#but ben is the actual dick in this friendship

[yellowocaballero]

Miguel is Fine, Actually (Being Spider-Man's Just Toxic As Hell)

Before I watched ATSV I said that I would defend my man Miguel O'Hara's actions no matter what, because he's always valid and I support women's wrongs. I was joking, and I did not actually expect to start defending him on Tumblr.edu. But I'm seeing a lot of commentary that's super reductive, so I do want to bring up another perspective on his character.

Miguel wasn't acting against the spirit of Spider-Man, or what being Spider-Man means. Miguel isn't meant to represent the antithesis of Spider-Man. Miles is the antithesis of Spider-Man. Miguel represents Spider-Man taken to its extreme.

Think about Miguel's actions from his perspective. If you were a hero who genuinely, legitimately, 100%, no doubt about it, believed that somebody is going to make a selfish decision that will destroy an entire universe and put the entire multiverse at severe risk - if you had an over-burdened sense of responsibility and believed in doing the right thing no matter what - you would also chase down the kid and put him in baby jail to try and prevent it. He believed that he was saving the multiverse, and that Miles was putting it in danger for selfish reasons. Which is completely unforgivable to him, because selfishness is what he hates the most. And then he goes completely out of pocket and starts beefing with a 15yo lmfaooo he's such a dick.

But why did Miguel believe that? Why did he believe that Miles choosing himself and his own happiness over the well-being of others was the worst possible thing? Why did he believe that tragedy was inevitable in their lives, and that without tragedy Spider-Man can't exist?

Because he's Spider-Man.

Peter Parker was once a fifteen year old who chose his own happiness over protecting others. It was the greatest regret of his life and he never forgave himself. Peter's ethos means that he will put himself last every time, and that he will sacrifice anything and everything in his life - his relationships, his health, his future - to protecting and helping others. Peter dropped out of college because it interfered with Spider-Man. He destroyed his own future for Spider-Man. He ruins friendships and romantic relationships because Spider-Man was more important. If Peter ever tries to protect himself and his own happiness, then he's a bad person.

That is intrinsic to Peter. Peter would not be Peter without it. A story that is not defined by Peter's unhappiness is not a Spider-Man story. If Peter doesn't make himself miserable, then he's just not Peter.

That is a Spider-Man story: that not only is tragedy inevitable, that if you don't allow yourself to be defined by your tragedy then you're a bad person. If you don't suffer, then you're a bad person. If you ever put anything above Spider-Man, then you're killing Uncle Ben all over again. Miguel isn't the only one that believes this - as we saw, every Spider-Man buys into what he's saying. There's no Spider-Man without these beliefs.

Miguel attempted to find his own happiness, and he was punished in the most extreme way. He got Uncle Ben'd x10000. He tried to be happy, and it literally destroyed his entire universe. It's the Spider-narrative taken to the extreme. Of course Miguel believes all of this. Of course he believes this so firmly. He's Spider-Man. That's his story. And the one time Miguel tried to fight against that story, he was punished. And like any Spider-Man, he'll slavishly obey that narrative no matter the evil it creates and perpetuates. Because if he doesn't, the narrative will punish him. The narrative will always punish him. It's a Spider-Man story.

I don't think the universal constant between Spider-Mans, the thing that makes them Spider-Man, is tragedy. I think it's the fact that they never forgive themselves. And Miguel is what that viewpoint creates. He doesn't believe this things because he's an awful, mean person. He believes them because he's a hero. He's a good person who hates himself.

Across the Spider-verse isn't really a Spider-Man story. It's a story about Spider-Man stories. Miguel's right: if this was a Spider-Man story, then Miles acting selfishly really would destroy the universe. But Miles' story isn't interested in punishing him. It pushes back against Peter's narrative that unhappiness is inevitable and that you have to suffer to be a good person. It says that sometimes we do the right thing from love and not fear, and that Peter's way of thinking is ultimately super toxic and unhappy. ITSV was about Miles deciding that he didn't need to be Peter Parker, that all he needed to be was Miles, and ATSV is about how being Peter Parker isn't such a good thing. Miguel shows that. Whatever toxic and unhealthy beliefs he holds - they're the exact same beliefs that any Spider-Man holds. He's a dick, but I don't think he's any more awful a person than Peter is.

TL;DR: Miguel isn't a bad person, he just has Spider-Man brainrot.

[evidenceof]

just letting you know that your tags abt yearning Winters made me burst into tears at work and no one was more surprised than me. Never have I ever lost it like this lmao. Are those quotes from his book?

OMG. I am holding your hand, my friend because I Felt That Right Here. Yes, they're from several books/collections actually (I am screaming with you) and they're all burned into my prefrontal cortex. :') Presenting co-dependency as told by Dick Winters, as inflicted by one Lewis Nixon III.

To address said tags and their corresponding quotes: 1. #dick “didnt want to see anyone but the moment nix called he answered” winters

“Winters was not only separating from DeEtta, but people in general. When friends came to visit, he refused to see them. This included the wife of fellow F&M graduate Rick Burgess, the army friend Winters loaned $125 while at Camp Croft so he could get married. The new Mrs. Burgess stopped at the house to welcome him home, but he would not go downstairs to greet her. “Naturally I hurt her feelings, but I didn’t want to see her,” he said. “I didn’t want to see anybody.” But the offer from Nixon was still in Winters’ mind. At about the same time the man from New Holland Supply made his offer, Nixon again called his army buddy. “Job’s still open, Dick,” he said. “Let’s get together and talk about it.” Winters liked the idea of seeing Nixon again, and agreed.” From "Biggest Brother" by Larry Alexander

2. #dick “Capt. Nixon left this week...im as lonesome as a lovesick swab” winters (One of my personal favorites. Makes me chew on my arm)

September 16, 1945, Letter to DeEtta (on Lew's departure from Europe) "Capt. Nixon left this week, which makes everything just dandy. I am about as lonesome as a lovesick swab who married a Wave on an eight hour pass." From Hang Tough: The WWII Letters and Artifacts of Major Dick Winters

3. #richard “Dick's eyes shone as he recalled his old friend” winters

"You seem to have been polar opposites. You didn't drink, nor did you swear. Nixon did both and in huge quantities. He would have been the last man whom I think you would have befriended. What was the foundation of your friendship with Nixon?” Dick's eyes shone as he recalled his old friend. "It is hard to explain. I had first met Nix when we were at Fort Benning, Georgia, in officer candidate school. Later we served as platoon leaders under Sobel's command. A special bond always exists among the platoon commanders in any military com-pany, particularly when they perceive their own commander as 'the enemy.

There is no question in my mind that Nixon was the best combat soldier in 2nd Battalion. By the time we jumped into Holland, I was so lonely that I needed someone in whom I could confide my inner thoughts. That someone was Nix. Whenever the bullets began to fly, I could turn and there stood Nix. From “Conversations with Major Dick Winters.” by Colonel Cole Kingseed

Once again, I am holding your hand so we can both scream together and marinate in this Winnix brainrot. I'm so sorry to have caused you distress in the WORKPLACE!!

[ultimate-spiderman-stuff]

Web-Warriors x gn!reader headcanons please? How would they react when they'd befriend reader and then realize they have a crush on them?

Peter

Peter met you in school

He got assigned to sit next to you in history

You were drawing,not really paying attention to the class

He kinda was just tapping his pen awkwardly trying to think of a good conversation starter

Ends up blurting out something really randome like:

'Hey, did you know that barnacals have the largest dicks relative to their size?'

He practically dies inside

He hurriedly tries to back track,stumbling over his words

Then you just look up from your drawing,raising an eyebrow at him, nodding slowly

Peter just stays quiet for half the period then he decides to ask what your drawing

You turn the sketch book around to show him Darth Vader

Cue to both of you fangirling over Star Wars

After a while you guys started hanging out at breaks with Harry and MJ

The both of you have the kind of friendship where you'll say randome facts about stuff completely out of then blue

Finally the team gets so annoyed with the constant yapping that they don't bother asking Peter if he likes you, they tell him

You already knew you like him but was just waiting for the right time to ask him out

The next day after class you both confess at the same time

It was really awkward but wholsome

So you start dating

Flash

He met you at the gym

You were doing weights and he offered to spot for you

You gladly accepted his offer and you guys clicked instantly

At first he thought it would be a one time thing, but the next time he was there he saw you and instantly came over

Soon you both were sharing opinions of different artists to listen to,and walking home together

Soon he asked you out

You went out for smoothies

Miles

You were from the Red Room and was recently taken into SHIELD

SHIELD had given you some Red Dust so you were free from the Red Room

Miles had come over to hangout with you in the cafeteria and was currently talking your ear off about Ghostbusters

As annoying as his constant banter was the plot was quite interesting

You were always getting into fights with everyone but you found him just that little bit more tolerable

Miles also liked hanging out with you even though you frightened him a bit

But after awhile he began to not really be bothered by you

Soon he decided to ask Peter for some advice on what he was feeling

Peter wasn't quite his best decision to go to cos Peter is practically clueless in that category

But after a lot of researching and Google saying he was going to die of a heart condition, both of them found the answer

Ge was in love with you

Ot was a very sweet confection, the poor boy was so nervous

You had no idea about dating

But everything eventually worked out

Amadeus

He met you at SHIELD

And yes you were 13 the same age as Amadeus

You were a botanist like your parents so you were able to work in the labs

Amadeus might be the 7th smartest person in the world but plants were just not his thing

So when he found some new plant based material on patrol he asked you for help

It turns out he wasn't as much as a prick as everyone else said he was

But he was still annoying

After a couple of days he was becoming a bit less of a dick then before

After a couple of weeks the prodject was finished

He kept on finding reasons to go back to your lab and the relationship began

None of you guys actually said it, it kinda just happened

So like who knows you could just be really good friends who shares a lab and custody of a goldfish

Ben

Scarlet was on patrol when he saw a creepy dude with a gun go into the cafe you were working at

By the time he got there he saw you judo flip the guy

So he just sat back and watched the show

Once you were done with him, he webbed the guy up, staring at you suspiciously

'What? Did ya think I couldn't protect myself just because I have no powers?' You asked

'Did I say that, punk?' He muttered, glaring harder

You rolled your eyes at his attitude, giving him a hot chocolate

Once he left he had to say you peeked his interest

So when aunt May was having a bit of trouble finding where to go to for lunch he suggested the cafe you worked at

May noticed that he was staring at you more than he did at other people so made sure to go there more often

Sometimes he even goes there without May

He begins to go there almost every day so that he can see you

He starts to talk to you and and become somewhat friends

After awhile he confide in May

She was so excited that he was interested in someone

So when he decided to confess he was a blushing mess

You got what he was getting at and said yes

[crushedsweets]

Do you have and hcs of how Toby and Ben would act together? - Hoodie

YES SORT OF . u know the drill this is my au and bens story is one that i changed a lot so here we go :9

ok toby younger brother family trauma issues lonely grew up isolated etc. ben only child got killed by neighbor for absurd vr theory now inhabits a virus-ghost-form that he partially shares with several other dead kids.

toby and ben wouldnt have gotten along before ben died. only because ben was just. a 13 yr old boy addicted to video games ... those kids r mean, and toby was heavily bullied in his childhood. the ONLY reason bens not a huge dick anymore is bc his 'form' itself is fucked up (he glitches, he has an electronic vocal fry and occasional stutter from glitches, he has a weird glow to him, sickly drowned boy skin, veins look like those green code lines, red/black eyes, HE'S LITERALLY DRESSED LIKE LINK). bens not exactly insecure about any of this, but he knows damn well he cannot make fun of a tic without toby shooting back 10x harder.

which ok yeah kinda sad that ben has to look weird for him to not be mean but .. . like . . yeah. it is what it is.

they met mmm... maybe when toby was around 21? jeff would be 16, and ben wouldve been 14. SOOO toby doesnt really TRY to befriend ben. he's too old for him and has no interest in being besties w some kid. but he has a job to stop ben from tormenting people online and drawing attention to weird ghost sites and whatnot, so he started talking to all sorts of ai- cleverbot being the main, of course.

of all the proxies, tobys the only one ben likes. tobys a dick, but he has his moments where he's funny and gets distracted during a mission, so he's sat and rambled and bickered with the ai on slow nights. ben immediately knew everything about toby, because he has access to every single file on tobys computer, phone, etc.

ben SCARED THE SHIT out of toby upon their first meeting. he crawled out of tobys janky ass computer one day and toby nearly threw up from being so freaked out. yeah, he's killed people and whatever, BUT GHOSTS R FUCKING SCARY (and he has .trauma with ghosts and hallucinations of them (lyra)). ben already knew exactly who toby worked for, what toby was doing, and thought it was beyond funny. ben was the first being who already knew all the slenderman lore because he spends literally. every. second. on the internet. he is basically the internet. and he watches them, listens through their phones, watches, etc. he doesnt know the details perfectly tho cuz technology gets weird around slednerman/the operator. so toby thought that was helpful, in a sense.

so pretty quickly ben was fond of toby. thought he was like, that cool older brother of your friend. the main issue was the proxies at this time were trying to find and kill jeff because he was infected by the operator and slenderman deemed him 'too far gone.'

ben was actually the one who proposed the whole 'okay. so you want me to stop terrorizing kids online. fair. now ive noticed you keep trying to kill my friend(jeff). stop that and we can be cool :3'.

eventually they all came to some weird agreement where. ben will stop haunting people, the proxies will stop trying to kill jeff, jeff has to stop doing his 'full course' murders, and eventually, ben just likes them enough to start helping them with cctv, police files, etc. it was a complicated agreement that eventually ended in friendship, sort of?

they play video games together. eventually toby does see him as a little brother. it's kinda unsettling because the proxies realize just how much power ben has when it comes to just...... leaking everything. toby thinks that 'ok well, if ben leaks stuff about us, we leak stuff about jeff, and now he has no friends and is lonely, so he can't.' but tim and brian are legitimately freaked out at the thought of their lives being ruined anymore than they already are, so theyre pretty courteous to ben

ben will really just hang around. toby can just be eating breakfast and ben will pop up and ask whats up. he's annoying and clingy, and he can tell toby is biting his tongue half the time. . but toby is grateful sometimes. bens laid back and funny, and toby could use some laughs, so its a decent time for them both

again, overall, toby is just kinda too old for ben(although ben wouldve been a year older than toby if he was alive), but ben is really funny, he's nice to toby, he plays video games with him, he comes and checks in on him randomly. so toby appreciates having a freaky ghost little brother thing hanging around. bens one of his fave people (which is only saying so much when the other people he talks to are like . . jeff)

[gravity-barbie]

The Sparrows with a sibling they think doesn't have powers HCs

A/N: So sorry for the wait! And the lack of Christopher, I tried but I really suck at writing for him and I think it'd take another 3 months if I kept trying. Also fair warning this is on the angsty side.

Request

Masterlist

Marcus Hargreeves

-Both as a child and an adult Marcus barely acknowledges you exist, his life revolves around the sparrow academy which you've always existed just on the outskirts of

-As your sibling he does feel a loyalty to you though, he lets you stay at the academy and use Reginalds funds as much as the others so long as you don't cause any trouble

-Of course you're completely excluded from the sparrow academy, despite your siblings vast fame most people don't even know you exist and Marcus won't ever let you join any of the families 'buisness' talks

-So while he's not mean or malicious there is a lot of disrespect and neglect there that builds resentment inside of you

-He's as shocked as you are to learn you have powers (very strong ones at that) but he's quick to collect himself, trying to reason you into letting him integrate you into the sparrow academy and follow his lead like your siblings

-Marcus is good with people, he says exactly what you want to hear, first easing your fears about your new powers and then more importantly giving you a glimpse of the belonging and connection you've always been denied in an attempt to get you to fall in line

-However it's likely too little too late

-Marcus does care about you and he wants to resolve things peacefully, however if you prove to be a threat to the sparrow academy he's completely willing to make an enemy out of you

Ben Hargreeves

-Ben's always looked down on you and unlike Marcus he won't hesitate to verbalise that

-Despite that and generally not thinking you're worth his time he doesn't actually dislike you though, he sort of appreciates your gentler personality, not that he often let's that show

-You're the only sibling he doesn't have to compete with which may make him underestimate you but it also makes you the only person in the world he'll even slightly lower his guard around

-Which, play your cards right, could lead to a tentative friendship between you two, however friend or otherwise Ben is really no good for your self-esteem

-He feels personally betrayed to learn you have powers as crazy as that sounds, jumping to conclusions and assuming the worst of you

-His default is distrusting people so he feels like an idiot for ever not seeing you as a threat and it doesn't help that part of him is still loyal to Reginald so it's easy for him to believe the lies the old man tells about you

-Beneath his anger and confusion though, if Ben cares about you even a little bit that isn't going to change

Fei Hargreeves

-It would seem you're totally irrelevant to her, she barely acknowledges your existence as a child, and as an adult that's only slightly better

-Plus she's kind of a loner so since she's not forced to be around you like she is the others and she likes to spend her free time by herself it's only natural you hardly see each other, let alone talk

-However she actually knows you better than you realise, she's a careful and observant person and like your siblings you're not immune to her spying from time to time

-Because of her perceptiveness she's actually the first to suspect that there's something weird going on with you though she keeps that hunch to herself

-She's probably the most calm and reasonable about learning you have powers and tries to talk some sense into your more reactive siblings

-She encourages them to give you time and space to let this bombshell sink in before they get involved because that's what she would want in your position

-She herself doesn't bother you, not interacting with you any more than usual unless you initiate, she does however have a bird watching you at all times

Alphonso Hargreeves

-Alphonso can be a real dick to you sometimes, but unlike the others it's not because he feels some kind of sense of superiority over you, it's more out of jealousy

-He resents the fact that you don't have the same pressure on you or the same heavy workload and essentially feels like you got off easy compared to him and the others

-He doesn't tend to go out of his way to antagonize you or anything but for someone that's usually pretty easygoing his pointed coldness towards you stands out

-He's definitely blindsided to learn you have powers and it takes him a while to wrap his head around, but he is actually more willing to get your side of the story than some of your siblings

-He still doesn't really get where your pain is coming from because he'd switch childhoods with you in a heartbeat but now that he realises you are genuinely hurting he's a lot more open to understanding

-Ultimately despite being more sympathetic towards you than ever before Alphonso will still go along with however the other sparrows decide to deal with you, for better or for worse

Sloane Hargreeves

-Sloane is the nicest to you by far, partially because that's just who she is, but also because you're both different enough from your other siblings that you form an unspoken alliance

-However as kids you never got the chance to get too close as Reginald noticed your bond and kept separating you

-So while you're glad you can finally be friendly as adults you're still not as close as you could of been, you do try to catch up but the years of forced seperation has created a wall between you

-So has your apparent lack of powers, because though it's absolutely not her intention Sloane can be so patronizing and insensitive about your status as the ordinary one

-As shocked as she is to learn you have powers she's quick to look on the bright side and tries to encourage you to as well, though on the flipside she does also feel terrible to realise the depth of how manipulated and isolated you were

-She's an absolute blessing when it comes to helping you understand and control your power, as a literal genius with experience handling her own superpowers and the kindest person you know she's the best mentor you could hope for, things would of been so much worse without her

-She's firmly on your side throughout this whole ordeal, constantly vouching for you and prioritising what you need no matter what the others say or do

Jayme Hargreeves

-Obviously Jayme never gives you the time of day, but really it's not like she's more apathetic about you than she is about anything else in her life

-Honestly she even likes you more than numbers one to three because at least you never try to tell her what to do, so she's not totally against your company

-Actually she's kind of a very typical sister, you're not friends and she has no problem snarking you but you're family and she'll have your back if you need it

-Even though she had no idea about your powers she isn't all that surprised to learn the truth about you, mostly because she knows this is the exact kind of bullshit Reginald would do and she always thought him keeping you around was a bit suspicious

-She's calm but reasonably cautious when it comes to dealing with the new-you since she has to admit that that is one intense power you have

-Personally she has a hard time seeing you as a threat but like Alphonso she's not going to stick her neck out for you if the sparrow academy decides to do things the hard way

[frommybedroom]

why nick and ben are each other’s foils

(cw for super brief mention of s*xual ass*ult, used only for analysis)

both nick and ben start the season (and end the season in ben’s case) in the closet. this could so easily be another “homophobic bully is secretly gay” cliché, used to, in a way, excuse the behaviors ben exhibits towards charlie. but then here you have nick nelson, this golden retriever of a person who, while figuring himself out, is still able to maintain a friendship with charlie instead of pretending he doesn’t know him and literally assaulting him.

the way they interact with charlie in general. obviously ben is a dick who doesn’t care about charlie’s feelings. he straight up makes out with a girl in front of the school gates and tells charlie that he’s overreacting. on the other hand, when charlie even thinks nick’s going out with imogen, nick jumps at the opportunity to explain his side of the story and promises to let imogen down gently. he doesn’t criticize charlie for feeling insecure about it and apologizes, even though imogen was the one who put him in that awkward situation.

the fact they both have scenes with charlie playing the drums: for ben, this is how the two meet and for nick, this is how the two bond even further when he comes over to charlie’s house. along with not caring about his feelings, ben doesn’t even bother to take an interest in charlie’s drum playing, whereas nick tries (and fails lol) to play which lets charlie know that nick, unlike ben, actually cares about his hobbies.

the conversation nick and tao have is a conversation ben could never ever have with any of charlie’s friends. during the conversation, tao is incredibly blunt. he tells nick that keeping their relationship a secret is hard on charlie and that the longer the secret goes on, the worse he’ll feel about himself. this is 100% true, and tao doesn’t try to soften his words. however, nick really listens bc he knows tao and charlie are besties. he listens and he learns and he almost immediately starts his journey on rectifying the situation. on the other hand, when charlie confronts ben with cold hard truths about his behavior and internal homophobia towards himself, he shuts those criticisms out and refuses to work on bettering himself.

in conclusion, ben hides behind his internalized homophobia and uses it as an excuse to be a dick, while nick takes the time to understand and process his feelings so he doesn’t hurt the people he cares the most about.

[katacreate]

I wrote this last year and never actually posted it, so here you go I guess

When I first watched Heartstopper I was kind of cautious. For some reason there was constantly an anxiety in the back of my head that I couldn't place. I didn't know why.

But now that I had some time to digest it, I realized what it was: I was constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I was waiting for Nick to ignore Charlie in school, for Tara and Darcy to eventually turn on Elle, for Imogen to be a dick about Nick and Charlie, for Tao to sabotage Charlie's and Nicks relationship, for Nick to cut of communication with Charlie after the kiss out of fear and confusion and so on and so forth.

Because these are tropes that are so well established in teen media, that my brain was just wired to expect them.

Instead what I got was constant good communication. Nick immediately shows up the next day after the kiss to explain, Tao tells Charlie about what he heard about the date, but doesn't try to sway him when he tells him he wants to keep staying friends with Nick, Nick actually does immediately admit he overhead them in the bathroom AND sets things straight with Imogen instead of leading her on, who takes it super well and doesn't make a big deal out of it, Tara and Darcy ARE actually nice and want to be friends with Elle, Charlie doesn't push, when Nick says he isn't ready yet to come out and Nick recognized that he's asking him basically the same thing Ben did and does feel bad about it, (though to be fair, I agree with Charlie that it's different in the sense that he does actually care about his feelings in all of this), and Nick does actually progress slowly towards being more comfortable with himself and is not scared to admit to close people what's going on between him and Charlie, they also don't push when Elle says that she just wants to keep her friendship with Tao.

It's just so healthy. Incredibly, incredibly healthy and I love it. It's amazing. People respecting each other and their boundaries. And just communicating instead of having stupid misunderstandings.

It's great.

[mr-independent]

EP 3 aka the Trent Crimm Manifesto. Lessgo

-- Ultimate Girlboss Rebecca is such a fun opener

-- i know fanfic ppl make fun of Ted for not exploring London but he went visiting Big Ben this ep so idk man. Tho i do love the trope of his British beau showing Mr Kansas the sights so I'll let it slide. This time.

-- Ted's hair keeps falling into his face so kudos to everyone who's called him 'boyish' yallre so right

-- and the start of the Coach Nate arc begins!

-- 'flattering silhouette' this episode, with the soft shoeing last episode.......no straight man from Kansas talks like this babe

-- the Ted/Keeley friendship really falls off at some point but my god is it entertaining

-- Colin and Isaac were right dicks in this episode holy hell. Colin i kinda get, hyper masculinity allows him to stay in the closet but Isaac??? For shame

-- ah Trent. The suit-converse combo, the big dick swagger, the little bemused self-satisfied smile whenever Ted makes a stupid joke........ I've said it before and I'll say it again, what I wouldn't give to peg that man

-- Roy loving Step Brothers is such a funny detail

-- Keeley wolf-whistling a shirtless Roy is iconic. Also Roy's impression of Ted is Fucking Hilarious

-- the chemistry with Roy and Keeley is palpable and i love it

-- there was actually no reason for Ted to be changing in his office with Trent right there. Not one.

-- Bi Keeley literally starts so early why was anyone surprised? She begged to see a pic of Rebecca's tits before they were even friends, then said multiple times that she couldn't stop thinking about them

-- Trent was forced to sit amongst the school kids at the school award ceremony which is fucking hilarious

-- he also knows the plot of A Wrinkle In Time off the top of his head and loves it. Trent is my fav character for a reason y'all.

-- i forgot their little date was to the restaurant of the chauffeur from ep 1 that's so cute 🥺

-- 'Trent, what do you love?' and Trent's face of absolute panic.... No one's ever asked him that before 🥺

-- Trent's slow realisation that Ted really is just so refreshingly earnest all the time... Poetry

-- 'I can't help but root for him' like i know the point is that Trent is the layman viewer, contextually as a standin for the average community member but in meta as a standin for the viewer of the tv show, someone who's most likely familiar with sports dramas, so Trent falling in love with Ted is actually a great allegory for fans of the show. Also I'm gay and want those middle aged men to fuck nasty on screen even if i know it's never gonna happen. That's simply my cross to bear 🫡

[zenjiiejiie]

No because neung is SO jealous and possessive over palm despite the fact that A: They aren't dating and B: HE FUCKING KISSED BEN?!

I am ALL for palmneung/neungpalm and I genuinely love love love their storyline so far but at this point I don't think neung and palm's relationship would be healthy if they started dating now.

I'm all for possessive and jealous bfs/gfs but only if it's in a healthy sane and consensual way for example someone being like "yeah that's MY bf/gf back off" but only if the s/os had and have open and clear communication between them so they won't hurt the other by accident.

I want to see neung grovel for palms forgiveness I want palm to be distant and cold yet respectful I want him to be /exactly/ what his father wants him to be just to spite neung and him only being that way with neung himself.

I want palm and chopper to be best friends who complain about the people they like being absolute dicks to them and the other agreeing because /fuck yeah he's a dick/ because ben has been nothing but cruel to palm and well chopper is neung's cousin ofc he shit talks him they're family! (Like 'I despise you' (affectionate) kinda thing)

But most of all I want palm and chopper to be with people who love a respect them despite whatever differences they may have. People who actually enjoy their company and want them in their lives and are willing to fight for them and with them. We all know neung will eventually be that person for palm but until then I want CHOPPERPALM!!!!

And if ben can't be that person for chopper then fuck him chopper deserves better but if he CAN- if ben can genuinely and wholeheartedly love chopper despite how different they are when hes already stated that he likes people similar to him. When he doesn't want to risk what he a chopper have /again/ after he almost lost it already (because I know ben missed chopper he missed their friendship and he missed /him/) then i will cry tears of joy and will walk them /both/ down the aisle.

[lookninjas]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

That's a lot of stars.

So I gave it a little bit of thought, and I think what I'm going to do is a breakdown of the edited version of Humdrum and Humble, since it's the most recent fic I've actually completed and posted that wasn't a very short one shot that can be boiled down to "I want to see everyone be nice to Rose Walker" or its natural converse "I want to see Roderick Burgess get kicked repeatedly in the dick." And as much as I'd like to get into something more recent, all I have that's recent is a couple of WIPs and any scenes I detail from those will almost certainly wind up missing from the deleted fic just because that's how it goes.

Also, I've already done a commentary on the original (mostly) unedited version of it, so it kind of feels nicely bookendish.

So let's dive in.

It starts in a theater lobby, while he’s paying for paper bags of rice and newspaper, playing cards and toast. He is out of his depth and trying to pretend he isn’t, in his old boots and a black button-down shirt, surrounded by sequins and pancake makeup and garishly bright wigs and fishnet stockings -- literally, everyone here seems to be in fishnets except for him and Poe. Even the silver-haired gentleman taking tickets has fishnet gloves on, and Ben feels like such a hick. And not, of course, that he feels like he belongs most places. That’s something that’s followed him his whole life. But this moment in particular, in this theater lobby, might be the worst so far. It certainly feels like it.

The first draft of this story was written during Rocky Horror season, specifically the week between our movie theater performance and our casino performance. At that point in the year, I'm understandably fucking breathing Rocky Horror. So that's a large part of where this scene comes from. I'd also referenced Toby playing Columbia once already, in Dead Souls, and sometimes when I was driving to or from work I'd mentally turn the idea of him and Poe interacting as part of a shadowcast around in my head for a few miles at a time. Rocky is kind of a liminal space where anything goes, and also the kind of place where Ben is going to feel decidedly off-kilter at first, even if he gets more comfortable as he goes along. So it just felt like a good place to start. Ben knew he was going to have a weird night. It just got weirder than he thought. But he also has Poe with him to guide him, and Poe has had experience in both these worlds -- Rocky Horror, and then also Torchwood, through that friendship with Toby that I dreamed up in my car driving through the middle of nowhere.

Sidenote: It's such a weird thing to try to write these situations where the main character has no idea what's going on, because you want to put some exposition in, but that's not how people have conversations. This scene was the worst for that, because of how minimal Ben's involvement is. As he gets more enmeshed in the plot, people take time to explain things to him. Right now, he just knows something weird went down at a synagogue once, and also sometimes people buy drugs from people with blowfish heads. But he's midwestern, you know, so he's just running with it. As you do.

And then some smaller notes: There's a bit about Aly getting hurt when he touches the person who took the drugs, which is notable because the skin on his left side is synthetic -- thicker and less sensitive than his real skin. It's also why his hand is cool in the second scene, at Pride. Poe saying "Stay safe out there," is a callback to Dead Souls, although I don't think the final draft used that saying as much as earlier versions did. Lastly, while I didn't edit much on this scene, I did add Jonah to it -- the silver-haired ticket taker in the fishnet gloves. Hilariously, Ben doesn't remember him being there, even though he'll later recognize the kid who took the drugs. Chalk it up to the kid being as conspicuous as possible, while Jonah's trying to blend in.

SECOND SCENE:

It’s Motor City Pride, which means it’s hot and it’s sticky and he’s got a ton of shit on his plate.

Fun fact: I have no idea what that conversation between Ben and Lando is supposed to be about, apart from people are trying to get Ben to do something and he really doesn't have time but is too polite to say no.

So this one is interesting, because it's our proper introduction to Jonah. In the last scene, we had Torchwood jumping in to a dangerous situation. This scene, we have Jonah in that position. His little conversation with Lando is one of my favorites, because it reveals so much about the two of them in a few lines:

Lando has worked with Torchwood enough that Jonah recognizes him on sight as someone who'd have their contact numbers.

Jonah knows Torchwood, but either doesn't have those numbers or is unwilling to call them.

Lando has encountered enough Time Agents to clock Jonah on sight.

The "Not Captain Jonah Hawthorne?" "Just Jonah" is our first clue that Jonah is trying to move on from his past.

And, of course, there's that echoing moment where Jonah puts his hand on Ben's shoulder, then Lando puts his hand on Ben's shoulder, and then Aly puts his hand on Ben's shoulder. Same basic playbook. Ben is more involved in this particular scene than he was the last, but he's still a civilian being treated as a civilian. He's helping with one person. They're handling the whole situation.

At the same time, his decision to help that one person winds up being crucial to how the story ends, which is the fun thing about it.

THIRD SCENE:

“-- scale of it,” Kai is saying, when Ben comes out of it. It’s dark, and there’s something cool and damp on his forehead. He feels okay with his eyes closed. He’s not sure how he’s going to feel when he finally makes his mind up to open them.

Ben, you're eavesdropping. Admit that you're eavesdropping.

Jonah mentions that John Hart had been in town -- this is a Torchwood Four story that I've toyed with for ages and never actually written out. Although one of my WIPs gets into it a little more. Whether John is cleaned up in canon is I think still fairly ambiguous, although I haven't really gotten much into the Big Finish audios. I do feel like Jonah, having known him from his worst days, would have his doubts. And Kai isn't that much more certain.

This also gets a little into what Jonah did with the Time Agency, at least for the latter part of his career -- he was the one to go after the rogue Time Agents when they went too rogue. Which is why, if a Time Agent were to be involved in this, things might get too personal too quickly.

One note: Poe's last full appearance in the fic here, and he has one of my favorite lines of the whole thing, even though it's sort of an odd choice -- “Toby always tells me it’s a very human response. I don’t even think he realizes how many times he’s told me that.” There's something unsettling to me about how the Torchwood Amnesia effect even affects Torchwood.

FOURTH SCENE:

Less than a month later, he finds himself sprinting down a crowded sidewalk, chasing a man who appears to have a bright red fish’s head where his human face should be.

This is the scene that made me want to write the fic -- Ben chasing an alien through the streets of Detroit. I just loved the image. I still love the image. No Torchwood, no Time Agent, just Ben being an incredibly brave moron.

I mean, he never does anything half-assed, so.

And judging by the blowfish's response, he's not even the first Detroit resident to pull something like this.

One of my favorite conversations in the whole fic is this one. I think it's easy to forget, reading through some of the other stories in the Children's Work universe, that Ben is tremendously unafraid of physical harm. He's been very traumatized, and he's very wary of certain emotional situations due to that trauma, but physically he'll absolutely throw himself into dangerous shit and not care at all. He's very secure here, even when he's alone and cornered and has a gun pointed at him. It doesn't bother him at all. He gets annoyed. He even challenges the blowfish at the end. “Just what kind of business is your boss involved in, exactly?”

And then Torchwood shows up to take over, and for the first time we get to see them dangerous, which is fun. I like how Kai basically unintentionally sums up the purpose of her Torchwood -- not arming against the future, or finding the Doctor, or weapons for the empire, but -- "You don’t kill kids in my town."

This is another part where the exposition gets interesting. First, we get the blowfish babbling about how Universe went down and there's no Torchwood in London anymore and there's a bitch in Wales (Hi Gwen!) Then Kai goes technobabble about vortex energy, and finally Toby steps in to explain things in English. Ben even gets a chance to ask some questions and receives a few answers, although they're brief and they lead to even more questions that he doesn't want answered.

And Mr. Universe/Ben Eugenides makes his return. I've kind of given up on doing a Torchwood Four story with this team that doesn't reference him -- I suppose as long as Aly's part of the team, that does go with the territory. Also, somewhere in writing this (and then continuing to work with the Jonah character), the idea of the death of Mr. Universe causing this hole in the extraterrestrial artifact black market became kind of an appealing hook for stories. If he was purchasing and selling (and releasing into the streets of Detroit) a lot of very dangerous alien artifacts, that creates a power vacuum that enterprising criminals would want to get into, as well as those who would be lured to the city by the promise of finding all of Mr. Universe's artifacts that Torchwood couldn't get to first.

Also, unstated in the story -- I have no doubt at all that Poe took Ben to Mr. Universe's shop at least once when they were kids, for incense or oils or tarot cards or something of that nature.

There's a brief nod to the fact that, since Dead Souls takes place in 2010, and Ben doesn't move to Detroit until 2016, Torchwood Four has outlived their standard expectancy by a little bit. (For the record, I imagine this story taking place around 2018.) But they're my characters, I love them, and they're not dying. Also, Aly doesn't count because he was born around 1916, but also went missing for about seventy years, and most likely spent that time in some kind of stasis. So he's not that much older than everyone else. He's pretty sure.

FIFTH SCENE

This time, there’s no room for forgetting.

Another good characterization moment for Ben right off the bat in this one: He keeps moving, and if the fear moves with him -- well. He’s used to that, isn’t he? Like an old familiar friend. I think part of what was interesting to me about this was this kind of moment for Ben, where he's in a very frightening situation and just kind of handles it. He keeps going, keeps living. Pays very close attention to what's around him and is aware of the ways in which he's in danger and is aware of the people trying to protect him and then also kind of... lets it go. And when the crisis can, he does what he can to call attention to the danger and then just walks right into it, knowing.

And trash-talks the woman who's threatening to kill him because he figures he's already pissed her off enough, so whatever.

Not like Jonah's better, calling his nemesis a cliche in the middle of their fight.

I had originally wanted Ben to take a more physically active role in the fight, but it didn't work out that way, and that's probably for the best. This is really more about the mental resilience of him and that particular fight -- having him throw punches would be a cop-out. He stays ready to get involved if he needs to, all the way up to holding a loaded gun at the ready in case he needs to shoot someone, but he's waiting until the need arises and trusting Jonah otherwise. There's even the very deliberate call-out to the fact that he could just eject the magazine, empty the last round out of the chamber, and throw the gun away, but he doesn't. He's fearless, but he's not dumb, and he'll do what he has to to save someone else.

That it doesn't come out that way is largely because of what he did to help the kid with the tie-dye in the second scene. He's not a good person -- he tazes Jonah for literally no reason -- but he bonded with Ben just enough in that hour at Pride that he changes the whole course of the story for it. It'd be sweet, if it weren't a fucked-up murder suicide pact in the end.

It's very interesting how much the kid does want to die. He takes the Sontaran Sunlight, he tazes Jonah, he claims to have set up a real bomb this time even though, at the end, it's another glitter bomb. He pretends he's disabled the panic buttons and then Torchwood shows up. He playacts the part of a villain, or attempts to, but in the end he makes a better victim.

And even with patchy exposition, Ben has still picked up enough info about Vortex Manipulators to realize that the Vortex Manipulator is the trigger to the bomb and that both the boy and the Time Agent have the ability to set it off. He might be an idiot when it comes to self-preservation, but he's sharp as a tack otherwise.

SIXTH SCENE

The butterfly bandages aren’t enough to patch Jonah’s face together where it’s split apart over his left eyebrow, and the glue is running low.

Ben finally in his element here. No chasing anything, no guns, no fighting. Just patching someone together so he can feed them.

This is the scene where I have to confront the O.C. in the room. What is the point of Jonah in specific? What is his arc, where is he going, and what does that say about Ben and his story? The entire time, Ben has been dipping his toe back into familiar uncomfortable waters. There is a crisis. The whole city, maybe even the whole world, could be in danger. Everything is lining up to make it look like it's his responsibility to stop the catastrophe. But in the end, it isn't a gunshot that makes the difference. It's the decision to sit with one person who really needed him, to take that time and take that care, that fixes things. That's where Jonah wants to be. He has been in the background of the story the entire time, wrestling with his decision to leave the Time Agency and just tidy up his corner of the universe for the time he has left. He just doesn't fully know how.

And Ben realizes that, and very directly offers to help him figure it out.

So we start with Ben fully out of his depth at Rocky Horror, and now he's back where he belongs at his own restaurant, doing what only he can with the experience that only he has. And it's that fearless side but also the compassionate side that has brought him where he is. And now Jonah's the one out of his depth and Ben will help him figure things out. Which is why it ends specifically with:

And it isn’t where the story ends, of course. But it isn’t a terrible place to start.

Which is also largely why I've been picking at various stories involving Jonah since then, because now I want to know how this works for him, because for all the similarities between himself and Ben, we're still talking about a sixty year-old Time Agent leaving the game as opposed to a teenager stealing a five year-old and moving to rural Northern Michigan, so there's going to be some changes.

One day. One day I'll finish a new fic.

I feel like I had more to say about some things; it's always different when you're thinking about it in the car than it is when you're actually sitting down to type shit out. But it's still fun to do this. I hadn't realized how tidy that arc was until just now, so that's fun. Sometimes I'm a better writer than I realize while I'm writing. I think that's true of most of us.

[ao3feed-narlie]

I Bit The Apple 'Cause I loved you And Why Would You Lie? And Then I Realized You're Just As Naive I am.

read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/6E5VsGC by UncleIrohsTea Ben's a dick, Nick's going through it, and Sarah is babygirl.   -- idk I made this bc you actually can get trauma from witnessing something like this and Nick would def be affected by this sooooo yeah 😁 Words: 2309, Chapters: 1/1, Language: English Fandoms: Heartstopper (Webcomic), Heartstopper (TV) Rating: Mature Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage Categories: M/M Characters: Sarah Nelson, David Nelson (Heartstopper), Benjamin "Ben" Hope, Imogen Heaney, Charles "Charlie" Spring (Heartstopper) Relationships: Nicholas "Nick" Nelson/Charles "Charlie" Spring, Benjamin "Ben" Hope/Charles "Charlie" Spring Additional Tags: Trans Male Character, Trans Charles "Charlie" Spring (Heartstopper), Past Benjamin "Ben" Hope/Charles "Charlie" Spring, Benjamin "Ben" Hope Being an Asshole, Benjamin "Ben" Hope Bashing, Imogen Heaney & Nicholas "Nick" Nelson Friendship, Nicholas "Nick" Nelson has Anxiety, Established Nicholas "Nick" Nelson/Charles "Charlie" Spring, Nicholas "Nick" Nelson Needs a Hug, Trauma, David Nelson Being an Asshole, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Supportive Charles "Charlie" Spring, Bisexual Nicholas "Nick" Nelson, Bisexual Disaster Nicholas "Nick" Nelson, Protective Nicholas "Nick" Nelson, Supportive Nicholas "Nick" Nelson, Nicholas "Nick" Nelson-Centric, Good Parent Sarah Nelson, Past Sexual Abuse, Past Abuse, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Sex read it on AO3 at https://ift.tt/6E5VsGC

[invisiblegarters]

Never Let Me Go Ep 12 (Final)

Okay, that hostage pic of Nueng is hilarious. He looks so surly. I know I'm supposed to be worried and I know why Palm is, but honestly Nueng just kind of looks like he got sent to bed without dinner and he's mad about it.

Poor Chopper. Literally every time that boy turns around someone is accusing him of being evil. I do kind of wonder if we're gonna wind up in some sort of Chopper/Kit standoff again, and this time Chopper will have to pull the trigger. I hope not, because he's so sweet and I think it would break him.

And in a surprise twist that literally everyone saw coming, it was a trap.

This. This right here is why you don't hire a literal 18/19 year old as a bodyguard. This family.

OH okay now things are actually getting kind of fun. I didn't actually think that Kit would shoot Palm. And yeah, of course that's the thing that would work. Even though pretty sure Kit fully intends to kill both of them. Still getting the feeling that Kit is living his best life. Still like him in spite of myself.

And a wild Chopper appears! Guess he does have to shoot dad after all. And good for him for telling his dad what is what. He's really the best. Please don't shoot him Kit. I am honest to god worried for the first time that Chopper might not survive this. Kit does seem like the type to temper tantrum shoot his kid, you know?

Why do people keep saying that Kit killed both of Nueng's parents? Did Tanya die and I missed it?

Wow those ropes sure were already untied.

Palm will be fine. This was a fun mess, everyone got a little shot. And suddenly Ben is there? Did someone involve him or was his Chopper sense tingling?

I do like that Chopper went straight for his dad when he got shot. Look, Kit is (was?) a dick and a half, but he was dad, and for most of Chopper's life he probably treated him fairly well, actually. I also like that Ben went right for Chopper.

I am liking Nueng breaking down.

Yay, the Nueng and Chopper scene is what I've been wanting the whole drama. I'm so glad. I always did like their friendship - from the very beginning they always got on, despite their parents. And Chopper finally gets that hug he's needed for like, eight episodes now.

The Chopper/Ben scene is adorable. And ha, okay, yes Chopper did text ben. And AW, the look on Chopper's face when Ben says that he wants to stay by his side. Say what you want to say about Perth, boy does pining like no one's business. He could give lessons. And the hug was adorable, my goodness. I still don't know how I feel about Perth & Chimon as a pair - they work well together and have good chemistry but I'm not sure it translates into the romantic kind. Guess we have to wait for Dangerous Romance to really tell, huh? And I will.

Okay, this is unexpected. I kind of thought that Palm would wake up without a scra - oh. Temporarily paralyzed. Should have known. Can't actually have our heroes hurt permanently. Not that I necessarily want them to be, but come on. Shot in the knee and the back and he's gonna be perfectly A-ok? Sure.

"What if my leg doesn't go back to normal?" Pfft you're not in that kind of drama, my dude.

Aw, I want these four to be friends. For real. Can they, can they?

CHOPPER WILL YOU PLEASE STOP APOLOGIZING FOR YOUR AWFUL DAD. He wants to badly to atone for something that he didn't even do. This kid. I guess though that that's what makes him so great.

I make fun, but I do think that it's kind of sad that Palm seems to be breaking down not because of the way his life will change if he can't walk properly, but because he can't take care of Nueng if his leg is messed up. Although that's not entirely accurate, I can understand the mentality. I just wish that he still wasn't so wrapped up in taking care of Nueng at the cost of all else. I guess that's just his personality, though.

See? Tanya's not dead. She's here to throw yet another wrench into things. Dammit, Tanya.

She's not wrong about Nueng changing. He's much less the spoiled brat that he used to be.

Hm. I honestly can't tell if she realizes what she did when she said that she was releasing Palm and that he could go back to his own life now. Or when she said that she hoped that there would be no more obstacles in Nueng's life.

These two and their disappearing acts and their notes, I swear.

Ooh I really like the song playing over this though. Anyone know what it is?

*quick google later*

Oooh never mind found it! it's If You Still Wanted to Be Loved by Candelion. *adds to playlist rotation*

Part of me is annoyed with Palm. I get not wanting to be a burden on Nueng but also, there's nothing inherently weak in needing help. Although it does feel less manufactured than it could, since Palm's identity for so long has been wrapped up in how much he can do for Nueng and his family. How useful he can be and how well he can protect him.

So I guess Tanya didn't mean to send Palm off. That's good - like I said I was waffling on whether or not that was what she was going for. It didn't fit with the loving mom but then again who knows when it comes to dramas.

I do think that it's nice this time it's Nueng going after Palm, though. Good for Palm to know that he's wanted for himself. And also good for Nueng to be able to help take care of Palm. Like he could have always backed him financially, but I do think that he really started changing for the better when he had to start doing some work on the island, and when he and Palm were on more even footing than they'd ever been before.

Pfft, I don’t Nueng cares about having to be practically on top of you, Palm.

And then a montage of frolicking on the beach and running the new place. The fact that Palm named it after Nueng is entirely in character and entirely eyeroll inducing.

I love that Nueng is like "dude. I was flirting with you nonstop when you lived at my place." We all knew, Nueng. Well, not Palm I guess. But I'm not entirely sure I buy that either. He was very definitely a little too smirky on occasion not to have had some idea.

They're cute, though, and I have to admit that I was expecting a far more angsty version of the lonely cowherd and the maiden story. I don't get the impression that the separation will be permanent, for one. And I do think that it's good that Nueng goes off to pursue his drams.

And dear lord we finally got Palm quitting it with the Mr. Nuengs. Of course it would be the last five minutes of the drama.

This was a fun ride. I had a good time pretty much all the way through, and I think that the chemistry between the leads actually improved as we went along, which was nice (it was good to begin with but it definitely got better). Kit was a fun villain actually, and again, the fact that he was clearly having a grand time made me like him even when I thought that he might be pointing a gun at Chopper, which is just not on. Chopper was my favorite pretty much from moment one, he was the best and I am glad that in the end he was happy. My emotional journey on Ben went up and down a lot. Chanon sucks.

I really did like Nueng's journey in the end. He starts off an isolated, spoiled little brat with more balls than sense and becomes a decent boss and hard worker with a solid friend group, a boyfriend, and more balls than sense. I liked that part though so I make no complaints.

I wish Palm had been a little more present in the middle eps - he was in every scene, practically, and yet his character felt a little passive and one note for too long. Although I do feel like much of that can be attributed to the (unfair) job he was given by his dad and his hangups around that. His teasing banter with Nueng was almost always great, though.

Final: 7/10. I had a good time overall, but I do feel like it could have been better. Probably part of that was that I didn’t really get the kind of angst that I personally wanted. I wanted more bodyguard angst, more of Nueng questioning what Palm really feels, how sincere he is being vs how he feels he has to act as someone who has sworn to protect Nueng and his heart. I wanted Palm to be more worried that Nueng was only going for him because he was there, even though we could all tell that was never the case. Nueng wasn’t kidding when he said he’d been after Palm from pretty much day one. Instead I got them both running off on the other and leaving sappy “live your life free of me” letters. It’s fine but it’s not the meal I was craving.

I admit I was also kind of annoyed with Palm taking off in the last act. We all knew that this was going to come back to the yearly meeting at the island, of course, but getting there felt kind of like an afterthought. Like the writers were like “oh, crap, we almost forgot that they have to separate. How do? Oh I know, have Palm make a bullshit ‘sacrifice’, that always works.” I don’t know. It just didn’t gel for me personally. It wasn’t melodramatic enough on the whole for me to buy into that bit. I’d still recommend it so long as you don’t take it too seriously.

In summation, Chopper is still the best and should get all the things he wants. 

[inamindfarfaraway]

Who's the first AK that Mina befriends and why? Which AK is the last for Mina to warm up to, and why? And which AKs will she never be friends with?

The first is Chelsea. Mina is mildly impressed that she volunteered to room with a VK, after getting a wary reception from some other AKs. Chelsea confesses that she didn't get on with her previous roommate, so it didn’t seem like that a hard of a decision, and they talk about being disabled and bullied and left behind and arbitrary AK social norms and hey, Chelsea’s funny, and actually gets Mina’s sharp sense of humour, and with healthy plants and wildlife being so alien to her Mina is more than happy to hear all her swamp facts and holy shit, she can do magic, that’s badass and -

oh. They’re friends. Wow. It happens a lot more naturally than either of them anticipated. They’re very sweet together. I love them. They have sleepovers at each other’s houses in the school holidays, because even by the first one they’re so used to and comfortable sharing a bedroom. Chelsea loves playing with the Foxworth pets. She visits the shelter and helps Mina sometimes, and Mina visits New Orleans and the swamp to watch Chelsea learn magic.

I think she'd get along pretty well with most canon AKs. They’re all generally good people, except Chad and to an extent, mostly formerly Audrey. Chad’s always come across as worse to Audrey than me, so his character growth would be slower and more begrudging and he plays a minor antagonist to Mina and other VKs; he’s too afraid of his parents, Ben and Mal making him face more serious consequences for his actions than the discipline he’s already got to try anything really bad, though. He is fundamentally a coward whose bark is much worse than his bite. And everyone can see that. He’s too pathetic, unintelligent and uncreative to be an effective bully. A minority of other AKs who share his malice aren’t, however, and not all of them change their ways. There are many AKs that Mina just never clicks with or warms up to because that’s how people work, with no such malice or judgment necessary.

It takes her and Terry surprisingly long to become proper friends. That’s why even after the time skip, I haven’t described them as friends in their bios. The reason is that I specifically created him to be Mina’s foil. Their personalities and roles are as different as can be, and she has trust issues and he’s bad at compromise, among other traits and attitudes that, by design, rub each other the wrong way. They both regret how awkward this is for Chelsea and want to be friends. But they just don’t get each other. Resolving this impasse is the result of their character development, particularly Terry’s, who’s more invested in befriending Mina. It requires him to slow down, acknowledge his flaws, listen to and learn from someone else’s perspective and put effort into building something despite knowing that it won’t be perfect. Mina is isn’t perfect, and neither is he. Neither is their friendship. But it’s still good. Yeah. Still good.

The last AK Mina warms up to is Audrey. Audrey has spent the six months since the movie having a big arc of unlearning her prejudices and callous, competitive, selfish worldview, which has involved coming to be on good terms with Mal, glad and grateful that she makes her best friend happy, and quite a messy breakup with Chad due to her no longer respecting him being a dick or liking that he enables and encourages her being a bitch. He swings between being bitter and desperate for her to take him back. She’s just tired of him. By Cotillion, her family is fracturing too: Leah refuses to change her views on VK no matter how unpopular they get or how much the whole rest of her family disagrees with her, and Aurora finally demands that if she can’t be trusted to look after all her citizens, she has to abdicate the throne. Phillip backs her up. In Audrey’s mind, Leah is her beloved, doting grandmother who’s always been there for her (a little critical and controlling, maybe, but all in the name of helping Audrey be everything she needs to be, right? There’s totally no toxicity in that dynamic that she also needs to unpack now, right? Please?) But… though it breaks her heart, she agrees with her parents. Leah is not taking any of this well. So Audrey’s under a lot of stress at the moment. Mina observes this from the sidelines and realizes that Audrey is not a shallow prissy princess/popular girl stereotype, but a Person with Feelings. Feelings about relatable stuff like a family member being awful. Now that, a VK can’t help but sympathize with. They have their first really open and honest conversation after that when Mina steps in to offer the appreciated sentiment of ‘you’re not alone and you’ll get through this, keep going’ and the less appreciated promise to sic her dogs on her grandma if she wants. Then Audrey ends up turning to the Core Four and Uma’s crew for empathy and experienced help processing and healing from Leah’s years of emotional abuse and thus forges a much stronger bond with all of them. Leah is forced to give up the throne, don’t worry.

It actually takes Mina longer to officially forgive Mal than to enter Audrey’s good books. She really does hold a grudge!

[ao3feed--reylo]

Lost

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/uVhjCQK

by RaeleiaL, TheRavenSpeaks

A chance encounter with a little girl lost in the park changes Ben's life for the better. What started out as a deep friendship slowly evolves as they grow older.

Distance will take them away from each other, but what happens when they come together later in life?

Song Inspiration:

LosT - Bring Me The Horizon

Graphic Music Video but it's alot of fun!

Words: 1731, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars - All Media Types

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/F, F/M, M/M

Characters: Poe Dameron, Rey (Star Wars), Ben Solo, Rose Tico, Paige Tico, Finn (Star Wars), Leia Organa, Maz Kanata, Amilyn Holdo, Tico Family, Armitage Hux, Phasma (Star Wars), Bazine Netal, Other Character Tags to Be Added

Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Leia Organa/Han Solo, Mara Jade/Luke Skywalker

Additional Tags: Friends to Lovers, Best Friends, Soulmates, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Nothing Happens When Rey is a Child, Slow Romance, Eventual Relationships, Friendship/Love, Protective Ben Solo, Rey's Parents Abandoned Rey (Star Wars), Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Canon Age Difference, Adopted Rey, Poe Dameron & Finn & Rey & Rose Tico Friendship, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Fluff and Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, No Beta, Eventual Smut, Hux is a dick but not completely irredeemable, Rey and Ben have other relationships

read it on the AO3 at https://ift.tt/uVhjCQK

[measuringbliss]

Spider-Man Read-Through 072 Silvermane Dies (SSM 69-71)

MASTERPOST

Hehe, 69...

In this post, we some some guests back, and I analyze Peter Parker's mindset post-first Clone Saga (=after Conway's run).

Also, I get really, really tired of Debra Whitman.

Hey, that's a cool cover!

And a gorgeous top half of the first page.

And the trend continues.

So the Cloak and Dagger investigate drugs, which apparently come from Silvermane...

I'm sorry but this issue is so gorgeous!

Peter reminisces about Uncle Ben in his old house, which May wants to refurbish to make into a "boarding house for oldsters".

Nathan Lubenski notices Spidey leaving the house and is curious about that. He also has a plan to get money and make of May's dream a reality.

After an unproductive encounter with our mysterious duo, Peter's back in class, having trouble following what Dr Sloan's teaching.

He's a dick to each one of his colleagues, particularly to Debra, who knows his secret...

But I do love his outfit so I forgive him.

I think it's pretty clear that Peter's downright avoiding any sort of social interaction by pretexting he needs to be Spider-Man and arrest some goons any time he feels stressed. It's a coping mecanism, and we see more and more how terrible it is. He doesn't have any actual friendship with any of his colleague; his old friends are nowhere to be seen. Ever since the clone debacle, Peter has had no solid relationship.

You could almost write meta about it, because it's been a constant thing for what, 6 years of publication now? Some of it may be accidental, some of it may just be the writer's impression of how Peter behaved before, but I feel like it's been much worse for a while now.

Peter Parker has been depressed ever since Gwen's death, the clone saga seriously messed him up, and developing relationships has probably felt (unconsciously?) impossible.

Like sure, Wein's run was mostly action. Wolfman's run wasn't much better. Meanwhile, Spectacular has been quite flat, static, and uninteresting. I'm latching onto any social aspect, but it's far from fascinating like the Coffee Bean Gang could be.

Stern, you CAN do something about it. But I'm not sure you plan to. And Bill Mantlo's SSM issues so far aren't stellar.

I don't know, I feel like at this point, it's been a phase of his life, where Peter's meandering and mostly fights unconsequential fights.

...

Anyway.

To find Silvermane, Jean DeWolff tells Spidey he has to go talk to the Kingpin, whose adress is no secret.

Hello, handsome.

The Kingpin gladly gives him the address. He's likeable now! I like him. I'm not asking for more Kingpin, but if "more Kingpin" = "more Kingpin like this", I won't mind!

Anyway, Silvermane's in a pretty sorry state, and the Dagger ends up killing him.

Blood, again! (See last post.)

Spidey's getting GRUESOME. Edgy? I don't know, it still feels weird.

In #70, Silvermane's doctor attempts to revive him and Peter has to escape.

Alright, I'll accept it.

That's a great expression.

Anyway, what happened with Saruman?

This is frankly disgusting.

Could Peter's teachers stop being assholes? I know it's give exposition, but there's a moment where constant reminding of some things throughout some characters really sounds awful.

However, he calls Biff "preppy" and I'll take that as another confirmation of his bisexuality.

Anyway...

This is miserable. These characters are miserable and that storyline is miserable. I can't imagine following the magazine at the time of publication. 6+ years of pushing poor Debra around with little to no progress. Jeez.

Apparently, she leaves in SSM 74, and to be honest, I can't wait because this whole thing has been sad to witness.

Anyway, Silvermane "dies" "again" ("probably") and everything ends well.

She has a teddy bear, which is great, but goddamnit girl, get a hold of yourself!

Alright, 71 time.

During a robbery, the victim shoots a thief dead while Spidey attempts to resolve the situation.

Then: a discussion on gun violence.

Quick, someone tell Robbie 1980 is not happening anytime soon because Gwen died, like, two years ago at this point.

The discussion reads like baby's first "guns in the US" debate, it lacks subtlety but at the same time, I welcome the message. It's a shame things are no different 4 decades later.

The subject is upfront throughout the entire issue. Very upfront. I think the shocking aspect works, at the very least.

Anyway, the weapons are found.

I just like seeing angsty Peter.

[uterialmotive-blog]

Book Review: One on One

TITLE: One On One

AUTHOR: Jamie Farrow

SUMMARY:

Annie Radford desperately needs a job, but the only one going is the videographer role for her Alma Mater's basketball team. The same job she fled from years ago . . . Returning to Ardwyn University is hard enough, but on her first day back she learns that the team is facing budget cuts and her new job is already on the line.

After a run-in with the annoyingly wholesome and seriously hot Ben, her old friend and now arch-nemesis, things go from bad to worse. Ben is holding a grudge about Annie's abrupt departure from his life, and now she might be the reason he loses his job . . . surely there's no way back for their friendship.

The two of them will stop at nothing to come out on top but unfortunately for them, basketball is a team sport, and they are on the same side. Will they find a way to work together and get the team the national championship, or will their bitter rivalry and the secrets Annie is hiding keep them apart?

TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual Assault

This book was incredible!

I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I requested it because it sounded like something I would enjoy but then was a bit cautious because I know next to nothing about Basketball. Literally, the extent of my basketball knoledge comes from One Tree Hill and Space Jam. So, not much.

I only really have one complaint about this book but it is a BIG one. There is no trigger warning. This is something that I hope will be added in before the book is published, however, it is something that I strongly feel should have been included in the ARC also.

That being said - trigger warning: SA.

Aside from the lack of trigger warning, the way that the discussion around the SA and the way that the FMC dealt with it, is all handled really well. There was a lot of potential for the MMC to be an absolute douche but he is just the best (I will get on to this later). Again, there was no trigger warning and, although it was alluded to, I enjoyed that it was not fully explained until near the end of the story.

Let's talk about Ben. So firstly, we think he is a dick. Then it turns out that he is not so much of a dick as we thought he was. All I wrote about Ben in my notes was "good guy, great guy, best guy". I really loved the relationship between him and Annie and also between him and the other characters.

Annie! I love her! I love the relationships she has with her friends, her family, the players on the team. I love that they call her A-Rad. I basically love everything about her and I want to be her friend. She is probably one of my favourite FMCs this year, if not ever. I was actually really dissapointed after this that I can't watch her hype videos because they sound absolutely amazing.

The supporting cast of players , friends and family was excellent, it touched lightly on elements of race and discrimination. Although it would have been nice for this to have been explored a bit more deeply, I can definitely see that perhaps ths story wasn't right for that.

I would absolutely read this author again and urge everyone to read this book. Please be mindful of the trigger warning that I mentioned previously. Stay safe out there, guys!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.