#so he definitely INDIRECTLY got her killed

[susiephone]

having just finished mockingjay for the first time, it is WILD how people talk about gale as if he killed prim on purpose

[thequeenofsastiel]

Soulless Spike fascinates me so much. We've never seen a soulless vampire care the way he did. I don't mean his love for Buffy, though that's definitely notable. I mean the way he was with Dawn. I'm watching 5x19 right now, and there's this scene in which Dawn is crying and telling Spike that she must be horrible because of how much suffering Glory is inflicting on the people she loves, and Spike is being gentle and comforting her. And this isn't the only time. I suppose you could argue that he treated her well so he could get in good with Buffy, but I really don't think so. I think he genuinely cared about her in a selfless fashion. Sure, the chip in his head stopped him from hurting humans, but it didn't change his personality. Soulless Spike had a streak of gentleness in him that no other vampire we've seen had.

You can see this as soon as he gets turned into a vampire. Other vampires murder their families and friends after they get turned. Instead he turned his mother, assuming that she'd live with him and Drusilla. And the fact that he had to kill her clearly broke his heart. He had familial love for her. We've only ever seen vampires have romantic love.

He was evil, yes. He did horrible things. But he had an ability to love and care for others that we've never seen. He loved Buffy so deeply that he devoted himself to caring for Dawn after she died, despite the fact that there was no chance he'd ever be with Buffy. Can you imagine Angelus doing that for anyone? If Angelus got a chip in his head he'd figure out a way to hurt people indirectly, just because he loved hurting people so much. Spike resigned himself to not harming humans. It didn't occur to him to try to hurt them indirectly. Or if it did, he didn't act upon it. Instead he started fighting evil with the Scoobies. He didn't have to do that. He could have simply fought demons by himself. But he chose to help them. Which is interesting in its own right.

Soulless Spike is the most fascinating character in the Buffyverse to me. I like ensouled Spike just as much when it comes to watching him, but I find soulless Spike the most interesting.

ETA: I just rewatched s4 and I'm rewatching s5 right now, and it looks like I was wrong about Spike helping the Scoobies instead of fighting demons on his own. He absolutely fought demons on his own and didn't start helping the Scoobies until he fell in love with Buffy.

[leth-writes]

Yandere batfam x reader part 4!

The cafe, Little Spoon, was extraordinarily quiet for this time of day; last time you had been the line had been out the door to get a drink, let alone sit at the tables and enjoy a meal. Yet, you supposed the complete lack of jobs and the constant villain attacks had created the perfect storm to kill most small businesses. In that light, you were happy such a small cafe was able to stay open, especially with the encroaching giants in the area. Sitting at the table, picking at your bagel with your head down, you felt shame. Having dumped your entire life story out for TIm and Jason to pick at, you felt weirdly hollow.

It felt like someone had scooped out your insides with a dull spoon, and you stared despondent down at your mangled bagel. Jason was texting again, and Tim was staring into the distance, lost in thought. You got the feeling you were the subject of his reverie. It felt weird, seeing them both so lost in their own worlds, especially after the intense way they had stared as you explained your reasoning behind choosing their family.

You didn’t know what to do now, and shame radiated through your core at facing the victims of your crime face to face. No matter how much you had apologized, and how much they had promised they didn’t mind, it still felt hollow, like you wouldn’t ever be able to make up for what you’d done.

“Well, I sicked Barbara on your landlord; if he’s got any dirt, she’ll dig it up.” Jason sighed as he plopped his phone down on the table, leaning back in his chair. “It’s probably a mafia connection. We’ll have to alert the … authorities.” Tim pondered, still half lost in thought and staring out the window. The idea of your landlord, the very one who had indirectly put you in this situation, and who you still hadn’t seen, having some sort of criminal connection had never crossed your mind; you couldn’t believe it was even possible. Hell, it was the type of thing to happen in film, not in real life! Yet, the more you thought about it, the more it made sense; it would explain the constant patrolling from the bats the last little while, you supposed.  You stared at Tim’s face in profile, noticing the sharp turn of his thin, high nose and his full, pink lips. You couldn’t believe you were soulbound, destined to have some sort of relationship that only time would reveal. You weren’t sure what your next steps were, but you felt guilty enough to do whatever Tim and Jason would suggest.

Jason abruptly stood up, making meaningful eye contact with Tim. “Hey, I’ll get you a coffee. Want anything else to eat besides that poor bagel?” He questioned you, a half-smile gracing his chiseled face. You shook your head mutely, unwilling to ask for even more. Besides, you weren’t feeling hungry, the anxiety killing any appetite you may have. Tim had turned to look back out the window, so you occupied yourself with glancing around the small room. The only other customer was a young Asian woman, maybe mid-twenties, with choppy black hair ending at the nape of her neck and flaming her face in floaty whisps. She was looking down at her phone, small mouth upturned into a smile, with her chocolatey dark eyes locked onto her screen. She was giggling slightly, evidently at the response from whoever she was texting.

As you attempted to get a closer look at her screen, both out of boredom and curiosity, Jason crossed your line of sight and sat a large porcelain cup and saucer in front of you. “Here,” he started, “It’s hazelnut. Drink up, then we can leave for the manor so you can meet the others”. You took a small sip as he sat down, looking behind you toward the door. 

“I’m sorry, I don’t really feel comfortable going to the manor. I can’t impose on your family, not after everything I did…” You responded, taking another sip of the rich, thick drink. Jason huffed playfully, rolling his eyes and smiling. “I told you it’s fine. You aren’t the first and you won’t be the last, but you’re definitely the cutest,” He smirked as you hiked your shoulders toward your ears in embarrassment. “Listen, the least you can do is meet the others. I’m sure they’d love to get to know you for who you really are, they’ve been curious for ages,” Tim turned toward you, staring earnestly into your eyes and gently gripping your free hand. 

“I… I don’t know…” You said hesitantly, pausing to take a large sip of the drink and glance out the window. What did you have waiting for you? Your apartment was empty and the neighbors weren’t exactly great company as of late, and the constant rejection while looking for work was definitely taking its toll. You yawned, overcome with a wave of sudden exhaustion. Your adrenaline must have crashed after it spiked earlier, you supposed. Through the fog of the exhaustion, you found yourself nodding along to their gentle affirmations as they led you out to the car that was now parked in front of the cafe. If you were more conscious, you would’ve questioned it, but the exhaustion wiped you out and you ended up passed out, laid over Tim’s lap as he ran his hand down your back and whispered reassurances.

Getting in the car was the final mistake that sealed your fate.

[locke-esque-monster]

I got real nervous they were doing Lila x Five really early in the season. It wasn't even explicitly stated, it was just a feeling from how they were setting up and framing things. Lila disagreeing with Diego and going to talk to Five. Lila keeping secrets from Diego that Five knew about. The tension of Five covering for Lila to Diego. Lila's dissatisfaction with her relationship with Diego and asking for a break. Without actively being romantically into Five, it kept setting up the narrative for Lila to leave Diego and Five was all tied in with what she was going to as an alternative to Diego. Add that to the promo pics with them together - even having watched it later and avoided spoilers I had a real bad feeling where this was going long before 4x5. (Or at least avoided until I already had my theory - my phone helpfully suggested an article days before I got to 4x5. I was not pleased to say the least.)

But there's a lot of reasons I take issue with this pairing and how it was done, so Christ, I guess let's get started:

Five explicitly stated in season 3 that Lila is not his type.

Five murdered Lila's parents. Sure, on the Handler's orders. But you think it's easy to have a romantic relationship when you know those hands killed your parents (aka my biggest critique of Tony/Bucky shippers in the MCU).

Five is indirectly responsible for the Handler's death. He saved everyone but her when he time traveled back. Sure, Lila was upset with her, but this woman raised her. She's got to have some complicated feelings about that and Five is all wrapped up in them now.

Five also had a weird relationship with the Handler, where she was a little flirty with him, which was all kinds of uncomfortable. Lila briefly mimicked this in season 3, which was even more uncomfortable. It's unclear if this was deliberately copying her "mother" or not. But adding Five and the Handler's complicated relationship on top of the other issues means there's a whole carousel of baggage to unpack here.

Five has always seemed kind of annoyed or tolerant of Lila, which extended into early this season. It's maybe a hair kinder at the start of season 4, but definitely not where it should be if there's potential here. It'd be one thing if they were friends after 6 years, but their relationship hasn't substantially changed at the start of this season to suggest otherwise.

If you have to do an all musical montage to show 2 characters falling in love, I'm sorry, you're not doing this right. That's telling, not showing. These characters have had tons of interactions to build off of. If you can't do that, then you're effectively saying that you have no foundation for this relationship.

Also, if it takes 6 1/2 years of being each others sole companions under adverse conditions for you to get together - maybe you shouldn't be together. It's one thing if it's treated like "Finally" or "Oh I didn't think you also felt this way". It's another if it's like it's a new idea entirely - that suggests loneliness and a desire for companionship and they're you're only option.

Five's history includes him having a pseudo-romantic relationship with a mannequin when he's left alone in the apocalypse at 13. The next time he's separated from his family for years he's with Lila. I'll allow that it makes sense he developed feelings for her specifically because of his history. That said, that makes this a wholly unhealthy relationship when he has a history like that. Lila is filling a gap Five's psyche has clung to before in similar harrowing times.

Frankly, the fact Lila was first looking for excitement out of her home life and is now upset she can't get back to her family isn't a good headspace either. (I'm also deeply frustrated that Lila feels trapped at home. Lila is so capable and she has a buttload of family members who apparently can take their children on a whim during all this chaos. You're telling me she couldn't have found a better outlet to work on their marriage or get some freedom before it got to this point of lying to Diego?)

Five is volatile and Lila is unpredictable. They're nothing but a menace to practically every other character they meet, including each other. But once they're a couple, they're perfectly pleasant the whole time. I don't buy it. The only fight they have is when Five lied to her. I'm not saying they can't be sweet. But this is all sweetness. For me to buy this couple they need to lovingly bicker. Instead, they've both had personality transplants.

So they decide to go back to the greenhouse after 6 years 5 months and 2 days. Five admits to having the book 5 or 6 months on their 7th anniversary of being lost. Let's be generous and assume they kissed within a couple days of getting to the greenhouse, because they look reasonably settled. That means that best case, Five decided that after being in a relationship for less than 2 months, he was going to throw his whole family away and run away with Lila. That is a hell of a lot of commitment for a short relationship.

And keep in mind, it's not like their family is safe. Last they heard, they hadn't solved the Cleanse. So they're either actively in danger or dead. Five - The man who spent 45 years trying to save his family. Who survived decades in the apocalypse alone (minus Delores the mannequin) and murdered his way through time for the chance to get back and save them - is going to let his family die for a 2 month relationship. I call bullshit.

Also, I will give Five credit that he tried to stay on task during the fight with the Cleanse. He only seemed to fight in retaliation for Diego - he actively looked towards the fight at least once before Diego pulled his attention. But you're telling me he's ready to keep fighting Diego and is threatening to kill him over Lila? That his powers only work correctly after 7 years of having them back because Lila begged him? I once again call bullshit.

And Five was going off to mope alone and never come back and potentially let his family die from an active threat, all because Lila didn't pick him? That is not the Five I know.

I also feel like we maybe did all this arc to get Lila to the point where Five has to convince her to stay because no one else could even if she hates him for it, but still get her family on the train to get the planned ending. And that feels very clunky and I hate it.

Outside of plot lines - it is a bit disturbing to me that we're pairing up an actor whose barely an adult with a woman 15 years his senior - practically old enough to be his mother. This is a aside from the fact he's a what, 71 year old man internally at this point and Lila (if we assume even living at the commission she's a similar age to Diego) is in her early 40s by the time she kisses a physically mid-20s Five. There's so much about that I am not okay with I don't even know where to start.

I also hear the writers wanted a romance for Five. First, okay, then have a longer season. Develop a character for Five earlier on in the season or the show you can pair him with. God knows with that history and age issues it'll be tricky. But also frankly - why? Why does Five need a romantic love interest? He's been fueled by the love of his family and that's done so many impressive things out of love for them. Not everyone needs a romantic love of their life to find happiness and it feels very heteronormative (is that the word I want?) that we need to have that for Five. Give Five an apocalypse-free world and his family alive and then we can see what happiness he can find.

[chasingwhitebunnies]

I feel a bit silly writing this because I’m sure other people must have but I’ve not seen anything about it

(SPOILERS - I’ll also tag)

I really love how we see Coriolanus’s character descent into who he becomes through each of his kills

His first kill is Bobbin. It was self-defence, kill-or-be-killed. If he hadn’t done it, he probably would have been killed himself, but this sticks with him. Coriolanus is horrified when he realises he took someone’s life. He thinks about it for a long time.

His next kill is Mayfair Lipp, the mayor’s daughter. It’s not self-defence, but he sees it that way. In a way, he’s got a point. She would have reported him, and he would have been hanged. So would Lucy Gray, so he shot her. This time, however, he had a choice. Maybe not much choice, but it was there. He chose to shoot her, but it doesn’t affect him anywhere near as much as Bobbin’s death

The third is the hardest. He doesn’t pull the trigger or tie the noose, but he might as well have. He betrays Sejanus. Sejanus who loves him like a brother. Sejanus who he has known since they were children. He made the decision in a moment and he questions himself afterwards, but he still made that choice. He reasons to himself internally that it was necessary and Sejanus was bound to get himself in trouble, anyway, right? Right? So it’s okay. But it’s not okay. The blood is on his hands and he keeps thinking of the moments they spent together before the betrayal. He benefits from his death and is rewarded for his loyalty. How ironic

Next is Lucy Gray. Possibly. For argument’s sake, let’s say he did kill her. He calls out for her, his gun slung over his shoulder. He realises how she might be scared, the gun sending the wrong message… but he doesn’t put it back. He brings it with him, not to use it, he tells himself. He would never use it, definitely not. He just… wants to talk some sense into her. As soon as the snake bites him, he abandons all pretence. Even though he admitted moments ago he understood why she would be scared, now she’s the enemy. Now she has to pay. How dare she. Not even an hour ago, he had plans to run away with her. He claimed he loved her. They were going to be together. Now, he’s chasing her through the trees with a gun in his hands and he’s screaming for her to show herself. He shoots a lot. When he thinks he finally got her, he’s pleased. It was her own fault, he tells himself, for the snake trick. Even afterwards, when he finds out that the snake wasn’t venomous - which Lucy Gray definitely would have known and therefore was only intended to slow him down - he doesn’t have a single moment of regret. The only thing he regrets is falling for her in the first place and he swears he’ll never do it again. His heart is stone. Frozen like snow.

Finally, his last kill (before the ones that take place once this book ends) is Dean Highbottom. This is the first kill that is not made in a split-second. This is premeditated. He carefully adds just enough rat poison to the morphling, sure to wear gloves, and sets his plan in motion. He has every opportunity to change his mind, to not resort to violent means. Not only does he not regret it, he feels proud. Excited, even. He hopes Dean Highbottom will know it was him that killed him

By the epilogue, Snow has gotten over (or buried deep enough) what guilt he had over Sejanus enough to use the Plinths’ grief to his advantage without any conflicting feelings. He’s convinced himself Lucy Gray was the villain who played him, when she was just a sixteen-year-old girl who was forced into a terrible situation. As we know, he goes on to directly and indirectly kill thousands between TBOSAS and THG, too many. I doubt he remembers most of them, just nameless, faceless children. He doesn’t care anymore, not like he did the first time

The whole world is his Arena. Snow lands on top until it melts

[autism-connoisseur]

this has DEFINITIVELY been talked about before but idgaf. something about this shot-- about oswald holding the last thing connecting kristen to ed after he has all but taken her place in his life (lee even unknowingly compared them DIRECTLY!!) and yet matches ed for ALL he is... after he passed the 'test' that kristen didn't, after he not only accepts ed's homicidal streak but actively engages with it, when the first thing they did together as friends was to violently torture & kill a man, someone who had indirectly hurt oswald that ed brought as a gift to him, when the reason kristen and ed wouldn't work out was that after he did the same (got rid of a man who had hurt her) kristen didn't accept him for it... and yet, did ed kill dourghy for kristen or for himself? he definitively enjoyed it, he had wanted to do it ever since he saw the way he had hurt kristen AND the way he treated him when he confronted him about it, and he hid what he had done from her because he must've known she would hate him. and yet mr leonard was a GIFT for oswald, so he could take action and revenge, to cheer him up. because sure ed WANTED to see oswald work but he wanted to do something for him more and that's why when mr leonard didnt work he went for the song. because the goal was to see oswald be the man he used to be.

tldr oswald is to ed what kristen could have never been. its not that he has replaced her is that the place she occupied in ed's life was always meant for oswald because all ed wants is for someone to see all parts of him and not turn away and that's exactly what oswald did. that is why he's the one that gets to get rid of her once and for all. metaphorically speaking.

[nalyra-dreaming]

Re: the other anon regarding armand, I'm on the complete other spectrum of this, to me it doesn't make sense why they don't kill armand 😅😅

I mean killing Nicky (even indirectly ) and killing claudia AND Madeleine? (Very much directly)

side rant follows

(I don't know how louis didn't lose his temper every day he woke up and saw his face as a reminder of his betrayal

"Good morning love of my life who knew I was going to be brutally murdered and humiliated infront of an audience but kept lying to my face for months but changed your mind and saved me at the last minute thaaanks" )

((And then he actually wanted to sell this as a win to Daniel 😭😭))

But most of all I don't get how LESTAT let's armand live! In the books as well but in the show now he even wants Louis dead! He wanted gabrielle dead ! Killed Nicky and claudia!

In the books we never get it but in the show I'd love to see armand somehow finally meeting the consequences of this own actions and realizing the immense pain he has caused

(Not that he hasn't been through enough pain in his past that definitely can explain his actions)

I think Louis blamed himself for her fate quite a lot. I mean the reunion scene, if real or not, is him taking responsibility.

And he got to know Armand quite a bit over those decades AND he got to realize quite a bit about the vampiric life style... because a lot of realizations had not set in yet when they left Lestat. The reality of their life and what it means - and not means ... the truth to Lestat's words at times.

All that was something Louis grappled with, and what he finally came to terms with, at least to a certain degree.

As per Lestat... well. Lestat is quite forgiving, because he knows suffering. He has suffered. He also knows what kind of circumstances Armand was stuck in - for centuries. And though Lestat took one look and "noped out" (to put it a bit flippantly) he did realize what a shit show it all was for Armand.

And ultimately he also blames more himself than Armand.

Because while Armand did what he did... he very much did what he did within his range of logic, so to speak. He behaved very much in character.

And both Lestat and Louis... know that. Later, at least.

But that's also why the biggest punishment for Armand is, ultimately, them not being with him the way Armand wants them to. And, I mean though they are closer later on... they are not with him. Not like that.

Because Armand did what he did and did not manage to escape his own (very much influenced) mind set. Unfortunately.

[kigozula]

Jacks definitely fell for Evangeline much earlier before the end of TBONA. It doesn’t matter if he needed her for the Valory Arch, this guy protected her by reflex many times and genuinely worried for her. He was even angry when Evangeline thought the worst of him (which he deserved from her pov). He was mad when he saw her struggling under Chaos, yet couldn’t do anything because it would ruin her.

Chaos indirectly told Evangeline that Jacks cares about her. In the Hollow, no matter what his original and current plan was, he left it behind to stay there with Evangeline. If it wouldn’t have been for Evangeline, Chaos and Lala, Jacks was happy with Evangeline there and put everything behind. It was her that made him leave.

And it was so sad. Jacks was hurt ans Evangeline was hurt. He just wanted to believe she loved and wanted him the was he does. He wanted to stay in the hollow with her. I got so sad myself*-*

Both Chaos and Lala noticed and sensed since OUABH that they have growing feelings. Especially about Jacks since they know him better.

In ACFTL, he admitted he thinks about her and wants her from the beginning. But he lied to himself because he would hurt her (that’s what he thought). And tell me all what you want, but I am still not convinced that all his goal was going to Tella. And if, then it actually became a plan at the end to save Evangeline. Because if she can’t remember him, the risk of hurting her decreases. And after her memories were taken away, he realized how much it hurts him. How much it would have hurt him even when he would have went to the past with the stones. He would always crave her, love her and want her.

I think he planned too much behind her back for the Valory Arch. But Jacks is a loyal man. He didn’t do all of it for himself. He did it for Chaos and Lala and the Valors too.

And since the curse on Evangeline that Lala put on her (I still can't believe no one was mad at her and she got away without any consequenses when she constantly hated on Apollo and Aurora although she did the exact things) would kill her, Jacks' motive changes again: to save Evangeline from the Archers and Mirror curse.

The only thing I truly hate is, and I also just skip because it is absolutely irrelevant, yet I want you guys to know: the Darling Sister, and the first fox disaster. The Darling thing was just for mock, to unnecessarily fill a page that made zero sense and was completely banal and disgusting. A page I rip. Though about the fox girl, it is confirmed that he wasn’t in love. Evangeline is the only girl ever he fell in love with. Cares for. Wants and loves.

And the things he told Lala. I absolutely think he is corrupt to lie to others and himself because deep down he knows telling the truth will hurt Evangeline, kill her.

And Apollo, oh boy. I wished he would have had another end. He clearly cared for Evangeline and his struggle in TBONA was so heartbreaking. Jacks saw that and that is why he told her in ACFTL that he believed she is safe with Apollo. I liked Apollo too and would have welcomed it if he would have had a happy ending himself. Same goes for Luc. Both of them got cursed and then their lives changed for the worse. And no one cared?

I honestly didn’t expect it to be like this, but I am so glad it is the way it is! Jacks true love as in, the only girl he truly fell in love with, loved so deeply and couldn’t stay away and who felt those things for him as well, is the one who breaks the curse. Which is Evangeline Fox!

[blues824]

Empress Navier has a male butler Sebastian Michaelis!Reader; he's sadistic and stubborn but he does care for her tremendously. Giving her good gifts, making sure she's healthy, creating hard-to-find secret places so she can de-stress in peace without fearing it'll be discovered by someone else (again). He's charming but sinister and can put down others without getting in trouble thanks to his silver tongue (and the fact he may be a demon, but that's up to you).

If he is a demon, he might not have a contract (he's just there because he's bored). He will be his Empress's shadow; waiting to strike at a moment's notice if he feels you've done the slightest wrong to her Majesty.

Preface: You are a demon, but you aren’t contracted yet so you’re killing an insignificant amount of time by serving the Imperial Families throughout time. It just so happens that you are serving Navier as her butler presently.

Sovieshu

You were a good butler, but he could tell that you had other intentions. You got close to his wife 1) because you genuinely cared about her and 2) you wanted to piss him off to no bitter end. But since you were still productive as head of housekeeping, Sovieshu couldn’t do much against you.

It was as though you were the one who was truly in control. You had power over the guest lists, you had power over the food and entertainment, and lastly you were the one who made sure that the guest rooms were up to standard (thus meaning you had the power to make or break political alliances).

The only thing is that the Emperor could tell that you harbored no romantic feelings towards the Empress. You cared for her well-being just as any employee would. The difference is that you don’t give a shit about him. You’ve indirectly insulted him a multitude of times, and he doesn’t even catch it until much later.

Another thing he absolutely despises about you is how charming and devilishly handsome you are. You can win over anybody you wished (read: rizz up anyone you wanted). Most of the women in the palace (and even Rashta) swooned whenever you would use your manners and bow down because you would say something along the lines of, “This way, my dear”.

Rashta

She first saw you as intimidating until she saw how cordial you acted towards her. You acted as though she was just any other person. You actually treated everyone like that, aside from Navier obviously because you were her butler. But that was understandable.

So, her first act as mistress was to beg the Emperor to make you her butler instead. She really felt a close connection with you, and saw you as a friend. However, Sovieshu quickly shut down her request and refused. No amount of crying or begging would change his mind.

Not only did you truly not care for Rashta, but your manners were forced. You knew her true intentions, and even though you weren’t in a proper Faustian contract with Navier, you still felt obligated to protect her from harm as her properly employed butler.

As a result, her infatuation with you turned sour. If you weren’t a friend, you were a foe, and she began to notice how you treat her like any other woman. You were known as a womanizer (mainly because of rumors she had spread, but also because you were definitely a lady’s demon), but you gave more attention to the Empress than any other person entirely.

Navier

You were competent and very diligent, and that’s what she likes to see in a butler. Your relationship is actually very professional. Whenever you display your more charming side, it’s never to her because you know that she wouldn’t fall for it. She typically rolls her eyes, actually.

If you were being honest, you actually liked working for Her Imperial Majesty. It was very calming, compared to some of your other contractees. You stayed of your own volition because of it as well. The things you have done for her; you’ve even designed an entirely separate garden that no one knows about so she can have a breath of fresh air.

Navier was probably the first person you’ve genuinely cared for. You made sure that she had a relaxing tea before she went to bed so that she may be well-rested for the next day. You got along with the handmaidens as well. You even helped her with planning the New Year’s Ball.

She didn’t mind your reputation of being a lady’s man. It didn’t matter to her, because rumors are just that: rumors. And even if you were, you were still a valued employee because you did your job perfectly. Even her husband had to admit that you were an efficient worker.

Heinrey

He thought you were a rival at first, but upon seeing that you did not desire a romantic relationship with Her Imperial Majesty, you became an ally. He often asks you what Navier likes so that he could increase his chances with her.

You both were known to be womanizers, but for him it wasn’t true. Since you joined him and Ergi via your reputation, you were one heck of a band of friends. However, there was a bit of passive aggressiveness between you and Ergi that Heinrey failed to notice because of his love for Navier.

The Crowned Prince of the Western Kingdom noticed how you treated the Empress with all due respect. Even though you were both charismatic and charming, you portrayed a nothing less than professional side of you.

When the whole thing with the divorce went down, you were there to assist where you were needed. You were the one to prepare the carriage that could conceal Navier in a more comfortable manner. After all, a Queen deserves a comfortable carriage.

[heyclickadee]

The first of several Tech Lives posts. I was going to do in show quotes, possible foreshadowing, and moments that are just kinda suspicious in one post, but just the quotes got too long. So, with the caveat that I’m arguing that I don’t think a Tech return was cut and that it’s just going to happen later than we expected, here’s a list of lines either said by or connected to Tech that could point to him coming back at some point:

"Better late than dead." Phee, as her introductory line, right before she starts hitting on Tech, "Spoils of War."

"Hey, I'm a survivor. Remember?" Romar, to Tech, followed by like a six second camera hold on Tech before he goes back to get into the ship. "Ruins of War"

The entire exchange about culture and memory; Tech's actual character arc was about experiencing life outside the war and the narrow definitions the war gave him. That was not an arc that was completed, no one steps up to fill that space or continue that arc, and maybe it’s not an arc that could have been picked up in season three without focusing on Tech and writing Omega into the background of her own show. Maybe it needed its own space.

This exchange (which I bring up because it happens right after Tech fixes Romar's databank and restores that cultural memory, and we do get the implication in season three that Tech could be running around with amnesia. So.):

Romar: You--you actually did it! Tech: Of course I did.

THIS exchange:

Omega: You did it! Tech: You sound surprised. Wrecker: I thought you were a goner.

Like. Come on. He drifts into a cloud of dust so that the outcome of the race is hidden from view at first, Wrecker and Omega thought he was going to die because he made the decision (in defiance of their requests not to) to do something that would have killed almost anybody else in order to save them, he succeeds and he comes out alive.

"I guess I owe you one, Goggles." Cid, in "Faster." This isn't something they just forgot about, either. Tech indirectly brings it up as a reason she should help them at the end of "The Crossing," and it actually does get Cid to relent a little and say that she'll see what she can do before cutting off the call. But, since she doesn't come through on that, she still owes Tech that favor.

This exchange:

Phee: Don't go running off with any pirates or smugglers while you're gone. Tech: No. This mission should not require either.

Because of course this isn't literally what Phee means, she even clarifies in the next sentence that this isn't literally what she means, but can we at least all agree that this is a weird ass way to say, "Don't run off with any hotties while you're out, I'm still interested and I'm right here?" There's no reason for her to say it this way…unless Tech is going to end up running into some pirates and smugglers. Which hasn't happened yet.

"See you around, Brown Eyes." Phee, the current last thing she says to Tech, in "The Summit."

This exchange:

Crosshair: Where's the jedi? Hunter: Stunned him when he jumped. He didn't make it.

you know, the one where Hunter and Crosshair are talking about Caleb, the jedi who very much did not fall to his death (which plants the idea that falling deaths are suspect right in the first fifteen minutes of the series, btw), is worded almost identically to THIS exchange:

Omega: Where's Tech? Hunter: Omega…Tech didn't make it.

And it's the only two places in the entire show that "Where's X?" is followed up with, "X didn't make it,” btw.

THIS LINE:

"We have to go back! What if he's hurt? He--he needs us! Tell him, Wrecker. We can't just leave him! No! Tech's not gone! He can't be!" Omega, to Hunter and Wrecker about Tech, in "Plan 99."

Two things. One, Omega is actually…usually right about this kind of thing. We never do get explicit confirmation that she has any force sensitivity, but we do get a somewhat implicit one that she does at least have a little bit of natural ability. And even if she doesn’t, when she has a feeling about something that feeling usually turns out to be justified. No reason this should be any different. Two, I got through the rest of this episode about a dozen times and the entirety of season three without ever knowing for sure if Omega even thinks that Tech is dead. The closest she ever gets is saying that she "lost" him, and then goes on to use that exact word in the exact same sentence to describe Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo being captured, and actually said that they'd lost Echo way back in "The Crossing" when Echo was very much not dead and she knew it.

And then when we get to season three, she never actually talks about That Time Her Brother Threw Himself Off A Gondola To Save Her On The Worst Day Of Her Life, and she only brings Tech up once, and only when prompted by Crosshair. I have NO IDEA if she's accepted that Tech is gone or if she even believes he's never coming back, we're given no real indication either way. You know what she WAS real explicit about, though? Demanding that they go back because Tech isn't gone and needs their help.

Honorable Mentions:

"This story changes every time she tells it." Tech, about Phee, in Entombed. This isn't an obvious comeback line, and it's a bit of a stretch, but the thing is. The thing. Is. That Tech being alive, especially depending on how he comes back if he is, when, who knew what, who was hoping what, etc. has the potential to completely recontextualize the entire third season, if not the entire show. A lot of things would be different without actually having to change anything at all.

"I thought it was obvious." Also not foreshadowing, but makes for one hell of a zinger if it turns out he's alive and the clues were there all along.

"Yes, I am playing against myself. It is the only time this game is a challenge," would be one hell of a line if it turns out Tech was forced to be someone else for a while and ends up really struggling with that once he's recovered. Not like. There's any hinting. That this is a thing that could have happened.

“The last time we crossed paths, you had just lost a member of your squad. And it appears history may repeat itself. CT-9904 resisted my conditioning in the past, but I've made alterations to my methods. If you all survive, you will make fine operatives. And if not, well, there's no shortage of clones to test on next.” Dr. Hemlock, “The Cavalry Has Arrived.” I blazed right over this line originally, but @eriexplosion brought up that it’s just *real weird* for Hemlock to be bringing up Tech and that history is going to repeat itself in the context of being right about to start CX-ing the others and being so confident it’s going to work. So here’s what I’m thinking might be happening here: either he CX’d Tech and Tech’s standing right over there in the room with them, or he did something else to Tech and Tech was the change he made to his CXing method. This is actually one of several reasons I don’t think the CX-Tech plot was dropped or cut, and that we aren’t actually done with this—we get little bits of hinting it’s him even in the final episode.

“This isn’t over.” Wolffe to CX-2, “Extraction” Like a few others in this “honorable mentions” section, this relies on Tech being CX-2 either physically or mentally. But I uh. Do think it points to Wolffe potentially having a run in with CX-2 again.

Controversial, but I’m putting it on this list anyway:

“Clone Force 99 died with Tech! We’re not that squad anymore!” Crosshair to Wrecker and Hunter, “The Cavalry Has Arrived”

I know.

But here’s why.

First, one of the long running narrative questions of The Bad Batch was whether or not Clone Force 99 could ever be whole—whether they could ever fix what the Empire broke in “Aftermath.” Because we never get a full reunion by the end of the series, the answer we get isn’t a “yes,” but it wasn’t really a “no” either. Because the entire Tech situation is so unconfirmed, and because the show did nothing to allow either the audience or the other characters to let him go, the possibility of a full batch reunion and reconciliation remains on the table. There’s still a remote chance that they can fix what the Empire broke after all. Maybe they won’t all live in the same place when all is said and done, but maybe, maybe they can still be a whole and complete family. Because the story never fully closed that off as an option.

And the thing is, the show could have had the family fully heal without Tech. They could have resolved the family stuff without him by dealing with him as dead and allowing everyone to treat their wounds and move on. But because we get this line in the last episode, because no one ever pushes back on it in a meaningful way, because Crosshair never takes it back, that’s not what the story does at all. So the answer we end up with here is, “Maybe, maybe not—but not without Tech, apparently. They’re still broken without Tech.”

Second, Crosshair has always been a little cynical, but this season went out of its way to establish him as Pessimism Georg, an outlier who shouldn’t be counted. The last time he said someone was probably dead, way back in “A Different Approach,” we knew it almost definitely wasn’t true and Omega immediately shut him down. He wasn’t there on Eriadu, he doesn’t know any more about Tech falling (he might know other things but we don’t know that) than the others and probably less, and I think there’s a possible future spoiler reason why they had Crosshair say this when Omega wasn’t around to hear it instead of any time that she would have been.

Third, like. Okay. Crosshair might believe Tech is dead. Crosshair might know something about what happened to Tech that no one else does, and might need to believe Tech is dead because of it. He might have suspicions about where Tech is. He might know nothing. Whatever Crosshair actually thinks or believes, though, one thing I do think we have to keep in mind here is that words very rarely leave Crosshair’s mouth without being sieved through fifteen layers of Crosshair being Crosshair, and so Crosshair frequently exaggerates, omits, talks from a certain point of view, lies, and so on.

He’s a genuinely perceptive guy who can read people and situations like no one’s business BUT his brain cells turn off and that big wounded heart of his takes over whenever he has to make a decision, so his internal logic makes sense but goes through such a tortured filter on the way he comes to some wild conclusions. (For example: The batch escaped without him and from his perspective, they didn’t do enough to give him a chance. Reasonable given what he knows about the situation. Justified. His solution to that is to capture them and invite them to the apocalypse to hear the galaxy’s worst business pitch.) He’s just. His observations are often good and, in contrast to his foil, Omega, who’s usually right about this kind of stuff, Crosshair has a tendency to come to the wrong conclusion.

And on top of that, let’s remember that this is a guy who will say the most cutting, ruthless, out-of-pocket thing in order to get a reaction or even to get people to leave him alone. And he’s good at it. It’s a skill. I’m not sure he even has a sense of what going too far looks like (I don’t think he left Tech out of his fight with Hunter because he thought it was a step too far, I think he left Tech out of that fight because he blames himself for Tech too much to blame Hunter for it). This is a man who told a child he would leave her to die if he had the chance. A child he would both kill and die for. So of course if wasn’t true, Omega immediately calls him out on it, but he still said it because he thought it would get her to leave him and save herself. It’s worth noting that the entire reason Crosshair launches into the entire “Clone Force 99 died with Tech” speech is because he’s trying to get Wrecker and Hunter to protect themselves and let him go into Tantiss alone.

Lastly, even if Tech was definitely dead, this line is custom made to get Tech spinning in his grave so fast that he’d spontaneously resurrect for the sole purpose of decking Crosshair across the jaw because what does Crosshair think he fell for then? You…can’t really have the final note on a man who (supposedly) died to save his family be that his family is irrevocably broken because he “died.” Which is another thing—they’re not just a squad. They’re a family, and Tech thought of them as a family. Like. Just. This entire line is just so perfectly crafted as something that feels like it needs to be pushed back against and refuted I’m just. I’m *biting biting biting*

All this to say that Crosshair should not be regarded as a source of objective fact.

Aaaand that’s. All the ones I can remember.

[demigoddaughterofhermes]

THOUGHTS on percy jackson and the olympians episode 1

1) opening narration "don't say i didn't warn you"- sounds more sad than i've always read it, i read it as angry

2) an artist!

3) was that mythomagic the game??

4) i would die for chiron, the statue of perseus was definitely on that work sheet on purpose; the handover of riptide???

5) "not everyone who looks like a hero is a hero and not everyone who looks like a monster is a monster" sally jackson i love you

6) ngl nancy saying "mommy's right here" is definitely the kind of thing that happened in real life

7) grover is an icon and i love him- psychoanalyze the bully; i love the way they pick from each others sandwiches

8) the mist so cute and quirky, i would definitely have lost my mind if that's how it happened to me. i love that there's more witnesses to it- but i kind of wish we got that epic first swing

9) "i didn't touch nancy" technically he's not lying; NOOOO i know why he's doing it but grover selling percy out of such a betrayal but i do love chiron telling percy without indirectly telling percy

10) it feels like chiron is quickly discovering that his usual tactics for supporting students won't work for percy

11) i hate gabe but this sarcastic back and forth is fucking gold

12) percy just absolutely hitting the verge of breaking down as soon as he sees his mom, me absolutely sobbing; chiron absolutely filled sally in on what really happened

i fucking love sally jackson- she is why percy is the way he is, i would kill and die for her too

13) nightmare scene first reaction: hey this is horrifying; really selling the bit that percy's dreams fucking suck

sally really said don't talk about my kid like that

14) she's putting it alll together, and i'm sure chiron told her what happened but she's also hoping she can keep him safe for just a little while longer

15) i LOVE percy's face of "huh what??" iconic and can't wait to see more of it

i'll really love that sally is the one getting to tell percy all of this- i feel so bad for both of them

16) percy saying there's no such thing as monsters

again, grover is ICONIC "so the important thing is not to panic" and "i'm actually 24"

17) i love how much more fast paced it is; i love percy flat out going "is that the minotaur??" super casually

i just realized how much grover must actually be beating himself up, bc not only did his best friend almsot get killed, but his best friends MOM is (for all intents and purposes) dead

"you're gonna need to be brave now" I AM SOBBING SCREAMING- this whole little scene is the best thing i've seen in years

sally is the bravest of us all- percy definitely thinks anyone could be poseidon's son, but being sally jackson's son is the specialist thing anyone on earth could be

18) the raw rage when sally turns to dust- his bravery and "head empty no thoughts, time to fight to the death" energy is amazing

we saw riptide return to his pocket

HE MUST BE THE ONE

WE'VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU

the credits and the title sequence??? *chefs kiss* that was amazing and iconic and i love it- onto episode twoooooo

[ari-the-arotistic]

You discussed this already in your character analysis of James Norrington, but I was wondering what specific sort of ego death / metaphorical death James would have to experience if he did survive? Any ideas on what specifically would have to happen to him to achieve the proper character arc completion?

Ooooh that's a good question! Thank you for taking an interest in my original post :>

Now, what specific ego death would James have to go through to complete his character arc... well, let's get into it! To begin with, the most important thing that needs to happen is for James to realize that his Commodore/Admiral persona is not as just or righteous as he thought it was, and that most of the decisions he had made trying to hold onto that persona either directly or indirectly got people hurt, or even killed. I believe that James would begin to question his decisions up to this point as Beckett starts mass murdering people in the name of ending piracy, but he would try to ignore it and convince himself everything was fine, up until his reunion with Elizabeth where she informs him of her father's death and Beckett's deception on the matter, and he fully, completely realizes that he has let himself become corrupt and complacent to corruption, and that he needs to change.

After this, there are a few ways his "death" scene could go. Maybe he fakes his death so he can escape with Elizabeth without raising suspicion. Maybe he does get injured as he escapes with Elizabeth, and the crew of the Dutchman don't think he'll survive. Either way, the crew of the Dutchman need to think that the Admiral is dead - not just that he deserted, because he had done that before as a Commodore and still came back, but properly dead. Because as far as James is concerned, the Admiral is dead. Now that he has found a way off the Dutchman, James needs to come to terms with the death of his own internal identity. He is no longer Admiral James Norrington, Scurge of Piracy, and upholder of righteousness. He's just James. And he needs to fix the mistakes he has made. So he accompanies Elizabeth to Shipwreck Cove, and gives the pirates all the information he can about Beckett's approaching fleet. The number of ships, how well supplied they are, any weaknesses that could be exploited - anything and everything of relevance that could help the pirates take Beckett down. And then we get to the final battle - the Dutchman versus the Pearl.

Now, there are only two ways I can see this going that would be a satisfactory end to this part of James's character arc. Either he would die on the Dutchman, sacrificing himself for Elizabeth, Jack, or Will, or he survives the final battle, and pledges himself to Elizabeth and her unborn son, Jack and the Pearl, or Will and the Dutchman. Choosing to pledge himself to Elizabeth would be the easiest option, as there is no real moral dilemma or personal conflict there, and he'd be doing a good thing by looking after her and her son. Choosing to pledge himself to Will and the Dutchman would be a bit more difficult because of his personal conflict with both the ship and its new captain, but it would be rather poetic for his arc to end with him helping ferry the souls of the dead when so many had died because of his actions. Choosing to pledge himself to Jack and the Pearl would be the most difficult, both because of his personal conflict with Jack, and the moral dilemma of becoming a pirate after having spent so long in the Navy, even if the Navy turned out to not be as righteous as he had originally thought. It would definitely take him some time to come to terms with the decision, and he would need to find a balance between being a pirate, and being a good man(thankfully Jack already haa some experience in that department). Ultimately though, there is no correct answer for who James would end up choosing, and it's really up to personal interpretation. As a Sparrington shipper, it's clear who I think James would end up choosing, but if you think he'd be more likely to choose Will or Elizabeth, your opinion is equally as valid as mine!

And so, that's how I think James's ego death would go, and how he would reshape himself afterward. Thank you so much for the lovely ask, and thank you all for reading! I hope you all have a wonderful day <3

[alarmsofmyheart]

Am I the only one who thinks it's Fasai's dad's hired man who shot Great and his mom?

And it was Win? who was following Tyme when he returned to hospital? That man was wearing a mask and tall and lean, Tyme was clearly being followed and he sensed it but Den appeared infront of him.

That lady who after seeing the news, gave a donation and picked up '4' numbered fortune stick and the diviner telling 'it means death or partition from beloved' what was that.. gosh that was nerve wrecking.. is it Nan's mom? Or Mon's mom? I don't think she could hire a person to shoot? But the person who shoots is he an hired man or personal revenge? Great in this timeline hasn't infact killed anyone directly, Mani is also saved ig or indirectly for online gambling coverup? So????Who???

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

Great's mom.. you're pretty pretty but that mentality sucks, justifying/ closing your eyes on murders and gambling is one bad thing, but expecting your only son to accept your ways and do as he is told as if he is a three year old is NOT GREAT?????!!!!!!!

Great having to choose between his mother who had "done it all for him" or running away from that home, Great running away makes sense, even though it was for like four seconds.

Both Korn and Great's Mom tell that 'You don't have to do it I'm doing it instead', 'All of this is for you to live comfortably', 'Ive done it all for you these many years, just apologise and accept' ???????? is a huge guilt to carry on by the innocent bystander family member. Those family dynamics run in all real life families, mafia or not, rich or poor or middle. And people who have no conscience can go ahead do whatever murder torture sex trafficking and live off that, but people with conscience suffer even if they were kept and grown without knowing any of those shit. And more so after knowing it all.

Can a child turn in their parents to the police? My Sweet Mobster kdrama did an amazing work with that exact mafia plot. Link : Eat, Die, Kill kdrama did a similar concept but without the mafia part. But it's not going to be happening in 4 minutes.

Korn is not going to turn anything anybody over to police. He is selling his soul multiple times for that company. Great asked for time from Tyme to take next step and got shot. So Tyme asking Great if can turn in his parents and Great hesitating (even if it was dream fight/unreal timeline) is insignificant now that Nan has revealed it all. Whether Great's Dad cover it all up is for upcoming episodes.

Coming to the guy who shoots. Korn is not going to hurt Great as Great knows. Great is sure to Tyme that nobody will hurt him. Is it blissful ignorance or is it just a simple fact or is it his childlike belief of his subconscious where all these episodes are taking place? Wow. Idfk. Great's father is not going to hurt Great too. Definitely not his mother.

Or Tyme, Tyme didn't hurt him in front of that bar or while standing on that rooftop or any other time. If not out of love, even if and when Tyme was just using him, he might have hurt Great emotionally but not physically to the extent of shooting, definitely not after falling in love! It's out of the question now. In the dreamy fight when Tyme tells he has nothing to loose, he for a split second literally forgot both his grandma and Great. But later in the outside world, it's shown he accepts the money and backs off from Great, trying to protect his grandma and Great. How much of this is reliable.. but atleast he won't be killing Great for whatever reasons.

But anyway, Great is shot. And that brings back to Fasai, the only one to have the motive and lack of emotional connection with Great. I think Fasai or both she & her dad are trying to actually take over the company by marrying Korn, using him as puppet/toy the same thing she refers Tonkla as and simultaneously eliminating Great and Great's mom and leaving Great's Dad with no choice but give up the company?

Fasai. God I hate that kind of manipulative/cornering/coercive/trading relationship when someone is emotionally invested somewhere else. Korn you poor thing. All your choices and life are meaningless and wrong loops.

If Fasai knows about Tonkla, and call him a toy like everyone was telling since ep 1 but I like an idiot telling no Korn loves Tonkla since ep 1 like I'm an absolute pathetic idiot who thinks love will be chosen over money.. I mean if I want that I should just stick to JJ Methas.. anyway.. what was I talking about.. If Fasai knows Korn and Tonkla, she must know about Tonkla and Win, but she didnt reveal to it Korn while telling him to leave Tonkla and marry her.. she might be playing that card later???

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

Korn. I hate you. I love you. Hope you runaway and restart a life. Or surrender or something. Anything other than doing whatever the shit you been doing since ep 1.

[merp-blerp]

I've seen takes about "There Are Other Ways", saying that Circe should have successfully gotten Odysseus to have sex with her because it would've kept up with the "will of the gods" being non-negotiable, as Circe's a half-goddess. And maybe there are good arguments in favor of that—I'm no expert on Greek mythology, but from what I know about Jay's vision, which differs from the og myth, I have some "counterpoints" (not really a definite argument, I know I could be wrong, so it's more like a question almost).

In Jay's TikTok (sorry it's muted 🙄) where he and Talya act out the song, Circe is backed against the wall with Odysseus's knife or sword (represented by a censored plastic fork in the video) at her throat, but as she prompts the "choice" to have sex, Odysseus stops fighting her, in distressed contemplation, and she's able to get herself out of the corner and get his weapon. She's only pretending to offer sex to him, but in actuality plans to stab him with his knife or sword while he's vulnerable and she has control over him in a way his flower doesn't aid. The video cuts out after that, but from the song we know that Odysseus rejects what he thinks were her sexual advances, Circe pauses as he explains that he's loyal to Penelope, and her mind changes, deciding to help him get to the underworld.

Odysseus didn't overpower Circe's will by turning down sex with her, since that wasn't her will at all. Her will was to not be physically backed against the wall, which she got, make him occupied with his thoughts enough so he'll stop fighting, which she got, and get his weapon, which she got. Circe gets her will, and if her will was to then stab him she would've been able to easily. Her will changes when Odysseus talks about his wife, but he isn't overpowering her will by doing that, he's only explaining why he doesn't want to sleep with her and begging to not have to do it, a thing she also didn't want to do herself, as her intent was to kill him. Circe got her will to not sleep with Odysseus, but she changed her own mind on killing him by her own choice. Odysseus was trying to not do what he thought was her will, but he was wrong. Yet his attempt to get out of what he thought was her will indirectly caused Circe to change her mind about her actual will, but he doesn't know that. He's not convincing her to go against her will, he's speaking his feelings and she decides to do something else on her own will. She still could've killed him, but she changed her mind. It's a nice thought to say that Circe respected his loyalty, but I don't think his loyalty had to do with her change of heart in that way, but his love in general. She just seems to know what it's like to be in love and wants to help him get home for that (and maybe she has beef with or reservations against Poseidon based on her "Poseidon, eh?", but I'm not sure. She likely knows a lot about him though, being the daughter of a sea-nymph). Circe is still in control. She changes her own mind.

I hope I made sense.

Again, I'm not a Greek mythology expert, and not even an expert on this musical, but I've just been thinking about this. If there's any detail or angle I'm missing here let me know!

[kellyvela]

Comparing Abel/fArya to Bael/Rose in the same breath as denying Sansa having any connection to the rose when she was stolen by Baelish is certainly a choice.

Because Jeyne was never a Stark girl (Arya), the comparsion ends with Abel indirectly stealing her, there is no rose as a payment because the girl was fake and also no bastard killing him. (why Mance/Abel is not painted in a negative light like all other Bael figures in the story, he is not paying the price because he is not stealing her for himself: OG Bael, Rhaegar, Ygritte, Littlefinger, Marillion all had selfish motivations)

Baelish left a rose (Margaery) as a payment for stealing a Stark girl (Sansa) from Lannisters, and it is prophecied his bastard (again Sansa) will kill him.

Which story parallels Bael's story more?

Moreover, Arya has no theme of roses in her story. Saying Arya=Lyanna and Lyanna=rose motif so Arya=rose motif is wishful thinking and won't suddenly alter the text to include it in her chapters.

Meanwhile Sansa:

1) got a rose at a tourney like Lyanna

2) wore it in her hair the next day like Lyanna

3) had her first flowering immediately after the Bael's story came up for the first time

4) spent a lot of time with roses (tyrells)

5) got stolen by a bael figure, like Lyanna

6) was called a 'roadside rose' by another bael figure (who is offering the song as a payment for seducing her)

Also GRRM has a thing for redheads so assuming the OG rose was also a redhead is not a stretch by any definition. However, Sansa's paralles with the story don't depend on anyone's hair color.

Perfect.

[angelsdean]

wanna preface this by saying if my tone comes across as biting, i did not mean that! especially not to you! i feel ok sending this in bc i agree with your takes on s8/9

anyway lol! maybe a spicy take but…

if we’re blaming dean for kevin’s death, then we’ve gotta blame sam for charlie’s and benny’s, cas for mary and jo and ellen and anna and bobby and sam (s5) and honestly i love you cas but i could probably go on :/

but seriously, i don’t actually *blame* them for these deaths bc while dean/sam/cas’s actions helped create the situations that got each character dead, their actual deaths were on other characters’ choices or even their own (sam, benny). the blame game is just too simple for how complicated spn is. like if you blamed them for every death that occurred after a sequence of events that included their actions, for every death that they were indirectly involved with, it’d just be impossible to count. and that’s just not productive or fair imo yk 🤷‍♀️

yea i definitely get what you're saying. there are a lot of factors playing into things, and chain reaction domino effects that lead from one character making a decision to another character way down the line killing someone. that doesn't necessarily mean the first character is responsible for the death or should be the one that is blamed for it. they couldn't have foreseen how events would transpire. however, i do think, like you said, these situations are more complicated and nuanced. and in some scenarios the "blamed" character did play more of a part in the death of another character. but i don't think in the case of kevin's death dean should be shouldering the blame or responsibility here at all.

like, the stuff with blaming dean for kevin's death feels unfair imo because well, when dean made the choice to let gadreel try to save sam (and sam still !! had to say yes himself!) dean didn't have all the facts. he thought gadreel was ezekiel. he thought this was a friend of cas's that he could trust. he didn't know he was opening the door to someone with ulterior motives, who might try to hurt people he cared about. and secondly, kevin's death was coming, one way or another, because as @aliveboydean says in this post, metatron wanted him dead and wasn't going to stop until he was. so if gadreel hadn't gotten him, metatron very likely would have killed him.

to address another seemingly similar situation where i come away feeling differently: sam and charlie. i have to say i kinda do "blame" sam for charlie's death, because he roped charlie back in. she really would not have been there or been in that situation or been a target for the Stynes had sam not specifically invited her to come help them. and while it seems like charlie and kevin's deaths are comparable, a key distinguishing factor is that one would have been safe had they not been in that specific situation that another character (sam) put them in, while the other always was in danger simply for being who they were. charlie's death is different from kevin's because kevin was always in the line of fire, always had a target on his back by simply being a prophet. so many people wanted to kill him, he wasn't uniquely in danger being around the winchesters. and he wasn't put IN danger solely because of dean's actions. he was always in danger, the whole time. no matter where in the world kevin was, people were going to be out to get him. and i'd argue he was safer in the bunker (and therefore around sam and dean) than anywhere else in the world. dean had no way of knowing gadreel would kill kevin! but charlie was just a regular person who no one cared about killing. if she hadn't been brought in at that time and made a target for the stynes she...most definitely would still be alive.

SO, i think at the very least dean is definitely allowed to blame sam in-world and be pissed at him. (tho sam is obvs still not the one that killed her. but i can understand if dean felt resentment toward him for her death). but. yea i kinda do see sam as more responsible for charlie's death in this case than dean with kevin's because the scenarios and key factors are different. that's what i feel a lot of people don't get when they want to issue blanket statements of who to blame for what and who did worse. there's nuance! and two seemingly similar situations are not always a 1:1 comparison. (this isn't directed at you, just a general sentiment abt fandom)

(and i think a similar situation for cas is mary's death. and i fall somewhere in the middle for him. he knew jack was dangerous at the time. he should've said something. he's still not the one who killed mary though and he couldn't have predicted that outcome)