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probably-writing-x · 2 years ago

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Armour - Chapter Two

Rafe!AU x Reader

Summary: Having your heart broken was one thing. But Rafe watching somebody break your heart? That was something nobody could prepare for.

Warnings: Cursing, mentions/hints of a toxic relationship

Word Count: 3K

Author’s Note: I LOVE writing this series and this whole concept, I feel like I could carry it on forever - once again, this chapter was inspired by this gif so I feel like this might be an ongoing theme for this series <3 Thank you for the love y’all.

After that night, you hadn’t thought of James. You and Rafe had returned home and, when Sarah asked how your night was, you’d told her you’d slept better than you had done in days. She’d probably tell you that you were crazy for going round to the house, and tell Rafe he was stupid for getting himself involved. She’d tell him this was too much like the old Rafe, the one that craved the power and the fights, and that he wasn’t like that anymore. But you knew that little spark in Rafe would always stay - for the few people that he cared enough about to make sure that nothing bad happened to them. And you’d seen that last night, the way he’d spoken about you; someone fighting your corner.

“Good morning,” Rafe groans as he walks through to the kitchen, dragging a hand over his face.

He’s wearing a pair of joggers that hang low on his hips, accentuating the V-lines around the bottom of his abs, his torso visible for the few seconds as he struggles to pull a hoodie over his head.

“Is it even still morning?” Sarah laughs, pouring out another cup of coffee and handing it over to him.

“I had a busy day yesterday,” He rolls his eyes, “You know, travelling and all that.”

He sits down at the kitchen island beside you and offers you a small smile just before his lips touch the coffee mug, his eyes warm in the steam coming from the cup.

“Did you get up in the night, Rafe?” Sarah asks, settling a hand over her growing bump and leaning back against the kitchen counter.

He frowns over his coffee and shakes his head, “Nope, slept like a baby.”

“That’s weird,” Sarah frowns too, “I could’ve sworn I heard the door open.”

“Probably just baby brain,” He clears his throat, “I’m going to hop in the shower.”

Sarah watches with a suspicious squint in her eyes as he disappears, “I swear he gets weirder every time I see him.”

You laugh and look down as you feel a smile spread onto your face, you’d have to thank him later for last night.

Sarah comes over and takes the seat that Rafe had been sat in, shifting herself so that she’s facing you, “So, I need you to be honest with me, how are you feeling?”

You turn so that you’re facing her too and Sarah stretches out her hands for you to take, both of you squeezing into the contact, “I’m okay, so much better than I was. It’s just weird, you know? For nine years he was the person I told everything to. Even when we weren’t living together or anything, I’d wake up and send him a text or call him before I went to sleep. I keep getting this weird instinct to just reach for my phone because I feel like I haven’t heard from him and then I realise that… I don’t know, I won’t.”

She nods reassuringly but doesn’t say anything else, letting you continue.

“I just want to know why,” You laugh a little, “Not in a weird ‘what’s wrong with me’ kind of way. But just… it was nine years of my life, you know?”

“Okay, I maybe shouldn’t be suggesting this because I think, as the best friend, I’m meant to tell you to stay far away from him, but maybe it would do you some good to meet up with James and talk it all through. Do you think?”

After last night? You weren’t sure he’d ever want to see you again, especially if he thought Rafe would be with you again.

“Yeah, maybe, we’ll have to talk about everything at some point, I guess I-“

You’re cut off as your phone pings on the counter and a message notification comes up from James again.

I think we need to talk after yesterday. I’ll pick you up and we can go for coffee if you’re free?

Sarah eyes the message too, “After yesterday?”

“Right, yeah, with the box and stuff, I thought that was his final straw or something,” You look down so that she can’t realise that you’re lying, “Um, I better go and get ready, tell him that I’ll be free.”

You squeeze Sarah’s hand as you leave, hurrying up the stairs as if running from the conversation. She probably wouldn’t be too mad if you told her about last night, but she’d almost definitely tell you that it was a bad idea, that Rafe is a bad influence even all these years later. It was the same way you didn’t tell her about the night at the beach with Rafe, or the countless other nights like that - she’d tell you Rafe was her brother but it wasn’t a good idea. And you weren’t exactly ready to hear that.

You go into the bedroom that had become your own and close the door behind you, just as there is the sound of the ensuite door opening. Rafe steps out, a towel wrapped around his waist, beads of water dripping around his shoulders, dipping down from his soaked hair.

“Oh shit sorry I-“ Rafe comes to a halt, glancing up from his phone in his hand, “The shower in the other bathroom is terrible so I just… I thought you were downstairs so I-“

“Rafe, it’s fine,” You laugh, “Not anything I haven’t seen before.”

He fakes a gasp, “You’ll embarrass me, (Y/L/N).”

You roll your eyes, “I don’t think anything embarrasses you, Cameron.”

He chuckles and drags a hand through his wet hair, “So, I was thinking we should get out of the house today. I miss the beach when I’m in New York, one of the few things to miss about this place.”

“I actually,” You clear your throat, “I have something to do today.”

Rafe frowns for a second, “Ooh, mysterious,” He stretches out a hand and pokes at your side, “What are you doing?”

“I just,” You shake your head, “I have a meeting, you know, to sort out the house and stuff.”

“Oh, okay, cool,” He nods, “Well, be back by sunset and we can go for a swim. Sound good?”

“Sounds good,” You return, “Now please go and get some clothes on.”

“Keep it in your pants, (Y/N), you know you love me,” He wiggles his brows, exaggeratively swaying his hips as he walks out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Your eyes settle over the room, landing on the box still sat beside your bed. The rest of it was closed away now, but the shot glass and now your toy giraffe, sat on your nightstand. You smile a little at the sight, thinking only to yourself. It felt like a couple of brightened moments in a week you were sure wasn’t going to get any sense of light. Today would likely be another darkness, but you’d be coming home to another bright place.

~~~

Within the hour, you’re showered, changed and ready to leave, sat on the edge of your bed waiting for James to text. Twelve minutes after he’d said he’d be there, he texts to say he’s outside. You grab your jacket and hurry down the stairs, glancing back to see Rafe and John B stood outside in the garden. John B is pointing something out and he’s holding a plank of wood in one hand as if he’s preparing to build something. Rafe nods along and seemingly agrees, laughing at something John B says that seems to brighten up his eyes. Your heart sinks a little at the guilt that comes with the view, knowing he would hate to think of where you were going right now. But you open the front door and close it quickly behind you, hurrying down to the car waiting with the engine still running.

You open the door and climb in quietly, feeling oddly far when you don’t have to lean over to kiss him in greeting.

“Hey,” You breathe out when he doesn’t make any move to say it first.

“Hi,” James glances at you, “Where do you want to go?”

“Are there really many options?” You frown, settling your hands into your lap and picking at the skin beside your thumb to give you something to focus on.

James chuckles a little and moves to reverse out of the driveway, “Fair point, let’s go.”

He drives you the short distance across the island to the one coffee shop that anyone actually used here. It’s near enough empty as you step through, thanking James for holding the door open for you. You order your regular and he orders his, sitting at a table in the far corner as if sheltering yourself from the world.

“So, I would ask how you’ve been but that feels weird when I saw you yesterday,” James comments, dragging his finger around the rim of the coffee cup on the table, “But how have you been?”

You swallow down a sip of your drink, too hot so it scratches your throat as it goes, “I’m okay, and I’m sorry about last night.”

He shakes his head, “Look, it’s your house too (Y/N), at least until we sort everything out. I just don’t know why you didn’t text me. And why you thought you should just show up in the middle of the night with Rafe?”

You nod as if you’re being told off, “No, I know. It was stupid. It was late and we were just planning on getting in and leaving, I didn’t plan on you seeing him, and I especially didn’t want the two of you to argue, you know that.”

He’s silent in his agreement, pausing for enough time for it to settle before he says, “So why is he here?”

“He’s back from New York for a few days, just coming to see Sarah,” You explain, taking another sip of your drink and wincing as it burns at your tongue.

“Perfect timing,” James raises his brows momentarily as if being sarcastic, “I’m sure he was happy to see you.”

“Wha-“ You pause, reconsidering the idea of starting up an argument that he’s already ignited, “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Come on, (Y/N),” James rolls his eyes, “I know the way he used to be with you.”

“We’re friends, we’ve always been friends.”

Perhaps that wasn’t so true, just maybe. Before you and James got together, you’d been so sure that you and Rafe would be inevitable. There was the night you kissed at the party, there was the night on the beach with far too much alcohol, there were countless days and countless nights. Just as you were losing hope of him ever reciprocating your feelings, you’d seen him kiss a girl at another party, and you’d used that as confirmation enough. Two weeks later, you’d gone on your first date with James. Nine years later, you’d still never told Rafe how you’d felt before that - especially since the two of you had started living such different lives.

“I knew how he felt about you, it was obvious. God, the first time I met those guys he acted like I was the worst person he’d ever met,” James scoffs, “I thought he was going to rip my head off when I said we’d be moving away for college. He could’ve done the same last night, too.”

“You know, you don’t get to talk like that anymore. You split up with me. So it shouldn’t matter to you how anyone feels about me, whether or not that’s true,” You defend, tucking your arms around yourself as if closing yourself away from him.

“I don’t think I noticed it when we were in college, it was just me and you in our own little world and for a long time I thought that’s what would make us last. But we moved back here and it’s like everywhere you turn there’s another memory of you two - another piece of him that you’re holding onto even years later.”

“We’re friends. He means a lot to me. That’s what friends are.”

You let the silence fall.

He’s silent too and it surprises you. Normally, he would find any way to keep an argument going if he’d started it, he’d argue back and forth constantly until you agreed - he didn’t just let arguments end.

“I didn’t come here to argue with you,” He takes a deep breath, “I’m sorry for the way I ended things. I know I probably didn’t go about things in the right way, but I think if I’d have tried to do anything else I… well, I don’t think I’d have been able to do it.”

You feel the lump grow in your throat, the way it seems to constrict your words just a little too much as you say, “Then why did you?”

He breaks eye contact then and looks down at his cup, his finger still swirling around the edge in continuous circles, “Do you remember the first time we went out?”

“Our first date?”

“I picked you up from your house and I had to wait down the road because your parents might see me. And we went out, and I knew then that this was it for me, like within one date I’d just already decided,” He doesn’t meet your eyes, “And then I walked you home and I stopped around the corner again so that your parents wouldn’t see me. And you walked up to your house and Rafe was sat on the steps up to your porch, just waiting for you to get home.”

Your heart sinks at his words, like a weird feeling of not knowing the inevitable.

“And I guess for the past nine years that’s how it’s always felt; like Rafe was just waiting for you to go back home to him.”

“You’re blaming this on Rafe?” You raise your brows, your words feeling coarse and dry as you speak, “We were together for nine years. I chose you for nine years, every fucking day I chose you, and you want to tell me that you blame this on Rafe? That Rafe’s the reason you broke my heart?”

“Broke your heart,” James repeats, nodding slowly, “Your heart didn’t seem too broken last night.”

You let out a scoff and bite down just a little on the tip of your tongue as if trying to calm the anger bubbling out of you, “Right, yeah. I had one night where I felt a little bit fucking human again, after not sleeping, not eating, crying until I thought I’d be sick. After asking myself over and over and over again - what did I do? what should I have done? what’s wrong with me? And this whole thing you’re just going to blame on Rafe?”

“Where is he right now (Y/N)?”

You stop in your tracks, your hand clenching around the heat of your coffee mug, your words seeming to sink in the air between you.

James takes a long pause, his eyes scanning your face as if waiting for you to find the answer, “Waiting for you to come home.”

~~~

It’s an uncomfortable drive back. Neither of you speak a word. So much so that the tyres suddenly seem to make too much noise on the road, and you feel like you can hear the sound of the wheel turning under his grip. There’s a welcome relief when you watch the car turn into the driveway towards Sarah’s house, and an overwhelming dread when you catch the sight you know that James has seen too.

Rafe is sat on the steps in front of their house, the copy of To Kill A Mockingbird in his hands, a third of the way through the pages. He glances up at the sound of the car, a slight drop in his features as he recognises the face behind the wheel. He sets the book down on the side of the steps and stands up, his jaw clenching as you watch him.

James doesn’t say a word, but there’s the slightest tiniest hint of a smirk on his lips as if he’s been proven right about everything.

You wait until he cuts the engine and pull your seatbelt off, pausing before you push open the door, “I didn’t know that he’d be-“

James opens his own door and pushes himself out before you have a chance to say anything else. You follow suit quickly, scrambling out like the car’s on fire.

“Couldn’t wait to jump on her could you, buddy?” James bellows, storming over to Rafe.

“Excuse me?” Rafe looks taken aback, glancing at you as your eyes catch, “This is the house meeting you were talking about?”

“House meeting?” James looks at you, “So you couldn’t even tell him you were seeing me?”

“I just- I didn’t-“

“So what is it? You’re trying to come crawling back to her?” Rafe interjects and you flick your eyes to him as if a warning, though now he is only focused on James.

“You want to talk about crawling back? It seems pretty fucking convenient that you show your face around here the minute (Y/N)’s not got a boyfriend anymore.”

“Right, yeah, that’s why I’m here. Maybe it’s a good thing I came home, to pick up the pieces of the shit you left her in.”

In a conversation about yourself, you’ve never felt smaller. It’s like you’re shrinking into the space around them, disappearing when all of their anger is fuelled by you and focused on themselves. You’re sure you could disappear and they’d remain - hot headed in their hatred.

“Pick up the pieces? That’s what you think you’re doing?” James laughs, both of them practically steaming in their anger, “You’re not doing fuck all to help when you’re trying to get into her pants two seconds after she’s singl-“

“Enough!” You yell, sounding like the word has come from someone other than yourself as you feel your hands start to tremble.

Both of the boys silence, finally looking away from each other to focus on you, their anger sinking into the same pool as your disapproval. Rafe’s eyes seem to settle back into himself, like a realisation of how he’d been acting - he’d been doing the exact thing that he hated seeing in James, the way he ignored you in favor of his own focus. He looks like his younger self when you watch him. That anger, that hatred, the kind that he’d had before he moved away. That kind that gave him a million more problems. He’s that boy again.

“Just stop doing this, okay?” You drag a hand through your hair, “Neither of you get to talk on my behalf. Neither of you get to choose what’s best for me, or force this narrative of what you think is going on in my life. I’m sick of it. Have this masculinity battle some other time but god do it when I’m not here.”

With that, you disappear around the side of the house, shortcutting through the garden gate and finally letting yourself breathe, the tension in your chest seeming to return.

Rafe looks at James as if he could go again but in that moment all he can think of is you. The disappointment in your face as you’d walked away, the way you looked at him like you didn’t really know him. He drags a hand through his hair and all he can think of is how you tell him you’re sure he could suit any hairstyle. He stops himself from smiling, the urge fading when he looks at James again.

“So, what? Maybe a week or so and you’ll ask her on a date?” James folds his arms over his chest, “Or is a week just too long to wait? Hell, maybe you’ll be engaged within the month.”

“You know what, James,” Rafe clenches and unclenches his jaw, “Just go,” He waves his hand in the boys direction, his body turning away from him as if it’s gravitating back to you.

And with only the thought of you, he backs away from the fight.

~~~

You’re sat on the half-made dock at the end of Sarah and John B’s lawn, your feet pushing through the surface of the water aimlessly, eyes focused on the way the water curves around your ankles. Your chest has seemingly settled now but if you let yourself think of everything for too long it seems to flurry in anxiety again.

“Can I sit? Or should I put myself in time out?” The words come with the sound of footsteps creaking along the wooden planks, pausing as if they’re sure they are a safe distance from you.

You don’t turn around, “Sit, as long as you promise to be quiet.”

Rafe mumbles a ‘yes ma’am’ and takes his spot on the edge of the dock beside you. You feel him looking at you, his eyes burning into you as they scan your face. You weren’t crying and it seems to relieve the tiniest bit of worry within him. But you looked drained. Not tired in the way you were when he first saw you - but drained in the way that life seems to have been just slightly pulled away from you.

He opens his mouth to speak but stops as you lean back, fingers linking between your hands over your stomach as you lay against the dock. The sun hangs bright above you and you close your eyes, a deep breath forcing a rise and fall in your chest. Rafe watches you, the innocence in your features. He’d relied on those exact features for a lot of moments in his life. Your smile when he needed reminding of a good memory, the way your jaw clenches when you’re angry when he needed reminding of when he was in the wrong. Your eyes when he needed to come back home.

After a moment, he leans himself back too, his shirt wrinkling against the wood as he lays down, one arm tucking underneath his head. He turns his face towards you, observing.

You poke one eye open and squint in his direction, “Stop staring, weirdo.”

Rafe smiles, “So you’re not completely ignoring me,” He nods his head a little against his arm, “Does that mean I’m at like a six on the scale?”

“The scale?”

“The scale. How mad you are at something, you don’t remember?”

Of course you remember. When the two of you had been at school, he’d used that ‘scale’ as a way of you telling him how bad your day was - on the days when you had exams, and your friends were being shitty, and your parents were having problems at home, you’d say you were closer to a 10. It applied to everything - when he annoyed you, when you and Sarah had argued over something silly, everything.

“I’m a seven.”

He laughs a little and it seems to sit welcomingly in the space between you, easing the clench in your chest just enough.

The two of you stay in silence for a while after that, watching the sun disappear momentarily behind a cloud, casting a welcome shade over the water. You focus on the rise and fall of your chest, breathing in and out deeply to avoid the discomfort coming from laying on the dock. Rafe stays still beside you for a while, before his leg slightly shifts to the side so that his knee knocks against yours. You fight back a smile and turn around to look at him;

“Yes?” You raise your brows.

He pushes himself up so he’s leaning over you on his elbows, his head blocking the sun out so you can look at him without completely squinting against the light.

“I’m sorry,” He nods, “I really did have no idea you were with him, I was just waiting until you got back. And I don’t know, as soon as he said that I just felt like I lost it. It was weird, I don’t think I’ve felt angry like that in years.”

You nod in response, watching the guilt cast a darkness over his features.

“How did it go with you two today?”

You push yourself to lean up on your elbows too, matching his stance as he settles back to his side of the dock.

“Well, he’s not your biggest fan,” You laugh a little, staring out on the stillness of the water, “I don’t know, it just seems like he wants to think our relationship was doomed from the start, like we were just putting off the inevitable.”

“Well, did you ever feel like that?”

You take a deep breath, “I don’t think so. I don’t know, I just thought we’d stay together. God, I think after our third anniversary I was pretty certain that this would be it. But after what he said today it just feels like the two of us had been in two different relationships for all this time. And now I’m thinking, why didn’t he ever propose? Why did he want to move back here when I had my whole life at college? I mean, shit, Sarah’s having a kid and I was still just a girlfriend after nine years.”

Rafe nods, “Yeah I know what you mean. He was crazy for not wanting to marry you after all that time.”

You turn your head to look at him but he stays looking out over the water dismissively.

“God, who wouldn’t want to marry you?”

You feel your heart swell for just a second and turn your head away from him to look back over the water, both of you letting the silence fill in the empty gaps of the conversation you hadn’t yet had, that you didn’t need to have just yet.

“So, the sun is about an hour from setting,” Rafe points out, “How about that swim?”

~~~

You make your way back downstairs with your swimsuit on, a towel held under one arm, your flip-flops slapping against the wooden steps.

“Hey! I feel like I haven’t seen you today, how did it go with James?” Sarah stands up from the couch as you come downstairs, “Are you going out?”

You glance out at the garden, Rafe not visible along the stretch of the lawn, “Yeah, I’m just going for a swim. And it went well with James, a little bit of closure at least. Still feels weird.”

“It’s bound to,” Sarah nods, reaching out a hand to squeeze your arm, “Did you tell Rafe that you saw him?”

“Um, yeah, yeah, he knows,” You scratch at the back of your neck.

“God, I’m surprised he didn’t flip. I don’t think there’s anyone he hates as much as he hates James,” Sarah shakes her head.

You’re about to speak again but are cut off by the sound of the garden door sliding open. Rafe appears on the other side, poking his head through the created gap between the door and the wall.

“You ready to go (Y/L/N)?” He looks at you, a soft smile on his lips, a sort of calm resting in his features.

“I’ll be there in a minute,” You return softly and he nods, disappearing again.

“He’s so different when he sees you,” Sarah shakes her head, glancing over at the spot where her brother had just been.

“Different how?” You frown, letting your eyes trail back to her.

She shrugs her shoulders and rests a hand over her bump, running her fingers over the skin, “Just like he’s grounded, like he’s home.”

You feel the lump form in your throat, the way it once again makes it feel impossible to think of anything to say.

“Go on, he might be grounded but he’s still impatient,” Sarah jokes, gesturing her head in the direction of the door.

You laugh and follow her instruction, closing the glass door behind you as you walk down to the dock. Rafe is sat on the edge, his legs dangling over into the water. In only his swim-shorts, you can see the contortions of his muscles across his shoulders, the way they dip in his skin and seem to make him look bigger than he ever seemed normally. His skin isn’t as tanned as you remember him being but you suppose he doesn’t get as much sun when he’s in New York - not the kind he got here, anyway. And part of you seems to remember just how distant he was nowadays, his return feeling all the more temporary.

You hang your towel over the edge of the dock next to his and pull off your flip flops, leaving them at the edge too before breaking into a sprint straight past him. Your arms outstretch in front of you and break the surface of the water first, submerging your underneath until your toes feel the cold of the still water too.

Your head breaks the surface and you drag your hands up to draw your hair way from your face, now slick against your scalp.

“Very graceful,” Rafe smirks, “How on earth do I follow that?”

You watch him stand from the dock, stretching upwards before taking a few steps back. Within a split second, he catapults himself into the air, drawing his knees upwards so that he lands in a cannonball into the water, spray dispersing into the air and all over you.

“Well, I wouldn’t call that graceful,” You laugh, blinking away the water from your eyes.

From where Sarah and John B’s house was, you could see the sunset through a clearing in the trees if you swam around to the right angle. And you and Rafe knew the islands well enough to know exactly where to go.

By the time you swim around, the sky is painted with a yellow hue, sun lowering down seemingly a few feet from the horizon.

“I’m sorry about today,” Rafe breaks the silence, turning himself in the water to face you.

You kick forward so that your body tilts back, head hanging into the surface water, “You already said that.”

“I know, I just hate when I feel like I’ve disappointed you,” He comments, watching the way your body floats in the water.

You smile a little to the sky, “You didn’t disappoint me.”

He pauses for a moment, “So, I didn’t ask you earlier but, did he tell you the reason why he ended things?”

Your body tilts to turn you upright once again in the water, hands pushing through either side of you to maintain your position, eyes locking onto him. His hair is slick against his head and there are small beads of water trailing down either side of his cheeks, looping around under his jawline. He’s home. For the first time in years, he’s back here and it feels like it’s actually him - not some replaced or changed version. You’re both back to being sixteen again, sneaking liquor out of your houses, staying up until the sun called you home, misfit ways of surviving life in this isolated haven. And you realise it then, for a fleeting moment where you let yourself accept it - it’s Rafe that makes this place home.

“He…” Your voice trails off then, considering every possible outcome that would come in return for telling Rafe exactly what had been said earlier, exactly what you’d come to learn.

But the moment is fleeting. And you’re back in seconds to a reality. To a broken heart and a broken home, to New York, to your future, to James, to Sarah just a matter of metres away, to everything and everyone that you didn’t want to lose. To Rafe.

“He couldn’t give me a reason,” You swallow the lump in your throat, your eyes not breaking away from Rafe.

“The guy’s an idiot,” Rafe shakes his head, turning away from you and towards the sun.

You watch as he does, watching the glow that radiates from his skin, the way it seems to warm the air around him.

James might be an idiot, but maybe he was right.

———

Taglist: @viianey

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tangosyourtek · 3 months ago

Note

I can’t help myself… trick or treat? [no pressure to respond though!] [gives you candy/fun treat of choice preemptively because I love your headcanons]

Hi! And thank you so much!! 🫶

You get a treat! 🍬🍫 (I saw mischaracterization of ranchers, and I desperately need to ramble about them through the whole life series, so I apologize that this isn’t really a “headcanon.”) Also, apologies if it doesn’t really seem like a “treat” 🙈.

Of course, they met before Double Life, but they never interacted for very long or spent time alone, so Double Life is where everything happened. I like the idea of Tango crushing on Jimmy in 3rd and Last Life (mainly because I love 🌹💍 erasure), but I don’t think they ever lingered on each other long enough to pass that as fact.

They got to know each other in Double Life, and it was such a great experience for them, but I don’t think they ever labeled what they had and were just “Ranchers.” Nor do I think they had enough time to consider that their growing affections were encroaching on serious levels.

Then, they were separated and didn’t have any contact. Their relationship had a big question mark on it, and they had a gaping hole in their chest where their soulbond linked. They wallowed like that for a while and busied themselves in their work. If the strain in their muscles distracted them from the ache in their chest, or the cold/scalding hot shower made them feel something for once, who will know?

By some miracle, they were reunited, and in that excitement, they didn’t care about labeling their relationship. They were so happy and relieved to see each other and felt whole again, but they had to part ways. Feelings came rushing back, as did that empty hole, and maybe some thoughts got loud.

Then, another death game.

I interpret Ranchers in Limited Life as the direct bridge between their unlabeled relationship and what they are right now. They are on opposite sides, fighting against each other, and that makes trying to navigate this relationship and talk about it hard. Did their relationship stay unlabeled because the other didn’t want it? Are they on opposite sides because they want to put it in the past and move on? They could remain kind and cordial to each other, but how long can they wait for the other to close that gap between them? I think Jimmy realized in this season that he will always be in Tango’s corner. He refused to join the hunt on Tango and refused to tell his ex that he loved him back. (I’m so incredibly proud of Jimmy at that moment. STAND YOUR GROUND, KING.) And Tango equally acknowledged that for himself. He could have gotten mad (or played a divorce arc) when the bad boys were killing him and his team, but he congratulates Jimmy instead and tells him good job.

Secret Life ranchers was so insane I can’t believe I even need to explain this… (maybe I played a part in it because I love exaggerating and talked about them “being over” all the time, BUT IN MY DEFENCE I WAS MOURNING A TEAMUP) They have an established relationship in this season, they know what they are and what they mean to each other whether that was through a conversation or went unspoken, who knows. Only they do. Jimmy goes after Tango and says he “loves his noises,” and Tango throws himself into TNT for his rancher, which was so incredibly gay. That man is down BAD. That was not a divorce arc; if anything, that said, “You’re mine, and I’m yours.”

And finally, Wild Life. It's currently ongoing, so we’ll see what more happens and if anything changes slightly (I have a lot of faith that they will still be gay lovers). But already, it’s giving vibes that they have started to be more open about their relationship and tell other people. (Everyone already knew something was up, but this physically confirms it). Like, how else am I supposed to take Mumbo saying “No! He’s with Tango!” about Jimmy? And Jimmy rushing to say they’re “just friends”; he’s definitely feeling shy and giddy about it. Maybe he also feels pleasure in dragging on the “we’re so into each other but aren’t doing anything about it” bit everyone hates to watch.

Anyway, sorry, I had to ramble. I saw someone imply that Tango is mean to Jimmy, and I definitely think it comes from their Limited/Secret Life interactions because I refuse to believe another person fell victim to the “Tango is sassy = Tango is mean” mentality.

#tumble posting #asks #jimmy #solidarity #jimmy solidarity #solidaritygaming #jimmy solidaritygaming #tango #tangotek #tango tek #team rancher #rancher duo #solidaritek #solidango #tangimmy #trafficshipping #headcanons

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drunkewok · 9 months ago

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Tiger Inside Chapter Thirty-Four

Masterlist

Likes, reblogs and feedback always greatly appreciated

WC: 4k

Pairing: Lee Know x reader

Genre: Series, Enemies to lovers, non-idol AU, Mafia AU

Warnings: 18+, Minors DNI, drinking, swearing, violence, weapons

Please do not copy or repost my work

“What if I go talk to him?”

The room fell into quick silence, a tension hanging in the air. Every pair of eyes turned sharply toward me, their gazes filled with a mix of concern and disbelief as if I had suddenly grown a second head. My hands rested on the island countertop in front of me, leaning forward as Chan, Minho and Changbin surrounded the counter.

“You can't be serious,” Changbin protested, his voice laced with apprehension.

I gave a small shrug, trying to appear nonchalant despite the gravity of my proposal. “He’s still my uncle. What’s a little chat amongst family?”

I brought my mug to my lips, drinking the last bit of my coffee before rinsing my mug under the faucet. Chan set down his own coffee with a sigh, clearly not amused by the proposition.

“Uncle or not, you need to remember he may be the mastermind behind this whole operation,” Chan cautioned, his tone severe. “And you just wanna casually walk up to his door like it's a plain old Tuesday? Even though you haven’t spoken to him in years.”

I turned around to face him, leaning back against the sink with arms crossed. “Is that not the perfect cover? I’ve returned home, do you think he would be surprised that I want to see him? Plus, if he thinks we’re onto him, the last thing he'd expect is for me to turn up at his door.”

Chan and I locked eyes in a silent standoff, each of us refusing to back down. Finally, he broke the silence, running his fingers through his hair with a resigned sigh.

“Fine. But you aren't going alone.”

“I’ll go with her.”

Minho’s unexpected offer to accompany caught me off guard, and I couldn’t help but feel a surge of frustration at his assumption of responsibility.

“Why can’t Changbin come with me?” I nudged my head in Changbin’s direction, brows raised as I stared him down, praying he would understand the nonverbal communication.

“I, um…” Changbin quickly averted his gaze, feigning sudden interest in the countertop. “I told Lix I’d help him with some moves, so I can’t, sorry.”

“Really? Lix? If you’re gonna lie, at least be good at it.”

“Ya!” His demeanor shifted instantly as he raised an accusatory finger, ready to defend Felix at the drop of a hat. “Maybe he wants to change things up! And he wants to learn from the best teacher, can you really blame him!?” He patted his chest with pride.

Before I could respond, Minho intervened, his tone eerily calm and devoid of emotion. “Relax, I won’t try to mentor you. You want to go talk to him, so we’ll go talk to him.”

I stifled a sigh of exasperation, feeling frustration bubbling beneath the surface. The one time I actually want Minho to push back, yet he complacently agrees.

“Fantastic,” Chan spoke up, breaking the tension as he collected the empty mugs and headed toward the sink. His hand patted my back in a gesture of reassurance before he turned to leave then paused in the doorway. “Just make the call when you’re ready to go.”

As Chan exited the room, a weighty atmosphere lingered, emphasized by the unresolved strain between Minho and me. I couldn’t shake the feeling that this moment marked just a temporary ceasefire in our ongoing battle of wills. With a heavy sigh, I closed my eyes before they had a chance to roll directly out of my skull.

The following day I was climbing into the car beside Minho, the obvious tension within the small vehicle seemingly unaffecting him. Draping one leg over the other, I leaned toward the door, resting my head against the window with a hint of defiance, arms crossed.

“You’re pouting.” Minho said matter-of-factly.

“You didn’t have to come with me.” I snapped back quickly, trying to match his deadpan delivery.

A chuckle escaped him, his lips curling into an amused smile. His head tilted slightly as he stayed focused on the road ahead, tongue pressed lightly to the inside of his cheek.

“Someone has to be there in case you try to make a break for it.” He remarked, his tone carrying a hint of cockiness. “And if memory serves me right, I’ve got a pretty impressive track record with that.”

“Is that what you tell yourself to sleep better at night?”

“It’s okay, kitten.” He reached over, just slightly patting my thigh. “You can put the claws away.”

“If that’s your attempt to replace ‘dear’ I will hiss at you, so help me god.”

He rested his elbow on the center console, letting out a short laugh. It wasn’t the usual snickers and teasing chuckles that came out of him. A true, genuine laugh. The type that your cheeks scrunch up to your eyes, and you shake in your chest. My brows furrowed as he glanced at me for a moment, before focusing forward again.

“You’re cute when you’re grumpy.” he remarked with a playful smile, his words catching me off guard.

“I-” I began, momentarily speechless, my mouth opening and closing as I struggled to voice against his unexpected demeanor. Minho’s eyes twinkled with amusement as he watched me stumble for words.

“What’s the matter, kitten? Cat got your tongue?”

“You’re impossible, you know that?” My eyes narrowed at him.

“Impossible to resist?” He quipped, his playful grin widening. I let out an exasperated sigh, crossing my arms and looking away.

“You wish.”

As we drove on, it felt as though the tension began to ease, a comfortable silence with the soft hum of the engine sitting in its place. The trees cast dancing shadows through the sunroof of the car, leaving a warm glow across Minho’s face. He seemed lost in thought, his fingers tapping lightly on the steering wheel in perfect rhythm with the music playing softly on the radio.

I glanced over to him, taking in the relaxed set of his shoulders and the way the corners of his mouth twitched slightly, as if he was on the verge of a smile. Like he was perfectly aware of my stolen glances. It was a stark contrast to the sharp, tense exchanges we’re used to. Maybe, just maybe, there was a possibility of us navigating this mess without tearing each other apart.

“What’s on your mind?” Minho’s voice broke the silence, his eyes still focused on the road ahead. My head dropped, studying my hands in my lap before letting out a sigh.

“Just, everything? I guess?” I replied, my voice barely above a whisper. “How complicated it all is.”

He hummed, “A lot has happened since you’ve come back. It’s a lot to take in.”

“Is this a twinge of compassion I hear?” I teased, attempting to lighten the mood once more.

Minho’s lips curled into a small, genuine smile.

“Don’t get used to it. I have a reputation to maintain.”

As the car rounded up the driveway of Tiger’s estate, I took a deep breath, trying to center myself and prepare for what was to come. Stepping out of the car, I took a moment to gather my thoughts before joining Minho at the front door.

The sound of the doorbell reverberated through the halls inside, suspense hanging heavy in the air. Glancing sideways, I caught sight of Minho, his demeanor showing a subtle restlessness as he shifted his weight and tucked his hands into his pockets. His gaze seemed fixed on the door ahead, yet distant, lost in thought. In an attempt to offer reassurance, I mustered a gentle smile, but it was met with silence on his part.

“Com'on, loosen up.” I urged, nudging into his side, his stoic face refusing to break.

“I still don't understand what good is going to come from this.” he remarked skeptically.

“It'll be fine, trust me.” I reassured him, though a hint of concern crept into my voice, “Though it's weird no one's answered the door yet…”

I rang the bell again before sidestepping past Minho. Cupping my hands above my eyes, I pressed against the window beside the door, peering into the darkened foyer.

“That's strange.” I mumbled, stepping off the side of the front porch and making my way across the grass to the front window. Peering inside, I noticed the untouched interior, with a thin layer of dust starting to accumulate on surfaces and all lights off. It was only then that I took a moment to survey the neglected state of the yard behind me, realizing that the property was well on its way to a level of disarray.

“That's so weird…” I muttered to myself.

“What is it?” Minho leaned back, his gaze fixed on me from the porch.

“His staff, they haven't been here. Look,” I gestured out across the lawn. “The hedges are overgrown, the grass hasn't been mowed, and inside hasn't even been touched.”

Minho reached for my outstretched hand, assisting me back onto the porch. Without hesitation, I reached toward an assuming gray box fixed to the wall, sliding it open to reveal a small black scanner on the inside.

“What are you doing?”

“I'm getting us inside.” I placed my thumb against the sensor, listening for the click as the door unlocked. “Something’s not right.”

“Y/n… I really don't think-”

“Minho, I'm telling you. Something is off, his staff usually keeps this place immaculate.” I pushed the door open slowly, stepping a foot inside and calling out. “Tiger? It's y/n, are you home?”

My voice bounced off the walls, projecting an echo down the hall like a pinball.

“Your print is in the scanner?” Minho slowly followed in behind me, quietly shutting the door behind us.

“The whole family was programmed into it, he said he wanted us to always have access in case of emergency.”

Entering the main room from the hallway, I gazed up at the vaulted ceilings, momentarily struck by the vastness of his home. The sleek, modern design with its crisp lines naturally directed one’s gaze toward the expansive windows at the rear, offering a commanding view of the property beyond.

“Well, this is sure an interesting family emergency then…” His voice trailed off, eyes taking in the massive room we found ourselves in.

The interior of his home remained largely unchanged since the last time I had stepped foot in it so many years ago. While tastefully curated, it lacked the opulence of my father’s home. Instead, it exuded a refined aesthetic reminiscent of the SKZ house, characterized by dark woods and deep leathers. It perfectly resembled the cliche image of a residence befitting of a wealthy bachelor.

Everything appeared untouched, as if the occupants of the house seemed to vanish into thin air, leaving a layer of dust in their wake. I stopped, turning back to Minho as my face contorted with confusion.

“I just don't get it, where could he have gone?”

“Didn't Chan mention he's been off the radar for a while? Would make sense that he hasn't been home.” Minho looked to his side with a shrug, slowly dragging a finger across a table to examine the layer of dust.

My hands settled on my hips and I looked around the empty house, my brows furrowed deep in thought.

“The office…” I whispered as the light bulb went off, sliding past Minho and hurrying my way toward the stairs.

Reaching the top, I stopped in the corridor. Taking a moment to look to my right, my eyes focusing on the large double doors that led into his bedroom, one sitting slightly ajar.

It was the first moment that it had crossed my mind that possibly, Tiger had maybe found himself with the same fate as my father. Left for dead in his own home. It was a wishful doubt deep in my bones that made me still want to believe he wasn’t the hand pulling the strings of this operation. If he was innocent, it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibilities that a hit could be carried out against him as well.

I paused in front of the doors, trying to tell myself that I was being dramatic, that I was blowing things out of proportion. The quietest of creeks admitted from the door as I slowly nudged it open;

Nothing.

His room mirrored the rest of the home, appearing untouched and devoid of any signs of recent occupancy. Glancing into his walk-in closet, I noticed a clear absence of clothing, with several empty hangers dangling from the racks.

“He clearly left on his own accord, he packed bags before leaving. But he must have been gone for a while with what the house looks like” I remarked, retracing my steps through the room, passing Minho, and making my way out through the doors and down the hall.

His office, to no surprise, sat untouched as well. Appearing as though he closed the door one night and hadn't opened it again. I sat down in his chair, wasting no time opening drawers to the desk and beginning to riffle through the papers that had been left.

“Y/n, are you sure you should be doing this?” Minho stepped into the room, slowly walking down the rows of shelves and eyeing them closely as if searching for something hidden among the books. “You don’t think he has hidden security or something?”

“Oh, he definitely does.” I said confidently.

Minho’s head snapped in my direction, his brows furrowed with apprehension as he processed my words.

“He’s clearly been gone for quite a while.” I looked up at him through my lashes, letting out a chuckle, “What? You think he’s gonna come down from the sky and smite us?” I pulled open one of the bottom drawers, pushing any useless items to the side while mumbling, “Wherever he is, I have at least enough time to at least get some information before getting out. He’s got to already know we’re here, there isn’t much more damage I can do now.”

Hidden beneath the random assortment of items, were two manila folders, carefully tucked away. I pulled them out, dropping them on the desk and not wasting a second before opening the first. The first couple pages were far too recognizable to me, the handwriting on the letters a clear indication of who the penman was.

“These are from my dad…” I uttered softly, feeling the familiar lump rise in my throat, the ache of loss tightening my chest as I kept my breath steady. Although the letters weren’t intended for me, they were among the last remnants of my father’s presence, now in my grasp. Attempting to push back the tears welling up, I shook my head as if to clear a mental etch-a-sketch, seeking a moment of clarity. Lifting the first letter, I sank back into the seat, absorbing the words before me.

“He knew…” I murmured, my eyes widening with urgency as I scanned the lines. Each word revealed his meticulous observations, detailing the intricacies of my father’s research into whatever was going on. “Minho… he knew about the imports!” I held the letter out, shaking it in the air as I tried to hand it to him.

“For the chemicals?” His face scrunched in curiosity as he stepped forward and took it. His eyes grazed over the page, his brows slowly creasing the further he got down the lines.

I flipped the folder back open, quickly skimming over each letter that was kept. He had known the entire time, keeping methodical tabs on any information he had stirred up.

The other folder held a variety of documents, each hand-dated at the top. Forged import documents with my father's handwriting scribbled into the margins, pointing out any discrepancies in bold red ink. Inventory logs directly pairing with each of the forged imports, and research documents eerily similar to the ones Seungmin had collected from the warehouse.

The dates in the beginning were sporadic, widely spaced out as if they were testing the waters in the beginning. Trying to see if they could be successful in performing under the radar. They progressively got closer and closer together, he was getting more confident.

Whatever my father was catching onto, he was relaying it all to Tiger. He knew exactly what evidence he had against him, and how quickly it was beginning to pile up. Tiger knew he was closing in on him and it was only a matter of time before my father bridged the gap and linked it to him.

Tiger knew he needed to cut all possibilities of that happening.

I rested my elbows on the desk, head propped up by my hands, as my vision blurred out deep in thought. The timeline of events played in my mind, culminating into Tiger making the final call for execution.

I could almost imagine all the late nights the two of them paced around my father’s office, discussing any new leads and possible plans of action. All the while Tiger held a strong face and orchestrated all of it. From the operations, to the investigation into him. Always one step ahead of my father.

Snapping myself out of it, I pulled open the other bottom drawer. It was a file cabinet style, a row of folders running to the back. My fingers flipped through each of the tabs, my brain quickly processing each heading on them in search of something that could be deemed useful.

My head slowly tilted in confusion as I froze, brows furrowing as my eyes fell on one of the last folders in the back.

Surely I couldn’t be reading that right.

I slowly pulled it from the drawer, Minho’s eyes falling on the folder as I laid it in front of me. I leaned my elbow on the desk, my chin resting in my fingers as I eyed the folder, almost scared to open it.

“Does that say Blossom?”

I gave a silent nod, fingers playing with the corner before finally being able to push myself to open it. I leaned forward, carefully studying the document that sat on the top of the pages.

The first was a list of employees, Seongho and I being the top two listed. The pages were a simple list; the name, followed by common employer-known information. But scribbled in below each of those was a list of notes, handwriting different from my father’s. Ones that went into more detail of the person, almost as if each were studied. Below my name had the longest string of notes, including the clear address to my Gangnam apartment.

“Had he been keeping tabs on me?” I held the employee pages to the side, seeing records of business ledgers that sat behind them. Yet the final page was the one that held the most intrigue, one far more official than the others in the folder. “It’s a fucking deed, Minho! He owned Blossom!”

I tossed the page onto the desk, leaning back with arms crossed as I stared it down with a pointed glare.

“He what?” Minho stepped forward, picking up the paper and turning to lean back up against the desk. He gave out a small puff of air as he examined the deed, before looking up and turning to peer at me over his shoulder. “And you had no idea?”

“I knew that ownership changed a few months after I started there, but the owner never came by to introduce himself.” I slowly spun the chair, turning to face the windows with a scoff. “I guess I can assume why now.”

Minho turned to grab the file with the letters off the desk, his fingers slowly pulling each page in the stack back as he skimmed over each one. He laid the letters onto the desk, letting himself properly read the documents behind it.

“Seungmin is going to want these.” He waved a few of the scientific documents through the air, “I'm not sure if this is stuff he's already researched, but if not it might come in handy for him.”

“How long had he been trailing me…” the question sat in the air, more rhetorical than searching for the answer as I mumbled to myself. “Is that why Dad wanted me with you guys? Was it only a matter of time before he took me out too?” My eyes fell on the floor, brows scrunched in confusion.

It felt as though Pandora’s box had been pried open. The sinister reality that I had wanted so hard to deny had its confirmation staring at me in the face, eyes too piercing to look away. Someone who was such a trusted figure in my life had orchestrated the demise of my father, his own brother by oath. It felt like a cruel twist of fate that it became apparent he had been silently tracking my every move since that day, lurking in the shadows of my existence like a malevolent specter. The revelation was leaving me reeling, my head spinning with the heavy reality of betrayal.

“But why did he buy Blossom?” I looked up to Minho, his body almost facing me now and his expression held that of concern or comfort, or it was his own strange blend of the two. “What was the point of that? I don't get it. I didn't think we'd actually find anything here, but now I just have so many more questions.”

Minho’s eyes softened as he glanced up at me, shoulders slightly dropping. He laid the papers out on the desk, separating each of them and reaching for his phone.

“We shouldn’t take these with us, on the off chance he does come back looking for them.”

I nodded, standing up and joining him at the desk. Everything felt like so much to take in, but there was a resolve forming in the pit of my stomach. I watched as Minho meticulously snapped pictures of each document, ensuring every detail was captured. The ownership deed, the letters, and the scientific papers. All of it needed to be scrutinized by Chan and the rest of the team.

As Minho finished the stack for one folder, I collected the pages. Returning them to their home and laying out the next stack for him. For once I couldn’t help but feel a surge of gratitude for his presence. Despite our rocky history, he still volunteered to accompany me. And he was here, steadfast and unwavering. His calm, methodical approach was grounding, a stark contrast to the turmoil rolling within me.

I pulled the drawers back open, setting the first two files into the drawer, and covering them as they were before. I slipped the Blossom folder back into the filing cabinet, securing both drawers shut.

The drive back was filled with a heavy silence, both of us lost in our thoughts. The weight of the day’s revelations pressed down on us, but there was also a sense of determination in the air.

The sun began to set, casting long shadows on the road ahead. The orange and pink hues of the sky seemed almost out of place against the somber mood in the car. I glanced at Minho, his expression focused yet distant.

As we approached the house, the familiar sight brought a small measure of comfort. I knew what we had uncovered was just the beginning, and the real battle was yet to come. But with the team by my side, it felt like finding the solution to all of this felt possible. And no matter how much I wanted to fight it deep down, Minho as well.

We parked and stepped out of the car, the quiet resolve between us unspoken but understood. With the photos ready for presentation, we headed toward the door, ready to confront the next chapter of this unfolding mystery.

Next Chapter

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#stray kids mafia #stray kids #skz mafia #skz #lee know x reader #lee know enemies to lovers #bang chan #lee know #changbin #hyunjin #han #felix #seungmin #jeongin #fanfiction #stray kids freeze #drunkewok

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ordinaryschmuck · 8 months ago

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Why I Love The Owl House: Part 4-The Arcs

Prev Part

Salutations, random people on the internet who are already skimming past this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons.

One thing that impresses me the most with The Owl House is how it juggles its many stories and narrative arcs. And if you were to ask me, I would say that the show is more character driven than story driven, with every arc being connected to the characters and their ongoing struggles. This means that whatever story an episode focuses on is dependent upon who’s the center of attention for the episode. It’s an Eda episode? Well, we’ll continue what narrative threads she has. Do we have room for a subplot? Then give it to King and maybe develop any story he has. Is there any narrative that needs to take top priority over others for a bit? Well, shelve the ones we CAN’T incorporate for now and focus on what we can.

This is how The Owl House handles each narrative thread, knowing exactly when it’s the right time to follow one while temporarily pausing another for later. It flows well with a few twists and turns sprinkled in on the occasion. And today, we’re going to follow those threads ourselves to see how well each one was and whether or not they paid off to a natural conclusion.

However, it’s worth noting that we’re NOT talking about character development. We did enough of that in the last three parts, and while characters growing into people and forming stronger bonds can be stories of their own, there’s not much I can talk about here. This also means we’re not talking about Amity and Hunter’s redemption arcs, as I said all I could in previous parts regarding these two and the way they’ve grown. Oops.

Instead, we’re going to focus on the arcs connected to the characters and the bigger stories that the show tries to unfold. And because a story is often linear, we’re going in order of the first thread introduced to the last. Starting with…

(Fifteen pages of discussion below...)

Luz Learning Magic—Okay, admittedly, this is more of a character’s goal rather than a story, but I still say it counts. This was the main hook of the series: Luz learning magic to be a witch. It’s what drove her for most of Season One before…getting straight up forgotten in Season Two. Yeah, this is something a friend of mine is VERY vocal about, because so much of Season One showed how cool Luz can be as she learned a new spell or improved ones that she had. And I do agree, it’s weird that the show started with her wanting to learn new spells only to trickle to a stop at a certain point. However, I like to think that there might be a narrative purpose for this.

Luz’s enthusiasm to learn magic started in her naive phase in the show. What do I mean by that? Well, every modern cartoon protagonist nowadays goes through what can best be described as a naive phase, a period where they start off goofy and optimistic only to slowly become more serious and angsty as the series goes on. It happens with characters like Steven Universe, Rapunzle, and even Star Butterfly. It’s to show how much they’ve grown and matured over time, and Luz is no different as she was so hyper focused on being a witch. That goal meant that Luz wanted to become more like her fictional idol, Azura, with each spell she learns bringing her closer to that unrealistic expectation. And you root for her because, well, it’s Luz. A ray of sunshine so pure that whenever she’s happy, YOU’RE happy. So whenever she learns a new spell, it’s a physical showcase of her development and growth. But when it stops, making it feel like her development becomes stagnant, it seems a little weird at first. That is, until you think about what Luz goes through in Season Two. For one she’s trapped in the Isles with no way home, with Luz getting back to Camila being in the forefront of her mind unless she hits a wall or needs a distraction. Now, granted, I feel like the writers could work around this by having Luz doodle plausible glyph combinations in her notes while researching a way back home. Could be risky if she ever touches them and causes an entire page of notes to crumple into a spell, but it could still work to continue what she’s going through this season while progressing her magical skill at the same. However, there’s one argument to counter this: By Season Two, Luz is unsure if she wants to be a witch anymore.

Upon coming to the Isles, being a witch is all Luz could think about. It was her dream, her passion…and then “Hunting Palismans” made her realize that it was all too vague. Because while being a witch was Luz’s goal, she technically already accomplished it by her first spell. It’s not like she wanted to be the BEST witch, like your average anime protagonist, winning tournaments and reaching the highest ranks through the power of friendship. Luz just wanted to be a witch in general…in a world where everyone was already a witch. Not only that, but a world where people are defined by their greatest talents and best skills with a specific type of magic. Luz, again, isn’t looking to be the best and isn’t focused on learning ONE type of magic but ALL kinds of magic. Because her thoughts weren’t on anything specific, it led Luz spiraling to figure out what kind of witch she wants to be or if she even wants to be a witch at all. The episode ends with her not really finding an answer, with Eda telling Luz to take her time. And Luz definitely does because that episode is the last time Luz ever goes all in with learning magic. She never really gets back into learning spells again after this, only making new glyphs to distract herself in “Reaching Out” and “Them’s the Breaks, Kid.” They’re not even spells that Luz uses unlike the ones she found or made, nor is there a similar passion to making them as there was before. Luz’s conflict about who she wants to be got mixed with the conflict with getting back home and even if she’ll be allowed back to the Isles. All of these questions and circumstances lead Luz’s desire to learn magic to come to a stop because there are bigger things going on. Because the naive phase has come to an end. Life is no longer simple enough where Luz can go on silly adventures and become her favorite fictional character. There are now situations taking place that forces Luz to grow and rethink who she wants to be. It DOES feel like the story of Luz learning magic ends unceremoniously, but I can at least see what was MEANT to be done. For the most part, I’d say it’s done well, even though I wish it had a proper ending.

Luz Lying to Camila—Ah, the story thread that inspired my very first Owl House fan fic. And yes, you can feel free to check it out if you haven’t already. The last chapter is the only one that’s no longer canon, but I’m still proud of how it turned out.

ANYWAYS, the second Luz lied about going to summer camp, she basically made a ticking time bomb where the fallout will only get worse the longer she keeps the lie going. The truth would have to come out eventually, because there’s no way that Luz could keep this huge part of her life a secret forever. Not from Camila. As we’ve already made clear, Luz LOVES her mother, and the series established from the getgo that lying to her made Luz uncomfortable. She’s hesitant to do it until King’s there to unintentionally offer comfort, with his cuteness giving Luz the gentle push to tell her first lie. Like with most decisions one makes late at night, Luz likely convinced herself that this was a good idea, as it keeps Camila from being worried and, more selfishly, keeps Luz from leaving too early. At the time, it seems harmless, as long as Luz returns before summer camp ends and can ease Camila into the truth. Except that “Enchanted Grom Fright” reveals how keeping the secret weighs heavy on Luz’s heart. Lying to Camila is getting harder and harder to do each time, to the point where all Luz can send are vague emojis that don’t convey much, if anything at all. Because it’s not an easy feat for Luz to lie to the one person who makes her human life bearable. In fact, we soon learn how telling Camila the truth is one of Luz’s greatest fears due to the uncertainty of how she’d react. The worst Luz already expects is anger and heartbreak, emotions most children would hate to make their parents feel. And it’s not like Luz is afraid of being punished by Camila for the lies. What hurts Luz the most is the possibility of breaking Camila’s heart with worry, and I think that’s something most kids with loving parents can relate to. I, for one, love my mom and she loves me. So the idea of adding stress to her life after all the warmth and support she gave me is a nightmare I don’t want to go through, so I can more than understand Luz’s plight. It can be scary to reveal a hard truth to a parent that you love, and you can see why in an episode like “Yesterday’s Lie.”

What’s fascinating about that episode is that Luz went in ready to tell the truth. She already expected that summer camp had ended and that Camila must be losing her mind with worry by now. Only for Luz to learn that Vee had taken Luz’s place and Camila’s on the assumption that summer camp worked too well. Once Luz learns more about Vee, the first thing Luz thinks is that this gives her an opportunity to keep the lie going. If Vee can successfully keep the act up long enough for Luz to find a better way home, further securing the fact that Camila won’t freak out about where Luz is and who Vee is. And this…is very clearly just Luz stalling for time. At that moment, it seems to make sense to these two teen girls who don’t want to upset the kindest woman alive. What they don’t realize is that they’re thinking short term, not long term. The longer they keep this secret going, the worse Camila’s reaction is going to be. She was already initially freaked out over Vee pretending to be Luz for a few days, maybe even a week or two. Imagine how worse her reaction would be when she finds out that Vee was pretending to be Luz for months. Now, that’s not how long Luz remained stuck in the Isles, but it COULD have been. That’s a possibility that neither Luz nor Vee considered when they went about keeping the lie going. They’re teens, after all, and teens aren’t exactly long term thinkers. Trust me, I was a teen once. So them trying to find the solution for the present problem without thinking ahead lines up, even though they’re clearly stopping themselves from revealing the truth sooner, fearing that big reaction from Camila. Only for that stalling to lead Luz in a position where the truth HAS to come out for Vee’s safety, putting Camila in a worse, more stressful environment to have all these shocking reveals pile up on her all at once. And, well, you saw the fear in Camila’s eyes when she first saw Vee transform. You heard the panic in her voice when she realized Luz was telling the truth. You witnessed how she broke the second she got the chance to breathe. This was a LOT to put onto Camila and it would’ve been better to ease her into the truth like Luz intended. Some complications arose like Luz being stuck in the In-Between and Vee’s…whole deal, but it would have still been better than telling Camila in order to save this creature pretending to be her daughter from a deranged individual. Camila would have been stressed out if Luz and Vee revealed the truth right away, but significantly less than how she did when the episode ended. Not to mention that Luz would have more time to explain things instead of scrambling to apologize as she admits the truth. Camila might not have been left as emotionally distraught if she knew sooner. In fact, this whole thing could have been avoided entirely if Luz was honest from the start.

Would Camila have approved of Luz staying in the Isles? Most likely not, no. She would have put her foot down immediately and questioned so much about what went down with Vee. But all the emotional stress could have been avoided if Luz told the truth sooner. It all worked out in the end and I’m sure Luz learned to NEVER lie to her mom again, but this little narrative thread proves that a parent hates dishonesty more than whatever it is that you’re covering up. Every parent wants you to know that you can trust them. Of course, there are those of us who have secrets we don’t want ANYONE to know due to shame and guilt, while others have secrets they don’t want parents to know out of fear of what the parent will do to them. But for a kind and understanding woman like Camila, one who is nurturing and comes to apologize for her own mistakes, it shatters her heart to know that Luz doesn’t trust her. And her reaction proves that the longer you keep a lie going from someone who genuinely loves you, the worse it will be when you tell the truth too late. It all worked out for the best in the end, but if this arc proves anything, it’s that honesty really is the best policy.

Eda’s Curse—Now this is the one arc that contains some legitimate intrigue. At least, it does it in a way that gains interest quicker than our first two threads. Luz learning magic is something that the series can do over time and Luz lying to Camila is a bombshell that left fans anticipating the worst. When it came to Eda’s curse, however, it was interesting for the fact that it was a mystery. Who cursed her? How bad can Eda get? Can she be cured? These are the immediate questions that popped into my mind with this reveal, and, odds are, I wasn’t alone in that. Eda’s curse became a main draw for her character, with the biggest question of all being what could come from it. And the answer is…surprising, but in the best way possible.

The way that the writers treated Eda’s curse was to make it an allusion to chronic illness. It’s something that Eda can’t really control or fix, and she has to live with and make it manageable for the rest of her foreseeable future. So every time an episode focuses on Eda’s curse, it’s about the ways to live with it. What does she do when she runs out of potions? What happens when her condition gets worse? How worse can it get? How does it affect her everyday functions? How does it affect her relationships? These questions get answered throughout the course of the series, proving that one’s life isn’t over because of a…complication. It makes living a little more difficult than it is for others, but if you take the right steps, you make it something manageable. That, and letting people in. Eda’s curse got noticeably easier when she started letting people help her through it. Luz and King were there to help Eda get potions and even forced the Owl Beast to drink them if needed. And thanks to Hooty, in an attempt to get Eda to sleep, he indirectly helped her find a way to make the curse work WITH Eda instead of against her. It goes to show that when a person has a condition that gets worse with time, all they need is a proper support group and materials to help them. However, with the curse being an allusion to chronic illness, Eda could never be cured of her curse. Most with an illness of their own don’t get a quick cure, especially a quick cure given to a character at the end of their story. So, unfortunately, the series ends with her still cursed, with it likely STILL getting worse with age. But one thing to remember is that it takes more than getting a curse cured to give a story closure.

For one, there’s still the mystery behind WHO cursed Eda. And it’s…fine? I mean, the mystery is only brought up in “The Intruder,” left fans speculating and theorizing who the possible culprit for the rest of the season, and then revealed the answer in “Agony of a Witch.” There’s not really much of a mystery or enough focus to make it FEEL like one. The writers only presented a question and held off answering it until the end of the season. There were SOME bits of foreshadowing, like how Lilith stopped the first witch’s duel the second that Eda mentioned the curse. Or how “Wing It Like Witches” showed us a picture of Lilith at a young age and how her big, curly hair and glasses could match the figure Eda sees in her dreams. But even then, it’s not much, making me wonder if the mystery behind Eda’s curse was even meant to be a mystery at all. The reveal that Lilith cursed her is still a shock, though. Just not one that was properly built up. As for what WAS properly built up, that would be Eda’s acceptance of her curse.

Yeah, that’s another way to give closure: Having Eda accept this…less than ideal part of her life. She’s spent years running from it, fighting it, and letting it control her life. Eda eventually got to a point where she made the curse manageable, but she still clearly feared and resented it. It wasn’t until Hooty intervened that Eda was forced to confront her curse and all the pain it caused her. Only to realize that the curse was also in pain. It was once a creature, flying freely, only to be trapped sharing a body with someone who hates it. Eda sees this and decides that both their lives have been ruined enough by this curse and instead of resenting one another, they could…live with it together. And this decision results in Eda’s harpy form, and…Okay, no person with a chronic illness will suddenly get superpowers for accepting the disease as part of themselves. It’s mostly the show leaning into symbolism and fantasy elements to get the same idea across and show something beautiful with it. Eda’s harpy form is a physical way to establish that she’s accepted the curse as another part of her, something to live WITH instead of work AGAINST. The fact that she got cool powers as a result makes the metaphor a little messy, but it handles things a lot better than if Eda was cured.

Eda’s curse was both a tragedy and a triumph. We see how badly it affected her life, but we also got to see Eda bounce back and prove that her life wasn’t over because of it. It became difficult, but she learned to work around it and even flourished better than she did before. That’s not going to be the same for everyone, but Eda’s little journey can potentially be inspiring to those worried about what to do when diagnosed with something that could change their life forever. You could get better or worse, but Eda shows that life doesn’t have to be over just because things are more difficult. It takes hard work, but you can still survive. It’s a pretty wholesome message in a narrative that’s built up well through the course of the series…It’s a shame that it’s semi-connected with a less wholesome narrative.

Lilith Hunting Eda—To me, this is basically the “Gideon Rises” of The Owl House. Lilith, much like Gideon from Gravity Falls (And spoilers for that series, I guess), is basically the first boss that the main cast continuously deals with, building up to a final confrontation in the first season finale, and moving onto the REAL threat for the next season. It plays about the same, with Lilith’s introduction establishing her as a threat, we get episodes of her trying to capture Eda mixed in with fun shenanigans, and end the season with an intense two-parter that also introduces the REAL antagonist of the show. It’s similar in a lot of ways, but there’s ONE main difference that hinders this plot thread as opposed to Gideon’s: Gideon is meant to be an irredeemable antagonist where Lilith was meant to be a complex one. Each episode featuring Gideon is meant to show him getting worse and worse, with each loss making him more of a threat due to getting both desperate and frustrated. It’s almost the same for Lilith, but her reasons are because she’s failing to heal her sister. That’s the real kicker behind this narrative thread, as Lilith’s motivations are all about her trying to bring Eda in so Belos can heal her. It’s a selfless motivation to make up for a selfish act, with every episode meant to be Lilith’s misguided attempts to remove the curse she caused. But that very motivation is what kind of hurts this arc.

Gideon getting worse and drastic with each episode makes sense because he’s the bad guy. He SHOULD develop into more of an active antagonist who does worse stuff because that’s how being an antagonist works, even if you’re not the CENTRAL antagonist of the story. His goals are selfish and it’s entertaining to see the lengths Gideon will go for the sake of accomplishing them. But for Lilith, in order for her inevitable redemption to make sense, we can’t have her go too far. Most of Lilith’s time in the first season is her being foiled comically, acting as a minor inconvenience at best and even someone who begrudgingly works with Eda in one episode. It almost works for her character and what she’s meant to be…but it also makes her actions in “Agony of A Witch” all the more flawed. On paper, it makes sense: Lilith is finally at the end of her rope and needs to get Eda, no matter the cost. Even if that cost is endangering a child to lure Eda in and make her lose a fight. It’s one of the worst things LIlith did that season and it ALMOST worked, narratively speaking. The problem is that desperation was never properly developed enough. We get a glimpse of it at the end of “Wing It Like Witches,” with Lilith on her hands and knees as she’s shaken with defeat, but even that feels sudden and out of place because we never got a real sense of what could happen to Lilith if she fails too much. Maybe if we had ONE more episode of Lilith being a direct antagonist to Eda and maybe showed her talk with Belos sooner, it would have made Lilith’s hunt for Eda feel better developed and definitely more engaging because, to be brutally honest, it’s the least interesting thing going on in Season One.

Like most of these serialized cartoons, The Owl House has a pretty relaxed first season, sucking audiences in with the cast going on simple adventures, making people care about the characters before they dive headfirst into darker trials and tribulations in future seasons. With that said, there was some narrative stuff going on to give the season a sense of progression. There’s the arcs I’ve mentioned before as well as the development of characters and their relationships. With Lilith hunting Eda, it was nowhere near as talked about as Luz learning magic, Amity��s redemption, or Eda’s curse. Even the show didn’t treat it seriously enough, with everyone (mostly Eda) treating Lilith as a joke and a character like Steve reminding Lilith that she should be hunting Eda still. The only time that things felt serious was in the second to last episode of the season, something that we’ve established had come out of nowhere because there was not enough time focused on it. Gideon may have had four episodes dedicated to his widdle ol’ arc, but Gravity Falls at least established him as a decent threat. In fact, he was established as the only threat before Bill showed up. Gideon was the one consistent problem that Dipper and Mabel faced, with most of the supernatural monsters being one-off villains and characters like Robbie and Pacifica being inconvenient rivals at best. Gideon was the one true threat that season, so it didn’t need much to build up this final confrontation with him. Just show him doing worse stuff every episode, like almost squashing a tiny Dipper in a fit of rage, and seeing our main antagonist of the season lose becomes all the more satisfying. But with Lilith, we’re not exactly rooting for her to lose. At least, we’re not meant to. We’re supposed to see a character cold and distant with Eda, but willing to reconnect through the shared dream they had as kids and make things right after cursing her. The problem is that we never got to see MUCH of that character, so when “Agony of a Witch” revealed that Lilith cursed Eda and showed her nearly killing Luz, it caused fans to go on a week-long rage fest over how Lilith is the worst and needs to be destroyed, with her explanation in “Young Blood, Old Souls” BARELY saving her reputation. In the attempt to make LIlith a valid antagonist for Season One, the writers either went too far or not far enough, making LIlith’s little arc feel more like an afterthought in favor of more magical hijinks, better characters, and making Belos more of a threat. There was some joy to be had like the badass witches duels, Eda and Lilith bonding over their search for The Bloom of Eternal Youth, and them having a high stakes grugby match. It’s good stuff, but rarely is it enough to ENGAGE me.

The Day of Unity—Or, in a way, this show’s version of Sozin’s Comet. What do I mean? Well, for the uninitiated who HAVEN’T seen Avatar: The Last Airbender (Spoilers for that series, I guess)…

The Last Airbender is a show where people can magically bend the elements of air, water, earth, and fire. Most can only bend ONE element, except for the Avatar who can bend all four. THAT is who the protagonist is: A plucky boy named Aang who has to learn to bend all elements to stop the evil Fire Nation from destroying more lives and culture. And if that already sounds like a difficult task for a twelve year old, he soon realizes that there’s this comet that will soon pass over the Earth and make every fire bender immensely powerful in the process. Meaning that to save the world, Aang has to learn to master all four elements and defeat the Firelord before the comet arrives and everyone is literally toast.

THAT is what The Day of Unity is meant to be: A looming threat that the characters have to prepare for and stop before everyone they know and love dies. It’s a great way to add tension to a serialized story except that it’s…not really played up as much as it should be. Or, at least, not as much as it WOULD be if it was meant to be the show’s Sozin’s Comet.

You see, in Avatar, we’re given a pretty good idea of what the comet can do and how badly it can hurt a lot of people. It’s a simple concept of how this bad thing can make the bad guys stronger, but it works because of its simplicity. We’ve seen how bad the Fire Nation can be and the knowledge that they’ll be stronger spreads more fear to the heart because that’s the last thing anyone wants. As for the Day of Unity, we’re told at the end of Season One that it’s something coming up SOON…and that’s about all the information we get at that moment. We’re not told what the Day of Unity means, what it could do, or why we should fear it. When we DO get more of an answer in Season Two, it’s still a little vague. Yes, we know that Belos SAID he’s planning to bring the Titan to the Human Realm, but it doesn’t answer one important question: Why? Why would he do this? Why is it a bad thing? And why should we be worried?

“Because he’s invading the human realm?”

That’s an option, but it’s disputed by Belos telling Luz that “The Titan has bigger plans” in “Young Blood, Old Souls.”

“Well, he’s clearly lying.”

Not CLEARLY. Sure, we know LATER how much of a liar Belos can be, but for all we know, from the Season One finale, he could just as well be telling the truth. We didn’t really know then and we wouldn’t know until much later. That’s because the Day of Unity is something that is closely tied to Belos’ character. The more we know about him and his motivations, the more it becomes clear of what the Day of Unity COULD be. And that’s what makes it less imposing than Sozin’s Comet. We didn’t NEED to know the Fire Lord’s plans or motivations that involve the comet. We just needed to know he’d get an insane power buff when the comet comes, and it’d be enough to understand the threat that the comet brings. But because the Day of Unity IS tied so close to Belos’ character, it feels as though it’s meant to be intentionally vague. Now, that DOES make sense. Belos would want his devious plans close to his chest with no one picking up on them lest he risks failure via uprising. The issue lies in how, for the longest time, we never really feel the threat that the Day of Unity has. That is, until “Hollow Mind.”

Once “Hollow Mind” tells us that Belos plans to wipe out the entire Isles and “Edge of the World” reveals that the characters only have a WEEK to prepare for it, THAT’S when I start feeling the intensity. We’re finally given the details of what to be afraid of and a tight time table to work with, with our characters doing everything they can to prevent the inevitable. Luz and King go off to get a potential army, Hunter tells all of Hexside what Belos is planning, Eda calls Raine for help, they all plan a way to stop Belos, and even Amity tries to convince her parents to stop making war machines for a genocidal maniac. There are many aspects of which these characters go to end the Day of Unity before it starts, yet there’s still moments to let them shine as characters. King learns he’s a Titan and tries to cope with it, Eda realizes that she can’t stop Luz from doing the right thing, Willow proves her worth, GUS proves his worth, Hunter joins the good guys, and Amity gets some form of closure with her family. The characters never take a back seat to the story, allowing them to develop WITH the buildup as we get closer to this conclusion. And best of all, we still have these fun adventures that also play alongside Belos preparing the Day of Unity. We get Luz and King visiting a warrior clan, Hexside students being stuck in an illusion maze, Eda and Luz going on a heist for King’s toy, and King going on an emotional journey with Steve of all characters. The fun, near-self-contained episodic adventures are still there and intact. They just play alongside a story that’s coming closer and closer to concluding. But the worst part is that after all the fun characters have mixed with trying to prepare for the end, it’s still not enough.

The absolute crazy thing about the Day of Unity…is that Belos almost won. He had contingency plans in place, his blind followers played their parts perfectly, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop the draining spell when it started. It took a literal act of God (er, A god) to put an end to Belos’ plans before anyone could actually die. The characters failed, large in part because they didn’t have enough time to prepare. If they knew what the Day of Unity was sooner or had twenty more adventures to work with instead of five, they could have maybe done a better job at stopping Belos, or form a plan with less risks. But they didn’t, and it makes me think that the initial vagueness really WAS intentional, due to how well done the final result is. So many dictators keep their true plans close to their chest, never revealing a scrap of truth to anyone. By the time people finally catch on, it’s almost always too late as plans have moved too far forward and the dictator has gained an oppressive following that are unwilling to listen to what should be considered reason. Belos is no different, and if we DID have time for twenty more adventures where the characters do all they can to stop the Day of Unity, it might not have turned out as well as it did. Or, at least, not as INTENSE as it did. If the characters had more time to prepare (and more chances for fun one-offs in the process), the intensity would drop considerably, with the slight possibility of rising the closer they get to that deadline. But because the time they have is short, it makes their desperation to prevent the Day of Unity FEEL dire with their brief moments of reprieve hitting harder. The Owl House getting shortened didn’t improve some stories in Season Two, but this is the one arc that I feel like was made better due to less time.

Luz and Belos Building a Portal—This is what the first half of Season Two focuses on the most, with every episode showing two portals being built with Luz and Belos having a sort of race to see who can finish theirs first. At least, a race that neither was really aware of the other taking part in. That was how it was until halfway through the season when Luz learns that Belos is finding a way to the human realm. It makes you think that the race is REALLY on now except it…never was. And that’s because building a portal was never actually the biggest thing in the series. It was more like a goal that managed to tie-in to other episodes and stories. Eda reconnecting with her mother, Luz working through her crush on Amity, Amity helping/fighting Hunter, introducing Vee, Luz and Lilith bonding, and the reveal that Belos was Philip are all big story elements that happened because of Luz building a portal and, more importantly, get back to Camila. The journey to build a new portal was more like Dipper’s quest to find the author of the journals in Season Two of Gravity Falls (Lots of Gravity Falls talk in this one). It’s there and you’re excited to see what comes from it, but the real engaging stuff comes from what goes ALONG with the story, not just the story itself. It’s just more or less an excuse to let other things happen in the series, with Luz getting some kind of progress with the portal to show that the story’s moving forward. In a way, it’s smart. It allows the show to allow character-focused situations while allowing the story to move forward instead of coming to a halt. A good serialized story lets the characters develop ALONG with any narrative threads that the writers think are important. This thread is no different, though it does meet a similar problem as Luz learning magic.

After all the focus that was put on Luz trying to find a way back home, it was pushed to the side when bigger stories took more of a priority. Hunter’s redemption, Belos’ plans, and even King’s identity were all deemed to be more important than anything else going on with any other character. Even using up the last of Luz’s Titan blood is barely acknowledged because the season is almost over and we’ve gotta rush to this big finale that becomes the biggest part of the story. By the time Luz DOES get a way to go home, it’s a solution handed to her for convenience and she doesn’t even want it because things went from bad to worse. Now, it’s an understandable choice and one that’s partially Disney’s fault. The writers had the first half of Season Two’s scripts finalized before Disney came in and said the show was getting shortened. So when they started writing the second half, they had to rework the rest of the series and STILL make something good for the fans. The result is that the race to home between Luz and Belos had to get pushed to the side despite all the attention it got earlier on in the season. I get it, and pushing it aside was handled better than with previous arcs. It just doesn’t stop it from having a sort of anticlimactic ending for the sake of giving another story a better one.

Where King Came From—I talked a bit about this in Part One, but this was the story that gave King’s character some intrigue and investment, taking away his desire to be the King of Demons and replacing it with a desire for identity. Upon his introduction, there was a lot of speculation of WHAT King was, even before the writers started acknowledging it. Was he really a King of Demons or was he just a stray Eda took in and allowed to play pretend. Turns out the answer is…technically both.

Once we’re introduced to this spire that Eda found King in, it at first makes it seem like there’s some legitimacy to King’s claims. There are these wall paintings of a mighty creature that looks like King, to the point where, for a second, I almost thought that he was a King of Demons. Of course, Eda shows up to set the record straight and finally tells King the truth about how she found him. It was eight years too late, but, you know…Better late than never. And while Eda’s explanation is close to what fans expected, there was still everything in King’s spire that hinted how there was more to the story. The art on the walls, King’s golden room, and the fact that he had his own personal bodyguard were signs that perhaps King COULD be the son of someone important. Maybe not a KING, but definitely someone with a high enough status to be treated as one. Yet, it wasn’t the knowledge of WHAT King could be that interested him. At that moment, what drawed his attention the most was that he had a dad.

The majority of King’s focus in the first half of Season Two was about finding answers of what he is and where his dad went. For the longest time, King spent his life so sure that he was demon royalty. So when the truth finally rears its ugly head, it leaves King with a dozen questions he never asked himself before because he never thought he needed to. It’s why King goes all in at first to find answers. He lost every sense of identity that he once clung onto despite the logic that everyone else but him picked up on. So by searching for his dad and any source that can tell King what he is, it fills this hole inside that tells him that something is missing. Interestingly enough, though, I don’t think what’s missing is his father. King makes a big deal of wanting to find his dad, but he also goes back and forth on wanting to meet him, sometimes feeling betrayed that his father “abandoned” King. He still considers Eda and Luz as family, even gets paperwork together so Eda can officially adopt him. It’s just that King wants to reconnect with his birth family, maybe even bring his two families together in some way. King just doesn’t want to leave Eda, he wants to find closure over who he is and believes that his father can give those answers. He’s not AGAINST the idea of having his dad back. In a way, having a father is just a bonus. Yet he still longs for one, hoping to do all the son and father stuff he thinks parents and children can do together. It’s why he is elated to be among the Titan Trappers… before realizing that he shouldn’t be.

Initially, King feels as though he FINALLY has all the answers he’s been looking for. He’s surrounded by what LOOKS like his own kind and couldn’t be happier. Just look at King when he’s experiencing the Trappers’ culture and getting close to all the people there. It’s filling the hole in his heart as he gains more of a sense of identity. Maybe HE could be a Titan trapper, maybe some of the trappers can become a family to him like Luz and Eda are. He even looks at Tarak as a plausible father figure to fill the role that King’s real father couldn’t. With Tarak looking more than willing to do so. It all looks like things are wrapping up nicely for this arc. So, what went wrong? Well, King being a Titan, for one.

This twist was a stunning one, not just for the episode but for everything it says about King. After believing he found his people, it turns out that he found those who sought to hunt his species to extinction and wear the skulls of King’s brethren as tribute. It was scarring for a number of reasons, most of all because it tells King that he’s the last of his kind and that he’ll NEVER get the answers he’s looking for. Not really, at least, as the only ones who DO know anything about Titans are either too young, too dead, or too psychotic to tell King anything. He has to live the rest of his life figuring himself out and what he’s capable of. But most interesting of all is how this gives King what he wants in Season One, but he doesn’t want it NOW. I said it all in Part One, but King dismissing the idea that he’s an all powerful god to be feared and respected is a perfect culmination of King’s character development. After spending so much time looking for answers and liking NONE of them, all King wants is a simple life. He wants to be the adorable little guy people always treated him as and nothing like the god someone like Lilith expects him to be. After all the mysteries, red herrings, and longing for SOMETHING to make him feel whole again, he comes to the realization that all he wants is to be a KID. Nothing more. It’s a great end to his arc this season…even if the whole thing has a similar problem as Luz making a portal door.

Just like building a new portal, King finding out who and what he is had a good amount of focus in the first half of Season Two. Four episodes, darn near back-to-back, was all about King looking for answers and slowly getting bits and pieces. If King had to play a big enough role in an episode, it was him and his identity crisis. Only for that to be shelved by Hooty eating a letter that has all the answers and then have him spit it out with five episodes left of the season. Now, I’ll admit that the conclusion is handled much better because it gives King his answers and allows the final three episodes of Season Two to let him react to this revelation. Everything involving King from “Edge of the World” and “King’s Tide” is done perfectly and it does feel like this was the natural conclusion that was the most closely executed as originally planned, unlike certain arcs. But it still feels off that it had so much attention in the first half, and then not address it until there’s five episodes left in the season. It worked out better than it could have, but I can see how it can feel a little off. Especially with how the show sort of spoon feeds us the twist that King is a Titan. There are some hints, like how King’s spire was noted to be older than most architecture Lilith’s studied, the painted mural showing how big King COULD be, and the fact that it’s been noted how King’s unlike any demon alive. And yes, all the answers would have come forth by the time King would have gotten that letter, but we don’t need him to get that letter to continue the story. We could have had King figure out what his powers mean or study the symbols in his spire. There aren’t any books, but there’s Jean-Luc. He may not talk, but he can verblessly show King SOMETHING if he asks in the right way. There are ways to continue this story thread through hints and careful thought, but because we don’t have time for that, we have to let other stories play out first before having the conclusion to King’s be wrapped up as quickly as possible. It’s not the best option, but all things considered, it worked better than it could. This thread may not have got the attention it deserved, but it at least ended in a nice way.

The Collector’s Playtime—Or as I like to call it: Amphibia Season Three…Also, spoilers for Amphibia Season Three from here on out (Man, I’m spoiling a LOT of good shows today). Because that’s exactly what this is. You have the protagonist and her friends stuck in the human world, them trying to get back, them realizing the world they return to has gone to Hell, a form of rebellion started in that Hell, a big, final battle with a lot of glowing, and it all ends with death, coming back from the dead, and a lot of hugging. Beat for beat, it’s more or less the same, with one big difference that changes the course of the story: The Collector.

The Collector is a different flavor of redeemable baddie than King Andrias. Where Andrias is a conqueror that followed his father’s orders for centuries only to start changing with the last moments of his life, The Collector is…just a kid with too much magical prowess. Everything that he does isn’t done out of malice or a need to gain more power. They’re already one of the most powerful beings in the series. All The Collector really wants is to play games with his new best friend, only for those games to cause a bit too much damage because The Collector doesn’t understand how fragile mortals are. Therefore, the conflict is less about stopping the maniacal monster with an army, but more like talking a child down because playtime should have ended five months ago. It’s a similar tactic for how Andrias was defeated, but handled more clearly and effectively, as the writers quickly established that talking The Collector down was the one true solution, whereas Andrias barely had any time to show how that’s even an option. Plus, The Owl House avoids an issue Amphibia causes through Andrias and The Core. Both shows, halfway through their second seasons, introduce these bigger threats that our main antagonists are buddies with. With The Core, it’s eventually treated as the REAL antagonist of the story, turning Andrias into a secondary baddie that the other characters have to fight THROUGH to get to the actual threat. With The Collector, they’re POTENTIALLY a bigger threat, but remain as a problem that the main cast has to deal with while Belos keeps his role as the story’s primary antagonist. The Collector is just a character that EVERYONE reacts to, even Belos, who has to come up with a NEW evil plan after The Collector ruined his last one. It’s a great way to differentiate The Collector from The Core, and make the finale more its own thing instead of a carbon copy of Amphibia’s. And while there ARE a lot of similarities, I’d go so far that The Owl House handles things better than Amphibia…Also does some things worse, but let’s start with the positives.

First of all, I still love that “Thanks to Them” just speedruns the “Back to Earth” arc in Amphibia. We still get shenanigans of Luz’s witch friends being stuck on Earth and gaining new hobbies. It just reserves those moments to montages and pictures in Willow’s scrapbook. Would it have been fun to see the Hexsquad go on a shopping spree or seeing them have a fun yet potentially chaotic beach day? Oh, absolutely. But as fun as it would be, it could potentially fall in the same trap Amphibia did where the fun would come across a distraction. Sprig playing a superhero is fun and the Plantars trying to take Domino to the vet is cute, but don’t really add much that couldn’t have been done alongside the developing story. Let’s look at “Spider-Sprig” as an example. That episode may end with him making a new friend that helps rescue the Plantars from Mr. X, but he could have made that friend at any point when finding a way back or discovering the secrets of that artifact they found. Instead he met her when trying to find his place on Earth, which is a concept, by the way, that makes no sense to focus on when the story ends with Sprig being separated from Earth and Anne. Again, it comes across as a distraction met with the best intentions but poor planning. With a final season, a show needs to focus on wrapping up as much as possible to give characters a sense of closure and make it clear that these are the last adventures they’ll have. Instead, Amphibia just…does what it always did, by having characters go on adventures that went nowhere instead of developing them outside the story. Filler can be fun, especially for a TV series. It allows the writers to play around with their characters and flesh them out more. Except that there’s a way to do that without stalling the story, like how Hunter’s hobbies in “Thanks to Them” unintentionally caused Belos to possess Hunter’s body. We still see Hunter have a love of sewing and take great interest in Cosmic Frontier, but those same interests led to huge consequences, showing that Hunter still suffers even when he’s happy (Told you that he’s the writers’ favorite punching bag). That’s a lot of development and good ideas to explore with Hunter, and the writers did it all within an hour when Amphibia had…seventeen episodes? Well, regardless of how many, Amphibia felt like it wasted the little time it had left where The Owl House made sure to use every second to develop Hunter, Luz, and Camila, characters who have yet to find closure for their arcs and deserve more of the focus. All the time for shenanigans is brief and doesn’t take away anything. They actually add more, showing us how close this group got, all while not lingering on the antics too long and giving us enough information to know what happened within these months to make up our own ideas of what must have gone on between them. Remember, where canon fails, fanfiction is always your friend, giving you the downtime you want these characters to have without halting the story. So, it makes The Owl House’s first third of the final season better than Amphibia’s first half…though the same can’t really be said when we get to “For the Future.”

I have mixed feelings towards the second half of Amphibia’s third season. It really feels like it forces its humor, its attempts being episodic while also wrapping up the story just did not work for me, and an episode like “Newts in Tights” was so bad that I almost decided to stop watching the rest of the series and wait until it came onto Disney+. If it wasn’t for the fact that the show was almost over, I just about would have. The second half is flawed in ten ways to Sunday…but I’ll admit that it does things a LITTLE better than “For the Future.” I don’t HATE the special. I think that overall it does more things right than wrong, with everything with Luz, Camila, Hunter, and Willow being some top-tier stuff. But when it comes to doing the stuff Amphibia did, Amphibia did things a little better. We got to see how negatively Andrias and The Core affected the world, with the skies being red and cloudy or how there are factories everywhere you look. We even got to see the return of a lot of characters, both the frogs of Wartwood and previous one-offs from Season One and Two, reminding audiences how far the show has come since meeting these characters. It was a bit of a mess in places, but helped make it clear that this was the end, all while showing how everyone reacted to this big disaster. When Luz and her friends return to the Isles, they spend the majority of their time in Hexside, where the students hid from The Collector and made a mess of the place. We don’t really see how the rest of the world reacts to this big change. Granted, most of the denizens of the Isles got collected into The Collector’s toy box, and most of the characters we grew close to are in Bonesborough anyway. But we don’t even get to see how Raine, Eda, or any other big players deal with this, with most of the juicy stuff happening off screen so Luz and her friends can go on an adventure dealing with Boscha and Kikimora of all characters. I don’t hate either and I like the ATTEMPT of what the writers did with Boscha. It's just that sticking to Hexside and dealing with those two characters specifically kind of makes you realize how small the world in The Owl House is and how limited its characters are, at least compared to Amphibia. There’s a purpose behind it and the show doesn’t HAVE to be like Amphibia, but in terms of making the problem feel bigger than it is and hammer home that we’re nearing the end, I gotta give it to Amphibia for this one. The crazy thing is that I actually prefer “Thanks to Them” over most of what happens in Amphibia Season 3B. It’s just the fact that Amphibia…did the job better even if the episodes weren’t as strong.

As for the finales, things are pretty even between The Owl House and Amphibia. Neither is really better or worse, as they fit the endings both shows wanted to build up to. Amphibia ends with all the characters coming together for three different final battles. The Frogs, Newts, and Toads storm the tower in Part One, Anne and company stopping King Andrias and The Core in Part Two, and the Calamity Trio take on the moon in Part Three. For a show that made itself more about goofy adventures and characters screwing around only to SLOWLY build up to a fantastic conclusion, it really did end the series off with a bang. As for The Owl House, after having Luz, King, and Eda separated for so long, “Watching and Dreaming” is all about them going on one last adventure, reliving memories, watching as Luz experiences death, and going on the offensive with Belos while the rest of the main cast goes on the defense in The Collector’s toy chest. And with everything featuring Luz, King, and Eda, it’s almost everything I could have ever wanted for The Owl House’s ending to be, fit with Luz having incredibly awesome magic as a kickass version of the show’s theme song plays in the background. It’s an epic ending that satisfies me and others in a way that’s not better than Amphibia’s ending, but offers something different that works for the show. The only thing that I would say is done better is…Luz’s death/revival compared to Anne’s. I vaguely mentioned it in my review for the special, but Anne dying, meeting The Guardian, and getting revived to live out her life before taking The Guardian’s place as she dies again is just…too much done in so little time. It just feels out of nowhere and cheapens the sacrifice she made by going, “Nope. Act of God says you live.” Sure, same thing happened to Luz, but she didn’t sacrifice herself. She died in an accident and The Titan brought her back by HER choice. And The Titan’s appearance wasn’t sudden either, as he was shown in the previous special and in the beginning of “Watching and Dreaming.” It left fans expecting them to show up in some way, and bringing Luz back from the dead because she was so nice to King honestly works and makes the revival feel slightly more like a natural progression. I mean, it’s still a god bringing Luz back and begging her to choose life, but the story laid down the foundation enough to make it make sense. With Anne, I’m glad she survived, but it doesn’t change how cheap it feels to reward her for dying. Say what you want about Rooster Teeth or the scumbags who ran it into the ground, but with its series, Red vs. Blue, the writers had SOMETHING to say about heroic sacrifice. With a fantastic speech from one of the characters, it goes into how the hero never gets to see that ending and all they have left is faith and…highly unrealistic expectations of what happens when they’re gone during their last moments. Regardless of a person’s feelings towards the now dead company and its show, I personally think that they handle self sacrifice a lot better, showing the real weight of it and how it’s not the best option. So making Anne live again, even with that nonsense about her being a clone or copy or whatever, takes away a BIT of the emotional punch out of her sacrifice. You can say the same thing with Luz, especially with how long “Watching and Dreaming” stretches out the fact that she’s dead, but I feel like making it an accident caused by Luz caring about someone else’s life more than her own makes me care a little less. Hell, if anything, a god telling Luz that her life DOES matter and that she can go back on HER choosing means something a lot more compelling than Anne getting a reward for killing herself. I’m SURE fans will try to tell me that it’s MORE than that, but I can’t help but feel like it’s the most out of pocket thing in the entire finale. Even if it is one that made me cry five times.

All and all, while it’s the same in the lot of ways, The Collector’s Playtime still offers a unique flavor of a final adventure compared to Amphibia’s third season. It’s better in the first third, moderate in the second, but evens out in the end there. Is it the final adventure I wanted? Not really, as I wanted way more adventures instead of condensing a season into three specials. But with all things considered and how most shows don’t even GET an ending, I’m fine with this last concluding arc being a gigantic send off for the series that has a lot of its best parts, some of its worst, all while ending on a high note. It’s not what I wanted, but it’s something I’m happy with.

And…That’s it. That’s the last arc of The Owl House…Huh. You know, with how often fans point out that the story arcs or narratives are more important than Lumity or one character getting the spotlight, there’s really…not that many arcs in the show. Now, not every series needs a whole lot. If anything, that can cause the show to feel overcrowded as writers are stretched too thin to figure out when to utilize which narrative. Heck, even the few that they had, The Owl House writers were still sometimes struggling, what with having no time to really work out a few threads they planned for Season Two. Still, for a serialized show, it is a LITTLE crazy that The Owl House doesn’t have that many arcs. I could call that a criticism, but here’s a reason why I won’t. To go full circle, The Owl House is character driven, not story driven. Seeing characters grow and develop is part of what makes The Owl House’s serialization work. If I HAD talked about the character development of Luz, Amity, Hunter, and many others, we’d be here all gosh dang day. Again.

And yeah, the few narratives are nice and make one excited to see what happens next, but only because we want to see how it affects each character or see how they react to big reveals in the story. It handles things way better than Amphibia (Last comparison, I promise), which tries to be character driven too, but constantly brings up all these narratives that I want to see continue only to stall for way too long and making the character development feel slow so the writers can save the big stuff for the grander narratives. It has its audience, and I’m happy for the fans who ARE into it, but I much prefer how The Owl House handled things. Its first two arcs are introduced as something closely tied through the characters, with episodes having us care about them enough to see them make it through some hardships. Plus, the character development is always moving forward, with Willow getting bolder, Amity acting warmer, and Luz getting more powerful with each episode. And that’s all in Season One alone. The characters drive the narrative, not the other way around, meaning that the show doesn’t need these BIG and complex arcs to make it one of the best shows. It just needed compelling characters, and you can tell by now that it does. Because even when talking about the narratives, arcs, and all that, the characters are still, and always will be a part of the conversation.

But it’s easy to tell a story. Just make a coherent beginning, middle, and end, and you got yourself one, easy as that. It might be good or stand out from others, but it’ll still be a story. If you WANT it to be great, however, you have to do more than tell a story. You gotta SAY something with it. As for what The Owl House has to say, you’ll see next week when we go over the themes and messages of the show.

Next Part

#the owl house #luz noceda #camila noceda #eda clawthorne #lilith clawthorne #emperor belos #king clawthorne #the collector #toh the collector #what i thought about #the owl house reviews

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the-mindless-meanderings · 4 months ago

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Aotearoa, 2040

Introduction:

Heyas journal, it’s been a bit, and things have settled down somewhat, atleast by comparison to how they once where, I’m feeling a bit retrospective I guess. It’s been five years since the revolution, and while you could rightly say that it’s still ongoing, things aren’t changing as quickly as they once where, atleast not on a systems level. We’ve established a lot of our new ways of being and life is calming down, people have settled in, we’ve got a new normal. So I thought I might do a bit of writing, and this time maybe not talk about history anymore, or about how things happened, or various theoreticals. I thought I might just do a small series talking about now, about what life is like, about what people are up to, ‘bout the various systems, and projects, maybe even talk about some of the folks in my life.

I’ll start with the briefest bit of history before moving to a more proper overview. The revolution happened, five years ago, it’d been building for a while before but five years ago we finally overthrew the old system. We set to work very quickly, numerous councils and citizens assemblies were formed to re-establish society. It was very messy at first and we had to go through numerous systems, for all sorts of things, before we got to the ones we’re now using, but we got here. Those first two years were a very tumultuous time, there was a real threat of us not being able to hold on to our new society, fate was on our side and we did, but it was chancy at times.

Breath.

So much of my life got caught up in trying to make this happen, it’s still a very emotionful thing for me.

Anyrate, where was I? I’m not even quite certain what to right as an introduction, there’s so much impulse to just jump into describing things, talking about government, or the things I’ve been up to. I’m getting close to a page written so I might leave it here, next time will probably be about government, for what that we have one, but we’ll see.

#solarpunk #ecosocialism #anarchy #anarchocommunism #mine

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sixpennydame · 2 years ago

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I BEG OF YOU. I'LL DO WHATEVER YOU WANT. Never Have I Ever is too good please make it an ongoing series, oh gosh I fell in love again. 😩

Hi Anon! This is for you..

Never Have I Ever, Part 2

Part 1

Levi x fem!reader

C/W: Canonverse, Levi being awkward about love, hangovers, mentions of alcohol / drunkenness, fluff

————

Levi was hungover, no doubt about it.

He never really drank much, but he figured with his above-average physical strength, he’d be able to quickly get over a hangover.

He was wrong.

Riding back to Headquarters after that night was agony; every noise felt like a cacophony in his head, and the bright sun hurt his eyes. His head was pounding like a drum.

Looking at him, though, you’d never suspect it. He still had that same, slightly pissed-off look on his face, so when you rode up to him, you expected him to just be his normal self.

But you and he knew things weren’t normal between the two of you anymore. You’d done something, but both of you were still trying to put those pieces of the night together.

You remember going to the bathroom, and when you came out, Levi was there in the hallway. Before you could ask him what he was doing there, he’d grabbed your arm and pulled you into him, his lips immediately meeting yours. The rest is hazy, but you can slightly remember you kissing down his neck to his collarbone, where you…

Oh my god, you thought to yourself, you’d left a huge kiss mark on him. You remember smiling into his neck as he took in a sharp breath in reaction to the sensation, his hands on your buttocks.

This morning, you notice he’s wearing his cravat a little tighter than he normally does, but his face is unreadable. Is he angry at you? Annoyed? He was the one that started kissing you, but maybe he doesn’t even remember doing that. You decide to take a chance and start talking.

“Fun night last night, huh?” you say with a small laugh.

“Yeah, it was…fun,” is his only reply and he doesn’t even look at you.

You try again. “But I’m afraid I drank too much during that game and I can barely remember anything after that,” he looks over at you when you say that. “How about you?”

“Nope. Nothing.” His answer is curt.

There’s no way he didn’t notice the kiss mark you left on his skin. Does he hate you for it now? “Listen, Levi, I -”

“I need to go talk with Hange for a minute. We’ll talk later,” he cuts you off as he rides ahead, leaving you toward the back of the group.

When Levi makes it to Hange, they’re humming a song. “How can you even be humming right now? I saw you down almost a whole bottle of gin.”

“Easy,” they smirk, “I drink a concoction of ginger, charcoal, and turmeric before I know I’m going to drink alcohol and it keeps me from getting a hangover.” They push their glasses up. “You see the mineral compound in charcoal works with the ginger to..”

Levi rolls his eyes. “I don’t need to know the science, Four-Eyes.”

“Ok, ok, but maybe you need to know how to treat someone after you make out with them…or whatever you two did,” Hange says, a little loudly for Levi’s comfort.

“Shh..shh..” Levi looks around to see if anyone was listening, “I don’t need everyone knowing my business.”

Hange laughs. “Levi…it’s no secret to anyone at that bar that you and Reader have got the hots for each other.” Hange looks at Levi, but the look on his face tells them he has no idea what they’re talking about. “I mean, you both were gone for a while, then you went over to a table in a corner by yourselves, and then you both left the bar together.”

“We…did?” Levi can’t believe he doesn’t remember any of this. In fact, he wouldn’t believe it if not for the mark on his neck. He feels so stupid. What if he overstepped his boundaries with you last night? How does he apologize for something he can’t even remember?

Hange and Levi both hear you laugh as you ride by with a few comrades. Your eyes linger on Levi for a moment, then they look away to focus again on the group. Levi’s eyes, however, stay on you for a few second longer.

Hange smiles. “You should talk to her. Tell her how you feel.”

“I…can’t,” Levi sighs, “I’ve never really done this before.” His voice gets even lower, “And what if she doesn’t even like me? Maybe it was just the alcohol.”

“Oh I doubt that very much.” Hange laughs. “Besides, you’ve liked each other for a while, but were both too stubborn to admit it. You know what they say… In wine, there is truth..”

When you all arrived back to headquarters, Levi stables his horse and goes straight to his quarters. Maybe Hange was right - maybe the alcohol tore down enough of his defenses for you to see how much he cared for you. How much he wanted you. And you must want him too, right? He takes off his cravat and pulls down his shirt to look at the purple mark. He presses on it, hoping in some way that the slight pain might jog some memories.

But he does remember touching you, pressing his body against you. Shit, if he could only remember more..

He paces the room, conflicted about what to do. “Fuck it,” he finally says to himself. He needs to talk to you. Clear the air once and for all.

When he opens his door, you’re standing there, hand up in a fist as if you were about to knock.

“Hey…” you say awkwardly, “can we talk?”

“Yeah, sure. I was just coming to look for you.” His heart is beating fast as he opens his door wider to invite you in.

“I drank a lot last night, as you know,” you confess, “and I think…some things might have happened between us. Things I can’t exactly remember.” You blush.

“I’ll admit, I can’t remember either.” Levi runs his hands through hair, clearly embarrassed. “And if I crossed any lines last night, I sincerely apologize.”

You walk over to him. “No, no. That’s the thing: I…wanted to be with you last night.” You’re face is getting hot; you can’t believe you’re finally saying it out loud.

He moves closer to you, his own cheeks turning flush. “I wanted it too. I want…” he runs his thumb across your plump lips, “…you.”

He can’t resist anymore - he has to kiss you. His lips hover over yours and then he stops. “Is this ok?”

“It’s more than ok,” you reply as you grab his shirt and pull him closer to you. His lips are so soft when they move against yours. As you both come up for breath, you start kissing his jaw, then down his neck, and that’s when you see the bruise you left.

You smile. “I hate that I can’t remember what we did last night.”

He takes your chin to lift up your head, then he starts kissing down your neck, sucking in almost the same place you’d left your mark. “Well then, let’s work on making some new memories.”

#we are now entering smut territory #who wants a part 3?#ask sailor #levi x reader #levi ackerman #levi drabble #levi ackerman drabbles #anon asks #tw; alcohol

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dailycass-cain · 2 years ago

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With one more issue to go, Batgirls #18 continues with its current plot while the issue really sinking in that it's building to a finale. So what did I think about it?

Well...

I'll start with I loved the throwbacks this issue had. It was throwback city, with nods to all three Batgirl runs here (though Steph gets two nods). Course, I'm going to go into the Cass throwback as it was well played into the story itself.

Namely, the bank robber sequence in the issue being a nice throwback to the Andersen Gabrych run for Cass.

It's weird to see a lot of homages going on to this run. I don't mind it, but I'm glad writers are taking the best parts of the run to play with (this and Spirit World playing with the time Cass died).

But on the Steph side, you do get this "finality" more but then again out of the three, I get why the writers chose hers.

Because well, even if it was abrupt Steph's still has the best ending beating Cass/Babs by a country mile.

That's the one thing now obviously creeping up this issue. There is a finality we're getting here. I'm kind of glad at the very least the creators are given to end the book at least on their own terms as best they can.

Compared to say either final issues of Babs which just didn't feel like final issues at all. More just one chapter closing and another opening. Here it feels like something is ending. Even if well...

We know all three are continuing on in other places. Be it Babs still in Nightwing (and Tec). Cass in Spirit World (and also Tec), and Steph maybe Joker? But at the very least the interactions with their supporting characters and the story feels like a good wrap-up.

For the full story itself? I'm glad that the story isn't mincing on who the sniper could possibly be or the fact that this issue reveals there are two out there.

With one issue left and no full reveal, I'm curious how Michael Conrad/Becky Cloonan will wrap up this sniper subplot by revealing WHY they want the Batgirls out of the picture. Will it be by weird motive (Gun Bunny) or by characterization (Assisi)?

Regardless, I think we'll get a good ending whatever we get for Babs, Cass, and Steph. Which is a shame given how better in quality this book increased after the arc that did the comic in.

I'd say other than the throwbacks the little characterization between both Cass/Steph is what makes the issue and an actual reason for Babs to be Batgirl in the field.

Overall, the issue was solid. The characterization of all three Batgirls (along with their supporting cast) is what makes the issue good for me.

Artist Robbi Rodriguez's art is better here than in the prior arc for me. It's not on the level of Jorge Corona or Jonathan Case (even Neil Googe managed to be a perfect bridge). But it'll do and he deserves it after the um lackluster ending he had to draw in the last Batgirl ongoing.

I am sad that the series is ending, but I treated each issue like it was a gift. Because it was for me. Being a Cass fan after so many debacles involving the character. I'd never thought we'd ever see Cass be in an ongoing Batgirls comic again.

Was it superior to her's or Steph's? No. But I think that was never the point of the writers to "reinvent" the wheel. They were just doing a series that was fun and for that I'll enjoy the interactions we got. Save for one story (#14) and they had a fantastic artist to tell it.

For this issue we get all three Batgirls shining nicely (with a bit more on the Cass/Steph side). I also did enjoy the moment both had with Bruce. Something I wish we got in the mainline Batman book (which is now all about them boyz).

I just hope Cass/Steph isn't lost in the shuffle again and that this comic does get relaunched (with a new creative team then so be it).

The characters truly deserve it.

#dc comics #cassandra cain #stephanie brown #barbara gordon #my thoughts

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tin-tweezers · 2 years ago

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This fits so well into the series’ ongoing critique of empire.

Imagine: You’re a poor kid in a backwater region. You have no money, you have no opportunities, you’re told you’re a burden to society, the clothes on your back and the food you eat have been resentfully bestowed by your social betters.

How do you get out? You join the military.

Hiding the rest beneath the cut, because this got long.

In America, joining the military means you get money, healthcare for you and your family, assistance buying a house, a subsidy for a college education, a chance to see the world. When you ship out, your town installs banners on the street lights with your face, name and an American flag in the backdrop. And if you live in an American territorial holding (Samoa, Guam, the US Virgin Islands, all the others) the military is by far the best pathway to citizenship. You don’t even need to be a permanent resident. If you want to vote for the president who sends you off to war, you have to join the war. Your body is the collateral that jumps you to the front of the line.

(Here’s a poem about it by afakasi Samoan poet William Nu’utupu Giles.)

The thing is, you might not survive to reap the military’s benefits. You might die - and even if you do make it back alive, you might be different. There was a guy in my high school, we’ll call him Prince. He was an asshole - he bullied smaller kids, skipped class, homophobic comments. I lost track of him after graduation - I had shit to do and also wanted to get as far away from that place as possible.

Five years later, I see Prince on the MetroNorth commuter train platform, and almost don’t recognize him. His hair was short, because he seemed smaller, held himself more still than the aggressive kid I graduated with. I called his name, because I was far enough away from high school now that it didn’t hurt as much. When he turned and walked over, he had a limp. A really bad one. I asked him what he’d been doing since graduation and he told me he’d joined the Marines.

I, queer artist and budding socialist, neutrally asked him how that was going. First, he shrugged and showed me his leg. I awkwardly nodded and asked, “How did that happen?”

“It was shrapnel. It killed my best friend.” No preamble. He was on convalescent leave, visiting his family.

We got on the train together and he showed me some videos of the chopper he and his division manned on his phone. I told him a bit about my life, how I’d been to art school and how I was freelancing in the film industry. In my memory, he listens politely but we don’t really have much to say to one another because our lives are different now. And we weren’t friends in high school, so we didn’t have the good old days to fall back on. But, I don’t actually remember how we acted after that initial surprise. Maybe it was awkward, or it could very well be me projecting in hindsight.

We arrived in Grand Central and parted ways at the clock. I gave him a hug, and headed off towards the subway downtown (I had a gallery opening to go to.)

I realized later that my awkwardness stemmed from the fact that I had no military family members, or friends, or colleagues. Not even acquaintances. My long-dead grandfather had been an engineer in WW2 - after that, he got a full time at Bell Labs and helped design communications satellites. Never left, and never spoke about the war around me when I was little.

I mentioned that disconnect to a friend later, who grew up in rural Wisconsin. “Well, of course you didn’t have any friends in the military. Your family’s rich.” I didn’t think of us as rich, but I suppose we were rich enough that no one we knew enlisted. While I had never noticed, it was quite obvious to her.

I don’t know what happened to Prince after we met on the train. I’ve met other veterans since then, of course. Some of them had very nice houses paid for the GI bill, one became a playwright I worked with on a project, one lived in public housing and begged for food on the street in a wheelchair. (I never talked to that last guy, Ed, until my working class Trinidadian friend brought him coffee on one of our walks. After that, I said hello whenever I went by, and he talked about losing his legs in Vietnam.) As for the others, the ex-Navy Seal with the big GI Bill house in Florida flinched at loud noises, and the playwright writes about PTSD.

Anyway. That idea in The Locked Tomb, of sending your kid off to war so they escape the cycle of abuse/disenfranchisement/poverty? And having them come back different? Dead, even? And of course, Aiglamene herself has a wartime injury. Permanently disabled, invalided home. She still knows the Cohort is the only way out for Gideon Nav.

Sure makes you think.

thinking about Aiglamene. Like, so

a child crash lands in town. mystery where she came from. the mother is dead. this tiny redheaded thing has no one in the world. the town takes her in because what else are you supposed to do with a orphan dropped on your doorstep, but they don’t love her. the reverend family needs an heir, so they kill every single child on the planet- wait, scratch that, all but one. this one kid is alive, she’s alive, against all odds. so naturally, everyone’s scared of her. everyone hates her. out of all the children to survive why was it the one no one cared about. but they move on, everyone does, and the kid grows. and she starts asking questions. you start answering them. you start telling her stories, and it’s nice to be listened to, even if the kid is just a twerp. you start teaching her, she’s a natural with a sword, but you don’t tell her because it’ll go to her head. you’ve never had a maternal bone in your body, you aren’t mothering her… but she’s got nobody. and neither do you. you train her, you teach her, you tell her she can get out, get free from this place, if she works hard enough, fights good enough. she works hard. she fights well, better than you ever did at her age. she tries to get out. she gets caught. she tries again. and again. and again. and eventually, there’s a chance, a real chance. you’re the only person in the world who could get through this kid’s thick skull, and you tell her: this is your chance, this is it, you’re getting out, you’re leaving me, you’re never coming back, you’ve going to live, you have to get out now. and she goes. she goes, and she doesn’t come back. she doesn’t come back, and then she does… and she’s dead. she’s dead, and she’s back, the two things you prayed wouldn’t happen. she’s back and she’s dead and this is your child, you raised her, and you sent her off, promising a bright future, and it killed her.

#tamsyn muir #is very smart #and she knows what she is doing #gideon nav #aiglamene #tlt #Gideon the ninth #the locked tomb #harrow the ninth #Nona the ninth #the cohort #militarism #military #empire

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dreamingsushi · 2 years ago

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Apple of my Eye - Episode 1

Hello again! Here I am starting another ongoing series of short episodes. Since there are so many of them, I think this drama might be somewhat of a sitcom and it’s been a while since I watched any from Korea (last one is probably High kick through the roof to be honest, which I loved so much). The synopsis seemed interesting and hopefully it is going to be funny. I feel for a little laugh lately, after all the solid drama and heartbreak TV shows made me go through.

As expected, this was funny. I’m trying a different format of recap for this one, since the episodes are so short. Also I saw that there are like 120 episodes of this, so you know. It’s a project. We’ll see how it goes.

Kang San works as a delivery man in a side dish restaurant to support his daughter. His wife ran away ten years ago and he’s still looking for her. I think this is going to use a few well known k-drama as a base for satire. How do I guess this? His daughter’s name is Geum Jandi (same as the female lead from Boys Over Flowers) and she goes to the same school as Junpyo (same name as the male lead from BOF). Anyways, Jandi hopes to become an idol and gets into fights with her dad as she is going through adolescence. They live with Kang San’s mom, owner of the side dish shop, and sister.

Mi Rae, who seems to be another main lead, is an adopted girl in a rich family and it doesn’t seem like she’s rather welcomed by the rest of her family members except her mother. It kind of makes me think of Cinderella’s sister maybe? Anyways. She’s claustrophobic and gets late to a job interview at an art academy, which might make her fail the interview. She’s the aunt of Junpyo. She doesn’t get along with her sister-in-law who keeps disrespecting her. The family isn’t going so well either, with the grandfather wanting Mirae’s mom to remarry with a man he works with. His health isn’t doing so well either.

The episode ends on a fight between Junpyo and Jandi because he bullies her for not having a mother. His mother gets really mad that someone dared to touch her precious son and keeps looking down on Jandi and her grandmother because Jandi’s mom left. So the grandmother lashes out at Junpyo’s mom, just before Kang San comes in to try and stop the cat fight, now that he’s sure that a discovered corpse near the area they live isn’t his disappeared wife.

I think I’m actually to enjoy this a whole lot. It’s funny, without being too extra anyways. The acting isn’t bad either so far and I love it when there are complex relationships between family members. I makes me think of High kick through the roof which was a story I held dear to my heart, so I’m really looking forward this!

#apple of my eye #seo joon young #yoon da young #song chae hwan #Kim shi hoo #kim si eun #sitcom #kdrama #k-drama #korean drama #drama review #drama recap #drama reaction

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talonpaw · 2 years ago

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🕰️☢️ i sure hope i remembered that second emoji correctly I feel like I’ve never seen her before in my entire life. Anyway. Hi 👀

hi hello 👀

🕰️: When did you first read the books?

around 10 or 11!

i know lots of people discover warriors through their elementary school libraries, but my school’s library never had them 😔 it DID have the seekers books though! (y’know, the erin hunter books with the bears?) so i ended up reading those first.

i purposefully sought out warriors after seeing the fan animations, though. i was the only warriors kid at my school. nobody else Got It. 😔 SAD!

☢️: Worst written character?

there are lots of angles you could take with this question. the fun thing about warriors is that your favorite character, unless they are specifically a one-off character, has the potential to be written horribly :D that’s just the nature of having several different writers, a sprawling timeline, and no series bible

for example, i LOVE mapleshade in crookedstar’s promise and mapleshade’s vengeance, but i HATE how the erins rely on her as a crutch when they don’t have any other villains lying around. (why is she suddenly in tigerclaw’s backstory. why is she suddenly in goosefeather’s backstory. why is she suddenly beefing with sandstorm. why is she siding with ashfur now. WHY. just KILL HER already oh my GOD.)

from a meta perspective, i dislike how nightheart’s arc was constructed. (i think trying to single him out as The Firekin when all of thunderclan is firekin at this point was a mistake, and tangling his drama with the bramblesquirrel drama was… a choice… 😬) but his arc is still ongoing… so… we’ll see… he’s written pretty consistently character-wise, though, and i see why some fans gravitate towards him as a protagonist. so answering with him doesn’t feel quite right…

in terms of characters who are just Written Badly. uhhh. cardboard cutout love interests from dawn of the clans? whatever stoneteller had going on in power of three? (you could not pay me to reread outcast.) yellowfang post-mortem???????????

idk, maybe i just have too much love in my heart today 😔

#thank you!!!#wc #ask game

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cevansbrat0007 · 2 years ago

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Photo Shoot Faux Pas

Summary: Andy’s reaction to a risque anniversary gift gets you more than you bargained for. Prequel to The Lonely Hearts Club mini-series. Check out The Lonely Hearts Club: Part One!

Warnings: Smut, Jealous/Possessive Andy, Confident Reader, Insecure Reader, Daddy Kink, Pussy Slapping, Oral (fem receiving), Vibrator Use (mentioned), Gags (mentioned), Sex Tape (mentioned), Boudoir Photography, Cursing, Minors DNI

A/N: Prompt courtesy of my dear friend, @writer84. I might write a follow-up drabble as well. Feedback is always welcome and appreciated, so please let me know what you think. This is part of my ongoing Growing Pains Series. Semi-proofread but not beta’d. All mistakes are my own. Thanks for reading!

___

There are three things everyone should know about Andrew Barber. One, that the man loves you to distraction. Two, that he believes in spoiling you whenever possible. And three, that he has a possessive streak that runs a mile wide.

You’d recently come to learn the last part the hard way, and you didn’t plan on forgetting that lesson any time soon.

___

One week ago…

You’re on your way home from work when your phone rings. Seeing that it’s Andy, you quickly hit accept before returning your attention to the road.

“Hello?”

“Hey, baby girl.” His deep voice rumbles over the speakers. “How are you?”

“I’m good, Andy Bear. Just headed back to my place.”

“Oh, what a coincidence. Me too.”

Huh? You weren’t supposed to be getting together until tomorrow.

“Um…why?” You were still a good twenty minutes away from your apartment. And you’d accidentally left a very important item sitting out in the open on your kitchen table.

One that your boyfriend wasn’t meant to see. At least not yet.

“Since when is it a crime to visit my lady? Plus, I left a couple work docs behind when I was there the other day.”

Oh shit. You knew exactly where they were too. Sitting on the freaking kitchen table right next to his anniversary gift.

“But I…I’m not home yet.”

“Pretty sure I’m capable of letting myself in, Y/N. In fact, I just pulled up.”

Oh, fuck me sideways.

“How about you take a walk around the block or something until I get there? Maybe stretch those legs. Or, you could go check out that new shop, Little Mahatma, over on 100th and Dennison. You know, the one with all those really nifty knick-knacks?”

Your ramblings are met with silence as you pull off the freeway.

“Or, just wait outside for me and we’ll go together. It’s a nice day, so –”

“Or, I could go inside and wait for you there like a normal person. Unless...there’s some reason you don’t want me in your apartment?” He asks, sounding mildly confused.

“No, not all! I just…can’t wait to see your handsome face.”

“Uh huh.” He grunts, sounding suspicious. “See you soon, baby.”

“Yeah. See you soon.” The call ends, leaving you alone with your thoughts. “Well, fuck!” You thump your fist on your steering wheel. “There goes that surprise.”

This weekend, the two of you were planning to celebrate a pretty major milestone. Namely, your six month anniversary. And as such, you’d splurged on a very special gift. Something you would have never even considered in previous relationships.

But what you had with Andy was different. It was…solid. You felt like you could trust your boyfriend with every part of you. So what better gift to give the man who had everything, including your heart, than a leather-bound photo album?

But you weren’t just talking about any old album. Oh no. This one was filled with intimate photos of you taken by a professional as part of a recent boudoir shoot, which was something you’d never done before. It had pushed you way out of your comfort zone, but for your Andy Bear, you were willing to try just about anything.

Plus, posing for those photos, while slightly uncomfortable at first, had made you feel sexy.

You just prayed that he liked them.

Of course he would. You were about to gift him with his own personal porn. If awards for being “The Best Girlfriend Ever” existed you’d be a shoe-in.

Right?

___

After what feels like forever, you finally pull up in front of your apartment. Parking in your designated spot, you get out of the car and make your way to the front of your building. Your heartbeat thunders in your ears as you anxiously dash up the stairs.

You were sure Andy had to have seen the pictures by now. And part of you hated the fact that you’d missed his initial reaction. Oh well. It couldn’t be helped.

Opening the door, you quickly toe off your nude pumps before going off in search of your boyfriend. You find him just where you'd thought he'd be, sitting on the edge of a kitchen chair with the album in his lap. And then you notice that his tie is undone and his hair is all mussed. Strange. He doesn’t acknowledge your arrival, instead he just sits there staring into the distance.

“Hey, baby.” You whisper, confused by the tenseness in his big shoulders.

“What the hell is this?” Andy finally asks, his tone gruff. You watch as his long fingers trace over the words you’d had etched on the cover.

“Umm…” Your teeth go to worry your bottom lip as the scowl gracing his features only serves to deepen.

“When did you take these?” He growls, his jaw ticking as he holds up a random page featuring two different photos. The first is of you posing in a skimpy scrap of sheer lingerie with your areolas proudly on display, while the second has you wearing a pair of thigh-high socks and no panties.

“Uh, well…” Ah, shit. This was so not the reaction you’d been hoping for.

“And better yet, who the fuck did you take them for?” Your man slowly rises from the chair before taking one step towards you, followed by another. And then another. Until he’s standing directly in front of you, all deliciously dark six-feet of him.

“I asked you a fucking question, Y/N. And I’m going to need an answer. Now.”

“They - they’re for you.” You rasp, your throat suddenly dry. “It was supposed to be a surprise for our anniversary.”

“For our anniversary…right.” Andy scoffs, scraping one large hand over his tawny beard. “And I suppose you captured these yourself?” He crosses his arms over his broad chest.

“No.” You can practically feel your cheeks burning. “I, uh, had them taken at a studio run by Ricardo Ventura. The whole thing was part of a professional boudoir shoot and –” Your boyfriend’s right eye twitches at the mention of the photographer’s name.

“So you let another man see you like this?!” He erupts, waving the book in your face. “You seriously let some fucking creep take photos of you parading around in next to nothing? I mean, I can see your goddamned nipples!”

“Hey! I wore clothes.” Which was true. Kind of. “And they’re all tastefully done.”

Andy flips to another page that showcases an impressive look at your ass rocking a g-string, along with another of you thrusting your lace-covered chest invitingly at the camera.

“That little scrap of fabric doesn't fucking count, Y/N!" He rakes a hand through his hair. "I mean, what the hell were you thinking?”

That’s it. I’ve had enough.

“Damn it, Andrew! I thought they’d be a nice surprise.” You snatch the album from his hands. “Each and every photo in this thing was taken with you in mind. That’s what this is, you oaf! This is me giving you a tiny, private piece of myself in a way that I’ve never ever done with any other man.”

Your boyfriend continues to glare at you, that tick in his jaw becoming even more pronounced with each passing second.

“I put a lot of thought and effort into this whole project, you ass. So, if you don’t appreciate them then I suppose I’ll just have to go give them to someone who does.” The words tumble out of your mouth before you can stop them. Big mistake.

Oops. Had you really just offered to give away your nearly-nude photos?

You watch nervously as his blue eyes darken with a mix of anger and arousal. And then he’s in your space, using his big body to crowd your own as he slowly backs you into the wall, effectively caging you in.

“You wanna try that again?” Andy snarls, his tone dripping with menace. “Because I know, I know, that you did not just offer to give away what’s mine.”

“But you don’t even like the photos!” You snap, trying to keep the hurt from creeping into your tone.

“I never said that, baby girl.”

“Yes, you did!” Exasperated, your hands fist themselves in your hair, tugging at your curls.

“No, I did not.” He fires back. “Those words never came out of my mouth. I love you. Which means, by default, that I love everything you give me.”

“Oh, bullshit.”

He keeps going as if didn’t hear you. “But what I don’t love is the idea of some skeezy-ass fucker walking around with a camera snapping naughty pics of my woman. In fact, I really fucking hate it.”

His big hand goes to lightly grip your chin.

"This gorgeous little body belongs to me, baby. I'm the only man allowed to see what lies beneath these clothes. The only man who gets to love you, touch you, tease you --"

"But -"

"No buts. The idea behind this gift was sweet, but I'm afraid all it's done is piss me off. In case you haven't noticed, Y/N, I'm a bit of a possessive bastard. Especially when it comes to you."

"Andy, I -" You can feel the tears threatening to fall.

"You, sweetheart, are my everything. Do you understand me?"

Unsure of what else to say, all you can do is nod your head "yes" before one brawny arm wraps itself around your waist to haul you flush against his big body.

"I love you, Y/N. More than you know. And now you're gonna be a good girl and let me show you just how much.” A shiver courses through you as he trails one nimble finger down the sensitive column of your throat. He grips the collar of your white shirt, threatening to rip it.

“Please don’t.” You whimper softly. “I just bought this blouse.”

“Fine.” Andy takes a step back from you in what you can only assume is a brief act of reprieve. “Tell you what. I’ll give you ten seconds to make it to the bedroom and get naked.”

“But that’s not enough time!” You protest, even as you start undoing your buttons.

“Not my problem, sweetness.” He shrugs. “If you want your clothes to stay in one piece, you’ll make it work. Ten.” You let out a small shriek as your boyfriend begins counting down before spinning on your heel and darting out of the kitchen. “Nine.” He keeps going. “Eight. Eh, fuck it.”

Sporting a feral grin, Andy takes off after you, your trail of discarded clothing acting as a carnal beacon.

___

“Time’s up, baby girl.” He purrs, as he leans against the doorframe to watch you fumble with the clasp of your blush-colored bra. “Oops. Looks like you’re still wearing too many clothes. Guess, I’ll just have to help you out.”

You protectively cross your arms over your chest.

"That's so not necessary -- eep!"

He’s on you then, faster than you can blink. In a flash your bra is torn from your body. It lands in a delicate heap on the floor next to your panties, leaving you naked and vulnerable to your man's primal gaze.

Bastard.

Looking every inch the predator, Andy circles your nude form, almost as if he's trying to commit your curves to memory.

"I still can't believe you let another man see what's mine, sweet girl. Makes my blood boil just thinking about it." His knuckles caress their way down your spine. "I refuse to share you with anyone. I'm just not built that way."

"Andy, I swear Ricardo was a perfect gentleman the entire shoot." His hand wanders its way from the base of your spine to your abdomen. It lingers there for a moment, lightly stroking over your heated skin.

"Hush." He purrs, leaning in to whisper hot, open-mouthed kisses along your neck. "I'm a man, baby. I know how we think. And even more importantly, I know what we want. What we look for." He possessively cups your cunt, groaning as your sticky honey coats his palm.

"Ahh..." You moan, your head falling back to rest against his shoulder.

"He wanted you, baby. I know you don't believe this, but you turn heads everywhere you go."

"You - you're being ridiculous." You whine, rising on your tiptoes when his fingers begin playfully massaging your clit.

"You may not notice it, but I do. And since I can't be with you all the time, I'm really gonna to need you to start remembering who you fucking belong to." His skilled fingers find a steady rhythm, making you arch into his touch.

"I didn't forget, honey. I'd never forget, I swear. All those photos were for you and - oooh!" Andy pinches your swollen nub before delivering a rough slap to your little pussy. "Ungh, yes! Right there, Andy. Don't stop!

Another slap.

"Quiet. It's too late now. Take your punishment like the good girl I know you can be and all will be forgiven." He delivers one more blow. "Understand?"

"Y-yes."

"Good. Now, climb up on the bed for me." Wanting to please him, you scramble to do as he asks.

"Lay back for me...there we go. Now spread your legs. Daddy wants to get a nice, long look at his sweet pussy."

Blushing, you dutifully part your thighs and expose your drenched core.

"Mm, would you look at that? All that cream just for me..." Smiling, he fishes his phone out of his pocket and snaps a photo. "I think we need to capture this moment, don't you?"

"What?" You breathe as your thighs quiver.

"Oh, nothing. It's just that now that I know how much you love the camera, I figure it's time for you to make your on-screen debut." You watch as your Big Man hits record before lowering himself to his knees in front of you. "Say hi."

"No!" You turn away in an attempt to hide your face from the camera.

"Aww." He pouts, flipping the screen and poking out his bottom lip. "Looks like my baby girl is suddenly feeling shy. Guess, we'll have to try something a little different."

Andy winks into the camera before briefly standing up to hand it over to you.

"Daddy's gonna be nice and let you hold this while he eats you. You're gonna need to give me at least three good orgasms before you're allowed to hae my cock." He presses a tender kiss to your vulnerable mound.

"Y-yes, sir." You cry as he settles himself between your splayed thighs once again. Your shaking hands struggle to hold on to the phone.

"And be sure to hold the camera steady. Don't want you to miss a moment of me enjoying the fuck out of this tasty pussy." He reaches over to your nightstand and pulls out his favorite vibrator.

Yes, his favorite vibrator.

He smiles as he turns it on, his intoxicating blue eyes glazed over with pure lust.

"On second thought, I wanna use this too. So how about we up it to four and then call it even, yeah?" Locking his thickly muscled arms around your thighs, he roughly hauls you to the edge of the bed.

Preparing you for his dining pleasure.

"A meal fit for a king." He murmurs as he nuzzles his bearded face against your dripping folds. You cry out as his wicked tongue swirls over your clit, eagerly lapping up your sweet and salty juices.

Fuck, you were in for a long night.

"And don't worry about making too much noise, baby girl. If the neighbors come knockin' Daddy will make sure to gag you."

END

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makeste · 3 years ago

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BnHA Chapter 324: Is There a Force Field Around Him??

Previously on BnHA: Flashback!Rat Principal was all “please tell Midoriya that I spent a concerningly small amount of money upgrading U.A. into a wacky physics-defying funtime grid so as to make the final battle much more confusing for everyone.” Present Day!Mic (or Present!Mic, if you will) and Jeanist were all “if only somebody could deescalate this dangerously unhinged mob, we’ve tried nothing and we’re all out of ideas.” Ochako was all “LISTEN UP PEOPLE.” The mob was all, “god??” Ochako was all, “NO, IT’S ME, OCHAKO. I’M REALLY HIGH UP ON THIS BUILDING AND THE VISIBILITY IS LOW DUE TO THE RAIN, SO I CAN SEE HOW YOU MIGHT MAKE THAT MISTAKE. ANYWAYS, DEKU WAS OUT THERE RISKING HIS LIFE FOR YOU CLOWNS EVEN THOUGH HE’S JUST A KID, SO I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE IF YOU COULD ALL REMEMBER HOW TO BE DECENT HUMAN BEINGS, THANKS.” Let’s see if her Big Scolding Energy has any impact.

Today on BnHA: Horikoshi is all “so I have this speech planned out, and it’s really good, but it also only really needs about 6 to 8 pages, but I’m gonna see if I can stretch it out to 17 pages so I can kill time before we get to the next volume cliffhanger two weeks from now.” Anyway but it really is a good speech though. There are feels, and tears, and more talk about how Deku is so in need of a shower that just looking at him requires a tetanus booster, and more feels, and more tears, and bonus ship drama, and an iconic callback to the very first chapter which reframes the entire series in a new context in a totally epic and moving way, and it’s all very good. Except that Horikoshi is determined to never let anyone actually give this kid a hug. Who hurt you, dude.

omg we are opening on a callback to chapter 212, a.k.a. the chapter with by far the cutest flashback that doesn’t involve any baby Todorokis

baby Ochako is lethally cute. she could literally murder someone with her cuteness. I just want to scoop her up and play airplane with her until she accidentally activates her quirk while we’re spinning around and we both helicopter up into the air never to be seen again

“a child’s insistence” huh well that’s all well and good, but I sure hope this doesn’t mean we’re going to drag out the whole “sternly lecture the obnoxious citizens” plot for another whole chapter. no offense but I think we’re good

so page 2 is just continuing the whole happy/worried faces monologue, which of course is very important to Ochako’s character as it provides the context for why “who protects the heroes” ended up becoming her thing. and this is making me think we actually are in for a whole second chapter of this sob. when will my boy finally get to rest

OH MY GOD SUDDENLY THESE PEOPLE HAVE EYES IMAGINE THAT

HORIKOSHI: [reaches for a box of tissues while tearfully penning an homage to his beloved Spider-Man 2, specifically the train scene where the crowd sees Peter without his mask and they suddenly realize just how young he is]

HORIKOSHI’S HOMAGE SCENE: “COME TO THINK OF IT, I GUESS IT WAS KIND OF MEAN FOR US TO PICK ON THIS TEN YEAR OLD KID WHO WEIGHS 75 POUNDS AND LOOKS LIKE HE LOST A FIGHT WITH SATAN’S MOLDY OLD BASEMENT”

lol at this one guy who can feel the mood of the crowd shifting and is all “WAIT, NO, I WANTED TO KEEP BEING AN ASSHOLE DAMMIT”

as many pointed out last week, this man is wearing an All Might shirt. that’s some fantastic irony there

-- SDKFJWIGKS

“LITTLE GIRL, I HOPE YOU’RE NOT SUGGESTING THAT WE SHOULD ALL BE WALKING AROUND DRESSED LIKE A SOVIET-ERA BUS STOP.” heh. last week I said I was ashamed of BnHA being my favorite manga. that was a lie, actually

(ETA: in the original Japanese Ochako’s next two lines are basically “the only ones covered in mud will be us heroes!” followed by “please give us some time to get rid of the mud”, with that second line basically being the single funniest thing I’ve ever read rdslkjl. Ochako thank you so much for supporting my running gags. “YEAH WE KNOW HE’S DIRTY. WE ARE GONNA TRY AND CLEAN HIM UP, BUT IT MAY TAKE A WHILE, I’M JUST SAYING. I MEAN LOOK AT HIM. HE LOOKS LIKE AN ASBESTOS COSPLAY.”)

doesn’t the megaphone kind of look ever so slightly like an axe that she’s wielding maniacally here

easy there Lizzie Borden

also that’s a really bold claim to make there. and not one she necessarily should have to make, either. but as we all know, there’s nothing that shounen manga likes more than having its heroes bravely hoist heavy burdens of responsibility like good self-sacrificing citizens

p.s. lowkey loving how Kacchan is positioned here standing slightly behind Deku. not presuming to stand in front of him all overprotectively (because he would hate if anyone ever did that to him), and kind of being unobtrusive and letting others take center stage -- but still being close enough to Deku that he can catch him if he stumbles or passes out again

(ETA: or maybe not lmao.

DEKU: [falls to his knees]

KACCHAN: [glancing up from his phone a few minutes later] “someone just sent me the stupidest meme about milk crates -- oh. uh. you good...?”

really, son. “the burdens you can’t carry, we’ll carry them for you. ...later, I mean. right now it’s late, and we’re all cold and wet.”)

also lowkey loving this OchaTsu moment here

I was going back and binging Ochako chapters this past week for reasons, and I gotta say it really stuck out to me just how often these two are paired with each other. they do everything together. it’s a really sweet friendship that often goes unappreciated but it’s very cute

meanwhile, not to be outdone by the OchaTsu, Iida is staring at Ochako with open admiration talking about how she’s fighting too. it’s been so long since we’ve had any IidaRaka you guys. I was starving and I didn’t even know it

oh my lord IT’S FINALLY HAPPENING

THE LIGHT IS BACK. he finally looks like him again. what a cathartic fucking moment omg

ffklkdw

“I KNOW YOU ARE ALL SCARED, BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS, WE DEFINITELY CANNOT GUARANTEE YOUR SAFETY AND WE ARE ALL SCARED TOO!” good pep talk there kiddo

BUT, jokes aside, truth be told this is the exact right approach to take imo, and something that’s long overdue. I’ve said this before, but this new generation of heroes is shaping up to be much more transparent than the All Might generation. they’re basically abandoning the almighty, untouchable Superman “heroes as gods” concept in favor of the more nuanced “heroes as people” concept instead. and that’s a good thing. seeing their heroes as humans, with human limitations and weaknesses and flaws, will hopefully not only lead to more scrutiny and accountability, but also more awareness of how hard some of them are working and how much they’re sacrificing. that’s something All Might never quite grasped back at the start of the series -- that the weak, vulnerable, injured him could be just as inspiring as the mighty, invincible him -- perhaps even more so. there’s a power in seeing otherwise ordinary people show extraordinary bravery and compassion. it inspires others to try and do the same

SSDLHK AIZAWA SIGHTING AAHHHHHH

so he was still back at the hospital this whole time?? smdh at this disrespect. that feeling when your sexy self-insert character’s powers of rationality are too strong, and so you have to nerf him so that he doesn’t ruin your Deku Angst arc twice over by (1) immediately talking some sense into Deku and making him come home Right This Instant Young Man, and (2) not allowing him to leave U.A. in the first fucking place. excuse me, you want to do WHAT now, Midoriya?? that’s it, go to your room

also living for Katsuki and Hawks’s soft expressions. Shouto’s too, although his is tinier and harder to see. and Jeanist’s 12-foot-long neck. imagine Jeanist’s head with Mic’s hair. maybe Jeanist had a mohawk back in the day and that’s why U.A.’s doors are so big now

speaking of soft faces, Enji’s is also excellent

what could this random close-up possibly imply?? hell if I know. but Horikoshi truly fears no discourse and that’s what I love about him

OMGGGG

“smh my child is so dumb.” poor Ochadad. your child is cute af count your blessings

SDOFFHSMH

I’m telling you guys. lethally, catastrophically cute

this speech is still ongoing lol. Horikoshi you’re doing so good but I think we get the point now my dude. you gotta learn how to transition out of these things

UNEXPECTED TOGA WHAT

“there we go” Horikoshi says, crossing off the last line on his list of Ochako ships. “that’s all of ‘em”

poor Ochako is just repeating the same “LET HIM REST, PLEASE, WITH EVERYONE’S COOPERATION, IF YOU DON’T MIND, WE APPRECIATE IT” talking points over and over again hoping someone will throw her a bone and acknowledge her already. SOMEONE PLEASE HELP HER

literally they’re all just staring up at her silently omg. work with me people!!

now she’s saying it for the 56th time but more dramatically all of a sudden

they got so dramatic that for a minute I thought she had suddenly leaped off the building or something

look, not to rush you or anything Horikoshi, but I’m starting to get the feeling that this is yet another one of those “the volume is ending soon so I need to either hurry things up or slow things down in order to make sure we end it on my perfect cliffhanger ending” chapters where you go to ridiculous lengths to drag things out much to the exasperation of your week-to-week readers

(ETA: ftr, volume 31 ended on chapter 306, and I’m predicting that vol. 32 will end with chapter 316 (a.k.a. “you’re next!” [explodes]). I’m guessing vol. 33 will follow suit and likely end on chapter 326, so keep your eyes peeled for a big cliffhanger in two weeks’ time. Deku’s dad?? All Might in peril?? U.A. traitor at long fucking last?? we shall see.)

is Deku straight up falling in love with Ochako right on the spot lol what is happening

I know I just said that I enjoy when Horikoshi gives zero fucks about discourse, but shipping discourse is a whole different beast lol. I hope he’s prepared

(ETA: and for the record, I have no interest in shipping discourse either, as always. and I think this scene can be interpreted as platonic, tbh, with the context being that Ochako was literally introduced as someone who was willing to help him so casually without a second thought, and now here she is saving him again.

I don’t think it really fully hit Deku until this moment how much he needed saving. like I said in another meta somewhere, selflessness is basically just selfishness on behalf of others. and Deku is selfless to a fault, but that’s okay, and it doesn’t mean he needs to change -- he just needs friends who are willing to be be selfish on his behalf in turn. and I think the full emotion of what it means to have friends like that just hit him at last. everything his friends have done for him, how much he needed it and didn’t even realize, and how grateful he is. anyways what a terrible day for rain.)

-- son of a --

is he apologizing?? or pleading?? please tell me that’s not the case, because what the actual fuck. Deku you beautiful precious radiant selfless child, this is the exact opposite of how this should be. all these motherfuckers should be on their knees apologizing to you

DEKU WHY

I DIDN’T ASK FOR THIS FREAKING BOMBARDMENT OF EMOTIONS GODDAMIT. OUT HERE ARMED WITH YOUR FREAKING TREBUCHET OF FEELS TO LAUNCH AT ME UNPROVOKED. WHAT’S WITH THAT

FREAKING CHRIST. THIS BOY IS CRYING HIS EYES OUT AND HORIKOSHI IS JUST ZOOMING IN WITH THE CAMERA, LIKE CAN WE JUST CUT HIM A BREAK ALREADY. ENOUGH OF THIS. HE’S SO YOUNG AND HE TRIES SO HARD AND I JUST NEED HIM TO FEEL SAFE, HORIKOSHI PLEASE CAN YOU JUST GIVE ME THAT ALREADY WHAT IS THE FREAKING HOLD UP!!

GIGANTIC FOX LADY!!!

GIGANTIC FOX LADY PLEASE BE MY HUGGER BY PROXY!! SERIOUSLY GIRL IF YOU JUST HOLD YOUR UMBRELLA OVER HIM OR SOMETHING AND DON’T GO THE EXTRA MILE I’M ABOUT TO LODGE AN OFFICIAL COMPLAINT. THIS IS GETTING RIDICULOUS NOW

!!!!

A KOUTA IS GOOD TOO!!! oh my god if Kouta hugs him I will seriously 100% straight up cry. go on and test me

FOR THE LOVE OF --

is this man expressly forbidden from drawing hugs in his contract or something. DO YOU DO IT JUST TO SPITE ME?? this is tyranny, sir

AND I KNOW, THIS PAGE ACTUALLY CHALLENGED THE VERY PREMISE OF THE SERIES ITSELF, AND HERE I AM COMPLAINING ABOUT HUGS, OR THE LACK THEREOF. “this is the story of how we all became the greatest heroes.” and just like that, he waves a polite middle finger at all of the Strongest Greatest Chosen One shounen protags of old, in favor of something much less conventional, much more interesting, and much more suited to Deku’s character. because if that one sentence doesn’t just sum up Deku to a T. he gladly relinquishes his Greatest Hero status in favor of acknowledging the hero in everyone. what a class act. that’s my protagonist

I love this kid so fucking much I swear. only just PLEASE. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD. GIVE HIM HIS HUG

#bnha 324 #uraraka ochako #midoriya izuku #bnha #boku no hero academia #bnha spoilers #mha spoilers #bnha manga spoilers #makeste reads bnha

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