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harocat · 6 months ago

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Why Inuyasha fans should watch hit Chinese fantasy drama Love Game in Eastern Fantasy.

This wonderful art was created by Sparky! You can find her twt account here, and if you're interested in commissioning something yourself, her vgen account here.

I promised I'd make this post, and I also promised I'd commission some chibis of the lead pairs from both shows swapping outfits as to entice you, so here we go. If the adorable art isn't enough to convince you, read this way!

Love Game in Eastern Fantasy is a 2024 Chinese fantasy drama starring Esther Yu and Ding Yuxi. It's thirty-two episodes long. The show has been a big hit in China due to its charming storyline, hilarious meta-humor, strong performances, beautiful costumes and sets, and well crafted characters. Let me get this out of the way first; yes, that is the English title of the series, and yes it's a pretty bad and unappealing sounding title. It's not uncommon for English titles of Chinese dramas to be kind of terrible. I promise it does not reflect the quality of the series itself. The original Chinese title is 永夜星河 (Yong Ye Xing He: Eternal Night of Starry River). This, although pretty, doesn't have much to do with the series either. For the rest of the post, I will be abbreviating the title to LGIEF.

Let's start with an introduction of our lead characters, then we'll go into why I think Inuyasha fans specifically will enjoy this series, although it should become quite obvious along the way.

Ling Miaomiao

Funny, compassionate, and clever, Ling Miaomiao is a young woman from the twenty-first century who is transmigrated out of her boring every day work life and into the novel Catching Demons. Once inside, she retains her memories of the real world and is given two main tasks by 'the system', the mysterious force that governs her stay in this parallel world; the first one is to stop the catastrophe of heaven, a potentially world ending event, and the second... is to make the second male lead of the original novel, a standoffish, suspicious young man named Mu Sheng, fall in love with her.

The problem is that she hasn't been transmigrated as Ling Miaomiao, but is instead in the body of the character of Lin Yu, the second female lead of the original novel, as well as an antagonist. Well, Ling Miaomiao doesn't have it in her to be a villain, and besides how can she capture the affection of Mu Sheng that way? It turns out that the best way to do so is by being herself. But of course, as goes in these stories, she didn't expect to fall in love along the way.

Miaomiao is, in addition to having one of the best wardrobes I've ever seen, so charming, so cute, so amusing, and such a sunshine of a character. She's not pliant. She sticks to her guns and doesn't take shit, but she's also kind, tolerant, accepting, and borderline fearless at times. Esther Yu has wonderful comic timing. She is a delight.

Mu Sheng

Courtesy name 'Ziqi', and what I'll be referring to him as in this post. Ziqi is the second male lead in the novel Catching Demons and the adopted younger brother of the novel's protagonist, Mu Yao. He's very close to his sister, and his self esteem is debilitatingly low, to the point he sees protecting her as the only reason for his existence. In the original novel, he becomes an antagonist at a later point.

Ziqi and his sister, Mu Yao, are demon catchers. They're both powerful cultivators (magic users) and warriors. Her family (and his adopted family--- sort of) were all killed by a powerful demon called the Resentful Woman about a decade before, and Mu Yao is on a quest to find her and defeat her, with Ziqi tagging along. But Ziqi has a secret, and it's one that he is terrified of his sister, who abhors demons, finding out. He is half demon himself. A gold ribbon he wears in his hair at all times protects him, keeping his true identity hidden unless it's removed.

He loathes his heritage and sees it as shameful-- until Ling Miaomiao comes along. Ziqi is brusque, angry, and bitter. He has a front of bravado, but is DEEPLY insecure. He starts out very rude. He's love starved but shirks away from love. He's jaded, but extremely innocent. He's a tsundere (even described as such in official material, which I found funny). His actor pulls off the best sad kitten eyes any man ever has, and your heart will break for him.

To clarify, although in the original novel Catching Demons, Ziqi and Miaomiao are not the leads, in the drama Love Game in Eastern Fantasy, they 300% are! This is a story about what happens when the second leads... become the leads.

Other Major Characters

Mu Yao- Ziqi's adopted older sister. He is extremely close to and protective of her, but her hatred of demons due to her past makes it so revealing his secret seems impossible. Mu Yao is a demon catcher from the famous Mu clan, which has been the most prominent demon catching clan for nine hundred years. She is friendly and no-nonsense, and as the story continues, she grows and matures in her views. She is very close to Ling Miaomiao, and she is in love with the original male lead of the novel, Liu Fuyi.

Liu Fuyi- The original male lead of the novel. He starts out quite 'wooden', which I think is deliberate because Ling Miaomiao even commented on him being a badly written character as she read the original novel. However, as the story goes on and he becomes more of a real person, he fills out and ends up likable. Stalwart, calm, and noble, he is in love with Mu Yao but dares not say it. He has a more nuanced, less prejudiced view of demons than Mu Yao does.

Cuicui- The last member of our group of demon catching travelers. Cuicui is a young bamboo demon who quickly bonds with Ling Miaomiao, sneaking along by turning himself into a bamboo hair pin she wears. He is very Shippou in that he adores LMM and bickers with Ziqi, but I actually do like him a lot better than his Inuyasha counterpart. He's quite useful, and he forms a pretty sweet bond with Ziqi over time. I have read that Cuicui is not ever gendered in the original dialogue, but as I'm unsure of this, I defaulted to the gender of his actor (who is a total cutiepie btw).

You can very much see even from here how the main cast really fills those Inuyasha roles! Together, they are the Four Bamboo Masters.

(Actual art of the Four Bamboo Masters+Cuicui by artist extraordinaire Ling Miaomiao)

The World

The universe of Catching Demons is a fantasy ancient China filled with yao which is the Mandarin Chinese word for demons of the variety featured in the series. If you understand youkai, you somewhat understand yao.

Japanese "yokai" is the Japanese transliteration or pronunciation of the Chinese term "yaoguai" and involves similarly strange creatures, with both languages using the same Chinese characters to describe them. ( x )

Yao in this world are for the most part, morally neutral, but are generally viewed as evil by humans. Those that are evil often ended up going that direction because of humanity's actions toward them. They can form from aspects of nature; bamboo, foxes, water, cats, birds, etc. There are also object based yao based on mirrors, paintbrushes, etc. Inuyasha fans will definitely see some similarities in the folklore between the series.

As with many high budget Chinese dramas, the settings are beautiful and atmospheric, capturing both the gorgeous architecture, clothing, etc. of a fantasy ancient China, as well as the nature and magic of this specific world. The effects are quality for a tv production, and the costumes, makeup, and wigs are next level. There's so much rich detail in them. Ling Miaomiao's hair ornaments alone deserve an entire post praising them.

Since this is also a transmigration story, the mechanics of 'the system' often come into play. This results in some of the best humor in the series. Ling Miaomiao's battle with the system is hilarious and clever. It's rendered as if it is a video game, with LMM in the early episodes 'dying' and having to respawn... many, many times. In order to clear her mission, Ling Miaomiao must get Mu Sheng to 100% favorability toward her, which is calculated adorably by little mushroom shaped demons.

One of the biggest appeals of the series is Miaomiao's modern mind set in this ancient world, and the fact that since she believes this to be just a novel at first, she is hysterically meta, often commenting on the quality of the story and well...

The Love Story

This love story is like crack to Inuyasha/Kagome fans (aka me). You should have gotten the vibe of the obvious character similarities from above, but their romance plays with so many of the tropes that made InuKag great and pulls them off so well. It doesn't feel like a rehash, it just happens to use similar tropes to great impact.

Look, this scene is spoiler-y for episode eleven, but I just think that if anything is going to sell you on this show, it's probably going to be this scene, so watch it.

youtube

In it, Ziqi has been forced to remove his hair ribbon to battle a demon, because he's not near strong enough without doing so. The rest is self explanatory from the video.

This is a really gentle love story. It has a lot of what I love about InuKag, which is a casual intimacy, a soft, sometimes unspoken affection, and a chemistry between the characters that speaks of a deep connection that goes far beyond just their romantic attraction. These are two people that click, and it's beautiful to watch the way they impact each other. It's about support, belief, trust, and acceptance. They start off very much on the wrong foot, as our intrepid lovers in IY do, but when they come together, it's all of that and more, plus a level of playful bickering.

I, Mu Ziqi, swear to the heavens that if I lose you somehow, I'll come back to find you. No matter how far it is, no matter how hard it is, I will bring you back.

And I am not the only one who has noticed the similarities to Inuyasha:

1, 2

Plus all the likes and reblogs on this post.

What else does the show have to offer?

I don't really want to go further into spoilers, but I love the themes of this story. It's about learning to love yourself, trust, and compassion of course, but it also ends up being a super uplifting commentary on the power of storytelling, memory, the impact fiction can have on us, the way love is laced into everything we create, and the power simple acts of kindness can have. The value of this series goes far beyond just being similar to Inuyasha, although that's definitely a plus.

Famous last words from early series Ling Miaomiao. Girl, you have no idea.

Does it have a happy ending?

Yes. I will leave it at that.

But I've never watched a Chinese drama...

This is a great place to start. There's little to nothing that should confuse you as a first time watcher. It's a perfect introduction.

Where can I watch it?

Luckily, unlike a lot of Cdramas, LGIEF is extremely accessible and available on several streaming sites. It's on Netflix, Viki, Youtube (up to ep twenty-three), and WeTV. If you have a Netflix account, it's there right now!! Audio is Mandarin Chinese of course, but subtitles are available in several languages.

If you do watch it, let me know! And make sure to share this post of course.

I watched LGIEF and I loved it (of course). What should I watch next?

Here's a few Chinese dramas that are readily available streaming, that I think LGIEF fans would enjoy:

Love Between Fairy and Devil (thirty-six episodes, streaming on Netflix, Viki, and IQIYI): When a low-ranked fairy accidentally resurrects a powerful demon, their fates become cosmically entangled as the world is thrown into turmoil.

For me, not just my favorite fantasy drama of all time, but my favorite drama period. Like LGIEF, this drama stars Esther Yu in the role of the heroine. One of the screenwriters is also the same as LGIEF, and much of the production team is similar.

This is a gorgeous story of the redemptive power of love of all kinds, of breaking the cycle of war, and of defying fate no matter the cost. A fantastic cast, stunning costumes, and the best soundtrack ever. If you're like me and are wary of the 'good girl changes the bad boy' trope, don't be. Dongfang Qingcang (the male lead) is an amazing character; he's deep and layered and complex, and he is never actually a villain. His trauma is convincing, and everything about him is so, so good. Xiao Lanhua is the heroine. Her character arc is so lovingly done. The two leads don't change for each other, they change because of each other. It's simultaneously one of the funniest dramas I've ever seen and devastatingly heartbreaking. You will laugh, you will cry. Happy ending though, I promise.

The Romance of Tiger and Rose (twenty-four episodes, streaming on Amazon Prime, WeTV, and Viki): A young screenwriter falls ill while working on a script and wakes up as one of her characters.

Confession that I am still working on watching this one, but it's quite popular and the first episodes are charming. It's mainly on here because it stars Ding Yuxi (Ziqi) as the love interest in another transmigration story. It's also not as long as a lot of other dramas, so it's a bit less of a commitment. It's a well known drama that is highly rated in most places.

Destined (forty episodes, streaming on IQIYI): Liu Yuru has suffered in her family; her only hope is to marry her crush, but fateful events force her to marry a rumored playboy from a rich family.

This is not the most appealing summary, but I promise it's misleading. This show is good. The main couple is ride or die, and they become best friends long before they become a couple. The heroine is extremely smart, capable, and business savvy. The hero is charming, funny, and so charismatic. It's the most fun you will ever have watching people do business (I kid; there is business, but there is so much more to the plot). The supporting cast is fantastic, and the relationships!! Wonderful friendships between women, wonderful friendships between men, and wonderful platonic friendships between men and women. SUPER good at subverting tropes. This is a costume drama, not a fantasy, but you won't miss the magic. Oh and did I mention this is by the screenwriter behind LGIEF and LBFAD?

Love You Seven Times (thirty-eight episodes, streaming on IQIYI): It tells the story of Xiang Yun, a fairy from Marriage Pavilion who becomes entangled with the ancient God of War, Chu Kong. Because of this encounter, they must go through tribulations in the human world seven times.

Stars Ding Yuxi (Ziqi) in the role of the hero. An ultimately flawed, but still fun fantasy drama. Gorgeous costumes, wigs, sets, etc., and a lot of heart. Don't expect writing as slick as some of the other dramas here, but do expect to enjoy yourself watching these two immortals discover each other while fumbling throughout seven very different lifetimes. Each lifetime has its own very unique vibes and aesthetic, and seeing how they all pan out if half the fun. Plus, if you like Inuyasha, you absolutely must see the arc where Chu Kong becomes a cat demon.

Moonlight (thirty-six episodes, streaming on Amazon Prime, Viki, IQIYI): After graduating university with a major in financing, Chu Li successfully enters her dream company, Yuan Yue Publishing House. There she meets author Zhou Chuan, who is said to be gentle as a jade when he's really not.

I can’t believe I forgot this at first! I haven’t seen it yet, but it’s a previous collaboration between Esther Yu and Ding Yuxi from 2021. If you enjoy their chemistry and the way they play off each other in LGIEF, you may want to check it out. It’s a modern romance drama, which isn’t as much my thing, but it’s deeply loved by a lot of drama fans and has great reviews.

#inuyasha #inukag #love game in eastern fantasy #yong ye xing he #I FINISHED THE POST!!!#kagome higurashi #higurashi kagome #ling miao miao #mu sheng #commission

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utilitycaster · 4 months ago

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Hi, would just like to say thank you for writing up so much meta on campaign 3, it is keeping me sane seeing similar thoughts to what I’ve had written down coherently.

The last couple asks you’ve answered have got me thinking about how campaign 3 ended up like this (indecisive characters, weird nonsensical themes, only setpieces and maybe a ship or two being memorable) and I remember hearing that c3 was described by Matt as ”Pulpy” and I keep coming back to that and thinking that there was never even meant to be a big decision. From what I’ve read of old pulp fiction dnd novels it's pretty much “here’s the big bad go defeat/seal/slap them on the wrist, have fun on the way there with several cool setpieces and romance!” and I wonder if there was even meant to be a god debate at all or if it was just picked up in the middle of the story by the cast. It could explain why the characters wouldn't fit the story if this wasn’t meant to be the story.

Cause a character who goes with the flow is fine in those books and a character who only looks into what is thrust upon them works, but it feels like somewhere it tried to be more and just fell apart.

Because even now the story does feel pulpy but just held down by a narrative it isn’t handling well. 119 was a great episode and having the Raven Queen show up in the middle to give boons is an incredibly cool beat that would be memorable as hell but for it to end up as another god debate just sucks. But the rest of the campaign sort of does that with cool beats that end up dragged down in one way or another so its not unique I guess

I know you talked about the “pulpy”ness of c3 a while ago and was wondering if you had more thoughts now that we’re in the endgame for the campaign

I do - this is all rather speculative but in some discussions with other people one possible explanation that's come up is that Matt genuinely didn't expect the characters to be so hesitant to save the gods or stop Ludinus or sympathize with the the Vanguard, and has kind of pivoted to make a campaign that accomodates those doubts...but in doing so sort of fucked his end premise of "we must deal with Predathos". Which, you know, makes a lot of sense! What if Hearthdell was intended as a glimpse into why people might join something like the Vanguard to introduce an element of complexity to a party that (quite reasonably I might add) had said "these people are a fucking scourge on Exandria" but instead served to fan the flames of "well the gods didn't give me things when I asked so yeah we should let them be eaten"? What if the fetch quests to the Shattered Teeth or the scouting mission were like the quest for vestiges - something that the party desperately wished to do to achieve a deeply felt goal - and not something they had to be nudged along to do every step of the way? What if the party went into the final confrontation with any consensus or intention? Because then yeah a pulpier "you're taking on the Big Bad Ultimate Threat...but your MOTHER is on THEIR side" a la vintage superhero comics plays out much more coherently. I cannot stress enough that the cultural touchstone Matt brings up about the campaign is the 2012 Avengers film. Regardless of some posts I've seen (which tend to assume anything the cast has ever read/watched/played is an influence, which is. incorrect) that is your starting point.

The thing about all the "take a third option" and "status quo" talk surrounding this campaign is...this post is actually a good description of how it plays out in real life. Like yeah there's a lot of political constructs within the world that are stupid and unjust! However it is unproductive, naive, and idiotic to act as though just because you don't like them they aren't part of a complex system that needs thoughtful dismantling (at least, if you place any value on human life) or worse, that they simply don't exist because they shouldn't. Sometimes you genuinely do have two choices and neither is ideal and if you do not choose between them because you're holding out for a better option the choice is made for you, and often, it's the worse one. Sometimes there is in fact a problem caused by something stupid that you cannot undo in time to solve said problem, and it is selfish and childish to say "well I think this shouldn't be a problem" and leave it at that. You will fail in your endeavors if you do this. People will see that's your approach and stop listening to anything you say.

Bells Hells feel like that to me and it's not even entirely their fault. I think because Matt had such a clear endgame in mind in the sense of "face off against Predathos" and the party was so ill-suited, and the early pacing was genuinely already bad, he's sort of tried to pivot away by following every dumb idea Bells Hells have to perhaps funnel them towards that endgame. And this is a problem too, because it means the plot doesn't push back on them and they do not grow as people, which means that a lot of us are getting tired with their shit. It's telling that most of Bells Hells' loudest defenders are the "well, if you're traumatized, you're excused from all responsibility for your actions ever :)" types within the fandom because like, part of why people are sick of Laudna's shit (for example) is that it's like ok I agree you shouldn't have an evil wizard in your head but you do, so like, what are you doing about it. And because she hadn't done anything about it and because they had to get to Predathos we had our Deus Essek Machina situation, which to be clear, not mad about, but it also means Laudna never really learned or grew from this. And to be clear she's not alone; part of the frustration around Ashton is it seemed like they DID have a revelation around shardgate and then immediately discarded it.

There's many more factors I'm sure but just to sum up:

Matt has a very clear overarching plot in mind [and, also, probably was creating a campaign for characters who see point 3 had more realized worldviews and goals and investment in their communities]

Matt does not give the cast much guidance in creating characters for that plot; "pulpy" is really tonal and not even genre

Cast, having played characters specifically designed for the "complex and morally gray and must be from the continent the campaign is set on" campaign last, turn to wacky and go-with-the-flow types

Overarching plot kicks in; characters do not behave as expected

Matt tries to embrace/encourage this by getting the party to follow what they want to do

Go-with-flow/take no responsibility party doesn't know what they want to do

endless loop of a DM trying to adjust the direction of flow to a directionless party instead of imposing a direction/Cast trying to take direction cues from a DM who keeps throwing more options at them in the hopes one will appeal to them which turns into a "what do you want to do" "I don't know what do you want to do" situation.

#answered #Anonymous #cr spoilers

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lime-bloods · 10 months ago

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I honestly didn't ever expect that I'd be in the position where I'd be using this blog not just to analyse what has come before in Homestuck, but to look toward the comic's future and do some real old-fashioned theorycrafting. but the time has come. so here goes; lime-bloods' Beyond Canon theories as of the July 6th 2024 update:

Vriska's Going to Hell

were all gonna help you! / whether you like it or not

a select few eagle-eyed readers already noticed that the sound used in last month's (Vriska: Figure shit out yourself.) is called "hell_tierwav". while it was easy to dismiss this as irrelevant composer shenanigans at the time, it's now become clear exactly what this was foreshadowing. whether it would be more apt to call this "Hell" or "Purrgatory" is probably up for debate - but whatever you call it, Vriska's been placed in a dimension seemingly tailored specifically for her personal torment.

while Vriska characteristically interprets the recreation of her childhood home as a symbol of how badass she was, the ghosts of her past - both literal, as the shades of the trolls she killed as Mindfang, and figurative, in the form of sprites wearing the faces of her dead friends - show us in no uncertain terms that Vriska's childhood home is the stage where traumas play out.

Erisolsprite puts it succinctly with his welcome to hell, but pay close attention to what exactly we're being welcomed to: this update ends on page 665. so as of this next update, we'll be starting on page 666.

Does Homestuck Have Hell?

the exact bubble of reality Vriska's currently found herself in seems to be an entirely new construction of the likes we've not yet seen in Homestuck - but that doesn't mean this kind of cosmic torment is without precedent. because while 666 is a number with Satanic connotations in the broader cultural context, it also has a very particular meaning of its own within the world of Homestuck. indeed, the latter half of the comic almost revolves around it, culminating in a climax in Act 6 Act 6 Act 6.

specifically, this repetition of a single digit is emblematic of recursive storytelling. to summarise what you can already read about in detail in my essay The World / The Wheel: when Caliborn is 'gifted' the Act 6 Act 6 supercartridge, which he is told is an "expansion" of Homestuck, it's a trick. there is no "expansion"; he's going to be trapped in a story that never ends because it keeps dividing into smaller and smaller versions of itself forever. the only way to truly beat the devil who trapped the heroes within a story is to trap him in his own story.

that's what Caliborn's "Hell" is, and that's also exactly what the Alternate Calliope achieved in Act 7 by creating the black hole which Vriska knocked Lord English into, ending Homestuck's story - something that Calliope even hints at in this very update, when she refers to the black hole as "containment"; not an accident, but a deliberately crafted prison. black holes are a symbol of recursion and regression; being sucked into one means being forced to live out your whole life over and over again, forever. so really, this is all we ever could have expected to happen when Vriska stepped into a black hole within a black hole! the presentation of the narrative even subtly hints at this; events in Beyond Canon that take place in the black hole are enclosed (in brackets), and now events that take place in a black hole-within-a-black-hole are contained within {curly brackets}, because you should always use a different kind of brackets to differentiate nested parenthesis from each other!

it is absolutely no coincidence that when Caliborn closes the curtains on his appearances in Homestuck, thinking he's won when really he's been condemned to a hell of his own making forever more, it's with a tribute to this exact same Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff strip.

IF YOU REMEMBER JUST ONE THING I SAY, OF SO MANY GREAT THINGS SAID BY ME, THEN PLEASE REMEMBER THIS. I WANTED TO PLAY A GAME.

So What Does That Mean?

one of Beyond Canon's central missions is expanding upon Homestuck's exploration of the relationships between author, text, and audience. as discussed above, a large part of Homestuck's thesis is the evil of forcing characters to live the same lives and the same stories over and over without the chance to grow or move on, and Beyond Canon picks up on this by placing Dirk in the position of trying to keep Homestuck going forever purely to appease its fans, while the Alternate Calliope continues to oppose this ideology. and while the alpha Calliope outwardly seems not to have taken a hard position on where she stands in this cosmic battle, the question posed by her device seems to be an entirely new one: can it actually be a good thing to regress, to return to ground that the story has already covered? can this path lead to something new, rather than merely stagnation?

it's so relevant that Vriska is being confronted with the crimes of her past, not only in the form of all the trolls she was personally responsible for killing but also in the form of the exact same punishment she condemned Lord English to with her heroism - complete with the herd of horses that are always present at Caliborn's demise! but where being condemned to an eternal cycle was fitting punishment for Caliborn, someone who refuses to break free of cycles of abuse and instead chooses to enact that same abuse on the world around him... if Vriska is someone who can break free of these cycles, who can change and become a better person despite what happened to her, will this punishment have the same effect? or, as Davepeta seems to believe, is forcing Vriska to reckon with her own past and traumas exactly what will allow her to break free of that cycle?

DAVE: [...] ill just be over here in the hyper gravity chamber training to beat lord english KARKAT: WE HAVE A HYPER GRAVITY CHAMBER???

it's hard not to be struck by the parallels in design and purpose between the Plot Point and Dragon Ball's Hyperbolic Time Chamber, and not just because of the Dragon Ball enthusiasts present on Beyond Canon's writing and art teams: albeit in typically Strider-bastardised form, the Time Chamber got a shoutout in Andrew Hussie's own Homestuck (see quote above), in a reference that was even picked up on by prolific theorist bladekindeyewear at the time. for the uninitiated: the Hyperbolic Time Chamber allowed its users to train for extended stretches of time, sometimes even spanning years, while a significantly smaller time period passed in the world outside - something that is actually true of real-life black holes! and with the Plot Point's own emphasis on time, represented by the hourglass included among its mechanisms, it seems to me that an essential part of making the 16-year-old Vriska ready for the trials ahead will be giving her the time to undergo the same growth her adult friends have experienced.

considering that Beyond Canon is already playing in the Ultimate Self space, where there are levels of power beyond merely the "god tiers", it also doesn't seem too farfetched to speculate that Vriska, forced to reckon with the fact that becoming a powerful Thief of Light isn't the be-all and end-all of personal growth, will take another leaf out of Dragon Ball's book here and ascend "beyond Super Saiyan". perhaps this is even the "hell tier" so cheekily alluded to in the Plot Point flash? certainly this kind of evolution would be the perfect way to challenge Dirk's belief that the Ultimate Self is the only logical final step for a character's development.

whatever the case, I believe we can take Davepeta at their word here. I don't think it's just a joke that by the end of this ordeal Vriska Serket is going to be fucking RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIPPPPPPPPPED!

#homestuck #beyond canon #upd8 #vriska #vriska serket #davepetasprite #caliborn #black holes #theory #< apparently ive used this tag before but i cant say what for. will have to check later

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fuckyeahgoodomens · 9 months ago

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Good Omens graphic novel update: August 2024

This time last year, the Kickstarter was in full swing, what a journey it’s been since then! Colleen is still working hard to complete the graphic novel and we have some incredible pages to share with you.

There have been many merchandise updates in the past few months and whilst a number of backers told us they loved these, others wanted to hear more directly about the graphic novel itself. So, for this month we will focus 100% on Colleen’s work, and how the various editions of the book are coming along. Everything is shaping up rather nicely, if we do say so ourselves!

You may have seen some of the sneak peeks Colleen has posted recently, such as this wonderful scene between our heroes:

And our favourite angel and demon on the road.

Collen has recently shared a rare view from her drawing board with us. "Working on pages 75 pages apart at the same time" she explains. The joy for us is that these pages arrive similarly out of order, so the graphic novel is unfurling like a magnificent jigsaw.

The reversible alternative covers by Rachael Stott and Frank Quitely are coming together beautifully. Different vibes, both ‘heavenly’ and we’re delighted to share them with you:

Moving inside. Here's an introduction to your introduction: our favourites include: Dog: Satanical hellhound and cat-worrier. Everyone should have one!

With the pencils mapping out the story almost completely in place, here are some samples from across the book – don’t worry we’re not giving too much away. It is always interesting to see these images come in, then watch them evolve over time

As we enter the latter stages of inking and colouring, we're also getting glorious new artwork by the bucketload. Colleen has been working diligently and it’s simply wonderful to see the story coming to life so vibrantly.

We shared this a few updates ago in its inked form. Now here it is in full glass-shattering colour.

A jaunty moustache and some 'definitely not-bad-news' being delivered in the middle of a birthday party.

A prior inked piece we shared before. Crowley venting his frustrations, oh so subtly.

And here's a closer look at some of the Horsemen in situ.

...of course you must also have some snippets of Aziraphale and Crowley having a fine time with books and wine.

And this rather lovely panel ends the previews of our main duo for this update.

But one final thing before we leave our heroes for this month... feast your eyes on this absolutely gorgeous celestial piece.

And now to the admin.

If you have a query, please check the Good Omens graphic novel FAQ page at terrypratchett.com. Some key recurring questions:

The Good Omens graphic novel was listed to publish in July 2024 - why have I not received it? We shared an update on April 16th 2024 introducing the new timeline and full context on why dates had to be moved. You can read that here. We appreciate that some didn't catch the timeline update and had been expecting items to arrive across July and August - the graphic novel and surrounding items are due to arrive in Spring 2025 to align with the new publication date. Thank you for your patience. We promise that it will be worth the wait!

I've been in touch with a query about my pledge but have not heard back - what should I do? We have been dealing with a significantly increased number of messages recently and our team are working through them as best we can. If you have messaged over a week ago and are yet to hear back, please get in touch again, either via the message thread on Kickstarter or your previous email chain. Rest assured, we are reading and working through all messages as quickly as we can and appreciate your patience.

If your question is not answered in the FAQ, please don't hesitate to contact us and we can get back to you as soon as possible.

Events

We announced in our June update that Crowley's S2 Bentley would be appearing at ACME Comic Con in Glasgow. Unfortunately, our team will no longer be attending, so the Bentley will not appear at this event. We wanted to let you know as soon as possible in case you have booked tickets expressly to see it, or to meet the Good Omens HQ team. Maggie Service is also no longer attending the event, however Quelin Sepulveda, our beloved Muriel, is still appearing on the Saturday, and there are many filming locations around the central belt of Scotland if you are visiting, so you can still make your trip a little more ineffable. We apologise for any disruption to your plans.

Colleen has also had to cancel her appearance at the upcoming DragonCon, as she explains here.

#good omens #good omens graphic novel #graphic novel #colleen doran #acme comic con 2024

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i-yap · 1 year ago

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hi!! could you write for tim with a reader that just gets him. like they both understand each other, dont have to communicate (verbally at least) to know how the other is feeling. also, she works at damian’s school as an intern/assistant for an art teacher (and brings her pet to school every day. maybe it’s a more exotic animal that piques damian’s interest.). so her and damian are close before tim introduces them (which he really didnt want to do LMAO. he probably let it slip that he was dating someone and now all his brothers want to meet them) so now every time you’re at wayne manor damian barges into tims room to tell you to hang out with him instead. basically fluffy tim x reader with platonic damian. sorry this was a long ask… 😭💞

I love this ask so much!

Tim drake x y/n x platonic! damian

y/n has a gecko as a pet named fluffy ( ik gecko's arent fluffy)

you prolly brought fluffy as an optional muse for your students. And since you are an art teacher at such a prestigious school means you are an amazing artist so damian for sure has a lot of respect for you.

in a couple comics its mentioned that dami is a loner at school so a loner art kid who loves animals hits close to home for you. You guys start bonding really strongly and for once dami has an adult figure who isn't cold as ice or hates his guts ( at least pretend hate) . You become his Didi (I'm indian and I couldn't find the proper arabic term for older sister so I'm just using hindi term for older sister aka didi).

Now when Tim finally opens up about the whole batfamily and how he is like "adopted brother" sort of to Damian, and the whole dynamics between the batfam, you are a little worried. Tim probably has seen you interact with Dami and realized how close you guys are ( dami didn't stab you when you patted his head)

Tim wants to keep you away from the whole batfam , maybe he tells alfred but nothing beyond that. He says its for your safety and he doesn't want you involved in such dangerous vigilante work but it's also because he wants to keep you to himself and being an rich single child...he sucks at sharing .

But nothing remain hidden in a family of detectives and ofc everyone finds out that tim has a secret girlfriend .

Damian probably invited you over to the manor a couple times because you are one of his favorite persons and he wanted to show you his art work or his pets. Everytime you came over, Tim obviously acted like an idiot. Sneaky ( but not sneaky enough glances), innuendos, inside jokes and secretly pulling you away for a mini "tour " of the manor even though Dami insisted he has already shown you everything(non batman related). Maybe everyone found out you were dating when you guys got caught on one of your tours? Damian for sure chased Tim with one of his Katanas till you stepped in.

Damian also doesn't know how to share- rich single child

since the batfam already knew you so well, you were over much more but ofc tim expected it to be for him. He is the boyfriend , the love of your life so why is damian getting your attention huh? Why are you doing an art challenge with dami when there are other more fun "challenges" you could be doing with tim?? WHY ARE YOU WATCHING A DUMB ASS FILM WITH DAMI WHEN YOU SHOULD BE WATCHING DUMBASS FILM WITH TIM?

to be fair, tim does love watching the soft motherly-ish side of you( makes him wanna give you more kids that steal your attention from him) But babyboy wants his cuddles and how dare you deny him of that. you think you are being fair and you are really good at reading tim's feelings so you are able to tell when he needs you attention and therefore excuse yourself politely from damian.

But one day tim is just feeling extra needy and damian and you are in a middle of an activity. you give him a look saying you'll come to him as soon as this activity is over but tim has no patience that day so he just runs into the room, throws you over his shoulder and runs away to his room and locks it. He has installed strong wind blowing thingie so when dami tries chasing him, he just turns the wind blowing things and he cant come close to the door. It then becomes a whole ass hiest while the rest of the batfam just watches and eats popcorn. you obviously have to step in AGAIN.

So you divide up a schedule and ground rules, (steph helps you dw), both tim and dami complain but you just give them both a look and they accept their fate.

Tim likes how much closer you have gotten to his family and damian likes the idea that you guys could actually become sort of related once you marry tim. The rest of the batfam love you ofc but they also love that fact that tim and dami don't try to kill each other( at least not as much as before) because of you. so it all works out( sort of)

I havnt gone exactly by the request and Ive changed up some stuff, I hope that's okay.

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heartfullofleeches · 5 months ago

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Maus and LoverBoy

Yan Artist + G.N Reader

"Hey."

It's dark. He hated the darkness. A callous, unpredictable foe; stealing the sight from his eyes when least expected. Sealed within the four walls of the room where he lay his head, of which there is no discernible difference between the average adolescent's bedroom and the grave, a greater enemy lurks beyond the eye to the outside world.

"Hey!"

A small stone no bigger than the petrified mouse's crumpled fist knocks not once, but twice against the window panel. A shadow looms over his bed, yet he dare not remove the covers wrapped tightly around his head - a truce between him and his longest adversary for their shared hatred of the celestial body sharing her light with the slumbering world.

"I can tell you're awake. I can see you trembling from here. Open the window, I have a surprise for you."

"Run..."

A tiny voice squeaks - like a tiny rodent in fear for its life.

"If you're outside for too long she'll catch you. If I open the window to let you in, she'll get me."

The shadow howls in laughter; the rock in their mitts cascaded to the winds as they clutch their stomach ready to burst from the sting of their giggles.

"Who?? Do you mean.... her?"

The little mouse doesn't have to look to know where the shadow points next. Nor the courage.

"....yes."

The moon. She had tried to take him once. Her gorgeous light reflecting on the water's edge. Her beauty was a trick. A ruse to drag him into the ocean's depths - never to be seen again.

"It's a good thing I showed up when I did. My big surprise will help you get over your fear. Tonight, I will show you how to fall in love."

Love?

"But with who?"

"Everything." A blissfully sigh falls from the shadows lips, hands nestled gingerly over their heart. "The evening air. That busted street lamp at the end of the road. Her. It isn't as much of a matter as who, but as what. By the time morning rises, I'll show you everything there is to love about the night. And in due time, I'll teach you to love the day too."

At long last, the mouse cautiously pulls his head from beneath his blanket. The first air he takes his crisp and fresh, like a glass of cool water after stewing in his own sweat attempting to fall back asleep after a nightmare. The light from his window isn't as harsh as he remembers; a stagnant shadow shielding him from the moon's rays.

As the moonlight reveals the shadow's face, its as if he's opened his eyes for the first time.

"Who.... Who are you?"

"My name is Loverboy, but as your new best friend- you can just call me your Lover."

.....

....

"So.... What did you think?"

Silent eyes scan over each image as a hand switches back and forth between pages, brows scrunched in concentration. Piece upon piece depicting a vibrant haired boy wearing mouse next to a figure with heart shaped eyes.

"I... loved it!"

The sandbags weighing your dear friend to his seat roll effortless off his shoulders. He corrects the crook in his spine against the back of your couch, pink dusting his ghostly pale cheeks as he leans onto your arm.

"I'm glad you liked it... I've been debating if Maus and Loverboy should speak in the comics I make with them included, but this one wouldn't have many much sense if they didn't... Maybe Lover speaks for Maus instead.... He can't really do much without them anyway.."

"Question?"

Here it comes... "Yes?"

"The R in Loverboy's name.... The way you write their name makes it kinda look like an A sometimes. Like, Love-a-boy.. Does that mean anything or is it just an artist thing?"

"Haha...... It's just a me thing, actually."

#Maus my oc #yandere imagines #yandere x you #yandere headcanons #yandere insert #yandere scenarios #yandere blurb #yandere x reader #yandere #male yandere #yandere oc #yandere drabble #yandere male

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skyeslittlecorner · 1 year ago

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Thoughts on Orias' event

I try to pretend that I have already cooled down and stopped howling with delight at the sight of the boys from Hades. Okay, I'm not very good at lying. They. are. gorgeous. So, ekhm. Some loose thoughts about what we know. No serious analysis this time, just my happy rambling.

Spoilers under cut!

Devils can lie

Earlier it was hinted between the lines, now we have official confirmation. Orias and Leviathan sure know how to lie.

Here is a suggestion that Foras can do it too.

On the one hand, my and my biased heart are happy that he is special, on the other hand, I think I would rather not know what he went through to learn how to lie. On an unbiased note, it would be interesting if all the nobles of Hades could lie.

Nobles stick together

It's a little thing I noticed. In Avisos we are often mentioned that seeing more than one noble at a time is an unusual thing. Meanwhile in Hades…

A large part of the event is from Foras' perspective, and how was I supposed to be calm?

We see that the boys often spend time together on patrols. Their relationship is also delightful. Foras doesn't like Glasyalabolas, and it's not mutual. Look.

Glasyal you bully, I love you lmao

Barbatos is gorgeous (even more so without clothes, but please, not on patrol).

Either way, it looks like they spend a lot of time together. They give so much siblings' energy.

AND THIS

I died. I didn't know I needed Barbatos saying fuck, but now I need him for my life. So hot of him.

Orias age

We have information that Orias is older than Leviathan…

…but this is information from biased, unconfirmed sources. Nobles only know rumors. I believe that Lucifer is the oldest. He's an angel, he makes sense. But when it comes to Orias, I would trust Leviathan more here.

I want to draw attention to this one quote in particular:

We know that devils get old. The stronger, the slower. But this suggests that Orias has been artificially aged.

Especially since the angels also refer to him as a kid.

+ it is interesting that they were taken for the same experiment.

Don't know what to call it, just some sexy guys ahead

Enough with serious topics, time to get back to silly things!

We've seen Satan's anger spreads to his subordinates, we've also seen it with Mammon's greed, so it's no wonder Leviathan's jealousy has the same strength. However, Levi's second main thing, his punishment, doesn't seem to be going as well as he dreamed.

They are terrible, I love them. No wonder the cavalry from Tartaros comes for us in Ch5, the guys from Gehenna would still shake hands with Hades. By the way, Hades and Genenna really seem to have the most similarities.

Hot.

Also, their devotion is insanely sweet. Leviathan isn't even truly in danger and they've already summoned their coffins to protect him.

But let's get to the cherry on the cake. You know what else is hot? We are in hell, it should be warm in here, but oh lord- I expected boiling lava, not a walking embodiment of perfection.

I totally agree with Glasyalabolas and his fourth wall breaking. JUST LOOK.

The smirk of this proud asshole. The fact that he is little known in heaven simply because he leaves no survivors to tell about him. And how much he smiles during this event. And how gently he treats Orias.

This event shows his soft heart and that's why I'm here. I'm glad that we don't see this side of him right away, in the chapter, and he only shows true himself with someone he really knows and cares about. Even if he does it his own way. This event, his attacker comic and his selfie comic, how he behaves towards heaven farm survivor and his childhood friends.

Final thoughts

Let's end this here before I start fawning over him even more. Of course, there was much more here. Even out of chronicler's duty, I would like to mention:

While escaping, Leviathan made a pact with his monster

There are beads in the hearts of angels that, when eaten, keep Orias young

Orias himself, if he didn't eat angel hearts, would age into a mummy in a week

Barbatos is secretly Sailor Moon or Winx or other magical girlie

This is how he dressed himself with his vines, prove me wrong.

Leviathan calls Glasyalabolas cute. Agree.

Orias calls Foras a child. It just sounds like a much older person addressing a younger colleague. And you know how much I agree

Astaroth mentioned (another point to the relationship between Hades and Gehenna)

Cherubs with their New Heaven are mentioned

That's all I remember for now. If you're curious about more things, @/thrones-of-buer collected here a lot of points from the event. I agree with a lot of them, and they're definitely interesting to check out. And here a whole report from the event from @/jazeswhbhaven so if you're hungry for more, head over there!

#whb #what in hell is bad #whb event #whb leviathan #whb orias #whb foras #whb barbatos #whb glasyalabolas

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snobgoblin · 3 months ago

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here's another "I wanted this to be a comic and then it seemed too daunting to draw every panel so now it's just a fic" thing anyway summary: Reise gets hungry so Valdemar takes them to the market where they are tormented (hyperbole) slice of life... slice of death even... slow paced

Of course the child would have to have his needs met eventually. These fleshy beings always do. Children are more fickle, though, more picky. He refused everything he was offered! Even that delicious heart!

So, to the market it was. Valdemar had their mask on, they couldn't stand the stench of the living. And so many of them! It reminded them of a colony of ants in terms of density and rapid movement. They tried to stay on the outskirts of it, and gently pushed the child forward.

"Ah, here we are, then. I suppose you'll be needing some money. Open your hands" Reise obeyed, and Valdemars hands hovered above his, and the gold coins seemed to come out of nowhere, spilling into his hands, and when there was no room, down onto the floor. "That should be plenty." Though, they didn't know that for sure. It had been so long since they had to buy food, they had forgotten what the prices were. "Go on, now. I'll be right here." They stood with their fingers interlaced. They had plenty of time to wait.

Reise just looked as uncomfortable as Valdemar felt. But why? He didn't run off like Valdemar had expected them to. Normally he was so talkative.

"What's this?" They kneeled, examining him. Turning his head from side to side. "Are you feeling unwell? Please, do be detailed for my documentation." It was... almost touching? They were concerned in their own fucked up way.

"Can you come with me?"

They tsked. "Of course not, silly. I have supplied you with everything you will need. You will be fine. I will be here when you are finished. Do be quick! We have work to do."

Why are his eyes watering. Euch. They do this when they're upset, don't they?

"Ah. I see." They thought they understood. They never liked these sorts of places, either. The sounds, the smells, it's much too much for them. A good cover for luring victims, though. "Seeing as how your emotions are rendering you completely useless, I suppose I will have to assist you more personally so we can get back to work." Valdemar picked him up, and he seemed to brighten up instantly.

It was... An experience for them. The thin cloth over their mouth and nose can only do so much for the strong scents, especially with their heightened senses. They didn't quite know what to do, either, which stands to go to. But Reise did eventually shout when they spotted an apple merchant, offering clarity in the jumbled mess. At last, a clear objective.

With the purchase concluded, (with a generous sum of gold given), they were seen off with a strange phrase. "An apple a day keeps the doctor away!" HA! Like a simple fruit could ever frighten them. In any case, the child had obtained one of the fruits impaled on a stick, covered in some odd, sickly-sweet smelling goop. So now, they could get back to work. At last!

As they walked back to the palace, both relaxed. Reise was less upset having a full stomach, and Valdemar was just glad to be away from that disgusting congregation of humans. On second thought they should have used the opportunity to stock up their lab... but, no matter. That was enough of that for one day. This child was already putting enough of a wrench in their routine! Perhaps they should start keeping their preferred sustenance in the lab to prevent this from happening again.

Their train of thought was interrupted by the child waving the stick at them. The half eaten, sticky mess.

They grimaced, as much as they could, anyway. "Do keep that contained, if you please." They politely continued walking.

"Try it."

"Try it? Of course not." They sounded offended at the very prospect. Like it was beneath them.

"It's good!" But Reise had a feeling that wouldn't be enough. "Think of it like an experiment. Don't you wanna know what's in it?"

"Not particularly."

Lightbulb. "They said it keeps doctors away. I guess they were right."

"WHAT! That's completely silly. Even if that were true, I am no ordinary doctor. I will not be done in so easily. Bring it here."

Bingo.

Valdemar lowered their mask and bit the top of the apple, unintentionally taking in some of the core and the stick impaling it in one sharp bite. Reise could've sworn their jaw unhinged.

They couldn't remember the last time they had something like this.

It wasn't thick and warm and metallic like blood.

It wasn't tough like an organ.

It wasn't splintery, like a bone.

No, it was hard, but gave in easily. Crunchy, but there was a softness to it. It was bitter, acidic. But sticky and sweet. It was completely new to them.

...And, completely revolting. They coughed it up, and a strange black liquid covered the piece and dissolved the ground around it.

"Maybe it does keep doctors away..." Reise looked at the stick with a newfound appreciation for the apples power.

"It would keep anyone away!" They hissed "I don't know how you humans can stand that complete junk. Let's get going."

But. The taste never quite left their mouth. They still didn't know if they liked that or not.

#reise tag #fic #i might make some doodles to accompany this later but no guarentees #also if youre wondering why sometimes Reise uses he/him and sometimes its they/them #he/him just means theyre significantly younger. before they Knew. they knew around the age of 11

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inklore · 2 years ago

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lost in the fire

premise: as miguel pulls you on top of him he knows that no matter what happens, no matter who is sent to kill you next, letting you die will never be an option.

pairing: assassin!miguel o'hara x f!assassin!reader

word count: 1.4k

contents: mentions of guns and violence, bruises, blood, brief piv, sooo much angst, enemies to lovers, this is an au therefore not comic canon.

note: i didn't expect to actually really love this lil storyline so if there's any interest whatsoever i could for sure see this as a mini series.

haunted hoedown day eight.

This might be the last time.

The final straw that breaks the patience of his boss.

The ammunition that loads the gun and has it pressed to his temple. That finally pulls the trigger and puts an end to this web of chaos—lust—and fuckups he continuously lets happen when he’s sent out to kill her.

To kill you.

An endless chase is what he tells his boss.

A tip off.

A job that’s set up for him to lose because you’re always three steps ahead of him.

Someone has to be setting him up. A thorn in his side that refuses to be pulled out to allow him to wrap his hands around your throat, pulling life from your lungs instead of moans.

But he knows after this, after this fuckup, after coming back empty handed again, this will be the last time. That they’ll send someone else to do his job. That he will no longer chase you around a new city or country and end up between your legs.

Bruises and dried blood around eyes and noses, cheeks, and eyebrows smoothed out by hungry lips and gentle teeth.

The next person sent to kill you won’t fight you for dominance; won’t put his fist to your cheek to wind you enough to wrap a hand around the back of your neck to pull you to his lips.

No.

It’ll be a gun pointed at your head.

A knife at your throat.

And as much as Miguel loves his job, as easy as it for him to kill someone. To not bat an eye when blood stains his suits, his skin, his tongue from a cut lip, he loves you more.

He hates himself for it.

Grovelled over it for nights, days, months, a year.

Swears the next time will be when he comes to his senses and does his fucking job. Not end up in bed with you. Not let your nails dig into his back, his thighs in pleasure, but instead in pain.

Instead of begging him to let you come, you’ll be begging for him to not kill you.

Then he sees you.

That cat like look in your eyes—michief, tortment, a challenge—and he’s back to where he’s started. Ignoring all the consequences that will come from this.

He hasn’t asked you if you feel the same. Doesn’t dare.

You were sent to kill him the first time. He sent to kill you.

And instead of either of you doing your jobs, you ended up in bed.

Again.

And again.

He’s seen you kill so easily. He’s seen you bleed. He’s seen you stitch yourself up. He’s seen you come. He’s heard you whisper sentiments in his ear that sound too close to love to not be anything other than that, but when morning comes, you’re gone, and it’s as if it never happened. The clock resetting, the board wiped clean to start the game all over again.

A note scribbled in your handwriting on the pillow that still smells like you of your next coordinates. An invitation to actually do his job—an invitation to give it up and come to you on his own and not with a contract attached to it.

He doesn’t know which holds more truth.

Doesn’t know why he never let himself jump over the hurtle to find out.

Together the two of you could take down whatever men are sent to do what the both of you should have done a year ago. You were the best. He was the best.

“No weaknesses; we need people like that in this business.” His boss had said. Complimented him on how little he cared about in life other than doing his job and doing it well.

He can hear the disappointed grunt his boss will give before he shoots him between the eyes, discovering the only weakness Miguel has is the woman standing in front of him now.

Your scowl casts a dark shadow over the fire in your eyes. A fire that’s usually there for other reasons. Not from the heavy sentiment that holds the tension in the air after he’s said them. You’re angry at him for swiping the board clean of all the pawns. From letting reality in before both of you actually wined up dead.

“Don’t you know how sick with love I am for you?” There’s anger in his voice, but it’s not at you. It’s never at you. It’s anger hiding the anguish he feels for feeling for you. For letting himself fuck a target.

For letting it go past that.

For letting the ice around his heart melt instead of holding steady enough to get the promotion that would surely come from your blood on his hands.

The thought alone makes him sick.

“Love has nothing to do with this.” The anger in your voice holds nothing but that. The only slip of anything other than fumes and flames ready to burn is your hands. How your fingers crack and twitch at your sides.

A tick of nervousness, a tick of things getting too real for you—something Miguel picked up after he let it slip that he loved you one night. How you can’t stop fidgeting when he asks you about work or asks you why you don’t just kill him.

“Put me out of my misery because I’ll be stuck in it if I don’t kill you, and I can’t.”

“You just don’t want me to be the death of you because you’re not man enough to do what you’ve been sent to do.”

There’s a sting in his chest, one he has to look away from you to swallow down. His fingers coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “There’s no getting out of this alive for either of us. This is the best option.”

The suggestion, the plan he had come up with before showing up here, that he had begged you to listen to. A plan that would have the both of you running for the rest of your lives, but you’d be together.

Alive.

Together.

“There is no best option here, Miguel.” You turn your back to him. Your reflection in the window shows all the emotions you’re not letting him see—not allowing him to see. “Not when love is involved. Everyone loses.”

Love is involved.

The closest you’ve come to actually telling him you love him.

His heart squeezes, his eyes shut, clenching.

When he walks over to you, when his hand runs along your side, he can feel you try to move away, silently resisting him. But your body doesn’t get the memo from the neurons in that beautiful brain of yours because you’re leaning into him when his palm splaws against your abdomen.

Fingers at the junction of your neck and chin to turn your head to look at him. The anger in your eyes glossed over by the same anguish he feels pulling the strings of his heart.

“One of us dies or both of us do.” Miguel says softly, eyes looking from yours to your mouth. “Because I’m leaving this room with you, not without you. You do your job,” kill him, “or we make the chase fun for them before they do what we never could.”

There’s a silence that falls where you’re just staring at him. Every thought and word you’re not speaking all over your face. “I don’t think I like this hero complex of yours,” you sigh, bringing your hand up to the back of his neck.

The corners of Miguel's mouth pull from a smirk into something soft, “you know how to stop it.”

“As much as I like to make you bleed, I like you living even more.” You say before bringing your mouth up to his. The kiss gentler than you’re both used. A kiss that cements both of the targets on your backs into a beacon for your bosses to come and find you.

Kill you.

But as Miguel pulls you on top of him, the two of you working quick to pull him from his pants and have you sink down on him—a mutual breath of relief falling from your open mouths—he knows that no matter what happens, letting you die will never be an option.

Killing when you have nothing to lose is never quite as gruesome as when you do have something, someone.

And you’re not something Miguel is going to lose.

#miguel o'hara x reader #miguel o'hara smut #miguel o'hara imagine #miguel o'hara x you #miguel o'hara x y/n #miguel o'hara angst #atsv smut #atsv fanfiction #miguel o'hara one shot #atsv fic #miguel o'hara fanfiction #haunted hoedown #hauntedhoedown

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vivicanyounot · 2 years ago

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"I'm so sorry! I thought you were someone else! ^-^;" "..."

Amy Rose just did the biggest mistake of her life. She ran and hugged some other hedgehog AGAIN! And this one was not what she was expecting.

The last time was a white hedgehog minding their business drinking apple juice at some park and now THIS? This is just utterly embarrassing!

Here she was, gone and hugged a hedgehog drinking coffee quietly on a corner and she didn't expect them to be so into their writing-- She done bumped on his work with ink spilling everywhere. Before realizing her mistake, she noticed how soft this one's fur is.

"This one's really soft!---------------I, wait a minute..."

'Sonic's more of a fluffy kind rather than a soft one.' she thought.

She let go of this hedgehog and adjusted her eyesight to the bright light cascading on the window. This one's fur is BLACK, not blue at all! How could she have missed this?! She really needs to get her eyes checked.

This figure turned their head behind revealing ruby-colored eyes.

"I-I didn't know you were writing! I'm so sorry! I thought you were someone else!" Amy worriedly joked hoping that this hedgehog would sympathize at her. She couldn't help but feel like this hedgehog was someone familiar to her.

"..." Eyes continued to stare. Then to his book. Then back to her again. There was a pause and an incalculable look bared on his face before proceeding to glare this time.

"Now what are you going to do with all of this mess?" he croaks slowly, careful with his words. He points to his book utterly disappointed.

"I-I didn't mean to bump on what you were writing. I hope to make it up to you." Amy said begrudgingly at the last part. She doesn't want to waste time today since she needs to find Sonic as soon as possible. HE has an upcoming tournament and he's seen nowhere at all from the venue! Where could he possible be?---

"Make it up to me, you say?" the stranger asks. He puts his pen down and taps his fingers on the table. Amy gulped, nervously sweating from this hedgehog's threatening aura. Yet still, she wouldn't feel much harm from him at all. She just knows that he wouldn't hurt her weirdly enough.

"It'd be nice if I had a ghost writer. *I* dictate about the contents." He flips his book, almost covered with so much ink stains.

"YOU write on it." He points to Amy then to his book. She has no idea on how to write.

'How on earth am I going to write. Much less have the time to be working with you?!' she thought. She had her hands ravaging her hair. And suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a blue figure from the window. And they're ordering from a hotdog stand. Could it be?

"You're probably thinking how this is going to be arranged? Don't worry I've got you covered." He whips out his used napkin on the table and hands Amy his pen. Amy holds his fountain pen but she was distracted. She got other things to worry about like that blue hedgehog from afar already eating his 10 chilidogs. She is determined.

"Just write your number here." He taps on the napkin. Amy didn't think twice about anything she just wanted to get out and give that blue hedgehog an earful of her nagging. She wrote on his napkin quick and easy.

"Yeah yeah, we'll talk about this later. Bye!" She turned around ready to leave until her arm got caught by the stranger. Her emerald-colored eyes focused solely on him. His eyes staring back with a level focus.

"Expect a call from me, Rose." He hoarsed then removes his hand from her arm. Amy saw the blue figure blur past their cafe. She holds her wrist hurt from his handling then consequently left with an irritated look. She still feel his eyes boring into her back.

"What a weirdo." She whispered running out of the cafe.

'And h-he knew my name! Did he also ASK for my number just now?'

How is the world coming into for Amy Rose?

a/n: i just made this story now to support the drawing. should i do a comic of it now too? let me know!!! and maybe you guys wanna continue this story...?

#sonic #amy rose #shadow the hedgehog #shadamy #sonic au #sonic the hedgehog

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norris-lando · 2 years ago

Text

where did my baby go?

Charles Leclerc x reader

based on the song Coney Island by Taylor Swift

warnings: angst, breakup, fighting, character death author’s note: I’m actually really happy with how this turned out and I kinda love the twist at the end. So, I hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this! word count: 4.1k

You and Charles had been together for four years. And sometimes you couldn't believe the half of it. The way you treated each other left people to wonder why on Earth you even stayed together when it seemed so painful for you. It was like you couldn't breathe. Like everything was always just the wrong shade of grey. Nothing ever working out the way you had expected it to. All the while you just couldn't stay away from each other. It was pathetic.

Break my soul in two looking for you

But you're right here

If I can't relate to you anymore

Then who am I related to?

A touch here, a sigh there, something always got on one of your nerves just enough to start a fight. It didn't matter where you were or who you were with, when the ball started to roll, there was no stopping it. Spiteful words were being exchanged, causing the poor people around you to be horrified when they heard the way you spoke to each other.

Nevertheless, you couldn't imagine your life without Charles. It didn't matter you couldn't understand anything about him anymore, like he had become a total stranger to you in a blink of an eye, in a matter of seconds. Still, it was always his eyes you searched for in a crowded a room. It was Charles who was your first thought each morning when you woke up and each night you let yourself be pulled to sleep. If you couldn't be with him, who would you even be? It was like you had lost your own identity and now you didn't exist without him.

When you first started dating in 2019, you were happy. You could picture your life with Charles from start to finish. You were in it for the long haul, you both were. Neither of you expected it to end any time soon, hell if ever. You found each other and simultaneously the two of you decided that, this was it. This is where the search ends. This is the end game. You were blissfully unaware of how far from the truth you really were.

And if this is the long haul

How'd we get here so soon?

Did I close my fist around something delicate?

Did I shatter you?

It didn't take long before you had your first fight. It was over something small, comical even. It was something you would laugh over later that same evening. Oh, how silly we were to be fighting about something like that, you would recall later as you thought it over. Maybe you should have seen the signs then? Or maybe they weren't there yet? Maybe it really was just something small. Something every couple would go through, only to grow stronger from it as a result. Maybe you were supposed to grow stronger from it, too, but just didn't know how to.

Later on in your relationship Charles would let his mind slip back to that fight again and again. Going it over in his head, wondering if there was anything he could have done or should have done differently. Would his actions had steered the ship in a different direction? Maybe avoiding a head on collision after all. Or maybe there was nothing to be done. He cursed under his breath each time he went over that first fight. He blamed himself for a lot of it. Honestly, he blamed himself for the most part. Maybe, he often wondered, you were just so delicate and he suffocated you. He would have to come to terms with the fact that he would most likely never find the answers to his burning questions. No matter how hard he searched.

You couldn't bring yourself to move from your seat. It was cold outside and you had far too few clothes on your back to stand the ruthless winds. Still, something forced you to stay. You looked around the park for nothing in particular. A part of you was hoping you'd see something that would jolt you awake from this dream-like state that had trapped you in. Mind spinning but still managing to focus on one thing and one thing only, you couldn't help but wonder what had happened to you and Charles. It was like a carousel in your mind that you were forced to stay on. Like a broken record, it never stopped spinning. Only playing the same painful memories from your past relationship over and over again.

And I'm sitting on a bench in Coney Island

Wondering, "Where did my baby go?"

The fast times, the bright lights, the merry-go

Sorry for not making you my centerfold

Over and over

'I'm sorry,' you said to no one in particular as you stayed frozen in the same spot.

There was a sickness in your stomach and tears forced their way to the corner of your eyes. A child was running with a big smile plastered on his face right in front of you and you couldn't help but wonder what it would have been like if you and Charles had worked out. If you would have been able to work through your differences and maybe start a family of your own. What your life would be like if it was your child sprinting in front of you.

But that wasn't in the cards for you. Not with Charles anyway. Maybe not with anyone ever.

Charles had dnf'd in the race and he was, rightfully so, angry. At himself, at the competition, at everything that stood in his way as he walked through the Ferrari motorhome, stomping his feet like a little child. You followed steadily, trying to keep up with him while trying to find words of encouragement. You knew there was nothing you could do or say to make him feel better but you had to try. It was a mistake but you came to learn that too late yet again.

Lost again with no surprises

Disappointments close your eyes

And it gets colder and colder

When the sun goes down

He slammed the door to his driver's room just before you could sneak in after him. The sound of the door hitting the frame at such a high speed made you jump. You knew what Charles was like when he was angry but it still always took you by surprise. A part of you had still not really gotten used to his behaviour when he was like this.

The anger felt always unnecessary to you. Like it was a little too much. It was like a cloud that swallowed him whole and held him tightly in place before it had had enough and it washed over him.

You tried to knock on the door, barely making a sound as your fist came in contact with the material. There was no answer. No ‘come in’, no ‘leave me alone’, nothing. Just silence as you were left to stand there as you mustered up the courage to walk in to the room. If someone had seen you, standing there alone, they probably would have found the sight sad.

The door opened with a creak and you peaked your head in. Charles was on the bed, sat down with his head in his hands. You couldn't see his face, leaving you unable to read his expression.

A sort of fear crept down your spine. You had been in a similar situation with Charles before so you knew full well how this could, would end. But you still held high hopes that you wouldn't go down that path again. You didn't want yet another weekend to end in shouting match between the two of you. For once, you wanted to end your weekend on a happy note. You wanted to be able to walk out of the paddock as a happy couple, your bodies intertwined together. Not so that one after the other, you held your heads down as you avoided the cameras, embarrassed that the situation had yet again turned to that.

But it was too much to ask. The sight of you in his driver’s room was enough for Charles to tip over the metaphorical cliff he was standing on. And as he fell, he took you down with him.

Sometimes Charles spent his nights going over everything that ever happened between the two of you. He went over the moments, step by step, reflecting where'd been at in his own life at the time. He'd reflect his own feelings now, when it was too late. When he could almost picture you so clearly as if you were right there in front of him, happy and moving on. Sometimes he thought it was all real and it was your way of getting revenge on him.

It was during those nights, when his memories were his worst nightmare, that he turned to his unhealthy habits. Maybe he would have one drink too much. Maybe he would speed just a little too fast on the empty highway. Whatever it was, it was his best attempt trying to stop the pounding in his head get louder and louder. Maybe, sometimes he thought, it was his way of trying to escape the empty void you had left behind when you walked out on him that night.

The question pounds my head

What's a lifetime of achievement

If I pushed you to the edge

But you were too polite to leave me?

During those nights he realised no matter what he achieved in life, it would all amount to nothing if it meant losing you. It just wouldn't be the same if he didn't have you by his side to celebrate. And it was during those nights when he first started to wonder, if he was just stupid. Maybe there had been warning signs. Maybe you had, in a way, tried to show him when enough was enough. Maybe you were too polite and couldn't dare to leave him in the hopes you could actually change him for the better.

But Charles also thought about how maybe it wasn't your job to save him. Maybe you shouldn't have tried to change him but instead, maybe you should have tried to accept him as who he was. Maybe. But he also knew you never meant to hurt him, not intentionally. So whatever it was that you did or tried to do, or said or tried to say, it was all to help Charles. To guide him, of sorts. If only he had realised it sooner.

You couldn't help but miss him after all. No matter how bad he made you feel half the time, no matter how toxic you two were to each other, you missed him. You missed him and his stupid laugh and his stupid smile and his stupid dimples and his stupid face. You missed the man he was when he was with you and you missed who you were when you were with him. Through the good and the bad.

Do you miss the rogue

Who coaxed you into paradise and left you there?

Will you forgive my soul

When you're too wise to trust me and too old to care?

When you broke up for the first time, you stayed away from his world. You left it all to him. Even though it meant you couldn't see your friends, the friends you had made through Charles. It broke you and you hated it but it felt like the only chance. If you wanted to get over him, you had to cut all ties to him and everything that reminded you of him. Because it was so easy for you to fall back into that toxic cycle of breaking up and getting back together. You had been there too many times already and the two of you grew tired of it. Each cycle lasting a shorter period than the last, even though each time you promised each other this time you would be better. This time you wouldn't hurt each other. But just like each year the first fall of snow comes around, the same way you and Charles fell back into your old habits, again and again.

And yet again, even though you had vowed to yourself that this time you were through, you somehow found yourself back together. Your breakup ending up to last only a few weeks. Long enough for the two of you two think you’d made it through the hardest part of moving on but not long enough for the two of you to not miss each other.

At some point after you had gotten back together it all just started to feel like the beginning of a bad joke. Bad habits, right, you'd chuckle to yourself when it happened, though you knew all too well it was a toxic cycle that didn’t do any good to either of you.

It wasn't hard for anyone to miss why you would always fall back into the same endless cycle. You and Charles together, had it worked out, were like one of those cheesy romance novels. Where no matter the hardship, the two main characters that were destined to be together, would find a way to work. Had your relationship worked out, you would have been the love story of your century.

'Cause we were like the mall before the internet

It was the one place to be

The mischief, the gift-wrapped suburban dreams

Sorry for not winning you an arcade ring

Over and over

But life had other plans for you two as tragic as it was. And because of those plans, more often than not the two of you were somewhere around the globe far away from each other staring up at the sky in the hopes that answers would pour down.

Would it be better to just breakup? For good this time. Is it right to keep missing one another? Would it be for the better to just stay apart? No matter how hard it might feel.

Does he miss me like I miss him?

Does she still love me like I love her?

Lost again with no surprises

Disappointments close your eyes

And it gets colder and colder

When the sun goes down

Charles hated to admit it but he spent days upon days going over everything that happened during the years you were together. He thought about were it all went wrong. He tried to find the reasoning behind it, tried to justify his actions.

There were times when Charles felt completely and utterly lost without you. You had been there for him for so long and suddenly you were just gone. The world felt cold without you keeping him warm. Anger turned to fury, sadness to despair. Even happiness was filled with melancholy.

In those moments he was filled with the feeling of not being himself. Yet again he came to the realisation that his life was not complete without you. Just like so many times before.

You had those moments too. A painful sting in your chest as you cried yourself to sleep. Why would life be so cruel? Why would anyone ever have to go through something like this? Why couldn’t you have just stayed home that night? Would you have worked it out or was this something that would have been inevitable no matter what?

Were you waiting at our old spot

In the tree line, by the gold clock?

Did I leave you hanging every single day?

Charles’ mind always going back to the time when you two were supposed to go out for the first time in what felt like an eternity. The two of you had been busy with work and life and had somehow you just let each other just slip by. Always finding reasons why it was so hard to make time for each other, even for one night.

Not tonight, though.

You had planned the perfect evening at a restaurant near your home. The same restaurant you had gone to on your first date. Charles had made the reservations for the two of you and you both had cleared your calendars for the evening, promising each other that this time you’d finally make time.

But something had stopped Charles that night. Some invisible force had put a pin in his plans. And now, in his mind, Charles could see you standing there. He could picture you in a beautiful dress that complimented your skin color, giving you a sort of glow. He could see you lift your head up in even intervals to stare at the clock. He could imagine how you hoped each time as you saw the hands of time that it was wrong. That for some reason the time that was being displayed wouldn’t be correct. There was a twist in his chest when thought about you being disappointed by him yet again.

It brought him so much sorrow when he realised, years later, just how much disappointment he had put you through by not showing up. And for a moment he wished he could have gone back in time and change everything. If he could have, he would have treated you better through every step of the way.

Maybe it had been your way of getting petty revenge on Charles’ for all the times he had ditched you. But had it really been necessarily the best way to do it? The thought of you not going to his birthday party still haunted you as the conversation between you and Charles played in your head.

Were you standing in the hallway with a big cake?

Happy birthday

Did I paint your bluest skies the darkest gray?

A universe away

“You promised me you’d be there.” Charles tried his best to sound tough, not wanting to show you how he really felt. But no matter hard he tried, you could hear the disappointment in his voice. Like a little child had been betrayed by their mother. Not really being able to comprehend why or how someone could such a thing.

What could you have said in that moment? ‘I’m sorry?’ Maybe. But in that moment the last thing you wanted to do was apologize. So you did what you had learned from Charles. You steered the conversation in a direction that would make him at fault.

After that it didn’t take long for you two to be in a screaming match. Both of you saying words you would know you’d later regret but not caring in that moment. Your night ending the same way they ended usually. With slamming of doors, one of you sleeping on the couch after you swore to each other that this was the last time. That morning come, one of you would be out the door for good.

And when I got into the accident

The sight that flashed before me was your face

But when I walked up to the podium

I think that I forgot to say your name

Neither of you could pinpoint the exact moment when it all fell apart. Sometimes it felt like it was a number of things combined, other times it felt like it was one specific moment.

Maybe it was the time Charles had ditched you at one of the many parties you attended during your time together. Maybe it was when you chose to ignore him when he really needed you after a bad day, when the only thing that would cheered him up would have been a hug from you.

To you, however, it was most boiled down to the 'podium incident' as you had began to call it.

Charles had won his home race in Monaco. And as he was up there on the podium celebrating, you were stood among the sea of people. Your eyes were fixated on Charles the whole time while he barely glanced at you. In that moment you felt like a plague — something that had to be avoided at all cost in order not to be swallowed by it.

There were so many people around you and it felt hard to hold it all together. To not break down.

That night as you went back home with Charles you were filled with an overwhelming feeling of emptiness. You looked around your shared apartment and felt as if you were just a guest there. Like nothing belonged to you. Like you weren't even supposed to be there.

So you took off. The Monaco night feeling chill on your skin.

You didn't know where you were going or what you were going to do or if you were going to go back. You just knew you had to get out.

You drove and drove and drove until your eyelids felt too heavy to keep open. You figured that you'd close them for just a second. Just a teeny tiny moment and then you'd continue and find a real place to sleep in.

But something jolted you awake. There was a smell of smoke and everything was spinning. Flashes of Charles went around your mind. Flashes of memories playing on repeat as you tried to make out which one was which, all of them just being slammed together, not making any sense. You were confused, not sure where you were or what had happened. It was getting cold. So cold you were shivering relentlessly. And then it hit you.

Charles held your hand tightly as he wiped his tears away with his free hand. He felt guilty. Torn. Like it was just a really bad dream. He was certain that soon he'd wake up in a pool of his own sweat next to you. He didn’t want to believe that what was in front of him was real. Your broken and bruised body lay still on the hospital bed. But he knew better and the truth was like a slap across his face when your friends rushed into the room.

“Charles,” Carlos called out and tried his best to keep his composure. He didn’t want to cry but the sight of your lifeless body was too much for him to bear.

Lando was the next one to peak his head through the door way. An audible gasp left his lips when see what had happened. He couldn’t come in, not yet. So he turned on his heels and stayed behind.

Carlos sobbed out apologies to Charles as if it would bring you back. Lando fell down on the floor outside the room. Pierre and Daniel were silent and frozen. No one knew what to say or do.

“This is my fault.” The room fell silent at Charles’ words. Carlos was looking at his friend, trying to decipher how this could be his fault. He couldn’t find a reason. He couldn’t find words to make Charles feel better. He knew you and Charles had had a lot of troubles during your relationship but he still couldn’t connect the dots. Not until Charles poured his heart out and told him how you had gotten into a fight, yet again. How you had left in the middle of the night, yet again. How you hadn’t returned home this time. How you would never return home this time around.

Carlos began to understand Charles in a way then. He understood why he felt like it was his fault but he knew it was just the shock and sadness talking. He tried his best to console Charles but found the task almost impossible. Carlos figured the best thing he could do right was just stay there with him for as long as he wanted. To be there for him in case Charles needed him. The room fell quiet as no one said a word. Only occasional sniffles echoing around. It was a sad day for everyone involved, one that would take them all months to process completely.

But for Charles it was different. It was more intense and way harder than to anyone else. Your death had a left hole in him and he was certain nothing would ever be able to fill it completely. In his mind, Charles was certain there would always a spot in his heart that would be tainted by the loss of you. Because after all the rough times you went through, the constant fighting and living on edge, fearing what could be said or done without causing a scene, Charles knew that the love you shared was always real. And there was nothing that could ever take it away from him.

#formula 1 x reader #formula 1 imagine #charles leclerc x reader #charles leclerc #cl16 #writingcl16 #writing wheredidmybabygo

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tfa-archived · 1 year ago

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Thinking about what a sweet, kind, silly and gentle hearted person Poe is until you piss him off and once that switch is flipped, he's a force to be reckoned with

Oh, did you mean? my most favorite? facet? of his character? that makes me lose my marbles? and also happens to be maybe my favorite character trope of all time? that? Okay I hope you were expecting an infodump because what-ho! that's what's happening, I have come prepared and with receipts, let's fucking go on how Poe Dameron is a goddamned force of nature and how the galaxy should be really fucking thankful his loyalty is first and foremost to the Resistance and to the Light, because if it wasn't...well, I'd dread to think, but it wouldn't be good for anyone else.

The fun thing for me, is that it has always been a part of Poe's character, right from The Force Awakens -- it's subtle, but it's there, hidden between the sassy quips in the face in danger and the professionality of Commander Dameron; little fleeting moments that tell you that Poe Dameron is not someone to be trifled with at all, including one of his very first scenes:

I'm 90% certain that Poe's gaze actually lands first on Tekka's body here, before lifting it up to glare at Ren - and that's more than just a defiant glare, that's a look of loathing. Which fits, considering that I do believe the Force Awakens novelization confirms that Poe rushes in without thinking, and acts on sheer anger/rage when he goes to shoot Ren after Ren kills Tekka.

(More lengthy thoughts under the cut, I was not kidding, I saved a dozen images for this).

And that look is far from the only moment in TFA that clearly goes "oh. yeah, Poe can be scary when he wants to be", there's this frankly delightful moment during the trench run when Poe sees a fellow pilot perish while covering him:

and then moments later, when Poe flies into the heart of Starkiller to destroy the oscillator, we get this shot:

that's far more than just determination/focus, he's angry. and he has every goddamned right to be - he was just held captive and tortured for (??) days, and this monstrosity just destroyed an entire fucking planetary system, and the very Republic that Poe has spent his entire adult life believing the inherent values of, that he thought could genuinely improve. Never mind the detail that Poe probably likely spent time on the Hosnian System, if he didn't live there temporarily during his time in the Defense Fleet.

But these shots makes it clear where the comic gets the idea from that the First Order might, y'know, actually be. A little bit terrified of Poe Dameron:

He's a serious threat, and ruthless when it comes to the First Order. People joke a lot about Poe being reckless, but I don't see a lot of recognition for the fact that he can be ruthless - he sees point b and dives straight at it, and he's absolutely relentless in his determination to take the First Order down.

The quickest possible way to enrage Poe is inaction or injustice. We see this clearly in the Last Jedi, when he believes Holdo is essentially leading them to their deaths and has thrown the Resistance away:

but we also see it as far back as Before the Awakening by Greg Rucka:

This conversation carries on for a page or so more, I think, with Poe arguing against the New Republic's decision to not act or investigate further (it's also what prompts him into going rogue to investigate on his own, which leads Leia into recruiting him for the Resistance).

And we've even seen it in material as recent as Free Fall, which means this is a character trait Poe has had his entire life:

(these do not paint my girl in a great light but like she's fucked up okay!! and being groomed into taking her mother's place it's fine, it's fine, she's my fucked up little blorbo)

anyway. so this is Poe when he's, probably about 16? 16 going on 17 here, and this is probably the angriest he's ever been considering how shocked he is about the chill in his own voice (which if you were ever curious why I say Poe's anger runs cold, it's because of this scene right here). He's so enraged by the injustice being carried out by Sotin, that he's genuinely - for the first time in the book - considering actually killing someone. And he gets into a screaming match about what the right decision is with Zorii.

(he also gets to punch Sotin later, by the way, if you even care. It's glorious. I love my favorite character who decides murder is okay if said murder is in question a guy who deals in the slave trade)

But also.

My favorite instance of this, ever, which rewrote my fucking goddamned brainchemistry in 2017 when I read it and made me have to step away from my computer and honest to god pace the length of my house to walk it off, is his confrontation with Terex in issue #13 of the Poe comics.

Because you know what?

This entire fucking exchange is personal, and almost/pretty much outright vindictive? Like at this point, Poe has solidly won this round - Terex has finally been defeated, and all Poe has to do is hand him over to the First Order. He knows, in doing so, Terex will likely be killed, and after who knows how long of Terex's bullshit meaning Poe couldn't trust his squadron, and the fact that L'ulo just died - well, Poe's not real broken up about it, which is fun in itself.

But then he asks Malarus if he can have a moment with Terex before he hands him over and Poe....uses that moment to gloat.

And y'all know me i don't use words like that for Poe but like. he kind of does? he asks a moment alone with terex specifically so that he can taunt Terex that he won, that Terex didn't beat him, and that in trying to take Poe down, Terex cost himself everything (a fact Poe happily rubs in his face), and even adds that "and when I give you to the First Order, I bet they'll take the rest."

So like. Yeah.

Poe knew full well they'd likely kill him, and spends the next few issues full heartedly believing that Terex was dead. And he taunts Terex with it here in this moment. It is TRULY glorious and honestly had 17 year old me's little head spinning because it was such a subversion of what I thought Poe would do -- but he did! He didn't try to figure out a way to spare Terex's life, and he used his final moments with Terex to make sure Terex knew that Poe was fully aware of what the choice he was making meant.

It's fucking DELICIOUS.

And I also love this panel from earlier into the issue:

Because again, it's a great illustration of how Poe can come off cold because of the art choices Phil Noto made here: look at the jacket. It's zipped up all the way to Poe's neck (a rarity for Poe), and just generally gives him this very closed off, cold appearance because he's at his wit's end in this issue, and he is angry about the circumstances Terex has forced him into.

So...yeah. Poe Dameron is a sweet, compassionate, silly guy who makes the worst fucking puns you've ever heard this side of the galaxy. He loves his droid, wears his mother's wedding ring with the intent to give it to the right partner someday, and loves all of his friends full heartedly and is generally the most tactile, affectionate person you will ever meet. He's pretty much everyone's best friend, because he has that kind of charisma and ability to make anyone feel like they're the most important person in the galaxy.

But Poe Dameron is also the man that the First Order seems genuinely intimidated/afraid of. He's the man that destroyed Starkiller base, and toppled the most powerful crime syndicate in the galaxy when he was just 17 years old. He is not someone you ever, ever want to piss off, because for all his warmth and love, Poe has an anger that runs cold, and when he hates something - it's just like when he loves something, he doesn't go half-way.

General Organa isn't the only Resistance general that can be absolutely terrifying in her own right as much as she can be gentle and loving. It's just that Leia's the only one anyone ever notices, because...well, Poe's silly and funny and usually kind of easy going.

And the fact that people underestimate him is what makes him that much more dangerous.

#userorb #ask box #my meta #poe dameron #listen. listen. he's SWEET and he's charming but also ongod the first order is /afraid/ of him and can you REALLY blame them #the best fucking trope in the world is the silly goofy soft characters that also can make that switch #to like. stealing from doctor who now. to going full oncoming storm #it's WONDERFUl #i love it so much we need more instances with this trope #flashing gif #death mention cw

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