#echo and trauma :(

[crush-echoes]

i dont know if anyone actually likes me

it doesnt feel like they do

everyone seems so close to each other

what if theyre talking about me

do they hate me

[tangents-within-tangents]

Listen I just love these two sm

I love how they are chaos buddies

And yet simultaneously Omega is the only one Echo trusts to be responsible when he's gone

also their little nicknames are you kidding me that's so cute!

[kindaasrikal]

I have a small AU where on the Day of the Departed some souls are able to go down to Ninjago to see their loved ones.

(Such as souls who have recently died, souls who are remembered, or souls who are trusted enough to go down (when a dangerous soul is one of the first two they either are not allowed to go down or must travel down with a ‘Guardian’ such as Garmadon with Morro (yes this is a Morro AU are you actually surprised)))

So imagine how Cole feels when years down the pipe line something triggers his previous ghostly-ness (maybe evil Garms resurrection) and he sees Morro and Garmadon bickering near a Lloyd, Cryptor making fun of Zane and Pixal, Dr Julien admiring all the changes that has occurred, his mom admiring how big he’s gotten, and the damn First spinjitzu master snorting at Wu and (evil) Garmadon bickering.

No Kai he’s not hallucinating Harumi’s birth parents and adopted parents hovering over her what the hell.

Imagine how baffled he would be when he sees some random blonde woman and a guy who looks way too familiar babying a Jay who has no idea why Cole both looks traumatised and amused when looking at him.

[casualavocados]

The Fan family has tried to harm Bai Zongyi many times. I gotta be on guard to protect myself.

KISEKI: DEAR TO ME Ep. 10

[ninjautizm]

Something tells me that the first Spinjitzu master might not be a good dad 😭

And I actually like that concept, it makes me think in a way where garmadon had daddy issues and now that's transfered to his son, Lloyd 🤔

[kayzean]

Bungie once again COMING FOR MY FUCKING LIFE.

I- I'm... I'm going to scream.

[coalbones]

[oneluckydragon]

"Suddenly the world was gray and dull and my heart was so heavy I felt like I couldn’t move, let alone make it back to Treasure Town. But because of Echo’s last wish… I was able to keep living.”

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

SORA : (Partner)

Abilities: Justified / Inner Focus

Nature: Gentle / Hardy

Moveset: Aura Sphere / Metal Claw / Poison Jab / Dragon Pulse

[tending-the-hearth]

thinking about rex and echo finding cody, and the three of them reuniting and hugging, but in the back of each of their minds is The Picture, and they can’t help but know that one person is missing, one spot can’t be filled, their little quartet won’t ever be the same again.

[archivewriter1ont]

I Know Your Name as My Brother: Adopting Echo

Sharing this again because it's been a while and it's my favorite!

Status: Complete Word Count: 25,972

Summary:

Echo didn't escape Skakko Minor unscathed, and his new limbs are the least of his problems. When he walked onto the Marauder, he had no idea how he was going to make a place among the four brothers who had rescued and then adopted him. Slowly he realizes that he might not have to. Maybe he just needs to accept the one they've already made for him.

Tech: Call Sign (The Bird Story) -- The Batch's resident genius asks Echo a strange question. The cyborg gets a lesson about birds and his new squad's way of doing things.

Crosshair: Silent Words (The Sketch) -- Echo is brooding and he thinks he'll find camaraderie in the other sulky Batcher. But Crosshair is more than meets the eye.

Wrecker: Midnight (Lula and the Cyborg) -- Echo can't sleep. He ends up getting a chat, a tooka doll, and some surprising revelations.

Hunter: A Quiet Morning (Tea and Terrors) -- The sergeant and the cyborg have a rough morning and tea is the fix, paired with plenty of cadethood stories about his brothers that Hunter is willing to share.

Broken Pieces (Somehow Fit Together) -- Echo thinks he's stable enough to sleep without his prosthetics. He isn't.

Reflection (Peace on Pabu) -- Home at last.

[perenlop]

im abt to rb a post on this anyways but tbh i dont know how you can finish isat and go “siffrin wasnt punished enough”.

the fella has killed themselves several times, what more do you want from him?

[crush-echoes]

I’ll always be more scared of you leaving me then caring for myself

Whatever you want I’ll give

 My heart, my soul, every fucking thing

[tangents-within-tangents]

As much as I love sweet headcanons and found family fics about the Batch accepting Echo and supporting him through his adjustment and PTSD/trauma, gotta remember that what we were actually given in canon is this:

Hunter: Me and the boys will tag along anyway, if only to say I told you so. Crosshair: I would have left him for dead too. Besides, he's just another reg.

(his rescue was just a mission for them, wouldn't have done it otherwise)

Tech: To be blunt his mind belonged to the Separatists until we unplugged him. We don't really know where his loyalties lie. Rex: Yeah? Well I know. Hunter: Alright Echo what are you trying to pull? Tech: How do we know that's what you're really going to do? Hunter: Well I guess you actually are on our side.

(They openly doubt his loyalty even though they saw what he went through, and he already fought alongside them on Skako. Feels kinda victim-blamey to me, and it's odd that it goes straight from this to him joining them, like he had to prove himself worthy first? It's just the opposite of fanon which usually has the Batch be immediately sympathetic/protective and assume the regs would distrust him)

Tech: You are more machine than man, percentage wise at least. Echo, a triple amputee: *sigh* lucky me...

Palpatine: ...the attempt on my life has left me scarred and deformed Wrecker: You can say that again! Echo, a physically disabled person:

Echo, who was medically experimented on: *injured and having a panic attack in the medbay* The Batch: *off somewhere joking/betting about if he’s dead*

Tech: -from the Citadel rescue when you... how shall I put this? Wrecker: Blew up!! :D Crosshair: And turned into that Echo: *sigh* yes

Random stranger: *mistakes Echofor a droid* Hunter: *smiles and goes along with it for the credits* Echo, who was SOLD and dehumanized as a pow: *visibly uncomfortable* Hunter: Echo, go to your new owner.

Echo, who was treated like property by the Techno Union: *explains why slavery is wrong* And we are gonna stop it from happening to that kid. Tech: As well as earn a decent amount of credits once the job is complete. Echo: (bitterly) yeah, that too *leaves the room*

Tech: The client being a Separatist is not relevant. Echo, who was imprisoned and tortured by Separatists for over a year: It is to me! Hunter: Forget politics! We're here to do a job.

Tech: This squad existed before Echo was a part of it, and it will exist after.

For the record, yes people can and do joke about their trauma and disabilities

But look at Echo’s reactions/tone/body language in these scenes. It’s downcast sighs and discomfort, while the others are smiling, sneering, or dismissive. And because it's animated that means that every facial expression was intentionally designed.

What really clinches it for me is this moment:

Omega, a child who he just met, comforts him and helps him through his panic attack. But when the Batch, his squad who he's been living with for at least ~6 months, comes into the room he visibly closes himself off and hides his vulnerability :(

There are good moments too (though tbh i can't think of many)

I don't wanna discount that, but that doesn't discount this either. And it's just really weird when you think about it. Like half of these were in the first episode, which is the first time we are actually seeing how these characters interact together as a squad. And this is coming from the "defective" clones who supposedly know what it's like to not fit in? Who offered Echo a place with them specifically because they thought he wouldn't be accepted by others?

As with anything, there are ways we can read into or explain these moments (like honestly 'selling' your brother or betting that your brother died by lunch tray is very accurate sibling energy (And my personal headcanon (to reconcile it for myself bc the show didn't) is that Wrecker was worried about Echo so Crosshair jokingly exaggerated that he was dead and turned it into an argument/bet to distract him (which is also why I think he turns battles into a game/competition with Wrecker)) but Echo is very traumatized and there's a complete lack of consideration there). But that doesn't excuse it nor does it change the fact that this is what was presented to us in the writing. Characters aren't actually people (shocking I know lol), so any of their 'choices' are actually made by a real-life writer. And whether the implications of these moments were fully considered/intended or not, it still portrays the characters and their attitudes/relationships in a certain way.

[whumpshaped]

Thing I'd read for forever: Whumpees who don't think they're people

There's a moment in Linden and Colton in a flashback when Colton breaks and he disregards his own personhood bc "this was too awful to happen to a person" so he doesn't believe he is a person. These things don't happen to people, therefore he must not be one

It's makes me feral! LIKE YES! RATIONALIZE IT!

Even better if they get questioned on their logic and they straight up do not understand.

My absolute favorite thing is a caretaker being like "well you're a human so you must be a person, right?" And whumpee is like "no. not a person. obviously." Literally believing they're built different from other humans. Just how it is.

Like how do you even combat that logic?? You don't. Sorry. This is Whumpee's worldview now. Good luck.

tw dehumanisation, conditioned whumpee, past trauma with multiple whumpers

"I appreciate it," Whumpee said softly. "I do. You're... you're very kind to me, and I know you're trying to comfort me, and it means a lot."

Caretaker listened, unsure where this monologue was going. They knew Whumpee had a lot of issues, a lot of new triggers they had to watch out for and avoid. Had they missed one? Had they upset them in some way?

"But I'm sure there are people who need you. I know– I know this is your decision, and you decide whether you want to waste all this energy on a useless thing like me, but... but if you care for my opinion at all, and you seem like you do, because you're s-so nice, then... then stop wasting time on me. I'm okay. Whatever duty you have in mind for me, I, I can start doing it today."

Caretaker hummed. "The person who needs me right now is you."

Whumpee shook their head a little. "Not a person."

They didn't flinch. They continued holding Whumpee's hands in their own, rubbing circles into the backs of them. "No?"

"Just a thing. A thing to use. I don't need such kind attention, though I am endlessly grateful for it." They shifted, averting their eyes. "I had to say something. I couldn't keep lying and taking advantage of such a kind person. I'm sorry I didn't speak up right away."

"You couldn't," Caretaker reminded them. "You were unconscious when I found you and barely conscious in the following days."

Whumpee didn't have a reply to that, but their guilt was palpable.

"How come you're not a person?" they asked gently. "You seem like one to me."

"I thought so, too. When I was still stupid and useless and arrogant. Bad. But Master taught me what I was. Showed me."

"Showed you?"

"Yes. They stopped pretending I was a person. They treated me like a thing, like I deserved to be treated, and no one said anything. You wouldn't have been able to treat a person like that. Somebody would've said something."

Caretaker tried not to let it show just how crushing those words sounded. Even through such a casual retelling — or maybe because it was so casual, like it was normal, — they could picture everything too vividly. A poor soul trapped in that horrible place, with monsters who brainwashed them to the point where it was all Whumpee knew. Trapped in a small world of torture and humiliation until they gave up the memories and the experiences of their life from before.

"I see," they forced out.

"I'm sorry if that was upsetting, I was just trying to answer truthfully and–"

"I know. You didn't do anything wrong."

Whumpee fell silent, their fearful eyes searching Caretaker's face for any lies or deception.

"For the time being, why don't you think of this little recovery period as maintenance?" they suggested carefully. "Would that make more sense to you?"

"Maintenance?"

"Yes. Repairs, even. Getting you back to full working order instead of pushing you to your limits with barely any rest time over and over again for no reason. You wouldn't do that to a thing you intended to keep for a long time."

Whumpee thought about it. Caretaker could almost hear the cogs turning. "I don't think I was meant to be kept for a long time," they whispered.

Caretaker squeezed their hands, prompting them to look up. "Yes, you were. If Whumper got to treat you however they saw fit, then it's only fair I get to do the same, right? And I would like to treat you like you matter, person or not."

~

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[waystarresourceco]

James Cromwell explaining how he contextualized Logan and Ewan's backstory in preparation for the funeral/eulogy. (x)

The reference to Ewan bringing home dead animals is (I think) from a deleted scene in Season 1, except below the cut.

Interview excerpt from an interview with James Cromwell with Vulture - May 25, 2023

Script excerpt from a deleted scene in "I Went to Market" in Succession - Season One: The Complete Scripts

[nshtn]

I love writing Wesker with a little touch of what he seems to hate so much... humanity.

The one core aspect of his persona is that he was manufactured - abused - created.

The Executive Training School intended to produce sets of controllable psycho-sociopaths - a class worth. Human beings, more complex than tools, rarely turn out how they are meant to - neither Birkin nor Wesker were controllable.

Lisa Trevor was a threat and an intimidation tactic as much as she was an experiment - "this will be you if you don't do what we say", essentially.

Wesker, Birkin, and Alexia were all groomed (literal) under the Doctrine, meant to take over in Spencer's stead when he passed (and meant to fight for the position).

Birkin's hate for Alexia was an intentional machination of Spencer. Wesker was intended to experience it towards Birkin eventually, but ultimately did not.

There is only so much death you can voyeur - unwillingly, willingly, it doesn't change the outcome - until you are no longer empathetic to it.

He's a victim of an insurmountable magnitude of intentional happenings whose scale approaches the Truman trope.

His natural, base inclination is not violence.

Birkin had a much higher kill count than he did in the beginning of his arduous and terrible journey, one that they had both started with the desire for a positive change even after they grew up watching their peers picked off like carrion by Marcus.

Wesker's comment to Birkin after the murder of Marcus is that he does not feel anything - good or bad - and that Marcus was "just another monster".

In RE4, he is more than willing to let people solve his own problems without directly, violently interfering to reach his goals. Only when they require violence does he portray it - his first suggestions aren't needlessly cruel ("ring the church bell", "take advantage of the distraction [Leon] is causing", "use [Leon] to clean up Saddler").

When Wesker initially became suspicious of the Arklays, and he looked upon what he perceived was Spencer's goal, he found the idea of it completely revolting even at its' smallest scale. But he could not flee.

The Arklays were meant to produce a viable strain that Spencer could then himself perfect after shedding the Arklays as a testing ground; it was intentionally set up for the event of Raccoon City to occur, but it was not intended for it to occur at the time that it did.

Spencer admits that he - and Project W as a whole - were raised intentionally to produce tools who would become eugenicists in a similar fashion.

Eventually that bitter lie becomes so numb to Wesker's tongue that it begins to taste sweet. "A lie repeated twice is truth" is a known and very evil propaganda tactic employed by cults and fascists - it is called the 'illusion of truth' in psychology, the curse of familiarity.

He was not born evil, and he's a broken dichotomy of a person who is fundamentally incompatible with life.