#she doesn’t need to sell herself for you losers

[danvssomethingorother]

Probably controversial opinion but Doja Cat is right.

She is right to not encourage her fans to get into her personal life and only listen to her music. I mean I guess she’s sorta mean about it but you know what? Good. Online fans are freaks now about celebrities and need to be told off and told to respect super basic boundaries

[radiant-reid]

The Right Person

request:

things spencer would say to his ex who’s his ex but not really his ex bc their hearts always belong to the other but is actually his ex bc they called it quits but just bc it’s over doesn’t mean it’s really over cuz he’s just: last slide

Summary: Right person, wrong time... at least until there's a part two

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader (angst, sort of)

Content Warning: a tiny spicy moment

Word Count: 3.3k

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Spencer has always jumped into things too quickly. It's the cocktail of being a romantic, coming from a broken home, failing with most social relationships, and the desperate need for a family.

So when Y/n came along, all smiles and beauty, he moved too fast. Fell is probably a more accurate verb. He fell in love so quickly without any logic that he couldn't help proposing a year in and marrying her six months later.

She offered him support and unconditional love. And for the first time in a tough five years in the FBI, he felt like the world wasn't completely terrible.

The whirlwind relationship would have been much better if taken slowly. It might have even worked out. With their fast pace, neither of them could keep up and after four years, trying to make it work wasn't worth it. The therapy, fights, and long periods without speaking wasted time and drained them both emotionally.

It was like fire. Hot and heavy or warm and comforting, but they were destined for a burn.

Sure, they loved each other more than anything, and they would forever argue that they're soulmates and the timing was at fault.

When Beatrice was nine months old, it was clear things wouldn't, so for her sake, Spencer moved out, the fighting stopped, and they could be friends.

For three months, they've been doing well with their co-parenting routine. Since Spencer had spent so much time away during their marriage, Y/n didn't have to get over the feeling of loss.

Maybe some of that could be accounted for by the fact it still felt like they were dating, the magnetism between them still volatile.

It's Saturday when Y/n's baking in the kitchen. She's yet to enquire about selling it, probably because they're yet to properly get divorced. Somehow, it doesn't feel weird for her to live in their marital home. She ignores how little it feels like they're broken up, especially when she's eagerly anticipating him coming home back from a case. He's not even coming to see her, but she's changed out of her pajamas and put makeup on.

"Guess who?" A voice says while the matching fingers block her vision.

If she didn't know that voice like the back of her hand, she would have freaked out. "You're so close to losing your key, Spencer Walter Reid."

He pulls his hands away, resting his back against the bench with his body facing her. "Boring answer. I would have accepted sexy ex or the smartest man alive." He says, smiling his perfect wide smile.

He looks good, a golden glow still surrounding him, and his shirt fits him tightly around his muscles. She's allowed to say that as his eventual ex-wife, right? It's more of a compliment to herself for attracting attractive, intelligent men. That's how she justifies it anyway.

"Who's been inflating your ego, loser?" She teases.

Repartee of their level is something no one else could ever offer him, and he cringes when other people try. "Jealous?" He asks.

Yes, she is. She'd love to shower him with compliments. Tell him about how nice his hair looks a little bit longer, how he should wear more light blue because it really is his color, how good he smells, and some less innocent things as well. The jealousy boils in her at the thought of someone else doing that. Still, she resists.

"That someone else has to vacate the bathroom for hours each day so you can do your hair? No." She lies. It's a lie on all levels.

Unimportantly, he doesn't spend that long in the bathroom, and he's about the furthest thing from a narcissist there is, but deeply, she would jump at the opportunity to be locked out of the bathroom while he spends far too long in the shower and be greeted with the gorgeous sight of a towel wrapped around his hips and his chest showing.

"Okay." He lets it go, and it annoys her that he won't believe the time. "Can I have some cookie dough?"

"Say please." She directs.

He pouts too much like Beatrice. "Please." He complies before opening her mouth.

She frowns, unsure if he seriously wants her to hand-feed him cookie dough. The answer is yes because he doesn't shut his mouth and tell her it's a joke. She scoops some up, putting her fingers into his mouth. He doesn't let them sneak out without wrapping his lips. It's suggestive, and it doesn't disgust her.

"You'll get salmonella." She tells him when he finally lets her fingers out of his mouth. She tries not to blush like mad while she wipes her fingers on a kitchen towel.

"You'll have to look after me then," Spencer says, justifying it. "As the person who gave it to me."

She shakes her head. "Gross."

"Why are you baking on a Saturday?" He asks, raising an eyebrow at her. He's suspicious whenever things change in her behavior, more so than anyone else's.

"I'm anticipating being busy tomorrow." She answers ambiguously.

It was on purpose, but the goal wasn't to make him curious and ask more questions. She just wasn't jumping at the opportunity to hear his opinion on her love life.

Unfortunately, his curiosity peaked when she started speaking. "Why?" She mumbles out an answer that he doesn't catch. "Come on, don't be shy."

"I'm going on a date." She says finally, avoiding looking at him.

That knocks him off guard, the smile slipping from his face as he steps back. Quickly, he forces himself to say something recoverable to hide the hurt and shock he's feeling at the unexpected news. "Does he know you're married?"

He knows he has no right to be upset about it. Not only are they not exclusive, but they're, in no way, romantically involved. It's why there's no bite in his words, nothing vicious in his tone.

It hits him harder with every passing second. Her statement is something he never expected, and questioning why that is while standing in the middle of their kitchen with her in a beautiful new top, yeah, it's gut-wrenching.

She holds up her bare left hand, shed of a wedding ring. "He doesn't, no."

"What's his name?" Spencer asks next. There are a million questions on his mind, but he keeps the conversation casual.

"Bradley."

She feels guilty for it, unsure if it's cheating guilt or mom guilt, and she's forced to constantly remind herself that it's okay, she's allowed to say yes when she gets asked out and be swept away by someone else.

His next move, to her, seems predictable. Whenever he's looking for more information, he stays quiet, waiting for her to feel awkward enough to elaborate. Even though she used to read him like an open book, she can't see that he's processing, replaying their worst moments-the moments that led them here- in his head.

She keeps talking, annoyed that his old trick is working when really she's just breaking his heart more. "He's a defense attorney, but he accidentally took my coffee the other day."

Spencer resists the urge to scoff because 'accidentally.' He's seen Morgan use the move a hundred times: pretend to mix up the coffees, apologize, and seal the deal by asking if he can make it up to her. "Switching teams, I see." He interrupts, predominantly so that he doesn't have to hear anything else. "And a new top." He mentions. Again, a tactic to get her to stop talking. "What color is it? It would look really nice as a feature wallpaper."

He does that, too, only complimenting things adjacent to her. Talking about fucking interior design instead of just saying she looks nice pushes her buttons, and she knows where his are.

"Yeah, I was wearing a jacket in a similar color, so I'm hoping it's a subliminal message." She admits. "Plus he's tall and very attractive.”

Spencer wants to scream something along the lines of 'I'm 6'1, I have three PhDs, you've told me I'm handsome after you held my hair up while I puked after drinking far too much, and I'm so goddamn in love with you,' but he can barely admit the last fact to himself.

"So he's got brown curly hair and sparkling brown eyes?" Spencer teases her, and she rolls her eyes. That dumb eidetic memory would never let him forget the descriptors she'd given him, and his cocky attitude would never stop mentioning it. "It's not your fault you have a type. Scientifically-"

"Shh." She requests, pressing her finger to his lips.

Without thinking about it, like it was second nature, Spencer purses his lips and kisses her skin. After letting it linger for a moment, she takes it away and turns back to what she's doing.

Again, he draws her attention back to him, cupping the cheek furthest away from him and turning her face to look at him. Once she is, eyes locked on his, he holds her other cheek. He steps forward so that he's so close to her that her breath gets trapped in her throat.

Those fingers on her skin make her feel things she shouldn't be feeling, and her heart starts to thump in her chest when she sneaks a glance at those beautiful veins. Maybe her skin is hot or maybe his fingers are just cold but the contrast sends shivers all over her. It's hard not to think about all the times they've been inside her or how they look wrapped around his cock as he lines himself up with her sex.

"Y/n, if he lays a hand on you, I swear to god." He says threateningly, and it would worry her if she didn't know him so well and if it wasn't so hot.

"You don't believe in god." She calls him out, raising her eyebrows in challenge.

"I can find anyone, anywhere." She can't debate that. "And if he lays a hand on you, I'll kill him or put him in jail for the rest of his life. Your choice."

He's acting like he's doing her a favor, letting her decide how he'll hurt someone who hurts her. It's an odd declaration to be making, contradictory to every bit of his sweet nature, and she doesn't hate it.

"What if I ask- beg for it?" She questions him.

"Oh, I'm not worried about that." He's really not.

He would do immoral things that would make him lose his job and even go to jail if someone hurt her, but the deep feelings he's disgusting as an overprotective bravado against someone assaulting her is really just because he can't stand the thought of someone else being with her.

He's not worried about it sexually. She might be anticipating not being home for the night, but she's not the type to ask a first date to get rough with her. What's got him on edge is her being someone else's emotionally. They might be telling everyone they're not together, but if her heart belongs to someone else, there's no chance of him getting her back, and that's all he wants.

His lips are so close that she could kiss him, but the magnetism makes it challenging to resist. She yearns for the feeling of warm lips against hers, more specifically, the pretty pink ones she's peeking at.

They've had slips before. It's been three weeks since their last one. Every time, she swears she won't do it again, but she's ready to tear his clothes off and fuck him in the kitchen.

She's daring him to make that dangerous leap, and he's about to.

The cries of a woken-up one-year-old through the baby monitor snap them back into a harsh reality before their lips can touch. They both wonder if it's horrid that they forgot why he's there. Spencer lingers for a moment with her face in his hands before he breaks away from her painfully.

"I'll go." He says, leaving her standing there stunned with cheeks hot and a pounding heart.

She has a moment to recover, but it's not enough, and soon Spencer's back in the room with the sweetest baby in his arms. She's giggling, clinging to her dad, who she loves dearly. If Y/n didn't love Beatrice wholeheartedly, she'd be jealous she wasn't enough for Spencer to spend time with. But she can't be. Not when Bea has the greatest dad in the entire world, and she deserves every inch of his love.

"Kiss momma." Spencer directs, holding her up to Y/n's cheek.

She plants a kiss that's mostly saliva on her mom, and despite how messy it is, it makes Y/n grin. "How'd you sleep, baby?" She asks, knowing they'll be no reply. Her vocabulary is limited to three words: mom, dad, and love.

"Not so well last night," Spencer answers like it was intended for him.

He sits on a bar stool at the kitchen island, sitting Bea in his lap. "Spencer," Y/n warns, glaring at him.

"Your mom's mad at me." He stage-whispers to Bea. "I never know why."

"Should we start with lying to a child?" She wonders, but it's playful, not insulting. "Add in some pesky comments."

Spencer pouts, holding Bea up so she can see it and copy her father. "Oh, she loves them." He assures her. "And I love you. So much."

Y/n smiles in adoration. He might be difficult to be in love with, but he's the best dad ever. Spencer catches her staring, it's pretty obvious when the bowl of cookie dough sits abandoned on the counter.

"You look so similar." She says, trying to prevent the awkward since and slightly too romantic looks.

"Need another one to look like you?" He jokes, or maybe it's an offer. She can't really tell.

She scoffs, shaking her head. "I'm alright, thanks."

"But she's so perfect." He coos, her entire hand holding his pinky finger. "How could you not want another one?"

She chuckles at his baby fever. It is practically impossible to not want another child when theirs is so incredible, but they're only masochistic towards each other.

"Don't go getting random girls pregnant, Spencer." She jokingly advises him.

“I’m only ever going to get one girl pregnant.” He tells her.

He’s messy. In fact, they’re messy together, and he can’t keep his dick in his pants, but it’s not a problem he has with anyone else.

"That's possibly very nice." She says, frowning as she tries to figure him out.

"You're lucky." He rephrases.

She laughs, shaking her head. "You're lucky I don't kick you out now."

"Whoa, I get it." He teases. "It's someone's time to get lucky, hang a sock on the door and all that."

"I highly doubt you got any in college." She reminds him.

"Or now." He adds.

It should be weird. Who casually discusses sex with an ex?

"Yeah, I noticed one of your hands seems stronger than the other." She quips, although there's no discernable difference. They're both equally delicious.

"Mm, reminds me, I need more lotion." He mentions, playing along with the joke. "Vanilla, right?"

She fake-gags. "That's literally disgusting." She chides. "Do not go and get the same lotion I have to jack off."

He shrugs casually. "It's a free country."

"You're disturbing." She reiterates, reminding herself he said it to get her flustered.

"Don't flirt with me like that, or I might start thinking you like me." He warns, fluttering his eyelids at her.

She does feel like she's falling in love all over again with him when it's all flirting and comfortable.

"You'd be begging if I was flirting." She assures him, and it's true. Spencer begs like no one else.

"Alright, I think that's time to go." He decides, clicking his tongue and looking at Bea again. "Your mom's too into me for her own good."

That is hitting the nail on the head. She's into him and she always will be, but it's not wise, and it compromises her self-respect time and time again.

He gets up, bouncing Bea on his hip and walking around the bench. She leans forward to kiss her happy baby before playing with her soft hair. "Just admit you lost, Spencer." She tells him.

A little grin lights up his features as he refuses to comply with her directions. "I never lose." Oh, except for his one true chance at happiness and a family with the most remarkable woman in the world.

"Those beautiful big brains." She coos, moving her hand to his hair to part his curls properly.

"I'm sure yours are equally, if not more, beautiful." He says, once again making her stomach slip with the eye contact. "Smaller of course."

She scoffs out a laugh. "Bye." She says. "Her bag's in the hall."

"When do you want her back?" Spencer asks, holding the baby up so her cheeks can be kissed an obscene amount of time.

Their custody arrangement is nonexistent. With Spencer's hectic schedule and their good relationship, there's never been a need to make it official. Bea's always his priority when he's in the District, and that keeps Y/n happy.

Not fully happy. She'd like to see Bea, and her dad, every day, and she's too far from that with the latter Reid to ever be completely satisfied with her life. Months later, she's still convincing herself she can one day not look at him and wish for something unrealistic.

"Whenever." She says. They start walking towards the front door, slowly, both lingering and dragging it out. "If you need to go, you can bring her back."

"If you're in the middle of a date?" He wonders cheekily, grabbing Bea's bag from the floor.

She glares at him, not finished with her sentence. "Otherwise, I'll text you."

"Call." He insists. "We're not texting people."

"Fine." She agrees, swinging open the door. She takes Bea into her arms, giving her a tight hug. "Love you, sweet baby."

"Mom, love," Bea mumbles back, placing her hands on Y/n's cheeks.

Spencer gets the sinking feeling in his chest that he always gets leaving, but it's worse when he's taking Bea, who's Y/n's entire world. It makes him feel nauseating amounts of guilt. How can he be okay with putting her through the loneliness of a house that big being empty?

He smiles at her as he takes Bea back. "Thank you."

She not sure what for and she doesn't have a chance to ask before he's walking out the door, strapping Bea in her car seat. She waves at her mom, looking as happy as always.

Spencer stops before he gets in his seat. "Y/n?"

"Yeah?" She asks, straightening up her posture.

She's hoping he'll say what she wants to hear, although she doesn't know what that is. A Spencer fact would keep things simple, but saying something about how they can get back on track, that she shouldn't go out tonight, would ruin their carefully stacked house of cards.

"He's a lucky guy." He says, and it kills him to know that it used to be him taking her out, watching her grin from across the table, making her laugh until she's begging him to stop, driving home with his hand on her thigh, watching her take off her makeup and become more beautiful, and ending up cuddling in bed, their baby just a room over.

And he can't ever have that again, not with her, and he can't fathom it with someone else.

Y/n goes back inside once he's driven away, hoping for once, after he leaves, that she can not think about him.

It doesn't work. As always, she's stuck thinking about Spencer.

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[igglemouse]

I never imagined I’d be here as my plans had always happened in Selva. That was home, after all, any any place else was far far away. Locations more meant to be visited and vacationed but never stationed. 

I wasn’t even sure what I’d be doing in Selva but I was sure I’d be there. Moving across the border to a new country had never been in the cards and had never been the plan but as I’ve learned all throughout my short life plans are always in motion and if you aren’t ready to adjust life will quickly leave you behind. Change is something you simply have to expect.

I grab a seat on a sun touched bench and take a sip of of orange juice as I look around the park. 

I’ve not been here long, not even a full day, but I’ve been here long enough to see that there wouldn’t be too much culture shock. Oasis Springs might not be on the border between Selva and Simerica but its close enough to be a city intertwined with enough culture from home to feel familiar but never familiar enough to be home.

That was fine. No, that was good. I needed change to be honest, not a lot, but just enough to make my own way in life and why not here? There were a few more opportunities here for me and in my case ditching a bit of my past is definitely a good thing.

I push out a breath and wipe a bead of sweat from my forehead, realizing that the sun has much more of a presence here than in Selva which is saying a lot and it is the dry kind of heat that a person can never get used to.

But I will. I’m not one to mind a bit of heat after all.

I wasn’t alone at the park although I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case. There was a woman there sitting alone playing chess and so I pulled out the opposite seat and made my challenge clear by moving a pawn. She accepted by moving hers.

I'm not good at the game, to be honest, as I've rarely played but I do think I put up a good fight before she eventually bests me. Not much was said between us as we played which was for the better because Simlish is my second language and I speak with an accent but she was kind enough to introduce herself, after winning, of course.

"Josefina, by the way," she says with a confident smirk. "Have a wonderful day!"

"You too..." I mumble, staring down at the board and wondering how I lost.

I might have lost at chess but I’m definitely not a loser when it comes to life. Thanks to my father (the less said about him the better) I was able to afford this small but kinda luxurious house? As you can see it's not very spacious but it does have a nice little pool area out back which should help with the Oasis summers and it has a big enough kitchen which is really all that matters when it comes to me.

I feel like a kitchen is the heart of the house and I would make sure that mines is beating strong and happy. It’s where life and love are nourished and I’ll be sure to add my own joy and flavor to mines. 

But...I do have a confession to make. I’m a novice. I’m a noob. At least when it comes to cooking. It’s not for a lack of passion, you know, life has been hectic and I’ve never had a chance to settle down and focus on my own dreams but now that I do I’ll make up for any lack of experience with pure enthusiasm and drive! 

Cooking will be very important to me seeing as its how I plan to make my simoleons and the first couple of dishes will be Frida’s homemade tortillas and waffles. The tortillas are something cheap I can make that I hopefully can sell in abundance and the waffles are, well, waffles. Who doesn’t love waffles?

All that cooking just so I can stand outside in front of my house on a somewhat hot day and yell "Tortillas y Waffles!" at anyone passing by.

Unfortunately, most....okay, all of them ignored me. Passing me by and only stopping to stare if I were some odd curiosity. That's right, I didn't sell a single plate and and if anything was met with some hostility? It felt that way to me, at least. 

In fact, one of them, some old man with stupid little glasses glared at my offerings and simply said "Ewww..." shaking his head and moving right along.

So. This might be harder than I thought.

And so I stood there, watching people walk right past me and my stand as if I were some bush that had always been here. Offering at most a glance and making me regret it all. 

Oasis Springs might be hot but it was only a spring day and it wasn’t nearly hot enough to prevent my offerings from going cold. Just as I’m ready to close my stand and write off today as a failure one customer approaches that makes it all worth it. 

A tall man with dark hair and fetching eyes who walks confidently right up to my stand and seems to seriously consider what's before him. “Waffles and tortillas huh?” he asks, the very tone of his voice making my heart skip a beat. 

“I chuss gettin’ started,” I say too quickly and too forcefully, already defending food that he hasn’t tried and revealing my accented simlish that puts either an adoring or mocking smile on his face. Hard to tell. 

He reaches into his pocket and pulls out his wallet, slipping four measly simoleons on the table. “I’ll take the waffles to go,” and he does just that, walking off without another word but I swear (or maybe I’m hopefully imagining it) that his eyes linger on me before he leaves me a little breathless and oh so very curious. 

ELSEWHERE IN SAN MYSHUNO...

"What are these?" Ray asked in a challenging tone, looking down at the food on display a little comically but moving out of the way so that his cameraman and audience could also see what he was seeing.

"These, sir, are empanadas," the woman replied dryly. Revealing to him that perhaps she wasn't here entirely by choice. She was just a woman hired to hand out the food, that's it. Ray knew the type, after all, he was a man that reviewed local food for a living and he could always tell when a server was there just to collect simoleons.

"Alright then...give me a few of those then."

The woman lazily smacked a paper plate on the stand for him and moved him along.

He went back to his table and started to quietly eat. Every now and then he'd go "Mmmmm," or "Ahhh" giving his viewers something to react t other than him smacking his lips. He was a performer in the end, people watched his channel not for the food, but for him and the more he dragged his audience along with every bite the more views he expected to get.

He finished quickly, knowing that in his line of work people didn’t like watching anything for too long. He always had to wolf down his meal knowing that him sitting there and chewing food was bad content. "How was it?" his cameraman asked. A friend of his and always, to his viewers, just a voice. 

As usual he'd look to the camera, smile, and deliver his judgement. "Complete trash," he said with a hint of delight. Nothing got more clicks than a little negativity after all. "Greasy, doughy, and taste like processed garbage. Rubbery cheese and far too chewy. Just trash. It wouldn't even be morally right to ask the woman to try the food she serves..."

This was all an exaggeration of course. It wasn’t that bad but again, this was entertainment, and drama always sells...

Episode List - Next

House by @thatonegreenleaf Juice poses by @mel-bennett

[mamirhodessxox]

Unpublished prompts from HTD

🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸

*Randy & Mira trying to plan Cody & Delilahs bachelor & Bachelorette party.* “He said he didn’t wanna go to a strip club or out of town. “Delilah says she doesn’t want those male stripper magic mike like dancers either so I don’t know what to do at this point” “They’re so fucking boring and in love at this point just has Cody come to the bachelorette party as her personal male stripper or something.” “Randy how else do you think Delilah got pregnant. He’s already a personal male stripper.”-Randy & Mira

“Delilah if your gonna have a bachelorette party you need to learn how to throw your ass.” “Mira I don’t have a butt made for tha-“ “BULLSHIT”-Mira, Delilah & Cody

“I’d rather choke on acid tabs than look at another womans oiled up boobs.” “Ok so what if I dressed up as a stripper and you looked at my oiled up boobs.” “Randy is there something you need to tell us?”-Cody, Randy & Seth

“Delilah the woman that you are” *Delilah in a night gown from walmart* “what..”-Cody & Delilah

“I realized I have Daddy issues & Mommy issues.” “I kind of gathered that when we first had sex Lilah.”-Cody & Delilah

“Seth?” “Yes?” “Can you stop fucking breathing it’s to loud & irritating”-Mira & Seth

“LEARN HOW TO FUCKING DRIVE YOU DICK” “Mira calm down you just got your drivers last month you are NOT vin diesel.”-Mira & Seth

“Guys I think Delilah’s pregnant” “how?” “You shouldn’t even be asking that when you know her & cody go missing ever 3 hours every day & 2 she just cussed someone out at target.” “She never cusses..” “OH MY GOD HE GOT MY SWEET ANGEL GIRL PREGNANT.”-Seth, Jey & Mira

*Everyone on a cruise* “Hey Cody.” “Hi…” “I like this cruise idea it was smart.” “Oh thanks.” “It’s a perfect way to get rid of your body if you piss me off.” “Oh.”-Mira & Cody

“The oceans so pretty!” “Beach sex.” “What?” “Beach sex.”-Mira & Randy

“I always knew Randy had a fat crush on mira. Isn’t that right Bunny?” “You call me that one more time I’ll rip your fucking ear off.” -Seth & Mira

“Guys where’s Mira?” “Adopting a parakeet” “FUCK”-Randy & Jey

“Here is our almost too emotionally and psychically attached couple that loves each other so much.” “Your so cute “no your so cute!” “And here’s our mildly toxic couple.” “I WANT MORE ATTENTION FROM YOU” “I ALREADY GIVE YOU ENOUGH ATTENTION WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM ME?” “MORE ATTENTION!!”-Seth, Cody & Delilah, Mira & Randy

“So is seth the top or bottom in his marriage with becky?” “I’d rather not know.”-Randy & Cody

“Ok guys I’ve been teaching Delilah how to stand up for herself a little better let me show you. Hey loser” *Delilah on the verge of tears* “hey man..don’t call me that!” “Did I just watch Cody try to bully her like this is disney channel?”-Cody, Delilah, Becky

“I love you.” *Mira coming back after zoning out* “huh?” “I- uh I said I’m SELLING you.”-Randy & Mira

“Awh look at them their play fighting!!” *Mira trying to slap a spider off Randy’s head from the distance* “CAN YOU NOT TARNISH MY BRAIN CELLS PLEASE?” “I’M FUCKING TRYING”-Delilah, Randy & Mira

“Hey Cody?” “Yes gorgeous?” “Do you like me?” “I literally proposed to you twice Delilah.”-Delilah & Cody

“Would you love me if I was a worm?” *Randy trying to sleep* “Mira it’s 3 in the fucking morning go to sleep.”-Mira & Randy

🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸🎀🌸

@alyyaanna @jeysbvck @kabloswrld @mini-rhodes @southerngirl41 @femdisa @claymoresofinfamy23

[wqintraining]

NEW X-MEN: THE ANIMATED SERIES - SEASON 2, EPISODE 10

 We open in the hallways of a private school. A blonde teenage girl in a uniform struts down the hall with her nose in the air and a look of smug superiority on her face. At her locker, a mousy, plain, brown-haired, and timid Emma Frost is terrified of her as she approaches. 

Emma awkwardly greets the girl, whose name is Matilda, unable to even look her in the eye out of fear. Matilda mocks her for being such a little wimp. She’s an embarrassment to girls everywhere. 

MATILDA: “And with how you looked after getting your report card just now, you must be a disappointment to your family too.” Emma hugs herself, ashamed of her failures. “All the money in the world can’t make a loser anything else I suppose.” 

As Emma whimpers, we cut between a rapid montage of Emma swallowing pills, drinking, and snorting substances. 

Still in the past, at Emma’s family’s old estate, Emma sheepishly tries to sell her B-filled report card to her father as a good thing, only to get berated for her continued failure, nothing like Adrienne. As she’s on the verge of tears, she looks to her mother for support. Her mother sees her looking her way but only sips her whiskey. 

Emma runs off in tears to her room…where she shrieks as she finds all of her stuff broken. 

Behind her, a pre-teen girl snickers. 

CORDELIA: “That’s for telling Mother and Father I snuck out last month.” 

As Cordelia laughs and walks off, Emma falls to her knees, hugging her torn-up stuffed bunny. 

Another rapid montage occurs, with a glassy-eyed Emma continuing to spiral via drugs and liquor. 

A few years following her high school days, Emma sits in a dressing room, having just finished a performance as a stripper. As she’s getting ready to go home, Sebastian Shaw barges in. Before Emma can ask what he’s doing, he grabs her and smashes her face into the mirror, screaming at her for daring to invade his mind with her illusion. 

Emma, no longer a child, doesn’t cower, but instead forces him to let go and step back with a psychic attack. This is exactly what Shaw hoped would happen. He got the feeling she was extremely powerful when she was in his head. At his side, he could show her how to use her abilities for so much more than simple survival. And together, they could take over the whole world. 

Emma’s eyes fill with uncertainty and fear before she smirks evilly. 

Hard cut to a Hellfire headquarters, where Emma and Shaw, nearly naked, laugh as they sip their drinks and watch Hellfire soldiers chase down a completely stripped Matilda with machine guns. 

In the present, Emma tosses an unconscious Storm onto the floor of a Hellfire base, surrounded by 18th-century regalia. She declares that with her finally dealt with, they can proceed with destroying the rest of the X-Men, transforming Cyclops into the perfect White King, and taking control of the entire next generation of Mutants. 

She’s joined in cheers of victory by Shaw, Selene Gallio, and Emmanuel Da Costa. 

At the Grindstone, Luna is chatting on the phone, twirling her hair. The friend group is seated in a booth, and Brian and Cessily are role-playing as her and who she's talking to, acting over-the-top lovey dovey. 

Sooraya tells them to knock it off. She's happy Karma found a girlfriend. 

JULIAN: "She deserves better than some Flatscan."

NORIKO: "Yeah, Luna's a pretty chill boss, but he's right."

Sofia narrows her eyes at the two. 

SOFIA: "Did you two find Magneto and take a class with him when we weren't looking?"

JULIAN: "Something like that. So, what are we doing this weekend?"

Cessily and Roxy gleefully remind everyone that they're gonna be out of town filming the Washingtons' music video, Noriko is working, and Sooraya is going to be getting ready for finals so she doesn't need to cram in a few weeks, while also helping Brian, and Laura was assigned a solo mission by Ms. Frost. 

Julian and Sofia turn to each other as they realize they're the only ones without plans. Julian shoots her a small, boyish smile, with her turning her head away, blushing. Noriko cringes, only to snap at Laura as she notices her staring at her, asking what she's looking at. Laura shrugs. 

Back in the Hellfire base, Emma informs her companions of the next steps, as the audience sees them play out. Storm was the biggest hurdle she needed to overcome because she's more powerful than her, she didn't trust her, and she has the strongest psychic defenses she's ever seen in a non-telepath. The rest will fall much more easily. 

Iceman's psychic defense is substantial thanks to Xavier's personal tutoring, but the poor fool actually trusts her. At a club, Emma casually subdues Bobby as they drink together. 

Wolverine's only advantage is that her dear students will worry about her if she goes missing. Hence why she's told Laura, who she knows will tell her friends, that she's been assigned a mission along with Storm and the other easy targets. Emma knocks Laura out as she heads into one of the X-Men's jets. 

EMMANUEL: "What of my son?"

SELENE: "And the demon. Perhaps I can play?"

Emma shakes her head. She assures Emmanuel that she can handle Sunspot, and that they'll help him see the light in due time. Roberto may be cautious, but Cable hardly spent time on training his mind. He goes down without any trickery on Emma's part. 

As for Magik, her mind is strange and difficult to play with…but a subtle suggestion to stay in Limbo for a little while should be doable. By the time she returns, she'll be too late. As Magik passes by Emma in the hall, her eyes glow blue, and she opens up a stepping disc, returning her to her domain. 

EMMA "Besides our future King, that only leaves one of them remaining. The only one besides Storm who could potentially ruin everything for us."

Emma takes a dagger, and stabs a picture of Kitty belching with it. 

At the Institute, Kitty, with Lockheed on her shoulder, barges into Scott's office, phasing through the door, and asking what the deal is with this mission Storm, Iceman, Magik, Sunspot, and Wolverine were sent on. Why isn't she with them, why aren't he and Emma, and why hasn't she seen Ororo since the France trip? 

SCOTT, sipping coffee from a "World's Most Acceptable Boyfriend" mug: "Good morning to you too."

Kitty and Lockheed both stick their tongues out at him. 

Scott explains that they received word from Wakanda that Shadow King was back. He's always been a personal matter for Storm, so he let her take a team to deal with him. She just thought after dumping the school on her, she could use the rest. 

Kitty doesn't appear convinced, but Cyclops asks her to just trust him again. Things have finally been put to bed between him, Storm, and Emma. He wants things back to normal for them too. 

Kitty glares at him with narrowed eyes. 

KITTY: "We'll see."

Kitty walks out, telling Lockheed he can poop in the Blackbird if Scott's lying. Once she's gone, Scott gets a headache. 

SCOTT: "Wait…when did Ororo and I last talk? Didn't we–"

Scott's train of thought is interrupted as Emma enters the office.

Emma: "Not another headache." Emma makes her way over to Scott and sits in his lap. "I'll have someone fetch an aspirin. Let me in, and I'll soothe what I can while we wait."

Scott pulls her into his arms, groaning as he thanks her. Jean used to do this all the time for him too. As Scott allows Emma free reign in his head, Emma sneers. Scott's eyes glow blue.

SCOTT: "Actually…this is much better than when Jean did it."

Emma: "I know, Darling. I know."

In the school’s dance studio, the Cuckoos are performing a routine. Dazzler watches and assesses them while nodding and sucking on a lollipop. As the Cuckoos finish, Dazzler shuts of the music and gathers the girls around. 

Allison has to admit, she’s a little surprised. She thought the bad attitudes they have were compensating for a lack of talent, but they’ve actually got something. 

ALLISON: “Poor taste in music aside, but we can work on that. Other things I noticed…” 

While Dazzler gives critiques of their performance, the Cuckoos ignore her, speaking with each other telepathically. 

PHOEBE: “She’s insulting us.” 

IRMA: “She just told us we did well! DAZZLER thinks we have talent!” 

ESME: “Then she shouldn’t be speaking like this right now. We should make her forget how to speak.” 

CELESTE: “Sophie?” 

Sophie narrows her eyes at Dazzler, but rather than do anything to her, she lights up her own eyes, as well the those of her sisters. They postures all become more at ease. 

Dazzler finishes speaking. 

DAZZLER: “Any questions or are you ready to run it again?” 

The Cuckoos smile politely as Allison. 

SOPHIE: “Thank you, Ms. Blaire. We’re ready.” 

Later, out in the hall, the Cuckoos are quietly excited with what just happened. They actually kept a lid on their cruel impulse. Dazzler definitely didn’t like them at the start, but she actually seems to be warming up to them. 

CELESTE: “Ms. Frost will be thrilled.” 

SOPHIE: “Don’t get ahead of yourself. We still have a lot of work to do. But maybe we are ready to try setting things right.” 

That night, Kitty is in her classroom grading papers. She sighs in disappointment as she has to give Noriko another D. She knows she can do better. 

“Never had to worry about that with you, kiddo!” 

Kitty jolts up to her feet. 

KITTY: “Daddy?!” 

“Not just the book stuff,” she hears Logan’s voice say. “You were a natural at everything.” 

KITTY: “Logan?” 

Kitty tenses up, but quickly exhales. 

KITTY: “Whoever’s messing with me…whatever supervillian is trying to use my dad to get to me, you better hope I’m not the one who finds you.” 

Kitty rushes out of the classroom, contacting Cyclops on her communicator. She wants his location so they can rendezvous. Someone’s messing with her mind. Maybe Shadow King. Emma needs to run a scan of everyone in the school immediately. 

There’s no response. 

KITTY: “Oh come on, Scott. Please tell me you aren’t in b…” 

Kitty trails off as she screams. As she enters the common area, she finds Dani, Xuan, Kurt, Hank, Jean-Paul, Allison, and James dead and hung on meathooks. 

Kitty stumbles back and her heart pounds. She reminds herself that there’s nothing to be afraid of. She’s seen this kind of thing a million times. None of this is real. 

“Oh, I’m afraid this is very, very real, Kitten.” 

Kitty spins around and sees Emma, who appears most pleased with her handiwork. 

Kitty clenches her face and her fists. 

KITTY: “I may not trust Emma, but you have to be pretty dumb to think I believe she’d ever do THIS.” 

Emma proceeds to blast Kitty into the wall with her psychic lightning. As Kitty’s eyes fill with panic, she phases through the floor. 

EMMA: “Oh. How fun. A chase.” 

In Sofia’s room, she’s lying in bed with a notebook and pen in hand. On the pages, there are countless potential nicknames for her followers she’s crossed and scribbled out. There are also various swears written above, below, and next to them, in both English and Spanish. This might be getting to her a little bit. 

SOFIA: “I will figure this out if it is the last thing I do.” 

Her eyes glow blue, prompting her to put the book down and leave her room. 

Julian is in the bathroom, getting ready for bed, and lamenting the fact he’s running out of his skin cream and is going to have to start buying cheap shit. He should ask Ashida where she shops. 

His eyes flash blue, and he leaves the bathroom without any of his things. 

Sofia and Julian end up wandering over to the same spot in the hallways, where their senses return to them. The two are both flustered to see each other and unsure of how they got here. 

JULIAN: “Wait…I know which hall this is.” 

The door they’re at opens, revealing Phoebe, who welcomes them both and asks them both to come inside. 

SOFIA, pissed: “What do you think you are doing?” 

JULIAN: “Taking control of us AGAIN? What is your damage?”

PHOEBE: “We know that you hate us. We understand why. But we wish to make amends. And we knew you wouldn’t speak to us if we came to you.” 

Julian and Sofia exchange an uneasy glance, unsure if they should trust this. 

Through the dark hallways, Emma stalks Kitty, her heels clacking against the wooden floor. 

EMMA, telepathically: “You aren’t going to find help, Kitten. The teachers are dead, Cyclops is elsewhere, and the rest of the X-Men have already been taken care of. Unless you plan on endangering our dear students, you’re all alone. Don’t fear for the children though. This is for them. Under Hellfire’s guidance, they’ll all have bright futures to look forward to.” 

Emma stops in front of a mirror and dons a slasher smile. 

EMMA: “Did you really think you could hide from me?” 

Emma is met with a punch to the face as Kitty phases her fist through the mirror and breaks Emma’s nose. 

EMMA, stumbling back: “Why you–! Do you have any idea how much that nose bloody cost?!” 

From beneath her, Kitty comes up through the floor and kicks her upside the chin. Kitty’s face is red and she’s sobbing in rage. 

KITTY: “WHY?!” 

EMMA, wiping up the blood on her face: “Oh, please. Don’t act so betrayed. This was the plan all along. You X-Men and your ineffective methods will never cost our people their lives again.” 

Emma tells her it’s not too late for her though. Scott will be ruling their new Mutant-run world alongside her, but they’re also planning on turning Laura, Bobby, and Beto to their side as well. And if Kitty joined them, Magik would follow suit. 

EMMA: “Come. Be what you were born to be.” 

There’s a moment of tension, but not an ounce of consideration from Kitty. Kitty rushes Emma. Emma tries to put her down with a psychic attack, but all she can do is give Kitty an equally bloody nose. She’s forced to send her flying with telekinesis. 

EMMA: “You’re out for blood, aren’t you? Good. You touch my chest or head and I’m dead. Go ahead. Keep trying.” 

Kitty, realizing there’s no point in continuing to try upfront assaults, slams her hands down on the floor and makes the parts directly underneath the two of them immaterial, causing them both to fall through it. 

In mid-air, Kitty runs on the air toward Emma, who’s been caught off guard. Emma still manages to react in time, however, tossing her away again, but Kitty pushes down against the air so she can hit the floor a split-second faster and phase them both through it. 

Emma is once again forced to hesitate, and this time Kitty launches herself off the air flinging herself at her opponent. But once again, she fails to reach Emma as she unleashes psychic lightning from her whole body, blasting up their surroundings, as well as Kitty. Kitty, slowed down by her injuries, isn’t able to phase the two into the basement before Emma goes into her diamond form and smashes the floor, this time catching Kitty by surprise. Emma catches them both in mid-air and takes the opportunity to once again strike as Kitty telepathically. 

Kitty screams in agony as blood drips out of her nose and eyes. 

EMMA: “Last chance.” 

KITTY: “F…ff..fuck you.” 

Kitty utilizes the Red Triangle to send Emma’s attack back at her. They both fall to the floor, but Emma lands on her side, while Kitty, although her knees are buckled, lands on her feet. Kitty approaches her. 

EMMA, her eyes practically mocking Kitty: “Go ahead…do it.” 

Kitty looks down out at her with burning hatred. 

KITTY: "You are everything that is evil and wrong. I won't let you hurt anyone else…ever again!"

Kitty sticks her hand inside Emma’s chest, but before she can do anything, her eyes glow blue. She harmlessly phases out of Emma and falls unconscious. 

Emma pants in relief as she stands up. Kitty almost had her. But the mind can’t fully defend itself while consumed with rage. 

Shaw enters the basement. 

SHAW, condescendingly: “I thought you were going to require some assistance.” 

EMMA: “Oh, do shut it.” 

In the Cuckoos’ room, the rest of the sisters thank Julian and Sofia for giving them a chance. Sofia asks why they decided to do this so late, with Sophie answering that they didn’t wish to speak to the rest of their friends yet. 

Sophie further explains that, when the sisters first arrived at the school, Ms. Frost had intended to introduce them to Hellion and Wind Dancer. She thought the best should mingle with the best. But they had their own plan. That failed. And they made another plan. That failed too.

SOPHIE: “We’re tired of failing.”

ESME: “It isn’t what Cuckoos do.” 

PHOEBE: “If you’re willing to give us one more chance, we’d like to start over.” 

CELESTE: “Do what we should have done from the start.” 

Julian can’t believe them. After how they tormented them, their friends, and the entire school, they think they can just start clean? 

SOFIA: “I believe in second chances. If you all want to turn over a new leaf, and this isn’t just a trick, I am rooting for you. But I’m not sure what you want from us is possible.” 

Irma promises them this is no trick. 

IRMA: “We only wish to stop being alone together.” 

ESME: “To be loved, not hated.” 

That last part naturally connects with Julian, whose disgusted sneer morphs into a look of frustration. 

JULIAN: “Well…maybe we could–” 

Julian is cut off as the Cuckoos scream. He and Sofia ask what’s wrong as the five-in-one pant. 

PHOEBE: “Something on the astral plane.” 

SOPHIE: “Something…is very wrong with Ms. Frost.” 

A limo drives through the city underneath the sky. Scott sits in the back. A peaceful, but joyful smile is on his face as he scrolls through pictures of him and Emma having fun on their France trip. As he flips through, however, he gets a headache, and he starts seeing things. 

When he looks at a picture of the two of them eating in a fancy restaurant, he imagines the two of them back there, only he makes Emma laugh by blasting away the waitress after she doesn’t get what she ordered. When he looks at a picture of the two of them by the water, he imagines Emma making him laugh by mind-controlling someone and making them jump in the river, and whispering in his ear that she made him forget how to swim. Finally, as he looks at a picture of the two of them on the helicopter ride he enjoyed so much, he imagines holding Emma in his arms and telling her that, one day, this will be theirs. 

EMMA: “That goes for the whole world, Darling.” 

As Scott experiences each of these flashes, his outfits become more and more white. 

Scott’s head is throbbing as the car stops. 

SCOTT: “Wait…where am I right now?” 

Bumpkin opens the backseat door and tells Mr. Summers he can go inside. Ms. Frost will be meeting him here soon. 

BUMPKIN: “I hope you have any idea what Ms. Frost is doing in a place like this.” 

Scott steps out of the car. The audience doesn’t get a clear look at where he is. 

SCOTT: “What the Hell?” 

Back at the school, Emma is on her way out, telekinetically carrying Kitty’s unconscious body behind her. Honestly, a part of her is going to miss this place. It was fun while it lasted. 

Emma psychically opens the door, but before she can step through it…

HELLION: “Ms. Frost! The Cuckoos felt something was wrong with you. Are you okay?” 

SOFIA: “What happened to Ms. Pryde?” 

CUCKOOS: “And to your nose?” 

Emma places Kitty down and turns to face the eight children who just rushed into the foyer.

EMMA, with a large, bright smile: “Just the bright, incredible children I was hoping to see. Come along. I shall explain on the way.” 

HELLION: “On the way where?” 

Emma asks if Julian and Sofia remember that little scheme they helped her with last semester. Well, that was only one part of a much greater plan. She’s taken her place back as the White Queen of Hellfire, the world will soon be hers, and she’d very much like her favorite students to join her. 

EMMA: “All of your friends and classmates will get to be a part of the dominant species on Earth. And the eight of you will enjoy lives of unimaginable wealth and power. I promise this is no trick, no game.” 

The Cuckoos seem to be tempted and Julian is just confused, while Sofia…

SOFIA: “Is that what happened to Ms. Pryde? You made that offer to her and she said no?” 

EMMA: “Yes it is. You know that I always wanted to teach her as I do you. And I know that you’re all much smarter than–” 

Emma is cut off as Sofia raises her hands and blows Emma back into the wall with a fearsome wind. Julian is shocked, in disbelief that she’d attack Ms. Frost, but Sofia reminds him that they’re X-Men in training, and she just admitted to being a supervillain; they HAVE to stop her. Emma looks at Julian with judgmental eyes, hoping he’ll see reason, but he just lights up with TK energy, still shoulder to shoulder with Sofia. 

JULIAN: “I don’t know what’s going on, but I don’t believe one word out of your mouth. This isn’t you.” 

Emma sighs in annoyance. 

EMMA: “Girls, please take them out.” 

The Cuckoos glare at Emma. 

SOPHIE: “Sorry, Ms. Frost.” 

PHOEBE: “We’re following your previous advice.” 

CELESTE: “Being better.” 

Julian and Sofia’s eyes turn blue and stay that way. The Cuckoos tell them they aren’t powerful enough to harm Emma psychically, but they can shield the two of them from her telepathy so they have a chance here. 

EMMA, shaking her: “Foolish children. Please do not force me to harm you. This isn’t a fight you can–” 

Julian telekinetically smashes a vass into Emma’s head. Emma seethes, going into her diamond form. 

EMMA: “Fine. Disciplinary measures are necessary. Prepare yourselves, my students! Class is in session.” 

In a dark, unknown location, Iceman’s eyes flicker open. Realizing he’s shackled against a wall by his wrists and ankles, he tries to go into his ice form, but his powers don’t work. He tries again in frustration but to no avail. 

“Don’t bother.” 

Bobby sighs, happy to at least hear Ororo’s voice, and hoping she has some idea what’s going on here. Storm asks Bobby if he’s dressed. Bobby looks down at himself and realizes that, no, he is not. 

BOBBY: “Hellfire?” 

STORM: “Emma."

Bobby asks what she’s talking about, with Ororo explaining how Emma tricked her into lowering her guard back in France. Before she was knocked out, Emma took the time to mock her. She’s been planning on betraying them from the start. He doesn’t believe that, as he’s been…

BOBBY: “Well, not friends, but not enemies either…” 

…with Emma longer than the rest of them, but Storm is sick and tired of people trying to excuse her, even now. 

Bobby turns his head and sees that, along with him and Storm, Wolverine and Sunspot have also been captured and stripped, but are still unconscious. Bobby casts his head down. He doesn’t get it. She went out of her way to recruit him. Why would she power up the team if this was her endgame? 

Storm doesn’t know and she doesn’t care. She’s putting her full faith in Kitty, and in Scott finally opening his eyes, and trusting the two of them will stop whatever she’s doing. Then, after she herself has had the chance to beat Emma within an inch of her life, and seen to it that she will never trouble them again, they need to start over. 

STORM: “Sunspot and Wolverine have done well…but we must return to what worked best.” 

She wants Laura to go back to being a normal student, Sunspot to be allowed to do whatever he wants, just not with the X-Men, and the remaining team to find a way to deal with “Magik” permanently. 

STORM: “There is so much darkness for us to purge”. 

And once that’s done, the two of them, Scott, and Kitty can rebuild the X-Men properly. No “New X-Men”. Just their family. 

STORM: “I know this will be difficult, Robert. For all of us. But for the good of everyone, it must be done.” 

Bobby is hesitant, but quickly nods in affirmation. 

Back in the school, Hellion and Wind Dancer float themselves and the Cuckoos into the air to keep them out of Emma’s reach, knowing that she can’t use any of her other powers while she’s in her diamond form. But with the strength Emma possesses in her diamond form, she’s able to simply kick herself off the ground. Hellion creates a shield, but it’s easily shattered by Emma. He’s only saved from her fist himself thanks to Sofia blowing him away. 

Emma, knowing that her other non-telepathic abilities can’t keep up with the children, elects to not catch herself in mid-air, instead choosing to fall back to the floor. 

SOFIA: “If you were a villain all along, why did you work so hard to train us as X-Men?” 

EMMA: “I was TRYING to open your eyes to how useless they are.” 

In the corner, Shaw, now joined by Selene, snickers. 

SHAW: “That’s not a very good answer.” 

SELENE: “What WERE you thinking?” 

EMMA, turning her head to them: “Silence!” 

Sofia and Julian exchange a confused glance. 

Frustrated and off-kilter, Emma sets her eyes on the Cuckoos. 

EMMA: “Sorry, girls.” 

Emma throws herself at their airborne Cuckoos. Julian drops them down to the floor before Emma can reach them, while Sofia creates a wind in mid-air to keep Emma from returning to the ground. At the same time, Julian directs all the energy he has stored up into his hands. If she goes back into her human form for even a second to use her telekinesis to escape, Julian will take her out. 

Emma glares at the two, as well as the terrified Cuckoos below her, before exiting her diamond form and NOT using her telekinesis. 

EMMA: “Don’t shoot!” Emma wells up. “Please. Let me explain. Honestly.” 

SOFIA: “Don’t believe her, Julian.” 

JULIAN: “Obviously. But there has to be something we don’t know. None of this makes sense.” 

Emma sniffles. When they went to Manchester with her, they helped her stop her older sister, Adrienne. But she isn’t her only sister. She has a younger one. One far more chaotic. She didn’t take her for much of a planner but now…now…

JULIAN: “Now what?” 

EMMA: “Now…” Emma grins evilly. “She’s in Hawaii.” 

Emma breaks out of Sofia’s winds. Julian, getting really sick of this, blasts at her, but that’s exactly what Emma was counting on, once again taking using a split-second advantage, and telekinetically tossing the Cuckoos into the line of fire, blasting them not into a wall, but through one. 

Julian and Sofia both scream in horror, unsure if they’re even still alive, but their fear isn’t given the chance to last long. With the Cuckoos out of play, it only takes a thought for Emma to put Hellion and Wind Dancer to sleep. 

Emma descends to the floor and clutches her heart. She hadn’t planned on two consecutive fights. 

EMMA: “Rest easy, children. You shall wake up to a brighter tomorrow.” 

Emma looks down at Julian and Sofia. Her expression softens. Guilt overwhelms her. 

EMMA: “Goddess…what am I doing?” 

Emma hangs her head, but before she can think on this any longer, Shaw puts his arm around her shoulders. 

SHAW: “The only thing you’re good for.” 

Emma is shaken but steels herself. Shaw is right. 

Leaving the kids behind, she picks Kitty up, and the Hellfire members make their way out. 

In the luxurious Hellfire base, Emmanuel plays the piano. Emma, with Shaw and Selene behind her, enters and tosses Kitty down on the floor, having already equipped her with depowering handcuffs on the car ride there. 

“Emma!” 

Emma proudly smiles to greet her guest of honor. 

EMMA: “There’s my king.” Emma saunters over to Scott and places a gloved hand on his face. “I hope the servants have accommodated you well.” 

SCOTT: “Serv…?” Scott pulls Emma off of him. “What is going on here? What did you do to Kitty?” 

Emma casually dismisses his concern and says she’s alive. What matters is how he’s feeling. 

SCOTT: “Like I need you to answer my other question.”

Emma is annoyed. She couldn’t WASTE her opportunity to take out Storm, but her work with Scott wasn’t finished yet.

SELENE: “I warned you.” 

EMMA: “And now, I have to rush things. Believe me when I say this is for your own good.” 

Emma psy-blasts Scott, filling his head with thoughts of not just what she’d put in there during the car ride here, but thoughts of leading a powerful mutant army across the globe, interspersed with sexual thoughts of the two of them. 

Scott falls to his knees as he tries to resist. Emma tells him not to fight it. With Hellfire’s help, she is going to do what she’s dreamed of since she was 22 and take over the world. And the only thing she wants more is for the only man to ever be her equal to be right alongside her. Become her White King and rule at her side. 

Scott’s breath weakens and his muscles shake as Emma grins. But Scott grits his teeth. And the visuals in his head are replaced with ones the audience has seen before. Emma walking into his office on that first day of school, bringing her back onto the team after he fired her, when they first started talking for real, killing Stryker and saving her from the Sentinels, their first time sleeping together, executing Nova together, becoming a couple, the highs and lows of their mission in China, the gifts they’ve gotten one another and all the genuine fun they had in France, and, finally, something we haven’t seen before: Emma shielding Scott on Genosha from the sentinels, from Scott’s POV. 

Cyclops breaks free from Emma’s attack and blasts her back. 

Emma is outraged that Scott would strike her. 

EMMA: “Can’t you see everything I’m offering you? The X-Men are gone, defeated all by my hand. Right here is where you belong!” 

SCOTT: “Right here?! Right HERE?!” 

EMMA: “Yes! What is the problem?! Would you like to move to a different room? For Shaw and our other partners to leave and give us some privacy? Would that make you feel better?!” 

Scott’s face falls. He isn’t angry. He’s scared. 

SCOTT: “Emma…where do you think we are right now?” 

The audience stops seeing this room from Emma’s perspective and sees it for what it is, as the piano music abruptly cuts off, replaced with nothing. Scott and Emma aren’t in a Hellfire base. Shaw, Selene, and Emmanuel aren’t even really there. 

The two are in a defunct factory. One which, based on what’s all around them, used to produce sentinels. 

Emma’s smile and confidence disappear in a flash. 

EMMA: “I…I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

Scott says he’ll explain then. He doesn’t know what’s going on with her, but right now, they’re in an old sentinel factory. He’d questioned why Emma would have her driver bring him here, but she doesn’t realize what she did, does she? 

Scott slowly approaches Emma, but she screams at him to say back. She’ll crush his mind like a bug if he takes one step closer. 

Scott stops for a moment. And then takes a step. Emma roars as blasts him with psychic lightning, tormenting him physically as she also assaults him mentally, reducing him to a curled-up ball on the floor. 

EMMA: “I know exactly what I’m doing! I know exactly where we are! And I know exactly what needs to happen here! I am the White Queen! Enemy of the X-Men! Taker and destroyer of countless lives! I am the evil villain of the story, and you the bold, noble hero. Yes! We’re in a sentinel factory! But not the one we destroyed together, no, no. This one’s close to home. This is one I helped fund. One of several! Because someone as heartless as me only cared about the money to be made from it. No matter how many of my own people they murdered.” 

Emma halts her attacks. Scott vomits up blood and pants, unable to get off the floor. 

EMMA: “Here’s the situation! I’ll explain it like one of your training scenarios. Your X-Men have been captured by the White Queen. You stand alone. If you fail to save your team, they will all be killed, and the world will be crushed under her heel. What do you do?!” 

Scott tries and fails to speak, coughing up more blood. Emma gives him a boost by standing him up. 

SCOTT: “D…do…” 

EMMA: “Either skip the talking or spit it out!” Emma sneers. “Better yet, I’ll make this easy for you.” 

Both of their eyes glow, as Emma travels inside Scott’s mind. 

Inside Scott’s mindscape, the two stand in an endless red void where faded memories swim across the non-existent walls. 

EMMA: “Tell me, Cyclops. Tell me what you do.” 

Scott takes a breath. 

SCOTT: “See that’s a tough one. Because I don’t know if you want me to kill you or kiss you.” 

EMMA: “What?” 

SCOTT: “One second, you’re acting like you want me to be your “king”. The next you’re trying to make me fight you. Either take us out of my mind and let me see yours or talk to me. Please! Talk to me.” 

Emma finally snaps completely. Of course he can’t understand her! No one ever has! That’s by design. She is a diamond, by definition her own best friend, and cold, and hard, and sharp. 

EMMA: “I am a monster, Scott Summers! That’s why I’ve hurt and killed so many, and relished every moment of their pain! That’s why you’re the only man, only person, ever to be stupid and naive enough to care about me! That’s why every man, woman, and child I try to protect always dies!” 

And just like that, Scott puts it all together. 

The mindscape fades away. In the real world, Scott is on his feet, breathing normally again, while Emma is sobbing on her knees. 

EMMA: “All I’m good for is being the villain. And if you, the remarkable idiot I don’t deserve won’t be one with me…then just keep me from ever hurting anyone again.” 

Emma apologizes. To the Hellions. To Synch and Skin. To the Genoshans. 

EMMA: “I will burn with you all soon.” 

Scott bends down. His visor lights up. Emma prepares for the sweet release of death. But it doesn’t come. Cyclops removes his visor, but no lasers come out. He just looks Emma in the eyes. 

Emma is confused, before realizing she’s an idiot too. Scott’s as well trained mentally as Storm. They’re still in his mindscape. 

Scott tells Emma that he’s sorry…

SCOTT: “...and before you can question, “What the bloody Hell are you talking about?”...

…he explains that he’s sorry he wasn’t able to earn her trust to a point she felt like she could talk to him about these thoughts, whenever they stated. Because if she had, he would have told her he sometimes thinks about himself like this. 

SCOTT: “I’ve never been a “villain”. but we’ve both been people we don’t want to be anymore. Both sculped by people who only saw us one way…ones who hurt us. Both carrying the guilt of 16 million deaths on our shoulders. Both responsible for the deaths of all the people who’ve looked to us for guidance. Who loved us. Who we loved. I look at myself in the mirror every day, and I’m not questioning who I’m looking at, I’m questioning why I should even keep going after so many failures. And that’s what amazes me such about about you. Even after all those failures, everyone you’ve lost…you still keep fighting.” Illusions of Julian and Sofia, followed by the rest of the squad, and then the entire student body surround them. “For them..” 

Emma tears up as the tiniest hint of a smile breaks through her rage and desperation. 

Whatever you’ve done in the past, whatever you blame yourself for, however you see yourself…I don’t care. You are the most narcissistic woman I’ve ever met, you look down on everyone around you, you can be needlessly cruel, you refuse to be open about anything…and there is no one I’d rather have at my side, defending our people. Maybe I am an idiot for this, but I love you, Emma Frost.” 

Emma shrieks at the top of her lungs, letting it all out, as she becomes a sobbing mess in Scott’s arms. The mindscape is shattered, as the two hold each other in the real world. 

EMMA, barely audible: “I love you too.” 

Scott holds her tight as he kisses the crown of her head, and presses their heads together. 

Morning finally arrives at the school. It’s shown that the teachers were never actually killed, that much was an illusion, and they’re all now just waking up. A grumpy Magik pops into Dani and Karma’s room from Limbo to shout about killing whoever messed with her mind. With somber expressions, Storm, Kitty, Sunspot, Iceman, and Wolverine sit in the teacher’s lounge sipping coffee and tea. Laura ends up spitting hers out. She forgot she hates coffee. That’s enough to make everyone laugh a little…except Storm. 

In the med bay, Julian and Sofia wake up. Beast welcomes them back, but also calls out Julian, asking him to PLEASE stop ending up here; it feels like it’s every other week. 

As Beast departs, Julian and Sofia turn to each other.  Everything seems normal. Was it all just a dream? 

“I wish it were that simple.” 

Julian and Sofia tremble as Emma enters. As they do, they notice the five-in-one are also in the med-bay, and haven’t woken up. Julian panics over if they’re okay, but Emma puts his fears at ease. Yes, his attack very easily could have crushed every bone in their bodies, but Emma put a psychic field in between them and the TK blast, so they were merely concussed. 

SOFIA: “You protected them? So WAS this another of your schemes? Or were you possessed?” 

JULIAN: “It had to have been something, right?” 

 Emma sighs, and mentally projects the cliffnotes of what’s gone on into their heads. Julian and Sofia are speechless. 

EMMA: “I am not well. And there are no words to express how sorry I am for harming all of you. Cyclops and I have called for Professor Xavier. He will be arriving soon to me ensure nothing like this ever happens again.”

Emma tells them that she will do anything she can to make this up to them. And that she completely understands if they would like her to step down as their co-mentor. 

EMMA: “I have run away from my students after hurting them before. I will not do that again. But I will walk if it’s what you want.” 

Julian is the first to speak. He doesn’t get anything about all that mental health crap, but it sounds to him like she brainwashed herself. She wasn’t herself, and that means there’s nothing to be angry about. Besides, she still took out the X-Men while not even in her right mind. Why wouldn’t he want to learn from someone who can do that? 

Emma is silently pleased her boy still trusts her. As for Sofia, she insists that Julian is wrong. Everything Ms. Frost did was done by at least a real part of her, no matter how much it was hurting. 

SOFIA: “But I remember what it’s like to almost lose yourself. What’s important is that you stop before it’s too late.” She looks lovingly at Julian. “Or that you have people who care enough to stop you.” 

Emma thanks the two for their forgiveness. And, if that’s all the case, then she hopes they won’t mind hearing how proud she is of all of them. 

EMMA, eyes on the Cuckoos: “The Cuckoos stepped up. They did all they could to assist you in stopping me. I wasn’t sure my lessons with them were bearing fruit.” 

EMMA, eyes on Julian: “Hellion, your loyalty and belief in me did not go unnoticed. Nor your bravery in being willing to fight in spite of it.” Julian grins as Emma turns to Sofia. “And you, Wind Dancer, impressed me most of all. You assessed the situation, you struck first, and you brought the others in line with you, despite knowing you stood no chance. That sounds like a future X-Man to me.” Sofia grins as well. 

Emma thanks them once again, and apologizes once more as well, and tells them to come see her when they’re feeling up to it; their lessons are about to get much, much more difficult. 

Once she’s gone…

JULIAN: “So, um…”

SOFIA: “No, me first. I just wanted to say that we–um…

JULIAN: “Maybe I should just say that I–” 

The two laugh together. 

Julian telekinetically moves one of his hands right over to Sofia’s so she doesn’t need to strain herself by moving. 

JULIAN: “Wanna catch a movie this weekend?” 

SOFIA, taking his head: “That sounds nice. But I guess I’m the one paying now.” 

JULIAN, cringing: “Ashida told you.” 

Sofia laughs again. And Julian can’t help but laugh with her. 

In Scott’s office, the 8 X-Men are gathered. Everyone has been made aware of the situation. And now, they must decide what to do about it. 

Cyclops knows everyone has to be angry. Rightfully so. They were hurt. Physically. Mentally. Trust was broken. And that can’t always be rebuilt. 

Storm looks over at Emma with a smug, victorious grin. Finally, she will be forced to face consequences. 

CYCLOPS: “Some of you already hated Emma. Some of you may hate her now. And as leader of the X-Men, all I can say is…I don’t care.” 

Storm’s face falls as Emma grins back at her. 

No matter what any of them have to say, he and Emma are partners. She isn’t going anywhere. 

Ororo forces Scott’s desk out of her way with her winds. She walks right up to him. Her expression becomes more gentle. 

ORORO: “Please do not do this, Scott. I can pity what she went through, but that does not change that what we faced is who she still is on the inside. Who she will always be. If you care for her so deeply, I cannot stop you. But the time to remove this cancer from the X-Men is now. Before she dooms us all.” She touches Scott’s face. “Please, brother.” 

Scott looks at Ororo’s heartfelt eyes, but all he can do is apologize. 

SCOTT: “I’m sorry, my sister. No.” 

Storm, welling up but holding her emotions back, breathes. 

STORM: “Then my time here is done.” 

Kitty, Bobby, and Roberto are shocked (Laura and Magik not so much). Ororo tried to make this allyship work, but her mistrust has only proven right again and again and again, and yet Scott remains blind. 

STORM: “Long ago, I challenged you for command of the X-Men. Even without my gifts, I soundly defeated you.” Scott hangs his head in shame. “We will not do battle again. Because this isn’t just about our family. It’s about all the children we look after. Simply striking you both down and taking your place? That will not work.” She glares at Emma. “Especially not when our future X-Men are all loyal to her.” Emma, enjoying this, gives a mocking shrug. “There are other Mutants who need me. If you need me, you will find me among them.” 

Cyclops, stuttering, says he doesn’t accept that resignation, but Storm says his words are no longer of meaning to her. Storm turns around and exits the office. A distressed Scott falls into his chair, while Kitty and Bobby chase after Ororo. 

Emma put her arms around Scott’s shoulders. Scott puts his hand on hers. Roberto and Laura aren’t sure what to say. Magik found this all hilarious. These guys are great. 

In the hall, Kitty asks Storm what the Hell she’s doing, with Bobby following up that she didn’t even give them the chance to back her up; she knows they would have. 

STORM: “Yes. You would. For you are both heroes of the highest caliber. And that is why we must part ways for now.” 

Ororo explains that, although she can no longer bring herself to be a part of it, and she believes it will fall apart in due time, right now, the X-Men are still Mutantkind’s first and best line of defense. Were they to lose Kitty’s brains, Bobby’s strength, and both of their hearts, the team would fall even sooner. 

Bobby doesn’t like it, but he gets it. And he respects Ororo’s choice. Ororo shakes his hand and wishes him well. 

STORM: “Good luck finding yourself, Robert.” 

With that, Ororo asks for some privacy with the now-crying Kitty. Bobby obliges. 

KITTY: “Don’t go. I’ll hate you if you leave.” 

STORM: “You mean like you hated me after I cut my hair?”

KITTY: “Yeah.” SNIFFLE. “Just like that.” Kitty sobs. “Please let me come with you. I can’t do this without you.” 

STORM, brushing her tears away with her thumb: “Do not be ridiculous. You are Kitty Pryde. The best of us. You can do anything.” 

A hysterical Kitty wraps her arms around Storm, who hugs her back. 

STORM: “You are the heart of the X-Men. The one person Frost could never hope to corrupt. Do what I couldn’t. Save Cyclops. Save our students. Save the X-Men. And kick Emma’s teeth in.” 

Kitty pulls away. She composes herself and nods. 

KITTY: “I will. I promise.” 

Storm leaves her with a gentle smile and a comforting breeze. 

As Storm flies away, the visuals are intercut with Scott and Emma going to bed together. Ororo tries to remain stalwart, but she can’t help but shed one last tear. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CAST CHANGE:

ORORO MUNROE AKA STORM: No longer part of the main cast.

[sirjuggles]

Worm Reading - Part 4, Arc 4 Shell

Ok, I didn’t get a chance to take notes on Arc 4 as I was reading it, but here are some retroactive thoughts glancing back through the Arc:

Honestly, great to see Taylor laughing in Emma’s face at the start. As I’ve mentioned, the bullying sections are the least enjoyable for me to read, but this was some nice catharsis. I’m sure there will be repercussions later, but at some point these high school bullies are going to learn that they’re screwing with the wrong person, even if she’s traumatized enough by it to not want to hit back.

Actually, let’s stop and look at the bullying angle for a sec. In this world it’s established that some people just randomly get superpowers, and those people keep their identities a secret. I’m assuming the ratio of powered:nonpowered is extremely low, but I’m surprised there’s not more of a social impact on how people interact. How dumb is it to bully someone, or mug someone, or commit any sort of abuse or crime, when the person you’re bullying might end up as the next Clockblocker, or worse, Lung? Sure it’s unlikely that any one person is powered, but you don’t know! And while most people don’t seem to know about the whole “being pushed too far can activate powers thing,” the fact of the matter is that people who are bullied or abused are more likely to end up superpowered! I’m a little surprised that doesn’t have some impact on how people navigate social hierarchies.

Nice to spend some time hanging out with the crew in the street market, opening up about her past and doing some shopping. I will admit I like the Undersiders as a group of characters, so this was some nice development. I am slowly warming to Brian, I’m no longer convinced that he’s intentionally manipulative. (I do still think he’s got abusive tendencies that he’s inherited from his father)

We get an explanation of who one of the supposed “murderers” in the crew is, and the details about definitely soften that blow. I’m still team #JusticeForRachel #GiveRachelABreak!

Who is our murderer #2? I could still make a case for it being anyone. I think Brian is more hardened by his past than he lets on, and he could justify killing someone as “doing what I had to do” to keep his goals from slipping away. I think Lisa has a cold streak in her, and we also have established that she just straight-up carries a gun, which is really funny in a superhero universe but also speaks to a level of lethal pragmatism. I still straight-up think that Alec could have a sociopath streak, and it’s possible he’s taken things too far in the past because he thought it was funny or because something made him snap. This one’s still up in the air.

Speaking of Lisa, I don’t believe that her power hasn’t tipped her to the fact that Taylor is planning to sell them out. After what we saw she could do just from standing in a room with Glory Girl and Panacea, I fully think that Lisa knows that Taylor thinks of herself as a double-agent. At this point my headcanon is that not only has her intuition told her that Taylor intends to sell them out, it’s also told Lisa that Taylor won’t actually go through with it. Taylor is feeling at home with this group for the first time in a long time, and she needs that connection and community. When the time comes, I don’t believe that Taylor will be able to sell out her friends. And Lisa knows it too.

The whole fight in the storage locker facility with Uber and Leet and Bakuda is wild. I don’t have a ton to say about it specifically.

Uber and Leet are such odd characters. They’re obviously bottom-feeders, and it’s a little amazing that they’re hanging on and surviving in this whole parahuman scene. I can totally picture them as ineffective Teen Titans villains. There is some interesting dynamic in why a parahuman with such potential as Uber sticks with an apparent loser like Leet. His comment of “because he’s my friend” speaks to some depth there, a real relationship between them, which is fascinating. I kinda get a vibe similar to Theseus and Asterius from the game Hades, except in this case Theseus is ineffective as well as annoying.

Bakuda, on the other hand, is just a straight-up psycho. Blow stuff up, kill people, try to hold on to power. Cool bombs though. Great villain.

Interlude 3.5: Purity - Ok, from literally the first line of this I got a sketchy vibe from Purity. Annnnd sure enough she’s a recurring member of the White Supremacist villain team! Whoooooo fun! She makes some token comments about not agreeing with Kaiser’s methods, but honestly it seems like she objects more to him as an abusive/narcissistic leader than any issue with his racist worldview, and she drops some super gross comments herself soooooo not gonna give her any credit there.

God I feel bad for this Theo kid. It’s pretty apparent that his whole parenting situation is absolutely a mess, there is basically no way he comes out of this well-adjusted. Seems like a nice kid too from the brief glimpse of personality we get. I hope he finds some way to break out from whatever his home situation is and become his own person but, uh.... doesn’t seem likely.

God basically everything we’ve seen about Max/Kaiser and Empire 88... barf. They make for effective villains though. Definitely seem to be at a power level above what the Undersiders are capable of operating at.

That actually reminds me that we still have basically no information on the secretive “Boss” behind the Undersiders. Could it be Kaiser? He clearly has resources and an interest in pulling strings in the city, he could be using the Undersiders as pawns for plausible deniability. I don’t see it as likely but it’s possible.

My original theory was that Tattletale was actually the Boss, pretending to just be a member of the team. It would require her to not be around whenever other members of the crew talk to the Boss, and then she would just be faking each time she pretends to call the Boss in front of them, which is a stretch but not impossible. This theory isn’t totally scuttled yet and is currently my favorite, even if I suspect it will get scuttled at some point.

We’ve now glossed over a few indicators about Taylor’s powers that I think are quite worrying, and no one in-universe seems to have questioned it: 1) We have not yet seen any sort of limit to Taylor’s power as far as how many bugs she can control and how long she can continue using them. Other characters get worn out when they use their powers too much, but in the Bank Robbery job Taylor harnessed large amounts of bugs with a high level of control with zero apparent power exhaustion for the entire time. She thought her power was wearing down but it was actually Panacea messing with her, and as soon as that was fixed Taylor’s power came back in full. What are her limits? Does she HAVE limits? 2) When she got knocked out during the Storage Facility fight her powers continued working while she was unconscious, with bugs responding to her last command. So Taylor is basically a walking bug bomb, and in a worse-case situation she could send out some incredible dangerous instruction like “multiply” or “devour people” and then get knocked out or killed(?) and all bugs in her radius would continue following that command. That’s a PROBLEM!

We’ve also not questioned the exact limits of WHAT Taylor can control! She generally just says “bugs.” But then we saw that she can control a crab, and she said “oh basically anything with a simple brain.” Does that mean any Arthropod? But she said she can control worms! That’s an entirely separate Phylum! And “worm” is a HUUUGE category! How simple does a brain have to be for her to control it?? I am very worried about how far her reach could extend with some practice and exertion.

So Danny has now met a few of his daughter’s new friends. I think Lisa and Brian did a perfect job of handling that situation, they had a solid cover story, they displayed responsibility and care, basically seemed like model friends for Taylor to spend time with. I feel like from Danny’s point of view this was a scary situation (especially after the phone call he got when his wife died, god I can’t imagine getting a phone call about his daughter being hurt with that trauma in mind), but overall it showed him that his daughter has good friends now and things are getting better. It’s a real shame this is all going to come crashing down on him at some point soon.

Interlude 4: Brutus - OK LOOK OK I HAVE ONLY KNOWN THESE DOGS FOR 24  HOURS BUT IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO THEM I SWEAR TO GOD I WILL STAB EVERYONE IN HERE. Brutus is the goodest of boys and Judas and Angelica are good doggos too and they’re sweet and perfect and they love Rachel and nothing bad can ever happen to them (ughhhh I know it’s gonna).

Look I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Is Rachel a messed-up person, violent and unstable? Unquestionably yes! But based on what we know about her life, frankly, I GET IT! I too have days where I like dogs more than I like people! Should she have commanded her dog to put that little girl’s arm in his mouth as a way to scare that mom? No that was super fucked up and not ok! BUT she had a point! That lady let her little kid harass random dogs in the sketchy part of town! That’s just irresponsible! Basically my stance on Rachel is that her responses are invariably disproportionate, but I don’t disagree with the logic behind pretty much anything she’s done (ok attacking Taylor on sight was uncalled for, but like I’ve said it makes sense for Rachel to be territorial based on her history). And wrecking that dog fighting ring was probably heat that their crew doesn’t really need right now, but I’m not gonna lose too much sleep over it. Also she has specifically trained her pups not to kill, even to the point of not using things like claws that could be accidentally fatal! And, I will say this again, they are Very Good Dogs and Perfect Sweet Puppers and I love them.

Honestly I just want Rachel to leave the city and start a Canine Sanctuary on a nice farm out in the countryside, rehabilitate abused dogs, don’t deal with people. That sounds nice let’s do that instead of whatever bad thing is inevitably going to happen here.

[waitmyturtles]

Well -- OKAY THEN. In THIS edition of “everyone is a bitch-ass hypocrite” -- Double Savage, episode 8 thoughts:

1) Win intimately reconciles with (a clearly messed-up, clearly vengeful, do not go near her) Rung, even though Rung categorizes herself as a criminal, as Win says he’ll love her no matter what,

2) At the same time, Win CONTINUES to condemn Korn for HIS being a “criminal,” weak ass, 

3) Win CONTINUES to think that he’ll be able to “put the bad people away” without using his HEAD (until the very end of the episode, thank gawd) as to who exactly the bad people are (which we can surmise at this point that Rung knows, too),

4) The PO-POs continue to be hypocrites for turning a blind eye to Ah’s operation because of RANKS (?!) and moolah (more on this in a sec)*,

5) Let me argue for a sec that Korn himself is also being a touch hypocritical, in that he’s being portrayed as someone who knows the way of the world, and still wants his tight circle to not get involved in his business, which like, homey, impossible at this point, because you kept/keep showing up to places and seeing all your old people, and

6) Rung herself is a hypocrite for blaming Korn’s family for her fate, because, GURL, DID YOU FORGET THAT YOU WERE THE ONE TO HOP IN THE OG DRUG VAN? ACCOUNTABILITY!!! And now you’re selling drugs to Pea/Satang! Good lord!

PHEW. In other words, very many people are being bitch-asses in this show at this point. Sounds very New Siwaj-y, if you’ll let me project. 

All that being said. I found out an answer to a question that I’ve long had, which is that Li doesn’t work, and was always expected to live at home, which I think is still a fascinating slice of Thai/Thai-Chinese culture that I need to know more about. And the way in which the patriarchal expectations of Win fall on his shoulders as he wonders if he can support the family without the store, and the dad having saved money to make it happen. 

Win doesn’t have a gray area. I think he’s the only character that doesn’t have it. And he didn’t need it -- because when he was growing up, he didn’t need survival techniques.

For all the time that Rung spent with BOTH brothers in their childhood -- Rung knew/knows this, and now knows how to take advantage of Win and his hypocrisy, because she knows that he was never a critical, survivalist thinker. Which likely explains, to an extent, her continued attraction to Korn, as she’s now figuring out a way to survive.

(Let me pause to say that I CONTINUE TO LOVE FILM, I love her leather-and-eyeliner-and-pouts-and-gold-chain-era, and by my count, she’s now kissed Nanon, Ohm, AND Perth in shows, and JUST GET ‘EM GURL, GET ‘EM, KEEP IT UP, HONEY.)

So with Win’s lack of a gray area -- man, he gets played all around him. The police are messy. Ah’s operation is messy. Korn’s loyalties are messy. Rung’s HEADSTATE is messy. Li now knows about Ah and the roles he’s played in the community, and recognizes that just condemning Ah is not so easy and is messy.

The only one still looking for black-and-white is Win. His whole life had been black and white, because he was the golden child. @shortpplfedup noted so succinctly in my last Double Savage post that that golden child mindset has messed Win up SO MUCH, because HIS frame was that Korn was ultimately a LOSER (because he indirectly absorbed that from his dad -- and never fought his dad on that point), and should NOT be the focus of Rung’s attention.

And Rung has learned so much from her time away to know that she can take advantage of Win’s dualistic perspective, which she’s doing, because she’s (wrongly, imo) revengeful towards Korn’s family. 

@miscellar is reading my thoughts exactly on this show -- that it’s becoming more and more of a soapy mess. But I think what I appreciated about the last two episodes -- because I’m me, a sucker for family trauma -- is that the show has been brought BACK to the center of the family trauma, and is reminding us that all of this is because the dad fucked things up so hard. We’ll see in the last week of the series next week that Korn will consider ponying up to help his dad. The dad created all of these fucking nasty dualities that just SNARED EVERYONE in. The person operating outside of all of this family drama/trauma was Ah, who knew how the world worked from the start. 

And at least Li is the one (maybe besides Korn, but again, Korn is being a hypocrite here too, for not reading everything as deeply as I think he can) who’s recognizing on the family side that shit’s complicated enough to think about it and to ask how it all ended up this way. How could people think of Ah as a good person? Her wheels are turning, and I wonder if that’ll have an impact next week. I hope so -- although next week looks seriously messy, and I wonder how the show’s going to get itself out of it.

*I forgot to add that some folks on Twitter seem to think the Captain is one of the guys who ran Ah off on the road -- I’m open to the idea.

[cyarskj52]

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MR. KEKE PALMER'S BOYFRIENDUPDATED JULY 17, 2023

Keke Palmer’s Boyfriend Doesn’t Know His Place

Keke Palmer and Darius Jackson. Photo: Rebecca Sapp/Getty Image

Is this how a second gentleman should be acting? After a video surfaced of Usher serenading Keke Palmer at his Las Vegas show on July 5, her boyfriend Darius Jackson decided to share his opinion on the family matriarch’s dress. “It’s the outfit tho.. You a mom,” he wrote on the Elon Musk app. Mr. Keke Palmer’s Boyfriend was saying her outfit — a black sheer, long-sleeved polka-dot dress with a bodysuit peeking out underneath — was unfit for a mother to wear in public. According to his misogynist logic, moms shouldn’t have fun at concerts in cute little black dresses because that is a threat to the traditional family. “We live in a generation where a man of the family doesn’t want the wife & mother to his kids to showcase booty cheeks to please others & he gets told how much of a hater he is,” he added in his follow-up tweet. Mind you, he and Keke are decidedly not married. The couple have been dating since 2021, and their first child was born in February of this year. “This is my family & my representation,” he kept going, for some reason. “I have standards & morals to what I believe. I rest my case.” He has since deleted his profile and scrubbed photos of him and Palmer from Instagram.

Twitter, however, kept up the fight. The internet dug up Jackson’s old tweets, which include seemingly defending police brutalityand liking a post that calls Tracee Ellis Ross a “female loser” for posting a topless picture of herself at 50 years old. The petit-incel vibes combined with conservative ideas about family and policing isn’t going to get a lot of Palmer fans on his side. The two people at the center of Jackson’s ire appear unbothered through it all. Palmer posted a picture in the allegedly offensive outfit on Instagram with the caption, “I wish I had taken more pictures but we were running late!” Meanwhile, Usher liked a tweetwhere a user understood Keke’s behavior, saying, “It’s Usher like cmon now. I could see if it was Jacquees,” where Jacquees replied, “😂😂 Leave me out of it.”

Despite Jackson’s departure from the internet, Palmer is rightfully not letting his misogynistic words go. She’s now selling merch reminding moms that they can be hot as well as an empowered parent. “One thing is certain and one thing is true, IM A MOTHA, through and through! ‘IM A MOTHA’ and ‘Stevie to the bullshit’ shirts available NOW!” captioned Palmer on Instagram with a video where she sang to her baby. “To all my mom’s out there, how did your baby change you?? Mine empowered me! On such another level, my perspective changed because when my baby is good I’m GREAT! Look at that face! Gratitude galore.” Palmer is even alluding to the baby daddy drama in her live shows. At Broccoli City Fest Sunday, Palmer changed the lyrics of “Bossy” to reflect her mother status. “Lil booties matter, my son gave me some ass/ I’m my own boss and I got my own cash/ I don’t need a *****, only thing I need’s a bag.” A couple days ago, Jackson was just Palmer’s low-key man; now he’s generating enough online discourse to last for weeks. Embarrassing.https://www.instagram.com/p/CuVoiM5r_iF/embed/captioned/?cr=1&v=14&wp=744&rd=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.vulture.com&rp=%2F2023%2F07%2Fkeke-palmer-boyfriend-usher.html#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A17773%7D

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[tinydeskwriter]

Fake it

(another) singer!reader x h.s

summary: to keep his clients image, Jeff suggests a PR relationship.

word count: 1225

warnings: none (apart the age gap, but everyone is over eighteen)

a/n: I wanted to try a different twist from the PR relationships I have been read recently, I don't think that there is going to be much angsty around this one, but… you never know.

Part I-Introduction

2019. february.

“It’s only going to be for a few months, a year and a half… tops, it’s going to be good for the both of you,” Jeff explained to both of his clients seated across from him.

The young woman looked at the man sitting next to her, muting whatever Jeff was explaining, it was not the first time she had been in the presence of the rockstar who had been her childhood/teenage idol, but in all other circumstances they had met to discuss her inclusion in his tour, not a PR relationship stunt.

She couldn’t even imagine what was going through his head, he looks calm, eyes fixed on Jeffrey.

“Y/n, what do you think?” Jeff questioned her, her face turned back to him, both man had their attention on her.

The young woman sighed, running a hand through her long hair trying to ignore the intense emerald green eyes on her. “I can see the benefit of this arrangement for me…but what about him?” She nodded at Harry’s direction.

She would be a fool not to see the benefits in it for her, people would look her up just because she was besides Harry, it would bust her career. The girl also new that it was a two-edged knife, she would receive an immense amount of hate, but either way her name would be at the top of the news. There was also the added bonus that a ‘relationship’ with Harry would probably shield her if rumors of her very private, very secret former ‘relationship’ ever got out, a relationship Jeff had instructed her to end for the good of her image.

“The whole world knows he and Camille ended things between them a few months ago, the thing is: most of H’s new songs are about their breakup,” Jeff looked at Harry for a moment before his eyes went back to Y/n, “it would be kind of pathetic if the album came out and he still don’t have a girlfriend to present to the world, I mean, he’s Harry Styles, British heartthrob, I can’t have him looking like a loser who can’t get over his ex.”

Ouch.

“I find it hard to believe he would have trouble getting himself a girlfriend.” She commented with raised eyebrows and slightly tilted head.

Jeff sighed, Y/n was always very inquisitive, always wanted to know every little detail of what she was getting herself into.

“We need to sell na image and we can’t risk it,” the older man said, Y/n was good at reading the between lines, they didn’t want to risk a PR stunt with someone the singer was actually in a relationship with, Harry was famously private with his relationships, and it wouldn’t work in this case, they needed the publicity, “this way it’s easier for us to control the outcome,” Jeff looked straight at her, almost ignoring Harry’s presence, “you have media training, you’re beautiful, talented, your style complements his, and we already know that the public would approve of you together.” Twitter went crazy a couple of days ago after Y/n’s ‘Who’d You’d Rather’ at Ellen, the singer gained forty thousand new followers in minutes, “This is going to be Harry’s first really public relationship, it will go against his usual MO and I mean public appearances, red carpet events, social media, to the world this is the first time he’s really been in love and he can’t hide it…he doesn’t want to hide it.”

The English singer didn’t seem too convinced. She wasn’t exactly an actress, and what Jeff was suggesting was selling a love story that didn’t exist to millions of people. She didn’t think she’d have much of a problem playing the fool in love for photos, she did it all the time in photoshoots, the problem would be when she had to start talking and lying about their nonexistent romance.

“You’re going to be Winona Ryder to Harry’s Johnny Depp.” Jeff exemplified gesturing, Y/n just arching her perfectly designed eyebrows.

“I’d prefer Kate Moss, she’s British and it suits my vibe better.” the young woman said, squinting in the manager’s direction.

Jeff smiled with satisfaction.

“Age wise, you are his Winona.” The manager joked.

Oh, yes. There was a small age gap too..

“Does that mean you agree?” It was the first time since they greeted each other that Y/n had heard Harry’s voice.

She turned toward him, for the first time their eyes meeting directly that afternoon.

“I’m young, but I’m not stupid, I know the benefits being seen in a relationship with you will bring to my career,” she said with a shrug, “and having to pretend to be your girlfriend is far from the worst job in the world.” Y/n smirked.

Being seen in a relationship would also mature her image for the type of music on her next album. The age difference between them, the fact that Harry was twenty-five and Lilly had not yet turned nineteen would be the focus of scrutiny at first, and then add to her appeal.

“Are we all in agreement?” Lilly turned her attention to Jeff, nodding, Harry must have agreed too, for their manager clapped his hands together with a smile, “Perfect, now, this stunt will stay between us, no one else can know, and there will be no paper trail, absolute secrecy, not even your families can know,” he said looking at the two, “to the world, I introduced the two of you during a dinner in NYC, and the rest is history.”

“If we’re going to be open about this relationship, talk about it in public, we need details, we can’t seem like something fabricated.” Y/n commented, running her hand over her hair in a nervous gesture.

“H and you can talk about it, I am leaving for the two of you to figure it out a narrative, it will be nice if you get to know each other better, you will spend a lot of time in each other presence.” Jeff looked at the two, Y/n turning her attention to the man beside her.

Harry didn’t seem to have much to say about everything, either that or he was extremely shy, which in a way she doubted from the years she’d followed his career. Jeff went on to explain that their first ‘public sighting’ would be the trip to Rome for the Met Gala fitting with Gucci in early March, as both are being dressed by Alessandro Michele. From then on, some small rumors, and comments from 'sources close to the couple' would be planted to spread the narrative to sell the couple. Jeff commented that it would be interesting if they started making some discreet outings around LA, being seen out with friends of both sides, maybe Harry driving Y/n to places

They exchanged private phone numbers and e-mail contact, the young woman also got Harry’s assistant number in case she couldn’t reach him on his own phone. Y/n said goodbye to the two men after a while of talking the finer details, having to leave in a hurry so as not to be late for the studio session with Mark.

She hadn't even made it to the elevator when she felt her cell phone vibrate in her back pocket with a notification.

Jeff had added her to a group message with him and Harry.

Y/n had a feeling that things were about to change drastically in her life. Whether it would be a positive change or not, she still didn't know.

[mochegato]

Even the Losers

Chapter 1

“You can do this Marinette,” Adrien whispered encouragingly, echoing the mantra she’d been whispering to herself for the past two days.  She could do this.  She could manage.  This was for Max.  She could handle it.  He couldn’t be here but she could.  She could be strong for him.  She gave Adrien a shaky smile and nodded.  “We just have to find him and we can leave,” he reminded her.

Marinette took a breath and let it out slowly. She’d dealt with far, far worse than a few judgmental, heartless asses who had no real interest in her.  But seas of artificial smiles had always unsettled her and currently she was surrounded with so much artificial sweetness she felt like she was walking through a kid’s cereal aisle.  That added onto her already existing anxiety had her ready to bolt at the slightest provocation.

She ran her hand over the skirt of her dress, letting the feeling of the fabric and the knowledge of all that had gone into it soothe her.  She was especially proud of her dress and the work that had gone into it.  It was a black so dark it almost appeared to draw in the light around it.  A mesh with strategically placed blood red decorations overlaid the dress, hugging her bodice until it reached her hips then dropped into a flowing skirt that ended just before it could pool on the ground.

She fought the urge to fiddle with the belt in her nervousness.  She couldn’t show weakness like that, not here.  She looked up at Adrien again in search of an anchor to reality.  She took in his expression and had to stifle the laugh that resulted.  He had his own artificially sweet smile on but his eyes quite clearly begged for a quick death.  He glanced down to her and nudged her discreetly, his artificial smile becoming wide and real.  “Shhhh,” he hushed her under his breath.  “We’re trying not to attract attention to ourselves, remember?  We’re ghosts.”  He looked around to make sure nobody was looking at them.

Marinette immediately quieted, her face becoming somber. She did remember.  In and out.  That was the goal.  Her goal. Knock the man on his ass with Max’s accomplishments, then never see him, or anyone else in this room, other than Adrien of course, ever again.  They were supposed to be like ghosts.  There but not.  Her eyes scanned the room looking for their target.

Adrien’s eyes immediately softened and filled with regret.  “Shit, Mari. I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to…”

“No,” she looked up at him with an artificial smile of her own.  “I know. It’s fine.  It’s not your fault.”  She scanned the crowd again, cursing her height, as she had many times in her life.  Even with the six inch, death defying heels, she still barely reached Adrien’s eyes, let alone give her any kind of advantage to see the crowd.  She needed some kind of vantage point but unfortunately, the only high point in the ballroom was the stage, which she couldn’t utilize if she was going to follow her Ghost policy.  “We might have more success if we split up.  Let me know if you find him.”

Adrien squeezed her arm quickly before nodding. “Good luck.”

Marinette shot him a genuine smile.  “You too.  May the Luck be with you.”

Adrien laughed and shook his head.  “I never should have forced you to watch that movie.”

Marinette grinned back.  “You never should have forced me to watch the prequels.  The original ones were just fine.”  Adrien narrowed his eyes at her but let it drop in favor of disappearing in the crowd to find their target.

Marinette followed him with her eyes until she couldn’t see him anymore then took a deep breath to brace herself.  Her eyes immediately started darting around and her fingers started dancing.  She needed something to occupy them or she was going to start attracting unwanted attention.

She noted a bar close by and made a beeline for it. She waited politely for the bartender to notice her, her fingers tapping anxiously against the bar while she waited. She froze when she heard a gruff voice next to her.  “Did you sneak in here?”

She turned to the voice and blinked a few times. “Excuse me?”

“You’re anxious and jittery.  Afraid you’re going to get kicked out?” the man elaborated.

Marinette studied him for a moment trying to figure out why he looked so familiar.  “No,” she started slowly, trying to give her brain a chance to answer the puzzle. “Just not a fan of events like this.”

The man scoffed and nodded in understanding. “Cheers.”  He raised his glass for her to clink his but she held out her hands with a sheepish look, showing she didn’t have a drink yet.  “Well, that’s a crime.  Nobody should have to endure one of these without a drink.”  He motioned to the bartender and got an immediate response. “Another for me and a…” he motioned to Marinette to give her order.

“Oh, champagne, please,” she finished with a smile for the bartender.  That’s what was socially acceptable at events like this, right?  Champagne.

The bartender looked to the man for confirmation. The man nodded.  “And a champagne for the woman.”  Marinette scowled at the bartender causing the man to laugh. “He’s just worried that you’re underage. You look awfully young.  You’re not, right?”

Marinette’s glare softened in realization.  “Oh, that makes sense.  No, I’m not.  I forgot the legal age here is higher than in France.”

He nodded and looked at her critically for a moment before offering his hand.  “Jason.”

Marinette immediately reached out for his hand and answered with her name before her brain registered the name he’d given. Jason.  Jason Todd.  Bruce Wayne’s son.  She pulled her hand back quickly as the realization hit her and focused on leveling her breathing.  She grabbed the champagne glass more violently than necessary when the bartender set it down in front of her and immediately downed the entire glass, only coughing a bit as the bubbles tickled her throat.  Overall, champagne was not the best drink to chug.  “Another, please,” she croaked out.

“You know, there are better drinks for that, if that’s what you want to do,” Jason grinned, laughing at her.

“Wasn’t the plan until it was and then that’s all I had,” she croaked out, her voice still hoarse from the bubbles.  She kept her eyes focused on her empty glass as she spoke, almost afraid to make eye contact with him as if just seeing her eyes would be enough to blow her cover.

Jason chuckled and nodded in understanding. “Don’t suppose you’d care to dance?”

Marinette whipped her head to him and stared incredulously, forgetting her previous reservations.  She only moved again when the bartender set the new drink down in front of her.  “Um… no… thank you.  That doesn’t seem… I don’t think my date would be comfortable with that.  Good luck getting drunk enough to handle tonight though.”  She gave him a weak smile and raised her glass to him before moving into the fray again, now armed with a socially acceptable fidget toy.

It took five minutes of avoiding wandering hands and leering looks but with a little luck and some prodding from the goddess hiding in the folds of her skirt, she was finally able to stumble on M. Lucius Fox, Director of Research and Development for Wayne Enterprises.  He was in a conversation he was not remotely interested in with some vapid business exec who was just as interested in M. Fox.  Not that M. Fox’s disinterest was clear.  He was very polite and good at covering his boredom, much more so than his conversation partner, but she’d been at enough stuffy, snobby parties with Adrien, Felix, and Chloe to know the signs.

She took another breath and squared her shoulders, going into Ladybug Mode; calm and confident, completely assured of herself. She was on a mission.  She had a goal and a plan to accomplish it, and once she had a plan, she had a direction and purpose, and with those, her insecurities fell away.  With M. Fox in her sights, she could see the pieces and the way they fit together. There were no more doubts.  She set her glass on a passing waiter’s tray and made her way over to M. Fox.

“The elusive M. Fox.  It is a pleasure to meet you,” Marinette purred, coming up next to him with a charming, real smile.

“I didn’t realize I was hiding,” Lucius responded with a polite smile of his own.

“Must just come naturally.  Foxes are known to be crafty.”  Marinette looked around them and motioned toward the dancefloor. “Would you care to dance, M. Fox?”

He shook his head deferentially.  “Are you sure there aren’t other people here you’d rather dance with?”

Marinette smiled conspiratorially and leaned closer to him, making sure to keep a respectable distance.  She did NOT want to have her banter confused with flirting. That was not the strategy she had devised.  “That would defeat the purpose of coming here.  I came here specifically to speak with you.”

Lucius looked down at her analytically, trying to figure out what her angle was, but took her hand and followed her onto the dancefloor.  “And what did you want to speak about, Ms…?”

“Dupain Cheng.  Marinette Dupain Cheng.  It’s nice to meet you M. Fox.  I wanted to speak to you to sell my friend Max Kante.”

Lucius’ eyes widened almost imperceptibly as the music changed.  After a beat, he chuckled.  “I’m not in the market to buy anyone, but thank you.”  He settled his hands on her mid-back and hand for their dance.

Marinette chuckled good naturedly along with him. “Sell his talents, would be a better way to say it.”

“And where is Mr. Kante?” Lucius raised an eyebrow at her, curious why the young man didn’t bother to come himself.  “Why are you presenting his talents instead of him?”

“Finals.  Had the incredibly bad luck to have a Friday at noon final.  I mean at least it wasn’t at 19h, right?  Can you believe they have those?”  She scrunched up her nose in playful disgust.  “But still means he’s taking it right now.  And for his last final of his career.  I mean… probably.  Knowing him, he might get another PhD at some point.  My finals and presentation ended last week.  M. Wa…” she took a steadying breath and looked back up with a strained smile hoping he wouldn’t notice the stutter.  “M. Wayne even visited for it.  That’s when the idea for this came to me.  So while Max studied, I plotted.”

“So why me then and not Mr. Wayne?” Lucius asked with a curious interest.

Marinette froze for just a second.  Hardly enough for anyone to notice.  Her mind raced to calculate the appropriate response to that question, a satisfactorily casual yet intelligent response.  “M. Wayne isn’t in charge of research.  You are.  Not to mention, I highly doubt the CEO would be involved enough in the research and development projects to know what was going on.  You I take as a man who knows what is going on with all your ongoing projects.”

He nodded.  She wasn’t wrong, or normally wouldn’t be.  Mr. Wayne usually was not involved in any projects and with the exception of one particular project they were having issues with, he wouldn’t know the particulars.  “A very dangerous and elaborate plan.  Why didn’t you make an appointment with me?  Or just stop me on the street?” he prodded, hoping for her thought process.

Marinette laughed lightly.  “I don’t imagine I would have had a chance in Hell of making an appointment with you in your office.  I have no standing, no name, no significance that would have attracted any PA worth their salt’s attention.  I would have been pawned off onto a low ranking employee to handle, if I was handled at all.  And something like this needed to be taken to you.  

“As for running into you on the street, I can’t imagine you would have responded positively to getting accosted on the street. You seem more than capable of handling yourself with grace in the face of a pest.  I doubt I would have gotten more than a few words in.  At a gala however,” she grinned conspiratorially at him. “Societal convention.  Almost absolute certainty of at least one dance where I would have you one-on-one for a few minutes.  Hostage audience.  Figured I could use it to my advantage for once.”

Lucius smiled back at her ingenuity.  “There’s an application process he could have gone through,” he noted.  

Mari nodded and looked out to the crowd, scanning it.  “Right, applying to M. Fedor Rabler,” she said distractedly.  “He did that.”

Lucius nodded in understanding.  Their application process was tough.  Lots of amazing candidates didn’t get through. He had to respect her devotion to her friend, to risk coming here and potentially making an enemy of Wayne Enterprises if he’d been that sort of man.  His eyes turned sympathetic.  “I’m sorry he was passed over.”

“You know, I’ve noticed Elspeth Cole puts forth a lot of inventions and extremely varied ones at that,” she continued as though she hadn’t heard his consolation.  “Most inventors, you can see their process, you can see how they got from one invention to the next, but hers… they’re so varied.  It’s almost like they’re coming from completely different people.”  Lucius watched her carefully, waiting to see where she was going with this.  “That’s them, isn’t it?  Dancing together.  Awfully close for purely colleagues.”

Lucius followed her sight line to Ms. Cole and Mr. Rabler dancing extremely closely.  Not obscenely, but perhaps a bit closer than was normally acceptable at a society event such as this one.  “It’s hardly incriminating that two people with expertise in electrical engineering would get together,” he said slowly.

“Max is amazing.  Brilliant,” Marinette said, seemingly not noticing her non-sequitur. “He created an AI that helped the Parisian superheroes locate and defeat our supervillain at only 14.”  Lucius’ brow rose.  That was certainly promising.  He wondered what would have caused them not to take such an applicant.  Surely there was some sort of embellishment there, but as he studied her, she seemed entirely genuine.  

“He’s being scouted by several high profile companies including Lexcorp and Palmer Technologies.”  She turned her attention back to Lucius, a curious pout on her lips. “But not Wayne Enterprises.”  She looked away with clearly forced casualness. “Lexcorp and Palmer, they’re offering pretty impressive packages.  Not as good as he deserves in my opinion, but I may be a bit biased.  Wayne Enterprises however… nothing.  Not even an offer.

“Now, I don’t really have a dog in the fight… other than wanting my friend to be safe and treated with the respect he deserves. But Palmer Technologies gets blown up by a villain or its inventors kidnapped far too frequently for me to be comfortable with my friend working there.  And Lexcorp…”  She looked down as if in thought before looking back at him again with a determined look in her eye.

“You know, I get a feeling sometimes.  I can’t really explain it, just get a feeling about people or things.  I’ve found it’s best for me and the people around me if I listen to that feeling and that feeling tells me Lex Luthor is the last person who should be trusted with a brain as brilliant as Max’s.”  She looked back over to Mr. Rabler and Ms. Cole.  “That same feeling told me Max shouldn’t trust the application process for Wayne Enterprises.”  

She looked back at Lucius with an apologetic smile. “No offense.  So, I convinced Max to make a small part of his submission just a little off.  Just a bit. Enough that even an expert could miss it, but if it’s wrong the project could never work.  It took a lot of convincing to get him to do it.  He refused to believe he had anything to worry about in Wayne Enterprises with its stellar reputation.”  She scrunched up her face in annoyance.  “But that feeling, you know?  I couldn’t get over it.  After a lot of work, I convinced him there was no harm.  After all, if he was hired he could fix it.  If he wasn’t… well, you shouldn’t be using what he presented anyway, right? No harm, no foul as you Americans say.”

“No,” Lucius agreed.  “That would be theft and completely against WE policy and standards.  In fact, we should not be asking applicants to submit anything like that in the first place.”

Marinette smiled and nodded approvingly.  “I’ve heard rumblings, or rather Max has, of WE getting into transmutation of materials.  Just can’t get that algorithm right though, can you?  Algorithms are hard.  Just a little off and nothing works.”

He stared at her.  That was a secret project.  Other departments in Wayne Enterprises didn’t even know about it.  “I can’t comment on ongoing projects.”  

“I never did show you what Max is capable of, did I?”  She gave him a bright smile and reached down to press a disguised button on her belt. Lucius tensed and cursed himself for exposing himself to whatever she was about to do.  A wave of emerald green washed over the front of her bodice as the blood red decorated mesh overlay turned into a brilliant emerald green that reflected the lights now rather than absorbing it.

Lucius’ eyes widened in surprise, a feat very few had been able to draw out of him.  “He designed the fabric?” he whispered out.  He reached out tentatively to touch the fabric at her shoulder.

Marinette grinned brilliantly at his reaction.  It was no less than Max deserved.  He’d worked incredibly hard on it.  “He did,” she nodded in confirmation, “and the software that controls it.  The whole dress can change but we’re kind of surrounded here and I didn’t want to attract too much attention.”  She let him touch it for a moment before pushing the button again to turn it back into the black, then allowing him to feel the mesh to confirm it was the same fabric.  “He has ideas for changing the texture as well, but limited resources you know? Something I’d hope wouldn’t be an issue at WE.”

“How does it work?”  His eyes were still focused on the fabric at her shoulder. He took a quick look at the rest of the bodice, but quickly snapped his eyes back to her shoulder.  The neckline was conservative, but it was still rather unbecoming to stare at the young woman’s chest.

Marinette laughed.  “You’ll have to ask Max that.  I just designed the dress.  I don’t really understand the mechanics behind it, but he does.  I doubt Ms. Cole can say the same.”

Lucius stared in awe at her shoulder before looking back up to her eyes and nodding in understanding.  “Interesting.  I’ll take that under advisement.  Maybe we should be scouting you as well.”

Mari laughed.  “No, thank you.  I’m not an inventor.  I’m a designer.  But I appreciate the interest.”

Lucius nodded and led her off the dancefloor with the end of the song.  “Inventor or not, we can always use someone with intuition, intelligence, and ingenuity like you’ve demonstrated.”  

Marinette gave him a brilliant, somewhat familiar smile. “That’s very flattering.  Thank you, M. Fox.  But tonight is about Max.  I have my own, separate plans for my future.”

Lucius nodded in understanding.  “Our loss,” he answered sincerely.  “If you ever need any help or advice, please feel free to call me.  I’m sure Mr. Kante will have it soon enough and can pass it onto you.”  He looked back down to her shoulder again.  “If I may…”  He motioned toward her shoulder.  

Marinette laughed.  “Of course.  I understand how truly impressive it is.  It’s been incredibly inspirational, thinking of the options.”

“And what did your intuition tell you about tonight?” He looked up to meet her eyes, curious about her answer.

Marinette’s face went slack for a moment before she pasted on a bittersweet smile.  “That it would be costly but worth it.”

Lucius quirked his head to the side.  “In what way?”

Marinette shook her head absently and took a sudden interest in M. Fox’s tie.  “I’m not sure yet.”

Mr. Fox’s eyes softened.  “Would he be available to meet on Monday?”

Marinette grin and snapped her eyes up to him. Mission success!  Max was going to get his interview!  “He can be.”

“I’d actually like to speak with both of you, if you don’t mind.  In my office at 10 Monday?” he offered.  

Marinette faltered.  “In Wayne Enterprises?”

Lucius chuckled.  “Naturally.”

Marinette swallowed heavily.  “Why don’t we meet somewhere else?  Early morning coffee perhaps?” she offered instead with an artificial smile.  “Here’s my card.  Have someone give me a call or text and I can arrange it.  He’s scheduled to fly in tomorrow morning.  He was supposed to meet with Lexcorp Monday morning, but he’ll be at coffee to meet you instead.”

Lucius smiled back at her as he slipped her card into his pocket.  “I greatly appreciate your candor and support Ms. Dupain Cheng.”  He took her hand in both of his to shake it.  “I cannot tell you how good it was to meet you.  And if you ever get one of those feelings about me or Wayne Enterprises, let me know, okay?”

“Lucius.”

Lucius froze at the cold voice, not accustomed to that tone of voice directed at him.  He looked over curiously and missed Marinette freezing before pushing another button on her belt.

Chapter 2

Tags:

@maribat-bdbwm

[0oolookitsme]

First time in Paris

Genre- One-Shot

Pairing- Ceo!y/n x Singer!Harry

Word Count- 5,287

Warnings- Smut, Slight humiliation [one line I guess], unprotected sex [she won’t get preggo anytime soon, dw], panic attack, asthma attack, angst, comfort.  

A/n- Okay so, this has been a wip since September and I think it’s time for this to be read by you now. The ending might seem rushed, because it was... this morning. Also, I'm shit at writing smut but baby steps people. Enjoy! 

Roaming in the crowdy streets of Paris all day and it finally hitting 5 on the watch, Y/n should’ve known that Harry, at the end isn’t going to play the role of her coat that good.

“I told you to bring yours!” Harry squeaked, pulling the side -with buttons- of his coat back when Y/n tried to cover herself in his long article of cloth. “You were the one who told me that we could share yours!” she frowned, faking a look of betrayal, and lifted his left arm to have it resting on her shoulders to secure some more warmth.

Raising his right arm, he defended himself saying “well I didn’t know it would be this cold!”, also frowning. “Then let me wear you!” she also smirked when she realized how smooth that was and saw that grin on his face. Squeezing her shoulders, he mutters, “hmm you, cheeky woman”, voice muffled in her misty rose-smelling hair.

“What do you think about that shop?” her body suddenly jerked with her left hand’s index finger pointing towards the shop. “The one in the right corner?” he asked, looking at her and smiling at the fact that she got so excited.

He was so in love with her that seeing her happy just makes him want to squeal.

“Yeah! That little shop!” finally looking at him with a wide smile, she said, her body in continuous motion as if she will run the moment he will reply. Looking towards the shop with squinted eyes, he mimicked “It looks cute, not going to lie”, in a voice like he was climbing rocks.

“Let’s go then!” she says, already walking at a fast pace. “At least know what the shop is selling!” he remarks, trying to catch up where his hand is in hers so he will not be -being- dragged. “We need to go there for that!” she says, looking back at him laughing and muttering a ‘sore loser’ to which he said his defensive ‘hey!”.

“After this, we are going back to the hotel!” he tells her right when he hears his stomach grumble. “You’re hungry too?” she says, slowing down when the shop entered in her proper view and near. “Tired too!” he pouts, though it soon transitions into a groan when she says, “Me too, but c’mon right now!”.

“They are selling cups and teas!” her hands coming to clutch at her chest where her heart situates while her mouth was hung open, adoring everything in her view. Hearing ‘tea’ Harry quickly comes beside her -from behind her- all perked up, “there are so many teas!” he says with a surprised smile on his face. The cups are just so beautiful! 

“Exactly!” she says, agreeing with him, now melting at the lightning and the aesthetic of the small shop.

For once she wasn’t a woman who doesn’t know how to explain her feelings in words -and would rather show it-, but her small little five-year-old dancing girl self who didn’t get to experience this earlier.

“Which flavor are you buying?” he asks using his right hand to pick the boxes from which a tea bag was hanging, showing them the type through the translucent paper. “Which one are you?” she asks him back, her right hand clutching Harry’s left one and using her left one to look at the names of the flavors.

“Stop that!”’ he says, chuckling at her mischievous side. Smiling she mumbles an “As you wish” and also kisses his cheek in the process.

“How about 1 of every flavor?” he asks, already picking up a few boxes of the flavors he liked or more like loved and few new ones he wanted to give a try. “Yeah and then I will plant a lotus in you,” she says, knowing that he will try each flavor in one day and then complain about how he feels water till the starting of his aesophagus. He is quick to say a “Shut up” though, kissing her temple to say not literally. 

“You can have all of these if you want to babe,” she says when noticing a small disappointment on his face in realization. “I know” he laughs, cheering when she fell for his trick. “You little shit” she fake-gasps, unclutching their hands to bring her hands to her hips. “You cursed!” he says, clutching his left and her right hand again, in a scolding tone. “Sorry mum,” she says, rolling her eyes but laughing as soon as her eyeballs end on the left side. Pointing his finger at her he instantly says “No! you say that every time!”, jumping when he hears another voice.

“Good evening! Can I help you with anything?” the middle-aged honey-ish lady asked them. The one who was swooning at them while watching them from inside. You can’t blame her, they do make a fucking perfect couple.

“Oh yes please!” Y/n says, moving towards the lady, still holding his hand and Harry can swear he for once felt like he was with his mum with young him on Christmas shopping.

“What are the best flavors?” She asks, her thumb rubbing over his hands’ knuckles. “Currently, the best-sellers are black currant, vanilla, and caramel flavor. The whole of Paris also has its favorite tea! I can give you the ingredients along with the recipe if you want!” the lady says, making an offer and trying to sell her teas but Y/n was simping over her at the moment.

“Yes please!” Y/n replied and soon the lady was writing the recipe on a piece of paper and handing it to her.  

“Does this cup has a pair?” Harry asks out of now where, only for the ladies to see that he is busy picking out cups. “The one in your hand?” the lady asks, moving towards him. “Yeah” he replied and y/n followed the beeline the lady formed.

“Oh, that’s a beautiful one!” Y/n says, appreciating his choice. “Here you go!” the lady says, handing him the pair of the cup from inside a box on the shelf above. “These look beautiful together, don’t they love?” Harry whispers to y/n who is smiling at him, nodding. “We would like to buy these and the cups please,” he says, causing y/n to snap out of her trance and hand lady the tea boxes which have formed a crowd in her hands.

One of the many things y/n loved about Harry was that he wasn’t ashamed to show affection in public at which y/n just drowns in a pond of warmth in her whole body.

“Thank you!” and she's snatched out her thoughts once again at Harry closing the gap between them by pulling her towards him with his hand resting on her shoulders and around her neck, turning them around. 

“We went a bit out of way,” she said, looking down at the bags which were hanging down from each of her fingers, chuckling, and looking back up at him. “Remove that ‘a bit’” he said, a smug smirk forming on his lips. “Funny” she scoffed, looking forwards at the now almost empty street. “Was it?” he asks, making her look at him and whisper a “no” while booping his nose.

The empty streets reminding him of the crowded streets they walked through in the morning.

Sighing, she leaned into him and rested her head on his chest while also asking him, “You been here before?”, voice barely above a whisper. Holding her closer he replied with a ‘no’ and continued to ask, ‘you?’. He did hear an answer saying “No”.

“Why not?” he asks again, earning a kiss from her at his chin and her head going back to listen to his in-rhythm heartbeat. “Wanted to come here with someone special” she replies, slightly laughing. “I see what you did there,” he says, shaking his head in denial at the memory of the night. “That night was quite funny,” she says, to which he gives a simple reply, “It really was”.

“Why didn’t you come here before?” she asks him, taking her head off his chest and wrapping an arm around his narrow waist instead. 

“Wanted to come here, to this love destination, with someone I want to keep to myself forever,” he said and kissed her cheek. He was also relieved that she wasn’t listening to his heart as she would sure as hell hear it slamming again his ribcage. He still felt slight nervousness building up in him anyways. “You want to keep me to yourself forever?” she asked, coming to a halt and looking straight at him. “Yeah, is it vice versa?” he asks, taking both of her hands in his and let his lips collapse on hers when she smiled and muttered a “Yeah”.

Pulling back in the middle, he quickly breathed a ‘good’ and pecked those -fitting to his- pair of lips.

“Did we had the first conversation of us getting married right now?” not believing it, she questioned him, standing still with her eyes watering. Mocking a ‘thinking’ face he told her, “we ..actually did”, with his own tears about to fall.

“I love you,” she says, kissing him again before turning to walk. “I love me too” he laughs and she especially turns around to slap his chest. Groaning and shifting her body’s weight onto him, she looks up to the sky and mumbles, “God, what did I do to deserve you?” to which he also looks up and says “You entered this world”.

“My bad, I don’t want to cry in the middle of a street,” she says, standing straight and rubbing the pads of her thumb under her eyes, drying off the tears at the border of her lower lash line. “We are now at the starting of the street but for the rest of the part, you are right,” he says, laughing and also drying his eyes.

“Where to now?” she asks, knowing the answer but still asking, in case he wants to go somewhere. “To hotel!” he says with wide eyes and hands up in the air as if cheering. “To eat!” she says, copying his actions with a wide-open mouthed grin. “You out!” he continues but not before smacking her bum from the side, biting his bottom lip when it jiggles. “Harry!” she squeaks, covering her butt with the bags in her hands. “I’m not even going say that I was kidding,” he says, walking forwards and putting his hand right on his shoulder so that the bags were hanging down his back.

Jogging and grabbing the other hand he had stuck out, she shoves him to the side and says “You suck” to which his filthy mouth replies with “me off” and she continues by saying “very good” while Harry opens the car’s door for her to sit in. Moving towards the driver’s seat he agrees with her for when she said that she sucks him off very good by saying a, “Yes”.

“Drive!” she said, pointing at the engine with one and buckling her seat belt with the other hand, sighing in pleasure when her legs finally got some much-deserved rest. “yes ma’am” he salutes, at which they share a laugh and he starts the car after rubbing his hand where it hit the steering wheel.

After a while of sharing a comfortable silence with the radio playing in the background, Y/n says with her brows frowned while looking out her window, “Let’s come to this diner tomorrow”. “Left or the right one?” he asks, eyes still on the road. “Right one was a coffee shop H” she narrowed her eyes at him but lets it go because he’s driving. “So the left one?” he asks, taking a glance at her. Squeezing her shoulders together, she softly mutters a “yeah” and leans over to press a kiss to his cheek.

A warm smile spreading on both of their faces on the realization of the confession they made today, the confession of wanting to live together forever. 

“It is closer to the hotel so what about a nice breakfast there?” he asks, leaning back in his seat with y/n replying with a hum. Just the thought of being served with fresh breakfast made him want to eat the damn air. “You want to go anywhere else tomorrow?” she asks him, resting her shoulder where the window and the head of the seat meet. “I was thinking about Louvre Museum after a nice brekky?” he recommended, raising his eyebrows like asking for her opinion which she gets and replies, “Sounds amazing”.

He always wanted to go to a museum with someone he wants to meet his family, to be his family, to join him in forming his own family and he will finally, tomorrow.

The rest of the drive is filled with melodious silence and some music, both of them too tired to speak and too busy cherishing the warm feelings in their hearts.

-

Harry had the time of his life with his woman today, couldn’t wish for a better first time in Paris. And when she confirmed that it indeed is vice versa, he mentally planned that he will engage her in Paris itself. He would never forget this note in his lifetime, ever.

When he saw that she was letting out the child in her, he just wasn’t able to stop smiling. When he saw the excitement in her eyes, he drowned in her addicting irises. When she entered a plant shop and told him strictly to stand outside and gave him a peck on his lips with the first bag in her hand, he fell for her mysterious grin. When she tried to secretly buy a bottle of wine for them but failed when he opened his eyes after sneezing, he wanted to kiss those pouts off of her face every time they formed for the rest of his lifetime. 

Y/n lived again after years of existing and fell impossibly harder for the man for whom she tried to do it for. She fell the hardest and deepest in the pit of love when he confessed that he wanted her to himself forever after she bought a secret she will reveal to him sometime, in the plant shop.

-

“Y/n, darling wake up, we are here!” he shook her shoulders, also unbuckling her seat belt. “Hmm,” she says, groaning because of not getting to sleep for longer and getting out of the car, mumbling a sloppy ‘thank you’ to Harry, to which he reciprocated with a kiss and ‘you’re welcome m’ heart.’ 

Receiving sloppy kisses in the elevator, he thought she’s in a cuddly mood. That was long forgotten as he quickly swiped the card and entered the room along with Y/n clinging to his side and leaving fucking love bites on his neck throughout their way in the hallway.

“Hungry eh?” he asked, pushing her on the door with his hand wrapped like a collar around the side of her neck and her hand lingering over his twitching cock. Receiving nothing but a breathy moan in return, he smirked. Tightening his grip, he muttered, “Use your pretty mouth baby”, while untying the bandana tied on her hair bun. “So eager to hear my voice?” she asked, not ready to submit to him just yet, well, at least she knew that she will be the submissive one tonight and so did Harry.

Feeling his bulge on her inner thigh she moaned, her own self forming an ocean of love between her legs, all for him. Crawling down his neck, her left hand made its way to his hardening self, moaning by just imagining his pre-cum sliding down his tip to on her occupied hand. He was quick to register her actions, “Jump” he said, voice stern right and one hand on the back of her thighs and one on the small of her back, supporting her.

“I said I wasn’t kidding about eating you out, didn’t I?” he asked, gently throwing her on the bed and standing right at the foot of the bed. Un-dressing achingly slowly and pushing her to the edge by leaving his pants to keep on covering his bulge.

“I said I suck you off good, didn’t I?” she bites back, supporting her body on her forearms, worshipping his carved by the god body with her eyes, the eyes which were filled with lust. Climbing up on the bed, he towered over her and dominated, “but I will dive in first”, in a voice dripping with desire, just like her arousal dripping down on her jeans, through her panties, from her pussy.

His hands almost reached where they wanted to be all the time when she rasped, “who said I will allow you to?”, not expecting the comeback to be, “Don’t need anyone’s permission to dive into what’s mine”, because he knew she’s just fucking with him when he saw that smirk-y grin and gifted her jeans to the floor alongside.

His mouth was hovering over her pussy and she could feel his cold breath on her, but still not ready to give up she crocked out in a sloppy voice, “You know you were looking hot while stripping down, should do it more ofte-” and her true words were brought to an unexpected halt when he nipped at her yearning bud. 

Removing his mouth from her very innocently, he asked, “What were you saying again?”, looking up at her while his nose brushed against her lips, the lips which hid the main beauty. Smirking when she whimpered, he landed a slap on her cunt and nipped on her bud again, “Don’t make me repeat my words, angel”. “Do-don’t know” she cried, wanting his mouth back on her. “Look at you, think my whore forgot her words because of how good her sir’s mouth is?”. And all she heard was self-complimentary. 

“Gonna let me have you forever?” he asked and “yes sir”, she answered. That was enough for him to put his perfect mouth to work and for her mouth to start spilling the music which calmed his soul’s hunger. 

“Like that baby? Want my finger there?” he asked when he heard that melodious moan of hers escape out as he teased her entrance with his digits, watching her squirm under him. “Cut the teasing H” she groaned, feeling another drop of her arousal slip down her opening and then being planted on his tongue. as if he watched it slip and let it tease her clit instead of his mouth. “Don’t tell me you forgot what an actual teasing is”, and all he heard was -don’t tell me you forgot when you cried as I played around with your pussy- and he grinned when she narrowed her eyes at him, right from above her song inspiring pussy.

“C’mon, cling to me as if this is the last time we make love as boyfriend and girlfriend” She recommended, knowing that it is. Doesn’t matter if they aren’t breaking up but another step. “Is it?” he asked, already knowing it isn’t but slightly confusing as it kinda was -from his side. “Maybe”, she winked and he squinted his eyes at her while pumping himself, smiling when she copied his pout. He also fell for her mysterious self again. 

“Yeah, maybe”, he smiled, gathering all of her arousal on his tip and then asked a ‘ready?’ and started slipping in when she hastily nodded her head while he muttered “just like that, doing so good, let me go deeper, lovie”.

She made sure to look right into his lust and love-filled eyes, watching him make the air burn her lungs and feel him in her inner core, watching his eyes as they adored the point where they both met, listening to her body scream for more and more of him.

The very thought of them getting engaged made her unconsciously spread her legs impossibly further more apart. “Mine” he mumbled, bending down to place a kiss where her pelvis bone is. Grabbing the sides of his face, she brought him up till he was face to face with her and muttered back, “mine” before crashing her lips onto his, increasing the want when he started thrusting, searching for a good pace.

“Love this sound” she said, referring to the sound of their skin’s patching sound produced due to the glistening sweat, wrapping her legs around his waist and crossing her ankles on the back. “So true bestie” he giggled, making her laugh out loud along with him.

Taking a deep breath, she sighed, “where did you learn that from?”, still laughing in middles. “Heard a group of fans years ago” he said, bending down to leave a sloppy kiss on her jaw.

“Feel y’ legs shaking, didn’t know making you laugh would do this” he grinned, knowing full well that she’s very near her climax.

Not able to process an answer she just moaned louder and clenched around him willingly, telling to go faster -which he did.

Hitting her g-spot with every thrust, his ears adored the sound of their skins now slapping, his own tummy filling with the burning sensation when he looked down at her, sweating and moaning mess, when he felt her warm and spongy walls engulf him every time.

“Come for me beloved, give all of it to me” he rasped, then twitched, and that veing just rubbed once below her bud and she spasmed around him, inhaling deeply.

He thrusted a few more times, emptying himself in her at the feeling of her cum slipping down his tip and length.

“That was magic” she whispered and he nodded from where his face was buried in the valley of her breasts, both of them too tired to move.

“Let’s get y’ all cleaned up”, he told her and attempted to get off of her, kissing both of her nipples in the process. She was early to stop him though, “let’s try and stay like this for a while”.

He fell for her adventurous self again

-

One pap photo.

It took one pap photo and it was out and open. Their relationship is trending on Twitter with hashtags such as #PowerCouple and #HarryStylesandY/nY/l/n. Both of their faces are white, mouth wide open as if just hit a ghost with a baseball bat by-mistake, and their foreheads sweating, even when the cool morning breeze is hitting them again and again in the guts.

They don’t care if people like them together or not, they don’t care about the hate, all they care about is the current situation they are in.

Harry’s phone is continuously dinging since 5 in the morning and Y/n hasn’t even moved, except her hand which shifted from her eyes to rub away the sleep, to her mouth to cover it and now in her lap.

The plan on how they will come out -on their own-, was completely washed away. Now Y/n won’t be able to post a picture of y/n’s baby bump with Harry’s ‘S’ initial sitting on it, on both of their socials to announce their baby’s start of the journey to the world; to announce that they are both engaged, married and soon-to-be parents and are madly in love. No cause now, they won’t be able to do shit without being photographed and bombarded by fans with questions and will always be afraid that ‘is someone here?’.  

Tears brimmed in both of their eyes, the eyes which were now bloodshot red without having shed a single drop of the salty water. 

“Now?” he croaked, shaking his head in anger when his voice cracked and the tear slipped. “What now?” she whispered, too weak and in rage to say. Speaking felt too strong, too hard, it felt like they needed to lift a 20kg block to speak. She rubbed both of her hands on her face while he tried his best to not bring a tornado into the hotel room and muttered a very low, “Why?”, quickly looking up at the ceiling of the room to somehow not let the tear slip out, but it fucking did. 

Both of their teeth were hardly gritted and tears were slipping out, against their will, just like the picture was taken, against their will, still, here, at least they know that the tears were out.

They had the right to scream their voices out of their throats at the world, to cry all the tears out until they finish. He had the right to destroy the room and she had the right to breathe. Yet they couldn’t pursue their right. 

Hearing his breath get heavier and louder, Y/n somehow reached her hands in his hair to massage his scalp and mutter, “Harry? Breath for me love, breath”. Even she doesn’t know how she’s doing it when she can feel her own attack nearing her lungs, nearing her breath, nearing her and him. 

No, hell no, this can’t be happening, they can’t have a panic attack at the same time!

“Breath Harry, everything will be alright, inhale and exhale baby, breath in and breath out”, she begged, anger increasing as she can’t even tell him to follow her breathing because if he did that, the situation will only get worse. She’s trying to catch her breathing but all her mind is showing her is an image of the crowd. People everywhere, shoving themselves into both of them. Nothing is helping her.

Bringing his mind to think of her skin warming up in the sunlight and warming him p on the cold nights, he exhaled the breath he had held and opened his eyes to see Y/n fisting the bedsheet in her hands.  

Climbing off the bed to get to the bathroom and splash some cold water on her face, everything started to feel cold, the room is freezing and it’s blue, there’s water in the room, everywhere, there’s water everywhere. “Har-H there, water- water ro-room”, she chokes out and doesn’t even realize that she’s having a asthma attack, that she’s coughing with a dried throat, that he’s sitting in front of her and has her face in his hands.

“Y/n? Y/n!” he lightly yells, loud enough for her face to get still in his hands. “Drink, baby. Imagine us sitting in a filled, green grass soothing our backs, the fragrance of fresh blooming flowers filling our noses. Butterflies dancing around and air blowing your air, sun’s rays warming your skin” and the water is down her dry throat and her body is sitting at one place. 

Rubbing her back with one hand he continues, “copy my breathing love, 10 inhale, 9 exhale, 8 inhale, 7 exhale...” just like that her breathing is back to its usual rhythm, her body is relaxed and her tears are dried on her cheek.

“You good, H?”, she concerned as soon as she came back to her senses, holding his wrists and kissing his palms.

Cupping her face again, he smiled and rasped a, “Yeah, and you’re too lovie”, and straightened up to reach the wooden table behind him.

“Here”, he handed her the half carrot while chewing his own.

“Hmm? Thanks”, Y/n said and brought the carrot to her mouth, chewing it just as loudly as she is hearing Harry chew it, very loudly. Looking up she sees him slightly calmed, his hand on her back, face wet and chewing carrot.

“I’ll order breakfast,” she got on her knees, voice still quiet, and stood up, only to be pulled back by him, in his lap and then being rolled back so both of them are laying on their sides. 

“Stay here for a while” he muttered, voice still hoarse and muffled in her neck, where he can see the hickeys and smell her faint perfume, calming his self, down to no level. She hummed back in response and weaved her hands in his hair once again, this time playing with his grown-out locks. 

"We are alright, yeah?" She asked, voice now slightly above a whisper. “Yeah, so what if we didn’t get to announce our love on our own, we still can put your initials on my future baby bump which would be carrying our baby or maybe babies? who knows?” she continued, making him laugh lightly. “We can” and they laughed again. 

They were alright, everything was alright, even if it wasn’t, it will be. 

-

“We’ll visit the Eiffel Tower tonight”, Y/n told him, and only difference was that, in usual, she would’ve asked him but right now, she’s telling him.

“Okay?”, he chuckled, confused but happy anyways.

They had talked to their families about the pap incident and were showered in concern and blessings by them and were given the, ‘it will alright’ line, by the mums.

The photo was taken down rightfully by their lawyers, yeah it’s probably screenshotted and downloaded by millions but they did it anyways. The paparazzi was sewed and currently, they are having lunch, disappointingly, in their hotel room only.

“We gotta disguise really good” Harry stated, earning a nod from his girlfriend and then he sipped on his soup after blowing on it.

“Gemma texted me she’d like to have a coffee to catch up with me when we reach London”, Y/n told him, munching on some sort of vegetable which was floating in the soup in circles since when she had stirred it.  

“Remind me to crash it”, he mockingly lowered his voice, laughing afterwards.

"Right."

Today is the day, Styles, buckle up.

-

"Harry! Look at that cycle!" Y/n shrieked, pointing behind Harry towards a pillar.

They have been out for quite a while now, she had bought two ice creams for them for the same reason, considering if they roam around there, they might get caught earlier.

Hell, y/n wishes that they don't get recognised.

"I don't see it?" He stated, turning his head in every direction but behind him, which y/n was thank full for.

"Look to your right, knob" she laughed while prepping the ring box in her hand while on her one knee.

This is it, Y/n.

Balancing herself one more time in her knee and repeating the words in her head, she took a deep breath through her nose and exhaled from her mouth and then pulled at his coat like a five year old.

"H?" Y/n whispered and called for him. That was enough for him to whisk his way around because of the volume of her voice as well as the low tug.

"Y/n.....I..wha-" he stuttered, slapping his sweaty palms on his mouth and feeling the tears moist his eyes.

"Marry me? I want you to myself, for infinity, forever", she croaked, her knee was starting to ache but she couldn't care less.

Never once did he thought that he would ever propose or get proposed for marriage, always thinking about flings but here he is, sniffling and clearing his throat as his girlfriend of 10 months is on her knee, asking him to be hers forever.

"I will dance with you in the kitchen at 3 in the morning too!" She rushed, when he didn't say anything, causing her to get even more nervous that he will say no.

"Yes! Oh my god Y/n, yes I'll marry you!!" He squeaked, extending his well manicured hand whose nails were painted by her and letting her shift the platinum ring on his finger from the small square box.

Harry, instead of saying anything, cupped her cheeks and smashed their lips together, tasting each other's tears in the midst and right then the lights of the Eiffel Tower were powered.

Their best first time in the Paris.

This was planned to be posted on the first of September -first day of autumn- but Im posting it on the Second last of October -end of fall (at least for me, as October is over, fall is over). Hope you liked it!

[brakken-spideyverse]

So, as part of my anticipation for No Way Home, I am rewatching all the live-action Spidey movies, and thought I would share my thoughts on them as I go.

Spider-Man (2002)

It had been a while since I revisited this one. It captivated me when I was younger, so I was excited and curious to see how much it held up.

The movie does a great job at guiding you through its story. I appreciate Peter’s narration as a nod to the comics’ monologues, and then it’s outta there as soon as we’re given enough steam to get the story going – it bypasses the need for an overly long introduction and backstory to Peter, which could have been an issue since we don’t spend much time with him before he gets his powers. It’s strange to think how very little we actually get of Peter interacting with Uncle Ben & Aunt May before the bigger narrative moments, yet they still manage to feel like this small and familiar piece of his life.

The weaker part of the opening is how they go about presenting ‘Peter is a loser’. From getting tripped on the bus, to MJ waving at her friends over his shoulder, it’s all a little too obvious and sticks out when there’s much subtler storytelling surrounding it. I love the scene with Harry and Norman in the car – they manage to tell you so much about that relationship, those characters. And then following with Peter and Norman meeting, the movie introduces this notion of parental pride, which flows so effortlessly in that scene that you don’t even feel its significance until their final encounter.

I think MJ probably suffers the most from the pacing. There is clearly intended depth to her character, but despite the story claiming to be ‘all about a girl’, she doesn’t really involve herself in the broader events of Peter’s life, so we don’t get a solid idea of why this is the girl that Peter’s so taken with, beyond a bit of – when it comes down to it - surface-level compliments about how when she looks at him he feels good. They have some nice interactions throughout the movie, but it’s a shame that it’s on Peter to do the ‘work’ to win her affections, while the writing seems content to let her simply exist and he is in love with her.

This next point is ultimately a nitpick, but a big setback on rewatching this movie is the look and age of the actors. The Hollywood filter really hit these supposed teenagers hard, and at times it’s tricky to go along with, say, Flash getting lectured by his teacher when they could be the same age. I think there is merit in really showing Peter’s youth, and how absolutely out of his depth he is with this life-changing burden he’s been given. But here, it’s easy to forget he’s only meant to be 19 or so by the end of the movie.

Tonally, I don’t think the Raimi films get a free pass for being ‘goofy’, but this movie strikes a fairly consistent balance with when and how it achieves that. I think it’s somewhat of a shame to not have a more loudmouthed, obnoxious Spider-Man, but it’s not like it’s entirely devoid of it. The score tells us that this story is mythic in nature, which the rest of the movie sells.

The wrestling scene comes with the most tonal whiplash. We go from this dramatic conversation between Ben and Peter – then it’s like Peter crosses through a threshold into a different movie – one where Macho Man Randy Savage has legal right to kill you, where Spider-Man can be casually homophobic, and forgets to use his Spider-Sense so he can be hit by a chair. Then as soon as that’s over, we’re right back into that harder tone. Parts of it have its charm, and can function as the high before the low, but I found my immersion getting thrown this time by just how sudden it changes.

The Raimi films are the king of having these great little ‘unnecessary’ moments and details that make the world feel more real – more lived in. I love the robber taking the cupcake from the bodega, and the hammy little montage of regular New Yorkers’ opinions of Spidey. It’s earnestly goofy, and doesn’t ‘wink’ at its audience in any way that becomes distracting.

That said, it’s an utterly strange choice to have major characters go entire scenes without acknowledging Spider-Man’s existence. We get all these shots of how the people are reacting, and then Jameson demanding photos (who is 10/10 in this movie). But then… we get a scene with MJ and Peter on the sidewalk talking about their lives as normal, followed by Harry brushing off questions about his ‘new girl’ and Norman offering to help Peter find a job. They’re both solid scenes that move the story forward at a brisk pace. But it’s simply odd that the first moment Spider-Man is actually mentioned by any of our main cast is when MJ says he’s incredible to Harry over the phone, after being rescued by him - and the scene then goes on to not mention Spidey again. The next time Harry mentions him? His father’s funeral. Meanwhile, you could make an argument that for this movie, Aunt May doesn’t even know Spider-Man exists.

Since Jameson doesn’t pay me to be a sensitive artiste, I will say that Green Goblin’s costume leaves a lot to be desired. I don’t hate it, but there’s something so primal to the comics version that would be  fitting to Willem Dafoe’s performance - it’s hard not to wish for a more ‘accurate’ look. And I get it’s the flight-suit, and that works for the lore, but if he can make a silly goblin mask, he can certainly embellish the rest of his get-up. And how dumb is it when he’s wrapped in the blanket and Spidey can’t tell, even though the dumb goblin head is stickin’ out all weird-like? I digress.

For the finale, I want to talk about ‘We are who we choose to be’. It’s what the movie is about, and what Goblin is forcing him to decide on the bridge, but I love that the movie doesn’t have the villain make that character decision for him. I mean, naturally we’re wanting to see him save the day so that Nickelback has a hero to wax poetic about, but it’s still a powerful moment when he manages to deny Goblin’s choice as to which identity holds more sway. In that moment, it isn’t a choice. In that moment, he has to be Spider-Man, not Peter Parker. And Spider-Man has to save everyone. It’s only later, when everything has settled, when that choice catches up to him. And he makes it. He chooses Spider-Man, but he does so on his terms, not Goblin’s.

‘Don’t tell Harry’ is my favourite moment in the entire Raimi trilogy. It gives this final, tragic layer to Norman as he dies – revealing that he still wants to be the man that his son respects and loves. And that line alone is the perfect evocation of the struggle in Peter’s dual identity. He saved the day, he beat the bad guy, but his best friend’s father is dead, and he can never tell him why.

Lastly I want to talk about a realization I had on this rewatch. Now, I’m inclined to think this is reading much further into it than the writers intended, but I like it, so it’s canon now. I had always wondered in the field trip scene why we get the showcase of the different spider abilities, but the movie never did anything with spiders being able to ‘change color to blend into their environment’. I wasn’t necessarily expecting Spidey to have a camo power, but the line sticks out as something we’re told they can do, and I wanted to see a callback to that somehow. I think you could make the stretch that his costume is him changing colour, but it doesn’t exactly make him blend in. Then it hit me. It’s Peter who brings up that fact about spiders, and at the end of the movie, it’s Peter who has to pretend he has no feelings for MJ, who has to lie to his best friend… who has to blend into his environment. Genius storytelling that is definitely deliberate and canon.

Anyway, I like this movie a lot. As a kid it was my favourite film, I watched it over 30 times and could quote every line. And after all this time and all these other Spidey movies, it’s nice to see it’s still pretty darn solid.

-

-

Rating:

[weeb-writor]

Bakugou Meets his Future Kids

Hiya! Long time no see! So I’ve been gone a while and today I was actually supposed to post the last part in the Aizawa mini series. That wont happen today because unfortunately even though me and my whole family have been super safe and only go to work and home I did test positive for Covid-19. I'm okay though just really drained and this was easier for me to finish. I'm hoping to have the Christmas fic up by the 28th at the latest, so sorry about that! For now I hope you can enjoy this! The kids do call reader mommy but there is no assigned gender! Anyone, any gender can be a mom!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Bakugou Katsuki x Reader

He meets his kids from the future in a troubling way

Words: 1896

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

It was supposed to be a normal day and it was for about 10 seconds. About 11 seconds in Bakugou had somehow been wrapped into a trip to the mall with most of the class. Bakugou prided himself on being a strong immovable boulder but when you asked could he come… lets say he had a temporary weakness. Now here he was at the food court as you all argued over what to eat.

“Is there a place that sells soba?” Todoroki asked.

“Even if there is, we aren't eating there! You always eat that!” Mina said, pointing at the boy who looked back a little deflated.

“I think we’ll be okay getting soba, his obsession with soba is super cute!” you said with a small laugh. This had Bakugou craning his neck. Only ever eating one thing was not cute, how could you think that!

“Like hell we are, Come on Y/n were getting a burger.” Bakugou said standing and pulling you away you didn't get far before you all heard someone crying and yelling. You and the rest of the class looked at each other once before you dashed in the direction of the cries. Arriving on the scene you see 3 kids surrounding a boy who was crying while one was holding back a girl who seemed to be crying in anger. 

“Hey what the hell is going on here?” Kirishima said in a scolding tone. The kids turn around and pale probably recognizing the group of soon to be Pro-Heroes.

“Nothing we should be going, later losers.” The kids said quickly scattering into the crowds at the mall. The girl quickly ran to the boy's side still crying.

“It's alright, you don't have to cry, I have a first aid kit if that helps.” You said trying to console the kids. At your voice both of the kids looked up at you before tackling you in a crushing hug, sobbing even more. You looked up at your class confused; they only shrugged at you.

“Mommy! I'm sorry, I took Hiroyuki from school and we followed you and then we got hit with that big scary guy's quirk and then we ended up here and we been here for like 2 days. I'm sorry!!” The girl cried, rubbing her eyes furiously.

“Uh um sweetheart, I'm sorry you got lost but my teachers will help you. We’ll find your parents I promise.” You said rubbing her checks.

“But you're our mommy.” The young girl sniffled.

“I'm not, you must be confused. I'm L/n.” You said, smiling at them as they seemed to tear up.

“That's not funny mommy, stop joking right now.” The girl said, shaking her head, more tears spilling from her eyes.

“Sorry kid they aren't joking, L/n doesn't have any kids.” Denki said, crouching to meet her eyes.

“Are you mad cause we didn't listen? Are you gonna send us away?” The girl said, beginning to cry even more.

“Stop making my sister cry!!” The boy said with tears in his eyes, the tears were short lived as explosion went off all around them. Everyone looked at Bakugou who was quietly watching

“It's not me, it's one of them.” He said with his teeth gritted. The class didn't have time to figure it out as the explosion stopped and they saw their teacher next to them.

“It’s always something with you guys. Hey kids I'm gonna need you to come with me so we can sort this out.” He said offering his hands to them which they didn't hesitate to take. The walk back to the school was relatively short and quiet. Now they were all sitting outside of recovery girls office waiting on some kind of news.

“I think i know what's happened. They kept calling you mom, right?” You nodded at her with a small smile.

“Well while I was trying to heal them I asked them some questions to make sure their heads were on straight. Their answers were very much incorrect to us but also not completely insane. For Example Dynamight, Deku, and Shoto are all top 10 heroes. The league of villains are no more and I'm dead. I examined their bodies and it seems they were hit with a time travel quirk from the looks of it. Not sure when it will wear off but my best recommendation is for them to remain under L/n and Easerheads care, I will check for any signs of it wearing off, every other day.”

“Huh? Is Easerhead their dad! Do you and L/n get married in the future?! That's kind of kinky…” Mineta said with a gross smile

“No, you creepy child. It seems they do like him though.” Recovery girl said with a sigh. You thanked her and went into the room.

“Hey, did recovery girl explain what happened to you guys?” You said as you approached them.

“Uh huh she said we went in the past to where you and papa were students. Like in the pictures on the walls.” The girl said.

“Mhm very good, so can you tell me your names? Then we can go hang out with my friends and eat something!” You said with a smile.

“Hiroyuki…” the boy mumbled.

“I’m Kaori!” The young girl cheered at you. You thanked them and guided you out the door and found your friends and teacher waiting. You led them to the dorm lunge where food was waiting on them.

“So which one of you have an explosion quirk?” Kirishima said as the kids were eating.

“We both do, kind of.” The girl said absentmindedly. “Mom says I make explosions from the heat of the food I eat, I like spicy stuff.” She said with a smile.

“Oh okay cool! But no spicy stuff for you.” Denki laughed at the girl who wasn't exactly happy.

“What about you, little guy?” Sero asked the younger one. The little boy looked at Sero before burying his face in his hands and shaking his head.

“Yuki, has a really cool quirk! Mom says he works like a gas stove! He leaks this stuff that's like propane! Then he can ignite it based on how he is feeling! Angry or emotional means bigger explosions! It comes from his pores or his hand.” The girl chimed in for her brother. He was upset at her words and ran to Aizawa.

“Sorry, we didn't mean to make you uncomfortable!” Mina said as she couched to the level of the boy who further hid his face into Aizawa legs.

“It's okay, kid, Bakugou has an explosive quirk, it's cool!” Denki said with his flashy smile.

“We don't care about that old man's quirk!” The girl said fresh tears on his face.

“What’d you say you little brat?! I’m not an old man!” Bakugou roared back to Kaori.

“You are a mean old man and I hate you! Its all your fault I'm stuck here without my real mom and papa! I hate you! I hate you so much Papa!” The little girl roared back before running back to you crying.

“Papa?” Kirishima echoed quietly.

“Kaori, you shouldn't yell at people or tell them you hate them it's a mean and strong word.” You said crouching down to her level and stroking her cheek.

“B-but it's all his fault. He said me and Hiroyuki were weak and and we couldn't do much because we're kids and it's best for us to stay out of Hero’s way! Like were burdens!” She said growing further agitated.

“And I was right, you followed your mom and you both got hurt when you shouldn't have been near the battle anyway.” He said with a frown.

“But that doesn't mean we are useless and can't do anything by ourselves! WE ARENT DUMB!” She yelled back at him.

“Future me didn't say you were dumb, he, I just want you to be safe. It's best for you and your brother to stay out of the way for now. However, that doesn't mean your a burden or dumb.” Bakugou said seriously. The little girl didn't say anything further and just threw herself into her your arms. Hiroyuki came from in between Aizawa’s legs and also threw himself at you.

“Okay enough mingling for today I guess, time for bed! I’ll be right back guys.” You said as you carried both kids off to your dorms with surprising grace. Once you were gone the group turned to Bakugou.

“Papa, huh Bakugou?!” Denki said with a chuckle.

“It's too surprising! I didn't even know you had a crush on L/N!” Mina said with a pout.

“Really? it was pretty obvious Bakubro had a crush though. Literal tiny explosions go whenever L/n is near.” Kirishima said with a cute head tilt.

“The hell they do.” Bakugou said angrily.

“No they do, I’ve had to stop them a few times now.” Aizawa said with his weird grin.

“I can't believe it though, they are so cute! Kaori is so much like you and I cant believe Hiroyuki’s quirk is so kickass!” Sero said rubbing the back of there necks.

“Well of course they got kickass quirks. With me and L/N as parents there’s no way they wouldn't!” Bakugou said flushed red.

“I'm just glad you cleared up everything with them. It would be pretty bad if they went back mad at the future you, or thinking something damaging like that.” Deku said with a sigh. Finally you were back with no kids, at least it looked like you didn’t have kids.

“So this parenting shit is pretty hard!!” You said as two figures came from behind your legs. They blushed before pointing to Bakugou and then back at your dorm.

“Use your words.” Bakugou said, cocking an eyebrow at the flustered kids.

“Story, Papa.” Hiroyuki slurred out.

“I'm sorry for saying I hate you… I didn't mean it.” The young girl said softly

“You better be, that's a strong word. Now let's go to bed.” Bakugou said nonchalantly as he picked up both kids and walked back to your dorm. The kids remained with you two for about a week and half. You learned lots like you and Bakugou have twins on the way and still want at least one more. Hiroyuki loves Aizawa because he is able to keep his quirk under control around him and they both have an addiction to cats. Bakugou is indeed amazing at everything except anger management. When they left it was during one of your cuddle sessions and boy did you cry like a baby.

BONUS:

“It’s been almost 2 weeks, where could they be?? What if they’re…” You said into Bakugou's chest.

“They’re fine, okay? Our brats are tough so wherever they ended up in time doesn't matter they’ll kick anyone's ass.” Bakugou said, trying to console you. You didn't get a chance to respond before you dogs went crazy at the knock at the door. You yelled for however it was to come in and you thought your mind was playing tricks on you.

“Don't worry they are just drowsy.” Aizawa said with the two kids in his capture weapon trailing behind him. Bakugou was the first to move and was on his knees, in tears in seconds.

“You idiots! Never, ever do that again.” He said hugging him like his life depended on it.

[reminiscingtonight]

Favorite Record

Wanda Maximoff x Reader

Word Count: 2506

Anon asked: can I order a Wanda x reader inspired by Fall Out Boy's Favorite Record song?

Warning: Brief mention of underage drinking

A/N: One order of Wanda with a side of fluff, coming right up!

Taglist: @mionemymind, @supersourlemon13

“Get in, loser.”

Wanda looks up from her spot on the porch with an unamused look on her face. You’re leaning on your elbows out the side of your car window, sunglasses pushed to the top of your head so you could see your best friend. In her opinion the sun wasn’t bright enough to require the protective lenses but then again you always made fun of her for having “eyes of steel” (“That’s not a saying.” “Would you like me to call you ‘she who doesn’t fear the sun’? That’s such a mouthful”).

She had heard your car approaching her street a while ago, the screeching tires on the pavement announcing your presence long before you came into view. Everyone kept telling you to change your worn out tires but you were going to sell the car in a month once school was out and you left for the west coast anyways, so you didn’t really take their suggestions into consideration.

Climbing into your car Wanda mutters out a soft, “I’m never going to call you to come pick me up again.”

“Pff, who else would you call? Natasha?” You both knew that she would never call the redhead for a ride. Not unless she didn’t mind a dysfunct seatbelt, broken side mirrors, and, of course, being driven by a homicidal maniac who drove at least 30 above the speed limit at all times. It was an unspoken rule among all of your friends that Natasha was never allowed to take any of you out.

You patiently wait for Wanda to pull on her seatbelt before putting the car back into drive and pulling off the curb. The two of you cruise in silence for a couple minutes before you speak up.

“Wanna tell me why I was called to be your getaway driver?”

She rolls her eyes, bringing a hand up to rub at her temples. “We’re going to need some booze before I tell you that story.”

You laugh, shaking your head at her antics. “Sorry babe, no can do. The crew drank the last of the vodka I had stored in the back of my trunk last weekend, remember?”

Some Sokovian swear words are grumbled under her breath as Wanda remembers the night in question. “Fine. Some music then.” Leaning towards the center, she moves to turn on your car stereo. 

“Nuh uh, hold it.” You bat her hand away before she can reach it. “No touching.”

“But--”

“Nope. The last time I let you touch my stereo you somehow broke the volume knob, the radio tuner, and the ‘load/eject’ CD button. I had to get the whole thing replaced.”

“Ugh, fine.” Wanda doesn’t even bother defending herself. There was no point in arguing when you were both there when it happened. 

You would be worried that she was angry at you but the smile she was trying to hide let you know that she was just pulling your leg. 

She leans back into her seat as you press some buttons, music softly coming out of the speakers.

“Where are we going?”

You shrug, noticing but not acknowledging the fact that she jumped over your question. You knew her well enough to know that she’d talk to you when she was ready. “Somewhere. Nowhere. Everywhere… Wherever you want to go.”

Wanda lets out a soft hum at your answer. “How ‘bout Lucy’s Diner? I’ve been craving some milkshakes and fries.”

You nod, the thought of food making your stomach rumble. 

It didn’t take long to get there, the two of you languidly strolling into the diner a few minutes later. 

Upon sitting down you decide to just order a chocolate shake while Wanda went for a vanilla one with a side of fries.

When your things come Wanda instantly catches you eyeing her plate. “Don’t even try.”

You give her an innocent look. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t.” She points a finger at you. “You’re not cute.”

“You love it.” That earns you an exasperated huff.

The dinging of the bell over the door signals the entry of another patron, and when Wanda lifts her head, attention momentarily drawn away, your hand darts out. A wrapper is flicked your way when you successfully snag a fry off of her plate.

“(Y/N)! You said you didn’t want any when we ordered!”

Quickly shoving it into your mouth you shoot her a sheepish smile. “Changed my mind.”

“Then go get your own.”

You pout. “You dare treat your best friend like this? I’m hurt.”

She shakes her head at you before reaching across the table, snatching your milkshake out of your hand. Your affronted look was ignored as she made a show of taking a large sip.

You grumble under your breath when she finally gives it back, half of your shake already gone. A wink is thrown your way and you can’t stop the way your eyes automatically follow her tongue licking up the remnants of the drink that didn’t quite make it into her mouth. You nervously cough before averting your eyes.

Aside from Wanda actively trying to murder you, this was nice. The two of you rarely had time to simply hang out anymore as you were both busy with getting ready for life after high school. You’ve missed spending time with her and the way Wanda was indulging your childishness also let you know that she did too.

After a few moments of silence you notice her movements faltering, a furrow appearing between her brows.

“Penny for your thoughts?”

Wanda has a distant look in her eye as if she had a lot on her mind. You don’t doubt that she probably did but she looked like she needed to get it off her chest.

It’s a couple minutes later when Wanda finally lets out a long sigh. You pause, another stolen fry halfway to your mouth. “My parents are heading out of town for another business thing. They won’t be back until July the earliest.”

Quickly swallowing, you frown. “But we graduate in June.”

Wanda nods, eyes now focused on her hands. She looks a little angry and you can’t help but feel annoyed on her behalf as well. “I get that their jobs are important and all that, but I think it’d be nice if they were here for the important stuff just once, you know? They always give us whatever we want, but sometimes it’s just not enough.”

You reach across the table to put your hand over Wanda’s, rubbing at her knuckles. You were well aware of how she felt about her parents’ constant business trips by now. You lost count a long time ago how many times either Maximoff twin trudged up to your house to crash at your place just because their absent parents were off on another conference overseas. “It’s okay to want your parents to do more, to care.”

Absentmindedly humming she flips her hand over underneath yours, tracing a finger along the crevice of your palm.

“I know. I just…” she sighs, fingers stilling against yours. “They promised that they’d be there. And when they told me and Pietro about their plans today I was just so mad that I just left. I think I might have broken my door by how hard I slammed it.”

You pause. “And then… you called me from your room?”

She softly nods, confirming your lay of what happened.

“Wanda.” She looks up from where she was still staring at your hands.

“You were waiting for me on your porch this afternoon.”

Her head tilts in confusion. “And…”

“Maxi, are you telling me you snuck out of your house through your bedroom window?”

Just like that you break the serious mood. You see the tension melt from her shoulders as she chuckles at your words.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say I snuck out of my house. I just didn’t tell anyone where I was going.”

“You also didn’t use the front door like a normal person.”

Wanda snorts. “What are you, my mom?”

“You wish your mom was as cool as me.”

---

When the two of you finish eating you walk out of the diner hand in hand. You’ve done this numerous times before so you’re not sure why this time something felt different. You shake the feeling away. Today was about Wanda, not you. You could figure out your feelings later.

Once you get to your car you wonder if you should take the two of you back to her place or head somewhere else. Almost as if she could read your mind, Wanda speaks up.

“Can we just… I don’t know, drive around? I don’t really want to head home yet.”

She’s nervously chewing on her bottom lip, anxious at the thought of having to go home. You throw an arm around her shoulder, keeping her close. Her head automatically comes to a rest against your collarbone. “Of course, Wands. Whatever you want.”

Back in the car it’s not long before the two of you are playfully arguing over your stereo again. When Wanda starts complaining about the music choice coming from the radio you purposefully switch it to the classical music channel, blasting it as loud as it could go.

“You are such an ass.”

“Noted.”

“I just want to plug in my phone to the aux.”

“No.”

“(Y/N)--”

“No.”

“I will literally only touch the aux cord. I’ll even let you control the music once it’s in.”

“Permission to control the things in my own car? Geez, thanks,” you sarcastically shoot back.

“You’re no fun.” Wanda huffs out, placing her feet up onto the dash.

“Maxi,” you warn. Everyone knew your distaste for people putting their feet on places other than the floor in your car.

She gives you a ‘what are you going to do about it?’ look, not moving an inch.

You groan at her. “You are so feisty today.”

“Noted.” You roll your eyes at her clear attempt to mimic your earlier words.

Two could play that game. “You’re no fun.”

“Take that back. I’m fun. I am so much fun.” 

You laugh at her faux look of outrage. Deciding to grant her some mercy, you change back the station.

It falls back into quiet as you focus on driving and Wanda looks at the view out the window. 

When you pass by an empty field you’re suddenly hit by an idea. Wanda peers at you curiously when you pull the car over and hop out.

 “What are you doing?”

She can hear a song playing on your phone and she has to stifle a laugh when you horribly mimic doing the waltz by yourself. Let’s just say she got a kick out of watching you try to dance along to hard rock music.

Wanda watches you with an amused smile on her face for a couple more seconds before you’re beckoning at her to come join you 

“Come dance with me!”

“You look like an idiot.”

“Then we can look like idiots together!” 

“You can’t slow dance to Rancid.”

“Watch me.” A laugh breaks free when she watches your moves quickly turn into you randomly flopping your arms around. “Come on, it’s fun!”

Wanda shakes her head at your tactics but gets out, taking your outstretched hand.

You instantly pull her in, twirling her around. Her face is red with laughter by the time you stop. When you start pulling exaggerated dance moves she joins in.

To any bystander driving pass the two of probably looked like you were high off drugs or something. Neither of you found it in yourselves to care.

By the time the song is over both of you are doubled over, stomachs cramping by how hard you were laughing.

Soon you guys are back on the road. By now the sun was slowly sinking in the sky, its orange hue turning purplish.

You couldn’t help but bask in your happiness. You couldn’t remember the last time the two of you went out and did random things together. It was fun.

A part of you knows you’re going to miss this when you go off to college in the fall. Wanda had opted to stay in New York with most of your friends while you were headed out to California. Everyone made promises to keep in touch, but you weren’t too sure how long that’d last.

Lost in your thoughts you’re not paying attention to anything other than the road until Wanda’s suddenly excitedly screeching at you.

“Turn it up!” Her favorite song was playing through the speakers and when you don’t move fast enough Wanda reaches over, fiddling with the volume knob of the stereo. You don’t have the heart to slap her hand away. The grin that overtakes her face when she realizes you’re not stopping her was more than worth it. You could spend forever just watching her face light up in joy.

“At least roll the window up.”

“You’re such a spoilsport. Singing with the window down is the best way to enjoy music.”

“It’s also the best way to get a ticket for noise pollution.” You laugh when she pouts at you.

Knowing that she wouldn’t pull it up herself you pull on the window button on your side. Wanda catches on immediately, quickly pushing down on the button next to her. What happened next could only be described as frantic clicking of buttons from two of you as the window gets caught in a cycle of moving slightly up and then back down, not really going anywhere.

When she uses her free hand to start poking at you you stop trying to close the window.

“Okay, okay, fine,” you chuckle, placing both of your hands back on the steering wheel.

Victorious, Wanda sings at the top of her lungs to the song and all subsequent songs that follow. You grin, her optimism quickly growing on you.

It strikes you then, watching the way her hair flowed in the wind, the way she was so carefree as she jumped around in her seat how much you cared about her. The two of you were always tittering over the edge of what could be deemed “friendly” so it didn’t really come as a shock to you. You think back to your hesitance to leave her behind in the fall, to your hand holding from the diner, to the playful jabs in the car, and it all seems to fit like a puzzle.

The words feel natural when they come out of your mouth.

“I’m in love with you.”

Wanda simply tilts her head to catch your gaze. “Yeah?”

You nod. “Yeah.”

She flashes you one of her soft smiles before her hand finds its way towards yours. Flipping your hand over from where it was resting on the center console, she laces your fingers together. Neither of you say anything, hands intertwined as the car drove underneath purple skies with no destination in mind.

[dancingintheraindreamingonday]

My loyalty can be bought - Chapter 7

Author’s note: The journey is almost over. Maybe two more chapters. Sometimes I want to write thousands of words but that would probably bore you. Thanks to everyone who reads my stories. It means the world to me. 

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6

„When was this picture taken?“ Bucky, Sam and Zemo, the golden trio, stand in Sharon Carter’s apartment looking at all her illegal paintings. But a certain framed picture got Bucky’s attention. On this picture was Sharon and you.  A cigarette was between your fingers and a bottle of Vodka was in the other hand. Your wedding ring wasn’t on your left ring-finger anymore. Instead you wore it as a necklace. You looked different. Your hair was darker than usual and you wore more make-up. If Bucky hadn’t memorize every feature of your body he wouldn’t have recognize you.

„Three years ago… I think… During that time (y/f/n) and I were pretty close but now not anymore. I think that’s a side effect when you are the vice-director of SHIELD. She doesn’t trust me anymore.“

Bucky didn’t know what shocked him most. You being vice-president of SHIELD or you not trusting Sharon anymore. After all, you and Sharon were really good friends. 

„She said my loyalty can be bought and that’s not a good character trait.“ Sharon continues talking as she pours herself a glas of whiskey.

Bucky jumps to his feet and pushes Sharon against the wall who drops the glas. „Bucky!“, Sam screams and stands right behind Bucky. „What the hell are you doing?“

„And did you sell your loyalty to the one who kidnapped (y/f/n)? Did you?“, Bucky shouts at her.

He knew it. Right from the beginning when they met Sharon after all those years. Something was off. She’s not innocent

Sharon doesn’t look at Bucky but instead at her mobile phone. Sam follows her gaze, unlocks the phone and finds a voice message of you just a day before the abduction: 

„Tell your little friends to stop following me. I don’t like being followed, Sharon. I know the identity of the power broker and I also know that SHIELD is infiltrated by HYDRA again. I’m neither blind nor naive. Why are you working with her, Sharon? I thought you hated Valentina. Why are you cooperating with her? I’m warning you. Leave them alone. Leave my family alone.“

The call ends. Your voice still hard and strong, echoing through Bucky’s mind. 

„Where the hell is she? If you want to live you better tell me.“

„She knew how this would end. (Y/f/n) played with fire and got burnt. You really think she’s still the same quirky and naive teenager who just lived for the love of a man. Wake up, Bucky. How do you think she got the job at SHIELD? You still trust her even thought she kept all the secrets.“ Sharon tries to free herself but Bucky’s grip is too strong. „Did she tell you that the first year of being a mother she wasn’t even with her child because of her depressions? She gave the kid to Tony and Pepper. Did you know that? Did she tell you how close she was with Clint Barton? Did she tell you about the huge argument she had with Steve and that they weren’t on speaking terms for 3 years? Did she tell you that she lived in Madripoor for months? And did she tell you that she was with Barton on their criminal missions? No, I bet not. She’s still acting like this weak woman around you but believe me. She’s not innocent.“ Sharon spats in Bucky’s face. 

„For the last time. Where is she?“ Not responding to Sharon's accusations.

„I’ll show you because she’s probably already dead. It was her or me and after all she was right about one thing: My loyalty can be bought.“ Sharon’s voice is filled with anger as she smiles at Bucky and Sam wickedly.

Sharon leads the way, a gun is pointed in her back. „If that’s a trap I’ll make sure you will regret the day you betrayed (y/f/n).“, Bucky whispers in her ear. 

After a while they walk into a dark building which is guarded with several soldiers with heavy guns. 

„They are with me. They wanna see the project.“

As they walk down the hall they see many doors with little windows. Bucky see other men and women in white hospital clothing laying on bed. 

„(Y/f/n) is our special guest. She’s in the last room.“

The last room has three more soldiers guarding the door. As they step aside and Bucky, Sharon, Sam and Zemo enter the room, Bucky’s heart drops. There you are. Unconscious and weak. Bucky pushes Sharon aside and walks directly to your bed. 

„Love?“, He caress your left cheek with his big hand. „Can you hear me? I need you to wake up. We have to get you out of here.“ He takes the syringe out of your arm and shakes you softly but you don’t respond. 

„I’ve brought them here as you wished.“, mumbles Sharon in her ear piece. 

The door opens again and soldiers run into the room to take their positions. „What a great day. Killing the winter soldier, the falcon and the vice-director of SHIELD. And this guy.“ A woman with black hair and big silver earrings walks into the room, looking from Bucky, to Sam, to you and to Zemo. „Good work, Carter. Well done.“, she pats Sharon on her shoulder. „You are Ms. De Fontaine. You were friends with Steve. How can you betray his legacy?“, Sam asks disgusted by her betrayal. „The world changes, Mr. Wilson. So does people and people’s goals.“ 

As Sharon and Valentina De Fontaine walk out of this room, Bucky and Sam, and even Zemo make themselves ready to fight. 

„Have fun, boys.“, Valentina chimes as the the door closed. 

15 soldiers versus 3 men. Bucky attacks first and then there was utter chaos. Punches, knife stabs and kicks. All you can hear are bones cracking, cries and thuds. Sam is pressed against the wall with no option to escape. „Any last words?“ , asks the soldier who points a gun at Sam. But before Sam could do anything the soldier collapses on the floor with a bullet in his left temple. Sam turns to his right. There is you. You lean against the wall with shaking legs. The gun is still in your hands as you whisper „Asshole“. While Sam and Zemo take the end of this fight as a small break to catch breath, Bucky rushes to you. He hugs you and kisses you dirty hair. „We need to get out of here.“ He grabs your hand as you all escape Madripoor. 

Later on the plane, Bucky looks at you intensively. „Why didn’t you tell me?“

You look at him confusion written on your face. „Tell you about what?“

„About everything. You and SHIELD; You and Steve and you and Barton. I didn’t know you were a couple.“ The last part hurts Bucky the most. He feels this green monster inside him roaring out of jealousy.

„Clint and I were never a couple. Maybe a couple of idiots and friends. But there was never more between us. Clint and I lost so much but we didn’t lose the love we had for those who we lost. At that time we were in so much pain and grieve. No, a romantic relationship was something both of us never wanted- not with each other or with anyone else.“, you reassure Bucky. He doesn’t show it but Bucky is relieved and happy. 

„There is still so much that I don’t know about you.“

„James, we broke up after you came back, remember? And people don’t really talk with their ex-partners.“

„Breaking up with you was the worst mistake I’ve ever made.“, whispers Bucky just for you to hear it. 

„It’s okay, James. I’m okay. We changed. We both did. You changed. I changed. Heck, our whole family and the whole universe changed. And love does the same too.“

„Mine didn’t.“, says Bucky. „My feelings for you never changed. I still love you.“

You smile at Bucky for a while, not reacting to his love confession immediately.

You lean your head against the cold window of the plane and close your eyes. You spoke so softly that Bucky almost missed it you say. „I’ll always love you.“

Chapter 8

Author’s note at the end: Sorry, for making Sharon kinda bad. I love the Sharon in the movies and I love the actress, so it’s definitely nothing personal. Did you notice how much my you-character changed? A few chapters ago in Bucharest she didn't notice that she and Bucky were being followed but now she's more aware of her surrounding. ;)

@inlovewith3 @jackiehollanderr @homesicam@dreamydreamerwriting @losers-club6 @gengen64@agentsofsheilds @crimson-darling @akkinda10 @xemine@bubblegumholland @chipilerendi @iamasimpingh0e @bbmommy0902 @madddiiee26 @teenagedreams-bucky @aya-fay @idontknowwhatthisisfam @w-wolfhxrd @useless-creature-213  @angywritesstuff @supernaturalcat7 @harrys-stan @geek-and-proud @pastel-boy-sungjae @austynparksandpizza @maxsaturdayhatesnarwhals @teenagedreams-bucky

[didon]

Rashta, Navier and the true villain of The Remarried Empress

Listen, I don’t like Rashta. I don’t think I really need to explain why as most people clearly don’t. I think that she’s using very underhanded techniques to get what she needs and more. Because we all need safety and she comes from a place and status where she clearly need reassurance and that’s understandable. I find her annoying though because of the way she act and how she manipulate people. That’s my opinion. Navier clearly isn’t the only one she has hurt though so we can maybe stop using a sexist term like “Mary Sue” to describe her. The same way we need to watch our language about Rashta.

Now, I do believe that most of the hate should go on the Emperor even though it won’t because fandom is always more willing to hate on a “handsome” man rather than on any woman no matter how beautiful they are. Especially if they uses that beauty like Rashta does which was very common and still is. Not only is he the one truly being an ass to his wife, but he could have easily had people teach Rashta how to behave from the get go. Instead, he enjoys her ignorance because it satisfy his idea that he is this great person that everybody would love if they met. He cannot understand why Navier hasn’t fallen for him, despite not loving her himself, and need someone to reassure him that he is the gift to humanity he was probably told he was a thousand times growing up. He’s the true villain because he hurts both of the women, uses them to get what he wants, etc. For those that have read to the right part, let’s remember what is divorce plan actually is and how ridiculous it is.

I don’t think though that people should blame Navier for being “cold” (not that I’m seeing it here but still). She’s a young woman who was raised with an immense amount of pressure on her and she was probably taught that every single one of her actions have consequences. They actually do because whoever she talks to can be seen as favored and therefore will probably boast about it. The clothes she wear have an influence, her hair, etc. She can’t even unburden herself on anybody because that would be seen as weakness and as the Emperess she’s not allowed to have any. She has “everything” but not really because she is alone and not allowed to truly want or need for anything. Heck, people would probably talk if she were to express anything because how dare she need/want for anything, her who already has everything. She’s not even allowed friends that don’t work for her per her husband driving them away. She’s a bird that’s locked in a cage at all time and yet isn’t allowed to sing because it would make the free birds outside cry. She didn’t choose her life either, she was forced into it by her family.

That wasn’t my point while starting this though. I wanted to ask since when did slavery = bad become a hot take? I get that this is fiction, etc. but what is fiction but a reflection of our world and our values. Yes there are places were men can have multiple wives and mistresses and the women can’t say anything about it, but that’s not the case in South Korea. We’re also not talking about adultery. We’re talking about the very fact that somebody can “own” another’s life and impose their will and desire onto them. No matter if it’s fantasy or anything like it, it’s never okay. I don’t know in which universe people live but seeing an abject crime against humanity done and go “but it’s fiction” isn’t a good reasoning. The same way pure racism isn’t okay because of “fiction” or abuse isn’t okay for the same reason. I get that Rashta isn’t the most pleasant character but still. Especially since we are told here that she might be paying for someone’s else crime. Imagine how ridiculous that is. Your ancestor stole a loaf of bread or flirted with the wrong woman and the leader of your country decided that generations after them must pay for them. I know we are told that only a true “horrible” crime result in slavery but that all depend on the leader and their view of what categorizes a horrible crime. For some historical leaders, being born was a crime. That’s not counting a mad leader deciding to make their enemies disappear by selling them into slavery. Does someone really deserve to be treated as less than human because they or their parents did not agree with the political leader?

Rashta is a victim of that and is a villain sure but at least we have actual reason for her doing what she does. She evolved from the naive and trustable person we met at first, but how can she not when she’s trust in a political world with no idea how to swim in it. She’s also very much aware that her origin make her less in everybody’s mind around her. Now, does everything she does is okay or the right course of action? Of course not it isn’t. She quickly loses her innocence and start playing the game just like everybody else but she doesn’t deserve hate for that. The same way she doesn’t deserve hate for trying to survive in a world of sharks. It’s not a question of not trusting the Emperor, which she is right to do by the way seeing how he’s treated his wife and how others are treated for doing less than she is, but a question of trying to come out of all of it with her head on her shoulders and enough to live on. Does she eventually get greedy? Maybe and in my actual opinion yes, but she didn’t start wanting to steal a husband and a kingdom from someone else. Men are constantly manipulating her and using her for their own wishes and she can’t turn toward any of the ladies either because she is very much aware of how precarious her situation is. Unlike Navier, she can’t rely on being raised for the role of mistress or even her losing her status causing a political problem. She’s a nobody being used by rich men as a plaything and trying to not come out as a loser. She might be going at it wrong, but she was never taught how to do it right and you have to remember all the men that are filling her with lies and mistrust. Because pretty much every single of her “schemes” have come from a man telling her a lie or giving her a bad advice.

What I think is very interesting in this webtoon is the duality of Rashta and Navier because in a way, they end up in similar situations. They are both women that have to survive court and nobles being faker than plastic while men are trying to use them for their own gains and who have nobody to truly be able to turn to. Eventually, Navier gains people like that, but the tragedy of Rashta is that she doesn’t. She might think she can trust some people, but none of the people around her truly have her best interest at heart. The best thing for her would have been for Navier to take her under her wing while Rashta refuses to be the Emperor’s mistress (I can never remember his name sorry). By having the very same position that grants her the “security” she so need and desire, Rashta put her best ally in an enemy position and that’s what’s going to be her downfall. She might be annoying and pushing it sometimes, but we know she will drown because she’s never been taught otherwise. That’s why the true villain will always have to be the Emperor because he’s not only the one who pitted the two women by taking one as a mistress while married to the other one, but he never took the time to truly help his mistress, expecting others and especially Navier to do so for him. He could have brought her back to the palace as a guest only and Navier would have probably taken Rashta under her wing like she does for many others, but by making her a rival to Navier, he destroyed any chances she had to be able to leave him and survive which I think was something he did deliberately. There’s no way he wouldn’t have known that this would be the actual ending. He wanted to keep Rashta bound to him until he was done with her otherwise he would have asked Navier to help set her up with housing and maybe even a job. Instead, he probably held her status and her gender against her and decided to use her beauty for himself.

The lesson of this story in my opinion isn’t that beautiful women shouldn’t be trusted or that you have to be pure of heart and your history a blank slate to be worthy or anything like that but instead a lesson for women on who to trust and that we are stronger together than separated. It’s also a very clear lesson on how appearances can be wrong and it asks us the reader to truly wonder what makes someone a villain. Does wanting to survive in a hostile world make you one? Does not wanting to let someone take what is yours and what you have worked for your entire life does? Or does wanting to use others for your advantage, control them and force them to need you make you a villain?