#i know she does it because not saying anything has put him in dangerous situations previously

[littlelightfish]

Marcille telling Chilchuck that healing magic can be used to torture people only to use it as such a few days later...

It's like she's warning him about what she can and will do if he doesn't cooperate. I find it interesting.

We know they're friends, but he doesn't want to talk about it. They all know that. Chilchuck is not a fan of talking about his life and they aren't usually pushy about it. The one problem is when Marcille wants to know. Because she's curious and has her head full of romantic novels and she just finds out her friend has some delicious and controversial love story. She's not going to let herself not know about his life. Even if he doesn't want to talk about it. For better or worse, she takes advantage from his injuries to make him talk about it, to force him to open up about this. She quite literally tortures him (just a little bit but still) to get this info out of him.

I have just realized about all this, but.. yea, Marcille, that's a kinda fucked up thing to do to your friend.

[fancyfeathers]

I’m not too familiar with DC, but I must say that yandere Batman would be absolutely terrifying (and super hot🤭)

What are your thoughts on this?👀

Bruce Wayne is one of the most terrifying yanderes in DC, not because he would ever hurt his darling, no he would never even dream of doing that, in my mind he is one of the most protective yanderes in the DC universe (the most protective being Clark Kent) especially after what happened to Jason.

But both as Bruce Wayne and as Batman he is absolutely terrifying, he has more money than fathomable to most and money can buy almost everything, gifts, silence, and anything in between. Now he would not use it like that unless it was completely necessary, it would just feed into the corruption of other individuals even if he is doing it for a good cause. Then Batman is self explanatory, not only is he built like an absolute tank but practically everyone knows not to mess around with him, he literally has contingency plans for every member of the Justice League if they need to be dealt with, there is literally no way of getting out of this one.

Now he wouldn’t kidnap his darling, it would be selfish and-

Well those circumstances would certainly change if his darling was put in danger. Like say if his darling was caught up in a hostage situation or got injured during a crisis, she would be heavily injured either way so she would have to let him help her out of there. Of course she does not expect to wake up in a bed in Wayne Manor with her wounds stitched and wrapped up with Bruce Wayne sitting in a chair beside her, acting as if her being here was the most normal thing.

Then not to mention his kids, good luck getting out of there without someone spotting his darling. Like just picture Bruce catching his darling trying to sneak out and Damian is right behind his father, silently letting you know that he was the one who snitched.

Also yes he is very hot, like there is no other way to put it here.

[dunmeshi-darlings]

There are a few misconceptions on shuro and his behaviors. The reason he was furious at laios for reviving falin using dark magic isnt really that he used dark magic (kabru even poins out shuro would have done the same). But Instead his anger is because he used black magic he put Falins life (as well as everyone elses) in danger because he knows just how the western elves react to black magic and black magic users. As for shuro's feelings towards laios for not picking up on social cues, it was shitty of him to do that however you do need to also take into consideration the kind of culture/life shuro has. He comes from a highly dignified Japanese style royal family, We see that him asking for help saving falin was the first "selfish" request he has ever made. The fact it is considered a "selfish" request speaks volumes on the kind of world that shuro comes from. After shuro and laios fight we see that shuro is actually envious of laios and how he views the world, showing that a portion of his anger isnt really from laios not picking up on his social cues but perhaps more so that laios was ALLOWED to be how he is. Even after their fight shuro offers to give laios sanctuary from the western elves, giving him the bell that when rung would have shuro sending people to go retrieve him and his friends and keep them safe from the western elves. if shuro deeply hated laios he wouldnt have offered this, if he didnt care about laios he wouldnt have offered him a safe place to live if the western elves come after him. i also want to bring up people saying he abandoned asebi/izutsumi. Which is also not true, in his own words when asked about her being left behind. "she will come back to us if she wants to." he explicitly states if she wants to, she will come back. To me this is him letting her make her own choice on what she wants to do with her life. Something that shows to me that i believe shuro has always felt perhaps some form of guilt at her situation but not able to do anything because of who he is and his father and his caretaker with him.

Shuro is not a perfect person, he has his flaws. But he IS a person, thats what people are. We have flaws and make mistakes and have issues that we do wrong on. Shuro is a man living his life and one who makes mistakes, everyone makes mistakes. I wanted to post this and talk about it because sadly some people ar being incredibly hateful about him and people that like him. Which is a shame as it is mostly a misunderstanding. Though i wont lie some of it does feel like its starting to become racist or because of people upset he could get in the way of farcille ship.

[orphiclovers]

Rereading early ORV and I have some THOUGHTS on Kim Dokja. In typical me fashion, they are unpopular. So if he's your absolute favourite character and seeing him be criticized will ruin your day, maybe skip this post, ok? Peace.

-

What is so novel and interesting about Kim Dokja is that he GENUINELY doesn't really have a knee jerk emotional reaction of outrage and empathy when seeing injustice happen. He sees something immoral and bad, but doesn't FEEL horrified and disgusted. Emotions don't drive him to attempt to fix the situation or save anyone.

Instead his moral compass is based on the simple logic that 'bad things happening should be prevented if there is an opportunity to prevent them.'

This philosophy is the most apparent in his actions in Chungmuro on the WHOLE, with the food and marginalized group and etc. But I will point out this moment in particular as an example of what I mean.

They see women be driven to prostitution to survive. Jung Heewon has an instinctive, human reaction of outrage and disgust, wants to rush in and save them and damn the consequences, while Kim Dokja is calm and rational, holding her back and saying those woman will starve if they try to help right now.

This lack of empathy (feeling strong emotions) is definitely due to childhood trauma stunting his emotional development but... that doesn't change the fact this is a legitimate part of his personality now.

Usually, when a character is 'cold and ruthless', it's because they are repressing their true feelings and forcing themselves to be unfeeling for some goal. Like Yoo Joonghyuk, for example.

But we are IN Kim Dokja's head and get to see the way he thinks, and being 'unfeelingly rational' IS what comes naturally to him.

Before you say anything, I know the Fourth Wall represses some of his emotions in certain situations and certainly helps him deal with pain and horror. But we are ALWAYS TOLD when it's active, and it isn't in these moments.

Blaming all of Kim Dokja's less than moral thoughts and behavior on the 4th wall even when there's no indication that it's influencing him at that particular moment, is not something I want to do as it feels like an attempt to scrub away his moral greyness. I choose to believe that his narration, in moments when he's not wrong or biased or 4th wall-ed, is a basically accurate representation of his character. I think the authors didn't make his narration totally 100% unreliable all the time, with no possible indication of where he's wrong or right. Because that would mean there is nothing a reader can latch onto and draw conclusions about KDJ from.

If they wanted to write about a faceless self insert with no concrete personality traits and flaws, a person you can headcanon to be anything, they wouldn't have written ORV.

I think it's okay to acknowledge Kim Dokja's first reaction to seeing a woman about to be raped is not 'oh my god...those bastards...! I have to stop this...!' but '...she might be dangerous or a hinderence in a future...'

We don't need to make excuses here and try to justify this. A moment later he catches himself thinking like this and 'shudders with disgust at himself.'

His first, instinctive thoughts that he can't control don't necessarily make him a bad person. What matters is his second thoughts and what he actually chooses to do, which he CAN control. I ALSO don't think he's wrong to feel disgusted at himself for having low empathy. His guilt is justified.

I genuinely like him even more for always picking the 'moral option' in every scenario now, than if he did it immediately with no hesitation. Because it makes empathy and compassion a constant choice he's making, and putting in the effort reflects well on what his values are.

Kim Dokja legitimately can't help but weigh everyone he meets on a scale of how 'useful they potenially are' first and foremost. He does this with strangers and also with all of kimcom too.

"Who should I save because they would be useful in the future? I wasn't Yoo Joonghyuk to be thinking about these things." At this point, chap 74, he thinks Yoo Joonghyuk is wrong and doesn't want to be like him at all and mostly calls him a psychopath. He thinks 'acting like him' is wrong and undesirable.

He has a mini arc about Yoo Joonghyuk later, goes from 'he's a bad person, I know it because I know everything about him' in chap 81 to 'maybe I don't know him at all' in chap 82 but this is before that.

Seeing people as tools and deciding who to save based on future knowledge is a thing BOTH of them do. Yet Kim Dokja critisizes Yoo Joonghyuk for it, it's his least favourite character trait that YJH of TWSA has.

And in typical Kim Dokja fashion, this similarity between them is exactly what he despises in Yoo Joonghyuk - but now we find out it's not because he finds it amoral ("I'm not a humanist" - he doesn't care about that part) but because he sees it as a mirror reflection of himself. He's projecting, as always!

In early ORV, he hates the part of Yoo Joonghyuk that is the most similar to himself. (even tho they're sort of the polar opposites too. Yoo Joonghyuk is a deeply emotionally driven person, he feels empathy and the desire to save everyone but chooses to repress and ignore this and act like a ruthless 'psychopath'. KDJ disagrees with this choice, as Kim Dokja IS an unfeeling psychopath (low empathy) but does his best to act like a decent person and not an edgelord.)

[rockrosethistle]

I actually fucking hate Mr. Jägerman here's why

Mr. Jägerman is a character in the Hatchetfield universe who is never onstage and only mentioned in 1 (one) line. This was enough to ignite my rage.

It's because in this one line, so much is revealed about Max's character. So let's dissect that.

Max is mean. We know this. The very first thing established about him is how threatening he is. But I think his character often gets lost in the 'bully' identity, because just like every other Hatchetfield character, he is layered and complex.

We also find out two other things about him pretty much immediately: He has a crush on Grace (we'll come back to that) and he needs to feel in control.

There's a lot of evidence to support this. He repeatedly refers to himself as the 'god' of Hatchetfield High. He creates arbitrary rules around who his friends can date. He creates arbitrary rules around where the nerds are 'allowed' to go. And the moment someone implies he is not as powerful as he thinks he is, he retaliates violently.

This isn't just Max being a jerk. These are all signs of someone who is almost certainly deprived of control in their home life, which forces them to find it elsewhere. Max likely has little to no say in what happens to him at home. He's clinging to a sense of control wherever he can find it. And that line basically confirms that his home isn't a safe place for him.

Back to the crush on Grace, when you look objectively at the actions Max takes in the show, you'll find that he's not really a bad person, he's a mean person. He's a little shit that processes his need for control in the entirely wrong way, but people are shaped by their surroundings. The actions that come from him are different.

His crush on Grace only supports this. Every other bully in every piece of media sees the girl they like and whistle and say "yo lemme hit that." And if the girl rejects them, they resort to "tease bitch." Not Max. The first thing he does is start a conversation with her, laughs at (what he thinks is) a joke, then offers to carry her books. Like, I wish my highschool bullies were that nice to their own girlfriends.

When she rejects him, it's true that he continues to pursue her and calls her "dirty girl," but that once again comes back to his need to feel in control. But he doesn't get aggressive, he doesn't do anything that screams 'bully.'

We don't get a lot of scenes with pre-ghost Max. But when we do, they're interesting to analyze. Like, have you ever noticed that when he finds Steph in the Waylon Place, his very first instinct is to tell her, "Get behind me, I'll protect you" from, as far as he knows, actual ghosts? He feels like his life is in danger, but he's still putting Steph's safety first, despite having no interest in her romantically. That's huge.

There's even some evidence to support that Max terrorizing the nerds is, from his perspective, not so one-sided. When he finds out they were the ones who pulled the pranks, he says "I thought you guys hated me."

And he's open to change. He's not stubborn, he's not brutal. He doesn't continue hating the nerds just because it is what it is. Moments before his death, he is showing signs of opening up to them, and actually seems like he's coming around.

And none of this is meant as trying to defend Max's actions. I know he's the antagonist. I know he treats people unfairly. But all of this has to come from somewhere. I'm trying to say that there was clearly a foundation of a good person underneath all that cruelty. So what toughened his shell?

Mr. Jägerman. Max reveals in that one line that if he were to go back home from the 'party', his dad would call him a 'little cuck.' "can't even fight off one lousy skele'uhn." In this, he reveals his dad is demeaning to him. He's the kind of man who would hear that his son was in a life-or-death situation, and instead of comforting him, he would have made fun of him.

What must that do to a person? As someone who grew up in a home where Dad wasn't always a safe person to be around, I know that when I was younger, a lot of my bad bad behaviours were something I learned from him.

The prank meant to scare Max was the nicest thing anyone's ever done for him.

I think a lot of what happens in NPMD is indirectly Mr. Jägerman's fault. "Knowledge is knowing Frankenstein is the doctor, wisdom is knowing Frankenstein is the monster" type of shit. It is directly because of his actions and the way he treated his own child that any of this happened.

or maybe I'm reading too much into this. But I fucking hate Max's dad so much.

[twomiddlefingersforthehaters]

"My boby moved on its own" is an SNS trope . Sasuke is the type of person who always does something for Naruto and then finds a logical reason to cover that up.

1. His reason for offering his bento to Naruto

2. His reason for looking after Naruto who had been training all night.

3. His reason for to Save Naruto from Haku's attack.

4. His reason for why he wasn't able to kill Naruto in vote1

5. His reason for protecting Naruto from Obito

It gets so intense every time he protects Naruto from Obito. And Naruto notices how Sasuke protecting him from the attacks every time. Even when his Susanoo is already protecting Naruto, his hand is also going there to shield him.

We've never seen Sasuke do anything like this for Sakura, while with Naruto it's pretty consistent throughout the series. And Why do you think Kishi made 5 scenarios like this to point that out? Sasuke wouldn't do this kind of thing for anyone else. Absolutely no one. So what impression does it make?

In this war arc, Sakura herself acknowledged to the fact that Sasuke didn't care about her:

When Sakura ran up to Madara to get stabbed, both Naruto and Kakashi were either terrified or shocked as she plunged on someone she couldn't deal with. And Sasuke's expression was completely different from the others, he was just focused on the opening to attack madara. Where are Sasuke's instincts when it comes to Sakura? And the one who saved her was Naruto. Look at her dejected face! Even she herself accepting the fact that Sasuke doesn't even worry or care about her. Also, Sasuke put Sakura and Kakashi in their place by calling them "useless" directly to their faces while they were being protected under his Susanoo.

You know, Naruto is the one who asks Kakashi and Sakura to stay closer to him...without knowing what's going on up there. And, Sasuke was talking specifically to Naruto to not move around when he comes down to Naruto and he didn't mention the other two. He only wanted to save Naruto with his Sasunoo from the infinite tsukuyomi, but Sakura and kakashi just happened to be near with Naruto.

And Sasuke himself openly said Kakashi and Sakura just happened to be next to Naruto and that's all! Once again Sakura looked so dejected and realizes it even more in this scene. It's very clear that Sasuke didn't care about kakashi & Sakura. When Sasuke summons a hawk , and Naruto points to the right and says, "Sasuke!! Over there!!" to help Kakashi and Sakura, but Sasuke only saves Naruto

We know that Naruto cares about others and Sasuke knows this very well. And Sasuke is the character who will PROTECT those he cares about in dire situations. And who has he been saving repeatedly? NARUTO. But what Sasuke says and his actions are an underscoring for Naruto to prioritize his own safety and life in the war. Sasuke has a valid point that everything would be over if he and Naruto were to die, but it doesn't erase the fact that he doesn't care about Sakura and Kakashi and almost let them die because he was busy saving Naruto, a person who wasn't even in danger to begin with.

Simply put, he would protect Naruto, no matter what. And all Sasuke's actions are completely and purely instinctive and derived from his sub-consciousness.

To which Naruto said,

Raw: お前の言ってることも分かってるつもりだ... けど... こういう時は体が勝手に動いちまうもんだ ろ... 橋での時────

Romaji: omae no itteru koto mo wakatteru tsumori da ... kedo... kōiu toki wa karada ga katte ni ugoichimau mondaro ...kyōde no tokiーーー

Literal: I think I understand what you're saying. But...in this situation, a body moves on its own (unconciously)... Just like that time on the bridgeーーー

What he meant: " just like your body moved on its own to save me on the bridge.... my body also move on its own to save Kakashi & Sakura". Because Naruto does care about Kakashi & Sakura. Therefore, he cannot ignore them falling into the lava and dying.

The Land of the Waves arc, specifically the battle with Haku and Sasuke's sacrifice, was pivotal to Naruto and Sasuke's relationship, as they both realized for the first time how important and deeply they care for each other. It was a very emotional moment for both of them.

When they came back from Land of waves, Naruto couldn't even look at him without blushing, and then Sasuke couldn't even look at him at all. They'd rather die in this moment than admit that how much they care for each other, but their actions speak louder than words.

Whenever something happens between these two, there are always other characters pointing out what's going on. After they return to Konoha, Kishi uses Sakura to point this out, even though it's clearly visualized in the panel:

Raw: あ〜〜〜まだだわ!

Romaji: a〜〜〜madadawa!

Literal: Ahh〜〜〜 Not again!

Raw: この2人...波の国から帰って来てからちょっ と変なのよね...

Romaji: kono 2 nin...ha no kuni kara kaettekite kara chotto hennanoyone...

Literal: These two... have been acting somewhat/ a bit weird ever since we came back from the land of waves...

Raw: づ〜〜〜 何だか気詰まり...

Romaji: zu〜〜〜 nandaka kizumari...

Literal: oh〜〜〜 I feel ill at ease for some reason....

Raw: 早く来い来い! カカシ先生!! じゃーんなろー!!

Romaji: hayaku koikoi! kakashi sensei !! Shānnarō!!

Literal: Hurry up and get here! Kakashi-Sensei!!

Notes:

変な (henna) - strange; odd; peculiar; weird; queer; eccentric; suspicious; fishy; disturbance; funny; abnormal; unusual etc... It is used as a colloquial word that has many meanings.

何だか気詰まり (nandaka kizumari): somehow I feel awkward; Somehow I feel uncomfortable; I don't know why, but I feel ill at ease.

• the author choose the length of prolonged sound mark (ーーー) longer to implying that the sound is prolonged for longer than normal. e. g: Naruto saying "Time on the bridge."

• prolonged sound mark → a wave line (〜〜〜) is used instead of a straight line (ーー)...this often represents a deliberate prolonging of the sound by the character who speaks it or just a trembly, shaky voice of the character.

Only Naruto and Sasuke knew what happened on the bridge, others like Sakura and Kakashi didn't know about it or not very clear about what exactly happened there. Later, Sasuke & Naruto didn't talk about it, but this scene always comes at crucial moments that point to their "precious person". Finally after 5 years, saving Naruto from falling into the lava leads to Naruto talking about what happened on the bridge.

Sasuke saves Naruto even when he knows Naruto could have saved himself because of Kyuubi Mode, but Sasuke has been known to save Naruto even when he doesn't need saving. We also know that Sasuke would rather give Naruto a stupid and lame excuse than tell the truth straight to Naruto's face. So, this isn't the first time Sasuke prioritize Naruto over Sakura, a pattern that has been repeating since Kishi introduced Sasuke to the story in Chapter 3.

Naruto's feelings for Sasuke grew stronger at this point. After everything Naruto had been through and talking to Sasuke every time they met, Naruto knew for sure that Sasuke still cared for him. Naruto could see through Sasuke's actions. Naruto truly understand and knows that Sasuke cares for him and that's why he mentioned what happened in the Land of Waves.

Naruto only says "bridge", but of course Sasuke knows that he was talking about that time at "The Bridge in the Land of Waves."

Sasuke had a reaction to Naruto's words. No matter what Naruto says, he wouldn't say anything... Sasuke is probably trying to show that he's "unfazed," but in reality, he might be "fazed" because Naruto has seen through his heart.

Sasuke's reaction... His facial expression is hidden by his hair and "not visible," but this "invisibility" stirs up the reader's imagination

And he's confidently teasing Sasuke: "Even though I asked you to save them, you saved me...because your body moved on its own... because you cared about me. so I'm sure you understand my feelings to save them....Sasuke"

However, the "meaning" of this conversation...is something only Naruto and Sasuke can understand and it's their extremely personal thing (because the events on that "bridge" are memories shared only by the two of them). Kakashi & Sakura certainly not aware of this peculiar phenomenon that is unconsciously moving bodies.

Sakura's "inner words"... they really express her current feelings. Sakura is convince herself that what Sasuke says is "reasonable." Look at what Sakura says, she herself agrees with Sasuke: "It's as Sasuke-kun says (we're useless)... but (thank you, Naruto for caring about us)...." Sasuke didn't care about her desperate attempts to get his attention. And Even she herself acknowledged it, you know!

Years ago Naruto & Sasuke couldn't even look at each other pretending nothing happened, but now Naruto was talking about it with confidence. And he's clearly flirting with Sasuke.

[in1-nutshell]

Can i Request Tfp Breakdown having a daughter, a youngling who is the opposite of him. She likes to fight, but with swords.

She is the niece of Bulkhead and Wheeljack, and Jackie is her fav uncle. One day, she had to fought with Bulkhead, but because of their story, she spared him. Starscream saw and told Megatron. Megs saw this as traitor behavior and decided to destroy her. BD with the help of his partner KO, the other dad of the kid, managed to get her to autobot territory. They hugged her and told her that everything would be okay. And then she passed out because of KO. The couple called the bots and told them about the situation and agreed to take her in.

(I love the daughters with opposite personality, Ironbolt is currently my Fav 🩷)

Another daughter to add to the list!

I will be figuring out a name for her and putting it on the Buddy name list when I do!

Hope you enjoy!

Breakdown with a daughter with the opposite personality

SFW, Platonic, Familial, Angst, Cybertronian reader

TFP

Buddy had known Breakdown since she was a sparkling.

Her parents were good friends with him and Bulkhead, after having worked in the same construction team for a couple of years.

Neither parent was able to stay at home with the sparkling, so she often came to the construction sites.

The bots didn’t mind the new cute face playing in their little play pin away from anything dangerous.

One thing the bots found out was that the sparkling could be incredibly fussy if things weren’t according to plan.

Breakdown looks at a slightly uncomfortable Bulkhead. Breakdown: “Bulk? You, okay? You look like a turbo fox’s gnawing on your pede.” Bulkhead: “I’m okay. It’s just…” Bulkhead motioned behind him. Breakdown looked behind him. Buddy was clutching the sides of her play pin with a glare that would make any bot say sorry. Bulkhead: “It started when I accidentally put her coloring pads in the other corner by her energon formula.” Breakdown: “Wait doesn’t she usually have the pads—” Bulkhead: “On the other side, I know now!” Both mechs look at the sparkling. She was still glaring at them. Breakdown and Bulkhead feel an uncomfortable shiver down their backstruts. Breakdown: “How long has she been staring at you?” Bulkhead: “We’re on hour 2… I don’t know how long she can do this for…”

But the sparkling did have a softer side for her parents and those she deemed worthy of being in her presence.

Nonetheless, the crew loved that little grumpy sparkling.

It was the highlight of their day if they caught a glimpse of the little thing playing with her makeshift toys.

The Accident happened a year before Megatron marched out of the Senate.

There was an explosion inside one of the sites.

It was the one where Buddy and their parents were.

As soon as Breakdown and Bulkhead heard about it, they quickly made their way to the hospital where the patients were recovering.

Buddy’s parents were the closest to the explosion.

Most likely terminated in an instant.

Buddy was lucky enough to make it out with minor scrapes and cuts.

Breakdown was the one who went to get Buddy.

Breakdown enters the room slightly panicked. Breakdown: “Buddy! Buddy are you—” Breakdown stops talking seeing the cherry red framed doctor. The doctor looked at him curiously. Breakdown: “Umm…” Buddy’s helm pops from the doctor’s side. Buddy: “Breakdown!” The sparkling jumps from the med slab and runs straight for Breakdown’s opened arms, burying her face into his chassis. Breakdown sighs in relief. Breakdown: “Thanks for taking care of her.” The doctor huffs. Knockout: “That’s Doctor to you.” He looks a bit more at the mech before smiling. Knockout: “But I guess you can call me Knockout, sweet rims.” Breakdown exe has stopped working.

Buddy didn’t let go of him for a couple of hours, she did go to Bulkhead from time to time, but mainly latched onto Breakdown.

He and Bulkhead step up to the plate to raise Buddy.

Tears up when Buddy starts calling him ‘dad’.

Does pull Buddy aside and tells her about what happened to her actual parents.

Breakdown finishes telling Buddy the story. Buddy looks at him confused. Buddy: “Do you not like it when I call you ‘Dad’?” Breakdown: “Its not that I don’t like it. I don’t deserve that title, Buddy.” Buddy puts her servos on her hips and looks at him with a stern look on her face. Buddy: “I’m still going to call you Dad. You raised me, took me in, and you care for me. If I’m not wrong, isn’t what a parent does?” Breakdown: “Well there’s more stuff but that is the gist.” Buddy: “Then you’re my dad. I don’t care if you’re not biological or that stuff—wait are you crying?” Breakdown with tears in his optics: “N-nope.”

Breakdown is not crying

Nope he is not

Buddy nearly gives Bulkhead whiplash when he hears her call him Uncle.

Breakdown just tells him to go with it.

War breaks out.

The three of them join the Autobot side.

They end up in the Wrecker’s unit.

Breakdown makes it clear to Buddy that she is not going to go out on the field until she is older.

Buddy just nods and helps with the cleaning and restocking.

Something that she is surprisingly good at.

Enter Wheeljack.

Breakdown doesn’t know how his sparkling, a grumpy grump ended up befriending, arguably one of the most chaotic Wrecker’s.

Buddy is running alongside Wheeljack across the base. Breakdown notices Buddy has something in her servos. Breakdown: “Buddy what do you have in your servos?” Buddy, still running raises both her servos displaying twin swords in them. Buddy: “Swords!” Breakdown and Bulkhead start running after her. Breakdown: “Buddy no!” Bulkhead: “Jackie why!?” Wheeljack: “Have you seen her cut things with them? She’s a natural!” Breakdown: “I will break your swords and shove them up your—” Buddy glancing back giving him a quick glare: “Dad! We don’t swear!”

As the war drew on longer, Breakdown started seeing more and more of what the Decepticon’s stood for.

He kept his thoughts to himself until he saw a familiar coat of cherry red sprinting across the battlefield.

He began to see Knockout in secret after that day.

Often asked Bulkhead, Wheeljack or another trusted Wrecker to watch over Buddy.

Buddy was worried about her father’s sudden disappearances, but never voiced it.

Bulkhead and Wheeljack had enough on their plates, so, instead she organized the inventory to get her processor off of things.

The inventory never looked so clean and organized.

Finally, the day came.

Breakdown told her that they both were going to join the Decepticon’s.

Buddy blinks looking at him. Breakdown: “Well, what do you think?” CLANK! Breakdown: "OW! Buddy!” Buddy had thrown a lugnut in between his optics. Buddy stood up looking at him with fury in her optics. Buddy: “Direct me what debris hit you in the helm from the bombing so I can beat it to oblivion for you TO EVEN CONSIDER DEFECTING!” Buddy clenches her servos. Buddy: “What are you even thinking!? No, you’re not!” Breakdown: “Buddy calm down—” Buddy: “You have no RIGHT TO TELL ME TO CALM DOWN AFTER TELLING THIS SCRAP!”

They both tried talking but Buddy was not having it.

Buddy fell asleep angry after that argument… something Breakdown was counting on.

His sparkling was notorious for being a heavy sleeper.

Breakdown ended up taking a sleeping Buddy across enemy lines and asked to join.

Buddy went to sleep an Autobot and woke up with a Decepticon badge on her shoulder.

She hated the Nemesis.

She didn’t talk to Breakdown for a long time after receiving the same work she was doing with the Wrecker’s.

She came around eventually.

It was a slow process, rebuilding their trust, but they made it work.

Meeting Knockout was when everything clicked.

Was part of her angry?

Yes.

Was part of her understanding?

Also, yes.

Buddy and Knockout are in the medbay waiting for Breakdown to come in. Buddy: “… You really love him, don’t you?” Knockout is a bit surprised from the question but remains composed. Knockout: “He’s the least bad out of the bunch here.” Buddy: “You didn’t answer the question, Doctor.” Knockout: “… I do.” Buddy gives a weary smile. Buddy: “You make him happy… I’m happy that he has someone else, but…” Buddy points both her swords at the doctor. Buddy: “I swear I will hunt you down if you break his spark. You WILL BEG for mercy when I’m through with you.” Breakdown enters as Buddy swiftly puts her swords back, acting like nothing happened. Breakdown: “Hey! Everything okay?” Knockout nods a bit scared from the sudden threat. Buddy smiles: “Just giving Knockout here a talk, nothing much.”

Knockout never thought a youngling would make him feel more nervous than Megatron walking into his medbay.

Speaking of other Decepticon’s, Buddy hated almost every single one of them.

Starscream and Megatron were at the top of her list.

The youngling knew well enough not to make her new superiors angry… but that didn’t stop her from making some inconveniences.

Starscream: “You! Where are the new missiles!” Buddy: “Nothing is new here Starscream.” Starscream: “That is Commander Starscream to you.” Buddy does a mock bow. Buddy: “Well, Commander Starscream, we don’t have anymore right now. You used the last ones trying to offline Megatron again.” Starscream: “I demand you make more!” Buddy gives him a deadpan look. Buddy: “Yes, I’ll do that when I get everything else in the storage rooms fixed.” Starscream: “And how long will that take!” Buddy: “Given you blew up part of it, consider it a ‘long time’ until we get the necessary material to fix the breach.” Starscream threw his servos in the air and stomped away. Buddy smirked a bit looking at the nearby box with said missiles, safely tucked away and out of sight.

Timeskip to Earth…

Buddy recently begun to scout for the Con’s.

She was out with some of the Vechicon’s and Starscream as her ‘supervisor’, but she knew for a fact he was using this as an excuse to complain about Megatron and talk about what a great leader he would be.

Even though there was proof what happened the last time he was left leader.

They get ambushed by the Autobots.

Buddy is deflecting all blasts with her swords.

Eventually she is forced to battle Bulkhead.

She really didn’t want to, but his raised wrecking ball said otherwise.

Buddy sees an opening and manages to knock Bulkhead down, pointing her sword straight at his neckcables. Bulkhead just stares at the sword and then at her. She blinks as her steady servo suddenly starts shaking. Bulkhead: “Well, are you going to do it Con?” She quickly backs off, almost dropping her swords and looks at the ground. Bulkhead, confused gets up not sure what to do. Bulkhead: “Umm… what—” Buddy: “Go.” Bulkhead: “What?” Buddy: “Just go Bulkhead.” Bulkhead just looks at her confused. Buddy: “Are your audials rusty? Go!”

Bulkhead gives one last glance before transforming and racing to the groundbrigde.

Unaware that Starscream had seen the exchange.

Back at the Nemesis…

Starscream immediately goes to Megatron and tells what he had seen.

Now, normal Megatron would have asked Buddy himself for her side of the story given how his Second in Command tended to paint some stories.

Too bad Starscream chose the moment when Megatron had placed more Dark energon in his chassis.

Dark energon Megatron immediately understands this as an act of treason and must be terminated.

He excuses Starscream and calls in Breakdown.

Breakdown comes in a bit nervous but doesn’t show it.

Megatron tells him to take Buddy out of the Nemesis and terminate her for her treason.

Breakdown takes a step back immediately asking why.

Megatron glares at him asking if he wants to join her.

Breakdown just slightly bows and leaves.

Just before Megatron demanded proof when he was done with her.

Breakdown quickly tells the news to Knockout.

Both of them fear for Buddy.

Breakdown wants to break something.

Knockout literally knocks some sense into him saying that that wasn’t going to help Buddy.

Both come up with a plan.

Buddy in the meantime was having inner turmoil.

This had been the first time in years that she had seen Bulkhead.

It brought up too many painful memories.

She snapped out of her thoughts when Breakdown called her asking if she wanted to go out with him and Knockout for a drive.

Buddy a bit surprised agrees.

Breakdown catches Megatron out of the corner of his optic before they enter the groundbridge.

Through the whole drive, they talked about anything and everything.

In it, Buddy confessed to letting Bulkhead go, she couldn’t do him in after all this time.

She quietly asks if they are both disappointed in her.

They tell her no.

That answer was good enough for her.

Buddy did however start to notice that they were entering an area notorious for Autobot sightings.

But it was also Knockout’s favorite place to race.

Best not to think too hard.

They transformed in a slightly wooded area. Buddy looks around. Buddy: “Isn’t this a bit too close to Autobot territory? I get that its nice, but we could get caught—” Breakdown cuts her off by bringing her into a tight hug. Buddy is a bit surprised but hugs back. Buddy: “Hey, is everything okay? You don’t usually do this out in the open.” Breakdown looks at his sparkling, his little one. Breakdown: “I just love ya kid.” Buddy looks a bit flustered and hugs a bit tighter. Buddy: “Love you too Dad.” Breakdown lets out a shaky sigh. Breakdown: “Everything’s going to be okay.” Buddy looks at him confused. Buddy: “What do you mean—AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!”

Knockout used his electric staff, knocking her out cold.

Breakdown just held her limp frame as Knockout grabbed a scalpel and quickly removed it from her shoulder, drawing a bit of energon on the badge.

Enough proof for Megatron.

Breakdown sent out an old Autobot S.O.S while Knockout patched up the bleeding shoulder.

It took a couple of minutes before a groundbrigde came out.

It was Bulkhead and Ratchet.

Bulkhead stood in front of Ratchet and ready to attack Breakdown when he noticed Buddy in his arms.

Bulkhead: “Breakdown? What in the Pits is this.” Breakdown: “Thanks to Buddy having a soft spark, you got away.” Bulkhead: “And?” Breakdown: “Starscream saw it. He reported back to Megatron that she let you go on purpose.” Bulkhead and Ratchet both tensed hearing the Second in Commands name. Breakdown looked down sadly at his youngling. Breakdown: “…Megatron gave me orders to terminate her—” Bulkhead: “Hold up! You called us here to watch you offline your own sparkling!?” Ratchet: “Bulkhead wait, I think he has more to say.” Breakdown: “ Obvoiusly there is no way I’m terminating my own child Bulk.” Ratchet: “See.” Breakdown: “That’s why I’m giving her to you.” Bulkhead and Ratchet: “What?!” Breakdown: “Buddy was never Con material. I should have never taken her to the other side and now termination looming over her helm… she’ll be safer with you Bots.” Bulkhead: “What do you mean taken her? I thought you both—” Breakdown chuckles humorlessly. Breakdown: “The day I told her about going to the Con’s, she tried talking and knocking some sense back into my processor. I took her across the line when she was sleeping, nearly cost my entire relationship with her. Bulkhead, this is my last chance to make it up to her, give her a fighting chance to live for a cause she can fight for.” Ratchet looks angrily at the Ex-Wrecker. Bulkhead is quiet for a couple of seconds. Bulkhead: “…Pass her over.” Breakdown hesitates a bit before gently placing Buddy into Bulkhead’s arms. Breakdown nods at the two bots before turning to Knockout and start to head out. Bulkhead: “Breakdown.” Breakdown stops. Breakdown: “Yeah?” Bulkhead: “Anything else I should know about her?” Breakdown: “She’s still the same grump Bulkhead… but do watch out for her swords.” With that Breakdown and Knockout transformed and raced out of the area.

Breakdown refused to look back, because if he did, he wouldn’t be able to go back to the Nemesis.

This…

This was for the best.

Ratchet was making sure the wound on Buddy’s shoulder was properly addressed while Bulkhead looked closely at the youngling in his arms.

She wasn’t the little sparkling he remembered chasing Wheeljack around with her swords.

Buddy had grown.

She had hit a grow spurt during her time with the cons, easily a helm shorter than him.

As the three bots walked into the groundbrigde, Bulkhead was thinking on a way to explain this situation to the rest of the team.

…This was going to be fun…

[sugar-grigri]

Denji is awake, Asa is already inside and Yoshida is Chainsaw Man's ally

We interpreted the last chapter in reverse, so why not continue the exercise?

I haven't read any reaction, but I know in advance that Yoshida will be shown in the same way: as a cold being always there to make Denji's situation worse. But the observation is quite the opposite: he's the one who's constantly negotiated for his situation. Worse still, interpreting him as an ally makes everything absolutely clearer.

I know what I'm saying may come as a surprise, after all, he's the one who announced Denji's dismemberment and doesn't seem to be doing anything to stop it. But don't interpret things that way, the whole answer is in the title.

The title refers to the ambient sounds of Denji's dismemberment, having no words at all, whereas titles usually refer to the dialogue in the chapter. Why is this? Because the answers are in the scenery and the unspoken words.

For example, the answers lie in the questions that seem to be answers (stay focused): for example, we learn that Denji slept for a week… OK… but why exactly did they let him sleep for a week ? The protagonist asks Yoshida: why didn't you wake me up before?

In addition : why wake him now?

The chapter deliberately focuses on a cold Yoshida, who announces that he's put him back to sleep. But why wake him up to tell him all this and then put him back to sleep? After all, the contract had already been broken, Denji couldn't negotiate.

Because it's been a week since Yoshida negotiated to give Denji one last chance. In any case, the time that has elapsed shows that there have been negotiations about what to do with this out-of-control Chainsaw Man. Why is Yoshida doing this? Because more and more, he starts trying to protect him, even though he's supposed to control him. We'll see that his principles and his own way of surviving will also be increasingly undermined.

Yoshida knows that Asa has a connection with devils, whether it was when he prevented Denji from revealing his identity after fighting Yuko or or when he assisted Yoru during the aquarium arc. Telling her to stay away from Denji was a means of protection, as he knew that she was a disruptive element, which could lead Denji to either reveal his identity or transform and thus put himself in danger.

In chapter 132, Yoshida appeared in an extremely dominant position with a bound Denji, with Yoshida looking almost antagonistic. But in reality, the direct consequence of Yoshida's intervention was an equal negotiation around a table about Nayuta and being Chainsaw Man in the chapter 133 that followed. Above all, Yoshida presented himself as a malevolent force when, in reality, Nayuta arrived earlier than expected, a sign that she was safe and already freed.

Above all, we know that there is a mole because the information leaked to the detriment of the church, the public hunters were aware of the attack to the point that Quanxi stopped it before it went off at 5pm. Worse than a leak, there was an exchange of information because the church was not at all destabilised and had already planned its response with the fire demon.

If you're still not convinced: then interpret Fumiko as the strict inverted product of the system that Yoshida has become. Fumiko is a hunter who presents herself as younger than she is, calling Denji senpai even though she's older than he is, while Yoshida never behaves like the teenager he is.

Fumiko also presents herself as Denji's ally, showing that she sees him as a child, whereas she has never had the will to protect him and has always dehumanized him. Yoshida does the opposite, presenting himself as Denji's enemy, playing on the fact that he's the only figure among the public hunters to negotiate with him and face his wrath, preventing him from doing what he wants while secretly helping him.

Yoshida is beginning to worry about Denji, otherwise he'd be totally indifferent to the fact that he doesn't grasp the stakes of the dilemma the hunters are imposing on him. The aim of the public hunters was to send a hunter around Denji's age for more connection, but in reality it's Yoshida who is becoming more sensitive to Denji's actions than Denji is to Yoshida's words.

By being this mediator who enters into direct negotiations, he feels that he is not only responsible for what Denji may do, but by dreading the fact that he breaks the rules, he also begins to dread the consequence of having broken them: Denji will be in danger.

Negotiations then took place for a week to improve Denji's situation, but failed given the way Chainsaw Man behaved out of control. Yoshida could do nothing officially, so he turned to the last resource he had left: the war devil.

When Yoshida confronted Asa, we sensed that he himself was unsettled by what he was doing. We also feel this unease expressly in this chapter, when he sees the state Denji is in.

But what interests us most is that he apologizes to Asa for attacking her, even though she had followed the rules. It's as if Yoshida realised that, even if he made sure that we totally complied with the State and its conditions (Asa had to stay away from Denji, Denji mustn't transform), that wasn't enough to guarantee the security they were hoping for in return.

All this overturns Yoshida's principles in two ways. From a relational point of view, Yoshida sees solitude as a way of life less likely to be hurt, and we also see that his criteria for normality are the fact of being isolated. But the hunter's tactic backfired: instead of not getting hurt, he became increasingly concerned about the fate of the man he was supposed to dehumanise.

On another level, Yoshida's survival strategy is to trust the system, to trust it blindly and to accept its logic, hence his eyes without a glint in them, like Kishibe's, who had integrated them so as not to suffer. But more and more, he realises that this is not enough to guarantee safety. He realised this when he attacked Asa himself. But above all, Denji himself has never broken the rules. He never revealed his identity to anyone. And when he turned into the Chainsaw Man, the contract had already been broken by the actions of Barem, who attacked his dogs and cat. In reality, Denji trusted Yoshida's words, he had fully integrated them, but the state failed to protect him as it had promised.

It is easier, even if only politically, to accuse a 17-year-old teenager of not honouring his commitment than to recognise that the state was unable to protect dogs and a cat from the actions of the church to prevent this transformation.

But above all, and this is what's fascinating, is that Yoshida uses this very political way of presenting this state failure when he opens the doors and is heard by Fumiko and the other agents, as if to convince them that he's still on their side. Yoshida thought it was enough to be alone and trust the system, but Asa and Denji proved that it wasn't enough. This trust in the state can be represented by the tako-tsubo trap: the octopus enters these cylindrical jars thinking it can protect its fragile constitution by sticking to the sides, but in reality, the octopus remains at the bottom of the trap.

Yoshida becomes aware of the trap he is in and helps Denji more and more. When did he have this realisation? I can't date it, but what I can say for sure is that in chapter 156, he intends to help Denji. He wakes him up to talk to him one last time, he gives him information, if only temporal, and Denji only confirms the failings of the system: Yoshida doesn't know Nayuta's fate because the state has completely failed to protect her.

But more importantly, takotsubo is also a fairly rare heart condition that can be brought on by a great emotional shock, which Yoshida wants to avoid by isolating himself. But as we said, he's already in the trap, so he's already become more emotional.

So Yoshida wants to help Denji, but how? By doing the opposite of what he was supposed to do, bringing Asa back into the equation by warning her about Denji's situation and his position.

The dismemberment of Chainsaw Man is a more than secret operation, and Fumiko asks Yoshida for confirmation, a sign that he is one of the only people with the most reliable information about Chainsaw Man's fate. No-one else could have warned Asa. But above all, Yoshida's information is going to help the war demon: by redeeming himself.

Denji has one leg removed, then the other, but what's left? His arms, right? Whereas Asa's legs are shown at the very end. But what was she missing? Her arms, right?

And what are these doctors doing, harvesting limbs and obviously? On top of that, it's a big number... 26... 27... what the public hunters are surely doing is to weaken Chainsaw Man as much as possible by dividing him up, but to accentuate his division, they're pulling on Denji's strap to force his regeneration while playing on his sleep to leave him unconscious. A large number of Denji's body members are harvested.

And who cut off Asa's arm? Yoshida. What could he do? Place her arm among all Denji's arms. To leave her with a weapon of choice within these walls. Warn Asa, and take advantage of her severed arm by recovering it, was Yoshida's plan B.

I know your headache's already there, but let's get on with it. What's the chapter title? Ambient noises, right? But who hears them?

I'm going to say the first sounds are those of the helicopter. The others are those of the dismemberment operation. But who hears all these successive noises? Isn't Denji supposed to be asleep?

Quite simply because Denji has woken up, not physically but to recover his senses a little, hence the detail of his clenched fist and the fact that he can now hear. How is this possible? Probably because Yoshida made sure not to shoot him completely. Why not? Because not only does he need Denji to remain at least minimally conscious, he also needs him to stay awake out of fear for the uncertainty surrounding Nayuta's fate.

We can see that Nayuta's fate agitates Denji and even makes him semi-conscious. Telling her that she was fine would have had the opposite effect, as Denji would have had no desire to get up. I think you can see where I'm going with this, but it was in Denji's interest to frustrate him even more about Nayuta and that's exactly what Yoshida did.

Let's make a brief philosophical and legal point: Leviathan by Hobbes is a work that forms one of the bases for thinking about the relationship between man and the state. Hobbes wrote this essay while traumatized by the English civil wars, for whom the only way to avoid chaos would be to give our liberties to a powerful monarch.

Man is a danger to social well-being; his natural reflex is domination, enslavement and violence.

Giving our freedoms to the state provides a powerful arbiter who in turn ensures security and social peace - the social contract. Why Leviathan? Leviathan is none other than the State, a creature invented by men, against which no individual can compete. Yoshida works for the state and therefore symbolically for Leviathan, the octopus demon.

The quid pro quo of this contract with the State, the Leviathan, is security, which is not guaranteed, as Yoshida can testify. So what does Yoshida do? He helps the figure whose popularity threatened that of the State as the guardian of social peace. But above all, he is helping the element that the state fears most - civil war, i.e. war within its borders. Within its walls.

If Yoshida and Asa have one thing in common, it's that they prefer to be alone to avoid suffering. What they do, however, is join forces to prevent Denji from stopping suffering, to enable them to move forward just like the legs they lack.

Just like friends would do.

[funnyoldworld-isnt-it]

There are so many posts about the weirdness around Nina and Maggie, but the thing that has always bothered me the most is that both of them know Aziraphale but neither one of them seems to know Crowley. Like, at ALL. Not even by sight. Which doesn’t make any sense. For the last four years, Crowley has basically been unemployed and homeless (this sentence made me so sad to type). He has had literally NOTHING to do except hang out at Aziraphale’s bookshop. And the vibe at the beginning of s2 is that he’s there a LOT. Like, multiple times per week (“we both get plenty of use out of it, don’t we”). When Aziraphale calls him in the first episode, he says “2 minutes” the way you tell your spouse how long until you’re home from the grocery store, especially if you were on your way home already.

The dialogue goes to great lengths to highlight that Nina and Maggie SHOULD know Crowley, which just heightens the weirdness of it. When they're at the pub, Crowley asks Aziraphale, “What’s wrong with the cafe?” (implying they usually go to the cafe), but Aziraphale made a point of introducing Crowley to Nina in the first episode. And Nina makes a point of saying to Maggie that she always remembers “the regulars," but she doesn't seem to remember Crowley. Of course, she immediately notices both Jim and Muriel outside the bookshop, so she's clearly paying attention to what's happening in the neighborhood and it seems like she couldn't have failed to spot him coming and going all the time.

And Maggie's situation is even weirder. Her whole back story is that she basically grew up IN the bookshop because her grandmother’s record store was essentially in a corner of the bookshop. And yet, when Maggie and Nina see Crowley on the street right before the lightning strike, Nina says, “Do you see that bloke? Six shots of espresso and he's smoking,” and Maggie responds, “I think that man was just struck by lightning.” Which is something you say about someone you’ve never laid eyes on before. She didn’t say, “Oh, that’s Mr. Fell’s friend,” or “I’ve seen him around. He stops by Mr. Fell’s shop a lot.” And then when he comes back, "It's him. The one who was just struck by lightning. The six shots of espresso." Again, no flash of recognition of anything before the current day. This happens immediately after she's just told Nina about knowing Aziraphale since she was little. It’s just weird. Why build a back story that would put her in extremely close proximity to Crowley LITERALLY her entire life and then write dialogue that makes it clear she's never laid eyes on him before?

You could maybe think, well they're just so used to having to hide...but then I asked myself: Does it make sense that the day that you find out there is an extremely dangerous, existence-threatening problem hiding out in your ineffable husband's bookshop is also the day that you would decide to STOP keeping a low profile and start wandering the streets with abandon, introducing yourself to all the local shopkeepers, and ferrying large plants into and out of said bookshop? No. No, it does not.

In any other show, you could assume that the writers just didn’t think about it very carefully. But, given the layers and layers of meaning and symbolism baked into every detail of this show, from the dialogue, to the costuming, the set design, lighting, blocking, etc., and the way that the story folds back on itself again and again, it just feels significant.

[rebeliz7]

We have to stop meeting like this

Natasha Romanoff x Doctor Reader 

Request: Can you do Natasha x non avenger/reader where reader is very possessive and protective over her wife “Listen pal. There are two things I need from you. Number 1 is get away from my wife and number 2 is stay the hell away from my wife.” Natasha finds her wife’s treats very amusing, considering she’s the black widow and can more than well take care of herself.

Word Count: 2255

…

You’re about to leave the hospital, your shift having just ended, when your phone rings. 

You see Steve’s name on the screen, and your heart stops for a second before you slide a trembling finger across the screen to answer. 

“You need to come in.” He says after murmuring a soft greeting, and you immediately become terrified. 

“Steve, is she - ”

“She’s okay.” He hurries to explain, probably realizing his mistake. “She’s fine, she’s a little beaten up, but she’s fine.”

“She’s alive.” You assure yourself, before taking a deep breath, and gathering your things. “Give me fifteen minutes.”

…

The moment you get to the Compound you know that Steve was more than vague in his explanation, because you walk into the most chaotic state you’ve ever seen the Avengers in. 

Thor is speaking loudly, his voice booming and making the windows shake lightly while Tony rubs his temples, trying to soothe a certain headache. Sam is nursing a bleeding arm on the couch, and he looks pissed as he raises his voice at Tony too. 

Steve, on the other hand, seems to be trying to keep everyone in check while Wanda and Carol sit on the nearest couch looking exhausted. No one notices you at first.

“Good evening, Doctor.” Scratch that, Friday notices you, and suddenly everyone else does too. They all fall silent the moment they see you, and when no one opens their mouth you rush down the hallway to the med-bay, terrified all over again. 

“Wait up.” Someone calls behind you.

“What the hell happened out there?” You ask over your shoulder, and you realize that everyone is coming with you. 

“You know we can’t tell you what happened.” Steve says calmly, and you turn around abruptly causing him to  stumble trying to catch himself before running into you.

You notice that his brow is bleeding from a small cut, and his suit has a tear on its chest, and he looks exhausted. 

“I don’t want the details of the mission, Steve. I meant what happened to my wife.” You clarify, and he looks to his left as he swallows, and then nods. 

“Bullet wound.” He says, and you close your eyes as you take a deep breath. Then you turn around, and resume walking.

You know how secretive Natasha’s work is, and you understand the risks. She’s an Avenger, and protecting the world is her job. Injuries are, at this point, just a professional hazard for her. 

Still, she’s your wife, and over the years you’ve only become more protective of her instead of more accustomed to the inevitability of these kinds of calls. 

“She should have waited.” You hear Tony say, as you round a corner. 

“Yeah, and you were a load of help.” Sam says sarcastically, and you begin to pay closer attention to their conversation. 

“More help than you, that’s for sure. Getting yourself shot the second you showed up.” Tony snarks back, getting angrier by the second.

“You put us all in danger by going for that computer, Stark.” Thor says, and the steel in his voice is terrifying to hear. “You are not a team player.”

“Newsflash, beach boy.” Tony starts, just as you reach the med-bay. “We need that computer if we want to put an end to this nightmare.”

“That’s enough.” Carol says, and even you straighten up at hearing her command. “Not now.”

The second you spot your wife you rush to her side, while simultaneously assessing the situation with a critical eye. Her waist is patched up, and you breathe a little easier when you realize that the bullet must have not hit anything vital. She’s being hydrated intravenously, and they’ve administered an antibiotic. Other than that, she just seems to be sleeping. 

You know she heals faster than a regular person, but you can’t help but feel as scared as you do every time that she comes home with a bruise, let alone a bullet wound. She’s not invincible, despite the world’s beliefs. 

You take a moment to look at her before you press your lips softly to her temple, and pull up the sheets to cover up to her chin. You pick up her chart next. 

The bullet went through and through just like you thought. They just had to patch her up, the wound was already healing when they brought her in. 

“She should have waited.” Tony says again, and you pick up on the fear lacing his tone. Natasha and Tony go way back, you know he’s her oldest friend among the Avengers, and he wouldn’t put her in danger deliberately.

So whatever’s happened, you rest easy at knowing that he had her back. He always does.  

“That’s enough, Stark.” Carol speaks again, her voice is steel  now, and it scares you slightly. “You can try to justify what happened out there all you want, but we all know the truth. We all heard what you said. We all know that it was you who gave Natasha the go-ahead. So stop. Nat is on this bed because of you. Own it.”

The silence that falls upon the room is deafening, and your confusion only increases the moment Natasha opens her eyes. 

“Jesus, Danvers! You’re being way too harsh.” Your wife rasps with humor in her tone. You know she’s okay, but that still doesn’t stop you from leaning down to kiss her lips the moment she’s done speaking. “Who called my wife?” She asks, her hand cupping your face as you comb her hair back with your fingers before kissing her again. 

“We gotta stop meeting like this.” You joke, and she scrunches up her nose. 

“You think you’re funny.” She says, her thumb caressing your cheek.

“Yeah, well. You married me.” You shrug, and she smiles up at you. 

However, your joy at having your wife in one piece is quickly snatched away when you can feel the rising tension among her team again. 

“We can talk about this later.” Steve says, as you sit down on the edge of the mattress, your wife’s hand in yours as you both turn your attention to her friends. 

“Of course.” Tony says, but you can hear the sarcasm in his voice, and so can everyone else. 

“Tony, come on. We’ll talk about it later.” Wanda insists, her hand on his forearm, but he’s quick to shake her hand off, and step closer to the bed, his eyes firmly locked on your wife. 

“You were an idiot!” He points a finger at Nat, and it’s your turn to frown. 

“Tony.” Sam, and Carol try to stop him but he continues to advance on your wife anyway. 

“What the hell are you talking about?” You wife asks as you slowly stand up. 

“That’s enough, Tony. Come on, man.” Steve intervenes, but Tony ignores him, his eyes still trained on your wife.

“Aren’t you supposed to be the master spy? The brains of this bunch, besides me?” He shouts, his anger sparking your own, and you find yourself pushing him back before he can take another step closer to Natasha. 

“Listen  here, pal.” You growl, as he stumbles back a couple of steps. “There are two things I need from you right now. One: Stop yelling at my wife, and Two: Stay the hell away from her. Got it?”

“Seriously?” He raises an eyebrow at you, and you step closer, daring him to try you. He may be Iron Man, and a dear friend, but you’re Natasha’s wife, and he’ll have to respect that. 

You glare until he takes a step back in response, still frowning. He looks at Nat over your shoulder, and you hear her snicker. 

“I’d listen to her, Tony.” She tells him, and you can hear the amusement in her voice. She’s not angry, or hurt, despite Tony’s frustrations. 

“Is anyone seeing this?” He asks, his index finger pointing at your chest, as he looks at everyone else in this room. 

“Come on, man.” Steve sighs again, and you catch Carol smirking, as Wanda rounds the bed to get closer to Natasha. 

When Tony looks at you again you can see the regret in his eyes as clear as day. You don’t know what happened out there, but you don’t blame him for your wife being on this bed. Natasha doesn’t take uncalculated risks, at least not since you two got married. Whatever decision she made during their mission was her own, you’re certain of that. 

“How about a shower, and a nap?” You tell him, your hand on his arm now, and he lets out a deep breath. He looks exhausted, and he’s a dear friend of yours too. You need him rested, and taken care of before he attempts to speak to Natasha again. “Come back later, we’ll be here all night.”

“Yeah.” He nods, and he leaves quickly, leaving you surrounded by equally exhausted superheros. 

“How do you do that?” Sam asks you, as Carol and Steve walk closer to the bed too. 

“Do what?” You ask him, feigning ignorance.

“You know what.” He says, and Carol is laughing when you turn around. 

“What’s so funny?” You wife asks her as you sit on the mattress, and begin running your fingers through her hair again. You smile to yourself as the Avengers gather around your wife’s bed. 

“Nothing, really.” Carol shakes her head, and your wife frowns, fixes Carol with a glare that only makes the Captain laugh harder as she turns around, and makes for the door. 

“Don’t say it.” Sam shakes his head, also amused and you’re tempted to laugh at the look on their faces but you limit yourself to watching the interaction. 

“What?!” Your wife insists. 

“Well, your wife is a lot scarier than you these days.” Carol shrugs, one foot in the hallway already, and Sam hides his laughter behind a very fake coughing fit. 

“And that’s funny why?” Your wife asks, and Steve shakes his head, finally smiling. 

“You’re the Black Widow.” Carol deadpans, and your wife glares harder. 

“It is kinda true.” Wanda says, nodding her head, and your wife huffs in disbelief this time. 

“Children, the bunch of you.” You call them, as you stand up again to put an end to their teasing. Natasha really does need to rest, as do all of them. “Go, take showers please. And eat something.” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Steve says with humor in his voice, and you roll your eyes as you practically push him out of the room.

When they’re gone, you close the door before taking off your jacket, and heels.

“What are you doing?” Your wife asks with a smile, even while she scoots over on the mattress, already making room for you. 

You get in bed with her, your arms wrapping around her middle as she presses her lips to your temple, and hugs you tight. 

“You need a shower too.” You tell her after a little while, and she pinches your arm as she laughs.

“Rude.” She says, but you’re quick to kiss her lips. 

“Babe, I love you. But you’re all sweaty and gross right now.” 

“I was shot!” She reminds you, and you hum in response. 

“No need to remind me.” 

“I’m sorry.” She apologizes. “I got distracted for just one second.”

“What happened?” You ask her.

“There was this really cute tabby-cat, and he was right in the middle of - ”

“Hold on.” You interrupt her, your hand in the air. “Please tell me that you didn’t get shot because of a cat, Natasha.”

The silence that you’re met with is answer enough, but she looks absolutely adorable as she grimaces, and pulls back a few inches from you. But that’s exactly who she is, isn’t it? She’s the kind of person that would get shot because she was trying to protect someone… or in this case a cat. 

“You really are scary.” She tells you, and you roll your eyes again. You know she likes cats but this is just ridiculous. 

“I swear!” You huff, and she hugs you closer, her lips pressing sweet kisses on your shoulder again. “Do they know why you got shot?”

“Wanda does.” She says with a smile. 

“That girl is always helping you when you’re reckless.”

“That’s why I love her.” Natasha smiles wider this time, and her wandering lips continue to press kisses along your neck, your jaw. 

“If you think you’re getting lucky while you’re lying on a bed after getting shot because you saved a cat, think again.” You tell her with a pointed look and she lets out a disappointed breath, a smile on her face as she presses one last kiss on the corner of your lips.

“You need to tell Tony that. He thinks you got shot because of him.” You tell her quietly.

“I know.” She sighs, and you can see how tired she feels. 

“Thanks for defending me.” She says after a few minutes of lying in silence. 

“Anytime.” You grin cheekily at her, and she presses one last kiss on your cheek before getting more comfortable. 

You both know that she doesn’t need you standing up for her. She could have handled Tony on her own, and she can take her teammates teasing. They all know how far to push after all. She is the Black Widow. 

But ‘Black Widow’, ‘ex-assassin’, ‘deadliest woman alive’ or not she’s still your wife, and the love of your life and you will always, always stand up for her. 

… 

[nthspecialll]

When it comes to Abigail Marston leaving John in 1907, a lot of people throw mean comments at her, say that she was unfair for doing so and a lot of other things, however I think that people fail to consider the time that this game is set. This is not our modern day woman, this is 1907, and it might sound like I am stating the obvious but by the hatred that she gets it I think it needs to be said again.

1907!

Do you know the rights that women had then? Or the lack of. Women were bound to their husbands, they weren't allowed to own close to anything and were only allowed to vote in about 4 different states, some women that is. Women were seen as a servant to her husband.

It was also hard for women to earn money, the average woman over 16 working in a factory (as the majority was) earned 5-6 or 6-7 dollars a week, a week! Eggs on average costed 29 cents by the doz, a pound of round steak cost 15 cents and half a gallon of milk costed 15 cents as well.

What about rent? New Austin, which Blackwater and the surrounding area is in, is based of Texas which in 1904 had a rent per room pr month of 28 dollars.

So why would Abigail ever go through all of that? Because of John, because of Jack. Abigail stuck around John for eight years, practically begging him to fix himself, to become better because she knew that she was pretty much dependant on him, because she needs his support to be able to live and she wants to give her boy a chance at a better life but she can't with John constantly picking fights and literally putting her and her son's lives at risk.

A lot of people make it seem like she just suddenly took that chocie, but she didn't, it was a choice that most likely took her years not just due to the financial burden but also the social burden that comes with being a single mom in a time where pre-material sex was seen as a death sin. She could very well be killed merely for being seen with Jack and without a husband.

And not just that, but it was probably also a hard choice because despite of everything she loves John, she really does, yes she screams at him for going out with Saide but who wouldn't. "She won't allow him freedom," no she is scared he is going to die, for us it is easy to say "he isn't going to" because he is a main character and we can just redo if we die taking on twenty skinner brothers or whatnot, but it isn't like that for her. I want you to imagine that your partner/friend/parent told you they were going to fight a gang of who knows how many, you are going to be scared no matter how skilled that friend is because you don't want to lose them. John himself admits it is dangerous work by saying "we always find a way to almost get killed, dont we?" Which Sadie agees to.

Abigail took the choice to leave, putting herself in a terrible situation, not for herself, but for her son. She gave up her one true love so that her son could have a chance at life, have a chance to be better than her and John. It was not easy and it is not something we should shame her for, if anything we should praise her for putting her son before herself.

I love John, I really do, but I think it shows just how shitty of a father he really was, and that Abigail leaving was exactly the push he needed to get himself together, it was the wake-up call he needed. He knew how shitty women had it, he would have to realize how terrible he must have been for her to prefer that over him.

Now am I saying Abigail did everything right? No, she did not. Although I understand her fustrations with him doing bounties she has to realize she is not in a place to be picky about jobs. She did ask John to take on a huge debt for the farm and John is right in one thing "it is legal work that I can handle," and while the farm is taking some time to get up and running it is the best form of income that they have access to.

Now to talk about her annoyance with John going after Micah, it is understandable as it could trigger a decline to their former life of crime or just lead to straight up death. It is unnecessary, revenge is unnecessary, meaning that John is risking their entire life for "nothing." He argues back with "I am doing it for Arthur" but again, yes Micah killed Arthur but killing Micah wont change that, killinh Micah will not bring Arthur back nor put him in a better situation, it is revenge, it is not nessesary, it doesn’t do any good.

If John had died she would not only have lost her husband but also the farm, as women could not own property. I am not that knowledgable on debt laws in 1907, but I would imagine that in some way or another the massive debt John got would end up with her or Jack either way, putting her in a terrible situation.

@heavenlymorals made a similar post back in may 11th where they also explore and explain Mary Linton and Abigail in 1899, it is really amazing and also puts some other light on it.

Sources:

Rent, page 369: https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/annual-report-commissioner-labor-6306/eighteenth-annual-report-commissioner-labor-608452?start_page=370

Food, page 233: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=umn.31951000014585x&seq=233

Wages, page 15: https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=nnc1.cu56779232&seq=15

[cobragardens]

5 Good Omens Timefucks that Haunt Me

1.

Why is this here? Why is this line included? Is it just to add texture, to imply that larger world of corporate fascism of which Crowley and Aziraphale are subjects and victims and little worker bees? If so, why "They've started early" specifically? Why not "I wouldn't have expected that shrub to be the first to go" or "Aw, I liked that rock formation"?

Crawly doesn't make this comment in an offhand way: he sounds a bit taken aback and not thrilled that things have kicked off sooner than he anticipated. But it doesn't ultimately seem to make any difference to this scene, so why do we, the audience, need to know Hell started early?

2.

This one I'm not as confident will turn out to be significant, because iirc it appears in the book, which was a complete story when written, and because it serves a narrative purpose: it puts Agnes Nutter in charge of the situation, not her murderers. By backfooting Witchfinder Major Pulsifer, Agnes startles him enough she's able to walk past him without Pulsifer seizing her and discovering the extra 80 lbs of gunpowder and roofing nails in her skirts.

But. Agnes Nutter's sense of time is Nice and Accurate, and she notices the witchburning party are late and remarks on it to herself before she says anything to Pulsifer. So assuming a few minutes to position Agnes, tie her to the stake, and read the charges and conviction against her, Pulsifer and Agnes' neighbors are 12-15 minutes later than they should be. Why?

If the book answers this question, I don't recall; the show does not. And again, it seems to make no ultimate difference to this scene.

I'm not saying this was even purposely included in S1 as a timefuck. I am suggesting that as Gaiman seems to be fucking with time or timelines in this story, even if he and Pratchett didn't plan it like this when discussing the sequel, a retcon is hardly out of the question.

3.

As others have pointed out, Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5 is 45-55 minutes long. If you're listening to it on 78s instead of LPs because you are a CRAZY PERSON, it's going to take you more like 1 hour 5 minutes, because one side of a 78 holds, at most, 5 minutes of music, so every 5 minutes you have to get up and flip or switch the record.

Shostakovich wrote his 5th symphony in response to criticism in the state newspaper (possibly penned by Stalin himself) that his previous work didn't suck the Communist Party's dick hard enough--the kind of criticism that put him in danger of being sent to prison or killed. At the time it was first performed in 1937, Symphony No. 5 was considered a massive triumph, walking the line perfectly between Shostakovich's artistic standards and the Communist Party's demands of him.

The choice is symbolically significant, but it's a symphony, so whoever's censoring it isn't censoring lyrics or information. Again, why? Why is a 45-55-minute symphony only 21 minutes long? What did the time thief do with the 24-34 minutes?

4.

Here's the rug that covers the portal to Heaven in Episode 1:

Here's the rug in Ep. 2:

Aziraphale does not change this rug for the party. We know this bc we see it in Episode 5 when Mrs Sandwich enters the bookshop and the party is in full swing:

Now here's Aziraphale moving the circular rug to expose the portal to Heaven:

But here's Crowley, putting the rug back:

Why are there two different rugs?

5.

Every end credits track has the first line of "Everyday" embedded in it But after the line from "Everyday," at the end of Episode 4, the theme skips twice like a vinyl record, and then is stopped by whoever controls the turntable and restarted, with several seconds of music having been skipped over.

This is not the first time it has mattered to a character in Good Omens what we in the audience see and hear. I argue here that God asks Aziraphale what he did with the flaming sword She gave him in order to show us the audience who Aziraphale is. God also addresses us the audience directly in S1, not only narrating about characters omnisciently but speaking to us about Herself in first person.

Now we evidently have a second character who has gone meta and is changing what we the audience experience of this story, and--indications are good--the story itself.

[momentomori24]

[This has been sitting in my draft for a while lol]

When it comes to Curly's failings, I always see people bring up his obvious failure to protect Anya and him prioritising Jimmy, who was the rapist in that situation. Which is completely valid btw and we should rake him through the coals for that alone even more. But I also see too many people saying that Curly "didn't enable Jimmy" or playing softball for his actions. And I could maybe see where that comes from if that incident was the only thing we had to point to-- but that wasn't all he did, is it? Curly being indifferent or not taking Jimmy's mistreatment and belittlement of Anya seriously was hinted at so much earlier than that.

Namely, the very first time we play from Curly's point of view. Let's just skip the fact that Curly was putting everyone in danger by not taking his psych evals seriously and simply giving the same answers to pass them even tho he was shown literal minutes after this scene being clearly not-sane, and go straight to the point I actually wanna get into. Which is this:

These scenes in isolation wouldn't be that bad. From his pov, it's played off as comical and it is. Jimmy being a brony (not really lmao) and getting playfully dragged over it is funny. But unfortunately this is the first example out of many for Curly's complacency. Anya is complaining about Jimmy not taking his psych evals or her seriously, which is easy to believe considering how much he rags on her for "not being a good nurse" (she kept Curly alive on hopes and dreams how dare you). So he keeps making her do silly and inappropriate reports she clearly doesn't wanna do, which is kinda shitty (also borders on harassment). But rather than actually saying something about Jimmy's behaviour or even acknowledging how it sucks he says this:

Mate, that's not a good thing 💀 He's clearly aware that the problem is Jimmy's lack of respect for Anya specifically. He knows that if he, his friend and a man in power, were the one doing the evals Jimmy wouldn't try that disrespect. But it's Anya, a meek woman who ranks lower than him so he thinks he can get away with it (which he DOES), and Curly's shown as comfortable in knowing that. He doesn't chew Jimmy out for making Anya uncomfortable nor does he reassure her that he will do something about it. All he does is take it off her hands this once and helps Jimmy power through it to get a good diagnosis (even tho we know he's DEFINITELY not sane either). He doesn't even mention Anya's discomfort or confront him on his inappropriate behaviour, just teases Jimmy in good fun instead because he doesn't think of it as anything serious. It's subtle and pretty minor in comparison to everything else, but I think it's worth pointing out. Especially because this convo takes place after Jimmy had assaulted her, which makes this so much worse.

If you need any more evidence of Curly being an enabler you need not look further than Anya herself. And I'm not just talking about the way he failed her here-- I'm talking about Anya's own view of Curly and the way said view influences her actions.

Just look at her choice of wording. "What would you have done". This is in response to him saying that she could've come to him if she were feeling stressed, which she-- in his eyes-- didn't. The question itself implies that she had no faith in Curly to actually help despite his insistence that he would've, which I think is significant because it shows that she's very much aware of Curly's shortcomings when it comes to her situation AND it's one of the first (or the first time) she actually verbalised her lack of trust towards him or anyone directly. Prior to this scene she had told him about her rape and the rapist, presumably because she trusted him to handle it. And he dismissed her because the rapist was his best friend, and that evidently deeply scarred her. Enough so that she secretly took the gun and hid it someplace else and didn't even tell Curly were that was, because she knows that if Curly has access to it there's a so much greater chance Jimmy will have too, insinuated by the line "the least I can do is make sure he never gets it either". Speaking about the gun:

It sucks so bad that this perception of him isn't even inaccurate nor unjustified. That despite everything Jimmy had done to her and everything he could still do to her, he'd very likely still not allow her access to the gun for protection. Because that's exactly what he didn't do anyway. He didn't attempt to keep her safe from Jimmy, instead he just pretended that nothing was wrong and still let Jimmy's belittlement of her pass. He didn't give her the gun after the incident, because she wouldn't have hid the case if he had. Despite his desperate reassurance that he'd do anything, he did nothing but make it worse for her and she KNOWS that. It's so frustrating knowing he entrusted the axe to Swansea when he needed it but not the gun to Anya when she needed it too. Also this:

The fact that his knee-jerk reaction to her admitting that she's pregnant was "Who would you--" is so fucked, especially considering she's already told him what happened. "Who would you" what? Who would you fuck? Who would you have sex with? That choice of wording drives me up a wall-- SHE wouldn't and didn't do anything or anyone. That was JIMMY. The potential sentence implies that she had any choice or agency in her pregnancy. She didn't. And the fact that Curly had to ask "who" insinuates that he's been putting Jimmy's action out of sight and out of mind the whole time, choosing to not think about them or what happened to Anya at all. And considering he still made her do Jimmy's evaluations despite being able to do them himself and literally didn't even think of making sure she gets psych evals done too--especially AFTER getting sexually assaulted--that might actually be the case (I haven't seen anyone make a stink about that piece of info so I'm going to because what kinda colossal fuck up IS that??).

I vaguely had a post like this in mind but seeing so many people be like "well Anya did some wrong stuff too like leaving Curly alone with Jimmy but you don't get mad at HER for that so why is Curly not doing anything about Jimmy being alone with Anya so different??" actually makes me want to blow some people up. Jimmy's an abuser, sure, but Anya has no real reason to believe that he'd actually harm Curly. From her perspective, they were close, close enough that Curly would not only let Jimmy continuously disrespect her but also get away with assaulting her too. That, and she knows that Jimmy was closer to Curly than anyone and more likely to be civil around him than he ever was to her. She has barely any reasons to suspect Jimmy would harm Curly when they're alone. Curly, on the other hand, has every fucking reason on the planet to think Jimmy would harm her when they're alone. He knows he raped her (likely in her room at night too). He knows that he sexually harasses her. He knows that he doesn't respect her at all. And that was BEFORE the crash. Anya tried insisting on giving Curly his medicine, only for Jimmy to keep aggressively insisting that he'll take care of it despite her protests. Curly didn't try to keep them separate at all even though he was the Captain and had the power to do so. And this should go without saying, but leaving your rapist alone with his best friend that he was close to and enabled/protected him and leaving your friend alone with the woman he raped (and might have repeatedly assaulted given his free access to her) is NOT THE SAME and I'm going to start chucking some people down a waterfall because what the fuck is that argument 💀 Actually leave it to the fandom of the game where the rape of a woman is the catalyst for the events that unfold to use her trauma to defend the guy that enabled it in the first place. Bloody hell.

The reason why this whole Curly discourse pisses me off is because it-- from what I can see-- ONLY brings up his failures 1-0 days before the crash and the Dead Pixel scene (or all the discussion around other points are drowned out by those two). Those scenes, while important to talk about, are not the only things he's done, and focussing on those as the only things is a mistake that comes short of understanding the issue. When it comes to Curly the main defences I see for him are "he was trying not to escalate the situation" and "he was trying to keep things under control the best he can" and "he was waiting for the right time to help Anya", but those don't work when you look at the bigger picture of everything he's done.

He half-assed through his psych eval despite clearly not being sane (and KNOWING he's barely sane, he literally admits it to Jimmy's face). He still continued to task her with Jimmy's psych evals. He brushed over Jimmy's sexual harassment of her as a joke. He didn't think about making sure she got psych evals done herself after being raped. He gave Swansea the axe but didn't give Anya the gun despite it being for "unrest amongst the crew" (whatever the hell THAT means). He let her assault slip his mind that she had to remind him. He's literally a blond man. He took no action to hold Jimmy responsible for anything, and prioritised how his violation of Anya would affect him rather than her. He ignored her demands for him to get rid of Jimmy. He still allowed Jimmy free reign of the ship as co-pilot even after he was openly fantasising about killing everyone and had a major motive and the means to do just that. He was potentially thinking of making her miscarry to cover up what happened. He was so accustomed to her sucking up being disrespected and disturbed that he didn't even notice a difference in her behaviour until she hid the fucking gun. There's so much other shit he's done and hasn't done, and not talking about them or glossing over them makes it so easy for people to argue that he isn't actually an enabler or just minimise the severity of his neglect.

And while I'm already dragging Curly through the mud, I might as well just drag Swansea too. I've seen too many people being like "Anya should've told Swansea instead" and "Swansea was the one that actually took responsibility". Like, y'all realise he's not that much better than Curly, right? He already knew about what happened to Anya-- he admits it to Jimmy's face-- but he didn't do shit. He knew, but he still got completely shitfaced for months despite her earlier protestation to that (for very understandable reasons). He knew, but he still let Jimmy have the axe AND be alone with Anya while having it. He knew, but when Anya locked herself in the Medical and Daisuke and Jimmy asked for his help he didn't budge nor really showed any care. He knew, but the reason he finally decided to do something about Jimmy wasn't Anya, it was Daisuke. Her suffering and her eventual death weren't enough for him to take action either.

This game, on top of everything else, is a great depiction of rape culture. It doesn't just include the rapists, but the people (mostly men) that stay silent, do nothing, make excuses for and protect the perpetrator for whatever reason, and Swansea and Curly (Curly way more so than Swansea) are both active contributors to the environment that allowed for evil to flourish and continue unhindered until it destroyed them all. And while that arguably doesn't make them evil themselves or as bad as Jimmy, they are so much more a part of the bigger problem than the fandom likes to admit.

[Ok since this is kinda gaining a bit of traction please consider helping these guys out here, here and here. Thanks!]

[pamwritessometimes]

Tuesday's Gone — Chapter 3

Russell Shaw x reader

Summary: When the police does little to no help to find your missing daughter, you are forced to contact Colter Shaw. What you don’t expect is how his investigation will reveal secrets about both your past and your daughter’s, in ways you never imagined.

Warnings: missing child trope, mentions of being stalked, language

Title’s based on Tuesday’s Gone by Lynyrd Skynyrd.

Catch up on Chapter 2 here

Tuesday’s Gone masterlist

━━━━━━━━━━✦✧✦━━━━━━━━━━━

You opened the door, expecting only Colter standing there. But he wasn’t alone. It was the man behind him that made your heart skip a beat. 

Russell. 

The past flooded back to you in an instant. Memories of the love you once shared, the betrayal when you found out the truth about him, and the pain of sending him away, and never telling him about the child you were carrying. Not that you knew it at the time or that you ever wanted to contact him again later when you did.

And it wouldn’t have changed a thing.

He lied to you. He kept secrets from you. No matter how much you wanted this to work out… he put you in danger. And now, even without his knowledge, he possibly put Emma in this situation, too.

Colter looked between the two of you, tension and a smudge of guilt in his stance. “I’m sorry. I needed to call him” he said cautiously. “He needed to know. And… he’s the only who can actually help.”

You looked between the two men, your eyes landing on Russell more than you dared to admit. He still looked the same, more or less. A few new scars here and there, maybe his hair and beard got a tiny bit longer– but he barely changed.

It was an undeniable contrast to your appearance. You felt the weight of raising a child alone while keeping your work… And now, your daughter’s missing. You felt it all being soaked in the way you looked. Your joggers were slightly loose now from the weight loss you experienced from it all, dark circles were decorating your concerned face, and your hair was a mess and unfortunately not in a cutesy, pinterest way.

But somehow, Russell didn’t seem to notice all these little things. He was focused only on seeing you again. The mother of his child. The one that got away.

As if sensing the tension in the air between you two, Colter nodded back to the front yard and said “I think you’ve got some things to talk about. I’ll take another look at the scene.”

You nodded, still in shock as you stepped aside to let Colter go. The door clicked shut behind him, leaving you alone with Russell. 

For a moment, neither of you spoke. 

Finally, he broke the deafening silence. “Y/N” he said softly, stepping closer. “I have so many things to–”

You swallowed hard, trying to steady yourself as you interrupted whatever he wanted to say. You didn’t have the time or energy for this.

“You shouldn’t be here, Russell.”

He shook his head, his eyes pleading. “I had to come. Colter told me everything. About Emma… about what happened.”

“I swear if this…if it has anything to do with you—“

“I’m sorry, Y/N.” he interrupted. “I’m sorry I lied to you. I’m sorry for everything, how it all ended.”

“Sorry won’t cut it. You” you poked his chest with your finger. “I don’t have time for you. My daughter’s missing and—“

“She’s my daughter, too.” 

“No” you shook your head as a few stray tears made themselves visible in the corners of your eyes. “No, you can’t say that. You don’t even know her. Never even met her.”

“Y/N, please” he sighed as he ran his hand through his hair. It was still a nervous habit of his, you noticed. “You have every right to be angry at me. Every goddamn right. But, please, let me— let me help. I want to find her. I want to—“ he trailed off. “I want to meet her. I need to know she’s safe.”

The vulnerability in his voice made your chest tighten. You wanted to believe him, to let go of the anger. But how could you?

“Why are you here, Russell? Are you actually worried about her… or are you just feeling guilty?”

“Because I didn’t know” he replied, his expression softening. “I didn’t know what I was missing until Colter called. He told me about Emma, about how scared you must be. And hell yes, I feel guilty. I— I wish I knew about her” he sighed. “Maybe I could have protected her from all of this.”

Just as you were about to answer him, to tell him another wave of fuck yous, Colter marched into the house. “I think you should see this.”

Both you and Russell turned to the younger Shaw, and you eyed him warily. “What?” you asked, still heated from the argument you and his brother had.

“There are new footprints on the front porch.” Colter said and motioned for you to follow him out.

Once you were out the door, he crouched down and nodded to Russell and you to do the same. You both compiled and once Russell inspected the new traces, his brow furrowed deeper. “This” he motioned to the dirty print “is new. Like, a couple hours new.”

“Exactly. Whoever was here–“ Colter stood up and once he did, you all could see that he had a great view from the window to the inside of the house. “–was watching you.” Colter looked at you.

Your heart skipped a beat. Someone was in your front yard very recently. Watchin– no, stalking you. 

You couldn’t believe this was your life now, not a lousy true crime TV show.

But whoever was here… they might be the key to finding Emma. And that’s good enough for you.

Russell remained crouched, examining the footprint intently. Y/N and Colter were too distracted by the chilling realization that someone had been watching her to notice the thoughts racing through Russell’s mind.

Frankly, he recognised these footprints. The grooves and pattern on the sole were unmistakable.

Ecca Boots. He owned one just like that – it was the unofficial tactical shoewear at Horizon. And they knew he would know that. They knew he would find it. This wasn’t just a trace left behind; it was a message meant specifically for him.

Another wave of guilt and anger rose in his chest. Now he was sure that Emma had been taken because of him. Because he’d left Horizon just months ago. 

It was a decision he’d agonized over for more than five years before finally walking away. He’d known it wouldn’t be easy. Nothing ever was with Horizon. But this? Even for them, this was a new low.

“I know these prints.” he spoke up finally as he stood up.

Your heart stopped as you turned from Colter to him. “What do you mean you know them?”

Russell straightened. “It’s someone from Horizon.”

“You sure?” Colter shot him a look as he stepped closer.

“I’m sure. The boots, the pattern – they’re standard issue for field agents” His voice was controlled, but you could see the anger bubbling beneath the surface. “They know I’d recognize them.”

“So were they watching me, us, because of you?” you asked, your voice rising with that familiar anger. “You really are the reason for all of this mess?”

Russell’s eyes flickered with guilt. “I don’t know” he said, though even he didn’t believe it. Deep down, he knew this was all because of his choice to leave Horizon. But he’d rather die than admit that his decision had put his daughter, and you, in danger. “It’s… it’s possible” he added reluctantly. “They could be trying to draw me out.”

“You– “ you hissed. “you not only put me in danger…. but also Emma” you said, taking a step back. Putting you into a life-threatening was one thing. But now it was about your daughter, your little girl…

“I know” he said with a voice soft but firm. “I know, and I hate that I did. I thought I—“ he didn’t finish his sentence. He knew no explanation would make it better. “But I'm gonna make this right.”

You stared at him, torn between the fear that he was right, and the hope that maybe he could help. That maybe he was the only one who could.

Colter’s voice cut through the tense conversation. “We don’t have time to argue about this. If Horizon’s involved, we need to act fast. We can use this to our advantage. If they left a trail, we can follow it.”

Russell nodded, stepping forward. “I know how they operate. I can track them.”

You raised a brow. “And why would they leave you a trail this obvious?”

“They want me to follow it” Russell said. “It’s a trap, I’m certain” he sighed. “…but I’ll spring it if it means finding Emma.”

You crossed your arms, your mind racing a million miles per hour. Every instinct screamed and shouted not to trust him, not after everything he’d done to you and Emma. But at the same time, he was offering to walk straight into danger for her – hell, for you both. You had no idea how far Horizon would go, but Russell seemed to understand their tactics, and right now, that was more than you had. It was your only chance at seeing your daughter again.

“You really think you can find her?” you asked quietly, desperately trying to hold on to that strength that kept you going these last two days.

“I don’t just think it” he said, his gaze locking onto yours. “I know I can. In fact… I believe this is all made for me. They’re leaving just enough crumbs to keep me on their trail. It’s their way of making a point. A warning that nobody walks away from them that easily.”

Colter glanced back to the yard, the tension in his posture hardening to focus. “If Horizon’s watching you and us, they’d leave more than footprints. They must have left something here to know your routine. Or to lead us to them.”

Russell nodded, dropping back down to study the ground, and Colter moved alongside him, checking nearby spots with methodical precision.

You watched them both, your mind racing. Russell’s expression was intense as he was sweeping through the property, and it hit you again just how much he knew about the dark world he’d tried to keep hidden from you.

Colter circled the yard, crouching down to check under the shrubs. He reached beneath one, pulling out a tiny, glinting piece of metal. Just like he expected. He held it up, squinting as he inspected it. “Looks like a tracker” he muttered and looked up at his brother who took the device from Colter.

“They planted a fucking tracker in my yard?” you asked.

Colter nodded. “And they placed it where they could monitor you without getting too close. Plus, this doesn’t look homemade.”

Russell’s gaze fell as he studied the device closely. Those bastards are probably listening even right fucking now. It means they probably already know Russell’s involved. Just how they wanted.

“Yeah, figures. This isn’t just some basic eBay find. It’s high-end, military-grade. They wouldn’t bother with this level of surveillance unless they were planning something… thorough” he said as he destroyed the goddamn tracker with his bare hands.

You shivered at his words, but you couldn’t help and feel a hint of admiration for how easily he could break that thing. “If they had a tracker all along… why would anyone watch me from the window?”

“To leave a message to me. If we didn’t find the footprints we wouldn’t have found the tracker.” Russell replied grimly. “It’s all their scheming.”

You closed your eyes, every little information sinking in, highling the gravity of the situation. “So… they’ve been here, watching us… What else did they leave behind?” 

Colter’s eyes scanned the area. “They’ll have had an exit route, somewhere nearby and quick. Russell, think back– where would they go after setting up surveillance here? If you were still on their team… where would you go from here?”

Russell’s eyes narrowed as the gears in his mind were turning hard and fast. “There’s an old warehouse about a mile east, on the edge of town.” he remembered. “It’s been abandoned for years, but it’s got exits to multiple side streets and connects to the main road. If they wanted to avoid detection, that’s where they’d set up. That’s… where I’d set up.”

Colter nodded. “Why does it always have to be a warehouse?” he muttered to himself, already moving to the edge of the yard. “We need to check that out, then. If they’re using the area as a base, there might something that leads us to Emma. Y/N” he turned to you. “I know you don't want to sit here, but coming with us – it’s dangerous.”

You scoffed, your heart rising with frustration of them trying to leave you here again. “Dangerous? What about staying here where they can monitor me however they want? You call that safe?” you asked a little more harshly than you intended to. You sighed and continued. “I can’t just… sit around here and wait when my daughter’s missing. She– she must be so fucking scared… She just needs me. So I’m coming with you, whether you like it or not.”

Colter’s jaw clenched, but before he could respond, Russell stepped in. “She’s right. If they’re watching, they’ll know when we leave. We can’t afford to split up. If Y/N stays, they might see it as an opportunity to–“ he didn’t even finished his sentence. He didn’t dare to even think about what they’d do to her. “We need to move as a unit.”

You kept your face hard as you managed to not roll your eyes at his words. Despite his intentions to help, your mind still struggled to accept his assistance.

Colter hesitated, but after glancing between you and Russell, he nodded reluctantly. “Fine.”

You followed them as they made their way out of the yard, adrenaline coursing through your veins. As you reached the edge of the property you turned back to look at your home, a place that had once felt safe but now felt polluted by uncertainty.

The house wasn’t anything special or modern. It sat comfortably on the edge of Idaho Falls, in a quiet neighborhood where people still waved to each other. The paint was slightly faded, giving it a soft, well-loved look, and the porch had a few creaky wooden steps that somehow added to its charm. Two rocking chairs worn smooth with age, sat under the shade of the front porch. The yard was small but cared for with wildflowers along the path and a weathered birdhouse nestled in a nearby tree. You loved tending the garden and the little oasis you created for yourself and Emma to play in.

It wasn’t much, but you were proud when you managed to afford it with your modest salary - and maybe a little help from your parents.

It wasn’t perfect, but it felt like home.

And at least it wasn’t a place where a murder took place. Not like your previous residence.

“What if they’ve already found out we’re on to them?” you asked with gripping anxiety.

“I’m pretty certain they’re expecting us. If they were listening,” Russell said as you three made your way to his car. ”then they know we’re coming.”

“They’re probably counting on it, using it to draw us out. But we don’t really have any other option here.” Colter added.

You rolled your eyes dramatically, unable to resist. “Great, so we’re the mice in their little cat-and-mouse game? That sounds like a fucking blast.” You couldn’t help it. Humor was the next step in your way of coping, even if it felt absolutely forced. 

“Look, I know this isn’t easy” Russell said, trying to keep his tone reassuring, but you couldn’t help but give him the silent treatment with your arms crossed tightly across your chest.

“Yup, definitely not easy. Just a walk in the goddamn park” you shot back sarcastically, shooting him a glance that was soaked with your lingering annoyance.

Russell opened his mouth to respond but thought better of it. Instead, he looked ahead. You could tell he was trying to rein in his frustration, but you weren’t ready to make it easy for him. You still felt raw from everything… betrayal and pain, all mixed up with the fear for Emma.

The car ride to the location was tense. You opted for parking it a few blocks away, trying not to draw any unnecessary attention to yourselves. Not like it made any difference. Horizon was already expecting them. Or so you thought, at least.

Colter led the way down the narrow street, and you two followed closely behind. The tension was palpable, and you couldn't shake the feeling that something was lurking just out of sight. And you hated that most of the time, your gut feeling was absolutely spot-on.

“Why is it always a warehouse?” you muttered, breaking the silence. Colter couldn’t help chuckle silently to himself as he heard you echoing his earlier thoughts. “Isn’t there a law against this? You know, ‘No illegal organizations allowed in abandoned warehouses’?”

After a few moments of tense silence, you finally arrived at the building.

“Okay, time to get serious” Colter said, his demeanor shifting back to focused. “Let’s scout the perimeter first.”

As you approached the entrance of the warehouse, the musty air hit you like a wave. You steeled yourself, feeling the adrenaline spike again. The shadows inside were deep, and you could barely make out the outlines of old crates and scattered debris.

Colter led the way, scanning the dimly lit interior with caution. As you moved deeper into the warehouse, you kept your eyes peeled for anything that might indicate where your daughter could be.

“Let’s split up” Colter suggested, after a few seconds. “We’ll cover more ground that way. Just stay within shouting distance.”

You nodded, but your heart sank. The idea of being alone in this dark, eerie, dusty (and other unsettling adjectives) place made you feel absolutely uneasy. Before you could voice your concerns, Russell stepped in. “No way” he said firmly. “We don’t Scooby-Doo here. I’m not leaving Y/N alone. There’s a reason we brought her with us, Colter.”

Colter raised an eyebrow. “Russell, we need to find Emma quickly. Splitting up is the best way–”

“We’ll go together” Russell interrupted, stepping closer to you and his tone left no room for argument. “I’m not risking Y/N being on her own while we’re in here. If something happens…”

You frowned at Russell. “Really? You think I can’t handle myself? I don’t need you babysitting me.” The truth was, you'd much rather handle this on your own than have him breathing down your neck the entire time.

Russell looked back at you, his expression softening slightly. “It’s not about babysitting. It’s about keeping you safe. I’m not letting you go off alone.”

Colter sighed but nodded, recognizing the tension. “Fine. Just stop arguing, we don’t have the time for this right now.” he hushed the two of you.

And then, you were left alone with Russell.

As you made your way through the maze of crates, the sound of your footsteps echoed eerily in the silence, and every creak of the floor made your heart jump. You felt a mix of gratitude and frustration toward Russell for being so protective, but the tension between you never really faded. It was – ambiguous, to say the least.

“Honestly, Russell, this is ridiculous” you muttered quietly as you walked beside him. “I can take care of myself. I don’t need you keeping an eye on me.”

“I know you can take care of yourself” he replied. “But this is different. We’re dealing with serious threats, and I don’t want to risk anything happening to you. Especially since it’s all… my fault.”

You rolled your eyes, but you could hear the genuine guilt in his voice. But you won’t give him an easy time, not yet. “So, what? You’ll just hover over me the entire time? That’s not going to help.”

Russell shrugged, a hint of a smile tugging at his lips despite the gravity of the situation. “If it keeps you from getting into trouble, then yes. I’m okay with that.”

Just as you were about to fire back with a witty remark, something shiny caught your eye. You stepped closer and brushed off some dust, gasping when you saw it. There, half-hidden under a pile of old boxes, was a Barbie doll. Not just any Barbie –Veterinarian Barbie. Its lab coat was dirty and wrinkled, and her pink stethoscope was missing, but you recognized it instantly. It was Emma's favorite doll.

The one she played with when she was taken.

You would spot this doll anywhere. Emma loved pretending it was curing the plastic cat and dog that came with the set. She often said she wanted to be a vet when she grew up, and it made sense; she adored animals and pets of all kinds. Last Christmas had been especially tough because she asked Santa for a puppy, yet as much as you wanted to get her (and yourself) one, you knew she was too young to handle a dog, and you didn't want to take on that extra responsibility all by yourself.

“Russell, come look at this!” you called as you momentarily forgot how irritated you were with him.

He hurried over, squinting at the doll. “Is it — is it hers?” 

“Yeah,” you confirmed, picking up the muddy Barbie and holding it up for him to see. “This is Emma’s favorite. She was just playing with it in the yard before… before everything happened.” Your heart sank as you thought about how scared she must be.

“Then we’re on the good trail. This is definitely a message” he said, a grim expression crossing his face. “They want us to know they have her.”

The gravity of the situation weighed heavily on you. “But we still don’t know where to start” you said, disappointment surging through you again. “This — this doesn’t tell us where she could be.”

Russell nodded, taking the doll from you. “Let’s go find Colter. Maybe he found something to guide us.”

Just as you turned to make your way back to the house, you heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps — heavy of tactical boots. The hair on the back of your neck prickled, and you froze, instinctively gripping Russell’s arm. Holy crap. Had he been working out even more? He was certainly ripped four years ago, but it was like gripping into a Schwarzenegger in his Mr. Olympia days.

If the situation weren’t so fucking serious, you knew that cocky bastard would be smirking, relishing the moment.

“Did you hear that?” you whispered, heart pounding like crazy. You were definitely going to need a solid prescription of happy pills after this.

“Yeah” Russell replied with a hushed voice. “Stay close to me.”

Before you could react, two men in black clothing emerged from the shadows, their faces hidden beneath dark masks. They moved easily with practiced military precision, blocking your path to the way out.

“Going somewhere?” one of them asked.

Fuck. This really was a trap.

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Next on Tuesday’s Gone (Sneak Peek from Chapter 4):

You watched with a continuously racing heart as Russell pulled a paperclip from his pocket — of all things — and straightened it. “Can’t believe they missed this little bad boy” he murmured, working it into the lock. His gun and knife hadn’t been as lucky; those were gone in an instant. But the paperclip? Somehow, it had slipped right past their search.

With a quiet click, the lock gave way, and Russell shot you an annoyingly triumphant grin.

You threw the door wide, scooping Emma into your arms as her tiny hands clung to you fiercely. She was trembling. Crying.

“Shh, baby girl” you whispered, holding her close. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”

Russell looked like he wanted to reach out, maybe even say something, but this wasn’t exactly the time for a heartfelt family reunion. His gaze shot down the hall.

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Right? It’s always a warehouse. Guess villains lack imagination. 🤭But we’re so close now… that long-awaited family reunion is just around the corner!

Read Chapter 4 here

Taglist:

@bitchykittenconnoisseur @smoothdogsgirl @spnfamily-j2 @winchesterwild78 @deans-spinster-witch @deans-baby-momma @zepskies @kr804573 @sebastianstangirl01

[lyricailove]

Does it ever hit you that because of Frank and Monica's emotional detachment, all of the Gallagher's seek out affection from romantic partners? But like to an almost obsessive degree.

Fiona's is obvious. She's hypersexual and falls in love easily. She will downplay her issues with Frank as something she's grown used to, but it's clear that it still affects her. She also does the same when it comes to Monica but I feel like her hostility towards other women comes from how she doesn't trust Monica, doesn't really trust herself, and sees those insecurities on other women. Ex: Her treatment of Mandy and distrust of her around Lip.

Lip is a classic case of a man dealing with his mommy issues by making it every woman's problem. He's hostile towards his romantic partners when they want a real commitment from him and he talks to women with so much disrespect that it's a wonder someone hasn't stomped his ass out yet. He's especially harsh towards his own sisters even though they've been the one's who have been there for him. He may hate Frank but he's noticeably giving and extremely forgiving towards men, even those he's only known for a short while. Almost like the story about the turtle was just as much about him hoping that he could fix Frank as it was about Frank crushing his hopes of a real father figure.

Ian being groomed is in no way his fault and is the fault of the creeps who pursued him. But I can't ignore the fact that Frank's abuse and neglect opened him up the further abuse he suffered at the hands of Kash and Ned. It's no coincidence that both Kash and Ned shower Ian with gifts and compliments about how impressive, smart, and mature he is.

Debbie 1. deals with comphet in the first few seasons, and 2. Feels ignored by her family so she tries to create her own family. Debbie is visibly the one most affected by Frank's issues and even when she for all intents and purposes gives up on him, it still affects her. Frank's hurtful words about her only finding love with someone "just as fucked up as she is" pushes her to put consider a dangerous situation with Heidi. She's also someone who struggles with control issues because she needs to help other people. She's a problem solver by nature. It's just that the two problems she wishes she could solve more than anything are out of her hands (Frank and Monica). She can't fix Frank's addiction, his selfishness, or his abusive tendencies. She can't fix Monica's wanderlust, her avoidance, or her aversion to long-term commitment.

Carl is so good at masking his emotions. It's easy to miss. But then you notice things like his attachment to Fiona, his absolute devotion to the girls he likes, and his need to protect. Carl is hypersexual, even though I've seen it rarely brought up in fandom, and longs for a long-term girlfriend. When he does get girlfriends he's all in from the beginning. When Carl loves someone he is all about them. He's so casual when it comes to talking about Frank and Monica, but that doesn't mean those feelings aren't there and they aren't affecting him.

Liam is still young so we don't get to see him in a relationship. He's the one Gallagher who's consistently treated like an actual kid. Probably the one who has the best chance at healthy emotional attachments. But then again, Fiona leaving most likely did a number on him and we weren't privy to what that looks like for him because the latter seasons forgot how to do long-term storytelling and emotional payoff. All we know is that he doesn't remember Monica, Frank being gone makes him an orphan and he's worried about where he's gonna live because Lip forgot that Liam was technically under Frank's care. We didn't get to see it, but I'd say Liam's first emotional crash is probably on the horizon.

[albinokittens300]

!Spoilers Under The Cut!

A/N: SO...been a minute since I wrote fic but. Made sense since I have ideas floating around might as well write and share them. Please note not only am I rusty writing in general, this is my first attempt at these characters. Be gentle on me please XD. I do hope you all enjoy. Let me know what you think, and maybe I'll try and get another one out maybe before Act 2 drops this weekend. All this ended up being was a little drabble of a possible reunion between Ekko and Jinx because I need some Timebomb goodness. Isha making an appearance is a bonus! Fair warning I make some wild leaps about what goes on during Act 2, so beware this is based some of my speculation.

He lets it go on for a few turns into different allies before finally stopping.

Ekko knows his little shadow is nothing more than a child, judging by the sound of the sets on the stone and the occasional clang of metal being kicked or tripped on. He usually wouldn't be worried- but with no one chasing after and taking her back to where she belonged, he took it as the sign it was. To follow him so far means she is all alone. Having just gotten back across the bridge, helping an orphan wasn't something on the list of deep concerns. At least, not until it needed to be.

"As quiet as you are, I have to say it'd be easier to get around if you weren't hiding." He says softly. Light brown eyes peek around the corner, playing at being undercover without actually doing so. She is hard to make out in low and greeish light, but he manages. "You can come out. Not gonna hurt you. All safe, I promise."

His hair raises, though, when her gaze flicks back to where he can't see. By all appearances, she is getting permission. So the girl isn't alone. When she takes a few steps out, he tries to remain unsuspicious.

"Whose behind there?" He asks as he kneels while she approaches.

"Definitely not who you're expecting." A darker, familiar voice speaks.

Jinx hasn't even revealed herself before the instinct takes over, and Ekko grabs the little girl and puts her behind him.

Attempting to pull her away from the known danger sets off another problem, though- the little girl reacts as if she has been burned. Letting out a cry, she wiggles away from him quickly before running back and wrapping herself around Jinx. While she removes the hood of her cloak, revealing a far too proud smirk, another arm wraps around the kid's shoulder. His eyes quickly scan her other side. A few bombs are latched there, but no pistol or any of her bigger toys. It was not a situation he loved, but it was preferable to facing down a minigun.

When Ekko's eyes return to the child, he doesn't think someone so small has ever looked at him so frightened. Something screams this isn't right as he watches for a few seconds.

"Relax, this one, I'll admit, has a reason to be a bit jumpy." She says, directing the words at the girl. Then, leveling a look at him. "What was it Vi said you had to say when the two of ya caught up? About looking good for a dead person?"

"That makes three of us, then." He says back. "Wanna explain what is going on down here, seeing as you are my welcoming party."

"Ah, nothing much. War, revolution, infighting, and unifying! All of that. If you are looking for the Firelights, they aren't at the tree. Or what's left of it." She says with a wave of her hand and a shrug. The blood runs like ice at the words and he rounds on her.

"What did you-"

"Woah, woah, I didn't do anything. Those wackos from Noxus? They are the ones who tracked the tree. My only part was helping everyone out." She hisses back. When his face changes, so does hers—relaxing just the slightest bit. Helped them out? Months trapped away should mean nothing surprise him. But it does.

He sees her arms crossed, watching and almost waiting for him to decide how this will go. Deciding to match her lack of hostility, just this once, he looks around to the eerily empty and quiet lanes.

"Guess I got a lot to catch up on."

That brings a less taunting smirk to her face. "Just a bit."