#in my defence of shitty child writing

[factorialsotherfandoms]

Ordem Normal, final episode spoilers. Happy Felps Weekend!

Loyalty, angst, and maybe introspection if you squint

Paulo has been playing at Carlos' house all day. Mamãe had said she would talk to Carlos about what was happening, but Paulo had told her that he was older now, that he could do it himself! And he had felt like he was old, he really did, when he took himself up the seven flights of stairs between their apartments and let himself in. He had even remembered to ask Mamãe for lunch to bring with him!!!!

But not it is nearly evening, and he still has not told Carlos. Mamãe will be here to get him soon, and once she is...

Paulo has to be a big boy and do this, even if it's very scary as to how. His best friend has tied some crayons to a toy car, and is running it around the bottom of the walls. Paulo is very sure that this means he is about to get into trouble, but Carlos is laughing and that means that Paulo will never be able to stop him.

Carlos is laughing, and Paulo does not want to stop him.

But Mamãe will be here soon.

"Carlos?"

Paulo's heart is in his throat. He can barely hear himself over the sound of Carlos' laughter and car noises, but still Carlos stops.

Turns.

Tilts his head and looks at him.

"Paulo?"

"I need... I need to tell you something very important!" Paulo replies, with the earnestness that only a desperate child can have.

"Is this why you've been acting so weird?" Carlos asks.

He does not abandon the car, but he does run back over.

Paulo... Didn't think Carlos had noticed.

He screws shut his eyes, and bites his lip, and nods a few times with a little "uh-huh".

"Uh-huh?" Carlos repeats.

When Paulo opens his eyes, Carlos is right in his face.

"Papai is going away again soon," Paulo says, fighting to keep the tears from his voice. "He- We- I-"

"Oh!" Carlos brightens up, and for one horrible moment Paulo thinks Carlos hates him, before realising that the other boy has misunderstood. "Does that mean you'll be here more?"

Paulo shakes his head.

"But surely Sra. Ventura needs a break? Mamãe always says that about me."

"No, Carlos," Paulo's throat makes an ugly, ugly noise. "No, I- Mamãe and I are going too this time."

"Like a holiday?" Carlos asks. "When will you be back? It'll be lonely, but I can be lonely for a little bit."

And that's when Paulo starts crying.

"Paulo?" Carlos tugs on his arm, getting even closer. "Paulo, why are you crying? You're coming back, right? When are you coming back?"

Paulo shakes his head, unsure of what to say.

"Paulo?" then, Carlos thinks about it, and turns his voice into a shriek to call "Mamãe! Paulo's crying!"

That won't do - Paulo HAS to tell him! He has to!!!

"I- I won't!" Paulo chokes out. "We... We go in a week. Mamãe and Papai are getting rid of everything and we'll be gone too soon."

"But- But Paulo?" Carlos blinks hard. "You're my best friend? You can't go!"

Except that Paulo knows that he has to; his tears grow harder, and he doesn't understand the call and response between Carlos and Sra. Eduardo this time. Nothing makes sense, not until Carlos grabs his hand, and shoves the toy car with the strapped on crayons into it.

"Here!" Carlos tells Paulo, crying himself now. "You can borrow my car! If you're borrowing it, you have to come back, right? So you can give it back to me! And no matter how long it takes, we'll still be bestest friends, right?!"

Paulo isn't sure that's how it works. but he clings to the car anyway. and nods his head.

"Forever?" Carlos bubbles out.

"Forever," Paulo promises. "Forever and ever and ever."

[totally-not-regulus]

Hi i just wanted to say i sometimes see your roleplay in the reblogs of the posts I see(love them) and saw an acc hating on you for it + being rude cus "it was their blog" like yeah typical 16 year old behavior? Checks out. 💀 If they didn't like your presence on their blog the NOT RUDE thing would be to block you or to atleast say it politely rather than shitting on you guys. It was pathetic, shameful and shows their maturity even at 16. it seems they're just entitled. i hated what they said to you so much i stalked their blog and EW. They even hate Peter. Typical CHILD. They also bullied someone about it like their opinion is gold and acted as if they were "teaching adults not to take creators for granted" or whatever like bruh you ain't making money and you give so shitty vibes just write your opinions in your notes at this point if you hate anyone interacting with your post that won't follow your views over fictional characters 😭 i usually dislike talking about someone's insecurity against them but after they bullied that person they said about their own body issues okay your body issues are to be considered while you spit on 20+ yo adults just cus it's social media? Typical london teen victim complex mindset. Ew.

Also sorry if me saying they're acting like it at them being 16 was uncomfortable to you in any way. In my defence i'd have disliked them irrespective of their age from their bossy garbage shit act towards you guys.

Ooc: Hi! Unfortunately it was not I, but @prongsie-rambles who had to deal with them. While I understand not wanting roleplay accounts to use your posts (for whatever reasons) being so rude while doing so was a bit iffy. But then again, I'm proud of the roleplayer for dealing with it in a very decent and polite way. The internet can be a very rude, bad, and nasty place sometimes, we never know what anyone's going through. However, all we can do is try and spread positivity and kindness. Also, while I understand letting your hate lead you to doing so, please don't spend your time and energy by stalking them😭. It will just make you angrier because you're already keyed up lol. But I appreciate your support!

Ps: Also, not that I can say anything, because the Major interaction occurred with the james roleplayer, I'd request, from my side, that nobody stalks them or God forbid send them reprimands and stuff, as it might just increase the fire that's settled lol.

[pinetrip]

Can someone write a fanfiction where Shoto knew what really happened to Touya and he always thought of him as his hero who could’ve you know brought peace to his family if he lived and viewed himself as a disappointment because he could never satisfy Enji and Endeavour would always compare him to Touya and Touya did not know this.Shoto would sneak to Touya’s room and find his hero name and costume drawing and draw himself as his sidekick next to Touya. There would be more reasons as to why Shoto wouldn’t use his fire quirk like (1) the obvious one he would hate Endeavour for what he did to his mother and brother (2) He had trained his ice quirk secretly from a young age so he could be Touya’s sidekick in the future and help him balance his quirk (but since Touya never got to know this because Shoto was kept separate he would still “die” like in the original manga and become a villain who hates everyone) (3) he is understandably afraid of dying like his brother. Shoto later learns he could run away but decides not to because he knows Endeavour would make another kid and abuse them instead of him and it would not be fair to that unborn child and Shoto would also do that because it’s heroic. Now (sorry but) cut to Dabi’s fight with Shoto after revealing his identity, Shoto defends Endeavour but not with fire and when that doesn’t work he still refuses to use fire and keeps trying with his ice only using fire side to balance his temperature and not attack and obviously that isn’t going to work. But during the fight Touya says something like “ I can’t wait to kill you and make things back to just the way they were and now that Dad has seen I’m so strong he’ll definitely let me be a hero!” And Shoto just completely turns off his quirk and doesn’t dodge. Touya was fighting with rage but this was just supposed to be hard blow not the killing blow, now Touya’s surprised and frustrated so he goes “ you what pity me and are going let me kill you like let that Bakuguo kid win? You think I need you to present your life I can take very easily without your pity” “ it’s not that I want you to have it if you think it’ll make you happy” “ what would you care about my happiness” and then Shoto tells him everything because Touya is finally listening and then Touya turns livid because he realises that Endeavour kept all this hidden and never told him his little brother’s feelings towards him because that would mess up his image even more and realises what a shitty man he was trying to impress this whole time and be the source of happiness to. On the other hand Sjoto was always looking at him and loving him despite his failures. He wanted to be to Touya what Touya wanted to be for Enji and he thinks that how can he deserve to be looked at when he didn’t look at Shoto either. But the damage is done; Shoto is far too injured to make it but Touya feels incredible guilt as his entire conscious crashes. When Endeavor finally arrives at the scene and sees Shoto dead in Touya’s arms, Touya says “ It’s all your fault. You’re the one who made me hurt him”( parallel to what Shoto said when he got cold burned by his mother). But Touya’s not a little boy who can’t do anything about it. He obliterates Endeavour when his original plan was to only kill Shoto and make Endeavour suffer not die but now Touya is absolute havoc as he realises Shoto was the only one always looking at him with love and pride while others refused to look or looked with pity. Shoto was the only one who believed in him and he’s dead because of Enji, all his problems root back to him and he just looses it. Then Touya disappeares with Shoto’s body. This was all caught on camera but with very poor quality (come on the todoroki family fought to the death here). The heroes think Dabi didn’t care about Shoto and just killed them when Touya absolutely does care about Shoto, so much so that he breaks into a high defence prison, break free All for One in exchange for AFO to let him walk away with a toddler Shoto who hasn’t unlocked his quirk yet and decides to raise him himself

[apple-but-sour]

View on how most of the C!Tommy apologists use, "Oh, but he's just a child!" as an excuse for his behavior? This is coming from someone who is currently writing a post about this. Here's a breif part:

When C!Jack died due to C!Tommy dropping him into a pool of lava during Exile, little to no one brought it up. Why? Because their poor child was being manipulated by a much greater evil! Of course during this stressful time, cannonically taking one of C!Jack's canon lives didn't matter when he was being abused!

Even while C!Jack is trying to get back up, C!Tommy jokes about it, saying that it was self defence and C!Jack scared him, and then when C!Jack tries to confront him about how casual he is acting, C!Tommy rants about how it’s been an entire week and just now C!Jack is coming to visit him. He then runs back to Logsteadshire and shoots C!Jack with a bow and arrow and then breaks the blocks that would let him back up. He then talks about how good it felt to “out my emotions”. *

While Exile is an obviously stressful and harmful time C!Tommy, C!Dream’s abuse had nothing to do with this aside from causing Exile’s conditions. There was no monolouge or subtle manipulation about how C!Tommy should murder C!Jack. It was his own personal grudge against no one coming to visit him that caused him to kill C!Jack.

I do think c!Dream's abuse had something to do with it though since part of c!Dream's manipulation was convincing c!Tommy that no one cares about him coz they think they're better off without him. It made c!Tommy really abrasive. Even if it wasn't the abuse in particular then it was the isolation c!Dream caused. c!Tommy is a very social guy, he depends on people to feel "okay", y'know?

I don't like dismissing those kinds of actions with "he's just a child" or "he's just traumatized" though. I feel it lacks nuance. Like, if you wanna try and provide some justification/explanation for c!Tommy's shitty actions, at least talk about it in more detail than just "he's a child" or "he's traumatized". That isn't doing your fave character any favors bro, everyone's just gonna think they're one-dimensional from that.

[sylvies-chen]

I’m not really in agreement as to why people keep saying “it’s so out of character for Ashtray to try and shoot his way out of that situation because he’s usually so calm and calculated!! that was shitty writing!!” because like okay. Yes. We can all agree that S*m Lev*nson is not a good guy nor is he a fantastic writer. Plot is the show’s main weakness, and it’s a big mess a lot of the time. But of all the plot critiques that you could make about Euphoria (how they tossed Kat and Jules aside and paid them dust, the unnecessary nudity, the 54-second prelude in episode 7, Elliot’s existence, etc.) I really don’t think Ashtray being ooc in the finale is one of them and I’ll explain why under the cut.

First off, Ashtray is smart but in no way does that make him calculating. You can be intelligent and still not be very good at playing the long game. He’s impulsive. We see this in 2x01 when he kills Mouse because even though Fez and Ash are obviously intimidated by Mouse (and rightly so; he’s a scary guy), Fez’s life wasn’t really in any imminent danger when Ash killed him. Fez explains it to Laurie as “we didn’t like the way he did business”. There was no need to say it was self-defence because it wasn’t self-defence. This behaviour makes Ashtray’s decision to kill Custer in episode 8 make a lot more sense, because he’d done something like it before and when you’re as young as he is, it’s hard not to feel a little invincible to the point where you think you could probably do it again with no consequences. On top of that, Ashtray only knew something was off with Custer. He did not see Faye gesturing at Fez to keep quiet, therefore his context clues were more limited. He knew only that there was someone in his house posing a threat to him. In no way should he have been expected to know that there were cops outside or a recording device anywhere. Only Fez could have pieced that together. And when Ashtray does kill him, and Fez is keeping Custer quiet as he passes away, he signals to Ash to keep quiet. This is probably the first time Ashtray even clued in that they were being listened to by cops. He has great intuition, so he acted as soon as he felt something was off, but he didn’t play the long game. He didn’t think of what Custer’s behaviour meant for them, what it could have done in the long run, the impact of his decision to stab him. He didn’t think about the future. So no, he’s no ordinary child. He was born into a life where he had to be tough, violent at times, ruthless, loyal, intelligent. But in spite of that intelligence, his tragic flaw (since his story does follow the conventions of tragedy perfectly) was impulsivity.

Second of all, I don’t care how smart or calculating he may or may not have been, because as much as Fez was trying to take care of him and protect him, Ashtray was literally AND metaphorically backed into a corner. Even if Ash had let him take the fall, he would have been placed into foster care, separated from Fez, left to fend for himself while Fez went to prison. If he himself went to prison, something similar also would have happened. Smart option, dumb option, it didn’t matter. Either way, the only family he’s ever known would have been taken from him. This, in my eyes, prohibits it from simply being that Ashtray was dumb and impulsive and thought he can get away with shooting up an entire SWAT team. This equates to him refusing to accept the possibility that he and Fez would be separated. It’s stubborn, sure, but it’s not him being tough or ambitious in any way. Any normal adult would have rather died than willingly give up their life, their home, their family. But he wasn’t even normal nor was he an adult. Make no mistake, he wasn’t mature or calculated in the end because he never was. He was a thirteen year old child.

Anyway, I’m definitely not trying to attack anyone with this post so I hope it didn’t come across that way, but I really just wanted to put out some observations I’d made about the situation and my own personal analysis of Ashtray and his decisions. If you’re still reading, let me know what you think!

[midnightsgift]

The shoe fitting the crime (Part 1)

I’ve been quite hesitant about posting my take on the punishments as i tend to not articulate myself well during text posts. I tend to just type out my thoughts and post not caring much for how i structure myself. It felt as if to convey how i felt about something that is woven into multiple episodes deserved more care than my usual nit-picking of isolate moments. Something that i didn’t think i could do justice however, it felt as if i would be doing a dishonour to the themes of the show if I didn’t post my thoughts. Not that I’m saying they’re worthy enough to listen to, but shows like these are created to stimulate ideas, and my mind has been thoroughly stimulated. And with the end of the show approaching i thought this is the time before it’s too late. (Yes I am aware the title is not the saying, I’m obsessed with Malaphor)

Reality vs Media:

The thing I want to touch on here are two things in particular. I have two opinions which I think aren’t mutually exclusive. They are that media affects reality, what I mean by that is that media is something we consume and as humans we process this. It can be as ‘trivial’ as seeing a characters outfit and then a adopting a similar style, learning facts about a characters culture that may or may not exist within our own world or gaining an insight into a topic you once had a strong stance on. I remember growing up and believing if you weren’t fostering to adopt it was a cruel thing, it wasn’t until exposure through some of my friends and tv shows that I realise adoption isn’t always the end result nor the best option in certain case.

          This however does not mean that your opinions on characters would be the same if they existing in our reality. What do I mean by this? If we take them out of the circumstances of being able to observe them from afar, during an activity in which we detach ourselves from the consequence of their actions we may have a very different perspective of them. Media especially in the form of Movies and Shows (Plays etc.) focus in on characters, they shape the way we experience their (the media in question) worlds. We can often find ourselves more likely to sympathise with the main characters due to the fact we learn about them, we see the “logic”  behind their actions, where as we tend to only see the consequence of other’s actions on to the main character. I’m not saying this is clear cut, but it does mean we have this bias, intentional by the creators, to understand the main characters more. Personally I strongly believe, ‘Understanding something does not equate to Justifying something,’ but I can see that’s how I take to interoperate those words. I know people who colloquially use those words interchangeably. For example I’m into true crime, so I might say I can understand why serial kill their victim, be it due to craving power or sexual gratification. Something I do not seek nor justifies what they did. They actual also touch on this in the show as well which i love but i brought this up not for that purpose but how we consume the characters on our screen.

          What do I mean? I love Yo-Han and Sun-’ahs characters, i love characters like them. However i am also well aware of the fact i would most likely dislike them in real life. No amount of backstory or tragedy (generally speaking) would make me think manipulating and murdering people for self gain is a positive or justifiable trait. I’m not talking about murdering in self defence be it in the moment or SA victims fighting back, but these are grown adults. Yes Yo-han was an abused child who never knew affection (Understanding) but there is a period in our lives where the actions we commit become our responsibility. I’m not gonna give a definitive age because it’s a grey period even in my own life. But there has to be, and it sounds harsh, even typing it this out i feel like it’ll be misunderstood and that i have no sympathy which is not what i’m saying. Yes technically even in adult you can blame the root of your actions on your shitty circumstances but if you’re not actively trying to improve yourself, it doesn’t have to be all at one and i do believe it’s a very personal thing, then that becomes a you problem. Anyway i feel like i’ve got distracted within in my points, what i mean is that most ppl who love these two characters wouldn’t love them in reality it’s the separation and the ability to digest them how ever you’d like that makes them appealing.

          However liking these characters doesn’t mean you sympathise with murderers or are bad people. The thing about media is that we can like it for different reasons, i love this show but i also love ‘shitty’ predictable tv too for contrasting and similar reasons. When we appreciate shows we do so for a multitude of reason, the writing, the acting, the actors, the cinematography, the soundtrack.... 

This also works on the flip side it’s so easy to hate and nit-pick characters for even the smallest of flaws and to extrapolate from there. Something i will talk about in my other parts if i ever continues what ever this train wreck of a post was

Crime vs Punishment:

Intent vs Effect:

Justice:

[lifereallysaidfuckyouhuh]

Everyone keeps talking about how dirty they did destiel but no ones talking about how shitty they were to Sam . Like the fuck was all that.

After constantly victim blaming him, gaslighting him and forgetting about him they decided that all he needed was a shitty wig and a blurry spouse.

At least cas and dean got to die, for dean it was like 5m then Sam was back with him, Sam spent decades without him reuniting in heaven wouldn’t have gone like that. Plus after years of making it clear how codependent the boys were once they were finally safe they were like na Sam gets two tears then he’s all good like!!!!!

Not to mention the complete erasure of any relationship Sam had with jack or cas I just-

What’s even worse is the majority of the fandom doesn’t even care.

It makes me so angry!!

It’s so hard to find Sam centric fanfiction as it is but it’s all we have because cannon frigen failed on that end.

Also the complete erasure, by the fandom, of sams queer subtext. Like his character was so queer coded it was ridiculous. Not wanting to be seen as a freak always feeling like he didn’t belong. Knowing his family couldn’t except and then finally finding people that understood him in college like!!!!

No this is not me saying dean isn’t bi or cas isn’t gay.

I always related to Sam and not because of personalities, I would never be caught dead going on a run, but I latched onto him from the start and because it’s how relatable he’s entire storyline is. As a queer teen he was the closest thing I was getting to representation on the early seasons of the show.

I started supernatural during quarantine and binge watched in about 2-3 weeks and I’m sure if I’d started later in I would have latched on to cas.

But I didn’t and I can’t fucking find Sam Winchester centric fics that i haven’t read or aren’t just pure smut. It’s ridiculous. And I’m tired of it. Can someone anyone please just wrote a good fic about Sam where the other characters realise how shitty they treat him and try and be better cause the show isn’t giving it and I just want to cry.

Like the toxic manipulation from dean and his consistent gaslighting and all the other characters just excepting it like BLOODY HELL. It makes me want to scream and the fandom s consistent glorification and victim blaming. Just because dean is bi dosent exscuse what he does, you can’t blame he’s actions on John because yes it is johns abuse that made him like this but that dosent exscuse his actions. When a murderer is on trial the defence can’t just say “they were abused as a child” like that crap dosent stand. The abuse is the scourse but the actions are his own and he needs to grow up and take responsibility for his behaviour towards both Sam and cas. If Sam has done half the shot dean had yall would have cancels him long ago. If dean wasn’t pretty half of you wouldn’t like him at all. Canon destiel was abusive and if cas had been a girl yall would have called that shit out. After making the writers kill her of course just like jo!!

I said what I said

Can someone please just write a decent fic about Sam Winchester maybe about his depression that gets ignored or about te abuse he receives with some castiel and maybe some dean redemption like please . I’m nearly pulling my hair out trying to find something.

[halfpint55]

A Defence of Kataang with regards to how they are portrayed in TLoK (it’s long but there’s headcanons at the end)

Note: This is not about shipping wars. This is a safe zone. This is not about Zutara vs Kataang. This is me defending Kataang and the characters themselves...from the writers. 

I initially wrote this as a response to a post that got me heated. My reblog just made it too long so here it is as its own post. 

Now this post ripped apart Kataang as a couple but more than that said some stuff about Aang himself that hurt my heart. I didn’t really want to pick on this post but its condemning of Kataang was based almost entirely in what we know of them as parents in TLoK and honestly it’s that lil nugget of canon that I take issue with. It has bothered me from the get go because it doesn’t make sense from a writing and story perspective, and it’s been pissing me off since I watched it.

TL;DR nice and early bc this post is gonna be a long one:

This particular condemnation of Kataang rests almost entirely on the SHITTY way they were portrayed as parents by the writers of LoK, and in all honesty, on this particular topic, canon should be ignored.

Overall Kataang parenting is of my biggest gripes with LoK because in terms of writing it’s totally incongruous - it doesn’t fit, it doesn’t align, and it makes zero sense for what we know of those characters, and I don’t know if I can ever forgive the showrunners for allowing it to be written it into canon.

I will also preface this by saying I like LoK - love it. I had a scroll through the comments and reblogs on this post, and a lot of the hate towards this portrayal of Kataang ended up being blamed on the “terrible writing of LoK” which is not where I stand at all. That being said I am so angry at the writers for this one.

The other portion of the concurring comments that were very hateful towards Kataang came from Zutara shippers and honestly for me, although I do ship Kataang, this not a just a Kataang issue. I’m of the belief that Zutara would’ve just as easily been written to have similar issues due to very similar dynamics - Zutara also would have been two powerful benders from very different cultures, and with Zuko/Aang (whoever you ship w her) having a massively important global leadership role that is embedded in who they are, and therefore impossible to ignore as a factor in their relationship.

Now let me be clear, my desire to reject canon on this front is by no means me wanting to believe the best of my faves, and not wanting to hear a word against Aang. It’s not even necessarily a defence of Kataang bc I ship it that hard (I mean I do but I can set that aside for the sake of argument if that’s what you need from me here). 

The first, and main issue people have with Aang/Kataang in Korra, is the first point of the original post:

So why in hell would [Katara] be okay with Aang ignoring TWO of their children’s complete existence once he found out they had an airbending son?

And I agree with the post on this front; Katara would not have allowed her children to each be treated differently by their father. I had the same initial thought when watching LoK, and it’s the reason I hate and want to ignore the canon of LoK so badly. 

As much as it hurts to think of, we have to accept that Aang wouldn’t have been able to stop his preferential treatment for Tenzin from bleeding through into his parenting just out of a desperate desire to save his culture (which is absolutely understandable - doesn’t make it okay, but it’s understandable; Aang suffered an incredible loss, a massive cultural trauma which he alone carries the burden of). So of course he wasn’t able to hide how excited he was, and forgot to be mindful of his attitude and behaviour towards Kya and Bumi. So this aspect of canon Kataang? Yeah, I’m with it. So far so good. EXCEPT the most unrealistic element of canon is now that Katara would let him. I simply do not believe for a second that Katara would’ve allowed Aang to be the kind of parent LoK painted him to be.

However, I do not think it would’ve been a point of contention between the two of them! Katara would pull him aside, Katara would gently (but firmly) point out what Aang mightn’t be able to see for himself - he’s focusing too hard on Tenzin.

And Aang would listen.

All throughout A;tLA the two of them often help the other sort through their stuff. Aang has a great track record of being receptive to Katara’s advice and help (calming him down when discovering Monk Gyatso’s body, The Desert when he Appa is stolen, Serpent’s Pass when he’s bottling his feelings about Appa being missing). He’s also just so receptive to others’ ideas - he just goes with it and trusts in his friends (think of his trust in Katara’s plan to rescue Haru, his trust in staying behind with Sokka in the library to get the eclipse info). Aang’s humility is one of the most incredible things about him and it’s at the core of who he is. He would absolutely be able to hear Katara telling him he’s focusing too hard on one child - he would be open, and he’d listen.

So to me now canon just does not make sense at all. it does not align with their established character traits. And yes, people change as they get older and grow into adulthood but honestly, the elements of their respective personalities that we’re talking about here are pretty core elements of who these two people are.

Katara has always been fiercely protective of those she loves, strongwilled, stubborn, and ready to (vocally or physically) fight for what she believes is right and that wouldn’t disappear as she gets older. She wouldn’t let Aang’s preferrential treatment slide.

Aang has always been, and chose to be despite his loss, an optimistic, kind, believe in the best of humanity kind of person. He’s open to all points of view, he’s a good listener, he always tries his absolute best to find solutions that are good for everyone. And again his humility, his willingness to love, is who he is.  He believes all humans (including fkn OZAI) and all life are sacred, he believes in the absolute right to life. The kid is a vegetarian for crying out loud.

Now the parts of the take in the post that hurt my heart to read about what OP thinks of Aang:

“Aang never made an attempt to establish anything resembling a real familial unit with Katara, basically just stayed around until she popped out an Airbender [...] she was treated like some trophy wife to give birth to airbenders and that’s it!”

I wasn’t going to address this in this post until I read the comments in the notes, because people seem to agree. They share the sentiment that Katara was reduced to “just a love interest” by the two ending up together.

However I do very much take issue w the notion that Aang “basically just stayed around until she popped out an Airbender” (and honestly that entire paragraph - we don’t actually know that Aang didn’t make an effort to establish a family unit). As much as the LoK writers fucked up in their portrayal of Kataang as parents, this is a much harsher judgement of Aang’s character as a husband and father than anything implied by Aang and Katara’s children. I just don’t buy that Aang would view Katara (or anyone he married, even if you don’t ship Kataang) as a trophy wife, whose only role is to have airbender children. He never has viewed her that way - he has always looked at her like she’s the sun, and the most important person to him after she pulled him out of the iceburg. He loves her the most of anyone on the planet. It does not align with his character, his values or beliefs that he’d think of her (or any partner) that way. He is so besotted with Katara for who she is it HURT me to read that part of your take. Aang simply would never. Look at how he looks at her! 

What’s more is the unwavering respect and deference he shows Katara as his waterbending master - he recognises and loves her as the whole, complete, three dimensional, TALENTED POWERFUL INCREDIBLE WOMAN that she is. She is NEVER “just” a love interest for Aang. (But ALSO, do we respect Suki any less for being Sokka’s obvious love interest??? No. suki is written to be so badass that Sokka is HER love interest and I think Katara has equally badass energy but I digress).

Moving on!

OP made an excellent point that there would’ve been culturally different values between the two but I don’t think it would’ve been family that was the clashing point. Yes the airbenders value spirituality and enlightenment. But they lived together in massive communities! They supported and raised one another. Their community and culture was strong, and they were bonded in their spirituality! They value love, as well as enlightenment, peace, and the lives of all.

Now, again the points they made about the cultural divides within the Kataang family unit are valid, but also again I dislike how they chose to portray this in LoK. It would definitely be a struggle they faced as a couple. However I think they really missed an opportunity here with where they took it. Because they do at one point in the comics have Katara bring up the fact that their family will be a blend of two cultures, and she brings it up because Aang is trying so hard to bring balance back to the world by means of seperation.

They’ve known from the get go of being a couple that they’re going to have to navigate being a culturally blended family unit.

So I find it so shitty that they wrote it so that Kya got to learn the waterbending culture, Tenzin got Air and bumi got…nothing? It’s dangerously close to the way Disney does the “the girls are carbon copies of mum, and the boys are carbon copies of dad” thing (think Lady and the Tramp). It’s lazy. Especially when we had that “separation is an illusion” episode, AND things like Zuko learning different nation’s styles and applying them to his firebending, and Sokka learning an element of strategy or fighting from every nation. 

So give us Kya using Airbending moves with her waterbending (maybe she invents the water scooter)! Give us Tenzin doing more grounded moves that Aunty Toph (or Lin, while they were together) taught him from earthbending.

There are much more creative ways to illustrate the bumps and troubles Kataang might have run into in trying to navigate incorporating equal parts of their cultures in their children and family unit. Even just smaller scale issues like food and meals - how do they figure out how to do mealstimes with Aang’s vegetarianism with Katara’s culturally significant Water Tribe meat dishes? And then even taking into account how picky little kids can be!

Give me a scene where they literally just ate moon pies for a week because toddler Kya would scream if you put anything else down in front of her.

Maybe Bumi demanded sea prunes over and over but Katara and Bumi are the only ones who like them, and Bumi bonds with his mother this way - they go on little one-on-one outings to water tribe restaurants in Republic City, searching for the most authentic sea prunes!

Kya maybe likes the water tribe fashions the most because it helps her connect with her namesake BUT Kya also has a playful sense of humour - not unlike Monk Gyatso - Aang sees how much she loved moon pies and teaches her to throw them with waterbending.

We know Tenzin was a calm, quiet, and possibly shy child. Maybe he loved to hole himself away learning crafts. Give me Tenzin learning to tattoo, Tenzin learning to carve (and carving his first glider - it crashes of course), but also Tenzin learning to carve water tribe adornments and necklaces. Katara tries at first but when she gets busy Sokka comes in and teaches Tenzin to break all the carving rules Katara has laid down (”it doesn’t need to be perfect my little pupil - let the creativity flow!”)

Tenzin may not be able to waterbend but that doesn’t mean he can’t learn other means of healing. As the littlest he spent a lot of time watching Katara work - she teaches him to tie splints, dress wounds, and yes deliver babies.

If you made it here I love you so much for reading. I love sharing my thoughts so HIGH FIVE YOU MADE IT, ur now my friend - the friendship is non-refundable sorry 😌😌

[someoneintheshadow456]

WE GOT ANOTHER ONE LADS

I think I may have come across another Fandom Frollo (aka - closet MAP who screeches at fiction and accuses everyone else of being sex offenders to cover their ass). First it was IHPAZ, then it was rasinrat, then it was the Twitter Purity Crusade CP ring (yes, that’s ACTUALLY a thing!), and now... I think I might have caught another one of these jokers in the act. 

Below the cut: TW for graphic language and descriptions of CSEM

What the hell kind of pedos has this person been seeing? Because they most certainly don’t use Disney villain style dialogues to groom their charges. If they did, there’s NO WAY they’d be able to successfully groom someone because nobody, even children, is stupid enough to go for a devil in plain sight. This is a trait I see of Fandom Frollos all the time – they assign these stupid, over-the-top fictional lines that NO real person would say unironically towards what they believe to be pedos. But they sound very creepy and strangely detailed… almost like they got off on writing that.

Blatant accusations with zero proof – another classic Fandom Frollo tactic. If I accuse everyone else of being pedos, then I’m clearly helping! Look at me protecting the kids! Look at me being wholesome and pure!!

Their response?

WTF?! What the fresh hell. NOBODY said anything about looking at children in such a disgusting way. That’s something YOU pulled out of your behind for some godforsaken reason. How does ANYONE look at “banning cartoons won’t help because pedos will be pedos whether cartoons exist or not” and think “ahh yes, this is saying CSEM is okay!” Also, AGAIN, note the very descriptive and graphic language of something they ostensibly are trying to fight against.  

Me: Banning cartoons won’t help. It’s like saying banning guns will stop murderers. The murderers will keep existing, they’ll just move on to knives instead. Comprehensive sex ed and self-defence courses for minors are the best way of stopping pedos. The young generation being armed and informed is always a pedo’s biggest weakness

This clown: Okay! Let’s NEVER do anything to stop pedos ever again!

Why do I have a feeling that’s EXACTLY what this person wants?

“I’m not an abuse apologist! I just think that we can blame the actions of rapists on fiction and that it’s totally okay to call rape victims gross for saying otherwise!”

Again, WHAT’S WITH THE HYPERFIXATION ON CHILD RAPE IN PARTICULAR?! If you’re so disgusted with the idea, why do you keep throwing those evil words around?!

There is ABSOLUTELY no way a person can be this ignorant – especially someone claiming to be a CSA survivor, regarding the use of religion in child grooming. But I gave them the benefit of doubt and explained anyway, and made it very clear that religion wasn’t to blame, it was EVIL PEOPLE twisting religion so they can use it as an excuse to be evil:

Their Galaxy Brained response, which is TOTALLY not a deflection from the shitty things they might be doing:

Ah yes – with THIS icon, there’s no way you could have found out what my race was! Obviously, my profile picture is SO WHITE that nobody could have just, well, CLICKED on it to see that I clearly wasn’t!! Do I need to make another DP with me in saree and a blatant red sniper dot on my forehead just to make things clearer for this hellsite?!  

Or how about THIS jackass response that proves, “yes, yes they ARE being intentionally obtuse”

Nobody – NOBODY who actually cares about CSA or abuse, will say something so vile when being confronted with examples of people twisting religion so that they can hurt children.

Yet another telltale sign of a fandom Frollo – a little TOO MUCH eagerness/sadistic glee from punishing pedophiles, and is WAY too vocal about their desire to hurt them. Hating pedos is the DEFAULT Sharon. You don’t get a cookie for basic decency! It reeks of “if I scream at the top of my lungs about how much I want to kill these people, nobody will know that I’m one of them!! I am very smart!!”

“Don’t teach kids how to identify a predator!! They could be ANYONE! Especially me!!”

Keep this in mind:

…for what they say next:

THEY HEARD – “PEOPLE AGAINST SEX ED TEND TO BE PEDO APOLOGISTS” AND ASSUMED I WAS TALKING ABOUT THEM.

Or how about THESE rather chilling accusations that seem to flow out of their mouth as easily as breathing?

A PSA – if you hear “sex ed” and think that it means showing minors pornography… maybe the problem lies with YOU. Maybe the one with a warped sense of sexuality is YOU. Maybe the one who is putting kids in danger is YOU. 

Them:

“How dare you call me a sex pest! I’m not a man, so I can’t be a sex pest!” – the calling card of all non-male sex pests EVERYWHERE.

If this creep comes to you, BLOCK THEIR ASS. It’s not clear if they have done anything yet, but they’re showing very dangerous signs.

[itsallavengers]

gee i don't want to bother you you can 100% ignore me but it's been a shitty week panic attacks are stronger than ever and some of my friends keep making fun of my anxiety (i downplay the whole thing so it's not really their fault) could you please give me some light hearted stevetony with italian!tony? ily so much youre a blessing for this world keep being yourself

Steve was going to be honest here: he didn’t like the sun.

 Bucky and Natasha would kill him for slandering the current Mediterranean summer weather like that, but it was true. He was an Irishman. His skin was pale and unused to anything above mild temperatures. Not to mention the fact that it was just damn uncomfortable to sit and sweat with no way to cool down all day. He wasn’t entirely sure why he’d come on this holiday with his two friends at all, actually. He didn’t like the sun, he didn’t really have the money for it, and he was currently acting as the third wheel to what could have just been Bucky & Natasha’s romantic getaway. But Bucky had asked, and said that Steve needed to take a bit of time off, so here he was. 

Sweating. 

It wasn’t so bad, though. While Nat was off looking around in a little local museum and Bucky was trying to sleep off the hangover from last night, Steve was sitting in a quiet cafe, reading his book and sipping on a latte. He was in the shade to prevent burning, and it was early enough in the morning that the heat wasn’t unbearable. It was actually quite nice.

There was also an incredibly beautiful young man sitting on a table a few feet to his right, nibbling a sandwich and working in a scruffy-looking notebook while he shot Steve occasional furtive glances. That was very nice too. 

He looked to be in his early twenties, and clearly native to the town. They hadn’t picked a touristy spot, which was good for the culture, but bad when it came to the language barrier. And the man didn’t sport any of the typical touristy items; instead lounging around in a breezy white cotton shirt with a few buttons undone, tucked into a pair of form-fitting navy slacks and then ending with some expensive-looking loafers. Atop the dark mess of curls were some aviators, and he wore a black ring on his forefinger that contrasted wonderfully against the olive of his skin. The way he held onto his pen made his fingers flex, and occasionally he would run it over his bottom lip in thought, suck it in, frown for a second before he wrote something else down. 

Yes, Steve may have been staring for a long time now. But in his defence, the man was stunning. Steve could admit he was more than a little enthralled. 

He checked his watch briefly, wondering at what point this was going to get weird and he would have to either approach the other man or leave. He could order another coffee, he supposed-- but too much caffeine gave him a headache. Maybe the man was a regular here. Steve might get to see him tomorrow, maybe smile at him or something.

“hai intenzione di stare lì a fissarmi tutto il giorno o vuoi venire qui?”

Steve blinked, watching the man as he pulled the pen from his mouth and then leaned his head backward, apparently speaking to no one in particular. But then his neck rolled, and he looked Steve right in the eye, his mouth curling into a gorgeously cheeky smile. “I take it you do not speak Italian then?”

Oh. Oh, he was talking to Steve. Fuck. Okay. He spluttered a little and then sat up, resisting the urge to push his hair back or smooth out his shirt. He was calm, he was suave. “I...no,” he stumbled, shaking his head, “was that... sorry, were you talking to me?”

The man nodded, slipping sideways on his chair and then leaning forward so his elbows rested on his knees and his hands were clasped in front of him. He was slim, but muscular. Steve could see the way his shirt smoothed over strong arms as he hunched. And now he was face on, Steve could truly get a feel for what the man looked like. Sharp jaw. Hair that fell artistically over his perfectly-proportioned face. The most beautiful hazel eyes Steve had ever goddamn seen. 

“I said, are you going to sit there and stare all day or are you planning on coming over?”

Steve realised he was being spoken to only a second after he’d stopped watching the way the man’s mouth formed the words, his accent thick, but his English perfect. Steve should probably respond to that, shouldn’t he. “Well, if it’s all the same with you,” he began, before cracking a smile and then standing up. In a few strides, he was at the man’s table, slipping into the seat opposite. He was in the sun here, but he figured that he could make the sacrifice, just this once. 

There was a second of silence, and then the man turned to face him again. His eyes were alight, shining in the sunlight and mingled with intrigue. “Was that an Irish accent I heard just then?” He asked, and God, even his voice was beautiful. Steve had never thought voices could be beautiful until today. 

He nodded. “It was. Born and raised there ‘til my mam moved us over to America. We don’t fare quite as well in this sun as you though. Hence the shade I was in.”

“Oh. We can move?” The man waved his hand backward, but Steve was quick to shake his head, simply smiling in reassurance. 

“It’s fine. I’m Steve, by the way.”

“Ah. I’m Tony.” He smiled and leaned his head into his hands, looking across the table at Steve with that fiery smile of his. His fingers traced idly over his notepad as he eyed Steve, and the writings he’d done were absolutely foreign- not even because they were written in a different language, but because they were all just complex-looking equations and diagrams and things Steve couldn’t even name. He didn’t dwell on them though. There were much more interesting things to be looking at just then. 

Leaning back in his chair and throwing an arm casually across the backrest-- and no, not to flex his muscles like Bucky tried to say whenever he did that--  he let his eyes walk slowly up and down Tony’s body, before stopping for a second at his mouth. The pen was back again. A brief thought crossed his mind, and he swallowed it down hastily. That was most definitely not appropriate for the first conversation. 

But Tony looked like he knew exactly what Steve was thinking anyway, because the smile widened and he took the pen back out from between his teeth again, spinning it in those agile fingers of his. “So tell me- what is an Irishman who doesn’t like the sun doing in Italy right now?” He asked, one eyebrow rising curiously. 

Steve explained the situation easily, talking of Bucky and Nat, the vacation they’d all planned, Steve’s need for a little break. In turn, Tony explained how he’d ended up here, him having come from America too, but much longer ago, back when he was a child and his parents had divorced. He talked emphatically and used his hands when he spoke, and Steve found himself hanging on to every word, Tony managing to make everyday events seem like film-plots. Their conversation came easily, like one would with a long-time friend, and soon Steve realised that a whole hour had passed since he and Tony had begun talking. He blinked in surprise at his watch and then felt the back of his neck. “God, I’m gonna burn,” he muttered to himself, popping his collar up. 

Tony pulled a face, clearly unimpressed by the weakness of his pale skin, but then it turned into a smile as he jumped from his seat and grabbed for Steve’s hand, tugging him upward. “I know how to cool you down,” he said enthusiastically, and Steve found himself being pulled into standing and guided out of the cafe. “How much time do you have?”

Well, Natasha wanted him to join her in the museum about ten minutes ago, so-- “no plans for the day,” he said easily, letting Tony guide them through the winding streets, their bodies brushing and their hands linked together while they navigated the people and market-stalls. Tony greeted locals as he passed them by, the Italian words rolling off his tongue easily. Steve hung on to every word he said, not knowing what he meant, but willing to listen to Tony talking like that for the rest of the goddamn day if he wanted to. It was like music. 

Eventually, Steve realised Tony was leading them to the coastline, and he frowned. “I haven’t bought any swim-trunks with me,” he said warily, but Tony just laughed, turning around and walking backwards while he looked up at Steve. 

“Just wear your boxers, they’ll dry off quickly once you get out!”

“I... I don’t--” but Tony was already leading them down a rickety set of wooden steps, winding down the cliff edge. It was a secluded place, and when they reached the bottom, Steve looked around in awe at the beautiful cove he’d been brought to. There was a small outcrop which slid off straight into the sea, and a few feet onward, a dusting of sand covered by the shade of a tree.

Tony beamed at him. “I come here to do work sometimes. Come, come. The water is lovely.” Without a moment of hesitation, he toed off his loafers and then skidded over the outcrop, where he then started to untuck his shirt from his pants. Steve could only watch, somewhat shocked at the man’s lack of embarrassment, as Tony quickly stripped down into his underwear, finally ending with chucking his sunglasses on top of the messy pile of his clothes. His eyes shone with knowing amusement as he looked over his shoulder at Steve. “My eyes are up here,” he commented, and in mortification, Steve hurriedly dragged his gaze away from Tony’s ass. 

“Sorry, sorry, I didn’t--” but Tony had already turned back around, stepping off the outcrop and then splashing into the water, being submerged immediately. He came up a second later with a gasp, slicking his curls out of his face with one hand while the other clamped around the outcrop. He swam closer to Steve, who was still stood at the sidelines, a little bamboozled by the recent events. 

“You joining me?” Tony asked, his arms folding on the rocks as he cocked his head at Steve. “I might need-- ah, come se dice.... a water-guard?”

“Lifeguard,” Steve said with a small grin, remembering the conversation he’d had earlier about his part-time job as a pool lifeguard when he’d been a kid in order to afford his first ever car. “And you seem to be doing okay right now.”

Tony hummed, and then very dramatically began to flail around, head dipping under the water. “Oh no!” He declared, “my legs have suddenly stopped working! If only I had someone trained to handle a situation like this to come in and save me!” He sunk below the water again, and Steve rolled his eyes and just tried not to laugh as his hands went to his shirt. 

If Tony didn’t seem to think this was strange, then neither did Steve. 

Once he was down to his boxer briefs, he slid in a little more calmly than Tony had done, bracing himself against the rocks and looking at the other man. Water clung to his skin, making crystal trails, pooling at the dip in his collar-bones. His hair was slicked back, but a piece had fallen into his eyes, and he tucked it behind his ear as he tread the water a few feet away. 

He was right though. It really was lovely and cool. 

Steve smiled, sinking under the surface for a moment in order to wet his hair. He could just about touch the surface, but Tony was considerably smaller than him, so he would have to stick to treading the water. Steve came back up with a gasp and then found himself laughing. “This is not how I imagined my day to go,” he admitted, watching Tony’s face soften. 

Then, slowly, he swam forward, cutting through the water and then settling a hand on Steve’s shoulder softly. It slipped across the damp skin, and Tony watched his own fingers as they trailed across Steve’s pale shoulders. “Me neither,” Tony admitted softly, glancing up at Steve through his thick lashes, “but I’m not going to complain. I met a very hot man and got him out of his clothes in under two hours.”

That made Steve laugh. Never in a million years would he have done this back in America. Not like he even could, really. The Hudson hardly counted as a romantic spot for a swim with the person you’d only met once. But everyone said Europeans were very free-spirited. And from what Steve could see, and, uh, feel, that certainly seemed the case. Tony swam a little closer, his other hand finding Steve’s neck, winding around the side of it delicately and pulling himself in until they were chest to chest. Steve curled his own hand around the other man’s waist, taking a small breath. He wasn’t sure he’d ever been quite as affected by someone as he was with Tony. Not in his whole life. 

“I want to kiss you,” Tony said, his words lilted with the accent, his skin glittering in the sunlight, and it was so damn strange for Steve to think of the fact that Tony had almost grown up in New York as the heir to a huge business like he’d spoken of earlier, all slick and hard-lined and American. This just seemed like it was where Tony belonged, far more than that life ever would be. 

Steve smiled, their noses touching. His hand rose from the water, the sound tinkling melodically, and he gently took Tony’s chin in his hand, tilting it up a little more. “I want to kiss you too,” he admitted, “I want to do a lot of things, actually.”

“Hmm?” Tony’s voice was low, warm, suggestive. “You said you have no plans. I don’t either.” He dipped forward, giving Steve the barest brush of lips before pulling away a fraction again.”You can do whatever you want, tesoro.”

Wow. Those words went straight down south, and Steve swallowed, before dipping down and closing the gap between them hastily. The water swirled around them, Tony draping himself onto Steve as they embraced, and vaguely he realised that this wasn’t a private cove and anyone could walk by if they wanted, but it was still difficult to keep his actions even remotely clean when he had a pretty much naked and willing and wet Tony in his arms, sucking on his bottom lip while his hands worked over Steve’s arms. He tasted like coffee and smelled like apples, and his mouth was a devil, licking into him, nipping and sucking and making little noises when Steve touched him in the right places. It was slow, easy, relaxed. The sun shone through the clear blue sky, lighting up Tony’s face as he leaned back against the rock and shut his eyes happily. Steve wanted to work him over. Wanted to find out what his favourite colour was and how he looked spread out on a bed. Just seeing him like this was driving Steve a little mad. God only knew what would happen when they got home.

He was going to have to do a lot of apologising to Bucky and Nat tonight, because he didn’t think they were going to be seeing anything of him for the rest of the day. 

Or the vacation.

-

ao3 / donate to my kofi

[camillemontespan]

her one constant [part ten: head vs heart] [drake the bodyguard AU]

Master List

A/N: Such a cliche of a chapter but I don’t care, I enjoyed writing it! And it follows canon but with a twist! :)

Big thanks to @jovialyouthmusic​ for your pointers! Very helpful and appreciated x

@ibldw-main​​​​ @jovialyouthmusic​​​​ @katedrakeohd​​​​ @moonlightgem7​​​​ @pug-bitch​​​​ @princessleac1​​​​ @burnsoslow​​​​ @notoriouscs​​​​ @dcbbw​​​​ @saivilo​​​​ @rainbowsinthestorm​​​​ @marshmallowsandfire​​​​ @marshmallowsaremyfavorite​​​​ @gardeningourmet​​​​ @kingliam2019​​ @nomadics-stuff​​ @kimmiedoo5​ ***********************

The following morning, Drake and Camille joined each other in the Manor ballroom for self defence class. Drake had instructed Camille to wear something comfortable. 

He wished he hadn't. 

She was wearing tight black leggings and a pink sports bra that showed her toned stomach. Her hair was pulled into a ballerina bun. 

Drake swallowed hard. Of course she looked good in gym gear. 

'So, what are we doing today?' Camille asked eagerly. 

Drake chuckled at her enthusiasm. 'We're going to learn basic self defence skills so that if you are ever in a situation where you feel unsafe or are threatened, you can hold your own.'

Camille nodded. 'Sounds good. What first?' 

Drake smiled. 'How's your punch?' 

Camille blinked. 'Um, I don't know.. I've never had to punch someone before.' 

Drake smirked. 'I had a feeling.' 

Camille rolled her eyes but smiled. 'Okay, so I'm a really nice person. I settle disputes with communication.' 

'God you're such a Duchess,' Drake teased. 

Camille giggled. 'And I also settle disputes with a bottle of wine.' 

Drake laughed. 'Maybe not a typical Duchess..' 

Camille gave him a wink and followed him to the centre of the room. She was trying her best not to eye fuck him but it was proving incredibly difficult due to the fact he was wearing a black gym vest that showed off his broad chest and muscles. His arms were corded with veins. Camille pushed down the thought: God I wanna lick one.

Drake cleared his throat and stood before her. He looked powerful. 

'So,' he said. 'Punch me.' 

Camille blinked in shock. 'Uh.. No.' 

Drake sighed. 'Look, just punch me.

'No!' Camille protested, stepping back in horror. 'I can't punch you!' 

'I need to see how you do it,' Drake explained. 'It's a basic move.' 

'It's a shitty move,' Camille corrected him. 'Drake, I'd love to punch the Applewood intruder but I don't wanna punch you.'

Drake pressed his fingers on either side of his nose, trying to gather patience. 'Camille, this is self defence. This is for your own safety. If I'm not around, you need to be able to look after yourself. I can't walk around knowing you can't defend yourself while I am the person who can help you. So, punch me.' 

Camille scrutinised his face. There was a long silence until she said simply, ' No. '

'Why not?!' Drake burst out, frustrated. 

'Because you're handsome and I don't want to give you a black eye!' Camille cried. 'And you're my friend!' 

Drake sighed. 'You won't punch me hard enough to give me a black eye,' he told her. 'Camille, punch me.'

'No.' 

'Punch me.' 

'No.' 

'Camille, for the love of God, fucking punch - FUCK!' 

He reeled back clutching his face. Camille stared at him with wide eyes, holding her painful hand to her chest as she watched him react to the sudden punch that she dealt him. 

'Drake?' 

He let out a deep breath and opened his eyes to give her a warm smile. A bruise was blooming around his eye but he didn't mind. Not one bit. 

'Not that difficult, huh? ,' he asked her softly. 

*********************

'Right, put these on.' 

Camille stared at the stilettos in Drake's hands with her eyebrow raised. 'Drake, when did you break into my dressing room?' 

'This morning,' Drake said casually. 'I chose your favourites.' 

Camille took the Manolos and tried to hide the blush on her cheeks. He knew about her favourite heels. Was there anything about her he didn't know? 

She slipped them onto her feet and swayed her body from side to side. Drake watched her, smiling at how cute she looked. 

'Okay, so you're wearing these because you tend to wear heels on a daily basis,' he said. 'But these heels are your secret weapons.' 

Camille let out a gasp. 'Oh my god, can I be like Catwoman?' 

Drake chuckled. 'Sure, why not?' 

'Does that make you Batman?' Camille teased. 'I mean, you are a loner. You wear black on a daily basis. Your voice is deep. You work alone. But are you Christian Bale Batman or Lego Batman? Lego Batman is the best Batman..' 

Drake rolled his eyes, enjoying her banter. He moved to stand behind her and placed his hands on either side of her hips, making Camille stop chattering. 

'What are you doing?' she whispered, turning her head to the side. 

Drake smirked. 'Relax, Camille,' he murmured, his breath hot against her neck. 

He closed his eyes for a brief moment. He could smell her perfume and her hair. Memories of the night when they kissed filled his mind. Hands. Silk. Coconut. Perfume. 

'So,' he croaked. 'You're gonna stab your heel back onto my shoe -' 

'No!' she gasped. 

Drake reached out to place his hand over her mouth, shutting her up instantly. 

'While you stab the heel down, elbow me in the gut,' he instructed. 'Fast movement, don't give room for any delay or they will know what you're doing to do.' 

Camille's tongue shot out to lick his palm. 

'Gah, Camille!' Drake groaned, pulling his hand away. 

Camille giggled and turned to face him, a mischievous smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. 'Fast movement, don't give room for any delay or they will know what you're going to do, right?' she teased, raising her eyebrow. 

Drake chuckled. 'I can't believe you licked my hand. Such a child..' 

Camille stuck her tongue out, proving his point. Drake shook his head and gestured for her to turn around. Camille obeyed and turned. 

'I'm going to grab your arm,' he told her. 'And you are going to strike the heel down and elbow me at the same time. Can you do it?' 

'I don't want to..' 

'Camille.' 

'But I need to learn so fine!' Camille said quickly. 

Drake nodded and took her arm, being gentle. He wasn't going to hurt her. 

His fingers felt like fire against her skin. Camille felt goosebumps blossom on her skin. She hoped Drake wouldn't notice. 

'Now.. Heel,' he said. 

Camille brought her heel down, making Drake wince in pain but he didn't let go of her arm. Her elbow stabbed into his gut, making him let out a groan. He let go of her arm instantly. 

'Well done,' he finally said once he recovered. 'Manolos are your weapon of choice now, okay?' 

Camille grinned. 'I knew I had a good excuse to buy them.' 

****************

'Last move,' Drake said, facing her. Camille threw her shoulders back and started to jog on the spot. She was filled with adrenaline now. Kicking ass was fun - though shame it had to be Drake getting his ass whipped. 

'Knee me in the crotch.' 

Camille stopped jogging. 'No,' she said. 'No, no, no -' 

'Camille, as a woman, you need to kick dick head men in the balls if they try to hurt you,' Drake told her. 'Balls are precious. It fucking hurts. I've not worn anything to protect myself because I need to see how hard you do it.'

'But it'll hurt you!' 

'I'll live.' 

Camille sighed but stepped closer. Drake braced himself. 

The things I do for her.. 

She kneed him in the crotch. 

Drake fell to his knees, holding his groin. His eyes watered as he felt pain fill every nerve. 

'You.. Did.. Good..' he choked out before falling on his back. 

Camille raced to his side and fell to her knees beside him. Her hair fell like a curtain from her bun, so that all Drake could smell was coconut and all he could see was her brown eyes with golden flecks. 

'I'm so sorry..' Camille whispered, reaching out to place her hand on his cheek. Her hand was cool against his skin. Drake closed his eyes, allowing her cool skin to soothe him. 

'I asked you to do it,' he croaked. 'No harm done.' 

Camille grimaced but she didn't protest. She knew this was Drake's job. He had to protect her and teaching her self defence fell into that category. But that didn't mean that sat right with her. 

Drake awkwardly sat up, leaning back on his elbows. He looked at Camille now, taking in her regretful expression. 

'Camille, I'm okay,' he murmured. 'Honestly. Stop feeling guilty.' 

Camille let out a shakey breath. She looked down at her hands, wringing them together. Drake's heart softened more. 

'Camille, look at me.' 

Camille sniffled. 

Alarmed, Drake reached out to rest his finger under her chin so he could raise her face up. Their eyes locked. Hers were filled with tears. 

'What's wrong?' he asked gently. 

'I know you're teaching me self defence,' Camille said, her voice trembling, 'but the idea that you could get hurt protecting me.. It really scares me, Drake. I can't.. I can't bear the idea. Like it kills me having to hurt you during this lesson. But what happens if you get hurt in real life? I can't stand to think about it.'

She rubbed her eyes harshly. Drake caught at her wrists, forcing her to look at him. 

' Camille,' he said steadily. 'I am your bodyguard, first and foremost. My job is to be your human shield. If you are in danger, it is my job to get you out of it, no matter the consequences.' 

Camille's eyes bore into his. 'You are so much more than a human shield, Drake,' she told him, her voice growing fierce. 'Your life has no less equal value than mine -' 

'But it's something I will happily give away if it meant you're safe,' Drake interrupted. 'Camille, I knew when I became a bodyguard that I could get hurt or even die in duty. But I don't care. And when it comes to you, I will protect you with my life. Because its my duty but also -' 

Camille blinked. 'Also?' she echoed. 

Drake kept his eyes on hers. His heart was hammering inside his chest, threatening to explode from the way she was looking at him and the thoughts going through his mind. 

'But also because you are the single most important thing in my life,' Drake finally said. 'I'll be damned if I let anything take that away from me. If that means getting hurt in the process, I don't give a shit. I'd never hesitate to take a bullet for you, Camille. So you better get used to the possibility-' 

Camille's mouth crashed against Drake's. 

He let out a surprised gasp as her lips pressed hard against his. When he realised what was happening, he automatically reached out to pull her into him, his hands spreading across her back. Camille kissed him hungrily, as if she had been starving for years and only now had found sustenance. 

'Camille..' he said against her lips, his voice like a warning. Be normal. Be normal. 

'Don't talk,' she whispered against his mouth, drowning out the warnings in his mind. 

'Yes ma'am,' Drake growled. 

He pulled her down onto him so he was lying on the floor. Camille straddled him, her kisses urgent as her lips travelled down his jaw towards his throat, kisses filled with heat and longing. 

Camille could feel his erection through his sweatpants. Testing the waters, she rolled her hips against his. 

Drake let out a visceral groan that rumbled from the pit of his stomach. Camille smiled like she had discovered a dirty little secret.

He rolled her over suddenly so he was suspended above her. His hands rested on either side of her head, supporting his weight, as he kissed her neck. He nipped at her throat with his teeth, making her curl her fingers into his hair. 

'I like self defence classes..' she whispered in his ear. 

Drake pulled back to give her a smirk. 'Oh really?' he asked. 'How about this?' 

He pinned her arms above her head, holding her down. Camille arched her back as Drake's lips kissed her collarbone and jaw. As he kissed her, Camille's hand roamed down his chest to the waistband of his sweats. Her hand brushed his crotch. 

Drake stilled. 

Camille blinked, sensing a change in the atmosphere. 'Drake?' 

'We should stop..' Drake whispered, his eyes dark as he looked down at her. 'Before we go too far.' 

Camille looked down at the tent situation in Drake's crotch region. 'But its right there.' 

Drake chuckled despite the awkward situation. 'We agreed to be professional,' he said. 'Be normal, whatever that means. Right now, we are doing the opposite.' 

Camille cleared her throat and sat up. She arranged her hair, now a tousled mess, back into a neat bun. 

'You were just saying all these things..' she muttered. 'I overstepped. I'm sorry.'

'Don't be,' Drake said. 'I meant every single thing.' 

An awkward silence. Drake sighed, wishing things weren't so complicated with them. 

'I'd never hesitate to take a bullet for you too,' Camille whispered, referring to their previous conversation, her eyes meeting his. 'I hope you know that. I care about you, Drake. I know how complicated our situation is and I'm sorry I've made it worse by kissing you.. My heart overruled my head.' 

Drake smiled weakly. He reached out to take her hand and squeezed it gently. 

'I've got to use my head when it comes to you,' he told her. 'I can't let feelings cloud my judgement. But that doesn't mean my heart isn't beating. It is, Camille.'

Camille brought her hand out to rest over Drake's heart which was indeed beating hard in his chest. 

'I understand,' she murmured. 

Drake's heart quickened, each beat betraying his determination to take it slow and be normal. 

I love her. I love her. I love her. 

**********************

The following night detailed yet another ball at the palace. Camille was sick of balls but as the newest Duchess, she had to go to the opening of an envelope. 

She sat beside Drake in the car as Geoffrey drove them through the city streets towards the palace. 

They were both acting 'normal'. There was no awkwardness between them after the kissing during their self defence lesson - far from it. 

Drake and Camille were perfecting their performance of 'normal'. 

To pass the time on the way to the palace, Drake and Camille were playing Rock Paper Scissors. 

'Damn it!' Drake swore. 

Camille let out a laugh. 'Everytime with the scissors, Drake!' 

Drake groaned. 'You and your damn rock.' 

Camille giggled and tucked her hair behind her ear. Drake smiled at her unguarded moment when she was just being free and silly. Camille savoured moments to be silly now - her role as a Duchess meant she had to hide part of her personality, something which she was still trying to get used to. 

They arrived at the palace and as usual, Drake got out of the car first to ward off any photographers. He opened her door and shielded her from the cameras, making sure she felt comfortable enough to proceed. 

Camille gave him her usual smile to show she was ready. 

'Let's go, kid,' Drake whispered, giving her a wink. 

*********************

Camille helped herself to a glass of champagne, feeling Drake's eyes on her as she did so. His eye never strayed from her whenever they went to these balls.

He was the reason why she could summon the courage to set foot in this ballroom again. 

'So we meet again,' a sleek and revoltingly familiar voice sounded in her ear. 

It was Leo. 

'Your Highness,' Camille greeted him, curtseying to him. She resisted the urge to vomit as she played the part of the Duchess of Valtoria. 

Leo smirked. 'After last time, I'm surprised you would even curtsey to me. I admit, I was very rude and inappropriate. So sorry.' 

He didn't sound sorry. Not one bit. 

Camille smiled thinly. 'It's water under the bridge,' she said. 'I have to speak to Liam, good to see you.' 

She turned to leave but was stopped by Leo grabbing her arm. Camille's breath caught. She could see Drake standing in the corner, his eyes furious. Any moment now, Drake would leave his post and rescue her. 

Camille closed her eyes. One day, Drake might not be in the room. He might be somewhere different. He wasn't in the room at Applewood. Camille was alone with a man who was holding her too tightly, asking for too much, demanding everything. 

Enough now. 

Camille's heel stamped down onto Leo's foot and her elbow jabbed him in the gut. 

'Fuck!' Leo cried out, letting her go. Camille saw the nobles around them turn to look at them, curious at the disturbance. Without hesitation, Camille 'accidently' spilled her champagne down Leo's chest, acting as if that had been the reason for Leo to shout out. 

'Soooo sorry Your Highness!' she cried. Leo had a face like thunder but Camille didn't care. She picked up two glasses of champagne and strutted away from him, her head held high. She looked over at Drake with a triumphant smile on her face and could see that Drake's expression reflected hers. 

His eyes sparkled with joy as he watched Camille regain some of her much needed confidence. 

Camille reached him and passed him a glass of champagne. 'Thank you,' she whispered, giving him a warm smile. Drake laughed and took the champagne glass, tossing the bubbly drink down his throat and grimacing at the taste. But the sickening taste faded quickly as his joy at seeing Camille free and happy enveloped him. 

Leo watched the Duchess of Valtoria and her bodyguard stand too close together, sharing smiles that showed a hint of something more. He glowered as the Duchess threw her head back as she laughed at something the bodyguard had said. She turned to leave him, squeezing his hand before she went, and moved across the room to speak to Maxwell, but Leo's eyes slid across to the bodyguard. 

He was watching her with a hopeless expression on his face. Hopeless and lovesick, that's what it looked like. 

Leo clutched his champagne glass, feeling revulsion in the pit of his stomach as he put two and two together. The Duchess wasn't returning his affections because she was close with her bodyguard. No wonder Leo hadn't been able to break through to her. A literal human shield was in the way. 

Leo would fix that. 

[progressivedreamings]

Can I request alpha/beta/omega society

I ended up writing too much again and not enough. Let me know if anyone is interested in me continuing this :’) This was my first attempt at writing an Omegaverse. 

__________________________

It was snowing heavily outside, with the low hum of the storm giving little to no comfort to Bakugou who found himself clinging to the dark sheets on his bed, tempted to hide under them, cursing low under his breath. It was day 2 of the storm, and they were basically in a lockdown in this low-quality hotel. News earlier also mentioned that the storm didn't look like it would pass anytime soon, and warned everyone to not leave their homes. Fuck him and his luck, really.

What was supposed to be a half-a-day job for him and Kirishima ended up being much more troublesome than they expected it. They were to find out the hiding place for a team of villains and detain them, but what they were not informed of was that the team also had a villain with a barrier quirk that more or less neutralized Bakugou's explosive attacks, so they highly depended on Kirishima's ability to break through it, which in turn forced Bakugou to play defence. He was going to have a talk with the organization that assigned them once he got back.

But first... The storm.

The worst part wasn't that his return was delayed due to unforeseen circumstances. But because he was too fucking conceited to think nothing would go wrong, he didn't pack enough.

And he didn't mean clothes by that.

See, Bakugou Katsuki had a secret. A secret that he didn't particularly care much about but would rather hide to not disappoint anyone. And disappoint, it probably would, in this world where 'alphas' were valued where 'omegas' were looked down upon. He knew that he had a chance to prove the world wrong, he could prove that alphas weren't any more powerful than omegas, they just had more opportunities to grow because of how society was developed or whatever. But he just couldn't fucking bother to be the poster child of example for it. He wanted to be the number one hero, not number one hero on the 'top 10 heroes you wouldn't believe were omegas'' chart.

So he hid. He depended on suppressants and manipulated schedules around his heats and made sure no one had a chance to figure it out. And now, it was all at risk, because he was too conceited to think nothing would go wrong, even though he knew his heat was cutting it really close to this particular job. He had just thought he'd be over with it before taking that time off for himself, one last job before a week alone where he fought off his nature.

Now he was alone in his hotel room, with no suppressants left, and no chance to walk out and buy them either. He could feel his heat beginning to take over his senses, urging him to find something familiar. His levels of anxiety were already high, and now they were slowly peaking. The unfamiliar room and the loud noises of the storm outside weren't helping. Bakugou knew he needed help, but damn if he was going to ask for it. This was fine. He could suppress it. What was those breathing exercises? In...Hold...Out...

His attempts at keeping himself calm were disturbed at the urgent knocks at his door, undoing the minimal work his breathing did on his stress. At the edge, he stared daggers at the door, as if that would've helped. But he was a hero, and this could have been an emergency. Pushing the blanket away from himself, he sat up, distracted by how shaky his hands were. Pathetic.

Making fists with both his hands, Bakugou forced himself to stand up, realizing that he was further gone down than he realized, without the cover of the blanket he felt the cold hit him strongly, making him shiver. He was running a fever. He knew what was coming next and wasn't looking forward to it. But first, he had to deal with the unwelcome urgency expecting him at the other side of the door.

"Fuck. I'm coming, hold your horses."

Unlocking the door, Bakugou opened the door with less force he would've if he'd been not currently plagued by his own biological needs. He held back a groan at his own weakness, fingers gripping the knob tightly as his eyes meet the person who interrupted his ... whatever he was doing. And suddenly he was being pushed back inside the room.

"Shitty hair, what the fu-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Kirishima had already locked the door and turned to him with a gaze that shot fireballs that could rival Bakugou's explosions.

"That's my line!" He angrily whispers, but it has the effect of a shout, putting more stress on him suddenly. Bakugou feels his knees giving up on him at the intimidating anger of an alpha, his eyes widening in shock. There was no mistaking the power dynamics in the room that's fallen victim to the uncomfortable silence now.

Suddenly the air became lighter, and Bakugou felt his heartbeat slow down. He couldn't look up to face him, but he knew it was Kirishima who realized his anger was making things worse.

Oh. Of course. Kirishima was a good alpha, wasn't he? Of course, he would know to take immediate action, regardless of the situation. It made Bakugou angrier at himself, for showing himself so vulnerable to the one person who always admired him from the beginning- and now he was going to lose it, wasn't he? He felt like tearing up, unable to move, unable to react.

"I came because I could sense a distressed omega," Kirishima spoke, this time softer, a tone that immediately helped calm down Bakugou. Even if he wanted to be alone, right now, Kirishima was the only familiar thing around him and in a way that also helped make things better. In its own sick way. "Katsuki..." Kirishima began to speak again, and Bakugou knew the question before it was even formed. "Are you an omega?"

Despite his obvious efforts in staying calm to not send Bakugou in another wave of panic, Bakugou could sense the underlined tones of shock and disbelief hidden beneath the layers of balance.

"The fuck are you asking obvious questions for." Bakugou breathed out, his fists cracking with the hints of small blasts. Kirishima, still standing up and looking down at him as the blonde refused to meet his eyes, down on his knees, defeated and embarrassed.

"Fuck." Kirishima breathed out, but without any venom behind it unlike Bakugou expected. He sounded more worried. Then again, who could blame him. And yet he appreciated the lack of mocking words, painted with disbelief and superiority. That wasn't Kirishima, but he sure was glad to be proven right.

"Bakugou... What can I do?"

As expected, Kirishima's aura was already protective and comforting- and Bakugou wanted nothing more than to crawl back under the unfamiliar blanket and drag the other in with him. Cling onto what's familiar, to be taken down and calmed down. Allow himself to be vulnerable around someone he could trust. And yet Bakugou couldn't put it into words, feeling his body heat take over his expression instead.

"Leave me alone." He spoke, hating the way he sounded so weak and unwilling. He forced himself to push himself up, half dragging his body to sit on the bed. From where he was, he could see the expression on the other's face. Kirishima looked worried and calculating, but there was no dominating presence that controlled Bakugou's instincts anymore.

No wonder it took a lot of effort, alpha's, while strong, usually tend to lose control of their nature around an omega in their heat - another reason why omegas were so looked down upon, almost considered a menace that interrupted the nature of things. Yet another reason why Bakugou was usually so careful.

Instead, Kirishima sat down at Bakugou's feet, at a respectful distance. "Katsuki... I can't do that." The other frowned, sparkles of danger around his fingers gently burning the tips of his fingers. "The fact that I was able to sense your distress means the others in this hotel have too. I'm going to assume you don't have your suppressants with you." Kirishima spoke softly, which helped relax his heartbeats, urging him to nod an affirmation.

"Okay..."

If he wasn't currently focusing on keeping himself calm, Bakugou would've appreciated the other even more. Despite suddenly being faced with a challenge (and what a challenge it was), Kirishima kept his cool (for the most part), and Bakugou could see the other in a new light. He always knew the effect the Red Riot had on other people (and him, but that's another story). He was charming, kind and safe. Someone you could depend on. And now Bakugou was experiencing it first hand.

( "It's not manly," Red Riot explained it once to someone who curiously wanted to know how come he's one of the leading heroes who is preaching equality for Alpha's and Omega's, despite being an Alpha himself, "to separate people based on their secondary gender. It doesn't matter whether you're an Alpha, a Beta or an Omega. Strength and power have nothing to do with it. Alpha's who can't support equality, are the worst in my eyes." )

And he really had meant it, didn't he? It was obvious from the way he was looking at him now, calmly measuring the possibilities of any risk and trying to find the best way to protect Bakugou - because after all, that's his instinct and he could deny it only so far.

"I could stand outside your door." He finally spoke softly, "Guard it."

Bakugou worried, feeling the strange hand of anxiety grip his chest and tighten around his lungs. "No," he choked up before he could stop himself. Suddenly his body shook with the fear of missing Kirishima's presence and being alone in a room with nothing familiar to him, nothing soothing to keep him calm. Kirishima was his anchor.

"I can't leave you alo-" the other, unaware of the inner turmoil of his best friend, tried to resist before Bakugou cut him off.

"Stay."

He could see the expression of the redhead change immediately, a flash of possessiveness briefly passing through his eyes. "Katsuki I... I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why the fuck not?!"

"Just because."

Because, Kirishima thought, even if he had the patience of a saint (which he didn't by the way), the longer he stayed in the room, the more he was being charmed by the distinctive smell of something that could only be described as Bakugou's manliness. Part aphrodisiac, part omega and perhaps something a little more that he's never sensed before. It was intoxicating and he could feel sweat beads forming on his forehead trying to resist leaning into Bakugou's scent glands.

"What the fuck shitty hair?! What kind of shitty excuse is that?!"

But of course, Bakugou would know nothing about it now, would he? And the challenge paired with the current situation triggered Kirishima's alpha instincts too finally, and yet not so much that he lost control, only that he found himself raising his voice just enough to match the other's.

"Unless you want me, you don't want me to stay here with you Katsuki! I'm only human!"

"Oh."

A heavy silence, but not particularly an uncomfortable one passed as they kept their gaze locked on each other, a silent agreement and a silent conversation.

"Yeah, so-" Kirishima began, beginning to stand up when Bakugou's voice cut him.

"Stay." His voice didn't waver, but there was a slight change in the air that neither of them could put their finger on. Kirishima paused in the awkward position, staring at Bakugou as if to tell whether or not he was sane.

"I'm not that far into my heat, so I can properly consent. This is me consenting." Bakugou blushed, hoping that he didn't misjudge Kirishima's earlier words. After noticing the passionate flash in the other's gaze, he let out a relieved sigh - he hadn't. "If... If you're also consenting." He added, slightly more bravely. "I wouldn't mind... your help." He finished lamely, wanting to punch himself.

"I am." Kirishima impatiently replied, then blushed in a way that Bakugou thought was adorable.

[kabhi-haath-pakad-k-tu-mera]

The Circle Of Life

A Harry Potter Fanfiction

Death doesn't seem so imposing when you know that you're dying--when you realised it a long time ago. Harry's journey as he deals with Cancer. Diary fic. Haphne. IWSC Season 1 Final entry. Hogwarts JP!

Written for the International Wizarding Schools Championship Season 1

Round: Finals!!!

Theme: Dittany which means healing, mentally, emotionally and physically and also injury (as you can't be healed if you're not injured). The theme is shown here as Harry trying his best to recover from cancer.

Year: Year 7

School: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. JP from Hogwarts!

Prompts: Potions (object) [additional]

Emerald (colour) [additional]

St. Mungo's (setting) [main]

Special Rule and Link: The special rule here is used by Showing 'birth' both Harry's own birthday, and his grandchild's birth. As for the link, In this fic the link is again Harry's birthday, as we're showing his feelings on his birthdays through different stages of his life, this being the last one. Mentions of infertility.

Word Count: 2190

***

14th January 2060

8:35 p.m.

Diary,

Death doesn't seem so imposing when you know that you're dying—when you realised it a long time ago. It's funny, really. We know we're all dying but rarely does it ever truly sink in. But in my case, I've had the pleasure of having realised this way back at the age of seventeen. I hadn't thought I'd get out of the Forbidden Forest alive again, especially if I were meant to die in the end, and so I had submitted to my sentence. I was as surprised as anyone at my continued living, I assure you, and with the amount of downright stupid things I've done in my lifetime—fighting Voldemort some five different times, riding thestrals, wandering into acromantula nests, and then contemplating becoming an auror before Daphne talked me out of it—I've already outlived my expectations, so I don't think it bothers me too much that death has come to claim me now.

Daphne and Hermione would both glare at me for saying that probably, and Sothis, Jacob, and Lily would frown. Acquiring blood cancer does not necessarily mean death, especially since it's a muggle disease, but at the age of 80, I have my doubts. Wizards might not be as affected by muggle ailments, but this is cancer. It's been nearly ten days since I've written to you, as you might have noticed, and that was because of the numerous tests they conducted and reconducted at St. Mungo's. I've had to quit teaching at Hogwarts because of this accursed illness. Those of my family who haven't had much exposure to the muggle world didn't realise just how serious cancer was, and they were rather unconcerned—it's a muggle disease, wizards always recover from muggle diseases—but Hermione knew exactly what it was, and how serious, and she passed this information to both Ron and Daphne—even when I begged her not to—who told others. So now, everyone is extra polite around me, and extra careful. I hate how everyone looks at me like I might shatter at any moment. Even Malfoy's started acting differently again, and it's just so frustrating!

I just want everyone to get back to normal.

Harry James Potter

***

8th February 2060

8:15 p.m.

Diary,

My health has gotten worse instead of better. Last week, I began coughing violently and realised that I was coughing blood. My body hurt. I also had a temperature and felt dizzy. Daphy took me to St. Mungo's as soon as she saw my pitiful state. I was kept there for a whole day while the healers ran tests and took samples. While the wizarding world doesn't use injections, their methods of extracting blood hurt just as much. The healers only let Daphy see me during around dinnertime after they thought me stable enough. Daphy was by my side the entire night after that, holding my hand, helping me eat, and then finally settling me down for the night. I hadn't seen her that tired in a long time, diary, and it was ... unsettling. I wonder if I'm being too selfish in not really caring if this cursed disease takes me down. Daphne would be shattered.

Hermione and Ron were there at the hospital before I woke up the next day, considerably late and still feeling pretty shitty. The two of them and Daphne were talking to a healer, and none of them had realised I was awake. I could only catch a few phrases of their conversation—flu, immune system, careful—but the grim expressions on their faces told me that whatever it was, it wasn't good. The healers sent me home with instructions to take some fifty odd potions every eight hours and to exercise regularly, but not so much that I overexert myself.

I was too tired the next three days to pick up a pen to write, let alone go for a walk. But yesterday, after Daphy and I got back from the walk she had coaxed me into going for, we came home to a pleasant surprise in the form of Lily and Sebastian. Lily has always been big on surprises, but the one she gave us yesterday was the best surprise I have gotten in a long time. They're expecting their first child in July! After a number of failed tries, Lily and Sebastian had both given up on trying to have children, but that right there was proof that miracles do happen. Daphne was so happy, she had tears in her eyes. So did I. For a moment there, I think all of us present in the room were a little misty-eyed. It took a little effort to digest that bit of news, happy as it was because our sweet little witch had grown so old so fast. Wasn't it just yesterday that I had first held her in my arms? She was finally going to be a mother now! I am happy as can be, of course, but I wonder if I'll be able to live long enough to see my grandchild in this life.

I really hope I do.

Harry James Potter

***

18th March 2060

8:00 p.m.

Diary,

I don't think I'd be able to stand a single more piteous look directed toward me, even if my situation is miserable. I feel tired all the time now, even though I've been taking all my potions on time and have done all the exercises that the healers had told me to do. My body still hurts sometimes, and I feel utterly useless. The healers in St. Mungo's still take samples of my blood to see if my condition is getting any better.

They don't say so to my face, but I'm only getting worse. It is clear by the looks they direct towards me, in how Ron and Hermione both always say goodbye to me at the end of the day as if it were their last goodbye, in how Daphne strokes my cheek at night when we're both in bed and tells me to stay strong for her. I wish they'd just tell me, so I don't have to go through everything pretending to be blissfully unaware.

Sothis and Jacob came to see me today. I hadn't seen them since my birthday last year. Sothis lives in America now with his family and practices as a curse breaker while Jacob has been wandering around the world with Lorcan Lovegood. They were upset when they'd been told of my cancer, of course, but today I truly saw how much my sickness really affected my family. If I had been my old self, I would not have wanted them to see me like this, but times have changed. At least I'm not in St. Mungo's because I wasn't able to fight a common cold.

I really do want to get better.

Harry James Potter

***

21st May 2060

8:40 p.m.

Diary,

Things have begun to look up for me now, and I feel I've gotten a little better for the past few weeks. I don't feel as tired anymore, and Daphy does not have to force me to get out of the house. Daphy could not be happier about this. I've begun working on a book to keep me occupied. This was Hermione's idea—to write a book on Defence Against the Dark Arts from my experience as a professor and what I learnt when I was still studying for it. That I have fought the supreme leader of the dark is an added bonus. I think the one single perk of being sick is that the children come to see me more often. The others came around too, recently—the Weasleys, Neville, Luna. It felt nice to see them all after so long, but it felt a little disconcerting that this might be the last time we saw each other. I suppose that was the reason they made the visit in the first place, to see me again while they still could.

In other news, I am in the news again. The Daily Prophet found out about my illness somehow, and it was all anyone talked about for the last week. Daphy and Hermione both blew up over the staff of St. Mungo's because no one else would ever leak any information to the Prophet of all people. Astoria, who works there, is having the board conduct an entire investigation to find the gossip.

Lily had her first contraction while she was here with us. It was a false alarm, the baby is due in the second week of August, but it felt strange and surreal. Everyone was excited though, Lily especially, even if she complained non-stop about her backache. Things are looking up, finally, and everyone, the healers included, think that I'm going to get better quite soon.

I hope I do.

Harry James Potter

5th July 2060

8:40 p.m.

Diary,

While my health had been stable enough for the past two months and was inching towards recovery, it has now gotten worse again. The healers think that I've been exposed to an infection which my body is not able to fight off. The incessant pain, the omnipresent tiredness have both returned with assorted bottles of potions that taste like sewer water.

I was kept at St. Mungo's for a week, and the healers were still reluctant to let me go home because apparently, my immune system has become so compromised that even the mildest of bacteria or virus could be the cause of my death. It wasn't until Hermione had reasoned with them that I was more likely to be exposed to pathogens—whatever those were—in a hospital than back home that they let me go. I've been told in no uncertain terms to take all my potions on time and to get plenty of rest. The worst part is that I am to avoid the outdoors completely, so no more walks or anything. Daphne looked defeated yet determined.

When they thought I wasn't listening, they also told Daphne and Hermione to keep the visitors to a minimum, so people coming to see me is also out of the question now, although Lily did come here the other day, so I guess the kids are allowed.

I had thought I was getting better, but now ... they don't say it to my face, but their pitiful expressions make it clear that my days now are numbered. I hope I get to see my youngest grandchild before I die, though. They aren't here yet, but I love them already.

Harry James Potter

***

31st July 2060

8:45 p.m.

Diary,

It's my birthday today, but so much has changed since last year. I was teaching at Hogwarts happily. People weren't scared of sneezing around me. I was cancer free. But most importantly, I didn't have a new grandson who looked exactly like me. His eyes are the same emerald green as mine, and he has a small tuft of jet-black hair, although I really hope he has better luck with it than I have had.

From what Daphy tells me, Lily had been visiting when her water broke. I don't know the exact details of what happened since I had been in St. Mungo's since the past week, but everyone panicked except Daphne, who had gone home for a while to shower and eat after leaving me in Hermione's care. She calmly called for a mediwitch from St. Mungo's and made preparations to transport Lily to the hospital for the delivery.

The baby was two weeks early, but still very healthy. He had curious green eyes, and the memory of how he looked at me with interest when I first held him is still fresh in my mind. I did finally get to meet my grandchild—Lily's first child—and I couldn't possibly be happier. If I were to die now, after I've seen my grandchild, I'd die happy. My princess had finally started a family of her own, and the baby looks just like me. He's a tiny and beautiful baby, and I am so proud. Lily and Sebastian are both beaming. They named him after me and Sebastian's father—Harry Alex Grahams.

I love him.

Harry James Potter

***

Daphne closed the diary shut on the morning of August the 2nd with tears rolling down her eyes. She put it beside her on the padded carpet she was sitting on and drew her knees closer to her. Harry had to go, leave, just as Lily's first child was born, just as he had turned 81. It was painfully sad. Lily had cried through the last night, and it had taken Daphne all she had in her to not join her in it and to comfort her instead. She took in a deep breath. Harry was right, though. The child was beautiful and looked painfully like him. At least she knew that he had died painlessly in his sleep. Happy. Content. His suffering had ended, and he had had the joy of holding his grandson in his arms. He had been happy. That was all that mattered.

[atragedycalledmom]

why the fuck cant everyone just get the fuck along?

I found myself spiralling way out of control trying to find a way to keep my family together. My parents and my Siblings!! I find myself in the position where I have a decent understanding of both sides. I’ve been a rebellious child and i am also a parent myself. And family, rather the idea of it, has been deep rooted in me like it almost feels like one of those essential organs without which, it means certain death. But I live countries away from the four of them and them being locked in there, thanks to the pandemic have resulted in every problem over the years resurfacing and exaggerating itself like a million folds. no one in the house can stand the other. There’s mom on one side, brother and sister on the other and then there’s dad trying to do what i do - keeping peace - and failing miserably. 

Mom with her signature defence mech. - “oh so all of you have a problem with me so i’ll leave” - LEAVE IN THE MIDDLE OF A PANDEMIC - abandoning as always. Sister with her “I’m not going to sit down and let her make me feel like shit all the time and I’m going to make her own up” - also none of them actually ever own up (biggest part of the problem). - also mom and sis (epicentre of the quake) are basically the same - wallowing in the past and constantly blaming and refusing to let go and move on. Brother with his “I’m all chill but just don’t make noise outside my door and let me be” which I guess is okay until he gets involved in and gets carried away too. And finally,  dad with the “yes we have shitty kids” + “yes your mum is nuts”

And all I want is for them to grow the fuck up, and stop wasting fucks on things that don’t matter and learn to stand and face each other and fix things and take responsibility for their own doings and learn to manage themselves better and treat each other with respect. To sum it up - I JUST WANT THEM TO GET THE FUCK ALONG.

But this has consumed me whole. I feel so at loss of peace because i find myself helpless trying to talk to them and persuade them and understand them and get to understand each other. I realised that talking to them is only making me worse but I feel like I’ll explode if i don’t let this all out somewhere. And thus this. writing this out and posting it randomly feels better.

At the end of this, I realised a few things - 

I cant control a bunch of adults like puppets and get them to stick it out and be a family because thats what I want.

I can still have the family but it doesn’t mean under the same roof and it could certainly mean tragedy.

I’ve learnt to accept things I can’t change, I’m trying to the best with the things that I can, and I hope I can differentiate better.

If there is one thing that is helping me stay sane, it would be a book - “The subtle art of not giving a fuck” - Mark Manson!! so Thank you Mark!!!

[meepmorpperaltiago]

Intertwined, part 2

Aka an extension of the pop star AU that I’ve been way too obsessed with for way too long! You don’t need to have read the other fic set in this ‘verse to understand this fic, it’s a standalone thing. Thanks so much to @397bartonstreet and @jake-and-ames for all your help with this fic! 

He sees that she’s shaking a little as she leaves. He takes her hand, runs his fingers over her rings.

He says softly “You don’t have to do this”.

“I know”, she says in response. “But it’ll be good to get everything out there”.

He nods. “Ok, as long as you’re sure”, he says, kissing the top of her head.

“I love you”

“I love you too”

 When I meet Amy Santiago in a four-star Brooklyn hotel, she’s a far cry from both the fresh faced, bright eyed 15-year old I first spoke to at the ’98 Popfest and the troubled megastar whose life was crumbling around her around a decade ago. There’s a new wisdom in her eyes, but there’s also a sense of calm and stability that’s clearly come about since her darkest days. 

She’s surprisingly humble compared to most people with her level of fame, handing me a coffee before we even sit down and then momentarily panicking when she considers that I might’ve preferred tea.

But she’s also unsurprisingly guarded, responding to my casual question of if she lives close to this area with an almost sarcastic glare. It’s a look that says “come on, you know my life, why would you ask me that?”.

In hindsight it was a pretty stupid thing to say. From the time when she first burst onto the scene to become the biggest selling teenage artist ever in only 2 years, the amount of scrutiny into her life so suddenly and so young must’ve been overwhelming.

“It was a really crazy time and for a while it was incredible”, she says with a hint of nostalgia in her voice, “but it was so so overwhelming and I never had any time to just breathe, y’know?”

When I ask tentatively if that was the real root of her later troubles, she silently nods.

 “I have a confession to make”, he says with a smile, as if a joke is forming on his lips. She grins back at him, inviting him to say whatever it is he’s thinking.

“You were my first ever concert”

“No way”, she says, her hand flying to her mouth dramatically as her grin grows to match his.

“Yeah way - don’t tell Gina I told you this but she was obsessed with you, we went to your shows in matching T shirts, we had different ones for each album”

“Awww, babe that’s so cute”

 For the next seven years it seemed like the undisputed Princess of Pop could do no wrong as she brought out three more critically lauded and record-breaking albums and sold out corresponding tours within minutes. Rather than dropping off like many of her contemporaries, she also grew as an artist, transitioning from cutesy bubble-gum pop of her debut album Amy and follow up Dulce into the more grown up sounding, R n B infused dance pop of Fascination and then into the pop punk and guitar sounds of My Lullaby and Our Song.

But from what she says, things weren’t so perfect behind the scenes.

“I was lonely; I didn’t get to just be a normal kid, I didn’t have any real friends, I didn’t feel like I could trust or turn to anyone. And my whole life other than my music was controlled by my management and even then every song I wrote had to be vetted. And over time I started to get really depressed”

She sighs then, looking down, as if preparing herself for the next topic of conversation.

“And”, she says slowly, “that’s when the drinking and the drugs started. That was my medicine”

 “Ames, are you sure you’re ok?”, he asks as they sit in Shaws.

“Yeah”, she says, looking away from him. But he knows her too well.

“Do you wanna just go home and watch a movie? I’m sure everyone will get it”

She smiles then, takes his hand and they leave together. The warmth of his hand in hers doesn’t take away or fix her demons, but the love she feels for him does drown them out on nights like this.

 “I kept it under control for a while and no one knew. But then as it got worse, it started to get to the tabloids. And then Vegas happened”

She was of course referring to the infamous incident that triggered the start of her fall from grace in 2008. The crazy vacation and a drunken fling leading to a marriage that was officially annulled within 24 hours was what turned the previous buzz of press around her constantly into a storm. The man, a failed musician named Constantine Kane, selling his story to every paper he could find for a very tidy sum also didn’t help.                    

“I guess that was the point where they figured out how lucrative it was when I messed up”, she comments, a sarcastic tone thinly veiling wounds that are clearly still present.

“After that, they were everywhere”

 He doesn’t understand why they’ve suddenly stopped. Why Amy is looking around so nervously. Until he sees and hears them. There are 2 cars, both with different photographers speeding up behind them. His heart drops at the fear in Amy’s eyes as they race away.

She brushes it off, but later, when they’re back in his apartment, he can tell there’s something on her mind.

“Ames, are you ok?”, he asks, wanting to make whatever’s upset her better. She sighs and then says:

“I think we need to talk about what happened today. Things like that are scary, but they’re something I’ve gotten used to, I’ve been in that world for a really long time. But being with me… it means you’ll probably have to deal with shit like that too… and that’s not fair on you. Are you sure you want that? Because you could just walk away from all this now and you’d be fine-”

“Amy”, he interrupts, taking her hand. “I’d deal with all of that every day for like 100 years if it means I get to be with you. This is special. And I’m not giving up on us just because of some shitty papparazos.”

She smiles and laughs a little at that and kisses him and he’s never been so sure of anything in his life. He knows in that moment that he’ll be with her no matter what.

 After we bring up Vegas and the press intrusion that followed, strangely enough she seems to zone out for a second and smile a little, as if she’s fondly remembering something. Then she comes back from whatever she was thinking of and we move on with the conversation.

Not wanting to upset her too much, I let her drive the conversation on the rest of her breakdown – the increasing stories of her crazy parties, the infamous incident where she hit a photographer with her car after he jumped in front, the lawsuit that followed in spite of the man being completely unscathed, her fines for drink driving and the crazy braids that started to appear in her hair. Then the climax of it all, for want of a more appropriate term: when she barricaded herself in her bedroom for over 24 hours in the lead up to the Grammys, where she was eventually forced to perform after her management broke down the door. She snuck out of the awards show afterwards and eventually collapsed from alcohol poisoning. I can tell that she’s holding back tears when she answers my next question: what happened?

“It just felt like everything was spiralling so far out of control and it just kept getting crazier and crazier and as things got worse, all I did was drink more and do more of whatever substances I could find. And in the end, all I could do was shut myself off, by shutting myself in. And it happened so long ago, I shouldn’t still be crying over it…”  

I try to comfort her as best I can and ask her if she wants to continue the interview or scrap the whole thing.

“No, this is a story I need to get out. If I keep it all in and internalise it and never talk about it, it’ll be even worse.”, she responds, wiping the tears off her face. In the face of everything she’s been through, she has a remarkable strength.

What happened after that is something she’s kept pretty under wraps, but she tells me now, after taking a few minutes out.

“After I got out of hospital, I quit everything, I left my record label and went straight to rehab. Then, I wanted a fresh start, so I moved to New York and started therapy, which is where I met my husband.” She smiles as soon as she mentions him, looking down at her wedding and engagement rings. Although not many details of him or their relationship are public knowledge, other than the fact that he’s a cop from Brooklyn, he’s been assumed to be the subject of some of her most well-known love songs since she came back to music.

 “So, what are you in for?”, he asks jokingly. “Sorry, I use humour as a defence mechanism, it’s kind of my thing”.

“It’s ok,”, she says with a smile. “For me, it’s a heck of a lot of childhood issues, mostly typical child star stuff”

“Samsies!”, he responds, “Except my childhood issues aren’t to do with being famous and I’m also here ‘cause I got framed and went to jail, I’m a cop, it’s a whole thing – but almost samsies”

They hi five at that and both smile. The therapist calls him in and before he leaves, he turns around.

“Hey, I’ll see you later, right?”

“Sure”, she responds.

 “After we met in therapy, we started hanging out a lot and after about a month we started dating and eventually we got married. I honestly don’t know where I’d be without him. When I was at my lowest point, he was there to make everything better, and I’ve never felt happier or safer than I do with him”

“I’d also been writing music the whole time and eventually I set up Brooklyn Records, so I could release new music on my own terms and support new artists. I still have struggles – things like addiction and depression don’t’ just go away. But I’m ok now and as I’ve already said, I have an amazing family to support me now”

When I comment on the success of both her label and the five new albums she’s released since her comeback in 2011, she smiles fondly. It seems clear that in spite of all the bumps in the road and how much time has passed since her debut, I’m talking to a pop star still very much in her prime.

 “How was everything?”, he asks when she gets home.

“It was great”, she says as she hugs him.

“Did you mention me?”, he says jokingly.

“Actually, I did”

He looks at her softly, before turning serious with genuine concern. “Aww, babe – but seriously, are you ok?”

“Yeah. I’ve never been better”, she responds. And she truly means it.  

[mothermaidenclone-blog]

Godzilla: King of the Monsters or It’s All About That Queen Bee Though

Godzilla: King of the Monsters was a very cool movie. Yes, it was pretty stupid, but was it also a gloriously fun, utterly ridiculous romp? Definitely. Warner Bros. knew we wanted to watch a bunch of massive monsters beat the ever-loving shit out of each other, and they certainly delivered on that front. As with any Godzilla movie, the main problem was that they spent too much time on the tiny, insignificant people and not enough on the aforementioned battling titans. However, there were some notable ladies featured amongst the squishy humans.

*Godzilla: King of the Monsters spoilers follow*

The first on screen conversation takes place between two women, Dr. Emma Russell (Vera Farmiga) and her daughter Madison (Millie Bobby Brown). Dr. Russell is evidently an exceptional scientist, as she has invented a device to communicate with, and to some extent control, the titans. She is also portrayed as brave and compassionate, risking her life to run to the aid of Mothra with her ORCA device. In addition, she wants her daughter to be strong and to experience what life has to offer, helping her to stroke Mothra once it has calmed down. She then guides her through the horrors of being held captive with the advice, “Eyes straight ahead, deep breaths, just like we talked about.” She isn’t shielding Madison from what is happening, but trying to help her to cope with it on her own.

However, it soon turns out that Dr. Russell is one of the villains of the movie, as she approached the eco terrorist Jonah Alan (Charles Dance) rather than being abducted by him, as it first appeared. As such, she is responsible for countless deaths in the movie, regardless of whether or not she is acting for the greater good of the planet. On the other hand, she is unwavering in the defence of her decisions and ethics, and even after the movie has declared her a baddie she is still portrayed as rational and somewhat empathetic.  She justifies her actions as being for the benefit of her daughter, and perhaps her daughter’s whole generation: “I couldn’t be more sane and Madison couldn’t be stronger. At least now she has a fighting chance.” At least Dr. Russell is granted a redemptive end - she dies saving not only her family, but arguably the entire planet, from the destructive forces of Ghidorah. It’s still shitty that she dies, no two ways about it, but at least she is granted some agency. Once a film like this declares you a villain you don’t stand a chance - it’s a noble sacrifice on her part and she isn’t just squashed by a giant monster foot while delivering a monologue about how her plans were right all along.

One of Dr. Russell’s plans does come to fruition, and that is that Madison becomes an incredibly strong young woman. She goes from slyly flipping off Jonah at the start of the movie to literally standing down Ghidorah and screaming right back in his fucking face. Now, it could well be argued that these are not the most considered of actions, but it cannot be denied that Madison has some nerve. In addition to being categorically courageous, Madison is also intelligent and principled. When she sees that Ghidorah’s rampage is becoming uncontrollable, she not only steals the ORCA from under the nose of a group of highly organised armed terrorists and escapes their fortified secret base, taking the time to appropriately supply herself for her journey (like no one in movies ever does!), but she also figures out the most effective location to broadcast from and operates the ORCA independently. Kudos to Madison, she knows what she’s doing. She does end up having to be rescued by her parents but two things are worth remembering at this point: firstly, Madison has just done her bit to save the entire planet and secondly, she is still a child. She’s more than allowed to run scared for a moment when a three-headed, lightning-breathing dragon from space is trying to cause the end of days.

Dr. Vivienne Graham (Sally Hawkins) reprises her role from the first film, and we are treated to a brief reminder of what a competent, intrepid scientist and eloquent, fearless defender of Godzilla she is before she is unceremoniously felled by Ghidorah. I didn’t even notice her death, and while it’s true I might have been taking notes and missed it, I was informed by a small piece of text on a character’s computer screen, which seems like an unnecessarily dismissive way to end the life of such an intrinsic character to the series.

Perhaps in an attempt to compensate for the loss of Dr. Graham, several new named female characters were introduced, and credit where credit’s due, pretty much all of these women are immediately addressed by their name and title. This not only shows them the respect they are due, but saved me the kind of IMDB credits trawling I usually have to do when writing a review. We meet another of Monarch’s top scientists, Dr. Ilene Chen (Ziyi Zhang). She is notable not only for her scientific competency, but also for her heritage, as she reveals she is the direct descendant of one of the female founders of Monarch, and shows a selection of photos of completely badass looking explorers and scientists that make up her family, all of whom are women. Her twin sister, Dr. Ling (also Ziyi Zhang) also briefly features, although she is seemingly working for the terrorists. We don’t see much of her except for an appropriately awed look at the hatching of Mothra, but it’s safe to assume by her presence at the site that she is an equally accomplished scientist. Dr. Chen is also notable for being an advocate of not blowing Godzilla to smithereens, pointing out that, “slaying dragons is a western concept.”

Another new female character is Colonel Diane Foster (Aisha Hinds), an extremely competent officer and woman of colour, who seems to be in charge of the military branch of Monarch’s operations. She continues to excel throughout the movie, surviving the attack that killed Dr. Graham and continuing to lead others safely through danger until the end. Foster is shown to be a strong leader as well as a distinguished field officer - she is a highly skilled sniper who cares deeply about saving innocent lives.

Black women continue to occupy positions of power, if not leading roles, in Godzilla: King of the Monsters, as further exemplified by Senator Williams (CCH Pounder), who presides over the Monarch hearing at the start of the film and appears to have the power to turn the whole organisation over to the military if she so chooses. Women do very much inhabit the world of this movie, with many women being present of all sides of the conflict as scientists, soldiers and terrorists alike. Although I’m not sure we hear all their names, many are credited, including Asaj (Tracy Garrison), one of Jonah’s team, First Lieutenant Griffin (Elizabeth Ludlow), Lieutenant Bottin (Natalie Shaheen), G-Team Officer Harryhausen (Shauna Rappold), Argo Officer Arvin (Skylar Denney), Argo Officer Cross (Kelli Garner) and a news anchor (Fiona Hardingham) who is one of the first voices we hear in the movie. The fact that two of these characters are named for practical effects superstars tells me that they held a special place in the hearts of the movie makers.

However wonderful all of these women are, let’s talk about the real leading lady of this movie - Mothra. Not only is she utterly radiant and resplendent, she can hold her own in a fight -  penetrating Rodan with her stinger - and apparently has the monumental power of the ability to resurrect Godzilla. In short, she’s amazing. She is also the only titan to be named as female, which makes it all the more shitty that she’s the only one - other than the big bad Ghidorah - to die. It seems even female kaiju aren’s safe from the played out and tired fate of dying for the benefit of their male counterparts. Now, my little brother (who is more of a Gozilla expert than me) texted me as soon as he knew I’d seen the movie to tell me not to worry and that Mothra is apparently immortal, because he knew I’d be so cross and sad about this. Thanks, baby bro. However, as this is not addressed in the movie, I have to stand by my initial assessment that Mothra’s death is pure garbage.

Overall, the women in Godzilla: King of the Monsters are incredibly strong and adept in a wide variety of fields ranging from science to combat, are without exception incredibly brave, and most of them hold to a high moral code. Furthermore, for a monster movie where presumably thousands of people are slaughtered, their mortality rate isn’t too bad. I think one more named male character dies than female, but this doesn’t make the loss of talented female scientists on screen any easier to swallow. Also, they killed Mothra, so I can never forgive them. Well, not until she comes back in a sequel and fucks up some even bigger bastards because you know I will watch another Godzilla movie, no hesitation. On balance, this is an absolutely ridiculous movie about giant dragons murdering each other, so I think we’re lucky that so many competent human women were featured at all.

And now for some asides:

Umm, excuse me, was that casually Atlantis? And did you blow it up?

Also did this movie low-key endorse hollow Earth theory?

Thank you, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, for the gift of someone ejector-seating straight into Rodan’s fiery maw. You truly know your audience.