#i think it would be AMAZING to see how Wolf confronts her past and develops without Kipo

[mylastmoleculeofserotonin]

One of my favorite things about KATAOW is Wolf’s character development. It’s so subtle and gradual that on my first viewing of it, I didn’t really notice it until the end of each season.

I feel like Season 1 could be used as a masterclass for this kind of character development. Even though there are major changes in the way she lives, they don’t change her immediately. At the start of the show, Wolf’s life fundamentally changes by living with another person, but she is basically the same as how she was before for about the first 4 episodes. However, during this time, she disagrees with Kipo on just about everything, but the way they resolve conflict slowly gets better and better, going from physically fighting over eating/keeping Mandu in “Burrow Girl” to Wolf willingly going along with Kipo’s plans in “Cactus Town” and even risking her life to do so again in “The Astronomers in Turtlenecks.” But even after that, they don’t start working seamlessly together. Wolf still is the person who she was before she met Kipo, putting herself and her security above everything else. But in “Tad Mullholland,” we see that this now is beginning to encompass her long-neglected social needs, which then comes into conflict with her physical safety in “Mute-Eat-Mute World” where we see her instinctively prioritizing her physical safety above all else.

But by the end of Season 1 and the start of Season 2, we see that Wolf’s concerns over physical safety, have grown to encompass the safety of Kipo and the others as well. This is a very subtle and important change which turns her rugged survivalist mentality into a more fiercely protective one, as showcased in “The Goat Cheese Prophecy” and “To Catch a Deathstalker,” where Wolf is more than willing to charge headfirst into danger to protect Kipo. But then, in “Benson and the Beast,” when Kipo is able to transform whenever she needs to, Wolf suddenly is not in charge of protecting Kipo and the others, which takes that stress off of Wolf and makes room for her to trust Kipo and actively participate in her plans for redeeming Scarlemange in “Sympathy for the Mandrill” and “All That Glitters.” This building trust eventually culminates in “Heroes on Fire” where Wolf has no weapon to fight with and she actually asks Dave for help, which was a small thing but made me pause the episode to appreciate how far Wolf had come.

In Season 3, Wolf gets a new weapon to replace Stalky, which I choose to take as an indication of how Wolf changes in this season. Her new rope dart not only compensates for all the disadvantages she had when fighting Emelia (reach, contests of brute strength, etc.) but also has non combative uses as well (ie restraining people and climbing). However, one of the biggest differences is the fact that it is often out of sight and not always in her hand. This both symbolically and literally shows that Wolf drawing her weapon to fight is a choice now that Kipo can turn full Mega and all of these properties of her new weapon are shown in “A Wolf in Wolf’s Clothing” where she makes the conscious choice to stop fighting Margot and helping her instead. When she chooses to do this, she does it because of how being around Kipo has influenced her and made her more willing to make peace with people instead of fighting them. Unfortunately Wolf does not, in my opinion, get enough screen time in Season 3, but we do see little instances where she chooses to do things the Kipo way such as getting the other HMUFA members to set traps for the invading humans instead of waging an all out war in “It’s a Trap” and stopping Kipo from sinking Emelia’s ship in “Requiem for a Dave.” She even agrees to do Prahm Kipo’s way as a genuine party instead of using it to kill Emelia, which was particularly cool to see because it took her some time to overcome her desire to protect Kipo and actually let her take this risk, but not only because she knows that Kipo can defend herself if worse comes to worst, but because she understands that it’s the right thing to do. She not only comes around to supporting Kipo, but gets Scarlemange to do so too and even prevents him from mind controlling people again, not because Kipo said so, but because she understands that it’s morally wrong. Everything then culminates for Wolf’s development in the show when she takes off her wolf skin and symbolically letting go of her old worldview for good in the name of peace and cooperation and then stops fighting Greta in “Age of the Wonderbeasts” to convince her to break free from Emelia and her manipulation.

And I think that this is a beautiful ending for Wolf’s arc. Not everything was wrapped up neatly for her, but she’s gotten to a point now where she can heal and move forward from her past to find an identity for herself within a community, and while we don’t know who she will eventually become, I think it really works because it shows us that we don’t need to know where we want to end up as people, but that just being around the right people will, by it’s very nature, change us and that this type of growth is possible for anyone. And I think KATAOW nails this in the subtlety of Wolf’s growth and that it just emerges because she spent so much time with Kipo.

Anyways. This was a lot longer of a post than I intended to write, so if you’ve made it this far, thank you for coming to my TedTalk.

[10holmes]

author self-rec game - tagged by @lady-of-the-lotus thanks for the tag! 💕

Rules: list the five favorite fics you’ve written, then pass it on to five other writers.

Puh... Basically this is me just tagging about every fic I've written so far, considering a lot are more on the nah side of things, but let's see 😂

1. Time is Our Worst Enemy

Recently I just recommended this fic to my super amazing and precious reader @impossible-stardust and realized this is - if maybe not my best or most popular - definitely my all time favourite XueXiao fic that I've written so far 💕

Basically it is me going: "The Yi City Arc didn't hurt enough - Let's make it even more heart-wrenching!" #peacewasneveranoption #IdontwantpeaceIwantproblems

2. Now That I See You

This fic is really dear to me because it is the most extensive one I've written so far and I spend like every spare minute thinking about it and plotting (if also often not always writing... #writerstruggles)

While watching the deleted campfire scene and seeing XY making heart-eyes at XXC and also his puppy-eyes during their final confrontation, I thought: "Gosh, what if XXC could have seen his expressions and had really had the time to understand and reflect on XYs story and past? And what if XY was more aware of his feelings sooner and less vicious & shaped by his past? This definitely would have changed things!"

Thus, this fic was born featuring a XXC, who still has his eyes, and a XY who's amnesiac after the assassination attempt. And, yes, I do take the slow in slow-burn very seriously here.

3. Fate is a Wicked Thing

Way before descending into danmei hell and becoming a Xue Yang apologist, I was an avid Loki stan and Lokane shipper and also very pissed with how his character was done dirty by Marvel. So I thought Screw canon! and went to write a canon divergence where the Infinity Stones are sentient beings and two of them always form a pair and they bond with their hosts and the pairing also extends to their hosts. So now we have Loki bonded to the Tesseract and Jane bonded to the Aether, which are a pair, and thus the two of them also find themselves suddenly developing feelings for one another and then having to question whether these feelings are influenced by the Infinity Stones or maybe their own after all...

Regrettably, I haven't finished or updated this in years as my interests and obsessions have shifted...

4. Down in the Black Sea

Are you even truly pan (or bi) if you haven't got a weird obsession with pirates and mermaids and Pirates of the Caribbean?

So yeah, I love mermaids, I love pirates, and I love the idea of combining that obsession with XueXiao. Thankfully I stumbled upon @memequeen1127 's fic collection and got permission to continue her opening chapter for what is now also one of my most beloved fics!

It's about XY, a mermaid hunter, being saved by XXC, a white mermaid of legend, with whose heart one can gain immeasurable power. So of course XY wants that power. But the growing feelings between them may yet change the tide of any ensuing betrayal...

5. Lone Wolf And His White Sheep Shizun

Take XueXiao but make it RanWan. As my obsessions shifted yet again to another pairing, but I can't quite let go of XueXiao (probably not ever again), I decided to just combine it and make it one huge obsession ✔️

But be warned: Updates are very slow for this one... #sorry

And now, I'm excited to get to know your favourite personal fics!

@bao-shan-black

@onlyonewoman

@unfortunatelycake

@the-ineffable-arvari

@zishustits

And anyone else who sees this and wants to join in 🥰

[ayuuria]

Yashahime Translation: Animedia April 2021 Issue

Please do not repost this translation without my consent! This includes screenshots of any type and amount. If you wish to share this translation, simply link to this post.

For more information regarding the use of my translations, click here.

Don’t Miss the Seriously Insane Decisive Battle Card!

After accumulating numerous dramatic incidents, “the time of the decisive battle” is finally arriving for a number of this term’s noteworthy animes. What sort of developments will they show… the seriously insane moment is near!

What Does Sesshōmaru (biological father) Think of the Yashahimes (daughters) As They Head Towards the Decisive Battle While Baring the (binding) Spell on Their blood?

“Hanyō no Yashahime” is nearing its climax and the insane truths like the details on how the three Yashahimes were separated from their parents have been revealed. During Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha’s first confrontation with Kirinmaru, Sesshōmaru appeared but contrary to the “emotional father-daughter reunion” we were expecting, Sesshōmaru left without saying a word. It appears Sesshōmaru is concerned about the twins’ mother, Rin, who is currently sleeping within the Tree of Ages. What he is trying to do and what he thinks of his daughters continues to be a mystery. On the other hand, Kirinmaru’s elder sister, Zero, is steadily reaching out her evil hand towards the Yashahimes. As half-demons and a quarter-demon (respectively), can Towa, Setsuna, and Moroha awaken their true strength in order to attack that evil hand… …?!

Character Bios

Higurashi Towa Sesshōmaru’s daughter and Setsuna’s older twin sister. She loses her demonic powers on the night of the new moon and her hair turns black. She treasures Setsuna and is slowly regaining their sisterly bond.

Setsuna Towa’s younger twin sister. Having had her sleep stolen by the Dream Butterfly, she is unable to sleep. She possesses strong demonic powers, but they are sealed by Monk Miroku.

Moroha The daughter of Inuyasha, a half-demon, and Kagome, a human. Having been separated from her parents, she was raised by the wolf demon tribe. When rouge is applied to her lips, her demonic power awakens, causing her to transform into “Beniyasha, the Destroyer of Lands” and go on a rampage.

Sesshōmaru Towa and Setsuna’s father. He protected his daughters immediately after their birth as Zero aimed for their lives, but he currently does not try to get involved with the two. His true motive behind that has yet to be revealed.

VS the People Who See It Through, Interview with Komatsu Mikako (Role of Setsuna)

“Please look forward to the climax that will be beyond imagination!”

— Looking back at the broadcasting up until now, which episode made you think “That was insane!”

Episode 14 where the truth behind the forest fire and Towa and Setsuna getting separated was revealed. I mean Homura’s (the one who caused the fire) intense love for Tamano was amazing. It was warped but his deep, strong love was incredible. On top of that, the shocking development of Zero being the mastermind behind Homaru and Sesshōmaru being present really made that episode “insane” in more ways than one.

— While there is curiosity about Sesshōmaru’s relationship with Zero and his motives, how do you yourself see him Komatsu-san?

Sesshōmaru doesn’t say much and his actions are hard to understand but I think he’s a character who always proceeds in his own logical way. As such, I think the current Sesshōmaru moves not because of the simple principle that “Love for a human has sprouted” but rather it is the result of him looking deeply at himself from different angles such as the curiosity at his own change of heart and/or looking at the general drift of affairs from the standpoint of demon. Also, I have a feeling that he has this belief that “He will protect and treasure things that are within his reach” so I feel real at ease about that. From Setsuna’s standpoint, I want to look forward to how he will show that through his actions from here on.

— The climax is right before our eyes, but could you give us hints as to what sort of future developments will unfold?

A development that is like “I didn’t imagine this kind of finale…!” awaits. Personally, I have a feeling that the “Test of Courage and Cowardice” that Sesshōmaru spoke of will become a keyword going forward. What did Sesshōmaru entrust to Towa and Setsuna and how did he feel? From here on is our critical moment. There is still the matter of the Dream Butterfly with Setsuna and many mysteries remain. I hope that one day, (the twins) can confront Sesshōmaru as father and daughter and that the things that they desire and have been entrusted with tie together. Please look forward to it!

The Yashahime’s Trump Card is the “Bond” They’ve Cultivated Amongst the Three of Them

Setsuna & Towa

Although Setsuna has not fully regained the memories of her past, while moving alongside Towa, she has started to acknowledge her as an older sister.

“At the beginning Setsuna didn’t really know Towa so she followed her movements out of the corner of her eye. But at some point, she started looking straight at her. However, she’s too embarrassed to show that change. Thus, I also control my emotions when I act” (Komatsu)

Gradually opening her heart ♪

Moroha & Setsuna

While battling demons, Setsuna and Moroha show that they’re a superb combination because they trust each other’s strength.

“I would say she’s not as worried about Moroha like she is with Towa. (laughs) She has a sort of peace of mind like ‘She’ll probably be fine’ and I think Moroha has become a comrade she can entrust her back to while fighting. Also, Moroha has a persistent “let’s get along!” type of personality so there’s a part of Setsuna that has been saved by that.” (Komatsu)

We asked Komatsu-san! Oh snap oh snap! Grand Prix

Characters with Insane Mysteries Best 3

1. Sesshōmaru

Sesshomaru’s level of mysteriousness stands out and I have a feeling he is continuing to evolve. However, after recording all the way to the final episode, I feel like the times where his intentions come through in a more straightforward way is increasing.

2. Riku

He’s a character whose investigations about him progress somehow so Riku’s level of mysteriousness is high. His human like sense and his birthplace are things I’m curious about.

3. Jyuubee

I don’t think Jyuubee of the corpse shop is a villain, but he seems to know things through his connection with Riku and he might surprisingly have an ulterior motive…? Although he could just be a regular middle-aged man (laughs)

We Asked Komatsu-san! The Enemy Prize

Who’s the number 1 enemy character you’re curious about?

Riku

“He calls Zero “elder sister” but we still don’t know what his connection to her is and Riku himself mutters things that have a profound hidden meaning so I feel like he has some kind of painful circumstance. Riku is the number 1 enemy (?) I wonder about.” Komatsu.

Cannot Overlook These Enemies

Those who are too dangerous

Kirinmaru A beast king on par with the Dog General (Sesshōmaru’s father). Having once received a prophecy from the Shikon Jewel that he “Would be destroyed by an existence that is neither human nor demon”, he is cautious of the 3 Yashahimes.

Zero Kirinmaru’s older sister. Due to her ties with the Dog General, she despises humans and half-demons. She is the mastermind behind the forest fire that separated Towa and Setsuna.

Oh Snap! The Yashahimes or Kirinmaru… Whose side is Sesshōmaru on?

When he sealed Inuyasha in the black pearl, Sesshōmaru behaved as though he was Kirinmaru’s ally. How he will deal with Zero who is after his daughters; pay attention to Sesshōmaru’s actions in the last 2 episodes!

Illustration Description

Towa and Setsuna prepare themselves while having complicated feelings towards Sesshōmaru. Moroha also faces the decisive battle with her characteristic cheerfulness.

[coco96]

LDAF - JB Romantic

Bare Left Arms (Bucky Barnes X Fem!Reader) Request: ... people have the names of their platonic soulmates on their left wrist/arm and the names of their romantic soulmates on their right wrist/arm ... R has REALLY long list of platonic soulmates ... Bucky ... isn’t on her left arm list, he assumes that it’s because he’s unlovable ... when Bucky fully lets her in for the first time ... then they get each other’s names on their right wrist ...

Losing Almost Everything (Clint Barton X Daughter!Reader) TRIGGER WARNING: ATTEMPTED SELF HARM Other warnings: Spoilers for Infinity War, death Request: Clint barton’s oldest daughter from a previous relationship. She’s enganged to bucky when the snap happens and goes into a deeper depression when she finds out from her dad and natasha that laura and her siblings were dusted and clint and natsha both stop her from harming herself just in time.

Old Thoughts (Bucky X Daughter!Reader) Warnings: Coming out, mention of homophobia and not being accepted, yelling Request: Hi! Would I be able to request a Bucky x daughter where he finds out she’s a lesbian and maybe isn’t so accepting of it at first but at the end he’s understanding/accepting and just rlly fluffy? If you don’t want to do it it’s totally fine

Anniversary announcements (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Mentions of past abusive relationship and swearing. Request: … Bucky and the reader has been dating for a long time and one day they discuss for something stupid and Bucky move his arms in a strange way and the reader gets scared (because of the movement, not because she is affraid of him) and Bucky gets very sad and the reader try to explain him that she is not affaid? Like a lit angst with fluff. Hope you could understand it..

I’m Here (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Claustrophobia, panic attacks Request: Can you write one where Bucky and the reader are ok with each other but there’s some tension thrown around? Tony decides to make them work out what ever it is and lock them in a small room together. The room ends up being too small for the reader and she falls to the floor hyperventilating and Bucky tries to snap her out of it while cussing out stark cause he knows they’re on speaker.

Inspiration (Bucky Barnes X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Mention of past serious accident Request: … Bucky Barnes x reader where she was recently recruited after him and she has a similar prosthetic leg or something (you pick) and they bond over their prosthetics? Thank you so much!! 💕

You Should Know (Bucky X Male!Reader) Warnings: Bucky’s past Request: Hey! Could you please write a Bucky x male reader one shot where they’ve been dating for a while but the reader doesn’t know that he’s dating the Winter Soldier so Bucky tells him? Maybe some angst and fluff?

Bad Day (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: minor swearing once Request: … reader has had a really rough day at work and is really frustrated and when she comes home Bucky accidentally makes a joke that just sets her off? Can it please be really fluffy at the end? Thanks in advance!

Sisterly Assistance (Bucky X Male!Reader) Request: Can I request a Bucky x T’Chala’s!Brother!Reader where Reader is older than Shuri but younger than T’Chala… He was taking care of Bucky with Shuri, and developed a crush on the White Wolf… He decides to tell Shuri about it and she plays match maker with them, because she knows that Bucky likes her brother, too…

Good Enough (Bucky Barnes X Asexual!Reader) Warnings: Self-consious reader Request: An asexual gender neutral reader x bucky where the reader breaks down bc they think they arent enough for bucky? Xx

Movies (Steve X Fem!Reader X Bucky) Request: … Just where they’re all just snuggling together with the reader between the both of anthem because she’s the smallest + they’re talking about stuff thats been going on with the avengers; theyre all just really comfortable with each other + care about each other a lot. …

I Still Love You (Bucky Barnes X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Spoilers of Civil War Request: With the stark reader and Bucky one, can you do where he blames himself for the death of readers and Tony’s parents, but she still loves him, even though Tony doesn’t allow it. Eventually Tony and reader have a heart to heart and gives her his blessing. Bucky puts aside his guilt?

Learning To Love (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Request: … Bucky and the reader are in love but he avoid her because he hasnt remember how to be with a girl. So the reader confronts him and he tolds her that he is affraid of hurting her and fluff (love your fic, your amazing) <3

Part Of The Family. (Bucky X Tomboy!Reader X Reader)     |     Part 2 Request: Could you write something where Steve and Bucky live in a house and they have a spare room and put an ad out for a roommate? Reader is a college student with a crude sense of humor and she takes the room. She thinks farting and burping are hilarious and on weekends the 3 of them get together with lots of beer and sports on the tv. Because she’s one of the guys they say she’s the best roommate to ever have.

Pretty Woman (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Mention of cat-calling Request: … Bucky x reader by the song “Oh Pretty Woman"by Roy Orbison?

Late Night Truth or Dare (Bucky X Reader) Warnings: Alcohol and drinking Request: … the avengers with reader play to thruth or dare (they had been drinking so its more funny) and they said funny things until they ask bucky and he confess he is in love with the reader, and all ask them to kiss? …

I Can’t Leave You Here. (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Drug mentions, prostitution mentions Request: ... Bucky is dating a ‘normal’ girl but she’s never taken him to her place cause she’s embarrassed that she’s very low income? One day he follows her home and realizes how bad off she really is so he asks her to move in with him at the tower?

I Can’t (Steve X Fem!Reader X Bucky) Request: … ‘Having a secret crush on both Steve and Bucky’ would include and I was wondering if you could do an imagine based on that with fluff and angst maybe where they try to make her choose and she gets upset and doesn’t choose so she ends up with either neither of them or both of them. Thanks in advance.

Starbucks (Bucky X Male!Reader) Request: … reader is a barista at Starbucks. When the reader is on his lunch break, he’s meets Bucky for the first time after offering him a seat at his table (because all the tables were full). They hit it off really well and become good friends. Later on, Reader notices that Bucky starts coming to have coffee whenever reader is on break so they can hang out.

Memories In A Nightmare (Bucky X Male!Reader) Warnings: Nightmares, harm to character. Request: ... reader who has pretty galaxy/space powers calming down his boyfriend bucky? Extra fluffy! Maybe in his mindwahsed state bucky hurts the reader but reader judt loves bucky and is like no this isnt u!

A little Persuasion (Bucky X Reader) Warnings: Angry/ upset Bucky, flirting, jealousy. Request:  ... Bucky is in love with the reader but wont confess, so Pietro flirts with the reader trying to make Bucky jealous and it works out, and Bucky confronts Pietro in front o the reader and lot of fluff?

Surprise! (Avengers X Reader) Warnings: Sad emotions Request: … reader thinks everyone forgot their birthday but they were just planning a surprise party for them? …

Finally Complete (Bucky X Wife!Reader) Warnings: Infertility Request: ... They’re married and she finds out she can’t have a baby. So him and tony (her big brother) go adopt a little girl to surprise her. She gets in from work to see her super soldier snuggled up to a 4 yr old girl. She jumps up extremely excited and asks if your her new mommy. Reader is so happy she’s in tears.

Liebling (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Request: ... the Avengers make fun of the reader because she’s german and one day she pretends to insults them in german but actually she gives them cute nicknames? Maybe some Bucky x reader because he knows he’s got a special nickname? ...

I Brought Flowers (Bucky X Reader) Warnings: Mentions of PTSD and illness Request: Bucky X Reader

I’ll Kill Him (Avengers X Fem!Reader)    |     Part 2 Warnings: Mentions of Domestic abuse. Request: Reader is the Avenger’s assistant and like a little sister to them, and one day she doesn’t come into work and Bucky goes to her house to make sure she’s OK and finds out she’s in an abusive relationship and helps her.

Sleep (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Warnings: Mention of violence and fighting Request: ... reader kinda acts like a cat and is constantly tired, no matter how much sleep she gets! ... the reader have aerokinesis ...

Unfortunate Reunion (Bucky Barnes X Reader) Warnings: Spoilers of CW, Black Panther, swearing and death of character Request: Bucky angst here, maybe a break up? Or a reunion years later after a break up? Maybe reader death? Thanks!

New Member (Bucky X Fem!Reader) Request: ... Bucky x mutant reader? Maybe she has fire powers? She’s very shy when she first goes to compound too ...

[malexfan10]

Malex thoughts

I was watching some old episodes of Dawson's Creek and it made me want to get some thoughts out. I watched a lot of TV shows growing up. For me, the couples I liked were either ones I casually rooted for or on the rare occasion, a couple took me by such surprise that I became extremely emotionally invested. Malex is the latter.

I've been a fan of Captain Swan (OUAT), Stydia (Teen Wolf), Kurt & Blaine (Glee), Buffy & Angel and lots more. The rare pairings I've been completely lost on, I can name on one hand. Pacey & Joey (my first OTP), Chandler & Monica and Malex. I'd say Destiel on Supernatural too but with them, everything is subtext. I don't think the writers will have the guts to go there, not even with the show ending.

With PJ, I love how they started as antagonists, became really great friends, and then fell in love. For me, PJ vs DJ was incomparable. DJ brought out the worst in each other (my opinion) while PJ showed each other what love was supposed to be. The only thing I hated about DC was the constant back & forth between the two pairings. It lasted until the final moment when you realized PJ was endgame (one of my fears for Malex). I hated that but I was a kid so it didn't bother me as much as it would now.

I loved Chandler & Monica because they started out as friends who fell in love, got married and had all the moments in between before adopting a set of twins. I loved their story because it showed their entire journey. True, the show was a comedy but their story didn't end in season 5 when they started dating. Their story just began.

It's hard understanding writers who feel that only the journey matters. Of course it does. The journey is important. It's what makes you root for a couple but the destination and what happens after is important too. It makes you continue rooting for them, seeing all that angst and pain amounting to something substantial in the end.

So as much as I loved PJ, the fact that they kept us guessing until the last 5 minutes before we realized who she chose was too much. The long, drawn out, multi-season, will they/won't they storytelling style is one I'll never be a fan of.

Which leads me to Malex.

They were two broken boys, both brought up under horrible circumstances, who found the missing piece of themselves in each other. When Alex gave Michael a warm and safe place to stay, it was probably the first act of true kindness Michael had ever experienced and it was made by a boy whose pain and suffering mirrored his own. How incredibly heartbreaking but beautiful is that? That initial bond, that "cosmic" connection stood the test of time. Separated for 10 years and it felt like no time had passed at all.

That first moment in the pilot episode outside his Airstream, you could feel the tension. I remember reading interpretations of that scene. People thought Malex were cold and angry with one another "probably over a girl". Are you kidding me? That tension could only be romantic. But that first kiss at the reunion was when I hopped on the Malex Forever train. One stop only. Endgame.

They set them up so amazingly in the first three episodes. The angst was there but you could also feel the deep love between them. They weren't shown as two guys who had a fling back in high school and then crossed paths again 10 years later, said what the hell and hooked up again. No, they were shown as soulmates. Their level of connection even scared and confused them but they both knew it existed. Their love was pure and true and rare.

With all their history and with so many odds already stacked against them, the writers deciding to throw in a triangle just because they could and doing it in such a rushed and messy way really made me scratch my head.

Carina said she loved the triangle on DC. I honestly think she was the only one. That show was incredibly divided, DJ vs PJ. But as much as I hated the constant back and forth, I'll give the DC writers some credit. Joey's feelings for both were fully touched on. I saw her romantic feelings for Pacey more profound and her feelings for Dawson as true friendship (just my opinion), but both sides were shown in depth.

The problem with Roswell? Where did those feelings come from between M&M? They shared a moment when Maria cried and I took that as the start of a wonderful friendship. I was obviously wrong. They hooked up in the desert. OK I hated it but they were two single people and Maria didn't know about Alex so I accepted. All of a sudden, the feelings were real and Maria was conflicted because of how strong her feelings were. Michael chose to be with Maria because he needed something fresh and new and according to the wonderful Vlamis, someone he also had strong feelings for (still hate that last interview LOL).

I understand where Michael was coming from a little better, as much as I hate it and hate how he went about it by leaving Alex just waiting. He'd been through so much trauma and Max and Isobel kept telling him to stop looking to the past (which, really Max? If someone told you that about Liz, would you listen?? But he died so he gets a pass). But as far as Maria's feelings are concerned, I feel like I missed something.

Between episodes 9 and 10, did the M&M feelings bloom overnight from flirty banter to crush to "OMG this is love"? Was their moment in the desert that mind-blowing that the weirdness of episode 11 happened? I don't get it.

The one thing going against M&M is that Malex is overwhelmingly loved and has been embraced by fans and critics alike.

One critic said it best when they reviewed the finale (Vulture).

"I was intrigued by the possibility of Michael/Maria at first, but the love triangle has been so rushed — with so little time spent on Maria’s developing feelings for Michael — that it’s ended up just making her look terrible. We know from Maria’s conversation with Liz that she hasn’t even spoken to Alex about the situation because she feels too guilty, and so having her accept Michael with open arms is such an odd note. Sure, she doesn’t know Alex is waiting for Michael right at the same moment, but she does know that he’s been in love with Michael for a decade."

And therein lies the problem. A lifelong friendship ruined over a guy (unless Carina makes Alex give his blessing next season which would really make me scream) to push forward a pairing that had little development and makes Maria look bad. One side of the triangle is Michael's soulmate and the other side is the friend with sudden feelings. Not the best character development which is sad because we know how awesome Maria can be and as mad as I am with her, her character that I enjoyed until episode 10 and the actress deserve better. But instead of being original, the writers chose the path always taken. They chose to use her as the odd end of a triangle where, unless they want everyone to hate the show, she will likely be the one forced out so Malex can eventually reunite and for what? Drama?

Season 1 started out really strong and it still had a lot of strong moments in the latter episodes (end scene of episode 9 between Malex, Liz & Jenna being kickass in episode 11, all of episode 12 - my fave of the season, Kyle's confrontation with Jesse etc).

But honestly, I feel like the inclusion of this triangle (amongst other reveals like Noah as the 4th alien) somewhat brought the story down. The writing for M&M felt OOC and was messily done.

Only in recent years have LGBT pairings started becoming more mainstream, given better development and importance in the overall story. With Malex, they have the potential of making Michael and Alex one of the greatest love stories on TV. As much as I love the show, I'm not saying Roswell is on the same level as Breaking Bad or The Sopranos etc. But from all the pairings on the show, Malex is the most profound and has the potential to go down as one of the best on TV. To overcome everything they've been through and still choose each other and their love would be the ultimate happy ending because unlike most male/female pairings that go through mostly regular angst, being two males in a small town, Malex have a whole other level of obstacles to face. That doesn't even include their personal history, the fact that Michael is an alien or that Alex's father is the cause of so much pain between them. Or the fact that Alex is a disabled war veteran. I mean, there is so much amazing points to their story. They are the OTP of OTPs.

But so far, it feels like the triangle is the only major roadblock the writers want to concentrate on and that's the biggest mistake of all.

Season 2 hasn't aired yet. We don't know how little (🤞) or how long (😢) M&M will last. We'll just have to wait and see how it goes and hope that Twitter Carina is not the same as Season 2 showrunner Carina.

But for me, Malex will always be each other's endgame. That's what I saw in the first 3 episodes. That's what I saw in the flashbacks. That's what I saw in Caulfield. Try and convince me differently, show. You'll fail.

❤

[rosalind-of-arden]

Sword and Pen Spoilers: Gleeful Squealing Edition

There is a lot to scream about in this book, so I am breaking it down by category. This is the post of happy things. Spoilers beyond the link: beware!

So, first and foremost, the scene in which Khalila becomes archivist is worth the cost of the book all on its own. It is in Wolfe POV, which automatically makes everything better as far as I am concerned. It includes the new Curia trying to give Wolfe the job first, to his great irritation. These are the same people who did nothing when he was taken to Rome and his work was erased, and he’s fully aware that part of the reason they’re in favor of him getting the job is that he’s not likely to survive long with the Library under attack. And he gets to call them on that shit. And when they insist? He fucking accepts, then turns around and announces his immediate retirement, nominating Khalila to take his place. “If you want to fight an old man who wants to drag the Great Library into the past, appoint a young woman who looks to the future.” Loads of affirmation for Khalila follows. And then we get to see her step into the role brilliantly. “That was not the voice of his student. It was the voice of his queen.”

Speaking of Khalila awesomeness, we also get some truly excellent Khalila/Dario moments. There is a very sweet bit of hurt/comfort after Dario returns from his spy mission, including cuddles, affirmation of feelings, and further marriage planning. And then, later, after Khalila becomes Archivist, we have Dario getting all overprotective, Khalila shutting that the fuck down, and the two of them negotiating how their public and private roles can interact. And then Dario gets to be a big damn hero.

Also a big damn hero? Thomas. Accomplishments include putting a giant fucking Ray of Apollo on the Lighthouse, raising a giant automaton Poseidon to defend the harbor, getting that second dragon up and running, getting past the tests in the Tomb of Heron to retrieve technology and an antidote that saves Jess, and convincing Khalila to open a printing division in the Library, complete with new Curia position. I am particularly happy that the last ones are peaceful, showing that he’ll be able to transition away from building weapons as things settle down.

But our first big promotion goes to Santi, who is appointed as Lord Commander of the High Garda, which surprises absolutely none of us, I’m sure. And he is awesome at it. He runs both a successful military defense campaign and a few covert operations. In connection with one of those covert operations, there is a bit of Santi-Dario interaction that I suspect Maz will mine for Santi/Dario potential, and that is going to be lovely. There is a Santi in case of death letter in this book, with the expected amount of Wolfe/Santi sweetness. Even more squeal-worthy, though, is his adoptive dad moment with Jess. Santi hugs Jess, calls him his son, and says he loves him, and I am never going to be over it.

Again, Santi fucking hugs Jess and calls him his son, people. Jess is very officially adopted by the dads. AND he gets a reconciliation with his mother, so lots of family for Jess now.

Wolfe gets good dad moments as well. From comforting Jess in the beginning, to protecting him while he’s sick, to handing Callum Brightwell his ass in the end, we see Wolfe fully embracing his dad role. He gets nice dad moments with the others as well: promoting Khalila, telling Glain how valuable she is, worrying about Thomas, mourning Morgan. That final confrontation with Callum is just amazing. Callum starts his abusive dad shit and first Jess, then Jess’s mother, then Wolfe all tell Callum to go fuck himself. And Wolfe then acknowledges how much it had to take for Celia to finally stand up to Callum.

On a much smaller scale, it is officially canon that Wolfe and Santi play chess on a regular basis. It’s mentioned immediately after sex and reading together in bed when Wolfe is thinking of things he misses doing with Santi in more peaceful times. I think you all know why I’m happy about that.

Also: Santi has gotten his protectiveness of Wolfe under control. At one point, he thinks of sending Wolfe a worried message and decides against it, knowing Wolfe won’t like it. At another point, Wolfe responds to Jess’s worry that Santi will be mad about him running off into danger by saying “he’s quite used to me doing as I please, thank you.” I get the feeling there has been an off-page conversation on this topic.

We also get confirmation that Wolfe has limited Obscurist-sense. He can tell when Morgan is trying to draw on his power. He can tell when Morgan is killing herself by overusing her power. And, in the end, Ascended Morgan informs him that he has a lot of power, but cannot use it because “something went slightly wrong in your body, but only just slightly.” She offers to fix this and give him access to his power. He doesn’t want that much more than he wants to be Archivist. Wolfe, in this book, has accepted himself as he is and not what he might have wanted to be in the past.

And then there is Dario. We get Dario POV, and that alone is amazing. Another chapter well worth the cost of the book all on its own. It is a glorious chapter of Dario showing that he really can be a successful schemer, and also a bucket of Dario angst. We get so many delicious little Dario details. He has excellent handwriting and knows a very obscure code. He likes his room in the Lighthouse. He has a spare Codex purchased just for sneaky-sneaky purposes. He somehow managed to read Wolfe and Santi’s journals during Ink and Bone, and found out interesting but unspecified things in the process. I really, really want to see that last point explored in fic.

Anyone who likes Jess whump will be pleased to learn that this is the big book of Jess whump. On top of the grief over Brendan, he spends most of the book poisoned and trying unsuccessfully to push through it. This gives us some very sweet moments of others taking care of him, especially Thomas, Anit, Wolfe, and Glain. Yes, that’s right, we get some excellent Jess-Glain bonding. And Jess and Anit declaring themselves siblings.

There is, in fact, just so much friendship and found family in this book. Everyone moved past the awkward “I don’t really like you” stage, and we see them all openly admitting to caring about each other. There are declarations of brotherhood/sisterhood/parenthood/friendship all over the place. There are hugs. There are non-romantic kisses. Glain is involved in both, and does not respond violently.

Speaking of Glain, guess who else gets a promotion? She’s up to lieutenant now, and as Wolfe points out to Jess, she’s on track to rise even higher. Her chapter this time is longer than last time, and showcases both her leadership and her combat skill. I am still squealing about how affectionate she and Jess are with each other, though. And it is in no way treated as a potential ship. It’s pure adopted sibling love.

And then there’s Morgan. This is not the post for crying over her death. This is the post for squealing over how fucking awesome she is before it. She develops her power to even greater heights. Eskander is trying to prepare her for the Obscurist Magnus job, and when he’s injured, she basically steps in to fill it, just without an official promotion. Even her death, sad as it is, is totally badass. She single-handedly prevents the Archives from burning. And she ascends to become something like a guardian spirit of the Library. After her death, she still looks out for the others. We see her communicate with Wolfe and offer to give him his Obscurist power, though he refuses.

This book also handles Jess’s grief very well. He is devastated by losing Brendan, and we see constant evidence of how it impacts him. There’s a lot going on, but he can’t forget his brother. It even leads to him breaking up with Morgan. He’s just not capable of managing feelings for her along with grief, and precious child that he is, he interprets this emotional confusion as evidence that they don’t really love each other and would never be able to work as a couple. That breakup hurts, but it fits where his character is at that moment, and because of her death, he never gets the chance to reconsider. And he grieves that loss as well.

That’s all I can think of for the moment. I’m sure there is more I will remember as I reread.

[darkzorua100]

When it comes to the majority of the anime I watch, I don’t believe in the concept of death. Unless I see a body, I don’t believe a character has actually died. When it comes to anime like Yu-Gi-Oh, even if we see them die on screen, unless it is some kind of Bruno case (which is extremely rare), they always find a way to revive the dead characters in the end. It is why I don’t believe Windy’s kid and Earth are dead dead. I’ve been so conditioned to believe that the character is still alive or will be bought back in some BS way because it always happens. The Boy Who Cried Wolf scenario.

That’s the best way I can describe the end of the Ghost Girl vs Blood Shepherd duel. 

Now the duel itself was amazing. We got to see both sides Synchro Summon and the plays that Ghost Girl made were just awesome and to me felt like something you would actually see in the real life card game from a Altergeist player. Sadly though, BS still ended up pulling out the win and at this point, after what just happened, I can’t take him serious anymore when it comes to Emma. What happens is what we basically are never going to see after the BS vs Soulburner duel which is that Blood Shepherd doesn’t shoot Ghost Girl. He lets her keep her account, making the whole duel completely pointless since he doesn’t even get Aqua afterwards for winning. Are you kidding me right now? This is actually stupid. Playmaker vs Bohman round 3 and Soulburner vs BS results left a bad taste in my mouth since they both felt like cop-outs (so Playmaker and Soulburner wouldn’t actually lose) but this is actually a cop-out. People have pointed out that Emma would have been just fine if she lost her account. She could have took the Kusanagi route for Aoi. That would have been perfectly fine! No instead the writers chickened out at the last second and boom, Ghost Girl is still alive out of basically pity from her older brother all because she had to get the final words in of “oh just to let you know, our dad died. Hope that doesn’t change your thoughts about deleting my account!”. I hate the Aoi/Miyu/Aqua story because it feels so cheated in but this...this is just the writers not holding up their end of the bargain and now I can’t trust them to not do this again when it comes to Emma and Kengo. I just hate when people set a set of rules for their universe in fiction and just don’t follow through with them. Why should we be worried about these characters then if nothing bad is actually going to happen to them? Playmaker and Soulburner never losing because they have a Ignis. Blue Maiden is probably never going to lose now because she has a Ignis. I don’t see what I should care or worry about them and that makes me so mad but mostly sad. 

So we get somewhat of a backstory for Emma and Kengo. They are actually half-siblings with them sharing a father who left Kengo’s mother for reasons and years later met Emma’s mother and they got busy, resulting in Emma’s birth. Seems to me that Kengo has always had a bit of a resentful side to him because of this and his car accident simply brought him to his breaking point or simply just gave him an excuse to unleash all of his anger out onto the world. Now I’m honestly not trying to find reasons to hate on the show as of late, since that seems to be a common factor now, but I don’t like how Emma found this out. Her doing some digging into Blood Shepherd’s past I can see, since this is Emma, but I don’t understand why they didn’t show us the ending to their confrontation in 63, 14 episodes ago all the way back in the beginning of August mind you, if they weren’t going to go back to that scene as the reveal. If they just showed us the end to that confrontation for the beginning of the episode as the recap and added onto it, with Blood Shepherd letting it slip that they were siblings and Ghost Girl being shocked about it, it could have lead Emma into doing all that digging to find out that hey, they actually are siblings. If we are to believe that she knew about this since the beginning of season 2, since the flashback showed her in her old Ghost Girl avatar, that just doesn’t make sense since Emma was clearly still wondering what the actual hell was going on, retconing the whole thing. 

The duel was awesome. It was just the beginning and the end parts to it that were just done so badly -_- 

Now onto the thing the everyone is going crazy about: Blue Maiden. Again, I’m not trying to hate, if you love the new design that’s great! More power to you for getting a design that screams character growth. I just...don’t. And I honestly don’t know why. The outfit is fine, I think it is just the hair that makes me dislike it so much. I was honestly expecting to to be long, since her Blue Angel form had her hair in ponytails and Blue Girl was short (which btw I’m going to miss that hairstyle since it was amazing) but the color pallet just looks wrong. It is a different shade of blue from what Aoi’s other forms had, actually the color pallets were flipped, so maybe that’s what bugs me. Also, the fact that she does look so grown up just looks...wrong? Is that the word to use? She is supposed to be sixteen and looks like she should be Emma’s age or something. It just doesn’t feel right. I know I’m going to get used to after a while but for now...I just don’t know. 

So we get a little bit more about Miyu, who actually did change her hairstyle during the Hanoi Project to reflect Aoi, and yeah Aoi is her Ryoken. Simple as that. Still don’t like this development but I’m starting to sound like a broken record as this point so moving on. Aqua and Blue Maiden team up, as to be expected, and them and the boys fly off into the sunset (well not really but you get the idea) as the new trio (because Go decided that frame was more important) which honestly doesn’t feel earned (since the boys still hasn’t told Aoi their identities yet or just the fact that they are going along with the fact that Aoi has an Ignis after the fact that she tried to steal theirs for SOL) but I’m just complaining at this point for no god damn reason.

So yeah, if it wasn’t obvious, besides the duel, I really didn’t like this episode. Honestly I do like how they are trying to get the girls involved in the story, which is saying something since in the previous series they would have been written out completely at this point, let alone have such a big role in the story that Aoi has now, but I just don’t like how it was structured to get us to this point. Aoi/Miyu/Aqua came out of nowhere and the Emma/Kengo storyline, while it had so much build up to it, just didn’t have the payoff that it deserved but that might just be me. I never expect any of my opinions to be popular and I’m fine with that. Once again, if you love everything that has been happening so far for the females, that’s amazing! I’m glad for you! Truly I am! I just wished I could say the same. 

The preview though. Wow Blood Shepherd is getting screen time in the form of duels. We knew about Ghost Girl and Lightning but not Revolver. Omg yes! We are actually getting the Wild West shoot out! They are actually going to duel in a wasteland! I wasn’t expecting this. I just thought 78 was going to be a plot episode. I’m not complaining this time but you all know I’m a Ryoken/Revolver fangirl so there might be some biased there. I have no shame to admit that. So who do I think is winning this? Pfff not even a question, Revolver is so going to kick his ass. He’s going to Mirror Force him just like he did to his younger sister and when he does I’m going to laugh so hard at the irony. Oh it truly is a wonderful thing to have our meme lord back.

[seriouslyhooked]

Lost Souls and Reveries (Part 5)

18 part AU written for @cssns​. Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4. Story available on AO3 Here and FF Here. Banner created by the amazingly talented @shipsxahoy​!!

Killian Jones is a wolf shifter without roots, without plans, and without a pack. He’s a rogue, someone humans should avoid and shifters should be wary of given his lineage. But one night years back set him on a path he didn’t realize he was taking, a path leading to a future he is destined for. That future is tied up in one woman – a human named Emma Nolan. Together Emma and Killian will find not only answers, but a love that’s truly fated. But will love be enough to set them free, or will past demons win out in the end? (Answer: love always wins – I am writing this so despite some tiny pockets of angst it’s basically a fluff-filled insta-love fest). Rated M.

A/N: Hey everybody! Hope this update finds you doing well, and that you’re ready for another installment of ‘Lost Souls and Reveries.” This chapter was very fun to write because there’s a bit of intrigue, some new developments in our shifter universe, and of course, more CS cuteness. I can’t wait to hear what you all think and I’m so looking forward to your thoughts on this. Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoy!

“A real man lives up to his word, even when it damn near kills him.”

Killian had heard those words more times than he could count from his elder brother over the course of his life, so much so that he could practically hear them aloud as he headed for the sheriff’s station.

The confrontation to come was something that Killian wanted no part of. It was bound to be unpleasant, but nevertheless it had to be done. This morning he promised Emma that he would try to smooth things over with Graham, and he would never break a promise to his mate. Even if he hated the idea of making peace with someone who had challenged his claim to her, Killian would try for Emma’s sake. Besides, the show down in the diner had proven to both him and Graham who the stronger shifter was.

Hours later it still amazed Killian that Graham was a shifter at all. There was no way to deny it when seeing him in person, but Killian had picked up no trace of another of his kind in the days since he’d arrived. It worried Killian that he could miss what should have been so obvious, and at first he wondered if his senses had taken some kind of hit. Perhaps the distraction of finding his perfect match had desensitized him to what should be undeniable signs. But he concluded, with the benefit of a few hours spent canvassing Storybrooke, that this was not the case. There was still virtually no scent that would hint at Graham’s existence, and Killian couldn’t comprehend how that was possible. By the time he arrived at the station, Killian was no closer to an answer, but as he walked through the front door his determination to get to the bottom of this had further solidified.

“Good morning,” a petite woman greeted from what appeared to be a deputy’s desk. “You must be Killian Jones.”

The acknowledgment of who he was surprised Killian until he remembered how small towns like Storybrooke operated. Still, this didn’t seem like a deputy greeting the town’s newest arrival. It was almost like this tiny woman had known that he would be here today, but that was crazy. He had made no appointment, and after the incident in the diner he was likely unwelcome and unwanted here, but this woman stood staring impassively at him as if his presence was just another item checked off of a very long list.

“I am, yes.”

“You’re early,” She said, motioning towards the clock on the wall. “He didn’t think you’d be here so soon.”

Killian wanted to ask how Graham could know he would come at all, but at that moment the man himself appeared.

“I think I’ve got it from here, Tink,” Graham said, embodying a much more laid back attitude than he had before. “It probably wouldn’t be a bad time to make the lunch run. We’ve likely outwaited the rush by this point, right?”

“You’ve got it boss,” she said dutifully before offering Killian a polite goodbye and heading out, leaving Killian and Graham alone.

“So… you made good time,” Graham said, pulling Killian’s attention back again. With the departure of the human buffer, Killian expected animosity to surface, but Graham remained as calm as he was before. “I’m assuming you surveyed the whole town. Find anything?”

“Nothing,” Killian said, perplexed by the newfound easiness in the sheriff’s demeanor as they walked back through the precinct and to Graham’s office. “How did you manage that?”

“Let’s just say you’re not the only one who doesn’t want to be found.”

The hair on the back of Killian’s neck stood up at the mention of his past though he did his best to appear unaffected. It was too much to hope that Graham wouldn’t go looking, but where there would be very little to say about him as far as the human government was concerned, Killian undoubtedly had a reputation amongst the packs. All it would take was one call and Graham would get some iteration of his story, if he hadn’t heard it already.

“Appears you have me at a disadvantage. You seem to know more about me than I do about you. Hardly seems fair,” Killian mused.

“There’s not much to know,” Graham said as he motioned for Killian to take a seat before taking his own spot behind the desk. “I don’t exactly come with a pedigree like yours.”

“No, but you’ve inserted yourself into a human town and become the sheriff. You don’t think that’s an interesting choice?”

Killian purposefully infused in his tone how strange it was for a shifter to do something like that. It was one thing to go rogue and live among humans. But to enmesh oneself so deeply in their community and take on the role of protector? Well that was a bizarre choice indeed, one that clearly stemmed from a story worth hearing.

“I didn’t insert myself,” Graham said evenly. “I was raised nearby by humans so they’re what I’ve always known. I tried the whole ‘pack’ thing out for a while when I was younger, but it didn’t stick, so I came home.”

Killian marveled at how forthcoming Graham was being with this information, especially given how anomalous it was. Humans didn’t raise shifters – there were fail safes in place to make sure it didn’t happen. To keep the secret safe orphaned shifters stayed within the clans. They were adopted by a pack and not allowed to live with people who shouldn’t know the truth. Yet Graham spoke of his past like it was nothing, and maybe to him it was. For Killian though, the past was something he wanted to forget and fend off as best he could. It wasn’t something he shared lightly, but now that Graham was aware of who he was, his options were limited. Killian could either take the man out in the hopes of preserving his secret (which was frankly not an option), or he could try and make nice and hope he could eventually trust the man.

“Packs are overrated,” Killian responded.

“That they are,” Graham agreed with a low chuckle. “But it begs the question – why is a rogue wolf who’s forsaken the bonds of pack and family laying claim to a human? Just what are you doing with Emma Nolan?”

“She’s mine,” Killian growled out immediately and the ferocity of his response triggered a defensive stance from Graham for the first time since Killian arrived.

“No, she’s not.”

Killian could feel his wolf pushing to get out at the provocation. His animal wanted a fight. It wanted to rip apart any shifter who would doubt his claim to Emma or question his motives. If Killian let himself give into those baser instincts his wolf would win too. A physical fight would just prove what their showdown had this morning – Killian was stronger and more dominant than Graham was, plain and simple. But a brawl would also make a mess where Killian couldn’t afford to create one. He tried to breathe through his rage instead of caving to it, but it was bloody difficult to do so.

“Look man, you want to stay here, fine. You and I both know I can’t successfully fight you off,” Graham confessed bitterly. “But I’m not letting you come in here just to mess with her. Emma might just be a human but -,”

“She’s not ‘just’ anything. She’s my mate and she’s perfect.”

The look of shock on Graham’s face was unsurprising. He must be thinking the same things Killian considered when he first found Emma. How was it possible? She was a human and Killian was a shifter. True mates that crossed the species simply didn’t happen – but it had – and he had the proof both in his heart and on his person.

“You can’t know that,” Graham replied, convinced it had to be a lie.

“And yet I do.”

“You just got here. The full moon is still weeks away. You need it to -,”

“She marked me,” Killian said, proud of that fact even though he didn’t like that he had to share it with anyone. “My wolf knew from the moment I saw her, but it was confirmed when I got this.”

He pulled down the collar of the shirt to reveal part of the insignia Emma had left as a presence on his skin. Meanwhile Graham shook his head, clearly blown away at all of this. The sheriff hadn’t expected this twist, but Killian hoped that now that he knew the truth, Graham would stop trying to get Killian to leave her alone.

“Well shit… I guess she is yours.”

“As I said,” Killian responded with a huff before returning his shirt to normal.

“I would apologize, but I’m not really all that sorry,” Graham said with a shrug. “I was only trying to protect her.”

“Why?” Killian asked, before clarifying. “Why are you close to her? To her family?”

“Because of David,” Graham stated, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“Emma’s father?” Killian’s brow furrowed as he asked the question. What did Emma’s father have to do with this? He wracked his brain, thinking of the few tidbits he’d learned from Emma about the man, but all he recalled was that he was a vet like Emma.

“You don’t know,” Graham said, his eyes giving away that he himself had just made some kind of mental connection.

“Know what?”

“Why did you come here?” Graham asked, completely ignoring Killian’s question.

“Honestly? Because Emma asked me to.”

“Not the station. I mean Storybrooke. How did you end up here?” Killian didn’t follow Graham’s insistent tone.

“It was random. I just did.”

“Really?”  Graham asked, unconvinced. “You had no other reasons?”

Of course you did, the voice in Killian’s head which he knew to be his wolf said adamantly. She was here. You knew she was here. She was calling you to her. Calling you home.

“Well I didn’t come here on a whim,” Graham said, filling in the silence that his question had prompted. “I came to this town specifically out of all the ones around here because of Doc Nolan. Because he saves people, people like us.”

“He’s a healer?” Killian asked, now completely and utterly flummoxed. “But he’s…”

“Human, yeah.”

If he hadn’t already been sitting Killian would have needed to take a seat. This was so much to wrap his mind around. A human who knew about shifters? That was a threat, one that the council would have a lot to say about if they ever heard. It was part of the reason that Killian was nervous about his relationship with Emma. She was his mate, but there weren’t any laws in the shifter world that said how to handle that. It was a huge grey area, but her father knowing about shifters was cut and dry. He should not know, and if anyone found out that he did, he’d be handled somehow, likely in a way that would hurt Emma because it would take away her father forever.

“Why does he do it?”

“I’ve never asked him,” Graham replied with a shrug. “And I don’t know if he’d tell me if I did. That’s his business, not mine, but there are shifters all around this area who owe their lives to him knowing. David’s not a threat, even if he has to hide what he does for us.”

“And Emma, does she know?” Killian asked. Part of him hoped that she did. If that were the case then he wouldn’t have to worry about the reveal of his true nature. Maybe she’d be open to this. Maybe it wouldn’t freak her out to find out the man who wanted to spend his life with her forever was part wolf.

“No, she doesn’t. I don’t even know if David has told his wife,” Graham said honestly. “If Mary Margaret does know she’s never said anything to me, and that would be impressive, since she’s hardly known for her ability to keep a secret.”

The implications of all he had just learned weighed heavily on Killian. On the one hand, Emma’s father knew about his kind and he had decided to help them however he could. That was admirable, even if some might consider it reckless or crazy to open himself up to the risks associated with what he was doing. But on the other hand this was a secret, a secret about Emma’s family that he now knew and that Emma did not. Killian didn’t know if he could handle keeping something from Emma. Right now things between them were new and undefined, but he had every hope of moving things along with Emma and soon. In a perfect world they’d cement their bond as mates by the first full moon in a few weeks, Emma’s being human or not, but he couldn’t go into that with any kind of secret. What kind of foundation was that to build a life together?

“He has to tell her,” Killian said firmly. “If he doesn’t I will.”

“I figured you might say that,” Graham said with another smirk. “But that’s between you and him. Unless you want me outing you as a wolf to your future father in law.”

Killian grimaced at the thought, assuring Graham that he did not want that. He would figure this out. He just needed a bit of time to endear himself to Emma. Only with the benefit of more time together would Killian learn the best way to move forward, and until he knew how to handle this with the grace and tact it deserved, he’d keep this to himself. Graham agreed to respect that, and Killian decided that despite the fact that he had a dozen more questions, he would only ask one more. He wasn’t sure how much time they’d have before Graham’s deputy returned, and it wasn’t exactly a human-safe line of questioning.

“Why is there no trace of any shifters here?” Killian asked, genuinely curious. “You were right before. I tracked all over the town and there was no trace of anyone, including me. How is that possible?”

“That’s my job,” Tink said, spooking Killian since so few people had the ability to sneak up on him. She tossed a bag from the diner over to Graham, apparently back from her lunch run.

“Tell me you’re a witch or something,” Killian pleaded, truly hoping she had some reason to know of their existence instead of being another human caught up in a dangerous situation.

“Tink is a Lynx shifter,” Graham explained, as if what he was saying wasn’t certifiably insane.

“That’s not possible. There are none left.”

“Ha! That’s what you think,” Tink quipped, her human looking eyes altering at her command to include a distinct shade of amber that Killian had never seen before. When she lifted this barrier Killian could finally scent her, and he was amazed. She was telling the truth. Would wonders ever cease? “Just because we don’t mark our territory constantly like wolves do, doesn’t mean we’re gone. Some of us like a little more discretion.”

“Lynxes can camouflage their scent naturally. Tink just broadens the scope – keeping Storybrooke and the trails coming in and out invisible to others.”

“Well that’s… brilliant,” Killian admitted. “Thanks for that.”

“You’re welcome,” Tink replied, clearly proud of herself. “But do me a favor and try to stop wandering, okay? You’ve had me working overtime with all the running and the pacing you’re doing. I know it’s over Emma but if you could just keep yourself in one area it would really help a lot.”

“Uh right,” Killian said, startled that she knew so much and a little sheepish at having been tracked this week. “I’ll keep that in mind. Any other shifters or surprises I should know about?”

“Nope. That about covers it,” Tink said with a smirk before she raised a brow at Graham and nodded towards the door.

“Well all right then,” Graham said, standing from his chair. “If there’s nothing else, I think Tink and I should eat this and go make our evening rounds. There’s a storm coming tonight. Want to beat the bad weather if we can.”

Killian took the hint, rising from his seat and saying goodbye to both of them before heading out of the station. He was still shocked by all that he’d learned in there, and his mind tried to make sense of the new discoveries he was faced with as he made his way home. But while he was walking, he came to understand exactly what Graham and Tink were on about before. The winds had shifted and the atmosphere had changed in the time since he’d gone to hash things out. A storm would come, probably not until later tonight, but instinct told Killian it would sweep in quickly and stay a long while. Summer storms were famous for that, and Killian couldn’t help but think of the worst summer storm he’d ever seen many years ago…

It was fitting that the world outside was still but charged. The air around them was hot and heavy, weighing on the forest in an almost impressive way, but it wouldn’t last. Miles off there was a feint sound of rumbling and the winds up high whistled a little more strongly through the trees. The normally brilliant summer twilight was dull and gray, and the white clouds above grew darker to the west as they headed this way. In another hour this relative state of natural peace would be long forgotten. The storm would be in full force, and that was when they would strike.

“It’s not too late you two,” Granny pleaded from the corner. “You don’t have to do this yet. There’s still time.”

“To what, run?” Killian asked, the words dripping venom as they spilled from his lips. “No we’re done running, and the only way this stops – the only way the world can be free of Brennan is if he’s dead.”

In every second that had passed since his mother was killed, Killian had harnessed just a little more pain and hurt and hate. It had been almost two years now since his mother had been killed, and the rage he felt towards his father flamed brighter than the sun at the peak of summer. The darkness inside of Killian had grown a little bit day by day, feeding him strength and stamina. This might be about justice, about righting a wrong that was too cruel to even contemplate, but Killian had not taken any kind of high roads to get here. He had channeled every ounce of his ability and feeling and natural alpha-genes and honed himself into a weapon. His body had shifted from boy into man through rigorous training and never letting up. He had managed to fully control his wolf, and learned to communicate with his animal side in a way that should have taken decades to perfect. But his only goal in achieving all of this was to rid this world of the monster that was his father.

“Ruby, dear, try to talk some sense into them,” Granny said, calling on Killian’s cousin who had been zoned out since Killian and Liam arrived here last night. But when Granny grabbed her hand, it seemed to pull Ruby back, and she looked at Killian with clear eyes as she made a surprising statement.

“I can’t. They need to do this. So many lives hang in the balance. Brennan is only getting worse, Granny, and soon it will be too late. The sickness is spreading.”

“Sickness?” Liam asked, and though Killian was interested as well, it wouldn’t matter what Ruby said. He was here to kill Brennan and that would not change.

“Alpha sickness. It’s rare, but sometimes when an alpha forsakes the good of the pack for the wants of his animal it happens. Your father has had it for years, but at some point there will be no human side left. Brennan will be a wolf – and a rabid one at that. When that happens…”

They all knew what would happen if his father reached peak strength and derangement. There were already no lines that Brennan wouldn’t cross, but at least the man had strategy. A wolf would be guided by instinct and instinct alone, and with a heart so black it no longer knew what goodness felt like, Brennan would be a force so dark it couldn’t be survived.

“So our window is closing,” Killian said, his muscles flexing in preparation for the fight ahead. He was ready for this, not caring that the chances of survival weren’t great. Honestly it didn’t matter to him. If he died then so be it. As long as he rid the world of Brennan once and for all, it would be worth it.

“Yes,” Ruby whispered, her sad and resigned look telling Killian she probably knew exactly how he felt. A part of him felt a pang of guilt for worrying her and Granny like this. But he couldn’t prioritize that over revenge. He just couldn’t.

“Any other things you’ve seen that could be helpful?” Liam asked, but Killian knew it was a losing battle. Gifted as Ruby might be, she was also cursed, at least that was what Killian’s mother used to say. Knowing the future was a burden that must largely be handled alone. It was the only way to keep things as they should be. Telling them too much could actually hurt the future, and Ruby knew that.

“Don’t let him bite you,” Ruby said firmly. “The sickness is contagious.”

“When did it start?” Liam asked, his curiosity and hope shining through in the question even though he tried to hide it. “The sickness. Was he bitten before we left?”

This was a moment of truth for Liam, even if it didn’t matter to Killian. There was no way that he could ever forgive his father. Whatever this alpha sickness was, whatever craziness Brennan had been infused with it didn’t matter. A real man would have fought it off, or would have taken care of the problem. No one could truly love his wife or his family and hurt them as Brennan had. There was no excuse – nothing that would make it right. So when Ruby gave the final blow, Killian didn’t feel any kind of pain.

“No. He wasn’t.”

Silence descended upon their cabin as the four of them soaked in that knowledge. It was the ugly truth, but in some ways Killian was glad for it. Now he had more to hold onto, more hatred to stow away, and he would need all of it to do this tonight. Absentmindedly his hand reached for the pendant around his neck, and he felt the cool, comforting metal he’d been wearing since they fled from England. The compass was his mother’s the only thing of hers Killian had kept after everything, and right now he needed it with him. Though she herself was peaceful and good, Killian knew his mother’s spirit would be with him tonight. He only hoped he could avenge her, and that maybe when it was all over he would be able to claw himself out of this darkness he’d created…

The ding of his phone that sounded when a message arrived sucked Killian from the depths of his memory. He was a little more used to the thing now, having given his number to Emma a few mornings ago, and he prayed that it was her reaching out. When he saw that it was he smiled, and when he read her message his smile bloomed into a full-blown grin.

E: Hope you’re brushing up on useless information for tonight. The Rabbit Hole is on the corner of Hickory and Main, FYI.

Killian couldn’t explain how he knew, but he was certain that this text wasn’t actually about telling him where the bar was. This town was so small; it would have been impossible for him to miss it after a week here. No, this was Emma reaching out and confirming that they’d see each other. It was a sign that she was missing him and wanting to be reunited, though probably not as much as him. He sent her back a message of his own, promising to do his best to bring her honor and to see her soon. Once his phone was put away he hurried up, walking as quickly as he could back home so he could get on with this evening at last.

Unfortunately, getting ready ended up being a little more complicated than he expected. It was easy getting home, of course. Killian would actually be surprised if any one could get lost in so small a town, shifter or not, but when he got down to readying himself to see Emma again, the challenge presented itself. Having very little experience in any kind of ‘trivia night’ Killian wasn’t exactly sure what one wore to such an evening. He assumed it was casual, right? They were going to a bar and playing a game, so that would stand to reason, but since he was getting to see Emma, Killian still had this urge to look his best. He wanted his mate to desire him, because he was desperate for more moments when her eyes grew darker and her scent shifted ever so slightly to one of want and need. More than that, Killian also wanted Emma to be proud of him. Despite his wish to be alone with her, the reality was tonight would be filled with other people too including her friends. It was imperative that he make a good impression, and there was only one chance to make a first.

In the end, after showering and trying to set himself to rights, Killian went with what he knew best. Dark colors had always suited him and he didn’t have anything else in his wardrobe to even consider. He tried to strike a balance between casual yet upstanding, and then he grabbed his leather jacket despite the heat and the impending rain for one reason, and one reason alone – because Emma liked it.

He had learned that particular fact early on, seeing the way she took him at their first few meetings, but yesterday as he was walking through town, hoping to run into Emma during her lunch break, he’d overheard some women in the town gossiping. At first he was angry that anyone would speak of Emma behind her back, but as he got closer to them (still standing far enough away that no human could have heard from such a distance) he noted that everything they said was complimentary. No one had a bad word to say about his mate; they simply commented on how taken she was both by Killian and by his choice in outerwear.

“I cornered her after their breakfast at the diner today, trying to figure out how far things have gone between them. You should have seen how flustered she got. She was blushing like crazy and mumbling. All I caught was blue eyes and black leather.”

Killian chuckled to himself during the brisk walk to the bar, not because he found Emma’s reaction to him funny, but because he knew it was unusual for Emma just as it was unusual for him. Never in his life had Killian succumbed to such feelings. He’d never been this distracted or in need of more time with anyone before. The only person he’d ever lay awake and dreamed of was her, but since coming here those dreams he once had had changed. Now, instead of innocently wondering where Emma was and wishing she were safe, his thoughts had progressed further. He still wanted her to be taken care of, but he now felt it was his duty to see her protected. He wanted to be close to her, yearned to touch her, to explore the sweet seductive pull between them, and so he spent the hours when they were apart imagining how it would be when they finally came together.

When he arrived at the Rabbit Hole, Killian was nowhere near under control. On the contrary, his constant thinking of Emma and waiting for the moment he’d get to see her again had him feeling frayed and unmoored. He lacked direction. He didn’t know how tonight would be or how he should be as a result. Would Emma want him to be friendly, or would she welcome more from him? He hoped that he could show her his intentions, but he didn’t know how, and as he stepped inside the well-used town tavern he debated the merits of a number of different options.

Yet at the moment that Killian found Emma under the lights at the bar, he stopped dead in his tracks. Instantly all debate flew from his mind, and it was replaced by admiration and enthrallment all centered on one Emma Nolan. He was rooted to his spot, looking at her and taking her all in, and what he saw was nothing short of a miracle.

It defied reason how any one person could be so beautiful, but here she was, a marvel and a treasure that a man could look the world over and never see again. Killian’s eyes moved down from her beautiful face along the curves of her body, finding her outfit of choice for this evening even more transfixing than her usual fare. Jean shorts and a short top that didn’t quite cover all the way down shouldn’t look this good, but on Emma it was sublime. She looked young and carefree, laughing at something one of her friends said beside her at the table, but he could feel the charge around her. Her anticipation hung thick in the air, but there were other scents too, scents he did not like at all.

Killian tore his eyes from Emma and looked around for the encroachers. There were other men here, men who were far from Emma but who watched her and her friends with interest. It stoked the protectiveness in Killian and an instant feeling of aggravation. He did not appreciate others looking at his Emma, no matter how impossible it was to ignore her. But those primal thoughts couldn’t overcome him. At some level Killian knew that Emma was her own keeper and guardian. She could handle herself – she’d been doing it for years – but he wished that he could fill that role for her. He wanted the world to know that the two of them were tied together, and as if she could feel his presence from the intensity of his yearning from her, she turned at that moment and found him in the crown.

When she spotted him her reaction was immediate and overwhelming. The wave of her happiness that she emitted hit him right in the chest, and Killian could do nothing to resist her. He made his way through the place, ignoring every other person until he was at her side, where he felt he most belonged. They were close, only a matter of inches apart, but he had to touch her, even if he couldn’t great her exactly as he might want. His hand came to hold hers lightly, his thumb tracing a soft trail over her hand as he grounded himself in the fact that they were here together.

“You made it,” Emma murmured, her voice silky and smooth and utterly irresistible.

“Trust me, love, nothing could have kept me away.” His eyes traced the flush that came to her cheeks at his words, and only when a throat cleared from beside Emma did he regain himself. He looked away from Emma, seeing her two friends, Anna and Elsa, in the booth and he offered them a smile. “I hope you don’t mind me crashing your game tonight.”

“Mind?” Anna asked incredulously. “Honey we are thrilled. We have all sorts of questions about -,” 

Anna let out a yelp mid statement and jumped slightly, and Killian knew that under the table one of them had swatted or kicked her to keep her quiet. He couldn’t tell based on faces if it were Emma or Elsa, for Emma looked mortified but Elsa looked irritated, like a mother who’s child had gotten somewhat out of line. 

“Uh, you know trivia questions. Not like digging into your background interrogation questions.”

Anna’s attempted cover prompted a groan to come from her sister and Emma ducked her head down for a moment, her hand coming over her eyes as she shook her head. Meanwhile Killian had to laugh at this and try to alleviate the tension.

“Well whatever questions pop up, I’ll do my best to answer them.”

This seemed to appease all parties, and just as he took his seat the festivities began. It became apparent rather quickly that this was a town-wide enjoyment and a usual occurrence for many in attendance, including Emma and her friends. There was a lingo here and inside jokes that Killian was not versed in whatsoever, but he found his ignorance only added to his overall experience. As the night progressed Emma made sure at every turn to keep him in the loop and include him, and soon enough he found he wasn’t just enjoying her company, but that of everyone else as well.

“I think you might actually be the perfect addition to our team,” Anna said after Killian had correctly guessed an answer for a question about this year’s World Cup. “I know pop culture, Elsa knows all things history, and Emma’s our science and animal guru, and you can handle the guy stuff.”

“Anna, girls can like soccer too,” Elsa reminded her. “But real talk, how much do you know about the history of alcohol? Leroy always asks a question about it without fail and -,”

“All right, all right quiet down. I can’t ask my questions if you’re all talking,” their host grumpily announced – lambasting their team as well as all the others who were chatting on their own. He was a small man, but Leroy certainly packed a lot of aggression into one small form. “In 1887 a bartender by the name of Jerry Thomas served the first martini ever. What city did the hotel he worked in reside in?”

Emma and her friend’s all looked to him expectantly and Killian was elated that he actually knew the answer. There was no real reason why he would, except for the fact that he’d actually spent time in the city a few years back.

“San Francisco.”

“You seem awfully confident about that answer,” Emma teased, and Killian didn’t miss the way her leg subtly grazed his under the table. It was a gentle touch, but it was enough to have his already present flame of wanting burn brighter.

“That’s because I am.”

“You’re bluffing,” Anna quipped, even as she wrote it down and covered the answer with her hand so none of the other parties (some of whom like to cheat a bit) would see.

“Am I?” Killian asked and it was Elsa who spoke up.

“Nope – he knows it. He won’t know the next three questions, though I think he’ll pull through for us in the last round.”

Killian looked to Emma for explanation as Leroy announced that he was in fact right and Emma explained about Elsa and her way of knowing things. It sounded to Killian like she might actually have some kind of gift, though he didn’t know the extent of her talents. Regardless he was soon distracted as the game continued on and his subtle flirtation with Emma unfurled as well. In the end Elsa was right. Killian did not know very many more answers, but the final question was one that stumped Emma and her friends, and he, blessedly knew what it was.

“The state bird of Virginia is a Cardinal.”

“Write it down, write it down,” Elsa urged Anna and a few minutes later, after they’d submitted their answer sheet for the final round, they found out he was right and that the four of them had won the game.

The women of his table immediately broke out into laughter and shows of excitement. Anna and Elsa were beside themselves, their game-long competitiveness paying off in spades, but it was Emma’s reaction that blew Killian away. Her excitement at having won was palpable, and Killian swore he’d never felt a similar high before. To see Emma happy was a remarkable gift and he felt the same sense of elation coursing in his own veins though the stakes were so small. This was one game of trivia, but Emma made it seem like the greatest accomplishment. She celebrated with her friends, and then, in a twist he never saw coming, she pulled him close for a kiss right there in front of everyone.

It was pure bliss when their lips came together, but where Killian desired the chance to pursue this further, Emma pulled away all too quickly. It was an instinctual reaction – just a sweet, short show of her affection, but when they came apart she only lingered in that happy thrill with him for a moment. When it dawned on her what she’d just done, the color drained from her face and her excitement immediately deflated, letting worry in in its stead.

“Oh um, I didn’t – well I mean I shouldn’t – I’ll be right back.”

Killian tried to reach for her and keep her close but Emma slipped away with a speed he didn’t see coming. One moment she was there with him and the next she’d gone running, leaving him not only desperate for more but also needing to make this better. He wasn’t sure what exactly was wrong, but he vowed to himself to fix it as he followed her. There were murmurs around them, no doubt discussing the scene that had just happened, but Killian tuned it all out, tracking Emma and finding her out back in small alley way. It struck him as significant that this was where his moment of truth with her would come, especially since they’d been in such a space before but under completely different circumstances.

“Emma, love, are you all right?” he asked, his eyes taking in her stance as his heart went out to her. Her position wasn’t defensive per se, it just looked like she was trying to hold herself together. There was anxiety in her brilliant green eyes, and he moved toward her slowly, not wanting to rush her, but also needing to ease that to the best of his ability.

“Yeah I just – I kind of lost my head in there. I didn’t plan that or anything. I’m so -,”

Oh no she didn’t. Emma thought that right now she was going to apologize to him for that kiss, but he wouldn’t allow it. Instead he closed the space between them, pulling her into his arms. He held her for a moment, taking in the heat that returned to her face and the slip of her mask. It revealed that she was just as desirous as he was, and when he knew that this was what she wanted he fused his lips with hers, tasting her again and letting himself have that more he’d craved when they were in the bar.

It took no time at all for Emma’s hesitations to fade, and Killian reveled in the way she arched into him and her hands clung to him. She met him beat for beat, her passion even more vibrant and amazing than he’d ever imagined. She was exquisite – a dream made flesh – and Killian was in awe of her. He would give anything in the world to take this further. The take these kisses even further. He let his hands roam her body, feeling her gentle curves and her smooth skin, but before he could get too carried away he retreated, breaking the kiss an waiting until Emma opened her eyes, blinking as her vision adjusted in the after math of such an embrace.

“I know you didn’t plan this, Emma. I didn’t plan it either. It’s sudden and unexpected, but I think you should know that my feelings aren’t in any way fleeting.”

“Your feelings?” Emma whispered, her eyes glancing back down at his lips before they returned to his eyes, searching for answers he was more than willing to give.

“I want you, Emma,” he confessed as his fingers traced along her cheek, before he pushed a lock of her wayward hair behind her ear. “There’s something about you that I can’t deny and I wouldn’t even if I could. I know it’s fast, but I also know that this pull between us matters. I know that you matter, more than anything has in so long.”

“I feel the same way,” Emma said with a smile as her hand rested above his chest. She must feel the unnaturally fast beat of his heart, but in the quiet of the alley he could hear hers matched the same rhythm almost identically. “I just didn’t think… I mean you never really made a move so…”

“Been waiting for me, have you?” Killian teased and Emma’s laughter was so bright and so bubbly that it filled him with joy all over again. He was floating right now, despite their surroundings and he never wanted this moment to end. “Well now that I know that, I promise, you won’t have to wait anymore.”

“Good,” Emma said before pulling him for another kiss and filling those last fleeting moments out there under the golden lantern light with all the peace and joy and love deserving of two souls who had been searching for each other forever, only to finally find their way home.

Post-Note: So there we have it. Chapter five came bearing some new beats, developments, and confirmations. I know it was kind of information heavy at the beginning – but I don’t think many other chapters will be that way from here on out. I foresee more action coming down the pike. That being said there were things that needed to happen, like Killian learning about Graham and Tink and David. Also on the CS front we just needed a kiss already, I mean come on. Five chapters is a slow enough burn for me. Anyway next chapter, which will be here in two weeks, is from Emma’s POV again and it will cover the aftermath of this kiss and then ask out for the first date. I hope you’ll stick around on this adventure with me and let me know what you thought about this chapter! I love to hear your feedback, and appreciate all your support!

Tag list (if you would like to be added let me know!): @jennjenn615 @winterbaby89 @kmomof4 @teamhook @coliferoncer @ultraluckycatnd @resident-of-storybrooke @artistic-writer @snowbellewells @snarkycaptainswan4 @allofdafandoms-blog @eastside-divebar

[minaminokyoko]

Favourite avengers movies scenes?

How on earth do you expect me to ever narrow down enough to not list the entire trilogy in general? Holy hell. I am a big fat Marvel fangirl and I could write a fucking dissertation on scenes complete with charts and graphs. For the sake of argument, let me see if I can at the very least just highlight the tippy top favorite moments from the first three Avengers films. Keep in mind, I fucking love all three of them to death and could rave about them for days at a time.

The Avengers

-Loki’s confrontation with Nick Fury. This scene sets the tone for the rest of the film so fucking well, man. It’s just brilliantly done to see that whatever humanity that we saw in Loki in Thor has pretty much flown out the window and he’s here to wreak havoc and start a war, and he doesn’t care how many people he destroys in the process. I also like that it shows the vast gap in power and experience between the SHIELD agents and an Asgardian. Loki all but flattens everyone in a matter of seconds. Seeing him among other Asgardians can kind of make you forget he’s literally a thousand year old god and is tough as nails. He’s also low down and ruthless and that’s the kind of thing that is scary as hell when you realize that’s what they’re all up against.

-Nat’s “interrogation” with the Russians. I actually love every single Avenger’s introduction scene, but this one is so delightful in that Nat shows us just why she is an Avenger even though she has no enhanced abilities: deception, manipulation, and just being an incredibly agile combat expert. I am most delighted with her scene because before Avengers, I had no regard for Nat at all and thought she was just fanservice, but here, she completely proved her worth as a character and to the team, and I got on board as a fan of her just from her opening scene wiping the floor with these idiot Russian dudes.

-Tony and Bruce getting to know each other in the lab. From a character standpoint, this is an outstanding scene. Tony is trying to draw Bruce out of his shell, and the sympathy and empathy he has for him is so palpable that it’s why we all dubbed them the Science Bros and why it’s one of the best friendships in the Avengers. Tony is so awesome for joking with Bruce and treating him like a normal person and reminding him that there is at least one person aboard that helicarrier who doesn’t see him as some terrifying monster and knows just from reading up on him that he’s not a bad person. It’s so charming and wonderful.

-Stuttgart. Man. Man, oh man, this is a well done scene. The build up to Loki’s horrifying actions is so great and so is this freaking diva’s grandstanding once he demands the poor, confused Germans kneel before him. It’s fascinating to me because Loki has an almost childlike need for attention, as if his frustrations with his failure to take over Asgard as king has manifested itself into this very basic need to be acknowledged as being a powerful threat. Loki could kill an average human being with a flick of his wrist. His comparison of “an ant has no quarrel with a boot” while cruel is accurate, but here’s the thing, Loki: if you fuck with enough fucking ants, you can get your ass into a lot of trouble, and we’re fireants, not sugar ants, buddy. And ants who band together get shit done. The old man who stood up to him, in my book, is a fucking hero all on his own and I think it’s one of the most well crafted pieces of dialogue in the entire MCU. “There are no men like me.” “There are always men like you.” Oh, standing ovation for that piece of dialogue. Give it an Oscar. Then Cap swinging in to kick ass and Tony swooping in beside him with an equally over the top entrance to Loki’s was the icing on the fucking cake.

-Thor retrieving Loki. Hnnnnnnngh, okay, so here’s the thing: I fucking love Thor and Loki’s relationship even before Ragnarok came out and upgraded it. Thor is and always has been since his first movie a man with very deep emotions who loves and loves deeply with all his heart, and his confrontation with Loki just wounds me so much. How Thor throws Loki to the ground and yet yanks him to his feet and just holds him there, his hand on his face, looking so torn between agony and relief that his brother is alive. “I thought you dead.” “Did you mourn?” Fuck me, this scene is absolutely brutal to my feels. Thor and Loki’s debate was nothing short of excellent as Thor tries to bring Loki around, and the thing is, he means it. He means every fucking word, that he would take the Tesseract and bring his brother home, and he doesn’t care about facing the music, he just wants his goddamn brother back even after all Loki has done so far in the story. Y’all better stop sleeping on Thor, man. His heart is by far the best thing about him, forget all the delicious muscles and that perfect teddy bear smile. Thor has miles and miles of heart, and that’s why I love this scene so much. 

-Nat tricking Loki into revealing his plan. This scene is so good I based an entire goddamn fanfic around its premise. Dude. Nat fucking Romanov, y’all. I love how this scene is staged and executed. I love Loki starting out almost gentle and conversational, as if for once he’s going to just be an actual person and not a monster, and then he slips back into that nasty egotistical megalomaniac when he thinks he has one over on Nat. And then Nat fucking schools him. It’s why I have a personal headcanon that he developed a hatecrush on her after she, a mere mortal, tricked the goddamn God of Mischief. It solidified Nat as one of my favorite female heroes forever. I loved seeing her use that feminine “weakness” to let him run his mouth. I also love that his cruel words did in fact affect her and motivated her even more to both save Clint and to go to war with Loki at the end.

-The whole ass helicarrier attack sequence. I mean, I don’t even need to go into detail. You already know. 

-Tony confronting Loki. This is the scene that assured us that what followed would be one of the greatest fight sequences in cinematic history. I pretty much have most of Tony’s dialogue memorized because it had such an effective impact on me from a storytelling standpoint. Tony standing up to Loki as a mortal man with no suit, candidly threatening him with barely suppressed rage that Loki murdered Coulson, a comrade, in cold blood, is downright amazing.

-The battle of New York. Boom. Again, no words necessary. Perfect fucking sequence from start to finish.

-Thor trying one last damn time to bring Loki around. Oh, my heart. My poor fucking heart. Thor really loves his brother and he would do anything to have him back. Is it naive? Yes. But it’s also a beautiful statement of what family truly means to Thor and it breaks my heart. The fact that a tear slides down Loki’s face when he stabs Thor and mutters, “Sentiment” is so not cool. As much as Loki pretends to be the Big Bad Wolf, there is something still young and human inside of him even though he pretends it isn’t there. All my creys.

-Hulk trouncing Loki. I went and saw The Avengers three times in theaters, and two out of the three times, everyone cheered so loud I didn’t hear the Hulk say “puny god” over all the noise. It was that satisfying a scene.

Age of Ultron

-The entire beginning sequence. Fucking loved it. What masterful ass-kicking and showcasing of the team dynamic. It made me want a longer lead in to how they all got reunited because it was so enjoyable. “Language!” Oh, Cap.

-Jarvis and Ultron’s first scene together. Dude. James fuckin’ Spader, man. I never knew I could be so intimidated by a man’s voice. It was so unsettling for so many reasons, the resentment, irrationality, and anger from his unusual birth and creation. It was all the more frightening when he turned on Jarvis, and at the time, we didn’t know he hadn’t killed our beloved butler. 

-Picking up Mjolnir. This scene needs no elaboration. It’s just perfection. Even people who complain about Age of Ultron admit this scene is just flawless.

-The team confronting Tony over creating Ultron. Cap’s line, which we now know goes even further after the events of Infinity War, just make me want to die. “We’ll lose.” “Then we’ll do that together, too.” Tony’s face, realizing that Cap doesn’t care that he fucked up–he cares that Tony couldn’t trust the team enough to let them in on what he was dealing with–is soul-crushing. Tony realizes he was wrong to assume instead of being honest with them. 

-The confrontation in Wakanda. Everything about it was badass and it hits you right where you live seeing the Avengers having to face their biggest regrets and most painful moments of their pasts. Especially Steve’s. The image of him and Peggy finally getting their dance was so not okay. Special props to Tony in the Hulkbuster armor. That was one hell of a fucking brawl.

-The Sokovia final battle. There are just so many awesome points in the final battle sequence, man. Everyone is out there just kicking ass and doing what they do best. Special props to Hawkeye getting through to Wanda, and Hawkeye’s “nobody would know…nobody” moment with Pietro. 

Infinity War

Disclaimer: I have no idea how to isolate moments in a movie that is by far one of the most well written comic book movies since The Dark Knight, but I guess since you asked, I have to try anyway. Hoo boy. Strap in. 

-Loki’s death. Let me explain something to you: I went entire years without caring about Loki, and then around the time The Dark World came out, I slowly became converted to both a Tom Hiddleston and a Loki fan, and then after Ragnarok, he finally just seduced me completely to being smitten with his stupid trashy self. It is important that you realize that I recognize that Loki is a selfish, inferiority complex-having, murdering bastard and I do not excuse a goddamn thing he does because of his fucking Daddy issues. That being said, in spite of how much of a flaming trashbag he is, I love him anyway, and I tried for months to tell myself that I knew as a fellow writer that Loki was going to die in Infinity War. It was assured not only from the trailer, but from me knowing that his character arc was always going to end with his death. What hurt most of all is that, as I predicted, Loki died trying to save Thor. I cried my eyes out. Hell, once Thanos closed his hand around Loki’s neck, I covered my eyes because I just didn’t have it in me to see it end this way for him and for Thor. Thor being helpless to stop it is truly what made it worse. There is nothing on heaven or earth Thor wouldn’t do for Loki, even knowing how wicked Loki is. And the fact that Loki couldn’t let Thanos kill Thor after all these two have been through was like an icepick through my heart. Loki wouldn’t have died protecting Thor if Thor had not loved him unconditionally this entire time we’ve watched their story. Thor’s love did have an effect on Loki throughout these films, and that’s why I literally burst into sobs and couldn’t bear to see him die that way. It is one of the most gut wrenching things ever put to film, and certainly in the MCU. I’ve only had the stomach to watch that scene twice because it hurts me so much, and neither time was I strong enough to actually watch Loki’s final moments. Goddamn, it’s just so painful. Capped off with Thor slowly crawling over to his brother to be with him one last time before the ship explodes and just laying his head on his chest in the kind of grief that honestly should get Hemsworth a fucking Oscar. Bravo. 

-Cap, Widow, and Falcon reuniting with Vision and Wanda. Holy shit, yes. This fight was gorgeous, gripping, and fucking awesome. Special props to Cap and Widow being the ride or die Avengers Mom and Dad team. We can infer from their actions that the two of them have been together since the end of Civil War possibly, so you can not tell me Cap and Widow are not a thing on some level. Captasha all day, err day. They perfectly compliment each other and I headcanon that they’re together and no one will convince me otherwise.

-”We’ll fight you too.”/”We don’t trade lives.” That sound you hear is me screeching. Some people have said Cap wasn’t given a ton to do this time around, and I emphatically protest it simply because, yes, he has less screentime, but man, he does so much work in this role that reminds us of why we all love Captain America. His values mean so much. Cap will lay down his life in the blink of an eye for someone who needs it. He cares so deeply. He is the pinnacle of selflessness and it’s so important to see in this film.

-Thor meeting the Guardians. Perfection. Just…perfection.

-Irondad and Spiderson aboard the Space Donut. Jesus fucking Christ, I am so on board for Irondad and Spiderson that it’s insane. I love that entire fucking interaction from start to finish. I love Tony’s strict, fatherly anger and exasperation because he just wants his baby boy to be safe on earth while he’s on another suicide mission, but the baby boy wants to help his dad out and baby boy also doesn’t quite realize the consequences because he’s too young. Extra points for Tony’s death-glare after Parker says, “It’s kind of your fault I’m here” and the fact that even the fucking cloak did a double take at Parker when he said it. Oh, it’s so perfect.

-Gamora making Peter promise to kill her if Thanos gets to her. I just…I want to die. This was so beautifully done, and so in character for both of them, and Peter and Gamora are just so soft and sweet and in love that it’s so overwhelming. At the very least, I take a small comfort in knowing that they were a happy family for four years before this shit happened to them.

-Gamora “killing” Thanos. Again, can we just award Oscars to like half the fucking cast in this movie? Jesus Christ, I cried at this scene too because the fact that she’s just completely unraveled as she finally thinks she’s killed her goddamn abuser is so deeply tragic. Gamora is my favorite Guardian. Hands down. She is so three dimensional. She tries so hard and she is so much more than the deadliest woman in the galaxy. She is so complex and it is the worst pain ever to know that Peter actually kept his promise and tried to kill her to prevent her from being in the hands of her abuser again and Thanos foiled their plan, and had the fucking nerve to say, “I like him” before he took her again. 

-”It’ll kill you.” “Only if I die.” “…yes, that’s what killing you means.” 

-The battle of Wakanda. Motherfucker. This is some A+++ motherfucking good shit hurr. What always gets me hype as hell is Cap and T’Challa sprinting down the goddamn hill at 80 mph and I just can’t even handle that shit because it was so good and satisfying. Everything about this battle was incredible.

-The battle on Titan. Same thing. It’s so creative and well crafted and amazing. You feel every blow. You flinch. You want them to beat that son of a bitch but he’s just so fucking strong. It is an incredibly engaging fight, man. Hoo boy. 

-Thor’s entrance to the battle of Wakanda. I distinctly remember the entire audience going absolutely apeshit during this scene the night Infinity War premiered. Like the first Avengers, I saw it three times in theaters, and two out of the three times, the crowd went fucking wild. That was so fucking satisfying, man, as are the neat little scenes of levity with Cap introducing himself to Groot and Cap and Thor remarking on each other’s changes in appearance. It was so pure and good and perfect.      

-Cap squaring up with Thanos. I. Can’t. Breathe. It was so powerful. Like the above scene of “we don’t trade lives,” this is why we love Captain America. Why we love Steve Rogers. This man, this mortal human man, took one goddamn fucking look at that twelve foot all powerful alien giant and said, “Not today, bitch.” Steve fucking Rogers stood there and took it. He put his life on the goddamn line for Wanda, and for Vision, and for the rest of the universe, and he actually held that goddamn line for a moment. The incredulous look on Thanos’ face is what seals it. He is utterly confused that this little man is actually holding him back, that this mere mortal doesn’t give a fuck that he can’t overpower him, but he is giving it his all because that is who he is. Steve will not quit. Steve will not falter. Steve will die doing what’s right and that is one of the most moving things in the whole MCU, imo. He just planted his feet and said, “No, you move.” I know we saw that scene in the trailer, but it was so unbelievable to see it in context that Cap gave it everything he had trying to protect Wanda and the rest of the universe, and I still get choked up just thinking about that shit. 

Welp, you asked for it and now you have it. I told you I was gonna rave, man. God bless anyone who actually read this nonsense. Marvel had me at hello with these characters and they have way too much sway over my emotions, as you can see above. Ten years, man. Ten years. 

[decadebeauty4-blog]

Asa Khalif Is Running for Philadelphia City Council. Is City Council Ready for Him?

City

In November, Asa Khalif announced his candidacy — and he might just have a shot.

The Asa Khalif City Council run was announced in November. Photograph by Agaton Strom.

One November morning a little over a year ago, Asa Khalif and Ikey Raw paid a visit to the Philadelphia office of Josh Shapiro, the state’s attorney general. Shapiro wasn’t there, but the two men demanded answers about the police killing of David Jones, an African-American who’d been fatally shot by a cop that June.

“We’re not going to tolerate the bullshit,” Khalif railed to staffers and security at Shapiro’s office as Raw made a video that live-streamed on Facebook. “Get whoever the fuck y’all need to get. Why is this investigation taking so long? … You fucking racist pig,” Khalif yelled at a cop down the hallway who seemed to be hiding from Raw’s camera. “You think it’s funny. It’s amazing that you’re over there. Bring your ass out here; say it to our face.”

Khalif was obviously baiting Shapiro’s security, and a few minutes later, he got arrested for defiant trespass and harassment (among other charges), which brought media attention to his protest.

In the past couple of years, Asa Khalif has emerged as perhaps the most visible leader of Black Lives Matter in Philadelphia. He’s been involved in a lot of dustups, some more public than the confrontation at Shapiro’s office: He protested outside the house of Ryan Pownall, the cop who shot Jones; he went to the Starbucks near Rittenhouse Square with a bullhorn to rant about the arrest of two black men who were waiting for an acquaintance; he put a hood over the Frank Rizzo statue at the Municipal Services Building on JFK Boulevard. The point of his protests, Khalif says, is to make people uncomfortable. It is no doubt uncomfortable to be on the receiving end of one of his tirades, but the deeper point, of course, is to make public stands that simply cannot be ignored. It is hard to ignore Asa Khalif.

Khalif was held by police for 16 hours after his arrest in Shapiro’s office. He was scared, he says: “You’re in the presence of your oppressor. People were calling the station, telling them the way I walked in better be the same way I walk out.” Khalif would be sentenced to one year’s probation. And Pownall would end up getting charged with third-degree murder.

In November, Khalif announced a new endeavor: He’s running this year for City Council as an at-large candidate. Khalif makes it clear that this isn’t a stunt. And with a crowded field, he just might have a high-enough profile to have a shot.

Asa Khalif on Council would seem, at first blush, to be a collision of opposites. Council is where middling politicians often land, not in service, but as a career, which is a mind-set that generally does not promote action. Khalif, on the other hand, says he won’t lower his voice if he wins: “Absolutely not. If I’m on Council, I’m going to get arrested more. Because if anyone is fucking with somebody in my district … ”

Never mind that as an at-large Councilman, Khalif wouldn’t actually have a district. The point is, there will be fireworks. And Khalif may be tapping into a moment when the demand to listen simply cannot be denied.

•

Forty-eight years old, tall and thin, with a long, narrow face, Khalif is quiet by nature and has a look, a resting pose, that seems almost mournful. He lives in Old City — though he says he’s thinking about moving soon to a neighborhood he won’t disclose — with an 11-year-old cat named Lady M and a rescued Chihuahua. He works in the real estate business his stepfather started. (Khalif’s biological father left when he was one, he says, and he reveres Paul, his stepfather, who is white. “And his stepfather dotes on Asa,” says Jay McCalla, Khalif’s campaign manager.)

Khalif’s been an activist since he was 13 years old. It started when an Asian-run store in his North Philly neighborhood was selling loose cigarettes and corn liquor to kids. Khalif organized a protest, complete with a bullhorn from Toys “R” Us; there was no profanity, just a rant on how wrong it was for him to see his teenage friends getting drunk. “What I didn’t anticipate,” Khalif says, “was how the adults stood back, creating a shield for us.” They also listened: That was the end of corn liquor sold to minors. “And that’s when I understood the power of activism.”

He moved on to protest the police in the early ’90s — invoking the city’s curfew, Philly cops were writing up kids sitting on their own stoops. Khalif talks repeatedly about being true to himself, finding his own identity in protest. He says it happened definitively at his mother’s kitchen table when he founded his own organization, Racial Unity, in the late ’90s — the stamp of approval he gave himself to shoot big: “To educate, to give power to all people. A mighty fist, and the fist doesn’t have to be one color.”

Then it got personal. In late 2014, Khalif’s cousin, Brandon Tate-Brown, was shot dead by a cop during a traffic stop. Khalif and others disrupted a town-hall meeting in Northeast Philly to demand answers from then-D.A. Seth Williams. (They got arrested.)

At a vigil for his cousin, Khalif says, the next step became apparent to him: “I need to be in certain spaces. We do the work, politicians get the glory. We cannot be overlooked anymore — we need activists at the table.” A seat on Council, he insists, won’t change him; City Council will simply be a new platform.

Khalif’s tactics have gotten him into some hot water with fellow activists, to the point that two organizations, Philly for REAL Justice and the Black and Brown Workers Cooperative, put out a public statement about him in April of last year. It charged that Khalif “regularly colludes and cooperates with police, putting comrades and community members in danger”; that “he has been particularly antagonistic towards groups led by Black women and Black LGBTQ folks”; and that he “has threatened and encouraged violence against other local activists on more than one occasion.”

“Asa Khalif is a major problem in the Philadelphia activist community,” the statement said. “While divisions amongst black people doing legitimate liberation work should be quelled, it is not divisive to call out the traitors who are working against us. … The truth is that Asa Khalif is not in the business of black liberation. Asa is in the business of self-promotion.”

Khalif says he stands by the response he made at the time to the Daily News: “The problems facing black, brown and poor people are greater than one person or group. … I will not participate in these destructive discussions that are counterproductive. Let’s put aside egos and create a choir of voices united in the battle for change.”

Fellow activist Christopher Norris is close to Khalif, and when he’s asked what his friend brings to activism, he doesn’t blink: “Showmanship.” It’s a compliment. “A level of drama has to be created to bring an issue to bear. A level of spectacle. People think activism is cut-and-dried, that you stand in the street, but to really be effective, you have to make people uncomfortable — he really does that well. People don’t change unless they’re uncomfortable.”

Hello, City Council.

•

Asa Khalif is an extreme guy trying to join a body of compromise. Though he first has to get elected. “In Philly, Black Lives Matter has a 95 percent recognition in African-American households,” Jay McCalla claims, “and 90 percent love it.” Furthermore, McCalla, who was deputy managing director of the city under former mayor John Street, isn’t particularly worried about having money for ads: “What ads try to acquire, Asa already has.” Which is recognition and a following in the neighborhoods.

Councilwoman Cindy Bass thinks Khalif could be a breath of badly needed fresh air. “I appreciate activism on Council,” Bass says. “There need to be people who understand what it’s like on the streets. And a voice not to be compromised — that’s something that on Council would be very, very useful. We haven’t seen anything like that in a long time.”

As for what Khalif would do on Council, the goals are big.

“Poverty is number one on the list,” he says. “Once we fix that, it goes hand in hand with education and housing and so on.” Asked how he would fix poverty, Khalif talks about homelessness: “We need to take empty buildings and schools that are sold for millions and turn them into shelters.”

I ask Khalif how he’d make affordable housing a reality, and he rails against gentrification: “People should not be homeless who lived in those neighborhoods during the crack epidemic, during the height of the drug wars. Big Mama stayed in those homes, because generationally, she knew her offspring needed a place to stay. … Council can find money for everything else, to serve privileged people and wealthy corporations, and you’re telling me there’s not money for people who are pushed out? They have that money; they can take away from the rich and start giving to the poor. Be Robin Hoods if you’re going to be a Councilperson, because that’s what you’re paid to do.”

I play devil’s advocate: If you do away with the tax abatements and force new developers to make affordable housing a significant part of any new building, might they decide to build somewhere else?

“They’re not going anywhere else,” Khalif says. “It’s a hot city. … They’re privileged enough, and rich enough, to pay for it. … I never feel sorry for corporations or their CEOs. They’re making money hand over fist and making it on the backs of poor people.”

Some of this, perhaps most of it, feels more like a plea than a plan, though the question about Khalif’s potential effectiveness on Council is less about him having a program in place going in than about the risk of trying to operate as a lone wolf. I ask Councilman Allan Domb how important collaboration is among his colleagues, and he gives an odd answer: “My impression of Council changed when I came on — I see how much they work, 45 to 50 hours a week, sometimes 10 to 12 hours a day. There’s no downtime, and it’s not as easy as some people think.” Domb goes on in that vein for a couple minutes more, and his point becomes clear: City Council, he’s saying, really isn’t a bunch of careerists sitting back with cushy jobs. We work. John Street, who’d been an activist before he came to Council in 1980 and would get into several physical confrontations there early on, quickly grasped what he had to do to accomplish anything: Understanding the process and the issues is important, he says, but the biggest factor might be personal: “Gaining the respect of your colleagues.”

•

It isn’t easy, what Asa Khalif does. After a particularly tense demonstration two years ago outside the home of Ryan Pownall over his shooting of David Jones, Fraternal Order of Police president John McNesby likened the protesters to “a pack of rabid animals,” singling out Khalif. He regularly gets death threats. For a time, friends acted as bodyguards. “But I got rid of [the protection],” he says. “If I’m living in fear, I’m already dead. If it’s going to happen, it’s going to happen. Just make it quick. And quite frankly, I need a rest. So fuck it.”

Four years ago, Khalif released a 23-minute documentary, AmeriKKKa Black, about how African-American men are much more likely than white men to be killed by police. Killings in Ferguson and New York are referenced; then Khalif zeroes in on the shooting death of his cousin, Brandon Tate-Brown. At issue was the police department’s refusal to release its tape of the shooting. “If it exonerates the police, fine,” Khalif tells us, quietly, in the film. “If it shows Brandon was murdered by the police unjustifiably, then that’s fine, too. We just need the truth.” As the camera rolls, he drives to the home of Tate-Brown’s mother and, on her couch, makes the point a second time, calmly: “We are willing to accept whatever the truth is.”

Then the film turns: Khalif gets his face painted with an American flag, and we see him walking silently to the Roundhouse, police headquarters on Race Street, holding a Black Lives Matter sign. He begins chanting “NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE” and “BLACK LIVES MATTER.” Then he falls to the sidewalk, still and unmoving. There is dead silence.

It’s a chilling documentary, for the obvious reason of what’s at stake but also because Khalif, in the film’s intense quietude, captures both the pain and the wonder of police violence: How can this be?

“The power is in the question,” he says now, and he means that generally — Khalif’s approach, even as he’s adamant that he’s not changing, is beginning to evolve. If he remains only in attack mode, the focus will be the attack instead of the message. It’s taken him some time to learn that, and as he comes fully into this new idea of running for Council, it’s with a question of his own: “If you’re sincerely working on behalf of people, who can turn a blind eye to that?”

Published as “The Activist” in the February 2019 issue of Philadelphia magazine.

Source: https://www.phillymag.com/news/2019/01/28/asa-khalif-city-council-philadelphia/

[lupuslxna]

                                               The triskelion

    The tattoo which is cradled between the werewolves shoulderblades is a symbol which was (as it seems) used in the Hale family for a long time. Just as the Alpha pack had their own symbol (it did resemble the triskele as well), so did the Hale’s, hence the reason why Derek made the decision to burn it into his own skin.        I do believe that he decided to put it there only after the fire, when he and Laura fled Beacon Hills, as not only a tribute to his family-which died in the fire-but for his own sake and for what the symbol represented.  It was pointed out that the symbol means different things to different people. It might mean past, present and future, or mother, father, child. To Derek, the  triskele stood for the three types of werewolves- Alpha, Beta, Omega. It were a reminder to him that while we can rise we can also fall, a Beta becoming an Alpha or an Alpha falling back to Omega status.       It was also later on shown that Talia(Derek's mother), used a metal disk imprinted with a triskelion to help each of her childer learn to control their shifts during the full moon, when the pull of their wolf was at its strongest.  Under the cut I will explore the meaning a bit more, in my headcanon I believe that Derek knew more about this than we were left to believe. It has been shown that he is well read when it came to different legends and lore of the supernatural; hence the reason why I believe that the triskele meant to him a bit more. While a tribute to his family and his mother- the Alpha, it also carries many centuries of Celtic wisdom and belief.

     When we look at the Greek term, triskelion literally means "three-legged," and appropriately, this sign looks very much like three legs running.

     The triskelion (also referred to as triskele, triquetra or fylfot) Celtic symbol meaning holds two major components of symbolism:                                                     Action and Passive.

The active is the action we invest in using this symbol, and the reaction from the universe in response. The passive is our ability to sit back, trust, believe, have faith that our path will be clear and known to us. It takes a harmonic balance and a conscious employment of passive and active energy to accomplish great things.

Active Keywords for Triskelion Symbol

Action

Cycles

Progress

Revolution

Competition

Moving Forward

Meanings of the Three Symbolic Extensions of the Triskelion

Spirit, Mind, Body

Father, Son, Holy Ghost

Mother, Father, Child

Past, Present, Future

Power, Intellect, Love

Creator, Destroyer, Sustainer

Creation, Preservation, Destruction

  The combination of all these components (active/passive + triad attributes) lead us to the conclusion that this Celtic symbol meaning tells a story of forward motion in the endeavor to reach understanding, and it also prompts us to see these heavy concepts as a whole, and meditate upon them (passive).

It is amazing to see how many different meanings can be pointed and told by simple tree lines that many would see it as nothing special, just simple spirals that curve inward and tell the meaning of ‘moving forward, never stop to grow and be.’ Now, by saying this, I also found man sources implying that the triskele may also represent the three Celtic worlds :

  Three Worlds Respresented by the Triskelion

The Otherworld: Where spirits, gods and goddesses live.

The Mortal World: Where you and I live along with plants and animals.

The Celestial World: Where unseen energies live and move about. Like the forces of sun, moon, wind and water.

An interesting side note - the number three is a powerful energy for seemingly infinite reasons. One such representation of number three deals with the three primary measure-marks within the phases of the moon (new, half, full). If we add lunar implications to the meaning of the triskelion we are dealing with...

Lunar Symbolism Associated with the Triskelion

Mystery

Feminine

Intuition

Subtleness

Subconscious

Spirituality

Illumination

Hidden desire

The knowledge that was passed down, the belief, the art of it itself...is vast, varied and diverse. It has so many possibilities for profound depth and meaning, understood or viewed differently by each person perhaps, has stayed strong through the many years which passed.  

Summary of Symbolic Triskelion Meanings

Personal growth

Human development

Spiritual expansion

While Derek had lost almost everything at the young age of 16, he was also used and mislead, abused and was forced to end the life of the girl that he had genuinely cared for-loved, if one may say- at that age where his mind and heart were still pure. After the fire, the world in which he lived changed drastically. Having only his sister and uncle(who was in the hospital and unresponsive), he was forced to leave behind his birthland and move. Constantly on his feet, carrying the guilt that many would not be able to handle at all. Putting his families symbol on his skin, it not only showed that he would remember his mother’s teaching, he also dig his claws in the meaning that it represented.     And while he definitely had a hard time coming around, I do think that in the end...Derek has shown a lot of growth, has never settled and given up. Personal growth, his development when it came to the human side of his persona and also the spiritual expansion that he had reached once confronting his mother and being reborn- I can only say that the tattoo, suits him quite well.

( x ) ( x ) ( x ) I will be tackling the connection of the werewolf with the moon next >:D