#brock baker (pilot) | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

waywardxrhea · 1 year ago

Text

Part Twenty-Six: Decisions, Decisions...

[slow burn romance between Steve Rogers and SHIELD agent Emma Baker]

Warnings: 18+, contains humor, fluff, mental health, family trauma, romance, angst, language, violence, (potentially smut later on).

installment list

Word count: 6.7k

General Ross proposes the Sokovia Accords and Emma has some big decisions to make.

On the way back home, there is relative silence on the jet. No one speaks because they're all just trying to process what they saw. As Emma is tapping away at her laptop trying to get a report done before they get back, Wanda wanders up to her. She sits beside Emma on the bench and asks quietly, "Is...is there any way we just...don't send the footage to the media?"

Emma sighs and shakes her head, taking a break from her typing. "Unfortunately no. Sam and I aren't the only ones who got footage of that today. A report has to go out, but I'm trying my hardest to make sure everyone knows it wasn't your fault."

"But it was my fault, I couldn't contain the blast," Wanda replies despondently.

"Well even then, if you hadn't stepped in we would be down a man and many many more people would have died. So here I am being the one to say thank you, Wanda." She makes a quick glance up to Steve who is piloting the jet and adds, "And thank you for saving Steve."

Wanda tries a small smile as she says, "I'll always have my team's back."

"Good," Emma replies. "And hey, look on the bright side of things, the ending may not have been the best, but while we were there, we did a helluva lot of good."

When the team gets back to the compound, Emma heads to her room to shower and take another look over the footage. She plays the news report on the TV as she showers and mutters to herself, "Of course they're only talking about the explosion. Of course they aren't focusing on how we saved that bio-weapon from being unleashed on the world. I don't see them publishing footage of Wanda taking all that gas out of the building and saving everyone inside's life..."

Freshly clean and pissed off, Emma sits down at her desk and opens her laptop. She takes snippets of the footage from the day, of all the good things they did, and edits them together into one video. Emma then goes to her recording feature and makes a voiceover for the video.

She takes a deep breath and starts her speech. "Hello everyone. My name is Emma Baker and many of you may know me as the Avengers Reporter. Today as you all know, a small group of the Avengers, including myself, went to Lagos, Nigeria on a mission. That mission's goal was to take down former SHIELD agent and STRIKE leader, Brock Rumlow AKA Crossbones. And we were successful. The footage you're seeing is footage I personally recorded of the mission. Here you get to see what the news isn't covering. Today Wanda Maximoff saved dozens of lives from noxious gas in this building. Natasha Romanoff and Sam Wilson saved what could have been millions of lives from a bio-weapon being unleashed on the world. Captain Steve Rogers made sure that all of this went down as smoothly as possible. No one could have known that Rumlow was going to detonate a suicide vest, and we are very thankful that Wanda was there because without her. Captain Rogers would no longer be with us. Same with dozens of people in that crowded market. As a team, we did what we could with the resources and time we were given and as you can see, we did a ton of good that the news simply is not going to show you. Thank you for watching." Emma hovers her finger over the upload button for a second before clicking it. There had to be a way to make things right...

A few minutes later Emma makes her way to the kitchen to start something for dinner for everyone because what they all needed was comfort food in the midst of what happened in Lagos. As she cooks, Emma keeps checking her phone. From across the kitchen, Maria notices and asks, "Why do you keep checking your phone? I know you aren't checking a recipe, you know this one by heart."

Emma scrunches her eyebrows in confusion before putting her phone down. "It's just...I published something to put on the Avengers blog about the mission today and it hasn't gotten any views."

"Well, how long ago did you publish it?" Maria asks as Emma puts the dish she's making in the oven.

"About half an hour ago before I came in here to make dinner. Usually my Avengers stuff gets thousands of views within minutes and I would assume after something big like this, people would be wanting answers."

"Huh, that is weird," Maria says, thinking of what could be the problem.

They don't have to think too long though before the voice of Tony Stark presents itself. "What happened was me, Baker."

Emma turns around and takes off her oven mitts, asking, "Hey Tony, what do you mean by that?"

"Don't you 'hey Tony' me. I had to stop that video you were publishing because it was about to cause me a PR nightmare. You aren't supposed to cause me PR nightmares, Baker, you're supposed to prevent them!"

Emma can't help the hot rage burning inside, so in response to Tony's yelling, she raises her voice a bit too. "How the hell would that video cause a PR problem Stark? Everything in that video was the truth whether you admit it or not!"

"The truth is that you were blatantly ignoring the fact that people in that building died!"

"Dozens more could have died if Wanda hadn't intervened! Millions more if we hadn't been there! Maybe you would know that if you had listened to a goddamn word I said!"

"Guys! Guys!" Maria shouts trying to stop the argument.

At the sound of the yelling, Sam and Steve walk into the area followed by Wanda and Vision to see what was causing the commotion. Both Tony and Emma ignore Maria as Emma takes a jab at Tony. "You never listen to what I have to say when it comes to this stuff Stark! Way back when you completely ignored my coverup of the whole Iron Man thing and now you're not letting me publish the truth? I got into this business so that the news and its biases couldn't just publish whatever they want with no one taking the other side. That video was the other side! That video shows all the good we did and the silver lining of it all!"

"Well, silver linings don't mean shit when the world doesn't trust you anymore, Baker!" The words hit Emma and even though they have nothing to do with her and Steve's falling out, it takes her back to that headspace. In this fragile state, Emma can no longer think of anything to say to Tony, the fire inside her being put out at the mention of mistrust. At Emma's silence, Tony gets one more zinger in, saying, "All the world sees is the destruction we leave behind and you have always caught that destruction on camera."

Emma tries to open her mouth to say something but can't get any words out. She stands there defeated and turns her eyes to the ground. As he watches her reaction, Steve wishes he could take Emma into his arms and tell her it wasn't her fault, but instead of doing that, he simply asks Tony, "You're here for a reason aren't you? You aren't just here to yell at Emma?"

"Yeah, I am here for a reason as a matter of fact. We have a meeting with the Secretary of State. Everyone to the meeting room. Now."

Everyone follows Tony to the meeting room, Emma taking up the rear of the group and walking slowly, not wanting to face the music. Steve slows his pace to match Emma's before they reach the doors. He takes Emma's hand in his own and gently squeezes it, telling her, "Hey, it'll be okay, Em." Emma gives him a small smile at the gesture, her mind too clouded by anxiety as to what the meeting could be about to respond with words.

The team all gathers in the room, taking seats around a table with Secretary Ross at the head of it. Ross starts off the meeting with a story about his past heart attack, ending with talking about perspective. "The world owes the Avengers an unpayable debt," he tells them all. "You have fought for us, protected us, and risked your lives, but while a lot of people see you as heroes - a great deal thanks to you Miss Baker - there are some people who see you as vigilantes."

Natasha is the first one to speak up, asking, "And how do you see us, Mr. Secretary?"

"How about dangerous?" Ross asks her. "What would you call a group of skilled individuals based in the US who routinely ignore sovereign borders and inflict their will wherever they see fit? Top it off with those individuals seeming almost unconcerned about what happens when they leave and that's why I call it dangerous."

A small fire ignites itself in Emma at the words, wanting desperately to speak up, but words fail her as Ross brings up a holographic monitor to show them footage of the major battles the Avengers have been present in. Ones that Emma captured footage of. As Ross goes through footage of destruction and battle, every time Emma sees her watermark in the bottom corner, she breaks a little more inside. She keeps her eyes glued to the screen, not wanting to look at anyone else to see if they notice the mark too even though she can still see their eyes shifting...

Everyone has their own reactions to the videos and Steve notices so he says to Ross, "Okay, that's enough."

Ross nods and stops the footage. "For the past few years, you have operated with unlimited power with zero supervision. Frankly, that's an arrangement that the governments of the world can't accept anymore. I think we have a solution though." He takes a hefty book from his assistant and passes it to Wanda. "The Sokovia Accords. It's approved by 117 countries and states that the Avengers shall no longer be a private organization. Instead, it will be run and regulated by the United Nations panel and only go out if and when necessary."

"The Avengers were formed to make the world a safer place," Steve tells him while staring at the book. "I feel we've done that."

"Then tell me, Captain, do you know where Thor and Banner are right now?" Ross is met with silence from Steve so he continues with, "If I misplaced a couple of thirty megaton nukes you can bet there would be consequences."

The fire inside Emma burns a little brighter at the words, but once more her own words fail to make an appearance because her mind keeps going back to the videos they were shown as well as Tony's words earlier. When no one says anything, Ross speaks again. "Compromise and reassurance. That's how the world works. This is the middle ground."

From his place at the table, Rhodes asks, "So there are contingencies, yes?"

"Three days from now the UN meets in Vienna to ratify the Accords. Talk it over," he tells them before starting to leave the room.

As he heads for the door, Natasha asks, "And if we come to a decision you don't like?"

"Then you retire," he tells her sternly.

When Ross leaves the room and everyone moves to the living area, arguing about the Accords ensues. Sam and Rhodes argue about what Ross knows about Avenging while Steve reads the Accords and Tony sits on the couch with his hand over his face. Emma gets the almost burnt food out of the oven and sits plates beside it if anyone feels the need to eat, but she certainly doesn't. She also doesn't want to be surrounded by her friends arguing so she stays in the kitchen just listening in.

"I have an equation," Vision says loudly to stop Sam and Rhodes' fighting.

"Oh great, this'll surely clear things up," Sam smarts off.

"Well in the eight years since Mr. Stark revealed himself as Iron Man, the number of enhanced individuals has increased exponentially. During the same period, the number of world-ending events has also increased."

"Are you saying it's our fault?" Steve asks, looking up from the Accords.

"I'm saying there may be a causality," Vision responds.

Pissed, Emma smarts off just loudly enough to be heard by Sam and Rhodes. "Correlation doesn't equal causation Vision, that's basic college statistics..." Sam turns and smirks at Emma's comment and mouths a thank you!

Vision continues his statement, saying, "Our very strength invites challenge which then incites conflict and conflict...well that brings catastrophe. Oversight is not something that should be dismissed out of hand."

"Boom," Rhodes says, turning to Sam which makes Emma roll her eyes as she turns to get a glass from the cabinet.

"Tony," Natasha speaks up, "you're being uncharacteristically non-hyperverbal."

"That's because he's already made up his mind," Steve tells her with frustration in his voice.

"Boy you know me so well," Tony mutters while getting up and walking toward the kitchen. "Actually I'm nursing an electromagnetic headache. That's all. Just...pain, Cap." He looks in the sink and asks, "Who's been putting coffee grounds in the garbage disposal? What am I running a bed and breakfast for a biker gang?"

Emma sighs and shoots a look at Sam and says, "Damnit Wilson what did I tell you?"

Sam puts his hands in the air, "Sorry, I was in a rush this morning."

"I don't care if you were in a rush," Tony tells him. "I care about this." He slaps his phone onto the counter and starts telling them about one of the people that died while the Avengers were there doing their thing.

Wanda lets out a barely audible "Oh my God..." at the information.

Tony then continues in frustration, "There's no decision-making process here. We need to be put in check and whatever form that takes, I'm game. If we can't accept boundaries or limitations we are no better than the bad guys."

"Tony, when someone dies on your watch you don't give up," Steve tells him.

"Who said we're giving up?"

"We are if we're not taking responsibility for our actions," Steve retorts. "This document just shifts the blame."

"I'm sorry, Steve, that is dangerously arrogant," Rhodes tells him. "This is the United Nations we are talking about here. Not the World Security Council, not HYDRA, not SHIELD-"

"No, it's not," Steve interrupts him, "but it's run by people with agendas and agendas change."

"That's good!" Tony shouts, leaving the kitchen. "That's why I'm here. When I realized what my weapons were capable of I shut it down."

Emma finally finds words to say and calls, "Stark, you chose to do that! If we sign this we surrender our right to choose."

"Emma's right," Steve agrees. "What if this panel sends us somewhere we don't think we should be? Or if they send us somewhere they want us to be and we would be of better use somewhere else? We may not be perfect but the safest hands are still our own."

Tony comes back with, "If we don't do this now, it's just gonna be done to us later. That's the fact and it won't be pretty."

Wanda finds her voice and says, "So you're saying they'll come for me."

Vision responds immediately with, "We would protect you."

"Maybe Tony's right," Nat says to them all. "If we have one hand on the wheel we can still steer, but if we take it off..."

Before she can finish though, Sam interrupts her, asking, "Aren't you the same woman that told the government to kiss her ass a few years ago? Am I still talking with her right now?"

"I'm just trying to navigate this situation," she replies. "We have made some very public mistakes and to make up for it we need to win people's trust back."

"I'm sorry, did I hear you right?" Tony asks. "Did you just agree with me?"

"Oh I'm starting to regret it now," she smarts off.

"No, no, no, you can't take it back," Tony tells her with a smirk.

From his seat, Steve feels his phone start buzzing with a text so he takes it out to check the message. "I have to go," he says out loud before letting the Accords fall to the table, walking out of the area quickly.

Emma watches as Steve leaves and Sam takes the initiative to follow him. "I'll be back."

When he leaves, everyone starts to get up from their seats and goes into the kitchen for food. Emma starts to leave the area so she could get some time with her thoughts when Tony stops her. "Baker, can I speak with you?"

"Uh sure yeah," Emma mumbles, turning back around.

"We don't have to talk right here, let's go somewhere quieter." Emma nods and follows him down the hall and back into the meeting room they met with Ross in. Tony closes the door and starts with, "Look, I'm gonna get straight to the point. As I see it, you have two options here. You can either stay an Avenger, sign the Accords, and do so legally under government control or you can continue as an Avenger without signing, become a vigilante, and lose your job here as well as any sort of government support. If you go the second route, on a mission, anyone at any time can call for your arrest or worse your execution depending on where you are. Baker, you're my best reporter, so I hope you make the smart decision here. There's big coverage coming up for the meeting with the UN and I'll need you there."

Emma nods while her mind turns over what Tony had said. "You've given me a lot to think about. I'll keep you updated on my decision, I'll try and make up my mind by tomorrow evening."

"Just let me know," he tells her as he walks out the door.

Emma leaves the conference room and walks through the living area to make her way to her bedroom. While passing through, she bumps into Sam. "Sorry, I'm super distracted, I didn't mean to run into you," she apologizes to him quickly.

"You're okay," he replies.

"How's Steve? Did he say what was up?"

"Well, Peggy died," Sam replies with a sigh. "He's pretty broken up about it, so naturally he's beating the shit out of the punching bags in the training gym."

Emma's heart breaks for Steve, she knows how it feels to lose someone that important... "I should go talk with him," she says and starts to head in the direction Steve had gone off in.

Before she can leave though, Sam grabs Emma's arm to stop her. "He just needs time alone, Ems."

"No one needs to be alone in a time like this, Sam. He was there for me when my Grammie died, I need to be there for him now," she tells him.

"And I understand that, but he explicitly told me he wanted to be alone. If he hadn't I'd still be in there with him right now."

Emma stops her walking and nods. "I understand."

"Good," he replies. "Now just go to your room and relax for the night, it's been a long day. Tomorrow we can figure all of this shit out."

"Okay," Emma says, not wanting to bring up the talk she just had with Tony. "Goodnight Sam."

"Night. Don't get too into that head of yours, okay?"

"I'll try. No promises," Emma tells him with a soft laugh.

The next day comes and by morning Emma still doesn't have an answer to her dilemma, so instead of staying at the compound, she heads back to Manhattan for the day to try and buy some time. As Emma is heading out, Maria spots her and calls out her name. Emma quickly turns around and shushes her, "I don't need anyone to know that I'm leaving right now! I just need time to think, time I won't get that being here with everyone all day."

"Where are you going?"

"Manhattan. I need to go to that coffee shop for a bit. Maybe then I'll take a trip down to Central Park to see if I can come up with an answer to all of this crap going on."

"I'm coming with you," Maria tells her.

"Oh Maria, you don't have to. I don't want to interrupt your work."

"I want my work to be interrupted," Maria tells her. "Since things went down yesterday I've had a massive headache from dealing with it all."

"Sorry about that," Emma tells her sheepishly.

"Don't be, now let's head out and have some fun like old times when it was just the two of us."

"You don't have to tell me twice," Emma replies with a smile.

After her day out with Maria, Emma arrives back at the compound with answers. "Here goes nothing," she whispers to herself as she goes to knock at Steve's bedroom door.

The door cracks open to reveal an exhausted-looking Steve Rogers. "Hey Em, what's up?"

"Can I talk with you about something?" At the question, Steve opens the door fully and invites her into the room. When she takes a step in, she sees Sam is there as well. Sam stands up from his spot on a chair, but before he can leave, Emma takes a deep breath and tells him, "You don't need to go, Sam. This kinda involves you too."

Sam sits back down and Steve sits on the edge of his bed, asking, "What'd you want to talk about?"

"Well..." she trails off, suddenly losing confidence in herself and her decision.

Emma starts subconsciously fiddling with the ring on her thumb, a tick Steve has picked up on that means she's really stressed out. "Is everything okay, Em?"

Emma sighs and replies, "I guess I'm just gonna have to rip the bandaid off aren't I?" She avoids eye contact with Steve and Sam as she continues, "I have to resign from the Avengers."

"And why do you have to do that?" Steve asks, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"I had a talk with Tony last night about the Accords and-" Emma tries but is interrupted by Sam.

"Since when the hell did you listen to what Stark has to say about the Accords? I thought you were on our side! You can't just abandon ship when things get rough, Emma!"

"He pushed my hand, okay? I refuse to sign those Accords, Sam, and because there's no way in hell I'm signing them, if I continue avenging I risk everything I have here. My job, my tech, maybe some of my friends. I can't lose every bit of stability I have in my life at once."

"Do you realize how selfish you sound right now?" Sam asks in frustration. "The whole point of being a hero is that you risk your life to save others who can't protect themselves! How don't you understand that?"

"Oh I'm so sorry that I'm finally in a stable place for once in my life and I would like to keep it that way! And don't you even dare accuse me of not understanding what it means to have the title of an Avenger. Of a hero. Because I lived most of my life believing I was the villain in my own life's story and now that I'm finally helping people, there's nothing about that title I don't understand." She turns away as her voice breaks, "I can't lose everything over a stupid piece of paper."

"You'd still have us," Sam tells her softly, sensing that he had gone too far.

"And I get what you're saying," Emma continues quietly. "I get that I can't just stop saving people because things get rough, but what Tony told me scared the hell out of me. He said that if I don't sign the Accords and I go out on a mission, even if I'm saving people, the government of wherever we are can call for my arrest or execution."

"Emma you know I would never let that happen to you," Steve tells her instantly.

Emma sighs and wipes a tear from her cheek with the sleeve of her sweater, saying, "I know, I know, but then you're in the crosshairs too. There are just too many factors and risks now. I'm sorry."

"Emma," Sam says, "that's what our whole job is: risk. We risk our lives to do the job that no one else will."

"But if we go out and have the government on our tails as well as the bad guys then we can't do our jobs properly. Please don't act like I didn't think this through."

Sam's frustration begins to show again as he mumbles, "I don't have to act."

Emma sighs in frustration and shouts, "I don't know what to tell you here, Sam! As long as I want to keep my job with Stark Industries, I have to remain a neutral third party in all of this and that means giving up being an Avenger! Trust me, it breaks my heart having to give up everything I've worked so hard for but I really don't have a choice."

"The hell you don't!" Sam says, raising his voice once more. His frustration reaches another peak and he shouts, "I really thought you of all people would understand what needs to be done here! You know, breaking the law for the greater good, it's not like you haven't done that before!"

Emma is speechless for a second as she sees red. She tries to keep her cool though, almost growling, "Don't you dare compare this to what I did back then."

Steve finally gets fed up listening to the bickering without getting a word in, so he stands up and says, "That's enough you two. They're tearing up the team enough as it is, we can't let them tear our friendship apart too!"

"Steve, are you even hearing what's happening right now?"

"Yes I am, Sam, and as your Captain, I advise you to back down. Emma is making the decision that's best for her. That doesn't have to change our position on the matter."

A few more tears slip from Emma's eyes and she tells the both of them quietly, "I hope both of you know that I support you one hundred percent, I just can't be involved in all of this, okay?"

"I understand, Em," Steve tells her softly.

"I'll just see myself out," she tells them and turns to leave.

Steve follows her to the door and tells her, "Don't worry about Sam, he's just pissed and needs to blow off some steam. I'll talk with him, okay?"

Emma nods and makes her way down the hall. She decides to go to her room to listen to music and calm down her nerves. When she gets there, she puts on her headphones and blasts some rock music to try and drown everything from the past 72 hours out.

After about half an hour, she feels a presence in the room and spins her chair around to see Sam standing in her room with a smirk on his face. Emma takes out her headphones and says, "I didn't think you'd want to talk with me right now."

"And I didn't know you listened to heavy metal, I guess we're both full of surprises."

"Aren't you pissed at me?"

"I wouldn't say pissed, more so just frustrated in your decision," he replies. Emma is about to open her mouth to smart off, but Sam says, "Ah, ah, ah, I know what I said back there was uncalled for and I'm here to apologize. Steve talked with me and I realized that what I said really hurt you and for that, I am very sorry."

"Thank you..." she whispers.

"Now I didn't come here just to apologize, I wanted to help you get your mind off of things too, so," he says and ducks out into the hall for a second. He then returns pulling a cart loaded with what might as well have been a fully stocked bar.

Emma can't help but laugh at the gesture. "So you came here to drink away our problems?"

"Not drink them away, just pretend they aren't here for a while," he tells her while closing the door.

"Is Steve coming?" Emma asks.

"No, he can't drink his feelings like you and I can, so he's blowing off steam in other ways. All of this isn't sitting well with him. He can try and hide it, but I can tell he's hurting."

"I would be concerned if he wasn't," Emma tells him as she grabs a glass from the cart and fills it a bit with liquor, topping it off with soda. She then sits on her bed and pats it, inviting Sam to sit with her. Sam shoots her a look of confusion and she laughs, "Not like that, you ass. I just want to drink and play video games and this is the best vantage point to see the screen."

"Got it," Sam laughs as he rolls the cart to be beside him so he can play bartender for the night.

As Emma boots up her game console, Sam says, "I hate to keep bringing it up, but you really do agree with us about the Accords though right?"

"Yes, I do. With all my heart. And that's why I have to resign, because I agree with you guys." Emma pauses for a moment and takes a drink before saying, "There's just so much that goes into the UN. With what they're wanting to do and with how many countries are involved, hundreds could be dead before we would even be given the clear to go do our job. How I see it is that it's all political. They say it's about saving lives, but I just can't see how. I think everyone just wants to save face, be the ones doing 'the right thing.' Well, I think it's all bullshit."

"Wow, you really did think this through, didn't you?"

"That's what I was trying to tell you," Emma tells him and lightly punches him. "They all know how many lives are saved every time the Avengers go out, they see the footage I've gotten through the years. I just wish it didn't come back to bite us in the ass..." She sighs heavily before throwing back the rest of her drink and handing the glass to Sam.

"Hey, no one's saying this is on you," he tells her as he hands her glass back once it’s refilled.

"Well I am," Emma retorts as she loads up a game for them to play, Mario Kart of course. "I know for a fact that you all saw my watermark in the footage that Ross used in that meeting, and even if no one's saying it out loud, my mind is telling me that I'm to blame for this mess."

"Try not to listen to those thoughts, okay?"

"It's just hard not to slip into that mindset when everything seems to be crashing down around me," she tells him while they choose their carts for the game.

Sam takes forever to customize his cart, so while he does, Emma finishes off her second drink. When she gets up to get herself another, Sam laughs. "Okay speed demon. Since when did you drink like this?"

"Since everything I've worked so hard for seemed to start to slip away, Wilson," she tells him. Emma makes her way back to her side of the bed with the bottle of liquor in one hand and the soda in the other, not wanting to get back up to get more later. She settles back into the bed and clicks start on the game so they can begin the round.

"Game on," Sam tells her.

The two sit and play the game for a few minutes while drinking, and Emma starts to slip up while trying to concentrate on the game and her conversation at once. "You know what I just don't understand?" Emma asks as she falls off the map once again.

"How you and alcohol do not mix well with Mario Kart?" Sam asks with a laugh.

"I mean sure, but that's not what I had in mind," she says back. "What I had in mind was who in the hell does Ross think he is asking Steve about where Thor is? The man is the literal God of Thunder, how and why does Ross expect us to keep tabs on him?"

"Right, it's not like they have the ability to email us from Asgard," Sam agrees.

"Exactly! And furthermore, does he really think that Thor Odinson would be okay with anyone telling him where he can and can't fight?"

"No, he would not be okay with that," Sam replies as they finish the map with Emma in last place. He decides to take a jab at Emma and jokes, "Wow I didn't know you were such a lightweight, Ems."

"Some of these maps are hard sober, okay?" Emma defends herself. The next map starts and she is left staring hard and silent at the screen as she tries to concentrate but can't as she falls off the map yet again.

Veering off-topic because of the buzz catching up to her, Emma says aloud, "You know, it sucks seeing Steve in so much pain."

"Tell me about it."

"He's just been through so much lately. First the Accords possibly take away his right to Avenge and then the possibility of them taking away his shield if he doesn't cooperate... And then on top of that the woman he loved for so long dies. He can't catch a break and it isn't fair. He doesn't deserve this kind of pain. He can hide it all he wants with that damn stoic look of his, but he's definitely hurting a lot more than he lets on. What I did earlier probably didn't help..."

"Yeah, I get what you're saying," Sam tells her as he loses his first-place position to concentrate more on the conversation at hand.

"I just..." Emma pauses for a beat to choose her words carefully, but at this point, her filter is gone. “I wish he knew how much I love him...maybe that could help take away some of his pain or at least give him an outlet to go to that isn't those poor punching bags.”

A bit more sober than Emma is, Sam takes time to process Emma's words before responding with a smirk, "I totally knew you were into him!" He pauses and then curses, "Damn, now I owe Nat five bucks..."

Emma pauses the game and disregards the second comment for now, saying, "Well of course I'm into him. He's one of the kindest, most caring, and genuine people I've ever met. He does this job and saves people's lives because he knows it's the right thing to do." Emma pauses and giggles before adding, "Not to mention he looks damn good while doing it." After saying this, she asks, "Wait let's go back, did you say you made a bet on me?"

"Yes, yes we did, and you just lost Wanda and me five bucks each," Sam replies.

"So what was this bet?"

"It was just us betting on who would admit their feelings first. Wanda and I bet on Steve because I mean, come on, he's one of the most confident and brave guys I know, and no offense, Ems, but you're...well you."

Emma laughs a bit but then her demeanor changes to be a bit more somber. "Well, it's not like the bet will mean anything anyways."

"What do you mean by that?"

"It's not like he has feelings for me."

"Emma, there's no way he doesn't have feelings for you. You can't tell me you haven't felt the tension between the two of y'all."

"I guess I just thought I was projecting," she replies, taking the last drink from her cup.

"I'm willing to bet it isn't that."

"Oh, well, now I know you aren't afraid to make a bet on me," Emma tells him.

Sam chuckles as Emma pours herself another drink. "So why don't you say anything to him?"

"Are you kidding me? He's Captain freaking America, the literal definition of perfection, and I'm just plain old me. Not to mention my shitty past when it comes to relationships... Then there's how my father treated me all my life... Overall, relationships and admitting feelings just...don't come easy to me after all of that."

"Well he was a boy, she was a girl, can I make it any more obvious?" Sam asks teasingly.

Emma cringes at the reference and tells him, "I'm also just afraid to ruin our friendship...if I make a move and he doesn't feel the same way then I risk things being super weird after and I don't know if I would be able to handle that." She pauses and then continues, "Plus, you saw how he reacted when Peggy died, he still loves her..."

"Ems, he's hurting so much because she was one of his only connections to the past. Barnes is still at large so she was the only one left. Of course he's gonna be hurt over her passing, but who's to say he doesn't have feelings for you?" Emma thinks about the words as she takes another long drink from her glass. When she takes the glass away from her lips, Sam chuckles and takes away the bottle and glass saying, "I think it's time for you to stop while you're ahead before you start telling me all your dirty little secrets like whose poster you made out with as a teenager."

Emma laughs as she leans her head back against her headboard, feeling like she was spinning. "I just wish I had the guts to tell him how I feel."

"Maybe soon," Sam tells her as he stands up from the bed, slightly tipsy, but gaining his footing quickly. He thinks for a second before saying, "You know, you're a lot more fun to drink with than Steve or Nat."

"I thought you said I was a lightweight," Emma replies.

"Oh you totally are, but at least you get drunk and tell me your secrets. Nat keeps hers even drunk and the only thing I've ever seen come close to getting Steve buzzed was that ale Thor brought from Asgard that one time."

Emma laughs as she stands up to change into her pj's, almost falling over in the process. Sam laughs at her as he helps her into the bathroom to change, standing outside the door to make sure she doesn't fall down. When Emma reemerges dressed in her pj's, she says to Sam, "Justin Timberlake." In response, Sam sends her a quizzical look. "You asked whose poster I made out with when I was younger. The answer is Justin Timberlake."

Sam can't help but laugh as he asks, "So I see you have a thing for blondes with nice jaw lines?"

"Shut up," Emma says with a blush on her cheeks.

"Well it's getting late," Sam says, checking the clock that reads 1:20 am. "It's been a fun night, but I'm gonna call it."

"Well thank you for letting me rant and drink away my feelings," Emma tells him with a smile. "I really needed it."

"I bet you won't be saying that in the morning," Sam replies as he heads to the door to leave.

"That's a fun fact about me, Sam. I can get blackout drunk and the next morning I won't have a hangover. It's actually really nice," Emma tells him, pride in her voice at the genes she inherited from Grammie’s side of the family.

"We'll see in the morning, you did quite a bit of drinking tonight," he replies as he turns to shut the door. "Goodnight, Baker."

"Goodnight, Wilson," Emma replies as he shuts the door. She then crawls into her bed and turns off the lights, hoping to get some shuteye after the events of the day.

link to the next part

#fanfic #marvel #captain america #slow burn #steve rogers #romance #fanfiction #friends to lovers #Spotify #marvel fanfic series #avengers fanfiction #steve rogers friends to lovers #protective steve rogers #steve rogers slow burn #steve rogers fluff #steve rogers angst #steve rogers romance #steve rogers x oc #captain america fic

4 notes · View notes

animevillainscourge · 2 years ago

Text

on a completely unrelated note apparently brock baker of the helluva butt pilot fame was the singing voice of a one off character in tuff puppy. for some reason

why are there proshippers on my cartman post why cant that post be reblogged by a normal person for once

#evil monologues

2 notes · View notes

weirdhappycigarette · 4 years ago

Text

This will never not be funny.

747 notes · View notes

stolasbuckzo · 2 years ago

Text

Stolas of the Ars Goetia

VO(s):

Bryce Pinkham (series)

Brock Baker (pilot)

Before 2x11:

After 2x11:

Theme song(s):

AU:

Legs - Myrah Marie (🤣)

Canon:

Owl in a Cage

youtube

Fave quote:

“Never seemed to be an issue, *chuckles* I guess you were just... creative.” — Stolas talking about his and Blitz’s height differences

Basics:

Social standing:

Royalty (formerly)

Commoner (currently)

Sex: Male

Species: Demon (barn owl)

* Human (disguise) (formerly)

(Also can technically turn into any of Hell’s race of his choosing with magical abilities)

Sexuality: Gay

Nationality:

Standard English 🇬🇧

<> RP (Recieved Pronunciation) dialect

Relationship Type: Monogamous

Height: 11ft tall

Zodiac sign: Libra ♎️ (theorised)

Occupation:

• Prince of the Ars Goetia family (formerly)

<> Host of Moon Harvest Festival (formerly)

• Benefactor of I.M.P (formerly — post 2x08)

• Receptionist of I.M.P (currently)

Age(s):

10 years old in 2x01 “The Circus” and was betrothed to Stella at that age (flashback)

17 years old >>> when Octavia was born

30 years old

RP (Tixel):

30 years old >>> exposition >>> (Chapter 2: Outcast)

36 years old >>> 6 years >>> (Chapter 3: Dead to Me)

46 years old >>> 10 years >>> (Chapter 9: Crossovers)

Rings (residing):

• Pride >>> Imp City

<> Goetia Mansion (formerly)

<> Blitz’s apartment (currently — 2x11)

• Sloth>>>St An’s hospital (temporarily— 2x04)

Flaws:

• Alcoholic

• Cheater (due to the fact that Stolas was NEVER in love with Stella and had endure her abuse for 17 years)

• Severe depression

• People pleaser (which is actually a trauma response)

• Smoker

• Simping (formerly)

• Emotional aphasia (yes it’s an actual thing)

• Married single dad

• PTSD (via Stella)

• Asperger syndrome

• Saviour complex (HC)

Strengths:

• Literacy

<> Reading

<> Writing

<> Education

• Bantering

• Storytelling

Romantic interest(s):

• Blitz (semi-boyfriend)

Although he HAS shown canonically some indications that he MAY have feelings for Stolas in return but hasn’t acknowledged yet

Edit: Until now between episodes 2x02 and 2x11 (which has been mainly Blitz’s body language speaking for itself— BUT it wasn’t until the episode “Ghostfuckers” he actually verbally acknowledged to Millie that he DOES have feelings for Stolas even though it was vague with a “yeah, I guess” but it’s still a confirmation!)

• Better Than Blitz guy (kissed one time)

AU & RP:

• Francois DuPont (OC)

• Corvo (RP) >>> Tixel

* Status: Sexually attracted

• Angel Dust (FWB) — fanfic

* Best gay friend

* Coworker

• Thunder Howler (OC)

Likes:

• Flirting with Blitz

• Flirting with Striker mockingly (2x04)

• His daughter (familial way)

• Having sex with Blitz (formerly)

• Watching soap operas

• Listening to songs

• Reading books

• Eating rats

• Gardening

Other (AU & RP):

• RuPaul’s Drag Race

* introduced by Thunder to help Stolas heal from his heartbreak to Blitz (and the show is very LGBTQIA+ friendly so it’s perfect 😂)

• Spending time with his husband either sexually or domestically (whether it’s Thunder or Blitz 😏)

• T.J. asking Stolas to tell her a story about how her parents “love story” came to be

• Flirting with Thunder (“rebound”)

• Flirting with Corvo

Dislikes:

• Andrealpus

• I.M.P. being careless on Earth

• Stella’s temper

<> Her insults

• Octavia being upset

• Blitz being in danger

• Being lonely

• Being banished (2x11)

_____________________________________

Family:

Daughter: Octavia of the Ars Goetia (formerly)

Semi-canon:

De-facto partner: Blitz Buckzo

Stepdaughter: Loona Buckzo

Daughter: T.J. Buckzo (OC)

Mother-in-law: Tilla Buckzo (Sr) (✝️)

Surrogate brother-in-law: Moxxie Knolastname

Surrogate sister-in-law: Millie Knolastname (carrier)

Estranged family:

Ex-brother-in-law: Andrealphus (TBA)

Father: Paimon of the Ars Goetia

Ex-wife: Stella (TBA)

Father-in-law: Cash Buckzo

Sister-in-law: Barbie Wire

Daughter: Octavia (post 2x11)

RP (Tixel):

• Axel x T.J. = Tixel

(1#) Son-in-law: Rimon Shiv (invalid)

Granddaughter: Azrael Shiv

Grandson: Shiv AKA “Vish”

(2#) Son-in-law: AxelBuckzo

Grandson: Axel “A.J.” Junior Buckzo

Deadname: Angel

Granddaughter: Abria Buckzo-Beaufoy

• Vampiric name: Ria

• Pronounced: Aria

(adoptive) Son: Nikolas Buckzo-Mayday (via Blitz)

Granddaughter-in-law: Snow Dust (via being married to A.J.)

Grandson-in-law: Samael Beaufoy (via being married to Aria)

Great-grandson: Claudius Beaufoy (offspring of Aria and Samael)

RP 2# (Sterosika):

• Stuart x Verosika = Sterosika

Status: Discontinued

Son-in-law: Asmodeus (betrothed in exchange for information about Valentino the father of Hope after his violation against T.J.)

Granddaughter: Hope of the Ars Goetia (✝️)

Status: Resurrected by Nurgle

Coparents: Verosika & Stuart (for T.J.)

RP 3# (Blitzika):

• Blitz x Verosika = Blitzika (before breakup)

Status: Discontinued

Family name:

• Ars Goetia (formerly)

• Buckzo (RP/AU) 🤭

_____________________________________

Enemies:

• Imp assassins (1x02)

• Striker (attempted assailant)

• D.H.O.R.K.S agents

• Andrealpus

• Stella

Other:

• Employees of I.M.P (coworkers)

• Mister Butler (former family butler)

• Striker (attempted assassination)

• Asmodeus (acquaintance)

• Unnamed bodyguards

• Fizzarolli (acquainted)

• St An’s hospital staff

_____________________________________

Nicknames:

• Prince Sleeps-A-Lot (by Blitz)

• Creepy Mouth AKA One Night Stand Bird Dick (as Blitz’s contacts >>> in the pilot episode)

Updated: Stols (via Blitz’s phone contact)

* My Bottom

* Buddy

* Big Bird

• Dad (by Octavia)

* Daddy (by young Octavia)

• Young Prince (by Mister Butler)

• My Dark Lord (by Asmodeus)

• Your Highness (by Moxxie)

• The Owl Boy (by Paimon)

• Sir (by his bodyguards)

• Feathers (by Striker)

• Ditzy Blueblood (by Striker)

• The Bird (by Millie)

• Lanky Bird (by Striker)

• Blue-blooded bird (by Sallie May)

• Freshest Ex (by Verosika)

* Honey

* Babe

• My Little One (by Paimon)

• Birdy Babe (by Asmodeus)

RP:

• Dad (by Loona & T.J.)

• D&D (to Stolas and Blitz by T.J.)

— Dad & Dad

• G&G (to Stolas and Blitz by their grandchildren; Aria and A.J.)

— Grandad & Grandad

• Medusa (by Royce)

________________________________

Abilities:

Skillset:

• Musical talent

* Singing

• Gardening

• Drawing

Unique: (formerly)

* Portal creation - Stolas can create portals (as any other Goetia can) without the help of his grimoire which can be seen in “Truth Seekers”, “Seeing Stars” and “Ozzie’s” as a prime example

• Reanimation - meaning Stolas can selectively, depending who it is, bring people back to life after being killed

• Electrokinesis

* Petrification

* Possession

* Telekinesis

Natural:

* Demon transformation (formerly)

* Human shapeshifting (formerly)

* Flexible head

Other:

Caws - When agitated or doesn’t like something as seen in 2x01 “The Circus” when Stella had badmouthed Stolas

Squawks - similar to a cockatiel when surprised seen in 2x04 when Striker aggressively grabbed Stolas by the back of his head

Hoots - when laughing at something or someone’s joke seen in 2x01 & 2x02 both times with Blitz

_____________________________________

Appearance / personality:

Stolas is tall and slender with a heart shaped facial disk (similar to a barn owl) and small black, slightly curved, beak. He has two pairs of almond-shaped red eyes, one set atop the other, with no visible irises or pupils, albeit white highlights do occasionally appear when he is excited. (On a side note, he also does wear guyliner mascara)

He has gray-blue feathers, which gradients to dark gray-blue on his head and long, plume-like tail. He has a lighter gray-blue puff of fur on his chest. His limbs are long, thin, and black, and his feet are tipped with owl claws.

Although he frequently changes clothes, Stolas is often seen wearing a deep red tunic with six linked golden buttons down the breast, and beige breeches.

He accessorizes with a feathery tophat that features a regal gold crown encircling it, as well as a long burgundy cape, tattered at the hemline, with a plush ermine-look fur collar, and long black gloves with white feathered trims at the elbows.

Human form (formerly):

In Stolas’s human disguise, he has light white skin. His hair is a light grey. His sclerae are white yet retain the red irises.

His outfit changes (form his regalia when in demon form) to a red tunic with greyish puffy sleeves and a red bow tie

Demon form (formerly):

Stolas in his demonic form is black and red, and slightly larger than he is in his standard form. Everything else changes except for his eyes which pretty much stay the same

When he opens his beak he has more demonic-like sharp teeth and a prominent forked tongue

How would you describe Stolas’s personality?

As an adult:

• Mature

• Assertive (S2)

• Fiercely protective (especially when it comes to his daughter)

• Husbandly (towards Blitz; 2x02)

• Expressive

• Hopeless romantic

• Paternalistic

• Awkward

• Sensitive

• Oblivious

Other (uncharacteristic):

• Calculated

• Indifferent

• Flirtatious (disrespectful)

• Arrogant

• Promiscuous (theorised)

• Dominant (2x02)

• Insightful

• Depressive (2x11)

As a child:

• Determined

• Cheerful

• Positive

• Playful

• Naive

• Nerdy

_____________________________________

Trivia:

2x02 - Seeing Stars

• Stolas is seen picking out sunglasses and placing them on top of his head. This action references his two sets of eyes, which are present in his natural demonic, owlish form.

<> Additionally, earlier in said episode, a reminder appears on Stolas’s phone for “Deal @ Ozzie’s” set for three days later. This strongly hints at a connection to the Asmodean Crystal, a theory later confirmed in the episode “The Full Moon.” and then was actually used by Blitz in the episode “Apology Tour” onwards

2x04 - Western Energy:

• At the end of the episode, it was revealed that Stolas—referencing a conversation from a couple of texts ago—was attempting to resolve the tension stemming from the incident at Ozzie’s with Blitz. Despite Blitz’s reluctance to address the issue directly, Stolas reassured him that their arrangement didn’t need to be transactional; Blitz could keep the grimoire, even for a longer period, without any expectation of intimacy. However, Stolas expressed a deep desire to see Blitz again, even as Blitz’s responses appeared indifferent.

That said, it’s worth considering the ambiguity of Blitz’s texts. Perhaps his brevity—like typing “y?”—wasn’t indifference but a genuine, albeit curt, question. Stolas might have been reading tone into the exchange, projecting more negativity than was intended. After all, Blitz didn’t begin to truly fall in love with Stolas until Season 2, Episode 2 (“Seeing Stars”), though the emotions were bubbling beneath the surface.

Adding another layer of complexity, we know Blitz has dyslexia, which likely affects his spelling and text style. His inability to write “why” clearly could inadvertently come across as “dry texting” to someone like Stolas. Whether Blitz was genuinely indifferent, struggling with his words, or simply misinterpreted remains unclear—something that can only be resolved when they finally talk it out. After all, tone is notoriously difficult to gauge over text.

• Stolas only calls Blitz by his preferred name out of either seriousness or appreciation

Stolas now addresses Blitz by his preferred name during face-to-face interactions, a meaningful shift that underscores a newfound respect for Blitz’s boundaries and desires—far more than what was evident in Season 1. The casual, unchecked use of “Blitzy” has given way to a more intentional and measured approach, signaling Stolas’s personal growth and emotional awareness in season two. This subtle, but deliberate, change reflects his understanding of Blitz’s comfort and autonomy, reinforcing their evolving dynamic.

(This reveals that he’s not as oblivious as we initially assumed. It suggests that he may be what I refer to as a “delayed thinker”—someone who doesn’t process or fully reflect on a situation until later. This trait, in turn, highlights his underlying intelligence, as it demonstrates a capacity for deeper thought and analysis over time as we’ve seen between 1x07 and all throughout S2 which has actually given him more than enough time to think about the events of his and Blitz’s relationship)

Yet, in Stolas’s phone contacts, “Blitzy” remains untouched— at the end of “Western Energy” episode — a quiet, sentimental holdover. It’s not an act of defiance against Blitz’s wishes but rather a personal comfort, a silent relic of the tenderness and history. He associates with the nickname. For him, that honorific contains memories of unguarded affection, longing, and the vulnerability of a time when he didn’t yet grasp the importance of earning trust or respecting boundaries. In this small, private space, (such as caller ID) “Blitzy” is a reminder of his journey, a bittersweet echo of the love he still holds and hopes to nurture with greater care.

2x05 - Unhappy Campers

N/A

2x06 - Oops (cameo)

This episode marked the beginning of Stolas’s character growth from his Season 1 personality. He likely began to subconsciously self-actualize when he arranged the meeting with Ozzie to obtain the Asmodean Crystal, with the physical intention of giving it to Blitz later in The Full Moon episode.

<> Given that Stolas in Season 1 would have never considered letting Blitz go (as harsh as that sounds, it’s probably true), this moment becomes even more significant. It took almost the entire season — minus two episodes — for Stolas to come to the realisation that it was morally wrong to hold the grimoire (the key to his business) over Blitz’s head.

• Stolas mentioned in this episode— albeit very briefly—that he’s a fast reader. Considering he has four eyes, that makes perfect sense, as he likely takes in information at a quicker pace. Pair that with his evident love for wordplay, and it paints a pretty vivid picture of his character. I mean, the man bird could not be any more autistic if he tried 😂

2x07 - Mammon’s Magnificent Musical Mid Season Special (ft Fizzarolli)

N/A

2x08 - The Full Moon

It has been observed that when Stolas experiences intense emotions, tears flow from both sets of his eyes, not just the lower pair as depicted in the episode “Ozzie’s.” This detail highlights the depth of his emotional vulnerability, suggesting that his physiology reflects the intensity of his feelings. The dual tears may symbolise the overwhelming nature of his sorrow or emotional release, adding another layer of complexity to his character and further emphasising his expressive, otherworldly nature.

Even more significant is the appearance of Stolas’s white pupils (not counting episodes post 2x11 😂), a visual cue that only manifests during moments of profound emotional impact. This subtle yet powerful detail underscores the depth of Stolas’s connection to Blitz, as his white pupils are typically reserved for instances where his emotions—whether love, desire, or heartbreak—reach their peak. Together, these visual elements not only deepen the portrayal of Stolas’s character but also show how strongly his feelings affect his appearance and behavior.

2x09 - Apology Tour

• Despite Stolas’s quip, “So, what are you doing here then?” after Blitz dismissed relationships as “boring,” there’s a definite hint of playful teasing—like Stolas is poking at something just under the surface. It’s as if, for all his obliviousness, Stolas isn’t entirely clueless; he seems to sense that Blitz might have feelings for him deep down. Stolas may be dramatic (as any theatre kid can get 😂) and a bit naive, but he’s not stupid, and this moment feels like a mix of curiosity and gentle prodding, as if to say, ‘You’re not fooling me—at least, not completely’ or something along those lines. Blitz, of course, isn’t ready to acknowledge it, let alone say it out loud.

Although, since the episode “Mastermind” came out, I’d say Stolas is pretty damn close to figuring it out — once he is out of his depressive state that is — after all, actions speak louder than words. 🤭 Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if Blitz finally admitted his feelings and Stolas just looked at him knowingly, as if to say, “I know—it took you long enough.”

• Knowing Blitz’s preference for people dropping the “o” from his name, Stolas still pronounced it when reading out Verosika’s invitation to the Anti-Blitzo party. It was most certainly an intentional jab fuelled by the rising tension between them.

Given their dynamic, and current relationship, it’s easy to imagine Stolas doing it to irritate Blitz, in the same way Verosika would do it prior to this episode ending, though it’s a detail that likely won’t come up unless they address it in conversation.

How do I know this? Because after the “Mastermind” episode, Stolas immediately reverted to using the name “Blitz” — without adding the ‘o’ to his name — So, it was undoubtedly a deliberate choice on his part

• Stolas saying “I don’t look down on you!” might come across as contradictory, but I think it stems from a lack of awareness rather than intentional condescension. He genuinely doesn’t realise how his words or tone come across to Blitz because it’s all he’s ever known. Growing up in a privileged, high-ranking family, Stolas was likely surrounded by attitudes and behaviors that normalised speaking down to imps and others of lower status. It’s

<> This is similar to how someone—particularly an autistic person—might unintentionally use a “rude” or blunt tone without realizing it because they aren’t perceiving the social cues in the same way others do. Stolas isn’t necessarily trying to be dismissive or superior; he simply lacks the self-awareness to recognize how his upbringing and habits influence his behavior toward Blitz. His intentions and his delivery don’t always align, which creates this dissonance.

This mindset is clearly ingrained in Stolas, even if he doesn’t consciously acknowledge or share those prejudices. This is particularly evident in the episode “Loo Loo Land,” where a Young Octavia is depicted surrounded by commoners at the circus—a stark contrast to Stolas’s own upbringing, during which he was kept separate from them by his father on his birthday in the episode “The Circus”

• Stolas drops his formal tone, saying “wanna” instead of “want to” when telling Blitz what he wants in their relationship.

<> On that note it was understandable that Stolas — when emotionally overwhelmed he has aphasia

2x10 - Ghostfuckers

N/A

2x11 - Mastermind

Stolas, who’s usually so eloquent and advanced sometimes shows his emotional vulnerability in unexpected ways. When he’s exceptionally distressed or overwhelmed, his smooth, sophisticated speech starts to falter— he stumbles over words, breaks sentences, and even makes little grammar mistakes (for example he actually said ‘I got banish-ed’ in “Mastermind”) . For someone who takes such pride in being refined and well-spoken, these moments stand out. They make his turmoil feel all the more real and relatable, revealing a raw, tender side of him that’s rarely seen beneath his usual composed and otherworldly exterior.

• Since getting banished and being stripped of his title and powers, Stolas’s eyes change in a big way—his once pupilless, otherworldly gaze, now has permanent white pupils (similar to whenever he had intense emotions during a certain scene all throughout S1 and S2; obviously, prior to “Mastermind” ). This shift is a pretty major contrast to how he used to look and seems to show just how much losing his status has affected him (not just emotionally but physically as well in regards of both eyes and hair whilst everything else basically stays the same). What’s interesting is that this seems to be unique to Goetian royals like Stolas, since Stella’s side of the family and even Octavia never had pupilless eyes to begin with. It makes you wonder if those, supernatural eyes are tied directly to their power and authority— once it’s gone, they start to look a little more… mundane

<> However, I do briefly theorise, that Stolas’s current status will likely transform his speech patterns as well. Since he is no longer royalty, (or at least for the next 100 years; which is probably a month and a bit or perhaps even less than that — judging by Andrealpus saying ‘What? NO!’ — in Hell’s timeline) but during that period Stolas would, probably, eventually drop the formalities and begin speaking more like a commoner. For instance, instead of saying “you are,” he might shift to “you’re,” and so on.

Or he might not — considering he does in actual fact love words and witticisms; and it’s just part of his personality that will never change despite being a civilian now (we’ll have to see in the next episode)

2x12 - Sinmas (finale)

• Stolas had still maintained his formal speech — albeit with a bit more vulgarity as he navigated the five stages of grief after coming off his meds — though his appearance now mirrors hat of a commoner.

• After Stolas attempted to call his daughter by using Blitz’s phone, Octavia contact appeared as “Dad [Shitty boyfriend’s phone],” which could hint at a developing father/daughter dynamic between her and Blitz as the season progresses.

Similarly, Blitz’s contact for Octavia is saved as “Via (Stolas’s bird daughter),” which is sweet, as he uses the same nickname Stolas does. This detail might further support the theory of a growing bond between Blitz and Octavia.

• The Karen client’s request for an assassination felt a little too close to home — literally — for Stolas (and, let’s be real, Blitz too) when she hired I.M.P to take out her cheating husband. The request sent Stolas into a spiral of panic, depression, and a hint of suicidal ideation as he wailed that cheaters like the client’s husband — a clear projection of his own guilt — didn’t deserve to live.

• Stolas finally got to live out his fantasy — playing the damsel in distress while Blitz swooped in like a knight in shining armor to rescue him from Andrealphus. Naturally, they capped it off with a romantic kiss in the middle of the battle with his (ex)-brother-in-law.

• Back at Blitz’s apartment, after Loona had her friends over and pulled out the drinks, Stolas noped out the second he saw alcohol — really showing how much he’s struggling with even being around it.

• Stolas leaned away from Blitz’s outstretched hand — but didn’t fully pull back, especially when Blitz gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. He was still feeling guilty about Octavia’s whole “you don’t love Mama, you don’t love me, you love HIM” thing.

Although — that guilt wasn’t hitting as hard anymore (hello, acceptance), which kicked in the moment he and Blitz shared an intimate dance — complete with mild flirting about their height difference that had Stolas laughing by the end. It was a little reminder that even though he felt like he lost his relationship with his daughter, he still had Blitz and their growing romantic connection.

#bryce pinkham (main series)#gay #brock baker (pilot)#helluva boss #character bio #stolas

4 notes · View notes

heartshapedcreaturefromcriptoon · 2 years ago

Text

No but like, the idea of two blocked people and a bunch of gray faces having “discourse” about my “worsening reputation” in the Hazbin Hotel fandom is so funny to me, because like:

Everything I know about Blair White and sh0eonhead I’ve had to learn against my will, because of this fandom.

Everything I know about Scott Cawthon I’ve had to learn against my will, because of this fandom.

Everything I know about Brandon ‘drops the R slur every video’ Rogers I’ve had to learn against my will, because of this fandom.

Because of this fandom, I’ve had to be subjected to “Rolling Robbie”.

And if you guys think I’d buy any official Helluva Boss merch after tolerating this shit along with the R-Slur that I don’t think would have been in the pilot if Roger’s hadn’t been hired, I don’t know what to tell you.

I still have my questions about Roger’s calibrating with Greg whatever his last name, is... Who’s actual channel name is so taboo to talk about I think it’s getting censored because it keeps disappearing every time I try to type it here?

Vivziepop channel’s merch commercials making fun of wheelchair users again in their promos (check the last ones for Summer).

The Amber Heard parody that Brandon did was in extremely poor taste, too. And I only bring it up because of:

Brock Baker

Stamper

The knowledge of the staff that work on Hazbin and Helluva still eat at Chick Fil A, they’re sorry if you’re gay. They know that they’re Bad Gays TM for doing that but The Sandwiches Are So Good! TM 🥺

The fact that I would have happily donated to the hunnicast if I wasn’t forced to just be tolerant of not only the Chick Fil A apologists, but also another ableist arsehole that isn’t Brandon LOUDLY SCREECHING “REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!” directly into my ears at the start of nearly every episode and every five minutes after.

The fact that I know some you guy’s favorite YouTubers are pewdiepie and Logan Paul.

Speaking of YouTubers:

youtube

Anyway, case in point: I know that the Hunnicast had to remain “apolitical” because of funding reasons, but there’s absolutely no reason for the fandom itself to adopt this mentality and it’s probably half of the reason people hate the majority of you! So I don’t know why the irony of even speaking about “worsening reputations” in this fandom of all fandoms is so hopelessly lost on people but I’m just gonna leave you with this actual, real life video of Brandon Rogers appropriating my culture in order finally let it sink in just how much. A. I’m on no ones side but my own. B. I hate all of you. C. I don’t owe abled-bodied autistics ether civility nor do I give even the slightest shit about my ‘worsening reputation’ in this fandom because I’m “rude”, “unlikable”, and actually have enough boundaries to BLOCK PEOPLE! D. I don’t owe shit to an abled-bodied, uppity cis-woman-fandom-mom-political centrist just because she claims she’s black, especially since she basically implied how she thought I was retarded and then said “I didn’t know that nor do I care” ( because she doesn’t have enough comprehension skills to notice references to my disability in both my url and profile and I’m surprised that she didn’t try to call me racist for having “crip” in my url, too). This fandom really literally is full bigoted political centrists and I refuse to make myself palatable to them.

Me: *Making a ‘Yo Daddy’ joke about Leeanne’s parents being two caricatures from a cartoon that she’s claims isn’t racist, since she wants to act like a cartoon caricature of angry black nerd*

Leeanne, throwing her bisexuality into it even though that joke about two racist cop cartoon characters created by a white dude that she just defended wasn’t racist being her parents had absolutely nothing to do with bi sexuality: ... Wow. This has to be the most bi-phobic, racist thing I’ve ever read in my entire life, you dug your own grave and I’m also going to type out your entire URL here even though the two shorter names you want people to call you are right there on your page but I’m not gonna use them because in my eyes you’re mentally disabled and I don’t see you as human and I don’t care if you call me ableist for disrespecting your disability ether! You dug your own grave, retard. Now lie in it!

Me, like, three years ago, the first time I saw this shitty, r-slur slinging youtuber crip-up to pretend to be one of my people and exploit us for the sake of “comedy” and money because, unfortunately, Viv gets herself into shenanigans sometimes and I just wanna know how badly this dudes shenanigans are gonna reflect on her new show now that I also have to tolerate her being involved with THIS specific kind of loser: .... Okay so working with someone who produces this shit is admittedly a new low for Viv and I hope to God that she keep you on a short creative leash and if your ableist, Elevated Andy Dick sounding arse gets recast for pulling some Problematic YouTuber TM bullshit I do not care especially since I see you’ve worked with Greg! You’ve just dug your own grave for me. Brandon Rogers, lie in it!

You guys, if I ever posted my grievances and exact feelings regarding Brandon in the tags before now: I am so sorry but are you okay you angry little invalid? I’m legit asking because it’s a bit much. I think you need to learn to take a joke and I think you’re taking this a bit too far almost like an anti would... Do you not care about the fandoms good reputation?

Me, before I block you: Honey listen, we’re in Hell, there is no “good reputation” or redemption, fuck off .

Abled-Bodied Mentally Ill People block evading me to call me rude and condescending and mean and harass an Actual Invalid in a world where “Rolling Robbie” is still on Viv Medrano’s pay roll: HOW DARE YOU CALL ME HO-

*oops they’re blocked again*

#Hazbin Hotel #Helluva Boss #ableism #harrassment #This is not about being an 'anti' this is about actually critical thinking and boundaries....

9 notes · View notes

petitprincess1 · 2 years ago

Note

My biggest thing abt ppl complaining about the new voices for the main cast is.

Do y’all not remember how Brock Baker was the voice of Stolas in the pilot, and then Bryce Pinkham is now Stolas and is DOING A FANTASTIC JOB AT IT 😤😤 way better than what in my opinion, than Bryce could have done for Stolas.

But we barely know these characters beyond a surface area and we have yet to see their true potential. We don’t even know if character traits or ideals from the pilot will be kept in the actual show! Idk it irritates me a lot that so many people won’t even give the new cast a chance. :(

First, I think what you meant was "what Brock could have done for Stolas" and I completely agree. There's so many emotional scenes that I just can't imagine going over as well with Brock's voice. Not to say he isn't a good VA, just maybe not for Stolas. Plus, his voice is just a little too deep. Bryce is perfect.

Second, for the characters' personalities, that's not how that works. Why would they change? Vivzie is very particular and strict about her characters, so it's incredibly confusing as to why she would change their personalities. Judging simply by the character redesign images, the personalities seem pretty well intact to me. I understand designs will often change from the pilot to the actual, but it's not too often that the personalities change. Especially from a pilot that's already "aired".

Also, if their goals/ideals change...that ruins the whole plot of the show. Can't imagine Alastor suddenly wanting to be pure and helpful with the hotel or Charlie changing her mind about redemption as a possibility.

#hazbin hotel #helluva boss #ask answered #ok 2 rb

15 notes · View notes

xensergal · 2 years ago

Text

Xen "Octavia" Sergal Goes On A Very Stupid And Long Rant About Her Favourite Show Helluva Boss Because She Needs To Get This Shit Off Her Chest ASAP™: The Movie.

This is a long, long ass fucking rant about this show. i will type shit as it comes up in my head. i dont care if my takes are "trash" or "shit" or whatever. its my tumblr and i get to choose whats posted here. ok.

its actually fucking insane how my 2 favourite shows are on near complete opposites to each other on the surface. you have an impossibly perfectly written show with 0 bad episodes and the greatest characters to ever be on TV (Breaking Bad), and then you have a 15-20m per episode comedy/musical/drama on youtube (Helluva Boss). but this isnt about me comparing BrBa to HB, its just about HB.

i have a lot to say about this show. a lot i really, REALLY couldnt get out due to twitter character limits/not really having many friends who watch helluva boss, so tumblr gets my full thoughts, straight from the top of my head. right as theyre being produced. enjoy.

Stuff

the premise of this show is pretty damn cool. a comedy/musical/drama about a bunch of imps in hell who start up an assassination business to make ends meet, while also yknow shenanigans n other shit happens like complicated love trigonometry, bc hey its a show you cant 1 thing forever bc thatd be stale *cough* SITCOMS *cough* and repetitive and would be a shit show, this isnt a shit show. its one of the best ive ever seen. but back to what i was saying. the show has a fantastic premise with good plot and cool characters i will get to in just a moment. i rewatched all of whats been uploaded for this post. to refresh my thoughts and finally, get all this shit off my chest which ive been needing to for all this time.

O YEA OBV SPOILERS FOR ALLLL OF HELLUVA BOSS DUHHHHHHHHHH

Pilot

this is 3 years old and damn does it show. the animation is very stiff (but still, well made) compared to later episodes, and especially 1 which ill get into later. but the pilot does a great job and introducing the viewer to the main characters of the show, those being Blitzo (Brandon Rogers), Moxxie (Richard Horvitz), Millie, and Loona (both Erica Lindbeck). all with weird, and fucked up relationships with eachother. M&M are a married couple (gross), Loona is a complete whore with syphilis, and Blitzo is her adoptive Father whos also a complete perv who stalks M&M at their house. its fun! its a good plot with good characters and its pretty damn funny. theres also a major supporting character introduced in this episode, Stolas (Brock Baker). i love him, youll see why very soon.

the pilot isnt without its issues tho, the pacing is complete ass with flashbacks inside of flash backs and its just, man idk its fucked up dude i dont like it. weird shit.

7.5/10, good shit, good opening to HB

Murder Family // S1: Episode 1

good episode! damn after a year of waiting after the pilot for something new people surely had high expectations and id say E1 followed, its pretty good.

plot wise it follows I.M.P on a job to kill some bitch n yknow shenanigans n whatnot moxxie fucks it up because hes a bitch and people almost die but moxxie saves em in the end its good and i like it!

some stuff changed from the pilot, mainly voice actors. Erica Lindbeck no longer plays both Millie and Loona, just Loona. meanwhile Millies new VA is Vivian Nixon and shes pretty good! Millie has more of a southern accent now which will make sense in a future episode. however Stolas also had a VA change, Bryce Pinkham. its flawless and makes me love Stolas even more, you will see why.

8/10 episode, great shit. much better than the pilot.

Loo Loo Land // S1: Episode 2

words cannot describe how much i love this episode. its flawless.

saying something is flawless is big, really big, but i do feel like this one is. and its all thanks to the opening sequence. the opening sequence makes the audience do a complete 180 about what they thought of a character, no longer is stolas just "a rich, important figure in hell who is extemely gay for blitzo" hes that, plus a loving and devoted father. and the music, its perfection. its the highlight of the whole moment alongside the beautiful visuals and deep character development. and on the subject of characters. Stolas #1 comfort character.

this episode introduces quite a few, the first 2 youll see are Octavia (Barrett Wilbert Weed), Stolas' daughter and Literally Me™, and also Stella (Georgina Leahy), Stolas' arranged wife who wants him dead as hell with NO shoes on in the casket for fucking blitzo. shes hot. very hot. girlboss. shes mean to Stolas tho :(

this episodes plot is cool too. I.M.P make an exception for Stolas and are hired to be bodyguards for the day at a theme park oh joy a theme park how whimsical and fun loving! oh goody! everything is on fire by the end of the episode! splendid!

but like yeaa dude this episode slaps, great plot great characters great shit, O YEA CHARACTERS i forgot about Fizzarolli (Alex Brightman) hes in this episode too, at least a robot version of him. Blitzo and Octavia hate him, thats cool.

10/10, i think this is the best episode of HB released so far. it also has Wally Wackford (Don Darryl Rivera)

Wally Wackford Counter: 1

Spring Broken // S1: Episode 3

oh damn! another banger! lets keep this good episode streak going!

this episodes also great. not as great as E2, but still great.

I.M.P get their parking spot stole by Verosika Mayday (Cristina "Vee" Valenzuela) whos a famous popstar in hell (thats why theyre in hell because they listen to pop and pop sucks listen to metal instead youll also go to hell but for a much cooler reason) and just happens to be Blitzo's ex girlfriend. so Blitzo challenges her to a duel where he bets I.M.P can kill more people than Verosika can fuck by the end of the day an who wins gets the parking spot (spoiler alert blitzo wins bc ofc, plot demands it) and then shenanigans lol.

i really dont have much to say about this one other than i like it, verosika is hot, drunk moxxie is funny, and that hehehoo sex joke. O YEA the musics good too its very good

9/10. banger

C.H.E.R.U.B // S1: Episode 4

i hate this episode. i really really hate it.

nearly everything which couldve went poorly, did. and i dont like that. let me explain.

the plot is okay, I.M.P go to kill a trillionaire. good! thats cool! fuck billionaires and especially fuck trillionaires. meanwhile a competitor, C.H.E.R.U.B, is trying to stop this guy from ending his life. and I.M.P cant have that so they convince him to fuckin die already lol. its fine but how the episode executes this is atrocious. you could easily skip through this one and go onto E5 anyway, this plot adds nothing to the current overarching storyline. yet.

for comedy, pacing and the actual joke is everything. especially if your main writer for this episode (at least by order of appearance in credits) has been doing comedy skits on youtube for many, many years now. no offense to Brandon Rogers, hes phenomenal, but this episodes pacing and jokes are trash. the pacing goes as follows:

Beginning plot development/jokes - meeting the competitors/jokes - joke - joke - joke - fight - joke - end joke. its trash and doesnt work at all imo. the jokes fall flat and its not well paced at all.

however there is 1 more point i want to bring up about not just the episode, but the show in general. regarding moxxie and the things which happen to him. moxxie in this show is essentially a less depressed Squidward Tentacles. this sounds fucking insane but Let Me Explain. the writing has him treated like a fucking punching bag for jokes and/or plot development. in E3, this was for plot development. he got stuffed in a beer keg and nearly got ate by a monster fish. this episode it was for no reason whatsoever. he just, got hurt and thats the joke. the joke is moxxie got hurt. thats it. next episode does it worse, ill get to it.

but anyway, this episode was shit but i liked the fight scene in it, that was cool.

4/10, trash but the fight was good. it also has wally wackford.

Wally Wackford Counter: 2

The Harvest Moon Festival // S1: Episode 5

wow.

when this episode first released, i didnt think much of it. i believe i said it was about an 8/10ish or something like that. rewatching it, i couldnt have been more wrong.

this episode has some fan-fucking-tastic plot. and it just might be the best plot driven episode to date. maybe E7 gives it a run for its money, maybe.

the plot is as follows, Stolas invites I.M.P to the wrath ring for a day off for the harvest moon festival. here we get to meet Millies parents Lin (Su Jan Chase) and Joe (Edward Bosco), but also Striker, whos played by Norman Fucking Reedus from video game kojima. and my GOD he fucking slays the role. besides Bryce Pinkham as Stolas, Norman Reedus as Striker has to be my personal favourite Voice in the show. its fucking fantastic.

however there is 1 character i do have to mention in particular, Sallie May (Morgana Ignis).

Why her in particular? she only has a few lines! yea true, however it gives me an opportunity to talk about the shows flawless LGBTQ+ representation. In Sallie's case, shes Transgender. you can tell the gender of an Imp by the pattern on the horns, millie for example has mostly black horns with thin white stripes, a sign of being AFAB. Moxxie and Sallie however have even sized black and white horn stripes, a sign of being AMAB. but what about other characters?

(these are all from memory so forgive me if any are wrong)

Blitzo is Pansexual

Moxxie and Millie are both Bisexual

Stolas is Gay

Stella and Octavia are currently unconfirmed (i think) tho i headcanon them both as Lesbian because i can.

Striker is also probably Gay i mean have you seen him talking to blitzo like cmon

(also funny side note i should add the VA's for Stella and Sallie, Georgina and Morgana respectively, both ship their characters together i think thats pretty fuckin cool i feel like i just have to mention that somewhere)

theres def a lot more ive missed, however these are the ones which come to mind. their sexuality/gender identity is never forced in your face, its never too painfully obvious that theyre gay for the sake of it, its pretty much flawless representation and i feel more shows should take a thing or 2 from HB in this aspect

Gushing over Norman Reedus amd LGBTQ+ rep aside, the plot revolves around a yearly game of strength in the harvest festival where blitzo and striker (among many others) compete in together. also tangent time

LETS COUNT HOW MANY TIMES MOXXIE GETS FUCKED BY A SHARK

3. thats 3 times. again, punching bad. what did moxxie do to you, anyway tangent over.

anyway striker competes in the games to gain the trust of I.M.P to stab them in the back by killing their gateway into the living world, Stolas. and you wouldnt believe who hired him (at least i didnt when first watching), Stella. anyway moxxie finds out, shit goes down, they fight, striker gets away. moxxie finally gains the trust of millies parents, big reveal, episode end. banger fucking plot and its just so damn good.

remember how i said the animation in this show gets really gooood,,this is the episode i was thinkin about when writing that. this episode has hands down the best animation (aside maybe the finale of E6) overall of any episode. with cool panorama shots which go around the whole charaters, n shit like that its great.

banger song too, striker did a sing and its good.

10/10, a great episode, but still a weaker 10/10 than E2. it also has Wally Wackford

Wally Wackford Counter: 3

Truth Seekers // S1: Episode 6

I barely remember anything from this episode, and at the time of writing, i only watched it five minutes ago.

so the plot is like, blitzo and moxxie get captured by crazy conspiracy guys called D.H.O.R.K.S (haha dorks) and its up to Da Girlz™ to save em meanwhile Da Boyz™ get truth gassed and spill a bunch of plot shit and its good i dont remember what exactly they said but its a fuckin good scene the animation is great with a unique visual style bc theyre hallucinating and OOOOOOOH the hallucination song its a fucking bop i love it (This is a good time to mention for anyone who yet doesnt know Sam Haft has put a bunch of the songs hes wrote for HB on Spotify, they may be just covers, but theyre still fucking great.) but anyway the fuckin, fight scene when millie and loona catch up to moxxie and blitzo is gahhdamn fuckin beautiful its so well animated n shit and then ya just got

Demon Stolas.

because fuck yes.

anyway yea good episode i guess plots good everythings good its just, i forget about this episode so often im convinced its not real

6/10, banger, just wish it wasnt so forgettable

OZZIE'S // S1: Episode 7 - FINALE PART I

rewatching this episode hurts. i cant put it into words how, its just a lot of fucked up shit to take in at once and i really do not want to write about this because its late and im tired so ill keep it fucking simple

Blitzo fucks everything up by using a fake date with Stolas as a cover to stalk M&M on their 1 year anniversary of their wedding, but then moxxie breaks into song and Asmodeus (James Monroe Iglehart) does not like that one bit so he and fizzarolli fuckin rip him a new asshole meanwhile blitzo interferes and gets both him and stolas into shit and my GOD this is where it gets depressing.

this song, despite it being a banger, is depressing as shit. i cant stand it, i cant stand how it treats blitzo and stolas

the shitty choices theyve made...

the people theyve thrown away...

its all coming back to them in song form. and it fucking sucks for them.

but m&m are doin okay ig they fuckin, hit fizz over the head and continued their song after that shit its all good for them tho ig or smthn idk im tired.

10/10, a phenomenal ending to the 1st season of one of the greatest adult animated shows ever written. it also has Wally Wackford.

Wally Wackford Counter: 4

THE CIRCUS // S2: Episode 1

damn i like this episode

i like the blitzo backstory with how he and fizz used to be before they now hate eachother, with how he met stolas and became his first friend. with everything really. its a great episode and like

damn its good idk what to say im tired its just a good episode.

Johnathan Freeman does a good job as Paimon, stolas' dad too even tho hes a shitty dad.

ok yea plot tho, it takes place like ~25 years before the pilot which is neat i like backstories. but like, paimon literally bought blitzo just so stolas could have a friend so he didnt need to be a father to him thats just. man i dont like that. blitzo and stolas are so cute tho i like them. uuuh fuckin, more stella content too shes back still a girlboss still hot, still mean to stolas :( you can tell im tired cant you lemme just say a thing

WAIT I FORGOT THE SONG AT THE END the song at the end is so goood i love it. idk if i like it more than You Will Be Okay but i like it its good i like it thats all i can really say rn. i could say more if i wasnt tired but im tired.

9/10, good shit, good backstory, good good good good episode.

SEEING STARS // S2: Episode 2

i have. so much to say about this. too many words to fit into tumblrs infinite character limit. but ill keep it brief because i want to

you have no idea, how long, i have waited for this to happen. just one scene between Octavia and Loona. just one, and now i have it. i am complete.

i saw this post which talked about star and moon symbolism between octavia and loona and it made me realise, holy shit, there is gonna be so much more octavia and loona content in future episodes if all this isnt a coincidence. and i am ready for it all.

i could talk about the rest of the episode if i wanted too, but i dont. i only want to talk about these perfect 2 minutes between these characters. i do think this is the best moment in the entire show so far. seeing a headcanon that youve had for so long (in this case loona and via being friends) become true, it connects with you in a way that not much else can.

and i dont care about the rest of the episode. not one bit. not right now anyway. i just want this moment, forever.

10/10. a good episode all around, and a truly, perfect moment. it also has Wally Wackford.

Wally Wackford Counter: 5

and damn thats like, all of helluva boss so far. ive been writing this for like 7h now becasue tumblr keeps breaking for me and i keep having to write anything all over again. god im tired. but im so glad to finally get all this off my chest after years of not really having anywhere to gush about this show. it means a lot to me, more than what people think. and i dont know where i would be without it, literally.

"but whats with the wally wackford counter" its there because its funny and hes a funny character.

#helluva boss

2 notes · View notes