#can you tell I'm re-reading hell followed with us | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

goingbuggy · 3 months

Note

Good morrow my shuggy liege!

I was pondering if I should or shouldn’t ask but I hope it will not be too much bother to answer

It’s about one of your metas about the love and sacrifice Beautifully written I must say but reading through it again made me wondering how does buggy fall into the sacrifice themes of one piece?

It pains me to admit that once I’ve read 1082 I had many different feelings and one of them thought of buggy sacrifice as quite selfish in a way? Don’t get me wrong I’m sure came from him believing in shanks and the love he had for the boy! It just it felt in a way like he was burdening shanks with his own dreams

I’m happy he finally got the courage to follow his own path It’s beautiful and inspiring I just wonder if my interpretation is coming from anxiety or is actually true? Thank you and I’m sorry to sending this on anon

Hello, anon! Thank you for your kind words about my metas. Before I answer your question about where Buggy might fit into the wider themes of One Piece -- like sacrifice -- I think I should address your interpretation of 1082's events and compare them with mine.

I can understand why someone might conclude that Buggy's faith in Shanks is a burden of sorts, and ultimately selfish; after all, Shanks never asked for the weight of Buggy's expectations, and you could argue that Buggy's plan was to live out his dreams vicariously through Shanks. However, I think that there are some key points which entirely re-frame the situation.

Buggy didn't actually tell Shanks about what he did.

This isn't explicitly confirmed by the manga, but based on 1082's events and Shanks/Buggy's relationship timeline going forward, I can definitely make a strong case for their miscommunication in this regard.

Although we have Buggy's narration in 1082 to guide us through his flashback and enlighten us with his true feelings about Shanks, remember -- it's an internal monologue. The only thing Shanks knows is what Buggy tells him, and what Buggy tells him is not the full story. Look at this series of panels to see what I mean.

We have a very important contrast here -- Buggy's thoughts ("You're not the next generation's king?! I misjudged you, Shanks!" / "Don't you care about following in Captain Roger's footsteps?!"), versus what he actually says. ("You coward!" / "It's your fault I lost that treasure map!")

In classic Buggy fashion, we see him deflect from the truth; instead of explaining how much he believed in Shanks' potential, he brings up a petty grudge and insults Shanks out of disappointment, hurt, and anger/frustration. Nowhere do we see Buggy explicitly tell Shanks what/why he gave up. And this miscommunication is not only the heart of Buggy's sacrifice, but the exact reason why they split in the first place: Shanks did not tell Buggy what made him change his mind about going to Laughtale, and Buggy did not tell Shanks about his decision/dream.

I think this is key to understanding the way they navigate their interactions later down the line, in Marineford. Remember: Shanks believes that they split due to the whole map ordeal, which is not only a relatively lighthearted grudge to hold, but also very confusing from Shanks' perspective.

I love the curt answer he gives here, because it really reflects Shanks' limited understanding of what actually transpired between them that fateful day at Loguetown. Thus, it's also understandable why Shanks acts the way he does at Marineford. I highly doubt Shanks would be so casual if he knew Buggy's real reasons for parting ways. Hell, their split was so important to Shanks that he still remembers Buggy's gripe about the map 20+ years later -- and even uses the promise of one to draw Buggy back into rehashing things between them. (The anime expands on Shanks' confusion/limited understanding even more, but because we're dealing with the manga only, I'm not going to reference those added scenes.)

This interaction can seem quite confusing, but place it in the wider context I've just proposed, and it makes a lot more sense. Something fundamental has permanently shifted between them, but Shanks does not understand the gravity -- nor the real reason -- behind that change. And yet again, Buggy perpetuates this cycle of miscommunication by not telling him.

So, now that I've argued why I believe Buggy didn't tell Shanks about his true dream/decision to give up on said dream, why is it so important?

Well, this leads to my second point.

2. Buggy is a character primarily motivated by greed.

This statement does not need to be argued; it's as explicit as can be, because it has been well-established by Oda. In fact, it's very likely to be what people remember best about Buggy's character, in the midst of the massive narrative that One Piece has become. (I will touch upon this later, because this is exactly why I view Buggy's sacrifice as so impactful to the reader.)

Now, my last point:

3. Buggy is terrible at hiding his true intentions.

Buggy usually makes it quite obvious what he's hiding through blatant lies which hint to the truth, or even a direct slip of the tongue, like in Impel Down. This is partially for the sake of comedy/divulging necessary information to readers, but it's also a genuine aspect of his character which reinforces the comedy. Buggy's intentions are comically apparent to readers, so it's ridiculous to see his followers fall for his schemes.

These three points, in tandem, are exactly what makes 1082's reveal so impactful. Oda uproots everything we thought we knew about Buggy's character in order to give us the missing puzzle piece -- the reason why he is the way he is. This exact decision.

Buggy is a character motivated by greed, but he gave up on his dream, a pillar of freedom and existence in the One Piece world. He is self-absorbed, and yet he de-centered himself from the narrative. And for who, of all people? Shanks, the very man he claimed to despise in his first introduction. Are you starting to see the groundwork Oda's laying down here?

Buggy is notoriously bad at hiding the truth when he lies, and yet readers are blindsided by this reveal, over a thousand chapters after his first appearance. He kept it a secret, not just from Shanks, but from us. 1082 subverted our expectations and further developed Buggy's character in the process. It's a great display of what I love most about Oda's writing.

Before 1082, it would be difficult to claim where Buggy lies in One Piece's themes of sacrifice or dreams. But post-1082, it's a lot clearer. Oda has shown us that Shanks is just as important to Buggy as Buggy is to Shanks, and he's done it in the most effective way for a greedy character: by showing us that even Buggy is capable of sacrifice, when it's for someone he cares about. And what did he give up? His dream -- one of the most important things people have in One Piece.

Sure, it's possible to dismiss Buggy's decision as selfish, but remember: he didn't tell Shanks. He didn't expect anything in return. In a way, he has actually spared Shanks from feeling burdened; Shanks doesn't know the truth, and so he has no opportunity to feel guilt or responsibility for Buggy's decision. For a character like Shanks, who is defined by responsibility, this is also massively significant. Buggy's choice is not Shanks' fault, and by deflecting to trivial matters like the map, Buggy has -- intentionally or not -- lifted a possible weight from Shanks' shoulders. Shanks still feels the loss of their relationship, but instead of potential guilt, there is confusion and miscommunication.

So, no, I don't view Buggy's sacrifice as selfish. He did what he did because he truly believed in Shanks. He was willing to let Shanks become king and live out his dream, all without burdening Shanks with the truth. It's the antithesis of everything we've known about Buggy up until this point -- a decision without his greed, egomania, and overt schemes at the forefront. And if that's not a selfless act from Buggy, then I don't know what is.

#tldr; this just in: miscommunication is once again beating shuggy's asses #one piece #buggy the clown #buggy #akagami no shanks #shanks #shuggy #is it shuggy? idk the lines have blurred at this point #ask #one piece meta #long post #meta

78 notes · View notes

f1-birb · 2 months

Text

in reference to this, the lovely anon came back to give full thoughts from a union rep perspective so I have taken the text from two asks and put them under the cut - incredibly interesting read and sheds light on a lot of assumptions I'd formed but from a more knowledgeable perspective:

As I said in my initial message, I have a lot of thoughts on the entire radio interaction throughout the last 20 laps of that race yesterday, so to keep things from getting too chaotic, I'm going to try to discuss things in sections.

-THE MESSAGES-

I actually think this is a two-fold problem.

So, for starters, we get the message

"Lando, he can't catch you. You've proved your point" towards the end of this whole ordeal. Every interaction prior to this point involves some variation of "We're stressed about the tyres, Lando. You need to save tyres, Lando." (Coincidentally, every message about saving tyres is followed up with some variation of "Remember to let Oscar through." I'll come back to this in the section about Will). Except, we can see from the photos of the two McLaren cars in parc ferme that Lando's tyres were fine. The fact that he was able to push and continue building a gap shows that his tyres were fine and weren't dropping off.

This, right here, prime example of gaslighting. A driver can feel when he starts struggling with the tyres, we've heard Lando himself complain about the tyres going off on the radio before.

He wasn't struggling at all here, the team was trying to convince him he was to slow him down. This, already, to me is extremely unethical and sets a dangerous precedent. If the team is willing to gaslight and lie to him about something occurring on the track, directly related to his race, when he's driving at high speeds and has no access to data, how is he supposed to know when he can trust them? Not only is this example gaslighting, it's extremely manipulative. They re trying to make him believe something that isn't at all true so that he does something completely unnatural to his nature as a racing driver (intentionally driving slower for like the last 15 laps) that benefits them.

Now, probably the most controversial part of the interaction occurs when Lando says he's fighting for this championship (presumably the Driver's Championship), and Will responds with

"The way to win a championship is not by yourself. It's with the team. You're going to need Oscar. You're going to need the team." Now, l'm going to be completely honest with you, if this interaction had occurred in some kind of interview between Will and Lando or in a free practice session or hell even in a qualifying session debating who would get a tow or prime track position, l'd probably be like "Yeah, fair enough, that's 100% true, needing a supportive team behind you to be successful is true of a lot of industries, including mine." But you have to remember the context here: They're trying to manipulate him into doing something he's expressed discomfort in doing, using tactics like gaslighting, blatantly lying, appealing to his emotions, and now threatening him.

This isn't the "You're part of a team" message some people are trying to play it off as to make it sound lighter than it is and like others are

overreacting. There is no "Remember, you're part of a team that can help you get that championship." The words of

"You're going to need the team" are very deliberate and intentional. They're basically telling him, if he wants the support and aid of the team, he has to do what he's being told regardless of if he agrees with it or feels comfortable with it. Again, they're trying to use tactics like intimidation and fear of future retaliation to get him to do something he's uncomfortable with.

-ANDREA STELLA-

Courtesy of Ted Kravitz, we now know Andrea Stella was the one telling Will Joseph the exact messages to relay to Lando. So, let's just break this down.

This is the team principal himself - the man whose job responsibility is quite literally to manage the team and driver dynamics.

His team has fucked up. He knows they've fucked up. Hell, even Lando knows they've fucked up and asks at one point why they didn't just pit Oscar first. Instead of owning the team's fuck up, he tries to make Lando the scapegoat. Even after the race, in the media, he's still trying to make it look like McLaren deserve no criticism, Lando does for trying to steal a win from his teammate (that his error-prone strategy team dangled in front of Lando). So, he's still resorting to abusive tactics like emotional manipulation to his driver who in the end did exactly what he asked despite being uncomfortable doing it. This is also just extremely narcissistic - refusing to acknowledge his and his team's role in this mess and instead placing it all on Lando.

And then the radio messages that he was feeding to Will Joseph to in turn feed to Lando. The "obey or we'll never support you" message would have been bad enough coming from Will, but there's a whole other element at power when you know it was the team principal, someone who strategists and engineers answer to, threatening this.

This is someone who very well could ruin Lando's entire career and stock in the paddock with the staff and resources at his disposal, and he's essentially threatening, on a public radio broadcasted to millions, to do just that if Lando doesn't obey him.

This wasn't a "frantic race engineer trying to reel his driver in" situation like we originally thought, this is a team principal - again, responsible for managing the TEAM and DRIVERS - basically threatening to have the team leave one of the drivers out to dry and focus all of their efforts and attention on the other if this one driver does not conform to his will.

And I know a lot of people are upset that Lando is not speaking out against the team, so let me pose this question:

If Andrea Stella is perfectly comfortable acting this vile - gaslighting, blackmailing, threatening - on a public radio broadcasted to millions, and the threat of "obey me or this team will not support you" is already hanging in the air, do you really think Lando could criticize the team publicly and get out unscathed? Given these radio messages, does Lando even think he could fairly criticize the team, publicly or privately, without jeopardizing his own career? We think because he's a multimillionaire (and he is privileged, I'm not denying that) with millions of followers that he has all this influence, but the one with the real power - the one who tells Zak Brown who he wants in those seats - has basically just publicly sent him the message that if he wants to stay in his seat and actually achieve his biggest goal, he'll shut up and listen regardless of his own thoughts or opinions.

-WILL JOSEPH-

Let me preface this by saying I don't think Will is completely blameless in this situation. That being said, he was manipulated by Andrea Stella and his tactics just as much as Lando was, and as l'll go into in a moment, I think there are definitely signs that he wasn't 100% comfortable with what he was doing and was still trying to look out for Lando while placating their boss.

But first ... the power dynamics, again.

Much like he has the power to destroy Lando's career if he wanted to, Stella also has the power to destroy, frankly much more quickly and easily, Will's career if he really wanted to. And we already know from his radio messages to Lando that Andrea Stella is not against threatening to do just that if his employees do not obey his orders. So, despite still being angry at Will, I do recognize he was in a lose-lose situation.

I really do think if you read between the lines of those radio messages that you can see that Will did try, in his own way, to look out for Lando, but that also makes some of the things he said a bit more eerie of some of this toxic behavior existing behind closed doors as well.

For example, one thing I noticed with the "Save tyres" messages was that every single time, there was some sort of plea to swap positions. And again, this is mostly speculation, but I think that was Will's way of saying like "Your tyres are fine, they are just demanding you slow down for this switch." Evidence of this: "We need you to save your tyres please and we do want to let Oscar through." "Ok, Lando, we still think you're using the tyres too much Turn 4 Turn 11, and the rears at exit Turn 6 Turn 9. Oscar's 3.5, I know you'll do the right thing." "We think both cars are using their tyres too much. Just remember every single Sunday morning meeting we have."

I also, and again this is mostly speculation on my part, but I do believe Will was trying to avoid saying some of the harsher things like the threat that Andrea was telling him. At the time, I thought the urgent messages in which Will insists he's trying to protect Lando were about protecting him from a potential undercut and thus needing to pit him first, but as quite literally every analysis has pointed out, Lando wasn't even under threat of that for the final pit stops. They could have pitted Oscar the lap they pitted Lando, pitted Lando the very next lap, and everyone would have maintained their original positions. I also just, idk, felt the urgency in that "I'm trying to protect you mate, I promise I'm trying to protect you." message just wouldn't have matched up if all they were discussing was the pit sequence. Like, Will sounded full-on frantic at this point, and then mind you, the very next plea Andrea has him give is the threat about Lando not having the team's support going forward if he doesn't swap positions.

So, despite still being mad as hell, I understand power dynamics were shifted in both Will and Lando's cases.

Stella was on a power trip and would have happily (and did, as we see Lando still taking the brunt of the blame for Stella's team's failures) thrown both Will and Lando to the wolves if he didn't get his way. And that intimidation factor easily allows him to manipulate both Will and Lando.

This is more like the arguments/ evidence I would use if this incident were to get reported to HR, and, as a Union Rep, I was chosen to go advocate for Lando and Will against management. That being said, much of what we focus on when we are advocating for employees are the power dynamics at hand, and that's something about this situation I don't see people recognizing enough. Andrea Stella is in a position of power over both the other men involved in this situation, and according to Ted Kravitz, he was the one pulling the strings with the gaslighting and blackmailing and manipulating. Had Will refused to convey Andrea's messages, he could have been demoted or maybe even terminated altogether. As we heard in the messages themselves, had Lando refused to bend to Andrea's will, there's a chance the team really does hang him out to dry and prioritizes Oscar at all costs.

It's difficult to provide a full Union Rep analysis too because so much of our work relies on reading actual employee contracts, and obviously those aren't just freely available online for F1 drivers. That said, I can already tell you they very clearly and deliberately broke one of their own team values with this behavior: "We act with integrity and work together to address challenges with respect, openness, and honesty." So, I wouldn't be surprised if there aren't mandates against this behavior in Andrea's own contract, and l'd be very surprised if McLaren didn't have just a general employee Code of Conduct that basically this entire incident broke.

and on the term 'workplace harassment':

I noticed the term "workplace harassment" used in the reblogs of one of your posts too, and while I didn't really use the term "workplace harassment" in my previous message, I would also throw in that I know Stella's (and by proxy, Will's) behaviors towards Lando yesterday 100% be considered workplace harassment. Intentionally withholding or spreading misinformation that impacts

someone's ability to properly do their job is workplace harassment (and granted, there's a lot of examples of that from McLaren and F1 as a whole, but the key word here is intentionally. that's normally genuine strategy blunders and not a team legitimately telling their driver lies to try to slow them down). Completely overbearing supervision can also be a sign of workplace harassment, and I'd argue by Stella literally trying to make Will his mouthpiece, he was definitely doing that. Making threats concerning job opportunities or job security (in the workplace, not in like a performance review) is ALWAYS considered workplace harassment, and well. We have direct evidence of Stella and Will both engaging in that.

#thank you anon #this was super interesting to read through

62 notes · View notes

elizabebabe · 2 months

Text

𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝 ೀ 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐥𝐨

𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡: you're scouted for love island and you and your manager think of it as a business opportunity but what happens when you actually want to find love?, you're in for the summer of your life.

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫: 4

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: use of y/n.

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 3k!

𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: sorry this took so long, been busy with real life stuff, love you all and thank you for the support on the last chapter! I typically re-read twice but I've only done it once so forgive me for if there's any mistakes. <3

‘ding’,

he looks back down at his phone, “please pick a girl for your first date and get ready to leave the villa.”

he pauses, “y/n, would you like to go on a date with me?” the girls cheer and most of the guys, romeo staying quiet.

“mhm” you mutter.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you peeled a bit of slime off your shoulder as you walked upstairs, you were called to the beach hut and prepared to share your thoughts.

you walked into the room, closing the door behind you then sitting down, adjusting the red bikini that hugged you tightly.

“how was the challenge?” the questions starting quickly.

“it was fun, i feel really gross though.”

“you didn’t seem to enjoy that kiss with romeo, how so?” the deep voice continues.

you sigh, putting your knee up on the chair, “i feel guilty.” you pause, “i mean.” you quietly grunt, “i don’t know, i feel bad for chris and romeo, i feel like i’m playing them.”

“i think my feelings are leaning towards chris more so i think that's where the guilt is coming from.” you continue.

“how do you feel about chris’s kiss.?”

“it was sweet, however i wouldn't have minded if he kissed me on the lips.”

“and finally, how do you feel about your date?”

you giggle, “i’m nervous but excited, he’s easy to chat to so it’ll be fine.”

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you strip out of the bikini and walk under the warm water, scrubbing slimy sludge off your skin, layering soap on top and shaving a few stubborn hairs.

the water streamed down your back fogging up the shower door.

you stepped out, quickly wrapping a white towel around your body and walking into the makeup room, it was twilight out, the sun being soon to set, you sat at your vanity as kaia left the room to hop in the shower next, the rest of the girls already getting ready for the evening.

“how do you feel, y/n?” abby asks the moment you sit down.

“i’m excited, like i really like him.” you say with a quiet squeal as you pick up the primer on your vanity.

clair smiles, “so happy for you.” she says, grabbing your attention.

“i have news.” she continues.

you quickly look in her direction, everyone else following behind you.

“i like robert more, i'm telling aidan tonight.”

abby cheers her on.

“hell yeah!” abby exclaims.

“you guys are nice together.” leah adds as you nod your head in agreement.

you can tell she feels validated since her lips curved into a cheerful smile. you move your lips over your water bottle, taking a sip between steps.

“how you doin’ abby?” you question.

“i don’t know, cade’s being a bitch right now.” she comments in a serious tone, ‘bitch’ taking you all by surprise making you chuckle.

“damn.” clair states.

“i’m gonna pull him tonight and ask what his problem is.” she says, standing up and walking to her open wardrobe.

“you alright leah?” clair asks, as she brushes her thick curls.

“fine, had a good chat with cyrus earlier but kaia is pissed.” she tossed her hair behind her.

“as she should be!” abby shouts, her mind focused on finding an outfit.

“you didn’t have to yell.” you giggle.

you quickly style your hair then get up and walk to your closet, sorting through your designs,

“you should wear that dress.” clair shares her input, pointing towards it with her makeup brush.

you grab the pointed at hangar and pull it out,

it was red, long and backless, you had some stilettos that you thought would pair nicely. you quickly lotioned up and changed, sliding the heels onto your feet and observing yourself in the mirror.

“gorgeous.” abby says as she watches you in the mirror.

“okay, i'm going!” you say nervously.

multiple ‘byes’ leave different mouths, you slowly walk down the stairs and towards the front door,

chris is waiting there, he's dressed in all black which happens to compliment your red attire.

“you waited this whole time?” you question walking up to him.

“mhm and it was worth it.” he says, successfully flattering you.

you share a quick hug before walking out the door and to the car waiting in the gravel driveway.

you approach a cliff over open water, there's a table waiting for you both with candles delicately placed around the setting, the sundown starting at a perfect time, it was beautiful.

he pulls the chair out for you and you quickly sit down, adjusting your snug fitted dress, he sits across from you.

“how are you?” he asks, grabbing the wine bottle off the table as well as a corkscrew.

“i’m good.”, “happy.” you continue, fidgeting with the utensils on the table.

he angels the corkscrew slightly and pops the cork.

“i’m glad.” he mentions, pouring the red wine into your glass, then serving himself.

he places the bottle down finally making eye contact with you, you can’t help but giggle, he does the same.

“so today, the kiss.” you comment as you pick up your wine glass.

“mhm?” he intently listens.

“you didn’t kiss me.” you say awkwardly swirling the wine then taking a sip.

he scoffs with a smirk,

“i technically did..” he says playfully, earning a sideways look from you.

“there was slime everywhere, everyone was watching, it just didn’t seem like an appropriate time.” you nod your head as you cut into a piece of chicken laid out on the plate in front of you.

“plus i really like you and i want to take things slowly.” he hesitates but also gesturing with his hands, awaiting your response.

“that’s nice.” you say after a bit of silent chewing.

“i like slow.” you continue, making both of you snicker.

he picks up his glass and takes a sip, “romeo.” he states, making you look up from your plate.

“how are things going with him?” he adds.

your manicured hand picks up your glass, “i don’t know..” you’re purposely elusive, wanting to leave him in the dark. sure you liked him more but you didn’t want him to know that, not until you were sure about him.

he puts the glass down, “don’t know.” he slowly nods, cupping his hand on his face, glaring at you.

his gaze felt intense.

your eyes darted around looking towards the scenery, how the sundown colors melted together, how the waves below crashed into each other.

“y/n.” he says seriously, catching your attention.

“i need to know that if i picked you it would be okay.” he continued sternly but also softly?

you smirk then bite your tongue, “it would be okay.” you hesitate, not wanting to put all your cards on the table.

“great.”

“so tell me more about you, i know you’re 21, have your own business, you’re family oriented, what else should i know?” he adds.

you smile, even though it felt like the bare minimum it was nice that he remembered all these things about you, “hm..” you think.

“what do you want to know?” you carried on.

“more about your job, i love that you paved your own path so to speak.” he doesn't take a beat to reply, it must have been heavy on his mind.

“well i started when i was 19 which was incredibly hard but my best friend, rhia, she really backed me

…and my parents helped float my rent”, you say embarrassedly.

“that’s so sweet.” he comments with a mouthful of chicken, usually this would be an ick but it was cute when he did it.

“i basically sketch my designs, create them, then ship them, i hope to have a huge empire or somethin’” you say shyly.

he smiles. “you’re so cute.” you say resting your elbow on the table and placing your head on your palm.

you watch the blood rush to his cheeks from the compliment, “thank you.” he nervously looks down.

he pushes his chair back with his legs and stands up, he walks towards you and pulls out your chair.

you stand up, patting your dress down and adjusting your mic, he places his hands around you, slithering to your lower back, your tidy hands quickly wrap around his neck, reciprocating the tight hug.

before you knew it his hands slipped a bit lower but you didn't mind, rubbed up and down your body as you patted his back.

you slowly pulled away knowing your date was over, “who do you want me to bring for you..?” you comment quietly.

“oh sorry, what was that?” he rubs the date in your face.

“you heard me.” you gently and playfully push him.

he smiles, placing his hand on his chin.

“leah.” he states then winks at you.

you scoff, “whatever.” you do your best ‘strut’ away, giving him a nice view before his second date and heading to your ride back to the villa.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you stepped into the villa doors, the only sound heard were your stilettos hitting the ground, you walked towards the backyard and noticed the girls on the swing and the boys at the fire pit, “i’m back!” you shouted, gaining the attention of everyone else.

they cheered in response and walked towards you, you shared hugs with the girl and boys,

even though you weren’t gone for long you missed them. once you were greeted you pulled the girls for a chat at the fire pit as the boys stayed in the kitchen.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you adjusted yourself as you sat down, getting a good look at the girls you noticed their sad demenurs, abby’s smudged eyeliner, “what happened?” you quickly comment.

“how was your date?” abby hurriedly states, changing the topic.

you're a bit wary but decided if abby insisted it would be a good idea, “it was good, leah, chris picked you for his second date.” you swiftly mention.

she looks surprised, “ok.” she stands up, rearranging her dress and walking towards the kitchen, then through the doors.

“we just get on really well and the chemistry is there.” you continue with a smile, the girls rally, they all seem genuinely excited for you, you give them details but can’t help but sense a weird vibe around the villa.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you were in the kitchen, drinking water straight from your bottle, you headed inside in an attempt to find where the girls ran off, you noticed kaia and aidan having a chat in the living space but you headed upstairs to find clair and abby.

you carefully walked up and heard sniffles from upstairs, you walked towards the noise, and quickly realized it was coming from the makeup room, you walked in and noticed abby sitting at her vanity re-applying concealer with clair right next to her.

“what’s wrong?” you speedily ask as you fully walk into the room.

“cade and her fought.” clair answers for her.

you walk around clair and sit on the other empty stool next to abby, “what!?,

you okay?”

“i’ll be fine.” she chokes through her words, continuing with a loose smile on her face as she looks at you.

“what happened?” you say worry lining your voice.

“he was upset about me kissing chris.” she begins to tear up again, “but it was a game.” you hesitatingly reply.

“that’s what i said.” abby says wiping under her eyelids,

“you missed a lot.” clair starts, earning a concerned face from you.

“kaia and cyrus also went at it.”

“holy shit” you rub your hand on abby's back, up and down in soothing motions.

“i just feel embarrassed.” she cries.

“no, no.” you hurriedly say.

“don’t be.” clair comments.

“i shouldn’t be crying. i met him yesterday.” she mopes.

“it’s okay to cry, you guys have something special.” you reply.

“and he knows that, it’s gonna be okay.” you continued, clair nods her head.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

after sitting with abby for a while you all headed back outside, you grabbed a champagne sitting on the counter and tasted it, this with the mix of the wine bubbled in your tummy.

you were sitting on the kitchen counter talking with aidan, he expressed him and clair calling it quits and his good conversation with kaia before your shoulder was tapped on, you turned to see romeo.

he pulled you to the fire pit, the heat keeping you cozy and warm.

“how was it.” he didn’t phrase it like a question, it was a statement.

“it was good, jus waitin to hear about leah and him.” you calmly comment, bringing the glass you held steady in your hand to your lips.

“you should definitely explore that.” he says monotony.

your head turns, why the sudden push towards him?

“i will.” you state, standing up and walking back to the kitchen, leaving him seated.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

you are sitting at the bean bags with abby and clair when you hear shouts coming from the door, they’re back, her arm was linked with his, internally lighting you on fire.

she made a beeline towards us and kaia came quickly behind, you all walked to your favorite spot, the swing.

you adjusted your long dress as you sat down, “how was it?” kaia asks.

“good, he’s sweet.” she states.

you smile, nodding your head as she shares details about the date, just him being a gentleman but also shedding light on his connection with you which earns a cheesy smile.

“i just think romeo’s more my type.”, “sorry.” she quickly continues.

“that’s fine.” you smile.

your conversation was interrupted by a loud ring from the bean bags, chris stands up, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

“chris, the time has come for you to choose which girl you want to couple up with,

all islanders must gather at the fire pit.” he continues, “#absoulutesteal, #allsfairinloveandwar.”

“shit.” cade comments.

you all walk over to the fire pit, chris stands ahead of it, beginning his speech.

he blows out air, “i’ve come in and been placed in a position where i have to ‘steal’ a young lady from a fine gentleman and that’s definitely been tough.”

you squirm in your seat, nervousness taking over you.

“i’m gonna have to end a coupling which i'm sorry about.” he smirks in a way that contradicts his comment.

“the reason why i’m picking this girl is because she's really sweet, she’s funny and she is someone who i can listen to unconditionally and that means a lot to me since i don't shut up.” he giggles, making everyone chuckle.

“obviously she’s gorgeous and just all around a nice girl, so.. the girl i want to couple up with is…”

…..

“y/n!” he exclaims, smiling towards you, you stand up and walk towards him sharing a quick hug before standing beside him, his arm glides around your shoulder.

you jump from a sudden ding, romeo takes his phone out of his pocket.

“got a text.” he states calmly.

“romeo, you are now single. at the end of the week all islanders will take part in a re-coupling. the boy not picked to be in a couple will be dumped from the island.” everyone lightly gasps, you look at chris.

“#un-koala-fied.” you notice chris’s attempt to hold his laugh, resulting in a low snicker.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

the re-coupling was over and it was time for bed, you had a long day and were ready for a potential cuddle in your new coupling.

all of you girls stacked up in the makeup room, using cotton pads to remove your makeup, you slid out of your tight dress and grabbed a pair of black shorts, you threw an oversized shirt over your head.

“leah, who are you leaning towards?” kaia asks as she lifts her top over her head.

“romeo, we kissed on the terrace earlier.” she says nonchalantly, making your head snap up from your mirror.

“is there anything else i missed? damn.” you comment with a giggle.

“sorry.” she replies.

“don’t be, i'm happy for you!” you lightly exclaim, adjusting your mic around your neck.

there was commotion in both dressing rooms, you walked to the hall then the bathroom to brush your teeth, robert was already using mouthwash.

“hi” quickly left your mouth when you saw him, “hello!” he cheerfully responded, making you smile. you grabbed the tube of toothpaste from yesterday and laid a bit of it on your toothbrush, gently brushing in circles.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

it was time for a nightly catch up so you groggily headed to the beach hut, ready to dish out your thoughts.

“how was your date?”

“it was good, so beautiful, probably the best date i've been on.” you easily reply.

“what do you think about what you’ve missed when you were gone?”

“holy shit.”

“apparently kaia and cyrus aren’t speaking and cade’s sleeping outside on a daybed, so hopefully everyone clears things up tomorrow, i don’t want there to be bad vibes in the villa week one.” you continue.

“what about romeo and leah?”

you giggle knowing this was going to be brought up to you.

“happy for them.” you smile.

“and your new coupling?”

“i’m excited to sleep, maybe cuddle?” you insist.

you speedily finished up in your tired haze, then walked down the steps with the rest of your fellow islanders.

⋆˚｡⋆୨୧˚

chris jumped in the bed, scattering the sheets.

your water bottle was in your crutches as you took tiny sips, “can i have some?” he said as you got closer to him, taking a seat on the opposing side of the bed, “sure.” you hand it to him as he slides the nozzle between his lips.

“thanks” he giggles, passing it back to you, you look around the room noticing romeo alone in the bed you once shared, you feel bad even though he had a sneaky kiss.

you placed your water down after a few quick sips and lifted your legs onto the bed, laying your head back comfortably.

you turned on your side to face chris, “you okay?” he calmly asks.

“mhmh” you hum.

he puts his hand on your waist pulling you closer to him, you oblige, nuzzling closely to him.

everyone quiets down again, followed by the lights turning off.

you peacefully drifted off, tossing and turning in your sleep, chris having no problem with continuing cuddles even with all of your movements.

what will this new coupling bring? find out next time on love island…

is it crazy to say this feels like a filler chapter?, I personally cannot wait till we get later into the weeks, casa amor will be very interesting.. :) when we travel to places (date's, challenges) i'll keep up with the whole visual thing, i think that definitely helps.

#zabe's finest pieces 👚#the sturniolo triplets #sturniolo triplets #christopher sturniolo #matthew sturniolo #chris sturniolo #matt sturniolo #chris x reader #matt x reader #zabebabe

98 notes · View notes

kaledya · 4 months

Note

Hey friend, I want to ask you some things about Constantine, I'm planning on making a FanFic about his way from Kid to Prince (Before he re encounters with Charlie).

1. How was his training? Was he trained by Lucifer? Or by Satan?, or by every single Deadly Sin?

2. Why did he lose his Humanity so much? Are there any specific or lots of events that relate to that?

3. When and which enemies he destroyed? If you don’t have it specified don’t worry, this is because after all nobody who fought him lived to tell it.

4. (This one is optional), Would you like to have something important on it? Something you would enjoy? Be honest, after all Constantine is your character.

First of all, I am very glad to hear that you want to write a fafic about him! And of course I will be happy to answer your questions!

In terms of knowledge, he was usually educated by the leading sages of Hell (he had a different teacher for each subject, so he had a well-rounded education) and Lucifer taught him what he knew as much as he could (how to use his powers, how to be a king), while Lilith taught him how to behave in politics, ) Satan was the one who taught Constantine's perception of power in general, Constantine was a person who thought that power came only from knowledge, Satan taught him that power was only power, showed him that he could not survive with only knowledge and taught him that fear was stronger than love and respect.

He also learnt from Leviathan about education and science. He was not very close to the other sins in terms of education. When Constantine went to visit his aunt, it was one of the rare times when he was a child and not a prince, Bee tried to make Constantine happy, not to educate him.

In general, the way he was raised and the training he received did this to him. Lilith and Lucifer had no evil intentions, they wanted their sons to be safe and strong, but they realised a little late that they were destroying the humanity in Constantine with their actions, and when they realised, they were at a point where they could no longer go back, but on the bright side, they did not follow the same thing with Charlie. Plus Constantine was already born with a superior intelligence, which made him less empathetic as he grew up, which came with the responsibilities of being a prince, so he had to grow up early because he had too much on him as a child. And even a normal prince would have to harden himself and control his emotions and act rationalistically in order to rule. Constantine was the prince of hell, surrounded by monsters and nobles waiting to see a weakness in him, and if he wanted to defeat the monsters, he had to become one of them. And Constantine did this, he hardened himself until his weakness or emotions were minimised.

The only person that constantine behaves with his sincere personality is his sister Charlie, I can even say that the face that constantine shows to Charlie is so different that Charlie almost does not recognise her brother at the royal meetings. (In the very later parts of the series, they start to develop a relationship with Serenity like Sherlock and Watson. but this is a very slow developing friendship)

and btw I was inspired to write Constantine by these two books maybe it helps to understand him!

3.Sometimes some demons decide to cross the line and Constantine can execute them. There is no one specific one at the moment, only Lucifer or Charlie can defeat Constantine, no one else in Hell is crazy enough to try to fight him. At least not yet.

4.Thank you for asking but no I've got nothing to add at the moment., and Constantine is my character, yes. but this is your fanfic, you can do whatever you want as long as you keep his personality, have fun! And when you're done writing and publish it on ao3 please tag me on tw and I look forward to reading it!

#hazbin hotel oc #HazbinHotelSSAU #HazbinHotelConstantine

84 notes · View notes

twstmemories · 2 years

Note

I dont know if you watched frozen fever, but if you do, can I request the first years with a fem s/o who has ice magic/powers and she has a fever/cold, and whenever she sneezes, cute little snowmans appear. Like what do they do or how do they react.

-- ! how to make an appropriate title 101 with naru. while i haven't watched frozen fever, i do get the gist of what it was about and what you want me to do with this request! apologies for the late response, but i hope you like it! // the sole reason why this was kept from my inbox purge was because i was already done with ace and deuce's part.

✧ first years with a s/o who summons tiny snowmen when having a fever

✧ gn!reader

✧ this is an old request, but upon re-reading the entire thing after i was done writing i realized i didn't use a singular pronoun throughout. so we sticking with the gender neutral reader here too HAHA. also not beta-read we die like how i let this blog die for a whole ass year.

✧ Shrieks a tiny bit the first time you sneeze and his head is suddenly freezing cold before seeing a tiny snowman topple down from his head - real confused for a good few minutes after, to the point he actually forgets you're the one that conjured that tiny being up.

✧ Stares at it for a couple of seconds, owlishly blinking at the sentient tiny snowman running around in circles before directing his gaze towards you: "You didn't tell me that your ice magic could also summons snowmen upon you sneezing," he remarks, sounding oddly offended about not knowing that detail.

✧ "N-No," you sniffle, "It usually doesn't happen unless I'm getting a high fever," you wheeze, another sneeze resulting in double the amount of snowmen appearing and Ace just stares trying to figure out what the hell is happening.

✧ He's worried for 0.5 seconds before his more mischievous side comes forward: "Oh, so those come out whenever you sneeze?" he asks, just to clarify his theory - to which you who is just a bit too delirious to notice any hidden motif he has, nod without thinking twice.

✧ Like, he sees that you're fine! You may be running a bit of a high fever soon, but you're still fine! You're going on about your days with tons of tiny snowmen following your trail whenever you sneeze, but other than that you're perfectly fine! He'll do his part as a good boyfriend after he's had a bit of fun seeing this unusual side effect from your magic.

✧ Tries every trick in the book to make you sneeze more often when he finally has you tucked underneath some sheets inside your room. Accidentally claps two books together that have accumulated just a bit too much dust your way? More tiny snowmen. Tingles your noise a tiny bit with a feather out of affection? Even more snowmen, and you want to be mad at him, but he's having this dorky smile on his face with a slight blush as he picks up another snowman. "Sorry, sorry! They're just so cute!"

✧ Deuce is rather ashamed to admit this, but the moment he set his eyes on those little snowmen appearing out of thin air when you first sneezed - the fact that you were running a high fever was forgotten. Completely gone from his mind, every worrying thought about your condition had suddenly vanished from his head.

✧ Over the moon seeing those tiny beings trail behind you. Ecstatic when he picks one up and the others just jump on top of his body like this is the happiest he is at the moment, nothing can make his day sour now that these little guys are around him.

✧ "Is this the reason why you try not to get sick so often?" Deuce asks, arms cradles full of the tiny snowmen that you conjure up whenever you sneeze and you can only give a defeated nod in return: "They disappear after a while, but if I'm sneezing left and right it's almost an unending snowman army."

✧ Becomes oddly attatched to every tiny snowmen you conjure up. You don't know why, he doesn't know why either. All you two know is that whenever one poofs away after a while, he gets sad and now you're the one consoling him even when you have a fever.

✧ Sadness is only there for a moment though before he picks himself back up and starts to take care of you: "Sorry, they were just so tiny that I couldn't help it. Come on, let's get you back to your room so you can rest properly."

✧ When he finds out the tiny snowmen try their best to help you too he's just so damn elated. Tries to give them small tasks and just smiles at them fondly when they try their best. You find it nice that Deuce isn't overly worried about you and causing a ruckus to the point you omit the tiny detail that every thing that the tiny snowman deliver to you, arrives freezing cold.

✧ Oh you're cradled up in his arms and off to his room the moment he even sees your red nose and shivering self. No he does not care if it's in the middle of the day and you both have class, you're not taking another step or standing up for another second.

✧ Literally halts in his tracks the moment he sees the first snowman appear when you sneeze. Eyes wide and blinking numerous time as he tries to process what the hell just happened, "I- That, is this normal?" No, Jack. It certainly is not normal.

✧ Vaguely listens to your explanation as he hurries towards the mirror hall and towards Savanaclaw, but every time you sneeze he stops to pick up any stray snowman that doesn't land on either you or him - What if you eventually need them to be absorbed back to get more of your magic back? "That's now how it works," "How would you be 100% sure? You rarely get sick as is."

✧ Keeps a mental note on the amount of snowmen that appears whenever you sneeze and where they scurry off to after they've toppled to the floor while taking care of you.

✧ Besides from the mental counting of snowmen he doesn't really try to touch the little creatures, they're made out of snow after all. Sure they can take quite a long fall to the floor or bounce on the bed whenever you sneeze, but they're so... small? He feels like if he just grabs their body they'll just evaporate from the warmth of his palm alone.

✧ You only laugh at Jack's hesitant face once the snowmen he has tried so hard to avoid touching just start to crowd around him, trying to jump on top of him to climb further up his torso. It's a nice pace of change, seeing your lover who usually runs around from dawn and lifting weights try to be so gentle with magic snowmen.

✧ The first snowman that's summoned from thin air and onto your head is in the middle of potion making class. Epel quite literally shrieks when he notices the snowman roll off your head and topple into the cauldron and drops everything he's currently holding to catch it.

✧ Which was the two beakers with other components for the current potion you were making, the shattering noise immediately alerting Crewel. However before he could even start to reprimand, it only took one mere glance at your wobbling self before he directed his gaze towards Epel who instinctively hid the snowman behind him, "Take them to the infirmary, puppy. They're one minute from falling all over the floor."

✧ And it is with that remark that Epel snaps his head towards you, stepping over and pressing the palm of his hand over your forehead, "Yeah, ya burn' up." he mutters, quickly excusing himself before pulling your weak self out the door. The snowman left behind scurries after the two of you when faced with Crewel who only raised an eyebrow up at it.

✧ He's not having a good time. While he tries his best to drag the barely consicous you to the infirmary, he also have to get a hold on every snowman you summon with each sneeze before they scurry away and wreck havoc. So safe to say, Epel has seen better days.

✧ Has half a mind to gather them and chuck them into a basket and zip it shut and another half to just observe them and see what they do. The former won the moment the two of you entered the infirmary and you let out a number of sneezes, which prompted more snowmen to appear and almost destroy the entire room.

✧ Does feel bad when he comes back to the infirmary after going back to the dorm to grab a few snacks to see a few more snowman appear and just try to pull the string open. Nonetheless, you awaken to Epel peeling off an apple, with a few of the snowmen sitting inside a bowl with a few unpeeled apples, "It took some time, but I eventually figured that they just wanted to help, so now they're just keeping the apples cold for me. Here, have a bite." he ignores the look of utter confusion on your face at the snowman on top of his head.

✧ Utterly appalled. Absolutetly flabbergasted. Disappointed that you, his lover, can not take care of themselves like he can. Barges into your room to see your sniffling self on the bed with a look of utter disappointment.

✧ "And here I thought you were one step above your other brethren the others with you rarely getting sick! And where do I find you right after thinking that? In bed! With a fever! How typical!" He huffs, pulling the sheets away from you despite your weak protests. He is utterly shocked the moment he sees the amount of snowmen jump away from your bed and out through your bedroom door the moment he pulled the sheets away from you, staring at the small creatures scurrying down the hallway of Diasomnia.

✧ "And to make matters worse, you hide tiny snowmen in your bed?! I cannot understand how you humans think!" You do not have the energy to correct him. But before you can get up and try to get those snowmen back into your room, Sebek is already pushing you back down to bed with a scoff, "You are not moving a single muscle until I allow it! Now, I know the young master is strong enough to handle some weak human magic, but I still need to ensure his safety, so wait here!"

✧ And he's off to worry about Malleus after lecturing you. After fuzzing about Malleus for a good half hour, the fae dismisses him with the loud thought of: "Wasn't [Name] feeling a bit sick this morning?" to remind your lover about your condition.

✧ Hence he barges back into your room and interrupts your short nap with a tray that's filled with warm tea and some soup. He scowls at the numerous of snowmen that's running around your room, setting the tray down on your bedside table before he gathers them all up and throws them inside a basket you had lying around in displeasure. They've made enough of a ruckus for a day.

✧ "As weak as you humans are, I would've believed you would still be able to take care of yourself sufficiently enough to not get a fever," he huffs, handing you the warm tea for you take a sip of. "I suppose I can give you some credit for trying to not get sick often, because these?" he starts, raising an eyebrow at another sneeze from you, and before the snowman can even topple down onto the bed, he's already grabbing it and throwing it onto the basket with the other snowmen, "Are quite frankly annoying to deal with." he huffs, picking up the spoon and taking the bowl in his hands, "Now hurry up and drink this soup so you can lay down while I prepare some wet towels."

#twst #twisted wonderland #twst x reader #twisted wonderland x reader #ace trappola #ace trappola x reader #deuce spade #deuce spade x reader #jack howl #jack howl x reader #epel felmier #epel felmier x reader #reader insert #i had another draft where sebek just abandons you to make sure malleus is safe #im so sorry sebek #but it made me laugh

430 notes · View notes

undying-love · 6 months

Text

Interesting interview with the guy who wrote the screenplay for Two Of Us

(I know many of you have already read this, but I still wanteed to share it.)

Q: Do you think it is possible that John and Paul ever spent some real time together (just the two of them) between 1971 and 1980 other than those two occasions?

Mark Stanfield: As far as I know, John and Paul were never actually alone together after the breakup of the Beatles. Paul, of course, often talks about how grateful he is that the two of them re-established some kind of friendship in the months before John died, but that was over the phone. So, unless Paul is keeping a secret, it appears the last time they saw one another was when in 1976 (probably around the time Wings played New York) when John told him to stop coming around without calling first.

Q: What did you do before writing the story? Did you spend a lot of time doing research? If so what books and sources? What TV shows or videos?

Mark Standield: The most valuable books were “Revolution in the Head” by Ian MacDonald; “25 Years in the Life” by Mark Lewisohn; and “Lennon” by Ray Coleman [...] As far as videos, a lot of them I had to obtain on the black market, things like “Let It Be”; the McCartney interview with Charlie Rose from 1991; the Lennon interview with Tom Snyder from 1975; “Wings Over the World”. And then there was the music, which provided the biggest revelations.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I always wondered what 'revelations" he was talking about, because he does not elaborate (although we can assume. The songs they wrote for each other are pretty telling). It's frustrating how these interviewers never ask follow up questions. He doesn't say, "What do you mean? What revelations?". He never even brings up the kiss in the movie.

By the way, I'm pretty sure Michael Lindsay-Hogg told Mark quite a few things about John and Paul. After all, he saw them interacting quite a bit. I'm pretty sure he, and many others, knew about the "John's princess" nickname, lol. Everyone who saw them interacting must have sensed something. Hell, Yoko just weeks after being in the studio for the first time, said "If Paul was a woman he would have been a great threat, because there is something definitely very strong between John and Paul''. It must have been so obvious if Yoko noticed this in such a shott time.

Anyways, It's very telling that Mark does not say what these "biggest revelations" were. Im pretty sure that most of the people who were close to the Beatles know that there was something going on, but they are too afraid to speak up. That's why a lot of them have said many vague but still suggestive things.

#mclennon #hmmmm #interesting

55 notes · View notes

ladysomething · 2 months

Note

Could we perhaps have a snippet to get us through the next two days? 😂

On another note, I have a 6 hour bus trip on Friday and the logic part of my brain is telling me to wait and read the new chapter then but I know I'm absolutely not going to be doing that.

you can but it gives you basically nothing I fear

also re your bus trip ... why wait to read the new chapter when you could just read the whole story again from beginning to end?

Out in the main section of the motorhome, Max’s phone starts to ring.

Charles looks at the closed bathroom door, then out into the main area. It’s barely eight in the morning—even Charles doesn’t get calls this early.

“Can you see who that is?” Max calls out.

Charles rolls his eyes. Like he’s available to meet all of Max’s whims.

Still, he gets up from the bed and wanders in, easily spotting Max’s phone on the counter.

“It’s Louis Moreau,” Charles says, reading the words FIA Compliance underneath his name and wondering why the Hell somebody from Compliance would be calling Max. The name sounds vaguely familiar, but Charles isn’t sure who he is.

“Ah, fuck,” Max swears, followed by a loud clatter. The shower in there is tiny, especially compared to the decadent spaces in Max’s apartment, so Charles knows he’s probably bumped against a wall. “Fuck, could you—can you answer it, I’ll be thirty seconds—”

#anon ask #where you go i go #wygig: snippet

23 notes · View notes

ananke-xiii · 1 month

Text

Forgiveness&Finding oneself in Purgatory Take II

While their first stint in Purgatory was all about Dean unable to let Cas go and Cas wanting to let go of Dean to stay there and do penance, things seem to be reversed in Purgatory Take II.

I've written about "The Trap" some time ago, trying to make sense of what Cas says there and what the hell is going on. I still think something's off in this episode, specifically I think Dean's prayer is redundant and it should've been Cas the one saying something, or at least there should've been a reply from his end.

Maybe, following my imaginal psychology-influenced interpreation of Cas and Dean in Purgatory, I can answer my own question. What I've found is quite interesting, I'll be honest.

So. I've previously interpreted Cas' and Dean's relationship as a marriage of sorts: their vows are based on betrayal and it's indeed the constant shadow of betrayal that keeps their weird marriage alive. It's time for a divorce.

Yeah, a divorce. What, wasn't "The Trap" the moment of reconciliation between the two after their "divorce arc"? Not according to this interpretation I'm attempting. Let's see what's going on.

Dean and Cas are back in Purgatory and they're looking for a flower. "You know, of all the time I've been in Purgatory, I've never seen a bloom of any kind" Cas tells Dean. Interesting. Nothing that Cas knows of has ever bloomed in Purgatory. He adds that they'll know when they'll find it because "it's likely to be the only flower here". If I remember correctly there was someone that Dean was looking for when he was in Purgatory the first time... he was also the only angel there... Oh, yeah. It was Cas. But now Cas is there with Dean so who does the flower stand for? Oh, it's still Cas. They're AGAIN looking for Castiel.

The parallel is reinforced by Dean mentioning Benny. If you think that Dean was mean to Cas in "The Rupture" don't read further cause this is worse.

Dean and Benny looking for Cas and Dean and Cas looking for a flower. Let's go there

Dean compares Benny, his previous fellow in Purgatory, to Cas, his partner now and it's not pretty. According to Dean, Benny was the best. Benny is King of Purgatory by now. Benny sacrificed himself for Dean to save Sam. Benny always picked up the goddamn phone when Dean called. Benny saved Cas and stayed with Dean when he was looking for the angel. Benny, Benny, Benny.

If Amelia was Sam's Magical Girlfriend, Benny is Dean's Magical Boyfriend. Unlike Amelia, Benny was written waaaay better so his function is a little less blatant but he's also written as a projection of all the things Dean looks for in a partner. Benny is an ideal. Cas is real ("We're real").

Comparing someone to an ideal somone else is petty and Dean does so because he wants to hurt Cas. But Cas can be as petty as hurting as his husband. He wants Dean to feel guilty:

CAS: Well, this place will bring that out in you. Guilt. It was my fault the Leviathan got out. It was my fault we were here the first time. I carry that guilt every day.

or: while EYE carry THAT GUILT EVERY DAY, YOU, on the other hand, DON'T, so now that we're back in this wretched place that brings out guilt YOU should feel it because EYE have already apologized while YOU refused to hear it.

Cas is also the worst. They belong together perfectly <3.

And this brings us here, to the words Cas utters and that I couldn't fully get:

CAS: You didn't give me a choice. You couldn't forgive me. And you couldn't move on. You were too angry. I left, but you didn't stop me.

If Cas and Dean are re-living Purgatory 2.0 then they are re-living what happened there the first time: Cas let go of Dean after Dean had spent one year looking for him.

So what Cas is saying here is (following what I've already talked about in the first link I've attached here): You asked of me a relationship based solely on your terms which I reject. You couldn't let go that image of me, that person who betrayed you, so much so you couldn't even leave Purgatory without THAT person (who I am not). You were too focused on your need to keep control and take responsibilities which I refuse to take. I left you as soon as I stepped into Purgatory and yet you couldn't stop chasing me.

Ouch. Cas wants a divorce, guys. But he doesn't want a divorce from Dean but from their distorted marriage founded on betrayal instead of openly expressed love. In other words, Cas wants Dean to let him express his love, he wants love back from Dean and he wants to do it openly. It's a good divorce, you see?

And Dean gives it to him. He kneels and prays and forgives Cas, he let go of that idea of Cas that he was holding on to.

DEAN: No, no, no. Cas? Cas, I hope you can hear me... that wherever you are, it's not too late. I should've stopped you. You're my best friend, but I just let you go. 'Cause it was easier than admitting I was wrong.

or: I should have stopped holding onto that image of you that I had, the one where you are my betrayer and I'm bound to you as your betrayed. You're my best friend first and foremost and I just let that first image of you go because it was easier than admitting my real feelings.

DEAN: And I – I forgive you. Of course I forgive you. I'm sorry it took me so long –I'm sorry it took me till now to say it.

or: I let you go. Of course I do, I've actually always done it in the secret of my heart and I'm sorry it took me this long to say it out loud to myself.

Wooooa. Now that's waaaay better. Dean agrees to Cas' divorce proposal. Consequently, Cas must give Dean something too because forgiveness, the resolution of the betrayal bond, cannot be simply given, there must be an exchange between betrayal and betrayed. The Power scale must result in a 0 on both plates or the experience of betrayal will repeat itself. In other words both parties must do an act of Love.

So what does Caa give to Dean? He gives him... himself. Wholly. A bit smudged, though.

See, while Dean was coming to terms with forgiveness, Cas was looking for himself (the flower/blossom). Instead of running away from the Leviathans aka The Monsters Inside Castiel, he let himself be taken. He accepts to go to their Queen (Cas and Queens... a love story. He's indeed The Man who Would Be King. Take that Dean, you and your King Benny, LOL. Cas becomes King by marriage like a true queen).

CAS: They were after me, not you. I figured it would be safest to give myself up.

In order to find himself Cas does The Surrender: he gave himself up to his literal and symbolical monsters. And in so doing something blooms: himself, new unabridged version. Again, a bit smudged because he's not the same powerful angel as he once was, his powers are failing but who cares? This is who he is and he offers himself to Dean, this is his act of love: take me as I am, smudged or not. I blossomed for you but I had to do it alone because certain things must be done alone but your forgiveness was what gave me the strength. Thanks for letting me go. I now come back to you free from our previous bond. This time our new bond is freely given by both.

In this light, Cas sort of silencing Dean was necessary and not because of his deal with the Shadow.

In between their Purgatory scenes we see what happens in an alternate timeline where Cas takes on the Mark of Cain, which is exactly why they're in Purgatory. The Mark is another bond. Cas accepted to take it because of Chuck.

If Dean took the further step he wanted to take, Cas had to turn him down: you either love freely and openly or you subject yourself to a Greater Power. You can only choose one bond.

If Dean had said what he wanted to say to Cas, they both couldn't accept the idea of Cas taking on the Mark: it's an idea incompatible with Love.

But now all the foundations are laid for Love to take center stage. Too bad that Dean didn't get his chance in "Despair" too. That was tragic and deeply unfair.

#spn #supernatural #castiel #dean winchester #destiel #spn meta #spn the trap #the trap 15x09 #dean and cas #spn purgatory

12 notes · View notes

according2thelore · 6 months

Note

i love the es dean / ls sam dynamic you've set up so much. I feel like it would slowly become a little hard for es dean though, as much as he's also happy as hell -- bc this sam knows him SO WELL and can read him like a freaking book and is able to ~take care of him~ and dean tries soo hard but he can't reciprocate as fully. it's the steak, it's sammy pushing him away for older dean after a nightmare, it's something happening that sets him off and sam just LEAVES (okay, to the gun range, not leaves-leaves, but STILL) and when es!dean tries to follow ls!dean won't let him, says he needs the time alone to regulate.....

I think it would be really tough for 26yo dean who is so used to caring for people--who LOVES caring for people--and is not so used to being doted on. and ofc ls sam knows he's trying and adores him for it and isn't at all upset but still... i think the role reversal, as it is, would be tough for him at times.

you're so right, anon!!!!

and EEP!!! thank you!!! ES!Dean and LS!Sam are just *sounds of me devouring them like the cookie monster*

you've hit the nail right on the head!

one of my favourite things about dean as a character is his crippling desire to be essential.

i think this trait is a lot more baldly demonstrated in the early seasons--he's collapsing inwards from it. he needs to be essential to dad, but he's not. he needs to be essential to sam, but he's not.

hell, he says it S1E2: "saving people, hunting things" -- he needs to be needed. his entire identity is built on the necessity of his existence. he has to hunt these monsters, because they (civilians) rely on him. who is going to protect them if i don't? i sacrifice my health and safety and life so the ambiguous "you" are safe.

LS!Dean takes a more back-step approach to this: he has a circle of friends/family that he wants to be important to, but he really only needs to be essential to sam (the trials, kicking cas out of the house in a time of particular need, not being responsive to jack's need to connect, etc.). he has his reasons, but he's a lot more jaded, and connects less with individuals on hunts. a barest touch less "saving people" a touch more "hunting things."

but for ES!Dean?? babygirl he NEEDS IT!!!! he loves serving a purpose!!!!! when sam says "i need you to be my brother again, because, just because--" DEAN DROPS EVERYTHING!!!! HIS BABY NEEDS HIM!!!

people needing ES!Dean is his purpose! so i think an LS!Sam who has needs that dean can't fill, or that can only be filled by someone else (like LS!Dean), it would tear ES!Dean down from the inside.

and he's not used to being doted on! his whole purpose is functionality to the user. ES!Sam just came back after not-needing dean so hard that he left for four years, some of that no-contact.

so for LS!Sam to choke down a steak that he can't stand, or take ES!Dean to the store and insist on buying him whatever cool shit he can fit in his arms; to, hell, even the quiet moments, of LS!Sam bringing ES!Dean his beer first. or salting ES!Dean's fries at the counter like he likes them before they even sit down.

it's confusing!!!! ES!Dean keeps trying desperately to reciprocate, to prove that i have function too! i know you, too! i'm not ungrateful, and i'm not purposeless, and you should keep me! please keep me!

but he keeps misstepping! from big things like the steak or being unable to calm sam down from a panic attack to small things like not knowing which weird hippie cereal sam likes best.

he keeps trying to provide and to dote and to care, but LS!Sam needs different things from dean than he did when he was 22.

of course, LS!Sam is giddy and smiling softly and wants to hold his little baby face between his hands because he can tell ES!Dean is trying so hard. ES!Dean adores being doted on, as much as it's confusing and strange, because it makes him feel wanted!

you said it--ES!Dean LOVES caring for people! it's how he expresses his love and devotion and intention! and being unable to fully reciprocate this attention from LS!Sam would break his little ES heart!

he can't understand why LS!Sam sometimes needs to leave to regulate (and a small, frantic, base part of him panics bc the last time sam needed "space," dean didn't hear from him for two years). dean's not good at giving space, lol. he wants to be needed! he needs it! he loves it!

by the way, i ADORE the way you wrote this. your insight!! your talent!! mwah!!!

YOU GET IT!

-lizzy

#ask box #lizzy answers #ES/LS verse #spn meta #also! this wasn't on purpose! but my deangirl brainrot...an affliction #anon <3

24 notes · View notes

regulusrules · 2 years

Note

New to your blog, I was wondering if you have a Merlin fic rec list that's just your favorites. I unfortunately missed the Merlin fandom back when the show was airing so I always feel like I'm just missing the greatest stuff from other people

Hello friend! Welcome to my humble abode of a blog (which resembles more of a Merlin waste disposal). Like you, I missed the show when it was airing, but honestly when you stay as long in this fandom as I have, you will constantly be exposed to wonderful creative energies that give their all. It's a timeless fandom, one of the very few, and no matter when you enter it you will always feel fulfilled. :)

So, favourite fics! Gosh, how can I fit 2K+ bookmarks in one ask. When it comes to this fandom, I admit: I have no life. I've read a real huge number of fics throughout the years, but sometimes it's inevitable for fics to get lost in a sea of bookmarks. So to make things easier, I'll write you some canon fics that immediately come to my mind for how unforgettable they were.

No order; each one has its own chamber in my heart.

Short fic recs (1K-50K)

1. Our broken pieces by @aramblingjay. 10K, T, Canon Era, Hurt/Comfort.

Am I purposefully putting this one on top this time so that everyone who stumbles across this ask could check it out? Yes. Yes I am. Is it my personal mission for the fandom to give this fic the love and kudos it deserves? You bet it's a big overbearing yes. And yes I want you to cry and feel your heart twist with agony because of how beautiful it is. My eyes never shed tears for a fic before this one, and never will after it. There is something in the way the author broke Arthur that just resonated in my innards. And the way Merlin was there for him, not a placebo "I'm here" but there, in all actuality, doing so with every fiber of his love, made it something else. I like to believe that this fic was crafted so perfectly in a parallel universe, and sent to us as a blessing we never knew we needed.

2. Beauty in the Ashes of Our Lives by Fulgance. 21K, T, Canon AU, Magic Reveal.

This is probably the umpteenth time for me to recommend this fic, but I won't stop. I can't stop. This fic ruined me so slowly, and healed me even slower. All my Merlin friends do not believe why this would be one of my favourite fics of all time with what Arthur did, but honestly, it's the fact that the writer wrote it so convincingly that makes me crumble internally. It isn't easy to write angry Arthur, and it's even harder to write him grief-stricken, but here, the author blended both elements so perfectly. It's impossible to forget this fic. It's worth your every second.

3. Linger On Your Pale Blue Eyes by supercalvin. 18K, T, Canon Era, Touch-Starved.

Will this fic linger in your heart? It sure as hell never leaves mine. Every once in a while, I have to go back to this fic and read it like a morning paper. Some fics sustain you.. this is definitely one of them. Most of @supercalvin's fics are of sustaining material. They are made with such depth and broad understanding to the characters that you should take notes. There's this one line that everytime I cross this fic I instantly remember and I go to the nearest pillow to just AAA a little bit. When you reach it, I'm sure you'll recognise it, and I'll be waiting for you to come AAA with me.

4. Dower the Stars by RurouniHime. 40K, E, Golden Age, Pining Arthur, BAMF Merlin.

I don't think anything levels the levels of intimacy in this fic. It is one of the best Arthur characterizations I've ever read. His boundless love and pining for Merlin— oh my heart. Also, the world building and amount of research that must have been done for this fic is astounding. I was this close from following the author's footsteps and, idk, writing an entire research paper about Arthurian lore or something. The moment I read it I immediately wanted to contact the author and just tell them WHY ARE YOU BLESSING US WITH ALL THIS INSTEAD OF PUBLISHING IT?? It was amazing. I reread it a month ago for the third (fourth?) time and found myself gasping and aweing as if I never read it before. It keeps being an experience every time, one so worthwhile.

5. from hearth and ashes, we’re reborn by @remuscariad. 5K, G, Canon AU, Magic Reveal, Hurt/Comfort.

Earthshatteringly-poetic isn't a made-up word powerful enough to describe the beauty of prose here. There are fics that you open and immediately know that you're sold: this was one of them. Its summary alone dropped my jaw down to my neighbour's floor. The dialogue is so meticulously crafted it feels like reading a piece from a past era. Genuinely beautiful.

6. Half of my soul by marvelxpendragon. 2K, G, Post-Canon AU, King Arthur/Court Sorcerer Merlin.

This fic is half of my soul, as the poets say. So what if I reject the canonic ending and resort to pain myself with fics like this instead? I sometimes feel we, as a fandom, try to up the angst of the finale so that we forget how painful it was by bringing even MORE pain. But it's pain that I delight in, because it's pain that MAKES SENSE. Yes give me MCD but with a freaking beautiful life like the one this author gave us. Make me believe it was all worth something. Make me believe they lived.

7. whisper to the flame by @missfaber. 16K, E, Canon AU, Wounded Arthur, Hurt/Comfort.

*clears throat* *prepares for a mental scream*TELL ME HOW YOU LIGHT YOUR FIRESSSSS *clears throat once more and pretends I'm okay*

So, as the author wrote, this is indeed a love letter to the two characters we love more than anything. More than anything, I loved the fact that the author gave Arthur agency to think and act and be a king, even when he was still a prince. Even in most fics where Arthur already knows, this isn't common. So whenever I find a fic that has Smart!Arthur and a lovesick one at that, I would vouch my life and soul for it. Also Protective!Knights is the best thing in the world, ok? I would die for this discourse for real.

8. As a Sea Shell by bathilda bagshot (wellthengameover). 12K, T, Canon AU, Slow Burn.

Okay, so this fic is only bookmarked "Agony until 7 AM", and with that, a rush of drowning memories always come crushing my soul. I lost sleep and SANITY over this fic. I was thrown from a cliff and kept hanging in the air without a respite until the very END. I read it a couple weeks after the finale and it broke me even FURTHER. I was promised growing old together, and it was a big LIE. And yet I love it so, so dearly.

Honourary biased mention:

9. My heart is readily yours by yours truly. 11K, T, Canon AU, Protective Arthur, Hurt/Comfort.

Sometimes I don't believe I had it in me to write this. Like.. what, dearest self, the hell were you thinking. With tyismso, I somehow balanced fluff and angst— a solid magic reveal fic. But this one? I only knew ✨pain✨

.. and I don't regret a thing.

[Long fic recs]

275 notes · View notes

ronsenthal · 8 months

Text

🪖 HBOWAR Fandom Q/A 🪖

Thanks @sharkboyandlavalieb, @ronald-speirs and @footprintsinthesxnd for the tags!!

Name/ Alias:

Jess / Jeska / whatever you want really I just don't like my full name

Country:

Brazil, zil, zil

Which of the series have you seen - BOB, P, GK, MOTA:

All of them!!! BoB is a long term relatioship while I finished both TP and GK last year and I'm really looking forward to more MoTA

Use an emoji or ONE word to describe your favourite character in an hbowar miniseries:

😾 LISTEN, IT'S HIM!!!!!

Ultimate ship (if any):

Has to be winnix

Favourite fic (yes I made this q&a just to get fic recs):

SHIIIIT I have tons of fav fics and I list all of them on my #fic recs but I'll list some of the ones I'm always re-reading x Better This Way series by @blurredcolour x Kinky Ron Series: Part 1 and 2 by @@footprintsinthesxnd x In The Bleak Mid-winter by @blurredcolour x He definitely doesn’t hate me by @brassknucklespeirs x Meine Liebe by @mads-nixon x Ares and Athena and the prequels Evaded by Hypnos by @softguarnere x Guiding Light by @holdingforgeneralhugs

What are some ways you interact in the fandom?:

I'm a all-in-one mess because I reblog stuff, create some content like fics, gifs and edits and I try to spread positiviy and love around like giving feedback and sending random love to my mutuals

Favourite colour:

Always changing but somehow blue always comes back to me (rn it's green)

Current favourite song:

I would say Common People by Pulp because it's always blasting on my headphones lately

What would you say if I held up a can of peaches?:

I would stare you down with my amazing thick eyebrows and tell you It's a can of peaches, sir

Complete this sentence: “Where the hell is ___ company?!”

F!!!!!

Other accounts or socials?:

Only this one here but if anyone want my other socials just send me a message

List one other fandom member (mutual or a follower you admire) for some appreciation:

I'll tag more than one because I can't just pick one right? - @ronald-speirs my partner in crime and the other half of ron's last brain cell, really awesome, sweet and precious - @ewipandora my love, my Lew and the one who is contantly making me smile and deserves the world!!! - @easycompanys talented, sweet and lovely, we exchange so many ideas and tips for creations I love our mutual admiration society - @basilone another fellow creator that I admire so much and I'm so happy to exchange ideas, feedback and tips here and there - @sweetxvanixlla my schatzi, truly one of the sweetest and most special souls you'll ever find, her talent and sensibility it's insane - @mutantmanifesto the talent is insane and matches the sweet and precious personality, love everytime we have our convos

Tags:

no pressure!!! @blurredcolour @ewipandora @easycompanys @mutantmanifesto @panzershrike-pretz @georgieluz and everyone else who wants to :)

#tag games #bob fandom

22 notes · View notes

spookymystery67 · 10 months

Text

I Wish I Could Walk In Heels

AN: Took me all day to re-read and edit this chapter and I'm still not 100% happy with it, but it is what it is. I hope you all enjoy it!

TW: Death, gore, zombie dogs, Brian Irons, language, angst, mention of sexual assault, ect. Typical Resident Evil stuff.

Chapter 8:

September 29, 1998-

"Why didn't you tell that man who the cause of all this was?" Claire asked you as she and the rest followed your lead through the streets to the orphanage. You've had to kill a few zombies and zombie dogs here and there. But nothing too extreme that your group of four couldn't handle.

"Because it wouldn't have changed anything. His wife would still be dead. His daughter would have still died. What would he have done with that information?"

"He could have fought with us. Instead of-" Leon started.

"Instead of killing himself? Look Leon, Kendo had already made up his mind right when his wife died and his daughter was infected. He had his chance last night to get out of here and decided to stay. He wouldn't have changed his mind. Not because of anything I would say to him. He didn't know me." You told him firmly.

"You could've-" You interrupt him once more, not bothering to stop your fast pace to the orphanage.

"You could have let Ben and I out sooner if you believed him. If the chips were nearby, you could have saved him. If I had paid more attention and seen Irons coming, I could have gotten Ben and Katherine out of here already. I could have stopped this whole thing a week ago if I wasn't a wimp and just shot William Birkin. Hell, Annette Birkin could have ended it if she shot him. The military could have. The police could have. Umbrella could have. So many possibilities, yet this is what is happening right now." You gestured out to the city as you paused in your step. "And there isn't much control I or any of us have over the situation. Bottom line, stop focusing on what you or I could have done in the past to improve what is happening now. Focus on what you can do right now to prevent shit from getting worse for us later. Okay?" You tell him.

He thought your words over for a moment before nodding in agreement. There is no point in focusing on what could have happened.

"You sound like you needed to hear that more than I did." He commented.

"Yeah, well, it's been a long week." You sighed.

"I just got here. So did Claire." Leon stated, trying to keep conversation going.

"I can tell, you're both nowhere near as filthy as I am." You snorted. "And Ada clearly just got here too. No way in hell she has been running around in those heels all week."

"What's with you and my shoes?" Ada questioned, torn between amused and annoyed.

"I will admit, part of me is slightly jealous that you can walk in those so easily. I wouldn't be able to wear a pair of heels to save my life." You said, as you glanced at her. "And what's with the sunglasses? It's night time. Are you trying to maintain an air of mystery or something?" You teased, trying to lighten the mood.

"Sure. If that's what you want to think." Ada snorted. You nodded, a slight smile on your face.

Yes. That's exactly what she was doing.

"There's the gate to the orphanage." Claire pointed out. The gate in question had cartoon animals painted on it, so you knew she was right.

You paused when you heard a series of growls behind your group. You all quickly turned to look behind you and saw a horde of zombie dogs running in your direction. Too fast and too many for you to comfortably shoot at the moment.

"Run!" Leon yelled. Your group had no arguments as you all ran toward the orphanage gate as fast you could. Ada in the lead. Which, again, heels. How?

You quickly slammed the gate shut and locked it behind you. You gasped for breath and turned to check on everyone.

"Okay?" They nodded and you nodded back. "Alright. Onwards." You said as you quickly walked up the long cobblestone path to the front door and opened it, briefly escaping the rain.

The place was full of children's stuff. You had two choices on where you could go. Up the stairs or down the hall.

"Maybe we can split up?"

Just as Leon suggested that, you heard a scream of pain. The voice sounded male. You all quickly ran down the hall toward the noise. A little girl ran into you with a gasp, before quickly hiding behind you.

"You little bitch! You'll pay for that!" Irons yelled, before pausing when he came face to face with you and your handgun pointed directly at his face.

"Hey, Chief. Long time no see." You spat, glaring darkly at the man. You notice burn marks on his face and smirk. "Nice job, Sherry."

Sherry seemed a little conflicted with the praise. On one hand, she hurt someone. On the other hand, that someone was an awful person who was going to hurt her.

"Seriously, good job." Claire reassured her as she led Sherry further behind the group. Leon and Ada each had a gun in hand just in case Irons tried anything funny.

"Thanks." Sherry whispered shyly.

"Alright, you know why I'm here, Irons. Where's Katherine?" You asked, the gun held steady in your grasp.

He stumbled for a response, eyes darting every which way for a possible exit. Your eyes narrowed.

"Don't make me ask again. Where is she?" You were getting more and more pissed off the longer he hesitated. Your worry began gnawing at your stomach, making you feel a little nauseous.

"There's a girl on the table." Sherry said.

"You little-" you cut him off with a click as you cocked your pistol.

“Shut up. Where, Sherry? In that room?" You asked as calmly as you could, pointing toward the direction she came running from.

"Y-yes. But I don't think she's okay." Sherry hesitated.

Your heart dropped. You grit your teeth and clenched your jaw. You took a deep breath in an attempt to maintain calm. "Really? Well, why don't we go see? Claire, stay with Sherry please."

She nodded. "Of course. Come on, Sherry. We'll wait in the lobby." She grabbed Sherry's hand and led her away from what is likely about to be a very violent scene.

"You two can do whatever you want. I'm taking Irons here to see the damage." You said to Ada and Leon. You grabbed Irons arm roughly and placed the gun against his head so he wouldn't try anything.

"We'll go with you. In case you need back up." Leon stated. Ada simply nodded in agreement.

Leon clearly wanted to assist you out of the kindness of his heart. You couldn't tell why Ada would help you. Those large sunglasses really do block any minuscule signs of emotion, making it extremely difficult to read her. You assumed that was probably the point.

"Alright, after you. No funny business." You told Irons as you shoved him forward, arm still held tightly in your grasp.

He reluctantly moved forward. He opened the door to the room and you shoved him forward once more when he hesitated in the doorway.

You walked in and examined the room, nearly wanting to throw up as you gasped at the sight before you, letting go of the man's arm in shock.

It was Katherine, lying flat on the table in her pretty white dress. Her skin was paler with a tint of blue to it.

You hesitantly walked forward and reached out to check her pulse, flinching slightly when you felt her slightly cool skin. Her heartbeat was gone. She hadn't been gone long.

Katherine was dead.

Irons turned to run away once he was out of your grasp, but Leon grabbed him by the arms and Ada quickly pointed her gun at him, making him freeze once more.

Tears were sliding down your face for what seemed like the millionth time today. You had been so close. So close to saving her. But you were too late.

Despite your conversation with Leon earlier, your mind couldn't help but go through the what-ifs and what you could have done differently. For starters, you could have not stopped and wasted your time with conversations. You could have not stopped at Kendo's gun shop and looked through it to see if there was anything of use left. You could have just made a run for it from the police station to the damn orphanage.

What if.

Could have.

What could have been.

You sniffled and choked back a sob, turning to glare at the man responsible with pure hatred rolling through every fiber of your being. You hated this man. You loathed him. And you wanted him gone.

Your tears had fallen down your face and you wiped them away, not wanting to look weak in front of the man. You raised your gun at him, ready to shoot his fucking face off. Ada and Leon stood back and watched the scene unfold, guns in hand in case something were to go wrong.

Irons fully laughed at you, deranged and disbelieving. "You won't shoot me, girl. You couldn't. Even if you wanted to."

You laughed bitterly. "I wouldn't be so sure about that." Your sharp eyes pierced through his. If you didn't know anything about this man, the psychotic look on his burned face would tell you exactly everything you'd need to know.

He did this.

You walked closer to Irons and held your gun steadily toward him.

"You're going to confirm everything I know. Out loud!" You told him, the venom in your voice and gun raised directly at his forehead showing him how serious you are.

"And why would I do that?"

"Because I will shoot you if you don't." You pushed the barrel of the gun on his forehead for emphasis.

He went to grab the gun in his holster, but you quickly reared back and pistol whipped him in the face, hard, knocking him back and sending him to the floor, grunting.

"Toss the gun away, or the next thing I do with this gun is kill you!" You snapped.

He seemed to understand that you weren't joking around. Still sprawled on the ground with a bruised and bloodied cheek, burn marks on his now disfigured face.

He now looked on the outside how he was on the inside, in your opinion.

Slowly, he grabbed the gun from his side and put it on the ground.

"Slide it to them." You motion with your head towards Ada and Leon, and he reluctantly slid his gun across the room toward the exit, Ada quickly picked it up.

"Stand up, and back up toward the wall." He did as you said, away from any doors or windows to run from, leaving you standing by the table with the body of your dead best friend. But you refused to look away from him.

"Now, I want you to answer everything I ask truthfully. Do you understand?" He nodded, eyes glaring into you. "Did you or did you not accept bribes from Umbrella to keep the police from investigating them?"

"I did." He confirmed.

"Did you or did you not, become in charge of the Raccoon City Orphanage to help disguise Umbrella's use of child test subjects and experimentation?" Leon gasped slightly at the question, not understanding how anyone could go as far as to hurt children in the name of science.

"I did." Irons eyes darted for an exit strategy, but stopped when Ada pointed her gun at him in your support. Leon followed her action by raising his own gun.

"LOOK AT ME!" You shouted angrily, causing everyone to jump and Irons to look at you. "Are you or are you not a rapist and a serial killer?"

"...I am."

"Did you or did you not kill your secretary this June after she uncovered your dealings with Umbrella?"

He glanced away, and you turned your gun and shot it at the wall on his left side. He jumped and shouted in surprise, raising his arms up higher.

"I did!"

"Did you snatch eight young women off the streets and murder them?"

"I did."

"Did you turn their bodies into taxidermy? Is that why the police couldn't find their bodies?"

"Yes, I did." His face showed a sliver of sick joy at the thought of it, making you and everyone else feel uneasy.

You walked a step closer, gun held steady.

"You locked Ben up and left him for dead."

"I did." He spat at the mention of the man. The man who almost gave him away. Who almost ruined everything for him.

"You sabotaged the police department and killed many officers and pedestrians in the process." Your hands began to shake slightly, rage bottling up to an all time high.

"I did." The joy of his deranged features increased.

"You killed, Katherine." Your breathing increased as you attempted to calm your shaking hands and rapidly beating heart.

"No." You paused briefly, confused. "No, I let her go." He continued. "Then I hunted her down through the halls of the station like a wild animal."

Your shaking hands increased, heartbeat pounding in your ear drums, yet you continued to hear every word from the man.

"She almost got away. Almost. She would have, if she wasn't so predictable in going toward the cell blocks. She was running to save you. You should have heard the screams. She called for you. Y/n. That's your name right? That's the name she yelled as I dragged the bitch by her hair through the station." Irons mocked.

Tears burned at your eyes and your breathing had turned to hyperventilating. The anger that burned at your chest was practically painful.

"You were supposed to protect them!" You yelled furiously. You were not only implying Katherine, but everyone else who had fallen victim to the horrible man.

"I was never going to protect them. Katherine was a goner as soon as the mayor left her in my care. She was always meant to be my trophy. He just made it easier for me to get her." His laugh was cruel, any sanity within him long gone.

If he ever had any at all.

The laughing was cut off by a bullet to the neck. He froze in shock for a moment, all eyes turned to look at the smoking gun in your hands in surprise.

You did it.

You actually did it.

His injury caught up to him and he collapsed to the floor, choking on his own blood as he took desperate gasps for air.

You pointed your gun down and glanced at the table to your right. You could have mistaken her for sleeping if her eyes weren't wide open. You slowly stepped up to her and used two fingers to close her eyelids for good.

There, now she looked like she was at peace. Simply asleep.

If only.

Your eyes turned back to the man gurgling on the floor. No, the monster. He was far worse than those things outside. The things that used to be innocent people that you feel you have failed. Maybe if you had done something sooner. But what could you have done? Everyone with power in this city, in this country, was in on it. You and Ben were doomed from the start.

You stared with distant eyes, ears still ringing from the sudden gun shot, as Irons looked around desperately for any chance of something, anything, saving him. You walked forward as he choked on the floor, crouching down to his level with a dark glare in your slightly red eyes and dried tears on your face as the ringing subsided.

"You don't deserve a quick and painless death. Even this is less than you deserve. It's a pity I can't make this last." You spat, rage still writhing in your chest. You watched as the blood ran down his hands that were desperately clutching at his throat.

"I never wanted to do this. I never wanted to murder anyone. You forced my hand, Irons. You've done too much harm in this world for too long. It's about time someone stops you."

Fueled by rage and adrenaline, you grabbed him by his graying hair and dragged him out of the room, moving Ada and Leon aside as you walked through the lobby past Claire and Sherry. Pushing the front door open to the yard, you dragged the man to the front gate where the zombie dogs were previously blocked. You pulled the gate open and pushed the choking man through.

You whistled to gather the attention of the zombie dogs that had went elsewhere. The six dogs came running and growling, immediately gathering around the former Chief.

They brutally bit and teared and ate away at Irons. He jerked and yelled through his bloodied throat. The gurgling sound was truly pathetic. You watched with distant eyes as he was ripped apart.

You didn't feel any better now that he was dead. Your friends were still gone. All those people were still dead. The only thing you may have accomplished just now was preventing Irons from hurting anyone else in the future.

You shook your head to get rid of your thoughts and quickly shut the gate. You took a deep breath to compose yourself, counted to 10, before walking back inside.

"Did you really have to kill him?" Leon questioned as you walked through the door. Him and Ada had moved to the lobby to wait for you.

You glared. "What should I have done? Let you arrest him?"

"Not kill him." Leon said. You sighed in frustration.

"Okay, we get it, you're a great guy. Never change, Leon. But something you should know about me, I don't let people who hurt the ones I care about get away unscathed. And frankly, Irons had it coming. One way or another he wasn't making it out of this city. I sure as hell wouldn't have taken him with me. Would you have?" You asked.

You maybe could have been a little nicer about it. After all, it was a valid question. Did you really have to kill him?

Murder wasn't right. But your emotions and your anger had gotten the best of you. You never thought you would become a murderer. You never understood how someone could just go through with ending another person's life like that.

You shocked yourself when you pulled that trigger. When you dragged the man who was twice your size out the door to be eaten alive. When you ended his life for good.

Maybe you were no better than Irons.

Leon looked conflicted. He knew murder was wrong. But all Irons did was hurt and murder people. Should he really be all that upset about it?

He stayed silent and you nodded. What's done is done.

"Great. Glad we solved that problem. Now, NEST?" You looked around for Sherry and Claire. "Where the hell did Sherry and Claire go? They were here a few minutes ago."

"Something spooked Sherry and she ran away. Claire went after her." Leon explained.

"Where?"

"Over here." Ada motioned to the door. "Any ideas where this leads?"

You reach into your bag for the map of NEST you found when you first went. "That would be the entrance to NEST. I guess we'll catch up to them." You turned to look back toward the room where your friend still lied.

"Do you want to say good-bye?" Leon asked. Ada stayed silent, letting you decide what you wanted to do next.

You shook your head after a moment. "No. It won't change anything. Let's just go." You started leading the way.

"It could give you closure." Leon said.

"Look, I appreciate what you're trying to do here. But stop. We have a job to do. Plus, I can tell Ada is getting impatient." You stated.

"I could still give you a few minutes." Ada offered. She wasn't as cold at that moment as she had been all night. You were thankful for her and Leon's offer, but you didn't think you would be able to hold it together if you saw Katherine again. It was best to move on.

No matter how painful it was for you.

"No. Again, I appreciate it. But, no. Let's just move on." You turned your back to the room, not wanting to look any longer.

You walked down the tunnel to the elevator at the end. Once you all had gathered inside, you pressed the button and the elevator began its descent.

"So, what do you want to know, Ada? From what I've gathered, you know a lot already." You said, attempting to break the uncomfortable silence that had surrounded the small space.

"I know mostly everything that you know. I know that Annette Birkins is the one responsible for this mess. And I'm going to bring her down. What I need to know from you is where the G-virus is so I can do that." Ada explained.

The elevator stopped and you all walked out. You followed the map leading you further down the tunnels toward NEST.

"Well, I can show you Birkins lab. We might have to take a look around the facility, though. There were people taking samples of the virus to sell on the blackmarket. So I doubt there is anything left in Birkins lab." Ada nodded in agreement.

"How can they have a whole underground facility without the authorities knowing?" Leon questioned.

"Welcome to corporate America. Umbrella's controlled Raccoon City for years." Ada deadpanned.

"Yeah, Irons was Chief of police and worked with Umbrella, remember? No one was looking for a secret underground facility. Well, no one until Ben and I." You explained.

"You said you were there on the night this all started?" Ada asked.

"Yeah. Looking for intel. I had a man from the inside help me get in here."

"Get anything good?"

"Yes. Information on the viruses, and additional things, the scientists were working on down here. What Umbrella did with the kids in the orphanage. Dealings they had with authority figures. I had proof, but I lost it at some point throughout the week." You lied.

You weren't going to tell Ada you gave the drive away to a S.T.A.R.S member. Truth be told, you didn't really trust her. Or Leon for that matter. They were strangers. The only reason you were still helping them was because they held up their end of the bargain and took you to Katherine. Even though it turned out to be too late, you still appreciated them trying.

"What was yours and Ben's goal? Why go through all this trouble?" Leon asked. You felt saddened at the mention of Ben, but tried to shake it off.

"Well, for Ben, it started out as a good story. He was a private journalist. Hired me when I was looking for a job." You reminisced. "But it slowly morphed from a good story to a need to shut the bastards down. To show the citizens of Raccoon City what their officials and so called "heroes" were really up to. To show the world. We had to stop them."

"A little ambitious for a couple of private journalists." Ada commented.

"Oh, we were in way over our heads." You agreed. "But we already got so far with the information we collected. We couldn't just stop. We had to see it through. And then, well, everything happened." You sighed sadly.

"Are you getting cold feet?" Ada asked. She couldn't tell if you wanted to continue with the mission or if you wanted to back out. She wouldn't give you the option to leave. She needed your knowledge.

"No. I want to see this through. Even if it kills me. At this point, I don't think that is entirely out of the realm of possibilities."

"We'll be fine." Leon said, clearly determined to make it and for everything to be alright.

"Hmm, an optimist and a hero, Leon? Never change. From what I've seen, the world could use more people like you." You said.

You made it to a door and Leon pushed you back slightly to open it first, just in case something dangerous was on the other side.

"Definitely Williams handiwork…" A woman said, crouched over a dead body. You all quietly make your way inside.

"Identify yourself!" Leon said, holding up his gun.

Ada held her gun up. "Annette Birkin."

"She's who we're looking for? The one who created the viruses?" Leon asked. You nodded.

"Not much time… Need to dispose of it." Annette muttered.

"We're here for the G-virus!" Ada said.

"Huh, that's not gonna happen." Annette scoffed. She noticed you standing there and furrowed her brow in confusion.

"I'm warning you, doctor." Ada said.

"Oh yeah?" Annette tossed a lighter to the body, setting it on fire and ran away.

"STOP!" Ada yelled. She rushed after her around the corner and you want to follow.

Gunshots went off and Leon quickly went to cover Ada, who was in the line of fire. You stayed ducked behind the wall, out of range. Leon fell to the ground, having been shot through the shoulder. Ada tried shooting Annette, but she ran past a thick, steel metal door as it shut.

"You'll never get the G-virus!" Annette yelled as the metal door shut.

"Didn't expect that from a scientist." Ada snarked. You noticed her sunglasses had been knocked off her face.

"Honestly, I'm not surprised." You said. Leon groaned in pain on the ground, catching your attention.

"Leon…" Ada ducked to the ground, leaning over to check on his wound. You followed.

"Forget about me… Just go… Stop her before she gets away." Leon passed out right after those words. Ada looked conflicted, before she finally decided to stay and help patch up his wound.

"Can you help me patch him up?" Ada asked you.

"I don't really have much knowledge on that stuff. I have a first aid kit though." You hesitated.

"That's fine. Just hand it here and do as I say." Ada said.

You nodded and kneeled on the floor beside her and Leon, digging through your bag to grab the first aid kit you had.

"Here." You handed her the kit. She nodded her thanks and started patching Leon up.

"So, do you have to do this often?" You asked.

"Do what?" Ada asked.

"Patch yourself or someone up. You seem to know what you're doing." You said as you watched her work.

Ada shrugged. "It's basic training. Everyone in the FBI knows this."

"Right. And in the FBI, do they also teach the women to kick ass in heels and wear sunglasses in the dark?" You teased.

Ada snorted and smirked. "The heels again? No. That's just my thing. Why, you interested?"

"In what? You?" You asked stupidly.

Ada actually laughed at that. "No, in joining the FBI."

You blushed in embarrassment. "Right. Uh, no. After all this, I think I've had enough of corporate America to last a lifetime."

"Hmm, so what are you gonna do? When all of this is over?" She asked as she began wrapping Leon's wound.

"I- I don't know. Lay low? Stay out of trouble for a while. Find some place to live." You shrugged.

"Any ideas on where?"

"No. I honestly haven't thought about it much. I had a solid thing going on before the outbreak. I had my apartment. I had my friends. I had a job where I was actually doing something that felt important. And as weird as it sounds, despite all of the danger we were putting ourselves in, I was happy." You trailed off.

"And now?" Ada questioned.

"And now it's all gone. All of it. My apartment. My job…. My friends. I honestly don't know how to go on with life after this."

Ada sighed as she finished patching up Leon's shoulder. "One day at a time. That's a start." She stood up and held her hand out to help you stand. You took it.

"We'll go after Annette in a few moments. Take a breather." She said as she helped you to your feet.

"We'll just leave him here?" You asked, referring to Leon.

"Well, we can't take him when he's passed out. He'll be fine. The area is secure." Ada said. You hesitated before nodding in agreement.

She's right. He's a big boy, he'll be alright.

#ada wong #ada wong x reader #resident evil #resident evil x reader #claire redfield #jill valentine #leon kennedy #raccoon city #idk what else to tag

32 notes · View notes