#and with all the other news about s4 that I have heard? I deserve this. dufflepuds you owe me this.

[still-a-morosexual-help]

Remember this post where I talk about the points "for" and "against" who Nightbringer could be, with the obvious choices being Barbatos and Michael (seriously read that post, so that this post will make more sense)

Ok so more points! To be honest though, this post is less about Barbatos vs Michael and more about Demon vs Angel

1.) MC actually meets and talks with Nightbringer who says he's a demon

BUT he says it like this:

• Barbatos should know by now that MC has never had a problem trusting demons. They're literally in the situation they're in now because they gave a book that could have easily stopped him to the demon that was trying to kill them 5s ago and then pledged to protect that demon & his family and keep them happy

• Angels on the other hand do think like this. We see it from what Luke & (to a lesser extent) Raphael say. From what Lucifer says when he first meets Diavolo. From the (pretty fucked up but also lore/relationship building) angel event. Even from Simeon every once in a while.

2.) It's (probably) not present Barbatos because Nightbringer says that the new path that MC is on will bring about true happiness, whereas the path MC was already on (post s4) was already steadily moving towards what Diavolo wanted (they had a human employed in a high position in the Devildom hello???), and so was also what Barbatos wanted. I'd say it's also probably not past Barbatos (and I talk about why in the post I linked up top)

3.) Nightbringer, also tries to guide MC and get them to do what he wants because he thinks that's the best path, even when they repeatedly say they don't want this. This also feels like something an angel would do? Like demons make pacts with humans and then they have to listen and do whatever the human commands them to. Angels become guardian angels for certain humans, they're not supposed to interact with the humans but they are supposed to protect them - that sounds like there's a lot less of the human's decisions/choices/free will being taken into consideration than when in a pact with demons.

4.) Adam says he heard trumpets right before he met Nightbringer. And look it's been like over a decade since I read the Bible (so please correct me if I'm wrong) but aren't trumpets very famously associated with angels?

5.) Say we take Nightbringer's name very literally, as in Night - Bringer. And Nightbringer's little slam poetry sesh after talking with MC implies it should be taken literally. He brings darkness. And um....

??????

Now I'm not placing all my bets on Nightbringer being an angel.

There's always the possibility it's a third secret Barbatos (which I think would be very funny) or a completely different character

Right now, I'm just simply laying out all the facts that we've been presented with. Eiher way I'm excited to find out who it is (and punch him in the face. I think MC deserves to break his jaw)

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9.) Presumably-Michael says that the MC allying with Nightbringer would piss the Celestial Realm off

[therantsofawriterrr]

The Umbrella Academy Final Season: My Version

Part Two: The Keepers

Overview: Lila and Five probe into a mysterious group called the Keepers, while someone at the CIA gets orders to stop Five.

TW: Mature language, mentions of PTSD and trauma, also, if you don't want spoilers to s4, read it after watching ig, tell me if i missed anything!! Pairings in the chapter: Five��OC, a little bit of Diego×Lila (I'm just gonna give these two so much love, bruh), also, Lila and Five being sibling-coded besties. A/N: hellu, hellu, here's the second chapter. so i realised i dunno what Derek's pronouns are in the show, so like, if i got it wrong pls tell me i'll rectify it immediately. Also, we have the Diego and Lila pairing THAT DESERVED TO SEE LESGOOOO

Masterlist

Since Five started working in the CIA three years prior, he had solved many cases. Many that had been a threat to national security and all that. When he'd heard of the cult called The Keepers, he'd decided to check them out, solely because he thought it was worthwhile.

It was the tenth meeting he was attending, being consistent and playing the part as perfectly as he could, listening to people rant in a support group. He was starting to think it was a waste of time.

"My name is Gus," the man who'd raised his hand spoke, making Five blink once to get himself back into task at hand.

"Hi, Gus," Five said with the others who were sitting around in the circle.

"I've been searching for the truth my whole life. Then I found this group. And it was like, a lightbulb went off. For the first time, I heard people talking about what I was going through," Gus ranted emphatically. Five held a yawn in his mouth, letting out a slow breath to let the air out.

"I realised, there's nothing wrong with me. It's this timeline, man. It's screwed up!"

If he'd been any younger, Five would have asked, "Are you sure it's not you who's screwed up, Gus?"

But he only took part in the murmurs of "Yeah!" and "Exactly!"

"I know I can come here and say anything. I could say that Sir Reginald Hargreeves is actually an alien who's secretly grooming a cabal of teenage super soldiers, and all you guys actually know what I'm talking about."

Shit. Bullseye.

That wasn't known to anybody but him and his family. His eyebrows bowed in a tiny furrow before he went back to his poker face.

Gus took a small breath, putting out his hands for the person on either side of him to hold.

"And now, I have hope. 'Cause I know a cleanse is coming."

Everyone started clapping, the soft noise echoing in the walls to ring in his ears. His brain started acting up once again as some gruesome memories of the past went through his head.

"Thank you, Gus," the guy sitting beside him said. "Thank you."

The bald man turned to Five next, looking at him encouragingly as he asked, "How about you? Got anything you wanna share?"

"Yeah, sure," Five replied, trying to cook up a lie in a second. But then he had a second thought.

Fuck that.

"Hi, my name's Jerome," he said, lifting a hand in hello, waiting for the others to say it back. "I'm still new to all this, but I can tell you folks, what you're talking about is real," he heaved a big sigh, getting lost in his mind, back in the apocalypse, the first time. "You're not crazy. I know because I've been to other timelines. I don't look it, but I'm 63. I spent 45 years lost in a future apocalypse. And I was involved in the Kennedy assassination. All that's unraveling now. I don't know what's real and what's not anymore. I feel like I can't trust anybody. All I know is I'm glad to have found all of you," he finished, letting out another quick sigh. "That's it. That's all I got."

The room erupted into claps again and his shoulders bunched up in response as he almost got under his chair for protection.

"You wanna hear some real shit, kid?" The guy beside him asked, not really waiting for an answer. "I'll take you to a real meeting."

Five resisted the urge to smirk victoriously, knowing he was getting closer to whatever the truth was.

When he entered the CIA building, he was walking briskly.

"You're late," an agent friend of his, Derek, announced.

"I know," Five answered sheepishly.

"Mustache."

His hand automatically went up, peeling the mustache off his upper lip and handing it to them, taking the file in return and going to the bathroom to change into his suit.

After changing, he pretty much jogged to the boss's room, knocking and entering when he heard a, "Yeah, come in."

"The Keepers function mainly as a support group," he droned as he handed in his mission report. "But, with strong cult-like tendencies. Membership is rapidly growing across all metro areas in the US, as well as in Europe. It's all there in my report, sir."

The deputy director of the CIA, Lance Ribbons, looked through the report and asked, "What's the organizing principle?"

Five took in a quick breath, hesitating before replying, "They believe we're all somehow stuck in the wrong timeline."

"Well," Lance said as his lips curved to one side in an amused smirk. "Just a bunch of loony tunes if you ask me."

He wove his fingers together on the table and turned serious. "Drop this Keeper nonsense. Move on. I think it's time you got back to your other cases. Ladybug, Panama, Chicken Wing."

Five felt a prickle of irritation but didn't show it on his face. "Sir, I am making progress with this."

"Now, you listen to me," Lance interrupted firmly, raising a hand. "You have the makings of a fantastic spook. A suspicious mind, a love of complexity and detail. A certain maturity, that most of my young agents lack. Play your cards right, you'll be running this place someday. "

Five stared at the man and took in a deep breath. He knew that the underlying statement beneath all that unnecessary flattery was just to say, "Do as I say, I mean well."

But something still didn't seem right. It might not be a national security level threat, but it surely was a mystery as to how these guys believe they remember the events of another, or, more accurately, the previous timelines.

"Thank you for saying that, sir."

Elsewhere in her home, Lila was getting ready for book club, wearing a pink strapless dress and styling her hair and makeup. She went out to the living room, showing her outfit to Diego with a spin.

"How do I look?" she asked. "Does this dress make me look weird?"

"Nah, you look great as always," Diego complimented in a soft voice, looking at her with stars in his eyes and a sweet, encouraging smile. "Do you feel like it?"

Lila's lips curved into a confident smile as she leaned down and gave him a peck on the lips. "Well, see you after book club, my love."

"See ya," he said, watching her exit the house. Immediately after, he opened the friend tracker app on his phone. He hoped she'd keep her location on, just so that he'd know she was safe. Grace came running to him with the twins, telling him about a cartoon they wanted to watch, so he happily set them on his lap, holding them close with a content smile, and watched the show with them, glancing at his phone at regular intervals.

At the meeting place, the bald guy, whose name Five had gotten to know was Larry, climbed up the stairs excitedly as he adjusted his suit.

"All right, just be cool, Jerome," Larry told him, even though he sounded just a tad bit nervous. "Anybody asks, you're with me."

Five followed Larry into the meeting room, opening the door and letting it close behind them. Five looked around the room curiously and suspiciously, as if he was trying to get the secrets out just by staring at the walls and the people.

His eyes went back to Larry's and he returned his smile with a fake excited one.

"These are the real Keepers. Best of the best," Larry stated, before greeting another member.

Five's eyes did another search of the room and he almost missed it. Almost.

Was it his imagination, or was Lila in this room? His eyebrows furrowed as he blinked once and confirmed what he saw was true. She was vociferously talking to an older woman in a different accent, asking for her opinion on something.

He sighed, as indignation and disappointment trickled down his spine. She was lying to his brother. Plus, she could blow his cover.

He placed a hand on his companion's back and excused himself, walking to where she was standing and muttering, "So, this is book club, is it?"

He heard her breath catch in her throat as she tittered and excused herself. She turned to keep her wine glass on a table as he fished up a name tag.

"You blow my cover, I'll rip your balls off," she warned, her accent immediately going back to normal.

"You're gonna blow my cover," Five argued. He decided not to talk about the fact that she was lying to his brother, who already had a shitload of trust issues. He'd keep in mind to address it, though.

"Nice mustache, by the way," Lila teased in a typical sister-in-law fashion. "What are you supposed to be? A Greek serial killer?"

Five chuckled as he wrote down his fake name on the tag. "I'll have you know this is top-of-the-line horse hair. The real question is, what are you doing here, 'Nancy' ?"

"Let's just say the transition from full-time assassin to full-time caregiver to 3 small children and a husband is no picnic," she explained in a dry tone. "I thought I'd be fine with it. And I am happy, don't get me wrong. But I can't help feel as if something's... missing."

Five could understand that to some extent. As much as he'd thought he'd finally get the retirement he'd been craving for in the past apocalypse, he'd been used to the stress and everything that he'd been going through in life. And if he was honest, he was happy to not have an apocalypse hanging over his head like a sword.

But then, did he know how to do anything else? Nope. So the CIA it was.

"But, y'know, these losers might be onto something," she whispered, as she stuck the name tag on his shoulder.

"If everyone can take their seats, the presentation's about to begin," someone announced.

Lila smiled excitedly like a kid in a candy store, and gestured to Five with a, "Come on."

Everyone started to sit down as two more people entered the room. Lila gasped when she spotted them, prompting Five to ask, "Who are they?"

"You never heard of Gene and Jean?" Lila asked, mild surprise and sarcasm lacing her tone. "Sure you're part of the right CIA?"

"Oh, just spit it out," Five demanded exasperatedly.

"Gene and Jean started the very first chapter in Clovis, New Mexico. Since then, the movement has been everywhere."

The lights dimmed as a white screen rolled down at the very front as Lila gave out a small excited giggle.

Jean took to the podium, tapping on the mic once and then saying, "Wow. Wowie! I mean, holy shit!"

Five observed her typical Southern drawl and noted it down mentally for later.

"Pardon my French, but look at all these beautiful shining faces. It is too much. Thank you for being here. We have a big night planned, because tonight, we will be discussing..." She paused for dramatic effect as a projector lit up the screen.

"The Umbrella Effect."

Five's eyebrows furrowed, and he could quite literally hear the gears turning in Lila's mind.

"And how I believe, we can return to a restored... and correct timeline," Jean finished with a relieved and triumphant smile.

"Now, what do we mean, when we talk about the Umbrella Effect?" She asked. Five couldn't help but notice Gene just standing behind her, smiling like an idiot. He almost snorted, but kept it inside, focussing on the speech instead. "Well, some people refer to it as 'timeline sickness'."

Five and Lila exchanged a look, trying not to laugh out loud at the sheer absurdity of the statement.

"These artifacts, from other timelines," she explained as the picture changed to the old Umbrella Academy toys that had been made for kids' entertainment. Five had never liked those things.

"Like the shared memories, so many of us have experienced, huh? Yup. Memories, the powers that be would have you believe are just figments of our imagination."

"A dapper dandy holding an umbrella, standing on the grassy knoll," Gene announced as the picture changed again, this time to the old picture of Reginald Hargreeves holding an umbrella on the grassy knoll, just before Kennedy was assassinated.

"An obscure sex cult called 'Destiny's Children'," he pointed out as the slideshow changed to a brochure and pamphlets about Klaus's cult, which included a picture of Klaus, looking like the saint the family knew he wasn't. Lila and Five exchanged disappointed looks this time. That idiot just had to do that, didn't he?

"A litter of child superheroes in short pants, from which we derive the name of this phenomenon, the Umbrella Effect."

The pictures of The Umbrella Academy made Five want to die of cringe. And that uniform freaked him out for some reason.

"Question is," Jean started saying. "Who benefits from covering this up?"

Five could hear everyone holding their breaths as he sighed with boredom. At this point, he preferred the nightmares that his mind provided at night than the one that he was living in at that moment. He found his eyes fluttering with sleep. Right, he hadn't slept the previous night, had he?

"The elites, of course," Gene answered, his noise booming in the silent room and driving away the sleep. The room was immediately filled with people murmuring in agreement, as the pictures changed to show various photos of Reginald and his wife Abigail Hargreeves. Five had the distinct hankering to ask what paparazzi reporter they'd hired to take these photos. "The ruling class has always been threatened by the truth. But they cannot stop the truth, now, can they? No, I didn't think so."

The screen changed to show an umbrella and sparrow baby stroller as Jean continued, "These artifacts are proof, that we're living in the wrong timelines. And they're the key, to bringing about, the Cleanse."

The way she said the last word sent a distinct feeling of nostalgia through his bones, even though he didn't know why.

"What the hell is the Cleanse?" Five whispered to Lila.

"No idea, but shut your mouth," Lila whispered back.

"Your whisper is very high-pitched," Five said in an attentive tone.

"Don't blow our covers."

Before Five could retort back, Gene asked, "Is there a problem back there?"

Five tensed as he felt the dread pool in his belly as Lila gave him a glare.

"Could you little Chatty Cathys stand up, please?" Jean asked, a tinge of offense and suspicion in her voice.

Lila and Five stood up, and he saw their faces change instantly. Gene chuckled as Jean said, "Oh, Papa, it's Nancy!"

"Hi everyone," Lila waved.

"And who's your little friend? I don't believe we've met," Jean asked, all hostility seemingly gone.

"This is my handsome fella-"

"Jerome," Five interrupted, shrugging off Lila's hand that just landed on his shoulder. "From the Orlando branch."

"Looks like your suntan could use a little work there, Jerome," Gene said, humor in his voice, but daggers in his eyes.

"Ahh yeah, I just go there because it's the nearest one I could find to my workplace," Five made up on the spot coolly. "Dang nine-to-fives can be tiring as hell, y'know. And the commute is just a bitch, pardon my swearing," he finished, pasting on a sweet smile. The people in the room chuckled and agreed, as Lila gave him an appreciative look.

Their expressions changed again, to a little trusting. They'd bought his lie.

"Well, maybe there's something we could help clarify," Jean asked encouragingly.

"We were hoping maybe you could elaborate on the concept of the Cleanse," he stated curiously.

"Some believe it's the end. Others believe it's but a great restoration," Gene explained.

"We don't know much about it ourselves right now, I mean, we gotta research and stuff too, y'know," Jean bragged, earning a few chuckles from the crowd. "But rest assured, because we are preparing a very special lecture on just this topic."

"Oh, well, that's lucky," Five stated. "Thank you, both."

They both sat down, even as Lila looked a bit worried.

Back in the CIA building, Clementine Rosewood, the deputy director's assistant was walking down a corridor to get to his office, her kitten heels clacking against the floor. She was still looking through a file as she just reached his door when she stopped.

"Yes, sir," Lance said in the office, his voice crystal clear because of her powers. "Yes, sir, I'm trying to make sure Five doesn't investigate it anymore. You know how he can be."

She strained to hear the person on the other end of the phone and it took a bit, but she succeeded.

"What's the plan if he doesn't?" the person asked. She guessed it was the director.

"Well, I suppose we can't help it, then," was the direct answer, making her suck in a breath in surprise as her head lifted to look at the door in surprise.

She gulped before knocking on the door, entering after his affirmation.

"I have proofread the reports, they just need your sign," she said with a polite smile.

"Ahh, thank you, Miss Rosewood."

"You're welcome, sir. Is there anything else you need?"

"Well, I do need a favor. Are you friends with Mr. Five?"

Her jaw clenched as her smile threatened to falter, but she replied normally, "Oh, I wouldn't go as far as to say friends. Work acquaintances would be a better way to describe it, I think."

He nodded in understanding. "Do you know he's been investigating a support group lately?"

"Yes. I read some of his reports. The Keepers," she answered.

"What do you think about it?"

"I think it could be worth our resources, sir," she stated, putting her hands behind her back and holding her left wrist with her right tightly. She didn't have too many pointers on this. "Developing cults like this one have proven to pose a threat in the past after developing to their full potential. Mr. Five might only be trying to prune the danger before it comes."

"All that is understandable," Lance reasoned, his eyes turning tired suddenly. "But I'm the one catching fire from the boss. So, I need you to talk to him and make him focus on his more important cases."

"I'll try my best, sir," she said, leaving when he nodded wearily.

When she exited the office, she whipped out her phone, pulling up Five's contact. He didn't pick up, to no one's surprise, which made her groan through her teeth. She went straight to Derek, knocking at the table to get his attention.

"Where is he?" she asked, making Derek sigh, eyes returning to the computer and a few mouse clicks later, he recited the location to her.

After thanking him, she headed out to get in her car.

If she didn't have a serious conversation about this, Five and her both were going to land in trouble.

It wasn't just that the bosses didn't want him to investigate The Keepers, it was that they were ready to do anything to stop him from doing it.

And, well. Even if they didn't see eye to eye most of the time, he didn't deserve that.

Likes, reblogs and comments are highly appreciated. Tysm for reading!!!

[lowkeyclueless5137]

Winx au(S4)

here's season 1, where the initial notes are :3

But here I come and hit y'all with season 4! >:3

Leaving from season 3 ending, the group still has to go back. Brosky and the pixies all announced in between them that they could return to the pixie village.

The group also report to Trein, who seems to have never heard of the count of nothingness. Yet still, he congratulates the group and Epel especially for saving the tree of life and everyone. Enchantix was earned from a selfless sacrifice to save one from your homeworld after all.

Still, their current objective was making the concealing potion and pretenting to still be some fairies with just a base form that struggle with magic. Oh that was gonna be fun.

But now, the school year was also close to ending. Only some formalities such as new repartitions, finishing grades and of course the end of the year party along the parent-teacher meeting were occurring. The exams were the big pain the group had to go through.

And for now, with no lead towards the Count of Nothingness, the group decided that yes, they deserve a break after exams!

So a few more nights of perfecting the potion and training to use the weaker version of their already way too powerful spells. Everyone did calm down and focused on exams, leaving aside the patrolling and inspections that used to be mandatory, which only eased up the group's work.

Meanwhile, Trein and Lucius were looking into a possible lead towards the count of nothingness. They realise that apparently a new book appeared into the library. And trying to open it, Trein and Lucius are faced with a backlash of a powerful curse. The library started to gain cracks around, books were falling off the shelves and with a bit of power left, Trein and Lucius mustered to call on the Requix squad and leave a small message for them, before getting trapped into the Cristal ball again.

Of course, when the group arrives, their instincts tell them to use the fairy dust to try and fix the issue, but that only made the cracks to spread more.

And the group manage to find Trein's message. It was symple: 'library. Danger. Mythix. Core of stories.' along that, there was also a very wierd symbol adoring the walls of the library, a symbol none of them saw it before, akin to a key with a bird skull on top.

The first 2 clearly spelled out that Trein was trapped somewhere and the library was clearly in danger. As for mythix, they didn't have a clue what it was, nor did they know about the core of stories.

But really they were SO PISSED about it. Bro, give them a break! They just ask for 1 consistent break!

Cue organising the books for the rest of the day and looking for anything that could give them at least an idea about mythix or the core of stories.

They manage to discover a book about magical items. From the fairy dust bottles to stones of memories. One that stood amongst them was the mention of the ancestral wands. Ace recalls that he heard somewhere before about them, but in the book, it said they grant mythix, which is exactly what they were looking for.

The book mentions that so far, that the ancestral wands can be used to get in the world of stories, accessing different books that hold first time written legends. But nothing about the core of stories. So far, the most famously known are the 7 ancestral wands kept on Terra or dubbed also as Planet Earth.

So keeping that in mind, the group make a plan to head there. None really had any idea about what Earth was like, so they just try and do some research while the exams are in full swing.

Cue written exams coming up. It was quite the mess, following the same old technique of 'leave some mistakes intentionally', But This worked on the mid-terms and it also worked now on the finals. Still the highest group score, which got envy from other groups. In their eyes, it makes no sense that the misfits of the school being just trouble, but also are the best in exams.

So the others ganged up on them at the practical exams. Much like the written counterpart, there were multiple practical exams. At first there were only Flying and Spell application, but a new one introduced recently was the Combat exam. Thankfully the points for this one don't make a huge difference, but everyone was looking forward to it as a way to either escape a failing overall or get on the top more easy.

And the prefects were also supervising these exams. More like they were curious of what the first years are capable of. At the flying exam, Kalim, Vil and Ruggie presented to watch. The flying course was a pretty simple one, the only part where one couldn't see inside was the tunnel, but Vargas reassured that for the first years, there was nothing in the tunnel.

Well... That 'nothing' was a lie on Deuce and Jack's agendas. One of the previous contestants places a sticky bomb inside, which got triggered manually when the 2 entered the tunnel. Jack was a bit more faster than Deuce, but Deuce warned about the said bomb. Thankfully, being in the tunnel, Jack used an enchantix spell to protect themselves while Deuce contained the mess with another spell.

This did take a few seconds off their time, but the 2 were more concerned about the little sabotage, which they warned the rest of the group about.

Ace and Epel had the floating pillars try and wack them, while Sebek and Ortho encountered changing sizes circles they were meant to pass through. Of course, a spell could quickly solve it, but those weren't like the tunnel, hence they had to get more creative, which took out of their time overall.

Kalim does point it out and asks if by chance the professor messed up a charm or something when setting up the course. Vil assures that he and Idia helped Vargas set it up and a scan done before the exam showed that it was all fine. Ruggie does agree with Kalim that something was fishy, but Vil again passes it off as the group just being clumsy.

Kalim does ask Vil if he's mad at the group itself or something. Vil says that he isn't mad, he just has some suspicions going on regarding the group. Ruggie just massages his temples, saying that these guys just happen to be at the wrong place once and now everyone puts the blame on them for everything. It reminds him of his life back in the slums of the sunset Savanah and he doesn't like it.

So for now, the 3 of them shut up and settled to just look at the other contestants.

By the last group, Kalim notes that the obstacles didn't move anymore like they did with the Requix squad. Ruggie seems to agree with him, but Vil asks if by chance the 2 have some favoritism for the group in question.

The second practical exam was the spell application. Some simple spells used on special magic flowers. They were special, because în their soil it was poured a potion that was meant to color the soil in the correct color if the spell asked to perform was successful. For this one, Riddle and Azul were watching.

Epel did feel that his flower was a bit different than the others. He was in the first row and did say that to the teacher, even so, Crewel seemed skeptical of that. Riddle and Azul did whisper in between them about what that would mean.

Well it meant that the flower would become a carnivorous plant once Epel tried literally anything on it. Thankfully, the lavender boy was skilled in other things, including punching the plant and keeping it contained.

Azul did raise up to check on the plant itself and indeed, he found traces of an additional potion. Crewel had to give credit to Epel, for saying since start that something was foul with his plant.

So secretly, Epel used his fairy dust on the new pots the next row of exam takers will have, telling to his fellow teammates to do the same since something really was fishy. First the flying exam, now this one.

This time, Azul had his suspicions and Riddle just confirmed them. It seemed to be some sort of tension I between the students. Azul truly had to keep in a snort, since he never saw such a tension over the exams. Riddle didn't really like where things were pointing at, so he told Azul that he will watch the last exam too. Azul adds that he is also curious of the combat exam for the first years. He suspects that in fact, all of the seniors will watch it too.

And indeed, as Azul suspected, for the combat exam, almost all of the seniors showed up to watch. It was after all, the first combat exam for first years. The prefects had special seats tho, to see any kind of fouls in there.

The theme was simple 2 groups going head to head in a capture the flag. Each group would participate in 3 matches and a ranking will be made out of it.

Of course, since no one knew until the moment of the actual exam about the theme, our Requix squad had a flawless first game. Ace really took way too much fun in wiping the floor with the other group. Fortunately, as to not blow their cover, Sebek had to charge in and cover for Ace.

Their second match tho, things started to seem fishy. Ortho encountered a firework ball on the field, which threw him in a tree. Epel tried to feel through the earth the flag, but he was meet with a ray of wasps from a hive that wasn't supposed to be on the field at all.

And Idia seemed to notice this. Kalim was the one who actually brought up the fishiness. Those attacks were caused by objects or potions, not by spells. Vil again denied it, saying that the forest field was checked multiple times. Malleus also insists on it, since he was the one who did the checking.

Azul just brings up how it was way too convinient for those things to just appear during the 2nd round of duels. They had to be planted there prior to it.

So with that, Idia wanted to call off this match, due to the fact that clearly this was a cheating attempt. Yet Vil stops him, accusing Idia of just stopping the match for the sake of his little brother. No one really had a comment, since they all knew what a worry mess Idia was for his brother and how willing is he to pull on some strings.

Even so, the duel continues and Sebek was the one who suffered a consequence from the sabotage, getting surprised by a hidden bomb, which threw him off the field. Thankfully Ace managed to catch him in time, which exposed the 2 to be the easier targets and get fully thrown off the field. At that, Kalim again insisted that something really fishy was going on and that maybe they should ask a tech fairy to do a scan over the field. At least in between duels, to just get it off his chest. The rest, minus Vil and Malleus, seem to indulge in the idea, so Kalim gets up to find a fairy that could help them out with this.

Even though Ruggie clearly wasn't that happy about the duel evolution. Riddle did confirm that there were no fire or bug fairies in this line-up, so Ruggie surely knew that something was going on.

Nonetheless, via using a more delicate approach: distract and conquer, even with Sebek and Ace out of the field, the group managed to secure the enemy flag. It was a bit tougher than the first match, but then again, they had to hold up a lot and even then, they slipped a few times just so they won't get severely injured, while the other group got out without any scratch.

And Kalim does return with the tech fairy and as promised, did a quick scan over the aera in between duels. Oh Ruggie did rub it in Vil's face when the scan showed them traces of fireworks bombs and other kinds of forbidden objects on the duel field. So rightfully Vil assumes that the winners of the duel staged it up like that. Azul butts in, saying that it couldn't be possible since the winners also happened to be the only ones affected by the cheating. Riddle brings up that on their first match, the Requix club had a flawless win, so he theorises that perhaps someone doesn't want the group to have a perfect score.

Idia sure was rubbing in to both Vil and Malleus that he was right. And to not have a cocky Idia, Vil and Malleus gave in and admitted that maybe they should talk with the teachers and count the match null.

Except that while the prefects were considering that specific match, our first years group were well aware of the cheating and that was NOT going to get past them so easy. They had an advantage none of the other first year teams had: enchantix. And they were gonna show those students what they were made of.

So they looked at the other matches, waiting for their final one and taking in anything they could about their possible opponents. The ranking was reworked again and only then did they see with who they are going up against. It was the 2nd best of the groups, which placed 1st in the ranks now because of their flatter on the second match. Thankfully they were around the last of the 3rd matches, so the group had time to brainstorm something and also refill on the potion.

That's when they get a small visit from Ruggie, who was quite serious. That was a new face of Ruggie, which frankly, it scared the shit out of the group. Ruggie just fills them in that their 2nd match was rigged and there's an almost certain chance that it will be redone, much to the annoyance if the group. They just fell on the 5th place and could quickly bounce back in the 3rd match. A match redo could only do worse because of the potion starting to wipe off at that point.

So for the 3rd match, they have a position: Epel and Ortho on flag defense, Jack leading through with a defense for the group, Sebek and Deuce as the damage dealers while Ace was securing the enemy flag. It was a compact way to get through.

Except that when Ace tries to get close to the flag, he comes face to face with a set of carnivorous plants ready to attack him. And he has flashbacks to how he gained his own enchantix, making Ace to get a bit vulnerable against the plants. Jack held defense for the team, so Deuce was the one that dove in to help Ace, while Sebek was powering through the enemy team to secure the flag.

Except that Sebek is hit with a magic repelling barrier, which promptly knocks him out, leaving Jack alone on defense.

The prefects also saw that and Kalim decided to act up and stop the match on a tie, yet he didn't really have time for that as out of stress, Deuce released a powerful energy attack towards the plants, shredding them in record time and finally securing the flag. Ace seemed to come back to his senses and went on defending Deuce against the enemy team, while Jack retrieved Sebek and helped him out.

Sebek unfortunately had a sprained foot. Jack was tired and so he used an enchantix unspoken spell to heal up Sebek's foot. No one had an idea of how bad the injury was, so many would assume it was a normal base healing spell.

Oh this was getting on the group's nerves. Clearly Ortho and Epel were reached first by the enemy team in full formation. They were keeping well for being outnumbered.

But the 2 got caught in another trap: a hidden cage. It passed out as some sort of spell, but oh boy Epel was losing his shit. He tried to bend the bars, but got electrocutated, all while the group took their flag and also a bit of their sweet time in mocking them for falling for that 'spell'. Epel sure af didn't have anymore patience.

So he and Ortho went on a convergence spell to rip open the cage. It was a very simple spell for them, despite that, many would assume they would be dead tired to continue.

Thankfully Sebek was a raging mess since the sprained foot. Jack and Ace actually had to hold him from showing those other first year fairies just what he was made of.

Nonetheless, Ortho was a more slippery one. And sure af he also wanted to show them off. Unlike Sebek who wanted to charge into the group like a bowling ball, Ortho wanted to disband those guys from the inside.

Thankfully Ace switches with Epel in holding Sebek off just to stop Ortho from possibly blowing their cover. As much as they wanted to just wipe the floor with those fuckers, they needed to be on low profile and pretend they are still fairies with just a base form.

Nonetheless, they won that one too. Even though they were greeted with boos from the other first years, the group was gald they just finished this. Fuck practical exams, all the homies hate practical exams! >:/

But! It is not over! Since Kalim brought up to the teachers about the cheating. As a result, the last 2 matches were rendered as not counting. Truly, Kalim was not expecting the group to groan and just tell them that this is a bad joke. They were so tired from holding all in and the concealing potion will start to wear off so really, time wasn't their friend.

First rematch? Completely wipe the floor with those suckers. They finished so fast that this was settled as a new record. In reality, they are just hurried and have no time to deal with them. :'3

Deuce's potion was the one who started wiping out first, during the 2nd match. Sebek noticed and made a sign for him to go and hide. They sure weren't starting well, but it was what it was. Deuce went to hide in a tree.

Except that there was also where a trick was planted. Thankfully Deuce used his miniature spell to avoid it, being covered by the foliage from everyone's eyes.

Cue Epel just powersmashing his way through. The potion was wiping off Jack next and really they couldn't let themselves be outnumbered and let this match continue too much.

But hey, they won again and now no one went against another rematch, because really, the group themselves wanted no more rematches. They were tired, man... So tired that they couldn't even sink in the fact that they were 1st in practical exams, nor celebrate that at least they passed. They just straight up went to sleep there, on the goddamn field. Holding back so much power truly does a degree in you. :'3

Meanwhile, the prefects had a talk in between them. Sure, the exams were now finished and only the repartition and final gradings were left to do. But still, there was the end of the year ball, much like how RSA had a start of the year ball, open to everyone, NRC had an end of the year ball open to everyone.

This year it fell on the same day at the parent teacher meeting, which sure will have the prefects worked up. Kalim suggests that maybe they should ask for help from at least their own groups, to have thing go smoother. This time, no one goes against him.

Idia does say that he plans on trying to see if the Requix team is allowed outside the campus for at least one day. When asked why, Idia saysd that the ball is coming and Ortho would blow a casket if he even dared to go in just some plain suit. :'3

Vil does say that it was quite the underwhelming motive for just letting these troublemakers go off the campus. Riddle this time steps in, saying that they mean well, which was a surprise, since when did Riddle ever take the side of a troublemaker? Let alone 6! Riddle just admits that he had his fair share of being strict, but since he got charmix, he tries to be less strict and even then, the group themselves were nice with him.

Unsurprisingly, Idia was denied, as he was under the suspicion if working hand in hand with the group. What was actually a surprise was Riddle stepping in, with the same request, but he actually got it as a pass due to his no-nonsense nature.

Meanwhile, our Requix group was absolutely inconsolable. Ball was coming, parents meeting also falls on the same day and it's clear af that none of their parents have any idea of what they've been up to. Not to mention the library situation and Trein being trapped inside the crystal ball. They would say that this was the doing of count of nothingness, but at the same time, they had their own doubts.

Cue Idia telling them of having 1 day outside to go and choose some nice ball outfits. The group expected for Idia to accompany them, but the older firehead explained that the headmaster was suspecting that he was hand in hand with them, hence instead of Idia, Riddle will accompany them. The rules were simple, stay together and try and not make Riddle pop a blood vessel.

But hearing that Riddle will go out, that picked up the interest of Kalim. So the next day, when everyone was ready to pay a visit outside, the group are greeted with Kalim and Riddle's groups all coming too. Not even Riddle knew about it, but Kalim happily said that it will be a very fun activity. Especially since now with the end of the year, his and Riddle's groups will absolutely merge into one for their 3rd year.

Besides, Kalim knew just the place to get good clothes for cheap. Whatever cheap meant for this absolutely loaded guy.

So Kalim takes the group to Earth. Jamil just explains to them that Kalim explored this place and discovered hoodies, which he absolutely loves. Kalim was a fairy that loved to explore other worlds. And since the Asim were powerful in the economical ground, Kalim also attended various high-class events.

And Jamil was his servant and right hand man after all, he had to assure Kalim's safety above all.

Nonetheless, Earth was very calm, magicless even, so they had to get used to it. Thankfully Kalim just had to pawn a very small jewel of his to just get lots of money. Hence why he said this place was cheap. :'3

But nonetheless, the group visit different shops, yet nothing really priquires much interest. Kalim tho really found a nice little outfit for the ball. Ruggie also found something too.

As for the others, well nothing priquired much interest. Floyd did mix and match some things, even so, it was quite hard even for him.

But in the end, with some magic intervention after they were bought, the group got themselves some nice brand new outfits. Kalim also decided to introduce them to a great place: the fruty bar. Kalim just loves the coconut and mango smoothie and every time he visits Earth, he makes sure to take one.

And so, everyone tries something out. Ortho and Epel got a mix of different fruits, unlike Ace who wanted just cherry. Sebek was dead set on a carrot smoothie, although he didn't even know what a carrot was. Jack took for himself a simple milkshake and Deuce got a very wierd sounding combo, but he was intrigued by the starfruit that adored the glass rim.

For the 2nd years, Jamil got for himself a mix too, much like Ruggie and Jade. Silver wanted to try out the passion fruit. Initially he wanted a dragonfruit, but the bartender said that their supply refill didn't come. Riddle got for himself a nice little pineapple and peach smoothie, while Floyd got a strawberry milkshake, although he was curious about the other combos. He seemed to enjoy Riddle's the most, so after some poking and teasing, the redhead agreed to switch drinks.

Cue Riddle noting the strawberry smoothie as his favorite drink ever.

Jack does ask how come Earth was so magicless. Jamil explains that once there were fairies ruling over, but they were hunted down and their wings were cut off by the wizards of the black circle. There was no speck of terrestrial magic in here.

Our 1st years group mentally groan. They had a lead about the ancestral wands being in earth, but with Jamil's intel, there went their chance.

Kalim tho, decides to shift the subject to summer plans. He, for one, was planning on traveling to Lymphea and then maybe visit a very famous nightclub in Melody. He said that Jamil suggested Melody, since he does like that planet.

Silver didn't really have big plans, he would just go home and train. Ruggie had more of a 'go home and work' plan, although not in the same sense as Silver. Azul actually had plans of spending more time back home on Andros.

Floyd tho, happily said that he and Jade will attend the night flowers festival in the queendom of Roses. Ace is hyped about that, since previous years he always saw his brother in the flower labyrinth race. Deuce mentioned that the night flowers festival was only in the capital of the queendom, hence he never got to see such an event except hear about it on TV.

Ace hopes to participate with his brother on his first year, mostly since it is a challenge that is played in duos. Floyd happily says that it's also Riddle's first year in the said race, but the redhead shuts him up. :'3

Now the rest of the first years seemed hyped about it. They now wanted to join in on the festival. Ace wanted to protest at first, but Jack reassured that the most they'll do about the race is stay on the side and cheer for Ace, which yeah, it was something welcomed.

This year was also special because of the princess Rosella would also participate. She was the heiress of the throne in the queendom and this year she was also eligible for participating, despite being much more older than the initial age requirement. It was something about royalty training that had her requirements be more strict. The royal family was a family of nymphs, which meant that the princess herself was trained since young to be a nymph too.

Epel seemed skeptical of the whole nymph thing, but didn't really voice it out to the group. Kalim did promise that he will cheer for them too. He did have a visit to the queendom of roses on the day of the festival, most likely some business formalities.

But with all that talk about the festival, there was not much left to do, rather just pay for their drinks and go home. Kalim did have a ring as a family heirloom, which allowed him to travel wherever he desires. It wasn't as powerful as the ring of solaria, mostly just a transportation device which Kalim uses to make going to places more easy.

Back at NRC, our group tried their best to reach out to the library problem. Their library marks seemed less severed by the sudden change, so they still could be used, but the library itself was trashed and the cracks kept spreading. To ensure the safety of the crystal ball Trein was trapped in, the group put it into a trunk along the magilock box prince Mangor was trapped in.

Ace did mention that so far, his dream visions didn't help him with anything. They couldn't even confirm if they manage to get a hold of Mythix, nor who was responsible of this. Jack just told him to have a bit more faith in his power. Maybe those visions were important pieces, even if Ace doubted that.

A few days later, the final results of the exams are published. The Requix squad marked as the 1st in practical exams and 6th in written exams. Their overall placed them on 3rd place in the first years groups, which clearly put the other groups to not be so happy about it.

Jack happens to bump into Vil tho, happily telling him of their exam overalls. Vil does congratulate him, although Jack noticed how it was very formal, not like the Vil he used to know. He wanted to press on the issue, but the blonde was hurried for some business.

Meanwhile, preparations for the ball were commencing for everyone except our group. Without Trein giving them clues, the group realised just how hard is to research for something without having any idea what it was. So far, they gathered an idea about Mythix and the ancestral wands being linked. Then what about the core of stories? What was that about?

On the day of the ball, in the morning, the parent teacher meeting was commencing. So it was clear that many were greeting their parents and having happy reunions before the meetings would actually commence.

For Jack, he was surprised to be tackled by his younger siblings. His mom and dad did come, happy to see their son in a good shape. While his dad was a unit of a man, just like Jack, his mom was also tall, but more soft looking, despite holding with ease her purse and 3 other kids after they finished hogging over Jack's attention.

For Ace, his mom came. Mrs Trappola was a quite business looking woman at first glance, but her cover was blown by her infamous smirk and playful approach. She happily told the ginger about how back at home there are some intense preparations and really she is happy for what was to come. Ace was a bit confused, thinking that his mom was reffering to the festival.

For Ortho and Idia, both his parents came. While his dad was more small, the infamous firehair put into an elegant undercut, his mom was tall, in a dark colored tight dress with her infamous witch hat that was always decorated with flowers. Her hair was also braided and she was the actual cheery person, despite many assuming the father would be.

For Epel, his mama and papa came. Both were informed of his little winter holiday stunt and thankfully, will be playing along with it, mostly as a reward for rescuing the blacksmith(back in S2). His father was quite the burly man, while his mother was a bit plump, taking after memaw Marja. Nonetheless The similarities to Epel were on both sides.

For Sebek, he was greeted with the same earth shaking loudness he usually bears, but this time from his older siblings, who were both guardian fairies. His father was a simple magicless dentist, while his mom was towering over the poor man, quite cheerful and ready to drag her youngest son in a spine crushing hug.

And for Deuce, his only parent came: his mom. Much like Mrs Shroud, she was a witch, although she wasn't a high witch or a guardian. She looked mostly like a magicless woman, but she was quite happy to see her son again. Deuce was a bit awkward, but excited nonetheless, mostly because he ranked in the top of the exams and he's sure his mom will be happy for him too.

There were some changes in behaviour on most of the students. Many were a bit embarrassed, some were quieter than usual and others seemed to have a spike in socialising skills.

Nonetheless, there were the fluffy reunions. On Sebek's end, he was a bit quieter, not giving a straight answer when his older siblings asked how was his guard job going. Ace also was quite confused about why the hell was his mom blabbering about preparations as if it was some grand scale event. Jack was a bit awkward, since his whole family was magicless besides him, which did gain some wierd looks from other students and sometimes other adults. For Ortho, he was just trying to wing it, but his mom was very hard to deceive. She knew something was up the second she saw her 2 sons. Epel really didn't have much on his plate, but he tried his best to avoid Vil.

As for Deuce, his mom was very happy for him, although she noticed Deuce seemed awkward. Her first thoughts were that her son got in trouble, to which Deuce really didn't want to confirm it. He didn't want to worry his mom, so he passed it as just some emotions for this hectic day. His mom seemed to but the excuse, but nonetheless that didn't completely reassure her. All Deuce hoped was for her to not hear about the sabotages during the exams, even so he doubted it wouldn't be brought up.

And indeed, things like the sabotage were brought up. Along the group's lock down from outside, at how it was told it seemed like the boys didn't do much after the start of the year, rather just read and explore the campus(the latter clearly wasn't done as there were many instances where these 6 will get lost without a map).

Of course, Mrs Shroud was the one enraged about the lock down. It was clear that being a high witch meant having great powers that would 100% be passed down to the kids. Maybe Idia got just a hint of it, so small that he couldn't even use it, but Ortho got a more bigger ammount, which doesn't mean he has to be denied access to things other students can do.

The worst thing out of the meeting was the parents realising that their kids never told them anything about these. The sabotage was something serious that could've ended much worse. And the lock down was also something that happened and was so out of their power, yet no one was able to do anything about it because it wasn't told.

Oh, our group just felt a chill up their spines, knowing full well where the meeting was going. Idia just peaced out, knowing that he will have his own piece of nagging after it. And of course, hiding was not an option. These were their parents. And right now it was clearly a very bad moment about to come.

Thankfully, when they pleaded innocence to their parents, they believed them. It was about not telling them how targeted they were just because of some dumb incident.

Mrs Spade, especially, was very hurt about her son hiding things from her. Deuce tried to reassure, saying that he really didn't want to worry her. He tried to do his best, but those things were completely out of his control. Nonetheless, he promises that whatever happens, when things like this occur, she will be the first to know.

And Mrs Spade does voice out that she is worried. It is not normal for her son and the group to be targeted for something out of their power. And she worries that mayhaps this targeting will continue. Deuce again reassures that he will do anything in his power to fight against it. At least to reassure his mom a bit more.

In the end, Mrs Spade tells her son that he is special... And that when the time is right, Deuce will do amazing things. After that, she, like the other parents, had to leave.

From what it was left, Sebek had a very ugly argument with his older siblings. It ended up with the Greenhead being all puffy and refusing to leave his room. For Jack, everything seemed a bit hectic. Epel did have a bit of an issue with his parents, while Ace was not surprised that his mom brushed over his mishaps so easily. Still it was a bit hurting, but now everyone had to gather together and deal with the last part of this day: the ball.

It took a while to crack Sebek. He was absolutely devastated over his siblings telling about this to his grandfather. He severed his relationship with the crowned prince of thorn valley. One of the most powerful magic users in the whole planet! He was royally screwed and it wasn't like he even wanted to mend things with Malleus and Lilia, but he was forced to for the sake of his family reputation.

The others don't know how to cheer up Sebek. Malleus surely will attend the party. But then again, this was a big open gates party. With Mangor still trapped in the box, no actual known threat was on Sage island as far as they knew. And still, they had to look into the mythix, but for now, one night of party maybe will help everyone cheer up and get more hyped for their investigation.

The ball itself was... Quite overwhelming. Over the top decorations, loud music and a sea of people dancing, chatting and hanging out. Jack didn't really like how loud it was, but for the sake of it, Epel conjured some earplugs to help Jack with the noise problem. They are just going to stick together and mind their business.

But, their fun was quickly cut short. Since it was in open aera, everyone was affected when the sky suddenly went darker and from there, a lady descended down along a quite big army of bug like monsters, all under the same skull key sign that was on the library walls. She presented herself as an ex-nymph, Neressa, casted away by her kind, but now she will get her revenge by purging down any possible candidates for her role.

Starting, of course, with the infamous NRC's top students.

It quickly became a chaos. Our first years group didn't have any concealing potion anymore, so it was left with using spells without transforming, while the prefects were evacuating the guests and guiding the other students to fight in different formations.

Epel is the one who remembers about the story of Neressa. But it didn't make sense, as she was supposed to be dead centuries ago. Ortho didn't feel any disturbance in the river of souls, but maybe Idia would've known when a dead person suddenly came back to life. Except that of course they couldn't reach Idia, since he was put to fight in the front lines along the other 3rd years.

Deuce declared that they must fight too. That sign under which Neressa came was the same as the one in the library. Maybe they didn't give it much thought then, but clearly that woman had to know of it. Thankfully, the chaos allowed them to hide without many noticing and transform.

Jack suggested that they go over the clouds so they could attack from above and take the enemy by surprise. With an invibilty spell courtesy of Ortho and Ace, the group got through the storm clouds, being met with reinforcement from the bug army. Of course Neressa was prepared with reinforcements. We are talking about NRC after all.

So in the need to hurry, Deuce uses his zodiac blade, summoning a new attack: the aquarius tsunami, which washes away a good portion of the army.

But that also results in a great mass of water and insect monsters raining down under the clouds. For that, Sebek and Jack made a convergence spell in time, turning the water into snowflakes descending slowly down, while also electroctating the insects inside, leaving them to turn into snowflakes as well.

Except that being sparkly snowflakes, they were confused very easy with Silver's dream powers, which he was currently using on defending his fellow students in fight.

Sebek was absolutely ready to rage it out, especially when Neressa was aiming for Malleus. The crown prince of Valley of thornes to be defeated by that woman?! It would make an absolute scandal! So at Sebek's reckless dive in, Deuce, Epel and Ace conjured down the clouds, creating a foggy environment where only the sparkles of the fairy wings and the magic attacks could be seen from a somewhat distance.

So using that, the group split up. Ortho and Jack went after Idia. Epel and Ace were keeping at bay the bugs and Sebek with Deuce were on the front lines, dealing with the ex-nymph.

And Sebek was absolutely BOILING. Man wasn't holding back the slightest! Even the ground shook several times because of the sheer rage and power Sebek was manifesting. Deuce was doing nothing more than actually hyping Sebek up, using his blade to keep others away from the danger zone while also aiding Sebek in landing his hits.

But Neressa was an ex-nymph, which meant that she was leagues above enchantix. And she does find their little show amusing. But due to her master being so generous and releasing her from the core of stories when the dark seed disturbed the magic balance, she is indebted to fulfill her mission: bring more fairy wings.

So she aims for Deuce, seeing him as holding back more than Sebek. She does catch them by surprise, able to grab at Deuce's face in order to taunt him for holding back against someone much more powerful than him.

Except that something happens. There is a pulse of energy that throws both Deuce and Neressa far from each other. Sebek immediately rushes for Deuce, avoiding the bluenette to smash into something and get hurt.

And Sebek sees for a fraction of second how Deuce's cheeks, where Neressa holded them, were different, reflecting a galaxy like pattern, shining slightly before returning to the normal human skin. Deuce was a bit dizzy, but insisted for them to get Neressa and capture her.

Except that the ex-nymph flees with her army. When she fleed, the fog seemed to dissappear too, so the Requix club had to make a fast retreat and hide.

For Ace and Epel, their holdup of the army was successful. If Neressa had a limited number of minions, then these 2 sure made a huge hole in her arsenal. Ortho and Jack weren't that successful. While helping Idia out, the older Shroud told them that he didn't feel once someone raising from the dead. Even less was it for an extremely powerful ex-nymph. Idia would've felt if such powerful individual suddenly wasn't in the afterlife anymore.

So the group comes to some brainstorming, clocking in early from the ball. It wasn't that wierd, even though the majority of students wanted to party in celebration for 'defeating' this foe.

Except that as they made their way towards their own dorm, the group is faced with none other than Riddle Rosehearts, clearly very mad. And he started by asking for how long did they hide the enchantix. And it was that moment that they knew... They fucked up big time.

So they do the next best thing: abduct the redhead to their dorm by knocking him out with a nearby lamp. (dw, they fixed it with magic) Was it ethical? Dunno. Was it their only solution? No. Did it make things easier? Most likely yes.

And Riddle is faced with waking up on a couch, the the first years explaining all at once the whole goddamn thing. It was impossible to focus on one or even understand what they were saying. But they all ended up begging for Riddle to not tell anyone, so the redhead figured that this was a hush-hush thing.

So after all of them calming down (and Jack healing the head wound inflicted by the lamp), Riddle finally gets a proper explanation of what these 6 were up to since start to finish. How they speedran the enchantix, what the library is all about and how they try their best to hide it, because if word gets out that they have enchantix, then they will paint a big target on them and the count of nothingness surely will know what faces to put to the ones that kept foiling the evil plans.

What Riddle so far registered was that these 6 snooped on an illegal magic object exchange, have multiple times broke the school rules and their punishment of being confined in the school grounds, abducted and hold hostage a prince from a quite powerful kingdom that terrorised Sage Island, went off the school's imposed limits and surpassed even the 3rd years's knowledge and now these 6 are searching for the ancestral wands in order to stop whoever is destroying the aincent library, the same person that summoned the ex-nymph Neressa to attack the students. Riddle found out when he saw them detransform and run out of there, but he didn't expect for this to have so much depth to it.

But you know... They are for a good cause. :D

Riddle rightfully gets mad again for a hot second, but he does calm down in the end. It made sense. It all made sense. How the group was able to do so well in exams, even with the cheating. How Idia took their side more than several times, how these wierd threats suddenly dissappeared. These 6 worked behind scenes, because the others didn't trust them.

And Riddle, surprisingly, apologised. At the RSA ball, his group took the credit for the monster that was defeated, when in fact, this group was the one who defeated the root of the problem. And he apologised on behalf of everyone who took credit for their hard work. They were thrown into this and their only response was to fight the threats and suck it up when their peers would shun them.

And Ace rightfully said that they don't want an apology. What they want is to make the one behind it all to pay. That damned Count was responsible for everything and they will make that sucker to pay dearly for everything. Riddle is a bit taken aback by it. For all he knew, many would immediately throw the responsability on the authorities or someone much more older and wiser. Yet here they are, ready to beat the crap out of the one behind it all. Even more, they looked excited for it.

So the redhead points out that they are looking for the core of stories. That place is a different dimension, where historical and fictional entities take life in there. Mythix is used to go inside that dimension and explore various cursed books that hold these entities and much more dangerous spells in them.

So Riddle follows with presenting them with a wand. It had a black handle and at the top a beautiful half painted white/red rose was, in the middle of the flower, a sparkling orange gem shining. Riddle introduces them to an ancestral wand. The group collectively are in awe, because the ancestral wand was right under their noses the whole goddamn time.

Except Riddle tells them that they can't take his because, for as long as he's alive, the wand is tied to him. He needs enchantix to unlock he true potential of the wand and fully travel to the stories dimension. Thankfully, there are other ancestral wands in the queendom of roses. Because the queendom itself is the birthplace of the ancestral wands.

The group asks if it wasn't the legendarium world fairies that brought them to Magix, to which Riddle responds that once, there was a nymph of stories, who was able to summon beings from there. After her passing away, her magic detached from her soul and gave life to the garden of pergaments, home of the ancestral wands. The palace was built around this garden as to protect the wands that would appear in there. Those wands were later lost in the legendarium world many many milenias ago, people forgetting about them until the fairies from the legendarium brought them to Earth, hence the said legend.

The group does ask Riddle how he had an ancestral wand, to which the redhead responds that in order to gain an ancestral wand, you have to prove yourself to either an old ancestral wand that was vacant or to the garden of pergaments. His father was the royal family's personal healer, hence Riddle was familiar with the place itself. Although he doesn't want to say how he gained his own wand, he warns the group that sometimes, proving oneself to someone can cost dearly, in ways no one can imagine.

So the group get hyped yet again because now they had a solid lead. And with the night flowers festival coming up, they will be ready to go and get their wands and then save the library.

And a last warning from Riddle was: watch out for Azul, Jade, Rook and Cater. Those 4 are the gossip masters. No secret on campus wasn't uncovered by them. Riddle fears the day these 4 will come together, but for now, it is simply a miracle that the 6 of them managed to keep things hidden. He will keep their secret, as he is indebted to Deuce(for the fire roses back in s3), but he would rather have these 6 not risk themselves so much.

But now they got a lead tho! :v

Idia of course, loses his shit when he hears that someone busted them again. He almost passes out when he hears Riddle is the one. Like damn, the strictest rule sucker in the whole NRC, maybe even the world. Idia sure as hell nags them for being so careless. This sorta reminds the group of Trein. They miss the old man. Maybe not all the nagging, but Trein was a great help and with him now gone, things surely were much more harder.

So the great night flowers festival comes. And our squad was more than ready to get those wands. Ace did wonder if those things were sturdy enough to bonk enemies with them. Like that is a great question! They could just wack the enemy down and that's it! :v The festival had 3 days, so for that, courtesy of the sudden wierd schedule the Trappolas had, Ace was able to house in all of the group. He wondered himself why his mom and dad lend him the whole goddamn house, but their response was, again, that the preparations were extremely time-consuming, so they will be bearly at home.

Cue the group looking around, because they need teasing material and who knows where Mrs Trappola has those embarrassing baby pictures of Ace. :'3

Although what they do find is that Ace's grandma still lives with them. He refers to her as Nana and the woman herself was sweet, a bit harsh sometimes, but she was blind, so Ace did have a habit of holding her hand when he talked with her. And his Nana says that it seems like Ace changed a bit. His friends too, seems like all of them changed in similar ways. Ace clears out that many things happened during school, but now they finished their first year in the top. His Nana seems very happy with him and offers to make a celebratory meal.

And by meal, it meant a whole fucking feast. Like this woman wiped out a whole feast in just half the afternoon. Ace explains that his grandma was a guardian fairy, who was blinded while protecting the royal family from a threat. She never got to see how Ace looked, but she got to see his bigger brother when he was a newborn. Nana Trappola was the fairy of reflections, coming here from Lymphea.

And while the rest of the family is gone, Nana was taking care of the 6 boys. Epel seemed to love the recipes, asking for some of them to give to his own memaw, while also giving to Nana some of the traditional recipes he knew from Marja. Jack and Sebek were helping with carrying heavier things and Deuce, Ace and Ortho helped out with cleaning around after everyone ate.

And so far, Nana was unaware of how the group planned to get to the garden of pergaments and get the ancestral wands. They didn't have any idea how they could prove themselves to the garden, but this was probably their only chance. And who knew when Neressa will come back. Sightings of her were none, even though her bug minions were reported to be causing small mayhems around. They, thankfully, where easily handled by guardian fairies.

First 2 days of the festival was exploring the place and having a bit of fun while at it. They did run into Kalim at one point and even meet up with the twins, that apparently we're staying at Trey's place. Trey was also with them, along a specialist named Che'nya. Che'nya practiced before some spells, but he was deemed a stagnant, hence he could only do some wonky teleportation spell, which he uses to spook others. The guy was fun tho. :3

Even so, the group hear from Trey about a big announcement that the royal family will do on the 3rd day, after the labyrinth challenge will conclude. This got the group curious as it might affect their own investigation.

So Nana hears the talking about it. Without having any idea if they knew, she asks if Ace forgot about it, to which the ginger genuinely had no idea what was all about.

And Nana Trappola explains to them that Alex got engaged to princess Roselle. Or more like the girl asked him, because really she was tired of him beating around the bush. Of course, Ace never heard about it, so for him it was an absolute shock. But it all fell into place with the sudden preparations his mom and dad were fussing about. Of course they would fuss about Alex, who got engaged to a princess.

So Ace has to take a moment to process things, alone in his room. Left with the rest of the group, Nana first tells them that Ace had the right to know, which was clearly something he was denied of. She told them that she's very proud of Ace for managing to make such wonderful friends, but she also warns them that whatever they are looking for, they are playing with dangerous powers. For Ace, the one who was always in the shadow of his older brother, he may not realise in what position he puts himself, so she asks of them to keep an eye out for her grandson.

And in between them, Ace was Nana's favorite. :)

So the big day comes. The race took place in the daytime. The objective was simple: gather all the night flowers on the list and get out before sunset. There will be decoys too and once you get out, you won't be able to get back in, even if you have an unfinished list. The winner pair will be found after the sunset, when the flowers will bloom and be told apart from the decoys.

And the labyrinth was gigantic. More over than that, the labyrinth was actually the garden of pergaments, with thick walls of bushes, whose magic leaves were used once to make pergaments for spells and prophecies.

And before the race, Ace still tries his shot at asking his brother to go as a pair. As he expected, he was denied, but that didn't stop Ace to pair up with Deuce. Because the race took place in the garden, the others in the group also signed in: Epel and Jack along with Ortho and Sebek in pairs respectively.

They also meet with other pairs. Trey paired up with Jade, while Riddle was paired up with Floyd, much to the visible cargain of the redhead. Che'nya came through with his pair: Neige. Neige did ask if by chance he and Jack meet up before. Jack awkwardly says that he never saw him. (S1 flashbacks :'3)

And of course, Ace let out a very angry puff when he saw his brother along the princess settling up as a pair to the race. All the pairs were tied at the hands together as to not part away. One of them holded a basket for the flowers, while another holded the list and the magic scissors used to cut the flowers without triggering their magic.

And so far, so good. Everyone split up in search for the flowers. What was interesting about this labyrinth was that it kept changing, preventing one from accessing different areas or even creating shortcuts.

But things could never be simple. Jack and Sebek happened to stumble across a few of Neressa's minions. While their spells without transforming did get the bug monsters out, they reported to the others via a message spell about them. It was a chance that the ex-nymph could be here, so they should be on guard.

Epel and Ortho also meet up with other bug monsters, who were trying to rip off some magical flowers. Ortho used one of his more higher level spells: soul link, tying up everyone in the group to they could talk to each other just as if they had earpieces. And of course, the news of the bugs aiming for the flowers were quickly distributed to everyone in the group.

As for Ace and Deuce, they had a pretty strong lead. They got a good chunk of the list over and so far didn't encounter any bug monsters. What they did encounter tho was her majesty, the princess and Ace's older brother. It ended on an awkward note, because on one hand, Ace wanted to punch his brother in the face, but on the other hand, he had to be polite in front of her majesty, his future sister in law. And Deuce was even more awkward, since he was in the middle of a family and royal drama. :'3

The group of 4 tho, get cut off by Neressa herself, who came in for princess Roselle. As a fairy training to be a future nymph, Neressa surely had her on the target list. Thankfully Roselle was a quick thinker and made a distraction while they fleed. She was heavily against splitting up from Adeuce, as they were younger and in more danger. Even so, Roselle insisted to put on hold their race objectives, in favor of finding the other pairs and informing them of the danger lurking in the labyrinth.

Look, Ace may be salty about the engagement, but he had to admit that the princess wasn't that bad. After all, Ace's beef was with his brother, not with the girl in question.

Deuce suggests to Ace that they should find first Ortho. His soul link spell could alert everyone in the labyrinth without necessarily finding them.

And of course, telling that to Ortho via the spell, resulted in a quick response. The firehead tried to reach outside of the labyrinth, but it seems like the place itself was keeping any magic from getting in or out. They were trapped in here.

So Adeuce inform the princess about the warning that was ensured. She asks if it's possible for everyone to be told to gather at the patch of teary poppies, which Adeuce pass on to Ortho and again, another warning ensures for everyone in the labyrinth.

Except that Neressa still was on the hunt for the princess. They ran into her several times and each time Roselle was willing to put up a fight if it wasn't for the fact that she was accompanied by some younger boys. She couldn't risk putting them in danger. Alex was a guardian fairy and could hold onto a fight.

So because of that, Ace suggests to split up. He and Deuce could find the teary poppy patch themselves. Roselle seems a bit skeptical, but the 2 insist that this could allow for her to properly engage in battle with Neressa, without the worry of hurting someone else.

So before she could protest, the 2 run off, hide and transform in their enchantix. Of course, they ran into Neressa first and engaged into battle.

The labyrinth was also on their side, since it made a few shortcuts for Sebek, Jack, Ortho and Epel to join in too and put much more of a fight against the woman. The group promises that they will promptly capture her, because they need to know about who sent her. It was clearly the same person that was harming the library.

And Neressa laughs at them for being so dumb and trying to help the aincent library. She was stuck in the stories dimension for far too long after she passed away. And her master wishes for freedom to the real world just as much as she wants. And she will not fail. She will destroy everyone who dares stay in her way, take down every future nymph that dares take her 'place' and above all, she will destroy the stories dimension and the ancestral wands.

And of course, to make her words true, she presents them with a fire roses, which was burning and she viciously threw in a bush, the fire spreading at an alarming rate throughout the place. The rose was made ashes, but the flames kept spreading around, causing more and more chaos.

Jack, Sebek and Epel made a convergence spell to summon a storm and freeze over the affected places, but they couldn't keep up with the fire speed. All while Deuce, Ace and Ortho kept Neressa busy.

And sure it was clear that the ex-nymph had a sudden obsession to aim only at Deuce. He, of course, was putting up the best he could against her, but he couldn't hold that much.

And Neressa again got a hold of Deuce, watching with interest how her touch made Deuce's skin to turn again into that galaxy reflecting pattern that kept moving and swirling around, signaling the panic the bluenette was going through.

And Neressa taunted Deuce, for being so weak. Even if she left him alive, he wouldn't pose a threat, but nonetheless, she should not take risks.

But Ace was absolutely done and over. So he took the immense risk and bodyslammed into Neressa, both of them rolling towards the fire walls that were once greenery. Thankfully Epel summons some vines that pull Ace away, letting the ex-nymph to get into the fire, while Ortho was tending to Deuce and Jack with Sebek were trying to make another storm spell to tame the fire.

But Neressa seemed to flee the scene. Ace wanted to chase her down, but Epel dragged him towards the group since the labyrinth was growing balistic and flame walls were closing on them. They tried many times to fly out, but the walls would grow upwards and keep them in there. The fairy dust didn't do much, only kept oh so much of the fire. They could've used it better if they could be above the whole thing, which wasn't possible.

But, to their extreme luck, the flames seemed to suddenly turn teal and all melt into some sort of water that spread around and slowly let the burnt bushes to regain their green leaves back.

So the group calmed down and decided to stay transformed a bit more, in case Neressa would come back. They didn't try to fly out of the labyrinth as it seemed like the bush walls were opening and closing around them, guiding them through, towards an opening, where a fountain was.

And there Riddle and Floyd were, the redhead fussing over the taller as he was laying down and seemingly just listening to him. Both had different looks and very sparkly wings, clearly a sign of enchantix. Before they got noticed by the 2, the group switched back. Floyd did open his eyes and greet them only after Riddle did. When asked about it, Floyd told them that apparently they were in the heart of the maze. And that fountain was what kept the garden all green. Neressa clearly was searching for this and wanted to burn the whole garden down just to get to it.

Sebek does ask what was that special with this fountain. The group theorised that perhaps it makes infinite water or maybe it can heal any wound or cure any curse. Floyd just breaths out that 'goldfishie' didn't tell him at all, but he got the goal for his 3rd year by almost dying so he deserves to nap today.

Riddle indulges to the group to get near and look into the water. And indeed, inside, the group each saw a different thing. The redhead did tell them to grab it and the 6 of them pulled those things out, the water giving form to 6 different wands, all matching one of them. They all look at Riddle with big puppy eyes and the redhead tells them that those are theirs. The garden wouldn't get them here if it didn't deem them worthy.

Floyd beams at the sight of the wands, asking his goldfishie why didn't they get sparkly wands. His answer was that they already gained a reward: enchantix. The garden saw it as a fitting enough reward for them. Floyd was a bit moody, but nonetheless, he declared that he was bored now, so he threw Riddle over his shoulder and leaved with him the maze, both turning back to their original civilian selves, most likely due to the lack of energy or danger.

So by summoning a box, the group put their wands in and followed after Floyd out of the labyrinth. They were greeted immediately with princess Roselle offering to use her healing spells for their various bruises and small burns. The group kindly tried to refuse, but already the princess did the said spell. She was very worried, especially when Ace got lost. As a future brother in law, Roselle wanted to bond properly with Ace. She never had any siblings and a brother in law sounds to her almost like she would have a little brother, even if she never met Ace up until now.

Ace was trying to look cool and collected, but inside he was absolutely telling himself that his bro landed the hot-shot in all possible senses. Like damn, she was too good for his brother. Then again, Ace's first thought when it comes to royalty was prince Mangor, so maybe Alex was a better option anyway. The standards are below seafloor. :'3

After playing again some dramas for shit and giggles (Ortho rubbed a bit too much on the rest), the group did want to talk to Riddle, but he was already gone. Che'nya tho heard that they were looking for the redhead, to which he tells them that most likely they won't see Riddle until school starts again. His mother was very strict and with this absolute fiasco of a race, it was sure af that Riddle won't go out for quite some time.

Nonetheless, the group had to get a hold of the redhead. Riddle knew at least some important bases about mythix and the last thing they need to do is cause several explosions in the span of 5 minutes. Trein trained them when they got charmix and later on Idia also helped them with their enchantix, so rightfully now they needed some sort of guide. If not for them then to prevent the iminent property damage that comes with 6 unexperienced magic users.

But now they can also test if the wands can bonk people! :D

By the end of the day, finally the news of the engagement were made. Although it was a bit late since Ace was already packing and everyone in the group decided to crash at Epel's to train. Before they properly took their leave, Ace really wanted to settle things straight with his family.

So he confronted them about it. Why didn't they tell him of the engagement? It wasn't like he didn't approve of the girl. After today, heck, Ace would say he's the luckiest man alive to have her as a future sister in law. But it was also the royal status the family will gain and much more things that Ace has to prepare for.

And their response was... Literally nothing. They got way too hyped with all the preparations, formalities and everything that with Ace at NRC, they forgot about it. So while Ace was living a hellish school year, his family was celebrating without a care in the world. He had to exclude Nana, because the memaw send him voicemails and called on several occasions to check on him.

Look, man... Ace is Nana's favorite and at least that he has going for him in this family. So he promises to keep in touch with her, because his summer holiday will be busy af. :'3

So the whole thing is left on a sour note.

At Epel's, it was easy for all of them to share his room. Epel had a huge room. And also the Felimers were quick and easy to accommodate 5 new boys. Just so many kids running around makes memaw Marja happy. And Epel is quick to give to his memaw the recipes from Nana Trappola.

Although, the next day, after helping with simple chores, the group had to get ahold of Riddle. Ortho decided to use his spirit link, but because of the big distance, he had to stay a bit and concentrate over it.

Poor Riddle had a spook when he heard Ortho's voice in his head. For a hot second he thought he was going insane. Nonetheless, since now they had a fail safe way of communication, the Requix squad wanted answers.

Riddle explains to them that the dimension of stories has many sub-relams. A famous one was the Legendarium world, home of notorious creatures that once reeked havoc in the magical dimension. Those were trapped in there, as the Legendarium was a tool to trap them in fiction, creating their stories for people to read about. The there are many other worlds. Riddle mentions that his father told him about the world of bedtime stories, Nightfall, a world where your aquitances take the form of story characters. Or about the Tales of the dead, stories which were written after the said beings were dead, unable to be captured in the Legendarium. Nonetheless, there were many places to explore. The core of stories was the one that gave life to them as well as connecting safely the real world with the imagination one. Magical libraries were the pillars of such place. Tye aincent library under Sage Island, the Alfea and Cloud Tower libraries... Those would be greatly affected if the core of stories were to be destroyed. Unfortunately, Riddle had no idea what would happen if something from the real world tried to destroy one of the pillar libraries. He figured it would also affect the core of stories, but his theory falls flat if they don't know what the perpetrator is aiming for.

A last question the group has for the redhead was: they could use the wands outside of mythix? The answer was yes. The wands will allow a new assortment of spells, although the downside is that those spells can only be casted with the wand.

So Riddle just knew these idiots would absolutely accidentally throw each other off a cliff to try out the wands's spells.

And ironically, they do just that. Well... Maybe not off a cliff, but still they threw Sebek down the mountain accidentally. Along with Ortho getting stuck in a tree, Ace falling in a ditch, Deuce crashed in a well, Jack found himself plummeted in the ground and Epel fell on a cow, from which an epic rodeo round ensured. :'3

Mrs Felimer was just glad that Epel finally had some kids just as rowdy as him to spend the days with. Ma'am, these kids are wielding very powerful objects and currently use those objects to slap a fly.

They do spend a few weeks training, before they get again a hold of Riddle, telling him that they feel like they grasped how to work with a wand. And the redhead tells them that they could meet up in the stories dimension. I fact, his mother is gone for a few hours, so they had time now to meet up.

First time getting mythix, the group collectively are dizzy from all that spinning when they entered the stories dimension. Sebek had to take a 5 because he saw at this point triple Aces and that would be his worst nightmare.

But at least they look very epic. And their wings also look akin to flowers or bursts of light/magic, which were pretty cool.

And they meet up with Riddle again. At first, the redhead is taken aback by the sudden group hug, but he gives in and congratulates them for figuring out their wands.

So far, the group finds itself in front of the doorway of worlds. That was their starting point. From there, they would be able to get into the different worlds of stories. And since the gate was sentient and clearly very wise, the group decided to ask how they could heal the ancient libray from Sage Island.

And the gate tells them that their only way of fixing the library is to restore the core of stories. For that, they needed to craft a special potion. They needed leaves of innocence, crying valley vines and the orchid of truth. Those items had to be found in the real world, only then they could access this dimension and retrieve them.

The gate also warned them that after them is a powerful foe, one who does reside closer than they think.

Riddle does warn them to be more careful with the traveling around. Deuce is very confident in his zodiac blade wielding by now. And be believes that while he had to polish a bit more his teleportation skill, he could make the most of it anyway. The group do ask if Riddle will join them on this quest, but the redhead has to refuse. His mother has no idea he has enchantix, let alone mythix. Floyd didn't tell anyone about it because he 'thinks it's boring'. Bless this mf for being moody. Nonetheless, Riddle will try his best to aid the group weather is by training in this world or in actual missions.

Later that night, Ace again has a bad vision, this time Jack consoling him. Ace didn't really want to talk about it, but he told Jack to just... Keep close tabs on everyone. They are simply a mess right now.

As for their mission, the wands will guide them, although none of them had any idea how. It would've been easier if one of them was a technology fairy, able to scan the wands and tell them exactly every detail, but alas, they had to go on with what they had.

So here came a long ass meditation phase. Nothing really came to them. They were trying their best, but really nothing came out. The wands didn't react to anything and really they wanted to hurry for no other motive than to just finish it and get to properly enjoy the summer break.

They finally find a lead to Lymphea. Lymphea had an amazing flora and the lush gardens this planet housed were meant to get them closer to what they needed.

So a travel to Lymphea has the group searching far and wide for anything. At this point might just use the wands as some sort of metal detector. But for places to teleport to the stories dimension.

Unfortunately for them, when they try to get a hold of Riddle, the redhead is a bit in trouble. Neressa apparently was still in the Queendom capital and somehow, she released a curse over the whole city, which made everyone who was outside, when it rained, forest critters. His mother was caught in it when she leaved for her job, turning Mrs Rosehearts into a skunk. While the Requix club had a quite hearty laugh at that, Riddle demanded for them to take this seriously. Neressa came from the stories dimension so it is clear she brought this curse over from there. Their answer to how to break it is in the stories world. The group also think they found the aera of where the innocence leaves were, so why not kill 2 skunks with one stone?

Riddle has to remind them that he did not laugh at that. No sir, definitely not.

In the stories dimension, the group finds themselves in a very pretty forest. Riddle also found them pretty easily due to wands being able to guide to one another.

Even so, the group collectively decided to explore around. There were various critters looking at them curiously as they went around the forest. A swan in particular was trying to bite the group. Well... Mostly Ace and Sebek who were ready to square up with the bird in question.

Except that the sun seemed to set a bit too fast. And when it did, the critters turned into people. People they recognised as students of NRC. And the swan itself turned into none other than Floyd. The group was obviously taken aback, but Riddle reminded them that this particular world is playing tricks of bias with them in order to either hate or sympathise with the characters in the story. He mentioned that this story in particular was named the swan lake. A personal favorite of his, which his father used to tell him to bedtime.

The group have a small moment of thinking before realising why exactly Floyd was the swan. And when they do, they immediately try to tease Riddle about it.

But as the story goes, they had to play along. This swan was a bit different from the version Riddle knew. For one, the swan was a princess. And also she was gracious and kind, hence the evil sorcerer turned her into a Swan when she refused to marry him.

And this story's Floyd confirms the story, saying how he didn't like the sorceress that came for his hand in marriage. He could only be a human in between sunset and sunrise, when is night, so no one could see him and have other possible suitors.

The group thinks that maybe they could break the spell by finding out how to finish this story, but Riddle tells them that while his father told him a more dumbed down version, eventually he caught up to the ending: the protagonists die along the villain. So they should find Floyd's prince and let it go like that, while they focus on the innocence leaves.

Except that just like the real life Floyd, this one found interest in the group of fairies and was set on tagging along and nagging them.

So in annoyance, Riddle uses a special spell from his mythix. Everyone had a horror moment when they heard the very loud 'off with your head', But calmed down when they realised that it was just a thick collar around Floyd's neck, which tied him to a tree, resulting in a pouty Floyd.

So leaving the pouty Floyd there the group go on with their search. They tried to use the wands again as metal detectors, but they actually showed them that they were going further from what they were looking for.

Unfortunately for them, time moves very fast in stories when nothing happens, so they were faced with another 'day', this time being when they were faced with the evil sorceress.

Except that this time, the sorceress was none other than a very real Neressa, set on turning all of them into helpless critters just like the others in the story. She aims for everyone at first, but quickly she settles on Sebek first, since he was always ready to jump into attacking.

And Sebek is turned into a goose. Except that goose Sebek somehow is far more violent and aggressive so... Good luck with that... This goose has a magic wand, baby! >:D

Deuce figures out that Neressa had some particular gurdge against him, because that woman was set onto either attacking him or the next most vulnerable in the group. Well... Sebek was posing much more of a threat as a goose. Like he had literally no chill, which put Neressa into a more tight spot.

So Deuce uses this to ask a question: what did she want to kill him so badly. Of course, Neressa wouldn't answer that, instead taunting Deuce for being so dumb. In response, Deuce's magic comes lose in the form of a powerful explosion, which sends everyone flying off.

Thankfully Epel meets up with Swan Floyd again, who escaped the collar once he turned again into a Swan. Epel did get his fair share of Swan biting, but he figured that Floyd wanted somewhere and if they speed up the story, maybe they could just get over with it faster.

So cue Epel attempting to catch a Swan. Unfortunately Floyd caught onto the gig and one thing Riddle forgot to say was just how MANY swans were on that lake. Like damn there were so many. Epel felt like he was looking for a needle in the haystack. He tried to find Ortho, because maybe he could tell Epel which out of these swans was Floyd.

Meanwhile, Deuce was passed out. Jack found him first, but he didn't really have any idea where to go rather than the lake itself.

Everyone seemed to have a similar idea as they rushed all to the lake, clearly in worry over Neressa finding them again. Their best shot was to find the swan they needed and get it to the prince of this story. But how?

Jack suggests to use a spell he has on his arsenal. Using it, everyone took the form of either ducks, geese like Sebek, or swans. So with this. They came in to join on the lake. Jack's spell will fade once the sunlight isn't on them anymore, so they had to hurry before the sun goes down.

Fortunately, Riddle, as a small duck, was again annoyed by a particular swan. The swan itself just tries to court Riddle. It works... Somewhat... If by working it meant a very messy swimming around and their beaks touching as a 'kiss'.

Apparently it works. As the sun sets down, everyone takes back to their human apparences and this Floyd takes no second in kissing properly the redhead fairy. Riddle seems to have a wave of shock and panic before finally leaning more into it.

And that's when the curse seems to be broken. The feathers out of Floyd's clothes fall down and float around the lake surface. As a gift for breaking the curse, he gives to Riddle one of his most pretty feathers, which were primarily white, with a few shades of teal and black. Riddle comes to accept them and has no other option but to quickly leave before Neressa finds them.

Surprisingly, the group's wands go nuts over the feathers, meanjng that those must be the 'leaves of innocence' they were looking for. Riddle was a bit down after the whole exchange, despite being a success, so the first years confront him about it, figuring out that it must be related to how he got his enchantix.

Riddle explained that his and Floyd's powers are volatile. He was representing the fire roses, a force that leaves unspeakable and irreversible damage. Floyd was drawing his power from the water stars, healing power and able to cure anything. When they clash, it ends up in chaos. Except in the maze. Floyd was burned by the fire and Riddle was poisoned by the water in the fountain, who turned against anyone in that moment. Both were thinking they had very few moments left so in desperation, both agreed to do a convergence spell as a last ditch effort. They actually sealed the spell with a kiss, which felt the more macabre as Riddle could vividly remember that he felt Floyd giving out his last breath just for that.

And the group decide to tell him that hey! That's how enchantix is gained. By accepting to sacrifice oneself to save someone from your home planet. Well, in this case anyone from this planet. Now... They weren't love gurus, but at the base, magic was influenced by emotions. So if there is truly some chemestry, their powers should be able to mix, just like in that convergence spell they did to save the labyrinth and everyone trapped in it.

Riddle really didn't expect to be taught something by some guys a year younger than him, but he gives them a thank you and they part for now, promising to look more onto what they need to restore the core of stories.

And indeed the research seemed to be more efficient after they got a vague idea of how the wands were guiding them. The crying valley vines were found in a history book world, as a throne on which a great fairy of thorns stood and ruled over her kingdom. Well... Stealing some was quite the fear when Neressa again was set on sabotaging them.

And the orchid of truth had the group traveling to lake Roccaluce, also known as the lake where nymphs were used to live. Now it seems like there were no more inhabitants of this place.

Even so, Deuce tells the group that he can feel this place reeking of power. It felt inviting to him. But they didn't have time to take a swim. They were hurrying. Unlike the other 2 times, this time Riddle couldn't come. His mother was having a free day and so he couldn't slip away.

So the group were faced this time with some sort of endless sea, over which a beautiful ship made out of glass and Silver was sailing. And like the new usual, Neressa was waiting for them.

But as the fight escalated, she seemed to only taunt Deuce. Telling him that he was oh so dumb for not realising and that the answer to why he and she are connected lies right before him. Deuce of course doesn't really want to listen, but Neressa knew better. He wanted to know.

But Deuce wasn't that dumb. He knew Neressa was not meaning well. She wanted to kill him. So he asks her why she keeps taunting him if she is going to try and kill him anyway. Why does she keep giving him pointers and clues if she wants to get rid of him. The answer was one that Neressa seemed to not know herself. And that plunged Deuce to unleash again his powers in full force, this time putting much more difficulty for the ex-nymph. Epel and Ace were the one who found the orchid in question, so now the others had to stop the fight in between Deuce and Neressa so they could leave. Except that it was quite hard. It was a clash in between 2 powers the others never saw. While Neressa was poise, composed and calculated, Deuce was rash, violent and full of rage.

Nonetheless, they left to the real world, this time Deuce visibly shaken up. And for now, they decide for each of them to go to their own homes after they prepare the potion, which they stored into a vial. Seeing as being able to put up a serious fight against Neressa, Deuce was deemed the keeper of the bottle. To make sure of it, the group made a few duplicates, to make sure that they could have a chance at confusing their enemy.

For now, everyone decided to take a small break to recover properly before heading to the core of stories.

And Deuce decides to go back home for a bit. He had to settle something with his mom.

At his home, Mrs Spade was happy to see her son back, but her smile was completely wiped off his face when she saw the patches of skin that were turned into that galaxy reflections. Those were places where Neressa leaved a trace when their fight got physical and Deuce just rushed here, not waiting for them to fully dissappear.

And his mother decides that it was time to have a very serious talk.

Deuce asks what is wrong with him, why this keeps happening and his mom does explain in the end. Nymphs used to be quite the thing in twisted wonderland. Yet true nymphs were beings of otherworldly power. Completely different creatures, to the point people in twisted wonderland hunted them, trying to prevent them from ever continuing to roam freely. There was, of course, a nymph that came to be out of training and connecting with their powers to a more deep level. But then there were true nymphs. Born with immense power that can easily get out of control.

And Deuce doesn't ask anything. He was connecting the dots as his mother was explaining. Since the magix alliances excluded their planet from, frankly, a lot of their history and lore, they didn't know about the guild of nymphs that twisted wonderland housed. Except that at one point, a true nymph slithered into those ranks. Being discovered of her true nature, the nymph in question was shunned and kicked out of the guild, being stripped off her status as a nymph. And unfortunately, her name was Neressa, the one from which Mrs Spade and Deuce were descending. That leaved Deuce in a moment of revelation. His mother explains that only a nymph, no matter if true or not, must've triggered his true nature to start and leak through. For generations, their seal that kept their actual heritage wasn't broken, a seal that Neressa, their great ancestor, placed with her last breath so the generations following after her won't have to ever suffer what she did.

And Deuce was still processing the fact that Neressa, the woman that wants him dead, was his ancestor. Scrap the whole nymph thing, his enemy thar swore to kill him, is actually his ancestor. Like she could've just not want kids or something and bam! No Deuce! Yet here they were. It was clear that Neressa also didn't seem to know.

But despite that, Deuce hugs his mom and lets her reassure him that everything will be alright. He will just have to keep his emotions in check for a bit. Deuce didn't tell her how exactly his nymph self started to get out, but Mrs Spade seemed to not have thought about it, so he won't bring it up.

Nonetheless, Deuce had to take his leave and join in with the others. Everyone was brainstoring a way to get to the core of stories. But with Neressa around, they couldn't risk being sabotaged by the ex-nymph.

And Deuce comes with an idea. He passes the bottle with the potion to Ace, declaring that he may be able to distract Neressa. If he gets her further from the core of stories, the others could fix it with the potion. It was a somewhat solid plan, but for rainforcement, Jack will go with Deuce. He had the biggest array of healing magic and so, he was great on supporting Deuce in distracting Neressa.

So a few days later, Deuce is at lake Roccaluce with Jack, the bluenette calling out for Neressa to come out and fight him. He had his answers and he wanted to see if she could hold on against him now.

As expected, Neressa answered the call, ready to face off against Deuce. Except that she also had something else with her: the magiclock box where prince Mangor was kept and Trein's crystal ball. She must've slithered into the library now that it was collapsing from inside and stole those.

So now their fight was also for those objects. Jack was aiming for the objects, trying to take them away, while Deuce was aiming at Neressa, ready to pour in all of his frustration and anger onto the situation.

In true Neressa fashion, she again starts to taunt Deuce that even if he knew now, he was unexperienced, which only posed less of a threat to her. Deuce tho yells out that because of her, he's like this. He was the nymph of the night sky, exactly how Neressa was once. And he promises to work for that title even if the world is against him.

Meanwhile, on Jack's side of the story, the crystal ball and the box were both thrown in the forest during the battle. So he tried his best to find the 2. He did find the crystal ball, but the box was smashed when he found it and whatever it was inside, now roamed freely. So in hopes of catching Mangor again, Jack tries to find the prince, but it's futile.

Back at Deuce and Neressa, the boy does tell to her what he found out. He knew that she was kicked out of the guild because they thought she was a fraud. How people used to hate true nymphs for being already born with immense power instead of training years and years for it. How the true nymphs were hunted down and Neressa was the last of them, using her last moments to cast a seal over her family that would protect upcoming generations from what she had to endure. And this Neressa, in the present, was only a remaining of the original. But Deuce told her that she could be more than just a copy of what people remembered her as. The stories can always be twisted around and that was her story's case, yet Deuce firmly believes that if at least one person sees it differently, the story can gain a new light and the characters could break out of their archetypes. For the better or worse.

Neressa seems to have a moment of revelation and she uses that revelation by grabbing Deuce's hands in hers and apologising. Indeed she was only a reflection of what the others knew of her. Her master freed her into the real world with the purpose of destroying the core of stories and bringing to her master fairy wings. Because the one who freed her saw her as a ruthless monster set on revenge for the nymphs, her mind and goals were shaped as in the story. But since Deuce believes in the real story, this way the story was altered and this Neressa was given a second chance to redeem herself.

But she admits she couldn't do much. Deuce tries to protest, but she cuts him off, telling him that the one who freed her into the real world could also destroy her by a snap of the fingers. So she uses her powers to break a big portion of the seal off Deuce at least, letting him to see what they were both supposed to look like.

And first thing Deuce realises was that he had longer, white hair, just like Neressa, yet all of his skin was reflecting the space and his eyes ere just glowing white his clothes were replaced by some other, much more flowly ones and his wings also dissappeared. In a sense, they looked similar. This Neressa also leaves for Deuce one last thing: a small key. She tells him to go to the royal library in the queendom of Roses and this key will guide him. It will be something that will allow Deuce to get in touch with the real her, as he will need the real Neressa, former nymph of the night sky, to guide him through his journey.

And as expected, this Neressa dissappears, although quite slow and painfully. It was clear that whoever summoned her, didn't need her anymore. With her last moments, Neressa tells Deuce one last thing.

Her master never aimed to destroy the library. He wanted to free Mangor, which is exactly why he succeeded now.

And after he dissappeared, Deuce rushed to find Jack. The others returned from the stories dimension, thinking they won again since they healed up the core of stories, but Deuce and Jack tell them that they were played. The true purpose was to get them so engrossed in mythix and finding the core of stories that they won't notice Mangor getting freed from the magilock box.

They lost this battle. Mangor was now on the loose and none of them knew where to even look for him.

And here we finish season 4, a bit longer than the others so far. :'3

previous season

next season

other seasons: S1, S2, S3, S5, S6

[chatxkilluaxnoir]

I have been wondering about this from people too!

One of the things that got me esp. thinking about it, was a poll that was posted very close to before the Season 4 Special was out, asking what their favorite and Special was; though in the case of Season 4, it was just Season 4 and not a Special, because it wasn't out yet. If had waited just a bit longer, the Special would have been out.

And at that point, the vote was down to S3 and it Special and S4 for me, because while I love all the seasons and Specials, those had/have been my favorites so far. I ended up picking Season 3 and the Special, but S4 was my 2nd choice.

Now, I am not sure what I have picked. Probably season 3 WITH it's Special too, is still my favorite. But S4 with it's Special is still up there for me too.

But what do people think? I have heard some mixed things about the Special; though I think it is still mainly good.

And I liked it myself too.

I do think and/or I head there might have been some animation restraints/budget stuff (still looks gorgeous as always though), and while the S4 Special did have a decent amount of time between the season and Special, I think maybe it could have did with just a bit more time; like the S2 and S3 Special had. So maybe (hopefully we get more seasons and specials) in the next seasons and specials they space them apart even better, and make them even more quality work. Like, sure, waiting less is nice, but I don't mind a bit longer if it means we get (even) more quality stuff

The S4 Special is still really good though! Just hope that future seasons and specials keep getting/get that good amount of time and animation budget to make LMK as great as it can obviously be (so basically even better/closer to being perfect/more perfect and stuff).

Alright; now that I have said all that. Let's talk about the points more specifically.

How was it compared to the season 3 special?

I kind of talk about this already. But the long story short, is that the S3 Special is still probably my favorite, including compared to the S4 Special. The S4 Special is still (pretty) good though.

Were our questions answered?

Some were, some not. Plus there were more questions raised. Honestly. Like I saw in that poll I talked about earlier this reblog, since the first 3 seasons were very heavily the LBD arc; it feels like we are in a new arc and the set-ups for it or something maybe. I hope they keep setting stuff up and have as awesome, if even more of an awesome pay-off and arc as the "LBD arc"; as you might say.

Do we have content for a possible season 5?

I think so, yes.

I heard MK actually went apeshit. Was it satisfying?

YES. Very much so yes. Still hoping for even more of this kind of stuff. Still basically want that dark and/or villain arc (and a really well-done one; as LMK and MK deserve!) for MK like I talk about in reblogs and stuff some (already). If anyone deserves one; it is is MK! Plus, it would be interesting. Makes me want some (more) interesting villain and/or dark arcs for our mains in Lego Ninjago too. Another beloved Lego show (like LMK is) and just beloved show in general for me.

Anyways, yes, just yes. But give me more of this, LMK (I hope we get more; more amazing LMK)! Give more of well-done MK just going ape-shit/dark/etc. Pretty please.

Like I have already said, but I am asking again. What do others think (too)?

Was the special good?

I'm waiting for the English dub so I don't know.

How was it compared to the season 3 special?

Were our questions answered?

Do we have content for a possible season 5?

I heard MK actually went apeshit. Was it satisfying?

Please give vague answers with no spoilers😭 I'm trying to wait but I need information and it's killing me.

[marypsue]

Look, Will is heavily implied/stated to have got True Sight from being in the Upside Down, and the implication is that Hopper escaped the lab explosion through the Russians' Gate, so if the brothers Duffer are feeling especially kindly and generous towards me, they could also saddle him with some minor, not particularly useful, but completely undeniable psychic ability. Please. He would be like a cat in socks about it and it would bring joy and delight to my miserable shriveled little heart.

[knottyk]

A Gentle Kiss

Pairings: Eddie x Platonic!Fem!Reader, Steve x Platonic!Fem!Reader

Summary: Y/N deals with the aftermath of the events in the Upside Down.

Warnings: extreme sadness, crying, slight mention of blood, dealing with loss, s4 spoilers!

A/N: I actually cried while writing this, my heart hurts. i need help in all caps

pls don’t repost, you shall not pass

It almost hurt to see the surroundings bloom with life. Small flower buds opening, butterflies soaring and lush shades of green scattered on the ground. The wind ruffling through the newly sprouted leaves on dulled tree branches. Wildlife beginning to depart from hiding and ready to start the season anew. 

For Y/N, it was a sight too beautiful see. Something to be frozen and framed. Engraved in the mind. 

Despite the recent events that rocked Hawkins and other neighbouring towns to their core, the new season brought a sense of hope. A new beginning. 

Maneuvering around stacked boxes and scattered random items waiting to be sorted, Y/N walked to one of many bulletin boards with plastered missing posters. Each person held great value of missed opportunities and radiating souls who once walked the small town of Hawkins. 

Y/N ripped a poster with disrespectful doodles and words handwritten in red, stuffing it into her back pocket without care and replacing it with a new one. Crisp and heavily inked than the previous ones. Smoothing over the piece of paper with one hand as she pinned it on an empty but visible spot. 

“Why do you even bother?” 

“He’s the reason for all of this!” 

“He doesn’t deserve to be put up there along with his victims.”

She’d heard them all but each sentence, each judgement, goes in one ear and out the other. Since the beginning of Chrissy Cunningham’s case, all eyes of those who knew her and her relation with the suspected perpetrator has been on her. 

Watchful eyes waiting for the perfect time to strike the wound, fresh on her mind. Despite all the questions and insults toward her friend, she stood by him and defended his name. If it was the other way around, she was sure he’d do the same for her. 

Glad that everyone else is busy, she went back to her station where Steve discreetly watched as she got back to folding and organising the donations. Since they got back from the Upside Down, everyone involved has tiptoed around her as if she was made of eggshells, ready to break with one wrong move. 

She turned to Steve, the boy hastily retuning to doing his work, avoiding her gaze. 

“I can feel you staring.” She glared at his guilty expression before turning back to her table. 

“Sorry.” He whispered. 

Though his eyes remained on her, despite the apology. She could feel her heart rumble in annoyance and anxiousness. 

“What?!” She snapped at the now wide-eyed Steve. 

“You’ve been so quiet.” He put down the folded clothes and smoothed it over. “You didn’t come by Hopper’s yesterday. We were all waiting for you. I thought you forgot but you didn’t answer the telephone even after.”

She stiffened. She hadn’t forgotten that they were to help Eleven move back in the cabin. She had deliberately avoided to come. It didn’t feel right that everyone else gets to go back to life normally. 

“I forgot.” She lied. These days, it was easier to lie. It saved her energy from explaining and the recent events were too fresh for people to press her truth. 

“Okay, but why didn’t you answer my calls? Anyone else’s calls for that matter?” Steve placed his hand on his hips. “We were worried about you.” 

“I’m fine.” A lie. 

Y/N and Eddie had been friends way before the kids entered his club and she had served as a bridge for his introduction to the group. They had shared milestones and failures together which she had to think back to, this time alone and with the absence of laughter. She was not fine.

“One way or another, we all have to deal with this together, Y/N. Max is in a coma and Eddie is gone. You don’t have to go through this alone.” 

When she continued clearing the desk as if Steve’s words were merely a glitch in the wind, he held her shoulder and attempted to turn her but she wouldn’t budge. She stacked books in the boxes like he didn’t even exist.

“Look at me, Y/N. Please talk to me. To us.” Steve embraced her stiff figure from the side. “We’re here.”

Bile threatened to explode from her stomach and her throat swelled with a lump strived to punch its way out. Her airways tightened and suddenly, breathing is a foreign concept to her body. A thick layer of tears blurred her vision and her hands grabbed on to Steve’s arms. 

He was alarmed when her body start to shake and his arm were warmed with her tears, each drop full. 

With a sob escaping her lips, she pushed out of Steve’s hold and bolted to the back door of the school gym. Boxes and paper flying, random items knocked over. 

Her heart thumped as she raced across the outdoor court, climbing over the metal fence and dropping on her knees. She didn’t care if she broke her ankle or ripped a hole in her cardigan when it got caught in one of the raw ends of the fence. 

In her mind, his laughter echoed as he chased her. 

It was a fond moment between the two of them when Y/N caught doodles of arrowed hearts in Eddie’s black notebook. The day she learnt of his admiration towards the queen of Hawkins High. He roared at her when she grabbed it from his opened bag and began to run from him, both of them ending up in the open court.

She waved it over her head and ran in circles while trying to find the doodled page. Eddie’s hair running wild and his leather jacket spreading like a cape as he raced to get his book back, laughter booming in the open space. He never really caught up to her that day but she wondered if he would’ve crashed against her and ruffled her hair like he always did. 

Dried leaves crunched under her steps as she ran. This time, away from the memories that forced themselves in her mind. Each corner is a reminder of how things used to be when he was still by her side and she knew that everything will be alright. 

When she closes her eyes, he is all she sees. Anywhere and everywhere.

“Just close your eyes.” Eddie would say whenever she was overcome with fear or when it was all too much for her to take. He would hug her and leave a kiss on her cheek, on her forehead. He would let her lay on his chest as he ran his hand through her hair or rhythmically pat her back until her breathing is steady. He’d do all of this with a warm smile etched on his face.

Exposed twigs and branches scratch at her skin, a few drawing blood but she didn’t stop. Not until she reached a familiar spot surrounded by tall trees and in the middle stood a wooden table and bench. 

Without a chance to catch her breath, she weeped in her hand as she leaned on the nearest tree, hair getting caught at the bark’s rough scales. She slid down and rested her head in between her knees, nuzzling her face in cupped hands.

She bawled in the comfort of the leaves scattered on the ground. She remembered how she and Eddie would push one another to get the chance of stepping on the crunchiest leaf or the time when he first taught her to play his favourite game. She wished that she actually learned.  

The place was a witness to all the secrets they shared and memories they made. The last time was when they waited for Chrissy to come by but Y/N had to leave him to wait alone when she didn’t show on time. Y/N asked for Eddie to see her in school the next day but he insisted that he wait for her. She wished she waited with him. 

Her tears had run dry, her lips chapped from breathing through them. 

With a heavy heart, she stood up and walked over to their spot. She sat and laid on her arms, eyes closed, basking under the spring sun that highlighted the trails of her dried tears.

“I miss you, Eddie.” She whispered.

The leaves danced as the wind blew. On her cheek, a butterfly landed with a gentle kiss. 

——————————————-

masterlist

okay so im in the mood to fight, writing this really did smth to me i wanna throw hands. also, this was inspired by a post i saw where they said that the group didn’t properly mourn eddie (except dustin) so here I am. I volunteer as tribute, im still crying ok bye hope you liked it bye

[thekatebridgerton]

Here me out. I think s4 could be philoise. Sophie is not introduced yet & even if the ball happened in s3 dont forget there I'd suppose to be a gap between their 1 meeting to when the story takes off. Plus 1 of the reason we're polin now is because they don't want to aggravate the fan, well the same applies for philoise. Add the actress playing Marina is sick she might not be up to return to a project so close to what she's going through her story could be wrapped in 1 scene or with her not even present in s3, paving the way for s4 philoise.

Okay so before I answer this I'd first like to encourage all of you to support Ruby Barker, who plays Marina. Like I always do. She's an amazing actress who has been trough a lot and deserves all the love.

Now for those of you who don't know the context, Ruby Barker was quite open about her hospitalization in May 2022 due to mental health problems. She has subsequently been posting pictures of what we assume is a happy and healthy path to recovery. BUT we haven't heard anything about her taking on new projects. Which likely means she's not ready to go back to work yet. (And honestly, acting, is a job, glamourous as it is, if any of us had a job that caused us to have mental health struggles, the least recommended thing would be to go back to that job, until healing was well and truly accomplished)

Because of the situation with Marina's actress I do think s4 is going to be Benophie. I love Phillip as much as any other Philoise fan, but 1) Benophie fans were left pretty high and dry after they polin season was announced 2) Eloise has a lot of growing up to do, before she's ready to start her journey towards true love. At least with Benedict, we know he is open to finding love.

I disagree with what you said about not wanting to aggravate Philoise fans. Because, and I say this with all the kindness in the word, Philoise fans are less rabid than Polin fans. They're even less rabid than Benophie fans. (by a landslide but they are). You will find that when push comes to shove, Philoise fans will be happier to wait for s5 than Benophie fans ever would (and I say this with all the love in the word, Benophie fans, you are as scary as the Polins)

In fact, with the recent recasting of Francesca, there is a possibility that s4 will mash up An Offer From A Gentleman and about half of what happens in When He was Wicked.

I'd also like to add something very very obvious about TSPWL. that for Philoise to happen benophie NEEDS TO EXIST FIRST. at least one quarter of TSPWL involves Eloise and Phillip going in and out of My Cottage. The philoise proposal happens in Sophie's study and the scene where Phillip saves Benophie's son from a fever is pretty pivotal for Phillip and Eloise character development. Netflix can't just cut that part out and I will seriously riot if they decide to substitute those scenes of Philoise bonding with Benophie, with Kanthony or Polin.

the point of showing in s1 and s2 how much closer Eloise is with Benedict than she is with the rest of her siblings. Is to draw a parallel of how they both fall inlove with people who love them and accept them for who they are. Both in Sophie, who has always seen Benedict as his own person, and never confuses him with Bridgerton #1 or Bridgerton #3. And with Phillip who sees everything that people consider flaws in Eloise and celebrates her for it.

isn't it also interesting that Eloise and Benedict have the only 2 Bridgerton spouses who have suffered childhood physical abuse as well. Because here are two people who need to be loved so desperately it hurts because they have received so little love in their pasts, and that just tugs at that weak spot inside of Benedict and Eloise. Because they can give all the love and they just want to feel needed but still maintain their independence and holding on to their right to do what they want in life. Sophie and Phillip not only need them, but also support their individuality and encourage their self expression to the extreme.

So when the Philoise season does come Benophie kinda needs to have already happened.

and that's the tea

[yjwhatif]

How are you feeling about the young justice news? I’m lowkey in denial about it and trying to hold on some form of hope.

Well…

It all kinda sucks to be honest - though I am of the mind that there always a chance until they officially say there isn’t… which maybe also puts me in the denial column - but that’s what I’m going with 👍. Clearly there’s a lot going down with hbo max and Warner bros. (a lot that I’m not even gonna try and comprehend) but from what I heard, hbo max is getting merged with discovery plus to make a new streaming site - which to me meant there was probably no chance of any kind of renewal information for anything until TPTB got at least some of their shit sorted out with this restructuring malarkey. Guess I’m not absolutely losing it at the minute because I wasn’t really expecting to hear any good news for the time being - I’m just sorta seeing what happens.

One thing I will say about hbo max and its content is that they really need to do something about the fact that it’s not available outside the US. They have been denying so many people the opportunity to actually financially support the content they love - which makes absolutely no sense to me. I am someone who can’t access hbo max and therefore has had to find other means of watching this show that I absolutely love and want to follow along with the rest of the fandom - all because hbo max won’t let me give them my money… MAKE IT MAKE SENSE!!! Now, the problem with using those other means is that it don’t help the show - I’m not paying to watch it as is intended - therefore TPTB can’t see my continued support because I haven’t gone through the official streaming site where those numbers are tracked. I want to support this show - I want to invest my money in supporting this show - but I can’t* - which totally sucks - and I know I keep repeating myself here - but it’s all so stupid!!!!

*except, that is, with the comics which I am buying both the digital and physical print versions of - so at least there that now… and I will be buying s4 when (if) it’s available for purchase elsewhere like S3 was… but is that enough? Probably not with the way things are going at the minute.

The other thing I keep thinking about with the information I’ve heard is that, the dude in charge basically wants to fix the dc cinematic universe so it’s more like the mcu with an actual 10 year plan and feels like y’know the actual comics universe brought to the screen… and I’m just like - you mean like what Greg and Brandon have been doing with young justice since day one?! Whether you like the stories they tell, or not, I don’t think anyone can deny that there’s an immense about of depth to this shows universe - it feels real and lived in - there’s history upon history that exists within it and it’s all so fascinating as I just want to know everything about everyone! I stand by my belief that nothing has ever captured and maintained my attention quite like YJ. I’m obsessed and I don’t even care because it is such a remarkable piece of creative construction that deserves to be explored and analysed and obsessed over. It doesn’t just copy and paste things straight from the comics or do the same things everyone does with the characters - grandon think and reconstruct and adapt things to make them concise and interconnected for the story the want to tell… and a hell of a lot less problematic in some cases! The characters have emotions and complexities and flaws and hopes and fears and histories - yj can put a character on the screen for 5 minutes and have me hooked on them - or they can have 5+ hours worth of exploration and development and I can write post after post after post with my current interpretations and understanding of their character as if they were a real living person. I love this show because there is love put into every aspect of it - and that is always something worth protecting and supporting!

I realise this has gotten kinda long (as usual) but what can I say, I don’t have anyone in my life to rant about these things to… I genuinely tried doing that today and all I got were cricket sounds… which is why, no matter what the outcome is with the future of the show, I will likely still remain here, ranting my random thoughts to whoever the heck wants to listen… (unless life dictates otherwise.) I am determined to get through the major backlog of asks that currently fill my inbox (honestly, I consider it shameful for how bad I’ve let it get - all I can say is I’m slow and my brain never works when I want it to… I apologise!) My goal is to get them done by the years end… but we will see if that happens.

Anyway, thank you for asking Anon - I shall be holding out hope with you! #SAVEYOUNGJUSTICE!💛

LB

[campbenji]

Bumpy will be key to getting Kenji back to the Camp Fam.

So apparently, Kenji has been put under the illusion that the mind control chips are going to help the dinosaurs, and since he wasn't there when Firecracker was chipped (which is how the audience knows the chips are painful for them), plus him trying to trust his dad, it makes sense for him to believe this.

By the time the Nublar dinosaurs are arriving to MCI, he's already betrayed the Camp Fam and working side to side with his father (I believe Kenji turning his back on them will happen very early into the season, around episode 3). We see Toro, Limbo, and (although we heard her, not saw her) Bumpy. I can imagine him not caring much about Toro or Limbo, but he knows Bumpy, he was around her for 6 months because Ben would never leave her side. He's known her enough to care.

When she arrives, he'll probably just look at her and be slightly surprised, but not afraid since he thinks the chips will do her good. However, Ben sees her, and knows what's bound to happen when they chip her, so chances are high that the moment he disappears in the clip he's running downhill to try and save her, probably ending in an argument between him and Kenji, if not an actual fight for the remote Kenji is holding in the clip.

Now, we all know Daniel is lying to Kenji about his true intentions and plans for the company, or at least giving him a very limited and manipulated version of the story, and that has to blow up at some point. Daniel will probably mention the orchestrated fights (or whatever new plan he’s got now that they’re working on the chips), something that guarantees the dinosaurs will be in immediate danger, to his investors. Kenji speaks up, saying he thought they had left that behind (as if you were an important part of the company, silly boy). Daniel brushes him off, which makes Kenji start to question his father's intentions.

If Bumpy is endangered by Mantah Corp’s plans, chances are high Kenji will try to stop things and keep her safe. Why? Because it would be completely out of character for him to stand by as he watches Bumpy having to face off another dinosaur against her will or suffer because of the chips. No matter how much pain they have inflicted on him and his friends, he still knows the dinosaurs are animals, and they don’t deserve this. He’s bonded with dinosaurs before (Rebel), and like I said before, he knows Bumpy, and he cares enough to stand up and do something. The campers will probably be there too, intending to save Bumpy, and might see him helping her out, if it doesn’t go as far as them running into each other face to face. However, things won't be magically fixed then, since the campers will be questioning whether this is a trap or not (lost trust🥲).

Knowing what Mantah Corp his dad were planning on doing to Bumpy, Kenji will start seeing the full picture, and slowly realizing his friends (if he can still call them that) were on the right all along. He could maybe even play as some sort of double agent for a while (although in my opinion it would be too much of a repeat of s4), but saving Bumpy would be the turning point for Kenji to see through his father's lies and make his way back to the group.

[beaulesbian]

I feel like some of the things the cast and co (especially Finn) talked about would happen ended up being scrapped or saved for the part of season five that picks up exactly where season four left off. The Duffers say that they film multiple different versions of scenes, but with them saying five people die, Mike learning about himself, Noah being in a harness, and the way some of the cast really hyped up a certain same sex duo, and the fact that none of that happened just reinforces that idea for me. I think it's ironic that with these longer episodes you would expect them to have everything more fleshed out, but in a way it just feels more rushed and sloppy. I don't see how Mike's monologue can be about himself if it's all about how he loves and believes in El. What did he learn about himself? That he's scared of losing people? We already knew that. That he loves El? We already knew that and heard him say it in S3. Literally what did he go through that was new? And I don't mean in subtext but that was actually said and shown in the show. Idk. I agree with you. There's so much they said that just didn't happen and if it isn't in S5 then I don't even know what to think anymore.

Yeah so that screenshot i guess wasnt real interview, tbh i didnt search for it, only saved the picture before.

But still i believe there could be another much more authentic mike monologue. He deserves to talk about only himself for a bit.

Especially if would fit into the two day time skip, i want to see him and El talk about what happened, and both of them to come clean about lying to each other before, how they feel etc. Theres just so many things that could be better between them (just let them be friends, it would be so much better for everyone included).

So i feel they still could have filmed another monologue, something that would make Mike finally open up a bit more about himself, just himself and what has he been going through. Bc s4 was still mostly about the people around him.

But yeah, as you said with all the other cast hints, noah's pictures of harness, etc, the duffels talked how they could have write s5 more parallel while working on s4, so i hope if they filmed some more scenes it would be these hints we saw from the cast.

I also feel that lot of things we predicted for vol 2 was just planned but as a story arc for s5. Like the hints are there since s3 or earlier, so they pointed them out during the unfortunate month between vol 1 and vol2, but probably was meant to be set for s5.

[sunfoxfic]

I’m so frickin’ happy someone else feels the same way I do. I saw a post maybe two weeks ago saying that the team just EXISTING was what resulted in Ladynoir’s conflict instead of miscommunication. I LOVE the class being miraculous users! It’s like a giant found family, and them being there does not make Ladynoir any less of a duo. They’re all such fun characters and seeing them get to interact with their kwamis and be heroes is what I keep coming back for. Anyway, thank you, that post made me feel better. I thought maybe it was weird that I got so upset over how people were acting towards them 🥲 /pos

In conclusion: Thank you, stan the miracuclass, can’t wait to see them all help wreck Gabriel’s life 👍

Marinette calling on the temp heroes so often in S4 was in some ways a symptom of the problems between Ladynoir (especially in Ephemeral and Kuro Neko) and in some ways was just a matter of necessity. Especially in the episodes with hero debuts (including Penalteam). Each of those episodes had a well crafted problem that had a well crafted solution which relied upon the temp heroes. Saying that the temp heroes shouldn't be given their Miraculous when the temp heroes were so invaluable in deakumatizing so many characters — Juleka, Anarka and Jagged, Chloe, Nino, Wishmaker — really feels like an insult to the skills that the temp heroes bring.

Like I said, calling on the temp heroes was a symptom of the problem, and in a lot of ways, it made the problem worse, especially in Kuro Neko. However. The entire conflict was a vicious, self-feeding cycle that needed a few wake up calls for the characters to get through. Chat felt unneeded because Ladybug kept calling on other heroes. Ladybug kept calling on other heroes because she thought Chat needed a break. Had the other heroes not been there, the narrative would have gone on. Ladybug still would have suffered without Chat Noir, because that's what needed to happen in the story, and Chat Noir still wouldn't have seen it, because that's what needed to happen in the story. The temp heroes were just a way to convey what was happening, but it was happening with them or not.

Taking out your anger for what happens in the narrative on the characters involved with making sure the narrative happens is not new. It's historically been called salt. You might have heard of it, especially if you claim to be an anti-salt blog.

There's more salt out there than just the Marinette and Adrien salt, and you do not get to speak on behalf of the fandom of what elements of the story are "good" and what elements are "bad." That's ultimately what this boils down to: People who think they know how everyone around them feels. Not everyone wants to totally cast off the side characters in favor of the main cast. If you name a character in ML, that's someone's favorite. And that character doesn't deserve to get all their agency and all their personality cut just because you would personally prefer more Ladybug and Chat Noir.

(General you, not you specifically, Anon.)

Sorry this just. Really riles me up. I'm trying to be a lot more conscious about cultivating my dash as of late, and I personally haven't seen most of this in like a month, if not more. But it just really sucks to see people celebrating the fact that my favorite characters lost everything that made them important last season, and barely even pretending that those characters having agency didn't annoy them.

"I'm soooo glad that everyone lost their Miraculous and it's back to our best duo, last season was so hard to watch because no one cared about the secondary heroes."

Untrue, and fuck off with your overgeneralization that makes it look as though the writers suck at their jobs just because they didn't pander to you specifically.

[cinematicnomad]

Hello! I’ve gone through all your Buddie fic and I am obsessed. I was wondering if you could recommend me your favorites? I’m scared to look into the tag 🙈 Preferably canon or canon divergent, but I wouldn’t turn away an AU if it’s super good.

anonymous asked: what are some of your all time favorite slow burns recs (for buddie)?👀

ooh TWO requests for buddie fic recs at the same time. i love it and i am here for it. (ALSO omg anon, thank you, i am INCREDIBLY flattered whenever anyone actually reads my fics bc i write so few of them. i am crazy flattered)

some of these are v popular fics that i'm sure you've heard of, but i'm gonna rec them anyway:

waves (it comes and goes) by sunspell80/@bibuddie (10/10 | 40k+ | M) buckley parents; past sexual assault (not the parents); pre-relationship; slow burn

evan buckley left his past behind when he left home for good at age 19. but an unexpected phone call on a quiet shift disrupts the life he’s built for himself: forcing him to confront his past in order to build a new future.

note: this fic has an amazing sequel where they actually get together, but you definitely need to read waves first to understand anything. please note that this series deals with a lot of heavy subjects and might be triggering to some people so i encourage you to review the tags and all the author notes to care for yourself as needed. this fic series was published pre-s4 so these are not the canon buckley parents, but i LOVE the depiction of them in this series.

don’t take my sunshine away by sevensoulmates/@sevensoulmates (21/21 | 113k+ | M) angst with a happy ending; canon compliant; emotional/psychological abuse; getting together

eddie is in a coma, and buck blames himself. he should’ve been there to protect eddie. the least he can do now is to be there for christopher, even if buck doesn’t know if he has it in him to be a parent without eddie. buck makes eddie a deal: he’ll fight for christopher in the real world, while eddie fights to wake up.

eddie’s come a long way since those bleak days in el paso, listening to his parents comments about how he’s not fit to be a father. christopher doesn’t deserve to be dragged down by the likes of eddie and shannon. eddie thought after moving to LA, he and chris had escaped that. when he wakes up and finds buck neck-deep in a legal battle with his parents for custody of christopher, eddie must face his own mistakes, and find the confidence to stand up for himself against his absolute worst nightmare.

the space between sleep by tattered_dreams (13/13 | 111k+ | T) post-tsunami; no lawsuit arc; canon divergent; PTSD; trauma; slow burn

as weeks pass after the tsunami, christopher has eddie to help him deal with the scars it left behind. he also has buck. buck's dealing with his own demons, but he has both of them.

eddie's trying to keep them all together and finding out his family might not be as small as he thought.

the 118 have their few cents to add, too, because don't they always.

the evolution of buddie by insanejuliann/@marvelingjules (19/? | 152k+ | M) canon divergent; internalized homophobia; slow burn; getting together; light angst

over time, eddie starts to wonder if everyone might actually be right when they joke about him and buck being more than friends.

a journey of self-discovery, patience, and caring between not just two men, but the friends and family around them.

note: this is a canon divergent fic series that starts immediately after s3's eddie begins. it's currently 19 fics deep and it is MY FAVORITE series in the fandom. it is almost entirely from eddie's POV except for the 19th fic which is currently ongoing as the author adds in other POVs for scenes throughout the series.

leading with the left by letmetellyouaboutmyfeels/@letmetellyouaboutmyfeels (18/18 | 84k+ | M) backstory; AU: backstory; smut; slow burn; stripper!buck

when buck said he was a “bartender” in “south america” what he actually meant was “stripper” in “mexico.”

and when eddie said, “what’s your problem?” what he actually meant was, “is this about the time you gave me a lap dance?”

in other words, there’s a few things the 118 doesn’t know about buck. or eddie. or buck and eddie’s relationship.

note: this fic is basically canon compliant, but it envisions a backstory where buck and eddie crossed paths pre-series.

don't unfold me by iriswests/@evanbucxley (1/1 | 4k+ | T) POV eddie; unrequited love (but not really); light angst; introspection; minor ana/eddie

it feels a bit like skipping church on sunday.

like some gradual inevitability that eddie probably saw coming long before it escalated, but it still comes as a surprise when he wakes up one day and realizes it's been a couple of weeks since he last went to church with his grandmother.

and then he just—never goes back.

it feels like that, only here he's somehow still in the process of digesting the truth, and he still believes he's going to go back, one day. he's just too busy this week. he hasn't slept right. christopher's too tired. some combination of the three.

buck giving his back to eddie to focus solely on taylor kelly feels a little bit like realizing he's skipped out on church for the past couple of weeks, and for a terrifying minute, he wonders if this means he's never going back.

note: this is the first fic in a 3 part series, and lucky you, the entire series has been published!! pt2 is from buck's POV and pt3 is from eddie's again. it's important that you read all three in order!

don’t worry baby (everything will turn out alright) by woodchoc_magnum/ @woodchoc-magnum​ (12/12 | 63k+ | M) canon divergent; angst with a happy ending; slow burn; friends to lovers

buck and eddie are falling in love, and it’s obvious to everyone but them.

note: last i have to rec EVERYTHING that felicity​ has written?? it would be impossible to pick one fic to rec bc i love them all (and i’ve helped edit...oh god, the last 15 or more of them???). i only chose this one to highlight bc it’s the first fic she published and the first one i read in this fandom that made me fall helplessly in love with her writing (also, it’s currently circling the fandom twitter-sphere bc apparently felicity predicted the future once again by having eddie tell buck, in the hospital, that he’s not expendable—wild). all of her fics are lengthy canon compliant or canon divergent slow burns (honestly sometimes i think felicity writes fics just bc she knows i’ll love them...). everything she’s written is amazing but here are some of my personal favorites: you can tell everybody this is your song ‘verse (24/? | 470k+ | M); let me roll it to you (2/2 | 22k+ | M); hearts on fire (10/10; 65k+; M); lead me to your door (2/2 | 21k+ | M); light me and i’ll burn for you (3/3 | 31k+ | M); just to be with you series (2/3 | 86k+ | M); and try to love me if you can (6/6 | 44k+ | M)—i am v clearly a sucker for fics where one or both of them are dating someone else at first and there’s a lot of unspoken pining. 

[leahseclipse]

To Marco, 2000 years from now.

Pairing: Jean Kirstein / Marco Bodt

Warnings: S1/S4 spoilers, death of a major character

A/N: I just wrote this in 30m after I saw THIS tiktok about Jean and Marco, and I had to write this.

"This could be the end of everything, so why don't we go, somewhere only we know?"

++

The sea was beautiful that day. It seemed...endless. Connie and Sasha loved it, if you were wondering. The others did too. It was better than I've been told. It was all bright, blue and shiny.

I would have built a house and lived nearby if it was all possible. If only there wouldn't be a titan to destroy it, along with my dreams. I wish they would have never existed.

I kept wondering if they did on the other side, or what kind of people could be living there. Would they help us? Kill us? I wish I had known. And I still wish that you, Marco, would have been there to see it. You should have.

The worse thing right now is that… I can figure out what your face while smiling is like, but I'll forget overtime. I'll forget forever one day.

It's been years since I last saw a part of you. I wish I had known how to draw, or to take a picture like they do in Marley. But it's too late. All I can be able to remember is your name.

I wish I had been with you. Perhaps I could have saved you, or else, died for you. You didn't deserve that cruel end, you deserved to die old after a long life, in a nice house, in a world where titans didn't exist anymore.

But you had to die before I could even try to fight for you. None of us will ever know what happened, what you felt, what were your last words… because we weren't there, I wasn't. I should have sticked with you.

The thing is that, I don't even know if that happened before or after I was struggling with my equipment. I was so busy to find a way to escape from these two, that I didn't care to have a thought for anyone else. I was too scared to hold a spot in my head. I was scared to die first. And a small part of me think it was selfish, but another allows itself to reassure me and think that I was afraid to die because I wanted to see you again. That's what I want to believe, no matter what, whether it's true or not.

You deserved to have someone to think of you, alive, on the brink of death, or dead. Anyone that has known you has lost a light inside of themselves when they heard of the devastating news. You can be sure of that.

I was the one who found your body. A part of it, unfortunately. And I'll never forget how that felt, even in 20 years. I'll never forget how unfair the world was with you.

l truly wish you could have seen how better it got. We fought tooth and nail to get back our life, and many have died in fight for our freedom, and it's finally over. No titans will destroy our houses, our dreams, or even our lives. You should have been there to see that.

I regret not sticking with you everyday. I'll always will. I promise to keep on fighting and surviving to see the world you couldn't see. I'll take you everywhere. Even if none of this is real, even if you're not truly here; I'll pretend you are.

One day, we'll reunite again. We'll go back to where we were from. A place only we know; so until then, take care of yourself, Marco.

— your buddy from the 104th training corps, Jean.

[beepboop358]

St unpopular opinions?

Alrighty here we go, also please don't attack me if you disagree with any of my unpopular opinions, I totally understand everyone wants different things to happen in the show.

1. When the series ends, I want Eleven to make this big heroic sacrifice for the "greater good". Whether that's saving everyone from an upside down monster, or defeating the lab for good, or stopping something horrible about to happen, or just saving her friends from their own deaths.

I talked in depth about this in my byler proof master slides (145-147), but Eleven was not originally intended to survive in s1.

In the show’s original pitch the Duffers wrote, “If Mike is the Elliot of our show, then Eleven is our "E.T.” It was planned for her to make this big sacrifice for her new friends, and mainly for the person who took her in and has bonded with (Mike, just like Elliot does with E.T.) I think it’s highly likely the Duffers will want to complete this E.T. parallel for Eleven in the show since it was part of their original plan.

There's one reason they might not follow through with this parallel, and it's that Shawn Levy has recently talked about how they "have the end of the show in sight" and they"know where the end is", but that they are aware there is interest in spinoffs. I've heard some rumors about an Eleven spin off series being possible, so if they were going to do this, they most likely would not kill El off.

Shawn Levy's actual quote:

“…What’s been made clear is there is an interest and a real voracious appetite for any offshoot, any other iteration format or extension of the franchise, the characters, the mythology,” Levy said. “Certainly those conversations are hardly evolved, but they're also not non-existent,” he added, cautioning that all this spinoff talk — at least for now, is just that: talk: “And you cannot take those words and turn it into a headline, that's like 'Stranger Things, executive producer, Shawn Levy confirmed spinoff' because I didn't do that"

2. I kind of don't want Steve to get a serious girlfriend.

I see a lot of "Steve deserves a girlfriend", and "Steve deserves to be happy" and I agree that I want Steve to be happy, but he doesn't need a romantic partner to be happy. He can be happy without one. It's not that I don't ever want Steve to fall in love, I wouldn't be upset if Steve did get a girlfriend, but I really love the idea that Steve can find true happiness in the show without being in love with someone. He does have love in his life, love from his friends, he doesn't need romantic love to be fulfilled. And honestly I think Steve's arc of self-acceptance and learning not to do just do what's considered "cool" fits into this idea. He needs to grow and learn about himself, and figure out what it is that he really wants from life, before he is ready to be in a serious relationship with anyone. Steve will most likely be flirting with girls who come into the Video Store in S4, but I really want to see Steve continue to grow by being around the others and Robin before anything seriously romantic happens for him.

Steve's death is rumored this season, (I talked about the evidence for it here), and if he does die, I don't think the show will introduce any kind of serious relationship for Steve if this is true, it just wouldn't make sense.

3. Murray is underrated, I really love Murray's character. (maybe this isn't unpopular LOL)

4. It was really sad when Barb died, but she was designed to die :(

5. I don't think Jancy will be endgame (there's lots of good theories on this out there)

6. The exploding rats in s3 were not my fav, I really liked the season overall, and I understand they were trying to have the monster represent puberty by literally making it out of flesh, but at times it felt like they were trying to go 'too big' almost like jumping the shark? Idrk how to describe it, but this is a fear of mine that they'll do the same thing in future seasons and try to do too much and go too big, and the characters storylines and overall vibe will get lost in the extreme action and gore and it won't feel authentic.

I'm sure I have other unpopular opinions but I can't think of them right now LOL

Thanks for the ask anon!

[ackermanshoe]

Edited lmao: warning this is kinda pointless and alot of farfetched theory and a veryyy long post please read at your own risk 🤡

Edit again: my analysis when I started it 1 month ago: 👩‍💼🖨️📇✒️🖋️✏️

My post now: 🤡🤡🤡🕯️🕯️🤡

Edit: I started writing this like ages ago but I don't see my own point with this writting and I'm editing it after reading @nini14 's Ackerman breaking the cycle analysis and I feel like both of these go hand in hand. So without further ado:

Triangles

Let's see as we all are made aware that aot significantly revolves around trios of friends such as the following :

Although these are the main trios that is noticeable, other trios can be made out by taking some characters from their original trios to make trios based on looks / character and dynamics. And this is where my argument comes in with this trio:

Their dynamic has always been mother father and son. Now let me explain, idk if anyone has heard about the drama triangle but here

These terms can be applied to MLE trio, Levi being the persecutor, Mikasa is the rescuer and the victim being Eren. In the first 3 seasons at least, Eren was being taken away and his decisions constently put him in danger, Levi being the persecutor who always gives Eren what he deserves for being a pain the ass and Mikasa being the rescuer always siding with Eren and protecting him no matter what. Do you see it?

This is Mikasa to a T.

The following is an example of the dad being the rescuer and the son "junior" being a victim, and much like Eren, could possibly refuse the hand that is helping him.

So that being said now that we have an understanding of their dynamics in the relationship, let's get back to understanding a triangle. Did you know triangles are one of the strongest shape because it has three sides that rely on each other hence shifting their energies on to each side and it makes the perfect shape for a bridge, architectures favourite. Why am I tell you this?

Because these dynamics that every trio is made up of in aot is because they have strong relationships.

Someone mentioned isayama loves putting move triangles and I couldn't help but agree, look at how many times he has placed Eren historia and an angry Mikasa? And subtly he has always ( to me at least) hinted the love triangle between Levi Mikasa and Eren, outside of their father-mother-son dynamic. Personally this makes sense to me the most, fueled by mikasa's dream. A choice was there to make and she unknowingly chose Levi.

Now this brings me to the death of all the trios Levi has been part of, from Isabel & Farlan to hanjo & Erwin to where we are now. Our situation before S4 was EMA+Levi = 4 people but we all know that a square isn't as strong as a triangle so something shifted. Eren, even with him in it Armin and him were more connected as for Levi and Mikasa as a pair it was more obvious. Especially in the conversation EMA had in that stare place as depicted on @gilly-bj 's analysis on similarities between rivamika and Mika's parents. Not only was Mikasa placed directly next to Levi although being feets apart in reality but her lines "another conversation only you two understand" it. Visually and verbally divided Mikasa from Eren and Armin and connected her to Levi. Both alone.

Yet another triangle placed by isayama intentionally or not is Armin Mikasa and Levi.

Because a triangle represents the process of recycle and reuse it also represent the cycle of life, an on going thing that doesn't stop, a history that repeats itself. And going back to Ackerman finally breaking this cycle of tragic fate, will they?

The fact that the whole manga series start at chapter 0 is very suspicious in it self. Why does it isyamaa? A 0, a circle that comes back around? A 0 which represents both the ending and the beginning? Why is the 1st chapter called "to you, 2000 years from now"? ( That's such a fucking impactful chapter name gives me chills )

Before my theory start I just wanna add that the story started from a narrative perspective makes me wanna believe in rivamika even more. Did eldians share the same fate in 2000 years? Who knows, but I know for sure Erens and mikasa's dynamic as the impulsive hotheaded doer and their protective calm but strong friend thinker will continue forever just like the never ending triangles.

I forgot all these ppls names on chaoter 0 so PLS bare with me.

The main dude who heavily resembles Mikasa even tho he is a man, has a incredible power just like the Ackerman's as a human AND he can shift into a titan???? Last time I checked weren't Ackerman's the bio product of titans? Remember is science is on a ongoing journey and forever progressing towards the impossible ;)

Hmmm

The little girl who resembles Gabi, who has the same dynamic as Eren, the girl also looks up to his inhumanly powers, a little too much alike Eren's idolisation of Levi ( and looking up to Mikasa's strength I think )?

Lastly, chapter 0 makes me believe it was set in the future. Look at the buildings, 2 story buildings I don't remember seeing buildings like this in the pre time skip era have you? I could be wrong tho.

If Isayama is as smart as we think he is then he might have related this chapter to the whole plot of aot. 🤷 Or it could mean something. And here's where my theory comes in and it may not be the most favourable for eldians. Let me start with the good part tho, the guy who looked like Mikasa is could be a descendant from the Ackerman clan, but he isn't half and half like Mikasa and Levi, he's full blooded. Which might be why he has the power to shift ( idk this kinda don't make sense since Mikasa and Levi can't buy hush )

So let's say rivamika got married had a family they always wanted and had the peaceful life and 2000 years from then this guy^ existed. Oddly familiar to great great great grammakasa 💀💀.

The cycle never ended for eldians, the whole world could still be mad at them for Erens action and has the prejudice against them for a long time. And the fact that they can shift is never going to change even 2000 years in the future. And the guy ( omg I keep calling him the guy cause I literally can not be bothered figuring out his name ) who lives in a far more developed society with richer civilization within the wall. It could be possible that Ymir or someone erased the eldians memories ONCE AGAIN after the rumbling ended. Because Mikasa levi weren't effected they probably were excused and got to live as they pleased. This dude is also the reason why I believe isayama does not consider the Ackerman's as side characters at all. In the end the story might have actually started with them, alluding to "the ending is just the beginning" as said by kingsama himself. ( Wtf am I saying lol )

So yeah in conclusion as I said yes story is weirdly really influenced by a large amount of triangles and loops. And yes ackerman probably would break the cycle of death after all living through hell fighting hell all for what? If not recreating into a heaven, giving it new life. I do believe in rivamika living the life they are destined for with each other but eldians fate might just be too tragic for me to see them as truly free people who gets to roam around outside the walls as they please.

I guess my point is that everything that goes around will come around, that will bring good karma for the Ackerman's and maybe a repeation of the past for the rest of the world. 😩😩 I think I fully somehow believe Eren is gone for good. Unless isayama draws him waking up from a long dream on his bed then 💀👀👀 I will throw myself away.

Thank you for reading 💞 once again I'm so sorry this post isn't as good as I'd like it to be I am sleep deprived right now and it isn't worded as well as of like it to be. But hope my delulu ness was enjoyable at least. ✌️💀

[introvert-pansexual]

ONE LAST MOMENT.

MASTERLIST | ARMIN ARLERT X G!N READER

summary : as your own, yet quick decision it was you, who caught the bullet, saving friend's life, but it all happened so fast you didn't even got the time to remember the promise you made to the person you loved.

cw : chapter 105 / s4 e8, death

A LAUGH ESCAPED your lips, when you felt pair of arms tightly embracing you, as you and others continued to celebrate the victory in the airship. "we did it! what a victory!" floch called out, causing other to happily shout once again. "why isn't lobov back yet?" you could hear connie ask over the calls and laughs, making your attention snap towards the trio next to you.

"i just heard something." announcing, sasha placed her hand next to her ear, hoping to hear the sound once again, but this time more clear. "hey! quiet down!" seeing his friend's confusion and slight discomfort, jean shouted in a hope to calm down the loud crowd of celebrating people. "what's wrong, sasha?" furrowing your eyebrows, you pushed past few people, placing an assuring hand on the brunette's shoulder.

"i'm not sure. i just heard-" before sasha could finish her words, your gaze shifted towards the fast movement near the airship enter, causing the breath in your throat to hitch. "sasha!" barely processing what was happening, you managed to get a glimpse of another person rolling into the airship, gun tightly held between their smaller hands. swiftly grabbing the brunette by her shoulders, you used all the strength to push sasha to the side, making her stumble into jean, as it was now you, standing in sasha's place.

the world around you suddenly slowed down, a loud gunshot ringing through everyone's ears, causing the crowd go silent at the sight of you taking few, unsteady steps back, before your body slowly fell onto the wooden floor, wave of pain coming right through your abdomen. the bullet punched it’s way through you, causing a gaping hole in its wake that quickly filled with blood and gushed out. you could feel your back collide with the harsh ground, as you the air from your lungs disappeared for a few seconds, yet it felt like a long, never-ending minute.

"y/n!" getting out of jean's hold she stumbled into not too long ago, sasha fell onto her knees next to your lying body, while the rest quickly took care of the two intruders in the airship. "just stay with me, alright?!" at sasha's words, your mind started to feel foggy, as you stared up at the ceiling, feeling your eyes starting to burn. feeling her heartbeat quicken, the brunette searched for the gun wound, before pressing her hands against it, mentally apologising for causing you more pain, yet you could barely realise it.

hearing rushed footsteps coming your way, your eyelids heavier than ever, barely being able to keep your eyes open at the sudden tiredness, sill feeling disoriented. "y/n!" another, this time male voice called out your name, as another two figures appeared over you, yet you weren't in the right state to come to the conclusion it's jean and connie, feeling their hearts clench at the sight of you and your abdomen soaked with the crimson red liquid.

"you're gonna make it! you hear me?! placing one of his hands on your shoulder, connie slightly shook your body. "it hurts..." you murmured, voice coming out quiet and raspy. "get the tourniquet!" jean shouted at the group of people, as they quickly nodded at his demand. "c'mon, y/n..." a silent tear fell down sasha's face, before gently placing her hand on your cheek, caressing it with her thumb.

in a world and times like these death wasn't anything new, nor unusual. but that doesn't mean it hurts less to see someone you grew close with slowly fade away right in front of your eyes, having to watch their life slowly leave their body. realisation slightly hit you, as the truth of you dying on the wooden floor of an airship occupied your now messy mind. yet it wasn't too long, before the thoughts of the painful truth changed into fastly rushing thoughts about only one person, you couldn't care more about. armin. you knew the blonde for a few years and something that started of as an innocent friendship between you and him, was now something way more, as the two of you shared a lot together.

as cheesy as it sounds... armin was one of your reasons to keep fighting and always helped you back up, when you fell down. you did the same for him and he couldn't be more grateful for him to have you in his life. at first armin thought he didn't deserve you at all, but you proved him wrong and promised him something. you promised armin, when the war is over and you'll no longer have to live in constant fear, the two of you'll get married and live together, as the both of you always wanted.

you knew, neither of you could promise such a thing, yet just the delightful thought of spending the rest of your life with armin, made you heart flutter. the promise was something, that kept you going and you weren't planing on letting go of it, but not every-time it's your decision to make.

"these two got up here using lobov's vertical manoeuvring equipment..." floch announced, as his hand gripped the two children, who were now tied up on their knees. "i'll toss 'em out. no objections, right?" at floch's words the brown-haired kid loudly grunted. "is throwing some kids out of an airship going to stop all this bloodshed?" jean called out, while looking away from your almost limp body, as you painfully cought up some more blood on the wooden floor.

after finally deciding on what to do, jean made his way towards where eren and the others currently were, bringing the two, still tied up kids with him. "who are these brats?" noticing the two beaten up children, levi asked. "they killed lobov and used his equipment to board the ship." jean started to explain. "and then... this girl shot y/n..." lowering his head, jean tried to ignore the feeling inside his stomach. "i don't think there's any hope for them."

feeling his heart harshly sting, armin's eyes immediately widened at jean's very unexpected words. did he hear him right? is jean sure? thousands of questions filled the blonde male's mind, yet it didn't stop his body from rushing out of the room, barely noticing mikasa following right after him. he couldn't loose you right now. you promised him, after all. but what a silly promise that was, because both of you knew the truth about loving someone in times like these.

armin's eyes used to be filled with light and love, but now they're dark and full of pain from having to observe the world become a darker place and watching the ones he cared about the most leave. a breath hitched inside his throat at the sight of your body lying on the hard floor, blood covering your lower abandon and dripping out of your mouth. seeing your eyes blink slower and slower, armin didn't waste any time, before quickly falling on his knees right next to you.

"y/n!" armin tightly gripped your hand in his in a hope of you acknowledging his presence. "you promised, so please don't leave! not now!" tears streamed down his face, as all you could hear were muffled calls of your name and pleads for you to keep your eyes open. you knew about the promise, but you also knew armin's strong. finding the rest of the strength left in your dying body, you softly squeezed armin's hand, before letting go.

your head limply fell to the side, your eyes shutting close, as armin could feel the grip of your hand suddenly disappear, signalling another painful loss in his life. not letting go off your hand, the blonde male brought his other hand up, placing it over his, still holding yours.

it felt like something inside of him shattered and slowly disappeared, causing his stomach to tighten at the emptiness he felt. all armin could hear was your voice in his head, repeating all the promises you made.

gently squeezing your and his hands together, armin leaned closer to you, letting his tears slowly drop on you and soak through the fabric of your shirt. even, if it was only gonna last a few seconds, armin needed one last moment holding your hand, as he never did before.

he needed one last moment with you.