#echoes of the past is still like a 9/10 episode i love it will all my little heart

[cherrymoonvol6]

oh.

[baddest-batchers]

TBB SEASON 3 EP 9 THOUGHTS & FEELINGS!!!!! | spoilers below ✨

• UHM OKAY CAN WE JUST GET A ROUND OF APPLAUSE FOR ALL OF US THAT KNEW FENNEC WAS TALKING TO VENTRESS LAST EPISODE 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

• Okay, hear me out: It’s totally possible Omega has a high M-count and could be Force-sensitive. But also, could it be possible that she may not have a high enough M-count to be trained yet her M-count doesn’t degrade since she isn’t aging at an accelerated pace? It could be that for whatever reason the clones’ M-counts degrade over time because their ages are accelerated, genetic degradation due to when they were conceived, what batch number they were, Jango Fett’s DNA degradation, etc? This also begs the question that normal Force-sensitive beings’ M-counts might possibly degrade as they age but not enough to alter their connections/abilities to tap into the Force, especially if they’ve been trained. Idk, it’s definitely possible for Omega to be Force-sensitive but we will just have to see.

•Asajj Ventress, you dropped this 👑

• Her fight sequence with Crosshair had me wishing I was her so bad.

• Crosshair being so brotherly and protective is still 100000/10. “You did.” Implying he was heavily against not intervening in Omega’s tests w/ Ventress but he let her go do it anyway because he loves and trusts his sister.

• TECH MENTIONED AGAIN I—PLEASE BRING HIM BACK I SWEAR FILONI I AIN’T PLAYIN AROUND.

• Wrecker this episode was so 🥹🥹. Him trying to cheer up Omega by telling her they should go eat was so cute.

• I adore Omega’s ability to see the best in people. She doesn’t immediately cast people off because of their pasts and that’s a quality I think many people lack today. We saw Crosshair tell her she’s being naive in an effort to protect her but I don’t think she is being naive. I think she genuinely sees the better part of people and will always be willing to give someone a chance.

• I am once again asking, WHERE TF IS ECHO. Ik he’s with Rex but PLEASE bring our boy back. I’m so tired of the family not being all together.

• DID ANYONE ELSE NOTICE THAT WE DID NOT SEE CROSSHAIR’S HAND TREMBLE AT ALL THIS EPISODE??? Like not once did we see him shake out his hand or scowl at it. He was steady as hell when he was shooting at Ventress!! His meditation sessions with Omega must be helping 💜💜💜💜

• Crosshair skipping down the Marauder’s steps to help Omega into the ship, adorable. AND THEN EXTENDING HIS HAND TO VENTRESS AFTER NOT WANTING TO TRUST HER. This is such wonderful character development. I think Omega has definitely rubbed off on Crosshair a bit. He’s trying to give people a chance, just like Omega did with him. 🥹🥹🥹

• I really do love that the Batch doesn’t want to let Omega go, esp Hunter and Crosshair. Hunter went months without knowing if she was okay, let alone even alive when she was on Tantiss. Obviously she and Crosshair have such an unbreakable bond at this point that ofc he doesn’t want to let her go either.

• It would be so cool if she is, in fact, Force-sensitive and that she goes off to be trained by Ventress or someone else in order to protect her brothers. But tbh it’s not the best ending the show could have imo. It would be so bittersweet but I also think fall kind of flat for Omega’s character if that were the ending of the entire show. A huge part of me just wants them to all stay together and live happily ever after. Ik it’s Star Wars and we probably won’t get that but still, it’s nice to dream that it could happen.

• And lastly

I will be thinking about this for the rest of the week.

[silviakundera]

a very official and unserious ranking of chinese mini-dramas I've watched. Mini-drama = 5-15 min episodes. Color coded "sets" that had same actor or writer.

1. Night of Love with You (2022) - the unbeatable. the ULTIMATE. villain 4 villain romance with a protagonist who knows she is in a manga series... but something has gone wrong, because how did she and the heroic female lead get switched this time?!

2. Provoke (2023) - Republican era noir revenge saga. Unresolved sexual tension. Glamour. Great lighting. Hot people in period costume giving VIBES. She married her mortal enemy as a concubine and keeps a murderboard. I'm in love w her.

3. The Deliberations of Love (2023) - Married consort of a prince dies with him due to the struggle for the throne. Then she wakes up in the past, only for this ambitious idiot to get them killed again! Receiving yet another chance after 2 awful deaths, she's determined to choose life over love and not marry into the royal family again. But it's not quite so simple... especially when the prince starts to feel echoes of their past life together. The romantic chemistry is what sells this lil tropey drama. She keeps subconsciously drifting back into acting like his familiar spouse and then he starts vibing too.

4. A Familiar Stranger (2022) - Like with Provoke, I think everyone's seen this one? Conniving prime ministers daughter face-switches an innocent girl who is searching for her sister and pining away for this hot general who saved her once. Wow what luck, the horrible marriage the prime minister's daughter wanted to escape is with her dream man. This all sounds very wtf but this director x screenwriter combo creates these moody pieces that have a certain dream logic.

5. Zhang Gong Zhu Zai Shong (2022) - The emperor's sister is tyrannical and keeps a stable of hot men. Political intrigue ensues. ngl this one is real choppy but is ranked high due to my bias for achingly hot leading ladies who step on a breathless delicate ML. 🔥 She makes me SWEAT.

6. The Killer is Also Romantic (2022) - Mr and Mrs Smith in costume drama imperial era china. It should be higher, but for an English speaker it's dragged down the list by terrible subs.

7. My Decoy Bride (2023) - Hidden identities, assassin marries her target in imperial era china. Same male actor as Deliberations of Love who builds good energy with his costars. But less budget, worse subs, choppy editing. Still fun. Probably ranked way too high but idc I was entertained.

8. Dong Lan Xue (2023) - 3 min episodes of broken Murder Couple ❤. The slighted 7th prince and his ex-prostitute maid who are out for blood & revenge. (It's that badass lady & her delicate suitor again. Love this webisode pair. love herrrrrrrrr)

9. Miss Mystery (2023) - Republican era revenge drama in a similar vein as Provoke but lacking it's elite lighting, sets, & cinematography. To her it's Fake Marriage but he agrees because he liiiiikes her. The couple has chemistry, gives good power-couple, and the FL is out for bloody revenge. It's a fun ride. But the writing isn't as strong as Provoke and the uneven acting of the supporting cast drags it down the list.

10. What's Wrong with My Princess (2023) - The standard reborn revenge tale played straight. Female general helped a prince fight for the throne, then he & her sister have her murdered when vulnerable and pregnant. Gasp! She wakes up years earlier on her wedding day to this other prince she'd married once, only to kill for her evil lover boy. Now she plots the downfall of lover boy & her sis, joining hands with the husband she betrayed the 1st time around. It's... exactly what it sounds like lol. Nothing stands out and the script is a string of tropes. But it delivers exactly what it promises.

11. Everlasting Bride (2023) - Republican era revenge with added spy games. Like Miss Mystery & Provoke, strong character intros & first meeting. They're mysterious and well-dressed and dangerous to know. More polished than Miss Mystery. The leads here are more filtered and more conventionally attractive. But I have to admit that there's a charm about how rough around the edges Miss Mystery is. And I like the lead actress in Miss Mystery a lot more. The first 3rd is pretty fire, then it lost steam for me.

12. Forever Love (2023) - It's that smoldering guy from Maid's Revenge (absent from this list because due to crap ending). Absolutely extra in every way, a tropey hormonal mess, to the point one can argue it circles back around to be ART. Female protagonists for 1-10 are all great & fun. Alas I can't say the same for #12. 💀

Haven't Finished:

Butterfly Lover (2023) - I have a serious hate for open-endings and I heard this has one, so I paused on it. It's from that amazing director&screenwriter combo, though (Provoke, Familiar Stranger, Killer is also Romantic...). So I know it's worth watching.

Romantic aka Love Strikes Back (2023) - I started this but stalled out. idk it wasn't compulsively watchable for me. Other people loved it.

[toodleoorblx]

Natural Order

Agatha Harkness x Rio Vidal

Word Count: 2,203

۫ ּ ֗ ִ ִֶָ ׄ . ִ ۫ ּ ֗ ִֶָ ִ ⠀ ִ ۫ ִֶָ ּ ֗ ִ ִֶָ ׄ . ִ ۫ ּ ֗ ִ ִֶָ ׄ . ִ ۫ ּ ֗

Summary: Agatha sees not one but TWO old friends. And finds out what her son has been up to.

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 10 - /?

Warnings: Cursing, talking of violence.

A/N: I love Alice sm.

Chapter 8

Westview, New Jersey 2023

Agatha- or rather Agnes, stands in her kitchen, the kettle's whistle echoing in the lonely silence of the room. She's dressed in a yellow sundress and Margaret's red ribbon in her hair, tied in a messy bun and her mothers brooch hanging on a necklace around her neck. As she makes herself a sandwich, she hums a tune, trying to inject some life into the desolate atmosphere. Agatha feels trapped, suffocated by the monotony of her existence.

It's been two and a half months since her defeat, and Wanda has made no attempt to confront her. Agatha still can't fathom how she allowed herself to be bested by a baby witch (who didn't even know she was 1)! The thought gnaws at her, fueling her frustration and resentment. 

She's become a spectator in her own life, observing Agnes' repetitive routines day in and day out. It's like watching a rerun of a show that never changes, each episode more infuriating than the last. Agnes' life has become a prison of predictability, driving Agatha to the brink of madness. And to add insult to injury, her magic has dwindled to almost nothing. She can barely sustain herself, her power lying dormant within her, a cruel reminder of her former glory.

Agnes and Agatha hear the doorbell ring. Agatha tenses, her instincts urging her to ignore it, but Agnes, ever curious, pads to the door at the sound of frantic knocking. Agatha rolls her eyes.

��Coming!” Agnes calls out.

As Agnes opens the door, Agatha freezes, her breath catching in her throat. Intense emotions swirl within her—regret, confusion, and a touch of fear.

It's Alice.

Agatha's mind races, memories of their past encounters flooding back. She wants to run, to teleport away and erase Alice's presence from her mind. But she remains rooted to the spot, unable to tear her gaze away.

Alice stands before them, her hair shorter and adorned with neon orange highlights. And she's wearing a… police uniform? Is she with the fucking police?! Agatha's mind reels at the sight. Alice, once a rebel against authority, now seemingly part of it.

Meanwhile, Agnes, unaware of the tension, leans against the doorway with a welcoming smile. It's been awhile since she's had anyone bother to talk to her without her initiating it. People get annoyed easily saying ‘drop the act’ or ‘Agnes is still being controlled’. Agatha can feel how much it confuses Agnes, and hurts her. But Agatha doesn't care.

“Hiya officer? Anything I can help you with?” Agnes asks cheerfully, her smile inviting.

Alice's reaction is delayed, her mind seemingly short-circuiting for a few moments before she regains her composure. She clears her throat, her hand instinctively resting on her gun holster, and Agatha notices the intricate runes embedded within the weapon—typical Alice.

“Hello, you’re Agnes, correct?” Alice asks calmly, her demeanor composed but her eyes betraying a hint of urgency.

“Yep! Is something wrong?” Agnes responds cheerfully, her obliviousness to the situation only serving to heighten Agatha's unease.

Alice shakes her head, a faint tremor in her voice. “No, not at all, but I’d like to… talk to you, in private.”

“Oh, of course, come in!” Agnes gestures for Alice to enter, her hospitality unwavering. “I was just making tea, would you like some, dear?”

Agatha scoffs internally, her patience wearing thin at Agnes's naivety.

“No thank you, I won’t be long,” Alice replies, her tone curt as she follows Agnes into the living room and takes a seat on the couch.

Agnes settles in on the farther end of the couch, a smile still playing on her lips.

“So-” Agnes begins, but before she can finish her sentence, Alice lunges forward, seizing Agnes's temples in a swift motion. Agatha's vision floods with pink hues. Agatha blinks. Actually blinks. With her own eyes. She can feel, with her own hands. This shock of sensations sends Agatha squirming in shock, she quickly sits up, rubbing her eyes. Her senses overwhelmed by the sudden rush of sensations.

As Alice retreats, leaving Agatha visibly stunned, Agatha's mind races with questions. Did Alice just save her? Why?

“Amazing to have you back, Harkness,” Alice remarks sarcastically, her eyes rolling in exasperation.

Agatha's glare intensifies, her suspicion growing with each passing moment. “How did you find me?”

Alice huffs, crossing her arms in frustration. “A ‘thank you’ would be nice, but whatever,” she mutters under her breath. Regaining her seriousness, Alice meets Agatha's gaze with a steely resolve. “I tracked you down.”

Agatha's jaw tightens, her frustration boiling to the surface. “What the fuck do you mean, ‘tracked me down’?! Why?”

Alice settles into the loveseat, her expression serious as she crosses her legs. “Exactly what I said. I need your help.”

Agatha ignores the last sentence. “You didn't answer my question, dear. How. Did. you. Find. me.” She emphasizes each word, her tone sharp with suspicion.

Alice sighs, her frustration evident as she rubs her eyes. “I followed the traces of chaos and dark magic. If I'm correct, you still have that hunger for magic?” There's a pointed edge to Alice's words.

Agatha narrows her eyes at the veiled insult but says nothing, rolling her eyes instead.

“I'll take that as a yes. Anyways, I thought maybe you wanted to figure out who or what was producing such magic. I went door to door, trying to sense if any magic was used in a home, but I only felt chaos, until this one. Hell, it reeked of dark magic. But I was right.”

Agatha huffs a mirthless laugh. “Why are you here?” It's not a question; it's a demand.

“I need your help,” Alice states simply, her voice resolute.

Agatha lets out a full-bodied cackle, the sound echoing through the room. “And why would I help you?”

Alice meets her gaze without hesitation. “Because your son is acting like his mother.”

Agatha's face falls into a deep frown.

Nicholas.

She hasn't said his name in a long, long time. She shouldn't be the one who should be helping. He wouldn't want to see her. He has every reason not to. Fear fills her to the boiling brim; she clenches her jaw.

“What do you mean?” Agatha finally asks, her voice meek, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her dress nervously. She feels like a child again, being held accountable for whatever misbehavior caused something worse to happen. She hates it.

“He has been draining the magic of unsuspecting witches all over the world. Leaving them dead, not even bothering to hide the bodies. He’s up to something. Something big. We-”

“We?”

Alice falls silent momentarily, then speaks again. “I’ll tell you who once I know that I can trust you.”

“Trust me?”

“Yes, Agatha. Trust you. Trust that you won't try to take their, or my own, magic.”

Agatha feels a lump in her throat. At some point in the fifties, Agatha had tried to take Alice’s magic, not knowing it was Alice. She hasn't felt the urge to take magic since her direct connection with the Darkhold was severed. When Wanda opened it a few weeks ago. That's another issue.

“I won't.”

“We’ll see. Anyways, we had counted how many young witches died, and as far as we know… he killed nearly 300 witches in the span of a year or so.”

Agatha’s blood runs cold. The last time she saw Nicholas, he was 6 years old… Now he's killing hundreds?!

Fucking hell.

Alice continues. “We figured we could use your help, not just because he’s your son, but because your magic is exceptional. It's useful.”

“Um, honey, there's one problem with that.”

“What?”

“The Scarlet Witch has my magic.”

“WHAT!? I thought she was a myth!”

“She's not. She's new to this.” Agatha clears her throat. “She.. Bested me when I tried to take her magic.”

“You let a baby witch win.” Alice chuckles.

“Shut the hell up, Alice, I was distracted.”

Alice's tone drips with sarcasm. "Sure you were." 

Alice stands up. “I think I have an idea on how to get your magic back.”

Agatha’s heart freezes, her hopes high. But how can she do anything?

“But The Scarlet Bitch has my magic.”

Alice chuckles. “Not that magic, your coven magic. It's dormant. The Darkhold tainted and suppressed it. But the Darkhold can't latch onto magic if there isn't any to begin with. The Scarlet Bitch, as you called her, has your dark magic, the magic the Darkhold gave to you. Your magic is still there, but we just need to… heal it.”

Agatha could laugh. Heal it? For Hecate's sake. “And who would do that?”

Alice shrugs. “I know a witch. You have to trust me.”

Agatha purses her lips, her eyes perfect slits. “But what's in it for me, me helping you?”

Alice sighs and puts her hands in her pockets. “Well, I mean… the fact that you get your old magic back seems like a good enough deal to me.”

Agatha rolls her eyes. It's definitely not her dark magic, but… it's magic. It's the best she can do for now. She'll have to go on a magic hunting spree, but that hopefully shouldn't be hard.

Agatha stands up and sighs. She extends her hand out to shake, which Alice does.

“Deal.”

Alice smirks. “Perfect. Also,” She lets go of Agatha's hand. “Do you know any other witches that might be able to help us? It was just the two of us, we need numbers.”

Agatha thinks. Who does she know that's of good use? Agatha never made friends; they were just so exhausting to keep up with. But she does have 1 old friend.

Lilia Calderu.

“I… know someone who might.”

Alice grins. “Let's go then.”

“Wait, I need to change. I’m not leaving like this.” hse gestures to her sundress and blue heels.

Alice laughs. “Hurry up then.”

Agatha quickly takes out her bun and ties margarets ribbon on her wrist. Then goes upstairs to change.

__

In Alice's car, they sit in silence. Agatha told Alice that Lilia lives on the outskirts of Pennsylvania. Agatha stares out of the window, dreading the impending confrontation with Nicholas. It's been so long since they've seen each other. He probably wants her dead, or worse, to exact his own revenge.

She doesn't exactly blame him. Agatha admits she wasn't fair to him all those years ago. She wasn't fair to anyone. But she needed to make her mark on the world somehow. And power was, and still is, the only way to do it.

Speaking of power…

“Alice?”

“Yep,” Alice replies, popping the 'P'.

“You freed me from Wanda’s spell, how?”

“Who’s… Oh that's The Scarlet Bitch. Well, whoever she is, she didn't do a very good job. The spell was easy to counter since it wasn't well-rounded. But… I couldn't fully get rid of its… effects.”

Agatha blinks. “What the hell do you mean?”

Alice glances at Agatha briefly, one hand on the wheel. “Well, she might not be the best witch, but she's strong. Her magic is. I got rid of Agnes mostly, but she's still in there. She's just dormant. She can't hear or see us, but she's there. And from time to time… she can come out.”

“Meaning?”

“Meaning that she’ll break free and reprise her role, not permanently, but maybe for five minutes or so.”

Agatha sighs. She thought she was finally free of Agnes, at least she couldn't feel her presence.

__

“And you said that this rickety fortune-telling shop is where your friend is?” Alice gestures at the old building as she parks.

Agatha sighs. “Yes, dear, it is. She runs it. It's more to attract young witches though.” Agatha shrugs.

Alice gives her a look. Agatha sighs. “To help them, not to harm them.”

Alice nods slowly.

They step out of the car and enter the old shop.

It's rundown, but the walls are adorned with a deep shade of purple, and various mystical items decorate the space - tapestries, candles, fabrics, symbols, and runes. It's like a magnet for novice witches.

“Lilia!” Agatha calls out.

“Agatha, long time no see!” Lilia’s voice holds a mix of surprise and amusement as she steps forward. Her curly gray hair frames her more aged face, but her eyes still sparkle with wisdom. Lilia is a witch born without actual magic but with supernatural qualities; she can have premonitions and specializes in any form of divination. But she can't cast spells. Witches born without magic are extremely rare. Yet, Agatha knows that even if she did have magic, Lilia prefers to age naturally.

“Lilia,” Agatha nods in acknowledgment, a small smile tugging at her lips despite the tension in her chest. “I need your help.”

Lilia raises an eyebrow, her expression curious. “My help? Well, this must be serious if the infamous Agatha is seeking assistance.”

Agatha exhales slowly, her gaze flickering to Alice beside her before returning to Lilia. “It is. We're dealing with something big, and I believe we could use someone like you.”

Lilia’s smirk softens into a more thoughtful expression. “Well come on then,” Lilia inclines her head towards the closed curtain. “Let's talk.”

[sheikahwarriork]

just finished season 6!

not as good as season 5, but still very solid

the sanctum "deity" thing was really cool because 1) omg fucked up immortal people by fucked up methods 2) it was similar to mount weather thing (the primes were willing to sacrifice people in order to make them survive) but BETTER DONE, they were selfish and greedy and we saw WHY and HOW. not two stupid people (the doctor and the son of the head of mount weather- cant remember their names) that fuck up everything bc they couldnt think for a fucking second- no. stop ranting about mount weather yuzu. you no longer need to. its over.

ok im fine. lets continue

poor jordan. spent his first 16 years alive with just his parents and then he falls in love with a girl which dies immediately. welcome to this serie!

bellamy 10/10 character. i forgive him for everything

clarke 9/10 character. she got a lot of point. not a top tier list character but solid. good. finally i understand why she's the protagonist. i dont want her to die anymore

josephine was very very funny. i'll miss her

i cant believe they CANONICALLY made marcus kane immortal. I WAS RIGHT HE IS UNABLE TO DIE. and ofc the only way to get rid of him was making him kill himself. most powerful character ever. i'll miss you daddy

the episode where clarke is on her own mind with josephine is the BEST episode of ALL THE SERIE. it was INCREDIBLE and i loved it!! she faced ALL the problems i criticised her about. if you told me theres gonna be such a cool episode while i was still at season 2 i wouldnt believe you

the octavia mindtrip episode was very cool too. im happy she finally went to therapy

i'm a bit disappointed in john murphy in this season. i mean i liked him but his character used to be funnier in the past seasons. also its funny in this season he DID something instead of letting things happen to him and SHIT HAPPENED. murphy you're not supposed to take the initiative. let life beat you

anyway murphy and emori are super cute and i fucking love them. grrrrr

what. what do you mean. echo is not echo. echo used to be called ash and the real echo was her friend that was forced to kill her but ash killed her instead so she took the real echo identity. what do. you fucking. mean. i'm not crying you're crying

didnt quite get gabriel's character. lets see

still didnt quite get madi's character. i mean what is her beside the commander (which shes not anymore) and clarke's daughter? idk. lets see

rip abby. i hope you'll have fantastic post-life sex with kane in heaven

poor raven. she finally got laid and his boyfriend died EPISODE 1. cant you give her a fucking rest

a boy kissed murphy. funny. i love when things happen to murphy

anyway its so funny everywhere these characters go they bring death and destruction. sanctum used to be a peaceful place before they arrived, even if people died so the prime could "reincarnate". and then clarke arrives and a lot of people die. TRULY WANHEDA

i fucking hate catholics

btw i'm watching the 100 for the first time in my life but i remember the hype on the internet in like 2015 about this serie

i have Thoughts (just started 3rd season so this is about seasons 1 and 2)

everyone is fucking stupid. like really really stupid. i cant believe humanity survived for 97 years

clarke is smart but also very very stupid. why is a 17 yo in charge

raven is smart, not too stupid. i forgive her

john murphy is the funniest character ever

i remembered there was lesbians but i didnt know who the lesbians were. at first i thought they were clarke and raven bc they fight over a white boy so i thought i would be funny if they were The Lesbians

lexa can step on me

its cool lexa is canonically bi but i cant believe she fell for clarke. lexa deserves better. clarke is too stupid for her

the grounders are RIGHT. they are FUCKING RIGHT. SINCE EPISODE 1. they are NOT stupid

i called finn "white boy" during all the serie. he's such a white boy. he's very very stupid. i'm glad he died and i hated when the sky people wanted to save him from the execution bc THE GROUNDERS WERE RIGHT HE HAD TO DIE. he killed 18 FUCKING DEFENSELESS ELDERS AND CHILDREN

i miss anya. she was such a badass. clarke: "nuuuh i need a sharp and sterile knife-" anya proceeds to BIT HER OWN ARM to get the chip out. 10/10 character

about the mountain weather arc: oh my god they are so stupid. mountain people are so stupid i mean. "ohh we need sky people's bone marrow so we can survive but theres only 47 of them so in order to take all the bone marrow for us they have to die" you know how they could handle this shit?? by fucking ASKING. they KNEW there were other sky people on the ground now. like at least 100 of them i think. so they should have gone to them and say, "hi sorry we are humans who have to live underground bc radiations. but your bone marrow could save us. so can all of you give us a bit of your bone marrow? we offer an alliance and other commodities (medicines etc)". imo sky people would say YES bc bone marrow grows back its not too dangerous to donate it if its just a bit. everybody would be alive by now. and i wouldnt have got a headache

still about mountain weather arc: another way to handle that would have been: asking the 47 kids a bit of their bone marrow and WAITING it to grow back. like donators in real life yk? by 2 years all of the mountain people could have gone on the surface and everybody would be alive now and i wouldnt have got a headache

marcus kane is also a very funny character. hes desperately trying to die since they flowed those 320 people on the arc. and i LOVE he CANT die. everytime he's like "omg finally im going to die" and someone saves him. im sure as soon as he thinks "ok maybe being alive is not so bad" he gets shot

mountain weather arc is truly the most stupid thing that every happened in a tv show. they chose the worst possible way to handle the problem. they acted more stupidly than the kids in season 1. i really cant believe humanity survived for 97 years

the "100" on the spaceship were NEVER exactly one hundred. bc bellamy got inside so they were 101. but during the landing 2 kids died. so they were 99. there is not a single moment in this serie called "the 100" were they are one hundred. this fact is driving me crazy

i truly hope everyone dies bc i hate almost all of them. the only people that imo are allowed to survive are: octavia, jasper, monty, raven, murphy, kane (bc its funny he cant die), and all of the grounders. other peoples are too stupid to live so i hope they die soon so i dont get other headaches (edit: bellamy is on thin ice bc hes funny but hes also very much stupid)

i cant believe mountain weather arc. oh my god it was so stupid

[omar-rudeberg]

the music of young royals, vols. 1-17

This post highlights is the music of young royals, volumes 1-17, lovingly birthed by @starsabovetheunderground (and shared here with express permission). These are separate close analyses of the young royals soundtrack, encapsulating close character studies, audio aesthetics, lyric interpretations, and how each of the songs are simultaenously informed by and drive forward the narrative within which they occur. Each contains exceptional meta-analysis, delicately nuanced and summarised in a piece of gorgeously evocative prose.

I have listed each post below with a favourite moment lifted from the text (none of the quotes are mine). Share this post if you’re called to, but most importantly, please click through to read and like / reblog / reply to / share the original work!

«« »»

the music of young royals

vol. 1 | bad - farveblind, killason

we are being pulled into the underground and the world of young royals with a mission to escape.

vol. 2 | wannabe ghetto - fata boom

battling the beat is the revving engine of erik's sports car.

vol. 3 | it takes a fool to remain sane - omar rudberg

acknowledging just how difficult this must be for wilhelm ... telling him, in fact, going crazy is the only response that makes sense.

vol. 4 | i see you - nadia tehran

to be a public figure like a royal is to be living in a fishbowl (or, using the metaphor from young royals, a frog prince snow globe) and exposed for viewing at all angles.

vol. 5 | blah blah blah - armin van buuren

once again we’re pulled into the underground, but this time the mission is not to escape. this time the mission is to survive...

vol. 6 | hands up high - adele roberts, jacob blair, gabriella chering, charlie tenku

if simon's voice is the powerful melody that comes through clear over the noise then these lyrics are a sign for wilhelm to keep turning up the dial.

vol. 7 | no tomorrow - ty frankel, stephane lo jacomo, myariah summers

but the songs of the second episode belong to felice ... can be read as an expression of the expectations for felice to get wilhelm’s attention and perhaps one day become a princess.

vol. 8 | alpha - yung titties

there is still an opulent confidence that accompanies the power of money. that money begets cultural capital begets more money.

vol. 9 | come to play -  andrey tatarinov, ty frankel, nathan bodiker

wilhelm must decide if he wants to make a break for it with simon or surrender all hopes of escape resigned to his gilded cage.

vol. 10 | äter upp dig - maxida märak

for what is supposed to be a moment of happy family reunions, there is a lot of unspoken tension just below the surface.

vol. 11 | holes - zhala, deep throat choir

...that state of isolation wilhelm is frozen in. the wind blows through his life, but the breeze echoes off the canyon walls freshly carved by the loss of the solid foundation from erik's presence that was once there.

vol. 12 | remember - omar rudberg

this song has a fascinating dual meaning of being both a memorial and a ballad. the remembrance is for erik, but being written into history is for wilhelm.

vol. 13 | revolution - elias, no. 1

there's the beauty of their love returning to the surface, but it still means setting a fire and feeling the heat as it burns.

vol. 13 | revolution - elias, no. 2

young royals uses beauty and love as a way to enter a revolutionary consciousness, where wilhelm and simon's connection becomes a way to push out of the past and into the future.

vol. 14 | live and die - gina dirawi

all that [wilhelm] has left is worship at the altar of the only god he has found: the love he feels for simon. ((not that I’m picking favourites, but if you’re going to read just one? for goodness sakes let it be this one - Lili x))

vol. 15 | sunday - gina dirawi

wilhelm is being cast down not only for refusing to kneel to the crown, but for kneeling in love before simon. ((...and this one - Lili x))

vol. 16 | impatient - duvchi

the meaning is to be impatient, but the way the song echoes the ending of the word as “patient” doubly communicates the opposite. this patience vs. impatience manifests immediately ... it’s wilhelm's impatience against simon's patience.

vol. 17 | samurai swords (acoustic) - highasakite

this song is the lone one that belongs to august. he wants to inflict as much damage on wilhelm as immediately as he can, even if that means burning the bridge. even if it means burning the palace.

[daddychims]

Offside Pt 18

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16, Part 17, Part 18

Series Masterlist!

Genre: Smut, Soccer AU, College AU

Pairings: Soccer Player! Jungkook X Sports Trainer! Reader

Word Count: 2k

Other BTS members all make a cameo as well because I’m an OT7 Trash!

You work as a sports trainer, providing basic first aid and injury management for the Hanguk University’s soccer team. Going with your mundane life of caring for the dozen of guys hurting themselves in the soccer game takes a turn when one of the guys catches your eyes. It’s not his breathtakingly good looks or his muscular athletic body usually seducing girls at the campus that catches your eyes. But the action plan in your kit, indicating he is diagnosed with Asthma is what draws your eyes time and time again to the Golden Boy of Hanguk University.

Warning: Slow burn, eventual smut, Taehyung being a freaking tease the whole time, Also Jimin not letting the female MC live for one day, Fuckboy!Jungkook, Asthmatic! Jungkook , mentions of episodes of Asthma, Take your Ventolin kids, Take your medications kids!

AN. Jimin is a little Satan saga continues! 

You thought these late-night parties will cease for at least until after final games but you might have been too hopeful. That’s why right now you were sitting beside Joon drinking from your bottle of beer while you watch the guys from his team speak obnoxiously loud and cheer their glasses of beer to the hopeful wins in near future.

Your eyes travel around the tables, spotting Jungkook a few tables away and immediately wince as you find yourself searching him. Since the night you had dinner together you’ve been trying your best to steer clear of him.  You still saw him a couple of times during practice and had to do a few straps for him as usual, but you’ve been doing your best to reduce your alone times with him and using finals and exams as an excuse by filling his medication diary over text or quick phone calls.

In other terms, you’ve been avoiding him, and you know that he would eventually find out your intention. You decided avoiding the danger zone is the best way to protect yourself from falling deeper into this. So when earlier that night at training he asked whether you’re going to the party you were at right now, you only gave him curt responses like “not sure” and brushed him off. You can still feel the shiver running down your back remembering his cold stare when you entered the party along with Jimin, Jiwoo and Joon. You tried to reason yourself that it’s not your fault your best friend has gone full on protective mode and wants to keep you close to him and his friends but you still feel guilty to face the guy knowing how much he hates you hanging around mortal enemy. 

Well its not your fault, since the guy decided to cross all boundaries you've been creating that night. You can still vividly remember, the way his lips met yours after those sinful words. “I want you”, your heart still skips a beat when you reminisce the way those words echoed in his car as he confessed and caused a turmoil in your heart. Now you can’t help but to feel your cheeks flushing every time you see the guy getting close to you, feeling too scared that he might pull one of his famous Golden moves on you, and feeling overwhelmingly disappointed when he just casually walks past you like he didn't tug at your heart's strings. 

He probably was used to this whole making out with girls in his Jeep business on a daily. So much he probably wouldn’t even remember the way your lips melted on his soft lips, the way your arms immediately moved up to hold the silky strands of his dark brown hair as you fell deeper into his trap. But you were different to him, this didn’t happen to you very often, at least not frequent enough to just forget everything and act as nonchalant as him.

“If anyone sees they’d think you guys are in love,” you hear your friend’s familiar voice from behind and immediately jolt around to face Jiwoo who came back from toilet

 “Are you sure Hoseok is fine with you sitting her with me?” you say trying to ignore his earlier statement

“I don’t think you should worry about Hoseok,” Jiwoo shrugs with a mischievous smile as he points her head to a table a few metres away where your eyes were fixed on earlier “Lover boy hasn’t stopped looking at you since we got here.”

“He’s probably just zoning out, wishing he never came here just like I regret coming.”

“Fool yourself like that honey,” Jiwoo beams as he leans closer “Something happened between you two, Right?”

“Jiwoo-“ you warn eyeing Joon who’s talking to one of his teammates, making sure he doesn’t hear anything “Please, nothing happened. Joon is already on my ass as it is, please don’t provoke him.”

“Fine,” she chuckles as she brings her index finger to her nose “But you can tell me, your secret is safe with me!”

“Hey, you two,” Hoseok calls as he steps closer to the table, placing a hand on both you and Jiwoo’s shoulder “What the hell are you two doing at this table?”

“We’re planning to steal her Hyung,” Jimin stands up and shouts back at the guy in between the chaos “She’s gonna be SNU’s trainer next season, right Angel?”

You roll your eyes at the guy’s childish response “I dont rememebr making such a promise.”

“That’s not fair,” Hoseok furrows his eyebrows in response, “Are you gonna betray us like that?” He brushes a fist on your shoulder jokingly

“Well, It’s not such a bad idea,” you shrug “I need a bit of change anyways. I’ve been with you guys for two years.”

“Cheers to that.” Jimin giggles as he clinks his bottle on yours

“Didn’t know you’re two timer, Y/N?” Hoseok gives you a chuckle “you know what, I can’t let this off so easily, you’re sitting with us.”

Before you can reject, the guy grabs your arm and yank you towards the table he was sitting at a few metres away and forces you to sit on place, between Taehyung and Yugyeom.

“Guys, SNU is trying to steal our trainer just before the finals,” he says with a semi-serious tone, as if he’s sharing a highly confidential secret with teammates “We can’t let that happen, can we?” 

Your eyes meet Jungkook’s who’s sitting across the table, averting your eyes immediately as he stares right into your soul with disdain so you quickly try to stand up “I need to-“

“No way I’ll let you back there,” Taehyung forces you back on your sit, heavy arms wrapping around your torso as he fills a red cup with some booze “You’re forever ours, Sugar!”

You sigh as you glance back at Joon’s table, eyes meeting his for a second and he throws a concerned look between you and Jungkook before glancing away and murmuring something to Jiwoo who’s only smiling and nodding in response.

You reach for the red cup and down the booze in a quick manner, making the guys around you applaud you with their boyish “Whoos” as you knock the plastic cup back on the table. If only they know your goal is not to impress them but to just numb the anxiety of having to sit through another night with Jungkook sitting across you.

“That’s the way to go, Sugar!” Taehyung laughs as he fills your empty cup “This one is for Hanguk’s win in the finale,” he explains as he pours the booze in the cup carelessly, filling it to the brim “you gotta go one shot!”

You sigh, already feeling slightly tipsy from the mixture of your beer and the booze Taehyung is feeding you so you look around nervously, biting your lips as you see the expecting eyes of the team on you.

“Tae, I had a bottle of beer earlier, I don’t think mixing is a good idea-” you mumble

“WHAT DID I HEAR?” He cries out loud contrary to your secretive whisper “YOU DON’T WANT US TO WIN?” He Gasps and cover his mouth to his teammates “GUYS SHE IS A BETRAYER!”

A loud “BOO” follows from the guys, and you puff the air out of your cheeks realizing you work for a literal day-care of 20 years olds pretending to be adults.

“Fine,” you sigh in defeat as you reach for the cup but before you can wrap your fingers around the plastic container, someone snatches the cup from the table and you immediately turn around “Jimin-“you call with a confused tone, not realising when the guy showed up behind you

“Guys, this is why she needs to come to SNU,” he shakes his head and everyone around the table immediately frown at the familiar snobbish boy “You’re telling there is literally 20 of  here, but not even one man to be her Black Knight?”

“Why don’t you keep your nose in your own shoes Park?” Taehyung spits at the guy, exchanging an annoyed look with his housemate across the table you don’t miss

“I just thought my angel may need a bit of help,” he chuckles, glancing at Jungkook before bringing his eyes to you “Right?” he winks at you

You shift uncomfortably on your seat, eyes peeking at Jungkook across the table who’s shooting death glares at you for some reason you really don’t want to dig upon.

“If you wanna be a black knight, chug your drink down your throat and leave!” Taehyung speaks up with a venomous tone

“Easy,” Jimin throws his hand along with the cup up “I’m just trying to help,” he smirks as he shifts closer and presses his chin on your shoulder like he always does “But I have a condition Angel!”

“W-What!” You gulp at the nickname he calls you

“You will have to wear SNU’s shirt tonight.” he declares before rolling his football jersey which is adorned by his name and number over his head and throwing it on your lap “Deal?” he asks a victorious smile plastering on his lips as he glances at Jungkook who’s drinking his beer while his eyes are fixated on him

“Oh, I-” your eyes widen as you look around at the guys’ disappointed face, realising the guy’s suggestion may have a greater importance you’d imagine for them.

“You’re not doing that Sugar,” Taehyung warns with a low tone which slightly catches your off guard because you’ve barely seen this Taehyung this serious about something

“It’s up to her right?” Jimin presses himself closer to your back as he waves the cup “I’ll down this if you agree.”

You hesitate, looking at the cup filled to brim hesitantly before muttering “F-fine, it’s just a t-shirt anyways-“

“Sugar-” Taehyung starts but Jungkook’s voice immediately silences the guy

“What about a drinking game,” He knocks his glass of beer on the table “SNU vs Hanguk,” he adds, watching as Jimin’s grin widens, knowing that’s exactly what the guy is after “If you win, she’ll wear that t-shirt,” he says through gritted teeth, eyes travelling between you and Jimin as he adds  “If I win, you have to do as I say!”

“Deal!” Jimin beams immediately and you furrow your brows as you try to register what’s happening

“Don’t worry Angel,” he whispers against your ear, making you jump in your place “I’m confident I’ll win,” he reassures as he flashes a confident smirk to his opponent “I just cant wait to see the SNU logo on your beautiful boobs !”

“Jimin!” you hiss back at him and he chuckles before sitting beside you, between you and Tae

“Come on, big boy!” Jimin raises an eyebrow, looking at the guy across him “What are you waiting for?”

“I’m ready when you are.” Jungkook declares

“Alright, Alright shall we begin this match,” Taehyung smirks as he sets two red cups and fills them up.

You nervously look between the two, eyes staying a bit longer on Jungkook as you watch the guy who is about to take the drink cup. You sigh, hand reaching to swipe around your face in frustration, already worried about the guy’s health status.

Its only one week to the finals and you’ve been feeling the dread as the D-Day gets closer and closer. On your last meeting Dr Kim told you he’s been very pleased with Jungkook’s progress and cannot wait to do his last lung test before the games to sign his permission to officially clear him to go on the field.

But as you watch the cup of alcohol in front of him, your heart starts beating faster and faster, the concern that watching the guy on the field after so much effort and time you’ve put into having him take his medication may be going down the drain, just like the way the drink goes down his throat.

“Stop,” you stand up, arms curled into a fist and falling on your side before taking your shirt off, grateful that the cold breeze made you wear a singlet underneath earlier.

The guys start to “Whoo” at your slightly bare body, but you could care less, since all you can think about is get that red cup away from Jeon. You grab Jimin’s jersey and guide it over your head before settling it around your torso and looking at him “I’ll wear this, are you happy?” you sigh with a disappointed tone, looking between the two men before sitting back beside Jimin and bringing your cup to your lips

The guys give you a disappointed look but soon go back to their loud chatters and cheers, moving on from the almost drinking contest you ruined for them.

“It looks really good on you Angel,” Jimin smirks as he puts a hand around your torso, pulling you closer to him “Better than I thought.” He whispers against your ears

You bite the corner of your lips, face flushing at the guy’s compliment, but all you can think about is the heavy gaze of the guy who’s sitting across you and watching you in silence. Your eyes flick to him as he stands up after a few minutes, giving you’re a cold glare before walking away from the table.

Your stare trails after the guy, watching him as he fishes in his pocket and finds something from his pocket and brings it to his lips. You sigh, knowing exactly what the guy is about to do, so you immediately stand up to walk after him.

“Wait-“ Jimin calls, holding your wrist “Where are you going?” he asks in a confused tone

“Bathroom,” you lie, flashing a faint smile 

“Sure,” he nods with a knowing smile, eyes watching the path Jungkook walked through and you know that he exactly knows where you’re going to "Use protection Angel!"

"Shut it!" you sneer at the guy and quickly shift away and run in the same direction Jungook walked in earlier.

You finally find him standing behind the locker rooms, the lighter in one hand while the other hand covers the white cigarette stick to ensure he successfully lights it.You sigh, walking closer to him and he finally catches your eyes when he takes a big poke at the cigarette and the smoke settles between the two of you.

“You must have really wanted to wear that shirt huh!” he scoffs, looking up and down your body in a condescending gaze before looking away

“Jeon,” you sigh, watching the guy inhaling the smoke into his lungs as he mutter “Didn’t you promise you won’t smoke-”

“Like you stayed on your promise,” he snaps, puffing the smoke out of his lungs “Like you haven’t been on Park’s dick on every chance you get?”

“Jungkook, we’re almost at the final games,” you call, tone slightly rising “Please put that cigarette away-.”

 “Stop acting like you care,” he yells this time, stepping forward towards you “just tell me if you like him,” he sighs in a frustrated tone “Stop this game.”

“Game?” you scoff, shoulders depressing in disappointment “There is no game, I told you there is nothing between Jimin and I!”

“Then why the fuck are you wearing his shirt?” he says as he places an arm beside your body, caging you against the wall behind you “why the fuck is his name on your body?”

“T-That’s only because-“ you stutter, the proximity of his face against yours, the musk scent of his breath mixed with his cologne starting to muddle all your thoughts “I didn’t want you to drink.”

“What?” his eyebrows rise, slightly caught off guard by your confession “What are you on about?”

“I- I just didn’t want you to drink,” you explain nervously, bringing an arm up to his chest to ensure there is a appropriate distance between you “I don’t want you to ruin your body with alcohol or this,” you state as you grab the remaining cigarette off his hand and throw it on the ground “at least not before the finals.”

He just stops there and stares at you, trying to make sense of your words and his long pause makes you shift your eyes back to him. There is a strange look on his face, a mixture of confusion, epiphany and something else you cant quite pinpoint.

“You did that-“ he hesitates before weakly adding “because of me?”

“N-No,” you blurt out immediately, eyes widening as you realise what your words might have meant “Well, technically yes,” you add in a rushed tone “But also- also because I didn’t wanna be involved in another-Nghh”

He interrupts you with a firm press of his lips on yours, other hand moving up to hold your neck in place as he deepens the kiss.

[tedturneriscrazy]

Okay, here we go, time to gather my rambly thoughts about Echoes of the Past!

Huh, from the trailer I figured this version of Eda was a lot younger.

More studious Luz, please. Also that doodle is so anime, I love it.

Lilith for Titan's sake put your glasses on

Why is Lulu and Hootcipher so good, tho? 😭 (yes, Luz, it is nice that they're friends)

Ooh, invisibility glyph! Em and Ed can never know about that one (though realistically they can probably already make things invisible considering their track)

"Don't ever do that again!" "Do that again!"

Also, King seems to have a shaky grasp on object permanence.

So Lilith's a history nerd, interesting...

That black eye really just came from the high five, huh? And yes, I am still stuck on that high five, it's so good. I'll need to find a gif of it at some point.

Let's not sleep on that roast from Lilith, though. You can tell Cissy has fun with lines like that.

Raving about tyrannical rule immediately followed by Luz cooing over King with belly rubs. Yep, this is The Owl House.

Jesus Christ, Lilith, you didn't need to be so savage

Luz's turn to be mom, I guess

"Hootrageous!" Dammit, now I want to see Hooty cosplay as Brave and the Bold Aquaman.

Oh hey, Hollow Knight and Piplup!

It doesn't seem like King should be able to grab the staves so casually, but eh.

You can tell Hooty has been waiting for a long time to be allowed to go somewhere. Also him detatching from the door is apparently as gross and horrifying as everyone was led to believe.

Hooty has no right to look so adorable in that little portable house, especially with the pulsating organs!

"Oh, no, not again!"

Okay what the hell is that bathtub thing, Eda?! You had that this whole time?!?!

Very convincing "aw," Lilith. 10/10.

This episode's gonna have some lore.

Hooty really just decided to be Lilith's bodyguard, love that for him.

Luz seems especially dedicated to indulging King this episode so far.

Hooty does have a point about the graffiti. It is quite nice.

I don't know why I keep being surprised by Lilith being cute, but I love it.

"With all the sugar I eat it better be!" More mounting evidence for @nikkydash 's moss mouth Luz theory.

I see Lulu and Hootcipher have reached the "sharing a single brain cell" stage of their friendship.

So apple blood really is just booze, huh? And they serve it to children in schools? Damn, the Demon Realm is hardcore.

Luz, no! You of all people should know not to split the party!

At least high fiving a dessicated corpse wasn't Luz's first instinct?

To quote Strong Bad: "Gross! I hate you! Gross! Gross! I hate you!"

I do love Eda's potion bandoleer. Very reminiscent of my artificer in D&D.

And nice to see Lilith's big sister instinct.

Backstory time!

Am I the only one who got film noir vibes from Eda's narration?

Boy, that curse does a number in the span of eight years, huh?

BABY KING HHEIKWKWJWHWG

So that's what happened to his horn!

Holy shit that's Dana voicing baby King, isn't it?!

I know Eda lied to King, but her telling the stories to King looks so cute.

Welp, that's heartbreaking.

Also, Alex Hirsch is a good voice actor, who knew? /s

"Is this what regret feels like? I HATE IT!" Future meme material.

Oh hi, guilty Luz. Haven't seen you in...*checks watch* five minutes.

King is so...shattered. 💔 (Bravo, Alex)

"Special delivery! P A I N"

I love everything about Hooty bazooka...Hootzooka!

Putting those invisibility glyphs to work. Very nice.

(Oh god I just realized that fanfic writers have been given a dangerous tool)

Hmm, maybe those "delusions of grandeur" weren't so delusional, after all...

Okay, creepy moon flesh thing, I hate you less now.

Ooh, future adventure hook!

Everyone looks so done with Hooty about that.

So that thing's name is Jean-Luc, huh. Bet I won't see any TNG references in the fandom. Nope. Not at all.

"All out of kisses." Amity will be so disappointed...

So. Many. Questions.

Final thing to note: this means King is only 8-9 years old, which means that younger sibling energy he gives off with Luz is justified.

Well, that was a great episode! Emotions and lore galore! I'm eager to meet Mama Clawthorne next week! Then again, considering what people have speculated about her, maybe I shouldn't be?

At any rate, I'll be chiming in once again next week!

[paroxysmal-distaste]

acatalepsy. || prologue

copied and pasted from my wattpad, excuse the old writing.

playlist.  0.  1.  2.  3.  4.  5.  6.  7.  8.  9.  10.  11.  12. ----- ◈ Chapter 0 - Prologue ◈ ◈ Date Published: 24/12/2018 ◈ ◈ Word Count: 2147 ◈ -----

UNKNOWN DAY IN AN UNFAMILIAR UNIVERSE

"What the hell are we doing in here?"

"Lighten up! You barely leave the house anyways."

"Yeah yeah yeah, you don't need to remind me. Did you bring the flashlight I asked you to bring?"

"I thought you were taking it."

You face palmed.

Recently, there's been a train accident where it's said to be believed that the tunnel was haunted. Everyone thought this was true because apparently there would be less people onboard after going through the tunnel than before. Almost like they were taken by something.

You thought it was bullshit.

The area had already been blocked off, but that doesn't stop your adventure loving friend from dragging you into her curiosities. In a way, you had always admired that about her, but other times you saw it as a flaw. One of those times being now.

"Mags?"

"Hm?"

"Can I go now?"

"No."

You rolled your eyes and frowned, speeding up your pace to keep up with her, "Wait up, will you?"

"Does your phone have any battery?" She questioned, ignoring your comment.

"Just a bit, I don't know if it will be enough though, especially since the flashlight takes up a lot of it."

"Turn it on for a moment, I can't see where I'm going." The both of you lifted up the Caution, Keep Out! police tape as you carefully stepped over the rumble. The atmosphere surrounding the place was giving you the chills, and you shivered quietly.

"Can we speed this up a little? I'm getting the creeps." You stated blandly, subconsciously tightening your grip around your backpack straps. You kicked a squashed can of Sprite to the left of you.

"Give me a hand with this." Mags gestured for you to help her with what seemed to be a large part of debris from the crash.

"Alright, but if it accidentally drops on your foot or something and it breaks, don't blame me." You raised your hands up comically and pursed your lips, before dropping them loosely to your sides. You grunted as your fragile hands attempted to pull off a large chunk of concrete from the side of the tunnel.

"You know, you're acting kind of weird. What's the rush? You don't have somewhere to be, right?" She asked abruptly.

You froze,"N-no, what makes you say that?" Your body stiffened as your friend squinted her eyes at you suspiciously.

"You seem to be in a really big hurry for some reason and you don't usually care when I pull you around on these trips."

You lifted your arms and shoulders, turning your head to the side, "I-I don't know, I think I'm just tired I guess."

"You're a terrible liar! You're meeting up with someone aren't you?" She placed her hands on her hips and neared you, making you back away nervously.

"Pffft- whaaaaaat? No way." You tugged at your turtleneck, "It's getting a little hot in here. Mind if I just-" Just as you were going to push past her, she said something that made you pause.

"It's Miles, isn't it?" The constant shifting of your eyes made her own widen and her lips to curve into a smile. "I knew it! You can't hide anything from me!"

"Shush! I was going to tell you, but I didn't know if I would call it anything yet." You fiddled with your hands in an antsy way, before pushing a strand of loose hair behind your ear.

"Ooo, you have to tell me what happened!"

"He just asked me out, that's all!"

"That's all! What do you mean- that's great!"

Your face reddened as she hugged you, "Stop... you're making it seem bigger than it is."

Mags nudged you suggestively, before walking forward. "I'll drop it. For now."

After a moment or two, a giant hole in the wall was finally revealed, and your friend carefully put a foot in the gap, trying to squeeze their way in.

"I can't get in! I think I'm stuck." She murmured, her voice echoing since half her body was left through the wall and her legs were kicking up and down in panic.

You snickered at her flailing limbs, and you could hear her getting cross at your lack of helpful action.

Something made a clicking sound, and you shielded your eyes from the sudden bright light in your face. It flickered for a moment, and a loud horn sound blew.

"M-Mags." You tugged at the bottom of her jacket, your eyes widening as you noticed that the light was from an incoming train.

"Huh?" She questioned, "I can't see! What's going on?"

Your face paled as you began to roughly tug at her legs, accidentally slipping one of her shoes off. "Dammit! A train's coming!"

"I thought there weren't supposed to be any trains seen this place had been closed off!"

"Yeah, well, it's not going to be stopping anytime soon - let me help you, stop kicking!"

Just as Mags was easing herself out of the hole, something made you pause momentarily.

Something tickled your arm, and instantly, you began to mentally freak out. Whatever it was, if you made any sudden movements, you were sure it was going to harm you.

"Ow! Something bit me!"

Never mind.

A burning sensation began to occur on your palm, and it felt as if your skin was falling off. You tried your best to not yell out in pain, since you and Mags were trying your best to get out of the place alive.

"I'm out! Quick! Hurry up, it's coming!"

You snapped your head to look behind you, seeing the lights coming closer. Turning your attention back to what was in front of you, a few metres forward was Mags with her hand extended, waiting for you to grab it.

The train seemed to get closer every second, and you bolted forward, almost tripping over the tracks.

You finally managed to clasp your hand around your friend's, and she hoisted you up immediately.

It was right on time too, because the train violently broke through the large concrete rumble, and continued going ahead at full speed.

The rubble of rocks flew everywhere, causing both you and Mags to fall backwards and to scoot backwards with your hands.

"Oh my goodness." You ran a shaky hand through your hair, which was now messed up. By doing so, a striking pain ran through your arm again, and it brought attention to what happened earlier.

You breathed in through your teeth, as Mags grabbed your hand gently in worry.

"I think it was a spider, but it must have been a pretty nasty one because it hur- gah! Careful!" You snatched your hand away from her grasp, making her stumble out a 'sorry'.

"Let's just get out of here." You frowned at her before walking out of the subway, her footsteps following quick behind.

You stared at your hand curiously, wondering what sort of bug would produce a large wound and sensation like that.

A radioactive spider definitely didn't cross your mind.

---

You ended up cancelling on Miles, and it made you feel terrible since you were really looking forward to your 'hangout'. He had invited you to go rollerblading with him, since he knew you loved it.

What you told him was that you weren't feeling very well, but you promised you would make it up to him.

That bite from a week before, was no ordinary bite. Your daily life was increasingly difficult, from accidentally ripping papers the second you tried to remove it from your own fingers, to climbing walls.

You did put two and two together, and realise that it must have been during that train episode because that's where you first started feeling weird.

Going out for a walk, you hummed the song that was playing through your headphones and looked around at the lights and streets of Brooklyn.

The moment was short lived though, since what happened next was only made aware to you when you heard an extremely high pitched scream. It must have been pretty loud since your headphones are always full volume, which signalled that something was seriously wrong.

You pulled your hoodie down, and carefully removed your headphones to find out what was happening.

Another villain.

And Kid Arachnid - as everyone called him - was saving the city once again. You had never seen him in action up close, and it only took you a few moments to notice that his abilities were the same ones that you had.

Your fingers began to tingle, and you looked down at them, slightly startled at the realisation. Were you just like him? You didn't know, and a small part of you wished you were. It would be interesting becoming a hero and fighting alongside Kid Arachnid.

A loud yell pierced your thoughts again, and you jumped at the sudden sound.

A car was thrown your way, but a string of webs managed to prevent it from going any further.

You looked up to see your saviour, who was now struggling to fight against the person opposing him.

A strong urge to help was almost forcing you to get up and assist him, but your fears held you back.

The villain seemed to have said something to him that alarmed him, because he ended up grabbing you and holding you up.

"Y/N!"

Wait, Y/N? How does he- His voice. I know that voice. Of course I do, I could recognise it a mile away. A mile...

Miles.

Everything that happened next was a blur, and you still couldn't process it. Before you knew it, you were free from the malefactor but in exchange for the well-being of someone else.

"Miles." You whispered, before running over to where he was laying. Almost instantly, you moved him off of the wreckage to make him feel a little more comfortable instead of having sharp rocks digging into his back.

"Miles- are you o-okay?" You managed to cry out. "You didn't have to do that!" You kneeled down to his level, unsure how to treat him.

"I did anyways though, didn't I?" He grinned and stated in a raspy voice. Of course that was his response.

"I-I should have gone to our meetup- maybe then I wouldn't have disappointed you, and left things like this. I-I-It's all my f-fault and-"

"Y/N. It's not your fault. This was bound to happen eventually." He was cut off when he gave out a weak cough.

Your hands shook vigorously as you placed them over Miles' cheek, using one to pull off his mask.

He smiled delicately when he saw you a little clearer, and he pushed the strand of hair that was sticking out behind your ear. "You always did have those little bits of hair pointing out all the time."

Your laugh made the tears that were brimming your eyes fall down on his chin.

Miles' eyes trailed to his stomach, where a large and deep, bleeding cut was held. There was no way he was recovering from that.

Suddenly, he squinted, and a pressure built into your head. It felt like a headache, but it actually felt nice. His eyes widened at you, and he smiled.

"Y-you're like me."

"W-what?"

He didn't reply, and his eyes were beginning to close.

"Miles. Miles! Answer me!" You tried your best to try to shake him awake without damaging him, but he wouldn't wake up. "M-Miles...?"

You stood up carefully.

This happened way too fast. First you get bitten by a radioactive spider, next your crush, best friend and also the city's super hero dies in your arms.

You couldn't even cry anymore, because you were still processing what had just happened. The villain was still on the loose.

Of course, at this point, you were fully aware that what ever caused Miles to be as skilled as he was, also got you.

It was a spider.

You dug your fingers into your fist until your knuckles turned white.

If there isn't going to be anymore Kid Arachnid, then there needed to be someone else to be there for him. Not to take his place, but rather, in his memory.

An idea started to form into your mind.

Chapter 1 >

[antiloreolympus]

11 Anti LO Asks

1. Zeus would make a much more compelling character if RS grounded his obsession with gaining respect in the context of his childhood: He could’ve been Rhea’s favourite kid and grew a huge ego/sense of entitlement as a result while feeling deeply under appreciated by his brothers and Hera for his instrumental role in rescuing them and his care for her respectively, unable to look past his own trauma and ego to see that they too are struggling with their own demons rather than neglecting him.

2. I’m gonna have disagree with that one anon saying narrators are always a sign of weak storytelling because that’s not always the truth. Hades the game for example has a narrator and it’s used very effectively to give it an fairytale-like feel, a funny thing for zag to comment on because he can hear them and he will often comment on the rude things they say, and also provides a bit of world building. A narrator is also good if it’s established beforehand who is saying the narration, such as a storyteller or prophet, and it can establish to the audience they are viewing something from the past, and they can speak when there are major shifts in the story, not throughout the whole thing. A narrator in LO isn’t even a bad idea, the issue is it should have been established much earlier, maybe even episode one is we’re being honest, instead of just coming out of nowhere to speak of stuff in the future? It’s also pretty purposely only being there to be a cliffhanger instead of even putting in effort to make it interesting enough for anyone to care or come back without the narration there basically begging them to care what’s going on. It’s very strange and shows a lack of confidence and effort in her writing to be so literally spelled out like that.

I agree with the other comments too. The font is atrocious. LO is usually really good with fonts and they picked one that was visually very ugly and hard to read with an even worse color. I didn’t even think the fonts would degrade too like the art, and yet here we are!

3. I love how rachel dropped the cover for vol 2 of LO and its just a treasure trove of book design failures. her name is on top, giving the impression both she is the title and she cares more about getting her own name out there over the actual story, empty space where the title should be, the title covering most of hades, the title being cramped so much to cover him, persephone being covered by volume two, the list goes on. the first cover wasnt much better, but this is much worse.

4. RS is willing to change aspects of the story according to fan speculation but isn't down to do anything that would retcon out the offensive stereotypes, the homophobia, or the character-assassination of apollo.

5. I’m pretty sure Hera and Echo will have an infidelity arc followed by betrayal thanks to Echo’s role in Zeus’s meddling. It’s already established that Hera is just as willing to cheat as Zeus is and Echo’s blue colouration and short hair is clearly reminiscent of Hades. Given how RS has stated that character colour palettes are symbolic, I wouldn’t overlook this detail (the one instance of RS actually sticking to her colour rules lol). Also, Ares’ comment just seems to imply it!

6. Yo I just saw RS Insta story- SHES ALREADY MAKING A VOLUME TWO BOOK???? When the first volume isn’t out yet?????? Tbh, I never expected this 

7. Daphne has more personality than Persephone. Though both came from the same deprives mortal realm background, Daphne is thriving. Unlike Persephone, she’s confident and willing to take control over her own life (though this is only illustrated in the context of her dating life which is sad af, female characters never get any other kind of agency in LO). Perse would be a more interesting protagonist if she had Daphne’s (still limited af) personality.

8. There seems to be a lot of infighting here regarding Myth Hades and Persephone and it's 'modern retelling' or butchering by RS.

All fighting aside on whether Hades was a good husband and Persephones role (or lack of agency) in the myth of the Kidnapping - what is actually wrong with appreciating the myth as is?

(Isn't the myth there to give an explanation as to why the seasons change? As well as being a story of a mother in grief over her lost daughter? And her fight to find her?)

Also, in that context, is there really something wrong with liking the... lets say more "modern" adaptations of the Myth where Hades and Persephone loved one another, so long as one understands and respects the original canon (sources) and culture from which it originated?

9. The way Daphne is drawn went from sweet girl-next-door to model with overfilled lips and too many surgical alterations to increase her sex appeal.. Her lips look like they’ve been stung by several bees in the latest FP what is up with that? It’s especially irksome since RS normally draws very nice looking full lips (I.e Persephone) but they just look so off on Daphne.

10. So Minthe being in the story so early on (and already dating Hades) is lets say an "interesting" narrative choice. Mainly because it feels like RS did this because she doesnt want to acknowledge that Hades may have loved someone other than Persephone.

Because (as far as I am aware) Minthe does not show up until after Hades and Persephone are already married. And Hades did care about Minthe (as I believe one anon mentioned - he named a mountain after her?) - and she was stomped on by Persephone for daring to say that Hades liked her more.

It feels like RS made this narrative choice because she wanted to (mess with the myths) showcase that Persephone is Hades 'One True Love' and the only way she could think do to that was to make Minthe a vicious abuser. Which is unfair.

11. Uh …. Why are they already publishing a volume 2 or LO only four months after the first one? If they keep that rate up won’t they catch up really quick to the actual comic and run out of stuff to publish? I would be pissed to get a book with a cover with effort put into it just to get rushed nonsense in the actual book. Girl take a break.

Also the logo is literally covering up half of the couple while there is a giant empty space above them so her name is the main focus. Either Rachel is shit at book cover design (likely) or she needs to stroke her ego real bad and make sure her own name is the main focus. Good lord. 

[franniebanana]

CQL Rewatch - Ep 19

Wow, Wei Wuxian looks so rough here. He’s spent some time under the knife (with no anesthetic), and then after that, he has just been waiting around for Jiang Cheng. It’s been seven days since Jiang Cheng went up that mountain. And of course Wei Wuxian is worried about him. What if something happened on his way down the mountain? What if he’d been captured or killed by the Wens? All the while, he’s basically defenseless here in Yiling (iirc). He’s sweating profusely, clutching at his middle—it’s possible he’s even suffering from an infection due to the transfer surgery. Seriously, the poor guy!

I love the visuals here: all these cloaked figures just filling this tea house, and not another soul in there other than the waiters. It’s both comical and heartbreaking the way that Wei Wuxian tries to immediately nope out of there, because he knows it’s a trap right away. Even with his Golden Core, I don’t know if he could have escaped them all—there were too many Wens, including the Core-Melting Hand. This part always really gets to me, because it truly is the first death of Wei Wuxian. It’s the death of who he once was: that smart, quirky, rascal of a youth, who made a very honest oath that essentially guided him to this point.

No joke, the first time I watched this, I was like, “Is that Lotus Pier? How tf did he get there?! How much did they change the story?!” And then a few seconds later, I realized this was a super sad dream/vision that Jiang Cheng was having and I channeled all my anger into sadness. This part is also super depressing. He has this vision of this happy family: his mother laughing, his father kissing his hand, just the picture of love. But it’s so far from what he had growing up, and you just realize that his greatest desire was really to have that happy family. But his parents are dead, he’s lost just about everyone at Lotus Pier—it’s so heartbreaking.

God, he just looks so broken! I’m sad now.

So even though I know the cost of Jiang Cheng’s happiness is Wei Wuxian giving up his own Golden Core, I still feel so happy here, seeing Jiang Cheng feeling like himself again. It’s because Wei Wuxian knows Jiang Cheng’s heart truly that he could offer up his own future so that Jiang Cheng could have a better one. I also just love this shot of Jiang Cheng kowtowing to the Immortal One, thanking her for healing him, and the camera pans past him, showcasing the beautiful scenery again. And then he walks down the mountain path with such a spring in his step! I love it!

I love that Wei Wuxian is still able to use his mind and play to their weaknesses. Wang Lingjao is extremely superstitious and fearful of the supernatural, and just the idea that he could haunt them scares the shit out of her. It’s just very cool to me that with all the abuse he endures, he still maintains a clear head and is able to fight back with his wit. This is yet another reason why I get annoyed when I see Wei Wuxian characterized as an idiot or someone who isn’t very smart. He proves his wit in just about every scene, so I don’t know why he gets this reputation in fanon. I feel like it’s derived from some overused yaoi/shojo trope where the “girl” has to be less smart than the “guy.” I don’t know how many things I’ve watched and read with a scatterbrained (but not charming) female lead—it’s overused.

This is so cool, because Wei Wuxian is scared out of his mind—he’s terrified of being left to die in the Burial Mounds. He’s heard all the stories: people don’t return, their souls get torn apart, etc. But what is cool is that he turns everything around and makes this place his source of power. He’s the man who conquered the Burial Mounds. It’s very satisfying to see that. FYI, I’m not going to talk about how he falls for like 20 minutes.

But I do think it’s really cool how the dark spirits catch him (and that’s all I’ll say).

This part still gives me major chills: you hear so many people calling out Wei Wuxian’s name, and then a “Wei Ying” breaks through. My breath always catches in my throat the first time I hear it. And then you hear it again, and the other voices have faded away before you hear it a third time. And that all feels nice until the screaming starts, which is hard to listen to, let alone hard to watch Wei Wuxian go through the mental turmoil.

Lan Wangji is back, bitches! He’s got a new title, a new headdress, and he’s hotter than ever. Jokes aside, though, this entrance is beyond epic. Other than that tiny glimpse of him in the last episode, it’s been ages since we’ve seen him, and it’s so satisfying that we get this great entrance, walking up this enormous staircase. Obviously by this point, I’m ecstatic to see him (it’s been way too long). Everything about this scene is great, from his entrance, to the way he uses his guqin as a spiritual tool, to the way he and Jiang Cheng are now a team. I don’t think there’s an awful lot of comradery there, but they have a common goal: find Wei Wuxian.

So we’re not really used to seeing a ton of emotion from Lan Wangji. Even when he’s annoyed, he doesn’t tend to show it. But, man, he is pissed here. Because of the magic of fiction, he’s probably heard the Wens’ conversation as he was walking up the stairs, so he heard them mocking Wei Wuxian (and the Yunmeng Jiang Sect), and he is not happy about it. He even uses the Chord Assassination Technique right off the bat against at least two of the Wen soldiers. Lan Wangji means business, and he’s not leaving until he gets what he wants.

The other great thing is that he doesn’t even need to come up all the way. He defeats them at a distance, while he’s still on the stairs. And the power and respect he commands is so great that they all know him by his face.

What Wen Chao does here is so relatable. His girlfriend is freaking out, having nightmares, convinced Wei Wuxian is going to turn into a ferocious ghost and haunt them until they lose their minds, and he, of course, rationalizes: they’ve sent so many people to the Burial Mounds and none of them have ever come back. In other words, “You’re being ridiculous.” But when he turns away from her, you can see the fear in his own eyes. When something spooky happens, my first step is always to rationalize—there’s a logical explanation for most things, right? And it always makes you feel better to rationalize it to someone else, but when you’re alone and thinking, your mind starts to wonder, your imagination starts to go wild. It’s easy to psyche yourself up in the dark and quiet of the night.

There’s this really gorgeous cello version of “Wuji” playing during this scene—it’s so beautiful, so moving, hitting me right in the feels. The look on Lan Wangji’s face when Jiang Cheng is telling him about how he and Wei Wuxian were supposed to meet in Yiling, how he thought Wei Wuxian had abandoned him to meet up with Lan Wangji in Lanling—he looks so defeated there. Defeated despite taking down the Qishan Indoctrination Bureau. Defeated because he hasn’t found who he’s been searching for. And then he holds Suibian so tenderly and lovingly—I’m emotional, okay?

It’s really cute and heartwarming to see Jin Zixuan starting to fall for Jiang Yanli. We’ve known for quite some time how Yanli feels for him, so it’s quite satisfying to see his walls come down as he starts to care more and more about her. He becomes protective of her. When she gasps at the hanging head at the gates of Qinghe, his instinct is to hold her—of course, he stops himself, but it’s very obvious that he wants to comfort her physically (and not in a dirty way, get your minds out of the gutter).

I love the dichotomy here: on one end, you have Jin Zixuan asking Lan Wangji where Wei Wuxian is, while you have Jiang Yanli echoing that on the other end with Jiang Cheng. Jiang Cheng can’t answer—he’s crying, trembling, emotionally responding to his sister without speaking. And Lan Wangji can’t speak either. His lips part, but no words come out. Again, you get this great sense of defeat from him—he’s completely at a loss, but he can’t or chooses not to show those emotions.

It’s also interesting how they kind of clipped the reunion between the Yunmeng Jiang siblings in favor of showing the conversation between Jin Zixuan and Lan Wangji. In my opinion, it’s to remind us of the reunion that isn’t happening right now—the one that should have been—the one between Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian. And why isn’t it happening? The conversation reminds us that he’s still missing. I don’t doubt the importance of the Yunmeng Jiang siblings in this story—they are obviously instrumental to the plot and to Wei Wuxian—but it’s choices like this where the writers/scene directors remind us that the relationship to focus on is the one between Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji. Lan Wangji, and not Jiang Cheng, holds onto Suibian, the only remaining item that is most spiritually connected to Wei Wuxian. Isn’t that interesting?

“A-Cheng, you’ve grown up. As your sister, there’s nothing I can do but worry about you.” Such a wise line—such a sad line. This really brings out how powerless she feels in the lives of her brothers. She’s a bystander, she has no influence. All she can do is watch and worry, and nothing either of them says or does will change that. It’s something we as parents and caretakers and guardians at some point have to admit: we can’t control our children’s lives, we can’t control those we take care of. Once they reach a point in their lives, it’s them who has to make their own decisions. They must thrive on their own, they must fail on their own. And all we can do is watch and worry and hope for the best. God, Yanli breaks my heart.

Me in bed when I watch a scary movie any time of the day.

She does crazy so well, though.

Other episodes: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |

[bebepac]

A Quarter For Your Thoughts

This is chapter 6 of Just The Way You are.  To catch up on what you’ve been reading click:  Just the Way You Are Masterlist

The Book:  CROSSOVER: Perfect Match x TRR

Pairing:  Hayden x Kai  /  TRR MC is single (past pairing includes Nico Karahalios) 

Word Count: 2489

Summary:  Liam walks Riley home after some strange things happens.  Even more strange events continue as Liam goes inside Riley’s apartment for the first time.  Hayden and Kai have a date night out with Dipper.  

Riley, Liam, Hayden, Kai, Chance and Dipper, all belong to Pixelberry, all others are my own characters to help tell our story. 

Warnings: Mention of character death, Profanity.

This is my submission for @choicesfebchallenge​ day #9  Chance.  Which I took completely literal. 

A/N:  DW is at it again.  We have two special guest stars in this episode  Pops and Mia visit Just The Way You Are, from my series: Pops Place. The dynamic is slightly different as they have crossed into this AU.  You’ll see. 

Song Inspiration:  “If I Could Turn Back The Hands Of Time” R Kelly 

I don’t own rights to the Music.

She walked in silence with Liam, holding the quarter tight in her hand. Could Liam have given it to her? It didn't make sense, why or how she got the coin, unless Nico really came to her. But Riley didn't believe in the supernatural, Riley barely believed in God in recent years, her faith completely shaken, and honestly nonexistent after Nico's untimely passing.

The idea of peace of having religion in her life Riley found comforting. However, she hated the idea of the same entity that placed Nico in her life for her to love, had not even two years later ripped him away from her so suddenly, it was cruel.  How could something supposedly so good,  be so cruel?

He murdered Nico. That's what Donovan Jacobs did when he decided to get behind the wheel of his SUV knowing he should not be driving and him striking Nico's SUV, essentially taking the greatly loved father, son, soon to be fiancé (we know Riley would have accepted his proposal), and best friend. There was hurt and anger in Riley's heart now for it and he was going to feel every bit of it when she gazed upon his face at the trial.

Riley had only seen Donovan's picture in the paper. But trust and believe she hated the man.

"Are you going home Riley? Maybe you should lay down for a bit once you get there."

"That might be a good idea."

"Do you mind if I walk  with you? I just don't want you to get dizzy again and be alone."

Riley nodded.

He helped her gather her blanket and guitar. He glanced down seeing a little cop car on his headstone.

"That's cute."

"Nico was a criminal profiler for the NYPD. His son left it."

"You have a son?"

"He's not my blood, but I feel like he's mine. He just turned 10 two months ago.  He’s still a very large part of my life. I see him at least several times a week."

"That's good you’ve stayed consistent for him. Often times... when relationships.....end... the kids are left missing the person they got to know."

"He has a lot of father figures in his life now to try to help him cope, my brother and my friends, we make sure he's loved."

"That's noble of your friends."

When they arrived at the apartment she noticed Liam was sweating a little.

"Do you want to come up and cool off for a bit? Maybe have a drink?"

"I don't drink."

"It's barely past noon. I'm not an alcoholic. I meant like lemonade or something."

Liam laughed,  "My bad. Sure."

Liam followed Riley to her apartment. Her door was painted a bright pink.

"That's unique."

She glanced at him.

"That means you hate it."

"No it's unique. I like pink.  Men can like pink."

He winked at Riley.

Riley opened the door to her apartment.

Putting her keys in the dish beside the door. Riley's apartment was spacious, decorated, nice and neat.

"Here Chance!"  She called out to a small Corgi that came running around the corner.

Riley was a few paces in front of Liam.  Chance ran right around Riley and barked happily at Liam.

Riley turned around and looked at Liam.

Liam picked up Chance and laughed as he licked his  face.

"Hey Buddy."

"He normally doesn't like strangers."

"Yeah I can tell he's absolutely ruthless. You've got quite the attack dog here Riley."

Riley laughed out loud.

He put Chance down.

Chance started rolling over on the floor, in front of Liam, and he had crouched down, giving Chance tummy scratches.

"My attack dog is absolutely worthless! See why I have a conceal and carry? He'd lick our intruder to death."

Liam smiled.

"Well at least he killed them. Kindness might not be the most effective route  though."

Riley burst out laughing.

He loved her laugh, and she seemed to like his corny jokes.

"Do you mind if I use your bathroom?"

"Sure it's…." Riley's phone rang. She paused to answer.

Liam knew walked down the hallway. He knew exactly where it was.

When he was done he could hear Riley still on the phone.  She was speaking in Greek again.  He walked into her room glancing around it.  It caught the light of the sun. He walked to her night table and on it there was a man's watch.

He picked it up. Maybe she was seeing someone. He turned the watch over finding, it was broken and the time on the watch was 6:32. He knew immediately what he was looking at. Nico's watch, and time the accident happened.  He put the watch down and picked up the picture frame.  It was Riley, with who he was guessing was Nico, in a cute candid photo. Riley was wearing a blue dress her head tilted back laughing while Nico held her tight in his arms. When his fingers grazed the face of the watch he felt a jolt of electricity go through him causing the watch to drop back on the night table.

Laughter. Riley's laughter was soft in his ear. He wrapped his arms around her while he was wearing the watch.

What the?.... he thought. But it was still working. He noticed the second hand still moving. What is this? Liam thought.

"No, stay in bed with me. Both of us are off today."

That wasn't his voice he thought.

"I'm hungry, I'm going to make us some breakfast. You relax. You work so hard."

He hugged her tightly.  "You feed those curves Girl."

Riley got out of bed exposing her naked body to him.

Liam gasped. Holy hell!!! God she was perfect in every way.

Then he heard his voice, but not his voice say..

"I love every inch of your sexy body Riley. You're so beautiful, you're my goddess."

She slipped her robe on. "Well your Goddess says go back to sleep." She kissed his lips softly.

"What are you doing?"

Liam jumped, and could still taste Riley on his lips when he opened his eyes.

He didn't know what happened, following her eyes to the floor. He had dropped her picture frame.

"I'm so….so  sorry Riley."

"It's okay, just let me clean it up. You go back to the living room."

Riley was carefully picking up the pieces of glass.

She glanced back at Liam as he walked out the door. Chance followed behind him, like he was his shadow.

When she came back in the room both Liam and Chance looked sad. Chance was sitting on Liam's lap.

"I'm sooo sorry Riley." Liam's voice was so apologetic.

"It's okay Liam. It was an accident."  She carried two glasses of lemonade and handed him one.

"Thank you."

"I've never seen Chance so taken with someone."

In minutes, Chance had already fallen asleep in Liam's lap.

"He must recognize dog people. They always had therapy dogs visit  when I was in the hospital. Dogs are so good at sensing when you are alone, scared or sad."

"What were you in the hospital for?"

"Not winning the genetic lottery." Liam smiled weakly.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes, Things are great!"

"My friend Drake says that all the time."

There was something about his life that he wasn't ready to share either. She could relate to that.

Riley changed the subject and they continued to talk. Time flew by.  Chance finally woke up.

"Oh thank God," Liam said standing up. "My legs are asleep."

"He does that to me too. Looks like you're his favorite person now."

"Then maybe we should see more of each other at places he might frequent.  I guess he can bring you along too, Riley. You know to the dog walking park, the fire hydrant right out front, the vet?”

Riley smiled again.  

“Chance you call me when you want to hang out brotha.”  

Riley bit her lip.  “Maybe Chance would like to have breakfast tomorrow.”  

“It is the most important meal of the day I hear.  We should start our day off right.  Good thinking Chance. I’d like that.”  

“Take care of yourself Riley.  See you tomorrow Chance.”  

Chance barked excitedly.  

Riley hurried and changed clothes to get ready to head over to Nico’s mother’s house for dinner.  

“I want to get out of the house tonight Hayden.  Let’s do something out tonight.”

“There’s a movie on the lawn at the park.”  

“What’s playing?”

“Since it's almost Halloween they are doing a Fright Night Series. Stir of Echoes.”  

“Oooooh. Spooky I love that one!!!!!  What food truck do they have tonight?  Please say it’s Pop’s On The Go. I really need you to say it’s Pop’s on the Go.”  

“Well Kai I hate to disappoint you, but the food truck they’re having is…. Pop’s On The Go.”  

Kai was ready to be disappointed until she had realized fully what he said.

“Pops and Mia are so cute,  they banter back and forth together they are adorable.  I really wish they had an actual restaurant.  I definitely would eat there all the time.   His chilli cheese fries are life.”  

“So do we want blankets or folding chairs?”

“We want blankets,” they both said in unison smiling at each other.  

They got their blankets  and headed to the park with Dipper in tow.  

“Dipper be a good girl and mommy will give you some chilli cheese fries.”  

Dipper barked happily.

“You will not give our baby chilli cheese fries.  Has she had chilli cheese fries before?”

Kai shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe?"

“Kai, seriously?”

“She’s got a stomach of rocks like her Momma.”  

“Kai…..”  

“You love me.”  

“Let’s get us our chilli cheese fries.  None for Dipper.”  

“Hey Pops!”  

“Kai! I knew I’d be seeing you tonight! You always seem to make it out this way when our truck is out here.”

“You have the best snacks around Pops.  Can we get two orders of chilli cheese fries, with two colas?”

“And I got something for you Dipper.”  

Pops took out a box of dog treats.  

“Got to make all my customers happy.”  

He handed Hayden dog treats for Dipper.

“Thank you Pops.”  

“Mia, did you make those shirts?”

Mia nodded.  

Pops and Mia were wearing matching shirts.  There were also a few hanging on the side of the van.  

“You should be in design school, you’d do really well there.”  

“It’s just a hobby.”

“Looks like an untapped revenue stream to me.”  Hayden responded.

“We’ll also be taking two of your shirts too.”  

Mia perked up.  “Really?”

“See, I told you people would like them Pops.”

“Yep Pops, you’re looking stylish.”

Pop's stuck his chest out proudly. "She makes me a stylish and proud pops every day!"

Pops gave Mia a smile as she pulled down the shorts they wanted, and bagged them up.

They paid for their food and their shirts and picked a comfy spot on the lawn.

Hayden placed their blankets on the ground while Kai held the food.  He set up their large blanket first,  and even Dipper got her own Dipper sized blanket to curl up on and in.   Dipper quickly curled up on her own little blanket, while Hayden and Kai got settled under the tree.  

He loved watching Kai watch movies. She had so many. Hayden had to build another book shelf for Kai's DVD collection.  And this movie he had seen with her several times.  Kai was engrossed in the movie as if it was her first time watching it.

“And all this happened because he was hypnotized to be more open minded.  It’s crazy and I love it!!!”

Kai begrudgingly went to the bathroom seeing Mia walking out.

"Mia! Your shirts you made are truly awesome.”

“Thanks Kai, that means a lot.”  

“And I was serious about design school, how old are you now Mia?”

“I’m nineteen.”  

“You should be in college sweetheart.”

“Pops needs me. Things have been really hard for us.  I used to think about things like college before Mom got sick.  She had cancer.”

“She’s in remission?”  

“No… she died.”  

“I’m so sorry Mia.”  

Mia’s eyes filled with tears.  

“So my last two years of high school my grades weren’t good.  I helped take care of my mom and worked with Pops.  I probably couldn’t get into a design school anyway.”  

That sweet young girl, that always had a smile on her face every time she saw her, was carrying the weight of the world in her heart.  

She hugged Mia.  

“You’re going to get the chance to chase your dream Mia.  Please don’t give up on it.”  

“Thank you Kai, I’ve got to get back.”

Kai headed back over to Hayden embracing him.  

“What’s wrong?”  

Kai told him about her exchange with Mia.

"I'm gonna call Hana and see if she has some contacts out this way that can see Mia's work.

"That's nice of you Kai."

"Mia's a good kid, she shouldn't have to give up on her dream because her family has had a rough time."

Liam got a text early that next morning.  "Chance couldn't make it, and he was wondering if it was okay for Riley to meet him instead?"

"Sure, I guess Riley is an okay substitute,  though I was kind of looking forward to hanging out with my main man Chance."

Riley smiled down at the text.  What was that feeling she was feeling in her heart. She took a deep breath. She went over to her dresser expecting it to be gone. She imagined it all. But the coin was still there.  She put it in her pocket. And headed to the restaurant.  

Riley was already there when he got there.

He walked up to her pulling out the chair and sitting across from her.

Her glance shot up at him.

"Um….."

"Hey, how are you doing?"

"Fine… Can I help you?"

"I know I wasn't who you were expecting as a breakfast buddy today."

Liam smiled at his joke. Riley did not.

"I actually wasn't expecting anyone."

"Okay…." He wasn't quite sure what game Riley was playing.

"So are you going to order the same thing or get something different?"

"We don't know each other."

"Riley, you're acting really strange."

"That's your problem right there, I'm not Riley, I'm her sister."

He wondered if this had anything to do with her fainting yesterday.

"Riley, this is weird and teetering on the edge of certifiable. You invited me to breakfast and if you didn't want to meet up, you could have said and pretended to be, oh I don't know your twin sister? Thanks but no thanks."

"Not Riley, corny jokes dude! You seem like just the type she would like."

Liam jumped up from the table heading towards the door. When he saw her. Riley was walking through the door.  She smiled at him.

Liam halted in his tracks.

"Hi Liam, I hope I'm not too late. Chance was upset he couldn't make it and I had to cheer him up."

She smiled. Liam looked incredibly confused.

Liam glanced back at the woman sitting at the table. She smirked at him.

"Told you, I'm not Riley." She waved at him.

He turned around to face Riley again.

"So…. I guess you met my twin sister Taylor."

Tagging: @dcbbw @queenjilian @jessiembruno @bbrandy2002 @khoicesbyk @janezillow @sillypapermango @gkittylove99 @gabesmommie1130 @mom2000aggie @jared2612 @shewillreadyou @zoehanji @queenwalton @kingliam2019 @mrsdrakewalkerblog @hopefulmoonobject @hopelessromanticmonie @lovablegranny @batgirlassociationofgothamcity @iaminlovewithtrr @iam-the-kind-and-thoughtful  @ladyangel70 @twinkleallnight @kat-tia801 @caseyvalentineramsey @thequeenchoices @yourmajesty09 @secretaryunpaid @sfb123 @neotericthemis @royalromancer​ @sweatyrysconnoisseur​

[bibliocratic]

variants on a scenario or: ten Martin Blackwoods walk into a house.

episode 170 spoilers, like BIG SPOILERS. 

jonmartin, one sided Martin/Lonely

In every universe, eventually, he finds the house we've built for him.

1.

There is a smudge that copy-cats the shape of a man, and they wander the corridors. Sweep from room to room, dust-mote slow and purposeless. They are the colour of the wallpaper on our walls, and a sludgy heartbeat follows the metronome of our clock, and their eyes reflect back only the fog-rent vistas of our rooms. We cosset them in mist, give them the means to bury themselves forgotten.

They are not happy, but much happier. They are not safe, but much safer.

We have loved them like children love toys; loved to faded-ness, to sun-stained faint watercolour, to dereliction, dilapidation.

Once, the Avatar stalked past them in the corridor, shouting a name long rusted. The Avatar did not see them, and the man-shaped being didn't remember that was their name anyway.

It is better this way, we think.

2.

It is a poorly observed phenomena, how closely we ally with so many of the others. Seep in at the corner of their shades like a fading gradient. We are beloved of the Mother, The Choke, The Everchased. The One-Who-Sees has bordered us close-knit, and though its gifts of awful revelation and exposing the terrible as-it-is have never found much fertile soil  with the Not-as-They-Should-Be, we at least have always been on pleasant terms with the Twisting Deceit.

The Stranger's lessons are in our fog, which refracts light and image like carnival mirrors. We build cliff-faces of falsehood, impassable paths bricked along with lies designed to distract, waylay, confuse.

This is your house, we whisper to him.

You have always been here alone, we promise.

We recite to our beloved that he has never been loved, and our winds, our walls, our winding mists tell him so often that eventually he believes us.

3.

It is cruel. A kindness we had thought to spare him.

We tailored this room, these walls, this house for him to wear, fitted and befitting, yet he picks at the seams, rubs patches into the weft of us through the friction of his insistence.

He always remembers eventually. Cycles round in conversational fits and starts, spasms and shocks, frowning at the tape recorder in his hand. He always remembers, and the intrusion of the wanting Eye, like a splinter, a broken bone, a half-glimpsed glimmer through our fog, won't let him rest, won't allow him to drift away properly.

Oh, hello there, he will smile at the little recorder. And steadily, his numbness will recede to fear, his blankness to panic, his silence to desperate declarations of a selfhood we have long worked on eroding.

Is this – this isn't my house, this can't be, why am I …. Jon! J-Jon, I'm here, I need you to find me Jon, please.

Before the realisation surges back out, gripless as tide. Memory washes away just as easily with the surf, we have found.

Oh, hello there.

Round and round and round he goes. Ad infinitum. It would be kinder just to vanish.

4.

Sometimes we are lucky. Our traps snaring multiple.

After all, we have so many rooms going spare. Enough for both of them to join us.

5.

The feast we desire walks into our open mouth.

His hands are chilled, frost-touched, trembling; he is babbling because he is nervous, because he smells the brine and sea-breeze and chemical tang of hospitals, because he knows he is enclosed by our teeth.

He does not fall behind. He does not lose his grip, does not stray from the hallways, the corridors. Our fog clouds his ankles but he doesn't stumble.

He leaves us, holding his anchor like a talisman, and our jaws are left wanting and empty.

6.

He never chooses us willingly.

He never wants us, not like he did. He does not yearn for silences, for the world to be washed colourless and simple and painless, not like he used to.

It hurts, how often he rejects us.

7.

The Avatar rips the clock from the wall. Shatters chair legs, tears down the lining of wallpaper, the carpeting, colouring the air with the name of the one we have taken.

He Sees into the heart of us and still cannot find him.

He is furious, powerful, but he is also insensible with terror, mired in guilt and recrimination and loneliness, and this only serves to help us dig our teeth in. He may be king in this world but he cannot conquer tide. He never deserved him, he who we claimed long before, our tendrils deep-rooted, historical. We have had our beloved all his life. 

8.

Not now, Martin.

You're a bad son. You put her there, and she hates it, how could you do that to her, your own mother –

Not now, Martin.

Useless. Forgetful. Clumsy. Loud.

Shut up, Martin.

Boring. Poor company. A placeholder for better friends.

They're all better off without you.

We don't have to tell him many lies. Life taught him to lie to himself far better than we ever could.

9.

He is a work in progress, work of art, our masterpiece.

Over time-honed hours we sand away the corners of his recollections. After-work drinks, and inside jokes, and drunken songs shared between three. We touch up the shading so his mind does not stray to remembering small triumphs, earned successes, hard won victories. We scrub at the stubborn stains of his mother's disdain, the gnawing panic left by a series of jobs that left him empty and frustrated and desperately trying to make the budget match up, the easy everyday dismissals he believed he deserved.

We sand off the more recently applied paint of carefully cultivated loves and wishes and hopes, the whitewash of acceptance he thought he could finally claim. The Archivist's love has upholstered parts of him we had already weakened, but we are patient, we have time aplenty to sow our seeds and watch our meadow flourish, and we toil and scrape and wear him down until we can see the raw wood of him peaking through.

When we have finished, we are the only thing he can ever remember being.

10.

We know we have failed this time when he finds his name.

I am Martin Blackwood, and I am not lonely anymore.

When he refuses to be quiet, when he shouts his value, his worth, the things that we have failed to wipe from him so they echo and shake our walls down.

I am not lonely anymore. I have friends. I am in love. I will not forget, I will not.

He clears the borders of our domain with his head held high, his anchor walking by his side, and we know we have lost him for good.

[incomingalbatross]

If I can still offer suggestions for the "things I'd like to see you write" ask meme: Starfleet chaplain Father Brown. What Holmes was really up to during retirement. And I'm still curious about the "RTD doesn't understand hobbits" meta you mentioned ages ago.

Thank you!

I will say that I do not feel remotely qualified to write Starfleet chaplain Father Brown, but I love that concept so much... I do definitely want to read it.

---

I do want to develop a theory I can stand by on Holmes’ retirement!! Currently I am trying to restrict myself to things that could fit into canon without too obviously catering to my tastes specifically. :P (I have an answer that fits my Modern Holmes AU, but that incorporates fantasy/supernatural elements, and I don’t want to make those essential to any of the original Canon as it lives in my head. It’s hard to articulate the distinction, but it���s there.)

---

...So. I started to write some bullet points for that essay, and...here it is. Or at least here’s a decent first draft. I have’t watched any 10 in a while, so it’s not as well-sourced as I’d like, but it’s here!

(WARNING: Anti-RTD content ahead. If you’re a fan of his era, maybe just scroll past this post.)

So, the essence of hobbit-ness is that 

they love the mundane, prosaic and ordinary with a deep love, 

this love is not incompatible with a love for the extraordinary, the wondrous, or adventures, 

the best and strongest heroes are motivated by their love for the ordinary, 

you don’t have to be cool or special or Set Apart to be a hero, you just have to do the job in front of you and keep doing it.

RTD’s era occasionally pays lip service to these ideas, but on a deeper level consistently goes against them.

His companions often dislike their normal lives (Rose in particular), and certainly think them inferior to TARDIS life.

Ordinary people who are content with ordinary lives are often portrayed as comical, small-minded, less worth taking seriously: see Jackie, and post-memory-wipe Donna, who we’re supposed to feel is jarringly diminished by having lost memories of the TARDIS even though she is still herself. 

Our heroes are often separated from what they’re fighting for, sometimes in a tragic Frodo-ish way but also, often, because they seem to care more for the fight than the cause: see Rose and 10 treating Queen Victoria like a fun tourist attraction instead of a real actual person (I can absolutely see why she got fed up with them). The narrative is more likely to dismiss the great mass of people the Doctor just saved than to show us that, “Wow, they were so absolutely worth it.”

The human characters become Cool and Real Heroes in direct proportion to how much they are distanced from their roots and made like the Doctor. This is particularly evident in S4, with Rose appearing in a leather jacket spouting technobabble (I’ve seen multiple Rose fans highlight those echoes of the Doctor, and I think they’re right to consider it a conscious decision on RTD’s part), and with Donna. DONNA. She gets her Summit of Coolness, when “for one moment, one shining moment, she was the most important woman in the whole wide universe”... and how does she get there? What’s the best Donna’s ever been, according to the show? The DoctorDonna. The absolute best version of Donna RTD could come up with is the one where her self is half-overwritten by the Doctor’s.

A couple moments that I think illustrate these themes especially well:

ROSE: Get up, catch the bus, go to work, come back home, eat chips and go to bed? Is that it? MICKEY: It's what the rest of us do. ROSE: But I can't! MICKEY: Why, because you're better than us? ROSE: No, I didn't mean that. But it was. It was a better life. And I don't mean all the travelling and seeing aliens and spaceships and things. That don't matter. The Doctor showed me a better way of living your life. You know he showed you too. That you don't just give up. You don't just let things happen. You make a stand. You say no. You have the guts to do what's right when everyone else just runs away, and I just can't (Rose runs out of the cafe.)

The idea that “going to work, coming back home” is somehow a downgrade instead of the fundamental beauty and worth of human life is...characteristic, I think. And while Rose does follow that by saying that she “can’t” be normal not because it was “a better life” on account of the adventures, but because it involved making a stand and doing what’s right... that just pushes the fallacy a little deeper, because now she’s saying that you can only make a stand and do what’s right in any meaningful way away from home, as an adventure. That there are no battles to be fought, nothing to fight for, in the course of “going to work, coming back home.”

Then there’s “End of Time”:

WILF: No really, just leave me. I'm an old man, Doctor. I've had my time. DOCTOR: Well, exactly. Look at you. Not remotely important. But me? I could do so much more. So much more! But this is what I get. My reward. And it's not fair! Oh. Oh. I've lived too long.

I know the Doctor follows this by making the sacrifice. But...what kind of hero says things like that out loud? What kind of hero thinks “I ought to live instead of you”? And the thing is...I feel like we’re supposed to feel it’s tragically unjust. We’re supposed to feel the Doctor is worth more, because...what? The man he’s saving won’t live as long as the Doctor would have? The man he’s saving is human?

Those lines should never have been said, because they never should have been presented as a perspective with any validity. The Doctor should have enough love and reverence for life that he jumps to save this life for its own sake, sacrificing himself because he feels Wilf is worth it, and not because he feels the unjust universe is somehow making him do it. That’s not necessary to being a good person, but it is necessary to being the type of hero that the Doctor usually is.

And “School Reunion”:

SARAH: I waited for you. I missed you. DOCTOR: Oh, you didn't need me. You were getting on with your life. SARAH: You were my life. You know what the most difficult thing was? Coping with what happens next, or with what doesn't happen next. You took me to the furthest reaches of the galaxy, you showed me supernovas, intergalactic battles, and then you just dropped me back on Earth. How could anything compare to that? DOCTOR: All those things you saw, do you want me to apologise for that? SARAH: No, but we get a taste of that splendour and then we have to go back.

...I have SUCH conflicted feelings about this episode. On the one hand, I adore Sarah, and K-9, and seeing those reunions, and I really love how much this episode meant to David Tennant, and this basically got us the Sarah Jane Adventures which are way up there on my favorite DW content ever. On the other hand...this is such an injustice to Sarah. They took one of the strongest, most independently adventurous characters in all of Classic Who and reduced her to this...droopy, pining figure, who it’s implied spent the last thirty years moping around because Nothing On Earth Can Compare To The Doctor’s Life! :( :( :(

(And then of course SJA itself proved that wasn’t the case, by presenting her as having a life full of adventures and contacts and importance entirely without the Doctor. Which is part of why I love it--although the other part is that everyday life is presented as precious and important, because she has a kid and the problems of Kids and Family and Parenthood are given full weight. <3 )

In short: I think that, on the whole, RTD’s era expresses his own biases towards believing that Cool Adventures and Special Powers and Being Important are inherently worth more than Normal Life and Normal People and Home--which is the antithesis of everything Tolkien embodied in hobbits and the Shire. It’s also not Chestertonian, incidentally, or Narnian (see Rose’s speech above--there’s a reason the Pevensies had to go home eventually, and learn to see Aslan and His work in their own world).

(It’s not entirely like that, of course, but I feel like even the episodes that revolve around the Doctor being Tragically Unable to have a Normal Life do so by...exoticizing the idea? I dunno. We always know it’s not going to happen, and it’s not supposed to happen, so I feel like it’s always a little hollow. And it’s definitely outweighed, in terms of quantity, by the sheer number of instances where being a normie is completely dismissed.)

So there’s my essay! :P

[sibillascribbles08]

If you could take creative control of ninjago what would you change

Christ...

WELL

Actually no idk where to start with this there’s so much anon there’S SO M U C H I guess I’ll do a run of MINIMAL changes tho (for as long as I can)

I don’t think I have to change much in the first two seasons, thankfully, since the writers actually sat down to think about what they were writing at the time but g o d did it go to hell afterwards

Season 3 - This Zane focused season is going to be ZANE FOCUSED DAMN IT. We’re focusing on his loss over his Father, having salt rubbed in the wound by having his father’s work turned into an evil army, and being faced with the fact he’s obsolete compared to it all. He keeps trying to stack up numbers to win, recalculate things, and it’s why his line at the ending ACTUALLY has impact. The thing that sets him apart from the nindroids, his ability to love, is what allows him to defeat the Overlord.

Jay, Cole and Nya love triangle is DESTROYED. Pixal, Zane and Cole is the new love triangle and later OT3

Season 4 - The explanation for the other EMs being around is far less stupid. Garmadon establishes that oh yeah all of your parents had elemental powers and even talks about a few of them because holy SHIT. Cole mentions his mom because he should have done that a g e s ago. Is this supposed to be a Kai season doesn’t feel like it. Open the season with better explanations of why the ninja split. Emphasis the fact that Kai blames himself for what happened to Zane, and continues to do so throughout the season. Add that to why he’s so desperate to save Skylor from her dad (not willing to lose someone else). We still lose Garmadon, Kai and Lloyd have a talk at the end of the season. Also ZANE IMMEDIATELY GOES TO GET PIXAL A NEW BODY WTHHH????

Season 5 - Idk this season was pretty good over all I think. A bit better lore established into the cloud kingdom, hints that they don’t actually control fate they just think they do. Explain where the FUCK NIMBUS CAME FROM?? Water can still beat up ghosts but idk feel like there should be some other factors involved, some magic. Kai and Zane figure out they can make water a LOT sooner. Also why doesn’t Kai just set the preeminent’s house armor on fire??? Should have. OH I did forget since this season is supposed to be for NYA GETTING HER WATER ELEMENT how about she actually GO WITH THE NINJA AND DO SOME SHIT SOMETIMES??? I don’t mind her training, specially Ronin helping her but like??? Wtf why not have her ENGAGE, idiots.

Season 6 - I’m the weirdo who actually likes season 6 but that doesn’t mean it’s not without its issues. I don’t mind Jay wondering about where he stands with Nya but his behavior throughout the season has to stay consistent. When he agrees with Nya he needs to let it go he needs to LET IT GO. IT LITERALLY SHOULDN’T BE BROUGHT UP AGAIN UNTIL THE LIGHTHOUSE. He also needs to linger more on his birth father (and besides he should have suspected he’s adopted since season 4 cause he knows neither of his parents had lightning powers). Zane doesn’t ignore Pixal’s warning about Nadakhan but if she’s off somewhere else idk how she gets threatened I’m sure Nadakhan could figure it out. OH and time can still reset and stuff idc but like, Jay and Nya need to talk about it and they need to GO BACK FOR ECHO. EVEN IF THEY DON’T FIND HIM THERE.

Day of the Departed - just wish it was longer tbh, but major changes: Why do the ninja not seem to care that cole is FADING OUT OF EXISTENCE and Lou should be a lot more worried about his son.

Season 7 - I mean, it’s mostly a trash fire, but I think it’d be a lot more enjoyable if they actually had good sibling dynamics going on. Acronix following his brother because he always has, but starts questioning their plans as things go. At first their relationship is much better, which is why they best Kai and Nya, but by the end that flips over. Actually have Kai and Nya having an ISSUE. Kai thinks their parents could have been traitors, Nya seemingly doesn’t care because she’s so wrapped up with her samurai x stuff being stolen. They end up fighting and don’t make up until the boiling sea. ALSO GIVE RAY AND MAYA A BETTER FUCKING EXCUSE FOR BEING GONE THEY COULD HAVE FUCKING SHANKED KRUX WHEN HIS BACK WAS TURNED GET OUT OF HERE HE HAD NO LEVERAGE.

Also Machia isn’t dead okay she’s just in the past she WILL COME BACK

Seasons 8 and 9 I’d say are pretty solid honestly? My minor changes: Garmadon isn’t Garmadon he’s a fucking fake get out of here with that shit THE REAL GARMADON WOULD NEVER. We actually learn where Mr. E came from I don’t even care if it’s just Harumi and UV talking about how they found him in a scrap heap and got him fixed just give me something. Stop treating Dareth like SHIT. Ronin and The Commissioner plan a jail break long before they’re let out in season 9. Teen Wu is a lot less... air headed. Like seriously he seems to have more logic when he’s a child it doesn’t add up. I’m not saying he has to remember everything but wth?? Oh, and Mistaké isn’t dead fuck you.

Season 10 - ............................................ delete it and start over. Literally, hate all of it, get it out of here. Four episodes for villains you built up like FUCK in the last two seasons??? All of them fucking as big as people???????? cowardly, weak, uninspired, I don’t want it I’m just going to have to redo this whole gd season. A) Oni leader is a QUEEN now and she can be up to 30 feet tall no I do not give a FUCK B) Fake ass Garmadon is revealed to be a different oni entirely he was an agent for the queen the whole time but never finished his mission C) She can still paralyze a bunch of people but man Lloyd you’re going to need more than a shiny tornado to fight her off. D) In fact you need to summon your other great grandma so the two of them can get over their divorce spat. E) Where’s the mask of vengeance bring that back into play. F) Mistaké shows back up to help. I suppose plot wise it can?? Mostly run the same but I think they’re going to have to run much farther than the city with how fast she spreads her reach. Also she’s weak for Lloyd because he’s the smol great grandson and he has to use that to his advantage to slow her down. Mistaké makes something that can unparalyze people and they get some of their allies back before the finale thank god. Faith isn’t just in a coma the whole GD time.

Season 11 - Fire half? Good. I need a much better reason why the ninja go to the never realm tho because wow did they just make everyone out of character in that last episode. The ninja have no reason to just ignore Wu and shove him out like that. Wu has no reason to NOT NOTICE LLOYD IS BREAKING INTO HIS ROOM WHEN HE WAS KICKING THE NINJAS ASSES IN THE FIRST EPISODE. Ice half?? ... h Yeah no they should have known Zane was the emperor from the start LMAO. Or at least suspected the possibility. The decades of time passing??? Deleted. Maybe give it a year. Idk why it’s just Lloyd snapping Zane out if why aren’t the other ninja involved like p l e a s e. Also kill Vex with an ice spike, thanks.

Season 12 - Over all I liked what this season had going but there... should have been more. And that ending felt so crunched together like damn... Unagami was a p cool villain at least BUT idk, despite all the focus on the plot so much of it didn’t feel tangible enough. Even if we’re going to focus more on the video game world I want to see more of what these NPCs are up to. Should have tossed in a couple of filler episodes. Also can someone just kill the Mechanic too SMH (and they should have tied Wu up in something sturdier how did he not just break out of that WHATEVER)

Suppose I’ll stop there I haven’t season season 13 yet.

Oh, the timeline itself needs some fucking work too. At least establish Wu and Garmadon’s sudden aging. At least establish how old Zane is (I’d believe he was built 40 years ago but I find it hard to believe he was active for all of it). Establish that yeah the FSM really did basically fuck off like idk 14 years ago and idk why the show acts like it was so long ago it couldn’t have been based on the other facts we know have Wu learn that his dad is a bitch ass motherfucker and he needs to ditch.

Honestly there’s more but like................. this is the simple version

[daisyjohnsonsblog]

Episode 9: A Detailed Look and Evaluation

Time to completely deconstruct this episode!! This is gonna be a long one so strap yourself right in and prepare for a DIVE into the mind-blowing goodness that is episode 9. 

Plot and Structure (with a Side of Daisy/Coulson)

OKAY I'm just gonna preface this with the fact that I think that Drew Greenberg did a great job with this episode. In terms of how it fits with the overall season arc, I can see that it’s more of a stand-alone episode, but it’s nonetheless really crucial in building all the characters, especially Daisy and Coulson (but more of that later, like a LOT more). 

let’s start with the main idea. everything is repeating, but going closer to a possible destruction? 10/10 would recommend. The escalation, the tension, the suspense. I mean like, I basically just said the same thing three times but what I'm trying to tell you is that my butt was glued to the seat and my heart? racing off faster than the Zephyr towards the vortex.

Structure of this episode was Super Interesting. Because only Daisy and Coulson were aware of what was happening, there’s this amazing intensity that is created as the episode goes on and stakes get higher. Only both of them know what happened, and even Daisy is only half-informed. This creates a super unique dynamic which effectively narrows down the attention and action onto Daisy and Coulson. Even when Greenberg uses this focus to draw in different characters in turn (Simmons, Enoch, and Sousa all take turns in this focus), the overall focus is on Daisy and Coulson: they’re the ones moving forward, trying to solve the problem. All the other characters become closer to props as Daisy and Coulson move to save the team, so we really get those quality Daisy/Coulson moments. *contented dad and daughter tropes sigh*

More Plot, but this time on the Time Plot and the Aftereffects

I think Greenberg found a great loophole when he used the time plot to essentially reset Simmons’ access to her Forbidden Memories. This way, the Zephyr gets fixed AND we don’t need to worry about endangering Fitz by her remembering Also, Elizabeth Henstridge did an amazing job in that scene when she Remembers (not to mention the directing. we stan). That emotional intensity is really beautiful and completely believable, but also leaves you wondering What On Earth She Remembers to make her have such a huge emotional and physical reaction. 

However, I also wonder how the next episode will deal with the time loop. I mean, I’m guessing only Coulson and Daisy will be able to remember everything that happened? So how will Sousa feel around Daisy if he doesn’t remember that conversation they had, or that kiss? in this way I get the impression that this episode has many hypothetical qualities rather than being strictly believable; in other words, more fiction than science. (I mean, Greenberg kind of concessed to this when Coulson’s guess to why they both remembered was that they “both fell asleep in futuristic sleeping pods”). You can see Daisy and Coulson are asking themselves “What if?”. Daisy’s is What If she allows herself to act on the feelings that exist between herself and Sousa. Coulson’s What If is manifested in his spiel on the time loop essentially being a metaphor for if he chooses to continue life as a Chronicom. I suspect that the writers are building ground for the end when Coulson needs to make a choice on whether or not to continue as a Chronicom. 

And I know I said earlier that this episode works more like a stand-alone episode, but it really reminds me of the whole plot of season 5, when the team was also trying to break the time-loop. And this season the writers have been doing frequent callbacks to the previous seasons, so I guess the episode’s place is as an echo to season 5.  

Daisy Johnson

In any case, this episode itself creates an amazing space for an in-depth look at Daisy and Coulson. That part where Sousa essentially breaks down Daisy’s character, how she’s gotten used to being alone (she hasn’t really had any love interests since season 4. I mean, you could argue that daisy/deke was gonna be a thing at some point, but I think we’ve moved past that.) despite being surrounded by friends. she’s headstrong. that image of Daisy running at a brick wall? Pretty much the past seven seasons. Sousa picking up on that so quickly and so accurately makes me wonder how closely he’s been watching Daisy, or (not to sound too critical and pessimistic) if he knows Daisy so well because he knew someone else like her - someone of her “type”. If the latter is true, then I would worry that Sousa is attracted to Daisy because she reminds him of someone else - that Daisy. Mostly because that isn’t a great foundation for a lasting relationship. Also he’s only known her for like, a week. I feel that part of it is pretty rushed, but I get that with only 13 episodes we don’t have time for a slow burn. Still, I hope that they get that dynamic right. If Daisy’s arc is gonna include a relationship, it better be a VERY VERY good one. 

Coulson 

For me, this episode was crucial in filling in Coulson’s character. I felt like his whole revival had kind of been swept under the carpet. Sure, there were moments when he had been overwhelmed, but they were super brief. I think that these conversations are LONG overdue. There’s been a lot of stored grief of both sides of the coin: I don't think Daisy ever got to truly leave Coulson behind, emotionally or mentally, and I don’t think Coulson ever really got the chance to share his experience(s) with dying and coming back to life. 

Adding on to this already complicated situation is the fact that Coulson is essentially an LMD. The whole team, Coulson included, have very recent memories of LMDs taking over and threatening their very existence. This episode, and especially Coulson’s denial of the possibility that he has a soul was very very necessary. It’s only natural that Coulson - or Coulson’s memories/stimulated personality - have these doubts. Just that bit showed us how much Coulson is struggling to align what he knows with who he is now. The Phillinda heart in me was half-hoping that he would have the convo with May, but I think I like this approach more. May has had somewhat more of an emotional development than Daisy so far in this episode. Still, the whole conversation kind of reminded me of the convo he had with May back in season 1 when he showed her his scar. *teary look* those were good times. 

Final Thoughts

I’m honestly very satisfied with what we’ve seen of Daisy and Phil so far. I just hope that that will continue and they’ll both get closure. There’s this sense of finality, especially when Enoch said that “families grow apart”. It’s somewhat ominous and melancholy but it also feels right. Daisy has had some pretty amazing adventures and missions, but there’s also the fact that I think she does want a normal life; even if not boring normal, then a stable life. We first saw Daisy as a “hacktivist”, and she’s never had proper stability: orphaned from birth, and then homeless, and then through the literal physical and emotional chaos. Through seasons 1 to 2, Daisy has been searching for parental figures (cue her very telling dream of Phil and Melinda being her parents), and then from then, she’s been more of...soul searching I guess. So if Sousa can give her that, then I’m all for Sousy. x