wakes up again it's not so nice...

3. Speaking of which, in season 4 Gerry doesn't exactly go out of his way to talk to basira or Melanie at first- basira doesn't trust him (she doesn't trust anyone at that point), and she only talks to him when she needs something from him (a dynamic Gerry really doesn't appreciate considering his history with Julia and Trevor). Gerry and melanie actually got along before everything went down hill. They had similar taste in a lot of things and Melanie was excited to talk to a ghost that didn't want to hurt her, but after a while, Gerry's awkward attempts to reach out just frustrated Melanie. She kept lashing out and Gerry could tell she wanted to be alone. So he left her alone, left basira alone, and consigned himself to being alone too. He never really gets along with basira until the end of it all, and he at least makes up with Melanie before she blinds herself (she stops being able to see him after that)

4. But speaking of being lonely, oh boy the Gerry and Martin dynamic in this au. Look, everyone and their mum has gone on about these two, but I gotta reiterate how much potential there is for their dynamic. Late season 3 when Gerry becomes an addition to the archives martin is predicably jealous. Of course, right when he's starting to think Jon might like him (though martin doubts Jon returns his feelings it's nice to at least be friends), some hot goth has to swoop in and steal his thunder! It's all very funny and petty considering Gerry is really not paying attention to any romantic drama in the archives- including the drama supposedly involving him. Gerry just isn't that type of guy. The period in between seasons 3 and 4 (one of my favorite pieces of unexplored canon tbh) has a different Gerry and Martin dynamic. Lots of them silently sitting beside jon's hospital bed, awkward exchanges. At least one stilted conversation where they almost bond over their relationships with their mothers. Then in season 4 even after martin turns to the lonely Gerry keeps trying to reach out, much to Martin's annoyance considering he's not allowed to talk to people (there's lots of snarky "well I'm not technically a person anymore, am I?" Remarks from Gerry in response). By season 5 martin has basically warmed up to Gerry and considers him a good friend, as does Gerry. It's something neither of them have had in a long while.

5. In season 5 Gerry keeps watch over the archives in the eyepocalypse. He has a domain, the twisted corpse of pinhole books which I can imagine is similar to the "endless library that's always shrinking" idea that Alex mentioned in the Q and A. It's a bit of a metaphor for the way Gerry's life, social circle and opportunities narrowed the more knowledge he gained of the supernatural world, as those trapped in pinhole books learn more and more, gaining more incentives to keep them locked away in the library forever, even if they find the exit, until they waste away and die. You can imagine Gerry wouldn't want to be there very often. He spends a lot of time with wtgfs- Georgie can see him because of her connection to the end and relays all the things Gerry says to Melanie. It's not perfect but they're happy they can talk again. I like to think Gerry is one of the avatars who ends up somewhere else, but honestly? I think his last moments are spent in the newly restored earth, before fading away. He's finally rid of the entities. He can rest now.

[rosetintmyworld84]

I'm not mad, just disappointed

Anyone who likes the live action Cowboy Bebop, go ahead, you do you. These are just my thoughts on it as an adaptation, and well...

First of all, it fails as an adaptation. Now, I'm not at all saying I wanted a shot for shot remake, I'll rewatch the anime for that. I wanted something new. And I at least wanted the characterization to remain consistent.

Full disclosure, I couldn't make to the end of episode 2. I value my time too much to force myself to watch 10 episodes of something I don't like at all. And after seeing some of the Julia spoilers I think I made the right decision.

So the show doesn't just remake the existing episodes/movie, but it does take pieces from the anime, dialogue, whole scenes, side characters, from various episodes and mix them together in a kind of mad libs script. When it made Katerina the runaway daughter of a crime Lord I was like, ok let's see where this goes. And it basically goes nowhere. It ends as Asteroid Blues ends, but instead of a couple on the run, with Katerina realizing Asimov has become too much of a junkie, too reliant on Red Eye to ever be the man she once loved, she kills him and herself to escape. In this new version they are star crossed lovers, and Asimov's drug use isn't an issue apparently, and he is killed by Faye and then kills herself in a Juliet parody. This kind of misreading becomes indicative of the show as a whole. 

Now the casting was actually really great, and honestly I don't care that much about John Cho's age difference from Spike; it was a nice music related detail but not really a deal breaker. AND it could have been a jumping off point for them to do something new. Same with Faye being introduced as a bounty hunter already. Her character was pretty defined by being a gambler and con artist in the anime, but that wasn’t really her defining trait. She is a survivor who has had to look out for herself for a long time, while also having no past or sense of where she belongs.

And Mustafa Shakir is a fantastic choice for Jet, and I was really looking forward to it, but aside from great casting THEY MURDERED MY BOY! I know he’s not everyone’s favorite, but Jet is integral to the cohesion of the Bebop crew. Jet is a former cop who left because he was an idealist that couldn't clean up a corrupt system. He is the black dog that won’t let go once he gets his teeth into you. And in no way would he chuckle it up about killing the bounty heads that they need alive to collect the bounty on, because their faces looked “so funny”. He was the conscience of the Bebop, reigning in Spike and Faye’s worst impulses. He is a man that feels such responsibility for the people in his life that he makes sure he’s the one to bring in his ex’s new boyfriend, to make sure he isn’t hurt, and that the police get the evidence that he killed a man in self defense. Despite his growling and complaining he worries about his crew, and comes to the rescue. It’s because of his need for companionship that the crew grows from him and Spike to include Ein, then Faye, then Edward. This is a man who is so desperate for a family he can’t function when they’re gone. I like to believe that in the anime, after Spike is dead, he and Faye go off to find Ed and Ein and bring them back. In no part of this characterization is a man that would run around the solar system, barely scraping by, while he HAS A CHILD! It doesn’t matter that he left the force, that he and his wife are divorced, Jet would NEVER leave his child behind! It just doesn’t fit! And don’t think we didn’t notice that as soon as he’s played by a black man they made Jet and absentee father Netflix. WE NOTICED!

All you need to know about how the creators totally missed the point is their comments about the women in the anime, and how they “improved them” for the live action show. Improved them how? Cheap girlboss™ Faye, battered wife Julia, Syndicate bar owner Ana are not the breakthrough feminist portrayals they believe them to be. Faye was already a kickass, take no shit kind of woman before. Her design was a bit fan service-y, and the costume change was very welcome, but everything about her was about survival. She had her Redtail, all those cool gadgets disguised as jewelry and cosmetics, and girl could throw a punch. Julia had ALREADY left the syndicate, living on her own for 4 years. Ana was a tough as nails FAT lady (OG Bebop was all about the diversity of body types in a way Netflix’s is very not) who was likely somehow related to Spike, like an angry Russian aunty. To say nothing of all the other female characters who were diverse, had full inner lives, and agency. 

And Vicious, oh my GOD Vicious. Part of his menace was how little he was in the show. Some brain trust decided that Vicious was integral to the plot and had to be EVERYWHERE, in a god awful wig. First of all, the whole Vicious/Julia/Spike love triangle was NEVER about Julia. Anime Vicious could give a shit about her. For Vicious it was always about Spike. Because of his relationship with Julia Spike wanted to leave. THAT was the conflict between them. If Vicious couldn’t have him, then NO ONE COULD! Spike wanting out meant he could grow and change, which means he’s NOT like Vicious, and that’s something Vicious could not allow. Spike in the syndicate gave Vicious power. That’s all Vicious really cares about, power. And nothing in Julia’s, admittedly tiny characterization, would stay with some psychopathic crime lord out of a misguided “love”. She knew leaving would put a target on her back, and she did it anyways. And she left without Spike because traveling together would make them more obvious. 

And for as much as people tend to typify Spike in the finale as going after Vicious for Julia, he’s really not. He was going to go after Vicious after they found Ana. He had already decided, even though he and Julia had just found each other, and she begged him not to, he was going to end him once and for all. Because that’s who Spike is. He had run away, and hoped he could just move on; but after Mao and then Ana he couldn’t let him be. He knew Vicious would continue to go after everyone he cares about. Julia’s death was just the final nail in the coffin, but he was still always going to end up taking the Red Dragons on regardless. 

It seems they were trying go for a lot of camp with it, which is fine and in keeping with a lot of the original tone, but where they miss the mark is the camp surround the bebop crew, but they are playing it totally straight. THAT’S what makes the world feel real, and likely why their Ed feels so off the mark for so many people. maybe it’s actor, maybe it’s the direction, but if anyone involved had every met a kid they’d know Ed behaves like a normal goofy kid, albeit with amazing hacker skills. It shouldn’t have been hard to have someone act like Ed but real, kids just be like that. And Ed adds an element of innocence to a hardened and cynical crew, and that’s an important balance. 

And I get that there are monetary constraints in live action, but the world seems so much smaller. Jet, Spike, and Faye only every fly their own space craft on planet. The space casino in Honky Tonk Women is massive; it feels like a space station. In the live action, it’s a closed off, fairly small room. It doesn’t feel like the right scale for a story that takes place across many planets, moons, and asteroids. 

Again they nailed a lot of the look, and I love that they kept Punch and Judy completely accurate, and the casting, for the most part, is fantastic. But they missed what people loved about the show. It wasn’t quippy one liners (and the Netflix ones are pretty bad ones), it wasn’t badass villains, it was the crew. It was the found family of broken and lost people, all of whom bring something different to the mix. It was seeing them become a family, as cliche as that has become now, but not realizing it until it’s too late. The crew in the Netflix version feels more like the Suicide Squad in the 2016 Suicide Squad; a bunch of unpleasant people who don’t like each other, becoming a “family” because the script says they do. It’s a cheap imitation that brings nothing new to the story. I’m upset because it could have been great, but instead it’s generic and boring. But I’ll always have the anime, and the movie, and even the 3 volume manga, or the 2 volume Shooting Star manga. To be fair, it is probably impossible to get that lightening in a bottle a second time, even with Yoko Kanno writing the music. And honestly, I think we, as a society, need to admit that live action adaptations are never going to work, because the medium of a story matters, and animation can produce wonders and fantasy that live action, even with modern special effects, can only dream of doing. 

[goldentournesol]

The Receptionist and the Profiler (Epilogue)

Chapter Eight: Epilogue

(Spencer Reid x f!Reader)

Series Masterlist

General Masterlist

A/N: Welcome to the final chapter of the series. this is just a summary of what Spencer and Reader’s life is like in the future. thank you so much for joining me on this journey. I’ve enjoyed it so much more than I thought I would. So without further ado, enjoy.

Working for the FBI made for a pretty wild life. Even though Y/N wasn’t an agent, her life had been caught up with work just like all the other agents’. It also didn’t help that her boyfriend was endangered practically every minute of every day. It was hard, but Spencer and Y/N made it work. Among the darkness, they created light for each other. Spencer was no longer dreading coming home to a quiet life of reading and rereading his favorite books. He had a partner, he had a lover, someone to depend on. She was there for him as he grieved the loss of his friend and coworker deeply and she was there when he struggled with his excruciating migraines. They walked through life together, facing the challenges head on.

Emily’s death had taken a toll on the both of them, but they were nothing short of relieved when they found out that she was alive and well. Many changes took place after that.

JJ had worked long and hard to turn into a profiler, the liaison had years upon years of experience before switching jobs which meant Hotch had to find a new communications liaison, but he didn’t have to look far at all. He had offered Y/N the job without a second thought. A lot of her job as receptionist covered a liaison’s job. She would often get numerous calls a day from nosy reporters and she’d have to shut them down. However, with the added responsibilities, she’d had to take classes and had undergone copious amounts of training with JJ and Hotch, but she found that she flourished in this new job, despite the hardships that came with it.

This meant that she had her own office now. Whenever Spencer wasn’t at his desk, he was in her office, and whenever she wasn’t in her office, she was at his desk. She often found that she missed her old job as receptionist, but nothing could replace the newfound feeling of making a difference in the world. She used to admire JJ’s ability to stand before nosy reporters and judgmental cops, and here she was, blowing herself (and the team) away with these hidden abilities. 

Before, she was aware of the general gist of the job, she knew it wasn’t easy, but the team often kept the gory details to themselves around her. Now, she had to pick and choose the gore which constantly left her with the question of whether she’d made the right choice or not. The intensity of the job had slightly damaged her spirits, but thankfully she had an amazing support system. She couldn’t have done it without Spencer’s unending support, or Hotch’s for that matter. Before allowing Y/N to accept the job, Hotch had made sure to warn her about the horrors first. She assured him she was ready, even though sometimes she felt like she wasn’t.

On the somewhat bright side, this also meant that she was around during most, if not all cases. This had Spencer jumping for joy, but it also terrified him to his bones. All his emotions were always on overdrive when it came to her. He was glad that he didn’t have to spend so much time away from her, but it simultaneously meant that he was constantly worried for her safety. He never wanted her to go into the field, ever. No matter the amount of combat training she did with Morgan. She found that she preferred interviewing victims’ families and controlling the press to facing serial killers head on anyway.

Sometimes it was easier for her to control the press from Quantico, so it wasn’t uncommon for her to stay back during cases. One particular case had dragged on for much longer than any of them had expected. The whole team was gone in Wisconsin and Hotch had asked her to stay back and hold down the fort at Quantico. The team ended up staying there for two weeks. It was the longest she’d ever been away from Spencer. Nightly calls weren’t enough for them and Spencer truly hadn’t experienced such an emptiness without her before.

As he scooped her into his awaiting arms right outside the elevator when they finally made it back to the office, he breathlessly declared to her, “Marry me.”

She pulled back from the tight embrace to examine his features, “What?” She said, voice thick with confusion.

“I don’t want to be away from you for that long ever again. I don’t want to wait anymore. Marry. Me.” He enunciated firmly. She broke out into a grin.

“Okay, I will.” She laughed and he squeezed her once more, savoring her warmth.

“This isn’t the official proposal by the way, you deserve something far nicer than all this, but I just want you to know that I’m ready if you are.” Spencer clarified and she threw her head back with laughter. Spencer’s heart soared at the sound.

Spencer took that statement and ran with it. He teased her every chance he got. At one dinner date they had planned, he had the nerve to begin his sentence with her full name, her heart dropping to her gut.

“Y/N Y/L/N, would you do me the honor of...sharing this fine wine with me?” Spencer said smugly, resulting in a shocked, but somehow relieved scoff coming from her.

A different time, he decided to give her a false alarm during one of their daily lunch walks in the park nearest to Quantico. He knelt down to one of his knees in the middle of their promenade.

“Y/N Y/L/N, will you...wait for me while I tie my shoe?” Spencer asked with a face-splitting grin. This time, she didn’t hesitate to shove his shoulder slightly, causing him to lose balance and almost faceplant into the pavement.

At this point, she truly had no idea when he was going to pop the big question. Knowing him, it could literally be at any point in time. She had to admit, though, he kept her on her toes. A month later, she was sure he’d pop the question during JJ’s wedding reception because of the way he was staring at her all night. He’d looked dreamy in his tux to say the least. Y/N was almost too shy to dance with him because of how magnificent he looked. What she didn’t know was that he was thinking the same exact thing about her. She looked exquisite in the evening gown she adorned and Spencer was absolutely enraptured by her. 

Being so surrounded by love and admiration, Spencer finally asked her to marry him the second they made it through her front door. They stood in the small hallway between the kitchen and the living room. She had just turned around from taking her heels off and was met with Spencer down on one knee, holding the most beautiful ring out to her in a navy blue velvet box.

“I had this elaborate speech planned, Y/N, I really did. I was going to talk about the stars, about the first conversation we had when I told you about the origins of yogurt, about how stupid we were for not realizing our love for each other earlier, but I realized that none of that matters right now. All I know is that this feels right, you make everything feel right. Will you marry me?” Spencer asked, his face incapable of hiding even a sliver of the adoration he felt for her.

“Yes, I’ll marry you in every lifetime and every universe.” She said, tears falling freely from her eyes. He sprang to his feet and wrapped her up in a long awaited embrace. He felt her body shake with wet laughter against his. He placed the ring on her finger and quickly kissed her passionately. Their giddy giggles flew through and around them.

Spencer knew she didn’t want a long engagement. Her previous engagement was hard enough of the both of them. Their jobs were just so demanding, it was hard to set a date and keep from pushing it back. Their wedding planner was beyond frustrated with them, but what can they do? They’re literally out there saving lives. And before they knew it, two years had passed them by and they were due to be married in two months.

But, alas, Spencer Reid seemed to have a knack for getting shot by unsubs right before weddings. While they were investigating a difficult case in Texas, Spencer was shot in the neck. Y/N was at the police station when she’d heard. She wasn’t sure who took her to the hospital to see him, everything was a blur since she got the call. She was plagued by the fear of losing him. 

She’d overheard Alex Blake and JJ discuss how he’d always wanted children when she arrived at the hospital. In the back of her mind, she screamed that she’d give him all the kids he wanted, if the universe just let them breathe. 

All too quickly, she was a sobbing mess in JJ’s arms. He’d gotten hurt before, he’d been in danger before, but she’d never been as close to it as she was then, it terrified her. Garcia had arrived and guided her to Spencer’s room. In another flash of events, there was a loud bang and Y/N had barely registered that a gun was shot inside the room.

The ringing of her ears subsided just enough to hear Spencer tell Garcia, “You saved my life, do you hear me?” 

That was the second time his life was endangered in the span of two hours. Y/N looked her fiancé square in the face.

“I don’t want to wait anymore. As soon as you’re up and well, we’re getting married.”

Exactly one week later, they’d rushed through whatever they could rush through. Thankfully her dress was ready and altered, the cake was made to order, but sadly, they’d given up their gorgeous, gorgeous venue. Rossi was more than happy to offer up his backyard and the couple found it more than fitting to commemorate their love in the very location where Spencer had first confessed his feelings to her and where she’d returned them later. 

Life truly came full circle as Spencer stood in the same exact spot where he’d confessed his undying love for her the very first time. Spencer did everything he could to keep from sobbing like a child as he saw the owner of his heart stand before him, just like she did that day, but this time adorning her white dress.

Being the romantic sap that he was, he recounted almost every milestone in perfect detail during his vows. Through the unrelenting tears, of course. Y/N’s words came out wobbly and wet, but she managed to get her vows out. There really was not a single dry eye in the small, intimate crowd. The entire team had watched them fall in love oh-so-gracelessly over the years.

Their ceremony was beautiful. It was different than JJ’s had been, it was more special to the two of them. Spencer was in nothing short of awe as he watched his wife sway with Henry wrapped up in her embrace on the dance floor. Henry’s little arms and legs were wound tightly around her, the bottoms of his shoes surely smearing dirt all over the back of her dress, but she didn’t care. Not when Spencer was looking at her like that. His throat clogged itself up as she caught his eye and smiled sweetly. The same thing was on both their minds, it was like an unspoken agreement had been made through some kind of special, invisible bond between them.

He couldn’t wait to have a family with that woman.

And they’d wasted absolutely no time. Three months after the wedding, Y/N announced that she was carrying a baby Reid. Tears and cheers erupted for them all. They had found the perfect little house with the help of Morgan. It was perfect for their growing family.

Pregnancy wasn’t easy on Y/N at all. Flying all around the country and helping catch serial killers was not an activity that pregnant Y/N wanted to engage in. The team had been more than forgiving as they dealt with her mood swings and crazy cravings. It also turns out that soon-to-be mama Y/N was especially helpful in chewing out unsubs in the interrogation room, but as useful as she proved to be, she couldn’t wait to pop the little peanut out.

Spencer and the team were rushing off the jet to the hospital as they’d heard Y/N had gone into labor. Spencer had only missed the very beginning and was by her side the entire time after that.

They welcomed baby Emelia Reid into this world on a chilly September night. Spencer was over the moon, he was borderline obsessed with looking at the baby and keeping a hand on her at all times whenever she was in the room with them. 

He waited for his mother to fly out a few days later just to meet baby Emelia. He wept as he watched his mother kiss the top of his baby girl’s head. No other feeling could ever compete with the one he experienced at that moment in time.

Emelia had grown into such a radiant little girl. She was a miniature hurricane of chocolatey brown curls and rosy red cheeks. She’d already blown her parents away as her intelligence only seemed to increase with time. The similarities she had to her father were astonishing. She was a daddy’s girl through and through, but Y/N didn’t seem to mind sharing him. Not when the sight of them together instantly melted her heart every single time.

Diana tried to be as active in the baby’s life as she could possibly be, however her condition began to worsen over time. Eventually, Diana had had to move in with Y/N, Spencer, and Emelia. Thankfully, their house was large enough, but taking care of a toddler and Diana while being 6 months pregnant was inarguably too much to handle for Y/N. She’d found out that she was pregnant again, and they were expecting another baby girl. Y/N had also taken time off from work to focus on the dilemmas at home. 

The at-home nurse was doing the best she could since Spencer was always either at work or off finding Diana some kind of new treatment. He’d told Y/N that he’d been going to Mexico to get her some special medication and so she didn’t mind as long as she’d been kept in the loop of where and how he was. Spencer Reid never kept anything from his wife. They were always transparent with each other. Y/N was glad that he’d told her about his trips down to Mexico, or else she’d be out of her mind looking for him. 

But suddenly, during one trip, he’d stopped answering her calls. Complete silence on his end. It had driven her absolutely mad. It was only until JJ visited her the next morning informing her that Spencer had been arrested in Mexico for the illegal possession of drugs and possibly murder. If JJ hadn’t been around to catch Y/N before passing out, she or the baby would have been in extreme danger.

But Spencer Reid never kept anything from his wife. She’d been adamant that she would have known if he was struggling with drugs again. The last time she’d seen Spencer was during the trial. He’d looked so terrified as they pronounced him guilty and shoved him away from her. From his family. He’d spared Y/N one last broken glance, his gaze drifting down to her swollen belly. Their second child was on the way and he won’t be there to meet them. He mouthed a heartfelt apology before they took him away. Y/N wept and wept until everyone but the team left the courtroom.

“How am I gonna do this, Pen? How am I gonna do this without him?” She spoke between breathy sobs. The baby, Emelia, Diana. She couldn’t do it on her own. It would break her.

“You won’t be alone, Y/N. We’re all going to help you.” Penelope reassured her, but the only thing that was capable of reassuring her was currently in handcuffs behind closed doors.

She’d had to keep Spencer’s whereabouts from Diana and Emelia. She’d told him that he was consulting a case somewhere in California, where he also had access to the beach. Up until that lie wasn’t viable enough. Emelia’s questions about her daddy absolutely tore through what remained of her heart.

Diana’s caretaker had apparently quit and a new one came by. Y/N thought something was off, but she pushed that thought aside as she worried over her husband and the baby that they were due to meet any day now. Two months had passed and Spencer was still incarcerated, he hadn’t allowed Y/N or Emelia anywhere near the prison, but she’d broken down at the possibility of him being locked away for 25 years.

She’d visited him once, right after the birth of their second baby. They’d had another beautiful baby girl, whose name had been decided long ago by the two parents. Baby Adaline. The delivery was immensely difficult without him, but she pushed through. Y/N had almost begged Emily to pull any, any strings she could to get them to meet since Spencer said he’d only agree to see them if he could ensure their privacy and safety. They’d managed to get them in with Spencer’s lawyer, Fiona. Y/N cooed to Adaline as she cradled her in her arms, wrapped in her little blanket. The cooing served as a distraction as she waited anxiously for Spencer to meet them in the small little room. 

Suddenly the doors emitted a loud buzzing noise, prompting a loud cry from Adaline. A sound that was strange to echo off the walls of this place. Y/N shushed her gently until she caught sight of her husband walking through the door. Tears gathered in her eyes as she took in his disheveled state. His eyes found hers and quickly flitted to the squirming bundle of joy in her arms. Spencer’s lip wobbled as he entered the room. Y/N shifted Adaline to rest upon her shoulder as she wrapped one arm tightly around Spencer. No touching was allowed, but the guards pretended to look the other way, courtesy of whatever strings Emily had pulled.

The three of them bawled against each other in an unceremonious reunion. Spencer at last pulled away from his wife and stared at the baby in the bundle. He hesitated to carry her. His hands were clean, but they still felt so dirty. How could his hands hold this beautiful gift of life while they’d been committing such heinous acts within these very walls? But one utterance from his wife made that all vanish.

“It’s okay, Spence.” She smiled slightly, angling Adaline towards him. 

He gazed at Y/N closely, as if checking to see if she was sure. Y/N carefully handed her over to him and he instantly turned into less of a shell of himself and had begun to resemble the man that Y/N could recognize. He cooed to her softly, kissing her face repeatedly. Adaline instantly quieted down at her father’s touch.

The small interaction had fueled the pair for weeks. Spencer found a source of hope and was determined to see through to the other side. He would not rot away in his cell forever. The team continued to try and crack the case from the outside. Y/N was instructed to be more careful than ever. She often brought Emelie and Adaline to work with her. She had not been flying out with the team, preferring to stay close to her girls until Spencer was back.

On one of the days Y/N brought her girls to work, she’d found out that Diana had been missing. Her caretaker was accompanying her to visit Spencer in prison and then neither of them had been seen afterwards. They quickly identified the caretaker as Lindsey Vaughn. If Y/N had been on the case with them ten years ago, she would have identified her, but she was just another face to her. Y/N was livid, Vaughn had been around her children, she’d been inside her home. If Spencer didn’t get to catch the bitch, they better believe Y/N will.

Spencer was released quickly after the BAU proved his innocence. He was on his way to the office now. Y/N had been peering into Adaline’s carriage when she’d heard the high pitched voice of Emelia.

“Daddy!” Emelia exclaimed, racing across the bullpen to jump into her father’s arms.

“Hi baby. Daddy missed you so much.” Spencer said, hiding his tears in his daughter's hair. He held her tightly to his chest as he crossed the bullpen and made it to Y/N’s office. He put Emelia down gently and scooped his wife into his arms.

“You’re back.” She said softly through tears. 

He hooked his chin over her shoulder and sniffled strongly. He might not be the same man he was before, but he still loved her unconditionally. He still loved all three of them unconditionally.

“I’m here.” He repeated the phrase out loud like a mantra.

And he was here, but he also wasn’t. His wife could tell that the man who stood before her had endured hell, but when he cradled their baby girl so tightly to his chest, it was hard to imagine him as anything other than a loving, gentle father, and a compassionate partner. She knew she’d hold onto that thought forever. Once they retrieved Diana, they knew they could face anything.

As long as they were together.

And they knew they would be, for as long as the universe would allow in this life, and then the one after that.

~THE END~

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