#he just let her abuser go and potentially have the chance to try and kill them for the third time

[aswanlake]

a/n ; Tim Bradford Drabble because I literally hit a standstill and have shitty writer’s block right now and it’s killing me, yet somehow I managed to write this but none of the stories I’ve been trying to write for a week.

CW ; drugs , alcohol , abusive parents , gender neutral reader (I tried my best) , addiction , substance abuse , grief

“ Unit 7, we have a 10-101 down La Brea Avenue. Neighbors complained about loud noises coming from a house, potential 10-99. ” Bradford sighed as he heard the call come in from over the radio, reaching for it before bringing it to his lips and holding down the button. “ This is 7-Adam-21 . Show us responding . ”

He knew that neighborhood all too well, why? Well you. Your parents didn’t have enough money to send you to school so you were often hanging around the wrong type of crowd and he’d booked a few of the kids for their crimes but he took pity on you. You were never directly involved with anything so it was useless to charge you half the time and he knew that if you were arrested then you’d been in the station for days before your parents ever knew you were gone— by the time they did, they still wouldn’t have the bail money to get you out. Even if they did, it was probably spent on drugs.

Perhaps that’s why deep down he’d been letting you go, your parents reminded him of Isabel, a time where he watched her waste away and couldn’t do anything about it. He wanted to give you a chance, to pull you out of that life but every time he handed you a card, you walked in the either direction, like you didn’t want his help or you thought you didn’t need it. He hated it, but he knew the mentality well and something in him wouldn’t let him give up on you.

“ What’s up with you? You tensed up at the sound of the address. ” Lucy was quick, she knew him too well and could tell whenever something was wrong with him. He wanted to play it off, rolling his eyes and groaning. “ There’s nothing wrong with me. ” He said quickly but he hand tightening around the wheel only gave him away further. “ Don’t lie to me. What’s wrong? Do you know who lives there? ” Her voice was soft and smooth, honestly checking on him and not mocking him, she never did and yet for some reason he still expected it whenever it came to his emotions.

“ It’s a kid, and her parents. They’re addicts, spend on their money on drugs instead of sending their own kid to school. ” He paused, taking some time to actually calm down, if he went into this emotionally then it would only go downhill. “ They . . they remind me of her. I couldn’t just leave the kid alone with them, so I come around sometimes, give the kid some food and homework to do. Not sure if they actually do it. ” Tim couldn’t say Isabel’s name, not at least while they were working. It was still a sore subject, even though it had been such a long time and she’d gotten better.

Pulling up to the house had gone worse than he expected, he thought it was going to be calm, maybe a few noises but instead there was screaming and the sounds of bottles shattering. Indistinguishable yelling at someone came from the voice of a child and an older woman. “ This is 7-Adam-21, requesting immediate backup. Possible RA, standby . ” Tim and Lucy’s hands immediately went toward their weapons, they would have grabbed their batons but a weapon was obvious— or maybe he was acting too irrationally and just thought that a weapon was obvious.

It took two kicks to the door before it finally caved in on itself, revealing what Tim only hoped to have been fake. Your father with a shattered bottle in his hand obvious cuts and bruising on your body and your mother, and your mother for once in her life didn’t look high. She was in front of you, holding onto you for dear life, with her body forcibly in front, taking the brunt of the incident. “ You’re gonna hit them! They were just doing homework! God, why do you always have to be like this?! You asshole! My mother told me I should have left your ass in Texas! ”

Your eyes turned to the sound, immediately drawn to Tim’s face. You’d seen him plenty of times before but you didn’t think it would be for a situation like this. If anything you thought he’d forgotten you. “ Hands! Put the bottle down now or we’ll have to use force! ” Lucy’s voice was calm but stern, your hands immediately flew up even though she wasn’t talking to you, your mother however ignored the girl, still standing before you and refusing to move. Your father hadn’t moved yet, head ticking in the direction of the cops before rolling his eyes. “ You called the cops on me? Over an argument? Woman you’re so fucking annoying! Who cares what your mother said! You’re broke anyways, where the hell would you go? ” Your father’s voice was rough and rich with booze.

You hated the screaming, it was so overwhelming and put you in the verge of tears. You tried to be strong but it was killing you. Instead of holding your hands up they went over your ears now, flinching back from all the fighting. Tim nodded towards you and Lucy immediately took action while he tried to deal with your father. He was drunk off of his ass and filled with nothing but rage, swinging the cut bottle around like a manic because he was threatened. It sliced the top of Tim’s cheek and that’s where he lost it, disarming him with ease and throwing the man’s body up against the wall with such a force it made the pictures on the fireplace shake.

He could have been charged with excessive force but he’d blame it on the man being drunk and erratic. He handcuffed the father and at the sound of sirens from an ambulance was able to put him in the back of the shop, reading him his Miranda Rights until the door shut. Lucy unfortunately had to arrest your mother too, the amount of drugs she had on her wasn’t legal and despite her being your savior this time, it was clear that this was one of the few. She waited for another shop to show up, your mom and dad obviously couldn’t be in the same one, behind her your shaken body stood, clutching onto her side like you’d fly away until Tim came.

He didn’t speak, just simply reached his hand out, you took it, letting him walk you to an ambulance. “ They have to check you out. No one will touch you without me or you saying it’s ok, alright? ” He looked at you, your eyes were towards the ground but your head nodded. He helped you into the ambulance, body littered with bruises and cuts, some recent and some from weeks, even months ago that hadn’t been attended to correctly. “ We’re gonna have to take them to the hospital, some of these need an actual doctor’s approval. They may even have some internal bleeding from the bruising around their ribs. ”

He looked behind the medic, staring at your figure, you were clearly scared and now your legal guardians were in jail and couldn’t speak for you and your family didn’t have enough money for a lawyer. He was going to have to be your legal guardian, at least until they could find some family to take care of you. “ Take them. I’ll be right behind you. ” With his hands on his belt, he came back into your line of vision. You looked up, face now covered by bandages instead of bruises— at least they weren’t as obvious. “ We’re going to the hospital. I’ll be with you every step of the way. After that. . we’re going home. My home. I’m not leaving you again, kid. ”

(Dividers by @ferretmilkshakezzz )

© aswanlake do not copy, steal, translate, repost any of my works

[jweekgoji]

can u write some Yandere TFO Darkwing x Cybertronian femme reader, who is a miner but Darkwing ends up getting her pregnant and forces her to be his conjux

Yandere!Darkwing/Femme!Reader [TFO]

tw: dubcon, yandere/dark themes, unplanned pregnancy, toxic relationship, supervisor/subordinate, power imbalance, size difference, mentions of past abuse, sickness, description of trauma, hurt no comfort, no happy ending. word count: ~1780 a/n: I wanted to keep it short, but somehow it leads to this. I guess this is for 5 Darkwing fans? imo, he has good himbo potential. also writing for Elita was fun...now i wanna write some Optimus and Elita/Reader fics once i'm done with requests.

How could you let this happen?

The same question runs in your head over and over again. It seems that no matter how hard you try to forget about it, you always see that familiar face right next to yours. Dwarfing you, making you feel so small and fragile. It probably wouldn't be too far from the truth. With your smaller, weaker body, nobody would even notice if you were gone.

You should be used to it by now. Countless cycles of mining, the same routine seems somehow calming despite having no signs of progress in any near future.

Energon, sleep, energon, sleep. What kind of life is that? Was that really all you're good for? Your endless purpose until you break one day?

Primus, why did he make you suffer?

“Hey!” you hear a rough, commanding tone from your captain right behind you. “No slacking off until we finish our job! Come on, keep up!”

You blink once, then another few times, optics quickly concentrating on the wall in front of you. How long were you staring at this wall…? Doesn't matter.

Elita-One gives you a glare; she is too preoccupied with leading her group safe; of course, the mines are too dangerous, and every single wrong move could lead to a series of disasters. You usually have no problems with following her orders, but everything now is just too much. Too much stress, too many orders. You're so exhausted.

Reluctantly, you continue working on collecting energon once again. The heavy equipment makes your frame tremble from the weight; you never once struggled with it, despite the drilling machine being almost the same weight as yours. Now, every single minute feels like a challenge. Focus, focus, focus— you can't just pass out during your work! If it didn't kill you first, then Elita-One certainly would after you screwed her chances of promotion.

You shook your head, as if somehow all the thoughts about the pain—the non-stop aching shooting down your back. It makes you want to bend down and wrap your arms around yourself; maybe, just maybe, it will all go away, and you'll be back to normal.

The soft whirr of your cooling systems gets louder. The poor mechanism overworking itself to cool down your frame. You barely notice how the buzzing sound of the drills seems quieter now, changing into the ringing in your head.

The loud clank of the metal against the ground quickly catches Elita's attention. A frown etched on her faceplate, the immediate ‘...by the name of Solus Prime, what's next?’ she quietly grumbled under her breath, turning her attention to the source of that sound.

Your boss was ready to scold you again, another lecture about the importance of teamwork and how it affects the whole squad—but all the annoyance quickly changes into panic the moment she sees you. Close to falling on your own knees and forehead pressed against the wall as you lean against it.

She quickly approaches you, placing her servo on your shoulder to turn you over so you can face her. Your frame is so warm, no, too warm it's almost burning hot. Your spark beats so hard she can practically feel it under her palm. The signs of sickness are obvious, and she cursed her luck yet again that now she has to explain the situation to the supervisors.

Elita helps you to lean your frame against her own instead, holding her arm around your waist, asking countless questions about what the pit you were thinking, and starting your shift without telling her about your well-being. She's the leader of your group! She has to know everything! It doesn't help with her concerns that you barely say anything, too weak to even open your mouth.

She is so annoyed with you, at everything right now. Great, just great, now she has to— a pause. Her optics widened for a mere second. Elita-One looks down at you with a mixture of confusion and a growing shock. The beating of your spark. Twice as fast, too unusual for any cybertronian even if put under the stress. Her servo reaches to your chassis, hovering over the spot where the spark chamber is. You're sparked up.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Quiet, too quiet, perhaps. The first thing you notice before finally opening your optics. The soft light of the room makes you want to go back to recharging again. Another innocent dream will be a good place to escape the harsh reality, until the slow realization creeps into your mind.

“It wasn't my fault, how could I—” the distant sound of Elita's voice is heard outside the room you were in.

“It was your job to lead the group and make sure everything goes according to the protocols. Just like ensuring that every bot in your squad is in the right shape for work,” you don't have to check twice to understand who it would be. Darkwing.

You can hear Elita trying to defend herself again. After all, it wasn't really her fault. You never wanted to tell anyone about it. But what choices did you have? How can you explain being sparked up? By who?

Now you feel guilty. Shame. She got into trouble because of you, and knowing how hard she worked to reach her position...You're so, so sorry.

You slowly move to sit up on the berth in the...what was this place exactly? It reminds of the infirmary, but surprisingly, any medic is absent today. Ratchet? Lifeline? First Aid? Completely gone.

As the door opens, your optics meet Darkwing's own. It was always hard to understand what exactly he was thinking about when he looked at you. The visor, the battle mask, it seems like every single thing in him has a purpose to make you self-conscious. Nervous and scared. Unlike him, you never had the chance of hiding.

Once you two were alone, he's fuming. He breathes heavily, trying to suppress the anger burning inside his chassis. If you were any other miner, another speck of dirt under his pedes, he would have disciplined you without thinking twice.

But you're no ordinary miner now, are you?

“You hid this from me, on purpose,” Darkwing looks down at you, servos clenching into tight fists. “And this is how I find out about it. Do you have any idea what you just got yourself into?”

The mere idea of him being together with  some nameless miner? Ridiculous. He never planned it to develop into something more. Just a one-night stand, nothing more. He would have forgotten about it by the next day if it wasn't for something, making him think about you since then.

The perfect size, fitting in his servos just right. A tiny toy to play with and use however he wants. A cute one too; isn't this a great deal? The curves, the shape of your frame...if you had a cog, what kind of alt mode would you have? A jet like him? Maybe a car? A boat?

Any other of his fellow supervisors would have left you immediately once they found out. If any bot gets to know about it, he's screwed. Darkwing, who claims to despise every single cogless bot? And now he's having second thoughts about whether he should let you be on your own or...participate?

You lowered your head, as if in shame. There's no fight in you left, not after Darkwing personally stripped you of your dignity. Now the only thing left is a sense of responsibility over that sparkling inside you. You're not even sure if your body can take it. The slowly growing little thing takes up a good half of your energy, and with the energon portions you receive, it is hardly enough for the two. You might die from starvation if this keeps up.

Just standing next to Darkwing is a struggle. You wonder, if he even understands what he costantly puts you through, or maybe he finds some sick pleasure in it. Watching you suffer. Is that what he wants? While you live with the responsibility that he put on your shoulders, nothing ever changes for him. This is so unfair.

You will be no surprised if he drags you to the mines to continue working just to please Sentinel Prime right now.

“Can't even look at me. You miners are only good at one thing,” another taunt. His servo reaches to cup your chin, forcing you to look up at him.

The touch is gentler, not the usual roughness you started getting used to. You learned that whenever he is near you, the pain should be expected the next. That's why it's hard not to flinch every time he gets a little too close. This time, it's something different. Your optics closed, as if expecting a punch, a slap, or another bunch of degrading words?

Nothing.

Trembling in his grasp like some sort of wounded animal next to their predator. Obedient, quiet and timid, the cycles he spent to shape you into a perfect doll to play with. But you're carrying his sparkling, the part of him is soon to be born in this world. It is too late to get rid of it, even though some time ago the sound of it seemed tempting. No, even a useless doll like you deserves a second chance to prove yourself. From some faceless miner, you can grow into something more. Better. A carrier.

He can't let you go back to that place; it would be too cruel even for someone like him to let the carrier of his sparkling to continue this. The best thing is, no one would even suspect you were gone. A tragic event, one of the miner bots neglected their health until it was too late.

Sad, sobbing story, but don't worry, being stuck with your ex-supervisor is not too bad. By the all old rules, it's a shame not to claim a carrier of your sparklings as your conjunx.

“You should be grateful that I have better plans to use you, cogless,” Darkwing's hold on you tightened just for a fraction. To make sure you listen and understand his intentions. No other options but to obey. His words echo in the back of your mind.

The act of profference.

Gifting you a freedom, something you wished for and craved so deeply supposed to make you happy. If only it wasn't the same day you lose it.

[akirathedramaqueen]

No, I am not done with Western Energy yet, and I am not sorry

I. Just. Can't. With those parallels.

Just look at that! I am sure bunch of people already pointed that, but Hell knows it makes me think a lot about this shift.

Murder Family

[Blitzø]: Stolas, this is really a bad time!

[Stolas]: Mm, when isn't it a bad time, Blitzy?

Stolas *knows* Blitzø is in danger. There could've been a room for speculation, if it wasn't for the next exchange:

[Blitzø]: What is it?!

[Stolas]: I've been meaning to follow-up on our last little conversation regarding my grimoire.

[Blitzø]: What did you just call me?!

[Stolas]: My book, Blitzy. The book I was given to do my job. That I've allowed you to use to do yours.

*gunshot*

[Blitzø]: Shit!

[Stolas]: Anyhoo, I have been thinking... You know I've been permitting you to access the mortal realm less than legally for some time now? But I do need it back to fulfill my duties. I was thinking; what if we worked out some kind of an exchange? Favors for favors... Doesn't that sound...

*gunshot*

[Stolas]: ...enticing?

[Blitzø]: You gotta stop using your fancy-ass rich people talk, okay? I am trying to concentrate to not getting FUCKED IN MY A *gunshot*

I will omit the rest, as it won't add much to the point (if you've seen the show, you know the conversation doesn't stop here), but you can draw some conclusions from the dynamic:

Stolas sees Blitzø in projection. Gunshots do not give any chance for the wrong interpretation. He knows imp is getting chased.

Stolas takes his time to get to the point, speaks slowly, as if playing with Blitzø, with his life even, and he enjoys that. He knows Blitzø can't turn him down as imp is on a hook.

Blitzø is clear that he would like to pass on the call for the better time, but Stolas keeps him on the line. Blitzø is clear that Stolas needs to get to the point because he is about to get killed, and Stolas, although does that, is still slow in speech, playful, and demeaning towards him.

Overall, Stolas does not care about Blitzø being safe at the beginning of the series. You can also get from that convo that he crosses boundaries without guilt, and if he was able to jeopardise life of his potential lover, it's not surprise at all that he is demeaning, creepy with overly sexual talks at inappropriate times, and does not take Blitzø's offence as something to care about (I don't think Blitzø was called by his name properly at least once in the 1st season, but I have to check), as shown in later episodes. Stolas is abusing power and knows he will get away with it, because Blitzø has nowhere to go and has to put with it.

Western Energy

[Blitzø]: It's really not a good time, buddy...

[Stolas]: I'm sorry it's a bad time yet again, Blitzy, but, um...

[Stolas]: I seem to have found myself in a bit of a sitch.

You see the parallel, right? Right?!

I'm sorry it's a bad time yet again, Blitzy.

The first time we heard that, he wasn't sorry. He was dismissive.

Mm, when isn't it a bad time, Blitzy?

And the situation... Stolas is literally getting kidnapped, and finds time to ask an apology for calling at wrong time. *Again*.

Let's look at another piece of conversation:

[Moxxie]: That's Striker, sir!

[Blitzø]: Oh, for fuck's sake! Can't you just get away? Aren't you powerful?

[Stolas]: I believe he has me bound with blessed rope, which limits my ability to free myself I'm afraid. So I think you should come save me.

[Blitzø]: Oh, shit, Stolas, I can't today, alright? I'm sorry. I-I'm literally on my way to take Loona in for her very important Hellbies S.H.O.T. It takes years to book an appointment at that place, it took me five to get this one... and she's doing a lot of field work, so you know, she needs it...

[Stolas]: Oh, ha-ha, well, I do agree that is very important... but I-

We know the rest. The phone is taken away by Striker, and the conversation is interruped. We also know that Stolas gets a sudden realisation that he is in danger, which gives a hint that before he didn't recognise the situation quite as serious.

You see the shift that happened?

Stolas apologises for taking Blitzø's time, despite being in imminent danger. He went from total dismissive to total apologetic and even evasive.

Stolas takes into account Blitzø's reasons, and admits their importance.

This time Blitzø is the one who talks more, but he is on point the whole time and generally sounds uneasy, understanding that this time this is, despite being the bad time, very important. As we know, after the conversation he rushes in, before agreeing with Moxxie and Millie for them to go instead.

And why is so?

I find it very interesting that the similar phrase was used in so different contexts. In the comparison, the power dynamic simply has flipped.

Stolas was the one who needed attention, and Blitzø was the one who was asked for help.

The first time around, Stolas needed attention as well, but his matter was so diminutive and Blitzø's problems at the moment were so serious, it was simply disrecpectful, to say the least.

The second time, his request is to literally save his life, and he apologises, puts Blitzø's interest higher than his. He now feels like he is a burden, a nuisance in Blitzø's life, not wanting to disturb him at all. The connection that holds them became so fragile, because Stolas realises he has nothing to offer besides power, and from that sole conversation it becomes clear that he now avoids using it against imp even on the verge of being hurt.

Stolas's attitude shifted from dominant to apologetic, he went from assertive to frightened, and, as Blitzø's importance in his life grew, so grew Stolas, giving us hope for his redemption, but also showing how insecure he really was all the time.

So much for the regal title and eldritch powers, if you can't hold onto a meaningful relationship with the one you care for.

[wilhelminyard]

part 3 of the foxes being brutally honest and insulting people to their faces because they are SAVAGES

NEIL :

"I figured he was an egocentric maniac who was so desperate for his own glory he refused to see the potential in anyone else"

"tell me you're not that stupid"

"I might have been a little more considerate if I'd known how stupid you are"

"you being an asshole at heart means I was right about your chances. you do understand by now that your cowardice is what's keeping you and andrew apart, right?"

"you're a spineless asshole. you let the world happen to you and don't bother to fight back. you let other people dictate how you can live your life and who you can spend your time with. remind me why you put up with your mother's abuse for so long. did you actually love her despite her madness, or were you just too afraid to walk away?"

"what do you think?" "I think fuck you"

"your false bravado helps no one" "neither does your cowardice"

"you already walked away from him once knowing what riko would do to him in your absence. don't do it again. if you don't protect him now, his death is on you"

"die free or die a failure. the choice is yours."

"I'd ask you how it feels but I guess you've always known what it's like to be second, you worthless piece of shit"

ANDREW :

"is your learning curve a horizontal line?"

"a privileged child like you has never seen the real world"

"I've had enough of your stupidity to last me a week"

"I'm volunteering my opinion" "don't. children should be seen and not heard"

"you're stupider than even I gave you credit for"

"you have a problem wherein you only invest your time and energy into worthless pursuits"

"you're a different kind of suicidal. didn't you figure that out in december? you're bait. you're the martyr no one asked for or wanted"

"I hope you two are miserable together"

WYMACK :

"anyone have ideas on how to make neil look a bit less like a battered wife?"

"I can't tell if you're being obtuse to fuck with me or if you're really that dumb."

"I need you to derail that one-track fucking mind of yours for two seconds"

"great. kevin's turning into another you. that's just what I needed."

"get washed up before your stench kills me"

KEVIN :

"we need you on the court but not if you're going to drag us down with you. in the shape you're in right now you'd be a complete waste of our time."

"even if you'd stepped it up when I told you to a year ago, you would have no chance of beating them. there is nothing at all you can do this late in the year. they are better than we are and they always will be"

"stop acting like a spoiled child"

"you've got a thing for controversial teams, I think, but I like this one much better than the last one" "they're mediocre at best but they're easier to get along with"

NICKY :

"do you get off on being such a debbie downer?"

AARON :

"it wasn't the drugs that made him crazy"

"I'm walking away and pretending I don't know you"

"I want to drink and pretend I don't know any of you"

MATT :

"good to see you're still fuck-all crazy"

"one of these days you have to let me hit kevin."

ALLISON :

"you are on messed-up child. you come by that naturally or did your parents do that to you?"

"seriously you guys? it's like you don't know us" "we try not to"

RENEE :

"I tried taking you off his hands at one point. andrew refused on the grounds he wouldn't wish you on anyone except a mortician"

[moulinruno]

So, I've had a lot of thoughts on Priscilla's Final Petal recently, and I would like to propose the following theory/interpretation:

The Earl and Lady Langbrook aren't being honest about Annabelle.

First things first, I don’t trust this family as far as I can throw them

Working on a PFP animatic has made me a bit sympathetic toward Annabelle, and rewatching the longform only reinforces that feeling when I really listen to the Earl and Lady Langbrook

For simplicity’s sake, I will be referring to the Earl as simply ‘Earl’ and to Lady Langbrook as ‘Morella’ (yes, it’s a House of Usher reference)

The biggest thing I want to establish is that I think Annabelle suffered from post-partum depression and potentially post-partum psychosis

Earl being the cruel bastard he is absolutely did not get her any help and just chalked it up to her being a terrible person

I don’t think she ever really was a terrible person (at least prior to Priscilla being born) and was really just stuck with a man who didn’t like her

Annabelle and Earl’s marriage feels like it may have been one of convenience or a politically motivated marriage

We know Earl puts a lot of emphasis on his political standing if the hired assassin is anything to go by, so it wouldn’t be shocking if he married someone for political purposes

I think Annabelle kind of started to like him while Earl never came around to liking her beyond thinking she’s fit

At the very least, Annabelle tried to make herself like him

I don’t think she ever hated Priscilla, but she hated that Earl could show a softer side with their child that he couldn’t show with Annabelle

He definitely had bouts of those rages that Morella mentions, maybe just not so often

Oh, did I mention the hired assassin

When Annabelle becomes pregnant is when things start going downhill fast (as it often goes with abusive men)

Earl already knew Morella but starts spending more time with her

Annabelle catches onto this, the two of them fighting more and more

They reel it back a bit as Annabelle’s due date gets closer, trying to get along with each other for the sake of the kid they’re bringing into this world

Of course, this doesn’t last for long after Priscilla is born, especially with Annabelle succumbing to depression and/or psychosis

Now, here’s a thing to consider: did she mistreat Priscilla or is that what Earl told Morella to make her dislike Annabelle as much as he did?

Because that man fucking hated her

Probably because she saw him for exactly who he was and didn’t let him get away with anything, she clearly had a strong personality

Also, I struggle to picture a scenario where Morella actually knew Annabelle (for whatever reason, I can’t picture her as part of their staff)

So, you may ask, why am I so skeptical of what Earl and Morella say about Annabelle? Well, namely because of Rumpold

While Morella and Earl say they got rid of Annabelle because she was cruel, Rumpold simply states it’s because Earl fell in love with someone else, and Rumpold has no reason to lie now that Priscilla knows about Annabelle

But who does have a reason to lie so that Priscilla won’t view them negatively? Earl and Morella

Now, Rumpold does also state Annabelle’s in Hell, so there must be some truth to her being cold and/or cruel, but I don’t know if it goes as far as Earl and Morella say it did since Annabelle clearly does care about Priscilla to some extent (evidenced by her knowing Priscilla doesn't like music and regarding her positively when she raises from the dead)

There’s also a chance that Rumpold only believes she’s in Hell because he either didn’t interact with her much (so got his info about her from whatever Earl said) or is mainly remembering post-partum Annabelle

Because when does Rumpold officially hang up the assassin title and become a gardener (if he wasn’t doing both at the same time)?

It’s not when he meets Earl because he’s killed Earl’s political opponents for him

So, maybe it’s after he kills Annabelle

Thus, he never truly knew her beyond what Earl had to say

Brief tangent time: there is an interpretation posited by @/legallycomet that Rumpold and Annabelle had an affair which makes me feel more vindicated in my interpretation of Earl (if true)

If Annabelle and Rumpold had an affair, I feel like it would have started at the same time or just after Earl and Morella’s affair began

To be clear: I think Earl and Morella started an emotional affair well before Priscilla was even conceived, it just escalated to a full-blown relationship when Annabelle got pregnant

Based on what we know about Annabelle, she probably didn’t have the easiest pregnancy and may have become difficult for Earl to be around, thus he decided to seek out Morella more

With Earl often out of the house, there’s a high chance Rumpold and Annabelle could have gotten close enough to have their own affair

As @/legallycomet points out, Rumpold being parental toward Priscilla is interesting (hell maybe Priscilla isn’t actually Earl’s kid), and if he had an affair with Annabelle then that means Earl made him kill his lover so yeah I can see him quitting assassin work after that

It also gives Rumpold a reason to both A) state Annabelle is in Hell but not elaborate (because, you know, adultery) and B) focus on Earl’s own affair as the motivating reason for the murder

Because I do really believe Earl just wanted a reason to get rid of Annabelle, I don’t think Annabelle’s personality – good or bad – would have changed that

I can also absolutely see him being the type of person to get mad at Annabelle for cheating on him even though he’s also cheating

I don’t know if I formally adopt this theory into my own timeline, but I do like it; okay, tangent over.

As for Morella, apart from the alleged cruelty, there’s the additional (and I think more prominent) motivator of moving up in the world if Annabelle’s place as Earl’s wife is suddenly vacant

We get little hint of Annabelle being cruel when they have that first conversation about her, it’s more about lifting Morella up

Therefore, I have reason to believe they may be lying/exaggerating when they say Annabelle was cruel (granted, Morella may not even know she’s lying)

Especially when you consider how downright mean Earl is

He tells a butler he hopes his kid dies and says some heinous shit about Annabelle that makes even Morella raise an eyebrow, like come on

Not to mention the implication that he would - at the very least - be okay with Morella having to sell her body like what the hell dude

Plus, Earl and Morella have this weird negative tension simmering under the surface of their scenes which is sort of out of place when Annabelle’s been gone for years

It would not be out of character for him to embellish the truth a little to make Morella think Annabelle is a worse person than she is

Morella is supposedly the one to suggest they kill Annabelle (or at least is the one to suggest they bury her in the garden), but I think that’s a conclusion she was guided to by Earl rather than one she came up with on her own

(That’s so fucked if Earl led her to suggest they bury Annabelle in the garden since Morella used to love the garden :( )

I don’t know why this family has possessed me so but they’re deeply intriguing to me

Earl may be one of SFTH’s most morally bankrupt characters (apart from the literal Nazis), and I think that’s been overlooked for too long

He also doesn’t seem to know much about Priscilla

Or if he does, he writes it off in favor of doing what he thinks will be best for her instead of actually listening to her

Additional note about Annabelle: I think she had very few family members to begin with (maybe just her parents) who then died while she was married to Earl, so that’s why he so easily gets away with making her disappear

This longform is really just one lonely child surrounded by the worst possible caretakers imaginable

Y’all remember when Rumpold threatened to stab Priscilla? I do

In conclusion: the Langbrooks fuck me up, thank you and goodnight

[talkdutchtome]

You Should Have Said No Chapter Five- Shake It Off 

pairing . . . max verstappen x reader / pierre gasly x reader )

summary . . . when your fiancé cheats on you, you strike up an unusual friendship with one of his closest friends, who just so happens to have had a crush on you since he set eyes on you. chaos ensues.

inspired by the works of miss taylor swift )

genre . . . angst )

song . . . shake it off- taylor swift)

warning . . . cheating, mental illness, angst, eventual smut, poorly translated french and dutch, swearing, mention of parent loss, emotionally abusive parent, slight social media au, kendall jenner as fc (potentially more i’ll add as i go along)

series masterlist . . . available here )

“Literally everyone does it Y/N, it’s a rite of passage after a breakup” Lila stresses at you, waving a pair of scissors in front of your face. She wants to cut your hair, claiming that it would help you forget about Pierre. Truth be told, you’re not even sure that you want to forget about Pierre, though you’d die before admitting that to Lila, who may kill you herself if you dared let those words pass through your lips. Whilst Lila worked on the West End theater scene in London now, she had spent years working on much smaller theater scenes so she had learned to cut hair so that her and her colleagues didn’t have to spend a good chunk of their small paycheck on their hair; so you knew that she definitely could cut your hair you just weren’t sure you wanted it cut. Pierre had once told you when you were 18 that he liked your hair long so naturally, you kept your hair that long ever since. There wasn’t a doubt in your mind that Pierre wouldn’t have had an issue if you did cut your hair, realistically he may not even remember that he told you he liked your hair long, but you remembered so you always kept your chocolate brown hair at the length it was when he said it. “Okay fine, just do it” you relented, sitting in front of her to allow her to begin to work on your hair.  

After she had finished, she put a mirror in front of your face, enabling you to see your now shoulder length hair and as much as admitting she was right was painful for you; you had to admit not only did you look good but you also felt a freeing sense, like you were finally accepting that life was going to be different now, and maybe that’s okay. “It’s lovely, thank you Lila”  

“Right okay time for outfits, I’m not sure what you’re wearing to the race yet but I know exactly want I want you to wear for the after party; you need to go full Princess Diana” The words that came out of her mouth made you laugh but you quickly realized that she was completely serious. “Okay what the hell do you mean by ‘full Princess Diana’, also you do know you’re not my personal stylist righy?” 

“Oh, come on you know! The revenge dress!”  

“My god you’ve lived in London for too long” You laughed at her but maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea, there was every chance Pierre could come to this party and you were only human after all, you couldn’t help wanting to realize what he’s missing out on. Whilst you were weighing up your options regarding your evening wear, Lila had moved onto looking through her suitcase trying to find something for you to wear. “Now this is perfect!” hearing your best friend’s words made you look up to the outfit she was referring to. In her hands she held up a pair of light wash ripped boyfriend jeans and a black top that was really more of a bra than a top. Opening up your mouth to tell her no, you caugh sight of her face looking at you with pleading eyes and pouted lips. “Okay fine, give it here”  

“Ohhh and this too?” she throws Max’s jacket at you, resulting in her receiving a death stare from you “Nope. Too far Lils” you told her trying to be serious but failing once she fell into fits of giggles, causing you to laugh like a mad man too.  

“Uhh Y/N, have you been on Instagram lately?” Lila questioned with a worried tone in her voice, before you could answer her question, she had turned around her phone and showed you the post that she clearly thought you needed to see. Your eyes focused on the image in front of you and you quickly snatched the phone out of her hand to have a look. The fact that there were paparazzi as you got off Max’s private jet a few days ago had completely slipped your mind after a very stressful few days. “Oh fuck” you cursed at yourself, you didn’t even think how it looked for a driver's fiancée to be flying on a plane alone with a bunch of other drivers, but clearly the fans following the infamous F1 gossip page did. Reading through the comments, you saw countless people calling you a slut, alleging that you were sleeping with one of the drivers that you were pictured with, people worried and upset for Pierre; pretty much any derogatory word under the sun was used to describe your behavior. Just for a second you felt a flash of guilt, knowing that Pierre is defiantly going to see the post, but it quickly dawned on you that you shouldn’t have to feel guilty for having friends or for spending time with people who were looking after you after finding out that your finance had cheated on you. After the guilt subsided, anger took its place. How dare they criticize you for having friends, for daring to even be in the presence of men whilst Pierre could literally fuck another woman and there wasn’t a post about that, there wasn’t cameras in the club when Pierre actually did what people are accusing you of. 

“You just need to ignore it Y/N, it’s not fair of course it isn’t but it’s also not important, just follow the advice of Taylor Swift and Shake it off” Lila spoke, knowing what was going through your head.  

“Oh I was actually meant to say, have you spoken to Charles since everything happened?” she asked you, trying to change the topic of conversation as she could tell the gossip post.  

“No actually, he messaged me literally the day after it happened as Pierre went to his house when I kicked him out but since then I haven’t heard anything since. Though he did phone you so I guess.” you told her and she scoffed, clearly not happy with that answer. “That’s really shitty of him, he’s been your friend for almost 15 years and all he can manage is one text. Though it doesn’t surprise me, he always was a dick.” her words made you laugh but you couldn’t help but agree with what she said, you had known Charles for almost as long as he knew Pierre and you were always close so you’d be lying if you said it didn’t bother you that he hadn’t reached out since that first day. “Oh come on be fair Lila, he was a bit of a dick when we were 15 but he’s changed since then, he’s a good guy” you told her but she just scoffed again, clearly not ready to accept that he wasn’t the same Charles that broke her heart 12 years age. 

Much to Lila’s dismay, upon your arrival at the track ready for the race, you were called into a meeting, leaving her alone for an hour, desperately searching for some entertainment, she ended up stumbling into Pierre. Whilst she tried to avoid his gaze and get away without speaking to him, she had no such luck. “Ugh what do you want?” she had asked him clearly pissed off that he wouldn’t let her slip away without having to acknowledge his presence. “Please just listen, I really need your advice” Pierre told the girl in front of him who rolled her eyes but gestured for him to continue. “I just don’t know what to do, I love Y/N so much and I know I fucked up, I really fucked up but I don’t want to live without her and every time I try to speak to her, I just seem to make it worse” his words caused Lila to laugh, earning her a death glare. “Look if she’s got any sense, she’ll never take you back, but I’ll tell you this; if she’ll ever be ready to take you back, she needs to heal first. Every time she sees you her heart breaks more and soon enough it’ll be broken beyond the point of no return. So, if you love her or ever did, you need to leave her alone, at least for a while” Lila told him, causing him to stand deeply in thought for a minute before speaking up again. “But what if I leave her alone to heal and she ends up falling for Max?” he asked her, with tears in his eyes threatening to spill over. “I’m going to be brutally honest with you Pierre, would that really be such a bad thing? You and I both know what a hard life she’s had, doesn’t she deserve love from someone who will never hurt her? Who will never make her look in the mirror and wonder what is wrong with her that the person who is supposed to love her went and slept with another woman.” Lila told him before turning around and walking away before he had a chance to respond.  

Eventually the race started, and you were sat in Red Bull garage hospitality with Lila, things were going well for the first 15 laps until there was a crash that made your heart sink. Pierre had collided with Geroge Russell sending them both spinning. Before you even had the chance to think about the consequences, you were on your feet and running to the Alpine garage. In that moment nothing else mattered other than finding out if Pierre was safe, everything else was forgotten. In the time it took you to reach the garage, Pierre had come back and other than sporting a bit of a limp, he seemed fine; that was until he saw you and it looked like he was going to cry. Both of you were acutely aware of the fact that were countless engineers surrounding you who had no idea what was going on between the two of you; they were used to you being sat in the garage all weekend but this time you were nowhere to be found until right now when you ran in frantically. It was quite the picture, you both standing opposite each other, him trying not to cry and you trying to catch your breath, partly from the running but also from the creeping anxiety that sat in your stomach.  

Eventually realizing that you weren’t going to say anything whilst surrounded by everyone, Pierre told the medic charged with checking him out that he was going into his driver's room to get his withings before they took him away to the medical center to be checked. As he walked, he gestured for you to follow him, so you did. “Are you okay? That looked really bad. I was so worried oh my god are you okay?” You rambled at him, not even giving him a chance to answer your questions. You were spiraling and he knew it, even though you could now see that he was okay, the initial fear you felt was the straw that broke the camel's back and every emotion that you had shoved down for the past week was making itself known. Pierre could see that you were shaking and crying, so on instinct he wrapped his arms around you, so tightly that it hurt because he knew you and he knew that’s what you needed when you got like this. “Shh baby it’s okay I’m okay. I know it was scary but I’m okay” He soothed you and stood with you in his arms until your breathing calmed down and you pulled away from him. “I’m sorry for coming here Pierre, I just needed to know that you were okay” you told him before turning to walk away from him, once the anxiety had subsided you realized that coming here wasn’t the best thing to do, that letting him comfort you wasn’t really fair on either of you. Just as you reached the door handle you heard Pierre’s voice ask you the one question you really didn’t want him to ask- “Why did you come here?” You turned around to look at him, but you didn’t answer his question, how could you when you didn’t even know the answer yourself. “What is going on with you and Max?” He questions you again, upon realizing you weren't going to answer his first question. It’s the same thing he asked you days ago, but the way he asks is different now; there’s no venom in his voice, no taunting look in his eyes, there’s just sadness and a look of hopelessness. “He’s my friend. He’s really looked after me over this last week and I do really like him, but it’s not like that Pierre okay. He’s just a friend” you told him hesitantly, you’re aware that maybe it was best not to humor his question, but the anxiety attack you just had exhausted you and you truly did not have the energy to argue with him as to why it’s none of his business “He likes you Y/N, he always has” he told you. There were no words you could think of to say in response to him, so you just walked away.  

After your interaction with Pierre, you went back to the garage with Lila where you both watched Max win the race by 30 seconds. Immediately following the race Lila had to leave to catch her plane back to London, you both cried as she left, vowing to not leave it so long until the next time you see each other again. Despite all of this and how much you loved her, you cursed her name when you arrived back in your hotel room and saw the dress, she left for you to wear. It was a tan mini dress that clung to your body tightly and stopped way higher up your thighs than you ideally would have liked; to put it bluntly it was almost the exact opposite of something you would chose to wear but as it was the only option available, you had to accept that you would be out of your comfort zone and get ready for the party. Just as you were getting ready to head to the club you remembered the last words that Lila had said to you just before she left “Make sure you post on Instagram how hot you look just in case Pierre isn’t at the party, a revenge dress isn’t a revenge dress if the person doesn’t see it” you laughed at her words but did what she said anyway, knowing that she wouldn’t leave you alone until you relented anyway.  

The second you walked in the club, you caught sight of table that Max and everyone were sat at. Even though it was a Red Bull party Max did mention that others would be coming so you weren’t surprised to see Lando and Daniel sat alongside him. As soon as Max spotted you, he was up on his feet, making the short journey from his table to the bar where you stood. 

“Hey Max congratulations, such a good race.” You told him, smiling sincerely at him. “Y/N I’m so good you’re here! I was worried you weren’t going to come. What are you drinking?” The Dutchman asked you, smiling ear to ear, clearly on a high from his win. Usually, you didn’t drink much in clubs, often finding that it ends up making your anxieties worse, but you couldn’t help but feel that this was a night where you deserved to let go a little bit and actually get drunk for once. “Ohh maybe tequila?” you suggested earning yourself a cheeky grin from the man in front of you, who leant forward and ordered four shots of tequila from the bartender before calling Lando and Daniel over to give them their shots. As you stood at the bar with the three men taking your shots, you couldn’t help but think about the gossip post from earlier; you realized that as you were in a public club, anyone could easily take a photo of the four of you and use it to fuel more rumors. Part of you wanted to walk away from them, to not give people anymore ammunition to use against you, but the other part of you didn’t care what anyone else was going to do or say and just wanted to have a good time with your newly found friends. Deciding to listen to the part of you who just said ‘Fuck it let me have fun’ you ordered more shots and let yourself just enjoy the company you were in.  

After an hour or so passed, you could feel how tipsy you started to become and decided that you had probably drunk enough; that was until you saw Charles and Pierre walk into the club and immediately decided to buy and drink a lot more alcohol. You sat at the Red Bull table with Max and his friends for a while more until you saw that Pierre had left Charles sat by himself for a moment and with your decision-making skills inebriated, you decided to go and confront him.  

“Oh hey Y/N” Charles spoke as you walked towards him. “Don’t ‘hey y/n’ me Charles you’re such a dick” you told him perhaps a bit more aggressively than you had meant, slurring your speech whilst you were at it too. He just gave you a confused look. “I can’t believe I’ve barely heard from you Charles. I know you’re Pierres friend I get that, but you’re my friend too. I’ve known you for almost 15 years and all I get from you when my life literally falls apart is one text? I get you called Lila and I appreciate it, God knows I needed her here. But I also needed you. I’m not asking you to pick my side or drop Pierre, but it would have been nice to feel like you didn’t drop me.” You ranted at him, and he just looked at his feet, clearly ashamed at his behavior. “I know, I’m really sorry. I did want to reach out, but I just didn’t know how” he spoke, and you could tell that he did genuinely feel bad. You were going to say something else to him in response, but you suddenly saw Pierre approaching and decided that being around him in this state definitely was not the best idea. “I should go” you told Charles before turning to walk away. “I am really sorry Y/N, phone me when you get home to Monaco and we’ll arrange to do something” Charles called out after you just as Pierre rejoined him, earning him a funny look from his friend.  

The need to drink came back after that conversation with Charles so you grabbed another couple of shots for you and Max before walking back to the table, and after taking them all you wanted to do was dance. With Lila being gone, the next best person to dance with was Max so you grabbed his hands and dragged him onto the dance floor. This was completely out of character for you, with you usually being the quiet person sat in the corner at a club but despite that and despite the fact that you knew that Pierre was burning a hole in your back watching the two of you, you completely let yourself go and danced with Max. The dancing started fun, with the two of you jumping around to Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off (the irony was not missed on you even in your very drunk state), however after a while the copious amounts of alcohol you had drank started to catch up on you and Max eventually declared that you probably needed to head home and that he would acompany you to make sure that you got in safely.  

The journey in the uber was proabably around 30 minutes, although it didn’t at all feel like that. You spent the whole journey talking to Max about pretty much everything that came into your head, you told him about how you and Lila met Charles and Pierre and how the four of you became best friends, you told him about your love for Taylor Swift and your desperation for Eras Tour tickets, you even told him about the time you met Christan Horner’s wife Geri for the first time and completely embarrassed yourself by gushing over her and telling her how obsessed you were with the Spice Girls when you grew up. And the whole time he sat there and listened to you, he didn’t just listen to the important stuff you had to say like you often felt Pierre did, but he sat there and listened just the same when you were rambling on about something silly and insignificant. He was completely attentive, and it made you feel like you could tell him absolutely anything. He then walked you all the way up to your hotel door just so he knew that you were home and safe. “You looked so beautiful tonight Y/N” he told you but it looked like he regretted in straight away when you just looked at him unsure what to say back to him. “Goodnight, thank you for a good night” He spoke again before turning to leave. “Wait Max” you called after him and he turned around to ask you what it is you wanted but stopped when he felt your hands come up to the back of his neck and pull him in for a kiss. Your lips touched only for a second and your touch was so faint that Max could have thought that he had maybe imagined it if not for the riot of butterflies took flight in the depths of his stomach, their wings fluttering in harmony with the newfound spark that had ignited between the two of them. Before Max had a chance to say anything you closed the door on him before walking to the bed and flopping onto it. In spite of the amount that you had drank, you had never felt more sober than you did right now, in the aftermath of your first kiss with Max. You wanted to cry, you wanted to laugh, you wanted to scream, you wanted to run after Max and kiss him again but in the end all you do is just lay on your bed and attempt to follow the piece of advice that Lila had given you earlier in the day, you just shook it off and went to sleep.  

Taglist-

@hiraethrhapsody @ironmaiden1313 @dudenhaaa27 @aundercover @dearlovelys @bicchaan @eugene-emt-roe @faithm120601 @ruleroftheuniverse @idkiwantchocolatee @simxican @reidsworld @icarus-nex @barnestatic @amalialeclerc @stargaryenx @pjofics @girlintheredscarf @janeholt3 @lu-morningstar-2 @mycenterfold @be-your-coffee-pot @omarsiglia @lordperceval-16  

[stansthemans]

What do you think would happen in fem!Stan aus if their parents find out her and Ford are having sex?

whoa boy. I mean. it would be Bad. I'm in the camp of Filbrick was an abusive dad, far more so to Stan than to Ford. With Stan, I lean towards it was physical as well as emotional and verbal. Ford didn't exactly have it easy with the weight of all filbrick's expectations placed on his shoulders, feeling like he had to be extra perfect bc of his birth defect and his intelligence, and this sense of responsibility for Stan, like anything Stan did was a reflection on him. I'm also not very forgiving to Caryn. I see a lot of people saying things like "she loved her boy" and I'm just not so sure. Especially with fem Stan, I think Caryn was critical about her looks and would she ever find a husband, and she let those criticisms be known. Stan never had to wonder if her parents didn't like her. They were clear on that front. Last born, totally unexpected, another mouth to feed, and worst of all: a girl.

I typically also think that the entire family hides the severity of what happens to Stan from Ford. it's the one cause they're all united on. I think filbrick and Caryn keep it secret as a means to control ford, because they think (know for a complete fact) that if ford knew, he would flip his lid and they would lose that potential meal ticket. they know that ford is choosing Stan over everything. Stan keeps it a secret because she's terrified that if ford knew, not only wold it break his heart, but he might try to fight for her, and she's so scared that filbrick would start hitting him too.

as for getting caught. yikes. I think they would place all the blame on Stan and the beating would very nearly kill her. it would just be terrible. typically with my version of the fem!stan au, I keep a lot of things very close to canon. She's even still named Stanley rather than constance bc I think doing that shows how little filbrick regarded her when she was born. their life plan was two boys and that's it (I headcanon older shermie). not only does Stan show up unwanted, but she also has the gall to be a girl. I usually still go with fem Stan being thrown out after the science fair incident, rather than other things I've seen like her running away. but for this, for them getting caught, it's the late 60s-ish. I think they might bring her to an asylum. maybe if it was something slightly less, like if she got knocked up but they didn't know it was bc of ford, maybe they would try to marry her off or ship her away to distant relatives. but this is so huge, I really think they'd have her committed. and ford, oh man, if ford knows that's what's happening, he'd go ballistic. ford is far, far more protective (and consequently, far more hurt and angry when betrayed) of fem Stan. that's not just his twin, not just the person he's in love with, it's his little sister, and despite the romantic/sexual feelings, that's been drilled into him his entire life. big brothers are supposed to take care of their little sisters, and ford is the big brother that really matters when it comes to Stan. they've always been so close. two halves of a whole, it doesn't work if they aren't together

yeah, I think he'd just lose his mind. literally clawing thru the dry wall. I think if they got caught, there wouldn't be a chance for the science fair shit to go down. ford would blow up at his parents, blow up at Shermie, and he would leave fire and brimstone in his wake trying to rescue Stan and get them as far away as possible to restart their lives. in some ways it's a happier ending for them, but man is it rough

[obsidianpen]

I love how you did all three if the original timeline boys. Ron and Draco are exactly the right kind of selfish, and Harry is exactly the right kind of selfless.

I get that Draco does experience genuine love for her to an extent, and I’m sure Ron does too, but they’re both so selfish. Neither of them care about what she herself has to say about any of it, and just assume they know better.

I get it why it’s a mindfuck for them, but if neither of them considered that Hermione —S.P.E.W.—Granger wouldn’t love and try to save the lonely loveless orphan, I’m pretty sure they didn’t know her at all. Harry gets it because Harry knows her. Took him about 30 seconds of listening to her words for it all to make sense to him—whether or not he liked it. No matter how much motive Harry has to see Tom dead, he could never be a coward and kill someone unconscious and helpless—unlike Ron and Draco who were all jealousy and arrogance (“She’s obviously confounded” he said forty seven times entirely ignoring any and all objection and evidence to the contrary), so entirely content to only care about their own experience that it never even occurred to them to consider anyone else’s.

I know you got a ridiculous amount of pressure from all the Dramione fans who wanted some sort of crumb of validation for Draco, and that using Draco’s love was a way to force Harry to accept Draco coming along, but I think the one single critique I have for this story is that it should not have been Draco’s love Sewlyn used. It’s a cheap knock off of the real thing compared to Harry’s love:

Harry wasn’t just being given a chance to save his bestie and get her back (a much bigger deal really than getting back a girl that maybe someday could want to date you, which is all she actually is to Draco). Harry was being given a chance to have his entire reality reset—to grow up with his parents, to maybe have siblings, to have a life in which he never had to be starved and abused by the Dursleys, watch Cedric, Sirius, Hedwig, Dobby and so many other innocent people he loved die, have the fate of the world on his shoulders and suffer, and suffer, and suffer some more. And he gave up his one chance for all of that because he loves Hermione so truly that he was not willing to sacrifice her well being and happiness for his own.

All Ron and Draco can think about is wanting Hermione to want to be their girlfriend and to not have to stop and consider that Voldemort might in fact actually be a human being instead of the boogey man from their childhoods. They’re both predictably (albeit forgivably) pathetic and selfish. Harry is the one demonstrating actual real love for Hermione. And Hermione is clearly demonstrating actual real love for Tom. Ron and Draco are not even in the same building, let alone the same level, of understanding real love.

Regardless of Draco’s undeserved significance, this story is magnificent! nothing gives a dopamine boost like seeing it update. I’ll just be spending all weekend coming down from this, obsessively checking for a miraculous next hit of my favorite drug ♥️

🤷‍♀️ a fair opinion, but I never really felt any real pressure from dramione fans to do anything in particular. It was always going to be Draco’s love, and Draco going back with them. The whole time traveling thing was his idea in the first place, and while I would never say that his love is purer than Harry’s, because it def isn’t, it was real and it was growing. Hermione was growing closer to Draco and further away from Harry. The potential is important. Also, Selwyn likes to cook with spice, as she said… and so do I. :)

[hello-nichya-here]

I saw this take on Azula. What do you think:

“the way the atla fandom treats azula reminds me so much of how the spop fandom treats catra. don't get me wrong, i actually love azula, i think she was a very interesting and complex character. but that doesn't take away from the fact that she was still dangerous and toxic, willing to manipulate and control and kill without remorse.

one huge example of azula being coddled by the fandom is when the comics came out, and she was restrained and put into a straitjacket. i saw many fans complaining about how this was ableist and demonizing trauma and mental illnesses.

which.. i mean i'm sure azula has her fair share of mental health issues after all that she went through. but she wasn't restrained because she was mentally unstable, she was restrained because she was (at that point) the strongest firebender who could and would kill everyone in a heartbeat.

literally it feels like people sometimes forget that this was a fantasy world where people had magic powers. azula had to be restrained because she was a firebending prodigy who has killed once, and will kill again. yes, she was mentally unstable but she was also a threat to everyone.

and you can see, in this universe, how every criminal was restrained in some sort of way. In tlok, the red lotus were each contained in custom-made high security prisons because they were that big of a threat to everyone around them. ming-hua was disabled and she was not provided prosthetics in her prison, but this was because she used water as her prosthetics and was a waterbending prodigy with criminal intentions.

if azula was mentally unstable but not dangerous, the straitjacket would not be necessary. and i know that irl there's a lot of history and ethical discourse surrounding the use of straitjackets but in azula's case, i believe it was necessary. it wasn't ableism or demonizing mental illnesses, it was simply a safety measure to assure that no one else got hurt by azula.”

The tags said “again I promise you. You can sympathize with a villain without taking away their actions that made them a villain in the first place. Just saying.”

The writer of said comics full on admited that the way Azula was treated in the asylum was deliberately to justify her condition getting worse through the story, hence her only improving when she's away from it. He wanted her to be abused to get "crazier" and didn't realize that it painted Zuko in a terrible light to allow a place like this to exist at all, let alone send his own sister there.

Azula was being restrained and beaten CONSTANTLY, despite not doing a damn thing. We see it happening. And to try and justify that by going "well, but she COULD, potentially, do something" is literally THE EXACT SAME EXCUSE that was used to justify that kind of mistreatment in real life asylums.

Much like you can't have the black character linched by the fantasy equivalent of the KKK and expect people to not see the racism in that punishment, regardless of said character being a bad guy, you can't send the mentally ill character to be abused in an asylum and expect people to not see obvious demonization of mental illness and disabilities just because they were a bad guy. This is beyond just "Azula, the character, deserved better", this is a case of "these writers are telling their audience, of mostly children, that ableism is okay"

Atla is a fictional story, yes. One that literally said "everyone is capable of great good and great evil." One that shows us characters overcoming trauma through spiritual healing. One that shows us a criminal in the freaking Boiling Rock getting treatment for anger issues. One that literally Zuko himself say Ozai is not beyond saving, even if he understandably doesn't feel like sticking around to see it or try to play any role in it.

Anything that goes "Actually, just beat the villains into submission, no mercy, or second chances, or basic human decency, ever" is an insult to the message and to the original show - hence why Korra and the comics should have never fucking existed.

You can enjoy Azula as a villain and not want her to be redeemed without excusiving bad, intolerant writing just because it has bad things happening to her. I promise.

[octoberland]

Invisible

Only TWD would get me to come back here writing my fandom thoughts. It's a landmine because you never know how people will react. I am going to share some deeply personal thoughts. I ask that you treat this vulnerability with the respect that it deserves. Spoilers for tonight's episode. And a trigger warning for my personal experiences with abuse.

I met Carol 14 years ago. It was a time in my life when she was a mirror for me. Meek, scared, abused Carol. The little mouse. Jumping when Ed said jump.

By the time the show aired that year I had extricated myself from my situation. But I was still terrified every day. I mostly didn't sleep at night. When I did sleep, I would prop things against the doors so I could hear if someone came in. I would rarely be out of the house at night. On the occasions I was outside after dark I would be walking with my heart in my throat, beating the loudest of drums in my ears. Every stranger was a potential threat. Every shadow could be him coming back to kill me.

I latched onto Carol in my fear and despair. I understood her. Related to her. Felt inspired by her. I was hers from the moment she bashed Ed's skull in. It was so cathartic watching her do that. I wished I could have that moment in my life.

Like her, people judged me. People blamed me for being with a man like that. Said I must like bad boys. Said I liked the attention. Asked why I didn't just leave. It's all so easy to dissect when you're on the outside.

Unlike Carol I didn't have a walker to take out my abuser. I extricated myself. It was one of the most difficult things I've ever done. And it came with great risk. And I mostly did it alone.

I watched as she grew strong. And I grew strong too. Like her, I learned to fight. To be fair, she was not my only influence there. I have Captain America/Chris Evans to thank for that too. I hope someday I get to tell him that story. But watching her grow was an inspiration.

Like many people, I was moved by her ability to connect with Daryl. You don't understand how hard that can be after abuse. It's been 14 years and I've still not been in another relationship. I may never be again. That kind of abuse leaves an indelible mark on you.

But with him she blossomed. Sexually, emotionally, and just as a human. I admired her ability to do that.

The trauma was still there though. We saw that. Her edges became too sharp. Her distance too cold. But I get it. I really, truly get it.

But through it all her relationship with Daryl remained. They were each other's North Star. Not perfect, but constant.

But the sad truth is, at the end of the day these characters don't belong to us. They are written by flawed humans with personal agendas and like with any long running series, the longer it runs the higher chance for writers to fuck things up.

Before I dive more specifically into tonight's episode and the Book of Carol let me just say that I still love Carol and I still love Daryl and I still love Caryl. If you want to stop reading here just know that Carol remains an icon to me for very personal reasons. But that is part of why I'm writing this.

Potential spoilers beyond the cut.

The writing this season is sloppy, imho. And this is where I put my writer hat on and try to look at things more objectively. It seems like Gimple is mining the past because it's "cool" and not because he actually wants to address any long standing trauma that Carol has.

Everyone's trauma journey is different and I get that. But after 14 years I doubt that Carol is going to start panicking when going into a barn. In fact, we've already seen her entering barns in early seasons without any issues. I wish the show had consulted some trauma experts. They could have provided some examples of things that might actually set her off. Like seeing a little girl walker. Or meeting a child named Sophia. And speaking of that, I know Carol is supposed to be tough and sneaky and all that but the episode where she lied about her daughter to get the plane really bothered me. If the memory of her daughter is so traumatic I feel like she would not use her daughter like that.

This reunion episode was a missed opportunity to explore trauma in a more meaningful way. It was a missed opportunity for Carol and Daryl to have some truly meaningful conversations. I know I've said this before but she FLEW ACROSS THE OCEAN. DURING AN APOCALYPSE. And all he basically did was grunt one liners at her and lie about how he never stopped trying to get back to her. These two deserve to have a real conversation where they talk about how incredible what she did was. They need to talk about what that means for each of them. And I'm not even talking about romance. Daryl has never had anyone do anything like that for him. Does he understand how profound an act that was? If he ever had any doubt as to how much Carol cared for him this should have erased it. And for Carol, this could also be a wake up call for her too. While being hard and cunning is good for survival, this is an opportunity for her to be vulnerable. To express what he means to her. Or to maybe even face any codependence she has with Daryl.

I feel bad what happened to Isabelle. It kind of feels like an FU to her character. As much as I love Caryl I'm not in support of fridging women for a ship or for man pain. I'm glad we got to see her and Carol together but I wish we could have seen them together a little longer. Again, there is a missed opportunity for some really interesting conversations.

I can't help but feel that this show is suffering under the leadership of male writers and showrunners. There's such nuance to be had here and it's being funneled down to base tropes. Genet is evil because her husband died. Carol is just now having flashbacks to something that happened a decade ago because we need her to grow emotionally and we can't think of another way to do that without mining her motherhood. Isabelle has to die because God forbid two adults actually have a conversation about emotions.

I honestly can't guess where this series is going right now. Every time I think I know what is going to happen something else happens instead. Normally this would be a good thing but here it just feels sloppy. Are they dicking around Caryl? Will they kill her? Or him? Or do they plan for this to go into more seasons? I haven't a clue. But it feels like whiplash, like they are trying to make the characters grow too quickly to fit an agenda without doing the real work people need to do. A hug from an old lady won't cure trauma.

I think mostly I just wish Carol and Daryl would have a real conversation before all this is over.

Anyway, that's my rant. I did like the old married couple joke in the car. And I'm glad Carol's not dead. But I hope we get to see some real connection.

[daughterofevil158]

How do you think Damon would comfort each of his soulmates when they cry?

You put this socially and emotionally awkward man in front of someone crying and you can visibly see him blue-screening. honestly chances are higher of him getting one of the more emotionally open soulmates to help him, but we'll ignore that for the time being. giving a few different reasons for the crying to add variety since Damon's actual comforting would probably be awkward hugs/back pats all around

Starting with the people I can most easily imagine crying in front of Damon:

◊ Toshiko: Like I mentioned in the previous crying ask, being a kid put in a killing game would terrible. Girl is trying so hard to be brave, but Damon unintentionally ruins it by constantly reminding her to be cautious here and that she should be careful because of her being an easy target. He's saying it out of concern, but Toshiko starts wailing that she knows that, so stop rubbing it in. Congratulations on completing a big step in being an older sibling: accidentally making the younger one cry (gods save him if this is in public). He wouldn't necessarily go back on his words, but he means it when he says that he'll do his best not to let that happen, and any potential killer has to go thru him first. Which sets her off even more because she doesn't want him to die either, and as an Ultimate she can take care of herself. Definitely more of a self-soothing thing where Toshiko is hugging Damon until he can barely breathe and sobbing into his chest while he clumsily pats her back (definitely needs to wash his shirt when it's over, but he doesn't say anything about it).

◊ Diana: Much like Damon himself, I see Diana as the type to put a brave face in front of the others then break down once she's alone. She gets caught by Damon at some point and he is desperately trying but unable to say things the way she does. It's another situation where the effort put into the comforting helps more than the comfort itself. She is once again hugging him for support but this time he returns it sooner.

◊ Kai: definitely also because of fears of dying, but Damon isn't as gentle about it as he is with the above at first (insert that "Gordon Ramsey with children vs. with adults" meme). Imagining it happening shorter after rooming up and finding out they're soulmates, so Kai is also upset that his soulmate hates him. Damon is forced to "begrudgingly" admit that, no, he doesn't hate Kai, he just thinks he's annoying and clingy. If he really hated Kai he wouldn't have helped with the ring. Is also one who clings onto Damon while crying, tho not as snotty. Kai feels like he'd be tired after a good cry, so Damon's stuck like that for the rest of the night.

◊ Eva: absolutely putting her reason as being the confrontation about her murder plan. She tries to remain calm while explaining her reasoning, but Damon would be more vocal that he trusted Eva because soulmates should be able to do that (i'm realizing i say that a lot in these posts lol) and that breaks her. She never had any friends before this, and the first one she made (her soulmate at that), she abused his trust while knowing he'd die if her plan succeeded (that, along with the deaths of the people who were trying to befriend her, would've definitely been something she refused to acknowledge until it happened). Definitely another situation where the comforter starts crying even harder than the one initially crying. (Imagine these two 18 year olds violently sobbing into each other while hugging, only held up by the other person. And Wolfgang is just standing there)

◊ Mark: definitely the one who ignores the building up stress until it bursts. Damon can hear him trying to make a new track, but he keeps pausing and restarting before stopping without finishing it, so he goes to check on him. Finds him curled up on his chair with his head in his arms, quietly crying. (I'm just theorizing here, but I'm convinced that them having similar features in gonna be important at some point in canon.) But because Mark looks so similar to how Damon did a few years back, he is simultaneously gentler and more uncomfortable about this (tho he has the awareness not to show that). Damon moves him to his bed so he won't end up falling off the chair, tries to get up to get some tissues or water or something, and gets firsthand experience on a gator's death grip. Bro's not letting go until he's done, so Damon just has to accept it. Thinking that Mark is also a quiet crier who lets out a stuffy and awkward "Thanks..." when he finally lets Damon go.

◊ Wolfgang: Why is he so far up compared to the rest? Because Damon almost getting 360 no scoped is now canon to the AU. This would be the second time that Damon got hurt because of him (the first being with isolating him at the start). And considering everything we know about the Akire's, there's already some self-loathing and guilty feelings that are exacerbated by this. He's there the moment Damon awakens and is apologizing profusely for putting him in danger, running his hands through his hair and visibly trying not to breakdown then and there. Damon does not help with his quip of "I'm the one who got shot, why are you so upset?" It wouldn't be as visceral as his in-game moment of crying, but Wolfgang is definitely not a pretty crier. Since he's normally so composed, I see him as the type that hyperventilates and goes into gasping choked sobs pretty quickly. He's holding back from hugging Damon to avoid worsening his injuries, but Damon makes the effort to sit up and clumsily wrap his arms around Wolfie.

◊ Ulysses: Also one who's crying either out of stress or from being relieved that Damon's alright. Doesn't even realize that he's crying at first, just that he can't see as well and his journal's getting wet spots. Damon points it out and gets a quiet "Oh..." in response. Another quiet crier, sobs are almost as quiet as his normal breaths. It's a coin toss on whether he conks out as soon as he's done or is desperately in need of a coffee afterwards (tho the former is more likely).

◊Cassidy: Girl is Totally Fine™ and there's nothing wrong with her. Stop looking at her imitation arts, stop it. She's not breaking down easily unless the walls are deliberately chipped at, but if Damon did catch her crying he'd be taken aback because. She's the cheerful gamer gal who always has a funny quip in mind. Another one who'd initiate the hug and not let go, and is probably just as messy a crier as Toshiko.

◊ Jett: More easily cries than Cassidy, but is lower than her on account of his helmet and surprisingly being a fairly quiet crier (more of a shaker than a sobber). Imagining his reason being guilt from their shared pain soulmark because Damon's never actually blamed him for any of it despite Jett definitely getting major injuries even before the big crash (like, just imagine all the ways drag racers can get hurt and Jett's probably gone thru all of them at least once). Jett feels shitty enough about it without the bonus that his soulmate also felt every moment of agony, thank you very much. Damon's attempts at comfort almost make it worse because, in Jett's eyes, he should be pissed at Jett for putting him through that. But Damon's initiating the hug despite everything, and Jett eventually returns it after some hesitance.

◊ Desmond: Trickiest to imagine of the bunch, but I decided he's also crying because of Damon getting hurt. But it's more tears of frustration than actual crying?? Based on his blackmail, I'm giving him a protection complex, if that makes sense. So upset that he wasn't there for Damon because even though he didn't die, he could've, and that's all Desmond can think about. Dude's great at comforting but not as great at being comforted. He'll be okay, he just needs some time to process what happened (he is Not Okay). Damon eventually has to claim that he's the one that needs a hug to finally get Desmond to accept one.

[davekat-sucks]

I feel like you missed the bit where Caliborn/Lord English/Doc Scratch controlled just about every detail of the Alpha timeline up until Game Over.

How the characters treated each other led to their classes and roles in the narrative, even to the point of who did and did not god tier.

Mindfang and Vriska are the way they are in direct relation to Doc Scratch. He in particular has an affinity for the Light players also screwing over Rose.

Spidermom does not lend herself particularly well to the task of raising well adjusted children. Not to mention that without Mindfang's actions, as reprehensible as they are, Vriska who has no other role models, wouldn't have killed Aradia who's death was essential for their success, wouldn't have bullied and abused Tavros who's death prompted Terezi to kill Vriska in turn.

Doc Scratch literally calls them suckers for all of this, something he had infinite timelines to perfect.

Further evidence is Vriska's ignoring and rejection of Kanaya's input. A character who literally symbolises maternity.

A lot of the problems within Homestuck are due to the literal universes being run by a toxically masculine father figure while nearly every maternal figure is killed or ignored. (Except Roxy, who bucks this trend.)

PM also noticeably diverts from this path. Her major influence is the White Queen. Both Queens are taken out extremely early, but PM's adherence to her queen's directives ultimately result in her victory. Roxy also just so happens to kill a queen in HIC.

Vriska after getting on better terms with Terezi and Kanaya and leaving behind her idolatry of Mindfang, the influence of Doc Scratch, and the abuse from her mother, is the character we see standing across from Lord English in the end.

Roxy making the Matriorb, Vriska's plan, Kanaya's discussion with Echidna (the mother of monsters) it's all extremely thematic to the reestablishment of a womanhood not subjugated by Caliborn's masculinity.

But isn't it also a reoccurring theme about fate and destiny that the characters either go along or reject? Can it not work for something like going against the ultimate big bad Lord English or Doc Scratch? John's Retcon powers was suppose to be this for Post Canon, but it's never used fully to its potential for things like saving Equius, Nepeta, and Tavros, pacifying Gamzee without using mind control, etc. You also forget that some of the people that were part of the doomed timeline had also gotten chances to improve as individuals. For example, Eridan was less of shithead somewhere, being friends with Feferi for real, and obtaining his Hope powers. But fate says it is not the right way. Eridan shouldn't be nice. He HAD to commit the horrible actions he did on the meteor to continue the timeline. So it's impossible to have Eridan improve even with John's retcon powers? Or why let some people be exceptions of what is the status quo for their aspects? Space players deal with loneliness. Kanaya is suffering from Rose's affair with Jade, Rose leaving Kanaya in the Meat Timeline, and Jade is suffering from her loneliness because Dave won't return her feelings in said both timelines. The only one not suffering is CALLIOPE, who is currently with Roxy in both Candy and Meat. Why is she special compared to others that would have go through what their aspects is destined to be? Even then, not all the things about the aspects is true. For example, Breath of Air is suppose to be about freedom. If it's that, then why do people still TELL JOHN WHAT TO DO when he can just actually make choices on his own. Not from the Readers, not from other characters in-universe, but his own being, as the story tries to claim that they are living people and living people don't have character arcs. It was also VRISKA'S CHOICE to wanting to be like Mindfang. It was HER choice to try and project herself and become something she may not be able to be as great as the figure. Nothing about Mindfang did say she had to sexually harass Tavros to make him like The Summoner. It was Vriska herself who think she can groom him to become his ancestor without his consent. Don't think it is Mindfang's fault for it because of Beyond Canon. How is also Vriska's rejection for Kanaya's feelings a symbol of maternity? Kanaya's ideal relationship with Vriska is that she's the bad girl and Kanaya would be the one to try and tame her ways. The whole I CAN FIX HER kind of shit. Vriska is just o8livious to Kanaya's feelings because she is so caught up in herself that she doesn't bother or care about how other people feel. Kanaya sawing off Tavros's lower torso is normal in Vriska's eyes because jadeblood is above bronzeblood. Vriska is used to violence done by trolls. So it's not like Vriska can call out Kanaya for hurting Tavros out of jealousy if she knew.

Also, how is it the father figures fault for toxic masculinity?! Dad Egbert was the sweetest guardian compared to everyone else. What he fuck did he do wrong when raising John? PUTTING A LETTER UNDER A SAFE THAT SAYS HE FINALLY BECAME A MAN AFTER LIFTING IT?!!! How the fuck is that bad? Equius' lusus, Aurthour, acts more like a servant for his son too. How is he abusive towards the blueblood when his son can bruise the guy even at the lightest pat? If anything, the problem lies more of the women who abuse their position and power. The Condesce is an example of this for Alternia and her alias as Betty Crocker. She wishes to be immortal to stay in her position. Mindfang was another in the sense that she had waited for The Summoner to grow up and have him gain his powers so she can use him for her own goals. Sure she loved him, but it's still fact that she had needed someone for her own benefits. Bitch had to wait for a troll to hatch and grow up legally for her to MATE. But nobody calls her out to be a pedophile. Then there's the Black Queen/Snowman and her treatment towards Jack Noir/Spades Slick. The Black King may be the figurehead and force upon his kingdom, but the true brains was the Queen herself. It's a running theme that the women are often portrayed to be strong, in power, or placed in such a high position while the men go through emotional arcs. But you forget that it wasn't Vriska who defeated Lord English. Bitch didn't even get to directly to fight him during Collide. She has to face ANDREW HUSSIE. It was Tavros, Aradia, and the ghost army that faced him. The same ghost army that TAVROS also recruited. The real leader would be him, not this fat 8itch. And even then, she got cucked out again and it was DAVEPETASPRITE^2 who killed Lord English in Epilogues. Vriska didn't deliver the final blow. For a girl to claim she wants to be seen or become a hero, bitch gets cucked out of the great moment it would instill herself as a hero. Vriska may have stopped Gamzee from doing worse to Terezi, but she wouldn't be there if it was not for JOHN. A man saved her life. Also the reason why Roxy had to make the Matriorb was because Eridan had destroyed the one on the meteor. It has nothing to do with Caliborn, even with the whole 'Eridan is the proto-Caliborn' bullshit that Andrew Hussie tries to say he is this in the book commentary. His destruction towards it was necessary too because it meant the Condesce could not repopulate the troll race for the Alpha Timeline. The Condesce was also the one who kidnaps Roxy to force her to make this. It was a WOMAN who wanted to get the troll reproduction back on track since her mistreatment towards her lusus, Gl'bgolyb, made her unable to get the Matriorb. It's in contrast too that Feferi was the only one who treated her lusus kindly that she was rewarded an afterlife for all her friends, the Dream Bubbles. How is Caliborn involved in anyway of the troll repopulation or forcing Roxy to make another one?

[basket-of-cats-and-witches]

New Beginnings

I never really liked all the different ways I could have introduced Kit, my OC. Originally, I settled on the ol "try to take him out and Sylus is impressed and recruits", but as Kit has evolved and changed as a character, it stopped feeling correct. After all, I've established in my own headspace that Kit is unwaveringly loyal to him, which requires quite the catalyst. She's very firm in her beliefs.

So, here. This is set ambiguously in timeline, but well before MC shows up at Sylus's doorstep for the Aether Core.

Content Warnings include: Mentions of physical abuse, expectation of death, brief mentions of s*x work (not in a nsfw way), mentions of violence/blood.

Anyway, if you liked this or just wanna support a writer, feel free to like or reblog! It lets me know people like my work, and encourages me to continue writing.

I'm really happy with the imagery in this one, so I hope you like it too!

🐦‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐦‍⬛🐈‍⬛🐦‍⬛

Gunfire could be heard inside the compound. Time slowed as people rushed inside, rain slicking the stairs like blood seeping between the floorboards.

Still, Sylus's attention was focused on one figure, and that figure alone.

She didn't flinch as Onychinus took over, men with guns shouting left and right.

The only sign of any life was the cherry-red glow of the cigarette as she brought it to her lips, inhaling in measured breaths.

Those eyes looked…hollow.

A man was dragged past her, screaming and kicking. He yelled profanities at her, face twisted with rage, but she didn't seem to notice.

Only Sylus's keen eye was sharp enough to see the tears that rolled down her face with the rain.

Short cropped curls sagged under their own soaked weight, twisting loosely across her forehead. There were old scars across the back of her neck, like a sheep forcibly shorn, and he couldn't help but wonder what she would look like if she had a chance to bloom.

This was no small woman. She was lean and tall, every muscle toned and built specifically for fighting.

She was not a typical beauty. There was a handsomeness there that few would recognize. People would see the towering height and her intimidating coldness first, and not look past it.

Kieran, ever quiet, nudged him.

He glanced down.

“You're going to take her, aren't you?” He asked softly, his voice barely audible amongst the din.

Sylus stared at her a little longer.

The woman didn't move. Her head was hung low as if she was already waiting for death.

As if she'd already died.

He sighed, and stepped forward.

-

There was a pair of nice shoes in front of her.

Instinctively, Kit knew they were Italian leather, polished to the nth degree. These were shoes that were well-loved, well cared for, like her father's hands holding hers and teaching her how to work the wax into each crease and seam.

She took another drag of her cigarette, and wondered if she'd ever see him again.

“So you're our informant, hm?” That voice was deep and rich, silky with raw confidence. This was a man who was used to getting what he wanted.

Numbly, she nodded. Any second now, he'd thank her for the tip and kill her.

That was just how these things went. She'd done it plenty of times on Hector's behalf.

The Italian shoes creased as the man squatted down in front of her. Rain soaked his coat, turning charcoal into pitch as the black fabric became waterlogged.

“What's your name?” He asked.

“Kit.” She didn't even recognize her own voice. It was hollow and flat as she waited for the executioner's ax.

He tilted his head. “No last name? I suppose this business does have a tendency to take out family members as potential casualties.”

“Don't play around with me,” she said flatly, flicking the cigarette onto the ground and crushing it with her toe. “Just do what you have to. If you're going to take my life, I'd appreciate it if you didn't play with your meal first.”

The man tilted his head, humming tunelessly in thought. She'd never heard anything so off-key in her life.

“You think I'm going to kill you?” He said. “That seems like a waste. Becoming one of mine is a much better bargain.”

Kit blanched at that. “I'm not interested in working ‘under’ you. I think I'd prefer death, in that case.” As soon as the retort came out of her mouth, she cringed, expecting the strike of a hand.

Or worse, getting pistol-whipped. Hector's favorite method of punishment.

Instead, she was graced with a low chuckle.

“Trust me, kitten, if I wanted a bedwarmer there are plenty of women far more willing. And I prefer them willing.” He continued as heat spread across her cheeks. “Besides, you seem like you're a skilled fighter. That's a much more useful ability to me.”

“And you're not concerned I'm going to sell you out like I did these people?” Kit asked quietly.

Sylus shook his head. “No,” he said, without missing a beat. “I'm fairly certain you had your reasons. By the scars on the back of your neck and the way you still haven't made eye contact with me, I think they were less kind to you than you were to them.”

Startled, Kit looked up.

Lightning cracked down behind him, illuminating the soft grey-white of his hair and turning it into a blazing halo. The sudden flare of light left his face in shadow, a single ruby eye glowing with an unnatural light.

It was like a panther’s gaze in the darkness, a predator waiting to strike.

Like an angel, filled with cruel mercy.

Sylus smiled at her, a tiny curve of his lips as he looked her over.

“There we go,” he murmured. Standing up, he held out his hand. “The name's Sylus. Onychinus is mine. Want to work for me?”

Kit swallowed hard. Her mouth felt dry, a swirl of complex emotions filling up her chest and pressing outwards, as of they were trying to break free of her lungs.

She took his hand.

“I'm Kit,” she whispered. “Kitty Hale.”

Sylus smiled wider, and pulled her to her feet.

[columbocorners]

I haven't done any art of otto but honest to god I feel like so much of otto's angsty behavior I really have chalked up to being normal for me because I have so many weird ocs who have trauma on the basis of horrible shit they can't comprehend happening to them. so this ramble is about that.

one of my ocs, mr. forget-me-nots' whole trauma is on the basis of pure abandonment by his family when he was 18 years old and expectation to run a horrible drug operation long after his mother, the sole owner, passes, and how does he even cope? by doing it. because he wanted any approval from his mother even after she was dead and buried, by hands which he embalmed, and he is so caught up in the world of the dead and the past which he is completely shook by to even understand why he mourns the way he does, because he's so stuck in anger he never truly got to express.

and for another character, their whole identity is chalked up to ' you are an essential copy of another man's legacy and mistake ( in this case, a mistake interpreted as a GOOD thing, mind you ) and told he can't be anyone else other than that person's legacy, that personification, and has to abide by that law, because that's all he is, all he will ever be, and he is told to kill anything personal ( his own childhood crush and lover ) just to extract any idea or possibility he could even be human.

and then I look at otto and all his actions just. make perfect sense to me because he is SO traumatized. by someone who he was potentially close to being taken by something and the idea noone suggested cece ( cici ? ) wanted that, is horrible in execution because has anyone ever considered that maybe cece is his only family? that maybe even their parents weren't that good? there is enough there were you could make the assumption they even hated each other as siblings, but by god with the way otto acts I can't imagine anything else beyond purely a good sibling dynamic or just the pain that is of losing someone, knowing they are in reach, but you're incapable of even getting there, and maybe to some extent it is because of WHO you are, and in that same sense there is a fear that because of how OTTO is, that could even be why she was gone which is why I have been doing nothing but rotting on otto being just such a misguidedly good person who does such horrible things because he is absolutely a bad therapist but you know it is because not only is he attached to noone, it's just the fact she's the one thing that could tell him why cece was taken which is why he's so frantic. noone doesn't respect him and I can't blame her, but I also think it's the little things, the breathing techniques, the attempts to try and make genuine connections, he's in so much denial though that is he so selfish with his own wants that he can't abide by noone's own but you know, that's the thing with someone who is as traumatized as otto is, how could he not be like that? how could he not be as aggressive and outrageously selfish as he is? it does not at all justify the behavior, especially towards a CHILD, mind you. However, it's still the point and clear fact that like or not, he has a complex care for noone and his patients, he doesn't like referring to children by numbers, he tries to ensure noone is given opportunities and chances to get cake, to have gifts. It is so unprofessional as it is a weak attempt to try and do better because he knows he's fucked up, but he's so disorientated in the belief that he can at least fix the one thing that BROKE him in the first place all these years, like. I get that honestly. as someone who has been abused, who has gone through more than the average person, I get not letting go of the past and the refusal not to, the denial, the bitterness about it all, the grief, because as much as you are moving forward, you can't help but look back and for me, that's what otto does so much in the podcast.

he can't help but be caught up in that incident because he was just a boy who lost his sister and was told by someone else that yeah, she could've left because of how he was, but then it's like, that is a majorly fucked up thing to say to someone, actually, he is being so shitty as he is, but he didn't deserve to be told that to me, because from how I see it, otto is alone. he's got nothing to cling to but someone who is already gone, and it's like. he lost his way because he got relapsed by trauma from the past that came to haunt him by literally noone experiencing the same thing his own sister was.

and I feel like by the end of it, he's just going to go down a hole he can't climb out of ( well, he's already dug himself so far as he did ) and it's like. on god, you couldn't exactly blame him for being mad at the ferryman either because it's like. in his eyes, that was the thing that took away a family member, someone he cared about. and if there is one thing I hate, it's like that so many people are forgetful of what makes up otto which is the trauma. like yes, he's done so much that is so shitty, but I'm not gonna' have that be like the only thing I will see about that character because he's really layered to me, I love noone, and I genuinely get why she's upset at otto, honestly I am too, but on god, I love seeing the trauma within characters and how that, for otto, never went away even through adulthood because trauma doesn't. you don't get rid of that, there is no healing some wounds, they just linger and they burn, and they will eat at you if you LET them.

and otto has. I've got like multiple headcanons about otto honestly that I could go into, because honestly he gives off divorced energy to me and that means lack of understanding and difficulty with some social cues reads to me as adhd in my eyes and I have adhd so I'm making that a big hc so it's like. broooo I could go on for hours.

[gamora-borealis]

I think with vol 1 Gamora we see her have a slow transition from beginning to end of the film and she softens over time. She had a plan in place to leave Thanos and was ready to risk distancing herself from him. She goes from quick to anger and having almost no trust and fear of vulnerability to letting her guard down a little. We can see her nodding her head to Peter's music and offering him a gentle smile by the end. In vol 2 she's grown some more and is closer to the others and more open, but she still has rough spots and doesn't trust new people easily or read every emotional situation. Then of course by the end there's more growth and deeper relationships to the others. We get to see a solid arc of emotional and mental healing. We're allowed to understand the good and bad parts of her and to connect with her story. In Endgame 2014Gamora is just like vol 1 Gamora. We see how hard she can be but also that she cares and has a good heart. In vol 3 Gamora is very much like vol 1 Gamora only a bit rougher because she's a ravager now. But also she's basically vol 1 Gamora who didn't get to ease into changes. She was thrown into the future, found out she had been killed, was dealing with both 2018 and 2014 Nebula and had to then jump head first into a potentially universe ending battle against her abuser. If that had been me I would have had a nervous breakdown. There's so much that was going on and vol 3 never allows that to be explored. Her entire significant experiences in the future all happened between Endgame and vol 3 where people couldn't emotionally connect to it. The guardians aren't given space to sympathize with her and the audience is left with undefined backstory and no real plot for Gamora in the film.

Lots of people have been deliberating on 2014Gamora and I think the most simplistic answer is they never should have killed 2018Gamora. Especially with only one film left. The contrast between her death in Infinity War and how James Gunn has handled characters deaths with far more agency and dignity stands out a lot. But in vol 3 it's so much more in your face how Gamora was treated compared to the other characters. In Infinity War she dealt with Thanos mostly on her own, was emotionally abused and then just as she's telling her abuser what he's done to her isn't love the movie allows her experience to be silenced when Thanos throws her off the cliff and actually receives the soul stone. Afterwards we are never given a chance in any other movie or show with the guardians to see them all angry or sad about what happened. In vol 3 we see every member of the team openly distraught over Rocket's situation. When he faces his abusive past he's not alone. When he stands up to his abuser his feelings aren't shutdown and he gets to win.

I think vol 3 had a number of nice character moments for Gamora and I was particularly happy she got to stab the villain. There are many aspects to the writing and characterization that are great. But it's hard not to notice Gamora's treatment compared to all the other characters has been pretty awful since IW. I saw lots of people excusing what Thanos did to Gamora after Infinity War or saying she wasn't really abused because Thanos got the soul stone. I now see some of those same people talking about how Rocket's abuser was actually a bad person and what he did was unforgivable. That alone tells me Infinity War should never have happened. Nobody should have been left feeling Gamora deserved what happened or that it was justified. James Gunn has said he signed off on and was okay with how Infinity War went down and I try to respect that but I don't understand him signing off on the message Infinity War sent about Gamora's abuse compared to the message he put out about Rocket's abuser. I don't get allowing a prominent character who was on her way to easily having one of the strongest arcs in the mcu, ending the trilogy the least developed character with the least amount of relationships to a story that she helped shape.

Yes Yes Yes! Great write up anon.

I think there could have been more Gamora stuff in Vol. 3, but it clearly was meant to be a Rocket-centric movie and there was so much going on considering they had to fit in Adam as well, so more stuff with her would have taken away from all that from a writing perspective. Not that that's fair to her character at all, but story/time-wise and knowing that Rocket is Gunn's favorite and this was meant to be his movie (whereas the last one was a little more Gamora and Nebula heavy), it makes a lot of sense.

We also have to remember: the timing of the James Gunn drama may have affected this too. The first time we see the Guardians again being in Thor 4 where it's just supposed to be kinda goofy and short was not ideal. This movie is 3 years late, and there were some changes made to the script (not huge, but probably some side-plot Gamora and Adam related stuff because the movie was further up the timeline now).

One thing I liked in Vol. 3 is they kind of have a moment where they take a jab at the "magic cliff" and how it doesn't make sense. I also struggle with Gunn's decision to sign off on her death. He seems to care about these characters a lot, even if Gamora isn't maybe his favorite like Rocket. It makes me wonder how much say he actually had in all of it, and how much it was just reassuring the fans (I'm skeptical of statements like this having become a Supernatural fan since 2020 lmao). From a writing standpoint, I can see how "Gamora having a big emotional death and Peter fucking everything up" sounds appealing, especially since they were desperately trying to figure out how to incorporate the soul stone and give the movie emotional depth. The soul stone was originally supposed to be tied to Black Panther/Wakanda, but their director wanted the movie and T'Challa's powers to be rooted in Wakanda/Africa (the flowers) and not some weird space thing (which makes sense!). So they probably came up with the Vormir idea and approached Gunn with not a lot of options. If Gunn had been the sole writer of IW/Endgame, I'm sure that even if he still chose to kill Gamora, that the stuff after Gamora's death would have been handled a lot better (as we see with Rocket and his abuser in this film). It's clear that Gamora couldn't have been brought back though because that would have meant Natasha also would have needed to come back, and the Avengers people clearly wanted her to stay dead (and that's a whole other problem ugh). Gunn probably was given story points he had to work with in IW/Endgame and write dialogue for, which I feel like he did a decent job of (Gamora spoke her mind as much as the story allowed and tried to sacrifice herself).

A lot of people have pointed out that sexism probably has some to do with how Gamora has been treated too (like if she was a male lead would it have played out like this). And you know, I don't think James Gunn is purposely trying to be sexist, but the dude is flawed (and admits it) and his writing used to be more problematic than it is now. It's maybe still a blindspot for him.

I'm also potentially processing this all differently because I purposely spoiled myself on some Gamora details last weekend before going into the movie (yesterday) to prepare myself (because if not I can get wayyy too invested and it hurts a lot). So I've had some time to think about all of this at a meta-level before I saw the film. I think I'm generally happy with how it turned out considering what happened happened in IW and can't be changed now. I kind of liked that Gamora had all this growth in Vol. 2, idk what path she would have taken in Vol 3. Everyone had to go discover themselves at the end. Would Starmora have broken up then? Adding the new challenge of making it a different Gamora was kind of more compelling in some ways, although I absolutely hate that that meant she had to die to get there (maybe if it was the same Gamora with no memories that would have been interesting).

I'm also very used to filling in all the gaps of what isn't on screen because that's just how my fanfic brain works, and I feel like Gunn writes such strong characters that it's easy to imagine stuff offscreen (and maybe that's what he wants us to do). So like, just because some of the Gamora / Guardians mourning her stuff happened offscreen doesn't mean it didn't happen. Gunn would probably agree with that. It still sucks that we didn't get to see it though.

[savingthrcw]

Kate Austen

Page under construction

Some important canon divergences:

-This is the most important thing, key to Kate regardless of me eventually writing other ships because it explains a lot about her (I'm talking about her relationship with her father as you'll see): I will be writing Kate as having feelings for Sawyer by default even if you write he doesn't feel the same way (she'll get over it, I don't want to forceship!), and trying to push them away because, like she said "every time I look at Sawyer, every time I feel something for him, I see you, Wayne. It makes me sick", and I interpret that as not only her thinking of Sawyer as potentially unreliable in romantic settings even if not abusive like Wayne was (she pictures the two of them as a very toxic couple, especially knowing herself and how she'd keep pushing him away, so she doesn't really him a chance to prove her wrong) BUT, more importantly, it means to me that she's scared he'll bring out of her everything she has inherited from Wayne, because she's more herself around Sawyer than around others and she keeps pulling closer and pushing away; she sees Wayne because she fears she's like him in many ways.

Wayne always pushed her darker side out until she killed him, and she's scared she'll find out she's too much like him so she runs first (same fear she had about having children, and Aaron proved her wrong, turns out she could be able to give healthy love if she gave herself the chance). This fear exists regardless of Sawyer, and will follow her in romantic & familial & strong platonic relationships in this order.

I want to point out that this doesn't need to come up in our threads because very dark (depends on your triggers and her relationship with your muse), but it was very clear that Wayne, while believing Kate to be "only his wife's daughter" (but still, you know, a young woman under his roof that he watched grow up), was making passes at her, at least in the form of sexual comments while drunk and grabbing her. I write Kate as sure this was going to go somewhere beyond words and the last push that made her kill him, besides having just found out he was her biological father. She hates him and everything else I said, and even more so for hurting her mother, but she was also terrified.

-her feelings for Sawyer will dissipate if we are writing another ship or if we write that from the beginning they never interacted as much, but if they were there she'll always care for him.

-I write her as caring very much for Jack but not being in love with him. I will write her as distraught after seeing him with Juliet and still sleeping with Sawyer that night, but it will be because she knows she hurt him very badly, begging for his help to save Sawyer and 'making him' perform surgery on Ben. It's guilt. It's also feeling she can't be the person he deserves. She's not going to be with Jack if she goes home. You can have your Jack feel for her whatever you want.

-Kate's afraid she'll also 'pass on' the evil onto a biological child somehow. If she's raising Aaron in one of our verses that fear has taken a dive and is almost gone, because she can never imagine hurting him and she's beginning to see that a biological child would be equally innocent and not draw anything evil out of her.

-Now here's the kicker: I have to write Kate as more open than she is in canon. I think the difference comes from not relying as much on Jack, not letting herself grow as close due to guilt (over manipulating him/using his feelings at the very beginning) and that changes everything. Because if I write her the way she is in canon, threads will lead nowhere because she'll shut down. So I'll put her in situations where she's forced to speak up and make different choices. Not much, because it's still Kate, but enough. You can assume she's running away from openness in between threads, of course, but during threads when doable I will force words out of her, probably by changing some neutral small choices (example: not leaving immediately which results into a conversation not being closed).

Example: if Sawyer tells her she can use him, doesn't have to pretend she wasn't upset about Jack and Juliet when she slept with him, instead of not defending herself because it's true she will later tell him that it wasn't like that because in this blog it's not, and because I'll find an excuse to make her admit it, even if it's just anger.

potential scenarios:

-I'd love to write Kate staying on the island with Aaron due to things going differently, and traveling to the past with the others, or just Kate, no Aaron. Or for Sawyer to go with her, back home with all the difficulties and awkwardness there. Write other things happening, other encounters, wounds, situations, going off-canon, having her and Sawyer actually discuss how she feels about Jack (and maybe she goes stay with Claire again after they fight over the pregnancy scare instead of going back to Jack) (or she COULD be pregnant and terrified), or like I said explore her relationship with Sayid more, since there was something going on there in the first episodes and they kept being close (but could have been closer). With Juliets and Jacks, if they are okay with the changes, there could be more focus on the '3 years later', keeping in mind that Kate stayed single. Same for potential Claires who may return to Aaron and be helped by her. Or even better, all these characters survive and go home and threads can be set there too! Let's save whoever we want and write nicer things too, besides causing them new pains!