#clone fights always seem more interesting when you're not the one doing the actual fighting

[krawkpaladin]

Minor Plot/Gameplay Spoilers for Baldur's Gate 3, Act 2 below the cut, but it's mostly discussion on the mechanics of a specific encounter with some plot.

So when you enter the temple of Shar by the House of Healing and get down into the Gauntlet of Shar, there's a gauntlet (heh) of trials you have to go through in order to get these magical gemstones to be used later, pretty typical "test of skills/character" stuff. There's a lot of cool things you can do, including scouting out the rooms if you pick the locks before starting the challenge, disarming traps in advance, that sort of thing. One of the challenges, however, is called the Self-Same challenge and is... a clone fight.

If you've played a lot of CRPGs or JRPGs (or lots of other games, say hi Ocarina of Time!) you've seen this type of gimmick fight before. The party (or character, if it's a solo deal) is confronted with a clone/dark reflection of themselves that is a perfect copy in every way and you have to defeat the clone(s). The in-universe intended solution to this sort of gimmick combat is generally superior skill/tactics, but D&D 5E's combat is swingy enough that even superior tactics can't save you from rolling a fat 6 for damage on Guiding Bolt only for your clone to turn around and hit you for 30 damage at a time when you likely have a max HP of around 40. On top of this, your clones have several additional abilities that you normally don't: like many Act 2 enemies, they turn invisible when not standing in a light source, they are immune to being pushed/moved around, and they are immune to spells like Hold Person. The last component of the fight is that you receive a stacking debuff (-1 to all ability scores until your next long rest) from attacking your allies' clones until you defeat your own. So your tactics end up having to be a lot of "hit your own clone and hope they die first" since you get a debuff for doing the reasonable tactical action of, say, using your rogue to gank the wizard clone first thing.

Of course, there are ways to reduce the difficulty of the fight, partly because it is a video game. You can do this in a couple ways, usually by manipulating how the clones generate. The most straightforward is to strip your party of all their equipment, generate the clones, and then put all their gear back on and beat the snot out of a bunch of naked people. I... I don't particularly like this solution. The logic is overly video-gamey, as it's hard to imagine how anyone would make the connection between a clone fight and removing all their equipment without already knowing the conventions and limitations of the encounter. The other way is that you can send in only one person to start the challenge, and then have the rest of the party follow by breaking into the room after it is sealed so you're only fighting a single clone. I do think that this solution is actually pretty clever, and given the nature of the dungeon and Shadowheart's storyline, can be a fun little potential thematic rejection of Shar's faith in her own temple.

Though to be perfectly honest, I just don't like clone fights the way they're implemented 90% of the time in RPGs. It's either a slug-fest where you hope you roll better on average, or you strip down naked and then get back in your armor faster than the Dragonborn Skyrim eats 10 wheels of cheese to recover from a sword stab mid-battle. There are some interesting ones out there; Final Fantasy 4's Dark Knight fight comes to mind, where the solution is not to attack at all. (It is also, strictly speaking, not a real clone fight, as it doesn't scale with Cecil's level, but it is very much thematically a clone fight.) This has got me thinking though of how to make clone fights interesting, especially in the context of TTRPGs, but I'm still sorting my thoughts on that so I'll probably make a follow-up post assuming I don't get lost in more BG3 or prepping for my group's Sci-Fi Campaign 2 Space Theft Boogaloo.

[daturabouquet]

❤︎𝔻𝕠𝕥𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕖 𝕩 ℝ𝕖𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣 𝔻𝕠𝕞𝕖𝕤𝕥𝕚𝕔 𝔸𝕌!❤︎🧪

Ever wonder what it'll be like in one of your daily lives with the Second of The Eleven? Il Dottore is a cruel, cruel man. But why isn't he cruel to you?

"Silly Doctor, I'm not afraid of ghosts!"

♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎𝐈𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐞♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎♡︎

Rough busy day for your mad lover, and a slow day for you. Dottore always comes back to your now shared bedroom tired and somewhat pissed off. You can tell he's had a rough day with his terribly messy blue hair and annoyed glare. He throws himself on the plush soft bed while he rambles on and on about how Webttore keeps on picking unnecessary fights with the subordinates.

You smile and carefully let his head lay on your lap, brushing his hair out lovingly as he rambles incessantly. Dottore locks his gaze on you, who's smiling and giggling a little.

"What's so funny?" Dottore hisses, his emotions still all over the place. "Hehe, it's just that I love to listen to you talk... and I can listen to this for hours so please, my dear doctor, keep ranting." You reply, being completely honest. Dottore sighs and grumbles;"How interesting. You fall asleep every single time I try to educate you on my research." Soft fingers twirl his hair as you think of a response. "Well, this is the only time I can actually understand you, anyway. I don't get it when you talk about joint consciousness and cloning and whatever it was!" Dottore rolls his eyes and caresses your face. He's suddenly confused, how are you always so cheerful? And better yet, why does a cheerful lovely darling like you end up with someone like him? You were the complete opposite of him.

"Am I not a monster to you, darling?" The doctor asks, his gaze softens. "Monster? What made you think that way?" You asked back.

"Is it not obvious, dear? I reckon you're very aware of why." Dottore scoffs, yet he's still patient to hear your answer. "You're not a monster to me! You're freaky and dangerous but that won't stop me from loving you." You answer, softly tapping his mask. "I recall you hated my experiments." Dottore grumbled again, swatting your hand off his mask. "I do, but... if they ever shun you away again, you can always nestle in my arms." Your honeyed words softens him a little.

Slowly, you remove his mask, revealing his beautiful ruby red eyes. Dottore winces at the sudden brightness, yet he immediately locks his focus on your face. He wonders, how could someone like you fall for a monster like him? No, not just a monster, he's a disgrace, a villain, a murderer. How did it happen? Someone as cheerful, as loving, as caring as you shouldn't fall for a demon like him. If you were an angel, all he ever did was cut your wings off. Why? Why did you love him?

"Are you scared of me, darling?" Dottore asks, he seems to be digging for more information. "I... I'm not scared of you, ttore. I trust you! I know you'll never do harm to me... and even if you do perform some sort of experiment on me, I'm sure it's one of the bearable or beneficial ones.." You reply. This answer stunned him a little, how could someone like him be trusted? Being tolerated is one thing, but trusted?

"Ttore-?" You wave your palm above his eyes, you noticed he was in deep thought. "Hmm, you know what? you should go to bed. you need some rest... those caffeine shots can barely keep you moving at this rate." You shuffle away from him, letting his head fall off your lap to the soft bed. He finally snaps out of his thoughts and sits up, you carefully take his lab coat off and put his hair in a low ponytail. He softly yawns as you bring him some comfortable clothes.

"Hmm? I'm too tired to change. I can sleep like this just fine." Dottore protests. "You smell like blood! I'll get nightmares sleeping next to you!" You pout, "If you don't change, I won't sleep with you." Your simple request comes off as a silly threat to Dottore, but he quickly groans and stands up and changes right in front of you. His signature burn marks tattered all over his arms are now visible, and you can't help but blush a little. You also stand up and help him with his harness, in which he smiles in return.

After getting dressed for bed, Dottore collapses on the bed again and quickly gets comfortable. You can only stare at him for a while before sitting on the bed.

"I've changed my clothes. Why aren't you sleeping with me?" Dottore asks, trying to hide the fact that he really wants you next to him. You giggle a little before settling next to him, getting yourself and him under the thick wool blanket. You know better than to tease him, which will result in him refusing to sleep. You initiate a soft hug, which he quickly returns with a tight squeeze.

He leans his head onto your chest, listening to every single heartbeat. You can only smile while playing with his soft locks. You softly hum a popular lullaby from Sumeru, while occasionally kissing his forehead. Before you know it, he's out cold. He's deeply comfortable with you, and to know that you trust him, makes him feel less like a monster. Or maybe, it gives him faith that monsters can be loved too.

----

[kotemf]

Date night

  Foxiyo week is finally here!

A quick A/N, I created this series, They killed Palps and everything is fine, and I thought that I could tie my fills for Foxiyo week to this series as I think it goes well with the prompts. You don't have to read the series to understand this, don't worry, it's just some barely connected one shots. All you need to know is that Palpatine is dead, Riyo and Fox are dating already and they sorta accidentally adopted a clone cadet. I hope you enjoy reading!

  Fox was trying to work.

  Riyo seemed set on getting him to stop working.

  "Could you please stop doing that?"

  "Doing what?" Riyo looked at him innocently. It wasn't her practiced 'I don't know what you're talking about' face she used when convincing politicians and other influential people that she didn't manipulate them at all, no. She actually didn't realize just what she was doing to Fox just sitting on his desk.

  "Sitting there like that."

  "Why?"

  "You're distracting me."

  "Am I now?" Fox shouldn't have told her that. She just realized just how difficult it was for Fox to focus with her around and she was going to use that. Fox watched in horror as Riyo went over to him and sat on his lap.

  "Riyo! There is a CCTV!" Fox hissed. He hoped no one found any reason to go through the footage in his office. It wasn't that he would get in trouble, he was a commander after all, but Thorn and Thire would never let him live that down. Fox made a point of scolding every trooper who brought their significant other to their office because that was their workspace, they were supposed to be working, not stuck staring at their partner like Fox was in the moment.

  "Then take me somewhere where there isn't," Riyo challenged him. And Fox couldn't really refuse her this, could he?

  "Just let me finish one report."

  "One report."

  Fox knew better than to even try doing anything more.

  They ended up in a random park a few levels down from the Coruscant Guard headquarters. Fox used to try to take Riyo to more popular dating places, like fancy restaurants or the cinema, but somehow Riyo being a senator and making about three times more money than Fox always ruined it a bit. She always insisted on paying at least for herself in not them both. Riyo liked to talk about equality. Fox didn't really see what was equal about Riyo paying for basically everything, he would very much like to treat her to a nice date sometimes,  but he knew how to pick his fights. Instead of arguing, he just suggested places that were free, like the park. It seemed to be working so far.

  "This park is pretty nice. How do you know about it?"

  "I passed through here a few times, patrolling or chasing after a suspect. You know, doing the usual Coruscant Guard commander stuff."

  "Are you implying your job is more exciting than mine?" Riyo asked, mock offended.

  "More interesting? Maybe. More dangerous? Definitely not."

  "Come on, it's not me who is chasing after the worst scum of the galaxy on a daily basis."

  "You've been in the senate for three years, that's not even a whole election period. You've received an insane number of threats, you've been almost kidnapped, twice, you've been shot at, five times, you've been almost stabbed-"

  "So what if my job isn't the safest?"

  "Don't interrupt me, I'm explaining why you're my biggest headache. Well, second biggest headache."

  "Just second? Who is the first?"

  "Well, senator Amidala holds the record for the most assassination attempts at the moment." Fox looked at Riyo. She looked strangely determined. Oh no... "Riyo, it's not a competition, you know that, right?"

  "Yeah, sure."

  "You know, maybe you should learn some self defense if you're planning on keeping pushing for unpopular opinions in the senate."

  "If you teach me."

  "Of course I'll teach you." It wasn't like Fox could deny Riyo anything, especially when it was something that was going to protect her. Most people assumed that he, as a guard, was the one who had a risky job. It was a risky job but so was being a senator. Fox has been working around the senate ever since he got deployed from Kamino, he was working to protect the senators. So yes, he knew how dangerous the job of a politician could be. Voicing the wrong opinion could lead to numerous assassination attempts. And while it got better after the war was over, senators could still be in danger.

  "What do you say we start tomorrow?"

  "Tomorrow? Sure. You will want to get Sky out of the house, though. The kid is good. He would laugh at you. Now that I think about it, where is he? Where did you ditch him for today's evening?"

  "He is sleeping over at Thanh's."

  Fox should've probably assumed that. Their adorable little cadet was best friends with Cody's adorable little cadet. By nat-born standards, they were cousins, by clone standards, they were brothers. It was rather complicated so they all just opted to call them friends. Thanh often visited them, he liked Riyo's huge villa that apparently came with the post of a senator. Sky in return spent a lot of time at Cody's house, because Cody being a stay at home dad while getting doing some courses on one of the many universities of Coruscant could watch the kids in the afternoon when Riyo and Fox were busy. Sky was technically old enough to stay alone at home for a few hours but Fox always felt calmer when he knew someone was watching over him.

  "We should do this more often," Riyo said suddenly. "Just take a break and go out."

  "Yeah, we probably should." Fox knew this. But they were both busy and most of the time they weren't working was spent with their son. Not that Fox minded, he loved their child. In fact, sometimes he was tempted to just leave work and become a full time trophy husband. Just get Sky ready for school, then watch some holos, get his nails done, cook lunch and drop it off at Riyo's office, gossip with Cody, then pick Sky up from school and tend to him for the rest of the day. That sounded pretty boring.

  "What do you say we go for a dinner on the weekend? Senator Organa recommended me a good restaurant."

  "I'm not sure." It wasn't that Fox didn't want it. He immediately felt guilty when he saw Riyo's soft smile falter. He rushed to explain. "I wanted to spend the weekend with Sky."

  "We can still do that. This would be just one evening."

  "Alright, sounds great."

  "Let's enjoy our walk now, shall we?"

  "Of course," Fox agreed easily. Problems will always be there, a nice, quiet night at the park won't.

[monsterblogging]

There's definitely a compelling story happening in Attack of the Clones. Anakin scans as a young man who has reached the absolute end of his rope from years of people telling him to practice spiritual bypassing instead of giving him true emotional and psychological support. It's very telling that the minute he's alone with Padme, he starts dumping his grievances with Obi-Wan on her. It's not really surprising that he falls for her so fast and secretly marries her; he is just that starved for human connection.

We can also see that Anakin has internalized a kind of toxic perfectionism. After Anakin kills the Tuskens in a rage, Padme tells him "To be angry is to be human," Anakin responds with "I'm a Jedi. I know I'm better than this."

Better than feeling angry.

And then he internalizes the guilt for Shmi's death, because somehow, Anakin has come to learn that it's all his fault, always.

The moment that broke my heart the most - the moment that made me cry - was when Padme agreed to go to Tatooine with him and he apologized. Imagine how traumatized you have to be to feel like you need to apologize when someone acts supportive when you want to go and rescue your mother.

This is also very interesting to me because there's something incredibly honest happening here: the way Anakin behaves really is what happens when someone internalizes the kind of stuff Obi-Wan and Yoda were teaching Luke in the OT. While watching the OT I was kinda horrified at how bad their teachings often were. ("Do or do not, there is no try" is the kind of thing that will absolutely fuck you up.) Anakin as depicted in this movie is basically just what happens when you bring a kid up on this stuff. (This isn't something that will only just fuck you up if you're mentally ill or traumatized, either; if you're mentally healthy, it will sooner or later traumatize you and make you mentally ill.)

Lucas is also pretty decent at pulling together political plots. I know a lot of people didn't the prequel trilogy's more political angle back in the day, but like... honestly, if we're going to let the man do anything, this is what we should let him do. Oh, and Jedi detective stories; pretty much everything that was Obi-Wan tracking down Kamino was good.

Unfortunately the movie has its problems; the whole thing of the Tuskens kidnapping Shmi is rooted in IRL anti-Native racism. The dialog and direction also could have been better in places (same problem as TPM where a good part of the dialog sounds unnatural).

I also think Padme's writing could have used help, too. Just as ESB never really made me understand why Leia wanted to smonch Han, AotC never really made me understand why Padme wanted Anakin so bad. Both stories feel to me like they're written from the assumption that women will just fall in love with conventionally attractive men in their vicinity.

And then there's that thing where Lucas seems to think battle scenes need comic relief, and... I dunno, maybe there's some people who like it, but I find it incredibly jarring to have this crucial fight scene interrupted by slapstick jokes. Jedi are getting killed, and C-3PO is complaining "this is such a drag!" while his head is literally getting dragged across the ground.

Finally, I actually think moving to CG was a reasonable choice for the prequel trilogy. No, the CG aliens don't look "realistic," but neither do the puppets and the animatronics in the OT, and it's evident that CG allowed for a much greater range of motion in nonhuman characters. I think both methods have advantages and disadvantages, and for what the PT wanted to do? I think CG was the right choice. IMO, the only place it really looks bad is where Lucas decided to insert a bunch of CG into the OT, because the looks don't match, and each one ultimately makes the flaws of the other stand out more.

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: "The Protector of Concord Dawn"

In which Kanan is the best and Sabine eventually learns to follow his example on things.

I honestly don't think I've watched this one often enough to remember it that well so this'll be an adventure for me.

Having been driven off Garel the Phoenix Cell fleet is once again just kind of ambling through realspace in the middle of nowhere.

Rex casually recanonizing the "Mandalorians trained the clone troopers" thing from Legends.

Oof, you know this conversation had to hurt Sabine in some private places.

Lol, Hera's "Sounds familiar." She talking about Sabine there? Probably.

Sato's line here about warriors only understanding strength is interesting, considering it was suggested/implied that he's a former Separatist. Who knows if he ever had to tangle with Mandalorians during the Clone Wars, but he clearly recognizes that they tend to be a stubborn and belligerent people.

Side note, I love how bouncy Hera's lekku are.

"There was a time when it [diplomacy] always won the day." *CRIES ABOUT THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE REPUBLIC FOREVER*

You uh... you look like you're missing a little... a lot of... something there, Concord Dawn.

This is a unique music cue, frenetic and tense even before there's any actual danger.

Hera's slight hesitation when she talks about those who would stand against the Empire, hngl, she's so hopeful for the best-case scenario, she has so much faith in people's inner goodness and desire for freedom and autonomy.

Too bad Fenn Rau already made a self-preservation deal with the Empire.

This battle is really nicely staged and shot.

Was that a very fragmented excerpt of the "Shenanigans" theme?

*listens harder*

Sounds a bit like!

Sabine groaning in aggravation when Hera tells her to "just follow orders" oooh boy that's a sour spot for her.

I think it's only thanks to their bonding in "Out of Darkness" that Sabine chooses to trust Hera.

AND THE CURSED WORDS, "I'LL BE RIGHT BEHIND YOU."

FANDOM DID NOT FORGET THAT THOSE WERE THE LAST WORDS KANAN SAID BEFORE HIS HEROIC SACRIFICE IN "CALL TO ACTION", WRITERS.

:((((((((

My gosh the way shards and pieces still seem to be floating around the A-wing like they're pulled by gravity towards it.

Wonder if the Chimaera looked similar when it exited hyperspace, wherever that was.

The worry in Kanan's eyes and his pinched brows, ugh.

The kids waiting anxiously for news about mom. :(

Sabine immediately blaming herself, and I can't help but think about the parallels to "Call To Action", how Ezra must have blamed himself for leaving Kanan behind, for not fighting alongside him.

Sabine sounds so vulnerable here, ouch.

Kanan backstory! If I remember, the issue of the Kanan: The Last Padawan comic that covered the event he's referencing here came out right about when this episode was airing, in a bit of fortuitous narrative timing.

Sabine be very angry. That Mandalorian call for revenge be beating strong inside her.

Kanan decides to protect the others by barring them all from coming, only risking himself.

Except, grudgingly, Chopper, who is none-too-happy about this lol.

Takes his frustrations out on Ezra, of course.

"You must be pretty distracted not to have noticed I stowed away." Well, you know, Hera is in the ICU, that's probably pretty distracting.

I actually really love that Kanan is going full Jedi here, offering the protectors, and Fenn Rau specifically, another chance to do the right thing. There's something to be said about his and Hera's shared faith in the true inner goodness of people.

"This Jedi philosophy stuff doesn't work for everyone." "That's why we're at war." CHEEKY BASTARD KANAN.

He's right though, if everyone were just more forgiving and self sacrificing and compassionate like the Jedi there would be far less problems in the galaxy, "You said the biggest problem in this galaxy is that nobody helps each other." CATCH ME SOBBING ABOUT THE PURE GOODNESS OF THE JEDI ORDER AND THEIR MODUS OPERANDI OF SELFLESS COMPASSION AND HOW THEY DIDN'T DESERVE ANY OF IT.

"You always bring enough explosives." Lolol Kanan knows his surrogate foster daughter.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: Kanan leaning in and peering through Sabine's helmet antenna display.

Sabine gives every impression that she intends to take revenge for Fenn hurting Hera so it's a little bit weird when she suddenly backs off from her rage and anger to reinforce a "no killing" moral.

The only reason she doesn't follow through is Kanan's Jedi influence, so I'm going to picture him as a little shoulder angel next to her ear, whispering to her the right thing to do and I'm going to assume that's the deliberate intention of the writers.

Side note: Kanan gives a lot of encouraging/calming/reassuring touches to Sabine's shoulder in this scene. It's adorable.

Oh wow, Kanan legit pushed Sabine's blasters down as they were sneaking here.

This location feels very weird to see in light of "Imperial Supercommandos", I swear they reuse shot and camera angles for some of the scenes.

Kanan saying he trusts Sabine, aww.

Rau is remarkably considerate of Kanan's intrusion. I really like this scene. Gives the impression of two worthy foes sizing each other up. Feels very much like some kind of callback to classic samurai films.

Rau puts his blaster away when he learns Kanan's a Jedi, a subtle hint to his true loyalties. Rau wants to believe in the miracles the Jedi are capable of but years of subjugation have made him cynical and bitter.

This tapping percussion bit in the score is often used to signify stealth or infiltration.

LOL Sabine blowing her cover by banging her head on a fighter, lololol.

I remember fandom went kind of nuts when Sabine declared she was "House Vizsla". I was never really into the Mandalorian lore side of things so I was like, "Cool. That's nice."

(Basically it means her family was Death Watch and caused way too many Problems On Purpose in the Clone Wars.)

"I believe they have the strength to defeat you and the resources to back it up." UNEXPECTED THRAWN PARALLELS HELLO??!?!!!??

No but seriously, Fenn Rau allied with the Empire for much the same motivations that Thrawn did, to preserve his own people and further their interests. He owes no true loyalty to the Empire but his strategic mind has determined that acquiescing to them is the best option to protect his own.

Wow I did not expect that in this rewatch.

Lol Kanan's whole expression of, "Goddammit Sabine."

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The way Sabine's bangs bounce as her head moves.

Kanan desperately appealing to Sabine's better instincts, the ones Hera instilled in her, and Sabine seeming serious all the way to the end until she holds herself back and shows mercy.

Aaaaaaaaaaah I have so many feelings!

Also LOL at Kanan being so frustrated with Mandalorians and how they fight at any provocation.

Sabine's "You need to trust me." sounds like she's already mentally backed down from her "RAWR MUST TAKE REVENGE" plot and is more calmly assessing the situation and figuring out how to accomplish the goal and adhere to Kanan's (and by proxy Hera's) wishes.

More Old West Hollywood shots here.

I don't think the visual similarity between this moment post-explosion and Sabine's fight with Gar Saxon in "Imperial Supercommandos" is a coincidence.

"You love making this hard for me." Lol aww.

...Where was Fenn intending to go? No really, this is gonna bug me. Was he going to search for the ship Kanan and Sabine clearly came in? Was he going to contact the Empire?

Oooh there's a leimotif in here that I'm sure I've heard, I can't determine what it's meant to symbolize or be associated with (maybe Kanan?) but it's a good one.

Obligatory pretty cloud shot.

Looks Rau straight in the face as he stabs his lightsaber through the Fang controls lolol, what a badass.

Kanan is exceptionally competent here. It's really sexy.

For those fans whose primary blorbo is Kanan I mean.

Fenn Rau begrudgingly accepting his defeat in acknowledgement of Kanan's raw skill. <3

It's not exactly what Hera wanted but it's close enough. Rau submits to a clearly superior foe and chooses to hedge his bets by ordering his men to grant them safe passage, out of a chagrined respect.

Love the callback to the joke in "A Princess On Lothal" lol

SABINE ACKNOWLEDGING KANAN'S POSITIVE JEDI INFLUENCE ON HER AND IMPLICITLY CALLING KANAN AND HERA HER PARENTS WITH HER COMMENT ABOUT BEING "RAISED RIGHT", WEEPING, SOBBING, GNASHING TEETH.

Awwwwwwwwww!

I... don't remember being super into this episode when it first aired. Mandalorians infighting with Mandalorians was never a drama I was into and I thought Sabine was frankly a little... boring?... as a character? In the early days for me at least. I was never much invested in her focal episodes in Season Two. She only really started getting interesting for me in Season Three.

But I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed rewatching this episode and seeing Sabine struggle against the competing family instincts and influences inside her.

That being said, it's Kanan who really shines in this episode, demonstrating perfect Jedi training and compassion, determined to find a peaceful solution to the conflict that honors both his values and Hera's wishes. He tempers Sabine's instinctual rage and anger and drive for revenge with calm serenity and mercy and it's this example that would influence several of her decisions in Season Three.

This episode is honestly a really quality one for the Kanan-Sabine bonding and relationship exploration. Maybe I didn't give its due at the time, but I'm finding myself really liking it now.

We're about to hit the Golden Streak, I am SO looking forward to covering the next several episodes. <3

[watching-pictures-move]

Movie Review | Under Siege (Davis, 1992)

Despite the fact that I own this on DVD (I think), I saw it was about to leave Canadian Netflix in a few days and decided to give it a rewatch. Mostly because I don't remember where I placed my copy (if I actually own a copy, that is; I think it's included in one of those "Four Film Favourites" releases that Warner Brothers used to put out so you can get four movies of wildly varying quality for dirt cheap; I think I actually got two of the Steven Seagal ones, inspired by Vern's wildly entertaining book Seagalogy; no, I don't remember where the other collection is either; such is the peril of buying movies faster than you watch them), but also because it's nice to be reminded that a movie kinda owns. And rewatching this, I can confirm that, yes, it does kinda own.

This is regarded as one of the better Die Hard clones, and like that movie is greatly evocative of the physical reality of its location. A ship is a great location for an action movie, because whether you're in the control room (or whatever you call that in a ship) or in the bowels (or whatever), there's always garish, coloured lighting that pops on the camera. There are always pipes and hissing steam to provide atmosphere. There's always clanging to remind you what a formidable piece of machinery we're in. There are always little things jutting out to give you interesting things to look at in the frame. There are always tight little corners for the camera to snake around and the characters to duck behind for cover as they're shooting at each other. I generally think of Andrew Davis more as a good director of action movies rather than a good action director, but I think he acquits himself pretty nicely in the shootouts. He's less impressive with the fight scenes, going in a bit too close and cutting a little too fast, perhaps to hide Seagal's slipping physical prowess, but despite all the camera shakes and excessive knife waving in the climax, he gets a good jolt out of the flashes of brutality. This is not Seagal's most bloodthirsty movie, lacking the ultraviolence of Out for Justice and Marked for Death (or arguably Hard to Kill, where he offers to take the villain to the blood bank), but it has its moments.

Davis' strengths as a director go a long way in making Seagal seem charismatic, shooting him in handsomely lit close-ups and cutting to punch up his delivery. (Davis previously worked miracles not just with Seagal but also Chuck Norris, who frequently comes off as flat but in Code of Silence is made to look like a seasoned character actor.) He may seem like a joke now, but for a couple of years there, Seagal really seemed like a big deal, like somebody with an unusual screen presence who was appearing in some really entertaining movies. Of course, it turns out that the unusual screen presence was the result of him being weird and a piece of shit, and with the mask coming off with On Deadly Ground (which was totally unable to hide what a fucking freak this guy was), it became obvious that directors like Davis and John Flynn (the man behind the aforementioned Out for Justice, my personal favourite Seagal flick, imbuing him with a nice streetwise swagger as he goes around town for ninety minutes brutally maiming or killing mob goons while spouting lines in a shitty Brooklyn accent) were doing heroic work in directing around him. Davis also cheats here by casting him against Gary Busey and Colm Meaney, two actors who excel at playing assholes, and providing a great lead villain with Tommy Lee Jones. The crazy guy villain played by an actor going against type is such a stock character in action movies now, that it's nice to be reminded what you get when you have a genuinely great actor in the role, and Jones, on top of being very fun to watch, gives him a real unpredictability. I was less enamoured with the handling of Erika Eleniak, who is cast for her Playboy credentials but is not the greatest actress and spends the movie being bullied by Seagal (which does not go down well in light of his his offscreen actions). I will however note that she's the only person in the history of movies who doesn't look dumb as hell with a backwards ballcap, so she does have that going for her.

A few additional notes:

As far as Die Hard clones go, I think I prefer The Rock, which probably has the best use of Nicolas Cage in an action movie, pairs him with Sean Connery in one of the all-time action movie teamups, and has a murderer's row of great supporting actors as well as those big, beautiful, gleaming Michael Bay magazine cover images while retaining some level of visual coherence. I'm also very partial to Die Hard 2, but I guess that's cheating.)

As a Die Hard clone, it hits an awful lot of the same beats, including a shot of its hero jumping off something to evade an explosion, a seemingly impotent supporting character (re)discovering their capacity for violence, villains pretending to be political terrorists but actually acting for personal gain. They do differ in satirical intent, with Die Hard taking aim at pompous authority figures and macho meatheads, while Under Siege is concerned more about the aftermath of Cold War American foreign policy. (The villain is a black ops type who the CIA was happy to let run free when he was useful but then tried to dispose of, not unlike the attempts by the George H. W. Bush administration to "course correct" through the invasion of Panama and the Gulf War. H.W. himself makes an appearance, you think he knew what the movie was saying about him?) Surprisingly, the guys in the control room are more supportive in this movie, with Dale Dye's casting presenting a guarantee of Seagal's heroism. If a guy whose job it is to advise movies on military accuracy says we can trust Seagal, we can trust Seagal.

I've seen this movie multiple times, and I keep forgetting that Seagal doesn't actually have a ponytail in this one. From certain angles, it looks like he might have, given the way his hair is slicked back, but he turns his head, and a ponytail is nowhere to be seen. I guess they don't let you keep one in the navy. But I'm sure the next time I revisit this, I'll be surprised again. This is my Mandela Effect. Others have the imaginary Sinbad genie movie. I have Seagal's spectral ponytail.

[eriexplosion]

Idk how to copy paste emoji on phone very well but Happy, Angsty, Shippy and Family for Echo Badbatch and Athelstan Vikings bc I am, nothing if not Predictable. Also Crosshair bc ilu 💜

*Rubs my gay little hands together* Hope you're ready to read because I am not joking when I say all this came out to over 1500 words.

Echo first, our beloved sad bby.

🟡 - Happy

99 Always watched over their batch from the very beginning and probably the first real memory they have of an ori'vod paying specific attention to them was 99 stopping what he was doing to check on them after a hard training session. It was right after they got their name, when they still very much did not appreciate it, and the best way they could think of to protest was to go to the opposite end and just completely clam up. Can't be an Echo if you just don't talk. 99 aas the one to check on them all crammed up in a tiny corner and he coaxed them out and got them talking again - when he talked, he made it seem okay to be an Echo, and that was a first step to embracing the name their batch gave them, even if it still took some time to completely accept it.

...This came out more bittersweet than fully happy but. I TRIED.

🔴 - Angsty/Sad

Rex had to be the one to bring Fives up to them after they were rescued. Not because they weren't thinking about him, they were, ever since they came out of the fridge and saw that he wasn't there to greet them. But they knew Fives wouldn't have EVER passed up the chance to save them, so... if he isn't here, they already know why. It'll be painful to find out how he died, they know he's dead, and they're already in so much pain as it is both emotionally and physically that they've been terrified to bring it up. Rex knows what they're doing, so he lets it go for a little while but he can't let them leave with the batch without having this conversation, which is just as painful as they both expected it to be.

🟣 - Romantic/Sexual/Shippy

Echo is SO so shy when it comes to romance, especially coming into the Batch. They're the New person and very much coming in on a highly established team with longstanding relationships between them, and they didn't come in with expectations of ever being anything but the outsider. They are in fact SO resigned to always being the outsider that they do not notice they're being flirted with for several weeks. Tech is the first one to give up on subtlety and just ask them if they're interested in being more than Squadmates.

👪 - Family

Echo, as a reg, has the best relationship with the vode in general. Where the batch is super reluctant to intermingle due to the general tensions that have managed to root in between them and the regs, to Echo they're still very much important Family. And so they take it super personally when things keep erupting into food fight violence. They really thought they'd have more time to try to work on getting everyone to get along.

Unfortunately, instead, Order 66 happened. And now not even their batch family is together anymore. This is just going to make them more desperate though to make everyone get along as they meet up with more vode, though, because goddamnit there are not enough clones left to be fighting like this.

Crosshair next to keep the Batch babes together:

🟡 - Happy

He's actually in a good mood much more often than most people would assume, he just doesn't show it in ways that anyone outside of his batch would notice. Happy Crosshair tends to sit closer to people, sometimes lean his whole weight on them, it's like having a cat really. People that aren't used to it tend to think he's trying to aggressively get in their space to prove a point, which is what Echo thought at first when he started planting himself directly in their way all the time until they actually got to know him more.

🔴 - Angsty/Sad

Do I dare do the Lula headcanon? Do I? I think I do.

Lula wasn't always just the name of a stuffed toy. Once, a few regs got their hands on a tooka that they brought back to Kamino for the cadets to take a look at, since the kids don't get off planet except for the occasional starship tour bringing back small animals is always a huge hit for the children.

Wrecker managed to get his hands on the little tooka and brought it back to their room, named her Lula, and absolutely adored the little creature just as much as he loves his Lula now. It's adorable. But this is a Crosshair headcanon, so where does he come in?

Well, the kaminoans didn't think much of the distraction of a pet, but they let Wrecker keep it for a short while because they saw potential for a test. She turns up missing Wrecker is losing his entire mind, and in the middle of it all Crosshair gets called in for a solo test. There's just one target, and the real test isn't if he can hit her it's if he'll do what he's told even though it will destroy Wrecker. He does, but not because of any real will to follow orders, he just knows it will be worse for them if he doesn't. He makes the replacement Lula to try to make up for it - it's not the same, but it's all he can do. (If this sounds similar to my Twelve Seconds fic it's because I imagine they did this to him multiple times with increasingly brutal targets to make sure he actually would shoot anything he was directed to before putting the batch out in the field.)

🟣 - Romantic/Sexual/Shippy

He probably gets the most hookups outside of the batch and literally no one knows HOW he manages this, because it's not his pleasant demeanor. Hitting on people usually takes the form of antagonizing them and seeing if they smack him or make out with him first and somehow people keep taking the second one.

He also tends to mood drop after them, but still won't recognize that this probably means there's something he's not getting out of it (like actual companionship) and so he comes back upset half the time to lay down with one of them and Radiate Sadness. Usually Wrecker, because he has the most Comforting presence and they've been together the longest by FAR.

👪 - Family

It is pretty much his only priority at all actually. There is a reason he takes it SO hard when he thinks they've abandoned him and it's because he has genuinely not at any point bothered to find anything else to live for. (And the reason he's still going at this point is that he does hope that they'll push back against his attitude and just make him come home so he can save face by not having been the one to give in first.)

Also the softest part of his brain really envies the life Cut and his family have, far away from fighting, but he tries not to listen to that part of himself because he's 1000% sure that kind of life is not for them.

And SOFT BOY ATHELSTAN:

🟡 - Happy

Athelstan keeps all of his journals as they fill up, so that he can look back on them and reflect. This means that he ends up with dozens of these, and he can open any of them to a random page and easily guess when he did it just by what he finds there. Even if it's just a sketch, how he draws the world and people around him changes as he shifts from being afraid to truly feeling like he belongs.

This means he can go back and usually pinpoint right around where he started to fall in love with someone, because he can see it in how his art of them changes.

🔴 - Angsty/Sad

Even years down the line he still has nightmares about his dead brothers. He's tried to move on from it and make peace and in many ways he has, but the nightmares haven't gone anywhere. Sometimes he thinks he's forgotten his brothers faces but then the bad dreams make it very much apparent that he hasn't.

These are also the only dreams that Ragnar can't help much with, which drives him insane because Ragnar HATES to think there's anything he can't fix. But this is one of them.

🟣 - Romantic/Sexual/Shippy

His favorite way to wake up is kisses, so he gets them every morning now from SOMEONE. Usually Ragnar or Floki will get him up this way but if they're not available metamours will do it (Helga especially loves to give him an adorable kiss to the cheek and make him make a SQUEAK of surprise.)

Of course being in a partner's arms just makes it better, please hold him while he wakes up. (This also helps when he's been having bad dreams, which he has OFTEN. As long as they're not the above mentioned brother nightmares that is.)

👪 - Family

So obviously my headcanons and fic go off the rails sometime around season three but I adore Alfred too much to let him go just because of something as small as 'Athelstan isn't fucking Judith in this version' so therefore. Athelstan has baby Alfred with someone else, in this verse Helga. They're not Together as a couple, but they're close and Helga is happy to parent a child with him, once a polycule becomes Complex enough it's all just coparenting anyway.

Also they're precious together so sue me. He loves her, and whether it's romantic or not really doesn't matter to him, she's just important to him.

[erithel]

Hi, old lady ask here! It's been about 25 years (not kiddking) since I've seen the original Voltron but there are some things I remember from the original that made it into VLD:

The death of Sven(Shiro)- This happened right near the beginning of the show. I seriously think they flew only a couple of missions with him, then he gets killed during a fight with Zarkon that also puts Zarkon in a coma. The difference is Sven stayed dead for most of the show. He didn't pop back up until near the end (don't remember if he was a clone or not, but he did have long hair lol), and when he did, he and Romelle lead the resistance. Romelle was also Allura's cousin and the two of them looked exactly alike for some reason.

Lotor's behavior- In the original Voltron Lotor was a ruthless, unapologetic, evil bastard who saw Allura as an object he desperately wanted to possess. I don't remember him having any sort of redeeming qualities whatsoever, but maybe I just don't remember them. What I do remember is wishing Zarkon would wake the fuck up because holy shit his kid was a fucking monster. I feel like this applies to the threads regarding Lotor's behavior/treatment in VLD because their desire to keep him a monster clearly was at odds with their sudden change to make him seem redeemable. Seriously, when that season of VLD ended with Haggar saying "Summon Prince Lotor", I turned to my husband and said, "Oh, man, shit's about to get reeeeeeal dark".

The lion swap- As a young girl watching the original I never understood why they had to swap lions when they could have just let Allura pilot the black lion. Seriously, there is an episode in the original Voltron where Keith let's Allura pilot the black lion for shits and giggles and she not only does an amazing job but they form Voltron with no problems whatsoever. (They also made lion swapping way less of a big deal.) When I got older and reflected on the time I grew up in I realized the whole reason for the lion swap was because this show was geared towards boys and at that time boys didn't want to see a girl leading a team of warriors. I feel like VLD missed a huge opportunity to right this wrong, especially with how much stronger and more confident this Allura was.

Keith's personality- This one isn't a similarity, but I felt I needed to comment on how incredibly different VLD Keith's personality is from the original Voltron. Holy shit, it's like night and day. Original Keith was a little reluctant at first, but he was a total boy scout and ended up being a great team leader. VLD Keith was very much not that, but perhaps he could have been if they'd given him more than five minutes as the black paladin.

Filler episodes- There were way more of these in the Original and they served a very important purpose: they showed the team getting to know each other and bonding a friends. VLD needed more of this.

Those are some of the big ones off of the top of my head. I'll try to remember more details if I can, but Ibdidn't want to make this longer than it already was! I actually really enjoy discussing these! SoI'll respond with more when I can!

This is interesting! I actually remember the Sven part and vaguely knowing it was only in there because it was some homage to the original series. I remember watching that episode and thinking they were all reacting very…low-key about someone who was basically an alternate reality version of Shiro. Because if I'm remembering correctly, that happened while he was still missing. I could be wrong about that, but I distinctly remember them not freaking out about it as much as I felt was warranted.

It's actually really interesting that there was also an opportunity for Allura to take the Black Lion in the original. Because I always felt she was a better fit than Keith at the time of the VLD lion swap. And you're so right – it would have been an amazing opportunity for VLD to put her in the Black Lion. To show her as the "strong female leader" they wanted her to be.

I often get annoyed with filler episodes in anime, but sometimes they are important for character building – like you said for the original. Like, I would have watched more space mall type episodes if it gave us an opportunity to see the team interacting with each other and having fun with each other. If fillers are done right, they are made with just enough fun to make it a breather from the main plot – but with one vital piece of information thrown in that ties back into everything, or advances something in the storyline.

This was really interesting, thank you for sharing! I'd love to hear more if you want to add anything. :)

[goji-pilled]

Okay @princekirijo you want an essay? Well here it is now, or as I like to call it Felix's "Asumari is great and this fandom has no fucking taste" rambling and infodump. Congrats fellas, thanks to Prince you ALL get an asumari essay. But before that I'll try to give you a rundown of Mari and Asuka. 

(I'm also so sorry for putting this long ass post on everyone's dashboard)

(Spoiler warning for Evangelion 3.0+1.0 Thrice Upon a Time!!)

Alright on one hand we have Mari Illustrious Makinami. Her whole deal? She's a walking ray of sunshine, literally lol. Unlike any other character in the Evangelion franchise she doesn't suffer from her trauma, she's quite literally the only healthy and functioning human being, she's just slightly leaning towards "batshit crazy" with the stunts she pulls 🤷‍♂️. Other than that she just loves living, she loves being with people, she keeps moving forward, stays positive and decides to live life to it's fullest even after she experiences loss and multiple apocalyptic events (Second Impact, Third Impact, etc.) and she really just embodies the joy of living. That's all there is to her, or at least all we know.

On the other hand, we have Asuka Langley Shikinami who is... well it's hard to explain what she is to be honest. She's part-German and part-Japanese and part of a line of clones specifically made with the purpose to pilot an Evangelion and later on be used as a sacrifice to trigger another Impact (ITS COMPLICATED I KNOW-) Asuka is, unlike Mari, very much suffering from her trauma. She doesn't have her parents and has a very deep seated belief that she's completely alone, which she says doesn't matter as long as she can pilot the Eva. She also very much wants to fight and kill angels all by herself, and it's seriously messing with her when she can't achieve that.

Now we get to the more interesting parts (hopefully this so far wasn't too confusing, then again it's Eva and even I can't fully wrap my head around it all LMAO)

In the second Rebuild movie (Evangelion 2.0 You can (not) advance) we get introduced to both of them, Mari's introduction scene (in the original English dub) has her pilot an Eva and singing about how she'll take the world on by herself, while in the third movie's (Evangelion 3.0 You can (not) redo) opening scene she's piloting the Eva again but this time it's together with Asuka (in her own Unit 02 though) and during that Mari sings about how wonderful it is not to be alone. It's nothing big yet, but it's a really cute detail me thinks,,, you know what else I love about them? They bicker and they banter and it's genuinely so fun to listen to shskdhsuwj

(For a quick catch up: During the end of 2.0 Shinji (the protagonist) triggers another apocalyptic event, the Near Third Impact, and was only stopped due to Kaworu (the guy in my pfp) stepping in. Also between 1.0/2.0 and 3.0/3.0+1.0 are about 14 years (without Shinji bc he's like comatose) where A LOT happens AND we learn in 3.0 that Eva pilots don't age physically bc of "The curse of the Eva"... honestly Eva is wild lmao)

Okay okay I'll get back to it!

So one thing that happens is that Asuka during 2.0 develops a crush on Shinji (girl why-), unfortunately things take a turn for the worse. Asuka had volunteered to be the testpilot for a new Eva (Unit 03), she seemed happy at the time and it was a really sweet build up with the "I can smile, I didn't know I could still do that."-line. And then? Then it turns out the Ninth Angel had infected Unit 03 (Angels are basically the Kaijus they fight using Evas btw). The thing goes on a loose and Shinji is forced to fight it (With Asuka inside mind you), he refuses and his father uses an autopilot to destroy Unit 03. And boy did it destroy the angel, well it and it crushed Asuka between its jaws (you can actually hear her scream btw haha pain :)).

Asuka survived though, but the whole incident cost her her humanity and she ended up becoming an angel herself/she took the place of the Ninth. But despite that, there's one person who keeps believing in Asuka's humanity, who fiercely believes Asuka is still a human and tells her as much.

Yep, that one person is Mari and she keeps holding onto that belief until the very end when Asuka uses her last resort, which is using the power of an angel (Doing so was a guaranteed death sentence btw). Mari's own words (in the German dub) were, "Princess, you're giving up being human…" AND IT MAKES ME SO EMO GOD FUCK

While I'm at it, Mari and Asuka are a fucking killer combo as a team. They rely on each other for support in combat, listen to the other's orders and advice. Especially in Asuka's case it's kind of a big deal that she so openly relies and counts on Mari's support. Like these two trust each other with their damn lifes!!! Holy shit!!

Guess what though, they also have nicknames for eachother. Mari always calls Asuka "Princess" or "(Your) Highness" while Asuka calles Mari "Four-eyes" / "Four-eyed chrony (idk how you spell that tbh RIP" Even better though, in the German dub Asuka calls Mari "Brillerella" as in a combination of "Brille" (German for glasses) and "Cinderella",,,,Cinderella and her Prince,,,Brillerella and her Princess,,, man, that was a gay fucking move of the translation team. Spoiler: I owe them my life.

Funfact: There's exactly two times throughout the Rebuild movies where Mari uses Asuka's actual name. These two times being when she watches Asuka "die" and be used as a sacrifice for Gendo's selfish plan and when later on she begs Shinji, "So please the Princess… Asuka needs your help!" And the best part? That wasn't even the first time she did that. The mentioned line came from 3.0+1.0, but she did that too in 3.0 with the, "At least save the Princess!" line (although her tone was much more...pissed, like she was really angry lol)

Remember the crush Asuka had on Shinji? Well due to the Unit 03 incident a whole lot of other shit got mixed into that and her feelings for him in general became really bitter (understandably so). Now Mari being who she is sometimes teases Asuka about said old crush but she really does want Asuka to get closure and sort that mess out. 

As an example for the teasing, in 3.0 there's a scene that goes like this (please imagine Mari with a literal :3 face while saying that):

"Unit! Are you back in the game?"

"I'm on it, your Highness. But first things first, how was our little puppy (Shinji)? Did he sit like a good little boy?"

"He's exactly the same! Same stupid face talking mayhem!"

"That goofy face of his, that's what you wanted to see? Riiiiight?"

"Shut up! I went there to bat him one!... And I feel better!"

There's also a very short bonus manga that was released in Japan for Thrice Upon a Time's release that has Mari trying to convince Asuka to come with her on the mission to get Shinji, given everything that follows, it's just another thing to prove my point. And the final bit relating to that is this:

"Feeling better now?"

"Yeah, I do feel better."

That's the exchange Asuka and Mari have after they talked to Shinji, it's nothing special but I think it's really sweet and this time Asuka actually sounded like she was feeling better instead of when she was screaming after she nearly broke pretty thick glass with her fist (If she had hit someone with that much force she definitely would've broken something omggg #violentimpulsesgang)

To get back on track though: I already mentioned it but during the second half of 3.0+1.0 Asuka "dies" (and honestly that entire scene is worth its own in-depth post because its just one huge parallel to The End of Evangelion), the point is: You can tell that the loss of Asuka honestly hits Mari hard. Not only because of how Mari screams Asuka's name but also because of her expressions. They're pained, like really fucking pained and Mari even apologizes to her that she has to fall back due to the fact that she's injured AND because eveything is going wrong.

After the events of Evangelion 3.0 these two got seperated from eachother, Mari was with WILLE (the organization both of them are with) and on board of Wunder (the ship WILLE basically operates from) while Asuka was in a Village full of (Near) Third Impact Survivors. When they do meet again it went like this:

Asuka, barely back, comes to the door and calls, "I'm back." And within seconds of Asuka stepping into their room after the door opens Mari already runs towards her, arms wide open and she says, "Welcome back, your Highness! Good job. I missed you so much!" And she says that while she literally nuzzles into Asuka,,,like,,,what the fuck gay people real!!! 

Best part? Asuka clearly has enough strength to push Mari completely away if she were uncomfortable, but she doesn't. Asuka merely wanted enough space to look at the room (because Mari managed to horde even more books lol) and play her game. During their entire renunion Mari keeps hugging her, and part of me thinks that perhaps deep down Asuka actually enjoys the feeling of physical affection.

Before we get to the last point though, let me say that Asuka and Mari have scenes in 3.0+1.0 that parallel Shinji and Kaworu's from 3.0. (Fyi Kaworu loves Shinji (yeah, like that, and 3.0 was basically them being gay as fuck for an hour) so like...do I even need to explain? 

And then of course there's also this, the "Take care of yourself, Princess…" line. That is the last time Mari talks to Asuka and as much as that line alone already is so much, it's Mari's expression in particular that kills me. Because this? This soft, almost bittersweet expression she has, as she basically says goodbye? Because she knows Asuka will finally be happy and safe? It just makes me feel so much actually. Man.

In the end it's a fact that Mari loved Asuka, wether that is interpreted as platonic or romantic by someone is up to them. But it is a fact that Asuka was loved enough that someone wanted to hug her, was happy to see her, to praise her, was hurt by her loss, wanted her to be safe, that someone told her "Take care of yourself…" Asuka was really and honestly so loved that someone would tell her, "I missed you."

But Asuka? Asuka was too hurt, too wrapped up in her own head to actually see how loved she was by Mari (and other people) that she genuinely believed she's completely alone and always will be alone.

It makes the "Take care of yourself" line hit even harder to me, because it's not only Mari's goodbye, but it's a goodbye during the one time Asuka allowed herself to be vulnerable and admit what she really wanted.

And honestly? All of this? Its makes me feel so many things and I just love them  so much man.

[ladykatakuri]

Our Dance

Tech x F Reader

Rating: General Audiences

Word Count: 2175

Lyrics used from the song All about us performed by He is We

Summary:“I believe you might have to come to her aid soon. The senator currently trying to keep her attention on him is well known for his more….illustrious desires when it comes to women.” The concern in her eyes immediately urges him to spring to action and before she can even finish her full sentence he is off to the rescue.

Here it is, the Tech fic i was working on. Somehow i had several songs that inspired story idea`s and ofcourse it is with the guys from the Batch and yes i also have something in mind for Omega. Hope you like it and comments / tips are always more then welcome here <3

It was one of those evenings, once more. A senator had decided that it was time for an early celebration of, well something important on his home world and of course that meant guests, a lot of food and drinks, caterers and guards. Normally not a big problem, any time that you were invited to a party by a good friend you would happily accept and you did, but this evening turned out to be a huge annoyance to you and a strain on your self restraint.

During your time serving food and having nice conversations with people from all layers of society you came to be very fond of the clones you met. The Coruscant Guard became steady customers of the shop where you served caf and breakfast most times and all the others were a steady stream of visitors at 79`s, the bar where you would have evening and night shifts, waiting on tables and just having a good time with your new found friends. But this party? You would be happy to leave and if you could leave after giving some of the politicians there a piece of your mind then all the better!

It began with the senator of Scipio and delegate of the Banking Clan, Rush Clovis, mentioning to another senator he did not see why there should be any consideration for the clones. Their conversation was caught by you as you walked by on your way back to your friend who had invited you in the first place, Padme Amidala, but it was more than enough for you to already hate the man. Unfortunately it was not an uncommon feeling among people with a seat in the senate to think of the clones as nothing more but meat for the grinder. They were created on Kamino to fight in the war effort, and when they died? Well there were more where they came from.

With a slight tremble you move forward, handing out the drink to a friend you found among the guests and had a nice conversation with. In the meantime you knew that several clones were there by special invitation. The senator that was hosting this party wanted to display his power and thought it would be fun to have some of those clones around to have fun with. In this case that fun meant that the guests who wanted to, could either talk to the clones or even dance with them. They were no more than props on display for most of the people there and you hated every second of it. Especially when you realised one of your favorite groups of men were also there. You were about ready to leave the party and grab some sleep when you saw that special group of men, especially one very special, tall, goggled man who had been haunting your daydreams from time to time.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Tech heard that they were ordered to attend a party he was seriously confused. “They do realise we are considered to be defective clones? Not many senators or other high placed figures would want us around them on purpose.” Rubbing his head he looks at his sargeant and leader, Hunter.

With a deep sigh, Hunter looked at his brother. “Yes Tech, they know. I believe that is exactly why they want us to attend this thing. I suppose there is some ulterior motive to it, but we have to follow this order in any case. So, suit up and be on your best behavior.” The last sentence has the sarge glance at the two most troublesome of his brothers, Wrecker and Crosshair. They were the least likely to really behave, but that was a concern for later.

Tech felt uncomfortable in his black suit, but orders were orders in this case and at least Senator Amidala had been kind enough to start a conversation with him and Echo. Both were surprised at her kindness and how she was genuinely interested in their feelings about the war. Echo had stopped him from rambling about the war too much by pointing out the one person he knew would draw more attention than anyone else in the room.

Take my hand, I'll teach you to dance

I'll spin you around, won't let you fall down

Would you let me lead? You can step on my feet

Give it a try, it'll be alright

For a moment it seemed as if there was only one person in the entire room, and that person was you. Tech looked in the direction Echo pointed at and there you were, walking around greeting and conversing with some of the guests in the room and looking picture perfect while doing so. A string of hair escaped your ponytail and the annoyed glance aimed at one of the senators only made you seem more beautiful. Looking at the senator that seemed to have annoyed you so much, he immediately understood why you seemed ready to hit the man with your fist. Senator Clovis was known to be ruthless when it came to clones and clone rights. When asked, he would always say the exact same thing, “Clones are mere tools in the warmachine. A cog perhaps. They are easily replaced and so, we have no need to mourn the loss of any of them. I see no reason why we would even have to spend any credits on the recovery of the wounded.”

A small grin formed on his lips as he watched you stalk away from the man and move to stand somewhere calm and quiet. Senator Amidala, still in conversation with Echo noticed the slight change in attitude as his eyes followed you around the room. “If you pardon my intrusion, Tech is it?” Her hand taps his arm as she turns to speak to him.

Tech looks at the senator as he answers. “It is indeed, senator. How may I help you?”

Amidala looks at the man currently shifting attention between her and the woman he keeps an eye on as she moves around the room. “I believe you might have to come to her aid soon. The senator currently trying to keep her attention on him is well known for his more….illustrious desires when it comes to women.” The concern in her eyes immediately urges him to spring to action and before she can even finish her full sentence he is off to the rescue.

You know that the man currently speaking to you as if you are just another nobody, who is lucky enough to have been invited to work the celebration taking place is also the same man who not only is a senator, but also well known for demanding personal time with all female personnel and even demanded coruscant guards to remove some women he has used when they became too much of a bother to him afterwards. This time he seems to have set his eyes on you and you are just not having it. “Senator, I must return to my friend now. I apologize for cutting this wonderful conversation short, but if I do not at least spend some time with Senator Amidala this evening, I would be a poor and ungrateful friend.” Though you smile it is obvious even to the senator you only mean the polite refusal to continue the conversation, as much as you refused to dance with him.

“I know you're nothing important in the senate, just a person that Amidala befriended from the lower regions of this planet. You will dance with me, because any offer such as this from the likes of me is an honor and then we will continue our conversation in private.” Just when he reaches for your hand to drag you back, your hand is taken by another man.

As fast as he managed to take your hand before the senator, Tech took the drink from your hand and gave it to another waiter nearby. His arm is already snaked around your waist as he turns you around and walks you to the middle of the room. “I believe you agreed to give me the first dance once you finished your round in the room Y/N. I noticed you were on your way back , so I suggest we make the best of it.

Surprise and gratitude quickly appear and leave your eyes as you smile at the man guiding you away. “Thank you Tech. I almost lost track of time.” The blush on your cheeks as you feel him turn you around to face him brightens when you take him in once more. He looks absolutely dashing in his black suit and light blue dress shirt.

The room's hush hush and now's our moment

Take it in, feel it all and hold it

Eyes on you, eyes on me

We're doing this right

The orchestra plays a slow song as Tech gently moves the two of you around the room. Despite his tall figure and the appearance of a soldier most times, he is absolutely graceful as he leads you in your dance. His hand, warm on the small of your back presses you closer to him while he softly squeezes the hand he holds. Leaning in closer to you his lips almost brush your ears as he whispers. “It seems you needed a rescue. Though from the look you gave that senator, it is highly probable I actually rescued him.” His low chuckle sends a shiver down your spine as he straightens out and swirls you around. “I shall thank Senator Amidala for warning me in time.”

Amidala, your friend. A senator who usually makes her way through all the layers of society and who does her best to help all people. She even spoke to you about clone rights and how to see to it that they would be treated more decently, after she found out that you were one of the people who were strong advocates for clone rights. Soon after that, the two of you struck up a friendship based on mutual respect. She invited you to this evening because of your shared passion for the rights of clones and your contact with many of these men. She felt it might make them feel at ease, seeing a friendly face in the crowd.

Grinning you look up into the brown, bespectacled eyes of your hero of the evening. “I will thank her for sending me a hero.”

The music stops and you are ready to step away from Tech so that he can walk back to his brothers. Tech however is not moving an inch and he is not letting go of your hand. Pulling you back in at the same moment another song is started, Tech gently guides you in another dance.

“You know, people will stare at us. They might even start to talk about us.” A gentle blush on your cheeks, you whisper to him.

'Cause lovers dance when they're feeling in love

Spotlight's shining

It's all about us

It's oh, oh, all

About uh, uh, us

And every heart in the room will melt

This is a feeling you never felt dry

It's oh, oh, all about us

Tech has always been kind to you from the moment you met. His brothers, all with their own sense of humor and fun way of flirting quickly became good friends of yours. Tech as well, though you also developed a crush on him rather fast. His fast knowledge of pretty much everything and witty remarks only served to make you fall harder for the man. And now here you were in his arms, dancing to beautiful music, still a little insecure on whether or not you should let him know how you feel.

Without paying any attention to the room, Tech moves the two of you a bit more to the edges of the room. No longer swirling around with all the other couples on the floor, the two of you softly sway on the sidelines. Still in a warm embrace of his arm around you and his hand softly holding yours, he looks down at you and smiles. “People always find reasons to talk about others. It is in their nature to try and find common ground so as to divert attention from themselves at such events.”

You sigh softly and move the hand that was resting on his shoulder all this time to his face. Carefully brushing his cheek. “You could just tell me to let them watch you know?”

A chuckle escapes him as he leans in to you and his lips brush yours. “It's all about us anyway.

When he moves back, he pulls you in closer against him, your head against his chest, his arms around you as you keep swaying to the music. Nobody else in the room exists at that moment, but the two of you.

“All about us.” you whisper, a promise for the rest of the evening and all the days still to come.

@loth-wolffe @catbustours @reluctant-mandalore @nahoney22 @hellothere-generalangsty @allamarisss

[transmalewife]

💻 📥 🍰??

💻 Do you do research for your fics? What’s the deepest dive you’ve done?

I do, but at the wrong moments. I've gone down many a wookiepedia rabbit holes to find out what a tatooinian rabbit would be called for an offhand line, but when it comes to writing mechanics or fighting i tend to just wing it. although, fun fact, I wrote sabine having an idea on how to make a spaceship work once, and I thought it was utterly ridiculous and unbelievable, until i found out months later the actual space shuttles used something very similar

last year when i was deeply depressed and writing constantly to escape my problems i was just constantly watching and rewatching the movies and relevant clone wars episodes as research, so that was a deep deep dive into a kiddie pool i suppose.

Oh also for the as yet unfinished sequel to my gomens fic I really really tried to learn more about slavic prechristian religion and witchcraft but unfortunately that culture has been thoughroughly erased by a thousand years of christianity and n*zis appropriating whatever was left. I'm being a touch dramatic there are books that have the information I want, but I just don't care enough about a two year old good omens wip to read them.

📥 What is your fave fic to receive comments/messages on?

How to build a friend from scratch, hands down. That fic hovers around a 1:1 comment to kudos ratio whenever I actually update it which is incredible. Nearly no one has read it but the few people who did have started the most interesting discussions in the comments and it's always really entertaining to see how delighted people are with seeing a fic centered on sabine and vader. And I truly feel like i've stumbled on something really good with the premise and its definitely an untapped niche. theres still only 3 vader & sabine fics on ao3, just like when i started it, and two of them are mine. Getting comments on that feels like a private little thing, compared to other fics. Like we're all in on the joke.

🍰 Name one of your fave comfort fics (doesn’t have to be your all time fave).

I don't read much fanfic these days, but anything black sails by vovelinthug is always guaranteed to captivate and destroy me emotionally. Idk if i mentioned that before but I have absolutely no wish to write bs fic, because I feel like the story is too good, too well rounded for anything I have to say to be worth addding. And the power that a writer has, who is able to perfectly slot their work into that kind of story, without it seeming disjointed, is incredible. before the last season came out, and even after, every time I rewatch the show, i immediately follow it with st. augustine is that way In my mind they are just one story.

I just remembered hands of clay by mhalachai being something very comforting, that I read over a period of years as it was posted. I lost interest in marvel at some point, or the fic just got too long for my patience, so I never finished it, but i definitely want to one of these days. one of the few modern, domestic aus of anything that i actually enjoyed.

If you're looking for star wars, then tano and kenobi by fireflyfish is very important to me, and has been for years. it definitely influenced my own writing a lot and i even have an unposted wip directly inspired by it in premise. although that's another one I just sort of drifted away from at some point. I'm mostly caught up, I think, but I apparently just don't have the attention span to stay loyal to a fic beyond 200k.

as always my ask game reading comprehension sucks, I was supposed to name one. but the thing is, most of what I read is not very comforting, and usually oneshots, so they don't really stick in my mind well enough to point to one specific one and say this one, this is my favorite, even though i like oneshots much more than multichapter fics.

[zabrak-show]

In the novel Clone Wars: Stories of the Light and Dark Obi-Wan's chapter retells the episode "The Lawless". While overall I found the book, while certainly not bad, missing a certain something and although some chapters really add to the corresponding episodes such as Rex' retelling of the Umbara arc, many are just very close retellings of the episodes. Now Kenobi's chapter was a mixed bag to me because some of it is really just an exact recount of the events of the episode, however, I found some additions made in regards to Maul interesting.

To no one's surprise there's a bit about Obi-Wan's almost hatred: "Hate was not the Jedi way. But for this man, Obi-Wan had grown weary of keeping it at bay."

Then we get confirmation that Maul is either just very perceptive, simply has Kenobi all figured out or is actually able to mindprobe even such thoroughly trained - albeit here clearly distraught - Jedi as Obi-Wan: "Maul seemed to sense his thoughts."

And of course we have Obi-Wan's reaction to Satine's death - which tbh made me all the more convinced that even though Obi-Wan might have crushed on her as a padawan, he is more fond of than in love sith her at this point -: "When Maul killed Qui-Gon Jinn, Obi-Wan was stricken with sorrow. Sorrow gripped him again. But there was something else, as well. Something dangerous. Something that scorched. Satine wasn't Maul's enemy. She was just a tool Maul had used to get something he wanted, the throne of Mandalore. And a tool to hurt Obi-Wan. Using a person that way was the worst form of cruelty. Satine had been a person, and her death wasn't just a loss for Obi-Wan. It was a loss for so many more. She'd been a child on this world. Like other children, she'd taken her first step, uttered her first word, laughed and chased flitters in the tall grass of the Mandalorian plains. She'd learned to read, made friends, suffered hurts, recovered and laughed again. And she'd become a leader. She should have lived to see her world thrive, to see her people find peace, to prosper, to make music and art. She should have grown old and been able to look back on all she'd achieved.

"But in a split second, Maul had ended all that. He'd extinguished a light in the universe and replaced it with shadow. Such an act was truly the definition of the dark side. And Obi-Wan burned with rage.

"With the rage came a vision: Eyes smoldering with hatred. Screams in the red glare of a lightsaber.

"Obi-Wan would cleave Maul in two. He would do much worse. There would be nothing left of him. Or the Dathomirian. Or the commandos, those Mandalorian traitors. He would kill them Almec. He would kill anyone who'd had a hand in overthrowing Satine, anyone who'd contributed to her death.

"And he would kill anyone who tried to stop him. Anyone who stood in his way, by word or by deed.

"Anyone.

"Maul laughed. "And now we see the true Obi-Wan Kenobi. The one he hides behind a mask of wit and charm. The one who yearns to be set free."

"And if Obi-Wan gave in to his desires, he'd be giving Maul exactly what he wanted."

So overall this just aligns with the episode. Although I do think Maul's additional taunt in this is so in character for him (and it'd be hilarious if it weren't for the entirety of the situation that Maul describes Obi-Wan as witty and charming). Although it's interesting just how close Obi-Wan came to falling. And ofc this passage really just hammers home the point that Maul wanted for Obi-Wan to fall to the dark side rather than wanting to kill him.

Anyways. The passage I've been dying to point out as an avid Obimaul shipper is the following:

"You can kill me, but you will never destroy me," Obi-Wan said, trying to keep his anger under control. "It takes strength to resist the dark side. Only the weak embrace it."

"It is more powerful than you know."

"And those who oppose it are more powerful than you'll ever be."

There was still a chance to turn this right. He could not overpower Maul, but maybe he could reach him. Maybe he could match Maul's fury, not with equal fury but with understanding. With sympathy. Maul had not always been this way. He'd had his future stolen from him. He'd been warped by the Force-wielders of Dathomir. He'd been groomed to become a creature of anger and vengeance who stood before Obi-Wan.

"I know where you're from," said Obi-Wan. "I've been to your village. I know the decision to join the dark side wasn't yours. I know the Nightsisters made it for you."

Obi-Wan cringed. The words had not come out as he'd intended. He'd wanted to extend a kindness that Maul perhaps never experienced. But he let his own anger and his own fear infect his words with venom."

And then the scene moves along as seen in the episode.

But phew. I feel like there is so much to unpack here. Obi-Wan trying to reach out for Maul is soooo good. I love that meeting anger with understanding and kindness is the Obimaul trope and this is pretty much that. It's interesting that Obi-Wan aknowledges that he couldn't strike the right tone.

Honestly all of this makes me yearn for the AU where he does reach Maul and maybe I'll even write it myself. Just Maul giving in and opening himself up to said kindness (although the staging might have to be different for that e.g. Maul visiting Obi-Wan in prison as an additional scene before he kills Satine).

This also made me reconsider the Siege of Mandalore. We all know, that Maul at that point of the story is not out to kill Kenobi. And honestly, considering that Maul is hyperaware of Kenobi's emotions in these scene and could possibly also have felt Obi-Wan's "kill 'em sith kindness" impulse, isn't it even more likely, that Maul wanted Kenobi to join him in robbing Sheev of his priced pupil Anakin but also killing Palpatine? I always thought Maul wanted to reveal Sidious to Kenobi and he only adapts his plan because it isn't Obi-Wan that arrives. But with this scene in mind, couldn't it possibly be, that Maul remembered that Obi-Wan once tried to reach out for him and wanted to extend the same gesture with the goal of overthrowing Palpatine? Whilst there is this short moment in "The Son of Dathomir" comic in which Maul and Dooku unite in fighting Kenobi, I feel like after Talzin was also killed by Palpatine Maul was kind of aimless - because in the comic he (unfortunately) has essentially moved from seeing himself as Sidious' tool to being Mother Talzin's tool (he even states the latter directly) - and nothing matters to him as much as overthrowing Sidious in that final arc, because he knows if not now then never. He has foreseen what Sidious and Vader will become and knows this is his last shot to truly hurt Palpatine in any way. And lastly Maul is certainly not that delusional that he'd think he can kill Kenobi and Skywalker alone (which is an interpretation I've seen and honestly just feels wrong at that point)

Essentially I am convinced that Maul wanted to form a sort of alliance with Obi-Wan to overthrow Sidious (The enemy of my enemy is my friend and all that). Maul knows that Obi-Wan knows him better than anyone and I think at the very least he hoped he could convince Obi-Wan of the truth. Additionally Obi-Wan is the only being left in his life Maul has a connection to, who hasn't been killed by Sidious.

All I am saying is that I join the ranks of other anons and blogs as a huge Obimaul enabler.

Wow!! This was so informative and awesome. I don't have that book so I appreciate the run down A LOT! And will probably save this as reference point tbh.

I don't really have anything to add other than thank you for sharing with me, and that I think you absolutely should write an AU where Obi-Wan is able to reach Maul. How that would play out and what happens when they do is a delicious thought.

[mneiai]

alpha/obi-wan, Mandalorian Empire AU? If you're interested

Alpha-17/Obi-Wan, Mandalorian Empire AU!

------

Jedi didn’t last long as Mandalorian prisoners--it was something they learned as Padawans, horrible stories filtering their ways down of just what had happened to this Knight or that Master captured on the field of battle. Jedi weren’t often Mandalorian prisoners, at least. Capturing a Jedi alive was hard to do.

Mostly, that was because the Mandalorians gave as good as they got, they wanted an epic battle against a trained Force user, wanted a fight to the death that could be glorious even if they didn’t win. Obi-Wan had known something was wrong the moment he faced down a group of Mandalorian supercommandos and they had their weapons set to stun. He'd almost gotten away, still. Then, because he worried they wanted some information out of him, almost fell on his own saber, but they'd gotten in closer enough to knock him unconscious despite all his tricks. Waking up on a surprisingly comfortable bed in a fairly large prison cell, Obi-Wan had spent the last few hours trying to figure out an escape route with the limited information he could glean. There were no other prisoners nearby, there were holorecorders at every possible angle, overlapping each other so there would be no blind spots. The vents were far too small for him. He was not restrained, but there was no way to turn off the forcefield keeping him locked in the room that he could find. It was a cell designed to keep a Force sensitive in for a long period of time. When noise finally picked up, he didn't bother acting casual, simply stood in the center of his cell and stared down the hallway as the door opened--and saw a mantrap, with doors clearly shut on the other side, meaning he'd have to get through both layers to get to whatever was beyond. Only one figure approached, in silver and blue armor and blue kama and cape. No weapons visible, not even the hidden sort that Obi-Wan had learned to look out for over the years. "While these are lovely accommodations, I really don't have time for a vacation." Despite the vocoder, he could hear a snort of amusement in answer to his words. "Always in a hurry, Obi-Wan." The voice wasn't familiar, not through the speaker, but something about the tone--and certainly the familiar address-was. "You seem to have me at a disadvantage...." he trailed off, leaving the space for the other's name. When the helmet came off, Obi-Wan had the briefest moment to think "oh," before the seriousness of the situation crashed down upon him. He'd never met the dead Mand'alor used as a template for the Fett clones, of course, but he had met some of the clones--a three-way battle with the Sith had gone badly and he'd found himself with a wounded Master quickly on her way to joining the Force and three supercommandos, two of which were clones. Knowing that the Mandalorians had cloned an old Mand'alor over a century ago and had kept up the process was not the same as actually meeting them. They weren't the current Mand'alor, but they looked nearly identical to him. Would always look identical to the Mand'alor, unless some major changed happened in Mandalorian politics. This one was Ta’raysh E’tad, Seventeen, though he'd been called Tar'etad by one of the others who had been too delirious from pain to keep formal before a Jedi. They'd allied, temporarily, and four weeks later separated when they could finally flee out of sight of the Sith. Obi-Wan had thought the incident forgotten (had assumed, sometimes, that Tar'etad would go the way of many of the other clones going through their trials for Mand'alor-ship and die in battle). He'd never expected to see the man again. "...I don't suppose you are here to release me? For old time's sake?" When Tar'etad waved a hand signal towards one of the holorecorders and the field between them cut out, Obi-Wan froze in place, putting on the best mask he could to hide his worry. "You...are?" Tar'etad smirked. "Of course, it wouldn't be right to have you locked away." "That doesn't sound the same as releasing me." Still, Obi-Wan took cautious steps forward until he was out of the cell, standing just before Tar'etad. Who stared at him as though soaking him in, before raising a hand to cup Obi-Wan's cheek, ignoring the shocked offense and rising blush he caused. "I thought of you, after those weeks. The pretty jetii who worked so well with us, fitting in like you'd been made to be in our unit." Obi-Wan shivered at the growing implications. "When I came to power...I knew what reward I wanted to give myself, for winning." His calm expression faltered. "...You're the new Mand'alor?" Tar'etad chuckled, hand moving from Obi-Wan's cheek to grip the back of  his neck. "Don't worry, cyar'ika, I'm not expecting any formality in private." Flicking his eyes to the holorecorders, Obi-Wan replied, "And what exactly is it you're expecting from me?" He'd had to put down the other Jedi with him, to spare them a painful death, and then he'd spent four weeks with nothing but the Mandalorians as company. Watching each other's backs, hunting together, eventually trusting each other in some way. Intense emotions had accompanied it even for him, he couldn't imagine what Tar'etad must have been feeling, without the practice of acknowledging and releasing such things. That last night, drunk on the possibility of finally getting away from that Force forsaken planet, he'd let Tar'etad in far too close. Now, reminded of it, he could almost remember the feeling of those strong hands, those chapped lips. The offer for Obi-Wan to follow them back to the Mandalorian encampment instead of continue on alone to the Republic ships ringing in his ears once more. "I've followed your career. The jetiise keep trying to kill your spirit, but you're too mandokar for that." "Tar'etad--" "Do you know why I don't fear you running away if I don't keep you in that cell? We're in Keldabe, the heart of the Empire." Obi-Wan's heart sank at his matter-of-fact words. "By the time you figure your way out of here, you'll realize I was right all along, that you should have come with me." He barely registered when Tar'etad began to kiss him.

[reluctantly-plus-ultra]

So....I'm literally in love with your rei&lov stuff and wanted to ask if you're still taking scenario suggestions? In case you do; how about dabihawks, in which dabi figures out/always knew that hawks is actually a spy but convinces hawks to actually become a villain? Or literally any hawks&shouto interaction in which they talk for some reason(internship?) And bc of that hawks figures out that dabi=touya and endevour=horrible and has kinda a breakdown? (Bonus points of shouto already knew) Thx

First of all, thank you so much! I’m definitely still taking requests- sorry this one took a while to post, but I’ve been in finals this past week and things have been hectic. Second, I’m going to have to apologize in advance because I saw all of your awesome suggestions here and instead of tackling this like any sane person would by choosing one thing to write about, I decided to write all of them in one request… So in other words, this sucker is LONG. Anyway, without further ado, enjoy the piece!

[REQUESTED] DABIHAWKS: DARK SIDE

- All it takes is one boy being saved for everything to go absolutely batshit crazy.

- Keigo “Hawks” Takami is a cunning man, ruthless when it comes to intelligence, speed, determination. He’s been trained- raised his whole life to be the personification of the perfect working hero: instinctive, quick, capable of wearing as many masks as it takes to get the job done and hiding all of that deadly capability behind a warm, smiling face that keeps him the darling of the public eye. 

- And yet, despite his wit, despite his impeccable skill for analysis, despite every sign that should have given him a few warning bells about this situation, Hawks had stumbled in completely blind. Nothing could’ve prepared him for this.

- It had started off as nothing more than a basic street brawl. Hawks had taken the day to patrol with Enji and Shouto, the young man having returned to his father’s agency for his internship. In fact, it was mostly because of Shouto that Hawks had decided to head out with Endeavor in the first place- he was curious about the youngest Todoroki. The boy already had a pretty impressive reputation regardless of the fact that he hadn’t yet gone pro, and Hawks was curious to see whether or not he would hold up in person.

- So when they’d gotten the call that there was a robbery four blocks away and that a fight had broken out in the square, he hadn’t given two thoughts about it, really. Hell, the kid had faced off against the League shortly after entering his first year and come out without a scratch. He could take a couple amateur thugs no problem.

- And at first, things actually go really well. Shouto’s got some serious skill, and it doesn’t take long for them to get the situation sorted out-

- That is, at least, until a few familiar faces show up.

- Hawks swears he’s going to kick Dabi’s ass into next week when he, Toga, Compress and Twice all round the corner and straight into the whole mess. Like, it’s bad enough that now he’s going to have to put up a fight with them, but for fuck’s sake the last thing he needs is to be gearing up to face them while also trying to put on a nonchalant expression as Toga starts laughing her ass off at the sight of him being there.

- So of course shit goes sideways and a second fight breaks out. Hawks has never been more thankful of Twice, because the man just keeps sending clone after clone his way and it’s keeping him busy enough that he doesn’t have to throw punches at any of the others. After all, the League had just started warming up to him, and he really doesn’t want to be sending anybody home packing black eyes on his account.

- But that also leaves three villains against two Todorokis, and while that still shouldn’t be a problem, it turns out to be.

- In hindsight knowing what he’d come to learn much later, maybe it was the way Endeavor barked the boy’s name. Maybe it was how he’d whipped around so suddenly the flames on his body guttered and flared. Maybe it was even just the simple matter of having his arm raised when he turned.

- Either way, whatever he’d been going to tell his youngest child goes unsaid, be it advice or otherwise.

- All Hawks knows is that it takes a full two seconds for Endeavour to shout his son’s name, to wheel around to face him, arm still rigid above his head from the last burst of flame he’d sent at Compress, hand exploding into a raging blaze once more- and then Dabi is fucking sprinting.

- And at first, Hawks almost goes after him because it seems like the fire-user is about to take out Shouto and quite frankly, it didn’t matter who you are: going after a child is a low blow, plain and simple.

- So when he dispatches Twice’s next clone in a messy hurry and moves to follow, he’s stopped dead in his tracks by a display he never thought he’d witness: the patchwork villain yelling “Sho!” so loudly his voice cracks before quite literally hauling the young hero behind him and bracing his free arm in front of them both in a gesture that is so inherently and naturally defensive it makes Hawks pause.

- Half a second later, there’s an explosion of blue fire so fierce and bright that it’s damn near blinding. It takes a few moments for the winged hero to blink the light from his eyes, but when he manages to do so, it is only to take in the sight of three faces equally painted in horror.

- And here’s the thing; Hawks expects some kind of reaction from Shouto, so the fact that he’s still stunned and unmoving behind this villain isn’t exactly a surprise. Hell, he expects a reaction from Dabi too, because that degree of defensiveness, that scale of fire, the sheer desperation in his movements seconds before the explosive blast- it’s so unlike him, especially over some hero’s son?

- But it’s when Enji Todoroki blanches just as pale as the other two, eyes wide as Shouto’s, hands shaking like Dabi’s, that Hawks feels an uncomfortable clench in his gut. That feeling persists, too, as the fighting stops around them, and everything falls into silence, ashes falling down around them like snow. It’s the first time that Hawks has noticed that the walls of the surrounding buildings have been scorched black from the heat, smoke still rising in the air. 

- There’s blood leaking down Dabi’s face, his arms, past his burnt jacket sleeves and the collar of his shirt. He’s in pain, Hawks can tell, even from where he’s standing. That move took a lot out of him- 

- But there’s also no way he wouldn’t have known that before doing it, and that raises more than a few questions.

- All three men look like they’re reliving some kind of flashback, some kind of memory or unanimous nightmare. It’s Shouto who speaks first, voice wavering, and even then it’s only one word, indistinguishable from their current distance- but it’s enough to snap Dabi out of whatever reverie he’s in and cause him to snarl and bolt.

- Nobody goes after him, not even Endeavor, and in seconds the patchwork man is gone, lost to the shadows and alleys. Being realistic, it would take Hawks less than a minute to soar up above the buildings and scout him down, demand some answers, but Twice is quicker to the punch.

“Let us handle this for now- you can take of him later, I’m not handling his broody side.”

- The rest of the League is in the process of disappearing as well as Hawks makes his way up to the pair of still shell-shocked heroes, quirking an eyebrow and tugging at a few feathers that got bent in his fight.

- “You want to tell me what that was all about? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

- The hard glint in Enji’s eye as he glances at him and then spins around on his heel without a word, walking in the opposite direction is all the confirmation he needs to know that maybe they have.

- Days pass. It had been hard enough not asking questions for the rest of their patrol but when, four days later, Endeavor still won’t give him the time of day and Dabi won’t respond to any of his texts and calls, Hawks has had about enough.

- Aizawa’s not exactly thrilled about the Number Two hero calling in to ask if he can take part of the morning to talk to Todoroki about some of the events of their last patrol, but he presses that it’s important, and Aizawa eventually gives in on the grounds that it’s safer for them to talk at the school about mission work than anywhere else, really.

- And that’s how he and the dual-quirked boy end up facing one another over cold coffee in the otherwise vacant teacher’s lounge, Shouto guarded as ever, and Hawks feeling a bit nervous despite the circumstances. Truth being told, he isn’t sure what he’s looking to find here, exactly, but the whole situation has been burning a hole in his stomach for half a week, and something about it really isn’t sitting right.

- “…This is about the whole… Incident with him, isn’t it?” Todoroki asks eventually, tone flat, and Hawks has to admit that he’s chosen some interesting phrasing.

- “Pretty much, yeah,” Hawks scratches the back of his neck awkwardly, unsure where to even start. The whole thing seems pretty absurd. The youngest Todoroki hums and sips at his cold coffee, the light rippling of the liquid being the only thing betraying the slight tremour of his hands.

- “If you have questions, why not ask him instead?” Hawks immediately wrinkles his nose at that.

- “Who, Endeavor? Something tells me he wouldn’t be the most willing audie-”

- “Not Endeavor.” Shouto fixes his cup back on its saucer before turning curious but carefully blank eyes on him, “Dabi. You two seem close enough for it.”

- Well, fuck.

- Hawks’ brain is going a mile a minute trying to figure out how Shouto managed to put two and two together. There’s no way he’d figured it out from that patrol day- they hadn’t even interacted at all, and Hawks had been careful not to mention the patchwork villain around any of the other heroes so as to not raise suspicion with his mission, or to have anyone go snooping too deeply into something that could also get him in a huge deal of shit. 

- Not really knowing how else to play his cards but to try and save face, Hawks squints and shakes his head at the boy in confusion, hoping the “dumb-bird” act will save his ass. Underneath the surface, though, he can feel the pinpricks of an impending anxiety attack, the boy’s blunt and unexpected words having shredded every assumption of caution that he thought he’d put up. Hell, if Shouto has figured things out this far, has he also figured out Hawks’ connection to the League? Has he told anyone else? The Commission is going to skin him alive when they found out-

- “I’ve got no idea what you’re talking about,” Hawks tries, grimacing at the end of the statement for effect, “Unless you’re meaning because I didn’t intervene when everything went down and help you guys out- sorry about that by the way, but I figured you two would have everything under control, and when all the fighting stopped, I just froze.” He shrugs, trying his best to look sheepish, “It doesn’t happen often, but sometimes when the shock is great enough I’m more of a natural freezer than a reactor. Probably some kind of weird bird thing.”

- Shouto regards him for a solid second, unblinking, before cracking a small smile.

- “You’re a good liar.” He says simply, before sipping his coffee again. “But that’s not what I’m talking about at all.”

- Those pinpricks return again, and Hawks’ wings flutter somewhat nervously on their own accord. He resists the urge to let them expand just to give himself a bit more of a size advantage, and instead tries playing it off again. Shouto’s eyebrows raise at the attempt, and it’s with almost exaggerated disbelief that he sets his cup down for the second time and announces, in that odd, cool way of his, “So you just let any villain wear your feathers, then?”

- Hawks chokes on his coffee.

- This time, he legitimately does not know what the hell Todoroki’s talking about, but it turns out that the observant teen had caught sight of a long stretch of cord that had shifted somewhat out from under the other man’s loose shirt when he spun around to run.

- And there’s nothing weird about that in itself. Dabi’s kinda a jewelry guy, and Heaven knows he’s got enough piercings to prove it. But when Todoroki gets to mentioning that there was a small red feather on the end of the rope, Hawks can’t help but flush pink just a little bit because he’d left that feather as a calling card to tell the other man he’d broken into his apartment two weeks ago and he’d gone and strung it on a necklace what an absolute fucking dork-

- “I don’t think Endeavor saw,” Todoroki continues absently, “So it’s just me that knows, and I don’t want any of the details,” He looks at Hawks solemnly again, this time his voice growing quieter, “I’ll keep your secret, but forgive me for using it to make sure you keep mine.”

- Hawks examines him for a slow moment, fully aware that neither of them are moving, and the air is growing tense. This boy could bring his career crashing down around his ears with a few words muttered in the right direction, and yet Hawks is inclined to believe him when he says he’ll keep a secret. With a sigh, the winged hero extends a hand.

- “Deal.” He agrees, shivering at the contact of ice on his palm, Todoroki apologizing for the slip under his breath. “Now, what’s this secret, then?”

- Shouto chews his lip for a moment before sitting back in his seat, hands clenched into fists.

- “I need to tell you a story.”

______________________________________________________

- An hour later, the entire fucking world has been turned on its head, and nothing is ever going to be the same.

- Shouto Todoroki sits quietly for a moment, before calmly reaching out for his coffee cup again, more for the simple grounding action of holding it than anything else. The silence in the room is stifling, especially after the burrage of information Hawks has had dumped on him in the last sixty minutes, and his brain is still sluggishly trying to process most of it.

- “He’s… He’s your brother?” The hero manages eventually, mouth feeling dry, stomach churning. That panging ache in his stomach that he’d felt before has returned tenfold, and it takes everything in Hawks’ apparent willpower to not run for a garbage bin and puke from all the nausea. 

- Todoroki won’t meet his eye, and Hawks doesn’t blame him- after everything that’s been revealed at this coffee table, he’s not sure he could look the younger man dead in the face without breaking down in some way. Seeing his scar, mentally comparing it to Dabi’s many, brain running lists of all their similarities and those lists coming up remarkably long.

- The worst of it is the carpet that got all but torn out from under his feet as Shouto had explained what his father had put them all through, his involvement at home, how they had assumed for so long that their oldest sibling had died, and that it had been their father’s fault, no different than Rei’s hospitalization and, by extension, Shouto’s burned eye. It’s this news that curdles his stomach more than anything, makes his blood freeze in his veins.

- He can already tell that when he allows that news to settle, it’s going to hit like a bombshell, but he can’t do that in front of Shouto, so he pushes it to the back of his mind for now until he can handle it later and instead tries to focus on the subjects that he thinks can be safely discussed.

- Todoroki just nods, seemingly spent on this whole ordeal as well, and also not really knowing what to do with it. 

- “I’d had some suspicions,” He admits softly, fiddling with his hands, “But I didn’t want to think on them too closely or get my hopes up- he was dead, or supposed to be anyway. And then that patrol happened, and… I don’t remember much of him, really. The memories are all hazy. I was so young- but he used to call me Sho as a nickname when we were kids. When he ran out in front of me though, I…”

- “You remembered it wasn’t the first time.” Hawks concludes, and Shouto nods again, his shoulders slumping.

- “It was exactly the same,” He murmurs softly, “And it just… Triggered memories of all of these things I’d forgotten, but now they’re all coming back, and I don’t-” He sighs in frustration, taking a deep breath to rein in his thoughts, “I don’t know what to do because he’s not dead anymore, but at the same time, I’m not sure that he’s really alive either. That part of him that I knew might be gone entirely- I’m willing to believe that his actions during our patrol were out of memory reflex more than anything.”

- But Hawks is already thinking about all of those times that Dabi has helped Toga arrange her hair into buns when it’s being too stubborn, and the almost-petty sibling banter he slings back and forth with Shigaraki sometimes just to get a rise out of him. There are other habits too, just little things here and there, but the more Hawks imagines Dabi being a former sibling, the more connections he sees.

- They clean up their dishes quietly, dirty laundry aired, secrets hanging heavy. Before they leave, though, Hawks turns back to Todoroki one last time.

- “You know I can’t bring him back, right?”

- It’s a harsh reality, but a very real one. Quite frankly, Hawks suspects that there’s a lot of the person Todoroki remembers in this new Dabi figure, but no matter how much of that remains, no matter how many different and surprising and kind, soft, gentle, loyal angles Dabi has, it doesn’t change the fact that he is first and foremost a villain. That takes precedence over anything, and there’s really no turning back from it, not now, and not after the extent he’s gone to. Shouto nods, hair falling in his face, though Hawks can see through the fringe that his eyes are clear. There’s no judgement, no upset. He’s more than aware, and something in Hawks’ chest twinges again at how quickly this child had to grow up, seeing the world with such adult eyes.

- There’s something else still tickling the back of his mind, and at first he hesitates to ask it. Shouto’s been through enough today as it is, and he doesn’t want to push too far, but at the same time, he’s dying to know. There’s this sense in him that it’s probably important, and Hawks has long ago learned better than to ignore his gut.

- “One more thing- what did you say to him that day? Right before he ran?”

- Shouto’s hand freezes on the doorknob, literally freezes on the doorknob, ice crawling over his fingers. For a second, Hawks is considering apologizing and moving on, afraid that he’s overstepped a boundary. But then Shouto’s grip on the handle eases, and the ice crackles and falls away from his hand, falling to melt in the fibres of the carpet underfoot.

- “Touya. I called him Touya.”

- They leave the room and don’t look back.

_______________________________________________

- Hawks walks Shouto back to class, only to pull Eraserhead outside for a moment and explain nothing more into the situation than that the youngest Todoroki experienced some stressful things during their last patrol, and that after their discussion that morning, it probably wouldn’t hurt to have him take the rest of the day off just to recuperate a little.

- And with any of the other teachers, he might have been hit with a hardass no, but this is Shouta Aizawa, and if there’s anything that man cares more about than cats, coffee, and the occasional witty remark, it’s rest and his students. As much as he likes to deny it, he keeps a better eye on those kids than they know, and he’s caught Todoroki acting a bit more reserved than normal, less concentrated. He nods slowly, dismisses Hawks with a casual comment about wasting his time, and goes to fetch Shouto from the classroom again.

- The winged hero leaves to the sound of Aizawa telling Shouto that he’ll get a notes package done up for him for the day, and to go rest. There’s some muffled arguing before the older man makes some statement about mental health that effectively shuts Shouto up and sends him back in the direction of the dorms, Hawks grinning to himself the whole way down the hall, until he can no longer hear the two. Shouto Todoroki has had one hell of a life, that much is certain, but nobody can deny that he’s in good hands now and that itself is a relief beyond words.

- That being said, it takes all of ten seconds upon returning home to his apartment and getting the door shut behind him, before Keigo Takami all but collapses on the hardwood and begins to sob. Once the tears start flowing they just won’t stop, and there’s this kind of warm, gentle light streaming in through the floor-to-ceiling-windows that seems to just encourage the outpour even more. 

- Were anyone to see him at that exact moment, they’d probably think it made an interesting picture, the Number Two hero weeping on his knees, wings spread about him like some kind of devastated creature of God, light pouring down his shoulders and face as though his halo had melted and dripped like tear stains over his skin. There’s this burning, raw sensation inside him that just won’t ease, and as he lies there, a crumbled statue of a once proud Icarus, he lets the truth rage over him like wildfire, lets the heat of it all melt the wax and burn the feathers, and feels it pull him into a drop he’s not sure how to recover from, or if he ever will.

- There’s this war raging inside him on how to feel, a million emotions crushing his chest all at once. The first that hits him is disgust, disgust for this man that he had looked up to for so long, who had been a hero to him even when he’d had nothing, nobody, not even a dream. He had put so much faith in him, had defended him at every turn, had stood by him as a colleague, watched his back, taken wounds to keep him safe. This was the man he’d bled for, if he deserved to be called a man at all.

- But the emotions that follow after this are so rapid-fire, they’re almost impossible to keep track of, aside from the pain- the pain lingers and grows, makes itself known in every damned crevice of his being. There’s betrayal, both to the person he is now, and to the young child who’d cheered the fire hero on, who he’d wanted to impress so badly. There’s sadness for the world he thought he knew, for the person he thought he knew, and all of that being stripped away to reveal something so much more grim and ugly. Grief for the loss, mourning for the death of something he’d seen as a foundation to his person, the pain so strong throughout.

- One of the worst, though, is the anger. When the anger arrives, it isn’t in a gradual wave like the other feelings had been, full of upset and still-numb disbelief. When the anger arrives, it is as a battering ram of rage that burns so fiercely in his core, he wants to scream. Rage for Shouto Todoroki, rage for Rei Todoroki, rage for Fuyumi and Natsuo, and damn it all, blistering, agonizing rage for Touya Todoroki and the unjust cards he was dealt. When the anger arrives, it’s with the passion of a man who has longed for family his whole life, and can’t imagine how an individual could so carelessly ruin what another would die for.

- When the anger arrives it stays, and it leaves Hawks trembling on the floor long after the tears have stopped rolling, after the damp spots on his cheeks have dried, after the pain has stopped clawing at his throat, and taken up permanent residence in his heart instead.

- And that’s how Dabi finds him three hours later as night starts setting in, and the light from the windows has faded, the warmth in the floorboards gone. Hawks is so out of it, so physically and emotionally exhausted, that he doesn’t even hear him come in, only notices him when the tall man crouches down in his line of vision, concernedly snapping his fingers in his face.

- Somehow the sight of him just manages to drive the knife in deeper, and he has to take a deep breath to keep his composure. Dabi’s eyebrows are drawn together in worry at the scene, hands beginning to rapidly check him all over for wounds of some kind before Hawks weakly bats his hands away, protesting. The cremation villain sits back on his heels, unimpressed, and flicks the other man’s forehead.

- “I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all afternoon- why weren’t you picking up your phone, dumbass? I thought something must have happened.”

- The irritation in his voice thinly covers his relief, and Hawks can only manage to blink up at him once or twice before clenching his eyes shut altogether. He doesn’t mention that Dabi hasn’t responded to any of his messages until today either, figures a fight isn’t what either of them need right now.

- “I talked to Shouto today,” He says quietly, voice so hoarse from crying, it’s almost hard to listen to. Dabi stiffens, but doesn’t turn away or make a sound, so Hawks continues, “He told me… Everything. Everything that happened, everything that that bastard did,” Hawks takes another steadying breath, choosing not to look Dabi in the eye for this part, “He knows who you are- I know about that part too. And that’s fine, really, it is; I won’t call you by that name or anything if you don’t want me to. I just… I can’t believe that I looked up to him so long, and he was doing all of this and nobody knew-

- And suddenly it’s all spilling out all over again, and there are more tears, but much less than last time, a slow and steady trickle compared to the earlier downpour. Dabi doesn’t do anything but listen as the minutes pass, as the sky grows steadily darker and they’re left in the kitchen with no lights on, almost silhouettes in the room. Somehow, it feels comforting- Dabi has a way of making shadows feel less like threats and more like hiding places, and Hawks has never felt it more strongly than now.

- But it isn’t until he’s done his tirade that he realizes his most crucial mistake- that in confessing all of this, he’s just botched his own story of being done with the hero world, the lies that he’d given Dabi when they first met. He’s just outed himself as a turncoat. And not only that, he’s just outed himself as a turncoat to a villain who is still kneeling over him in a dark room, and who would have literally nothing stopping him from crisping the winged hero right there, not even Hawks himself. Fast as he is, he doesn’t think his reflexes will save him quickly enough in this state, and all it will take for him to be completely defenseless would be Dabi moving his hands an inch or two forward to light his wings on fire, exposed as they currently are.

- He can feel the panic building in his chest as Dabi stays silent, breathing picking up a few notches before he’s suddenly scrambling to get into a less vulnerable position, trying to make out Dabi’s expression in the dark. Maybe if he can get out a window fast enough, he’ll be able to catch a draft and soar out of the way- it’s his best bet, but the kitchen island is against his back now because he scooted too far back, and there’s no way for him to get to a window without either getting through Dabi or-

- The panic attack that he was feeling earlier decides to kick in at this exact moment, and that’s when Hawks realizes that if Dabi wants him dead, he’s dying in this room. All of his instincts and nerves are shot, he has no sense of coordination, he can’t see, the dark no longer feels safe-

- The lights come on, and Hawks glances up sharply from his position against the island to see Dabi with his hand still on the lightswitch, expression hard to read, but not the crazed, maniacal look Hawks would have expected to receive if the villain were planning to outright kill him. He watches as the other man slowly walks forward, gaze locked, until he kneels so closely on the floor in front of him that if Hawks so much as slid his knees a centimetre forward, they’d be hitting Dabi in the chest.

- His heart is hammering so fast, he’s sure he’ll either hyperventilate or pass out at any given second, body trembling, brain unable to focus. He manages to force his eyes closed as Dabi extends a hand out, certain that he’ll be feeling those blue flames crawling his skin the second they get close enough to burn. The flames never come.

- Dabi’s fingers trail across his temple, brushing back a few strands of sweaty hair, before going to cup his cheek entirely. The action is so uncharacteristically tender that it causes Hawks’ eyes to flash open again, the scarred man looking at him with intent eyes.

- “Take a few deep breaths, pretty bird.” He says calmly, not even flinching when Hawks’ hand comes up to clench hard on the patchwork man’s bicep.

- “You took all of that info rather well,” Hawks states, almost accusingly, through gritted teeth. His breathing is starting to slow, heartbeat becoming less erratic, though Dabi’s sudden smirk isn’t helping anything.

- “I’ve known that you weren’t legit from the first day,” He scoffs, looking a touch of smug, but also somewhat offended, “Give me more credit than that, sweetheart. This isn’t news.”

- The simple, familiar arrogance of it all forces a sharp laugh from Hawks’ throat, and against all odds he can feel the adrenaline draining from his system, beginning to relax again. 

- “You’re such an asshole, you know that?” Said with a tired grin. ‘I’m relieved this one corner of my world isn’t crumbling down too.’

- “Only time you’ll catch me alive saying guilty as charged.” Said with a smile as crooked as a broken law. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’

- They wait like that just a few minutes longer, listening to the hum of the overhead lights, nothing needing to be said for those moments at least. Then, once Hawks has calmed down enough to relocate, they move to the couch.

- “So,” Dabi is the one to begin this time, throwing his lanky form across the whole sofa and stretching out well enough across it that his head can rest on one of the arms, his ankles dangling off the other. “You know about my shitty childhood. I`d rather not talk about that any more tonight, honestly.”

- Hawks, appreciative that he seems to be willing to let to matter of the anxiety attack drop completely, chooses to take a seat on the middle cushion, leaning back against Dabi’s hip as a support and letting his wings fall over the back of the sofa and behind it. The longest feathers drag on the floor from this height, and Dabi watches for a second as Hawks flares them temporarily to adjust his wings in a better position before continuing. “And I know about you not being true to the League. Anything else you’d care to hash out while we’re in the sharing mood?”

- “Yeah, actually,” Hawks shoots him a look and raises an eyebrow, “If you knew I was lying, why the hell did you keep me around?”

- Dabi goes entirely still, one hand subconsciously draping across his chest, and Hawks remembers the comment Shouto made earlier about the necklace. He wonders if the villain is reaching for it now.

- “You don’t ease into anything, do you?” He asks eventually with a chuckle, Hawks’ answering grin speaking for itself. “Alright, it’s… I guess, you know when you’re in a deep body of water and your head goes under, and it kind of hits you that you could drown there? And the first thing you do when you see it is reach for the light?” Hawks nods even though he’s always had an aversion to swimming due to the weight of his wings and has never been close enough to drowning to truly know. “It’s… Fuck, I’m trashing the hell out of this, but it’s like that. I could tell I was sinking, and I didn’t give a shit. And then you showed up, and I knew right off the bat that you were lying to my face, but for once, there’s this light right in front of me, close enough to reach for. I never really meant for it to be more than that.” He paused for a second before adding, “But there was something about the fact that you were batshit crazy enough to walk into the wolves’ den for your cause, and you just kept coming back. You had to know we’d figure it out eventually, and when we did you’d be done, but you kept trying anyway.” Dabi grins slightly, fingers definitely closing around the necklace this time, “That’s real hero shit. I’d spent so long hating all of them that I’d forgotten they weren’t all like the one I grew up with. And I can’t ever be like you, I’m not hero material, but… Reaching for that light here and here, it makes me feel like maybe I can be more than this someday.”

- He didn’t expect this kind of response. He didn’t expect this kind of honesty, barbless and vulnerable and kind. He didn’t really expect to find himself moving to straddle Dabi’s waist so he could be in a better position to kiss him, either, but that happens as well.

- Wordlessly, Hawks tugs Dabi’s hands from his necklace, and settles them on his hips, the winged hero pressing his own palms to either side of the villain’s scarred face, leaning forward to rest their foreheads together. He can feel Dabi’s breath against his mouth and cheeks as the other man lets out a soft exhale, his skin carrying that familiar slight chill that it always does, cooler still where his fingers rest on staples. He could stay in this forever, this moment, safe and sure and grounded. It isn’t until Dabi pulls away from him slightly to trace one hand down the curve of his wing and into his primary feathers that Hawks realizes that in his contentment he’s brought his wings up almost defensively, shielding them off from the rest of the world though there’s no one else around to see.

- “I used to hate the colour red.” Dabi murmurs, repeating the action once again, Hawks fluttering his wing against the fire-user’s calloused hand just to bring a smile to his face. That smile carries into the kiss Dabi pulls him in for an instant later. It isn’t their first kiss, not by a long shot, but there’s something more sweet and slow about this one, and it takes Hawks a second to realize that unlike the kisses they’ve shared in the past, this one isn’t laced with the premonition of an ending. Usually, there’s this sort of rushed tension in their more intimate moments, an unspoken understanding that whatever this thing they have is, it can only last so long. But that’s missing this time, the overlying pressure of awareness, of only whispering things that won’t break your heart later, of never knowing when each embrace might be the last and being prepared to cut your losses if it is. This time is different, sanguine, and Hawks suddenly gets the feeling that things are about to change.

- He isn’t wrong.

- “What if you joined us for real?” Dabi breathes, eyes hooded as they draw apart but still lingering close. Catching Hawks’ incredulous look, he runs his hands up the other man’s arms, taking on a more serious tone. “I mean it. We can get you out from under the Commission- they’d never be able to touch you again. You want a world where heroes have more spare time on their hands than they know what to do with? That’s never going to be a possibility the way things are now. Most of the groups and agencies are corrupt over the profitability of it all, and there’s a lot of heroes in the same boat. Believe me, birdie, they don’t want the crime rate going down- they just want it televised.”

- Hawks knows it’s true- Dabi isn’t just saying this to sway him. The winged hero has seen this firsthand. There are heroes out there who would sooner go into a situation after a disaster has already happened rather than stopping it before anyone can get hurt, because it’s flashier. It’s more likely to gain attention, even if it means innocents being injured or, hell, dying in the process. And there’s all the other stuff too- the notices they get at the beginning of each new year, informing them that if they save ‘x’ number of people from various minority groups, there will be a bonus payout for them by the end of the year, as diversity is good for their public image. Hawks always threw those papers away, but there were some who held onto them, kept a tally going. There are heroes who are only on the field for the money, who couldn’t care less about the people they’re saving so long as there’s a cheque at the end of it with their name on it. Hawks has even heard of a few cases where heroes staged or set up disasters and accidents to be noticed. There’s the Commission, literally grooming child soldiers and people like Endeavor who wear two faces to hide a darker truth from the public eye.

- For an organization made to help, the hero collective is a dog-eats-dog world, and it’s ruthless. Dabi’s right about Hawks’ dream being impossible- because as long as people are profiting off crime, they’ll never allow it to stop.

- Suddenly, all Hawks wants to do is sleep, cut the nightmare short and try to let himself catch up with the feeling of free-falling. He can’t go back to working beside Endeavor like nothing’s happened, he knows that. And to make matters worse, he told Shouto he wouldn’t tell anyone about this though he desperately knows he should, but at this rate he’s not sure it wouldn’t do more harm than good. There may be a time later in the future where the truth can be revealed without completely annihilating the small, fragile, bright world that the youngest Todoroki has been slowly building for himself, but to have the public come after him over something this big, demanding answers and surrounding him at all times… He can’t handle that yet, and Hawks can tell. Someday, but not yet. 

- “And after you dismantle the system? What happens then?” Hawks asks quietly, noting the surprised flicker behind Dabi’s blue eyes. He hadn’t been expecting him to entertain this idea.

- “Hey, my job’s just to burn it to the ground,” Dabi snorts, nonchalant, but his hands stop moving up and down Hawks’ arms, and loosely circle his wrists, “I think I’ll leave the rebuilding to those of you who will do it right. Let the real heroes take care of the hero world, and maybe everything else will settle too. Maybe things can be better- and who knows,” He puts on a smirk, “Maybe the heroes will find they’ve got some spare time on their hands, just like you said.”

- Hawks considers this, nods once, makes up his mind and goes ‘fuck it’ while cutting his losses. 

- “Fine.”

- Dabi freezes under him, confident look replaced by something much more comical.

- “What?”

- “Fine, I’m in.” Dabi goes to say something about considering options for more than three seconds, but Hawks cuts him off. “No, I’m serious. Things need to change, and that’s not going to happen with the way everything’s going now. I’m a hero because I want to help people, not because I have a license, and damn it there are more people I can help by fighting against the hero track than on it, which is really fucked up in itself. I’m in, and I’m saying that while I’m pissed off and bitter enough to go through with it because for fuck’s sake I can’t keep going back to that place and letting them wring me out until I’m dead. None of this is normal or okay, and I can’t keep pretending that it is. I need to do something.”

- The fire-user just stares at him awestruck throughout all this, and for a long while afterwards too, before eventually sitting up.

- “You’re certain?”

- “Yes.”

- “…Damn it, pigeon, what the hell am I going to do with you?”

- Hawks laughs at the weak pet name even as Dabi cups his face and pulls him in for another kiss, the blond’s laughter spilling out across their lips, fingers carding through Dabi’s hair. It’s a bright moment to end a dark day, something hopeful amid the tentative nature of something new. 

- “We’re never rushing this again.” Hawks grins when they both need to take a breath, that warm embrace of security and peace having returned to him once more, settling in his chest and radiating so strongly he’s surprised he’s not glowing. Dabi hums in response, turquoise eyes mostly closed as he leans down to dust a kiss on the other’s collarbone, almost painfully slow as if to prove a point.

- “We won’t have to.” He promises, chuckling lowly at the slight gasp he receives for turning the kiss into a nip, “Welcome to the dark side, birdie.”

[vohskyfire]

you're idiot for defending other m. other m is known for destroying samus' backstory by including things that were never mentioned before. therefore, you are not a metroid fan and a sexist if you like other m.

My turn? My turn.

First, let’s look at that first statement of your argument.

“Other M is known for destroying Samus’ backstory by including things that were never mentioned before”

You and half of the Metroid Fanbase that claim to be ‘true’ fans of the series seem to think you know everything about Samus’ backstory. And while it’s true that the backstory of Metroid isn’t always the focus of the series, but you seem to have forgotten something about the backstory of Samus Aran.

Exhibit A: Adam Malkovich. Metroid fans seem to hate this dude, but he’s always been apart of the series. Even before Other M.

Yes. You read that right grey face. Adam has always been apart of the Metroid lore. 

Wanna know when we first got to know about Adam? From Metroid Fusion. A game that is critically acclaimed among fans and critics alike as one of the best Metroid games out there.

In that game, you find out that the Galactic Federation takes the minds of their greatest generals and makes digital copies of them to upload into a computer in case something happened to said commander/general. 

Guess what? Adam was seen as one of the greatest generals ever in the Federation. And at the end of Metroid Fusion, you find out that the computer that has been giving you orders the entire time through out the game is indeed, Adam Malkovich. 

And this would not be his only appearance in the franchise.

You see, if you and half of the fan base were to actually do research, you would find out that there was in fact, a manga of Metroid. And in fact this manga, is canon to the series plot!

This manga in fact, goes into more detail about Samus’ backstory than any other Metroid game out there. As it literally serves as the stepping stones for everything that happened to Samus in her life before she became the most feared and well known bounty hunter in the galaxy.

Guess who also was in the manga and had a significant part of its story?

You guessed right. Adam Malkovich. Who was not only one of her few friends in the Federation, but one of her many surrogate fathers. In fact, during one chapter in the manga when Samus finds out that her home planet is being invaded by the Space Pirates, and the Federation won’t let her go back to Zebes to stop them, guess who was the only one to allow her to go back in secret to try and save her adopted world?

You guessed right again. It was Adam.

So no, Adam did not just ‘appear’ in Other M. He had always been apart of the series lore even BEFORE Other M came to development. (Even though I will admit, the Varia Suit activation until you fight the lava boss is stupid as hell.)

And let’s address something else real fast too since this is still on the topic of Samus’ backstory.

We all know what it is. It’s this bastard in the Metroid universe.

Yes. Ridley. We all know the scene I’m talking about. As I do not want to play the clip, allow me to tell you something interesting about Samus’ lil PTSD moment with the Space Pirate commander in that scene in Other M.

You see, people say Mother Brain is Samus’ arch nemesis. This is in fact, false. Yes Mother Brain is often the primary antagonist in the games that she’s in, but Ridley is the Bounty Hunter’s arch nemesis. And has been since Ridley’s pirates destroyed her original home world.

“But she wouldn’t have freaked out the way she did in Other M!”

We again, go back into the manga.

In the manga, specifically chapter 1, we see the first time Samus and Ridley ever met with one another. Samus was merely 3 years old when she bumped into the space dragon. And at first, she wanted to try and make friends with him as she believed that they could be friends after she met Old Bird of the Chozo. 

However, since this is Ridley we’re talking about here, he decided that he was going to kill her, right there and then. And almost did were it not for Samus’ mother barely managing to keep her daughter alive before the space dragon could kill the girl who would become the most feared bounty hunter in the galaxy.

Years later, in said manga, Samus and Ridley have another encounter with one another.

And if you thought the break down in Other M was bad? Then you have awholenother thing coming with Samus’ break down in the manga.

In Other M, she took a few steps back and lost her suit. In the manga? Not only did she not MOVE ONCE, she couldn’t breathe, her body locked up, and she had dived down into a fear induced madness that nearly got her killed. In fact after Ridley left, she was begging everyone around her to KILL HER because she was so terrified by the sight of Ridley.

Later on she would have to work to overcome her fear of him, and up until the final battle she had with him in Super, she was able to maintain that control.

And as to why she freaked out in Other M?

She saw him DIE. On an exploding PLANET. Meaning that Ridley could by no means necessary, unless it was the meddling of the Galactic Federation, could ever come back to life.

Come to find out on the bottle ship, they cloned everything from Planet Zebes. Meaning guess who came back to life unintentionally?

That’s right. Ridley.

And again, Other M takes places MONTHS after the end of Super Metroid. Meaning that the last time Samus saw her arch nemesis was on an exploding PLANET. You don’t get that much deader than being killed on a planet, and then having said planet EXPLODE.

Of course she’s going to freak out at first because Ridley fucking DIED. Like, full on DIED. The only way he was gonna come back from an exploding planet was from being cloned by the dumbasses in the GFD. Which, as we saw in the events of Other M, SAW THAT HAPPEN.

So unless you can disprove FACTS FROM THE MANGA, which the creator himself stated is canon to the over all plot of Metroid, I highly suggest you do our homework before you come at me making claims up that you don’t have the sources to back up your arguments.

Until then I am done with people and their arguing about Other M.

Have a nice fucking day, Grey Face.