#but we must remember all the points he lost in early seasons

[callisteios]

i have spent three years assigning points to every action and inaction of all the major house md characters. here is each character's objective moral value across all 8 seasons of house

[dilemmaontwolegs]

Not A Verstappen: A New World {2}

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x fem!driver!reader x Lando Norris Summary: Unexpected allies and strange changes are happening both on and off the track. Warnings: 18+ only, mature content, we got another period WC: 2.4k F1 Masterlist NAV: Sibling Rivalry One || Two || Three NAV: Gridlocked One || Two || Three || Four || Five || Six || Seven || Eight || Nine NAV: A New World One || Two || Three

Round One - Bahrain 2023 “Nice work out there,” Lance said as he clapped you on the back as you began your return to the motorhome smelling like champagne. 

“You too, not a bad start at all,” you said with a grin. It was the first race and already you had scored a podium for Aston Martin, albeit behind both Red Bulls. 

“Not sure your boyfriends would agree. Have you seen them yet?”

You sighed and shook your head. Charles had out-qualified you, both Ferrari’s starting a row ahead, but in the end he hadn’t been able to finish the race. Lando wasn’t much better, coming in last with who remained in the race. 

“I’ll hunt them down after I find my mum. She’s probably lost and confused by now.” 

“She’ll get used to the paddock soon enough. It must be good to have her finally come to your races.”

“I’m not sure she would say the same thing,” you chuckled. “Did you see how nervous she was at testing last week? Thought she was going to have an aneurysm when she heard my top speed.”

“Dad was like that when I started too.” Lance opened the door for you to the Aston Martin motorhome and grinned at the cheer that erupted. The race had only finished an hour ago and already the motorhome was being dismantled to move on to the next destination.

“One more race like that and we’ll already have more points than we had all of last year,” Lawrence said as he threw his arms around both you and his son. “Sensational! That’ll show the bastards at Red Bull they have a competition on their hands this year.”

“Can’t wait,” you smirked at the idea.

Lawrence squeezed your shoulder. “Show them what a mistake they made, alright?”

“With pleasure. Thank you for giving me the chance.”

Lawrence sighed and took a seat at an empty table, pointing you to the one opposite and he sent Lance off to get changed. “You’re a great driver, there’s no disputing that, so I’m happy to have you on the team - especially if you keep performing like you did out there. You could have an entire harem for all I care.”

“I’m happy with two, thanks,” you said with a laugh. “It does suck not being able to go out and celebrate though.” 

You had received a warning letter before the season began with an outline on which countries you would be arrested in for showing any PDA, same with Lando and Charles. Bahrain was one and the next stop in Saudi Arabia was another. Lewis had tried to speak up but his influence couldn't change the laws that were going to be upheld and there would be no leniency. 

“I’d rather not have to bail you out of jail so early in the season.”

“I can cover bail, just don’t rip up my contract,” you joked. “Please.”

“That wasn’t right. I have a daughter so I know full well the different treatment you ladies get no matter what you do.” He leaned forward and lowered his voice as he jutted a thumb over his shoulder, “They don’t even seem to remember Checo’s scandal in Monaco last year. It just goes to show that it wasn't because their ‘core values’ were breached. Red Bull is led by misogynists. End of.”

“Well don’t hold back, Mr Stroll.” You grinned at your boss and sat back in your seat feeling even more comfortable with your choice in employer. You had offers from Williams and Alfa Romeo, as well as a reserve driver for Mercedes, but you were glad you took the Aston Martin seat, even if green wasn’t your best colour. “I feel like I should set you up on a soap box outside their garage.”

“I’ve found they don’t pay much attention to words, we’ll just have to beat them instead,” he said as he rose from the table and wrapped his knuckles on the wooden top. “Have yourself a good evening.”

“You too, boss.”

After showering and searching the motorhome and failing to find your mum, you went in search through the paddock, finally locating her in McLaren’s hospitality. 

“One race and you ditched me already,” you said to her as you stole one of their bottles of water from the fridge. 

“I knew you were fine, so I thought I would check in on sweet Lando,” she said with a sad smile. “He’s not too happy with his result.”

You snorted a laugh and she slapped your arm as she shhh’d you. “What? No one jumps for joy at last place. It’s kind of obvious.”

“Just go and check on him okay? I’ll see you all for dinner later.”

You watched her navigate her way out and trusted that she could find her way back to Astin Martin. Kristian was staying in the same hotel so she was going to get a ride back with him while you rode with Lando and Charles after finishing the debrief and interviews. She had the endless patience of a saint, except when it came to the media.

You rapped your knuckles on the door before opening it and found Lando pacing the narrow space, his phone to his ear. “-least yours was a mechanical failure, my car is just shit. Oh, she just got here. We’ll see you soon. Love you.”

He tossed his phone onto the table and opened his arms, welcoming a warm embrace after the terrible performance he had endured. His chest was still damp from the shower and he smelt edible like a key lime pie when you kissed his collar bone. 

“Proud of you,” he murmured into your neck where he buried his face and inhaled your body wash too. 

“Proud of you too.” 

He pulled back and shook his head like he didn’t believe you and you caught his face in your hands, forcing him to face you. “I am proud of you, baby. What you did today was much harder than me…the fact you still finished the race and held your head high shows how resilient you are. I probably would have done a Kimi and just fucked off mid-race.”

His chest bounced with a small laugh because you both knew it was true. 

“You are going to be a world champion one day, I know it,” you swore as you pressed your forehead to his and felt him shake his head. “You don’t have to believe me, Lando. I believe in you. You deserve it, you have the raw talent - and one day you will have the car to match. Then you will be unstoppable.”

The door swung open as Charles let himself in and you delighted in the way his face lit up upon seeing you both opening your arms for him to join. “Mmmm,” he sighed as he closed his eyes and tipped his head onto Lando’s shoulder. “What a fucking day…Can we go home yet?”

Round Four - Baku 2023 You were a shoo-in for a podium place. It was in reach for the fourth race in a row, until the pain began. Sudden and strong, you nearly missed the corner as the ache in your abdomen grew to a point you couldn’t ignore it. You felt even bump in the road, every force of the turns, the pressure from your harness.

“Fuck,” you growled through gritted teeth. “How many laps left?”

“Five, why? Woah, your heart rate is through the roof,” Chris exclaimed, not nearly as calm as Nicholas would have been.

“Yeah, kind of happens when I’m in pain,” you retorted as you thought you could probably handle five more laps. There wasn’t another option anyway. 

By the penultimate lap Charles had overtaken you and you saw his helmet turn your way ever so slightly, like time slowed as he passed. There was no way to see under his visor but you knew there would have been a look of concern on his face.

“Try to at least maintain your pace, Sainz is currently gaining.”

“I’m fucking trying alright.”

You managed to remain in fourth position as you crossed the finish line and then returned to the pits to see Charles’ Ferrari taking the last podium parking spot. You would have liked to have parked there but if it had to go to someone else you were glad it was him. 

“Where’s Lando?”

“Ninth.”

You laughed happily at the news that he had also made it to the points again and turned off your engine to start unstrapping yourself. You reached between your legs for the buckle and swore under your breath as you felt the sticky residue on your race suit that was definitely not sweat.

Charles had been celebrating with his team before the final weigh in but when he returned to take a drink of water he noticed you still hadn’t climbed out of yours. He could see Lando’s car a few behind as he arrived but even he was touching down on the tarmac and pushing his steering console back into place.

“Charles, you’re up,” Max interrupted the step he took towards you. “What’s she doing? She’s not crying because she lost, right?”

“I don’t know,” he muttered half distracted before realising what Max had said and rolled his eyes. “She’s not crying.”

He seemed proven wrong when you pulled your helmet off your head and he saw tears streaming down your face. Max turned to Sergio and pointed to the interviewer waiting by the Sky News cameras. “Mate, can you go first?” They didn’t wait for an answer as your face contorted with pain and your head fell forward. 

“Baby, you alright?” Lando asked as he reached you first, reaching in and taking your steering wheel out for you as you shook your head. “Here, let me help you out.”

“I can’t get out of the car,” you admitted as tears of embarrassment wet your hot cheeks. 

“That's okay, I can carry you,” he murmured as he reached for you but you slapped his hands away. 

“I can’t get out of the fucking car!” you snapped, immediately getting the attention of Charles and Max who had arrived too, only increasing the anxiety that you were feeling. “Please, just get my pit crew to jack up the car and wheel me to the garage.”

“Why?” Max asked as he crossed his arms, but then they dropped as he barked a laugh. “Did you pee in the car?”

“Fuck off, twat,” you grunted as Charles hit him on the shoulder with a, “Mate, it happens, leave her alone.”

You hunched over and clutched your abdomen as a cramp wracked your body and a pained groan slipped out. “Oh, oh shit,” Lando reacted first, knowing exactly what was happening after surviving three of your menstrual cycles over the winter break. 

“Charles, Max, interview time.” 

They both glared at the FIA official but Lando nodded his head. “Go, I’ll take care of her.”

Three Days Later Your knee nervously bounced as you sat in the doctor's room. “I never get periods during the racing season, something must be wrong.”

“Well, your test results were all normal.” She pushed her glasses back up her nose as she changed the folders she was looking at. “Are you feeling stressed?”

You pondered the question for a moment, not really having realised how different life was in Aston Martin and not having to hide your relationship. “Not really, no.”

“But you used to be,” she noted as she read through her past comments on your file. “Stress, as you know, can upset your hormonal balance quite significantly.”

“So I’m getting my period again because I’m not as stressed? That’s inconvenient.”

“It’s how your body should function.”

“I need it to stop.”

Reaching into her drawer, she grabbed a few pamphlets and laid them across her desk. “There’s certainly options, but they could have other side effects.”

You left the office with a prescription in hand but you weren’t sure how your boyfriends were going to take the news. They were always concerned about your health and wellbeing that it could go one of two ways.

“I thought the hormones would mess with you,” Lando said as he shook the box and heard the rattle of the foil trays inside.

“They are messing with me now.” You dropped down onto the couch as he passed the box over to Charles to read. “Who knew Red Bull could be so stressful?” you mused.

“Pierre, Albono, Kvyat,” Lando listed with a smirk. 

“I think you should take them, if you think it will help,” Charles decided as he placed the box back in your hand.

“There’s only one way to find out,” you shrugged, cracking the foil seal on the first tablet. “Plus, we’ll save a fortune not having to buy condoms.”

“Wait, what?” Lando’s face lit up like a kid at Christmas. “I thought this was to stop your period.”

“I mean, it stops them, as well as having babies, like a two-for-one deal.”

“I could get on board that.” His lips curled up into a sexy smirk as he dropped into the space beside you and draped his arm across your shoulders. His body was already stirring at the idea and he looked up at Charles who had gone to get a glass of water for you. “Tell me you haven’t dreamt of this day.”

Charles rolled his eyes but didn’t refute him as he handed the glass over and watched you swallow the little pill. “Of course I have, mon cher.”

“Sorry, boys, it takes seven days to work. You’ll still have to wrap it if you want to tap it.”

It was mean but you took some pleasure in the collective groan they made.

“Block out your calendar,” Charles chuckled as he bent down and kissed you. “Seven days and we plan to absolutely ruin you.”

You squirmed at the thought, imagining the feel of their cum dripping from you after they filled you and it drove you feral. You grabbed Charles and pulled him onto the couch as he laughed at the sudden urge you had to feel his body on yours. 

“Tell us what you need, chérie,” he teased while Lando’s lips found your racing pulse.

Your core clenched and reminded you of the emptiness within. “You,” you begged as your hands disappeared up their shirts and felt the hard muscles beneath your palms. “I need you to ruin me.”

Click here for part three.

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[nalyra-dreaming]

Hello! Love your blog - please allow me to bring back a topic to the table:

How long did Daniel spend with Louis and Armand back in the 70s? I see a lot of speculation that some version of DM takes place back then. And, it would be very dramatically compelling to have Daniel realize that he’s not just lost a night of memories (which I think is what he believes presently?) but actually several months/a whole relationship/a side of himself. However, in every new clip from the 70s thus far the trio seems to be wearing the same clothes as from the flashback in episode six. Also, I think in some official interviews it sounds like they are referring to a single event when they are talking about the first interviews. Of course, this could be a deliberate obfuscation as to not spoil anything…

I read a theory speculating that Daniel will early on in the season remember a few flashes of Armand. Specifically that after having saved him from Louis, Armand basically considered killing him. That this is what the ”I’m the quiet you’ve been longing for…” scene is about, and that this is why Daniel at some point fears Armand (as heard in the trailer). He will probably believe that Armand must have erased his memories after Louis tried to kill him (which might also be just what happened if DM doesn’t take place) as he learns of the extent of Armand’s mind ability (which could be connected to learning about the Théâtre des Vampire as they are probably hypnotizing their victims?). Listening to Louis’ and hearing his inconsistencies he will probably put two and two together and realize and help Louis realize that Armand has interfered with his mind.

If DM happened in the past, this could result in a really explosive ending in which Daniel first believes that he has finally come to understand all there is to know of the story between Louis and Armand and also of his first encounter with the two, but then as more memories comes to the surface he is faced with the realization that there’s a lot more to it.

(1/2)

Hey!

Glad you like :))

Sooooo I think that the Devil's Minion of the past will likely unfold pretty much the same as in the books, namely the hunt across the globe, and then years of relationship.

However, I do not think that will be something we will see everything of already. AND I think that both Devil's Minion and Lesmand have been mostly kept out of the "general trailer" as not to confuse the more casual viewers. So that is nothing I would go by, actually.

Daniel remembering is - contrary to Louis! - a deliberate thing (at least from Armand's side - I do believe Louis also tries to remember deliberately, but Armand probably does not really want him to, which... I get. Ahem.). Others have posted about this too, but the medicine he gets should have other effects - and the sheer presence of Fareed means there's... something going on.

I think he will continue to remember, more and more, and there is a high chance that he will remember Louis, too. Personally I think that it was not Armand who erased Daniel's memories (contrary to Louis'). This could also be the reason why for Louis some bleed through... and for Daniel they didn't. (But we'll see about that^^).

I am very sure DM did indeed happen in the past - up and until Daniel not being too healthy and wanting to be turned. And then something happened differently than in the book.

Remembering will indeed be a shock to the system for him - as you said, he more or less settled. Though his subconscious remembers. The Bosch-puzzle, the "Savage Garden" book. Set design, yes, but done on purpose. He also knows there's something that doesn't match, because he probably cannot remember where he got the bite mark.

Considering these vampires can heal these wounds... that's a visible claim. By Armand.

And yes, this is a very... insidious kind of horror. And it is a theme in the chronicles. The road to accept themselves as the monsters they are is rocky indeed.

Daniel realizing he "loved this thing" is also part of it all. (That is a quote, too^^). Daniel does not see Armand in any kind of idealized light - he sees him in his entirety. And yes, of course Armand thinks what he does best... he's not doing it out of malice. He thinks he's helping... in his own, inimitable way.

"L'amour est un monstre".

They didn't choose this headline just for Loumand on the posters :) No, as with so many things... this goes for several relationships and situations.

Armand will indeed not be able to let Daniel die, imho - but that won't be this season... I think this season will need to deal with the fallout on Louis. For Daniel and Armand that will come up still, in some kind of way.

The upcoming season will be very interesting for DM, but I doubt it will be the last - I think it will open it up, so that the truly interesting, gritty conflict can come about in the upcoming seasons :))

I for one am looking very much forward to it.

[nofomogirl]

Before the Beginning (part 1.2.)

Part 1.1. | Part 1.3. | Part 1.4. | Part 1.5. |

Part 2.1. | Part 2.2. | Part 2.3. | Part 2.4. |

This series of posts is about the opening scene of S2. Obviously. In every X.1. post I will propose one theory of what I believe the scene tells us about the universe and the characters, and then in the following X posts (X.2. and on) I will interpret scenes from both seasons applying and further examining thet theory.

My first theory, which I presented in the opening post, is that the Fall was a far more transformative event than both we, the audience, and the characters in the show, especially Aziraphale, have ever realized. I believe it's communicated to us by showing us pre-Fall Crowley who has no serpentine traits, from which we can infer that he had no serpentine nature either. It had only appeared after the Fall.

Now I'd like to examine the scenes where Crowley's past angelic identity is ever brought up.

In this post, we'll be looking at the (in)famous Bandstand Breakup from S1E3. The beginning of that scene is one of the earliest instances Crowley's past angelic identity is ever brought up properly.

Here's the original dialogue:

A: It's the Great Plan Crowley. C: Yeah. For the record, great pustulent mangled bollocks to the Great blasted Plan! A: May you be forgiven. C: I won't be forgiven. Not ever. That's part of the demon's job description. Unforgivable. That's what I am. A: You were an angel once. C: That was a long time ago.

I'm not going to lie, I didn't notice anything unusual about it after S1. It's a brief exchange and the Bandstand Breakup is a heavily emotional scene, so even after multiple rewatches it got lost for me among all the other things that were going on.

If anything, my interpretation was that Aziraphale meant Crowley might not be as unforgivable as he claims. But I really wasn't thinking too much about it.

But now that I have a reason to look specifically at those two lines, they are very unusual.

Just compare them to the dialogue from the very same episode, from the 1862 St. James Park scene:

C: Look, I've been thinking. What if it all goes wrong? We have a lot in common, you and me. A: I don't know. We may have both started off as angels but you are fallen.

And, OK, this was somewhat unusual too, but only in how extreme it was, not in the sentiment either of them was expressing. It was perfectly on-brand for Crowley to try and bring Aziraphale's attention to how the differences between them weren't really all that big or significant. It was just as perfectly on brand for Aziraphale to insist they were on opposite sides.

In fact, they both express the very same sentiments during the bandstand scene.

Except in those early lines I quoted where their roles are practically reversed for a brief moment. By pointing out that Crowley was an angel once, it's Aziraphale who tries to convince Crowley they are more similar than it may appear. And by brushing Aziraphale off it's Crowley who shuts down that line of reasoning and underlines the divide between them.

You must admit it is unusual.

So why would they?

When it comes to Aziraphale, it's important to remember that at the time this scene was happening, he was in an exceptional and very difficult position. I've already addressed it in one of my older posts, so I'm just going to quote myself:

"At the end of episode 2, Aziraphale learned who and where the Antichrist was and it was the first piece of real information he got that could actually make a difference. He needed to make a choice about what to do with it and it pretty much paralysed him.

First, immediately after finding out, he got a call from Crowley asking for updates and lied claiming he didn't know anything. Then he arranged the meeting with the Archangels but withheld most of the information and when asked directly where the Antichrist might be he lied again that he wasn't sure. Then he met Crowley face to face (this is where the scene we're discussing takes place), once more lied (by omission) about the Antichrist, insisted he wouldn't tell him anyway, and eventually broke up with him. The next day he approached Gabriel and tried to reason with him by mentioning "human prophecies" but not the Antichrist. Then Crowley approached him again and was rejected again. And finally, he got cornered and assaulted by Michael, Uriel, and Sandalphon.

Frankly, I haven't even noticed it before, with all the other scenes in between, and all the emotions involved, but it's a very clear pattern, isn't it? Crowley - Heaven - Crowley - Heaven - Crowley - Heaven. Nothing could illustrate better how Aziraphale was swinging between the two."

Aziraphale is trying to figure out what to do. He's currently in a swing away from Heaven - which put him off the idea of telling them during their meeting - and towards Crowley. He's searching for reasons and arguments why he might choose siding with Crowley. And it's all very high stakes and emotionally intense.

And under all this immense pressure Aziraphale brings up, in a rather small and pleading voice, something that seems uncharacteristic at the time.

"You used to be an angel once".

You used to be like me. You still are.

This was a perfect opening for Crowley. He should have picked that thread and pulled and he would very likely get where he wanted. Starting from there would make it so much easier to back all his arguments and prove all his points. But he didn't.

Crowley straight-up refused to discuss it.

He pretty much shut the door Aziraphale opened for him and then not even a minute later proceeded to try and break through the wall...

Why?

That is a much simpler question. Just like Aziraphale, Crowley was heavily distressed. He didn't know about the Antichrist. He believed he was running out of options and out of time. The world was about to end and he was powerless to do anything about it. He didn't have the mental capacity to reexamine and discuss this very sensitive and problematic topic right then.

We are not done with the scene yet, but for now, let's leave it. In the next post, we'll look at ones when Crowley is a bit more open about the subject - the Job minisode.

[coraniaid]

🔥 honestly just let loose with controversial btvs opinions I’m ready

So ... I think I've probably said this before, but at the risk of repeating myself: I don't like the way the show treats the idea of Harmony as a vampire.  In particular, I really don't like the way the show depicts Buffy Summers finding out that Harmony is a vampire (in Season 4's The Harsh Light Of Day).  I don't think it's consistent with her character as established to this point, and I don't think it makes much sense logistically either.

Before Season 4, I think the show is actually pretty consistent in how it treats the idea of 'becoming' a vampire.  Yes, a vampire remembers their past life: we see that with Jesse as early as Season 1's second episode, The Harvest. And yes, a vampire's personality is heavily influenced by the person they were when they were alive: again, see Jesse's continuing obsession with Cordelia, and also what Angel (almost) says in Season 3's Doppelgangland about Willow.

(Indeed, this is really the only excuse for Giles repeatedly telling Buffy about the crimes various vampires she faces in the first three seasons committed while they were alive: which he does for Andrew Borba in Season 1's Never Kill A Boy On The First Date, for the Gorch brothers in Season 2's Bad Eggs and for Zachary Kralik in Season 3's Helpless.  Why bother doing that unless it tells her something about the vampires she'll now be fighting?) 

So yes, a vampire remembers being human and (at least sometimes) retains a lot of their former personality.

But equally, the show has also been consistent up to this point -- and, more importantly, it has consistently shown that the characters in the show believe it to be true -- that the human does die when turned into a vampire.  The vampire retains the memories and something of the personality, but something ineffable -- call it a soul, continuity of self, whatever -- is lost.  As Buffy tells Ford in Lie To Me, you categorically do not "become" a vampire:

"... that's not how it works.  You die, and a demon sets up shop in your old house.  And it walks, and it talks, and it remembers your life, but it's not you."

-- Buffy Summers, Lie To Me

This is why Buffy can't just let vampires turn people into more vampires, even if (as in Lie To Me) those people are willing for them to do so.  Because it's murder.  Because it's wrong.  It's something that's pretty much central to the premise of the show.  Not that it is necessarily a true belief about the world -- the show is fiction, after all, there is no objective truth to be found -- but that Buffy herself believes it.

And, at least for the first three-and-a-bit seasons of the show, she does believe it.  Ford gets turned by Spike, and -- just as she promised him she would while he was alive-- Buffy waits up by his grave that night and she stakes the vampire he has become.  She doesn't congratulate him on his plan to beat cancer succeeding because -- as far as she's concerned -- it did not succeed, it could never have succeeded, and her old friend Ford is already dead.  In Doppelgangland, after meeting the alternate reality vampire Willow, the gang all react as if their Willow has died: they speak of her in the past tense, they offer up eulogies for her.  They don't wonder why Willow has decided to 'become' a vampire.  They mourn.  Buffy blames herself, because (she thinks) her best friend has just died.

That's the other thing the show is consistent about.  By Season 2, if not earlier, Buffy has deeply internalized the notion that she personally has a duty to protect her friends and her classmates from harm.  And when she fails in that duty she blames herself.  Willow's a vampire?  Well, that must be because Buffy called her "reliable".  Angelus turned Theresa into a vampire?  Well, of course that's Buffy's fault: she's to blame for everyone Angelus kills, isn't she?  Buffy's new college friend Eddie's a vampire now?  Well, that's definitely her fault too, so she'll apologize to him even as she readies herself to stake him.

But then there's Harmony.

Granted, Harmony Kendall is not a particularly admirable person in life.  She's a bully, she's shallow, she's fickle.  She does not treat Willow or Marcie Ross or Cordelia kindly or well.  And when Buffy Summers, Class Protector, asks her to, she risks her life, just like all of the graduating class of 1999 - without powers, without destiny, without training -- to try to stop the Mayor's Ascension.  And we see on the screen how it ends.  One of the vampires she's fighting gets close enough to bite her; and that's the last we ever see of the human girl called Harmony.

Harmony is not a good person, but she dies a hero. She dies fighting to save the world.

And how does Buffy react to finding out that Harmony has been turned into a vampire?  Does she mourn her?  She's known her for over two years, by this point, far longer than she'd known Eddie.  Longer than she'd known Theresa or Jesse as well. We first see her in The Harvest, as part of Cordelia's clique, and so -- since Buffy tried befriending Cordelia when she arrived in town -- it's possible that Harmony was one of the first people Buffy ever met in Sunnydale.

Does Buffy blame herself?  It was her plan, after all, to have her fellow classmates arm themselves and fight the Mayor and his vampires.  She had to have known there would be casualties.  None of them have superpowers.  They'd just given her an award for protecting them.  This isn't like Theresa or (as she mistakenly thought) Willow.  There's no complex, convoluted chain of reasoning required here.  Harmony is dead because Buffy decided her best option was to ask her to risk her life.  Most of the time Buffy is wrong to assume it's her fault people have died, but this time I think she might have a point.

Just how does Buffy react to finding out that Harmony is a vampire?  Well, she says this:

"Harmony's a vampire?  She must be dying without a reflection."

-- Buffy Summers, The Harsh Light Of Day

She makes a joke of it. And ... uh, that's it. Although Buffy will run into Harmony again (and again, and again...) that's the most reaction we ever see.  We never see any suggestion that Buffy blames herself for Harmony's death: we don't even see her acknowledge the fact that Harmony is dead. There's no apology for Harmony.  At best, she's a punchline.  The fact that Harmony's dead is funny.

So yeah, I think that kind of sucks, frankly, and I don't think it's consistent with how Buffy was acting as recently as two episodes earlier.

But also ... how, exactly, can Buffy only be finding out that Harmony is a vampire now?  Graduation Day was months ago.  Buffy stayed up by Ford's grave in case he'd been turned.  Did she not bother to do that for the kids she talked into dying in a fight against the Mayor?  For that matter, how does Willow not instantly know that the 'Harmony' she runs into must be a vampire?  Did she not even bother to find out which of her fellow students died in the battle?

(Or, maybe, is the point meant to be that Harmony got bitten in the battle, didn't actually die at all, but then somehow got bitten again later that summer? Everything I've read online suggests Harmony was meant to have died in the Season 3 finale, but I guess it's not explicitly stated in the show that she did...)

More generally ... well, I think having one of Buffy's old classmates come back as a vampire is a solid writing choice.  I don't think it would have been a good idea to have it be one of the regulars -- that would have been far too depressing -- so a minor recurring character makes a lot of sense. Personally I'd have liked to see School Hard's Sheila come back in a later episode, but failing that Harmony is as good a choice as any.  And -- since the show has already established that a vampire's personality owes a lot to the human they were in life -- it makes sense (albeit it's a bit mean-spirited) to have Harmony as a vampire be vapid and self-absorbed.

I don't think it's quite as funny a joke as the writers obviously did though.  Funny enough for one episode, maybe two.  Not twenty-eight (across the full runs of both Buffy and Angel).

[delta0003]

Jse ego winter prompt-Day 8- baby it’s cold outside.

Leobashi winter AU enough said.

It was a cold winter night and Chase just got the kids to bed and was ready to get to bed himself when he noticed a figure coming towards the house. Hm strange why would anyone be out in this kind of weather, maybe they're lost and need help so Chase got back up and headed back out to meet said person but when Chase opened the door there wasn't a person in sight. Hm strange could of thought i saw someone, must be my imagination or the lack of sleep finally getting to me. Well don't tread on it for too long so Chase turned around and went to bed dreaming of some of the stories his mother used to tell about monsters in the woods and especially about the embodiments of the four seasons, Chase wishing he could meet them in person. Chase woke early in the morning making breakfast for the kids, come on you two, you don't wanna be late to see your grandma and grandpa do you. No but dad why do we have to go, why can't we stay here with you all year round. Well your education for one thing plus you've both got friends that will miss you if you stay here. Well yes but wont you get lonely. Na your old man can handle himself. Alright if you say so. Good now you two eat your oatmeal and get dressed. We'll be leaving soon. Okay but can we visit mom’s grave before we get dropped off. Alright we’ll visit before dropping you off so chase and his kids went to the cemetery, prayed for a bit, then chase dropped the kids off with their grandparents for the new year, then trekked back to the cabin.

By the time chase got half way there it was already sometime in the evening. Hm got to start dinner then chop some wood for the fire better hurry up before something out here has ME for dinner so chase picked up the pace to get home quicker when he noticed he passed a certain tree twice already. Strange I passed this tree already must be in one of those fae traps I kept hearing from Angus. Now what did he tell me if i was ever in one, hm lets see he said if i ever got caught in one all i have to do is turn back right? No ive gotta find it and kill, right?Eh i cant remember what to do and mom never told me about fairies before. I guess I could walk back and find a different route so Chase turned around and went back to a half way point when he noticed he felt like he was being watch but Chase looked around and couldn’t find anyone around. Hm must be paranoia getting to me but then Chase felt a heavy weight on his shoulders and collapsed into the snow but he tried getting up and failed miserably what with this weight I feel so heavy and tired, like I can’t keep my eyes open Chase started to panic but couldn’t find the strength so he quickly passed out and when he woke up he was back at his cabin under the blankets. What? How’d I’d end up back here? But Chase couldn’t find the source of his questions till he heard a bang from his kitchen so Chase quickly got up to investigate the noise and was met with the sight of a man with snow white hair. Verdammt blöder Herd(god damn stupid stove.) The sight was hilarious seeing as how whoever this was didn't know how to use a stove that chased let out a laugh that startled the strange man. Gah-your still supposed to be asleep human-this is a dream I'm not real but that just made chase laugh harder till finally chase composed himself. Hah ah sorry dude for laughing but the sight just tickled me fun is all, anyways who are you? My name is Hendrick. Hm it's nice to meet you Hendrick and thanks for saving me from a cold death. Um you're welcome chase now if you'll excuse me i should be going, um human you should be more careful from now on. Hm alright thanks for the advice winter spirit. WHAT HOW DID-the hair it gave you away-N-no it's a fashion choice. Right fashion choice we’ll go with that anyways thanks again for that and be safe my dude. Hm right and with that the spirit vanished into a flurry of white and left. Hm so that was the winter spirit, he’s cute.

@leobashi @incidentsofunknownorigins

[vikenticomeshome]

Cyberchase Character Discussion (for your local Cyberchase trivia quiz) - #4: The Hacker

You all knew this one was coming.

#4: The Hacker

Let's talk about The Hacker's character, as well as the lore around him. We can start with his original character bio. Of course, keep in mind that this info was laid down nearly 25 years ago, so much of what we talk about may no longer be canon. The Hacker is a particularly interesting case, as they have presented different origin stories for him over the years which contradict one another. These don't seem to affect how the Cybersquad views him, though. I remember reading a post not too long ago about someone pointing out that our three Earth kids don't seem the least bit interested in The Hacker's origin. Yeah, I agree on that point.

So, we know from this panel that he is pompus and power-hungry. We also know that he wants to take over Cyberspace. It is a bit weird that they call it "Cyberworld" here. Maybe that was some sort of early name. They already knew that his wig (or was it real hair at this point?) was going to be important to the character.

His favorite color is puce. We all remember how upset he was during Season 1 Episode 1 "Lost My Marbles" when he was stuck using pink fog instead of puce fog to make sure the children would be lost on Topsy-Turvy Island forever.

We also know about his interest in Elvis and becoming the Big E E (Evil Elvis).

We also saw his love for Elvis in the official Cyberchase web comic "Cyber Idol" from Ron Barrett.

He also loves Judge Doom from "Who Framed Roger Rabbit".

He enjoys "The Prince" by Machiavelli, which is a very old and famous book going back to the 1500s. The book present itself as a guide for how princes should act when they gain their power. There's a whole section about princes gaining their power through criminal acts, which I'm sure The Hacker would have enjoyed very much.

The Hacker's original original story came from the oficial Cyberchase Prequel web comic, "How It All Started" (episode 1). It is about as simple as can be.

Narration: Needing an assistant with a high level of intelligence, Dr. Marbles assembles a cyborg who calls himself The Hacker.

The Hacker (thinking): Hmmm, someday I'll take over all of Cyberspace!

He picked out his own name, and he decided he would take over Cyberspace shortly after birth. He also always looked like his current self. Is assembly the normal process for birthing a new Cyborg? Did Slider start out the same way? You know what? I don't even want to go into the confusing mess that is Cyborg biology or how it compares to Robot biology on this post. We know that Cyberchase is never going to explain it.

I'll keep the rest of this origin story brief. The Hacker stole Motherboard's Encryptor Chip and locked in a Vault.

Digit was able to retrieve it, and Motherboard declared that The Hacker must be banished for his crime. Dr. Marbles drained his power, which ensure that he needs to regularly recharge himself. Then Dr. Marbles sent him to the Northern Frontier via a remote-controlled pod.

I love Dr Marble's line here. "Page down, Hacker. You file is closed!"

It is revealed that The Hacker brought Digit with him into exile against his will. Somehow, neither Motherboard nor Dr. Marbles realized this.

I've already talked at length about The Hacker causing disruption on the Valussa Cybersite, which led to Digit fully defecting to Motherboard.

We actually got an animated adaptation of this version of The Hacker's origin story in Season 1 Episode 11 "A Day at the Spa".

It gives us The Hacker having his perpetual power supply down-graded by Dr. Marbles prior to being launched into exile.

However, the show has not maintained the origin story from "How It All Started". Starting with Season 3 Episode 4 "A Piece of the Action", we see The Hacker in his younger years. I'm not sure if his hair was a wig back then or not.

We got more of this during the Transformatron Arc, where we saw Coop destroy the Transformatron Blueprints to prevent The Hacker from using the machine to take over.

We also know that The Hacker went to school, though it's not clear if this was high school or college.

So, yeah, it seems like the writers decided to move away from The Hacker as being born evil. They wanted to flesh him out more and have him turn to darkness over time.

All of this could still fit with his original banishment though. Maybe Motherboard never learned about the Transformatron, since The Hacker damaged Coop's hard drive and sent him into exile. Maybe Coop didn't want to go to Motherboard and harm The hacker more once the Transformatron plans were disposed. Perhaps The Hacker's theft of the Encryptor Chip still happened later on and triggered his banishment.

And then Season 5 Episode 6 "The Flying Parallinis" happened.

Oh look, that poor cyborg is trapped on top of Mount Way-Up-There in the Northern Frontier.

Good thing The Flying Parallinis are here to use their flexing power to build a tower to rescue him.

Oops.

And so, having accidentally freed The Hacker from his prison, The Flying Parallinis vowed to put aside their special talent for who knows how long. No doubt that was pretty traumatic for them.

One central point of The Hacker's situation is that he no longer has the amazing power supply he started with. It was downgraded, so that he requires regular recharges. Did Dr. Marbles and Motherboard just stick him on top of a tower all by himself to die?

Well, if Season 12 Episode 8 "Hacker Hugs a Tree" is his canon origin story, then the answer is no. Here is how his banishment was portrayed during that episode.

So, we have Hacker in his young form being shoved through a portal to the Northern Frontier all alone. This breaks the idea that The Hacker was in his final form when he was banished. This breaks the idea that Motherboard and Dr. Marbles put him on top of Mount Way-Up-There. This breaks the idea that he took Digit with him when he was banished. I'm not even sure if Digit exists at this point in the new timeline. They don't explain why he's being banished here. It may not have even been over the theft of the Encryptor Chip in this timeline. Given that he looks the same as he did when Coop shredded the Transformatron plans, I wonder if Motherboard found out about him giving Coop magnetite poisoning a few days later, and that got him banished.

In hindsight, maybe I should have made a separate post all about The Hacker's origin story and its retcons. On the other hand, I don't know that you can talk much about the character without at least trying to explain his banishment.

Okay, let's fast-forward to the present. What does The Hacker really think of the Cybersquad? With Motherboard damaged, but not destroyed, Matt, Jackie, Inez, and Digit are usually the only ones standing between him and controlling Cyberspace. Assuming Digit's origin story hasn't been ret-conned, he is basically The Hacker's son, even if he has betrayed him at the point. Matt, Jackie and Inez are actual children. Would The Hacker really go as far as trying to kill them all if he had the chance?

Yes! Yes he would! One stand-out example is Season 3 Episode 7, where he uses lava to flood the pyramid stairs that they are climbing. That was attempted murder.

We can also consider Season 1 Episode 7 "Zeus on the Loose" as a stand-out example. The Hacker openly states that he intends to open Pandora's Box in order to unleash death and destruction. As a children's cartoon character, he isn't even supposed to use the word "death", but he does it anyway, because he's The Hacker.

But what about Cyborg children? Is The Hacker willing to hurt them too?

Yes! Absolutely! The most notable case was probably giving Slider magnetite poisoning in Season 4 Episode 5 "Measure for Measure".

And what about Digit? What is The Hacker willing to do to him?

How about we use Season 6 Episode 1 "Digit's B-day Surprise" as an example. The Hacker spends Digit's B-Day with him breaking his self-esteem down. Digit is convinced that the kids dislike him for being clumsy. He is almost convinced to sign a consent form to let The Hacker reprogram him to make him less clumsy.

Of course, this is a trick to let The Hacker turn Digit into an obedient henchman. The kids are so fortunate that Digit defected to Motherboard. Buzz has no special abilities. Delete has his seldom-used elongating arms, but he is a wishy-washy mess. Digit has an all-purpose beak that can open nearly any lock and drill through nearly any material. He's also the only Cyberspace resident who is immune to magnetite. Also, he can fly. He could be a goddamn Terminator.

What's next for The Hacker? Will he hurt unborn babies?

Oh yeah, he already went there in the pilot, "The Poddleville Case", where he stole the Poddle's eggs.

Anyway, what else can I say about The Hacker? He's quite happy to bide his time and play the long game with his plans. We saw this in the Snelfu Snafu, where he let the kids get the last bid on the auction for the Encryptor Chip. They took it back to Control Central, plugged it in and...

...it turned out that The Hacker sabotaged the Encryptor Chip ahead of time to allow him to take over Cyberspace.

We could also look at the Transformatron Arc, where the kids won in small ways, while The Hacker slipped away laughing with another piece to his blessed machine.

Ascension.

I suppose we can finish up with his official trading card.

The only real piece of new information here is that he refuses to provide his age. So, your guess is as good as mine. He could be 3 years old or 300 years old.

[emeraldspiral]

Hi, I'm glad there are still people talking about invader zim. I like theories, so I'll aim more for that. What do you think is the biggest mystery of the series? And what do you think about the invader Tenn in relation to this reddit theory?(link: https://www.reddit.com/r/invaderzim/comments/dvf9ad/theory_one_of_the_tallest_may_have_a_crush_on/ )

There's just certain things we don't know about because the show didn't get to flesh out everything. There's things like Miss Bitters's true nature or whether Gaz or Membrane have supernatural abilities or if it's all just artistic license, or questions like "What happens when Zim finds out his mission is fake?" But the series isn't like Gravity Falls or LOST or something where there's a question explicitly asked by the narrative with the promise of an eventual answer.

I think the only really big question mark in the show was "What happened to Dib and Gaz's mom?", which is a topic never broached in the series. I believe Eric Trueheart or somebody debunked the fan theories I remember hearing about in the earliest days of the fandom that she died and Membrane kept her remains preserved in a jar or something and said the real reason Dib and Gaz's mom was never brought up on the show was just because Jhonen had no interest in exploring it. Eric said he had an idea for a story where Dib "goes on a journey to find out why his life sucks so much" and finds out he's a clone of Membrane, but it was just an idea, there was never an actual script for it. Personally, I'm not a fan of the idea because it seems kinda underwhelming, especially now that The Venture Bros has already covered that ground and milked it for whatever dark comedy and existential horror you could get out of it. I think it's a wasted opportunity for Dib to just not have a mom when his mom could be literally anything. She could be a supernatural entity, or her consciousness could be trapped in a computer like GLaDOS, or she could've been into paranormal science like her son and disappeared on a mission, like I wrote about in these posts:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

As for that Invader Tenn theory, it really seems like just a big nothing-burger. Canonically, Irkens don't feel love or attraction, so why would the Tallest have a crush on her? Really examine what OP is saying and it's pretty much just misogyny. "Why would the Tallest give a GIRL an important mission? Can't possibly be that they thought she was actually qualified for it, must be because these aliens who don't even have reproductive organs want to bang her!"

Tenn's mission getting fucked up was never going to be a major plot point. It was all part of that Invader Dib concept that the fandom made up. I remember first hearing about it on the Nick.com message boards in the early 2000s and it was basically "Zim and some other Irkens are sent on a mission to rescue Tenn (Why would he be recruited for a mission of actual importance?) while Dib joins the Resisty and/or Meekrob and defeats the Irkens in the series finale and Zim's ultimate fate would be getting stranded on an asteroid hurtling toward certain doom". I guess apparently overtime the fandom added or changed details because what I see thrown around a lot nowadays is that it was going to end with Zim winning and making Gaz his queen, or that it was going to be the season 2 finale and not the series finale, or dropping Tenn and the Meekrob from the synopsis and just making it Dib + Resisty vs Irk. Regardless, none of it was ever real. Invader Dib was not a thing other than just the name being thrown out once as a joke. The series had no planned ending and we already pretty much know everything that was meant to be in season 2 because most of the scripts for it were already done and we at least have some vague descriptions of the ones that weren't released. Zim was never meant to be a plot-driven show, it was always meant to go on indefinitely with small things like the introduction of Tak's ship opening up new possibilities or episodes like The Trial or 10 Minutes to Doom fleshing out the lore. There were no plans for Tenn, no plans for the Resisty, and no plans for Dib to ever face the Irken army outside of the Marty-Stu fanfic parody episode. Skoodge and Tak were the only characters ever meant to have bigger roles/repeat appearances in the story.

[ashitomarisu]

As the summer begins to wind down, I want to share a few non-spoiler things about my experience reliving Digimon's "AiM era" (which covers Adventure, Adventure 02, and Tamers).

(Note: I will not go in-depth because I have a couple followers actively watching this franchise so let's cut to the chase.)

June

Adventure had the least impact on me since I knew most of the story and background already from watching the dub during my childhood. Although, that did not affect my enjoyment in the slightest as the moments between seeing Mimi and [my boi] Gomamon still hit the feels as it did the first time.

(He is best digimon; don't @ me).

[Side note: I did start to let Gabumon slide as second best, since I do remember loving him as a kid for looking LIKE a doglike creature, and MetalGarurumon is still one of the coolest Ultimate forms at that point.]

As for the music? Of course, Butter-fly was a huge nostalgic punch (for the first week), but then it got old (in a weird way). BRAVEHEART still kicks ass though. In terms of the ED, hearing "I Wish" and "Keep on" felt nice to revisit AiM (Ai Maeda) early in her career trying to perfect those vocals (more on that later).

=Let's fast-forward to 02.=

July

(Is "currencist" a good adjective to describe a noob who refuses to accept anything but dollars? )

This is the season I watched over and over again in reruns and still cannot get over it. It ties in with the original 8 as a continuation, but is HEAVILY driven with spoilers. With that, the only change I notice is the fact I finally paid attention more to the ending, which I failed to understand for the last two instances I watched this.

All I can say is "what a literal dark turn".

Nevertheless, the music was a memorable portion of this season. Target ~Akai Shougeki~ is my personal favorite OP with Kouji Wada putting a lot of effort into the song. Miyazaki returns with BRAVEHEART but also Break Up!, a huge double-header of hits to my ears. "Ashita wa Atashi no Kaze ga Fuku" by AiM, on the other hand, is AiM at her literal rise. Her vocals improved so much throughout the ED, and has become my favorite ED overall as of recently. All three singers brought their A-game for this sequel.

Oh, and one more thing: THE NEW TRIO. I can't choose who gets my heart I guess.

August

(I LOST COUNT OVER HOW MANY TIMES THIS BASTARD KEEPS SAYING "MOUMANTAI").

All crossover ideas aside, it was a pleasure [and a pain] to rewatch this spinoff. Supposedly, I had to remember this season was directed by someone who worked on Evangelion; thus, the darker vibe lurking over the usual Digimon traits. Despite the oncoming fear factor ranging from [this spoiler] to [that spoiler], the season still left a massive scar on my psyche. As for the main characters, Ruki and Renamon are still my guilty duo. I still get pumped up looking at Kyubimon every time it appears on screen.

The music this season is decent, although...

[Side note: Once upon a time, I actually considered Days~Aijou to Nichijou~ to be my favorite ED from AiM. However, upon discovering the English translation...]

(I've been living a lie for 8 years).

-----

Overall, this has been an insane, memorable trip back in time for me. Unfortunately, fall is approaching and I must move on from this nostalgic phase.

------

With the "Digital Summer" over, let's get into what is in store for September. Luckily, I have already lined up something (good, I suppose). The only catch? WE HAVE TO GO BACK ABOUT 13 YEARS.

IT'S TIME TO GO BACK TO THE 80s!!!

Now, if I can remember which button it is to reveal the hint...*brb; pushing buttons*

Okay! Here is the hint:

(If I did an audio hint, it would be a dead giveaway).

Until then, here's hoping your buddy doesn't have a bonk stick nearby.

[archiemills10]

Thank you, Steve

Thank you, Steve.

Thanks for that night at Ashton Gate, thanks for the Play-off semi finals, thank you for Wembley and thank you for every home game last season.

Without you, those games, those scenarios would not have been possible, but you had this clever way of installing a belief, a unity, that ran throughout Nottingham Forest from the players to the fans. You gave us some of our happiest days and for that, Steve Cooper will forever be a legend in Nottingham. 

It says a lot about the man Cooper is that he has relentlessly had his name chanted by Nottingham Forest fans when the team has been 4-0 down away to rivals Leicester, in dire straights away to Aston Villa having not won for two months and again this season despite being 5-0 to Fulham with the writing seemingly on the wall. His connection to the supporters was unbreaking and he earned every last cheer he got. 

His time in charge of the Reds will go hand in hand with some of the best memories Forest fans will have ever experienced in their time supporting the club. For those who never got to experience the heady days of the Brian Clough era, this was the next best thing. 

Here was a man who made it his mission to restore a bit of hope to the club, a club which in truth before he turned up, had lost that loving feeling. 

Arriving on Trentside following our worst start to a Championship season with the club bottom of the table and the fans seemingly resigned to another year in the second tier at best. There was no real furore about his appointment - we knew what he had accomplished with Swansea, especially given it was his side that pipped Forest to the Play-offs a season prior, but there was largely little buzz given the fact that we had seen every single type of manager come through the doors in the past ten years, former club legends, unknown foreigners, experienced Championship pros who know how to get promoted, we had seen them all. Cooper was expected to be the next to try his hand and fail.

Something was different this time around, however. Maybe it wasn't the most obvious pairing but what happened next will go down in folklore. 

Firstly, there was the matter of restoring pride in the side, giving the ability for supporters to get behind a team they believed in and could be excited about. 

My first week as a university student in London coincided with Cooper’s appointment as Forest boss. Studying at a sports university, when I met my flatmates for the first time, the topic of who we supported was an obvious one. You can imagine the obvious answers I got from these people therefore, when replied with Forest.

“Rough start to the season for you guys.”

“Why do you support them then?”

Five out of the seven in the flat supported teams from the ‘big six’, and so, every weekend, it would be one of their games on the TV in the kitchen with only passing comments from them asking how we got on that weekend. 

I can't recall ever watching a Forest game together as a flat early on, not before Christmas at least and even then, it was only our FA Cup games against Arsenal and Liverpool that they ever paid any real attention to.

What I associate my first year of university with most, however, is the journey we went on. 

We got better and better each week (minus a few odd blips) and I remember getting to the point where I felt able enough to brag to my other flatmates about how well we were doing. By the time we made the Play-Offs, I sat them down, all weary eyed after our plane had only just got back from Italy and I made them watch the Sheffield Utd game. I wanted them to experience what Steve Cooper had given me and so many others that season.  

My flatmates may not have cared, they still don’t, but for the first time, it gave me something to be proud about. 

I had got to love and support Forest through my dad, a fan since the 70s who had developed into one of the most cynical supporters I knew. At the first sight of issues, he lost belief - this must have come from seeing the struggles we had been in since the turn of the century - a misery we’d shared since 2010. 

I think this was symptomatic of most Forest fans throughout this period. They would fool themselves into believing this could be the year, yet after several poor results in games we could have won, as well as the inevitable Christmas collapse (a yearly event), all that goodwill and hope would be gone. January would arrive, a new manager would be in place and the rest of the campaign would be about making sure we didn't embarrass ourselves. 

Steve Cooper did what none of the recent previous managers did, he changed how my dad and so many others viewed the club. 

There may have been a few bumps in the road, however, we never lost faith in what this brilliant, clever man had created - a team and a club with a positive, forward-thinking mentality. 

He changed our track record in the league, something that appeared to be an impossible task for so many before him.

I remember the first time I properly believed we would get promoted, Blackburn away at Ewood Park in February 2022. Blackburn were above us in the league, challenging for automatic promotion, however, I felt as though we were a much better side. Normally therefore, facing teams I felt we should beat would normally result in the exact opposite occurring, however, Forest put in a composed performance to win 2-0, leaving me with little doubt that we were in the hunt. 

Cooper made the team believe, he made the city of Nottingham believe. He also made sure we didn’t kid ourselves. We deserved to be there in his eyes, but he would never let us get ahead of ourselves, that part was key. Celebrating what we were achieving under his guidance therefore, felt necessary. The fistpumps, Forza Garibaldi and Depeche Mode - all of these things seemingly were now part of the fortnightly sensation at the City Ground with Cooper as the ringmaster. 

When we reached the promised land of the Premier League, following 23 years desperate to return, things were naturally harder as they always are for a promoted side. Not every game will be a victory, there will be moments when you contemplate whether we’re good enough, however, it’s important that you keep believing, keep the faith in the team and with Steve Cooper at the helm, it always felt like the captain of the ship had it under control. 

Let’s not kid ourselves, last season could have been very different. After signing nigh on 30 players, we had an entirely new team, players we’d have to grow to love, especially after losing the bulk of our promotion-winning side in the same window. At certain points in the season, fans would find themselves comparing the two sides, often feeling our Championship side would have done better, however, by the end, after we grinded out survival, the fans grew to love that group because they cared about the club - something I am in no doubt Steve Cooper drilled into them. 

Cooper got this club, he understood what being in the Premier League meant to the fans. His time charge allowed us to dream, have those dreams become a reality and then dream even higher. 

His place in Forest history will forever be cemented, with younger fans today likely to hark back to the 21/22 and 22/23 seasons in the years to come. For them, these are the glory years. They might not be quite the same as the success under Brian Clough, but they do now have a hero of their own, the man who galvanised their club in a job many thought to be impossible.

So thank you, Steve, forever leader of the Garibaldi.

[jrpneblog]

Seconds out, round three.

The third phase of the 2023-24 campaign begins at 12.30 on Saturday lunchtime when North End face Millwall at Deepdale in front of the SKY Cameras. The game comes on the back of the second international break of the season and with North End having lost the three games leading up to the break, quite heavily. Following on from the Millwall game North End will be at home on Wednesday evening, once again in front of the SKY Cameras when newly relegated Southampton will be the visitors to Deepdale. Clearly North End need to bounce back quickly after the week from hell that we endured at the start of the month and although we currently sit third in the Championship table, the chasing pack have almost caught us up and wins are now needed to build on the, generally, great start North End have had in the opening weeks of the season

Millwall come to Deepdale, on Saturday, in fifteenth position in the Championship table but are only five points behind North End as the table starts to concertina below Leicester and Ipswich. Personally I think Gary Rowett had done great work since taking over at the New Den but he surprisingly parted company with the club on Wednesday leaving things very much up in the air in South Bermondsey. The Lions also have several injury concerns leading up to the game and I suppose if there is a good time to play them then this is probably it. However, as we all know, complacency can be a very cruel attitude to take in this division and North End must be on it from the first whistle to the last to take the three points they desperately need to build that early season confidence back up.

Next Wednesday evening Southampton are the visitors to Deepdale in the first league contest between the two sides at Deepdale since November 2008, a game which North End lost 2-3. The Saints sit three points behind North End having won five, drawn two and lost four of their opening eleven games. They have taken seven points from this last three games and have some very dangerous players still on their books after their relegation from the Premier League in May. Russell Martin is the man at the helm these days after deciding to leave Swansea to take up the role at St Mary`s and he will be best remembered for the melee with Ryan Lowe at Liberty Stadium back towards the end of last season. There is no doubt that Southampton have some quality in their ranks but they have conceded twenty one goals so far this season which indicates that they are not unbeatable and if North End can keep it tight at the back then I think we can take something from this game.

And finally this week:- joy for England in the Euro 24 qualifier against Italy on Tuesday evening means that we are going to Germany next Summer for a competition in which we will be one of the favourites with the bookies. It was comprehensive in the end as England won 3-1 and gave all those teams around Europe a little reminder of what we can do when we put our minds to it.

.

MATCH PREDICTION -

MILLWALL (League) H - Home Win

SOUTHAMPTON (League) H - Draw

.

JR`s HIGH FIVES

Preston to beat Millwall 11/8

A £5 Stake returns £11.88 on bet365

SEASONS STATS

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Predictions 11 won 5 lost 6

[koushisatori]

if you can't believe in others, at least believe in us

kyoutani x gn!reader

genre: as ordered: a bit of angst w a touch of comfort

warnings: one (1) big jealous idiot, miscommunication

word count: 5.4k

note: this is smth an anon asked me to do (but like...nearly a year ago, I'm not sure if anon is still there or if they remember and my dumbass deleted the ask so I just beta-ed through whatever I had but I know they called me out on enjoying jealous characters so here we go) I'm sorry, mysterious anon, I'm stupid </3 Anyway, that's that. I don't remember if reader was supposed to be female or not so I made it gn!reader (but if I forgot to change something, pls tell me so I can fix any errors c: It's also my first attempt I apologize in advance)

In the beginning, you weren't sure why your boyfriend is ignoring you

You can't remember doing something that would annoy him, nor do you remember an instant of anger in his eyes that would give you a hint about his reasoning to stay away from you

He explained early on that sometimes he just needs a day of distance because Kentarou could feel the anger simmering right under the surface, enough that something small could tick him off already, and he would hate if you were on the receiving end of this unexplained fury

Both of you also made sure to promise each other to clearly communicate, the relationship between the two of you would not last long if you're not properly telling each other what might be bothering or hurting...just in general cross a boundary

Communication probably was one of the most important aspects of your relationship

cue to the actual situation: your boyfriend avoiding you

So, Monday evening you think maybe it's this overwhelming sensation of unexplained anger and that something at morning practice ticked him off completely

But then Tuesday comes and goes, and your boyfriend had avoided you all day long, did not even bother to read your messages,

on Wednesday, you try to talk to him, but all he does is glaring at you with a look that leaves you speechless and kind of heartbroken,

Thursday is the day you're replaying everything you did on Monday, trying to find something that he could have misunderstood, yet no matter how hard you think about it…your brain won't come up with a reason that explained why Kentarou was so upset with you!

So you decide to make him talk to you on Friday

Enough is enough, right? For gods' sake, he is your boyfriend! You miss him and his strong arms that give hugs so warm that you melt right into them

You don't get a second alone with him until school ends

you practically sprint out of the school building over to the gym, knowing that he had a free hour, which means that he is probably the first person there - your only chance

There he is, sitting with his back to you, aggressively chewing on a bun filled with chicken - his usual that reminded him of his favorite dish - glaring holes into the ground

After taking a deep breath to calm yourself, you carefully aks: ''Kentaro…Ken…?'', slowly stretching out your hand, wanting to rest it on his shoulder to maybe help to soothe him a bit

he flinches instead and his heated, agitated gaze meets your eyes, making you recoil in return

''…will you talk to me, I miss you…'' you say softly, realizing how it hurt being ignored by him

''Ah, suddenly you miss me…'' he spits, narrowing his eyes ''…didn't fucking seem like it the last time I saw you…''

''Kentaro, baby, I have no idea what you mean,'' you plead, keeping your voice low to hide the desperation lacing it, confusion written all over your features

all Kyoutani does is growl, hopping down from where he's sitting while shouldering his gym bag

''...shouldn't have been so flirty with Shittykawa like that then-'' he grumbles - ''Ken, I didn't-'' you insist, but he continues ''twirling your hair, batting your pretty eyelashes at him, fuck you Y/N, if you want him, then feel free to take a fucking leave" Kyoutani cusses, not even listening to you

You shake your head, ''Kentaro, no, you totally misunderstood the situation,'' you follow up, panic seeping into your voice now that you knew what he referred to, ''I love yo-''

''Tsk'', he moves to leave

you try to take his hand but, instead of turning around, Kyoutani just rips it away from you, tucking it into the pocket of his jacket

from behind you, you hear Yahaba and Oikawa approaching (talking about Volleyball and Captains duties)

once they guessed what must have happened, they offered you their help (they both swear that Kyoutani will never ever find a ''cute s/o as you are, y/n-chan, I'm worried for my little angry pomeranian kohai'' )

Usually, you would try to talk to him, but after enduring a week of radio silence and now this treatment, you were tired of upholding something that seemed like a lost cause

you just wave both setters off and leave the school grounds, a frown plastered onto your lips and tears swimming in your eyes

Kentarou had not listened to you, did not even really look at you, and the few seconds he did, his eyes were filled with rage instead of the warmth he had usually reserved for you (and only for you)

If your boyfriend thinks avoiding you for a week and blaming you for something ridiculous without hearing you out is how you handle a relationship…maybe you would have to consider not pursuing it any longer

Which is easier said than done

The whole night you wait for a message, anything, and then all Saturday morning

you still had hope left

You get one from Yahaba, who tells you that Oikawa tried to clear up the situation as well after the reason for your fight dawned on him (Kyoutanis piss poor mood and behavior towards him a strong indicator) but Kentaro, again, just ran off

The future team captain even called you after your lackluster answer, listening to you getting the frustration and sadness out of your system

It didn't matter, right? Your boyfriend decided to unofficially call it quits by implying that your feelings for him were not genuine instead of using his mouth to talk to you and disregarding everyone involved

as if he wanted to ignore the truth as a convenient excuse to get out of your relationship

that's the conclusion your brain came up with

You softly sniffle in the privacy of your room, clutching a pillow to your chest (which has seen more tears in the last two days than in the past three years), deciding that it would be a good idea to go into the city to treat yourself

knowing that your mother has a hair-dresser appointment somewhen today, you go and announce that you would join her to finally buy the latest season of your favorite series

once there, you additionally get microwave popcorn, chocolate, and ice cream, as well as a pretty shirt you saw on a mannequin while window shopping

you feel a lot better after spending some money and ignoring the lingering sadness of your presumable break up with Kyoutani (who you love ok, it is not that easy)

In between your stops, you meet Iwaizumi and Oikawa munching on fatty burgers (celebrating your cheat days like a holiday and indulging in whatever your heart desires, is what makes it easier to stick with healthier habits the rest of the time was the questionable explanation coming from the brown-haired setter, pointing at you with a soggy potato fry)

after a moment, the setters eyes turn sad, a frown replacing the smile on his lips

he wraps his fingers around your wrist to stop you from going just yet, apologizing for being the cause of your fight and for being unable to talk some sense into him

(you assure him that it is not his fault, knowing that your friend will probably brood over it otherwise, which wouldn't be fair)

Iwaizumi adds that Kyoutani will come around and that his cooldown time is just longer than those of other people (and if not, he will give him one of his famous volleyballs to the head and use his status as only truly respected senpai to talk some sense into him) but you again decline their suggestions

after saying goodbye (and seeing Iwaizumi give his best friend an assuring gentle pat on his shoulder, the secret softy in the usual harsh ace shining through)

If Kentaro was willing...able to throw away your relationship this easily, he can't possibly really love you, and you'd accept this even if it's hard and painful

Now remembered of what you had attempted to forget about, you feel your eyes sting with unshed tears (you thought there was no possibility of you having more tears to spill, yet the impossible seemed to be the case) you look down at your phone to text your mom and frown

Kentaro 🥰: we need to talk. Kentaro 🥰: meet me there [location]

For a second, you hesitate, biting your lower lip harshly…you really want to go and talk to him but…

The tears still sting in your eyes and blurring your view reminded you of what you had gone through the whole time, and that it was his turn to finally come to you

break up or makeup, the ball was in his court now

so while walking to where your mother would be waiting for you, you begin to type

You: No.

You: I waited for you all week, even though you ignored me, and now you expect me to run the moment you choose to stop being a childish idiot?

You: if you decide to speak to me then comqjdkn

Kentarou wouldn't say he feels particularly bad. Not at all! If someone was to ask him, he would probably answer fucking peachy, what the fuck are you asking for or growl angrily. No one would bat an eye and further question him, nor guess that maybe he wasn't as great as he pretended because he missed his gorgeous better half, but…it was his fault, wasn't it?

Of course, he originally thought he had a valid reason to be upset. And if he had just spoken to you about it, everything would be solved now. Instead of being a decent boyfriend, though, his pride overtook his thinking processes once he realized that his behavior wasn't even the slightest bit justified. Not that he knew this when he saw you speaking with Shittykawa right before school. All he could see was his gorgeous s/o shyly fiddling with her fingers, conversing with a leaned forward, very involved Oikawa Tooru. He would have fetched you away from the brown-haired setter. He had no qualms about showing his possessiveness. God, Kentarou wouldn't have hesitated to growl at the tall, brown-haired boy if not for the question he heard coming from the Captain.

''Y/N-chan, how is it that you, an adorable, charming individuum, is with a brute like Mad Dog-chan? I really-'' Well, that's where he decided to leave you with the setter. He didn't need to hear your answer. Didn't want to witness an excuse or maybe the truth. If both of you were so fucking smitten with each other to flirt this blatantly, why don't you just go and cheer for him, hold his hand, and kiss his cheek goodbye? It was his choice to distance himself.

Kyoutani couldn't help the feeling of betrayal and hurt washing over him. Maybe you just used him as a stepping stone to get closer with Oikawa, and Kyoutani has been too blind to see it. He never doubted you or your relationship before, but it's not a secret how eruptive Kyoutani could be. It has always been beyond his imagination how someone so cute and sweet like you could love a person like him. Your friends thought so. The teachers. The whole school! Everyone questioned your poor judgment. And when you came running up to him, you're cheery voice calling out for him, everyone present looked at you like you grew a second head. It's the reason why seeing you with Trashykawa ticked him off so bad. It catered to his biggest insecurities and fears. He knew that all those skeptics would be delighted to see you, everyone's darling, with the schools' star setter. They all would agree that the pretty, handsome young man is a better fit than the always hostile-looking troublemaker.

While Kyoutani didn't take Oikawa seriously in most cases, he undoubtedly was one of the most devoted people Kentarou had ever met. If Oikawa wanted to get a new serve right, he wouldn't stop trying and repeating it until his legs gave in, and Iwaizumi dragged him out of the gym. When he wanted to find more advanced players to practice with, so he could, in return, give this new knowledge to his team, there was no way he would not manage to make it happen. Even if his ideas, wishes, and plans cost him blood, sweat, and tears (like getting Kyoutani to actually train), Oikawa never backed down. Kentarou had heard that Oikawa's last girlfriend dumped him because of his passion for Volleyball. Yet Kyoutani couldn't help but think that, in you, the ambitious setter would have found someone that would be able to handle it. You usually came over to watch the team when you knew that Kyoutani was there to play. You sat on the stands with your homework in your lap and a Seijoh-coloured pencil wiggling between your fingers, not bothered by the noises coming from the court. You play with your earlobe while you frown at whatever problem you came across. You patiently wait for practice to finish. Kentarou was sure that you'd be someone Oikawa would actually try for. You weren't one of his squealing fangirls, hanging from his arm on every opportunity, but his friend. You didn't pester him to take selfies with you while pushing cute bentos into his hands. When you bring food to practice, then it's for the whole team to share. If he wanted you, Oikawa would probably have to win you over and make sure that you'd stay. Courting and all that jazz. In all seriousness, Shittykawa would be a fucking idiot if not.

The dyed-blond wing spiker had been so sure that he was rightfully mad that he didn't stop to think twice before he reacted this coldly towards you. But, and this made it even worse, Kentarou knew that he was wrong the moment you asked what happened after an entire week of enduring his silent treatment. The second he heard your shaky voice and saw the tears welling up in your eyes, his brain rebooted, and suddenly he wasn't so sure of his own reasoning. You two were together for about half a year. Kyoutani - by now - was confident in his ability to identify most of your expressions. All he could decipher in your eyes was pain, paired with a need to understand, but…if he was in the wrong…it would mean that he had hurt you the whole week, which in conclusion implied that Kentarou had been the world's shittiest boyfriend. Fuck, he thought, I don't deserve y/n.

His situation didn't get any better the moment Oikawa entered the gym. The person Kyoutani thought he had a real reason to despise now tried to mend the rift between the two of you.

''Mad Dog-chan, I think you misunderstood something there. Well, no, you decided to not listen-'' The taller male says, hands gesturing wildly. While his voice still had that annoyingly cheery tone, it had something commanding hidden underneath. And oh, how Kentarou hated when someone demanded something of him, even if it was for his own good. ''Don't want to hear it.'' the blond mutters, already aggravated. The brown-haired setter resolutely puts himself in the way again. ''Oh, but you have to! That morning, Y/N-chan literally declared her love for yo-'' - ''I don't fucking care.'' Kentarou barks, not looking Oikawa in the eyes.

After another fruitless attempt to get properly into the gym, he growls and turns to leave. Already on his way to grab his stuff and take a leave, he hears Oikawa yelling. ''You answered and justified why I asked Y/N-chan to begin with!" And then louder, even though he could make out Iwaizumi trying to wrestle his childhood friend back into the gym, "APOLOGIZE, YOU IDIOT! YOU BETTER GROVEL FOR Y/N'S FORGIVENESS! THEY DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS SHOW YOU'RE PUTTING ON, AND YOU KNOW IT!"

This happened on Friday evening, and the guilt was gnawing away on him ever since. On his way home, Kyoutani had automatically taken the detour to your house. Kentarou enjoyed bringing you home (and more often than not, you pulled him inside with you, making him cuddle you!). It makes him feel like a good boyfriend, and he knew that you arrived there safely. He would never tell anybody and deny it if you ever decided to share this, but Kentarou relished in the feeling of your hand holding his all the way while going on about your day. He admired that you'd pet every cat and every dog you meet on the trip home together with him. You were perfect for him…why again did he act like this?

What caused Kyoutani's attempt to apologize - in his usual overly blunt and partly aggressive kind of way - was Yahaba, though. Both boys denied being remotely something beyond 'not really enemies'. But his future team captain was definitely one of the very few people that could and would tell him to his face that he fucked up without real repercussions. He would presumably even help Kyoutani to get it together.

After Yahaba had called you and listened to your heartbreaking rant, the setter realized that you, his friend, and his 'not really enemy' needed to talk ut out. Totally immersed in your tirade, you accidentally let slip that you couldn't endure Kyoutani's treatment any longer. That being pushed over by your boyfriend with brash and hurtful words after handling the cold shoulder was too much. That you expected Kyoutani to break up with you on Monday either way. In-person, if he had mercy on you or continue his treatment as a silent method of doing so. While you told Yahaba about your planned ''get over it-self-care'' weekend (involving tons of ice cream, movies with crying guarantee, lots of blankets, and no smartphone), the setter had already put on his jacket, shooting a message to Kyoutani.

From Yahaba: get your stupid fucking ass outside to meet me, or I'll bench you the complete season next year

Even though the wing spiker was sure that Yahaba's words were nothing but empty words, Kentarou allowed himself to accept this threat as an excuse to put his pride aside. Because, even though Yahaba annoyed him to no end - not as bad as Oikawa but still - Kentarou was also aware that you and he were friends. If someone could help him gaining your forgiveness, Kyoutani had to accept and admit that it was Yahaba. Meeting his light brown-haired teammate was kind of awkward. Kyoutani was unsure what he had to expect, though he should have seen the rough treatment coming. Yet, getting told that you, the person Kentarou was undeniably in love with, felt so neglected and hurt that you deemed this relationship to be as good as over allowed the guilt monster in his chest to grow. Shitty Oikawa was probably right ordering him to grovel and beg on his knees for you to even hear him out.

Your answer to his message was partly unlike you. Well, the last sentence. You usually were pretty forward with him to avoid miscommunication and uncalled-for moping around. And while you sometimes send keyboard smashes to express the chaos you felt, they were always in a separate message and not so…random. The text definitely meant something like ''then come to me'' but somehow, Kyoutani had an uneasy feeling about the whole thing.

Besides, he couldn't just wait till Monday and hope that you'd accept his apology! You may send him away today already, but he still had a teeny-tiny bit of hope. If he let the thoughts of him leaving you or the other way around fester in your mind for two whole days, though,…you'd probably realize that leaving him wasn't that bad of a decision. You'd come to the conclusion that all your admirers could treat you better than Kyoutani did. And he was too selfish to let you leave. Even though all he did the whole week was being self-centered and stuck up, he would be damned to begin being a saint now and let you go. That you at least were willing to talk to him was…a relief, to say the least. Kentarou hoped that this translated to you being willing to put up with him a little longer if he apologized correctly. That you're not opposed to giving him another chance to make things right.

At your house, he was greeted with darkness. Not even a single light illuminating any of the rooms he could see from his spot on your front lawn. And the ones he saw were your and your mom's most-used rooms. Your room window, your mothers' workroom, and the living room area with an adjacent kitchen. All of those rather significant rooms and the lack of light in them seemed to be a dead giveaway for Kyoutani that no one was home. Kyoutani guessed that you were probably out with your mom, glancing over to the empty spot in front of the garage.

Oh god, your mother had been the only supportive person of your relationship. Maybe it's in your family to see the best in everyone, even in shitty people like him. But if you told her about his behavior, she'd most likely not welcome him with a smile ever again, no matter if you forgave him.

There weren't many things Kyoutani could do in this situation, but it wasn't as late as nature let it on, and after a few seconds, he had decided to sit down at the front door and wait for you, hoping that it wouldn't take too long for you to come home. As if fate wanted to tell him something, the wing spiker had put on the jacket with the half-full power bank. He had worn it to the shelter when he visited it this week while distracting himself from your absence in his daily life. You had gifted him the piece of clothing, which is probably why he unconsciously had decided to wear it to everything he did after school in the first place.

Kentarou passed the time by snarling at people eyeing him for a moment too long to not be judgmental, petting the neighbors' cat wandering over to him, and watching videos. Every time he thought ''Y/N would like this'', his heart stuttered guilty.

To Kentarou, it felt like an eternity until your mother's car finally drove up the entry. To avoid your mother's potentially deadly stare, he nervously checked his mobile, realizing that he had waited for a little more than 3 hours. Yet, the wait had done nothing to soothe his nerves. They instantly spiked up again while his heart threatened to jump out of his throat.

She will hate me. Your mother would hate me, she'll hate me, she'll ha-

''Ah, Ken-chan! Good evening.'' Your mother greets him with a tired, yet still gentle smile. Oh. The blond blanches. He'd never admit it, but he enjoyed the treatment he received from your mother more than he should. Being spoken to without suspicion and receiving a warm smile every time without fail was a welcome change to his daily life. Your mother didn't listen to people trying to bad-mouth him. To her, he simply was the boy that - normally - treats her child the way a mother wished for. Even if he pulled a face as long as a fiddle.

''I didn't know you were coming, Ken-chan, or I would have messaged you…but now that you're here, maybe you can assist us out and help Y/N inside? It would help a lot.'' His gaze immediately flitted over to you on the passenger seat. With your arms crossed in front of your chest and that stubborn but endearingly cute pout on your lips, he nearly missed the tiredness your body emitted. Kentarou wanted to rush over to your side immediately but was stopped by your mother again. ''I don't know what you two are fighting about…but please talk to each other. I don't want my baby to be this sad. Especially now, and…'' she rests a hand on his shoulder, her eyes kind and comforting ''…I also don't want to miss you here, alright?'' He stiffly nodded and watched your mother carrying in plastic bags filled with various medicine packages and food.

After coming back to his senses, Kyoutani finally stumbled over to your side, practically ripping open the car door. This new perspective revealed a plaster cast wrapping your whole left leg and a removable wrist brace on your right hand. ''Bab- Y/N…what the fuck…happened?'' His honey-brown eyes continued to wander over your injuries, and with every second, he found more. Scratches and scrapes, bandaids and bandages peeking out from underneath your clothes. ''I'm so sorry,'' he whispered, hanging his head low.

All your intentions to fight his helping hand and limp over to the door by yourself disintegrated into nothing. You never witnessed such a devastated, beaten expression on his face before. Instead, you settle for ''Will you help me?''. A question asked quietly to your fingers picking at a loose band-aid edge on your arm and pressing it back onto the irritated skin.

After you loosened your seatbelt, he waits for you to carefully place your arms around his neck. It is followed by Kyoutani lifting you out of the car so gently as if he was afraid you might break. This whole situation in itself already contradicting his brash appearance and usual behavior. It would give whiplash to all the people pretending to know him. But he was always caring in his own way when it came to you. It's why you loved him after all. Because you usually knew that he loved you, too.

For a few moments, the atmosphere between the two of you felt awkwardly tense, both of you unsure how to interact with each other. The mostly blonde wing spiker breathed out a sigh of relief when you fully leaned into his chest once he stood upright, resting your head against his shoulder. A bit of maneuvering through the front door eventually lead to Kyoutani passing through the hallway and taking you to your room, where he was gently lowering you down on the bed.

It was a now or never kind of situation. For the both of you. While Kentarou was trying to find out where to begin his apology, he took a few steps back in case you wanted space until everything was cleared up.

You unconsciously helped him making a decision by impulsively grasping onto his shirt the moment he started to withdraw, stopping him in his retreating movement. Kentarou saw your lower lips wobbling, teary eyes looking up at him pleadingly.

''Please stay,'' you say weakly, which is enough for him to throw the whole thinking process away and simply sit down next to you, intertwining both your hands. ''I'm staying. I'm not leaving. Not now nor this relationship if you still want...an ''us''. The wing spiker took a deep, shuttering breath. '' I'm sorry, Y/N…'' he finally manages to say, honey eyes locked onto your linked your hands. ''I have been fucking stupid all week. 've been a fucking terrible boyfriend, the worst to ever exist.''

As if to encourage him...to show your boyfriend that his apology was not for nothing, you shuffled around until the last bit of distance between the two of you was closed. You hum, acknowledging his words while leaning your head on his shoulder.

''I didn't think you're cheating or something, …'' Kyoutani immediately assures you. There was no way he would allow you to think that he would accuse you of something like this. ''I had no reason to be jealous, but I was insecure. Let it get the best of me. Despite our promise to communicate, I was sulking. 't was easier. I'll do whatever the fuck you want for you to not give up yet…'' he says, taking his time with every sentence.

With a sigh, you squeeze his hand. ''It will probably take a lot of cuddling and attention from you...'' you say thoughtfully ''...but I forgive you…if you promise to not do this again…'' you murmur, tilting your head upward to press a chaste kiss to his jaw. ''Otherwise, I'll accept Iwaizumi-san's offer to get your thinking process restarted.'' For a moment, your voice had its usual joking edge. But you knew talking out everything was necessary. ''But, in all honesty, 'Tarou....please, never do this again. I am honest. I will not endure this a second time. When you tell me that you need a day or two for yourself then that is totally fine. If you feel yourself giving into whatever insecurity, talk to me about it. I am sure there will be an explanation or a solution but don't leave me in the dark. Don't treat me like that. I love you. Only you and no one else. But the time love can withstand straight-up ignorance by your partner is limited.''

Slowly, your boyfriend nodded, squeezing your hand to tell you that he understood. You would probably cling to him for a while but were sure that he would survive the extra closeness. Not even half a second later, his head leans onto yours cautiously.

''…and try being nicer to Oikawa-san, Tarou, he hasn't done anything to you.'' You add humorously before small giggles started to erupt from your lips. ''Also...Baby…'' you start, being interrupted by choked-up hiccups and giggles. By using your nickname for him, you take away another persistent fear of his. What he does not miss, however, is how you wince in pain before you continue, ''…who helped you put this into words? I mean…I loved it, but…,'' You leave unsaid that words usually are not his strong fort.

Biting back a smile, he frowns, huffs, and puffs…, but the way you are looking up at him, eyes shining with relief and adoration, allows him to admit defeat. He sighs ''…it's how Yahaba said I should say it…'' It usually would be an odd enough statement to make you throw yourself all over him with laugher. As a slight replacement, you squeeze his hand a bit, still shaking with suppressed laughter. ''I promise…that I will talk to you. Can't promise the Shittykawa part.'' Another soft chuckle leaves your lips before you look up at him again. ''I hope you try nonetheless. You should not let Iwaizumi-san hear you calling Oikawa-san that, though, I don't think this would turn out well for you…so...maybe stop this at least.'' Kentarou rolls his eyes at you, but in the end, he nods.

You wait for another second to clearly distinguish the two topics before you continue. ''…Thank you…for coming and finally speaking with me instead of break-'' A hand on your lips muffles your words.

''Don't say these words. I'd never break up with you,'' Kentarou grumbles, a light, uncharacteristic light pink settling on his cheeks. You stick your tongue out, which leads to him taking his hand off of your face with a surprised noise, rather dumbfounded that you had licked his hand. It gives you the chance to lean up and finally press your lips against his. ''I'm not leaving you either,'' you murmur, feeling his lips twitch upwards slightly. You decide to leave the teasing for another day.

Moving back into your previous position was enough of a hassle to hiss in pain. It brought back Kyoutani's awareness of the second problem at hand. ''What did happen to you?'' Kyoutani asks in an attempt to tamper down the excited, happy beating of his heart.

''Oh, this...uh, when I answered your text, I got driven over by a dude on a bicycle,'' you casually drop. It was kind of entertaining to watch his expressions change at an unequaled pace while processing your words. In the end, it settled into something akin to passive-aggressive worry. The way he was immediately fretting over you while cursing and cussing out the bicycle dude was his own way of caring. As you watch him retrieving the food your mother bought, while mumbling about how you're a dumbass for not paying attention to your surroundings, how he'd come over every day until you could go to school again to bring and teach you the stuff you would miss and how he would fucking murder the bicycle idiot if he ever finds out who dared to drive you over, you can't help the smile forming on your lips.

Once again, you are proven that loving him - while occasionally troublesome and demanding - was everything but wrong.

[thimbil]

Having some thoughts about the references and inspirations used for the Bad Batch’s designs.

So Boba Fett is my absolute favorite character and Temeura Morrison was perfect casting. I went to see the 2008 TCW movie in theaters because I was so excited to see him again, even if he was animated. You can imagine my disappointment. Whoever was on screen was not Temeura Morrison. You could sort of see a resemblance if you squinted and didn’t think too hard about it. They replaced Temeura with Racially Ambiguous G.I. Joe. If I didn’t know better and someone told me the animated clones are space Italians from the moon of New Jersey I would buy it. One Million Brothers Pizzeria and Italian Bistro. Not that there’s something wrong with being space Italian, I just don’t think it’s the right choice for the Fetts. The design got slightly improved by season 7 but it still bugs the hell out of me.

I did eventually get into the show later and (of course) got invested in the clones. Unfortunately, they were largely sidelined by the Jedi storylines. Out of the two new main characters created for TCW, Ahsoka definitely got more development and focus than Rex. When they announced The Bad Batch, I was excited to see a show specifically devoted to the clones… at least that’s what it said on the tin. We have all seen what lurks beneath those stylish helmets.

Jango Fett, you are NOT the father.

So who is?

Based on interviews with Filoni, it sounds like the Bad Batch was a George Lucas idea. And like all his ideas, it’s super derivative. The original trilogy directly lifted elements from sci fi serials, westerns, and samurai movies, more specifically Kurosawa films like The Hidden Fortress. For The Bad Batch character designs, the influence is obviously American action and adventure movies.

Now let’s get specific. Bad Batch, who’s your daddy?

Hunter

Sylvester Stallone as Rambo in First Blood 1982. That bandana has become an integral part of the iconic action hero look. You see a character wearing one and it’s a visual shorthand for either “this character is a tough guy” like Billy played by Sonny Landham in Predator 1987, or “this character thinks he is/wants to be a tough guy” like Brand played by Josh Brolin in The Goonies 1985 or Edward Frog played by Corey Feldman in The Lost Boys 1987.

Hunter’s model is closest to the original clone base. If you look closely you will see the eyebrows are straighter with a much lower angle to the arch. His nose is also not the same shape as a standard clone like Rex, including a narrower bridge. It’s certainly not Temeura Morrison’s nose. Remember what I said about space Italians? It didn’t take much to push the existing clone design to resemble an specific Italian man instead of a specific Māori man. The 23&Me came back, and Hunter inherited more than the bandana from Sylvester.

Crosshair

The long narrow nose, the sharp cheekbones, the scowl. That’s no clone, that’s just animated Clint Eastwood. Not even Young and Hot Clint Eastwood from Rawhide 1959-1965. With that hair, I’m talking Gran Torino 2008. The man of few words schtick and family friendly toothpick in lieu of cigar are pure Eastwood as The Man With No Name from Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns A Fist Full of Dollars 1964, For a Few Dollars More 1965, and The Good the Bad and the Ugly 1966.

In a way, this is full circle because the actor Jeremy Bulloch took inspiration from Clint Eastwood for his performance as Boba Fett in ESB.

Wrecker

In an interview Filoni lists the Hulk as an (obvious) inspiration for Wrecker. Ever seen the old Hulk tv show from 1978? Well take a look at the actor who played him, Lou Ferrigno. Would you look at that. Even has his papa’s nose.

You could make the argument that Wrecker was influenced by The Rock, an appropriately buff ‘n bald Polynesian (Samoan, not Maori) man. But look at him next his Fast and Furious costar Vin Diesel and tell me which one resembles Wrecker’s character model more.

Tech

Tech is a little trickier for me to place. If he has a more direct inspiration it must be something I haven’t seen. That said, his hairline is very Bruce Willis as John McClane in Die Hard 1988. His quippiness and large glasses remind me of Shane Black as Hawkins from Predator 1987. In terms of his face, he looks a but like the result of McClane and Hawkins deciding to settle down and start a family. Although, Tech’s biggest contributors are probably just everyone on TV Trope’s list for Smart People Wear Glasses.

And finally,

Echo

Oh Echo. Considering he wasn’t created for the Bad Batch, he probably wasn’t based on a particular character or movie. But if I had to guess, his situation and appearance remind me a lot of Alex Murphy played by Peter Weller in Robocop 1987. However, Robocop explored the Man or Machine Identity Crisis with more nuance, depth, and dignity. Yikes.

The exact tropes and references used in The Bad Batch have been done successfully with characters who aren’t even human. Gizmo from Gremlins 2: The New Batch 1990 had a brief stint with the Rambo bandana. I could have picked any number of characters for Defining Feature Is Glasses but here is the most cursed version of Simon of Alvin and the Chipmunks. Suffer as I have. Marc Antony with his beloved Pussyfoot from Looney Tunes has the same tough guy with a soft center vibe as Wrecker and his Lula (also a kind of cat). Hell, in the same show we have Cad Bane sharing Cowboy Clint Eastwood with Crosshair. I actually think Bane makes a better Eastwood which is wild considering Crosshair has Eastwood’s entire face and Bane is blue.

So we’ve established you don’t need your characters to look exactly like their inspirations to match their vibe. So why go through the trouble and cost of creating completely new character designs instead of recycling and altering assets they already had on hand? Just slap on a bandana, toothpick, goggles, and make Wrecker bigger than the others while he does a Hulk pose and you’re done. Based on the general reaction to Howzer it would have been a low effort slam dunk crowd pleaser.

But they didn’t do that.

So here’s the thing. I like the tropes used in The Bad Batch. I am a fan of action adventure movies from the 80s-90s, the sillier the better. I am part of the Bad Batch’s target audience. Considering what I know about Disney and Lucasfilm, I went in with low expectations. I genuinely don’t hate the idea of seeing references to these actors and media in The Bad Batch. I don’t think basing these characters on tropes was a bad idea. If anything it’s a solid starting point for building the characters.

The trouble is nothing got built on the foundation. The plot is directionless, the pacing is wacky, and the characters have nearly no emotional depth or defining character arcs. They just sort of exist without reacting much while the story happens around them. But I can excuse all of that. You don’t stay a fan of Star Wars as long as I have not being able to cherrypick and fill in the gaps. This show has a deeper issue that shouldn’t be ignored.

Why do the animated clones bear at best only a passing resemblance to their live action actor? In interviews, Filoni wouldn’t shut up but the technological advancements in the animation for season 7. So if they are updating things, why not try to make the clones a closer match to their source material? Why did they have to look like completely different people in The Bad Batch to be “unique”? Looking like Temeura Morrison would have no bearing on their special abilities and TCW proved you can have identical looking characters and still have them be distinct. In fact, that’s a powerful theme and the source of tragedy for the clones’ narrative overall.

Here’s Filoni’s early concept art of Crosshair, Wrecker, Tech, and Hunter. (Interesting but irrelevant: Wrecker seems to have a cog tattoo similar to Jesse’s instead of a scar. Wouldn’t it have been funny if they kept that so when they met in season 7 one if them could say something like “Hey we’re twins!” That’s a little clone humor. Just for you guys 😘)

None of these drawings look like the clones in TCW, much less Temeura Morrison. Let’s be generous. Maybe Filoni struggles with drawing a real person’s likeness, as many people do. But he had to hand this off to other artists down the line whose job specifically involves making a stylized character resemble their actor. Yet the final designs missed the mark almost as much as this initial concept. Starting to seem as if the clones looking more like Temeura Morrison was never even on the table. It wasn’t a lack of creativity, skill or technical limitations on the part of the creative team. I don’t think there is an innocent explanation. They went out of their way to make the final product exactly how we got it.

This goes beyond homage. They could have made the same pop culture references and character tropes without completely stripping Temeura Morrison from the role he originated. It was a very purposeful choice to replace him with more immediately familiar actors from established franchises and films. It wouldn’t shock me if Filoni, Lucas, and anyone else calling the shots didn’t even think hard or care enough about the decision to immediately recognize a problem. And I don’t think they believed anyone else would either. At least no one whose opinion they cared about. Those faces are comfortingly familiar and proven bankable. They are what we’re all used to seeing after all. They’re white.

Lack of imagination, bad intentions, or simple ignorance doesn’t really matter in the end. The result is the same. Call it what it is. They replaced a man of color with a bunch of white guys. That’s by the book garden variety run of the mill whitewashing. There’s no debate worth having about it. For a fanbase that loves to nitpick things like whether or not it’s in character for Han to shoot first or Jeans Guy in the Mandalorian, we sure are quick to find excuses for clones who look nothing like their template. Why is that? If you don’t see the problem, congratulations. Your ass is showing. Pull your jeans up.

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Hue and Cry II

Warnings: non-consent sex and rape; abuse of power, threats, chase.

This is dark!medieval!Bucky Barnes x reader and explicit. 18+ only.  Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Synopsis: You find a place to hide for the time being.

Note: Got this done quickly and was surprised with myself. Gearing up to go back to work tomorrow. I’ll try to catch up on responses after work and check in with y’all.

Thanks to everyone and thanks in advance for all your feedback. :)

I really hope you enjoy. 💋

<3 Let me know what you think with a like or reblog or reply or an ask! Love ya!

You didn’t stop running until the dawn. You didn’t head for the village as you knew that would be the first place the lord and his party would look. You kept to the forest despite the howls and the hoots of unseen creatures. You stopped to bury your cap and apron under an overturned trunk. If it was known that Barnes was searching out a servant, it would be better to be less obvious.

As the horizon turned to a soft amber, you found an overhang and nestled into the small nook. You turned your back to the bitter morning air and tried to sleep. If you kept going, you would only pass out in the open. Your slumber was shallow and fitful. You were stiff as you woke up just after noon and climbed out of the cranny.

You feasted on nuts and berries gathered along your clueless path, eating as the twigs and branches pulled at your skirts. You weren’t sure where you were or where you were going. You could be out of the county or you could be five minutes from the castle. For your luck, you could have just gone in circles.

The second night you found a cave and slept there instead of pressing on through the dark. You were itchy from a brush with poison ivy and your feet throbbed from the endless trek. You got a few hours under your eyelids before you emerged and carried on.

What were you doing? Where were you going? If you did manage to evade the wrathful lord, what then? Knock on the doors of another castle and barter an apron with your fingernails dirty and your face wind burned?

The third night saw your stomach squeezing painfully as you failed to catch a rabbit and drank from a river eagerly. You slept between two broken logs and woke to the sound of hooves. You didn’t move as you listened to the voices. None were familiar and the only prey they spoke of was some doe they sighted moments ago.

“Nolan spooked the creature just behind the hill, my lord, if we hook around the lea, we might catch it by the stream,” a man said.

“I’d rather the stag. He must be close,” a deeper timbre replied, “you and Nolan take your course and I’ll search these grounds for the mate. Whistle if you sight our game.”

“Yes, my lord,” the other responded and the horses cantered away.

You stayed as you were as you heard the remaining man dismount and tramp over the carpet of leaves. You rolled onto your stomach and wriggled away from the noise and kicked yourself out from between the logs. You kept on your knees as you crawled around the other side and headed for the nearest tree.

His footsteps softened and you kept on, hoping your dirty dress helped you blend into the wild. You pushed yourself behind a trunk and pressed your back to the bark. If you sprinted out, he might just think you another frightened creature. If he sought a stag, he would be uninterested.

You nodded and readied for your flight. You took a breath and yelped as suddenly a figure appeared before you.

“I thought I heard a rustle,” the man said as he looked down at you. He was a lord, you could tell by the pin at the nape of his cape, “you look to be lost, my lady.”

“My lord,” you stood and bowed your head, “I only wandered too far. I can find my way back.”

“Way back where?” his hands went to his hips, “you look as if you have been wandering for a time.”

“I only tumbled and mussed myself,” you lied, “my lord, my apologies, I did not realise this forest was noble land.”

“It is easy to break the threshold of the common lands and the noble sprawl. It would be quicker on horseback to reunite you with your home, would it not?”

“I am grateful for such generosity but I would be remiss to accept, I might go on my way and--”

“Where do you hail from, lady?” he squinted.

“The village over yonder,” you pointed away from him, “it was a game and I did go too far.”

“And the village you speak of? What is it’s name?” he asked.

“Ildersin,” you uttered, one of the three nearest villages to the castle you knew.

“Ildersin? That is far and beyond my holdings,” he tilted your head, “one cannot wander there in less than a day so I warn you now to be honest or I would have your tongue out with hot pincers.”

You gulped and looked away from him. He stepped closer and caught your wrist.

“I could chase you down easy on my horse’s back, trample you into the mud, so answer me now or I will take you to the stocks,” he snarled.

“My father,” you said, “my father, he does beat me and I waited until he was abed to leave but I lost the bundle I did prepare for the escape. You see, my spare clothing and my food… I only did want to be upon my own and toil for one who does not lash me.”

He breathed through his nostrils as his thumb brushed the stitching along your cuff. He dropped your arm and his jaw ticked. His blond lashes flicked and he considered you and the dirt as one.

“You seek work?” he asked, “and asylum from your violent father?”

“Yes, my lord, er,” you blinked innocently, “I know not where I’ve found myself but I would serve you loyal if you would keep me from the stocks.”

“You can hold a broom? Empty a pot?” he asked.

“I can,” you assured, “my lord.”

“You have good manners for a farm maid,” he mused, “I might find a place for you in my kitchens.”

“My lord? You might direct me to the nearest village so I might find labour there, instead, I would not presume to further tax--”

“My castle is big enough, another hand would be more help than a burden,” he stepped back and waved you around the tree, “I will accompany you back to my keep and return to fetch my men… you look to have been out here long enough.”

“Truly, my lord, I--” you saw his impatience in the vein along his forehead and bowed your head, “I am most grateful.”

“Let us be off or my men might be lost without me,” he said.

He lifted you onto his horse and climbed up behind you. You’d never been astride with a man against you, it was awkward and crowded. He snapped the reins and the horse fell into step. He steered it away from your hiding place.

“Might I ask where I am, my lord?” you ventured.

“This is Astrens,” his voice rumbled through you, “And I am its lord, Duke Steven Rogers.”

Your heart sank as you recognised his name and your mistake. He wasn’t easily known with his beard, newly grown since his last visit to the Lord Barnes’ hold. He was of the few who were granted company with the miserly lord of the castle but there was a chance yet he did not know you. You were after all, only a servant.

🏰

Lord Rogers handed you over to his steward. You were reassured as you were given a cap, apron, and a new dress. You washed out of a basin and reported for your new duties.

It might just be far enough away that you wouldn’t have to worry about Barnes. He never went far from his estate and Astrens was out of the way of the capital. Even if it didn’t work, it gave you time to plot a real departure.

You were sent to the laundries to sweat over boiling cauldrons as you stirred the linens with a large stick. The steams seeped through your clothing and left you out of breath as you wrung out the sheets. You hung them outside along the line and helped beat out the old woven rugs.

After nights in the forest, your first day felt far from a return to normalcy. You were in a new place, you had new duties, and you didn’t know anyone in the castle. You’d worked in Lord Barnes’ manor since his father was still alive and you were only a kid. It was only a few years before Barnes took over but you remember it being much easy to ingratiate yourself to the staff.

You were shuffled onto a feather mattress in the servants’ quarters with three others. The snoring, snorting, and coughing kept you awake and you missed the chirp of crickets and scratching of critters. You woke more tired than any night spent among the trees and went back to the laundries.

Your days took on this pattern, sleep, eat, work, and do it all over again. You were forgotten among the other servants and it really seemed like you might just be able to hide among them forever. 

Nearly a week into your time as Astrens and the castle blustered to a storm. All the drapes were to be taken down, beat, and washed, and all beds were to be stripped and redressed. Servants littered the corridors scrubbing, sweeping, and running from chamber to chamber. When you asked what the occasion was, the response was vague. Lord Rogers is hosting a guest.

You weren’t used to the rush. Visitors were rare at the other castle and rarely were they accommodated so wholly. If they had a place to rest their head and fill their stomach, Barnes felt they could not gripe. Even his greetings were not required on such an occasion.

You helped with the scourging and scouring of the linens and the drapes. You worked so hard you didn’t even have the energy to gulp down the lumpy stew allotted to the servants. You fell into the heap of your bedmates into dreams laced with your own snores. You dreamt of the forest and the sound of hooves.

Another early morning and the gears began to grind once more. Darcy sent you away from the laundries to help refresh the rushes in the entrance hall with several others. You scattered herbs over the grand carpet that displayed scenes of hunting through the seasons. 

You wondered if perhaps Rogers was to be betrothed at last, the news of his first wife’s passing had sent many into gossip even before she was buried. Or maybe the king would make progress to the ancient grounds of the historic castle. You let your mind wander as your body was led by habit.

You heard the rolling of the carriage and the clip clop of horses. You followed several other servants as the tall doors were opened and you peered out into the yard at the party. You backed away as Lord Rogers emerged from the archway that led to the spiraling stairs and crossed the carpet. You could hardly hide your curiosity as you reluctantly followed the other servants. It would be unseemly to remain as Rogers welcomed his guests.

“James!” Rogers’ voice boomed and you stopped just outside the chamber as you looked down the stairs that led to the servants quarters, “it has been too long.”

“It has,” Lord Barnes’ responded and your eyes went wide as Deandra hissed for you to go. You couldn’t move as you listened and she abandoned you with a flutter of her fingers, “you know my father only ever called me James.”

“Ah, Buck, I’m kidding,” Rogers chuckled, “it is a pleasure to have you drag yourself from your hermitage.”

“You would make me regret it already,” the other lord chirped, “but the king did request my presence at the tournament and he did not allow for refusal. I’d prefer to travel with a friend, my only friend.”

“Oh, the sentiment, Lord Barnes,” Rogers preened dryly.

“I don’t know if I should be able to wait to tussle until the tourney,” Barnes jibed, “oh, this old place, has it been so long?”

You shoved yourself away from the door and clamoured down the stairs. You nearly tumbled down the last few and caught yourself on the wall. You sidled past Agnes and towards the laundries. Harriet called after you as you passed and rushed out the doors past the muddy puddles of dirty water and hanging sheets.

The grass was slick beneath your shoes as you raced for the stables. You only needed to hide there for a time and sneak out before they closed the gates. You didn’t make it past the first stall before you heard the steel whine. You turned as Lester greeted you with the tip of his sword.

“The master has been searching for you,” the toothy guard smirked, “oh and what a reward I shall have for bringing him a prize of his own.”

[oh-boy-me]

I found your speculation of Satan having a crush on mc from the get go verry interesting. I was wondering if you have any speculations around the other boys? Like in what order do you think the boys fell for mc? Any specific points in the story that you think are the "fall for mc" moments for them?

(HFSDHFSD LISTEN I’ve had this in my drafts for AGES and I’m so sorry I’m just now getting to actually posting it ;w; )

I’m MORE than happy to speculate on this!  For the brothers, at least, because I haven’t read up to the parts where the other characters show notable interest in you

Putting most of this under a cut for long post and spoilers, but the tl;dr (with some mysterious elements to catch your interest heheheh) is that I believe the brothers “fall for MC” in this order:

1. Satan 2. Mammon 3. (Lucifer) 4. (Levi) 3. Belphie 4. Beel 4. Levi 4. Lucifer 7. Asmo

That must look a little weird; I hope I’ve piqued your interest!

Now, what am I defining as falling for MC?  For consistency, we’re going to consider a brother falling for MC being the moment when they themself realize that they might have feelings for them.

#1 Demon: Satan Moment: As early as day 4

First up is Satan, who I’ve already explained here.  An argument can be made that Mammon catches feelings first, but assuming a real-time progression, Satan’s first text reaches MC on their fourth day in the Devildom.

#2 Demon: Mammon Moment: Lesson 4-1

Mammon is interesting, because with this analysis he’s one of only two brothers for which you can actually get a calendar date for their falling for MC.  You can do this because the first few lessons cover a very short span of time.

According to the fact that Lucifer says you don’t want to be late on your first day of school after giving you a hint about Goldie, MC makes a pact with Mammon on their second day in the Devildom. (You don’t go to school on day 1.)

Lucifer blocks MC from the attic on the night of day 3, and after that things get shaky again until you hit the TSL movie night with Beel and Mammon.

The reason the movie night is interesting is because Beel specifically states that midterms are coming up soon.  Based on the game’s Japanese origin, we’re going to assume that RAD also follows the same three-term system that Japanese schools do.  This places the TSL marathon at about a month into MC’s stay.

Anyway, we’re basing Mammon’s interest in you on pretty obvious factors:

We basically don’t see any of Mammon’s trademark tsundere nature until after these lessons.  Before this it’s not him being tsundere, he’s genuinely annoyed with you.

He left a toothbrush and charger in your room sometime between Lesson 3-10 and 4-4.

This famous line: 

He probably developed feelings sometime during the TSL marathon, but I think it was when you were in danger, and even though he kept saying he’d let you die his first instinct was to save you, that he understood what those feelings were.

#3.  Demon: (Lucifer) Moment: Lesson 12-19

Crossed out and in parentheses Lucifer is the first one where we start to go off of assumptions and headcanon rather than concrete in game evidence, but.  I’m sure your bigger question is “why is he crossed out AND in parentheses AND why does he show up again later.”

The moment I listed is the lesson where you and Lucifer have to fall in love to escape the “horror game” that Levi “trapped” you in.  He spends most of the time seeming like he isn’t interested and doing it out of necessity, but then he turns around and says these lines.

Assuming that was almost a confession, I wouldn’t be surprised if he decided right there, in that moment, that he was developing feelings.  Lucifer is very self aware, and very sure of himself, and it’s also not like him to suddenly change his mind about how he’s treating things.  If he was hiding his feelings the whole time, I don’t think he would have almost slipped at all.

Of course, right after this, you announce that you’ve met Belphegor, and his developing feelings are overshadowed by rage.

And of course, Lesson 12-19 never happened.

What?

Let me remind you of the timeline.  Barbatos explains in Lesson 16-19 that he has the power to choose any timeline as the sole reality, and he chose the timeline you traveled to.

When you jump back in time, you end up in the moment right after making a pact with Satan (Lesson 12-10).  This means that everything that happened between Lessons 12-10 and 15-17 was erased from history.

The timeline in Season One looks a little something like this, to simplify.

Admittedly, we don’t know how far into their conversation MC and Lucifer make it in the second timeline, but on Lucifer’s part I don’t think it changes much.

This timeline stuff is important because

#4 Demon: (Leviathan) Moment: Lesson 14-4

Ok, first, I have to say that I really hate the way MC and Levi make up in Lesson 14.  imo it has the potential to be really manipulative on both sides.  But that’s not the point of this post.

Levi does NOT have a crush on you before Belphie shows up out of nowhere.  In Lesson 14-4, he’s talking to himself, and distinctly complains about losing a friend, and how Henry is his only friend.

He’s also refusing to acknowledge your existence, and he’s talking to a fish, so there’s no reason for him to hide how he really feels in the moment.

Then, later on in the same chapter, this is Levi’s response to seeing MC hug Lucifer.

I’m assuming MC isn’t the one he’s jealous of.  But what’s interesting here is that, as far as I can remember, this is the first time Levi ever expresses jealousy about you in any sense, platonic or romantic.  You don’t really interact with Levi one on one between Lesson 14-4 and this moment, so 14-4 is the most likely catalyst for this change.

Levi does say “you’re my true friend” at the end of 14-4, but you are not a fish, and that doesn’t change the fact that he could have been like “oh wow MC didn’t abandon me they really like me oh no I really like them”

Also, by 16-A he canonically likes you.

But just like with the last one, this exchange never happened and Levi never fell for you.

#3 Demon: Belphie Moment: Between Lessons 18-15 and 18-19

Now Belphie is interesting, because I would argue that he was trying to fall in love with you for a while.  All that “making up for lost time” and seeming to spend every waking hour with you in lessons 17 and 18 to me point pretty heavily to the idea that he wants to feel the same way about you that his brothers do.  Whether it’s to feel more connected with them or from a genuine interest in you is unclear though.

But then he decides to give you a pact as a present, which is a pretty big deal.  Most pacts in the game are made before the demon has feelings for you, but aside from Belphie, Satan is the only one who brings it up himself.  And since like I said Satan pretty clearly liked you before making a pact, the same can probably be said of Belphie.

I should also mention that Belphie muses over giving you a pact in Lesson 18-A, which takes place before Lesson 17-7 at the latest.  But we have to remember that this is before you’ve helped him mend his relationships with his brothers, and therefore he barely knows you.  Satan also barely knew you, but Belphie has the added problem of mixing up you and Lilith.  You can make arguments for the others when they were uber nice to you in Lesson 16-19, but for Belphie there’s really no other possible reason than Lilith.

However, Lesson 18-15 is the one where Belphie says he’s going to move forward with his life and stop putting things on hold for Lilith.

So, chances are his attachment to you is pretty unhealthy at first, but I’m choosing the timeframe I did as the moment because in 18-19 he explicitly states that he isn’t confusing you with Lilith.

This would be the moment of confirmation that he likes you, not the idea of what you might represent.

#4 Demon: Leviathan, Beelzebub, Lucifer Moment: Sometime during the time skip

I don’t think we see these three fall for you on camera.  The time skip covers literal months, and I think they fall for you in somewhere in that long period of time.

I don’t think I need to tell you that Levi and Beel like you by the time Lesson 20 comes along, since they both confess to you.

Lucifer doesn’t explicitly confess, but if you choose to hug him, he says this

Which heavily implies that he wants to be the one most important to you.  Also, I don’t think he’d have made a pact at all otherwise.

#7 Demon: Asmodeus Moment: Lesson 19-17

For Asmo, I think we see the EXACT moment he realizes he’s in love with you.

First off, in Lesson 16-A he noticeably isn’t openly interested in you in any way other than superficially.  Granted, 16-A never happened, but it does confirm that he didn’t like you before then.

Then, in his part of Lesson 19, you go drinking with him.  Early in the night, he says this.

His answer to your prompt of romance suggests that he doesn’t understand the fact that he does like you like that, or at least that he’s in denial.

However, then you beat him at a drinking game, and the reality of you leaving him behind comes crashing down on him.

The drastic change makes me think that this is the very moment he understands his feelings.

--

And that’s it!  I hope this was an interesting read, and sorry again it took SO long.

[musings-from-an-elder-goth]

That Time a 'Satanic Panic' Guy Lectured at My University

"Better to reign in Hell, than to serve in Heaven." - Satan, Paradise Lost

Circa 1989.

Like most folks who were teens during the 80's, I and my mostly goth friends played Dungeons & Dragons fairly often, however, we were never particularly hard-core gamers. I enjoyed playing necromancers, even if it was cliché. Although we all owned the rule books, the dice, the charts and tables, we rarely followed one session with another and preferred our games to be somewhat brief. We certainly knew of folks just like the Hellfire Club in Stranger Things season 4, who met every weekend at a set time and who played with the same character in the same game for years, but that wasn't our little group. We were strictly casual.

We much preferred D&D computer games. These had the obvious advantages of not requiring any other players and being ready to play at a moments notice. Games such as Dungeons of Daggorath, Temple of Apshai, The Ultima series, The Bard's Tale, and eventually the AD&D Gold Box series, were all games we spent hundreds of hours hacking and slashing our way through, to our endless delight.

Despite the thousands of hours we spent playing these games, nary a one of us managed to accidentally summon a demon, inadvertently become Satan's minion, or accidentally dice our souls away to the neither realms. So it was always with mirthful amusement we regarded the 'Satanic Panic' folks whenever they popped up on a TV talk show professing that we young, impressionable youth had all become Lucifer's love slaves.

Anyway, it was sometime in late 1989, when I heard that one of these Satanic Panic folks would be giving a lecture on the evils of the wacky dice at my school, Virginia Commonwealth University, in the Harris Hall auditorium. I rounded up as many of my very goth and militantly pro-D&D friends as I could and we made sure we got there good and early for this clown's lecture. We sat in the first row, right in front of the lectern.

Surprisingly, this little side show actually managed to draw quite the crowd, and the auditorium was nearly filled to capacity. Right on time, an ordinary looking guy in his mid-30's came out and took his place behind the the hardwood podium. He looked out at the large crowd with obvious surprise and smiled a little. But then he noticed our pool of darkness in the front row, and the color drained from his face. I remember chuckling to myself that this doofus must have thought that Satan himself had sent a minor detachment of his legions just to challenge him, one of the Lord's own righteous warriors. I settled into my chair, excited for the impending chaos. Chaotic Neutral alignment, all the way.

The next 15 minutes were everything I could have ever hoped for. Mr. Satanic Panic confidently began his lecture and was actually a fairly competent and polished speaker. He rattled off the usual satanic panic talking points, but he was accustomed to preaching to the choir, and this crowd was no choir. Almost immediately, the counter points began being shouted out. "I've played this game for years and I'm no satanist!" "It's just a game, like chess or Monopoly, you idiot!" "Have you ever actually played the game you're bashing?" And so forth. The university moderator repeatedly tried to calm the crowd (now more of a mob) down, but to no avail. The poor speaker was quickly reduced to stuttering, dropping his notes, loosing his place, repeating what he'd already said, and sweating profusely. Our little group of goths hadn't even said a word, but he kept looking down fearfully at us like we were somehow controlling the other students through satanic sorcery - it was hilarious! It was at this point, and I shit you not, Mr. Satanic Panic straight up fainted, dropping to the floor behind the lectern like a sack of righteous potatoes.

And with that, the show was over. Mr. Satanic Panic was fine. As we students were filing out of the auditorium, an ambulance arrived, but the guy was able to stand and walk about on his own. He may have faked the faint just to get out of an ugly situation (and if so, I don't blame him) or it could have been legit. While leaving, I overhead other students chatting about how we'd collectively 'won a victory' and taught this guy not to bring his special brand of crazy back to our University. Honestly, I think Mr. Panic would run back to his church and tell the congregation that he'd bravely faced down a demonic legion, only faltering at the last moment when he briefly doubted in the Power of the Lord, or some such silliness. Regardless, he never vexed VCU again, at least not while I was a student there. I chalked that up as a solid win for goth gaming.

And that was what happened that time a satanic panic guy lectured at my university in Richmond, VA, back in late 1989.

creaturesfromelsewhere 3-12-2022