#my personal speculation on how Volume 9 would have gone

[kyraxyrespace]

A Story That’ll Never Be Finished (early-Vol 9 fanfic)

Back in May of 2021 I just felt myself shrivel at this reminder I began to speculate what Vol 9 would be about based only on the brief after-credits scene we had at the end of Vol 8. I started on it, but never had the time to finish it despite the lengthy hiatus we as a FNDM went through. Now with Vol 9 out and finished, I don’t have any plans on continuing the story. However, I wanted to share the brief start of what was thought of but never to come.

Please enjoy.

The repetitive, gentle sound of waves lapping against the shoreline lulled Jaune out of his unconscious state. His mind worked slowly, and only dimly registered the feeling of soft sand beneath his person. Then, as he got to his knees and gave his surroundings a look around, his mind snapped into place like a rubber band. He glanced around more frantically, his hand reaching down to his waist, feeling a degree of relief that his Crocea Mors still occupied his body. It did not alleviate the consternation he felt while taking in the unfamiliar environment.

He pulled himself up to his full height, his right hand touching his weapon. Narrowed blue eyes roamed the horizon, taking in the lush, tropical island. He kept quiet, listening for any sound that would give away another soul in the area, and was equal parts relieved and torn that he heard nothing at all. The water continued to lap behind him, and the wind rustled the leaves, but there was no sound - human, faunus, or animal - to be heard. The enormous tree situated up on the hilltop caught Jaune’s attention; considering its size, it wasn’t that hard to miss.

Although he was apprehensive of where this new land was, he did at least know one thing: he got here by falling from the walkway. And if he was here after falling into the void, then there was reason to believe that Team RWBY was here, too. He needed to link back up with them and find a way off the island; there were loved ones waiting for them in Vacuo. The notion that his friends were alive - not lost to the void like he had thought - spurred him into action.

He didn’t have any clue which way to go, so he picked to go to the right. He took two steps forward in his intended direction but stopped as his ears picked up on a noise coming from behind him. He placed his hand on the hilt of his broken sword, listening to the noise to differentiate if it was friend or foe. It was too faint to actually understand, but it was high pitched enough that he didn’t think it was a Grimm. He spun around on his heel, his eyes narrowing as he tried to pinpoint the cause of the sound. There was something coming his way, and he was able to determine it was in the shape of a person. He blinked, and his heart skipped a beat as he was able to pick out the person’s distinctive white hair and knew instantly who it was.

“Jaune!” Weiss shouted, her voice easier to recognize the closer she came to him.

“Weiss,” Jaune breathed. Then, louder, “Weiss!”

He jogged toward her, closing the gap so she wouldn’t have to run so far. When he determined he was halfway toward her (he was taller, his legs longer, so he traversed the distance in a shorter amount of time), he came to a stop, expecting Weiss to do the same. He was shocked when she didn’t slow down at all; she launched herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Jaune released a breath of surprise, and his left foot readjusted itself to keep him from tumbling backward. His arms, on instinct, wrapped around Weiss to keep her steady.

His surprise over her jumping onto him turned to relief that he could hold her. When Winter had returned to the pathway empty handed, Jaune’s heart had dropped. He hadn’t seen what had happened to Ruby, Blake, and Yang, but he had guessed. Knowing that he had been steps away from getting Weiss somewhere safe, just to lose her, turned his insides cold. He couldn’t mourn her loss immediately; the void had been compromised, and he and Winter had to get to Vacuo. Even the logical knowledge that the team had to have survived if he had didn’t provide the amount of relief he felt holding her in his arms. He had to will away the tears threatening to form in his eyes.

Jaune, believing they’d held each other long enough, began to withdraw his arms, expecting Weiss to do the same. It was probably the first time since Beacon’s initiation that they held each other; it was certainly the first one Weiss initiated. To his surprise, she moved reluctantly. She tightened her hold briefly, before unlinking her arms, moving them down until they rested on the boy’s elbows.

“What happened? How did you get here?” she asked, her voice raised in concern.

“The pathway collapsed,” Jaune answered. “I made a jump for the portal, but missed it.”

“And my sister?” Weiss asked, her face twisting up at the memory of the last time she’d seen Winter.

“She made it through to Vacuo,” Jaune replied.

Weiss’ shoulders dipped as she released a breath, exhaling the tension she’d probably been feeling since she arrived on the island.

“Have you come across anything?” Jaune questioned, giving their area a look around.

Although he had only spotted Weiss, he was hoping it was because he had only put focus on her, and that her teammates were actually somewhere close by. His heart plummeted a bit when he saw Weiss shake her head, her braided hair flowing back and forth with the motion. She removed her hands from his elbows, relocating them to sit comfortably on her hips.

“You’re the first person I’ve come across,” she answered. “You’re the only thing I’ve come across.”

“That’s unfortunately true for me, too,” Jaune admitted, sighing a bit at the end.

“...Do you think the others are here?” Weiss asked, looking for his opinion.

“They have to be,” he answered immediately, scanning the horizon over the empty water. “We’re the only island.”

“That we can see,” Weiss pointed out.

Jaune frowned at the truthful statement. They were only on one side of the island, so for all they knew, there were other patches of land on the opposite side. They needed to get to the other side of the island which would take time walking. Jaune blinked and looked back at Weiss, who raised an eyebrow up in questioning when she saw him staring at her.

“Weiss, can you summon a Queen Lancer?” Jaune questioned.

Weiss’ eyebrows raised upward in confusion, wondering what had spurred him to ask such a question. It was telling how far the two had come that Jaune could read the question on her face without her even having to verbalize it.

“If we can get an aerial view of the island, we could spot our friends easier.”

Weiss’ eyes widened in comprehension as she followed along. She gave a sharp nod at his earlier question and took a step back from him. She pulled out her Myrtenaster and produced a summoning glyph in the open space to the left of them. Weiss approached her Summoned Grimm, stroking the hornet’s face affectionately. The Queen Lancer was becoming a fast favorite of hers, only second to her Arma Gigas. She moved to its side, Jaune following. She hopped up first, taking her place at the front of the insect. Jaune hopped up behind her, sticking his hands in the gap between its protective plates. Seeing that her passenger was secured on the Summoned Grimm, Weiss willed her Queen Lancer to launch them into the air. The flying-insect took air, flying above the tree lines, facing the enormous tree. The two looked down on the tropical island below them, checking for any sign of movement, any familiar shape of their friends.

Jaune was looking off to his right, blue eyes scanning the sandy beaches. His eyes focused on a lump laying just inches from the lapping waves. His heart beat in excitement.

“Weiss.”

Weiss looked over her shoulder at Jaune, and then to her right. She spotted the lump as well. She directed her Queen Lancer in its direction. The hornet sped as it made its descent, and the closer it got to the lump, the easier it was to see its features. The lump was a person. Weiss’ eyes widened as she identified the person. Jaune didn’t wait for the Queen Lancer to land. Without warning, he hopped off the creature.

“Jaune!”

The boy rolled, got back on his feet, and rushed to Penny’s fallen body. He dropped to his knees beside her, blue eyes staring in anguish at her pale body. His hand hovered over the three holes created from the claws of Cinder’s Grimm arm.

[kathyprior4200]

Alastor, Autism and an Ace Author

Yesterday, I discovered something mind-blowing about my favorite Hazbin Hotel character. On Twitter, a user by the name of “puppyclown struggle tweets” or “StinkyRatBoy” proposed a theory they had kept for a while. They claim: “Alastor is on the autism spectrum.”

 My first response in my mind? “Nonsense! Alastor is the most extraverted, sociable and manipulative character we’ve seen so far. You can’t just assume he has a neurological disorder out of nowhere! It’s an insult!”

 But then I read their reasons for it…and it slowly clicked into place. As I read them, they began to make sense…it was a reflection of my own personality. Indeed, I am also asexual/aromantic and on the autism spectrum. Whether Vivziepop meant for Alastor to be on the spectrum remains uncertain at the moment.

 What did they say? Here is their first reason:

 “Alastor is often speaking in a very loud voice, something that autistic people do since they have trouble regulating their volume.”

 Reason 2:

“He has little social awareness, telling Charlie to her face that he wants to see people fail and he doesn’t see why that would make her not want to partner with him.”

 Reason 3:

“He also doesn’t see why people constantly run away from him (as shown in the Alastor comic) getting pretty annoyed when people are too sacred to speak with him, despite him knowing of his reputation.”

 Reason 4:

“His discomfort with people touching him probably being a sensory problem, something I myself struggle with, despite not understanding other people’s physical boundaries, constantly dancing with them and pulling them into side hugs without permission.”

 Reason 5:

“Tying back to social problems, he sees Husk as a friend, despite how much Husk wants to make it clear that he doesn’t like being roped into Alastor’s schemes and interests. He reads Husk’s refusal as just him being in a bad mood.”

 Reason 6:

“His hyperfixation with radio, entertainment and old technology being so strong that it causes him to dislike it changing and becoming more modern and foreign to him. Entertainment is his special interest and he doesn’t want someone showing up and making it different.”

 Reason 7:

“Of course, there’s troubles with physical hygiene, something that autistic people are known to have a hard time with for any number of reasons.”

 Reason 8:

“Him constantly smiling could also be his inability to emote the same way neurotypical people around him do, which is why people find it so strange.”

 Reason 9:

“One more thing! Hs little sound effects and song clips he plays are auditory stims. I said what I said.”

 They certainly said it indeed! Despite me having autism as well, myself and the majority of fans didn’t fully pick up on those traits. We knew that the majority of the Hazbin characters were LGBTQ…but so far, there haven’t been any characters with physical or mental disabilities. If what StinkyRatBoy says is true…and if it’s confirmed by Vivziepop herself…it could be revolutionary, both in the show and real life.

 If Alastor has autism, it could add more depth to his backstory and his character. Being a French Creole colored asexual man in the early 1900s wouldn’t be the ideal status to have in the predominantly white straight male society. Many fans speculate that his mother was kind to him and taught him everything he knows about dancing, music, cooking and Voodoo culture. His father is often portrayed by fans as an abusive alcoholic who wanted to shape Alastor into the ideal “macho man,” that was expected at the time. (No “women’s” work, no theater, got to have sex with girls and provide for the family). His abuse toward Alastor and his mother may have laid the groundwork for Alastor’s decent into becoming a serial killer.

 With his expertise with radios, music and entertainment at a young age, it’s no wonder he became such a renowned broadcaster in New Orleans. Along with music being his special interest, it may have been the very thing that kept him sane when he was ruthlessly bullied by his peers, his father, and society in general. It was his escape, a mental state where he felt safe and secure. Entertainment represents the good side of him…the killing part is what got him into Hell. Murdering racist men and criminals may have been both a new special interest and his way of coping with the trauma he faced. In addition, Alastor’s name, means “spirit of vengeance,” thus it was also his way to get revenge on those who wronged him. Alastor’s side hobby of hunting deer and taxidermy may also have been a way to cope.

 Now in Hazbin Hotel, Charlie will have to find a way to redeem Alastor (and like Angel, Husk and Niffty, he can be redeemed, but it will not be easy). Charlie and the others will eventually learn of Alastor’s condition and his asexuality. (Many people on the spectrum also identify as asexual and have trouble with relationships). As demonstrated by the “Day In The Afterlife” comic, Alastor seeks true friendship and belonging, despite his sadistic nature. He has several allies like Mimzy, Rosie, Husk, Niffty and Charlie, yet also misses his mother. Alastor likes seeing others fail as it reminds him of his powerful status…but when he helps the other Hazbins (and betrays them), he may very well learn that he too, is a “lost cause.” More than ever, he wants to see his mother in Heaven…but he’ll have to develop for the better, first. Not to mention villains like Vox and maybe the angels might try to take advantage of his condition. (Does Heaven discriminate against those deemed “abnormal”?)

 Charlie will likely learn of his condition and help him better express his feelings without feeling vulnerable. “You’re never fully dressed without a smile” is a motto he’s lived by in both his lives. His smile is a mask he wears to hide his true feelings of loneliness and leftover trauma. (World War One, the Great Depression, the Spanish Flu, his death etc. is a new level of trauma!) Niffty will likely help out Alastor with his hygiene…even demons need to bathe, eat and sleep. (His yellow teeth, bags under his eyes, thin body and raggedy nails don’t help matters). Husk will teach Alastor about personal space…and hopefully, Alastor will free Husk and Niffty from working under him in the future. And Charlie of course, will help him get in touch with his feelings, creating a relationship of friendship, mentoring, and hints of romance.  

 Embracing change and expressing feelings is very hard for those on the spectrum…but with therapy, effort and practice, it can be achieved by many. It will take a long time for Alastor to redeem himself, let alone allow himself to cry or fall in love. But the journey, rather than the Heaven destination, is what matters most. After overcoming his evil nature, Alastor will learn to embrace his feelings and condition…even if it means adapting to a moderate amount of change. (There are other ways to seek out justice and entertainment.) I bet his mother will be very proud of him once Alastor is able to make friends and truly be happy.

 Proper representation in media, matters, and Vivziepop has already gone above and beyond. A majority of her characters are LGBTQ or are in LGBTQ relationships. Representing someone with a disability will make the show all the more intriguing, and the characters more relatable. Her show deals with a variety of issues that young adults face in real life: sex, drugs, slavery, rebellion etc. With Alastor supposedly being both LGBTQ + and having a neurological disorder, it is a portrayal not often seen in many cartoons.

 Hopefully in a few years, we’ll get to see more of our deerly beloved radio host in the first season of Hazbin Hotel; we wish him all the best on his journey of redemption and friendship formations!

[miss-writes-a-lot]

What I PERSONALLY didn't like about Rwby Volume 8 (content warning: caps and spoilers.)

I am surely going to garner hate from the title alone, so let me explain - THIS IS NOT MEANT TO BE RWDE! THIS IS NOT MEANT TO BE HATE TOWARDS THE SHOW OR ANY SHIT LIKE THAT! THIS IS CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM AND MY OPINION ALONE. If you liked volume 8 and its entirety, that's good on you. I am just not the same way. I am going to approach this as respectfully as I possibly can and not going to slander the show just because I didn't like something. This is not what this is.

This post contains spoilers for volume 8. You have been warned.

The Unnecessary Flashbacks - the last two episodes before the finale had flashbacks that are oddly placed in both episodes and break up the flows of action in both. I think it would have been better if they either placed it in the beginning or get rid of it so we can have more time with our other characters.

Show not tell - these, again, are moments that mainly take place in the last two episodes. There's barely a balance with show not tell and not explaining certain aspects ahead of time so we do have to explain it again or spend too much time explaining during the moment of action and haste. In the episode where they are trying to get Penny to the vault, they have the oddly placed flashback where they discuss the plan and it didn't really feel like they explained it in much detail at all (again, this is my opinion) and when it came to actually getting the Relic of Creation in a moment where they were meant to be quick because they needed to save penny, they have to explain to us the mechanics of the Relic and Ambrosius' powers. I feel like if they had the conversation of the powers of the Relic and Ambrosius earlier, the urgency of the moment can remain and the intensity can still be there.

Ironwood and his weird gun thing - I just don't like it. I would have preferred it better if he just used his guns which are already attached to whatever that thing was. I just did not like it. It looked a little bulky and unnecessary.

Robyn and Qrow - I hated how they were just held up in their cells for half of the volume and how the other half just had them walking around and running into the Ace Ops. I wish they could have joined up with one of our groups or maybe Ruby's team for the first half of Volume 8 could have gone to break them out somehow. I was somewhat disappointed that their story was seemingly pushed to the side.

The Bomb's relevance - the bomb was kind of this big looming threat both times it was mentioned but it was never used which was good. But I feel like after that, the bomb shouldn't have been relevant because it wasn't. It should have been left alone or there should have been a scene where they deactivated it or ripped out it's wires or something so we no longer had to deal with it.

Tone - I did chuckle at a few of the jokes and I understand that Rwby has always had jokes and light bits in it, but I don't think they fit the tone that this volume was trying to set up. Especially after what happens in the finale.

Penny's end - I felt genuinely upset that they decided to kill off Penny just after she became a real girl. I don't know the reason why or speculate the reason either, but it upset me that this is Penny's end. After bringing her back in the 7th season and then have her become a real girl and then just kill her off like that? I was genuinely depressed and slightly angry.

The last Cinder fight - I didn't enjoy the fight because once Cinder ejected herself in the air in her giant fire tower, team Rwby just stands there as she monologues. They don't try to attack her by using team attacks or using their weapons to launch them into the air and attack. They just sit there and listen to her speech and then Neo comes in and takes out best girl in an instant.

The Girl Who Fell Through The World - I didn't mind it too much. I just felt like when they first introduced the concept, it felt like they were laying it on really thick.

Reactions - Arryn's performance was great. It really hit me emotionally when Blake broke down, but I wish the rest of Team Rwby was the same. I wish Ruby's silver eyes activated like they had with pyrrha and jaune. I wish Weiss was in so much pain, she wouldn't be able to control herself or console Blake. I'm not trying to imply that they don't care about one another, I just wish they would show our characters getting upset.

The power scaling and aura breaking - this is just a general problem I have. I feel like after they introduced aura breaking, our characters get their auras broken by hits we've seen them take before and survive from, and it seems like some characters are a lot weaker than they once were. Like the scenerio on the train. Neo had the upper hand because Yang was physically exhausted from not sleeping or resting her body. Here, Neo did get the upper hand, but with one strike, she manages to break Yang's aura whose semblance is to get stronger with each hit. I may have seen it wrong or maybe I am wrong. That's just how I feel.

The bloated cast - this is somewhat of a callback to the pacing and cutting between the flow of action. We have a very large cast and it feels like we are always cutting through multiple perspectives during pivotal moments to catch up with our other characters (i.e Robyn and Qrow, the Ace Ops, Winter, etc.) Maybe keep the groups limited to team Rwby + jaune and the Vacuo crew in Volume 9 so we can get a balance of the two and it can open the doors to a group character arc since they are so close together.

That's all I have. I thought the volume was good but there are definitely things that should be worked on. If you found offence to this post (not sure if I phrased that right) I apologize. This is not meant to be rwde or any type of vicious hate. Please do not harrass me or flood my notes with hate because I really don't mean anything malicious towards crwby or the show at all.

Have a good day.

[whatdoesshedotothem]

Monday 6 June 1836

6 55

11 ½

- No kiss fine but dullish morning and F50° now at 8 am wrote (and sent by George at 11 1/2) the following to ‘Messrs. Parker and Adam Solicitors H-x’ - ‘Shibden hall Monday 6 June 1836 - Sir -I shall be much obliged to you to make out my [D.r and c.r] account as soon as you possibly can, and bring it with you - Illingworth ought to have paid the money on Miss Walker’s account by this time - She and I both of us equally anxious to get all settled - I am sir, etc etc A. Lister’ - George to give the compliments of the family and inquires after Mrs. Rawson of Stony Royde and Mrs. William Rawson of Savile hill - out from 8 to 9 10 with Robert Mann + 2 removed sycamore (lopped it) from near the Elms at the back of farmyard to top of wheat field glen - then set the men to trench bottom of what field near farmyard - had Mr. Husband at 9 - mentioned my idea of joining the temporary brew house on to the phaeton house which is to be the temporary laundry - breakfast at 9 ¼ - A- terribly low did a little French while I breakfasted all in vain could not stop her tears what shall I do with her?  we must get off at this moment she is lying down what a miserable thing it is had just written so far of today at 10 55 - then wrote and sent by George to ‘Messrs. Whitley and Booth Booksellers etc. H-x’ ‘Miss Lister will be obliged to Mr. Booth to bind Crabtree’s history of H-x in neat ½ binding, leaves not to be much cut - and Bakewell’s Geology, and Taylor’s Roman Empire, and the German Grammar in very strong neat hall binding (leaves not much cut) - all to be done by the evening of this day week - Let there be ten (blank leaves   laid paper) at the end of each volume except the German grammar Shibden Hall 5 June 1836’ - out (A- with me) from 11 ¾ to 2 - sent off Robert Mann to meet Old Washington at one at Cliff Hill - backwards and forwards (twice there) at Mytholm and in the walk - with A- at luncheon - and in and out - talked to John - about road along the top of my top Wellroyde wood etc - with A- again - she had while out promised Thomas Pearson to let his son go to her school found her at luncheon fretting at having taken more wine after I left her always harping on its being wrong for her to eat and drinks  afraid she shall drink in good truth I am afraid so too but I do not own it I have put her to bed she will sleep I hope the fact is she has had three or four glasses and so much is too much - poor thing what waste of happiness what will become of her we must get off - at my desk at 3 ¼ wrote the last 8 lines –

SH:7/ML/E/19/0055

from 3 ¼ to 5 30 making out (balancing) Frank’s account and beginning John Booth’s from Tuesday 17 May last when he left my sister’s service and re-entered mine (lived with me some months after my uncle’s death in January 1826) - wrote out in the account book belonging to each of them a memorandum respecting the cottage each occupies - rent free, and not tenant, and to quit when I think fit or on leaving my service - a deduction made in their wages on account of their cottage - wrote out also agreement to the same effect to be signed by Samuel Booth and John Green (nephew to William Green who lately lived here) on entering today a cottage each at Mytholm - had Mr. Husband - dinner at 6 35 - coffee - A- did her French - had Samuel Booth and Jack Green who each set their mark to the agreement and John Booth witnessed it and signed his own agreement - written in his account book - Frank being gone to the p.o. signed his agreement (written in his account book) - brought from the p.o. Letter dated ‘Beggars Bush Barracks June 5th 1836’ from ‘William Ferguson master tailor 93 Highlanders’ stating that his wife (originally Harriet Matilda Aked) died at 4 am on the 1st instant of bilious fever which seems to have began on the 26th ultimo - he trusts I ‘will perceive’ that he is entitled to receive the money she was entitled to draw from Xmas until the day of her decease which being five months amount to £16.13.6 sterling’ ‘certified that Mrs. Ferguson died on the 1st of June  1836 J. Campbell surgeon 93 Highlanders’ - Poor Mrs. Ferguson - what she might have been and what she was - how different! ‘comme on fait son lit on se couche’ - my trust of £2000 that my uncle Joseph got for her from the effects of her uncle Major Aked of the 33rd ft. - must now be paid in and I shall be relived from all further trouble on this account - Parcel (small) from Messrs. Hammersleys London containing the small parcel (2 gardeners’ knives from Rodgers,  Sheffield) and a letter from Mr. Harper dated London 20th May - no success in meeting with a tenant for the Northgate hotel - he had mentioned it to ‘several persons, and they seem to think that the establishment would require so very large a capital that it will be difficult to meet with a person willing to enter into what call ‘so desperate a speculation’ - the hotel must be advertised when nearly ready - no doubt there will be ‘plenty of applicants’ caution must be used in selection - true - Mr. H- had seen Martin the painter - will have to employ him before the Casino is ready for him, so can judge of his fitness for the job before engaging him for me - with my aunt from 8 to 9 - then in my study - wrote all but the 1st 7 lines of this page - Frank Day on entering my service lived in the front Mytholm farm cottage (from Wednesday 30 September last) to Mr. Husband’s leaving the Mytholm farm house itself and then I put Frank into it and he has left it and gone today to the cottage lately occupied by Luke Greenwood’s widow at the Conery - Mr. Husband on leaving Mytholm went to the Lodge at John Oates’s at the Pump - fine day till about 2 - then a very little drizzling 2 or 3 times during the afternoon and rain in the evening from about 7 and afterwards F48 ½° now at 10 pm

[helihi]

Thoughts on RWBY Vol. 7

Quarantine day 20: I finally force myself to re watch volume 7 instead of doing my French homework.

Spoilers ahead for RWBY and How I Met Your Mother (yes).

Volume 7: The Story of a Broken Narrative Kingdom

The day has come where I finally sit down and watch the whole season again. Some of you wondered why I didn’t simply do a The Good, The Bad, and The Dirty review on the last episode of the volume like I did with the previous ones. The answer is the same reason why Ozpin’s speech at the end of the volume encapsulates the volume’s theme as a whole: finales affect the way you look at shows, comics, movies, and books. It provides a framing.

Did any of you watch How I Met Your Mother? For those of you who didn’t, it was a often called the show “which could replace Friends”. Something that you may not know is that fans of the show renamed it something among the lines of “How I should date your Aunt Robin” after the last episode aired. You see, the ending of the show changed the way most viewers see the show in the present.

The show had main character Ted Mosby narrate to his children how he met their mother. However, the story doesn’t begin during the day that encountered happen; no, it starts years before, when Ted declares he wants to settle down and find the love of his life. In that very same episode, he meets Robin Scherbatsky. In the end it’s revealed that the mother (the character we spent years speculating about) is dead (which I expected), and Ted asks his children if they give him the blessing to date their Aunt Robin. Originally, the fans could excuse episode 1 centering around Robin because it was the instance where Ted decided he wanted to settle down, but after the veil was lifted; there were no excuses, this whole story was a Ted’s way of convincing their children he should marry Robin, the main woman in his life during the whole show (even if we spend the last season on her wedding with one of Ted’s best friends).

Perhaps the ending of Volume 7 didn’t destroy the character development of 3 main characters, but it drastically changed the way I felt about the volume.

“The Kingdom of Atlas will remain safe, that’s my promise”- James Ironwood, Volume 7, Episode 1.

If you go back in my blog and read my reviews for most of the volume, you will find glowing ratings and stars. Anyone that knows me, knows that I love a good politics game in the shows/stories I read, so I was really excited when the writing team started developing that during the first half of the season.

Our gang (RWBY+JNOR+Q+M) reach Atlas after finding out that Oz is a fraud, that Salem cannot be beat (by Oz), and that Cinder almost took another maiden’s power. They quickly realize that Atlas is in a state of chaos and Ironwood is consumed by fear taking authoritarian measures, which keep the kingdom divided.

The stage is set:

 Ironwood, Winter, and the Ace Ops.

Robyn, the Happy Huntresses, and Mantle.

 Watts, Jacques, and Tyrian.

I thought the way everything was set was fantastic, I loved the political drama, and I thought the writers were taking their time properly. Even now I give huge kudos to the Schnee storyline, which is my favorite. The volume showed us how flawed Winter’s coping mechanism is, how Weiss is still susceptible to her father’s gaslighting and manipulation, and how the household isn’t just broken by Jacques (Willow apologists, pls read this).

However, the cracks started showing during the first episodes and I noted that on my reviews. We have characters used for exposition dump: from the Robyn supporter, that explains what we could’ve learned by the normal progression of the story, who gets killed as soon as he returns home, and other characters like Maria talking about Pietro while he’s standing right there.

In contrast to that, we get wonderful montages which show the passage of time. The kids interact with one another and the Ace Ops, they train, they help with Ironwood’s plan. It seems weird to have 2 different tools one after the other.

Also, it it weird for anyone that Qrow and Winter only interact 1 time during episode 2 when in Volume 3 a clear rivalry was established? Winter’s storyline was supposed to follow Penny’s, while Qrow was supposed to grow attached to Clover. Because these 2 characters had to reach a certain point in the story, they are not allowed to deviate from the interactions needed for the plot to advance.

Another thing occurred to me while re-watching the season again... Why is Ironwood so fixated in protecting Atlas when it’s floating in the air away from Grimm? Yes, we know that some Grimm can fly, but by the many times we see Mantle in chaos, you would think Ironwood would repair Mantle’s wall to keep it safe?

That’s the theme, guys, girls and nonbinary folks: a kingdom divided.

Just like the Atlas kingdom falls apart, the narrative of Volume 7 has a specific breaking point that marks the decline in quality (you can see that in my reviews). The moment everything went downhill starts in Episode 8, with the dinner at the Schnee Manor.

We spend much time developing the political tensions of the volume for Jacques to be promptly arrested and taken away from the scene in a second.

While Ironwood, Winter, Penny, and Clover are shown doing plot relevant stuff, team JNOR does that ridiculous gag to get Whitley out of Weiss’s hair.  The rest of the team do jackshit, and we don’t hear anything from them until everything is over. Again, the writers reached the plot point and forgot about everything else.

Also, Ruby looks sadly at Weiss when Whitley mentions that Klein was “let go”, yet Weiss has never talked about him to Ruby on screen. Claiming Weiss could’ve done that off screen strips away the possibilities of Weiss bonding with Ruby the same way she did with Yang when talking about their pain during Volume 5.

Such a large table, and only 4 council members, isn’t that kind of stupid? I mean, if Ironwood had 2 seats, numbers wise it makes sense, but who are those other 2 supposed to represent? Why haven’t we seen them before?

Robyn is told by Yang and Blake that Ironwood doesn't know who to trust. She proceeds to pressure him in front of people he clearly doesn’t trust. This is the first instance of OOC Robyn.

The walls crumbled, and everything became obvious as a viewer. Some other notable flaws:

Tension jojoing. The people in mantle will revolt! Except they aren’t. This happens in Episode 5, 6, and 9. The only real uprising is the last one. The other two were silly cliff hangers that make no sense when you watch the show again. (they didn’t make sense before either  and I complained).

Hey there, Watts! You may have an interesting backstory, except it’s only implied you are pissed off Penny got chosen as a major project instead of whatever yours was. Also, Paladin incident? What? If he is the main villain of the Volume, why not expand on him? I shouldn’t be surprised, Hazel and Tyrian are not that complex. And Cinder? It’s been 5 volumes and we barely know anything about her haha.

Robin! I love how civilized and smart you are when the volume started, choosing to observe and talk instead of acting against the main characters. How awful is it that you forget to keep your calm when a Serial killer is on the loose. It would be a shame if someone were to... die.

I already gave my 2 cents over Clover’s death, and I’m not going to repeat myself. I am sorry to all the Fair Game fans, I’m afraid bury your gays is till alive and well.

The nail on the coffin is the final episode: after making a speech about how Salem wants to divide people and how the only way to go is to remain united, James does the exact opposite thing the moment something doesn’t go according to plan. Don’t get me wrong, his PTSD regarding the queen chess piece was foreshadowed, but the moment team RWBY offer an explanation and identify the person behind it, he’s to far gone. Then, Salem shows up, and goes for Team RWBY when Ruby gets under her skin. This shows that Salem has a weakness and that Team RWBY can be trusted when it comes to defeating her, yet that is promptly ignored.

Also, Ironwood might be hurt about Yang and Blake talking to Robyn, but after everything, they were proven right: Robyn is to be trusted, Ironwood was making a mistake.

The whole setting up a trap to attract Tyrian wasn’t Ironwood going “mad with power” or something. Robyn knew he has lying and allowed Ironwood to catch someone who could hack everything. Not only that, but the camera zoomed in on Ironwood, so nobody could see Robyn’s handy Semblance going red. Or... maybe I’m looking too much into it and the writers expected you to forget.

Sorry, I guess James Ironwood had to take a bunch of stupid pills.

“I wish it didn’t have to end this way.” - Clover Ebi.

“It doesn’t have to, but the writers need that Branwen angst.” - Qrow Branwen.

Volume 7: Part 1 of the Atlas Arc

Have you ever heard of Checov’s gun? It is a dramatic principle that states that every element in a story must be necessary, and irrelevant elements should be removed. Elements should not appear to make "false promises" by never coming into play. Let’s play a game called the false promises of the volume that may carry over to volume 8?

Renora: Nora sides with Robin, Ren sides with Ironwood. They do not communicate with one another and the tension builds throughout the volume. They kiss, nothing gets resolved. Ren cries when Neo turns into Nora.

Training: Ren is shown to throw himself into the enemy as a flaw, he repeats the same mistake when fighting with Neo. Oscar’s Semblance is questioned, nothing comes out of it. Ruby’s Semblance is questioned, nothing comes out of it.

Cinder got beef with Atlas? For some reason, Cinder talks about Atlas hoarding power when speaking with Winter. Bitch, where the fuck do you come from? Who are you? Do I know you? Sorry, the writers forgot to write a growth arc for you. My bad.

Nora, daughter of Atlas? Can someone explain to me why she became a SWJ (/s) during this season? We never get a backstory of her previous to Kuroyuri and for some reason Nora is super attached to the people of Mantle. The daughter of Atlas title was thrown around, why?

It’s so nice to see tea FNKI back! Too bad they are there for 5 minutes and never show up again, not even when Mantle is supposed to be defended by all huntsmen. I guess this was fan service.

What’s the purpose of the Happy Huntresses? Isn’t it funny how the only one who got wounded by Tyrian is the only character who could see in the dark, but didn’t tell Robin that Penny wasn’t guilty? Hi Fiona, I don’t know why you exist.

Marrow: the butt of the joke. Since the first episodes, Marrow is shown as the outsider inside the Ace Ops: his teammates don’t take him seriously, Ironwood doesn’t think Marrow is up to the challenge of some missions, and he’s the only Faunus, the only one that seemed to sympathize with Robyn at the end. Too bad he wasn’t allowed to break his mold.

The World Building looks pretty, but it doesn't play the part.

I have to praise the art direction of this season. I was blown away by the aesthetics of Mantle clashing with Atlas, the details in the backgrounds, the world building by back messaging, screens, and posters. My favorite scene of the volume is the penguins in the tundra.

However, you have to walk the walk, and the writing team failed to deliver.

Racism: hey, I know you guys kinda messed up the White Fang’s internal struggles and opportunity to expand on Adam’s power grab and Sienna’s leadership, but maybe don’t skip the racist elements of Atlas? All we get are Faunus mine workers looking angry, that drunk dude who yelled at Blake and Marrow making a simplistic comment about politics. What...? What’s the point of acknowledging u are bad at writing racism and then do nothing about it? Did none of the new writers know how to tackle this?

In-World Continuity: Hey, wasn't the Vytal festival broadcasted to the entire world? When I saw that camera focusing on Yang on episode 1, I thought there would be a call back to what everyone saw her do during the finals, but nope. Let’s not bring that up again. ever. The only important thing about the Vytal Festival is the tower, move on.

Weapons upgrade: We were told that weapons were an extension of each huntsmen; too bad none of our gang actually work on them. Pietro makes all the modifications and repairs. I remember the bumblebee fans eager for a scene of Blake repairing Gambol Shroud, don’t tell me you’re not disappointed.

Atlas ball: not found. Hey! We have Jacques Schnee celebrating his fake victory on the elections! It would be a perfect moment to showcase the disconnect between what’s happening in Mantle and what the people in atlas thing. Too bad we didn’t wanna make extra character models.

--

Closing thoughts

I wanted to re watch the whole season again to see if the bitterness left on my lips after watching that chaotic finale went away, but it only grew. There are so many character choices that made no sense, so many scenes where characters stood around in the background doing nothing.

WHY THE FUCK DID OZPIN ONLY APPEAR AT THE END?

Oh, I’ll tell you why: he needed to give a speech about themes to justify the stupidity that happened during the last episodes to get to that cliff hanger.

I am disappointed in volume that seemed to be doing so good at the begging, but hey... at this point we shouldn’t be surprised, should we? Interestingly enough, the people who dreamed about the ball and the scenes of Blake fixing Gambol Shroud grew quiet after the episodes aired... 

Almost as if criticism wasn’t allowed on the RWBY tag.

AN: The titty window isn’t justified Salem, your ex is now a child that’s PEDO—

[real-jaune-isms]

RWBY Volume 7 Chapter 9 Rundown

I felt very satisfied for the first 90% of this episode but then I got kinda annoyed in the literal final 40 seconds before the credits. But that’s just my own growing agitation for Cinder, so it’s fine. We’ll get to that later.

There isn’t exactly a very happy vibe at the start of the chapter though, as it opens on the cold streets of Mantle as the cold is now likely setting in something fierce and people have realized the heat is gone. As Maria and Pietro welcome folks into the shelter of his pharmacy, some of those inside wonder if this same problem is affecting Atlas as well, and if this dangerous change was done intentionally by the city on high. The two kind elders stare up at Atlas with growing concern.

In the dinning room once more, the council continues to bring up criticisms that have been leveled at Ironwood, specifically that he has two council seats. He tries to counter there are checks and balances to make sure he doesn’t misuse his authority, but they interject that he has been ignoring those regulations and making major decisions all on his own. The General tries to defend himself and say he had no intention of running amiss of the rules, but Councilman Sleet reminds him that intention and action are not always the same and his actions have been wrong. Speaking of making wrong decisions without meaning to, a faunus servant comes in to whisper concerning news in Jacques ear, presumably that the SDC Heating Grid has been off for a while and people are freezing. And it was done on his authorization. Guess Watts just loves to frame people. As Jacques urges the staff member to check the system again and grows visibly concerned, Sleet notices he’s not paying attention and pulls him back into the conversation. He tries to act like he knows what’s going on and agrees with what Sleet was saying, then claims he has no further concerns or questions. But Robyn is by no means done yet, badgering Ironwood about all his secrecy and fears that he refuses to share with the council. He says he fears Atlas becoming a tragic site like Vale or attacked like Haven, but she knows there’s more to it and wants to use her lie detector Semblance to force the truth out of him and test if he’s hiding something. The pressure is palpable, and we know he wants to be more open after the talk he had with Oscar...

But then the door behind Jacques slams open to reveal Weiss with a Phoenix Wright worthy OBJECTION to this one sided accusation. She knows the real culprit for the killing of anti-Ironwood speakers, and the fraudulent election, and she claims Jacques not only knows him in name but knows him personally. With such an accusatory prelude she sets Willow’s Scroll on the table and projects the video big enough that Camilla and Sleet can recognize Arthur Watts, who was thought to be dead since the “Paladin Incident” years ago. Papa Schnee feigns confusion and ignorance, but Daddy Ironwood stands in steely determination and tells Weiss to play the video. It shows the tail-end of Jacques conversation with the bad Doctor, how he hates Ironwood for the embargo and wishes he could fire everyone to save money, and we get to see just what Watts had in mind for Jacques to have his cake and eat it too. Watts is pissy and petulant that Ironwood disgraced him despite his genius contributions and wants to return the humiliation he received ten-fold. All Jacques has to do is give Watts his login for the Atlas Network and promise he’ll make ol’ Jimmy’s life a nightmare, and Watts will manipulate the polls to guarantee he gets that Council seat. Robyn seems very pissed off to learn the voting was rigged and she would have actually won like she had hoped. Jacques, or at least the version in the video, is delighted at the offer and commends Watts for his cutthroat “business” strategy. Ironwood has had enough of this, and Weiss stops the video so they can all glare at Jacques. He tries to get up to run and claims the video is fake. Sleet tells him to SIT. BACK. DOWN. but instead he bolts for the door only to find Weiss’ Knight standing guard and ready to take him down. By the power vested in her by the Kingdom of Atlas, Weiss arrests her father for treason... but maybe she doesn’t actually have the power to do that? It’s unclear but I definitely hope she can. Her entire relationship with her father has been based on him having power and control over her, her wanting to earn his approval and remain on his good side or suffer the consequences of his rage. The crux of her character arc has been recognizing her old way of living was unacceptable and finding ways to get free of that control and influence to become her own strong person. Now, through her hard work, she has more power than him and he has to do what she says or suffer the consequences of his actions against justice. But on the other hand you have to wonder what legal authority Huntsmen have to make arrests and the like. They’re not military or police officers, but they do handle more dangerous threats than the common man. If their job involves apprehending human criminals then they probably would be sanctioned to make arrests. To draw reference to another of my favorite shows, perhaps they are akin to deputized vigilantes like Green Arrow and his team on Arrow? They have specialized skills with which to handle threats the regular military and police aren’t trained enough for.

But breaking off from that topic and back down to one such criminal, Watts is standing on the street catching a snowflake in the palm of his glove before he sees people looting a store that I SWEAR is called Dust in the Wind. Desperate civilians have already started burning things to create a big enough fire so they can keep warm, and a few stolen Fire Dust crystals get thrown in to make it really flare up. Atlas soldiers are watching on and requesting advice on what to do. Glad they’re not stopping them forcefully since no one really knows the procedure for all the heat not working and this being the only way to live in warmth at the moment. Watts relishes in the chaotic moment and is joined by Tyrian.

We go back to the dining room where the adults stand around a sitting Jacques to continue interrogating him while the teens stand off to one side. As Ironwood berates the still defensive Schnee for stooping for such disgraceful lengths to get what he couldn’t fairly earn, Clover gets a blip in his earpiece and walks away to take the message, likely about the freezing crisis. Jacques warns Ironwood he’ll hurt his knees if he keeps jumping to such wild conclusions, but no avail. Better switch condiments, cuz that weak sauce ain’t working on the General. Now that he knows Watts is around and willing to cause trouble, all the loose ends are tying together quite smoothly. Since he made the Mantle security network he would know exactly how to manipulate it and work with Tyrian to do such violent acts and frame good people for it. Penny still seems pretty upset over her tarnished reputation because of that. And to top all of the scandalous deeds of Arthur Watts off, all of that was just to help Jacques cheat through the election. I should like to note that as Ironwood is giving Jacques the works he is backed by a smirking portrait of an armored Nicholas Schnee, as if even now the founder of this great company of his is amused by just how badly his son in law has fucked up royal. Jacques didn’t even consider the consequences of his alliance, he only saw the way it benefited him. There is blood on his hands for this, and he needs to be held accountable in a court of law for both his treason against the safety of his kingdom and the lives it lost. He is of course very much against this idea, all he intended was to win the election after all! But like Councilman Sleet said earlier, what you intend and what you are responsible for doing are not always the same thing. An excuse like that is not enough, and Robyn is physically enraged that he would try to trivialize the deaths of good people, to the point that she throws a chair across the room. Councilwoman Camilla asks the important question, what will Watts be able to do with the power Jacques gave him? They can only speculate into the grim infinitudes, until all their scrolls start buzzing with the concrete facts of just what he’s done. The heat is off, and Jacques can’t even log in to fix it anymore since Watts took his account and locked him out. The bastard tries to save his own hide and distance himself from the situation by saying he didn’t know Watts was planning this, but Winter tells him to SHUT. UP. and fix the heating grid, but he reveals what I did just now about no longer having access. Sleet voices the depressing obvious as Ironwood stares at his scroll and Robyn looks out the window, both in solemn concern: if the heat doesn’t come back on people WILL die. Ruby tries to get the General’s mind off of desperate what-ifs to focus on the facts of how things are right now. Since they know whose credentials Watts is using they can follow his network activity, but he would now have the ability to find out about the Amity project and get into its network. Fortunately, he hasn’t looked hard enough yet so neither he or Salem know about it. Weiss asks if they can lock the good doctor out, but he’s already set to work blocking their access instead. They can’t exactly trace him if he’s on the move so they need to lure him out so they can get to his access point. Robyn interjects, since she has been listening to all this cryptic talk and planning with no one paying any mind to her still being in earshot, that people as vastly different as Tyrian and Watts banding together seems rather farfetched without some larger factor. Their unanimous decision to go after Ironwood in particular seems even stranger with only one of them having much motive, and she still doesn’t get why Ironwood is keeping the Amity Tower a secret. James is quite shocked that she even knows about that, and I’m sure Blake and Yang will have a rather sheepish confession to make. 

But we don’t see that, because instead we bear witness to Atlesian Knight robots being sent in to dispel the rioters gathered around the massive fire. But as Pietro and Maria watch on in silent shock, the people of Mantle lash out hard at these cold metal symbols of a cold ruling society and smash two of the robots. But these heated emotions are the tipping point and the streets start lighting up red to warn the civilians. Grimm are coming, and they are coming in mass. Mammoth-like Megoliaths and swiftly vicious Sabyrs are charging at the massive gap in the border wall, and the assembled Atlas soldiers and robots are not enough to hold the line, while Manta aircraft on bombing runs do nothing to slow the pack or thin the numbers. The Sabyrs are the first to get in and demolish the robots at ground level, and unidentified avian Grimm fly over the heads of the soldiers on top of the wall.

The scene shifts again from that chaos to the dining room again for a calmer moment of building faith, as Robyn admits she now sees just how much Ironwood is trying to protect with all the work he’s doing and the secrets that means keeping. She recognizes he has genuine fear for what will happen if the truth comes out. But the moment is stalled there as Clover and Oscar burst in to inform everyone about the Grimm swarming into Mantle, and how the airfleet can’t do much of anything or else it might result in civilian casualties. Ironwood goes back into beard-stroking panic mode, this is precisely what he hoped wouldn’t happen. Clover urges him to send in ground support to handle the Grimm within the city, but Robyn insists nowhere in the city will be safe if it gets completely overrun. Evacuating people up to Atlas with the airfleet should be their priority. But Daddy Ironwood has to raise his voice, he can’t move the fleet for any evacuation measures or else Atlas would be vulnerable instead. He worked so hard to keep everyone safe, and it’s all falling to pieces in the worst way. But Oscar is there to offer his advice again, though Ironwood rudely rebuffs him that he doesn’t want that. He wants Ozpin’s advice, but Oscar tells him that’s not the fix all answer he wishes it were. Oz would have told him to keep secrets, but Ironwood already knew that wasn’t the right way to go and made his own new and better plan. That plan has failed, the General argues, but that just means the day he was preparing for is upon them already. It’s time to tell the truth and have faith that the world will accept it, starting with Robyn and the council. Ruby assures him, he will not be alone in this. That puts the wind back in his sails, and he starts making a plan. Oscar is probably best off going back to the Academy for safety, and Ironwood needs to have a talk with his critics. In the meantime, the huntresses and huntsmen need to head down into the fray to do what they do best. And that means everyone is coming, even Penny. They still trust and believe in her, and the people will too. Winter has a look of approval as Ruby starts calling the shots, she definitely sees growth from how unimpressive the young rose seemed at Beacon. Clover couldn’t have said it better himself, and they all go running out the door... past a servant who had been in the dining room a couple times last episode bringing in drinks. She watches the trained warriors all leave, and smirks. Creepy.

As everyone else heads out the door, Ruby and Oscar stop for a moment to try and talk, and of course they talk over each other and act like a couple of dorks. They both think that since Ironwood is revealing everything he knows, they ought to do the same. But a lot of the fans are just thinking how they seem like such a cute adorkable couple. Y’all know who I ship so I can’t say too much about this, but I do certainly think it’s fun how they get along so well and seem to be on the same wavelength. Anyway, Ruby wants to be the one to tell Ironwood but duty calls so it has to be Oscar. Marrow is not amused by their awkwardness, or by the fact that Ruby uses finger-guns. Still, the Ace Ops, Qrow, and the young huntsmen head down in an airship where Clover lays down a reminder that their priority is saving people not racking up a Grimm kill count. Ren seems very distressed, so Nora holds his hand and it seems to help a little. They both feel a bit safer being able to feel that they still have each other, and Blake and Yang share a look that seems to imply the same sentiment even if they’re not going to hold hands too. As the ship soars swiftly downward into the danger, we see a streak of danger soaring above them too.

Back to the political scene, Sleet and Camilla are quietly discussing the world changing whiplash they just had  from Ironwood telling them about Salem existing, and how they almost can’t believe it’s true but know he wouldn’t make something that serious up. Robyn, meanwhile, is just staring at the ground as if thinking to herself “I know I asked what he was hiding, but I immediately regret asking”. She looks over to the closed door, and we cut to the other side to see the General in his own mind shattering crisis. Oscar told him everything they know about Ozma and Salem’s past, how as far as they know she’s immortal and they can’t do a damn thing to change that. He’s understandably upset that Ozpin kept this from all of them, you can almost hear anguish and sadness in his voice, but Oscar affirms that it was for the sake of keeping hopes alive so they would stay motivated. Oscar also apologizes on behalf of RWBY and co. for likewise keeping it a secret, but they just didn’t know who could be trusted to know. Of all people Ironwood would understand that. But now was the time to bare it all, before anything terribly important was lost for good. It might be too late for that though, Ironwood’s hope seems pretty broken now. The poor boy tries to make sure the General is okay, to see what he’s going to do now that he knows all this, and for a second it seems like even he doesn’t know. But his head finds a firm place back on his shoulders and his gaze returns to the task at hand. Grand scheme matters will have to wait, they need to save Mantle. Oscar seems proud, says Ozpin would be too. Atlas is providing the hope it was always meant to, since such a marvel of ingenuity and power is supposed to be held to standards matched only by its altitude. I’m paraphrasing, but the way Oscar says it seems all too familiar to Ironwood, as if he was there to see Atlas get its start. It would seem there’s more of Ozpin in Oscar than even he realizes, or maybe there hasn’t been much Oscar himself in there for a little while?... But we don’t have time for that, because their transports have arrived and they need to go. The two agree that neither of them could handle any more surprises, but it’s the huntsmen and huntresses who are in for the surprise. 

A new Grimm called a Teryx that as you would expect resembles a pterodactyl has latched onto the ship and no matter what fancy flying Harriet does to shake it loose it’s not budging. All that comes of it is Jaune starting to get airsick for the first time since Volume 1 and the Grimm moving around to the starboard side and digging its talons into the wall, right between Blake and Yang’s heads. Any further to either side and one of them might have died. The news only gets worse as another Teryx dive bombs them and damages the starboard engine. They all agree now would be a good time to bail and just get to the ground, and Clover opens the side door... on the side where the Grimm is. As his copious luck would have it, the damaged engine breaks loose and takes the Teryx down in a ball of flame so they’re safe to jump. As the kids start jumping, Elm playfully tells Harriet not to stay on board too much longer and she responds with sarcastic thanks. Not friends my ass, they all get along so well! Harriet decides to be a little extra with her exit and punches the windshield to go out onto the roof, inviting Ruby to try and keep up. Ruby gives a smile with more purity than distilled mountain spring water and follows her. Clover and Qrow are the last to jump, and Clover tries to show off a little for his boyfriend.

We go back to Schnee Manor for the last time as Jacques is being taken away by soldiers and Willow watches from the front door. Whitley is sitting sadly on the stairs alone, and Willow looks over to him with a slight smile. Clearly, she feels like the worst is behind them and hopefully they can try to be a real family now, but he runs away up the stairs. I don’t blame the poor kid, he feels like he has no one now. His mom has always preferred to drown her despair in liquor over being a present parental figure, and his sisters see him as an annoyance whom they never give the time of day. His father was the only one who showed him any attention or guidance, and that was so he could mold the boy in his image. He played along and did as he was told because no one else was there for him to give him much choice. Whitley probably wants to get along and be cared about by his sisters, but they thought the worst of him because he chose to listen to the father they wanted nothing to do with. Its a tragedy of circumstances, and it gives new context to lots of old scenes. The poor kid probably was kinda hurt that Weiss didn’t even say hello or show joy in seeing him again when she arrived for the party last episode. I definitely hope these two can recover and find a happier life. But as Jacques is brought to the armored truck, complaining all the way, we instead focus on a member of the staff leaving rather nonchalantly: the same young woman we saw smirking at everyone leaving earlier. She even starts skipping and if you couldn’t tell the twist already the familiar creepy music should make it obvious; Neo is already in Atlas, and if she’s here then Cinder can’t be far behind. Neo goes to a locked room in an unknown building with wall to wall windows showing the city outside, and sure enough there’s the fiery cockroach herself waiting for her companion’s return. Neo was in disguise to do recon since Cinder would stick out too much in a crowd, and it seems she found what they’re looking for. That sounds quite ominous and troublesome, and I’m a little annoyed that at the first sign of the new interesting villains getting exposed and being in our heroes crosshairs we return to the old villains who’re still trying the same old shtick. Still, at this point they almost feel like the Pilaf gang from original Dragon Ball, once the worst thing our heroes had to deal with but are now practically comedy relief villains who still think they’re the top threat. I’m not that mad, I just don’t much like Cinder and her nefarious schemes anymore. Still, doesn’t detract from the great satisfying episode.

[bubble-tea-bunny]

andromeda

[peter parker x reader]

author’s note: been working on this over the past week as time allowed. haven’t written in third person in a long ass time but the style of this story kind of necessitated it. it was an interesting change of pace but i am excited to go back to second person haha. i hope you enjoy!

word count: 11,687

[Name] used to joke Jameson was crazy enough to have a guillotine hiding somewhere in his office, and today, her speculations just might be confirmed, because he’s going to have her head.

The discordant beeping of the alarm clock starts far away, at the other end of some tunnel, and she’s moving slowly towards it, at a pace like walking, then like running, then like she’s got a train at her back and it’s pushing her forward at full speed. When the volume becomes clear and loud—and oh Christ is it loud—her eyes open suddenly, jarred to consciousness.

How long had it been going off? She doesn’t remember hitting snooze. Maybe she had, and she’d done it without fully waking up, or maybe she hadn’t, and she’d slept straight through it. Neither is good, so she figures it’s not worth trying to decide which it was. She props herself up on her elbow to look over at the clock on the nightstand, and her heart rate picks up at seeing the time. Shit.

Adrenaline courses through her veins and prompts her to stand up, kicking the blankets away. She nearly trips over herself in her haste, rummaging through her dresser for a clean button-up and skirt. Once she’s dressed, she brushes your teeth and combs through her hair, trying not to tug too hard on the knots. She hisses in pain when she pulls a little aggressively. Of all days to have nasty tangles. Eventually she gives up trying to get all of them out and ties her hair up in a ponytail.

There’s nothing prepared in the kitchen since she usually leaves herself more than enough time to make something in the morning, so instead she snatches an apple from the fruit basket. Her teeth sink into it to hold it in place as she slips on her shoes and grabs her jacket and purse. She’s out of the apartment in record time, and a glance at her watch tells her that if the trains aren’t running late today, and she walks at a brisk pace, she’ll make it.

She throws the apple core in the trash can before traipsing down the stairs of the subway station at the end of her building’s block. It’s at this moment that she realizes she left her water bottle on the kitchen counter, and she deflates slightly. She’ll just have to get water from the water cooler at work. She hopes no one tries to make smalltalk when she does. As much as [Name] likes Helen, she doesn’t really care about her son’s little league games (and their striking—no pun intended—zero loss season). Their season record is the same every year anyway.

As the train makes its stops, she can’t stop staring at her watch. For some reason it feels like the subway is lagging today, taking too long to open the doors and close them again. She wonders if the anxiety is visible on her face, because she feels like it’s obvious. Everyone else in her car looks some combination of bored and tired despite the fact it’s only 8:45 (Holy shit it’s 8:45 I am going to be so late—!) on a Monday morning. Or perhaps it’s because it’s 8:45 on a Monday morning. No one is ever ready or looking forward to heading into work for the next eight or however many hours.

She practically runs out of the train when she arrives at her stop, and skip steps going up to ground level. Good thing she wore flats today. She can see her place of work from the corner where this subway station exit leads to. There’s only one crosswalk to wait for, and then it’s a straight line to the Daily Bugle. She could do this. No problem.

The breeze kicked up by the motion of her pushing the door back to enter ruffles her ponytail. She doesn’t even give herself a chance to look at her watch again. There’s no time, and she's already so close. She yells for the man in the elevator to hold the door for her and thankfully he does. Inside, she presses the button for her floor, and grows a little annoyed that the other occupant has to get out a couple of floors below hers. Great. More waiting.

She tries to distract herself by staring at the numbers counting off the floors. When the man gets to his floor, he says Have a good day, but she’s only half-paying attention and mutters something incomprehensible that was meant to sound like You too. Once on her floor, she barely waits for the metal doors to slide apart before she squeezes between them and makes it into the office. She catches a glimpse of the clock hanging on the far wall. The hour hand is on 9 and the minute hand is on 12. Yes! She made it!

Or at least, she thought she did. She’s halted on the walk to her desk by a harsh voice calling out her last name. She closes her eyes and sighs heavily, then opens them again as she turns around to sheepishly face the one who addressed her.

“You’re thirty seconds late,” Jameson states. He doesn’t voice it but [Name] knows there’s an implied question tacked on to the end of it—Why?

“I know. I’m sorry, sir.” She doesn’t bother trying to give a reason because he wouldn’t hear any of it. There’s no excuse to be presented to a man like Jameson. “It won’t happen again.”

He crosses his arms, disapproval apparent in his eyes, and it stings. He’s already intimidating, more so when he’s angry. “It better not.” She doesn’t realize she’d been holding her breath until he returns to his office, and at the sound of the door clicking back into place, she exhales.

There are some people who glance her way at the confrontation but most people don’t. Jameson chewing someone out is far from new. One of the onlookers, however, is the boy sitting across her desk, and he’s leaning back and tinkering with a pen, smiling sympathetically as she plops down in her chair,.

“Sleep past your alarm?” Liam asks.

She sets her purse under her desk and turns on her computer. “Yeah… How’d you know?”

“My super mystical powers.” Liam uses his free hand to wiggle his fingers. [Name] raises a brow, thoroughly unconvinced and unamused (though could she be blamed? It hasn’t been the greatest morning), and then he just shrugs, giving her the real answer. “You are never late for work. Never. The only way you would be is if you woke up late.”

“Well, it was a late night,” she mutters, logging in. The clack of the keyboard fills the next few moments of silence as Liam thinks about her words.

“Was it…”

“No. It wasn’t that.” She shakes her head. “I was finishing up my preliminary research for that article I’m writing. I conduct the interview today.”

“Oh, managed to get in talks with the doctor himself, did you?”

“More like with his assistant, which is the next best thing. He said in the e-mail I could stop by after lunch.” Liam nods, and [Name] changes the subject. “How’s your article going?”

“It’s… going,” he responds off-handedly. “Zero pizazz to it, honestly, but there really isn’t anything exciting about little leagues, even if one of the teams has gone 12-0 this season.”

[Name] laughs. “Try telling that to Helen.” At this, Liam laughs too.

———

Lunch is a hot dog and can of cola from the food truck that sets up shop right outside the Daily Bugle offices. One-third of the reason [Name] comes here is that it’s quick and convenient; another one-third is that it’s cheap; and the last one-third is that street dogs are just good as hell. She eats at her desk, scarfing the hot dog down as she reads the follow-up e-mail from Doctor Octavius’s assistant to remind her that he’ll be in the lab until four o’clock. He gives her his phone number at the end so she can contact him directly once she’s outside the building.

Liam watches as she takes a big bite before she brushes the crumbs off her hands and types out her reply. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you hadn’t eaten in days.”

She rolls her eyes. “I only had an apple this morning, and admittedly, I’m really nervous for the interview. This is a huge deal.”

“You’ll do fine.” Liam waves a hand dismissively. “You always do.”

His words settle in the back of [Name]’s mind when she’s on the subway again, making her way to Octavius Industries. They’re comforting, and help a little in alleviating her worries, but those concerns become more difficult to push aside as she gets closer to her destination. She wonders if this assistant will be nice, and she hopes that he is. The technology that he and Doctor Octavius are developing is too advanced for her to understand, and despite the extra research she’s done to prepare for this, she doesn’t feel like any of it has helped much. He’ll need to slow things down for her. A lot. Fingers crossed he’s patient.

There are no indications on the exterior of the brick building that let her know she’s arrived at the correct place. She double checks the address and compares it to her location on her phone’s GPS, only to see that they indeed match. With a sigh, she peers up once more at the structure before opening up her messaging app.

I’m downstairs!

[Name] hits send, and barely ten seconds has gone by when she sees three little bubbles pop up at the bottom of the chat, and then she gets her response: Great! Heading down right now!

She readjusts her bag’s strap on her shoulder, a nervous tic she’s developed over time. In the other hand she holds her phone, and she absentmindedly stares at their two-message conversation, not bothering to tap her finger on the screen to keep it lit up as it switches off, and she’s left staring at herself reflected back.

The sound of the front door opening grabs her attention and she lowers her phone to her side, looking at the boy who comes out and meets her on the sidewalk. He’s wearing a lab coat over his jeans and plaid button-up, and he grins amicably. “Hey,” he greets brightly. “I’m Peter. Doctor Octavius’s assistant.”

“I’m [Name].” [Name] smiles and shakes his outstretched hand. It’s warm. He motions towards the door and asks Shall we? and she nods, falling in step behind him as he leads her inside and in the direction of the elevator.

Octavius Industries occupies the top floor, and there’s a sign hanging to the left of the door bearing this name. It’s ordinary, and most certainly not eye-catching, which [Name] considers to be strange because she knows the scope of what Peter and Doctor Octavius are working on, if not the finer details then just the fact that it’s big, and it’s revolutionary. She figured the lab would’ve appeared more grand, at least on the outside. But she’s still awed as Peter opens the door to allow her through, and her eyes widen as she finds herself surrounded by terminals and workbenches full of tools and prosthetics in the making.

“Sorry it’s a little messy,” Peter begins, closing the door behind him and rounding [Name] to try to clean up the nearest workbench, pushing equipment to the side but stopping when he comes to the conclusion there’s too much clutter to make a difference in just a few seconds. “And it’s just me in the lab today. Doc’s been feeling a bit under the weather.”

“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Hope he feels better soon.” [Name] smiles sympathetically as she grabs her notebook and a pen from her bag. She flips through for the first empty page, and as she does, Peter can see each page as they pass, and he grins a little to himself when he sees all the doodles dotted among the hastily written notes.

He listens intently as she asks her questions, and he answers them to the best of his ability while making them easy to understand. And she’s grateful because it means she can follow along, and it also means that her audience will be able to follow along too. It didn’t matter if she understood this stuff just as well as he did. Her readers most likely wouldn’t.

He leads her to one of the prosthetics resting on a table and picks up the tablet resting near by, pulling up the circuits on the screen to show her. Neuroprosthetics is certainly a difficult and still growing field, he explains, but we really feel like we’re making leaps and bounds here. [Name] can hear the passion laced in his voice when he says this, and the corner of her lips lifts into a lopsided smile.

“Does it ever feel… cramped, to work in a space like this?” She asks gently so as not to offend, motioning to the space around her. But luckily, Peter doesn’t take it badly. Instead, as soon as this gets brought up, his shoulders sag and he relaxes and he doesn’t try to hide his worries.

“It does feel like that sometimes. The funding for this project hasn’t been the greatest,” he admits solemnly. “Our funders want results before giving any more grant money, but it’s been slow. Lots of bumps to smooth out, and I know we’re on the cusp of a breakthrough. It’s just that… there hasn’t been enough time, and not enough money.”

[Name] sighs and click her pen, retracting the nib. There’s no doubt that what Peter and Doctor Octavius are working on here in this one room, this one unassuming room in some unassuming building here in New York, with the likes of Oscorp or the Avengers Tower just several subway stops away, is an incredible innovation, and another step forward into the future. How many projects have suffered the same fate, she wonders? Inventions with the potential to shift the paradigm of the world as it’s currently known, only to be stifled by a lack of funding. It all comes back to money. And it’s why she’s writing this article in the first place.

“That’s what I’m hoping to change with this article,” she tells Peter. “Maybe it’ll garner the attention of the right individuals, and you’ll get that grant money.”

Peter smiles and tucks his hands into the pockets of his lab coat. “Thanks for writing this. Funding aside, I think what we’re doing is important, and it’ll be good for more people to see that.”

“Of course.”

[Name] takes her final notes on any closing remarks Peter might want to make, and when those are done, he walks her back out. She thanks him for agreeing to the interview, and he shrugs casually and says it’s no problem. Felt nice to share this project with someone else. The remark makes her smile and she thinks distantly that maybe the two of them could be friends. It certainly felt as though she’d been talking with one for the past hour. Once they’re outside, she turns to him.

“I’m aiming to have the article published sometime this week. It’s the only thing on my plate right now, so I can really focus on it.”

“I look forward to reading it!” Peter’s smile is soft and it makes her stomach flip. He probably flashes that smile at everyone, she tries to reason. That tender nature seems to just be part of him. There’s nothing between the lines to read. So don’t bother, [Name]. But still, she pretends for a moment like he doesn’t flash that grin at just anybody, and that maybe it does mean something.

Peter stays glued to his spot on the concrete walkway as he watches [Name] walk away, and only retreats back inside after she turns the corner. Someone is in the elevator when it reaches the ground floor and he stands to the side to allow them through. Back in the lab, he shrugs off the white coat and hangs it on the hook by the door. It’s just past four o’clock. Sometimes he chooses to stay later to keep working, especially if Doc is out sick, but he’s still riding a bit of a high from that interview, and he’d like to carry that with him for as long as he’s able.

The last task he carries out before leaving for the day is sending a quick e-mail to Doc about how the interview went. It’s short and simple, with comments like It went great and Get well soon. The loading bar races across the screen, and a quiet ding signals that the e-mail has been sent. After that’s done, he’s ready to go.

He opens the door, ready to lock up, and stands in the frame, hand braced on the light switch as he gives the lab a once-over. He’s thinking back to the way [Name]’s face lit up as she walked in here, into a space that he considers less than magnificent and hardly roomy enough. Yet that hardly mattered to her, and the wonder in her gaze made her look like she’d stepped into a whole other world. The thought makes him smile. She had been so sweet, he was bummed when the hour was over.

His duffel bag is hidden on the roof, and he goes to retrieve it. It’s a little earlier than usual to begin his daily patrol, but there’s no harm in that—just more time to catch criminals. He trades his regular clothes for his suit, sliding into it with practiced precision. The material hugs his form, becoming like a second skin, and he slips on the mask, allowing the eyepieces to calibrate. He perches on the ledge while it does, watching as various readouts of the HUD pop up on the periphery of his vision.

“All right then…” he murmurs, taking in the expanse of the city in front of him. He would never get tired of this. New York pulses with energy, full of life, a universe of its own, and from the tops of the highest buildings he feels like he’s walking past a display in a museum, looking down, looking in, at all the people and the cars that look like ants from so far up. And every single time, it hits him. He’s protecting a whole city, and it’s a city he loves very much.

He zips his way between buildings, police radio filtering into one of his ears. Whenever he picks up a dispatch in the area, he’s quick to make his way over. He stops a car jacking and right after helps a lady get her cat out of a tree. The latter he hadn’t heard from the radio. She’d seen him swinging by and called him over. He retrieved the feline easily; its name was Percy. Cute cat! he’d complimented, and then he was away again.

His stomach had started to grumble and he stopped by a hot dog stand to grab some food. The vendor had given it to him for free, and Peter smiled before realizing the man wouldn’t be able to see it, so he gave an audible thanks. He swings his way along to some rooftop with one hand, the other busy holding his dinner, and when he’s sitting comfortably on the edge, he rolls his mask up to just beneath his nose so he can eat.

He watches the sun set, the sky fading from orange to purple to black. The city is awash with lights, bouncing off slightly wet roads from the light drizzle that has started. He can already imagine the distinct smell of wet asphalt and it almost seems to reach his nose despite the fact he’s way off the ground. Some people have their umbrellas out, black nylon dots moving to and fro on the sidewalk and the zebra crossings.

A new dispatch comes through of a robbery just a few streets away, and Peter stands up, rolling his mask back down. He takes a few steps back and gets a running start as he jumps off the building, building up speed on the descent before slinging a new web. A couple of units respond to the call but he knows he’ll beat them there. It’s not far now.

He turns the corner and sees the canvas overhang bearing the name of the jewelry store, and he hides in the shadows to survey the criminals, counting five, dressed in black, of considerable stature and build. They’re armed to the teeth with guns, yelling at the employees to stand against the wall while they smash glass cases and stuff the valuables into bags. When he sees them making their way towards the door, he braces himself to head in, but he’s beaten to the punch.

A swift form darts down, catching them off guard as it kicks away their guns and dodges any bullets they manage to fire in their shock. Peter watches in a similar state of surprise as this figure he doesn’t recognize takes down all five of the robbers with increasing ease. He zooms in his HUD for a better view of the scene.

A mask obscures the lower half of the girl’s face, and her hair is tied in a braid to keep it out of her way. It’s hard to analyze her fully since she’s moving so quickly, and he only has a few seconds to get a good look after she takes out the final criminal. She stands in the midst of the chaos, of the bodies and the shattered glass and the shop alarms, and scans the canvas bags full of jewelry now laying out on the sidewalk, seeming to take count and make sure they’re all there. Her eyes narrow, and they look… weird. Different. Peter can’t quite describe them but he’s never seen eyes like that, and he’s still stuck on the thought of them even after she retreats and disappears in the darkness.

Pedestrians had stopped to see what was going on, and remain there, muttering to each other as the cops arrive, all loud sirens and blinking red and blue lights. Who was that? Peter can hear them saying, and he’s wondering the same thing.

He doesn’t run into her again for the remainder of the evening, but with every swing around a block, and with every crime he swoops in to stop, there’s a part of him deep down that kept hoping he would.

———

It’s another bright and beautiful day in New York and [Name] is at the office with five minutes to spare. By the time Liam arrives and shrugs off his messenger bag, taking a seat in his desk across from her, she’s three sentences into her first rough draft.

“You beat me here today,” Liam remarks playfully.

[Name] chuckles. “Didn’t want Jameson scolding me again.”

“No staying up late to do research then?”

“Staying up late doing other things, but don’t worry, I made sure to be home before midnight.”  

There’s a flash in [Name]’s gaze, and Liam takes a deep breath, leaning back in his chair. She isn’t looking at him, too busy typing away, and he studies her closely as he repeatedly clicks the pen he has in his hand. When he responds, his voice is hushed.  “Keep that up, and people will start asking questions.”

The statement is vague, but [Name] doesn’t need it to be clarified. She knows exactly what he’s talking about, and upon hearing it, her attention is pulled away from her word document. Her hands slides off the keyboard and drop into her lap as she stares at her friend. “Then let them,” she tells him matter-of-factly, voice equally quiet, and she shrugs.

She doesn’t let herself be distracted for too long, for she returns to writing without waiting for what Liam has to say in return. She’s determined to have this article edited and published before the end of the week. It’s what she had told Peter she would try to do, and if she’s being honest with herself, she’s excited to know what he thinks of the article when he finally reads it. As she writes, she’s brainstorming in the back of her mind supplemental questions to ask him that would lend more details to her article. And the rationalization makes perfect sense, one that hardly merits suspicion, but she’s her and she knows herself best, and she knows she’s only looking for excuses to talk to him again.  

The first draft is completed by later in the day, and she looks it over while sipping at her soda. Her lips rest absentmindedly around the straw, fingers of one hand curled around the cold aluminum can and her other hand correcting any typos she comes across. Now, the offices are hardly ever completely silent. It’s an impossible demand to have, considering that at any moment there was typing, or a ringing telephone, or the chatter of some coworkers a few desks away. But considering [Name]’s proximity to him, Liam finds it difficult to block out the noise of her slurping as the last of the carbonated liquid is consumed and she’s sucking up nothing but air. He pauses in his writing, eyes sliding over to her. She seems not to have noticed.

He opens his mouth, about to ask her to stop because it’s really distracting, but he catches her eyes flickering over to her phone, which is sitting face up on her desk, before going back to the computer screen. That’s not the first time he’d witnessed her doing that within the past hour. And he closes his mouth and furrows his brows as he wonders what that could possibly mean.

“You keep looking at your phone,” he says finally.

[Name] sits up straight, lowering the can of soda from her mouth, and the surprise on her face makes her look like a deer in headlights. “What?”

“Are you expecting a call?”

“No…” [Name] trails off, glancing down at her phone. The embarrassment at being caught makes it hard to maintain eye contact. She thought she was being so subtle too! Perhaps it’d do her good to remember who she’s dealing with here. Liam is nothing if not observant.

He’s looking at her silently now, brow raised, clearly waiting for an explanation. She almost doesn’t give one, not willing to divulge her humiliating infatuation. It just seems so elementary to have a crush the way she does currently, and “crushes” are something she considered herself to be above. But in the few seconds of the tense stare-off, it occurs to her that maybe it’s because she’s never met someone whose smile made her feel like it was summer in the middle of January. And so she cracks. Liam’s whole keep-quiet-and-they’ll-keep-talking strategy is way too effective.

“Okay!” she exclaims quietly, not wanting to draw attention. She sets her can down on the desk and holds up both hands, palms out. “I keep trying to think of questions to ask Peter Parker, the one I went to interview yesterday, but honestly the article is as detailed as it can get without being redundant and I’m this”—she brings her thumb and index finger close together, leaving a small gap between them—“close to just making up something random so I can talk to him.”

There’s a flush to her cheeks and it’s endearing, it is, but she’s so mortified at the confession that Liam can’t help chuckling. “[Name] [Last Name] flustered?” he questions playfully. “He must be special.”

She groans, burying her face in her hands. “Is it bad if I say yeah, he is despite the fact I’ve only had one conversation with him and it was about his work?”

“No.” Liam shakes his head. “If you like him, you like him. Give him a call.”

[Name] peeks between her fingers to look at her friend. His grin is encouraging, and she sits up and grabs her phone. Her thumb hovers over the screen, poised to navigate to her contacts list, but she can’t bring herself to go through with it. What would she even talk about? It’s an internal battle, one that she really does not want to be having right now at work. Eventually she sighs and sets her phone back down. “I will, just… not now.”

Liam nods in understanding. “Fair enough.” And that signals the end of it. She’ll always be grateful he never pushes the envelope on things. That’s not pressure she needs.

———

As soon as the article is cleared for publishing, [Name] takes a look at all the other articles that will be going into tomorrow’s paper alongside it. She has a plan for her piece that she’s hoping she’ll be able to carry out, and the ease with which she can argue her case with Jameson all depends on what else is going to be published. For most of it, she’s in the clear, and with every headline she scans, her assurance grows. But the final one at the bottom stops her short, and she heaves a sigh.

Liam hears it and asks if she’s okay, taking a second to spare a glance at her while writing in his notebook, and she shrugs and says I don’t know. No, she can’t just roll over that easily. She might be walking into an argument with a significant disadvantage, but she’s practiced for this! All those years of college writing and debate got her ready. A burst of confidence shoots through her and she stands, but bit by bit that confidence whittles away the closer she gets to the lion’s den. Now that she thinks about it, she’s not so sure that preparation counts for anything considering who she’s up against…

She knocks on the door, three curt raps—any fewer and he wouldn’t hear, any more and he’d complain she was making an unnecessary racket. “Mister Jameson?”

There’s a grunt, her cue to enter, and she twists the knob, pushing the door open. She steps into the office and closes it behind her, and the noises from outside with all the other employees is silenced. Jameson is sitting in his chair, papers littered across his desk and a cigar sitting in his mouth.

“What is it?” he questions gruffly. He never tries to hide his impatience, and it’s whipped everyone into shape. Always prompt, all the time.  

“I was wondering if my piece on Octavius Industries could headline tomorrow’s edition.” [Name] comes right out with it, and she rushes to explain herself before Jameson can shoot her down. “It’s just that I think it’s a really important article, and eye-catching too. So I figured it’d make a good… page one spread…” Her initial firm tone fades to one of timidity as she trails off at the end. Jameson doesn’t appear convinced in the slightest, and now she’s wondering if she’d been a fool to bring this up.

He grasps his cigar between his index and middle fingers and blows a puff of smoke. It floats in the air between them briefly before dissipating. “No can do. There’s a new piece on Spider-Man ready to go. Spider-Man: Super-Hero or Super-Zero?” As he quotes the article title, he sits back in his chair, sweeping his hand from left to right, envisioning the way it would look in print.

[Name] purses her lips and while Jameson takes those few moments to get lost in his thoughts (and distaste for the red and blue vigilante), she contemplates if she should keep trying. Is it worth the effort at this point? Well, she is already in here. Go big or go home, right? “Don’t you think it’d be nice to have something different on the front page this time? Something fresh.”

“What do you mean? We had Fisk on the front page last week!”

“I guess what I mean to say is… maybe it would do the paper good to take a step back from having vigilantes and criminals making page one. At least once.”

It’s quiet again and Jameson stares at her, the cigar replaced between his lips. She can’t tell what’s going through his mind, and a part of her is nervous he’s going to explode. When he gets really mad, it’s easy to hear his yells from outside his office. And whoever has been chewed out always looks humiliated and like they’re five seconds away from crying (or at least shedding a tear or two). She forces a polite smile onto her face as she waits.

“You know,” he starts, and she flinches ever so slightly, for she’d been so sure she was about to be yelled at (she hopes he hadn’t noticed but if he did, he doesn’t say anything), “I like you, [Name]. You’re a hard worker. So I’ll tell you what: your piece can take page two.”

This is the stopping point. She’s not about to argue any farther, lest her article get pushed back more. So she nods. “That sounds great! Page 2 is just as fantastic. Thank you, sir.”

Jameson grunts, grabs his cigar again. There’s another plume of smoke. “Now if that’s all…” He makes a shooing motion with his hand. She’s dismissed.

Liam looks up at [Name] as she sits back down at her desk, and he tilts his head as he analyzes her distraught expression. “I can’t tell if your talk with Jameson was successful or not.”

“It went fine, but it could’ve gone better. Jameson’s not pushing the Spider-Man article for tomorrow. So I have page two.” She huffs.

“Page two is still good!”

“But come on, Liam! Another Spider-Man article?” The exasperation in her voice is apparent, and as she continues, her voice lowers to ensure no one can overhear. “I don’t understand why he’s so set on this smear campaign…”

Liam smiles sympathetically. Reasons for her disagreement with Jameson’s stance on Spider-Man run deeper than they do for the average New Yorker. Spider-Man’s a vigilante, but he does a lot of good, she’d said once when looking at one of the many Daily Bugle front page spreads on the web slinger—a negative one, as always. She wished Jameson and people like him would understand that. He’s not the bad guy.

“Well who knows,” Liam speculates. “Maybe something will come along eventually that’ll grab Jameson’s attention enough to make it page one instead of good ol’ Spidey.”

[Name] lets out a breath as she laughs, and it toes the line of disbelief. “Yeah. Maybe.”

Even if her conversation with Jameson hadn’t been as successful as she was hoping, her spirits are lifted again because now that her article is about to come out, she can finally talk to Peter again. Not that she hadn’t been able to before, but this is a perfectly legitimate reason. She won’t be left a stuttering mess trying to scramble for topics that aren’t about the weather.

But for all that excitement, she struggles to actually make the call. She spends most of the commute home switching between staring at his contact on her phone and shoving her phone back in her bag. It’s not until she’s gotten off the subway at her stop and is on her street that she finally gets the nerve to call him.

It rings three times, and then she hears him. “Hello?”

“Hey, Peter!” she greets. “It’s [Name].”

“Hey, yourself! What’s up?”

“I was just calling to tell you my article’s been cleared for publishing. It’s going up tomorrow.”

“What? That’s great! I can’t wait to read it.”

She can sense his excitement, and it’s entirely genuine. It makes her cheeks warm and her smile wide. A gust of wind kicked up by a passing public transport bus blows her hair around and she runs a hand through it to tame it. “Not quite front page though I’m afraid. I tried, but I was competing with a Spider-Man article, and you know how Jameson is.”

Peter chuckles. “I do. But to be honest, that doesn’t matter to me. What matters to me is that you wrote that piece at all. You’re getting the word out.”

He’s right, she realizes. Her motivation from the start had been to draw attention to Octavius Industries. She’d been hoping to have the front page for maximum exposure, but in her talk with Jameson today her motivations had blurred together, and it turned into wanting to have the main headline for the sake of avoiding an over-saturation of Spider-Man articles (though it is a little late for that). She sympathizes with Spider-Man a lot more than other people do, relates to him a lot more they they do, and Jameson’s smear campaigns never sat well with her because of that. But when looking at the situation from her original purpose, to show what Peter and Doctor Octavius are doing, page two isn’t bad. Not by a long shot.  

“I’m really glad I decided to write this piece, and I hope you like it,” [Name] states.

“I already know I will.”

The remark and the ease with which he says it makes butterflies flutter in her stomach. She feels like she could take off with wings of her own and she’s trying to pull herself back down to earth. Neither of them speaks for a few beats, and [Name] wonders if this is the point where she says goodbye. But she doesn’t want to, she wants to keep talking to him and hear his voice, and she wracks her brain for something else to talk about. What the hell! She hadn’t planned this far.  

But Peter beats her to to it, and not quite in a way she expected. “You know, not that I’m annoyed by it or anything, because I’m not, but you could’ve texted me this too. Is there any particular reason you decided to call instead?”

She sputters, and Peter laughs. Her face feels hot as she enters her apartment building and makes a beeline for the elevator. This is so embarrassing! (In the midst of this embarrassment she notes his laugh is really cute.) “W-Well, I just—” She groans in frustration at her sudden inability to piece together a sentence, so she takes a deep breath and starts over.

“You were so easy to talk to the other day when I was at the lab, and I don’t know… I just wanted to do it again. I like talking to you,” she admits shyly.

When Peter doesn’t respond right away, she automatically assumes the worst. Oh no. Had she moved too quickly? Did he not feel the same way? Her eyes slide closed as she mentally prepares herself for rejection. Nice job, [Name], just assuming this could go anywhere. It was just one interview, and it only lasted one hour—

“How about we talk in person then?” Peter’s suggestion interrupts her train of thought. “Maybe over some pizza?”

[Name]’s eyes open just as the elevator dings, and she gets out, walking down the hall toward her flat. “Yeah…” she replies quietly, but then she clears her throat and speaks up. “Yeah, I’d like that.” With every word her lips curve into a smile, and she bites at her lip lest she smile so big her face cracks.

They agree to meet at New Park Pizza tomorrow, and Peter’s grinning from ear to ear as he says goodbye and hangs up. The corner of his HUD reads Call ended and he misses [Name]’s voice already. He’s crouched on the ledge of some skyscraper in Manhattan where the air is cool and crisp. Up here, the birds are his company, weaving their way through buildings. One flies above his head and he swears he could run the tip of his suited fingers along its soft down if he were to extend his arm above him.

He stands slowly, toes hanging off the edge, surveying the streets below. There’s the familiar blinking of police sirens that are nothing but blips at this distance, and he’s too far to hear them. But what he does hear is the dispatch coming in through the radio. It’s nowhere near as pleasant to listen to as [Name] had been.

Peter’s eyes narrow, his suit’s eyepieces narrowing in turn. That police car must be on its way to the scene. A couple of birds stretch their wings from their perch not much farther down the ledge from him, and they take flight, swooping down and finding their path flittering among the towers. He follows suit, jumping off the edge, and there’s the familiar sensation of his stomach dropping as he seems to float in the air for a few seconds in silence. And then he’s diving, speed building, wind roaring in his ears, and the blare of the sirens and the honks of the yellow cabs grow clearer with every foot he falls. Adrenaline fills his veins and it’s nothing new, but the novelty won’t ever be lost on him. He shoots a web to pull himself forward, and another, and another. He’ll get there before that police cruiser does.

It turns out to be a drug bust down by the docks. Apparently a big one too, since as Peter gets closer, he can see the guns blazing. The police are using their open car doors to shield themselves from the bullets, but he gets right in the middle of the action. He releases two webs so he can slingshot himself into the first man, feet hitting his chest at full speed and knocking him down to the ground.

“Having a party without me?” he asks, hand going to his chest in feigned offense as he looks at the rest of the criminals. “I have to admit, I’m a little hurt, you guys.” He doesn’t bother waiting for a response (though he doubts they would have any except to shoot at him) before he’s on them, maneuvering and avoiding the bullets with a precision and fluidity that’d be otherwise absent without his Spidey senses.

Cover Spider-Man! Peter can hear one of the officers yelling. The job is done quickly. Disarming the criminals came first, and then webbing them to the ground or telephone poles or what have you was a piece of cake. At the end of it, he stands in the center to observe his work, hands poised on his hips. He nods in approval. He did clean up nicely.

He freezes when another dispatch comes in. It’s for a mugging in the vicinity. He wastes no time in shooting another web and pulling himself up and away, back towards the streets, and he frees up a hand to wave as some of the police yell out a thanks for the assist.

Rounding a corner, he spots another police car pulled over on the curb. The lights flash colors to match his suit, but the siren is off. From the looks of it, the mugger’s already been caught, and the lady he’d stolen from is clutching her bag against her chest. Rather than swinging right by or turning around in search of another crime that needs stopping, he swings along until he can settle on top of the building the cruiser is parked in front of. He’s thirty feet off the ground but as he listens in, the voices are clear as day.

“I’m telling you, it was crazy!” the mugger exclaims. Peter tilts his head in confusion. Obviously he had begun to eavesdrop on an already ongoing conversation. “Her eyes looked like stars! A sky full of them!”

“Sure. Okay.” The police offer doesn’t believe a word of it, shaking his head and guiding the suspect into the back of his car.

But it does grab Peter’s attention. That description is familiar. He lifts his gaze and surveys the tops of what buildings he can see from his vantage point, as though he’ll catch a glimpse of her somewhere. She’s out there tonight, patrolling the streets like he is. She stopped this mugging before he could get here. Surely she couldn’t have gone far. If there are any more dispatches from this area, he’s willing to bet she’ll be at the scene.

As if on cue, another call comes through: bank robbery on 14th. Only a few blocks away. Peter heads in that direction, hoping his assumption had been correct.  

It seems the bank has been cleared of civilians by now. Only the robbers remain inside, and they open fire on any officers who try to come inside. The windows are shattered and the alarm is shrill and grating. The noise makes Peter’s ears ring, and he can hardly hear himself think in the ensuing chaos. There’s a flash of movement inside, and suddenly one of the robbers falls to the ground in a crumpled heap, fingers loosely grasping his weapon. Peter inhales sharply. That had to be her.

He wastes no time entering the building, colliding with one of the men and kicking him back into a wall, effectively knocking him out. One down. Peter turns his attention to the rest of his surroundings and his impromptu partner for the ordeal. She moves swiftly from one criminal to another, all of whom look so brutish in comparison with clunky armor and big guns. Her movements make her hard to catch, and she’s too close range to be shot at. He can tell she’s trying to separate them to prevent them from teaming up, and he does the same, making sure they’re spread out so he can take them down safely without risking getting caught from behind.

With two of them, subduing all the robbers goes by fast, and they mostly stay out of each other’s way. Peter’s fine with that. The girl looks perfectly capable of taking down her share. Besides, she has her methods, and he doesn’t want to interrupt. He knocks one of the few left down to the ground and webs him, and suddenly the hairs on the back of his neck stand, his senses beginning to buzz.

He whips around in time to see the final criminal, tall and all muscle, seconds away from barreling into him with a tackle, but there’s no contact, and instead a lithe leg sweeps across his knees and forces him to the cold tiled floors. The girl seems to fly into his space before he can react, hand flying to his pressure point and squeezing. And then he’s out like a light.

Peter won’t lie: he’s impressed. He’d watched her in action the other night, but it’s an entirely different experience up close, especially as he’s working alongside her this time. As she stands straighter, he can finally get a good, proper look at her. He’s drawn to her eyes, no longer viewing them from a zoomed in HUD, and he understands why the mugger had pointed them out, and why the officer wasn’t convinced what the mugger was saying was even real.

Instead of a sclera with iris and pupil, her lashes frame deep pools of black. No, a sky of black. That mugger had been more accurate. Flecks of white dot the expanse like stars. Peter’s reminded of little marbles that seem to hold the galaxy in them, and it’s hard to look away.

“Thanks,” he says, motioning to the unconscious robber laying between them, but he quiets down immediately when she holds a finger up to her masked mouth. She’s noticed something he hadn’t, and he wonders what, because they’re the only two still standing in the lobby. Her head turns in the direction of the open door behind the counter, and he follows her line of sight.

She starts walking in that direction, and he trails behind. They step over bodies and discarded weapons and wads of cash, footfalls completely silent. Through the door and down the stairs is the vault, which is slightly opened. From where they are, they can’t see inside. Peter catches on: there’s someone inside. She looks at him and he nods before setting his hands on the heavy vault door and waiting for her to get in position. Their exchange is wordless as he raises a hand to count off: three, two, one.

Peter yanks the door back with an ease that comes from his superhuman strength, and the girl braces herself to pounce on whoever is in there. But her stance relaxes as they both take in the bank teller cowering in the corner, tears streaming down her face. She’d tucked her face into her drawn up knees as the door opened, prepared for the worst, and she peeks up to see who had found her. She lets out a breath of relief at spotting her saviors standing at the entrance.

“It’s okay,” Peter starts, approaching slowly. She’s in shock, and he doesn’t want to make it worse. He has his palms out, and when directly in front of her, he bends down to gently pick her up, one arm behind her back and the other at the bend of her knees. The girl had known the bank teller was in here. But how? Did it have something to do with her eyes?

He wants to ask but figures questions like that are a little too on the nose considering they hardly know each other. Perhaps later down the road. He turns back toward the vault exit—she’s not standing there anymore. Not wanting to jostle the lady in his arms, he walks briskly rather than run out of the vault, and he looks left and right for any sign of her. He sees her at the emergency exit, one he knows leads to the alley between this building and the one next door, but he calls out to her before she can leave.

“Hey, wait!”

She halts and slowly her gaze turns to him, waiting for what he has to say. But then Peter realizes he has no idea where to start. He hadn’t actually expected her to stop. Does he say thanks? Does he ask who she is? Does he ask Why now? Because he has never seen her around until now but she seems to know this city just as well he does, so surely she’s been in New York for a long while.

All the questions are good, but it’s a matter of deciding which to ask first. However, all this debating back and forth within himself causes him to run out of what little time she’d allotted for him to speak to her, and he’s forced to watch as she leans back on the push bar and slips through the gap, there one second, and gone the very next.

He sighs in disappointment at coming away with no answers, but doesn’t dwell on it too long. The police are sure to be inside already, cuffing all the perps. He carries the woman back upstairs, and as she does, she asks who that was just now. I don’t know, he responds truthfully. But he wishes he did.

———

He’s running late.

Upon this realization, he’d groaned, but it’s not exactly like he could ignore the stolen armored truck plowing down Canal Street. He slings a web onto its roof, pulling himself atop it, and the drive starts to zig zag back and forth even more than he had been before in an effort to knock him off, but Peter sticks to the vehicle easily. He crawls along the side, making sure to stay out of view of the passenger-side window.

“So I’ve got a date,” he announces, shouting to be heard over the noise of cars honking and veering out of the way, “and I really don’t appreciate that you guys are gonna make me late!”

The man in the passenger seat sticks his gun out the window, but Peter is quick to grab it and tug it out of his grip. He webs it into place against the side of the truck before pulling the man out as well, who he drops on the sidewalk to be picked up by one of the police cars speeding after the rogue vehicle.

“She’s the sweetest girl too. I need this date to go perfectly!” Peter crawls to the driver’s side now, and when the man frees up a hand to shoot him, he webs that hand so he can’t pull the trigger. Then he yanks him out of the seat, leaving him similarly abandoned on the ground, and climbs into the cabin, taking control of the wheel. He maneuvers the huge truck around other cars and slows it down, bit by bit until he comes to a complete stop right before a stoplight. It turns red when he puts the truck in park.

He crawls out, standing on the roof again, and looks down the street behind him. Traffic has all but stopped. Cars have swerved to the sides of the road and crowds of people have gathered on the sidewalk to ogle at the aftermath. Some of them take out their phones to take pictures. A stream of police cars come to a stop, and now that they’re there, Peter takes his leave. The time is displayed on the lower left corner of his HUD. If he’s fast, he wouldn’t be too late. Maybe five minutes tops. He’s got this.

———

[Name] sits in the corner booth of New Park Pizza and stares out the window, head resting on her propped up hand. Two glasses of water are on the table and the laminated menus sit undisturbed in the center. It’s three minutes past the agreed upon meeting time, and she wonders if her concern at Peter’s distinct absence is an overreaction. She’s almost inclined to text Liam and ask what he thinks, but it’s mostly because she’s getting antsy and needs a distraction.

No, don’t freak out, she tells herself. Maybe the trains are running a little behind. Yeah, that’s it. He’d be here. Peter doesn’t seem like the type to just bail. Still, even with this assurance, she’s jittery, and she starts to dig through her bag for her phone. Talking to Liam would be the only way to calm her down. Whenever he assures her of things, she always believes him.

The bell above the door jingles as a patron enters, and [Name] glances up to find Peter standing there, looking around for her. When he spots her, he smiles and it’s apologetic. Her hand slips out of her bag and she smiles back, sitting up as he slides into the shiny vinyl booth across from her.

“I”m sorry I’m late,” he says right out the gate. “I just got held up with some things and—”

“Don’t worry about it,” [Name] responds, waving a hand.

Peter’s smile shifts to one of thanks at the reassurance, and, more at ease now, he slides one of the menus toward himself and changes the topic to what would have been his original conversation starter, if he hadn’t come in late. “I read your article this morning.”

[Name]’s head snaps up from looking at her own menu, and she watches him in equal parts eagerness and nervousness, waiting for what he has to say. She doesn’t say it out loud, but the question is apparent in her eyes: And? What’d you think? Peter almost doesn’t want to answer right away, skirt around the subject, prolong his final opinion, if only to witness that overwhelming sense of curiosity written on her face. She’s hanging on every word, or will, anyway, once they leave his mouth.

“I thought it was great.” That’s not the full extent of his response, but it’s enough to make her eyes light up and her face break out into a toothy grin, unable to contain her joy. As much as he likes to see her curious gaze filled to the brim with interest, he likes seeing her smile more. It makes his heart twist a little—a minute and diminutive but not at all insignificant tightening of his chest, there to point his brain in the right direction.

“You explained our work really clearly,” he continues on, giving more detailed feedback because he knows it’s helpful to her as a journalist. “You made a good case for Octavius Industries. I can’t ever thank you enough for deciding to write this.”

[Name] takes a deep breath, shoulders lifting as her whole body puffs up, and she exhales and relaxes steadily. She’s putting together the words. “It felt… right to me, to do it. Sometimes the little guys get pushed under the rug, but they deserve a chance just as much as anyone else.”

Peter smiles softly. He thinks he can see the compassion that flows through her veins, can hear it pounding in his ears like it courses through his own. There’s care in everything she says, written and verbal, and he’s wondering where she’s been all his life. “And,” he adds on quietly, “if not for this article, we wouldn’t have met.”

She picks at the corner of her menu as she stares at him, fully processing his words, and the graceful curve of her lips is enough to turn him into ice cream on a hot summer day. Neither of them says anything, watching one another with the mutual realization that this is turning out to be more than shallow infatuation. The tips of Peter’s fingers twitch like there’s a current of electricity flittering between them both, like they’re two magnets slowly pulling together, and then colliding all at once. It’s a sense of connection almost scary in its strength, but he doesn’t fight it because she doesn’t either.

“Are you ready to order?”

Peter and [Name] are pulled back to reality as the waiter approaches, notepad out and pencil in hand. They stammer as they actually take a good look at their menus for the first time since they got to talking, and hastily decide upon a pepperoni pizza. The waiter writes the order down with a nod and collects the menus, then gives them one final smile before returning to the kitchen.

Asking for more time wouldn’t have been an issue, but they were so flustered from being interrupted that it hadn’t crossed their minds. They glance at each other again, little smirks on their faces, and then they can’t contain their laughs.

Pepperoni pizza might be a little lowbrow considering how many other options New Park Pizza offers, but it’s perfect to them. They grab slices off the tray, watching in awe the strings of cheese that stretch as they pull. Conversations are easy and laid-back and wonderful. [Name]’s eyes glimmer in the light of the setting sun outside New Park Pizza’s windows, and Peter feels like he’s known her for forever.

———

[Name] sits back in her chair, flipping through her notes. They’re messier than usual this time. The man she’d interviewed spoke a mile a minute and she was half-expecting her hand to spontaneously combust in its efforts to keep up. Her head tilts as she tries to decipher one word that looks like nothing more than chicken scratch. She’s about to lean across to Liam to ask if he can figure it out, but movement in her peripherals grabs her attention.

A man she doesn’t recognize is being led by the secretary to Jameson’s office. He’s gripping a manila folder and nods to her in thanks when she lets him in. The moment the door clicks shut, she turns to look at Liam, who’s already looking at her, similarly confused.

“Who was that?” she asks.

Liam shrugs. “Beats me.”

[Name]’s brows furrow. She gives one last glance at Jameson’s door before forcing herself to return to her work.

It’s not much longer until the man emerges again and takes his leave. [Name] finds herself distracted once more as she follows his retreating form. Just to take a break from staring at her ugly scrawling, she reasons, but it’s more than that. She glances at his hands: no more folder. Did he have something to offer Jameson? But what? Clearly it had piqued his interest. She’s itching to know more, and briefly wonders if Jameson would tell her if she asked.

However, it seems bringing it up herself wouldn’t be necessary, because said man opens his door wide enough to stand in the gap. “[Name],” he calls so he can be heard across the room. “Come in here.”

[Name] uncrosses her legs and sits straight, dropping her notebook on her desk with a quiet thwack! Her eyes slide over to Liam. It seems like they’ll be learning what that was all about. He smiles encouragingly and nods his head in the direction of Jameson’s still slightly ajar door. She walks over, slipping through the gap and shutting it behind her. Jameson is standing on the other side of his desk, leaning forward with his hands braced on the wooden surface.

He cuts to the chase. “What are you working on right now?”

“I’m writing about that new exhibit down at the Met.”

“Well you can forget about it.”

“Sir?” [Name] is even more lost now.

“Take a seat.” Jameson points at one of the two chairs opposite his desk, and she does as he instructs. “The gentleman you no doubt saw come in here just now had some fascinating photos to show me.”

Great. More photos of Spider-Man. [Name] represses a sigh, and though she really doesn’t care to, when Jameson twists the folder around and slides it closer to her, she picks it up and opens it to examine the contents inside. Except it’s not pictures of Spider-Man. It’s not pictures of anything she could’ve begun to expect when she saw that man come in with this folder in his possession.

The figure in the photographs seems to almost disappear in its dark suit against a dark sky. A mask conceals the bottom half of its face and darker still than its outfit or the nighttime backdrop of every snapshot are its eyes, black ink with white specks like stars. One shot is slightly closer, albeit grainy, but that vigilant gaze is nonetheless more pronounced and seems to be a more accurate representation of outer space than the sky looming in the back, nothing but a plain canvas, its details obscured by the plethora of city lights.

[Name]’s heart rate picks up as she goes through the photos. There aren’t many, and some are too far or too blurry to be usable, but it’s the fact these had been taken at all. She desperately tries to hide her shock. To be surprised at viewing these wouldn’t be out of the ordinary— since these are, of course, what just might be the first exclusive look at New York’s most recent night crawler, whose existence was making rounds purely by word of mouth considering its elusiveness, and its propensity for the shadows. But the level of shock [Name] is doing her best to hide goes beyond that, and would warrant suspicion, perhaps even leading to questions she would rather not answer.

She inhales deeply, willing her heartbeat to slow, and she forces her eyes away from the pictures in her hands to look at Jameson. “But what does this have to do with me dropping my current article?” Her voice doesn’t shake. Good.

“Because I want you to write this piece,” he says as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “You weren’t able to land page one with your last article, so here’s your chance to do it.”

[Name]’s mouth opens, but nothing comes out. Holy shit. Holy shit. “Wow, uh, thank you, sir!” she forces herself to speak. Her breathlessness as her brain tries to make sense of this situation makes her feel like she’s just run a mile or three.

Jameson nods and motions to the photos, and she gives them back. He spreads them out on the desk, facing him, and he pores over them silently. She wrenches her hands in her lap and her gaze switches back and forth between the glossy pictures and Jameson’s face. His expression is unreadable, and she can’t begin to guess what he might be thinking.

“First, she needs a name,” he declares. [Name] isn’t sure if he wants any input but plays it safe and keeps her mouth shut. It’s quiet again, and her eyes narrow the longer she sits there, curious as to what sorts of names Jameson is going through in his head. Suddenly he snaps his fingers and looks at her, and she jumps a little in surprise at the quick movement.

“I got it.” He stands up straight.

[Name] exits his office with the manila folder tucked under her arm. Liam glances up, looking at her expectantly, but she doesn’t return to her desk. Continuing to walk past, she nudges her head in the direction of the break room, and he stands immediately and follows after her. Luckily there’s no one in there, and she leans against the counter. Her eyes don’t give anything away.

“So?” he inquires.

[Name] almost can’t answer, still feeling the effects of being caught off guard as hard as she had been. It’s like she took a nasty punch to the temple. She’s reeling. She looks down at the folder in her hand, and Liam follows her gaze, and finally she settles for simply holding it out to him. He takes it and opens it, and his eyes widen, much like hers had when she first saw those photographs.

“Someone managed to take a few shots,” she explains. “Jameson wants it on the front page and he wants me to write the article.”

“Oh my god.” It’s the only thing Liam can think to say. He’s too engrossed looking at the pictures.

“You were right, Li. People are asking questions, and it only makes sense they want answers.”

Liam sighs and closes the folder. “The irony of this whole scenario is palpable.”

[Name] hums, one of agreement and disbelief at the predicament she finds herself in, so ridiculous it’s almost silly. “Jameson even gave me a name to use, to help frame a narrative.”

Liam tilts his head, and she reaches in her pocket for the small piece of paper. He unfolds it and a grin overtakes his face as he reads what’s written there, in all capital letters. It mirrors [Name]’s when he looks at her.

———

“Andromeda, huh?”

Peter holds up the newest edition of The Daily Bugle and surveys the large headline on the front, reading Andromeda Emerges from the Shadows! It’s accompanied by a photo of said vigilante.

“Yep.” [Name] walks into the living room after having set her purse in the bedroom. “Jameson came up with it. Said it was because of the way her eyes look. Reminded him of constellations.”

“I have to admit, it’s pretty creative.”

[Name] nods in agreement. “It is. I doubt I could’ve thought of anything that good.” She takes a seat next to him, also observing the front page spread. “Do you think she and Spider-Man would be friends?”

The question is aimless musing, hanging in the air as [Name] leans her head on his shoulder. But it makes Peter think, makes him wonder. Would they be? This Andromeda hadn’t exactly been the talkative type. Perhaps over time she would be. They had already stopped multiple crimes together. Ever since the bank heist, they’d run into each other now and again, and the whole duration of their encounters remained wordless. But there was a sense of respect between the two, and Peter considers it progress.

“Maybe,” he replies, turning his head to lay a quick kiss on [Name]’s head.

Her stomach growls then, and she stands up. “Can we start dinner now?”

Peter chuckles and drops the newspaper onto the coffee table. “Yeah.” He trails behind her, and as they enter the kitchen, he widens his strides until he’s close enough to reach out his arm and wrap it around her waist, pulling her into him.

She lets out a quiet oof! as her back collides with his chest, and she sets one hand on the arm securing her in place. He kisses a trail from her cheek to her neck to her shoulder and she’s giggly and squirmy but with his grip, she isn’t going anywhere.

“Stop!” she breathes out, and it’s interspersed with laughs. He doesn’t stop, grinning against her skin. “I’m hungry!” The last word comes out like a whine when his lips pass over a particularly sensitive patch and she’s caught between laughing and gasping in delight.

Peter finally lets up, and he’s laughing as his arm loosens, allowing her to pull away. She turns to him and shakes her head playfully, gradually regaining her breath. “You’re about to have the best curry of your life,” he states as he walks up to the counter where all the ingredients are laid out.

[Name] stands next to him, assuming the role of assistant chef tonight. “Show me how it’s done then!”

The next time he runs into Andromeda, Peter decides he’ll mention the Daily Bugle article. Maybe then she’ll talk. Even if they don’t become friends, at the very least, they could be partners. Two is better than one. But he doesn’t dwell on these thoughts for long, as another one of [Name]’s laughs fills the kitchen. It makes him smile fondly. There are more important things to focus on right now.

[theonceoverthinker]

Things I’d Like to See in Guardians of the Galaxy 3

What will a post-Endgame Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3 be like? I’ve been thinking about that question since Endgame came out and while we’ve a lot of time to speculate before we get so much as a teaser for the film, I wanted to jump in with my two cents on stuff I’d like to see in the next film!

Points of full disclosure before the list beings: First, Endgame spoilers, obviously. Second, most to all of these involve my heart’s new owner, Nebula! I don’t know when it happened, but this blue bud won me over and I just want more of her and this list is gonna be reflective of that! Third, everything here is in no particular order!

Okay, with all that settled, here we go!

1. Rocket and Nebula being close friends. Rocket and Nebula worked together for five years, likely even living on the same ship. I expect when conflicts arise between the new team, Rocket and/or Nebula will take the other’s side. They’ve grown close and get each other on a level that’s so different than any of the other Guardian’s dynamics. They suffered horrible losses and had to live with that for five years of their lives. Even when they weren’t bogged down with their own troubles, they were with everyone else’s. I could see them sharing an opposing view of something Peter suggests given that Nebula and Rocket share a more...contentious relationship with him compared to the other Guardians and outside of them, Peter is the most serious member of the team.

2. Drax contemplating his life post-Thanos. Drax dedicated himself to avenging the loss of his wife and child by killing Thanos. Hell, given that one of his traveling companions was a literal daughter of Thanos and they were traveling as heroes, it’s not even that much of a stretch to think that he figured their paths would cross eventually. And now Thanos is dead, and not even directly by his hand. What’s that gonna do to Drax? Don’t get me wrong -- he’s happy that Thanos is gone and he feels like his family has been avenged, but that was his life’s mission and it’s done, but he’s still got a lot of living left to do. I’m not saying this needs to be a big part in the movie or anything, but I think a conversation between himself and Mantis or Nebula about it would a good way to give Drax a bit more depth and provide some closure for that part of his character.

3. Peter and Nebula bonding over Gamora. When Gamora died, both Peter and Nebula lost someone who meant virtually everything to them. And now they have a new Gamora, but she’s not the same as the one who they got so close to. That’s gonna breed a lot of weird feelings and Peter and Nebula will probably be the best two characters to explore those feelings. Can Peter love 2014 Gamora in the same way he loved 2018 Gamora? and will a completely different Gamora even want anything to do with him beyond being a temporary teammate, or will it be like that last episode of Teen Titans where Beat Boy had to let Terra go? That would be a pretty interesting ending and be in time with the general running theme of loss across the Guardians movies.

4. The Thor/Peter rivalry to settle down. I love rivalries as much as the next person, but this one’s run its course. It was cute in Infinity War, but the joke went on a bit too long for me at the end of Endgame. I really hope it doesn’t play a large part of the next movie. We got that with Peter and Rocket in Guardians 2, a film that did a great job taking on the concept of toxic masculinity, and I don’t think we need any more in place of more interesting story directions the film could take. Hell, going along with my third point, Thor would also be an interesting player in the greater discussion of loss given just how much he’s had to endure.

This is running a bit long, so here’s a cut to go under!

5. Some full circle thing for Groot. We have literally seen Groot throughout various stages of his life across these movies. Now in Guardians 3, he’ll likely be an adult again or at least damn close to an adult and I’d like to see something to cap that off in terms of his character. How is this Groot several films later and now parented by the Guardians different from his counterpart in the first film, especially because Groot was such a selfless character at the end of the first film? Maybe he’ll take care of another creature in the same vein as how the Guardians took care of him? That’s the first idea that comes to mind, but I’m sure there are others!

6. Nebula stays on the team. ...Look, i just like Nebula, okay?! I like her story, her development, her dynamics -- I just want to see her in more movies! Is that too much to ask? I don’t know what the next direction for Thor is, but it would make me really happy to see Nebula stick around!

7. Give Mantis more to do. Mantis plays such an interesting role in the team. She’s relatively new, still very inexperienced with social cues, but at the same time, has the power to bring dysfunction to the surface and it’s about time that was used more! Mantis has had so few moments to shine, especially compared to the other Guardians and I’m hoping Guardians 3 will give her a bit of the spotlight. How will she use her powers in relation to some of the tension going on around the new team? I think that’s a very interesting question to answer.

8. Positive moments between the Guardians. I like positive moments and the Guardians are due for some! So can we get a moment of them bonding over music or Rocket jokingly saying that he missed them or just some fun banter not completely based in sarcastic semi-bitterness? Because that would be cool!

9. New angles on Gamora’s dynamics with the team. We have a new Gamora! Let’s see how she interacts with the team under different circumstances. What will they be? It’s tough to say. There’s one level of tenseness gone in that most of introductions with the other Guardians happened during a big fight and then in prison. However, with that informality gone from such an informal greeting, there might be a lot more distrust there. Maybe she’ll be more initially friendly with Drax or Mantis! Maybe Nebula will have to once again be the more vulnerable sister! There are some really interesting possibilities to explore!

10. A thematically connected and character-based villain. Ego was a great villain in Guardians 2. His role as a “father” figure played an interesting role in Peter’s story, helped move Peter and Yondu’s reconciliation along, and was a strong and menacing presence. However, Ronan kind of sucked in Guardians 1. And by kind of sucked, I mean he REALLY sucked. He had no connection to the characters and was just a boss fight. So for Guardians 3, I’d like the villain to be more like Ego. How would I do it? Well, one idea that I have is that most of the Guardian’s main threats are now neutralized. However, the alternate Gamora likely won’t think so or see it that way. There are enemies she’s made that she might want a piece of or might want a piece of her, and she’s not going to have that restraint and compassion she’s developed over the two Guardians films to walk away from or ask for help dealing with them. And you could cross those enemies over with enemies of another member of the team’s for added effect. This would also cross over well into what will likely be a primary theme in this movie -- letting go. Peter and Nebula will have to let go of the notion that this Gamora will ever be exactly like the one that they knew and her new identity is one that needs to be respected. Drax will need to let go of his drive for Thanos in lieu of a new passion. And Gamora will need to let go of her hatred of these enemies and her expectation of total independence and understand that neither of those things is healthy. That sounds like a good villain layout to me!

So, what are your thoughts  on this list and what would you like to see?

[moonlitgleek]

I would love to hear your thoughts about Fire and Blood when you finish it! (Or not even when you finish it, just whenever, cuz you're amazing!) 💕

I have the best friends in the world! Love and hugs, lady.

I am halfway through and I intend to go back and reread each chapter once I finish since I keep blowing through pages because I want to know all the things, which is not very good for proper processing. But a few of the things that jumped at me so far:

(spoilers for Fire and Blood volume 1 under the cut)

1. Gyldayn seems more rambly and prone to ponder sexual scandals than Yandel. He spent waaaay too much time talking about that, and while sexuality is at the heart of some conflicts, the way he went on about the story of Coryanne Wylde and the sordid details of how she was “examined” really undermines his position as a historian and makes me overly iffy on him. Also, there are private conversations between Jaehaerys and Alysanne that I’d really like to know his source on.

2. Speaking of authors, what the actual fuck George? You’d think that in a book that goes so into detail about unconfirmed scandals he’d have the room to expand on someone like, idk, Argella Durrandon? He had the chance to make her story a bit better but he not only did he uphold her forceful loss of voice being the last we hear of her, he compounded the matter by also having Marla Sunderland’s tongue removed before she was packed off to the Silent Sisters. Literal stripping of women’s voices for defiance, by their own men no less, when it’s so unnecessary and so singular in its gendered use in the plot infuriates me. There is a lot of overlap between gender and silencing of voice in this (Argella, Marla, Ceryse Hightower, Rhaena Targaryen). UGH.

3. On the topic of women, Torrhen Stark’s daughter not only does not have a name, she is completely unmentioned in Jonos Arryn’s rebellion, nor by her nephew (?) Alaric with either Alysanne or Jaehaerys. Looks a bit peculiar since Alaric obviously brooded on the consequences of Targaryen decision for his family in the case of Jaehaerys and those he sent to the Wall, so is there any particular reason Torrhen’s daughter goes completely unmentioned even when the topic of marriage was raised and southern matches brought up, George?

4. Aegon, Visenya and Rhaenys are outright referred to as the three heads of the dragon. It’s no longer symbolic or understood but an explicit connection. That’s way too obvious for me to buy that Rhaegar’s Aegon and Rhaenys don’t point straight to a recreation of the Conquest Trio.

5. The war of escalating atrocities between Dorne and the Targaryens is terrible but I feel like there is a conscious effort to make the Targaryens seem better somewhat? The mention of them trying to negotiate at this point before actually utilizing dragonflame is weird because it is not consistent with anything in the Conquest. I don’t know what to do with that part.

6. The First Dornish War makes Daeron I’s folly in the conquest more obvious. Dornish terrain is as much an element to conquer as Dornish people and it costs a lot to manage it. Keeping conquered Dornish ground is bloody hard even with dragons. Daeron even leaves a Tyrell in charge just like Aegon.

7. Is it just me or does the Targaryen succession look weird in early days? Jaehaerys is referred to as the rightful heir by all rights then a few pages later it’s nope, Aerea is then suddenly we’re talking about Rhaena’s claim even though every reference to Targaryen succession before that points to a male-preference primogeniture. Alysanne takes issue with Jaehaerys treating Aemon as his heir over Daenerys even though Jaehaerys’ accession is tarnished based on that principle. There is a distinct vibe of seeing the son of Rhaenys the Queen Who Never Was as the expected heir of Aemon rather than Rhaenys herself (though this could partly because Princess Rhaenys and Lord Corlys wanted to put forward a potential male heir to offset Baelon being seen as the natural successor - since when was Baelon seen as the natural successor though? That apparently wasn’t only Jaehaerys’ sentiment so was that a popular view while Aemon lived or a reaction to Baelon avenging Aemon? Was Aemon aware and that’s why he made a comment to Rhaenys about liking a grandson, or was that regular era preference of male heirs?). Main takeaway though is that Jaehaerys passing over Rhaenys had nothing with extant competing claims but was about regarding Baelon as a natural successor for his gender, age and prowess. Jaehaerys pretty much didn’t even consider Rhaenys. Headdesk. You’re killing me, man.

8. I feel like the characters of Rhaena Targaryen and Alyssa Velaryon are being walked back. The point where apparently Septon Barth comments that Alyssa undoubtedly wanted to do the right thing but didn’t know what that was flies in the face of her previously established actions. I don’t like how she was taken down from an active and conscious political player, to a confused and almost secondary player next to Rogar (much preferred him when he was Robar, both the name and the person) till their final tiff, to  a womb and another casualty of childbirth with the emphasis being on her children. Rhaena may have called out the latter but the whole thing feels like a punishment for Alyssa for first opposing Jaehaerys and Alysanne then opposing Rogar. As for Rhaena, she swings between political sacrifice for the greater good to treating Jaehaerys and Alysanne with contempt for it. Resentment is perfectly normal and understandable but Rhaena surpasses that. She is purposely cast in an unfavorable light and her sexuality is strongly used to frame it.

9. There is a bit of exoneration after the fact to Jaehaerys sentencing most of Maegor’s Kingsguard to the Wall on contradicting arguments. I get his point about oathbreaking but punishing those who deserted Maegor because they didn’t uphold their vows to protect hum while also punishing those who didn’t desert him for defending and enabling a murderous usurper is extremely contradictory. That the two knights who deserted Maegor then deserted the Night’s Watch and a caused a conflict that claimed the life of Walton Stark neatly brushes this quandary off because it demonstrates that Jaehaerys was right.

10. I love how Septon Barth and Alysanne often work as a team in pushing Jaehaerys towards one policy or another. On more than one occasion, one of them makes the argument and the other comes with the definitive final strike. I love the women’s court and Alysanne’s Laws though I think there is a certain vagueness in the way Jaehaerys codified inheritance in the Widow’s Law. I’m still midway through Viserys I’s tenure though so I don’t know if this will be raised in any sort of legal argument for the Dance but it’s a non-issue so far.

11. I hate how Daella Targaryen was written. I hate how we keep adding names to the “death by childbirth” list. I hate how the child brides keep getting ignored. This is too conspicuous in the case of Daella and her daughter Aemma Arryn. Queen Alysanne held herself and especially Jaehaerys to blame for Daella’s death because she felt that, at 16-17, they wed her too early and that contributed to her death in childbed. But it’s treated like a non-issue that Aemma married Viserys at 11 and was bedded at 13.

12. I’m indescribably charmed by how Baelon the Brave got his epithet by booping a dragon on the nose. Also, the relationship between Aemon and Baelon, and Baelon and Alyssa. Too bad we can’t have nice things.

13. I already lost my shit over this in DMs with you but still, Aerea Targaryen! Aerea Targaryen! Oh my god. I was equally horrified and fascinated. A speculated trip to Valyria that resulted in the princess’ body being inhabited by “worms with faces” or “snakes with hands” made of fire and heat that cooked her body from the inside. This surpasses Valyria being a thin place or geophysically unstable. This means there is a Lovecraftian horror capable of using human bodies (and non-human bodies, Balerion was wounded as well but dragons are fire made flesh so that probably protected him) as vessels to… spread? Take over? Turn people into dragonic/fire abominations? Also, also, is that take over possible for anyone or is whatever is dormant in Targaryen DNA that tends to emerge with the use of magic in the form of babies with dragon-like qualities (though it appeared in non-magical cases) makes them more susceptible?

COMPARE TO THE OTHERS. A Lovecraftian horror made of ice and another made of fire. Blood magic probably behind the creation (calling?) of both. We still don’t know how the Others came to be and there has been legitimate rebuttals to the show’s version of their creations BUT I think what could be taken from the show is the suggestion that this is blood magic gone wrong.Both take over human bodies though differently (is this linked to living bodies being warm and dead ones growing cold? Is that why the fire-based monstrosity manifests in living creatures while the Others trades in dead bodies? The things beneath Aerea’s skin burst out either when they felt the cold of the ice bath the maesters put her in or when she suffered cardiac arrest and died. Either way it’s connected to cold)  The cosmic balance between ice and fire has deeper roots….. now I’m really curious as to the nature of the magic of the Wall that keeps ice and fire firmly separated.

14. We are slowly building a succession history for the Starks: Torrhen Stark -> son (?) Brandon -> son Walton -> brother Alaric -> grandson Edric -> Ellard of undetermined relation. That’s how as far as I got in the book but that’s too far from the Benjen Stark that starts the Stark family tree in TWOIAF. Cregan Stark was already Lord of Winterfell by 129 so that’s a period of 28 years between that and the Great Council that also fits the aforementioned Benjen and his son Rickon, Cregan’s father and grandfather.

15. I’m so not a fan of the art in this book. It ranges from blatantly inaccurate (Aemond and Luke during the Dance, SIGH), to exaggerated (Elinor Costayne is weird in that art with Maegor. Also, did she wait to react till she climbed the entire Iron Throne? And Jaehaerys was cool and measured in his response to Maegor’s supporters after landing in the Red Keep. WHY does he look like he is yelling in the art?) to weird (Which of the Black Brides is dressed like a septa and why? Why does Jaehaerys look like all of 8 at his coronation when he was actually 14?). Perhaps that’s a bit nitpicky but I’m not impressed tbh.

16. GRRM overdid it with Jaehaerys’ reign imo. There is writing conflict because peace and prosperity is dull to write, and there is cramming every possible conflict under the sun in the story. Was there anything missing? I count family drama, political intrigues, succession questions, plague, policy changes, financial crisis, winter, and mini-rebellions. He reigned for a long time so I get it but at one point it was one conflict after another that I’m having trouble reconciling what I read with previous descriptions of Jaehaerys’ reign.

17. There is a lot to talk about with Jaehaerys and Alysanne but I want to get the timeline straight and give it some more thought. But I will say that as delighted as I am with all the women in Alysanne’s story and with Jaehaerys and Alysanne’s relationship reflected in policy, it’s monumentally disappointing to read about his relationship with his daughters. There was an underlining gentleness in how he treated his mother Alyssa and Rhaena that was sorely missing with some of his daughters. I came out of this part feeling really off and unsettled. And sad. So very sad. WTF, Jaehaerys. Just WTF.

That’s my preliminary thoughts on the first half of the book. It’s mostly feelings with a side of unsubstantiated and unresearched spiraling. Politics, worldbuilding and themes tend to appear on later reads.

(Edit: part two is here)

[hypeathon]

RWBY Volume 6 Adam Character Short - A Shot-by-Shot Analysis

Trailers and shorts in RWBY are very interesting and unique format as far as works of fictional entertainment go. They can be so tricky to describe that even the show’s late creator, Monty Oum himself, admitted he was not entirely sure what to call the pre-volume 1 trailers at the time they were first released. Whatever you or I call them, these small works can serve various purposes for this serialized web-series. On the one hand, they can give a very thorough idea of how the characters being focused on engages in combat through their movements. At the same time, they can also provide a piece of a character’s story, igniting many theories from within the show’s fan base.

How well a short or trailer can convey either of those aspects or any other ones depends greatly on its presentation. This is why I believe the Adam character short sticks out so well. 

Before RTX, things were dead-silent as to what the future of RWBY’s main story would entail. So when RTX Austin 2018’s first RWBY panel showed the premiere of the Adam Character Short, word had naturally spread about the implied quality. This extended to a handful of fans learning of a snippet of the short without the post-production polish via a stream of the RT Animation Audio panel (oops). But aside from this, there was only so much to interpret. That is until Friday, August 17th, when the piece had officially been released to the general public. With the Adam short being the longest of any of the previous character shorts yet at a whopping 7 minutes, there is a lot to cover regarding both the animation and the visual presentation.

Speaking personally, this is by far the strongest of all the character shorts by far based on one factor: its visual direction. And there’s a strongly implied reason as to why this is. Back on February 12th, RWBY’s director & writer, Kerry Shawcross and Miles Luna respectively, as well as RWBY Chibi director, Paula Decanini, took part in an “Ask Me Anything” Session over at the RWBY sub-reddit. It was there when Kerry particularly responded to a question about the matter of “show, don’t tell” by stating that was what stuck with him the most. Love it or hate it, volume 5 left many fans with various mixed emotions, including concern for how the show would visually convey its story in future installments. However, between this character short and the announcement at RTX that Connor Pickens, the lead editor for volumes 3-5 of RWBY being promoted to co-director, these were signs how much Kerry took such particular feedback to heart.

Although it’s one thing to state the short itself applied “show, don’t tell”. It’s a whole other thing to elaborate on all the different ways it was utilized and why it matters. Sadly, there’s no confirmation as to who provided the storyboards, another important role in visual direction. In fairness though, who provides boards for the characters shorts are rarely ever stated to the public with one exception being that Kevin Harger did the ones for the Yang short at the “Just the Fights” RTX panel. What can be confirmed though are the animators confirmed to have been involved with the Adam short, as stated by volume 6 animation director, Joel Mann:

Melanie Stern 

Matt Drury

Joe Vick

Asha Bishi

Hannah Novotny

Michelle Yi

Erika Soosar

Vince Cappelluti

Just like with the matter of “show, don’t tell”, equal concern has been expressed regarding Gen:Lock’s production have more of an influence at Rooster Teeth Animation, leading to certain fan-favorite animators in RWBY’s production being permanently taken away. However, I have gone on record on how vital it is to acknowledge the merits of both newer and veteran talent since like it or not, the former will have more of a presence in RWBY. The Adam character short is especially noteworthy due to not just the number of animators being double that of past shorts, but five of the eight animators were recruited during volume 5′s production while two were recruited during volume 4′s and Melanie Stern, the assistant lead animator for volume 6, was first brought on during volume 3. This makes things both interesting and complicated, the latter of which has to due with how for some animators, there are little-to-no sources confirming who did what in RWBY thus far. Though certain animators have confirmed or at least implied what sequences they did, making for a good opportunity to examine their skills.

With that said, now is the time to decipher how the Adam short stand outs shot-by-shot and scene-by-scene. 

Scene #1: Outside of the Schnee Dust Company Plant

The biggest thing worth talking about in this scene is how the cinematography is in great effect. When Adam is introduced, we don’t just see his model in plain view first thing. We see a shot of his shadow, then his feet, then his mask, and finally a slow pan up to his face as we are teased with not seeing how he actually looks. With reaction shots of the other faunus characters sandwiched in-between, this captures not just importance in Adam’s character for the short itself, but also to his own kind that look up to him. When fans of RWBY think of cinematography, it’s generally believed to not be capable of more then making things prettier. This completely mis-represents the purpose it serves. Cinematography is more about using elements of camera direction, lighting, staging and timing of each shot to help tell the story within a scene. Camera direction as one element, has played a role into helping convey different characters in RWBY since volume 3, as confirmed by certain people in the show’s storyboard and camera layout departments. Ozpin’s level-headed mindset by having the camera point straightforwardly at him, Ironwood’s display of authority from low-angles, Qrow’s drunk nature through the camera tilting, and Nora’s bundle of energy by having the camera dramatically pan and zoom along with her. Their characters have been further utilized by the camera in varied ways and Adam is no different.

Beyond that, one other aspect of visual direction in both this scene and the short in general is the use of transitions, namely the invisible cut. It’s a fairly common trick used in film-making but it has never used in RWBY outside of chapter 9 of volume 2, nor has it been used as consistently until now. More will be talked about this technique, but the gist as to what it greatly presents is the passage of time for Adam’s story.

Scene #2: The forest skirmish between the White Fang and the Humans

Before going over the next scene, it’s worth quickly addressing the setting. Some fans have speculated that too much time and resources may have been spent on the Adam short which could affect the production of volume 6. However, in terms of the models of the environments, specifically the forest set, it seems similar to the set in chapter 4 of volume 5, albeit with more varied placements of trees and open space and different lighting. The same goes for the set in the next scene with Blake and Adam which may have been from the Blake Character short. Although it’s all speculative, these observations can imply that at least on the modeling team’s end, not too much time was spent on the short.

Moving on to the beginning of the sequence itself, one bit that stands out is Sienna’s ears and the way they move. This is actually something seen a little earlier with the one faunus girl when she sees Adam and it’s noteworthy for three reasons. First, while there’s not a lot of information as to how real life tigers communicate through their ears, it’s possibly similar to how house cats use their ears to express various emotions. This in turn leads to the second noteworthy reason, how it adds depth to what certain faunus characters express at a given moment. It can even be seen with Sienna’s character which, assuming such similarities between tigers and cats are there, indicate that Sienna was feeling defensive and alert in the first shot next to Adam. There will be more moments where the animal ears add to a character’s emotion both from Sienna and Blake later on.

The third and final reason this is all worth bringing up is the matter of who animated the beginning of this scene. One animator in RWBY’s production that has made consciously applied movement to animal ears and tails is Asha Bishi. I’ve mentioned before how her way of moving characters, faunus, human, or Grimm, usually feel snappy and lively which makes character acting her greatest strength. And while the character acting is also strong between Ghira, Adam, Sienna and other minior characters here, I’m not positive it’s her. If I were to take a guess, Hannah Novotny may have animated this sequence. Hannah and Asha were both recruited during volume 4′s production and while both are great at providing expression through the characters they animate, the former is slightly less snappy with her movements based on the confirmed shots she did and thus feel a tad slower. That said, she does provide little touches herself when animating scenes like shrinking and shaking of pupils within the eyes and even movement of animal ears, hence my guess.

In the midst of the skirmish, there’s a brief as a bullet hits the window next to Ghira, it leaves off an neat electricity effect. Jumping ahead to when Ghira gets shot with more electricity and aura effects, we get to the first big action sequence in the short and right as he lands on the ground, I love the look of the small dust that forms. The VFX team have expressed in the past taking inspiration from visual effects seen in anime to help compliment RWBY’s aesthetic. They were already accomplishing that by volume 5 in the Anime Skies Fight and I think they almost perfected it here. We’ve definitely come a long way from the days how smoke and dust use to look like in the show.

We then get a quick rotation shot to show where Adam’s target is and according to Matt Drury, this moment is what he animated. He has gone on record as to how much of a fan he is of Adam’s character to the point where he did motion capture for him in volume 5 and even dyed his hair red, and boy, does it show in how he made Adam fight. Between him dashing, parrying, doing jump-inside kicks, and turning around as he crouches to jump for the tree and use it to spring himself across in rapid succession, Adam rides this balance between being using martial arts and being animalistic. The part where he jumps off the tree is an especially good use of squash and stretch and not an example of bad animation, in case anyone considered that. To get a clearer idea of what does and doesn’t make bad animation, Youtube Anime Ajay provided a very insightful video explaining what is and is not bad animation to respond to a practice commonly made by fans in the anime community.

Going back to the short, the camera steadily follows Adam barrel-rolling to the far right, leaving some more good-looking anime dust and then sets some nice staging between him and his enemies in front of him as he blocks their attacks. One quick thing to note is how Adam twirls his weapon with the smear effects. The spinning smears throughout this short have invoked some big groans within the fan base and I would be lying if I didn’t have my minor gripes with it. However, the smear effects themselves are not inherently a problem and there are two instances where I believe it works for different reasons. This is one of them. The reason why it works here is through a combination of where the camera moves and zooms and how Adam’s hand moves is seen twirling the weapon. It’s very subtle when playing in normal speed, but it is there. Really, if there’s anything off about the animation is how the spinning just starts without a slow-in and thus feels a little too instantaneous. Though more will be elaborated on this later.

That tangent aside, what I love is how the camera zooms to angle Adam as being seemingly bigger in perspective compared to both characters he’s blocking bullets from. As icing of the cake, you see the shift in facial expressions from the girl on the right with the hoodie as she expresses being intimidated by Adam and ends up anxious for the girl next to her as she looks to her right. After pinning the one girl in the yellow outfit unconscious, we see a brief yet clean combination of smears and sparks as he blocks another bullet and then he dashes to trip the gray-hoodie girl and hit her in mid-air. As nice as it is to see action scenes done at a break-neck pace, having a moment where a character winds-up before performing a certain action can add more impact. What Adam did as he swung his weapon back before gutting the girl was a classic example of anticipatory action, one of the 12 principles. My only criticism regarding this moment was that I wish the moment where the girl was hit lasted a few frames more. Though it helps that in the next shot, we see the facial expressions of the girl who deeply regrets having faced Adam before being knocked back down to the ground. I can’t help but feel sorry for her in particular.

We then cut to Adam going towards another gunman while swiftly dodging bullets and once again using the tree to his advantage before kicking the latter unconscious. With the bright gunshot effects, because they are so close enough to the center of the camera, it helps makes the speed of Adam’s sidesteps feel somewhat blinding. The only slight problem is the smear effect of Adam’s kicks. Similar to the moment where he kicked the gray-hooded human, both use just red for the smears when they could benefit more from using a combination of red and black to consistently follow with the color of his shoes. But in the grand scheme of everything in motion at normal speed, this is all relatively minor. Then we cut to what is either the end of Matt’s sequence or the start of another animator’s. Either way, the faraway wide shot is really great at showing how unstoppable he is while appropriately charging like a bull. The next set of shots that follow a clever way to make the launch of Adam’s sword show how much force it had to make the girl emit such a reaction when being hit in the gut. Then follows the sword twirling in mid-air and here is where I started having issues with the use of smear animations. Though as I said before, more on that later.

Then there’s the human hiding who gives an anxious facial expression before deciding to fire, effectively displaying the fact he is making a split-second choice. Between what came a couple of shots before and what comes next, Hannah Novotny might have animated these parts. Though it’s somewhat of a shot in the dark based on her tweet of doing some action shots. Speaking of darkness, we then see Adam’s signature slash, which the compositing itself is presented slightly differently from the Black trailer. There, it’s timed so that the darkness fades after he absorbs the laser attack. In this character short though, it’s timed so that it disappears after he strikes. It’s different, but it works well here due to how it blackens his body, making him appear as a silhouette while the background fades to near-black and that all disappears once he draws his swords and strikes, making for great impact. It also helps that the way he’s posing with his back facing the camera and his should in front of him makes him more menacing in a manner akin to that one shot of Neferpitou from Hunter x Hunter.

As the human is struck in the next shot, there’s an interesting effect where the pupils in his eyes disappear that feels like something out of the One Piece anime. Just as an aside to talk about the music, I love how it suddenly stops to add to the shocking effect of Adam having brutally killed someone. Next, in the shot where Ghira and Adam look down at the human, we get really clever staging. Not only are they both framed so that only they follow the rule-of-thirds, but your eyes are easily drawn to the remaining humans that appear behind the tree in the far right and then flee. As the scene follows with Sienna defending Adam and calling him a “hero”, Adam makes a surprised reaction that tells a fair bit considering we can’t register his emotions through his eyes. To close the scene, we get the White Fang members cheering as they walk towards Adam, creating another great invisible cut while Sienna and Ghira stare down.

3) Adam and Blake at the rooftops

I mentioned before that there was another scene I believe Asha Bishi animated and Blake and Adam’s scene is it. At first I was only 70-80 percent sure it was her. But this was before Joel Mann confirmed who animated the short. Since then, I’m now 80-90 percent sure. Much of her tells can be identified here, especially with Blake. The various pupil shifts, the slight expanding and wincing of the eyes, and the abundant character acting with their body language and even Blake’s cat ears.

What I especially liked was the end where her hair is flowing in the wind for two reasons. First, it created an opportunity to show that the strands of.. hair, fur maybe, were flowing from her cat ears, something I’ve admittedly never seen before. It’s a small thing, but it showed a neat attention to detail in the modeling. Second, the way her hair flowed and how her fingers seamlessly dug into them is another sign of how we’ve come a long way from the days where hair when being touched or pull around felt more like large clumps than individual strands that could be felt between the fingers.

We are then shown another invisible cut and by far my favorite one of the fall leaves flowing after the wind gets stronger and harsher, indicating that Blake feels a hidden bit of uncertainty by trusting Adam’s words. These invisible cuts have really excelled at presenting the passage of time in Adam’s story and they reminded me a lot of how the anime Haikyuu used a combination of match cuts and invisible cuts to help visually enhance the story of certain characters. Again, I’m very unsure who provided the storyboards for this short and thus the transitions. Though the invisible cuts may be applied by the editing team. Either way, this is how cinematography is displayed in great effect.

4) Adam, Sienna & Ilia at the White Fang facility

As the short transitions to the second set of action sequences, we are treated to a several-second rotation shot where Sienna flails her chain weapon at her enemies wildly but precisely. Melanie Stern confirmed she animated Sienna fighting and honestly, I had initially thought animator Austin Hardwicke may have done her scenes. So I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong this time. As camera stops to face her, we get more of her cat ears shift, this time to help her confidently stay one step ahead of the Atlesian Knight about to attack her from behind. Next, Sienna uses the mech as a spring board to launch across the hall. Although the camera as she leaps over the Adam and Sienna is zoomed a bit too much and makes the shot feel slightly more claustrophobic than warranted. That being said, moments that follow with Sienna kicking her chain weapon against one mech and then shooting the snapped off arrow-end to the other mech opposite of her are examples of the sequence riding this balance between being chaotic and readable. Sienna delivering her smirk right after also adds a lot to her personality in the limited time we see her fight. 

Now would be a good time to quickly talk about the Atlesian knights themselves. First, while seemingly trivial, it’s an interesting attention to detail to have the electricity around them be red as oppose to a more generic yellow or blue to better match their color scheme. Whether that was the VFX or compositing team’s idea is unclear, but it was neat to see regardless. Second, the way we see one of their feet into the camera after the one prior fell is a brief yet smart way to draw focus to the remaining androids. It also helps that between the White Fang being blurred from afar helps stage the distance between them and their opponents. One thing the camera does consistently well in this entire second fight sequence is stage the distance between characters, as we’ll done again shortly. Moving on, Adam blocks more bullets with with some sword spinning smears, though we do get a bit of slow-in and slow-out smears as he as he draws his sword and again before sheathing it. Then get the staging of the previous shot mentioned in effect as Ilia runs ahead with the camera making a nice low-angle shot with some slight rumbling as it trails her.

Once she finishes her attack, it’s Adam’s turn to run ahead and we see a classic case of slicing a few mechs which cuts pause as he sheathes is sword for dramatic effect. This is where Matt’s other animated sequence in the short is presented and a few things are worth highlighting: First, the slash effects quickly fading one-by-one. Second, the way the ends of Adam’s coat flaps down as a follow-through after he pauses. Third, the way the mechs slightly shifted from where they were cut. And fourth, The way the camera tilts to indicate how much damage was in effect. All of these aspects demonstrated how swift and overwhelming Adam’s attacks were. It also helps to given that quick moment of pause. As I said before in the forest skirmish scene, having a time and place to slow down can make for greater impact on a certain action. The same can go for having a character pause before a certain action is performed as demonstrated here.

The scene then proceeds with a sequence of Adam destroying two Atlesian Knights in quick succession. Right away does this moment one-up the previous one in terms of both direction and animation. With the direction, as Adam shoots his sword, we cut to the hilt hitting the first android and with another example of the camera, perfectly staging the set-up and distance of where Adam’s targets are, The sword being shot and bouncing up also easily draws the viewers eyes to where Adam will go next. We then cut to another shot of the sword twirling in mid-air and here is where the smear animation is best presented in the short. In previous cases, the spinning sword lacks the slow-in and slow-in frames. Here, it properly displays the momentum of the sword as it slows down which leads to the next thing Adam does. Hopefully, this settles the matter that the smear being used at all isn’t the problem, nor is it what it’s referencing to. Rather, it’s about how it’s animated which if you look at various anime, there are a myriad of ways to present smears. Back to the sequence, as Adam jumps to the android and off it by shooting its head, he then kicks the sword in mid-air to the other android in a manner similar to animator Ken’ichi Fujisawa did in a fight scene in Naruto Shippuden.

We end Matt’s animated sequence to move on to the next one where the Schnee Dust Company personnel fire across the hall and we get a nice change to red lighting to signify how treacherous things will get for both sides. As Adam, Sienna and Ilia dodge the bullets, we see some good character acting maintained in how they each take cover. Adam using his sword skills to defend himself, Sienna acrobatically staying out of fire and Ilia clumsily back-stepping which makes her inexperience compared to the former two self-evident. Next is more of Sienna’s tiger ear shifts as she and Adam notice the canister creating some anime smoke screen effects, through they’ve been visually filtered a bit. As Adam and Sienna counterattack, the latter climbs up the wall and jumps off which gives a glimpse of how much her weapon resembles a tail. And following that, we get more of her using her chain weapon to flail the gun she lassoed to knock all three of her enemies around her with slightly chaotic but steady camera shifts,

Next is Adam getting more action through a brief shot of him charging towards the camera which reminded me of how Winter first struck against Qrow in chapter 3 of volume 3. The latter cut was part of animator, Ian Kedward’s sequence in that fight, but I’m unsure of who animated Adam’s portion of this sequence from here-on. Jumping slightly ahead, we get an interesting transition from Adam slicing to Sienna throwing her chain around. Only it’s not completely a transition, but because it’s a split-second and their actions flow well, it feels like one at normal speed. With more of Sienna’s agile moves, she snaps off her arrow again which starts with her facing towards the camera to then cleverly rotate around the arrow to highlight what it’s going to do. Moving ahead, we get one more action moment with Adam, this time with some additional funny character acting from the SDC guard as he tries to dodge the former’s strikes and attempts a right hook only to get schooled by Adam’s hilt again. Though it doesn’t end right there as we see a couple of shots of Adam framed dominantly, about to stab the guard while he’s down and he pleads for his life. Though there’s an excellent delayed reaction where Adam responds to Sienna’s call as if he got caught up in the blood lust. This short has been a good opportunity in general to add character to Adam and Sienna through just their facial expressions alone.

5) Adam and Sienna in the Throne Room

After all is said an done, we get another invisible cut to the throne room with another White Fang member running across the SDC facility hall. It would’ve been funny if it’s the same member that did the invisible cut after the forest scene, but they have different skin tones so that’s sadly not the case. In all seriousness, we don’t get any visual direction that’s too daring aside from the establishing overhead shot starting the sequence. An interesting observation is how in comparison, the seen that first introduced Sienna in volume 5 had he and Adam’s positions mirrored only she’s on her throne and Adam’s kneeling. This may visually support the fact Sienna was considering treating Adam as her equal in the future, so long as he did overstep his boundaries.

Not much else to add before moving on to the next short sequence through a transition that’s not an invisible cut but is something more like a jump cut? It’s honestly hard to describe, but it does go along with the motif of passage of time. One other thing to mention is the flame and how it’s animated. it doesn’t feel at all like a 3-D visual effect and is instead more like it was animated in 2-D with some filtering effects. Beyond that, not much else to add for the remainder of the short, though that’s not a bad thing since a moment of rest is needed to close off after two extensive action scenes. The only two things worth stating have to do with Adam. First is how when Adam is on the throne, there’s one shot where he is of distance from the White Fang members and another where we don’t see his full body from behind the throne. Both indicate the relationship between him and his followers. At this point in his story, he is less concerned about looking out for his fellow kind as he is about stroking his ego. To conclude, we get the most ironically-funny shot in the short where Adam gets exactly what he deserves and walks off leaving his mask behind feeling defeated. Some would find the choice to have him animated walking awkwardly to be strange when connecting to his last scene in volume 5. But in the context of the story of his character short, it works thematically.

Final Note

This was quite a short to cover, but there was so much packed in that both reinforced some things spoken by Blake before about Adam’s character while still peppering in insight into his psyche through a combination of facial expressions, adjustments to his line of dialogue and the in-genius transitioning techniques used. And there were still a couple more small details that weren’t fully covered like the red markings in Adam’s design added after the first scene or Ghira’s slightly younger character model. The visual direction demonstrated in just 7 minutes how in-spite of his hostile streak, Adam’s shift from the White Fang hero looked up to by his people to the tyrant whose thirst for power and dominance made his own followers turn on him.

While the short not totally perfect, its storyboards outmatch even the Weiss character short, which is saying a lot considering it was one of my favorites. It’s still a shame we don’t know who did the boards, but between them, Kerry and Connor, the ideas definitely payed off. The animators themselves also cannot be commended enough for the effort they poured into the short. There have been a few newer recruits being recognized by other more veteran animators, including Erika Soosar, John Yang, Michelle Yi and Jason Dickol. With Matt Drury added as another name, I do hope more fans will keep an eye out for them. Though none of this is to leave out the other animators involved with this short whose shots were unconfirmed, as they deserve to be kept an eye on in the future.

No doubt will there continue be criticisms and concern regarding the short though, as many wonder whether this will hinder on volume 6′s overall production. While the debate is a whole other subject for another day, it’s worth bearing in mind for now that shorts and volumes are two different things and the scale between them in terms of skill-set and more importantly, management, are night and day. For now, I intend to keep enjoying this short for both its story and as a potential sample of things to come.

[jackalopingintothevoid]

Camera Shy

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 TBA

The vidstream was starting, but not in the usual way. The New Start Crew, or whoever would be on stream this time, weren’t all on the couch ready with the opening greeting. Instead, it was just a pale heart-shaped face and brown hair in a stylish undercut, hazel eyes darting back and forth as they double checked everything was set up. The outgoing Riley with the camera on follow mode, much closer than if there were a group.

“Hello Crewsters! Now, you might be thinking ‘ay up, something’s not quite right here’. You’re not wrong friends, and it’s not ‘cause I’ve picked up the wrong thing to take a selfie with; we’ve had an incident. Early this morning-- before I had even returned from last night’s passionate tryst-- somebody broke into the garage!”

A dramatic gasp sounded as they reeled back from the camera in faux shock.

“Oh my goodness! What could they possibly want from our garage? Tools, spare parts? Access to our top-secret stash of pilfered alien tech!? All good questions, all wrong answers.” They dropped the theatrics, but remained energetic. “Turns out some poor bloke had been homeless out in the snow, and in desperation had wrenched the door open to get out of the cold.”

They grinned, turning slightly to start leading the free-floating camera across the room.

“So, have we had the guy arrested for breaking and entering? Dropped him off at a hospital to be treated for hypothermia?”

With a chuckle, Riley waved their hand dismissively. “‘Course not! Sampo’s gone and adopted him, bless her heart. Vera says he’s twice her size and frankly that’s bloody terrifying ‘cause she’s ripped as all get-out, but if Sampo says,” here came the bad impression, “‘We must wrap him up warm and feed him soup and love him forever’ then God knows Ali-oop’s gonna do it. She’s arse over tits for that woman.”

Riley cheerfully bounced through a door, not bothering to close it as the camera tracked them across the hallway.

“Now, I haven’t seen this bloke. Something about not overwhelming him. I think anyone who can force open a garage door with his bare hands and hypothermia is a big boy and can handle it, but it’s not my call.”

“Now, three people have met him themselves, and both Sampo and Mousy are still in the bedroom with him, so it’s our favourite hunk who’ll be providing today’s news bulletin!”

With that, they pushed through into the living room area, where Alouette sat on the usual vid couch with a cup of coffee and her COM pad, probably browsing the net. She glanced up in mixed annoyance and confusion.

“Ali, darling, give us the deets! What went down with the mysterious man in the garage?”

Raising her eyes to the heavens, Alouette put down her COM. “Not much. Mo heard a noise, called me to say someone had broken in, I went in with my gun and found a very large man. He didn’t attack us so Mo tried to talk to him and he passed out.”

The camera pulled back a little way so Riley could turn to it and adequately express how unimpressed they were by expression alone. “No sense of intrigue whatsoever. Two out of ten, lacklustre at best.”

Huffing in frustration, Alouette snapped, “I am not the noir lead! I am an ODST! We get shit done, not write sagas about it!”

They didn’t even wait for her to finish. “Come on Aloe Vera--”

“Do not call me--!”

“-- what does he look like? What does he sound like?”

“No sound.” Alouette folded her arms, frowning. “He did not speak. Perhaps he’s spoken to Sampoorna or Mo, but not to me.”

After a moment of expectant silence, she rolled her eyes and continued, pensive. “He is very big. Very very big, taller than Sampo and more muscles than me. Skin white like chalk, white like there is something wrong with him. Very big eyes.”

“... I’m getting the feeling this bloke might be a bit on the larger side?”

The camera listed violently to the side as a cushion collided with it, narrowly missing Riley’s head.

A dark and skinny form, under 6′, came into focus. Riley was nowhere to be seen. All was quiet save for the soft sound of boiling water and a spoon ringing lightly against a mug. Only the back of this person was visible, even the head obscured by the pulled-back hair, thick natural curls giving it incredible volume.

“Ring-a-ding, it’s Changming!”

With a cry of shock, Changming whipped round before immediately laughing, releasing his nervous tension as he realised they’d gotten him again.

“Riley! Why d’you do this to me? Every time!” A slightly-less-thick accent otherwise matching Mochou’s and more than familiar to regulars of the channel. “I’m making tea here!”

“Changming here is the next-closest individual to the incident by association.” They’d adopted a news reporter voice for this part, still out of view of the camera. “Changming, what can you tell us about the stranger your sister accosted this morning?” A rolling pin appeared, thrust into the younger man’s face like a microphone.

“Ahaha, well, not much really! He’s super huge though, like all over, and so scarred up! He looks like a Brute used him as a chew toy!”

“All over?” The suggestive eyebrow-waggle was audible.

“Yeah!” He was glossing over that. “We had to strip him off see, ‘cause of the-- shut up, don’t look at me like that-- ‘cause of the hypothermia. He was in this tight bl-- stop it!-- a black bodysuit. And you have to-- you have to take off-- if you don’t stop laughing I’ll stop talking.”

“Okay, okay I’m sorry! I’ll stop.”

“Wet or tight clothing has to come off. Hold it together Rile! But he was so pale I could map out his whole cardiovascular system by eye, like that guy needs a specialist probably.”

“Maybe he’s a new form of human that evolved underground in the dark?”

“Please do not make me worried about mutant mole people right now.”

“We all know what your dear sister’s like, has she taken any samples?”

“Please do not make me think about my sister taking human samples.”

“Just--”

“No, okay? She... she kinda seemed really worried about him. She just told me he was sick and really cold though. Oh, and he liked my tea a lot!”

“A ringing endorsement. Thank you, Changming, for your insight on this matter.”

“En, that’s okay, I guess--”

“Now, to gather some speculation from local experts.”

Rapid movement, and a distant “Bye, then?” from the Guan brother.

Shoulder-length black hair and a mix of African and Arab features were the focus of the next scene, a stern and no-nonsense approach evident on the woman’s countenance.

“Fiona Kuhne, what sort of things should we be--”

“I think this is a mistake.”

“... Elaborate, if you would.”

“This is a complete stranger, guilty of breaking and entering, for whom we have no idea of motive or intent. No concrete motive, anyway. Answer me this, Riley-- what sort of person can tear open an automated alloy door by hand?”

A pensive silence followed the loaded question. Fiona answered it herself.

“No one I’m happy keeping around my family without vetting, that’s who.”

The camera rounded a corner--

“I’m working, Riley. You bug me right now I won’t have time to edit it for you.”

“Mr. Adebayo, you wound me! I would never interrupt your work without good reason--”

“I don’t know anything ‘bout this guy, okay? Just wait until he’s halfway recovered, geez.”

“But Davis, what are we gonna give people for the vid today if everyone’s busy with this mystery man? We have a fan base, we have expectations, we have potential loss of income!”

“Look, you’ve probably already got some stuff right? Even if it ain’t much it’ll explain to folks what’s happening. Better to get your news from the source right?”

The camera stopped it’s movement, then turned a full 180 back to Riley’s face. A face with a wide grin slowly spreading across it.

“You know, Davis, you are absolutely right.”

[samingtonwilson]

Marriage Material - Part 17 - Jim Kirk

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8 / Part 9 / Part 10 / Part 11 / Part 12 / Part 13 / Part 14 / Part 15 / Part 16

Summary: in this chapter, there are still some things that need to be worked through.

Warnings: language, god too much fluff for my taste

A/N: i’m bones in this chapter, he’s acting as my voice. this hasn’t been read over for typos so please excuse those.

You had a choice to make.

You could deny the whole thing. You could pretend those words that brought relief to every muscle in your body that ached whenever you held the statement in never slipped from your lips. You could pretend you had only told Jim you were in love with sitting with him. You could pretend you had actually expressed your love for the coffee you had yet to drink. You could pretend the statement was one of sarcasm, one laced in irony.

You could tell Jim it was a figment of his sleepy mind’s imagination. You could tell him his drowsy mind conjured up a strange hallucination. You could go completely Freudian on him and tell him his subconscious made his conscious mind perceive words that had never been spoken in order to fulfill the suppressed desire of staying there— there was no way he could deny momentary psychosis.

You could bolt. You could hop up from your overly cushioned, overly wide seat and zip past him to leave the medbay and lock yourself in Leonard’s quarters. You could race out of the office and locked yourself in the very exam room that likely still reeked of sex. You could duck behind the nurses station and beg Christine to keep her perfectly glossed mouth zipped until the coast was clear.

Or you could tell him the truth. You could look him in his ridiculously blue eyes and say without any hesitation that you loved him, that you were in love with him. You could stand up, jump into his arms, and whisper into his skin that he meant the universe to you, that he brought light into your life. You could tell him marrying him was one of the best things you’d ever done, that you were thankful for your drunken decision to throw caution to the wind and marry the man you couldn’t believe had any sort of interest in you.

You could nod.

You could smile.

You could say something— anything.

But you sat silently, staring at the man before you that wanted nothing more than a confirmation.

Hell, he would’ve settled for a shrug of uncertainty. It was an outright denial that he feared most. After all, there was no way he could hide what came over his eyes the instant he heard the words roll off your tongue— he couldn’t imagine even trying to hide the relief, the shock, the sweet warmth that overtook him.

But you sat silently, staring at him with your lips parted and eyes wide.

So he asked again. This time he stepped closer to you and set his hands against the armrests on either side of you. His torso was looming over you, his nose close enough to bump yours. Soft, warm, and steady breaths washed over your cheeks and the faint scent of peppermint would’ve made you lightheaded had the tsunami of emotion in his eyes not taken you under first.

“You’re in love with me?” he repeated, his eyes seemingly enacting an attempt to pull the response from you, to dig for the response so he could maybe cut past the agonizing moments of silence ringing in his ears.

You almost frowned at the idea that your option to bolt was now out of your scope of abilities. But you couldn’t muster any movement in your lips, any words from your tongue, any sound from your throat. You couldn’t even remember the last time you blinked— the only recent memory you could recall had Jim’s voice demanding answers.

Your mouth snapped shut before falling open once more. You still stared right at him as he stared right at you, his pupils wide.

You glanced away for a moment and made your choice.

You nodded when you looked at him once again. “Yes.”

You truthfully didn’t know if your answer was audible, if you’d spoken in a volume high enough to be heard by even yourself over the booming of your heart in your ears. But with the way a low groan rumbled in his chest before he closed the short distance between you to kiss you with everything he had in him, you assumed he heard you.

It didn’t take long for you to kiss him back, your hand against the back of his neck so your fingers could comb through his hair. You wanted to pull his body closer to yours, make him feel that every part of you wanted him, but your seated position and his awkward looming didn’t allow for it.

When he took his hand from the armrest with the intention of winding his arm around your waist, the weight distribution forced the chair to swivel a bit to the left effectively breaking the kiss.

With a shake of his head, the arm around your waist tightened and pulled you up as he stood straight. He hoisted you onto the desk, standing between your legs and sparing a long look into your eyes. “If you were joking, if it was some form of sarcasm, tell me now.”

Though there was a sinking in your chest at the possibility that he believed his speculation, the response that felt most natural, that brought you the most relief fell from your lips, “I love you, Jim.”

Another kiss that would have turned your legs to rubber was pressed against your lips, his hands wandering and tightening and squeezing as if he had no idea where to touch you, how to hold you, what to do to you so you could realize what your confession did to him.

So he settled on a simpler way of letting you know. He broke the kiss, leant his forehead against yours, and watched as your eyelids fluttered open so lightly mascaraed eyelashes gently brushed his skin. “You wouldn’t even let me tell you that I liked you, that I had any feelings for you.”

Your gaze fell to where your uniform had ridden up a little, a slightly shameful guilt pulling your eyebrows together. “I’m —”

“All I’ve wanted to do for months is tell you how much I love you.”

You tilted back and away, your eyes snapping up to meet his as your lips fell open once again.

He nodded upwards when he caught your gape. “I’ve wanted to tell you, and show you, and make you understand what everyone else on this fucking ship already knows.” His arm tightened around you and pulled you to the edge of the desk, your chest pressed against his as his eyes seemed unable to even waver from yours slightly. “I love you, starlight.”

Before you could reply, before you could even comprehend his words, he ducked his head to press his lips to your neck, his teeth grazing your skin lightly as he hit that sensitive spot that made a soft sigh and hopefully inaudible whimper leave your lips. “God, I love you so much.”

You set your fingers under his chin and brought his lips back to yours, hooking your leg around him as if you could pull him any closer. You sighed into his mouth as his fingers disappeared under your uniform, grasping onto the waistband of your shorts until a loud chime rang through the room.

You ignored it at first, hoping it would take a hint and just stop, but when your spandex shorts were already stuffed into Jim’s pocket and your panties were currently being pushed to the side, the chiming began once more.

You pulled back and ignored Jim’s disappointed pout, glancing down at your PADD screen that glowed with incoming notifications. Sighing, you unhooked your leg from his body and took your hand from his hair. You offered him an apologetic look and stifled the desire to pull him against you again.

“A patient?”

You nodded, suddenly cold when his hands left your skin.

“Is it going to take a while?”

You nodded again, frowning slightly.

“Should I just go back our quarters?”

You reluctantly nodded and took the hand he offered, hopping off the desk and onto your feet.

Once you’d collected your PADD, your communicator, and the cup of coffee that had gone lukewarm during the time you spent lost in Jim, you started towards the door with him only a few steps behind.

Before you could slap your hand against the control panel, you spun around and grabbed a handful of Jim’s shirt. With a firm tug in your direction, you crashed your lips against his.

He quickly held onto your hips, pulling your body against his as he deepened the kiss you really intended on being a quick one.

You broke the kiss once the irritating chime brought you back to where you stood. You looked Jim in the eyes and tried to calm your heavy breathing. “I love you.”

He groaned and let go of you, shaking his head to himself. “You should leave before I get carried away. Don’t want you to get fired.”

Nodding with a small smile, you turned around and pressed the button beckoning the door open.

His arm wrapped around your waist from behind before he buried his face in the crook of your neck, your head tilting reflexively as he pressed a few kisses to your skin. “On second thought, we could just quit. Who needs a job?”

You shook your head, escaping his hold as soon as it loosened. You hugged your PADD tighter to your chest and spun around to walk backwards. “I’m only in love with you for your job, Captain.”

“And I’m in love with you despite yours,” he said as you continued towards the patient room you were called to. “Maybe you should quit.”

“You’ll have to pry my job from my cold, dead hands.”

“Yeah, yeah, go save a life. Whatever.”

You laughed and shook your head, spinning back around and racing away.

There were several things Jim could have done.

For one, he could have handled the hardness in his trousers in your shared quarters. But the prospect of becoming reacquainted with his hand when he’d much rather be buried inside of you deep enough to feel your heartbeat was so off-putting that he softened almost instantly.

He could have gone to your shared quarters and slept like a reasonable person. Take the very short amount of time he had left until he needed to get ready for his shift and rest. But the idea of sleeping in that bed without you when he’d just told you everything that usually kept him up at night was unappealing enough to keep his eyes wide open as he made a swift detour.

He smiled at the few crewmembers he passed and resisted the urge to scream, “My wife’s in love with me!” in each of their faces. He just nodded in greeting instead.

Once he reached his target door, he knocked like a madman, a constant stream of rapping knuckles forcing Leonard out of his bed with a groan Jim could hear through the door.

When the door slid open, a heavily scowling, completely exhausted, messy haired, droopy eyed Leonard barked out a loud, “What? What the hell do you want now?”

“Guess what.”

Jim sighed when Leonard offered him a look of sarcasm and the door slid shut. He knocked again— in a shorter stream this time. “Bones.”

Leonard was grimacing when the door slid open again. “You ask me to ‘guess what’ like a fuckin’ child again and I swear I’ll beat the living daylights outta you.”

“Invite me in, then.”

He moved aside so Jim could enter the dim quarters, the latter calling for the lights to brighten just fifteen percent. “You say that like I’ve invited you in each time your ass has somehow found itself on my couch.”

Jim didn’t reply, falling into the couch as a small smile pulled at his full lips.

Leonard just sat, looking at his friend with a cocked eyebrow. He rubbed his eyes and leant back against the couch. “Say somethin’, for fuck’s sake.”

“Do you know what it feels like to hear that the person you’ve been in love with for as long as you’ve known them is in love with you, too?”

Leonard narrowed his eyes for a moment, widening them a moment later as if all exhaustion was forgotten. “What? The two of you—”

“I feel full,” Jim continued, sighing as he sat back as well. Though his smile faded, there was a look of contentment over his features that Leonard hadn’t seen for ages. “I feel so full. And I didn’t even say it first— not that it’s important. S’just a good feeling.”

“What? You’re sayin’ the iciest person I’ve ever met,” Leonard began, smirking a little, “the person that is as cynical as they come, the person that would die denyin’ ever feelin’ something said it first?”

“By accident, but yes.”

“By accident?” Leonard asked, snorting a moment later. “By accident. Shoulda known y’all’s toddler asses wouldn’t confess shit to each other unless by accident.”

Jim ignored that. “Did you know? How she felt, I mean.”

Leonard nodded. “Aside from it bein’ painfully obvious, it slipped out a few times in the middle of most ramblin’s. Y’all talk about everythin’ else, though?”

“What else is there to talk about?”

He offered Jim an incredulous expression. “Your relationship has an expiration date, Jim— you didn’t think to talk about that? About your loomin’ divorce I have a feelin’ she’ll still want even if y’all last that long?”

Jim frowned. “Well, no—”

“You talk about knowin’ full well what you were doin’ when you asked to stay married? That you were bein’ selfish for more reasons than your professional reputation that woulda suffered a li’l bit, I’ll give you that, but not as much as you made it seem?”

“Bones, —”

“You talk about the reasons why all-a this shit had to be said accidentally? About why the both of you were holdin’ all of it in for this long?”

“For God’s sake, Bones,” Jim practically whined, sitting forward so his elbows were atop his knees and the heels of his hands dug into his shut eyes. “I was happy a few minutes ago.”

“‘Blissfully ignorant’ is the correct terminology, Jim,” he said with a snort. “The two of you are grown ass people with the ability to communicate, to talk shit through. None of that has been done yet. I’m happy for you, I really am, but your problems are still problems.”

“My problem was not being able to say the way I feel,” Jim nearly shouted, lifting his head to glare at the doctor dressed in a white t-shirt and light blue boxers. “I did that! I was able to say the way I feel!”

“Sayin’ you love each other, and kissin’, and fuckin’ isn’t all a relationship is. If that was the case, I’d be on Earth with my house and all my goddamn cars still in my name.”

“So we’ll talk it through,” Jim shrugged. “We’ll sort it out. I’ll make sure that we do.”

“Good. Stick to that.”

A few beats of silence passed before Jim sighed. “You really brought me down.”

Leonard smiled. “Wasn’t my intention. Just wanted you to know this ain’t the end of it all.”

“I know, I know. I’ll figure it out.”

“I’m glad y’all finally said somethin’, though. ‘Least that’s one less thing I have to hear about.”

Jim nodded with a smile. “Yeah, we —”

“Wait,” Leonard said slowly, his eyebrows coming together as he looked at Jim. He frowned deeply. “Your wife’s on gamma this week and I’m guessin’ this just happened. Your uniform’s wrinkled as shit, your hair’s a fuckin’ mess, and what the fuck’s hangin’ out of your pocket?”

Jim looked down and his smile turned sly as he pulled your shorts from his pocket.

“You two fucked in my medbay, didn’t you?” he didn’t wait for confirmation. “You fuckin’ animals! You hormonal teenagers! How many fuckin’ times have I told you my medbay isn’t a fuckin’ hotel for all-a this nonsense? Gonna have to disinfect the entire thing— gonna have to disinfect every corner. Christ knows what diseases you’re walkin’ ‘round with.”

PART 18

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[meier-zbinden]

Labyrinth of Virtue

“Does this elegance serve a purpose beyond itself?[1] Beauty cannot be its sole purpose. [2] Every form has its practical purpose.”[3]

“No one knows for sure, although we may safely attribute these structures to inheritance. [4] She had given the simple explanation that she "did not believe in the institution of private inheritance.[5] Gone is the incentive to pass on property in the form of an inheritance to offspring of marriage—the purpose for which the male dominated institution of monogamy was ultimately created, and without which there is no more reason for the continuation of [6] an internal heritage. It’s my heritage.[7] But it shall be an external heritage, not an internal one.[8] A more democratic and egalitarian form of legitimacy. [9] Therefore my inheritance will be shared with any who are worthy."

“Utilizing the concept of earthly fame in order to honour a specific figure or family. [10] I guess the most amazing philanthropists are people who are actually making a significant sacrifice. [11] But for what purpose?[12]”

“Its purpose is not to create a false belief but to undermine established beliefs and convictions.[13] Its driving and motivating force, its determining purpose, is therefore exchange value.[14] Though inheritance used to be the most widely criticized source of inequality, it is today probably no longer so. [15] On that day she proclaimed:”What is the devil’s treasure? [16] You may ask: What have I done to deserve such a gift? [17] I do not deserve it. [18] I do believe that we make the future sustainable when we invest in the poor, not when we insist on their suffering. [19] Compassion is the greatest virtue.[20] But not just anyone will be granted my patronage. Boldness and tenacity attain the most difficult goals.[21] There is no problem so difficult that study and persistence cannot overcome it. [22] By effort man's ingenuity learned to conquer all. [23] The different degrees of hardship endured, and of ingenuity exercised, must be taken into account. [24] Both equally deserve applause if successful.[25]” After that she became ethereal and vanished, reappearing only to men of great virtue. [26]”

“What do you think the inside is like?”

“The overseer sleeps near the main entrance, the labourers in the places that are close to their duties. [27]“

“You’ve been inside?” [28]

“Yes. First I entered a singular corridor. There was no one in the corridor.[29] Shortly, The corridor took a turn and became dark.[30] Sometimes I heard the sound of passing cars, but they were always in the next corridor, and however fast I rushed the corridors were always empty. [31] You see, there are two types of skin, the inner and the outer.[32] The outer skin is a labyrinth. The labyrinth raises its walls, digs its tunnels, lays down its corridors.[33] It is monodromic and unicursal, universal, and does not turn back on itself. [34] If the unicursal labyrinth were to be “unrolled,” we would find we had a single thread in our hands—the thread of Ariadne which the legend presents as the means of extricating oneself from the labyrinth, whereas in fact all it is is the labyrinth itself. [35] A terrestrial labyrinth, it is also a spiritual labyrinth. [36] It serves as an architecture metaphor for serene self meditation: the primal intersection of sky, earth, water, and human limitation. [37] The Labyrinth cannot be dominated.[38]

After making it through the labyrinth I reached a dining hall of all things. Into this Hall I entered through a handsome Vestibule, fronting to the South, from which I passed into another smaller Vestibule or Lobby, and so into the great Hall. [39] The Dining Hall was turned towards the East, to the end, I assume, that being covered from the great force the Sun hath when it is near Setting, it may be cooler about the time it is to be made use of. [40] It is difficult to imagine a more picturesque spot.[41] On the pavement of the dining hall is a labyrinth, indicated by the arrangement of black and white stones which compose it. [42] It is said to be a league, measured along all its folds; a countryman applied to me to know if this was true.[43] Sadly i had not measured it. 

From the dining hall several corridors led further in, unfolding into more Labyrinths. In short, both exterior and interior are interior to the stratum.[44]”

“Are they differentiated only by their function or use?”[45]

“I’m not sure, I investigated further but soon found myself trapped in a great labyrinth where I had to ponder how far [46] I could go on. How was I to find my bearings in that black labyrinth? [47] I tried learning the proper pathway through the labyrinth to some food supply,[48] back to the dining hall, but I lost my way by the twists and turns of the labyrinth.[49] I do not know how long I wandered but when I woke up I was back outside the entrance and no pleading would persuade them to let me back in.

As for what’s further inside, at the end of the labyrinth or labyrinths, there are rumors. There is, too, a very general rumor, which many have verified by their own experience, or which trustworthy persons who have heard the experience of others corroborate, that [50] at a small square there is a fountain centered in a plot of lawn.[51] the plants are green and have probably never felt drought. [52] They say the water shines like the light of a thunderbolt and, if you put in it a salted fish, the fish would return to life and dart off, a sign that this is the fountain of eternal youth.[53] Though doubtful, one thing however is for sure, one can always drink from the fountain of youth, plentiful and irreversible, its level never goes down. [54]  

Although, the biggest mystery, the one most speculated about, still remains unsolved. What is at the center of the labyrinth? As soon as it was built the Mystery began. [55] No matter how many tried, they did not penetrate.[56] The labyrinth will always evade full apprehension, will always hold in its depths inexhaustible mystery.[57] Down there infinity has a tendency to fill the mind with that sort of delightful horror, which is the most genuine effect and truest test of the sublime.[58] In some circles, the maze is rumored to be the sum of a man’s life. At its center lies a man who has been killed over and over—only to come back to life. To keep out his oppressors, he built the maze.[59]”

“Thank you.”

“I neither want any thanks, nor merit any.”[60]

[1] Schumacher, The Autopoiesis of Architecture Vol 2

[2],[3] Frankl, The Gothic

[4] Darwin, On the Origin of Species

[5],[20],[56] Rand, The Fountainhead

[6] Teige, The Minimum Dwelling

[7],[8],[12],[28],[31],[48],[51],[52] Asimov, Complete Robot Anthology

[9] Fukuyama, The End of History and the Last Man

[10] Whitehead, Castles of the Mind

[11],[19] Bill Gates

[13],[35] Eco, From the Tree to the Labyrinth

[14] Marx, Capital Volume One

[15] Hayek, The Constitution of Liberty

[16],[29],[30],[47] Hugo, Les Miserables

[17] Borges, Collected Fictions

[18] Austen, Pride And Prejudice

[21],[25] Harrison Wood Gaiger, Art in Theory 1648 1815

[22] Lovejoy Boas, Primitivism and Related Ideas in Antiquity

[23] Holt, Literary Sources of Art History

[24] Smith, An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations

[26] Barber, A Companion To World Mythology

[27] Williams, Daniele Barbaros Vitruvius of 1567

[32] Alberti, On the Art of Building in Ten Books 1988

[33],[49],[54] Serres, The Five Senses

[34] Serres, The Birth of Physics

[36] Eco, The Name of the Rose

[37] Mallgrave, Modern Architectural Theory

[38] Hays, Architecture Theory since 1968

[39] Alberti, 10 books of architecture 1755

[40] Perrault, An Abridgment of the Architecture of Vitruvius 1692

[41] Humboldt, Equinoctial Regions of America

[42],[43] Woods, Letters of an Architect from France Italy and Greece 1

[44] Deleuze Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus

[45] Deleuze, Expressionism in Philosophy

[46],[58] Mallgrave, Architectural Theory

[50] Augustine, The City of God

[53] Eco, Baudolino

[55] Hugo, Notre Dame de Paris

[57] Braidotti Hlavajova, Posthuman Glossary

[59] Westworld

[60] Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

[the-mic-drop]

RWBY Ship Power Rankings V5E3

So, y’know how sports sites will have power rankings of leagues during their season? Well, I’m gonna do that but with RWBY ships! Now, this won’t be ranked by the validity or popularity of the ship, but instead by its liklihood of becoming canon. I’ll try to put my personal biases aside as much as I can. Oh, also...

SPOILER ALERT

Let’s get started...

1. Renora (Ren x Nora)

This being here is really just a formality. By all accounts, this ship is already canon, what with the ending of Volume 4 and all. However, besides that one moment, the two haven’t really acted like a couple. I can’t imagine this will keep up though, and I expect there to be a great moment this Volume where the two will allude to being “together together.”

2. Wudonna (Blake x Sun)

Another ship that is basically a foregone conclusion, Blake and Sun have gone through many of the motions that we’ve seen elsewhere; the wink, the dance, the blush, etc. If watching shows has taught me anything, it’s that Blake and Sun are going to be official at one point or another, but if the Legend of Korra has taught us anything, it’s that anything is possible.

3. Rose Garden (Ruby x Oscar)

Here’s one that only recently gained any substance. Oscar and Ruby actually meet in this Volume, much to the joy of this ship’s followers, and despite the small amount of interaction, this ship seems to have some of the makings of an eventual canon ship.

4. Freezerburn (Weiss x Yang)

With the battle against Neon and Flynt in Volume 3, this ship gained a good bit of legitimacy. Yang and Weiss now seem to be on a path to be the first members of team RWBY to meet back up. With that, comes alone time, as RNJR and Blake aren’t too close, as well as the potential for someone to look really cool and woo the other. Though nothing is yet set in stone, and this ship has little more than speculation behind it.

5. Iceberg (Weiss x Neptune)

Ok, calm down for a sec. Now, Neptune hasn’t been seen since the end of Volume 3, and that is a huge problem for this ship. However, with their interactions in Volume 2, it’s hard to say that Neptune won’t come back in some capacity, and Weiss will surely be there if he does. Once that happens, the wheels will naturally start turning on this one. Of course, this all hinges on Neptune showing up again, and with an absence such as this, it’s becoming less and less likely.

6. Ladybug (Ruby x Blake)

This one is something of a longshot. With Yang and Weiss almost surely about to meet up, it’s not too far-fetched to say that RNJR might come across Blake. Should that happen, Ruby’s sunny disposition might just become the light that Blake needs in her current gloomy situation. However, this might only happen if Sun is out of the picture, which is not impossible, but very unlikely.

7. Lancaster (Ruby x Jaune)

The two former team leaders now have a lot more to carry on their backs, perhaps it might be lighter if they share the load? Of course, the death of Pyrrha is likely too fresh in Jaune’s mind, and we don’t know if Ruby has even started seeing boys (or girls) in such a light. If she has, Oscar seems to be the more likely suitor for our heroine. That does not make this a sunken ship just yet though. When you consider all the moments these two have had, it shines more than a bit of hope.

8. WhiteRose (Weiss x Ruby)

A once, and perhaps still fan favorite, its likelihood in canon is diminishing. These two are a long ways away from meeting up, perhaps another volume or more. That could mean a more heartfelt reunion, but their relationship up to this point signals that not much more than the most endearing friendship of the series is in store for these two.

9. Bumblby (Blake x Yang)

Handled another way, these two could be a stone’s throw away from canon, but ever since the dance, Yang has done nothing in the way of trying for romance that would interfere in what Blake and Sun have. Of course these two still have one of the tightest bonds on team RWBY, and that is what is keeping this ship alive. When these two meet again, it should give us all definitive insight as to where this ship is going.

10. Combat Goggles (Yang x Neptune)

The two shameless flirts. There’s not much going on for these two, but what little they have is more than any other ship not listed here. Unfortunately, the only way this has a chance is if Yang and Weiss have a falling out and Weiss pushes Neptune away as well. Of course, we might not see Nep for a while, if ever, so this ship is more or less done for.

[mrmrsvegan]

The true cost of Avocado

A young slanderer has taken to my Facebook group to let the 12,000 people there know I am a horrible person for telling people an avocado is 80% fat.  This is a true fact.  If you take 234 calories in 100 grams of avocado / 21 grams are of fat (21* 9 calories of fat per gram = 189 cals from fat)  189/234 = 80% fat.  

Rather than spend time on her hateful remarks I will lob a few more blows to the Avocado.  We eat them, sparingly.  Lets see what happens if you enjoy one every day in the USA...

  Just adding a single avocado to the diet of Americans each day could potentially add 20 pounds of fat on a person each year or 100 POUNDS IN 5 YEARS!!!  

1st. Let me laugh a second that the Avocado Nutrition Facts split the avocado up into 3 servings per “container” OMFG.  Let me have 1/3 of this avo today, 1/3 tomorrow & 1/3 next week.  We eat the whole damn thing, how about you?.  (note their own label is 10% higher than Google’s nutrition calculator.  8g * 9 cals per fat = 72 cals from fat 72/80 = 90% fat by calories.  SO lets roll this baby out on the American public & see what happens.  btw how deceiving are these labels?

3500 cals in a pound of fat (not totally accurate but its what the institutions use) 8g * 3 servings * 9 calories of fat per avocado  = 216 added fat calories a day so (3500/216) = every 16.2 days 1 pound of fat can accumulate if an avocado is added on top of a calorically sufficient diet.  How are Americans doing on their caloric sufficiency?

Average American eats almost 4000 calories a day while people in the Congo get 1600.  The USDA recommends 2000 - 2400 for our highly active men & women.  We are already almost doubling that...  

 365/16.2 = 22 of these cycles in a year.  After 5 years that is over 100 pounds of additional avocado fat someone could be walking around with.  Luckily a single avocado is $2.00 or more making it a luxury purchase for most.

I wonder if the Avocado Board has anything to do with these price increase & shortages where cases have gone from $20 to $80 in the past few years?  I’m not alone in this speculation --> http://www.ocregister.com/articles/prices-731700-mexico-avocados.html  These things literally grow on trees...  When people are fed high calorically dense items like an avocado the reward centers of their brain are impacted.  Alcohol is 7 calories per gram & an avocado consists of 80%~90% of its caloric content at 9 calories per gram.  Rice & potatoes are around 1 calorie per gram for comparison.  How is the healthiest food supposed to remain enjoyable when the brain is subjected to a calorically dense assault? 

How are additions like this helping the American people?  

https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/health-statistics/Pages/overweight-obesity-statistics.aspx

More than 2 in 3 adults are considered to be overweight or obese.

More than 1 in 3 adults are considered to be obese.

Health Risks of Overweight and Obesity

type 2 diabetes

heart disease

high blood pressure

nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (excess fat and inflammation in the liver of people who drink little or no alcohol)

osteoarthritis (a health problem causing pain, swelling, and stiffness in one or more joints)

some types of cancer: breast, colon, endometrial (related to the uterine lining), and kidney

stroke

Obesity seems to be slightly racist, too SJWs...  These should be unhinging government statistics not at me for promoting the diet PROVEN to help minorities and socioeconomically disadvantages, but at the food industries that keep putting more fat on people’s plates.  

Every purchase of an avocado funds the avocado marketing cooperative to get people to eat more avocados.

This bit of history is right from their website (I saved it so we’ll see how fast they remove it);

http://www.avocadosource.com/CAS_Yearbooks/CAS_31_1946/CAS_1946_PG_123-126.pdf

And is the market unlimited? That, too, seems to be a true assumption. If everyone in the United States were to consume as many avocados each year as are consumed per capita in the Los Angeles area, the required volume would be fantastic. Los Angeles consumers do away with four or five pounds of avocados per capita per year, on the average. The people of New York or Washington or Philadelphia or other large eastern cities, in contrast, use as little as one per cent of that amount per capita. Thus, to bring the nation to our local consumption level, production would have to be increased a hundred fold or more. The market appears to be virtually unlimited. Year 1946

To dieticians, chefs, hotel people, and other institutional users, we send dietetic and nutritional material and mass-serving recipes. Nutritional folders, for example, have been sent to more than three thousand dietetic experts— making them aware of the high food value of your product. Market promotion, in another important form, is accomplished through visual demonstration and display. People can be told that avocados are good; they will believe it if given the opportunity to eat a sample of a properly prepared fruit. 

The California Avocado Commission's predecessor organization, the California Avocado Advisory Board, was organized in 1961 out of dissatisfaction by individual growers with the success of the state's largest agricultural cooperative, Calavo Growers, to secure stable prices for avocados. New laws were passed allowing growers to form an association that would obtain a compulsory contribution from businesses directly involved in the avocado industry, and use the money to advertise and promote avocados to consumers throughout America

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Avocado_Commission

So once again, we love Avocado’s, but get real & understand their potential effects on the average american & the market collusion & manipulation that brought a single tree’s mutant tree fruit to everyone’s table and waistline.  

Think I can get my hands on that industry provided nutrition material for my next avocado warrior???  Sparingly, use as condiments, if health & weight loss are your goal, enjoy liberally if you need to obtain life saving/sustaining body fat if you have an underweight BMI.

[loveofgodblog]

Foreknowledge and Foreordination (The Kindness and Love of God in the Choices He Gives Us!)

This article was republished from WhiteRaimentEvangelism.blogspot.com. By E. J. Waggoner "For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren." The word "predestinate" is the same as "foreordain," which is found in the Revised Version. Volumes of speculation have been written about these terms, but a few words are sufficient to set forth the facts. With respect to these, as well as the other attributes of God, it is sufficient for us to know the fact. With the explanation we have nothing to do. That God knows all things is plainly set forth in the Scripture. Not only does he know the things that are past, but he sees the future as well. 2 "Known unto God are all his works from the beginning of the world." Acts 15:18. "O Lord, thou hast searched me, and known me. Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising; thou understandest my thought afar off." Ps. 139:1, 2. Thus God can tell what people even yet unborn will do and say. This does not make God responsible for the evil that they do. Some have foolishly thought it necessary to apologize for the Lord and to relieve him of the charge that if he is omniscient He is responsible for the evil if he does not prevent it, by saying that He could know if he wished, but that he chooses not to know many things. Such a "defense" of God is both foolish and wicked. It assumes that God would be responsible for the evil if he knew it beforehand and did not prevent it, and that in order not to be in a position to prevent it, he deliberately shuts his eyes from it. Thus their "defense" really puts the responsibility for all evil upon God. Not only so, but it limits Him. It makes him like a man. God knows all things, not by study and research as man learns the little he knows, but because he is God. He inhabits eternity. Isa. 57:15. We can not understand how this can be any more than we can understand eternity. We must accept the fact and be not only content, but glad, that God is greater than we. All time, past, present, and future, is the same to Him. It is always "now" with God. The fact that God knew the evil that men would do, even before the foundation of the world, does not make him responsible for it, any more than 3 the fact that a man can see by means of a telescope what a man is doing ten miles distant makes him responsible for that other one's actions. God has from the beginning set before people warnings against sin, and has provided them with all the necessary means for avoiding it; but he can not interfere with man's right and freedom of choice without depriving him of his manhood and making him the same as a stick. Freedom to do right implies freedom to do wrong. If a man were made so that he could not do wrong, he would have no freedom at all, not even to do right. He would be less than the brutes. There is no virtue in forced obedience, nor would there be any virtue in doing that which is right if it were impossible to do wrong. Moreover, there could be no pleasure or satisfaction in the professed friendship of two persons if one associated with the other just because he could not avoid it. The joy of the Lord in the companionship of his people is that they of their own free-will choose him above all others. And that which is the joy of the Lord is the joy of His people. The very ones who rail against God for not preventing the ills that he foresees since he is all-powerful, would be the very first to charge him with cruelty if he did arbitrarily interfere with their freedom and make them do that which they do not choose. Such a course would make everybody unhappy and discontented. The wisest thing for us to do is to stop trying to fathom the ways of the Almighty, and accept the fact that whatever he does is right. "As for God, His way is perfect." Ps. 18:30. Predestination: The text shows that "whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the first-born among many brethren." God's thoughts toward men are thoughts of peace, and not of evil. Jer. 29:11. He ordains peace for us. Isa. 26:12. We read nothing about men being foreordained to destruction; the only thing that God has predestinated is that men should be conformed to the image of His Son. But it is only in Christ that we become conformed to His image. It is in him that we come "unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ." Eph. 4:13. Therefore it is that men are foreordained or predestinated only in Christ. The whole story is told in the following passage of Scripture :-

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ; according as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love; having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good-pleasure of his will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved."

Everything is in Christ. We receive all spiritual blessings in Him; we are chosen in Him unto holiness; in Him we are predestinated unto the adoption of children; in Him we are accepted; and in Him we have redemption through His blood. "God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Thess. 5:9. 5 That is God's purpose and foreordination concerning man. Still further, "whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of His Son." Whom did He foreknow? There can be no limit; He must have foreknown all. If there were any exception, then God would not be infinite in knowledge. If He foreknows one person, then He foreknows every person. There has not been a person born into the world whose birth God did not foreknow. "Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight; but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." Therefore, since every person has been known to God even before the foundation of the world, and those whom he foreknew He predestinated to be conformed to the image of his Son, it follows that God has purposed salvation for every soul that has ever come into the world. His love embraces all, without respect of persons. "Then everybody will be saved, no matter what He does," some one will say. Not by any means. Remember that the purpose of God is in Christ. It is only in Him that we are predestinated. And we are free to choose for ourselves whether we will accept Him or not. Man's will has been forever set free, and God Himself will not presume to interfere with it. He holds sacred the choice and will of each individual. He will not carry out His own purpose contrary to man's will. His will is to give man whatever man decides will best please Him. So he sets before man life and death, good and evil, and tells him to choose which he will have. God knows what is best, and has chosen and prepared 6 that for man. He has gone so far as to fix it beyond all possibility of failure, that man shall have that good thing if he chooses it. But the wonderful kindness and courteousness of the great God is seen in this, that He defers in everything to man's wishes. If man, in his turn, will but defer to God's wishes, there will be the most delightful and loving companionship between them.

Called, Justified, Glorified:

"Moreover, whom He did predestinate, them He also called; and whom He called, them He also justified; and whom He justified, them He also glorified." This is completed action. We need not stumble over it, if we will but remember that everything is in Christ. In Christ we have already been blessed with all spiritual blessings. All men are called to that which God has prepared for them, but none are "the called according to His purpose" unless they have made their calling and election sure by submitting to His will. Such ones are predestinated to be saved. Nothing in the universe can hinder the salvation of any soul that accepts and trusts the Lord Jesus Christ. And all such are justified. The death of Christ reconciles us to God. "He is the propitiation for our sins; and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world." 1 John 2:2. His death has secured pardon and life for all. Nothing can keep them from salvation except their own perverse will. Men must take themselves out of the hand of God, in order to be lost. Much more, then, those who accept the sacrifice, are justified. "God commendeth His love toward us, in that, 7 while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son; much more being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life." "And whom He justified, them He also glorified." Have we not read in the prayer of Christ for His disciples, not only for those who were with Him in the garden, but also for all them that should believe on Him through their word and therefore for us, "The glory which Thou gavest Me, I have given them"? Peter said that he was a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. God has left nothing undone. Everything that Christ has we have if we accept Him. All that remains is that it should be revealed. "The earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God." When God asks concerning His people, "What could have been done more to My vineyard, that I have not done in it?" who shall presume to say that there is something that He has overlooked?

All Things Ours:

But we have anticipated the apostle. Hear him: "He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall he not with Him also freely give us all things?" How shall He not? That is, how can He avoid giving us all things? In giving Christ for and to us, God could not do otherwise than give us 8 all things, "for in Him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through Him, and unto Him; and He is before all things, and in Him all things consist." Col. 1:16, 17, R.V. "Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours; whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours; and ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's." 1 Cor. 3:21-23. This, then, answers the question, "Who can be against us?" Everything is for us. "All things are for your sakes." 2 Cor. 4:15. A general once telegraphed to the seat of government, "We have met the enemy, and they are ours." This is what every child of God is privileged to say. "Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Cor. 15:57. "This is the victory that hath overcome the world, even our faith." 1 John 5:4, R.V. This is what makes us know that all things work together for good to them that love God. No matter how dark and forbidding the things may seem, if we are in Christ, they are for us, and not against us. Blog Edited by John Foll. If you were blessed by this article by E. J. Waggoner, you may want to check out some of our other articles by him or others on our Faith Blog: http://whiteraimentevangelismfaith.blogspot.com/. A really good article on this site by E. J. Waggoner is: “Living by Faith Part 2 of 5: A Cause of Failure” http://whiteraimentevangelismfaith.blogspot.com/2016/10/living-by-faith-part-2-cause-of-failure.html 

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