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maddiebiscuits · 4 years ago

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Personal Opinions on FFXIV Villains (in general order of appearance)

As a note, I will not be including any pre-A Realm Reborn villains (as I did not play the original Final Fantasy XIV) nor will I be including any one-off primals, raid bosses, etc. I will be trying to focus on villains as they appear in main or side storylines, in cut scenes, that have some over-arching influence on the story they participate in with something akin to a clear presence - Garleans, Ascians, and so on. Also SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS.

Rhitahtyn sas Arvina

Rhitahtyn gets the shaft out of Gaius’ three main players in A Realm Reborn. A conscript from a Empire-conquered land who rose to power and respect, directly honored by Gaius himself, and possessing an even temper and noble ambition really helped to level out Nero and Livia’s general nonsense. Unfortunately, Rhitahtyn is provided almost no screen-time, development or exploration, and as years have passed, his in-game 8-man trial can now be completed in a regular synced party in mere seconds. He deserved a lot better than what he got, yet remained too sidelined to really leave me feeling invested in wanting to see what sort of story this character could be used to tell.

Livia sas Junius

When first playing through A Realm Reborn my feelings on Livia were...tepid, but optimistic. Of Gaius’ three main players, Livia was easily the most active and ruthless, lacking the shady “long game” and self-serving ambitions of Nero or the more honorable, measured personality of Rhitahtyn. Suffice to say, the dawning (and then confirmed) realization that Livia’s sole motivation seeing the plan of the man she loved through to completion by any means, to the point of tunnel-visioned, murderous intent, was...disappointing. Add to that Livia was raised by Gaius in her backstory, the man being a father figure to her, and the romance motivation becomes even more unhinged (especially since it is largely considered to be a reciprocated romance, at least physically, by Gaius - barf)

Nero tol Scaeva

Nero has become a fan favourite character over the years, thanks to his continued development into Cid’s boyfriend foil rather than outright villain of the main storyline. This development was easy to spot early enough though, as it was clear Nero’s fealty to Gaius was largely self-serving. He didn’t care much about conquering Eorzea or felling primals/eikons - he just wanted to show that he possessed the brilliance to build weapons capable of doing so. His speech/squabble with Cid during the Praetorium sequence paints that picture even more clearly if the players missed the not-so-subtle implications for Nero’s character already. The man lived, breathed and seethed with inferiority when compared to Cid, and in the end he did ultimately prove his engineering mastery, even if the Warrior of Light took it (and him) down. Ultimately though, Nero serves as a much better supporting and “redeemed” character than a villain, so I do have to rank him pretty low.

Gaius van Baelsar

Aside from whatever...weird...thing was going on between him and Livia (again - barf), Gaius in A Realm Reborn was a pretty solid villain, with clear-cut motivations that I actually understood, and begrudgingly agreed with to a small extent. As legatus, Gaius was still the tyrannical arm of the Garlean Empire, but a level-headed one who was more interested with the purging of the primal/eikon threat from Eorzea than subjugating other peoples. Further development of this character into something of an anti-hero and glimpses of how other characters viewed him in flashbacks in later expansions ends up providing his A Realm Reborn rendition with more strength in retrospect. The heads of the three city-states deciding to accept Gaius off to willingly join the Empire is a pretty good sticking point for the validity of his plan as well. Ultima Weapon is...you know, pretty impossible for Ul’dah, Gridania and Limsa Lominsa to face down if they refuse, but more enticing is its ability to, indeed, single-handedly defeat primals/eikons - something the city-states desperately need at their disposal, having been plagued by such threats constantly, for years and years.

Gaius cuts a pretty direct swath to the truth of the Twelve as well - they’re no different than the primals/eikons he seeks to eradicate, and the more stock Eorzeans put into them, the more empowered they become should someone ever try to summon one, making Eorzeans no better than the beastmen and their ‘gods’. Join the Empire and have protection from such powers, and put faith into the leadership of man, versus that of fictional deities that can be given terrifying form...in the world of Final Fantasy XIV, that’s not a terrible proposition. But it would still subject thousands of people to the Empire’s tyranny, so even if Gaius has the oft-coveted ‘Point’ that most villains wish they had, he still must be stopped. Eorzea will simply find other ways to endure the primal/eikon threat rather than bend the knee, and I like that defiant angle the Warrior of Light represents to counter Gaius’ character. Also, Ascian meddling and Hydaelyn shenanigans, sure, but I don’t feel that takes away from the core conflict that Gaius presents. He was a good villain, and I’m happy to see him return and go through the motions of penance for his past deeds and aid the supporting cast now, elevating him even higher into a good character, in general.

Lahabrea

I admit I have a soft spot for Lahabrea, only because he seems to be a universal punching bag for heroes and villains alike in Final Fantasy XIV. He lacks the more subdued, long-term planning of Elidibus or the explored nuance and sympathy of Emet-Selch - he’s sort of the odd one out between the trifecta that make up the unsundered Ascians. Just a blindly-tempered zealot of Zodiark, seemingly more enthused by the ancient primal’s return than the promise of the world being set back to how it was before The Final Days. Even the other Ascians don’t seem to like Lahabrea that much - Elidibus seems keenly aware that Lahabrea has gone off the deep end, constantly needing reminders and wrangling-in to keep the plan in motion. But I will admit, he serves his purpose well enough, and the additional side-story that reveals that Lahabrea was a brilliant scholar unmatched in the Amaurotine field of ‘phantom creation’ was a nice touch to explain why he’s pretty dang good at getting people to try and summon primals and conjuring or corrupting monsters himself. By no effort of Square Enix themselves, I sort of feel bad for the guy. He really was just Doing His Best, and getting no respect for it. His end was also anti-climatic, but by the time it happened, there were far more interesting characters and stories to tell, and he was unnecessary - it was just better this way, Lahabrea.

Nabriales

This one-bit player served one substantial purpose, and it was to see an Ascian get obliterated permanently and thus provide the means and understanding to battle Ascians in the future. Except that the cost to do so was a throw-away villain, a throw-away damsel-in-distress 8-man trial, and turning Moenbrya, a character with a lot of potential to be great, into a throw-away character who has to make an untimely sacrifice because the script says so. Nabriales you’re boring, you’re bad, you’re a waste of time and your mutton chops are dumb as hell.

Ilberd Feare

You know what, I like this villain. I absolutely want to punch his face in, but I figure getting that sort of rise out of me on sight is intended, since, you know: villain. His motivations aren’t bad either, even if his methods are deplorable. The speech he gives at the very end of A Realm Reborn to rile up Raubahn is pretty effective too. Despite both being refugees of Ala Mhigo, Raubahn fought his way to wealth and status, and Ilberd was never afforded that chance, or at least never quite managed. Raubahn pledged himself more to Ul’dah and the Immortal Flames with his new privileges, however, and Ilberd was perhaps right to resent that, with Ala Mhigo still under the yoke of the Empire, and so many refugees left to flounder in The Black Shroud and Thanalan both, Raubahn seemingly unwilling to step in. Ilberd saw the opportunity to change the status quo and took it, and proceeded to rally others to reclaim Ala Mhigo. If the city-states would not help, then they would be forced to help, and for all his dirty tactics, punch-able face and Shinryu-summoning finale, Ilberd’s plan did work: he forced the hand of the city-states to fight against the Empire to reclaim Ala Mhigo, and did indeed remind Raubahn and other passive Ala Mhigans that there was still an important job to do. So, good job Ilberd. Gold star. Now perish.

Teledji Adeledji

I thought the politics at the very end of A Realm Reborn were intriguing, and Teledji’s heel-turn pretty fun, since of all the Monetarists, he seemed to be painted as the most reasonable. Though I found his game plan a bit...suspect. Yes, a poisoned goblet assassination attempt on the Sultana that he could frame on someone else, while usurping control of the Crystal Braves so he could make a bid for full Monetarist control of Ul’dah (with him at the helm) makes sense on paper, but I’m not sure why he sought to frame the Warrior of Light for it, and implicate the Scions either. While it’s true that the Warrior and the Scions would be an obstacle and want to investigate the death, and would prove tenacious foes, if you think about the scenario a bit more, it seems unnecessary. The Warrior and Scion efforts were likely going to start swinging towards Ishgard and the Dragonsong War, to better embellish the northern city-state’s relations with the Eorzean Alliance, nor are the Warrior or Scions people you’d want to make an enemy, especially with the Warrior being one of the only people who can defeat primals (a very active threat in Thanalan).

Framing Lolorito would have been a wiser idea, as he was already disliked and untrustworthy in the eyes of many, powerful and dangerous to compete with though he is. If Lolorito had been framed, Raubahn and the Scions may not have questioned it, and Teledji could have enjoyed planting himself in the eye of the power vacuum that was to come while the Warrior of Light focused their energy up north. Instead, Teledji bet on the wrong chocobo and paid dearly for it - his plan fell apart (and so did he) in more ways than he could anticipate, but on the whole? This was a pretty intriguing and entertaining storyline, I enjoyed it.

Lady Iceheart / Ysayle Dangoulain

I debated putting Ysayle on this list because by the first act of Heavensward, she’s not a villain - but, she certainly was in A Realm Reborn and going into Heavensward, so we might as well just keep representing how good Heavensward is and include her here. Aside from Minfillia, this is one of the only ever characters you meet early(ish) who shares The Echo with the Warrior of Light. Unlike Minfillia or the Warrior, though, Ysayle doesn’t really adhere to the call of Hydaelyn. Instead, her powers allowed her to hear and learn the truth of Ishgard’s history: that it was a lie, and that King Thordan broke the peace in a bid for power for Ishgard, turning Nidhogg to rage and setting the Dragonsong War into motion. Having witnessed Ishgard’s cruelty at a young age when her home was destroyed by snow and ice after the Seventh Umbral Calamity, and knowing what she knew and maintaining close bonds with dragons throughout her life, it’s sort of easy to see why Ysayle would be set upon the path she is. She wishes to end the war much like how Thordan does: ending it, with the dragons as the victors.

Her slap in the face is when she confronts Hraesvelgr though, her bid to sort of not only take the form of Saint Shiva but embody her memory being dismissed as a pale imitation. Saint Shiva wished for true peace, whereas Ysayle demands it through bloodshed - she realizes this, and changes her current course. This is why I debated to list her as a villain, because her gradual change into a supporting character and hero is a logical conclusion as she and Heavensward’s story develops. She starts a villain and dies a hero.

Igeyorhm

Full disclosure: I completely forgot this character existed. And I still don’t actually know why they exist. They’re a second to Lahabrea during the events of Heavensward, and is easily shut down by the Warrior of Light before being annihilated permanently by Thordan. Despite this, I don’t find their existence as offensive as Nabriales’, so...that counts for something.

Archbishop Thordan VII

When I first encountered Thordan (”pope grandpa”, if you will), I thought “oh, he’s evil”, because “church bad” isn’t exactly and uncommon trope and it’s apparent that Ishgard is a broken and unjust society, with this man sitting at the highest seat of power and consorting with Ascians. Yet to my surprise Thordan was...pretty reasonable. At least to start. He makes his audience with the Ascians known and seems unaffected by them and their schemes, is polite and cordial to the Warrior of Light...he doesn’t seem so bad. But the gut feeling remains, and slowly builds as Thordan’s true plan is revealed, becoming a primal-esque deity. And much like Nidhogg, I do get his motivations. Trying to broker peace with the dragons, to him, is just not going to happen - in fact, it’s insulting to ask dragons and Ishgardians both to make a bid for it, when so many people have died and live with the burden of hatred and grief. His solution is more direct: end the war entirely, by winning it for Ishgard.

After assuming his new form and powers, him and his Heavensward have the power to thwart any dragons that oppose them, perhaps even Nidhogg himself if the dreadwrym were to re-appear. Fueled by the generations’-worth of prayers from the Ishgardian population, Thordan was set on ending the war and ousting the dragons from the land, ushering in peace and prosperity. But the Ishgard he sought to protect and defend was built on a history spun of bloodshed and lies, and the dragons were not the true enemy and did not deserve to be put to the sword. Thordan’s plan would have worked in the way he envisioned it, and he made a good argument for it, even if it was ultimately wrong, and that’s a good villain.

Nidhogg

Having come to Final Fantasy XIV from World of Warcraft, a giant, scary black dragon that rants on and on about suffering and misery and pain and vengeance was something of a red flag for a Very Bad Story. Imagine my surprise when Nidhogg was given the screen-time to be properly fleshed out and explored, his motivations and hatred more sympathetically-human than his giant dragon body would have one believe, his presence menacing and well-paced, and his overall being representing the true, dark heart of the Dragonsong War: the cycle of hatred. For dragons, centuries are like days, and the pain Nidhogg feels is no less than what he felt when the Ishgardians brutally broke their pact. Because of this, with each re-emergence of him and his brood, the wheel of suffering turns anew, breathing new hate-filled life into the ongoing Dragonsong War, generation to generation. Time has no effect on his turmoil, and his existence ensures that no other Ishgardians will ever be able to move on from the war either, even as generations continue on.

I find Estinien being consumed by Nidhogg’s rage very thematic as well, Estinien truly embodying the countering hatred the Ishgardians feel towards the dragons, and it makes the final trial with Nidhogg bittersweet. He defeats Hraesvelgr, because as long as Nidhogg exists even the brightest hope for peace will be squashed under the cycle of malice and war. The Warrior of Light must put him down because he cannot be saved - but Estinien still can, and can choose to move on and pursue the peace that Nihogg strived to prevent and Ysayle died to see come to fruition. And he does, and it’s touching, and Heavensward is SO FUCKING GOOD I LOVE THIS EXPANSION.

Quickthinx Allthoughts

I don’t care much for timey-wimey storylines, but I found the Alexander plot easy enough to follow, and the timeloop it creates to be manageable. The truth about the Enigma Codex and the journal Quickthinx has isn’t exactly hard to figure out though once time travel becomes a part of the plot, and beyond beind a fun goblin with a cute kitty cat friend...there’s just not much in the way of compelling character writing here for this gobbo.

Diabolos

Big ancient demon is revived and wants to wreak havoc. Uninspiring, but its also not necessary for Diabolos to be anything more than what he is either. The heart of the Void Ark storyline is the tribulations of Cait Sith, the sky pirates and the history of the Mhachi, Diabolos just being an excuse to explore those characters and lore.

Regula van Hydrus

Regula deserved better damnit. This is the last Garlean villain with nuance and humanity before Stormblood turns everyone who is so much as associated with the Garlean Empire into a cartoonishly-evil, absolutely twisted, reprehensible confusing mess of a person.

Fordola rem Lupis

Stormblood has a lot of story, pacing and character problems. A lot. It has its moments and some people love this expansion, but I do not and its villains are a very large reason why that is. Fordola, for example, had the potential to be quite interesting. She was raised to believe in what her father did: that Gaius and the Empire were not all bad, and then watched her father die trying to protect her from angry, almost barbaric Ala Mhigans who decided that pelting a little girl with rocks because her parents were Empire-sympathizers and supporters was an okay thing to do (as the Garlean soldiers just watched on and let it happen without intervening because they didn’t feel like it - a fact that Fordola knows and remembers). You would think this event would have a sort of polarizing effect on her, feeling betrayed by both her people and the Empire her father believed in, feeling caught in the middle, in need of finding her identity and sense of self. Instead she...basically throws her entire stock in with the Empire, deciding that if she’s a good little soldier for the Empire, then Garleans will have to change their minds about Ala Mhigans and respect them because, see, look: an Ala Mhigan is a respected Garlean asset.

Except this backfires over, and over, her Ala Mhigan team nothing more than vicious dogs that never bite the hand that feeds them, turning their teeth on their own people instead. Fordola is constantly belittled and ridiculed for her heritage and even her gender by the Garleans, and at no point does she ever stop and go “wow maybe the Empire sucks hot ass and I’ve been terribly wrong about my motives this whole time”. And yet, no...Zenos offers her power in some magitek-aether experiment, she kills her own Skulls team, she finished the expansion jailed for her crimes, believing until the very end that the Garleans will win (they did not). She utilizes her anti-primal abilities once, and vanishes from the plot entirely, only to re-appear in a bad side-story where the Immortal Flames have her hooked up to some penalty-of-death submission collar so she doesn’t act out so they can use her synthetic Echo abilities to fight a re-summoned Ifrit.

Bad character, bad writing, and a waste of her new, game-changing anti-primal abilities.

Grynewaht pyr Arvina

This is such...a stupid character. His design, his voice and dialogue...I can’t tell what Grynewaht is supposed to be. Is he comedic relief? Because he’s not funny. Is he a character that you’re supposed to pity or despise? Because I felt nothing towards him. Is he supposed to be a rival? Because...no. I had to look up what his name was. The only thing I can clearly remember about him is that he was the final boss of the Doma Castle 4-man dungeon. That’s it. If you removed him from the plot entirely, nothing of value would be lost.

Yotsuyu goe Brutus

Between the two female villains of Stormblood, Yotsuyu is the more popular. It’s easy to see why: she has a cool design and a lot more screen-time and development, with a big 8-man trial to finish things off. But like Fordola, something is just off about her writing.

I don’t understand her motives or how she even came to feel the way she does about Doma, specificially. And anything bad that could happen to her, has happened to her. She suffered an abusive childhood under her adoptive parents, was sold off to an abusive husband, then sold off again to a brothel after her husband died to repay his debts. She later became a spy for the Garleans, rose in rank and was appointed acting viceroy of Doma, to keep the masses terrified and under her heel. At first, it seems pretty reasonable for her to turn against Doma, and lash out as she does on its people - her Doman upbringing left her used, abused and powerless, and with the Garleans she found power and strength. But this reading falls apart when you quickly realize that Doma was already occupied by the Garleans during the course of her upbringing, her family obedient to the Empire and her suffering just as much the fault of the Garleans. There’s an argument to also be made that not enough time was really spent portraying Doma as the disgusting place Yotsuyu sees it, as from the onset of Stormblood’s story journey into the Far East, Domans are only ever portrayed as a terrified, broken people, scared of the Garleans and Yotsuyu. I also don’t personally care for “character was abused, so now they’re sadistic and crazy” clichés either.

What does work well for Yotsuyu is the theme of power and control. Yotsuyu is a woman who lived a life not her own, weak and frail, until she obtained power. Now that she has it, her drive is to do anything to maintain it and survive - yet for some reason the story is written in such a way as to downplay this much stronger theme of her character, and play up this slightly confusing, all-consuming hatred for Doma instead. Her transformation into Tsukiyomi is also a bit odd (though decently thematic, with her ‘cold, uncaring and distant as the moon’ comparison), with not enough time paid to explore her understanding of Doman deities and why the mirror would trigger this change (and why would she even keep Doman deities in her mind, with her supposed hatred of Doma?)

I also take some issue with her “Tsuyu” arc, where she reverts back to the last time she was ever truly good or innocent, and has the personality of a child while still being an adult woman (and suffering amnesia). I find these infantilizing tropes pretty offensive, especially when Yotsuyu’s arc here is largely just to reinforce and reiterate what cartoonishly terrible people her family were, and provide Gosetsu with some development instead. Aside from killing Asahi and having a cathartic death herself, everything about Yotsuyu just baffles me. Every time I think I like something about her, athe bad writing twists it around.

Zenos yae Galvus

I don’t like Zenos, he’s a bad character, and I hate that Square Enix decided this limp-haired sullen-faced clown was going to be their poster-boy villain for Final Fantasy XIV.

What is the appeal of this character? Yeah, some people find him attractive. I don’t, but I also didn’t find Sephiroth attractive so, okay, whatever - like what you like I guess. But what else does Zenos have going on besides people seeming to think he’s their buff bishonen thicc daddy or whatever the kids are saying these days? His entire character can be summed up in one sentence:

“While the Warrior of Light was practicing empathy, Zenos studied The Blade.”

He’s a Garlean lordling with a bland and cold upbringing who likes katanas and blood sport. That’s it. He’s a sociopath, finding no joy or meaning in life for whatever reason: he just wants to collect Cool Swords and push his bizarre love-hate fight narrative on the Warrior of Light. Because they are opposites, you see: the Warrior of Light is a cardboard cut out of a Good Guy and Zenos is a cardboard cut out of a Bad Guy. He’s not even entertaining about it. He doesn’t want to watch the world burn, he just wants to fight the Warrior because the battle will make him Feel Something. Meanwhile, all I feel whenever I see him in-game, either in a cut-scene or when I’m locked in an unskippable “survive the drawn-out battle!” sequence with him, is a groan coming on. And sometimes villains who are evil just for the sake of it can be fun! But Zenos is not fun - he’s dull, he doesn’t get me hyped up for a fight...I feel nothing.

When he died after using his uber-synthetic Echo to possess Shinryu by taking his own life I thought, “well, at least that’s over” and I felt relieved. And then he came back, bigger and worse than ever! Yippee! I love confusing, unrelatable, boring villains who are recurring. Whatever Square Enix wants to do with Zenos, they need to hurry up and get it done. I care so little about him and just want to explore other stories and characters. I’m assuming he’s going to like, possess Zodiark or something, and then the Warrior will possess Hydaelyn, and there will be some big anime light fight showdown where Zodiark and Hydaelyn both shatter for good and Zenos dies and the Warrior lives another day and uuuugggghhh. How the hell did an expansion like Stormblood follow up Heavensward? Who let this happen?

Asahi sas Brutus

Bowl-cut twink hates his sister because he’s a Zenos fanboy and is angry Yotsuyu got all of Zenos’ attention instead of him. Filled with spite and piss, cartoonishly evil just like everyone associated with Yotsuyu or the Empire in Stormblood. Rest in pieces you little shit.

Varis zos Galvus

I’m lukewarm on Varis. He’s a better villain than Zenos, but that’s like saying a flat three-day-old glass of soda is better than sewage water. The bar is set very, very low. He’s ruthless, but not entirely unfair in his thought processes. Hell, he doesn’t even seem to like his own son (and really, if Zenos was my kid, I wouldn’t like him either). But Varis is a bit too...static, in my opinion. He doesn’t feel like a major player, and his batshit “let’s all just burn so the world resets and we can stick it to the Ascians” is pretty asinine and plays so transparently into the Ascian’s hands. I was originally bummed that Zenos killed him pretty unspectacularly, but...like with Lahabrea, it was probably better this way.

Omega

I don’t have much to say about this villain, really. The heart of the Omegascape storyline hinges on Cid, Nero, Alpha and the abstract concept of free will and accepting imperfection. It’s almost hard to say if Omega really is a villain, simply acting out a series of programs and statistics in a cold, robotic way, not really with malicious intent, so I think where Omega sort of shines is just as a being to build this sort of story off of, and provide a lot of fun boss fights as well.

Ran’jit

I had no strong opinions on Ran’jit for a long time, so I guess he improved for me as I now have An Opinion of him. He’s fine. He’s an okay villain. His Zenos-esque “survive the timer” encounters are annoying, but I find his persistence and presence more inspiring than any time crummy ol’ Zenos showed up. The biggest issue with Ran’jit is the lack of time devoted to developing him. This is a man who lost his home in the Flood of Light (which was the First’s equivalent to the Source’s Far East), and has essentially trained and raised numerous Minfillia reincarnations to battle Sin Eaters, just to watch these poor girls he saw as his own daughters die and die and die again. That cycle of loss would break down anyone, and make Vauthry’s postulations of paradise in Eulmore until the end finally comes appealing. Ran’jit pursues the Scions and Minfillia/Ryne not because he’s resolute in following orders, but because he just wants to bring this one psuedo-daughter back and keep her safe - something he could never do for the others who came and went in his tenure.

Naturally, this protectiveness leads to giving in to Vauthry’s nihilistic promises and stifles Minfillia/Ryne as a person. Thancred eventually learns to let the Minfillia he knew go so that Ryne could floruish into her own person - she was not ‘his’ Minfillia and it was terrible of him to ever impose that upon her. But where Thancred can move on and let Ryne develop into the wonderful person she is, Ran’jit cannot. And I’m disappointed this aspect of his character couldn’t be more at the forefront of his narrative.

Vauthry

If you ask me, this is more in line with how I figured Zenos might be. Vauthry lived a life or privilege and power, a child born of divine providence with no true regard for life, just his own desires. He’s spoiled and unreasonable, but his nihilism isn’t really nonsensical in the world of the First. All but a fraction of the world is destroyed, and Sin Eaters are a constant, devastating threat, so why not just relax in luxury, in the safety of Vauthry’s control over the monsters, and live in peace until the world truly ends? The battle against the Sin Eaters is exhausting and has no hope of victory anyway (until the Warrior of Light/Darkness arrives, that is). Even without the meol subplot, it makes sense why so many would flock to Eulmore once Vauthry takes over. Goofy as he can be, I do think Vauthry’s embodiment of just giving in to nihilism, hedonism and annihilation stands as a good thematic contrast to Shadowbringers strong themes of stubbornly striving for hope in even the darkest, bleakest hour. His trial is also fun and a slight swerve. All the Light Wardens up to that point had been monstrous, and Sin Eater transformations the thing of nightmares (Tesleen), so to see Vauthry take on the form of Innocence (ironically appropriate, as he truly believes he is blameless in all he has done) and become a golden-haired, angelic being of beauty - how he likely has always seen himself - is very entertaining, and defeating him feels great.

Emet-Selch / Solus zos Galvus / Hades

Ah yes. The Big One. Most people like Emet-Selch and his involvement in Shadowbringers. He’s sardonic, he’s entertaining, he’s honest, he’s explored, and he’s even sympathetic. The revelation of how Zodiark (and Hydaelyn) came to be, Amaurot and The Final Days is truly tragic. Emet and the rest of the Convocation were trying to save their world, and the cost was staggering - the lives of so many of their own, their minds, and eventually even their own world in the Amaurotine schism that followed. Being able to see a shadow of what Amaurot and its people were like really helps drive home the sorrow of it all, and Emet himself admits that he did try to learn to appreciate what the fragmented world had become. He’s also one of the most “successful” villains in Final Fantasy XIV - his intertwined association with death and masterful ability to raise up and lead empires like the ancient Allagans and modern Garleans to their self-destructing, Calamity-inducing downfalls (of which he was almost successful did with Varis and the Black Rose in the latter’s case) is pretty impressive as far as villainous plans and activity is concerned. Being forced to work alongside him in Shadowbringers because your goals are aligned while attempting to guard yourself from his inevitable schemes - which he’s pretty blunt about admitting he has - is an interesting way to develop him as a villain too. He spends most of Shadowbringers actually helping you rather than outright antagonizing you.

His conundrum is sympathetic as well, if not entirely relatable. If you had the ability to bring back your world, your friends and loved ones, at the cost of countless lives that are trivial in the grand scheme of the cosmos and start again, anew, in a better world that could repair and rebuild, would you do it? Tempered by Zodiark or not, Emet would, and while I don’t agree with him, I don’t entirely blame him either, for feeling how he does. Similar to Ran’jit and Vauthry too, Emet is nihilistic: he clings to something long-gone and will burn the current world down to get it back. To him, the Rejoining and Zodiark’s return is inevitable, and people like the Warrior of Light/Darkness are futile, frustating obstacles that cannot understand not only his plans, but just how he feels. They don’t remember what they lost. Emet does.

And yet in his final moments, Emet seems at peace. He seems to realize, as he is fading into oblivion, that the Warrior of Light/Darkness isn’t just the reincarnation of Azem, but what Azem believed in that made Azem part from the Convocation. Fractured life is still life, and Azem believed that the world and its beings was worth learning about, loving and protecting, capable of great things even when faced with insurmountable odds. The last act of good will Emet can do after requesting that the Warrior not forget about Amaurot, is to free the Warrior from Elidibus’ binds so that the last unsundered Ascian can be put to rest at last. It’s a very emotional throughline for Emet’s character, rather than a more logical one, but it works very, very well and really helps push Shadowbringers into that amazing high its story can get to.

Elidibus

I never liked Elidibus all that much for the longest time. It’s not that his character was “bad’, per se - he’s polite, diplomatic, and enigmatic, providing a much more leveled, intriguing villain to counter-act Lahabrea’s more active plays and cackling. But Elidibus’ long game always left me sort of wanting: I was never really sure what he was trying to accomplish expansion to expansion and how it related to the Rejoining that would bring about Zodiark. His plans also seemed to just regularly...fall through. Sending the Warriors of Darkness to antagonize the Warrior of Light in the Source ended up bringing about the halt of the Flood of Light on the First entirely. Picking up Zenos’ body and squashing Garlemald uprisings while nudging Varis to make and use the Black Rose was promptly halted by the true Zenos making an unspectacular return. I don’t know, I just feel like any plan Elidibus sets into motion gets stopped before it really gets started.

My opinion of him did change, however, during the course of the Shadowbringers expansion. Being the heart of Zodiark, manifesting as the First’s...uhh, first, Warrior of Light, summoning them from across the other shards to wreak havoc and empower himself, only to finally be put out of his misery not just be the true Warrior of Light/Darkness, but Emet-Selch’s last act of will and revealing that he had been an over-working, sad youth who just wanted to save the world he knew was...well, sad. And his first (and last) real gameplay with the various hero summonings was a pretty amazing set piece too, though it also tells me how devastating Elidibus could have been earlier on if he’d taken a more pro-active approach, access to the Crystal Tower notwithstanding.

Valens van Varro

Much like how I wanted to punch Ilberd, because Ilberd is a deplorable person but an effective villain with decent motivations, Valens is just...I just want to punch him, in general. He’s just Disgusting On Purpose. And since we still haven’t shaken Stormblood’s insistence that Garleans are Evil So Evil Oh My God Evil You Guys they’re trotted out a demented borderline sex-offender who forces his child wards to brand subjects who are out of line with red-hot irons. Valens is...entertaining, I guess, in that regard. And Valens does serve as an appropriate counter-part to Gaius in this storyline, the themes of which seem to largely deal with fatherhood and penance for past misdeeds. I just...really miss Garlean villains with nuance.

Fandaniel

Oh god damnit Asahi is back. Square Enix stop doing this, stop bringing back bad characters. Though it is unfair to say Fandaniel is anything like Asahi. Oh sure, he’s using Asahi’s body (and therefore the Brutus’ family inheritance to fund his machinations), he fawns over Zenos, and he’s cartoonishly evil, but at least this go around there’s a certain...goofy charm to it. Fandaniel is a sundered Ascian - he doesn’t care about the Rejoining or Zodiark, he’s aware that he’s a broken being and he is, quite frankly, loving it. He lays his intent out pretty plainly to the Warrior of Light/Darkness: he’s evil, he loves destruction, and he’s doing it because that’s just what he feels like doing. Don’t reason with him, don’t try to understand him, just fight back and cry about it. On some basic level I appreciate that brutal honesty, so much so that I’m comfortable writing my thoughts about him now because I don’t think they’re going to change. What you see is what you get with Fandaniel, and he’s just having such a good time. He’s a terribly-written villain but gosh darnit I just can’t bring myself to hate him.

#don't @ me zenos fans or i will always win need rolls on mount drops by one point in your queues #ffxiv

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wiypt-writes · 4 years ago

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Stark Spangled Banner

Ch36: I Bid You Farewell And Good Luck, Morons. Part 1- It’s Like A Pirate Had A Baby With An Angel.

Intro: Thor wakes up on a strange ship, surrounded by even stranger people, a talking tree and a rabbit. Meanwhile, back on Earth, the fight to save Vision is won and the group make their way back to the compound to understand what exactly it is that they’re facing.

Warnings: Bad Language words.

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC Katie Stark

A/N: So I HAD to write Thor and Tony’s POV over the IW chapters too, because, frankly, they had some of THE best scenes in Infinity War, and I love that freaking Norse God Himbo and chaotic Stark chemistry so bad! I know this is Katie and Steve’s fic, but Steve had so little screen time in this film all things considered…we were so robbed!!! Once again, I can’t thank @angrybirdcr enough for her edits, they’re awesome!

Disclaimer: This is a pure work of fiction and classified as 18+. Please respect this and do not read if you are underage. I do not own any characters in this series bar Katie Stark and the other OCs. By reading beyond this point you understand and accept the terms of this disclaimer.

Chapter 35

Stark Spangled Banner Masterlist // Main Masterlist

Thor wasn’t dead. But he felt like it. Every inch of his body ached and when he was jerked back to consciousness for a moment, just one split moment, he thought he saw Little Stark. Only it wasn’t her. The woman had dark hair, yes, but as he focussed he realised she looked nothing like the woman he loved dearly as a sister. This wench had huge eyes and antenna dangling from her forehead. And, whilst he knew it had been a while since he had seen his friend, she wouldn’t have changed that much.

Finding his feet he looked around, chest heaving, at the band of people stood in front of him; a woman with green skin and red hair, a man with grey/blue skin covered in red designs, a tree creature- a Flora Colossus unless he was mistaken- which was off to the side draped over a chair, some kind of furry, animal thing- a rabbit maybe- and finally a man who appeared to be a normal, human being. That was until he opened his mouth and Thor realised he was probably the most stupid human being he had ever encountered.

His rescuers had offered him soup, and then when he had explained about Thanos, the green skinned lady called Gamora had told Thor what the Titan wanted the stones for. Which she knew, because she his daughter.

Thanos had a daughter. Interesting.

“Families can be tough,” Thor spoke wisely, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Before my father died, he told me that I had a half-sister that he imprisoned in Hell. Then she returned home, stabbed me in the eye so, I had to kill her.” He shrugged. “That’s life though isn’t it I guess? Round and round, but I feel your pain.”

The human, Peter Quill, pushed his way between Gamora and Thor, and looked at her “I feel your pain, as well, because, I mean it’s not a competition, but I’ve been through a lot. My father killed my mother, and then I had to kill my father. And that was hard. Probably even harder than having to kill a sister. Plus, I, came out with both of my eyes.”

Thor wasn’t paying attention. The man was clearly a moron, and he’d just noticed he had bent the spoon in the bowl of soup and was having a flashback to the time he had tried to bend the Captain’s shield. Little Stark had laughed so much at how annoyed he had gotten when he failed that she had cried. And then, to make it worse, a few days later the Captain had managed to move Mjolnir. Just a fraction, but it moved. No one had seen it, bar Little Stark of course, but there was something there, Thor was sure. Steve Rogers was a man worthy of a lot of things, but his hammer was complicated. You have to prove your worth. That had been explained to him by his Father the day he had given it to him. Of course, he hadn’t realised then that Eitri had actually made it for Hela first.

Eitri… Oh, yes!

“I need a hammer, not a spoon.” Thor mumbled, as the idea took hold and he looked at the pod at the back of the ship. “How do I open this thing?” He began pressing random buttons on the screen next to the door. “Is there some sort of a four-digit code? Maybe a birth date or something?”

"What are you doing?” the rabbit animal, Rocket asked.

“Taking your pod.” Thor replied nonchalantly.

And then there was an argument in which the moron Quill tried to imitate Thor’s deeper voice telling him he could not take the pod, but Thor was going to take the pod anyway because he was the God of Thunder after all, and then the lady Gamora cut them off quite rightly directing the focus back to Thanos by stating they needed to find out where he was going next.

But Thor had already thought of that. “Knowhere,” he answered as he brushed past Quill and over to the refrigerator he had seen Gamora get his soup from.

“He must be going somewhere.” Mantis argued innocently.

“No,” Quill shook his head and Thor noted his stupid voice was back to normal. “Knowhere? It’s a place. We’ve been there. It sucks. Excuse me, that’s our food.” He jabbed, suddenly noticing what Thor was doing.

“Not anymore.” Thor shrugged, stuffing it into a backpack he found.

“Thor!” Gamora cut across the pair of them again. “Why would he go to Knowhere?”

“Because for years, the Reality Stone has been safely stored there with a man called the Collector.” Thor stated.

“If it’s with the Collector, then it’s not safe.” Quill snorted. “Only an idiot would give that man a stone.”

“Or a genius.” Thor shrugged.

“How do you know he’s not going for one of the other stones?” Gamora asked.

“There’s six stones out there.” Thor began to explain, “Thanos already has the Power Stone because he stole it, last week, when he decimated Xandar.”

He didn’t missed the shocked and horrified look the group shared with one another.

“He stole the Space Stone from me, when he destroyed my ship and slaughtered half my people. The Time and Mind Stones, are safe on Earth. They’re with the Avengers.”

“The Avengers?” Quill asked.

“They’re Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.”

“Like Kevin Bacon?” Mantis called out.

“Errr he may be on the team now, I don’t know.” Thor shrugged, having no idea who the man named after a breakfast meat was. “I haven’t been there in a while. And as for the Soul Stone, well no one’s ever seen that. No one even knows where it is. Therefore, Thanos can’t get it. Therefore, he’s going to Knowhere. Hence, he’ll be getting the Reality Stone. You’re welcome.”

“Then we have to go to Knowhere, now.” Gamora stated, looking around.

“Wrong. Where we have to go is Nidavellir.” Thor picked up the backpack.

“That’s a made up word.” Drax, the blue man countered.

“All words are made up.” Thor smiled, slinging the backpack onto his back.

“Nidavellir is real?” The animal called Rocket’s eyes grew wide and he jumped up onto the table and looked at Thor. “Seriously? I mean, that place is a legend. They make the most powerful, horrific weapons to ever torment the Universe. I would very much like to go there, please.”

“The rabbit is correct.” Thor grinned at Rocket’s excitement. “And clearly the smartest among you. Only Eitri the Dwarf can make me the weapon I need.” He turned to the furry animal. “I assume you’re the captain, Sir?”

Rocket grinned and nodded, “You’re very perceptive.”

“You seem like a noble leader. Will you join me on my quest to Nidavellir?”

“Let me just ask the captain. Oh, wait a second, it’s me!” Rocket grinned. “Yeah, I’ll go.”

“Wonderful.” Thor beamed.

“Uh except that I’m the captain,” Quill chipped in

“Quiet!” Thor was now beyond bored of the moron.

“And that’s my backpack.” Quill continued pointing to the bag that Thor was stealing.

“Quill, sit down.” Rocket tapped at the pad and keying in the digits to open the pod.

“Look, this is my ship. And I’m not going to - wait, what kind of weapon are we talking about here?” Quill looked round.

“The Thanos-killing kind.” Thor smiled.

Boy, was it going to be a big, fucking weapon like no one had ever seen before…

“Don’t you think that we should all have a weapon like that?” Quill frowned.

“You lack the strength to wield them. Your bodies would crumble as you minds collapsed into the madness.” Thor shook his head.

“Is it weird that I wanna do it even more now?” Rocket asked.

“Erm, a little bit weird. Yeah.” Thor looked down at him, frowning.

“If we don’t go to Knowhere and Thanos retrieves another stone, he’ll be too powerful to stop.” Gamora stepped forward.

"He already is.” Thor shrugged.

“Look, I got it figured out.” Rocket interrupted, looking at Gamora. “We got two ships, and a large assortment of morons. Me and Groot will go with the Pirate Angel here, and the morons will go to Knowhere to try and stop Thanos. Cool? Cool.”

“So cool.” Thor grinned before he climbed into the pod.

“For the record,” Quill said leaning down to Rocket, “I know that you’re only going with them because it’s where Thanos isn’t.”

“You know, you really shouldn’t talk that way to your captain, Quill.” Rocket smirked, walking backwards and gesturing outwards with his arms. “Come on, Groot. Put that game down. You’ll rot your brain,”

As Rocket sat down Thor nodded out of the pod to the rest of the people on the ship. “I bid you farewell and good luck, morons. Bye.”

******

It wasn’t hard for the team to track Wanda, her red power flashing bright against the dark sky over Edinburgh City Centre, and as the jet followed her movements, the four friends saw her spiralling through the sky with Vision and crashing through the train station roof, just as Sam put the jet on the ground.

Within seconds the Ex-Avengers were sprinting off the jet.

“Katie, Nat, take the side!” Steve yelled, as he vaulted over the railings at the edge of the road running down onto the bottom half of the concrete ramp which led to the station. “Sam, up high and remember, we protect Vision at all costs!”

“Got em.” Sam spoke over the coms. “Platform seven, near the café.”

Steve vaulted over another set of barriers, the station now deserted thanks to the evacuation taking place by the local police. As he ran onto one of the walkways over the lines, he was just in time to see two of the aliens crash through the station roof. Weighing up his options, he realised it was going to be quicker for him to hop down onto the platform he was currently overheard, and jump across the lines to help. He swung his legs over the railings and landed easily, looking up. Across from him he could see Natasha and Katie emerging to the right, as Wanda stood and moved protectively in front of Vision, building power in her hands. An express train whizzed past him and he stood still, waiting and it wasn’t long before the taller, blue looking woman spotted him, and she launched her spear over the platform. Steve easily snapped his left shoulder back whilst leaning over his body with his right, catching the staff in his hand.

“Heads up.” Sam muttered, and as Wanda and Vision turned to see Steve step out from the shadows, fury lining his face, Sam swooped in and kicked one of the aliens across the platform and through a closed café’s security gate, causing tables and chairs to go flying, before he spun and started to fire on the other alien.

Steve launched the weapon he had caught across the tracks where Natasha caught it and stabbed the second assailant in the gut as Katie moved in to head off the other who was stalking back towards them. The weapon Natasha had been using flew back into the alien’s hands and Katie ducked as she swung, jabbing her in the back of the leg with an electric powered escrima stick. The alien let out a yell, stumbled slightly and Steve cleared the platform in an easy leap, rolling and scooping up the second assailant’s staff from the floor, holding it up to block the blow that the creature aimed at Katie. He grit his teeth, planting his legs to absorb the power of the hit, as Katie rolled to the side, jumped up and the two of them began to fight the alien, joined shortly by Natasha. Steve had to admit, the woman (if you could call her that) was a force to be reckoned with, but the three of them were just about getting the upper hand when they heard Sam yell.

“DUCK!”

The three of them did so and Sam flew in hard, kicking the woman backwards where she fell and scuttled over to her fallen friend. Sam landed next to Katie, drawing both his submachine pistols on the couple.

“Get up” The alien instructed to her fallen partner, her voice was deep.

“I can't.” His gravelly, robotic voice replied.

“We don’t wanna kill you.” Natasha spoke coolly “But we will”.

“You’ll never get the chance again.” The female levelled them, with a cold glare and with that a beam shot down from the hole in the station roof and the two were transported upwards. The weapon Steve was holding also shot out of his hand. He frowned in surprise for a moment, looking at his hand then upwards as the beam of light disappeared and the ship sped off.

“Can you stand?” Sam asked Vision as Katie replaced her sticks and walked towards Wanda and the android. When Vision shook his head, Sam moved forward to help him up.

Supported by Wanda and Sam, Vision looked over at Steve, Natasha and Katie, electricity shimmering over his surface. He’d been badly damaged in the fight, and as he spoke his voice distorted.

“Thank you, Captain.”

Steve took a deep breath and nodded. His face stern, but his eyes were much softer than his expression and Katie knew why. It had been a while since anyone other than Sam, Nat or Wanda had called him Captain.

Steve looked at the android, he might have been damaged but they had the stone, and that was the main thing. Nodding, he spoke. “Let’s get you on the jet.” His voice was soft and he moved to let Sam and Wanda support Vision on their way past him, Natasha following.

Katie hung back a little, trying to stop the light-headedness she was feeling from washing over her.

“You okay?” Steve turned to her as she blinked.

“Yeah, just took a whack that’s all. “I’m fine.” She assured him as they took up the rear of the group, her fingers lacing into his.

Once Vision was safely settled in a seat at the side, Sam dropped into the pilot’s seat. Katie hit the button to close the ramp as the Jet rose into the air.

“I thought we had a deal.” Natasha spun angrily to Wanda. ”Stay close, check in. Don’t take any chances.”

“I’m sorry. We just wanted time.” The younger woman said gently.

Katie glanced at Steve, he was stood up in the middle of the jet, hands on the buckle of his utility belt, staring seemingly at nothing but clearly contemplating something.

“Where to, Cap?” Sam asked.

Steve looked up, he glanced at Sam then locked eyes with Katie as he spoke one word, one simple word that they had all been waiting to hear for almost two years.

“Home”

*****

After a few hours, with the morning sky being the only thing in sight, Sam started to lower the jet through thick white clouds and Katie couldn’t help but inhale sharply when the compound began to take shape as she watched out of the front window. It looked the same. The buildings, the grounds…she wasn’t sure why she had expected anything to change, maybe because it felt like everything had changed for them, but either way, there it was. The exact same as the last time she had seen it.

Steve noticed her demeanour change slightly as they landed. She stood up straight, her shoulders squaring as if she was about to face an onslaught. And they were, in a way. On their way Steve had called Bruce to tell him that they had Vision and were heading back, but had had no idea what they were heading back to, nor did he care. Be it Ross, police, the army, whatever, Steve was done bowing to anyone’s will, he was over playing other people’s tunes. The two years they had spent hidden had shown them all that they could operate on their own if required, and he wasn’t afraid to fight anyone who got in his way.

They stepped off the ramp and strode over the lawn, Katie taking a deep breath as she looked around. So many emotions flooded her system, she couldn’t explain or identify half of them. Memories flashed in front of her eyes, visions of long summer nights spent outside in the garden and on the BBQ patio until sunrise. Laughs during team dinners. Sam and Wanda collaborating on pranks. Training sessions with the team and Vision reading Tolkien aloud to Wanda before asking questions about humanity’s love of fiction. Walks and picnics and other things in the ground, just her and Steve. Their wedding, God their wedding! Frequent visits from Tony, bringing in new ideas and improved gadgets. Getting back safe after being out on a long mission. Feeling relaxed and at ease.

Feeling at home.

Steve’s arm curled round his wife for a moment before he pressed a kiss to the side of her head as Vision opened the door.

“Still no word from Vision?”

“Satellites lost him somewhere over Edinburgh.”

“On a stolen Quinjet with four of the world’s most wanted criminals.” “You know they’re only criminals because you’ve chosen to call them that, right, sir? “

“My God, Rhodes, your talent for horseshit rivals my own.”

The sound of the call between Ross and Rhodey echoed down the corridor reaching the group that were making their way through to the lab.

“If it weren’t for those Accords, Vision would’ve been right here.” Rhodey shot back and Katie glanced back at Vision as the sounds the voices grew louder as they neared their destination.

“I suspect it will be a Hollo Call.” Vision said gently, answering Katie’s unasked question. His suspicions were proven correct as they rounded the corner and the lab came into view. Rhodey was stood across from where the holographic image of Secretary Ross was facing off against him.

"You have second thoughts?” Ross was challenging Rhodey, who smiled simply as his eyes shot sideways. Steve strode forward, his presence as intimidating as ever, and the first thing Rhodey noticed was just how dark he looked. Gone was the upstanding, All American Hero, and in its place was someone much harder, far rougher round the edges. Kiddo looked different too. Her hair was shorter and she looked slimmer.

“Not anymore.” He grinned.

The holographic Ross followed Rhodey’s gaze and his eyes fell on Steve who was stood next to Katie at the front of the group, Natasha, Wanda, Sam and Vision behind them. Steve raised his chin a little defiantly and moved to take his power stance, feet apart, hands on his belt, before he greeted Ross politely.

“Mr. Secretary"

Katie couldn’t help the smirk on her face as she watched Ross attempting to cover up the shock he had clearly felt at the group of outlaws turning up again. She locked eyes with Rhodey who gave her the smallest of winks before he glanced back at Ross who was shaking his head slightly as he approached Steve, his holographic form almost trying to square up to him. Steve simply raised his chin further and looked down from the steps he was stood on.

"You got some nerve.” Ross sniffed, staring up at him “I’ll give you that.”

“You could use some of that right now.” Katie shot back bluntly, Ross turned his head to face her for a second. She held his gaze and arched an eyebrow until he turned back to Steve.

“The world’s on fire.” Ross said incredulously. “And you think, you can just walk back in here and all is forgiven?”

Steve levelled the secretary with a firm gaze. “I’m not looking for forgiveness.” his voice took on a threatening tone as he spoke “And I’m way past asking for permission.”

At that point the smirk on Katie’s face grew even wider as she stole a glance up at her husband, pride swelling in her chest as he continued, stoic and unyielding.

“Earth just lost her best defender, so we’re here to fight. And if you wanna stand in our way,” he stepped down to be at level with the hologram, and stared it square in the eyes “We’ll fight you, too.”

Ross was practically foaming at the mouth as his eyes went to Rhodey and he spat out his order, “Arrest them.”

“All over it.” Rhodey promised nonchalantly before shutting off the hologram, shortly after a beeping noise sounded from the computers.

“That’s a court-martial.” He informed the group as he slapped the back of his right hand into his left palm, though his tone said told Katie that he blatantly couldn’t have cared less for Ross’ demands. There was a short pause as the group glanced down at their friend, Steve smiling softly, before Rhodey’s face split into a huge smile of his own.

“It’s great to see you, Cap.” He stepped forward.

“You too, Rhodey.” Steve answered, taking the last two steps down before he shook Rhodey’s hand. Katie threw herself at her brother’s best friend and he gave her a huge bear hug before he looked down at her.

“You do something to your hair?” He teased. Katie smiled, stepping back from his embrace while he looked the rest of the group over.

“Well. You guys really look like crap. Must’ve been a rough couple of years.”

Steve looked round, an amused smile on his face as he glanced at his wife then to the rest of the team.

“Yeah, well, the hotels weren’t exactly five star.” Sam quipped back cheekily, the banter flowing between them like no time at all had passed.

“Uh, I think you look great.”

Steve turned at the new voice to see Bruce inching his way into the room nervously wringing his hands together.

Steve and Katie remained silent, exchanging a glance. In the rush around and the fray of the fight, we’d forgotten to explain exactly who it was that called.

“Yeah. I’m back.”

Katie glanced over at Nat, she had her gaze fixed solely on the scientist as she spoke “Hi, Bruce.”

“Nat.” Bruce answered inclining his head towards her slightly as he fidgeted.

“This is awkward.” Sam piped up. Steve and Katie looked at one another, before they both smiled and looked back up at Sam.

“Any news on Tony?” Katie asked gently, interrupting the silence that had fallen.

“Not yet no.” Rhodey said. “FRIDAY lost him when he left the atmosphere. We got NASA running scans and we’re trying to track his trail but…” He shook his head.

“Typical Tony.” Katie rolled her eyes “Always has to go one bigger and one better doesn’t he?”

Her blasé tone wasn’t fooling anyone.

“Banner.” Steve said gently, looking across the room at the scientist. “Can you fill us in on what we’re up against here?”

“Yeah sure,” Bruce said nodding hesitantly.

Without so much as another word, the group all started to make their way out of the room. As Katie turned to follow Natasha, Steve’s hand gently fell on her shoulder. Without looking at him, she reached up and gently wrapped her fingers round his, giving them a squeeze before she left.

Steve took a deep breath as he glanced around the room once more, before he too followed on, that sick feeling in his gut was getting worse.

**** Chapter 36 Part 2

#stark spangled banner #steve rogers #steve rogers fanfiction #Katie Stark #steve rogers x ofc #steve rogers x original female character #steve rogers fic #mcu fanfic #mcu #chris evans #chris evans characters

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realityhelixcreates · 4 years ago

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Dance of the Spheres Chapter 4: Venusian Vogue

Chapters: 4/?

Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe

Rating: PG 13

Warnings: drugging, kidnapping, forced marriage

Characters: Loki(Marvel),

Additional Tags: Loki Goes Overboard, But When Doesn’t Loki go Overboard, Mature Reader, Disabled Reader, Political Intrigue

Summary:

Images of broken light Which dance before me like a million eyes They call me on and on across the universe. Across the Universe-The Beatles

“I am Loki.”

“I asked for a bride.”

The declarations smashed into you like fists and took your breath with them.

There was a ring on your finger. Silvery, plain, simple. Why hadn't you noticed it before?

This was clearly Loki. Sunken eyes, and onyx hair, and refined bones. Exactly like the pictures. Why hadn't you noticed?

Too many things all at once. Too much. A fearful whine escaped your teeth, as you tugged on the ring. It didn't budge.

“You're supposed to be dead.” You whispered.

His face fell the instant you spoke.

“You know. I sometimes think that myself. Yet somehow I remain. Take it as a reassurance: you will not lose me to battle, or accident. I will never leave you. I suppose that is something that new brides must worry about, especially human ones. You may put that fear to rest.”

“That's not what I'm-” You clamped your mouth shut. You were in a bad position, worse than you'd ever been, maybe. You were completely alone here; you could contact no one for help. You weren't even sure where exactly 'here' was-no one knew where Asgard was located.

You were trapped in a room with a madman. A prince among his own people, who had proven himself capable of the mass murder of humans like you. Yet claiming you were his bride.

No one would come to your aid.

Did anyone even know you were missing?

You glanced at the ring once more. Its twin rested proudly on his own left hand. What choice did you have?

You had to play along. At least until you found some way out of this. Stay on the madman's good side, as much as that was possible.

“Why me?” You asked, fighting down your panic. Just gather information for now. “I'm literally nobody.”

“I don't understand either.” He sat down on the bed, just a little closer to you than arms length. “This was supposed to be a chance at reconciliation. I willingly gave myself up in a symbolic act of unity. Sacrificed my own freedom.”

You side-eyed him hard. Gave up his freedom? In what capacity? He wasn't the one kidnapped and married without any knowledge or choice!

“This isn't an uncommon arrangement.” He continued. “Your species has done this since time immemorial. From kings all the way down to commoners, uniting families, uniting fortunes, uniting entire lands. Surely your...leader...understood what was to be gained. Yes, I did a terrible thing to your people, but this should have forged a new alliance. A promise that not only would I not do such a thing again, but that my formidable prowess would be for your people, rather than against them. Was this not enough? This should have opened the way for trade, for treaties...And you! Why do such a thing to you? One of his own people?”

“Oh, I'm not his.” You said. “I voted against him. I march in protests against his shitty policies. I oppose him in any way I can. I'd say 'maybe that's why', but it really can't be. I'm nowhere near important or influential enough for the government to pay any attention to me. They're too busy trying to kill me through austerity. Or through the cops.”

Loki's face darkened. “I should find that officer and flay him. Make you a bodice of his skin.”

He'd been reaching for your shoulder, but you flinched away.

“Okay see? That right there? That's why people might not want to ally with you.” You pointed out.

“He shouldn't have hurt you.”

“That's true. That doesn't mean you can use my pain as an excuse to rampage on Earth!”

“I shan't!” He protested. “Never again, I promise you that.”

But how good was the promise of government? Politician or hereditary ruler, it was all the same. How good was the word of a murderer? How many promises had he already broken?

“How do you feel?” He asked. “You seem...lively. Whatever you were drugged with, is it having a lasting effect?”

“I'm a little disoriented, but I'm awake.” You said. “The food and water helped.”

“Yes. About that. Ah. Would you like to see your rooms? I've been anticipating your arrival-well, someone's arrival-for some months now, and I've had chambers created that befit your new station.”

The big unknown outside. Beyond this room was nothing but uncertainty. But you would be the first human being to see this new Asgard. You told yourself it was a perk.

“Um...” You mumbled. “My clothes...” You weren't going out there in a flimsy hospital gown, that was for sure.

“Being cleaned and mended.” Loki informed you. “I have a simple gown that I believe should fit you. Here.” Wit a sweeping gesture, he produced a voluminous, forest green garment out of seemingly nowhere.

You scooted away. “How did you do that?” You demanded.

“Magic, of course.” He said. “You...don't know about the magic...?”

You shook your head and took the robe from him. It felt real enough, smooth and soft, with fur trim and pin tucks. This was simple?

“What do you know about me, my dear?” He asked.

“Not much. Just what...turn around!” Sheepishly, he turned his back so you could change. “Just what was on the news. And the approximately three million conspiracy websites that popped up afterwards. You might be shocked by how many people think you were an inside job.”

“A what?”

“That's not even counting all the cults. You and Thor really got the radicalization machine cranking them out. White supremacists, nationalists, doomsday cults...thanks a lot. Not as if we didn't have enough problems cleaning up the mess you left behind.”

“That...was not my intention. Were you...?”

“I was not part of any cults. I was also not part of the celebration of your death, either.”

The news broadcast had interrupted every television, lit up every phone. A tired and battle-worn Thor, looking not one inch the hero the world knew him to be, as he towered over the reporter. He gave only a short statement: His brother Loki was dead, perished in honorable battle, in an effort to protect the galaxy from an ancient enemy.

People had trusted him. They'd seen the destruction that enemy had caused, in their quest to destroy everything. The odd teleportation anomalies in England that had dominated youtube for a long time. The leaves in your bathroom, the foreign plants in the park. Exotic, even alien creatures being spotted.

People threw parties at the news of Loki's demise. You'd gone out, gotten yourself exactly one drink, and then stayed home for the weekend. It didn't seem right, not after seeing Thor so hollowed out. You didn't really get on with celebrating the death of your enemies anyway, only the success of your causes.

“Oh. Well. Thank you.”

“But yeah, all I really know is that you attacked us out of the blue, and brought an army with you. You caused billions in damages and cost hundreds of lives. Thousands more lost everything. The economic blow is still with us, and led to some of the problems I've been marching against. And then you died. Except not, obviously. Was Thor lying to us?”

“No. He truly believed me dead. I did too, until I woke up. So you know nothing of me. I feared that might be the case. I am no warlord, not truly. I am the foremost sorcerer of Asgard. My magic has many applications, one of which is that I am rarely found without what I need.”

“So magic is real?” Why not? Aliens were real. Gods were apparently real.

“Yes, very. When times were...better, I used to tutor younger students. I might go back to doing that, once we are more established. Once we are safe.”

Safe? From what? Was whatever it was that had destroyed Asgard still out there? Thor had said otherwise, before the radio silence, but he had also thought that Loki was dead, and he was wrong about that, so...

“May I look now, dear?”

“Oh...yeah. I'm dressed.” The gown did fit, though mostly because it was a shapeless, oversized thing that was closed around you with ties. Still, it was luxurious, and made you feel like you were actually pretty-as long as no one looked at you too closely. Was this what a princess wore? You shouldn't allow yourself to get too used to it. As soon as you found a way out, you were out.

“Delightful. Even such a simple gown enhances your beauty. Will you come with me, dear? Let me show you our grand achievements.”

You didn't really want to be exposed to the people of Asgard, but this room was no safer than anywhere else right now. Loki hovered, and you stood, and managed a few wobbly steps before you overbalanced. He caught you instantly.

“Don't worry.” He murmured. “I'm here.”

As if that wasn't the problem in the first place.

“So, while you were carrying me off...I mean, when you, uh, received me, did you notice a cane lying around?” You asked. “I had one. Did the guys who brought me give it to you?”

“I'm afraid not.” He said apologetically. “They seemed strangely eager to quit the area.”

“Yeah, well. They had just committed a felony.” You griped. “They probably had orders to disappear. And they probably didn't want to hang around and witness what a warlord was gonna do to me.”

He winced. “I promise you, that's not what I really am.”

“Sorry.”

He held out his arm for you. “I don't have your cane, but I can support you. We will have another cane made for you. There should have been an Artificer and an apprentice Healer in here at some point, to measure you for a new prosthetic.”

“Uh, there were. I, uh, kinda told them to piss off.”

“Ah. I suppose I cannot blame you, now that I know of your situation. But they are here at your service, as is all of Asgard.”

He helped you limp along, somehow maintaining his dignified stride, even as you wobbled along like a penguin. The hallways were as bland and labyrinthine as a human hospital, if somewhat more softly lit. Again the light source was obscured behind thin panes of cloudy crystal, which diffused the light, giving everything a comforting, if slightly mysterious atmosphere, which the general emptiness of the area only enhanced.

There were few people here, but for some reason, you had been placed in a room far within the hospital complex. Maybe they wanted to hide you away, so that no one knew you were here until they were ready to introduce you to Asgard. Or until they were certain you were going to survive. It might cause a scandal if the prince's bride just up and died upon arrival.

Or perhaps it was to protect you. There were plenty of reasons why a human bride might not be accepted by the Asgardian populace; everything from nationalism, to someone wanting to make a bid for that crown themselves.

There were still no windows to be seen, and everything was made of stone, just like in the hospital room. Out here, in the halls and waiting rooms, the desks, chairs, and tables all seemed to be joined to the walls and floor, as if the whole place had been carved from a single, solid piece, like the rock-cut architecture of the fabled city of Petra. Here again were the creamy grays and oranges lining the walls, though a smooth black also made an appearance.

Eventually, you came to what must have been a foyer, with a high ceiling, complex stone mosaics, and huge, gorgeously carved double doors, but still no windows.

“We will be going outside now.” Loki said. “This facility is within the palace complex, and is not far from your special chambers, but we will have to cross a few halls and courtyards. There are plenty of places to sit, so if you need a rest, simply say so.”

He opened the doors for you, and you stepped out into a world of stone.

Everything was stone, stone or metal. Before you was a wide open courtyard, clearly unfinished, but spacious. At regular intervals were stone towers supporting open pillared hallways in a multiple storied, vaguely Roman courtyard style. The towers shot up, and up, and up...you climbed them with your gaze, following them to the heights to which they had to buttress each other with thin struts of stone, higher still, where they joined with an impossibly high ceiling.

There was a roof over the courtyard, so tall that your couldn't fathom how it had been built. Beyond the courtyards stacked walkways-six full stories-you could see the tips of other towers, lined with lights, merging with this high rise ceiling. Was the entire palace built under this massive shelter?

Clearly the sun did not reach into the palace. To offset this, the crystal-paned, inset lights were everywhere, creating complex patterns that mimicked the intricate knotted carvings that chased up the towers and pillars. The corbels glared down at you, fierce masks of bearded men, wolves, dragons and birds, lights in their eyes.

Combined, it was not as bright as sunlight, but not dim either. The softness of the glow made shadows diffuse, made the stone look soft and fake, and even shimmery in places, like the set pieces in eighties fantasy movies. If not for the pain in your bruises, you'd have thought the dreamy atmosphere was just that, and that you were about to wake up from this absurd dream any moment now.

But the pain was there, and denied that simple, hopeful wish. And Loki was there, gently urging you forward like he was a real gentleman, instead of a heinous war criminal. There were a few other people out here as well; walking the courtyards pillared halls, resting on stone benches, carving hollows into the ground.

There was no soil here. All stone. As you crossed the courtyard, you noticed black, and gray, and cloudy crystal inlaid into the ground in a shape reminiscent of a compass rose, decorated with silvery wire knotwork in bird and serpent shapes.

There were troughs and niches being carved into the ground that looked to you like they were meant to be flower beds...eventually. You had seen no dirt here yet, no grass or growing things at all. Maybe once you finally got outside. But for now, it felt as if you had left a building, only to exit into another building, that was in turn, within another building.

It was a bit suffocating.

Loki led you across several courtyards, each with a different pattern inlaid into their bare floor, and through vaulted hallways that still contained no windows. Many of these hallways intersected in large, circular domes, and few of them had any distinctive markings. Soon you were completely lost. With any luck, you would be able to get your hands on some paper, and create a map-otherwise, any escape attempts would be doomed from the word go.

But maybe that was the point.

Your staggering steps echoed down a particularly tall and wide hallway, almost completely devoid of people. You were almost at the end of your physical capabilities, and while there were places to sit, you felt like you must be close to your destination. You really wanted to be in a room whose dimensions you could be certain of. A space you could comprehend.

Loki brought you to a stop in front of a pair of carved wooden doors. As the first piece of architecture you had seen here that was something other than stone, you found them more beautiful than anything you'd seen all day. They were something almost normal, almost like something you would have at home. If you were insanely rich, or your dad was a carpenter or something. They were a warm terra-cotta color, carved with a dizzying array of knotwork, framed with blackened, riveted iron. The handles were iron serpents.

“We imported some things from your homeland. This redwood lumber is one such thing. From what I hear, these trees are emblematic of your country.”

“Er...” How to politely say, 'not really, even though most people who live there do know what a redwood is'. They weren't very important to anyone who didn't live near where they grew. They weren't what you would call 'quintessentially American'. There wasn't anything you could really call that. The place was just too damn big.

“We couldn't bring too much, not yet anyway.” He continued. “It is expensive, unfortunately, and we only have one ship. It can only carry so much, and it takes about three days to transport. Things are moving slowly, but our construction projects are moving along speedily. There's little else to do right now, save build.”

He opened the doors for you, and led you into a fairy tale.

#danceofthespheres #loki (marvel)#loki x reader

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emperorsfoot · 4 years ago

Text

I’ve posted about this before, but it’s time to go off on the Ben 10 arc that I hold deepest in my heart.

The Ultimate Kevin arc of Ultimate Alien

Let’s begin with how Kevin became Ultimate Kevin.

The Defeat of Aggregor

Aggregor was the main villain for the first two seasons of Ultimate Alien. We went through two arcs with him. One where our heroes had to protect his alien prisoners from being re-captured (a task they consistently failed at in every episode), and then after Aggregor re-captured them and absorbed their powers, the Map of Infinity arc where they had to stop Aggregor from collecting all the pieces of a map that would guide him to the Forge of Creation where the “ultimate prize” was (another task they consistently failed at in every episode).

Aggregor got all his aliens, and he got all his map pieces, and he made it to the Forge of Creation, and he had beaten Ben!OS, Ben!AF/UA, and Gwen into submission. Our heroes were not doing well. Kevin and Ben!OS were the only ones even still conscious and Ben!OS’ Omnitrix was timed out and non-active.

So, Ben comes up with a plan.

He offered the power of his Omnitrix to Kevin in order to defeat Aggregor.

This is a very jarring moment because, remember, THIS version of Ben has only ever known Kevin as an enemy and not someone to be trusted. But he also recognizes that his other self and Gwen were both unconscious and unable to do anything. He himself is unable to do anything because without his Omnitrix, he’s just a tiny little 10-year-old kid. But Ben recognizes that Kevin can do something if he uses his Osmosian powers to absorb the Omnitrix.

So, he offers that power to Kevin.

That’s very important.

As we move forward in this post (and all my rants about this arc, to be honest), I want you all to remember: Ben offered Kevin the Omnitrix.

Kevin has his misgivings and refuses at first. The reasons for this should be obvious, but I’ll list them for you anyway:

Kevin loses his mind when he absorbs too much power

Absorbing a lot of power overloads an Osmosian’s mind and they lose their sanity

If Kevin absorbed and Omnitrix, any Omnitrix, he will cease to be himself

Do all three of those sound like the same thing to you? Good. They should. It’s very important to this essay, so I had to say it three times. Kevin does not want to absorb the Omnitrix or the Ultimatrix because Kevin does not want to lose his mind. Kevin does not want to lose the stable life he’s built for himself. Kevin does not want to lose the healthy relationship he has with his mother. Kevin does not want to lose the friends he has made. Kevin does not want to lose the love he has found with Gwen.

Kevin has everything to lose by following Ben’s plan and absorbing an Omnitrix.

But, Kevin has even more to lose if Aggregor absorbs the power of a god and can un-make the universe.

Realizing the necessity, Kevin, accepts this plan, but goes for his Ben’s Ultimatrix instead.

He absorbed the Ultimatrix, as was Ben’s plan and becomes Ultimate Kevin. This gives him the power needed to defeat Aggregor.

The universe is saved! Whoo hoo!

The universe is saved and Kevin was the one who saved it.

Ben didn't save the universe. Kevin did.

It was Kevin.

Kevin is the hero here.

But at great personal cost.

He’s now off his nut. He even says, out right, very clearly, in plain words, that he could absorb all of his friends right now. Both Bens and even Gwen. He could even do what Aggregor was trying to do and absorb the Celestialsapien and become a god.

No one can stop him. They’re all still too weak from having their asses handed to them by Aggregor.

Everyone is 100% at Kevin’s mercy. And they all know it.

But Kevin doesn’t absorb anyone. He doesn’t absorb either of the Bens. He doesn’t absorb Gwen. He doesn’t absorb the baby god-alien that’s right there.

Instead, he leaves. He has just barely enough control of himself to do it. But he does it. Because he just sacrificed -literally- everything else he has in the universe to save these idiots.

Cue the wrap-up. Professor Paradox sends Ben!OS back to his own time, and Ben and Gwen wonder what’s gonna become of Kevin now that he’s... changed...?

And that leads us into the next segment:

Trying to Convince Us Kevin is an Unforgivable Monster

So now we have an arc of Kevin being a villain again.

Sure. I’m down.

I love a good “good guy turned bad” arc. It... does things for me...

But, the very first episode of the “prove Kevin is evil” arc only shows us that he’s not evil at all. All it does is show us that Kevin Levin has had one of the hardest and most unfair lives of any character from the Ben 10 franchise.

Let’s begin.

The Episode opens in the Null Void in a prison called Incarcercon, and introduces the characters that are going to be important for this episode. Two convicts, Trukk and Quince, and the Warden, Morgg. We’ll come back to them.

Then it cuts to our “heroes” Ben and Gwen.

And Ben is already on his “Kevin needs to go down” bullshit.

They are desperate to find Kevin. Gwen, to help him and return him to some version of sanity and normalcy. Ben, to beat the shit out of him and “stop” him like any other villain in his rogues gallery.

After this conversation we learn that Kevin has actually hurt someone, so he’s not completely innocent.

This Guy ^

Whom we have never seen before and we will never see again.

According to This Guy, Kevin claimed he owed him money and then attacked him, and Kevin’s into some pretty sketch stuff so I’m willing to believe that. Sure.

But Kevin also, right now, has the power to fly through space, race the Rust Bucket, rip into Plumbers bases, somehow get to the Null Void, and a whole bunch of other stuff. He could kill an average earthling with a sneeze, and this guy looks like an average earthling to me. I’m honestly skeptical Kevin actually hurt him at all and he didn’t just see Kevin, get scared, and trip down some stairs.

But whatever.

The testimonial from This Guy, whom we have never seen before and will never see again, bolsters Ben’s resolve. “Kevin must be stopped, no matter the cost!” (<--Optimis Prime voice)

So, where in the universe is Kevin Levin?

You guessed it! He’s in Incarcercon that was already explained to us at the beginning of the episode!

One of the other inmates approaches him because he thinks he recognizes him. Kevin is his normal abrasive self. Ben and Gwen teleport into the prison. Then we get a flashback to Kevin’s past to explain his motivations for coming to this prison in the middle of the Null Void.

This was the prison Kevin was sent to when he was just 11 years old. (I have more comments to make on that, but that’s a whole other post!) And it’s the place where -objectively his best- father figure was murdered.

Y’all remember in the OS how Ben finally “defeated” Kevin was to trap him in the Null Void, right?

Welp, once he was in the Null Void, they went even further and locked him up in the alien equivalent of a Turkish prison.

The flashback opens up with Kevin being attacked by multiple other inmates at once.

The fight is seen by two other inmates, Quince, the one we already met in the present who approached Kevin,

and Kwarrel.

Kwarrel approaches Kevin and offers to help him.

And thus, Kevin Ethan Levin gets the first positive father figure he’s had in his life. (At the age of 11, but once again, that’s another post.)

Kwarrel teaches Kevin how to channel his anger, control his powers and... TURN BACK FROM A MUTANT INTO A REAL BOY!

Oops. Sorry. Wrong image.

Here you go.

We also learn why Kwarrel wasn’t there at the beginning of Alien Fore when we run into Kevin again.

He dead.

He super dead.

He murdered.

Shot in the back by Warden Morgg, the current Warden of the prison Kevin has snuck into. Kevin has come back now that he’s Ultimate Kevin and has all these extra powers, so that he can avenge his father-figure’s murder.

That really does not sound all that villainous to me.

Morally questionable, yes. But not “evil”.

Kevin want’s justice, not senseless mayhem.

Ben and Gwen expose a slave labor and drug smuggling plot. The corrupt Warden is defeated. Ben and Gwen are the heroes. Kevin escapes. End Episode. Okay.

Let’s keep it moving.

Next episodes begins yet again with the supporting characters that are going to be important in this episode, before cutting to Ben and Gwen.

Ben is still on his “Kevin’s gotta go down” bullshit.

Then Argit practically jumps in front of their car and explains that Kevin is after him. The main conflict of this episode is Ben and Gwen protecting Argit from Kevin. (There’s also a subplot of the Vreedle brothers becoming Plumbers, and Argit trying to scam a Plumbers base, but this post is about Kevin, not them.)

Argit, of course, played the innocent victim. Gwen does mention that Argit has betrayed not only Kevin, but both her and Ben in the past and asks why they should help him. But they end up helping him anyway.

Trying to protect Argit from Kevin who wants to murder him now.

The thing is... the first time we met Argit, he paralyzed Kevin (and Ben and Gwen), and tries to steal the Rust Bucket 2.

He also sold Ben, Gwen, and Kevin out to the Vreedle brothers.

Kevin finally breaks off his friendship with Argit in “Andreas’ Fault” of Ultimate alien, when Kevin witnesses his treatment of Andreas (one of the prisoners of Aggregor).

In this very episode where Argit is the “victim”, Argit is trying to defraud the Plumbers.

So, while Ultimate Kevin trying to kill him is very extreme, for sure! I don't think it’s all that “evil” considering the history they have.

Once again, Kevin wants justice, not mayhem.

Obviously, this is a kids show and so some black and white morality is to be expected. Killing is wrong and so if Kevin wants to kill someone then he is wrong.

I just don’t think he’s acting “irredeemably evil”.

Certainly, he’s not acting bad enough to earn him a death sentence of his own!

Which is exactly what Ben tries to do to him in the third and final part of this arc.

Operation Kevin Must DIE!

#I think I reached the post limit #to be continued #tbc #part 2 coming soon!#ben 10 #ultimate alien #ultimate kevin #kevin levin #kevin 11 #kevin 11000 #forge of creation #nor iron bars a cage #kwarrel #argit #gwen tennyson #it's 3 am #I'm so tird #I'll probably finish this tomorrow

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rons-hermiones · 3 years ago

Text

Come Find Me

by rons-hermiones

Summary: Unplanned, Hermione is forced to spend Christmas at the Burrow due to her grandmother falling very ill. After being ignored by Hermione for weeks, Ron is determined to show her how much she means to him. Just before he gets the chance to tell her, Bellatrix Lestrange shows up with other plans for Hermione. Can Ron get to her before it's too late? (Ron/Hermione Half-Blood Prince AU)

Rating: M for language & dark themes in later chapters.

Chapter Thirty Six

Hermione’s been doing it on and off since last night.

By the grace of all things mighty, Jamison and Ron’s parents allowed him to remain vigil by her bedside, watching over her.

He was able to convince them over some bullocks that he’d be able to detect if her mind was really at ease. Which wasn’t a complete lie, but the only thing on his mind was her. Seeing her. Never letting her out of his sight again.

And it sounds mad, but he knows somewhere deep within himself that her mind’s okay. She’s way too fucking brilliant and too strong to let the likes of those Death Eaters take away her greatest strength.

She has to be okay.

And when he isn’t spending his time worrying himself about her in here, he’s worried about what’s out there.

The Death Eaters could come back for her. Surely they would try. Bellatrix fucking Lestrange was infamous for holding grudges.

Not to mention, Hermione somehow is in possession of Narcissa Malfoy’s wand. A Malfoy’s wand! No doubt Draco and Lucius would be on a warpath about this, just furthering the issue.

Oh yeah, and with You-Know-Who in the bloody fray. Well, let’s just say Ron was beginning to understand the true feeling of constant vigilance that Mad-Eye’s always dragging on about.

But despite all these worries, despite being nothing but a seventeen year old wizard, he was determined to protect Hermione from this. To ensure nothing, nothing, will ever happen to her again. No matter what the cost.

And he doesn’t care what Harry, his Mum, his professors- anyone, have to say about it. There’s no argument.

He realizes now, a life without Hermione is empty, almost purposeless. Even without her presence, the very thought of this moment kept him going. Not birthdays, chocolate frogs, or quidditch. Just her.

His eyes rove over her face. And he doesn’t know why, but he suddenly has the incessant need to vocalize these thoughts to her. The same he’d been doing all night.

“I know if you can hear me you’re probably damn tired of hearing it, but you’re safe now darling. Just open those pretty eyes and come back to me, alright?”

He watches her chest rise and fall at its steady pace. He knows she’s in there somewhere, she’s just a little lost right now, but he would find her.

He’ll always find her.

“Come on love, I miss you. I can only take so much of reading this book to you.” He jokes lightly, lifting Hogwarts, A History from the bedside table.

He had the idea of reading it to her last night, thinking it might awaken something, even if it’s not, well- awakening Hermione herself.

He wonders if she ever got the copy he gave her for Christmas…

“There’s so much I need to tell you Mione, that I should’ve told you ever since, well, since first year, I reckon. Since that day when-“

“Have you slept?” A voice calls from behind, making him jump slightly. However, he recognizes it instantly and decides not to turn around.

He hasn’t.

He’s so tired he can’t even manage to be embarrassed about the fact someone else heard him having this one sided conversation.

“Of course you haven’t, neither have I.” Ginny whispered as she lurched closer, closing the door as she came.

“Cissy.” Hermione groans painfully before Ron can answer his little sister.

And just like that, Ginny springs to life, “Sissy?” she questioned, “What’s that about? Hermione didn’t have a sister did she?” She almost feels stupid asking.

“No.” He answers quickly, “No she didn’t.” He reconfirmed, eyeing her sleeping form.

“Odd.” Ginny said quietly as she leaned over to inspect Hermione closer, “Has she been doing it all night?”

“No.” Ron answered quietly.

And it was true. But all this down time sitting, worrying about her, he has noticed a lot. One thing is that whenever the door squeaks or closes Hermione groans that damn word. It’s like her brain has some sort of unconscious reaction to the sound of the door, no doubt some trigger from that place.

Merlin, if he didn’t get his hands on one of them soon, he would-

“Ron?” Ginny said, studying him worriedly.

He shook his head, forgetting his thoughts, “Only when the door sounds.” He told his sister.

“What?”

“She only does it when the door makes noise, I dunno, must be something from there, I guess…” Even vaguely hinting at what she may have endured makes his chest ache.

Ginny seems to be blocking him out, just staring blankly at Hermione’s battered form. He manages to peel his eyes away from the brunette long enough to direct his gaze to his sister.

She must feel him piercing a hole into her, because she says, “This is the first time I’ve seen her.” Ginny whispers throaitly.

He gulps.

“By the time things had settled a bit with the Healer and Mum and Dad, Harry came to say you fell asleep in there. Mum thought it best to let you both rest. We stayed in some stuffy Ministry Overnight Room Kingsley set up. This was the first time I’ve been in.” Somewhere along the way a tear slides down her cheeks. Followed by another. And another.

They’re silent. She’s not heaving. Her shoulders barely shake.

Ron knows now that her long ramble about not seeing Hermione was merely a ploy to fool herself into some sort of distraction.

He slowly places his hand on her shoulder, making Ginny jump a bit, but she soon relaxes, “I don’t think it gets easier.” That definitely wasn’t what he was supposed to say.

Ginny seemed to realize as much too, face turning to meet him with a scrunched brow.

“Sorry,” He says, pulling away to rub the base of his neck, “I just mean, the longer I stay in here the more angry and sad I get, you know?” He sighs, “I’m angry that this happened to her and I’m even more pissed off that even though she’s here, it feels like the universe is taunting me. She’s here now, but she’s still… not.”

Sensing her older brother's rare outpour of vulnerability, Ginny now takes it upon herself to comfort Ron, “She’ll come back to us, I know it.” Her green eyes move back to Hermione’s closed ones, “You have so much waiting for you, I hope you know that Hermione.”

And it’s true, she does. She has Ron, Harry, Neville, all the Weasley’s, The Order, and so much more.

But Ron couldn’t help but think, with her parents gone, would it be enough?

...

“Excuse me, can I please talk to you two?” Healer Jamison asked Molly and Arthur.

Quickly, the woman stood up, frantically nodding, “yes, yes of course.”

Arthur soon joined them as the caretaker ushered them into a quiet corner.

“Is everything okay?” Mr. Weasley asked anxiously.

Jamison appeared to be at a loss for words, opening and closing his mouth, just furthering the pair's nerves. “I’m aware the two of you aren’t Miss Granger’s parents. I’d recognize Weasley’s anywhere.” He settled for.

Molly and Arthur exchanged a quick look before the former spoke up, “no we aren’t Hermione’s parents, but hers-“ she stops abruptly, not knowing what to say, or if she even has the heart to say it.

“Hermione’s parents can’t be present at the moment.” Arthur finished, giving his wife a squeeze, “she’s of age though, but we are acting as her guardians. If there’s any issues you can contact Kingsley Shacklebolt through the-“

Jamison shook his head, “no, no that’s not the issue. It’s just, there’s no easy way to say this…” he fretted, rubbing at his brow.

After another moment passed of tense silence, Molly spoke again, “I don’t understand. I thought you said that Hermione was stable, that reassessments on magical healing would be made once she comes to. Please don’t tell us-“

“Nothing like that, Mrs. Weasley, as of now I have no concerns that Miss Granger will enter such a state that could be fatal.” He assured, though the ‘as of now’ brought them little comfort.

Bewilderment was still evident across the pair's faces. Jamison knew he couldn’t put it off any longer no matter how terrible what he had to say would be.

“Miss Granger sustained a multitude of injuries, broken bones, multiple contusions, deep gashes, internal bleeding. Those were all things we took care of, or did our best to, without magic, upon her arrival. However, once we got the bleeding to slow down, we did some more testing.”

“And what did you find?” Arthur whispered, sensing this man's dread.

“It was evident that Miss Granger underwent sexual trauma.” Jamison told them quietly.

At this, Molly moaned in pain as Arthur’s arm found its way around her.

“She-she isn’t- right?” Molly asked through tears.

Hurriedly, he shook his head, “no. There were no signs of…” he gulped, “pregnancy. Even if there was at one time Miss Granger’s body was in no state to support another life. She’s severely malnourished, weak, and wasn't being taken care of properly. It doesn’t seem her body is even in a fit state to menstruate at the moment, but we can only be sure when she tells us as much.”

Molly continued to shake a little with small cries that she was clearly doing her best to conceal. Arthur decided to take the initiative asking questions she’d be sure to have later.

“I’ve heard some stories you know, about organs, and hers are…” he asked hesitantly.

“Any damage done to her organs seems to be a direct effect of the cruciatus curse. There’s some bruising on her thighs and hips that were evident as well as some scratches we believe may have been a factor, but our scans only picked up on residual dark magic.”

“Okay.” Arthur nodded slowly, “okay.” He said again.

“It’s not so much about the physical effects I’m worried about, it’s the emotional toll something like this has. Especially on someone so young. She was looked at by another healer, a female, who specializes in these kinds of things. The damage indicated that Miss Granger’s virginity was taken against her own will.” He informed sadly.

Molly cried a bit harder. Jamison himself felt a little blurry eyed.

“Here, I’ll get you the information to reach out to Healer Evangeline. She can answer any questions you may have better than I can.” He said before writing something down on his pad and handing it to Arthur.

“Thank you.” He nodded to the healer before ushering Molly to a chair.

Once he sat her down she spoke, “I’m okay Arthur, I’m fine. It’s just, poor Hermione… she doesn’t-“ she stopped speaking and shook her head.

“I know Molly Wobbles.” He said, kissing her forehead.

“I’m gonna go to the loo and freshen up. I don’t want the children to ask questions. Hermione will tell the lot of them when she’s ready.” The older woman said standing.

“Okay dear, take your time.” He said, rubbing her shoulder “I better go see Ron.” Arthur said throaitly, still not having processed what he just heard, “he'll be wondering about Narcissa Malfoy’s wand.”

“Have you heard anything?” Molly asked through a sniffle.

Arthur shook his head, “not yet, but I’m sure that’s what he’ll want to know for now.” He offered her a small smile before they parted ways.

Mr. Weasley took the sickeningly familiar path to Hermione’s room, doing his best to shove aside the pit in his stomach.

Horrible isn’t even a word that does the situation justice. No words could measure up to how terrible and vile such an act was.

Arthur Weasley was a calm, level headed, caring man. But now, now there was hell to pay.

His anger momentarily subsided at the scene he was met by, his emotions being replaced by nothing but sadness, pity even.

Ron was hunched over, clinging onto Hermione’s delicate hand. Arthur swore he could vaguely hear his son whispering something to her as his fingers stroked her hair.

“I’m gonna make this up to you, darling. I swear I’ll try and make this better if it’s the last thing I do Mione. Okay love? So please just come on…”

From the sound of his voice Arthur would bet he’s been at this for a while. It makes his heart break even more.

“Son.” He says, doing his best to not let his voice quiver.

“Dad.” Ron breathes in relief as his glassy blue eyes find his fathers.

“How is she?” He asked quietly.

Ron shrugged as his eyes fell back on Hermione’s. Fingers moving on their own accord through her matted hair, “she says something whenever the door sounds. I try to talk to her, hope she won’t hear it. Other than that, nothing.” He informed regretfully

Arthur clapped Ron on the shoulder, “you seem to be doing a good job then, I didn’t hear anything from her when I came in.”

“Yeah, at least I can do something.” He said miserably.

His father opened his mouth to speak, but Ron didn’t want to hear someone else’s apology. “Anything about the wand?”

“It’s definitely Narcissa Malfoy’s, we-“

Hermione twitched a little violently, “C-Cissy.” She groaned.

“There it is.” Ron whispered sadly.

Arthur’s brow furrowed. Something about it felt vaguely familiar. Like it meant something…

“Do you know how she got it?” Ron asked next, seemingly wanting to avert his fathers pity.

He sighs, forgetting his prior thoughts, “I reckon that’s something Hermione will have to tell us son, I just don’t imagine it’s a pleasant story.” If she remembers, Arthur added, not wanting to break Ron’s heart anymore than it’s already been fractured.

Like he can hear his fathers thoughts, he speaks confidently, “she’ll remember. I know she will. She’s right here Dad.”

Arthur hangs his head sadly in both shame and sadness.

“If there’s anyone who can bring her back son, I know it’s you.”

...

Ron wasn’t sure what day it was. A weekend maybe? It was a bit shocking no one has pestered him into going back to Hogwarts for his classes yet and Harry, Neville, and Ginny are still around.

Well, at least he thinks.

He’s pretty sure his arse hasn’t left the horrid hospital chair in over forty eight hours, save for a trip to the tiny loo connected to the room.

It’s night again. He thinks tomorrow is Sunday. Or maybe it already is.

“Mione, I’m a little surprised you haven’t woken up yet and scolded me for missing Friday’s lessons.” He whispers to her still frame under the moonlight.

Ron can feel the water building up in the backs of his eyes. Merlin, what he wouldn’t give to just hear her nag him again.

“Do you think you can try that love? Please.” He practically begs. “I don’t know how much longer I have here until my parents-”

And it’s like something within her is triggered by his words. It’s almost a bit frightening how it happens, namely, why it’s happening now, he has been prattling off to her for days. But Ron pays no mind to that.

Her eyes are open and sparkling. Still the same brown they’ve always been. He doesn’t know why, but for some reason, he thought maybe they’d look different. Like he forgot.

Hermione starts to whimper and move slightly. If she wasn’t as weak she’d surely be thrashing about in the bed.

Tears coat his cheeks before he can realize it, “Hermione, I’m here love, you’re going to be alright.” Ron swears, gently wiping the droplets streaming her own face.

At first she flinches at the contact but soon melts into the touch.

“C-Cissy?” She cries out, her voice mangled and not at all sounding like her own.

Hermione’s mind is cloudy. All that resonates is pain.

She swears she hears Ron, but that wouldn’t be the first time that’s happened. When terrible nightmares don’t haunt her, whenever the exhaustion takes over it’s dreams of him calling out to her, Harry playing quidditch, of her parents…

Ron holds off asking about that, “No, it’s me darling. It’s Ron. You’re back Mione, it’s okay.”

But his touch, it feels so real, so soft. His hand feels exceptionally large and calloused against her cheek, not at all like Narcissa’s small smooth hand.

It can’t be real. There’s no way. My mind is playing tricks, but please, let me feel it a bit longer…

Her eyes fluttered shut and Ron’s worried he’s lost her again, “Please open your eyes love, it’s me. Let me show you please.” He croaks.

Hermione’s instincts are telling her to open her eyes, but another part of her is saying not to, or else this, this feeling, will be gone. But like always, her thirst for knowledge takes over, she needs to know what’s going on.

Oh my-

The blue of his eyes. The small scar under his left eye from a quidditch incident as a child. The smattering of copper freckles dotting his face. His hair, flaming and a little more shaggy than when she last saw him.

It can’t be real. There’s no way.

But he looks, feels, so real…

She can feel her chin quivering at its own accord. Next, his large fingers push through her hair, away from her eyes.

“Hey, sh, don’t do that. You’re gonna be alright.” He promises with a watery smile.

Then with a shaking hand she weakly presses it to his cheek. Ron revels in the sensation of her small hands on him and lightly holds it to him to stop the shaking.

“R-real?” She cries.

His eyes flutter open, searing into hers, “Real.”

And she believes him.

Maybe that makes her stupid and naive. Maybe it’ll make it hurt all the more for when she wakes up and realizes this was all just another dream. But something just feels different.

At his assurance, Hermione is more than ready to succumb to the sobs building up in relife, but she can’t. Not yet. Not until she knows.

Dream or not, she needs to convince herself that what Narcissa told her wasn’t real and Ron would never lie to her. And that word, that’s what woke something within her.

He can see her struggle, “What is it? What’s wrong Mione? Do you want me to get the healer? Or maybe my Mum-”

“P-p-p,” She stutters.

“That’s it love, you can do it.” Ron encouraged, squeezing the hand pressed to him.

“Pa-parents.” She barely manages.

“My parents?” He tries.

Hermione shakes her head best she can manage before opening her mouth to speak again.

“M-mine.” She whimpers.

He realizes she doesn’t want his Mum, she wants her hers. Her dad too.

Her parents.

Merlin her parents-

And the look in her eyes, the pain in her voice. Ron just knows she knows.

It makes him feel sick at the prospect that the death of the Granger’s was used as some taunt while she was in that place.

She can see his eyes drop and the tears glittering in them at her words.

Narcissa never lied to her, but god, she wishes she had…

And before she can realize it, control it really, Hermione screamed.

A terrible, painful thing. Something she wasn’t even sure she was capable of when she can barely manage a sentence.

Without a thought Ron carefully climbed into the small bed with her, mindful of her injuries. He then thought of the best way to embrace her without causing hurt. But, before he could get the chance, Hermione took the liberty.

The small brunette practically collapsed on his chest, placing her less aching hand to clutch as his shirt.

Quickly, Ron grabbed it and held it tightly, then used his other hand to stroke her hair gently.

Hermione wailed into him, body shaking at an alarming rate. And Ron didn’t know what to do but hold her, he couldn’t tell her it was okay, because it wasn’t.

“That’s it love, let it out.” He encouraged, though he was sure his words fell upon deaf ears.

Hermione was sobbing herself into exhaustion, just thinking over and over why?

At one point, without realizing it, she was muttering the word out loud best she could through her cries.

She’d rather be in the dungeon being dealt the cruciatus day after day then experience this kind of pain.

Hearing her whimpers and the strangled words, Ron couldn’t help but let tears slip himself, “oh darling.” He sighed sadly.

And that’s how it went for an hour, even more. It was almost astounding how she managed to go on that long in her condition. Ron considered calling Jamison for a calming drought, but he knew she needed to do this, that some ruddy potion wouldn’t make her wake up and suddenly feel good as new.

As minute eighty-four ticked on, Hermione just stopped. He looked down worriedly to see her asleep on his chest.

For a moment he panicked, until he felt her shaky breath near his neck. He sighed in relief and tightened his hold on her.

Part of Ron wanted to be happy to finally hold her this way, to have her here, and to know she’s completely safe in his arms.

But he couldn’t be.

Not like this.

It was never supposed to be like this…

#Ron Weasley #Ron and Hermione #ron x hermione #rons-hermiones come find me #Hermione Granger #romione fanfic #romione #hp fanfic #hp #sixth year

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akumageist · 4 years ago

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I would die for Hitori Uzune. RIP to Kazuaki, but I’m different.

The Hatoful fandom consists of 13 people and a paperclip. It always has. Unfortunately, it probably always will. Where this is cause for some perks, it’s also some of its faults. In example, it’s still an anime game, made by a Japanese woman, and attracts weebs. Weebs tend to like to think of characters 2-Dimensionally, breaking the character down to what they think is their core personality traits. Hitori is no stranger to this, and is beaten down into this heartless, manipulative, selfish bastard. But I believe Moa is saying “anyone, even the best of us, is capable of becoming a monster if driven to it.” Let’s roll.

2162. Hitori was born into a world of war and hate, plopped into an orphanage at just 2 years old. This can be found in Moa’s canon spin-off manga, where Hitori at about ten years old is caring for the other war orphans along with the other older birds. Luckily for him, he was a genius. He was able to go out and get jobs tutoring birds and support his rag-tag family at his young age.

With that, we know Hitori was not originally cold and heartless, despite how the world may have birthed him. Especially when Nageki arrived frail and sickly. Hitori and the other birds were happy to put in overtime in an attempt to pay for the poor dove’s medications, even in his protest.

Then, 2180 happened. Imagine what sort of toll that would take on Hitori. he was absent. He was at work, unaware of the jeopardy that befell his family. What kind of horrible, mind-rattling survivors guilt must rack this bird’s brain, knowing he wasn’t there as his family was massacred one by one?

“What did we do? We had nothing. Our parents and homes had already been stolen by the humans. All we had left were each other.”

We can gather from this same scene Hitori blames himself for not being there. For not being able to protect his family, or even Nageki. Even though had he been there, he would have died alongside everybirdie else, and left Nageki to succumb to his illness alone. Something of this magnitude would create anxieties and trauma unfathomable to those who did not deal with it.

In Hitori, this manifested as full-blown helicopter mom. He can’t help but think of every little nit-pick detail over Nageki, terrified one feather out of place will kill him. The fandom is good about this side of his character! And of course, so is Moa. This may be the Summer Vacation Drama CD: Hitori The Worrywart (which takes place in MIRROR AU), but I love it’s portrayal of the anxious quail.

Hitori continued to care and ache over Nageki’s declining health. He was desperate. Begging doctors, even though deep in his little quail brain he knew Nageki was a lost cause, and that he was dying. But he couldn’t think of a life without Nageki, and did all in his power to try and keep the bird as well as he could. We can see a great example of this love in words you might not think of.

“How about this? From now on, ‘I’m fine’ is not allowed.”

I’ve always imagined Hitori getting mildly heated at Nageki in this conversation.The quail is on his last strands of stability, and the dove he cares endlessly for is trying to hide the very thing he ails himself over. The genuinity in his words shines through- telling Nageki he’d rather hear he’s bad and hurting.

So, in this desperation, Hitori carted Nageki off to some strange doctor in some strange prestigious school. And how couldn’t he? A doctor who claimed to know of the virus eating away at Nageki’s life, and how to cure it. Hitori’s beacon of hope in a sea of darkness. The only bird in the entire universe he had left to love, the one he had arguably always favored and adored, was dying. He would do anything in his power to keep the one thing he loved alive, no matter the irrationality or cost. No matter the very dying bird’s own lips saying “I… don’t want to go.”

Whether or not you ship these birds, I firmly believe Hitori is in love with Nageki in a romantic sense.

“I can no longer love another creature // I think we meant more to each other than anybirdie else in the world... // The love I felt soured into resentment // I should remember the beautiful face I knew, not… a photo covered in scribbles”

Not to mention admitting he can’t bear to live without the dove in BBL. And, in his route, Hiyoko goes as far as to refer to this bird as a female, which means he’s speaking so fondly she’s assuming it was a lover, and therefore a woman. Hitori’s stopped any sort of love at the idea he can only love Nageki post-mortem. That is canon. And well… that’s not very brotherly, no matter how good of a relationship you may have with your sibling (I speak from experience).

Okay, okay, this persuasive essay is NOT for convincing you of this ship, that is another essay for another time. I’ve only mentioned this opinion because I need you to understand his irrationality for the one thing he has left, and the fragility of it. And why it might drive anybirdie to… Hitori-level madness. Moving on.

2183. A mere 3 years after Hitori had lost the majority of his family to human terrorists. Nageki sends a coded letter, and… we can see Hitori’s anxieties outright.

“It’s happening again. Nageki needs me, and I’m not there.”

This is… a very powerful line in the game. We’re seeing just how vulnerable Hitori truly is. This is a traumatized individual in a panic attack- realizing the love of his goddamn life is once again faced with something horrible, and Hitori is once again absent from the scene.

And just like that, he’s gone.

The only thing. The only one Hitori had left in life to love. To live for. Taken from him without so much as a second chance. This is painful to write. This part of Hatoful is, without a doubt, the most agonizing. I know how it is to lose something so dear and feel as though maybe it’s not worth going on without them.

This is the peak of Moa’s tragedy writing ability (and yes, I’m including Holiday Star). But this is my point, is it not? Though his kanji may be “sun bird”, the actual word for his name “Hitori” quite literally means one, alone, solitary. He is now all alone in the universe, no family left. How can anybirdie even remotely remain in charge of their faculties (as Sakuya would put it) by now? You wouldn’t.

Hitori is now a husk of his former self. Anything he’s ever cared for is gone, he has nothing left to live for. He goes- my favorite coined term for him- absolutely batshit. He gets what we call “trauma-induced psychosis”, and begins to hallucinate very vividly, a form that he refers to as “Nageki”. We all know him of course, as Shadow. Shadow, from the little information we’re able to gather from BBL, is tormenting Hitori ruthlessly.

Shadow is easily misunderstood, because Moa made him fathomable, so the reader was able to understand exactly what was happening. What had become of Hitori Uzune. Shadow in all his simplicity- is Hitori. It is an introjection of Nageki, manifested to validate Hitori in his self-hatred. Don’t you get it? He hates himself just as much as you hate him!

Anything Hitori thinks of himself, Shadow is there to back up. He’s taunting him day in and day out, reminding him that he killed Nageki, and every ounce of Nageki’s suffering life was the fruit of Hitori’s inability to protect him. But again, it’s his own brain, telling him exactly what he wants to hear. What he truly believes. Telling himself what he’s done, and how he deserves this. ...And to seek revenge.

Hitori lost his mind. He had nothing else to lose, after all. He became obsessed with Nageki even moreso than he was in life, because there was no level-headed dove to calm him and tell him to stop worrying so much, or keep him at least reasonably held together by simply being there.

He listened to his psychosis, and when he made a friend (Moa gives evidence Hitori and Kazuaki were friends prior to Hitori’s ill-intentions), his psychosis got in the way of that, too. As he travelled down this relationship (which Moa herself says is pretty much romantic), we can assume he realized just how unable to love he was. He had Kazuaki around because, let’s face it. He wanted someone like Nageki who was incompetent so he could nurture and care for them. And for a while, it worked. But it didn’t. Hitori didn’t love Kazuaki. He couldn’t. He was too busy looking for Nageki.

So, you’re reading this in english. You speak english. At least a little, right? So maybe you played the english (and localized) version of the game. Well then you may not know the following. Please pay attention! This gets a bit rocky, and a bit more “Hitori...!”.

In the English version, Hitori disguised as Kazuaki is “tired”. In the Japanese version, he’s “sleepy” or “dreamy”. I’d describe him as ditsy, for sure. He kind of acts like an airhead who knows absolutely nothing, and his students don’t take him seriously. In the Hatomame Sweet Blend Drama CD, there is a track that follows Kazuaki on a little adventure of his narcolepsy, and going to Shuu for help.

In and out of comatose, Hitori, as himself, is there in his dreams as a separate bird.

“This bird with a face I had never seen spoke to me in a voice I had never heard, and this is what he said.”

“Nanaki-sensei” is clearly denying his own identity.

“I’ll sleep, just a little, and then leave… good… night…”

“But sleeping is my job… You still have a little longer. Tomorrow, and the day after that, and the day after that…”

This is dream Hitori telling himself that he has to continue his alias until his revenge is fulfilled. The quail that was once Hitori must remain dormant until he is reunited with Nageki again, and can be happy again. As a metaphor for depression… don’t you feel like you’re a shell of your former self?

So, going off this information… I believe Hitori has repressed himself. This is due to my own knowledge on psychology but-- Hitori doesn’t want to be Hitori anymore. It’s too hard. Hitori the war orphan. Hitori the lone survivor. Hitori the murderer and identity thief. It’s him not wanting to deal with his trauma in a healthy way, and instead locking it up and becoming somebirdie new and undamaged.

He killed Hitori.

This falls into the other delusion- that Nageki is somehow not completely dead and gone and ash- but still trapped, somehow, somewhere, and Hitori needs to find and get him. To kill Isa and the researchers who “killed” Nageki, and bring “Nageki” home. Whatever he believes Nageki is. In BBL, we see this quite literally varies! He tried to cut Ryouta open and steal his liver!

“Sir, Nageki would have never wanted this…!”

There is no difference between a serial killer and someone in a court room screaming for the serial killer to be murdered in turn. That mourning mother is then one in the same with that killer, is she not? She sees him, and wants him to die. She wants him to die and suffer. She believes that will bring her a sense of justice. Even though she knows it will not return her son to her. Hitori, is that mourning mother. He sees Isa, and all he can see is the man who murdered his dove.

I know the biggest aspect as to why the fandom hates Hitori is the sole factor that Kazuaki is #relatable. He’s a depressed college student who thinks he’s better off dead. Then, Hitori tricks him. But you’re not reading Kazuaki right. It’s okay, he’s easy to misread from Holiday Star’s plotline.

Holiday Star was written with Kazuaki as the villain, do you forget? A grey villain as well, but a villain nonetheless. He told his tragic sob story death in such a way, you can’t help but to cry. He’s the victim! I’m not saying he’s not. But he was written specifically to be pitied in Holiday Star, and as you continue on, you begin to see he’s actually just anti-self help. He doesn’t want to face his fears. He doesn’t want to leave his safe egg and take the risk he should have.

Kazuaki is meant to be pitied, yes, but just on the brink of annoying with his helplessness and self-deprecation. He’s, forgive me, a “sad sack of shit” who does nothing to help himself. Don’t come after me for being “ableist” or whatever- Moa literally wrote him this way.

This is also depicted in “Kazuaki-kun’s Book”. Now, this book takes place in the MIRROR AU, but it tells of how Kazuaki met Hitori. Moa starts the manga off by explaining Kazuaki had a great chickhood, a healthy life, and an easy, happy time. But then, he flunked his college exams and didn’t even get into his safety school. He lazed around, grew depressed, and let his apartment rot. He played video games until his online friends got jobs, and wasted any money he had on them as well. The only thing that scared him out of it is when his next door neighbor was found dead, having rotted into his own futon.

So imagine Hitori, who has worked so hard and lost everything he had done so for. Tirelessly, through his horrible, fucked up existence. Nageki, who had his short and miserable life robbed from him, had to die. Had to kill himself. And this random quail has the audacity to bitch and moan, thinking he’s got it bad? He’s a waste of space that could have been filled with Nageki. This is what Hitori’s brain is thinking. Hitori’s only ~20 years old when Nageki dies, after all.

I’m not saying this is cause for murder and identity theft. Don’t you dare misread me on this. But as I’ve stated prior- Hitori’s completely lost it. But you ship him with the chukar that literally ruined his life. Hitori’s a grey villain but holy fuck why would you want him to fuck the partridge that tortured and drove his only loved one to suicide?

It was wrong to trick Kazuaki. It was wrong to insult him as he died. It was wrong to steal his identity. That’s obvious and a given. But you all seem to look at that factoid alone, chalking it up to ‘preying on a poor mentally ill man” but not taking into consideration Hitori is mentally ill himself. ...Just not #relatable enough for you.

Hitori is suicidal as well. He’s been suicidal presumably since Nageki died. Don’t you dare say Hitori isn’t at least a little in the same boat. I don’t care if he’s not as soft and uwu and cuddly as Kazuaki. Mental illness is not rainbows and butterflies and emo hair (though Kazuaki is not portrayed this way).

Holiday star bears all the answers. I raise you important points, so pay close attention. The first key component is Hitori, found upside down in the pudding. He’s crying. Why is he crying? Because he’s lost his name? Oh, but think deeper.

“I’m Nemo”.

“Nemo” is latin for nothing, and his name translates to “nothing” in every language of HoliStar. The King has vomited him up in his kingdom, and robbed him back of what he stole from him. His identity.

But it goes even deeper than that.

“I’ve lost something, and so, I think I might cry.”

From this phrase alone, it’s painful to play this game. Nageki is right in front of his beak. But what did he do? He ate his own eyes. Hitori, in his refusal to identify with himself, has robbed himself of quite literally seeing the very bird he adores and sought after. Then, he is renamed his own identity by that bird (the only identity he accepts). How surreally real.

The second key component is when everybirdie is being rescued, but Leone warns Yuuya the quail is clearly falling more rapidly into a coma, and may not be able to awake. Why is this? Because Hitori wants to die. He’s fine with it, and Kazuaki is more than happy to keep him. When Yuuya finds him, Hitori is not at all alarmed as he should be. He seems passive, and simply wants to fall back to sleep. He’s to the point of trying to strangle Yuuya in attempt to let himself fall into eternal slumber (even if he thinks Yuuya is… Kazuaki..?).

Heed these next words carefully. When Yuuya asks if The King did something to him, Hitori replies-

“...No, all The King did was close the door.”

I am a firm believer this is Hitori indirectly saying “Kazuaki did nothing wrong, and I do not resent him for hating me.” Especially since Hitori shows signs of knowing it’s Kazuaki, and repenting.

“He said I need to be punished. Apparently I did something bad… and I think I know what it was.”

This is confirmed in my next point, so bear with me.

Hitori, in this same conversation, is admitting he wants to die. The only thing that stops him- as morbid as it may be, is remembering this takes place before the events of BBL. He hasn’t fulfilled what he believes is his “something I need to do”. Which is seek revenge, and bring Nageki home, as per Shadow’s orders.

Lastly, at the bitter end of Holiday Star when everybirdie is plummeting through the air from the false star, Hitori is still blind and confused. Suddenly, The King erupts from behind Hitori, and appears to be talking to him.

“Oh, is that right?”

“...I know, I know. ...but it’s still too soon. That’s right, I’ll be along soon. I’ll catch up with you. Someday…”

This is arguably my most prominent point in the entire essay. This is Hitori, admitting not only does he still plan to kill himself, but that he intends to keep his promise and reunite with Kazuaki in the afterlife. These are not the words of a heartless quail. These are the words of somebirdie who knows they’ve taken advantage of a friend, but is continuing to do their best to keep their promises and make amends. This is Hitori telling Kazuaki he still cares for him.

Hitori is the result of trauma and hardship beyond compare, and his inability to cope. He is not meant to be hated. He is meant to have shock value, yes. What he has done his disgusting, but you want to love him. Because he raised the sweetest bird in the entire game who would rather kill himself than hurt others.

Grey-villains are difficult, and because you can’t love them for being purely evil, you end up hating them for being a good person who’s done bad things. Hitori is a cracked window. Not quite shattered, but no longer whole, with a faulty image. Hitori is not just some heartless, manipulative, selfish bastard. He’s quite literally a bird with a broken wing (or entire ribcage more like), trying to… well, Live, and be happy.

#hitori uzune #uzune hitori #hatoful boyfriend #hatoful kareshi #hatoful #hatoful boyfriend bbl #kazuaki nanaki #nageki fujishiro #hatoful boyfriend holiday star

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snowdice · 5 years ago

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Coffee and Cinnamon Rolls (Sometimes Labels Shift Series)

Fandom: Sanders Sides

Relationships: Virgil & Remy (background Logicality and Remile)

Characters:

Main: Virgil, Remy

Mentioned: Patton, Logan, Emile

Summary:

Remy meets his best friend/bosses new child and immediately has the must protect at all cost urges.

This is a midquel for my story Sometimes Labels Fail.

Notes: Superhero AU, child abuse

No promises for a part two for this, but it is a possibility... Also I’m going to go ahead and put it in the Sometimes Labels Shift series even though it’s technically not a sequel.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Remy said, drawing the teenager’s attention back to him. He’d gone a bit distant, and his leg had started bouncing nervously a few seconds ago. That wouldn’t do. “He’s an old person. How can his system handle that much sugar and caffeine? Short answer, it can’t.” He took another long drink, being sure to slurp a bit obnoxiously.

Virgil’s nose twisted just a bit. “Then why are you drinking it?” he asked.

“When you get to be my age kid,” he said seriously, looking at him from over his sunglass, “you learn the universal truth.” The boy tilted his head curiously, falling directly into the trap. “YOLO.”

He watched Virgil go through the 5 stages of grief in two seconds flat. Remy sat back to bask in it. Mission Distract-the-Child was a success. “Why?” Virgil chocked.

Remy ignored the question. “Sure, you don’t want something other than a black coffee?” he asked. “Like, I get the aesthetic thing, I do, and I appreciate it, but why suffer?” Virgil glared at him and took a resolute sip of the drink looking like a little gremlin. “At least wash it down with a cinnamon roll,” he entreated, shoving the plate toward him.

Virgil frowned at the plate. “That’s yours,” he said.

“Yeah, well, this drink is actually giving me a stomachache so I’m not going to eat it,” he said as though he’d ever intended to eat the thing himself. “We shouldn’t let it go to waste.”

“You’re still drinking it,” Virgil pointed out.

“And your point is?” Remy asked.

“You’re a weird person,” Virgil commented.

“Please eat the pastry,” Remy said, pushing it toward him a little more forcefully. He looked at it and hesitated but eventually picked it up and took a bite, smearing the icing all over his face. Cute. Leave it to Patton to find the most anxious and damaged, but still adorable teenager in the city and adopt him on sight.

Remy had spent his night unbelievably salty that Patton had switched his on-call night around at last minute with one of the other doctors in the office. It wasn’t that Remy didn’t like the other two or that he minded working with them. They were fine, but if Remy had to work until 7am because they got called in for an emergency, he much preferred suffering with his best friend.

He’d guessed of course that whatever had gone on the night before last with Big Bird and Shadow Caster had spilled over and he’d understood that, but still. He’d been left alone and bitterly wondering what Patton could really be doing that was that important.

But apparently the man had been busy, because he’d somehow managed to accidentally acquire a whole fucking child which is not an emergency phone call Remy had ever expected to come from his incredibly homosexual best friend, but here they were.

And yes, this was clearly Patton’s baby now. He couldn’t have been any more transparent if he’d stamped the words “Patton’s son” on the boy’s forehead. What’s more was Logan was clearly also 100% on board the dad train which was a bit of a shock.

Remy studied him as he chewed on the cinnamon roll. So, this was Shadow Caster, the cities resident heroic bank robber? Remy should probably be surprised, but honestly after the Nerd=Bird realization, he really couldn’t find any shock in himself. It was a little weird, sure. Shadow Caster was a kid and one he was going to have to take pictures of and call the cops for (not because of the bank robbing). That was an interesting pill to swallow, but such was life.

In almost a blink the cinnamon roll was gone, and Jesus, did the boy ever eat? Judging by the small frame hidden under the large coat he wore, probably not. Well, Patton would surely see to that.

Remy would need to get a ‘congrats it’s a boy’ card for them, if for no other reason to watch Logan’s head spin trying to explain why that type of card was designed for the purpose of newborns joining a household and not this situation like a nerd.

“Napkin?” Remy said offering one. The kid recoiled when Remy moved too fast. Oops. He kept his hand still and didn’t comment. Eventually Virgil took the napkin, and Remy sat back slowly watching him curling in on himself a bit. Remy sighed.

Music started up suddenly and Remy glanced at his phone. “Sorry, I forgot to text my boyfriend that I’d be home late,” he told Virgil, he swiped to ignore the call and sent a text back instead with an apology. When he looked back up at Virgil, the kid was glaring at him. “What?”

“I recognize that ringtone,” he said. “It’s from Steven Universe.”

“It’s a good show,” Remy said, but that was apparently not the point because Virgil pointed a finger at him.

“You know who the Ninja Turtles are,” Virgil accused.

Remy rolled his eyes. “Of course, I know who the fucking Ninja Turtles are kid. I’m not Bluebird. Also, my boyfriend’s sort of a cartoon fanatic so even if I didn’t know before I met him, I would by now.”

“Liar.”

Remy rolled his eyes and finished his drink, smacking his lips. “Babe, I have an image to keep up as a crotchety old man. What will everyone do if they realize I’m secretly cool as well as this hot.”

He scoffed and Remy narrowed his eyes.

“Stop with the sass kid or I’ll throw this dirty napkin at you.”

Virgil screwed up his face more.

“That’s it. I’m throwing this at you,” he warned before pitching the crumped-up napkin at him.

He laughed, batting it away.

“‘ight want a coffee refill before we go?” Remy asked standing up.

“Oh, um, maybe.” He got a little quieter again at the reminder that this wasn’t just a fun coffee date, but they did have to get going pretty soon. Remy would have just taken the coffee to go if he hadn’t noticed the boy about to jump out of his own skin once they left Logan and Patton on the roof. Honestly, Remy wasn’t relishing what they were about to do. He didn’t know if he wanted to see the leftovers of whatever put that twitchiness into his movements or the distrust in his eyes. It needed to be done though, Remy knew. He’d just try to make it as painless as possible.

“Sure, I can’t tempt you with a Remy special?” he asked.

Virgil rolled his eyes. “Please. No.”

“Lame,” Remy complained. “You have that young digestion system and you’re not even taking advantage of it.”

“My body is a temple,” Virgil said. “Crumbling to pieces and also definitely cursed.”

“Dramatic fucking teenagers,” Remy mumbled, snatching up the boy’s coffee cup and heading over to get him a refill. Virgil laughed at him and Remy smiled as he walked away.

Want to read more? Click below!

Labeled Master Post.

My Masterpost.

#sanders sides #virgil sanders #remy sanders #labeled universe #sometimes labels shift #background remile #background logicality #patton sanders mentioned #logan sanders mentioned #emile piccani mentioned #child abuse #adriana writes

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stellahibernis · 4 years ago

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Lan Wangji: Out and About

AKA Lan Wangji’s costumes in the Untamed, part 2/9

I’m back with my love for beautiful costumes, more screencaps than I actually need, and some wine, let’s have a look at Lan Wangji’s second (and first blue) outfit! As always, I’ll first write about the costume, and after that how it reflects where LWJ is in his character journey.

He wears this one in episodes 8 to 11 when he goes out on a quest to find more pieces of Yin Iron, trying to escape all the confusing feelings Wei Wuxian caused. Of course, WWX will not let him go alone, and he’s only a little bit annoyed about it.

The Costume

I called his first outfit simple but formal, and this second one is pretty much opposite on both of those points; the silhouette is less formal with one less layer and narrow sleeves, but there are more details, not to mention the fabric itself is less plain. Also, in-universe this outfit cost a lot, you’d feed the whole village for years kind of money.

Above in the first image you see the general silhouette, and below we have a bit more detail in view. (Also please appreciate the soft expression directed at WWX sleeping on the roof.)

The silhouette is a curiously mixed bag when it comes to practicality. The lack of another robe over the sash and the narrow sleeves make it easier for him to move about, appearing more ready to fight if needed. Then there are the long strips of fabric falling down from his shoulders front and back, that are the opposite of practical, and potentially risky, as we see when WWX grabs one of them at one point. They look great while he’s moving, though, which is a necessary consideration in costume design, and often overrides practicality.

I was wondering, by the way, about the hen and the egg situation, whether they put the strips of fabric so that WWX had something to grab, or if he was just supposed to grab something and they were conveniently there. I’m also amused that in episode 8 WWX says LWJ always dresses in white like he’s in a funeral, and he’s wearing blue 😅

The top layer made of the blue fabric is very sheer, you can see the white layer underneath through it, and the bottom part is slit up to waist for ease of movement. That’s common for the layer underneath the sash, you can see it best if the layer below is of different color like here, or from the way it fans out while sitting. With this robe it’s especially noticeable because the blue fabric is very light and easily moves at the edges of the slits.

There’s also the usual Lan Sect cloud embroidery done with white (or very pale blue, hard to say) thread on the lapels as well as the front panel at the bottom. Even though I call this one a blue outfit, there’s still quite a bit of white visible with the layer underneath, the sash, wrist bands, and some detailing.

As I mentioned in the first post, if he has narrow sleeves, there are always fabric bands wrapped around his wrists to finish the look, as you see below. I like that the crisscrossing of fabric happens both at the wrists and in the front of the sash (seen above), it ties the whole look together. In the image below you can also see the fabric in more detail, there’s this subtle pattern of two alternating blues, and it’s very sheer indeed, if you look at the seams. That one took a weaver a lot of time. (Also salutations to whoever actually sewed this outfit, fabric like this is an unforgiving nightmare, and it’s so easy to make the garment pull at the seams.) The lapels and the long hanging strips are made of a different fabric, there’s no pattern in it, and it’s maybe slightly heavier (would make embroidery easier, as well as help with the narrow strips to fall pleasingly. (Also you might have guessed by now that I really like the string talisman scene.)

Let’s consider some more details next from the following image. First, the new head ornament that he’ll wear for the rest of the flashback. This is probably my favorite of his formal hair arrangements (I have an extra soft spot for the laid back present time look we get to see at the Jingshi).

Then we get to the main reasons why this outfit cost an arm and leg, besides the sky high cost of the fabric: just look at the jewelry on his shoulders. On both shoulders there is one large blue stone, another slightly smaller, and a white stone in the middle, not to mention that silverwork. The largest stones are huge, and the same color as the ones hanging from his waist ornament, as well as the ones he wears with his final outfit, so we definitely have a theme there. Anyway, expensive as hell, and they’re just sewn on the shoulders of the robes he decided to wear on a quest that likely would contain fighting. Also note the silver detailing at the lapel edges, want to guess if it’s made of actual silver thread in-universe? I would say yes, all things considered. Why spare the expense there after the jewelry?

Finally, I want to point at the layers at the collar, we can see four. There’s the top layer of sheer blue, then a layer of white (it’s mostly underneath the blue but you can see a narrow bit on the right, and obviously we know otherwise that the layer below is white. Then there’s another blue robe, and finally a white layer, which I think is the undershirt rather than another robe.

I should point out that this screencap was chosen because of his tiny smile at WWX on his roof, you guessed it, another scene I like a lot.

The Context

As I mentioned in the first part, in general in the flashback when LWJ is wearing predominantly blue, he’s moving closer to WWX and motivated less by his duty to his sect, and this quest is obviously a key point in that. At the start, he’s perfectly happy to be going alone, he deliberately doesn’t tell WWX he’s leaving even though they both made a promise to Lan Yi to help prevent the misuse of the Yin Iron. Of course, he doesn’t get far before WWX shows up, and he’s genuinely annoyed there at the beginning, just note the frequency of him calling WWX boring. After all, he was hoping to put all the inconvenient feelings aside, and now it’ll be all but impossible.

Incidentally, when we consider Lan Sect in general, only those of higher rank can wear predominantly blue robes. They are those who are responsible for making decisions, and can be trusted to act independently. In light of that, it’s kind of funny that the blue in LWJ’s outfits is generally a sign of him moving away from his sect and toward WWX.

All throughout the quest we see LWJ being annoyed at WWX, but a significant change is that apart from the very beginning, it only happens when there’s a particular reason for it (like WWX grabbing a hold of his robes). LWJ is no longer annoyed simply by his presence (while he rather is annoyed by the mere presence of NHS and JC).

The binding talisman (or whatever WWX ended up calling it) scene is great, because on one hand, we get an absolutely amazingly annoyed look from LWJ (please see below, I’m still laughing), but we might also add that he doesn’t even attempt to break the talisman, just yanks WWX to come along with him. Also, after this he doesn’t actually protest WWX’s presence on the quest, and when the Yin Iron reacts soon after, they’re immediately on mission mode and actively collaborating.

In fact, this quest is when they at first start to become a unit. At the summer school we hear WWX saying he considers LWJ his equal, and while he considers the quest for Yin Iron their common duty, I don’t think he considers them partners in general at the time, and if asked, he’d definitely trust his family first. Similarly, LWJ is used to being independent, and hasn’t particularly looked for company, but during this quest we see him start to trust in WWX and rely on his skills.

The key point in all this is the fight against the dire owl in the forest, where they work seamlessly together. At the start, LWJ significantly asks WWX to put the protective net around the others, which is a clear signal that in this fight he trusts WWX to have his back, but not the others. This is a huge shift for him. Likewise, when the disorientation fog arrives and LWJ is much less affected by it (due to his practice in controlling his temperament, no doubt, which is a Lan Sect practice that WWX mentions helped him at the Burial Mounds in episode 22), WWX doesn’t hesitate to trust his judgment on how to handle the situation (closing his eyes, putting his sword away etc.) We know that WWX has a pretty lofty opinion of his own skills, as he later admits (for a good reason, I’d add), so completely relying on someone who is of similar age with him is a big deal and speaks of how highly he actually thinks of LWJ. It is a major shift where they take the first steps on the road to become the people each of them relies on the most out of everyone in the world.

Another key scene that demonstrates the strengthening of their bond is when they say goodbyes to Song Lan and Xiao Xingchen. There is a pause where LWJ stays looking after them, with yearning in his eyes, and WWX is the one to notice and to call him to go. There is a clear and genuine moment of understanding between them, perhaps of the conflict between freedom and duty, that is a challenge to both of them occasionally (albeit one that takes very different shapes for them).

Even though their bond is now starting to strengthen, the circumstances are pulling them apart, and for LWJ it’s the start of the pivotal conflict between his duties to his sect and his feelings for WWX. At this point, it probably isn’t a too difficult choice for him to leave once he knows the Cloud Recesses may be in danger, but it is obvious he still regrets the parting. We see it clearly on his face when he tells the sleeping WWX that he must go.

My personal headcanon, by the way, is that LWJ composes Wangxian on the way back to Gusu after parting with WWX, at least consciously so. It might have been poking around in his head even before then, but I don’t think he was ready to admit WWX’s importance even to himself any earlier, and I doubt he had his mind in the mood for composing after what happened at the Cloud Recesses. Not to mention, what was he supposed to do while traveling when there wasn’t a certain chatterbox around to fill the silence.

His return to home is of course not at all a fun time, and his duty to his sect calls him back hard. Hence the next time we’ll see him in all white, not having a good time at all at the evil summer school.

(Somehow this one became even longer than the first part?! On the plus side, I managed to cut down the amount of images pretty well, I originally had seventeen screencaps 😂)

(You can find the rest of this series via “lwj costume series” tag below, or through my blog contents page. I’d link for ease of access but the links made it disappear from tags, so. 😒)

#the untamed #cql #lan wangji #costume design #the untamed meta #cql meta #lwj costume series #cql rambles

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mittensmorgul · 4 years ago

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I've watched season 11 again, and I have a question if you're willing to answer. In season 5, Cas was very disappointed about learning God was basically a "dead beat dad," as Dean called it. But when Cas had an opportunity to talk to Chuck, he didn't seem all that interested in talking to him or even asking a question or two. Why do you think they never had Cas interact with Chuck as a son talking to his father when it was such a huge deal for Cas in season 5?

Hi there! I’m happy to talk about this, because honestly I was personally GLAD that Cas treated Chuck the way he did in s11.

(A/N: I was halfway through writing this when my power went out last night, so now that everything is back on I’m gonna see if I remember wtf I was even talking about... if this goes sideways halfway through, blame Potomac Edison)

Cas had already realized long before exactly who and what Chuck was. I mean, not that Chuck was actually God, but that God and “His Plan” was always a load of BS.

Chuck left the angels a lot of conflicting information, and not a lot in the Free Will and Critical Thinking arena. I was just thinking about season 6, and this sort of feeds into a lot of the same distinction between Cas and the rest of the angels. My personal line of thinking earlier this evening was this line in 6.20:

CASTIEL I'm doing this for you, Dean. I'm doing this because of you. DEAN Because of me. Yeah. You got to be kidding me. CASTIEL You're the one who taught me that freedom and free will -- DEAN You're a freakin' child, you know that? Just because you can do what you want doesn't mean that you get to do whatever you want!

Major Tangent Warning, because I gotta write out what I was thinking earlier in order to explain why I am So Pleased with Cas and his reaction to Chuck in s11, which I think of as abject disdain. This is key to everything Cas had learned, to all of his growth as a person up to that point.

What Dean tells Cas here is in direct contradiction to what Raphael’s self-stated motive in restarting the apocalypse was. Also from 6.20:

RAPHAEL You rebelled - against God, heaven, and me. Now you will atone. We'll start by freeing Lucifer and Michael from their cage. And then we'll get our show back on the road. CASTIEL Raphael...No. The Apocalypse doesn't have to be fought! RAPHAEL Of course it does. It's God's will. CASTIEL How can you say that?! RAPHAEL Because it's what I want. CASTIEL Well, the other angels won't let you. RAPHAEL Are you sure? You know better than anyone, Castiel. They're soldiers. They weren't built for freedom. They were built to follow.

Raphael is just doing “whatever he wants,” in the way Dean was trying to convince Cas NOT to. Because if Dean learns anything in s6, it is the cosmic cost of his own actions. Think 6.11, and the lessons he learns having to play Death for a day. As much as Dean tries to work around the Bigger Picture of the Universe, he does understand that there is a right and a wrong, and that some things are worth fighting or even dying for, but the cost might sometimes just be too great. And unleashing all the souls in purgatory on the planet seems like just a different sort of apocalyptic level of bad... like putting out a fire with a flamethrower.

Cas had to make a choice here. He’d chosen his path every step of the way, wrestled with each decision he’d had to make over the previous year leading up to that point, but he’d passed the point of no return, and his direct prayer to Chuck went unanswered, and he never got a sign whether he was doing the right thing or not.

I’ve argued in the past that he absolutely DID get a sign, in the form of Dean telling him to stop in 6.20. But Cas dismissed him, out of pride, out of hubris, out of desperation to do the one thing he believed could give him the power to stop Apocalypse 2.0, save Heaven, and also save Dean in the process, since Dean would be back on the radar to be Michael’s vessel if Raphael succeeded in breaking him out of the Cage.

And here’s the really tangenty part of the tangent: it just made me think of all the nitwits who won’t wear a mask in public, or follow social distancing rules because MAH FREEDUMB, you’re impinging on MAH LIBERTY. BUT THE CONSTITUTION!

Because yes, we can do what we want, but we can’t do WHATEVER we want when our actions are harmful to others!

The framers of the Constitution could never have foreseen a pandemic like this. But any SOCIETY where people must coexist needs to put some constraints on liberty, and the framers absolutely DID understand this.

They also couldn’t have foreseen air travel, but we have established rules about this. They couldn’t have foreseen cars and traffic lights and interstate highways, and yet we have rules that govern our behavior there, as well. Air traffic controllers, stop signs, speed limits-- we don’t just have the right to drive 90 mph through a school zone and run through red lights. And yet nobody yells BUT MAH FREEDUMB! when they get a speeding ticket.

Polite society ALSO must include *MY* right not to be killed because someone else decided that traffic laws didn’t apply to them, see?

Basically, wear your mask and shut up about it, whiny pissbabies. This is what is required of you to live in a functioning society. You do NOT have the right to infect others with a potentially deadly illness. Full stop.

But back to Cas and the Leviathan infection he’s about to infest the entire planet with...

Dean was effectively giving him the “wear a mask, nitwit” speech, but on a cosmic level.

And Cas had to live with the consequences of his choice, with the GUILT and DEPRESSION that resulted. And he spent the next few seasons desperately trying to make up for what he’d done, to atone and do whatever he could to redeem himself-- to Dean. He’d tried to redeem himself to Heaven, but the more he eventually began to learn about Humanity, the less affinity he felt for his fellow angels, and for Chuck’s construct of Heaven.

Because back to another previous point, Chuck effectively left the angels two opposing sets of instructions: orders to watch over the earth and act as shepherds to humanity, and orders to bring on the apocalypse at any cost. Can’t do both, truly. Even Naomi will eventually say, right before Metatron stabs her in the head, that she (and the other angels) forgot that their true mission was to protect and defend humanity, and she didn’t know when or why that ever changed.

FINALLY back to the point! WHEEE!

Basically, Cas has, in the six years between s5 and s11, experienced “god-ness” from every angle, experienced his own guilt over what he now believes were misguided actions, that sometimes Humanity has a better answer, and there are some things that just aren’t worth it in the long run.

Mostly, he’s realized just HOW deadbeat Chuck has always been. And the revelation that Chuck had actually been God all along? Saw their pain and suffering at trying to STOP the apocalypse all those years before? KNEW FULL WELL that Sam, Dean and Cas were doing everything they could to try and save the world from basically the entirety of Heaven and Hell, who were plotting the destruction of humanity and most of creation with it. I mean... Cas spent s5 begging for God’s help, to save the world, to convince Michael and Lucifer that they did not have to destroy humanity, and Chuck... had done LESS than nothing. He’d sat there and ghoulishly watched the entire mess unfold like a bad tv show... oh wait... :’D

By s11, Lucifer had not reached that point that Cas had. Lucifer had many other issues, having been rejected and locked up for most of existence, and even HE had been the one in 5.22 to try and talk Michael out of enacting Chuck’s battle plan. Lucifer never had the experiences Cas did (and despite being given every opportunity to have them over the next few seasons after s11, he continues to reject those experienced at every turn anyway, only serving to highlight the difference between Cas and, honestly, most of the rest of the angels). Lucifer had a personal need for a direct apology from Chuck for everything he’d been put through-- starting with taking on the original Mark and ending with the cage.

Of course Lucifer didn’t get an honest apology, because in the end, it was all just a theoretical production to Chuck. He had never apologized, in any of his universes, to any of the beings he created. And he never would. And on some level, Cas-- via his experiences, what he himself had already come to understand about God and creation-- already understood this about Chuck.

Cas... didn’t care about him anymore. He cared about HUMANITY, about Chuck’s CREATION. The creator might be a worthless jerk, but what came out of his creation is a thing of ultimate beauty. Humanity, love, free will, and the beauty of the universe is what ends up saving the world in 11.23, so I’ve chosen to accept this read of Cas and his relationship and opinions of Chuck. Because it’s perfectly in line with the “moral” of season 11.

Plus it’s just so personally satisfying to me watching each individual character’s reactions to Chuck, and understanding how that aligns with all of their personal arcs.

Dean: brought the “how could your forsake your creation” of a broken-hearted son who has finally seen the truth. something he worked out YEARS ago between himself and his own father, so it didn’t come with that particular personal baggage and didn’t completely break him in the process (as it may have done with Cas had Chuck revealed himself, say, in 7.01...)

Sam: brought his life-long hope that God was real, his faith in God’s inherent “goodness,” did the Chuck Fanboy for a bit before seeing Chuck a lot more clearly. He was able to relinquish his idol worship of Chuck as the Savior of Humanity.

Cas: had brought his experience of Humanity and Godhood, the entire spectrum of Creation that he had experienced for himself and grown through. Cas, for all his mistakes, had never stopped TRYING to do the right thing, never stopped doing everything in his power to save humanity and creation from every cosmic threat, while Chuck himself had only hidden away and watched from the sidelines, when he’d ALWAYS had the power to make everything good and right and allow the Winchesters their peace. Honestly, what BETTER response than to treat Chuck like a bit of gum stuck to his shoe?

Metatron: who had basically spent s9 trying to turn himself into Chuck Lite, literally plagiarizing his Supernatural novels to create his own origin story as the new God, and failed miserably. What other angel could truly confront Chuck, writer to writer, and call him out for His Story? Even fallen as low as he could go, Metatron understood first-hand the responsibility of The Cosmic Author in ways even Cas couldn’t, because narrative symmetry. Metatron was always about the Word, as God’s Scribe. He was a bad copy of the original with the names scratched out. He basically wrote the worst self-insert fanfic of all time. And that gave him the narrative space to confront Chuck about everything that Cas no longer had. Cas had long since rejected that role, sided with Humanity, and smashed Chuck’s Word. The original tablet-breaker.

Crowley: carried on Crowley-ing. Doing the best he could with what he had, and somehow miraculously BS’ing his way through.

Rowena: recognized the Biggest Power in the room and ingratiated herself to it for comfort and protection, and hopefully for a bit of power and security.

Billie: gosh she just stepped in at the 11th hour to annoy Chuck. :’D

But yeah, I’ve always been incredibly pleased that Cas basically ignored Chuck in s11. Good for him.

#spn 6.20 #spn 5.22 #spn 5.18 #spn 11.20 #spn 11.21 #spn 11.22 #spn 11.23 #spn 14.20 #castiel winchester #chuck's process #in the time of covid-19 #Anonymous

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princesssarcastia · 4 years ago

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Oops, i tripped and fell into writing more star wars fanfic

someone stop me. anyway, I’ve decided I have more to say about the universe where Ahsoka Tano asks Maul who his master is, saves the Republic from turning into an Empire, and then finds and starts down the path to who she is without the war on her shoulders (on tumblr, or on ao3)

so! part one of ?, in which Bail Organa, like so many of us, is having thoughts and feelings about ahsoka tano, because i love that they’re friends.

also on ao3, if you’d prefer.

—

None of his colleagues dared call him unintelligent. Idealistic, yes. Soft. Too privileged, coming from a Core system, and a founding member of the Republic, at that, to know the real cost of certain measures, to understand the way things worked. But never unintelligent; you didn’t pass legislation successfully as one of the opposition leaders by being stupid.

Still, they underestimate him. Equate compassion with a lack of cunning, instead of realizing just how compassionate you can be when you’re cunning about it. Bail sees, hears, intuits a hell of a lot more than most people, and more than most people realize, largely by design.

It certainly comes in handy where dealing with the Jedi Order is concerned. Understanding that an entire group can operate first and foremost from a place of compassion means Bail has an easier time understanding what the hell the Jedi are doing right now.

What the Jedi are doing…it makes Bail hopeful for the future of the Republic. Hopeful that the Republic even has a future. They are, as ever, the warning animals fleeing before the fires and earthquakes, and for the past many, many months there has been far too much running.

For the first time since the war began, they are acting as Jedi, and not generals. Negotiating peace at any cost. Which, yes, sometimes involves violence, but more often means sitting down with the parties involved for terms and impartial evaluation.

There is still more violence than not, but the tide is turning. Duchess Krynze, were she alive to see it, would be satisfied the Republic has finally seen her way of things.

—

All this to say, Bail has been intrigued by Ahsoka Tano from the start.

A jedi, then a traitor, then an advocate for Mandalore and probable commander of Republic forces. Her career has certainly been interesting, to those who are paying attention.

And Bail has always been paying attention. It’s not many people that Senator Amidala trusts to drag along on her more…creative diplomatic endeavors. He would know. So, for Padmé to drag the girl into Separatist space, to meet a trusted friend, Ahsoka in turn must have been trusted, by Padmé at least.

He doesn’t think the Jedi Order realizes how obvious they’re being, when it comes to her.

Former Padawan Tano reappears on Coruscant some time just before Chancellor Palpatine is revealed to be not only a traitor to the Republic, but also a Sith Lord. An old evil, an impossible enemy from the heydays of the Republic when the impossible was reality, like something out of legend. And despite her rather abrupt departure from the Order, and subsequent stripping of rank in the GAR, she is allowed full access to the Jedi Temple, the Senate, and, if Bail’s intelligence from inside the GAR is correct, force-wielding prisoners inside the most secure prison on Coruscant.

Footage of Chancellor Palpatine’s offices that night will never be fully recovered, due to some strange mishap on the part of his security forces. So, all they have to rely on is the testimony of the Jedi and whatever evidence they uncover.

All the pieces are there: Palpatine’s confession to General Skywalker, heresy as it is. Fragments of footage clearly showing Palpatine in a heated battle with the Jedi. The dead bodies left in his wake. Palpatine, as dead as the Jedi he killed. And the records that the man known only as Maul, a traitor to Palpatine’s conspiracy, pointed the Jedi toward before escaping their custody. Woven throughout are hints of the larger story, one Bail is sure some of the other senators must have put together, but none of them have mentioned it, either.

He wonders if it’s for the same reason he hasn’t.

Even Master Windu, for all his pointed references to her as Lady Tano, some unknown barb that slid unerringly under her skin every time, talks brisk circles around Ahsoka’s involvement, drawing all the attention onto himself, pushing it back toward Maul, tossing it to Skywalker who runs with it faster than the Senate can keep up.

They protect her at every turn, and Bail finds himself unable to poke holes in the story, to tease out what really happened, because they’re doing it as a kindness to a girl who’s known nothing but war and betrayal at the Republic’s hands.

A girl who Bail officially meets for the first time, before learning any of this, when she bursts, uninvited, into his office to quietly fall to pieces unobserved.

Breha gives him a soft, knowing look, seeing the whole of it in an instant with just the first piece in hand, and tells him to keep his tea close at hand; he’s going to need it.

—

Master Windu claims the final blow was his. And Bail wonders:

Is it because letting Maul take credit where it’s due would be challenged at every turn by suspicious senators?

Or is it one more kindness to the young woman who successfully laid siege to Mandalore, who was apprenticed for years to the finest warrior the Republic has; who didn’t deserve to shoulder this burden, too?

—

It is a true relief to offer her a place on one of Alderaan’s relief missions. Anything, to further ease that dead-eyed panic pervading her frame for the weeks they spend talking through the mess that is rebuilding a government.

One turns into two turns into four turns into something more than just a Jedi lending her services to a cause she deems worthy. Turns into: comradery with Ansatho and the rest of the relief teams, the deep faith of the people of Ryloth, and a kind of budding companionship that has been increasingly rare in Bail’s life, as he’s gotten older and more consumed with the causes and burdens of the Republic’s many, myriad peoples.

With the distance between them, this mainly involves Holocalls at the oddest of times, though luckily almost never when he can’t be interrupted, increasingly with no justification other than a desire to say hello. Her clear-cut, burnished kindness and dry wit are like a mountain breeze in comparison to his conversations in the Senate.

What a strange bond to form with a seventeen-year-old Jedi, Bail muses. But then, Ahsoka Tano is no stranger to burdens, and like calls to like.

Breha teases that, at this rate, she very well might offer her Alderaanian citizenship, as a thank you for her continued efforts, as a declaration that Ahsoka’s values and Alderaan’s values were kin; and as a silent offer of refuge from the Jedi Order and those heavy burdens she is so clearly learning to shuck from her shoulders.

He never presses the issue with Ahsoka. Why she can’t stand to stay on Coruscant for more than two or three cycles, why she refuses to take part in the re-structuring of the Jedi Order or allow her council to interfere in how she spends her time. But he does extend Breha’s offer to Ahsoka, to make it clear that she will not be cast adrift if she finds it necessary to cut ties with her people once more.

#star wars #star wars fanfiction #star wars fic #fic #bail organa #ahsoka tano #mentions of breha organa #mentions of mace windu #more meta than plot lmao #there is more where this came from I promise #im just gonna take this ball and run with it #apparently

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catgirlxox · 5 years ago

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Omg! I just watched the B10:AF ep “Veeedle, Vreedle” and I now see what your talking about with Julie! I mean, I always believed you, but now I am seeing it with my own eyes! I haven’t watched Ben 10 in some, just recently started to rewatch it (found you blog and I love it!), and I always remembered feeling weird about their (Ben & Julie) relationship. I didn’t remember this ep I rewatched it and I notices something. (1) when the Vreedles come to repo, Ship is on the offensive & starts morphing

into weapons. Julie tells Ship “I don’t want them to see how valuable you are” and instead calls Ben(who comes with in seconds!!) (2) when with Gwen and Kevin, they find out the court order is legit, Ben says “somebody can use him [Ship] as a weapon” Gwen: “AND you DON’T want Julie to LOSE her pet EITHER, right BEN?” Ben passively says he agrees and Julie calls him out on it not being sincere

(3) Julie ask Gwen would Ben care if Ship was “just a dog, my [Julie] dog” (4) When Ben & Kevin comes back from court Julie is happy b/c Ben went “halfway across the galaxy” for her. But when Ben tells her that he feels, in light of all of this, that Julie is putting a lot of pressure on their relationship, Kevin tells him “it’s just a dog”. Like people Ship is not a dog! Ship is a sentient Mechamorph! You perceive it to act like a dog! Is there even dogs in space?!

Julie starts the episode saying that Ship is powerful, latter saying the same thing to Gwen, but once Ben says the exact same thing that she says, all of a sudden it’s wrong. I’m with Ben, that thing can kill you, your family, or anyone at any given time! Ship, though friendly, it’s not a toy or pet. Ship is like owning a gun; it’s cool and you can take it to the shooting range for “fun” BUT it doesn’t take away how deadly it is.

Gwen & Kevin might be so relaxed b/c they have seen and can handle things like this. But Julie hasn’t, she literally had to call Ben for help b/c she couldn’t protect herself! And what if he couldn’t answer his phone?! But lucky for Julie he comes on time to help, but after that Julie questions if Ben cares about ship. Girl, he cares about you and Ship on two different levels. Even if Ship was a dog, I’m pretty sure he wouldn’t go out his way unless it was important.

Julie is important to Ben & Ship is important to Julie, therefore Ship is important to Ben. But again you can’t ignore how dangerous Ship is, or the potential to be. But the worst thing is Ben opened the conversation about what he feels in the relationship, but Julie looks offended and Kevin dismisses Ben. If anyone says they feel pressure in a relationship, THATS SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT! Your partner should feel safe & comfortable with you not pressure.

His grievances are dismissed but when Julie got a problem, she’ll raise hell for Ben. And note that this is in the beginning of their relationship and latter Ben doesn’t start these types of conversations anymore, he is mostly reacting or apologizing (to my memory, still rewatching). And I’m surprise that Gwen, of all people, doesn’t have Ben’s back more often. In OS when Kai was first introduced, I remember Gwen sticking up for Ben when he was treated unfairly. Seeing this, I personally think Ben stayed in the relationship b/c he’s lonely & wants intimacy with someone. It used to be Grandpa Max & Gwen, but they now have lives and responsibilities outside of Ben. Often times people who are lonely overindulge in intimacy, i.e always wanting to be around people no matter how long & if it’s good or bad . Some who are quick to romantic relations often do it b/c it’s a quick way to companionship.

I’m not saying Ben doesn’t love Julie, I’m saying is that he emotionally needs Julie more that what she knows and what she can give him. It’s funny how in OV when Rook and Ben become friends, girls start throwing themselves at Ben but he doesn’t care. Julie is traveling and he doesn’t freak out, instead believes the best and let her do her thing. Why? B/c he has Rook, he has a friend that will never leave his side. He finally gets that companion & intimacy he wanted.

Therefore, no longer NEEDING to hold onto or pursue romantic relations. Instead he’s free to get a gf when he wants one. It’s sad b/c Ben is a empathetic guy, he is so open hearted, kind, forgiving, lighthearted, & trustworthy but people see that as a flaw. Ben will fight for you however you need it, at any cost, but rarely is it returned. He can’t afford to feel bad, to be anything less than Ben 10/10.

I personally think, within story, Ben deserved better romantic partners or should just stay single. The girls say they given more than they get, but they should know who they’re dating. He couldn’t stop being a hero if he tried, b/c it’s who he is! He’s not dumb, he’ll make “gf time”, but he also needs “me time”. He’ll do what they want, but to do what he wants they’re reluctant or wants something out of it *cough* the D *cough*. It seems like they all are in love with

—————————————————————-

Yes!! I’m so glad people are noticing!

First, the “dog” situation…SHIP IS NOT A DOG. Just because he is seemingly programmed to mimic an earth dog, doesn’t make him any less a weapon. It’s the equivalent of having a machine gun painted pink. Cute, but still deadly.

Ben is right to see Ship for what he is, and in doing so, it proves that he cares about Julie because he cares that she’s in possession of what could be highly dangerous alien weaponry.

Why does he need to go half way across the universe for her to see that??

Is he supposed to just agree with her delusion? Okay, “delusion” might be a little harsh, but he’s had so much experience with dangerous alien technology, even being able to become a Galvanic Mechamorph himself because of the potentially dangerous alien technology literally on his wrist, that he would know what he’s talking about. She doesn’t even know the half of it at this point!

Why does she not care that he’s looking out for her?? How does that make him a bad boyfriend? Just because he disagrees with her?

Who wouldn't feel under pressure when this is a problem very early into your relationship?

Part of me just thinks that they’re reading him wrong. Maybe it should be obvious that Ben saying “I think Ship could be used as a weapon” would translate to “I care about Julie’s safety”, but to her it seems to not have been so clear, unfortunately.

Similarly, I hear a lot of people talk about how much of a problem Ben’s “attitude” is when debating things in relation to this pairing. Although this is probably more common when discussing Ultimate Alien.

But honestly? If you don’t like someone’s attitude, why would you stay in a relationship with them?

Are relationships for changing your partner to suit your own preferences? And if their own opinions and perspectives don’t line up with yours, even if they’re right, does that make them a bad partner?

Flaws are subjective. Clearly what these characters thought was ‘bad’ about Ben, we see the good in.

He is not fundamentally a terrible boyfriend.

It’s interesting that you say Ben chose to stay in the relationship due to feelings of loneliness and longing for intimacy that he was lacking. I have my own particular issues with Rook, but, for the most part, I’m willing to slightly overlook those flaws because I’m glad he was there for Ben when he needed someone during the beginning of Omniverse. But that really makes it clear why he stuck around.

I hate when people argue that he was neglectful and ignorant towards her, which is what made her leave. Or, more accurately, “ghost him.”

I don’t recall anyone in “Rules of Engagement” ever definitively saying that it had been months between the last time Ben and Julie spoke.

Ben is sixteen in both Ultimate Alien and Omniverse, apparently. If that is true, SO MUCH HAPPENS THAT YEAR! He gains fame, takes down his childhood hero (Captain Nemesis), deals with Ultimate Kevin and Aggregor, deals with the Forever Knights becoming increasingly more violent, defeats Vilgax and Dagon with Ascalon, loses his old team, becomes friends with Rook. deals with Khyber hunting him down, has old wounds ripped open and faces off Malware, gets kicked off the planet while the Incuseans enslave Earth before coming back to save everyone…and that’s not even the whole show!

They had a falling out between Ben defeating Vilgax and Dagon, and the frog war. Compared to how many events can fit into a year of his life. that couldn’t have been an extremely long time. Two months, maximum.

But more importantly, he must have been so overwhelmed. It’s so unfortunate that he feels like he can’t express that in fear of people not seeing him as the strong, unbreakable hero he is always expected to be.

Overall, I definitely agree that he deserved better than what he got. And I could be petty and plug my own self insert oc who I ship with him (and do it right lol) but I’ll save it. Thank you for letting me know my words make a difference!

#ask #long post #wow this turned into an essay #but I shouldn't be surprised lol #anyway if you do care about my oc...check my deviantart ;3 #link in bio #benlie #ben 10 #ben 10 alien force #ben 10 ultimate alien #ben 10 omniverse #ben tennyson #julie yamamoto #benxjulie #essay files

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