#i just would like Piper to have a personality besides disliking things

[aroaceleovaldez]

I think one of the problems with the HoO characterizations is Rick kind of forgot to give half the cast hobbies and general interests, and maybe like people they know outside of their families and outside of camp, or if he did remember to it rarely gets brought up for most of them, or in the special case of Annabeth - she randomly develops a hobby in weaving for exactly one scene and then never again. Apparently she just knew how to do that, even though it is a skill she has literally never used before nor uses again.

The best examples I can give of this are comparing/contrasting the examples of when we do actually get this with the lack-thereof: Hazel and Frank are good examples. Hazel has hobbies and interests generally unrelated to all her demigod stuff (horses and art) and we see this repeatedly discussed and brought up. She also knows and interacts with people outside of the necessities of her quest/Camp Jupiter or her family - Sammy was her best friend at school and they hung out and stuff! Meanwhile, Frank, as far as we know, doesn’t know anybody outside of his family even though he presumably went to school before Camp Jupiter? His hobby is... archery? That’s the only thing he ever really shows interest in but at the same time it only rarely gets brought up except for him using a bow as his main weapon and the like two instances of noting that Frank had hoped he was an Apollo kid for a little bit. The closest other detail we get to Frank having any other kind of hobby/interest is him mentioning off-hand that he used to play Mythomagic.

Piper and Leo - We can presume that Piper knew Shel before moving to Oklahoma, because Piper used to visit her grandpa often and as far as we know that’s also where Shel lives. But we never see Piper ever mention knowing anyone else in her grandfather’s community. Heck, when she’s introduced we’re basically outright told that she doesn’t interact much at all with any of her classmates outside of necessity, and we don’t even have any confirmation that before Hera’s mind-meddling that she even acknowledged Leo’s existence. Also, Piper has like, exactly zero hobbies. We do not know what Piper does in her free time or what she likes (except vaguely that she has surfed before), only really what she dislikes. Leo at least does have some kind of excuse for not really knowing anybody, and an explicit explanation about why that is the case and how he feels about it. Leo also has a repeatedly referenced interest/hobby in mechanics that’s very core to his character.

Percy and Annabeth? Pre-HoO, they both have plenty of interests and know people outside their general circles! Percy knows kids at school. Annabeth’s general outer social circle is Camp Half-Blood, because she grew up there, but she clearly knows people at camp. She’s also super into architecture! And Percy does a ton of stuff in his free time - he skateboards! He plays basketball! He has two pets he takes care of (Blackjack and Mrs. O’Leary)! Post-HoO he’s on a swim team! But during HoO? Percy’s hobbies just kind of disappear, besides “oh yeah he uh. Does water stuff.” There’s no acknowledgement of like, “Yeah Percy sets up a little basketball hoop on the back of his door on the Argo 2 and shoots trash at it.” Literally anything! And yeah, Annabeth’s architecture interest is somewhat acknowledged, but also like, not really? We at least get some kind of “Yeah, in her spare time she’s usually on her laptop working on stuff” but we also barely get any instances of Annabeth thinking about her friends at camp except for like, Tartarus.

For Jason it at least kind of works because a.) he has amnesia and it’s implied he doesn’t really have close friends at Camp Jupiter besides Reyna, so it figures he only ever really references random other legionaries like, twice. and b.) there is also the heavily implication that Jason doesn’t have hobbies, because his entire life was so focused around his training at Camp Jupiter. This works less with Reyna, but she also kind of has an excuse for not knowing people besides like, her sister and Jason, given she ran away when she was young, Circe’s island was destroyed, and she could have only been at Camp Jupiter for like 3 years maximum at that point. And she’s not exactly the most social character. We also don’t get much indication of her hobbies, besides she also likes horses and it’s heavily implied she likes nature/gardens? Presumably, given we get like, one note of that in HoO, maybe two if you count her living on Circe’s island, and then like one more nod to that in TOA. And we only get her POV chapters in BoO anyways so again, she has some excuses. Coach Hedge also is incredibly bland besides maybe him having a hobby in sports, and... violence? Which definitely does not count. And him lacking any POV chapters doesn’t really help.

I think this is why Nico continually feels like such a strong character, simply because we know what he does in his spare time. We know he knows people outside of the camps (most of those people are gods or ghosts, but he at least knows people) and technically you could argue him knowing about Camp Jupiter between BoTL and TLO counts too. He even references his old neighbor at one point. Obviously, he’s very into Mythomagic, and that comes up a lot because it’s his special interest and is usually also relevant to their quests. He travels a lot, and apparently used to when he was younger as well. We also learn he used to have a special interest about pirates and that apparently may have played into his crush on Percy. Like, all that is so simple and minor but it makes such a difference for how Nico feels as a character. Most of Nico’s stuff though is established in the first series, which definitely helps because the first series was pretty good about giving characters hobbies and maybe some people they know - Annabeth, Percy, and Nico we’ve already covered, but also like, Grover knows other satyrs and is usually practicing music and also we know what foods he likes. Thalia is very into punk culture and music. We know she particularly likes Green Day. We know she knew the Hunters of Artemis before the events of TTC. Rachel's whole thing is that she’s super into art and she has a bunch of connections through her rich family, and she’s basically Percy’s only mortal friend. They have lives!

If you put a protagonist in a room and told them to occupy themselves, you should have an answer for what they do. They should be able to name one person outside their immediate social circle who they are generally friendly with or vaguely know, unless they have a specific reason for that to not be the case. HoO crew needs to occupy their time by themselves, no weaponry, for twenty minutes? Hazel could be drawing, Nico could be organizing his cards, Leo could be tinkering, Annabeth could be working on her laptop, Percy could be trying out little skateboard tricks. Jason, Piper, Frank, and Reyna? What would they be doing?

TOA does actually answer that question for Jason, at least, because we learn that Jason makes tiny dioramas! That’s adorable! Why doesn’t he do that in HoO?! TOA also gives us more depth to Will Solace besides “He’s a medic and does medic things” with telling us that he’s into Star Wars. Like, that’s actually so much information to work with! Thank you! And then we also find out in TOA that Nico’s also kinda into art! We still don’t get anything new for Piper, Frank, or Reyna - besides again one more potential implication that Reyna thinks plants are Pretty Okay, and that nature is Mildly Alright. Like, not even “maybe she keeps a houseplant” territory, all we have is “if she had the option, she might be interested in visiting a flower garden.” But honestly TOA at least gives us something for most of the characters we see. Like at least one thing. Most of the rest of the writing is a mess but at least the characters are mildly interesting.

Anyways, give your characters hobbies, it’s good for them.

[d4rkdi0rrr]

First off I just want to say I LOVED you’re other Leo x reader writing 😭

Could you write a sort of enemies (they just argue a lot lol) to friends to lovers with Leo on the Argo. Like maybe he’s blasting country music like 24/7 while he works and the reader hates it (sorry to any country music lovers lmao). Or like the reader is one room down from him and she just hears the power tools going all night. And maybe the reader ticks him off too because she like keeps breaking her weapons, or starts playing loud music to retaliate idk. But then one day they are paired together for night patrol or cleaning duty. Leo’s like “dude why do you hate me so much??” and the readers like “who said I hate you??

(Sorry if this is long I’m horrible at explaining things lol 😭)

he hates me, he hates me not

(im glad you liked the leo x reader fic and thank u sm for this request! it was a little rushed so i apologise in advance but it was rlly fun to write <3)

leo valdez x fem!reader

cw: arguing, enemies to lovers, swearing, reader cabin not specified, not proof read

_______

Leo Valdez was infuriating to say the least.

You had agreed to join the quest, thinking that you and Leo could become good friends. What was there to dislike? He could be funny (at times), cared about his friends and had a nice face (something you would never admit out loud). But boy were you wrong. He held some sort of personal vendetta against you, ticking you off on purpose, making your life a literal living hell. You had no idea why he hated you so much.

"Maybe he likes you," Piper giggled, fanning her freshly painted nails. You two, along with Hazel and Annabeth were in Piper's room, having a girl's night.

"Me and Percy were like that before we got together too, y'know," Annabeth agreed, grabbing a cookie from the box that was sat beside your position on the bed.

"Oh please," you scoffed. "You guys know how much he pisses me off. It's too bad he has such a pretty face - oh shit." Realising what you'd said out loud, you immediately covered your face with your hands. "Please forget what I just said."

"Aww, someone's got a crush!" Squealed Hazel, throwing a pillow at you, "we are never letting you live this down."

You rolled your eyes at her. Just as you were about to grab the last cookie, the door flew open, along with the sweaty grime-covered bane of your existence.

"Pipes, have you seen Buford? He ran off with my tool belt. Are those cookies?" He reached an arm out towards the cookie box faster than the speed lightning, and before you could stop him, he'd taken the last cookie. Darn it. He looked around the room before his gaze fell upon you, to which he wrinkled up his face. "I wasn't aware that we let aliens in on this ship."

"Fuck off, Valdez," you grumbled. You weren't in the mood to argue with him right now. He'd taken the last damn cookie and now your evening was ruined. "Says the abominable fuck face. Buford isn't here. Go away before I punch your face in."

"Alright, alright, good night to y'all." Leo winked before saying, "except for you, Y/N, of course." You threw a pillow at the closing door.

_______

It was currently 1 am on the Argo, and Leo had been tinkering away in his room beside you. To be honest, the occasional sounds of the metal clinking and clattering was quite relaxing. It was the loud country music blasting, making you want to crawl under your bed and stuff cotton in your ears that was truly insufferable.

You weren't about to let go of the absolutely appetizing thought of sleep escape you, so naturally, you got up and knocked loudly on Leo's door.

"Come in!" you heard over the loud music. You entered his room and looked around, disgusted. The ground was absolutely trashed and looked like the equivalent of a war zone. "Oh, it's you."

"Can you please turn this horrible music down?" you tried to yell over the obnoxious music. "I'm trying to sleep."

"No can do!" he yelled back. "It helps me concentrate. Get out of my room!"

You huffed (which Leo thought was absolutely adorable) and slammed the door closed.

Back in your own cabin, you accepted the fact that you were going to wake up looking like a sleep deprived rat. However, maybe you were hallucinating or delusional but you swear you heard the volume lower before drifting off to sleep.

_______

"Not you again," you groaned as you saw the first locks of Leo's curly hair from the top of the ladder. "I thought I was on duty with Frank."

"We're stuck with each other I guess," Leo shrugged cheerfully, plopping down next to you. The night breeze was cooling on your face and you felt like the main character in a movie as the wind gently kissed your hair. For once, you actually didn't mind his presence. Then: "Dude, why do you hate me so much?"

"Hmm?" you hummed, unsure of where he was going with this. "What do you mean? I don't hate you."

"We can't stand each other!" Leo protested. "I'm always insulting you, and you're always insulting me back. This is probably the most civil conversation we've ever had!"

You were starting to feel defensive. Wasn't he the one that'd always started tormenting you? You'd only wanted to get back at him for everything he'd done to you. "You start all of it though! I wanted to be friends with you but you just wouldn't let me! I tried, Leo, I did but you were just so infuriating with your jabs and pretty face and pretty everything and- "

"Wait, you think I'm pretty?" Leo looked starstruck by your words. He was gazing at you with the softest look on his face. "Can I tell you something?" You nodded. "I acted like I hated you because you were too beautiful, definitely way out of my league. I'm so sorry."

You grew flustered at the sudden proximity between the two of you.

"Can I kiss you?" He breathed softly.

"Okay."

He leaned forwards and placed a hand around the back of your head, the other finding yours and intertwining your fingers together. His lips were slightly chapped against yours but you felt like you were in heaven.

Breaking apart with a small giggle, you mustered up your courage and asked, "Can we do that again?"

[a-dam-leo-valdez-lover]

Anyone But You

Leo Valdez x Reader

6k words

TW: implied sexual content

When you’re trapped on a magical flying boat with 7 other people, there’s somethings that you definitely don’t want to happen, like getting caught after making out with your best friend who you may or may not be in love with, you also don’t want them to overhear you to say it meant nothing. AKA I watched Anyone but you this weekend because I’m in love with Sydney Sweeney and all I could think about is the amount of drama that would’ve happened if this was a teen flick. Like no adults (or Annabeth) to think things through, the drama would be unmatched. Soooo yeah and I know this doesn’t fully fit into the actual plot of the books and it doesn’t really follow the plot of the movie either but canon be damned. I’m gonna just make things up sorry.

Y/N’s POV:

They were friends, that was it. Sure Leo Valdez was cute, and yeah maybe he had this way of smiling at you that made it impossible not to blush, and of course his jokes were hilarious, despite you being the only one laughing most of the time, but it didn’t mean anything. At least not at first, but on a boat filled with couples, by default you spent most of your time with Leo, at first you were sort of forced into it, but eventually you sought him out when you were bored. His non stop talking was sure to fill the silence that you found suffocating. Eventually you two became joint at the hip, everyone could see it, but it's not like you two were ever truly alone with one another, especially after Percy and Annabeth’s little “falling asleep talking the the stables” incident when you first set sail. Coach Hedge spent more time patrolling for indecent activity between the crew than he did for monsters. Still, your moments with Leo managed to keep you up at night, you woke up with a smile on your face every time. That was of course until everything went wrong.

Percy and Annabeth were gone, lost in the depths of Tartarus and as you rushed to try and save them, there was a constant cloud of doubt and stress covering the ship. The only saving grace was the departure of Coach Hedge, Nico, and Reyna as the set off across the world to deliver the Athena Parthenos to Camp Half-Blood. Not that you disliked having the later two around, it just made it simpler to not have so many people on a small ship, and as for Coach Hedge, it didn’t take long for the couples to start spending a night together with no fear of an angry satyr with a baseball bat intruding. Slowly but surely everybody seemed to be bunking with someone else at night, not just the couples, you often found yourself sleeping over with Hazel and Piper or falling asleep on Frank or Leo’s floor while hanging out. The only persons room you didn’t find you self in was Jason’s and that’s because the boy was always up at 4 am no matter what time he went to sleep, and you weren’t crazy enough to be awake at such an ungodly hour.It was obvious though, that nobody wanted to be alone, especially now the the crew’s size had shrunk significantly. That’s how you found yourself in Leo’s room late one afternoon, nobody besides Jason could stand being on the ships deck for too long do to the storm brewing meaning you needed a way to occupy your time. Everyone seemed a bit on edge that day, but you figured Leo could make you laugh and probably would be alone working on some project anyways. You were right, slowly as the day moved on, talking turned into something more, at least that’s what the cluster of hickeys that painted your neck implied. You hadn’t thought too much about it when you were in the heat of the moment, but now, laying in Leo’s arms as the sun began to rise, you were panicking. Before you could even think about what you were doings, you had already gathered your belongings, doing your best to make yourself presentable before sneaking out and back to your own bunk.

You thought you had gotten away with it too, styling your hair in a braid an throwing on a oversize sweatshirt, you didn’t think anyone would notice, but over course Piper did. The very first thing she did when you emerged from your room was call you out.

“Looks like someone had a fun night”

“I have no clue what you’re talking about Pipes,” You tried your best to sound oblivious but it wasn’t working.

‘‘Right, so you didn’t spend the night in Leo’s room and come out covered in. Hi-“ She was cut off by you shoving your hand over her mouth just as Frank turned the corner to head into his room.

“Do I even want to know,” He laughed as he looked at you both.

“No, bye Frank” You said way too quickly to not be suspicious before dragging Piper into her room and closing the door behind you.

“Spill” She commanded.

It left you wondering for a moment if she had used her charmspeak on you because it was like you couldn’t get the words out fast enough, desperate to tell someone about how you felt. It was more than just something physical, Leo was your best friend, your confidant, last night almost seemed to be too good to be true, with you talking for hours about everything under the sun. You told Piper about how you felt after, about how you snuck out first thing in the morning, panicked about what to do and what to say, about how all you could think about the entire time the two of you had been in her room talking, is what you were going to say when you saw Leo on deck later.

“So what you’re telling me is that instead of telling Leo you’re in love with him you snuck out and didn’t say anything. You just left him alone in his bed.”

“I never said I was in love with Leo, I just-“

She cut you off, “No Y/N you didn’t say it, but it's pretty damn obvious. So?”

“So what?”

“Are you going to tell him?” She asked

“I can’t do that! What if he doesn’t feel the same, what if it-“

“Y/n I swear if you don’t get your ass over to his room right now and tell him I’m going to do it myself”

“Is that an option? Because I’m totally okay with that”

“Y/n GO”

So you went, and as you approached Leo’s door you saw it was cracked open and could hear 2 voices coming from inside, Hazel’s and Leo’s.

Leo’s POV

Last night changed everything, for the first time in his life, Leo wasn’t the odd man out. For the first time in his life, Leo felt like things were going right, the girl he’d been in love with for weeks was in his bed, in his arms, and yet the most exciting part by far was the way she smiled, the way she blushed whenever he made a joke, Y/N was perfect. Everything was perfect, until he woke up and she was gone. At first he sat there wondering what he did wrong, maybe he should go find her, or maybe give her space. It wasn’t like there was a manual out there for what to do after hooking up with your best friend who you’re secretly in love with and she snuck out on you. So instead he found the next best thing, after a quick iris message Hazel was in his room in no time at all. So Leo told her everything, well not everything, she was still pretty naive in a lot of ways, and he was pretty sure some of the 21st century occurrences would’ve given the girl an aneurysm. But Hazel listen to every word of the slightly abridged version of events and came to the simplest conclusion.

“So you’re in love with Y/n” She stated quite directly.

“In LOVE with Y/N? No not at all” He didn’t even know why he said it.

“Okay but you talked all night and kissed and said everything is different? How can you say you’re not in love” She asked, she seemed genuinely confused, but so did Leo to be fair.

“Look all of this is new to me, and I don’t really do the whole love and relationships thing” He tried to say it in a way that seemed cool like some sort of playboy, it wasn’t working.

“Okay but you like her right”

He thought about it for a minute before answering, the thought of being in love was enough to make his stomach churn with anxiety, romance was uncharted territory. There were too many feelings, too many moving peices that were out of his control. Sure Y/n was basically his entire world, some days he could’ve sworn he woke up just to see her, but at the same time she left so quickly without even saying goodbye, what if he was overthinking what happened last night. So he let his insecurities take over, and his hurt fueled the words the came out of his mouth.

“Honestly Hazel, I think I was just bored, I mean Y/N was there. Besides I don’t do love, Y/ns great and all but, its never going to happen between us”

“Are you sure about that” Hazel was shocked

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life” And for a brief moment Leo could’ve sworn he heard footsteps in the hall outside his room .

“I don’t know Leo, maybe she just left because she was nervous”

“Nervous? Nervous about what? I was nervous too, but I didn’t leave, I stayed.”

“Why did you stay though?”

“Because,” He hesitated, “ Because I thought maybe we could be together, that she loved me too”

“Then maybe you need to tell her that, she deserves to know”

Y/N’s POV

“Honestly Hazel, I think I was just bored, I mean Y/N was there. Besides I don’t do love, Y/ns great and all but, its never going to happen between us” Leo’s words hit Y/N like a punch to the gut. Maybe he didn’t mean it. Hazel seemed to be thinking the same thing.

“Are you sure about that” Hazel said almost too quietly to hear despite the open door.

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my entire life”

That was all it took for y/n to run away, trying your best to be silent knowing you were probably failing. You did your best to hold it together, with each step closer to your room however the tears seemed to flow harder. How could you have been so stupid. Y/N thought that maybe Leo felt the same, even Piper had agreed, if they were both wrong, Y/N must be damn near delusional. It was moments like these where Y/N missed Annabeth more than ever, she would’ve been straight to the point doing some analysis of the situation and determining the best way for Y/N to move on. Hell it was moments like this where Y/N wished Coached Hedge was running around with a baseball bat and could’ve prevented this from ever happening in the first place.

You made it to your room slamming the door behind you, the impact shook the room, causing a picture frame that had been hung on the wall to fall the the ground shattering in a hundred tiny pieces. You couldn’t even be bothered to clean it up instead you sat down on the floor and cried. Y/n’s body shook with sobs and realized why they called it heartbreak. Just like the picture frame on the ground he heart felt like a piece of glass that had been broken beyond repair.

Y/n didn’t know how long she had been sitting there, maybe 10 minutes or ten hours but you did know you had no tears left to cry. Your lips were dry, your eyes were lined with red, and your head was aching. You had enough medical training from your time living in cabin 7 to know you should probably get some water and try to eat something, but you just didn’t have the energy so you kept sitting there. It felt like eternity later when there was a knock on the door. Y/N wasn’t sure if she said come in or if Frank out of worry took it upon himself to open the door unprompted, but there he was looking at the sniffling mess of a girl sitting on the floor surrounded by broken glass. He had a plate of food in his hand, vegetarian enchiladas, it was Leo’s night to make dinner. Without a word, Frank set down the plate and started cleaning up the glass. When he finished that he looked at Y/N who still hadn’t said a word to him, he wasn’t sure exactly what to do or why she was upset but he knew that this was going to be someone else’s problem so he got Piper.

When Piper got to Y/N’s room a few minutes later not much had changed. Y/N still sat on her floor but unlike Frank, Piper knew what the look on y/n’s face meant and what had caused her tears.

“Don’t tell me he turned you down” She said softly wrapping y/n in a hug as she sat on the ground next to you.

“I didn’t give him that chance to say it to my face not after what he told Hazel”

“What do you mean? What did he say to Hazel?” She questioned

“He said it was never going to happen between us, he said he was sure about it.”

“Oh honey, I’m so sorry. I shouldn't have told you to go over there. He’s such a jerk. You didn’t deserve that.”

“Just don’t tell anyone, please” You said softly. It was bad enough you looked like an idiot, it would be worse if everyone knew Leo Valdez had rejected you after everything that had happened. “Promise me.”

Maybe it was just the overwhelming emotions you were feeling, but you didn’t even notice that Piper never responded.

1 Week Later

Everyone was on edge, petty fights and disagreements became blowouts far too often, and more than ever it felt like the 6 of you left on the ship would rip each other's throats out if given the chance. Y/N and Leo weren’t immune, it was probably worse for you two since he couldn’t take the hint you wanted nothing to do with him. You’d been trying your best to avoid him whenever possible but he continued to seek your attention, as if he had any right to talk to you after everything. While Leo didn’t seem to take the hint, everybody else seemed to pick up on what was happening. Piper had talked to Jason about what happened, after all it only seemed fair he knew since the 4 of you had gone on your first quest together and he was the only one who didn’t know the story but she had sworn him to secrecy. What Y/N didn’t know however, was that everyone but her seemed to be talking about her relationship issues.

Frank thought he had put two and two together after seeing y/n crying and seeing Leo act like more of a love struck idiot than normal, but what he didn’t understand is why Y/N would be upset that Leo liked her. Sure Leo was basically the most annoying person to ever exist second only to Octavian, maybe, but Y/n very clearly liked him so it didn’t make sense. At least not until he talked to Hazel and Piper one afternoon as they made a pit stop in a small town to get some groceries.

“Maybe I’m just dumb, but why is Y/N avoiding Leo? I thought she liked him and he clearly likes her back” Frank asked.

“Look they’re both my friends and I’m not taking sides here, but just because he had a sudden change of heart doesn’t mean she automatically has to forgive him,” for someone who wasn’t picking sides, Piper was being pretty clear how she felt.

“Forgive him for what?” Hazel looked lost

“What do you mean change of heart?” Frank asked

“Look Y/N asked me not to talk about it she feels awful enough as is without everybody knowing what Leo said” Piper said looking slightly torn, she didn’t want to betray y/ns trust but its not like she promised her anything.

“Okay but it's not like I’m going to go to Y/n and ask her about it, I’m just trying to figure out what happened. One moment she’s laughing with you in the hallway Piper, and the next she’s crying and ignoring Leo whenever he tries to talk to her,” Frank explained, “from where im standing it makes no sense, she’s clearly liked him for weeks, but now that he is trying to get with her she just pretends he doesn’t exist.”

“No I’m sorry but that is so not what’s happening” Piper said all worries about betraying Y/N seemed to disappear pretty quick, “I don’t know why Leo all of a sudden is all over Y/n considering he told Hazel there was no way he’d every date Y/n”

“Wait, he told Y/N about our conversation?” Hazel looked more confused than ever, “because if they talked about it, then she knows he’s in love with her, he admitted it right after he said that , he was just scared she left without saying anything because she didn’t like him.”

“Wait so he does like her” Now Piper was confused.

“So they both like each other? I was right, but this still doesn’t explain why Y/n is all mad at him then.” Frank looked a little too pleased with himself for someone who still had no clue what was happening.

“Of course he likes her, I mean he’s totally in love with her,” Hazel acted like this was the ost obvious thing in the world, “but I’m with Frank here, if she likes him too I don’t get why she’s mad.”

“Because she went to go talk to him and heard him say it was never going to happen between them, and she just left” Piper stated

“Which means when I went to Y/N’s room and she was crying its because she didn’t hear the rest of the conversation” Frank said

“And Leo took my advice to tell her he loves her, but” Hazel continued

“She won't listen to him because she’s upset” Piper finished

“So, what do we do?” Frank was asking the important questions.

“I mean we should probably let them handle this on their own right?” Hazel, sweet innocent Hazel couldn’t be more wrong.

“No, we have to set them up,” Piper looked at hazel who clearly disagreed, “and before you say anything, think about it, we need the two of them on their best behavior if we are gonna save Percy and Annabeth and what better way to make them get along than if they’re getting it on”

“Getting it on?” Hazel asked

Frank looked panicked. “What Piper means is we need them to date, or at least be willing to be in the same room with one another.”

“And how are we going to do that,” Hazel asked.

“Easy, divide and conquer” Frank said

When Hazel, Frank, and Piper got back to the ship, things were worse than when they had left. It seems Leo had given up on trying to talk to Y/N, instead he had resorted to leaving when ever she walked in the room, and at one point at lease according to Jason, while fighting a monster who had gotten on board, the two were so busy arguing they almost killed each other instead. This could only mean one thing, they were going to need more help to set the two up so Jason was enlisted in the plan. It started simple at first, Seats were taken strategically at the table forcing Y/n and Leo to sit either directly next to each other or across from one another. It didn’t make for a pleasant dining experience to say the least. For the first few meals most of the dinner conversation went from bad to worse.

“Can you pass the salt” Y/N asked, the shaker was right in front of Leo, and while she’d rather not talk to him, her mama would’ve killed her for not using her manners at the dinner table.

Nobody moved. The silence was thick, it was salt for gods sake, one of them could just pass it over, but it was right in front of Leo and he wasn’t moving.

“Leo, can you pass y/n the salt” Hazel whispered, may he just hadn’t heard her.

“Oh she was asking me,” his voice was dripping with sarcasm, “I thought we weren’t speaking.”

“Yeah well if we aren’t talking you may as well just shut up and pass the salt” Y/N’s voice was laced with venom.

“What’s your problem” Leo practically jumped out of his chair.

“Me? I don’t have a problem”

“Oh please it looks like you have plenty of them”

“Okay, that’s enough you two” Jason tried to intervene before it went too far, it had been the same conversation for the past 3 meals and it never ended well, “Leo could you just give her the salt.”

“That depends, is she just going to use it then disappear?”

“Leo-“ Jason warned”

“Fine take it, whatever makes you happy right Y/N” He didn’t wait to hear ehr response before storming off.

Clearly they needed to try harder than that. So that night Piper, Frank, Hazel, and Jason devised a second part of the plan. If the root of the issue was Leo thinking Y/N didn’t like him and that’s why she was ignoring him, and Y/N overheard the conversation where Leo insisted he wouldn’t date her, then it was up to everyone else to subtly tell let the two know just how wrong they got things. The plan was mostly Jason’s idea, but he was definitely right. Piper was almost annoyed she didn’t think of it sooner, especially considering her mom was the goddess of love and all that. So they set into action, Frank and Piper would patrol the deck while Leo was steering the ship and talk about how Y/N is clearly just upset because she thinks Leo doesn’t like her just loud enough that he would overhear, Jason would have Y/n help him make dinner and be a bit more direct asking her what’s happening between her and Leo and do his best to push her into talking to him. Hazel was the final step, if nobody could get them to make up she would do her best to guilt trip them into speaking, she wasn’t sure how yet but she’d come up with something should the need arise.

Leo’s POV

Steering the ship late at night got boring, sure one of the others gladly would’ve taken over if he asked, but none of them quite understood how to operate the whole ship, well no one except Annabeth. Besides he wasn’t getting much sleep nowadays anywhere, maybe it was the impending war with Gaea, or the fact that his best friend hated him, but he was up all night all the time. If he was going to be awake he may as well be productive. So he steered the ship, checking the radar on occasion and talking festus when things got a bit too quiet. He knew Piper and Frank were on patrol and would eventually make their way in to talk to him, but until them Leo was left alone with his thoughts. He didn’t have any clue what he did to Y/N but he knew she had no reason to be ignoring him after she left him alone that night. Plus, he tried talking to her more than once to tell her how he felt, but she wouldn’t even give her the time of day so really she was the problem. Clearly that night together meant nothing to her so he decided it would mean nothing to him. He no longer loved Y/N. It would be much simpler that way. At least that’s what he told himself as the exhaustion started setting in.

“Look Piper, I know I’m not Leo’s biggest fan or anything but I don’t understand why Y/N just tell him how she feels” Franks voice broke through the steady beeping of machinery as they walked down the hall.

“It’s because she overheard him talking to Hazel and now she thinks he doesn’t like her which is ridiculous”

Y/N overheard him talking to Hazel? That couldn’t be right, she’d left and he didn’t see her all day. He thought back to that morning as he talked to Hazel when it clicked, he swore he had heard footsteps, it must have been Y/N.

“I get that, but why didn’t she just talk to Leo”

‘Frank, you’re the one who found her crying that night, she probably felt terrible and didn’t want to get hurt but talking to him again. We all know she isn’t the best at emotions.” Piper’s voice sounded weird.

“Yeah well neither is Leo.” That wasn't weird especially coming from Frank, but still he didn’t need to say it like that, “ But its pretty obvious to everyone but Y/N that he is head over heels in love with her. Maybe he just needs to give it one more shot, you know, talk to her alone and apologize for what she overheard and explain the full story. If he tells her he’s sorry and just explains he was worried she’d reject him, she would definitely forgive him and they could just live happily ever after.”

“Either way until one of them decides to be the bigger person and talk to the other, we’re in for a long ride.”

It was settled, as much as he would never admit this publicly, Frank was right. He needed to talk to y/n and he needed to do it now before she could hate him anymore. He put festus into autopilot and did his best to pretend he didn’t overhear Piper and Frank talking.

“Hey Leo, didn’t know you were still up” Piper said casually

“Of course, someone’s gotta keep this ship moving if were going to get to Percy and Annabeth in time” Leo forced a laugh, he didn’t really have time to stand here chatting

“Well we will be here all night if you need anything,” Piper offered

“Actually I have to run down to the boiler room for a few minutes if one of you wouldn’t mind keeping and eye on the radar, we don’t really have time to deal with any monster attacks right now”

“Yeah you got it bro, and hey dinner is in like 5 minutes try not to come back covered in grease or Hazel may kill you” Frank said with a smile

Leo didn’t even have time to think about how weird Frank was acting, like seriously when had Frank ever referred to anyone let alone Leo as bro. Still Leo was already on his way down the stairs to the living quarters, he needed to talk to y/n.

Y/N’s POV

Y/N was just about ready to go hide in her room for the next 3-5 business days, or at least until they reach the doors of death, whichever ever came first. She was exhausted, physically and emotionally exhausted. When she wasn’t patrolling or trying to come up with some sort of plan to save the entire world, she was arguing with Leo, and when she wasn’t arguing with Leo she was thinking about him. Actually she thought about him basically 24/7 but she didn’t want to think about that too much. Leo was a condescending little jerk, and he didn’t deserve the space he held in her mind, now if only her brain would get the memo. All Y/n wanted was a distraction. If she were back at Camp Half-Blood right now it would be easy to get her mind off Leo. She would just curl up with a book or do target practice with Will, heck she’d even volunteer for extra shifts in the med bay if it meant getting her mind off things, but abroad the Argo II the only distractions they ever seemed to get were monster attack and Y/N really did want one of those. So she settled on taking a nap. All she had to do was curl up under her blankets and at least until dinner she wouldn’t have to think about Leo and his stupid, adorable, obnoxious face. So that’s what she did it felt like she’d only been asleep for a few minutes when there was a pounding at her door. Y/n walked over to open it, surprised to see Jason there of all people.

“I need your help” He said looking but panicked.

“Yeah of course, what’s wrong” Y/n was concerned, it wasn’t like Jason to ask for help and she was the last person he’d come to normally. It was weird, something must be seriously wrong.

“I was making dinner and I burned basically everything and I mean you can’t even eat it and we only have like 20 minutes till dinner I need your help.”

“Can’t someone else help? I’m a terrible cook.” Y/N insisted, it wasn’t that she was all that terrible, it was just not something she really enjoyed doing. Baking on the other hand was her favorite.

”I can’t ask Hazel she made dinner the last 2 nights, Piper has never cooked a day in her life unless you count cereal, and Frank is Frank, he’d say yes because he’s too nice but he’d be miserable. Plus he’s already on patrol right now so it wouldn’t be fair to pull him off to help me cook.”

“Fine, I’ll help but you have to help me make breakfast tomorrow then”

”Deal” He was quick to agree.

So Y/n and Jason made their way down to the kitchen, there wasn’t any evidence of burned food but Y/N figured Jason had already gotten rid of it. The two of them worked side by side to make up a pasta dish that hopefully looked like it was the original plan. It was actually pretty nice, Jason’s no Y/N hadn’t had time to hang out in a while and it was nice to catch up. They talked about all sorts of things, what they wanted to do after the quest was over, their favorite movies, and Y/n least favorite topic as of late, Leo. Jason was good Y/N would give him that much. Despite her managing to avoid the topic so far he was able to sneak it in when they were talking about their favorite foods on the ship.

”I mean your breakfast sandwiches are killer Y/n but i really think Leo’s the best chef here” Jason laughed hoping Y/N wouldn’t snap at him for mentioning Leo’s name.

”I hate that you’re right” Y/n admitted, looking rather annoyed at herself for doing so.

”What happened between you anyways? It’s like all of a sudden someone flipped a switch and you went from loving each other to hating each other, did he do something because I’ll kill him.” Okay Jason was definitely being weird, he wasn’t normally one to but into peoples lives.

”I have no clue what you’re talk about.”

“Don’t lie, you guys were fine and now you can’t be in the same room without screaming at one another, so clearly something happened.” Jason insisted, Y/N just didn’t understand why he wouldn’t just drop it.

”Jason, seriously its fine,” it wasn’t fine.

”Look you’re both my friends, and I know all of us being trapped here can get intense sometimes, but he likes you and you like him. Maybe you should just talk it out.”

“And we are done here, I’m going to my room to clean up before dinner. I'll see you in 5.” And with that Y/n walked away effectively ending the conversation.

Gods, she should’ve known something was up. Since when had Jason ever wanted to talk about feelings, he was plotting something. Scratch that, Piper was probably the one plotting something since nobody else would be able to get Jason involved. Besides, he didn’t know anything, Leo didn’t like her and it was like nobody besides Y/N could get the hint and move on. She closed the door to her room before quickly changing out of her current clothes. Just as she was tying up her hair there was another knock at the door.

”Hey Y/n dinner is in like 2 minutes wanna walk up with me?” Hazel asked.

”I’m changing right now so just go without me”

There was no response, y/n continued to tie her hair up when there was another knock.

”Hazel I said go without me”

”Um, its not Hazel, can I come in and talk to you for a second?”

Leo. This is just what she needed, she could probably just say no and head up to dinner now right? Besides anything he had to say he could say in front of everybody else at this point. It wasn’t like everybody wasn’t up in her business anyway. She debated what to do for another minute when Leo’s voice rang out again.

”Y/N? Please I know you’re in there” He said it with a slight laugh, almost involuntarily she smiled, its like he knew she was trying to figure out how to escape the room without talking to him.

There was only one thing she could do at this point, so Y/N opened the door.

There was a palpable tension in the room. Leo shuffled in awkwardly unsure what he should be doing, is this the sort of conversation you have sitting or standing. Should he keep the door open? Maybe he should close it, the walls on the ship were pretty thin so if y/n decided to murder Leo someone would probably hear it. No he’d keep it open, that way if things went south he could just run away.

”What do you want Valdez,” Okay straight to the point, clearly this was going to be harder than Leo originally thought.

“I’m sorry.” Gods that wasn’t what he wanted to say, well it was, but he had so much more to say and he couldn’t find the words.

“Okay if that’s all then I’m going to go grab dinner”

“No that’s not what I meant,” Leo said quickly

“So you’re not sorry? Great talk Leo” Y/N began to push her way to the door.

“Y/n stop.” His voice seemed to echo in the room, y/n froze and turned around to face him. “Please Y/n, I need you to hear me out and when I’m done you can chose to hate me if that’s what you want but first i need you to listen, promise me you’ll listen.”

“I- I promise” Y/N had never seen Leo like this, he looked worried, upset, gods when she looked at him its like she could see all the sleepless nights engraved in his eyes.

“I’m terrible at apologies, I normally just make a joke and laugh it off but I’m not joking about this, I need you to know I’m 100% serious with what I’m about to say,” He looked at you as if waiting for you to shut him down, to break your promise instead you just nodded. “That night we spent together was basically the best night of my entire life and I was really happy because I’ve been in love with you for ages, basically since the first day I laid eyes on you. And when you disappeared without saying anything I panicked. I thought maybe it didn’t mean anything to you, I thought maybe you regretted it so I talked to Hazel. And I know I said some awful things, I said that I would never date you but I was lying, I was just hurt and trying to pretend I wasn’t. Gods Y/N I’d give the world to take it back but I can’t, and that’s what you overheard, me being an asshole because my feelings got hurt.

“And I know you had no reason to stick around but if you did you would know that i also told Hazel I was in love with you, not was am, I am in love with you. And I didn’t know you overheard me, Hazel told me I needed to talk to you so that’s why I kept trying and I wouldn’t leave you alone, and clearly you were mad at me but i didn’t know why at the time, and I know i was jerk to you and I can’t undo that but I’m hoping you’ll forgive me. Gods, I’m such an idiot and I should-“

Gods the boy could ramble forever if you’d let him, but you didn't have time for that. Instead you cut him off by kissing him.

”Wait, so does this mean you forgive me?” Leo asked

”What do you think” You laughed leaning in to kiss him again.

”Well I want to think yes, but I’m pretty sure we’ve established thinking is not my strong suit”

“I forgive you Leo.” His face lit up, “and I’m sorry too, my feelings were hurt and I didn’t give you a chance to explain anything, and you should know I only left because I was worried, I mean what do you say to your best friend after-“

“after you blurred the lines of your friendship and haven’t figured out what comes next?” He finished for you with a laugh.

“yeah”

“We really should get better at this whole talking thing, it would probably save us a lot of trouble.” He smiled, taking you into his arms.

“Speaking of trouble we should probably make our way up to dinner before one of them comes down here.” You smile and start pulling him to the door.

Okay so I know that about halfway through I started writing she/her instead of you but in my defense I stayed up all night writing this and also I’m literally just a girl.

[blookmallow]

my feelings about fo4 romances thus far

ive done all of them except piper and danse i think. i have both planned but haven't achieved them yet. i know one major thing about danse's development but have no idea what happens after the discovery of the thing comes out and have even less idea why so many people are into him so I'm hoping I will Learn

currently i feel like im just being followed around by a domineering buzz lightyear. he's... nice enough if you do things he likes...? he's supportive. but I have yet to get any personality out of him other than "soldier" and I'm guessing that's probably the point, so maybe there's a side of him I haven't seen yet. i really want him to get the hell out of the power armor though it is so unnerving having him stomping after me in the middle of diamond city. like. boy calm down for one minute we are going shopping. if he stays in the fucking power armor for his "waking up beside you" animation i am going to actually lose it

anyway i dont have a problem with piper (except i hate that she calls you "blue" i really feel like most of my SS's would be offended by that. you're nicknaming me after the vault i was lied to and controlled in. where i was frozen against my will and forced to watch my spouse die in front of me and my son be taken away. it's not cute! ) i just hadn't gotten around to her bc i hadn't figured out a character to make sense with her yet/it didn't feel natural but i think im gonna double her with my preston file. i have like 6 ocs going here dont ask (ive got uhh. my main is curie + hancock, then i have one for maccready, another one with hancock, one with preston + eventually piper, one with cait + gage, one intended for danse)

ive romanced hancock twice and had to talk myself out of doing it again on a third file. this man is my weakness. i would do anything for him. his romance lines are so sweet he makes me cry. perfect. no notes. the way he's threatening and dangerous but only when someone deserves it, and so soft and loving to you? rough and a lil bit fucked up, a lil bit nasty, but so calm and comforting and supportive to you? kills me. destroys me. my comfort character is a fucked up chem addicted radioactive ghoul who wears a 500 year old coat every single day of his life and might've lost a toe somewhere

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

cait's honestly feels so weird to me. it's like her personality just totally changes. she goes from being rough and sarcastic to "anything for you my treasure :) my heart is yours my beloved :)" and it doesn't feel like character development so much as just like. character flattening. it was actively putting me off spending time with her anymore. its like its not her. do you get me. does anyone feel this. i havent seen anyone talking about cait that much honestly so i have no idea

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

curie was my first love and i still cannot believe they gave us a miss nanny robot wife. i wish she was more android after the change though. i know human-passing synths are totally indistinguishable but i want her to be weirder. i want curie with glowing eyes. i want to see circuits on her arms instead of veins. anyway she is so so sweet and such a unique character i love her but also i do not understand her bc i was looking at her likes/dislikes and she apparently likes the brotherhood and doesn't like the railroad which does Not Make Sense To Me At All. girl you're a synth

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

i never really got why people are so into porter gage until i went through his romance and he's still not really my type but like, i get it now. the "man don't make me talk about feelings and shyit. we're... we're great! you know THAT. :/ " is so cute. i wish there was a redemption arc/reformed raider option for him because i feel like he had potential for growth that he just wasn't allowed to realize. underdeveloped but he is a DLC character so i guess that's how it goes

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

maccready is also kinda dangerously close to "personality changed completely when romanced" but it feels at least less jarring than cait's. maccready reads to me as a person who is actually quite sentimental and sweet but has become jaded/has to act tough to fit in/to protect himself and he's taking his walls down for you. he's another one that still isn't really my type but i Get It Now. his little toy soldier thing still gets me every time. speaking my exact love language of "here is a little thing that is important to me and i want you to have it and think of me." i respect maccready enjoyers

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

i haven't spent a lot of time on the file i romanced preston on but i was fully not prepared for the fact that he calls you "babe" once you're dating. it's so cute. preston is so cute. i don't have a lot else to say other than he is So Cute and deserves more attention than he gets.

@ bethesda give me nick valentine

[fallout-mountains]

I’m just gonna write the basic things I like and don’t like about each fallout 4 companion.

(These are likely based on:

Qualities that resemble myself

Qualities I want/don’t want in myself

Are they just enjoyable?)

Preston

Dislike: Have any other hobby beside Minutemen

Like: Just want to do good (and his hidden depression is relatable)

Nick

Dislike: As much as I like watching noir movies, the 1950s had problems I don’t want to be reminded of (despite that Nick doesn’t have those problems)

Like: He gets along fine despite all the bigoted hate he gets. That doesn’t stop him.

Piper

Dislike: Not a good reporter, also kind of basic

Like: Sisterly love (which I am aware she runs away from). Also, she’s hot

Cait

Dislike: Too much into fighting

Like: Doesn’t really get into your business too much

Codsworth

Dislike: Aside from him not fully understanding things and the world so it’s not helpful right after getting out of the vault (like he accidentally sent me to Raiders not knowing they weren’t friendly), he called me “mum”

Like: Once you get to know him he’s very nice. Also, good fighter companion

Strong

Dislike: Most everything

Like: He’s fairly consistent

Hancock

Dislike: giving me “totally far-out, dude” vibes, which makes me think he’s not really understanding Sole, so as just friends it’s fine, but closer seems a little unrealistic

Like: How does he function on that many chems? He’s a loved mayor, and there’s many reasons behind that

Curie

Dislike: I feel like she is in the game for a specific kind of fetish/kink (which I don’t have a problem with fetishes, but if you’re not into it, then it kind of lands flat, because her other characteristics seems to go by the wayside)

Like: Her aversion to violence despite being formidable enough. Also, her love of science

Ada

Dislike: if she had a skill perk, then maybe people would care about her more (I feel bad she’s forgotten a lot).

Like: Not really any judgement. She approves of most everything you do

Deacon

Dislike: He’s a liar

Like: Most of his one-lines are gold, and not self degrading

MacCready

Dislike: most things, especially abandoning his son

Like: He’s feels the most complex, which feels the most human. He also has his own charms. Can actually feel the struggle of living in a wasteland. His 180 change of how he treats you because he likes you is interesting, meaning he isn’t being nice just to be nice.

Danse

Dislike: sooo many things, Arrogance of BoS, his dismissal of most people, he has not tried to learn any people skills, his relation to Sole at the beginning is contradictory (he invites you to be a Knight but also said later he didn’t believe in you)

Like: He tries to uphold good. He’s a good fighter. He’s also hot

Longfellow

Dislike: That being an alcoholic is one of his biggest personality traits. His final speech would be compelling but growing attached to him is harder

Like: He’s pretty chill to just be around. Also fights well enough

Cage

Dislike: He’s a raider

Like: Smart, and proud of himself (but not in an arrogant way). His quests are not self-indulgent at all, like most others

Dogmeat

Dislike: Nothing, just give more kinds of things he can wear and let me pet him

Like: He’s the best boy

[marjaystuff]

Eliza Jane Brazier Interview

Girls and Their Horses by Eliza Jane Brazier is more than just a book about horses.  Readers should think about sports travel teams and stage mothers.  Those parents who try to put their own dreams on their children and push them to succeed, even when the dream does not seem realistic. The book explores the world of competitive horse jumping, with overbearing mothers who push their children to compete, toxic coaches, and mean girls. 

The story opens with a suspicious death at a horse show.  Throughout the book readers are trying to figure out who has been killed since the author does not reveal the victim until late in the story. This adds to the suspense along with other accidents that put some of the girls in danger.  

Besides the murder there is also bullying.  One of the families, the Parkers, have joined the Rancho Santa Fe Equestrian Center, to make a fresh start.  They left their Texas home because the youngest daughter, Maple, was constantly being bullied. Besides Maple, readers get the perspective of her sister Piper, her mom Heather, and some of the other families, Vera, and Pamela. While all appear superficial at the beginning of the book as readers get to know the characters they begin to like and dislike them. 

Then there are the men in the story.  Kieran, the owner of the center and the head trainer appears to only care about his prestige. Douglas works with the horses and is involved with some of the female characters.  The father of Piper and Maple, Jeff, is only concerned about making money. 

Anyone who has never read Brazier should start with this book. It is a fabulous story involving smoldering tension, manipulation, poisonous female friendships, and wealthy power dynamics, a depiction on the elite world of teen horse competitions.

Elise Cooper: Are you a horse person? 

Eliza Jane Brazier: I live ten minutes from Rancho Santa Fe. I worked in the horse industry for several years as a working student, a rider in a training program, and a riding instructor. I would observe the different dynamics between parents and children, which is what was the original spark for this book. There were some incidents where a mom wanted to pass her dream of riding horses to her child. 

EC: Do you think in the beginning of the book the characters appeared superficial?

EJB: My characters might have presented themselves that way. I want to write my characters taking a journey. In the beginning of the book as in most cases when someone first meets a person that person can appear superficial. It is only after the reader gets to know them, spending more time with them, they see the characters reveal themselves in a natural way.

EC: How would you describe Mable?

EJB: Bullied, which affected her.  She went along to get along.  Very anxious, jealous, with an attitude of woe is me. She idolizes her mom, is jealous of her sister Piper, and feels unlikeable.

EC:  You describe the bullying affect?

EJB:  Yes.  Bullies tease, push people around, and humiliate them. By complaining or showing fear the bullies are energized. I was bullied.  The scene in the book happened to me, where someone pulled me down by my hair and threw me on the ground.  I wanted to show how a parent feels powerless and helpless in those type of situations. The bullying motivated Heather, Maple’s mom, because she really wants to help her child, but does not know how.  

EC:  How would describe Piper?

EJB:  She is a go-getter, a problem solver, lonely, and tried to hide her feelings about horses. 

EC:  How about Heather?

EJB:  She wants good things for her children and is very supportive.  She does not see herself as a good mom. Heather is affected by being abandoned as a child. She has not dealt with her past and is not happy in her marriage. By marrying Jeff, Heather thought she would be safe and secure with him, someone to count on.  They never had any romance or love in the relationship. Her focus is on making her children happy instead of making herself happy. Heather has lost herself as a person. 

EC:  What about Heather’s relationship with her daughters?

EJB: She can be pushy and controlling. Eventually she realizes this and tries to back down. Her journey is the backbone of the whole book. The premise is a mom’s influence over their children and how they should yield it. No parent should be completely hands off yet should not be domineering. The other mom, Pamela, lets her daughter Vida do whatever she wants and then there is Heather, who tries to figure out where she is as a parent. 

EC:  How would you describe Vida and her relationship with her mom?

EJB:  A bully, self-centered, devious, basically a complete mean girl. Her mom Pamela related more to Maple than Vida. 

EC:  Can you explain why the mother quote?

EJB:  You are referring to this one. “You would worry and torment and impact your kids for the rest of their lives.  They would blame you for everything.  They would blame you for nothing.” I have eight brothers and sisters, with thirty nieces and nephews.  I get to observe many different dynamics between parents and their children. As people get older, they realize it is not about a right or wrong decision, but which decision will be the least harmful. With parenting the consequences are huge and somewhat scary because it affects someone’s life. The characters in the book have a complicated relationship with their parents. 

EC:  How would you describe Kieran, the owner of the Equestrian?

EJB:  He thought himself of G-d, is obsessed, narcissist, manipulative, controlling, and intimidating.  All that mattered to him are the horses. 

EC:  He abused humans, but did he also abuse horses?

EJB: Many readers who are not familiar with horses might think he abused them. ACE is a commonly used horse tranquilizer, which he gave the horse Commotion.  It is something commonly used. It is administered to calm a horse, especially after an injury. ACE is a mild sedative. This does not mask a horse’s injury. 

EC:  Douglas played an important role in the story?

EJB: He was confident, patient, sensitive, passionate, and charming. But he was also desperate to be loved.

EC: What was the role of the horses?

EJB:  They are beautiful and smart, powerful, and can help someone.  I put in this book quote, “Anyone that did not believe in magic, had never written a horse.” The horse Commotion brought Piper out of her shell, but also created jealousy among the girls. Through Commotion everyone projected their dreams. Maybe Douglas and Piper appreciated the horse as a separate being, but they also wanted to see how they can achieve their dreams through the horse. Both looked on the horse as a friend.

EC:  What about any movies/TV shows?

EJB:  There is something in the works. 

EC:  Next book?

EJB: I went into a different direction.  It is about a guy and gal who meet on an overnight sleeper train going from Florence to Paris.  They have a flirtation, but he disappears.  Both are contract killers. It has murder, romance, and adventure.  It should be out the end of the summer next year.

THANK YOU!!

[mentally-ill-pan-fried-egg]

I don't wanna be mean, or offend anyone, but I just wanted to share this to other PJO fans out there with my own opinion. ^ I feel like they're biased (sorta) on ships because the don't like Annabeth, and I respect that.

!❕❗SPOILERS❗❕!(read at own risk)

1. Percabeth 9.9999/10, it's all in all a good ship. Annabeth understands Percy's dumbass-ness (in a good way) and honestly endures his puns. As for the judo flip, it's like a warning, showing that she missed him and wouldn't risk him to get lost again. Telling him to try his best not to drift away from her, because they love each other. That shows when he's willing to go with her to the pits of Tartarus. She remembers stuff about him, like the blue food, and I feel like she tries her best to make him happy. If that's not true love, idk what is.

2. Solangelo 9.5/10, Will wasn't technically the first person to accept him, I get that it was Jason or Percy. But, he got over his crush on Percy and realized that he may like someone else. Most of the reasons people dislike this ship is because Will was said to have 'no' character development and that he doesn't deserve Nico. People seem to forget, he lost his brothers in a war, took control of his cabin and became a field medic at 13. Sure, his experience might not be as much as Nico's but still. He overcame his fear of the underworld JUST so that Nico wouldn't go alone. Heck, he even fought monsters in Tartarus (or tried to). And Nico, I guess for him, Will was a small light in dark times. If you've read TSATS, you would understand. It's shown their what happened or how their friendship developed.

3. Frazel 8/10, sure it didn't have a reason to happen but it's there. And it doesn't do any harm to us, it even makes us happy. You can see the development of their feelings for each other, some hints while on their quest with Percy. There's really no reason to hate it. The thing with Sammy and Leo made it a little more complicated, sure.

4. Caleo 6/10 now this is where things are kinda rough for me. Yes, it's a good ship, no reason to hate it really. But for me, I don't quite like how Calypso treated Leo in the start, ik it got better but for some reason that bothers me. And for her, I know she's destined to fall in love with whoever lands on her island. But, once she was free, maybe she would've liked to become a Hunter of Artemis, after being left repeatedly. But, if she makes Leo McShizzle Bad Boy Supreme Valdez happy, I'm fine with it.

5. Jasper/Jiper 7/10 ik this ship is only here because Hera did it (technically), in a way it's null. But, Piper had started developing feelings for Jason, real ones before and after they found out it was fake. They actually cared about each other. Maybe not romantically, but they did. Sure, it's not a ground-breaking ship, but, it's a good one. And besides, Piper found Shel. I get that Piper may be a lil bit possessive, I saw that, but then, maybe it's her way of idk, showing how distraught she is with the whole thing being fake.

6. Percico 4/10 I get why people ship percico. We all thought it was gonna be canon at some point, but, I have a few things. I feel like Nico might've gotten a crush because he was inspired by Percy, bringing him to chb. I get that he inspired him, but Nico in BoO realized that he got over his crush, or in a way idolization of Percy. And Percy, he is in love with Annabeth. And deeply cares for her.

Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk. Ciao

personal opinions on rrverse ships (part 1)

Percabeth: -999999999999/10 it’s super toxic and they’re honestly not compatible (tbh who would judo flip the “love of their life” upon reuniting? Shouldn’t it be a happy and wholesome scene? I get it, annabeth is badass and all that, but that’s just mean and toxic behaviour.) (also I lowkey dislike annabeth)

Solangelo: 5/10 I don’t mind it that much but will has NO character development. He literally only exists because RR wants to represent diversity and prove that nico’s gay (they’re pretty cute tho)

Frazel, caleo and jasper/jiper: 0/10 exists for absolutely no reason. weird and completely random. no development and got together.

percico 10/10 beautiful and awe-inspiring. in all seriousness tho they’re so compatible and cute together. Percy was the one who led nico into the demigod world and nico would be the one who made him realise what true (romantic) love is. BESIDES, anyone but annabeth.

[spookysteddie]

Between The Bookshelves

18+ Minors DNI

Pairing: Eddie Munson x fem!reader (Slightly modern AU cause I just cant help myself)

Content Warnings: bullying, Eddie kinda threatens to punch Dustin, mutual pining, Eddie talks bad about himself, slight self loathing, a mention of vomit (no actual sickness), public displays of affection, kissing, kissing in public, implications of sex, swearing.

A/N: reupload due to a formatting error 🥰

…

Everyone said being friends with Eddie Munson was social suicide. That talking to the “freak” would ruin a person image, and furthermore, their life.

It was quite ridiculous. Sure, Eddie did a good job of making fun of himself, therefore making it harder for anyone to realistically bully him. He took the story in his own hands, something you thought was sweet. And to be perfectly honest, you thought he was cute. Of course that was something you kept to yourself… sort of.

Eddie’s yelling is what pulls your attention that day at lunch, “THAT’S WHAT’S KILLING THE KIDS!” He lets some cheerleaders walk past him, smiling at them warmly. You cant help but laugh. Not at him, per say.

Your friends sneer, looking at him like hes not more than dirt on the bottom of their shoe, “he’s sincerely so annoying. If he didn’t fuck around, he might actually be cute.” Piper has a habit of hating anyone who is different from her. That wasn’t unusual.

But that also wasn’t how you rolled. Sure, you were friends, but it didn’t mean you condoned that behavior. “Piper, don’t talk like that. You just don’t like him cause he’s different and loud.” Now its your turn to roll your eyes at her.

“Why are you sticking up for him? Do you see the way he acts? He’s just as much of a bully as the basketball players are.” Jason mutters from beside you. It was frustrating talking to people who couldn’t accept that someone is different from them.

So, you get up, tossing the rest of your uneaten lunch in the trash and deciding to take a walk. You couldn’t stand your friends, but you also didn’t want to drop them. Making friends wasn’t easy and the last thing you wanted was to be eating alone at lunch. So, you dealt with it. They never said anything to anyone they disliked so you figured they wouldn’t be that bad.

You wrap your arms around yourself, walking deeper into the woods. You couldn’t wait to graduate, leaving Hawkins behind to go to a college in a warm climate.

You hit something hard, making you let out a small yelp.

“Oh! I am so sorry I wasn’t… paying attention.” Eddie Munson is staring down at you, holding your arms and keeping you steady.

You laugh awkwardly, your face growing warm from embarrassment, you should’ve been watching where you were going, “N-no I should be sorry. I wasn’t paying attention.” You can practically feel the lightening coming from the spots where he is holding you.

And you’re almost sad when he lets go, immediately missing his heat as he steps back, “have nothing to be sorry ‘bout sweetheart. I’m the one who needs to be more careful. Don’t wanna mark up your pretty skin.” He shooks you a wink and a little smile. And it’s then that you realize just how devastatingly beautiful you find him?

“I- I better get to fourth period. Ms. Carlisle will kill me if I’m late.” You mutter, your eyes barely meeting his, arms still wrapped around yourself.

“Be safe out there sweetheart, there are some scary men in this school.” He laughs a little, awkwardly tapping your shoulder in a friendly way. You know he’s referring to himself, but little did he know, you didn’t find him scary in the slightest.

…

It’s been close to three days since Eddie’s little encounter with you in the woods. And he hasn’t stopped thinking about you since. Of course, he hasn’t stopped thinking about you since fifth grade when you gave him a Valentine with his favorite candy at the schools Valentine’s Day party.

He knows it’s stupid, he just doesn’t care.

Well, that and the fact that he knows you could never like someone like him. Because, frankly, being friends with him equaled social suicide. And dating him? Practically the end of the world. And he couldn’t lie, that knowledge did kind of hurt him. But he would never show it, nor tell anyone. He only had a few months before he was finally out of that shit hole they called Hawkins high.

But, he couldn’t deny the electricity he felt in his finger tips as he steadied you. It wasn’t anything he’s ever felt before but it damn sure was something he wanted to feel again.

“Dude what is wrong with you today?” Dustin hits his elbow off the table, nearly making Eddie smack his face.

Jokingly, he punches Dustin in the arm, “nothing? I’m just super stressed about passing. S’all.”

They all know that’s bullshit, “Dude you’ve been staring that they girl over there like a god damn stalker. You like her or somethin’?”

He knew he could easily lie. In fact, that’s exactly what he should’ve done. But he doesn’t, knowing Dustin would eventually draw it out of him. “Okay kind of? But I barely know her. And besides, she wont like me back so I’m not worryin’ myself with it. Frankly, I wanna get the fuck out of this school.”

That was the truth. He needed out, and he needed it now. But he wouldn’t drop out. No way. He swore he’d never be like his father and he meant it. He was graduating even if it damn near kills him.

Dustin looks over at Mike, rolling his eyes and muttering a “he’s as oblivious as we thought.”

Eddie rears back, a little shocked, “I am not oblivious?”

Mike nods, taking a sip of his drink, “yes you are. She’s been sneaking look at you all lunch. And she looks away every time you guys lock eyes. Theoretically, you guys should just kiss in front of the entire school. Be less painful to watch then this…” he waves his hand around “this pining shit.”

Alls Eddie can do is blink at them, truly stunned that he was caught staring by his friends. And here he thought he was slick.

“Did you knuckleheads not hear a god damn thing I said?”

Dustin shakes his head, “we heard you. Just go get her number! She’s a girl. She isnt going to bite you… Well she might but only if you ask really, really nicely.” He flutters his lashes at Eddie, creeping in closer and grinning wildly

Eddie squints at him, “get away from me before I knock ya teeth out.”

“You’re a dick,” but he laughs anyway, knowing Eddie would never.

…

It’d been nearly a week now since you ran into Eddie. And since then, he’s done all he can to avoid you. You figured it was because he didn’t like you. That was until you caught him staring at you from the lunch table.

You also may have overheard the conversation. The tables were close enough.

And now, you had made the executive choice to get his number, maybe even invite him on a picnic.

“E-Eddie!” you call out to him, stopping him before he can get in his van.

He turns around, that devastatingly beautiful smile appearing. It nearly knocks you to the ground.

“Sweetheart! Hi. What can I do for you?” His voice light and sweet.

You cant help the shyness that creeps in. You always got nervous when you talked to others, more so people you didn’t know. Rejection wasn’t something you liked. Rocking on your toes, you take a deep breath, trying to remain cool, calm and collected.

“I, um…” you start quietly. “I just wanted to give you this… you don’t have to do anything with it. I mean, if you throw it away that-that’s your prerogative. But, um, if-if you didn’t do that… then feel free to use it!” You cut yourself off before you can ramble further. Piper told you that it’s annoying and unattractive which is the last thing you want to be to Eddie. You shakily hand him the paper, watching him open and smile at it.

“Aw, is this your number?” He’s not infantilizing you as he says it. He genuinely seems excited, though you can tell he’s trying to keep those feeling reigned in.

You nod, happy that he took it and didn’t reject you… yet. “It is. We should hang out sometime. Maybe see a movie or get ice cream.” You shrug, “ya know… whatever you think is fun.”

He smiles wider, making his eye crinkle a little. It’s cute. HE’S cute. And you knew that he could break your heart. But it didn’t matter. He could chew you up and spit you out and you’d thank him.

“I’ll let you know when I’m free.” And before you can answer, he hops in his van and drives away.

You take it as a win, for now.

…

Eddie cant deny the feeling inside his chest. It’s a mix of anxiety and pure delight. You actually gave him your number. AND invited him to hang out. And all he said was “I’ll let you know.”

“Idiot. You should’ve made plans right there. You’re such a pussy.” He berates himself as he drives.

Truly, he didn’t understand how someone like you would want to ruin her life with someone like him. I mean, its not like he was actually going to do something extravagant in life.

Or well, that is according to his teachers.

But that didn’t matter. All Eddie knew was that you gave him your number and, to him, it didn’t seem like a pity action. To him, it was genuine and insanely cute how nervous you were. It was then that he decided he was going to get you to stick around for as long as you’d have him.

…

Were you terrified he wasn’t going to call you? Yes.

Were you scared giving him your number was a mistake? Absolutely.

Did you lie awake all night waiting for him to call you? Maybe. Jury was still out on that one.

You looked over at your alarm clock that read 3:03 am. The witching hour. You couldn’t help but feel slightly embarrassed, feeling like you possibly read the situation wrong.

But you felt the electricity in his touch and the emotion in his eyes. Those are things you cant fake.

The ringing phone pulled you from your spiraling. You were quick to answer, praying it didn’t wake up your parents.

“Hello?” You answer, keeping your voice slightly quiet.

“Sweetheart, hi! Its um, its Eddie.” You could hear the nervousness in his voice. Kind of like he had been fighting with himself on if he should call you or not.

You cant help but grin, it may be late but he did call you, “well hello there! I thought I’d maybe written my number down wrong or something.” You giggle a little so he knows you’re joking with him.

“Now that would be funny. But, um, I know it’s late and we have class tomorrow but I didn’t know if after you wanted to maybe get smoothies? I know you like reading so maybe go to the book store? If-if you want?” Nerves clear in his voice.

The gesture was sweet, making little butterflies in your stomach. You, hanging out with Eddie Munson? A dream come true, honestly.

“I’d love that! Maybe I can convince you to read a book with me, like a little book club or something like that.”

He laughs, the sound washing over you and settling deep in your bones. You could listen to that sound on repeat; bottle it up and keep it for a rainy day. “We’ll see.” So not technically a no. Again, you’d take it as a win.

…

Eddie spent that entire school day distracted, nerves eating him up inside.

What if you didn’t like him?

What if you thought he was too weird?

What if you ran away screaming?

What if-

“Earth to Eddie? Hello?!” Dustin snaps in his face, drawing him out of his self loathing.

“Don’t snap at me like that. S’rude.”

Dustin rolls his eyes, “you’ve been bouncing your leg for the last twenty minutes, staring at the lunch table, looking like you’re about to vomit…” His eyes grow big with realization, “Which means you asked out y/n, huh?” Now hes giddy, staring at Eddie with those big eyes.

Eddie waves a hand, trying to pretend like it wasn’t a big deal, even though to him it was, “if you must know, yeah. We’re hangin’ out after school.”

Mike perks up, grinning at his friend, “oooooh, look at you go! Where are you taking her?”

Eddie grumbles a little, but he deny it kind of makes him happy his friends care. Kind of being the key word. Mainly because, he didn’t want them to do something to fuck up his chances with you. He already knew the ‘risk’ you were taking by giving him your number. He didn’t want you to slip through his fingers before he even had a chance to hold you.

“Were getting smoothies and going to the book store.”

The table is quiet for a minute, everyone staring at him before they all burst out laughing. He knows they aren’t necessarily laughing at him, but it does make him feel a tiny bit annoyed.

“You cant be serious? You don’t read.” Dustin says between laughs.

Eddie rolls his eyes, “just because I don’t read the books this prison makes me read, doesn’t mean I don’t like it.” He shrugs, “I read magazines all the time.”

“That’s not the same.” Mike teases.

Eddie shrugs, “whatever. That’s what she likes so that’s what we’re doing. I’ll make sure to come back with a detailed report considering you all got your noses in my… dating life.”

The table laughs some more before Eddie swaps the topic. But his mind is still occupied on one thing.

You.

…

“Ready to go, sweetheart?” Eddie comes up next to you after the bell rings, letting everyone go home for the day.

You grin up at him, enjoying the way his eyes light up when you’re around. “Absolutely! I’m so excited. My favorite author just released a new book so this is perfect timing! It’s a continuation of a series I already read and I’m pumped for the new one.” His attention makes you ramble, meaning you’re nervous. You mentally slap yourself, not wanting to scare him away on the first… whatever this was. Date? Friendly gesture?

He opens the door for you, letting you climb in before coming around to his side. “Well that sounds very exciting and I cant wait to hear all about it.”

…

You sip your smoothie as you peruse the aisles, scanning the shelves for the book, “this one?” Eddie holds up the book you’ve been lookin for, triumph on his face.

You grin, skipping over to him and gently taking it from his hands, flipping through. “Oh my god that’s the one! You’re amazing!” You get up on your tiptoes and kiss his cheek before you can think about it.

You pull away, realizing what you just did. You can feel your face get warm, Eddie’s growing red from a blush.

“I’m amazing? Nah, you are.” He gets closer, boxing you in against the bookshelf. No one was around, you knew that, but you can’t deny the excitement of someone seeing you two. Obviously nothing nefarious was happing, but the point stands.

“You-you are amazing too. So s-sweet.” Your eyes shift between his lips and his eyes. Gods, you wanted to kiss him. You’d wanted to kiss him for so long. And here he was, so close you could feel his body heat sinking into your bones. His smell engulfing you. It made you dizzy, but you didn’t want it to stop.

“Me? Sweet? According to everyone else I’m mean and scary.” You know he’s teasing, but the soft flash of self doubt flashes in his eyes, leaving just as fast as it came.

You shake your head, trying to swallow the knot in your throat. It didn’t work. “You’ve never been mean and scary. Always been so kind and sweet. Perfect.” Your voice comes out embarrassingly breathy, quieter than you wanted it to.

Eddie didn’t seem to mind. In fact, it only served to bring him closer to you, his lips inches from yours. You silently begged for him closer. For him to close the gap and just fucking kiss you already. “Perfect? No ones ever called me that before.”

You nod, “perfect. Just so, so perfect.” You decide to take the lead, closing the gap between you and him, brushing your lips over his to test the waters.

You feel his breath hitch before he melts into it. His hands wrapping around the back of your neck to hold you in place. The kiss is sweet, his lips soft and plump against yours.

Of course you’d been kissed before, but this kiss? This kiss felt like coming home. A feeling only talked about between the pages of your books.

He deepens it, tongue softly running over the seam of your mouth begging for entry. And the second your grant it, he’s exploring your mouth. You aren’t sure why, but you can feel the emotion in it. The way he’s holding you, like you’re sand that’s going to slip away when the tide comes in.

But you wouldn’t. Not unless he asked you to.

He breaks the kiss, panting slightly. His lips swollen and beautiful. “Wow” is all he can say as his eyes find yours.

You nod, “wow is right.” You don’t really know what else to say.

You can his mind working, trying to think of something to say. And then, “why me?” His soft voice almost too quiet to hear.

“Because you’re uniquely you.” You know it sounds cheesy, but it’s the truth. He deserved to know he was appreciated. “You make the bad days good. I’m always laughing when you’re around. And you’re just incredibly kind.” You shrug, “I wish more people got to know you like this.”

A soft smile pulls at the corner of his lips, “wanna know a secret?”

Your eyes get big and you nod quickly at him. If there was one thing you loved, it was secrets.

“I’ve had a crush on you since our fifth grade Valentine’s Day party in Ms. Kathys class.” You watch his cheeks go pink at the admission.

A small giggle bubbles in your chest, “I asked so many people what kind of candy you liked because I wanted you to notice me. I sort of had a crush on you too. And it never really went away.”

He kisses you again. This time its short, just a peck, but to you it’s just as sweet as the first one. “Maybe we can act on our crushes. Actually date.” He laughs awkwardly, “make our fifth grade selves proud?”

“Eddie Munson are you asking me to be your girlfriend?” You smile so big at him, the butterflies filling your veins when he smiles back.

“I am. I think we’d be a good match. Plus, I want in on this book club. The back of this book seems very interesting.” He wiggles his brows and your face grows hot at his implication.

“Then lets get two and head to my place. We can start the first ones.”

He smirks, kissing you once more before taking your hand, “I couldn’t be more excited.”

[piper-williamson]

my hoa ranking of characters — least favorite to favorite

not all characters are on this list but the ones i felt like i could rank as of rn. there’s too many minor characters i don’t care for and it’s not that i particularly care for the others i just remembered them enough to rank.

~~~~~~~~~~

rufus — -70969943853/10

kidnapped patricia. and jerome. and trudy. willing to commit human sacrifice of a kid. threatened them with electric bees or whatever. have had nightmares about him. thrilled that bitch is dead

denby — -10/10

so threatening with her words but she’s all talk. no action. kinda makes me hate her more? but in a different way. storyline is so messy like how did she even find out harriet’s destiny and how did she then decide she wanted to awaken a >hundred year old man and basically a hell demon?? like girl just go work for donald trump or somethin

vera — -6/10

not as annoying as denby but still like what did she even want? to be with rufus? why?!?? creepy af the time she was frozen dead but like not.

mick — 1/10

just,,, there. all he does is be in love triangles and play the sports. half of his storylines are just him leaving. patricia says there’s a man in the house (rufus) and he eats a banana. n who gives their gf and “just a friend” matching bracelets?!? 1 point for not being evil.

victor — 1.5/10

as much as i wanna put him above mick, he yells too much. calm down old man. 1 point for caring for the kids enough to not carry on when he found out about the whole human sacrifice thing. also saving joy in s2. y’know what he gets half a point more than mick.

trudy — 4/10

trudy is heartwarming but holy shit is she oblivious. Is Just Ok with “robert smith” being there even when she has no confirmation of his identity. very loyal to the kids and does protect them from a lot of shit. writers did her dirty a lot of the time.

mara — 5/10

ok listen. i don’t dislike mara. i just tend to favor the sibuna mystery storylines, and all of her stories are more realistic scenarios. that being said i love her helping poppy and i also love the sisterhood thing in s3. but also mara why the FUCK would you fall for mick like he’s mick??!?

kt — 7/10

written into hoa way better than on shows like h2o where there’s just one sentence about emma being gone and that’s that. she wasn’t just nina’s replacement, she was her own person. love her personality and her friendship with eddie. 100% a lesbian. only reason she’s so low is cuz no matter how good she is of a replacement character she still kinda is one and i don’t do well with those. i’m working on it.

nina — 8/10

i love nina so much. fabina is so cute together. i think the only reason i have her so low and don’t wanna put her higher is cuz i always hate main characters, even though i don’t hate nina. my mind is strange.

amber — 8/10

dumb blonde stereotype but who cares i love her. provides much comic relief for me especially in s2. ping pong queen. also love her bday episode. ungrateful for alfie at times. also liked mick but it’s a little more understandable cuz Hot Guy cliche. but was also mean to mara about it. but also a lot of that was mick’s fault #blamemick

alfie — 8/10

class clown who’s loyal af. Actually completes amber’s bf trial list. would go through hell for her. always feeling like he has to prove himself to the group but he’s always been an asset. we love him.

willow — 8/10

was such a comfort character when i was little. for some reason rewatching she was less of one. still absolutely so pure of heart and lovable. somebody get this girl a hedgehog.

eddie — 9/10

cool dude™. top notch bf. peddie is one of my fav ships ever. he kinda gets all heroic in s3 but s3 has a whole set of issues. plot twist reveal of his daddy issues. great development while being a great character the whole time.

fabian — 9/10

such a solid dude. guy-falls-for-girl-first trope to the max. he’s awkward and nerdy but not really cocky or annoying. fabian defense squad for life. point off for kissing joy like dude besides the outfit she looks nothing like nina come on.

jerome — 9/10

terrible person at times, but great character. comfort character of mine. his flaws allowed him to be developed throughout the show. he feels very real and human and i love him.

piper - 10/10

obsessed w her cuz i’m also pretty similar to her. both of us go (went) to music school and love patricia. not that i think she’s a BETTER character than a lot of the characters lower on this list, but this is a ranking of my favs so she has to be above them.

joy — 10/10

also a comfort character. i honestly feel most like joy out of all the characters. similar to jerome in that her character flaws lead to richer development. i live for it. was Literally held hostage by her parents and forced into a cult in s1. most of anubis house seemed to just brush that off. that doesn’t excuse her actions, but i love her growth throughout the series. not higher cuz she was kind of a dick to nina for a long while.

patricia — 10000000000+++/10

again i wish there were an infinity symbol. do i even have to say anything? witty and sarcastic and says what’s on her mind. i wish i were eddie cuz i’m in love w her. i know amber’s the one who went to fashion school, but patricia is a style icon. my gay awakening.

[longitudinalwaveme]

Flash Villains: Who’s The Most Evil?

Like all heroes, the Flash’s villains vary widely in terms of threat level, motivation, and level of malice. Unlike most heroes, Flash is relatively unique insofar as most of his villains aren’t especially malicious. However, that doesn’t mean that all of them are sympathetic. 

The most malicious Flash villains, to my mind, are probably Eobard Thawne (aka Professor Zoom the Reverse-Flash), Gorilla Grodd, Cicada, and Murmur. Eobard is a predatory stalker and has caused more personal harm to Barry than anyone else, Grodd is a sadist who wants world domination, Cicada led a cult that murdered hundreds, and Murmur is a creepy serial killer. None of them have ever displayed any signs of remorse or real humanity (and yes, I recognize the inherent meaninglessness of saying a gorilla has no humanity; I couldn’t think of another term.) 

Blacksmith, Abra Kadabra, and Girder the rusty rapist are also pretty high on the list. Kadabra is frighteningly unhinged and has very little regard for human life. Blacksmith organized a plot to take over the entire city and arranged for such things as framing Hartley for his parents’ murder and convincing Jay and Joan that Joan was dying of cancer. She also pointlessly killed Rainbow Raider, who posed zero threat to her. And Girder is...well...a rapist. Besides being angry and creepy around women, he has no other noticeable personality traits, so he’s pretty easy to hate. I guess Plunder would also fall around here, though he had so little page time that I have a hard time getting a good read on his personality. 

Beyond this point, things start getting complicated. While Grodd, Eobard, and Kadabra are almost always portrayed as malicious and dangerous, and Blacksmith, Girder, Murmur, Cicada, and Plunder were really only ever written by one person (at least in major roles), how malicious the other villains are varies widely between writers. 

That being said, Hunter Zolomon (Zoom) and Thaddeus Thawne (Inertia) would probably fall just below Plunder on the list. Zoom is hard to rank, because while his actions are often heinous, he seems to be legitimately mentally ill; to the point where I think he’s one of the very few supervillains who could successfully use the insanity defense in real life. He honestly believes that what he’s doing is helping Wally....but his actions are still incredibly disturbing. It’s also worth noting that he’s much less evil under Geoff Johns than he was when he finally made his reappearance during the relatively recent War of the Flash arc. His level of actual malice was so much higher there, in fact, that at points he seemed like a different character entirely. Inertia, while a serious threat, was portrayed somewhat sympathetically in his appearances in the Impulse comic, but was subsequently portrayed as an Eobard-level psychopath in the Flash: The Most Terribly Written Man Alive and nearly all subsequent stories (his most recent major appearance, written by Joshua Williamson, is an exception). Because of this inconsistency, I can’t move him any higher or lower on the list. 

Of the Rogues proper, the most malicious ones are, in no particular order, the Top, Captain Boomerang, Sr., Mirror Master II, and the Golden Glider. The Top is unique insofar as he was basically always portrayed as one of the most dangerous Rogues. In his first appearance, he tried to blow up half the world (though he seemed more than a little uncharacteristically unhinged in that story, so it’s possible that he wasn’t all there during that escapade), he tried to blow up the city when he died, he possessed the body of Barry’s father, he tried to take over the country by becoming president, he tried to kill the mayor to take over the city (though he was definitely mentally ill during this story), and he generally caused havoc during the Rogue War. He’s by far the most conventionally ambitious of the group. 

Evan McCulloch, the second Mirror Master, is not especially malicious when written by his creator, Grant Morrison (he refuses to kill women and children, readily works with the Justice League when Batman promises to donate money to his old orphanage, and seems to bear no dislike for Wally or any other hero). However, when other people write him, he’s usually one of the most malicious Rogues. During Mark Waid’s run, he was depicted as an abusive stalker; during Geoff Johns’ run, he racked up an enormous body count and was responsible for the death of Piper’s parents. Why this is, I have no idea, but it’s still enough to put him fairly high on the list. 

Captain Boomerang, Sr.’s level of malice jumped noticeably after Crisis on Infinite Earths. Pre-Crisis, he actually came across as one of the least malicious of the bunch, but when John Ostrander started using him on Suicide Squad, he became a disgusting, racist, sexist, foulmouthed, selfish, cowardly, abrasive, treacherous, boorish disaster of a human being...and he’s been that way ever since. 

Golden Glider is bizarre, as she’s one of the very few villains whose level of malice actually seemed to decrease over time without them actually outright reforming. In her Bronze Age appearances, she was absolutely terrifying; targeting Barry’s wife and parents and pursuing revenge with a level of single-minded determination that would make Batman impressed. (Barry even canonically compared her to Batman during this period!) While she was more sympathetic than, say, Eobard, by virtue of the fact that she genuinely loved and grieved for Roscoe, she was still incredibly malicious. After Barry’s death, the writers seemed unsure of what to do with her. I enjoyed her semi-reformed period under Messner-Loebs, but after that things just fell apart until her eventualy pointless death. Geoff Johns portrayed her as more of a victim than anything, and since Flashpoint, she’s actually seemed to be one of the least malicious Rogues. It’s very odd. 

Weather Wizard would probably be next. He’s had a few acts of humanity and a few more acts of unusual malice, but on the whole, he’s generally somewhere in the middle of the Rogues in terms of level of malice. He also doesn’t seem to vary too much between writers. 

Axel Walker, the second Trickster, was very malicious during the early period of Geoff Johns’ run (tying bombs to homeless people-yikes!), but gradually became more sympathetic over time as he started to realize he was in over his head. Post-Flashpoint, he’s been one of the least malicious of the bunch, probably since he’s just a kid. It’s still strange to compare his appearances under Johns to his post-Flashpoint appearances, though, since they’re noticeably different. 

The first Mirror Master, Sam Scudder, probably falls near or below Axel. Since most of his major appearances were pre-Crisis, he’s really never succeeded in doing anything particularly heinous, and when compared to, say, Roscoe or Bronze Age Golden Glider, he’s usually not planning anything nearly as damaging. 

Captain Cold is one of the least malicious Rogues; he’s the one to enforce their codes and generally seems to avoid causing harm to people if he can help it. He can definitely be hypocritical, and he’s shockingly brutal at times, but on the whole he’s one of the most restrained and moral members of the group. Heat Wave is probably one the same level as Cold. For a long time, he was one of, if not the, least malicious Rogues, but since the pyromania retcon, he’s gradually become more and more unhinged and violent. Furthermore, even though Captain Cold and Heat Wave are traditionally among the least malicious of the Flash’s villains, for some reason they both seem to have become much worse since Flashpoint happened, with Captain Cold becoming much more of a brutal ganglord than he was pre-Flashpoint and Heat Wave’s remorse over his pyromania seeming to all but disappear at times. 

Fallout probably falls about here. He’s more of a passive danger than an active one, and he doesn’t seem to mean anyone harm. 

The first Trickster, James Jesse, is usually comparatively harmless, even reforming and managing to do an impressive amount of good during the 1990s. He even saved the world from Neron! That being said, when he finally reappeared after a decade-long disappearance, he suddenly became much more like his TV self than the traditional comic book version of James Jesse, to the the point where it almost felt like he’d been replaced by the Joker. I wasn’t really a fan of the arc where he came back. While I was glad to see him brought back from limbo, I didn’t really want to see him brought back as a psychopath who brainwashes the entire city. 

Peek-a-Boo only turned to crime to try to save her father and legitimately didn’t seem to mean any harm to anyone. 

Finally, the Pied Piper has been the most reformed, and therefore least malicious, of the group since the late 1980s. Since his reformation, he’s done almost as much to help the Twin Cities as the Flashes. However, it’s interesting that his reformation was immediately preceded by the period at which he was the most malicious: the never-ending Trial of Barry Allen arc. During that arc, he actually attempted to hypnotize the mayor into committing suicide! However, since then, the Piper has been pretty solidly on the side of the angels (his stupid appearances in the Flash: The Most Badly Written Man Alive notwithstanding). 

[seattlesea]

The Poor Character Developments in the Heroes of Olympus Series

Rick Riordan doesn’t know how to write character arcs ✨

-Percy. What arc did he even have? From The Last Olympian to The Son of Neptune it seems like he just got more arrogant and douchey, and this is never explained or expanded on. The readers don’t know why he suddenly got so arrogant. His pride got out of control and he was doing things he knew he couldn’t do but jumped into anyway like attacking a giant head-on alone. He was reckless in PJO, but every time he always had a plan. In HoO he just turned careless. He even put other demigods’ lives at risk at times and honestly didn’t do much throughout the series. He was just kind of there, not really contributing to anything and only involved when the book needed comedic relief or to remind the readers that ‘Hey, Percy is super cool and powerful’. As for his arc, he didn’t change at all. He just got annoying and way too self-involved and vain. I mean- he was literally in front of Hercules, the man who broke Zoë Nightshade’s heart- the girl who literally sacrificed herself for Percy- and he didn’t even say or do anything? He didn’t even mention Zoë or think about her at all. All he was worried about was how ‘big-shot Jason’ got to meet the all-famous Hercules and he didn’t. And this never changed. Percy’s character arc was completely flat cause he never learned from his lessons or mistakes. Even when in Tartarus and was reminded of all the people that he lost during the Second Titan War, how he forgot about Calypso on her island for over two years, and how he left Bob the Titan alone in the Underworld, he didn’t make any move to change. After that scene, he completely forgot to even mention them again. 

-Annabeth. Same thing with Annabeth, except her realism was ripped from her. She was well-written in PJO with actual flaws and weaknesses, relationships outside of her romantic one with Percy, a very important and crucial role, fighting bravely, etc., but in HoO, she- just like Percy- was pretty much dead weight, and she became extremely weak. The only thing she really accomplished was following the Mark of Athena and getting the Athena Parthenos, but she still had to be saved by everyone else, and honestly any other demigod could’ve done it way faster. Nico literally could’ve just shadow-travelled to the statue then shadow-travelled it back out. The only times she fought (which was very few times) she was always with another demigod, and the two-three times she actually fought she always had to be saved, by a newbie, especially. In the Temple of Fear, Piper ‘toughened’ her up and saved her three times from the giant Mimas, and when caught by the giants, Piper was the one to save Annabeth (again). She couldn’t do anything by herself without others having to save or help her. And she also became very dull. She didn’t have any more of her pride, short temper, care, ferocity, etc. All she was was a Percy fangirl. Everything was about him and him only. This also didn’t change. We didn’t see any improvement or alterations to her personality whatsoever. 

-Jason. The majority of the fandom doesn’t like Jason- which is understandable- but they hate on him for the wrong reasons. They dislike him cause he was ‘boring’ despite him actually having multiple distinct personality traits. They just think he didn’t have any personality cause his traits weren’t directly commented on like the other characters’ were (which is actually bad writing, readers should be able to interpret a character’s personality without it being stated to them by other characters). And he even had a sense of humor. His character arc though...fell short. But! He could’ve had an amazing character arc, Riordan just focused on the wrong parts. Riordan’s take on Jason’s character arc was deciding if he was more ‘Greek or Roman’ and then deciding he was both. But...that makes no sense, cause that’s just stereotyping every single Greek and every single Roman. The fandom says that the Romans are the cruel, harsh, and merciless ones, but what about Hazel? Or Frank? Or Reyna? Or the fact that they immediately accepted Nico while Camp Half-Blood outcasted and even ostracized him? And they say that the Greeks are the fun, cool, relaxed ones, but what about Percy, the only character to canonically torture? Or Annabeth, the unfriendly bossy one? Or Thalia, the merciless, ambitious hunter? Or Piper, the prejudiced manipulator? So really, Jason’s character arc made no sense. It was written to be Jason going from ‘always following the rules and following expectations because of his godly parent’ to ‘doing whatever he wants’, but the fandom forgets that Camp Jupiter is the one who doesn’t care about godly parent, Camp Half-Blood does, cause Camp Jupiter has demigods live in barracks for the sole purpose of demigods without family members not having to live alone while Camp Half-Blood separates cabins and tables by parentage and immediately set Percy to high standards after he was claimed. Besides, does Camp Jupiter have harpies that literally kill demigods if they’re out past curfew? Plus, Jason was breaking multiple rules before his character arc anyways- leaving Camp Jupiter, sailing across the Mediterranean Sea, etc. 

-Piper. Oh boy. Where to start with this one. I’ve already gone over how her horribly-portrayed backstory ruined the chances of a good character arc, but now let’s discuss the character arc she actually had. And the best way to describe it is ‘tell not show’. The main idea for Piper’s character arc was that she felt insecure about herself and useless and that she gained confidence in herself and her powers, but that’s not actually what happened, because starting from The Lost Hero, Piper showed multiple narcissistic tendencies that showed that she had a huge ego and placed herself on a pedestal she did nothing to earn or deserve. This is first shown with femininity- Piper immediately thinks that she’s better and above any girl if they so much as wear lip gloss or a dress, which is a sign of an obvious ego: thinking you’re better than everyone else (or in her case, a certain group of people) before getting to know them first. It’s also shown when her and Annabeth are looking for a weapon for Piper and when suggested that she doesn’t choose a dagger cause she’s a newbie, Piper retaliates with “But you use a dagger”...aka thinking she’s already on Annabeth’s level and that she can do whatever Annabeth can despite being a newbie. It’s not hypocrisy if Annabeth has been training for over nine years. Another example would be in The Mark of Athena-  "Piper's eyes flashed defiantly, like anything Reyna could do, she could do". Like, no, she can’t, cause Reyna has been training her whole life and Piper doesn’t even know her. Piper shows multiple signs of having a very high opinion of herself, including degrading others (especially other women) for her own sake, thinking she can do what anyone else can, thinking she’s better than everyone else, constantly fussing over her appearance, thinking she deserves everything she’s gotten and that she deserves more without earning it, etc., so her entire character arc wasn’t even there. She just went from quiet about her narcissism to openly expressing it. She never grew from her horrible traits and habits, never realized she was wrong by jumping all over Jason while he was amnesiac, etc., and the whole ‘feeling of uselessness’ was brought up once then never expanded on or mentioned ever again, and nor was her internalized misogyny and fiery hatred towards femininity (which wasn’t even explained). Riordan should’ve used the ‘snobby rich girl learns to be kinder and more modest’ or expanded on the fact that Piper almost killed her friends multiple times. In Katoptris, she saw Jason with gold eyes in Kansas then said ‘Let’s go to Kansas!’ She saw her, Jason, and Percy literally drowning and legit said ‘Let’s go drown!’ without telling them about what she actually saw in her dagger. She saw her and Annabeth exploring some ruins and said ‘Let’s go!’ despite knowing the visions were deadly. She put all of her friends in multiple, life-threatening situations and never felt guilty and wasn’t even called out on it, because no one said if the visions in Katoptris were fate- something you can’t avoid- or destiny- something you can choose and change. 

-Frank. Frank’s character arc was clear, but it happened in the wrong way. The main idea of his development was that he was insecure about his appearance then gained confidence from it, but he did only after he magically gained rippling abs and muscle. He only felt good about himself once he lost all his fat as if that’s not obvious lookism, fatphobia, and fat shaming (thanks, Riordan). Frank should’ve learned to love himself despite his flab and appearance and learned that it didn’t matter what he looked like cause he would still be a hero either way. He should’ve shown the readers that ‘Hey, I don’t care what I look like, cause appearance doesn’t matter, whether you choose to do the right thing or not does’, but it was wasted for fat shaming every single reader who was insecure about their weight and didn’t or couldn’t get skinnier and telling them that they should be insecure about themselves because they don’t look like Frank. Is it really so hard for society to believe that a lot of people who aren’t stick-thin are happy and confident about their body? 

-Hazel. Honestly, her character arc was one of the most confusing ones, cause she didn’t have anything to drive or even start one. Her backstory is tragic, yes, but there isn’t anything in it that she has to learn to change from cause all of that was resolved when she took down Alcyoneus and Gaea. The only thing I can think of is learning to break away from toxic people even if they’re your family or friend or cause you don’t want to hurt their feelings, but Hazel didn’t struggle with relationships at all. She wasn’t even introduced to any toxic people besides Octavian, and she already hated him. Her transition from the racist and segregated days to the modern world could’ve been really good material for a character arc along with internalized racism- she of all people (someone born and raised in segregation who was taught to hate herself and her skin tone) would grow up thinking that there was something wrong with her because of her dark skin tone and- especially after meeting so many different people of different ethnic groups and skin colors- could’ve learned to love herself and learn that skin tone doesn’t define you (which also would’ve been a perfect lesson for younger readers). Another thing that puzzled me about her ‘development’ was her powers. Her Mist control powers are cool, but what would’ve been cooler was if she was reluctant to use them because she wouldn’t want to twist the minds of people just like Gaea did to her mom. Her gem and metal control powers could’ve been expanded on but they were barely mentioned after The Son of Neptune. As for her curse, that...made absolutely no sense. Her curse was honestly just dead weight. It wasn’t even that one thing that had a lot of potential, it didn’t even have potential, cause what would she ever use it for? It was just used to make her backstory sadder, but it was never mentioned again or even explained. The only thing it could’ve been used for (and what I was hoping would happen) was if one her friends or allies took one of her cursed jewels and died because of it. The one thing I was really hoping to see in her character arc was from the quote she said to Hecate after Hecate gave her the three paths to choose from- “I’m not choosing one of your paths. I’m making my own.” This really sparked my interest because almost everything Hazel had gone through was forced onto her by others without her consent. She didn’t choose to be born into racism and segregation. She didn’t choose to be cursed. She didn’t choose to be used as a pawn by Gaea through her mother. She didn’t choose to almost raise a giant and nearly bring upon the apocalypse. She didn’t choose to use her curse against others and move to multiple places. She didn’t choose to be brought back to life. She didn’t choose to be brought to Camp Jupiter and thrown into an army. She didn’t choose to be a part of the Seven and face the same woman who used her and had her mother possessed years ago. The only two choices she made herself- destroying the island and Alcyoneus and sacrificing Elysium so her mother wouldn’t go to the Fields of Punishment- and she and her mother died because of it and she went to Asphodel for years. I was really hoping to see Hazel break free from others always making decisions for her and learn to make her own choices, but that never happened. 

-Leo: His character arc was also very confusing, but because it was all over the place. Riordan kept switching up Leo’s internal problems; forgetting about one of them and jumping to another, jumping to three different others, and then going back to the first one a few chapters later. It was so confusing. And then- in the end- he focused on the worst problem Leo had- not finding a love interest. I mean, who exactly focuses on whether or not they have a girlfriend while in the middle of a war and fighting to survive again? I liked Leo’s other problems- guilt over and blaming himself for his mother’s death, seeing his fire powers as a curse instead of a gift, forcing himself to hide his pain with humor instead of opening up to people, running away from all his problems, and his abandonment issues and constant fear of being left out and alone, but they were all replaced with ‘He felt like the seventh wheel’ (cause yes, Riordan, if you don’t have a love interest, you are immediately lesser than anyone who does, obviously). Leo got over his mother’s death in The Lost Hero- which, great- but after that nothing too memorable changed about his character. He never even used or mentioned his fire powers after The Lost Hero, he continued to hide all his pain with humor, hide his emotions from other people, and never learned to open up to others about his pain and trauma, he never learned to stop running away from his powers (shown by when he faked his own death without bothering to talk to the others about feeling left out), and his abandonment issues and fears were never expanded on, he just ran into the arms of a girl who verbally abused and constantly insulted him AKA ran to the person who gave him attention, even if it was the bad kind of attention, as if that’s not something emotionally scarred people and people with abandonment issues do, and he never grew from accepting unfair hate and criticism. 

-Nico. His character development was actually pretty good. From going to an energetic, cheerful, and playful kid to becoming a quiet, closed-off, and independent teen who struggled with depression and feeling alone and like he didn’t belong, to finding comfort in his family and friends (especially Reyna, Hazel, and Will) and learning to accept himself for who he was (as a son of Hades and as gay) and how to confide in others about his struggles, problems, and trauma and finally letting people in after being do dubious of people after Percy broke his promise to protect Bianca, he found out that King Minos was using him, and almost all of Camp Half-Blood excluded and ignored him. After being alone for most of his life, by the end of The Blood of Olympus, he has two homes (as stated by Reyna), is comfortable with people hugging him, allowed people to take care of and help him, decided to stay at Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter instead of isolating himself, made a bunch of new friends that helped him through his struggles, and he even showed multiple signs of healing from his depression and anxiety. His character development was pretty well-written. But, there was one thing wrong with it that kind of ruined the rest- his love life. Nico had an incredible character arc that could’ve taught multiple valuable lessons to younger readers, but most of it was ditched after he came out as gay in The House of Hades. Throughout all of his point of views in The Blood of Olympus, Nico never thought about any of his past trauma or struggles, Bianca, his new family and friends, etc. Pretty much all he thought about was finding out how to come out to the others and Percy. And while mustering the courage to come out is a huge deal and is great material for a character arc, Riordan never actually utilized it. Nico telling Reyna he was gay was really touching (best duo) and telling Percy he had a crush on him was great, but after that, his entire character was about his attraction towards Will (which was way too rushed, but that’s for another rant), and it got pretty annoying cause it made it obvious that Riordan only confirmed him gay for publicity by trying to shove it in the reader’s faces as if every gay person needs to have a boyfriend to validate and prove their sexuality. Riordan should’ve stayed on track with Nico’s original character arc. 

-Reyna. THE BEST CHARACTER ARC. Hers was actually really good. She started off trying to do everything on her own because she believed that she had to be strong enough to do things by herself without help from others to learning that it’s okay to ask for help. She also started off with the (quite serious and traumatizing) problem of bottling all her emotions because she believed that she always had to put on a strong, brave face for others without showing any signs of weakness to learning that it’s okay to express your emotions and confide in others (and again, that it’s okay to ask for help). This was mostly evident after she met Nico, which (in my opinion) kick-started her motivation to change because once she saw how much Nico needed help and giving him that support and comfort, realized that everyone is allowed to ask for help and started confiding in Nico as well. I like how she stayed strict and serious cause she has a formal job- a job that’s equivalent to an American’s president, that is- so she’s supposed to be serious, and she’s only strict cause she wants to protect her people. Though I do hate when people misjudge her as ‘cold-hearted’ or ‘cruel’ because Reyna is actually one of the kindest and most selfless characters in the series. Even Pegasus (the immortal lord of the pegasi) was ‘touched’ by Reyna’s ‘compassion’ towards Scipio (he didn’t even say that to Percy about Blackjack), and it’s pretty obvious she cares deeply about her family, friends, and people. And overall, her character arc was easily the best-written one in HoO. But then Riordan- just like he does with most things in this series- completely trashed her character arc just so he could have the opportunity to make fun of wlw readers who thought Reyna and Thalia would be a good couple by making her leave everything behind for the Hunters of Artemis just cause she ‘couldn’t find a love interest’ as if joining the Hunters is the only option for single female demigods instead of just...living a normal demigod life without a partner without leaving everything they know and love behind for no reason other than their shitty love life. 

[overheard-at-camp-half-blood]

A Rant About Heroes of Olympus Character Arcs.

Just as a warning most of this is negative, but I put the names in big bold letters, in case you want to skip. I do have some controversial opinions in here, specifically towards Percy and Annabeth, and their relationship, but I don’t think I’m negative towards their actual characters... I more so critique how it could have been written better.

I do still love the series, and even though I poke fun at Rick a bit, I still like him as a writer (though I recognize the problematic elements in this story). These are my own opinions on the books, and I’m sorry if I criticize your character in ways you don’t like.

Also, I may do another post about some other problematic elements, so be on the lookout for that.

Percy

Let’s start with Percy, shall we? After all, he is the one who started it all, and he was the one who introduced us to this world. If I’m being extremely honest, and I know I’m going to get hate for this, but I think Percy’s arc should have ended in the first series. He could have still remained a major character in this series, but I think as far as his main arc went, it wrapped up better in the first series, because I feel like this series added nothing to his arc.

I mean, he and Annabeth went through some majorly traumatic shit in The House of Hades, and then nothing was done about it, and I feel like it would just be better had it not happened. Besides I have some major issues with how his relationship with Annabeth played out.

Annabeth

I was really excited for Annabeth, and I did like her arc in MoA. It seemed like a good continuation of her arc in the first series, where Annabeth wanted to prove herself to everyone else, and now she wanted to prove herself to... well, herself. The arc had potential, and I really enjoyed seeing her arc in MoA, but as I said, I didn’t like how her and Percy’s relationship ship played out.

Now, let me preface this by saying that I am NOT anti-Percabeth, in fact, I do post a lot about it on this blog, but I am critical of how Rick writes established relationships. Perhaps it is because I’m older, so therefore my mind is more critical of these sorts of things.

I love Percabeth, but I really dislike their codependency.... I mean Annabeth’s arc in MoA was great because there was a focus on her relationship with Percy, but it was still about her. And yeah, I understand they’ve been through a lot together, but I really don’t like how their development was dependent on each other.

The reason why I put this under Annabeth and not Percy is because for me, it was much worse for Annabeth, because this was our first time getting this from her perspective. We got to see Percy develop through his own eyes, but we never really got the same for Annabeth. Most of Annabeth’s development was through Percy’s eyes, which was why I was so excited that Annabeth was getting her own POV.

And it was great in MoA! But after that, it honestly felt to me that her story was more about her relationship with Percy, than Annabeth herself.

Jason

Jason was doomed from the beginning.

That’s the main issue, is in the beginning, he was literally a blank slate, and while we were worried about the mystery of his character, there was really no way for us to know who he was as a person, because HE didn’t even know. So, as he was introduced at the same time as Piper and Leo, he didn’t get the same development as Piper and Leo. As we learned the other two’s backstories, and how those backstories represent who they are in the current story.

And the thing is, when we finally DID find out who he was, it was too late to do anything with it, because the story ended. I think by the time Blood of Olympus rolled around, and we did learn more about him... a lot of people had no interest in him.

That being said, I love fanon Jason, and I didn’t like how he was treated in the Trials of Apollo series.

Piper

Piper... I have a very complicated relationship with Piper. I kind of wrote this several times, because I couldn’t quite pinpoint my issues with Piper, and she is such a controversial character for whatever reason, and whatever I say will be perceived as me hating on her. That is not the case. I like the idea of Piper’s character, though I can agree she, as well as the other Aphrodite children, are written with sexist tropes, which is another post.

My main issue with Piper is that most of her development happens off the page. In the first few books, she her charmspeak is shown getting her in a lot of trouble, and she often lacks confidence when using it. My issue is the resolution for this happens mainly off the page.

A huge internal conflict with Piper is her lack of self confidence, which is something that I personally can relate to, but we never see her develop that confidence, we’re just told that it happened. Like she worked with Hazel and Annabeth on xyz, so suddenly she is much better and confident in her abilities of xyz. This kind of made her hard for me to connect with her in general, because it seems like most of her struggles happened off page.

This isn’t even just with her overall character; it’s with her relationship with other characters. We do see her friendship with Leo develop to some extent, but that’s because they already had an established friendship before the series started. Her other relationships? Jason and Piper went from barely knowing each other to dating between books. We never saw her friendship with Annabeth develop. She apparently was friends with Hazel, but that happened off the page.

Now, this happened to each character to some degree, but I think Piper got hit the hardest with the “tell, don’t show,” thing. I do think that because a lot of people didn’t like Piper, and imo, most of the criticisms were bullshit, Rick tried to overcompensate by trying to force development on her, without doing the work of showing us her development.

Leo

To be honest, his wasn’t as bad as others, but I feel like more people were disappointed, because he was a relatable fan-favorite. His arc went wrong for the exact opposite reasons as Piper’s, as there was legitimately a lot of development on the page, and he had a good arc set up, but Rick literally forgot everything that initially made his character so likeable to the audience.

So, here’s my thing with Leo’s arc; it was really good for the first three books, as Rick did develop him while leaving room for more development in new books. He also had a consistent arc; in The Lost Hero his arc was about his inferiority complex, which was directly connected to his trauma. He never felt like he had a home, and never felt like he belonged.

This was the direction I was hoping they would go with the “seventh wheel” storyline; meaning, yeah, he’s the only one in the seven who’s not in a relationship, but why does this bother him so much? Because, I don’t think it was the fact that he was in a relationship, I think it was trauma.

I so badly wanted the seventh wheel plot line to be an extension of what happened in TLH, but it became ignored, and it just seemed like a reason to put him in a relationship.

I’m not going to sit here and say that Leo shouldn’t have been in a relationship (though I will say I had an issue with Caleo), but I will say that I hate how a relationship was supposed to solve his feelings of inferiority- when it’s clearly indicated that Leo had those feelings because of trauma. A relationship can’t reverse years of trauma.

I also thought it would be so much more impactful if Leo made his sacrifice because of his feelings of inferiority, then perhaps the resurrection happens through one of his friends.

Hazel

I fucking hate how little Hazel (and Frank) were written into the series, especially considering she was one of my favorite new characters introduced in HoO. I also think she had the most potential, and her backstory was the most intriguing of the seven.

Why the hell was she not in the books more? Rick literally wrote a whole ass book in the series that mostly centered around the two already developed characters of the series, but he couldn’t give Hazel and Frank more POVs?

I don’t have anything to say about Hazel’s arc, because she barely HAD one, at least not after her initial one in SoN. The Sammy arc was made about Leo, which I get to some extent, as they sort of have a connection through Sammy. That being said, Leo never actually knew Sammy, and I feel like the flashback scene would have been so much more impactful from Hazel’s POV.

The biggest issue with that is it didn’t really feel like a way to develop any of the characters, but it was used as a way to justify a love triangle... that was barely even a love triangle.

In conclusion, Hazel was screwed over.

Frank

Frank, oh I have some things to say about the writing of Frank’s character, because my issue with Frank’s writing is a combination of the off-the-page development that happened with Piper, and the lack of POVs issue with Hazel, but to different degrees. Most of my issues with this comes from between Heroes of Olympus and Trials of Apollo

See, I do think his lack of POVs contributing to his lack of character development, you know what pisses me off?

The fire stick thing was a HUGE part of his character arc. It caused him legitimate fear and partially affected his relationship to some of the others (coughLeocough). And the resolution? Happened between series, and it’s literally mentioned in passing. What the fuck, Rick?

I don’t know, to me, it just seemed like a betrayal to his whole character arc, because we saw him struggle so much because of this, and the resolution just happened off page? I can just rant about how annoyed I am by that, because it just felt like Rick realized he forgot about Frank, and resolved his whole internal conflict off the page.

Nico

I love Nico! But, of course, I do have my criticisms of his character.

First of all, I really enjoyed how we got his point of view in Heroes of Olympus, but I really just wish he was part of the seven to begin with, for a number of reasons. First of all, it just makes sense- it’s indicated that he is the only demigod who knows about both camps... so wouldn’t it make sense that he would be part of the plan to reunite them? Don’t get me wrong, he does play a big role in this anyways, but it’s kind of weird that he just knows, and nobody thinks, “Hey, maybe we should include Nico!”

Another huge issue I had, was Nico’s coming out scene was in Jason’s point of view... which I get, because I’m reality, he wasn’t one of the seven... but it just seems fucked up? I mean I like headcanons of Nico and Jason’s friendship, but the unfortunate truth is... they didn’t actually know each other.

In fact, Nico wasn’t really that close to any of the seven- he was probably closest to Percy, and even he didn’t know that much about him at times. It just felt weird, not only seeing Nico come out in someone else’s POV, but in a POV of someone he barely even knew.

Also the fact he was forced to come out... I see the intentions, but it’s just not a good look.

Reyna

Reyna... don’t have any issues against Reyna, other than I wish we had more time with her before the last book. She was such an interesting character and I needed more of her.

[mistaeq]

➵ fugo + katherine's fluff alphabet [@pr3sa 's birthday gift]

pannacotta fugo x katherine lancaster [@pr3sa 's vento aureo OC]

arguments: fugo's a feral man, so his anger issues would be really triggered, if he happened to argue with kathie. luckily, he's learning to manage his issue, thanks to his wife directly, and he'd never do anything to her while angry.

babies: he keeps on denying it, but he's a better father than he likes to admit. he's always saying he's the worst, but the truth is kathie is grateful everyday, for he's the man whose children she gave birth to.

cuddles: pannacotta's a sweet man, but i won't deny katherine probably has to be the one to pull him into a well deserved session of cuddles. he's never sure about it at first, but as he gets used to his wife's arms' warmth, he'd rather not go away. just like showering.

dora's random hc: okay here's an interesting headcanon about katherine and fugo. katherine is best blueberry girl with an amazing voice and amazing skill with music, super beautiful girl, and fugo's just a lucky hoe because he gets to kiss her everyday. fuck you fugo. oh and their creator is awesome. like really.

effects: fugo changed completely when he got to know kathie. she always accepted him the way he was, and as a way to thank her, the boy trusted her completely and evolved day by day into the new man he is.

first date: you know how pannacotta's iq is incredibly high and stuff? well, throw it all out of the window, because during his first date with kathie, his words got stuck in his mouth the whole time, and couldn't manage to pour his heart out properly.

giggle: everyone admitted that since katherine and fugo started dating, the man's become way more lighthearted about stuff, and thanks to her, he can be heard giggling even at midnight, probably thinking of an inside joke of theirs.

honesty: he knows how much his wife suffered for men lying about their intentions in her regards, but he's always been more than honest about his love and appreciation for her.

indoor: sometimes the couple happens to be stuck indoors because of bad weather, for example. when they don't cuddle, fugo would probably try to get katherine involved in playing a board game. chess and monopoly are his favourites.

jealousy: he used to be jealous of the gang at first, but now he trusts both his friends and above all his wife. still, when a man he doesn't know gets too close to her, fugo sometimes gets suspicious or worried. just until his doubts don't disappear.

kiss: oh please katherine, shower this man in kisses and tell him he's worth a lot, fugo will melt. pannacotta enjoys being kissed more than being hugged. kisses are part of those kind of things he sees as more intimate than hugs, just like lovemaking and so on.

love letter: pannacotta is so shy, come on. under that thick layer of anger, lies one of the shyest people ever. he'd definitely use love letters to communicate his love to kathie sometimes. not the most romantic she's ever read, but she's happy.

miss you: oh man. those times when they've been apart after fugo left the gang. without katherine by his side, pannacotta felt just like his life could be ruined. he could have gone with them, he could have protected her. fuck. he was regretting his actions so much, praying he would have been able to see her again, alive.

newborn: after kathie gives birth to their newborn baby twins, he feels like he could run around the moon with his bare feet only and come back on earth. he's gonna definitely cry, maybe just not in front of his wife. man is so happy he can't hold back.

oh no: he doesn't pull many pranks on katherine. she's definitely and easygoing girl, but he knows he lived through some traumatic experiences, and doesn't want to scare her, even for a prank only. he just does innocent stuff like hiding her shoes or eating her favourite pastry before her, but not much more.

presents: pannacotta is the one who knows katherine's tastes the most, out of all of passione's member, but he's gonna need other members' help to choose the presents for her, for fear of getting something she already has or something she'll dislike.

qualities: he fell in love with katherine because she never criticized him for his personality. she listened to fugo's story, she supported the man's effort to get better, and never ever tried to change him or rush him into eliminating anger from his life. she's respectful and he cherishes it.

reading: he's not perfect, but pannacotta can definitely tell when his better half is down or is in a bad mood. what he does is sitting next to her and and gently asking what's up. if he can help, he'll definitely not move until he manages to.

stand: oh, purple haze loves kathie, it's just a little worried about what it might do to her with its uncontrollable anger. it wouldn't be the first time that stand goes berserk when it shouldn't. pannacotta loves seeing and being with the pied piper, though...

together: fugo likes to eat together with kathie, otherwise his will to eat disappears, it's almost like children who refuse to do something unless a specific adult is with them. a day on which she wasn't there, the gang had to put a photo of her next to the table.

unexpected: he would learn to dance for katherine, since she loves so much to make people dance with her pied piper. at least he'd do it with cognition and sense, when it happens. it would be a big surprise for kathie.

vacation: being part of an organization like passione, they wouldn't have much time to think about a vacation. but for pannacotta, every day spent at home with his wife instear of being in the streets, fighting against other stand users, is a well deserved vacation from fear and from danger.

wedding: during the marriage ceremony, he'd have a huge smile on his face, which is a coping mechanism in order not to cry out of happiness. he doesn't want to breakdown in front of his new wife and in fronf of all the guests, but he'd be so thankful to kathie, it will be difficult to resist.

e(x)es: well, fugo hates every man who had to do with katherine before and would love to see them perish for how they treated the most amazing woman of his life. so yeah, he won't even have to worry about exes coming back to her. he'll kill them, in case.

year: oh, his head would go crazy thinking about what to do for an anniversary. pannacotta has so many ideas about a romantic date, that every single one of them starts looking too simple for such an amazing girl as kathie. he doesn't realize she'll be happy with anything he does.

zzz: after the first time you sleep together, he doesn't want to ever stop, he feels happier and calmer if katherine sleeps beside him, so he can easily know if she's fine and whether she's sleeping calmly, dreaming or having nightmares. nighttime matters a lot to him.

[percabethfangirl]

Percabeth College AU

Annabeth knocks over a cute boy outside her government in politics class, and she can't stop thinking about him.

Ch.1

Annabeth hurried across campus in the rain, already late for her third period class. Today is just not my day, she thought. First she had to struggle through English, which was not her strong suit, with her unforgiving professor, Mrs. Calkins. And just when she was thinking she caught a break, she spilled coffee on her biology homework, which meant she had to run all the way to second period.

Now it was raining, and the puddles were unavoidable if she wanted to be on time to her government and politics class, which she didn't want to be taking in the first place.

Head down to keep the rain out of her eyes, she took the steps up to the front of the building two at a time. In her haste, she didn't see the person in front of her until it was too late. They went down in a soggy heap of limbs and assignment papers; the other person's binder spilling open.

Annabeth internally groaned. This day just couldn't get any worse.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there, I'm really late for class," Annabeth apologized as she started to pick her soaked self up.

"It's okay, Just watch where you're going next time," the other person chuckled, hastily stuffing his things back into his binder, "I'm late too, you know." He sounded surprisingly unbothered by the fact that he had been knocked down in the rain by a strange girl.

Weirdo, she thought, reaching for her pile of assignments and books. Anyone else would be annoyed, I know I would be.

"Just out of curiosity, what class are you late for?" the boy asked. At this, Annabeth looked up-- and promptly forgot how to breathe.

The boy had startling sea-green eyes, framed by wet and unruly black hair. He was extremely tan, and even with a rain jacket on, Annabeth could see his muscles. Though she was tall, he was taller. He looked like he could be the quarterback on the football team, or any team captain really.

"Uh, hello?" His voice brought her crashing ungracefully back to reality.

"Oh sorry, its-uhm I'm going to government and politics," she said, hoping her dislike for the class wasn't too evident in her voice.

"Hey I'm going there too! I haven't noticed you in that class before." At this, he leaned closer to examine her, dragging his eyes up and down her body. Annabeth gulped, before admitting, "I haven't seen you either."

"Well I usually sit in the back so I don't get caught sleeping," he smirked, stuffing the rest of his papers back in his binder. "That class is boring as hell."

Annabeth smiled, rolling her eyes, "Tell me about it. I don't know why I have to take it anyway. It has nothing to do with architectural designs."

They started walking towards class, much slower than Annabeth had been going before.

"You're majoring in architecture?" he asked, turning to look at her as they trudged through the rain to class

"Yeah. What about you?"

"Marine biology."

She snorted, trying her best not to laugh, but he noticed anyway.

"What's so funny about that?" The amusement in his eyes showed her he wasn't offended.

"I just pictured you some sort of sports jock, not an ocean lover," she explained, barely keeping herself from bursting with laughter.

"Oh, well, I guess that makes sense," he commented. Smiling, he turned to continue, "I am on the swim team, so you weren't too far off your mark."

"You swim? Are you any good?" Annabeth asked, half teasing.

"Well I guess," he said, looking sheepish. "I got a scholarship, so someone must think so."

"Oh wow, that's awesome. I did track and field in high school, but not well enough to get a scholarship or anything," she smiled.

"I'm sure you were great, I mean.." he trailed off gesturing to her, going a little red. Annabeth knew she was in good shape, but she didn't think about how she looked too much.

Heat creeping up her neck, she hurried to change the subject. "So, marine biology, huh?"

Percy looked relieved as he answered. "Yeah, my mom used to take me to Montauk every summer. I loved it there, it was like my second home. Swimming in the ocean was as natural to me as walking, even as a toddler," he beamed

Just as he finished talking, they reached the lecture hall.

"Oh, uh, I didn't catch your name," he said.

"Annabeth, you?"

"Percy," he smiled. "Well, see you around."

She waved goodbye as she headed to her seat in the front of the hall.

__________

"WHAT????"

Annabeth cringed away from her best friend.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" she whined.

"Pipes, I just met him yesterday, calm down," Annabeth soothed.

It was a Tuesday morning, and neither Piper or Annabeth had classes. They were in a cozy coffee shop, just off campus, and Piper had been interrogating Annabeth about her love life. She hadn't meant to tell her yet, but Piper could be very persuasive when she wanted to be, and Annabeth had trouble keeping anything from her.

"You could have texted me! You do have a phone, you know!" The other girl was slowly calming down after her original outburst.

"I didn't want to tell you yet, Pipes. It'll probably turn out to be nothing," she explained reaching for her coffee. "I didn't even get his number."

"But you got his name right? Even you could manage that." Annabeth could see in her eyes that Piper was determined to get every last detail about the previous day's encounter.

"Yes I got his name Piper." Annabeth rolled her eyes, taking a sip of coffee. She cursed as the boiling hot liquid came in contact with her tongue. Piper ignored her.

"Well? I want to know the name of the boy who got the ever-stoic Annabeth Chase to pay attention to him," Piper pressed.

She sighed in defeat, trying to ignore her burnt tongue. "His name is Percy. He's on the swim team and he's majoring in marine biology-" Annabeth paused. Piper's mouth was hanging open, and she was staring at Annabeth with wide eyes, shock written all over over her face.

"What? What's wrong?" she asked, worried.

"Percy!? As in Percy Jackson, the most popular and sought-after boy in school? Percy, the super hot captain of the swim team? That Percy?!" 

"Uh.. I- Iguess? I didn't get his last name," Annabeth stammered, taken aback by Piper's second outburst.

"Where have you been the last two years? Percy is the hottest boy in the entire school, besides Jason of course, and everyone knows about him!" Piper seemed genuinely shocked that Annabeth hadn't heard of him before.

"If you hadn't noticed, I was too focused on my grades to make friends with anyone freshman year, and only became friends with you because we were forced to work together. I barely came out of my dorm," she rolled her eyes at Piper's incredulity. Then she thought of something.

"If he's so popular, he's probably dating someone -" Piper cut her off.

"No that's the thing!" She was excited now, and Annabeth was slightly worried. When Piper wanted something to happen, it happened, and Annabeth didn't want to be caught in the middle of one of her schemes. "He's not dating anyone! I mean, he dated Rachel Dare freshman year, but she moved to Germany or something."

"Well if no one else could date him, why would I be any different?" 

"Annabeth! You're the prettiest person I know, and I'm not just saying that because you're my best friend. If anyone has a chance of scoring Percy, it's you."

Annabeth frowned, "Well I don't want someone to date me just because they think I look pretty. And I'm not much of a social butterfly, if you hadn't noticed."

"You're more than just a pretty face! Your smart, witty, and have a great sense of humor. I don't see how he could not date you." Piper leaned back in her chair, looking satisfied, as if she had single handedly gotten Percy to date her already.

"That's very sweet Piper, but my social skills are sadly lacking. I don't think I could charm my way into a relationship," she countered, chewing her lip.

"Annabeth! You don't need to! Just be yourself, and if he doesn't like it, he's not the one for you," she explained.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I don't think I'll be finding my 'one' anytime soon."

Their conversation moved on to the biology homework, but Percy was still on Annabeth's mind. And as the week progressed, he stayed there, front and center, as much as she tried to get him out.

•••••••••

Thank you so much for reading! Comments and criticism are welcomed and appreciated! But please keep in mind this is my first ever fanfic :)

Many thanks to @technicallyburninggarden for helping me edit!

[bonesgadh]

My thoughts on the final season of Orange is the New Black:

Obviously, some heavy spoilers below:

If you ask me, Piper’s storyline outside Litchfield was, for the most part, a complete waste of time. Instead of having her getting stoned with her brother or going to that pointless retreat, why didn’t they have her doing something productive like helping other former inmates or writing her book?

Speaking of the book, I’m high-key disappointed they gave the memoir storyline to Judy fucking King. Call me cheesy but I was looking forward to the show ending with Piper writing her book just like she said she would in season 6. Such a missed opportunity.

I really, really wanted Taystee to be cleared of Piscatella’s murder. I don’t understand why they gave so much importance to Suzanne writting what really happened and Taystee showing the text to her lawyer if it wasn’t going to make a difference in the end. Chekhov’s gun, anyone?

I’m so relieved she didn’t kill herself. I guess as long as there’s life there’s hope fucking Cindy will confess the truth and justice will be served. In the meantime, I was happy Taystee found a new meaning to her life and decided to help other inmates have a better shot at rebuilding their lives after prison.

Daddy’s death caught me by surprise. That said, I didn’t notice her absence at all for the reminder of the season. I guess she was a one-hit wonder character.

I have the feeling they had no idea what to do with Frieda so they just had her do weird stuff like accumulating trash. 

Thank Christ they got rid of Badison so early in the season. Cringiest, most annoying character in the history of television.

Aleida is so stupid lmao. I get she wanted to protect her daughter from that pedophile but she fucked up. I was rooting for her to rebuild her life and I was disappointed at her.

I liked Suzanne coming to terms with her sentence and being more comfortable around people and making new friends. It’s what she deserves.

Why is Cesar out of jail? Didn’t Aleida say he was supposed to stay there until he was an old man?

So Yadriel isn’t Pepa’s biological father?

Shani, man. Her relationship with Nicky was so cute and you could tell she was different from Nicky’s other flings. She didn’t act like a stallion around her, she was sweet and considerate with her and her backstory was very sad. I’m pissed they weren’t endgame because they made such a good couple.

There was no need to kill off Lorna’s baby. That was unnecessary roughness.

What happened to Maritza left me devastated. That final sequence of her getting into the plane and all the other women who were deported as well slowly disappearing until there was no one left gave me fucking chills. It was tough to watch but it had to be done to make a point of how a good portion of the immigrants who get deported are young adults who have never lived anywhere else besides the US, but still they are not considered citizens.

I absolutely adore Fig. Her character development was one of the best in the show. Also I LOVE HER RELATIONSHIP WITH CAPUTO OMG.

Piper’s sister-in-law is annoying af. I bet she is one of those anti-vaccinations freaks.

Alex looked so damn hot in her flashback oh my god. 

Goodall is adorable! For real, what a gorgeous baby.

I was not expecting CO Fischer to make a comeback.

Healy is still a piece of shit.

I can understand why Piper developed feelings for Zelda. She represented the potential life she could lead now that she was a free woman, the opportunity to start over and leave prison behind (like Sophia advised her to). However, there wasn’t anything exciting about being with her, it was way too safe and that’s the exact opposite of what she had with Alex. 

Polly is even more annoying than she was before but Larry didn’t get on my nerves this time around, which surprised me. Maybe because his little prep talk is what pushed Piper to follow Alex to Ohio or maybe it was the nostalgia. Idk, but they brought him back in a nice way.

I felt really bad for Vinnie. He wasn’t only grieving for his son but he also had to see Lorna fall into that complete state of denial.

Sophia’s comeback was everything. She looked like a goddess and she seemed so happy and in control of her life. I thought we wouldn’t see her again after she got released from prison but I’m glad they managed to bring her back even for a couple of scenes.

Totally random statement but Piper looked very attractive at the benefit gala and the morning after. I don’t know if it was the hair or the way they did her eyes but she was smoking hot.

Danielle Brooks is the best actress in the show. Don’t @ me.

McCullough is the archetype of the psycho ex. I legit thought she was going to shoot Piper when she confronted her at her house.

Alex knows Piper so damn well. She is aware of the fact that Piper tends to run away from stuff when things get complicated and her choosing to have an affair with McCullough was her way to try to protect herself. Then again, I really thought they had moved on from that phase. 

Fig lying about being pregnant to help that woman get an abortion was such a strong moment. Also her calling out the double-standard of the guard who was opposed to the woman aborting but wanted her to get deported? Legends only.

Lorna is such a racist but I can’t bring myself to dislike her. If anything I’ve always felt a bit sorry for her.

Linda is such a bitch.

Tamika was the only warden who actually cared about making a difference. I’m sad she got fired because of something that wasn’t even her fault but her good deeds made a profound impact.

McCullough is so damn unstable but I can’t blame her for developing such strong feelings for Alex. She’s quite irresistible.

Alex acting all unattached and cold as she was breaking up with Piper was painful to watch. I knew it wasn’t real but for a hot second I thought that was it for them. 

The ICE storyline was out-of-this-world amazing. So powerful and brilliantly done, quintessential OITNB.

If you had told me six years ago I would cry like a baby with Pennsatucky’s death I would have laughed at you.

But for real, POOR PENNSATUCKY. I’m sorry she had to die for Taystee to stay alive.

Because of the ‘a fan-favorite character dies in the final episode to mark the end of the show’ trope I had the feeling they were going to kill either Red, Alex or Taystee. I was legit surprised when the final death was revealed to be Pennsatucky.

That Poussey flashback had me in tears.

Alex and Nicky’s goodbye scene was so sweet and I love they talked about eventually reuniting. They were my brotp.

What Larry told Piper when she visited him at his place was very interesting. When Piper told him she loved Alex he told her he believed her, but that he also thought she loved what Alex represented. I believe that was true at some point—well, for most of the series—and, unconsciously, Piper believed that as well. But, if anything, what they went through in season 7 helped Piper realize she did want to be with Alex. The extra limb analogy was amazing and I don’t think Jenji could have picked a better way to explain their relationship.

Hellman is the new warden? Gross.

My favorite part about the old inmates’ cameos was that they were shown doing the same stuff they did in Litchfield: Boo being tired of everyone’s bullshit, Yoga giving the mandala talk to new inmates, Gina feeling exasperated and Norma calming her down, Watson running and Alison checking her time, Angie and Leanne being stupid, Brook mooning over stuff.

I only missed two characters making a cameo: Sister Ingalls and Miss Claudette. I know most fans wanted to see Bennett again but fuck that coward.

Also wtf happened to Bayley? I kinda wanted to know.

Karla’s story broke my heart. I’m glad they included her character because her story is the story of millions of immigrants that are separated from their children, forced to return to their home countries and endure harsh conditions while trying to make their way back to the US.

Blanca really went out there and said “fuck it” to the american dream, didn’t she? In my opinion she had the best ending out of all the characters. I’m so happy she reunited with Diablo and is ready to live her life with him at last. My girl deserved it.

Maria’s storyline was so ‘meh’. It was way too similar to her season 6 storyline.

My mom Gloria had the second best ending. I was afraid they were going to punish her because of the phone thing but thankfully asshole Luschek finally did something right. I was rooting for her to have a happy ending and I’m glad she got it.

Also was that little girl living with Gloria and her kids her granddaughter? Because she was definitely younger than her sons but Gloria’s flashback stated her daughters are older, so I’m confused.

I really need to know if Aleida killed Daya. I hate it was left so open.

Flaca choosing to help immigrants was so sweet. I bet one of the reasons she did it was to stop them from suffering Maritza’s fate.

Fig and Caputo are adopting!

Cindy did not deserve a good ending after she ruined Taystee’s life. That made me so angry. I was really hoping she would confess the truth.

In the end, McCullough made Alex a favor by having her transferred to Ohio. She went back to minimum security, she was with friends and people she knew and far away from all the crap in max.

What happened to Red and Lorna was devastating. Red losing her identity and her memory was so tragic because of what a badass she was. Also I knew Lorna would lose it after her son’s death but it was heartbreaking. They deserved better.

It sucks balls Nicky lost every person who was important to her but despite that I liked her ending because, even though she suffered heartbreak after heartbreak, she found a way to keep herself sober and now she will help others the way Red helped her. It was the best way she could honor her.

Despite literally everyone around Piper advising her to leave Alex behind and forget about her (from her parole officer to her dad to Larry to Sophia) the fact that she chose to follow Alex to Ohio was a pleasant surprise to me. It showed her growth and how much she really wanted to be with Alex, and that she was not a mistake in her life but her life. I was never a Vauseman shipper but even I knew they had to be endgame, any other ending wouldn’t have made any sense. I feel bad for the shippers because it was a very tough season for them but love prevailed, so congrats.

I didn’t catch the Piper Kerman cameo until I saw someone mentioned it on twitter. That was so cool! Also I don’t know if this was intentional but I liked the visual parallel between Larry Smith & Piper and Piper Kerman & Alex. Larry waited for Piper for as long as she was in jail and never abandoned her, so I choose to believe Kenji and Co. are hinting at Piper doing the same thing for Alex.

It was a good decision to show us a glimpse of Piper’s new life. She has a stable job, a new home, she is studying about criminal law and using her time in a productive way, and also she looks happier than we ever saw her.

In conclusion, I liked the season very much. Orange is one of my favorite shows and I think they ended it in a very nice way. It was very well executed and, unlike other final seasons I have watched over the years, it never felt rushed to me. It was the best season in at least a couple of years and I’m in love with the series finale, I stand by my original statement that it is the best one I have ever seen.

I give it a solid B+, four-out-of-five stars, 8.5 out of 10.

Orange forever, indeed.

[pjo-trash-and-remy]

The Percy Jackson Fandom is Toxic

Talk about a Jeffree Star title (smack) ow, okay

But yes, you heard me right, the Percy Jackson Fandom is toxic.

Now let me tell you why AND how to fix it

Now, let me start out with naming some of the most controversial topics in the fandom.

Caleo and if it was toxic, whether Luke died a hero or not, and Calypso and Rachel within themselves.

Why are these topics controversial? Because everyone has their own ideas on them and they are VERY different. Now, that's great! Please have your own ideas and opinions, but everytime I see an Anti Caleo post, it makes me mad. Not because Caleo is the fuel to my fire, (my opinion on them changes daily) but even on a day were I was not liking the ship I'd still get mad. Why? Because its hate. Now Lory, you just said we should have our own opinions?

Agree! You should! But their are better ways to express yourself than saying "Caleo sucks." Because what if that is someones favorite ship? Or if I see a post that says, "I hate Rachel Dare because she kissed Percy." You might as well put Annabeths name up their too. They both kissed Percy, that's not a good argue. And if you do have a post that says Rachel sucks, I recommend you take it down.

Not because your opinion is bad. But because the way you stated it isnt very nice or understandable.

Now that we've addressed the issue, here are some better ways to express how you feel. Now, I'm going to pick Piper Mclean as our Guinea pig. I, personally, love Piper. She's a strong badass woman who isn't afraid to speak her mind. But if you disagree, here's a better way to put it besides "Pipers annoying"

"Piper/or other ship/Character, just isn't my favorite because....(insert well argued fact)

"The reason i dislike Piper/or other ship/character,.... (instert well argued reason)

If you dont have a good reason that you dislike a character and dont have a kind way to put it, keep it to yourself.

I see about ten posts everyday that make me want to leave the fandom. Not necessarily because I disagree with the opinion (I personally love seeing what other people think and why, I think it's fascinating) but because its filled with hate. Its toxic. I'm not saying you should stop with your ideas, just simply finding kinder ways to state them.

If you still don't get what I'm saying heres an example. I think Percabeth is the worst ship. They're actually awful and you're weird for liking them.

How did that make you feel? Not at all well I assume! You maybe you would head to the comment section and say something also not so nice. I personally don't care too much for Percabeth for my own reasons, but instead of stating it like i did above a better option would be

Percabeth just isn't my favorite ship because the ship itself is too sweet for my taste. When they get into the relationship we never see them go through any fights or anything like that. Yes, they do get into arguments in the first books when they're friends but while their actually dating they literally never have any bumps. The idea is adorable and the ship in-itself is cute, but it's just a wee bit to perfect for my taste. But I still love the characters!

Was that put better? Did you see my point if view differently? You probably still think I'm crazy (true) but you can agree maybe? You can understand why I said it. I gave a well reasoned point and an idea and still respected the opposing side.

You are entitled to your own opinions

But can we be kinder? Remember what happened to the Greeks and Romans? Yes they have different battle techniques and set up their camps differently, but at the end of they day they can set those aside and be demigod friends.

I don't see that, I really don't. Keep in mind that everyone does not see the same things or understand the same things as you. Everyone is different and thinks different.

That's it. Thanks for reading and I truly hope you can apply these things to your posts and whatnot.

Treat others as you want to be treated.