#granted I haven’t seen the movie yet but. like. we’re all familiar with this man’s actions yes?

[talesfromthebandgeekmafia]

Call me crazy but I don’t think blonde hair and a pretty face should be enough for you to be crushing on a fascist

[disappointingyet]

Design For Living

Director Ernst Lubitsch Stars Gary Cooper, Miriam Hopkins, Fredric March USA 1933 Language English, French 1hr 33mins Black & white

Dear boy, you can’t possibly be telling me Gary Cooper is in a Noel Coward picture

Ninotchka

Director Ernst Lubitsch Stars Greta Garbo, Melvyn Douglas USA 1939 Language English, a tiny bit of Russian and French 1hr 50mins Black & white

Garbo laughs! Stalin doesn’t!

Many of my favourite films are Hollywood comedies of the 1930s and ‘40s. Ernst Lubitsch is regarded by critics as one the best directors of the era* and he specialised in comedies but I haven’t seen many of his films and those I had seen had watched hadn’t sold me on his genius. In particular, The Shop Around The Corner, which I saw on the big screen, left me underwhelmed. But it seemed like time to give him another go…

The attention-grabbing thing about Design For Living is that it is a Noel Coward adaptation starring Gary Cooper. Slow-talking cowboy Gary Cooper? Yeah, that one. Gary Cooper as a Cubist painter living in a Parisian garret and involved in unconventional sexual arrangements? Uh-huh. In a comedy? Yep. 

It’s apparently a very loose Coward adaptation (I’ve never seen the play) but his spirit remains, even if all the characters are now American. George (Cooper) and his playwright chum Tom (Fredric March) meet Gilda (Miriam Hopkins), who does art for an ad agency – ie, unlike them, she has a real income – on a train. Soon, and unknown to George and Tom, she’s carrying on with both men.

Ah, yes, something important to say: this is what is known as a pre-Code movie – one made before Hollywood’s system of self-censorship (which lasted until the 1960s) kicked in. 

Anyway, the guys rumble what’s going on and tell Gilda she has to make a decision: But instead of choosing one of them, she moves in to sort them out on the condition that there will be no sex… What are the odds that that will stick? 

If an Americanised Noel Coward  play sounds like a classic Hollywood monstrosity, it turns out that this film is pretty funny and still a bit daring. And Cooper could do comedy: he’s opposite Barbara Stanwyck in Ball Of Fire, a Howard Hawks screwball classic from 1940 in which he plays a linguistics professor researching slang. My assumption is that Cary Grant must have been first choice for that film but Cooper is good, and he and March and Hopkins are an appealing trio (or maybe throuple?) in Design For Living.

Ninotchka is much more famous movie and one I’m 95% sure** I saw as a kid. The tagline was ‘Garbo laughs!’ – this was a big deal. I feel that Greta Garbo is somewhere between those old-time movie stars who are almost completely forgotten – Sonja Henie, for instance – and those who have endured more clearly, say Marlene Dietrich. Even if you’ve never seen a Dietrich movie – and let’s be honest, most people alive have not seen a Dietrich movie – there's a reasonable chance you have some sense of what she looked and sounded like, if only from parodies and drag queens. Garbo, on the other hand, seems like just a name now. 

Considering she’s playing the title character, Garbo takes a while to turn up in Ninotchka. We’re in Paris again and a trio of Soviet officials are in town to sell some jewels. News of this mission reaches the Russian Grand Duchess (Ina Claire) who was the former (or, in her view, still rightful) owner of the jewels and she sends her boyfriend Leon (Melvyn Douglas), a French count, to try to retrieve the stuff or at least put a spoke in the Soviet plans. Pretty soon, he has the three officials thoroughly seduced by Western decadence. So Moscow sends a much more hardline comrade to sort things out… and that’s of course Ninotchka.

The broad strokes of this kind of hardened yet naive Bolshevik were familiar until at least the 1980s: she’s baffled by fun, she asks the Count’s butler why he subjects himself to the indignity of being a servant and the old man turns out to be far more conservative than the count etc.

 But the film is smarter than that (and Garbo was a huge star known for dramatic roles.) So we get nuance – for instance, we learn that Ninotchka had been a frontline soldier in the wars that followed the revolution, something not possible in the US until this century as far as I can tell. I don’t think the film is disapproving of this. 

The film’s take on the USSR is fascinating. It was claimed by many Western Communists and other apologists for Stalin (so-called fellow travellers) that it was impossible to know how oppressive the regime had become until the death of Stalin (1953) or even the invasion of Hungary (1956) – but this mainstream Hollywood comedy from 1939 has a clear idea. 

‘The latest mass trials were a great success,’ reports Ninotchka. ‘There are going to be fewer but better Russians.’ That’s a pretty brutal joke even now, but kind of astonishing at the time. The working assumption is that anyone who has messed up and has to return to the USSR will be shot. The scene of a Moscow parade shows Stalin’s cult of personality in full effect. The Russians are in Paris as a part of a programme to flog off Tsarist-era treasures to feed a starving people. 

Ah, but this was anti-Communist propaganda, so they would have said all those things, wouldn’t they? But American anti-Communist propaganda, by and large, didn’t work like this. It wanted to show that the USSR was powerful, dangerous, its agents insidious, not (for instance) easy to derail with champagne and cigarette girls. Anti-Communists were constantly warning everyone to be on their guard (and, during the Cold War, waved through absurd defence spending). This film, instead, is suggesting that people like fun and anyone in a position to compare the two will decide that the decadent West is simply a better time than Marxist-Leninism.

There are three writers credited with the screenplay (although apparently Lubitsch also did some of the work): Charles Brackett, Billy Wilder and Walter Reisch. Reisch I know nothing about, but Brackett and Wilder wrote Ball Of Fire (mentioned earlier) and Sunset Boulevard together, among many other films, before Wilder went on to an even better partnership with IAL Diamond. Pretty much any film Wilder worked on will have some great lines, and this is no exception. (‘A Russian! I love Russians! Comrade, I've been fascinated by your five-year plan for the last fifteen years.’)

Ninotchka is a terrific movie – silly when it needs to be but often extremely smart, funny but also quite tough in its way. It does so many interesting things, like holding off on bringing on its star, and the politics are super-interesting. So, yes, I'm starting to understand why Lubitsch mattered.

*One time and one time only I was invited to the Christmas party of Sight And Sound, the most serious-minded non-academic film magazine there is. My main memory of the evening is lurking uselessly on the edge of an intense conversation about Lubitsch, knowing I had nothing to add. 

**The tiny bit of doubt is because the story was reworked as a Fred Astaire-Cyd Charisse musical called Silk Stockings. I may well have seen that too, but my memory is of a black & white film, not a musical – so Ninotchka. 

[faecaribou]

Going Gray/Old Age

TW character death

Wilford goes gray. Egos face old age.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/33467572

-------

His hair had started to fade.

Truthfully, it had been such a gradual change that Wilford hadn’t noticed it until one day Bim stepped into his television set with a head full of silver and had announced that he was going to stop dying his hair black. Wilford had stopped whatever he had been doing at the time-he can’t remember what it was anymore- to gape.

“You’re going gray?” He had managed to squawk, and Bim grinned at him proudly, mistaking his shock for admiration.

“You bet I am!” Bim said confidently. “I saw how Dr. Iplier looks, and its not that bad.” He preened in a nearby mirror. “I’m a silver fox,” He said to himself, and Wilford startled.

“Dr. Iplier is going gray?” He asked, feeling stunned. He hadn’t seen the doctor in a while, but surely-

“You need to step outside more!” Bim lectured. “I can’t believe you haven’t noticed that the doctor doesn’t have a dark hair left on his head!” He looked back at the mirror, running a hand through his hair. “Of course, I’m not there quite yet, got a few black hairs left-”

“Is everyone going gray?” Wilford demanded, jumping to his feet, and Bim chuckled.

“Practically everyone.” He peered at Wilford. “You’re even losing a bit of color, I think.”

“Excuse me,” Wilford choked out, and leapt to his feet and hurried out.

He sprinted down the hallway, passing Eric, who, Wilford noted almost absently, had become quite the man, as he headed to his room. He whipped the door shut and went to his bathroom, staring at the mirror.

His hair was starting to fade. His bubblegum pink had been reduced to a lighter shade, and amongst the dark hair he had had for so long lay a few hidden gray hairs.

Wilford stared.

Everyone was going gray. It was as if Wilford’s eyes had been opened. Dr. Iplier had let himself go, or so The Host was teasing that evening when Wilford joined the others for the meal. King was featuring a more salt-and-pepper sort of look, which was making Yandere cringe. Yandere and the Host looked the same as ever, but tale-tell wrinkles were beginning to pop up on the Host and Yandere and Eric, easily some of the youngest, were definitely starting to show signs of age. 

Bing and the Googles looked the same as ever, Wilford thought, relieved, until Bing glitched in the middle of the meal and Google Prime had to take him away to be recharged.

“His battery doesn’t last as long,” He said, almost apologizing, and the other Googles muttered anxiously.

“The most recent update didn’t make me feel too great,” Green admitted quietly. “It’s a bit more complex than my systems want to handle.”

“We’re not obsolete yet,” Red muttered furiously, and Oliver stayed quiet save for the sound of his fan running.

Heart beginning to pound, Wilford scanned the others. Captain Magnum looked exhausted, his beard grayer than the rest of his hair, and the gray streaks in Yancy’s hair somehow suited him better, though his tattoos looked faded. Illinois’ hair was frighteningly impeccable, and Wilford knew that the man was stubbornly dying his hair and covering wrinkles with make-up.

“Wanna watch a movie with me after this, Jim?” Asked one of the Jims, hair still dark but looking the same as Eric and Yandere.

“You’ll just fall asleep in the middle,” The other Jim retorted, and Wilford’s stomach sank.

Only Dark looked the same as ever.

“Dark,” Wilford started slowly, and the demon looked over, an eyebrow raised.

“Yes, Wilford?” he asked patiently, and Wilford hesitated, feeling uncertain.

“...Nothing.” Dark hummed but thankfully let it go.

Wilford was never good with years, and normally he didn’t care, but when Silver Shepard and Ed Edgar disappeared he found himself wondering how long he had been alive.

“Google?” He whispered, entering the androids’ room late in the evening, and he opened the door and saw in the dark five shapes.

“Google!” He hissed, and a loading bar shot up.

“Waking…” it read, and it was impossible to tell if the bar was moving impossibly slow or not at all.

Wilford was off like a rocket.

The 1890’s. No, the 1880’s. No, the 1890’s was right the first time. Wilford shook his head. When had he been born? How long had he lived? Surely over a hundred years, maybe a hundred and fifty? He couldn’t remember, he didn’t know-

Dr. Iplier was gone and no one knew until the Jims had stumbled over the Host’s cold body. The double funeral had hurt, but not as much as the tired resignation on the androids’ faces.

They were quick to follow, simply never waking up from their charging pods.

Captain Magnum and Illinois went out with a bang, one disappearing on high seas and never returning after a terrible storm, the other insisting they weren’t too old for one last adventure that they didn’t have the reflexes to come back from.

He couldn’t read their tombstones, and he had to take a trip to the doctor- and didn’t that hurt, remembering they used to have a doctor?- to find out that he needed glasses. His eyesight was starting to fail him, it seemed.

The sensation of glasses seemed familiar but it made his chest feel hollow. He coughed, only half-heartedly covering his mouth.

He got a glimpse of Mark, once. Still just as youthful as ever, but he smelled of decay. Wilford didn’t see the District Attorney anywhere and tried not to think about what that could mean.

He stopped counting who was left.

At some point he stumbled into the Jims and Eric, crying in the hallway. Without a word he wrapped them up in his arms. Dark stood nearby, silently making eye contact with him, and Wilford knew they were all that were left.

He locked himself in his room, for a while. He didn’t know for how long, or really why, but when he looked in the mirror and saw nothing by gray with a faint gleam of pink, he coughed in his elbow and sighed.

He had always known he would go out with a bang, something violent. He didn’t know when that changed.

The door creaked open.

“...Wilford…?” A voice said quietly, and Wilford knew who it was before he looked up.

“Damien,” He sighed fondly, and smiled up at the man’s worried face.

Dark seemed startled at the sight of his friend- whether it was the gray or the glasses, he didn’t know.

“Willi-” Dark deflated. “Wilford,” He said instead, and his voice was soft and miserable. “I didn’t expect you to-” “To be so old?” Wilford finished wryly, gray mustache twitching, and the back of his throat tickled when he tried to chuckle. “Me neither.”

Dark looked like someone had punched him in the gut, and Wilford sighed, drinking in the sight of the still-youthful man. It seemed that Dark and Mark would be stuck alone together, fighting forever. Speaking of the villainous man, Wilford always thought Mark would kill him, not old age.

“I always thought my death would be more violent,” he admitted, and Dark made an injured sound.

“Death?” He repeated frantically, “Wilford, are you-” he choked, and Wilford took pity on the monochrome man.

“Not yet, old friend,” he said soothingly. “But soon.” Dark winced. “I have lived over a hundred years, you know, even if I can’t remember the exact number,” Wilford half-teased, half-reminded. Far longer than a normal man, he left unsaid.

Dark looked miserable, shoulders hunching, and Wilford suddenly realized that the demon had always taken Wilford’s lasting presence for granted, had never stopped to consider that Wilford was not like him.

“Wilford,” Dark croaked. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault that I’m not like you,” Wilford said, not unkindly. He kept his tone strong enough to get the point across, but also soft, because he wasn’t made at Damien, he would never be mad at Damien.

“Besides,” He continued, “Life needs a bit of madness, and if I lived forever I would start to find life boring. We couldn’t have that. I wouldn’t want that.”

Dark stared at him for a moment silently, taking the sight of his old friend in. Then he sighed, and seemed to give up some internal fight.

“What can I do for you,” He said without an asking tone, and Wilford’s eyes almost watered.

“Stay?” He asked, suddenly feeling as terribly alone as he had been up until that moment. “Just until I go?”

Dark trembled, then crossed the room far faster than Wilford could keep up with, faster than Wilford could have moved even in his prime, and wrapped his arms around Wilford tightly. Just when Wilford thought he wouldn’t be able to breathe, Dark loosened his hold.

“I can do that,” His voice cracked as Dark pressed his face into Wilford’s neck. “I can do that.”

[mirkwoodshewolf]

You’ll always be my brother mine; Queen x reader

*Author's note*

Okay get the tissues out my fellow readers because this one WILL make you cry. For this is the LAST chapter with John Deacon in the Rock Angel's life.  After this, Deacy will only be lovingly mentioned but will not have another physical appearance. I also want ALL of you to listen to the music choices down below as well as watch the music video above (cause it will REALLY pull your heartstrings and set the mood for this chapter). Up next we're gonna make quite a huge time leap cause next chapter were gonna get into some current events that has happened with Queen/Rock Angel. So be prepared for the next chapter(s).

MUSIC VIDEO HERE

Taglist:

@plethora-of-things

@waddles03

@psychosupernatural

@simonedk

@ixchel-9275

@jd-johndeacon-or-jackdaniels

@queensdivas

@queen-paladin

@queendeakyy

@wormzteef

@bohemiansweede

@labessieisallama

@naturalswifty89

@starswin

@isabella-bby

@5sos-wdw

@geek-and-proud

@onebigfangirlworld

@ssa-sadboi

_________________________________________________________

*Nov. 28th, 1997. Deacy's POV*

I had only agreed to come here to do this one last thing. My last music video that I would ever do with Queen, I had already completed my last live performance with Brian and Roger along with Elton back in Paris but without Freddie it just wasn't the same. Now we were making the music video for a song that Brian had written years ago just shortly after Freddie died.

I was sitting by myself along Roger's bar area (we had assembled at his place to do a mock rehearsal of the song before recording tomorrow) with my bass guitar resting on my lap when Roger came in and said.

"You doing okay?"

"Define okay." I told him.

"You're right. Dumb question. But—in all seriousness John, it really means a lot to us that you agreed to do this video."

"All I keep hearing is Freddie telling me 'darling if you don't get in front of that camera, I'll kick your arse from here to Glasgow'." The two of us chuckled softly.

"Well the team's already to go for tomorrow guys, we'll start filming at 9am sharp. We feel good about this?" Brian came up to us and asked.

"Actually, we can't do this video just yet." I told them.

"Why not?" asked Brian. "It's not much like any of our previous videos have been. We're in the perfect location and we're willing to perform this live instead of going through playback."

"It's not about missing something Brian, it's—someone."

"Look Deacy. We all miss him, but he'd still want—"

"I'm not talking about Freddie, Brian." I snapped before taking a deep breath and calming myself down.

"John I don't even know if she'd be interested in wanting to return to work. After the trail she's been—" Roger said softly before exhaling deeply. "But I can give Jack a call and see."

"No need. I booked a flight to Montreux, if I can convince her, we should be back tonight. Late." The two of them looked at each other and Brian said.

"Alright Deacy, we'll let you go get her. But don't get your hopes too high if she says no."

"Believe me, I know what she's going through. I almost didn't want to do this either. It feels wrong even continuing without Freddie, but—with this being the very last time I'll ever perform for Queen. I need at least one more performance with the Rock Angel. You guys need to give me this."

"We are. Bring our angel home." Roger said as he clasped his hand on my shoulder. I nodded before packing my bass up and headed off for the airport.

After a 2 hour flight, I arrived in Montreux airport and got a cab to take me to the Kline vacation home. It was another hour, hour and a half drive but finally the driver pulled up along the driveway. It was completely silence in the front yard, almost like a graveyard.

I got out of the car and walked up the gravel road, up onto the sidewalk and finally up the few stairs before finally standing before the door. Taking a deep breath I knocked on the door and waited for a couple of minutes. Soon enough a young girl opened the door, she had long (h/c) and familiar (e/c) that she inherited from her mother.

"Uncle Deacy?"

"Hello Kelly." I greeted with a warm smile. She smiled at me and hugged me.

God she had gotten so big since I last saw her. She was really starting to look more and more like her mother each and every day.

"My dear Kelly, look at you." she looked up at me and said.

"What are you doing here?"

"I was wondering if I could speak to your mum?"

"Yeah, of course. She's down in the basement with the boys." Kelly allowed me to enter inside and the first thing I see as I walk through the door was old Sammy, the Kline family's golden retriever. Already he was showing signs of aging around his nose and eyes. But when he saw me, he raised his head up and I saw his tail wag.

"Hello Sammy. Long time ehh boy?" he stood up and walked towards me and nuzzled against my hand. I stroked down his head when Kelly said.

"That's the first time I've seen him move so much since Bucky died." I turned to her in shock. "Brain tumor. We had to put him down last month and it was hard for all of us, Sammy especially." I looked down at Sammy and he looked up at me with those sad brown eyes of his as he let out a sad, soft whimper.

I scratched through his head as I walked over toward the basement stairs. I opened the door and walked down the U-shaped half-pace staircase. All the while I could hear some orchestra music playing and the sound of some creature bellowing before finally hearing someone say.

"How fast are they?"

"Well we clocked the T-Rex at 32 mph." As I came down to the bottom of the stairs, there at a desk surrounded by books and wearing prescription glasses was my sister dear while on the leather couch playing on the big TV was a movie that I wasn't quite too familiar with.

"T-T-Rex? You said you got a T-Rex?" Georgie quoted alone with the woman on screen while the old man nodded.

"Say again?" Jackson quoted along with the actor on screen.

"We have a T-Rex." The old man repeated. The actor on screen then started acting faint while the woman tried to get him steady and that's when the old man said.

"Dr. Grant, my dear Dr. Sattler."

"Welcome—to Jurassic Park." The twins quoted along with the old man on screen. Then soon enough dinosaurs were shown on the screen and I'll admit it was quite a sight to behold.

Never have I seen practical effects like that when it came to dinosaur films. Whatever film this is, I'll have to check it out for myself.

When I turned towards (y/n) I noticed that she turned her head away from her books and paper just to watch the television. I shook my head at her. Some things never change. I even saw her mouth out the next quote that was spoken on screen.

"Some things never change with you sister dear." She turned around to face me, as did the boys and they raced towards me exclaiming.

"Uncle John! Uncle John!" soon I was tackled down to the ground by these big boys. I smiled down at them as the two of them talked over each other trying to speak to me.

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat threw up. And I see you finally cut that raggedy mullet of yours." My sister teased.

"Haha, very funny." I mocked up at her.

"What brings you around here?" she asked me.

"A brother figure can't see his surrogate sister anymore?" I asked as I stood back up with the twins still clinging onto my sides.

"Not that I'm complaining but, you haven't really came around since......" she looked away before grabbing the remote and turning the movie off.

"Awww mum! We wanted to keep watching the film!" the twins whined.

"Georgie, Jackson you both have seen the film over a million times. Besides you two got chores to do that you both forgot to do yesterday."

"But, but, but....."

"Now boys. You mind your mother and don't argue back with her." I lectured them giving them my father eye.

"Yes Uncle John." They both said glumly before they walked up the stairs.

"I swear they both got their father's handsome looks but their uncle Jensen's laziness." (y/n) complained which made me softly chuckle.

"They're little boys. And believe me it'll get worse, cause they're what seven now?" she nodded. "So yeah get ready. Ten is probably the age they'll really push your buttons."

"Well thanks for the heads up."

*My POV*

Now don't get me wrong, I love Deacy and I'm always happy to see him (on the rare occasions that he does come around) but this visit has something else written all over it.

"What film was that exactly?" he asked me.

"A Steven Spielberg masterpiece, Jurassic Park. Since it gets scary at around the middle part I don't allow the boys to watch this film alone without either me or Jack in the room."

"And what's with all the books? I haven't seen you this swamped since your first days as Miami's intern."

"Well—believe it or not. I'm finishing college."

"Really?"

"Uh-huh. You see since I left college once I became the Rock Angel, and with me taking a step back from the spotlight for a while. I enrolled at a University here about to graduate with an English degree."

"I'm proud of you (y/n). Really I am. And—I know he would be too if he heard that." See there it was. The reason behind his sadness. Sometimes Deacy couldn't even say his name without feeling such agonizing heartache. His eyes that were once filled with light had diminished and rarely sparked up anymore.

"What about you? How are you and the other two aging Queens getting along?" I asked as I took off my reading glasses.

"We're getting by. Day by day. We're—actually about to do a video for a song Brian's made." Okay, I think I know where this is going.

"Deacy—I appreciate the offer but I just.....don't think I'm ready to get back into the limelight just yet. Plus I got school to finish up. And then there are the kids and Jack. The press made my life hell throughout the trial and I refuse to go through that again. So you can tell Roger that I'm not interested."

"Actually it wasn't Roger's idea for me to come down here and have you work with us again. Nor was it Brian's." I looked at him in shock.

"You mean you want me to be a part of this video you're doing?"

"Yes. They told me you might not want to but please, sister dear, for old time's sake. You wouldn't want to break an old man's heart now would you?" he proceeded with the puppy dog eyes and with that greying hair on his head it just made him look like a sad old puppy dog.

"Why must you always get your way?"

"Because I'm your brother and you fall for it every time." I sighed heavily and said.

"Let me get a hold of Jack at the hospital and see what he says." I stood up as Deacy came behind me and said in an alarmed tone.

"Wait? What happened to Jack? Is he alright? He didn't do anything stupid did he?"

"Deacy, Deacy relax. Jack's fine he's with our son."

"Wait you're....." it was then he finally noticed my body shape. The post-pregnant belly and weight gain.

"Was. Yeah. Just 2 weeks ago we had our new baby boy."

"Oh (y/n). Congratulations. But—then why is he......"

"The thing is, he wasn't supposed to come till next January. I gave birth to him prematurely by 2 months." I said sadly as I finally arrived at the phone and touched it.

"I'm so sorry poppet. Had I known I would've never—"

"No need for apologizes or sympathy Deacy. Like I told you once a long time ago about my parents. I didn't tell you so you have no reason to feel sorry for me. Besides our boy's strong. He's shown great improvement. Doctor says we could possibly bring him home come this weekend."

"That's good. But knowing Roger and Brian, they'll be wanting pictures of him shortly."

"And what about you? Don't you want to see a picture of your new nephew?"

"Of course I do." There was a bit of hesitation to the way he responded but I set it aside for now as he asked me, "What's the lad's name?" After he said that, it was my turn to hesitate cause I didn't want Deacy to grow sad again.

"You promise me you won't get too heartbroken when I tell you?"

"So long as you didn't name him Adam, Paul or Steve I think we'll be good." I turned to face my brother and I said.

"It was no difficult decision, Jack and I agreed that this name just suited him perfectly and we—we knew he would've loved it too. Our last and newborn baby's name is Freddie Mercury Kline." I immediately picked up the phone and rang the hospital for Jack.

After awhile of Jack and I talking back and forth between one another, he agreed that he could handle the kids for a couple of days, man down the house, and even look over my final paper that I have to turn in in a couple of weeks for a class.

"Thanks babe. How's our boy doing?"

'Ahh (y/n) you should see him, he's glowing like the sun right now. Maybe when we do get to take him home, we can even get the rest of the Queen family to see him.'

"We don't want to overwhelm him so much." I lectured.

'I know. But I think it's time we told the rest of Queen didn't we? Especially after who we named him after.'

"Well half the job is done. Only Brian and Roger need to know."

'Yeah. Hey can you give me regards to Deacy?'

"Sure thing love. We'll stay here till you get home."

'Baby you know Kelly's old enough to keep the boys under control till I come back.'

"I don't know Jack, I mean yeah she's a pre-teen but I don't....."

'Trust me (y/n). She's clever just like her mom. She knows right from wrong. The kids will be fine. But if it makes you feel any better, I'll head home right now so that way she won't have to be responsible for too long.' I rolled my eyes and said.

"Thank you Jack. I'll be back on Monday, I promise."

'Take as much time as you need. Besides, you need to catch up with the guys.'

"You're right love. I love you Jack, give my baby a kiss for me before you leave."

'Will do mama lion. Give the guys my love for me when you see them.'

"I will." We then said bye to each other before I hung up the phone. "Alright, Jack's on his way from the hospital, he said Kelly can watch the twins until he comes back."

"She's responsible that girl of yours. Reminds me of you when we first met. You made sure everything got organized and planned out accordingly. Hell you managed to keep the four of us in line." I smiled and gathered up my school stuff to take into the study room.

After turning the TV, off and putting my books away I called the kids into the master bedroom while I packed a weekend night bag.

"Okay now listen you three, mum's going away for the weekend with your uncle Deacy to see your other uncle as well as your godfather to do some work. Your father is on his way home from seeing your brother, and until he gets back you're in charge Kelly."

"What!?" the twins proclaimed.

"You heard her." Kelly sassed down at her younger brothers.

"Now you all know the rules, stay inside, no trashing the house, no answering the phone for any reason at all unless the caller ID says its your father or another family member. And absolutely; No one. Sets. Foot. In my study or studio or else." I firmly stated to them, especially the last part.

"We promise mum." They all choired out.

"Good. Now stay safe, and listen to your sister boys. I'll be back on Monday. Now come on kisses and cuddles." I knelt down and got a hug from my three big kids.

I even told them to give their uncle Deacy cuddles and kisses, which he happily accepted, before the two of us headed out back for the taxi car to take us back to the airport.

After a few hours in the air, Deacy and I arrived into London by about 7pm and this time I paid a cabbie to take us over to Roger's place. God all this traveling is really making me jet lagged right now. I only hope I have enough energy to record tomorrow.

The next day we were all in the recording studio to film the music video of Brian's song. I was sitting at the piano with Brian who was giving me the rundown on how to play the tune when it came for my appearance in the video.

"So—how have things been for you lately?" asked Brian. I looked up at him, "I mean it's just—you went underground after the trail and we—got worried."

"I'm sorry I worried you guys. I just......needed some time to myself and my family, that's all."

"No, no we understand. God what—what happened that day was extremely traumatic for you and—"

"Brian. Can.....can we not discuss anything regarding him. Please?"

"Sure, sure, absolutely." God sometimes I hate it when Brian wakes eggshells around me.

"I'm finishing up school."

"Really?" I nodded.

"I'm studying Creative writing. By next spring I'll graduate from college and finally get my diploma."

"That's wonderful news (y/n). I'm so proud of you." he wrapped an arm around me and gave me a one armed hug and kissed the top of my head.

"Also—there's.....a new Kline in the household." He looked down at me surprised.

"You mean—"

"Had him two weeks ago. Prematurely though." His brows knitted in that familiar sympathetic way.

"Oh (y/n), I'm so sorry. Are they....."

"He is doing just fine. Even for being born 2 months early, he's already got the Kline lion strength."

"I'm sure he does. What's the lads name?" I took out my wallet from my inner coat pocket and took out a picture of him from his incubator.

"Jack and I both agreed on the name together. Bri, meet your newest nephew. Freddie Mercury Kline." His eyes looked right at mine, with awe but also a hint of sadness. But a wide smile spread across his face as he softly laughed out.

"God what he would've said knowing that he got one of us to finally name our next kid after him."

"Probably something like 'about fucking time darling. I was beginning to think I'd been neglected.'" We both chuckled softly.

"That is something he would say. Oh and I bet he would've doted on this little chap, just as he had with all of your other kids." I nodded solemnly.

"God I wish he were still here." He placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and lay his head down on top of mine, his curls gingerly stroking my forehead and nose.

"We all do poppet. We all do." I sniffled softly but pushed back the tears.

"Alright, enough of this chatter. Now for this part of the song it goes like this right?" I said shrugging him off before playing the chords he had taught me at the butt-crack of dawn before we even came to the studio.

Finally we were ready to film the video. First Brian, Rog and Deacy got into position with Bri at the piano, Deacy on a stool with a bass guitar, and Roger in the back with his drumkit.

I couldn't help but be touched at the reminder of cups full of beer and a champagne glass sitting right along the piano's edge. It was—a nice little touch that Freddie would've appreciated.

This music video......I'll admit that this is probably my favorite out of all the Queen music videos. Because now people will get to see what it was like on a daily basis with us. Almost like they are a familiar face stepping into the recording studio.

The director called for quiet on the set and I stayed back for awhile until it would be my time to go up there and soon the director called out action! The camera's rolled and I watched as a camera crane came down from the ceiling at a slow pace.

I then saw at men on the mobile camera slowly moved closer across the studio to really give that first person POV as Brian sang the first verse and played the piano. Already hearing him sing this song made my heart .

*Brian*

A hand above the water An angel reaching for the sky Is it raining in heaven Do you want us to cry?

And everywhere the broken-hearted On every lonely avenue No one could reach them No one but you

One by one Only the good die young They're only flyin' too close to the sun And life goes on Without you

Next up was Roger. The cameras slowly came towards him as he played the simple drumbeat and he took over the vocals of the second verse. By that time, Brian had switched over to his Red Special and stood a few feet away from Deacy while I took over at the piano.

But to surprise the fans; I had a hoodie to cover my entire face as I now took over playing the piano.

*Roger*

Another tricky situation I get to drownin' in the blues And I find myself thinkin' Well, what would you do?

Yes, it was such an operation Forever paying every due Hell, you made a sensation (sensation) You found a way through (found a way through)

*All*

One by one Only the good die young They're only flyin' too close to the sun *Roger*

We'll remember Forever

When it was finally my turn, I took the hoodie off and proceeded to play the piano as I sung the third voice. My heart was heavy and my throat felt like clenching up but I kept my sorrow at bay in order to get this done in one take.

Cause I knew if I didn't, then there's probably no way I could keep my composure after three takes of singing this verse. Because all that came through my mind were the good memories of Freddie, and how I couldn't even believe that he was really gone. Even though almost 6 years have passed.

*Me*

And now the party must be over I guess we'll never understand The sense of your leaving Was it the way it was planned?

And so we grace another table And raise our glasses one more time There's a face at the window And I ain't never, never sayin' goodbye

By the end of it all, the video would show Queen and the Rock Angel singing the song with such sorrow but passion as we sung it in honor of our beloved Freddie.

Soon all four of us were gathered around the piano, Deacy still sitting on his stool, but Brian, Roger and I were gathered close together with music sheets in our hands. I stood by Roger and would sing the first line before finding myself unconsciously leaning against him for support.

Thankfully he didn't see anything wrong with it as he wrapped an arm around me and took the next part before Brian would be the one to finish it since he was the one to start it.

*All*

One by one Only the good die young They're only flyin' too close to the sun *Me*

Cryin' for nothing *Roger*

Cryin' for no one *Brian*

No one but you

The video would then close off as the camera would rise up over the four of us gathered around the piano. The lights shutting off and us acting like we were now leaving the studio after a hard day's work.

"Cut! Okay Brian, come and see what you like and what we need to reshoot." The director called out and both he and Brian began speaking to each other as Bri reviewed the footage.

As I watched Bri talk to the director, I felt a slight nudge at my shoulder and I looked up to see Deacy. His eyes were sad but the smile across his face held some warmth to it. I leaned my head against his chest and I felt his hand rest on top of my head, gently scratching my scalp.

"You still got it poppet."

"Singing to the kids still keeps my pipes in check." I felt him gently kiss the top of my head when the director called out.

"Alright Mrs. Kline. We're gonna runback from your verse, your hair got in the way of your face too much." I nodded and soon someone from the hair department came and brushed my hair back out of my face. As well as take a couple of hairpins to make sure the strands didn't get in my face again.

Deacy walked back towards his stool and Brian went to grab his guitar once again while Rog twirled his sticks.

"Okay playback from the third verse." The music picked back up and the cameras rolled and I sung the third verse once again, this time I could feel myself choking up as I sang the verse again.

This continued to go on with reshoots, trying to make this video even better. By the fifth time singing it, I needed to step out and take a breather because at this point I was just about to breakdown crying. Luckily for me, Deacy was right there for me the whole time till I calmed down and was ready to go back to recording.

Four hours later, the video was complete. Once the director as well as the boys were satisfied with the results, it was time to head home. Roger insisted that I stay with him the next couple of days (because he wanted to know more about his new godson) as well as catch up with one another. As I placed my coat back on over me, I heard Deacy's voice say my name softly.

"What is it Deacy?"

"Can I—can I talk to you for a moment? Privately." The look in his eyes were full of regret, almost like he didn't even want to tell me whatever it was he wanted to say.

"Sure Deacy, let me just tell dad to wait up for me." He nodded while I raced off towards Roger and told him that I needed to talk with Deacy.

From behind his new circular prescription shades (kinda similar to what ole Ozzy has), I could see that he must've known what Deacy wanted to tell me.

I walked back towards Deacy who took my hand and led me out of the studio and out into the abandoned hallways. No one was there but us two.

"Alright John Deacon, what's really going on?" he refused to look me in the eye.

"I—the reason why I wanted you to be a part of this music video was because I......I wanted to work with you. One last time." My heart slowly sunk. "Freddie he—he was what made Queen the way it was from the beginning. Without him there......th-there just isn't any need for Queen to continue on."

I remained silent as John confessed his heartbreaking news. I could see the redness of tears at the corner of his eyes.

"I just can't continue with all this. Not without him. This—was my last contribution to Queen. And—I wanted it to also be the last time I worked alongside the Rock Angel as well." He went silent again. "I'm sorry love." He sniffled.

I reached out and softly took his hands in mine. When he felt my touch, his eyes finally looked right at me. I looked at him with pure empathy before walking closer to him till I finally embraced him.

Play video

Oh my poor brother, I felt him tense up underneath my touch. It was almost like he was expecting me to go full on hysterical about him retiring from music forever.

"I was a fan before I met you guys. I've read every interview you guys ever did, seen all the concerts. And never have I seen a band be so involved with each other as Queen has. Like me, Freddie took you under his wing and allowed you to soar. You never just became the 'bass player', or the 'quiet guy in the corner'. No you, John Richard Deacon, are the most vital and important piece that was needed for Queen to finally rise to the top. And Fred saw that in you."

I cupped his face in my hands as I continued,

"If this is what will bring you peace, I'll understand."

"You knew my reason all along, didn't you?" he said. I only gave him a soft smile before I embraced him.

"You will always be my brother mine." He slowly raised his arms and wrapped them around my back and he whispered his last words to me.

"And you'll forever be my sister dear." We remained there in each other's arms. Embracing each other as tightly as we could, inhaling each other's scents, remembering each other's touch.

Because I knew that once we let go, this would be the last time we would ever see each other again.

Finally I forced myself to release him from my embrace. I looked down sadly trying not to cry in front of him. I felt his hand cup the side of my face and his forehead press up against mine.

Our noses softly grazing one another's until I finally felt him give me one final kiss on the cheek.

When I opened my eyes, I only saw his back and heard as his shoes clicked along the hallway. That image would forever be imprinted into my brain for as long as I live.

"Goodbye......my sweet, sweet John Deacon." I whispered softly. The tears then softly fell down my face as he finally turned left and disappeared from my sights, leaving me all alone in the hallway.

After a while I finally left the studio and met Roger at his car. The hidden tearstains still glistening on my face and the occasional sniffle coming out. He didn't say a word as he looked at me knowingly, I looked up at him and ran into his chest and softly wept into his shoulder.

His father instincts toward me immediately kicked in as he wrapped his arms around me and tried his best to comfort me. God I tried so badly to not let this affect me. I knew where Deacy was coming from and I do respect his decision, I truly do, but—I just can't believe that even after this I'll never get to see my brother mine again.

It was like losing my parents all over again, except this was much, much worse. This time he'll be so close yet so far away.

*FF to May 14th, 1998*

I had done it. I was a college graduate at last. Earlier today I had finally done the famed college graduation walk that all my previous friends in college got to do all those years ago, and I was an official college graduate.

(Y/n) Kline, Bachelor's degree in English with a concentration in Creative Writing.

It was late afternoon and I was sitting up along the balcony of the vacation home with a glass of wine in hand. We all had just gotten back from a family dinner in celebration of my graduation, now I wanted to be at peace and watch the sunset.

Because starting tomorrow, I decided that it was time to head back to our home in London and I wanted to get back to work.

"Thought I'd find you up here." I heard Jack's voice say. I smiled as I turned towards him.

"I was wondering if you'd be joining me."

"Well you know as well as I do that if those twins of ours are left unattended during their bath, they'll drown the entire bathroom in soap again."

"God that was such a nightmare to clean up." I laughed as he came up and sat down close beside me on my lawn chair. I noticed in his hands he held some mail. "What all did we get?"

"Well some bills, junk mail, some congratulation cards from the family back home in America, as well as from Brian and Roger, and.....that's it." I extended my hand out and he handed me the mail and I began sorting out the business mail from the personal one.

It was then I came across an interesting letter. One I never though I'd expect to see.

"What's this?" I turned the letter towards him and that's when Jack's face went pale. For you see the letter was addressed to Jack but the place it was from is what had me curious. The letter was from the London Police Academy.

"Oh shit." He muttered.

"C'mon Jack spill it, what is this?"

"I really didn't want to make a big deal out of this, especially since these past few months were all about you."

"Jack." I warned him since he was getting off the subject. He sighed heavily before he took the letter from my hands and said.

"Okay. Do you remember when I had gone up to London, and I told you that I was just going up there to check on the house?" I nodded. "Well, I lied. The truth is—I went to apply for the London Police Academy because—I want to become a police officer, and eventually a criminal detective."

"Jack."

"I know I must sound crazy but, this was my decision. After what happened to us with—you know. For the past year and a half and then....dealing with the trail. It put all of us through hell. And I—I don't want us or for anyone else to go through the pain that we went through. That bastard nearly tore this family apart, and it was because of the law that he got away with it every time. Creeps like him shouldn't get off scot-free."

I hugged my husband as tightly as I could and I said with a wide smile.

"I'm so proud of you."

"Really?" I separated from him and continued.

"You're my husband and you've been so supportive of me for years. It's about time I was supportive of you in your dream career."

"Well I don't even know if I even got in, that's probably what this letter is."

"Then what are you waiting for? Open it!" I chuckled and opened up the envelope and soon took out the folded letter and read it to himself.

"I—I got in."

"Oh my darling that's fantastic! Congrats!" I hugged and kissed him.

"Well hold on, this just means that I'm a potential candidate for a chance at working for the London Police force. There's still like a six month process when it comes to actually getting in. Right now I'm just joining the academy for some training."

"Still, that's something to be proud of. Oh Jack, you're gonna be a fantastic officer. And soon a world-class detective. A regular Sherlock Holmes if you will." I teased the last part as I bopped his nose.

"I don't think I can be that good. But—I'll try my best. For you, for our kids, and for every other stalking victims out there. The law may have failed us, but I won't let it fail for those in the future." I smiled at my loving husband and cupped his face and kissed him. "Oh and there's something for you inside."

"Really? Another surprise?"

"Well it's more like a small package. And sadly it's not from me." I looked at him confused.

"Then who is it from?" he shrugged but led me inside back into our bedroom where the small package lay at the foot of our bed. I opened it up and inside there was a single videotape. It had no marking or writing on it to indicate what it was.

The two of us looked at each other perplexed before I went towards our VHS player and insert the tape into it. I turned the TV on and the screen was blue as the tape finally began to play.

Coming up on the screen sitting right on a couch was none other than John.

"Hello (y/n), Jack. And the young Kline cubs, if they are there." He softly chuckled with a slight smile. Jack sat down beside me on the foot of our bed as we continued to watch Deacy's tape. "(Y/n), my darling sister dear. I know that—my leaving from Queen may seem like another abandonment but I swear to you it's not."

"Seems like this is just for you both, I'll just—"

"And Jack you stay right there with her because this is for you too." Jack looked at the telly surprised.

"Holy shit that was creepy."

"Our Deacy knows all." I wrapped my arms around my husband's arm as Deacy continued.

"Now—I have known you both for a long time. And both of you have equally been such an important part of my life. So it breaks my heart to know that this—might be the last time we meet face to face. But there is no doubt in my mind that you both are going to change the world. (Y/n), my lovely Rock Angel, you continue to spread your wings and fly. I know that you're going to continue to be the brightest and biggest solo female rockstar this world will ever know. And Jack, my pupil, my dearest American friend. You continue to protect your family, because if there's one final piece of advice that I can give you, it's that family is forever. Friends may come and go, but family is forever. And I know that whatever you choose to do with your life, your wife is gonna be there to support you. You both were meant for each other. I love you both so much. Continue to love, to give, to inspire, and......be happy. Bye."

The screen went black for a moment before he came back on screen and he began to say.

"Kelly, Jackson, Georgie and—little baby Freddie." At that point I stopped the tape and I turned to face Jack. I could already see the faint tears in his eyes.

Play video

"So this is really it huh?" Jack asked. I nodded. "I—can't believe we'll never get to actually talk to Deacy again." I rested my head on his shoulder and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"This is just his way of grieving. Deacy's very fragile right now. You know how his childhood was, and losing Freddie at three years his father's age. It's like—losing two father figures to him."

"I know. It's just that....." Jack looked at me with tears in his eyes.

Jack really did look up to Deacy for everything. After all they've been through for over 10 years together, to Jack it was like he was losing a very good friend.

"I know my love, I know. But this is what Deacy needs. To be with just his family now, and not be reminded of the pain of losing Freddie. And who knows—maybe, and this is a slight maybe, we might see him again. But until then we need to respect his wishes." Jack nodded and the two of us cuddled close together as we were both thinking the same thing.

We hope that you're happy at home John Richard Deacon.

[shenglingyuan]

title: the second chance we didn't ask for (ao3) pairing: gojo satoru/geto suguru both satoru and suguru are free from the prisons that bound them, but returning to life is another matter entirely.

The Zen’in estate boasts of its wide space and multiple residences, a feature Satoru is able to take advantage of. After being released from the Prison Realm with a death sentence hanging over his head, there really isn’t anywhere he can go. Suguru’s case is worse, of course, this death sentence is his second one. He might have been able to take back control of his body, but it doesn’t erase the crimes he and that ancient sorcerer did while residing inside him.

If it was up to Satoru, he wouldn’t drag Megumi into this any further. The boy — now the undisputed leader of the prominent Zen’in Clan — insisted, owing it to the fact that Satoru kept him and his sister under his care when they had no place to go to.

“Sorry for troubling you, Clan Leader Zen’in.”

“Please, Gojo-sensei, you should be the last person calling me that. Besides, I’m an accomplice anyway.” With the passing of the years came Megumi’s mastery of the Ten Shadows Technique, granting Satoru this freedom. “The last place they’d look for is their own backyard, won’t they?”

“That’s smart. Your teacher must be really great.”

Megumi ignores his lousy attempt at a façade and jabs directly at the issue at hand, “How is he?”

For a moment, Satoru’s shoulders seem to drop, but he immediately straightens up, as if that moment of small weakness was but an illusion.

“I don’t know, but I’m working on it. No worries, he’s no threat with me around.”

“I’m not worried about him.”

Time didn’t pass for Satoru inside the Prison Realm, but the world has moved on without waiting for him. He looks at Megumi without having to lower his gaze, smiles genuinely, and reaches out to ruffle the boy’s hair, “So responsible already. Don’t worry about me, either. I can handle this.”

-

Though the Zen’in estate is big, Satoru and Suguru had to reside in one of its smaller, unused quarters, leaving them with a small space with the living room, the kitchen, the dining room, and the bedroom altogether. At least, the bathroom was a separate structure on its own, albeit it’s not big enough for comfort. Satoru thinks this is still better than none, besides, with this arrangement, he can keep an eye on Suguru all the time.

Suguru isn’t too keen on the fact that he’s being guarded, but it’s not like he can put up a fight either way. That ancient sorcerer’s plan released all the curses he had so far collected and left him with very basic ones. He did try to resist before, almost at the cost of their small quarters, but without his previous arsenal, he isn’t much of a match for Satoru.

“Keeping me here is pointless.”

It was the first conversational sentence Suguru drops several days after they have settled in the Zen’in estate, spoken over a lukewarm cup of black coffee. The television blares unintelligibly on the corner, its volume never loud enough to be heard beyond the walls of their small room.

Satoru looks up from his own cup, just having dropped the fourth cube of sugar in it.

“The world is after my head,” Suguru adds.

“They are after me, too, don’t think you’re so special.”

“You’re a vital member of the Gojo clan… No matter how the higher-ups seem to hate you, if you just bring my head to them, they’ll have to forgive your previous offenses. There’s no use in keeping me here, I’m a criminal.”

“I need no forgiveness. Not from them.”

Suguru ignores the implication. “Just kill me already.”

“Death is not the only path. You’re just being a coward, Suguru.”

“What? Do you want me to spend this second life repenting for all the lives I took? I still don’t care about them, Satoru.”

“Repentance? Both of us…we’re beyond that. You’ve killed people. I’ve brought people to their deaths. There’s already too much blood in our hands.”

“Then should we die together?” Suguru smiles — it is anything but sincere. Satoru has almost forgotten what his real smile looks like.

Satoru drops another cube of sugar. “We will, but not anytime soon.”

-

Satoru sleeps next to Suguru, not because he hopes to form some intimacy through contact, nor to make sure he will not run away in the middle of the night, but because there are times where terrors unseen haunt Suguru’s slumber, Satoru would need to hold him down lest he ends up hurting himself. He used to keep the distance as well, sleeping on the couch, but after one close call, Satoru didn’t want to take another chance.

It was also during these moments where Suguru’s walls are at their lowest, and they could have a semblance of a proper and civil conversation.

“What is it this time?” Satoru asks, almost an involuntary response at this point, his hand already smoothing Suguru’s hair, rubbing circles down his back.

“He’s trying to creep in again.” His voice is hoarse, low, almost inaudible, as if in fear that when he speaks loud enough, the nightmare will turn into reality. “He says…this brain is his…and he can return anytime he wants…”

When Suguru is like this, Satoru can hold him close without being pushed away, and so Satoru does, wrapping Suguru tightly between his arms.

“You’re stronger than him, you took over him. That bastard won’t own you again.”

“If I die, it’ll finally be over.”

“You won’t die. Not on my watch.”

-

With the small space and bare minimum mode of entertainment, Satoru resorts to watching movies with Suguru to pass the time.

Well, to call it ‘watching with’ is too much of a stretch.

“What do you want to watch today?” Satoru asks, as usual.

Suguru doesn’t respond, as usual too, remaining seated on the corner of the bed, always seemingly creating as much physical distance he could between the two of them. Whatever closeness they would have during Suguru’s nightmares dissipates as if it never existed in the first place.

Satoru eventually gives up with a sigh, picking a 2008 horror movie from the selection this time.

“I’m guessing you haven’t seen this yet.”

He loads the disc onto the player, then settles himself on the end of the small couch. It’s some sort of an unspoken invitation, one that Suguru never entertains.

The film plays, the film ends.

It’s a daily cycle.

-

Every now and then, Megumi drops by personally, providing them with their daily necessities. In this situation, his Ten Shadow Techniques are particularly useful for hiding the things he brings them, only pulling it out once he is within the four walls of the small quarters. They can’t be too careless, after all. Whenever Megumi arrives, Satoru takes it upon himself to do the cooking and even sets aside a portion for Megumi himself.

“How is it outside?”

“Curses are still running rampant,” Megumi says, his tone as if still a student reporting to his teacher. Nevertheless, his bearing has become more and more that of a clan leader, “There’s quite a lot, so it will really take some time.”

The responsible person is quietly laying down the bed — whether he is truly asleep or just pretending, Satoru just lets him be. The sizzle of the oil as he pours the ingredients onto the pan fills in the momentary silence.

“And how is being a clan leader?”

“I think I can understand why the late elder Naobito was drinking all the time.”

“Haha, now don’t go picking up his habit. You’ve got a former clan head before you here, just ask for my help if you need it.”

“I feel like Kamo-san would know more about being a clan head than you.”

“Was never one to deal with family politics anyway.”

“Don’t worry about the affairs of the Gojo family. Okkotsu-san is making sure your family won’t lose its place.”

“I knew I could always rely on the new generation.”

“But Gojo-sensei, many of us still do rely on you.”

“A habit that must be changed.” Satoru turns off the stove and transfers the food onto the prepared bowl. “It’s for this very reason the incident at Shibuya became possible.”

His eyes wander to Suguru’s figure then, and he notices how tense the other man’s shoulders are. In fact, they really haven’t talked much about that time. The ancient sorcerer knew of Satoru’s weakness; Satoru wonders if Suguru himself came to realize it.

“No, I mean...,” Megumi seems to want to say something else, but in the end, he just sighs in defeat, “Never mind.”

“Don’t be thinking too much. Here, have this,” Satoru gives him a bowl of the freshly cooked stir fry, “Added some extra ginger especially for you.”

He takes another look at Suguru —— he doesn’t seem to be planning in joining them. In the end, Satoru decides to eat dinner with Megumi. It’s only when Megumi bid his farewell and left the room did Suguru finally move, only catching a glimpse of his retreating figure.

“Your dinner’s ready,” Satoru tells him, “It’s still a bit warm.”

Suguru stays seated on the bed, his eyes still at the door. “Megumi, that kid, he looks oddly familiar.”

“Remember Zen’in Toji?” A frown forms on Suguru’s forehead, his lips pursing rather unhappily. Satoru immediately quips, “Well, Megumi’s his son. Megumi didn’t know anything about his father’s shady business, and they were left without parents, too, so I took him under my care.”

“He seems to be quite dependent on you.”

“Is he? That kid hates asking me for help.”

“When he said many of them still rely on you, he was probably referring to himself. I know that tone.”

“From where? The two kids you had with you?”

Suguru suddenly stops responding. It’s apparent that the topic of the two girls is something he didn’t want to talk about. Though Suguru never told him about what happened, Satoru has been able to connect the dots from the first report of Suguru’s crime to the time he showed up in Jujutsu Tech to declare war.

But still, he wished that Suguru can tell it to him in his own words. There’s so much that happened in the last decade, cleaving an immeasurable distance in the space between them — an emptiness about the people and things and circumstances that shaped them to be the people that they are now.

“It’s funny though,” Satoru tests the waters, trying to fill the gap starting from his own side, “Back then, we said we’d run away together with Amanai if she wanted to. We failed on that part, but—”

“We still ended up babysitting,” Suguru continues for him, the tension on his shoulders replaced by a sudden weight, “I guess Riko-chan got the best deal out of that incident.”

“The girls—”

“I’m not hungry.” Suguru cuts him off immediately, lays back on the bed, and turns around, covering himself with a blanket. He obviously didn’t want to talk about his own share of babysitting, so Satoru lets the conversation go.

For now, Satoru bottles his many questions —

Why did you run away?

Why didn’t you force me to come with you?

Why didn’t you tell me all the things that have bothered you?

Why did you suffer with your thoughts in silence?

If I tried a little harder, would you have come with me?

There are so many things to talk about, many things that can’t be talked about. Patience is one of Satoru’s virtues, and when it comes to Suguru, it becomes the greatest.

-

Many times, he catches Suguru staring at his own reflection in the mirror…no, not at his reflection, but the wound lining his forehead. Satoru isn’t as skilled as Shoko in terms of healing others — the skull is intact, the wound is gone, but the scar remains, a reminder to them both every single day.

“Does it bother you?” he asks.

It takes a while before Suguru replies. “A bit.”

“A full bangs will hide the scars.”

A small smile starts to form on the edges of Suguru’s lips, but it disappears in a flash, replaced by a melancholy look on his face, “Mimiko and Nanako would have loved to see that.”

“Are those…their names?”

“…Yes.”

The girls he saved and raised throughout these years, to whom he exchanged his status as a sorcerer to be a curse user, just so he can provide them a better life. After all that’s happened, their place is still big in his heart. Not a single ash could be recovered in the ruins left by Sukuna, and so Suguru mourns with only the memories the girls have left him, memories his body was able to keep despite death.

Later in bed, Suguru weeps quietly. Satoru holds him. In between them, there is silence.

-

Satoru loads a 2009 suspense thriller this time, one that he himself hasn’t had the chance to watch yet for some reason. With a bowl of popcorn in tow, he settles himself at the end of the couch.

The film starts.

Just as the title appears, he feels the couch shift.

Satoru holds his breath, turns to look —— Suguru sits next to him, his legs already crossed comfortably.

“Mind if I watch with you?” he asks.

Satoru smiles, offering him the bowl, “Not at all.”

The film plays. The film ends.

And by the time it does, Suguru’s head is already resting Satoru’s shoulder, and Satoru’s head on Suguru’s. The positions are so familiar even though it has been over ten years since they were last together like this. The credits roll and neither of them moves.

“It sucked.” Suguru is the first one to speak.

“Sure did,” Satoru lets out a laugh, “Want to watch another one?”

“Let me pick this time.”

“Your call.”

-

“Satoru.”

Suguru calls out his name in the dark, certain that he is still awake. Satoru turns. In the dim light, he finds Suguru staring up at the ceiling, seemingly lost in thought. His nightmares have been recurring less and less, and at times they can go a whole night with a peaceful rest.

“Can’t sleep again?”

“No, I wanted to ask you something —— Why didn’t you chase after me?”

Memories of Shinjuku are still vivid in Satoru’s mind, especially the view of Suguru’s back getting further and further away from him, his own outstretched fingers curling into a fist. Looking back at all his years, it’s the only time he has ever felt so helpless. Shibuya can’t even compare.

“You didn’t seem to be the type to be swayed if I held you back.”

“And after that? You’re a jujutsu sorcerer. You have the responsibility to clean up curse users like me. Why didn’t you chase after me?”

“I didn’t want to be the one who kills you.”

Suguru turns to face him then, his expression solemn, “Yet you did.”

Satoru can’t help but reach out, running a hand over Suguru’s left arm. If there’s one thing he’d give that ancient sorcerer credit for, he fixed up Suguru quite well. “It was beyond me already. You declared war. I was under orders.”

Suguru doesn’t shy away from the touch, but neither does he reciprocate. “And what about now?”

“You and I are both fugitives. No need to follow some stupid higher-ups.”

“Freedom?”

“As free as we can be in this small quarters, yes.”

Ironic as it is, what Satoru just said was true. Step out and their tails will be chased by jujutsu sorcerers, stay in and they can maintain this pretense of liberty. In any case, it can’t be worse than staying inside the Prison Realm or being controlled by some ancient being.

“Back in Shibuya, many people died.”

“Trying to make me feel guilty?”

“Not at all. I just wanted to ask what you think of it now.”

Satoru ponders for a while, then with a sigh he says, “Can’t be helped. It’s regrettable, but it’s not like I’m a god. That brain knew me too well —— Do you still hate them? Non-sorcerers?”

“I don’t know. It used to be my fuel, but I’ve spent it all. Now I’m just…drifting.”

“Drifting isn’t bad. We can drift together over this sea of blood beneath us.”

A small laugh escapes Suguru’s lips. “Satoru, you really are so foolish. Because of me, you got sealed. Because of me, there’s a death penalty over your head. Why do you even still stay with me?”

What value does one Geto Suguru hold that the great Gojo Satoru can turn his back on the world just to be by this person’s side? Shouldn’t have it been obvious by now? Satoru can’t put all his heart’s contents into words, and so he reaches for Suguru’s hand instead and places a soft kiss on his palm.

“I’ve let you go twice,” he whispers, his breath warming Suguru’s cold hands, “and they both turned out to be very bad decisions.” Satoru looks up, meeting Suguru’s astonished gaze in the dim light, “I’m not letting you go again.”

-

Despite the chaos unleashed in the world, humanity still observed festivities, especially something like Setsubun as it concerns the cleansing of evil spirits. It also happens to be Suguru’s birthday. Upon Satoru’s request, Megumi drops by their small quarters and brings them food apt for the occasion. Satoru takes it from him with much gratitude and prepares the table, inviting him to eat with them.

It is a bit awkward, after all, Suguru has never really interacted with this young Zen’in clan head. His uncanny resemblance with Fushiguro Toji also rails up his fight-or-flight tendency, as if his body remembers the person who quite turned his world upside down.

“What?” Megumi suddenly asks him, the boy’s own shoulders tense, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Nothing,” Suguru offers a weak smile, “I was just reminiscing — I fought your father once.”

Megumi visibly relaxes, very much unlike when he asked the same question to Satoru over a decade ago. “Apparently, I did, too.”

“Apparently?”

“I didn’t know he was my father at that time. I just came to know recently.”

“He’s crazy strong.”

“That he was.”

“Satoru looked after you?”

“He occasionally dropped by, but he’s no more a parent than my negligent father.”

“Hey—,” Satoru tries to butt in the conversation and save his reputation—

“No wonder. I thought you’re too good of a person to have been brought up by this nuisance.”

It’s useless.

“I heard that.”

“I was only speaking the truth —— Fushiguro Megumi, isn’t it? I apologize for imposing on you,” Suguru’s tone shifts, his fingers wrung together on top of his knees, “I don’t have anything to offer in return, I even had your sister caught up in all this mess. I can only thank you for letting me stay here unnoticed.”

“I’m no saint, I also have my personal biases. And I didn’t do this for you. Since Gojo-sensei asked for it, it’s nothing I can’t do. Besides, my sister’s issue has already been resolved, no need to hold onto things that are past. Just…whatever your issue is, please deal with it yourselves.”

Just in time, Satoru finishes laying down the food on the table, a small cake with a single candle lit on top taking the center spot. His eyes meet Suguru’s, his lips curving up in a soft smile. “Don’t worry, we’re already working on it.”

-

“We can be like…I don’t know…rogue jujutsu sorcerers or something. There are too many curses running about, I’m sure they won’t notice us if we do clean up some. We'll be doing them a great favor, too, you know?”

In the end, the two of them decided they can’t stay in the Zen’in estate forever. Sprawled on the bed, they’ve been discussing how to move forward with limited resources and a death penalty over their heads.

“You’re too noticeable for us to keep lowkey.”

Satoru suddenly stops, not failing to hear Suguru’s use of the word “us”. A sudden warmth blossomed in his chest, like the first ray of sunshine after a long, arduous, winter. It’s the onset of spring within his reach.

“Maybe if we eliminate all the released curses, they’d provide us both amnesties.”

“I released them, remember? The moment anyone from the jujutsu society sees me, I’m as good as dead.”

“I won’t allow that, of course.”

“No need to be so gallant. We can just run away after.”

“Where to?”

Suguru doesn’t even miss a beat when he replies, “Anywhere.”

-

“Gojo-sensei, are you sure about this?”

Under the cover of the night, three silhouettes huddle in an obscure corner of the Zen’in estate.

“We don’t want to overstay our welcome either,” Satoru smiles.

“You won’t,” Megumi assures him, “You’ve taken care of me for nine years, after all.”

“Then I’ll come back to settle the rest of your debt when things calm down, okay?” Satoru reaches out to pat Megumi’s hair one last time, “For now, we’ll have to deal with our lives on our own.”

“Please don’t die,” Megumi says with a stern look. “And please don’t get yourself sealed again.”

“Who do you think you’re talking to?”

With a final farewell, Megumi retreats back into the Zen’in estate.

It’s only until his figure disappears that Satoru finally turns around and faces Suguru. He stretches out an arm, reaching for him. The weak moonlight brings an almost glittery sheen over his hair, reflecting the galaxy on his eyes. The sight is so beautiful it’s almost breathtaking — they haven’t been out for a while, and now, in just a few steps, it will be the road to freedom.

Together.

“Let’s go?”

Suguru takes his hand.

[davidmann95]

JJ Abrams Superman Movie officially announced, with Ta-Nahisi Coates writing

Anonymous said: Just a few days after you said you were happy with DC taking a break from Superman movies and just focusing on him being on tv again, they go and announce a new Superman movie. How do you feel? Coates is an exciting choice, I think

Caught me red-handed! But to be fair a couple times I said that I left a caveat of ‘barring extraordinary circumstances’, which I’d say this qualifies as.

There’s only so much to go off of at this point, but even these tidbits open up a lot to think about.

* As out of left field as Coates feels at first blush - he’s a Marvel man! - it’s not entirely shocking that he’d be on WB’s shortlist to be their ‘how to fix Superman’ guy: he got a MacArthur Genius Grant the same year as his #1 bestselling book about what the American Way actually means, after which he got into superhero writing with a run that ended up having elements incorporated into a cultural moment in Black Panther, and then Between The World And Me was cited as the inspiration for the Watchmen show that substantially drew on Superman iconography and won 11 Emmys. People are already talking about him admittedly not being a DC or Superman guy (though in that same interview he notes his love for the DCAU, specifically including STAS), but if he’s here he’s got something to say and, y’know, probably read a decent amount of Superman stuff either since then/prior to this or to get ready for the gig, so can’t say I’m worried.

* Related note: I’m seeing folks concerned about how much control he’ll really have over the project, which is fair. But that it’s his involvement that’s being touted over JJ Abrams’ (the guy who, like him or not, rebirthed Star Wars as a going concern to the tune of over $2 billion), and that they’re formally announcing and hyping it up as TA-NEHISI COATES’ SUPERMAN MOVIE™, COMING 202X before even having a director or lead actor attached, says to me that whatever his vision is it’s one WB’s going all-in on for the time being.

* I’ve seen plenty of discussion already about the appropriateness of this potentially starring a black Superman given both the dynamics/thematics of Superman as a character, and more significantly the implications of Coates maybe only being brought onboard to do ‘the black version’. That is a conversation I have precisely zero qualifications to wade in on with my own takes, but given that he is a dude with enough options that he could probably even turn down an opportunity on this scale, and the aforementioned weight being given to his role in this, I think it’s safe to say whatever we’re going to get is something he’s onboard with.

* Also seen concerns re: his pedigree as a fiction writer - another one I’m not that qualified to weigh in on, I’ve only read the first year or so of his Black Panther and Captain America runs (though I got the rest of his BP on Comixology while it was free, gotta check it out sometime), which were solid if a bit more workmanlike than you’d hope, along with the (other category altogether) Between The World And Me some time ago, which was...considerably more than solid. I know however his fiction novel debut in The Water Dancer was well-received, his Marvel work rather than staying ‘grounded’ hasn’t shied away from the sort of outré high concepts you’d want to see in a Superman movie, and the main criticism of his runs of ‘they’re too slow’ wouldn’t likely have the space to apply in a 2-3 hour Hollywood blockbuster, so again, not too concerned.

* Perhaps time will make me eat my words, but hot take: there is a basically 0% chance this is about Calvin Ellis or Val-Zod. Yes, yes, the DC movies are reportedly embracing the multiverse an excuse to do standalone stuff, but the two examples of that thus far in Joker and The Batman are still broadly rooted in the conventional trappings of those characters even if they’re separated from the ‘main universe’. Maybe someday the options might go further afield, but right now, when Superman hasn’t had an unambiguous silver screen hit in over 40 years? They’re not going to pour a quarter-billion dollars into a movie with the premise of “last son of the doomed planet Krypton, imbued beneath Earth’s yellow sun with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men and raised with the noblest ideals of truth and justice, Some Other Guy Most Of You Don’t Know protects the world...as Superman!” Not even getting into Val-Zod being just one member of an ensemble cast from a largely overlooked book and having the baggage of being Zod’s kid, and the EVERYTHING of making a four-quadrant tentpole film about Super-Obama (when you haven’t even been able to make your regular Super work) - this is either going to be Clark, or if they do make Superman black or brown but still want some distance it’ll be a Jon movie so it’s still got the direct connection to the original and the ‘son of Superman’ pitch in its corner too.

* Abrams is an interesting partner. He’s Hollywood’s big nostalgia guy, and that’s...probably not what Coates is going to be going for here. I assume he’s basically there to keep things familiar enough for WB’s tastes, which itself raises questions about the nature of Coates’ pitch and how it was internally received even if they’re clearly very publicly committed to it.

* Michael B. Jordan probably won’t really be the guy - he apparently talked about it, reasonably concluded he didn’t want to face that inevitable scale of backlash after what he already went through just playing the Human Torch, and the tradition is to cast an unknown in the part - but I guess never say never. Heck, while I sure wouldn’t bet on it I don’t think Ryan Coogler ending up involved is out of the question either; Coates’ previous screenwriting experience was working on a project with Coogler and Jordan that evidently didn’t come to fruition (Wrong Answer, a drama about a 2006 Atlanta public school cheating scandal), and they seem to have maintained a relationship as they had a public discussion regarding The Water Dancer in 2019.

* Ok I know making fun of Snyder people is passé at this point and usually more “NO SUPERMAN MOVIES MAY BE PERMITTED UNTIL THE CIVILIZATION-REDEFINING FIVE-FILM SAGA IS COMPLETE” howling into the void is barely worth notice, and “this is solely WB retaliating against us for bending them to our will!” in response to a Superman reboot would normally be just an amusing side-note too. But trying to get #HenryCavillSuperman/#HenryCavillIsOurSuperman trending in response to the possibility of a black Superman...I mean obviously so fucking many of them are fully aware they’re just not saying the quiet part loud, but what’re the percentages here?

So that’s what I’ve got so far. How do I feel about it all? It’s odd; given that there are basically no actual details beyond a name attached I’d never thought about in this context, and that this came with no forewarning just as the prospect of Superman in movies for the next long while seemed as dead as it ever had been, it’s so ill-defined and seems so unreal that I don’t feel much of anything about it yet? Plus I’m no longer driven on a day-by-day basis by a savage, all-consuming desire to slake a thirst for quality Superman stuff long left unquenched the way I was even a couple years ago, which likely also plays its part. But objectively? This is a guy formally, nationally recognized for being smart who’s also a journalist and comics fan being given Superman, with what sure feels like a lot of leeway and presumably a blank slate, which is basically the abstract concept of a perfect pick. So yes: I formally rescind my “please no Superman movies in the 2020s” plea.

[a-crash-in-time-collection]

Chapter 5: A "Nice" Place To Stay

Reginald glanced up at the stars, that glittered with the hope he needed to get the clan through this hard time. Righty had left about an hour ago, keeping his promise to Hat Girl about looking for a place to stay. She was currently in one of the tents near a campfire, likely sound asleep as she was dreaming of the fun she could have while here. Having fun with her old friends while the clan worked on getting home.

She had briefly visited to forest before the sun started to set, and apperily that ghost would be coming by tomorrow. A proper introduction of sorts, apperily. Reginald sighed as he glanced at the ground. He wasn't fully sure what to think of the ghost. He seemed to be well-meaning, but Righty stated he couldn't trust him. He tried to explain to him that he was sure nothing bad would happen, but Right Hand Man said he would have to keep an eye out when the ghost was around.

At least he knew Hat Girl and Platinum were safe right now. That's all that mattered. Reginald shifted his position, glancing in the direction of the flames that light up his face slightly. Almost every member was asleep, except for those keeping an eye on the fires. He knew he should be getting to sleep as well, but he couldn't even try without his husband near him. He could hardly ever fall asleep without by his side.

He needed to find better shelter. Ok, one could argue it wasn't exactly a need. Once they got to work fixing the place, it shouldn't take too long for the members to be able to sleep inside. Even if they would be sleeping on the floor, which granted, they were likely to do anywhere else they would stay. But it would feel nice to know they would all have an actual roof over their head. And that some wouldn't miss sleeping to make sure fire didn't spread.

He was starting to debate if he could and should ask her bird friends for help. They were movie drictors after all, maybe they could get them a place to stay? Then again, he didn't want to intrude on their work. There had to be some other option out there for where they could stay. So at least Hattie wouldn't have to worry about the clan's safety. It was his job to worry about that, after all.

Eventually, the familiar rocket sound met his ears. Faint at first, but quickly coming closer. A soft smile formed on his face as he glanced over, seeing the cybrog land about a foot or two away from him. "I was wondering when you would get back."

Right Hand Man looked at him slightly. A small smile formed on his face as he walked up to him, red eye glowing in the dark. He held his hand and pulled him close, brushing some hair out of his face. His own was slightly tangled. "Sorry it took so long, Reg. Went as far as I could tryin' ta find a place."

Reginald chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "It's fine, Righty. As long as you're here, I know everything will be ok." He leaned against the half metal man, looking at him. "Your hair is starting to look a bit tangled. Might have to get the brush out of our room."

Right Hand Man looked at him, chuckling as he shook his head. He didn't only get his mother's hair color, he also had it's fast growth rates as well. He never liked how the long hair looked on him, and always tried to keep it short. Til Reginald mentioned the idea of a ponytail.

Thoughts about hair aside, he glanced at his lover. Normally red in the dark made people look evil, sensiter even. But it just brought a bit of warmth to his face in the dark. He pulled Reginald in slightly, pecking his check. The leader blushed and let out a playful huff, glancing to the side. But his expression soon softened as he glanced back at him. It made him wish they could have stood on the orbital station in earth's orbit, sharing a moment like this.

"So... I looked around a bit." He said, drawing attention back to what was important at that very moment. As much as he would love to stay under the starlight without a care in the world, they couldn't do that forever. Besides, it would be a bit awkward with the others nearby.

"Oh, right." Reginald said, remembering the task at hand. The sight of his husband was enough to make him forget things at times. "Well, did you find anywhere we might be able to stay? Or the kids to be safe at the very least."

"Well, it might be a bit of a squeeze at nig't, but I t'ink it should be able to 'old all of us." the cyborg said with a nod, a relieving smile forming on Reginald's face. He glanced over to the forest, pointing to where Subcon was. "It's t'at way, really deep in."

"Oh, really?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. He glanced at the forest. It was hard to believe something as dead and dreadful as Subcon was connected to something so... normal. You had to get close to the treeline in order to start seeing where the two were connected as one. "Well, at least it's close to someone who knows the area. What did the place look like, are there any repairs we'll need to do?"

"Don't know, it was gettin' cold so once I saw it I just came back 'ere." He shrugged, crossing his arms as he looked at him. He didn't like the idea of living closer to that ghost then they already were. He just seemed like he was going to be trouble later on. Why Hattie even saw him as a friend was something he pondered. "It's near some ot'er 'ouses, w'ich will need lots of repairs for sure, to say t'e least."

"Well, looks like we might get a little Toppat Toptown then." Reginald chuckled, RHM letting out a snort. Whatever made Platinum get these thoughts, Reginald will likely never know. And being the one who programmed him, that was saying a lot. He glanced around to where the others were once again, before glancing at his second in command. "Me and you should leave tomorrow, check out the place for ourselves."

Right Hand Man raised a brow at him slightly, a bit confused by his statement. He glanced in the direction of the woods again, before holding his lover's hand. "Are ya sure, Reg? I'll be fine gettin' a closer look myself. Besides, Hattie and Platinum might try to follow us, and I don't want to risk t'em gettin' 'urt."

"Well we'll leave before they wake up then." Reginald replied, crossing his arms slightly, looking smugly yet playfully at his lover. He understood why Righty was worried, he really did. Hat Girl wasn't as young or small as when she was last here, and those were likely part of the reason she did so well last she was here. "Sven should be well enough to keep an eye on what needs to be done, and Snatcher will be visiting, so he could keep an eye on the two."

"Still don't trust t'at g'ost, but I suppose t'at will help keep 'em safe." Right Hand Man sighed, glancing at the forest. He nodded slightly to himself, this should be fine. He just had to hope Reginald could deal with the cold there.

-------

"And then he just had his goons throw us out!" Hat Girl threw her hands in the air in annoyance, glancing up at the ghost, who was leaning against the large-est rock near the orbital station. Some of the kids let out shocked gasps. "But yeah, the rest of the trip back here was pretty uneventful. We're lucky the camping stuff happened to be in the boat for whatever reason. Would have returned empty handed without it."

"Mr. Jar guy sounds mean.." One of them spoke up.

"I would have just knocked him over if I were you." Snatcher said, adjusting his position so it was clear he was rolling his eyes. He then glanced at the small kiddos around, some still looking at him in interest. He had done his whole 'FOOOOOOOOOOOL' trick when he had arrived there, and while a decent bit of the adults showed fear, the kids didn't for the most part. "Not like the mafia would really miss him anyway."

"Why not?"

"I doubt that would be the case, Snatcher." Hat Girl said, standing up and glancing at the ghost. He was one of the few things that truly allowed her to feel nostalgic, as his towering from still give the illusion she was a child by height alone. She still missed those days sometimes, being young and carefree. "The mafia may not be smart, but if there's one thing they are, it's loyal. He likely would have been replaced by now if no one would have missed him."

Snatcher let out a huff. "Fair, I suppose."

"Sorry Snatcher, I don't think you're going to be getting his soul anytime soon." She giggled, smiling up at him. To think at one point she shivered in fear at his presence. She sighed and glanced around. She didn't wish to show it, but she was worried. "I wonder where Dad and Papa are, haven't seen them since last night. Platinum would be back here by now if he found them."

"Excuse me, Snatcher!" Esmae called to the ghost, who turned his attention to the child. They were one of the bravest of the kids when they first saw him. They had the gall to call him a snake as well. If it wasn't a child who he didn't have under contract, he would likely have slapped them.

"Why hello down there! Tell me, have you been studying law for what crimes you will commit in the future?" He asked the ginger haired child. "Like I know stealing items is what you Toppats mostly do, but imagine all the other possibilities. You could smuggle endangered animals for one!"

"Well, Hat Girl told us you were really powerful. Like, you could teleport and other cool things!" The child raised their hands in the air, as if trying to prove a point of sorts. Snatcher couldn't help but let out a chuckle at the child's amusement. He was honestly starting to question why he'd gotten that one book. "But we really haven't seen you use any of them. Can you show us a trick you can do?"

"Yeah, show us!" Marybeth called, so loud that Quiney could be seen shaking his head in the faint distance, likely letting out a chuckle.

"Well..." He taped his finger against his 'chin' "I suppose I can show you one." With a smile, he got off the rock, and raced to the ground at quick speeds. He dove into the ground, and for a moment, all was still. The children glanced at the spot, curiosity growing. Suddenly, a new figure popped from that spot. It shared the same shape as Platinum, but with Snatcher's purple color and yellow eyes. "How about that?"

The children let out awes, as Hat Girl giggled, glancing behind her. "Hey Platinum!" she called.

It was at that convent time the topbot was leaving the station. "Yeah?" He called, racing over to the group. He stopped as soon as his copy entered his sight, looking a bit surprised and amazed. He raised an arm, and Snatcher copied his movement. The kids giggled as Platinum kicked his foot, Snatcher acting fast to appear to be a mirror of sorts. The Topbot chuckled. "Well hello there handsome."

"Right back at You!" The Phantom Chuckled, shaking his head.

"Oh god, there's two..." Sven's comment could be heard, groaning as Calla chuckled beside him. She had been staying by his side all day, making sure he didn't do more work than what was needed of him. That had always been a small habit of his, as if he was worried he needed to do more for the clan. He let out a sigh slightly. "How are we going to be able to fix all this? Especially with that chaos maker."

"Platinum's not that bad, Sven." Calla mentioned, shaking her head.

"Snatcher isn't either. Well, outside his forest at least." Hat Girl mentioned, chuckling as the two look-alikes kept playing their mirror game. She was happy that Snatcher seemed to be getting along well with everyone. Well, everyone who bother trying to learn about the ghost anyway. She glanced back at the third in command. "Hey, I was wondering, did you happen to know where Dad and Papa are?"

"Weren't they going to look at that one house in the woods?" Calla asked.

"Yeah... sounds like it's creepy. But if it has room for us, I suppose it will be fine." Sven sighed, as Hat Girl tilted her head to the side. She didn't recall any houses in subcon. The few she did were near the one time rift, unless... "It's in a more wintery place of the woods. About three stories high apparently. Might be something we'll need to fix up, but should have ro-... are you ok?"

Hat Girl's skin was almost as white as snow. No... they couldn't have. She just wanted Papa to find a safer place for the clan. But now her dads might be joining Vanessa's collection of lost souls. In a way, it felt like her own soul belonged to the manor. She had to shake herself out of her frozen state, before racing to the group of kids. "Snatcher, Platinum! We need to go save Dad and Papa!"

"Huh?" Platinum said, tilting his head to the side as his sister passed, garbing the phantom's hand and pulling him with her. He looked over at Sven, who was just as confused, before shurrging and following the two. The forest started blocking the sunlight, so Hat Girl could tell when Platinum caught up when orange reflected ageist her skin. "Wait, why do we need to save them again? Or at all."

"Yeah, and no offense, but why are you pulling me along with you?" Snatcher asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Well, for one my memory is fuzzy of your ex's house, so I need someone who likely remembers it better than I can." She said, and she could have sworn the ghost's hand went colder once those words left her mouth. Purple entered her sight as they entered the subcon she dreamt of returning to for years. "Besides, if the worst comes, we need a distraction."

"T-That's not really needed, kiddo! I-I'm sure you and Platinum can handle things there all by yourself." The Phantom chuckled worriedly, him turning back into his true from in an attempt to slow her down or let go of his arm. She could tell by tone alone he was worried, scared.

"Well, I'm guessing since Snatcher is having a bit of a panic attack from the look of things, that this really isn't a nice place to stay?" Platinum asked, tilting his head to the side slightly. Oh. He had no idea. "Also, Snatcher has an ex? Didn't really take him to be a romantic type. Although since again, he's having a panic attack, I guess she wasn't the nicest person? I don't know, I'm not programmed that way."

"Well.... If you take the N out of nice, then yes, both she and the place are 'nice'" Hat Girl said.

As if on cue, they came across the bridge that led to the coldest part of the forest. "Oh... Ice.. Don't tell me this is some freaking horror version of frozen."

"Look, It's not cuz I'm scared or anything, but you two can handle this by yourselfs." Snatcher huffed, Hat Girl finally letting of as she garbed Platinum's hand, carefully hoping over the gap in the bridge peices.

"So you just admitted you're scared." Hat Girl asked, walking up to the purple wall. She brought out her umbrella, taking a slight glance around. Weren't there four frozen Dwellers here? Or was it just her memory not fully working? She shrugged it off, smacking the bell with the umbrella. She glanced back at the phantom as she walked over. "It's fine, really. Me and Platinum, the brave ones, will just handle it ourselves."

Snatcher let out a low growl, before sighing. "I'm not getting out of this, am I?" He said, following after her.

"Nope!" Hat Girl, glancing in front of her slightly. The floating blocks of magic she would use the dweller mask on were still there. However, the wall she would need to use said blocks to pass now had a large hole in it. Looked freshly melted. "Papa must have used his lazer eye in order to get them past it. Must have been planning ahead of time for when the clan would come."

"Which is not happening, I guess." Platinum said, letting out a shiver as he hop threw the hole. Why he was programmed to somewhat be able to feel hot and cold, he'll never know. He glanced at Snatcher slightly, who seemed to be shaking from a cold he couldn't feel. "Hey, it's alright."

"Nothing involving that old grimstone is alright." Snatcher stated, his trembling getting more noticeable as they kept heading to his old home. His old cell. It was a cell long before they day he was chained up in the cellar. It was sad it took that to realize him and Vanessa weren't meant to be together. "You'll be lucky if we don't find your parents dead. Even luckier if you can get out of it alive."

"Hey, as long as you let me use my hats this time, it should be a piece of cake!"

"Please use them." Snatcher turned his attention away from the purple hatted child, and shrinked a bit as the manor relieved itself from the fog. Every lit up window was like an eye staring into his being. The brown walls looked ready to keep them locked up forever. He was shivering as memories filled his head. "I'll find a way to turn your walls into bacon one day, 'old friend'." He hissed slightly.

Hat Girl shook her head, beginning to head to the back.

"It doesn't look that scary, I don't really see what the big deal is!" Platinum shrugged, kicking at the snow slightly. "Besides, me and Hattie played a couple of horror games in the past. Well, 'horror' in question marks." He chuckled. "Like, how can you be scared of an 8-bit plush bunny."

"You say, having only watch videos of that game." Hat Girl chimed, ignoring the huff her brother made in response. She soon found the entrance to the cellar, throwing it open and beginning to head down. Snatcher hesiated. "Come on!" Hat Girl called, and the ghost flouted down slowly.

The scent of death and beer met the group's noses, as the two with feet made splashes in the achola all over the floor. "Well, good thing I'm waterproof." Platinum said, kicking some beer over at Hat Girl. She let out a chuckle, although she tried to keep it quiet. Drawing attention to herself was the last thing she wanted to do. "Well, where's the entrance to the actual place? Cuz I doubt Dad and Pops are down here."

Snatcher was going his best to avoid looking at the wall with chains. "Yea... hopefully the place is unlocked."

"Looks like it is." Hat Girl said, pushing open the door and beginning to tip-toe up the stairs. She never thought she would have to step foot in here again. And although she was putting on a brave face, her heart was shivering in fear. But she had to be the brave one here, partly to annoy Snatcher, but mostly to insure their own survival. "We need to be quiet, and I mean that, Platinum. Don't get any ideas."

The Topbot rolled his eyes as they entered the first floor. "Yeah yeah, fine. I'll just be chillin' here..." He glanced over at a strange shaped ice statue. "Like that statue over there. I'll say, Snatcher, your Ex is one good ice sculpture. Looks so realistic."

"Platinum. That's a corpse. Someone she frozen alive." Snatcher and Hat Girl looked at each other, before the later cracked a slight chuckle as the perfect timing. Snatcher glanced back at the body, Hat Girl's chuckling stopped. He wondered if the souls were still aware in there? If they were even there at all. "Honsently, a lot of these people weren't even contractors. They just snuck in for the heck of it."

Platinum glanced at the dead body."Ok, yeah... Forzen but it's a horror movie, forgot." Worry entered his eyes slightly, but he still rolled said the orange orbs. "But dead bodies around the place is just a horror trope. All we have to do is ignore them, find Dad and Pops, and we'll be fine-" Lighting struck outside, and he screamed in pure terror, hiding behind Hat Girl in a split second.

"What was that for?!" Snatcher scolded the cowering topbot.

"He has astraphobia" Hat Girl quickly whispered. "Apparently he was struck by lightning once before he became 'Platinum', and the fear stuck with him ever since."

Before Platinum had the chance to try and defend himself for being rightfully afraid of those demons in the shape of zig-zag lines, another striked as the doors in front of them swung open. "WHO'S THERE!?" that haunting voice screamed, as the black and red form stomped one foot outside the room. Snatcher felt his soul shutter as those red eyes locked onto him. "YOUR DAYS MESSING AROUND MY HOME ARE OVER. BOW TO ME!" A hand reached out...

"RUN!" Hat Girl shouted, racing down the hall with Platinum's hand. Snatcher didn't need to be told, already darting to the room that would lead him upstairs. He could hear her screams as she began to chase. He wouldn't be trapped by her again!

Once the only sound he could hear was his own breathing, he stopped, putting a claw hand on the wall as he caught his breath. Well, not really, as he didn't need to breath, but it felt like he did at that very second. He was more powerful than her... he thought so at least. He should have tried to end her right then and there but... the risk was too great... at least she didn't seem to know he was her prince...

"Well, this is why I didn't want to come here. I hope you two are happy for getting us in a cat and mouse game." He crossed his arms with a huff.

The two didn't answer... he couldn't even hear Hat Girl's breath. "Kiddo?" He glanced down... they weren't there. He glanced around the hall, a bit confused. He wanted to call out, but didn't want attention to be drawn to himself. They must have gotten split up when the ice witch appeared... worry stepped into his non-existing heart. They were her prey now, likely in a corner, holding onto their breaths in order to not be noticed...

He should just go. Hat Girl survived the manor once before. She could easily do it again. Platinum was a questionable case, but he seemed to have some brain cells. Snatcher only went into the manor once each year, to grab any dwellers or minions that got too close to the place. And when he did that a month back, there were no living souls making his job harder... but what if Hat Girl got killed? Why did he care?

Was it because she represented a child he could never have? Was it because the feeling of someone being able to outsmart him, something that made him admire the strange girl. Was it because of how she took his Death Wishes with stride? Once he wanted her dead, but now he couldn't imagine afterlife without her, especially now that she was back. He grabbed his head. Ignore these feelings! She'll be dead and gone sooner or later anyway! Just get out of here before Vannessa-

A small knock. Followed by footsteps. He glanced over, seeing something had been knocked over near the stairs that lead to the third floor. He floated over, tilting his head to the side slightly. He was faintly able to see the imprints of footsteps on the carpet. At first he hope they were Hat Girl's, but they were much too small. They looked like they belonged to a child... but he hadn't recalled any living child in his forest And they were fresh... almost too fresh.

He had done a head count of his minions that morning, so he knew it couldn't be one of them. They knew better by now not to go near the manor anyway, well, most of them did. He brought his hand down, tracing the footprint slightly. Something felt... off about it. It was like whatever made it was something he knew before, held before... but that was impossible... He glanced back to where the stairs he raced up were. Where the others likely were...

He took a breath before being to float up. It felt like something was calling him... He had to know what it was... Hat Girl and Platinum could survive a few minutes on their own... right?

[recentanimenews]

Isekai, Ranked

If Anime is escapism, there is no better way to escape than plunging Into Another World, where our niche skills and routine possessions may shake the fabric of reality! From MMO-inspired, to hard fantasy, there are many types of shows on this list but no movies nor series we haven’t seen recently. Bring all disagreements to the comments below!

1. Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World Re:Zero takes Isekai’s love for fish-out-of-water stories on step further: through brutal, expectation breaking blind sides, it makes the viewer a fish out of water too! Dripping with fantastic animation, Re:Zero true strength is the balance of its highly detailed world without over explaining its magic system, time loop mechanic and political systems. It also earns bonus points for  limiting the application of its protagonist’s powerful magic and technological advantages.

2. Sword Art Online (1st season)  In the narrowest of second places, SAO pairs top shelf animation with an approachable cast and easy to appreciate central conflict. Its lovingly constructed MMO setting aside, Kirito’s mistakes and occasional darkness elevate him above his potentially generic good-at-everything character type and Asuka plays the strongest heroine/love interest on the list.

3. Now and Then, Here and There Imagine if Digimon told a bleak about story sex trafficking child soldiers trapped on a waterless world with a maniac king? NTHT’s intense swerve from adorable into darkness is on par with Re:Zero and, much like Natsuki Subaru, HTHT’s Shu must rely on ‘durability’ and ‘heart’ to make it through. While some of it’s later tragic moments are predictable, this f’ed-up little anime scores major points for telling a complete story and having that story grow Shu from simpleton into a conflicted young adult.

4. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet While Red’s post-earth scifi origin may stretch the common definition of Isekai, being trapped in a primitive culture that treats him (and his AI-driven mech Chamber) like a hero of old does not. Beautifully, Gargantia flips the script and makes Red’s overwhelming power, and killing in general, at odds with the local people.

5. Yōjo Senki / The Saga of Tanya the Evil Give us World War I with magic, a gender swapped villain as our protagonist, and God as our antagonist, and you’ve given us something pretty damn original. Like Gargantia, this reborn in another world captures thinking differently about the world can be as powerful and terrifying as unworldly strength. Without question, Yojo Senki’s cast is the most uniquely imagined on this list.

6. No Game No Life Like Tanya, the Blank twins piss off god and are sent to another world as punishment. However, their punishment is much more stylish and… harem. Underneath NGNL’s acid-soaked panties, over the top protagonists and the psychedelic color pallet, lives a show featuring thoughtful puzzles and imaginative spins on classic gamble to win story telling. Sadly, its story ends unfinished…

7. KonoSuba One part jab at Isekai and one part love letter to the starting town of every fantasy MMO, KonoSuba is all parts ruthlessly funny!  While this reborn in another world (with a goddess!) show is not be as smartly written as NGNL, and it becomes repetitive after a time, the constant frenetic action more than makes up for it.

8. Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash Quiet, thoughtful, and full of sadness, this hard fantasy Isekai doesn’t care if its heroes are reborn in another world or trapped in a dungeon crawl afterlife. Building family bonds and connecting with people who would not normally be friends is all that matters… and it’s lovingly animated to boot!

9. ReCreators As a reverse Isekai, ReCreators distinguishes itself by bringing the other world to us. The experience is fantastically animated and packed with clever dialog that somehow breaths sincerity into a profoundly silly plot. The cast is quite diverse, both in design and personality, which keeps the action fresh, yet somehow cohesive throughout. It’s only major flaw is, the final act, which is way to drawn out.

10. The Devil is a Part Timer No I’m not kidding! This reverse Isekai’s premise that the Devil is trapped in our world and must work at McDonnald’s to get by is charming. While DiaPT’s humor isn’t particularly specific to the devil, the jokes are punchy, and the overall plot develops at a respectable pace. As an added treat, the opening gothic fantasy fight scenes are surprisingly well animated.

11. Log Horizon (1st season) Most exposition heavy, trapped in an MMO themed Isekai featuring ‘top ranked’ players crumble after a few episodes. More often than not, these shows try too hard to sell the coolness of their game worlds, user interfaces, and central characters. Miraculously, Log Horizon gets better mid season with a simple question: if former NPCs have personalities, can grow and learn, and even die, are they more human than the former players that dismiss them as background texture? Still, it takes Log Horizon six episodes to get going and good lord is it gray looking…

12. Overlord (3 Seasons) This transported into an MMO Isekai mirrors its main character: it is competent but not sure what it should be doing at any given moment. Sometimes the protagonists are villains and sometimes they are heroes. More often than not, characters are given lavish screen time to develop, only to be slaughtered whimsically. The resulting narrative is full of call backs and revealed foreshadowing… yet hasn’t gone very far in 3 seasons and hasn’t asked any interesting questions along the way.

13. El Hazard – The Magnificent World (OAV/TV) Predestined paradox, trans-dimensional time jumping high school students (and their drunk gym teacher) are trapped in an Arabian Nights’like land besieged by sentient bugs, a secret tribe of assassins from another dimension, and a death star like eye of god orbiting nearby. If you watched anime in the 1990s it will all be familiar but it still manages to feel original yet cohesive production. The character abilities are wonderful, the tragedy is nice, and plenty is left up to your own imagination to fill in the blanks. A bland, fault free, protagonist and a boy-crazy harem vibe are the only reasons it isn’t higher on the list.

14. Gate: Jieitai Kano Chi nite, Kaku Tatakaeri This invading the other world Isekai flips the script to deliver political intrigue, clash of culture, and commentary on Japanese society. It loses points for being a overly harem, relying on super dumb/super evil antagonists, and a dull protagonist but it’s fun enough to watch.

15. Drifters Stylishly violent, strikingly ugly, historical character filled and utterly bonkers, this reborn in another world Isekai’s uniqueness will hold your attention. Even if you do not want it to.

16. Rise of the Shield Hero (2 Seasons) On paper, this transported to an MMO world Isekai’s “treat the hero like crap,” “watch him accept the role of a slave-buying villain” and ultimately “rise to become the true hero” concept is great. Revealing that the world he’s saving may be less redeemable than the world the invaders are trying to save is also great. Too bad its padded and many of the arbitrary delays and narrative dead ends feel like cop outs.

17. That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime While it lacks the initial hardcore’ness of Shield Hero, this reborn in another world Isekai is pleasantly animated and full of heart. The idea that naming monsters grants them power is a pretty neat mechanic too. It just sort bounces from idea to idea without a sense of purpose of resolution. One minute it’s a story of unlikely friendship, then magic destiny, then town builder, then harem, and onto magic school and isn’t about anything in particular until a hastily thrown together plot ties it up at the end. It scores points for making its hero a slime… although the reborn aspect never feels played with or justified.

18. Angel Beats! If the gun fetish, kids fighting a loli-angel instead of attending school in the afterlife plot weren’t so dumb and drawn out, this rebirth story’s touching moments would push it much higher. There’s a really good tale of life cut short, reunion after death, and again after rebirth here and it gets major bonus points for finishing the story it had to tell. Totally squandered.

19. Death March / Kara Hajimaru Isekai Kyousoukyoku Like Shield Hero, this reborn in an MMO Isekai is actually quite good looking. However, its Gary-Stue protagonist, harem and absurd narrative padding make it far less interesting.  OMG how many episodes are about making lunch?! That’s too bad because the concept of code-like “copy and paste” magic system is pretty neat.

20. Wiseman’s Grandson / Kenja no Mago Despite opening with a modern day man being killed, this reborn into a fantasy world Isekai is more Magic School than Isekai. The only thread that connects the protagonist’s lives is that he can look at magic with an eye for process instead of outcome. The result is harmless easy watching but harem elements, a slow pace and lack of getting anywhere narratively hold it back.

21. How Not to Summon a Demon Lord This summoned into an MMO Isekai starts off as charming, but ecchi-heavy, before abruptly turning dark at the end of the season. We’re talking ‘make a child watch as her best friend is slowly tortured to death’ and creepo ‘finger-bang a loli cat girl in order to give birth to the demon inside her’ level dark. While those elements elevate HNtSaDL above niche appeal of its harm and MMO content, they aren’t so interesting to earn my recommendation.

22. Problem Children are coming from Another World, Aren’t They? The non-ecchi poor man’s No Game no Life features a talking cat that only some characters can understand and dreadful music. TFW smooth jazz? There’s some cuteness to be had, and the solutions to gambling games can be clever, but the overall vibe is low energy. It loses drama points because its protagonist is as smart as a god and physically stronger.

23. Do You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks? This poor man’s Konosuba is occasionally funny, satire of RPG conventions and family relationships. Mama’s skill that interrupts whatever her son is doing, no matter what it is or where he is in the game world, is particularly charming. Unfortunately, there’s no avoiding the creepo factor of sexualizing that family relationship.

24. Restaurant from Another World My mom is secretly from another world and my restaurant’s front door connects back to that world each day is certainly unique, but it’s structured more like a food-porn show than Isekai. While the linkages of each patron become clear over time, few characters are not aware of those connections themselves. The result never feels like it gets anywhere.

25. In Another World With My Smartphone Stories without risk are still watchable when they immerse us an interesting world, or delve into niche details like food or how magic works, or sleeze us with harems and sex appeal. Smartphone fails all of these things. Worse, it does nothing with it’s one idea: protagonist Touya is reborn in a fantasy world with smartphone. Except, GOD GIVES HIM GOD TIER MAGIC FROM THE GET-GO! Ironically, Re:Zero and No Game No Life both use of a cell phones in more interesting ways, and Tanya’s God isn’t even comparable. Unoriginal, unfunny, not dramatic, not sexy, not worth watching.

26. Maou-sama, Retry! This transported to an MMO Isekai’s trash production values, and bizarre characters are hard to take seriously. The results are sometimes so terrible they are funny, such as incompetent background music transitions and detailed horses hiding at the edges of the frame. Sadly, a bland harem and complete lack of narrative objective kill the mood.

27. Isekai Izakaya Imagine a low energy, public access style show, with a tourism theme, that featuring a modern Japanese restaurant that serves fantasy world patrons…

28. Isekai Cheat Magician A loveless summoned to a fantasy world Isekai who’s protagonists are the most powerful and purely good characters could deserve a niche rating. Not this one. The narrative sort of ‘skips the boring stuff’ and, in doing so, skips character development. Hilariously, what the narrative does show is poorly animated, always underwhelming magic battle scenes or people standing around talking.

29. Endride Without dialog, this stumbled into a magic world Isekai’s vibrant color and crisp art would be watchable. The fact that the world is somehow inside of Earth’s core and the sparse use of mythology are unique, but its dumb-as-bricks whiny teen protagonists have the maturity of a small children. There are many unintentionally funny moments like scientists using gigantic laptops or the king’s magic weapon looking like a safety pin. Ultimately, the cast is so unlikeable that the show itself is unwatchable.

By: oigakkosan

[cutie1365]

A Kid from Queens Part 6

Pairing: Peter Parker x Stark!Reader

Info: CA: Civil War Era. Tony Stark enlists his daughter to find the web slinging spider in Queens.

Word count: 2062

Warnings: Descriptions of violence

A/N: Thinking about taking a break from writing, just not getting as many notes and comments as I used to and its super discouraging because I’ve been putting so much work into my content lately. We’ll see, so please let me know what you think!

Part 5 | Series Masterlist | Masterlist

A loud ding from within the lab pulled your attention from Peter. That had to be his suit. The update must have been successfully completed and installed.

“I’m sorry, I don’t usually um” You motioned between the two of you, referring to what just happened.

“It’s ok, you don’t have to apologize.” Peter smiled sweetly, looking down with concern in his eyes.

“I know its just uh,” You didn’t know the words to describe how you were feeling, so you just shook your head and changed the subject, “That’s your suit.”

You walked back into the lab, beginning to pull the wires from Peter’s suit and fold it back into the heavy metal case.

“I’m sure Aunt May is waiting up for you.” You spoke as you extending the case to him.

“Actually I told her I was staying at Neds tonight...” Peter took the case from your hand and paused for a minute before cautiously saying, “I don’t want to leave you all alone in this tower if you’re not ok Y/N.”

“I’ll be ok, I have to be. This is my life Peter, I can’t change that, I just have to deal with it.” You crossed your arms over your chest.

“Well you don’t have to deal with it alone if you don’t want to.” He offered, no one had ever said that to you before.

“Do you want to stay?” You took a chance, “I mean we’ve got plenty of room, and some pizza and a movie sounds really good.”

“That sounds amazing.” He laughed and smiled.

“Follow me,” You motioned towards the elevator as you got in and hit the button for your floor.

The elevator opened onto your floor. On the right was the kitchen which extended into the large chic living room. That connected to your bedroom and bathroom.

You pointed to the phone on the counter.

“Order the pizza, I’m gonna take a quick shower.” You instructed.

“From where?” He asked picking up the futuristic looking phone.

“If you eat pizza from anywhere other than Joe’s we need to talk.” You smirked.

“Ok, ok just making sure.” Peter laughed.

“Tell them it’s for me and it should be on the house.” You spoke from the doorway of your bedroom.

“For real?” Peter asked, eyes growing wide in surprise.

“Dad saved the owner a few years ago during the incident. Haven’t paid for pizza since.” You shrugged, “F.R.I pull up the theatre display and help Pete pick a movie.”

“On it Ms. Stark.” F.R.I.D.A.Y replied.

A few minutes later you returned to the cozy living space with slightly damp hair, no makeup, sporting a big T-shirt and shorts.

The smell of pizza hit you right when you entered the room.

“I’ve never seen pizza delivered so fast in my life.” Peter said before shoving the slice in his mouth.

“I think that’s part of the Avenger’s discount.” You smirked as you stuck a slice in your mouth. God bless Joe’s Pizza you thought.

“Did you pick a movie?” You asked, leaning against the counter.

“Well you don’t make it easy, you own every movie ever made,” He laughed before looking up to you, “Are you sure you want to watch a movie, you should probably get some sleep.”

“I don’t sleep, haven’t been able to in weeks. Not since we signed the accords. So movie it is.” You said as you  jumped on the couch with a slice of pizza in your hands.

Peter grabbed the box and placed it on your coffee table before taking a seat beside you on your large sectional.

“Wait, you have the new James Bond movie?” Peter asked, excitement in his voice when he saw it on the screen, “It’s not even in theatres yet! How is that possible?”

“I know a guy.” You shrugged.

“Is that guy Daniel Craig?” Peter rolled his eyes.

“No...but I know him too.” You said, sporting a smirk as Pete laughed.

“Do you mind if we watch it?” Peter asked.

“I’d want nothing else.” You smiled.

You started the movie, and Peter was super into it, granted it is a really good movie. After eating for a little while, you threw away the empty box and turned off the lights. You returned to the couch and curled up with a blanket.

About thirty minutes into the movie Peter turned to you to ask you a question. He seems that you’re fast asleep, a smile grows on his face and he lets you sleep. He lowered the volume on the TV because he knows how long its been since you’ve slept.

About an hour later you turned over, unconsciously leaning into Peter’s side and laying an arm over him. He only smiled and put an arm around your back.

You woke up cuddled into Peter’s side on the couch. You saw that he was still asleep too. You turned to look at the clock, it was 10:00. Had you really slept like 11 hours? That seemed impossible to you, seeing your recent average was about 2 hours.

You went to your kitchen and whipped up some pancakes, the smell waking Peter up.

“God those smell so good.” He padded over to the kitchen and slid onto your bar stool.

“Family recipe.” You winked.

“How’d you sleep?” He asked.

“Amazing. Like super amazing, I haven’t slept that long in years.” You said, sliding a plate of pancakes over to him.

“I’m glad.” He smiled as you joined him.

“Did u like the movie?” You asked.

“It was really good! Too bad there won’t be another.” He commented.

“There won’t be?” You asked in insinuation.

“Didn’t Daniel Craig say he’d rather slit his wrists than play Bond again?” Peter raised an eyebrow.

“He did, but for enough money anyone will do anything.” You said.

“Your kidding, he’s doing another?” Peter asked in shock.

“Don’t tell anyone, you’re pretty good at keeping a secret.” You laughed.

You ate with Peter and talked. It felt so natural to be with him, you haven’t enjoyed yourself like this in a while.

“Ms. Stark your one o’clock is here.” F.R.I.D.A.Y said, you didn’t know it was already one.

“My what?” You asked, before it hit you, “Oh god the galas tonight. Like tonight tonight. Tell her I’ll be down in a minute.”

“I’m so sorry Peter, I completely forgot.” You said, rushing to clean up the living space for your hair and makeup stylist.

“No it’s ok, I should probably get going. I’ve got rounds soon anyway.” He smiled.

“Be careful please.” You pleaded with a smile.

“I always am.” He said, you raised an eyebrow and smiled.

After hours of hair and makeup you heard the elevator open behind you. You were almost finished with your stylist, still sitting in your room in a silk robe about to put your dress on.

“There’s my pretty girl,” Your boyfriend Tom walked into your room and placed a kiss on your cheek.

“Hi handsome, we’re almost done here.” You informed him.

“No rush, we can be fashionably late.” He made his way in his tux over to your couch and plopped down where you are Peter slept the night before. Guilt began to well up in you.

Of course nothing happened, Peter was just a friend who was there for you in your time of need.

A few minutes later you entered the living room donning a silk champagne colored gown that fit you perfectly.

“Wow, you look amazing,” Tom stood to greet you, his eyes scanning you before quietly saying, “I can’t wait to get home and rip that dress of you.”

“Ah,ah,ah you better behave tonight. This is very important for your father and his image, he needs votes and donations, not another scandal from his son.” You warned.

“Ouch I’m hurt.” He placed his hands on his heart, being dramatic, you just rolled your eyes, “Kidding, I’ll behave, I know father would have my head if I didn’t.”

You both entered the limo outside of Stark Tower and headed to the gala. Once you arrived the place was crawling with paparazzi. You answered a few questions from reporters and broke away from Tom before entering the ballroom.

“Ms. Stark?” A voice called from beside you, you turned to see a familiar face, though you’ve never met before, “Danny Rand.”

“Y/N please,” You said as you shook his hand outside the building. “Danny Rand, back from the dead. To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“There’s something you should know about Mayor-” Danny tried to warn you before

“Babe we gotta go, they’re starting.” Tom interrupted and placed an arm around your hip, pulling you towards the door.

“Find me inside.” You mouthed to Danny, not knowing that security wouldn’t let him in.

You made your way to your table at the front of the ballroom, where the mayor greeted you with open arms.

“Thank you for coming Y/N.” The mayor nodded.

“Well someone has to keep Thomas in line.” You joked, getting a laugh from the table.

“Better you than me.” The mayor smirked before making his way onto the stage.

Little did you know Peter didn’t have a good feeling about this event. Call it Spidey-Senses if you want. He hated how happy you looked with the mayor’s son, though he knows if he really cares about you he should be happy for you. You live in different worlds, you’re the daughter of a billionaire for christ sake, he’s just a kid from Queens.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like to welcome you to-” The mayor began but the mic cut out. Your head was spinning and your ears were ringing. You opened your eyes to see smoke covering half the room, tables and chairs scattered around. You were on the ground bleeding. As you tried to make sense of everything around you, another explosion went off. This time followed by half a dozen men barging into the broken wall of the ballroom.

You turned behind you to see your boyfriend Thomas cowering behind you. You tried to sit up but your whole body hurt.

The men were now coming towards you, and they had guns, big guns. They took a shot at the mayor who was now on the floor of the stage, but he was pulled away by security.

You twist your bracelet, pulling the exposed metal up over your fingers as it turns into a fingerless unpainted Iron Man hand. You shot at the man now coming towards you, sending him soaring backwards, knocking him out unconscious.

You saw Peter swing in, starting to web up some of the intruders. Two approach you from behind, you shoot one, but the other grabs your arm and holds it back, immobilizing your one weapon. You pull your free arm back, bloodying your knuckles as you rammed your fist into his face. His grip loosened on your arm and you were able to break free. He tried to take a swing at you, but you were able to block it. You used the chair next to you to jump and strike him again, sending him to the ground. You were now standing over him, and pulled his mask off. He seemed to be knocked out.

You turned to see Peter finishing the last one off, and making his way across the ballroom to you. You still couldn’t hear anything and your vision was blurry. You noticed Peter raise his hand to aim behind you, but it was too late. As you spun around to see your attacker, you took a hard blow with the butt of his large machine gun. The force of the blow pushed you to the ground. You knew it had broken a rib or two. From the ground, with all the strength you had, you raised your arm to shoot him with your Iron Man hand, and he was out.

You attempted to stand, leaning on the turned over table for support. Peter was only a few feet away from you now. You limped towards him, trying to mutter his name as you reached an arm towards him, and fell unconscious.

“Pe-” Was all Peter heard as you collapsed and he caught you in his arms.

Part 7

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[mfmagazine]

Patrick Fabian

Article by Ricky Tavi

Photo by Josh Madson

Patrick Fabian is likely one of those actors who seems to have been in so many movies we’ve seen so many TV shows we’ve watched and so many adverts we’ve listened to. And yet because his performances and characters are so diverse and convincing, it just hasn’t seemed necessary to remember his real name.

But Patrick Fabian may not be able to avoid the personality spotlight too much longer. As the season of his current CMT sitcom, ‘Working Class’ just ended, he’s looking at another critically acclaimed success to add to his nearly 20 year acting resume.

Patrick spent some time with us and allowed us to discover something of the real life personality behind the brilliant list of stage and screen characters that this fine actor has so often brought to life.

Our interview reveals a man of humor and humility. He gives us a glimpse of his Working Class co-star Ed Asner - is he easy to work with? – And, with a big smile, drops a hint about the most famous screen character he’d welcome the chance to portray. Read on to discover the fascinating background to one of Hollywood’s better kept secrets – Patrick Fabian.

In your 18 year acting career you have appeared in just about every performance medium possible – stage, movies, TV, voice-over, adverts…..the list seems endless. So starting with the most recent, and where today’s buzz is, please divulge something about the new CMT series, ‘Working Class’.

This has been a great experience and a ton of fun to do. It's a smart, funny sitcom that'll get the whole family laughing; it's a real traditional show in the vein of "Roseanne" & "Everybody Loves Raymond". If you haven't tuned in, now's the chance to see what all the fun's about.  And there's gonna be some kissin'!

Do you think you were an easy choice to portray your character?

Well, I run Parker Foods and am the boss of Melissa Peterman and Ed Asner's characters, so clearly, someone in casting thought I knew how to order people around! That, and wear Armani well. I think I can bring a bit of humor and good nature to the usual traits that bosses possess.

I read somewhere that you are happy to be thought of as a ‘working class actor’. If so, are you bringing ‘real life’ to your part – albeit the show is not intended to be taken too seriously?

The show is meant to make people laugh, we're not solving the world's problems, you know? And being a working class actor, for me, means that I get to do a wide variety of roles and situations, and that I'm fortunate enough to work fairly consistently. Although, let's be clear; if you need me to be a Star, I'm open to that.

Ed Asner, one of your co-stars in ‘Working Class’, is known for his real life advocacy of the ‘common man’. What special energy do you think his outlook on life has brought to the show?

Ed's a man of his word and certainly backs up his beliefs with his actions and I respect him for that. His acting experience and skills are totally fun to work with and I've learned a lot from watching him. He's not afraid to fail in life or work.

Comments from your colleagues in the show talk of the fun and good humor that has made the production work such a pleasant experience. With so many seasoned actors are you all able to stick to the script? Is ad libbing allowed?

I can easily say it's been one of the easiest sets to work on; we laughed all the time. And that tone is set by Melissa Peterman; she's a shining light and considering the crazy schedule we were on, that's no small feat. And Melissa comes from improv, so she's wonderful on her feet and can ad-lib all day long. The writers' wrote us great material and they weren't averse to our going off the rails: we were all looking for the funny.

As an actor you’ve portrayed the deadly serious to the comic. How do you classify yourself primarily – if you do?

I think it's all about the point of view you bring to any particular role, and how that fits into the whole, you know? I'm fortunate to work in both serious and comic worlds and I like it like that. However, if James Bond ever opens up..........

Where do you have the most fun? In theater or movies?

They all have their charms, (and frustrations), but I definitely have a soft spot for live theatre; it's where I learned my craft and the immediacy of a play and it's interaction with an audience can't be beat.

All reports are that you have a great sense of humor. Could you ever imagine yourself as a stand-up comedian? Ever tried it?

I have way too much respect for stand-up to try it. I need writers. Wildly, talented writers making me look good. Daily.

As a serious actor, has Shakespeare featured much in your stage experience?

I got my Equity Card at the Shakespeare L.A. Festival years ago playing Moth in "Love's Labor's Lost". Shakespeare under the stars at the John Anson Ford Theatre in the summertime. A wonderful experience and I would kill to be at the Festival in New York City's Central Park.

Ever played Hamlet? Would you want to?

No I haven't. And yes, given the opportunity, I think every male actor would love a crack at it.

Your career has given you the opportunity for a lot of travel. Much time away from home. Now that you are a parent – congratulations, by the way, to you and your wife, Mandy Steckelberg, on the birth of your daughter Abbey Ray – will you be earning fewer frequent flyer miles?

Well, they say have a baby and the world will provide (or something like that) and so far, that has been the case, although most jobs have kept me local. I thought it would be great to get a series in New Zealand or Europe for a few years while Abbey Ray's still a wee one. But my wife has been wonderful about the work when it does take me out of town. Many of friends have managed it all, so I imagine we will too; we should be blessed with such problems, right?

What are some of your favorite place around the world?

Wandering the old streets of Barcelona, the Playhouses of London, NYC's Central Park, Muir Woods just over the Golden Gate Bridge and Will Rogers State Beach in Santa Monica, Ca.

You are one of the hardest working and most experienced actors in today’s industry – and yet you manage to avoid the excesses of the paparazzi. How do you balance keeping a private life with the demands of your work to be in the spotlight?

Well, going back to what a 'working class' actor is; I'm familiar to a lot of people because I've been in such broad spectrum of venues, but I don't necessarily stand out as one particular role, one that the paparazzi or public is that enamored or obsessed with, so I get the benefits of being known, but without the downside of being crazily sought after. (Again, if you need a STAR, however......)

You’ve been active in the union movement on behalf of stage and screen actors and others in the entertainment industry, and have held union elective office. Could you imagine a political career in the future?

I've really enjoyed my experience on the SAG Hollywood Board; it's a great reminder that you need to have personal responsibility for what goes on in your Union, or for that matter in your City, State and Nation. As much as I would be interested in a political career, I think working with a baby, a chimpanzee and Screech in a single episode of "Saved By The Bell: The College Years", disqualifies me.

It’s difficult to imagine now, that as an actor you’ve ever found yourself ‘resting’. How difficult is it to sift through the offers and scripts to find those that interest you? Are you very selective?

I love to work. And the next job is always the one I'm interested in finding out about. Different jobs rear their heads different ways; this past year has included Commercials, Low-Budget Films, 1/2 Sitcoms, Hourlong Guest Spots, Live Theatre and VoiceOver: I've been wildly fortunate and love to stay busy.

When you are ‘resting’ at home, what do you like to do for R & R?

Take walks with the whole family. (wife, baby & the two dogs) And cooking is very relaxing.

What musical preferences? Are you playing Mozart for your daughter?

I love Rock & Roll and 80's Hair Metal, but there's room in my head for lots of different things. We play a kaleidoscope of music for Abbey Ray; I hope she takes to it, but you cannot force it. (So far, Rock-a-Bye Baby: Pink Floyd is a big hit!)

What movies have you enjoyed recently?

Loved "The Social Network", "Inception" and "The Awful Truth"(Cary Grant)

Your character in “Working Class’ dresses exceptionally well for a grocery store manager! An anomaly of the storyline? Your stage and screen characters have provided just about every costume statement that could ever be made! What styles reflect your personal comfort zones?

Only on television does a store manager sport Theory, Donna Karan & Armani: What a great business! I love comfortable, horse-riding clothing; Robert Redford around 1974. And the 'Swashbuckler' wardrobe from "Xena" will be hard to top.

Can you give an idea of where you see your career progressing over the next few years? Maybe the next James Bond? Could you ever imagine living elsewhere from LA or is that almost a necessity that comes with the work?

Did you say Bond?  I'd love to spend a chunk of time in New York, albeit with a steady gig. But I love Los Angeles, its home for me and my family now and I wouldn't have it any other way.

It’s clear that you are a man with an active social conscience and also a man of letters – graduate of Penn State & California State Universities. Do you have any words of advice to young actors and performers starting their careers in today’s entertainment industry?

It's the greatest business when's it's all working; and absolutely devastating when it doesn't. Don't take it or yourself too seriously. However, learn your craft. Go to school or take class, and take IT seriously.

[perlocutionary]

Morning Glory, pt. 13 - The Maze Runner - Thomas au

Description: Based off the original story of The Maze Runner, where Y/N has been around a long time and she and Thomas might be the key out of here. I have my own take on this, I have used particular things from the movie/books but a lot I did change for this story!

Relationship: Thomas x Reader - THE MAZE RUNNER

Title: M-O-R-N-I-N-G-L-O-R-Y Word count:�� 1907 

A/N: So I was thinking, as a Valentine’s day gift to you all, to update Morning Glory twice this week. So the next update will be on Friday, 16/02/2018.

Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Part 4. Part 5. Part 6. Part 7. Part 8. Part 9. Part 10. Part 11. Part 12. 

I take one last, deep breath as I close the shed door behind me, smiling as I see the three boys that will accompany me today lingering in the middle of the open area. “Ready?” “As much as I can be, going back into the Maze.” Newt chuckles as he fastens the strap of his bag on his shoulder. A small nod acknowledges what he tries to say, my own heart rapidly beating in my chest.

The doors creak loudly as the gears start turning, slowly sliding open and revealing the long corridor. “Let’s go.” I glance to Thomas, smiling as he gives me an encouraging nod. I break into a run, everyone falling into pace behind and beside me.

Half an hour had passed, the only sound resonating against the walls our footsteps and heavy panting. “Hey…” Minho catches my attention and we all slow down to a leisure jog before stopping all together. “Don’t you think this is going a bit too smoothly?”

I’m rummaging through my bag pack in search for a water bottle, hogging half of it down in one go as my gaze scans along the walls. “With so many Griever sightings lately,” I start, looking to Thomas and Minho, “I would’ve thought to have seen one by now.” A shrug accompanies my words, dropping my water bottle back into my unzipped bag.

“Do you shanks have a death wish? It’s almost like you’re hoping to meet one. Be fucking glad we haven’t encountered one.” Newt growls audibly, shaking his head as he takes a bite of his sandwich. “I understand what they’re trying to say though, Newt. It’s as if someone wants this to go as good as possible.” Thomas chimes in, taking a step closer to me and raises his hand, only to stop midway.

“Maybe we should head off again. We’re resting prey like this. And we’re almost there.” I turn my head again, glancing back down the way we came. “Are you okay?” Thomas mutters as he passes me, his lips pressing against the shell of my ear briefly. “I can’t shake this ominous feeling.”

“So you’re telling me that there’s a platform right there?” Minho mutters as he glances over the edge of The Cliff, eyebrows furrowed before he backs away quickly. “Yeah. Thomas discovered it.” I mutter, fastening the straps of my bag as I step closer to the edge, sitting down to jump down.

“I’m coming with you.” Newt mutters as Thomas drops down beside me as well. “No!” I am too quick to yell, my voice echoing off the walls as Newt stares at me in shock. “Newt, you can’t… You’re my second-in-command.” I take a deep breath; our gazes meeting and I smile weakly when he seems to understand what I’m trying to say and a small nod follows.

“Both of you need to have our backs. If we don’t return in time, leave. Don’t come looking for us.” I order my two best friends, granting them with a smile before I drop down onto the platform. “That also means please make sure you’re not stung by a bunch of Grievers lolling around for us, yeah?” I snicker, knowing that Minho and Newt would never leave me behind – and neither would they leave Thomas. But risking their lives – and probably not surviving a full on Griever attack when your only way out is the Cliff, wasn’t something I wished for my best friends.

“Coming, Thomas?” I grin up at him as he drops onto the platform beside me. “Y/N!” I hum, looking over my shoulder as Thomas jumps into the hole. “Be safe.”

“You too, boys. I’ll see you later.” And with that, I jump down and fall onto my side as I land on the ground with a harsh thud. “Oh my, Y/N. Are you okay?” Thomas grasps my elbow and pulls me upright, my body screaming as I straighten my posture. “Bad landing, that’s all.”

Thomas lets his gaze wander around the Dungeon as I make a beeline for the old computer. “What’s behind this large door?” He questions as I boot up the computer, the lights flickering on as I press the big red button. “Don’t touch it! It’s electrified.” I reach out for his arm, fingernails digging into the soft flesh of his arm and yanking him towards me.

“I found out the hard way.” I grin at him as I refocus on the green block letters on the small screen. Password. I let my fingertips slide along the keys. M-O-R-N-I-N-G-G-L-O-R “What if this does something way worse? Like open the Griever feast – main course, us?” I sigh, my finger hovering over the Y. Thomas steps behind me, his arms winding around my waist as he presses his lips to my shoulder. “Are you willing to spend the rest of your life in the Glade wondering?”

“No.” I mutter, pressing the Y as a loud rumbling fills our ears. Both of us back away, the large steel door stops flickering and clicks open slowly. “Here goes nothing I guess.” I smile at Thomas as my fingers find his, slowly pulling him along to the door.

“Oh, wow.” I mutter, mostly to myself, as I push the door open and a long, bright white hallway reveals itself. I let go of Thomas, stepping into the corridor and squinting at the brightness of it all, my feet taking me to one of the windows to the right. “What?”

Steel tables, filled with body bags, line the wall of the room I peered into. I almost fall back, stumbling away from the window as my gaze locks on the far end of the hall. An elevator. “How can you be so calm?” Thomas stutters, his eyes still locked on the bags and clinical attributes as I stroll away from him.

I’ve set my mind on reaching the other side of the hall and taking the elevator wherever it may take me. I don’t want to look at the other windows because I know what I’ll find. More of the same rooms – experimental shacks. I have a feeling this is where our Gladers end up. “I am not. I’m freaking out. But on the other hand – this feels too familiar.”

Thomas steps beside me, his fingers once again lacing with mine. I stop in front of the elevator, my gaze landing on the fingerprint scanner. “Familiar?”

“Like I’ve been here before.” I mumble, my thumb pressing against the flat surface of the scanner. With a loud beep, the doors slide open and as the elevator chimes. I motion for Thomas to head on in, following him immediately after. Other that a slight elevator tune ringing through the elevator, we’re quiet. Until realization hits me. “Oh my god.”

“What?” My head snaps to Thomas as I point my finger up to nothing in particular. “That tune… Doesn’t it sound familiar?” I watch Thomas’ eyebrows furrow as he rakes his mind for the answer. Thomas was the first boy in the Glade that I had shared this small piece of information with. I could remember that there was music and dancing, but I couldn’t remember one song there existed to dance to. Until the day before Thomas came up in the Box, when a song suddenly popped into my head.

At first I was shocked, but seeing as how it was an amazing ear worm that didn’t seem to leave anytime soon, I was actively humming the tune along while working in my Shed. “It – That’s what you always hum when you’re working.”

A shiver runs along my spine as the elevator comes to a halt, my heart visibly beating against my skin. “If I wasn’t freaked out yet, I would be by now.” The door slide open as the familiar ding sounds again, revealing something both of us would never think was in the depths of the Maze.

“Is this a – a control room?” Thomas questions as he steps out of the confined space, wandering off to the left as I take a right. Everything here is high tech, from the panels adorning the walls to the computers scattered across the premises. And I knew just where to look.

I gaze over at Thomas, our eyes meeting through the glass panels that separate us. My fingertips are ghosting among the panels, my eyes snapping all over and never once focusing on anything in particular. “Don’t you think there should be someone here?”

“What do you mean?” Thomas mutters as he steps around the computers and scattered chairs to resume his place beside mine. My hand points out, running over the room before falling back to my side. “You said it yourself. It’s a control room – where you control things. And seeing that,” I point to the screens that showed bits and pieces of the Glade, “means they controlled us. So where are they?”

“Wait – Y/N, look!” Thomas’ long, slender fingers curl around my elbow and he yanks me back harshly, my body shaking from his force as I refocus my gaze on the camera screens. It’s barely visible, but as soon as my eyes focused on the shimmering, light-reflecting steel leg my breathing hitches in my throat.

A Griever, at the end of the maze, right at the threshold where the Glade starts, hidden within the shadows of the Walls. His eyes are glowing, sparking in the camera and I wonder if that really was the last thing the runners saw before meeting their eminent death. A shiver runs along my spine as I let my eyes snap over the other screens.

“It’s not only the West Door. Look,” I sigh, pointing at the other screens showing the Doors. All three other Doors held Grievers, hiding from the sunlight and the sight of the Gladers. Something seems to scare them though as they scurry off, back into the Maze.

I turn to Thomas, my fingers intertwining with his as I whisper my words. “Have they always done that?” His arm winds around my neck, his lips briefly pressed against my hairline. “After that night in the Maze, I haven’t seen a Griever since. So, I don’t think so.”

I push Thomas off, staring up at the fearless man as a chill runs up my spine. “Do you think they know we’re here?” If they knew, they’d be waiting for us as soon as we returned. That might also mean that Minho and Newt are in grave danger. Thomas’ answer doesn’t satisfy either. “They have to.”

“What if Newt and Minho are in danger? Maybe we should go back.” I start pulling the tall male along by his shirt, his large hand curling around my wrist and yanking me to a stop. “You told them to bail as soon as they saw a Griever, Y/N. I’m sure they’re safe.”

He presses his lips to mine again, but not like usual. It’s comforting, an effort to calm my nerves and to prevent me from running back to the Cliff in a haze to check up on my friends. Perhaps his undertone was right, this was way too important to just bail on.

“Y/N! Y/N!” I instantly recognize the voice, but it shouldn’t be here. When the footsteps become louder and his mass of curls come into view, a gasp shocks my core and I snap away from Thomas to stride over to the young boy. “Chuck?!”

Taglist: @mariariley96 @rebeccaannex3  @blue-berry-barry-allen @honeymoonmuke​

Forever:@ssweet-empowerment​ @fuckwhateverfuck​ @youshiverwhenyouhearmyname​ @behind-my-hazeleyes27​

[theinquisitivej]

‘Avengers: Infinity War’ - A Movie Review

Here’s how this is going to play out – this first section is a spoiler-free review of the general characteristics of this movie. I still point out all of the films’ accomplishments and shortcomings, but in a sweeping way that’s not too specific about plot details. After the first score which summarises the film in a spoiler-free way, we’ll be diving into complete spoiler territory. I want to talk about the details of this film but I don’t want to spoil it for anyone, so check out the spoiler-free review if you haven’t seen it yet, then go watch it, and then come back for my full thoughts after you’ve done all of that.

         Avengers: Infinity War would be an impressive accomplishment if it just showed up and existed. Marvel was tasked with its most difficult juggling act to date with this film, having to bring in countless characters who have each had significant roles in their own movies, and find a way to allocate the appropriate amount of time to each of them so that nothing feels forced or clunky. Oh, and it had to convey the established personalities of these characters almost instantaneously so that familiar viewers are happy to see them again, while newcomers get a sense of who they are without too much explanatory dialogue bogging down the run-time / pacing of the movie. Oh! AND it had to introduce a central character who has been hinted at for a long time but hasn’t really had more than three minutes of screentime across any of the 18 movies up to this point, and develop him enough to make him seem like a legitimate threat, as well as a compelling enough character to take the weight that’s placed on his shoulders as the source of conflict in this two-part grand finale.

         Not only does Infinity War pull all of that off, but it does so while telling a cohesive story which constantly marches forward with an unwavering sense of purpose. It delivers on the promise of being this colossal team-up event movie while also taking you by surprise as the scale and stakes of the movie start to sink in. As the film progresses, the tone causes you to feel an ever-increasing amount of adrenaline and uneasy dread. They are both in constant balance with each other, making you wonder when, if ever, one of these feelings is going to win out over the other. Some characters don’t get much room for an emotional scene or to do much more than show up, be themselves, and engage in some enjoyable banter with old friends and new faces they’ve never met before. Even so, there are a great deal more characters who get the chance to have a meaningful moment or just sit down and talk than you might expect. Infinity War is a film that’s filled to the brim with content, but it has a clear focus to it which gives it a coherent theme and makes it work as its own movie, and not just the last act of an ongoing series. I’d be lying if I said that I was as invested in some of its threads as I was with others, and there is going to be a lot of debate over whether every character was handled as well as they ought to have been. But Infinity War, despite the hype, meets many of the lofty goals it has set for itself over the years, and its story also ended up giving me something I didn’t expect which has caused me to sit and process this film long after I finished watching it.

8/10 – I don’t know if it breaks the Top 5 MCU movies, but its tone and impressive balance in many areas certainly makes it one of the better films in the series.

OKAY SPOILER TERRITORY FROM HERE ON OUT GUYS

         After having time to sit on the film and reflect on how each character was used, I’d say that each character was properly represented and used effectively. Given the apocalyptic circumstances and the particular nature of what Thanos is after and what each person involved brings to the table, the film ensures that the characters all act in a way that scans with their personal history and what they would feasibly do in this situation. The fact that the film pulls this off with arguably every single character, whether they’ve got the luxury of time with full emotional conversations like Gamora and Quill, Thor and Rocket, or Vision and Wanda, or if they’re present but not quite focused on like Okoye, Bucky, Black Widow, or Captain America, is hugely commendable. Those are some of my favourite characters in the series, but I didn’t feel short-changed because I still felt that they were the same people I’ve grown to care for, and I’m pretty confident that a good number of them will have more time dedicated to them in Part 2. With the film spinning as many plates as it does, you’d expect one or two of them to fall down and break, and depending on the individual audience member’s level of investment in certain characters, they may well feel like someone they cared about was under-served. But I was personally satisfied with the overall handling of the characters.

         However, one area where the film felt uneven for me was how invested I felt about each of the individual ongoing threads. Character groups move back and forth throughout the film, occasionally overlapping or splitting up, which means that things are constantly shifting, but not so rapidly that you can’t keep track of everything, which I appreciated. I enjoyed the characters simply being together, so ultimately the specifics of what they were doing didn’t matter all that much to me. Nevertheless, two threads which felt weaker to me for different reasons were Thor, Rocket, and Groot’s quest to forge Stormbreaker, and the stuff on Earth with Cap’s group between his awesomely triumphant entrance, and Thor’s group arriving onto the battlefield at Wakanda. I loved seeing Rocket and Thor interact, as Rocket shows some growth and actually reaches out to Thor to try and offer support and check he’s okay, and Thor shows Rocket genuine respect and heartfelt comradery in their conversations. However, while it’s cool to see where Mjolnir and the Infinity Gauntlet were forged, the amount of time dedicated to these guys as they forge Stormbreaker feels like busywork, and lacks the palpable sense of tension which is ever-present throughout the rest of the movie. We don’t doubt that they’ll forge Stormbreaker, and while I wasn’t sure whether Thor would make it through the movie, the danger of the forging sequence never sold me on the possibility that Thor might die here. I do appreciate what this plot thread brings to the ending when Thor uses Stormbreaker on Thanos and comes so close to preventing calamity, but still ends up failing, even after all the work they put into forging this weapon. However, when they’re actually forging Stormbreaker, it all just feels a little too removed from everything to do with Thanos, which makes it feel too removed from the main thrust of the narrative.

         The reason the group on Earth and their fight to protect vision left me a little cold is that, while the other groups get more time to slow down and actually talk to one another, I felt less of that with Cap’s group. More than any other group in the film, their dialogue felt preoccupied with what needed to be done next, making the conversations and character lines feel functional rather than opportunities for unique moments of introspection. Granted, there may have been more of these quiet emotional moments going on than I give the film credit for which could have passed me by, and I might just catch some of them when I go see it again for my second viewing. Still, when I hear some people talking about how they had an issue with how the film never stops moving forward, this is the section of the film that comes to mind for me. Neither of these threads are weak enough to drag the film down all that much, but because the rest of Infinity War felt so lean and well-balanced, they do stand out.

But I’ve danced around it long enough. Let’s get to the real meat of this movie and talk about Thanos and its ending.

SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SPOILERS SERIOUSLY GET OUT NOW JUST GO SEE THE FILM ALREADY

         As many others have pointed out, this is Thanos’ movie. I love seeing this character land as well as he has with people after all this time, and hearing all the various thoughts about his twisted hero’s journey, his understandable yet inherently broken philosophy and conception of what love is, and all the debate around just how much we’re intended to see where he’s coming from. What stuck out to me was that, when the film is over and the credits have rolled, we see the typical Marvel ‘X will return’, with X being the main character(s) of the film you’ve just seen, and the statement serving as a simple yet tantalising promise that, while you’ve just enjoyed a complete narrative with this hero, their story isn’t over yet. This time, however, the final tagline is not ‘The Avengers will return’ (though that statement would certainly be very confusing to our emotions after that ending); it’s ‘Thanos will return’. That made everything slot into place in my head, and suddenly made me realise that we were watching Thanos’ movie this whole time. This isn’t a film about the Avengers facing a new villain and finding a way to triumph over them like in Age of Ultron. It’s a film about someone with such overwhelming power and conviction in what he must do that he succeeds in his goals, even though getting to that point meant coming close to losing or receiving a fatal blow, and even having to sacrifice everything he cared for in this world. By the end, as we sit and look at this man, we see the scope of what he has worked so hard to accomplish, and his sad acceptance of the role he had to play, and that no one will thank him for doing what he truly believes was the right thing. It just so happens that the thing this man wanted to do is horrifying, and that the people opposing him on his journey are the Avengers, the heroes we’ve grown to care for over this series. Bringing in this villain at this stage in the game and having him land as strongly as he has is a triumph, but it didn’t happen because the MCU spent this long hyping the character up in his brief appearances up to this point. It happened because this film executed the character masterfully through a combination of Josh Brolin’s commanding and nuanced performance, and the exceptional CGI work through motion-capture which creates a kind of villain we really haven’t seen before.

         The ending is profoundly unexpected. Not just because the heroes lose, not just because we see so many of our heroes die, but because the final tone of this huge movie, what all this whole series has been heading towards, is not grand or bombastic, but quiet and understated. It simply lets the horror of what just happened speak for itself, and it echoes out as we take in the stillness of the aftermath and realise just how much has been lost. In our anticipation for this film, many of us thought that the Old Guard, the original six from the first Avengers, would surely fall, dying in a moment of noble sacrifice as they protect the new heroes and the world that these films have built up over the last decade. Perhaps that might happen in the sequel, when things resolve in a way which fixes what lies so immensely broken at the end of this first part of the story. But right now, it just feels so intensely wrong that all of these old soldiers are left behind, while the young, the people they took it upon themselves to protect, are the ones who were snatched away.

         This is why, although I understand and, in some ways, share the opinion that many people have voiced when they say “oh come on, they’re all coming back, there’s no way they’re killing Black Panther, 90% of the Guardians, and Spider-Man, we’re not buying it for an instant”, I still think this emotional ending works. It doesn’t matter if we, the audience, don’t believe that these people are gone forever; what matters is that the characters within the film believe it, and that the emotional performances of the actors portraying them sells us on that idea. We see, in a matter of minutes, moment after moment of intense heartache and devastating loss, and it all registers because of the strength of these performances and the writing which adds so much weight to what each of the survivors has just lost. Rocket’s heartbroken response to seeing Groot die for a second time, Okoye’s world being shattered when her king and the young man she’s protected for so long is suddenly blinked out of existence, Tony seeing his worst fears come to pass when Peter begs him not to let him die, and Steve being overwhelmed by the magnitude of what’s been lost, both on the large scale and on the small scale with his friend and last connection to his old life fading away. All of these hit, and they hit hard. For me, even if next year’s follow up to this film undoes much of this and brings those characters back, that won’t rob this ending of its power. Whenever I watch this film, I will always believe that these characters are seeing their dearest friends disappear, and, within the context of what we see within the borders of this contained film, nothing changes or undoes this. For the next year, these characters are dead. After that, they will always feel dead whenever I finish watching this film. That’s what makes this instalment in this ongoing series as powerful and as praiseworthy as it is.

         Infinity War is both a thrilling joyride with some of your favourite characters and a haunting story about facing inescapable loss even after you fight with every ounce of energy you have. Some of its components aren’t as strong as others, and it hinges on the audience being invested in these characters, which means it’s not going to change your mind about the MCU or be the best entry point for the series, but that much should be obvious to anyone signing up at this point. But in every other respect, this film impresses and surprises, even with all the anticipation that has been leading up to it.

8/10 – Balances countless characters as well as feelings of elated joy and devastating loss. Depending on my ever-changing mood on this subject, this could just be my favourite of the mainline Avengers films so far.

[ramajmedia]

Star Wars 9: A Theory On Matt Smith's Incredibly Important Role

Matt Smith's role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is a complete secret, but there are only a select few characters he could be playing, and we have a theory on who that is. Set for release on December 20, 2019, Star Wars 9 will end the Skywalker Saga, bringing the 42-year story to a close in presumably dramatic fashion.

Directed by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker's cast sees a number of familiar faces return, including Mark Hamill's Luke Skywalker and the late Carrie Fisher as Leia Organa, but there are some big additions as well. Naomi Ackie has joined Star Wars 9 as Jannah, Richard E. Grant plays Allegiant General Pryde, and Keri Russell is going to be Zorii Bliss, while Dominic Monaghan has been cast in an undisclosed role.

Related: Star Wars 9's Trailers Prove Disney Has Learned From Endgame

On top of all of those, there's the return of Emperor Palpatine for Star Wars 9, although it remains unclear exactly how he's coming back - but that might be where Matt Smith fits in. The role of the former Doctor Who star is very much a closely guarded secret, but it's quite likely linked to Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

Matt Smith was reported to be in Star Wars 9 back in August 2018, although it's worth noting that wasn't an official casting announcement. Still, it was the kind that seemed extremely accurate and reliably sourced, so there was little reason to doubt the veracity of it. After that, there were rumors about Smith's role in Star Wars 9, which is to be expected when any actor of note is cast in a movie of this size, although of course there was again nothing official this end from Lucasfilm or Disney.

Things took a twist, however, back in March of this year, when Smith said he isn't in Star Wars 9, saying: “As far as I can tell, I’m definitely not [in Star Wars 9]." The final turn in the saga of Matt Smith in Star Wars happened in May. Smith had previously been listed in the cast for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker on Disney's official UK website, but then in May his name was removed - so what gives? Since Smith was supposed to have an important part in the film, it seems unlikely that he was never in it, or that it's even been cut.

Instead, it's worth remembering that Star Wars 9 is being made by J.J. Abrams, a man who lives for mystery and secrets, and delights in trying to trick viewers, especially in the lead-up to films. While it's weird to go as far as pretending that Smith isn't in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, rather than confirming his casting but not his exact role, it isn't completely out of the ordinary for Abrams (just look at how much he insisted Benedict Cumberbatch wasn't Khan ahead of Star Trek Into Darkness). It's likely, if not 100% confirmed, that Matt Smith is in Star Wars 9, and is now another one of Abrams' mystery boxes just waiting to be opened when the film releases.

Related: Star Wars 9's Poster May Contain Big Emperor Resurrection Clue

After he was cast, the biggest rumor doing the rounds was that Matt Smith would be young Palpatine in Star Wars 9. That obviously still hasn't been confirmed, but it does nonetheless tie into what the most likely use of Smith in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker is: that he's connected to Palpatine in one way or another, and there are a good few options for just how that could come to be in the movie itself. It may very well be that Smith really is young Palpatine after all, meaning those first rumors were true. Star Wars 9 is presumably going to tie-up Palpatine's entire story and reveal a major plan that we haven't seen, so it's not out of the question there'll be flashbacks to a much younger version of the character to tie into that.

Of course, this is Star Wars, so there are plenty of other options too. Palpatine loves his clones - and there's a fair suggestion that Star Wars 9's Dark Rey is a clone too - so again, it's entirely possible that Smith has been created as a clone of Palpatine. Alternatively, he may be some hapless victim who has been possessed by the old Emperor, who needs to use the body because his is no longer of any use. That's what gets to the crux of Palpatine in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker - that there's a very good chance we aren't actually going to see Ian McDiarmid in the role.

Both Star Wars 9 trailers have featured the Emperor, but only in a voice capacity; we're yet to see what he looks like in this movie. Furthermore, Palpatine was a toy in the D23 Star Wars 9 poster, which only further suggests we're not going to see McDiarmid in a physical role. Like with Smith's casting, Lucasfilm is doing what it can to hide what Palpatine looks like in this film, which only really makes sense if we assume it's not McDiarmid. But since Palpatine seemingly has such a large role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, then someone must actually be playing him.

Based upon everything we know about Smith's casting (or apparent lack thereof), and what's already been revealed about how the Emperor fits into the film, then Matt Smith playing Palpatine in Star Wars 9 makes a lot of sense for both the actor and the character. Smith's part was described as a "key role" and, outside of the core characters who are already accounted for, they don't get more important than Palpatine.

Related: Star Wars 9 Theory: Palpatine Never Existed, It Was Always Darth Plagueis

It's worth considering the secrecy around Smith's casting and Palpatine's appearance. Neither is completely unprecedented, but they're not entirely normal either. So for a film to be doing both effectively at the same time does suggest they're linked. It'd be a weird coincidence otherwise, but also there's no discernible reason to be hiding Smith's role in Star Wars 9 unless he is Palpatine. Even if he was, say, Rey's father, there wouldn't necessarily be an obvious way of figuring that out just from a fleeting shot or two in a trailer. Palpatine is different, because he's going to have to look the part, and even without context that's a difficult thing to disguise.

In terms of how Palpatine fits into Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, this makes sense too. Piecing together what's known about the film, it's likely that Palpatine is a crucial part of this movie as an influence over both Kylo Ren and Rey, but he doesn't need to appear too much for that. He can be a voice inside their heads, which is how McDiarmid returns. For a physical appearance, though, well it fits that Palpatine would look rather different: we don't know if his body survived after Return of the Jedi, or just his mind and soul. We know that Palpatine had a contingency plan in place, and it's possible this then extended to a clone, a willing (or unwilling) vessel for him to take over, or another means of possessing another human's body. It allows McDiarmid to return, but without demanding too much of him. This works well for Matt Smith too: he's a good actor (and one with great physicality), but one who hasn't completely made the leap in a blockbuster sense after Doctor Who, so even if it's not a lengthy role, it'd still be a big one for him.

There could even be a chance that Smith isn't completely lying when he says he's not in the film, at least from a certain point-of-view. He's skilled at keeping secrets from his time on Doctor Who, and it'd be quite fitting with that and Abrams' sensibilities if what he means is that he's playing a warped version of Palpatine: perhaps a body that's been disfigured, like the old one, so that Smith is hardly recognizable. But even without that, Smith seems like a good fit to be filling at least part of Palpatine's role in Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.

More: Star Wars 9 Theory: Dark Rey IS Palpatine

source https://screenrant.com/star-wars-9-matt-smith-role-theory/

[rayshippouuchiha]

do you think toni and rhodey celebrate their anniversary? do you think they even remember when it is, or do they take turns choosing a random date sometime every autumn (which is probably around when they met) to surprise each other with flowers and cuddlefests and fancy candlelit dinners and paintball or however these nerds celebrate

+CAn you imagine toni and rhodey celebrating their 5, 10, 15+ year anniversaries with candle-lit dinners, expensive alcohol, flowers, gifts, CUDDLES, etc etc like i bet they both love to make a huge fuss over it and even their regular anniversaries are super sappy bECAUSE THEY LOVE AND CARE FOR EACH OTHER SO MUCH SDKJFH (also bucky and steve hear about it and get hella jelly)

~~~~~~~~~

I got two asks about this and I, unfortunately, didn’t realize it until now.  That being said I’m gonna hopefully do justice to them both even if my little fill mutated a bit.

So. Anniversaries.

This is officially a Thing(TM) with Toni and Rhodey.

They know the exact date they met for the first time because it’s immortalized in print (Stark Heiress Involved in Drunken Brawl) and because it’s one of the days that changed their lives forever.

So that also makes it one of the few anniversaries that Toni can remember on her own.

Rhodey normally requests leave during that week way ahead of time and Pepper’s mostly stopped scheduling things for Toni then too.  And even then JARVIS always makes sure to remind Toni about a week or so ahead of time each year anyways so she can make preparations or clear her schedule for the day or whatever.

There’s been a few near misses and a few last minute arrivals and day early/late celebrations but each year Toni and Rhodey make an effort to spend that day together if at all possible.  They also trade off responsibilities about entertainment and plans as they go.  One of Toni’s years resulted in a heart shaped scar on Rhodey’s lower back after a trip to Milan.  One of Rhodey’s years ended up with them spending a rather intimate weekend in jail and Rhodey with a mental block and a severe case of denial as to the existence of the entire state of Delaware.

The year they all manage to come together as a team with Bucky safely in the Tower just so happens to be Rhodey’s year and since he’s got a lot more free time now than he used to, and because he’s not so secretly a giant fucking troll, he decides to go full on date night style.

So he has JARVIS tell Toni to “dress to impress and baby girl I’m talking red carpet level here” and to meet him on the common floor at 7 sharp, which is, by complete coincidence Rhodey swears, also the time the others will be congregating for dinner.

He shows up to the common floor at a minute or two after since he knows Toni’ll be at least five minutes late no matter what.  He’s dressed to the nines in a crisp three piece suit with a crimson tie and holding a chocolate bouquet in one hand because he knows how Toni feels about regular cut flowers and a small gift box in the other.

He makes his way towards the dinning room where the team’s gathered and Clint and Sam both shoot out an impressed whistle when they see him as the others call out their greetings.

“Looking good my man,” Sam grins at him.  “Hot date?  And if she’s got you looking that sharp does she have a sister?”

“Sorry buddy,” Rhodey tells him smugly, “she’s an only child and I ain’t up for sharing tonight.”

“That’s cold Rhodes.” Sam quips with a mock frown.  “Ice cold.”

Before he can say anything else he hears the ding of the elevator and he turns enough so that he’ll be able to see the door and the looks on Steve and Barnes’ faces.

Cause he knows it’s gonna be good.

There’s the familiar sound of Toni’s heels on tile and then suddenly she’s there.  The room goes quiet and Rhodey sees Steve’s face flush even as Barnes’ goes tense all over.

Honestly though, he can’t really blame them.

Hair swept up with pieces left to fall tantalizingly around her face and neck, eyes done in a smokey catlike look and lips as crimson as the dress she’s wearing, Rhodey’s easily able to admit that Toni looks ... divine.

He’s aware that he’s more than a bit biased too but still.

The dress itself is one he hasn’t seen yet.  It’s slit indecently high on both sides so that it shows teasing glimpses of stocking clad thighs.  It’s also molded lovingly to every curve she has.

Hell Rhodey isn’t even sure if it really qualifies as a dress because that thing? 

That thing is a fucking promise.

Granted it’s a promise that neither of them want to even consider keeping but he had said red carpet and Toni, as always, has gone above and beyond.

If Sam’s soft ‘shit’ and Clint’s hissed out breath alongside Thor’s appreciative grin and Steve and Barnes’ ... everything is anything to go by then he’s not the only one who thinks so.  Hell even Natasha looks approving and Rhodey’s pretty sure Bruce is blushing.

“Looking otherworldly as always baby girl,” Rhodey tells her 

“This old rag?” Toni purrs as she sweeps a hand down her side, eyes heavy lidded but sparkling with a warmth that makes Rhodey grin back helplessly because goddamnit he really does love her, “It’s just something I threw on gumdrop.”

“You could throw me on anytime Tin Girl,” Clint leers only to flinch away from Natasha like he’s expecting to be smacked like he normally is.  Only it doesn’t happen.

“Agreed.”  Natasha says instead and Steve abruptly chokes on the glass of water he’s been almost desperately drinking.

Toni laughs as she saunters across the room until she’s standing by Rhodey’s side, a small gift box clutched in her left hand.

“Got you something sugar britches.” Toni tells him as she holds out her box.

“You know you don’t have to baby girl.” Rhodey reminds her even as he hands her the bouquet and they trade gifts.  “I tell you that every year.”

“And yet,” Toni sighs, “every year we both do it anyways so you might as well just accept it.”

Toni got him a War Machine tie pin, an exquisitely crafted thing that probably cost more than he wants to think about.  He clips it into place with a smile though cause it’s just the kind of thing she knows he gets a kick out of.

From the soft look on her face and the way she immediately shuffles her bouquet around and reaches up to take out the earrings she’s already wearing the gold chain and feather earrings he brought her must be a hit too so he figures they’re even.

“You ready to head out?”  He asks her once she’s settled again, bouquet in one hand and jewelry box with the old earrings tucked safely into a nook on the wall.  “I’ve got two tickets to something special and then reservations at Masa and then I’m thinking dancing before we bring it back here.”

 “What’s ah, what’s the special occasion?”  Bruce asks.

“It’s our anniversary.”  Rhodey says promptly, proudly.  There’s a soft crunching noise to his left but he doesn’t bother to look.  He’s pretty sure it’s just Barnes wrecking another chair or something.  Or Steve.

Honestly.  Him and Steve both are fucking hopeless.

“Yeah,” Toni smiles, that soft, warm thing she only rarely lets herself show.  The smile he fell in love with when she was fifteen and so goddamn skittish that just looking at her broke his heart.  The smile that represents everything he wants to protect.  “Today, more years ago than I’m going to admit to right now so shut it Feather-face, Rhodey broke an asshole’s nose and defended my ... dubious honor.”

“He deserved it and honestly I should have broke more than his nose.”  Even after all these years he still routinely has to check the urge to hunt Stone down and kick his ass all over again.

“You were dashing and manly and I was suitably impressed.”  Toni reassures him with a pat on the shoulder.

“You laughed.”  Rhodey reminds her with a small scowl.  “I thought I was gonna have to take you to the hospital.”

“I was fine and it all worked out in the end.” Toni smiles.  “I got you out of it so I think I actually came out ahead on that one to be honest.”

Rhodey just tugs her closer to his side, presses a kiss to her forehead, and grins because he pretty much feels the same way.

“Alright guys,” he finally calls to the others as he steers Toni back out of the room with a hand on her lower back, “we’re gone.  Don’t wait up.”

There’s a chorus of well wishing and goodbyes as Toni tosses up a hand too and lets herself be guided away.

Their night out’s great.  Rhodey’s procured two tickets to an exclusive movie premier Toni actually enjoys.  They go to Masa and eat ridiculously expensive and delicious sushi.  Afterwards they go to a vintage electronics show and get ice cream at a gourmet parlor before going dancing.  They’re flushed and happy by the time they get back into the car to head back to the Tower in the early mourning hours.

Toni falls asleep on his shoulder on the ride home and Rhodey just sits there with her pressed up against his side.  It’s hard for him to believe he has her in his life sometimes, his best friend, his platonic soulmate, and all the other categories Toni fills in his life that he never knew were empty until she took them as her own.

He loves her so much.

When they finally arrive Rhodey gets out of the car with Toni’s heels dangling from his fingers.

He’s not surprised when the elevator opens and Steve and Barnes are there, looking vaguely guilty and blank faced by turns.

Instead he just shakes his head at them and reaches in to scoop her up into a bridal hold.  He tucks her close to his chest and carries her into the elevator where the other two are waiting.

Toni hums, presses her face closer to his neck, but otherwise doesn’t wake up.

Steve and Barnes haven’t taken their eyes off of her since Rhodey pulled her out of the car.  They’re tense, hands clenched at their sides, and so obviously jealous that Rhodey’s surprised they can stand still.

“How’d you two meet?”  It’s, surprisingly enough, Barnes who asks the question.

“At MIT,” Rhodey says softly as he stares down at Toni, careful not to wake her, “She was fifteen and she was so goddamn small, all big eyes and wild hair and more brains than anyone could handle.  And I’d heard of her of course but our paths had never crossed.  Then one day there I was, going to class, and I hear screaming.  And there she was, this tiny little thing just wailing on this guy.  I pulled her off of him, tried to figure out what was going on.  But then he started running his mouth and her shirt was ripped and I just ... I knew.  So I beat his ass like the piece of shit he was for what he tried to do to her.  We’ve been in each other’s lives ever since.”

There’s a harsh inhale from both sides of him and when he glances up and around he can see the way Steve and Barnes’ jaws are both clenched, how Steve’s eyes are dark with fury and Barnes’ face is hard and cold with deadly intent.

‘Right,’ Rhodey thinks, ‘I thought that’s how it was but now, now I know.’

“I’m always gonna be there for her you know?”  Rhodey stares straight ahead as he speaks.  “I’m always gonna have her back no matter what.  No matter who I’ve got to fight.  No matter who I’ve got to go through.  I won’t ... I won’t let her be hurt if I can help it.  She’s been hurt enough.”

The elevator dings at the penthouse, JARVIS having bypassed all other floors to take him and Toni straight home.

Rhodey steps out and turns, keeps the other two from following him out, Toni still cradled in his arms.

“I’ll cut my way right through the next one to fucking try if I have to.”  Rhodey tells them as he looks between Steve and Barnes.  “No matter who they are.”

He holds eye contact with each of them long enough that he’s sure they both understand his meaning and then he takes a step back and lets the elevator doors close on them.  

He knows JARVIS will keep them out of the penthouse for the next day or so until Toni goes down or invites anyone else up.

“Jealous fuckers,” he mumbles as he moves towards the bedroom.

“Indeed.” JARVIS agrees softly.  “But, perhaps, one day they’ll overcome that shortcoming long enough to take notice of what’s right in front of them.”

“Maybe.”  Rhodey agrees.  “Doesn’t mean I’m gonna make it easy on them.  Anyone who isn’t willing to fight for her doesn’t deserve her.”

“Agreed.”  JARVIS says.  “Agreed.”

[didyouwatch-blog1]

Legion: Chapter 5. Hurts So Good

NOTE: This review contains spoilers. (So have my other reviews. I’m a little late to the “spoiler alert” thing.)

My least favorite part of many movies and shows is the “dream sequence.” I acknowledge that it’s usually an artistic, creative insight into the character, but I’m always anxious for it to be over. It’s probably because those sequences tend to defy logic and reason, and therefore are very difficult to interpret or understand from my outsider’s point of view. In other words: as a viewer, I like to maintain some control, and dream sequences always feel as though they’re getting away from me.

With that in mind, you’d probably expect me to hate watching FX’s new superhero mutant series, Legion. Five episodes in, large sections of each episode have taken place inside a character’s mind. (That character is David Haller, played by Dan Stevens). We, along with other characters in the show, are exposed to his haunting hallucinations and horrifying memories. All of these, in theory, are in service to the character and, by extension, the show. Particularly insightful are the childhood memories of David interacting with his father. The father’s face is always in shadow, which isn’t too hard to get a handle on. Then you have the more terrifying elements: the “yellow-eyed demon,” or the creepy title character from the disturbing children’s book “The World’s Angriest Boy in the World.” (A real book, by the way, that show creator Noah Hawley apparently wrote and keeps on set for reference.) When these figures appear, they’re generally chasing whoever is seeing them. Or sometimes, they just appear for a split second in the person’s periphery. It’s the stuff that nightmares and horror movies – a genre that I’ve always been too much of a wuss to stomach – are made of.

And for some reason, I love it.

I can’t explain it yet. I’m working on it. It might be because the show itself trains you not to take anything for granted. Much of what your see, maybe even all, is viewed from David’s point of view, which has been proven unreliable time and time again. Case in point: the character Lenny (played perfectly by Aubrey Plaza) is revealed in one episode to in fact be a man - maybe. We, and the other characters, assumed she was a woman because that’s how she appears to David. In other words, don’t take anything in this show for granted.

That goes for details, such as Lenny’s gender, as well as broader elements, such as what in the show is “real.” Initially, it seems easy to tell when we (and the other characters) are experiencing something inside David’s head and when we’re in reality, but that gets foggier and foggier as the show progresses. The other characters even admit that they don’t know where they are. They’re clearly thrown out of their element, just like you and me. So any hope of maintaining control goes out the window.

This episode, “Chapter 5,” takes the nightmare to a whole new level. Things that I’ve always assumed were only visible and tangible for those inside David’s head – like the demon and angry boy – seem to be leaking into the real world. Lenny terrorizes Amy (David’s sister, played by Katie Aselton), in a horrifying way that should only exist in hallucination, but how did Amy get in David’s head? David rescued her from the D-3 facility, but security tapes suggest that the yellow-eyed demon was there as well. Was this whole thing in his head? What does that say about everything and everyone else we’ve seen so far?

Maybe I enjoy the confusion because I’m looking for answers. The show is a puzzle and if you can identify the patterns – when and how certain elements appear, and how they behave – you can figure out what’s going on.

Or so I thought.

Then I came to the last sequence in this episode.  (I know I mentioned a spoiler alert above, but I can’t bring myself to say it, just in case you haven’t seen it yet. Those who have watched know what I mean.) It introduces a whole new possibility for what’s going on. Completely changes the rules at the last second, and threw me completely on my back. After the episode ended and the credits started rolling, I paused it and just stared at the screen trying to make sense of it. My heart was racing for a full minute.

So that’s what this is. It’s a thrill ride. You just strap in and allow the loops and corkscrews to mess with you how they will, and hope that somehow the track will eventually lead you back to familiar ground.

But I’ve learned not to make any assumptions.

[sweetsuccesssociety]

Live Your Full Potential and Embrace Your New Routine

Does anyone else feel like they take their routines a bit for granted once they switch up? Even if you didn’t necessarily like your last routine, there was a comforting sense of familiarity. Once it shifts for whatever reason—whether by choice or not—it’s like our whole balance is off. And it’s not so much about getting used to your new routine as it is about establishing it, sometimes seemingly from scratch. Let’s be honest: it takes effort and time to get into a new grove! No matter your circumstances, or whether you made the choice to change up your routine, you’re the one who is in control of your new situation.

That’s right. I’ll even go so far to say there’s no ifs, ands, or buts. So, what are you going to do to make this a fulfilling, nurturing, impactful new routine?

I’m right there with you in the midst of figuring that out.

See, I recently moved and changed jobs, switching from a marketing agency to in-house marketing. That’s its own topic for a different time, but it feels like my entire routine is so off—primarily because I swear these boxes to unpack are multiplying and, more importantly, I now work from 7am to 4pm. But that’s not a bad thing! Aside from waking up an hour early (COFFEE), I’m arriving home 2 or 3 hours earlier than I’ve been used to for years

Like, what is this thing called a late afternoon? (No, but seriously.)  I accidentally cooked and ate dinner by 5:30pm every night my first week on the new job—once, I couldn’t understand how there was so much food left over until I realized the rest of the household wasn’t even home yet. My old routine of come back from work, hurriedly make dinner, relax in front of the TV, work on computer in bed and go to sleep doesn’t work anymore—I maintained that routine my first few days (ya know, before the move and life became consumed by boxes) and found myself tucked in bed by 8pm. I like to go to bed early, but maybe when it’s dark outside? Add moving to a new house that’s twice the size of our old one (!!), it’s as if I’ve pressed a “Restart” button on how I go about… well, everything. I feel accomplished simply for getting my butt out of the door on time to head to the new job!

We hardly notice our day-to-day routines, but the moment they’re shaken, oh man it’s like our worlds turn upside down. From adjustments like a new job’s different commute, to getting ready in the morning after a move, or integrating healthier food into your diet, to bigger I’m-relearning-how-to-live-my-life changes such as an out-of-state move, new baby, or starting your own business, it all begins with how we establish our routine. We make the most of it when there are elements we don’t like, and continue adapting to keep on improving. Because ultimately, that’s what starts with a better lifestyle (however your #badass self defines that).

Like I mentioned, June and July are turning out to be quite a transition period over in my neck of the woods. Between moving (again) and the new job, I have to make necessary changes to my daily routine and it’s causing me to reflect on how to proactively improve my transforming routine so it’s more in line with my goals and passions. Once I started thinking, it was hard to stop!

But despite saying “I want to do this” and “I need to do that,” I tend to follow through only a few times… and that’s that until 2 weeks later when the cycle repeats itself. Remember what they say about getting used to something new: It takes 3 weeks for it to become a habit. In other words: As you establish/improve your routine, it’s going to take some time and a whole lotta repetition.

Before you half-subconsciously settle into another adjusted routine that just “works,” let’s seriously consider how to make this adjustment effective and purposeful. I mean, why not, right?

Embrace your new routine. Love it, nurture it, and find balance in your day-to-day life.

Sprinkle old familiarities in with the new routine to bring back a sense of comfort.

Like listening to a favorite album/audiobook (my go-to is the Harry Potter series), or watching your favorite classic movie. Something that brings balance, warmth and happiness into your life and fills you with all the fuzzies amidst the hecticness. You know, so you don’t pull your hair out in complete frustration or plop down on the floor and burst into tears.

I used to plug in earphones and listen to the same Pandora station all the time at my old workplace, so I made sure to stream my productivity music (Lindsey Sterling, if you’re curious) at the new spot. It instantly brought me more within my element—and every bit of comfort at a new job is appreciated!

Consider what you enjoyed, appreciated, and loved about past routines.

Especially your most recent one. When were you most productive? Happiest? Relaxed? What made you feel refreshed and ready to kick ass? How did you effectively get through obstacles and challenges? What triggered stress and frustration, and how did you manage it? Ask yourself these questions to match actions to emotions and find patterns in what attributed to successful outcomes (no matter how small the task).

Simply recognizing what has worked well in the past helps you become more aware and intuitive of how you want to move forward. We do so much on autopilot, that stopping to wonder and reflect is essential to extracting the golden nuggets!

Define your goals.

Are you trying to incorporate something into your schedule (or get rid of) that you feel “should” be there, but in all honesty you’re not too enthused about it? It doesn’t actually align with your goals?

Umm… then why are you wasting energy on trying to make it work?

(Adulting things aside—obviously we still need to pay our bills, clean the house, and all that crap.)

For instance, as I build out my new routine, I’m focusing on two additions and integrating them into my daily schedule:

Exercise and;

Blogging

(The latter is because, if you haven’t heard, Sweet Success Society is going NEXT LEVEL baby, with Erin’s big announcement here.) I’m taking advantage of my newly discovered late afternoons to attend a 5pm yoga class and spending most lunch breaks at a nearby coffee shop where I dedicate 50 minutes to 1 blogging related task. Let me tell you, it feels fantastic and these daily achievements (small as they may seem) are cause for a pat on the back each evening as I reflect on the day and prep for the next.

Remember that success is earned through consistency, and consistency is found via habit-forming. What do you want to be successful in? I’m not talking just career—this is much broader and can apply to any aspect of life. Once you define your go-getter goals, what methods of consistency must be applied to achieve these goals? How are you able to make that happen? How will you integrate that into your regular routine?

Figure out what will best help you achieve these goals and make it happen.

Remember, you’re in control and can cater to even the most ridiculous new schedules by making that routine work. Seek out resources to aid you in following through with your new routine. When you pinpoint what you want to incorporate into your new routine, sometimes it requires a little help or extra push to actually get there. (I’ve been talking about taking yoga classes for more than a year, but never did because they were “too expensive” and I “never had the time.” So when I saw the opportunity with my additional time, I sought out cheap yoga classes. Gotta love Groupon!)

Why not take a peek at Pinterest life hacks while you’re already making considerable changes to your routine? Or ask friends and family for recommendations? Find an accountability buddy?

Write down your goals and map out what your ideal day looks like.

You know you’ll be more committed, motivated, and encouraged if it’s tangible in some way, shape, or form. You’re literally teaching yourself new habits, which naturally take time and a lot of reminders—so let’s not act like we can do it by just saying we will in our heads. Come on, we all know we’re a hell of a lot more likely to consistently follow through and be 100% both feet in by writing down our goals and visually articulating how we’re going to accomplish them on a day-to-day basis.

Here’s a few ideas to consider:

Write on post-its and stick ‘em on your fridge

Write on your bedroom or bathroom mirror

Set reminders on your phone

Utilize a planner

Sure, every day will vary and some days you’d rather do this than that. I’m talking about, loosely, the things that are on your day-to-day agenda. Or hey, maybe you want to be more specific with a time of day and zone in on that (like your morning or evening routine). Whatever you choose, the importance element is to visually see it, recognize it, apply it, live by it.

Keep an open mind and remember to be flexible.

Ultimately, establishing your new routine is going to be a trial-and-error process. What may seem to work well originally turns out not to be so beneficial—and that’s okay! Learn from those bumps in the road to make your routine better, brighter, and best fitted exactly for you and your success. Especially in the beginning, awareness is key. You’re not on autopilot yet, so you’ll already be more conscious of what you’re doing, where you’re doing, how you’re making it happen, and what you’re thinking/feeling.

Like anything, it’ll take time to adjust to this new routine as the kinks continually get worked out, new and improved methods get sprinkled throughout, and we learn more about ourselves and what best works to achieve success—from a #bossbabe career to doing the dishes. Ultimately, the goal at the end of any and every day is to be prepared for an even better next day as we combine learning from our experiences balanced with new knowledge.

What changes (purposeful or accidental) have you seen in your routine lately? How do you recommend continually improving your day-to-day routine? What are your favorite life hacks that assist you in achieving daily success?

  The post Live Your Full Potential and Embrace Your New Routine appeared first on Sweet Success Society.

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