#comment about the pacing and how you were wondering how things were gonna be resolved

[cloud-somersault]

gotten comments surprised that there's an epilogue and i just...

i said chapter 1 there would be an epilogue. and people displeased with....the pacing, the plot "what about macaque's curse!????"

so none of you trust me? i see now.

[emeren]

Mmm maybe eren walking in on the reader using a vibrator and offering to help her and over stimulating her..

you got it! here it comes :)

red handed - eren jaeger 

pairing: eren jaeger x fem!reader 

word count: 2.5k

content warnings: smut, 18+, masturbation, overstimulation, crying

notes: this one was fun to write, it was my first time writing about a vibrator so idk if it’s that good but i hope you all enjoy nevertheless! <3

you sighed to yourself, anxiously glancing at the clock. your roommate had informed you he wouldn’t be back until around nine; the numbers 7:30 blinking back at you expectantly. there was no way he’d be home early; eren was late to nearly everything he did. 

deciding to move into a small, crappy apartment with your childhood best friend had seemed like a good idea at the time. you and eren knew each other forwards and backwards; right side up and upside down. 

what you didn’t know was just how needy eren could be. he hated being bored more than anything in the world. he was always lingering, always pestering you to go do something. he would sometimes just walk into your room and stand there, asking you what you were doing and if you wanted to hangout. 

most of the time you didn’t mind. most of the time. but there were instances where the lack of a lock on both your bedroom and bathroom doors became an issue.

instances where the pent up hormones became too much to bear and you had to relieve yourself, quickly and quietly. 

you thanked your lucky stars that eren had decided to go out with some friends tonight. you’d finally be able to enjoy a moment of bliss for the first time in well over two weeks. 

after double checking that the front door was locked and peaking your head into eren’s room to make extra sure he was gone, you skipped to your own space with an air of giddiness. finally some alone time!

you softly closed the door behind you, turning to look at your beside table. pulling the small drawer open and rifling through various pieces of junk, your eyes landed on the small, inconspicuous piece of plastic. 

you’d come to realize that your hand wasn’t quick enough to combat eren’s nosey nature, and after a few near misses, you invested in your very first vibrator. 

it was a light pink color; just nearly longer than your middle finger. you picked it up carefully before plunking down on your hard mattress. you shifted so your back was pressed against the head board, knees slightly bent. 

you could feel yourself aching in anticipation, cold hand slipping past the hem of your pajama pants to press the plastic device against your clit. your thumb moved to click the on button, halting as you heard a floorboard creak from out in the hall. 

“ugh,” you muttered to yourself, trying to quell your paranoia. “eren’s not gonna be home for at least an hour.” 

you paused for a minute longer, ears straining. when you were met with just the distant sound of sirens, you allowed yourself to continue, clicking the button. the soft vibration buzzed against your nerves, breath hitching involuntarily at the sudden pleasure. 

it was a wonderful feeling; your chest heaving as your lower half embraced the foreign object. you leaned your head back against the wall, shifting to a more comfortable position as you bent your knees for better leverage. 

your mind began to wander, an image of eren popping into your brain. a few years ago, you would’ve cringed and banished the thought away, but you’d come to acknowledge there was no denying just how attractive your best friend was, no matter how guilty it made you feel. 

you pictured his muscular back, leaned over the sink as he washed dishes with a pair of black sweatpants hanging dangerously low on his hips. you could feel your face heat, closing your eyes as the pressure within the pit of your stomach began to build. 

it was easy to reach your breaking point with the vibrator; breath growing shallow as the image of eren’s muscular arms and defined v-line started to fog your mind. you exhaled out through your nose, the gentle buzzing making your clit twitch with desired release. 

you were so wrapped up, so distracted. it was the single moment of bliss right before your orgasm, face hot and hands clammy. 

you’d never let your mind wander so far before, but you were beginning to imagine eren touching you; letting his hands wander down your skin and caressing your curves, squeezing and- 

“what’re you doing?” a voice startled you from the moment of peace, replaced by an overwhelming embarrassment as your eyes snapped open, focusing on the tall figure leaning against the open doorframe. 

eren’s arms were crossed, face shadowed as he observed you. you quickly sat up, pulling your vibrator from your pants and clicking it off. the pace of your heartbeat was through the roof, eyes wide and chest tight. how fucking embarrassing! 

“i’m- i was-,” you were at a loss for words, standing from your bed. your heart pinged with annoyance, the embarrassment quickly dissipating into anger. “can’t you learn to fucking knock?”

eren didn’t say anything, quirking a brow at your snippy tone. it just aggravated you more, your brain trying to combat the dopamine that never truly reached its full potential. he stood in your doorway, staring you down as you seethed in your place.

“don’t be embarrassed,” he spoke softly. his face had some unknown expression on it, one you’d never seen before. his pupils were dilated, brows furrowed and gaze serious. “it’s a normal thing to do.” 

you huffed, shifting your legs in an attempt to quell the burning between your thighs. “i know that. what’s not normal is you barging into my room without knocking when you weren’t even supposed to be home for another hour.”

“i got bored, so i decided to come home and hangout with you,” he explained. his lip was curved upwards, as if he were trying to suppress a smirk. “s’more fun here anyway.” 

you frowned at his words, your mind flashing that image of his rough hands trailing down your body, squeezing. you swallowed at the thought, the anger quickly being overpowered by your unfinished arousal. “how long were you standing there?”

“long enough to know you didn’t finish,” he commented, holding eye contact as your eyebrows raised in surprise. you opened your mouth to respond, but eren beat you to it. “c’mon, i think i know you pretty well.” 

“not like that,” you muttered demurely, the dull ache nearly too much to bear. you felt like you’d be antsy till you got off, shifting uncomfortably as your eyes fell to the floor. “could you- could you give me some privacy?” 

eren didn’t respond for a moment, the sound of your bedroom door shutting sending a feeling of relief to your brain. you looked up, frown deepening. 

eren was leaning against the closed door, eyes dark and serious. “let me help you.”

his words sent a confused throb to your cunt, face going slack. was this really happening? 

“eren, you don’t mean…” you breathed out, the ache in your center multiplying tenfold at the sight of his tall and muscular figure staring down at you. shit, shit, shit!

“i do,” he responded seriously, taking a step towards you. he was normally tall and formidable, but in the darkness of your bedroom, he seemed infinite. you paused for a moment, your resolve already thin due to the incessant throbbing of your clit. eren seemed to take notice, eyeing you carefully. “who better than your best friend?” 

you held your breath before responding. you’d been thinking of this, dreaming of this. now here he was, standing before you and looking at you as though you were his for the taking. and it excited you. it excited you to no end. “i- okay.” 

eren was quick to smile, stepping up to you. you craned your neck to look at him, heartbeat erratic as his calloused hands ran down your bare arms. he slowly lowered himself to his knees before you, fingers hooking under the waistband of your pajamas. 

his teal eyes glanced up to you, asking for permission. you were afraid your voice wouldn’t work, instead feverishly nodding your head in acceptance. he pulled your pants down tantalizingly slow; like he was unwrapping some sacred gift. 

you bit your lip as your thighs became exposed, the feeling of eren’s hot breath fanning across the newly exposed skin. he leaned forward, eyes still locked with yours as he placed a kiss to the soft flesh, lips slicked with chapstick. it was sinful and he knew it. 

your cotton pants dropped to the floor, standing in nothing but your underwear and a t-shirt. eren’s gaze grew heavy on your panties - the inevitable wet spot showing just how desperate you were for attention. 

“trying to finish before i got home?” he cooed, curling his lip. you felt your face heat, glancing away. 

“yeah,” you responded bashfully, eren motioning his head towards the bed. 

he breathed out a laugh at your answer, giving your thigh that deeply desired squeeze. “that’s so cute. bet you’re so needy for me now, hm?” 

you could feel yourself growing wetter at his words, choosing to sit on the end of the bed in front of him rather than respond. he kissed your leg again, eyes catching on something beside you. 

“what’s this?” he smirked, reaching to grab your vibrator. you were too slow to react, reaching for it in vain as eren inspected it. “tsk, tsk. sit back down.” 

you hadn’t even realized you’d lifted from the mattress, eren’s dark tone making you abide as though you had no free will. 

he gave you a sadistic look, lunging forward to press his tongue flat against your clothed clit. you hissed at the feeling, hands fisting your bed sheets. eren chuckled against you, the vibration making your stomach burn. 

“just that already has you squirming?” he mumbled, lips pressing a kiss. as if this couldn’t get anymore embarrassing. “’s’hot.” 

you breathed out, the sight of eren between your legs in the lowly lit room entirely too attractive. you weren’t surprised he was so bossy and vocal, hand tapping your leg impatiently. 

“off.” he deadpanned, leaning back to watch you as you stood, yanking your underwear down your legs. you tried to quell your excitement; eren’s pupils growing impossibly larger at the sight of your exposed cunt. you sat back down, breath shaky as eren situated himself in front of you. “so wet already.”

eren, just as he always had been, was impatient. you’d just sat down and he was prying your knees apart, tongue hungrily pressing itself against your center. he was sloppy; eating you out with an animalistic hunger that had you nearing your climax much faster than usual. 

“eren,” you whimpered, the feeling of his tongue circling your entrance causing a moan to ripple from your mouth. the sound of his name only made him suck harder. he wasn’t letting up; absolutely determined to bring you to your high as fast as possible. “m’gonna cum, eren.” 

he groaned at your words, arms hooking around your thighs to hold you in place as he focused intently on your clit. the warm, wet feeling was becoming too much; edges of your vision growing dark as you let your release come crashing down, legs twitching as eren released his suction on you. 

he looked at you just long enough for you to notice the sheen on his chin, the sparkle in his eyes, and the grin on his lips. “been waiting so long for this, i’m gonna make the best of it.” 

your chest was heaving, brows pulled down in confusion as eren brought his first two fingers to your entrance, circling it twice before stuffing you with his long digits. 

you were burning, just having come down from your embarrassingly quick release only to have eren fucking you with his fingers. they easily slid in and out, wet with your sheen as he began to gently suck on your inner thigh. your vision was hazy, eren pushing his digits in to the last knuckle and curling slightly. 

the feeling of another release was building in your core; churning and readying you to succumb to eren’s will once more. and you were ready; a breathy moan leaving your lips as he angled his fingers particularly deep. you laid down, hands subconsciously lifting to grope your own chest - searching for an anchor. 

“shit,” eren swore at the sight of you palming your breasts, squirming in his hold as his fingers pumped in and out of you, quickening his pace. you whimpered in response, screwing your eyes shut. 

you felt the cold object press against your clit before he turned it on; eyes widening in surprise as you shot up. eren was grinning at you, thumb clicking it on as an involuntary cry ripped from your chest. 

the vibration was too much as his digits abused your cunt, stuffing into you as far as possible. your clit twitched aggressively, face and neck hot. your brain was growing fuzzy, thoughts clouded as you stared down at eren, mouth hanging open and eyes glossy. he was watching you seriously, pressing the vibrator harder against your clit in order to make you jolt. 

you were burning, abdomen flexing as your eyes began to water. the sensations were too much, legs trying to close but you were blocked by eren’s broad shoulders. 

you’d never been one to scream, but you couldn’t help the strangled sound that escaped your mouth as eren included his tongue in the overstimulating mix. hot, sticky tears slid down your cheeks, eren’s tongue lapping at the spot where his fingers disappeared inside of you. 

his eye contact. oh, his eye contact. it was pervasive and inspective, analyzing every sound and movement you made. 

he pulled his tongue back for just a moment, the vibrator buzzing intensely against you. “cum for me.” 

and you did. it was too much; your legs jerking and stomach cramping, mind turned to mush at the overflow of dopamine. you collapsed back on the bed, eren leaving the vibrator pressed against your clit for a moment longer, the feeling now more uncomfortable than anything. you waved your hand, too exhausted to beg him to take it off. eren only chuckled, pulling his fingers from you but pressing the object against you harder. 

“let me see those tears,” he said sweetly, tapping your thigh. it was a sinister sweetness, the tears pooling down your face as you began to grown numb below your waist. you forced yourself to sit up, eren smiling as he saw your wet face. “good girl.”

he removed the vibrator, tossing it on the bed as he stood. you laid back down, breathing heavy and legs weak. eren hovered above you, leaning down to wipe your cheeks. 

“next time, just ask for my help,” he sneered, your eyes rolling weakly. he had a boyish grin on his face, something teasing about his nature. “i’m way better than some stupid vibrator, anyway.” 

<3 <3 <3 

[noctuaas]

ON THE DOWN LOW

synopsis; you share a dirty little secret with your host family’s son.

pairing; tendou satori x reader

content; nsfw/smut, fem!reader, friends with benefits, clothed sex, morning sex, don’t get caught

word count; 1.8k

At this rate, you were going to be late for school. Wouldn’t that look great; the one foreign exchange student in your homeroom stumbling into class long after the bell, out of breath with her hair mussed up and skirt wrinkled. You could only pray that no one on the school board would choose to call up your host family and tell them that not only was the exchange student they were housing tardy this morning, but their son was as well.

 You couldn’t exactly blame Tendou for initiating this at such an unusual time. He saw an opportunity, and he pounced on it, simple as that. With his mother out of town and his father already gone for an early morning business meeting, you honestly weren’t even surprised that he spent the morning spouting off flirtatious comments; only that it led to this.

“You’re not gonna have time for breakfast,” you panted down at him.

“What do you mean?” Tendou finally pulled away from the home he had found between your legs. His eyes travelled up to meet your own, and you knew from personal experience that your clothes were the only thing stopping his gaze from taking a detour across your body. “This is my breakfast.” 

“I think most people would rather have breakfast in bed,” you joked back. Risking a glance at the clock on the microwave, you saw there was less than 30 minutes until class started.

“I figured eating at the counter was quicker,” he chuckled deviously. Tendou mirrored your glance, quickly evaluating his options before slowly beginning to rise to his feet. The light caught your slick smeared across his lips, glinting tauntingly before getting drug under his tongue. He was never one to wipe his chin with the back of his hand. Instead, he licked everything away, savoring your taste, like he was on death row and you really were his last meal. 

As he rose to your level, you pushed up from where you were leaning back on the countertop and met his lips halfway. The redhead’s tongue was against yours immediately, insisting you taste yourself in his mouth.

 It was almost intoxicating, only fueled by the feeling of Tendou’s clothed erection pressing against your bare sex. You couldn’t resist the whine that seeped between your lips when his fingers clawed at your hips, pulling you ever closer. 

Time was of the essence here, and at this point you were becoming needy. The hand that had found its way into his hair rerouted to slip down to his waistband, but you were interrupted.

“You should ask nicely,” Tendou intercepted your fingers at his belt, barring you from entrance.

“You started it,” you scoffed like a petty little kid.

Tendou didn’t move an inch. Those scarlet eyes of his bore into you, and you tried to stare back, but your resolve was no match to his. “Please,” you finally murmured, fingers nudging his belt buckle once more. His devious grin stretched wider at your submission.

He had the tip of his cock pressing into you faster than you had ever seen. There was no undressing; the only thing tossed away was his belt, which joined your previously discarded underwear on the tile floor with a clank; the slacks of his uniform were shoved down just below his ass cheeks, barely far enough to free himself.

The feeling of Tendou filling you made you let out a long sigh, like he was finally relieving a persistent ache. Instinctually, your legs hiked higher up his sides, pulling him deeper, and if it weren’t for the fact that he was already sliding himself back out, you’d have crossed your ankles to keep him close.

Tendou found a rhythm quickly. It started out slow, focused more on technique and allowing himself to kiss and tug at your lips before moving to lap at your throat hungrily; if you didn’t know any better, you’d almost say it was sensual. It didn’t last long though, each thrust increasing with speed until he was driving into you at the rapid pace you expected from this race against time.

“Fuck, kitten, you feel so good,” Tendou groaned into the crook of your neck. The pet name sent tingles through your skin, crawling down your body until it settled like fire in your lower gut. The only response you gave was the flex of your fingers, nails digging into his shoulders and grasping at his shirt.

The force of his thrusts caused you to let out little mewls and moans in huffs, breath escaping your lungs with every slam of his hips against yours. Tendou had to hook an arm under your knee and grab onto your thigh to keep you flush with the edge of the counter. Though his palm was cold to the touch, you swore your skin burned under the calloused pads of his fingers.

Combined with the tightening internal coil from Tendou’s actions, the burning of your abs as you tried to hold yourself upright was becoming too much to handle. Pulling away from Tendou’s face, you placed your hands behind you so you could lean back and brace against them. You were just beginning to sink back onto your elbows when the sound of the door to the utility room crashing open jolted you from your bliss.

Shooting back upright, a yelp of surprise nearly escaped you, but Tendou’s hand was clamped over your mouth in an instant. You both stared at each other, wide-eyed and frozen in place, as footsteps echoed from the utility room. It was only separated from the kitchen by a small, open archway.

When a voice grumbled out something about ‘forgot my briefcase,’ you instantly recognized it as Tendou’s father.

Step, step, step.

The sound of his heavy footfalls seemed to retreat further into the laundry room, but you knew he still couldn’t be more than 10 feet away. Tendou craned his neck back, trying to peek further past the doorway, before turning back to you with that mischievous smirk of his.

“Shhh,” he whispered almost inaudibly, letting go of your leg and placing a finger over his lips. You didn’t even have time to wonder what he was up to before he was pushing himself back into you, slowly, as if testing the waters.

 The pleasant pressure was minor enough to ignore, and the only response you gave was a worried glance past Tendou’s shoulder at the doorway. You could still hear the shuffling of movement across the wall.

Displeased by your lack of reaction, Tendou took the hand that wasn’t covering your mouth and brought it down between your hips. His thumb dipped around where you two were connected, collecting your juices so that when he moved it up to rub your clit, it glided over it without unwanted friction.

Now, that got your attention. Your stomach tensed and you huffed into his fingers, which only led Tendou to tighten his grip on your face; his hand was firm enough that not a lick of air would escape your mouth, but just barely gentle enough that no marks would be left.

His thumb brushed against your clit in every direction until he found the perfect mix of pressure and angle that made your hips buck and eyes roll into fluttering eyelids. As soon as he discovered this, he repeated the motion, but this time snapped his hips into you as well.

Oh, how badly you wanted to gasp and whine and moan his name, but instead you choked on your own voice and forced it back into your chest.

If we get caught, you thought, I’m so getting kicked out of the exchange program.

You hated to admit it, but the idea was kind of thrilling. It was like throwing lighter fluid on the fire in your belly.

Every time the roll of Tendou’s hips lined up perfectly with the way he thumbed your clit, white hot electricity seared through your lower abdomen. He was hitting that spot more and more, and the heat was pooling now. You grabbed onto his wrist, the one at your face, and squeezed sharply; you were trying to channel every urge to cry out into the aching grip you had on his arm.

The coil in your gut was seconds from snapping, and you could tell Tendou was in a similar boat; his jaw was clenched and his eyes half lidded. You begged him with your eyes, silently told him how badly you wanted to cum. 

Through both your hazes, the sound of a briefcase clicking closed broke in. It was quiet, barely louder than a pin drop, yet somehow felt as loud as a gun firing next to your ear.  Tendou’s head lifted slightly in realization, then he gave you a hasty nod of encouragement.

Creeeaaaaakkk, slam!

As soon as his father was gone, Tendou was mumbling, “Come for me, baby girl, come on.”

He didn’t have to ask twice. You were already falling over the edge, the pleasure rolling from your core out to your finger and toe tips before rolling back again. He finally broke his hand away from your face, and you gasped for air, gasped his name, gasped until your lungs couldn't take any more. Your heels dug into his back, pressed into his spine like you might be able to collapse into him.

You didn’t know exactly how long it took for Tendou to finish behind you. You were coming down from your high and the next thing you knew, he had his cock in his hand and he was spilling out all over your thighs.

Both of you heaved until your breathing evened out, foreheads pressed together. At long last, Tendou broke the silence with a chuckle, and you couldn’t resist laughing as well.

When he peeled away from you to grab a dish towel and clean you up, your skin stuck together from the sticky sheen of sweat. You were lucky he managed to not get anything on your skirt.

“You’re in big trouble,” you said as he placed his routine post-sex kiss on your cheek.

“Why—” he babbled incredulously, “What for?”

“Because,” you glanced at the clock, “We have less than 15 minutes to get to class.”

“Shit!” Tendou scrambled to pull himself together, hastily running about as he shoved his dick back in his pants. You followed suit, jumping off the counter and grabbing your underwear. You tugged them on with about as much coordination as you could while hopping down the hall to get your backpack and shoes. You were both running around like bats out of hell, cackling with laughter by the time you were out the door.

You ran the whole way to school. At least it was a reasonable explanation for why you looked sweaty enough to have just had a sex marathon.

[muninnhuginn]

I saw your post comparing the finales of odd taxi and wonder egg and i agree the odd taxi finale was TIGHT - i was wondering though if you knew about the production issues on wep and that's why they had that recap episode. the actual actual finale just came out today!

Hey ^^.

Yeah, I'm aware of the production issues on WEP and I've seen the proper finale. Just gonna go through my understanding of them below so sorry if I repeat stuff you're already aware of!

(EDIT: This post got a lot longer than I intended so I put it under a readmore but it basically goes into my opinion on the production stuff as well as how the finale contradicts the groundwork previously laid out)

From what I gather, they've had scheduling issues throughout which led to them having to bring in a lot of foreign animators (I think ANN actually did an interview with some of the translators involved in relaying information between production and the animators - I'll see if I can find that after this). There were also instances where I believe people involved in the production literally ended up in hospital due to overwork.

In terms of the finale episode itself, I think this reddit post gives the gist of the timeline:

(Please keep in mind that though this is an example from just the finale, it happened for several episodes that they only finished with hours to spare - this actually led to the episode being released late on the Eng sub side a couple of times)

I think with WEP, it is going to become difficult to untangle where the issues arise from the production problems and where it's down to the actual writing and directing.

The show definitely started strong and in terms of tackling the really dicey topics it did superbly (I remember my only real issue on that end prior to the finale was the Accas commenting on "male vs female suicides" and iirc that was clarified on Twitter as *not* being the views of the writers - and the Accas acting that way tied in massively with their backstory in the Frill episode and how they clearly don't understand.) The art and animation throughout? Honestly, if I didn't know already about the production issues from outside sources like Twitter I'm not sure I would've been able to tell? Because for the most part it was ridiculously solid (though of course there were still signs - namely the midpoint recap episode and the way they stopped interweaving flower language near the very end and the sheer number of stills they used in ep 13).

Where the finale fell down in my eyes was the very thing that brought me into the series in the first place, aka how it handled the difficult topics. The narrative of the series is fairly strong early on, about how various societal factors contribute towards suicides, especially in young girls. This starts to falter somewhat down the latter end, though my personal opinion is that the Frill stuff doesn't discount the societal factors, but rather the pacing was off with her introduction and so there was no way the Frill and AI angle would have time to be fully explored and resolved within the remaining episodes. Anyway, society and how it impacts on minors with fairly nuanced takes in terms of how adults can take advantage of power dynamics over minors. There’s also the more straightforward character part about how the main four start as outsiders but end up actually becoming proper friends, hanging out outside of the egg quests.

With this in mind, there are some places where the final episode actively went against the previously laid groundwork:

In the Frill ep, we see Himari claiming to Ura-Acca that she’ll be “marriable” when she grows up, with the implication that this is pretty horrifying just hammered in by how she then mimics Frill with the “pop” noise. And then separately from this, we see that Sawaki has painted art of Ai as a grown-up and says “someday you’ll be a wonderful, adult woman like your mother”. Her mother who, I have to point out here, he is dating. There are various other red flags throughout the episodes but I’m just highlighting this one because it’s a parallel within the series itself. In the finale what we get is Sawaki saying that truth behind Koito’s suicide (which he was heavily implicated in) was “Koito tried to put advances on me, yelled rape accusations, then fell off a building”. And that scene ends with alt!Koito saying “Mr Sawaki is kind”. The entire series had been setting up red flags in terms of Sawaki’s relationship with Koito pre-series as well as his behaviour towards Ai and then the resolution is just “Koito was lying about rape threats and Sawaki is innocent”. Like, you can’t even argue this is somehow commentary on how there can be witch hunts when people make false accusations because nothing happened to Sawaki. It’s just plain and simple going against both Sawaki’s suspicious behaviour *and* undermining a lot of the previous points made about sexual harassment by having it be that Koito was lying. (Sidenote: If you *did* want to have something about people lying about sexual harassment without it undermining the rest of the series, you would have put it midway and had counter examples throughout, not put it at the very end so it becomes the final say, so to speak.)

Ura-Acca, Acca, and Frill. I personally think some of this is down to pacing issues which were present earlier than the finale compounded by the overall production issues, but regardless, this entire plotline with Frill and her minions was set up a few episodes prior to the finale. In the finale itself, the only time we even see Frill is in Neiru’s dream where her only role is to reveal that Neiru is an AI (and bring up the potential parallels that could be contained in that only to immediately go “but we don’t have time to unpack that”). The Accas just exist to say to Ai about the eggs, with no mention of the Warriors of Eros or Fear of Death stuff, despite how all four girls managed to achieve their goals. There is just no resolution or even acknowledgement as to this storyline.

This one is more subjective and tied in to how Neiru was handled. A big point which is shown during the series but explicitly laid out in ep 12 is how Ai has friends now and has grown throughout the series. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that people drift and that they no longer have the egg quests tying them together. But at the same time, why make the point near the end when Ai is talking to her alt!self that she has friends and has grown now if you’re then just going to undo that at the final hurdle. (I could go into the Neiru stuff specifically but I think this post has gotten long enough and I’d tangent even further from talking about consistency throughout the series into the general writing of the last episode)

In retrospect, I do think you can tell from episode 12 that it was going to be almost impossible for WEP to stick the landing from the pieces that we had there, but I think it could have been salvageable if they'd just kept their own themes and narrative consistent with the rest of the show.

[donttouchmeimwriting]

Argo ch. 1

Friday the 13th - Friendship/Romance - Jason Voorhees/OC M/M ship

2897 words, 3rd person POV

This is not following canon closely at all and I'm kinda blending bits of Jason's personality between original movies, the remake, and fan versions so this is pretty solidly AU. I hope you enjoy!

Cross-posting on FFN under PyroTheWereCat

There was no pleasure in killing. It was a task, like any other, but one that had to be done adequately. Even if it took several tries and the body was mangled by the end of it, the life had to be gone from their eyes.

"We can't have them coming back to hurt us, can we?"

Mother was right. Mother was always right. She was the only one who cared. She was the only one who knew kindness. It was her idea and her decision to take revenge against the wicked counselors of Camp Crystal Lake, and what she wanted, she would get.

She had nearly died herself trying to punish the ones responsible for her son's drowning, and so the pair needed to live in hiding, deep in the woods surrounding the camp. It took over ten years of teaching and training, but it was finally time. Mother knew best, and Jason Voorhees was willing to serve her every command.

Four years ago, Jason began his killing spree. He picked off the counselors one by one, catching each in a deadly infraction. He worked carefully at first, making the disappearances look like believable shirking of duties or horrible accidents. That year, authorities ruled the camp could reopen for the next season with some extra safety precautions. Jason was praised so lovingly that year.

The second year, Jason continued his streak, but allowed himself to get a little sloppy. The murders were attributed to one of the staff members, and no one was the wiser to his presence (or, more importantly, his mother's). The camp was forcibly closed for the following season, and Jason's mother prayed it would stay closed and they could be free of the evil of the counselors who knew no compassion.

But, as an investigation cleared the camp of outside interference, further cementing the falsely accused staff member as the murderer, Crystal Lake reopened for another season, forcing Jason out of hiding once more. He did not want to go back, having enjoyed the peaceful summer with his mother last year, but he knew he had a job to do. He dusted off his mask, sharpened his machete, and set out for Camp Crystal Lake once more.

This year already felt different for Jason. Perhaps it was the time off, or perhaps he was growing tired of killing, but this year he decided to approach things in a different way. He spent the first two weeks of camp watching from the shadows, identifying the counselors and their habits. There were eight of them: four men, four women. Their ages were uncertain, but it seemed the youngest was about seventeen and the oldest was about twenty-five, the majority being roughly twenty-one. College age, Mother had said, was the worst age for most folks. Leftover rebellion from their adolescence and newfound freedom created a sinful breeding ground for debauchery and cruelty that needed to be punished. Jason was of this age now as well, and he had promised to not let himself lose sight of his task.

During the weeks Jason watched the camp, he noticed a few important details. First, he noticed that ghost stories about the murders he and his mother had committed were being told at nightly bonfires, embellished to near supernatural lengths. This excited Jason to some degree, seeing that his hard work had noticeable impact years later. Second, he noticed there were no hikes on the outer trails and strict curfews were imposed on both the campers and the counselors, keeping the grounds barren between the hours of 9PM and 7AM. This rule would make Jason's work difficult if he planned on making any of these deaths appear accidental, but he could improvise if needed.

The third detail, and the most curious of all, Jason noticed that out of all eight counselors, one stood out as unique. The first distinctive feature was that he was shorter than the rest of his coworkers, somewhere close to five feet tall. Jason almost mistook him for a camper at first, but the back of his shirt clearly read 'COUNSELOR'. What truly set him apart from the rest, however, was how attentive he was to the campers. He made sure every voice was heard and no one felt left out. He kept a bright and supportive demeanor no matter the circumstances, and helped the campers with every activity. Furthermore, he did not seem interested in sneaking off to sacrifice his job duties in favor of more lecherous behavior. Jason found himself growing fascinated with this counselor, and opted to watch him a little more closely to see if he had any damning secrets that would confirm his impending death with the rest.

Another week dragged on, and Jason regrettably had lost track of time. He followed this seemingly kind counselor as he engaged the children in their activities and lent a listening ear to those who had problems or concerns. What could he be hiding? Mother was certain that anyone who took a job at this camp was a bad person, and Mother was always right...right?

"Alright, everyone!" the strange counselor called one morning, catching the attention of his group, "It's Friday tomorrow, and that means s'mores night!"

He allowed for a brief cheer from the kids before quieting them down again to continue,

"S'mores are really nice, aren't they?" Whoops and words of agreement rose from the group. "Do we agree that nice kids deserve to have nice treats?" More affirmations rang out. "That's right! But it's come to my attention, as well as the other counselors, that there's been some of you who haven't been as nice as they should be."

Jason leaned forward from his seated vantage point on a log, listening curiously to the counselor's teaching moment. Would he punish the whole group of kids for a minority's bad behavior? Would he revoke s'mores privileges? Would he try to drown some of the children in the lake? That last one was unlikely, but the thought still crossed Jason's mind. The counselor continued,

"Here at Camp Crystal Lake, we value honesty, teamwork, and what else?"

"Accountability," the children chorused.

"Exactly right," he praised, "And if one of us is being picked on, it's up to the rest of us to help them feel included, right?"

"Right!"

The counselor clapped his hands together, smiling kindly at the group.

"I don't want anyone to feel like they're in trouble, so we're gonna make this into a game, okay?" he proposed, "We're all detectives looking for clues on whodunnit. We have to solve the mystery of who's being a bully and have them apologize by tomorrow night, or all the s'mores will have to go away until next week. Does that sound fair?"

"Yes," the kids answered, somewhat anxious now that the promised snacks might be withheld.

"Awesome! Here are the rules of the game: you can't force someone to give you a clue if they don't want to. That would defeat the purpose of the game! You also can't point any fingers until the bonfire is lit tomorrow night. If the person who was mean wants to come forward on their own, they have to come to me or one of the other counselors so it doesn't spoil the end of the game. Once the person is revealed, they have to apologize to the person they hurt and will spend the weekend making it up to them because, here at Camp Crystal Lake, we want everyone to have a great time. If one of us isn't having a good time, we all have to work together to help them so we can leave here at the end of the summer with the best memories and the best friends. So let me hear it from you guys: are we ready to go out and have a great day?"

The kids burst into another round of cheers and the counselor shepherded them off to their first activity of the day. Jason propped his elbow on his thigh and rested his chin in his hand. He frowned in contemplation. This counselor was so dedicated to the kids...could he be an exception? Could Jason's mother have been wrong? He would have to catch this counselor alone to find out more. He still had plenty of time to dispatch the whole staff, he figured, so he had the time to learn what he could about this one counselor.

Jason stalked the counselor over the next few hours, watching him be the perfect role model for the kids as usual. Finally, sometime near midday, the counselor took a break after passing his group to another and announced he was going to check the nearest hiking trail for debris before he took the kids on it later. One of the female counselors offered to walk with him, and Jason detected signs of flirtation in her body language, but he refused, claiming it would be a short trip. Jason felt his heart beat faster with anticipation, following him just out of sight as he walked the trail, moving any large sticks or rocks from the path. Jason flexed his fingers on the hilt of his machete, wondering if he should kill him now despite having no evidence yet that he was a bad person. He resolved he would wait until they were far enough away from the camp where screams would not carry, then he would decide.

The counselor moved at a brisk and energetic pace, enjoying his time alone. He seemed so full of life and vigor...Jason almost felt bad that he was planning on murdering him. The counselor stopped at a fallen branch blocking the path and looked it over, his hands on his hips.

"That's a big one," he commented to himself, "I hope I can get it out of the way on my own."

With that he bent down to lift one end of the branch, stepping backwards to drag it off the trail. From Jason's position, he could see another, smaller branch on the ground behind the counselor, twisted and gnarled, but big enough to pose a hazard. Jason watched as the counselor caught his foot on the hidden branch and tumbled backwards, rolling through the leaves and sticks as he fell down the slope. He went over a slanted rock near the bottom and crumpled on the other side of a rotting log, his ankle caught in a hole in the log. Jason slowly approached, minding his steps down the slope so he would not fall as well.

The counselor grunted in pain as he pushed himself up on his elbows and attempted to free his leg from the log. He had dirt on his face and debris in his hair and, as Jason drew closer and could see more clearly, cuts and scrapes all over his arms and legs. Unsuccessful in his attempts, the counselor fell back on his elbows, breathing hard. He craned his neck to look over the log, having heard the approaching footsteps, and his eyes met Jason's, mere feet away.

"Oh my gosh, you startled me!" he greeted, "Thank goodness someone else was on the trail! I'm okay, by the way, I'm just a little stuck. Can you help me out?"

Jason froze as the counselor addressed him. Oddly enough, he didn't seem afraid, despite Jason's hulking stature, out of place hockey mask, and freshly sharpened blade in hand. He tilted his head to one side, puzzled. He hadn't been this close to another person (aside from his mother) in almost two years, but he distinctly remembered every person he had been this close to fearing him on sight. He looked down at his machete, wondering what was holding him back from stabbing this man and walking away. It was all so easy before...

"Ooh, yes, you came prepared!" the counselor said, noticing the machete as well, "If you're careful, you can probably hack around the opening so I can get my foot loose. If you want, I can get you some free food back at camp for helping me out. It's not much, but Miriam makes a mean chicken salad."

He smiled up at Jason, and Jason felt his heart stop for a moment. There was not a single flicker of fear in the counselor's eyes. All he could see was the same gentle expression shown to the kids back at camp. An unfamiliar feeling came over Jason and, for the first time in years, he felt compelled to help. He raised the machete, his eyes focused on the counselor's trapped leg. His breathing hitched, one part of his mind urging him to kill as Mother instructed, the other begging him to show mercy, just this once. He glanced back at the counselor's face, at that warm smile, and made his choice.

The machete swung down and struck the wood of the log, sending a spray of splinters into the air. The counselor winced, shielding his eyes from the shower, and tried to wiggle his leg loose.

"Still a little stuck," he announced, "I think one more whack on the other side oughta do it."

Jason wrenched the blade out of the wood and swung again on the other side of the counselor's leg. As predicted, the counselor was able to maneuver himself out of the weakened structure. He brushed the splinters and dirt off of his skin and shakily stood up, clearly in some pain from the fall.

"Thank you," he said to Jason, his smile returning, "Really, I would have been in some trouble if you weren't here, so thanks a lot. My name's Lijah."

He extended a hand to Jason to shake, but Jason was too caught off guard by his own response to the situation as well as Lijah's genuine friendliness to return the gesture. Lijah lowered his hand, unfazed by the lack of reaction.

"Not a talker, huh? That's okay," he noted, then became visibly nervous, "Oh, cripes, I'm sorry, are you deaf?"

He made some strange hand movements with that last sentence, gesturing to Jason and to his own ear. Jason shook his head, slowly coming out of his confusion.

"Ah, gotcha," Lijah said, relaxing, "That works for me. I'm not very good at signing."

He laughed at this, and Jason felt a pang of....something. Lijah's laugh was light and pleasant sounding...it reminded Jason of dappled sunlight through trees. He couldn't explain it, but he wanted to stay near Lijah for a while longer.

"In all seriousness, what is your name?" Lijah asked, "I'd like to know who my hero is."

Hero. That wasn't a word Jason thought would ever be associated with him, but it felt surprisingly good to hear Lijah call him that. He looked around himself for a moment, then up the slope at the trail. He motioned for Lijah to follow him and made his way up to the flatter part of the forest floor. Lijah had some slight difficulty following him, being so much smaller and having mild injuries, but he made it up the slope all the same. Jason waited until Lijah had caught his breath and stood next to him. He held his machete out to the ground and drew the letters of his name into the dirt. Lijah read the name aloud once he had finished and looked up at Jason brightly.

"Jason!" he chirped with delight, "Like the Argonaut in Greek mythology!"

Jason tilted his head, frowning. His mother had told him many stories as he grew up, but they were all from the Bible. He wasn't familiar with the character Lijah was referencing, and Lijah could see his bewilderment.

"He's a hero in his story," he explained, "well, for the most part. He goes on adventures with his crew and they see and do all kinds of amazing things together."

Jason nodded, liking the sound of this hero with the same name as himself. And the fact that he was not entirely virtuous...that struck a chord with him. He gestured to Lijah, who seemed to understand that he was asking about his name.

"I was originally supposed to be Elijah," he said, emphasizing the 'e' at the beginning, "but my little sister had trouble saying the whole name, so I changed it to just Lijah. By itself, I don't think it means anything special, but it's pretty special to me."

Jason stared at Lijah. How was he so good-natured? Even with an intimidating stranger like Jason, he managed to keep his upbeat attitude and unselfish way of speaking. Was he stupid or genuinely that benevolent?

"Hey, walk with me back to camp," Lijah encouraged, setting off in that direction, "I owe you lunch."

Jason felt a small stab of panic and shook his head. He looked over his shoulder and back at Lijah, who nodded.

"You've got somewhere to be - that's fine! Don't worry about it, big guy! But, if you find yourself back this way, come find me at counselor cabin 5 and I'll get you a meal to pay you back for helping me. Thanks again!"

He waved goodbye before turning and walking back towards the camp, the pep in his step dampened only slightly by the soreness in his legs. Jason watched him go and wondered wildly what had just happened. Had he somehow accidentally made a friend?

[whencallstheheart]

We’ll find out tonight if our predictions are correct! 

Responses to the written questions are under the cut.

Where is Ned and what is he doing?

No idea

Business trip

Dealing with some financial issues.

Doing business in UC or Hamilton. Nothing major

He stayed behind next episode and will be back in the finale.

I think planning something for Florence, maybe expansion for the mercantile?

I don't know

I have no idea, wth!?!?

Yo i have no idea. I'm gonna take a wild guess and say he's trying to contact Florence's daughter who wasnt there for the wedding

Maybe he's visiting his daughter? Or expanding the Mercantile somehow

With Mike. Oil pipeline

Hiding

It sure

I have no clue honestly, maybe planning a surprise for Florence?

Perhaps...expanding his store? Or ordering something new to begin to be shipped to his.

something related to factory

Sussing out suppliers

Maybe something to do with the Wyman guy?

visiting his daughter

Buying a new house or a surprise for Florence

Visiting Abigail

Planning something special for Florence

He is doing something with his daughter

No clue

With his daughter

Planning to expand the mercantile to include deliveries (Hope Valley Amazon) lol

Not sure

I really dont know!

Made out a Will since he now is married to Florence

Business in Union City

Business, but he’ll be back

I don’t Know

I dont know. This one threw me!

Literally have no idea

maybe he will come back with his daughter who will come to live at HP

some sweet surprise/gift for Florence

He is involved im some growth in HV.

Taking care of business.

He's making a business deal somewhere

I have no idea. I think it was a weird to put in o.O

Making purchases for the store.

Business stuff somewhere

I don't know

i don't know

ned things

He just took the long way home...

Adopting Flo's son

Hiding

He is picking up a surprise order gift for Florence, and it’s taking longer than expected.

Fighting attempt to take over mercantile

Talking to a divorce lawyer. Or putting a pillow over Abigail's mom's face so she can bury her already and come back to Hope Valley for his buddy Henry's sake.

Honestly I’m not sure but interested to find out!

Idk honestly. Probably actually doing something sweet for Florence but she doesn't know it.

What's up with the Pinkertons?

Not sure

A storyline to bring a change of pace to the show.

I really Don’t know

Not sure, but I don’t think it will be resolved this season, maybe it’s the cliffhanger?

I don't know

They’re hired thugs like they were in S1, just there to show Walden is a bad guy despite appearances

Factory related

Up to no good! Don’t trust them.

Yo i dont even know. They look totally sketch but they are probably the good guys actually. I'm predicting they are after someone who's been wanted for a long time. I think it may be too easy to link them with the guy who took Jesse and Clara's money

Not sure yet

Working for Waldon

Railroad

Sneakily buying land

I couldn't care less about them

Perhaps something is in the cabin/someone they don't want found.

No idea

Something to do with the mine disaster (even though it's been ages).

we will see in season 9

Setting up a good storyline for season 9

Not sure maybe something to do with the new factory that might be built

Maybe it has to do with Henry

I have no idea, but I do not like them!

No good

Buying all the land

They have Jesse. Someone wants to reopen the mine and seek revenge on Elizabeth for his son going to jail (Spurlock).

Looking for some kind of hidden good

Shady dealings going on

Guarding the future factory site. But something extra at the cabin connected with Spurlock.

Trouble

?

An even bigger I dont know on this one. Like, what in the world???

Holding Jesse captive

I think they kidnapped Jesse because he found out what they were up to but I have no idea what that is

stumped on this one

That is difficult. He is apparently connected to S1 Spurlock. Is he there for revenge? Or, just a heavy hand like his relative?

Revenge? They want to take over Hope Valley.

Something sketchy, probably bigger than just whatever is going on with the cabin though.

Land grab

No clue but they'll be one of the big bads next season

They are probably the goons of the Industry dude

They are working for somebody bigger.

They want to take over the town

I don't know

i'm worried about Nathan

idk they are the bad daddys of the season

they can only be there to cover up a crime, or some valuable find

No clue

They’re wanting to uproot Hope Valley for better business by destroying the town.

Keeping identity of mastermind safe from townspeople.

Maybe looking for Ned, who alternatively is a serial killer and now on the run. Possibly for the murder of Abigail's mother?

I’m so confused lol

Creating a monopoly & doing some villain nonsense (as it would seem the show is hinting).

Any other thoughts going into the finale?

No

There will be at least one surprise- not sure what

There are too many loose ends to tie up in one episode and I just want Elizabeth and Nathan together (and perhaps quickly married in this episode!)

I’m honestly really nervous, I’m rooting for Nathan but I have a feeling she’ll go for Lucas, I really don’t mind Lucas as a character but like what storylines can they do with them as a couple? The manuscript is finished, they’ve gone on every sort of date at this stage and she’s been in his office. What else can they do? With Nathan they can do the being scared because of his job again but making it different, there’s children involved now, it’s not just Elizabeth. Jack won’t understand but Allie will 100% feel worried for him. Also Allie having a mother figure, especially at this stage in her life, how could you not want it! The blended family as the main family would be so nice for this show, I know it’s been done before but they will be fairly front and centre in the show. Sorry for the rant, I love your blog so much! I don’t have tumblr so I can’t leave comments or like your gifs but I thoroughly enjoy all your theories and opinions!!

Just ready for this stupid love triangle to be over!

I’d love to actually see Henry meet up with Abigail, but doubt it. I hope they have Clara do something heroic for Jesse, but also doubt it. Henry will definitely be putting Hickam in charge at least temporarily. I think Ned will return but we won’t get a full explanation yet. And the dramatic ending won’t be the triangle choice, it’ll be Elizabeth losing the school.

Allie’s adoption finalized and reaction to Elizabeth choosing Nathan is something we should see.

Glad the triangle will be DONE!!

I hope that Elizabeth follows her heart and not pick someone who is a safe option.

I wish Faith were leaving instead of Carson. Also, I think there will be lots of set up for problems with the school board and Elizabeth. Also, I want more little Jack scenes but i don't think we'll get much since child acting laws and covid combined make that difficult

Excited for Elizabeth to move on from her past and enter a new adventure with either of the two men and really just everything else (Rosie and Lee, Fiona, Henry.)

I hope Faith doesn’t end up with whoever doesn’t get chosen by Elizabeth.

hopefully the finale will clear up the drawn out love triangle

The triangle was waaaaay drawn out. Be done and choose.

Nathan and Faith......would be great......

No matter who Elizabeth chooses I'm SOOOO READY to get this over with!

Kindness matters - no matter who she chooses. Isn't that why most of us watch the show

I am so over the love triangle and just want to know who Elizabeth picks.

Worried about the fandom more than anything

Elizabeth please pick Nathan

It's just a TV show and no matter what , it's there for our entertainment. I do think they're setting things up for the return of Abigail in some way.

The must be a Season 9!!!

I hope Fiona does not get involved with Mike.

Hopefully things get back to normal for Elizabeth and Rosemary

Interested to see the other storylines. I want Elizabeth to choose Nathan but I think JT will throw us off. From the promo pic, it looks like they will try to put Faith with Nathan.

- I just want Elizabeth to chose so that this storyline can come to an end and we can finally get to see her marriage and functioning has a wife. - Wonder what will become of Lucas once her choice is made. - I would like Lucas to have a proper storyline that doesn't involve Elizabeth or the love triangle. - I would love to see Rosemary and Lee finally become parents however that may happen. I feel like the writer just left them in limbo about it and keep teasing but never delivering on anything.

Hopefully will end with Nathan but the very last minute. I would prefer more romance before the finale

Elizabeth will have to decide on what’s important with school.

Jack might make an appearance in a dream scene?

So excited! I hope I don't wake up my kids while watching.

I hope they don’t pick Lucas

CLARA DISCOVERS SHE IS PREGNANT

?

Just excited for this to be over. I know we needed it and I think overall it was handled decent enough, but I'm glad to finally move on.

Why is everyone so scared?

The whole season has been about getting over your fear. Elizabeth doesn’t have to deal with her emotions or real life with Lucas because school is out for the summer and she is working on her book. She needs to make up with Rosemary and get over the loss of Jack and fear to be with Nathan.

this season has been totally not what I expected...I thought the hug at end of season 7 was definitive and we'd get at least some Nathan courtship, not a complete U-turn to Lucas (with hopefully a turn to Nathan at the very end). I now think Season 9 will be what I expected season 8 to be, and I am very much looking forward to that.

Something sudden will allow Elizabeth to bring her feelings to light for everyone...Nathan. I think she will have decided by the time she takes of the rings, but will not have the opportunity to share with the man until later. Until she faces the prospect of him being in danger again? Full circle from the end of S7.

I need Elizabeth to really apologize to Rosemary. Rosemary has always been there for Elizabeth.

I’m so afraid :(

Hated the triangle

I am so ready to finally move on from this triangle!

They put waaaay too many storyline in the last 2 episodes, they will never manage to conclude them all and we'll have another weird random cliffhanger which will not tie in with the Christmas episode (If we're getting one ?)

I hope the guy who loses, has a good life in later seasons

The annoying love triangle will finally end. Elizabeth/Nathan are endgame, unless Jack suddenly comes back from the dead. But, I doubt it. I hope Lee/Rosemary are pregnant, or decide to adopt children. I just want Lee/Rosemary to have children. Can't wait to see how this season ends. Hopefully, it won't be a cliffhanger.

Nervous as hell

Elizabeth and Nathan get married

i kinda hope someone dies tbh it would make everything more interesting

Elizabeth was so tiresome this season, they could have told her story of overcoming grief in a much more relatable way. Why did they not just have her talking to Rosemary about how sad or exhausted or numb or angry she feels all the time? You know, something a widow would actually go through. At the very least she could have been stoic, instead she was just kinda bitchy.

Faith and Nathan will have some sparks; Elizabeth will choose Lucas and they will kiss twice one being at bridge one being at her home inside with baby jack present.Carson will leave; Jessie will be found; Ned will come back safely.

Lucas endgame, Nathan and faith have sparks, Rosemary paper, Jessie and Clara make up.

I think Henry will take his own advice and leave to find Abigail to see if there is still any hope for them. Though I like his character, I want him to finally be happy, and if that means staying with Abigail, then that’s what it means. I don’t think TPTB will bring back Lori soooo.... that means Henry would be the one possibly leaving. I also think some scare will happen with Nathan between him and the Pinkertons. Then it may come full circle at the end where Elizabeth runs to him like she did last season, but instead of hugging him, she’ll kiss him instead.

Hallmark execs dictated ending and will cut salaries to bring back Abigail, hence Paul leaving.

My condolences to whichever guy gets to look forward to being bored by Elizabeth for the rest of his life. Are we sure Jack's death wasn't a suicide?

Ready to see how it ends and already looking forward to next season!

I will be really disappointed if she chooses Lucas but I’m afraid that’s where it’s headed. Either way I don’t understand how they’ll end in “the healthy place” they’ve said it will be with so much left for one episode.

[babygirl-diaz]

Objection Part 2 of 3

(You can read part 1 over here)

It's one of those rare lazy days when Sam doesn't have to be on a mission or deal with his Captain America duties. This gives him the time to finally get things done around the apartment, like clean up and do laundry.

For once he even gets to cook his dinner rather than get takeaway. He even cheats a little and makes himself a dessert. Chocolate fudge sundae.

When he's done, he finally sits down with a book he's been meaning to read for months when there is a loud knock on the front. Startled, he looks at his phone and realizes that it's 11 PM and wonders who could it be at this hour. This is Bucky's apartment too, so he doesn't need to knock, and Sam wasn't expecting anyone. Carefully, he gets out of the couch and heads towards the door. Looking through the peephole, he finds a familiar face on the other side.

"Daredevil?" He inquires, quickly opening the door.

It was Matt, fully dressed in his Daredevil gear, but he wasn't alone. He was struggling to keep Bucky up, who looked bruised.

"What happened?" Sam reacts quickly. He moves to the other side of Bucky and moves his flesh arm around his shoulders, before leading him and Daredevil to the couch. They dump Bucky on it and Sam gets down in front of him.

"A couple of men got the drop on him and beat him up pretty bad," Daredevil tells him.

Sam looks up at the man dressed in red and glares at him, despite knowing the man couldn't see him scowling. "Where the hell were you?"

"I-- I tried to get there on time but I was too late."

"He needs the hospital!" Sam reaches out to gingerly touch Bucky's cheek.

"No! I don't need the hospital" Bucky catches Sam's hand with his own and tries to give him a smile that doesn't look convincing at all.

"Of course, you don't," Sam grumbles. "Stubborn asshole." He examines the wounds on his face and they don't look too bad. There is blood on his jacket and Sam slowly moves it to the side to notice a blood-soaked t-shirt underneath. "You were stabbed!" Sam exclaims. "And you say you don't need the hospital?"

"It's not deep. It's just a slash," Matt replies.

"You're a lawyer, not a doctor!" Sam snaps. "Sorry," he quickly adds when he notices Matt flinch. "Look, Matt, I get that you have to protect your identity and that's why you couldn't take him to the hospital, but I can."

"That's not why I didn't take him to the hospital." Matt sounds offended. "He insisted on coming home instead."

"He's right," Bucky chimes in. "I don't need the hospital. It really is just a slash. Matt can wrap it up and I'll pop some aspirin and I'll be better by tomorrow morning. You can go to bed."

Matt will wrap it up. You can go to bed. Bucky wanted Matt to take care of him. That brought back the ache in Sam's heart that has been there for the past two weeks since he has found out about Bucky and Matt.

"Okay," Sam replies sadly. "I'll get you the first aid box, Matt." When he returns, Sam notices Matt had taken off his mask. One of his hands was in Bucky's.

Sam feels that anger and frustration in the pit of his stomach once again. He tries to keep it at bay as he brings the first aid box to Matt and dumps it on his lap.

"Try not to bleed out on the couch," he tells Bucky with an edge in his voice.

Back in his room, Sam doesn't close the door behind him. Instead, he keeps it slightly ajar as he watches the scene outside, ready to step in and offer Matt his help if need be.

Matt helps Bucky out of his jacket and shirt. When he opens the first aid box, he takes out a bottle and shows it to Bucky. "Is this the saline?"

"No, that's hydrogen peroxide." Bucky digs through the box and finds the saline before handing it to Matt. "That's the saline."

"You do realize Sam would have been quicker at this than me, right?"

"You're my boyfriend. You're supposed to help me."

"I'm not your--" Sam's eyebrow furrow at that, but then Matt quickly says, "I'm not your nurse though."

Bucky guides Matt's hand to where the wound is and Sam feels another pang in his heart. Bucky hisses in pain when Matt cleans the wound and Sam has a powerful urge to go there and push Matt aside and help his friend himself. He'd be tender with Bucky.

Bucky scoots forward and lets Matt wrap the bandage around him, and Matt practically engulfs the other man in his arms.

Sam has enough of them and he closes the door behind him and falls into his bed.

***

"Good to see you didn't bleed out," Sam comments the next morning when he wakes up and finds both Bucky and Matt still in the apartment.

Bucky wraps his arms around Matt's waist as he says, "Well, my boyfriend here took good care of me."

He turns Matt around in his arms and presses a kiss to his lips, much to Sam's surprise.

The anger and hurt rise through Sam once again, and he feels like punching something, but he ignores the urge and heads out the door for his run.

***

"I can't do this anymore, Barnes," Matt tells him one night as Bucky is hanging out with him on the rooftop.

"Can't do what?" Bucky asks. "You thinking about retiring?"

"What?!" Matt exclaims. "No! I meant I can't do this fake relationship anymore."

"Why?" Bucky asks, worried. "Did I do something wrong? Did I take it too far?"

"It's not you, man," Matt replies. "I am in an actual relationship now."

"Wow..." Bucky trails off. "With who?"

"My best friend, Foggy."

Bucky can't help but feel a little jealous. He wasn't jealous of anyone in particular. He was just jealous of the fact that Bucky was in a relationship with his best friend while Bucky was pining over his.

"Congratulations, man," Bucky genuinely meant it.

"Look, I'm the last person who should give any sort of advice, but maybe you should just tell Sam how you feel."

"I can't tell him, Matt," Bucky says, desperately. "I will only hurt him."

"You are so full of shit," Matt tells him. "You're hurting him now."

"You don't know that."

"Yes, I do. I am usually the one who is out of the loop, but even I know that he's hurting."

"I'm a monster, Matt." Bucky gets up from the ledge and paces the rooftop. "You don't know half the things I've done."

"Maybe not, but whatever you did, it's in the past. You can't let that define your today."

"Pot. Kettle."

Matt sighs and gets up as well. "No one brainwashed me, Barnes. I make my own choices. If anyone is the monster between us, it's me."

"You don't kill people, Matt," Bucky argues

"Yeah, but I leave them half-dead, which is probably worse. The point is that you're not a bad person. You were just in a bad circumstance and no one understands that better than Sam. So talk to him. Tell him how you feel."

"I can't, Matt. I just can't."

***

It's another quiet night a week later and Matt doesn't need his help, so Bucky goes home early. He knows Sam is probably still up but part of him yearns to see his best friend.

As he suspected, Sam is up preparing for his Good Morning America interview tomorrow morning.

"Hey," he says, clearly surprised to see Bucky. "You're home early."

"Yeah, I had nothing to do tonight." Bucky shrugs. He gets two bottles of beer from the fridge and hands one to Sam.

"Thanks, man, but I can't drink tonight. Gotta turn in early."

"One beer ain't gonna hurt you, Sam," Bucky replies

Sam sighs and picks up the bottle before settling on the couch next to Bucky. He keeps his distance by sticking to one side.

"So how are things with you and Matt?" Sam asks casually as he takes a sip of his beer.

"Good." Bucky lies easily.

Sam fidgets with the sticker on his beer bottle, clearly contemplating something, and Bucky really wishes it isn't what he thinks it is.

"Bucky— I— I need to talk to you."

"Sam, sorry, man, I'm feeling sleepy. Can we talk tomorrow?" Tomorrow Bucky will go back to his old routine. Leave home before Sam is up and return when he's asleep. That way they can avoid the talk.

Bucky gets up from the couch but Sam catches the wrist of his bionic arm. He gets up as well, and Bucky looks up at him.

"Bucky, please, I've been gathering up the courage to say this for days so just let me."

The pleading tone of Sam's voice breaks Bucky's heart.

Sam steps closer to Bucky and looks him directly in the eyes. "I love you."

Bucky's eyes widen in shock. He can't believe just how easy was it for Sam to say that. "W- what?"

"Yes... I love you."

"I am with someone else, Sam."

"Bullshit," Sam growls, much to Bucky's surprise.

"Excuse me?"

"I said, bullshit," Sam repeats himself. "I ran into Foggy Nelson last week. He told me he was buying a birthday present for his boyfriend Matt."

Shit. Bucky gulps and turns away from Sam. "Sam--"

"Sam what?" Sam grabs Bucky's arm and forces him to turn around. "Look at me, Bucky. Why did you lie to me?"

Bucky refuses to look at Sam and throws his hands up in frustration. "Because... because deep down I knew how you felt and I— I don't feel the same way."

"You're lying," Sam says adamantly. "I am not an idiot, Bucky. I can read it on your face. You feel the same way. So tell me why you are running away?"

"I am not running away. I love you but only as a friend!"

"I don't believe you, James," Sam doesn't back down. "If you don't feel the same way, then why won't you look at me?"

The second Bucky looks into those beautiful brown eyes, his resolve almost breaks. Almost. "I don't love you, Sam."

And just like that, he breaks Sam's heart.

[once-upon-a-pirate-ship]

On Their Terms

You didn’t think I was just gonna leave you guys hanging, did you? Nope! I just posted this little fic, and I hope it holds you over until I can start reposting Even If It’s A Lie. Enjoy!

one shot, post 3B, no Elsa plot: Startled awake in the middle of the night, Emma finds herself at Ki-no, Hook's door at Granny's. A few days after The Kiss (you know the one), with both of them not quite sure of where they stand.

AO3 | FFN

It wasn’t a nightmare. Or she just couldn’t remember if it was a nightmare, but there was a lingering sensation in her throat, in her chest, in her gut. It clawed at her, ripped and tore and reminded her of every fear she’d ever had. It was unforgiving and entirely relentless, every cell in her body urging her to do something.

So, at three-thirty in the morning, Emma Swan slipped out of her bed at the loft and crept out the door. It wasn’t a conscious decision so much as an instinctual reaction, but she headed straight for Granny’s, and she didn’t stop until she was in front of his door.

She hesitated as her hand raised to knock, her resolve trembling, then crumbling, and suddenly it was replaced with a new, more interesting fear. Her mind shouted at her, spinning terrible possibilities of rejection and anger. He wouldn’t answer. He would tell her to leave. He’d tell her that she wasn’t worth it, like nearly everyone else in her life had done before him.

She almost left.

But there was something that stopped her, a quieter, tinier voice in the back of her mind that allowed her to bring her fist to the door. This voice used evidence and reason against the more traitorous parts of her mind, reminding her of his promises and assurances and her certainty that he’d never lied to her.

So she knocked.

And he answered.

It wasn’t as if she’d expected him to answer the door fully clothed, armed in his sweeping and signature leather jacket and that stupid vest and all of those layers, but it made her breath catch in her throat when she saw him in borrowed sweatpants and a simple t-shirt. His brace was empty, his hair askew, his blue eyes fogged with sleep. And yet he smiled at her like he always did, that wonderful and beautiful, broad grin that somehow created swarms of butterflies in her stomach and made her fears fall away like leaves in the autumn or snow in the winter or some other cheesy nature-related metaphor that she couldn’t even imagine in that moment. All she could do was watch his lips as they curled into that smile.

“Swan?” he asked, his voice rough from sleep, but not rough enough that she missed the concern in it. “Everything all right?”

It took her a few seconds to realize that she needed to reply. She’d gotten lost in his voice and his eyes and his entire presence. “Yeah, yeah,” she said quickly, berating herself for making him worry. But he was worried. A part of her rejoiced. “Everything’s fine, I just…”

Aye? He didn’t say the word aloud, but his eyes said it, urging her to continue her half-formed sentence.

But she’d come all this way, walked through town in the dead of night, and she hadn’t even considered what she was going to say. And now she stood in front of him, a silent fool who couldn’t stop her eyes from searching his beautiful face.

“I’m not sure what I—” She shook her head, cutting off her own words. “I just thought that I—” Again, she didn’t let herself finish. She huffed a breath as she tried to gather her thoughts and try one more time, but she was thrown off by the way the corner of his lips twitched.

“Swan,” he said softly, “would you like to come in?”

Emma chewed on her lip, trying to figure out how she could fight dragons with swords and face monsters and witches and that little brat Peter Pan, but thirty seconds in the presence of this goddamn pirate and suddenly there wasn’t a coherent thought in her entire head.

She nodded.

Inside the room, everything was perfectly neat. The only thing that was out of place was the bed sheets, strewn and twisted as if she hadn’t been the only one who had a nightmare. It was so predictably Killian—when did she start thinking of him as Killian?—that it almost made her laugh.

“What’s on your mind, love?” he asked, and when she turned back to look at him, she was struck once again by how perceptive he was. She could see it on his face, and if she wasn’t in—if she didn’t like him so much, it would’ve pissed her off.

“I had this nightmare, or maybe it was a dream, I don’t know, and I felt kinda weird, and I just,” she paused, forcing a breath. “I wanted to see you.” She waited a beat before adding, “Is that okay?”

“Of course, love,” he replied, and the way his eyes softened and his lips shifted from a smirk into something so much more tender, she almost lost it. “I’m always happy to be of service, Swan.” Normally, a comment like that would’ve been accompanied by something teasing, perhaps an eyebrow quirk or a playful grin, but the word tender returned to her mind and she just couldn’t make sense of anything.

Her brain started to attack her again, and her arms moved to cross over her chest, but it was more protective of herself, more comforting, than defensive. “I’m not sure why I came, I just…” she trailed off, eyeing the door.

“I’m glad you did,” he said simply. There wasn’t a second of hesitation in his response, no contemplation or consideration for something that would make her stay. It was just the truth. And he wanted her to know it.

She exhaled slowly, her arms dropping from around herself as her shoulders relaxed. “I know that we haven’t really…talked about anything since we came back from the past, and, you know, kind of made out outside of Granny’s, but I’m historically Not Good at this relationship stuff and I don’t even know how to do this, or even what I’m doing, but I want to do this, which is absolutely crazy for me, but—”

“Swan,” he breathed, and he moved to stand directly in front of her until their faces were merely inches apart. “Whatever happens, it happens on your terms. You set the pace, you decide. I’m perfectly content to follow your lead. Even if you’re ‘not good’ at ‘relationship stuff’ as you’ve so brilliantly dubbed it.”

“My terms,” she repeated.

“Aye.” Her eyes traced his face, finding not a single flaw. No deception, no manipulation. Just this beautiful man and his beautiful words.  

“If we do this, it’s a partnership. Whatever happens, it’s both of us deciding.”

He hadn’t expected these words, hope and surprise and love painting his face. “As you wish, Swan.”

She couldn’t help it when her gaze moved to his lips, so close yet somehow impossibly far away. “Killian,” she murmured, and she almost missed the way his eyes flashed with something before they moved towards each other, their lips meeting somewhere in the middle.

[lizzie-boo]

What’s In A Name? - Part 5

Bill Weasley x Reader

Words: 1,168

Masterlist

A/N: This is it. The end of this story. It’s been forever since I last posted but here you go the final part. Hopefully you like it. IDK how I feel about it but I don’t like most of what I write anyway. 

                                                       ~~~

Just like the other times you had fought with Bill the twins were now standing in the middle of your living room. This time however Bill stood between the pair. You on the other hand were still curled beneath the blankets of your bed as self deprecating thoughts swirled through your mind. You didn’t know you had visitors until they had moved into your room to find you.

“Not even gonna off us a drink?” Fred jokes earning him a slap on the arm from George.

Moving the blankets from your face you watch as George whispers, “Now isn’t the time for jokes Freddie, this is serious.”

You appreciate his understanding of the situation but know that no matter what you can’t fix what you did. You would have to live with the guilt of your actions for the rest of your life and the knowledge that you pushed your soulmate away and ruined the only real relationship he cared about.

“I think it’s time we talk alone,” Bill finally speaks ups while ushering the twins out of the room.

The second the door closes you pull the blanket back over your face and take a deep breath before speaking up. “I already know what you’re going to say so I’ll save you the energy. I know I fucked up and now your mad so go ahead and leave. Go back to Fleur, you loved each other and I promise I won’t stand between you any longer.”

He takes a hesitant step towards the bed. His hand reaching to rest on where he assumes your shoulder is resting. You tense under the gentle pressure and he pulls away. For a moment you think he will retreat and leave you to sulk. However, he ends up moving to take a seat at the end of the bed. As the mattress shifts under his weight you peak your head out to make sure he is really there.

“Please love, just give me a moment to speak.”

You nod your head ever so slightly and he takes that as his sign to continue.

“I felt it the second you decided to spend the night with that guy. It hurt like bloody hell, I felt like my arm was gonna fall off. I spent a long time last night wondering why you would do this to me. Put me through so much pain.”

He takes a breath and rubs the back of his neck trying to collect his thoughts. There was so much he wants to say to you. So much he needs to say to you. But now that the time is here he feels as if his mind has gone blank. All the words that had swarmed his mind all night were suddenly gone.

He pulls at the cuff of his sleeve and finally collects his thoughts enough to go on, “I was so bloody mad at you. You knew I was your soulmate but you still went and slept with a random bloke. And as I was sitting there cursing you I realized that what I had done to you was even worse. You found me and I didn’t give you a chance. I pushed you away for someone who I knew would never love me as much as you could.”

The words resonate through your ears and a gasp slips past your lips. Taking in the words you open your mouth to speak, “You didn’t know who I was when you started dating Fleur. This was different I knew you when I went and did this,” you argue.

“Darling, please let me finish before I forget everything I need to say to you. I know I hurt you more than you hurt me. Last night was nothing compared to what I put you through. It shouldn’t have taken almost losing you to someone else to realize that we are meant to be together. We don’t just have these soul marks for decoration they bound us together. I should have never pushed you away or broken your heart. I know it will take a miracle for you to forgive me but I want to work towards earning your forgiveness everyday for the rest of my life. You deserve the world and I’m such a fool for not seeing that sooner.”

Finally sitting up you notice the tears in his eyes. The look of hurt and regret are painted across his face. For a second all you want is to wrap your arms around him but instead you settle for gently clasping your hand around his larger one. He squeezes back as if to prove to himself that you’re still there.

“It got awful quiet in there,” George shouts from the other side of the door and the moment is broken.

“You think they finally decided to just shag and resolve all the god damn sexual tension?” Fred muses.

“It’s the only reasonable explanation Freddie,” George jokes.

“Go home already, there’s no reason for you to still be here.” Bill shouts at his younger brothers. His cheeks tinted red from their comments. The distinct popping noise of apparating allows for both of you to know when they have finally left.

“I’m sorry about them,” he apologizes to you.

“They were just joking, it’s fine,” you reassure him. Once more he squeezes your hand and for once there is no ache in your heart or burning on your arm.

                                                      ~~~

It took years. First you had built a solid friendship based off of trust and loyalty. Then it slowly evolved into a loving romance. Neither of you ever pushed anything. You took it at a pace that you were both comfortable with and learned over time that true love can’t be rushed.

It may have taken years but never once did you regret how the two of you went about the early stages of your relationship. The time spent as friends helped to heal the wounds of the first months you knew each other. It also helped to connect you on a deeper more meaningful level. Looking back on it now you wouldn’t change a single thing about it because it taught you how to handle your problems and how to communicate with each other.

Holding your daughter now made your heart swell with joy. She had the same red hair of her father and her older brother and sister. Bill rubs his thumb over her rosy cheek and places a small kiss to your forehead as your other kids rush in to see the new addition.

Looking at the faces of your family you knew that you had everything you ever wanted. Since the day the name appeared on your arm all you wanted was to find your soulmate. Now here you were married to him with three beautiful children. There might have been problems along the way but nothing could replace the joy you felt from getting to spend everyday with Bill and the family you had created together.

                                                  ~~~

Thanks for reading the final part of this story. I hope you have enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing it. 

Tip Jar <--- If you maybe wanna support me. Not required but greatly appreciated. Thanks loves, have a great day/night. 

[vaguely-gestures-to-the-void]

Hindsight: My thoughts on Loki (2021)

Welcome back! Spoilers below!

I need to clarify that I watch Loki purely as an escape. I've got a biased perspective in that regard because I don’t actively try to find fault with the show, though there are definitely things I’m not so inclined to. This is more of what I noticed and think things mean and it’s something I’m doing for fun. Anyways, here's my thoughts on episode 2 my loves.

Episode 2: THE VARIANT

Pre-title scene

Miss Minutes’ monologue in the recap is different to the one last ep.

1985 Oshkosh, Wisconsin

C-20!

“Today’s guest performances” on a board. Don’t really know if it means anything tho.

The Iconic (TM) I Need A Hero scene.

Pony.

The green tent - the lair of Loki.

I know not everyone’s a fan of the lighting, but it made sense to me. They’re still in the dark about who Sylvie is.

Why does C-20 take off her helmet? For the drama?

I hope Sylvie cleaned her blade. Narnia taught me well.

The Time Samsung (I can’t remember what it’s called right now) says that the date’s 04/12/1985.

Loki’s first mission (?)

‘Volume 26’ - how many of these does Mobius have?? #giveMobiusajetski

“ONLY at your LOCAL AUTHORIZED DEALER” - subtext about the TVA being control freaks? Jet ski safety?

I googled Wake Magazine. They’re up to volume 20 from what I saw, whilst Loki is reading volume 26, so I guess that’s something

Loki and Miss Minutes lmaooo.

Behind Loki’s elbow is the taxidermy something from the last episode. Also confirms that Loki threatened Casey at Mobius’ desk lol.

The thing has an egg?? What the hell is Mobius collecting? (He’s a Harry Hart variant lmao).

There are little twitches in Miss Minnutes’ hands. That’s so cool!

The egg timer’s a nice easter egg (I’m a comedian).

Mobius! B-15! :)

Is it just me or do the minutemen look similar, but not exactly the same. Makes sense if they’re variants.

I just realised the lights are built into the ceiling. Whoops.

What’s Mobius’ favourite?

Couple of things:

The racks full of identical uniforms/ones just hung up on doors.

The music has started to pick up the pace, but not in the way we see later on in the episode.

There’s a sign saying ‘FARE THEE WELL’ on it. Google tells me that it’s ‘used to express good wishes on parting’. Dang that was some good foreshadowing!

The person that looks like Agatha is still present.

I wonder whether it was supposed to be colder or whether the weather was just like that when they filmed.

The pony’s still around.

I think B-15 certainty that “a Loki couldn’t have gotten the jump of C-20” comes from her experience with them. She constantly tries to make it clear that because she’s not a variant, she’d know Loki better than he would, which (personally) makes the revelation that she’s a variant feel more devastating.

Again with the lighting, they’re still in partial darkness, constantly moving in and out of the light. Whilst what Loki says about the variant setting a trap is true, it isn’t in the context that he says it. Sylvie whoops their asses later.

The black and red-orange flags remind me of tomb markers. It’s a stretch, ik.

B-15 only has tally marks on one side of her helmet.

Mobius has fake pockets in his suit jacket. They’re the worst.

The ticking increasing in tempo as they approach red line - great for setting up tension.

I believe that Loki uses personal space like a weapon - slowly approaching them from the front, and then going behind Mobius’ back when he wants his way. It would make anyone uncomfortable, especially on a subconscious level because there’s a threat behind you.

Or maybe it’s that I have different personal space boundaries, not everyone likes being approached from behind. Loki’s movement felt intentional at least.

Getting Mobius to physically turn his way because of that might have been very subtle manipulation?

Loki looking back and forth trying to judge their reactions lol.

I liked the music in this scene, it sets up tension for Loki’s first attempt at betraying Mobius but then doesn’t completely dismiss it when it’s resolved.

Ravonna Renslayer’s office

The music here is 18 morceaux, Op. 72, No. 2. Berceuse. 18 morceaux, Op. 72: No. 2, Berceuse (Arr. For Theremin and piano) by Clara Rockmore for anyone that’s curious. I found out through Natalie Holt’s Twitter (I think).

The score is, and always will be, perfection.

Mobius’ small talk amuses me.

“Why do you get to keep all the trophies from my cases in here, you don’t think I’d love having that roller skate?” Mobius, what about the thing on the shelf behind your desk????

Ravonna seems like she’s answered these questions before, but she has a fondness for him that makes me think they’re good friends.

Also does Ravonna have multiple complete collections of the Encyclopaedia Britannica in her office? What are those books??

“I hope it’s a double.” Me too Mobius, me too (drink responsibly).

I don’t get how people think Mobius doesn’t remember leaving the stains. It sounded like Ravonna was chiding him for a bad habit and Mobius just made up a remark, not confusion.

Although he does place the cup at a different spot to the rings.

The ship flying past in the windows is a wonderful detail.

“The variant likes to stall for time.” It's very satisfying to me how everything stays relevant. Every detail advances the plot/contributes to it.

“Look, I know you have a soft spot for broken things.”

“I don’t think so-”

“Yes you do.”

Both Mobius and Ravonna only look at the middle figure when referring to the time Keepers. Either the other two are side-lined or don’t contribute at all.

“I’ll delete him myself.” At this point in time, I think Mobius is serious. As the episode progresses, his status may have changed, especially after the Jet Ski philosophy session.

Ravonna’s sash on the peg reminds me of the ones the people talking to Casey were wearing in episode 1.

Man those doors are so cool.

Peak sitting outside the principal’s office energy.

Mobius whistles at Loki as opposed to talking to him like he does later.

Any screen shot from the following scene is pristine chaotic disaster bi Loki energy featuring tired-of-your-tomfoolery Mobius.

“Isn’t that precisely why I’m here?” This marked a change in Loki to me. Up until that point, he’d tried to use what he’d known, who he’d been by scheming his way to the Time Keepers. By admitting he wasn’t sure of his purpose, we’re back with the person at the end of the last episode. It’s very Loki to try all avenues to get what he wants, and after having his world turned upside-down a few times in a short period, maybe he just wanted the familiarity of his old tricks, who he thinks he is.

Loki tensing up and then trying to assert control again reaffirms what I just said.

Man, give Mobius a holiday after all of this. Loki really tested him, huh?

Loki definitely likes validation on some level.

TVA archives (a.k.a the Salad Scene)

I can’t believe that place really exists. The looks combined with the music are just *chef kisses*.

I’m not sure if I’m thinking of the right progression, but the music reminds me of a plagal cadence. Google examples and play it side-by-side, you’ll get what I mean, maybe someone knows what it really is?

On either side of the elevators near the Time Keeper statues are the signs TVA archives.

The symmetry pleases my goblin brain.

I believe the entire show was just flexing the skills of the Loki crew and I couldn’t be happier.

“Pretend your life depends on it. I’m gonna get a snack.” This was so funny in the trailers but Mobius is dead serious (delete him myself comment). And he couldn’t even enjoy his salad.

Love that the end of credits takes from some of the scenes in episode 2.

The archivist has neat glasses.

I want some TVA stationary y’all.

It’s that moment fam.

I can’t be the only one curious by the ‘DISPLACED by 000:000:002:162’. Is that in Units? It would explain why the time line looks slightly bendy whenever we see it, especially if Apocalypses are so frequent.

IT’S THE SALAD LADS!

Mobius is reading the magazine that Loki was looking at earlier. Jet skis are Mobius’ comfort character.

“Don’t set fire to the palace.”

Tom Hiddleston has so much energy, he can move so fast.

“Oh God.” - Mobius, Null Time Zone

“YOU.” - Casey, Null Time Zone

Casey!

No thoughts, head empty, the Salad (TM).

But seriously, people only seem to be at their tables with others that work in a similar section. Not hunters and analysts eating in tandem to me, folks.

Oh Casey. Please don’t hurt him.

Aw, Mobius’ little giggle warmed my heart. Owen Wilson’s giving me whiplash with Mobius. My heart can’t take this y’all.

79 AD Pompeii, Italy

They’re both so giddy, Your Honour, I love them.

Mobius snuck them out lol.

“Bird noises?”

“BE FREE MY HORNED FRIENDS, BE FREE!” The post wouldn’t be complete without this.

Loki just throwing food at people and telling them “...enjoy your last meal while you can” is top tier comedy to me.

This is the first time we see Loki openly say nothing matters. I feel like the case file on the destruction of Asgard really pushed him to treat fate as unchangeable.

LXXIX is 79. Nice one Loki crew!

Mobius’ eye twitching as he checks the variance is a nice touch.

Loki throws away the stick that was holding the goat pen closed at the end.

TVA Archives, TVA cafeteria

Mobius picked up those files so smoothly I had to re-watch it.

Their position reflected what they were talking about - when Loki thinks it’s his individual contribution, he’s walking separately to Mobius, but they meet up when working together. I loved the blocking in that little moment.

I seriously thought that Loki was unconscious when I first saw him asleep around Mobius. I’ll admit it, it felt out-of-character for someone with such bad trust issues. Both of them seem pretty tired tho.

It’s the Jet Ski conversation comrades!

I’m beaming. Mobius talking about Jet Skis was the only time I’ve really remembered it’s Owen Wilson talking. It’s such a fun line to think about!

Loki’s smile. Adorable.

Just go watch the scene, it’ll give you good brain juices.

Mobius does it all for the Jet Skis and nothing else. I don’t make the rules, the Time Keepers do.

“My own glorious purpose.” This is a recurring theme in the season. Ultimately, I think that Loki is going to run for as long as it brings in money/until Loki gets killed again. However, I do like to think that in following seasons we’ll move beyond setting up Phase 4 Marvel stuff and just get deep dives into Loki’s character, though it may happen in the later eps or not be as interesting. Part of what made this show so interesting is the new setting in the Marvel universe but it’s hard to make predictions as to whether it will last in a show featuring the God of Mischief. Whatever happens, I’m happy that we got to see Loki’s existential crisis together, lads.

The music picks up, signalling that this quiet moment is about to end.

“No one bad is ever truly bad. And no one good is every truly good.”

“Scared little boy.”

These lines mean a lot to me. Loki perceives Mobius as an equal, similar to himself but not completely identical. The TVA’s whole aesthetic is Kafkaesque (Disney+ used that word), the imperfections keeping the place from looking mechanical and orderly like what the TVA promotes itself to be. Loki wants Mobius to acknowledge it, but Mobius is in the past, not addressing what’s right in front of him, surrounding him. That’s probably because Mobius doesn’t believe, he accepts what he’s been told though Loki wants to change that. He’s still focused on his job, the variant. I don’t think Mobius will struggle against change in the ‘belief’ part as long as things are rational.

Kate Herron (director) said that the Kablooie scene was improv which makes me wish we had more B roll of Owen and Tom. They seem so professional, invested and fun on set.

“No wonder you’re so bitter.” I’m sorry Mobius you sound as salty as your salad.

‘Artificially flavoured chewing gum’ Has something happened causing artificial flavouring to be preferred?

‘Blue’ has canonically changed to ‘Bloo’ by 2050 in America in the MCU. I blame capitalism.

Why does Mobius look so tiny? I say that like Owen Wilson wouldn’t look like a giant next to me lol.

Owen Wilson is 3.5 inches (9 centimetres) shorter than Tom Hiddleston. Yet he is dwarfed as Mobius. I need to stop talking about this and move on.

There’s no ‘variance energy detected’ line in the report.

“You’re gonna take my job if I’m not careful.” Loki looks so chuffed.

One day, I’ll properly address my thoughts on the shipping. Until then, I just want no one to die.

“Yeah, he’s doing great.” Mobius is so hyped. Good for him.

Owen Wilson has dimples.

Ravonna’s screen doesn’t show the timeline like it does later.

Ravonna is the done mom friend. Sane, undeserving of this, please give her a jet ski moment.

Buckle up folks because the last twenty minutes of this episode are my favourite so far.

At 34 minutes in, we get the music fading in with “Okay. But Mobius...” and a transition to my favourite composition so far. Natalie Holt outdid herself. The soundtrack is nearly constant, there’s no break for a moment of clarity anymore. The progression of events is inevitable, tying the bow on a plot line created in an hour and a half. The little embellishment from the strings (possibly) as Mobius and Loki exit is perfect. Combined with Loki’s raised fist leading to a pan to the ceiling, it prepared the audience for everything being turned upside down.

The changing camera angles and shot lengths (the continuous shot when B-15 takes the knives, the circling behind as the briefing occurs) keep viewers on their toes. The continuous shot is fluid, B-15 doesn’t look at Loki or Mobius, her reaction is natural and that just proves that the timing on that scene was impeccable. The circling behind reminded me of Loki positioning himself behind Mobius as he did earlier, but now he’s on the same side, part of the team though he continues to distinguish between himself and the variant. The building sensation that change is coming is met by the incredible swell in the music as we watch the picturesque Haven Hills get destroyed by modern technology and face the terrifying reality that is the Roxxcart store. There’s a close up on the Roxxcart storefront with school buses with the words ‘Evacuation shuttle’ in the background as we see the TVA’s minutemen come out reinforcing that even when the end is nigh, large corporations will loom over. A storm is raging with worse to come. I can go on and on, but you get the point.

2050 Roxxcart Disaster

I love that y’all are calling this the Alabama supermarket breakup. Makes me chuckle, that’s for sure.

I too hate when people can hear my footsteps. Someone that gets the struggle.

Sylvie places the TVA Samsung over a Roxxcart Security manual. She’s overridden both and is in control.

The date is 03/15/2050.

I think that the way the Hunters and minutemen hold their baton things is so that they don’t get yeeted. Neat.

As always, the beats are slick yo.

I hope the Azaleas guy gets some Azaleas wherever he ended up.

I love the way Loki says “In this storm.” It’s so satisfying for no real reason.

The wonderful Wunmi Mosaku does not get the recognition she deserves for this scene. She switched from B-15 to Sylvie so effortlessly. They’re two distinct characters, her facial expressions, body language everything changed in that instant. Even from the one line, “No, they usually survive,” her delivery had changed in a way that was noticeable. It’s uncanny, exactly what was needed when facing a foe that remained unseen. And the smile? It’s before we know the variant as Sylvie, so naturally it’s that signature Loki smile with a hint of malice we associate with the variant. Damn y’all, Wunmi’s incredible! I really hope she’s recognised for being so talented in this series, if not in all her other work!

Mobius really cares about those people. I really want his redemption (?) arc.

It’s been pointed out that even in those conditions, Roxxcart were selling blankets and water. I think it means that by 2050, cash would be defunct. If only electronic payment existed, as long as there’s electricity they can run a business. Chew on that.

If the man they speak to is 50 to 60, he was a 90s kid.

There must be a difference in the reprogramming or kind of variant selected to be a hunter as compared to an analyst. The Hunters look after their own, but the analysts (or Mobius) go as far as empathising with variants.

C-20 is sitting in front of safety standards.

“A bit amateurish.” Loki knows that the variant isn’t as skilled with magic as he is.

As Loki and the possessed people walk, the lighting becomes brighter. He’s moving out of the shadows.

Me too Loki, I’m worried about B-15 too.

Sylvie unironically saying bless is hilarious.

Randy must be hella tall.

There’s a low angle shot as Loki and Randy face off with the flickering light above with a sign hanging above them like a sword of Damocles and a physical separation. Terror is nearly constant in Loki's life now, but he responds by letting go of his drive to survive.

The subtle swells in the music just add to my rising blood pressure.

C-20’s voice over is sad lads.

“I wanna go home,” we know she’s not referring to the TVA.

Mobius seems like a caring person.

When B-15 sits up and searches the room, I think it’s her realisation. Her shiver was from fear and shock, the music wasn’t about her not seeing Loki, it was about the TVA and what had happened to her.

The head snap and the score timing matching. So satisfying.

“I would never treat me like this. Hi.” I think that’s Loki realising that his foe is not willing to talk their way through conflict.

This fight scene contradicts all the magic we see later ik, but if he didn’t want to hurt anyone and was trying to draw out the real enemy it made sense.

Some of Sylvie’s powers must come into the people she possesses. The guy punched a glass screen and didn’t even bleed.

“I have shit to do.” Sylvie wasn’t raised with court etiquette (from what we know) and her lexical choice reflects that.

Dell computers survive into 2050 in the MCU. So do those robot dogs and Roombas. I am only happy about the Roombas. Where did the real dogs go? :(

“Mobius.”

“Where is he?”

“I lost him.”

“What happened?”

“I...”

Until now, B-15’s delivery has felt slightly rhythmic, like she was used to having the same arguments, particularly with Mobius. When she trails off however, I think it’s her trying to rationalise what she’s been through with Sylvie’s possession. Her devotion to the TVA was rooted in the fact that she wasn’t a variant, her life had a purpose and it was intentional. This must have rocked her, I’m invested in where she’ll go.

THE CUT TO BLACK OH GOOD GOSH.

Sylvie, my queen. I’d roll off a cliff for her.

The person with the moustache (you know the one) has pure fear on his face.

Ravonna knows what’s up.

And so do you, yes it’s the music, go listen to it.

THE RED LIGHTING

The zoom out to that incredible hallway shot and then stopping behind the time door. It was never about him after all, he was in the background of her plans.

Sylvie’s wave in Roxxcart vs. Loki’s on the train. Discuss.

The blackout, thunder and Loki’s pause under the flickering red and white light, do y’all really want me to talk about the s y m b o l i s m????

He’s conflicted, you know it, I know it, Mobius knows it.

Speaking of Mobius, there he is, we cut back to Loki and see him make his decision, zooming back in on him.

And with that final flourish in the score, we are done with episode 2!

Cue the most amazing end credits score you’ll ever hear.

Do yourself a favour, listen to all of it, including the part after the main credits, both are Works. Of. Art.

Ep 2 review

In case you didn’t notice, this is my favourite episode so far. There are parts I didn’t take to as much, but details from the previous episode being used in the plot as well as others being explained by Sylvie in episode 3. Rewatching it was easier than episode 1 though it left me wanting more. It will get more interesting from here, but until then, that was a fun romp.

See y'all next time. I hope whoever's reading this has a wonderful day!

Part 1, Episode 1 extend review link:

[capricornus-rex]

Flying Lessons (1)

Cal Kestis x Reader

Summary: You and Cal make Greez fulfill a promise that he has made—teaching the pair of you to pilot a real ship.

Next: Part 2 | Masterlist

1 of ?

You and Cal relish the sunshine in Takodana while enjoying your drinks at the rooftop lounge of Maz’s castle. The both of you made up a game where you spot a droid and try to identify them.

From above, you spot a blue HURID-327—a likeness of the Haxion Brood bounty droid that you bump into certain worlds every now and then—stomping by the entrance of the castle; as for Cal, he discreetly points at a PZ protocol droid and recites it name.

“You sure know your droids,” you commented.

“Thanks. You’re not so bad yourself,”

Your game was cut short as your collective attention was drawn by the arrival of a ship—probably belonging to one of Maz’s regular customers. The mere sight of the ship reminded you of something, you didn’t waste time in telling Cal before the idea dissolves away from your mind.

“Have you ever piloted a ship on your own?”

“Unless you count lifts that I used to drive in Bracca, then no. I suppose you have?”

You beamed, “Nope!”

“Okay, so… Where did that come from?”

“Do you remember what Greez told us once—back in Zeffo?”

“Which one exactly? He mentioned a lot of things,” he chuckled.

“That he’d teach us some flying tricks,”

A smirk played along Cal’s face, “I think I see where you’re getting at,”

Once finished with your drinks, you tugged him by the sleeve of his jumpsuit and raced to the ground floor of the castle, nimbly slipping through bar patrons and blurting out “Excuse me!” or “Sorry!” as you startle them with your zooming past.

The two of you find Greez exactly where you want him—he was chatting with Maz, Cere, and Merrin by the bar. You come running towards their cluster, but specifically for Greez.

“Greez!” Cal called, startling the old Lateron so much that the glass in his hand clattered.

“Geez, you two kids always gotta give me a heart attack one way of another, huh?!”

“Could you teach us how to fly?” the excitement in your voice strung your words together that it was nearly incoherent.

The wrinkles on Greez’s head became more visible as he asked you to repeat your question and you obliged in a more comprehensible speaking pace, but your perkiness didn’t fade out.

“Could you teach us to fly?”

“I’d love to, but what ship are you gonna drive? Definitely not the Mantis!”

Greez emphasized on his latter sentence by waving his two right arms in front of you and Cal, however, that wasn’t enough to kill your resolve.

“Aw come on, Greez. Neither of us are gonna put a scratch on her.” Cal reassures.

“I’m sure both of you aren’t going to. But have either of you piloted a ship before?”

Both of you shook heads—Cal even reminded the Lateron that he’s already answered that question back in Zeffo.

“Well, I’ve never personally held a ship’s steering wheel. Just landspeeders,” you answer.

“Same here. Just scrapper lifts back in Bracca,” Cal added.

Greez’s worry doubled and he expressed that frustration with a long groan. Maz chuckled and politely cuts into the conversation between the three of you.

“You don’t trust these children, Greez?”

“Well, I… I’m not saying I don’t but…” Maz got Greez good as his words reduced to stammers.

When the Lateron was at a loss for words, Maz chuckled in a combined amusement and triumph. Greez tried to redeem himself and his words, he finally came to a coherent sentence.

“Look, if someone else is gonna touch the Mantis’s steering wheel—“ he planets his two right thumbs on his chest, “I have to be on the passenger seat—no matter how annoying it is to have me hovering over your shoulder!”

Cal playfully raised one eyebrow at him, “So, is that a yes?”

“Maybe if the pair of you do learn how to fly—in a different ship, obviously—maybe, just maybe, I will.”

Maz chuckled in a scoffing manner and then waved her hand at the two of you, beckoning your attention to her.

“I think I have something that you can two can work with,”

“Really?” Your eyes lit up.

“Follow me,”

The elderly orange creature hopped off her stool at the bar but she stopped in her tracks because she got any farther. She pointed and wagged her finger to Greez.

“You too, Greez, come with me.”

“Why me?” he groaned.

“Just follow!”

The four of you walked, with Maz on the lead, you reached what seemed to be the back door of the castle as the patrons idling and mingling became less and less. The back door leads to the outside of the castle but it faces the forest. Maz continued on towards the woods, the hiking has come to a halt when the group got to a clearing. In that clear patch surrounded by trees, a canvas tarp formed a large silhouette, the tarp was enormous that Maz had to pull it a few more times but you and Cal stepped in to help.

What the tarp revealed took your breaths away. It was a pair of Eta-class shuttles.

“Where did you get these?” Cal asked in wonderment.

“These served as payments to me, from a loan a long time ago,” she answered somberly.

“How did two shuttles equate as payment?”

Maz commended your insightful question before answering it.

“It’s simple: either my payer brings the debt in full credits or something of the same value. Some smugglers did me wrong and so I had their ships end up as payment.”

She was quick to cut it short with the exposition about how she got them as it interested nobody among the group. She then questioned your willingness to still learn how to pilot a ship.

You look to Cal, as if waiting for some initiative or prompt, he looked back with the same idea in mind. Both of you stepped forward to each ship.

“You seem to have tended to them quite well,” you commented.

“Yes, I have some droids programmed to take care of them,”

“Even the maintenance work?”

Maz nodded in reply confidently.

Your fingers ran across the little nicks and other battle scars that it has gotten from its past adventures, dust clung onto the pads of your fingertips when you pulled your hand away.

“Are you sure with lending us these?”

“Of course! I’d love to see Greez teach one of you how to fly,” Maz replied with a certain perkiness that matched her unique personality. “Which reminds me: how about we settle that score of ours, Greez?”

Greez, again, was startled by the reminder. The two of you were surprised that there was something going on between the two. Utterly fascinated, you pressed Greez with another question.

“What score?”

“I can’t believe you still remember that!”

“What is Maz talking about, Greez?” Cal added to the pressure.

“It was a bet to see who the better pilot was,” Greez breathed out a defeated sigh. “Maz has a knack for challenging old friends—a good way of feeding her ego too.”

“And now that you two youngsters are here—I suppose we can add best instructor!”

“It’s on!” you cheered.

You and Cal were enthused with the challenge—that wasn’t technically directed to either of you, but more on to Greez—but you encouraged Maz with the idea, ultimately pinning Greez to the corner with no other choice, and so the poor, old Lateron caved in with the game.

[tiny-maus-boots]

The Howl pt 15

A/N: thank you thank you thank you to everyone still reading and all that comment and kudo. special thanks to bestie beta person @chloes-yellow-cup

15.

“It’s time Bree.”

Aubrey nodded and peeked her head out of the garage, blinking at the still bright sun before pulling herself back inside. The pack would be there any moment and she was sure they had picked this time specifically to put her at a disadvantage. Stacie rolled her shoulders and rotated her head trying to work out of the tension of the coming full moon. She was doing her best to try and stay calm but Aubrey could feel her eagerness to run and howl singing through their connection.

She turned and pulled her mate close for a soft kiss. This was the night that would make them whole in the eyes of the pack but they were already one in her heart. Nothing was going to stop her from getting to Stacie, not even Redd. The taller woman smiled into the kiss; her normally warm hands already fever hot with the rush of wild wolf power rising to the surface. Aubrey watched as Stacie’s eyes bled to a rich golden glow, the muscles in her face twitching as she controlled her shift to keep it at bay.

“Are you ready?”

“Was just gonna ask you the same thing. You have a lot of competition tonight, Angus said even the outliers are choosing to run tonight.”

The vampire dipped her head in a short nod. She was aware that the pool of contenders had grown since news of the parley had been confirmed. They all had a vested interest in seeing how this hunt would end and she was sure most of them were hoping for a wolf to be the victor. Aubrey brought her hand up to trace a cool fingertip along Stacie’s furrowed brow, smoothing it gently.

“I was ready to be yours the moment we first bonded. You just run and keep running. I’ll find you.”

The touched foreheads, Stacie’s breath coming in short shuddered pants as the wolf in her struggled to get out. They didn’t need the formality of vows or even real words for her to know that they were choosing each other. The hunt would be all the final word they needed anyway.

“Knock knock.” They turned at the sound of Angus’ low rumbling voice. He stood just inside the doorway a solid mountain of muscle and swirling restless energy. “Ready to run with the wolves?”

There was a slight tick in his cheek, as he leveled his gaze at her. Aubrey gave a slight nod, squaring her shoulders in response. She was ready for whatever would come to pass once the sun fell and the power of the moon called to them all. The blonde vampire shrugged out of her machete harness and placed it carefully in Stacie’s hands. She wasn’t worried about another vampire taking it, they wouldn’t be able to use it anyway, but she was reluctant to let it out of her sight.

“I’ll put it somewhere safe. I promise.”

Aubrey gave her a mate a soft smile and stood on her toes to give Stacie one last kiss on the chin and turned to follow Angus outside. He stopped her with a hand and held up a full faced helmet with tinted shield. The vampire looked at it for a long moment and raised her brows in question.

“The sun is still up, I thought…”

He shrugged unsure how to say whatever he had been thinking. It was a kindness she hadn’t expected and Aubrey took the helmet gratefully. She opened her mouth to thank him but Angus gave a soft grunt and gestured for her to follow him outside, perhaps uncomfortable with her gratitude. A ghost of a smile flitted across her face as she pulled it on and stepped out into the sun after him. She hoisted herself into the passenger seat of the large truck and shut the door quickly to avoid more exposure than necessary.

“Buckle up.” Aubrey turned her helmeted head and blinked at him through the dark tinted mask. Angus blinked then nodded as it dawned on him that buckling the seat belt was completely unnecessary. “Right. You’re uh already…well. Okay then.”

She turned back to face the front sensing her attention was making him feel awkward. Aubrey didn’t want to count him as an ally because alliances were made and broken easily in life, but that he showed concern for her said much. The vampire wasn’t likely to forget any time soon and appreciated it none the less. There was only one road out of town and he followed it, the truck tires cutting furrows in the thin crust of already muddy snow.

It didn’t take long to reach the gathering of pack wolves, surrounded by parked cars and trucks. Angus pulled up alongside the others and parked. He took a calming breath and gripped the steering wheel in his big hands. Aubrey waited it out sensing that he had something he wanted to say but not wanting to push. And if she were being honest with herself, she wasn’t quite eager to step back out into the swiftly lowering sun just yet. Protected or not the demon in her was still afraid of the relentless power of the sun.

“He’s gonna try something, man like Redd doesn’t much like losing. Not especially losing his chance to be with Stacie. Whatever happens, whatever you hear or see, you keep running. Understand?” If he could see her face he would have noticed the surprised widening of her eyes. Angus shook his head slightly in disappointment as he continued. “Not everyone here is on his side, but you can’t count on anything out there aside from your own ability. I’ll do my best to watch your back, getting to her is on you.”

“Why are you helping me?”

Angus turned his head to stare at her, his pale blue eyes clouding with a soft golden hue as his beast rose slowly. A soft knock on the window drew her attention away from him and Cynthia Rose cautiously opened the door for her. Aubrey slid out of the truck and removed the helmet just as the sun dipped past the horizon. The power of her demon flared to life within her, filling her with cold resolve.

Some of the wolves had already started to undress knowing that the full moon would rise quickly. Redd stood apart, chest bare and puffed out in prideful arrogance. She would have ignored him if he hadn’t swaggered up to the truck with the wolves that followed him trailing in his wake. Cynthia Rose stepped between them; her full lips curled back in a snarl that held a promise of violence. He stopped with a smirk on his face, amused at her response to his proximity.

“Guess you’ve chosen a side. Not smart for you when I take my place at Stacie’s side. And you Angus?”

The burly man yanked his shirt over his head and tossed it into the truck but he kept his gaze trained on Redd and the rest of his supporters. Wolves were starting to crowd around them and Aubrey realized with a start that many of them were drifting toward her. For a moment she wondered if she would have to fight them all before the hunt even started but there no one appeared ready to attack.

“Stace is my Alpha, the only side I’m choosing is hers.”

Redmond looked as though he had expected it but it still didn’t sit right with him. He gave a slow nod and looked over the wolves assembled, dismissing Aubrey’s presence like she didn’t matter. When he turned back to her his eyes were full of fire and power and she knew without a doubt that he would kill her if he could. The pull of the moon hit them then, the weakest already dropping to their knees as the pain of the shift tore through them. Redd stood there calmly watching her as one by one the pack twisted and changed. It was a standoff between them, him showing her how strong he was to resist what others couldn’t hold back.

“This ends tonight blood whore. Without your little weapon you’re as good as dead.”

“Oh Rover, you silly mutt. I’ve been dead since before you were born…and I still stole your girl.”

Her lips quirked once as the cold of the grave consumed her. Aubrey flung off the long leather duster and let it drop to the side, hissing as her fangs lengthened fully. She didn’t need her blade, she was dangerous enough on her own. He watched her a second longer before the wolf could not be denied and he dropped to the ground with all the others. She carefully pulled off her heavy boots and left them with her jacket. She didn’t have to get naked like they did but she wanted as little to slow her down as possible.

The moon rose high over the tops of the trees and a loud baying howl shook the snow from their limbs. Stacie. She knew it was her mate without thought, she could feel her mate’s call through their connection and it pulled at her with desperate need. The wolves tipped their heads back and howled out a response, some of them already darting toward the tree line. Aubrey lunged forward no longer caring about the wolves at her back, or the threat at her side. She had one goal, to get to her mate, and she wasn’t going to waste a second more thinking about anything else.

It was easier than she thought to get ahead of them. The weight of their great furred bodies made them sink into the drifts that she was able to speed across without much effort. Aubrey ducked and weaved but as the trees grew closer and tighter she found herself struggling against claw like branches that snagged at her tank top and yanked at her hair. It slowed her down and she could practically feel the hot breath of the wolves at her heels.

A heavy shadow matched her stride, bounding along over felled trees and small boulders just on the other side of a strand of trees. Aubrey spared a quick glance that was almost her undoing when the wolf unexpected cut directly into her path, the weight of it taking her to the hard ground. Teeth snapped viciously at her face as they rolled, the shaggy beast getting the upper hand and pinning her down. The air shifted suddenly above her and the crushing force on her chest lifted with a pained yelp.

The vampire rolled to her knees and took off in a sprint, her legs pumping furiously as she worked to cover the ground she had lost in her brief tussle. A wolf with fur as dark as midnight leapt from the underbrush with a short yipping bark. She tensed waiting for an attack but the wolf kept pace alongside her, tongue lolling out as they ran. Another joined them, loping with the easy grace of an animal used to the wilderness.

Cynthia Rose and Evan.

Her mind supplied the information before she even had time to question it. Aubrey ducked a low hanging branch and kept going. More of Redd’s chosen tried to intercept her and slow her down but there always seemed to be an unexpected ally ready to level the playing field. She didn’t waste time or effort by looking around for potential threats, she simply followed the call of her mate. Her body moved on autopilot, leaping to avoid collision, lashing out to knock her opponents back when they got too close for comfort.

She could sense Redd out there, watching as he raced her to Stacie’s side. He was smart keeping himself hidden and letting his wolves try to bring her down and wear her out. An outright fight between them would end the hunt before it had even begun because she would win and he understood that. It made her re-evaluate how she viewed him; he was by no means a stupid man. If he had been a vampire a few centuries more of experience would have made him a much deadlier enemy to underestimate.

Another echoing howl boomed out and the pack turned en masse to the sound, cutting a path through the snow that veered sharply away from the track they were on. Aubrey skipped to a stop, and waited, her head tipped to the side following the sound of the howl. If she were following just the sound, she would have turned with the pack but a tug on the tether of her connection pulled her forward in a different direction. Stacie was on the move, calling her pack had been an intentional misdirect and she could practically feel the defiant amusement her wolf felt at making the hunt all the more difficult.

Aubrey broke from the path she was on and barreled into the deepest part of the forest. The vampire slowed and raised her head sniffing lightly at the air in a gesture that was more Stacie’s than her own. Blood. It wasn’t much, just the faintest aroma. Her lips pulled into a wide smile, her mate was leaving a trail she was best suited to follow. The trees around thinned, moonlight finally filtering down to the ground from above. She slowed again and pushed her awareness out, searching the darkest spots of the woods around her.

Stacie was close but so was Redd. She had lost track of him when the pack diverged and splintered off and it had been stupid to think he was as easily mislead as the rest of the pack. Of course he was there, he had probably been following her the entire time. A rustle from her left was the only warning she had before his body plowed into hers. Aubrey rolled with the impact and brought her feet up to kick him off her. Claws slashed down her arm as he tried to cling to his prey despite being lifted and tossed away back into the thicket of frozen twigs and brush.

The vampire glanced down at her arm with a low growl of her own, the feeling of it foreign yet familiar. Redd answered, his body darting out low to the ground to take her out at the knees the second she righted herself and tried to stand. The ground came up hard and fast and she had to twist quickly to avoid the bone crushing jaws that tried to close on her throat. Stacie howled again, her call so much closer than ever before. It wouldn’t take long for the pack to find their way to her and she was wasting time wrestling in the snow.

Teeth dug into the forearm she only just managed to get up in time. Redd growled triumphantly and shook his head trying to yank the arm right out of the socket. It hurt. Pain like acid raced down her arm and into her shoulder and she was dragged back further into the woods, further away from Stacie. Power flowed through her in a cold wash, Aubrey slammed her free hand into the ground, her clawed hands digging deep past the layer of permafrost to anchor her to the spot.

“I am SO over you.”

Redd snarled and pulled harder but she flexed, curling the arm still caught in his grip to slowly drag him closer. He tried again, jaws loosening briefly so he could get a better angle. It was all she needed and the second the pressure let up she lashed out with her anchoring hand in a blinding punch that knocked him sideways. The wolf rose unsteadily but she was on him before he could process her movement. Rage took over her good sense for a moment and she had to fight the urge to end him then and there. Only the sharp barks and searching yodels of the pack coming up fast prevented her from sinking her fangs into his soft belly to tear at his flesh.

Aubrey gave another hissing snarl and brought her fist back to punch him again and felt bones crack when it landed brutally against his jaw. He wasn’t dead, and he wouldn’t die. At least not this night and not by her hand. She stood and stumbled forward; Stacie’s pull on her more insistent than before. Her feet were sluggish, her balance unsteady but the more Stacie urged her on the stronger she got until she was running once more. The vampire burst out of the tree line into a clearing and dropped to her knees.

She scanned the area quickly, recognizing a half-buried boot poking up from a small drift of snow. Aubrey crawled to it and ran bloodied fingers over the black leather. Heavy paws padded across the ground and she raised her head to meet the golden eyed gaze of her Alpha. It was only right that they end this where it began.

“Hello, Puppy.”

[asleepinawell]

huge fan of your fics! if you don’t mind me asking, what’s your writing process? i’m always so impressed with how quickly you complete fics, especially when the quality is also wonderful

process is a generous word for it. for the majority of my fics I just...write. no planning, no outlining, just sit down and write and assume plot things will sort themselves out in the end. too much planning ahead makes it less likely I'll finish something because once I know how it all works out I lose interest. I don't usually know how fics are gonna resolve or end, but I often have one or two very clear visuals for a specific moment in time I want to include and I just have to figure out how I'm going to get there.

in the last year though I switched to pre-writing entire fics before posting them. I still don't plan them out or know how they're going to go ahead of time, but it does let me tighten up world building since I can go back and edit early parts with the knowledge of how it ends before I post it.

the trade off is that I don't get the ongoing encouragement/validation of kudos and comments as I go to provide motivation, but so far that hasn't been as big an issue as I thought it would...partly because one of my friends reads my wip stuff a lot which is an enormous help (thank you @themaarika 🙏) and partly because it turns out I really want to know how I'm going to make the story magically work this time!

like it's always great when I'm writing and I realize that some random thing I shoved in the story with very little thought turned out to be the key to how a main plot conflict gets resolved. that was something that happened in a big way in the fic that I just started posting and I was like wow thanks past me!

so I think the writing in full ahead of time thing is working out well for me. it's way less stressful since I don't feel like I run the risk of losing interest and leaving a story unfinished after I start posting it. and I don't feel bad for taking forever to post a chapter. wǣrloga is the longest I've done that with, though originally I'd guessed it would only be 40-50k words and it ended up at 74k-ish. considering stc was supposed to be, like, 60k and ended up at 319k I figure my estimate wasn't too bad by comparison.

so yeah, I usually get a story idea and fixate on it and maybe think up some cool random ideas associated with it. in some specific instances I then pause to do research. for the dishonored au fic I went and read through the book I have that has every single book/note/text from the game and spent a lot of time on the wiki and replayed all the games to nail down the world of the game to make it as accurate as possible. for the lighthouse fic I spent some time looking up how lighthouses worked and diagrams of the insides of lighthouses. a lot of times I'll find ref images too of things that fit the story aesthetically. I very occasionally have a mood playlist as well. I did for this latest one.

then I just open a gdoc and start typing. I don't outline but as I write I often scrawl down notes to myself about things I need to resolve in the plot later. in the case of wǣrloga, which was unique in the fact the world building was entirely original and I prewrote it (as opposed to star wars and dishonored au which were prewritten but based on existing worlds) I made a ton of notes as I went of things I changed slightly to improve world building that I would have to go back and correct after.

once I finish a chapter I usually read it through once or twice and do a rough edit. at that point if a friend is reading it I'm okay sending it to them. there's often still typos (I write everything in gdocs on my phone with a swype keyboard and it makes some wild typos) and sometimes I'll realize I need to add part of a scene, but it's a good draft at that point. then I'll move onto the next chapter. for the last fic, when I finished the whole thing, I went back and fixed some specific notes I had and then edited the whole thing together as one for pacing and stuff.

then I spend like 3-4 days whining about how titles are hard and eventually start posting.

way more than you probably ever wanted to know. and thank you!

[therainroguefanfiction]

⁂ Lookin’ Cool (Weiming Shen)

Genre: Friendship, Comedy, Slice of Life, Fluff ☁

Word Count: 2,528 ☁

Pairing: Reader, Weiming ☁

World: The Prince of Tennis – Match! Tennis Juniors ☁

Prompt: This from @write-it-motherfuckers​

Author’s Note: This is my first time writing for Chinapuri and I am honestly nervous about how people will view this lol Honestly, I’m mainly concerned with the names because I’m not sure how the Chinese do their names, if it’s like Last Name First Name or reversed, or if people use first names or the full name. Anywho~ I hope you enjoyed this!

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You paced the locker room anxiously, waiting for tennis practice to conclude. Your anxiety had been steadily building all day, so much so that you couldn’t even bring yourself to each lunch. Chen was also feeling nervous, but at least he had tennis practice to keep his mind busy. You, on the other hand, tried watching practice, reading a book, and even working on your homework, but nothing has held your attention.

A groan passed your lips as you fell onto the bench. ‘Maybe I should have picked up an after school club. I wonder if the manga club is still accepting members…’

The door swung open, Jing and Xiuwen pausing in the doorway when they noticed you.

“Why are you in here?” Jin made a face. “You’re not on the team, you’re not supposed to be in here.”

You rolled your eyes. “It’s not like you have trade secrets for me to steal.” Pausing for dramatic effect, you tapped your chin and narrowed your eyes at them. “Or do you? Maybe I should have a look around. After beating Yu Feng, lots of people are looking at Yu Qing. I bet that info’d sell for top yuan!”

Xiuwen gasped dramatically. “You wouldn’t!”

With a smirk, you rested your chin between your thumb and index fingers, striking a pose. “Oh, I would!”

Jing opened his mouth to reply when a monotone voice came from behind him. “You’re in the way, can you move?”

Stepping away from the door so Lu Xia could enter the locker room, Jing sent you a glare. “Out, Y/N!”

“Yeah, yeah.” You rolled your eyes again, grabbing your school bag before leaving the room. Chen was just rounding the corner, nearly knocking into you. “If you take too long, I’m going to leave without you.”

He scoffed. “Yeah right. You’d fall apart without me there.”

“In your dreams!” You huffed, continuing down the hallway. Not that you’d ever admit it out loud, but you knew he was right. Even with the thought of Chen being there to keep you from acting too stupid, you still felt like a bundle of frayed nerves. If he wasn’t going, you would probably just ditch the meeting and go home.

Lost in thought, you ran straight into Siyang and Zhi as they stepped into the building.

“Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.”

Siyang nodded, voice monotone. “Be more vigilant, Y/N.”

You sweatdropped at his attitude. “Right…”

Zhi chuckled, resting his hands on your shoulders. “You’re pretty tense. Is everything okay?”

‘He’s got that glint in his eye. Nothing good ever happens when he looks like that…’ You forced a smile, pushing his hands away. “Perfectly fine! Just didn’t get much sleep last night.”

His lips twitched up. “Oh yes, Qiao Chen mentioned something about you having a bad dream.”

‘That son of a – I’m gonna kill him! Of all the people to tell…’ Your eye twitched and you struggled to keep up the fake smile. “A-Ah yeah. I really need to get go -”

“Wait,” Yan appeared out of nowhere, hand on your shoulder to keep you in place. “If you’re experiencing nightmares, try drinking this. It will help.”

You stared at the bottle of green, bubbling liquid and your stomach turned. “You know, I would, but uhh… it’s against my religion?”

Yan tilted his head to the left, not pulling the bottle from your face.

“Hm? Aren’t you an atheist, Y/N?” Zhi questioned, smirking when you sent him a glare.

“What’s going on -”

As soon as you saw Chen, you grabbed his arm and bolted from the building, not sparing the three a single glance. He protested as you dragged him all the way to the school gate, huffing when you finally came to a stop.

“Aren’t you just a bit too excited?” he teased.

“You’re one to talk. Still hearing music when you see Xingzi?”

His cheeks darkened and he punched your shoulder lightly. “Shaddup,”

You started down the street away from the school with Chen at your side. “Ha! What a loser,”

“You dreamed about Weiming last night but I’m the loser?”

It was your turn for your cheeks to darken. “Don’t say it like that, idiot, you make it sound dirty! Also,” you suddenly brought your arm back, punching him in the spleen.

“W-What the hell -?!”

“That was for telling Zhi about my dream!”

“I didn’t!”

“How did he know then? He may be a genius but he’s not psychic.”

“I only mentioned it to Lu Xia and Mu!” He scowled.

“You told Mu?!” You cried out, stopping to stare at him incredulously. “He can’t keep his mouth shut to save his life. Everyone he meets knows his business.”

“Mentioned,” he stressed. “I mentioned it, not told.”

“Same thing!”

“It’s not the same thing!”

“Ahem,”

Both your and Chen’s attention snapped to Xingzi who stood nearby with Weiming and Yiwu on either side of her. She was smiling in amusement, but the two boys didn’t seem happy to see the two of you. Though, in the short time you’ve known Yiwu, you’ve never even seen him smile, so that didn’t mean much.

You and Chen exchanged sheepish glances before you cleared your throat in an attempt to fight the embarrassed blush that was trying to rise up to your face.

“It’s supposed to rain,” Xingzi commented with a smile. “We should hurry to the park so we can play at least one game.” She then turned, continuing down the road with both boys following close behind.

“Che,” Chen clicked his tongue, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “Why do they always have to be so close to her?”

You frowned at their backs, copying his stance. “I don’t know, but I hate it.”

“Me too,”

Xingzi glanced over her shoulder, noticing that neither of you had moved and she waved her arm in the air. “Guys, come on!”

Yiwu mumbled something to Weiming, which made his eyes snap to yours. You quickly dodged his gaze by speeding up and passing the three. A light breeze ruffled your clothes, offering a small break from the summer heat, and the sinking sun was slowly being covered by light grey clouds.

Only a couple people were at the street court when your group arrived and they were packing up their things to leave.

Xingzi pulled out her pink racket and grinned. “So, who’s going first?”

You and Chen exchanged a look. No matter what, you didn’t want to be paired with your crush and you knew that he was thinking the exact same thing. As if it had been rehearsed, the two of you suddenly pointed at one another and chorused, “Chen/Y/N can go first!”

She giggled. “Why not play some doubles? Yiwu and Weiming versus Y/N and Chen!”

Without hesitation, Chen agreed, his face lighting up like a puppy that had just gotten attention from its master. “Great idea!”

You glared at your best friend, resisting the urge to punch him again. Thunder grumbled overhead and you glanced up at the darkening sky. ‘Even mother nature thinks this is a bad idea…’ You headed to the far end of the court, dropping your school bag onto the bench. Although you knew how to play tennis, it wasn’t something you genuinely enjoyed doing often. You knew you wouldn’t be able to hold a handle to the two boys who played tennis regularly and you were just going to make yourself look like an idiot again.

Chen bumped your shoulder as he stopped beside you, dropping his tennis bag next to your own. “Don’t worry, we got this!”

You scoffed. “I’ve never even played doubles before, but I bet our coordination is complete trash.”

“Me and Lu Xia figured it out!”

“Hardly! All you did was play singles together.”

“Maybe, but it worked.” He threw his arm around your shoulder. “This is our chance to impress our crushes! Besides,” he glanced up as another grumble of thunder passed overhead. “It’ll rain long before the game ends.”

You pulled your racket from the bag, running your fingers across the smooth surface, painted your favorite color. Taking a deep breath, you tried to steel your resolve. “Fake it ’til you make it, huh?”

“Right!” He grinned. “Let’s do this!”

Yiwu and Weiming were already on the court waiting. You took position at the back of the court and as soon as Chen was in position, Yiwu threw the ball into the air, smacking it toward you. You recognized it instantly – twist serve.

Chen just barely managed to dodge before it hit his face.

‘Twist serve, huh? They’re not holding back.’

As he prepared to serve again, you suddenly remembered the match that you had watched the night before with your uncle. The pro, Xi Yangwi, was a twist serve specialist while his opponent and childhood friend, Jang Yilong, had learned fancy tricks in order to counter it. One of the best counters, in your opinion, was the takeout. Yilong would move to intercept the ball with his face before pulling back at the last possible second, doing a spin before returning it backhanded. It always had the crowd going wild when he used it.

‘If I can pull off that move, I bet Weiming would be so impressed.’

Yiwu served again and you rushed forward, nearly knocking into Chen as he tried to hit the ball.

“Y/N -”

“I got it!” You threw yourself in the direct trajectory of the ball. You saw it heading for your face and you sent orders to the rest of your body, but it seemed as if the messenger was too pre-occupied to deliver them – you couldn’t possibly react in time. You heard your name being called, but with the blood pumping in your ears, you couldn’t tell who had said it.

The ball smacked into your face like a ton of bricks, the world spinning rapidly around you as you fell backward onto the court, pain shooting through your face. Chen’s head appeared above you, blocking your blurred view of the sky.

“Y/N! Are you okay?”

“I don’t get it…” you muttered to yourself, voice nasally from the damage to your nose.

He grabbed your shoulder and forced you into a sitting position. Yiwu and Weiming had approached the net, watching the two of you closely. Xingzi stepped onto the court and gasped. “You’re bleeding!”

You reached up to touch your face, feeling thick, warm blood on your fingertips. Upon doing so, a sharp pain shot through your face. “Motherfuking tap-dancing satan on a bagel, that hurts!”

“Then why the hell did you do it?” Chen scowled.

Xingzi pulled a towel from her bag before returning to your side. “Here,”

You took it with a grimace, carefully holding it under your nostrils to soak up the blood. “I thought it looked cool…” you mumbled, tilting your head toward the sky. The light gray clouds had turned dark, thunder roaring loudly overhead to act as a warning. A moment later, rain was blanketing the earth, the drops sending waves of pain through your face every time they landed on your nose.

Chen helped you to your feet, bringing you over to the awning that covered one of the benches. It did little to block the rain, especially with the wind blowing.

“We should take you to the hospital,” Xingzi frowned, brushing her wet hair away from her face. “Your nose might be broken.”

At the mention of a hospital, your nose instinctively wrinkled, causing you to wince in pain. It honestly hurt like a bitch, but you were positive that it wasn’t broken and you hated hospitals. You pulled the towel away from your nose and swiped your fingers under your nostrils. It was still bleeding, but it had already slowed down. “No, I’m okay.”

Chen exchanged a look with her before taking wrapping his arm around your own. “Come on, I’ll help you home.”

“You live in the opposite direction,” you muttered, pulling your arm away from his. “I’m fine, really.”

“Weiming lives in the same direction,” Xingzi commented, turning her gaze to him. “Can you make sure Y/N gets home safe?”

Your cheeks burned at the thought and you were thankful that your skin was already discolored from the injury. “Ah, no! It’s really okay, I don’t want to trouble him.”

“He’s right here, you know.” Weiming rolled his eyes, returning his racket to his bag before swinging it over his shoulder. “Let’s go before the rain picks up.”

Chen stopped him, expression deadly serious. “You better take care of Y/N.”

“I don’t need you to tell me that.” Weiming scoffed, sending him a hard look. The expression softened when he turned his attention to you, his slender fingers gently wrapping around your upper arm.

You said nothing as you walked at his side, the rain helping to keep you cool despite how hot your face was. The first few minutes passed by in silence and you were in the middle of having an internal debate over whether or not you should try to strike up a conversation when he spoke up.

“Don’t do that again.”

“Eh?” You blinked dumbly, surprised that he had actually broken the silence.

He glanced at you before turning his attention forward again. “Whatever stunt you were trying to pull, don’t do it again.”

You lowered your head, fist clenching around the towel. This made your nose throb but you were thankful for the distraction. “Yeah… I won’t.”

He continued as if he didn’t hear you. “Why would you try such a risky move? You know you’re not even that good at tennis. The fakeout is a pro-level counter.”

You winced at his harsh words and the bite of his tone. “I know I suck, you don’t have to rub it in…”

“That’s not -” Weiming paused, his fingers tightening so you’d stop walking. “Look at me, Y/N.”

You forced your eyes to meet his and nearly melted where you stood. Why did he have to be so damn attractive? Even more so with the way his hair clung to his face, water dripping down his skin.

“- that’s why.”

You blinked, realizing he had been speaking for several moments and you hadn’t heard a word of it. “Um… can you repeat that, please?”

He sighed deeply before taking you by the shoulders. “I didn’t mean it the way that came out. I just don’t want to see you get hurt again.”

Warmth flooded your body as your heart fluttered within your breast. His concern was touching and you felt happy knowing he actually cared about what happened to you. You offered him a gentle smile. “I promise I’ll be more careful. Thank you, Weiming.”

His eyes scanned your face before he nodded and released you. “Good,”

The rest of the walk was silence, accompanied by the pitter-patter of the rain, but that was okay. You now knew that he did care about you and, even though that was probably just on the friendship level, it was a start. For now, you were content just walking by his side.

Your nose might disagree, but you were happy that you had been hit.

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[hamfistedmorals]

Rise of Skywalker: Initial Thoughts and Feelings

As a movie, it was engaging. As a Star Wars story, it hooked me. But as a conclusion to this particular trilogy? As a final chapter to the entire saga? Oh boy, was it a hot mess.

BEWARE OF SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT

(Disclaimer - I’m one of the 5% of Star Wars fans that loved The Last Jedi, so that might influence my opinion, but I’ll try to keep things unbiased.) 

It was all over the place, and I mean that quite literally. 

We got to see so many new locations, and most of them seemed interesting. Unfortunately, because of the breakneck pace and the ticking clock, the film doesn’t spend any time developing these places apart from Exegol - and that’s only planet who’s name I can remember. Adding on to the map of a Galaxy Far, Far Away is always a good thing. But so many new locations in one movie, with our heroes jumping back and forth every ten minutes...doesn’t make this universe feel larger. Actually, it makes it feel smaller. In past Star Wars movies, it would take time to go from one planet or star system to another. But that really doesn’t seem to be the case here. If there’s one problem that’s been semi-consistent throughout this trilogy, it’s the confusion of timing. (What’s the point of the title crawl if Episode 8 is going to pick up immediately after Episode 7? But I digress.)

The Dyad in the Force is easily the most fascinating concept of the entire trilogy.

I braced myself for the movie to ignore the connection previously established between Rey and Kylo Ren, as it ignores so much of Episode 8. But no, Rise of Skywalker actually build on the bond between these two characters and gives us more amazing scenes of them interacting entirely through their connection in the Force. We learn that they are essentially a one-of-a-kind anomaly, that Palpatine can use to restore his life energy. Rey and Ben even learn how to use their bond by the end of the film. It’s a new idea that Star Wars hasn’t done before and I kinda love it - I just really wish they had explored it more, and better outlined what it is, where it came from, and how it works. Then again, after how much people hated the Midichlorians, I expect the writers are hesitant to give any answers about how The Force works. 

I also appreciated the official introduction of Healing, as a Force Power. 

Say what you will about some of the Force-Abilities introduced in TLJ, but this one makes perfect sense. So much so that I’m pretty sure it’s already a thing in Star Wars video games? It was well foreshadowed and it played a role in Rey and Ben’s final fight, as well as that heartbreaking climax. Honestly, I truly thought Rey was dead in that moment. I teared up, thinking that her parents’ sacrifice was for nothing. Wondering if Finn could sense that she was gone. Wondering what Ben would do without her, since he had no one else. To be honest, I almost wish Rey had stayed dead, since as it stands...we have a redeemed villain sacrificing himself to save the hero that redeemed him...sound familiar? If Ben had lived, and Rey had died, it could have been a tragic inversion of Return of the Jedi, instead of just a retread. But oh well. I had a feeling they were going to kill off Kylo Ren anyway. 

It feels like they did have plans for Finn, but never properly carried them out. 

Rise of Skywalker very clearly implies that Finn has discovered that he’s Force-Sensitive. Which is a good idea, it just comes out of nowhere. Apparently, that’s what he was going to tell Rey - JJ has clarified it. One problem...that’s not a detail that should be confirmed in an interview. It should be answered within the movie. There were two separate conversations about Finn wanting to tell Rey...something, but the film never comes back to that or gives it any conclusion. Likewise, the idea of Finn being force-sensitive is only ever foreshadowed, never brought to light. Overall, Finn got some great moments, like when he met Jannah and got to connect with another former Storm-trooper...but his overall character arc in this film never got off the ground. 

Was it just me...or was Poe constantly angry throughout the movie? 

I don’t know if this was just Oscar Isaac’s frustration slipping through, or if it was meant to be the stress of the war, or something...but Poe was in a bad mood in just about every scene. But just like with Finn, this never gets resolved or even really acknowledged. Didn’t Poe go through an entire arc in the last film about learning to be less of a hot-head? For some reason, he and Rey are at each other’s throats...even though the end of the last film hinted that they found each other attractive? He does get some backstory as a Spice Runner (though they don’t explain what that is. Maybe it’s answered in one of the books, I dunno.) and we get to meet Zori, who is truly a charming and compelling character. Even if she was only written in as a final “no-homo” to Finn and Poe, I wanted to learn more about her. 

They did Rose dirty. They did her so dirty.

She should have been an official member of the squad in this film, not relegated to cameos. There was no reason she couldn't have been more involved. Her romance with Finn should have been addressed. Even if it was just him gently letting her down, they ought to have mentioned it. Regardless of how you feel about Rose and that particular pairing (Personally, I adored her) it's downright strange that she's so absent from the story when she was a main character last time. Gee, I wonder why this was done? Could it be because the character was eviscerated online by a group of hardcore “fans” who compared her to Jar Jar Binks? Who not only made racist, sexist, and body-shaming comments about the character - they drove Kelly Marie Tran off social media? It really seems like downplaying Rose in this film was a direct response to how unpopular she was, and that isn’t fair to the character or the actress. It just seems...cowardly.

The CGI on Leia...could have been better. 

Not gonna lie, it might have been safer to simply reveal Leia’s death in the title crawl and open the movie with her funeral. Don’t get me wrong, I was initially quite impressed with how they managed to re-create Carrie Fisher. It was nice to see her training Rey, and we even get an answer to the age-old mystery of why she never became a Jedi. But as Leia’s scenes went on, the cracks started to show. It became very noticeable after a while that she would never adjust her standing position or really move at all. So many of her lines were shot to avoid showing her face while she spoke. Don’t get me wrong, I understand why it looked this way. I’m just saying that as a viewer, I noticed. Leia’s death scene was the worst offender of this. By the way...what exactly killed her? She apparently gave the “last of her energy” to call out to Ben, but...nothing beforehand indicated that her health was failing, so why would a simple telepathic message consume all her life energy? She’s done it before. Either way, the death scene was kinda lame...but other characters reactions to it? Hit me right in the feels. Chewie’s breakdown tore me to pieces. I wanted to hug him. And as for Ben...

 That Han Solo Cameo

I’m impressed, first of all. We all though Han could never come back since he wasn’t force-sensitive, so he wouldn’t get a spirit form. But the great thing is, Han didn’t come back - not really. It was all in Ben’s head, hence the lines echoing his father’s death. I love how Leia’s death, compounded with Rey healing Ben and all but telling him that she would be with him if he wasn’t on the dark side, is what ultimately swayed him to turn back. When he called Han “Dad...” In that broken voice, and Han just said “I know...” Honestly, that was the best scene in the movie. Ben previously said to Rey that the Dark Side was in her blood, so she couldn’t escape it. It was so clear that he felt that way about himself too, which may have been part of why he turned. Seeing Han was a perfect reminder that he had more than just Vader in his ancestry. 

Chewie’s “death” was the other scene in the movie that took my breath away. 

Echoing the Force-Battle over Anakin’s lightsaber, Rey and Kylo Ren have a tug-of-war for the ship Chewie is on, and in her rage, Rey accidentally conjures Force-Lightning and blows up the ship, shocking everyone. It demonstrates Rey’s power, as well as her natural leaning toward the Dark Side (through anger.) It also foreshadows her lineage. Plus, the whole concept of accidentally killing your beloved friend..It’s got so much tension, so much emotion - it’s fantastic. Only one problem...Chewie survived, and we find that out not even five minutes later. Honestly, it’s the last movie. Anything goes, you can kill off main characters, even beloved main characters. All of the emotional drama that this scene brings to the table stops mattering once you find out Chewie’s alive. I would love to see Rey actually have to deal with the consequences of what happened, for the movie to explore how it makes the other characters feel about her. On the other hand, one of my first thoughts after it happened was “Geez, if the fandom hated her before...” All the fans who complain Rey is a Mary Sue (She’s not) Yeah, they’d never, ever forgive her if she was responsible for Chewie’’s death.

I can’t decide how I feel about Kylo Ren repairing his mask. 

When I first realized it was happening, I was disappointed. In a way, it undoes his character growth in Last Jedi when he rejected his hero worship of Darth Vader - and even did what Vader could not, slaying his master and living to succeed him. Kylo Ren surpassed Vader once he stopped trying to be him, and that was awesome. But between bringing back the mask (with the painfully on-the-nose line about the “cracks in your mask”) and the reveal that “Snoke” is still alive, all of Ben Solo’s coolest moments from TLJ have been reversed. On the other hand... the Kylo Ren mask is, and always was, a symbol. In TFA, it reflected a pretentious attempt to be more like Darth Vader. But in this movie, it seemed to reflect Kylo Ren embracing the image of being the “Big Bad.” much like how Luke embraced his status as a legend, just before he died. And I’m not gonna lie, seeing the words “Supreme Leader Kylo Ren” in the title crawl was quite satisfying. Not to mention, at the end of the day...it’s all an act. Kylo Ren has always tried very hard to be “evil” but his heart just isn’t in it. He’s trying to be something he’s not - so maybe it’s okay if the mask comes back. 

Let’s rip this band-aid off: Bringing Palpatine back was a mistake.

If they needed a greater-scope villain for the climax after Ben was redeemed...why not use Snoke? Apparently, they’re the same person anyway, and people were mad that Snoke died without having a greater story to tell. Palpatine’s return goes entirely unexplained. He just hand-waves the issue by quoting Episode 3. As a viewer, why should I feel triumphant when Rey kills him at the end, when as far as I know, nothing is stopping him from returning again? After all, he survived certain death before, and we don’t know how he did it. (This is what I mean when I say the film is good by itself, but highly flawed as a continuation of existing Star Wars.) Palpatine’s return devalues Anakin’s sacrifice. It weakens both Vader and Kylo as villains because it removes their agency - we now know they only turned because Palpatine manipulated and groomed them. They’ve made him the greater-scope villain of every single trilogy, which just feels weird. I always thought the overarching villainous force of Star Wars was supposed to be, y’know, the Dark Side and it’s tempting call. That anyone could potentially succumb. But speaking of this film rejecting the idea of “anyone” being special...

Rey...did not need to have a bloodline. 

You need Palpatine to have a reason that he’s so intrigued by her? You’ve already got that - she’s part of an anomaly in The Force that no one’s ever seen before. Need a life-changing shock that pushes her closer to the Dark Side? All you have to do is let Chewie stay dead, and have it be her fault. As much as I have genuinely loved Rey’s character growth and I always enjoy watching her, I can’t help but feel like giving her a bloodline at this point was at least partially done to mitigate the claims that she’s “too powerful.” Not to mention, it ruins the reveal at the end of The Last Jedi, and it’s one more thing that makes the Star Wars universe feel smaller. Coming from a powerful bloodline shouldn’t be a requirement for changing the fate of the Galaxy. Sure, Force-Sensitivity is often hereditary, but not exclusively. Besides, there are more people out there attuned to the Force that just the Skywalkers, Palpatines, and Kenobis. Why couldn’t Rey just be one of them? If Star Wars really is going to go on forever, it can’t simply be the continuing sage of two or three families screwing up the Galaxy. 

What’s up with the super-rushed tone of the ending? 

So, Rey and Ben share a kiss - whether or not you ship them, this moment is wholesome, heartwarming, and so earned -  But then Ben immediately, and I mean immediately falls down dead. He doesn’t get any last words or even a last moment. (Come to think of it...does Ben have any lines at all after his scene with Han? I...don’t think he does. That’s just weird.) Nope, he just fades into the Force so quickly that I didn’t even realize what happened at first. Rey makes it back to the Resistance base and reunites with her friends, but they don’t share any dialogue either. No final moments, not even Finn telling Rey that he’s Force-Sensitive. Disney gets to check off their diversity clipboard by having two nameless women kiss in the background, and Rey then visits...Tatooine, of all places, to bury The Skywalker twins lightsabers. Because you see, a Jedi’s Weapon deserves respect. Burning them? Shameful. But burying them, A-Okay.

Rey is never shown mourning Ben Solo.

Whether or not you think he “deserved” redemption, the film clearly sided with the idea that he did. It based a lot of it’s conflict on Rey and Ben being a hero and a villain who also cared about each other. Going so far as to include the Dyad, and give them a kiss scene. So it’s bizarre that Ben’s death doesn’t seem to affect Rey. She doesn’t even have any sort of reaction to it, but she does have a gold lightsaber now. Which is so incredibly cool that it baffles me that they didn’t let her have it sooner. She never gets to really use it. A random local shows up, for no other purpose than to ask Rey who she is. Rey looks on to see Luke and Leia’s Force-Spirits give their blessing (No Ben, for some reason.) And she then introduces herself as Rey Skywalker. Because they had to justify that title somehow, right? Then the scavenger-turned-jedi, who started out all alone on a desert planet but found a family through her travels...ends her story all alone on desert planet. Hey, wait a minute-

The problems of this trilogy boil down to the fact that it had two writers, with two different visions for the characters.

Perhaps the death of Snoke, the introduction of Rose, and Rey’s lack of lineage directly conflicted with J.J.'s plans for the new trilogy...but The Last Jedi happened. It's canon now. Trying to pretend otherwise doesn't "fix" that. Having moments that directly contradict the previous film, even taking intentional jabs at it (looking at you, Force-Spirit Luke) is a waste of time and honestly feels...kind of immature? As a writer, I’m sure it isn’t easy, but you've got to work with what you have, follow the ideas and plot threads introduced, or else none of it will feel organic. So many moments like repairing Kylo Ren's mask, bringing back Anakin's destroyed saber, giving Rey a bloodline...they just cause whiplash.The only arcs that really continue through each movie are Kylo Ren's redemption, and Rey's identity issues. The writing of Episode 9 does everything it can to erase the ideas of Episode 8, and as a result, the entire trilogy feels directionless. The story feels like its at war with itself. I understand if Rian left J.J. in a compromising position, but sometimes you have to let go of ideas if they can no longer work in your story, however much you want them to. And, not to pick on J.J. too much, but...if he really had a major plan for the trilogy, then why didn't he stay to write Episode Eight? He left the second chapter of the trilogy to an entirely different writer, so...what did he think was going to happen? 

It’s a good movie. It really is. I was on the edge of my seat. If you’ve never seen the first two films, you’ll likely enjoy the hell out of it. But if you’re hoping to get a satisfying conclusion for the characters you’ve grown to care about...well, I’ll just say that I didn’t find that here. 

[maikatc]

Black Sun Tale | A Mother

honestly i feel like i don’t appreciate this chapter enough, but this is where the storm dies down a lil

remember that this is a first draft with only minor edits and enjoy! comments and reception are heavily appreciated 

-

Leaves being damp didn’t help when Oliver tried breaking those in his path. 

The scent of those around him weakened as he paced his way back home. The day started to dim with the sunset. The rays hitting against the tall buildings once the rain clouds began to disappear. 

Oliver bit his healed lip, gnawing at it with his own frustration. 

Ayu’s final reaction would happen sooner or later. And the ideas of what could come made Oliver’s head spin. His attempts to draw attention elsewhere were futile.

“It’s not like they’ll kill me, right?” He questioned himself under his breath. Yeah, yeah, no kid would do that to a human-like thing. 

The future was unsettled for Oliver then. It twisted up more than he expected in the matter of a single two hours. 

He groaned. I’m gonna have to get close with him now, don’t I? He face-palmed himself. “I didn’t even realize that he’s actually almost in the exact same boat as me… Fuck… Fuck.”

He eyed down to his bloody hands. The scent wasn’t all as strong as before, started drying out and got messed up by dirt already. However, it was still enough for him to take a small lick. 

His memories of when he became unconscious grew on him as he cleaned off some of his mess –he figured whatever magic there was would keep him covered-. Though, after reading through the foggy visions, he only took a breath. 

“I’m gonna have more things to deal with.” 

***

“… Just what was that?” 

Oliver threw a ball up and down from one hand as a replacement of destroying his apartment furniture. On his other hand was a squeezed-up stress ball. 

He dabbled around Ayu’s initial reaction, studying what he could from memory. Overall, the black-haired boy was reasonable. Though Oliver admitted to himself that if it weren’t for Ayu chasing after him, he would’ve cut ties immediately after running. 

However, one image stuck with him. Despite it being so recent, the memory was disappearing as he tried deciphering. Perhaps it was because he was in such a shock, but Oliver doubted that idea. If fear could make his recollection worse, he wouldn’t have remembered anything from his first ever meal. 

The vision itself wasn’t so terrible, simply questionable in Oliver’s eyes. Ayu’s appearance has always been strange to him, from his nimble structure to his dry skin and alien eyes. However, it was a first to see both of his eyes glow a vibrant vermillion. 

Oliver clenched on the ball he threw. “He’s never mentioned that before to me, hasn’t he?” Then again, there isn’t much I know about him either. 

“How’re you doing after all that?”

Oliver cocked his head to the corner of the living room, finding Vittorino standing right then and there. “You saw all of it, didn’t you?”

Vittorino nodded with a grin. “You panic way too much.”

Oliver’s eyes narrowed, dumbfounded from his comment. “…Really?”

“It was entertaining to watch at least,” he shrugged. 

Oliver took a moment to process just how ignorant Vittorino really was. He only scoffed at the end, “You’re more of an ass than I expected.” 

After Vittorino’s short chuckling, Oliver remembered he needed something of confirmation. “This is probably obvious,” he started, “but before that, you already knew, right?”

“Of course, I did,” Vittorino rose a hand. “Almost every- I already knew for a while.” 

Every- body? The slip-up was there but Oliver pushed it aside. “Did Faustus know too, then?”

“What makes you think that?” Oliver noted Vittorino’s eyes drifted off at the question. 

“He left right before my seventh birthday, it’s been leaving me suspicious for four years. Anybody would.”

Vittorino didn’t reply immediately. Oliver waited but only for a satisfying answer. 

“Well, I’m not exactly allowed to say.”

What the hell. “But why? Why would he leave before all of it?” He squeezed up the stress ball with all he had. “Why is this even happening in the first place? Why- … Who’s Alice?”

“Oh,” Vittorino leaned towards the wall behind him, “So you’ve met her already.” 

“Who is she?”

“First off, what did she tell you?” 

“She-.” He won’t answer until I do first. He sighed, “She was crying, hugged me out of nowhere and just kept saying she was sorry, for ‘all of this’. I asked and she just told me she was my mom… It didn’t make any sense so I kept asking. But I woke up before she could answer.”

“Ah, well she tried as much as she could for the time being.” Vittorino moved over to a seat.

Oliver’s brows furrowed. “Of course, you know her…”

Vittorino shrugged, “She’s high up in reputation, and second in charge. I always saw her as depressing though, boring for the most part.” He leaned over his chair, keeping his elbows on his knees. 

“But what does she mean that she’s my mom?”

“Simple enough,” he answered, “she’s your mother.” 

Oliver took a gulp, doubt ridden in his head. 

Vittorino added, “I hadn’t heard much about what went down. That was like, what, three centuries ago?”

“Three centuries ago?”

“Oh yeah- we never mentioned that,” he blinked. “I’m older than you’d expect, Oliver.” 

“Just how old?” Oliver asked in disbelief. 

Vittorino hummed, “About three centuries, yeah. Alice’s about four-hundred more or less but that doesn’t really matter right now.”

“But… how-”

“Alice is your mother, that’s a fact.” He crossed his arms, resting his back upon the chair cushions. “From what I can tell, you’ll have to figure the rest out by yourself.” 

Oliver groaned. He threw both of the balls he held across the room, making loud thuds. “That’s helpful, isn’t it?”

He dragged his steps back to his room. His exhaustion didn’t come from his lack of a meal for once. Instead, pure stress and vex loomed over him as he prayed for a day where he could just clear his mind. 

He passed through the narrow hallway between each room. Above his head laid arrays of framed photos staggering from throughout his life. He dawned upon them, each carried photos of him and his mother together. They all held bright smiles from both of them. His face went blank once the newer pictures came around. His eyes were dull and tired in each one, while his mother stayed the same as ever. 

She was the only mother he knew, even if they weren’t related by blood. Oliver himself had no recollection of an original family or parent, no real father to teach him how to be a man, or whatever they showed on television. Though, someone like Alice wouldn’t be his guess on who his birth mother would be. 

Her peachy skin and neat, blonde hair was nothing near his light brown and burgundy. Nothing of her was similar aside from her speckles of freckles. She was just an average white woman. If she were his mother than everything should have come from his father, but then the question would be about where he was. 

Oliver gave up thinking about it all, taking a sigh and leaving the photos to shine like always. He entered back to his own room, walking and leaning over to the corner of his nightstand’s legs. Grabbing and setting up his ukulele, he plucked tabs and rhythms in silence. 

Vittorino appeared again in short time. He sat on the ground along with Oliver beside the bookshelf. However, he didn’t say a word, only watched from afar. Oliver took no mind of it, focusing solely on the music he played. 

His breathing calmed down as the chill melodies rung throughout the room. He mumbled the lyrics of the song he played, they didn’t matter much to him at the moment, he only wanted the rhythm. 

Music was the only thing that could clear his mind almost completely, yet something he detached from through the years. It was something his mother raised him with, playing songs for him when he wasn’t thinking so much. He grew up only a year after she gave him his own uke to play with. 

He continued to play with whatever he came up with, only for Vittorino to interrupt by asking, “Do you know any hymns?”

“Hymns?” Oliver stopped playing. He raised a brow by the question. “I don’t know any. Caeli Desuper is bound to be easy… but why hymns?”

Vittorino rolled his eyes over. “I remember learning lots of ‘em as a kid. Forgot most of them though. Barely remembered Caeli existing…” He shrugged it off quickly, “So, how’re you feeling now?”

Oliver eyed him at the suddenness of the topic, though didn’t ask. “Eh, still wondering about stuff. ‘Least things are going somewhere for once.” 

“That’s good then.” Vittorino sat up from his slouched state. He grabbed a book from behind him, opening it up and staring at a middle section of a fairy-tale book. He only muttered after seconds of not moving, “I forgot I can’t read in this language.”

They both sat, Oliver playing on his ukulele again and Vittorino sitting around. The quiet relaxed Oliver’s body for once. He was replenished with barely any pain, no headache with the music, and no Vittorino annoying him at every waking second. However, there was one more thing he had to question before any resolve for the day. “Hey Vittorino,” 

“Yeah?” He looked up from looking at a picture book. 

“Do you know why Faustus gave me a switchblade in the first place?”

Vittorino’s face softened, to Oliver’s surprise. “He knew you would want it for the future, I believe.”

Oliver bit his lip. He then crawled over to his ukulele case, opening the small pocket inside and grabbed the blade. He stared at it in his hands. The handle was carved with a beautiful silver, showing patterns of roses and other items he couldn’t tell as easily. 

He fisted the switchblade handle in his hand. “I want to see him again, just so I could know what the hell he was doing.”

With no words, he put the switchblade back in place. “… Ayu’s gonna ask about my mark again, isn’t he?”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Vittorino suggested. “Depends on how he thinks the privacy is.”

Oliver listened to Vittorino in the back of his head, spacing out with ideas swirling. He pulled down his left sleeve barely. What encased was a sliver of a black sun mark like beforehand. He refused to pull the sleeve down more, shameful of what was underneath. 

The idea of blood was already craving his mind. 

“… It was a mistake for Faustus to give me that thing.” 

-

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