#he likes to make both nina versions angry
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How would Toby get along with the new Nina? The 2021 remake
I like the old Nina more personally haha
#he likes to make both nina versions angry#tobs#creepypasta ticci toby#ticci tobi#ticci toby#ticci toby creepypasta#toby rogers#creepypasta nina the killer#nina the killer#nina the killer remake#nina 2021#creepypasta art#creepypasta#my work#ask
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hey so we know natalie and jack both like toby, right? but do they know they have a crush on the same person?
đ§ââď¸
short answer: no
long answer:
ok so in my like, 'canon' version of creeped, the crushes are genuinely so fleeting and pointless, nobody knows anything and it goes nowhere. the only canon romantic relationships happen between nina/jeff, jane/mary, liu/ex fiance, dina/helen
BUT in the more multishippy-funsy version of creeped where i allow ships to happen...
i think it would be funny. they'd both be pretty clueless for a while. clocky fights her feelings for toby sooo so so so so hard, she feels hella shame and embarrassment. jack fights it a little just cuz 'really? i like this guy?' but eventually is like ok fine he's cute its fine.
and theyre both incredibly observant. nats got an eye more than jack, so she thinks she has an advantage and can get away with lingering stares, but jack can hear her heartbeat across the damn room.
and nat goes to jack a lot when she's feeling overwhelmed and angry with everyone else, but cant handle being alone either. and she'll sit on his couch and grumble and occasionally wipe down his counters while he cleans and he quietly talks about his day and asks if she wants go to go on a walk and this and that...
so eventually, toby would come up. and i think jack would be the one to say something first. dunno how, but maybe more of a suggestion than anything, and nat gets all tense and she's like "what the fuck are you implying jack" and jack laughs and is like "alright you dont need to get defensive, i get it" and shes like "the fuck you mean you get it" and he just smiles and keeps cooking or walking and then they drop the topic.
then a week goes by and shes banging on his door and is like "what did you mean you get it." and hes like its 3am. and shes like im asking you a question.
lets her in and they kinda talk about it. eventually it turns into them laughing about 'god i cant believe HE of all people got BOTH OF US' and make fun of eachother for it. theres no jealousy or envy or resentment between them - both are too mature and detached from romance for that, but they dont talk about it often
#im hesitant to add ships cuz 1. feels restricting 2. i feel like it takes away from the story i wanna tell#even though i still largely focus on ships for my own fun... ykwim though#creeped#creeped hypotheticals should be its own tag . LMAOOO#asks
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Okay but also, just wanna make something clear to some people that apparently missed half the ending, neither Crowley nor Aziraphale are truly in the wrong or right in that situation.
(Oh also, I forgot to do this to.my previous posts because I just talked about the ending in them as in general without that much detail but this will be slightly more detailed so imma just put an extra spoiler warning here just to be safe:
Spoiler warning for the ending of Good Omens S2 under the cut!)
â¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨
While I am angry with Aziraphale, or well, not angry, but thoroughly disappointed, I feel like a lot of people are just overlooking the fact that in his head, when he is being offered that position as supreme archangel of heaven⢠title, he is not looking at it as an "Here is a title for you so you can once again join Heaven" offer;
He is looking at it as an "Here is the title that can change everything and help you build a future for you and your demon boyfriend if you just work hard enough on it so you two can still stand on your own side and have everything you wanted once everything is fixed" offer.
Because believe it or not, Aziraphale, as brave or stubborn as he can be at times, he is like a lost kid the others. He is naive, easily influenced by those around him.
And when Metatron (Fuck that guy btw) offers him that title, in his mind, it is for the best of everyone involved. Because in his idealised version of heaven and righteousness, that ticket to being on almost the very top of heaven, yeah that is the ticket to him and Crowley finally being able to be together.
BUT ALSO, when Aziraphale wants to work with Crowley, he doesn't want him to change to be an angel, because again, in his poor naive heady there is nothing to change. When he looks at the angel Crowley was and the demon that Crowley became he sees no difference because the same passion and excitement is still there.
To Aziraphale, angel Crowley and demon Crowley, they are one and the same.
And that's where we run into the problem of their relationship as of now.
As Nina said:
They never communicate.
They talk, they talk a lot, but even in the confession scene, even after The kissâ˘, never once did either of them ask what the other wanted.
Because they both just assumed the other wanted what they did, and because they operated on that same system for thousands of years, when the time finally comes, so soon and so suddenly, when Crowley finally confesses...
They finally have to face the problem in their relationship. They. Never. Communicated.
As romantic as it is for Crowley and Aziraphale to go off together into the stars, I feel like people need to remember that:
That is Crowley's idea, that is what he wants. He never asked Aziraphale if he wanted that as well, he just assumed.
And never did Aziraphale make it clear to Crowley that he loves him unconditionally, be it angel or demon, and he just assumed that Crowley would be okay with going to Heaven with him because they never talked about it.
Both of them, no matter how much we want to pretend they are, are not ready yet for a relationship with each other. They still need to learn to communicate, to make it clear not just what they want , but also to learn to accept what the other wants, hell, what the other needs.
So to cut the long story short because I am not yet ready to get murdered by undying Crowley defenders, which fair;
Both of them are at fault in this scene. Aziraphale, yeah, more so, but Crowley is also not completely out of fault for everything that happened in my opinion.
đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨đ§Ąâ¨
And with that, thank you for reading and have a wonderful rest of the day â¨đ§Ąâ¨
-Cleo
#good omens#crowley#aziraphale#ineffable husbands#good omens 2#good omens season 2#good omens episode 6
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i'll honestly NEVER understand the decision either. she has a solid design, many ppl want her. yet they never use her. oddly enough - it's highly theorized she was originally gonna be in TK3 itself. (shocking! given jin wants to avenge her in that game!) since if you look at the arcade versionsâ files - you can find her pic, amongst other files for her.
and oddly enough - there was this old mag that came out right before TK3 did that spoke of jinâs story in the game. it mentions nothing of him trying to avenge his mother. but instead... oddly - his father.
the son of kazuya and jun, jin kazama has entered the tournament to defeat the evil force that destroyed his father, the GOD OF FIGHT. so it couldâve been that very well... jinâs original story, what they had planned - was that jun couldâve still been alive and present (as seen in the arcade version) but grieving that she failed to save kazuya from his devil. therefore, jin gets angry at this - both upset that his mother is so sad, and that he never got a chance to meet his father. therefore, he sets out to get revenge by destroying the very thing that cursed his father. maybe instead of azazel, ogre was the one originally planned to have been the source of the devil gene. i find this to be extremely interesting, and i wonder how things wouldâve gone had it happened this way. instead of hating his father for having the devil gene - jin wouldâve felt bad for his father, and felt as though he was a victim.Â
so, something mustâve happened between development to make them decide to scrap jun, and then change the story a bit. but even then... why are they still letting her gather dust? it wouldnât be a big question if she was literally dead. but the devs, and harada himself, make it a point ot say âno, sheâs NOT dead.â so - they MUST be planning on doing something? but why wait this long? did they wanted to wait for the perfect time? for when the kazuya and jin fight actually happens? itâs a big mystery to me. especially when jun is such a big character. thereâs many jokes that tekken is afraid of older women. as all women in the game are 25+ or younger (and anna and nina were in cryosleep for 20+ years - so they still have the appearance of 20 year olds) but i wonder why canât there be older women? after all - kazuya barely looks his age. especially in tk7. he still looks like he can be 30s+ - at most, in his 40s. yet heâs supposed to be a 50 year old man. so if kazuya can just happen to look younger - why canât jun? if thatâs what the game is really afraid of lol. jun already looks older and more motherly in tag 2 compared to tk2 where she does look much younger and babyfaced (as she was literally around jinâs age when that game happened)
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I think the rubber band snapping is the perfect metaphor for Crowley kissing Aziraphale, your post very much summarizes my thoughts on it, too!
I'd like to add one aspect, which is the secondary emotional motivation fro Crowley kissing him.
The entire season has been nothing but a gigantic frustration for Crowley. No one listened to him, no one took his concerns or thoughts seriously, people told him what to do and how to do it, made assumptions about what he does and doesn't want, and covered it all with "it's in your best interest".
Hell took his flat and then Beez summoned him without his consent, threatened him, and then demanded he find Gabriel for him.
Aziraphale pressured him into helping him with Jimbriel, and then forced him to both give him the Bentley and take care of the bookshop and Jim while he was gone. He also ignored his solution for the Maggie and Nina issue, didn't even let him talk about it. The ball? Just more of Aziraphale ignoring his concerns about heaven and hell like he has always done.
Muriel? Somewhat listened to him but the entire sneaking into heaven manoeuvre was still all on him and they needed some convincing.
Maggie and Nina then cornered him in his and Aziraphale's (former) safe space and told him they know his relationship better than he does, practically wrapping a command as an advice with "do it or your relationship will fail".
The cherry on top was Aziraphale not listening to him when he tries to follow their advice, instead making decisions for Crowley without asking and telling him to his face that he doesn't want their life on earth, he wants Crowley as an angel in heaven.
Crowley is done.
So he does what he always does - he swallows his anger, his disappointment, his heartbreak, hides behind his sunglasses and leaves. Just that Aziraphale doesn't let him!
You're completely correct OP, he cannot resist Aziraphale yelling at him to come back, but he hates himself for it. Then Aziraphale basically completes a "how to manipulate someone" checklist, barely giving Crowley the chance to say anything.
And then.
THEN.
When Crowley says his nightingale line, Aziraphale looks away.
Crowley took off his glasses, physically and emotionally exposed himself just to be punished for it so severely it completely broke him, turned back to let him speak AGAIN, but Aziraphale looks away as if Crowley is the one hurting them?
So yes, he snaps. He does not want to kiss him, this is his version of a mental breakdown because even though he is furious he cannot hurt Aziraphale, he cannot yell or scream or push because he loves him.
Six thousand years of pent up emotions burst out of him as the kiss we see. It's angry and desperate, he's shaking, he's pulling him in and hoping against hope that it will change something for the better, that it will make HIM feel better.
But it doesn't.
Aziraphale says the cruellest thing he has ever said to him, and so he leaves because it is the only thing left to do. Crowley has exhausted every single one of his option and none of them mattered, none of them changed anything.
One fabulous kiss and we're good done.
After rewatching the Final Fifteen over and over again, I don't think Crowley wanted to kiss Aziraphale.
Look. I know weâve all read a lot of different readings of â¨the kiss⨠and why it happened the way it did. Itâs just that none of the posts Iâve seen so far captured exactly the feeling I was reading into the scene, so I thought I might as well share my interpretation. Because I donât think Crowley wanted to kiss Aziraphale, actually. I mean of course he wanted to, butâ let me explain.
I brought gifs and a little more heartbreak :)
First of all, I do agree with most of the interpretations going around. Crowley wanting to change Aziraphale's mind? Totally plausible. Wanting to show him what heâs losing? Probably. Taking the last chance he might get to finally kiss him? Yes, please!
What I mean when I say I donât believe Crowley wanted to kiss Aziraphale are essentially two things, one of them being that Crowley didnât plan on kissing him. He planned on leaving.
We know this because itâs exactly what he does.
The moment I come back to over and over again is when Crowley puts on his sunglasses and heads for the door.
Look how close they are to each other. Usually, you would expect the kiss to happen in a moment like this. All it would take Crowley is to lean forward. If he wanted to kiss Aziraphale and change his mind, he would do it right there. But he doesnât. He nods in a way that screams: Right. This is a losing game.
Aziraphale had just told him that nothing lasted forever (so why should he stay) and he already put back his wall of defense (the sunglasses). Of course, we can't tell for sure but everything in his appearance tells us that for him, the moment between them is gone. The only chance he had decided to take had slipped through his fingers. It is time to leave. So he does.
Crowley does not stop until Aziraphale cries out his name and wants him to come back. He is not held back by his own desire but by his incapability to resist Aziraphaleâs cry for help. Not that these things canât be connected â but look at his body language, look how reluctant it seems, annoyed almost.
It looks like he really doesn't want to stay. At the same time, he doesnât want to hurt Aziraphale. He wants him to know that he cares. Itâs not easy for him either. So he stays. Listens to what Aziraphale has to say.
But it hurts even more. Crowley doesn't even bear to look at him. Aziraphale just doesnât understand him, doesnât understand the way Heaven works, even after all these years. At least, thatâs what Crowley thinks. Everything that made the air around them vibrate, every nightingale that ever sang, is now dead silent. Crowley says so himself.
This is not him pathing the way for a kiss. This is him saying goodbye.
And then he says: âYou idiot. We could have been ââ
Maybe he doesnât quite know what exactly he wants to say or maybe he does but he doesnât know how.
ââ us.â
His voice is trembling. He lets the words linger in the room between them. Note how he is already speaking in the past tense. We could have been. But weâre not.
However, Crowley admits that the possibility of them being an Us was there, hence the possibility of everything that being an Us means to him. It drips from his toungue, every moment and every feeling he connects to the sense of being an Us. You have to remember the feeling to voice it, even when you do it to say goodbye.
And I think â weâre getting to the essence of this post â I think what happens is that Crowley gets overwhelmed by his own words, or rather: by grabbing his feelings and putting them into words, by the implication of them as an Us and everything he imagined it would have been for them. And what it means to lose it.
And I donât think he consciously decides to kiss Aziraphale. I donât think he wanted to kiss him in the sense that he didnât want to take this step and actually do it. He had already lost.
(We could have been us but weâre not.)
They are still too far away from each other.
(Weâre not. But we could have been.)
Eventually, Aziraphale averts his gaze, and turns his head to the side.
And this! This is the moment Crowley steps forward! Let me emphasize it once again because I do believe itâs crucial to Crowley's change of heart.
Aziraphale looks away. And Crowley snaps.
He snaps like a rubber band you pull at for too long, like the clip of a ballpoint pen cap you push too hard upside. Itâs not a conscious decision. Itâs a reflex. Like closing an app on your phone and opening it again directly after. Like someone calling your name and you turn your head in the direction of the voice. You donât think about it. It just happens.
And I think Aziraphale looking away was the last straw that held the rubber band in place. The last thing that kept Crowley from falling once again. I genuinely donât believe he would have kissed Aziraphale if the latter had continued to look at him. Too scary, right? Too real. Too close.
So this is the second thing I mean when I say that Crowley didnât want to kiss Aziraphale. Of course, he wanted to but he didnât make a deliberate decision. He just ⌠gave in.
And when he pulls away, he knows that everything between them has changed. He waits for Aziraphaleâs reaction, everything about him is tense.
And if he dared to hope for anything at all, it surely wasnât this.
Forgiveness.
"I forgive you."
I forgive you for giving in.
Don't bother.
So Crowley does what he wanted to do in the first place â and leaves.
He didnât plan on kissing Aziraphale. He wanted to leave, maybe even to prevent this from happening. And when it happened, I donât think itâs because of ulterior motives like changing Aziraphaleâs mind or grabbing the opportunity as it presented itself to him.
Iâm not saying these motives arenât there â in fact, I pretty much believe so! I'm just saying that maybe he didnât think about them when kissing Aziraphale and that he didnât decide to kiss him because of that.
Maybe this is more than obvious to everyone else already and I'm stupidly rambling to myself. Also, I'm truly sorry if I overlooked another analysis of this.
I just donât think there was time in Crowleyâs head to reflect on any of his feelings.
I think he was just not holding back anymore.
#alex talks good omens#good omens meta#good omens#continuing my job as the unofficial kiss meta person
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six of crows ships x folklore
i assign songs from miss taylor swiftâs folklore album to kanej, wesper and helnik, because pain is infinite and inescapable. (will be changing some of miss swiftâs original meanings to fit the ships)
wesper - mirrorball
a song about expectations, insecurities, but also about how thereâs a special someone youâll always shine for. a pure, beautiful song for them but also with a bit of angst.
i'll show you every version of yourself tonight/Â i'll get you out on the floor/ shimmering beautiful- they both bring out the best in each otherÂ
hush/ when no one is around, my dear/ youâll find me on my tallest tiptoes/ spinning in my highest heels, love/ shining just for you- intimately they both show each other their real selves (e.g. wylan confessing that he has dyslexia, the Scene preceding their first kiss)
i can change everything about me to fit in- jesper is a grisha but he pretends not to be one in order to fit in with the dregs (and also not to get fucking killed but ok) and wylan hides his dyslexia out of fear that he would be shamed
you are not like the regulars/ the masquerade revelers- they are both accustomed to a certain lifestyle; jesper the dirty streets of the staves and wylan the luxurious though unhappy life he lived with his father. and jesper thinking that wylan âlooked like heâd fallen into a wrong story, a prince turned pauperâ.
helnik - exile
pretty self-explanatory title. by all accounts almost a perfect song for them. describes their relationship after ninaâs betrayal and matthias gets locked up in hellgate (nina, probably: oops)
 youâre not my homeland anymore/ so what am i defending now?/ you were my town/ now iâm in exile seeing you out- matthias having a big olâ crisis over his loyalty to his country vs this hot grisha who threw him into jail. him not knowing where his place is anymore
iâm not your problem anymore/ so who am i offending now?/ you were my crown/ now iâm in exile seeing you out- ninaâs persperctive:Â âok dumb fjerdan iâm not here to make you angry now u happy?â but still feeling that she has lost something by betraying matthias
all this time/ weâve always walked a very thin line/ you didnât even hear me out/ you never gave a warning sign- their relationship as allies being precarious from the start as... well because one of them was a grisha and the other hunts grisha for a living. nina betraying matthias in order to protect matty boy but matthias only being angry (you didnât even hear me out) and matthias being caught off guard at the moment of betrayal (you never gave a warning sign)
kanej - peace & hoax
ah finally. the reason i made this post. these songs are actually made for them. and i might be cheating a little here since itâs two songs but i always saw them as a combined duo. and also because theyâre the saddest songs in the whole album.
peace
but iâm a fire and iâll keep your brittle heart warm/ if your cascade ocean wave blues come- they keep each other âwarmâ by their own ways, protecting each other from trauma and hurt. âbrittle heartâ reminds me of kaz so deeply.
all these people think loveâs for show/ but i would die for you in secret- seems like something they would say to each other, especially kaz with all his dramatic bullshit.
would it be enough if i could never give you peace?- mostly kaz fearing that his love wasnât good enough for inej and always fearing that his love for her would put them in danger
give you the silence that only comes when two people understand each other- they often sit together in silence, e.g. when kaz is working in his office and inej is outside his window feeding the crows. the intimacy and understanding that they have is perfectly portrayed by this line.
hoax
my twisted knife/ my sleepless night/ my winless fight-Â all motifs related to kanej. first one obviously inej, the last two pointing to kaz and all his vengeance
donât want no other shade of blue but you/ no other sadness in the world would do- reminds me of inej saying that she will have kaz without armor or she will not have him at all. they want each other, trauma and all, and nothing else can replace that
my best laid plan/ your sleight of hand- also motifs, this time reminding me of kaz
you know it still hurts underneath my scars/ from when they pulled me apart- both of their traumas hidden under their âscarsâ, both figuratively and literally.Â
and thus concludes my post on using my education on writing about fictional people. i would also very much like to do an evermore one. possibly.Â
#wesper being pretty love songs and kanej being Depression in a Song#i hope this isn't too sad#if i gave you a further soc breakdown i apologize#soc#six of crows#crooked kingdom#grishaverse#wesper#kanej#helnik#kaz x inej#jesper x wylan#matthias x nina#jesper fahey#wylan van eck#kaz brekker#inej gafha#nina zenik#matthias helvar#taylor swift#folklore
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Please Don't Leave Me Chapter 5
Title: Please Donât Leave Me
Author: SirenPrincess
Description: What if Aleksander hadnât answered the door when Ivan interrupted the war room kissing? What if Aleksander and Alina had a bit more time to get to know each other before Baghra told her his true identity? Alina is the only one who can comfort Aleksander through his nightmares. Will she leave once she knows who he is?
This story is based on the show version and features a soft on the inside, hard on the outside Aleksander with an emphasis on emotional hurt/comfort and angst. If you are looking for lots of hurt!Aleksander thoughts, then this story is for you. Mal exists but pretty much solely to cause Aleksander some angst. Donât worry. It will be a Darklina ending.
Chapter 1 is a missing scene at the end of Ep 4, and Chapter 2 takes place alongside Ep 5 and then diverges from canon there.
Pairings: Aleksander Morozova/Alina Starkov, bits of Ivan/Fedyor
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Grisha are oppressed in this universe, and I donât shy away from showing the horrors of that. There may eventually be mentions of canon-typical torture (Fjerdan pyres), death of family members, and cruelty to Grisha children. Itâs not the focus, but that backdrop is definitely there and comes up as characters discuss their past.
In this chapter: Aleksander struggles with his nightmares. He can no longer hide them from Alina.
Chapter 5
Aleksander found himself staring at the ceiling above the bed. Every evening went the same. He made love to Alina and she showed him heaven. And then they fell asleep and he managed that for a bit, but then he was in hell. Sometimes it was Luda he saw murdered, sometimes it was Marie, sometimes he saw Nina burning on a pyre in the ice court, but the worst ones were when it was Alina he saw them kill. He never made it more than a couple of hours before he was gasping for air and awake, left with nothing but time and his fears.
He never managed to fall back asleep, and it was taking a toll on him. Alina hadnât said anything, but he knew it was starting to show. He tried to just be happy to feel her warmth as she slept and to relax knowing she was safe for now, but every moment of bliss they spent together made him more and more afraid of what he had to lose. He could not imagine going on if her warmth was extinguished.
He got up to pull a book on the Stag. He had sent a search party to follow the trackerâs directions, but he worried they would need more. He had been trying to calibrate Alinaâs dreams and the trackerâs information with the text. Maybe if he just looked at that book in Fjerdan again; it had more details on topography near sightings of âthe witchâs magical spyâ. He hated reading that one, but maybe that was exactly why he might have missed something. He didnât dare leave her to go to the war room to read as he normally might, but if he just grabbed the book and brought it back to bed ⌠He stood. He could sense no one else around the room, and he could keep her in eyesight the entire time. He reached the desk in the war room and moved a few books to find the Fjerdan one.
âAleksander?â Her voice was soft, sleepy, but it was enough to make him drop the book he had been holding, race back to the bed chamber, and scan the room for threats. Nothing.
âSorry, I was just ⌠looking for a book.â He wanted her to know he would never leave her alone and vulnerable like that.
âCome back to bed,â she commanded.
She was the only person who could tell him what to do. With a command like that, how could he possibly not adore that about her? He obeyed, sliding under the blankets and sheets with her for warmth. He tried to pull her into his arms to get her back to sleep, but she was sitting up and staring into his eyes.
âYouâre hardly getting any sleep,â she pointed out with concern. All he could do was nod. It was true. âIs it me? Do you not really want me here? You put me in here for security, but if you donât want to be sleeping next to me âŚâ
âAlina, no!â How could she think that? He leaned his forehead against hers and held her. âI would very much like to kill every person who made you think that you are not worthy of being loved.â He probably shouldnât have admitted that; she probably should not know his taste for vengeance, but perhaps she needed to know how strongly he felt about her worth. âThat made you think that you are a bother, in the way, somewhere you donât belong. Itâs not like that with me. Alina, you are everything. Everything. There is nowhere Iâd rather be than by your side.â
âThen, why? Do I move too much? Keep waking you up? Am I kicking you in my sleep?â
âAs you might recall, you had concerns about my lack of sleep before you entered my bed.â
âYes, but itâs gotten worse.â She couldnât possibly know exactly how much, but she knew enough. She could likely feel the exhaustion in him. Her hand reached up and caressed his cheek.
âYes.â
âSo, what is it? Tell me.â
âAlina, itâs fine. I donât really want to bother you with my ⌠darkness.â
Her eyes narrowed. âI donât think thatâs really how this is supposed to work.â Perhaps she had a point. âYou so easily notice in me how my past has affected me, scarred me, so that I always think I donât deserve to be cared for, but you donât notice it in yourself. You think the burdens are all yours to bear, that no one would notice or care how those burdens are affecting you. Why is that?â
He took a deep breath. She had seen right through to the truth. She didnât have to know all the details; she still saw it. He realized that he had to not only give himself permission to love after all of these years--that his heart had taken off with immediately despite his head advising caution--he also had to give himself permission to trust, to share. It was new. He had never really had anyone, not even as a child. They had moved too often to let him bond with anyone. Baghra had forbidden him to confide in any of the other Grisha children, and he knew he couldnât trust them. Even when he tried to share his feelings with his mother, she had gotten angry and punished him or lectured him and called him a fool. Luda had come close, but he had never really let those walls down all the way, even with her. He knew she would die some day and then there would be the pain, but he had regretted not living in the moment with her when he had the chance, before ⌠And Alina was different. She could be the true partner heâd waited all his life for. That meant he had to learn to act like the one she deserved. âSharing is hard for me,â he admitted. âIâve never really been able to.â
âAleksander, you can trust me.â
He could try to share, as best he could, so she wouldnât worry it was her. âIt is my problem, not yours. Itâs just, since the assassination attempt ⌠knowing Zlatan means to kill you ⌠I could not survive, Alina. Now that Iâve had you, I could not take âŚâ She would not understand the depth of the pain, but it was the best explanation he could give. âWhen I fall asleep, I have nightmares of your death, so forgive me for preferring to stay awake.â
She took a shaky breath as she processed all that. âOkay ⌠okay, then we deal with the nightmares together.â
âAlina âŚâ
âDoes having me here make it better at all? Or is it worse?â
âI am doing immensely better being able to see for myself that you are alright when I awake from those nightmares. Much better than pacing my chambers worrying until I can see you again.â
âHave you noticed anything else that makes it better?â
A smile played across his face as he thought of his answer. âYou are going to think that I am only trying to get more sex.â
âSex makes it better?â She laughed softly. âWere you actually about to say that to me? Sex makes it better. Maybe I do think you just want that more, but Iâm not complaining.â
âItâs ⌠feeling the connection to you, your warmth radiating through me. It keeps the darkness at bay for a short while.â
âActually, that gives me an idea. Will you trust me to try it?â
He nodded.
âLie down. Close your eyes.â
He wanted to argue, but she had asked him to trust her, so he complied and tried to will the grim images from appearing in his head. She placed her hand on his chest, and then he felt it, her light, her warmth, surrounding him, enveloping him. His eyes flew open to stare at her in appreciation. It did feel so different.
âBetter?â
He nodded. It did help.
âThen we take shifts. You guard over me for a while. I know that makes you feel safer. And then when it is your turn to sleep, I will keep you warm and protected. I need to practice my power more anyway, and you need sleep if you are to properly protect me. It benefits us both.â
He smiled at her concern. It was that genuine care for him, so different from the eagerness of others to benefit from his power, that was making him truly fall in love with her. He leaned in and kissed her. âOkay, letâs try.â
#darklina#alina x darkling#aleksander x alina#kirigan x alina#alina x aleksander#alina x kirigan#aleksander morovoza#general kirigan
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Songs From Musicals That Make Me Cry.
From Waitress,
Take It From An Old Man- That shit makes me emotional.Â
She Used To Be Mine- a given. Ouch. OUCH.
You Matter To Me- The spoken part of that song. The part where she hopes one day her baby meets someone who just wants to hold them. I sobbed the first time I listened to that. I want that, and if I never get that I hope someone else gets that. That will always make me cry.
From In the Heights,
Enough- it reminds me of my dad. I love him very much and the part where sheâs saying how he doesnât sleep when Ninaâs gone and does whatever he can for her gets me.
Breathe- I donât always cry listening to that, but when Iâm especially relating I lose it. I literally AM Nina. Nina is me. We are both disappointments.
Atencion- OW
Everything I know- OWWW. Reminds me of my late grandmother.
Six,
Heart of Stone- when it shifts to talking about how sheâll never see her son. I canât.Â
All You Wanna Do- only when Iâm watching or listening to the live version. Specifically Sam Paulyâs version. The climax is so much more powerful when itâs live.
I Donât Need Your Love- the live version. The vocals alone are enough to knock me over. I Stan the broadway cast and let me tell you. Anna is incredible. Her voice legit brings tears to my eyes.
Beetlejuice,
Prologue: Invisible- Who doesnât cry at this one???Â
Dead mom- Never made me cry when I first listened, but then I got attached and now it makes me cry.
Home- very moving. The poor girl just misses her mom :(
Heathers,
(Honestly when I listen to heathers Iâm way too invested in singing along to actually be affected by the content. Too catchy to have me crying.)
I Am Damaged- idk man it just hits different?? Not every time, but most of the time.
Hamilton,
That would be enough- Makes my emotions come alive. Good or bad? Idk. Just emotion.
Dear Theodosia- Cute tears. Baby song. Makes me soft.
Stay Alive Reprise- That scream. That live scream. It haunts me.
Burn- Makes me angry most of the time. But sometimes it makes me sad.
Itâs Quiet Uptown- OW. The pain.
Who Lives Who Dies Who Tells Your Story-Â âThE ORphanAGE-â +Â âYOU could have done do much more if only had TIMEâ
Into The Woods
Stay With Me- I guess I just sympathize with mothers, huh.
Lament- mothers, yes. And also Bernadette Peters. I love her.
No One Is Alone- Poor Babies.
Finale: Children Will Listen- In my opinion the perfect finale to any musical. Love it. Makes me cry like a b*tch though.
#Musicals#musical theater#theatre#Waitress#In The Heights#Six#Beetlejuice#Hamilton#Into the woods#Heathers#I just cry a lot#i guess#Sad songs
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LATE! but for the fandom asks: BtVS and Shadow and Bone? đđđ
BtVS
my favorite female character: At the moment itâs probably Faith. Her journey and her approach to slaying has always been fun and interesting, but Iâve been thinking more about the things that lead her there lately. The bad choices she made and what couldâve gone differently with a nudge here or there.
my favorite male character: Xander Harris. I know heâs grown some hate over the years, but I love him dearly. He still one of my favorite characters of all time to this day.
my favorite book/season/etc: Season five is the best in my opinion. Iâm not even sure why, but its just so good. Or maybe itâs just the last really good season of BtVS, because I feel like the show went down hill after that.
my favorite episode (if its a tv show): Hush is just an amazing episode. They do a lot with so little spoken dialogue, and the misdirect with Tara was just awesome.
my favorite cast member: Anthony Stewart Head, I always like him in whatever I see him in.
my favorite ship: I have my OTP, Spike/Xander, but at the moment my favorite ship is Angel/Willow. Every now and then I get back on them and need content, Iâm just so damn picky about them and theyâre on the rarer side ship-wise in the fandom that I hardly ever find anything I like. :(
a character Iâd die defending: Xander! >:( He gets way more hate than he deserves and I am not here for it. I wonât got into a big defense now, many people have done a better job than me at it anyways, but the amount of blind hatred he gets is staggering.
a character I just canât sympathize with: Warren. Itâs not just that he killed Tara, but he entire storyline is basically just him being bitter and angry that life isnât âfair.â Iâd argue that he got way more than deserved from life to begin with.
a character I grew to love: Cordelia Chase. During my first watch through, I didnât care for Cordelia until about season three. I loved her after that, and she was probably my favorite part of AtS.Â
my anti otp I will call it notp until I die!: Spike and Buffy. I shipped them for a half a moment when I stumbled across a random season five episode before I ever started watching the show. Then I actually watched the show and just wasnât into them at all. Itâs not that I donât see the appeal they could hold for others, but they hold absolutely no appeal to me and I really donât like the subplot of Spike being in love with Buffy that happened in season five.Â
Shadow and Bone, possible spoilers ahead! Youâre getting multiple answers for almost all of these, btw :P
my favorite female character:Â
In the Shadow and Bones trilogy it is my girl Genya. She had some amazing lines/moments and she put with so much all for the chance at a better life. And she was this subtle badass, fighting back in her own small ways, like the method she used to poison the king. Iâm a little disappointed they didnât show the Queen all fake and plastic looking in the show considering how Genya would purposely tailor her just a little off as revenge. I still like her in the show, but she hasnât yet grabbed me the way she did in the books. I actually donât think I have a favorite female character in the show at this point.
Nina and Inej mostly tied as my favorites in the Six of Crows books, but Nina made me laugh more which gives her just a little bit of an edge. Sheâs fun and flirty and doesnât let anyone, even Kaz, keep her from being herself. Sheâs also a pretty good grifter, able to use her skills with languages and her ability to read people to get what she wants.Â
I didnât actually like Zoya all that much until later on in the series (a mistake on my part because Zoya is awesome), but King of Scars made her one of my favorite characters. Yes, sheâs prickly and prone to jealous sniping when her position is threatened, but sheâs also unapologetic in who she is and genuinely wants what is best for her country and people and will do whatever it takes to get it. She learned a hard lesson at a young age that being nice wonât protect her and has fought to keep herself and those she loves/are loyal to safe.
my favorite male character:
Iâm not positive he fits the label of âfavoriteâ but I certainly found the Darkling the most compelling male character in the books, and heâs pretty far up there in the show as well. I probably enjoy watching him on screen the most as well, although I feel like in the show Jesper was my actual favorite male character. He was certainly my favorite in Six of Crows books, and the show version of him captures book!Jesper perfectly.Â
I wanna say that Nikolai is my favorite somewhere, because I love him so much (heâs funny and sarcastic, which Iâm always a sucker for in a character), but I feel like he doesnât quite count for reasons I canât put my finger one.
my favorite book/season/etc
Out of all of the Grishaverse, Six of Crows is hands down my favorite. Itâs a heist! With young morally-gray criminals who donât all have this nice heart of gold under it all, who break into-and out of -an unbreakable prison while spouting off witty dialogue!Â
Thereâs only been a single season in the show so far, but Iâm excited to see more!
my favorite episode (if its a tv show)
Probably the episode two. Thereâs something about the way things were revealed and the subtle unfolding of many of the characters that I like.Â
my favorite cast member:Â
The only oneâs whoâs name I know is Ben Barnes and I only learned that when he was announced as the Darkling and Tumblr had a meltdown. *shrug* I mostly was like, âthatâs the guy from The Punisher. Heâs good at playing the villain, so yay.âÂ
my favorite ship
I donât want him redeemed in the slightest, nor do I particularly want a happy ending for them, but I love the dynamic between Alina and the Darkling. That push/pull they have, how very alike they are even as they are very opposite, and how she just canât shake her draw to him and him to her, although he doesnât try as hard as she does. They have this connection, are insanely compatible, and part of this tragic appeal of them is that in another life they couldâve had that happy ending together. Itâs beautiful and tragic, to see how youâve broken something before you even had it. And thereâs something so appealing for me in that, in how their feelings are this tangled mess that canât be undone and the way they really are the only people who can fully understand the other and the bond that forges between them.Â
On a lighter note, Nina/Matthias was my favorite ship in Six of Crows for a long time, but Iâd be remiss if I didnât mention how much I love Kaz/Inej.
a character Iâd die defending
Zoya maybe? Or Matthias?Â
a character I just canât sympathize with
The apparat. I kept waiting to see if his motives were something I could relate with in the books. They werenât. Heâs just a creepy old man who wants Alina to die and become a martyr so he can lead the church in her name.Â
a character I grew to love
Probably Zoya. She seemed to be such a stereotypical mean girl in the first book, there only to make things hard on the main character, and I fell for it. She really is so much more than that.
my anti otp
I will accept the term anti-otp just this once because I donât really have a notp for the show or books. The closest I have is Alina/Mal in the books. In the show I can actually see it and will probably aw over them when they get together, but in the books? He doesnât seem to care of Alina at all, even as a friend for most of the first book, and gets downright petty and bitter when sheâs revealed to be the Sun Summoner. But I can see their friendship in the show, on both sides, and thatâs gone a long way for me. Itâll probably never be a ship I love, but I think Iâll probably grow to like it well enough.
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Why Jack Bauer Is Americaâs James Bond
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Despite what Marvel might have you believe, not all film franchises are perfectly serialized.
Take, for example, another kind of cinematic superhero: James Bond a.k.a. 007. The MI6 spy created by Ian Fleming and brought to screen by Harry Saltzman and Albert R. Broccoli is timeless in the most literal sense of the world. Since Sean Connery passed the role of James Bond to Roger Moore for good in 1973âs Live and Let Die (Connery previously gave way to George Lazenby in On Her Majestyâs Secret Service before returning in Diamonds Are Forever), James Bond has become unstuck in time.Â
As played in subsequent films over several decades by actors like Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig, Bond remains the same while the world around him changes. Some fans like to theorize that âAgent 007â and âJames Bondâ are aliases used by different MI6 spies throughout the years. But within the context of the series, there is only one BondâŚJames Bond. Bond is always middle-aged, looks good in a tux, enjoys stiff drinks and beautiful women.Â
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James Bond Movies Streaming Guide: Where to Watch 007 Online
By Don Kaye
The Cold War ended in the â90s and yet Bond, perhap the ultimate cinematic representative of its aesthetic, just kept calm and carried on as usual. Save for a handful of Craigâs latter year depictions, James Bond rarely learns any new tricks. He doesnât develop. He is what he is â a hero of espionage and action. In that regard, the James Bond series is a surprisingly honest exploration of the occasional propagandistic aims of major blockbuster filmmaking. Bond isnât a character in a story. Heâs the United Kingdomâs idealized version of itself writ large on a canvas widescreen: a suave spy who is welcomed into every country to get laid and save the world.Â
But what about the United Statesâ idealized version of itself? How has the Cold Warâs lone surviving superpower let itself go without a similarly iconic (and occasionally nakedly jingoistic) cinematic creation? The answer is that America already does have an outsized action iconâŚhe was just on television.Â
Jack Bauer of early 2000s Fox thriller series 24 is American James Bond whether we want him to be or not. Just as Bond is the idealized Englishman, with his martini lunches and quick wit, Bauer is the Americaâs warped ideal of itself: angry, merciless, focused, and unfailingly effective.Â
As portrayed by Kiefer Sutherland (who won an Emmy for the role), Jack Bauer started off as a fairly three-dimensional character in 24âs first season. That season picked up with Jack as a family man and a glorified pencil pusher at the fictional Counter Terrorist Unitâs Los Angeles office. Over the span of the first seasonâs 24 hours (24âs hook, of course, is that each season takes place over the span of a 24-hour day in real time), Jack slowly lost grip of his humanity, culminating with his friend Nina Myers turning out to be a mole and murdering his wife Teri.Â
The death of Teri fundamentally changed Jack. For eight subsequent seasons and a movie, Jack became an Uncle Sam-style cartoon character obsessed with protecting his country from terrorists all over the globe, because his family was already taken away from him. Elisha Cuthbert as Jackâs daughter Kim was a prominent character for a few seasons, but as she was phased out so too was Jackâs grip on reality.
Unlike the James Bond series, 24 was particularly devoted to its chronology, with the very premise of the show meaning it had to have a close relationship with time. Jack Bauer would in theory grow as a character from season to season. But rather than developing, he mostly devolved into the most base version of himself.Â
Itâs in this way that Bauer actually became more like James Bond than one might initially expect. Regardless of who is playing him or what time period a particular film is set in, Bondâs characteristics remain static. By the end of 24âs run in 2014, Jack was similarly a Bond-ian relic of the past. Though the country was still feeling the effects of it, âThe War on Terrorâ seemed as dramatically quaint for 24 as the Cold War did for James Bond. And yet here was this rugged American in the miniseries 24: Live Another Day, gripping the life out of a pistol and barking at perceived London terrorists in a gravely timber like a psycho.
24: Live Another Day was the last appearance for Jack Bauer and rightfully so at the time. The character had become a bit too anachronistic and his show, quite frankly, was frequently xenophobic. Still, as the continued success of Craigâs Bond films indicate (with No Time to Die finally set to arrive this October) perhaps there is still room for walking anachronisms in the entertainment world, as long as theyâre approached correctly.
Fox has repeatedly attempted to rejuvenate the 24 brand. In 2017, the network greenlit a spinoff starring Corey Hawkins called 24: Legacy. Like its forefather, 24: Legacy, utilized a real-time format, only condensing 24 hours into 12 episodes like Live Another Day did. The spinoff was not successful and was quickly canceled following the conclusion of its first season.
Ultimately, Fox (now owned by Disney) hasnât made any subsequent reboot attempts work yet because it has misidentified the appeal of 24 as a franchise. While the ticking clock aspect of telling a story in real time is novel and interesting, it wasnât the reason the original series lasted for nine seasons. The real reason for 24âs success was Jack Bauer. Viewers are typically attracted to characters, not concepts. In Jack Bauer, many an American viewer likely found the embodiment of a paranoid nation they recognized.
Thereâs an undercurrent of anger and indignance in the American psyche. Exactly why is a question best left for sociologists. Perhaps itâs misplaced guilt over displacing a society to create a new one, or maybe itâs just the disappointment of being promised a Manifest Destiny and getting Wyoming. But whatever the reason, Jack Bauer is as apt a cartoonish American avatar as James Bond is a British one.
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So why then doesnât 20th Television (again, now owned by Disney) just formalize the comparison and make Jack Bauer literally American James Bond? Just as Connery once handed off the baton to Lazenby and Moore, have Sutherland hand the role off to someone else. That actor would preferably represent the American physicality that Sutherland brought to the role (despite Sutherland being a Canadian, which is somewhat fitting given that the Scottish Connery was the first to play Her Majestyâs favorite spy). The new Jack Bauer would be played by someone who is short, stubbly, and angry rather than Bondâs tall, dark, and handsome. Throw the new Jack back into the field in a modern day ticking time bomb plot without bothering to explain why he is still middle-aged after 20 years.Â
The answer to why Disney wouldnât want to do such a thing is almost certainly all that aforementioned racism and torture. That is admittedly a, uhâŚroadblock. It really canât be overstated just how xenophoci 24 was at times and how cruel it could be to characters and actors of Middle Eastern descent. Jack Bauerâs reliance on torture wasnât just a dramatic crutch, 24 co-creator Joel Surnow genuinely believed in the value of torture as a foreign policy tactic.Â
Suffice it to say, the series has not aged well. Then again, however, neither have many of the earlier Bond films. To a certain extent thatâs the point of the Bond franchise. It understands that making movies is making myths. James Bond is every bit the mythical figure that Captain America or Iron Man are. The fact that Bond is so obviously an exaggerated character now has helped soften some of his more problematic edges.Â
Bauer, on the other hand, comes from an era where Americans were both terrified of the looming threat of terrorism and were starting to invest in television as a more âseriousâ art form. As such, not everyone of the time was prepared to accept Jack Bauer as American James Bond, that is to say a cheesy cultural figure, not a vital supersoldier of freedom.Â
In The Atlanticâs 2007 article âWhatever It Takesâ about the politics of 24, U.S. Army Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan, the dean of the United States Military Academy at West Point, recounts Jack Bauerâs effect on enlistees.
âThe kids see it, and say, âIf torture is wrong, what about 24?â The disturbing thing is that although torture may cause Jack Bauer some angst, it is always the patriotic thing to do.â
The world has changed since then, obviously. But even now, it feels like it hasnât fully set in that Jack Bauer is the American James Bond and should be treated with the same amount of reverence, which is none at all. Perhaps the only responsible move left is, in fact, to continue the increasingly ridiculous stories of the character with new actors.
In the right hands, Jack Bauer could be put to use as a blockbuster magnet and an appropriate critique of American foreign policy. In the end, icons donât matter so much as what you do with them.Â
The post Why Jack Bauer Is Americaâs James Bond appeared first on Den of Geek.
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itâs been a while back so iâm w more song analysis!! this is too long iâm warning u now. in fact this might not even be readable im so sorry itâs just. so much rambling đ
when memories snow (more mitski mm also i got tickets for her tour and i will not shut up ab it!!! sheâs so cool!!!!!!!) is incredibly tim coded. the very sinister chords at the chorus, really makes you *feel* him spiralling - and the LYRICS ugh very âiâm trying to ignore/suppress my memories but they keep coming back against my willâ slash âbottling up all my feelings and forging on with my work. pretending they donât existâ
hate yourself by tv girl is very nina x kate (in the sense of kate watching nina destroy herself for a man who does not even like her) ough. âi think youâd fall in love with anyone who fell in love with you / and they frequently doâ BC KATE DID!! kate fell in love with her!! also âiâll just wait til those arms belong to meâ is so subtly manipulative which is very. yeah. kateâs definitely not perfect and i wouldnât put her above being like that if she really wanted to. + the deceptively happy instrumental with vaguely dark lyrics = nina being overly outgoing and social to make up for the fact that her mental state is in absolute shambles (poor bby)
the wolf by siamĂŠs is both tim and brian but i think leans more brian (what is it with this man that makes me think of âwalking musicâ. ykwim? the chain, the wolf, house of the rising sun all remind me of him. all very slow-threatening-determined-walk songs) once again, driving beat, heavy bassline. (i play bass guitar so i love a song w an interesting bass part) i think shows resilience as well as grounding - imo heâs always been one of the more mature / level-headed creeps, to the point heâs very self aware. this man knows exactly what heâs doing at all times. âsomewhere far away i can hear your callâ even in the future when he thinks heâs escaped from slender he knows deep down heâll never be truly freeâŚ. yes ok
keep myself alive by get scared for jane. sheâs so angry - AS SHE SHOULD BE and i feel itâs just a audible version of her rage. âi just wanna leave this place behind / everytime i see your face in mineâ because her and jeff have the same burned face thing going onâŚâŚ.. ough. she can never escape from the man who ruined her life. the guitar shifting from this melancholy, reverb-y tone in the verses to the loud distortion in the chorus reflecting her mood shifting from self-pity to raw anger
bonus: class of 2013 by mitski x toby
i should rlly make a playlist for each creep but i use musi not spotify đ
- đ anon
sorry for making u read all of this â¤ď¸
anon. oh my god. i need you to know how often i think about this ask. and how guilty i feel knowing i shouldve responded forever ago but kept putting it off. im going to respond now with shame. thank you so much for your patience. my god
when memories snow for tim is soooo real. i associate him with a longing for life before slendy, while also repressing it cuz it hurts knowing itll never ever come back. going to bars, hanging out in his friends apartments, going to class, late night driving... "I shovel all those memories, clear the path to drive to the store" i think even the imagery of him shoveling snow out of a driveway gives off that sort of strong, cold idea of him. and 'drive to the store' obv being...proxy work... SO SAD
ALSO FUCK NINAKATE MENTION IM IN TEARS ok listen. theyre both really bad. and i super agree that kate might be a bit deceptive and manipulative (intentionally or not) cuz she wants nina to completely remove jeff and take his place (NOT HIS ROLE, just his place in ninas arms). also "how long will it take before you start to hate yourself and go straight to the arms of someone else" i think its undeniable that ninas obsession with romance is related to her own self image, and kate doesnt really like herself that much either. "im not saying that you love me, im not saying anything" OHH BUT SHE WANTS NINA SOOO BAD... man.
also im absolutely in love with how you take the sound itself into account, not just lyrics. the way you explain the wolf connecting to brians determination, reslience, and grounding presense is SOOO PERFECT and i can see it in the first few lyrics as well. the also "sneaking in the pain, every truth becomes lie / i wont trust myself once i hear your call" THATS TIM AND BRIAN COME ON GUYS DO YOU HEAR THIS
also i love keep myself alive. i heavily agree she has every right to be angry, and thats a core part of her character - rage, grief, strength. "to sleep i of course think i'm stronger now / to sleep i gotta catch myself" im crying. the sleep menton + she feels alone. she has a support system, a literal wife, but she still holds all of her grief on her own shoulders. who the fuck else can relate to being violently stalked for months, walking in on your parents being tortured together, being attacked, nearly burnt alive, then LOSING your parents? also "how could this dark cloud make me stronger now" i think a lot of people would have told her that her experience made her a survivor and made her strong and whatnot. but i dont think she feels that way. i think she feels like a victim, she feels tortured, she feels like that same little girl who'd sleep in her parents bed after a nightmare - but this isnt a nightmare she can wake up from. her parents bed burnt to ashes. there is relief in just letting yourself grieve and hurt - but she's so beyond focused on being strong. and it doesnt make sense to her. doesnt make sense how she can be strong after all of that . but she is, cuz she has to be
ALSO YES OH MY FUCKING GOD CLASS OF 2013 DFUCK FUCKFUCKF FIFJF FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCKKKKKKK i dont even need to explain why this gets me. yall already know. my god
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I Like to Watch | Promising Young Woman (2020)
by Don Hall
In the pantheon of films made, only a handful stand out as truly understanding and communicating its time. Not documentaries or those based on true events but fictional stories that likewise mirror the specific zeitgeist (yeah, I used that term with a straight face) of a given time period or social movement.
Fifty years from now, when discussing the Black Lives Matter movement in the country, Get Out will be among the films watched for context on the American experience. It grasps the indelible feelings of the movement without mentioning it and is a stand-alone epic horror film at the same time.
The French Connection (1971) is not only brilliant but perfectly tells a tale of the beginnings of the War on Drugs instituted by Richard Nixon.
Casablanca (1942), unlike the propaganda films of most pre- and post-WWII movies, demonstrates an incredibly timely portrayal of the horrors of fascism, the values that heroes like Victor Laszlo hold, and illustrates an America that is a place for refugees to find freedom.
The Graduate (1967) is both a wonderful film and also expertly captures the transitioning from the idealism of post-Kennedy assassination to the craven capitalist emerging from the ashes.
High Noon (1952) is a grand cinematic device using clocks and real time as well as a window into the hysteria and paranoia of the McCarthy Era.
The Deer Hunter (1978), Fast Times of Ridgemont High (1981), Norma Rae (1979), The Great Dictator(1940), Wall Street (1987), and American Psycho (2000). The list is almost exhausting but spectacular at the same time. No question that you will, upon reading this, think of ten movies that fit this particular bill that I haven't mentioned.
While I gravitate to the optimism of Rocky (1976), the film of that year that depicts the isolation and torment of a young man disillusioned by the trifecta of the Kennedy assassination, Vietnam, and Watergate is Taxi Driver.
Set in a decaying and corrupt post-Vietnam New York City, Travisâplayed by a stunningly grim Robert De Niroâdreams of ridding the city of the filth and perversion he witnesses during his overnight shifts as a cabbie. The more Travis drives, the more he questions his purpose in life and grows deranged, ultimately leading down a path of violence, hatred, and even redemption.Â
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If there is a modern parallel, while Joker is a DC comics version of Bickle's journey into madness (although it more accurately makes a case for the existing madness of Incels), the more appropriate equivalent is without question Emerald Fennell's Promising Young Woman.
I'll confess that I didn't really want to see it. These days so much of film has become a series of lectures on social justice that, after the insufferable reboot of Charlie's Angels and the ugly one-sided and exploitative Them I just couldn't bother with more of the same.
It didn't help that they wanted twenty bucks to watch it. Then, when Dana and I were flying back to Vegas from a visit with my father-in-law in Pennsylvania, she watched it for free on the inflight. She loved it and, being that Dana is a notoriously finicky critic of film, the recommendation did not fall on deaf ears.
The premise is not what I gleaned from the trailers (Carey Mulligan does not play a serial murderer so much as serial justice seeker) and, like all superior satires, everyone (including the protagonist) gets a bit of shade.Â
In the opening minutes of Promising Young Woman, Cassie (a deeply sardonic and wearily angry Mulligan) walks down a street with blood dripping down her leg eating a hot dog. Sheâs just left the home of Adam Brody, a beta-male who couldn't resist the temptation. She must have murdered him. Nope. It's ketchup from her phallic snack. In a single moment, you realize that Fennell has decided to subvert the male revenge fantasy for something wholly different.
Cassie, a medical school dropout, lives with her parents and works as a barista. She lives with the trauma of her best friend Nina Fisher's rape by a classmate. As a response, Cassie spends a night a week pretending to be the drunk single hot chick in bars. She's looking for the 'nice guys' who invariably offer to take her home and instead take her to their home with the intent to rape the helpless inebriate. She lets them go far before snapping the rubber band and revealing she's completely in control.
Cassie has a book of names. In it she keeps track of every 'nice guy' she confronts as well as another list directly related to Nina's rape. The college dean (Connie Britton) who did nothing when Nina reported her rape; the med school friend (Alison Brie) who dismissed the accusation as crying wolf; the lawyer (Alfred Molina) who bullied Nina into dropping the court case. She plays twisted pranks on them if they haven't yet seen the Nina she knew. She wants them to understand the gravity of their collective action.
After a chance meeting with an actual nice guy (a disarmingly adorable Bo Burnham), Cassie sees a way out of her dark quest. From this point, Fennell does something unexpected and remarkably effective: the film bounces back and forth from dark revenge fantasy to heartwarming romantic comedy in a whiplash manner. It's hard to keep up and serves to keep us guessing throughout.
Fennell (who also wrote the thing) has described Cassie's rage as "like an ingrown toenail" and Mulligan portrays Cassie with the numb pain of that feeling. Fennell isnât content to simply paint the men as the problem; everyone involved, men and women, are culpable agents. Certainly the men who rape are the actors of personal destruction but the men and women who do not rape yet cover-up or minimize the damage are equally as guilty and ripe for Cassieâs meted out justice.
Travis Bickle was a young man traumatized by war and the abandonment he felt as society realized he was fucked up by a system designed to fuck him up. Cassie Thomas is a young woman traumatized by a system in place designed to fuck her and discard her like a piece of trash.
In fifty years, when college students are watching popular culture for insight into the #MeToo movement, Promising Young Woman will be on the watchlist.
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OCAF | Ch. 9Â âWoundsâ
Warnings: read the masterlist first and check Alecâs chart
Songs:Â âThe One That Got Away (Acoustic Version)â by Katy Perry, âHurtâ by Christina Aguilera, âCarouselâ by Melanie Martinez.
DAPHNEâS POV
Ë FLASHBACK Ë
The first time Alec arrived at the brothel he was just 15. His father wanted to introduce him to his job, to secure his position and future. Very thoughtful of his, if it wasnât for the fact that he had just brought a little lamb in the lionâs cage.
Alec was already tall for his age, but he kept growing in height until he was almost 6â0. And yet his body stayed pretty slender and delicate. It quite matched his sweet features and manners. Alec was the purest soul Iâve ever met in my entire, albeit short, life.
At first, he just had to take care of the few horses and carriages the Master possessed. Animals didnât quite like the Undergroundâs environment, so Alec and his father were the only ones allowed to go on the surface to go for a ride or escort the Master somewhere.
He wasnât authorized to talk to us or even enter the brothel: us girls were off-limits. But, eventually, we found our ways to meet him. There werenât many nice and young people around the building. And as good-looking as him.
Nina and I werenât on the same page about Alec. She used to bully him all the time, calling him whiner or pussy. On the contrary, Iâve always known he was one of a kind. And to be honest, he was so nice that even the Master started to like him and became more indulgent with him. Thatâs when he softened and I formally met Alec for the first time.
I remember that one of my first training with my Masterâs goons didnât end well for me. I had bruises and wounds all over my body and face, and I couldnât even stand up properly. I donât know what I was expecting, they had never been the kindest.
However, long story short, that day I was a literal mess and as I was trying to pull myself together, I crawled to the nearest place, looking for some water and rest: the stable.
As soon as Alec saw me, he ran towards me and started stuttering anxious and incoherent phrases. He took care of me and since that day, after each training he would have waited for me to spend some time together, talking, playing with the horses, walking around the building, or just enjoying our company, in silence.
We tried our best to not get caught as we treasured those moments together just for ourselves.
âSo?? Did that scrawny ass boy have the courage to kiss you this time?â said Nina, when I entered the kitchen. âWhat the fuck are you talking about, Nina??â I promptly replied. âDaphne! Pretty please, stop swearingâŚâ complained Abigail âWell, did he proposed???â then added full of curiosity. âWHAAAAT?? EXCUSE ME???â I shouted.
âOh, câmon Daphne. itâs so obvious that even Sae-jin got it!â screamed Ruth walking in the room. âDonât pull me in. I donât give a damn about what she does with that poor boyâŚâ calmly stated Sae-jin, leaving the room and dragging away with her Eve, who as usual was not understanding much.
Sae-jin was always so avoidant. But how could I blame her? The girls could get pretty annoying sometimes. Well, always.
âOk, now Iâm losing my patienceâŚâ I sighed âYouâre totally misunderstanding the situation. Alec and I are just good friendsâ I declared. âI couldnât care less how you call each other. Friends, brothers, potatoesâŚâ started again Nina, now reaching for Ruth, who instantly intercepted her gesture and sprinted to sit on her lap.
Nina was always too casual when it came to those things. Whenever we were alone - which happened very frequently given that we were almost inseparable - she used to tell me: âThey told us what to do with our bodies, but thisâŚâ she pointed at my head â⌠and thisâŚâ and then at my heart âare only ours, or of those to whom we choose to dedicate themâ.
I knew she was talking from experience. Among us, she was the best at faking the whole thing, the clients loved her, but she was nobodyâs property but Ruthâs. And vice versa. âRemember doll, loving and fucking are two different things⌠Well, if you find someone who can give you both, then⌠Lucky youâ and then laughed out loud.
I never fully grasped what she meant. At that time, I knew so little about relationships, love, desires, but I wanted to know more, to learn more about myself, my true self, the one I couldnât talk to anyone about.
Eventually, I figured it out in the oddest way: the thing I despised more than anything else, sex, taught me the most about the others, myself, and my relationship with others. So little could be hidden to two naked bodies, two stripped minds. But thatâs a lesson I learned only once out of th brothel, years later.
But still, at that time, love was only a mysterious word in Marthaâs stupid fairytales, in Chadiaâs past affairs she used to tell us about, and in Ninaâs mischievous hints.
âGirls⌠Geez, we didnât kiss! And never we will!â I stated, getting nervous. âOk, one more week. I bet tonight tipsâ whispered Ruth in Ninaâs ear. âDealâ said Nina. Abigail chuckled watching my frustrated reaction. Those were our little innocent moments. Just the calm before the storm.
Eventually, that day arrived. I knew Alec had a crush on me, but I always avoided thinking about it too much, until that day. I was hanging the laundry on the rooftop of the building when Alec came to me mumbling some nonsense. âAlec, are you high or something?â I teased him. He frowned making a hilarious puppy face. He always looked so innocent even when he was angry.
âN-no. No, please Daphne, let me finishâ he said. âBoy, you didnât even startâ I laughed. He couldnât stand my attitude anymore, so he rushed towards me, making his way through the bright blankets swaying in the air. And there, hidden by their motion, he stole me a kiss.
He immediately took a step back. One kiss gave him enough courage to say: âI like you, Daphne. I like you a lot. I liked you since the first day I saw you through the window. And I think Iâll like you foreverâŚâ he said all in one breath.
I blinked, unable to say a single word. I knew I liked him too, but I could already tell the difference between our feelings. And I believe he knew that too. Since I couldnât stand lying to him, I didnât say anything and I just hugged him tightly.
I knew that wasnât love, but Alec always made me feel safe and understood, so I swallowed my indecision and gave it a try. I was so young and naive.
I used to sneak out at night, climbing down my window, to meet him at the stable. I was always the one who initiated every make-out session and Alec seemed to appreciate it, but he was already content with my presence, he simply enjoyed my company. Instead, I craved to be touched by him, by someone who cared about me, for once. I craved it like I was starving and avidly trying to figure out something, someone. Probably myself.
We successfully kept it on the down-low for more than a year. When I turned 20, he surprised me with a gift: a knife, with a capital D he personally engraved on the hilt. I couldnât stop thanking him, when, at some point, he came up with âI know you can handle yourself, but I want you to be safe. Whatever happensâ.
âAlec, youâre such a party pooper. Donât be so dramatic, Iâll be fiiiine. But still thank you so-â. âNo, Daphne, you donât get itâ he interrupted me âTrust me. Things are taking a turn for the worst. The Master is getting himself into⌠into some deep shitâ. âAlec Reed. Did you just say the s-word??â I sarcastically added. But his face was so serious I almost got scared.
âThings are about to go down, Daphne. Please, carry this thing with you⌠Oh, I almost forgot about it. Here, I also made thisâ he said handing me a short leather belt with a little pocket designed for the knife. âYou can put it around yourâŚâ he coughed ââŚthighâ.
His little speech literally gave me chills and I desperately wanted to change the subject, so I seized the moment. âOh, well⌠since you thought about this belt on my thighâŚâ I seductively said, raising my skirt up, exposing my leg ââŚWhy donât you show me how you imagined itâ I suggested.
He almost choked at my words, causing me to laugh out loud. I hugged him once again, thinking that the heavens had sent him to me. I kissed him on the cheek, thanking him again, and then I rushed back inside since our little time was quickly coming to an end. But his words stuck inside my head for days, weeks, months, until his prophecy took place.
My last year at the brothel was nothing but a sequence of tragedies. One day Eve found Chadiaâs lifeless body and after a couple of months, Sae-jin and her lover, Colton, were brutally murdered by the Master, who found out about their complot against him. Tabitha was given as wife (well, sold) to an unknown client and at some point, Abigail started to act quite strangely around me, almost avoiding me.
That chain of catastrophes ended with my worst nightmare: Alecâs execution.
One night, after climbing back to my window, I found two guards waiting for me in my room. One of them quickly grabbed a fist of my hair, shoved me down to the stairs and then dragged me to the back of the brothel. And there I saw them.
Alec was on his knees and around him stood other guards in a semi-circle. I tried to call Alec but he didnât seem to even notice me. His eyes were fixed on the ground, his hands behind his back and his body shaking. âAlec, whatâs going onâŚâ I murmured again.
âOh babygirl, you know what is going onâŚâ my Masterâs voice echoed behind me. His filthy hands caressed my skin, from my collarbone to my chin, as he spoke again âBoy, look up, look up at me when I'm talkingâ. Alec immediately obeyed. His face was swollen and his eyes glassy and red. âAlecâŚâ I whispered in disbelief, shaking my head.
âSee? You see this?â The Master said brushing his index along my cheek and then fiercely grabbing my jaw âThis is my property⌠Everything here is my property⌠I trusted you boy. But I think youâve bitten off more than you can chewâ. âNo⌠No... Please noâ I whispered as tears streamed down my face. He was right: I knew what was going on.
The Master nodded and all his little dogs moved quickly, obeying him. A second just before that, Alecâs lips moved to tell me something that I wasnât quick enough to catch. Soon the Masterâs goons were over him, ruthlessly punching and kicking him.
I started to scream and as soon as I tried to move forwards the Master fiercely grabbed me, blocking my arms behind my back and holding my jaw in Alecâs direction so tightly he was bruising my skin. I fidgeted in his grip and while I was sobbing uncontrollably, he whispered in my ear âOh no no no, babygirl. I want you to watch this veeeery carefully⌠I want you to learn a little lesson today⌠Nobody touches whatâs mineâ.
I couldnât stay still in the Masterâs hands. I couldnât stand that view anymore but he was so massive and definitely stronger than me at that time. On the corner of my eye, on the left, I saw a couple of other guards holding a man: Alecâs father. His face was stoic, his body firm. He didnât even notice me: he was "watching carefully, trying to learn a little lesson that day".
When they were done with Alec, the Master let go of me and my body fell heavily on the ground, exhausted. Alec was left on the ground, lifeless and alone. His dad immediately walked away as I crawled to Alec's body, calling his name softly âAlec⌠Alec⌠â. My hands stood in front of his black and blue face. I didnât dare to even touch him like I was in front of something unreal.
Words seemed to get trapped in my throat and my mind completely blanked out. I donât know how much time passed, but at a certain point, a sweet voice whispered in my ear âLetâs go, dollâŚâ. I immediately sensed Ninaâs strong hands lifting me and carrying me up to my room. I desperately clung to her body as we made our way back into the building.
That night I did learn a lesson: The Master would have paid for all of that. But revenge is a dish best served cold and the night I escaped from the brothel I left my sister Abigail Alecâs knife: just one knife wouldnât have been enough for my plan.
Ë
Trying to not think about Leviâs lips on me was impossible. Even if I promised to myself to cut him out of my mind, that night I allowed myself to repeat that scene, that feeling several times again in my head until I went numb and fell asleep. I felt helpless against those thoughts and I let them get the better of me. Just for tonightâŚI thought.
Another day came and I told myself that that fantasy wouldnât have left my room, it would have died there within its walls. As soon as I see him again, letâs make things clear before anything else happens. Confident, I went straight down to the cafeteria, but Levi was nowhere to be found.
On the right corner of my eye, I sensed Mikasa, shily waving at me, and Sasha energetically gesturing me to join them for breakfast. âWhere is Eren?â I said at some point. Well, where is Levi? I actually thought. âI was thinking the same thingâŚâ mumbled Mikasa. âMaybe heâs just with the captain and his squad, or with Hangeâ suggested Armin, trying to comfort her.
I decided to use that spare time to practice my future speech in my mind. "Levi, letâs stop making out in the kitchen. Ok, thank you for your kind attention, bye". No, this is absolutely ridiculous. I sound like I want to make out somewhere else. Oh, breakfast is over. And as I got up from the table I kept thinking of some other smarter alternatives.
"Levi, donât you ever kiss me again". Are you sure you want to say that, Daphne? asked that annoying voice in my head. Sure. Absolutely. "Levi, donât come closer to me ever again ". Okay, maybe thatâs a bit much. "Levi, stop...". And as my feet unconsciously followed the others into the hallway and my mind wandered looking for other excuses, I sensed a presence behind me and a hand grabbing my left arm.
Then, suddenly, a warm breath tickled my ear, saying: "When youâre done with the lesson, meet me at the stable. Iâll wait for you". Levi. I instantly froze, unable to take another step forward, and my lips slightly parted, as if I had just seen a ghost.
As soon as I felt that presence moving away from me, a cold shiver ran down my back. He never failed to make me feel so fucking helpless. I turned around and saw the Captain join the rest of the squad, going in the opposite direction. Among the soldiers, I saw Eren, who waved at me and thankfully woke me from that momentary paralysis.
"When youâre done with the lesson, meet me at the stable. Iâll wait for you. When youâre done with the lesson, meet me at the stable. Iâll wait for you. Meet me at the stable. Iâll wait for you. Iâll wait for you". Stop, stop, stop. STOP. This must end now.
When we arrived in the classroom, we were greeted by a couple of team leaders standing in front of a huge green board. A few steps from them Commander Erwin Smith was waiting for us all to take the seat. As soon as he got our full attention, he started talking "Cadets, welcome. Before class starts, I wanted to carve out a moment to talk to you".
I looked around quickly. Everyone seemed completely fascinated by Erwinâs words. The only thing I could think of, looking at him, was a huge fucking obstacle, the wall standing between me and my true freedom. "The next expedition will start in less than 48 hours. I hope no one wants to pull back at this point" he lightly laughed, looking at the other team leaders.
"I hope not... especially since I hope that each of you will understand your invaluable value. Each of you is a key piece in this plan. Each of you is a key piece in the victory of mankind over titans. Your life and death will have meaning far beyond human understanding. Sacrifice your hearts for mankind".
I only needed those 10 minutes in his presence to truly understand Commander Smith. It wasnât just his always right choice of words, his statuesque physique, or the charm of his reputation. No. It was his aura. It reminded me of the same feeling Levi gave me. They were men of power, because they emanated that power, in their gestures, in their gaze, even in the tone of their voice.
At that point, if Commander Smith had ordered me to make him soup, I would have made it on the spot. "Well, my time is up. See you at the departure, soldiers," he said, looking at us with severity and pride, and then, after our salute, he left.
Shortly after, the squad leader Ness took the floor. He was in charge of making a general explanation for the expedition. He clarified the main goals, the equipment and the distinction of the different colors of the signal flares, and other basic rules. In the afternoon, the various units would have more information from their captains on their position and strategy.
I did my best to concentrate but Leviâs words still echoed in my head. "Iâll wait for you". Commander Erwin had not hesitated to mention our possible - and statistical - death during the mission. If I donât want to die, Iâd better listen more carefully.
Wrong move. Erwinâs speech had a whole other heaviness than Leviâs vague hint. It was life or death, and at that point, I no longer knew which one of those damn two was driving me nuts.
After the lesson, I immediately went to the stable. Look at you, what are you? His puppy? So obedient... Look at you wagging your tail... teased me a voice in my head. I wanted to confront Levi about the other night, now more than ever.
Once at the threshold of the stable I couldn't see anyone and so, I entered the shed starting the monologue that I had prepared before.
"Look, Levi, I donât have much time to waste... Levi. Where the hell are you... Levi? Are you here?" I have a bad feeling about this. While I was still calling his name, at a certain point someone called mine: "Daphne?". That was definitely not Levi.
Eren jumped out of a corner and I instantly froze. Then he added, "Here you are! We were waiting for you," and so I turned around. Behind my back, the whole - I repeat, the whole - Levi Squad was preparing their horses. Fuck, fuck, fuck, shit, shit, shit, shit.
Among them, Levi was staring at me with his hands on the hips and the smug look of someone who seemed to have just won a bet or something. As if that wasnât enough, in addition to that temporary shame, seeing Levi after that kiss was just torture. I could still feel his hands and the icy peppermint aftertaste of his breath all over me.
Once I found a crumb of courage, I managed to simulate a shy salute.
"So how did it go with Commander Smith? Did he scare you enough?" Petra asked me, laughing. "Yep" I replied. "Câmon, get a move on," Levi said harshly. I looked at him, quite confused. âI need to talk to you all about the expedition," he added.
"Oh, wait, Captain! Before we go..." Petra started talking again "Here, Daphne, from now on this is yours!". She handed me a green cape with the wings of freedom on the back. Once I wore it, Petra said: "Wow, green is definitely your color, Daphne!"
I looked around and immediately saw Gunther saying, almost blushing, "Indeed. It looks really good on you, Daphne". Then again, I felt that familiar feeling of being watched intensely. I slightly turned my head to intercept Leviâs reaction, who was checking me from head to toe. I donât know what Iâd give to know whatâs on his mind sometimes...
"Yeah, sure" Oruo muttered, rolling his eyes and jumping on the saddle. Eld gave me a nod and followed his comrade. The others joined them and then I heard a trot getting closer behind me. Levi was walking towards me with two horses beside him.
Handing me the reins of my horse, he silently approached me, with his usual composed expression. So, I started to say, "Look, Levi, first...", but he immediately interrupted me: "What is it? Were you expecting a romantic rendezvous with me in the stable?"
"No" I quickly answered in a frustrated tone "First of all, Iâm sorry for calling you by your name⌠I didnât know-â. âI couldnât care lessâ he interrupted me and then walked away. âHEY! IâM NOT DONE TALKING!â I shouted back at him. He immediately turned around, looking at me wide-eyed, quite surprised by my tone.
âSecondlyâŚâ I coughed âI wanted to talk to you about what happened last night in the kitc-". But Levi didnât, again, let me finish the sentence, and getting practically under my nose he said: "I think you were pretty clear about it. We shouldnât have kissed, right?".
I didnât know what to say and Levi knew perfectly well how uncomfortable he was making me. He tilted his head and raised his eyebrows as if he wanted a quick answer from me. (Poorly) faking a bold attitude, I gave him a wide smile as if to confirm his insinuation and so I began to exit the stable.
But just when I was a few inches away from him, Levi started talking again: "Iâm sorry Daphne, I really canât do this". I couldnât tell by his tone if he was sad, serious, or almost angry when he said those words. "Me neither, Captain," I told him, showing off the most impassive face I could do, and so I went out, without looking back.
When we reached the others, we set off, riding for a good half an hour. Once we reached an isolated place, we got off the horse and Eld began to explain to us the strategy for the expedition. Our position would have been in the rear. Our only goal was to protect Eren.
"I have reason to believe that Commander Smith is hiding something from us... like a second target of the mission," Eld suggested. "Are you doubting the Commander?" Oruo tried to insinuate. "Iâm just saying, thereâs a good chance this mission is just a test. A simulation to see if it is possible to reach the district of Shiganshina" Eld declared, instantly interrupting him.
While the rest of the squad seemed to discuss it without much concern, Eren and I were visibly confused. So, I turned around to look for Levi. I needed some reassurance. Meanwhile, he had been on the sidelines, caressing his horseâs mane, enjoying the light breeze of that day. He caught me staring, turned his face and with his lips mimed a "What are you looking at?". This man...
Soon after, Eld specified to Eren and me that those instructions were absolutely confidential and no one outside of our squad should know Erenâs position. We both responded with a firm nod.
Back at the base, Levi coldly dismissed us saying: "Well, thatâs all for today. If you want to continue your training, the courtyard is at your disposal. Tomorrow, enjoy your day off. We will meet the day after tomorrow, at dawn, before departure. You can go now"
I looked at Levi one last time. So thatâs it? Thatâs really it? I thought.
That night and the whole next day I did my best to escape Levi. At meals, I tried to avoid his table, and I dedicated the day before the expedition trying to make be more friendly with the other soldiers. "Be more sociable," you said to me that night, right? So, Iâll do my best, Captain.
After dinner, I was invited by Eren to spend some time together with the other before the departure. The concern for the next expedition was getting heavier and the mere thought of having to socialize more hourse did nothing but make the situation worse. So, I went to the kitchen to get a cup of chamomile tea. I needed to calm down.
LEVIâS POV
I started to believe that castle was haunted for real. That damn kitchen reminded me of those few but indelible memories with Daphne... and yet after a restless wandering in the halls I found myself there again, on the doorstep looking at her as she stared out of the window.
I watched her take the pot from the stove and pour it somewhere, maybe into the cup she supposedly had prepared before. I started to make my way into the room, trying to come up with something reasonable to say to her.
As soon as I got close to her, Daphne turned around. "Captain" she saluted me coldly and then left without adding anything else, holding in her hands the fuming cup. Say something, you idiot, I ordered myself. But nothing came out.
As soon as I realized I was alone in the room a growl of frustration slipped out of my mouth. Damn it. But maybe it was a sign for both of us to forget about what happened between us. Nothing. It meant nothing.
Then, looking up from the ground, I noticed something strange on the cabinet: another fuming cup, placed on a tiny tissue, on which my name had been written.
#LEVI ACKERMAN#levi x oc#levi x reader#Levi fanfiction#Captain Levi#snk levi#snk fanfiction#snk fanfic#snk#levi aot#aot fanfiction#AoT#read on ao3#read on wattpad#levixreader#levi#ytlcaf
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Peter and Rediscovering his Heritage
Iâm still disappointed in Dark Phoenix for not giving us a resolution on the Dadneto storyline. I think its rather damning for the franchise as a whole, when we see how the writers characterizes Erik, who is much defined and shaped by his Jewishness. One of the aspects of his philosophy is that mutants should have to hide, who they truly are, and they should feel proud of who they are.Â
 I understand that Fox wanted to do something different with Pietro Maximoff to differentiate from Marvelâs version of the character; thus Americanized the character. But they still white-washed the character, through not as horrible as bastardized the Maximoff Twins in the MCU, half-Romani and Half-Jewish character signing up for Hydra, who are the MCUâs I Canât Believe Itâs Not Nazi! And despite Captain America: The First Avenger, being set during WWII downplays the Nazisâs and kinda of says it was Hydra fault, which is historic revisionism and low-key Holocaust denial: that faults the atrocious and death caused by them but as a result of magic, secret societies, etc. and doesnât engage with the historical memory and trauma. Further mythologizing Nazi Germany as this supernatural evil, separate from the human condition. When they were ordinary men. In the pop culture and popular memory/ collective memory of a modern audience.Â
Give Fox credit for the X-Men, especially First Class that doesnât shrink away from discussing theses traumas or trying to lay blame to someone else. Yes, it was indeed the Nazi and humanity that caused Erikâs suffering; there is no shifting the blame. That weight is felt through the first scene and until the closing credits. Even fosters in Days of Future Past and Apocalypse.  Never again, truly means never again.Â
But getting back to Pietro. I am not saying that Peter Maximoff is not problematic, along with the writers writing in a harmful Romani trope of being a thief. You are not a bad person for liking problematic content, however the content should be engaged in critical and there should be awareness of how media is consumed, and we shouldnât do it mindlessly.Â
Iâm a firm believer of turning weakness into strengths in writing. Iâm more disappointed than angry that once again Fox had this brilliant idea right underneath their noses and didnât use it and this does relate to Dadneto. One of the weakness of this Peter is that he has been Americanized and if go by [Lencia]  interpretation that Magda due the fear and prejudice against her and her children she fled to the United States and assimilated into the greater culture. He has been disconnected from both his backgrounds. I really did this idea instead of Dark Phoenix, Peter in finding Erik and connecting through him finds a connection back to heritage, finding more meaning and spirituality that he had never had before. This can culminate by Peter taking back his old name of Pietro. It can even connect back to Erik and his character development by having a found family on Genosha, finding and exploring what is mutant culture and what it means to be a mutant and reconciling that his Jewish heritage; we can also include why Erik wasnât there for Peter during his early childhood because he was hunting Shaw down and trying to make a better world for him. For me, I think Peter rediscovering his heritage is just a natural storyline for him to have because thereâs always been this wanderer like element to him, then again he is a runner; but he is desperate to seek purpose in life, and yes he does get it by the end of Apocalypse, but thereâs this feeling that he is going to leave and go to Erik in the future, once Erik grieves probably and process the death of Nina and Magda.Â
I think thatâs an incredibly powerful and beautiful storyline go down and a better note to leave on as a franchise.Â
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ever since i saw magnus and ragnor talking about imasu ive been wandering about this, so: do you think magnus would play any instruments? or what kind of music do you think he likes to listen to or play?
i love music and magnus and you asked about both kfbjhvksgvfhsdvfsjdv thank you anon i love you <3
okay so to answer the first question, i think magnus is only good at one (1) instrument and heâs like pro level good at it but canât play any other instrument. at all. iâm leaning towards piano or violin but more violin because i play it asfhbshbdajbvfjb so anyway i think he learnt in europe and studied under a whole bunch of composers and teachers, he learned different styles from all over the world as music evolved and changed, from the various european styles we associate with classical music, to folky celtic fiddle tunes, to carnatic violin music, jazz, latin american violin music, film soundtracks, etc etc. so while heâs a virtuoso on the violin, he canât string a tune together on any other instrument no matter how much he tries. other similar string instruments he can maybe sound alright if you play a backing track louder than his playing. he tried to learn the charango once, for imasu, and then cat and ragnor told him that if he ever were to do so again he would find himself the victim of a variety of non-lethal hexes over the course of the next century. so. if thatâs any indication of his abilities.Â
i think heâs very versatile in his music taste and for playing, he likes to play pieces that come alive when you put your bow to your strings, the swelling epic compositions, and heart-wrenching ballads, the jaunty dance numbers, and the stirring movements that make you feel like something shifts in your very soul when you play, you know? i feel like what he chooses to play depends on his mood. if heâs feeling in love, heâll play a violin version of lisztâs liebstraume no. 3 in a flat minor or nina simoneâs black is the colour of my true loveâs hair, if he wants to escape from reality, he might play john williamsâ binary sunset or holstâs venus, if heâs angry he might break out beethovenâs symphony no. 5 or vivaldiâs winter suite, he might play the swallowtail jig or la bamba if he feels like dancing, a violin rendition of nat king coleâs autumn leaves or queenâs love of my life if heâs sad. basically i think magnus is open to a lot of different styles and genres when it comes to music.Â
outside of his instrument i feel that he has a soft spot for queen, and loves to dance to swing and jazz, enjoys club hits that are great for partying, and is very interested in regional music from across the world. heâs lived for centuries and i feel that music is one of those things that untie people no matter the culture and itâs a pretty universal language so heâs picked up a few favourites from all over along the way. he likes to listen to up and coming artists just as much as music icons, especially artists of colour and queer artists, and he has a soft spot for fusion music (no, not the shitty white people new age stuff but stuff that blends cultures like beyonceâs the gift album which combines afrobeats, hip-hop, pop, and r&b or sid sriramâs entropy album which blends carnatic classical music, jazz, blues, and hip-hop)Â
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Have you ever noticed that ( ERIK LEHNSHERR ) from the ( MARVEL UNIVERSE ) looks a lot like ( MICHAEL FASSBENDER )? But ( HE ) also go/goes by ( MAGNETO ). Having the ability of ( MAGNETISM MANIPULATION & UNWAVERING LOYALTY TO HIS CAUSE ) sure makes them a force to be reckoned with. Rumour has it they are ( 44 ) and is working as a ( LEADER OF THE BROTHERHOOD OF MUTANTS )
hey there, hi there, ho there !! iâm c, and iâm bringing my babies erik lehnsherr && grant ward to you about 400 years later.  life snatched me but here i am finally. iâm terrible at remembering to respond to tumblr messages so if youâd like to plot, you can hit me up @ serial killer of kisses#0440Â
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timeline wise, erik is pulled somewhere post days of future past and early into apocalypse. given that the x-men were constantly fucking up their timelines and futures, heâs from an alternate timeline. which one? good question. weâll pretend we know and just smile and nod. either way, this isnât his timeline and it definitely isnât the world / year he left behind so heâs going to be culture-shocked by 2020. Â
the last thing he really remembers is his daughterâs death and apocalypse strengthening his powers to become a horseman. so suffice to say, heâs simmering with rage and is very broken.  he still hates humans, maybe more-so than ever before, and he thinks theyâll always be a plague â never see them as equals â and their extinction is the only way to ensure their kind survives.  heâs an extremist and his methods are questionable as hell but heâs not entirely wrong. Â
this quote, in my opinion, sums up erik to a t:
â that you're wrong. you think you're right. and that makes you dangerous."
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erik lehnsherr, also known as magneto, is a canon character from the x-men. my version of him follows the x-men first class timeline.  you can read more about him here on the wiki but iâll give you a brief overview.Â
he was born in dusseldorf, germany, into a middle-class jewish family. his father was a decorated WWI veteran but that wasnât enough to save them from the struggles of discrimination when the naziâs started rising to power. the family moved to poland shortly after he was born but were separated at the auschwitz concentration camps when he was fourteen. erikâs powers first manifested when he ran towards one of the gates â trying to get to it before they closed as he was forced to watch his parents get ripped away from him.  the metal warped and twisted as the soldiers grabbed him, reports of which were made to dr. schmidt. instead of being sent out with the other children, erik was taken to the medical wing. his powers were exploited and often used against him, dr. schmidt focusing in on his anger and using it to control his powers.  (  his mother died because he couldnât move a simple coin with his abilities. in grief, fury washing over him, he destroyed everything in the room and murdered all of the guards. )  he was experimented on for years, schmidt weaponizing his anger, and when he was finally free he spent years trying to track down the man responsible for his pain and suffering.
by the time he finds shaw, his intentions are clear. heâll kill him by any means necessary, even if it means his own death. itâs charles xavier that saves him from drowning in his efforts to sink shawâs submarine, the professor dragging him up out of the water.  though erik never really trusted the CIA, he agreed to help charles with some of the other mutants theyâd found â to help them hone their abilities, and give them a place they belonged.  he grew to care about charles and these other mutants, respected them even, but his ambitions always came first. he also feared that a mutant holocaust was an inevitability and his fear kept him from truly trusting others.  finally, when he confronted shaw, who shared a vision of a world led by mutants, he found he agreed â but he couldnât allow the man to live. he murdered him slowly, much to charlesâ horror. with the soviet union and the united states teaming up against mutants, erik was prepared to kill them all.  so much for preventing the cuban missile crisis.  as  charles and erik were fighting, rolling around on the ground as both tried to get the upper hand, a CIA agent shot at erik and he deflected one of the bullets. a stray bullet ricocheted and hit charlesâ spine, paralyzing him.  unable to comprehend the pain heâd caused someone he loved â and knowing their interests no longer aligned â erik and several of the other mutants left to start the first incarnation of the brotherhood of mutants.  a family was divided like after a messy divorce. Â
from there, we donât know a lot about what happened with erik until days of future past picks back up. we know he was arrested and detained in the pentagon by 1973.  he allegedly curved a bullet that killed JFK.  they break him out of prison to help try and save the world and inadvertently meet his timelineâs version of pietro  âpeterâ maximoff.  heâs erikâs son, but he never discovers this information.  to this day, he doesnât know the truth. in truth, erik had been trying to save JFK â who was a mutant â but unfortunately he wasnât able to.  trask, who created the mutant detecting machines in the future, had been killing off mutants one by one. many of their former students, people they cared about, had died as a result of it.  tortured, too. so suffice to say, both erik and charles thought the other had abandoned them / failed them and it was messy.  he agrees to try and help them stop the future from happening, in the interest of saving more mutant lives, but does try to kill mystique when their plans start going awry. he fails and earns more distrust both from charles and the nation. yes, he went all evil villain and did a monologue on live tv. heâs that bitch. he fully intends on killing trask but mystique, who changes her mind thanks to charlesâ influence, shoots him. it grazes his neck, just enough to garner his attention, but itâs enough to give her the opportunity to knock the helmet from his head.  in the end, after his abilities are used by charles to free himself, he flees.  ya yeet. Â
at some point after this, he moves to poland and decides to live among the humans. he meets a woman named magda when heâs living as henryk gurzsky and they have a daughter named nina. heâs seemingly happy with his little family, working at the factory, until an act of kindness turns the tides against him.  he uses his abilities to save a co-worker and someone reports him. police show up without any metal to confront him outside their house.  nina, terrified and young much like erik was when his powers manifested, had the power to control nature and had birds attack the police. one of the officers was trying to shoot the birds and an arrow struck nina and her mother magda instead.  erik, in his grief, used the metal locket around his daughterâs neck to kill every single police officer in the clearing and then dropped to his knees to mourn the loss of his family. Â
en sabah nur, aka apocalypse, finds erik shortly after this. heâs at the factory, about to murder all of the workers who allowed this tragedy to happen, when en sabah nur takes his revenge for him.  the god then takes him to auschwitz and strengthens his mutant abilities to give him the power needed to destroy it.  he agrees to be a horseman, to join en sabah nur in bringing about the apocalypse.  shortly after this happens, he goes to sleep and wakes up in this timeline in 2020. he doesnât know whoâs done it, or it was something the x-men did to try and stop the apocalypse, but heâs livid and probably wants to go home.  thereâs nothing here for him â no revenge, no purpose, so if he canât ... catch him starting up the brotherhood again and waging war on humankind again. Â
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erik carries a lot of anger around with him. itâs the trauma, the grief, and the after-effects of years of abuse.  he knows best how to function when heâs angry, feels it gives him direction, and thinks that happiness leads to vulnerability. he thinks now that if he cares for someone, letâs them get close, thereâs a possibility he will hurt them or they will get hurt because of them.  his abilities work best when heâs angry, almost like heâs been conditioned that way, so he finds heâs most effective when he gives into the anger. Â
at the end of the day, his hatred is directly linked to fear.  he fears that mutants will be persecuted for being different, for not living up to what humans feel is normal, and that theyâll be experimented on or killed if discovered.  heâs seen firsthand what a genocide looks like and because of that fears that another will happen if theyâre not carefull.  again, heâs not wrong. Â
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heâs a class 4 mutant who can generate and manipulate magnetic fields.  you can read more about his abilities on the wiki here but iâll give you some  examples.
magnetogenesis: the ability to create magnetic fields. magnetokinesis: the ability to control magnetic fields. ferrokinesis: the ability to control metal. ( thanks to apocalypse, he can now control metals found in the earth. )
#thephoenixintro#tw: canon mentions of child internment / concentration camps#tw: child abuse#tw: experimentation#tw: murder#tw: character death - canon characters#tw: grief#idk man erik's life sucks#general tw for tragedy
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