#like what do you MEAN it also brings up issues with Stan’s dad AND readers mum

[noccynoo]

Putting this out there so I don’t forget about it later BUT

duet between Stan and Reader just before Stan gets memory wiped because the song IS THEM like for real just listen to the whole song trust me bros

If I don't make it back from where I've gone / Just know I loved you all along

[srirachvbi]

Sakusa and Ushijima bringing their kids to practice Headcanons !

requested by anon: Um hi idk if you write for them so you can totally ignore this . Um can I ask for sakusa and ushijima (or one of them it's up to you) bringing their kids to practice bc the reader was called into work ??? Like Sakusa with his little boy and ushijima with his son and daughter. Sorry you can ignore this 

a/n: ignore this?? absolutely not LMAO i love this idea. tsym for requesting anon! hopefully, headcanons are okay for this! also sorry that ushijima’s is a little shorter-- i wasn’t quite sure what else to write <3

warnings: manga spoilers 

SAKUSA KIYOOMI

This dude was like 👁👄👁 when you called him only half an hour into practice to ask

They were on a water break after doing a bunch of drills and his phone lit up with your contact picture

Atsumu: Aw Omi Omi, that’s a cute picture of you two~

Kiyoomi: I will literally end you ❤️

Anyways he grabs his phone and stalks off to get away from the team since he knew they would eavesdrop if he stayed that close

The second he answered the phone, you started rambling and like begging for forgiveness so he was just “???”

Y/N: Yoomi! I swear I’ll make dinner for the next week and-- and I’ll uhhh... buy all of the groceries and cleaning supplies for a while and-- and

Kiyoomi: tf are you going on about?

Y/N: Is it okay if I drop Hi-chan off with you? ... I got called into work and the nanny’s busy...

He goes silent for a second, which makes you start to freak out because you were out of options for who to call

Your parents were on a cruise which both you and Kiyoomi got them for their 30th anniversary so they won’t home and your siblings lived on the other side of the country

Kiyoomi’s parents were too busy and so was his older siblings

So

He was your final resort

After a few seconds he just kind of laughs quietly and sighs

Kiyoomi: yeah, you can bring Hito-kun here

Y/N: your hand in marriage pls ❤️

Kiyoomi: ...

He justs SIGHS and hangs up cause he’s tired of your bullshit ❤️

He’ll pocket his phone and go up to the coach and Meian to ask if it’s okay if his kid sits in during practice and they’re perfectly fine with that

LMAO Atsumu, Bo, and Hinata eavesdropping and being like “tiny Sakusa??????”  

Fifteen minutes later, you pop into the gym with Hitoshi (not the bnha character LMAO) and Hinata and Bokuto both go “TINY OMI-KUN!!!!”

Oh my god when I tell you Sakusa almost had an aneurysm when they started to run towards you and his son, i mean it

he literally went from one side of the gym to in front of you two with the most disgusted look on his face

Hito’s pretty similar to Sakusa as in like... he hates germs so when he saw those two sweaty adults running towards him he just

Hito: due to personal reasons, i will be passing away now ❤️

Bo and Hinata are trying to get near Hito, but Sakusa just completely blocks them 

Y/N: thank you for taking care of Hi-chan, Yoomi :(

Kiyoomi: I had nothing against taking care of him in the first place, idiot

Anyways, you realize the time and literally sprint out of there to get to work

Bokuto: Mini Omi-kun! HI!!!

Hito:  👁👄👁 you’re so sweaty pls don’t touch me sir ❤️

Bo goes :(( but recovers when Hito apologizes after seeing how sad he got

Cause even tho Sakusa wouldn’t apologize, Hito was also raised by you and he’s a kid so he just kind of gets all flustered

Hito pats his shoulder to try and comfort him and Bo goes “!!” and like picks up the poor boy

At first, Hito is TERRIFIED but after a few seconds, he starts giggling and enjoying himself

Sakusa was about to kill him but then he saw his little son all happy and his heart clenched

After a few minutes of fooling around with Hito, they start practice again since they can’t spend the whole day just fooling around with the little Sakusa lol

The whole time while they’re doing drills (or smth idk how professional volleyball practice is LMAO), Hito’s standing next to Coach Foster and his eyes are so bright and big

He’s super excited to see his dad play because he hadn’t gone to that many games (Sakusa said that there were too many germs and that he’d get sick)

So to see his dad going like “BLAM” with the ball was like “!!” 

They do a game of 2v2 and he’s cheering so loud for his dad it’s so cute

Hinata and Atsumu are on a team together and they’re sitting on the sidelines with Hito until they get to play

Hito getting super excited and energetic when he sees his dad playing volleyball so he asks them about the players :((( 

Stop I can just imagine a tiny sakusa with more energy just being so cute

Practice finally ends for the day and Sakusa walks out of the locker room and Hito’s like “DAD!!!!!!!” and runs towards him

Sakusa’s soft for his son so he chuckles and picks him up

Hito: you were so cool!!!! You went like BLAM and BOOM!!

Sakusa, internally: oh god, i gave birth to another Hinata...

USHIJIMA WAKATOSHI

SO in this one you’re on a business trip for work and like.. the nanny cancelled on him the morning of so he was like “well, shit” 

But like not really cause he’d probably be nonchalant about it

His daughter, Riko is 3 and his son, Eiji is only a few months old so he comes into practice with a baby carrier and Hoshiumi’s like

>:0 !!!!!!!!

Hoshiumi: BABY USHIJIMA >:0 !!!!!

Riko’s super energetic unlike her father or her brother so she’s running around the second she walks into the gym and Ushijimas like  👁👄👁 cause he’s not quite sure if he should scold her or not 

Honestly, Ushijima would be so confused with kids cause he’s just... 

head full only volleyball

Normally you’re around and or the nanny so he’s not sure what to do LMAO

Riko’s unusually energetic and he’s pretty sure she got it from you lol

Romero sees Ushijima’s look of pure conflict and almost loses a lung from how hard he laughed

Ushijima may be super smart when it came to volleyball but it seems children is the next obstacle 

Riko and Hoshiumi somehow bond in hardly any time and suddenly Riko’s on his shoulders and they’re running around

chaotic duo, we stan 

Kageyama’s looking at the children with utter confusion

Omg Kageyama and Ushijima would both definitely be so confused with children

smh these volleyball idiots

Eventually, they actually have to start practice so Riko and baby Eiji were by the benches

Lmao Riko running onto court because she wants to play volleyball with her dad and Ushijima having a stroke

He’s bowing so low to the coaches because he just... doesn’t know what to do

it was hard enough to get them out of bed today 

It’s okay with everyone and Hoshiumi literally tries to pass the ball to Riko and Romero SCREAMS in fear

Romero’s definitely the savior of the day when it comes to the kids

Ushijima carries Riko off the court and the tiny bab was like >:0 !! When he sat her back down with Eiji

Riko: DAD >:0 !!!

Ushijima just asks her to stay on the bench but he doesn’t want to scold her 

She listens to him because she sees how conflicted he looks finally 

Lmao she tries to pass a ball to Eiji and Ushijima’s like “oh, oh god.”

Talking about Eiji, he starts crying and the coach just SIGHS and gives them a ten minute break

Ushijima losing ten years of his life as he tries to calm Eiji down

Hoshiumi: !! he wants to play volleyball too !!

Romero: Hoshiumi, no... please... 

Ushijima eventually calms the crying baby down and feeds him a bottle

Eiji ends up falling asleep after that tho so there’s no more issues with him for the rest of practice ❤️

It would be interesting to see Ushijima with his kids lolol

ANYWAYS

practice ends and Riko’s like “DAD!!! Teach me how to play volleyball now!!!” even though he’s already began

She’s a bit forgetful ❤️

Romero literally starts giving Ushijima tips and everything because he sees how confused he is

All of the other players listening as well because they’re interested

Professor Romero! 

Ushijima heads home with his two kids and he’s just listening to Riko ramble a lot and he’s happy

He was scared she wouldn’t like to be there and would throw a fit but similar to her father, she’s super excited about volleyball 

You call them on the way home and Riko’s like “MOM !! I WANNA PLAY VOLLEYBALL !!” 

You start giggling and you listen to her ramble for a while before asking her to give the phone to her dad

Ushijima: please never go on a business trip again ❤️

Y/N: aww, you miss me Waka-kun~

He hangs up

[thelovelyghostwriter]

Some of my favourite female characters in fiction

This list is not exhaustive and while I do have other characters that I find charming and that I love, I have noted these characters because in my opinion, they have struggled and/or there is a certain analysis to their personalities. 

Please take note that some of the characters are not morally good or have done questionable actions. This is not to discuss or say they are role models, but rather to write up what they represented, their role in the story or simply their personalities. I’m not here to justify the character’s actions.

Remember that a well-written characters do not have to be morally good. 

Also, a lot of them are from memory and the analysis aren’t well-structured. 

Let’s dive in:

1. Daisy Buchanan from The Great Gatsby

Daisy, in my opinion, is incredibly misunderstood and unjustifiably hated among the readers. Her betrayal to Gatsby is indeed vile and it did upset me, I definitely think that she is materialistic, shallow and hurtful.  

“I hope she’ll be a fool—that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.”

Daisy did shit on Gatsby [trying to avoid spoilers here].  

However, I do like to note that I think part of her materialism and shallowness is because of how women were in the 1920s. They did not have any freedom or agency. To Tom, she seems to be a trophy wife for him to keep; and to Gatsby, he only liked the idea of her, he wasn’t in love with her. To everyone around her, she was an item, a beautiful doll to be possessed, rather than a person. I think that’s why she turned out like that. 

She's materialistic because men around her sees her as an object. Nonetheless, Daisy is still “careless” and hurtful; and I think this stemmed from the life she had led that were a compilation of choices that were made for her. Her betrayal towards Gatsby is what makes her character rather disappointing to most readers. The whiteness in her dress as described in her first appearance? It’s not innocence, but rather a void and jadedness. 

2. Neon Nostrade from Hunter x Hunter

Yet, another girl in our list that loves to be hated by the fandom. Though honestly, most of her haters are Chrollo and Kurapika stans who gets jealous because Chrollo got to hang out with her and Kurapika works under her. Also her repulsive hobby - although this is actually what makes me like her. 

I have addressed this in my other posts before, but let me just copy and paste them (and modify a bit):  Her upbringing and exploitation by her dad makes her materialistic and emotionally detached. This materialism and detachment is manifested in the form of her hobby as a dead body parts collector. But other than that, she’s really a normal girl, just sheltered and spoilt. The money she spends are even from her talent Lovely Ghostwriter, her father will be nothing without her. So I don’t see an issue with her spending them on shopping etc. 

In fact, I would argue that she bathes in materialism to fill the emptiness that she has. Her father is more concerned with her ability and power, she has no friends and is guarded 24/7 by employees.

All the times she threw tantrums and the way she talks… it’s a different speech pattern altogether when she interacts with Chrollo - which may suggest that the whole spoilt attitude is exaggerated to gain attention from a father who is indulgent in terms of material gifts, but not in terms of affection and time for her.

When Eliza cried, she was willing to forgo bidding the auction physically. Yes she did not care about the bodyguards because she is more focused on the living and the present (Eliza) than the dead.

The reason why she didn’t seem fazed when Dalzollene and the others died is because a) they were her bodyguards, it’s their job to put their life on the line to protect her, b) she mentioned to Chrollo that her fortune-telling is for the living, she likes to live in the present and doesn’t believe in the afterlife.

Neon is more focused on who is alive, rather than the dead (which also represented by her hobby of dead body parts collecting). She focuses on the present, unlike her clients who likes to know their future or people who dwell in the past. Kurapika on the other hand, is the complete opposite. He dwells on the past and likes to focus on his dead clan rather than the present times with his friends (which is completely understandable).

Another significance is that her fortune-telling ability is very useful and helpful, she says that she wanted to make people happy with it; but however, it is commercialized and used as a means of power (knowledge of the future = power) by her father and pretty much everyone around her. Just like how she objectifies dead people by collecting their parts, the people around her sees her as a tool due to her fortune-telling abilities, rather than see her as a person. Even Kurapika chose to get employed under her, for his own agenda (he is bound to meet dead body parts collectors at some point). 

She treats people like objects because people see her as one.

Of course, collecting dead body parts is a pretty fucked hobby; but what she represents and her role as a minor character is what makes her an outstanding minor female character in the show. 

Yes. She has traits that are not your typical role model, but neither are other hxh characters. She’s not independent, naive, can’t fight, in need of saving, uncaring at times and spoilt. She is far from so-called “strong female character” that we often look up to. She is a character with bad traits which is a result of being a victim. But that’s what makes me love her as a character in hxh. It reminds us that there are girls out there who has lack of freedom and control over their own fate; and their only way out is through materialism and detaching themselves from people. 

In fact, she might be even relateable to some people more than other female characters because there is vulnerability in her character.

3. Hua Mulan (Mostly the Chinese 2009 film, though the most well-known is the Disney 1998 animated film)

There has been various adaptations for this character, with the Disney Animated version being the most prominent.

However, my favourite one is definitely the Chinese film Hua Mulan: Rise of A Warrior (2009). It portrays the horrors of war and the suffering it brings, nationalism, camaraderie among the army - all while giving us the admirable Mulan climbing up to the ranks of being a war general.

I highly recommend this adaptation. I know the Disney Live Action 2020 version did not receive good reception, and we honestly did not need one because this 2009 Chinese film does the job well (I like their soundtrack though). It's not really well-known because it's a Chinese film (which is hella ironic because Hua Mulan is a Chinese character? Lmao).

"Today we will stain the battlefield with our blood. Behind us is our homeland. If we have to bleed out our last drop of blood, if we have to become bleached bones in this desert, we must defend it to the death! We must let the Rourans know we Wei warriors will never surrender and will never compromise! Soldiers may rebel against me, generals may leave me for dead, but I, Hua Mulan, will never betray my country!"

Generally, I either have an issue with strong female characters because they are just shallow (meaning they are only physically strong, often viewing rudeness, misandry and independence as strength). I like female characters who are so much more to that.

Mulan, in this film, not only showed her badassery in fighting the war for more than a decade, but we also see how much she struggled. Everytime her comrades die, her heart gets broken. Yet she has to learn how to pick herself up and become the leader that they need. She dislikes war, she dislikes the bloodshed; yet she fights for her country.

To me, a strong female character is not just a feminist icon or someone who can fight. In fact, a female character doesn't need to be someone capable of fighting, what makes her strong is to be able to overcome turbulence with determination.

I think this is something that is lacking in recent "strong female characters" - showing us their strength through perseverance.

As for the Disney's counterpart (talking about the 1998 film here), it is less morbid but we also see her trying her best to make her family proud and protect her country. Like the song Reflection and Loyal, Brave and True, she struggles with finding her purpose and her role in her family.

"The greatest gift of honour, is having you for a daughter."

4. Blanche Dubois from A Streetcar Named Desire

It's been years since I had analysed Blanche, but among all the 6 books that I had to study for English Literature, A Streetcar Named Desire has been my absolute favourite.

I think what struck me in this book is not just the style, but Blanche's vulnerability. Her actions are definitely not morally good: she misrepresents things, she lies, she even had sex with an underage student. She's paranoid, mentally unstable and prissy. Which was why, her polar opposite character, Stanley, is so annoyed with her.

After her husband's suicide, we see Blanche relying on the company of men to fill the void of her loneliness and misery. She is also concerned about her beauty fading with age - I find that highly reliable. It sounds incredibly "vain", but beauty does play a part.

Based on Evolutionary and Mating Theories among humans, appearance in women are especially important (also for men but not as much as women). Of course, there are other factors and traits that people find attractive, but Blanche's concern is valid here. She needs to find a husband to escape from her financial troubles; and her age, beauty and chastity plays a huge factor in her search for getting a man in the setting she was in (which was Mitch in this case). Ironically, these are the very traits that she has "lost" and so desperately tries to hide it.

Her ending is truly a devastating and upsetting one. [Will not talk about it due to spoilers]

"I've always depended on the kindness of strangers."

5. Haibara Ai/Shiho Miyano from Detective Conan

Perhaps one of the girls that is a wasted potential. In a series where the characters are mostly flat, she's arguably the most multi-faceted (but somehow I had heard that she no longer has the same complexity as she used to have - it's been a while since I followed this series).

But I remember absolutely loving this character.

Her background story is really unique in the show and one that is embedded within the Black Organisation plotline (why her character was dropped... Forever frustrating for me).

From the moment she was first introduced, we see Conan taking an immediate distrust towards her. A guy who is a detective who had been catching criminals - yet one ex-syndicate member stands before him. The one that actually helped to develop the APTX4869 that changed his life.

Yet, we see that it wasn't entirely within her control. Both her parents were syndicate members and when her sister tries to get both of them to leave, her sister dies.

Ai starts off as seemingly cold, pessimistic and avoidant. But as her arc goes on, the iceberg around her melts. We see her quirky sarcastic replies, her taste for fashion and she genuinely desires to be happy. Her relationship with Conan developed into a beautiful one - to the point where Conan trusts her with anything and they would risk their lives for one another.

Yet, we also empathies with her impending jealousy and heartache. The boy she has fallen for already has someone else. What's more, the girl is genuinely kind and is a splitting image of her sister. After Ran saved her from Vermouth, she quickly warms up to Ran as well.

She's also the key to developing the antidote for Shinichi to be back with Ran - an almost painful metaphor for her to give him away (he never belonged to her in the first place). Yet, she doesn't really stop them from being together (even though in some cases she appears jealous or phrase ShinRan's reunion as a word of caution).

I definitely think she is the most compelling character in Detective Conan because of her character development and the struggles she faces. It's definitely upsetting that her character has been neglected.

“Don’t judge people from the outside. Like any rose has thorns, the more the person appears nice on the outside, the more you should doubt the inside.”

6. Misato Katsuragi from Neon Genesis Evangelion

Who is the best female character in Eva? Asuka or Rei? My answer will always be Misato, Risato is a close second (I wanted to analyse Risato, but I’m trying to keep it to one person per series). Misato is one of the 90s anime babes. She definitely captivated many people’s heart. 

I must say though, I have a soft spot towards female characters who has some sort of daddy issues (why I like Neon Nostrade). It’s been a while since I had watched Eva, but I’m going to try to remember why I like her. 

I think the concept of Hedgehog’s Dilemma has been echoed throughout the series, and all the characters seem to struggle with emotional attachment towards people. I actually like to phrase the Hedgehog Dilemma as “Avoidant-Fearful Attachment Style” - wanting connection with people, yet not being able to do so out of fear of being hurt. 

For Misato, when I initially first watched Eva, I compared her a little to Blanche Dubois in how they cope with loneliness - their sexuality. I remember being confused with her interactions with Shinji, who was half her age. At times, she serves as his guardian/mother figure; but at some moments (I think it was sometimes after Kaji’s death), she tried to seek comfort with Shinji by attempting to initiate sex (which Shinji rejects). I remember coming across a comment somewhere that Shinji and Misato’s relationship is somewhat like Humbert and Dolores (from Lolita) - can’t comment on this as I only read the first chapter of the book. 

It makes me think that she uses sex as a way to cope and the only way she can connect with people (and it’s superficial), which doesn’t work for Shinji because she needs to be her guardian (and ultimately fails to be purely his guardian once she crossed that no-no boundary). 

Another thing to note was her backstory about her dad. There seems to be a dissonance, given that she resented her dad for not spending time with her due to his work, but he ended up sacrificing her life for her. I do think it’s a bit of guilt (because resenting her dad but he saves her - these two contradicts one another). It’s clear that her issues to connect stems from her backstory regarding her father. 

It’s interesting how she compares Kaji to her father. I do think she loves Kaji, but “reminds him too much of her father” (as to put it simply). There is this... stereotype that we find someone similar to our opposite-gender parents, no matter how shitty they were towards us. I believe that it is because we tend to stick to something that is familiar to us, even if those type of people aren’t good for us (I think to break this cycle is to practise self-awareness and know what is good for us). 

Anyway, Misato is a character that I really liked (as all the characters in Eva) because they highlight Hedgehog’s Dilemma that stemmed from their parental issues. Maybe I have not watched a lot of anime, but female characters with issues with their fathers are not as explored deeply as male characters and their parental issues. A lot of times, female characters (especially in shounen) serves as a romantic interest and yes they can have really sad backstory, but not issues towards their father and how it affects their relationship with other people. So far, the only ones I had seen is Mukuro (Yu Yu Hakusho), Misato and Neon Nostrade. 

7. Disney's Cinderella

First of all, she has been a victim of abuse since she was a child. It's not easy for her to escape her predicament. Where can she go? It's not that easy.

Boy. I hate how much people remember Cinderella wrongly and attack her for being "backwards", which is actually factually wrong.

Cinderella always get flack for using the Prince to "escape" her predicament when "she can do it herself".

I say that's bullshit. I actually came across a youtube video: Cinderella Stop Blaming the Victim [please check it out for more in-depth analysis]

Despite all that, she's doesn't internalize it. She knows she doesn't deserve to be treated this way, and she does to a certain degree stand up to them (whenever the cat makes her tasks harder). She knows when to fight back and restrain herself because it might endanger her life.

After years of suffering in this domestic household, she remains kind, compassionate and hopeful. Which is not an easy feat. The problem is, these traits are often seen as feminine and synonymous with being weak. But it is actually, in fact, signs of strength. The mental fortitude she has to remain kind after all she went through is a sign of strength.

The Fairy Godmother only appeared when she was losing hope - take note that she ends up crying because her stepsisters tore her mother’s dress (which is the most disturbing scene in the film). 

Even I had remembered this wrongly - one crucial fact is that... She did not want to go the ball to nab the Prince. That was her stepsisters. Homegirl just wanted to chill. She did not even know she was dancing with the Prince!

When Lady Tremaine locked her up to prevent her from reaching the Prince, it wasn’t the Prince that saved her. She and her animal friends got her out of the room, and proceeded to prove that she was indeed the maiden that had danced with the Prince. Her marrying the Prince was only a fitting end to her because it provides her a home and an escape from an abusive household; however, it was her resilience for holding onto fate and being mentally strong, and her initiatives partially contributed to her happy end. The Prince is more like a passive character. 

I highly think that people tend to brush her traits - e.g. compassion, having fate, being kind is listed as feminine. However, it is far from being weak, which most people would deem it as. But that is definitely not true. 

“No matter how your heart is grieving, if you keep on believing, the dream that you wish can come true.”

8. Mikasa Ackerman from Attack on Titan

Mikasa is either a hit or miss among AOT fans. Some people like Mikasa because she is physically strong and her loyalty to Eren is admirable. On the other hand, some people think she’s clingy and her being physically strong makes her a Mary Sue. 

Whether or not you like Mikasa, there is a fact that she is not a Mary Sue. The definition of a Mary Sue is a female character lacking in weakness and seems perfect. 

She is physically strong, yes - I believe that Isayama wanted to distribute traits to the trio. Even Hannes has said it in S1. Armin represents intellect, Eren represents grit and Mikasa represents strength. So her being physically strong makes sense, and Isayama also provided an explanation for it (being an Ackerman). 

However, this does not mean she lacks any weakness. Arguably, her loyalty to Eren is both a liability and her strength. This “weakness” has been highlighted by her dilemma between her loyalty towards Eren and her belief that mass genocide is wrong.

[I won’t go into details about the manga parts that have not been animated as of 2021, can’t spoil it too much]. 

[sansacherie]

Something I’ve always been curious about, why exactly do book Dany stans hate Sansa? (assuming they’re not show watchers). They’ve never interacted in the books (yet) and their arcs have nothing to do with each other. I can understand show watchers because Sansa flat out rejected their precious white savior, but the book readers hatred is odd. (Just like all antis)

Honestly someone (maybe @sayruq @trinuviel or @cleverjonquil ) who have been in the fandom longer than I have would probably give a more satisfactory answer BUT I would probably say it's a number of factors -

1. Many Dany stans are like Arya stans in that they have "not like other girls syndrome". Therefore, they can't comprehend that a feminine character like Sansa could possibly have any narrative importance, or be a hero in her own right. Because if Sansa had been a character in a different story, she would have been reduced either to a love interest, a background character, gives up her ladylike interests for "character development", or killed to be someone else's motivation (ie Ned) Instead, she is a major POV character and has been called "central part of the story" along with Bran & Arya, she has a political arc with strong Queen foreshadowing, has her own endgame antagonist ALL the while still existing as a feminine character. Now, I know someone will challenge this by arguing that Daenerys is also feminine, which is true. But the difference between Dany and Sansa is that Dany is much more admissible because she has dragons etc

2. Which kind of goes into my second point. Many book Dany fans are male, fantasy readers, and they're used to seeing characters like Daenerys in the genre. I've said before that when you read Sansa's chapters and compare them to her siblings/Dany, Sansa arguably feels like she could be in a different literary genre to them. She's also a more realistic child character than Dany or Arya. That's not to say that Arya or Dany are "grown ups" (because reading Arya's chapters, you get a sense of how young Arya is too - for example, her insistence that Ned never loved anyone but her mother... which awww) but like.... Arya is a tiny 9 year old at the end of AGOT when she flees the Red Keep. Realistically, throwing a kid in the middle of a war zone - she should have died. Arya's survival is in many ways miraculous.

3. There are Dany stans who also happen to be Arya stans who hate Sansa. I get the feeling that some Dany & Arya stans also have an "alliance" (lol) but they'll 100 per cent turn on one another when given the opportunity or if the other character does something that pisses the other fandom off - for example, the horrible things said about Arya by Dany stans when surprise, surprise, she sided with her blood (that is, her inferior sister Sansa) instead of a invader/tyrant that would only bring more blood and carnage to a continent that has been devastated by a war very recently, in the show. There are a lot of hints in the books that show Arya is going to feel very similar. Like Arya named her direwolf after a woman who found refuge for her people after fleeing the Valyrians.

4. Book Dany stans love Dany because they've misinterpreted her arc as being a heroic one. They see her as a saviour because they've mistaken her anti slavery campaign as being wholly altruistic, and they think shes going to retake Westeros and reestablish her family dynasty (perhaps with Jon) or she's going to sacrifice her life fighting the Others AFTER she's decimated Kingslanding. Accidentally of course. They overlook a lot of red flags in her narrative. For one, her whole mantra of "If I look back I am lost" is her refusal to contemplate her mistakes. Her whole Dance arc. People say it's boring, but I think those chapters are very revealing about where George intended to go with her character. He could not have been more blatant when he has her think that if she gets to fly on Drogon, it'll be "worth it" despite at the same time having her witness the absolute nightmare Drogon has created by him showing up. The fact that Dany is an isolated POV character - think how much people's view of Dany might have been changed if we had Mirri's POV to counter hers- but then again, considering how much WOC are treated like monsters in situations when they're the ones who have been hurt by white women, racists would still try to rationalise what Dany did to her. Arya has a similar issue -she's interacted with other POV characters who all have their perceptions of her (Jon, Ned, Sansa) but while the first two paint her in a very favourable light - you know Arya is a daddy's girl (which I identify with, I'm much closer to my dad) and Jon & Arya adore each other. When it comes to Sansa, she doesn't think Arya hung the moon (she doesn't hate her either to be clear) but it's very obvious that when it comes to AGOT, that George was very heavy-handed with the way he wrote them. And because of that people walk away with the perception that Arya is the underdog and Sansa the mean older sister. But at the same time it's not that simple. The perception isn't entirely accurate. Yes Arya is in many ways an underdog, but Sansa isn't an enemy. Her moments of being "mean" are the result of the trauma she very recently went through and isn't processing healthily, her issues with Joffrey etc, her repressed anger towards Ned (the person who killed Lady) There's also the fact that Arya projects onto Sansa in her first chapter - she blames her for getting her into trouble with Septa Mordane etc. Like Sansa wasn't doing anything but chilling with Jeyne girl. You're the one who spoke too loudly. You're also the one who insulted the Crown Prince, and if Sansa was really the bitchy sister antis paint her as, she would have told Septa Mordane. But instead she covers for both Arya AND Jon's asses (because he's the one that Arya is mimicking) It seems like such a minor thing because I don't think readers at that point would understand how serious that is for someone of Jon's station to be insulting the heir to a throne. Like don't get me wrong I don't care that he did lol, but that considering the nature of Westeros - smallfolk/lowborn etc they've brought up to have a respect/fear for their lords/kings (now whenever or not that is a good thing is another question.... abolish feudalism!! equality baby!!! However thats not going to happen in Dany, Sansa & Arya lifetimes. I feel like Brans election as king is going to be one small step towards progress) and that was a dumb thing for Jon to do. Like it reminds me of how Ilyn Payne insulted Aerys by saying that Tywin was the true king and then Aerys had his tongue ripped out.

Just as book Dany stans love Dany because they've wildly misunderstood her plot and character, these same Dany stans hate Sansa because they've wildly misinterpreted her character, her arc, and motivations. For example some think she is on an redemptive arc after her "betrayals" in AGOT. Or I've come across Dany stans who geniuely think Sansa is going down a dark path and is a "villian in the making".

5. Some Dany and Arya stans have a similar view of Sansa in that she is only meant to serve/support them & couldn't be important in her own right. And they resent the idea of that not being the case.

Wow I didn't mean to get so long winded. Hope this answers the question though lol!

[mobagehelllocal]

“do you even lift bro?” extra notes i - iii:

I finally finished rereading all my “do you even lift bro?” stories! Man, I feel like I wrote them ages ago. As I mentioned before, I have been going back to do grammatical edits and what not. In the process, I’ve also been noting down my thought process for writing these pieces, and little easter eggs I put in for fun~ This extra notes will contain my thoughts from versions i to iii! 

*please do not read if you haven’t read “do you even lift bro?” ver i - iii. 

The title came to me immediately upon reading the request hahah. originally, it was meant to just be fluffy and cute... but I think it’s actually pretty funny. To me, at least hahah. 

Divus’s was the one exception, but i’ll get into that later.

The reader personality was based on one of my ocs. She was also the oc in my special Malleus x OC story, “bright eyes.”

I went with her because she was an OC, who, in my opinion, is the epitome of a optimistic fangirl lmao. If you’ve read “bright eyes” then I think you’d understand what I mean hahahah. 

For ver i--I think I definitely wrote Riddle’s first. followed by Leona, Azul, Malleus, Kalim, Vil then Idia. 

One of my best friends is a super huge Riddle stan (if you’re reading this, hi sis!) so I wrote his story primarily with her energy in mind. In short, she would most definitely bench press Riddle. 

Her energy + the base reader personality makes Riddle’s story one of the most fun actually. His reader is probably the most mischievous ones--which I thought balanced out well with Riddle’s actual personality. 

Leona’s story is heavily influenced by pride dynamics. It’s common knowledge that it’s the female lions who hunt hence why in Afterglow Savanna--the women are stronger. Leona is royalty, so I assumed that from a young age he’d be told to wed a strong woman. 

I also need to note that Leona is described as respecting women. here’s the thing, I’m pretty sure it’s specifically women from Afterglow Savanna because they could bench press him. That’s not to say he doesn’t respect all women--he probably just puts women from Afterglow Savanna on a different standard because of his experience with them. Either way, you surprised him greatly, and assume that Leona will not be able to look you in the eye for awhile.

Azul’s story specifically takes place after Jamil SR Lab Coat episodes and Azul’s R PE Uniform episodes. I found their relationship funny, and thought it would be fun to continue off from there. 

Most of Azul’s stories come from me just wanting to fluster the hell out of Azul... that being said, I did delve a bit into the magic of TWST for this one. I remember it was Crowley (was it in the prologue?) who noted that magic is dependent also on how much someone believed in their ability to do something. This is why Azul falls down haha, his will faltered and he stopped believing. 

Jamil doesn’t get a break at all, doesn’t he? The reader and Jamil actually vibe really well because they both understood enough about Kalim to know what he was doing.

I think I remember being pretty stuck on which one to do for this. I think it was reading Jamil’s SSR Dorm Uniform story that really made me have an ‘aha’ moment on how to write it--since something like this happens on there. 

Surprisingly for Vil, once I had figured out that I wanted to write him getting mobbed, and being saved by his reader--it flowed out really fast from there. 

For Vil, I always end up bringing up the issue that he’s something like a celebrity and you are one in the million who adore him. I thought that this was just one way to sort of tackle your relationship together. 

I really enjoyed highlighting how you love Vil different from the rest who adore him. The importance of how you see his flaws and still love him--especially because as an influencer Vil has a certain pressure to appear in a certain way. 

Idia’s was the last one I wrote, but I had a lot of fun because I stuffed it full of references. I figured that Idia’s thought process would be more of him thinking life as a game, that’s why he uses terms like support level often in my writing. 

On that note, I know ‘Gao-Gao Dragon-kun’ is a reference to Tamagotchi, but I decided to just merge up Tamagotchi and Pokemon in this case. Hence why ‘Gao-Gao Shield and Sword’ existed lmao. I didn’t put too much effort in that and just switched ‘Shield and Sword’’s order HAHAH. I did consider making it ‘Gao-Gao Gun and Wand’ though. 

‘Water Crest: The Seven Dorms’ is a reference to Fire Emblem: Three Houses. I felt incredibly clever when I came up with that HAHAH. But also, when he references support levels, he’s talking about a gameplay in Fire Emblem. For people who aren’t familiar with this, essentially, FE has a system wherein the more you use two units together the likely their support will rise. The supports go from C-B-A-S, with S as the highest. When Idia says he works hard on S Support, he literally means he went out of his way to spend time with you and befriend you. Isn’t that cute? When he references SS Support, it actually doesn’t exist HAHA, but he didn’t realize there was “another level” sort of thing xD

When I write funny Malleus stories, the other members of Diasomnia are likely to be hiding in the bushes. Most funny stuff probably fly over Malleus’s head so... The other Diasomnia members pop in to react hahaha.

To Malleus, your tendency to treat him as a regular person, and not treating him as a lord--makes him incredibly fond of you. It’s because you treat him as an equal, that makes him treat you as an equal. I also think this was the piece where he started calling you “bright light.” There’s no deeper meaning to it, he really just sees you as a bright light--like a brilliant star. You, literally, light up the world. :,) 

Ver ii order of writing--Ashton, Dire, Divus. I had come up with the premise of Divus first though. 

I think Dire was the hardest one for me, because I kept worrying about things like--’what if he’s not actually like this,’ or ‘what if that isn’t how he would actually act’ etc etc. but I think it turned out pretty alright.

Dire, for all his claims of being a kind person--I think actually is a kind guy. He does have the tendency to be a little manipulative and whatnot... but at the end of the day he does care.

For Divus, I sniffed GBF Belial’s Perfume because I wanted to get inspired (and I sort of headcanon they smelled alike) but it went horny too fast. 

Divus is naturally intrigued with you, and he’s also very aware you’re attracted to him. So it amuses him to fluster you. He’s very aware of how good-looking he is, and he doesn’t mind flirting with people.

How I chose to portray Divus is actually based on how @avionvadion writes Divus in her story “Once Upon A Dream.” please check it out! It’s a super cute fanfic about a girl in Twisted Wonderland~ 

Ashton... I was surprised at how fast I was able to write his piece actually hahha. I went with a no braincell, but cheerful and all-around good guy. 

I don’t think there was a lot of Ashton to really research about, but... I just tried to make him good guy Gaston... for now xD 

Ver iii--it went Floyd, Jamil, Jade, Rook, Lilia, and Epel.

There’s this scene in, I think, the first episode of Avatar: The Legend of Aang where Appa wouldn’t fly. So Sokka just straight up... insulted? Appa? i guess. Then Appa suddenly COULD fly, and Sokka was just straight up amazed and yelling... Yeah that was my primary inspiration for Floyd’s story.

Floyd... Floyd is twins with Jade, let’s not forget that. I’m sure Floyd is actually really intelligent, he just isn’t in the mood to be sometimes. Hence he’s able to really understand something when you say something seriously. I think Floyd would always take you seriously when you say something important. 

For Jade’s story, my inspiration was the story of my dad tripping. It was only witnessed by him and mom. My mom talked about how terrifying it was to watch a six foot tall man fall down. My dad just found it funny. Hence, I thought, Jade should trip. 

Other than that, the general idea I wanted was that it’s our time to pamper Jade. He’s one of the two characters who I know would love to pamper his reader. So this was his lover’s chance to pamper him. Also, he’s also one of two characters who would have an idea about your insane strength.

Jamil, much like Jade, is the type of guy who pampers the people he loves. He doesn’t take to being pampered too well. He’s not used to it. 

Jamil also appreciates getting his hard work recognized, so I’m sure he has a praise kink hahah. He’s also easily embarrassed. I think Jamil needs someone who acknowledges all of his hard work, who also accepts his mistakes. 

Epel was the last one to write, and actually a genuine struggle for me. I always... end up writing something in relation to his struggles with his face and femininity. Epel is someone who wants to be seen as a real man, so I worried about what he’d think of a reader who had the strength he wanted. 

I figured if it was anyone else, it might inspire jealousy in Epel--but because it was his lover, he was able to push aside his negative feelings and look at the bright side. You’re truly his ideal, and he wants to learn how to be strong from you.

Rook was another tough one. There did exist a version where you surprise him... but the more I thought about it, the more I found it impossible for Rook to not know or not have an idea. He’s the other character who would have an idea about your strength.

On that note, thinking about a romantic partner for Rook... I thought what was best was someone who wouldn’t find him odd. Who would actually try to learn about him. 

Lilia’s... was also pretty easy given he enjoyed hanging upside down a lot in the main story hahah. Lilia cute, I love him. Also, when will Lilia stop messing with Idia? Probably never tbh. 

I touched upon the topic of mortality and immortality, but because I wanted this to be lighthearted--I chose not to pursue it. It would drag the mood down, but honestly--it’s something we can’t ignore and is very integral in relationships with Lilia or Malleus.

[har-rison-s]

like father, like daughter?

Whereyoustand: would you do a Richie tozier X daughter!reader? I don't know if that's out of your comfort zone but maybe Richie's daughter meeting all the losers for the first time. sorry if you're not taking requests and I read it wrong but if you are please take your time and feel free to decline. 

A/N: Nooo baby it's completely okay! Richie x daughter!reader makes me melt, omg… Let's guess why I'd love his arms around me any day I feel like crying… Hmmm… My daddy issues, you say? Haha, you're being silly. I've been dying to write this. You're one of my favourite followers, babe Whereyoustand ;) So, let's do this! I'm watching stanley edits while writing this, so forgive any sentimentality slipping into this one-shot. By the way, did you guys hear the rumor about Stan and Eddie dying? Who's the crazy sadist that spread it? Couldn't be me… Losers are a little out of character in this one, I'm so sorry. Happy reading!

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gif credit goes to owner, which isn’t me!

How do you even say hello to them? Your father's known these people since childhood, they're his best friends. They're the most important people to him in the world, just as important as you. And how do you not screw up with a first impression?

There must be hopes built up for you and what you're like... If you're like your father or not, how much you two are actually alike. But you're not what they're worried about. They don't even know you're coming! Their main excitement is about Richie himself. What's he like? Has he changed? How much of him do they actually remember, and how much of that is true?

Truth is, you're not like your father. You haven't inhabited the restless humor or the ability to improvise in general. What if they don't like you because of it? What if his friends want you to be the same, even expecting that of you? And you don't meet their standards…

You really wish your mother was here. She'd be your anchor, she'd make you worry less. But how would you know? She left when you were five. You hadn't become the person you are today by the age of five, or even a person, so you couldn't have known her at all and there's not much to remember, to go on. Only thing you remember is that she was kind. And you built a fairy-tale around that single feature. What else would there be to do?

Perhaps that's why you've grown into more of a quiet person. That makes you different from your dad Richie. He adores it, honestly, having not the feeling of looking into a mirror each time he sees you. He can't say you remind him of your mother, either, you're not a replica of her, either. You're like… a mix between them. Somewhere in a grey area that is what Richie isn't and what your mother is, is a little spot called 'Y/N'. 

You, Y/N, are still sitting in your dad's second-most expensive car (the expense of it makes you wonder why he'd bring such a car to a place like this), outside of a restaurant you're both supposed to meet his old friends at. Richie's standing outside, leaning against this horribly pricey car, patiently waiting for you to come out, when you're ready. He's surprised it's not the other way around - you waiting for him to get out. He supposes that his own sentiment will come at some point. He already felt longing and wonder while driving through some of Derry's streets.

Your eyes watch a woman with striking red hair and a man in a denim jacket interact in front of the restaurant's entrance. They embrace, and then they enter the building. Huh. Maybe they're two of dad's friends. Maybe. You sigh and untwist your sweaty hands from the knot they've formed. You run them over your denim thighs, fast at first, but you slow your movements and calm yourself down. You think you're ready to go out there and face whatever. Why does this feel like some big step, some big life-changing step now? Why does it feel like the world's stopped spinning suddenly? 

Try to shake the feeling, it's only dad's friends. It's not the end of the world. You're gonna be fine. Your hand pushes the car door open before you could protest against it, and when you step out of the car, your father turns his head around to see you. His eyebrows are raised, his eyes locking with yours through his glasses, and he walks around the car to reach you. Your eyes meet the ground out of shy habit, but a second later you feel Richie's hand on your shoulder firmly, comfortingly. You look up then, and are met with your father's concerned eyes.

“You okay, kiddo?” He asks, and you, out of another habit, nod. He knows it's false, you're so worried he can see right through you. “Want a hug?” Another nod. You feel yourself embraced by your father not a second later and you sigh against his chest. “They're gonna love you,” Richie says, “I know it even though I barely remember them.” 

You laugh with him. “Thanks, dad.” You say.

“No problem, baby.” Richie says. “And, hey, I know it's a stupid thing to say, but don't worry so much. I should be the worried one, fuck's sake, what if they've changed too much to like me anymore? Pshht.” He makes you giggle again. “What I'm trying to say is,” your father's hand moves soothingly over your back, “you're perfect even if you're not like me. Alright?”

You nod against his chest, and you both pull apart. 

“Now, let's head in. I'm actually excited for this.” Richie admits, looking upon the restaurant. He sighs, looks back at you and gives out his hand. You eye it for a second, but then take it with no further hesitation.

Your father's grip is tight, and you get the quiet thought at the back of your head that he's afraid. You look up at him for a few seconds, thankful he's not looking back at you. You don't like to be caught in the middle of your analysis, even if it is your father you're analyzing. And you truly see fear in his eyes. Just the smallest amount, but enough to be real. 

All six of them, as Richie had said, are sure enough standing in the restaurant's booth and conversing amongst themselves. The pair you saw outside are a part of this group, you were right. Wow, this surely is something. A lot of friends. Even for your father's warm and energetic persona, six friends are a bunch. Your wide eyes quickly switch between them all, not knowing who to focus on, wondering which name belongs to who. 

One of them, a man with dark, curly hair dressed in a checkered button-up (people still wear those?) turns to you, having felt your curious gaze on him and his friends. His face is laced with nervousness, similar to yours, and from your point of standing, you notice small marks on the sides of his face. The man on his left, dressed in a flannel and sporting some grey strands of hair already, turns to you, too. But a faint smile appears on the first man's face when he's looked longer at you. He might have an idea or two about who you are, because you certainly look the part.

“Hey, who's this?” He asks his friends, his hand faintly pointing at you from a low angle. You gulp when the rest of the adults turn to look at you. They spot both Richie and you, and there's a gasp from the woman with red hair and one from the guy who looks not a few inches taller than yourself. His gasp is sharper and deeper, almost a panicked one, you think.

Your father breathes an exasperated sigh, taking in all his old friends. “Fuck. You lot look great.” Is what he says first, and his friends are silent. Simply because they're too shocked to even laugh, not sure if they're right to. “Hello.” Richie says and gives a little wave. His friends are still in shock, and now Richie notices why - their eyes are fixed upon his offspring. She must be in a huge panic now.

He puts an arm around your shoulders, squeezes tight and smiles at his friends. “Right. This is my daughter.” He says. His friends' responses mix together since they speak at once, and Richie can't tell them apart. “Y/N, meet my friends.” 

Richie guides you the few steps towards the curly-haired man. You extend your right arm, as does he, and though your dad's embrace gives you comfort, it also limits your movements. “Stanley Uris. Nice to meet you.”

“Y/N Tozier.” You say, and suddenly saying your birth name, which you've had for a whole of seventeen years, gives you pride and you feel it through your whole body. Your face lights up, you give Stanley a smile that stretches to your ears and your cheeks flare with a subtle rosy blush. 

“Very nice to meet you, Y/N.” Stanley says, shaking your hand firmly and smiling at you, nodding his head. Looking into Stanley's eyes, you can feel they're searching your face and looking you over, clearly finding features you share with Richie. He, your father, does let go of you eventually, when you're done shaking hands with Stanley, and goes to greet his old pal Stanley now. As you walk over to the flannel guy, you hear your father and Stanley embrace and laugh together. 

“Hi, I'm B-B-Buh-Bill Denbrough.” The man speaks first and gives his arm for you to shake, which you do. It takes a second to remember his name, and now you recognise the stuttering best-selling author your dad told you about on the plane. “You luh-look a lot like R-Richie.” Bill says. “Your father, I me-mean.” 

“No worries, he's Richie to me, too.” You say in response. “We keep it formal in the Tozier house-hold.” You surprise yourself with a voice imitation of some business man breaks out of your own throat. Naturally breaks out, and you have to take a moment to realise what's happened. As natural as breathing.

Bill Denbrough laughs. “I see he's puh-passed the Voices down t-to you, as well.” He says. You only shrug, generally awestruck by what broke out of you seconds ago. 

“I'm Mike Hanlon.” Comes from the man standing a little behind Bill. You have to look up at this man, he's taller than the previous two, as tall as your dad. You smile at Mike, recognising his name.

“You're the one who called dad.” You say, then, giving your hand to Mike for shake, but he surprises you with a hug. You're a little shocked and frozen, at first, but you don't mind the hug. Makes you feel a little easier, makes you feel welcomed into the company. 

“Glad to meet you, Y/N.” Mike says to you. How strange. Have we met before? You want to ask him, but you decide against it. 

“Glad to finally meet someone as tall as my dad.” You say instead and Mike, Bill and the remaining friends to greet laugh. You pull away from Mike Hanlon's grip and are met with quite the fitness guy. Oh, wait, that's the one in the denim jacket. You could have sworn your first impression of him was that of a cowboy, his denim jacket and leather boots sure make for the part. 

“I'm Y/N.” You say, finally speaking first, before the man can introduce himself. He chuckles and shakes your extended arm.

“I'm Ben Hanscom.” He tells you with a warm smile on his face. His name rings a bell and you look for which bell is that. Have you heard him on the radio? The news? On Twitter?

“Wait a second,” you say, turning your head slightly to the side, “aren't you the guy who designed the famous building in London?”

Ben Hanscom nods, a little embarrassed, and there's even a blush on his cheeks. “That's me, yeah.” He confirms. You chuckle.

“Don't worry, I don't want an autograph.” You shake your head. Thankfully, Ben laughs, and lets you move closer to the woman with red hair. Before you greet her, though, you look over your shoulder to see your dad. He's embracing both Bill and Mike, and he looks very happy doing so, he looks very happy to meet them. Stanley's already choosing his seat at the round table.

Whispers from the near-by conversation catch your attention, and you listen in for a second.

“R-Richie, man, all due respect, buh-but I don't think hav-having Y/N here is safe. For her. F-For you.”

“Yeah, man, you should have left her with her grandmother or something.”

“Long story short, fellas, her mother's out the picture and all grandparents are dead. Yes, I could have arranged some activities for her while I'm gone, but I… I don't know. I didn't think she'd be safe alone at home or anywhere without me, if I'm here. You know?” Your father speaks much too quickly, he's nervous, he's afraid.

“That could be, yeah.”

“So I figured I better take her with me, so I can keep an eye on her and actually keep her safe.”

“You-you better. It's very duh-dangerous for her to be here.”

“Oh, like we're safe in a durable bubble here, Big Bill.”

But you turn your head to face the red-haired woman as if you hadn't heard anything. And you give her your best smile.

“My, you're a pretty thing.” She says and also pulls you into a hug, just like Mike did. You have no time to notice the bruises around her wrists. “You look like a doll, just like your father.” She tells you and then pulls back, but still holds your shoulders and runs her eyes over your features. It makes you nervous, and your eyes look lower, to her shoulders. “I'm Beverly.” She finally tells you.

“I'm Y/N.” You say and she nods. 

“A very pretty name. Are you sure you're Richie's kid?” Beverly teases, and you can only chuckle. “He wanted to give all his kids, like, Star Wars or Lord Of The Rings names. I wouldn't allow him to name my kids back then.”

“Sounds like mine's the best choice.” You respond. This is news to you about your father. And you realise you'd gladly hear a lot more about what he was like as a kid. He's never talked about his childhood, never told a funny story from that time, and it's only now occurred to you. Sure, you've wondered what your father was like when he was your age, but asking never crossed your mind. What you don't know is that your father didn't remember his childhood until today. And you're excited to hear stories.

“Hey, kiddo,” says the man short in height, who is also the last one you have to meet out of Richie's friends, “my name's Eddie.” He gives you his hand to shake, and you do, and notice that he looks at your hand a little suspiciously for a brief second.

“I'm Y/N.” You tell him, smiling politely. 

“So strange that you're Richie's kid.” Eddie wonders once your hands aren't touching anymore and he's stuffed his pair of hands into the pockets of his jeans. He shakes his head as you furrow your eyebrows. Eddie looks at Beverly. “Think Richie was the last one we thought would ever have kids, right?” Beverly nods to his question, and there's a wandering look in her eyes. “Tell me, how many times did he drop you when you were little?” Eddie asks, then, and the question makes both Beverly and you laugh. Eddie's humor is similar to Richie's.

“Very funny, Eds,” the mentioned man's voice comes from behind you, and so does his hand on your shoulder. Eddie visibly tenses up and his face changes.

“Don't call me that.” He tells Richie, but he doesn't respond.

“I may have been a big joke back then, but, as I look upon you all now,” Richie makes a circular gesture to his circle of friends around him, “I'm the one who's raised a beautiful kid out of the whole seven of us.” Your father boasts and everyone laughs. You smile and lean into his side. Meeting his friends has been ten times better than you anxiously had anticipated. 

The Losers Club, a nickname Richie announced when he also banged the gong in the corner of the room, and you moved to the round table and took seats around it. You chose the seat between Stanley and your father. Eddie and Ben were to Stanley's left and Beverly, Bill and Mike were on your dad's right. Through the course of the dinner, it turned out you'd chose the best seat. Whether it was out of nerves and social anxiety or just pure clinginess to your parent, didn't matter now. 

Your father and Eddie were quite the bickering house-wives, and to hear Stanley's little comments to himself only added to how funny everything was where you were sitting. Also, Stanley talked to you about being nervous, saying he'd noticed your shaken form and wide eyes, and talked about his own nervousness. That made you ease up even further. 

The dinner was filled with laughter and fun, made you forget all your worries. Hearing all the stories about Richie as a kid, finding out the nicknames they gave each other, and joining them in re-discovering their childhoods. Spending time with your father's friends... You never thought you'd be in this kind of situation, yet here you are. You write this dinner down as one of the best days with your father, if not the best.

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A/N: Yes I use that picture in every losers request. No I don't have a better one.

[thoughtfullyyoungduck]

Color explosion  (stenbrough x reader)

A/N: This was requested by @stanleyurisgirl​. Thank you so much for the request! I hope you like it! Let me know what you think! Also yes I’m aware the titel sucks 😂

Summary:  If possible could I request a soulmate au where the reader's soulmate's are Stanley Uris and bill Denbrough, could it be where soulmate's are colour blind until they meet their soulmate and can see in color?

‘Can you fucking watch where you’re going?’ Your loud voice called out angrily to a woman who without even looking around flipped you off. You huffed, adjusting your skirt before continuing on your way. You grumbled the whole way, still wondering why you had said yes to this meeting in the first place. You were a illustrator for a marketing company, and you were on your way to meet the famous Bill Denbrough. You had read a few of his books, and beside the general outrage, you actually really liked the ending to his books, and you had a Knick for reading regardless of who the author was, but that didn’t mean you were all that excited for this project. You were supposed to read Mr. Denbrough’s new book draft, and design a book cover for it, but this was the third time already that you had tried to set up a meeting.

The first time mister Denbrough had cancelled, he said he had some family problems, and he had to go back to his hometown, though he didn’t offer up any other explanation. You had felt a bit annoyed, as you lived for away from Atlanta, where the meeting would take place, and you had already been in a hotel when he had called. Still, you understood that sometimes things could come up without any notice, so you politely said nothing and returned to Ohio, where you lived. You had never met Mr. Denbrough before, and the only reason he had your phone number was because your boss had given it to him. The second time your phone had rang and Bill Denbrough’s name popped up, he had said it was a ‘boyfriend emergency’.

Stanley Uris, you thought his name was. In the  radio interviews you had listened to, solely to prepare yourself for your job you insisted, not because Bill Denbrough seemed like an interesting man, he had talked about how much he loved his boyfriend. Stanley Uris was apparently just as blindingly pretty as Bill himself was. You had never seen either one of them, not seeing the point in that, but your friends had, and they loved to tell you all about them.

They suited each other. They weren’t pretty in the same way, Bill looked like he was a laid-back looking man. He wore a lot of plaid shirts, and he dressed casually, but somehow he made it work. Stanley Uris looked more fancy, he wore a suit and tie, his curls tamed as much as they possibly could, and his posture rigid. Both of them looked like models in their own way, and together, they looked even better. Of course, that wasn’t your perspective, but you did trust the judgment of your friends, so you were excited to finally meet him.

A coworker of yours gossiped that Stan and Bill had another soulmate that they hadn’t found yet, as Bill had once mentioned that he and Stan could only see blue colors, which was unusual to say the least. When people met their soulmates, they found out what colors were. It was a universal given, that everyone had a soulmate, and once you met them, you could finally see what the big fuss about  clothes were, your dad often joked that he wasn’t your mothers soulmate, because she still couldn’t match clothes at all. Your mom would huff lovingly and roll her eyes at that. It was rare to have more than one soulmate, but it did happen, yet it was very rarely talked about.

Having a second soulmate was seen as taboo, so when your coworker had told you Bill Denbrough had admitted to it on live television, you doubted it very much.  When people with more than one soulmate met their first one, they would see only one part of the color scheme, until they met their other soulmate(s). You didn’t know if that was the case with Mr. Denbrough and Stanley Uris, but you weren’t too bothered about it. Being happy is always the most important thing.  

You had also heard that Stanley Uris ended up in the hospital, though you didn’t know for what, so while it made sense that Bill was taking care of him, you felt irritated that you had yet again came to Atlanta for nothing. The hotel your boss made you stay in was comfortable, but it didn’t do anything to make you miss your own home any less. You missed your dog when you went away, even though your dog was content to stay with your parents for a couple of days. You had once more said nothing, instead wishing Mr. Denbrough luck. Afterwards though, you reached out to your boss. You weren’t close to her, but that didn’t stop you from telling her that if Bill Denbrough canceled one more time, you were not going to design his cover any more. Your boss complained, but ultimately agreed, which brought you to Atlanta for a third time, and you swore to your parents up and down that this would be the last time that you would drop your dog, stitch, off at their house.

They didn’t mind, in fact, they loved the fact that you were gone. Your mother told you one time that it might be the time Where you would finally meet your soulmate, which caused you to dismount very quickly. Soulmates were a touchy subject in the family, considering you had still not, found your soulmate. Your mother had often pushed on the issue, saying that your biological clock was ticking,

And that she would love to become a grandmother before she died. She had said it in a joking way, though you knew she meant every word of it. She had been pushing you to find your soulmate since you were only 12 years old, and so many fights in the family between your mom and dad went about you. You didn’t even know if you wanted children, because you refused to bring a child into this world that would have two bickering parents all the time.

Your words ran through your head though, and you had looked around Atlanta thoughtfully, hoping that you would suddenly see color. This was the third time you had been here though, and you still had no luck. You were starting to think that you may not even have a soulmate, that you were destined to live your life in a black and white world, I’m a world where you would never be able to match your clothes, or pick out wall colors. It upset you sometimes, like when your best friend got married and you couldn’t help her pick a dress because you couldn’t see the color it was in, but for the most part you had just accepted this as a part of you, and you were okay with it.

You had finally reached the address Bill had given you, not too far away from the train station which you had used, and took a deep breath before knocking on the door. You’re face lit up with a fake smile right away, because you were a professional, and even though Mr. Denbrough got on your last nerve, you were going to be polite

You were surprised that you had actually gotten an address from Mr. Denbrough, as the previous times you had an appointment, you were supposed to meet in a cafe nearby. It seemed like he know that you were close to quitting and decided that having you come over to his home would mean that you could relax a little more. You knocked, and for a few minutes nothing happened, then the heavy door creaked open and a woman stood in the door opening. She was smiling, and she looked absolutely beautiful, even without you being able to see color. ‘You must be Y/N? I’m Beverly, come in, Bill’s caught up in writing again.’ As she said it she extended her hand and you politely shook hers.

She lead you into the home, past the living room where shouting voices could be heard, ‘eat shit trashmount’, but Bev led you over to another door, opening without hesitation. She turned around motioning for you to get in and smiled once more. ‘Don’t get too caught up in how he looks, I swear he’s a professional’, she winked, before walking back to the living room. You wondered if you looked okay, considering you had no idea which colors you were combining.

You stepped into the room, the first thing you noticed was that it was messy place. There were papers everywhere, cups of coffee on the floor where you were sure you there shouldn’t be, and in the middle of it all sat a man, with his back towards you. In front of him, there was another door, leading into a room you couldn’t see from this angle. The man hadn’t appeared to hear you come in, too busy typing furiously.

You coughed lightly, trying to get his attention. His head shot up, and he turned around. ‘Oh I’m so sorry, I completely forgot you were coming today, you must be’. He cut himself off. You suddenly had a pounding headache, so extreme you stumbled backwards, keeping yourself upright on the door.

You squeezed your eyes shut, breathing deeply in through your noise as you tried to calm down. You heard Bill’s breathing pick up a notch, but you were too busy trying to deal with your own pain. After a few seconds of this, your eyes blinked open, heavy and you squinted against the light coming in through the window. Suddenly, your own breathing picked up.

You could see, what you guessed was the color red. It looked so beautiful, and you nearly cried. It was the color of Bill’s shirt, and a deviant of the color was on the walls, orange or pink, you remembered. When you were a child, your school taught tried to teach you colors, but it was hard when most of the kids hadn’t met their soulmates yet. You barely registered Bill, slowly rising from his chair. You looked down, and saw that you had were wearing a lighter red jacket. With tears in your eyes you looked at Bill, who himself was looking at you with tears in his eyes. ‘Hey, Bill would you like a drink’? Someone called out from inside the other room, his voice like velvet.

A confused frown appeared on your face, didn’t Bill have Stan as a soulmate yet? You looked around the room once more, and noticed that some of the colors still weren’t visible to you. You suddenly remembered what you coworker had told you, that Bill had said that he and Stan still hadn’t found their other soulmate. He was so close to you now, if he took one more step forward, the two of you would be pressed together.

Bill ignored his words, instead calling out a quick, ‘Stan, Stan get in here now please’.

Almost immediately, another man came running into the room. He looked scared, but when his eyes landed on Bill he let out a sigh of relief. Bill glanced at him quickly before turning back to you.  The man followed suit, and the second your eyes met, you felt the same pain once more. Your knees buckled, but Bill acted fast and caught you in his arms. You collapsed against him, but this time you opened your eyes quicker than before. ‘Stan’, Bill breathed, and ‘Stan’ looked up at him. His eyes were open as well, and he looked around the room in wonder, before his eyes settled on you, his mouth dropping open slightly.

You looked up at Bill, who helped you stand up again, but kept his arms encircled around you anyway. His eyes were blue, an amazing ocean blue. A smile took over your features once more, you could see every color now. Dark, light, bright, not so bright. Every single one of the colors were full of life, and you couldn’t get enough from watching them. Your friends were right, both Stan and Bill looked absolutely stunning in their own way. Stan’s curls were a dark color, and you reached up and whipped a curl out of his face.

Stan smiled, his hand cupping yours, grabbing your hand tightly. Bill turned your head, leaned down, and kissed you without thinking twice. You kissed him messily, at first hesitant, but after a few seconds the both of you pushed your nervousness aside, and kissed like your life depended on it.

You felt dazed, so full of happiness. Stan and Bill shared a kiss too, and you felt a bomb of happiness in your heart. You had not one, but two soulmates, how lucky were you?

Stan leaned forward a bit, but instead of kissing you on the lips, he pressed a kiss to your forehead. ‘I’m sorry’, he murmured, ‘I’m not good with germs’. You laughed, reaching your arms around his midsection, shaking you head. ‘Don’t apologize.’

‘I’m Bill, but I think you already knew that’, Bill laughed, his hand reached out for Stan, who immediately took it.

‘I’m Stan’, Stan continued, still leaning close to you.

Still dazed from the amount of love you were feeling, and from all the color attacking your eyes you merely replied with; ‘I have a dog called Stitch.’

The loud laughs both Stan and Bill let out made you laugh too, and you had never felt more at ease than you were now. Thank god for your boss.

[kitty-lunaz]

The loss of heroes

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

             Definitions

 

PTSD-. (is a mental health condition that's triggered by a terrifying event — either experiencing it or witnessing it. Symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.

D.I.D- “a mental disorder characterized by the maintenance of at least two distinct and relatively enduring personality states.”

P.P.D- (depression suffered by a mother following childbirth, typically arising from the combination of hormonal changes, psychological adjustment to motherhood, and fatigue.) 

Depression-Depression is a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. Also called major depressive disorder or clinical depression, it affects how you feel, think and behave and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems

Schizophrenia- schizophrenia (a serious mental disorder in which people interpret reality abnormally. Schizophrenia may result in some combination of hallucinations, delusions, and extremely disordered thinking and behavior that impairs daily functioning, and can be disabling).  

Hallucinations- perception of objects with no reality usually arising from disorder of the nervous system

Conventions-A convention, in the sense of a meeting, is a gathering of individuals who meet at an arranged place and time in order to discuss or engage in some common interest. Valkyrior- Within the context of Marvel's shared universe, the Valkyrior is a group of female warriors led by Brunnhilde / Valkyrie that was originally designated by Odin to bring the souls of slain heroes to Valhalla.

God Khonshu- Khonsu (Ancient Egyptian: ḫnsw; also transliterated Chonsu, Khensu, Khons, Chons or Khonshu) is the Ancient Egyptian god of the Moon.

Inertia- a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged.

Iron man’s addiction- alcoholism

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Hero a person who saves others. What about the kids who don’t have their hero. What about the kids whose hero was iron man, captain America, Thor, hulk, people like that? Our heroes are gone and we don’t have hope anymore. People say it's all going to be ok, we’ll be ok but what about when we lost all hope. What about those of us whose heroes we remembered as the creations of stan lee. Imagine the silence that has echoed for almost two years and it is still here. It’s not going away. The yelling of the depressed scared kids comes across deafened ears. Our pain fills our ears, mouths, and brains its overriding everything we’ve got left.

Young people now barely past 23 still choke on the mornings of a certain September day. Seeing a corrupt country that still somewhat loved its country shattered to its bones. Broken-down voicemails of a man giving up his right to a family. People staring out windows as a pair of buildings seen as a CenterPoint of a nation crumbles to ash and death stung the air.

Kids shaking in fear as another child points a gun at them. Their last moments in a place that swore it would protect them. Their heads screaming a blissful cry of fear at finally not having to fear this moment again. Yet crying out for someone like their own ‘friendly neighborhood Spiderman’ to come and save them.

So many of us thinking maybe just maybe if ‘so and so heroes’ were real maybe things would be better. Maybe if they were, daddy/ mommy would’ve made it home because they could’ve stopped the fire, the crash, the shooting. Maybe if they were real we could go to conventions and have them give us another reason to smile.

Our generations need so many heroes, heroes like Valkyrie who shows strength in not only being a beautiful woman of color, a leader of the Valkyrior, and a woman who is on the LGBT spectrum. We need heroes some like Deadpool who talk people from jumping off buildings those who remind us we might not be great people but we can change and better ourselves. We need heroes like Moonlight, wonder woman, or Daredevil each of these three has different illnesses I will do a quick explanation of their illnesses, but we need heroes like this who remind us and tell us that it is ok. That even heroes aren’t perfect they are ‘human’ in so many cases.

Moonlight who is a male character who supposedly was given powers to him by an ancient Egyptian God Khonshu. He has been depicted as having D.I.D.  He has also been shown hallucinating to the point that in certain comics even the reader becomes confused: Did he ever even have powers in the first place? What is he truly experiencing? There is cases wherein extreme fear of situations he takes on other personalities for long periods. His most notable secondary persona is Jake Lockley. Some even theorizing he may have a form of schizophrenia.

  Wonder woman is a non-human who has a human appearance. She experiences a few mental illnesses although compared to some heroes they seem to lackluster and nonserious. Yet although hers are less than painful than some that does not mean they aren’t important just rather a different type. One said illness a very common one in heroes P.T.S.D. For her she had been living her life believing one thing only to find a large portion of the place the memories took place in being false. This and a mix of other things she has experienced sent her into a level of shock which sent her into a catatonic state. She would experience things such as hallucinations of a snake that came out of her arm and would talk to her. (Do not do what she did to help hers see a therapist for help if you can.) She ended up as much as some with an illness like P.T.S.D can she cured herself by doing a form of self-exploration. 

 

   Daredevil is a different character. His mental illness isn’t his only illness though. Matthew Murdock is a blind lawyer.  He is an extremely interesting character being born from a poor family. His mother started experiencing P.P.D. This led to her attacking matt as young age her husband jack stopped the attack in turn she left and joined a covenant in which later on would meet and connect back with matt. The more important part of that is rather that he could inherit depression. Later on, in his life this mattering on which version his dad who was a boxer would be killed for not throwing a fight. Either being a gymnast/Boxer as a child or be taught by the character stick. Either way, he would at some point lose his sight from trying to save a man from a chemical spill. This would aide in his fighting ability because of his enhanced senses. Yet as with many superheroes’ death plagued him like his own shadow. His two lovers both killed by a very common villain named kingpin. Depression would become an illness he is constantly fighting. A section a comic would show in a set of three panels of his fist seeming to push through a thick layer of a gelatin-like substance that didn’t want to bend. This representing the battle against depression the words accompanying this would hit home for many.  “Get up you have momentum now, don’t let the shadows pull you back in. Inertia is the enemy; do something, move. Move Matthew”

  This is not to say generations raging back long before D.C. was even an idea didn’t need heroes. Yet rather than their issues were different not to say they didn’t deserve them. Those times didn’t have them and then seemingly losing them.  Logically they probably did posters for survival and fighting spirit but they could see and hold the hope themselves without needing to hear things like this to believe they were safe…

  “I am iron man” and think that he will protect me even through a screen or comic book page.

  “I could do this all day” Imagining him using his shield to protect you from bullets physical and metaphorical.

  “With great power comes great responsibility” Knowing that he’ll catch you as you fall into your depressive episodes.

  “Odin’s beard!” Knowing that although he could be doing other things there were those with powers to hurt yet use them to help

  “Excelsior!” That no matter what there will be hope and there will be those willing to save you in the darkest times.

  Now “I am iron man” echoes in pained breaths. “I could do this all day” feels more like a mock of how hard our lives trying to break us down. “Odin’s beard!” Feels like lightning piercing the heart knowing it may never sing out its call again. “Excelsior!” Now there’s an emptiness it licks at the ears, eyes, brain, and heart and it feels like it will never refill.

The face of hope seems stripped away now as a series of movies and characters have finally waved a long-awaited farewell. Wolverine said goodbye as time has gone on the x-men series slowly seemed to lose its tact yet there was always a joy knowing there was a mix of different people keeping us all safe.

  Iron man gave his most graceful goodbye, and now his addiction seems more appealing so there’s still a connection. America placed his shield away and watched his sunset, now fighting so that way someone is protecting others seems kind. Thor laughed booming and it echoes trying to claw anything close enough to that joy one last time.

  Memories of our heroes will always be here leaving an aching in the lungs.

[bigskydreaming]

Thanks to a friend I got my grubby little hands on a copy of the new New Mutants first issue first thing this morning, and I mostly really liked it? Maybe the most out of all the new Dawn of X titles so far?

Spoilers below:

The Bad:

Really really really painful clunky wow this is bad stilted exposition between Dani and Berto to catch new readers up to speed, like Previously on As The X Turns or whatever.

The Good:

Almost everything else? I know, I was surprised too.

But the characterizations were on point, Chamber and Mondo being tossed in with the rest of the classic New Mutants gang is kinda random but it works, I think.

The shout out to Synch and Monet being elsewhere doing stuff was nice, like, I would’ve loved seeing them too but its not really their book and I’m still riding the high of Ev just being alive again at all.

The New Mutants gang all living communally together in one big house on Krakoa IS MY EVERYTHING AND LITERALLY ALL I’VE EVER WANTED FOR THESE CRAZY KIDS I THINK IM GONNA CRY JUST THINKING ABOUT IT WTF. Like as many troubling implications as Dawn of X and Krakoa as a whole have, at least until I figure out how many of them are meant to be there as plot points and how many are just things that weren’t considered or else weren’t considered problems.....like, if Hickman keeps tossing out little gems like this, I am weak and I just. Its such a little thing but its SO GOOD.

Illyana being obsessed with the new Krakoan strain of coffee and willing to cut you if you try and touch her coffee is my new favorite trope.

Just Illyana in general. God, when she’s written like this, she’s one of my all time faves. Her replying to being called a demon girl with stuff like “lol its cute you think thats an insult” and her sparring match with Raza is just...gold.

Berto was my runner up fave in the issue. God, the classic Berto characterization, like this is him at his quintessential best. The casual arrogance but delivered with enough charm that its like oh Berto, instead of ugh, Berto....the assumption that he’s the one in charge in Sam’s absence, yet not even slightly offended when its later basically established that the others are just humoring him because none of them really want the job, and the second he makes an ‘executive decision’ they don’t agree with, they just go and do their own thing anyway, and Berto’s like....yeah, that tracks. Oh well.

Doug is the most interesting he’s been in...since like, ever, pretty much. And that’s even with the fact that I’ve always kinda liked him anyway.

The classic New Mutants style adventure. Like, this is the kinda thing they DID as kids, and that was like....what made them them. The X-Men are all about saving the world....the New Mutants were just a bunch of weird outcast mutant kids who were friends who never would have been friends if not for the mutant thing bringing them all together....and them just hanging out and stumbling into hijinks that turn into the most random adventures as just...them living their lives.

So to see them basically get involved in an epic space adventure that really just organically results from them being like, y’know what we’re missing? Sam. This place is awesome but its not perfect as long as he’s not here, and he’s off in Shi’ar space living with his new wife and kid, so obviously, the logical course of action is to go into space, bum a ride from Cyclops’ pirate dad, and then wind up arrested for crimes against the Space Empire because like...pirates, man. Effin space pirates.

Also, its nice to see them continuing with the whole thing where Sam totally got together and had a kid with one of the Shi’ar Imperial Guard. Like, every appearance of him since Hickman’s Avengers run basically acted like that never happened, and I didn’t read his Avengers run because eww, Avengers, I can’t do that even for Sam and Berto and I LOVE THEM, like. There are limits to even my ability to stan and thus stomach Unfortunate Canon Things. So I’ve literally never read a comic with Smasher, Sam’s new....girlfriend? Wife? Idk their relationship status. And I’m not at all invested in their relationship but I AM always a fan for any and all chances for X-characters to be allowed to have new relationships and GROW instead of cycling through the same half a dozen dynamics they’ve been stuck in for twenty plus years. 

So, I mean, I know that literally the only thing keeping Sam plus Smasher plus their new baby a thing is the fact that Hickman’s writing this title personally and of course he wanted to return to the plot point he established with Sam even if nobody since him has wanted to touch on it, but I’m not mad about it, and like. X-Men having kids is a THING with me, and Sam is A+ Daddy material and omg if you make that into a kink joke I will hurt you, YOU ALL KNOW WHAT I MEANT lmfao.

But srsly, the team being all ‘brb, we’re just going to a galaxy far far away to bug our BFF into coming back to live on Fantasy Island with us in our big communal dome house thingie’.....it honestly couldn’t feel any more classic New Mutants but still with them all grown up, like, even if I tried to come up with a more fundamentally THEM plot with all my might.

Also, never hurts to be reminded that even though Corsair is Scott’s dad, like....the dude is kinda a douche and always has been, and his characterization here is absolutely valid. Fuck that dude.

Last but not least:

The Bad but purely in an objective way that like, its not bad writing, its just I Don’t Like It, Fuck You:

As much as I’m happy to see Sam’s latest relationship status upheld and continued to be built upon, the Sam/Bobby shipper in me can’t help but be all awww, sad feels. Which Sam/Bobby, you ask? Drake or DaCosta? Either. Both. Whichever. I’m not picky!

I maintain there was room for Ev and Monet to be squeezed in there somehow if Hickman like, really TRIED, gosh darnit. And it IS a little weird to me that if he was going to mash together some members of the Gen X lineup with the classic New Mutants for this particular adventure....umm, where’s Paige? Did nobody think hey wonder if our Gen X teammate and friend Paige Guthrie wants to come with us to go see her brother and new nephew? I mean, I guess maybe she’s busy hanging out with her presumably newly resurrected little brother Jay, but given the story context, that could’ve used a mention somewhere. That’s just my personal nitpick though.

Too much focus on Rahne. With full awareness that it was only like, one scene of focus, a few pages at most, but any focus on Rahne is too much focus for me, sorry not sorry. Turns out I still hate her and like, look, I know its not actually her FAULT given that she’s a fictional character that didn’t write the story that made me hate her, but its a Thing and I think at this point I can safely say her character is ruined for me forever and I’m like....Magma should be around somewhere too, what if you just like....quietly air-lifted Rahne out of this story and dropped Amara in instead, like, INSTANT IMPROVEMENT, try it, you’ll see! I am not biased, this is totally impartial criticism!

[mrsspidermanmaryjanewatsonparker]

“While they're depicted as happy and in love, there are a lot of details that don't make sense.”

Oh boy I can’t wait to hear this from the pinnacle of comic book journalism that is Screenrant....

20 EVERYTHING ABOUT "ONE MORE DAY"

 Okay fair enough

 19 THEY HAVE NOTHING IN COMMON

 Sense of humour. Study different forms of science. Science and acting are both about making sense of life. Troubled childhoods. Living double lives. Living with guilt over relegating on responsibilities which hurt your family. Immense inner strength. Oh and btw having shit in common isn’t the be all and end all of romantic relationships so shut up.

 “It's possible for two people to love each other and not have much in common. ”

 That’s what I said.

 “At some point, however, a couple needs to have something to build a relationship on.”

 And they did see above and add in being one another’s friends, confidants and support group.

 “Peter Parker and Mary Jane couldn't be further apart from each other in almost every single way. He's a science geek with a weird sense of humor and no social skills.”

 Also heroic, also gult ridden, also responsible, also inner strength, also working class, also lost a parent, also lived a double life....like MJ.

 “Meanwhile, MJ is an aspiring model/actress, except for when she's a super successful model/actress.”

 Everyone knows model/actress = a personality right.

 “In recent years, she's shown a more entrepreneurial side, but that still involved opening a nightclub, the sort of place where Peter doesn't fit in at all. They say opposites attract, but there comes a point where that just becomes nonsensical.”

 Yes there is but that point is well beyond the ways in which Peter and MJ are opposite to one another because their traits often balance one another out.

 18 THEY GOT TOGETHER WAY TOO SOON AFTER GWEN'S DEMISE

 They got together almost 2 years after Gwen died shut up.

 “Time in comic books is a funny thing. The Marvel Universe has a sliding timescale, meaning that it's hard to peg down when stories took place in relation to each other. The time that passes in the real world means nothing. That being said, Peter and MJ started dating way too soon after Gwen Stacy's demise.”

 Canonically its still 2 years so shut up.

 “She lost her life in Amazing Spider-Man #121 (1973) by Gerry Conway and Gil Kane. By the end of the next issue, the seeds were being planted for them to get together. They didn't immediately start dating, but Peter seemed to get over his "one, true love" suspiciously fast”

 2 years isn’t too fast and she wasn’t his one true love. Nobody has a one true love.

 17 SHE FLIP-FLOPS ON PETE'S LIFE AS SPIDER-MAN

This list is about stuff that doesn’t make sense. Anybody dating a superhero is probably going to flip flop over their own or their loved ones’ lives being potentially endangered by super powered serial killers.

 “Look, dating a superhero must be hard. Nobody can blame someone for not wanting to deal with it, or trying to convince a loved one not to risk their life. Also, it can make having a social life impossible. It's understandably frustrating, but at some point, enough is enough.

It seems like Mary Jane can't make up her mind about Peter's life as Spider-Man.”

 Obviously she can because she chose to date him, chose to marry him and stayed with him all the time sans stories where she was written as OOC.

 She both likes it and dislikes it which makes her compelling and its realistic too. She doesn’t HAVE to make up her mind definitively and every day stay on track with liking or hating it because people flip flop over shit all the time.

 Shit Spider-Man himself flip flops about BEING SPIDER-MAN!

 “Sometimes she's fully supportive, while other times she wants him to quit. ”

Gee its almost like something as dangerous as a superhero’s life would have lots of factors that impact how you feel depending upon what side of the bed you got up from.

 Also she never wanted him to quit outside of when she was OOC. She only once wanted him to remain retired when she was heavily pregnant.

 “Considering that she knew Peter was Spider-Man before she even met him, it's time for her to figure out her feelings and make a decision. ”

 a)                  She did, hence they married

b)                  She doesn’t need to make a decision YOU the individual reader want her to but realistically the character for her own sake doesn’t have to

 “They both know he's not going to give up being a hero, so it's time to be grown ups.”

 16 THEIR ENGAGEMENT WAS SUPER QUICK

In the history of mankind there have been quicker engagements.

Shit STAN LEE got married super quick, he married his wife Joan of 60 something years literally the day she got divorced.

“In Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21 (1987) by David Michelinie, Jim Shooter, and Paul Ryan, Peter Parker married Mary Jane. Behind the scenes, this occurred because Stan Lee wanted Spider-Man to get married in the newspaper comic strip that he was writing at the time. Marvel liked the idea, and decided to have them get married in the comics as well.

The problem was that they were broken up at the time. So, the writers had to quickly bring her back, rekindle the romance, have Peter propose, and then get married.”

 This is total fucking bullshit.

Mary Jane had been a mainstay in the titles for over 4 years before the wedding, being the most recurring character sans Spider-Man himself.

Moreover broken up isn’t strictly accurate, Peter and Mj years prior to their wedding had been effectively dating whilst being in denial about it to one another or publicly.

Their romance and love was always there they just weren’t being honest about it until Peter proposed.

Yeah the proposal-wedding was a few issues, but the romantic tension and relationship had been years in the making.

“Anyone that's ever planned a real wedding knows how unrealistic this whole timeline was.”

Yeah unless you were having a quick wedding at city hall with a small ceremony and there was a time skip before and during the final part of the story where they tie the knot.

15 DO THEY HAVE A BABY OR NOT?

“The second Clone Saga that ran during the mid '90s had one of the most confusing endings ever written. Basically, the writers needed to finish Ben Reilly's storyline while also tying up all of Peter's loose ends to make it possible for Peter to become Spider-Man again. One of these plot threads was the fact that Mary Jane was pregnant.

The editors felt that Spider-Man being a dad would age him, so they suggested that Mary Jane not have the baby, after all. However, it was also heavily implied at the time that Norman Osborn had the baby taken away. This storyline was teased for a few years, before ultimately being forgotten about.”

This list is about things that do not make sense. This list is not about things that are merely unresolved.

14 WHY DOES PETER STILL USE THE BLACK SUIT?

“In Amazing Spider-Man #299 (1988) by David Michelinie and Todd McFarlane, Venom made his frightening first appearance. Mary Jane thought she saw Peter wearing his black costume, until a mouth formed and turned into a horrific smile. Venom didn't hurt Mary Jane, but the experience was still pretty traumatic for her.

After Spidey defeated the villain, Mary Jane asked him to stop wearing the black costume. This made sense, and Peter happily obliged. Except, he keeps bringing the costume back from time to time.”

 Yeah and it’s justified each time.

He brought it back in the 1990s during McFarlane’s run because he needed something stealthy and he discussed this with MJ.

He brought part of it back in the Clone Saga because he had nothing else to wear but it wasn’t the whole suit.

He brought it back during the Mackie run with Larsen because again he had nothing else to wear and MJ was presumed dead at the time anyway.

He wore it again in Back in Black at a time where he wasn’t wearing it in front of MJ and wanted to send a message to criminals that he was now going to be a more violent and scary fucker (it worked).

He wore it again in Brand New Day when he was impersonating Venom and he and MJ were broken up.

He wore it again in ASM #800 when he needed the power boost from the symbiote to beat Red Goblin.

And all this aside, MJ got over her fear of Venom anyway.

So rather than making no sense each individual instance actually did add up.

“Sometimes there's a specific reason, other times he just seems to feel like wearing it. He knows it scares his wife, but apparently Peter likes the way it looks too much to care.”

Not true as I just explained. Peter himself doesn’t even LIKE the suit anymore.

13 HOW SUCCESSFUL IS HER CAREER?

“Not everyone is a fan of Peter and Mary Jane's relationship. While many fans love her, some feel that it's weird for Peter Parker to be married to a supermodel. That can be a valid complaint, but the problem is that Mary Jane has had one of the most inconsistent careers ever.

She's constantly moving between being a struggling model, a highly sought after model, a soap opera actress, and even giving up on show business completely multiple times. It's understandable for careers to have ups and downs, but it seems like the writers can't even decide if she's famous or not.”

Because a model and actresses career and fame can’t fluctuate right?

 12 THEY'VE BOTH DEALT WITH TOO MANY STALKERS

WTF is too many exactly when one of you is a famous-semi-famous actress and model and the other is a superhero?

Like shit dude, there are people, a lot of them women, who aren’t famous and can have stalkers.

“In the late '90s, Marvel's first attempt to undo Spider-Man's marriage resulted in Mary Jane getting on a plane which then exploded mid-flight.”

Technically that was not their first attempt.

“For the next year or so, everyone believed she had passed away. Instead, she had been snatched away by a deranged stalker, who caused the explosion so that no one would look for her.

Before that, Mary Jane had to deal with Jonathan Ceaser, who attempted to take her away several times in the early '90s.”

 OP misspelled ‘once’ as ‘several times’.

 “Even Peter had to deal with his ex girlfriend, Felicia Hardy, dating Flash Thompson just so she could be near him during that same time period. ”

That isn’t a stalker.

“People really need to give these two their privacy.”

 Again...not a thing that doesn’t make sense which is the point of the article.

 11 THEY BREAK UP CONSTANTLY

constantly

Dictionary result for constantly

/ˈkɒnst(ə)ntli/

adverb

1.    continuously over a period of time; always.

 Hmmmmmm...doesn’t seem to add up with breaking up:

 For the first time in the late 1970s.

Again in Spider-Man vs. Wolverine.

Trial separating (which isn’t a proper break up) in 2001.

Seperating for real in OMD/OMIT

Breaking up again in Superior when it wasn’t even the real Spider-Man. And no her dumping him again twice doesn’t count.

 Gee, four break ups across 40+ years = constantly apparently.

 “Comic books can't just rely on action, they also need to have drama. One of the most common places writers create drama is in the hero's relationships. It's probably very hard to date a superhero, and it's understandable that not everyone would want to sign up for that ride. At some point, however, enough is enough.”

 I’m not saying I’m innocent of lazily repeating the same words and phrases over and over again, but I also don’t get paid to write for a big website.

 Also, wtf does enough’s enough even mean?

They broke up a few times, one due to genuine issues, once because of a misunderstanding, once because MJ wasn’t well and Peter was OOC (which doesn’t count) and every other time also because they were both OOC.

 “It's hard to feel bad for them when Peter and Mary Jane break up, because they do it all the time. He's always focusing on saving people, she's constantly moving to another part of the country to work on her career. When Mephisto forced them to break-up, he could've just waited a few months and gotten the same result.”

Again all the time and constantly does not = 4 times across 40 years.

Also that wasn’t Mephisto’s endgame but whatever.

10 HOW DID SHE NOT NOTICE OTTO'S MIND IN PETER'S BODY

Hey look, the secod legitimate point on this list. The answer was because bad writing.

9 HOW DO THEY AFFORD THEIR APARTMENTS?

“A common complaint across various forms of fiction is that characters always seem to be able to afford apartments that they shouldn't be able to. For Spider-Man and Mary Jane, however, it's pretty bad. Of course, there are times when Mary Jane's career is going very well, which explains how they can afford a nice apartment.

For the most part, however, Peter is a struggling photographer and she's a struggling model. Somehow, they are consistently able to afford apartments with giant skylights. ”

 If this happens across most fiction in ways which aren’t more egregious than anything else (because Joey and Chandler’s apartment is egregious given their jobs) then it’s not worth mentioning on this list.

“Seriously, Tony Stark would struggle to afford some of the places they've lived in over the years.”

He really wouldn’t.

8 PETER WAS SUPER SHALLOW ABOUT MEETING HER

First off he wasn’t super shallow, he was as shallow as you would expect any teenager to be in that situation.

Also, a teenager being shallow. Thats certainly something that doesn’t make sense and belongs on a list entirely about shit that makes no sense.

“In the early stories, Peter could be kind of shallow. Granted, he was a teenager, but he always just seemed interested in dating the prettiest girls. ”

Ugh...no he didn’t. He asked out 3 young women who were all relatively attractive but none of whom were like compared to Hollywood starlets of the era. There was something of an implication that Betty Brant, his high school love, was not as attractive as the more glamorous Liz Allan whom he typically rebuffed in favour of Betty.

Also if we’re playing the ‘its super shallow to just date the hottest people you can’ then Peter and MJ were no worse than one another at those ages.

“Considering that he was always getting bullied and picked on, he should've been more understanding.”

a)        Being bullied and picked on isn’t innately going to make you more understanding of anybody

b)        Understanding of who? Who was he being inconsiderate towards exactly? He asked out two girls he was attracted to, attraction being an involuntary thing in the first place. He presumed his elderly not hip aunt who described MJ as being a good house wife was going to pick someone unattractive or boring, especially considering that if she was going to be set up with him she probably couldn’t get a date with anyone else. Meaning in his teenage head she must be unattractive

“Then, when he found out that she was beautiful, he was suddenly interested. ”

 My God how dare characters as teens be shallow and flawed. It makes no seeeeeeense!

 “It turns out, Peter's type was "any girl that looks good, regardless of her interests or personality."”

 That’s true which is why he quickly began to turn away from MJ because he found her shallow and preferred Gwen who was seemingly not shallow...

 7 WHY DID SHE NEED TO BE SET UP WITH PETER IN THE FIRST PLACE?

...huh?

 “Every comic book fan knows the story of how Peter and MJ met. A recurring plot line in early Spider-Man stories was Aunt May constantly trying to set Peter up with her friend's niece. The two didn't actually meet until The Amazing Spider-Man #43 (1966) by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, when Peter opened the door and she said the iconic phrase "face it tiger, you just hit the jackpot!"”

 Wow...the degree of incompetence in this paragraph is truly impressive.

 First of all it was ASM #42 not #43...how do you fuck that up. More importantly it was with Lee and Romita Senior not Lee and Ditko. SERIOUSLY how do you fuck that up.

 “What's weird about this, however, is that Mary Jane was a beautiful and outgoing girl. Peter was busy being Spider-Man, and was considered a nerd by his peers, so it's understandable that he'd need help getting dates. Mary Jane, on the other hand, should have been doing just fine.”

 Lets ignore how this was explained in Parallel Lives a story which has a major plot point referenced by the article more than once.

...why is this presumption Mj NEEDED to be set up. Maybe she just agreed as a favour to her aunt.

6 HOW DID SHE KNOW TO SAY THE JACKPOT LINE?

Because she knew she was sexy and could tell by his reaction he didn’t realize that and was taken aback by it.

“Ok, this might seem like a nitpick,”

Why let that bother you now.

 “The famous scene where Peter and Mary Jane first meet plays out like this: Peter answers the door, and Mary Jane is standing and delivers the famous line. It's a memorable moment, but it also doesn't make any sense.

Mary Jane never met Peter before this.”

Not formally no, but yes she had and knew what he looked like.

“How did she know she was a "jackpot" for him? Maybe she wasn't his type?”

His reaction spelled it out for her.

“For all she knew, he could have answered the door and been very disappointed. Also, maybe he wouldn't care what she looked like? It was a pretty arrogant thing to say, looking back, and she's lucky it didn't backfire.”

 *rolls eyes* oh fuck off.

5 THE REASON SHE CALLS HIM TIGER MAKES NO SENSE

“For years, everyone focused on the "jackpot" part of Mary Jane's famous introduction, but apparently, Peter was focused on a different part. Apparently, he never understood why she called him "tiger," especially because the nickname stuck. In all honesty, it's a good question. Especially during those early years, Peter Parker was anything but a "tiger."

In the original Clone Saga that ran during 1975, Peter actually asked Mary Jane for the reason. It turns out, it's because he's not a tiger and she's just playfully teasing him. That's fine, except why did she say it the first time she met him? How did she know he wasn't a "tiger?"”

a)           Because she called everyone that

b)           Because Aunt May and Aunt Anna probably told her about him

 4 THEY DON'T EVEN TRY TO HIDE KNOWING EACH OTHER

Yeah they do.

 “Peter's never been great at keeping a secret identity.”

Yeah that is why hardly anyone knew it before Civil War...

 “His entire scheme is that he takes pictures of himself fighting crime as Spider-Man, and then pretends that he's just Spidey's photographer. He's basically telling everyone that he's connected to the wall-crawler in some way.”

Yet it worked so obviously he is good at hiding it.

 “Even worse, whenever Spider-Man runs into Mary Jane, they often blatantly talk to each other in public. They always forget to pretend that Mary Jane isn't supposed to know Spider-Man. ”

He talks to lots of people in public and MJ has the easy cover story of knowing/dating Spider-Man’s friend Peter Parker.

“That, or they go way over the top and really awkwardly state that they don't know each other.”

No they don’t.

“At some point, someone's going to notice Spidey flirting with Peter Parker's wife and put two and two together.”

Yet they never have so...

 3 HOW DID SHE FIGURE OUT HIS SECRET ID?

“As previously stated, Peter is kind of terrible at keeping a secret identity. ”

As previously stated no he isn’t

“Often times, Peter doesn't even get caught as Spider-Man, people just end up figuring it out.”

Again a lie from the author who didn’t even know Romita Senior isn’t Steve Ditko.

“For example, after dating Peter during the '70s and the '80s, Mary Jane broke up with him, moved away, and then came back to New York. ”

Actually they broke up in the 70s and began dating after she returned in the 80s.

“When she returned, she revealed that she had figured out his secret.

While that made sense, later stories contradicted this. It was eventually revealed that she saw Peter leaving his house dressed as Spider-Man the night Uncle Ben died. So, she didn't figure it out. Obviously, this was a retcon, but the result is that Mary Jane lied to Peter. She didn't figure anything out!”

a)           Seeing Peter Parker enter an abandoned house and Spider-Man emerge would count as figuring out his identity

b)           She never actually told him directly she figured it out like she was a goddam detective

2 THEY BOTH KEEP HANGING AROUND THEIR EXES

As do most comic book characters...

“Both Peter and Mary Jane had healthy dating lives before marrying one another. There's nothing wrong with that. On the other hand, it's strange how they're both constantly hanging around their exes. ”

Or refreshingly healthy...

“Peter still brings Black Cat around constantly, and he and Betty Brant are still very close.”

He dated Betty as a friggin teenager and the author reaffirms he doesn’t understand what constantly means.

“Meanwhile, Mary Jane dated Harry Osborn while they were both in college, and the relationship did not end well for him. Now, years later, everyone is always hanging out together and that's a little strange. Hanging around with your exes typically leads to disaster, and based on how many ex-boyfriends and girlfriends are around, Peter's Spidey-sense should be tingling.”

Or again healthy and an affirmation of a deep bonded friendship that goes beyond personal baggage from when they were young and dumb.

1 GWEN WAS MEANT TO BE PETER'S TRUE LOVE, NOT MJ

Again, not something that doesn’t make sense. In fact it makes less sense for Gwen to be his true love since they were not a great match and true loves are fairy tale bullshit.

 “The end of Gwen Stacy is one of the most defining moments in comic book history. Up until that point, the hero saved the girl. Part of what made this story so memorable was that Gwen Stacy was always meant to be Peter's one true love.”

As far as Stan Lee was concerned yes but not everyone else.

Also OTLs are bullshit.

“Her demise rocked his world, and he's still affected by it, even to this day.

That's understandable, but it also strains Peter's relationship with MJ. She's always been understanding, but how many times can she come across him crying over Gwen's picture in the attic before it starts to effect her.”

He has literally never ever done this ever.

“She's constantly being reminded that she might be Peter's second choice.

Again with the misuse of constantly and no she isn’t because Peter has told and shown her she isn’t second best more than once.

And again, not a thing that doesn’t make sense however you slice it.

You what really doesn’t make sense.

This person being paid for this garbage.

[pascals-djarin]

Home - Chapter 4

Summary: After years of being gone and studying abroad, you return to the place you called Home. Your father's workshop had been a place where you grew up that provided a sense of security and childhood memories. You’re suddenly taken by feelings for a certain handsome mechanic that you thought were dormant so many years ago.

Pairing: Sebastian Stan x Reader

Word Count: 1966

Warnings: Flirting, swearing

Author's note: Hey everyone! Chapter four is here! Hope you liked it and let me know your thoughts on the story!

Thank you to my dear friend @bxckmebarnes​ for co-writing this story with me <3

Enjoy your read x

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3

Dinner was surprisingly successful, considering you had not prepared a decent homemade meal since you had returned. Dad enjoyed every bit of your culinary skills and ate pretty much everything you made for him. For dessert, you had baked some cookies just to satisfy his sweet tooth. You had noticed some candy bar wrappers around the office and was hoping he would stop grabbing whatever he could find to eat, especially junk food.  There was plenty of leftovers, so you hoped he would eat that for lunch tomorrow. As you were putting the remaining dishes away, you noticed the lights from the shop were still on. Dad had retired for the evening, so you knew he didn’t go back to the shop. From the kitchen window, you looked around and saw that Sebastian's truck was still parked outside the shop. What’s he doing here so late, you thought. Then you realized and felt somewhat responsible knowing he may still be working on the car you saw him with earlier.

Smiling to yourself, you had an idea. You grabbed two bottles of beer from the fridge and decided to head to the shop, wearing what you had on earlier, shorts and a loose tank top. You probably smelled like fish from the salmon you had cooked for dinner, but you didn’t care. If you went upstairs to change and freshen up, Sebastian may already be leaving. Whatever reason he was still there working late, you were going to take the opportunity and find out.

You walk out of the house and immediately are taken by the gentle summer breeze that flows through your hair. You look up to the clear night sky and take a moment to gaze up at the stars. A smile forms on your lips. It’s beautiful nights like this that make you feel happy to be back home.  When you were little you would wander to the shop and keep your dad company when he was working late. You loved the summers here. It was so peaceful and serene and far enough from the hustle of what a city life could bring. Sure, you loved the city nightlife, but being here was a nice escape. Possibly one you could get used to all over again.

You enter the garage and hear a faint sound of music playing in the background. Not a song you were too familiar with. Your eyes widen and a smile appears when you see Sebastian working on the car. You noticed he was fully concentrating on his work. You took this moment to watch him carefully. His white T-shirt rose up, exposing his taut stomach. His arm muscles flexed as he was adjusting something under the hood. His jeans were already sitting low on his waist exposing the lining of his boxer briefs, Calvin Klein, you add. The way his thighs fit so perfectly into those jeans, it was as if you were looking through a GQ catalog. It felt rude to be staring and Sebastian oblivious to your presence as you find yourself practically salivating at his form. However, you were able to approach him quietly, careful not to disturb him.

"Hey, still working this late?" your soft voice caught him by surprise, making him jump and hitting his head on the hood.

"Fuck!" he exclaimed while rubbing his head.

"Oh my God! Are you okay?" You said, feeling bad but also not being able to contain your laugh.

"Yeah, I’ll be ok," he said still rubbing his head. You tried controlling your impulse to burst out laughing again. "Ok, ok, you can stop laughing now, (Y/N)" he said jokingly. You fold your lips in, trying to be sympathetic to his pain. “Sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you.” You chuckle again. “I’m not helping am I?” Sebastian lets out a chuckle. “Not really.”

“Here, maybe this will help.” As you smile and hand him the beer. "You clearly need to relax more," you continued and he looked at you smiling. Grabbing the beer from you, you clinked bottles and both take a swig from your beers.

"Is this the car you were working on earlier?” Sebastian swallowed and nodded his head. “Yeah, it is.” I’m sorry that you’re still working on this because of me. I did tell my dad that I could grab an uber but he insisted,” you said. "No, don’t worry about it. It's fine, really. Working on cars is actually very therapeutic for me, I enjoy it,” he said reassuring you.

"It is a nice car," you said taking another sip and walking alongside the car while gently running your fingers over the exterior. He watched your hands sliding up and down and licked his lips.

"Yeah, it’s a beauty. A 1975 Dodge Challenger. Everything looks in great condition, but I found some issues with it earlier so I had to take some parts out to get a better look. The owner wants to pick it up in the morning so I wanted to finish it tonight," he explained. “I enjoy working on these cars. Sometimes I wish these were the only type of cars we worked on.” He says with a smile.

"Something about the classics, huh?” You say smiling back at him. “You can say I have a thing for classic cars and that whole era,” he says taking a sip from the beer. “I remember you and my dad talking about it a lot.” You say recalling their past conversations. “I guess now I know how to get your attention if I wanted to.” You say with a smirk while taking another drink. Sebastian smiles but turns his head back to the car trying to hide his face from the blush you caused.  

“So...um, why are you still awake?" he asked hoping to change the subject.

"Oh, I was putting some things away in the kitchen and noticed the lights to the shop were still on and then saw your car still parked outside and.....,” you paused looking to see what he would say. “And I thought maybe you could use some company?” Sebastian smiled. “I guess I just got caught up and didn’t realize how late it was.”

“Did you have dinner yet?” You said suddenly realizing he may not have had anything to eat. “Oh, no I’m fine. I had a power bar earlier. That’s kept me full for awhile. Thanks for asking.” You smile at Sebastian as he finishes up his beer. Suddenly the night air starts to chill and you start rubbing your arms up and down trying to get them warm. Sebastian noticed and grabbed his jean jacket, draping it over your shoulders. You don’t refuse and let him place it on you. The light scent of his cologne immediately invades your senses.

"Thank you, Seb" you said and he smiled shyly as his nickname left your lips. “You know, I’ve only been back for a few weeks and I feel like I never left.” Sebastian looks over at you. “The familiarity of the shop, being around my dad. Of course I’m older now, but everything is how I remembered it,” you continued. “And that’s good right?” Sebastian asked as you look at him. “Yeah! Definitely.” You smile back at him. Your voice then trails off, as if you were thinking out loud. “But sometimes I wonder if I made the right decision five years ago.” You pause as you look out to the field. “You know, leaving with my mom.” Sebastian looked at you not sure on how to respond, but listening intently.

As the silence between you seems infinite, Sebastian finally spoke up. “Look, the way I see it (Y/N), everything happens for a reason. Nothing is by coincidence.” You look at him, your eyes urging him to continue. Sebastian smiles. “If you hadn’t chose to leave with your mom, then you wouldn’t of had the opportunity to live out of the country and experience the things you did, at such a young age. Live in each moment. Take those opportunities and run with it.” You give Sebastian a big smile. “You have a good future ahead. And there’s so many more opportunities waiting, (Y/N).” He smiles and shrugs his shoulders. “Wow. Thank you dad!” You say while giggling. “Hey, call me spiritual, but I get where you’re coming from, that’s all.”

“No, thank you Sebastian. I just wasn’t expecting you to say all that. It’s very simple and I appreciate it.” You smile back at him reassuring him. “Well, I should probably head back. It’s getting late and I’ve already delayed you enough,” you said standing up.

"Oh, it’s ok. I mean you can totally stay....if you want to of course,” Sebastian said as he placed his hand on your back. You smiled at the way he touched you.

"Do you want me to stay?" you asked him as you take a few steps closer while starring into his piercing blue eyes. He licked his lips and you could tell he was holding his breathe. He then took a step back from you and smiled, sighing softly. You knew that look. It was his nice way of saying, to not step over boundaries. Sebastians expressions had a way of saying something without actually saying it.

Suddenly the moment was interrupted by his phone ringing. Who could be calling him now? He turned to look and then back at you. “You know what,” he sighed. “You’re probably right. I should probably finish up here." He said walking back to the car. “Thanks again for the beer, (Y/N).” He said with a grateful smile.

"Sure, anytime. Have a good night, Sebastian." You said feeling slightly brushed off before walking out of the shop and back towards your house. Sebastian watched you walk away. Dropping his head and grabbing the back of his neck, he sighed heavily. Trying to distract his thoughts, Sebastian goes back to working on the car. Who was calling him now? And why did you even care? It’s not like he’s your boyfriend.

As you settle into your bed, you couldn't sleep thinking that maybe there was a slight chance that Sebastian was interested. Like there had to be something there. Even the friendly banter between you and him made it obvious. But maybe he was too afraid to let it show? What was he thinking? The conversation you were having in your head while going back and forth internalizing the “what if’s” of the situation, made you tired. Sadly, the only person aware of any situation happening, was the one reading too much into it. Which was you. The truth was that you were his bosses daughter and being this type of man, having too good of a conscious, was most likely not going to come within feet of you going forth. The thought only exhausted you more. You close your eyes and slowly drift off into sleep, imagining a starry night and the piercing blues looking back at you.

Tags: @dugan365 @ssweet-empowerment

[yvvaine]

What do you think about jonarya then?

I’m apathetic? I mean I def dont have a knee jerk reaction to dislike them the way I developed with j//nerys.

I love their relationship (esp. in the books…), its one of my favorite. It’s just so pure and loving and sweet! It reminds me of Ned/Lyanna that way. I just don’t see it as romantic. If it becomes that way though, I dont really care? But part of the reason I like jonsa IS the fact that they were so distant growing up. If they were anywhere near as close I would be a bit more uncomfortable with a romantic plot developing (even though they’re really cousins. arya/jon have SUCH a strong, loving, sibling bond its hard to see them as anything but).

And the fandom isn’t as toxic (I dont think) as j//nerys. They dont cross tag really, honestly it seems pretty chill and similar. I do take issue though in a popular idea that I see is mentioned, that jonsas stan sansa so much to the detriment of other female characters.

I’m sure a small amount do, but honestly I dont see it that way. Firstly, you can like a character and think they’re bad guys. I love cersei as a character but I don’t deny shes a villian. When I started to believe in dark!dany it doesnt mean I dislike her character less (she was after all my favorite in the books, arya following second, and sansa third), I think the story would suffer greatly without her, I just think she has a different arc. And I started to believe that *long* before I was invested in any one ship, which i find is common, so I dont think theres a direct correlation between it or its only because of a ship.

I think if anything, if people seem like they are always defending sansa, its because she wasnt a popular (or loved) character until reletavely recently? Until her rape plot in the show really (which is…..also something I’m the eye emoji at. That shouldnt have been the thing to have made her more likable in peoples eyes and yet….). Whereas many of the other female characters like Arya and Dany were since stanned since the very beginning; and thats not mentioning all the people that still want to paint Sansa as a cersei-type (basically anyplace outside tumblr: youtube, reddit, etc? done with the “she’ll betray them all” narrative).

Sansa’s far from perfect. But people are ALWAYS bringing up her flaws to the point of knit-picking or are painting her as a shallow and 2D (which they do with both dan and arya too: painting dan as flawless when shes grey, *painting arya as only a warrior revenge type when shes SO much more complex*) girly-girl who doesnt think or care about anyone, who deliberately wanted her dad to get hurt, that shes not strong or less strong, that shes not kind…. hence the always defending sansa. She gets shit on a LOt by the fandom, less than in the past, but still.

Im still annoyed by people who want to discount jon/arya’s bond, but I dont thnk you’re automatically discounting it if you dont think it’ll develop romantically. They are very important to one another. And Im annoyed when people reduce arya’s character down to her ‘badass-ry’ like all she is is a vessel for revenge (which lets be honest, is fueled by childhood trauma thats still not addressed otherwise?). I mean, in the show they really did disservice to her character by reducing her greatly, so i can see why show-only fans think that, but as a book reader, and as someone who loves her character is annoying.

Still, in the jonsa fandom i dont come across either ideas all that much, so it doesnt *really* bother me.

I kind of went off on a tangent there, my bad. But yeah: If they got together romantically I would be a bit uncomfortable as someone who has stanned such a pure sibling bond, but when it comes overall to the ship and the fandom I’m pretty apathetic either way.

I just prefer jonsa dude.

[were-cheetah-stiles]

The Recruit (Chapter 11) - Mitch Rapp

Author: @were-cheetah-stiles

Title: “Day 62″

Characters: Mitch Rapp, Stan Hurley, Beth, Dan Brunski, Peter Collins, Jacob Clemens & Reader/OFC

Warnings: Separation anxiety, anxiety, somewhat detailed description of sexual assault/attempted rape.

IM SERIOUS DO NOT READ THIS IF YOU ARE EASILY TRIGGERED. you can always just message me and ask me what important plot you missed.

Author’s Note: “y/n/n” means your nickname, like if your name can be shortened to something, if it can’t then just go with your name. “y/f/i” means the first initial of your first name. 

Summary: Mitch is forced to take a day trip with Stan to the Ghost Protocol Training facilities, and y/n takes off for New York City to see someone from her past.

Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven - Chapter Twelve

"Y/n/n.. Y/n/n..." Mitch whispered and nudged you awake. "Hey, hey... it's me." You flinched backwards in your bed, your legs struggling to get you upright fast enough under your sheets. You were clearly having a nightmare about the attack. Mitch wanted to leave even less.

"What's going on? Why are you dressed?" You asked groggily.

"I heard Stan telling Aiden that he'd be gone for a couple of days so I went and slept in my room after you fell asleep. I was worried he’d come in my room and I wouldn’t be there."

"You're leaving?"

Mitch held up Joseph Heller's novel, Catch-22.

"You're going back to Ghost.."

"Yea and I've gotta go now. I told Stan that I'd be down in a minute, I was just stealing one of your books. I'll only be gone for a day."

"Be careful." You looked up at him with emotional eyes, and he nodded.

"I will." Mitch leaned down and left a lingering, sad kiss on your lips.

"Don’t go." was what you wanted to say but didn't. You watched him walk out the door, your book in his hand, and you sunk back into your pillow. It was still dark out. You glanced up at the bookcase on your wall and saw the space where Catch-22 had been. It was the first time that he had left in a month and you were anything but excited to go through the day without him. You decided you wouldn't.

The perks of being Stan's niece and de facto daughter, coupled with the fact that you had been at The Barn for forever  was that you had more free reign around here than basically any one else. You also had your Uncle's cellphone number. You waited for it to be light out and grabbed the burner phone that Stan had given you from the loose floor board under your bed. It was dead. You rolled your eyes and waited for it to charge. The phone finally turned on and you sat on the floor next to the outlet, composing a text to your uncle.

Y/N: hey.. can you text Aiden or Campbell or someone and tell them to give me a personal day?

Stan: everything ok, kid?

Y/N: yea, i just realized that last week was Dad's bday and I didn't go to the grave. I was going to drive up to NYC and visit.

Stan: I'll be back tomorrow, want to wait and I'll come with u?

Y/N: I'd like to go today if that's okay.

Stan: I'll call Aiden and tell him not to expect u today

You walked over to your closet and grabbed a tight black skirt with buttons down the front, a striped blue and white long sleeved top, your thigh-high suede black boots, and your heavier black bomber jacket. You heard the phone vibrate on your dresser and you walked over, your boots slumping around your calves as you hadn't tied them against your thighs yet.

Stan: BMW is gassed up. Be back by tomorrow morning. Take ur phone with u.

You tied your boots up, grabbed your keys out of their hiding place in the floor, and replaced the board. You walked on your tip-toes as not to let your noisy heels hit the wooden floors and wake up anyone in the house. It was barely 5:15 in the morning and everyone was pretty much still asleep. 

You walked down to the garage level of the house, which was restricted to everyone but you, Stan, and the other instructors, Aiden, Campbell, and Smith, and unlocked the door. You turned over the engine of your E52 Z8 BMW convertible coup, a classic car that your father had owned, you had inherited upon his death and that Stan gave to you when you got your driver's license in high school. You pulled open the glove box and took your iPhone, charger, sunglasses and wallet out and laid them on the seat next to you. You plugged your iPhone in and watched the screen light up for the first time in ages. You pushed the button for the garage door and peeled out onto the gravel road that led away from The Barn and into downtown Williamsburg, Virginia. You hadn't left the premises by yourself in a long time.

You took the top down, regardless of the fact that it was only the middle of March and it was still cold, and enjoyed the passing scenery and fresh air on Interstate 95 going North to New York City. You typed out a quick text on your iPhone as you drove through early morning D.C. traffic. You got a "see you at noon." text message in reply, and threw your phone back on the seat beside you. 

You admired the view of Manhattan as you crossed the George Washington Bridge from New Jersey into New York and made your way onto a familiar block. You parallel parked, got out of your car, locked it and walked up to the beautiful brownstone apartment across the street. You rang the buzzer and waited for a familiar face to open the door.

"Hey Beth."

You sat on the comfy couch and tried to remember the last time you had been in that room. It hadn't been even six months but it felt like it had been forever.

"I'm not used to seeing you this time of year, Y/N, what are you doing up here?"

You rubbed your arm and glanced around the room. "Did you have to cancel any appointments to fit me in?"

"Y/N/N, you're avoiding my question and eye contact. What's going on? Is my Dad okay?"

You sighed and looked at the girl in front of you. She was two years older than you, beautiful and tall, with platinum blonde hair and long legs. "Stan's fine, Beth." You told your cousin.

"You're not fine though. Did something happen at The Barn?" Beth stared at you, waiting for you to stop being evasive. "You're the one who came up here, Y/f/i. I'll cancel all my patients for the day if I have to, you're going to talk to me. You never just come up out of no where."

You stared down at your hands. You dug your fingernails under each other when you were nervous, a habit that Beth was surprised to see since you had been trained to not do it anymore. "We still have doctor-patient confidentiality, right? Even though I haven't seen you in a while?"

"You ask me this every year, and every year the answer is always yes. These meetings stay off the record, there is no chart, and my Dad never finds out you saw me. What does he think you're doing up here anyway?" Beth asked her younger cousin, a girl that she grew up with as a sister when you moved into Beth’s house after your family died in the terror attacks on September 11th.

"My Dad's birthday was last week and he thinks I'm down in the dumps about it, and I told him that I was going to bring flowers to their graves." You finally gave Beth a straight answer.

"Are you down in the dumps about it?"

"Of course... but.." You sighed. You didn't know where to start.

"Start from the beginning, Y/f/i." Beth told you.

"I met someone."

Beth's face lit up. "At The Barn?"

You nodded. "His name is Mitch, and B, he's the best I've ever seen. Stan has completely taken him under his wing and he's training him personally, and he keeps trying to trip him up andget him to fail, but he hasn’t yet. Stan has been, like, whisking him away for special sessions.."

"Wow, he really must be good then." Beth commented, a surprised look on her face. "Did something happen between you two? Did you get caught or something and he got kicked out or..?"

"No, no, no.. he's great. I'm really happy with him and we've only been together, together for a like week or so. He's not why I'm here... well, I mean, your Dad took him on some special assignment before the sun even came up this morning, so his lack of being around is why I'm here, but he and our relationship are not the issue." You were babbling.

"What is?" Beth inquired, watching her cousin's bizarre mannerisms. You weren't acting like yourself at all.

You rubbed your hand against your nose and mouth and scratched at the corner of your eye. You weren't ready to talk about this. "About..." You cleared your throat and sighed. "About a month and a half ago, these three guys tried to rape me in the shower at the main house."

"WHAT?! y/n.. shit, what are you talking about? Does my Dad know?"

"What do you think?" You looked up at Beth with a deadpan look on your face.

"What happened?" Beth fought the urge to scrap her professionalism and embrace her beloved adopted-sister and best friend.

"There were these three guys, Dan Brunski was the main aggressor. Peter Collins and Jacob Clemens were his... lackey's essentially. Clemens being much more involved and much less remorseful than Collins... and anyway, Dan Brunski clearly is the kind of rich white kid who has never been told 'no' in his life and he either liked me or just wanted to fuck me or hates women and wanted to brag about conquering me or was just a regular old sociopath, I really have no idea. But he kept making all these really aggressive advances on me and I was not giving him the time of day. I had definitely humiliated him a few different times in front of multiple other trainees, and he just, I don't know, really internalized it all."

"So what happened?"

"Well, first he accused me of sleeping with Stan and said that was the only reasonable explanation as to how I got into the program. That pissed me off so I punched him in the face. I gave him a bloody nose and it wasn't a big deal."

"Your idea that assault is not a big deal is so far from the reality of what a big deal is, y/n/n." Beth interjected.

You shrugged. "He tried to make a few moves on me, cornering me in the woods or trying to slide his hand up my thigh during class, and I shut that shit down every time... Then Mitch got to The Barn and we had this weird instant connection."

"And Dan was watching you more closely than the other trainees?" Beth had seen the behavior before.

You nodded. "Yea, I guess he was. Honestly, he probably realized that there was something going on between Mitch and I before Mitch and I even did. But one morning, Dan snuck into my room while I was still asleep, he covered my mouth and tried to get under my blankets with me.. to rape me." The breath hitched in Beth's throat and her stomach did a flip. It was one thing when her patients told her these things, but it was another thing when the story was coming from someone she loved dearly. "I stopped him, but he was like 'I see the way you and Mitch are with each other. If you're willing to suck his dick, why won't you suck mine. I know you're a slut. I won't make you beg for it the way he does.' and whatever... I threw his ass out of my room, but Mitch sleeps literally across the hall from me, and he heard the tail end of the interaction, and that was when he knew something was wrong."

"Y/n, this Dan guy sounds like he's done this before, how is he at The Barn? How'd he get through the vetting?" Beth asked.

"I don't know." You shook your head. "But later that day, him and Collins, Clemens and a guy named Brian Keller, tried to attack me in the woods. Mitch stopped it before anything could happen. A consequence, not related to the attack, got Brian Keller kicked out of the program no more than ten minutes later, and Dan blamed Mitch and I."

"So he became more angry, and it accelerated his actions, huh?"

"Later that night, I was taking a shower and I hadn't been in there for more than a few minutes but it was late because Mitch and I had been working out together late and no one else was in there, Dan, Clemens, and Collins.. well, Dan and Clemens... Collins was the lookout. They came in the bathroom, ambushed me in the shower.." Your eyebrow furrowed as you thought back to the incident in detail. "Clemens held... he held my arms back against the wall and Dan stood in front of me, touching my naked body with his hands. He was getting undressed and telling me that him and Clemens were going to take turns and I was going to love it and if I didn't that they would kill Mitch and then they'd kill me." Beth had tears in her eyes as she listened to the story. "Dan... he.." You wiped a tear from your own eye. "He stuck a finger inside of me, while Clemens covered my mouth and hit me across the face every time I tried to scream. I knew, I knew I couldn't take the two of them on at once, so I had to wait. Finally, I became more compliant, just waiting to get the upper hand, and Clemens left so that Dan could rape me. I got on my knees in front of him, and he.. he put his dick in my hand and made me stroke him while he was hard..." You shut your eyes and shook your head, tears streamed down your face. "That was when I heard the bathroom door open and I knew it had to have been Mitch, everyone else was asleep, and we had worked out so hard earlier that we both had to shower or else it would've been disgusting the next day."

Beth nodded, and you continued. "Dan grabbed me off the floor, pulled me against him, and covered my mouth. I tried to climb the walls but they were too slippery, I tried to hurt him and kick at the curtain, but he restrained me. I think Mitch may have already been suspicious by Collins and Clemens just... loitering in the bathroom, and he knew it was my towel.... I kicked the tile hard enough that it made a noise and Mitch pounced into action. He held off Clemens and Collins, which gave me the opportunity to finally take on Dan."

"What'd Mitch do?" Beth asked, her face portraying how devastated she was.

"He broke Clemens' wrist and knocked him out, and he broke seven of Collins' teeth against a sink. He broke the sink with Collins' face."

"Did he help you with Dan?"

You shook your head. "I didn't need it. By the time Mitch got through the other two, I was bashing Dan's head against the shower stall. I broke his cheekbone and temporal bone."

"Good." Beth gritted her teeth.

"Mitch took care of me that night. He literally dressed me in his clothes, put me in his bed, sat in a chair in the corner of the room, and watched me sleep the rest of the night." You remembered, fondly and painfully, how wonderful he had been that night.

"What happened when my Dad found out?"

"I never told him. The only people who actually know what happened are me, Mitch, Brunski, Clemens and Collins."

"You never told Stan?" Beth asked again.

You huffed, a part of you thought that Beth would understand why you had kept the secret. "Your Dad raised me.. he's in charge of my fate as a CIA agent, do you know how hard it would've been to tell him that story and have him never look at me the same again or think that I couldn't handle the job. This shit happens to women in the field, Beth. It just does. They've dealt with it and so have I." You raised your voice at Beth.

"Are you dealing with it though, y/n/n?" Beth raised her voice right back. "What happened to Dan and the other two?"

"Dan had to get facial reconstructive surgery.. multiple surgeries from what I hear. Collins and Clemens were gone for a while, but now that they can both fight again, they're back at The Barn."

"So you're just living with your attackers?! y/n, holy shit. This is insane." Beth was getting more and more upset.

"Beth..."

"What about Mitch? I'm surprised he hasn't told Stan.... He has to know how ridiculous this is."

You lowered your eyes from Beth. "...He's wanted to tell Stan from the start, but he hasn't because I asked him not to."

"That's bullshit, y/n/n, and you know it."

"Beth, you're losing your therapist hat right now.." You warned your cousin.

Beth shook her head and tried to regain her composure. She leaned forward and looked at you. "What happens when you try to have a relationship with another man, Y/N? Like Mitch, for example."

"Mitch and I finally had sex about a week ago."

"How'd it go?" Beth knew that you were about to prove her point.

"It was hard... at first, but Mitch.. he kept me in the moment and he was tender and he was there holding me and making sure I knew it was just us and he would stop if I needed." You divulged your secrets to Beth.

"What happens when Mitch wants to be a little rougher in the bedroom? Maybe do it doggy style or something less 'tender'? What happens then, y/n? Are you having any side effects from what happened? Panic attacks? Flashbacks? Nightmares?"

"Yes."

"Which?"

"......All of those."

Beth sighed. "Oh, y/f/i... fuck." She got up and hugged you, then sat on the couch next to you. "If this happened a month and a half ago, why are you only telling me now?"

You leaned back against the arm of the couch, and looked at Beth. "I thought that there would be some improvement by now, and there just hasn't been and I want to be with Mitch. I am falling for him, but I am never going to be able to give him everything of me, and he is always going to walk on eggshells around me, if I can't figure this shit out." You wiped a tear from falling down your cheek. “On top of that, the nightmares and the panic attacks. I don’t know how much longer I can hide them.”

"You've gotta get rid of those guys.. if Dan comes back.."

"I know." You confirmed that you understood that no good could or would come from Dan Brunski returning to The Barn.

"Getting rid of your attackers is the first step. Coming back up here and talking to me in a more regular fashion would be a good second step.. the rest of it, y/f/i, unfortunately, the rest of it is just time and talking. Talking about it, confronting what happened, whether it be with Stan, or Mitch, or me, or someone else, not letting it be a secret.. it'll lose it's power over you. Communication will also help in regards to being intimate with Mitch. Be explicit with what you expect and what you want and what you're struggling with."

"And then time."

"You're just going to have to wait. 'Time heals all wounds', you know?" Beth reiterated an old saying, and took her cousin's hands in her own. "Y/f/i, I am so sorry that this happened to you. I know they prepare you for the possibility of it happening in the field, but at training?" Beth shook her head. "It's not fair. I could kill those guys."

"You sound like Mitch." You said with a small and short chuckle.

Beth leaned back on the couch, copying you. "What's he like?"

"Intense... and smart and kind and so. fucking. sexy. Beth, oh my god." You couldn't help but laugh.

"How old is he?"

"My age. A few months younger, but he doesn't act it. He's been through some shit too. I don't know. He's amazing. He's kind and witty and he has a smile that just knocks me to the ground, every time." You were grinning. "You know, Easter is coming up..."

"Dad's doing the cover story exercise?"

"I think so. I told Mitch about it and we thought we'd come up here for the break. Maybe you could meet him." You offered.

"I'd love that." Beth glanced at the clock. "Oh shit.. I have someone waiting in the waiting room."

You shook your head. "It's okay. I have to get to the cemetery before it closes anyway. I'll see you in a couple weeks?"

Beth nodded and hugged you.

You drove around Manhattan for an hour, revisiting old haunts and hangouts, but avoiding the Lower East Side, where you grew up. You brought flowers to the 9/11 Memorial fountains and placed them on your parents and brother's names. You got back in your car and drove to the cemetery. You placed flowers at their graves and sat to talk to them for a while, then got back on the road. 

It was late and you didn't want to have to get a hotel and drive early in the morning to get back before shooting range at 0700. Your iPhone rang and "S" popped up on your caller I.D. You picked it up.

"Hey."

"Hey. How was it?" Stan asked through the speaker.

"Fine. Thanks for letting me go. I needed it. Talked to them, got some pizza, I feel re-energized." You only told half the story.

"Anytime. You on your way back?" Stan usually used nicknames for you, just like Beth did, but he wasn't so you knew that Stan wasn't alone.

"Yea, I just passed into Maryland on 95. You?"

"Just got in the car. I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yep."

Stan hung up the call. You shifted the car into fifth gear and sped back to The Barn.

You pulled onto the gravel road back to The Barn behind Stan's black SUV. You smiled because you knew that Mitch was inside. You pulled into your spot in the garage and threw your iPhone, wallet, and charger back in the glove compartment. Stan shook his head at you as he got out of his own car. It was so much easier to hide the truth when none of the recruits knew that you had access to a car and they did not. 

Mitch stepped out and tried to act surprised, although, he was surprised since you never mentioned that the classic BMW in the garage was yours, or at least, yours to drive. You pocketed your keys, nodded at Mitch and Stan, and walked inside.

"How does y/n have a car here?" Mitch asked Stan as they followed you up the stairs.

"She's been here for three years, Rapp. She gets some amenities that the rest of you will eventually earn as well." Stan lied. You had a car because you were his niece and, unlike the other recruits who got to go home on breaks, The Barn essentially had been your home for the past few years. Letting you keep a car there was the least Stan could do. "Don't worry about it, Rapp. Just go to bed. You did well today."

"Thank you, sir."

Mitch headed off after you. He looked at his watch. It was just past midnight.

What’d you guys think? Let me know! and as always, if you’d like to be tagged. Get your requests in soon for the Recruit, because I will probably stop taking tag requests in the near future for this series.

@chivesoup @confidentrose @alexhmak @dontstopxx @iloveteenwolf24 @surpeme-bean @snek-shit @kalista-rankins @parislight @cleverassbutt @damndaphneoh @mgpizza2001 @chionophilic-nefelibata @sarcasticallystilinski @teenage-dirtbagbaby @mrs-mitch-rapp93 @alizaobrien @twsmuts @rrrennerrr @sorrynotsorrylovesome @iknowisoundcrazy @5secsxofamnesia @vogue-sweetie @therealmrshale @twentyone-souls @sunshineystilinski @snicketyssnake @xsnak-3x

[forestwater87]

yo got any tips on how to get my gwenvid fic out there?

Ah, this is tricky, and I gotta be honest I think I only lucked out because I wrote the first real Gwenvid fic out there and no one had any other options. But since “go back in time” isn’t really plausible, I can offer some things that I think might be helpful:

1. Make sure you’re tagging them correctly! On both Tumblr and AO3, it’s really useful to make sure you’re using the most-viewed and/or official tags for your content. For example, “campcamp” is the official CC tag, and as far as I can tell “cc david” is more successful and widespread than “david cc” … but that might not be as important as I think it is. But definitely be smart with your tags, especially those first 5, since according to Tumblr Lore those are the ones that … do something something algorithm idk. As for AO3 tags, I’m not really sure how they work, like if the site lumps “Gwen/David” in with “Gwen (Camp Camp)/David (Camp Camp)” – ah, what we had to use when the fandom was still so young and tiny – but I’d err on the side of over-tagging, personally. As long as you’re not one of those people with 30,000 tags it takes ages to scroll past, why not?

2. Reblog a lot! I always feel really really self-conscious resharing my own stuff, but it works! It introduces the work to a new crop of readers and makes a big difference.

3. Use your friends! Use people you barely know! Seriously, if I didn’t have @ciphernetics and @hopefullypessimistic84​ aggressively stanning my work I don’t think anyone would read it. XD And I’m always happy to give someone a shout-out, as long as it’s not something that makes me uncomfortable.

4. Get involved in the fandom! This is a more general thing, but answering asks, doing memes, participating in appreciation weeks, and just generally filling up the tag with content is not only super fun, because we suck up CC and especially Gwenvid content like we’re starving in the desert, but it also helps to get your name out there and get people interested in your stuff. I know I’m considered “the Gwenvid person” by a lot of people who’ve never read my fics and don’t even know I have fics, because I just have so goddamn many screenshots to fling in every direction and ramble about my love of the ship. You can also use that involvement to plug your writing, like the many wonderful fanfics I’ve written that you can check out if you like my other stuff!

5. Credit people! This sounds weird, and may have a tiny bit to do with the fact that I’m salty about this issue, but if you use someone’s AU or headcanon, or even if they just got you inspired by enjoying their work? Tag them! Not only will they be happy that you liked their ideas and are acknowledging their contribution, but it gets them to pay attention to your fic. And hey, if someone inspired you so much you used their ideas, it feels amazing to have them pay attention. (This is also how you make friends in the fandom. Seriously.)

I’m also gonna give a few more types of advice, ranging from making an awesome fanfic to attention-getting. But since the world is kinda unfair, entertainment is very unfair, and fandom is an impossible beast, I also wanna give you some thoughts that I’ve developed over the course of being in this fandom. Under the cut since it’s only tangentially related …

I’m starting with what I personally think makes a fic worth reading. It might not guarantee kudos, but it might be worth thinking about:

1. Get a beta reader. Honestly, having someone comb through your work for things like consistency, characterization, and grammar is hugely important. There are a ton of great fics that suffer for not having someone run their eyes over it, and the fandom is one big happy family; you could throw a rock in any direction and find someone who’d be happy to help you out.

2. Figure out what makes your story worth reading, and emphasize it. This is gonna sound kinda dumb, but I swear half the stuff on AO3 is the same fucking “David adopts Max and may or may not be a serial killer” fic. I realize this is kinda petty of me, but I do think it’s a good idea to know what about your fic is special and worthwhile, because that’s going to be what makes people enjoy and recommend it. (This doesn’t mean don’t use popular tropes or plots, but just to be aware of what you’re bringing to the table, what cool twist or je ne sais quois it is that made you wanna write it. It’s also a great way to prop yourself up when you’re getting down on your work, because it reminds you that you’re doing something original and special.)

3. Consider short chapters (3,000 words or less) and a regular updating schedule. I don’t do this. It’s a problem. But seriously, people enjoy bite-sized content, and regularly adding to it keeps your work at the top of the tags/queue while also keeping the people who like your fic from forgetting about it.

4. Use small paragraphs. No one wants to read a giant block of text, and I know more than once I’ve clicked away after seeing the entire chapter was one big paragraph. Again, bite-sized. Getting people to read a fic is difficult, because it’s asking for an investment of time and mental energy they could be spending on something else. So do what you can to make reading as easy and enjoyable as possible for them.

5. Be mindful of standard grammar. I’m not trying to impose my Western-centric ideals on other people, because there are a lot of valid ways to talk/write and using “proper” grammar doesn’t mean you’re more intelligent by any means; I’m also not trying to discourage the creative and poetic use of nonstandard grammar (lord knows I abuse my artistic license to mess with grammar all the time). But in the name of making things a bit easier to read – especially, as I understand, for ESL readers – adhering to generally-accepted rules of “good” grammar is worth considering.

Unfortunately, your story still might not get the attention it deserves, and I’d like to start by saying I’m very very sorry about that. (I went from the only Gwenvid writer to being, like, that former high school football player who reminisces about the good old days before all these talented whippersnappers came around to upstage me; I’m just saying that I know how much it hurts to feel like your work isn’t being appreciated, whether you think you deserve the appreciation or not.) It sucks, and it hurts, and I’m sorry. I wish more people saw your stuff. 

But some thoughts about dealing with those feelings as well:

1. Get a cheerleader. This is another super useful thing about having a beta, btw. Sometimes you’re going to feel like crap, and you’re going to need someone to prop up your ego and tell you that they think you’re amazing and that they believe in your story. Get as many of these as you need and feel comfortable leaning on them when you’re feeling down.

2. Beg. I make posts begging for compliments on like a twice-a-month basis. It’s kinda pathetic, but it really really helps, so if you have followers, there’s no shame in asking them to say nice things when your self-esteem has taken a beating.

3. Know that attention =/= quality. Like, okay, there are some incredible fics that are rightfully getting their due (fucking Netics and Mouse, talented bitches). But legit, the second-most-kudos’d fic on AO3 is also one of the worst ones I’ve ever run my poor undeserving eyes over, and only the fact that this is under a cut and unlikely to be read by many people is giving me the pettiness to say that. My longest fic, the one I’ve poured the most of myself into, has fewer kudos than a masterpiece called “Camp Campbell’s Cum Dumpster.” I wrote an entire post enumerating just a handful of CC fics I think deserve more attention, and if being well-known and -loved correlated with talent, they’d all be topping the leaderboards in my worthless opinion. But seriously, sometimes your stuff won’t be appreciated. Maybe it doesn’t have enough fluff, or enough angst. Maybe it doesn’t have enough dad//vid. Maybe it’s the fact that nothing will ever grab positive attention like dan//vid and there’s nothing we can do about it. Fans are picky and tricky, and sometimes trying to figure out why something becomes blisteringly popular while something else doesn’t is impossible, but it doesn’t mean your writing isn’t amazing. Believe in the story you’re telling, and that it’s worth telling.

4. Don’t compare yourself to other writers. I feel compelled to put this one on here because it’s good advice, but ahahahahahahahaha I’ve never done this and I’m pretty sure I never will.

5. Don’t be so hard on yourself. Your writing is worth reading, and some things are out of your control, so just cut yourself some slack. Ahahahahahahahahaha fucking I’m such a piece of shit I don’t think I could do this if there was a gun to my head

[stilestilikeslydia]

A Totally Objective and Unemotional Recap of Teen Wolf Episode 6x12: Raw Talent

@wellsjahasghost hasn’t gotten a chance to watch the episode yet, so I told her I’d write her a recap, and....... yeah, this is about as far from objective as it gets.

friends, i really hated this episode, and this recap is almost entirely negative, so if you really liked the episode, you probably want to skip this post lol. if you're also bitter and want to enjoy 2.5k of someone else ranting, please read on!

The real title of this text post: 

Anya Discusses Plot Holes, #recycledplotlines, and Casual Racism in Episode 6x12

*ahem* 

The show begins. The0 R@eken, sleeping in his car because he is homeless and friendless and irredeemable, is awoken multiple times, in multiple locations and at multiple times of day, by police officers rapping on his window and telling him to get up and leave. It takes me three minutes to figure out that it's him for sure because he's grown out his hair a bit to look more Boyish, Unkempt, and Vulnerable and I can no longer tell white boys on Teen Wolf apart. By the time I've reached 95% certainty that it is, in fact, the white boy who literally killed Scott and is still stanned by tw fans everywhere, he's waking up in the middle of the night to a spider crawling on his hand. He watches it, fascinated and unafraid, probably because he's like "yo this thing looks as evil as I am lolol." Then the spider burrows under his skin.

Cue The0 breaking into Deaton's vet office to stab the spider crawling around in his back with a scalpel and pull it out of him. Cue me gagging. Then the spider disappears in a puff of black smoke/gunpowder dust bc like... why not.

The police montage continues. And continues. I'm bored. Then - gasp! - the next police are nOt In fAcT CoPs bUt mEN wItH gUnS wHo wAnT To kiLL thE0. They shoot into his car repeatedly, and the scene ends.

(This would be a good cliffhanger if tw trailers didn't already show him appearing in future episodes smh.)

I refuse to watch the episode again, so I'm just going to say that I'm pretty sure the mcmartate scene is next. I'm not going to recap it fully because it was actually pretty good and this recap is not about Accuracy, it's about Salt. In short, the Scott laser scene happens but it turns out that the lasers were actually police flashlight beams (why were they in the woods?!?! who the heck knows. oh wait p@rrish exists, i forgot. maybe he told them about getting beat up by a hellhound wearing matching boxer briefs) and he was hallucinating. he's panicked enough to wolf out before he realizes it's a hallucination and the entire police department sees his eyes glowing red. great great great my son is hallucinating yET AGAIN, i really needed him to suffer more. also he pockets the Argent bullet shell case and mcmartate decides to talk to Chris Argent before they involve Papa Stilinski.

Mcmartate is a Good group. "Maybe this episode won't be so bad," I think.

*sighs*

idk what order the next scenes happen in, so i'm just going to tackle each subplot separately lol.

2.0:

Mason and Liam are chatting in the boys' locker room before lacrosse practice about the supernatural evil threatening Beacon Hills, surrounded by tons of freshmen who could easily overhear them. Liam's giving an extra practice to the freshmen so they have a chance of making first line, even though Mason thinks this is foolish. Liam explains that Brett is helping him, which makes no sense, but I don't mind because this sequence happens:

M: Brett? Incredibly... HOT Brett, with the 8-pack abs?

L (sounding mildly disgruntled... iS SOMEONE JEALOUS R U SURE UR STRAIGHT KIDDO): Pretty sure it's just Brett.

M: He has an 8-PACK. Do y- do you know how hard it is for the human body to have an 8-pack??? *music swells dramatically and then cuts off* ...God.

Also, at the end, Liam tosses Mason over his shoulder and carries him out of the locker room because he was accidentally discouraging the freshmen.

This is the best scene in the episode.

Next, both Liam and Corey failing to do a decent job at playing lacrosse. This is ostensibly an extra practice for the freshmen, and yet Brett, Liam, and Corey are the only ones playing. Brett outclasses them both in looks, swagger, and skill. Liam has no control as usual and Brett tells him to get it together. Audience reaction: Writers are recycling Liam's s4 plotline bc they ran out of ideas for his character; Brett is so clearly superior to Corey that we don't understand why Mason and Corey didn't break up during the hiatus so Brason could happen. Also, guidance counselor watches Brett score on Corey and hears Corey reply, "Wait, I'm not actually invisible right now, am I?" Nice subtlety, Corey.

Liam is pissed bc #recycledplotlines and punches out a locker. Somehow stays there all day because by the time Mason and Corey go to find him, it's after dark??? And since it's summer, it must be like 9:30??? "We need to study for a history test" hOW IS THE SCHOOL STILL OPEN THIS LATE i will never understand.

Oh yeah I forgot, while Liam was still working through his anger issues on the lacrosse field, a bunch of spiders crawl into a freshman boy's helmet in the locker room, and when he puts it on, they invade his body and then start crawling out of his mouth. So when Mason and Corey go to find Liam, they notice a smeared blood trail on the locker room floor and follow it to the showers, where there is an..... unidentifiable bloody mass on the floor. I am disturbed.

Brett:

After obliterating Liam and Corey, it is somehow magically nighttime and he's heading towards his car when the guidance counselor shows up, holding a lacrosse ball that rolled off the field. She compliments his abnormal skill level and tosses him the ball.... which turns out to be covered in wolfsbane. She claims it's "nothing personal,” but no one deserves that much power, and then tries to kill him. I think she stabs him??? I forget the details of their fight. Anyway, he manages to escape.

Scott and Malia:

They go looking for Chris at his... house? bunker? who knows. He has crates full of guns, surprising no one. They have #wittybanter and #chemistry, surprising no one. (i’m sorry i’m sorry i just feel like sc@lia is forced i’m sorry) Scott tells Malia it's okay to break into Chris's computer to find his calendar, and she is turned on by his rule-bending. All of the passwords she guesses involve her capitalizing the first word and adding spaces, because that's how passwords work. Scott picks up a bow and has a Revelation, immediately going to Chris's computer to type in ALLISON as the password. It's the second #recycledplotine of the night. Not to mention that as much as Chris loves his daughter, he is much too practical to have such an easily hackable password.

Questionable computer security aside, they show up in the middle of one of Chris's gun deals right after his fake military buyers pull out their guns, realizing that Chris knows they're fake military and is trying to find out who their boss is. Chris is annoyed with them for intervening and claims that he had an inside man that they just took out while trying to help him, which is yet another plot hole bc Chris shouldn't need to ask about bosses if he has an inside man. In the following chaos-ridden action scene, Scott drops the Argent shell casing. Chris says it's okay and they'll just find the actual bullet in the woods.

Best line of the episode: After Scott and Malia ask if the shell casing belongs to him, Chris says, "I haven't stamped a bullet since Allison died." Our hearts all break a little.

Anyway, despite their plans to go to the woods TOGETHER, Chris is mysteriously nowhere in sight so Scott and Malia can have ~time alone~. Malia shows concern for Scott's well-being. They smile at each other, and thanks to compulsive heterosexuality, this clearly means they've just caught feelings. I'm definitely not still bitter that the writers didn't bring back Kira and give Malia a girlfriend instead.

(in all honesty, however, i can admit that this scene was objectively cute, and it was great character development that already happened in s5 but again #recycledplotlines to see Malia actively caring about other people. I’m really happy for sc@lia shippers because I know you were all really excited about that scene.)

Chris comes back. They find a bullet in a tree thanks to its infared heat signature or smthg (idk i'm spaced out at this point). It's a silver bullet, meaning that the guidance counselor is just a wannabe Hunter, not the Genuine Article.

Lydia and Toast:

At the sheriff's station, Lydia??? hears some noise in her premonitions and decides to tell Toast and not her bf's dad for??? some completely valid reason i'm sure??? tbh i have no idea what the premise of this scene is, but Lydia realizes that the noise she keeps hearing is the key card reader from Eichen House. Apparently that means something bad is happening there so she tells Toast that they need to go check it out. Toast tells her that there's no way he's "letting her" go back there - because clearly he owns her and she can't make decisions for herself - and decides to go alone instead, because once again, that clearly makes so much more sense than telling the Sheriff. The whole scene is written to make it sound like Toast is the only one who cares about Lydia's well-being - because it's definitely not like she has a pack full of friends who care about her and a boyfriend who would do anything for her - and therefore is in charge of protecting her in a creepily possessive way. Aka, tw writers are still pandering to M@rrish fans even after Stydia is canon, and I don't know why I'm surprised.

So Toast goes to Eichen, meets Creepy Doctor who accidentally released Other Hellhound last week, and tells him to let him into the closed ward after hearing a woman begging for help. Doctor refuses. Toast shows him his glowing eyes as an... intimidation tactic??? Doctor complies but locks the door behind Toast after he enters.

Toast finds the woman in a communal-shower-type room (which???? okay), lying on the floor with an open electric cable sparking her body every few seconds, surrounded by a bunch of other apparently dead supernatural creatures. When Doctor arrives and Toast tells him to help, plot twist! Doctor is the one who put them there. (Oh, look, electricity........ I wonder who would be helpful....... in this........ situation........)

Doctor gets Toast locked up in room where Other Hellhound used to reside and turns down the temperature, telling Toast that he'll freeze him from the inside out or smthg.

Meanwhile, Lydia's just been hanging out at the sheriff station and waiting for Toast instead of registering for MIT because according to a reminder on her phone, this is the ~last day~ for her to do so and Lydia "IQ of 170" Martin OBVIOUSLY would have put off registration until the last minute. OF COURSE. She ignores the notification bc apparently college isn't important and steals one of the deputies' walkie talkies after she hears strange noises emitting from it. Her absurd attempts to sneak casually would have made Stiles Stilinski proud af.

However, her next move would NOT have made Stiles Stilinski proud af, as she hears the Doctor threatening Toast and immediately decides to go after him alone instead of

1) calling Scott so that Scott and Malia can come with her or

2) taking the Sheriff, seeing as he is her BOYFRIEND'S DAD and also CONVENIENTLY LOCATED IN THE SAME BUILDING AS HER AT THAT MOMENT.

So. Naturally. She goes to Eichen alone, and every sound she hears, every sight she sees, is immensely triggering. For the first time, Teen Wolf actually somewhat addresses the fact that Lydia has PTSD after everything she's been through. This is a good thing. I would be happy with this development if, again, Lydia wasn't alone throughout the entire experience. Clearly, Teen Wolf writers have decided that Strong Female Characters must always face their fears alone if they want to remain Strong Female Characters. Clearly, having her friends there to ground her would have taken away from her character development. Clearly, it wouldn't have been amazing to see Lydia accept her friends' help when s1 Lydia Martin never would have shown weakness around others. Clearly, having a support network when you've faced immense trauma isn't important at all. CLEARLY.

(Clearly I didn't have to pause my TV at this point because I was so horrified and angry that the TW writers placed her in a situation where she was surrounded by a myriad of triggers, on the verge of a panic attack, and completely alone.)

Anyway, Lydia reaches a turning point where she is somehow able to push aside all of those horrible memories and find Toast, who's been slowly freezing to death while watching Doctor hold a gun with shaking hands. Doctor's been explaining that he hates guns and has always been opposed to violence, but his fear of supernatural creatures has led him to believe that eradicating them all is the only way to ensure normal humans' safety.

Lydia runs into the cell just as Doctor raises the gun to shoot Toast in the head. She screams, knocking Doctor back and killing him. GREAT. LET'S ADD ANOTHER TRAUMATIC EICHEN MEMORY TO THE PILE. LYDIA DEFINITELY NEEDED TO KILL SOMEONE ELSE. THAT WOULDN'T BE EMOTIONALLY SCARRING AT ALL. OF COURSE STILES IS ENTITLED TO AN ENTIRE SEASON OF ANGST AFTER KILLING DONOVAN IN SELF-DEFENSE, BUT LYDIA KILLING MULTIPLE PEOPLE WOULDN'T HAVE ANY EMOTIONAL RAMIFICATIONS. OF COURSE.

End scenes:

2.0: Suddenly realizing that freshman boy (I think his name is Aaron) is missing, they go running around the school looking for him and eventually find him in a classroom, magically unharmed. "What are you doing here?" they ask. "Just remembered we have a history test," he replies. I thought this boy was a freshman. smh.

McMarTate: Clearly not scarred from her experiences at all, Lydia rejoins Malia and Scott to discuss their discoveries. Cue "what is everyone afraid of?"/"us" scene combined with a montage of everyone looking away from Liam in slow motion at school the next day, apparently afraid of him. Which is definitely because they magically know he's a werewolf, and not because they don't want to catch the disease that gave him his awful haircut.

Brett: Brett pounces on the guidance counselor, who's looking for him in the woods, and they start fighting. It looks like he's going to win, but then he gets shot in the chest with an arrow and runs off.

The arrow was shot by Gerard.

He tells wannabe hunter/guidance counselor that she has potential.

Huzzah, what a great episode.

Bonus casual racism: Now that Kira's gone, wannabe hunter/guidance counselor (who still doesn't have a name...... oh hey, look, mORE CASUAL RACISM) is the only woman of color on the show... and she's a Black antagonist. This is clearly Not Problematic At All.

Of course, thanks to theories that will be discussed in this week's episode of stydiacast, it's possible that this casting decision is entirely legitimate.

HOWEVER, one other poc was introduced in this episode...... and Aaron, poor young freshman lacrosse player, is now possibly being possessed by spiders and will likely also be a Black antagonist, albeit one with no control over his actions.

Oh, hey, doesn't..... that...... sound..... familiar? It's.... almost like..... another problematic #recycledplotline. *looks at s5 Mason Hewitt*

Thanks, Teen Wolf.

[thefroggyfiles-blog]

South Park; Does it Help or Harm

Comedy Central’s South Park has been on the air now for 20 seasons, starting in 1997. The creators of the show, Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Brian Graden, seem to have started the show as just a simple adult humor cartoon, with the occasional deconstruction of pop culture. However, the show has grown to be an political spectacle. 

The show is about four children, named Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman and Kenny McCormick, who live in a mountain town in Colorado named South Park. The boys go on adventures, often involving pop culture celebrities, and eventually somehow someway the story gets completely blown out of proportion and becomes utterly ridiculous. Just to try and portray the ridiculousness of the show, here is the opening disclaimer shown before every airing of the show:

Despite the recommendation that the show not be viewed by anyone, the show is one of Comedy Central's highest-rated shows (watched by more than 8 million viewers a week). It has been translated into 30 languages and shown in 130 countries, nominated for 18 Emmys (winning five), made into a movie (1999's Bigger, Longer & Uncut, which grossed $83.1 million worldwide) and has spawned a merchandising industry generating hundreds of millions of dollars (The Hollywood Reporter). Does the show inspire a pessimistic view of the world around us, or does it serve as a representation of how ridiculous the popular media’s portrayal of society is? Using cultural theory and ideologies, I plan to expose the show for what it is, regardless of my bias, and let you the reader ponder the rationale of the show.

The first set of analysis regarding the show, is based on its relationship to pop culture. In many ways, pop culture is American culture, because no other society internalizes pop culture representation like American society. This notion is often termed as the Americanization of culture. This is referring to the change of culture from an art of the people to an art for the people to consume. This is the product of a commercial capitalist society and it as resulted in popular culture being more socially and institutionally central in our society, more so than that of Europe (Storey, 8). In our society today pleasure and desire is manufactured for us based on our socio-economic position and how that position is represented in popular culture. That being said, I believe that South Park acts as a contradiction to that representation. South Park exposes the ridiculousness of having popular culture so prevalent in society’s spheres on influence, by mocking celebrities, fads and norms, yet the only reason its still on the air is because it makes money and people watch it. 

The show also exposes how Americans idolize the representative they voted for president, as if he is a figure of pop culture. For example, in episode 12 season 12, Obama wins the election and those that voted for him bask in his glory, while those that don’t think it is the end of days. Randy Marsh when looking at President Obama, pressing his face to the television comments, “He’s so awesome, he’s so perfect and awesome.” The episode then continues by making fun of the conspiracies created behind every election. They do so by rendering Obama and McCain as using the entire election as a way into the White House so they can get access to an underground tunnel leading to the heist of the hope diamond. This represents how the election has become more of a patriotic rally than a democratic debate and how things get thrown out of proportion in a heated election.

Here’s a link to the entire episode: http://southpark.cc.com/full-episodes/s12e12-about-last-night

Here’s a list of the top 10 celebrity impersonations on South Park (Warning Crude And Mildly Offensive):

“Popular culture is structured by the attempt of the ruling class to win hegemony and by forms of opposition to this endeavor (Storey, 10).” By mocking pop culture South Park exposes the agenda of the ruling class, particularly the ruling class’ use of popular media to articulate an unachievable desire conforming subordinate groups to a hopelessly commercial lifestyle. I believe this is why they chose the band Primus to produce the soundtrack for the show, a band that named their 1999 album Antipop.

Despite the benefits of putting up a mirror to pop culture and letting its hideousness be exposed, the viewer must know to interpret as such in order for it to be fully deconstructive. A viewer may very well view that show as just mindless humorous entertainment, which renders them just as capable as one of the ignorant citizens of South Park. Or, they might view the show in a pessimistic matter and internalize the content to be the stupidity of a hopeless world.

Also, South Park directly relates to a Post-structuralist interpretation of society. Its meaning is flexible and will never truly be concrete, depending on personal interpretation. Because the show is a cartoon it is in binary opposition to reality. It gets place in the same category as hundreds of texts that are unconsciously binge consumed. However, it is a deconstructive text if critically interpreted correctly. Deconstructive texts, “must always aim at a certain relationship, unperceived by the writer, between what he commands and what he does not command of the patterns of language that he uses” (133, Storey). South Park fits this definition because the language used is crude and vulgar, yet its message is, hey society look at what is accepted by you in relationship to what isn’t. It says that to talk about things using curse words is unaccepted, yet for a company to profit off of the public by manipulating them with lies into thinking a certain way is. Its exposes how stereotypes are created and internalized, yet to talk about them and address the issue is taboo. It exposes how to make jokes about Satan and God are forbidden, yet to make jokes that oppress social groups is ok. 

South Park is a deconstructive text, however if interpreted incorrectly, it can reinforce existing hierarchies. If a viewer were to watch the show without critically thinking about its message, it could potentially further the internalization of the hierarchy.

In a episode 4 season 20, the children at South Park Elementary have been exposed to an online bully that torments the young girls of the school. This leads to the split of boys and girls against each other. The girls think it’s one of the boys, when in reality its one of the parents. The episode begins with Kyle explaining the issue to his father (who is the bully or “troll”) and he says, “One guy gets online and says terrible things about girls and it reflects badly on all of us. Everyone is sad, everyone is depressed and no body knows how to move forward.” Kyle’s Dad brushes the issue aside and walks out. This is the basis for every stereotype every created. When a man of color commits an act of violence, it gets internalized by the people around him not for what the crime is, but for what he is, a man of color. Then the act becomes stereotype because it is reflected badly on all people of color. On the contrary, if a white man were to commit the same act, he would just be considered a crazy person, because he doesn’t ave the same signifier as the man of color. South Park is exposing this issue, though it is hidden in pity middle school conflict, and it exposes the societal issue. The episode then continues with students that are male exposing their genitalia during the national anthem, in protest. The character Butters is usually shy and avoids conflict, however he is the leader of the boys who are in protest. This to me shows how hate and opposition can make even the pure at heart want to take up arms against the oppressor. Additionally, South Park has reversed the roles of men and women, making the boys of the show oppressed by the women based on the actions of few. When in reality it is the majority of men who oppress women by judging them based on the means of their sexuality and their physical attributes. This is a prime example of the shows deconstructive nature.

Here is a link to the entire episode: http://southpark.cc.com/full-episodes/s20e04-wieners-out

South Park is also a critique on the postmodern society we live in. The show essentially defines its characters by the metanarratives they posses. That notion parallels how the members of a society define themselves and judge others based on these subscriptions. For example, the character Chef, one of the few black characters on the show, is overtly involved in classic African-American culture preconceptions, such as his ability to sing soul music and discuss the power of love with the children. Also, a priest makes a few appearances on the show and its almost always during a mass. The priest says something ridiculous and untraditional, yet all the people of the church take his words with reverence and respect. The one black child’s name is literally Token. 

In addition, South Park mocks the American Society for being hopelessly commercial. South Park is the definition of an, “anything goes culture, a culture of slackening, where taste is irrelevant, and money is the only sign of value” (Storey, 196). The character Kenny represents the lower class of society. Kenny is purely the object of neglect. The viewer can never understand what he is saying and he dies in every episode and yet no one seems to care. Often his dead body lays and rats surround it and then the episode ends. Kenny represents the absence of wealth and what it means to social status to be as such. Yet all the children and adults desire the same material goods commercialized. Representing the lack of separation between what is perceived as art, and what is art. 

Kenny’s Multiple Deaths:

South Park is a show that I would recommend to a friend, because it brings all of the issues of society into reconsideration. I forces the viewer to see the horrors of racism, sexism and gender binary, in a comedic environment. Though there is no comedy when having real life discussions about these issues, It makes the topic easier to cope with. However, before recommending I would explain the critical thinking elements involved in watching the show. Without understanding them, the viewer can either further their hierarchic misrepresentation of society, or view society pessimistically as hopeless and too far from revival.

If you are a frequent viewer of the show, I would enjoy hearing your interpretations of the show, before and after reading this blog. Did/Do you view the show as a exploitation of the ridiculousness of society, or as a comedy cartoon show with no other purpose than to exist as such?

Reference:

Storey, J. (2015).

Cultural theory and popular culture.

Harlow: PearPrentice Hall.