#donna could be so abrasive

[sallysellsseashellssundays]

Sitting here thinking about that scene in Partners in Crime where Donna asks about Rose and the Doctor says “still lost” 

The way he momentarily freezes at hearing someone else mention her name

And my heart swells up with affection for lovely, kind Donna for remembering after all that time that Rose is important to him, for how she’s already started to look out for him

We really missed out on having a Ten, Rose and Donna TARDIS team didn’t we?  😭 😭 😭

[thepinkdreamganjaqueen]

Focus On Me

Randall Kirkland x Fem!Reader 

Masterlist 🩷

Summary: Y/N is the newest arrival to the township. Amongst all the townsfolk, she takes a liking to the most unlikable guy in town when things go awry at the colony house. How will she survive the night? 

Warnings: SMUT, NSFW, 18+, MINORS DO NOT INTERACT, piv, unprotected sex, DubCon (kinda), breeding, public sex, exhibitionism, drug use, mentions of DV, mentions of violence (murder), swearing, fem!reader, romantic smut, aftercare (he deserves that and more!) 

A/N: Randall Kirkland needs love, y'all!! You know, under that cold abrasive exterior, he's a total softie with a good heart! From is such a great show, I love Randall and will protect him at all costs!!! Story is cannon, no spoilers for new season, but it's definitely the reason I wrote it… especially after ep. 6. Randall is baby girl!! Please enjoyyy! I love and appreciate you all! Feel free to reach out anytime! I welcome all interaction!  

Word Count: 5.4k

FOCUS ON ME

Stepping back into colony house was heavy after last night. Donna and Boyd were outside at first light to cover and remove the body of yet another victim to these creatures. You often reminisced of your days before this nightmare you were trapped in. Wishing, hoping to wake up. You arrived in the township by yourself, close to sunset. The folks at colony house were welcoming albeit, strange. You understood now. Often disassociating from the truth and drowning yourself in a journal or sneaking off to vape THC, often walking in the woods, trying to make sense of things, to find… something. Like everyone's first night, you struggled to take in what this place was, what it did to people, not wanting or willing to trust anyone. There was no answers or information as to why this was all happening, no one communicated, and you felt alone. Everyone else seemingly accepting their fates. Except one person. A guy by the name of Randall who people whispered about in the colony house. After hearing some not so stellar rumors about fighting and guns, you initially opted to stay away. Not just from him but closing yourself off to others as well. Sure, some of them seemed nice, but you knew no one or the circumstances that led you to this place. It just didn’t make sense. It was hard to trust anyone, truly. 

After your third night here, you awoke from maybe two hours of sleep to find people rummaging through your things. Personal items mixed with sentimental items that you once thought held value. You were in the middle of a move, taking only your most precious items with on the initial voyage from Key West to Seattle escaping from a violent DV situation literally upheaving your entire life. A new life, new beginnings and new opportunities you had once looked forward to. That was before the tree appeared in the road and the crows circled above.  

The car alarm was jarring waking you from an unrestful sleep, you bolted out the door to see people with handfuls of your clothes, bagging up your journals and other personal effects. It felt as if they were taking what was left from your old life, what made you, you. Without hesitation you started ripping your items from the hands of the thieves. One of the women started yelling while trying to yank back your things, you didn’t hear her and acted out, launching a solid fist into her jaw causing her to fall back as others went to restrain you trying to talk about the rules, and other things you were too upset to hear.  

This place was already loathsome enough, you thought. “You can't take my things!” You yelled as people held you back, each holding one arm. You bucked and screamed until they let go and you fell to the ground. A crowd had begun to form on the porch, watching you. You could feel the heat of anger and embarrassment rise in your cheeks. You pant in defeat, looking at the ground sobbing as people loaded your things into the home. Boots appeared in front of you and a hand reached down. A deep voice spoke out “Here, stand up” You recognized the face immediately as Randall, who had wandered over after hearing the commotion. Him and some folks from town were trying to build some kind of radio tower near the garden.  

You took his hand and stood, dusting off the front of your pants where wet dirt had stained your knees. “Don’t let them see you like this” he whispered. “Give her back her shit!” He yelled to the crowd. Donna stepped forward demanding everyone calm down, she then firmly reminded Randall of the rules if “she” wanted to stay here. “As a community, we have to share everything equally” she had said to him while looking at you. “My journals? My clothes? Are you serious? Its all I have!” You said wanting to swing again but refraining, what good would it do. Your stuck with everyone here anyway. “That or you can do as Randall here did and leave if you don't like the rules” she said directly to you in a condescending manor.  

You storm off in a huff, not wanting to display any more emotion than you already have. You walked away fists clenched and head down when you heard footsteps beside you. “Thank you.” You said. Looking up and meeting his eyes. It was Randall. His smoldering gaze made your breath catch in your throat. He stood at least a foot or more taller than you, athletic build, clean shaved buzz cut, hazel-green eyes, and a dimpled chin. Funny you thought, all the talk about him, how terrible he is, how difficult he can be, and yet he was the only person to stick up for you.  

“Its bullshit, you know it, I know it. They tried that with me too when I got here.” He said as you two continued walking away. “What did you do? Did you get your things back?” You asked. “Yeah eventually, and they kicked me out because of it. Didn’t want to follow their rules” he said with a half grin. “I stay in the bus away from everyone else.” He lamented. Explaining how Donna had showed him how to use the talisman and wished him luck as he took his things. "Wow. What a peach," you said. “I'm Randall, by the way” he said while sticking a hand out. You reached to shake it “Y/N” you replied.  

It was nice talking to someone, you had felt alone here for the past few days, even more so when they began taking your things, it felt like your identity being stripped away. He seemed to understand, and vice versa, you understood him and his reasoning. He had already come to terms with some new truths about this place having been here longer, but you were still taking it all in, or rather, bottling it up and pushing it away. Whatever worked really. “So, where are you going?” He asked while walking beside you. “I guess, just for a walk to clear my head. Wanna come?” You asked, flashing a smile at him. “Sure. Anything to get away” you both chuckled as you led the way to the tree line. 

You learned a lot from him that day you first met him. You exchanged stories of your lives before, where you were going, what you were doing prior. He spoke candidly with you. It was truly refreshing. Sure, he was abrasive and blunt. You could see that on the surface, but somewhere below, you could see he was kind, that he cared, and that he, like the rest of us, was scared. You found it easy to talk to him and it was nice having conversations that didn’t completely revolve around death or scary night serial killer creatures. It was a nice escape from reality, one you both suffered from and needed badly. Spending much of your walk laughing and cracking jokes. His humor was dark much like your own, something you appreciated. You quickly found yourself wanting to talk to him all the time. He was relatable and understanding. He exuded strength and confidence and a no bullshit demeanor. Everyone else seemed so fake, or so lost. 

Although your conversations mostly remained light, he did speak about the people here too, about not trusting anyone, and how no one has really done anything or tried to figure this all out. He explained that living in the bus was hard, the creatures came every night like a routine, he studied them closely. Trying to find weaknesses, vulnerabilities, any information really. You two had stopped for a while. You remembered you had your pen in your pocket and asked him if he was ok with it. "Do you mind if I uh" you said as you wiggled the pen in your fingers. “Nah” he said with a grin. He stood taking stock of the environment you found yourselves in as smoke billowed from your lips into the cold morning air. You nonchalantly hold the pen out to him while also examining the environment. He looked down and grabbed the pen before clicking the button and drawing from the mouthpiece. Eliciting a couple small coughs from him. “Thanks, needed to take the edge off” he said while trying to catch his breath as you two began the trek back to town. You hadn't wandered off too far, never did in fear of getting lost before dark.  

He walked back to colony house with you. You didn’t want to go back, wasn’t ready to after this morning but nightfall approached. Randall stopped at the steps as you ascended. “Thank you, for today. I was really struggling, so, I appreciate you talking with me. It was nice.” You said with a coy smile. He nodded “Tomorrow we’ll get your stuff back okay.” He said. “Thank you, please be safe.” You lamented, truly hoping he made it through the night. You at least found solace in knowing you made a friend here. Knowing that made you feel less alone, but when you were on the couch at night as the creatures roamed the streets as Randall watched. You felt more alone than ever. A resident walked by wearing your shoes. You rolled your eyes and turned over, waiting for the night to be over. Tomorrow you would get your things back. You decided you weren't coming back to colony house. Maybe you could stay with someone in town, but you just couldn’t stay sane in a house full of people, especially when they were taking your things. You drifted off thinking of Randall, and what it must be like to stay on the bus at night.  

You were awoken by screaming. Someone had gotten killed last night and their body was left in the road in town. You heard residents chatter as Donna left to help dispose of the body. Before your mind could fully wake your body pulled itself up and ran for the door. You walked over to town, not wanting to see the body, but wanting to make sure it wasn’t Randall. A crowd formed around the body as Boyd tried to control the commotion with his hands waving telling people to move back. The bus was down the street a bit further away when you saw the door open and Randall step out to see what happened, who had gotten killed. Boyd gave his speech about safety at night and not trusting the creatures. You found yourself walking over to the bus where Randall stood arms crossed leaning against the open door. He straightened as you approached. “Let's go get your things” he said. “No one needs your journals and shit but you!” He said while starting to walk.  

The crowds were all down near the diner speculating about last night's murder. Only one or two people were at the house. You began collecting your personal effects from the rooms and basement where much of it was stored, mixed with other linens in a chest. “What if they don’t let me stay anymore” you said, voice full of concern. Randall set a bag down thinking for a moment. “Then you can stay in the bus with me.” The words sent shivers down your spine. The bus seemed so unsafe; he spoke about how vulnerable it made him feel. No shades for the windows, no pretending like everything is ok at night like the others have the luxury of doing. But it also excited you in a way. Randall was the only person here you’ve connected with, and on a deep level. You felt compelled to stay with him for reasons that can only be blamed on your hormones and lack of social life here. Maybe you would both be better off if neither of you were alone. You could feel heat rise in your cheeks as you continued to pack your things and head for the bus. 

After dropping off your things to the bus Randall was kind enough to help you carry, you both opted for another walk in the woods. It was a calmer environment; it was almost like being taken away from the commotion and despair that was the township and the townsfolk. Randall was a breath of fresh air. He saw through the bullshit and told it like it is. You appreciated his directness, especially when it came to you. “They think what they're doing is right, but they have no idea, no one does" you could sense the frustration in his voice. An emotion you shared. You agreed. “I get people are scared, we all are, but why can't anyone come together and think of something more than a temporary fix. These talismans are Band-Aids over a bigger issue were almost ignoring or just not trying hard enough to figure out. How many people are here, have been here, with nothing to show for it? With no answers as to why or how?” Randall shook his head. “See, you get it” he said as he reached to grab the pen from your hand.  

You two had found a log to sit and chat. Remarking at the landscape, trying to find something, anything really. Every answer he found only led to more questions, but at least he was trying rather than ignoring it like nothing ever happened. Like we all just chose to live here, to be here. Neither him nor you accepted that sentiment. He wanted out just like you did. But in the meantime, at least you had each other in a way.  

He never said anything but it seemed like he enjoyed your company. Willingly going on walks with you and talking for hours about anything. You were both a nice distraction for each other from the daily depression of existence within the confines of this horrible place. You found solace in him. A warm presence like protection and safety. That night you two had stayed awake for the most part talking through the screeches and screaming heard in the distance. Helping one another to ignore the words of the creatures when they would tap on the bus windows asking to come inside. It was scary but you two got through it.  

He had been used to this for some time. As used to it as someone could get, you supposed. But he was able to help you through your first night on the bus. “Focus on me” he said when they wandered to the window at the seat you occupied. He sat next to you and reached for your hand squeezing tightly. “Just focus on me”. The words he spoke echoed in your mind that evening until it darkened with slumber.  

You must have drifted off at some point because you awoke at first daylight as the sun began streaming into the windows. Randall was still sitting next to you. Had he held your hand all night? You must have fallen asleep on him. He could have shifted or asked you to move so he could sleep as well. But he didn’t. He sat there with you all night as your head rest upon his shoulder. When you moved, he jumped suddenly, eyes shot open and looking around. “Hey, hey, it's okay.” You said grabbing his leg and shaking it gently. He immediately relaxed.  

“Bad dream?” You asked. “No. No I uh, I just never really fall asleep in here. Sorry.” He spoke in a soft voice. “I haven't been able to sleep much at all my self since I've been here. But I was able to last night. I have you to thank for that” you looked on as he processed what you said. “Don’t worry about it. I should uh, thank you too. Having you here I guess, made it easier for me. Not having to be alone when those things show up.” He said clearing his throat and shifting slightly in his seat. “I appreciate you letting me sleep here. And I'm sorry about falling asleep on you” you said sheepishly.  

He grabbed your hand once more “Like I said, don’t worry about it.” A light smile lingered on his lips before he left. He had gone up to colony house again. Him and a few others that he was able to gather, had left to scavenge materials for the radio tower they were building. He would be gone for a while, so you spent your day mostly in the woods searching for answers, stopping by the diner for a quick meal then returning to the bus before nightfall.  

You sat in the fourth row back from the entrance. There was a break in seating here and room for your things in front of you without feeling crowded. This was normally where he would sit. You sat and journaled about your day, about last night. Jotting down ideas, possible relations between happenings and the effects, trying to make sense of things. The familiar ding of the nightly bell Boyd used to warn the townsfolk rang on the distance as the sky began to darken.  

You realized Randall wasn’t back at the bus yet. Your mind spiraled into worry. You panicked rushing to the bus door closing it and waiting for him to arrive. You looked in all directions when you spot him emerge from by the clinic. He’s running to the bus as those creatures slowly follow behind him ever so menacingly. You open the door before he gets to it yelling for him to hurry. He rushes in and runs to a seat. You shut the door behind him insuring its fully closed then rush to help him. Was he hurt? What was going on? He was frantically tearing at his clothes and swatting as if there was something near him. 

You stepped close to him trying to calm him, it was as if he could hear you but couldn’t respond. You could see he was scared and was seeing something you couldn’t, his eyes flickered looking at something. Not odd for this place but nonetheless, you were concerned. He was back on the bus, but was he actually safe? What happened out there? You wondered as you tried to calm him. “Randall! Hey! It’s me you’re okay!!” You tried to consol him. You grabbed onto him holding his arms and entering his vision. He was sunk into the seat eyes still wide with fear. You put your weight on him, straddling him in the seat grabbing his face trying to redirect his attention. “Randall!” You yelled helplessly. You were scared, unsure what else to do in this moment. Unsure how to help. 

He sat with you on top of him, still unphased. It’s as if he was stuck in a waking nightmare. Suddenly all you could think was to potentially shock his system somehow to take him out of it. "Randall, focus on me, okay?” You lean in quickly, pressing your lips to his, breathing deeply through your nose. Laughter could be heard coming from the creatures that had gathered around the bus. You ignored them. You continued kissing him. Softly pressing your lips to his watching his reaction. His eyes went half lidded before flickering shut.  

His breathing slowed and body stopped trembling. He kissed you back, wrapping his arms around your waist. You embraced it and closed your eyes. You didn’t expect that. You pulled away for a moment examining his expression, wanting to know if he was out of the woods so to speak. “Are you okay?” You asked. He looked at you with surprise. “Why did you do that?” He spoke softly, still holding you to him. “I'm so sorry. I didn’t know what else to do, I just wanted to shock your system or something. I had to pull you out of that! I was scared for you, and you showed up past dark and-" he cut you off suddenly, pulling your face back to his. You melted in his grasp, returning the kiss with fervor. You wrapped your arms around him while he pulled you closer as your tongues searched each other's mouths, teeth clashing as you vigorously and passionately kiss. 

Somewhere outside there was knocking at the windows of the bus as the creatures taunted you. Neither him nor you paid attention. Your focus remained on each other. As long as the talisman hung from the frame of the bus within and the doors and windows were shut, you were fine as far as you knew. Not accounting for whatever happened to Randall. Regardless of what it was you were able to redirect his attention and pull him back, putting his focus back on you. 

Moans escaped your lips as his hands caressed your back, sides, and hips, rocking you on him. You could begin to feel the stillness grow in his pants. It was hard to ignore as it pressed against your thigh. His hands slid under the backside of your shirt; you could feel the cold air from the bus creep underneath. You took a moment to pull your shirt up over your head, fully immersing yourself in the heat of the moment. You weren't even thinking about those things outside watching. Let them, you thought. 

You caught his gaze after removing your shirt, his eyes met yours with a look of longing. You felt the same, the need. You had only been alone here for less than a week, he had been here for months. You could only imagine how alone he must have felt. Your heart ached for him, but your body lusted. You could feel heat envelope every part of you, concentrating in your groin where you began to throb for him. Your hand wandered his body, exploring every muscle, every curve and line, tracing it with your fingers, following where it led. He continued rocking your hips into him, his face now stern with concentration as he looked in your eyes watching you squirm as he rocked you slowly forward then slowly back. 

The look in his eyes as he watched you soaked your panties, that, and the friction he applied. But the way he looked at you, like he needed you, drove the innermost primal part of you absolutely insane. You began rocking with his grip, pushing yourself onto his stillness. Your head flung back as he began pressing kisses to your décolletage, biting at the fleshy mounds beneath your bra breathing heavily. 

You slid a hand between you and him down to his waistline tugging at the buttons on his jeans. He motioned to undo them and took them and his boxers off. You stood and slid your pants and panties down as well, taking them off completely before returning to his lap. You grabbed his shoulders to steady yourself as you put your knees on either side of him, while he slapped your ass. You cried out at the sting of the slap that reverberated through the silence of the bus. He looked up at you and grinned, rubbed up your thighs to your backside, grabbing a handful of flesh in each hand and bringing you in for another passionate kiss.  

Your chest heaved against his as you lustfully devoured him. You could feel him even firmer now. You were soaking wet; he must feel it you thought as you mindlessly grinded against his length. After breaking from the kiss, you lean your forehead to his looking into his eyes then down at your hand that was moving to grip him. He gasped as you took hold of him, stroking him slowly as you looked into his eyes. He was rock hard and throbbing. His tip sticky with precum. You used your fingers to spread it around before scooting yourself against him and sliding his length up and down your slit.  

Your hand held him firm to you as you slightly moved up and down. His manhood throbbing against your clit as he slid so easily against your slick cunt. He had been pawing at your flesh, squeezing, pinching and scratching at your back as you teased him. His face buried between your breasts sucking and biting. He would reach up and grab them and caress them, running his tongue over them leaving a trail of cooled skin behind that made you shiver every time he breathed.  

He would look up at you periodically, watching your face enjoy him. The hand you used to hold him against you slowly started applying pressure until he was at your entrance, and you slowly slid down, taking time to accept his size within you. You cried out as he breached, just the tip making you want more. You slid down fully, watching his face contort as you forced him inside you. You were dripping wet yet he was quite substantial, so you felt yourself stretch as he entered.  

You wrap your arms around his neck as you start to slowly grind and bounce on top of him. His hands were back at your hips trying to control the speed, pushing you down on him harder each time. His look was stern as he focused on you, looking directly into your eyes as he met every bounce of yours with a thrust of his own. Each thrust drawing a cry from you. Your moans and cries of passion paired with his grunts and heavy breathing, drowned out all the outside noise. All the screaming all the nightmarish things just beyond the windows were now worlds away. They could probably hear you over at colony house with how intense it was, how loud he had you. You pick up your knees bringing your feet onto the seat on either side of him, grabbing his shoulders as you continue to ride him. 

His head fell back against the seat eyes closed as he used his hands placed under your thighs to help lift you as you rose and fell against his length. A look of relaxation and serenity you had never seen on him before. You provided a peaceful temporary escape for him. You watched as his chest rose and fell with each panting breath that escaped his lips. You watched how his lips quivered with each passing exhale. You reach a hand up from his shoulders and caress his face softly, he burrowed his cheek into your embrace. You cradled him as he looked at you adoringly. You wondered what he was thinking. 

You felt his grip tighten on your thighs as he grabbed you and flipped you onto the seat. He hovered above you as you pulled your knees to your chest. He pushed heavily against you, leaning into your knees, filling you completely. He leaned back slightly, grabbing behind your knees, placing your ankles upon his shoulders as he began drilling into you. The pain he must have experienced here, the things he's seen. You couldn’t imagine. You wanted him to take it all out on you, to have you exactly how he would want. All of his frustrations, anger, and fear, pounded into your readily waiting cunt. You wanted to give him that release, anything to take the pain away, even if only for a moment. 

Your legs clung loosely around his neck as he continued pressing his weight against you, forcing loud moans to escape your lips every time he buried himself within you, hitting your cervix. He was so enveloped in you. Watching your face twist with every thrust against you.  

He needed this, but so did you, perhaps neither one of you knew. It would have eventually led here though you thought.  He was the only one in town you found yourself able to relate to, the only one who stood up for you. Whatever ideas or thoughts people had about him were wrong. They just didn’t know him or understand him. This place makes people crazy; everyone reacts differently. It’s a big change to adapt to that no one wants to. 

Enveloped in your thoughts about him as the pleasure began to become overwhelming, you pulled your legs back down spreading them wide and wrapping them around his back as you tugged on his shirt, pulling him in for another passionate kiss. Holding him as close to you as you could. You took his tongue into your mouth, sucking it and pulling from the kiss with a gentle bite to his lip. This only made his motions increase furiously. He slammed into you continuously, teeth gritted, eyes narrow. A wave of pleasure washed over you emanating from your core, a sensation that began taking over your entire body. You clawed at his back, leaving red lines trailing your fingernails, it made him shiver under your touch. He could tell you were close; he was too. “Please, don’t stop!” You cooed in his ear.  

The creatures still outside could be heard chattering near the windows. Why were they watching? Maybe it mattered, maybe it didn’t. Right now, it didn’t, Randall was your focus and you-his. You had managed to pull him from his waking nightmare, however difficult that may have been. You did it, you helped him. Whatever control they had over him, was not present when he was with you. 

Hearing your plea, he maintained his rhythm as your legs began to quiver and shake around him. You squeezed your legs tightly around him as you arched your back, meeting his thrusts with your own enthusiasm. Still holding him close, his forehead resting against yours, your eyes watched each other approach the precipice of climax, focusing only on one another. You could feel him begin to pulsate within you as your own climax began to coalesce. Your walls clenching tightly around him as he buried himself to the hilt. No longer able to hold on. As your own climax eclipsed his. The pulsating of his member echoed by your own quivering climax. You both erupted. Your moans filling the air of the bus and beyond. The feeling, immeasurable, as he let out an animalistic groan, thrusting into you with every pulsating shot of his essence that painted your insides. You could feel each pump, burning you from within, a fire you so badly desired.  

His face relaxed, shoulders dropped, every ounce of tension left his body with his seed, spilled deep within you. Your bodies, both shaking with exhaustion and satisfaction. Temporary focus offering temporary relief for you both. He slumped beside you cradling you to him with his large arms wrapped around you. You felt his breath on your neck, still heavy but slowing, his stillness pressed against your back as pearls of his desire dripped from your core, slowly leading a trail down your thigh.  

He pulled a blanket draped over the seat behind him and spread it over you and him with one arm. You turned your head slightly to him and raised a palm to stroke his cheek as you planted a kiss upon his lips before turning back around. He looked at you admiringly, his eyes soft and a smile that touched the corners of his lips. He kissed the back of your head before cradling himself in the crook of your neck as he held you close to him. "Thank you for letting me stay here with you.” You felt him nod and his arms squeeze you tighter. “I'm not going anywhere; you don’t have to tell me what's going on if you don’t want to. Just know I'm here, you're not alone, and my focus is on you.” You spoke candidly in loving voice. He only nuzzled his face into your neck further, peppering your shoulder with light kisses as he quickly drifted to sleep. 

[exkowrites]

That Distant Shore

This game is in the start of development. It is not currently planned out and is a test for me to learn twine. I can not promise when or if there will be a finished product. This game will be free and remain free if finished. Everything is subject to change.

Features!

Choose your first, middle, and last name.

Select from the three pronoun presets, or customize your own.

Customize your hair, eyes, skin, and facial details.

Trans, nonbinry, and intersex options.

Three gender selectable RO's and one nonbinary.

The Demo: (updated 8/6/24)

The story:

You and your siblings are displaced after your parent's death and the loss of your home. You suffer from a strange family ‘curse’ where each member will die one by one. Your flaws will be your undoing... Your dead parents, Adelina and Theodore loved you and your siblings.  So, what happened to all of you?

The characters:

Theodore -last name-

Your deceased father.

Adelina -last name-

Your deceased mother.

Victoria -last name-

Your prima donna sister. She doesn't like you. Can you change her perceptions or will you prove her right?

Alexander -last name-

Your kindhearted brother who took custody over you and your sister after your parents death.

Matteo/Madelyn Abbott (RO, gender selectable) "the bully"

Brash and abrasive. Despite being the principals child they refuse any special treatment and in fact take great joy over annoying their mother. They don't like you, maybe you used to be friends maybe you were strangers. Whatever your history, can you persuade them that you are not who they think you are?

Oliver/Olivia Campbell (RO, gender selectable) "the neighbor"

Typical golden retriever type. They are sweet but loud. You used to be neighbors, you two basically grew up together. O has noticed you drift since the accident. They wish they still lived by you so they could help more, but at least you'll see each other at school! Will you let them in?

Dylan Levine (RO, gender selectable) "the new kid"

A bit mysterious being new to the town. Dylan is your new classmate and is determined to learn about you and all the rumors surrounding you. You don't yet know what to think about them. Will they push you away when they find out about your so called curse, or will they stick around?

Jordan McKinley (RO, nonbinary) "the weird kid"

Jordan is known for being a bit... eccentric. They are kind and love making new friends, but your school has deemed them an outcast, not unlike yourself. Perhaps you two can bond over your loneliness?

My current plans:

Finish writing the prologue

Add/make any changes to the character customization

Publish complete prologue

[thestupidhelmet]

What are your least favorite seasons for each of the main characters? Season 8 doesn't count for obvious reasons.

Hi! 😀

I'm going to start with favorite then least favorite (because I totally misread your ask 🙈).

Favorite

Red: Season 1.

Red's still gruff but more complex. He demonstrates his love and compassion for Eric directly in "That Wrestling Show" and "Grandma's Dead" without being emotionally constipated about it (that's a term I use for Hyde, too 😂). Same with Hyde in "That Disco Episode" and "Career Day". But he still does so in-character. After S1, the writers replied down on him being a hardass. Perhaps some humor was gained, but more was lost imo

Kitty: Season 2

Kitty shows her strengths and vulnerabilities this season. She is the sole breadwinner while Red's out of work and supports him through his emotional crisis about his joblessness. She becomes depressed at Eric's growing up (i.e. when Eric and Donna begin their sexual relationship).

Eric: Season 2

This choice was a little tough for me because I love how good a friend he is to Hyde in season 1 and how strong he is in season 5. But in season 2, he must learn to balance his ego, his insecurity, and his wants vs. respecting Donna and their relationship. Unfortunately, he doesn't learn the lesson fully enough.

Donna: Season 3

Donna grows in independence this season while her relationship with Eric remains an important part of her life. Eric's insecurity and resultant controlling actions ultimately push her away. I stead if pushing her anger (and wants and self) aside to protect Eric's ego, she finally puts herself first in a non-selfish way --

Except for her utter disrespect of Eric in "Backstage Pass" (which is the accumulation of her understandable resentment of him for trying to control her and hold her back; story-wise, it makes total sense and is completely set up for by the writing all season).

Jackie: Season 5

Jackie grows and changes significantly in this season. From bossy to communicative. From living in a superficial fantasy to appreciating the depths of reality. Hyde encourages her independence and ability to take care of herself financially as an adult -- and thus encouragement happens before she's forced by her parents to be financially responsible for the family's estate as a minor (her parents left her without any kind of adult guardian, family member, godparent, nothing).

She discovers her true strengths but overcorrects. She has to (re)learn how to let people support her.

Hyde: Season 2

Hyde's protectiveness of and support for Jackie in this season is e v e r y t h i n g . He starts helping her not because he likes (he doesn't and finds her personality abrasive) but because she's heartbroken and vulnerable and he believes helping her is the right thing to do.

Kelso, of Hyde's best friend, is not only responsible for Jackie's emotional state but also punishes her after she refuses to accept him back as her boyfriend. Hyde not only tries to get Kelso caught by Jackie, he also teaches her a method of protecting herself from bullying -- making himself more vulnerable to her by doing so (i.e. sacrificing some of his own mental-emotional safety for Jackie's).

Fez: Season 1

Fez isn't a joke but a complex character who's emotionally insightful. He's someone who's learning how to fit in with his American friends and sometimes overshoots. He doesn't yet suffer from Nice Guy syndrome and genuinely treats Jackie with kindness. He has the awareness and respect not to try to steal Jackie's affections for himself, despite believing he could.

He calls Kelso out on his bad behavior. His bond with Hyde is well-written, too.

Kelso: Season 6

Kelso demonstrates the most growth and change in this episode -- where Brooke is concerned. He leaves Jackie and Hyde alone now that he's interested in someone else (a selfish, self-interested release). He's still selfish with Eric and Donna, taking their toys without permission and destroying them. He tries to sabotage Eric's waiter job at the Holiday Hotel out of a sense of entitlement.

He doesn't reciprocate any of the friendship and support he's given except at the very beginning, trying to undo the damage between Jackie and Hyde he's partially responsible for.

All of that being said, he works hard at maturing for Brooke to prove himself a worthy romantic partner and father. He chooses a stable, albeit potentially dangerous, career. He respects Brooke's boundaries (although he does try to push them a little), and he ultimately lets Brooke and his child go because he believes that's what's better for them: his most unselfish act in the show.

Least Favorite

Red, Kitty, Hyde, Fez: Season 7

These four are almost unrecognizable from their canon selves in too many episodes. Fez is the worst written of the four. He's reduced to a punchline and punchline giver -- and his disrespect for women a d female friends is firmly cemented. (This transformation began at the end of season 4.)

Kitty is devolved from her intelligent, compassion character to a dumbed-down, alcoholic whose fear at Eric growing up and leaving home is transmuted into hostility and resentment toward Donna (but this transformation began in season 5).

Red is changed from someone deeply in love with his wife and has eyes only for her; has no interest in other women sexually, to the point of feeling guilty and scared when a teenage girl hits on him despite all his efforts to turn her away; to someone who acts like a put-upon husband in a terrible marriage, finds joy (and possible lust) in posing with two much younger car models.

Hyde goes from someone clearly deeply committed to Jackie in seasons 5 and 6 to someone who is now commitment-phobic, disrespects Jackie utterly in "Winter" and after she graduates high school. Breaks promises to Jackie. Shrugs instead communicating with her properly. This Hyde is incompatible with seasons 5-6 Hyde except in a select few episodes where he's written in-character (e.g. "On With the Show").

Jackie: Season 4

Jackie vacillates between being supportive of Kelso's potential success and utterly jealous and resentful of it (and him). She chooses her love for Kelso over money, tolerates his lazy approach to finding a job, gets a humiliating job herself -- and while her envy at his modeling gig is understandable under all the circumstances, her treatment of him is unacceptable.

Kelso: Season 5

First, I have to talk about his behavior in season 4, which leads to his behavior in season 5. Kelso's misogyny hits an all-time high in the second half of season 4, as does his hypocrisy and sense of entitlement. He makes a false equivalency between Jackie's one kiss with Todd, which she is tricked into and tells Kelso about almost immediately, to his months of sleeping with at least two other girls with no intention of ever telling Jackie about it.

He also, hypocritically, tries to see Donna's breasts while he and Jackie are in a relationship.

He becomes paranoid and possessive, stalking Jackie at work. He blames his cheating on Jackie's supposed mistreatment of him. But the specific incident he cites is never shown on-screen nor spoken about in season 1 when he first cheats on Jackie with Pam Macy. He claims men cheat "out of joy" while women cheat "out of hate" and that "girls don't even enjoy sex".

This attitude and behavior carries over to season 5. Where in season 4, Kelso is decent to Jackie during the first half, he's awful to Jackie (and Hyde) throughout the whole of season 5. While he's allowed to sleep with whoever he wants, Jackie's "allowed" only to pine for him in perpetuity and get occasional sex from Kelso as a consolation.

Upon learning Jackie isn't going to abide by Kelso's controlling, narcissistic, self-entitled rules for her life and, instead, found joy with someone else -- worse, one of Kelso's friends, he dies all he can to destroy her happiness. Not because he's in love with her but because of his wounded pride.

Kelso feels humiliated that Jackie is in a happy, fulfilling relationship with Hyde. This fact translates into Kelso's mind into other people believing he's not the hottest, most sexually skilled man in Point Place. Therefore, he must "steal" Jackie back to prove he -- not Hyde -- is the hottest, most sexually skilled man in Point Place.

The above, coupled with Kelso's possessiveness of Jackie, feelings of entitlement toward her, and misogyny, renders season 5's Kelso a completely unlikeable and unsympathetic character. He should've been kicked out of Eric's basement long before season 5, but Kelso's behavior this season -- in the real world with the friends he has -- would have clinched his ousting from the group.

Donna: Season 4

While I understand Donna's character development in this season, and believe much of it is set up well by previous seasons, this is my least favorite season for her. She is in an incredible amount of pain. It makes her self-destructive but also outwardly hostile. She jumps into another committed (for her) relationship rather than talking the time to heal herself.

Donna disregards Eric's own grief to distract herself from her own ("The Relapse"), with no regard -- or care -- that this might deepen Eric's grief. Only her feelings matter to her in this episode, and it's written as if the audience is supposed to agree with her.

Dating Casey is a way to narcotize her grief. But she bullies Eric with Casey. She snaps at Hyde and rejects his friendship when he tries to protect her. She agrees with Casey's rapey advice to Fez about Rhonda.

Yet, as I wrote above, much of her behavior is grounded in the show's previous seasons. As much as I dislike how she acts, I believe most of it is in character because of the specific stressors she's under. It's a shame T7S's writers didn't give her a chance to self-reflect on her season 4 choices and gain emotional clarity from them (beyond, "I was so stupid!")

[gamerbearmira]

More resident evil 8 Au! I don't think I will ever run out of things to talk about for this AU!

First I'm glad you like my idea for julieta's mutation and I 100% agree that Miranda was trying to get rid of Alma's voice but she didn't directly go for her voice box she was just kind of hoping that it would be a side effect of the experiment so it didn't happen.

The Dimitrescu family does need to chill. They try their best but given their mutation and what I feel like is an ingrained primal/animalistic instincts they have a very hard time reeling in their emotions and with self-control in general. They've gotten a lot better over the years but it is something they still struggle with.

I just realized that we haven't got the families opinion on the other Lords or their first interaction with them besides the Dimitrescu family. As you know with Alcina and her family things were very tense and it took them a little while to be able to get along with each other but they managed The family doesn't have very high opinion of them because of their diet and their overall attitude but they are grateful for the fact that they took Mirabel in and took care of her when she was young. None of them like Monroe mostly because of the smell and the disgust that they feel being near him but also because of the fact that he is constantly trying to trick them into doing things to help him look better in the eyes of Miranda. All of them were creeped out by Donna at first, most of them still are, but Donna and Isabela built an odd little friendship over their special interest in gardening/plants. None of them like karl because of his abrasiveness and the attitude that he takes with Mirabel Plus the fact that his solution to the Miranda problem is to experiment on people and create these horrible monsters although camilo does like/appreciates the chaos that karl brings to certain things.

I feel like when Ethan is in Mirabel's creepy Casita he could go to different sections of the house and find different things. Like when his in the kitchen which is Julieta's area he could find healing items that would randomly regenerate more and could probably buy cheaper food items from Julieta, for weapons and ammo I'm torn about who he could get that from I feel like Luisa would be a good person to get that from because of how much she wants to protect her family. But I also feel like Pepa and Felix would be a better choice because in this Au they go crazy protective over the family plus I just get that type of vibe from them better than I do Luisa because at the end of the day Luisa is a cinnamon-roll sweetheart and I can't really imagine her hurting anyone or dealing with weapons.

Yes Ethan lives! I don't trust the B.S.A.A especially after seeing how they treat Rose. She literally didn't have a childhood in their care, and they were going to shoot her because she had a very reasonable reaction to what that one guard dude said, plus the fact the guy even felt comfortable to say something like that to her when she's visiting her father's grave is just gross. In my version The Madrigal family goes back to their encanto with Ethan and Rose, it's the place they all love and they all miss it very much, There are a couple villagers that are still alive and remember the family but not that many. Casita is still standing. Nobody lives inside because Casita refuses to allow anybody to live in her pushing away anyone who tries to get inside. When they get to Casita they were all basically pushed inside Casita was so happy to see them again! Casita had added a room for Mirabel while they were gone, the family doesn't know why or when. They make Ethan a house near Casita so he can have his own privacy and raise Rose the way he wants to. They of course help him whenever he needs it and spend a lot of time with him and Rose!

But I've been thinking. By the time Ethan happens Mirabel would be fully grown and would have been fully grown for a while before Ethan/Rose happens (all the Lords/experiments seem to stop aging after they reach adulthood) and with how much Miranda likes to experiment do you think it's possible that in between that time Miranda would try and experiment on Mirabel to create a vessel for Eva? In this Au Mirabel is considered the favorite and Miranda does have an unhealthy obsession with her so I wouldn't put it past her to try it but I don't know I would really like your opinion on that.

Any art you would like to make is always appreciated!

PLEASE DON'T STOP TALKING ABOUT IT BECAUSE I LOVE IT❗❗ Honestly, Resident Evil by far like my favorite Video Game Media, and in the top five of my favorite media of all time 😭😭 like if you want my attention just mention resident evil

ANYWAYYYYY yeah, I think it's cool for Julieta <333 makes me also think that since her hands leak mold and infect the food, if someone did eat it to heal, it would more effectively heal people who had some form of black mold or any mutation like that; an idea, maybe Ethan, if he goes to her kitchen for healing items, he can take food (if she offers it to him), and he can use it to help regenerate or repair stuff; it can’t regenerate whole limbs though, not unless he has them, hence why Ethan is still missing fingers <\3333 And anyone without mold or mutations have to eat more in order to heal properly. Or maybe ut doesn't heal at all. Idk 🌚

The opinions are so real 😭😭 like I can see why they don’t like Karl (and even Camilo probably only barely tolerates him), and Moreau, for obvious reasons is disliked. Like I know bro is a victim, all of them are, but he SO manipulative it’s not even funny, and he’s just trying to make himself look better in the end. Alcina and the daughters…yeah. By far, if they had to choose one for Mirabel to be around, they prefer Donna, like yeah, she’s creepy, and yeah her weird dolls are creepy, but she’s otherwise pretty chill, and Angie is really just a vessel for her to speak through. I like how Donna and Isa bond over gardening, that’s cool <333

ALSO ETHAN IN CASITA 💪💪💪 he finds the house and family creepy at first, but honestly, with how much he’s been through, he gets over it when he realizes that they only want to help him. Him raiding Julieta's kitchen is so funny, and like she doesn’t care 💀 also I think Pepa and Félix fit for weapons; maybe Luisa can still have a role, since she’s still strong, she can and will defend herself, especially against Lycans. If she’s not at Casita, she will roam the villages and knows her way around, so maybe Ethan can go to Luisa when he needs to know where to go next or where to find certain items (not the flasks though)??

AND THE B.S.A.A…I haven’t watched gameplay of the Rose DLC yet (I need to lmao), so I was going off the B.S.A.A in previous games like 3/5/6. I’m glad they went back to the encanto, and I’m glad Casita is still standing and was so excited that the family came back 🦈🦈 The Madriagls pretty regularly check on the Winters. No Mia. We don’t talk about Mia 👹👹

As for Miranda trying that, yeah, I think so too. Even with her, and the family getting older, Miranda still treats her like a child, like her child. Arguably, her obsession gets worse, and it affects her both Mirabel and even her family to some extent. Mirabel wants to be herself and live as herself, but Miranda essentially ends up viewing her as nothing but a vessel for her daughter, and treats her as such. She either treats her as she would Eva, or she would treat her like the experiment Miranda will ultimately try and turn her into. Mirabel fully believes she won’t fail this time. She refuses to listen to Mirabel, much less her family.

Mirabel might even be a little happy Miranda doesn't really like her family, becayse at least that way, her family is safe from Miranda's obsession with getting her daughter back. Miranda tolerates them but you know. She's not above brutality and LITERAL ASSAULT AND MURDER 🌚)

ALSO ART❗❗ so fun to draw. Honestly, I'll draw a lot for this au 🤭🤭 LIKE...its insane. I had this idea, but it doesn't work with the timeline of RE8 and Encanto 😭 Anyway, I want to do a snippet, so if you have any ideas or more lore 🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃‍♀️

[thebreakfastgenie]

Can you explain the new doctor who stuff to someone who has never watched doctor who before?

Ooh I can try?

Background:

The Doctor is a Time Lord, a powerful time-traveling alien. There are other Time Lords but they're not usually around and when they are it's not good. He travels the universe, and time, in the TARDIS, which looks like an old-fashioned British police call box on the outside but is massive on the inside. The Doctor is also kind of bad at controlling where it ends up. Every time the Doctor dies, he regenerates, but keeps all his memories. This happens every time the character is recast. The Doctor's gender is not fixed, the previous regeneration was a woman, but he's mostly been portrayed and written about as a man over the years so I'm using he/him for simplicity. David Tennant is one of my most beloved portrayals of the Doctor since the show was revived in 2005 and he returned for three specials to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the show. In-universe, the Doctor regenerated into the same body he'd had a couple regenerations ago, and he does not yet know why (we'll probably find out in the last special).

The Doctor also travels with friends, called companions. One of the most beloved companions of the revived show is Donna Noble, a loud, abrasive, middle class woman who has trouble holding down temp jobs, and turns out to kind, compassionate, and brilliant. Her relationship with the Doctor is completely platonic. Companions have to be written off the show eventually, and it's often in heart-wrenching ways. Donna was involved in some scifi mumboj-umbo called the metacrisis, which basically gave her a special connection to the Doctor and some Time Lord powers (mostly intelligence). Because her body is human, the power was killing her, so in order to save her life the Doctor wiped her memory of him and all their adventures. Donna met and married a wonderful man and had a child, but the Doctor could never see her again, because if she remembered him she would die. However, Donna also came back to celebrate the 60th anniversary. These specials are were created by Russell T Davies, the writer who revived Doctor Who in 2005 and ran the show until he left at the same time David Tennant did. He's now coming back to run the show again. He has a distinct style that a lot of fans really respond to, although the other two show runners who have been in charge in the meantime have fans as well.

The new Doctor Who stuff:

About 15 years after wiping Donna's memory, the Doctor regenerated back into David Tennant and the TARDIS immediately landed on a street, where he ran into Donna, who fortunately did not immediately recognize him. Donna called for Rose, which freaked him out because Rose was the name of the first companion in the revived Doctor Who, the Doctor's love interest, who was permanently trapped in a parallel universe. Donna knew about this and even met Rose during a big finale. It turns out the Rose Donna was calling for was her daughter. Rose is also trans and chose the name Rose for herself, and Donna got very protective against some transphobic bullies.

There was an alien threat in London (again) and in the course of investigating, the Doctor wound up at Donna's house, where Rose was harboring a deceptively adorable alien called the Meep. In order to save the entire city of London from the adorable but evil Meep, the Doctor was forced to restore Donna's memory so they could use their combined abilities. They succeeded, but Donna passed out, however she quickly recovered. It turns out that when she had a child, some of the Time Lord power stuff got passed down, so it's now shared between her and her daughter. Rose's choice of name as well as some of her hobbies were influenced by subconscious memories of TARDIS adventures. There's a whole little bit about how the Doctor is male (David Tennant's Doctor), female (Donna), and "neither and more," (Rose, who is a nonbinary trans girl). It's incredibly silly and campy and very fun and the whole episode is just very pro-trans which is nice. In the end, Donna and Rose are able to let the Time Lord power go and retain their memories. Donna is not planning to return to traveling with the Doctor, as she now has a family, but she gets in the TARDIS for "one last trip" and spills coffee on the controls, making the TARDIS go haywire and ultimately getting the Doctor and Donna stranded on a spaceship at the edge of the universe.

In the second special they had a very creepy adventure on the spaceship featuring "not things" taking their shape. They finally made it back to Earth at the end, only to find humanity going violently insane, setting up the plot of the third special, which we will see soon! They also got to see Donna's grandfather, Wilf, who was himself a beloved companion. Wilf's actor, Bernard Cribbins, died recently, but he filmed this scene before he died, so fans were really overjoyed and emotional to see him one last time.

The second special also had a scene at the beginning featuring Isaac Newton, who was played by a brown actor, and later had Donna and the Doctor agreeing he was hot and a line confirming the Doctor is not straight. There's been subtext about the Doctor being queer for a very long time, he was kissed by a canonically omnisexual male companion, and the previous Doctor, who was a woman, had ship tease with her female companion, but this line was a bit more direct and overt about a male Doctor liking men than most of what's been included before. These two things, along with the pro-trans stuff in the first special, have the right throwing a tantrum about Doctor Who going "woke" which is just kind of hilarious.

At the end of the last special the Doctor is regenerating into his newest form, played by Ncuti Gatwa. Davies is staying to run the show, but Ncuti Gatwa's Doctor and his companion will be new.

tl;dr: beloved actors and show runner return for specials that have been really good, well-written, good mix of practical and computer effects, and fun pro-trans stuff in the first special, so Doctor Who fans are happy.

[a-wolf-at-the-door]

Hi Lia, it's the anon from a few weeks ago. It's my birthday! Nothing really that big just turned 23, but if you're still up too it I would love a preview of the next story in the verse. Maybe, something happy? Thank you very much for taking the time to answer!

Hello returning anon and happy late birthday!!! Sorry it took me a few days to get this to you, my notifications have been on the fritz. Not 100% sure this fits the word "happy" but it's definitely hopeful/positive, here's an excerpt that takes place at the end of the "Planet of the Ood" storyline, hope it makes up for the wait:

The freedom song of the Ood Sphere was like nothing the Doctor had ever heard.

From the very moment he’d emerged from the TARDIS, he’d sensed something was very, very wrong in the planet’s psychic field, a feeling only intensified as he and Donna held the dying Ood Delta 50. So close to the suffering Ood, so far from the protective balm of the TARDIS’s telepathic shielding, he’d hardly been able to concentrate on anything at all other than the agony of the Ood’s collective trauma howling through him. A younger him, a more naïve him, might not have been able to cope at all. This Doctor had had time immeasurable to develop a resistance to specieswide telepathic despair. So he’d soldiered on, seen the light go from Donna’s eyes and swallowed back bile as she insisted she wanted to go home.

And then the circle was broken, the Ood Brain freed. And the weight of their triumph nearly bowled him over. It was rich and pure, simple and multifaceted, soaring with the sort of joy only felt by those who have known great sorrow. Relief and respite, succour and solace. A balm to the spirit, to the mind.

His cheeks were strained from grinning, his eyes burning with tears. This, he thought, bizarrely and against all reason, was what it must feel like to be human.

The subtle tunes and twitches in the melody revealed wordless truths to him, and he understood at once that Oodkind were being summoned home, that they were boarding rockets to comply. A sour thing twisted within him, a reminder of the last time he’d answered such a summons, but he pushed that feeling aside. Now was not a moment for grief or bitterness. He’d had plenty of that and would surely have plenty more. This was a rare, bright moment for hope.

Outside, as the Ood emerged and joined hands in song, he explained to Donna the scale of what they’d done. “The Ood are coming home.”

Donna opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, Ood Sigma approached.

“We thank you, Doctor and Donna, friends of Oodkind. And what of you now? Will you stay? There is room in the song for you.”

For a fraction of a picosecond, something inside him almost considered the offer. To be among a telepathic race again, a peaceful space… but immediately, reality set in.

“Oh, I’ve… I’ve sort of got a song of my own, thanks,” the Doctor stammered. It was a lonely tune these days, just him and the TARDIS, but it was his. All he needed, all he deserved.

Ood Sigma blinked at him with those incisive, bulging eyes, then said, “I think your song must end soon.”

It was the way he said it, so matter-of-factly, like he was reading a weather report or surveying a picked-over platter of middling nibbles, that unnerved the Doctor more than the words themselves. Of course his song was ending; his song had been ending ever since the most important chords in it had fallen into the Void. It was a tuneless thing now, only the rhythm of his heartsbeat and the TARDIS’s breathy sighs to propel it forwards, but generally this sort of observation, if someone were to make it, would be made with an abrasive reverence, some grand acknowledgment that they were witnessing the death knells of an ancient and magnificent being from an even more ancient, even more magnificent race.

“Meaning?” he asked, a note of acid in his tone he wasn’t even sure he meant.

“The wolf is at the door,” the Ood said, that same infuriatingly pleasant, neutral tone colouring his voice.

The whole universe narrowed to that utterance. Time ground to a halt. The Ood went silent. The sun extinguished. Even his hearts fluttered in the space between a pulse.

The wolf is at the door.

He was jarred back to reality by Donna grabbing hold of his shoulder and shaking him a little. Ood Sigma was long gone, with no footprints in the snow to indicate where he’d been. It could have been seconds or hours, though likely it was on the shorter end of that scale considering Donna’s typical patience levels.

“Doctor, are you alright?” When he didn’t immediately respond, she added, “What did he mean, the wolf is at the door?”

Hearing the words again snapped him out of his haze and he shook his head violently as though dislodging a knot of flies. “I don’t know,” the Doctor said. “But we’re going to find out.”

[presidentdisastraofgallifrey]

Rating Every Nu Who Episode: Season 4

Voyage of the Damned: 5/10 didn't care much for it, though there were a couple of funny moments.

Partners in Crime: 10/10 DONNA!!!!! Also the adipose are cute and funny and horrifying and although the implication is MEANT to be that they took advantage of there being so many fat people in existence, I choose to read it as taking advantage of the predatory weight loss industry. Also Ten and Donna are the perfect Doctor and companion pair. They are chaos twins.

The Fires of Pompeii: 8/10 it was interesting and funny and I love the ending with "save someone, just someone" bit.

Planet of the Ood: 9/10 despite the weird hair loss poisoning which I'm not sure can cause one to change species. But every other part was so perfect and heart-wrenching I'm not even taking points off.

The Sontaran Strategem/The Poison Sky: 7/10 the sontarans are a lot of fun and I liked the cars turning against people, but the young genius guy and his private school felt sort of random and out of place.

The Doctor's Daughter: 8/10 while not the most exciting episode ever, the Doctor's complex family feelings were great and the idea of war spreading so fast that whole lifetimes pass in days was beautiful.

The Unicorn and the Wasp: 9/10 yes it's one of the silliest premises since the revival and yes it feels just like an Agatha Christie book and yes it's sweet and charming and tragic and I love it.

Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead: 10/10 RIVER!!! This was a GREAT introduction for a fellow time traveler married to him. And also a very creepy premise. And also a very sweet solution when you expect greed to be the cause, or some villain, but it was just a little girl who wanted to save everyone. Note, however: people do so say however many were saved, the show tried too hard to be clever here.

Midnight: 3/10 nothing wrong with it and I know it's a very popular episode, but I don't care as much for plots that take place in a closed space (that felt very spaceshipy) with a mystery threat, and it wasn't fun to me how quickly everyone turned on each other even though I'm not saying it's unrealistic.

Turn Left: 10/10 genuinely one of my favorite episodes. (1) I love in-show AUs, (2) Donna is the most ordinary and most extraordinary person in the universe, and (3) I actually liked Rose a lot more here.

The Stolen Earth/Journey's End: 10/10 I love everything about it, but especially the coming together of all the Doctor's friends. It was fantastic. Also the tragedy of Donna's leaving was beautiful.

The Next Doctor: 8/10 it was charming and funny and I loved the confusion of "well he COULD be me, this happens every few years."

The End of Time: 6/10 thought the Time Lord plot was clever and enjoyed Wilf as a proper companion. The Master's plot to make everyone him was unusually nonsensical, though, and I hate everything about his over-the-top vibes.

Waters of Mars: 0/10 because scary water zombies. I literally only watched it once. It lost its last point because I like the rest of the plot but can't watch it again.

Bonus Character Rating:

Ten: 10/10 he's great and sad and silly but trying so hard to live life.

Donna: 10/10 she's just such a Person. She's normal and abrasive and unapologetic and utterly perfectly complimentary for him.

Wilf: 10/10 perfect grandpa

[amberjazmyn]

heaven

𝓲𝓶𝓪𝓰𝓲𝓷𝓮 - heaven

𝔀𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 - tears, unrequited love, requited love, death, mention of terminal illness, mention of a hospital, mention of a wedding

𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓬𝓻𝓲𝓹𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷 - with the lyrics of shane filan's "heaven" we see all four supernatural male cast members in love or watching their crush in love or reminisce about their deceased lover/spouse/deceased parent with their partner 

𝓪𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻'𝓼 𝓷𝓸𝓽𝓮 - this came out of bum fuck nowhere since i didn't like where my "completely" one-shot was going so yeah, hopefully, this is better. as always, lyrics is written in bold italics, flashbacks if any is written in italics, the present time is written in the regular font and everything is written in lowercase. some of these, like jensen's, could be seen as a "part two" or like a prologue to the "always with me" one shot but you don't have to read "always with me" to understand this one since basically only jensen's and maybe someone else's will have some correlation and relation to it.

masterlist listen to heaven right here!

- - - 

jensen ackles:

ooh, thinking about all our younger years, there was only you and me, we were young and wild and free. 

tears streamed down his face as he remembered the joy he had with you in this life and how that joy was now no longer around. you and jensen ackles were only married for just less than three months when out of what felt like nowhere, you fell ill and were diagnosed with a terminal illness that changed everything for you and jensen and all the dreams you two had with each other now that you were mr and mrs ackles, were swirling down the drain as you two started your short move-in to the hospital as an in-patient. 

whilst in the hospital, you and jensen but, jensen in particular, would think about your guys' younger years from the day you fell in love with each other, when it was only you two before supernatural was even a thing and when you were young, wild and free. and, other times, it'd just be silent in your hospital room because there would be times when jensen couldn't just stop working with supernatural entirely even though if it was that way, all of the supernatural cast wouldn't be working and helping their castmate and best friend through this journey but, they weren't allowed to because they were a tv show and they were always having to be filming or on tv in an interview. and today was one of the days where jensen thankfully praise god, got a day off of work whilst the other main three [jared, misha and alex] covered for him during a media interview and he was with you at the hospital. however, this was the day he wished jared, misha and alex weren't at an interview...

...because the moment he heard that all-too-familiar beeping sound that only seemed to get louder and more abrasive, he only wished that he had his three best friends with him. he could barely even yank his phone out of his pocket in time before he heard the rush of footsteps coming up from behind him...

...turning around, tears welling in his blue eyes, jensen never expected to see his castmates who were also his best friends rush through the hospital hallway when he hadn't even taken his phone out of his pocket to tell them. that was when he remembered who else was in the hospital with him, his mom donna had joined jensen and was the one who had contacted jared, misha and alex. 

"...jensen...we heard the news about y.n from your mom, is she okay?" jared questioned, bringing his arms up to jensen's shoulders as he just shakes his head, his tears streaming down his cheeks slowly 

"she...she's gone j..." jensen whispered as he felt his heart breaking as he fell forward, jared only just catching him as he hugged jensen as tightly as he could as it just set into jared, misha and alex's heads that the code blue they were hearing was y.n's - they were seconds too late 

"...jensen..." jared whispered, not knowing what else to say as jensen collapsed to the floor, jared going down with him as jensen cried and cried and cried, misha and alex joining the two of them seconds later as they joined jared in comforting their best friend 

jensen cried on that hospital floor in his best friends' arms for how long, he had no idea but it felt like forever when the nurse who took care of y.n had basically confirmed what was already known and it broke jensen's heart even more. 

"...mr ackles, i am really sorry but, there was nothing we could do to resuscitate your wife. if you, your mother and your friends would like to, you guys can come in to say your final farewells..." the female nurse spoke softly as jensen shakily stood up, jared helping him as the rest of them stood up as well 

"...thank you, doctor..." jensen trailed off, wanting to say something else but, he couldn't, he didn't know what else to say other than a weakened "thank you" as he loosened himself away from jared and walked in on his own 

jared, misha and alex watched on with broken hearts as their best friend and their castmate basically collapsed to his knees and hugged his now-deceased wife, wishing for her to just wake up and to "stop being a fucking twat, y.n". and well, jensen's mom donna, she felt as though it wasn't the right time for her to stay so, with a quick touch to jared, she silently excused herself out of the hospital back to her car to go back home. 

speaking up, jared bit his lip, "what are we going to do now?" tears welled in his eyes for his best friend who had now become a widower less than three months after marrying as misha and alex, who were also teary-eyed, shook their heads in unknowing 

"i have no clue, jared...all i know is that jensen's going to need us more than he's ever needed us and we have to be there for him through all of it," misha responded as jared and alex nodded their heads in agreement 

"absolutely. but, we need to be ready for all five stages of grief, we can't just be there for him when he's going through the depression stage. we also have to be there for him when he's in denial, when he's bargaining and wishing it was him that got sick, when he's mad over it all and then, when he eventually comes to some sort of acceptance over this whole situation, we have to be there for every single part of it..." alex gulped as he placed his hand over his heart, only able to imagine the heartache that his best friend was going through and it broke his heart that jensen wasn't imagining it 

jared, misha and alex joined jensen in y.n's hospital room minutes later and comforted him as he wept and wished it was him laying in that hospital bed over his wife. after that though, after jensen cleaned himself up, he took it upon himself to remember his wife and all the memories he shared with her. the four talked, cried and laughed together as they shared their favourite memories of y.n ackles with each other and, whilst that wasn't going to fix jensen's hole in his heart straight away, it was a small stepping stone that was the foundation. 

jared padalecki:

now our dreams are coming true, through the good times and the bad, i'll be standing there by you 

nicky hadn't been any happier before in his life. he was starring in the biggest sci-fi show in the world, he had the life he dreamt of and he was married to the love of his life, y.n padalecki and he couldn't have wished for anything else. 

kissing his now-wife's ear, he whispers, "...do you think our guests would notice if we just...left the reception?" jared smiled as y.n giggled, grabbing her husband's hand 

"yes, they totally would, jared! we are not going to do that! besides, the speeches haven't started yet, we'll leave during cocktail hour, okay?" y.n giggled as jared rolled his eyes but agreed with his wife 

"...jared...jared...jare..."

"...jared!" y.n giggled softly as she snapped her fingers in front of her husband's face

jared looked up from his phone, his tears welling in his eyes as y/n's smile fades immediately and grabs her husband's phone out of his hand, slips it into her back pocket and pulls her husband in for a hug. 

"what was the phone call about, babe? it felt like it was going on forever..." y.n trailed off as jared sniffled, not wanting to start his sobfest now, especially in somewhere as public as the austin airport 

"...steve...umm, one of [best friend's] workmates went up to check on him since he didn't respond to me or his mom's calls and umm, he...[best friend's] been taken to the hospital and they..." jared's voice caught as y.n's eyes widened and her heart broke and, just like her husband, tears welled in her eyes 

"...oh, honey, is...is that why you ran off the plane you were supposed to be on?" y.n whispered as jared turned around, grabbing y.n's hand so they could run to their car to get to the hospital 

and, as they started to run, jared started to talk again, "yes...i...i think he's dead, and it absolutely terrifies me that i could have found out when i got to vancouver..." jared sniffled as he closed his eyes, only wishing he wasn't close to breaking down in the airport as he and his wife ran through the halls 

"...jared...babe..." y.n wished she could think of something but it was kind of hard when she was running no...being pulled...through the austin airport back to their car to drive to the hospital 

she then halted the both of them and spoke up after quickly catching her breath, "...jared, have you called the hospital to ask them if [best friend] is okay, first?" she questioned, it broke her heart to think that jared would go straight to the thought that his best friend could be dead without even ringing up the hospital to check first 

and, it was at that moment that y.n gave her husband his phone back and jared rang up austin state hospital...

austin state hospital 

"austin state hospital, rebecca speaking who is..."

"...you've admitted somebody here, [best friend's full name], and i'm just wanting to see how he is?"

"and, who are you?" 

"i...i'm his best friend!"

"you need to come to the hospital, you don't need to rush but you need to come into the hospital!"  

"thank you...bye..."

and before the receptionist from austin state hospital could say her piece, jared ended the phone call and sobbed the tears he tried his best to hold back when he had to tell her that he was his best friend's friend. y.n bit her lip as she just looked at her husband as he looked back at her and shook his head as her eyes widened and a tear slipped from her cheek, causing tears to stream down jared's. 

"...what did she say, jared?" y.n sniffled, wiping her tear away as she moved closer to her husband as he covered his face before his hand reached his hair 

"she...she said that i...we need to come to the hospital but we don't need to rush...y.n, i...i was correct. [best friend]...[best friend's] dead and i was nearly on a plane to vancouver..." jared sniffled as his voice broke as y.n shook her head, not wanting jared to blame himself as her heart broke even more than her husband's suspicion was correct 

"...oh, babe...no, don't blame yourself for having to leave for work! besides, i think we should listen to what the receptionist lady said and make our way to the hospital, maybe there you'd still have somewhat of a chance to say one final goodbye?" she knew that last part could have come off as insulting and anything but helpful but, she was lost with what to say since all of her best friends were very much alive and she now had no idea the emotions and grief nicky was going to go through 

jared nodded his head, knowing what y.n meant and tried to wipe away his tears as the padalecki's finally reached their car in the airport parking lot and started their drive down to austin state hospital - the last place they wanted to be in november 2016. 

 by the time jared and y.n padalecki arrived at the hospital, it had been announced that jared's best friend had indeed been pronounced dead from what seemed to be a suspected suicide but, of course, the cause couldn't be confirmed until the autopsy report had been performed and finalised. and, jared was absolutely distraught and broken to the ground, of course, he was, his best friend was his best friend and now, bam, 100 days after they had gone through the same devastation with a different best friend, they were doing it all over again with this specific best friend. and, y.n had no idea what to do to help her husband, she did think about ringing up [the other best friend's] wife but, she thought that seemed a bit crude since, technically, it hadn't been that long since [other best friend] had died and she was probably still doing all she could do to console her husband of the other deceased best friend. so, the next best thing y.n did was to just simply, be that shoulder for jared to cry on and her ears for jared to cry and rant to and to remind him that he couldn't just not eat or drink anything for a whole day because that is unhealthy and he needs to eat and drink. it also meant that when she knew that the phone calls and funeral planning were getting too much for her husband, she'd send him upstairs to their bedroom to sleep alongside their son, thomas. 

after going back and forth with jared about why he should go upstairs to have a sleep, you spoke up again, "...and i understand you want to help your best friend's mom, i get it, sweetheart. but, babe, look at the state of you, you are not in the right state of mind to be on the phone with his family and the funeral directors. there's a reason why his mom has been attempting to be this strong and it's because she has to. so, i'll ask you again, go upstairs to our room and i'll take care of this. what you need is sleep. you are wrecked and the only way you'll be able to continue is if you rest and take care of yourself. you are not okay, jared, you just lost your best friend..." she trailed off as jared's eyes closed and he covered his face with his hands 

she hated that she made her husband cry, of course, she did but, they both knew that it would be better for jared to rest with their little boy and for y.n to continue just for the moment. as she watched her husband with their shared son go upstairs for a nap, she remembered why she married her husband and this was the reason - so she could be there during the good and the bad times. 

misha collins:

ooh once in your life you'll find someone who will turn your world around, bring you up when you're feeling down, yeah nothing can change what you mean to me

she couldn't believe that misha collins wanted to talk with her. she didn't even think that misha knew who she was but, apparently he did because, when she arrived at school and opened up her locker, a piece of paper slipped out. when she opened it, she found a letter from misha and it read, "hey y.n, meet me at the school's lecture theatre first period. misha collins xx" and, he even left her two kisses on the letter! surely that means that like, misha's into her, right? well, she would find out soon since the first period starts at eight thirty-five am and it was currently eight thirty am so, only five more minutes before she'd be with misha and finding out what it was that he wanted to tell her. so, with her geography textbook in her hands and misha's handwritten letter on top of it, she began her walk to the school's lecture theatre...

...arriving at exactly eight thirty-five am on the dot, she waited in slight confusion for misha only to jump out of her skin when someone did walk in, only for the person that walked in to be the very person that wrote the note. giggling in slight embarrassment, y.n bit her lip and tamed her hair, curling it behind her ear as she stepped closer, handing misha the letter, gesturing to him to explain what it was he wanted since she was missing period one, something she had never done before since she was always known as northfield's goody two shoes. 

smiling, misha happily spoke up, "...i...i didn't think you'd actually skip geography, y.n, wow, you're not just a goody two shoes..." he laughed as y.n giggled too as she shrugged, her geography textbook hugging her chest 

"...so, what is it you wanted to meet me here for? this couldn't wait until break or my study-free period since we're seniors?" y.n teased as misha shrugged his shoulders this time as he huffed 

"i just...i've been meaning to tell you something for a while since i know you've been sort of, f...fawning over me lately and i wanted to tell you that, i...i also like you like that..." 

"...y.n...y.n...hello, earth to y.n?" snapping to get her best friend's attention was something danielle collins has had to do for ages now, ever since misha collins, danielle's older brother, started dating vicki vantoch

"yeah, sorry dani, what...what did you say?" y.n gulped, clearing her throat as danielle sighed sadly, her shoulders sagging 

danielle knew of the history y.n and her brother, misha, had had during their senior year of high school and the first few years of y.n's college years until 2000 when misha wanted to be an actor and misha started realising that he was growing apart from his high school sweetheart and falling in love with someone else. and, whilst it was utterly painful to watch this unrequited love between her best friend and brother, she knew that being invited to her unrequited former lover's wedding in maine was doing anything but helping those feelings. danielle and y.n had gone out to the boutique to find themselves dresses for the wedding, dresses that weren't too out there but were still nice since it was a maine wedding where the dress code wasn't too formal but rather comfortable. 

"i said, y.n, i personally think it was quite low of misha and vicki to invite you considering the history of you and him but, it can't be any worse for you though..." danielle trailed off as y.n smiled and shook her head, her hands shuffling through the dress rack 

"...i don't think so...i think it was actually quite sweet of them to invite me..." she trails off as she pulls out a dress she thought she liked the look of but immediately grimaced and placed it back, making danielle giggle 

"...sweet? why do you think it was sweet of them to invite you?" danielle questioned after reeling in her giggles from the dress fiasco as y.n sighs and rolls her eyes, moving her back towards the clothes rack and to danielle with her arms crossed over her chest 

"i think it's sweet because it means that they clearly trust me enough that one, i'm not going to do anything silly like object to their wedding and two, they still care about me because, honestly, vicki is the sweetest girl out there and, i'm truly happy that it's vicki that misha's marrying, i wouldn't want him to be marrying me at all..." y.n trailed off as danielle was shocked as she tried to find any inkling in y.n's face that she was lying but, danielle couldn't, her best friend was not lying at all 

"...seriously? you wouldn't want misha to be marrying you but victoria vantoch instead? why? i always wished it was you that misha married eventually..." danielle trailed off as y.n giggled as she sighs 

"...absolutely, vicki is the right one for misha and misha is the right one for vicki. i was only meant to be a short-term relationship and i'm okay with that. i knew from that day at school, back in the school lecture theatre when he first talked to me, that it wasn't going to last longer or reach a ring and a marriage and truthfully, i think you knew that too but, you just didn't want to believe it. so you tried your absolute hardest to hate the guts out of vicki when she just fell in love with the same boy i did who realised that he finally found the love of his life who wasn't me. and you hate that because you wanted it to be me even though you knew in your sub-conscious that it was never going to be me and because you don't actually hate the guts out of vicki, you just hate that your older brother found the love of his life and it wasn't who you always wished it to be..." y.n finished as danielle gulped and locked her jaw, crossing her arms over her chest as she sighed, nodding her head as y.n felt herself flashback to that day that misha asked her to be his girlfriend 

"...y.n...y.n...earth to y.n? hello? y.n y.l.n!" misha snaps his fingers with a giggle as the girl blinks and shakes her head with a small giggle 

"sorry misha, what did you say? i didn't catch that..." y.n gulped, she totally heard what misha said, she just couldn't believe the words that came out of his mouth after the very vague note he had scribbled down and placed in her locker earlier that morning 

"...i said, i like you a lot, y.n and i was wondering if you wanted to be my girlfriend and if i could pick you up this friday to take you out on a date to the movies..." misha repeated and y.n smiled, her mind was not playing tricks on her and misha did ask her to be his girlfriend and to take her out on a date 

even though she knew this relationship wasn't going to end in them getting married and having a family together, y.n nodding her head and responded, "...of course, i'll be your girlfriend and i'd love it if you could pick me up on friday to take me to the movies, what movie were you thinking of?" y.n bit her lip as she could tell that misha was also relieved that she said yes and he smiled 

"i was thinking my girl with macaluly culkin and anna chlumsky to then pick you up at around, six thirty pm as the movie starts at around seven and then drop you home afterwards?" misha proposed as y.n smiled and nodded her head which made misha feel so much better

"i'd like that...wait, isn't my girl supposedly like, really really sad? i don't wanna cry in the cinema, that's so embarrassing, mish!" y.n started but then trailed off in worry that seeing titanic with misha in the cinemas would make her cry as misha giggled and bit his lip 

"yeah...it is said to be quite the emotional rollercoaster but, i made sure to buy seats right at the back since i'm also quite the crier so you won't be the only one crying so, my girl at six thirty on friday?" misha giggled with a hint of embarrassment as y.n felt butterflies in her tummy hearing that misha was a crier as she nodded her head 

"that sounds perfect, thanks misha, see you then?" y.n trailed off as the bell for period two had rung, meaning that y.n had to rush to her locker to grab her political studies textbook and explain to her teacher why she was late as misha smiled 

"yeah, if we don't see each other in political studies..." misha winked as y.n giggled, remembering they had period two together 

"...y.n, seriously? how many times do i have to snap my fingers in your face today? did you hear what i asked you?" danielle sighed in exasperation as y.n blinked back into reality with a sorry look towards danielle

"i'm sorry dani, i only got two hours of sleep last night, bambi and pascal were barking all through the night because of the fireworks on the main street, what did you ask me?" y.n apologised as danielle softened up, she knew how loud her two huskies, bambi and pascal got whenever the austin council let off fireworks during a random day on the main street 

"don't apologise, i asked where you and misha went for your first date since i don't think you ever managed to tell me or elizabeth and sasha what you guys did even though you promised us you would," danielle giggled as y.n did too, how on earth did misha or her forget to tell their first date to their best friends and siblings after promising they would 

"oh my god, did we not tell you guys?" y.n was shocked, how did they never tell anyone about their first date back in 1991 and only now in 2001, ten years after the fact as danielle shook her head 

"no, you guys never ended up telling us, you didn't even give us a slither of a clue after we all begged and begged you two to tell us, you guys just went straight to the cafeteria for lunch and by the time you came back, there was no use to ask you again since you two were avoiding telling us at all costs..." danielle smiled as she trailed off as y.n smiled, remembering that friday evening like it was yesterday 

"...well, it wasn't too crazy. all we did was, misha picked me up at six thirty pm that friday night for a seven pm showing of my girl and after the film was over, he drove the both of us back to my place. misha did originally plan on driving back home but, we didn't seem to take into account how long the movie was and we didn't get home until like, nine thirtyish in the evening and mom was hellbent on having misha spend the night since it had started to rain seconds after misha and i got home and, because she didn't want misha to drive back to his place in the rain, she rang up your parents and explained to them that misha was staying overnight at ours and that he'd return back home in the morning the next day. so, we had some fish and chips and watched another movie that was on the tv and then we went upstairs to my room, he stayed in my room and we slept in my bed but, there was no touching, no cuddling, no sex, no nothing. misha was quite respectful of my space on my bed and i was quite respectful of his space on the bed and we fell asleep. when we woke up the next morning, we got dressed, me in my room and misha in the bathroom and then went downstairs for some breakfast when misha then left since the rain had died down during the evening while we were asleep and that's what our first date was, nothing too crazy, nothing too special, just something lowkey and it was great..." y.n trailed off as danielle smiled the whole time 

"...then if it was just that, then why didn't you guys tell us? what was so embarrassing that you couldn't tell your best friend and sister?" danielle grilled as y.n scoffed out a laugh as they sat on y.n's bed as danielle gestured for her best friend to tell her 

"fine, i'll tell you. we both cried our eyes out during the movie and, we didn't want to tell you guys because, knowing the three of you, sasha, elizabeth and you, you would have laughed at us if we told you my girl made us cry so, we just decided not to tell you at all..." y.n shrugged as danielle gasped in offence that she wasn't told ten years ago 

"...how dare you say that we'd laugh at the both of you for crying during my girl! i'll have you know, i watched it with my now husband, noah and sasha in 1992 during a break in between the college terms and we both sobbed our eyes out, why didn't you tell us then after i had rung you in such emotional duress over the movie?" danielle howled in shock and mock offence as y.n laughed wholeheartedly at her best friend 

"jesus christ, can you be any more dramatic, danielle? but, i'm sorry, okay? we just forgot to tell you since we started to go on more dates more frequently to the point where we started to forget what we had done the week before. it wasn't that we intentionally hid it from you guys, we truly did want to tell you," y.n giggled, sighing at the end as danielle smiled

"it's alright, i was being dramatic besides, if misha and vicki's wedding is tomorrow, we should probably go to sleep since we have to wake up kind of early to make sure we catch our flight in time since we've finished packing everything we need," danielle suggested as y.n agreed and nodded her head, slithering herself into her bedsheets, danielle following suite, knowing that danielle's husband and y.n's friend, noah, was doing the same thing a couple of rooms down from them 

"agreed. goodnight dani..." y.n whispered after turning off her bedside lamp as danielle smiled, turning to her side of y.n's bed 

"...goodnight y.n..." danielle whispered back as she quickly fell asleep whilst y.n stayed awake, staring at her ceiling for five minutes until she lulled herself into sleep only hoping that her emotions would be controlled and she wouldn't bawl her eyes out during the wedding of her ex-lover and his new wife 

*

and how she should have known that her emotions would not be controlled, similar to what she's seen people do at funerals in movies and tv, she couldn't move from her seat after misha and vicki's beautifully hilarious wedding. thankfully, there was still time before the reception but, for now, y.n just needed time to herself, to breathe and to regulate her emotions before she sees misha and vicki to congratulate them...only, misha noticed her first and decided to go over and talk to his ex-lover...

"...hey...hey, y.n?" misha whispered, not wanting to startle his ex as she turned around, quickly wiping away her teary eyes as she smiled towards the now-married man 

"hey, misha, what are you doing over here? you should be with your wife, celebrating together before the reception," y.n cleared her throat as misha smiled and gave a side head nod as he gestured if he could take a seat, y.n nodded her head 

"i'm here because i wanted to talk with you, and so does vicki but, i think she'll do it later so as not to overwhelm you...but umm... i...we both know, vicki and me, how hard it must be to have come to the wedding and to have seen the wedding invite but, i just, i couldn't get married to vicki without you being here and, whether that sounds selfish or not, it wasn't our intention but, thank you. thank you for showing up because, even though i'm now married to vicki, i still love you in a way that vicki will never properly understand but understands enough that you won't do anything to jeopardize our marriage together. i know we dated from 1991 to 1997 and they were an amazing six years, i don't ever regret those six years but, i know that we both knew that we weren't ever going to get married or have kids as i will with vicki. vicki's my romantic soulmate, she's my wife but you, you y.n, you're my platonic soulmate. you have always been there for me during everything when we finished high school, when you were in college yet still cheered for me when began the white house internship to when i left that and started acting and then after we broke up as a couple. i mean, you were there for me when we found out recently about dad's cancer diagnosis and you were there for me as a shoulder to cry on when vicki wasn't available because you wanted to be a friend, a best friend. and, i mean, nothing can change what you mean to me, y.n. so, thank you for letting me marry my romantic soulmate and being my platonic soulmate, i love you y.n but, i have vicki now and, i'm forever thankful for the two of you...bye y.n, i'll see you later if i don't see you at the reception later on..." misha smiled, standing up from his seat next to y.n and giving her a hug as she accepted it whilst she wiped away her tears, tears that weren't tears of grief or jealousy, tears of joy that misha finally found his one true love, his romantic soulmate 

"...i love you too, misha...bye misha..." 

alexander calvert:

baby you're all that i want when you're lying here in my arms, i'm finding it hard to believe we're in heaven, and love is all that i need

alex couldn't help the way he looked at his wife, y.n calvert as she slept, curled up against his exposed chest. he was totally in love with the woman who he had just married less than two nights ago as they stayed in the magical maldives for their honeymoon. this newlywedded bliss for sure felt like heaven and that love was all that alex needed. now he finally understood and appreciated the happiness that jared, jensen and misha spoke about when it came to the feeling of being in heaven after getting married. 

groaning, y.n opened her eyes and giggled in a startle, "...alex, you scared me! why are you staring at me?" she giggled, sleep still in her voice as alex smiled, brushing some of her hair out of the way as he bit his lip 

"because you're beautiful and you're my wife..." alex whispered as y.n smiled, biting her own lip as she spoke up again, her hand messing around with alex's hair 

"...say that again, baby," y.n smiled as alex chuckled but didn't waste time saying it again 

"you're beautiful and you're my wife there, i said it again and it's true. you are beautiful and you are mrs y.n calvert for now and forever!" alex chuckled as he continued to remove hair off y.n's face as she smiled at her husband 

"now and forever..." y.n trailed off as she smiled, her mind rushing back to her wedding day and her wedding vows 

"...alexander calvert...we've known each other since we were twelve and i've been in love with you ever since and now we're here, at twenty-nine-years-old and we're getting married. i mean, what kind of fairytale like that actually comes true other than those that we see in movies and tv shows that show this very thing happening? apparently, ours does and i'm forever grateful for our little fairytale. you always make me laugh when i don't want to laugh, you always make me smile when i don't want to or when it's the hardest thing in the world, you love me in the most loved way but, most importantly alex, you...you make me happy *sob* and i don't think i can say anyone has ever made me happier the way you have. i mean, when we first met, you were obsessed over musical theatre *giggles*, hip hop dancing, hockey and acting even though you were sort of embarrassed to admit it at all *giggles* and then, somewhere in all of those obsessions, you found yourself obsessing over me in the same way i obsessed over you. we always wanted to be around each other, even if it annoyed your sister rachel and your best friends to the point where i barely let you guys have hangouts on your own because i just wanted to be near you all the time *giggles*. but then, after high school and college, you sort of went away because your obsession with wanting to be an actor was no longer an obsession but a dream, a dream you started to chase alongside all these amazing families you've made through supernatural and the other tv shows. i love you, alex, i really do and it makes me so happy seeing the way you come alive on that tv screen every single week with your supernatural family. alex, i promise to you that i'll love you for all my life, i'll laugh with you, i'll cry with you, i'll never go to bed angry, i'll never let you doubt my love for you, i'll never doubt your love for me and for now and forever, you'll be my husband, my number one, always..." 

"...y.n...babe, you alright? i lost you for a moment, what were you thinking about?" alex sniggered as y.n giggled, cuddling further into him before lifting her head 

"my wedding vows at our wedding..." she trailed off as alex smiled as he suddenly felt himself get teary-eyed 

"...i cried my eyes out during your vows...they were the sweetest in the world," alex smiled as he sniffled and y.n smiled, reaching her hand up to alex's cheek 

"aww, did that make you emotional? and i know, that's why i couldn't look at you because if i did, then i would have started crying as well, that's also why i was giggling at some points because i was moments from crying but wanted to stop myself. anyway, i cried though when i was writing them, that's also probably why i didn't cry when i said them because i was in hysterics when i wrote them..." y.n giggled as she stared lovingly into her husband's eyes as he stared back into hers 

"...is there anything you want to do today or do you just want to stay in bed..." alex questions as y.n giggles, biting her lip as her leg started to intertwine with alex's as his eyes rose in shock 

"...or we could, you know..." y.n suggested with a hint of cheekiness as shane smiled and nodded his head

leaping onto his wife, making her shriek, they started to get all dirty and fun in the bedsheets in the paradise of the maldives and they couldn't have been happier. however, they remembered quite quickly that after today, their honeymoon in the maldives was over and they'd have to leave back for their home in vancouver so alex could return back to work with supernatural and y.n could return back to her job as a paramedic back home in vancouver.

however, at this moment, right now, they were moaning each other's name and getting down on it with each other and probably ruining every other vacationing couple or family's morning due to how loud they were but, hey, you couldn't blame the calvert's, they were newlyweds and, they were soaking up their last day of honeymoon bliss by doing it

- - - 

this was so much fun to write and i'd like to reiterate that everything i write in these, unless otherwise stated, are fictional and have no facts to them.

ok ily bye xx

wc; 6800 

[victor-epix]

🌸🖍♟ for victor?

🧩🚤 for donna?

~ @normal-about-jade

victor:

🌸(fav thing/scene) — easily my favorite thing about victor is this almost childlike compassion he possesses. given what was revealed about his past, it speaks volumes that (despite the overwhelming damage that trauma has clearly caused) the kindness is almost intrinsic to him (and while he does have a handful of somewhat abrasive moments, they're few and far in between—and i don't think he realizes that's how he comes across). the two scenes which came to mind related to this are the one where he waits for tabby to come down to the tunnels: even though he was so scared, he understood that tabitha needed him, and he instinctively prioritized that, taking turns in being brave w her even though it was clearly taking a toll on him. another scene which showcases this is the one in his room with ethan, where iirc ethan attempts to apologize for going through his stuff w somebody else (i think jade??). in general he's also super good about volunteering info that could help others, even if the info may be painful. + he gives ethan his old coat. fucking melted tbh 🖍 (further exploration of character) — i think i would really like to see victor build mutual trust with more people. i think he's on a good path to achieve this with tabby (and i suppose ethan, though ethan is a young kid so im not sure if it's quite the same) and probably, to a degree, with donna. i think putting trust in other people not to hurt him is a huge obstacle for victor, and it makes him come off... the way he does. which, in turn, repels others. tldr: i just want him to have friends so badly LMFAO ♟ (hangout w character) — i think victor would benefit from vibing somewhere cozy, populated with people (who aren't from fromville) but not too crowded at the same time. and quiet. a library comes to mind, or a bookstore. now that i think on it, i think he'd have a blast going through books and gathering information on the world & everything that had happened since the 70s. i can picture him cozied up in an armchair w a blanket and tea and just going absolutely hog wild reading a computer manual or smn

donna:

🧩 (something about character that's misunderstood/overlooked) — not to be that guy but i've said it once and i'll say it again. donna is hot as fuck. donna is gilf extraordinaire. bursting at the seams with raw sexual energy. literally the model oldschool butch. although on a more serious note, i think a lot of people in our very small fandom don't really understand her 'role'. or undermine it, at the very least. i think she's cast aside as not very interesting due to the fact that she doesn't really get a turn on the mystery wagon. but like... they'd all fall apart without her. she's a social leader. sure, boyd is presented as her counterpart in this, but as the show goes on, he gets so much more on his plate that he can't keep this up. so she picks up boyd's slack too. in a community ruled by fear and uncertainty, she is THE person to look to in the terms of leadership and holding it together, the sort of lighthouse standing out in this murky fog they're all lost in. i feel like this isn't appreciated enough. 🚤 (romantic ships) — honestly?? not really. it's actually quite interesting regardless. i don't think donna ever Could have a romantic relationship, not after fromville (if she gets out). i think she would have gotten so used to managing and micromanaging everything, to being the loadbearing beam, that she simply... couldn't lean on somebody else for support (i.e. a romantic partner.) she would never be able to drop this constant feeling of responsibility for the other person, and i think that not only would this be a Lot for her, but also, her partner would probably not like the discrepancy either. i think they'd possibly interpret it as a lack of trust. but really i think our poor girl has been through too much.

[glitterdustcyclops]

Ten Fave Characters from Ten Fandoms

I started this post years ago and gave up halfway through, but I thought it would be interesting to revisit it. To see if my thoughts had changed since then, and to add in some new fandoms I've been into. The thing is, I've always struggled to pick my Single Favorite Character in any given media, because I am a total sucker for a good ensemble cast, and most of the time I'm more interested in the dynamics of the different relationships between characters than I am in the individual characters themselves. But you know, I do still have my blorbos, same as everyone else. So here are ten of them, from ten different fandoms, in no particular order (with a general warning that there will be spoilers):

1. Steven (Steven universe)

My son, my muffin, light of my life, best boy!! Honestly, how could I not put him first? Steven Universe is and always will be It™ for me, My Thing, and I could probably write essays for days (and in fact, I have) about the themes, characters, story arcs, design, music, everything to do with this fucking show. And while I love literally everyone in Beach City to bits, you know I gotta give a special shout out to our boy Steven. Watching him grow up over the years was a genuine delight, and the conclusion of his arc being a pretty obvious transgender acceptance allegory at the exact same time I was coming to accept my own trans identity was an extra special treat on top. It will never stop blowing my socks clean off just how revolutionary a character like Steven was at the time (and shamefully, continues to be), especially in media aimed at young kids. A boy hero whose strength and power comes from his empathy, from his kindness, from the women in his life. He is literally surrounded by a team of powerful alien warrior women, descended from the Princess of Alien Space Rock Royalty, and never once does the narrative even slightly question the fact that he idolizes the women in his life. Steven fights with a rose-colored shield and loves singing and laughing and his big sisters and love, and his whole arc was about learning how to take these feminine influences and come into his own power with them, to be the kind of hero he wanted to be. At the end of the day, no matter what else Steven was, he was above all himself. And he was loved for it, completely, unreservedly, without question. How fucking magical is that? (And thank god we finally got him some therapy, this poor lil muffin).

2. Donna Noble (Doctor Who)

Best companion 5ever, fite me. I love Donna for so many reasons, but most of all I love her relationship with Ten, which is easily one of my top five brotps of all time. She challenged him and snarked at him and dared him to be better, and he tried his hardest to do it, because he wanted to be worthy of her companionship. And they were just so good together!!! Ahhh!!!!! Donna Noble was introduced as a rather abrasive figure, loud and sarcastic without apology in a way female characters frequently aren’t allowed to be, especially in the dark times of the late 2000s. But she was also shown to be really deeply kind, overflowing with empathy for all of the people and creatures around her. And not only that, but she was quite literally the Most Important Woman in the Universe because of it. Your faves could simply never, I’m sorry. Ten + Donna will forever be my ultimate fav season, my fav companion, my favorite everything of Doctor Who forever and always. (Also David Tennant & Catherine Tate’s irl chemistry is the best, they are just so good whenever they’re together on screen.)

3. Iron Bull (Dragon Age Inquisition)

It is almost impossible for me to pick my favorite character from Dragon Age more than any other series because I really do love them all too much. I mean, Hawke, my disaster bisexual? Fenris, my moody little porcupine? Dorian? Sera? Leliana? VARRIC?!?! To me one of the defining features of Dragon Age are its excellent ensemble casts. The fascinating dynamics between all these messed up weirdos trying their best to save the world. But if I had to pick one guy, the one who definitely surprised me with how absolutely head-over-heels in love I fell with him, well then I have to give it up to the Big Man himself, our beloved Iron Bull. I remember when it was first announced we were getting a Qunari love interest, and not only was he a Big McLarge Huge Warrior Guy, he was pansexual. I was braced for a walking punchline, leering and making jokes and flirting with everyone in a really crass way (not that there’s anything wrong with that, just you know, it’s been done before). But what I got instead was a burnt-out professional liar with a determined love for softness, for pleasure. Bull is an incisively intelligent and brutally calculating man who is willing to turn his back on his country and everything he's ever known, to become an outcast, just to stick up for the people he loves the most. Dude's got layers. He loves dawnstone because it's pretty and pink, he totally gets off on fighting dragons, he calls Vivienne ma'am and plays mindchess with Solas in his spare time. And obviously, of course, him being a loving dom who gives you a place to be something other than the literal Herald of Andraste was just the icing and sprinkles on top of this already delicious slice of beefcake.

4. Izzy Hands (Our Flag Means Death)

Oh boy. Hoo boy. Okay. We're getting into it now. Sometimes you just see an absolute miserable little rat bastard of a man and go "yes, that one, that one's mine thank you." While I love Stede for Gender Reasons and I love Ed because he's literally perfect, and the tender sweetness of Jim + Olu melt my heart into a pool of butter, and everyone else in the cast is absolutely spectacular, down to the guest roles, there's just something about Izzy. It’s undeniable. We love a complicated character round these parts, naturally, but also, how could you not be obsessed with one so singularly pathetic and yearning and just absolutely begging to be stepped on as Izzy motherfucking Hands. Just. His whole deal?? Imagine being so fucking married to the fictionalized persona you helped create of the man you've decided to devote your entire life to. Imagine knowing that the crumbs of affection you accept from him are the most that you could ever hope to get, because you and he just aren't made for anything else, you are Hard Men and this is a Violent, Terrible world. Until, suddenly, in walks this fucking prissy little nonce with no skills and all of the privilege, who by all rights should have been shot dead the second he set foot in Nassau, and somehow this fucking idiot manages to utterly bewitch your husband god Captain?? Who, it turns out, actually did want all of that lovely sweet softness you told yourself was Forbidden, For Reasons, and he is actually perfectly capable of showing warmth and devotion and care for someone, just not You. No, instead you are fated to watch your Captain and This Fucking Idiot fall in love, right in front of your face, and the rest of his floating insane asylum treat you like you're the bad guy here. Like, bitch, I would probably want to stab someone about that too!! (And that's not even getting into the Toe Thing, which. Jesus Christ. The Toe Thing). Also, he has the privilege of being portrayed by Con O'Neil, who I have the most atrocious of crushes on, so really, how could I not pick him?

5. Flint (Black Sails)

Speaking of Messed Up Gay Pirates. I know we can all relate to someone being so fundamentally angry about homophobia that he decides to declare war on all of Britain about it, right? No, but for real, James Flint McGraw’s entire arc, from earnest do-good Homosexual with politically radical beliefs to vengeful ginger murder-pirate to tired old man who gets to retire to a lifetime of gentle lovemaking with his recently-unburied Husband was something I never expected, but was utterly delighted by nonetheless. There is just so much seething rage burning under the surface of this man, that constant war between his tenderness, his capacity for love and care that was so cruelly ripped from him by such a corrupt system, and then his yearning for violence and vengeance. And, on top of that, the ways he relates to the women of the show; his entire co-dependant Thing with Miranda, which is so queer it’s almost beyond definition in the best way, and his Tired Gay Dad routine with Eleanor, and to a lesser extent, Madi. Plus, he’s damaged and hot and so so sad about it, and he looks so criminally good covered in blood it should actually be a crime. To this day the entirety of the “in the dark there is discovery” monologue fully lives rent free in my head, not to mention “my truest love, know no shame.” Ultimate blorbo status for sure.

6. Joan Watson (Elementary)

Confession time: I was definitely one of those people who was initially dubious and upset that they were doing yet another modern Sherlock Holmes adaptation, and not only that, but they were making Watson a woman! “Oh this is obviously an egregious No Homo attempt, fuck this show,” I thought, and I was fully prepared to write off the whole enterprise. But then I found out they had cast Lucy Liu as Watson and I was conflicted because, seriously, Lucy Liu, how could you not totally love her? I decided to give the first episode a shot and was delighted to discover that Miss Joan totally captured my heart from the literal moment she appeared on screen. I’ve never been the biggest fan of the original Holmes stories so take all my opinions with a grain of salt here, but I love that Joan is played as Watson who is an actual equal to Sherlock. Their dynamic is an honest-to-god partnership, instead of the tired trope of the Brilliant Amazing Perfect Special Genius Boy and the long-suffering idiot who puts up with him. You can really see what Sherlock sees in Joan, all the things he values in her: her strength and quiet brilliance, her inquisitiveness and determination, and how she utterly refuses to put up with his bullshit from like, day one. This is a Watson with healthy boundaries, y’all. She’s just such a wonderful character in her own right. She’s more than Sherlock’s blogger, she has a life and dreams and goals of her own, and the show respects that. And not only that, but there is not even a hint of any tired romance tropes between the two of them. Their quiet queerplatonic domestic partnership evolves in such a really lovely way across the series, it is one of the core dynamics of the show, and it’s so good. And each episode is an excuse to look at Lucy Liu in gorgeous outfits for an hour at a time, which I will happily take where I can find it. Good show. Criminally underrated.

7. Aziraphale (Good Omens)

Alright, I’ve got another shameful confession for you. I’ve never actually managed to finish reading Good Omens. I know I know, nail me to the cross. There was just something about the writing style that I could never fully get into, but I got far enough to know that Crowley and Aziraphale were totes in love 5ever, and even though I wouldn’t have understood why at the time, I really Related to Aziraphale for Some Mysterious Reason. Smash cut to 2019 and the first season of the TV version premiers and I’m watching Michael Sheen do all That as Aziraphale and a lightbulb pops on over my head and I just go oh. Gender!! There’s a tumblr post I love that talks about how Aziraphale is soft and effeminate and good, and that is such an important part of his character. He on-purpose cultivates a deliberately gay image because he relates to gay culture, because he identifies with being a maligned outcast to society the same way homosexuals were for most of the time he’s been on Earth. Our Angel loves food and pleasure and soft warm things, and that never stops him from being a hero. In fact, it is because of his hedonism and softness that he defies Heaven and Hell to literally save the day. To quote from that post directly, “He’s soft and queer and vain and he loves food and these are good qualities! These things are his and he wears them openly and defiantly and they make him strong in a way heaven doesn’t comprehend!” God, just, *slaps Aziraphale’s belly* this bad boy can hold so much gender. I love him endlessly.

8. GLaDOS (Portal 2)

So rarely in media are women allowed to be unhinged murderous lunatics, but GLaDOS carries that heavy burden on her beautiful robot shoulders admirably. I think sometimes the fanon characterization of her focuses a little too heavily on either the tragedy of her, of Caroline being forced into this body against her will, or on the whole Evil Dommy Mommy Step on Me Cold Calculating Badass thing, which is unfortunate, because GlaDOS is also completely fucking bonkers in the best way. Not a goddamn hinge anywhere to be found on this bitch, and that’s what makes her so special. She’s silly! And weird! Her toxic yuri mother-daughter Thing with Chell is endlessly compelling, and every line out of her mouth is an ice-cold banger. Also, she gets the special honor of being one of the few characters I’ve cosplayed as, and she is certainly one of the funnest to portray. To this day I still have the entirety of her wake-up speech from Portal 2 memorized. “Okay look. We both said a lot of things you’re going to regret. But I believe we can put our differences behind us. For science. You monster.” She’s incredible.

9. Yuna (FFX, FFX-2)

My first blorbo! Yuna Finalfantasy will always have a special place in my heart, for reasons I’m not sure I can properly articulate. FFX is one of The Games of All Time for me, I literally used to listen to the soundtrack as a lullaby, and to this day my dad and I can quote the dialogue along with the cutscenes. And Yuna’s arc just absolutely destroys me if I think too hard about it. She is just so good, she is quiet and gentle and sweet and absolutely drowning under the crushing enormity of her legacy, her mission, the fate of the goddamn literal world. And then she meets her match in the Manic Pixie Dream (Heh) Boy who gets her to open up and live a little, who makes her laugh and smile, and she really values him for it, for the discovery and possibility he represents for her. And then, the ultimate tragedy of him being the one to sacrifice for her, that she may live? Ugh!! It’s raining. On my face. To this day the scene of her Sending after Kilika just guts me, and the way she grows and changes and comes into her own over the course of FFX-2 breaks me down to my atoms. Best girl, no question.

10. Astarion (Baldur’s Gate 3)

Alright. Okay. Yes. I know. I’m going to try and make this entry not just a rehash of my last post about Astarion or unhinged gay screaming for 500 words but like. Come on. Look at him. I never played Baldur’s Gate during early access,  but when I found out that one of your potential love interests was a queer pretty-boy vampire with a Tragic Backstory involving a twisted Master/slave dynamic I was...intrigued, to say the least. What I did not expect was all of the depth and complexity that went into writing him and portraying him. It helps that Neil Newbon has an absolutely delicious voice, yes, but there is so much more there besides the surface level of him. In fact, that is the entire point of his arc! Seeing beyond the very pretty seductive mask he presents to the world, to the gaping wounds and barely-concealed traumas and fear and insecurities behind it, and choosing to love him for it anyway. And by loving him, the real him, you make space for him to find himself, to rescue himself. A man who has spent 200 years buried under ground surviving horrific abuse and becoming cruel and petty to cope, finding the strength within himself to heal, to choose to live and to love, honestly. That is so fucking powerful, I will literally never get over it.

[plungermusic]

If this doesn’t cheer you up, check your pulse …

Serendipitously arriving exactly at the moment the UK slides into the rain-lashed gloom and early frosts of autumn, Terra Lightfoot’s latest album Healing Power will bathe you in musical sunshine, perk up your pineal and kick your SAD blues right where it hurts.

The twelve tracks fizz with energy (and often a barely suppressed glee) whether in what Plunger think of as more ‘traditional’ Terratunes or the more ‘out there’ tracks. The former include Kept You In My Pocket, its latinate slink, sophisticated Tin Pan alley arrangements, organ wash and tinkling piano giving a late night dive vibe, topped with impassioned vocals and an abrasively furry baritone sax break; the quirkily confessional warm-and-snuggly The Only One Of Your Kind with its poppy singalong “Oooh ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh-ooh” chorus; and the muscular Youngian chug of Someone Else’s Feelings, the raw guitar offset by high soaring bvs and vox.

Plunger already encountered ‘out there’ with the late 70s electronica / 80s Sunset Strip-cruising rock mash-up of lead single (and album opener) Cross Border Lovers [https://tmblr.co/Zc96bkeMsA_gWy00] and there’s plenty more where that came from. Anyone But Me takes a smoky, bluesy 50 torch song and gives it the Soft Cell treatment with syndrums, loping 80s bassline and a dreamy chorus - before giving that chorus a monster, Townshendesque flailing-guitar rock makeover. Penchant For Love similarly crosses bobbysox poppy soul (velvety voice, piano and xylophone trills) with a boisterous defiant Nu Metal chorus with windtunnel vox, sinewy guitar (and probably a bassist wearing shorts!)

More 50s flavours underpin Come Back Around, this time twinned with a strobing left/right channel electronica pulse and driving new wave bass, Old Skool synths and slick call-and-response bvs. That pulsing theme (that runs through a lot of the album like, well, a pulse) is picked up by a throbbing glass harmonica-like synth in Fired My Man, where the hallucinatory feel is heightened by effects-laden guitar, ticking rim shots, sweeping lush synth strings and Terra’s soft ethereal vocal, and also in the heavy vibrato and volume-swell guitar of Out Of Time, aided by half-speed hip hop-meets-N’awlins shuffle beats, filling-rattling bottom end bass and some tricksy timings to create woozy, hazy stoner waves, all topped with cracking swooping harmony vocals.

Plunger’s picks from this corker of an album are the Martha And The Muffins-do-Get It On glammish boogie groove of You Don’t Get Me Now with its electrifying tambourine-driven gospel bv chorus; Long Way Down, where a raw riff (reminiscent of the seminal 12345 678910 1112, for those old enough to remember) collides with seductive sinuous Donna Summeresque vocals over an insistent Motown snare; and the totally grin-inducing Need You Tonight - phased garage rock guitar + burbling tweeting sequencer + slick West Coast multi-vox chorus = a head-bobbing, wave-your-arms-in-the-air rave psychedelia-meets -Joe Walsh hit of happiness.

Another sublime effort from Terra: in Plunger’s eyes she can do no wrong - musically questing and inventive she’s unfailingly hit the mark with each new outing, and vocally there is none to beat her. She could sing the Hamilton telephone directory and it would be an exhilarating listen. 

So don’t be SAD, get some Healing Power!

Healing Power is out on Sonic Unyon Records on October 13th, available to stream/buy here: https://orcd.co/terralightfoot-healingpower while limited issue vinyl can be bought here: https://sonicunyonshop.com/collections/all/products/terra-lightfoot-healing-power-lp

[gldenhrs]

                              (—) ★ spotted !!  OLIVIA MORGAN  on the cover of this week’s most recent tabloid ! many say that the 26 year old looks like OLIVIA HOLT , but i don’t really see it. while the  PROFESSIONAL FIGURE SKATER  is known for being  VALIANT  my inside sources say that they have a tendency to be  ABRASIVE   i swear, every time i think of them, i hear the song HALL OF FAME BY THE SCRIPT .

*   ◞  ╰   general   .

full name :   olivia desirée morgan . nicknames :   goes predominantly by liv  &  ice princess by the press / fans . birthdate / zodiac sign : somewhere in november during scorpio season  . birthplace :  chicago , il . sexual orientation : heterosexual . family :  patricia  &  john morgan ( deceased ) . siblings :  none . pets :  dog named fitz .   occupation : professional figure skater . life goal :  to make it to the figure skating hall of fame . love language :  actions / words . + traits  :   valiant , authentic , loyal , confident , determinated , passionate , persistent , strategic , fearlessly ambitious   &   self reliant  . - traits  :  secretive , resentful , controlling , stubborn , abrasive , sarcastic , possessive  &  opinionated . aesthetic :  bravery , white ice skates , the smell of freshly made coffee , customized leotards , smudged lipstick trails on coffee cups , olympic gold medals , designer sunglasses , cold breeze , sports endorsements , eye contact across a crowded room . muse inspo :   scarlet o'hara ( gone with the wind ) , elsa ( frozen ) , monica geller ( friends ) , christina yang ( grey’s anatomy ) , princess jasmine ( aladdin ) , megara ( hercules ) , donna pinciotti  ( that 70s show ) , kat straford ( 10 things i hate about you ) , dorothy zvornak ( the golden girls ) , eloise bridgerton ( bridgerton ) , spencer hastings ( pretty little liars ) , lexi howard ( euphoria ) , rosa diaz ( brooklyn nine-nine )

*   ◞  ╰   quick history facts  .

okay , okay , okay , so liv here is your typical star athlete . ever since she could breathe , she breathed figure skating  &  doing the impossible on ice which now kind of makes her usa’s crown jewel due to her accomplishments  !  

grew up in chicago to an amazing couple of parents anyone can ask for , they were her biggest support system , her everything --  ( tw: death ) until a tragic accident which took them both .  she still lowkey hasn’t recovered from that .

luckily , her coach aka tom , stepped in  &  basically adopted her bc he didn’t want the foster home to take one of the best talents in the state !  she owes him her life , her everything ,  &  she definitely considers him a father figure  ( despite him being strict af ) .

to cut the story short bc it’s still in the works , she’s one of the best figure skaters in the US after winning the U.S. champion title five times ,  &  then later on going so far to actually win the olympic gold  TWICE !  naturally , not everyone follows sports or figure skating but when ur the best of the best  &  getting all these praises , endorsements , magazine covers , etc , the people kinda know ? ?  ( career inspo :  michelle kwan )

anyway , she moved to la when she was about 20 bc’ tom kinda had a business deal there idk so she obvi followed bc the land of dreams yadayada .  tbh she misses the colder weather , but she grew to like the fact she can hike with her dog whenever , even during october so there’s that

*   ◞  ╰   personality & dating life  .

can be v charming  ( kinda has to be )  due to her area of work aka needing to charm the crowd  &  her sponsors , but at the same time she’s very detached from everyone ? ?  she tries to be social but prefers staying out of the limelight the most she can .

lives a seriously healthy af lifestyle bc her coach is always on her throat about it .  her schedule is insane , lemme just say !  BUT  , obviously she does drink  ( rarely )  but when she does she’s such a fucking lightweight it’s almost iconic to see her drunk .  she can legit get off by  ONE  cocktail  &  make a total fool of herself which is also one of the reasons why she’s like  “ water for me pls “  .  god forbid if she ever tried any drugs ....

v v opinionated  (  &  sarcastic )  about p much everything ?  she’s also stubborn as a mule so good luck trying to prove her wrong .  

but if u are her friend , she’s the most loyal of them all . will do absolutely everything for u !

lowkey has a bit of a problem when it comes to being in control ? ? she likes to be in charge of p much everything which is why she also  HATES  failing aka losing .  the idea of doing such just sends chills down her spine so instead she works twice as hard just to make sure it never happens .  she’s really under a lot of stress obvi but mostly it’s her own fault due to her self-depreciating on a day-to-day basis !

as for her love life ... well , she doesn’t have any . had one boyfriend whom she dated before he broke her heart .  since then , she’s been kinda scared to open her heart fully to someone .  plus , she now considers falling in love to be the  BIGGEST  distraction of them all .  it’s sad tbh .

*   ◞  ╰   connections  .

ahhhhhh just like , the usual --  childhood best friends , best friends , ex best friends , friends through association , maybe a rival or a friend in skating ,  friends only for the cameras , enemies , exes on bad terms , exes on bad terms , hookups , flings , fwbs ,  etc  ! !  

i also have some plots written for her too  HERE .  :~)

[zeppelin-and-unicorns]

Fanfic recommendations part six: 100% Alternate Universe stories.

Hey! It took me a while to post this and I’m sorry, got too caught up with, well, you know, life (ew). But I’m back!

All the stories listed in this are stories are 100% AU (yes, I’m including the Soulmate AU’s in this category). I’ve read and enjoyed them all.

Accidentally In Love by the bohemian flow.

Rachel Hyde was a witness to a strange romance that blossomed between her twin brother, Steven, and Jackie Burkhart, of all people. Her and Steven weren't the biggest fans of Jackie, but now, he loves her. How could Rachel possibly put up with her brother's girlfriend?

AU where Hyde has a sister. Not 100% focused on J/H, since it’s from Hyde’s sister POV, but it’s still pretty good.

This story is a WIP and it’s being updated constantly.

109k words, 28 chapters so far.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, OC/Kelso, OC/Eric, Eric/Donna.

A Different Start Could Lead to a Better End by SoftBubbles

Instead of Hyde meeting her as Kelso's annoying girlfriend, what if he met her as his annoying English partner, whom he quickly learns is more than she seems.

This story is not complete, it was last updated on July of 2020, and I pray for the author to come back to it one day, it’s a really good story.

Trigger warning for child abuse.

13k words, 14 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Bad Moon on the Rise by Badfanfic

Set around season 2. Jackie starts to develop feelings for Hyde, even though its the last thing she wants. Hyde is just trying to survive but is having difficulty controlling himself, especially around a certain cheerleader.

Hyde is a werewolf in this story. And THIS IS GOOD Y’ALL, I’ve read this like 10 times already.

Unfortunally, I think this story is abandoned, the last time the author updated was in June of 2020, but I still have hope, it’s really good and I’m DYING to read more. I absolutely adore stories with supernatural elements, and it’s so hard to find good ones in this fandom. Please read this.

13k words, 9 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Focus by Jenny7

After a metaphysical awakening, Hyde develops the ability to telepathically connect with a single stranger. What he doesn't expect is that the girl that he shares the connection with, a rich cheerleader with a complicated past, will forever alter his views on life and love.

SO GOOD. It’s complete and it has a sequel (that’s not complete but still worth the read), called Darlin, Walk Awhile With Me.

2k words, 19 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde.

History Rewritten by kezztip

What if Hyde got his Season 1 wish and stole Donna away from Eric? And then what if Eric had turned to a certain tiny cheerleader instead?

This story is complete, and if you have a soft spot for Eric/Jackie, than you might like this a lot.

81k words, 25 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, Jackie/Eric, Hyde/Donna, Eric/Donna.

(I absolutely hate the Hyde and Donna pairing but it’s temporary so it’s okay).

Playing Pretend by isnotme

Caught up in her teenager concerns – and some wounds to heal, Jackie didn’t realize that her parents' marriage was crashing down for real, causing a major turnaround in her world.

.

In the edge of seventeen, Hyde had too much on his mind. With graduation coming so soon, he knew too well he was about to be kicked out of the Forman's home. But when Bud’s illegal activities came to knock on his door, Hyde saw his plans falling apart once again.

Or

An AU where Jackie and Hyde get themselves in one of those fake relationship situation and somewhere along the way, they find somethings in commun. Highly inspired in every cliché Rom Com ever made, including Netflix's most recents TATBILB and Isi and Ossi.

This story is a WIP and it’s being updated often.

33k words, 13 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, background Eric/Donna

Pretty in Wisconsin by BelleBae

Jackie Burkhart has a lot to deal with. Her dad is in prison, her mum can't get it together and one of her best friends is in love with her. Will she be able to sort everything out by Prom? Inspired by Pretty In Pink.

Cute and complete.

20k words, 23 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Rock You Like a Hurricane by zeppelinandunicorns (yours truly)

Alternative universe where Donna met Jackie before meeting Eric and the rest of basement gang.

Jackie and Donna are 16 and 17 when they finally met the four basement misfits after a Fleetwood Mac concert.

This story is a WIP, and I do not plan on abandoning it, I love it too much to do that.

77k words, 15 chapters so far.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, Eric/Donna, background Red/Kitty and eventual Fez/Laurie and Kelso/Brooke.

Also Available on AO3

She Belongs to me series by QueenBookBuff

A universe where Kelso cared a lot more about Jackie and Hyde getting together and implications of a deeper background for both Jackie and Hyde and Kelso and Jackie.

This got me hooked, it’s really good, please read it.

It’s complete and there are sequels! They are called All Our Tomorrows

and The Scarlet and SJ Chronicles.

27k words, 7 works in total.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Summer Music Series by Wickedfetch

What if Hyde and Jackie didn't meet until 1985?

Complete.

7k words, 3 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Also Available on AO3

That 70s show by Zenmaster21

What if Jackie had dated Hyde from the beginning instead of Kelso? This is simply a re-write of the episodes had Jackie and Hyde always been together.

One of my favorites stories from the entire fandom.

Not complete, but please read it, it’s worth it.

Trigger warning for child abuse.

152k words, 37 chapters.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, Eric/Donna

The Fifth Forman by BlueZeppelin

What if it wasn't just Eric and Laurie? What if they had another sibling? Like...Jackie? What would happen with Hyde? Would Eric be happy with his sister dating his best friend? Would Red like his daughter to be with one of the basement dumbasses?

This story is complete!!

52k words, 18 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

The One Where Jackie Moves In by Floweerchild96

Jackie has been living in New-York with her family but after her father goes to jail and her mother abandons her, she is forced to return to a town she thought she was done with for good. How will Jackie's reemergence in the basement effect the gangs lives?

A really good story, but unfortunally, it’s not complete. Still worth the read.

103k words, 20 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, background Eric/Donna.

Wall Around Your Heart by ourinvisibleink

Jackie Burkhart-Forman was adopted at almost ten years old by Red and Kitty, after her parents flee the country for drug trafficking crimes. Laurie grapples with addiction, Eric is messed up because of Red’s verbal abuse, Steven’s arrival is brought on by Jackie, Kelso is neglected, Fez is victim to racism, and Jackie befriends Jason, the new kid who happens to be gay.

This story is really good, but it deals with some serious stuff. I still love it.

Complete and it has a sequel called Plastar and Mortar.

52k words, 26 chapters.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, Eric/Donna, Fez/Laurie, Red/Kitty.

One-shots:

A Little Less 70s, A Little More Modern AU by fairytalesandfolklore

A modern AU where the characters from That 70’s Show grew up in the 90’s x early 2000’s instead.

Cute as hell!!! Worth the read!

1k words.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

found a wife and a home (and a family that matters) by blackorchids

Hyde’s been part of the Forman family for years before they make him move in.

I placed this in the AU category because apparently Jackie and Hyde always dated, it doesn’t specify much.

1k words.

Rated G.

Pairings: background Jackie/Hyde and background Red/Kitty. This is not focused on the couples, but on Hyde’s relationship with the Forman’s.

Lady and The Tramp by soobeans

'See, I, myself, don't like you. I find you abrasive. But if I didn't know you, and I'd never talked to you, I'd think you were totally hot.'

In Point Place, Wisconsin, there are only three distinct areas. The Western area consists of the burnouts, thugs, outcasts, hopeless dreamers, poor people, and overall, tramps. The Eastern area holds the classy, rich, and more fortunate ladies and gentlemen. In between is where the two are forced to intermingle, but of course, they found a few ways to separate themselves.

8k words.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, some minor background Eric/Donna moments.

That Disco Episode: Zenmasters Style by springsteenicious

What if Hyde had learned how to dance to impress Jackie instead of Donna? And what if Jackie hadn’t been dating Kelso?

That Disco Episode, rewritten for Jackie and Hyde.

2k words.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Bonus: Soulmate AU’S:

I am so in love with Soulmate AU’s that I’m currently writing one, I wanted to make a special post just for this category but it would be too small so I just included it in here. 

Finders Keepers by nannygirl

It's said that before you find your soulmate you will find one of their lost items first, so what happens when Hyde finds a gold bracelet in The Formans' backyard? Will it lead him to his soulmate, someone who he's sure probably doesn't even exist?

This story is not complete, but worth the read.

5k words, 2 chapters.

Rated K+.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, some background Red/Kitty

It Takes Time to Fall in Love by yabookreader96

Jackie can't wait to meet her soulmate, but a dire mistake on her part leads her to mistakenly identify him as Michael, while Hyde watches his soulmate clock hit zero and immediately knows that it's Jackie. Years pass, Jackie with Michael, Hyde saying nothing as he knowingly watches from the side. Will this dynamic be permanent or will destiny bring the true soulmates together?

This story is complete.

18k words, 12 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, temporary Jackie/Kelso.

Mistaken Messages by MistyMountainHop

Jackie longs for her soulmate to accept her, and Hyde hopes his will leave him alone because he's in love with someone else. A stack of mystical index cards lets them communicate with their as-yet unidentified soulmates. But the more their soulmates write, the less control Jackie and Hyde seem to have over their fate.

This story is complete.

23k words, 5 chapters.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde, background Eric/Donna

Also Available on AO3

Until We Get There by poetdameron

Running away from their own wedding is the craziest thing Hyde and Jackie have ever done together. But the tug he feels at his heart when realizing she doesn't want to marry him? The worst.

This story is complete.

39k words, 8 chapters.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Also Available on AO3

Voodooized by mc_1

Eric’s been noticing something weird going on between Jackie and Hyde. At a party one night, all of Eric’s suspicions are confirmed when the two become love-marked- an event that occurs when soulmates are ready to be together, resulting in a mark on the skin that bonds them together for life. The unlikely couple puzzle over how they could possibly be paired together as they struggle to understand each other.

This story is a WIP.

14k words, 4 chapters.

Rated M.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde. Eric/Donna

Where It Wasn’t Supposed To Be by moved-ao3

Jackie thinks it's a blessing, Hyde a curse. Set in an alternate universe where characters receive a list with their soulmate's worst qualities, Jackie and Hyde struggle to navigate their feelings for each other when everything else seems pitted against them.

Not complete, and it makes me want to cry, but it’s really good.

15k words, 5 chapters.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Also Available on AO3

One-shots:

all i need by orphan_account

"When he is six years old, the words 'Pudding Pop' appear on his wrist in the curliest, loopiest handwriting he's ever seen. There's even a little heart dotting the 'i'."

1k words.

The author didn’t rate this one, I would rate it as T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Blush by springsteenicious

On a person's eighteenth birthday, they swap bodies with their soulmate. Hyde doesn't have high hopes for his soulmate, but when he wakes up in a very pink room with posters and painted nails, his life is changed for the better.

4k words.

Rated T.

Pairings: Jackie/Hyde

Also Available on AO3

I believe this is all!

I’ll repeat this at the end of every single post (seriously, I literally copy and paste this every single time): Speaking as someone who writes, it would be really cool if you guys decide to leave a review (or a comment, if the story is on AO3) in the stories you read, especially the unfinished ones. It really motivates the authors, and receiving a compliment is always a mood lifter. I’ve seen some authors updating stories after years because of nice reviews, so… yeah, this is just an idea.

Feel free to reply to this post if you think I left out a good story!

Next category: Christmas fics!

[fantoccia]

@venenatum  🖐 tracing fingers against your muse’ skin or over a scar/other

Jonathan Crane finally finds himself visiting the Beneviento home. He has a chance to take a quick glance around before Angie is all but tackling him, excitedly welcoming him in and chattering on about something or another. Her quick, high voice takes a moment to get accustomed to but he’ll manage. He’ll just allow her to lead him off to the den where they’ll sit with a promise of tea. The kitchen must be just beyond there, he can hear a kettle being filled.

In the meantime, they exchange their pleasantries. Jonathan isn’t given a chance to quiet himself yet with Angie gently prodding him with all sorts of questions... When he reaches a hand up to scratch at a spot on his cheek, he suddenly finds his hand getting grabbed up in Angie’s. Little as they may be, she can be quite forceful when she decides to.

“... What happened?” Angie would ask in a quiet tone upon noticing his bandages and callouses. She glances up at him after a beat when he doesn’t answer just yet and the steely gaze she gives him causes him to cave.

“A-ah it’s nothing. I have a glove I wear often- a gauntlet, really. It can be abrasive and- wuh? Hey!” His little spiel is interrupted by Angie quickly and easily unwrapping some of those bandages, setting them aside to take closer inspection upon the raw, reddened flesh underneath. His voice trails off with the gentle little ‘tsk!’ she gives before she finally releases him and stands.

“You stay right there, mister! And don’t touch those.” With a motion to the discarded bandages, Angie is quick to flutter off. With nowhere else to really go, of course Jonathan remains put... Eying over the bandages but deciding to heed the doll’s words and not touch them. They won’t go back on correctly anyway...

He glances up from his pondering when Angie returns to the couch, almost bounding over the back to plop herself back beside him. She sets a couple of items in her lap- new bandages, thank goodness, and... some sort of container. He sighs and extends his hand when she points to it.

“Here, give it here! Look... Donna uses this stuff when her hands start getting hurt from sewing or whatever else... It’s got some of our flowers in it.” Angie opens that little ointment container and scoops just a tiny bit onto her little fingertips before finding a spot to apply it to. There’s that initial sting of something new being applied to such raw skin, but... it was cooling, somehow soothing. There was a nice lavender smell starting to come up now that it was being spread. After getting that spot nicely covered, Angie casts a glance up. “Is it helping?”

“It’s... It’s nice.” He’ll admit lightly, pausing a moment to really focus on the spot that Angie helped- cooled, softened, almost pleasant... He’d nod with a little more resolve then and can’t help but gain a little curl to his lips at how Angie beams, seeming so proud of herself for finding something that helps.

“Um. You know, I could... You really don’t have to...” Jonathan’s voice trails off as Angie begins now to apply little dabs of that cream to other spots on his hand, just humming away his comment. No no, she’s gonna make sure he’s set! It was a strange sensation, really... Her smaller hands carefully rubbing over his sore knuckles. Though little hard pieces of porcelain, her touch is incredibly tender and caring, one hand gently holding up a finger or under his palm to hold while the other makes the application. She moves gently, yet dutifully- it’s not very long at all before she has his hand all taken care of, even an extra dab of the cream applied before she rewraps his more sore spots. The little smile may return a moment when she finishes it all up with a little kiss to his knuckles- kisses to make the boo-boos better...

“There you go! How’s that?” Angie smiles when she finally releases him and Jonathan takes his hand back, carefully flexing the fingers and even forming a loose fist before relaxing.

“Oh... It’s much better. Thank you, Angie... I might just ask your Donna for her recipe for that.” Jonathan responds lightly, offering her another little flicker of a smile as she beams up at him once more.

“Gosh, you gotta take care of yourself better you know!” She begins to fuss slightly now, patting at his arm. “Gonna have to start pulling you over here to give you a meal and bandage you up before having Donna knock you out for a nap every so often!” That gains a laugh out of the man then, chuckling as his hand moves now to give the top of Angie’s head a gentle pat.

“Har har! Now that almost sounds like it could be nice! If you didn’t make it sound like such a threat!” 

[bigskydreaming]

Okay, so its no secret that I detest fandom’s obsession with Dick’s temper and how its one of his biggest character flaws, and that I looooooooooathe how much people fixate on that fight with Donna in NTT, but I don’t think I’ve ever actually seen anyone post the FULL scene with Dick and Donna rather than just selectively pull the panels in which Dick makes Donna cry, so I’ve included them all here so people can decide for themselves.

And keep in mind, as the last page I’ve included shows (with it taking place a mere THREE issues after this Dick and Donna fight)....Dick was quite literally NOT IN HIS RIGHT MIND at the time. This was a PLOT point, NOT a CHARACTERIZATION. The entire ‘road’ to this storyline was Dick deliberately and consciously being written as being more and more OUT of character, to SHOW that something was literally wrong with him. 

This includes his reaction to Kory when she got married on Tamaran - literally the issue BEFORE this fight with Donna, his abrasive attitude to Alfred when he visits Bruce, Alfred and Jason at Wayne Manor briefly upon returning to Earth, and this fight itself.

And lol, all anyone around him wanted to do was talk about how he needed ‘tough love’ from them and to be lectured on everything he was doing wrong rather than a SINGLE ONE OF THEM bothering to ask themselves - let alone him - WHY he was behaving so erratically and again, LITERALLY out of character. Why, no matter what personal problems he was having, they were having him react THIS way, lashing out at everyone around him, when Dick has ALWAYS had a lot of personal shit going on and yet this is absolutely NOT his standard, in character way of USUALLY dealing with that.....

Despite people both deliberately and unknowingly calling back to stories whose entire POINT is showing this behavior as out of character....

And using it to describe THAT VERY BEHAVIOR as being IN character.

So, please read these pages with that context in mind, keeping a firm awareness of the fact that Dick is literally battling mental conditioning he’s unaware of through all of this, while Donna on the other hand is NOT. And has NO excuse for the things she says and DOES.....

And yet, this fight only EVER comes up in demonstration of DICK’S temper and how its this great character flaw of his, and NEVER to say, DONNA has a temper and this is one of her character flaws.

Please ask yourselves why the fuck a fandom has spent thirty years since this issue framing this fight as Dick’s fault, proof of how cruel and awful HE can be, instead of....how even his closest friends are TYPICALLY characterized as having no patience with him when he’s acting out of character....even when there might very well be - and usually IS - a REASON he’s acting out of character, beyond ‘he’s going through some shit.’

And ESPECIALLY ask yourselves why the hell this fight comes up so often with it being cited - and panels provided as proof - that Dick makes Donna cry with the things he says (again, while brainwashed).....

But with ZERO mention of the facts that:

a) Dick told Donna from the outset that he wasn’t in the mood to have this argument and asked her to leave HIS apartment

b) Donna refused and said they were going to talk about this now whether he liked it or not

c) Donna - a character with super strength - physically manhandled Dick into staying put when Dick still insisted he didn’t want to do this now

d) Dick AGAIN makes the effort to de-escalate or break off the argument because he knows or feels strongly its going to get even LESS civil than it already has been, given the mood he is (and not knowing that this mood is again, at least partly due to turmoil from constantly fighting against brainwashing he himself isn’t even aware of)

e) When Donna STILL refuses to do him the COURTESY of listening to his repeated efforts to NOT DO THIS RIGHT NOW, Dick tries to go past her and leave his OWN apartment just to get away from her

f) Donna STILL refuses to allow this, physically shoving him back again to keep him from going anywhere until SHE’S good and ready for him to

g) only THEN does Dick go on the offensive (but also kinda the defensive, if you consider the fact that he’s repeatedly expressed HE DOESN’T WANT TO BE HERE OR DO THIS WITH HER and has tried more than once to get her to go or remove HIMSELF from the situation)....and its only at THIS point that Dick says the admittedly cruel things that make Donna cry and are the source of the ONLY panels from this whooooooole scene that I’ve ever seen provided in posts about how this demonstrates Dick’s temper

h) Donna - far from being a helpless victim of Dick’s cruel temper, the way its usually framed - responds with her OWN offensive, not just in the form of words, but - and I can not express enough how fucking uncomfortable it makes me that Dick is so often framed as the aggressor here, the one with the temper, the one OUT OF LINE when this happens in the same scene - Donna responds to what Dick says by LITERALLY PUNCHING HIM THROUGH A WALL

i) Donna then REMAINS just as much on the offensive as Dick himself, but whereas Dick’s offensive is in the form of words he’s saying to Donna - after being pushed and provoked despite repeated attempts of his to de-escalate or disengage (and again, WHILE brainwashed) - Donna’s offensive remains in the form of PHYSICAL AGGRESSION, as she repeatedly tries to attack HER FRIEND with her super strength, clearly not holding back as we see her demolishing the parts of HIS apartment her attacks actually connect with

j) Despite Donna changing the nature of their conflict from being just about words to being one of outright physical aggression - well not really changing, if you keep in mind the fact that Donna used physicality to force Dick to remain in the apartment long before they reached this point to begin with - Dick STILL makes ZERO effort to respond with any physical aggression of his own, despite her having ALL the advantages in a straight up physical conflict between them, and the fact that even ONE of those hits from her is going to do FAR more damage to him if it connects than ANYTHING he could do to her ever would, and instead, Dick remains committed to simply EVADING her physical attacks while doing zero to reciprocate with anything other than words

k) the conflict only concludes when Dick FINALLY - and despite Donna’s repeated and continued efforts - manages to get out of his OWN apartment and leave just to get away from her - as he was trying to do ALL ALONG

l) in the aftermath of the conflict, we only see Donna sitting on the floor of his demolished apartment, clearly upset but with no indication if that has ANYTHING to do with anything SHE actually did throughout it or if she’s still only focused on what he said to HER, whereas we’re treated to a full internal monologue from Dick where he’s clearly confused and upset with his OWN behavior and trying to justify it and make sense of it even just to himself, which again, plays right into the fact that from here he sets out to find Raven, which leads him straight into the clutches of the Church of Blood as it turned out he wasn’t sneaking in but rather being lured back in via....

m) the mental conditioning its revealed Dick’s had implanted thanks to them all along, and the ultimate SOURCE of all his erratic, OUT OF CHARACTER, and volatile behavior over the past year, as he’s been battling against it internally with no idea that’s what he was doing or why he was having dramatic mood swings and shifts in priorities and decision-making

But again.....the only thing that EVER gets mentioned about this entire conflict, and the only pages which are ever posted from it....

Are the ones where Dick makes Donna cry.

So. Yeah. THAT, and the fact that this particular fight is FOUNDATIONAL to the whole “Dick has an awful temper and lashes out at even his closest loved ones at times” characterization that’s influenced not just fandom, but other later writers of canon itself....

All without ZERO mention or awareness of the larger overall framing or even the fact that there were TWO people involved in this fight, but only Dick has the excuse of “I was literally brainwashed at the time tho” for what he says and does and he STILL wasn’t the one who initiated, escalated, repeatedly refused to take what the other wanted into account, and oh yeah, physically attacked him....

Like. This would be why I 100% can not stand talk of Dick’s temper and how its one of his greatest flaws, while literally every single character can be shown to be written as an asshole at times or having a temper when lashing out or hurt - such as say, Donna in this very same scene....

And the much, MUCH more consistent and frequently appearing pattern in canon is NOT Dick being this volatile jerk who often makes his friends and family the victim of his temper....but rather Dick himself is the victim of THEIR tempers and physical aggression, with this repeatedly and consistently glossed over and DELIBERATELY EXCLUDED FROM THE NARRATIVE in order to just focus SOLELY on Dick’s part of a fight and whatever he did or said that was wrong.

Also also also, just to reiterate, like I coincidentally (or is it a coincidence) have to keep doing with the Ric Grayson arc to get people to remember to be sympathetic to how DICK is affected by all this rather than how he’s VICTIMIZING his loved ones through all this, ALMOST FORTY YEARS AFTER THIS SCENE (lol my how things have changed).....

OH YEAH. AND HE WAS BRAINWASHED THOUGH.

Anyway, the pages in FULL, below the cut:

Skipping ahead to a mere THREE ISSUES LATER and the brainwashing reveal: