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make-it-mavis · 4 years ago

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Homesick (Entry #41 - Finale)

02/03/88 11:53 PM

Hey.

...Hey.

I’m… really not sure where to begin. To be perfectly honest, part of me feels strange writing this at all. Not to say that filling this notebook has always made total sense to me, but today is different. Today is, well… today. This long-winded bedtime story has finally caught up to me. For the first time since I started, all I have to write about is what happened today.

I’ve never been quite so stuck on the fence between calling these entries ‘letters’ or ‘journals.’ I don’t know where I stand in this game of pretend I’ve been playing with myself for the past couple of months. Pretending I’m writing to you, pretending you’ll ever read all this. I don’t know. I guess I want to believe I don’t need to do this anymore, at least not today. Because with any luck, you saw everything that happened today, and heard everything that was said. What’s the point of telling someone about an event they attended?

But I’ll tell you about it anyway, because I want to record and remember every detail. It was overwhelming, and it somehow went by so fast, and I’m worried that I’ll forget something. My heart’s still kind of pounding. I feel a bit light-headed. I can still smell burning paper, and it’s making me a little sick, but it’s… well, it’s complicated.

Today was, of course, your funeral.

I’m not sure what I expected your funeral to be like. I’d never been to one. I’d certainly never prepared one. I wasn’t even sure a gathering of three could be called a funeral at all. But I did my best to make sure each of us would pay respects to you that were not given at the arcade-wide memorial.

I really had only one major request for Felix and Ralph. I wanted each of us, including myself, to write a letter to you. I could tell that they weren’t thrilled by the idea, but they didn’t fight me on it. I tried to make it as easy and open-ended as possible. I told them to just say whatever they would say to you if they had one more chance to do so, to be genuine about it, no matter what that might look like, and write it in the form of a letter. I didn’t tell them why that last part was so significant, and they didn’t ask. But it just felt right to me.

Once we fully settled on a plan together, it looked like this:

One hour after the arcade closed, we would meet behind Niceland. No articles of blue clothing would be allowed, and I would provide red color edits as needed, including on the flowers that Felix was tasked to bring. I would bring the picture frame with our drawings, and your scarf and goggles, to be placed on a table with the flowers. Each of us would read out our letters, and then fold them into paper boats, light them on fire, and send them down the river while I played a song I wrote for the occasion.

I was still working on the song by the time the evening came.

I was in Felix’s apartment when the arcade closed. I had spent most of the day in my den so that I could hear my own music over the sound of Niceland being pounded to bits, but eventually snuck into the building, picture frame and your belongings in hand, so that Felix would not have to come looking for me. When I heard ‘Quittin’ time’ announced and the wrecking stopped for good, I just tried my best to ignore it and keep plucking away on my guitar.

It was not long before I heard approaching thumps rising up the side of the building and, from the corner of my eye, saw Ralph’s face appear in one of the apartment’s windows. I was startled by the sound of glass breaking, and looked to see him still holding up the finger that he had tried to gently tap the window with.

“D’oh, darn it,” he grunted, before smiling at me sheepishly. “Hey, Mavis. Sorry.”

I set my guitar aside and walked over, kind of annoyed that my heart rate had not fallen since the startle. “Hey, don’t be sorry,” I said with a bit of a sigh, “I hate that window, too.”

He laughed briefly and awkwardly before scratching the back of his head with his free hand. “So… I’ll get out of your hair in a sec, I just wanted to make sure we’re still… Y’know, that this is still--”

“Yup. Still on in an hour.”

“Okay,” he nodded, pretty clearly nervous. “Okay, I’ll go get ready, then.”

He almost dropped, but I called him back with a short whistle. “Hold on,” I told him, pulling out my brush. He watched me quizzically, but held still long enough for me to reach through the window and touch the color red into the otherwise aqua undershirt peeking up under his collar. “There. Now you’re set.”

“Oh,” he tugged his clothes away from his chest to inspect the change. “Right, right. Okay. At least the rest of me is pretty red already, huh?”

“Well, you’re better off than Felix,” I said, cracking a small smile.

We said a couple strained, awkward goodbyes, and he disappeared back down the side of the building almost the second Felix walked in the front door.

At first, he said “Oh, Mavy,” in pleasant surprise, but when he saw the broken window, he repeated in a less happy tone, “Oh, Mavy.”

“Hey, for once it wasn’t me,” I shrugged. “Take it up with the Bad Guy.”

Felix mended the broken window as quickly as ever, and from there, we more or less carried on like we would have any other evening. Felix brewed some tea, we sat at the table, and he told me about his day, as usual. I pretended to listen just enough to seem like I wasn’t snubbing him while I continued to work on the song. I just kept my notepad in my lap and darted my eyes down to it whenever he broke eye contact. Eventually, he couldn’t carry the conversation on his own anymore.

“You haven’t touched your tea,” he pointed out gently. “Can I get you more sugar?”

“No, thanks,” I mumbled absent-mindedly, eyes down, and reached to take a sip of the tea to placate him. Once the cold, minty drink was in my mouth, however, I found it hard to swallow. It tasted fine, but my throat felt almost too tense to allow it. I tried to subtly spit it back into the cup, but I know he saw.

“Are you… alright?” he asked gingerly, like he knew how stupid the question was, today of all days.

“I’m fine,” I sighed, drumming my pen against the paper, still not looking up. “I’m just working on the song I said I’d write. I’ve got the melody, but the words just aren’t coming together.”

“Oh,” I heard him take a slow, thoughtful sip. “Maybe it doesn’t need words. I’m sure it’s lovely anyway.”

I paused to consider that, accepted it, scratched out all my attempts at lyrics and tossed the notepad and pen over my shoulder. “Yeah,” I sighed sharply, planting my elbows on the table and rubbing my brow. “Screw it.”

Felix was quiet for a while. I just kept my eyes closed, trying to escape the headache I’d been fighting all day.

“You know, Mavy,” he said slowly, “we don’t have to do this today. If you need more time, that’s alright.”

“No, no,” I sighed again, folding my arms and staring down at my tea. “I want to do it today.”

“That’s fine, too,” he said. “Just… you know, there’s no rush.”

“Yeah, there is,” I muttered. “For me, there is. I know that a couple of days is not a long time to plan anything, but… I’ve wanted this for way more than a couple of days. I just… I’ve had a lot going on. I haven’t exactly had the mental space to realize just how… how mad I’ve been this whole time. Mad about…” I lifted my fingers, “everything. And I know I’ve been pissy as hell in general, but there’s just been this shade of it that I… I haven’t been able to see.”

I finally glanced up at Felix. He was just listening, cupping his empty mug on the table. There was no pain in his eyes, only a desire to understand. So I continued.

“In counselling, I learned about the stages of grief. Anger is the first. It had been long enough, and I had done enough work on myself, I thought I had moved past it. But there’s been this… underlying resentment that’s gone unaddressed. I know what it is now. It clicked when Ralph gave me that picture frame. I was hit by the fact that it was the first real gesture of respect for Turbo’s memory that I had seen since he died. Yeah, I’m not angry at Turbo anymore. But Devs, I’m angry for him.

“Angry that the arcade-wide memorial only served to vilify him. Angry that I was assaulted before even getting the chance to start mourning, and I’ve spent all this time dealing with what’s happened to me and ignoring what happened to him. Angry that other sprites in counselling get to talk about their grief and loss without a single judging look. Angry that I feel like I have to apologize any time I bring up Turbo in counselling. Angry that sprites out there are literally changing the meaning of his name to mean the act that killed him.”

I took a second to breathe. Felix waited patiently, and I continued once I found a calmer tone to speak in.

“I remember the night before he died. I remember the shape he was in. If anyone else had seen what I did, they wouldn’t be talking like they are. They would know he didn’t deserve to die. I can’t stand being the only sprite in the arcade who seems to understand that. And now I finally have time and energy to do something about it. Even if it’s just me, you, and Ralph. Ideally, Tapper would be there, too. Ideally, the whole arcade would care enough to be there. But I’m doing the best I can with what I’ve got.”

I shook my head. “I just can’t carry this anger a single step further. It has to be today.”

Felix smiled in a sad sort of way and nodded just a bit. “Okay,” he breathed. “Then we’ll do it today.”

The conversation ended after that, and shortly after, Felix excused himself to go gather the flowers he was tasked to bring, leaving me alone in the apartment for a while. It was enough time for me to practice the song a couple more times and try not to obsess over it. I felt like you deserved something better. Something grand. Something you would be happy to assign your name to while you were here. But I couldn’t manage it. I couldn’t even manage to write lyrics for the short, simple melody I came up with.

I guess missing you just doesn’t make me feel very musical.

After I was as satisfied as I was going to get with the song, I set to work coloring my clothes red, leaving only the already white parts unpainted. I was staring into the bathroom mirror, debating coloring the blue out of my eyes when Felix returned, arms full of flowers. I gave the flowers the same red-and-white treatment I gave myself, and eliminated every shade of blue from Felix’s outfit. He looks a bit weird in red, but I just couldn’t allow anything resembling Devout attire at your funeral. Nevermind blue being your least favorite color.

Once about an hour had passed since the arcade closed, we were all ready to go. There wasn’t a shade of blue on us. Felix held the color-coded flowers, and I held the picture frame and your belongings under an arm. Both of us had our respective letters we wrote to you in our pockets. I had my guitar slung over my back, tuned to perfection. Everything on the proverbial checklist was ticked.

But still, I stood there at the front door, one hand on the knob, finding it hard to make myself turn it.

“It’s okay, Mavy,” Felix said softly from behind me. “Take your time.”

I sighed through my nose, closing my eyes and trying to fight the quivering in my stomach. The gravity of what I was about to do had been squeezing me tighter and tighter as the evening went on.

“Hun,” Felix prompted gently, “I know you’re angry. But are you sure you want to do this in anger?”

I considered that, took a deep breath, and stood a bit straighter. “Yes, actually,” I looked back over my shoulder at him, speaking calmly despite my nerves. “I do. Waiting won’t help. I think I can safely say that delaying this is what made me angry in the first place. And... for once, I’d like to use my anger for something good,” I gave half a smile. “I won’t blow anything up this time. Don’t worry.”

Felix gave a quiet huff of a laugh, paused, and shook his head with a warm smile. “I’m not worried.”

I raised a brow.

He put one hand up a bit. “I know, I know how ridiculous that sounds. I know I’m the king of all worrywarts. But I mean it. I’m not worried.”

“Explain.”

Felix shrugged contentedly. “I trust you.”

I just stared at him, unsure if he had ever uttered those words to me before. I didn’t know what to say, so he continued.

“I trust you to do what’s best for you… and for Turbo. You’re the only one in the arcade who could,” he sighed, a bit of glassiness showing in his eyes. “And I’m proud of you. I know he would be, too.”

A bit blindsided in my already emotionally vulnerable state, I swallowed hard. Suddenly, my face felt much too hot. I nodded a bit, letting my eyes wander as the words sank in. I hoped he was right, but I tried not to think too deeply about that lest I turn into an emotional wreck before even making it downstairs.

So I just glanced at him and muttered, “Thanks, cuz.”

“Of course,” he smiled wider. “I know you’ll be alright. I’ve never been so sure of that.”

I allowed my own smile to show. “Yeah. I’ll make it.”

He chuckled. “It’s what you do.”

At that point, I finally found the resolve to open the door and walk down the hall to the elevator. We rode down in silence, and I managed to steady my breathing enough to gain confidence that I could keep it together through our modest little service. Once we reached the ground floor and stepped out into the hallway, however, Felix stopped me before the back doors of Niceland.

“Mavy,” he said, “a word before we go out.”

“What?”

“Well… I hope you don’t mind, but I took a couple... liberties with the service.”

I blinked. “Okay. What’d you do?”

“Just…” he stepped back, pushing open one of the double doors and nodding towards the outside, “...have a look.”

I had no idea what to expect -- Felix’s ideas of surprises are usually extremely underwhelming. But when I obliged him, and took a single step out of the building, what I saw stopped me in my tracks.

There was a crowd.

I saw the Nicelanders first. Behind them, I saw Tapper. And Peter Pepper. And Paperboy, two Joust knights, Mario, and Clyde. And Ralph, towering above them in the back. They were arranged in rows in front of one of the prepared tables, watching me, waiting for me in a reverent hush.

I felt, for just a moment, that I could pass out.

“Mavy… you okay?” Felix whispered.

I looked at him. Then back to the crowd. Then to him. I hadn’t the slightest clue what to say. My thoughts were struggling to keep up with my feelings. I was overwhelmed, equally on the verge of crying, yelling, and running away. But, somehow, all the same… my heart was swelling with gratitude.

“You did this?” I mouthed to Felix.

“I may have spread the word a little bit,” he replied, looking almost smug, in a very nervous way. “I just… I knew you wished he could have a bigger send off, and I knew you thought no one would even come, but… I wanted to prove you wrong. It’s not the whole arcade, but it’s something.”

I stared at him.

“Oh, Mavy,” he frowned, “I’m sorry. Did I do wrong?”

“No,” I whispered, looking back at the crowd. “Absolutely not.”

Finally, we both stepped fully out of Niceland. We crossed to the table in front of the crowd and found that a couple rows of bricks had been placed on it, almost like an altar to put the frame on. I did so, along with your scarf and goggles, and Felix laid out the flowers. After that, he clarified whether I was okay one more time, before stepping in line along the front row of the crowd, leaving me in the spotlight.

I looked at everyone. They looked at me. I silently thanked counselling for getting me accustomed to a certain level of vulnerability in a group setting, and I spoke.

“Wow… I’m almost speechless,” I told them, my voice faltering a bit. “I don’t know what to say, other than…”

At that point, my eyes landed on Gene.

I immediately snapped, “Gene, what the hell are you doing here? Get out.”

He threw his hands up, exclaimed, “THANK YOU,” and broke away from the crowd to return to Niceland. I watched him go, and waited until the door shut behind him to continue.

“Anyway,” I addressed the crowd with a bit more confidence, as Ralph struggled to stifle a laugh in the back, “it means a lot that the rest of you are here. Thank you for…” I sighed, “joining me in remembering Turbo properly. I… obviously have a few things to say, but I’ll hold off for now. Felix and Ralph have prepared remarks, and, uh… after that, if anyone else has something they’d like to say, you’re welcome to do so. I’ll take it from there after that. So…”

I met Felix’s gaze expectantly, and he gasped a little bit before nodding and switching places with me. I set my guitar down on a separate table, and then I stood by the crowd and watched him pull a folded piece of paper out of his chest pocket, clear his throat, and take a moment. The reverent silence from before settled over everyone once more as Felix found his voice.

“Turbo…” he began, “I’m afraid you’ll have to forgive me. This letter isn’t exactly the poetry you’d expect to be read aloud at a… gathering of this nature. Truthfully, writing this at all has been, well… a lot harder than I thought. I’ve written my fair share of letters on my own time. Boy, I even sent you one or two before, when you were still here to receive them. Whether you read them or just turned them into paper airplanes, I never really knew. But this one… I hope, wherever you are, you’re listening. Even if you don’t want to hear from me, there are things I need to say to you. More things than I realized.”

Felix paused to take a steadying breath before attempting the rest. “Turbo, I’m sorry. I’m sorry that it took me this long to truly think about you and how I feel. How I feel about losing you. I’ve been so preoccupied looking after the sprites who depend on me, I just… somehow, forgot to mourn. And once I did, once I started writing, I… Well, I cried. I know I’m a big crier, but even for me… I cried so much. Because golly, I… I didn’t realize just how much I’m going to miss you.

“It feels so strange to say it, because, well, you did drive me up the wall most days. You’d burst into my apartment in the wee hours of the morning, tracking in dirt on my carpet, raiding my fridge without so much as a ‘Hello.’ You’d show up uninvited to parties and be rude to the guests. On more than one occasion, you drove your car into our game and left tire tracks that tore up our lovely grass and flowers. But I miss it all, just the same. I miss feeling guilty for laughing at your... crass jokes. I miss being angry at you, angry enough that all my other problems felt like a breeze, comparatively. I miss seeing you in passing in Game Central and hearing every new, mean... frankly annoyingly clever nickname you chose to greet me with. I miss your laugh, your smile, your face… I miss seeing you at all. It’s strange, but I miss all the complicated emotions you brought into my life. You did drive me crazy. But I loved it. I’m just sorry it took losing you to make me realize that.”

At this point, he was pausing at the end of every sentence to wipe away tears from under his eyes, and as he went on, I could feel my own starting to sting a bit. “I wish you could have understood how loved you were. In the way that matters. I wish that you could have seen that you had nothing to be jealous of. You were one in a million, Turbo. No one will ever replace you. No one will ever forget you.”

Just for a moment, he glanced at me. “And I’ll never forget the happiness you brought to my family.” Then, sniffling, he closed out with, “Goodbye, Turbo. Goodbye, my friend.”

After that, he wandered over to join me next to the crowd and pulled out a handkerchief to blow his nose into. I watched him, eventually deciding to rub his back. Touching him is still a challenge, but… I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t know if I could even say it right.

I had expected his letter to be almost entirely about your relationship with me and how it made him feel. I expected to be the bridge between the two of you, like I always seemed to be before you died. But, seemingly out of nowhere, he pulled out these deeply personal feelings about you. He himself felt guilt over not mourning you properly, just as I did. It made me think about the conversation we had shared about an hour beforehand, and how he must have been angry, too. In his own Felix sort of way. And how that might have inspired him, in part, to invite all the extra guests.

It just meant a lot to me, knowing you meant something to him.

After a couple moments of clumsily comforting Felix, I saw no movement, so I looked back over the crowd at Ralph. He seemed to be doing his best to disappear all nine feet of himself, but once we locked eyes, he surrendered and trudged to the front of the crowd. He seemed kind of nervous, fumbling as he pulled out his letter and unfolded it.

“Turbo, uh…” he began, pausing to stare out at his audience one last time before shifting his feet and clearing his throat. “Okay. Look. I'll be honest with you. When Mavis asked me to write you a letter, I was kind of confused. The letters are a nice idea, but… me? I was never your friend. We never got along. In fact, the very first time I met you, I very clearly remember you saying--” and at this point, he poorly mimicked your accent, “--’Don't tell me. You're a Bad Guy. I can smell a professional loser from across the arcade, even without the help a’ your severe body odor. Take a shower, ya might like it.’”

I didn’t hide my chuckle. I even heard one or two behind me. Ralph noticed, and seemed unsure if he was being laughed at or with. Either way, he took on a bit more of a solid tone.

“Yeah, you were a jerk. You didn't like me, and I didn't like you. But I'm still… I don’t know. Somehow, part of me is still sad you're gone. And not just because things have been so messed up since you left. I think there was just one thing about you that I might have, possibly, maybe, sort of liked.

“You were a Good Guy, but… you didn’t really act like one. A lot of Good Guys are jerks who pretend to be nice, but you never pretended. You never hid how mean you were. It’s weird to think of that as a good thing. I don't know. I'm not sure I get why that sticks out to me in my memories of you, but it does, so... I guess I will miss you, Turbo. Even though you were basically a second Mavis most of the time.”

That one got a bigger laugh, especially from me. Ralph seemed very pleased with himself. He had to clear his throat to snap himself out of a poorly timed smile. Frowning appropriately, he said, “Goodbye, Turbo. Rest in peace.”

He then walked back to his spot in the rear of the crowd, and a blanket of silence settled softly over us all once again.

By this point, I was feeling pretty sick. Somehow, I wasn’t crying yet, but I was incredibly anxious. The longer the service went on, the more I began to wonder if I was making a mistake, after all. Hearing the other two talk about you the way they did… It scared me for a lot of reasons. Not the least of which being I was probably going to have to read my letter in a moment, and it was a lot longer and a lot more personal than what they wrote. I knew that would be the case from the beginning, but when the moment finally came, I was not prepared for it.

And as the silence carried on, I only felt sicker. If no one else wanted to speak, then it would have to be my turn. I just stood there, fighting myself on whether I should wait longer or get it over with, until I heard the blessed sound of footsteps.

Tapper stepped out in front of the crowd.

Seeing him standing there alone, rescuing me from my anxiety for just a couple more minutes, I was finally able to process how happy I was to see him. Knowing that he must have closed the bar down to come support you and me, even after I nearly got his game unplugged… I mean, I could hardly believe it. A week ago, I thought he would never want to see me again. But he was there. He left his blue vest at home, out of respect for the dress code. He was responsible for the precious frame propped up on the table behind him.

And he had something to say to you.

“Turbo…” he began, sighing, “first, let me piss you off by talking about myself at your funeral. It won't take long. After all, I'm a pretty simple guy. I sell root beer, and that's about it. I barely ever even leave my game. But the truth is, I don't have to. I can go anywhere I want without ever stepping outside. I open my doors… and the arcade is brought to me. Everyone brings in little bits of their lives, whether they know it or not, and I get all the travel I need just from good conversation. But lately, well… I ain't been traveling so far. For the first time ever, my game isn't big enough for me. Not since my road to Turbo Time disappeared.”

He paused thoughtfully, eyes down for a moment. “I may not have ever physically set foot in there. Most of us didn't. But I know we all miss it. Some more than others, sure. And yeah, maybe it wasn't the center of the universe like someone would have liked us to believe. But Turbo Time was more than just a game. Turbo Time was a fact. Constant, stable, since the opening of the very arcade itself. I don't think any of us realized just how comforting it was, the idea that at least one thing in this strange, unpredictable world could remain unchanged -- Turbo Time's place in the spotlight.

“Now... it's gone. And I'm sure there's not a sprite in the arcade who doesn't miss it. Who doesn't miss that stability. Doesn't miss the things we could still believe when Turbo Time was here. So I speak for everyone, and I mean everyone, when I say: Turbo, you will be missed. And thank you for the years you gave us. Goodbye, old friend.”

Tapper gave me one short, meaningful glance, and the corner of his moustache tipped up just a bit in the hint of a smile. He walked away, but not before flashing just a flicker of a wink at me. It took a couple of minutes to understand what he meant to convey with that, but knowing Tapper, I figured it out. And it just made me even more grateful that he came.

I think that everyone else’s refusal to speak did not sit right with him. He knew everyone had something to say, so he said it for them. Because it was your freakin’ funeral, and it would be damn disrespectful to snub you like that.

Tapper’s the best.

Once he rejoined the crowd, I went back to waiting for a while. Deep down, I knew no one else would step up. I knew I was just prolonging my own suffering, but I felt rooted to the spot. I just stood there, staring at the point on the ground where I would have to stand. It was only a few steps away. It should have been easy. But everyone was waiting for me. I could feel more than one pair of eyes watching me expectantly. And in a moment, I would have to broadcast some very, very personal feelings to them. For a few moments, I wondered if I should have been mad at Felix for inviting everyone without permission, after all.

But then I thought back again to the conversation we had earlier. How I said, in a perfect world, the whole arcade would come to pay respects to you. In a perfect world, the arcade-wide memorial would have a complete do-over. The handful of sprites I stood next to was the best you were going to get. At that thought, I felt the same anger that inspired me to host the funeral in the first place.

I pulled the letter I wrote to you out of my pocket and looked it over for just a moment, contemplating. It was everything I would say to you, if I could turn back time. But I asked myself whether, given this opportunity, I wanted to speak to you or to them.

I folded up the letter and put it back in my pocket. I told Felix earlier that anger could be used for good, and I figured it was time to practice what I preached.

I stepped out in front of everyone. I deliberately made them wait just a minute longer while I counted every gaze pointed my way. Every single sprite was watching me, listening, which was no longer off-putting.

It was perfect.

“Let me start by thanking you all for coming, once again, and thank Felix for inviting everyone,” I said clearly and calmly. “This… event is long overdue, and undersized. So, what few guests you may be, know that your appearance here means a lot. A special thank you in particular to the Devout here who skipped the blue clothing, as requested. You see, Turbo was not Devout. He never was. Yet, somehow, a Devout preacher was the only sprite given the authority to speak about him at the memorial after his death. That’s why we’re here today.”

I paused, letting that point sink in, and picking my next words carefully. I was angry, but I had to stay level-headed. I had to use that anger effectively, or the very important message I was about to deliver would not land. Once I felt confident in my emotional balance, I continued.

“The preacher never knew him. No one who spoke that day knew him. Admittedly, he was a tough sprite to know. I could easily count on one hand how many sprites actually did. But no one knew him like I did. By rights, it should have been me who spoke that day. It’s a bit late for that now, but I can tell you what I would have said.

“I’d have told you what most people knew Turbo as. Arrogant, narcissistic, loud, belligerent, relentlessly competitive. You could get him to do pretty much anything just by suggesting he couldn’t. And no matter how badly he failed, he would always challenge you to do better.”

I heard a quiet chuckle or two from that, and smiled as I went on.

“Yeah, nothing, not even his game’s lofty track record, was ever so famous about Turbo as his ego. But he was also clever. And witty, and resourceful, and inventive. His garage was always cluttered with work-in-progress gizmos and sheets of... wildly intricate blueprints I never learned how to read. Framed on the table behind me is proof that we would draw together sometimes, and I always thought his art style was cooler than I let on. Sometimes we would sing, or even write music together, and it’ll likely surprise you to hear, but his voice and his poetry weren’t half-bad. Yeah. That guy was full of surprises, way more than anyone would have believed. And probably the hardest to believe of them all, was… he was afraid.”

I took another pause, figuring out how to continue without betraying your privacy too much. I needed to make everyone understand, but I still wanted to be respectful to you. Eventually, I continued carefully, a light tremor of emotion in my voice.

“He had the fame, the fortune, the status, the gamers’ full attention… but like anyone else in this arcade, he was… scared. He wanted to be loved. To be remembered. He wanted something real to hold onto. Some meaning that could hold its own against the universal fear of this life, the fear that someday our games will be unplugged and wheeled out that door to nowhere. Now, I know how I’ll remember him. I’ll remember him as the greatest racer this arcade’s ever seen. I’ll remember him as an artist, an inventor, a singer, a comedian. I’ll remember him as a person. Because that’s what he was. No matter how hard that preacher tried to twist his life into nothing but a cautionary tale, he was just as much a person as she is. As any of us are. Ignoring that goes far beyond disrespect. Ignoring that is outright dangerous. Because Turbo, no matter what connotations his name carries now, was not a monster. He was only ever one of us. We lost one of our own, and until we stop hiding and face the truth of his death, we will lose more the same way. What can kill one of us can kill more of us.”

I could see a few frowns in the audience. I knew my words were getting a bit scary, but that was good. It said to me that they were starting to get it. So I didn’t let up. I let my tone sharpen.

“Disobeying the program is not what killed him. Seeing no meaning outside of the program killed him. And yet, there was the preacher saying we ought to do the exact same thing. Place all our meaning on our code. She said that Turbo had a virus, that he was corrupted, that following the program will protect us from his fate. The program keeps your game alive, this much we can’t change. But it can’t protect us from everything. You can do everything right and still end up quarterless. New games are plugged in, gamers move on, for reasons we will probably never understand. That’s just life here. Life here is hard, and it’s confusing, and for the most part, our roles are the only things we can actually make sense of. But there has to be more. You have to find more. Your role is what you do, but it can’t be who you are. Because if that’s taken away, who are you? Why are you?”

I stopped. The silence that was once reverent had turned tense. I let my breathing slow as I took a good, long look at the crowd. I felt very little sympathy for the uncomfortable faces at first. Felix was just holding his hat in front of his belly, eyes wide, lips parted. Tapper’s gaze was steady on me, but his brow was furrowed in an almost pained sort of way. Ralph wasn’t looking at me at all. His eyes were low, staring at nothing in particular, squeezing his fingers anxiously.

I took in a deep breath, held it, and let a long sigh wash the anger and adrenaline out of me. That was enough. I could let them off the hook.

“Anyway,” I said lowly, sadly, “that’s my sermon for the day. Moving on... Well, speaking of roles... my role doesn't offer a whole lot in the first place. Some say Easter Eggs are good luck, but being one sure isn’t. You can go weeks without a second of gameplay. It’s hard to feel like you really belong anywhere, sometimes. You live in your game, sure, but… it’s hard to call it ‘home’ when you’re barely needed. It’s easy to feel like the least important sprite in the whole arcade. So, imagine my surprise when, four years ago, I found myself goofing off with the king of the arcade,” I smiled a bit at the memory. “It was so weird to me, hanging out with a guy so obsessed with status when I had basically none of my own. I thought it would have bothered him. But… that was one of the instances where his narcissism sort of… canceled itself out and made him a better person, I think. He was too concerned with himself to care. I asked him what he thought about me being an Easter Egg once, and he just shrugged and said, ‘The hell should I care?’ Like I’d asked him what I should have for dinner, or something. Not saying there weren’t things about me he didn’t like, and hey, he wasn’t perfect either. But there was trust there, I guess. Weird, snarky trust.

“So, I ended up spending a whole lot of time with him, and that was great, because being an Easter Egg frankly gives me more free time than I always know what to do with. Eventually, goofing off with him was one of the few things that made sense in my life. Even if it didn’t make sense to anyone else. I mean, not that everyone didn’t see why we got along so well. We were often told how similar we were, usually not in a good way. But why we did the things we did, I don't think many understood. And I wouldn't expect them to, because our fun usually came at everyone else's expense. Like the time we poured puddles of oil around game central just to watch everyone slip. Or when we'd play music in Ghosts n' Goblins so loud it literally woke the dead. Everyone here probably has their own story to tell…”

I made eye contact and managed a smile for each sprite I mentioned, “Like Mary, whose cake we ruined by switching her sugar and salt. Deanna, we were the reason the whole arcade started calling you ‘Dana’. Tapper could keep us up all night with his own tales of our misdeeds, and so could Gene for that matter, if he were allowed to speak. And Don, yes, any time one of your model boats went missing, it was nicked by us. We used to take them into Frogger and set them on fire, and watch them drift away down the river.”

Don in particular looked shocked, confused, and a bit scandalized, but resigned quickly with a small sigh.

“It all sounds… petty,” I continued, nodding. “Meaningless, shallow, self-indulgent wastes of time by two arrogant sprites who didn't give a damn about anything or anyone. And that's how I preferred to think of it too, most of the time. But I tell you… once, while we were watching one of Don's boats burn away as it floated along, Turbo asked me, ‘Where do you think it goes… after it's deleted for good? After the fire eats it all away?’ He wasn't looking at me, but I could tell… he wasn't smiling. I told him the only thing that made sense to me… ‘Anywhere but here.’ And… honestly, I think the idea of that was some kind of comfort. The idea that there was anything outside of what we knew. Many would say he only ever knew a perfect, privileged life. That he had everything he could have wanted. But, still… all we ever did was look for a way out.”

My eyes fell for a moment. I stared at the ground as I clenched my jaw, struggling to string together the heartache I felt into words. My emotions were finally starting to bubble over, and as much as I tried to fight it, my vision started to blur with tears. Almost at a loss, I just forced myself to start talking, my voice weak and quivering as I looked out at the crowd again.

“...Sprites said a lot of things about us. About… us. Some would call him my partner in crime, which wasn't the whole truth. Some called him my best friend, which... wasn’t the whole truth, either. A whole lot more called him my boyfriend, which, despite evidence to the contrary, he was not. Even I was never sure what to call him, or what he really was to me. But I think I understand, now that he's gone. Because I didn't just lose a friend... or a partner. I lost a place at his side… the first place I ever felt like I belonged. Turbo… he was my home. I... don’t know where the fire leads. I don’t know if it leads anywhere. I don’t know if he’s listening. I don’t know if he exists at all anymore. Out of all those, I don’t even know what I want to believe. Right now, all I know is… no matter how many games I see, no matter how many sprites I meet, no matter how many years I live… I’ll always be homesick. Always.”

I closed my eyes, unable to keep a few tears from falling. Trembling from the awful heat deep in my chest, I knew I was done. I couldn’t say another word on the matter. So, after a long, hushed moment, I turned my eyes to Felix and tipped my head in request for him to take my place. He obliged without question, wiping away the wetness on his own red cheeks. I wandered over to sling my guitar over my shoulder once again as he informed the crowd that it was time to take their paper boats over to the river.

Almost everyone started making their way over to the water, but a few stayed behind to exchange passing words with me or Felix, even though I was mostly staying quiet in an attempt to keep the tears reined in.

Mary approached me first, making an awkward, but genuine offer to bake me a cake when I was finished with my counselling. Even suggested that a small party be arranged. I wasn’t opposed to the idea, but I just thanked her and told her I would think about it. I wasn’t in any shape to be making decisions, and she seemed to get that.

Clyde didn’t get too close. He just put himself in my line of vision and offered a supportive, almost proud smile. I just smiled back and nodded, and that was enough for him. He floated away. I’m glad he was there -- I’m sure my grand display of vulnerability earned me some counselling points.

Peter Pepper, Mario, Paperboy, and the Joust knights came one after the other, all saying more or less the same thing. They had some fond memories of you and me, they wanted to show their support, and they were sorry for my loss. I didn’t know how to respond to most of it beyond muttered thanks.

Then Tapper approached me. There was a whole lot of pride in his eyes, too, as he smiled at me. He reached out to do our patented air-handshake, but I fully clasped his hand and shook it gratefully. He seemed shocked for a second, but laughed a little in pleasant surprise. At that point, I began falling over myself a bit in some attempt to come up with an apology even a fraction as big as he deserved, but was quickly stopped short. He told me that me getting help was the best apology I could give him, and that when I’m done, I should come find him to continue our drawing business, since his walls are still pretty bare.

Again, Tapper is the best.

Once all the conversations ended, Felix and I proceeded to fold our letters into boats, and I helped Ralph with his, since his fingers are so huge and clumsy. He thanked me, but he also seemed sadder and quieter than I expected him to be. Maybe someday I’ll talk to him about it, but I didn’t today. I just grabbed the picture frame, your scarf and goggles, and we all walked over to the river in silence.

I stepped up to the edge of the water, brush in hand. One by one, every guest approached me and gave me their boat, which I touched a shade of fire to with my paint, and gently placed them into the stream. As the process went along, I wondered what all of the letters might have said. I expected most of them to be blank, but a good portion of them had handwriting poking out under the folds. The thought of it put a terribly painful gratitude in my chest.

I sent Ralph’s down the water, and then Felix’s. And last of all came mine.

I held it and stared at it for a minute. It contained everything I wish I could say to you. Everything you should have known before leaving this world. Somehow, it seemed hard to let it go, to do any harm to it. But with all the faith I could possibly muster, I blessed it with a prayer, and sent it floating away in flames, like all the others.

I sat, set my guitar in my lap, and with the heaviest heart I carried in my life, I played your song.

Felix sat beside me, and Ralph followed a moment after, but everyone else remained standing for the soft, mournful serenade. I may not have found the right words to sing, but I hummed along gently anyway, quiet tears falling from my cheeks. I watched the little lights sail away, watched the paper blacken and curl, and the little embers escape into the air. I don’t need to tell you what it reminded me of. But, as painful as it was to relive even a moment of your passing, I knew that this was, maybe, the only way my prayer would be answered.

‘Wherever the fire took him, let it take these, too.’

My song ended before long, and I could barely see through the tears in my eyes, but we all watched until the very last flame burnt out, and only flecks of charred paper remained, carried away by the current. I sat there for a while, sniffing, wiping my eyes, keeping as tight a grip on my composure as possible. Felix pat my back very lightly until I was ready to stand up.

Once I did… it was over.

Everyone said their goodbyes, gave their thanks, gave their sympathies, but ultimately, had to go. Tapper and Peter Pepper had to reopen their games, after all. As the visitors made their way across the bridge and to the cord train to leave, Felix checked in on me. He asked if I wanted to come have dinner with what was left of the group, and just spend the rest of the night in each other’s company.

I declined. I told him that I needed some time alone, and that I was very tired. I haven’t slept much, the past couple days, and I told him so.

He understood, of course, and like a good friend, told me that he’ll be there whenever I need him. Ralph, finally speaking up, seconded the notion, saying that his ‘door’ was always open.

Felix almost went for a hug, but stopped himself, still unsure of my boundaries. On another night, I might have obliged him. Instead, I just clapped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. Eyes glassy, with a loving smile, he did the same to me.

Then we went our separate ways. Felix, to Niceland. Ralph, to the dump. Me, to my den.

Where I fell to pieces and cried my heart out.

All the tears I had been holding back all night just… erupted out of me. I know I could have cried sooner. I know I would have been met with support. Felix and Ralph have been there for me in meaningful ways I won’t soon forget. But, today, I just… I need you. It’s physically painful how badly I need you. No one else will give me what I need tonight, and I can’t expect them to.

So, I guess that’s why I’m here, writing to you again. I can’t visit you any other way, now. I can’t believe how important this notebook has become. I started this ‘story’ in such a terrible, anxious, spiteful place. I was so angry at you for leaving me, and I wanted to tell you just how badly you’ve hurt me. But I’m not angry at you anymore. I almost wish that I was. Because now that it comes down to it, this notebook just feels like the only line to you I have left. There will be no more buff-fueled journeys into my memories, no more hallucinations taking the shape of you. And that’s all well and good, because buffs never filled the space you left behind like I hoped they would. Booze and buffs never kept me warm. Never listened. Never held me.

I don’t want them anymore.

All I want is you.

Once upon a time, this would be too sappy to say, but… Devs, I just want to fall into your arms. I want to vent out everything I kept inside today. Everything I’ve kept inside since starting counselling. Everything I’ve been fighting to keep contained so I can stay strong.

I am strong. Staying strong is going to be worth it. But sometimes, I need to be weak. I’m sure ‘weak’ isn’t what the sprites at counselling would want me to use, but… tonight, I want to be weak. I don’t want to need to be strong. For a while, I want you to be strong for me, and just… let me feel the hurt without endangering myself or anyone else, for once.

Let me play pretend for a little while longer, and tell you everything that’s on my mind.

Maybe some of it will make sense once it’s on paper.

You know… I’m just remembering a moment in counselling, when a sprite talked about how his worst fear came true, but knowing he had lived through it was freeing. I think I mentioned it to Felix last week, but as time goes on, I just… I’m realizing how true it is.

So many horrible things have happened. So much has changed. Sometimes, I still have trouble recognizing my life, and the anxiety surrounding that is suffocating. But every time I come out the other side and calm down, I find that reality is as steady as ever. Slowly, I’m getting used to the new normal. Even the painful parts. I feel… safe. Which, given everything I’ve written here, is kind of amazing.

And, with that safety, I’m given a bit of room to actually look at the good changes that are underway.

One of the biggest sources of pain in my life, and indeed, one of the biggest fuels for my addictive habits, has been the idea that I’m trapped. Trapped in my role by the Devs. Trapped in the grief of losing you. Trapped in my addictions themselves, even. All I’ve ever wanted was a way to escape. Yet, somehow, being locked up in cabinet arrest, being forced to attend stupid, boring counselling… I don’t feel so confined anymore. The arcade feels like it’s getting bigger.

I’m still too big for the life I was made for. That much hasn’t changed. But I’m beginning to think that I don’t need to cut off pieces of myself to fit into it. I think I can just… make my life bigger. I’m not entirely sure how, but I have to believe it’s possible. I mean, I did just preach the idea at your funeral. I have to find more. I have to make more. You managed to show me that. Somehow, through all the loss, suffering, and mistakes, you’ve left me with the knowledge of how important it is to look for more than you’re given.

It’s hard to feel grateful for that.

Truthfully, letting anything good come of this whole nightmare has been incredibly difficult. It still is. There’s some horrible guilt to it. Why do I get to be the one to survive? Why am I the one with a chance to turn my life around? Why couldn’t I have learned all this without having to lose you first?

But, you know… falling apart didn’t bring you back. It was no honor to your memory. It just caused needless pain, almost to the point of total disaster.

I learn from all this because I have to. I joined counselling because I had to make a change. I have to believe you’d be happy for me. Especially because… I can feel big changes happening, deep down.

I feel like I’m on my way to finding what ‘good’ feels like again.

I once told Felix that the search for ‘good’ had never felt so daunting before. I had so many fears holding me back. I was afraid to feel much of anything at all. Afraid to put down roots of any kind. Afraid to have anything real out of belief that I would break it. Afraid to be loved because I didn’t know how to accept it.

Accepting love is still hard, but I’m starting to see that it’s not a decision you can make for anyone else.

Even things about yourself you’ve deemed completely unforgivable will, somehow, still be forgiven. It’s a tough thing to wrap your head around, but hating yourself will not make others hate you, too. I mean… I still can’t manage to hate you, even after all the pain you put me through. Devs know I’ve caused a lot of pain to sprites who care about me, even before all this happened.

But, somehow… I’m not alone. I was never doomed to be alone. It’s taken me five years to realize that.

Along with it, I’ve realized that your mind can really become a world you’ve created around yourself. It feels like absolute truth and reality. But when you manage to look outside of that world, you realize how small your mind really is. The real world is a whole lot bigger than how you perceive it. Everyone has their own perception, too, probably very different from yours.

Everyone’s got their own colors. I have to remember that I can choose mine.

I choose to heal. I’m already on my way.

Even the funeral, scary as it was, felt like a big step.

I was afraid of how I would feel after. I was scared of the finality of it. I once believed all this to be a prank or a dream, and while I wanted to believe I'd abandoned those delusions… I think, even today, some small part of me still wanted to believe that you would spring out of hiding and relieve me of this cruel joke. Or that I could still wake up next to you and forget this whole nightmare by the end of breakfast. I was afraid that the funeral would feel like giving up hope, and in the process, I'd lose you even more than I already have.

It didn't feel like that, exactly. At least, not yet. For now, I feel… relieved. But exhausted. Like a huge weight has been lifted off my back, and after carrying it for so long, all I want to do is collapse into bed and rest. I am in bed as I write this, and I'm admittedly having trouble keeping my eyes open.

But I can’t seem to stop writing.

I know I should. I know I’m just pretending. I know I should get some sleep, because there is still so much more work ahead of me. Work that’s far more real and important than writing letters to a ghost. I’ve had an ache in my wrist for about a week, I keep having to shake this pen to get any ink out of it, and there are only a couple pages left in this notebook.

I’m just… afraid to stop. I’m afraid that it will mean this bedtime story is over. I’m afraid it will mean that it’s time to move on, and I’m not ready.

I’m not ready.

I’m glad I was able to give you some manner of send-off. I’m glad I was able to defend your memory. I feel relief from dealing with the anger I had been carrying on your behalf, and from the knowledge that I don’t have to mourn you alone anymore. I do not regret the funeral, not in the slightest. But that doesn’t mean it didn’t terrify me. You see, as the service went on, I noticed a pattern that just kept stabbing pins into my heart. Felix, Ralph, and Tapper’s letters all had a certain word in common, one that I neither wrote nor spoke.

‘Goodbye.’

As I wrote your letter, as I attempted to write lyrics for your song, as I improvised that speech about you, that word never crossed my mind. I did not arrange a funeral for the purpose of letting you go. I’m starting to see that I arranged it for the purpose of holding you tighter.

Through the whole service, I just couldn’t stop thinking about that moment in Felix’s apartment, when I was helping him clean up the ashes after my… explosive incident. When I was scrubbing the black off of his wall, and it struck me how time was moving forward without you. That feeling managed to be so healing and so devastating all at once. I accepted that I could never go back to our days together, but I refused to accept that I had to leave you behind entirely.

I can’t say goodbye. I knew you for four years, and I barely feel like I said hello. It feels like our story didn’t even end, it just trailed off into nothing. We began a new chapter the last night we were together, and then we just… stopped.

I just want to go back to that night. That moment when I realized how I really felt about you, and the few precious hours I was able to spend with you after. If I could do it all over again, I would have stayed up all night telling you everything I was too cowardly to say at the time. And the morning would never come to steal you away from me.

That must be part of why it’s so hard to move on. You were stolen. We promised to stay together forever. We had a future. For me, that’s everything. I came into this world already lost, with barely a role, barely any context. I could only ever see the day to day. The future was just this dark fog I ran into blindly. But then you came along. And you told me that no matter my future, you would be in it. You didn’t blow the fog away. You weren’t my destination. But you were a light. You were my star.

Then the sun came up, and took you away.

It’s so hard to accept that I can’t win you back. I can’t accept that my promise to you is out of my hands. I have to find a way to move on, and I will. But I can’t let you go. I won’t.

Listen, T… I said I was afraid the funeral would feel like giving up hope. It didn’t. I’m scared, but I’m more hopeful now than I’ve been since you left. I may have lost your light, but I have a clear direction to move in. I’m going to finish counselling and stay sober. I’m going to be free to roam the arcade again. I’m going to repair the relationships I nearly broke. I’m going to regain full color in my brush and take to the skies again very soon. It’s going to be hard. I know that. But I also know that I’ll be okay. I hope Felix is right, and you’re proud of me. I’m getting there myself.

But I swear… I can, and will, do it all without letting you go.

Forever. That’s what we promised. You being out of reach makes it harder, but I’ll find a way.

And… this is my most wishful thinking of all, but… I hope you’re keeping your promise, too.

Maybe it’s just the lack of sleep, but… I swear I can feel your eyes on me. I swear you’re curled up behind me, right now. My bed is never this warm when I’m alone. I know the illusion will be broken if I roll over, so for now…

If you really are reading over my shoulder… if the act of writing this feels like holding your hand for a reason… if I’m not just a lonely, heartbroken fool with an overactive imagination…

Keep your promise. Don’t let me go.

Rest here with me.

If there’s anything at all you can do for me, have it be this. Just stay by my side when I lie down at night. I’m so tired, Turbo. I am. I’ve dodged death more than once since you left. I’ve fought so hard to keep my head above water. I haven’t had a minute to just lay down my burdens and feel safe. But feeling you here, even in the small way I do now… I feel like I can breathe. I feel like our last night together never ended.

And it never will, because in Fix-it Felix Jr., the sun never rises. I’ve had many complicated emotions regarding the stars that glitter in the endless sky of my game, but tonight, I’m giving them a meaning better than any they’ve had before.

As long as I can see the stars, I’ll know you haven’t left me.

There’s never going to be a goodbye between us, Turbo. I promise you that. I’ll just say ‘goodnight.’ And I’ll say it again tomorrow.

And a thousand times more.

Forever isn’t over yet.

#fanfiction #fanfic #wreck it ralph #make it mavis #fix it felix #turbo #tapper #original character #homesick #epilogue coming tomorrow!!

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straynstay · 5 years ago

Text

Double Knot theory

this might be completely wrong, sorry lol it took me the whole day to come up with this, my head hurts lol

Alrighty peeps, here I am again with another attempt in trying to understand what’s behind the minds of SKZ when it comes to concepts, so I’m gonna analyze Double Knot on my yeezys after watching several times all their MVs (yes, I’m crazy lol). I’m not gonna be able to put pics of everything here cause tumblr sucks sometimes, but you can check the MVs to see what I’m talking about in case you don’t remember or didn’t notice. BARE WITH ME CAUSE THIS IS GONNA BE A LONG RIDE!

Starting with District 9 (where it all began), we have Mr. Bang Chan (the one in charge of their duties, therefore the leader) that sees a red flower and realizes that something is not right because if everything is monochromatic, how can there be a red flower? A glitch? An abnormality in their reality?

I think that the flower is a Poisenttia, but I don’t understand much of flowers, so I might be wrong. But if it’s really a Poisenttia, it could mean that the flower is pointing them to “salvation” since, according to Google, this flower is used during Christmas to symbolize the star of Bethlehem which led the Wise Men to where Jesus was born. So maybe the flower is showing that there’s a way out of this controlled reality they’re in? Maybe... (or maybe the flower will lead them to the big boss).

Moving on, Chan runs away to find that one of the drones that was watching them has crashed with a glass (?), making him place his hand on the panel that is projecting their world, and it wobbles (idk), meaning that they’re in a fake reality (everything is not what it seems!!)

Chan then hands out red papers with an encrypted message (I tried really hard reading what was on it, but it looks like and alien language or sth) to all SKZ members and they all get inside the bus (I’ve always wondered who’s driving the bus…) to break free from that reality and they enter another reality, a post-apocalyptic one, kinda lol, which is District 9 and they think they rule it cause they raised their flags there (but they’re not the ones in control, sorry boys)

And at the end we see the Stray Kids logo with black letters and the K in red. My mind went crazy and thought: S T R A Y K I D S = 9 letters, but one is different. > 9 boys, but one is different. Who? I think is Hyunjin because he’s the only one that looks at Chan after receiving the paper to escape and because he’s the one that the camera shows right after we see their logo on the floor lol So what I take from this is that Stray Kids now has become a glitch in their perfect system, but Hyunjin is not completely okay with it.

Moving on, in Mirror (not Miroh) we have Hyunjin alone in a room with 9 chairs, which I think that while the others left, he stayed behind. He’s writing on a piece of paper: who am I? where am I? I am not me (and the pencil dramatically breaks). They repeat several times “I don’t even know who I am, I just came along as they told me to” so I’m assuming Hyunjin is the one who’s still lost while SKZ is trying to break free, and maybe he’s having a hard time trusting Chan cause in the end Chan and Hyunjin are facing each other (don’t fight boys lol).

And I say that Hyunjin is the different one by watching subtle things in other MVs (like Voices, MIA, My Pace...) in which the scenario changes suddenly when his part comes, or when it doesn’t glitch as much as the others, etc., which makes me believe my theory that he’s the odd one, the one that actually doesn’t want to be part of the group.

May I add that in My Pace they’re all stepping on red pamphlets on the floor that says “Just stay in my lane”… and they’re not staying in their lane anymore? (you can’t control SKZ trying to take over the system).

Now we move on to I Am You MV which is the sequel to My Pace, right? So we see them after glitching a lot in My Pace and they’re still being watched, but now Jisung breaks a surveillance camera lol and they move to another post-apocalyptic scenario cause, let’s be honest, who would live on that rooftop with drawings of a couch and a plant if it wasn’t for the end of the world? But what called my attention was the fact that we see Jeongin’s reflection on a puddle and we see two moons (hi Side Effects and Double Knot), they’re on the move on a truck instead of a bus, and we have an interesting scene with Chan and Jeongin’s reflection becoming one (so they’re indeed in this together), but what about Hyunjin? Well, we see him assembling something like a bat-signal that has SKZ logo on it as if he’s now calling for them…but by the end of the MV their logo still has the K as the odd one out.

So what’s all this about? In my weird mind, Chan discovered that they were living a lie, being controlled and told what to do and decided to break free from all of it, and while the others seem to agree, Hyunjin isn’t fully convinced about it. Maybe he’s scared? He doesn’t know who he actually is, since they all seemed to be in a mind controlling environment being watched 24/7, so he’s lost. The albums go like this in the storyline I’ve created in my mind: I Am Not = I’m not who I think I was, my life has been a lie; I Am Who = who am I? everything is a mess while I’m searching for my own self at my own pace; I Am You = I’m a glitch just like you.

NOW WE MOVE ON TO THE CLÉ SERIES!! (I swear to God SKZ is trying to give me a headache cause I’ve never used my brain this much before in my life lol)

In Miroh (not Mirror lol) we all know now that they are trying to overtake the system. They were able to enter the surveillance room and find those who they thought were controlling them. There’s some signs I was able to check in Miroh during the parade (that I haven’t noticed before) that are quite interesting. The first one says “There is no Tarzan in City Jungle”. Tarzan is considered a wild man, someone who’s not behaving the way society demands since he was raised in the jungle among animals. The other signs say “Something happened, nothing changed” and “The world is the same”, so I’m assuming that society is celebrating the fact that the faulty/glitched ones (the “Tarzans” aka SKZ) are long gone now – since District 9 –, and everything is back to normal with everyone behaving like they should and the system functioning perfectly, but they don’t realize that SKZ figured their way into the City Jungle (aka the central part of the system) and are gonna make a mess in it lol

I have already analyzed Side Effects (you can check it here), but I’m gonna go even crazier now and assume that Side Effects is also them being chased by the “boss” after what they’ve done in Miroh, and they have to follow unlocked roads in order to lay low and not be captured. Maybe that’s why Hyunjin is the nervous one in the MV, fighting Seungmin (cause he’s about to register with a camera where they are and what they’re doing) and Felix (who wants to leave the cart, their ‘safe’ zone), because he didn’t want to be there in the first place. His lines in the song shows he’s afraid and doubting himself.

But at the end of Side Effects, Hyunjin is now converted to SKZ’s cause, if that makes sense. After everything they’ve gone through, everything that happened in Miroh and the other MVs, he’s finally part of the group. So Chan, as the leader, reaches out to him, and Hyunjin accepts, leaving a key behind – which I think might be what he was holding onto since District 9 (cause they all had separate rooms in that ‘prison’ and that key looks like a regular room key and not one of the fancy keys that show up on Double Knot). Now they’re gonna walk their path as a unit, not individuals.

Alright, that being said, I’m gonna move on to Double Knot. In Double Knot we see them walking on a road that looks almost exactly like the one they’ve been staring at in Victory Song in a city with two moons, so that means that after running a lot in Side Effects, they’ve reached their destination = the city. 9 fancy keys appear on top of some maps, so I’m assuming everything is complete now. We see an Astronaut billboard and we also have “take off” being showed in a bracelet, a ring, a necklace, and on the road. I’ll comment on those two later.

Right, so here comes the fun parts of this analysis. When Jisung (?) ties his laces, the ground becomes glitched as if something (aka SKZ) is interfering in the system (we can see signal written, so it means ‘no signal’ or ‘error-signal’).

And now EVERYTHING STARTS TO MAKE SENSE! Because SKZ now knows that since everyone is in this together after Hyunjin decided to join them in Side Effects, they can play with the glitches! Let me try to explain it better: after watching this MV and the others, I now see their concept kinda like Wreck It Ralph, if you know what I mean lol They’re not where they were supposed to be and they’re glitching inside a world that’s being projected to them, a fake world in which someone is in charge, but they broke free from that control, so now that they’re complete as a unit, they can be like Vanellope and play around with the faulty system that can’t handle them, meaning that they’re free and can go anywhere, change from one to another, lag the system and confuse the hell out of whoever is still trying to stop them.

This MV has more glitches and interferences than any other one, so it probably means they’re closer to the end than before. I don’t know if they’re trying to reach the main core or anything like this, but I do believe that this is not the end for them, I still think that there’s a final boss even after Miroh... but this is just me guessing lol

Minho, Jeongin and Seungmin see that they’re still being watched by a drone (kinda like District 9) and they’re recognized by the system (can you see their names on the side of the screen right below Stray Kids?), maybe the system is trying to get rid of the glitches?

Hyunjin is running alone on the street until he reaches a crossroad (now he doesn’t have to choose which road to take, he can go anywhere) and then after running some more he finds a key with the SKZ logo on the floor. This key is the same key that Chan uses to unlock the Yellow Wood on the elevator, btw, and the same key that we see him trying to open the white door with; the same door that Chan peeks through the key hole and sees himself and the SKZ on the sky, somewhat in a heroic kinda pose, right?

“ERROR-SIGNAL” shows up at the end when they’re all together, and we see that the Stray Kids logo is now all white (they’re all the same now). At the end, there’s blue while we see the interferences, which I think is because they’re gonna go up to the sky in Levanter.

THEY’RE GONNA TAKE OFF TO THE MOON!!! or not lol mark my words: Stray Kids everywhere all around the UNIVERSE! the world is too small for them now! The MV also shows “the owners of Clé”, meaning that they’ve learned how to make the system work for them now. GO, STRAY KIDS!

Something weird that I noticed while watching the MVs is that they’re always on rooftops (in Victory Song, Voices, I Am You, Miroh, etc), as if they’re trying to reach higher than that, but can’t or don’t know how to yet. They need an Astronaut to help them Take Off (see what I did here?), and I believe that the answer is behind the white door that Chan is about to open. Now I have no idea who or what might the astronaut, or what’s behind that door, but I hope we get more answers in Levanter.

Wow, I think I wrote a lot and there’s still much more that we can talk about this MV and SKZ’s concept. Maybe I’m dead wrong, but this is how I interpreted the story, so feel free to discuss your ideas with me if you want to~

STRAY KIDS MAKE ME PROUD AND THAT’S ALL THAT MATTERS ♥️

#stray kids #stray kids theory #stray kids comeback #double knot #skz #stray kids reactions #bang chan #woojin #lee know #changbin #hyunjin #jisung #felix #seungmin #jeongin

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sparkie96 · 5 years ago

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Chreon #6 👀💖

"Well, aren't you a crotchety old man?" The male Beta Nurse covered in beef stew asked as he wheeled Chris's food cart out, Chris's doctor standing before him with her clipboard.

Dr. Sophie Kennedy gave another sigh as she scribbled down some notes, shaking her head at her patient's behavior. That was the third Nurse this month that Mr. Redfield had scared off or sent packing. It also seemed like the Alpha wasn't making very much progress with his recovery either, still not knowing what had happened overseas...or in the last couple of years.

Though it was hard to determine how far back he could remember considering Chris hadn't been very talkative or friendly, but that was due to his condition and his stubborn personality...and the fact that the Alpha couldn’t remember anything and didn’t want to make the effort either.

She had been with the BSAA for a couple of years now and she had never dealt with a patient as difficult as Chris. He usually was never this bad. He was usually very friendly and easygoing, one of her favorite patients since the start. It probably helped that the man and his sister had been friends with her husband for years.

Christ, she wished Lucas was here now, but the man was busy down in DC dealing with what...well, that was “Classified” but he promised to be home soon.

Sophie looked through the list of nurses that had been assigned to the Alpha’s care since the beginning of his stay. Two Alphas and a Beta. She had changed out the Alphas because she had the impression that they triggered competitive behavior in him and made him more hostile...but it seemed that changing to a Beta nurse made him hostile as well...which meant that she was going to have to pull in an Omega...but most of them worked in the Children’s Ward. She would need to pull one that she could closely monitor...maybe one that was also familiar as well.

She really didn’t want to...but she had just the Omega in mind for the job.

_______________________________________________________

“Jingle Bells! Jingle Bells! Jingle all the way...” Leon sang along with the little boy he was treating, letting the little guy squeeze his hand as the doctor drew blood for his blood tests, “...in a one horse open sleigh...hey! Look at that! All done!”

Andy averted his eyes until the needle was out of his arm, the limb was still discolored and a bit mutated, but Andy was well into his treatments of the infection and was considered not contagious or hazardous anymore. Leon wiping his arm with an alcohol swab before showing him a variety of bandaids, “Now, I got a bunch of band-aids; Star Wars, Super Mario, Avengers, or Disney Christmas.”

Andy sniffled, wiping his nose with the sleeve of his non-mutated arm, breaking into a fit of giggles as Leon used funny voices and had the character band-aids ask the little boy to not be sad, promising that they could have ice cream now that he was all done. Andy picked a Minnie and Mickey band-aid, Leon helping to put it on his boo-boo.

“There, all better!” The Omega said, putting the rest away, but giving Andy a Donald and Daisy Duck band-aid, “And another for good luck...now, what kind of ice cream would you like with your lunch today, bud?”

Andy reached up and accepted Leon’s hand as the Nurse walked him back to his room, Leon swinging their arms as Andy skipped. The Omega smiled as he listened, Andy listing off his favorite ice cream flavors and toppings. A couple of times, Andy or Leon would stop to greet fellow patients or nurses, Leon high-fiving the other children. Once they were back, Leon helped him into his bed, gently booping him on the nose, informing Andy that it was coming right up.

“Get plenty of rest in the meantime, okay?” Leon asked, tucking Andy in.

“Okie dokie, Mr. Leon.” Andy said, giving a yawn as he nestled into bed, “Can I watch Wreck-It Ralph?”

“Sure!” Leon replied, turning to the little television above the boy’s bed, looking through the on-demand options before finding the movie he was looking for, turning it on, “If you want to change the movie, just use these buttons or ask for help, okay?”

Andy nodded before turning his attention toward the television. Leon smiled and gently ruffled his hair, exiting the room and gently closing the door behind himself.

He loved his job and he loved working with kids. He had been fresh out of Medical School, not his first choice, but his Dad didn’t want him to join the Police Academy. He had just graduated and barely a month out of school when his Mom brought him into the fold. When he first started here, everything had been a bit overwhelming and admittedly kind of scary. He had expected medical emergencies and dealing with blood and stuff. What he hadn’t anticipated was having to work with children infected with biological viruses and children affected by biological warfare.

Luckily, he had gotten into the swing of things fairly quickly, and learned to love his job. The kids needed people who wouldn’t look at them like they were monsters or were scary. Some kids who had been injured and separated from their parents needed guardians that would love and care for them during their stay. Someone to let them know that things would be okay in the end.. They all needed people who kind of had an understanding of them and treated them like kids.

So, that’s what Leon did, he treated them like they were his own, giving them the love and care they needed, even just being a friend when they needed him.

“There you are!” He heard a voice call to him, his mother approaching him, “I need you to come with me.”

Leon canted his head, brows furrowed in confusion, “Is something wrong?”

“Yes...and no.” Sophie admitted as she led him to a different wing, one that he usually never worked in, “I have a patient who is a bit older than ones you’re used to working with. He’s a tad difficult...but I think he needs just the right kind of nurse to help him out.”

Leon raised a brow, “What do you mean? What happened? And why are we going to the Soldiers Area?”

"You're going to have a new patient during your runs." Was her curt reply.

Sophie explained everything on the way to Chris’s room, explaining that Captain Redfield had a mild case of Post Traumatic Amnesia that was causing him some issues. The Alpha had already gone through three nurses in the past month, and he wasn’t showing much signs of progress either with his usual treatments…so she was going to try a different route for this case.

"But...what about the kids I care for at night?" Leon questioned.

"I already have people on it. They'll take over your patients so you can care for this one."

She handed Leon Chris’s file, before giving the door three sharp knocks and stepping aside to let Leon do his usual greeting.

Leon gave a deep breath, never having worked with any of the soldiers before. So dealing with their Captain sounded a bit intimidating to him. He gave his friendliest smile before slowly opening the door. What greeted him was a very clearly annoyed Alpha, the man wearing a deep scowl as he watched the Omega. The younger man couldn't help but blush, breath momentarily caught in his throat as he studied the older man briefly.

Oh, lovely, he was quite attractive and intimidating. This definitely wasn't going to be a walk in the park.

"Good evening, Mr. Redfield!" Leon greeted in a chipper tone, "My name is Leon Kennedy, or Nurse Kennedy. How are you feeling today?"

The Alpha raised a brow at him, grumbling a reply as he turned away from him. Chris crossed his arms and looked toward the window, the curtains still closed.

"Oh, did you prefer to have the curtains drawn?" Leon asked, setting the folder down before going to the window, "It's not a "bright and sunny" kind of day, but I find the rain to be quite beautiful."

Leon drew back the curtains, giving a momentary look of disapproval due to how dark it already was outside and wondering if someone just recently closed these. He apologized to Chris, saying that it was night time right now, so there wasn't much to see, but plenty to hear. When he didn't receive a reply, Leon cleared his throat, muttering to himself before going to close the curtains.

"Leave them." A stern voice commanded, Chris's eyes turned to Leon, now watching the Omega again.

"Oh...okay!" Leon replied, complying with the simple command, leaving the curtains be as he turned his full attention to his new patient, "So...I don't know if you've been informed yet, but I'm your new nurse for the duration of your stay here."

Chris gave a sound that resembled that of a scoff, shaking his head at Leon. The nurse took a deep breath through his nose, maintaining his smile and friendly demeanor. He was not sure if he should acknowledge the sound or act as though he hadn't heard it. This man was definitely not like any of Leon's past patients, not even the most difficult of kids made Leon feel unsure of his abilities...or confidence.

"Well...oh! Have you eaten lunch yet?" Leon asked enthusiastically.

Chris looked the Omega up and down again before shaking his head, a stern look still on his features. He still wasn’t quite sure what to make of the Omega, but decided that he preferred the younger man to the previous nurses he had had before. He seemed overly kind, but Chris guessed that that was due to the Omega having worked in the Children’s Ward previously. So, Chris could see that it wasn’t just an act...at least he was sure it wasn’t an act. He couldn’t tell how good he was at judging someone’s character. He had been pretty sure previously...not that he could remember...but he wasn’t completely sure of his own mind right now. Or his judgement skills.

He would just have to wait and see what this “Nurse Kennedy” was all about.

“So, hungry for anything in particular?” Leon asked, grabbing the room menu, “I know my Mo-Dr. Kennedy said your memory isn’t the best right now, but maybe if you look over our delicious and nutritious options...it might help you remember something?”

“You can drop the baby voice.” Chris deadpanned, “I’m not a child.”

Leon gave a look of momentary surprise, blinking a couple of times before giving a small “oh”, before apologizing to the Alpha. Chris narrowed his eyes but gave a sigh, telling him that he didn’t need to apologize. He just needed him to...not treat him like everyone else did.

Leon gave a nod in understanding, “Okay, I’m sorry for that...I’m so used to working with kids and you’re my first real adult patient. I know that’s no excuse…”

Chris waved it off, “It’s fine...you’re just doing your job, I guess…”

Leon gave a small smile and a nod, handing Chris the food menu. Leon gave some suggestions that he himself thought quite delicious, Chris not helping himself and listening as the Omega happily went on to describe his favorite dishes. Chris thought it necessary to make mental notes of them...just in case.

Leon had spent part of Lunch with him and went through his mental exercises without a hitch. Chris had actually found him quite helpful and encouraging, unlike the nurses Chris had had before.

By the end of the night, Chris really didn't want Leon to go home.

___________

It wasn't long until Chris found himself looking forward to the young Nurse's visits, often waiting patiently for Leon to get done his morning runs in the Kids' Ward before coming to spend his nights with him. He helped quite a lot and was very patient during physical therapy. Chris hadn't had any issues with Leon, the Omega growing on Chris quite a lot…

...More than he thought. He felt something other than admiration. He hadn't felt like this before...not that he could remember a time where he had. Had he liked men? Was he even into them? He didn't know nor could he remember. Even if he hadn't been into them previously...he would make an exception in Leon's case. Chris was an Alpha who definitely could have a thing for Omegas in general.

Especially adorable brunettes with cute smiles who brightened up his days.

He hadn’t said much to Leon, but the Omega didn’t mind, doing most of the talking anyway. And Chris didn’t mind Leon doing the talking, starting to genuinely enjoy the sound of his voice. Especially since Leon wasn’t talking to him like one of his younger patients or like he was dumb or confused. He spoke to him like he was like anyone else. Bottom line, Leon was the only nurse who could handle Chris, and the only nurse Chris hadn’t sent packing.

In his confusing blur of faces, Leon was the one constant.

A smile crossed his lips as he heard the familiar pattern of knocks, not needing to guess who was on the other side.

“Good Evening, Mr. Redfield!” Leon exclaimed in a chipper tone, this time pushing in a cart with two mugs, a teapot and a bag full of something, “I brought you a surprise! It’s snowing outside and the cafeteria had hot cocoa today and I thought you could use some warming up!”

Chris raised a brow, watching curiously as Leon rolled the cart next to the bed. The little bag was a bag full of heart-shaped marshmallows, Leon informing him that he had heard from Captain Valentine that Chris was a fan of hot cocoa. And because Chris was Leon’s favorite patient, Leon brought a treat from his own personal stash of sweets.

“That and the little guys and gals ate all the other marshmallows.” Leon admitted with a chuckle, pouring the packet of cocoa into the mugs before pouring the hot water from the kettle.

Chris sat up on his own, despite his arm being in a cast, looking at the contents of the cart curiously. He couldn't help but quirk a brow at the bag of pink, heart shaped marshmallows sitting there, the packaging very, dare he say, cute. Much like the nurse who had brought them.

Leon blushed as Chris chuckled, “They’re very cute...just like you.”

Leon gave a bashful smile and a nod, “Uh, thanks...one of the guards here I’ve become good friends with. He brought them back for me from Tokyo.”

Chris gave a curious look as he accepted the offered cup of cocoa, “Oh...so are you seeing them? Like, romantically?”

The younger dropped a couple of hearts into Chris’s cup before stirring the cocoa, giving a deep blush as he turned back to his own cup, “Oh...uh, no. He’s just a friend…”

An internal sigh of relief left Chris as he listened to the younger man explain that Finn had been a friend of his from college, him and Piers. He used to play video games with Finn...before Finn passed away in Edonia. He stopped himself, Chris furrowing his brows and repeating the name. Leon apologized, saying that he probably shouldn’t have mentioned him.

“Why not?” Chris had asked, feeling a slight ache in the base of his skull.

Was it just him or were the fluorescent lights flickering ever so slightly?

Leon bit his lip, wondering what he should say, “...Do you remember a place called Edonia?” he asked, sitting down on the side of Chris’s bed with his own cup of cocoa, “It’s okay if you don’t. And if you start to feel distressed, we don't have to talk about it anymore.”

The Alpha gave a slight nod, “Kind of...everyone who visits me keeps asking me about it...but Dr. Kennedy tells them to stop before I can understand why.”

Leon nodded, “Right, because she doesn’t want you to have an episode or hurt yourself in the process. You’re suffering from a form of amnesia that occurs sometimes through an extreme injury or trauma.”

Chris nodded in confirmation, “Which is why I can’t remember anything. That I know...but your friend, Finn...he was in Edonia with me? He died because of me?”

Leon shook his head, “No...he died because of a terrorist attack. Not because of you, you led his team but...I don’t know the details, but I think Piers said it was an ambush.”

“But I could have saved him…” Chris assumed.

“I don’t know…” Leon shrugged, “...but I’m sure you did all you could for him.”

Chris was about to respond until the lights seemingly flickered some more, causing him slight alarm. He could only vaguely hear Leon as his world became muffled and blurry. He could see a figure…a person...reaching out toward him. Chris felt extremely overwhelmed, his heart pounding in his ears and his fingers numb, his limbs tingling. Air...he needed air…

“Mr. Redfield? Mr. Redfield!” Leon called with concern, taking the hot cocoa before the man accidentally spilled it and burned himself in the process, putting his own down, “Chris! Chris-HEY!”

Chris could see a woman, she was holding a weapon at them and laughing. He needed to stop her.

The Omega was tipped backward, shoved hard against the bed with the panicked and slightly angry looking Alpha holding him down onto the bed, tightly gripping his biceps. Even the one in the cast still somehow maintained a death grip on him. Leon didn’t fight back, knowing that would not only be irresponsible, but probably a bad move in case Chris awoke from his panicked state.

Or didn’t and hit him. Not that he wasn’t used to getting hit, but this wasn’t a small confused baby or toddler. This was a grown man with the strength of a bull who was trained in the most deadly of combat.

“Chris! Hey...you’re not in Edonia…” Leon tried, speaking calmly and slowly as wide brown orbs held him down with an admittedly intimidating gaze, “We’re at the BSAA Headquarters...can you hear me?”

Chris held him down, the flashing coming to a halt as the room became normal again. The woman melted away, in her place was Leon, looking up at him with confused blue orbs. Chris quickly released him, breathless and utterly confused as he got off of the younger, helping the nurse to his feet. He apologized profusely, but Leon merely waved him off.

“It’s alright, you were having an episode...it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have mentioned anything about...that stuff.” Leon apologized, “You’re distressed, so we’re dropping it. You didn’t hurt me.”

Chris gave him another once over, brushing the nurse off, “Are you sure?” he asked softly, “I’m sorry…”

Leon gently laid a hand on Chris’s shoulder, giving a nod and a smile, “Mr. Redfield, it’s alright...this isn’t my first rodeo.”

Chris felt guilty but Leon kept insisting that everything was alright, that he had dealt with patients all the time. Some were a bit more difficult than others, considering that there were patients here that were mutated. Granted, his patients were a lot smaller and younger than Chris...but some of them could be pretty brutal and aggressive. Especially if they were suffering with mutations due to the viruses they had been exposed to.

Chris raised a brow, “Really?” he asked as Leon helped him back into bed, “There are little kids dealing with this?”

Leon nodded, tucking him in before adjusting his pillows, “Yup, they aren’t usually in the middle of it all, not like you guys. Sometimes, the virus is delayed and sometimes doesn’t activate until they are in the transport vehicle. Or until they get here.”

The Omega gave a sigh of relief, noting that there wasn’t a mess. Then again, Chris hadn’t knocked his teeth in or broken his nose. He had read that Chris had “often left a mess” after most of his encounters with the nurses. And his mom informed him that she was thoroughly impressed that Leon had managed to “tame” the “Wild Alpha” that was Chris...but Leon had to admit that “taming” the man wasn’t his intention. He wanted to help him like he helped his other patients.

He picked up the cocoa, handing Chris’s cup back to him. He sat back down with him, giving another reassuring smile before holding his cup out. Chris looked down at that, holding his cup out and meeting Leon’s, clinking their mugs together. They sipped at the mugs of hot cocoa, not saying much to each other as they enjoyed their chocolatey beverages.

Chris made a curious sound as he slurped up the marshmallow, “Tastes like...strawberries.”

Leon nodded enthusiastically, licking his lips, “Yup...wait, you’re not allergic, are you?”

The Alpha shook his head, eagerly slurping up the other marshmallow, “Not at all...I love strawberries...at least I think I do…”

Blue eyes widened and brightened with interest, “You do? Me too!” Leon exclaimed, “Well...you don’t know...but…”

The Alpha smiled, “I like sweet things...that I know for a fact.” He said with a wink. The Omega blushed, happily sipping his cocoa as he sat with Chris, occasionally looking up to meet his eyes. Chris smiled back, stealing looks at the Omega until it was time for Leon to go. Leon’s heart fluttered as he bid Chris goodnight, the Alpha giving a small wave, his own heart fluttering as he watched Leon leave. He was always looking forward to tomorrow.

(based on a prompt from @camellia-hale)

(Read more at Ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23322454)

#chreon #kennfield #late valentine's day #LeonxChris #ChrisxLeon #Leon S. Kennedy #Chris Redfield #age difference au #omegaverse #send me asks #requests

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mosylufanfic · 5 years ago

Text

On a Wednesday, in a Cafe

<sidles in> ahem so.

I meant to have this done for Valentine’s Day. I really, really did. But then I didn’t. I don’t know what to tell you. But hey, it’s still February, I haven’t finished eating my giant heart-shaped box of chocolates, and I ship these two dum-dums the whole year round so I’m going to slap it up here anyway.

Title from “Begin Again” by Taylor Swift

On a Wednesday, in a Cafe

"Hi, welcome to Jitters," the barista said when she walked up to the counter. "Decaf chai latte from the app, right?"

"Right. Thanks." Caitlin forced a pleasant smile onto her tired face and reached out for her drink.

But instead of handing it over, the girl said, "Look who's here!"

Caitlin blinked at her. It had been a long day and she really just wanted to sit quietly in a corner and unwind before going home and to bed.

But the barista waved a hand. "Look!" she said insistently.

Caitlin turned her head and saw a man sitting at her usual table. She started to be annoyed, but something throttled the emotion before it could fully form. She knew those shoulders. She knew the sheen of that dark hair, even if it was caught back in a ponytail at the nape of his neck. She knew that broad-palmed hand that lifted to tuck a stray lock behind his ear. She even knew that huge hockey bag down by his feet.

"That's your friend, right? You guys always used to be in here together."

"Right," Caitlin said faintly. She took her drink and walked over to the table. "Cisco?"

His head whipped around, and she knew that smile too, even if it was buried in a thick, dark beard. "Caitlin! Hey!"

He leapt up and hugged her. She hugged him back, the solid feel of his body against hers feeding some hunger inside her.

He let her go first, and she made herself release him. "I literally just texted you," he said.

She pulled her phone out and saw his message glowing on the screen. Just got into the CC, it said. Can I crash with you for the night?

She looked up. "Of course you can. You don't even need to ask."

He grinned. "Thought maybe I should check. Just in case you had a, uh, a guest already."

She felt her cheeks heat. "No guests," she said. "Not for awhile." Nobody but you, she almost said, and felt herself blush hotter.

He looked at her for a moment, and then said, "Well. Good."

She popped the lid off her drink and stirred it absently. "So," she said. "How long are you in town this time?"

He'd been gone for months, on the road checking out what had changed after Crisis. He would upload his findings to the Star Labs database and stop into Central City for a day or two when his path took him there. The last time, he'd stayed with Caitlin.

"I think," he said slowly, "that I'm back for good."

She looked up. "For good? Really?"

"Yeah, I've hit all the major cities with a meta presence. Think I got a handle on what's changed now. We'll probably still get the occasional shock here and there, but the project's done as far as I'm concerned. And - " He met her eyes. "It's time, you know? I took my break."

She put her hand over his. "You know there's a high chance you'll run into Kamilla. She still works with Iris."

"Yeah. I know."

"How are you doing?" she asked.

The night it had happened, he'd texted her. It's over. We broke up. I can't stay here. Can I crash on your couch?

She'd texted back of course immediately.

He'd come over with a bottle of vodka and no information other than that long distance had been too hard on their relationship. He'd asked to watch Star Wars ("original trilogy, obvs"), and had only cried a little, when Princess Leia told Han Solo she loved him and he'd said he knew.

He'd been gone by the time she'd woken up the next morning, her sofa bed folded up and the blankets and pillows stacked neatly on the cushions.

They usually texted when he was on the road, and when he video-called, it was to the cortex because he'd learned something everyone needed to know. So it had been hard to gauge how he was handling the breakup, and when she asked, he just texted back that he was handling it okay.

He did look okay. Not nearly as wrecked as he had been after Cynthia. Of course, it had been two months.

He met her eyes. "I'm doing okay," he said. "I won't lie, being out of Central City really helped."

"Your stuff is all in storage," she said. "Kamilla packed it all up for you."

"I know. She sent me the address of the storage place. And the bill, which is fair." He toyed with his phone. "I did a lot of thinking. A little drinking. And, uh, for future reference, 'I'm in town for a week and I'm newly single' is apparently, like, Tinder catnip."

It hit her like a thump in the chest, and she pretended to take a sip of her latte to cover her baffling reaction.

They'd talked about their sex lives before. Not in graphic detail or anything, but she'd always known when he was dating or had an FWB or having a dry spell, just like he had with her.

Of course he would have had a few hookups. She should have known he would. That was one of his breakup go-tos, along with drinking more than he should and watching the angstiest, most dramatic telenovelas so he would have an excuse to cry.

"Hey," he said, and she looked up. "I know what you're thinking."

She felt her cheeks heat. "What's that?"

"Yes, I was safe, and yes, they were nice."

That hadn't been even close to what she'd been thinking, but she went with it. "Well, good. That's all I ask."

His smile faded. "How's, uh, how's she doing?"

"I haven't seen her much," she said tactfully. "It would be awkward, you know."

"Right."

"But Iris says she's doing okay."

Iris had also added that if she never heard that one Lizzo song again, it would be too soon, but Caitlin didn't share that.

She bunched up her napkin and made herself drop it, smoothing it on the table. “Are you going to let her know you’re home?”

“I should,” he said, scratching at the edge of his beard. “Just as a heads up. Maybe we’ll get coffee or something, just for closure. But that’s her call.”

She was quiet a moment more, but he didn't seem to be up for talking about it. She thought closure and realized again that they really had broken up. Somehow it had been hard to believe it.

"So, how are things around here? You mentioned Frost and Sue were getting into it a little.”

“Oh, adjustment pains,” she assured him. “You know how Frost doesn't like new people in the group, and Sue is kind of like a cat, in that if someone doesn't like her, she makes it her mission in life to annoy them. It’s much better now. They've worked it out."

"Yeah? Really? What happened?"

"I don't have all the details, but judging by the hangover the next morning, tequila shots were involved."

"Just tequila shots?"

"Sue pleaded the Fifth and so far there's not a warrant out for Frost, so I thought it best to leave it there."

He laughed. "So otherwise, how is the famous Sue?"

She started filling him in on all the ways that Sue was tying Ralph in knots, and how much he was enjoying it, while acting like he wasn't. As usual with them, they found more and more things to talk about, until their drinks were stone-cold and they were the only people in the cafe.

She looked across the table at him as he was telling some story about his time in Gotham, and thought I missed you.

They'd had long stretches of separation before, like after Ronnie had died the second time or after Savitar. But this was the first time it hadn't been due to some trauma, and the first time they'd kept in touch. She'd started to live for the buzz of her phone, and more than once Barry had called her out for sneaking a look at her texts when they were trying to brainstorm about the enemy-of-the-week.

The night he'd broken up with Kamilla, she'd stared at the ceiling for close to an hour before she was able to make herself go to sleep, wondering why she had butterflies in her stomach, and why she kept thinking about him asleep in the next room, and why the door between them seemed so thin and the distance between the sofabed and her own bed seemed so short.

It would have been a bad idea, she knew that. Bad timing. But somehow she couldn't come up with any reasons not to do it besides that.

The barista started wiping down the tables near them, and she checked her phone. “Oh, they closed half an hour ago.”

“It’s fine!” the girl chirped in the tones of someone who’d been instructed by corporate not to ever kick someone out. “You stay as long as you like."

"No, we should go." Caitlin got up and tossed her cup into the trash. Cisco followed suit and hoisted his bag over his shoulder. She tried not to stare too openly at the flex of muscle in his arm as he did so.

The night was warm. He'd left in early February, hat crammed firmly on his head and mittens enveloping his hands as they said goodbye at the train station. She'd looked away from him kissing Kamilla and wrapped her arms around herself against the snowy morning, wishing as she always did that Frost could share some of her temperature imperviousness.

Now, they strolled down the street, just the two of them, in the balmy evening. The steam-heat of summer lurked on the horizon.

After nixing the idea of a taxi - "I've been traveling all day. Be good to stretch my legs. Unless you want one?" - Cisco was quiet. They'd turned down her street when he said, "So there's something I didn't tell you earlier about my Tinder dates."

"They weren't nice?"

"They were. But I made it sound like I had a bunch and actually I only had one."

She looked at the sidewalk, pretending she had to pick her way across perfectly flat and clear concrete. "You can have as many or as few Tinder dates as you want," she said. "It's really none of my business."

"They were nice," he persisted. "And I had fun. But I also felt kind of . . . empty afterwards. I'd gotten used to sleeping with someone that I loved, and just sex was like whipped cream without the hot chocolate. Still a good time," he added. "But not really satisfying, you know?"

She took that in, staring at the sidewalk. "Are - are you thinking of getting back together with Kamilla?"

He shook his head at once. "No. We were good together for awhile, but we had good reasons to break up."

"But you thought she was the one."

He was quiet for so long that she looked up, half-dreading his expression. But he just looked sad and pensive.

"You know, I think I wanted her to be the one," he said. "I wanted it so hard that I stuck with us way past our natural expiration date. And it wasn't good for either of us." He looked away, brushing his hair back. "But about a month into my trip, I started to realize that I missed - " He shot her a look. " - other people more than I missed her. And after that it was like things just started unraveling."

She felt her face heat and her heart thump, but he was talking again.

"So, no, I'm not getting back together with her, and I'm pretty sure she'd feel the same if I asked her."

"So you're going to start looking again?" she asked.

He was quiet for a moment. "Being on the road, you know, it gave me a lot of time to think. Time to look at my life from the outside. Figure out what was making me happy and what wasn't. I worked some things out."

"Good," she said. "I think you needed that." It was why she'd made the suggestion in the first place, no matter how much she'd missed him.

"And I got to see a lot of people who'd had different lives before Crisis."

Her mouth fell open. "Did you vibe?"

He shook his head. "Mostly my powers are still gone. But every so often something did happen where I'd look at someone, and I'd see their other lives, and I'd see where the path - " He waved his hands. "Where they sort of branched. Where one version made one choice and another version made a different one.”

"Wow," she said, because she couldn't think of any other response.

"Like, it was all chance which version won out, you know? Sometimes they were living their best life and sometimes their worst one and - god, this was a mindfuck - sometimes they were living one that was just as good. It wasn't the same, but it was just as good."

"That's pretty wild."

"And you know, a lot of times it was down to the stupidest little things like whether they braked for a yellow or not. But sometimes it was something big, like deciding to marry someone or move or take a job."

She frowned at him. He was rambling, and she couldn't completely follow his train of thought. "Well, yes."

"I know, I know, life's like that sometimes. We all know that. But seeing it like that really made me think, you know, about all the big and little choices I've ever made in my life and how just changing one of them could have changed everything and, you know?"

"Y . . . es," she said slowly. She wasn't sure she did, but it seemed important to him.

"And then I started thinking how I've still got time. We've all got time, right? We've got all the time in the world until we're dead."

"That's a little morbid."

"I know! I know. But, like, we have all this time, right? But we just spend it doing all the things we always do, in this rut, complaining about our lives and not actually doing anything that might change them. And then we keep saying, what if, what if."

If she hadn't been with him for the past two hours, she would have suspected him of being a little drunk. Instead, she cocked her head. "Cisco, how long have you been awake today?”

"I slept on the train," he said. "But do you get what I'm saying?"

"I don't think I do." Her heart was thumping heavily in her chest, dark and slow with dread.

What if he wanted to leave Central City? Or even just Star Labs? He’d said he was home for good, but what if he’d just meant he was done with his tour? What if he wanted to take off all over the world?

He rubbed his hand over his hair and muttered, "Okay, I - okay. Look. I'm saying I missed you."

Well. That wasn't what she'd expected.

She tucked her hands in her pockets. "I missed you, too."

"You did?”

“Of course I did. You’re one of my best friends.”

“Friend,” he echoed. “Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Long time now.”

“What’s it been, eight years?”

“Something like that.”

“So of course I missed you.” She unlocked the front door of her building and held it open for him. “I’m glad you’re back.”

He put his hand on her arm, stopping them in front of the mailboxes. "Do you ever think about that? About how our lives would change if something was different?"

"Who doesn't?" She searched his face. "Cisco, what are you getting at, exactly?"

His mouth opened and closed for a moment, and then he let out a soft groan. Before Caitlin could do anything else, he'd taken her face in his hands and kissed her.

For some reason, the only thought in her head was that kissing a man with a beard was surprisingly nice. Or maybe it was kissing Cisco that was nice. More than nice.

Oh.

Cisco was kissing her.

He let go before she could get her jumbled thoughts in order and retreated a step or two. "Shit," he said. "Shit, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to just - like that - I - "

She grabbed his jacket and hauled, and he stumbled back towards her until she could kiss him back. He was much faster on the uptake than she was, and it was only a moment before his arms wrapped around her.

Sometime later, his forehead rested against hers. "So," he said, eyes closed, "that's okay then."

"Very much okay," she said.

His hands skimmed up her sides and then down. "Every time my phone buzzed I grabbed it. Hoping it was you.”

“So did I,” she whispered.

He smiled at her, eyes bright. “I know the timing is weird and bad. But it’s always been weird, bad timing with us. That’s why I never did this before.”

She found herself smiling goofily. “You wanted to do this before?”

“More than once. A lot of times.”

“So we have some catching up to do.” She kissed him again.

Someone cleared their throat, and Caitlin pulled away from Cisco to see one of her neighbors looking judgemental at her for making out with a strange man in the middle of the lobby. "I need to get my mail," she said.

“Sorry,” she lied to Mrs. Trainor, not sorry at all, and scooted a few steps down.

“Hey Mrs. T,” Cisco said.

She squinted at him. “Cisco? Is that you?" She'd seen him reasonably often, and Cisco was the kind of person who could chat amiably to neighbors that Caitlin had never said two words to.

“Yep. The beard threw you off, right? I’ve been traveling and it was easier than shaving every day.”

She looked a little mollified. “Well, welcome back.” She looked between them. “Nice to see the two of you finally got it together. Only maybe not in front of the mailboxes.”

Cisco snickered, and Caitlin elbowed him. “Sorry about that. We’ll get out of your way. Have a good night.” She grabbed Cisco's hand and tugged him toward the elevators.

He gave her a delighted look. “I think your neighbor’s been shipping us!” he whispered.

Caitlin hit the button. “And to think all this time I thought she just had the hots for you, asking about you so much.”

He snickered again. “No reason it can’t be both.” He turned serious. “So, I’m still staying?”

She blinked at him. “I said you could.”

“Yeah, but that was before,” he said. “I don’t want you to feel pressured or anything. I can crash at Barry and Iris's place. Or get a hotel.”

She took that in and smiled. He knew as well as she did that inviting a man you’d just kissed into your home was a different thing than letting your friend stay for the night. “It’s fine,” she said as the elevator doors slid open. “I don’t feel pressured at all.”

He took her hand, smiling back. “Good. We can talk this out. Figure out how this is going to work. And then kiss some more.”

“That sounds like a good plan,” she said, hitting the button for her floor and sending him a coy look. “And if we both feel like it, maybe we can have some hot chocolate.”

FINIS

#Caitlin Snow #Cisco Ramon #killervibe #fanfiction #mosylufanfic lives up to her damn name #apologies for any inaccuracies #I haven't seen the latest episodes #the flash

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kevintor · 5 years ago

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Tor’s Best of the Decade: Animated Movies

I decided to make a series of “Best of the Decade” lists. First off will be my favorite animated movies. “Kids” movies are so good these days that I’m sure one or two of them will also end up on the “Best Movies” list too. As this decade also coincides almost perfectly with my kid’s existence, I watched way more animated movies than I probably would have. Probably.

Animated Movies I Did Not See But May Have Made The List: Croods, Ralph Destroys The Internet, Your Name.

Honorable Mention: Big Hero 6, Storks, Zootopia, Wreck It Ralph, Finding Dory

10. (TIE) “Coco” & “Moana” - I could not choose between these two for the last spot so they tie. Moana is a beautiful film and I love the music. Coco is a great story that makes you cry unless you don’t have a heart. Then again, what are you doing watching a heartwarming story without the heart that will ultimately be warmed? I’d give the edge to Moana on songs but Coco has the better story. I like them both.

9. “Kubo And The Two Strings” - This has some of the coolest animation I’ve ever seen. It’s done with stop motion and it was nominated for Visual Effects Oscar. That’s not very common for a non-computer animated movie. Only one other movie has ever done that (The Nightmare Before Christmas). Besides being amazing to look at, it’s got a great story too!

8. “Minions” - Sure, one of the main minions is named Kevin. That’s more than enough for me to like something. But the movie is good, too. Sandra Bullock is a strong villain.

7. “The Lego Batman Movie” - Now we are getting into the rewatchable territory. Will Arnett is a tremendous comic Batman. Michael Cera is perfect as Robin. Zach Galifianakis might be the best Joker since Heath Ledger which is impressive as I think there’s been about 40 different Jokers since 2008. Finally, what other movie has all the Batman villains teaming up with King Kong, the Gremlins, the shark from Jaws, Sauron, Voldermort and more? The answer is no other movie. Maybe this should be higher.

6. “Inside Out” - This is such a good movie. It might be the best movie on this list but it can’t be higher because I don’t think I can ever watch it again. I think I cried through 90% of it. We also went with a group and couldn’t get all the tickets together so I had to cry next to a.stranger. This wasn’t wipe the eye with a little lump in the throat crying. This was sniffling, need a tissue, there might be a noise or snort that comes out at some point crying. Every parent should see it but, also, every parent should probably not see it.

5. “Frozen” - The movie I watched the most with my daughter. Some things I had to watch with her were torture. I’m looking at you, Ni Hao Kai Lan. I hope you get run over by Thomas the Tank Engine who is, not coincidentally, on fire because I hate him too. However, Frozen is enjoyable. The songs are good. I must have sung them thousands of times in the car. I’ll always cherish this movie for the memories of my kid growing up.

4. “The Lego Movie” - While I love this movie, the one flaw is that the father is played as a bad guy for wanting to glue the completed Legos together. It’s so annoying to put a set together again after it breaks. The man is a hero and doing what is ultimately right for his kid. One day that boy is going to wake up and say, “My dad was right to glue this stuff together.”

3. “Tangled” - Best horse in movie history. My favorite Disney movie. Great songs. Endlessly rewatchable.

2. “Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse” - This is one of the best movies of the decade. Why isn’t number one? I’ll get into that when I talk about number one. The animation makes it like a comic book come to life. The juggling of all the different dimensions is handled so well. And there’s a great Post Malone song that plays throughout. My favorite alternate Spider-Man was Spider-Gwen.

1. “Teen Titans Go! To The Movies” - I never watched the TV show so I did not know what this was going to be. I laughed so much. It’s so silly and ridiculous. I wish I had made it. It may not be as good of a movie as Spider-Man but it entertained me to no end. The scene where they beat up Superman and then dump kryptonite all over him is one of my favorite movie scenes. I put it on whenever I’m looking for joy.

And that’s the list. Tune in next time for my favorite songs of the decade!

#kevin tor #best of the decade #top 10 #animated movies #tangled #frozen #teen titans go #spider-man into the spider-verse #the lego movie #the lego batman movie #inside out #coco #moana #minions #kubo and the two strings #movies

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smolbeandrabbles · 5 years ago

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The Arraignment - Kenneth Hayes x Reader (The Outsider)

I caved because I keep switching to calling him “Hayes” now... Either way, I love him the most.

Love It Gone

Author’s Note: If your character is acted by a Broadway star, he can sing. That’s all I’m saying. Or an actor who just so happens to be able to sing BUT in Kenneth Hayes’ case, a Broadway Star. Just in case you were about to doubt that one sentence I wrote about Karaoke 😉 Don’t worry, that fic is coming...!

Disclaimer: The Outsider and it’s characters are all Stephen Kings / ‘Kenneth Hayes’ as a name I guess is HBO’s.../ lyrics not mine / I took the cap! / I did steal the title from the title of the chapter in the book I won’t lie...

Premise: When the Arraignment hearing doesn’t go exactly as planned, you know the one thing DA Kenneth Hayes needs right now...

Words: 1901

Warnings: N/A - I always say ‘The Outsider’ spoilers, you know, just in case you haven’t read/seen it yet.

_______ Don't think I've ever seen your kind of pretty Wandering 'round this midnight mad house city You got a look that says you got it all together So if you don't mind, I'd like to know you better I want the secrets you keep, the shine underneath Of the diamond I think I just found Take me the long way around I want your red blushing stories Your faults and your glories That made you who you are right now

---

To say every screen in this house was on was an understatement.

Everything was going fine this morning. He’d left so early you’d barely had time to mumble a sleepy ‘Good Luck!’ as he kissed your cheek goodbye and left you in bed. You knew you’d be a nervous wreck – this was huge – so you’d taken a day of leave to watch the whole thing on TV. Which means you’d caught him being interviewed on WPQX. How they’d slipped in a question about his name perhaps appearing on the election ballot in March. Your heartbeat quickened at that – you’d assisted him in his last campaign – and you were just as excited to kick this one off for him too. Well, all in good time. First to put Terry Maitland away for what he did. Conflicting evidence or no – you believed in this case, and you believed in your lover. He worked so hard – but as the District Attorney, unfortunately that didn’t come with much love.

But then the shooting started. And immediately all your senses were on fire – such as they should be, you were a detective in your own District. An active shooter situation was no laughing matter. Ralph Anderson took two shots, two good shots – but by that time you could hardly make anything out as the camera got shaky and people were running and screaming, as they rightly should have been. Then the footage cut. And nothing. News casters looking bewildered and trying to cut back to the scene of the biggest thing happening in this city since forever…

From then on, every piece of technology in this house was switched to a different channel and you were analysing every grainy, mobile phone camera, piece of footage that each network could offer you. But they all focused on Terry, Ralph, the shooter. And no matter how hard you tried; you couldn’t answer the only question that mattered to you: Where was Hayes?

But it was getting late now, and all the news was getting repetitive. The house was dark and quiet, save for you sitting huddled in your chunky knit cardigan on the stairs, the only glaring light coming from your phone screen as you read new updates. Terry Maitland was dead. So was Ollie Peterson – brother of Frankie, and also the shooter. Shit. This is a mess… babe…

You hadn’t heard anything else. Noone seemed to care about anything else – people glad Terry was dead, people throwing abuse at each other over whether he was innocent or not… At this point even you didn’t know for sure. But you were upset that all this hatred could be so incited. And you best believe your DA and his Detective associate were in the middle of it all. Only, Ralph had stopped the shooter. So, people weren’t really getting as angry with him. You’d given up waiting to hear ‘The Long Way’ chime gently from your phone speakers to let you know that Hayes was calling. But you were dying to. But sitting here waiting for him to call, and tell you he was fine, only made you laugh at the juxtaposition to hearing the go-to Karaoke song of choice – that you both sung a little too loud when taking lengthy summer drives with shades on and the top down.

You shook the thought away. Truth was, there’d been no record of who had or hadn’t been hurt. And what’s more, you knew what would be going down. Questions, checks, assessments – at police stations and hospitals. And god knows how many calls he’d have to make right now because of the position he was in. That was before Howie and Terry’s family got hold of him. But Hayes hadn’t even text you yet. You got tired of asking questions of people after situations like this, rarely had you been on the receiving end of them. But you can imagine having witnessed, and been right in the middle of something like that, it was bound to leave a mark on you. The last thing you’d probably want to do was talk with anyone. Let alone the hell scape that was outside the courthouse.

Eventually the lock to the front door clicked and the door opened with about as much force as the exhausted man behind it could muster. You raised your eyes to the sound, heart leaping to know he was okay enough to return to you this evening – and that you didn’t have to open that door to police vehicles. But Hayes looked like a hollow wreck. There was no light in those deep brown eyes – lost in his own head on another planet. He still carried his briefcase and his case file under his arm – papers hastily stuffed in it where he’d finally cracked and had to get out of his office. Hayes was surprised that he’d actually made it all the way back here; thankful that he must have done it on autopilot. But he was numb, and he didn’t think he’d ever been in a position before where he’d felt nothing. Not even when prosecuting the worst of the worst. Hayes’ suit was a little crumpled and his tie was slack; top button undone to allow him to breathe. But it looked worse than that – right now it looked like it didn’t belong to the man that was in it. That it was a little too big for him and the situation. You knew he didn’t even realise that you were there as the door swung closed behind him – still looking at that far away point. But not for long. Your phone clattered to the floor as you rose – you were going to attempt doing so slowly, so as not to startle him. But your instincts kicked in – your need to protect him, and make him feel safe; to love him at a time you knew (practically) no one else would. Because right now Hayes was barely recognisable – and you knew that look. He’d made a mistake, and he knew it. And other people were going to pay dearly… Heck, today people had. So you ran to him – throwing your arms around him you buried your face in his chest. He took a step back at the force of it; and the briefcase went first. thump Your next movement released him from your grip for a second, before – slower – you wound your arms around his neck and shoulders, pulling him into your own. Papers scattered – neither of you cared. He didn’t move – he just let you bend his body. And you weren’t sure which were the right words to say first. You squeezed your eyes shut and knew that tears were clinging to your lashes. “You’re home…”

You slipped back down to the floor, wanting him to feel anything but trapped. Maybe right now the last thing he felt he deserved was love – he sure wasn’t quick to return it. Maybe Hayes wasn’t ready for that. Instead your gaze locked with his, and you didn’t blink for a significant period of time. The man you loved wasn’t just hurting, he was completely broken. You tried desperately to search for something in those eyes that would tell you otherwise; but tonight Kenneth Hayes was gone. Replaced by the hollow shell of a man who knew all he’d done was fucked it all up.

His eyes searched your face for something too, some semblance of ‘told you so!’ or ‘You should have just WAITED for the arrest! You should have pressed Ralph for something more!’ - something that wasn’t concern for his own wellbeing. But even he knew he wouldn’t find that now. Not now, not after hours and hours of you waiting alone for the call that never came.

When Hayes did open his mouth, you placed your fingertips delicately to his lips and shook your head. Nothing he could say would make this right. Nothing he could say would do anyone any good. “Hush… You’re safe. You’re safe here with me… I promise.” Safe from what? The masses that would want him and his reputation destroyed for this? From the hefty lawsuit he knew was coming? From himself-!? But Hayes still wanted to tell you that he should have called. He wanted to tell you he loved you. Wanted to tell you that he appreciated everything that you’d ever done for him, and continued to do, even if he didn’t say it so often – as if this would be the last chance he’d ever get to say it. For Terry Maitland that day and time was today, and it had been and gone. For Hayes the reality of mortality didn’t get much closer than being in the middle of a shootout. What if you’d decided to come to the Arraignment today? To see him at his very best? Hayes knew how much you loved watching him in the court room. When he’d catch your eye after a particular great statement of law; and you would bite your lip none too subtly… He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. Even he knew that thought right now was inappropriate. Instead he exhaled – as if he’d been holding that breath in since he’d been standing on the courthouse steps. You ran your fingers through his hair, it was always neat and tidy. But at least you could pretend you were doing something for him if you did this. And that’s what made him break. Not so much that he cried; just that he crumpled. Hayes had a way of telling you he needed you, and this was more like begging. His arms wound around your shoulders, frame bending so low he made himself shorter than you, burying his face in the crook of your neck like he was trying to hide himself from the world. And you could only wish him good luck with such a thing now.

You wound your arms back around him, rubbing his back soothingly with one hand you cradled his head with your other. “It’s okay… It’s going to be okay…” You didn’t think this was true, but you knew you had to say it for you both. “You’re safe with me, I promise.” That was all you wanted him to know. God have mercy on anyone who decided to come for him this time around. You weren’t above giving TV crews a piece of your mind, at the very least – whatever they said about him, you’d give them hell. Exactly what they deserved. You wouldn’t let Hayes do this to himself, too many good people got torn down by mistakes. This mistake was big, maybe even huge. But no one involved deserved to have their careers and lives ruined over it.

Terry Maitland’s family did… Resounded in your head and you squeezed your eyes shut again to stop those tears from threatening again. No more crying. He needs YOU to be strong now. This wasn’t about Terry anymore, this was about the man you were holding right now, that you would walk through hell fire for. That you loved more than anything, a man who was just doing his job – with concrete evidence and the District behind him. And they better not let him down now... You would fiercely protect him from anything, because you loved him, and that meant that’s what your job was. And that’s exactly what you would do.

---

@3134045126 Though this one has much let of *that* relationship present!

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virmillion · 5 years ago

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Ibytm - T minus 48 seconds

Masterpost - Previous Chapter - Next Chapter - ao3

Words: 2,053

Logan hisses gently as he pulls the bowl of popcorn from the microwave, setting it on the counter as fast as he can manage to shake the burning feeling from his fingers. “Popcorn’s done!”

“Great, now come pick a stupid show already, so I don’t feel like I’ve wasted my Friday,” Virgil calls back. Remembering to check his pride this time, Logan scoops up the bowl with two objectively safer napkins and peers around the corner of the kitchen wall.

Virgil’s head just barely peeks over the top of the couch, a tuft of pale purple hair sticking out opposite the rest. Beyond him is a daunting list of movies and shows scrolling beneath the Netflix logo. A fifteen second trailer loops for the movie Wreck-It Ralph, but Virgil stubbornly refuses to press play. The tuft of hair vanishes as Virgil leans forward and clears off a space on the table for the popcorn bowl.

“Careful, ’s hot,” Logan warns, dropping the bowl on the open spot.

“Noted.” Virgil, after acknowledging Logan’s words (which really ought to be heeded), proceeds to completely ignore them in favor of grabbing more than a fair fistful and popping the whole mess in his mouth. “Ha her he hah king?”

“You want to run that by me one more time?”

Virgil swallows around the lump of butter and grain with a grimace. “What’re we watching?”

“Great question. No more scary movies, you’re cut off from those, but that’s about our only parameter.”

“Puh- leez, it’s not my fault you couldn’t get to sleep last week. You’re the one that kept me up with nervous texts, ’member? I would’ve expected you to be grown up enough to survive watching Nightmare on Elm Street . Guess I was wrong, if laser tag was anything to go off of.”

“Laser tag was barely two months ago, and already you’re having delusions about my lacking bravery?”

“Hey, hey, you’re the astronaut in training here. I’m not the one with explicit and express intent to fly a hundred hours of pilot-in-command aircrafts before I turn twenty-seven.”

“A thousand hours, or three years of related professional experience. And if I want to break any records, it has to be before I’m twenty-six. Try to pay more attention when I lecture you about my internship next time.”

“I have to endure a next time?”

Logan shoots Virgil a pointed look, the effect of which is lost to the popcorn kernel lodged between his right molars. He prods at it with his tongue.

“In my defense,” Virgil continues, “this is pretty much the longest a relationship of mine has ever lasted.”

“Oh, is that what we’re calling it now?” Logan isn’t quite sure where all this bravado came from, but it’s doing wonders for keeping his voice even, so he won’t jinx it by digging deeper right now.

“It’s faster to say ‘relationship’ than ‘that dorky guy who hangs out at my apartment every Friday night to make fun of movies because we have nothing better to do as self-respecting adults,’ but I’ll gladly switch to that absurd and overly expository title if you prefer.”

A pout tries to crawl onto Logan’s face, which he promptly ignores. “Point taken. Did you pick a movie yet, or are you just that obsessed with watching a pixelated handyman smile on your television screen?”

“Neither. There’s no good bad movies left on here, so at this point, we’re better off watching something one of us has already seen—”

“Out of the question.”

“—watching nothing—”

“No thank you.”

“—or binging a series show.”

This gives Logan a moment’s pause. “That could work.”

“Right, because watching half an hour of an unending show every week without fail is how I want to spend my next three years’ worth of Fridays.”

“Well, why not?”

“What would we even watch? There’s, like, no serializations that normal people haven’t seen. Everybody’s watched The Office —”

“I haven’t.”

“— Brooklyn 99 —”

“I haven’t.”

“—and Parks and Rec .”

“I haven’t.”

Virgil slams the remote gown on the couch and gapes at Logan. “You haven’t seen Parks and Rec? ”

“Have you even been listening to a single word out of my mouth?”

“You are an absolute monster. You disgust me. We’re through, no more movie nights. I can’t hang out with someone whose true colors are so monochromatic.” Logan is not entirely certain whether Virgil is kidding at this point. “I’m kidding.” Logan is not entirely certain whether Virgil is about to add the caveat ‘mostly’ to that statement.

After an uncomfortably long silence wherein Logan looks absolutely anywhere that isn’t Virgil, the speakers proudly announce the sound of Leslie Knope introducing herself to a small child playing in a sandbox. “This isn’t very funny,” Logan murmurs. “I mean, what child would say they were having a moderate amount of fun and somewhat enjoying themselves to a stranger? I suppose I might if prompted, but still.”

“Shut up ,” Virgil hisses, “this part is hilarious, stop talking. ”

“Ha ha,” Logan says dryly. “I love watching drunks hide in swirly slides. Ha.”

“Shut up. ” This command is accompanied by Virgil swatting at Logan’s shoulder.”

“Well, hey, can’t we skip the theme song?” Logan is almost hoping he’ll say no, just so these movie nights can be that much longer. Series show nights, now.

“Nope, out of the question. Skipping the intro is cheating and an act of cowardice to the nth degree. Be quiet and enjoy the upbeat music.”

A few weeks later, Logan finds himself enjoying watching the theme song. Maybe it has something to do with how they’re sharing one bowl of popcorn, their fingers brushing against each other every so often, rather than Virgil hogging the whole thing for himself. Maybe it’s how their knuckles linger when they reach in at the same time, neither pulling away instantly, but neither vocalizing what’s happening. Maybe it’s how, when Virgil is distracted by people assuming Leslie is dating Ann, he absently lets their fingers link together loosely, too intentional to be a thoughtless mistake. When the scene shifts to some guy named Anthony waving, they both yank their hands away from each other. Logan swears he can feel his nerve endings burning.

Upon the premiere of season two, the distance between them has closed ever so slightly. Rather than being at opposite ends of a three cushion couch, Virgil leans on one armrest and Logan arranges himself on the next cushion over. And if Logan’s fingers wander over to Virgil’s when Leslie marries the two gay penguins (despite the popcorn being well out of reach on the table), and if they hold on long after the credits for the episode have passed, well, that’s nobody’s business but their own, isn’t it?

When the Galentine’s day episode rolls around, Logan has abandoned all pretenses of slowly inching closer, instead taking Virgil’s hand as soon as they’re both seated with their respective mugs. Both cheap water steepings from a broken keurig, of course, but at least they’re enjoying them together. Well, enduring, enjoying, same difference.

“Hey, that’s what you said the first time we went to the museum together!” Logan exclaims, watching the sweater swap moment between April and Andy. Okay, so he doesn’t really exclaim it, per se, so much as say it suddenly and without warning—it’d be rather difficult to literally exclaim it, what with his head resting heavy on Virgil’s shoulder and all.

“Oh, right, on our first date, you mean?”

“Our first what?”

For those of you keeping track at home, yes, Logan has managed to go about six months without realizing that their first date was, in fact, a date.

By the time Chris asks Tom and Jerry to come up with a new logo for the department, Logan is literally sitting in Virgil’s lap with an arm slung around his shoulders. You might liken the position to that of a koala, but then again, Logan didn’t ask you. Full disclosure, they started watching more than one episode a week somewhere along the line, but this was spurred in some part by the need for background noise while they packed everything Virgil owned into a small mountain of cardboard boxes.

“Something to celebrate the occasion?” Logan asks tentatively, holding up a bottle of champagne. This kitchen certainly looks much nicer than the last one, but the leniency of adding paint to these walls was a buffer Logan had sorely missed at Virgil’s old place.

“If you want,” Virgil replies, craning his head over the back of the couch. “But you’re paying damages if you spill it all over my clean floors.”

“Well, duh, I’m paying half the rent, of course I’d fund repairs.” Logan holds back what more he wants to mention, still wary of the sore spot surrounding Virgil’s careers.

“In that case, plop your butt down on the couch we need to replace—speaking of which, we need to figure out a day to descend on IKEA for some upgrades.” Virgil pats his lap and gestures toward the screen—longer and thinner, purchased with some of the funds they’d pooled from their respective savings when picking a place together. “Now, c’mon, we’re about to see the squad go to London. I know you’re all about the architecture over there, aren’t you?”

“As if you even need to ask.” Logan grins, plopping himself down on top of Virgil and whistling along with the theme song.

Living together, unsurprisingly, does wonders for powering through the last couple seasons at a much more efficient pace. In what seems like the blink of an eye, Logan is watching the futures of the main squad playing out as they do one last project, and it’s not a stretch to say he’s holding back tears. As the credits fade to black and The Office pops up as a recommendation to watch next, Logan lifts a hand to his cheek and is baffled to find it come away wet.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Virgil murmurs, slipping an arm around Logan’s back and rubbing circles on his arm. “This is the worst part, I know. You’ve never been this attached to fictional characters before, huh?” Logan hiccoughs. “Yeah, I got you, it’s okay, it’s okay.”

Between shuddering breaths that aren’t quite laughs, Logan manages to get out, “It’s like the end of an era. I don’t know, I mean, it’s really over.”

“Oh, I know, sweetie,” Virgil mumbles, pressing his lips against Logan’s hair. “It just means moving on, and I’ll be here for you through it all.” Slowly but surely, Logan’s hiccoughs turn into giggles as the ridiculousness of the situation dawns on him. Why should he be getting so emotional over the end of some tv show? He literally went into this knowing the series would have a finale. He says as much to Virgil.

“True, but we sank a couple years into this tradition. You’re allowed to mourn a tradition, even if you think it’s silly. There’s no rules for what you can or can’t grieve, and even if you lie to yourself enough to believe there are, I’ll be here to help you through it.”

“First off, you can’t spell believe without ‘lie,’ and second, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, hon. What would you get out of dealing with nonsense emotions?”

“Besides knowing I get to wake up every morning to see your face?” Virgil pretends to ponder this for a moment, only breaking into a grin when Logan elbows him in the side—not intentionally, mind you. It’s more of an effort to bury his nose in Virgil’s neck, but unfortunately for Logan, Virgil is ticklish right around there. He laughs loudly and announces, “I want the moon.”

“The moon?”

“The moon, spaceman.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll bring you the moon. Is that all?”

“One more thing.”

“One more thing besides the moon, you mean?”

“Well, yeah, you have to know how much the moon costs.”

“How much does the moon cost?”

“The stars.”

“The stars?”

“It’ll cost you the stars.”

Logan shakes his head and smiles, wrapping Virgil in a tight hug and drying his eyes against his boyfriend’s sleeve. His words are no doubt muffled, near unintelligible, but he’s sure Virgil can make it out well enough. “Okay, love. I’ll bring you the moon.”

#labhwrites #mine #i'll bring you the moon #ibytm

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yandere-dbh-imagines-blog · 6 years ago

Text

Protection [Ralph]

Anonymous said: Could I request something (scenario, headcanon, whatever) with Ralph being taken in by the reader and becoming possessive with the reader?

Word Count: 1.9k

Warning: Dark

Also, sorry for the wait. The last two days I just continually edited it over and over again. Hope y’all enjoy!

You were always known to be a kindhearted person. Oftentimes you would rescue stray cats and dogs, donate food and old clothing to those in need, and give spare change to the homeless beggars on the street corners. Your parents often warned you against your altruistic nature, but you disregarded their words, labeling them misplaced.

You had been walking home from a long shift at work when you had heard the angry shouts and pain-filled pleas from a nearby alleyway. Turning to look into the darkened alley, you saw the figures of two men. One assaulting the other by striking them, shoving them harshly onto the ground. Without a further thought, you rushed to the men, barking to the aggressor, “Hey, hey! What’s going on here?!”

Startled by your sudden appearance, the attacker fled from the alleyway. Slowing down in your pace, you looked over to the man who lay beaten on the ground.

“Hey, you okay there?” You asked all the while cautiously approaching him. The man flinched away from you before you could properly examine him, shielding himself from you.

“N-no more, no more! Ralph’s sorry!”, the man sobbed, cradling himself in distress. Soon, you spotted the red glow of an LED on the individual’s temple. An android, you realized.

Keeping an appropriate distance from the android, you persisted, gently reassuring them, “It’s okay,” you paused to recall the android’s name before continuing, “Ralph. I’m -- Look, I won’t hurt you, okay? The person who hurt you is gone, he left.” Your tone was sincere and direct as you attempted to show him you meant no harm.

“No, no. Humans hurt Ralph. Humans always hurt Ralph.” Ralph muttered, his statement was aimed more towards himself than to you.

Still, you tried to comfort the frightened android, “Ralph, I promise I won’t hurt you. I only want to help.” Your effort was in vain as the android began to repeat his words, his louder voice easily talking over yours.

Deciding to try something different, you ordered in a stern tone of voice, “Ralph, look at me.” Instantly, he fell silent and his eyes slowly raised to lock with yours. In a solemn and sympathetic voice, you vowed, “No harm will be done to you, Ralph. I won’t hurt you and I won’t let anyone else hurt you.”

After a minute, his LED began to change from a red to a yellow, though it still flashed red. You chalked it up to any damage he may have received from the attack.

Glancing at the street exit you had come from and back to Ralph, you suggested, “I...I have a place not too far from here. You’re welcome to come with me if you’d like. It’s out of the weather and you’d probably be safer there than you are out here.”

You gave Ralph time to consider your suggestion. His LED now fully glowing yellow as he was deep in thought. His eyes were cast downward, mumbling under his breath and furrowing his brows, clearly contemplating your offer. With a slight hesitance in his voice, he answered, “Ralph will go. Yes, he will go with the girl.” His voice grew more sure and jovial towards the end, giving you a small smile.

Helping the android stand to his feet, you realized you had yet to introduce yourself. Deciding now was the best time to do so, you smiled at the android and commented, “Oh, I’m [Y/n], by the way.”

“[Y/n]. Ralph...thanks [Y/n] for saving him. Ralph was -- he was very scared.” Ralph confided.

The two of you walked through the dark streets of Detroit in silence, with only the occasional light pole providing a slight buzz to the otherwise quiet night. Ralph followed slightly behind, most likely still somewhat suspicious of you. You understood his reasoning and couldn’t blame him for being apprehensive of humans, if that scar was anything to go by.

Reaching the small, familiar house that you called your own, you invited the android into your home. He entered the home, his shoulders folded in and looking unsure of what to do now.

“I know it’s not a lot, but I try to keep this home looking decent.”, taking notice of Ralph’s tense posture, you directed him to a nearby chair, “Uh, you can sit there if you’d like.”

Letting out a loud and overdrawn yawn, you looked at the clock that sat on the end table. Gasping in disbelief, you cursed, “Shit, 12 o’clock already?”

Turning to face Ralph, who uncomfortably sat on the sofa, you explained, “Listen, Ralph. I’d love to stay up and chat, but I’ve got to get to bed. I need my beauty sleep. You can sleep on the - well, you don’t really sleep, do you? I suppose you can make yourself at home then.”

With that, you left the room, deciding to keep a small tableside lamp on for the android, and turned in for the night.

As you settled in for the night, Ralph had yet to move from the chair you had suggested for him to sit in. Ralph knew he was in a vulnerable position, accepting the invitation to stay with a stranger after being brutally attacked by a human. Who’s to say the girl was any different?

He shifted in his seat, feeling the knife press against his side, having been concealed from your view by the ragged cloak he wore.

He battled himself against the thoughts that clouded his mind. It would be easy to overpower you, especially while you were asleep. Would you look up to him with wide eyes and plead for your life before he brought an end to it? Would you put up a fight like many of his victims? You looked so fragile though, Ralph was sure you would break under his tight gr-

No, no. The girl promised not to hurt Ralph. [Y/n]’s not like them. She’s not like the other humans. [Y/n] won’t hurt Ralph.

Ralph managed to silence the dark inner thoughts that plagued his mind. She wasn’t going to become another one of Ralph’s victims, he swore to himself. [Y/n] was one of very few humans to show Ralph any sort of hospitality, the thought that a human being had rescued him and showed him such generosity was something Ralph still had trouble processing.

Weeks flew by and with that Ralph gradually became more open and amicable towards you. You discovered that he had gained the deep scars on his face after delinquents tortured him for hours on end. Ralph had also disclosed his disdain for humans, though he assured you that you were different.

And you were different, at least in Ralph’s mind. You were compassionate, forgiving, and trustful. Unlike any human he had met before. He didn’t hate you, Ralph registered. He could never hate you. You had shown him such care and tenderness. He no longer felt the overwhelming sense of loneliness that was once so common to him.

But as the two of you grew closer, Ralph’s possessiveness of you grew. It started off simple enough. You had plans to meet up with your friends for a night of fun, yet canceled after Ralph had guilted you into staying at home. But then it became out of control, with Ralph attempting to block you from leaving your home.

“Ralph, move out of the way.” You commanded, glaring at the android who stood in your way.

He shook his head, his eye twitching nervously before he hesitantly replied, “No, Ralph won’t allow [Y/n] to leave. She could get hurt -- yes, the humans, they could hurt her. Ralph won’t let them hurt her.” His tone became more and more desperate as you showed no signs of giving in to his demands.

“Ralph, they are my friends. I know them better than anyone and that includes you. Now, I am leaving. Whether you like it or not.”, you stated in a sharp tone of voice. Nearly yanking the door handle off, you stormed out of your home, leaving Ralph behind.

After you had left, Ralph turned into a nervous wreck. He paced throughout the house, his fingers shaking as they wildly brushed through his hair. You hadn’t listened to him. ‘Why didn’t you listen to Ralph? Didn’t you know Ralph only wanted the best for you? To protect you from the humans that desperately wanted to hurt you? Why couldn’t you see that?

‘Maybe [Y/n] doesn’t know what’s truly best for her.’ The thought entered Ralph’s mind. And Ralph found himself agreeing with the idea. Ralph knew of human’s wickedness, while you were purposely naive to their true nature. Yes, you were blind to it all, Ralph concluded. But Ralph would protect you.

It was at three in the morning when you returned back to your home, having a taxi drive you back to your place. Drunk and struggling to open your door, you nearly fell face first onto the floor when it was opened for you. Luckily, Ralph had caught you before you collapsed onto the ground.

Ralph felt himself fill with rage as he observed you in your drunken stupor. Had your ‘friends’ really allowed you to get that drunk; to the point where you could hardly stand? You were so helpless like this, someone could have easily taken advantage of you if they wanted to. Ralph wanted to yell at you, to chide you for drinking so much. But he was left unable to do so as you fell unconscious.

While he was angry at you for drinking yourself into such a senseless state, it helped him to have you in such condition.

Slowly, you began to rouse from your night of drinking. Your head was heavy and throbbing as you opened your eyes. The rays of sunlight that filtered in to your room caused you to squeeze them shut. Letting out a pained groan, you tried to sit up. Feeling a tough pull on your right arm, your gaze flickered to your arm.

Your arm was tied at the wrist to your bed frame by a rope. Sitting up to the best of your ability, you attempted to pull your hand out of the binding. You found your effort to be in vain as it was taut against your skin.

You tried to remember the events that led to you being tied to your own bed, but your memory was fogged from the drinking. Shifting around, you stopped all movements when you heard the doorknob to your bedroom door jiggle. Hearing the door begin to creak open, you were soon face-to-face with Ralph, who carried with him a large tray of food.

Placing the tray down on to a dresser, Ralph turned to you with a wide, gleeful smile. Confused by his smile, you pulled against your bound arm, asking the android, “Ralph, what -- no, why the fuck am I tied to my own bed? Can you untie me, please?”

The smile receded from Ralph’s face and he shook his head in response, “No, Ralph -- Ralph can’t do that. He is sorry, but he can’t untie [Y/n].”

Feeling shocked and horrified by his reply, you struggled against the rope around your wrist in an attempt to free yourself. Ralph was quick to put an end to that, gripping onto your arm with such strength that you let out a yelp of pain.

Ralph’s face leaned in close to yours, his LED red and his eyes dark, before he warned, “Ralph doesn’t want to hurt [Y/n]. He doesn’t, but he will if he has to.”

Fearful of his words, you ceased to struggle. Ralph was pleased that you had heeded his warning, and gently caressed your cheek, where he noticed a lone tear trail.

“There’s no reason for [Y/n] to cry, she is safe now. Ralph will protect her.”, Ralph whispered possessively as he wiped the tear away and pulled you into a tight embrace.

#yandere ralph #yandere dbh #yandere dbh x reader #detroit become human #dbh ralph #ralph wr600 #ralph x reader #dark fic #yandere x reader #Protection Ralph

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make-it-mavis · 5 years ago

Text

All Work and No Play

Wreck-it Ralph fic (main timeline, post-Roadblasters, pre-Sugar Rush) Comedy/Romance 6370 words Characters: Make-it Mavis, Turbo Content warnings: dirty humor, brief sensuality, themes of burnout/depression

Premise: Unable to sleep, Mavis stays up practicing drawing objects. Turbo joins her and convinces her to draw something more fun. While they both have a good time, Turbo has a few things left to say on the matter, and, as usual, Mavis is reluctant to listen.

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Mavis never considered herself afraid of the dark, per se.

She had long ago set up curtains around her camp in Fix-it Felix Jr., trying to capture and contain the glow of her stolen lights and hide the vast, dark forest from her mind. On the nights she spent in Turbo's trailer, she was grateful for what little sunlight that managed to intrude through the tiny slits of space between the blackout shutters, just enough to highlight the shapes of furniture and belongings. But it was not the dark she truly feared -- it was the space. It was even just the illusion of space. Wide, open darkness with no visible end just needled toxic flashbacks into her brain, memories of the time she spent trapped in her game's code space. Smaller, enclosed spaces were protection from the fear that she would float away in her sleep, never to find her way back, never to be seen again.

Unfortunately, that security was sometimes hard to firmly hold onto during nights in the abandoned wall socket that was Turbo's hideout. The chamber was not unreasonably large, and there was some minuscule illumination from the hole in the socket, but it was not enough to clearly touch all the walls or the far corners.

It was not worthy of a panic attack, but sometimes, it was enough to keep her awake, even just out of the knowledge that she would have a nightmare if she fell asleep.

So, on a night in late spring, Make-it Mavis sat awake, alone in the direct, dim light from the arcade outside. With her sketchbook in hand, and her sleeping attire just a tank top and panties, she figured the mental stimulation and the somewhat chilly air on her bare skin would be enough to keep her from drifting off.

Too tired for extensive creativity, she merely drew miscellaneous objects and weapons, the usual effort to keep in practice so she could accurately produce said items with her brush. If she could not draw it, she could not paint it.

A few pages in, beginning to run out of ideas, she glanced around the room in thought, and had a mini heart attack at the sight of two distant yellow eyes peering through the darkness. In one way or another, Turbo had woken up in the corner where they slept.

"Mav?" she heard him say groggily.

"Hey," she replied. "Did I wake you up?"

"Uh," the glow disappeared for a moment as his eyes closed, "I dunno. Maybe? It's fine."

"'Kay," she said softly, looking down at her blank page again.

After a moment, he asked, "You okay?"

"Oh, yeah," she nodded. "I'm fine. Just can't sleep, so I figure I might as well do something."

From the corner, she heard rustling, grunting, and stumbling footsteps. Turbo approached, a blanket around his shoulders, and two pillows under his arm. His hair was a mess, part of it flattened against the side of his head, part of it trying to fly away to freedom. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Just drawing," she shrugged.

A pillow hit her in the face, thrown by Turbo. After a grumbled thanks, she put it behind her back. Turbo then plopped himself down next to her. Sizing her up, he said, "Ain't ya cold?"

"Don't fuss," she mumbled, drawing a small spiral. "I'm fine."

He threw half of the blanket over her shoulders anyway, scooting right up against her body. Fresh out of bed, he was even warmer than usual. It was more inviting than she cared for at the moment.

"Whatcha drawin'?"

"So full of questions," she observed, glancing at him with a quirked brow.

"I woke up into immediate, crippling boredom, Mav," he exhaled. "Forgive me. Indulge me."

She scoffed. "Okay. But I ain't drawin' anything interesting."

"Why not?"

"'Cause my brain is half asleep, and I need to practice drawing new stuff."

"Huh," he breathed, perplexed. "So, even now, you're working."

Mavis' brow furrowed, and she drew more swirls. "Yeah, so what? I'm just gettin' better at bein' productive. I gotta be if we're ever gonna get you outta here."

Turbo was quiet for a moment.

"Draw something fun," he insisted.

She laid her pencil flat against the page and sighed tiredly. "Like what, T?"

"You really got no ideas?"

"Like I said, I'm real tired."

"Well, a'ight, how about this," he presented his idea to her on his open palm. "I give a prompt, and you draw the first thing that comes into your head."

She rubbed her brow. "Why?"

"'Cause you're bein' boring."

With an irritated glance, she said, "I'm not boring."

"I know."

Partially fueled by spite, and partially genuine interest, she agreed to the game. "Okay, fine," she shrugged. "What's your first prompt? First thing that pops into your head."

"Rumble," he said immediately.

"Wow. That was fast."

"Y'said 'first thing.'"

"Well, alright," she stared at the page, preparing to carve something out of it. "Rumble."

Latching onto her first bizarre idea, she set to work, her pencil moving fast and loud, barely taking time to erase. Mashing together her knowledge of animals and machines, she drew the lovechild of a tiger and a motorcycle. It was essentially a tiger with a bike for a body. As she was paying particular attention to its snarling mouth, Turbo snickered.

"What the hell is that?"

"Tigerbike, obviously," she said, unable to keep from smiling. "A rumbling motorcycle and a rumbling tiger… Y'know, growlin' and junk."

"That really was the first thing y'thought of, huh?"

"Of course. Does this look, in any way, planned?"

"No, no it does not," he said, leaning in to point out one fatal flaw. "If you'd planned it, you'd have realized exhaust smoke should be shooting from its ass."

That made her snort. "Devs above, how did I miss that?"

"You're off your game, Make-it," he chuckled as she drew crude black clouds trailing out of its rear end.

"Cut, print, done--"

"Wait, wait, wait," he delicately lifted a hand in protest, and took up the pencil. On the tigerbike's back, he drew a tiny stick figure wearing a helmet, sporting a grin and a triumphant thumbs up.

"That's me," he pointed, grinning.

Mavis burst into wheezing laughter. "What? The hell?"

"Well, obviously I'm the only sprite alive who could tame Tigerbike, Mav!" he said in mock outrage.

"Why are you so tiny?!"

"I'd like to think Tigerbike is inconceivably huge," he grinned.

Mavis cackled, "That's perfect. I'm gonna frame this."

"Wanna do another?"

"Y'know what? Hell yeah," she flipped to the next page, pencil at the ready. "Hit me with another."

"A'ight," he smacked his tongue. "Meteor shower."

Her brows raised. "Ooh. How pretty."

"Show me what ya got, kiddo," he shrugged with a smile.

Mavis pondered for about two seconds before an idea hit her. It was so stupid that she snickered out loud, but she shook her head and went with it.

"That's a good sign," Turbo observed, a smile in his voice.

"You're gonna love this," she muttered, her wrist working wildly. This one took way less time, a far cartoonier style than Tigerbike. Mavis and Turbo both chuckled as the idea came to life on paper, until she finally leaned back and showed Turbo the full masterpiece.

It was, quite literally, a meteor shower. Three meteorites stood in a group shower, lathering themselves up with their tiny stick arms.

It took Turbo a second, but then he groaned in the way reserved for any of her horrible puns. With a whimpering, perplexed laugh, he mumbled, "Seriously, Mav? Are you really presenting this to me?"

"No, no, look. You don't get it," she insisted with a grin, pointing at vital details with her pencil. "See, this guy in the middle is totally eyeing up the guy on the left. I mean, like, shameless ogling."

Turbo rubbed his face, half-laughing, half-whining. "No," he pleaded softly.

"Listen," she tapped the paper harder, her voice breaking with laughter. "And, like, the guy on the left is actually super into it, but he's actin' all oblivious n' blushy because the guy on the right is there, and he's-- I mean, he's just some regular guy."

"Mav--"

"AND, and, guy on the left isn't into PDA or anythin' 'cause he's just a boring freakin' space rock--"

Turbo cackled.

"And he doesn't wanna make the guy on the right like, an unwilling third party or some crap like that, but after they're all done n' the guy on the right's gone home, you know the other two are gettin' it on in the locker room."

Turbo put out his hand. "Mav, do me a favor. Please illustrate for me just how two spherical rocks get busy."

She sputtered. "Well, let's see, I mean, it'd be hard--"

"Ha."

"There'd be a lot of rolling, and-- hah, hard-- and just, like, tryna smash together like big ol' pool balls--" she drew a short series of pairs of rocks clacking off each other, trying in vain to hold onto the other with their tiny stick arms, getting stuck on their bellies. Turbo wheezed through the whole thing.

"Wait, okay, wait," he interjected, "what if they sorta worked like flint, and they threw off sparks when they really got goin'?"

"Oh, my Devs," she gasped. "What if everyone shot fire outta their junk when they came?"

"WHAT?"

"I mean! Y'better keep a fire extinguisher around and be really good at pullin' out or you'll get yourself some serious property damage and cook your partner from the inside literally every time you smash! There'd be like, safe sex ads in every port, and Surge would be handin' out free fire extinguishers left n' right!"

"Mavis what the hell?!" he wheezed, his eyes glistening from laughter. "Though, I gotta say, as far as horrible deaths go, death from screwin' don't sound like the worst."

"At least you got laid, is what you're sayin'?"

"Yeah. At least the last thing y'knew was the sweet throes of orgasm."

"So you're tellin' me," she poked him, "gettin' burned alive from the inside would be worth it just to get laid?"

"Wh-- I wouldn't go into it with the intent of gettin' fried to death, Mavis! I'm just sayin', theoretically if that unfortunate accident did occur…" he paused. "And, I mean, honestly, if the lay was, honest to the Devs, really to die for--"

"Turbo," she interrupted, her stomach beginning to ache from laughter. "Gimme another prompt, already!"

"Okay, okay, cool your jets!" He licked his lips. "Uh… sunshine."

"Huh. Gettin' sappy on me, here?"

"Just playin' the game, Mav."

Sunshine. She let that word sink in. She loved sunshine. The light, the warmth, the way it brought out the color of everything it touched. She knew Turbo liked it, too. It had to have reminded him of home… It occurred to her then, just how much he must have missed it.

An image suddenly came to mind. But she cheated just a bit and twisted it into something more manageable. They were having fun. She did not want to suddenly drag big ol' emotions into it.

Taking a bit more time with this one, she drew a lovely, grassy hill, speckled with flowers. She then drew herself rolling down that hill… very unceremoniously, as if by accident. She was a bouncing, tangled ball of limbs, throwing up dirt, grass, and flowers beneath her. And close behind, she drew Turbo falling the exact same way.

Watching over her shoulder, Turbo's chuckles had taken on a confused air. "Oookay," he muttered. "What am I lookin' at here, babe?"

"I'unno," she shrugged. "We're having a race. In the sunshine."

"And you're winning? Sounds fake."

"Okay, jackass. What if I told you there were jagged rocks at the bottom of the hill?" She drew crude spikes at the bottom. "Would you still wanna win?"

"Absolutely."

"Wow."

"So what's the real reward for winning, other than broken bones and bragging rights? It's always more fun with a reward."

She considered that. "Uh… I don't know, maybe the loser has to pick the winner a bouquet of flowers. I sure drew enough of 'em."

He paused. "A bouquet of flowers."

"Yeah, I mean…" she shrugged, suddenly wanting to backpedal. "Sprites get flowers for winning sometimes, right? Like, a medal and a big blooming bouquet, or whatever."

"Uh huh… so where's this medal?"

Mavis shoved him just a bit. "Gee, I'unno, T, why don't ya go pick one off the medal tree, ya greedy bastard. Y'said 'sunshine.' Sunshine makes flowers."

"It was a joke," he scoffed. Ruffling her hair, he said, "It's cute ya wanna pick me flowers."

Playfully swatting his hand away, she protested, "Maybe y'didn't hear me right -- I said that pickin' you flowers would be a punishment for losing."

"Sure," he leaned his head a bit closer, "but of course, y'must have known you were gonna lose anyway, ergo…"

Mavis looked at him, silently bearing that strange emotion that she felt only for him, wherein she could be irritated, but still know that Turbo being annoying usually meant he was in a good mood. And it was good to see him in a good mood, with how many reasons he had not to be. After so many nights of seeing him deep in program withdrawal, and literally sharing the pain as his glitching bled into her, but holding him close anyways… She could tolerate annoying teasing if it meant he was happy.

It took her a moment to realize that he had gone silent, too. He was still smiling, leaning his head back against the wall, but looked calmer, more thoughtful. There was something peculiar about the way he looked at her, and it made her antsy.

"What?" she asked softly.

He blinked slowly, and his smile pulled into his cheek a bit. Tweaking her nose, he said, "Nothin'."

Suspicious, but not wanting to question him on it, Mavis cleared her throat and tried to move things along. She turned to a new page in her sketchbook. "Well, what do you think? Got another prompt for me?"

This time, he was quiet. She almost wondered if he did not want to play anymore, but with a glance at him, she determined that he was thinking about it more than he was supposed to. He was gazing straight ahead, right through the socket, into the arcade. His lips were pressed into a hard line, and he was lightly tapping his thumbs together. He seemed reluctant… almost anxious.

"Hey," Mavis said. "You're not supposed to think about it."

"Yeah, yeah." He did not look at her. "I got one for ya. Fun."

She was not expecting that answer. It felt so broad, compared to the other ones. "...Fun, huh?"

"Yeah," he said, rolling his head back and peering down his cheek at her. "Draw what that makes you think of."

She squinted. There was some kind of ulterior motive there that had her suspicious. Still, she shrugged. "Okeydokey, weirdo."

Fun, fun, fun. Images and colors fought for the forefront of her brain, but she could not hear one single, solid idea through the overlapping noises in her head. It did not take long for her to decide that she had been thinking too hard. She was making it way harder than it had to be. Willing to just get it over with, she put pencil to paper, closed her eyes, and let her hand follow the flow of her thoughts.

As she listened to the graphite scratching, she realized that she had been having so much trouble because ‘fun' was manifesting in her head as feelings and not one specific concept. It felt like… a thrill, a rush, a genuine high. It was triumphant victory and motivating failure. It was acrobatics, dizzying aerial maneuvers, falling, flying. Wild, messy rainbows. Loud music and explosions she could feel in her chest. Fireworks. Theatrics. Clever pranks. Stupid pranks. Petty crime. Booze, bad decisions, rough sex, risky business. It was what she lived for. It was in her code just as much as her paintbrush.

She really believed it was the core of her very being.

A minute passed before she opened her eyes and observed her work. It was just about as cluttered, ugly, and near-incomprehensible as she expected. Hard lines criss-crossed with no rhyme or reason. Shapes and figures overlapped until they were nearly unrecognizable, but she could make out a few. There was a guitar, a trumpet, a drum, and music notes. There were glass bottles, many broken. There were bits of confetti and paint splatter that would have been rainbow. Somewhere, there was a suspiciously phallic shape. But more than anything, there were clouds, feathers, and wings.

It was hideous. She liked it.

Turbo’s weight pushed against her a bit as he leaned in to see. “All done?”

“Yep. Whatcha think?"

He was quiet for a moment before making a comment. “Don't see much of that stuff in here, huh.”

She looked at him with slight concern. He just looked thoughtful. She frowned, wondering if confinement was particularly making him depressed that night. There truly were very few ways to have fun the way they used to, being locked up in a box. A pang of sympathy tapped in her chest, and she subconsciously rubbed his leg a bit, comfortingly.

Turbo just looked at her hand with apparent confusion, and then at her with a serious brow. "Uh, no," he said flatly. "I wanna know when you last did any of those things."

She blinked, taken aback. "What?"

"Y'heard me."

After an automatic moment's thought, she realized an upsetting thing. She really could not remember off the top of her head. But there was something about Turbo's tone that felt accusatory, and her guard went up.

"When am I ever not doing these things?"

"Really?" His expression fell flat. "When was the last time you pulled a prank? Or flew around, just for the fun of it? You sure don't fly in here."

"I can't fly in here," she protested. "There's no room."

"Exactly!"

She huffed. "If you have something to say, T, will you just say it?"

He bit back words for a moment, his brow furrowing as he reconsidered, before he sighed and smacked his tongue. "Mav, you've been workin' way too hard."

She withdrew a bit. "Seriously? You're mad at me for working to get you out of here?"

Turbo sighed, briefly rubbing his face. "I ain't mad, I'm… Look, you're workin' too much. It ain't like you."

She scoffed. "I ain't a hard worker?"

He burst into a chuckle. "Are y'serious?"

Face getting hot, she bristled. "Be fair, T. I work real hard when I actually care about something."

He went quiet, and his gaze fell a bit. She could not help but look away, too. It was hard to talk about just how badly she wanted him out, how hard it was to see him in a cage, sick and suffering. And in her day to day life… she was lonely. She missed her other half. There seemed little she would not have done to have him back.

The hard work and sleepless nights, it was almost all for his sake. But it was really for hers, too.

Turbo spoke again, a very real exasperation in his voice. "Look, ya gotta know at least that if y'don't pace yourself, your engine's gonna burn out, n' then you won't be able to work at all. Does that sound good to you?"

"I'm not burning out," she mumbled. "I'm fine. I get enough of a break when I come hang out in here. I mean-- when we're not still working."

He waited again, and she could feel him looking at her. "Mav… take a break."

"I've been takin' too many breaks."

"Obviously, you're not. Take a longer break."

Idly, she drew small bubbles on her already cluttered drawing. "So… what, like a weekend?"

"Try a whole week."

"A week?" Her gaze snapped to him in disbelief. "I-- I-- No, I can't take a week off. That new motorcycle game just got plugged in and I haven't even been inside yet. I feel like we're so close to figuring something out--"

"Can I draw something?"

"...What?"

"Gimme your sketchbook," he beckoned at it.

"Uh, sure, knock yourself out," she said, tossing the book and pencil in his lap. Turbo sure was acting weird that night. She was beginning to just accept it.

As he began to draw, she put her face in her hands and pushed curled fingers through her hair. In a sighing, apologetic voice, she said, "Look, T, it's not like I don't appreciate your, uh… concern. Well-- Not like it ain’t also real annoying, but... It's just that-- I'm-- I don't even think I could relax if I took a week off. I'd just be stressing about all I could be gettin' done, and thinkin' about all the days I was settin' us back…"

Turbo did not reply, or even look at her. His focus remained on the paper against his bent knees. Ever since he ended up in the socket, he had been drawing more and more. She would find his artwork littering the floor almost as much as his notes. It was endearing to see.

Suddenly feeling as sad as she was tired, she scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder, watching him work. It was always sort of hypnotic. Turbo had such a unique drawing style, evolved from years of blueprints and mechanic work -- he seemed to think almost entirely in perfectly clean lines and sharp angles. His work was abstract and boxy, rarely illustrating any clear figure, but beautiful in its own right. More often than not, it looked so pristine, one might have thought a machine printed it. And indeed, as she watched, his arm moved so mechanically, as if his skeleton were made of metal. She would not have been surprised if it was.

Letting her eyes follow the motion of his hand made her eyelids heavy. As curious as she was about his drawing, she just could not keep her eyes open.

Mumbling softly, she said, "I can't sit back and do nothing. Not while there's anything I could do. So, just… let me do this. I'll be fine. I know how to--"

The rough scrape of paper against her legs perked her up as Turbo shoved the sketchbook back into her lap and the pencil clattered to the floor. When she opened her eyes, squinting through the sleepy fog, she saw what she expected -- a geometrical contour drawing. However, as her eyes adjusted and she began to decipher the abstract figures, she saw something entirely unexpected.

Flowers.

Confusion was her first response. Why flowers? Turbo was hardly a flowery guy, much less one to give flowers.

Then she remembered their prior conversation. The prize flowers. The ones the loser had to pick.

She looked at him, lips parted, brows squinting, in some attempt to understand. He was not looking at her, but rather, glancing around at nothing in particular, tapping his leg.

"I don't--..." she muttered. "Why?"

He grunted, and then barely opened his mouth to grumble, "...Not that many options for flowers in here."

"Well-- well yeah, but…" she looked at the page. "What did I win?"

He shrugged and shook his head. "I'unno, pick something. You're definitely the best at what you're doing. No one else could help me the way you are. And you've gotten so much done. Like, a crazy amount. So, you won. You've earned a break."

Mavis was so thrown for a loop, she almost felt dizzy. The sweet gesture, the sweet words… they were not a common occurrence for him. Granted, they had been growing in frequency ever since the two were reunited, but still…

"I…" she fumbled. "I wasn't competing. I just wanna win you a way outta here."

Turbo rubbed his face. "I cant believe how much convincing it's taking to get you to go goof off."

"...Things are a bit different now."

"I know."

"You want me to go out there and play around the way I used to? The way we used to, together?" Her words proceeded slowly, quietly, and unsteadily, as if they were fragile. A sort of grief weighed down on her heart. "It just… doesn't… feel the same anymore. Even if I tried, I'd just… be thinkin' of you."

He sighed deeply.

She added sadly, shoulders sinking, "Nothin's been the same since I… thought you were gone."

"But I'm here now," he mumbled. "I'm back."

"I know, but… I need you… back. In my life. Again. For real."

Turbo fell silent, but as Mavis studied the crisp lines of the drawing in her lap and idly scratched her foot, she could practically hear words sitting just behind his lips. He was taking his time with them, and she gave him space to do so, mostly because she was almost afraid of what he would say next. What she was about to feel.

Finally, he spoke in a slow, soft voice, “Mav…”

Reluctantly, she looked at him. He had an elbow propped up on his knee, his hand buried in his hair as he leaned his forehead against his palm. His eyes gazed straight ahead into the dim light from the arcade that washed a blue tone over his skin, making the gold glow of his heavy-lidded eyes burn bright in contrast.

She swallowed. “T…?”

He took in a breath through his lips, sat with it, closed his eyes, and let words flow on the exhale. “You remember what I said… that night… about never wantin’ to make you… miserable?”

Mavis’ heart grew tight and heavy at the memory. That night. The last time they spoke before he…

“Yes,” she breathed, not taking her eyes off him.

“And how I said… I’d actually try to keep that from happening?”

“...Yeah.”

He shrugged, flexing his fingers in his hair. “This is… me doin’ that. I’m just tryin’ to keep my word, Mav.”

“Turbo,” she said, gently but firmly squeezing his shoulder, “you’re not making me miserable.”

He looked her plain in the eye. “Tonight’s the first I’ve heard ya laugh in four days.”

She froze. That fact stunned her. That could not have been true, but she had obviously not been keeping track. Had Turbo been keeping track?

In response to her silence, he nodded a bit. “Yeah… Yeah. Doesn’t sound like Make-it Mavis, does it?”

Mavis did not know what to say. Slowly, her gaze fell. Her emotions were too crowded to move in any one direction, but she felt shame begin to simmer in the pit of her stomach. Somehow, she felt that she had done something wrong -- and not in a fun way. She had been trying so hard to help him… but did she just let him down? Did she let herself down?

Turbo took notice of her conflict. He twisted a bit to place his hand on the side of her neck and coax her jaw to tilt up again. “Hey, Mav,” he almost whispered, “don’t be like that. You’ve done good. Really good. It’s… kinda insane actually. It’s very obvious how dedicated you are to-- to helpin’ me, but… workin’ to the point of this, is just… It ain’t you, Mav. It just ain’t you. And I…”

His words caught, and Mavis could see his face clearly wrestling the words. With a bit of a bonk, he rested his forehead against hers and squeezed his eyes shut.

“I need you in my life, too… for real.”

It seemed to Mavis that all the heat in her body rushed to her face. Her chest quivered, scrambling for any words to push out, and coming up empty.

Turbo continued anyway, “So, y’know, if you really wanna help me… take… care of yourself, and… stay yourself. Okay?”

Hard memories crashed into the back of her head, memories from the darkest time of her life. She heard echoes of a promise she had made to his memory, a promise that was, in all sincerity, one she made to herself.

She caved.

“Okay,” she nodded slightly.

As he opened his eyes, their glow nearly strained her own. Slowly, his cheeks lifted in a smile. “Yeah?”

“Yeah,” she sighed hoarsely through her own rueful grin. “You’re right. I need a break. And I’ll take it.”

A truly exhausted sigh of relief washed over her face as he leaned back to give them both some breathing room. “Thank the Devs, finally,” he laughed airily. “Y’stubborn lil’ mule, ya won’t even listen to me when I tell ya to do stuff you wanna do!”

She laughed too, “I’m doin’ it now, jackass!”

“Yeah, just as I started to wonder how much rope I had left ‘til I’d reach the end!”

“Look, I know I’m too good at what I do, so I’ll try my best to get just a little worse,” she smiled, leaning out of his touch. “I’ll play hooky for a week, for starters. And I’ll do…”

“Whatever the hell you want?” he guessed, glancing down his grinning cheek at her.

“I’ll do my damn best, anyway. I would love to at least get some pranks in… I think the sprites out there have had it too easy since I, uh, mysteriously stopped.”

“Mmm,” he hummed, giving a long nod. “That there’s a problem, too. Gotta keep up appearances, Mav. Sprites will know something’s up if you’re suddenly so well behaved that they can leave pies coolin’ on sills.”

“Or balcony doors open.”

“Ah,” he chuckled. “You have not said anythin’ about Gene for ages. When’s the last time ya pranked that guy?”

Unable to remember, she said, “Well, I think I can get him pretty good this weekend. He’s hostin’ someone’s stupid birthday-- I think it’s, uh, Norwood’s, the guy with the cats--”

“PussyMagnet69?”

Mavis’ throat nearly ripped from the size of her surprise cackling.

Turbo joined in, insisting, “That was his name, Mav! How could ya forget?!”

Through tears, she wheezed, “Okay, okay-- But seriously-- I think if I can get in the penthouse early enough-- and I can-- I can switch all his clear alcohol with vinegar--”

Turbo was already keeling into his lap.

She continued, nearly shouting over his laughter, “Then I can make it a party no one will ever forget, and I can make off with a whole buttload of booze!”

Snorting, Turbo threw himself upright again, his hair flying haphazardly. “No, no, you gotta stay at least long enough to see the looks on their faces--” “Well, obviously--”

“And then remember ‘em really well and draw ‘em all out so I can see ‘em too! Damn, why do I gotta miss that?”

“Hey,” she laughed lowly, pushing his shoulder. “I’ll bring ya the drawings, and I’ll bring ya the booze, and then we can get flat out wasted n’ go as wild as this box can-- Well, uh--”

She had forgotten to ask something. Turbo looked at her quizzically.

“I mean, uh,” she said quietly, still managing to hold a smile, “you’ll let me in, right? Am I-- Am I allowed to come back here… on vacation?”

Turbo almost looked stricken, and after a moment’s thought that betrayed a bit of anxiety in his eyes, he said, “Well… obviously. Don’t feel like you gotta or anythin’, though. I’m a grown-ass man, I don’t need a babysitter. But, y’know, if you really wanna come over, you can.”

Mavis’ shoulders dropped and half a scoff slipped out of her. “Of course I wanna hang out with you. Y’kiddin’ me, T?”

For a second, he gave her an uncharacteristically warm half-smile. He chuffed a bit. “Arright,” he said, twisting to open his arms to her and gesture inward. “C’mere. Bring it in.”

Forcing an eye-roll that was ruined by her smiling face, she scooted right up and wrapped her arms around his torso, and he hugged back tightly. The closeness felt so well-needed, as if she were touch-starved without realizing. Surely, they had still been touching over the last little while… but this was the first time she felt present for it in days. She hummed appreciatively, resting her chin over his shoulder.

“Yeah,” he sighed, smugness creeping into his voice as he rubbed her back, “should’a known I couldn’t shake ya. After all, I am your lifelong obsession, ain’t I?”

She groaned. “Turbo…”

“It’s kinda creepy, there, Cherry Bomb. Takin’ advantage of the fact that I don’t got a game to get ya banned from.”

“Like I could even get through the barricade here without your help,” she considered. “Or without dynamite, but, y’know. I’d hate to have to build it again.”

Turbo just chuckled. He buried his face against the side of her neck and let out a deep, hot sigh through his nose that sent a tiny wave of goosebumps over her skin. She held him tight, soaking in the exceptional heat from his skin. At times such as this, memories would flood in from the time she believed she had lost him, and her chest would glow with incredulous, almost painful gratitude to have him back.

Mavis chewed her lip for a moment, possessed by the emotion growing in her body. She tucked her head in, the bridge of her nose pressed against his collarbone. Sweetly, sadly, she mumbled, “Y’know I miss you, T. I miss havin’ a friend out there.”

His hand thumped softly against her shoulder blade. “...Yeah. I know, Mav,” he muttered. He then turned his head until his face was in her hair, his mouth angled just behind her ear. She could feel his lips move as he said, “I’m pretty lucky to have a friend in here.”

Heart aching, Mavis pulled back to look him in the face. He just looked thoughtful, meeting her gaze with a bit of a squint. “Seems like whatever luck I’ve had since this mess started has had somethin’ to do with you. How’d that happen? Once upon a time, you were the biggest pain-in-the-ass problem child in my life.”

A small laugh blew from her throat, half warm, half naughty. “Things are different now… and you forget I’m a good-luck-charm Easter Egg.”

Turbo chuckled, and his eyes dropped to her mouth as a hand snaked behind her head. “Whatever you say.”

She drew closer, her eyes closing with an airy, snarky chuckle. “But I’m still a pain in the ass.”

“Don’t I know it,” he breathed, before his lips made contact with hers.

She kissed back gladly, folding her knees and bringing them up close as she let the comforting warmth in her face and chest slowly spread throughout her body. The kiss did not break, only deepened, and after his hands tugged under the crook of her legs, she found herself grabbing his shoulders and gracefully moving to straddle his lap. All she wanted was to be closer, to hold him as flush against her body as she could, and it was a sentiment he clearly returned. His rough hands roamed over her slender curves, clenching fistfuls of her shirt and letting his fingers skirt beneath the fabric. As her head and body began to buzz with all-too-neglected excitement, she broke away from his mouth to kiss a trail down to his neck and happily nip at the salty skin there.

For a few moments, Turbo merely squeezed her hip bones in appreciation and uttered naught but a few shivery sighs, but Mavis soon noticed that he was a bit too still and quiet. No sooner had she noticed than Turbo leaned his head into hers a bit, ducking his face down.

“I will get out of here,” he whispered insistently. “I swear I will.”

Mavis paused before pulling back to look at him. He did not look sad, no -- he just looked determined. There was a fire in his eyes that made him look unstoppable, like nothing could possibly hold him back from taking his place in the world again. She believed it fully.

“I know you will,” she muttered back. “And I’ll be there.”

He scoffed a bit. “And then? Then I’ll get ya some real flowers. Call those ones over there a placeholder.”

Mavis twisted a bit to look at the sketchbook she had tossed to the floor, the graphite lines softly illuminated from the light shining through the socket.

“Hm,” she hummed. “Don’t bother. These ones are better.”

When he laughed briefly, she looked back at him to see a lopsided grin that flashed his pointed teeth. “Okay, princess, how about this? Whatever kingdom I end up ruling--”

“Ruling, huh?”

He ignored her and continued, “I’ll program a room just for you, and then I’ll draw flowers on the walls like a gap-toothed madman, and I’ll make ‘em so Dev-damned bright and colorful and horrendously ugly that no one could spend more than five minutes in there without gettin’ a migraine.”

Mavis laughed, clapping his shoulder a bit. “See, now that sounds perfect. Seriously. Please do that. That’s so much better than flowers.”

Turbo’s eyes narrowed as his grin grew. “Consider it done.”

“Now,” she wrapped her arms behind his neck, leaning her forehead against his. “Will ya please go back to bein’ a jerk for a while? All this sweetness and thoughtfulness, it--” she dropped into her roughest, most unflattering Turbo impression, complete with bad accent, “‘it ain’t like you.’”

Turbo’s brows shot upward, and he sputtered through a wild grin. “Ooh, okay, smart-mouth,” he said, cracking his neck and knuckles. “Ya wanna get reacquainted? Let’s get reacquainted.”

With that, he seized her by the ribs and roughly yanked her in, lunging for her neck like a snake. As his teeth sank in, Mavis’ short yelp of pain and surprise turned into thrilled, dirty, self-satisfied laughter. The mushy stuff was finally over. It was time to have fun again.

Mavis was still unsure of how effective her little vacation would be, but as far as she was concerned, she was off to a pretty good start.

#fanfiction #turbo #make it mavis #wreck it ralph #the shitgoblins #yeah have another story i worked on whenever i couldnt sleep #i just wanted to write something fun and cute for the babies #of course theres bittersweet bc i cant help myself #but i hope yall enjoy this silly mess #rare non-AU content

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erictmason · 6 years ago

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THEY’RE GONNA WRECK IT: A “Ralph Breaks The Internet” Review

I don’t know that I ever would have told you that the original “Wreck-it Ralph”, one of the more pleasant surprises of post-Pixar-merger Disney, “needed” a sequel; the original’s story was compelling and complete enough on its own. But the characters were so much fun to spend time with and the world felt so intrinsically interesting that it also seemed like a prime candidate to give a sequel to anyway. And to its credit “Ralph Breaks The Internet” starts from a premise clearly designed to keep it from simply being a needless retread of the original, trading the halls of an old Arcade for the world wide web. Unfortunately, the resulting film, while not exactly a TOTAL wash, also feels like it’s learned all the wrong lessons from its predecessor, taking an anted-up version of the first movie’s playful Video Game in-jokes that were there a mere garnish and here turning them into an inescapable aspect of the entire story that severely compromises its narrative integrity.

(SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT)

(SPOILER SPACE)

Said narrative picks up six years after the events of the original, with Ralph happy as can be with his lot in life nowadays: thanks to his friendship with “Sugar Rush” superstar Vanellope Von Schweetz, he’s more than content to just do his job and hang out with her goofing off all night. Vanellope, however, feels increasingly constrained by the repetitive limits of her closed-off racing world, leading Ralph to try and give her a new surprise or two to cheer her up; unfortunately that just leads to "Sugar Rush” getting broken. Ralph and Vanellope thus decide to venture into the arcade’s newly connected Wi-Fi system to reach The Internet in hopes of finding the part necessary to fix the game before it’s permanently unplugged.

Which kind of sounds like a bit of an overcooked premise, and indeed the number of contrivances the movie throws at you more or less right out the gate to get to where it wants to go speaks to the problem at the heart of the whole thing, but to start things out on a relatively positive note: Ralph and Vanellope remain a great pair of characters, and if nothing else the opening few minutes of the movie honestly do make for a pleasant little coda to the first movie. More to the point, there actually IS something admirable about how this movie chooses to dig into how their characters have changed and where they stand: now that he has an anchor of affirmation in Vanellope, Ralph is able to find acceptance and fulfillment in the same places he once felt rejected by...but once that anchor is threatened (as it is when Vanellope finds herself increasingly attracted to the idea of staying online in the wild and unpredictable world of an online racer called “Slaughter Race”), all of his old insecurities begin to surface. Meanwhile the same drive to strive for something greater that drove Vanellope in the first movie has now begun to slowly but surely push her out of “Sugar Rush”; this one’s a bit shakier (and the movie fumbles it pretty much completely in the execution but we’ll get to that) but you really can see the emotional logic it works on in a way that adds up, especially because the movie genuinely has the courage of its convictions and chooses to pursue it to its most logical conclusion rather than try to hedge its bets or chicken out at the last minute.

As well, basically all of the new characters work. The obvious highlight is Gal Gadot as Shank, the Boss Character of “Slaughter Race”; even as her presence in the movie overall is surprisingly limited given her importance to the main emotional arc that (eventually) reveals itself as the heart of the story, she is nonetheless an immediately enjoyable presence, at once tough as nails and On The Edge (one of the movie’s better sight gags is how the world of “Slaughter Race” is bathed in the reds and browns that dominated Video Games for most of the mid-00′s and Shank feels right at home in that tone) but also a caring figure who looks at her job with a genuine sense of Duty and Honor. Likewise Taraji P. Henson’s Yesss is delightful, a beaming bouncing presence whose constantly-changing look is a consistent delight (and who may have the most enjoyably subtle details of animation of any character in the movie with the way her coat lights up whenever she gets excited being a personal favorite). But even minor characters like the Search Engine curator Knowsmore (our now-traditional Alan Tudyk role) and Bill Hader’s J.P. Spamley are genuinely fun new additions to the overall cast. You do find yourself wishing they could maybe get a bit more screen time or else be better integrated into the overall story, but even so I really liked just about all of them and they do a lot to buoy the whole thing.

Unfortunately none of them, nor the movie’s clever-if-not-especially-original conception of what “The Internet” would mean to this kind of world (my personal favorite touch might be portraying pop-up ads as old-school Newsies), can really add up to much in the face of the larger problem here. See, even though they’re a relatively minor presence in the overall movie, the original “Wreck-it Ralph” hyped up the presence of its various Video Game character cameos (many of whom return here), and the attendant in-jokes that came with them. “Ralph Breaks The Internet” apparently seems to have the mistaken belief that it was this wink-wink nudge-nudge meta-humor at the original’s margins that was in fact the key to its success and thus, using The Internet as a launching pad to broaden its range of targets, has made that element much, much more prominent this time around. Sometimes that does make for amusing gags; the extended (and heavily-touted) scene where Vanellope meets the other Disney Princesses is indeed a particular highlight, and the one sequence where the movie comes even remotely close with reconciling its desire to indulge in fairly tired meta-textual snark with actually trying to tell any sort of real story. Far more often we have to deal with things like how a joke about Ralph making the age-old mistake of reading the comments stands in for any kind of actual attempt to show how his old anxieties are resurfacing (in a moment that fails to land almost completely; it is honestly impossible to tell while watching it how seriously the movie expects us to take it), or even more frustrating how Vanellope’s realization that she wants to stay in “Slaughter Race” is told to us through an incredibly ineffectual and far too self-aware parody of the old Disney-style “I Want” song. That Vanellope would in fact choose to leave Sugar Rush behind is already the biggest buy-in the movie asks us to make of its characters, so that failed short-cut proves especially harmful to the overall arc here. It all leads to a finale that feels like it could, indeed even should, work for how frankly it chooses to tackle the underlying emotional problems at the heart of the story, but it ultimately can’t because the movie just flat-out has not done the work to really earn it.

There are other smaller problems as well; Fix-it Felix and Calhoun, the primary side-characters from the first film, are here given what feels like it should be the lead-in to an enjoyable and inspired B-story of their own but instead wind up being nothing more than glorified cameos. I’m also not super fond of how the movie actively begs the audience to question the logical nature of its world and characters as often (and seemingly without much thought) as it does. But the real fundamental issue here is that “Ralph Breaks The Internet” just plain cannot square its two competing impulses; the desire to actually try and tell a story that meaningfully expands on the original’s characters in some genuinely-daring ways is ultimately undone by the far-stronger drive to weigh it all down beneath a lot of knowing referential humor that feels far less relevant and insightful than the writers think it is. There really is something good deep in the heart of all of this, but, sad as it is to say, it basically gets wrecked this time around.

#disney #wreck it ralph #ralph breaks the internet #review #spoilers #disney spoilers #My writing

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lozhashersay · 6 years ago

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I want to start this review off with complete honesty. I didn’t like Wreck It Ralph all that much so as you can imagine I wasn’t that thrilled when the sequel came out, but as I’m still on my Disney quest even though I have now been to Disneyland (if all goes to plan I will go again in 2019) I decided to give it a go.

I don’t know if it was because of the way I was feeling that day but the very obvious themes of anxiety and confidence issues actually made me cry and leads to to conclude that I didn’t like this film very much at all. I appreciate the effort to include these very real problems but I don’t feel like they were handled very well at all, the fact Ralph’s insecurity was exploited so visually and he was belittled and turned into a literal monster because of this was almost traumatising. I know this was supposed to be away to address these themes and show everyone they understand and give people who suffer and outlet and something to relate to and what not but bringing up those issues so abruptly and displaying them so forcefully was wrong. But again, maybe that was just how I was feeling that day.

What I did like about the film was the references to everything else, the Disney empire, the Princess’ scene was excellent, the Stormtroopers and Stan Lee cameo again added such a surreal feel to the film, it made it seem so familiar.

The other themes expressed were decent enough, the acute separation anxiety Ralph showed before the monster ending seemed like a nicer way to address something so real. Vanellope wanted more, she wanted new, but her fit with Ralph didn’t seem convincing after all, and Ralph didn’t seem like Ralph, we knew he had existential issues after the previous film, and he coped by putting such a strain on V’s shoulders and maybe this is what drove them apart and to be so different. I just wasn’t that keen. But it was nice to see the bonds grow between the other characters, and to see life beyond the games progress, but I feel like this could have been better explored in some Disney shorts rather than a film that made me sad.

Overall I rate the previously oversweet Ralph Breaks the Internet a 5/10, it wasn’t bad, but Disney have done so much better, and I just don’t see the point in this sequel other than to depress adults and to scar those with mental health or young children. Not a fan, sorry.

#wreck it ralph #ralph breaks the internet #john c. reilly #sarah silverman #stan lee #Disney #jack mcbrayer #jane lynch #alan tudyk #taraji p. henson #gal gadot #vanellope #Film Review #reviews #Cineworld Unlimited #Cineworld Cinemas #cineworld

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sharksfood · 6 years ago

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spoilers for Ralph Breaks the Internet (Wreck-It Ralph 2)

SO i was going to wait to record my thoughts on Ralph Breaks the Internet until after i finished my homework but i cant stop thinking about it!!!

anyways, I saw RBTI on Tuesday night in 3D and it was AMAZING!! i mean, both the movie by itself and how it looked in 3D. i loved that they put in a nod to those movies that took 3D to the fullest potential with stuff coming at you from the screen, when Ralph was throwing the football into the air.

BESIDES THAT i LOVED this movie!!!! i’m no negative nancy when it comes to sequels and i had been wanting a WIR followup since the first one came out!

but to get the biggest aspect out of the way, i was not always on board with the plot of Ralph and Vanellope going into the Internet. when I first heard the movie announcement and the whole Internet aspect it didn’t totally make sense to me. I mean, I originally thought the gang going into online games was a good mix between Internet and video games (since WIR revolves around video games). However I quickly changed my mind, especially since they WOULD be going into online/mobile games.

My initial reaction to the movie as a whole was EXTREMELY POSITIVE!!! I loved how the animation looked, the fact that we got an introduction on what Ralph, Vanellope, Felix, and Tammy (Calhoun) had been up to since the last movie, and that everything including the arcade had changed in basically real time. That last part was a bit sad too, especially with how few games were left in the arcade and that it seems business was not as good for Mr. Litwak as it used to be. BUT this movie, especially the beginning, was like catching up with an old friend after a long time apart! WIR means so much to me and I was so glad Disney took the time to connect to those who’d seen and loved the first movie.

I’ll admit I was a little nervous with how they’d handle the Internet, especially for a fictional universe thats based on the real one, like WIR. I knew they’d have to create fake websites and video games and what not to fit the plot and because of licensing rights. I’m also glad they did this because if Yesss were the algorithm for actual BuzzFeed or YouTube I don’t think they’d let anyone forget that. plus that would be too 4th wall breaking in my opinion. and this movie did A LOT or meta/4th wall stuff. I dont think any of the references or hints or real-world tie ins were annoying or over the top, it was the right amount for me. they could have made everything fictional, but that would fail to hook people. it was the right amount of fiction and real-life.

that being said, I do think some of the things Ralph, Vanellope, and Yesss accomplished couldn’t work in the real world. What bothered me is that any video of Ralph showed him as 3D, like how he looks in Sugar Rush or in the Game Central Station. Yes, that is how he looks “inside” the games and from other video game character’s perspective, but does that work for humans? Maybe it wasn’t explained very well, thats all. WIR is at times a little hard to wrap my head around. But then again, not everything needs to be explained or completely realistic, since, you know, video game characters are not able to coexist in each other’s games or buy stuff from Ebay.

the new characters was SO GOOD especially Yesss, Shank, and Knowsmore (to me anyways). I would have liked if the new characters had interacted with each other on screen more (like Yesss and Shank are friends but you wouldn’t know that without each of them saying so). also the Disney Princesses were adorable and actually more plot-related than i thought they’d be!

the biggest surprise for me is how much importance the movie gave to Vanellope for being a princess, i mean, she got a song and everything! To me she never gave her princessship much mind, since she only wanted to be a racer. by the end of the movie she was farther from being a princess than before. but i think this was intentional and why we got the scene with the other princesses in the first place, Disney wanted to show that there’s no one way to be a princess. obviously Pixar addressed this with Merida, and I think Moana is a good example, too, but Vanellope really is the least-princessy princess. I’m also glad that they didn’t make her song or voice too cute/pretty, it fit with her character, personality, and dream!

the part of this movie that my most impactful for me was the message and eventually plot structure of how Ralph and Vanellope’s friendship was addressed. WIR means a lot to me is many ways, but the fact that romance or blood family isnt the main relationship dynamic is huge. I mean, I can’t think of many Disney/Pixar movies that do this, and even those that do, friendship is just a subplot. Ralph and Vanellope becoming friends, protecting one another, even in the face of their differences is one of the main messages of WIR (the other being self-acceptance and following your heart). RBTI took this further with the message of how friends can grow, drift apart, have difference dreams, become too attached, and build negative friendships based on anxieties. I’ve NEVER seen this in an animated movie, and it hit me pretty hard.

so with anxiety in mind, I really liked how Vanellope’s glitching was utilized, i mean since she now has a general control on it, she doesn’t glitch out as much. the only time she does in RBTI is when she wants to or when she’s super anxious. its almost like a physical symptom of her having a panic attack. (on a personal note, Vanellope’s glitching was the main thing that helped me get over my fear of glitch, so that relation to anxiety and fear is very meaningful to me) but Vanellope’s anxieties were very different from Ralph’s, which is good! they both struggled with being accepted within their games in the past, and part of that still lingers, though now, especially for Ralph, it manifests in anxiety over their friendship. I really like the direction that Disney/Pixar has taken with some of their movies recently in that the main antagonist is not a villain, but rather an emotion or conflict anthropomorphized.

as for the characters, Ralph and Vanellope were PERFECT. Vanellope is my favorite and she was just amazing. Their characters were the right amount of the same from the first movie and different, since there’s been 6 years for them to grow. I’m also really happy that Felix and Tammy were in RBTI, though I wish they were in it more. I mean, this was Ralph and Vanellope’s movie, but most of Tammy’s appearances were just for comedic affect, in my opinion. They also seemed way different, but I guess that’s marriage? It’s as if their character-specific dialogue and quirks were toned down. Maybe after a second viewing it’ll make more sense to me.

My only other complaints are that when Ralph accidentally finds the comment section of BuzzTube, his reaction and that whole scene didn’t add much to the story. I think it was important, especially given Ralph’s past, but it was so short. Ralph seemed to have forgotten all about it after the scene ended. The comments and toxic parts of the Internet play a much bigger role than that, so I wish it was addressed better. I also thought it was weird that we didn’t get any clear context as to why Mr. Litwak got Wifi in the first place. I mean, I assumed it was to get an online presence for the Arcade, but i don’t think that was actually addressed. Of course thats a minor thing compared to my previous comment.

The last thing I noticed is that the main conflict of the movie, the steering wheel of Sugar Rush breaking and how they’d need to buy a new one or Sugar Rush would be gone for good, was introduced too soon. I think this was done because there was so much content to get through within 2 hours, and I know that the main premise was involving the Internet, so staying in the Arcade would defeat this purpose. It’s just that to me it all sort of fell into place a little too easy and fast. Also, Vanellope feeling trapped in a boring loop of her game and other feelings from the characters in the beginning were told rather than shown. I know already mentioned that I thought certain things weren’t “explained” well enough, but I mean that like, both visually and through dialogue. With the emotional parts of the movie’s conflicts, I think those developed well once Ralph and Vanellope got into the Internet, but it seemed “presented” almost at first. Again, I only saw it once and its not totally fresh in my mind anymore, so maybe after seeing it again it’ll clear this up.

okay so as for the aesthetic and animation of RBTI it was GORGEOUS!!! I love how Disney/Pixar can take things like the Internet or your brain (like in Inside Out) and turn them into working cities/structures that are creative and make sense! I really like that Pop Ups are maneuvered by sentient beings like street salespeople, since the feeling of online popups and ads is the same! Also, the Dark Web being the underbelly of the Internet “city” and all the avatars are dressed like theyre in Incognito mode is amazing. i also LOVED the viruses, since they looked like gross, scary, creepy fictional bugs or visual germs (they reminded me of Osmosis Jones in a way). How the viruses functioned, at least the Insecurity Virus, made sense for how I think most people imagine computer viruses to act. I honestly don’t know how that stuff happens, and I bet Disney knew most of their audiences dont either, so they took some artistic liberties with that in mind. But the virus was a clever plot device because it literally detected insecurities, both in that Ralph/Vanellope were insecure about their friendship, and neither of them “belonged” in the Internet.

ANOTHER THING is when Shank and her crew had to fight the Slaughter Race players, the distinction between player and NPC was clear and funny. It felt very GTA to me. How they handled Slaughter Race in general was great, since it was obviously a violent video game, but they didn’t tone it down too much to loose that feeling. I think it would’ve been cool to see cars and buildings “update” like they do in some games, too. OH the way that the Virus Ralphs joined together to make the Giant Ralph and that they kept moving to make the entire thing kinetic was SO CREEPY BUT COOL!!! that must have taken forever to animate. I also noticed that on the Giant Ralph the little virus dudes were like laying down or posed a certain way to give the impression of different textures or colors on Giant Ralph, which is amazing!!! the filmmakers and animators paid so much care to the look and feel of this movie and it really paid off.

okay last few things before I forget: all of the main characters were great examples of positive and negative personality aspects that real people could reflect on. Ralph felt so much more openly emotional and body positive than in the first, which for a dude character is great!! Vanellope has always been a great example of a girl who likes “tomboy” or “masculine” stuff but still likes cute and “girly” stuff (i mean she obviously wasn’t into the whole princess thing but she found her own way around it!). Felix and Tammy in RBTI were obviously an example on how married couples can still love each other just like the day they met! Did i mention how much I love Yesss? I love her SO MUCH!!! she wore a different outfit/hairstyle every time we saw her, she was fun and smart and over the course of the movie grows to actually care about Ralph and Vanellope beyond their Internet fame. the MUSIC was fantastic as always, and I love Imagine Dragon’s song and the Julia Michaels rendition of Vanellope’s song on Slaughter Race.

Just like the first one, this movie was funny, heartwarming, emotional, and really fun!! I hope it gets all the recognition and love it deserves. I can’t accurately say if I like this one of the previous better, since I’ve only seen it once. HOWEVER I ma really glad that Disney has made a lot of merch for RBTI since the first one got barely anything. All in all, I loved Ralph Breaks the Internet!!!!

P.S. Did yall see the after credits scene?

#babble #ralph breaks the internet #wreck it ralph 2 #ralph breaks the internet spoilers #sorry this is so long i have many feelings

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pedrobrvs · 7 years ago

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Wreck-it Ralph 2 Analysis

With almost all the Disney princesses (that belong in the "Disney Princess" line) appearing in Disney's newest movie, many people went crazy, many more went "oh. that's neat i guess", but it caused some discussion. The changes done to all the characters to fit with the Wreck-it Ralph universe were disappointing to those who were looking forward to see a more faithful recreation (like me), and some people even brought up the argument of "Same face syndrome" again.

Since I absolutely adore Disney animation (It being the job of my dreams and all), I'm making this post in hopes of shining light on the resemblances and differences and arguing that maybe these adaptions are more respectful to the originals than people give them credit for.

For that I'm comparing most of them with the originals, for obvious reasons, and when applicable I'll also compare with the gaming franchise Kingdom Hearts, since rather than adapting the models to fit an uniform style, Square-Enix decided to recreate them as closely as they could. Head under the cut to see all of them!

SNOW WHITE (1937)

Before I explain the similarities, I want to point out something about the first 3 princesses. Snow White, Cinderella and to a lesser extent Aurora were all animated with heavy help of a method called rotoscoping (where you draw on top of live-action footage) and consequentially have more realistic proportions than almost every other princess. Sleeping Beauty would be one of the first movies where they'd start experimenting more their human characters, but it is still restrained.

Anyway. Snow White has chubby cheeks, very round eyes with softer corners and 3 larger eyelashes that are very characteristic of her. Her lower lip is large and round, and her eyebrows are simple curves. She has a button nose. She is animated as a comedic, exaggerated version of her original self, mainly symbolized by the way she holds her hands (pictured) and the little head shakes she does when singing.

CINDERELLA (1950)

Personally out of the 3 original princesses I find Cinderella to be the most different from the cartoon. Not just because, well, she has ears now but because I don't seem to get any cues of her original version from the animation. Then again the original Cinderella is animated with gentle, delicate slower movements movements while this one is making a shiv out of her shoe. However, she does keep some of the original design in the model itself. Her eyes are a bit round, with the upper eyelid being rounder than the lower, but the corners of her eyes are evident without causing the eye to look almond-shaped. I'd pull her outer corner a little bit more outwards or at least add an eyeliner but nobody is perfect. Her nose is slightly pointy but mostly round. I'm hoping that when we get to see more of her she'll demonstrate more of her slower, graceful nature. I don't mind that all those characters are more energetic and cartoony in this movie, but in Cinderella's case it seems to go against her very personality.

AURORA - SLEEPING BEAUTY (1959)

Aurora has a very diamond-shaped jaw, and while she appears to have a rounder one in this movie screencap, she demonstrates this diamond-shaped jaw whenever she's not facing straight forward. Her lower eyelid has a very prominent "corner" to it like the original, making it kinda look like she has two outer eye corners. Her nose is pointy and thin. Her inner eyebrows could go lower and be closer together but the general thickness is very close. Her mouth isn't as wide as the others and her smile is V-shaped. My gripe with her design is her hair, because IT SHOULD CURL THE OTHER WAY. Her body language captures a lot of the gracious, romantic behavior she exhibits while awake in the movie. It differs from Cinderella's posture because Cinderella behaves more in a motherly, warm and kind fashion while Aurora behaves more "professionally" and in a more reserved way.

ARIEL - THE LITTLE MERMAID (1989)

Ariel is one of the closest to the original IMO, but she has subtle differences. Her eyes keep the same general curves, with the upper eyelids being more curved and bending more towards the inner face. However, in the new version they are less vertical. Her nose is small, pointy and turned a little bit upwards, her lips are thin and don't have a cupid's bow. She has big cheeks but they are not as round as Snow White's, and her forehead is more forward, giving her the curve seen in the 2D version. For her the biggest difference is the eyelashes, that are way less uniform and are way thinner in the 2D version. She still keeps the bright-eyed, curious expression, being very similar to Rapunzel in behavior.

In a side topic, I'm extremely glad to see her hair being done properly in 3D, by comparison with Kingdom Hearts 3. Her hair is a huge part of her animation and what made it impressive (as important to her body language as Rapunzel's hair is. Strange how much the two of them have in common) I was disappointed that in Kingdom Hearts 3 she kept the stiff hair she had in the first games even with the advance in technology. Her eyes are also closer in shape to the original than the Kingdom Hearts edition even if that one got the general face proportions right. KH is closer in proportion while Wreck-it Ralph is closer in specific shapes.

BELLE - BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991)

Belle is also one who I didn't see a lot of her original personality, though she was very gentle and gracious in the original as well, which contrasts with her more cartoony animation here.

She has a larger nose than most princesses and it's also one of the most round, and her lips, while they have a cupid's bow, are less defined.

Her eyes are more almond-shaped, having the outer corner being higher up than the lower. Her eyebrows are pretty close in shape, thickness and distance to the original (considering the change of art style).

One thing that could be done was to make her laugh lines more prominent in the 3D model, since they tend to appear when she's grinning in the original. Going back to Kingdom Hearts, i must say that Belle's appearance there is not very accurate. I think that something is off with her face in Kingdom Hearts 2, like her face looks squashed, longer and different from the original.

JASMINE - ALADDIN (1992)

Jasmine for me is one of the most accurate to the originals, with her almond shaped eyes, characteristic nose, sculpted lips and more oval shaped face. Her eyebrows also look slightly more accurate to the original than the KH counterpart, with the inner edge not being round (though they should be thicker). She shares a lot of the posture of the original, specially with the tendency of stopping with one leg in front of the other and bending her torso in a way that kinda highlights her butt (but you do you Jasmine)

POCAHONTAS (1995)

So, Pocahontas is one of the most unique-looking movies in the Disney canon, having the most realistic body proportions of Disney canon in decades.

Her movie is also characterized by having stronger edges and a more angular shape. That entire proportional yet angular look is mostly out of the window, but her face still has the most geometric features of them all.

A strong chin, a big triangular upper lip, a nose with up-turned nostrils that has a kind of v-shaped outline... Also even with the change of art style she has a slightly stronger build than the rest of the princesses.

In terms of animation she has that classic impossible hair, and keeps the dignified and mysterious attitude she has most of the time when she's not trying to see what's just around the riverbend.

MULAN (1998)

She is definitely really close to the original, though the proportions got shifted around for the art style.

Her round face, almond shaped eyes with a single eyelash going outwards in the corrner, and her very caracteristic lips are there (her lips are one thing they did more accurately than Kingdom Hearts as well). Though I think her nose should be slightly flatter to be closer to the Original and the Kingdom Hearts rendition.

I haven't seen enough of her facial animation to form an opinion on expressions, but she does enter the scene with that jump kick she does in the end of "Be a Man" so there's that.

TIANA - THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG (2009)

Same case with Mulan, the biggest differences are just to accommodate for the art style. Her characteristic smile looks pretty great in 3D, dimples and all (though I think Coco did a better looking dimple for Miguel, those look a bit fake)

Since the movies are so close together, being technically released in the same "Disney era" with way more artist overlap than previously (as in, more people who worked in the two movies), the animators already have a lot of practice animating her so I expect that she'll be pretty accurate.

RAPUNZEL - TANGLED (2010)

Speaking of accuracy, we're finally on the realm of 3D disney princesses. I like this comparison that @constable-frozen made (I apologize for not asking first/Lo siento no haber pedido antes/Desculpa por não ter perguntado primeiro). It shows that even the 3D princess got changed to fit the movie so it's not the 3D that is to blame for this change and that it was very much intentional rather than just lack of skill from the artists. But back to the comparison, I find it amazing how apparent the improvement in technology is, with Rapunzel having more natural skin and more strands in her hair (as well as the hair also looking more natural). Like i mentioned before, Rapunzel's hair was ground-breaking for Disney, since they spent years perfecting the technology for it. 8 years later and it looks greater than ever. The whole lighting in the scene looks more natural as well, taking away the slight "PS3 game cutscene" feel the original gives me. Speaking of her hair, Kingdom Hearts 3 still didn't give us a look at her face, but the developers keep telling us of how much work they put into making her hair and turning it into a gameplay element as well. Seems fitting that a story about a girl with long hair would cause innovation in hair simulation for both animation and games.

MERIDA - BRAVE (2012)

Ok so this will definitely take some using to. In this pic specially she looks a bit like a baby. Though from other pics I think they at least nailed the facial expressions. Still, seeing her with those big bright eyes makes her almost look like Jessie from Toy Story, both having red hair and a very round face.

MOANA (2016)

To finish, here's Moana, from their last movie, to exemplify again that the change in art style is pretty much intentional. Larger eyes and eyebrows, smaller nose and mouth. Thin neck. Pretty much what happened to everyone else. Wreck-it Ralph stylized them to make them fit with each other and with the place they appear in. Otherwise they keep the basic shapes and ideas of the originals, only following the general style of the current artists. I hoped they'd keep the proportions and styles as close to the original as possible, but I won't pretend they didn't put any effort. All characters presented in those images belong to Walt Disney Animation Studio and Pixar Animation Studio.

PS: ANNA AND ELSA - FROZEN (2013)

I couldn’t get decent enough pictures for the both of them for me to make a comparison while I was writing. Might edit the post with the pic tomorrow.

In the original, their eyes are larger than most princesses and their noses are pointier. The two of them look really alike because they're sisters but there's differences:

Anna has chubbier cheeks and curved eyebrows while Elsa's eyes have a drooping lower eyelid common in smug/sexy characters, as well as L-shaped eyebrows.

The changes from the movie to the Wreck-it Ralph 2 version are essentially the same as Moana's (larger upper face, smaller lower face), plus an extra difference of them having bigger, more voluminous hairdos than what they had.

PS: PS: On the off chance Tumblr messes up the images, I posted this entire thing on Imgur

#Disney #wreck it ralph #princess #disney princess #analysis #comparison #animation #walt disney pictures #pixar #same face syndrome #not #kingdom hearts #KH

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