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k1nky-fool · 3 years ago

Text

Between Regulations and Protocols

Part 1/?

Pairing: Thrawn x OC

m/f pairing

Rating: Teen

Warnings: bit of angst, introductions to characters and story.

Taglist: none yet. If you want to be tagged in future chapters, feel free to DM me or comment on this chapter.

It wasn’t as though she could have prevented this disaster. However, there were certainly moments which, in hindsight, could have been changed just by thinking through a decision with a wiser mind. By now, it was much too late, and the mess left in front of Ceka was as regrettable as it was dangerous.

For her at least, this was dangerous. She hadn’t meant for it to get so out of hand. As far as she was concerned one or two of the indulgences she allowed herself were fine. It was when these “indulgences” became so regular they might as well be the rule, that it began to be a problem.

Every time Ceka gave herself that allowance, every rule in the book ran through her head, making sure that none were being broken. As far as the book was concerned, crushing this hard on a superior was not forbidden so long as it was not acted upon and the individual in question’s work is not compromised.

There were rules for relationships. Probably because Ceka’s current predicament was not uncommon. Especially when one was serving under an officer as respectful and intelligent as Grand Admiral Thrawn. Feelings happened, and rules were in place. And while rules were not broken, Ceka could snake her way around them without even so much as bending them.

It was necessary with her situation. Long before she was ever harboring feelings for the Grand Admiral, Ceka had to claw her way to the top as a Togruta in a system that was clearly designed to cut those like her down.

Perhaps that was what drew her to Grand Admiral Thrawn in the first place. As shallow and rude as it sounded, him being a non-human, thriving in such a rigged system was astounding to Ceka. She knew first-hand what it takes just to get out of the academy in one piece. It took bone, blood, and tears just to get to her current position. It was probably another level of hell in reality to get to a position where people took orders from him instead of having to fight for enough recognition to be respected as a living being.

Of course the first thing she did when assigned as an ISB consultant on The Chimera was to do her research on her superior. Even if he wasn’t such a sight for sore eyes, she would have looked into him, just to get a map of the territory she was treading on. Ceka had served under her fair share of slimy bastards and downright war criminals.

Much to her surprise, he was almost spotless. A court marshall, but it wasn’t a severe offense, at least not to her. Above all else, nobody had anything very malicious to say about working under him. There were plenty of people who were conflicted, taking orders from a non-human. However, the vast majority of people, even Stormtroopers, had relatively nice things to say about working under him.

What they did say was that Grand Admiral Thrawn was a rather imposing presence. He ran a seamless ship, left little room for error so long as the crew did their work. It was said he was a ruthless strategist, which didn’t surprise Ceka in the slightest considering what she had read of him. He was intimidating, but very few had any elaboration on that comment. She didn’t see for herself until she was called into his office the next day. Ceka hadn’t the slightest idea of what he wanted.

Entering his office was damn near surreal. Ceka hadn’t met anyone in Imperial High Command that held such a collection of art. And especially not such a diverse lineup either. Everything from a Mirialan statuette of a goddess she couldn’t name, to a segment of a durasteel wall covered corner-to-corner in generations of graffiti, to a Clone’s painted helmet from the war it was so known for. The Grand Admiral, himself, was nowhere to be found.

Right away, this struck Ceka as odd. The art was the lesser of two analyses in her mind. She had been called over her wrist comm to meet Grand Admiral Thrawn in his office, where he is not currently present. If it were a prank from a superior officer for some hazing she was too familiar with, then it would have been a better move to call her here while the admiral was present. If it was indeed the admiral that sent for her, then there was a reason for this.

In interrogation, making the suspect wait was a tactic to put them on edge. And if that was the admiral’s goal, then it was working. But it wouldn’t do well to leave an unknown individual in your office, especially since she knew it was more than likely that he knew she was looking him up as soon as she got here. Letting her in here without supervision was a foolish move.

Unless of course, she wasn’t unsupervised.

Keeping her wits about her, Ceka began walking around the office, carefully observing everything in the room. To anyone watching, it would look more like she was admiring all the art on display, when in reality, she was scanning over every surface in search of anything that might be a recording device. If it’s sending a live feed, then it’ll be in something that can easily conceal wires or large enough and shaped well enough to hide an antenna to transmit the data to a screen somewhere.

She mentally cleared a random painting, and the durasteel graffiti wall. A few of the sculptures could barely fit enough material in them to remain standing, so those were cleared too. The Mirialan statuette was too small to hide anything. And it would be easy to see the mechanisms of a recording device inside.

More suddenly than Ceka would have liked, she stopped dead in her tracks. She turned to the clone helmet. She felt stupid as soon as she noticed it; this particular helmet was outfitted with a recorder by its visor. They were used to record and review battlefield footage in the Clone War. The antenna on the helmet and the device itself fit the categories to send live feed to a holoscreen somewhere. “Very subtle, Grand Admiral. I wish I had noticed sooner, but if you were looking to challenge me, you certainly did a good job.”

A door on the side of the office hissed open, revealing the man that set up this whole charade. “Not one new crew member has deduced the design of the test until now. Most giving in to impatience long before they attempt to find reason.”

“You do this with every new crew member?” She asked.

“Everyone assigned to The Chimera ranked Lieutenant or higher.” He said. “However, as mentioned, you are the first to realize you were being observed. Let alone to find the device I was watching from.”

Ceka wasn’t sure exactly how to feel about that. She was half certain he was complimenting her, but there was also a chance he was just thinking out loud about what he had observed. “Seeing as I am an ISB agent, and in charge of interrogation, I would hope I know my way around observation tactics.”

“You have found a place where your talents are put to good use.” He said, “However, I do find myself rather curious about you.”

Ceka moved to the space in front of his desk as he moved behind it to take something out of one of the drawers. "I'm more than happy to answer any questions you have." She said.

"I will keep that in mind." He noted, pulling something up in the holoprojector. It was just about every file The Empire kept on her. Every mission, every report, every personal file, and even her academy registration. "Much like yourself, I did my research when you were assigned to The Chimera. I must say, your talents are exemplary, yet based on the impression you made when faced with my test, your files do not add up."

Clearly the lack of reaction from her made him all the more interested. In truth, she expected he might say that. "What specifically do you want to know?"

"Agent Lo, I am no stranger to the ruthless ends humans will go to in order to assure they are not upstaged by someone they deem less than themselves." He cut in. "Yet you have managed to reach your current rank without any recorded incident. Not even so much as uniform code violation marres your record."

"I consider myself an upstanding agent." She said, as though to tell him respectfully to get to the point.

"Then tell me, Agent, why is it you actively dull any record of your success?"

"Sir?"

"I understand the need to blend in with your peers." He continued, "However every record that mentions an accomplishment of yours has been buried in unnecessary details; even your own reports follow this pattern."

Ceka could feel her throat tighten and her face heat as Thrawn observed her carefully as though he could see through her skin. He was indeed as intimidating as everyone had said. She had said she was willing to answer whatever questions he had, and now she wished she hadn't said that.

She forced herself to relax. "You said it yourself. I need to blend in with my peers. And you know better than anyone else what they're willing to do to cut me down should I rise above them." Ceka explained. "It's a method of survival, that is all. Remaining at the average minimizes the harassment I receive."

Thrawn considered her words. "Why minimize it?" He asked. "It would be far easier to simply retire from military service."

A small smile graced her face. There was so much more to her than just self preservation. "Because retiring is not my goal, sir."

"What is your goal, agent?"

There was the right question. "To make my home planet whole again." She answered without hesitation. "The Galactic Empire has redistributed the population of Shili to only major cities and tribes they had the ability to commit troops to. My tribe was among the many to be forced off their ancestral territory. My goal is to climb ISB ranks until I can bring to light that it is more dangerous to The Empire to force Togrutas off their homeland than to commit minimal troops to the smaller tribes."

"A noble cause, Agent Lo." He noted. "I have come to a decision. I expect you to take full credit for every successful assignment I give you. Should I find in any of your reports that you belittle your role in the accomplishment, the report will be rejected, and I will require a new one."

"Ah- sir, I-"

"That will be all, Agent Lo, you are dismissed."

Ceka opened her mouth to speak again, but the rulebook went through her head again. Disobeying orders was an offence one could be court marshalled for. But voicing disagreements were not prohibited, even though any officer would find a way to punish you for questioning orders.

However here, Ceka would risk it. "Indulge me for one more minute, sir." She all but demanded, causing him to once again pay close attention to her. "I understand what you're doing. You want me to step up; to be something greater than I am. Because after hearing what I am trying to accomplish, you believe you have a better strategy than I do."

Her words caught him off guard. She didn't give him enough time to recover before she continued. "I acknowledge that I probably don't have the best strategy. However, if you are going to require me to bend to your plan for my own life, then you're going to need a better strategy to get me to follow along." Ceka held her head high, and hid her nerves behind a strong voice. "Because if there is anything I know you have learned from your test and our minimal interactions, it is that I am patient, especially when I am being beat down and discarded."

"This is your way of telling me you do not intend to abandon your methods?" He inquired.

"This is my way of showing you the merits of my methods." She clarified. "And hopefully, I will change your mind."

Thrawn scanned her face once again, coming to some unknown conclusion. "It is unwise to reveal your end goal to the enemy."

Ceka offered a modest smile. "You are not my enemy, sir."

With that, she turned on her heel and made her way out the door. Ceka's heart raced and she had to make a solid effort to slow her breathing. Right then she promised herself that arguing with him would be forbidden from there on out. That was far too dangerous, and it was a miracle Thrawn hadn't cut her off and refused to hear her out. He could have her off The Chimera by morning. But even then she knew that this was an empty promise.

-X-

As it turns out, eighty-four was the magical number of rejected reports before Grand Admiral Thrawn finally gives in and calls you into his office to renegotiate the terms of his orders. It took twenty-eight days to reach this point. Every day, she would eat her meals and write out a new report to the same mission, even if Thrawn had yet to notify her that the last one was rejected. Ceka stood in front of his desk once again, as he flipped through all eighty-four reports on the holoprojector.

It was one single mission. An investigation into disappearing medical supplies from a medicenter on Pantora, that Ceka had figured out pretty quickly. But every single one of them was worded to shine the light of success into anyone other than her.

Thrawn must have been looking for something in the reports, but he was coming up empty handed. It was another brief moment before he shut off the holoprojector. "I admit, I underestimated your talent for persistence."

She couldn't have been more excited to hear that from him. In all honesty, it was wearing her out. Finding new ways to reword the same events was exhausting. "However, what you have shown me is something I did not expect to find." He said, now slowly walking around his desk to circle her. "My attempt to outsmart you was quickly turned into a challenge to outlast you. However, it has answered more questions about you than I could ever ask."

"I am glad the experience was illuminating, sir." She was careful not to appear smug or prideful in any way, even if she was rather proud of herself for this.

"What has come to light is exactly how you managed to remain unseen by those that wish to do you harm, yet impress those that you wish to be more visible to." He explained. "I would like to see you put this to use more often."

"What do you have in mind, sir?"

"To start, I will rescind my orders to take more praise in your reports." Thrawn said, causing Ceka to smile. "In light of your tenacity, I have another duty for you. As it is already one of your many tasks on my ship to assess the officers and troopers for information leaks, I would also like you to send me reports of those who rise above their peers."

Ceka was surprised to receive such a request from him. "Pardon me, sir, but can't you select your elite by looking at the reports yourself?"

"It has occured to me that you are far from the only officer under my command that hides behind their more obnoxious coworkers and modest wording in reports. Unfortunately, due to their efforts, it is difficult to find the more competent workers of my fleet." He explained. "You are in a particularly beneficial position to solve this problem. Seeing as you are not only interacting with the lower ranks of my fleet on a closer level, you also know what to look for in those that possess the same skill set as you."

"It takes one to know one." Ceka chuckled awkwardly, knowing exactly what he meant. Honestly it was a miracle he even saw her point of view at all. Let alone be open to changing his mind and instead giving her an assignment that they both agreed would suit her talents. "I can do that, sir."

"That is much appreciated, agent." Thrawn said, "You are dismissed."

Ceka turned to leave, but she stopped herself. Once again the rules made her hesitate. It might not be professionalism at its best, but she would give herself this allowance. "Oh, grand admiral, sir?"

Thrawn turned to face her once more. He was no longer a stranger to how bold Ceka Lo could be, but this time she wasn't angry. Instead, she smiled kindly. "Thank you. For giving me a chance." It was a split second, so fast she wasn't even sure it was completely real; Thrawn returned with a small percentage of a smile to her.

There was a faster moment that Ceka felt herself take a moment to recover, where her heart stuttered at the sight of him just smiling for a fraction of a second. However it was gone the moment she reminded herself where she was and who he was. "Sir." She nodded with a stern voice, bidding him goodbye before she marched back out the office door.

It was rare a superior gave her the time of day. And so rare to be given respect and a smile that Thrawn was the first to offer after many, many years of serving the Empire. Ceka held onto that image in her mind every time someone would say anything hurtful, or when someone would do something rude. She allowed herself to remember Thrawn gave her a chance to prove herself, and he respected her for it.

There were moments that she stood in his office again, whether it be for a strategy meeting or a PSA for the higher ranked officers, Ceka hoped to whatever god in the galaxy was listening that she might catch another glimpse of his smile.

He smirked quite often, she found. Not that it was very easy to notice those either, but once she was watching, she noticed. It was usually when he was explaining his strategy to his officers that his expressions were slightly more discernible. For the most part, he kept the same even tone, and strong, calculated glare. Red eyes kept up with every little detail going on around him, and Ceka had to wonder exactly which details he noticed.

Really at this point, Ceka found she looked for any reason to be around Thrawn. He was an island of peace in an ocean of exhausting people. But what really made her start to worry was when he probably figured out he was her island.

It was rather chaotic in the aftermath of an attack. The way The Chimera was run made the battle itself run like a well oiled machine. However, trying to get everyone on the same page, especially if there were significant losses, was pretty much hell.

One particular flight officer was being specifically infuriating. She just wanted to know how many TIE fighters they had left. Ceka did not need to know who was flying, and who came back, or why only four fighters could land properly. Cykla went off on another tangent about how they were going to need repairs before she finally cut him off. "Cykla, just tell me how many TIE fighters we have left in the fleet."

Despite her even tone, Ceka had murder on her mind and it must have shown on her face with how he shut up immediately. "Six."

"Great…" She hissed out. "Now I can go to my job and tell the Grand Admiral we need more TIE fighters. You are dismissed, Cykla."

He gave a curt nod, running off to do whatever the hell else he had to to get this ship running at full capacity again. Ceka busied herself punching the numbers into a slow datapad, being on the verge of throwing it against a wall.

"I take it Officer Cykla was being difficult." Thrawn's voice made her jump slightly, but the second her eyes landed on him, she gave a small smile, and she visibly relaxed.

"Just a little slow." Ceka chuckled, still trying to hit the datapad to get the damn number to punch in. "Which seems to be a running theme today."

"Is there something wrong with your datapad, Agent?" He asked.

"I dropped it off the hyperdrive room railing when the ship was first hit. Didn't have the chance to get it back until a few minutes ago, but it looks like a few people might have stepped on it." She explained, knocking it against her montral and hearing something make a pinging sound echo around in her head. That couldn't be a good sign. "Well, that's unfortunate. I have a few nostalgic files on this datapad."

"I am curious of what you might keep on a datapad that one would find nostalgic." He said.

"Oh, it was just a few of the Pantora Medicenter Investigation reports I never got to give you. I kept writing them until you told me I could stop." She shrugged.

"How many reports did you write?" He asked with clear curiosity.

Ceka actually had to think hard for a moment. "You gave up at eighty-four, but I had a few extras on queue. I wrote a total of one-hundred-two reports."

Thrawn usually did a great job of hiding his emotions, but ever since Ceka started paying close attention to him, she began noticing the smallest expressions he gave. Right now his eyes went to the side, as though he had to give himself a moment to process that information. There were eighteen more reports on that one mission. All of them ready to be rejected, where she was ready to write more.

When he did look back to her, Ceka was smiling again, now trying to stop herself from laughing. "Do you find something amusing, Agent Lo?"

She really wished she could say no. Usually when a superior officer asked that question it just meant to stop smiling and take things seriously. However it was not in Thrawn's nature to use many euphemisms or human sayings, so he was genuinely asking. "Yes, sir." She nodded, still smiling as she explained herself. "It's not all that difficult to read your expressions. And when I told you how many reports I had written it was like every gear in your head stopped turning all at once. I thought it looked a little uncharacteristic is all."

Thrawn became more interested in her words. "I have rarely heard that it is easy to read my expressions. In fact most say the exact opposite."

Now it was her turn to stop and think. How in the hells did she hope to explain this to him? Was she supposed to tell Grand Admiral Thrawn that he spent just about every moment of every day hoping to see him, or that if she did get to see him that she carefully watched him in hopes of seeing him smile again? No, that would be very bad. But lying to a superior officer was quite specifically stated in the regulation.

"I'm in ISB. I guess I'm just very good at watching for small details." Both statements were true. She didn't have to tell him that the two statements had little to no correlation in reality or that she was only good at watching him for close details. Everyone else she just knew how to interrogate.

A beat of a moment went by before she caught it. Another split second where he gave a genuine smile, only for it to be gone the next second. The instant that passed by in silence before he answered felt like an eternity. "Indeed you are."

His answer left Ceka more distressed than trying to figure out how to avoid confessing her every private thought to him. Did he know she was hiding something? Did he know all along what she was doing? She wanted answers, but nobody but Thrawn could give them to her. She was all the more terrified of what those answers might be.

Though, it was nice to come back to her cabin late that night to find a new datapad waiting on her desk.

She didn't see Thrawn for a while after that. Not one on one, at least. She would occasionally catch him in the bridge as she was doing rounds with all the stations. Though when Ceka looked over to him out of habit, more often than not, he would already be closely observing her. Every time he did, she would tense up again and focus back on her work.

The heart stopping call came later that week. Thrawn asked to see her in his office once again. She had no idea what this could be about, and nothing about the last week really stood out. And especially not since their awkward conversation.

Though, he didn't waste any time as soon as she entered the art-filled space. Right away, she could tell something was up. Thrawn had never looked so worn out, not even after talking to the lieutenants. "Agent, if you are not currently indisposed, I would appreciate some assistance."

"What do you need?" Ceka asked without hesitation. Either she would get this over with or she would have to prepare herself for a long task.

"There was an incident with a terrorist group on the planet surface this afternoon. Unfortunately, Commander Bengts is on medical leave for the next three weeks, and since you and I are the only officers left with the clearance and skills necessary to review the reports, we are the only ones to be able to complete the processing." He explained.

"Would these usually just go into filing? Unless there's something specifically abnormal about this incident?" Thrawn had already sent the reports to her datapad.

"Yes. According to several eyewitness accounts, an imperial officer was seen giving information and weapons to three of the attackers just before it began."

Ceka took a long breath, calming her nerves. It didn't help that she was already on shaky ground with Thrawn as she was still questioning if he was aware of her growing fondness for him. Good thing endurance was her specialty, otherwise she would have given up the first time he smiled at her.

Pinching the bridge of her nose, she came to her choice. "This probably means they're waiting on some kind of information to pass on. They're not yet ready for a full attack, which is why they simply aided the terrorists and didn't blow their cover. By your estimation, how long do we have before such an informant gets their hands on severely damaging information?"

"Depending on their rank, approximately two days. In the next fifty hours, I will be receiving a transmission from the Imperial headquarters on the surface to account for the current number of troopers on guard and officers working." He answered.

Ceka took her datapad and began searching through the reports. "The sooner we finish this, the sooner we can sleep." She said. "Unfortunately, time is not something we have the luxury of."

-X-

-Thrawn-

"Let us start with who was present on the ground during the attack-"

"No, we need to start with who exactly these terrorists are, and what they were doing. What was their mission? How did they accomplish it? Where did they escape to after its completion? Or if they completed their mission at all." Ceka interjected. "We've been here on Wutellou for about a standard month. Start with the locals. What do we know about them as a people?"

Her interruption surprised him to say the least. To be completely honest, she hadn't ever stopped surprising him. However, Ceka had the right approach to the problem. He was certain she would just let him take the lead, but it was becoming increasingly clear that despite her near religious commitment to subtlety, when it came to him she was anything but reserved the way she was with everyone else. It was easy to see why Agent Ceka Lo had captured Thrawn's attention.

"Tellouans are a very spiritual people. They also place most of their values into unity and connection to one another and their planet." He explained. "The population seems to worship the ground, as a way of giving respect to the very thing that gives them the vegetation they grow for food and spiritual practices."

"That… sounds awfully familiar."

"I imagine it would." He said, pulling up a few sources on his holoprojector. "Watellou shares many similarities with your homeworld, Shili."

"However, they're largely vegetarians, from what I can gather. There aren't many animals big enough to eat on Watellou." Ceka noted, in a somewhat short tempered way. "So, they probably aren't as culturally focused on hunting as my people."

Thrawn noted how she grumbled about the lack of meat on the planet. It had occurred to him that Togrutas were carnivores, and unable to eat most of the food served in the mess. Though, he did make sure she wasn't starving, even though there wasn't a whole lot of good food for Ceka to eat. "You did say they hold a deep connection to their planet." She recalled. "So, it would be a fair assumption that they don't want the Imperial agricultural project on their planet, since it is so sacred to them."

"That is logical, yes." He agreed. "Which means their attacks are not likely to be carried out on a large scale, so as not to harm the ground."

"Let's take a look at the reports." She turned to her datapad, connecting it with the holoprojector. "The report of the soldier that saw what type of weapons were being smuggled said they were E-11 blaster rifles. However weapons were not the only thing given to the insurgents."

"The inventory report after the attack states several crates of empty gas canisters were also missing." Thrawn pointed out. "An attack utilizing poison gas would assure the land attacked would not be harmed."

One look to Ceka proved she was enjoying herself while digging for information. "Guess what the most poisonous plant on Watellou is." A smile cracked across her cheeks as she pulled an info file of a simple flower onto the projector. "The Osella blossom is a flower that is only found in the very few coniferous forests on Watellou. The one closest to where the supply warehouse was attacked is owned by a local businessman, who employs many people to gather these flowers. Oddly enough, four days ago, he reported that a large portion of his freshly picked flowers had gone missing."

Thrawn looked over the file on the flowers. "Only the roots are poisonous. The flower petals are dried and used for a tea that is very popular among the locals. Boiling the roots will secrete a poisonous gas known as Lesurra gas." He read. "We know the insurgents are planning a large gas attack. More than likely on the Imperial command center that has been established."

"So we know what they want, how they plan to do it, and because of the information you will be getting in the next two days, we know when they plan to do it." Ceka concluded. "Now we just need to figure out who is planning to leak that information to them."

"Now we must narrow down the list of suspects based on reports." He said. Ceka took a deep breath, finding a seat on his desk as she began reading through reports.

The low light of the holoprojector illuminated her more now that she was seated right next to it. The blue light did little to change the tone of her skin. It was rare that Thrawn met many Togrutas in his line of work, however, even Ceka was certainly something of a rare specimen of her species.

When Thrawn was researching her, he found that the specific shades of light blue that showed on her skin were only found in two clans of the Lo Tribe, and nowhere else on Shili. Ceka had a very soft appearance. Her age wasn't shown anywhere other than the length of her lekku, which placed her perhaps a year or two younger than himself. Her montrals rounded backward off her head and spiked back up like horns. The patterns across her skin were soft, bubbled shapes that spread all around like water.

But it didn't take a military genius to know she was so much more vicious than her appearance suggested. Particularly her deep violet eyes, that scanned everything as though it could give her something if she just convinced it of such. Ceka bit her lip in focus on the task at hand. She was quite brilliant, even if she was convinced her only talents were in enduring brutal treatment. Thrawn wanted nothing more than to show her that she had other talents that could help her never see such brutal treatment ever again.

In some ways Thrawn noticed Ceka's favor of him, though usually only through her demeanor. It confused him how she could manage to be both comfortable expressing herself to him and rigid the second he acknowledged her comfort.

In many ways, Thrawn saw himself being drawn to her. He rarely bothered to know his subordinates more than basic research, and in truth, Ceka was one of only seven people to ever peak his interest enough to give them the test she passed with such ease. Her response had only heightened his curiosity of her character. Even this was an opportunity for him to learn more about her. And every time he learned something new, his interest only grew.

This was indeed going to be a long night.

-X-

It had been nearly eight hours. Four a.m. galactic standard time. Every report from the warehouse had been looked through, and even people that weren't planetside had been looked into. Nothing looked even remotely suspicious.

"I don't suppose you've already ruled out the possibility that they had someone impersonate an officer?" Ceka asked with a dragging voice. She laid on her back on Thrawn's desk, staring up at the holograms that still hadn't given them a lead.

"You ruled that out three hours ago." He reminded her. "If I recall correctly, you said a Tellouan with a skin color and texture similar to a human's would be more rare than finding one with horns small enough to fit into an officer's uniform. I also agreed, stating that using an infiltrator would not guarantee they would be able to get the information they need for their attack."

"You're right." Ceka groaned, rubbing her eyes again. "Either way, we're running out of time. Forty-seven hours to find a traitor with no leads is damn near impossible."

"You say 'near impossible.' Is there something you believe would make the task at hand possible?" He asked.

"The ability to drink three gallons of caf in a minute would be helpful." She said, "More people to look through the reports would be useful. Many hands make for light work, after all, but alerting our subordinates that there is a traitor amidst them is too high of a risk. I think it's impossible to find the culprit in time with only two people."

Thrawn was impressed with Ceka in the eight hours they had spent together theorizing and even arguing at times. However, he would admit he would have never gotten this far on his own, this fast. Most of the investigation is credited to Ceka. It was his job to help her investigate, then come up with a plan once they had found their traitor.

"Agent, you are an exemplary investigator. If there is anyone that can accomplish this in the given timeframe, it is you." He said.

Suddenly, Ceka sat up. About a million thoughts looked to be passing behind her eyes before she settled on one. "Timeframe…." Her voice was quiet, as she once again took control of the holoprojector, still sitting on his desk. "We're looking at the wrong timeframe."

She pulled up personnel files from everyone who was planetside for the last four days. "Remember, four days ago, the report of a missing batch of Osella flowers was given by a local businessman?" She asked. "We know his own employee probably stole them, right?"

"That was the logical conclusion, yes." Thrawn agreed.

"First, what if the traitor isn't working alone?"

"Then I suppose only half of the information would be present in the reports of the warehouse attack. The other half would be with someone we have already ruled out, thus making it impossible for us to find the culprits on those reports, alone." He reasoned. "Who do you suspect?"

"Four days ago, Commander Bengts was hospitalized. The morning after the Osella flower batch went missing." Ceka explained with a smile on her face, searching for a minute before pulling up the commander's medical file.

Thrawn read the file thoroughly before landing on something that Ceka must have known would be there by the way she smiled. "Reason for hospitalization: Toxin inhalation." He read out loud.

He turned to Ceka once again, only to find her still smiling. "We can order a test for the Osella toxin and have the results in the next two hours."

"That only leaves her accomplice." Thrawn noted, searching through the reports again to see which officer specifically has been stationed with Commander Bengts for their assignment to Watellou. One name stuck out. "Supply Officer Cykla was planetside, stationed at the warehouse during the attack." He pointed out. "Cykla was also the officer that filled out the inventory report of what was stolen. And has also been assigned to the command center tomorrow to report inventory, where he will have access to the transmissions being sent from the command center."

Ceka placed her feet on the ground, standing tall, but a little wobbly from the sleep deprivation. "Shall I set up interrogations, sir?"

"No need." He ordered. "I will give the order to have Commander Bengts tested for the Osella toxin, and I shall reassign Officer Cykla to accompany me to organize the information from the command center. He will be forced to abandon his original plan and act in panic, giving us the evidence we need to incriminate him."

"I can help, sir. You don't need to carry this out alone." She was nearly pleading even if she could keep it behind a thin layer of professionalism.

"I am sure you can offer your skills to the mission. However you are sleep deprived, and until you are well rested, you would be unnecessarily placing yourself in harm's way if you were to continue like this." Thrawn reasoned. "As of now, you are relieved of duty until you have recovered."

"But, sir-"

"That is an order, Agent Lo." His voice became stern, but as he watched Ceka, she appeared to halted all cognitive thought as she suppressed a shiver. Thrawn noticed how her face became hot and the muscles around her throat tightened. He was unaware that Togrutas not only blushed on their face, but also their lekku.

Ceka had to force herself to breath again. "Yes, sir." Was all she could get out from behind tense muscles and a figure frozen in place.

"You are dismissed."

She marched off in a hurry, though Thrawn didn't get the impression that she was scared at all. In fact she seemed to be enjoying herself quite a bit.

Thrawn decided to focus on the task at hand. He had just barely learned the nuances of human behavior, he didn't have the time to figure out what made Ceka tick before his command center was eradicated.

-X-

-Ceka Lo-

After Thrawn had commanded her to get some sleep, Ceka was having a surprising amount of difficulty letting go of consciousness. There was a lot to process, particularly about how the entire night had gone.

She hadn't meant to so casually sit on his desk, though when he didn't stop her or even mention it, Ceka allowed herself to get comfortable. They had started the night speaking with formalities, though as time progressed and exhaustion began to take hold, she began interrupting him when she felt like it, as he would for her. She swore a few times without any shame. When she laid down on his desk, he didn't say anything. She took every liberty, and Thrawn gave them without any question.

But at the very end of it all, the order he gave her wasn't what surprised her. It was her own reaction to how he spoke. Heat shot up her spine and she stood at complete attention. What shocked her was that she honestly didn't expect to be given an order, despite everything Ceka had drilled into her head from day one at the academy. Somehow, she felt comfortable enough around Thrawn that it was a surprise when he did normal, imperial, things.

Though, even then Ceka knew this could only be the beginning of something terrible.

-X-

Somehow she managed to pass out after an hour. When she awoke again, everything appeared to be working smoothly. No trooper was out of place, no officer looked worried, and all was as though Ceka never fell asleep in the first place. Though, a quick look at her wrist chrono told her it had been nearly six hours.

Walking through corridors to Thrawn's office, she found something must be working well. There were two troopers standing guard instead of just one. "I take it Cykla is in there?"

"Yes sir." The command trooper confirmed. The other flinched when he spoke. Suddenly the other trooper was very interesting.

"Is something bothering you, trooper?" Ceka asked with a warm smile. She wasn't ignorant of her appearance. She was rather soft looking, and it was easy for people to underestimate her or trust her. Most people she interrogated were more likely to trust a non-human because of how rare they were in the Empire.

The trooper stood firmly at attention. "No sir." There was something off about his voice. Though, with two words, it was difficult to place.

"It's ok to be anxious. I'm sure anyone would be worried once they wondered why the grand admiral doubled the security in his office." She suggested. The trooper must have been eyeing her cautiously behind his helmet.

"I assure you, I'm fine sir." He said. Now Ceka could place it.

"You won't be." Before he could even flinch, she knocked the blaster out of his hand and rammed his head into the wall. The command trooper aimed his gun at the two of them, unsure as to what was going on. "At ease, soldier." She said, taking the helmet off the unconscious criminal, revealing dark green skin, and very small horns for one of his kind. "He was probably back up."

"How did you know?"

"His Tellouan accent." She said, restraining the prisoner. "Now I just need to see what his plan was. Take him to containment. I'll stand guard here."

"Yes, sir." He replied faithfully, throwing the infiltrator over his shoulder and carrying him away. Ceka pulled her blaster out, and set it to stun, now waiting for Cykla to make a break for it.

A loud crash came from inside the office, and the door hissed open. She stunned Cykla as soon as she laid eyes on him. Thrawn looked between Ceka and the man on the floor with mild amusement. "May I set up interrogations now, sir?"

Thrawn calmly caught his breath, wiping some of the blood off his cheek. "Yes, Agent Lo, that would be the wisest course of action."

...

Thrawn and Ceka stood together, watching the live feed from the two interrogation rooms, waiting for Cykla to regain consciousness. The Tellouan infiltrator nervously fiddled with the cuffs on his wrists, probably trying to find a way to break them off.

"Commander Bengts tested positive for the Osella toxin." Thrawn said, "She has been placed under arrest, but is still recovering."

"We'll need more evidence if we want to convict her. Getting one of these two to admit she's an accomplice should be enough, but I am not confident they'll talk for anything short of their freedom." She noted, looking at the two of them. Cykla was now gaining consciousness, frantically looking around the room and struggling against the restraints.

"Perhaps striking a deal with them is necessary."

Something was finding Ceka rather uncomfortably, and she wanted nothing more than to tear it apart to find out what exactly made it that way. It was Officer Cykla. He's panicking and struggling far too much for someone that had a decent plan until now.

"Perhaps not." She said, exiting the observation room and entering the interrogation.

-Thrawn-

Cykla was quick to stop moving as soon as Ceka entered the room. She didn't say anything as she sat down on the table to his left.

Thrawn couldn't see much from here, yet at the very least he could tell she wasn't trying to be imposing. She reached across the table and released his restraints, sitting back on the table comfortably and without any sign of defensiveness.

She was waiting for something. Pushing this man to the edge of something, but waiting for him to jump off on his own. Ceka remained silent. From the angle of the holorecorder, Thrawn couldn't see her face, but he almost intrinsically knew she was giving her subject a kind smile.

The silence must have become unbearable to the human. "What do you want, Lo?"

"I thought you'd never ask." She said, "You see, a witness at the scene of the attack yesterday saw you aiding the terrorists in their escape, but there's something that's gone completely unanswered, and I want you to give it to me."

"I'm not about to turn on my allies." He hissed back at her.

"Oh- no you aren't. Certainly not yet." She said, "At least not without a reason to. I happen to be in a position to get you just a year of community service, and a dishonorable discharge from the Imperial Navy. Where you can live out the rest of your life doing whatever you want."

"And what in the hells makes you think I value myself over my cause?"

"Why shouldn't you?" She asked as though she were genuinely concerned. "I've seen how much value your life has. And I believe it's worth more than being executed on a treason charge." Cykla broke eye contact and stared at the floor. "I'm not a fool enough to believe you don't have people you're doing this for. Wouldn't it be better to go home and see them again?"

Cykla came to his conclusion quickly. "I want to negotiate those terms." He said.

"Then negotiate."

"I tell you who my associate is, and I take the blame for everything." He said, "Everything was my idea, and she was forced to take orders from me. She gets to live."

"Cykla, you will be executed for this."

"But she won't." He stated. "I want this agreement in writing. So you can't back out after I'm gone."

"Your accomplice must mean quite a lot to you." Ceka noted.

"She is everything and more to me." He said.

Ceka stood from the table and exited the interrogation chamber. Making her way back to the observation room where Thrawn was waiting for her.

She was clearly torn by the situation. She began tapping through her datapad.

"What are you looking for?" Thrawn asked.

"Commander Bengts' medical record." She said, "I have a strong suspicion about why Cykla is so desperate to protect her."

"And why would that be?" Thrawn asked, curious about what Ceka saw that he missed.

Suddenly she stopped scrolling, her shoulders deflating in defeat. Handing the datapad to him, she pinched the bridge of her nose and leaned against the wall, perhaps in regret.

Thrawn looked at the data on the medical file. It was a few pages after the tox screen results, so it wasn't important at the time they were initially investigating. However, it was possibly the most important piece of information in the whole investigation. "She's pregnant."

Ceka nodded. Now it made more sense why she was so torn on this decision. "Tell me I'm being too soft." Her voice held strong, but the tensity in her muscles said otherwise about her emotions. "Tell me we should just execute them both, and move on with our lives. That it's better to just manipulate his confession and charge them both with treason like every other officer would."

"Do you truly believe that to be the wisest course of action in this case?" Thrawn asked.

"I want to believe it is in my best interest."

"Yet you are still questioning it."

"By Imperial Law, I need a confession from him to charge her. But if he doesn't confess to her being an accomplice, then there's nothing I can do, and at most she'll be medically discharged." Ceka went through her thought process. "Either way, Cykla is going to be charged with treason. There's no way I can get around that."

"Then perhaps you don't want him to give up Bengts." Thrawn suggested. "She will be medically discharged, and you don't live with that on your conscience."

"I can't allow Imperial Law to be determined by the weight on my conscience." She argued.

"Then don't allow it." He stated.

"It'll be a failed interrogation on my near flawless record."

"Attempting to rationalize the less favorable option will not help you make the decision you have already made."

Ceka bit her lip and closed her eyes. She took a moment to take a deep breath before neutralizing her expression and leaving to speak to Cykla again.

On the holoscreen, Ceka stood to her full height. "We will not abide by such an agreement for your accomplice."

"You what!?" Cykla burst. "You can't! She has to live!"

"It will take more investigation, but I am confident that I can find a name without your help." She calmly exited the room as Cykla struggled against the handcuffs.

Ceka didn't return to the observation room.

#thrawn x reader #thrawn x oc #thrawn #original chatacter #original story #star wars #ceka lo

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snkpolls · 4 years ago

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SnK Chapter 132 Results

The chapter poll closed with 1,746 responses. This month’s chapter poll results were brought to you by /u/_Puppet_, /u/staraves, @momtaku, @shifter-lines and /u/berthototototo

RATE THE CHAPTER 1,693 responses

When we compare “Wings of Freedom” with other chapter results we’ve recorded, it comes in 25th out of 41, making it middle of the pack as far as ratings go. Looking at the chapter on it’s own, however, it’s very well received with nearly 86% of the fandom rating it good (30.4%) or great (55.3%).

I think it was definitely just a classic aot chapter, had that plot that always had you on the edge of your toes, had the emotional moments, the momentary funny and bittersweet moments, 10/10 chapter

It couldn’t have gone any better besides Hange’s death :/

wish Floch got a little more screen time upon death but otherwise, awesome chapter.

It felt a little bit rushed but I enjoyed it nonetheless

It was so well executed yet so sad. I'm pride of our Hanji but feel so much distress thinking it's over for her.

It was a great emotional piece, and last moment before the true final battle begins. There’s no going back.

It was a good chapter but I would’ve liked if there was more dialogue between the alliance members

The deaths were rushed and poorly written

It was good, but alliance focused chapters are still a drop in quality.

It was a solid chapter and did what it aimed to do well, though I think it had pacing issues with the two deaths.

It had a little something for everyone. Except Zeke stans.

WE’LL GET TO THE GOODBYES IN A SECOND, BUT FIRST, WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING WAS YOUR FAVORITE MOMENT?

1,695 responses

Hange’s sacrifice was the moment that people liked the most at 30%, and seeing the old Survey Corp crew was a stand-out moment for 21%. Seeing Mikasa and Annie have an almost casual conversation brought joy to 12.1%, and Floch’s determination and brutal death were appreciated most by 11.6%.

I love the final shots of the scouts being shown in the afterlife. Ty Isayama

The little moments between the characters was great because it reminds us that they're still human.

The overall scene was legendary seeing Hange dying for her comrades and even in her last seconds she thought that she sacrificed herself in order for her comrades to live. That's what she thought a great commander would look like. That's why Hange was one of the best commanders of the Scouts.

Mikasa is such a boss, love seeing her fight and hopefully we'll get more big moments from her (as opposed to Levi).

Chad, King, hero. Every moment that Floch was in is a great scene.

I loved the Colossus slipping down the mountain

My favorite part is Kiyomi refilling coal with a shovel alone :)

WHICH OF THE GOODBYES WAS YOUR FAVORITE 1,699 responses

In a chapter filled with goodbyes it was Levi and Hange’s final moments that we found most endearing with close to 60% selecting it. “Please don’t make me choose” was a very distant second with 14.7%. Interestingly Annie and Reiner (10.4%) beat out Annie and Armin (6.5%) for third place.

i think isayama truly gave hange a great goodbye, and writing them still being cheerful and joking around made me feel so much more for their death.

It made me cry because of all the goodbyes. It reminded me of Erwin saying goodbye to the people inside the walls and people of the military. And his iconic “roar”. All of that before the battle.

Hange’s and Levi’s goodbye was very well done (that look in Levi’s eyes too, ouch), props to Isayama for breaking my heart.

The Reiner/Annie hug was all I could ask for, bless Yams.

I wanted a Levihan moment for this chapter and NOT a last levihan scene 😭

WHO WAS THIS CHAPTER’S MVP? 1,700 responses

Who else could it be? Hange Zoe is the chapter MVP according to two-thirds of all poll respondents. Floch (13%), Engineer-kun (3.4%) and Mikasa (2.6%) all got tiny slivers of the remaining pie.

Hange was truly the hero of this chapter and i'm so happy to have been witness to their characters journey over the years!

Hange is overall my second favourite character and I looked up to them. For me Hange is the true embodiment for the Survey Corps which is for Humanity and their courage, optimism and selflessness really made me love them so much.

Hange was a flawed commander. We all know this. They made mistakes like any other human being would when faced with the stress of a leadership position. They tried desperately to fill Erwins shoes but in the end accepted that they should be themselve. But overall Hange Zoe is an incredible person and I will miss them so

Best girl Mikasa rocked it this chapter with the way she swiftly killed Floch!

While I don't agree with some of Floch's beliefs, he died trying to save his home by slowing down the Alliance. Goodnight, sweet prince!

Floch did his best he anchored all the way from the beginning to the hangar with a bullet wound and that mustve hurt like hell all that salt water coming in

Someone please send me help I can't do this my family and friends got so worried because I've changed. They be like "Bro you've changed and I be like yeah Hange died bro what do you expect I'm in genuine pain you won't understand."

HOW DID YOU FEEL ABOUT HANGE’S HEROIC EXIT? 1,701 responses

Just over half of respondents loved the way Hange went out at 51.4%, and 26.5% liked it despite some quibbles. Not many of us saw it coming but it was at least emotional and a badass way to go. However, 9.6% hated it – there is an undeniable trend of every vaguely older character getting the chop. Who will poor Levi sit with in the retirement home with now?! 6.8% don’t really care about how the scene went. I suppose they’re the ones most prepared if no one in SnK gets to go to the retirement home.

A great ending to an amazing character, it's sad to see her go, but her time was up and she died fighting the creatures she loved.

I'm disturbed by how much it affected me

I loved it, but its not something i'll cry over.

I don't hate it but it did seem kinda unnecessary tbh could've been better

I STILL CAN'T STOP CRYING ABOUT IT. OPTION ONE IS GOOD BUT DOESN'T EXPRESS HOW MUCH THIS CHAPTER HURT ME.

It does break my heart,however the way and the time she do that, That was... Memorable

It happened too quickly for me to consider it perfect, but I'm glad she got to go out on her own terms.

Not heroic at all, she didn't even stop the colossals and was a cheap way for her to never face the consequences of her betraying the island

It was dope but Floch indirectly killed her so he takes that dub

I'M STILL CRYING ABOUT IT, SHE WENT OUT LIKE A FUCKING CHAMP

I'm super frustrated that she died, but she was heroic

She’s a traitor, nothing more to be said

i hated it. it was perfect. she really did go out with a bang and i hate it

Felt a bit pointless, would've loved to see some emphasize why it was crucial to kill these exact two titans. For me it looked like plain suicide

Had to go through the 5 stages of grief after that one, honestly. I was so angry immediately afterward because Hange is my favorite character of all time in any piece of media, losing them was almost like losing someone I've known and cared about for almost 7 years of my life. I've now come to accept that maybe death is the only happy ending any character can achieve in this story.

I don’t want to think about it

I don't like the idea of every Scout commander having a ""curse"" that they have to inevitably pay for with their lives. They're outstanding people and volunteers, just like their comrades, no one forced them to join.

WHAT WAS THE ASPECT YOU LIKED MOST ABOUT HANGE’S LAST MOMENTS? 1,687 responses

This question was fun to write but looking at the even distribution of selections, I suspect choosing an answer was difficult. Levi saying devote your heart to Hange was top pick with close to 30% selecting it. Retaining their sense of humor to the end (17.1%), being able to reunite with their old comrades (14.7%), having a moment of amazement while confronting the titans (14.4%), being able to die on their own terms and say goodbye (12.3%), stealing death from Reiner yet again (8.2%) and telling Armin he can boss Levi around (3.4%) were the other selections.

I really love Hange and when i see her died and see erwin and other old friends and morbit helping her i just cannot cry (sorry for my english im french ^^)

I was never a really big fan of Hange, but that exit was badass as hell.

It was a heroic death but it felt forced and unnecessary and she was my favorite character, so I'm extremely salty and in denial.

Hange seemed too eager to just die, like welp, i guess my contract is up, gotta go die.....It felt like when actors are written off a show

I never really considered myself a fan of her, but her death got me good. I think it was because how she marvelled and was genuinely amazed by titans, even in her final moments.

glad to see the old titan obsessed hange back before her final sacrifice

Most people seem to think that Hange's death was a bullshit ending, but I think that it was perfect, going out the way they were introduced.

To have hange say that titans are amazing before she dies was just perfect! It shows how she stayed true to herself until the end. And the part where she reunited with Moblit, Erwin, Mike and the others was so beautiful.

WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE HANGE QUOTE THIS CHAPTER? 1,686 responses

Hange really got to shine this chapter as we’re reminded of how off-kilter and fun they can be, even when the situation is at its most serious. We got a chapter chock full of memorable lines, but the favorite was of course ��Titans really are incredible,” a call back to the reverence and respect for titans that made so many love the character to begin with.

"titans.. are truly incredible." was a fitting last(ish) words for hange.

SO GOES THE 14TH COMMANDER OF THE SCOUTS, HANGE ZOE, FOLLOWING IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF THEIR PREDECESSORS. WHAT ARE YOUR FINAL THOUGHTS ON THEIR OVERALL LEGACY? 802 responses

GOAT

I think their legacy is one of grit and determination in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Not as revolutionary as say, Erwin, but they were perseverant and selfless, and innovative in their own right, as a scientist and researcher, always seeking new possibilities.

I will always remember Hange as our awesome scientist who came up with ideas for weapons! and was passionate about titans! and would stand up for a better comprehension of them instead of... whatever it is that Isayama made of Hange post-time skip that they no longer could shine about anything or would even reflect about what Eren was going through. Love you, Hange, you deserved that we followed your struggles more closely. <3

Hange became the commander in the most difficult moment and had bad times having to deal with politics, a whole new world and their own powerlessness. I think the Alliance is their most precious legacy and it really represents the old SC's spirit.

I adored seeing them go from loony scientist to a powerful and serious commander, even if it did come with a boatload of trauma. I also respect the hell out of them for being willing to watch their own culture destroyed if it meant not committing genocide. On a more personal note, as a nonbinary person it's just been really wonderful to see a character like Hange treated with such respect.

Amazing character and leader. Not on Erwin's level but she was a badass 😭😭 #rip

*you tried star*

A bit hypocritical. She was willing to stop Eren and endanger all Eldiana to save strangers from other nations that want to kill them. She also says killing is wrong, but proceeds to kill multiple Eldians unbothered, but when she sees Marleyans or people from other nations, she softens up.

Being a commander is not an easy job, and Hange's start was even more difficult because of Zeke annihilating like 90%(??) of the Scouts and the reveal in the basement and the crisis that followed. Still, she kept going, never giving up, even if she clearly had some moments of selfdoubt. I feel like Hange can be proud of herself and the life she lived, and I am happy that she was able go in her own terms. Her death bought them precious time, but it was a great loss as well. I feel a bit empty and wistful...

Brilliant character, brilliant way to let them go. I’m most interested to see how this death will effect Armin and his leadership as they alliance approach the founding titan. I’m also glad we got to see them in the afterlife, that was a bittersweet comfort.

Every commander dies young, rip armin

Hange was annoying. Glad they're dead.

Hange was incredible in their own field of interest, but definitely not fit to be the commander. Loved how they could be themself once again at the end.

Followed in Erwin's footsteps and even went beyond. Hange will be remembered as the commander who took Paradis from the titans and who explored beyond the island for the first time in 100+ years. Plus a rational commander, putting facts and science before everything else, as well as grasping how important diplomacy and politics are even beyond Paradis. Also although quirky, an example of tolerance.

Fuck that.. Their death was worthy of them.. it was a very sweet goodbye.. But I really thought they would make it to the end... And I really wanted them to. Hange was such an important character, they did so much for the cause and for everyone. They were someone who could be trusted but who didn't hesitate to do what had to be done. Incredibly smart and humbled, I just wish they believed in themselves a bit more.. cus they are incredible.

Hange was given a shit-circus to try and handle- complete with clowns, children causing mayhem, and a giant fucking monkey.

Her "gEnOcIdE iS wRoNg" quote with no actual solution in 126 really turned me off for her for a while as a character; overall however, Hange was one of the more memorable and likable characters from the series and it's sad to see her go.

Given the difficult job of rebuilding the Survey Corps after its destruction with very little help. Had to deal with the wannabe hegemon in Zackly who was doing lots of underhanded power grabs in the background. Had to deal with a populace who finally realized they were not alone. Had to deal with a moody weapon known as the Attack titan who knew all the answers but shared it with no one. Poor Hange who was never given a chance for victory

Hange was amazing character that got entirely too much flack for not being a "good commander" This is a character that above all stayed true to themselves in what they fought for and believed in.

Hange Zoe spat on the legacy of the scouting league by squandering their sacrifice to protect their families and communities. Hange's actions if successful will likely lead to the deaths of all their families which is something they would never support.

Considering how we never truly knew if Erwin was totally devoted to humanity or totally selfish, and considering Shardiz' inferiority complex, Hanji was the true one who gave her whole being to humanity and who truly embodied Survey Corps' abnegation, without any regard toward such senseless conception like homeland. No wonder why the title of her final battle is "Wings of Freedom"

Legendary commanders, each one going out with with a bang. Erwin going out by distracting Monke and Levi taking him out. Hange going out by taking care of a few Bert ripoffs, having the alliance survive a few more hours. And Armin, wait-

Hange helped the main characters in the story with her quick thinking and managed to put the missing pieces into place for us. Their different outlook on the whole situation gave us a fresh perspective and there’ll be no one else like them.

hange is great!!! too bad she tortured bean and sawney tho and sannes smh but 10/10 regardless love that mad scientist

Hange embodied the spirit of the survey corp. She was the commander that made unlikely alliances and advanced Paradis infrastructure.

Hange has been one of my favorite characters. They are the best Titan Scientist. RIP.

Thank you Hange, you did great 💖

FLOCH FINALLY GOT THE GLOCK. OR ACTUALLY, THE ANCHOR. WHAT DID YOU THINK OF HIS LAST HURRAH? 1,660 responses

Let’s not forget that Hange wasn’t the only major death in this chapter. After months of being voted most likely to die, Floch’s time finally came. About 30% of respondents are just celebrating that he’s finally dead, a quarter are glad he’s dead but got this last fun scene, and 20.4% are glad he was able to screw with the alliance once more before dying.

🦀🦀🦀FLOCH IS DEAD🦀🦀🦀

A fitting ending for an interesting, yet very unpleasant character. Love how his death was contrasted with Hange's, and the fact that Mikasa was the one to off him (the symbolism of the person who represents Eren's humanity killing the person who keeps referring to him as the devil is... well, not subtle but it can't be ignored).

Could have done more, but he never wavered or lost his convictions, more of a hero than any of the alliance will ever be

he should have been dead since 129, makes no sense

He should've stayed on the island and failed

Died a hero, wouldn’t even beg for his life but for his friends and countrymen instead

Even though I didn't really like him, I have my full respect to him for following his beliefs till his last breath

Floch is one of the best characters, and most complex characters, he got a very good ending.

I love eren’s boyfriend ♡

He died a hero's death after carrying chapters 124-130 on his back. He also did nothing wrong.

He's a mega chad and I love him. Managing to survive underwater for 2 days and slowly losing blood, and then shooting the ship to stop the Alliance, and then having a bomb-ass speech? He was a legend that needs to be appreciated more.

His arm should've been blown off to begin with and even if it wasn't, he should've died from hypothermia. I think it was needed drama, but done poorly.

His death was far better executed than I thought. He shot the fuel tank instead of one of the SC or one of the engineers/Onyankopon. That should tells you that he just want them to stop, not killing them all. He stays true to his belief of saving Paradis by following Eren, even in his last words he is pleading for Paradis' instead of his own live. From someone whose country has been colonized once, I say that is a true soldier for his nation.

Oh fuck off floch, he was a dick with volatile ideals anyway. Fuck that guy honestly. Like I agree with his stance but like. Everytime it feels oddly implanted when he has an opinion, like he does think with his own head but gets influenced very easily into changing sides too fast? Like, he does the right things but jot for the right reasons because he doesn't really think them through enough? That's my vibe. Idk. Ignore all my answers I feel stupid

RIP Hero of Paradis. To save your civilisation is an admirable goal, although it being achieved through genocide is still morally wrong

I'm sad he didn't get to know how Eren used him.

FLOCH FORSTER WAS A COMMANDER IN HIS OWN RIGHT, FIGHTING HIS WAY UP FROM HIS ORIGINS AS A BACKGROUND CHARACTER. ANY OVERALL THOUGHTS ON THE BIRD NEST BOI AND HIS IMPACT ON THE STORY? 912 responses

Best boy. Fly high you little devil :(( <3

a bitch but i respect the fact that he did what he believed in (even if its genocide😕)

Controversially, I have no opinion on him.

Ding dong the witch is dead

A character that was perfectly written for his purpose. AoT World isnt black and white and he showed us. Pain and loss made the Floch that died in 132. but Eldia and Marley made the Floch that survived to see all his comrades dead.

Floch is shit :) but also is a good character because its represents a real human.

A complete and satisfying character. It's not easy to summarize, but the way he went from a naive gloryhound to a single-minded guy trying to make his own survival/the deaths from the charge mean something while still remaining a relatively normal, unremarkable soldier was great. Also, I appreciate how he, Eren, and the Yeagerists basically reenacted Uprising by overthrowing a regime that would've just continued the royal family-eating and messed around until the island got destroyed. The prediction from Sannes all those years ago turned out to be too accurate, unfortunately.

A lot of people did hate Floch, I didn't. I think adding Floch to the story was just as essential as the other supporting characters. He played out a good and effectively annoying enemy. I think in every Action-thriller story, a Floch is a must as a villain. The hate on Floch reminded me of the hate on Joffrey from Game of Thrones. But Joffrey did have a great impact on the story, so did Floch. The way he was written just really did manage to get on our nerves, and I think that's what makes a character great.

A true patriot.

An asshole but at least he went out feeling like a rounded character

An nazi ass bitch

Based and Redpilled

Best character not named Eren or Erwin.

By far exceeded expectations.

Disagree with his agenda, but he's a very real character and a representation of the monster someone can become when driven by survivor's guilt and trauma.

He was the literally epitome of a roller coaster ride.

Floch always felt like a background character, and even though he gets far more to do than other background characters, he never felt like an actual person but rather just a plot device. He has no personality.

Floch was surprisingly good given he was such a minor character. He fully displayed the shades of gray of the narrative.

Heck him >:(

Floch has always been someone who held an opposing view to the main cast, and his entire arc revolved around his need to "bring back the devil" in order to ensure the safety of his land and his people. Some people seem to have forgotten that, but at his core he never changed. Sad to see him go out like this.

Floch has my respect for fighting until the very end (and even after the end since we all thought he'd been killed by Gabi) for what he believes in, but obviously it is not what I and my favourite characters believe in, so I'm glad he's gone. His impact is great as he earned the title of "most tenacious villain ever" when he only really started as a coward rookie soldier many chapters ago. Also props to him for holding onto this boat for such a long time and being up for a fight after probably being hauled in the sea and swallow more water he ever had his entire life.

The panel of him shushing Hanji will always be iconic. His descent into nationalism (new Eldian empire, anyone?) however, was not so cash money"

When Floch had captured Miss Kiyomi (ch. 128) he dismissed what she said and had his speech about ‘it’s important to know your place’, and then not even a minute later he was taken down by this same old lady smh. Previously, he wanted to kill Onyankopon and Yelena, but Jean deceived him and he failed. Later, he wanted to kill someone on the boat, but Gabi shot him and he failed. He wanted to stop the alliance, but Mikasa got him with her anchor and he didn’t just fail, he died. I’ve seen some readers applaud him for fighting for what he believes in and having a strong will, but they don’t see what else there is. Strong will? Not giving up? So many characters have the same traits in AoT. The difference is that Floch repeatedly never achieved what he wanted to accomplish, despite his strong will and belief to not give up. His determination and willpower made him achieve nothing. By contrast, Hange’s will and determination to keep fighting made her kill about 2-4 colossals and save her allies just in time for them to get away. Is the difference obvious enough? Their deaths are even put in the same chapter. Floch was not important, admirable, or whatever you want to praise him like. He kept interfering with the alliance and for what? He simply never knew his place.

He played a larger role than I ever thought he would and became one of the most interesting characters during this time. I’m glad he was here to push the story along, and I’ll miss him.

His fans are insufferable but he is a needed counterbalance to the alliance characters and stuck to his beliefs to the end.

He started up as a fodder and ends up as one of the biggest threats for SC. I might be in the minority when I said I already like him since pre time skip. He showed us how the war is like from the perspective of a normal soldier, not the talented ones who got into the 10 top ranks. Just a normal soldier who was inspired by the words of his leader to devote his heart, and came to a realization that it's an actual hell, just like reality. Maybe he's wrong to vent about choosing Armin instead of Erwin when Armin was feeling down, but I can understand. All his friends died, he's currently having emotional and survivor trauma over the suicide charge, and all of those sufferings came to a waste because of the people in front of him.

Pee pee poo poo

Good riddance. What a worthless pile of garbage.

Goodnight sweet prince

ARMIN WANTS TO BRING ALONG THE LEFTOVER EXPLOSIVES. HOW WILL THEY BE USED? 1,638 responses

Chekov’s explosives are now in play. 37.7% of you think they’ll be used to try to blow Eren out of his nape, and 33.7% think they’ll definitely be used for another suicide mission.

Another failed suicide attempt by Reiner

Any of the above, depending on the situation. I think Armin isn't really thinking of anything in particular, simply that having the option to explode something is better than not.

Armin could use them as a suicide necklace to threaten Eren. If Eren still cares for Armin he may stop the rumbling if he knows it will stop Armin from killing himself and possibly Mikasa.

dude there's been so many unexpected turns and plot twists right now I really don't want to make any assumption. But the plane idea is interesting.

i still think armin will fight eren with his colossal titan. I can only hope for something truly epic.

I think they'll be used for more than one of the above

Idk, but for sure they want to damage Eren's Titan to buy some time in doing something

If Eren doesn’t comply I’d assume they will be used to destroy his “nape” if they can even find it. Someone probably has to go on a suicide mission to do so.

Kamikaze Onyankopon like its written all over the poor fellas face,

Levi will suicide bomb Zeke to cut off Eren's connection to paths

make my brain explode hopefully since this plot is ridiculously bad

Only Armin (and Isayama) knows how the explosives will be used. I'm sure it will have something to do with stopping Eren.

Plan A: Blast Eren nape, but it will fail so Plan B: Kamikaze

Reiner will try to use the bombs to commit suicide and take Eren with himself

they'll probably kaboom zook with that idk (I missed my monke so so much)

They will be as useful as farting on Eren.

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF MIKASA AND ANNIE’S CONVERSATION? 1,665 responses

Mikasa and Annie have a heart to heart near the start of the chapter, after being rivals early in the story. The two most popular options were being in awe of the cuteness when Armin became the topic, at 34%, and just loving seeing these two characters interact, at 31.3%. 17.5% are wondering how they made the switch to friends so quickly, 9.5% view it as rehashing what’s already been talked about, and 7.8% are more interested in that Mikannie action.

Mikasa's reaction was so cute after realizing Annie has a thing for Armin.

The chapter was also surprisingly humorous, with Mikasa's reaction to learning Annie likes Armin having me burst out laughing.

The sudden closeness between Alliance members who used to be enemies, such as Mikasa/Annie, feel forced and unearned, and the extra Armin/Annie shipping is just unnecessary and a waste of panels when we are so close to the ending yet many things still need closure.

Aruani😍

Mikasa and Annie's conversation almost made me gag because I feel so sorry for Annie having to put up with the constant misunderstanding of her feelings. Annie is aromantic and Mikasa needs to sit down and respect that fact quite like Armin himself does.

I legit laughed out loud when reading Mikasa and Annie's chit chat. At 1 AM.

MIKASA TELLS ANNIE SHE HAS KEPT THE SCARF WITH HER. WHAT DO YOU THINK HER PLAN IS? 1,662 responses

The scarf has become an actual plot point as of late, with Louise stealing it and now this. Will it be important for the end game? 45.1% of you believe Mikasa will use it to try to see if the Eren she used to know, who gave it to her is still in there somewhere. 29.1% of you don’t think she has any particular plans as of yet. 15.2% think she’ll comfort Eren in it once they stop him, and 10.5% are putting their money down on the “She’ll use it to strangle Eren” option.

Mikasa need to understand the Eren she remembers is no longer coming back from this.

Mikasa is really a frustrating character... but I think it's on purpose that she keeps swinging from realizing who he really is (chapter 123) and still wanting to be with him (or rather the idealized version she has of him aka the ""old Eren""), because her whole character arc is to separate herself from Eren and coping with it."It's up to Mikasa whether or not she'll be a slave. If she decides to fight against her slave instincts, Eren will have no choice but to kill her since, as an Ackerman, Mikasa, is immune to the memory-fuckery.

In fact, Mikasa should just hang herself with Eren's scarf and the story would become infinitely better and women might finally have better representation. I have never liked Mikasa, but now I actively despise her. She is nothing more than an Eren simp as was revealed to us when she said she's still holding onto that threadbare rag of hers despite everything Eren has proven himself capable of doing. You know, that whole genocide thing that Mikasa herself barely survived in this very chapter while her Commander very much did not. "

I feel tired of people who make fun of Mikasa. She is the one who still believes in Eren's good side and doesn't see him as monster. Everyone else see Eren as devil, while Mikasa still keeps memories about kind Eren and believes that this "old Eren" still is somewhere there. He is the most important person in her life and she will not give up on him as fast as everyone think. She is not obsessed. She is aware of Eren's dark side, of his cruelty and everything he has been doing, but on the same time she will still keep trying to help him and show him that he is NOT the devil, he is not as horrible person as he thinks he is. Everyone are saying that HISTORIA saved him in the cave when he was in his dark moments. Maybe this time it will be Mikasa who will save him from his darkest nightmare.

I can't wait for Eren × Mikasa confrontation "

WHAT DO YOU THINK WILL HAPPEN WITH THOSE ON THE BOAT? 1,653 responses

The party has split in two, with one half going directly to Eren, and the other half…? Nearly half of you think that they’ll certainly end up doing something to help the alliance still. 21.8% think they’ll run into the survivors of Liberio, 17.9% think they will in fact be absent for most of the story no, and 11% think they’ll dock at Paradis and do something of import there.

Please isayama, please don’t add any more needless sideplots with the boat doing something

Could have done many alliance interactions/good-byes better. Reiner didn't seem to care for the kids, despite them being his motivation to live. Bert never mentioned. Annie/Armin had no discussion. What are the boat crew even going to do?

"Falco & co. WILL join the battle! At least he has to, because the Jaw Titan is the only one who can break through the Warhammer's hardening!

With them leaving Falco behind (and therefore the Jaw titan's power), I think the explosives may at some point be used if Even tries to shield himself using the Warhammer's power.

Anyone that thinks Annie, Falco and Gabi sailed off is an idiot.

The only thing I'm not too sure about is Annie, Gabi, Falco, Yelena and Kiyomi staying behind. I was every character to have their chance to shine in the final battle. Hopefully, Isayama will find a way to bring these characters back into the conflict.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT LEVI EQUIPPING HIMSELF FOR BATTLE? 1,661 responses

After being blown up and almost out of the story a year and a half ago, Levi is finally suiting back up to get a slice of someone or something, despite still being heavily injured and scarred. Almost half of the fandom, at 44.6% are excited for his upcoming role in the story, but find it hard to believe he’s ready to fight, as it hasn’t quite been a year and a half in their world. About a quarter, at 23.2% have been waiting for this moment to finally come for all that time. 15.1% want him to stay away from danger the way he has been, and 9.2% wish he would have just died all those chapters ago.

Kinda silly, but I'll roll with it.

Now that we know Levi is ready for battle, I think his role in the story at this point is for one final confrontation with Zeke (assuming Zeke is within Eren's Founding Titan body somewhere). There, Levi will kill Zeke once and for all to finally fulfill his promise to Erwin, but something tells me Levi will die shortly after he lands the killing blow on Zeke.

Beast Titan vs Levi Round 3

Can't wait till he's forced to team up with Zeke

He will go out in a blaze

Definitely going out with a bang. He’s done with life, it’s obvious he is just here now to complete an objective, he wants to go out strong because of the weight of the survey corpse members gave him. Everyone he has cared about has died. He wants make them proud in a sense, at least dying with pride, and finally getting to meet them again in the afterlife.

I think he should have died in the explosion BUT I think that to do that, he should have had a longer philosophical talk with zeke and overcome his erwin issues, AND THEN die

He’s survived this long- he’s definitely earned the rights to go out on his own terms.

His comeback to fight is just another asspull.

How can he even move, let alone fight? If he survives all of this I’ll be shocked.

I can only see a Pyrrhic victory. I'm scared.

Isayama still has the chance to have Levi die by Eren's hands. The entire story has been leading up to this. Levi was always right about Eren and the sweet irony is that Levi always fought and saw all of his comrades die for Eren only to get killed by Eren as well.

I don't know why people are angry at that. Levi is a soldier and is not a suicidal one. He has a definite role to play and I don't want him to sit around. He's been through much worse.

He is a liability, I don't see him surviving.

-Death flag initiated-

He ain't surviving this one, huh?

Good that he’s feeling better. But I don’t want him to die.

He’s going to make a final charge and die

The man can barely stand on his own, so I think fighting is pretty much out of the question. Really interested in seeing what a character who has always relied first and foremost on violence is going to do now that this has been taken away from him.

As a good commander (and letting annie stay) Hange or Armin had to tell him to stay in boat, like he s only going to kill himself against zeke if he crossed him

He'll be fine...right? RIGHT?!

he'll probably die in a suicide attack on the monke

I feel like this may be a death-sentence. Levi dying and finally getting the burden of killing Zeke off his chest is a likely/ and good way for his character arc to end.

I just hope he doesn't have a cliche death alongside Zeke.

He'll rest with his comrades soon

He will get more injured, then give a speech to mikasa about letting the man he loved die instead of becoming a monster, then he will die

Watching him makes my anxiety level raised to 100

He's gonna give monkey chan a thousand years of death two finger style

Please just let him rest, he's tired, I'm tired, we're all tired ffs

YELENA IS HOLDING FAST TO HER BELIEF IN THE EUTHANASIA PLAN AS THE ONLY WAY TO PEACEFULLY END THE CONFLICT. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT ZEKE’S PLAN IN HINDSIGHT? 1,620 responses

While the plurality of fans acknowledge Zeke’s plan is better than Eren’s (at 48.2%), only 7.7% say they agree in hindsight, and 5.8% always agreed with Zeke, for a combined 13.5%. This makes a total of 61.7% who would vote for it over Eren’s plan today. Interestingly, when Zeke’s plan was first revealed in 114, 76% voted for his plan when given the choice between that and rumbling the world. So after seeing the rumbling, the support for Zeke’s plan as an alternative has actually dropped.

I get it, Yelena’s something of an ideologue but the fact that she still thinks euthanasia is the way to go is sad

I originally thought forced euthanization was disgusting and now I’m hindsight it’s still disgusting and solves nothing.

I still hate it. The lesser evil doesn't mean it's an optimal solution. Would've kept Kiyomi's plan by sacrificing Historia and only attacking the military forces to keep them at bay.

Thinking with logic only, Zeke had a good plan, but if we put emotions and moral in to play, it's just horrible. I don't support it, not even now.

It's a terrible plan. Eren's plan is evil AF, but it's not stupid. Zeke's plan it's stupid. Imagine throwing your entire nation under the bus because your dad didn't hug you? Zeke's a loser.

Maybe so in this messed up world, but then again no. Both plans are awful, the answer to solving this question was to stop hatred in the first place and find a way to have a conversation with everyone. Clearing the air, stopping the rumors and fake news regarding Eldians being devils, etc.

Both plans are shit. 50 year plan + a partial Rumbling (in other words probably Armin's choice) is the most logical plan.

Denying children being born is denying a human being to grow and live their own live, and experience the world. I never accepted Zeke's plan and never will.

Depends whether you were born in Paradis or outside of Paradis.

Eren's plan is better. It ensures Eldians can survive and continue to grow. Zeke's plan just makes them die out. Me no likey.

50 year plan gang 50 year plan gang

Both plan suck.. But everything fair in love and war so... The winner was the one who right

There has to be some third option we/they just can't think of that doesn't involve genociding the entire planet *or enslaving another young woman (Historia in this case)

Zeke's plan was the lesser evil OF THESE TWO (Rumbling and Euthanasia). They should have found a third, peaceful option that doesn't kill anyone off.

“Evil is evil, Stregobor. Lesser, greater, middling, it's all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. I'm not a pious hermit, I haven't done only good in my life. But if I'm to choose between one evil and another, then I prefer not to choose at all.”

JEAN SEEMED RATTLED BY FLOCH’S FINAL WORDS. HOW DO YOU THINK THEY WILL AFFECT JEAN? 1,641 responses

We’ve seen Jean yearn for a peaceful life on Paradis, and Floch has tried to convince him to give in to that desire before. Did Floch’s dying words do anything to further affect Jean? About 69% of respondents say that we will see Jean think on them, but he’ll end up staying with his current convictions. Interestingly, among the 17.8% who think he will change his mind on helping the alliance, 12.9% think he’ll join Eren and actively oppose the alliance, vs. the 4.9% who think he’ll just abandon the mission like Annie.

After 127 no way is Jean leaving the Alliance. However, I think this will affect his resolve and affect whatever discussion they end up having over how to stop Eren.

Dies trying to avenge Mikasa

He was rattled by Floch's dying moments, as he was one of the last survivors from the Survey corps of Erwin's time

He'll single-handedly stop Eren by telling him how cringe his followers are

he's gonna hesitate when he shouldn't have and will die for it

I feel like it's not the words, but the actions--Floch is who Jean could have been if he didn't see past his own self-interest.

Floch died so his homeland could live. His noble death will inspire Jean to fulfill his duty as a soldier of ELDIA, and oppose the alliance. Thus, Floch will have helped Eldia one last time. Even after he died.

He's too coward to do something about it. Jean's arc was all about suppressing his own desires and keep moving forward; he's a slave of his sense of duty.

I smell another sacrifice coming.

I think it's too late for him to change his mind at this point. We're almost at the end. He'll move forward because that's what he promised Marco. He won't be able to look him and his comrades in the eye if he alters his stance.

WAS ARMIN THE BEST CHOICE AS COMMANDER? 1,639 responses

From Keith to Erwin, to Hange to Armin. Was that the right step to take in the line of succession? The majority, at 61.8% believe that Armin is the perfect choice, at least for this particular Eren scenario. Just over a quarter, at 26.5% are sticking with Marco saying Jean has the potential to lead. 11.7% are wishing Hange stayed in command instead.

I didn't like the way Hange died and how she left the commander role to Armin. He's probably the worst person to take the job, not long ago he was literally trying to kill himself (chapter 126) cause that's how insecure he is.

"I both believe Jean makes a better overall commander than Armin *and* that Hange's choice in this instant was the correct one.

Jean has more of a skill and flair for leadership. He is, as Marco once said, the every man which makes it easier to follow him. With his attitude, he can inspire others to follow his plans even if they do not closely know him. He also has some more confidence in himself. He doesn't have Armin's mind for crazy strategies, but he still can reasonably think of his feet and is willing to take hard decisions and sacrifices as they are needed. If the story was still like it had been earlier in the manga, with a big Survey corps and regular missions, he should be the commander.

People are arguing who ""deserved"" to be the commander between Armin and Jean, when it doesn't fucking matter because there are like 5 people left in ""old"" SC and they are all on a suicide mission. What *does* matter is that everything was pushed on poor Armin yet again, first Erwin was allowed to die and his legacy was put on him and Hange, who never asked for this, now Hange killed themselves too and left Armin to solve this shit by himself. I wish he would call out Levi, because his decision in Serumbowl is what led to this mess, but we'll probably not get that.

Jean shouldve be the commander but it's okay to be armin

Either Hange should've lived or Jean should've been the commander

Armin becoming Commander was probably the highlight of this chapter for me

I thought it was a good death for hange, but also kind of a combo of all of the above choices; their death seemed rushed just to make armin commander. I don’t hate armin, but I don’t think he should be commander, and it feels so much like isayama had NOTHING planned for hange ad commander, which was extremely disappointing. but at least hans is at peace lol

Armin as commander? Really? He has never really led troops in to battle. He is not a logistician or a tactician. He is only a good strategist, but even then he failed to plan for everything that Eren has so far done. Can you imagine him turning into a titan and attempting to direct everyone? He’ll kill them all or put them on fire by waving his arms. I’m so worried for him and for Jean too. Jean is suppose to be the next commander or why else is he even here?

A bit sad we didn’t get much time with her a commander, but she was a GOAT

A "You Tried" commander that was truly ineffective. Erwin should've been kept around.

Each Survey Corps Commander (current or former) all dedicated their hearts to protect humanity. If someone or something threatens their mission and their lives, they do what is necessary to uphold the mission, mainly giving up their lives in order to give time for their comrades to act. Their sacrifices affect their closest allies to the point that they have to carry on their mission by any means necessary.

Felt like a filler commander for Armin wish Hange had gotten to do more and be more successful

1- Armin isn't the new commander of the survey corps because the SC belongs to Paradise island and he & his group betrayed that place .

2- Armin is the new commander of the alliance .

Not sure of making Armin commander the best choice but mmm yeah, Isayama needed them out of the way to make a final Armin/Eren confrontation *sigh*

survey cops commander is the worst position you can find yourself at the moment. I can't even imagine what's on Armin mind right now

Armin does actually make the better leader. The problem in front of them is Eren. Even though he doubts himself right now, Armin has always been able to understand Eren and get through to Eren in a way others (and definitely not Jean) can't. He's also capable of thinking outside of the box in a manner that this situation needs. Though he's only now made commander, throughout the Rumbling arc, we've already seen that his closest friends look to him for leadership/plans. And while he still lacks self-confidence (though, who knows, maybe he'll get a special Levi talk??) a lot of his other leadership flaws (like his limited ability to command and inspire groups) are not relevant now because there isn't huge group of people anymore. There is just a handful of his friends left who already trust in his abilities. He doesn't need to inspire loyalty right now; that has already been built over years.

Narratively speaking the Alliance are the true successors of the SC, not the Jaegerist and the 15th commander is Armin, not Floch.

Hange should've stayed alive.

king jean commander jean ftw

COULD SOMEONE ELSE HAVE TAKEN CARE OF THE COLOSSALS IN PLACE OF HANGE? 1,621 responses

We’re losing a lot of veterans lately and suddenly. After Magath and Keith’s sacrifice a few chapters ago, was Hange’s necessary as well? The vast majority, at just over ¾ say that others could have technically taken the role, but Hange was still the best choice to stay behind, as morale would be drained much more by the commander sending others to their deaths.

A mix between love and hate. With Shadis' death (specially after Nile and Pixis) I thought that Isayama was judt getting rid of a veteran again. But Hange's death at least had her in character, and she was the one who deserved to see her comrades the most.

At first it was nice to see them sacrificing themselves but then I noticed i didn't really care much. It was too sudden and a copypaste of Magath's death

Hange died because the situation called for it. She did what she had to do because of Floch. I feel like the anime will make it much clearer that Hange HAD to die.

Shoulda been Reiner bruh

I think Armin could use his titan, stand on the water and push avery titan that was going to destroy the Angar but anyway

Shadis' death left a bad taste in my mouth since Magath could've handled the deed on his own. Shadis didn't need to die. Hanji too could've sent someone else in her stead; she is (was) the commander, a veteran, she was necessary. Not saying that I would've wanted Jean or Connie to die or anything, but sending one of these two or Mikasa to hold back the titans would've made sense.

WHAT IS THE TRUTH BEHIND THE SCENE WHERE HANGE MEETS THE DEAD SCOUTS? 1,649 responses

The scene where Hange, after having died, seems to wake up to meet the rest of the deceased Survey Corps members was a scene unlike any we’ve seen before in this manga. Isayama hasn’t shied away from the depressing reality of death before, so what exactly is happening here? 45.9% of respondents think it was strange enough that something real was happening, Paths, afterlife… something. 30.3% don’t buy it being real and think it was a symbolic scene, perhaps to lessen the pain of Hange’s death. 23.8% think it was purely in Hange’s mind, a euphoric experience to lessen the physical shock of death. Whatever it was, it was remarkable.

Purely symbolic, though I don’t mind if it has to do with Paths

The comrades scene its a metaphore of the relief she had sacrificing herself, being useful just like her comrades and friends before her.

Probably Valhalla, would be pretty badass if it was confirmed in the end to actually be Valhalla or something.

THE AOT AFTER LIFE IS REAL AND MY BBYS LIVE AGAIN 🤧😭

The author was trying to Placate the audience over killing off a popular character

The characters that died may have their happy ending in heaven

The dead comrades have always been watching over the living.

We only see Eldians, it very well could be a connection to Paths. And it seems like the people you go to are people you knew well and had a strong connection with. ALSO I'M HAPPY WE GOT A GLIMPSE OF SASHA and seeing Erwin for most likely the final time is cool too.

Afterlife real. Dead characters keep on living. Shifters go to PATHS, probably. Expect a specific someone to appear :)

Delusions of a naive and idealistic character. Hange saw what Hange wanted to see.

Dunno, but i REALLY hope that was just Isayama softening the blow for Hanji fans and what not, otherwise having a true afterlife would render all deaths and racrifices pointless and would ruin the whole theme of survival the manga has.

Eren may be using PATHS fuckery to comfort Hange in her death.

I believe the final scene did happen as Instructor Keith is seen in the back and Hange should have no knowledge of his death.

I don't think Isayama particularly cares for fan service in any regard (though Annie x Armin might signal a change), so I don't think he'd dedicate that to make Hange's death any less tragic. I think there's something to it.

NOW THAT WE’VE SEEN THAT IT’S POSSIBLE FOR OUR DEAD FAVORITE CHARACTERS TO STILL HAVE THEIR SOULS, WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE REST OF THE STORY? 1,621 responses

If these ghostly figures do make another appearance in the final confrontation, what on earth will they do?! 43.1% say they don’t matter damn it, because they’re not even real. 32.2% think the dead characters might be alive in some kind of afterlife, but it’s just an interesting part of the SnK universe. 18.8% think that PATHS will make its infinite fuckery known once again, and 6% think that those ghosts are going to make a difference standing up to Eren – how is he gonna fight against a million dead guys, huh?

The most interesting part about the data we got was a surge in responses for only this and the previous question. About 300 entries to the poll which only wanted to submit that “It was purely symbolic and Hange did not experience this,” and “I ain’t afraid of no ghosts. It was just in Hange’s mind or symbolic.” Now that is curious indeed. For someone who ain’t afraid of ghosts, I’m sensing some real trepidation here!

They likely will not interact with nor affect the coming events, as their roles have already played out.

" Valhalla’s battle-honed residents are there by the will of Odin, who collects them for the perfectly selfish purpose of having them come to his aid in his fated struggle against the wolf Fenrir {Fenir had been previously associated with Eren by fans} during Ragnarok – a battle in which Odin and the einherjar are doomed to die."

Setup for Reiner to converse with his fallen comrades.

Afterlife. Not convinced it's significant in any way, but would love it to be

An afterlife would be completely unnecessary for the story and make things needlessly more complicated for little reason/narrative payoff.

Feels like a set up for an ending where even if everyone dies they can be together in the afterlife

Mobuhan is fucking real

Hange is in heaven, surrounded by everyone who she's fought alongside. She can't help the alliance in any way, but she can watch them win. And they will win.

They are bystanders.

CARE TO EXPOUND YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS SCENE AND WHAT IT MEANS? 611 responses

Through PATHS the thought of 'Afterlife' is possible. And if it isn't, then it's nice to hallucinate something good while they're dying.

Is hange really dead?

it means ERWIN KNOWS WHAT'S IN THE BASEMENT AYEEEE

IT MEANS ERWIN GETS MORE LINES WOOO

y'know how from the start there's been the idea that the survey corps have been making sacrifices that no one will ever care about? this is a rebuke to that. Hange, like every other survey corps member, is watched over by their own dead and now Hange gets to be a part of the ghost crew that watches over the corps and occasionally appears to freak out the commander. I also tend to dislike the idea that this manga has a perfectly happy afterlife because it cheapens the goal they're fighting for and comes dangerously close to validating Reiner's attempt.

You should have given a choice of this is symbolic. Ya'll should really read more fiction if ya'll think this is really the afterlife ffs

Afterlife makes all the deaths useless and less impactful, hope it's not a thing.

All the Eldians have the ability to “stay” alive after they die thanks to the paths dimension.

All this suffering to get an afterlife?!?

Although I do think that an afterlife could be possible, I don't think it'll affect the story. It may come back during the epilogue, but I can't figure out how Isayama could use it for the main story plot.

Anything is possible, either it's Hange's own hallucinations or something real. Though i would like for it to be smth tangible, (esp since a clue was that Hange didn't know Shadis died but he appeared anyways). idk I'd just like for everyone to be happy and see each other again 😭

Beetroot alive in PATHS and he's gonna kill Eren

Being dead is happier than living in this world, such an uplifting moral Isayama

Both Hange and Erwin thought about their comrades and "saw" them when their role was weighing on them. I don't think I have nothing against it being real, but I like the symbolism. Some things are cooler when I don't overthink.

Perhaps it will be less edgy to see so much death if there is an afterlife in SnK, but use the opportunity well! For me it was a gift to see the veterans again: Moblit caring for Hange, Erwin being in peace, Mike being there after the impact that he gave us…

every time "ghosts" have been shown in attack on titan they've just been visual depictions of the character's mental state.

Everyone who begged to see Erwin in another chapter can finally be at peace

Expansion of what chapter 85 already implied

I don't care, I'm just happy we get to see our babies again.

I think it is some sort of a special place in paths because they are standing on where Hange died, that's really weird if if it's afterlife, if it's afterlife they should be in a paradise or a peaceful place, but no. It's weird if they are all ghosts like almost the survey corps are in that area

I think it means that every dead soldier have meaning and we shouldn't forget them

I think it shows that their deaths weren’t in vain and they are watching over their comrades. It was a truly moving scene.

I think it's symbolic. Honestly with all the discourse around this scene I am not sure if it was even worth it to include.

I don't believe she's dead. We have an unexplained memory shard of her without glasses (ch130) and one of the panels this chp looks like she lost her glasses.

if levi could hurry up and join them that´d be great

If Yams tries to pull a kny I'm gonna rip him a new one. This is bullshit and he should stop before people believe there is an afterlife in aot. This doesn't fit into the story he created for years. But he is willing to kill his own world in hopes to get some readers back from stealing smth from a way more successful manga. It's pathetic.

Im still in doubt if the afterlife scene really happened since erwin is still missing his arm while the others are just fine. I hope its all just in hange's head and that someone from the boat could rescue her.

It might be the Path. Because just like Eren Kruger said, "All Eldians is connected to what we say the coordinate." This maybe a paradise or a heaven that Eren or someone with the founding titan and royal blood can control.

It only serves to dramatize hange's death. No shit, I was crying like hell when I read this scene😭😭 other than that it's just like other deaths we've seen before, only to set a dramatic and brutal tone for a thriller series

The remaining of Hange blood in the floor indicates she/he was already dead, so no hallucinations in her last moments. Symbolic? Doesn’t sound like isayama. The only symbolic stuff in manga concerns the cult to Ymir. Has to be a connection through paths.

They really gave their hearts to humanity, they were all incredible, and it's really nostalgic to see them in this way

This scene wasn't here for no reason. It just felt different from any other vision we've seen, and I believe it'll come into play later on.

This was Hange's imagination because she saw the dead ones in the same shape she saw them alive last time like Mike and Nanaba. Erwin too(without one hand)

those who died are finally set free

You just died and entered spectator mode

FAVORITE PIECK MOMENT THIS CHAPTER? 1,601 responses

For a chapter not focused on Pieck plotwise, there sure were a lot of short moments with her. The two most popular options being her shooting down Hange’s ask for a ride with no hesitation, and vowing to give her comrade’s sacrifices meaning. A moment of meme and a moment of serious nature, perfectly balanced.

Idk but Pieck is a bad bitch

Pieck sounds like she may turn on everyone in the end but I hope not.

pieck finger = some kind of marleyan erwin smith

Pieck is gonna DIE 😭

Pieck isn't really interesting....and she doesnt do any Import to the others....Just for Reiner maybe

Pieck will sacrifice herself for the sake of her fallen comrades. (that's what I think)

WHICH “FRINGE” THEORY DO YOU BELIEVE IN? 1,597 responses

Despite the manga racing towards its conclusion crack theorists have had no shortage of new material, most recently with the bizarre amount of focus given to birds and Hange’s warm welcome to the afterlife. We wanted to find out which of these fringe theories have a broader appeal.

Nearly half the fandom is no fun at all, selecting “These theories are all just cope” (49%). For the rest of us “Birds are spies” apparently requires the least amount of tin foil since just over a third of the fandom thinks it has potential (35.4%). “The ghosts are real” (16.7%), Historia’s pregnancy is fake (13.7%) and the “The birds ARE the ghosts” (8.7%) didn’t fare quite as well.

Overall a great chapter. But this whole Theory of there being an afterlife in Attack on Titan is utterly ridiculous and extreme coping.

The afterlife thing was completely garbage and was easily the worst part of the chapter.

I believe that afterlife exists. It has nothing to do with paths, titan powers or religions. It is just afterlife, where souls of dead soldiers may find a peace. The world of SnK was always "cruel but also beautiful". Cruel - because innocent people die, but beautiful - because there is still a hope for happiness for their souls.

the birds...work for the bourgeoisie

I hope it's all symbolism but these "dead people" motive have been weirdly often mentioned in the story. People asking Erwin if he thinks that "dead have no regrets" in season 1. Levi Ova called " No regrets". Erwin asking Levi if he thinks that dead are watching them in S.3. There is also role Valhalla plays in Ragnarok in Mythology...

WHICH MOMENT OF LEVITY BEFORE THE DOOM OF THIS CHAPTER WAS YOUR FAVORITE? 1,633 responses

THAT face from Mikasa was the highlight for 28.2% of you. I don’t think she’s ever been that stunned. 22.8% loved that one of Hange’s priorities was getting to ride the Cart Titan in the future, and Pieck not having it. 17.6% enjoyed Levi being the butt of a joke even as Hange was about to meet their doom, and 14.5% appreciated Levi throwing his fans a finger bone. Annie talking with Reiner about the good old days earned a laugh for 13.3% of you, and 3.5% liked seeing Levi throw shade at Yelena’s kinks.

the "what the heck" face on mikasa's face after realising annieés feelings made my day.LOL

Levi x Yelena is cute and soon to be canon

Poor Levi. He cearly is still not recovered but his comment on being forgotten was a nice knock on the fourth wall.

Uh... you feeling okay, Yelena?

"I AM GONNA KILL THE BEAST TITAN" "Okay grandpa, now let's get you to bed"

DESCRIBE THE CHAPTER IN ONE WORD 1,065 responses

I get the feeling this chapter was a little upsetting for many. But then again, three over the top five words were the same as last month! Such is the life of an SnK fan. The top five words this time were:

Pain [143] Sad [56] Heartbreaking [29] Emotional [24] Sacrifice [20]

For those of you still thinking this is a cookbook, it's obvious you're making soup for your souls. Tangy, Cheesy, Hot, Chile, and YAMS must be the dish that represents this chapter.

WHAT ARE YOU MOST HOPING TO SEE NEXT CHAPTER? 1,634 responses

Are we actually about to see the final confrontation?! I can hardly believe it, but 48.6% of you are goddamn ready for it. 17.9% still want to see Historia’s own POV (what, weren’t you satisfied with that one convoluted flashback?), and 15.5% would like to see some kind of discussion before the alliance launches into an undoubtedly insanely reckless maneuver. Also, Zeke had better come back soon or I’ll forget to put him in the options again!

girl i wanna see eren with the alliance

Next chapter I hope to see Zeke, you didn't put the option

We really really need to see Historia. She's been missing from the narrative for so long, and the flashback crumbs from Eren's memories explained nothing.

Surprises ..!!! More of them...flashback about carl fritz ...zeke ...more about eren ...we wanna more important moments and facts

I'd like to know what happened with Zeke. Is he dead? Is he merged with Eren? Is he still back on paradis? What's going on?

Alright, where is Zeke? I've lost my patience.

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 1,492 responses

Reddit maintains the lead this month, with just a few percentage points over Twitter, which takes second. A bit behind Twitter is “In real life”, which goes to show that Attack on Titan fans are total chads with social lives. Stay safe and don’t die though! After real life comes Discord, with 22.3% of the vote. Trailing Discord, in order, is Instagram, Youtube, “I don’t”, Facebook, 4Chan, the wiki, Snapchat, and Steam. Much to my dismay, this question was made multiple choice this month, which MEANS that, in theory, some of you could have ~erroneously~ voted Snapchat. Either that’s the case, or you lot are multiplying far faster than I’d anticipated… I’m going to elect to believe the former on account of not wanting to believe the latter.

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE CHAPTER? 497 responses

What the fuck is doing the survey corps

where is that goddamn monke

WHERE IS THE MONKE

snkpolls admins please hold me

Floch with wet hair looks cool.

Glad to see yams isnt afraid to kill characters, I was getting worried.

I have a love/hate relationship with Floch, and while I disagree with the rumbling, his last words got to me and it was sad.

I honestly found Floch's death to be tragic, even though he was a bastard, he still believed he was fighting for Paradis's wellbeing

I laughed when random Floch appeared, but I hate that his actions lead to Hange deciding to sacrifice herself.

Even though the manga it's coming to an end Isayama really gives us details which is interesting in order to understand the storyline but I'd like more action

Even though we didn't see him this chapter, Hanji's sacrifice took me from "Eren must be stopped" to "I WILL strangle Eren to death with my own two hands". Dude's ground-breaking idea of rumbling got Hanji killed and he will pay for that.

Everything about this chapter was just so breathtaking. I Loved this chapter so much it was just amazing. Words can’t even describe how I feel. Only thing I didn’t like was floch shooting the plane. God answering these just makes me wanna cry.

Also Bert mentions! We're finally going to see him soon and have a long-awaited RB-union!

REALLY GLAD I FOUND AOT BEFORE IT ENDS , I wish Annie and armin ends up, and jean and mikasa 👀👀👀 dont judge me please. It really gave more insight on the feelings of the alliance now.

WHY ISAYAMA, WHY?!

Why no Bertholdt :(

Why no one is happy?

I feel like the fandom would've broken if only an Alliance member died, so to make things equal, we lost a Yeagerist and an Alliance member.

EREN IS A VILLAIN

FLOCH DID NOTHING WRONG

Listen. I couldn't stop crying, like UGLY sobs, from the moment Hange says they're gonna "do it" and then they become all "Armin Arlert" and "I hereby name you" and then I was DONE. Buckets of tears, squealing noises, repeating "no no no" while rereading the same panels over and over again. I Loved Hange. I loved them so much. They were THAT kind of weird, they were passionate, smart, funny... I loved them, but I love how they got to choose how to die, and when, and especially knowing their death will be useful for the others. They died fighting brilliantly, and I will love them, and they will inspire me forever. Farewell Hange, have a nice time in the afterlife with all your fallen comrades, knowing you can stand tall and proud among them.

No one can force Annie to stay. But I can't believe everyone's just fine with this. The world is fckin' ending and only by a miracle they can win, there's NO WAY those people are compromised to the gravity of the situation if they're all just "yeah, Annie is a titan and she's out, let's get the other titan too because he's a kid, Pieck I thought you were coming to the ship too?", because it really sounds like they're not even trying at this point. Is this a walk in the park or the destiny of all people in the world?? :/

Levi’s “see you later, Hange” reminds me of Mikasa’s “see you later, Eren” in the first chapter. A foreshadow of Eren’s eventual demise?

There still isn't a third realistic alternative.

Hange sacrifice was the greater good and I hope the alliance makes the most of this chance, For those they have lost. For those they can yet save

Hange knows their time is near and they are correct.

There was no need to kill off Hange, felt forced and rushed

this armin/annie stuff had better go somewhere plotwise after wasting cringy panels on it that could have been dedicated to less rushed interactions between other alliance members. might as well just kill the alliance off at this point and let reiner finally die, since their chapters are such a drop in quality.

This chapter and the previous two are perfect reminders that we're at the point of no return in the final arc. While I want to see some good moments, twists, and any loose ends tied by now (Zeke, WHERE ARE YOU?!!), it's all going to be all doom and gloom from here on out. Whether Eren or the Alliance succeeds depends on how these next chapters turn out; Whoever wins, bloodshed will continue until the Rumbling ends.

I realised Hange probably has huge survivors guilt and that she wanted to die, and wanted to make her old friends proud(who are dead)

They all really cared for Hange a lot and that's sweet.

They should have a concrete plan on how to stop eren if they could

Things are gonna get wild.

Great chapter, and I'm really excited to see how the Alliance and Eren confrontation plays out. This ending has the potential to be absolutely legendary.

Half of the characters have no hope in what they are doing (the "leaders") but do that because "ThEY hAD tO" and another half will makes me sad because they dont care about eren plan really (not speaking about gaby and falco)

Hange could have exited the story in another way, I guess.

Hange's death should have been more dramatic.

Hange's death was handles perfectly and the chapter had it's fair share of humour.

Hange's death was rushed, could've been better handled. Floch's selfless death was the only high point, and maybe LH being semi-confirmed.

Honestly, I don't hate Hange but I wish she had lived to see the consequences of her betrayal of Paradis, by putting her own feelings and morals over her own people's wellfare; for better or worse, her actions will have huge repercussions on the entire island and she should be there to take responsibility over the inevitable fallout. Even though she never tried to avoid responsibility over her choices, and I genuinely respect her for sacrificing herself over her ideas, it honestly feels to me like death was an easy way out from having to deal with Paradis' fate (SPECIALLY if the Valhalla stuff is real) while leaving Armin to clean up her mess.

Levihan is real

i expected sex on the ship or aruani huge/kiss/touch

Honestly, I'm just following it because I got used to reading a chapter every month, but the story is terrible now. Hange's death only served to confirm that Isayama intends to have a 'final battle' between childhood friends, nothing unexpected.

hope we get more from Jean

Hope we now start going into the final confrontation cause this chapter seemed setup to that.

As I've said before, I'll miss Hange. RIP you absolute legend.

Hopefully we get to see historia

Hoping for more Hanji backstory.

I don’t need a heart to live

I don’t see how this story can have any sort of a happy ending

I dont see a possible ending where all these characters can live the rest of their lives in peace but oh well

This chapter dropped massive death flags on Armin and Pieck. These two aren't going to last. Yelena is probably dead from compartment syndrome next chapter.

This chapter honestly makes me more scared for Levi because I was hoping he would get the kind of ending that Hange got. Now we just have to wait and wonder about how much more pain Isayama is going to put him through.

ZEKE WHEN ?????? I MISS YOU

I’m frustrated with the direction the story is going in. Armin being made commander, Hange dying, Annie being brought back just to confess to Armin and then be sidelined, Mikasa being the one to kill Floch, it all just seems to make little narrative sense. I don’t feel like we’re building to a clever twist, it all feels capricious and random

After comparing Hange’s death in the manga to Erwin’s death in the manga, I can safely say that Hange’s death was better. Hange’s had comedy like her complaining about how hot the CTs were and of course that line she said to Pieck, it was sad with the Levi and Hange moments and the chapter’s conclusion, and it was epic with her killing 3-4 Colossal Titans, getting scorched to death and her dead body falling until she got trampled in the Rumbling. Erwin’s was just epic with bringing the entire Survey Corps going down with him. If Mappa does well with the anime, this will break the internet for sure and this death will be remembered.

bruh my favorite character just fucking died

It was a quick way for removing another veteran. I feel that the vets sacrifice their lives too easily. They see their own existance like it was some rpg game and they were going to go back to life after while. First Magath and Shadis decided to commit heroic suicide, now Hange decided to leave this world "just like that"/ C'mon, people don't give up with their lives so fast..

Oh, and this chapter made me start shipping levihan!

characters stop dying challenge

This and next chapter are the calm before the storm. And once that storm comes, this is going to end up as either a great story or a perfect story. Also, what the heck happened to Zeke? I need answers on that matter.

At this point the only way for this story to end in a satisfying manner is for Eren to kill everyone, successfully finish the Rumbling and save his people.

Aún estoy llorando.

I feel Hange should have been given more space to make a bigger impact as a commander. It’s like, Erwin always made gambles that magically worked out for him in the grand scheme of things (for the most part and in a group with a horrible survival rate like the SC no less) but for whatever reason Hange just stuck their thumb up their butt and twirled the whole time. Sometimes making one character smart results in everyone else only being allowed to have one shared brain cell. Overall I liked Hange a lot but they were done dirty. And blaming Eren for everything? Lol Hange. You can put your clown nose on now.

Overall best leader? Jean. Best leader for this particular set of circumstances? Armin.

I can't wait until the Alliance realize their futile efforts and come face to face with the reality that, Eren has power over the memories of all subjects of Ymir and can control their titan shifting.

Isayama just want to kill everyone,isn't he? In every chapter we've got deaths this is just depressing. Isayama I respect you but I hate you but I respect you but I hate you.

I cried buckets while reading it, so props to Isayama for that! :)

I cried when Floch died and I laughed when Hange died .

I don't have words for that. I am just lucky enough to be able to witness this work while

Pain. So much pain. Levihan pain. Aruani pain... *cries for a week while preparing self for more tears in the near future*

i just want everyone to be friends again😭

Jean has not been about stopping Eren from the get-go. I think we are up for a MAJOR revelation about his own involvement in Eren’s plans.

Hange should be survived

Hange should've not died in this chapter since we still do not know the clear plan of the alliance. Their death was written in a hurry, not as epic as Erwin.

Hange was my favorite character. But, as much as I am sad to see her go, her last moments were pretty epic, I am looking forward to see how it will affect the rest of the story.

Hange wasn't a good commander no matter how much her fans cry about it. her being a good character is another thing altogether.

My babies Yelena, Pieck, Reiner, Gabi, and Falco deserve the world.

Hange's manner of death, in her own terms fighting to save others, is my favorite so far.

Hanji death was unnecessary and Floch death only made Allience look worse then they already are

0/10 no Zeke

Jean is the only one who undestands eren and Floch

Jean never really supported the Alliance, he will try to reason Eren's plan isn't all that bad.

Jean will see Flochs words as a possible option but i dont see him going through with opposing The Alliance. He made his choice when he joined them.

(THE DEAD SPEAK LMAOOO) I really liked this chapter but it’s still horrible and traumatizing like the 131 (wait actually the 131 is way more horrible 😭)

Amazing art as always.

Amazing yet sad chapter since I respected both hange and falco and to see them die was pretty sad.

ANNIE AND ARMIN FOREVER. I want her to be free to be soft and caring and to have someone who loves and adores her. I love this dynamic and I think it’s a good foil to Eren and Historia

ANNIE IS THE BEST GIRL!

I want Reiner to live on as the clinically depressed sole survivor.

i’m still broken. hange and sasha were my comfort characters✌🏻😭

Idc but your quiz suck

Idk its just i'm pretty sad about hange's death cuz she was one oof my top waifus

One of my favorites ✊😔 rip Hange

One ship. I just want ONE CANON SHIP by the end of this, Isayama. JUST ONE. Is it really too much to ask, man. I've already given you plenty of my tears to sip on so idk what more you want from me...

Only Armin, Mikasa, Levi and Reiner will survive.

OUCH

Please stop making Levi suffer be it a final rest or a peaceful life anything PLEASE

Please, don't let anyone else die :(

Plot wise it was shit, but I love it for the drama

POGGERS

Poor Levi. Everyone important to him was taken away. Also, HANGE GOAT.

Poor Reiner.

rest in peace Hange "nonbinary icon" Zoe

rest in peace king, now is in Eren hand to keep giving meaning to your life

Really was good. Hange went out in a great way.

Surprised Floch didn't end up killing anyone, especially no named engineers, Yelena or Connie.

The way Mikasa shot the grappling hook at Floch’s throat was like how Levi killed an MP by shooting their throat during Uprising. Ackermans can access the battle experience of other Ackermans through Paths – Mikasa learnt that move from Levi.

I would think that this chapter should have gotten into more interactions between Armin and Annie, because i feel as though their relationship should be explored a bit further. Given that we know that both do like each other, it should be seen on how these two handled their possibly last goodbyes.

I'm just gonna let it flow

I'M NEVER GETTING OVER HANJI'S DEATH

Hange is one of the most well-written characters of a manga abounding with them. I love the way they always stayed true to their ideals without wavering, despite all their doubts about their suitability as Commander. Their open-mindedness, humour and love for knowledge make them truly special, and their most quintessential line must be this one from chapter 127: "'Just bringing freedom to this island is enough for me'. Do you think a single one of [the dead Survey Corps] would be so narrow-minded as to say that?" Chills. Very glad they chose Armin as their successor as well before taking down the colossals. They will be missed.

I'm quite curious about Armin's next moves. He is the commander now after all. Also, wondering what Levi is going to do now.

I'm really curious about the weapon that Yelena brought up to the alliance

i get the feeling that annie has had all the closure she needs and she’s gonna die but at least she might pass on her power to gabi ? either way i’ll be devastated to see her go

I HATE it that Hanji had to die, but loved the way she got her heroic moment. It's a love/hate chapter for me.

I have fears of Annie to die

I hope Levi lives just so he can be the most tragic character in AOT.

I hope soon, eren can stop all of this thing

I it wasn’t for the spoilers, Hange’s death would have break my heart.

I just hope Levi found his peace and die, please. He's already lost Hange, please don't make him suffering more.

I just thought it was impressive that this was one of the three moments in the whole story that actually made me ugly cry (Other two were Hannes' death and Serumbowl)

The more i think on Hanges death the more i like/understand it.

The sad looks on Levi and Hanji's faces are enough to say thousands of unspoken words. Nuff said.

Reiner is immortal

reiner looked hot af

This beast of a man, how many hours did he spend nearly drowning with a wounded arm? I got to really care about him even if his ""political"" choice was the worst. I just wanted him to have a dignified end and he had (even if Jean wasn't the one to do it). And the vignette... Perfect. In the end, he really fought as the devil he needed so much, no matter their identity. Relax, honey. Now you're safe from Eren's bullshit.

i miss hanji

I need HISTORIAAAA

I need more PATHS and I smell it coming

...i´m tired.

The Survey Corps never actually fought for humanity prior to the Rumbling, only against it. Hange even states this irony in chapter 89. The "well, the Corps was always fighting for humanity" rationalization is just disingenuous cope that ignores everything that got revealed with the basement and, by extension, the plot itself.

Super based

I really just want to see how this ends already.

I still can't believe Hange died. And to think that Levi's got no one else in his life anymore breaks my heart. I've always think that Levi and Hange should be together until the end. Not shipping them tho. I don't if it's platonic or romantic,but they love and care for each other. And Levi realising that his only friend is going to die and his eyes turn dark like an abyss really makes me feel like broken in half. And that dedicate your heart scene..oh my god I can't. And Hange still got some nerves to joke around at time really made me goes "HANGEEE-SANN!!"༼;´༎ຶ ۝ ༎ຶ༽

Floch's final moments were sorely needed to remind us just how human he really is. He didn't care about ruling the country or destroying the alliance. All he wanted was for his people and the island to survive, and he felt the alliance was putting that in jeopardy so he did what he thought he had to do.

Isayama keeps killing my favorite characters

I liked the chapter but it felt unnecessary Floch probably should have died before the boat left and Hange was killed off to lighten the cast and make Armin commander. Hange and Levi probably could have died/stayed in the forest.

R.I.P. in horny titan jail

I like this manga. Very much so ❤

#snk polls #snk poll #snk chapter 132 #snk poll results

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acuriouslilthing · 4 years ago

Text

Umbrella Academy S2 R a n t

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~SPOILERS~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Note: This is totally my opinion. Don’t like, don’t read. Also, I haven’t read any of the comics. This is all based on the Netflix series. Please don’t attack me.

I’d say, season 2 was a jumble. It was quite dizzying. The characters had many ups and downs in developments. The transitions were so w t f. There were too many arcs. The relationships were. . . And the plot had such a similar theme to the first season. With that, let’s dive in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHARACTERS

I’ll go into the characters each in a bit but here’s an overview. The characters were sort of a mess? I’d say in terms of the main characters, Allison, Vanya and Ben were the best (Ben wasn’t even there frequently). The worst being our Luther and Klaus? (Don’t get me wrong he’s one of my favorite characters but I think this season did him quite dirty?)

-Number 1/Luther: MOON BOY!!! Yeah no I really didn’t enjoy watching him this season. Actually scratch that I didn’t enjoy watching him in season 1 either. It’s nothing against his daddy issues, I’m sure most if not all of the main characters have them. It’s just how he deals with it? His want for a father figure goes on to a mafia rich guy named “Jack” who he got acquainted with after getting stuck. I’m all for finding father figures who’d treat you better than the original but seriously? Lmao we don’t even see Jack after abandoning him for one lost fight. Which I guess parallels to Mr Hargreeves abandoning him but weren’t we supposed to let Luther develop? Idk, He’s just such a lost puppy. As well as his is addiction for Allison. It’s just so unhealthy I c a n ‘ t. I just couldn’t see his development. Hell, he disagrees for saving the world then goes on to do random ass stuff that is so unnecessary. I visibly groaned whenever he was on screen. Not caring about the apocalypse? Fine. Getting high with Elliot? oKaY. Telling Diego to find the siblings while he tries to coax Five, only to fall asleep? WHATEVER. Just, why did they have to make him so useless sometimes. The scene where he was with both young and old Five, he just bullshitted around. LIKE I’M SORRY LUTHER BUT PLEASE. His power was quite confusing too? He got shot by the bullet but survived a nuclear missile huh?? Anyways, the actor playing him did a great job. There were scenes I really just wanted to sigh but Luther looked so cute like a lost puppy.

-Number 2/Diego: In the first few episodes, I was extremely iffy with him. Some of it came from the fact that season 1 Diego was just so ;-;. Anyways, his obsession to save Kennedy was a bit out of hand. I get it, he wanted to save a life he knew that was in trouble, especially one so important. But I wish he stopped to think first. I mean, he chose that over the end of the world HAHA. Mm though I suppose I think I started enjoying watching him more when he reunited with Mother? Speaking of the mother, his interactions with her were so cute. He loves her so much and just seeing her there alive..I don’t know he was more sympathetic. That Team Zero shit was so sweet even if it didn’t pull through. He became much sweeter though still an idiot. As always, he had daddy issues too and I wish we dwelled more into that. Seeing him vulnerable was nice. Also him entering the commission was so badass?? Like damn. I guess his character grew a bit more this season which I’m satisfied with.

-Number 3/Allison: I loved her so much this season. She was such a badass queen. There were rarely scenes I’d facepalm at. I think it’s because Ray brought out a much better side in her. She was the most stable of all the siblings but I don’t think that says much. Her marriage was a bit out of hand at one point, I’m glad she was able to fix it. HOWEVER, the scenes where she abused her power was very irritating. It was never mentioned again. They brought it up but didn’t do anything with it. That can be highly used against black people as a whole. She did that in a room full of white people and I can only think of the consequences that could leave for their movement. Or it will go unaddressed. But I hope that isn’t the case.

-Number 4/Klaus: I love this man. He’s one of my favorite characters as a whole. But. . . what the fuck happened this season? It’s like all his development by the end of season 1 was just tossed out the window. He was sober and although he didn’t like it, he was one of the ones who kept trying to bring their siblings to the problem. It’s just his sober self in season 2 just gave me vibes of his drunk self in season 1. I guess it’s more on his personality and who he is but it was so interesting to see him when he was trying. Instead, I watched him lead a cult. It shows that he’s really not the leadership kind because he doesn’t know what he’s doing with himself, better yet how is he going to lead a cult? I guess he needed some way to survive but damn. Also I thought Dave, if not his siblings, was going to be his first priority. I know he ended up finding Dave already but why was he after the cult. Klaus half the time he didn’t do anything. There was a big waste of power for Klaus because he wasn’t even able to use his to full capacity. There was that one shot where he was falling and caught by other ghosts which was the only time other ghosts were seen. The only time he used his power. The season 1 ending had such an OP Klaus but it led me to expect more from him this season. Like, remember that point where they were trying to reach Vanya but it was from Allison to Diego to Klaus to Ben. The part when it was Klaus’s turn, I really think he could’ve used his powers to have the ghosts push him. He was giving himself the talk and everything and then he just flew back only for Ben to just stare. And as seen, Ben wasn’t affected by the whoosh the ghosts thing could’ve worked. He ended up feeling a bit like a plot device for Ben this season. I really hope in season 3, he’ll be able to develop his powers and develop himself as a character. Also for the record, I cannot believe he didn’t tell anyone of Ben?? I remember that clip with the “Klaus, is Ben here?” and he responded with ghosts can’t time travel and jazz. I THOUGHT THAT WAS JUST A JOKE?? But he ended up n o t telling AT ALL. Like I love you Klaus but your brother misses your family too. I was just so frustrated at him this season.

-Number 5/Five: This boy is one of my other favorites. He’s just so fun to watch. I guess it does with the amount of times he warps and uses his powers. His development on his powers were 10/10. In terms of personality, he’s still the same old grumpy pants but the amount of times I wanted to reach the screen and shake him I swear. I know he rushes so much but I remember he was watching a stripper or singer or something in the place where Luther was and was that really the time? He needs to tell his siblings before rushing head first. Funny how he keeps saying let’s think of a plan but as soon as he has one he goes with it. The Reginald Hargreeves plan wouldn’t even be able to go if not for the invitation. I swear this boy always has something going on which is why it’s so fun to watch him all the time. He just wants to save his family. And he’s just throwing hands every time a plan fucks up it’s funny and then he starts a new one. I’m sure he blames himself a lot for getting his family stuck. I wish he had time to develop his mental state. But I understand he was busy all the time. Though to be honest, Allison is probably the only stable one, they all needs help. Hmm I’d say he grew a bit more from the first season, though again the first few episodes of this one were sorta infuriating because he was basically repeating what he did in the first. I hope he can finally rest in the third season or at least take a b r e a k(HAmiLton). They made him super badass already, I’d love to see more of it but I want to see him more when he gets to actually talk to his siblings about anything else. I look forward to his season 3 arc.

-Number 6/Ben: HE WAS SUCH A BEAUTIFUL CINNAMON ROLL THIS SEASON I LOVE HIM. The one iffy part was when he possessed Klaus and was about to have s e x in Klaus’s body and not give back his body LMFAO. Poor baby just wanted to feel it though. He missed it so much and he missed his family so much. HE ONLY GOT TO REUNITE WITH DIEGO AND VANYA. Both times, hit just as hard. Though Diego never asked about him again probably because Vanya told them all about how he...Ugh, I wish he was there more to interact with the other siblings. KLAUS THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULD’VE TOLDKFHJD. His scenes were so precious. My heart cried when he passed away to Heaven. He was just so gentle with Vanya. You’re my sister. AGH CHILLS. He was such a beautiful sibling to Vanya and I hate it so much how he wasn’t able to have more. He was a true hero. He should’ve had more scenes. I don’t know what season 3 is going to bring for the “new” Ben but he looks more aggressive and edgy than the old ones so I’m not going to have any expectations.

-Number 7/Vanya: This girl is always in such pain, it was nice to see her happy for once. Though I am a bit iffy with the relationship with her and Sissy because it looks like there’s an age gap but I don’t know, I’ll go more into it later. No, it’s not because they’re two girls, I’m bisexual myself. Anyways speaking of gender, most fans say she’s bisexual but I’d head canon her to be pan sexual more than bi. I feel like she really doesn’t give a fuck about who she is with as long as they love each other and that’s sweet. We stan representations. As for her character, hmm she was okay. She’s still unstable but in the end she’s just a hurt baby that’s been through a l o t and just wants a family. I’m glad she was able to use her powers more. High key Elsa vibes. She was not bad this season but I wish she knew how much she couldn’t bring them. The extent of the time travel world. But I know she just wanted love after having such a lack of it. I hope to see her get love she deserves in season 3. More specifically, self-love. Because these past 2 seasons, she’s been putting so much on that one person that I want to see what she does for herself. Maybe pick up that violin and go girl~

In terms of side characters,

*THEY PUT HAZEL THERE FOR TWO MINUTES AND THEN HE DIED. WHAT. I know it’s probably better that way but damn, he was one of my favorites. I’m glad he was able to live a peaceful life with Agnes. He deserved it

*RAY IS MY MAN I LOVE THIS MAN SO MUCH! He stays calm and collected most of the time. He does what’s right. He’s a much better choice than Luther. I’m sad we had to let him go but it was going to come sooner or later.

*Lila..She was such an intriguing character. Just, she was so dumb at some points, especially near the end. I wish she thought more analytically. I guess she’s like a more emotional female version of Five. Her fight with Five was pretty cool. She probably got with Diego because they’re mummy’s children HAHA. Her powers were so bad ass though. We’re prolly going to see more of her in the third season which I look forward to.

*Reginald Hargreeves, bruh are you an alien.

*Pogo.. He was cute but I thought we’d see more of him. But I mean he’s just a baby so I guess eh.

*Mom was beautiful, she DESERVES MORE SCENES INSTEAD OF EVERY 2 EPISODES FOR 2 MINUTES.

*The Handler was not bad I suppose. I mean I loved her in the first season. But here she wasn’t as terrifying anymore. She’s a hella good manipulator but of course it was going to bite her in the back. I was honestly looking forward to fish guy though. I hope she stays dead just so that we can see our future villains.

*Speaking of the fish, he was sort of useless. We didn’t get to see any action of him. He’s just a f i s h. We won’t ever know if he was as good at his job as the handler or what not but that’s because he did n o t h i n g. A F I S H.

*The Swedish villains, they were eh. Not gonna lie, the first few episodes or so, they were hella boring. Not as fun as Hazel(WHO THEY KILLED IN THE FIRST FEW MINS) and Cha Cha. But their sibling ship was really heart felt. And every time one died.. Just ;-;.

*Herb was such a precious soul. I hope he doesn’t die in season 3.

I think the problem was that some of the characters were just on standby half the time.

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RELATIONSHIPS

The way they treated and interacted with each other is what makes the story so appealing, the familial, platonic and romantic. The relationships here were fine but I just wanted to bring them up.

Romantic

-Allison and Ray: What a 9-10/10 couple. The reason why is because there’s a line Allison said that made me so...what? I remember when she reunited with Luther she said something along the lines of “I just, I needed something to hold on to. And Ray gave me that” SIS. That sounds like such REBOUND energy. It doesn’t sound like she chose Ray, it sounds like she needed someone to depend on and Ray was there. I’m sure their relationship grew eventually but to say that about him to her ex or whatever they are. She’s in a vulnerable state, and to say something as minor as I needed him does not seem healthy. Relationships shouldn’t always be a need-need relationship. Allison needs to be her independent person and fall in love when she’s ready. If she’s just doing it because she needs someone to hold onto. What kind of love is that? Aside from that note, their whole relationship is so precious. I love how much Ray stays by Allison but he doesn’t take her bullshit. Like he is strict with knowing the truth because he needs to know he can trust her and that she can trust him. And you know what, she pulled through and told him. Because she loves him. I’m glad they didn’t kill him off or separate them because of Luther. It’s sweet.

-Diego and Lila: I didn’t like it until we knew of who Lila was. Because honestly if Diego got with her, that’d reflect on how much he changed from dating a cop to a complete psycho. But no, there’s more depth in Lila which made her interesting. Their dance scene right after was so nice. It was like a fight for dominance and it reflected how they thought of each other. Though, when she started choosing Five over Diego it went downhill. Diego was so lost because Lila didn’t trust him with whatever shit. Lila was just going around playing mummy’s girl and getting flustered whenever the handler mentioned him. It made her look young. Then when she captured Diego and called him boyfriend I got so lost. Then later Diego calls them exes. THEN WE FIND OUT THEY’RE ALSO BORN ON THE SAME DATE. They’re not as bad as Luther and Allison but still, they could’ve been siblings. Their relationship goes up and down so I’m not really sure what to think. I don’t see Lila bringing out the better side of Diego. I only see Diego doing it. I think Patch was a better fit because she was emotionally stable. But maybe when Lila gets her shit together then perhaps??

-Vanya and Sissy: Uh...This is definitely going to be an unpopular opinion(im saying that as if most of what I said is not unpopular) but this relationship gave me eh vibes. Like I don’t really know what to say about this one. I’m all for LGBTQ+ representation and of course Vanya being happy but. I think, again, Vanya must be her own girl. She shouldn’t be someone to be protected or get validation from protecting. She should be her own girl fighting and figuring out herself. I think another iffy thing is Sissy was a mother who was stuck in a bad marriage. My thing with that trope is that usually, the love interest saving the mother is someone who’s ready to take them. Yes I know Sissy shouldn’t have to live unhappily. But depending on a girl who doesn’t have self-independence, emotionally unstable with her own unstable family. Yeah, no wonder Sissy didn’t come with. Just the deal is Vanya depended on her like a lost child with a mother. It looks motherly. I’m not judging from looks, I’m judging from the treatment. Plus, their first kiss, they were drunk. That’s a sign within itself. Yes, they didn’t regret it in the morning. But Sissy was in a vulnerable state. She was crying. And I guess I thought it was going to be eased in like “I’m really happy you’re in my life Vanya.” BWAM KISS. Instead it went like “You tell me how you let her go. Tell me and I’ll do it.” “Sissy I can’t--” KISS. THAT DOESN’T SOLVE THE PROBLEM, in fact she interrupted Vanya because she was so emotionally drained. All the emotions and weight of it, into that kiss. It’s not like a drunken confession, she’s crying about a problem beforehand. Not a problem on her sexuality, but a problem on her life. And... kissing doesn’t make all the pain go away. Running away doesn’t make the pain go away. I don’t understand the message this show is trying to give us for this but I don’t like it. I know they were aiming for simple life simple family but.. as said, it’s never going to be simple.

-Klaus and Dave: I just felt sad. This was so pitiful. They did them so dirty. Also, I know it’s not the show’s fault because they changed actors but Dave looked so young. In season 1, he looked about the same age as Klaus if not older.. In season 2, he looks like a precious baby boy. Like, I know they changed actors but I couldn’t get the vibe out of my head. But back to the main point. I feel like their relationship was sadder. Dave ended up going earlier. As well as he might avoid anyone who looks like Klaus because it would sort of be creepy. What hurt most is when Dave punched him. That hurts. Poor Klaus, again, he didn’t even get to say goodbye properly. He has to deal with losing him again but since we get less Klaus scenes this season, we can only speculate. I wish they could be together but they never could. One of the saddest love stories.

-Ben and Jill: I want Ben to be happy, I really do. But... he’s dead. He was doomed to have no love interest from the start. Though it is cute to see him crush over her. But the concept it a bit weird you know? He possessed Klaus to get to her and he was about to have sex in Klaus’s body. That says a l o t. Plus we didn’t really get to explore Jill as a character. So I didn’t really care about her and we prolly won’t ever. But I hope wherever Ben is now, he can vibe peacefully.

-Allison and Luther: I hate this. They’re siblings. It’s not all of them being under the same roof, it’s all of them being raised by someone who adopted them together. IT DOESN’T MATTER IF NOT BIOLOGICAL. I’m so glad it got called out this season. Though, it’s so hard to see them as just siblings now because of how often it gets called out. But no. just no.

-Sissy and Carl: Um. I don’t know what to think but both of them were unstable af. I wonder why Sissy married him in the first place if she didn’t want to commit to him. I guess Carl was a different person? Hmm, he manipulated her for sure but that’s because he wanted the family to stay together. Around the time he was about to shoot her that’s when it was clear they weren’t a fit at all. But I think Carl could have improved before that scene with Vanya. Fucking disgusting. But, honestly before that scene I couldn’t tell if he was genuine or not. Cause, he did look like he loved Sissy while Sissy would give off looks. It’s pitiful. But eh, this is the unhappy marriage trope so...

-Reginald and Grace: This was heart breaking. I genuinely loved seeing emotion on Reginald and Grace was a perfect match. When they broke up I AGH. I wish they had more moments.

Familial(I’m highlighting important ones but feel free to skip) There were less. and there was a LACK OF FIVE AND KLAUS. Their dynamic was one of my favorites in the first season.

-Luther and Vanya: I was hesitant in their reunion. Mainly due to the fact that we get a panel of Luther holding a gun. But, I’m glad he didn’t end up doing anything. I’m also glad he apologized. Their relationship is unsteady but it’s growing ish. But aside from the first few episodes, we don’t really get much. I’m just glad he’s not being shitty to her.

-Luther and Five: Ngl Luther’s incompetence gets made up from Five’s competence. It’s funny. When there were two five’s it was so f u n n y. Luther was just panicking everywhere. He was like “He hAs A pOiNt” and then like “oh no we’re going to kill him???!??!”. It’s cute I guess. Though when they first reunited, it was annoying as hell. I thought their dynamic was going to be lame but this wasn’t bad I suppose.

-Luther and Diego: Hehe. They are highkey two brain cells left energy. If I remember correctly, the first season contained them fighting over what to do or who’s “leader”. They didn’t have as much moments this season but I remember Diego chasing after Luther when Luther threw hands. It was cute in a sibling-y way. They were okay. I mean, as okay as any unstable family but it was nice seeing their meaningless little fights out of the way.

-Diego and Five: It was like arcs talking to each other. Diego was basically representing “Save Kennedy!” while Five was like “END OF THE WORLD”. Lucky for them that it was connected. But if it wasn’t, imagine that huge waste of time. Anyways, they were okay-ish. Five didn’t want to deal with Diego’s shit half the time but that’s just Five. Their connection grew after Diego went to the commission because I mean, they can now both relate. However, Diego only stayed there for a little bit while Five stayed there longer. And Diego was only recruited because his “girlfriend” wanted him. But either way, they now have something more to talk about.

-Diego and Ben: This was a cute heartfelt moment. And.. honestly I wanted more. Not just with Diego and Ben but with Ben and well EVERYONE. But at least this small moment was given. Just, Diego’s realization that it’s Ben. His dead brother. It hurt you know.

-Allison and Klaus: This duo I swear. I don’t really like it because I’d say these two are the chillest aside from Vanya. Their reunion was really sweet true but the way they dealt with problems? Allison is the more sane of the two yet Klaus’s influence helps her relax. However, Klaus is unstable and Allison didn’t really help him exactly. She just drank with him. Yes, she asked him how he was. But right after she goes to drinking. EVEN BEN WAS SMILING WHEN SHE PUT DOWN THE FLASK. And then she promoted more booze. That’s a way of coping for some people. But, I don’t think the time was right. Klaus was trying to be sober. I don’t think promoting what he’s not trying to be is a good idea, especially at that time. Then for Allison, I mean as Klaus said himself “Allison, your marriage is in trouble and your rally turned into a riot”. She shouldn’t be drinking either. She should be thinking of what to do. It doesn’t take until later.

-Allison, Vanya and Klaus: Their dance was really cute. I loved it so much. It’s what I wanted from season 2 in the first place. The siblings to have fun with no weight of the world on them. Allison and Vanya’s reunion was so sweet. I loved every second except the part where they got drunk and started to be like LeT’S coNfEss mY lOVe. But, it did get the plot along. I’m just happy they found solitude in each other while their other brothers were a fidgety mess.

-Five, Diego and Luther: Speaking of that fidgety mess, these three were all over the place. There were some funny moments like Five being so done and changing his clothes. While Diego and Luther were like h u h ? And they also had moments where they talked about daddy issues. Also when Luther and Diego found Elliot dead and threatened a person until Five came was hilarious.

-Klaus and Ben: Ngl, I found this relationship very bitter because KLAUS WOULDN’T LISTEN. Ben keeps trying to say something or prove what he should do but Klaus keeps ignoring his remarks. It’s very unhealthy especially when Klaus has the upper hand. He doesn’t even give Ben the chance to interact with his other siblings. While Ben misses them dearly. It’s heartbreaking to watch.

-Five and Vanya: I LOVED THAT MOMENT WHERE THEIR POWERS BATTLED. Even if it was for a split second, it looked so cool. Anyways, I don’t have much to say on this one because they didn’t interact as much I’d say but it was chill. A chill siblingship. Though, Five was being rude when he completely disregarded the fact that Vanya has people she care about in that time. He was too focused on the end of the world and that’s okay but he has to understand his siblings. I’m not using it against him though, he doesn’t exactly know how to read signs. But when you put them together by the end, it’s nice seeing Vanya having more control of who she is instead of being pushed around.

-Five and Reginald: It’s interesting. Five hasn’t seen his father in a long time and there he is. And, he’s scared or if not scared then hesitant, really hesitant. His father is someone who treated him like shit but he is someone who also raised him and has the knowledge to who he is.Of all the people, he looks to him when there’s no other choice. It’s interesting to see this because Five rarely hesitates. And seeing a man who has no real threat to him in that timeline but he knows how much he has hurt him. It’s breathtaking. Among all his children, I’d say Reginald gravitates to Five the most because as said he’s the most reasonable. As most theories for season 3 would suggest, Reginald probably chooses different kids because he’s seen how fucked up his kids are in the past. But, he talked to Five and I just wonder why he’d not choose him. I guess just speculation that Five was also fucked up. Anyhow, their bar scene was nice. It was simple yet had a lot of weight to it, especially to Five. Another scene I liked is when Five was spying on Reginald in the closet thing and Reginald stared at it. It was a shot of them looking at each other with Reginald having the authority while Five hides. It’s a nice frame to think on and what it means for them.

-Vanya and Ben: I FUCKING LOVED THIS. Even if it was one scene, I could replay it all day. Because Vanya, a woman who has been numerously ignored or pushed aside as a threat by her own family, finally has one family member who thoroughly cares...And he’s dead. She’s been through so much and no one ever seems to take her as her own person which is so depressing to watch. Until Ben. Ben was so peaceful and gentle with her. He knew she could explode at any moment but he also knew that she’s hurting and scared so God damn much. She feels like there’s something wrong with her and she doesn’t even feel like she’s deserving to live. And Ben took the time to phrase it gently but had so much weight to it because of how true it is. “You aren’t a monster, you’re my sister.”He reassures her that she is not something to be afraid of, not a ticking bomb. But a person who he loves deeply, his sister. He reassures her she’s not alone. He makes sure of that and he lets her know he believes in her. I just loved that so much. He was the only one who reached out when it felt like everyone was against her. And she opened up to him because he was the only one who would listen. That’s so touching and I’m so glad they had that moment. I’d say that was the best moment in the whole season. Their relationship says it all in that one scene.

-All of them: It would be such crack energy + daddy issues whenever they were all in the same room. It was entertaining but half the time they fought or bickered so it sometimes didn’t go anywhere. I wish they had more fight scenes though because they’d look united as a family whenever they were against the same enemy. But I suppose we’ll have to wait for season 3 to see that.

Other

-Five and the Handler: The Handler character gives major pedo vibes. So it’s very uncomfortable when we watch her have those little touches on Five. It’s very meticulous in showing their relationship. Five doesn’t want anything to do with her while the handler just keeps getting closer. Their fights back and forwards remind me of Sherlock and Moriarty. It’s all big game and gamble. Though for Five and the Handler it’s less of a game. It’s fun to watch I suppose but I would’ve liked to see another force opposing Five aside from just The Handler all the time. She’s a good contrast to his character though. He always refers to her when there’s nothing else. And we get to see his soft side with his siblings and how he wants to keep saving them and how he always emphasizes it.

-Five and Lila: Half the time if not most, Five wanted nothing to do with her. It was hilarious in a sense that Five was oblivious for most of it. Lila was a pained girl who had anger to take out. And Five was there, being an asshole. Yeah, in the mental side, Five was a bitch while Lila being emotional is not a good match. Their power fights were really hard-core, I loved it. Their original connection was through the handler and Diego then morphed into the whole killing parents thing. It was fun.

-Five and Five: This was hilarious. Too fucking good. Though, it gave me headaches thinking of all the times where if this Five dies then... Plus this time older Five has the correct formula now which could change? But that’s for a different timeline now or universe. I enjoyed watching them. When they were “fighting” it played one of my childhood bops. They oppose each other so well that it’s so comedic. It’s a nice touch.

-The Handler and Lila: Mother Gothel and Rapunzel or Thanos and Gamora vibes-- Anyhow, their relationship was very manipulative but hey that’s the handler’s specialty. It was okay, just a regular villain deceiving lost child trope. Though this one had more loyalty on Lila. For, this one had more love put into it. I’m not sure exactly if the handler loved Lila for real but we see shots where she takes care of Lila and takes pictures on her in a pretty dress. That’s cute which is understandable to why Lila is always so hesitant in picking between what she wants and what her mother wants. But as seen in the first half, she chooses Five. She chooses her mother. That’s a strong bond they got even for the handler. Though I guess it’s safe to say that the handler doesn’t really care about Lila if she was ready to kill her. I suppose Lila just brought amusement and help but as soon as she’s useless, gone. (Same with Mother Gothel and maybe Thanos?)Honestly though I got confused at one point because didn’t the Handler badmouth Lila’s parents? She said “Her mother who rescued her from those gin-addled, neglectful parents--”. If Lila didn’t believe in those words, she would’ve interrupted. If Lila did, then why did she care so much if they died? Yes, they are still her parents. But, she was so defensive over who killed them in the second half of the season. She kept calling them innocent and such. It was a bit out of the blue I suppose but eh.

-Ray and Luther/Klaus: It’s important to note that Ray is fighting for black rights as well as his wife. Now, to find out that she might’ve lived in a “white” world is a big shock to him. I can understand why that anger was built. I’m not going to go into detail because I’m sure others can explain it better than I can but in general, Ray felt betrayed by Allison. His expectation of her once he sees Luther and Klaus. Yet, Klaus is more likable since you know he helps him out of jail. They had cute moments in jail too. Luther looks lost af and I just don’t like how aggressive Ray becomes when he sees him.

-Harlan and Vanya: It’s probably setting up for the future plots but I found it unnecessary to give Harlan Vanya’s powers. honestly during the whole time he was screaming and shit, I was just like...Is that...Will from stranger things?? BECAUSE BOTH OF THEM WERE POSSESSED BY SOMETHING OUT OF THEIR CONTROL. But anyways their relationship is okay, Vanya helps him calm down but I guess it would’ve been nice to see more bonding.

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PLOT

-There were so many arcs-too many. To the point where it was such a jumble of what was going on. From activism to queer rights to daddy issues to mafia to mental asylum to a broken family to more broken families to etc. All leading to the major plot of “the world is ending”. I get it, they were trying to make the story more eventful. However, some of them were pressing issues that should be used more than a plot device to move the story along.

-I know each character was separated to shine individually but I wanted to see more group work. We already saw their individuality in season 1, this was just a different environment. The only group work where they all were looking badass was in a timeline that ceased to exist(Specifically the one where they fought during the Soviet Union-Us War). They sort of worked together in the end but LMFAO half the time some of them were pinned or just not doing anything.

-I have to say, this whole season just gave me a hardcore repeat of the first season. Again, all the siblings are separated. Again, Five goes looking for them but then goes and fucks around finding plans/leads. Again, the siblings fuck around. Again, the commission tries to hunt them down. Again, they are tricked to killing each other. Again, Vanya is the cause but this time they were able to mend it. Again Again Again Again. Just please. I was really looking forward to seeing something new. I wanted to see their younger selves because by the end of season 1 they turned younger?? But instead we get a repeat of season 1 with a bunch of differences that weren’t able to be fully expounded. It’s like this season was a plot device itself for season 3. It was used to find out more characters and find out more of the universe. While the mental stability remains the same.

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NOTES

~Sissy’s family. I don’t know what to say about this family. It’s obviously fucked up. Harlan is just like confused majority of the time. While Sissy and Carl have so many issues. I really had hope for Carl until that homophobic remark and the fact that he tried to shoot his wife. I know I know it’s obvious to see Carl as the asshole immediately but it would’ve been nice to see a change of pace where Carl is worth staying for: He cares about his son, he wants to keep the family together and he cares whether or not Sissy still loves him. And therefore giving Sissy more of a hard option. It adds more depth. But eh.

~Transitions/Editing. I guess it’s the same as the first season but for me, the transitions felt more abrupt and off-timing. Like, sometimes it would show Luther after 2 scenes when I’ve been waiting for Five after four scenes. It made my head spin, especially with the amount of arcs. But I guess that’s normal. As for editing, the part where Ben possessed Klaus, I really wished they made it Ben sooner because for 2 minutes I’m just staring at Klaus. It was okay though.

~The commission. As said earlier, the villains weren’t as entertaining. I loved the three brothers but to say they were more fun to watch than Hazel and Chacha? Mm. Not it for me. More heartbreaking sure. But not more fun. Anyhow, the commission seems like one big mess within itself. It’s so easy to go in their building and mess up time. I mean, what kind of security do they have? No one was protecting board control room thing. I’m not undermining Diego but ?? It seems like high school where people can just slip in and out easily. Also, the amount of commission that died from that last fight. That was a big yikes. I understand their role in the story but it was very undermining to watch them.

~Previous season 2 hopes. I really thought they were going down the child route. Like, I thought Five would bring them back to the time where they all were still children aka still being raised. This would include Ben being alive. This wouldn’t keep the same pressure as the apocalypse but instead a new one on how to prevent it but still being years from that time. They know it’s Vanya and this time they’ll take the time to understand her. They’ll take the time in understanding each other. Frankly, some of my favorite parts of this season would be when they’re bonding. Because they rarely get to do that in season 1. This season 2 would be bonding-centric, while dealing with their powers. I mean, aside from those few flashbacks in season 1, how badass would it be to see it in real time? We would get to explore their capabilities. It would make them look united, it would make their mental issues seem addressed and it would let them have the playful youth they deserve. I guess that’s more of a fanfiction idea though. Most fans probably wants more action than affection so I understand why they took this route. Probably because they wanted to keep the same actors too. But still, it would’ve been nice.

~Season 3 hopes. Not going to lie, my season 3 hopes are probably a bit similar to season 2. The only difference is age. I want their mental issues to be a d d r e s s e d. With the lack of apocalypse, there’s going to be less pressure on their shoulders. Especially Five. I’m looking forward to what he’s going to do in his free time. I’m looking forward to see what they all do without that much pressure on their shoulders. They’re obviously going to be more bonded now but will they just keep away again? As for the new group, I honestly thought they were going to be them but raised differently but I guess not. There’s definitely going to be more of an interest on Ben. It’s a whole new one and I’m interested in seeing how their powers and dynamics work. As well as interactions with the OG UA. Though, I feel like it won’t be major in terms of them going against each other. Like, of course they will have one point because I’m sure some of them are competitive af. But, it’ll be more fun than more of a problem. I’m sure they’re all going to unite as one against an opposing force. Maybe an alien arc. Reggie being an alien is also probably going to get addressed and will also maybe become a problem about alien invasion, unless they leave that for later seasons. Lila is also going to come back I bet. I hope no more handler. And if the commission is involved in any way, make them more fun to see in their world building. I’m looking forward to seeing them all though.

=============================================================

Overall, as most movies or shows, I think the Umbrella Academy is a wonderful concept with so many interesting stories to tell but execution could need more work. As well as script. Though I’m not saying it’s all bad. Of course there were moments I’d laugh at, of course moments my heart ached and of course moments I loved. It’s not all bad unlike-- Anyways, it was a nice adventure and I’m looking forward to what season 3 has to bring~~

#Umbrella Academy #Umbrella Academy Season 2 #Umbrella Academy Season 2 Review #Umbrella Academy Season 2 Rant #Rant #iWISHTHEYHADMOREFIVEANDKLAUSISTG #Spoilers

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trek-tracks · 5 years ago

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Trek Book Club: The Romulan Way

So I read The Romulan Way by Diane Duane and Peter Morwood! Overall, it was quite enjoyable, but I have some conflicting feelings about it. (Please come discuss it with me!)

(Spoilers Ahead)

This is an unusual book, as it features an original character as the main character (Lt. Terise Haleakala, posing as a Romulan head servant in order to better understand and report on their civilization), with Bones being asked to check up on her to make sure that she hasn’t fully “gone Romulan” after a two-year hiatus in contact. To get himself into Romulan space, he needs to get himself captured by Romulan officers who have a specific grudge against the officers of the Enterprise. He also needs to check up on Terise and get out before his automatic death sentence is painfully carried out, either in a preapproved “scenic execution pit” or behind the scenes by a Romulan willing to pay the highest price for his head. Of course, we don’t find out about this mission until much later on in the book, leaving us to assume for much of it that he’s just been captured, as usual.

The good:

Bones being Bones. Diane Duane and Peter Morwood’s Bones is great; unsurprisingly, they really understand both him and the Trek universe. His first scene in the ship, communicating with the Sulamid (shades of the “Planet Forbidden” exchange in Wrath of Khan) and then being a total badass with the Romulan leader and being as self-sacrificing as usual, even if it also turns out to be in service of a greater plan, was excellent. (There was a LOT of collateral damage here for a covert one-person mission. You’d think Bones would be even more perturbed about that than he is, but that would have spoiled the reveal of his purpose in the narrative).

Terise is a pretty solid new character; fleshed-out, interesting, conflicted, resourceful, successful, and refreshingly, a female character not there for any romantic purpose. She’d be cool to follow in her further adventures.

Terise’s immediate understanding of Bones’ “gentleness,” and his dislike of antagonism other than a shield:

Bones getting the undercover agent to break purely by purposefully being as annoying as possible.

Some good banter:

McCoy being the one to think of coating the Horta Starfleet officer’s body in Teflon so that the oxygen wouldn’t hurt him, because of course he creates more than one healing technology for this completely out-of-the-box species using duct tape and a dream.

Naraht (the Horta officer) in general, especially bantering with Bones who’s mother-henning him to eat more rocks so that he can grow up big and strong.

H’daen, Terise’s house lord and a complicated Romulan with a conscience - and numerous Romulans who don’t all behave the same way.

Bones using the Romulan filibuster method to stay his execution for as long as possible, saving his own life by ranting about everything under the sun, from criticizing the hypocrisies embedded in Romulan culture to discoursing on mint juleps, which is just so Bones that it’s amazing.

Random Sarek namedrop during one of the chapters on Romulan history, described as a “grimly handsome gentleman.”

This WAY too prophetic line about government:

“You have your own worlds to save.” Bones: “All of them.” <3

The middle:

The Romulan backstory was intriguing and very fleshed-out, but I also flipped forward to see how long the chapter was every time we went back to it, because for a story involving a heck of a lot of death and war, it was fairly dry. I wanted to know it, but I also wanted to keep reading the main story.

The “enhancing Bones’ brain with a chip so that he’s a recording device” was odd, but kind of fun, and did explain a lot of things. I enjoyed his musings about and discomfort with it. Felt like payback for Spock’s Brain and the remote control. I think they could have gotten into the implications of it for the character more, as he has a lot of trauma surrounding people messing with his brain, especially telepaths - which means that a mission like that would probably bring it to the surface. Though this didn’t really decrease my enjoyment of the novel, I kind of prefer when beloved characters succeed on their own attributes, rather than random technology enhancements (this is not a criticism of assistive tech at all - it’s just more narratively interesting when Jim Kirk bluffs his way out of a scenario using intuition than “Jim Kirk ate phlebonium and wins because he can now jump 20 feet in the air”).

The “hmmm…”:

I get that they wanted Bones to record a Romulan trial and get a feel for the Senate while he was there, which necessitated him to stay for the “trial,” even though the reasoning felt a bit tenuous as an excuse for a dramatic escape. I’m not sure I understand the purpose of essentially exploding the trial hall and killing a bunch of Romulans as Bones’ exit plan. Wasn’t this supposed to be a relatively covert operation, for Bones to check up on their spy’s mental health? I guess it took all suspicion off her, but it was a hell of a way to stage it.

I love Bones. He’s 100% my fave. But I really, really missed his interactions with Kirk and Spock when he’s totally on his own, and the fact that, other than accompanying him to the initial meeting to plan the incursion, we have no idea what the other two are doing. My favourite long-form Trek fic, Equilibrium, separates the trio for two-thirds of the story, but they’re all still very much in each other’s thoughts and influenced by what the others would do. I got a feeling of almost total separation from the book, other than Bones wryly thinking that, if something a Starfleet officer said as a compliment led to his current predicament, he’d take Spock’s insults any time (and thinking about Spock every time a Romulan or Romulan in disguised raised an eyebrow). His interactions with Terise and Naraht are good, but nothing beats the chemistry of the Triumvirate.

The pre-epilogue ending fell flat for me. Though it was cool that their rescuer was the aunt of the Romulan Commander from The Enterprise Incident, the space boss battle felt really unnecessary; if the story is about Bones and Terise, the climax is now basically something that essentially takes neither of their skills to resolve, so the main characters are either not on “screen,” or are just kind of hanging out.

Plus, the introduction of Ensign I Love Danger (the ironically-named Luks) only a few pages before he sacrificed himself made it fairly difficult to care deeply about his heroic sacrifice in and of itself. He worked as an analogue to a young Kirk, and maybe we could have explored that more in Bones’ reaction to his presence and death. Maybe that seemed too obvious to the writers, like it would have been hitting us over the head with the 2x4 of symbolism to make that any more clear. Really, it just made me miss the Bones-Jim dynamic, and felt like Ensign Ex Machina, without a greater thematic relation to the plot. Yes, I know sometimes in life things just happen in sequence, but that’s not as satisfying to read.

Leonard “Edward” McCoy gave me the same visceral reaction as James R(iberius) Kirk, even though I realize that both of these things happened before Horatio and Tiberius showed up, and I know Horatio is beta canon at best (from Provenance of Shadows, etc.) I just like it better.

Have you read the book? What did you think? Let me know!

#star trek #star trek tos #star trek book club #trek books #leonard mccoy #star trek books #bones mccoy #the romulan way #diane duane #peter morwood #i am uncomfortably aware that they're both on tumblr #because both of them have reblogged my posts #please don't read this

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vindogy · 5 years ago

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happy prompt: everybody lived, they' re all roommates, it's several years in, everybody's generally worked out their interpersonal issues ( alex included ) , and they all go together to a rowdy screening of a classic bad movie

Everyone is here!!!

Also the obvious choice for the bad movie is The Room but I feel like that’s been beaten to death by now so I’ll do a more niche one

“We could be doing a million other things with our time that are more productive than this.”

Tim stood in an authoritative pose, resting his hands on his hips as he gave the three behind him a disapproving look. Brian instantly grew a wide grin, letting Tim know preemptively that a cheesy quip was coming his way.

“Well Timmy, if you’re up for filing taxes or doing calculus problems, be my guest!”

Jay smiled as well, much to Tim’s disapproval. The group was at a local cinema, getting ready to watch a movie for the first time in years. Though Tim was happy to finally do normal friend group things, he wasn’t content with the movie choice everyone had agreed on. He turned around and stared the person in the booth with absolute contempt. The ticket salesperson awkwardly looked away, hoping that Tim would just get the tickets and leave already. Unfortunately, Tim wasn’t quite ready to let this slide.

“What is everyone else doing?”

Alex piped up, his voice still somewhat lacking the warmth it had all those years ago, but still friendly enough to show Tim that he was truly back to normal.

“Well, Amy’s studying for her finals, Jessica’s doing some shopping down at the strip mall, Seth’s at therapy, and Sarah is… doing Sarah things.”

Tim sighed, slowly realizing that he had no choice but to go through with this movie.

“Sorry Tim, but everyone is go- busy. Everyone is busy.”

Alex blanked out for a second, a look of worry spreading across his face.

“Everyone is busy. That’s what I meant to say. Everyone is busy.”

Alex shuddered as his spaced out expression turned into one of extreme worry. Luckily, Jay had sensed that Alex was beginning to panic.

“It’s alright Alex. Don’t worry, we’re all okay now. C’mon, let’s get some popcorn.”

Jay guided Alex to the concession stand, rubbing his back and reassuring him all the way there. Tim was concerned. He knew it wouldn’t be easy going back to normal after what they’ve all been through, but it still pained him to see reminders of it everywhere he went. He was sure everyone else felt the same. That fateful day was as clear as ever to him. He was so sure that everyone had died, and that all that was left to do was killing Alex.

The final confrontation was horrifying to say the least, and it was immortalized forever by the camera that recorded it all. Right when Alex had him in a choke hold and Tim felt that all hope was lost, a sudden intruder came in and took Alex by surprise. Standing tall, blood dripping from his scalp, and a bloody grin across his face, was Brian. Somehow, he had survived the fall and managed to escape The Operator’s dimension while it was distracted in the fight. Standing behind him was Jessica, who had Jay cradled in her arms. He was pale and unconscious, but still breathing. With Brian’s help, Tim managed to incapacitate Alex and tie him up. The group went to the hospital immediately after, all admitted into emergency care. Alex was still violent and lashing out, and had to be admitted into a psych ward. But to Tim’s absolute shock, the friends he was so sure were gone had all survived. Brian and Jay were hospitalized for their injuries, while Jessica, Tim, and Alex were all admitted to therapy. Brian, however, kept telling the doctors that “there are still more survivors”. By some miracle, Brian had found everyone trapped within The Operator’s dimension, and had pulled out every single one. Seth, Amy, and Sarah were all found alive with severe injuries, but alive nonetheless. Everyone was nursed back to health and admitted to therapy, with Tim recommending that they all take the same medication he did. It was an absolute miracle. After that, The Operator never bothered them again, presumably because it had lost all of it’s victims that it spent so long trying to get. Tim never knew what happened after that. Maybe it was off harassing some poor dudes in New Jersey, or maybe it died. He hoped for the latter.

It took one month for Alex to recover. The nurses stated that one day during a violent episode, he dropped to the floor and began crying heavily. He asked if his friends were alive, begging to see them. When he was eventually let out, he gathered everyone and spent an entire day begging for forgiveness and apologizing for what he had done. He especially apologized to Tim for all the torment he was put through. Tim remembered hugging Alex as he cried into his chest, tearing up as well. Not tears of sorrow, though. Tears of relief. From then on, everyone had decided to stay close and live life as best they could. Their relationships were unbreakable because it was forged in hell.

“Hey, Tim-Tam! Wake up!”

Tim looked up, grunting as he was broken from his daydreaming. Brian grabbed his shoulders and shook him around, causing Tim to fully snap out of it, much to his annoyance. He grabbed Brian’s arms firmly and raised them above his head.

“I’m awake. And I told you not to call me that!”

Brian smirked, Tim already knowing exactly what was coming next.

“Whatever you say, Tim-Tam!”

Tim squinted at Brian, before putting on a grin of his own. Without a word, he effortlessly hoisted Brian onto his shoulder. Brian squirmed around, surprised at Tim’s show of strength.

“Alright, alright! Enough with the gun show, tough guy! Movie starts soon!”

Tim obliged, but didn’t put Brian down. He walked over to the counter, Brian still over his shoulder, and placed a twenty dollar bill down.

“Four tickets to Tremors.”

The salesperson hastily gave him the tickets, somewhat intimidated by the fact that he was effortlessly carrying a grown man taller than him over his shoulder.

“E-enjoy the move sir!”

Tim gave him a polite smile before taking the tickets and finally heading towards the cinema. Brian struggled to escape, but Tim had a firm grasp on him. After all, he had quite a but of experience with this.

“C’mon Tim-Tam! How’re you gonna eat popcorn like this?”

Tim continued walking, taking amusement at Brian’s attempts to escape. Jay and Alex immediately took notice when Tim approached. Alex took the chance to make a joke.

“Hey Tim you uh, got a lil something on your shoulder.”

Tim smiled and gave Brian a pat on his butt.

“Yep. He’s little alright.”

“Wh- I’m taller than you???”

Tim let out a laugh at Brian’s response. There was still some time before the movie, which meant more time to mess around. Jay had the same idea. He had gone behind Tim and was feeding Brian popcorn. Tim took notice and turned around. Jay smiled and attempted to feed Tim as well.

“Hey Alex! Come over here for a sec.”

Alex listened and went beside Jay.

“Take his popcorn.”

Alex raised an eyebrow at the strange suggestion, but did so anyway. Jay pouted as he reached to get it back. Perfect. He was distracted. Jay was taken by surprise as he too was hoisted onto Tim’s shoulder. He yelped and attempted to struggle. Alex stood wide eyed at Tim’s amazing yet unnecessary show of strength. A few bystanders stared as well, much to Brian and Jay’s embarrassment.

“Alright tough guy, you made your point. Can you put me down now?”

Tim smiled as he shook his head.

“Nah. I think you guys need some assistance getting to the theater anyways.”

Tim walked towards their theater, not slowed down at all despite carrying two taller men. Alex followed close behind, struggling to carry a few buckets of popcorn and drinks.

People continued to stare as Tim walked into the theater, Brian and Jay still held firmly in his arms. Finally finding a good place to sit, Tim finally let go. The two dropped onto their seats and looked up at Tim. He made an exaggerated show of flexing his biceps at them, before sitting in between them. He draped his arms over the both of them and pulled them in for a hug.

“Alright you little bastards. You wanted this, so you better stay for the entire screening.”

Alex clumsily made his way towards the group, a few kernels dropping from the bucket. Right when everyone thought he would drop it all, he sat himself down, securing every bucket and drink firmly. Brian gave a slow clap, mildly impressed at Alex’s balance.

“Good job buddy. Pass some of that here, will ya?”

Alex handed a bucket over to Brian. He turned over to Tim, shoveling a few handfuls of popcorn into his mouth.

“Hey, Tim-Tam. Take a look around. Y’know what I see? No people!”

Tim turned around. There was nobody else in the theater besides them.

“That’s cool, but what did I say about calling me that?”

Before Tim could react, a handful of popcorn was launched into his face. Wiping it off, he glared at the attacker. Brian was now perched on a seat a few rows away, smug grin on his face and a bucket of popcorn in his arm.

“What you gonna do about it, tough guy?”

Tim sighed as he rolled up his sleeves and stepped over the seats.

“Alright. You wanna play this game, so be it.”

Brian scrambled away as Tim narrowly missed his leg. Another handful of popcorn was thrown his way. Thank god it wasn’t buttered. Tim grunted as he got down on all fours and rushed towards Brian. Brian yelped at the sudden change and ran up even more rows. From below, Jay and Alex were watching the whole thing go down.

“Should we stop them?”

Alex nervously looked at Jay. Jay shook his head and smiled.

“Nah. This is way better than the movie.”

The two ate their popcorn as they watch Brian and Tim play cat and mouse in the large theater. Tim had a hard time grabbing Brian, but if he did, it would be over. Brian was doing a great job pelting Tim with popcorn, but was beginning to run out. He called out to Alex once more.

“Throw me another one!”

Alex paused, then fumbled as he winded his arm back, ready to toss the bucket over. Unfortunately, he never was much of a pitcher. The bucket flew across the air and smacked Brian straight in the face. That one mistake was all Tim needed. Alex winced as he witnessed Tim body slam Brian onto the floor. Before he could ask if they were okay, Tim spoke up.

“Gotcha! Look who’s little now!”

Brian squirmed under his grasp, but was once again unable to escape. He stared up at Tim, who was panting from the sudden physical activity. The two locked eyes, staring at each other for a few moments. Brian finally responded.

“Well, it’s still you.”

Tim frowned and tightened his grip. He stooped closer to Brian’s face.

“I’ll give you one more chance. Take it back or I’ll make you suffer.”

Brian was mildly concerned, but his need to a smug bastard overshadowed any worries he had.

“No.”

Tim sat up and began rolling up his sleeves even higher.

“Alright, you asked for it.”

Jay and Alex heard a sudden scream from Brian. They rushed over as he continued yelling, Alex especially concerned, fearing that an old foe might’ve returned.

“No! Stop! Get off!”

His worried immediately melted away once he heard Brian laughing. Tim had Brian pinned under him and was tickling him, refusing to let him go. Brian gasped as he reached out to Jay, his face red from laughter.

“Jay! You gotta help!”

His pleas were drowned out by more laughter as Tim went for his ribs. Jay decided to instead sit down and continue eating popcorn.

“Sorry man. You got overpowered by Tim-Tam. Now you gotta face the consequences.”

Tim immediately stopped. He turned his gaze to Jay.

“What did you just call me?”

Jay immediately ran away. Tim leapt off of Brian as he began running after Jay. Alex walked over to Brian, who was panting heavily and clutching his stomach, still letting out a few giggles.

“You alright Brian?”

Brian wheezed as he composed himself, his face still red.

“Yeah I’m good. But c’mon! Jay’s next! I can’t miss this!”

A loud laughter from the other side of the theater signaled that Jay didn’t last long. The two immediately ran over. The movie continued playing in the background, completely ignored by everyone. There were much more entertaining things going on. As Tim sat over Jay, smiling as he laughed under him, he felt happiness spread within him. It was good to have a friend group again.

#Anonymous #asks #mine #marble hornets #long post #ok i couldnt resist having some sadness but #the rest is fun #:)

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paytonfischer · 4 years ago

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location: Royals Clubhouse featuring: @thexiomarareyes triggers: nsfw, fighting & blood

ABOUT: Payton finds Mara at the clubhouse, and two share a discussion before someone else appears, causing growing tension until the two finally find themselves alone.

Vanilla Ice05/23/2020 With her palms pressed against the desk, a frustrated sign came from Mara. The coding that displayed on her screen nearly burned into her vision. She spent the majority of the afternoon tucked in the back of Ignition. Two computers sat turned from the public view while a black hard drive flashed a consistent green light. Mara began working to answer Carsons' questions after she gave him a preview of her current work. The week following the Carnival was spent organizing what she already retrieved from the Moonlight security footage and computers. She kept the possible banking records to herself, for the time being. It wasn't promising enough to bring attention to it. This was one of her biggest projects to date, and her brain ready for a well needed break.

She attempted to ignore the wandering eyes as they passed the office door. It was the distant sound of a motorcycle that caught her attention. A nervous breath released from her as it could be one of two people. Mara let a hand raise to the keyboard, her eyes returning to the processing screen. The sound of heavy boots worked in her direction, her fingers slowly down on the keyboard as her eyes flickered up towards the doorway.

Trissy Trat05/23/2020 The conversation with Joshua had gone well, and though the mere idea or suggestion still hung heavy over his mind, he’d decided to allow his chest a moment to expand. Catching his breath as he moved down the narrow hallways, nodding towards familiar faces, only pausing when one asked for a word with him. “Sure, shoot.” He offered, pausing to lean against a far wall, his gaze traveling about the clubhouse till landing on a familiar brunette. “Actually I’m sorry, can you excuse me?” Pushing off the wall, he wasted no time in crossing the room towards her.

“Let me guess, you were hopin’ to catch me at my place of business?” Ignoring the looks of others, Payton reached out, pulling the chair across from her free as he turned it around, sitting in the opposite direction. “Seriously though, you look good in the glow of your computer screen.” His tone was light, teasing though it’d be a lie if he said running into her wasn't the highlight of his afternoon now.(edited)

Vanilla Ice05/23/2020 A sarcastic scoff formed in her throat as she pushed off the desk. “Yes, I’ve set up my stalking command center in your office,” Her eyes rolled as she gestured towards the two computers in front of her. It had been a week since she heard from him and it showed no signs of letting up. Mara wasn’t one to reach out in a moment of silence. She decided the distance between them was for the better.

Smiling softly, her arms folded loosely across her chest. “All I’m missing is the leather,” She countered as her attention turned back towards the computer. The screen came to a sudden halt, causing her hand to fly down onto the keyboard. “Not off saving the world?” Her eyebrows raised upwards as her eyes remained on the screen. It was easier for her to focus elsewhere when attempting a conversation with him. May 24, 2020

Trissy Trat05/24/2020 Scoffing, Payton shook his head. “I mostly just save the city, particularly the Brooklyn area, I’m a fan of their pizza.” Tapping his fingers against the plastic of the chair, he watched her for a moment, her own digits dancing over the keyboard. It seemed whatever she was doing, the woman was rather invested in it. “How’s work goin’ for you?” If she was in the clubhouse, odds were it was Royals related though before he could inquire further, another walked up, slapping the male across the back.

“Someone overheard your talk with Joshua; I wanted to be the first to say congratulations.” It was just a random member, someone Payton hadn’t spent much time with in general. But still he nodded his head, giving the others hand a firm shake. “Thanks, man, really do appreciate it.” It seemed news spread fast as he cleared his throat. “Sorry, if you don’t mind.” Gesturing towards Mara he motioned with his head for the other to leave.

“Oh sorry Pay, didn’t realize you needed help setting up a Wifi password or something, that is what you do though right baby?” It was intended to be a joke but already Payton was standing, his chair scooting back. “Bet she’d like to see my hard drive and everything, aye, Fischer?”

Old habits died hard it appeared, as Payton reached out without warning, catching the hem of the shirt of the other as he dragged him forward. “You were almost not annoying, Collin, but then you just had to open that big ole gaping hole in your face.” Deep sighing, he tighter his grip. “Apologize to her, now.”

Vanilla Ice05/24/2020 Mara acknowledged she was listening with a nod of her head. Her teeth caught the skin on her bottom lip as the computer began to not respond. “I found a crust in my couch,” Her fingers tapped eagerly at the power button, the screen sudden going a bright blue. Paytons’ question brought her attention back to his, her hand pausing on the keyboard. “I need another vacation,” Her words were interrupted by the voice of an unfamiliar male.

Her hand moved to close the non-responsive computer. The celebratory comment coming from the males mouth caused her attention to return to Payton. Mara let her mouth press into a fine line as the two continued their conversation. His gesture towards Mara caused her eyes to narrow slightly at the pair of males. She wasn’t surprised she had no idea what was going on. The brunette steered clear of any inner-club doings. It was the unfamiliar members next comment that caused a frustrated sigh to release from her lips.

The same childish comment Mara faced before. It was the constant attention towards her looks that caused her skills to be overseen. Laughing then, all she could do was nod her head as her hands worked to pack up her things. Mara didn’t need to do this here, especially not where she was going to get unnecessary attention.

The shift motion of a body launching forward caused her body to stiffen in place. The sight of Paytons’ fist clenched into a tight ball caused her to take a step back. Mara knew the anger was there. He danced around it like it was invisible to everyone else. She could feel the frustration growing as Payton gave the male one last shove forward. “I don’t want a fucking apology,” Her voice more direct than she intended it to be. The brunette was sick of being bothered just to be protected by those who kept her at arms length. Her narrowed eyes fell on Collin, her chin nodding towards the open doorway. “Go before I change my mind,” May 25, 2020

Trissy Trat05/25/2020 Exhaling, Payton tightened his grip on the other's shirt, pulling him just a little closer. “Remember this,” With that, he pushed him back so he stumbled, nearly falling on his heels. “--because I will.” Maybe he shouldn’t have cared, just let it go, the very moment the asshole had opened his mouth. And yet he couldn’t, something about Mara’s presence pressing him into action. “Xiomara...” Turning towards her, he let his fists drop to his side, stalled balled up.

“Hey, wait.” The woman hadn’t left, though she had acted to stand and Payton found himself moving around the table towards her. “I’m sorry.” He was hot-headed, his temper getting the best of him in most moments. But he wasn’t willing to let Mara walk away so easily, especially when she seemed just as angry. “Mara, look at me.”

Vanilla Ice05/25/2020 Maras' arms folded tightly across her chest as she glanced between Payton and the other male. She wouldn't deny the fact it felt good to have the human shield. The problem was that she needed to fight her own battles. She silently watched as the male retreated into the garage, her eyes flickering towards Payton. Her hands returned to grabbing her things. "No, I'm fine." The lie broke from her lips as she leaned down to grab the large tote bag from the floor. Her hand dug into the bag, pulling a set of keys from the bottom.

She kept her attention focused on everything she brought from her apartment. It was easier to focus on that than to avoid the sixteen questions she had. Her movement stopped when another apology rang through the air. "For what?" She questioned as Payton continued towards her. Mara needed to keep the distance between them, the confusion she had was threatening to come spewing out. "I'm not doing this here." Mara finally returned her eyes to his, her mouth pressing into a fine line as her eyes glanced past. Their encounter with the other member already caused attention, she didn't need anymore of it. May 26, 2020

Trissy Trat05/26/2020 Frustration was evident on his features, but Payton would at least try to understand where she was coming from, recognizing that they were in a public place. “Alright,” Exhaling, he reached for her hand, tugging it gently behind him as he led her away towards the back hall. Ignoring every look they earned, his focus solely on getting the brunette alone. “--hold on.” Reaching for the knob, he turned it abruptly, watching as the door opened into a little office space. Nothing huge, and mostly used for storage but it would do.

And as they entered, he waited till she was inside, shutting the door with his free hand as he leaned over her. Finally alone, or well at least as alone as they would be getting in the next five minutes. “I said I’m sorry because of whatever the hell that was back there, I could tell it bothered you.” Looking down at her, he tried reading her features, piecing together the string of sentiments she was feeling. “And I know I overreacted, but I just, I can’t handle assholes thinkin’ they can talk to you like that. Not when I’m around, or hell, not ever.” She deserved better, and if he had any say in it, Payton would make sure she was provided nothing less. “You deserve respect, and if they can’t figure it out the first time around, I’ll help them with some directions for the second course around.” Shaking his head, he dragged a hand down the length of his face, working to try and properly express what he was thinking, what he was feeling. “You’re something different, they ought to see that,” Pausing, he sighed, his whole chest releasing. “--Because I sure as hell do.”

Vanilla Ice05/26/2020 The tension between the two was thick enough to create a wall between them. She could feel his frustration breaking through the barrier as his hand took ahold of hers. His swift movements towards the back of the shop caused the anxiety to rise in her throat. Mara kept her mouth pressed closed as she moved into the office. Her head shook as she turned to face him, her arms folding across her chest.

A minute passed before Payton moved to stand over her. She let her eyes fall to the middle of his chest, shaking her head once again. "I'm not mad," Mara could feel his eyes burning a hole into her head. She was more taken back by his instant jump at the male. The vulgar comment the blonde male made was one she heard many times before. A frustrated breath escaped her lips as Mara looked up at him, her arms dropping at her sides. "And, I appreciate that. I don't care what you do, I just don't need to see it." She knew the violence was bound to happen. The brunette already accepted the fact Payton would somehow find his way into the middle. "I don't need respect." Her eyes narrowed at him then. The brunette hesitated for a moment, her teeth catching the inside of her cheek. "I have my own way to get revenge." She watched the hand drag across his face, the frustration was easily replaced by exhaustion. "If I'm so different, why do I feel like everyone else?" Mara let the direct question linger for a moment, her eyebrows slowly raising. The words coming out of his mouth contradicted his actions. "What do you want me to say?" Her eyes glanced away as her brain went silent. Her skin was crawling and the pit in her stomach began to spread.

Trissy Trat05/26/2020 “You’re different to me.” Payton repeats, unsure how better to explain his thoughts. Already everything was racing a mile a minute, and he was left trying to keep up. “If those assholes are gonna disrespect you, then they might as well be disrespecting me.” Because somewhere along the way in the last few weeks, Payton had become attached to the woman in front of him. Forming ties that refused to be broken, even if they sometimes got knotted. “You aren’t everybody else.” This time his voice lowered, his gaze meeting her own. “—you’re like nobody I’ve ever met.” Mara saw things, experienced things and yet she kept herself separate. Somehow able to see through the ring of sin that the Royals circled in. “Xiomara,” Payton should’ve been smarter, more sensible but instead he simply reacted, placing his palm flat against the wall behind her as he stepped forward, closing the distance just before he kissed her.

It was slow at first, barely ghosting over until suddenly it wasn’t, his free hand moving to her side as he walked her back, teeth grazing against her lesser lip. “You’re something different altogether.” He promised the woman, feeling the wall stall their movements as he pulled back just a few inches. “Believe me.” May 27, 2020

Vanilla Ice05/27/2020 "Treat me like it then," She suggested as they worked to process the situation at hand. This wasn't what was suppose to come out of their first meeting. "I'll deal with it. It hits harder from a woman," Mara countered, the corner of her mouth twitching upwards. She wasn't going to argue any further about it. The brunette wanted to be on the same playing field. She didn't want to stand behind him, she wanted to stand beside him. "You don't have to convince me," Her head shook once more before glancing back up at him. She knew long before her first interaction with Payton that she wouldn't quite fit into this life. There was something off about her and it wasn't visible at the surface. The sound of her name made the hair on her neck stand up, her body shifting backwards as Payton pressed towards her. With his lips on hers, a hand fell back to reach for the wall.

Her opposite hand reached towards the open end of his jacket. The feeling of his teeth only earned a hitch breath from the back of her throat. "So are you," The words formed against his lips as her back meet the wall. Mara let her head tilt backwards as her hand attempted to tug him closer. "Why should I?"

Trissy Trat05/27/2020 There was a surge of heat collecting in the cavity of his chest. everything else fading away as he moved in closer, a hand gripping at her hair, though he was careful to remain gentle. He wanted this, he wanted her. It was evident in every action that he made, and yet she still needed proof. The thought alone permitted a chuckle to escape his lips, which was now buried against the curve of her neck, his lips pressing chaste kisses along her flesh. “You smell so fucking good.” It was intoxicating, as his hands slipped lower, tracing along her curves till he found her hips; digits digging in deep against denim. “I think about it constantly.” Without warning, he lifted her, his other hand slipping from her hair to the wall, as he easily urged her higher, sliding his palm along the length of her leg till he encouraged her legs to spread around him.

“You know that? You drive me bloody crazy.” Pressing his forehead against her own, he released his hips to roll against her own just once, the notable bulge pressing against her inner thigh.

Everything about Mara had thrown him, inebriated him to the point that he saw nothing else when she was around. And when she wasn’t? Well, the woman hardly skipped his subconscious, even in his dreams, it was her who he saw. “Tell me I do the same to you, tell me you can’t escape me in your head.” Driving his hands even lower, he found no shame in cupping at her ass, his hand ceasing against the curve of her cheek as it found its way into her back pocket, squeezing determinedly. “Say it.”

Vanilla Ice05/27/2020 The sound from the opposite side of the door dispersed as Payton closed the gap between them. The hand tangled in her hair only promoted her neck to tilt to the side. She was giving up the battle she fought to keep the distance between them. Her hands moved to coil around the fabric of his shirt as he worked against her flesh. It left a trail of heat spreading well past the neckline of her shirt. "I'll remember that," The words were replaced with a content sigh. Her body only pressed closer as his hands gripped tightly onto her hips. His words were only pushing her closer to the edge, the anticipation beginning to form in her torso. "What else do you think about?" She curiously questioned as a gasp came from her. The sudden boost in height caused her hands to latch around his neck. Mara let her back press fully against the wall as her legs wrapped just above his hips.

"Don't tell me that," Her fingers worked to lace into the ends of his hair. The throbbing between her legs went into overdrive as he rolled against her hips. She let her legs tightened around his waist as his growing length pressed into her.

Mara could hear her own words repeating in her head. If she wanted to be happy, she had to stop being scared. Their path was already unclear and it only seemed to be getting worse. In this moment, she decided to stop thinking about what would happen tomorrow. "No," She let her head raise to speak the word against his lips, her fingers tugging back on his hair. The pressure on her ass only caused her hips to grind slowly against his groin. "Make me,"(edited) May 30, 2020

Trissy TratYesterday at 10:25 PM Oh, so that was how they’d be playing it as Payton let his hands travel lower, scooping at her ass as he managed to use his free hand to pop free the button of her jeans. “As you wish.” Slowly he let her feet meet the ground, dropping to one knee as he tugged gently at the denim, moving it further down her hips. “Hell, I’ll do whatever you wish.” Placing a kiss against her hips, he shifted his position so he was leaning against the wall, his thumbs hooking into the sides of her panties, pulling her forward. “Tell me if you want me to stop.” Though when no hesitance came, he let one side slip further down, a trail of heated caresses following.

“I want to taste you.” Looking up at her, he finally gave the fabric one last tug, freeing them as he reached around, urging her forward as he tipped his head up, crouching just a bit lower so he could lean into her, meeting her warmth with his mouth.

Vanilla IceYesterday at 10:50 PM A grin formed on her face as the button of her jeans unsnapped. Mara let her eyebrows arch as her feet fell to the floor. She watched as he dropped to his knee, her hips working to peel back from the material."Anything?" Mara asked as she inhaled a sharp breath. His mouth moving against her skin prompted her hips to move forward. A hand rested against the wall as the other worked into the ends of his hair. "Don't stop," Her legs began to part as the thin material began to fall from her sides.

Mara's head mindlessly nodded as her eyes locked with Payton's. She sat bare in front of him as his hand tugged her forward. The brunette's head fell back within seconds as his mouth connected with her center. Her teeth caught the inside of her cheek in attempt to stifle back a moan.

Trissy TratYesterday at 10:57 PM Oh, no he wanted to hear her as his tongue moved about, exploring and savoring. Everything about her taste capturing him as he moved one hand towards her own, interlocking their fingers against the wall, as his other only pushed him further into his mouth. “Say my fuckin’ name.” It was a demand, as he moved his gaze up towards her own, locking it as he popped his lips around her clit, a slight suctioning movement before dropping his head back.

“Say it as I make you cum.” This time his tongue came in contact, fully working at a feverish tempo, determined to feel her walls clench, with her wetness tinting his beard. “Mara,” Growling against her warmth, his teeth gently nipped at her clit, teasing and taunting as his free hand gripped her asscheek, stroking the rounded curve. God, she was beautiful.

Vanilla IceYesterday at 11:33 PM The arch in her back increased as his tongue worked vigorously against her. Mara's chest began to slowly heave as his tongue hit spots most missed. She let her nails dig into the rough side of his palm, her hips rolling with the curve of his mouth. The brunette let her eyes fall towards his, her fingers tightened around the ends of his hair. "No," She let the words moan from her lips as her body twitched with the pull of her clit.

The hand in his hair urged his face deeper, her grasp pulling eagerly at the loose ends. Mara could feel the wave of euphoria threatening to spill over as Payton continued his aggressive pace. She quietly mummed at the sound of her name, a throat moan broke from her lips as his teeth grazed across the delicate skin. The brunette felt the base of her legs begin to shake as her core tightened against his face. "Right there," Mara could feel her dominance streak wearing away as her groin rode out her orgasm against the heat of his mouth. Her head fell back once more as her eyes focused on the ceiling, his name could practically be heard from the other side of the closed door. "Payton," May 31, 2020

Trissy TratToday at 12:00 AM Feeling her come against his mouth, Payton kept himself pressed against her, memorizing each vibration as his nails dug against her flesh. "Yes baby, come for me." Never ceasing his movements, he let her ride out the orgasm till she stilled, and only then did he rise, licking over his lips as he looked down at her. "I'm excited to do that again," Pausing he forward, kissing the curve of her neck. "and again, again."

Only next time, it'd been in his bed, and not a supply closest. So he could really show her his worth, as he grinned down at her. "You're different, Ximoara Reyes, I mean it."

Vanilla IceToday at 12:29 AM She could feel her eyes fluttering back into her skull as her body fell to his manipulation. A whimper rolled from her lips as Payton’s fingers pressed roughly into her skin. It was only a few moments after her release that his figured returned to look over her. Her back remained flat against the wall as she looked up with him. “Whenever,” the brunette declared as her head tilted to welcome his lips against her neck.

A small sliver of greed spread through her as she wanted to push further. Pouting her lips slightly, her hands reached forward to tug him closer. “I know,” Mara pushed off the wall to press her mouth against his. The brunette welcomed the taste of herself as her tongue barely grazed along his bottom lip. Pulling back, her hands worked to pull her clothing back into place. “I’m not walking out first,” Mara challenged as a smile planted on her face.

// FADE TO BLACK

#discord #interactions . { and he spoke as if every word was a prayer }#xio tag. (( she’s the color of a constellation falling into place ))

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wheresmynaya · 6 years ago

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Two Ghosts Ch.4 | Brittana

Here’s an early update bcuz its 44C and it’s too hot to leave my desk. (x)

Santana had been so used to the city life that she had forgotten how finding a spot for a drink in Lima at barely noon was nearly impossible. The only place open is Breadstix and she wouldn’t really characterize that as a bar, but there’s alcohol and the patio is open so they find a spot outside in the sun and order wine and a bowl of fries.

“Now this is a classy combo.” Quinn points out as the waitress comes around with their order and begins pouring wine into her glass.

“Leave the bottle.” Santana says once the waitress finishes filling her glass. She remembers she should be polite and looks up apologetically, “Please.”

Quinn shakes her head, hiding a laugh, and steals a fry, “I didn’t think you were serious about the getting drunk part.”

Santana just sips her wine and leans back in her chair, “I didn’t think I’d run into my ex-girlfriend and the guy she dumped me for.”

“Fair enough.” Quinn shrugs and goes to sip her wine too, “I can’t believe it’s been five years for you two.”

Santana nods as she thinks about the so-called progress she thought she made over the years, “It’s this town. There’s too much history here. I can’t wait to get back to New York and feel normal again.”

“I didn’t know it was that bad.”

Santana looks at Quinn over the rim of her glass, brow arched in question.

“You two must’ve had a brutal break-up because the only time I’ve seen you guys half as awkward as that was back in like sophomore year?” Quinn explains and Santana instantly knows of the time she’s talking about; now that was rough. “You’ve had arguments and fights before, but it’s never lasted this long.”

“Yeah,” Santana answers and finishes her glass in record time. Quinn’s eyes go wide but Santana’s already topping up her glass, “Don’t really feel like talking about it.”

“I can see that.” Quinn says and sips at her wine again.

They end up talking about the funeral and how many people they spotted and how different they looked or how unchanged, the topic of Brittany and Sam never making its way into the conversation again because they both know they don’t want to open that can of worms.

They talk about staying in contact this time around once they return to their lives because like Santana, Quinn also finds it a little lonely in New Haven. They talk about possibly visiting each other since Quinn’s never been to New York and Santana’s never been to New Haven and it can’t be that long of a trip.

The bottle is nearly empty and the last of the fries are cold when Quinn gets a call. She looks at the number on the screen with furrowed brows before answering. Santana tries not to listen but a series of looks Quinn pulls has her intrigued. There’s mention of Santana being with her currently and that she doesn’t know where Brittany is then there is a lot of yes, okay, sure.

When the call ends Quinn’s brows are still furrowed and she says something Santana hasn’t heard in years:

“Principal Figgins wants to see us.”

They spend the next hour sobering up since they both drove separately. They wonder what their old principal could possibly want with them, but they don’t come up with any reasonable explanations.

Quinn leads the way and as they pull into the WMHS parking lot, Santana spots Brittany just getting out from her car. Quinn parks next to Brittany and Santana pulls in next to her but she kind of wishes she lagged a little behind so she would’ve had more time to prepare for the second interaction with Brittany of the day. Maybe this time she won’t embarrass herself by making a complete fool of herself.

“Figgins called you too?” Brittany asks as the three of them meet in front of their cars.

“Yeah, not sure what this about though.” Quinn answers and looks up at the building, “It’s so weird being back here.”

Santana agrees, but there’s a certain look on Quinn’s face and Santana can’t tell if she’s talking about school or Lima in general.

They walk inside and subconsciously fall into their usual order; Quinn in the middle with Santana and Brittany flanking her, their steps in unison as they walk the halls they once ran. Everything looks the same still, a popular trend in Lima, and Santana is instantly taken back to the time she spent there. As they round the corner, Santana spots the lockers she and Brittany used to share and remembers all the times she spent working through her feelings there: the innocent flirting, the pep talks, the confessions, the hurt, the dirt, the kiss. It’s all just a distant memory now.

The secretary welcomes the girls and directs them inside where Figgins awaits, a large TV set up behind him.

“Good afternoon, McKinley alumnus! Please have a seat.” He greets a little too loudly but the girls say their polite hellos and take their places in the chairs set out before him. “I am delighted you have accepted my invitation but I am sure you are wondering why I have asked you here today as you are no longer my students and do not require my guidance and supervision.”

They nod in unison.

“In the passing of our beloved Cheerios Coach, Sue Sylvester, I have been assigned one last task. Please direct your gaze to the television screen behind me.” Figgins says robotically and presses a button on the remote sitting on his desk.

The screen flickers on and the image of Coach Sylvester fills the monitor. She sits at her desk, a number of trophies displayed behind her, a look of determination spread across her face.

“Lady Ta-Ta, Q, Tweedle-Dumb.” Sue addresses and Santana cringes at the nicknames, “If you’re seeing this, it means I am no longer of this Earth and I have sent for you to gather once more. Why have I interrupted your inevitably boring lives you may ask? Well, despite how I may have treated you over the years, whether frowned upon or not, you three have always been the shining stars of my squad and I have yet come across Cheerios that embody an ounce of what you three do.”

Quinn looks between Santana and Brittany in amazement, Sue rarely gave a compliment let alone directed at them.

“Sandbags, Other Blonde, you both were my most valuable soldiers however questionable your loyalty was and no matter how exhausting your Sapphic drama was to endure, the two of you were talented and that carried the team and I have not forgotten that. And Q, I’ve always thought of you as a younger version of myself: ruthless and stoic. But now, in my last hours, I have spent the time reflecting on my glorious life and I am saddened with the thought that my legacy will not be carried on. That is why I have summoned you three here today, my Unholy Trinity, because on this day I request something of you.”

Sue pauses and Santana scoots to the edge of her seat, hanging on every word. It’s all over the top and the drama is so unnecessary but Santana can’t stop watching. She’s genuinely intrigued but also afraid of what Sue could possibly want with them. In high school, they were made to do horrible things to their friends, to each other, and Santana couldn’t imagine having to do that again.

“In my untimely demise, I leave behind a squad worthy of greatness. A squad in need of mentoring and guidance, and without the tutelage of one Sue Sylvester, I have no other choice but to rely on the next best thing. In fact, due to your greatness that could’ve only been attained by my doing, you all are kind of in debt to me. Because of this, I have selected the three of you to carry on my legacy. I have no doubt that you will excel and bring in one last National trophy. My proposition is: for one school year, I ask you to coach my Cheerios in exchange for-”

“I’m sorry, did she say coach?” Santana interrupts and jumps to her feet, “Oh hell no. No, no, no. I did not sign up for this. No thank you.”

“Santana, hold on.” Quinn tries but Santana’s already halfway out of the office, the video continuing to play without her.

Quinn and Brittany share a knowing look before directing their attention back on the screen.

A little while later, Quinn finds Santana in the hallway, pacing, and Brittany trails a little behind with a worried look on her face. Santana doesn’t notice though, she’s too wound up from the video.

“Who the hell does she think she is? Am I supposed to drop everything I’m doing and return to this shithole of a town to do her a favor? It’s one thing to come back for a funeral, I’m not that much of a heartless bitch, but I am not putting my life on hold to fucking coach a bunch of entitled, snotty teenagers.”

They watch as Santana continues to rant, switching in and out of Spanish, before she tires herself out and slumps against the wall with her arms crossed.

“Are you done now?” Quinn asks, unfazed by the tantrum.

Santana rolls her eyes in defeat, “Maybe.”

Brittany covers a smile with her hand and that makes Santana soften a little more.

“I’m just as thrilled as you are with this surprise,” Quinn starts and looks to Brittany, “We both are, but if you would’ve listened to the entire video, you’d hear that Sue would make this job worth our while.”

Santana drops her arms and tilts her head to the side, “What do you mean?”

“Apparently Sue is willing to pay us a pretty hefty sum in exchange for this one last favor.” Quinn tells her and Santana instantly thinks of her tiny apartment in New York and all the second-hand furniture she’s acquired throughout the years and the student loan she’s still working to pay off.

“How much are we talking?”

“Enough.” Quinn answers, “More than enough, I’m talking more than a coach should realistically be getting paid, and there’s a bonus if we place at Nationals.”

Santana’s eyes widen, that’s definitely more than she makes at the diner and she could really use that money to knock out a big chuck of her student loan debt. She hesitates a bit before asking, “Are you going to do it?”

Quinn looks to Brittany and nods, “Brittany and I have agreed to give it a shot.”

Santana glances over to Brittany who stands a little off to the side of Quinn. She’s been quietly watching the whole time with her hands in her back pockets.

Brittany looks back at her and shrugs, “I think it could be kind of fun. Besides, it’s not like I have anything better to do.”

Santana frowns; fun isn’t the first word that comes to mind but the money is really tempting and it’s hard to think straight when Brittany’s giving her more reasons to join.

She also wonders why Brittany wouldn’t have anything better to do; as if she’s not some successful journalist or choreographer or photographer or whatever Brittany loved doing. She realizes she doesn’t know anything about Brittany anymore, not even what she’s been doing for work over the years.

Quinn looks to Santana expectantly, “It’s only for a school year..”

“And that’s not even a whole year.” Brittany adds and it almost sounds like she’s trying to coax Santana into doing it.

Santana looks between Quinn and Brittany and she can’t believe she’s actually considering the job, but it means being around Brittany more and she doesn’t know if she can handle that. There’s a lot of history there and not much closure and it’s probably for the best that Santana just heads back to New York where she belongs.

Then again, it’s just a job offer and she could keep things professional between them. That could work? She could last the year then head home for good?

She thinks about the money again and how much it’ll help in hopes of distracting her from the way Brittany is looking at her, a hopeful glint in her eye.

“Do you want to sleep on it?” Quinn asks, “We can’t really do it without you though, we’re the Unholy Trinity, we need you. But if you need some time to think about it then go ahead.”

Santana looks between them again thinking about how she can’t remember the last time she felt needed and there is an unmistakable pain that Brittany doesn’t need her in the way that she used to need Brittany. It’s strictly for the money and although that reality hurts, Santana finds a little comfort in that. There would be no room for confusion or feelings or anything. It’s just a job.

So she sighs and pushes away from the wall she had been leaning on, “Okay, fine. I’m in.”

#two ghosts #brittana #santana lopez #brittany pierce #fics

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leadpaintrose · 6 years ago

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How Long Has it Been?

Jack gasped, suddenly aware of his surroundings, unfamiliar, though familiarity seemed an impossible concept. He tried to remember something, anything, but every corner of his memory was a blank slate. He pushed at the white walls of his mind, searching of a gap, a hole, a fragment of memory or understanding. The sense that time had passed was everywhere, pushing down on his neck and shoulders, and he stooped below it. At last, a memory pushed through. Recording a video. Green hair and heavy emotions.

“Well. Wasn’t that a long time ago?”

He jumped at the voice that sounded from nowhere, the smooth white walls around him flexing and glitching, green and red and black flickering through in rough burst. The sound was double layered, triple layered, offset and broken, smooth and whole. He had heard it for so long. It swallowed the memory of recording and forced new ones into his mind. Years flew past as he watched them behind his eyes. Hundreds of videos, thousands of people. Games, conversations, interactions, art, writings, edits. Life. Where had he been?

“Where do you think?”

The voice again. It tore painfully through him. Amid the chaos, the voice was familiar. Familiarity was not the comfort it should have been. “How long have I been here?”

“Time? What a stupid thing to ask about.” His own face, reflected, whole where it should have been broken. The memories settled, and Jack realised they weren’t his own memories. No. They were the memories of the parts of him. The aspects of his life and personality, memories overlapping and forming the recent past. He watched it all with horror and pain. Anti laughed, a layer of red and flashes of green laid over every moment that passed Jack’s eyes, the pain of it lancing through Jack and freezing him in place. He vaguely heard a familiar voice pleading to be allowed to save him, but it faded as soon as it bloomed into existence.

“What have you been doing to them?! How long have I been here?” Jack asked. He stumbled around the room, trying to reach the edges. The wall shifted away from him as he approached, the room he stood within maintaining its size, Jack always at the centre.

“Doing to them? They’ve been happy. Doing what they always wanted, what you’ve kept from them, forced them away from. With just a little pain, I’ve made them happy. More than you ever could. You just couldn’t give up those parts of you, could you?” Anti sneered at him, static and green flashing.

“What? Kept from them? What the hell are you talking about?”

Anti stood unmoving, flashes of the others appearing around him. JJ hunched over a computer screen, smiling broadly, typing furiously. Marvin on a stage, in front of a huge crowd, gesticulating wildly, laughing. Jackie hugging an obviously ill child, squeezing tight, heedless of the young tears on his shoulder. Chase, blowing a victory toot on a tiny blue trumpet. And Schneep. Tired, pushing on, running fingers mindlessly through tousled hair.

“Do you want to see? Do you want to see how much better they have been without you? How unnecessary you are? Those weaklings will watch anything they think is you.”

Jack shook his head, but the wall in front of him changed, split into quarters, each showing a different scene. He watched JJ, sitting comfortably in an armchair, typing methodically and somewhat haltingly on a phone, holding it up occasionally to take a photo and laughing silently, the intensity of his joy evident even without the sound. The image moved, showing the phone screen, JJ flipping between Tumblr, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, passionate engagement flying from his fingers.

“I gave him a chance to speak and be heard – to use a voice that you decided he didn’t need!”

Another screen – Chase livestreaming, dying over and over again to snipers, shouting and laughing in equal measure, a picture of his children taped to the bottom of the monitor. His gaze softened each time he looked at the monitor featuring the chat, the warmth of his connection with the viewers radiating from his eyes.

“You took his kids away – I'm just giving him some back.”

Marvin, in the distance, standing on a massive stage. The audience a sea of green specks in a black abyss, laughing rising and falling like sea spray. Behind him, the tour logo was huge and bright, almost matching the liveliness of his smile and movements as he performed for the adoring crowd.

“A chance to be seen by everyone. To be loved for what he does – all he wanted.”

Jackieboyman meeting a group of fans, hugging and chatting to all of them. Petting several dogs, bending down to interact with the animals, still speaking to their equally exciting owners. He hugs each person even tighter than they hug him, tears gathering in his eyes as they trip over their thanks and stories.

“When were you going to let them share in this happiness? Or was it all for you?”

A giant screen flickered into life above Jack. He stepped back and craned his neck to look up, straight into the eyes of a weary and desperate doctor. Schneeplestein’s deft fingers appeared and disappeared rthymically, the length of surgical thread on the needle shortening with each appearance. He sighed and sat back, reaching down and bringing Jack’s wrist into view to count his heartbeats. The string around Schneep’s neck fit snugly into a scar, worn there by years of wearing the string.

Behind each Ego stood Anti. Thin strings were bunched, grasped in his hands, leading to each of the Egos. Anti twitched and pulled them, and they danced to his manipulations. Around JJ’s fingers, around Chase wrists, around Jackieboyman’s wrists and ankles, along Marvin’s whole body. Around all of their necks.

“Parts of you, aren’t they? Bits of you made real, but you still force them to be silent, to be still, so that you can do everything you want. What about them, Jackaboy? You can’t create and then just shelve them, and hope they won’t hate you. You know what happens when you force them to hide away for too long?”

Anti was behind Jack, in his head, above him. The voice echoed through his being and his memories.

“You get Me.”

Jack scrambled away from Anti as phantom parts of his recording room faded into view around him. He tried to touch, but he simply passed through everything.

“You can’t do this” Jack pleaded, panic and fear bubbling over.

Anti grinned at him. “I already have. So simple. See? Did you really think you were the one that created them? Moulded them? Made them what they are? No. These are mine. I made them. They are mine - just like you. Just like the rest of those things that follow you. They’ve chosen this,” he said, gesturing at the videos still playing behind him, “I offered, and they accepted. It took some work, some....pushing. But they accepted. Like good like puppets. So obedient.

“I’m in control. Everyone is going to know that. Finally.”

Jack fought as the white began to fade from around him, straining to hold onto the light before the darkness swallowed it again. How long before he was allowed back here? How long would they survive without him?

How long could he survive without them?

#Jacksepticeye #Antisepticeye #myfic #writings #horror #angst #Chase Brody #Jameson Jackson #Marvin the Magnificent #Jackieboyman #Dr Schneeplestein

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badnovels · 7 years ago

Note

Did I miss the porn!Peeta fic posting? Because there are few things that would upset me more than if I missed one of your fics about a porn!Peeta. Just that phrase makes me tingly. #everlark #it'sbeensolong #butnorush #lyingtho

No, you haven’t missed anything! It’s below the cut.

—

“He’s being a real bitch today,” Glimmer complained. She left a trail of her namesake across the floor as she stalked down the hallway. Her beautiful face, heavily made-up to appear flawless on screen, was mutinous. Her body was covered in a sheer peignoir that was dripping glitter as she walked, and her surgically enhanced breasts pointed rosy-tipped nipples at Katniss, which she studiously tried to ignore as she replied to an email on her phone.

“Sorry.” Katniss shrugged and finally met the other girl’s eyes. She slipped her phone in her back pocket and sighed. “You know I don’t control him. No one can.”

To say that Peeta Mellark was an unstoppable force was an understatement. That anyone believed she had any real sway over him was laughable on a good day, but today wasn’t going to be a good day, because yesterday? Peeta caught her doing something she’d sworn never to do.

He hadn’t spoken to her since.

And considering he didn’t go one hour without texting or calling or giving her some sort of order…well. Katniss wasn’t about to start making any demands on his schedule. He’d sent her one line this morning: studio @ nine. When she’d arrived, he was sequestered in a room that was already shooting a scene, and she’d been loitering in the hallway like a troll ever since.

“Oh, whatever,” Glimmer said with a derisive frown. “You’re his precious…” Katniss stared at her. “…personal assistant,” she finished with a little more respect. “You could at least give us a heads up. I hate when he crashes in like this.”

“Look. He owns the production company,” Katniss said. She drank deeply from the tepid cup of coffee in her hand and grimaced. Peeta liked it sugar-sweet and full of cream, the opposite of her preference, but she needed fortification this morning if she were going to deal with a confrontation with temperamental talent. “He can show up whenever he wants.”

“Yeah, but I thought he was above all…this…now.” Glimmer gestured vaguely with her hands. “He can just sit back and relax while we make money for him on our backs.”

She choked during her next long sip. “You make him sound like a pimp.”

“If the shoe fits! It’s ridiculous how he storms in here-” The words cut off like a scratched record, and Katniss didn’t have to turn to know why.

“For your information,” Peeta said, taking the coffee cup from Katniss’ hand without acknowledging her. “A pimp wouldn’t pay you nearly as well as I do.”

“I didn’t mean…I just meant…” Glimmer stammered, backing away.

“Maybe if you put as much passion into your scenes as you do talking shit about me, we wouldn’t have to do so many reshoots,” he said. His trademark blue eyes were cold.

“I’m sorry, sir.”

“Go cry it out in the dressing room,” he said. “When you come back, I expect you to be professional and ready to nail your scenes. Literally.”

Glimmer fled. Katniss cleared her throat.

“That was unnecessary, don’t you think?” She tried as hard as she could to sound normal.

“Don’t even start,” Peeta warned, his voice low. He lifted the cup and glared at the lip gloss-stained rim. “You had to drink my fucking coffee?”

“I drink it every morning. Out of spite.”

“Why’d you do it?” he asked suddenly, throwing the half-full cup into the trash.

“Well.” She chewed on her lip and looked at the wall behind him. “I really didn’t know you were that serious about your coffee.”

“Don’t.”

Katniss exhaled and closed her eyes. She couldn’t believe he was actually going to bring it up. Why couldn’t they just quietly go about ignoring unsaid things? It worked for them.

“Do you really have to do this right now?” she mumbled, turning away. She had a hard time meeting his eyes. “Let it go.”

“I had one request. One rule,” Peeta said, grasping her arm and pulling her back toward him. “Look at me.”

She reluctantly did as he asked, her face burning.

“I asked you not to watch my films,” he said slowly, “because of this. Right here.”

“This, what?”

He gave her a resentful look, his handsome face showing the true depth of his anger. He didn’t look like a polished, successful entrepreneur at that moment. He didn’t look like the funny, humble man that he was sometimes with her in private, a hard-won intimacy and friendship she’d developed as the person who looked after his every need for the past three years. Peeta now looked like the raw, brutish person who fought his way up from a dodgy, orphaned childhood, where he transitioned from a homeless teen to an edgy adult film star who specialized in controversial, rough kink.

“This. Where you can barely talk to me. Where you treat me like I’m something to be ashamed of,” he said, voice hard.

“Jesus!” she exclaimed. “Do you really think I’m that much of a prude? I work for the owner of a porn company.”

“You’re my assistant because you had no choice,” Peeta reminded her with a curl of his upper lip. “You’d be on the first flight outta LA if you’d had any other options. You took this job because you were broke and desperate, and Prim begged me for the favor.”

“That’s really low.” Disbelief flared, taking the place of embarassment. “Don’t bring my sister into this.”

“Why not?” he taunted her, his beautiful smile unkind and cruel.

“Because…” She was speechless with anger and confusion and hurt. This was all spiraling so out of control. They were breaking every one of their rules, even the unspoken ones.

“Just say it.” He stepped into her space, crowding her against the wall. “It’s because I fucked her? Years ago? Aw.” He was all faux-solicitousness. “It was just for the movies, sweetheart.”

Katniss’ vision blurred. “No.” The sudden outrage made her shake, and another emotion, something sharper and brighter and painful, made her eyes burn. “Because you dragged her into this shit.”

His laugh was a bitter, brittle thing. “Now we get to the truth. The shit.” He was so close now that their foreheads were practically touching. “The disgusting porn industry that Katniss Everdeen is so far above. Who cares that it pays your bills every month.”

She pushed him, but he didn’t move. Peeta was big, and hard, and though he didn’t have a reason to keep his body in the same peak physical condition he needed back when he starred in the movies that he now produced, he was just as buff as he’d ever been.

“You’re putting words into my mouth. She’s my baby sister. I wanted…I wanted something else. I wanted her to go to school. To be a doctor. And then she met you, and the next thing I know, she’s banging people on screen and changing her name to Rose Deen.”

“I didn’t make her do anything. She asked me for a foot in the door. And she’s successful. She’s happy,” Peeta gritted out. “Prim’s my friend. I’d never hurt her, not then. Not now.”

“It doesn’t hurt that you’re making a heavy profit off of her now, either,” she said meanly, regretting it instantly when a flash of hurt that swiftly turned to anger crossed his face. God, envy made her a bitch. “Wait-”

“It’s fine.” He gave her a blank look, the kind he sent to people who didn’t matter. “It’s time to watch the dailies. You’re coming with me.”

“But I don’t do that,” she protested feebly, flustered from both the request and what she had just said to him. “Finnick usually does that with you.”

“Okay. You can do it. Or you can quit. It’s up to you,” he said, staring at her. He wasn’t throwing a tantrum. He wasn’t being a dick. He was matter-of-fact, like he didn’t care whether she walked out of the studio doors or not.

“All right,” Katniss muttered, shoving her hands in her pockets. “Look. I’m sorry. I know you’ve been good to Prim. And that it was just business.”

“Don’t be sorry. Do your job.”

Peeta turned on his heel and stalked down the hall. She struggled to keep up with him, ignoring the sympathetic grimaces that actors and crew members gave her as she hustled past. Normally she was on the other end of this particularly unpleasant stick, the one to give reassuring looks to the people that Peeta blistered on a daily basis.

Finnick turned and stared at them when Katniss trailed behind Peeta into the editing room.

“Boy. You two look like you’ve been through some things,” he observed. His copper hair gleamed to perfection, and his skin shone with good health under the same lights that made Katniss look like a hag. She hated him, and not just because of his beauty. It was for the same reason she harbored a secret, horrifying little anger at her own sister: Finnick had once gotten to touch Peeta Mellark, even if it was on film.

Katniss glared at him while Peeta examined something on one of the screens.

“Hmm.” Her nemesis took a bite from an apple and leaned back in his computer chair, addressing Katniss. “Exactly why am I being blessed with your presence, tiny?”

“Ask my demon overlord.” She plopped down on the couch that was against the wall and then frowned. “I’m not sitting on any DNA right now, am I?”

“Casting couches are in the room next door,” Finn said with a leer. “It’s where you did your interview, actually.”

“Ugh! Shut up.” For a moment she forgot she was in a fight with her boss. “Peeta! Tell him to stop lying.”

“Don’t torment my assistant,” he said curtly. Then he sat down next to her on the couch, his thigh touching hers. “That’s my personal privilege. Now roll on the footage from this morning.”

Finn cast a doubtful look her way that was mixed with disdain. She knew he mostly considered her an annoying little prude who got in the way of his friendship and personal time with Peeta, but to hell with him. She was here because she was asked and she wasn’t going to be intimidated by the likes of a former porn star named King Badcock.

“Yeah…um.” Katniss gestured at the bank of screens, refusing to be cowed by Finn. “Play it.”

And then something happened.

What ensued was the most uneasy two hours of her life. She’d seen her fair share of cock and vagina before, especially as Peeta’s employee, but this was raw and up-close and technical. And it was discussed in great detail, paused and analyzed, all while the heat from Peeta’s body was touching hers. She couldn’t explain it, couldn’t even put it into words, but hearing words like ‘cum shot’ and ‘squirting’ dropped from such a beautiful mouth in such a dry, deadpan voice was doing something to her that no amount of actual porn had ever done. So she sat there in quiet, squirming agony while Peeta and Finn talked around her.

Her leg was jiggling with nervous energy when Peeta landed a heavy hand on her knee.

“Like I was saying,” he said as if nothing had changed. “Zoom in right there, Finn. Yeah.”

Katniss stiffened and looked at his profile, but he just continued to speak to his partner. His fingers were there, splayed on her skin, and it was somehow the most vulgar sight she’d ever seen. He might as well have been nine inches deep in her pussy, she was so turned on– turned on and furious at herself for her reaction.

“Peeta.”

He and Finn both turned to look at her, their expressions odd. She could only imagine what they saw. She was hot, and if she wasn’t sweating she soon would be. Any second she was going to come right out of her skin.

“Yes?” he asked.

“I need.” She stopped and started and rubbed her face, stuttering. “I need…I need to talk to you.”

He stared at her. Saw something in her countenance. Then he looked at Finn. “Get out.”

“You serious?” Finnick said, visibly annoyed. “You called me into the studio early, talking shit about being on a time constraint. And now-’

“Get. Out.”

He got out.

“Well?” Peeta finally asked in the long moment that followed Finnick’s departure.

“I…” She tripped over her tongue.

Silence. Then, “You look like you want be fucked.” This was delivered coolly, deadpan, but he couldn’t quite hide the undercurrent of something like astonishment.

“You’re so arrogant,” she said, her hand shaking. Katniss stood, but his strong hands found her hips, and he pulled her down to sit on his lap. She wasn’t even surprised. It was a Wednesday afternoon and she was sitting on Peeta Mellark’s denim-covered erection, and it felt as natural as breathing.

“Do you?” he asked into her ear. “Just say the word. Say anything, Kat.” She held back a moan. “I’ll be your dirty little secret. Your nasty, trashy porn star.” He bit the shell of her ear and Katniss squeaked. Squeaked. “I’ll be whatever you want, just tell me what you want.”

“I want you,” she whispered. And she really did. Despite the history with her sister, the fact that she worked for him, that they could barely go a day without bickering…she wanted Peeta Mellark with an intensity that scared her.

She thought he’d explode into action at her words. If it had been one his movies, he’d have torn her dress straight down the back. He’d rip her underwear with his bare hands and pound into her, then and there.

Instead, it was a painfully slow seduction that followed. He lifted her up, turned her to face him, and looked at her.

“You’re so damn pretty,” he said almost angrily. He fingers were at contrast to his voice, gentling gliding over the rise of her cheekbones. “I don’t understand…I don’t know why it feels like this. I’ve seen so many beautiful women. Nicer women.”

“Charmer.”

“I don’t want beautiful. Or nice, I guess,” he said. “I want you. With your sour patch tongue and mean eyes and sweet lips…god, your fucking lips.”

Peeta kissed her. His tongue swept her mouth, and she allowed it, giving back the energy he was infusing into her. His hands ran down her arms as if to give her warmth, but then they were working on the buttons of her shirt-dress, both nimble and leisurely at the same time. Her bra came off and then his clever mouth was pressing kissing down her jaw, nipping the sensitive space between neck and shoulder, and then pulling gently at her sensitive nipple, worrying it with his straight white teeth.

When he pulled his head away she almost cried.

“Come back,” she said, and he laughed in disbelief before scrubbing at his face.

“Can’t believe I’m saying this. But. I don’t wanna do you here,” he said. With his blond waves and flushed face, he suddenly looked more like a fallen angel rather a hardened businessman.“That seems…I don’t want to.”

“Where, then?” Katniss panted, staring up at him with frustration and bewilderment.

Peeta didn’t speak for a long moment. Instead, he helped her back into her bra, kissing her every time she started to protest.

“Let me take you on a date.” His expression was a mix of grumpy, horny defiance and a dash of what she’d swear was vulnerability. “A good one. We can fuck all night long after that.”

“Why?”

He closed his eyes as if praying for inner peace. “Because I like you. I like you and I want to do it right. For once. Prove to you I’m not the man you think I am. That I can be a better man.”

“I don’t think you’re a bad man, Peeta.” She touched his cheek. “I thought…I don’t know. I’m not anything like what someone like you’d be interested in.”

“You kidding?” He gestured toward his still-raging erection. Then he stopped and shook his head. “Let me show you…just…” He held up his finger and pulled out his phone, the one she spent an hour setting up before painstakingly explaining to him how to use it for two more. He tapped on it for a moment and then thrust it at her. The background photo was a picture of Katniss, tipsy and beaming a rare smile after drinking too many margaritas at a wrap party a few months back.

Katniss blinked in pure surprise, completely at a loss. “But you’re my boss” was all she could think to say.

He gave her the squint-eyed stare she had grown to know so well. “You’re worrying about that now? You were dry humping me not ten minutes ago.”

She huffed, purely for show. “Do you wanna date me or not, asshole?”

Peeta laughed. “There’s my girl.”

#boy am i rusty #bless this mess #everlark #hunger games fanfiction #ficlet #reply #macchapstick

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joonsgalaxy · 7 years ago

Text

a meaningful moment through a meaning(less) process

° reader x superhero!namjoon

° fluff ° 3,1 k words

°° while the headlines of newspapers were screaming about people born under the lucky star, for they had been saved 7 or more times from life threatening situations, and while radio hosts were wondering who would next earn the title of “the best superhero of the year”, the new established policy of keeping a record of it all allowed you to see the reality of what happens behind the scenes.

a/n: this fic is written in namjoon’s pov

‘How many lives saved?’

He watched you intently as your eyes blinked at the screen. Your tone was polite, reverent hence suitable for this formal conversation; yet it was also lightly cheerful and kind, gently wrapping him up in a blanket and lulling him into a dreamland, where the moon and the sun had your warm eyes and your soft smile.

’74,’ he answered.

The commodious room was filled with indistinct chatter and the repetitive sound of keys clicking as the employees typed away.

He thought he was the luckiest man on the planet whenever he would find the chair in front of your desk free. These days it was pretty much the only opportunity he got to talk to you.

Your dexterous fingers halted over the keyboard. You sent him a surprised look.

’74?’ You echoed his words in utter astonishment. ‘Wow.’

‘It was 7:30 am,’ he explained, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck. ‘Lots of people were traveling to school or work. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time.’

You chuckled lightly, shaking your head at his indifference. ‘Well, those people were very lucky you were there.’

‘I guess.’ He shrugged.

There was a moment of silence hanging above the desk between you two; then you tilted your head to the side, brows raised in sheer disbelief. ‘You do realize you’re 14 saved lives away from securing your spot in the second place on the list?’

‘Oh.’ He did not realize that, if truth be told.

In fact, he’d never checked the list and he’d never counted the total amount of the lives he had saved; he would only be aware of the count right after an incident had happened, and only because he had to report these exact numbers to authorities like he was doing it now.

Even thinking about the total sum felt weird—he was not some kind of obsessed collector, keeping a record of every butterfly on his walls.

He simply had a supernatural gift—or rather an abnormality—of being exceptionally strong. He figured he could use it to help the ordinary people; and he certainly could do that without keeping a count of the saved lives, or receiving any of the awards, or holding a place on some kind of list, for that matter. In Namjoon’s eyes those things only motivated the overly ambitious and morbidly greedy superheroes. To him that kind of attention seemed unnecessary and overwhelming.

The thing was you seemed quite enthusiastic about it, fascinated even. If it was a big deal to you, well he might as well use this situation for his own good at least once. All he wanted was your attention, after all. It sounded a tad bit selfish and wrong, but he was pretty much hopeless by now. He had no idea of how else he could make you see him as something more than just your brother’s friend or a man obligated to visit your workplace once in a while. He wanted you to see him in a different light for so long, probably since you were sixteen. How long exactly had it been since Hoseok introduced you to him? Seven years? Holy shit. It was about time he did something about his feelings.

It all began, when his eyes landed on you for the first time. You took his breath away. He had never fallen in love so deeply before.

His visits to your house grew more and more frequent. At first he tried to convince Hoseok and himself that it was because of the new TV in Hoseok’s room—it was way wider than Namjoon’s. What a ridiculous excuse. After a while he started feigning concern about Hoseok’s homework—the finals were approaching at the speed of sound, it seemed, and Hoseok was not yet prepared.

Much to Namjoon’s humiliation his friend eventually figured out the real reason he visited your house nearly every day.

‘Admit it. You’re not here because of your benevolent nature,’ Hoseok had confronted him. ‘You don’t actually care about my exams. You only come here to gawk at my sister.’

Namjoon was mortified. How could he be so imprudent? What gave him away? Was it the fact that his pencils would just keep on snapping in half between his fingers, whenever you’d show up in Hoseok’s room? Or was it the way his gaze would linger upon your shape as you were strolling out into the hallway? And most importantly were you cognizant of it all?

‘It’s okay, man,’ Hoseok had said. ‘As long as you’re truly helping me, I’m fine with you hanging out at my place whenever. Just, y’know… don’t actually ask her out or something. That’d be hella weird, right?’

Come to think of it, perhaps those exact words were obstructing him from asking you out even after all these years.

‘Hey.’ A tiny—well at least compared to Namjoon’s—hand was waving in front of his frozen face. ‘Are you okay? I think you zoned out for a moment.’

Namjoon’s spirit returned back to the room full of formal chatter and the click-clack of keyboards akin to the gentle pattering of the rain. He shifted in his seat sheepishly. ‘Sorry.’ His cheeks got pinched by the wicked fingers of embarrassment forcing uncomfortable heat and red dust dance upon his features.

‘Can we continue?’ You politely pointed at the computer, eyes expectant.

‘Sure, I just— yeah, where were we?’

Your eyes fixated on the screen, agile fingers ready to type. ‘Any injured people?’

Namjoon winced at that and sighed gloomily. ‘Yes… this one guy broke his leg.’ The fact had been plaguing him for a couple of hours since the accident. He should’ve taken all the aspects of the situation into consideration; he should’ve assessed all the possible hazards and acted accordingly, avoiding the distressing outcome.

You typed and waited for more, graceful hands hovering above the keyboard. Namjoon stayed silent, going over the incident again and again in his mind, so you asked, ‘That’s it?’

‘Uh-ha.’

‘Just one guy?’ You wanted to make sure, incredulous.

One guy is one too many, Namjoon thought to himself. ‘Yeah, but he’s hurt, I could’ve done a better job.’ He stared at his lap sorrowfully. ‘If only I used less force… that damned train jerked backwards—

‘Would you stop blaming yourself?’ Your irritated tone forced Namjoon’s eyes up.

He felt stupid. He didn’t want to look pitiful in front of you, surely it wasn’t his intention.

He itched for caressing that tiny crease between your brows as you gazed at him with worry on your youthful face.

You deeply inhaled then, as if preparing to scold a child. You leaned forward, resting your hands on the desk.

Would it be weird, if he placed his own hands on yours?

What the hell was he thinking—of course, it’d be weird. The weirdest. He shook his head—imperceptibly, he hoped—to get rid of the ludicrous thought.

‘Look, Namjoon,’ you resolutely began. ‘You saved nearly 6000 lives in the past two years. That guy got lucky he got out with only a broken leg; he’ll be fine.’

Namjoon’s shoulders felt lighter instantly; perhaps you had just descended right from his dreams as the wind and dispelled those sombre clouds suffocating him. ‘You’re right.’

You nodded satisfied and, much to Namjoon’s disappointment, you leaned back against your chair, hands sliding across the desk along with you like the ocean retrieving its wandering waves. He never felt so far away from you, so empty and dry like a lonely beach during low tide.

‘You know,’ your eyes drifted away in thought, ‘sometimes I think this whole system is bullshit.’

Namjoon felt his eyes widen.

‘Like— yeah, of course I’m happy you get to use your talent to pay your bills and all, but I think people abuse this thing, y’know.’

Namjoon could only nod approvingly as you passionately narrated your opinion. Frankly, his mind was still stuck on the words your talent; he would play it over and over in his head later (in your voice, obviously).

‘They’re convinced it’s your job to protect them no matter what, which, well, it kind of is, but—

You shook your head to collect your thoughts. ‘Citizens are so careless now. I’m sure some purposefully get in trouble because of those stories in newspapers and what not. And you know what grinds my gears the most?’

‘What?’ Namjoon encouraged you to continue, interested and fully engaged in the conversation by now.

You leaned forward over the desk again, grabbing a pencil in the process. ‘People are not appreciative enough, not like they used to be.’

If only those fingers irritably twiddling the pencil could run through Namjoon’s hair. His hair felt exhausted and in need of your pacifying touch.

‘Did that guy with a broken leg even thank you?’

‘Nope. Actually,’ Namjoon said, scratching his temple, ‘he was pretty angry at me.’ Being castigated by a stranger this early in the morning wasn’t the most pleasant thing, to say the least.

You gasped and tossed the pencil somewhere to the side, horrified and incensed. ‘See? You know what I’d do, if I were him?’

‘What?’ This time Namjoon was the one leaning forward, hands on the desk. His pulse sang in his ears at the proximity.

‘I would— I’d buy you a dinner,’ you uttered, and his ears were occupied by a whole band now, drumming like there’s no tomorrow.

‘Or, uh,’ your determined voice wavered a little as your eyes skid around the desk. ‘I’d help you in your garden or—

‘I don’t have a garden,’ Namjoon’s lips moved on autopilot, voice chords working on their own, lacking the contribution of his mind, which was swimming now.

‘Right. Well, I’d do at least something to show my appreciation,’ you picked up that persistent tone again, sincere eyes focusing on Namjoon’s.

He felt his cheeks heat up at the nice words coming from your—his crush’s of seven years—mouth.

‘You save people’s lives, for crying out loud!’

Oh, darling, if only you knew how many times he had saved yours. In his mind, that is.

A plane suddenly crashes into this building? Have no fear, for Namjoon—the superhero—is carrying you out into the street and toward the horizon while the blinding dust, scorching flames and misty smoke dance around viciously.

The breaks of your motorcycle are malfunctioning? Fear not, for Namjoon is the one to stop the vehicle with a light touch of his palm like it’s nothing.

And now he’ll have a dinner with you after saving your life in his fantasy too. What could be better than that?

Before he could drown fully in the deep ocean of his ideas and wander away like earlier, a hand came up to tap him on the shoulder and a derisive voice of a man that Namjoon despised with all his might invaded his skull.

‘Joon!’ Jimin beamed. ‘What did you break this time?’ He chuckled heartily as the muscle of Namjoon’s jaw twitched angrily. ‘You know, we’re here to help people, not to compress their cars together.’

‘That happened one time,’ Namjoon exhaled, annoyed. ‘One time.’ He hated to be reminded of that occurrence, especially when he felt your attentive eyes on him. Perhaps the building was truly on fire, that’s why he was so hot right now.

‘Whatever,’ Jimin waved him off flippantly. ‘Gotta go register my three saved lives today.’

What a prig. It’d be so easy to wipe that stupid smirk off his stupid face.

‘Hey, Jimin!’ Your voice echoed just when the man turned to look for a free desk.

‘Yeah?’ He curiously tilted his head with a grin, and Namjoon’s hand clenched into a fist.

You smiled triumphantly, ‘Guess who’s this close,’ you demonstrated with your fingers, ‘to surpass you in the list of the best superheroes.’

Jimin’s brows shot up in surprise. ‘Who?’ He questioned with much interest.

You smacked your lips and used a finger to point at Namjoon. ‘This guy!’ You sing-songed.

Now Namjoon had the same shocked expression on his face as Jimin. He had no idea.

It felt great, though, to see how strongly affected Jimin was by this. Finally he would realize Namjoon is truly capable of doing great things with his enormous power; maybe Jimin would even forget all of the ignominious incidents that happened during school days, when Namjoon was only starting to learn how to master his ability.

‘No way,’ Jimin exclaimed, resentful.

‘Yes way, bitch.’ You seemed so joyful and proud, chin up high victoriously, arms crossed in front of you as though you had just won the most significant fight in the history.

Namjoon didn’t succeed in supressing his laugh; he was so amused and so damn in love.

Jimin’s nostrils flared in fury; his eyes were blazing as he indignantly glanced at the older superhero.

‘What can I say,’ Namjoon shrugged, ‘being incredibly strong comes in handy.’

‘Fuck you,’ the younger one spat out and stormed off.

Your voice pervaded the spacious room, catching up with him. ‘Go to Jeongguk’s desk. He has a thing for losers.’

Namjoon could hear Jimin’s frustrated groan in the distance and your soft jubilant giggle mere few feet away. Your eyes sparkled like the sky on New Year’s Eve. It seemed as though Namjoon’s heart would explode like fireworks too.

The gleeful mood didn’t last long, though; your laugh dissipated, your face seemingly frowned in sincere regret as you leaned over the desk again.

‘Did I go a little too far just now?’ You asked.

Namjoon tried to fish something out of his scrambled thoughts. ‘I mean—

‘Jeongguk is really nice, if I’m being honest,’ your voice was kind and thoughtful.

‘Oh, he is?’

‘Yeah… And Jimin did save lots of lives,’ you muse, but then unexpectedly change your tone and add in a whisper, ‘Yet he’s such an asshole.’

You were adorable. Too adorable for Namjoon’s weak heart.

‘I know right?’ He agreed, leaning forward as though you were school kids gossiping about that one annoying classmate that nobody genuinely liked.

Your soft chuckle was the most precious melody he could listen to while jogging, reading, before sleep and maybe while making food, oh and definitely when he’s feeling miserable, when he’s happy, and also on the way to the grocery shop—

‘Anyway,’ you utter, focusing on the screen again, hands delicately smoothing out your pristine shirt. ‘The next question— oh.’

Namjoon had gone through the process enough times to memorise the general questions, and judging by the glum look in your eyes it was time for, ‘Damaged property?’

‘Uh-ha.’ You said tentatively, voice sounding dismal.

‘It’s okay,’ Namjoon reassured. ‘The train has a dent in the front, but it would’ve been a lot worse, if I hadn’t interfered.’

You typed and nodded, showing attentiveness.

‘But I was pretty bummed out about that guy and his leg so—,’ he stopped mid-sentence, feeling quite embarrassed. He was used to all this, sure, but Jimin’s teasing words from earlier might had had an impact on him.

You glanced at him with kind eyes and motioned him to proceed.

‘I kicked down a tree,’ Namjoon said in a small voice, ashamed.

You didn’t seem too affected by it, though. Your fingers flew over the keyboard, eyes concentrated, tone professional. ‘Was it private or public property?’

‘Public,’ he let you know and shifted in his seat.

You typed, elegantly fixed your hair and then typed some more. ‘It’s just a tree, Namjoon. You think too much.’

‘Yeah,’ he exhaled and glanced at his watch, calculating the time in which he would get to the stadium once he leaves this place. It seemed that running helped him to calmly mull over his ideas and let out his pent-up frustrations. This method was certainly better than crushing his plates and cups while doing the dishes as his restless mind rushed through a million irritating thoughts.

A few more clicks of the computer mouse and then your attention was drawn back to Namjoon’s face. ‘If everything’s correct, you’ll be eligible for the reward. You should get it in a few days.’ You gave him a smile that embraced his heart in a tight warm hug.

‘Great. Thank you.’

He was preparing to push onto his feet and leave, when a tremendously bright light bulb set off in the depths of his brain, halting all his movements.

It’s now or never, he thought to himself and cleared his throat, mustering up the courage to do what he should’ve done long ago. (This thing really did require much more of his courage even than all that heroic stuff.)

‘Hey, um, you’re so nice to me, and,’ he began rather shyly, drumming his fingers against his jeans. He’s back at your house; he’s that inexperienced boy again in his best friend’s room, nervously stuttering in front of the girl who so effortlessly made the knees of the strongest boy in the whole world ridiculously weak.

‘I’d like to show you my appreciation by buying you a dinner.’

This might crush his dreams; this might go terribly wrong and ruin him; you might draw a sword from under your desk and slash his knees, sending him sprawling across the floor in front of your feet.

(He had great imagination, indeed, but he wasn’t good at foreseeing the future.)

‘Oh?’ You grinned with a curious look in your eyes.

He prayed that the cause of that bright smile on your beautiful face was you being pleasantly surprised and not you thinking he was laughably funny and dumb for daring to ask you this kind of thing.

‘Well,’ you glanced at your folded hands upon the desk, lightly biting your lip.

Every brain cell in Namjoon’s skull was about to scream to book it and never step a foot into this place again.

He had to stop himself from clinging onto the armrests of the chair, because he was certain they wouldn’t withstand his nervousness.

He thought you were dragging it out because you weren’t sure of how to reject him without hurting his feelings too much. But he should’ve known by now that he was pretty bad at interpreting a girl’s actions.

‘I’d love to have a dinner with you.’

(What could be better than having a dinner with you in his fantasies? He had the answer now—it’s having a dinner with you in real life.)

thanks for reading!! and as drew monson says: leave me a fxxking comment because i’m very lonely :))

#kwriterskollection #hyunglinenetwork #kim namjoon #bts fanfic #namjoon scenarios #namjoon fluff #namjoon fic #rm #bts fanfiction #bangtan #superhero!namjoon

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