#the 100 season 4 episode 4 spoilers

[justinewt]

Going Up In Flames - THE 100 REWRITE Chapter Thirty-Two

[THE 100 MASTERLIST]

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Summary: Captured while hunting, used as hostages by an angry Roan who found out about Kane's people repairing Alpha station behind his back, the chancellor, Michelle and Bellamy were dragged along his army and met by Clarke. They spoke and returned to Arkadia as the ship was crumbling down, going up in flames.

Words: 4.7k

Warnings: The 100 season 4 spoilers (episode 4 "A Lie Guarded", episode 5 "The Tinder Box" & episode 6 "We will rise"), fire, explosion, heart to heart, violence

Michelle had left Arkadia with Bellamy and a few others as part of a hunting party, but this outing didn’t exactly go as planned when Azgedan warriors ambushed them, tying them up, their hands behins their backs and dragged them all the way to Polis. They had also been gagged, preventing them from communicating with each other. They were thrown in the same cell they had stayes in not so long ago, before they put an end to the menace that was Alie and the guards came back soon after and pushed them in the back of the elevator and led them to the throne room, one guard per prisoner, Stephens – one of their peers – at the head of the line, Echo by his side, followed by Bellamy and another grounder and Michelle last, with an Azgeda warrior bringing up the rear behind her. They hadn’t been told anything at all and when her steps showed to be too slow to the grounder’s liking, he shoved her unceremoniously and she grunted, almost losing her balance but kept on walking. She knew he wouldn’t mind giving her another head trauma or literally kill her, and she didn’t want to risk it. They heard Roan talk in the room as they waited in the corridor until he called Echo, and she started the march. Before Bellamy and Stephens were forced to their knees, Michelle’s view was blocked but she heard her father’s voice say the two young men’s names upon seein them in surprise and confusion, asking what it was about but he froze in shock when he saw his own daughter being made to kneel alongside Bellamy, gagged and tied up as well. There was one emotion going through his eyes – worry. He put his hand at the back of her head as she looked up at him.

���Are you all right?” She gave a firm nod to try and reassure him. Roan stood from his throne, taking a few steps forward.

“Echo saw your people rebuilding your ship. She captured these three hunting in my woods. This one says it’s a shelter from the radiation.” He pointed at Stephens. Michelle looked at him from the corner of her eyes. He had in fact spilled the beans the moment they had been caught by the grounders and while she wasn’t exactly mad at him, she was a little annoyed because they were now in this uncomfortable situation. Kane tried to justify it.

“It’s a backup plan, nothing more.”

“He said that too, just before he told us that you have a Nightblood. It’s a good thing the flame’s been destroyed, or I’d be worried you’re planning an ascension.”

“You have to trust me. We discovered that Nightblood helps metabolize radiation. We’re investigating ways to create it for everyone – turn everyone into Nightbloods so we can all survive.”

“Blasphemy.” Echo exclaimed angerly. “Nothing they tell us is true.”

“This is— it’s not blasphemy. It’s— it’s science. If Nightblood can save lives, we should use it.” Michelle and Bellamy watched the Azgedan king anxiously as a weird silence fell in the room and Michelle guessed he looked at Echo as his eyes shifted and he gave a very subtle nod, and she got confirmation that her guess was right when Echo suddenly grabbed onto Stephens and slit his throat. Kane yelled, rushing to the young man as blood poured from his neck and he gagged as Echo pushed him forward.

“Warriors don’t reveal secrets.” She then said as Kane fell to his knees by the boy’s side. The spy walked behind the two other prisoners, and she forced Michelle to stand up, putting her bloodied blade to her throat. She could feel its sharpness as she gulped. She hadn’t even moved it across her throat that she already felt a slight sting as if she had been cut slightly from just the pressure of holding it so close to her skin. Michelle’s eyes were wide, but they looked frantic now and she held her breath, Echo holding her head up, her hand under jaw. Michelle was confused as to why Echo was doing this when she had kept quiet and didn’t tell them anything, but she realized that if she wanted to come at Kane, if Echo knew about the fact that he was her father, well she was their best choice to force Kane to do and agree to pretty much anything.

“No! Don’t do this. Don’t hurt her.” Though he didn’t beg Echo, but his eyes were, and there was a great urgency in his voice. He was terrified about the thought of his daughter’s life being harmed.

“Truth is the first casualty of war.” Roan spoke. A gesture of his hand let Echo know her next move and she shoved Michelle. The latter couldn’t find her balance and was caught by her father as she fell. They came down to their knees and he softly wiped the tiny drop of blood that ran down her neck and held her arms. “If your motives were pure, you would’ve shared your plan with me. Our alliance is broken. Skaikru and Trikru are the enemy.” One of the warriors asked something, speaking in their tongue and replying in it as well, Roan declared the lot of them hostages. Indra and Octavia’s name were mentioned, and Roan ignored Kane pleads to listen to him and turned their back to them, walking away as they were dragged away and thrown back into the cell, Kane along with them this time around.

“Doesn’t matter what we do.” Bellamy said. “Always end up here— the brink of war.”

“Abby’s on the island. She’ll find a cure. I know she will. Hey… We will get through this.” He called out to him and his daughter to get them to look at him as they were obviously feeling defeated and beaten down. “We will get through this.” Michelle sighed through her nose, parting her lips, about to mention all that Jaha told her the day prior but she rose her head, looking at the cell door upon hearing keys jiggle in the distance and the door creak open. A couple grounders walked in, followed by Echo, white and black war paint on her face and around her eyes.

“On your feet.” They obliged. Roan came in as well.

“What are you doing?” Kane enquired, looking at the latter.

“We’re bringing you home. Your ship is shelter from Praimfaya, so I intend to take it.”

“You don’t have to do this. We can find a solution together.” Roan rose his hand to quiet Kane.

“That time has passed.” He turned around. “Get them ready to march.”

“Octavia will get there first.” Bellamy spoke. “She’ll warn them you’re coming. You’ll lose.” They stopped in their tracks. Roan glanced at Echo, and she turned back around, pulling out a sword. The blade was broken in half and the metal clattered as they hit the ground. Bellamy didn’t move, looking down at it in silence. Michelle stared at the weapon. She couldn’t believe Octavia could be dead.

“She wouldn’t be taken alive.” Roan said.

“No.” Bellamy spoke under his breath, shaking his head in disbelief. He turned his back to them, facing the bars of the cell. Michelle pulled her eyebrows together, hurting to see him like this as his face crumpled. His breath was shaky, and he let out a sob. He fell to his knees, grasping the bars firmly while Roan said something to his men. Tears welled up in Michelle’s eyes. Of course she was sad about Octavia, but she was even sadder for Bellamy. She knew how this must feel. She imagined it a thousand times when she almost lost her father to Alie’s machinations. Bellamy cried and shouted. He didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t want it to be true. Michelle crouched down, putting her hand on his shoulder and squeezing gently, hoping her touch would be somewhat comforting but she was quickly pulled off him. It was breaking her heart to pieces to hear him scream at the top of his lungs and cry out like this as they were led out of the cell.

Echo rode with Roan, at the head of the immense army he was leading towards Arkadia. Bellamy, Michelle and Kane stood in the middle of the crowd; their faces covered with rags. A voice rose in the distance. Michelle recognized Clarke instantly. Roan gave orders to his archers and the simply mention of wanheda confirmed it was in fact Clarke. Warriors grabbed the prisoners and made them walk forward and they pushed down on their shoulders to force them to their knees and the cloths were pulled off their heads, holding their swords a few inches from their faces. They were briefly blinded by the bright light and looked around them. Clarke was a few feet in front of them and snipers were positioned on the sides, at the top of the cliffs.

“Your move, wanheda.”

“10 minutes. That’s all I ask.” Roan eventually got off his horse and Clarke walked away, and he followed her.

“Wait, where is she going? What if it’s a trap?” Echo called out to her king.

“It is a trap. We’re already in it.” He glanced at her over his shoulder. The snipers’ lasers still set on him. After he left, Echo gave orders to her people, and they took position. Kane turned his head to look at Echo behind them.

“This is insane.” He sighed as no one listened to him. “We have thousands of rounds. You’ll be the ones with no one left.”

“Then let’s hope no one shoots.” She replied coldly.

Michelle followed her father’s gaze as he looked at Bellamy, addressing him. The latter stared ahead of him, rather composed. “What is it?”

“They thought they had the element of surprise, but we did. Someone warned them.”

“Octavia?” Michelle spoke under her breath. The corners of his mouth lifted slightly, a gleam of hope reviving his gaze. He was convinced that his sister was alive, but he was still worried. He couldn’t be sure that was the case and looked around, gulping.

After a moment, Monty came walked before the army, his hands in the air, letting them know he was unarmed. He wanted to talk to who was in charge, and that happened to be Echo. A grounder grabbed his arm and led him to her. Bellamy and Michelle exchanged a look of incomprehension. Their friend was pushed to the ground and Bellamy leaned forward, helping him up, immidietaly asking about his sister. The latter gave him a nod. She was alive. Echo got off her mount and approached, urging the newcomer to speak. He kept his hand where they could see them, to be as non-threatening as possible. He was risking his life coming here.

“One of our people has moved out of formation. I’ve reason to believe he’s trying to kill your king.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Why do you think he’s telling you this?” Bellamy spoke. “He’s trying to stop a massacre.”

“Who is it?” Kane asked.

“Riley.” Michelle remembered who this was – Monty’s friend from Farm station. One of the people who had been enslaved by Azgedan grounders. Given what Bellamy then said, he shouldn’t even be here. Echo didn’t waste any more time and grabbed something off her horse’s sadle, talking to the archers.

“Wait. If our snipers see archers on the move, they’ll open fire.” Kane addressed her before she left, urging Monty to support his claim and he confirmed those were their orders, but she was reluctant to listen.

“I will not allow my king to be assassinated.”

“He doesn’t have to be. I know Riley. Let me come with you. I can stop him.”

“Do you think me a fool, Bellamy?”

“You’d be a dead fool if you step out of this kill box without me.” He argued. “Use Monty’s radio and let Kane tell them we’re working together to find Riley, and they’ll let us pass.”

She considered it and gave a nod to one of his men threw the radio at her. She caught it and handed it to Kane. He pressed the button under his thumb, “This is Chancellor Kane. Listen to me. Bellamy’s working with one of theirs to find Riley. You let them through, understood?”

“Copy that.” She then immidietaly snatched the radio from his hand and slipped it to her belt. One of them took off the chains at Bellamy’s ankles, linking him to Kane and Michelle, and put them on Monty at Echo’s order. She was clear – if she wasn’t back before the sun went past the trees, they were to kill the hostage on the spot. Monty and Michelle couldn’t hide their uneasiness. Though Bellamy had been detached from the others, they didn’t remove his handcuffs and Echo shoved him, making him walk in front of her.

An explosion sounded in the distance, and everyone could see the smoke rise above the treeline. Given the distance, it must have come from Arkadia itself. The sky was already dark by the time they reached camp and saw the entire ship set in flames. All their efforts to make it livable for the radiation had quite literally gone up in flames. Bellamy found his sister and held her in his arms as she struggled to catch her breath. Clarke and Michelle rushed to them.

“It was Ilian… I tried to stop him.” She said with difficulty, her face covered in soot. Clarke looked up. A young grounder was standing nearby. He raised his hand in front of his face reflexively when there was another explosion in the station. Pieces of metal flew off the ship’s structure. Michelle winced, looking away, his eyes hurt by the fire. She took a step back, putting her hand in front of her face. She turned her head when she felt a hand on her shoulder and saw her father standing next to her, so she eased up a bit. Another explosion and the ring broke in half, one part falling to the ground. She jumped and her father wrapped his arms around her, bringing her closer to him in a reflex to protect and shield her from the fallouts of the explosion.

Ilian was put in a cell in the prison wing. He wasn’t exactly locked up though since the mesh walls had been burnt to a cinder. And after a mob entered the cell last night to beat him up, only stopping when her father fired a warning shot and yelled at everyone, they had had to place guards to protect the young grounder. Yes, he was at the origin of the fire that ruined all their efforts, but they weren’t going to enact justice on their own.

The top half of Alpha Station had collapsed and many of the sectors had sustained a ton of damage, or were completely destroyed making it impossible for them to seal the whole thing in preparation for when the radiation and the black rain came but still, not everything had been calcinated but only half of the living quarters or even the chancellor’s office had been spared by the flames. Michelle was starting to wake up and opened her eyes when she felt Bellamy move away from her. She held the blanket over her bare chest and leaned on her elbow. He got out of bed and put on his clothed before turning around as he slipped his arms in his jacket. He had to go to a meeting with the Azgedan king, Monty, Clarke and Kane, who she had almost forgotten was very much still the current chancellor. It was weird to think she was the Chancellor’s kid, like Wells was on the Ark, except her father’s wasn’t necessarily hated, and unlike Wells, she had no problem being blunt or argumentative if she didn’t like something or disagreed with her father. The fact that he was Chancellor didn’t change anything for her, which also didn’t mean that she would ever be genuinely disrespectful.

Michelle wasn’t going to attend the meeting – she honestly had nothing to do there with them. But she knew what it was about. They had to go out and bring things Raven and Abby needed to work on this Nightblood cure on the island with Luna. Bellamy leaned towards her and pressed his lips against hers, tenderly kissing her before leaving the room. She would meet up with him and Clarke later, when they would leave camp, but she lingered in bed a bit before getting up. She picked up her clothes from the floor, got dressed and grabbed her jacket on her way out, putting it on as she walked to the Chancellor’s office. On the way there, she crossed path with Roan, and they gave each other a respectful nod. Nearing the door – or rather the doorframe – she heard her father speak. It was good that he was still there, maybe they would have a minute to talk before she left with the others.

“Clarke, I’m going with you.”

“You can’t.”

“I’m the chancellor.”

“That’s why you can’t.” She insisted. Michelle waited outside for their conversation to be over, leaning against the wall. “After everything that happened this morning, our people need you here, now more than ever. I know you’re worried about my mother.”

“She’s going into space… in a 100-year-old rocket. Do you have any idea how many things could go wrong?”

“Raven says the rocket’s intact. She’d like a little more fuel, but as long as we get her what we’ve got, she said she’ll get them both back down safely. Look, we have to try. I’ll send her your love.”

“Yes. Please do that. And I’ll make sure there’s something left to save… when you get home.” As they went silent, she entered and couldn’t help but smile upon seeing them hug. It really felt like they had become this huge family. Their parents were together, so they were like actual sisters now, even though they had always felt like sisters. And even with Octavia and Bellamy, given she was with him, they were all like in laws or steps. And Abby had always kind of felt like a second mother since she was her mother’s best friend, in the same fashion as her and Clarke. Turning to the door, Clarke told Michelle to meet her at the gate in five minutes. She nodded. It gave her just enough time to speak to her dad about what she learned from Jaha a couple days ago.

“I wanted to talk to you.”

“What is it? Is everything all right?” He caressed her cheek gently with the back of his fingers. She locked eyes with him and spoke quietly.

“Did you really not know?” He parted his lips, probably about to ask what she was talking about but, but she saw in his eyes, that he knew exactly what she was talking about. His hand went to rest on her shoulder. He sighed, looking away. “When Abby first told me about it, months ago… she said mom told you the truth after the bombing, on Unity Day but, Jaha… he told me the whole council knew. You were on the council. I know the only person she actually told at the time was Abby, but Jaha said it was obvious to everyone you were my dad. Did you really think she’d gotten pregnant with someone else’s kid after you’d just separated?”

“I didn’t want to face it, and when I asked her… she refused to talk to me and said it wasn’t my child. She probably didn’t mean it literally, but I took it that way... It was my fault things ended with your mom.” She noticed he looked sad talking about it, despite it happening almost two decades ago. He looked shameful too. “She told me, multiple times, that she felt as though I didn’t care about her. And I thought she was right to keep me out of your life – I didn’t deserve you. I watched you grow up from afar instead.”

“Maybe things would have been different if I’d known then that you were my dad. I mean, I would’ve still fought over it with her, but I don’t think I’d have hated you so much, if I didn’t only know you as the really annoying Councilman Kane.” They chuckled and she sniffled, wiping a tear which beaded in the corner of her eye. “I mean, I was a bit of a handful as a teenager.”

“I saw that.” He smiled, tenderly cupping her cheek with his hand. “Look at the young woman you’ve become. I’m sure that she’s proud of you. I am.”

She wrapped her arms around him, resting her chin against his shoulder. “I’m happy that you’re my dad.” He held her tightly against him, his hand cradling her head. She couldn’t believe how far they had come. When she found out he was her father, she refused to accept him as such, and now she was basically telling him how much she loved him.

Michelle was with Clarke and Bellamy in the rover as he drove through the woods, a second truck behind them, hiding Roan and his guards. It had been decided it was preferrable for the Azgedan to keep a low profile as they crossed the forest on their way to the island to bring Raven the rocket fuel she needed. She glanced at Clarke from the corner of her eyes when the latter spoke. Both of them could tell something had been troubling Bellamy ever since they left Arkadia.

“Is it Octavia?”

“Keep your eyes on the trees.”

“She hasn’t forgiven you, has she?” Clarke insisted. Michelle looked at him, seeing his jaw clench. “I told you it would take time.”

“We don’t have much of that left now, do we?” Less than a minute later, they came to a halt after reaching a bunch of grounders in the middle of the road. He grabbed his radio, telling the second vehicle to stop as well. “Looks like a Trikru checkpoint. Stay alert, show no weapons. Keep your passengers on ice.”

“Wait. It’s not a checkpoint.” Clarke opened the door, her foot already out. Michelle leaned forward to look through the windshield, her hand on the passenger seat. “They have a wounded.”

“Clarke.” He called out to her, but she didn’t listen and hopped out of the car.

“What is she doing?” The second driver asked.

“Being Clarke. No one else gets out.” He looked over his shoulder, telling Michelle to stay put and he joined Clarke outside. They went to check on the wounded man, lying by a tree. From where she was, Michelle saw a small child wander around the vehicles and walk along the truck. She looked at Bellamy and Clarke, hoping one of them would notice him before he found the smuggled Azgedan at the back. And Bellamy did see him. He got the grounders to clear the road and Clarke came back in the car. He motioned for the kid to get away from the truck, but he stepped back and saw the passengers they were hiding. He screamed, warning his people about Azgeda and Bellamy rushed inside the rover, immidietaly starting the car and they drove fast to get out of there as the Trikru grounders brandished their weapons. They sped through the woods and reached the river with cobblestone shores. He stopped the car again and got out. Michelle joined him and Clarke outside.

“Murphy didn’t say anything about a river.” She spoke.

“Ice melt.” Roan walked up behind them. “I’ll find us a place to cross upstream.”

“Wait. Take the rover. You’ll cover more ground and it’ll be safer.”

“With him?” Bellamy wasn’t too convinced it seemed.

“We have to get across the river. The rest of us will stay here and guard the fuel.”

“We won’t be long.” He nodded and they drove away. While the two were gone, the rest of them found out pretty quickly that the grounders they had come across earlier had followed them all the way here. They were attacked and one of Roan’s security detail was killed. Clarke tried to talk to them, but they wouldn’t listen. One of them grabbed Michelle, putting a blade to her throat, and they were just as deaf to Clarke’s pleading to not hurt her friend. She agreed to drive the truck if they left Michelle alone but instead, the latter was hit in the head and collapsed to the ground, her eyes struggling to stay open, her vision had gotten blurry, and she groaned in pain as a migrained set in. She heard people talk around her as she was forced to come sit at the front with the grounder while Clarke took the wheel. She heard their voices, but she couldn't make out the words. Leaning against the window, wincing, still very much conscious and she wished she would just pass out to not feel the pain and just sleep through it. The side of her head felt like it was burning and while she wasn’t sure she was bleeding, but she would definitely get a bump.

She did somewhat fall asleep at some point because she felt herself coming to her senses when something cold and sharp pressed against her skin and had the displeasure of realizing that the grounder was holding his machete to her neck and the migraine became way less of a problem. She didn't dare move as he threatened Clarke after realizing she was slowing down the vehicle. A glance at the rearview mirror outside let her know that Bellamy and Roan had found them. At least some good news. When the rover got next to them, the grounder forced Michelle to show herself and lean forward so that Bellamy would see her. Roan had jumped at the back, and they could hear him fight with another grounder. The latter screamed at the top of his lungs and went quiet – Roan had won the fight. Michelle wasn’t all that relieved because the one with the machete tightened his grip, pressing the sharp side of the blade harder against her throat and she gasped, holding her breath while Clarke eyes darted around worryingly as she kept on driving.

Bellamy pulled the rover aside, blocking the truck’s path and he jumped outside, gun in hand. All while keeping his weapon on Michelle, he struggled with Clarke, grabbing the wheel with his free hand. She felt the machete move around and feared she would accidentally get her throat slit so she put her hand against the blade – specifically the one hand with the scar from when she had gotten it slashed during their first major battle against the grounders. She had lost all feeling in that hand, although also quite a bit of strength in it, but she was less worried about injuring that one again while pushing the weapon from her neck, which she did. She let out a groan as she slipped away, putting her back against the door to stay away. Clarke threw her elbow at his face and a second later he was shot by Bellamy. Michelle pushed his body off her and fell from the seat, and under the glovebox as Clarke suddenly came to a full stop.

“Are you okay?” Clarke’s relieved smile faded as she looked at her while Michelle opened the door to throw out the grounder’s body, wincing from this intense throbbing pain because of the migraine and the slight sting at her neck. She didn’t respond as she started feeling sick and nauseous and she jumped out of the truck, stumbling down and falling to her knees on the dirt, spitting out bile. Her throat was feeling sore, as though there was acid in the back of her mouth. Bellamy rushed to her side, bringing her a bottle of water. She took a few sips and sigh, letting her head fall on Bellamy’s shoulder as he put his arm around her and helped her to the rover. They took off and she rested her eyes until they reached the ocean. When they did, some time later, Bellamy told her to stay in the rover while they unloaded the fuel, and he would come back for her. From her seat, she watched Bellamy and Clarke speak but she really didn’t want to move one bit. Her head hurt with every single tiny movement she made. Her eyes felt heavy and she fell asleep again.

[To be continued…]  

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Published (08/15/2024) by Andrea

Taglist:  @mirellef2001

[kopykunoichi]

"Domiciles"

What other clone in the galaxy uses that word, besides Tech? He cracked Phee's encryption on her navicomputer without issue, which you can bet was pretty advanced.

But...maybe he isn't as brainwashed as he appears. Did anyone else notice how the typical clone accent was heavy when he was talking to Hemlock, but he sounded more like Crosshair when he was on Pabu?

There was a whole ass Imperial cruiser on Pabu, equipped with detention cells and hundreds of armed guards...and he just threw the highly essential asset in the back of his suped up space corvette and said, "she's with me", before he peaced out and left his imp buddies. Highly sus.

[80smoonlight]

Barry: Season 4 Episode 6, “the wizard”

[sokkas-therapist]

Started Killing Eve last Monday, finished it at 3:00am last night, devastated. changed forever. will never be the same.

[sundrop-writes]

The Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes

Spencer Reid x BAU!Fem!Reader

Summary:

While undercover inside the Separatarian Sect, you and Spencer realize something important: you can’t live without each other.

Spencer Reid x BAU!Fem!Reader. Co-Workers to Lovers. Fake Dating. Hurt and Comfort. Set during Season 4, Episode 3.

Word Count: 8,200

Criminal Minds Masterlist | AO3 Link

THIS IS A RE-POST. This is a fic from my old blog (a blog that was shadowbanned, forcing me to move). This fic is not stolen, it is completely mine, and I am just re-posting it to help people find my new blog, and to make my masterlist complete when I post new fics for this fandom.

Detailed warnings and author’s notes below the cut.

Warnings: Lots of spoilers for the canon episode - so if you haven’t watched Season 4 of Criminal Minds yet, steer clear of this fic for now (especially because watching the episode provides some context for this fic/makes things make more sense); the reader uses she/her pronouns and has the ability to get pregnant (she is not pregnant during the fic and there’s no smut, but due to discussions in the fic, it’s not unreasonable that she could get pregnant); fake dating in the form of a fake marriage - the reader and Spencer pretend to be married under the Christian religion to ‘appeal’ to Cyrus; because of the fake marriage, Spencer uses the term 'my wife’ to refer to the reader; lots of mentions of religion (Christianity), religious extremism, mentions of pedophilia/child brides (in line with the canon episode); mentions of systemic sexism and gender roles enforced by cultures of organised religion and religious extremism; use of y/n and l/n (in this case meaning 'your last name’); the reader pretends to follow the Christian religion while undercover but I never stated if she believes in a less extreme version of these things or not (the reader’s true religious beliefs are never stated); protective!Spencer, possessive!Spencer; mentions of Spencer being taller than the reader (which, again, I think he would be taller than most people) - the reader’s body/body type is not described in any other way; mentions of guns and gun violence (not described in deep detail) - in line with the canon episode; the reader and Spencer fear for their lives; dangerous/live-threatening situations; the reader and Spencer are threatened with a gun; Cyrus is just generally creepy and sexist toward the reader; Spencer is pistol-whipped and the reader is threatened with sexual assault (it does not happen, Spencer protects her); mentions of pregnancy/the reader being pregnant (she is not pregnant during the course of the fic); mentions of the reader being a mother/having kids (Spencer makes up fake kids to sell their fake marriage story); the reader realizes she might actually want to be a mother because of Spencer’s fake kids story; mentions of an explosion (as in the canon); love confessions; angst with a happy ending. Hopefully that is everything.

A/N: The title for this fic comes from a Fall Out Boy song of the same name. The theme/lyrics of the song don’t really fit the fic, but I love the way that this title fits - how everyone in this fic is lying in some way but Spencer is someone with good intentions while lying. Making him the Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes. I love how it fits. I wrote this while suffering with heat exhaustion so idk if it’s good or even makes sense. I rewatched the canon episode and it doesn’t 100% align with what happened in the episode in terms of the timeline and stuff, and I am too tired to rewrite the whole fic to make it align with the episode. So uh - alternative canon? But I really love the basic concepts and I do really love how it turned out. I hope you guys like it too!

...

You thought it would be an easy day. 

Maybe that was foolish on your part. So far, you hadn’t seen a single ‘easy’ day while working with the BAU. Between chasing down scumbags and then reliving every single gory detail while doing the paperwork - none of it was ‘easy’. It was worthy, accomplished work - making the world a safer place to live in. (At least that’s what you told yourself.) But it was never easy. 

There was always someone who made the job easier. Someone who made you smile every single day - especially on days when you didn’t think you were even capable of feeling a tiny shred of joy. Someone who made you feel safe, who you always felt had your back no matter what. So you were glad that he was by your side today, along for the ride. 

“Tell us about Cyrus.” Reid prompted. 

He looked to the woman driving, your new companion for the day - Nancy Lunde, someone who worked with the state department and had set up the interviews with the children at the Separatarian Sect. 

“Benjamin Cyrus. No criminal record. In fact, there’s no record of the guy at all.” Nancy explained. 

“That’s odd.” You commented. “Usually someone being accused of something like this would have some past offenses. Especially because it would give him a reason to move into isolation to continue the criminal pattern of behavior.” 

“Well, I couldn’t find anything on him.” Nancy shrugged. 

“What about the 9-1-1 call?” You asked. 

“A fifteen year old girl called in saying that a man was ‘laying with her’ and claimed it as ‘God’s will’. I believe the ‘he’ referred to is Cyrus.” Nancy explained. “The age fits with Jessica Evanson, but I’ve managed to negotiate interviews with all the children, just to be sure. It wasn’t easy.” 

“They’re incredibly weary of outsiders.” You commented. “Our boss warned you not to identify us as FBI, right?” 

Nancy nodded. “I got you some spare credentials, just in case.” 

She took one of her hands off the wheel and reached into her pocket.

“You’re going to be using your real names. You’re going in as Child Victim Interview Experts working with Child Protective Services. No association with the FBI.” Nancy explained, handing Reid your fake credentials. 

He nodded, inspecting the IDs before handing you yours where you were sitting in the backseat. 

“Oh, before I forget.” You noted, reaching into the pocket of your cardigan. “The rings.” 

You pulled out a small plastic bag that Hotch had given to you before you left. It was a bag containing a fake diamond ring in your size and a fake golden ‘wedding’ band for Spencer. 

Reid reached over the seat to grab his ring from you, and Nancy gave the two of you an odd look. 

“Rings?” She questioned. 

“Fake wedding bands.” You explained. 

“It was our Unit Chief’s idea.” Reid added on. “He believes that presenting us as a ‘godly’ married couple to Cyrus will make him more likely to open up to us. He’s less likely to see us as hostile outsiders if he believes that we share a similar system of beliefs.” 

“It could also have a calming effect on the teenagers we have to interview or the kids there who have had more time to go through indoctrination at the Sect.” You continued to explain. “Even if their parents are hesitant to let the kids speak with us, they may be more willing to have their child speak with us or even leave them alone with us if they believe that we’re fellow Christians, rather than hostile atheists there to poison their children’s minds.” 

Reid nodded at you through the rearview mirror. 

“Make sure you put on the left hand.” He told you. “That’s the position for marriage.” 

You nodded at this. 

You placed the ring in the appropriate position, and you couldn’t help but to take a moment and stare at it. It was jarring to have a wedding ring on - especially with the thought that it represented you being married to Spencer. But you supposed, of all the people to call your husband, he would be one of the best. He was honest, intelligent, kind, and… if you were pressed, you would definitely say he was handsome. 

But you couldn’t get too caught up thinking about all of that. Because it wasn’t real. It was a false projection you were wearing for the benefit of a self inflated sociopath. 

Spencer liked the feeling of the ring. He didn’t take too long to stare at it after he had put it on, because he knew his mind would wander if he did. When Hotch had first proposed the idea of the two of you pretending to be married, Spencer had almost tripped over himself to oppose it - mostly because he didn’t think that he would be able to handle simply pretending to be your husband for the day. It was just too cruel. 

Having something he wanted so badly dangled right in front of him and knowing that it was all just a farce - it bothered him, but he delighted in the play nonetheless. 

When he caught the fake gold glinting in the light, Spencer had to remind himself that it was fake - that you would just be playing his wife for the day. He had to push back any internal glee that he felt at the idea that he got to be ‘taken’ by you while wearing that ring. It wasn’t real. It was just for the day. 

“Isn’t that deceptive?” Nancy asked. “Won’t Cyrus be even more angry if he finds out that it’s not true?” 

“He won’t find out.” You replied confidently. “And besides, we use deception in interrogations all the time. It’s a very basic tactic: align yourself with the suspect. Make them think you share the same beliefs, that you’re on their side.” 

Reid grinned at this. He always loved it when you spoke so confidently. 

… 

“We’re looking for Mr. Benjamin Cyrus.” Nancy announced as the three of you got out of the car. 

“Then you’ve found him.” Cyrus announced confidently. 

He was pretty much what you had expected him to be - dressed informally, slouched over, faking meekness, holding a bible near his chest as though it were a shield. He had planted himself there purposefully, wanting to be the first person to interact with the outsiders as three of you came into the Ranch. 

You hovered back near Spencer, letting Nancy make the first introduction. 

“I’m Nancy Lunde.” She said, giving a small nod toward the man. “We spoke on the phone regarding the allegation.” 

“‘Savages they call us, because our manners differ from theirs.’” Cyrus rhymed off a quote, obviously positioning himself and his group as martyrs being attacked for having ‘different ways’ that the world simply didn’t understand. 

“We didn’t come here to hear you cite scripture, Mr. Cyrus.” Nancy reminded him, hoping to keep the religious zealot on track. 

“Actually, it’s Benjamin Franklin.” Reid corrected her, talking about the quote. 

That did surprise you, but you didn’t find it surprising that Reid knew this fact right off the top of his head. It was just one of the many amazing things about him - his perfect memory and his ability to use it. 

Of course, him saying this immediately drew Cyrus’ attention toward the two of you. So Spencer stepped up to introduce you. 

“Hello, I’m Spencer Reid, and this is my wife, Y/N L/N.” He said motioning toward himself and then to you as he introduced the two of you. Hearing him refer to you as his wife - you hated to say it, but it caused a jolt through your system. Almost as if you had been waiting forever to hear him say those words and hadn’t even known it yourself. “We’re Child Victim Interview Experts, here on behalf of Child Protective Services.” 

Of course, you couldn’t get too caught up in deciphering how those words made you feel, because you had to focus on the task at hand. The job that you were here to do. 

“How far from God’s word must we have strayed for there to be a need to invent a job called ‘Child Victim Interview Expert’.” Cyrus said, his tone even, quiet. 

You knew that covertly, it was his way of saying that the two of you didn’t belong there, because he ran the Ranch with God’s word, so nobody had actually been harmed (in his opinion). He believed that he had done nothing wrong. Obviously, he thought your time and resources were better spent with ‘actual’ victims who didn’t have his power wielded over their lives. 

“I can assure you, Mr. Cyrus, we try to bring God into our work.” You told him, trying to appeal to him. “The children we visit usually need prayer and God’s light the most.” 

Spencer gave you a sideways glance, clearly holding back a grin at how thick you were pouring it on - how much intense, feigned passion you said these words with. 

“Well, I can assure you that a lack of prayer and God’s light is certainly not an issue for the children here.” Cyrus said, giving you a clever little grin. He thought that you would simply interview the children, praise him for what a good job he had done, and then leave. “You can go and see the children whenever you like. They are up at the school, as I indicated in our phone call.” 

Nancy walked toward the school, and you paused before you followed. 

Before you walked off, you looked to Spencer. In a completely silent conversation that only worked so well because the two of you had been in so many tense situations before, thinking around UnSubs and planning miles around them before they could even know it, he gave you a small nod and you instantly knew what it meant. He had established a small bit of trust with Cyrus, so he would stick back and see what else he could get out of the man. 

You nodded back, and then - completely surprising yourself, you leaned in and kissed Spencer on the cheek. You were just playing the part, you told yourself. It’s not that it felt entirely instinctive to say goodbye to him with some kind of affection, like the many hugs you had given him before. It’s not that you felt so entirely scrutinized with Cryus’ piercing eyes on you, and you needed the anchor of Spencer’s touch. 

You were just playing the part. 

Spencer tried not to get caught on being kissed on the cheek like he was some blushing virgin, and instead, focused his attention back on Cyrus instead of watching you walk away. (Even though every single one of his instincts told him that he needed to keep a more careful eye on you because you both had to leave your guns in the car.) 

He took a step closer to where Cyrus was leaning on the concrete, and easily picked a topic of conversation. 

“Solar panels.” Reid said, motioning to the large devices sitting behind Cyrus on the grass. 

“Yes.” Cyrus nodded. “We’re completely self-sufficient here. Food, electricity, water. Benjamin Franklin said ‘God helps those who help themselves’.” He explained. “You look surprised.” 

“No, uh, impressed, actually.” Reid easily lied, trying to appeal to his ego. 

“Thank you.” Cyrus said. “Most men wouldn’t admit that.” 

“Well, I suppose that I’m not like most men.” Reid shrugged in return. 

“How long have you been married?” Cyrus asked, motioning toward Reid’s ‘wedding ring’. 

Reid panicked slightly, knowing that the two of you likely should have coordinated this story during the plane ride to Colorado so that your answers to these simple questions wouldn’t be different. But he just made up an answer and hoped that nobody else would ask you the same question and find out the deception. 

“Three years.” He said. “I’ve been very blessed.” 

He used the language purposefully, knowing that the simple phrase could get him on Cyrus’ good side. That, and he hoped it would draw the attention away from any possible signs of his blatant lie. 

“Your wife is very beautiful.” Cyrus commented. 

He gave a wicked smirk as he said this. It was a simple, fairly ‘innocent’ comment, but it was immediately off-putting to Spencer. It took everything in his body not to glare daggers at Cyrus or throw out some protective comment in return. He could only imagine what was going through Cyrus’ mind as he thought about you, and he hated even imagining it. 

Reid knew that it was a basic logical good, the instinct to protect you because you were his partner on this case and he was supposed to have your back. But it was also something more. Something in every fiber of his being that screamed you were his and no man should ever be thinking of you that way except for him. 

“Has it been a godly union?” 

He was lucky when Cyrus spoke again and distracted him from his mounting rage. 

“We try to be as godly as we can be.” Spencer took the simple, diplomatic answer. 

“Your wife didn’t take your last name.” Cyrus pointed out. 

Nancy had used your name on your false credentials because Hotch had only come up with the fake marriage idea the day before. There hadn’t been time to inform her about it and have ‘Reid’ put on your ID as your ‘married’ name. So he had introduced you by your name to keep everything consistent with the reuse. 

It did make Spencer wonder if you would keep your last name if the two of you ever did get married. It made him almost dizzy, thinking about you as ‘Mrs Reid’. Thinking about your kids having his name. Or your name, if that’s what you wanted. 

But naturally, he pushed past all those thoughts and formed an excuse. 

“Typically, married women aren’t very well perceived in our line of work.” He quickly excused. “She doesn’t even get to wear her ring that often. She couldn’t change her name on paperwork at our office because a working married woman… it’s heavily frowned upon.” 

“Well, I’d have to agree.” Cyrus grunted. “A woman shouldn’t be out working. A woman should be at home raising a family.” 

“I - I suppose you’re right.” Reid agreed through gritted teeth. 

He walked away toward the school before he got too angry again. 

… 

A few hours later, everything had gone to hell. 

Some authority - the police, the military, you didn’t even know - had charged into the Ranch shooting. In response, Cyrus and his followers had come into the school toting large semi-automatics asking you and Spencer if you knew about a raid. 

You didn’t. You wish you had known about a raid. You would have warned Hotch and gotten them to call it off. You certainly would not have been there while it was happening. 

When they had pointed those guns in your face and forced you into the tunnels - it wasn’t very difficult to pretend to be Spencer’s wife then. Cowering in the bunker, confused and scared, you flung your arms around his waist almost instinctively, and he buried his nose in the top of your hair as he wrapped his arms around your shoulders like a shield, promising you that everything was going to be okay. 

Whispered to you like that, coming from him - it was almost easier to believe. Even with the chaos going on around you and the fear pumping through you in response. 

Nancy had run off trying to get them to surrender and did not come back. You had a feeling that you knew what that meant. 

And now, with the kids from the school ‘evacuated’ into the church, you were being held in the cellar at gunpoint. They had forcefully separated you and Spencer, making you sit in chairs at opposite sides of the room.

Spencer was fidgeting. His eyes kept flickering from the door, to you, to the man standing beside you holding the very large gun. 

You knew that you had ugly tear tracks down your face, and oddly enough - you wanted nothing more than to be back in his arms. As you were forced to sit there, just a few feet across the room away from him - you ached for it. 

There was a very large possibility that you were going to die today. And you selfishly needed the comfort of being in the arms of someone familiar - someone safe. Someone you knew would never hurt you. Someone who had made you laugh with dumb science jokes and puns for the last five years that you had worked together with him. 

When Cyrus charged back into the room with two men flanking his sides, you and Spencer stiffened up once again. 

“God will forgive me for what I’m about to do.” Cyrus announced to the room, presenting a handgun from his belt. 

Your insides quaked, and Spencer’s eyes grew wide. 

You couldn’t contain the fearful whimper that erupted from the back of your throat when he raised that gun and placed it near the middle of Spencer’s forehead. You clasped a hand tightly over your mouth to keep yourself from crying out in protest, knowing that would only make things worse. 

“Which one of you is the FBI Agent?” Cyrus asked firmly. 

Which ‘one’? 

So he knew that you were undercover, that you had lied about your job titles - but he thought that only one of you had done so. Where the hell was he getting his information? 

“I - I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Spencer told him quietly, looking him in the eye the entire time. 

You hoped that his stutter could be passed off as nervousness from the gun being pointed in his face, and wouldn’t be pointed to as deception. 

“Which one of you is it?” Cyrus pressed. 

“We are not FBI Agents.” Spencer said, more confidently this time. “We are Child Victim Interview Experts. We were only sent here to ensure the wellbeing of the children. Nothing more, nothing less.” 

Well, that last part wasn’t a lie. 

“You’re lying.” Cyrus told him, entirely confident in this. “God expells those who lie, devils in sheep’s clothing.” 

There was a tense moment, and then Cyrus cocked the gun. 

Spencer didn’t flinch. You resisted the urge to scream. 

“Proverbs 12:22 says: ‘The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth.’” Cyrus said, actually citing scripture this time. 

He was giving Spencer one last chance to tell the truth. As if using the bible verse to say that his punishment would be lesser if he simply told the truth now. 

Spencer didn’t take the bait. 

“I’m not lying.” Spencer said firmly. “What? You think I wouldn’t know if - if my wife was an FBI Agent? This is the woman I wake up next to every single morning, the woman I go to sleep next to every single night, we work together every single day, we-” 

Cyrus interrupted Spencer’s ranting with a sharp hit to the face, pistol whipping him across the cheek. 

This caused Spencer to go flying off the chair, and you couldn’t help when you let out a wounded cry. It took everything in you not to jump out of your own chair and rush to Spencer where he had collapsed onto the ground, clutching his cheek. 

“Someone is going to tell me the truth.” Cyrus said gruffly. 

“It must have been Nancy!” You said, the idea finally popping into your head. 

You seemed to be more clever with the pressure of Spencer’s life being threatened. Cyrus stared you down, turning his attention fully toward you now. You caught Spencer’s eye for a moment and he gave you a small nod - as if to say ‘yes, keep going with that’. 

“The woman we came in with! Nancy!” You reasoned, continuing to point the finger at the woman you had to assume was dead. “We - we just met her today. Our boss introduced us to her, but we had never met before that. If she was FBI, we had no clue. We swear.” 

Cyrus turned to you then, and tightly pressed the barrel of his gun into your forehead. You could feel the imprint of it so tight in your skin that it hurt, and you could only lean away so far before threatening to knock the chair backwards. 

“It’s very convenient to pin this crime on someone who isn’t here.” He grunted at you. 

“It’s the truth.” You sniffled out quietly. 

“Hmm.” Cyrus hummed thoughtfully, and then, much to your surprise, he removed the gun barrel from your forehead. 

You barely had a moment to breathe in relief before he began skimming the gun down your neck, touching the metal whisper-gentle across your bare skin - clearly taunting you. It was something that made your whole body stiff with alarm, and caused Spencer’s eyes to go wide once again.

“Perhaps I should strip you naked to ensure that you’re not wearing a wire.” Cyrus said, teasing the gun along the buttons at the front of your cardigan. 

You held back a sob at the thought of it - at the idea that he could make you do almost anything for the fear of you being shot. Truthfully, you were more afraid of what he might do to Spencer if you didn’t comply, but it was all the same in your mind now. His life was just as valuable as yours, and you would do whatever it took to protect him.

Before Cyrus could take these threats any further, a heroic voice intervened. 

“That’s enough!” Spencer yelled. 

He gathered himself off the floor and oddly enough, none of the men moved to stop him as he came to stand beside Cyrus. Perhaps they didn’t see him as a threat. Perhaps it was because Cyrus didn’t bark any orders at them to stop him. He was entirely unflinching, keeping his focus on you and keeping his gun held between your breasts as Spencer crowded into his personal space, trying to press himself between you and the awful man. 

“We’ve told you everything that we know.” Spencer told him lowly, his voice heaving with well controlled anger. It was something that you had rarely ever heard from him. 

Cyrus kept his eyes locked on you, so Spencer continued. 

“We don’t know anything about the FBI - we have a simple job advocating for children who have been abused. That is it. We came here to investigate a most likely false claim against someone in your community and we truly didn’t mean to get caught up in all of this.” He said firmly, clearly trying to appeal to Cyrus. “So I suggest you get that gun away from my wife before you and I truly have a problem.” 

Spencer’s voice was dark, so thick with rage. More pent up rage than you had ever heard from him when he was talking to any suspect, people who had done the worst of the worst. Something about Cyrus threatening you had truly boiled his insides. 

The way he said the words ‘my wife’ - growling it out like he was a feral animal and this threat to you had activated every single one of his protective instincts. Hearing it made something inside of you yearn for him on such a deep level that you didn’t know was possible. You wanted to feel that kind of protection cast over you every single day. It made you feel invincible, having Spencer watch over you like that. 

Cyrus lowered the gun then, and Spencer grabbed your arm as you dissolved into hysterical tears. Instinctively, he lifted you up into his arms. You thought that you heard Cyrus mumble out ‘my apologies’ as he left the room - but he was barely on your radar. Your entire world became narrowed down to nothing but Spencer, your safety net as he built a wall of protection around you. 

He used his height to block you from seeing anything but him, letting you push your face into his chest as you cried. He wrapped you in his arms once again, letting you feel truly safe for a few moments as you sobbed into the fabric of his sweater. Your arms clutched desperately at his waist, needing to keep a hold on him - needing to ensure that he didn’t leave you. 

“Hey, shh. Shh. It’s okay.” He said, leaving gentle kisses on the top of your forehead and your hair, rubbing across your back with one hand, comforting you in the only way he could in those moments. “It’s gonna be okay.” 

Of course, he wanted to break down too. But he had to be strong for you. 

“Spencer,” You called his name in an utterly wounded voice, pulling away from his chest to look up at him. 

When you saw his injury up close - a sharp, purple-red bruise that was blooming across his cheek, it looked so utterly painful. Your insides ached at the thought that he had taken a blow for you. You hated to imagine what more they could have done to him if they had not believed your lies. 

You instinctively reached a hand up to touch it and he caught your fingers halfway, instead, gently grasping your hand and laying it on his chest. The intimacy felt so oddly rehearsed - so worn in, so ‘normal’. It felt like you had been married to Spencer for years. Like it wasn’t a play at all. 

Your two souls had been calling out to each other for years, just waiting for the dam to break. But you couldn’t quite put it into words - not like that. 

“It’s okay.” He said quietly, knowing you were horrified by the injury. 

He was so gentle, so comforting, so calm. Everything the men pointing guns at you were not. Unlike Cyrus - Spencer Reid was a true blessing from God. 

You couldn’t hold yourself back then. 

You surged up and kissed him, fully embracing his mouth with yours in a kiss. Though it was so sudden, it was something he easily returned. The kiss so full of urgency, so needy, so passionate. Like he was trying to tell you that it was okay, that he would protect you no matter what. 

He would protect you because you belonged to him. 

In those moments, the two of you were basically alone. One of Cryus’ men was guarding the door, watching on boredly. But Cyrus was off in the church, funneling people in to prepare for his ‘loyalty’ test. It didn’t matter if he saw you kissing or not - it wouldn’t have sold the reuse of you being married any better. 

This was just for the two of you. This was comfort. 

When you pulled back from the kiss, Spencer looked stunned, almost as if he couldn’t believe what had happened. You didn’t give him time to question it. 

“Thank you.” You said quietly. 

It was twofold:

Thank you for protecting me. Thank you for giving me comfort. 

Spencer didn’t have too much time to marinate in the meaning of the kiss before Cyrus’ men came back and fetched the two of you, wanting you to observe the loyalty test. 

… 

After the mock poisoning (which Spencer figured out rather quickly, making you admire his cleverness once again), Cyrus kept you and Spencer in the church with a few of his closest, most loyal followers while all of the low level followers dispersed back to their homes. 

You and Spencer were lingering in the back quietly while Cyrus was on the other end of the room, talking to his men about how to proceed. The plans for their ‘final stand’. 

“We need to get some kind of signal to the others.” Spencer whispered quietly. “Maybe they’ll take pity on you and let you go if-” He swallowed sharply, cutting himself off abruptly. Oddly enough, he didn’t want to voice whatever was on his mind. 

“If what?” You probed. You wondered what the hell you could possibly be thinking. 

“If we tell them that you’re pregnant.” He said, whispering so lowly that you almost didn’t catch the words. 

You rolled your eyes sharply at this. 

You had gotten married and had kids all in one day. What a miracle. 

(In those moments, clouded by fear, you couldn’t see it for what it truly was - Spencer blatantly revealing his unconscious desires to have a baby with you.) 

“We could convince them to release you. As a show of good faith. A pregnancy would be good leverage in that. You know how religious people are about fetuses-” Spencer reasoned. 

“Yeah, and what if they give me a test?” You probed, punching a large hole in his logic. “We don’t know what kind of infirmary they have here. They obviously believe in modern technology. What if they want to give me an ultrasound to check on the fetus after the stress of the day? To prove that they did no harm to the precious unborn child,” 

Spencer was easily caught on this point. If they examined you and found that you weren’t pregnant, all the lies would fall apart. 

“Well… what if we tell them that you have a baby at home that you need to get back to?” Spencer reasoned, jumping to the next logical conclusion in his mind. “It’ll likely garner the same level of pity.” 

“Your imaginary sperm is powerful, isn’t it?” You whispered back sharply. Spencer rolled his eyes this time. But he didn’t redact the plan as unreasonable, so you continued on. “Okay, what do I even do when I get out there? I’m not gonna be of any use to the tactical team. We don’t know what Cyrus’ final play is yet.” 

Truthfully, you couldn’t bear to be separated from Spencer. Knowing that he was inside, potentially being beaten up more, potentially being shot and bleeding out from a wound without you knowing - it would kill you with stress. You need to be by his side. You needed to know that he was okay. 

“Has God blessed your union with any children?” Cyrus appeared behind you suddenly. 

You wondered if he had heard you say the word ‘pregnancy’ or if this was just a random topic that had come up in his mind. 

His sudden appearance behind you caused you to whip around and crowd into the comfort of Spencer’s arms again because you were frightened. Naturally, Spencer wrapped his sheltering touch around your shoulders. Your back was gently pressed into Spencer’s front, his arm shielding you protectively as it was wrapped around your chest, holding you with his hand on one of your shoulders, unconsciously stroking his thumb across the fabric of your cardigan. The position had you both facing Cyrus, watching the fan in an offensive way. 

And of course, Spencer didn’t miss a beat. 

“Yes.” Spencer answered easily. “We have two kids at home. A boy and a girl. Iris and Hugo. Iris is almost three years old and Hugo is eleven months. His first birthday is coming up in June.” 

You knew that Spencer could be very good at talking off a suspect’s ear under pressure, but when you heard him rattle off these ‘facts’ so easily, it hit you. 

This wasn’t simply statistics or physiological knowledge - this was a very elaborate backstory for your supposedly real marriage. Perhaps he had thought about all of it on the car ride up (which was odd not to share it with you, in case Cyrus asked you a similar question and your answer didn’t match up with Spencer’s). 

But if you weren’t mistaken, this wasn’t simply a backstory for your fake marriage during the undercover mission. This was a fantasy of his. Those were names he had lovingly chosen for your imaginary children - kids he had dreamed up in his head and wanted to be real. 

Your heart ached at the thought of it. You found yourself missing a set of children that weren’t even real. (And distantly, wanting to jump his bones to make it a reality.)

“Tell me, Mr. Reid, would you find it so shameful for your daughter to marry young?” Cyrus asked. 

You found it odd to hear Cyrus call Spencer ‘Mr. Reid’, but you realized that he hadn’t introduced himself as ‘Doctor’ in this setting. You held your tongue when you felt the need to correct him as you had so many other people, wanting Spencer to receive his proper title. 

Your mind almost couldn’t focus on the question that Cyrus had asked. Of course, he was trying to get Spencer to stroke his ego once again. Basically admitting that the whole reason the two of you had come here was true - he was being vastly inappropriate with a young member of the church, and getting away with it. And he saw nothing wrong with it. 

And he was trying to get an outsider to admit that he saw nothing wrong with it too. 

When there was a moment of silence - Reid obviously torn on how to answer the question, Cyrus continued. 

“Is there really something so wrong with a blooming young woman marrying a man who will protect her under God’s laws?” He probed, his voice so entirely confident. Clearly confident that he was right. 

“Well, I’m not sure if I would let my daughter get married so young.” Reid said, finally speaking up. “I just know that I would want her to marry a man that would protect her, and be the best possible fit for her. Someone who would cherish her and be good to her no matter what.” 

His answer made you swoon. You reached up and gently gripped his forearm in response, giving a light squeeze to show your approval. He leaned in and kissed the back of your head - dizzyingly, you were imagining him walking your imaginary daughter down the aisle before you had even gotten married yourself. 

Maybe it was being so close to death, being threatened in such dangerous territory that was causing your life to accelerate at light speed in your mind. If you were going to lose everything, you might as well enjoy the escapism of a fake life with a beautiful man in your mind instead of being stuck on the heart pounding terror of being held hostage, right? 

Surprisingly, his words drew a smile from Cyrus. 

“You’re a protective father, aren’t you?” Cyrus asked. 

“Of course.” Reid confirmed. 

“I can always admire that in a man.” Cyrus nodded. “A man should always pride himself on protecting his family.” 

There was another moment of pause, and you were hoping that the topic had been dropped completely. 

“Do you have a picture of your children with you?” Cyrus asked. 

You wondered if - in a different version of reality, where you and Spencer really were married, where Hugo and Iris really did exist - if you had a picture of them in your pocket, would Cyrus only be asking this so he could use the picture to taunt the two of you? What other purpose would he have for knowing what your children looked like? 

“Unfortunately, no.” You answered. “I keep my family pictures on my desk. In my office. We - we’ve just been praying to get back to them safely.” 

Cyrus seemed perturbed at you mentioning that you had an office. Something dark flickered over his features for a moment and then disappeared. 

“Well… if it is right, God will grant you that safe passage.” Cyrus said. 

Just when you truly thought the conversation was done, he said something to you that entirely grinded under your skin. 

“I find it entirely odd that a mother of two young children spends her days working a job where she takes care of other people’s children, rather than staying at home with her own youngins where she belongs.” 

He said, using that same entirely confident, righteous tone that he always did. Even though you were not really a working mother, you had a hard time not boiling with anger at the sexism ripe in his statement. 

“How much must you be missing of your sweet angels lives to instead partake in the horrors of devils you shouldn’t have to witness.” 

Of course. 

You had a hard time not rolling your eyes at this or saying something harsh that would set him off. Instead, you reached up to Spencer’s arm around your shoulder, squeezing his fingers, trying to keep your patience.

“I’ll have you know that Y/N is an amazing mother.” Spencer piped up, knowing that Cyrus respected him enough as a man that he wouldn’t beat him simply for speaking up. “Her nurturing and caring makes her infinitely better at her job.” 

Again, you knew that there was so much personal truth in Spencer’s words. He thought that you would make an amazing mother to his children - at least theoretically. He was entirely firm in that conviction. And he thought that your natural caring made you amazing at the job you did as a Profiler. He knew this from the quality of work he witnessed you doing every single day. 

You didn’t know it - but it was just one of the many things that had caused him to fall in love with you. 

Oddly enough, Cyrus’ words prodded at something deep inside of you. It made you imagine a life for yourself where you weren’t spending your days witnessing horrors from unspeakable devils - but instead, at home, looking out for Spencer’s imaginary children. 

You would have said it was the fear of the day, clouding your mind. But maybe it was the clarity of being so close to death that made you realize what - and who - you truly wanted out of life. 

… 

Hours later, after some of the hostages had been released (the ‘non-believers’ who had failed the loyalty test), Cyrus had requested that some food be sent up. Spencer gave you a sharp look when he saw the message written on one of the takeout lids. 

The team would be storming in to end the hold-out at 3am. You had to somehow ensure the safety of the hostages by then. 

Obviously, the fake pregnancy idea was still warping through Spencer’s mind, but you had come up with some much better. 

“Cyrus,” You called out his name gently, getting his attention. “You said that you have a nursery here?” 

It had come up, during his long winded bragging about how perfect the Ranch was. Something about how mothers didn’t have to raise their children alone. The children were raised as more of a ‘group effort’ and women took ‘shifts’ in the nursery, allowing the women to rest or get chores done in the interim. 

“Yes, we do.” He nodded. 

Spencer stared at you with his jaw set, wondering what you were doing but not daring to speak. 

“I - I’ve been missing my children dearly. I was wondering if I could go to your nursery and see if they need any help? It would do my soul good to be around young ones right now. After all the commotion of these days.” You spoke meekly, trying to play the part of the shaken up, dainty woman well. 

Which was too difficult, seeing as you were playing up the fear you had already experienced. 

He grinned. It was a rather menacing smile, and you tried your hardest not to show any further fear, or disgust. 

“That sounds like a splendid idea.” He nodded. “Christopher, why don’t you escort her down to the nursery and then come back? We need you here for our final preparations.” 

You were finally falling to those gender roles that he had been pushing on you since you had arrived. He didn’t suspect a thing. He simply thought that you were a God fearing woman falling to your natural womanly instincts, needing to care for children lest your womb shrivel up and you die. 

Spencer rose from his seat and Cyrus stopped him. 

“Just your wife.” He said, putting a hand in front of Spencer’s chest to stop him. “There are still some things you and I need to discuss. Man to man.” 

You went over to Spencer and didn’t hesitate to plant a kiss firmly on his mouth, which he returned with vigor. This one lasted only a moment - it was something precious for the two of you. You didn’t need to put on some pointed show for the men in the room. 

“It’s okay.” You told Spencer quietly, brushing your fingers gently over his uninjured cheek. 

You could tell that he was dying to ask you what your plan was. But he kept the words trapped in his throat, unable to speak in front of the many temperamental villains lurking about. 

“Come on.” Christopher grunted. 

Spencer gave you a longing look as you left. He didn’t want to think it, but as he watched your figure retreat out the door, he feared that it would be the last time he ever saw you. 

… 

Your plan worked flawlessly. 

Getting to the nursery meant that you had unsupervised access to the women and children, especially away from Cyrus’ prying ears. Because you were a ‘delicate’ woman, nobody suspected you of having ulterior motives. You easily found a crack in Kathy, Jessica’s mother. You spotted her as the one who had made the original 9-1-1 call, wanting to get her daughter away from Cyrus. You convinced her to help you get everyone out, and you felt intense relief when you were met with a familiar face in the cellar as everyone escaped through the tunnels. 

“Where’s Reid?” Morgan easily asked you, glancing behind your shoulder as if waiting for him to appear. 

“He’s still up at the church.” You told him. “I had to separate off to help get the women and children out-” 

“Go on, we have to get you out!” Morgan urged, trying to gently usher you along. 

“We have to go get Reid!” You argued, trying to turn around. 

“Go, go on, I’ll go get Reid!” He told you. 

You were about to argue back, but you were cut off by a scuffle behind you. 

Jessica was yelling about Cyrus - how her mother had betrayed her, tricked her. 

Morgan pushed Kathy toward you and ran off screaming for Jessica. You took Kathy’s arm, gently convincing her that everything was going to be okay as you guided her the rest of the way out. You had to focus on this, convincing yourself that everything was going to be okay. You had to tell yourself that Derek was going to get Spencer out - that they were both going to be okay. 

When you got outside, you were hyper focused on marching away, taking a path away from the church as directed by the officers in charge. You froze in your tracks when you heard it - an earth shattering boom. The ground beneath your feet shook. You felt a puff of hot air swell to touch your back. 

You let go of Kathy’s arm and whipped around, and you couldn’t even pay attention to where she went. You almost thought you heard her weeping, but your mind couldn’t process it as your eyes were glossed in bright orange flame. 

It was the church. 

“Spencer?” You gasped quietly. “Spencer!” 

You couldn’t help it, but you began to run toward it. Your feet carried you faster than you could think, and before you got more than a few feet across the ground, you felt a sharp grip on your upper arm. 

“L/N!” 

Hotch’s voice, sounding far too distant for the position he held right behind you, viciously gripping onto you as you fought against him, trying to get toward the fire - trying to get to Spencer. 

“Hey! Hey! Stop it!” Hotch tried to order you around, tried to get you to stand down. 

He got a hand around your waist, and you continued to kick like a wild horse, fighting against his grip as hot tears poured down your face. 

“He’s in there!” You sobbed. “Spencer is still in there.” 

“Calm. Down.” Hotch ordered sharply. 

You collapsed back into him sobbing, all of the fight leaving your muscles at once. You couldn’t fake the reality in front of you. 

“You running in there and getting hurt isn’t going to change anything.” Hotch told you quietly, a somehow distant murmur into your ear. 

Through the blur of your tears and the sharp orange glow, you saw the shape of two bodies. You heard coughing as someone emerged from the blast, hobbling down the stairs at the front of the church. You forced your eyes open wider, trying to see who it was, and then: 

“Y/N!” Spencer called out your name gruffly through the smoke he had inhaled, and you easily shucked off Hotch’s grip to race up the stairs to get to him. 

He was leaning on Morgan for support and you were worried that he was hurt. But the moment you were close enough, he tore himself away from Morgan and the two of you met in the middle. In a pattern that was easily developing, you fell into the safety of his arms, holding him tight enough to bruise him - never wanting to let go. 

“You’re so stupid, you’re so stupid! Why would you do that to me?” 

You sobbed out, gripping both sides of his face, staring into his eyes, needing the recognition that he was right there, right in front of you. 

He stared back with glassiness - intense fear, adrenaline, and something small that told you he was thankful for you, and needed you now more than ever. 

Of course, your words were simple anger at the situation, not at Spencer himself. The terror of thinking that he was dead still pumping through your veins, causing you to shake. 

“I know.” He said quietly. “I love you.” 

His voice wrapped around the words so tenderly - it was the most sincere declaration you had ever heard from him. As if to say ‘I know how much that scared you. I know what this ordeal has done to us and I only meant it more because of how scared I am’. 

“I love you too.” The words flew from your lips so naturally it hurt. You took a moment to recover, entirely shocked by your own lips. And then, you only found the need to say it growing more inside of you. “Spencer, I love you.” 

You pulled him toward you with the grip you had on his face, and he easily met you in one of the most earth shattering kisses you had ever experienced. 

It was no longer a show, it was no longer about displaying the fake marriage for someone else’s benefit - if it had ever been about that in the first place. It was about the two of you. It was about feeling that comfort, that safety. It was about the fact that your two souls were drawn together since the day you had met. The fact that you had always felt safe with each other. You had always been the other person’s shelter from the storm. 

And you poured every ounce of those feelings into that kiss. 

You combed your fingers through Spencer’s hair, taking a harsh grip on the back of it, holding him there so he couldn’t pull away from your lips. He wrapped his arms around your waist, fisting the back of your sweater. Both of you entirely refused to come up for oxygen, not even caring who saw the epically passionate, public display of your love for each other. 

Unbeknownst to you, Morgan and Hotch exchanged a look with raised brows as it happened. You and Spencer didn’t care. You were barely perceiving the world around you as the two of you kissed. 

“You know if you’re not careful, people are actually gonna think you two are married.” Morgan said, being his usual sarcastic self. 

Rather than pulling away from Spencer’s lips to sass him back - you simply flipped Derek off over Spencer’s shoulder. 

On the ride home, JJ handed Derek five dollars. He had the over/under that the two of you would get together before the end of the year. JJ said that it wouldn’t happen for another five years, at least. Derek handed the fiver to Emily when she reminded him that the ‘fake marriage’ bit had actually been her idea. 

When Emily and JJ relayed the story to Penelope, she squealed so loudly into the phone that JJ dropped it. 

Hotch pulled you aside later and warned you that the fake rings were just cheap costume jewelry that Garcia had gotten and they would tarnish soon if you kept wearing them. He also recommended that you and Spencer put in the paperwork with HR if you were ‘serious’ about the relationship. You knew that it was him wishing the two of you his best. 

A few days later when you came into work and found the HR request for an update of relationship status sitting on your desk, already signed by Spencer, you couldn’t help but to smile.

...

A/N: This is a oneshot, so there will not be a continuation or a sequel to it. If you are going to comment, please comment about the body of work that I have written, rather than asking me to write 'more'. If you want to see more things that I have written about Spencer, feel free to check out my Criminal Minds Masterlist.

[rootspiral]

WANDAVISION DEEP DIVE part 1

(Wandavision entries: [1][2][3])

(AAA entries: ep1 [1][2][3][4] ep2 [1][2][3][4] ep3 [1][2][3] ep4 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][+1] ep5 [1][2][3][4][5] ep6 [1][2][3] ep7 [1][2][3][4][5][6] ep8 [1][2][3][4][5][6][7])

After managing to keep away from social media for almost two months, here comes Agatha All Along sucking me back in 🙃 I want to rewatch the whole thing and see how many details I can catch, but I guess I might as well go through Agatha's scenes in Wandavision first. and you guys are coming with me!! we can all hyperfixate together (spoilers from both WV and AAA below. this is going to be just a stream of consciousness as I go through scenes, don't expect anything elaborate)

SO.

Agatha arrives in Westview attracted by Wanda's Hex. She might already suspect she's dealing with the Scarlet Witch because lbr, who has that sort of power? She takes a calculated risk to come investigate (detective Agnes of Westview on the case!) It's funny that her calculated risks are always way more emotional than she'd admit, because who in their right mind comes after the SW? But all that power is too alluring, so Agatha takes possession of Ralph's house, ruins the market value adding a creepy basement and brainwashes him into being her husband/minion/pet.

And now it's time to do what she does best, con artist is gonna con! I adore that Agatha became one of the most infamous witches in history thanks mostly to her improv skills.

She's a magical gal is a small time locale!! he's a husband who's part machiiiiiine (great now it'll get stuck in my head again)

worth nothing that both witches and androids have historically and culturally been used as queer allegories, and here's a very sapphic witch pretending to be a straight 1950s housewife and another witch who's got an elaborate fantasy going on where her husband is able to pass and all their problems are sitcom-level fixable.

How to solve the Hex mystery according to Agatha Harkness:

step #1, casually fish for personal info

step #2, flirt with your suspect (obviously)

she literally asks if Wanda's single ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

AGATHA

she's lying it on soooo thick

she dropped that pot so deliberately LMAOO stinky chaotic goblin

knowing she' s being an asshole on purpose makes this scene 100 times funnier tbh

(also a moment of silence for Sharon's irreparable trauma. her last words will be "Wanda, I'm begging you, let him breathe, please")

episode 2: Agatha keeps being a menace

And knowing now that she's always playing a part and her real personality is much more emo makes it easier to spot when she slips out of character

"was that too much? might rein it down a lil bit" (btw I'm still suspicious of Dennis the mailman and totally expect a big reveal in Westview season 3)

I'm betting that this was Agatha rather than Agnes too. she's so miserable lol. she hates playing this part so much. and that wig is hideous

not Agatha casually planting the idea of children in Wanda's head. She probably was the one making people chant "for the children" too. literally manipulating Wanda into showing her if she can create life, calculated risk my ass, she's out here playing with fire

(does that mean that Agatha is a liiiiiiitle bit Billy's and Tommy's parent too?? she planTED the sEED. hear me OUT.)

you know she was dead inside at having to sit through the whole talent show. she probably took it out on the contestants and made them trip onstage or something

Episode 3 of pappappa pappappa wandavision!

Agatha helping Wanda to pick baby clothes, I'm going to sob. (look at this technicolor filter! modern shows CAN color their shit! it's just that they'd rather make everything look like muddy ass instead)

not much from Agatha this episode except scheming to get Monica kicked out of the Hex, seeing as she's the biggest obstacle between herself and Wanda ('s powers). Also you know she was stalking the house to keep track of when the babies were born. Also also, the painted scenery! Like mother like son, it's such a big hint about the nature of the Road.

look at this piece of shit, I love her so much. And she does tend to wink when she's just told a truly egregious lie, doesn't she? it's like her little signature.

Agatha in episode 5 coming in like: LEMME SEE THOSE BABIESSSSSSS

kathryn hahn with 80s curls is doing something to me, let me tell you

so manipulative, in so many ways. and knowing what we know now about Agatha and children, imagine the turmoil inside of her!! triumph at having confirmation of Wanda's life-giving powers. nervousness about the mess she's putting herself in. exasperation at having to keep up the charade. and, most importantly, getting to HOLD A BABY BOY AFTER ALL THIS TIME (amazing, terrifying, traumatic, wonderful)

what is she doiiiing. this bitch, I swear.

OH MY GAWD I FORGOT WANDA SAID THIS. "so she keeps coming at me like a cat in heat, that's not her fault Vision, she has a Medical Condition"

"kids. can't control them. no matter how hard you try"??????? the suddenly wistful voice?????????????????????? why don't I fling myself off a cliff?????????????????? was this woman actually honestly dying inside while still having to play pretend, I can't, I cannot. And how much of Agatha's backstory was decided at this point, was Kathryn given a general idea?

Agatha and Billy, partners in crime already! Seriously, Jac Schaeffer must have had an idea of where this was going. And it's obvious in retrospect that Agatha would be drawn to Billy the most, he's a witch unlike Tommy and he's such a polite, sweet little fellow, he probably reminded her of Nicky so much?? Here's this scary dangerous witch who on one side is planning to murder everyone in the room, and on the other is fighting back the urge to go full mama bear on this kid and protect and cherish him forever. This is not what she signed up for when she decided to stalk Wanda!

She is so horrible. She is despicable. I'm allowed to say it because I love her so much! I can't remember, was it revealed that she turned a fly into a dog or something? Or did she kidnap a dog dog from a shelter / someone's garden and then stone cold killed him? No, wait, she made Ralph kill him. Do your own killing of cute innocent little creatures, you coward! Love that vest tho.

"Fix the dead!" "You can do that?" And of course she's pretending here but you know that's EXACTLY what this whole sordid Sparky affair was about, she's testing and prodding at Wanda's powers, trying to figure out her limits. There's an eagerness here that she doesn't need to fake. Who knows, maybe she was actually squeamish about killing the dog (she does have a cuddly bunny and woves him vewy much), hence why Ralph had to do it. But more importantly even if she didn't like killing a pet, even if she wasn't happy about traumatizing these kids - that's exactly what she's doing here, she's willingly hurting two children - she went and did it anyway, because her thirst for Wanda's powers is too big. She kills witches out of anger, out of fear and self-preservation. She is ultimately a selfish person, and that is what makes her a villain. It's not that she doesn't have feelings. She has plenty of feelings, she has a conscience, and she chooses to do the bad thing anyway.

"And we can't reverse death. No matter how sad it makes us. Okay? Some things are forever." These two shows above all else are about grief. You can peel this scene and find more and more layers, it was about the kids losing Sparky at first but also about Wanda losing Pietro, Wanda losing Vision, Wanda losing the kids. And it's also, DEFINITELY about Agatha losing Nicky. I need a drink.

Agatha discreetly wiping a tear in the background nbd

And I can only upload 30 pictures per post so there's going to be a part two. I was NOT planning to write so much, help. What are you doing to me AGATHA

go to part 2

[emeryhiro]

My Thoughts on The Book Of Carol Season 2

-Spoiler Free Edition-

Okay, not to sound like a broken positivity record, but I want to share my spoiler-free review of the season to put my own thoughts out there and give others who haven't seen it yet another perspective.

Overall, I was very happy with the season. Of course, my favourite episodes were 4, 5, and 6 (in that order). All of them really reminded me of the episode Consumed (S5EP06), which is exactly what I wanted from this season.

I wanted Carol and Daryl to have the chance to work through their own demons and finally find each other on the same page again at the end. And that's precisely what this season did.

They promised us bickering like an old married couple, and they gave us bickering like an old married couple and so much more. The constant bickering, teasing, longing looks, and tender moments between Carol and Daryl are as beautiful, if not better than ever before, and it has honestly given me all the energy I need to wait for the next season.

If I had to, the only negative things that I would say about the season were that some of the French cast's storylines felt like they came to an abrupt end and that they would have deserved a more fleshed-out story, but that's just the nature of a six-episode season. Ultimately, if I had the choice, I'd rather have more screen time with Carol and Daryl.

I now feel more confident than ever before that this season was designed this way to allow the natural and healthy progression to canon in season 3, and I'd rather wait for Caryl to become canon once they're both in a healthy place and can give each other 100% of themselves. I also have to say that I agree with some of the reviewers who said that they felt at least one of the characters has come to realise their feelings for the other by the end of the season.

My advice would be to stick through episodes 2 and 3 (which weren't terrible and had some great moments, especially between Carol and Ash, which I'll talk about weekly as the episodes officially come out) because episodes 4-6 are absolute gems, and it will all be worth it in the end ♡

[gotskamstuff]

My honest review of PART 1 (that nobody asked for but I wanna talk about it)

‼️ SPOILER FOR S4 pt.1 (obviously but still a fair warning) ‼️

After watching the entirety of part one I have to admit that I am a bit confused by my own reaction ‘cause there are so many little things that I loved and missed about the show and we finally found back, but at the same time on the overall it kind of disappointed me a little how much time was taken away from the important things and going straight to the point…it was mainly ruined by Topper and Sofia’s storylines, both incredibly boring, repetitive and totally unnecessary.

I gotta say I LOVED episode 1 and episode 5 and half of episode 2, they had me hooked and got me really into the Outer Banks feels from S1 both in terms of adventure and Pogues dynamics, but I feel like half of episode 2 and episodes 3-4 nothing really big happened and there was just a lot of filler scenes, in terms of plot and storyline for the treasure hunt all that happened in 4 episodes is that they found the necklace and lost it, just in episode 5 they actively move forward.

There was so much unnecessary stuff that felt like plot fillers, probably gonna get a good portion of the fandom against this statement ‘cause I know the character got so many fans, but Rafe? The amount of scenes he got with Sofia repeating the same thing over and over was too much in my opinion, it felt like fan service just to get Drew on screen as much as possible. The whole Sofia character and storyline is actually insane to me how much screen time and attention got, no offense but…who cares? It’s kind of crazy that we got scenes of Sofia’s home, family, relationship, insecurities and background BEFORE WE EVEN GOT CLEO’S!

Too much screentime and too much attention to background characters (IMMENSELY background) that the audience could not care less about, especially when it came to the expenses of the main characters story and depth. This goes for Sofia just like Topper and quite frankly also Terrance.

Sofia is a character that we barely saw one season ago for a total of probably 2-3 minutes, now she’s taking up minutes upon minutes and various scenes IN EACH EPISODE and to repeat the same thing over and over again…I feel like one scene would have been enough to understand she doesn’t fit in with the Kooks and therefore she turns on Rafe, also there hasn’t been no built ups whatsoever neither over her or her relationship with Rafe. As i said we barely ever saw this character, why or how is the audience supposed to care or empathize with her? Why is the audience supposed to care all of a sudden about Rafe and Sofia’s relationship? It went from 0 to 100 out of nowhere, from the most irrelevant thing last season to now apparently being the entire storyline for Rafe. There would have been so many more interesting things to see about Rafe’s behavior after his father’s death, how he lost it, how he’s reacting and clearly trying to become the man Ward was, but no it was just “gotta invest and be good for me and Sofia”…none of the things he cared for (and literally went psycho for) were explored with any depth: his family, the gold, the family’s property at Tanny Hill he wanted to keep, how he said he’d seek revenge if anything happened to Ward etc.

Topper as well…did they not get the memo last season of how tired the audience is of his repetitive storyline? He comes, insults the Pogues, digs at John B about Sarah and blablabla, still WHO CARES? And who cares he got a girlfriend or that he has something to prove to her? Who cares that he hosts parties and who cares he was there surfing and causing problems with the Pogues? Who cares about this Ruth girl suddenly beefing with Kie? This has been done and over for 4 seasons now, we could’ve just seen him talk to Rafe once and impress his girlfriend about the investments on the land which is the only relevant thing for the plot.

And I’m probably gonna sound like a bitch here but Terrance as well, was it necessary? I mean, the only good thing about it is that we FINALLY got a tiny little minuscule bit of backstory for Cleo but even that was sooooo superficial. Once again they wanted the audience to empathize with something that was portrayed so minimally. Terrance reappeared out of nowhere without any explanation, told Cleo to comply and died…damn we could’ve at least seen a little more of that bond he and Cleo had, have him be there a little more for a couple of episodes, see him look out for Cleo and save her to empathize a bit more with his death and even find out more about Cleo’s upbringing since it’s something related to one of the main characters, but no.

Sofia, Topper, Ruth, Terrance and I’m sorry but I’m gonna include even Rafe in this list, are all characters that have no relevance anymore for the show and might as well not be there at all, they don’t add anything valuable to this story and just take away time from the plot with irrelevant and marginal scenes that no one cares about.

I guess my overall disappointment is that a lot of the Pogue’s storyline got put too much on the side and brushed off way too quickly for the sake of irrelevant characters who got way more screentime than needed to the point it started getting boring/irritating.

Barely saw Sarah and John B mourning their fathers, not even slightly explored the evident fear of John B turning into his dad that was just blurted out of nowhere by Pope, Pope’s family that’s been a constant in this series is nowhere to be seen, Kiara’s family dynamic and storyline is brushed off ENTIRELY with a 3 seconds flashbacks and with her parents suddenly being at the ceremony without a clue on what happened in between, Cleo’s backstory that was promised to us was just a quick show up in one episode of an old character and one line “he raised me since I was 13”…and can we talk about JJ’s reunion with Luke?

It was probably the most anticipated plot and one of the things the audience cared the most about and it felt so anticlimactic, same thing for the discovery of JJ’s parents. A MASSIVE PLOT TWIST in the main storyline of a main character blurted out like that so casually? Solved in one episode in a handful of minutes of screentime? I was actually getting really excited about the build up towards JJ’s past ‘cause I feel like they were doing a pretty good job with the hints and the subtle way it was getting anticipated that JJ’s mom was the woman who died and then Luke comes back without any type of suspense and in two minutes of screentime “I gotta tell you I am not your father and that wasn’t your mother” just like that, as if the Maybanks storyline isn’t what defined the entirety of JJ’s character and personality. There was so much more depth that could’ve gone into their reunion with mixed emotions and there could’ve been waaaay more pathos about JJ discovering his true identity. It was just thrown out there after 3 minutes on screen with his dad.

Even all the couples and ships, we saw more of Rafe and Sofia’s relationship than we saw JJ and Kiara (perhaps the most anticipated ship) or Pope and Cleo.

I feel like even the whole treasure hunt was moving so slowly and got put in the background, the only real high was in half of episode 2 with the scuba diving portion and in episode 5 when they actually go do something and they are in the catacombs, I’d include Cleo’s kidnapping but once again it got done and solved so minimally and once again interrupted by scenes with Rafe, Sofia and Topper when we could’ve been on the suspense for Cleo.

Personally I think that what people really missed about S1 ans S2 was the Pogues dynamic (which I ADORED so far in part one and this is something that to me made the whole season dear to me, finally they’re back with their essence) but also how action packed the show was EVERY EPISODE, back then it was almost as if each episode was its own mission for every discovery and every adventure they went on, it was a constant “onto the next move” and so high on adrenaline and action around the treasure hunt and I don’t know, it overall felt so slow this time and like they did so little discovery except the necklace and the crown (which was just mentioned).

And I gotta be real here, the reason why I say episode 1 and 5 (and half of 2) were my favorite was indeed because it was PACKED with the Pogues, the catch up to their story, their dynamic, moves being made in the plot with the treasure…and MOSTLY because they had the least interruption from all that Sofia and Topper boring stuffs that just kept breaking the flow of the story with irrelevant scenes.

I know that at this point I’m sounding so negative and believe me, the first person saddened about this is me. I was so excited for this season AND I STILL AM but I gotta admit, I really loved a lot of things (and I’ll probably show my excitement during the wait for part 2 with a lot of things I want to rewatch, theorize about and obsess over) but also I couldn’t get past my annoyance over the superficiality the main characters personal storylines suffered from compared to the excessive importance it was given to background characters.

And once again I’m sure my excitement over the episodes I just watched will probably build up in the wait for part 2 but it’s because I’ll be able to control where to direct my interest and attention concentrating more on the things I liked and found interesting, but I gotta say that my gut reaction on first impact while watching for the first time is that something kept breaking the flow of the storytelling so far (what I just explained about the excessive irrelevant subplots).

Get more screentime and more depth to our Pogues feelings and personal stories…WE DON’T CARE ABOUT SOFIA AND TOPPER!!

[carigm]

MAJOR POTENTIAL SPOILERS/LEAKS REGARDING S5 (WARNING)

Last Spring/Summer, a semi popular fandom account on Twitter got sent some leaks about S5, focused on the first half of the season. At this time, many fandom accounts were receiving supposed leaks, so our attention was a bit scattered and we didn’t focus on any of them too much. A popular leak account on Twitter (unrelated to ST) also mentioned that they had gotten the first half of S5 leaked, and that this source is “never wrong”. Now, it is hard to tell if these leaks are the same as the ones that the specific fandom account I’m talking about received, but something to keep in mind. Her leaks were given to her by a person named James (which I assume is a fake name). These leaks were also posted on Reddit, last year, by her (the person in the fandom that got the leaks from James) but some major things were omitted in that post. I’m gonna leave a link here in case you guys want to read the discussion.

I’m sharing these leaks with you because some things from them are kinda lining up with what we’re seeing from S5 production. Keep in mind that these could be fake/wrong, and James himself said he didn’t have info on the last couple of scripts.

According to James, Mike dies in Ep. 3. I’m adding more screenshots later for more context, but the gist of these leaks is that Mike bites it, mlvn never breakup nor do they get a resolution, and Byler is left up to interpretation but never really happens. (I don’t really need to get into how shitty this all is writing wise)

Let’s go over the things these leaks might have potentially gotten right, according to what we know so far.

1. James said that the time jump would occur in ep. 1, after an establishing scene where S4 left off. He said the time jump would place us in late 1987/early 1988. He also mentioned there would be a series of flashbacks showcasing stuff from before the time jump. The dates he gave do seem to be accurate, and David Harbour had a shaved head right before they went into filming, which could imply pre time jump scenes.

2. According to him, after Mike dies, they find a letter he had been writing. Some of us were theorizing Finn had a letter in his back pocket in those rooftop pics. Could’ve also been Finn’s script and he just stuck it there (who knows).

3. He said that Joyce gets badly injured in ep.3, and since there’s speculation Winona was seen filming at the hospital, some people think that means she was taken there because of her injury. It’s important to notice that Natalia, Cara, and Finn were also supposedly seen filming at the hospital, and that the production called for many extras for nurses and paramedics. So whatever they’re filming at the hospital, it might be bigger than Joyce getting injured in her leg. Let’s remember Max is at the hospital too. I’m not 100% sold on this part of the leaks.

4. Today it was revealed that they’re setting up to film at Stone Mountain. (This is where they filmed UD scenes for S4)

Apparently production might have purple tentacles out already. (UD vines?)

Cara Buono mentioned, in that video shared by Ross Duffer, that she was filming stuff from Ep.2. This was around 2 days ago.

The people that know about the leaks think this is where Mike dies in ep. 3. Here’s some further context:

Here’s some stuff he said about mlvn:

Which is just….meh, because like I said, it doesn’t look like him and El ever breakup before his supposed death. Plus Byler never gets any resolution.

Now some things that might disprove the leaks (I’m trying to be impartial here)

1. These leaks mentioned Argyle a couple of times, saying he has a hero moment at some point. Eduardo made it sound like he’s not coming back to the show, but tbh he could just be lying. He’s listed for ep.2 on IMDb (and yes I know anyone with an account can edit that site)

2. These leaks say that Mike is very insufferable for the 3 episodes he’s alive, basically lashing out at everyone, specially El, and just overall behaving like an asshole. I really didn’t get that from the ElMike rooftop scene, in fact he seemed very gentle with her. People that know about these leaks think that the rooftop scene is Mike maybe apologizing to El and them having a heart to heart, right before he dies (no comment).

All in all, if Mike is dying this early, I’m sure we’ll know soon enough. The rest of the cast is gonna be filming for like a year, and Finn will be done in like two weeks 💀

I also hope there’s more leaks soon (on Reddit) so that we might compare them to these and see wtf is up.

I know someone is gonna inevitably ask why leaks would be out almost a whole year before they started filming when we usually get them during filming or post production, but I’ve been told these leaks happened around the time the writer’s strike began, which is when they were originally gonna start filming. I was also told other shows had issues with leaks around that same time.

I don’t want to get too much into the truly awful writing we’re facing if these are real but…First, I believe it’s a total disservice to Mike’s character. One of your mains since S1 and you don’t even offer him the option of dying towards the end of the season? Even fucking Eddie got that. Two, it seems like a very easy cop out for not having to make Byler canon. Let’s just have neither ship be endgame and that way we don’t get queerbaiting allegations. It also stands in a zone too close to torture porn for my liking, because sure let’s kill the character two of the most traumatized characters in the history of TV love most. And yes, it’s also a disservice to El and Will’s characters. And lastly, if that supposed letter vaguely alludes Mike having some sort of sexuality problems (we don’t know atp) it is pretty fucked up they just killed him off like that. Sure let’s not explore any of that, but give a half assed explanation via letter ex machina. This is looking like Supernatural finale levels of bad to me.

Another point, I distinctly remember the Duffers saying, after S4, that they could never kill off a character like Mike because it would be too painful, and that ST would cease to be ST and lose its identity. They didn’t want to be like GOT. I sincerely hope they actually meant this and were not trying to be cheeky or whatever the fuck.

It would be genuinely insane, and quite frankly, a highlight of their lack of writing abilities.

I hope the leaks are wrong, but I felt like it was necessary to warn everyone just in case. I know I’m not watching something this awful.

[bridgertonandchocolate]

Top 5 (for now until I’m able to rewatch the show a million times) Queen Charlotte and King George moments. SPOILERS ABOUND SO BEWARE:

5. The end. So devastating and beautiful. In that moment he was just George and she knew it. And hiding from the heavens. I can’t.

4. The birth scene. I can’t explain it I love when it’s not “appropriate” but the man goes in anyway to support his woman. I also really loved this because it’s one of the only moments in the series where we see George giving to Charlotte what she gives him in terms of building up of courage. I loved George in this moment.

3. All the spicy spice. You know. I don’t have to explain myself. “I’m very good with buttons” is where I’ll leave you with this.

2. The first meeting. I absolutely adore how they met and it will go down as one of the most charming things I’ve ever seen.

1. The I love you confession. This scene was a literal chefs kiss. You 100% understand each characters motivation with this scene and I can’t get enough of it. So brilliant.

I’m sure there’s more but I don’t know all the episodes well enough yet to give you a proper run down. But be prepared because QC is going to tide us over until Polin season!

[tenpintsofsundrop]

The Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes

Spencer Reid x BAU!Fem!Reader

Summary:

While undercover inside the Separatarian Sect, you and Spencer realize something important: you can't live without each other.

Spencer Reid x BAU!Fem!Reader. Co-Workers to Lovers. Fake Dating. Hurt and Comfort. Set during Season 4, Episode 3.

Word Count: 8,200

Criminal Minds Masterlist | AO3 Link

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Full list of warnings and author's notes below.

Warnings: Lots of spoilers for the canon episode - so if you haven't watched Season 4 of Criminal Minds yet, steer clear of this fic for now (especially because watching the episode provides some context for this fic/makes things make more sense); the reader uses she/her pronouns and has the ability to get pregnant (she is not pregnant during the fic and there's no smut, but due to discussions in the fic, it's not unreasonable that she could get pregnant); fake dating in the form of a fake marriage - the reader and Spencer pretend to be married under the Christian religion to 'appeal' to Cyrus; because of the fake marriage, Spencer uses the term 'my wife' to refer to the reader; lots of mentions of religion (Christianity), religious extremism, mentions of pedophilia/child brides (in line with the canon episode); mentions of systemic sexism and gender roles enforced by cultures of organised religion and religious extremism; use of y/n and l/n (in this case meaning 'your last name'); the reader pretends to follow the Christian religion while undercover but I never stated if she believes in a less extreme version of these things or not (the reader's true religious beliefs are never stated); protective!Spencer, possessive!Spencer; mentions of Spencer being taller than the reader (which, again, I think he would be taller than most people) - the reader's body/body type is not described in any other way; mentions of guns and gun violence (not described in deep detail) - in line with the canon episode; the reader and Spencer fear for their lives; dangerous/live-threatening situations; the reader and Spencer are threatened with a gun; Cyrus is just generally creepy and sexist toward the reader; Spencer is pistol-whipped and the reader is threatened with sexual assault (it does not happen, Spencer protects her); mentions of pregnancy/the reader being pregnant (she is not pregnant during the course of the fic); mentions of the reader being a mother/having kids (Spencer makes up fake kids to sell their fake marriage story); the reader realizes she might actually want to be a mother because of Spencer's fake kids story; mentions of an explosion (as in the canon); love confessions; angst with a happy ending. Hopefully that is everything.

A/N: The title for this fic comes from a Fall Out Boy song of the same name. The theme/lyrics of the song don't really fit the fic, but I love the way that this title fits - how everyone in this fic is lying in some way but Spencer is someone with good intentions while lying. Making him the Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes. I love how it fits. I wrote this while suffering with heat exhaustion so idk if it's good or even makes sense. I rewatched the canon episode and it doesn't 100% align with what happened in the episode in terms of the timeline and stuff, and I am too tired to rewrite the whole fic to make it align with the episode. So uh - alternative canon? But I really love the basic concepts and I do really love how it turned out. I hope you guys like it too!

...

You thought it would be an easy day. 

Maybe that was foolish on your part. So far, you hadn’t seen a single ‘easy’ day while working with the BAU. Between chasing down scumbags and then reliving every single gory detail while doing the paperwork - none of it was ‘easy’. It was worthy, accomplished work - making the world a safer place to live in. (At least that’s what you told yourself.) But it was never easy. 

There was always someone who made the job easier. Someone who made you smile every single day - especially on days when you didn’t think you were even capable of feeling a tiny shred of joy. Someone who made you feel safe, who you always felt had your back no matter what. So you were glad that he was by your side today, along for the ride. 

“Tell us about Cyrus.” Reid prompted. 

He looked to the woman driving, your new companion for the day - Nancy Lunde, someone who worked with the state department and had set up the interviews with the children at the Separatarian Sect. 

“Benjamin Cyrus. No criminal record. In fact, there’s no record of the guy at all.” Nancy explained. 

“That’s odd.” You commented. “Usually someone being accused of something like this would have some past offenses. Especially because it would give him a reason to move into isolation to continue the criminal pattern of behavior.” 

“Well, I couldn’t find anything on him.” Nancy shrugged. 

“What about the 9-1-1 call?” You asked. 

“A fifteen year old girl called in saying that a man was ‘laying with her’ and claimed it as ‘God’s will’. I believe the ‘he’ referred to is Cyrus.” Nancy explained. “The age fits with Jessica Evanson, but I’ve managed to negotiate interviews with all the children, just to be sure. It wasn’t easy.” 

“They’re incredibly weary of outsiders.” You commented. “Our boss warned you not to identify us as FBI, right?” 

Nancy nodded. “I got you some spare credentials, just in case.” 

She took one of her hands off the wheel and reached into her pocket.

“You’re going to be using your real names. You’re going in as Child Victim Interview Experts working with Child Protective Services. No association with the FBI.” Nancy explained, handing Reid your fake credentials. 

He nodded, inspecting the IDs before handing you yours where you were sitting in the backseat. 

“Oh, before I forget.” You noted, reaching into the pocket of your cardigan. “The rings.” 

You pulled out a small plastic bag that Hotch had given to you before you left. It was a bag containing a fake diamond ring in your size and a fake golden ‘wedding’ band for Spencer. 

Reid reached over the seat to grab his ring from you, and Nancy gave the two of you an odd look. 

“Rings?” She questioned. 

“Fake wedding bands.” You explained. 

“It was our Unit Chief’s idea.” Reid added on. “He believes that presenting us as a ‘godly’ married couple to Cyrus will make him more likely to open up to us. He’s less likely to see us as hostile outsiders if he believes that we share a similar system of beliefs.” 

“It could also have a calming effect on the teenagers we have to interview or the kids there who have had more time to go through indoctrination at the Sect.” You continued to explain. “Even if their parents are hesitant to let the kids speak with us, they may be more willing to have their child speak with us or even leave them alone with us if they believe that we’re fellow Christians, rather than hostile atheists there to poison their children’s minds.” 

Reid nodded at you through the rearview mirror. 

“Make sure you put on the left hand.” He told you. “That’s the position for marriage.” 

You nodded at this. 

You placed the ring in the appropriate position, and you couldn’t help but to take a moment and stare at it. It was jarring to have a wedding ring on - especially with the thought that it represented you being married to Spencer. But you supposed, of all the people to call your husband, he would be one of the best. He was honest, intelligent, kind, and… if you were pressed, you would definitely say he was handsome. 

But you couldn’t get too caught up thinking about all of that. Because it wasn’t real. It was a false projection you were wearing for the benefit of a self inflated sociopath. 

Spencer liked the feeling of the ring. He didn’t take too long to stare at it after he had put it on, because he knew his mind would wander if he did. When Hotch had first proposed the idea of the two of you pretending to be married, Spencer had almost tripped over himself to oppose it - mostly because he didn’t think that he would be able to handle simply pretending to be your husband for the day. It was just too cruel. 

Having something he wanted so badly dangled right in front of him and knowing that it was all just a farce - it bothered him, but he delighted in the play nonetheless. 

When he caught the fake gold glinting in the light, Spencer had to remind himself that it was fake - that you would just be playing his wife for the day. He had to push back any internal glee that he felt at the idea that he got to be ‘taken’ by you while wearing that ring. It wasn’t real. It was just for the day. 

“Isn’t that deceptive?” Nancy asked. “Won’t Cyrus be even more angry if he finds out that it’s not true?” 

“He won’t find out.” You replied confidently. “And besides, we use deception in interrogations all the time. It’s a very basic tactic: align yourself with the suspect. Make them think you share the same beliefs, that you’re on their side.” 

Reid grinned at this. He always loved it when you spoke so confidently. 

… 

“We’re looking for Mr. Benjamin Cyrus.” Nancy announced as the three of you got out of the car. 

“Then you’ve found him.” Cyrus announced confidently. 

He was pretty much what you had expected him to be - dressed informally, slouched over, faking meekness, holding a bible near his chest as though it were a shield. He had planted himself there purposefully, wanting to be the first person to interact with the outsiders as three of you came into the Ranch. 

You hovered back near Spencer, letting Nancy make the first introduction. 

“I’m Nancy Lunde.” She said, giving a small nod toward the man. “We spoke on the phone regarding the allegation.” 

“‘Savages they call us, because our manners differ from theirs.’” Cyrus rhymed off a quote, obviously positioning himself and his group as martyrs being attacked for having ‘different ways’ that the world simply didn’t understand. 

“We didn’t come here to hear you cite scripture, Mr. Cyrus.” Nancy reminded him, hoping to keep the religious zealot on track. 

“Actually, it’s Benjamin Franklin.” Reid corrected her, talking about the quote. 

That did surprise you, but you didn’t find it surprising that Reid knew this fact right off the top of his head. It was just one of the many amazing things about him - his perfect memory and his ability to use it. 

Of course, him saying this immediately drew Cyrus’ attention toward the two of you. So Spencer stepped up to introduce you. 

“Hello, I’m Spencer Reid, and this is my wife, Y/N L/N.” He said motioning toward himself and then to you as he introduced the two of you. Hearing him refer to you as his wife - you hated to say it, but it caused a jolt through your system. Almost as if you had been waiting forever to hear him say those words and hadn’t even known it yourself. “We’re Child Victim Interview Experts, here on behalf of Child Protective Services.” 

Of course, you couldn’t get too caught up in deciphering how those words made you feel, because you had to focus on the task at hand. The job that you were here to do. 

“How far from God’s word must we have strayed for there to be a need to invent a job called ‘Child Victim Interview Expert’.” Cyrus said, his tone even, quiet. 

You knew that covertly, it was his way of saying that the two of you didn’t belong there, because he ran the Ranch with God’s word, so nobody had actually been harmed (in his opinion). He believed that he had done nothing wrong. Obviously, he thought your time and resources were better spent with ‘actual’ victims who didn’t have his power wielded over their lives. 

“I can assure you, Mr. Cyrus, we try to bring God into our work.” You told him, trying to appeal to him. “The children we visit usually need prayer and God’s light the most.” 

Spencer gave you a sideways glance, clearly holding back a grin at how thick you were pouring it on - how much intense, feigned passion you said these words with. 

“Well, I can assure you that a lack of prayer and God’s light is certainly not an issue for the children here.” Cyrus said, giving you a clever little grin. He thought that you would simply interview the children, praise him for what a good job he had done, and then leave. “You can go and see the children whenever you like. They are up at the school, as I indicated in our phone call.” 

Nancy walked toward the school, and you paused before you followed. 

Before you walked off, you looked to Spencer. In a completely silent conversation that only worked so well because the two of you had been in so many tense situations before, thinking around UnSubs and planning miles around them before they could even know it, he gave you a small nod and you instantly knew what it meant. He had established a small bit of trust with Cyrus, so he would stick back and see what else he could get out of the man. 

You nodded back, and then - completely surprising yourself, you leaned in and kissed Spencer on the cheek. You were just playing the part, you told yourself. It’s not that it felt entirely instinctive to say goodbye to him with some kind of affection, like the many hugs you had given him before. It’s not that you felt so entirely scrutinized with Cryus’ piercing eyes on you, and you needed the anchor of Spencer’s touch. 

You were just playing the part. 

Spencer tried not to get caught on being kissed on the cheek like he was some blushing virgin, and instead, focused his attention back on Cyrus instead of watching you walk away. (Even though every single one of his instincts told him that he needed to keep a more careful eye on you because you both had to leave your guns in the car.) 

He took a step closer to where Cyrus was leaning on the concrete, and easily picked a topic of conversation. 

“Solar panels.” Reid said, motioning to the large devices sitting behind Cyrus on the grass. 

“Yes.” Cyrus nodded. “We’re completely self-sufficient here. Food, electricity, water. Benjamin Franklin said ‘God helps those who help themselves’.” He explained. “You look surprised.” 

“No, uh, impressed, actually.” Reid easily lied, trying to appeal to his ego. 

“Thank you.” Cyrus said. “Most men wouldn’t admit that.” 

“Well, I suppose that I’m not like most men.” Reid shrugged in return. 

“How long have you been married?” Cyrus asked, motioning toward Reid’s ‘wedding ring’. 

Reid panicked slightly, knowing that the two of you likely should have coordinated this story during the plane ride to Colorado so that your answers to these simple questions wouldn’t be different. But he just made up an answer and hoped that nobody else would ask you the same question and find out the deception. 

“Three years.” He said. “I’ve been very blessed.” 

He used the language purposefully, knowing that the simple phrase could get him on Cyrus’ good side. That, and he hoped it would draw the attention away from any possible signs of his blatant lie. 

“Your wife is very beautiful.” Cyrus commented. 

He gave a wicked smirk as he said this. It was a simple, fairly ‘innocent’ comment, but it was immediately off-putting to Spencer. It took everything in his body not to glare daggers at Cyrus or throw out some protective comment in return. He could only imagine what was going through Cyrus’ mind as he thought about you, and he hated even imagining it. 

Reid knew that it was a basic logical good, the instinct to protect you because you were his partner on this case and he was supposed to have your back. But it was also something more. Something in every fiber of his being that screamed you were his and no man should ever be thinking of you that way except for him. 

“Has it been a godly union?” 

He was lucky when Cyrus spoke again and distracted him from his mounting rage. 

“We try to be as godly as we can be.” Spencer took the simple, diplomatic answer. 

“Your wife didn’t take your last name.” Cyrus pointed out. 

Nancy had used your name on your false credentials because Hotch had only come up with the fake marriage idea the day before. There hadn’t been time to inform her about it and have ‘Reid’ put on your ID as your ‘married’ name. So he had introduced you by your name to keep everything consistent with the reuse. 

It did make Spencer wonder if you would keep your last name if the two of you ever did get married. It made him almost dizzy, thinking about you as ‘Mrs Reid’. Thinking about your kids having his name. Or your name, if that’s what you wanted. 

But naturally, he pushed past all those thoughts and formed an excuse. 

“Typically, married women aren’t very well perceived in our line of work.” He quickly excused. “She doesn’t even get to wear her ring that often. She couldn’t change her name on paperwork at our office because a working married woman… it’s heavily frowned upon.” 

“Well, I’d have to agree.” Cyrus grunted. “A woman shouldn’t be out working. A woman should be at home raising a family.” 

“I - I suppose you’re right.” Reid agreed through gritted teeth. 

He walked away toward the school before he got too angry again. 

… 

A few hours later, everything had gone to hell. 

Some authority - the police, the military, you didn’t even know - had charged into the Ranch shooting. In response, Cyrus and his followers had come into the school toting large semi-automatics asking you and Spencer if you knew about a raid. 

You didn’t. You wish you had known about a raid. You would have warned Hotch and gotten them to call it off. You certainly would not have been there while it was happening. 

When they had pointed those guns in your face and forced you into the tunnels - it wasn’t very difficult to pretend to be Spencer’s wife then. Cowering in the bunker, confused and scared, you flung your arms around his waist almost instinctively, and he buried his nose in the top of your hair as he wrapped his arms around your shoulders like a shield, promising you that everything was going to be okay. 

Whispered to you like that, coming from him - it was almost easier to believe. Even with the chaos going on around you and the fear pumping through you in response. 

Nancy had run off trying to get them to surrender and did not come back. You had a feeling that you knew what that meant. 

And now, with the kids from the school ‘evacuated’ into the church, you were being held in the cellar at gunpoint. They had forcefully separated you and Spencer, making you sit in chairs at opposite sides of the room.

Spencer was fidgeting. His eyes kept flickering from the door, to you, to the man standing beside you holding the very large gun. 

You knew that you had ugly tear tracks down your face, and oddly enough - you wanted nothing more than to be back in his arms. As you were forced to sit there, just a few feet across the room away from him - you ached for it. 

There was a very large possibility that you were going to die today. And you selfishly needed the comfort of being in the arms of someone familiar - someone safe. Someone you knew would never hurt you. Someone who had made you laugh with dumb science jokes and puns for the last five years that you had worked together with him. 

When Cyrus charged back into the room with two men flanking his sides, you and Spencer stiffened up once again. 

“God will forgive me for what I’m about to do.” Cyrus announced to the room, presenting a handgun from his belt. 

Your insides quaked, and Spencer’s eyes grew wide. 

You couldn’t contain the fearful whimper that erupted from the back of your throat when he raised that gun and placed it near the middle of Spencer’s forehead. You clasped a hand tightly over your mouth to keep yourself from crying out in protest, knowing that would only make things worse. 

“Which one of you is the FBI Agent?” Cyrus asked firmly. 

Which ‘one’? 

So he knew that you were undercover, that you had lied about your job titles - but he thought that only one of you had done so. Where the hell was he getting his information? 

“I - I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Spencer told him quietly, looking him in the eye the entire time. 

You hoped that his stutter could be passed off as nervousness from the gun being pointed in his face, and wouldn’t be pointed to as deception. 

“Which one of you is it?” Cyrus pressed. 

“We are not FBI Agents.” Spencer said, more confidently this time. “We are Child Victim Interview Experts. We were only sent here to ensure the wellbeing of the children. Nothing more, nothing less.” 

Well, that last part wasn’t a lie. 

“You’re lying.” Cyrus told him, entirely confident in this. “God expells those who lie, devils in sheep’s clothing.” 

There was a tense moment, and then Cyrus cocked the gun. 

Spencer didn’t flinch. You resisted the urge to scream. 

“Proverbs 12:22 says: ‘The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in those who tell the truth.’” Cyrus said, actually citing scripture this time. 

He was giving Spencer one last chance to tell the truth. As if using the bible verse to say that his punishment would be lesser if he simply told the truth now. 

Spencer didn’t take the bait. 

“I’m not lying.” Spencer said firmly. “What? You think I wouldn’t know if - if my wife was an FBI Agent? This is the woman I wake up next to every single morning, the woman I go to sleep next to every single night, we work together every single day, we-” 

Cyrus interrupted Spencer’s ranting with a sharp hit to the face, pistol whipping him across the cheek. 

This caused Spencer to go flying off the chair, and you couldn’t help when you let out a wounded cry. It took everything in you not to jump out of your own chair and rush to Spencer where he had collapsed onto the ground, clutching his cheek. 

“Someone is going to tell me the truth.” Cyrus said gruffly. 

“It must have been Nancy!” You said, the idea finally popping into your head. 

You seemed to be more clever with the pressure of Spencer’s life being threatened. Cyrus stared you down, turning his attention fully toward you now. You caught Spencer’s eye for a moment and he gave you a small nod - as if to say ‘yes, keep going with that’. 

“The woman we came in with! Nancy!” You reasoned, continuing to point the finger at the woman you had to assume was dead. “We - we just met her today. Our boss introduced us to her, but we had never met before that. If she was FBI, we had no clue. We swear.” 

Cyrus turned to you then, and tightly pressed the barrel of his gun into your forehead. You could feel the imprint of it so tight in your skin that it hurt, and you could only lean away so far before threatening to knock the chair backwards. 

“It’s very convenient to pin this crime on someone who isn’t here.” He grunted at you. 

“It’s the truth.” You sniffled out quietly. 

“Hmm.” Cyrus hummed thoughtfully, and then, much to your surprise, he removed the gun barrel from your forehead. 

You barely had a moment to breathe in relief before he began skimming the gun down your neck, touching the metal whisper-gentle across your bare skin - clearly taunting you. It was something that made your whole body stiff with alarm, and caused Spencer’s eyes to go wide once again.

“Perhaps I should strip you naked to ensure that you’re not wearing a wire.” Cyrus said, teasing the gun along the buttons at the front of your cardigan. 

You held back a sob at the thought of it - at the idea that he could make you do almost anything for the fear of you being shot. Truthfully, you were more afraid of what he might do to Spencer if you didn’t comply, but it was all the same in your mind now. His life was just as valuable as yours, and you would do whatever it took to protect him.

Before Cyrus could take these threats any further, a heroic voice intervened. 

“That’s enough!” Spencer yelled. 

He gathered himself off the floor and oddly enough, none of the men moved to stop him as he came to stand beside Cyrus. Perhaps they didn’t see him as a threat. Perhaps it was because Cyrus didn’t bark any orders at them to stop him. He was entirely unflinching, keeping his focus on you and keeping his gun held between your breasts as Spencer crowded into his personal space, trying to press himself between you and the awful man. 

“We’ve told you everything that we know.” Spencer told him lowly, his voice heaving with well controlled anger. It was something that you had rarely ever heard from him. 

Cyrus kept his eyes locked on you, so Spencer continued. 

“We don’t know anything about the FBI - we have a simple job advocating for children who have been abused. That is it. We came here to investigate a most likely false claim against someone in your community and we truly didn’t mean to get caught up in all of this.” He said firmly, clearly trying to appeal to Cyrus. “So I suggest you get that gun away from my wife before you and I truly have a problem.” 

Spencer’s voice was dark, so thick with rage. More pent up rage than you had ever heard from him when he was talking to any suspect, people who had done the worst of the worst. Something about Cyrus threatening you had truly boiled his insides. 

The way he said the words ‘my wife’ - growling it out like he was a feral animal and this threat to you had activated every single one of his protective instincts. Hearing it made something inside of you yearn for him on such a deep level that you didn’t know was possible. You wanted to feel that kind of protection cast over you every single day. It made you feel invincible, having Spencer watch over you like that. 

Cyrus lowered the gun then, and Spencer grabbed your arm as you dissolved into hysterical tears. Instinctively, he lifted you up into his arms. You thought that you heard Cyrus mumble out ‘my apologies’ as he left the room - but he was barely on your radar. Your entire world became narrowed down to nothing but Spencer, your safety net as he built a wall of protection around you. 

He used his height to block you from seeing anything but him, letting you push your face into his chest as you cried. He wrapped you in his arms once again, letting you feel truly safe for a few moments as you sobbed into the fabric of his sweater. Your arms clutched desperately at his waist, needing to keep a hold on him - needing to ensure that he didn’t leave you. 

“Hey, shh. Shh. It’s okay.” He said, leaving gentle kisses on the top of your forehead and your hair, rubbing across your back with one hand, comforting you in the only way he could in those moments. “It’s gonna be okay.” 

Of course, he wanted to break down too. But he had to be strong for you. 

“Spencer,” You called his name in an utterly wounded voice, pulling away from his chest to look up at him. 

When you saw his injury up close - a sharp, purple-red bruise that was blooming across his cheek, it looked so utterly painful. Your insides ached at the thought that he had taken a blow for you. You hated to imagine what more they could have done to him if they had not believed your lies. 

You instinctively reached a hand up to touch it and he caught your fingers halfway, instead, gently grasping your hand and laying it on his chest. The intimacy felt so oddly rehearsed - so worn in, so ‘normal’. It felt like you had been married to Spencer for years. Like it wasn’t a play at all. 

Your two souls had been calling out to each other for years, just waiting for the dam to break. But you couldn’t quite put it into words - not like that. 

“It’s okay.” He said quietly, knowing you were horrified by the injury. 

He was so gentle, so comforting, so calm. Everything the men pointing guns at you were not. Unlike Cyrus - Spencer Reid was a true blessing from God. 

You couldn’t hold yourself back then. 

You surged up and kissed him, fully embracing his mouth with yours in a kiss. Though it was so sudden, it was something he easily returned. The kiss so full of urgency, so needy, so passionate. Like he was trying to tell you that it was okay, that he would protect you no matter what. 

He would protect you because you belonged to him. 

In those moments, the two of you were basically alone. One of Cryus’ men was guarding the door, watching on boredly. But Cyrus was off in the church, funneling people in to prepare for his ‘loyalty’ test. It didn’t matter if he saw you kissing or not - it wouldn’t have sold the reuse of you being married any better. 

This was just for the two of you. This was comfort. 

When you pulled back from the kiss, Spencer looked stunned, almost as if he couldn’t believe what had happened. You didn’t give him time to question it. 

“Thank you.” You said quietly. 

It was twofold:

Thank you for protecting me. Thank you for giving me comfort. 

Spencer didn’t have too much time to marinate in the meaning of the kiss before Cyrus’ men came back and fetched the two of you, wanting you to observe the loyalty test. 

… 

After the mock poisoning (which Spencer figured out rather quickly, making you admire his cleverness once again), Cyrus kept you and Spencer in the church with a few of his closest, most loyal followers while all of the low level followers dispersed back to their homes. 

You and Spencer were lingering in the back quietly while Cyrus was on the other end of the room, talking to his men about how to proceed. The plans for their ‘final stand’. 

“We need to get some kind of signal to the others.” Spencer whispered quietly. “Maybe they’ll take pity on you and let you go if-” He swallowed sharply, cutting himself off abruptly. Oddly enough, he didn’t want to voice whatever was on his mind. 

“If what?” You probed. You wondered what the hell you could possibly be thinking. 

“If we tell them that you’re pregnant.” He said, whispering so lowly that you almost didn’t catch the words. 

You rolled your eyes sharply at this. 

You had gotten married and had kids all in one day. What a miracle. 

(In those moments, clouded by fear, you couldn’t see it for what it truly was - Spencer blatantly revealing his unconscious desires to have a baby with you.) 

“We could convince them to release you. As a show of good faith. A pregnancy would be good leverage in that. You know how religious people are about fetuses-” Spencer reasoned. 

“Yeah, and what if they give me a test?” You probed, punching a large hole in his logic. “We don’t know what kind of infirmary they have here. They obviously believe in modern technology. What if they want to give me an ultrasound to check on the fetus after the stress of the day? To prove that they did no harm to the precious unborn child,” 

Spencer was easily caught on this point. If they examined you and found that you weren’t pregnant, all the lies would fall apart. 

“Well… what if we tell them that you have a baby at home that you need to get back to?” Spencer reasoned, jumping to the next logical conclusion in his mind. “It’ll likely garner the same level of pity.” 

“Your imaginary sperm is powerful, isn’t it?” You whispered back sharply. Spencer rolled his eyes this time. But he didn’t redact the plan as unreasonable, so you continued on. “Okay, what do I even do when I get out there? I’m not gonna be of any use to the tactical team. We don’t know what Cyrus’ final play is yet.” 

Truthfully, you couldn’t bear to be separated from Spencer. Knowing that he was inside, potentially being beaten up more, potentially being shot and bleeding out from a wound without you knowing - it would kill you with stress. You need to be by his side. You needed to know that he was okay. 

“Has God blessed your union with any children?” Cyrus appeared behind you suddenly. 

You wondered if he had heard you say the word ‘pregnancy’ or if this was just a random topic that had come up in his mind. 

His sudden appearance behind you caused you to whip around and crowd into the comfort of Spencer’s arms again because you were frightened. Naturally, Spencer wrapped his sheltering touch around your shoulders. Your back was gently pressed into Spencer’s front, his arm shielding you protectively as it was wrapped around your chest, holding you with his hand on one of your shoulders, unconsciously stroking his thumb across the fabric of your cardigan. The position had you both facing Cyrus, watching the fan in an offensive way. 

And of course, Spencer didn’t miss a beat. 

“Yes.” Spencer answered easily. “We have two kids at home. A boy and a girl. Iris and Hugo. Iris is almost three years old and Hugo is eleven months. His first birthday is coming up in June.” 

You knew that Spencer could be very good at talking off a suspect’s ear under pressure, but when you heard him rattle off these ‘facts’ so easily, it hit you. 

This wasn’t simply statistics or physiological knowledge - this was a very elaborate backstory for your supposedly real marriage. Perhaps he had thought about all of it on the car ride up (which was odd not to share it with you, in case Cyrus asked you a similar question and your answer didn’t match up with Spencer’s). 

But if you weren’t mistaken, this wasn’t simply a backstory for your fake marriage during the undercover mission. This was a fantasy of his. Those were names he had lovingly chosen for your imaginary children - kids he had dreamed up in his head and wanted to be real. 

Your heart ached at the thought of it. You found yourself missing a set of children that weren’t even real. (And distantly, wanting to jump his bones to make it a reality.)

“Tell me, Mr. Reid, would you find it so shameful for your daughter to marry young?” Cyrus asked. 

You found it odd to hear Cyrus call Spencer ‘Mr. Reid’, but you realized that he hadn’t introduced himself as ‘Doctor’ in this setting. You held your tongue when you felt the need to correct him as you had so many other people, wanting Spencer to receive his proper title. 

Your mind almost couldn’t focus on the question that Cyrus had asked. Of course, he was trying to get Spencer to stroke his ego once again. Basically admitting that the whole reason the two of you had come here was true - he was being vastly inappropriate with a young member of the church, and getting away with it. And he saw nothing wrong with it. 

And he was trying to get an outsider to admit that he saw nothing wrong with it too. 

When there was a moment of silence - Reid obviously torn on how to answer the question, Cyrus continued. 

“Is there really something so wrong with a blooming young woman marrying a man who will protect her under God’s laws?” He probed, his voice so entirely confident. Clearly confident that he was right. 

“Well, I’m not sure if I would let my daughter get married so young.” Reid said, finally speaking up. “I just know that I would want her to marry a man that would protect her, and be the best possible fit for her. Someone who would cherish her and be good to her no matter what.” 

His answer made you swoon. You reached up and gently gripped his forearm in response, giving a light squeeze to show your approval. He leaned in and kissed the back of your head - dizzyingly, you were imagining him walking your imaginary daughter down the aisle before you had even gotten married yourself. 

Maybe it was being so close to death, being threatened in such dangerous territory that was causing your life to accelerate at light speed in your mind. If you were going to lose everything, you might as well enjoy the escapism of a fake life with a beautiful man in your mind instead of being stuck on the heart pounding terror of being held hostage, right? 

Surprisingly, his words drew a smile from Cyrus. 

“You’re a protective father, aren’t you?” Cyrus asked. 

“Of course.” Reid confirmed. 

“I can always admire that in a man.” Cyrus nodded. “A man should always pride himself on protecting his family.” 

There was another moment of pause, and you were hoping that the topic had been dropped completely. 

“Do you have a picture of your children with you?” Cyrus asked. 

You wondered if - in a different version of reality, where you and Spencer really were married, where Hugo and Iris really did exist - if you had a picture of them in your pocket, would Cyrus only be asking this so he could use the picture to taunt the two of you? What other purpose would he have for knowing what your children looked like? 

“Unfortunately, no.” You answered. “I keep my family pictures on my desk. In my office. We - we’ve just been praying to get back to them safely.” 

Cyrus seemed perturbed at you mentioning that you had an office. Something dark flickered over his features for a moment and then disappeared. 

“Well… if it is right, God will grant you that safe passage.” Cyrus said. 

Just when you truly thought the conversation was done, he said something to you that entirely grinded under your skin. 

“I find it entirely odd that a mother of two young children spends her days working a job where she takes care of other people’s children, rather than staying at home with her own youngins where she belongs.” 

He said, using that same entirely confident, righteous tone that he always did. Even though you were not really a working mother, you had a hard time not boiling with anger at the sexism ripe in his statement. 

“How much must you be missing of your sweet angels lives to instead partake in the horrors of devils you shouldn’t have to witness.” 

Of course. 

You had a hard time not rolling your eyes at this or saying something harsh that would set him off. Instead, you reached up to Spencer’s arm around your shoulder, squeezing his fingers, trying to keep your patience.

“I’ll have you know that Y/N is an amazing mother.” Spencer piped up, knowing that Cyrus respected him enough as a man that he wouldn’t beat him simply for speaking up. “Her nurturing and caring makes her infinitely better at her job.” 

Again, you knew that there was so much personal truth in Spencer’s words. He thought that you would make an amazing mother to his children - at least theoretically. He was entirely firm in that conviction. And he thought that your natural caring made you amazing at the job you did as a Profiler. He knew this from the quality of work he witnessed you doing every single day. 

You didn’t know it - but it was just one of the many things that had caused him to fall in love with you. 

Oddly enough, Cyrus’ words prodded at something deep inside of you. It made you imagine a life for yourself where you weren’t spending your days witnessing horrors from unspeakable devils - but instead, at home, looking out for Spencer’s imaginary children. 

You would have said it was the fear of the day, clouding your mind. But maybe it was the clarity of being so close to death that made you realize what - and who - you truly wanted out of life. 

… 

Hours later, after some of the hostages had been released (the ‘non-believers’ who had failed the loyalty test), Cyrus had requested that some food be sent up. Spencer gave you a sharp look when he saw the message written on one of the takeout lids. 

The team would be storming in to end the hold-out at 3am. You had to somehow ensure the safety of the hostages by then. 

Obviously, the fake pregnancy idea was still warping through Spencer’s mind, but you had come up with some much better. 

“Cyrus,” You called out his name gently, getting his attention. “You said that you have a nursery here?” 

It had come up, during his long winded bragging about how perfect the Ranch was. Something about how mothers didn’t have to raise their children alone. The children were raised as more of a ‘group effort’ and women took ‘shifts’ in the nursery, allowing the women to rest or get chores done in the interim. 

“Yes, we do.” He nodded. 

Spencer stared at you with his jaw set, wondering what you were doing but not daring to speak. 

“I - I’ve been missing my children dearly. I was wondering if I could go to your nursery and see if they need any help? It would do my soul good to be around young ones right now. After all the commotion of these days.” You spoke meekly, trying to play the part of the shaken up, dainty woman well. 

Which was too difficult, seeing as you were playing up the fear you had already experienced. 

He grinned. It was a rather menacing smile, and you tried your hardest not to show any further fear, or disgust. 

“That sounds like a splendid idea.” He nodded. “Christopher, why don’t you escort her down to the nursery and then come back? We need you here for our final preparations.” 

You were finally falling to those gender roles that he had been pushing on you since you had arrived. He didn’t suspect a thing. He simply thought that you were a God fearing woman falling to your natural womanly instincts, needing to care for children lest your womb shrivel up and you die. 

Spencer rose from his seat and Cyrus stopped him. 

“Just your wife.” He said, putting a hand in front of Spencer’s chest to stop him. “There are still some things you and I need to discuss. Man to man.” 

You went over to Spencer and didn’t hesitate to plant a kiss firmly on his mouth, which he returned with vigor. This one lasted only a moment - it was something precious for the two of you. You didn’t need to put on some pointed show for the men in the room. 

“It’s okay.” You told Spencer quietly, brushing your fingers gently over his uninjured cheek. 

You could tell that he was dying to ask you what your plan was. But he kept the words trapped in his throat, unable to speak in front of the many temperamental villains lurking about. 

“Come on.” Christopher grunted. 

Spencer gave you a longing look as you left. He didn’t want to think it, but as he watched your figure retreat out the door, he feared that it would be the last time he ever saw you. 

… 

Your plan worked flawlessly. 

Getting to the nursery meant that you had unsupervised access to the women and children, especially away from Cyrus’ prying ears. Because you were a ‘delicate’ woman, nobody suspected you of having ulterior motives. You easily found a crack in Kathy, Jessica’s mother. You spotted her as the one who had made the original 9-1-1 call, wanting to get her daughter away from Cyrus. You convinced her to help you get everyone out, and you felt intense relief when you were met with a familiar face in the cellar as everyone escaped through the tunnels. 

“Where’s Reid?” Morgan easily asked you, glancing behind your shoulder as if waiting for him to appear. 

“He’s still up at the church.” You told him. “I had to separate off to help get the women and children out-” 

“Go on, we have to get you out!” Morgan urged, trying to gently usher you along. 

“We have to go get Reid!” You argued, trying to turn around. 

“Go, go on, I’ll go get Reid!” He told you. 

You were about to argue back, but you were cut off by a scuffle behind you. 

Jessica was yelling about Cyrus - how her mother had betrayed her, tricked her. 

Morgan pushed Kathy toward you and ran off screaming for Jessica. You took Kathy’s arm, gently convincing her that everything was going to be okay as you guided her the rest of the way out. You had to focus on this, convincing yourself that everything was going to be okay. You had to tell yourself that Derek was going to get Spencer out - that they were both going to be okay. 

When you got outside, you were hyper focused on marching away, taking a path away from the church as directed by the officers in charge. You froze in your tracks when you heard it - an earth shattering boom. The ground beneath your feet shook. You felt a puff of hot air swell to touch your back. 

You let go of Kathy’s arm and whipped around, and you couldn’t even pay attention to where she went. You almost thought you heard her weeping, but your mind couldn’t process it as your eyes were glossed in bright orange flame. 

It was the church. 

“Spencer?” You gasped quietly. “Spencer!” 

You couldn’t help it, but you began to run toward it. Your feet carried you faster than you could think, and before you got more than a few feet across the ground, you felt a sharp grip on your upper arm. 

“L/N!” 

Hotch’s voice, sounding far too distant for the position he held right behind you, viciously gripping onto you as you fought against him, trying to get toward the fire - trying to get to Spencer. 

“Hey! Hey! Stop it!” Hotch tried to order you around, tried to get you to stand down. 

He got a hand around your waist, and you continued to kick like a wild horse, fighting against his grip as hot tears poured down your face. 

“He’s in there!” You sobbed. “Spencer is still in there.” 

“Calm. Down.” Hotch ordered sharply. 

You collapsed back into him sobbing, all of the fight leaving your muscles at once. You couldn’t fake the reality in front of you. 

“You running in there and getting hurt isn’t going to change anything.” Hotch told you quietly, a somehow distant murmur into your ear. 

Through the blur of your tears and the sharp orange glow, you saw the shape of two bodies. You heard coughing as someone emerged from the blast, hobbling down the stairs at the front of the church. You forced your eyes open wider, trying to see who it was, and then: 

“Y/N!” Spencer called out your name gruffly through the smoke he had inhaled, and you easily shucked off Hotch’s grip to race up the stairs to get to him. 

He was leaning on Morgan for support and you were worried that he was hurt. But the moment you were close enough, he tore himself away from Morgan and the two of you met in the middle. In a pattern that was easily developing, you fell into the safety of his arms, holding him tight enough to bruise him - never wanting to let go. 

“You’re so stupid, you’re so stupid! Why would you do that to me?” 

You sobbed out, gripping both sides of his face, staring into his eyes, needing the recognition that he was right there, right in front of you. 

He stared back with glassiness - intense fear, adrenaline, and something small that told you he was thankful for you, and needed you now more than ever. 

Of course, your words were simple anger at the situation, not at Spencer himself. The terror of thinking that he was dead still pumping through your veins, causing you to shake. 

“I know.” He said quietly. “I love you.” 

His voice wrapped around the words so tenderly - it was the most sincere declaration you had ever heard from him. As if to say ‘I know how much that scared you. I know what this ordeal has done to us and I only meant it more because of how scared I am’. 

“I love you too.” The words flew from your lips so naturally it hurt. You took a moment to recover, entirely shocked by your own lips. And then, you only found the need to say it growing more inside of you. “Spencer, I love you.” 

You pulled him toward you with the grip you had on his face, and he easily met you in one of the most earth shattering kisses you had ever experienced. 

It was no longer a show, it was no longer about displaying the fake marriage for someone else’s benefit - if it had ever been about that in the first place. It was about the two of you. It was about feeling that comfort, that safety. It was about the fact that your two souls were drawn together since the day you had met. The fact that you had always felt safe with each other. You had always been the other person’s shelter from the storm. 

And you poured every ounce of those feelings into that kiss. 

You combed your fingers through Spencer’s hair, taking a harsh grip on the back of it, holding him there so he couldn’t pull away from your lips. He wrapped his arms around your waist, fisting the back of your sweater. Both of you entirely refused to come up for oxygen, not even caring who saw the epically passionate, public display of your love for each other. 

Unbeknownst to you, Morgan and Hotch exchanged a look with raised brows as it happened. You and Spencer didn’t care. You were barely perceiving the world around you as the two of you kissed. 

“You know if you’re not careful, people are actually gonna think you two are married.” Morgan said, being his usual sarcastic self. 

Rather than pulling away from Spencer’s lips to sass him back - you simply flipped Derek off over Spencer’s shoulder. 

On the ride home, JJ handed Derek five dollars. He had the over/under that the two of you would get together before the end of the year. JJ said that it wouldn’t happen for another five years, at least. Derek handed the fiver to Emily when she reminded him that the ‘fake marriage’ bit had actually been her idea. 

When Emily and JJ relayed the story to Penelope, she squealed so loudly into the phone that JJ dropped it. 

Hotch pulled you aside later and warned you that the fake rings were just cheap costume jewelry that Garcia had gotten and they would tarnish soon if you kept wearing them. He also recommended that you and Spencer put in the paperwork with HR if you were ‘serious’ about the relationship. You knew that it was him wishing the two of you his best. 

A few days later when you came into work and found the HR request for an update of relationship status sitting on your desk, already signed by Spencer, you couldn’t help but to smile.

...

A/N: okay, I do have to admit, the ending kind of sucks imo (like the last few paragraphs) because I highly resisted the urge to end this with 'baby making' smut where y/n is like if 'you want kids for real, then we can have kids', and then Spencer just goes nuts. because I did like the more cheesy/romantic love confession ending, and I was getting way too tired to write smut for this. idk if I should do that 'x amount of reblogs for part 2' thing or if I'm just happy with this being a standalone oneshot?? idk. if people ask for a part 2, then I will set a reblog goal for it. and I will work on a part 2 for it after Lesson Two is posted.

[justinewt]

The End of the World - THE 100 REWRITE Chapter Thirty-Five

[THE 100 MASTERLIST]

Previous Chapter / Next Chapter (09/27/2024)

Summary: Everyone would share the bunker - 100 of each clan - and that rule applied to the Sky people as well. While Kane tried to ensure Octavia's condition was being respected, his daughter, Michelle, Clarke and Bellamy left the bunker to go get Raven before the death wave hit but with a 24-hour window and 10-hour long trips, there wouldn't be much room for error.

Words: 7k

Warnings: The 100 season 4 spoilers (episode 12 "The Chosen" & episode 13 "Praimfaya"), angst

It was chaos in the bunker. The Grounders had forced all the members of Skaikru into the rotunda. People were so crowded in the center that they were stepping on each other. They walked out of the office, Kane brought up the rear, and they faced the crowd. No one really knew what was going on and were quite confused and disoriented. People were repeatedly asking the chancellor, standing above them, what was happening. Announcing that 300 of them would be kicked out of the bunker and left to die in the upcoming death wave, which would arrive in just a little over a dozen hours. The situation was critical now. Grounders went to close the door to the dorms after having brought everyone in the room and loud shouting ensued. They pounded on the door and walls.

Jaha turned his head towards Bellamy, whispering, “Three out of four of these people are going to die tonight. You still think you made the right choice?”

Bellamy ignored him but gulped, staring ahead of him. He wasn’t even making eye contact with any of them lined up there. This wasn’t easy for any of them and hearing him trying to blame and guilt-trip Bellamy made Michelle clench her jaw, looking at Jaha from the corner of her eyes. They still had some time before having to read out the names on the list. They went back into the office and Abby sat at the radio to establish contact with Raven. She was yet to arrive to the bunker, still on that island they had gone off to the previous week. They wanted her to be part of the 100 to survive in the bunker, not just for them but because she’s a mechanic and one of the smartest engineers they had. They needed her for the thousand people in there with them. Eventually, Michelle, Bellamy and Clarke entered the room, along with Jaha, who received an umpteenth sidelong glance from Michelle the moment he spoke up, though quite quietly. She then glanced at her father, leaning against a shelf.

“Our people are scared, Marcus. We need to tell them something.”

“We just spoke with Raven. When she gets here, we’ll have all our essential personnel.”

“How many spots does that leave us with?” Clarke asked worriedly. Her mother stood up from her chair.

“Including the essential personnel, and the places that we’re holding for the children under 16, that leaves us with 80.”

“80.” She repeated gravely, glancing down. There was a heavy silence that befell the room before Jaha inevitably found something else to say. Michelle briefly closed her eyes, rolling them under her eyelids and crossed her arms over her chest. He wasn’t helping.

“I can’t believe about sending 364 of our own people to their deaths.”

“We’re lucky they’re giving us any space in this bunker at all.” Clarke looked at him, raising her eyebrows. Kane straightened up.

“Look. I don’t like it any more than you do.”

“Then let’s fight this.” Michelle couldn’t help it and sighed through her nose. She was glad her father went against him.

“No. Any sort of resistance will cost us all our lives. Our best course of action is to hold a lottery for the remaining spots.” Jaha approached, leaning on the desk. Michelle glanced at Clarke as the latter massaged her forehead, exhaling.

“It’s not going to work, Marcus.”

“It was your idea.”

His voice rose, “That was for the chance to survive.”

“And how is this any different?” Abby wondered.

“Until 20 minutes ago, our people believed they were safe. They let their guards down. They picked their bunks. They unpacked their bags. They imagined their futures. You try to rip that from them now, and, believe me, they will fight.”

“No one’s saying it’s gonna be easy, but we need to make the people listen to reason.” Kane said. The discussion was cut shot by Bellamy mentioning they still needed to go get Raven. He volunteered. Michelle nodded, glancing at him as she said she would go with him and so did Clarke, but Abby didn’t want to let her daughter go.

“Mom, look, Raven needs our help. I know the way to the island. I need to do this.”

As he took a few steps toward them, Kane agreed, “Well, be safe. There’ll be a place for the three of you when you get back. I’ll meet you in the airlock.” He put his hand on Bellamy shoulder as he sent them off. They left, heading for the airlock and once there, the trio took the hazmat suits from the walls and got ready as Abby came to join them.

“At these radiation levels, any amount of exposure is harmful. Keep the suits sealed at all times.” She explained, as she helped them with their suits. They had only 23 hours left until the death wave hit. “On a good day, it takes 10 hours to get to the island, and 10 hours to get back. That doesn’t leave you much room for error.”

“Mom, I know, okay? We’ll be careful.” Michelle glanced at them from the corner of her eyes as she finished zipping her suit and picking up their things with Bellamy. They spoke to each other in hushed tones and shared a tight hug. Abby then turned to the other two and crossed Michelle’s gaze. She gave her a sweet smile and went to give her a hug, whispering in her ear that Callie, her mother, would be proud of her. She knew, her father had told her already. Her eyes got slightly watery and she shut her eyes close, a tear falling down her cheek, which she wiped off once they broke the embrace.

“Take care of each other.” She looked at Bellamy.

“Yes, ma’am.” He turned his head to the airlock door when Murphy and Emori came in. “Murphy what are you doing here?”

“We heard you were going after Raven. We just wanna help.”

“I’ve been to that island dozens of times.” Emori added. “No one knows the water better than me.”

“Maybe it’ll help our chances if we bring home the chosen ones.”

“There’s a lottery. I’ll make sure your name is in it.”

“And Emory?” Abby looked at the grounder and parted her lips, quiet for a moment.

“I’ll do the best I can.” As she gave another hug and kiss to her daughter, Michelle heard the door open again; it was her dad. She instantly turned to him and locked her arms around him breathing against his shoulder. He softly rubbed her back, placing a kiss on her head and eventually, Abby and Kane left, giving their daughters a glance and a smile. They then put on their helmets, sealing their suits and walked out through the hatch. It creaked loudly as they closed it after them. Clarke showed them to way and Michelle followed suit but, looking over her shoulder, she saw Bellamy grabbing Murphy’s arm. She squinted her eyes, staring at them.

“What are you really up to, Murphy?”

He pulled his arm out of his grip, even glancing at Michelle behind them as he knew she was there, “You killed us when you opened that door, you know that? Oh, what did you think our people would do? Waste a spot on Emori? On me? We were safe, and you screwed us. You wanna know what we’re up to? It’s called surviving. There’s a bunker on that island. You’re our ride. That’s it.” Michelle shook her head, staying quiet. She couldn’t understand how she ever was in any kind of relationship with him.

“That bunker’s not stocked, Murphy. You won’t last 5 months, let alone 5 years.”

“No, we probably won’t. At least we’ll survive the death wave. We can’t all be essential personnel, or have a sister who’s queen of the grounders,” With a scoff, he then looked over his shoulder at Michelle. “or be the Chancellor’s daughter.” As he walked past her, he gave her a sidelong glance and she frowned, shaking her head. Bellamy approached, bringing his hand in her back and they walked away, cathing up with the others.

“Why did you come on this mission, Clarke?” Bellamy asked. The three of them sat at the front of the truck, with Murphy and Emory in the back.

“Raven’s my friend.”

“Yesterday, you were fine, leaving your friend out to die. My sister, too, Kane…” Listening, Michelle looked down, sighing through her nose quietly. If she hadn’t succeeded in convincing her to let them open the bunker’s door, her father would have been dead, and she couldn’t fathom losing him.

“I wasn’t fine with it, and you know that.” There were a few seconds of silence. “Bellamy… Michelle… I never meant to hurt you.”

“Aiming a gun at us is a strange way of showing it.”

“I didn’t pull the trigger.”

Michelle finally said something, “You did, actually. A warning shot is still a shot.”

“Whatever choice I make, somebody always dies.” She then said with a heavy tone, staring at the road. Bellamy shrugged, glancing at her with a smirk.

“Well, not shooting me- not shooting Michelle; that was the right choice.” They were exchanging glances and soft smiles when Clarke suddenly turned her head back to the road and shouted as someone walked in front of the truck. He couldn’t stop the vehicle nor dodge the stranger, so they crashed into them, crushing them under the wheels as he drove to the side, urgently, and crashed into a tree. The engine stopped, with smoke coming out. They were panting, looking around, confused and startled.

“He just jumped right out in front of us.” Clarke said, shocked. “It’s like he wanted to die.”

“You two, stay here. I’m gonna check the damage.” He opened the door and as he was about to get off, he was pulled out of the truck by a man who was shouting in trigedaslend. The two young women gasped, turning to the other door to get out but another grounder appeared on the other side, boxing them in until, like with Bellamy, they were dragged outside. Murphy shouted at the back, warning them others were coming, and the vehicle began to shake as they were slammed against it, beating them up, trying to take their suits off them. Arrows flew by their heads, shooting down their attackers. Someone seemingly came to their rescue on a horse, and that someone turned out to be the banished Azgedan spy, Echo. It was once she pulled down the mask hiding her face that they realized it was her but for the whole time she spent shooting arrows, throwing knives and slashing with her sword, they couldn’t tell who it was. The whole group was panting, looking at the newcomer.

“There might be more of them. We should get going.”

“Echo, what are you doing here?” Bellamy enquired.

“I know about your bunker on the island. I just saved your lives. I’m hoping you will return the favor.” She looked genuinely desperate. There was hopelessness in her eyes and the ever-growing level of radiation in the air was already affecting her breathing and face, on which there was a lot of redness, but maybe the fact that she was catching her breath was also because of the energy she had just spent on the fight. Bellamy was hesitant and looked around him, crossing the gazes of Clarke and Michelle beside him.

“Unless we can get another ride, no one’s making it to that island.” There was really no other choice but to let her come with them, and there wasn’t much time to talk this over anyways – they didn’t have much time to get there, and then return to Polis. As Abby said, not much room for error. But they still didn’t have another way to go there quickly since the truck was no longer an option after the accident and moving six people by foot would take twice as much time, if not more and they would never be able to make the return trip. As time passed, Bellamy kept on trying to establish contact with Murphy over the radio, but they didn’t get any response and Michelle was growing restless and anxious, going back and forth, staring into the void. She was quite frightened by what this delay would mean. She wouldn’t see her father for at least the next five years, during which the ground would be totally unsurvivable for anyone but maybe it wouldn’t be for much longer and not being sure about how long they would be separated made her feel like a cat on a hot tin roof. She glanced over her shoulder; Clarke was helping Echo put on their spare suit. Finally, after hours, Monty’s voice rose and Michelle swiftly turned on her heels, staring at Bellamy who urged to respond to their friend.

“Yes, Monty. I read you. Where are you?”

“Two clicks outside Polis. Almost there.” Michelle had almost forgotten that he had stayed back at Arkadia with Harper and the others but clearly, they had changed their minds and were making their way to Polis. This could be their ride to the island with the rover. “Everything okay?”

“Not exactly. Look, Monty. I hate to ask you this, but we broke down on the way to the island to get Raven. We need to come reel us in.

After a second, he said, “We’re on our way. Tell us exactly where you are.” Then, suddenly, Emori started coughing profusely. Blood was dripping from her mouth. Clarke rushed to take a look, and her conclusion was clear – she had been exposed to the radiations. 

“How’s that possible? She’s wearing a suit.” Murphy asked, angry and worried about his girlfriend. Emory slightly turned around, and Clarke looked up.

“The seal of her helmet is torn.”

“Can you fix it?” Emory asked, fear piercing through her voice. Murphy was about as scared and said they could use tape to fix it but as Clarke went on to remind him, they didn’t have any tools or weapons. The only thing they had brought was this spare suit, which they had just given to Echo.

“So we give her the extra suit then.”

“We don’t have another suit.” Bellamy argued, raising his voice.

Murphy snapped, shouting, “Yes, we do!” His eyes then went to Echo. “Take it off, now.”

“I saved your life.” She stared at him.

“What were you gonna do if we didn’t get attacked, huh? I mean, you guys seriously think she was following us out of the kindness of her own heart? No. She was gonna attack us the second that we stopped. Give me that suit.” He threateningly walked towards her and Bellamy stood in his way, trying to stop him. They were yelling at each other, arguing and pushing each other around.

“You cut that suit and it serves no one.”

“I’m not letting her die.”

“Neither am I.” Everyone turned to Clarke, not expecting to hear her voice but a second later, she was already taking off her helmet. Michelle took a step towards her, parting her lips.

“No, Clarke—”

“Clarke, what are you doing?” Bellamy got concerned as well.

“I have nightblood.”

“Untested nightblood.” He cut her off.

“We’re testing it now. Take off her helmet.” Emori was gasping and coughing, breathing with difficulty while Murphy quickly took it off to replace it with Clarke’s. Bellamy and Michelle shared worried glances as they watched.

Monty came back over the radio, “Bellamy, you there? Come in.”

“Yeah, we’re here. Head northeast from Polis, and Monty… drive fast.”

Looking down at her watch, Michelle saw they only had about 12 hours to get to the bunker. She took a deep breath, raising her head and glancing at Bellamy next to her. He had seen the time on his watch as well. But to her, it was over no matter what happened. She wouldn’t see her father again for years, if they did make it to the island, if they lasted long enough there and Bellamy had already told Murphy that there would barely be enough rations for a few months. Clarke came up to them.

“We have to talk about it.”

“Missed the window.” Michelle closed her eyes at Bellamy’s words, letting out a heavy sigh. “Continue to the island, we won’t make it back.”

“What about them? Do we just save ourselves?” She looked over her shoulder at Emory and Murphy sat on the ground.

“Clarke, if nightblood works, we need to get you to Polis, them, too. We pull in as many people as we can before the death wave hits. If your mom can make us all nightbloods, we only need to stay down there until it passes. We can still save everyone.”

“Just not Raven.” She added gravely. The Rover's headlights illuminated them, and they turned their heads towards the incoming vehicle. Monty parked it in front of them and got out.

“We got here as fast as we could.” He noticed Clarke’s helmet was missing and frowned worriedly. “Clarke, you’re exposed. Come on. Let’s get you into the rover.”

“No, Monty. I’m fine.”

“I’ll grab the extra helmet.” Harper added. She brought an entire suit because the helmet didn’t match the suit Clarke was already wearing. Murphy took care of Emory. Echo had been somewhat affected by the radiations she had been exposed to and Bellamy and Michelle helped her to walk to the back of the car. They stopped in their tracks, looking at Clarke as they heard her cough and spit black blood. Bellamy let go of Echo and Michelle passed her on to Harper who continued to the car without the two. Monty urged Clarke to take the suit, adding that it was supposed to be with Jasper. That’s when Michelle realized that the latter was indeed no where to be seen. He had let himself die with the others at Arkadia. He was Monty’s best friend. Michelle couldn’t imagine losing Clarke.

“You should put it on. Jasper would want you to.” He insisted. “If we’re still gonna make it to the island, we better—”

“We’re not going to the island.” Bellamy declared. Neither Clarke nor Michelle understood why he was saying this – of course they were going to the island.

“Nightblood doesn’t work.” She spoke.

“We don’t know that yet. Luna got sick before she got better, so—”

“Even if you’re right, they won’t let us all into the bunker if I’m still sick. It took days for Luna’s resistance to kick in, and by that time, the death wave will already be here, and all our friends will be dead. Are you okay with that?”

“You know I’m not… Clarke, unless I’m missing something, there is no other way for all of us to survive.”

“What if there is?”

“What do you mean?” Michelle asked, shaking her head in confusion. Her idea was to go up – to go back to space with the rocket she had seen at the bunker. Hours later, they arrived at the island at last and entered the bunker. They were standing by the railing as they took off their helmets as Raven looked up to them with a subtle frown. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re not leaving you behind.” Bellamy spoke, climbing down the stairs leading to the laboratory below, where Raven was. She didn’t understand what they were doing. There was not time for them to go back to Polis. And as Clarke had suggested earlier, they weren’t going back, they were going up.

“Space? But we don’t have enough fuel to get down.”

“Sounds like a 5-year problem to me.” Harper joked. Raven looked back to Clarke, realizing what she meant by going to speace.

“you’re talking about the ring?”

“Seems like a shame to let a good rocket go to waste.” Bellamy added.

“Uh, how do we live?”

“They left a water reclamator there, and we know that go-sci has an algae farm.” She explained, holding her helmet under her arm. “We just get those two things up and running, and we have food and water.”

Murphy spoke with a dragging voice, “Algae salads and recycled urine. Sign me up.”

“Better than dying.”

He turned his head towards Emory, “Yeah, you say that now.”

“All right, slow down.” Raven went back to speaking seriously. “Breathing’s important too. What’s the plan for oxygen?”

“Based on what Murphy says about the lighthouse bunker, I’m guessing— make that praying— there’s an oxygenator there. We take it with us. You hook it up. Bob’s your uncle.”

“You’re an engineer, Monty. You do know there’s about a thousand things wrogn with that plan, right?”

“Yes, and every one of them kills us.” He shrugged. “Of course, staying here will kill us too, so—”

“Raven, we need you to get us off the ground before the death wave hits. What do you say? Can you do it?”

She turned to Bellamy, her arms crossed over her chest, looking at each of them, unsure about her ability to pull this off, “What do I say?” Taking a few steps away, she looked at a map on a screen, showing the progression of the death wave and the location of Arkadia and Polis, as well as the lab they were in. Arkadia was already gone but they had a little less than 11 hours before it reached them. “I say that death wave can kiss my ass.”

“Good.” Clarke nodded. “It’s settled then. We’re going back to the Ark.”

Michelle had her arms crossed, going back and forth the lab, kind of dragging her feet around. Looking over her shoulder, she watched Bellamy in the glass-walled room upstairs, sitting on a couch and talking through the radio. He was talking to Octavia. She was waiting for their conversation to be over so she could have a word with her father before not hearing from him or seeing him at all for the next few years. She was nervously tapping on her arm with her index finger, turning her head back around, sighing through her nose. She had to hope they would survive five years in space, return to earth and she would be reunited with her dad and all would be well. She had to be somewhat delusional that nothing bad would fuck up their plans because if there was no hope to see him again, she would lose it. She couldn’t bear the thought of losing both her parents after spending barely half a year with him as her actual dad after spending her entire life not knowing. She threw her head back, closing her eyes and exhaled as she then stared at the ceiling before approaching the screen to see the progression of the death wave.

She eventually walked up the stairs and softly opened the door. They locked eyes and she barely took one step in the room before stopping in her tracks, gulping. One glance at the radio and the microphone in his hand, added to his silence, let her understand that the communications had been cut by the radiations of the upcoming death wave. She turned to the side, clenching and unclenching her fist repeatedly and slightly flaring her nostrils as she breathed in and out. She felt her lip quiver and her eyes filling with tears. Bellamy’s hand grabbed her shoulder, and he turned her towards him, drawing her into a hug. She gulped air, squinting her eyes, her sight got blurrier from the tears, and they fell down her cheeks.

“I’m sorry you couldn’t say goodbye to your dad. We’ll meet them again.” He spoke quietly, trying to keep himself from getting emotional but she heard that he wanted to cry too and maybe it was because of her that he contained himself. She broke down and weeped, stifling a sob, gripping onto his suit, feeling his arms tighten around her. His chest heavied against her as he pressed his cheek against her face, his breath blowing in her hair. She tried to catch her breath in order to stop crying and she felt his head move away from hers and she looked over her shoulder. Clarke was staring at them worriedly. She slightly turned; the hug got looser but they didn’t entirely let go of each other right away. “The radio’s dead… won’t get to say goodbye to your mom. I’m sorry.”

Seeing her break down in tears got Michelle crying some more as she and Bellamy walked towards her to hug her. They broke the embrace when Murphy’s voice rose from the laboratory, telling them to come down. They were all gathered in front of the screen she was looking at earlier and they watched as the death wave hit Polis before their eyes. Michelle tried to steady her breathing, in order not to cry in front of the group but a few tears ran down her cheeks. Bellamy put his arm around her shoulders, squeezing it softly in his hand. There was shock on all their faces, but Michelle’s twisted with sadness, and she closed her eyes. It was too much to see, knowing her father was right under that tower. She knew he was safe in the bunker and yet her imagination couldn’t help but make her believe he was going to die.

“It’s 210 miles from Polis to the island.” Raven said. “According to what was our last drone, the wave is accelerating. If we’re not off the ground at least 20 minutes before it hits, the electromagnetic charge in the pyroclastic cloud will shut down the rocket’s avionics, meaning it won’t fly. That gives us 90 minutes to run a 6-hour preflight check, retrieve the oxygen generator from the lighthouse, turn a cockpit designed for two into one that can carry 9, and load the cargo hold with enough food to keep us from starving in space while we wait for the algae to bloom.”

“I thought you said it was gonna be hard.” Murphy commented.

“That’s not the hard part. Becca designed her rocket to dock with Polaris, not the ark. That means I have to pilot it into the hangar bay on the ring.”

“What’s so hard about that?” Harper wondered.

“That’s not the hard pat, either.”

“What is the hard part, Raven?” Clarke urgently asked.

“Assuming we blast off in time, CO2 scrubbers on a two-person rocket won’t support 9 of us.”

“So we use supplemental oxygen.”

“Our tanks only hold an hour of air.” Monty said, looking at Clarke. She and Bellamy turned their heads towards him simultaneously.

“Correct. We’ll have one hour to get into orbit, land in the hangar bay, and fire up the life-support system using an oxygen generator built to supply a lighthouse bachelor pad.”

“You suck at talking people into things. You know that right?” Murphy grumbled.

“Anyone still need to be talked into this?” Bellamy made eye contact with each of them, and they all shook their heads to confirm that no one needed to be talked into this anymore. They were all in on it. “Good. Now we know the many ways we might die today, why don’t you tell us what we have to do to live?”

Raven acquiesced, turning to the computers at the center of the room and began tapping on the keyboards before her, launching the final countdown; the last 90 minutes they had before being stuck in the bunker and dying of starvation within a few months. The seconds passed on the screen while they stared anxiously. They had to get to it now. The final stretch. Murphy and Monty went to walk through the woods to get to the lighthouse while the rest of them worked around the laboratory; Echo helped Emory at the rocket, bringing her stuff she needed, and Clarke, Michelle and bellamy worked on how to survive until they could use the algae farm to sustain themselves on the Ark. Michelle stood by Bellamy near the staircase, his hand on the railing, tapping on it with his thumb. They were looking at the two grounders at the rocket.

“Grounders in space, it’s an oxymoron.” He spoke as Clarke approached.

“Survival’s a team sport, especially up there. It was the only choice. Only choice, also an oxymoron, by the way.”

“So is cold sweat.” He sketched a tight smile with a worried frown. “Still holding out hope for that nightblood solution.”

“There was never any solution.” She shot up her eyebrows. “Alie was right about that.

“Our fight is not over.”

“My mom had a vision of me dying, just like the one Raven had that told her there was a rocket there.”

“You’re not going to die, Clarke. It is not the same thing.” Michelle shook her head.

“Yeah, they were both EMP’d.”

“And Abby will be fine, too.” He spoke. “Raven told her how to stop it.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about. If anything happens to me—”

Bellamy grabbed her by her shoulders, widening his eyes, “Nothing is happening to you.” He walked to the computer, urging them to run the water numbers again but she insisted that he hear what she had to tell him too. Michelle was already listening, but he was reluctant to hear it and understandably so. None of them wanted to face the possibility of Clarke’s death. She was their best friend. Clarke plunged her eyes into theirs.

“We’ve been through a lot together, you and I. I didn’t like you at first— that’s no secret.”

“I didn’t either.” Michelle chuckled faintly. Looking back, it was crazy how far they had come since their first encounter at the dropship’s landing. Clarke laughed quietly too.

“But even then, every stupid thing you did, it was to protect your sister.” He gave a subtle nod, looking away. “She didn’t always see that, But I did. You’ve got such a big heart, Bellamy.”

“Clarke—”

“People will follow you. You inspire them because of it, but the only way to make sure we survive is you use this too.” She lifted her finger to his head, poking his temple.

He shook his head, “We got you for that.”

Her lips quivered faintly, “Raven’s premonition came true.” Their conversation was interrupted when a loud electric zapping sound caught their attention and Raven yelled. They came running towards the rocket to check if everyone was okay. Bellamy climbed the ladder to the cockpit, peeked inside.

“Raven, what is it?” He enquired.

“Oh, there isn’t enough time.’ She groaned. “We’re pushing too hard.”

“What’s happening?”

“Computer, systems check.” Once he stepped inside, Clarke and Michelle squeezed together on the ladder and climbed. The rocket’s computer’s voice spoke, listing the various systems and their state. Two out of three were optimal, aside from the life-support system. “It’s okay. We’re using completemental anyway.”

“All life-support systems are offline.” The voice declared.

“Just wait. Two more.” She shook her head, frowning in concern. The life-support systems weren’t the only one to be completely offline, the communication systems were as well. “Recommend repair options for communication system.”

“Who cares? There’s no one to talk to anyway.” Harper didn’t understand. Raven straight up told her to be quiet, waiting for the repair options, but all damages were beyond repair. They would need to replace the entire communication system for it to be able to work.

“Talk to us, Raven.” Bellamy urged.

She slowly looked over her shoulder and then stared into space, “We’re not going anywhere. Computer, terminate launch sequence.” She got up and Clarke and Michelle stepped aside to let her through as she sighed heavily and walked away. They all came after her, wanting her to explain herself.

“It’s simple. There’s no power in the ring. Two minutes ago, I though it wasn’t a problem because I could activate it remotely.”

“Over the rocket’s com system.” Clarke figured.

“So, we turn the power on from the inside.” Bellamy spoke.

“We can’t get inside. That’s the point. Without power, we can’t even open the hangar door.” She was beyond frustrated, but Clarke encouraged her to think harder, she had solved way bigger problems than this before. It would be quite difficult to do so in the 53 minutes they had left.  

“It’s over, Clarke.” She shouted. “You know, maybe if I still had Alie’s code eating away my brain, I could figure it out. I’m not smart enough myself.” She let herself fall on the stairs to the rocket, hopeless. Clarke didn’t what else to do. She turned to the others, standing around and Bellamy approached, trying to talk to Raven, sitting beside her. She wouldn’t believe him when he insisted, she could do this.

“How many times have you saved our asses before you ever heard of Alie?” He asked.

“Oh, too many to count.”

“You’re damn right. We don’t need Alie on the ark. We need you.” Tear fell down her face and she wiped them and frowned. “What?”

“Alie was on the Ark.” She jerked to her feet. “I— I was right there, so close to the kill switch, but she got away by transmitting herself to the ring.”

“Using the pod in the temple.” Emory spoke.

“Yes. If she can do it, so can we.”

“Raven, we’ll never make it back to Polis on time, and the radios are dead.”

She took a few steps toward Clarke, “We have something better than radios— the satellite tower.” Turning back to Echo, Emory and Harper, she told them to get back in the cockpit and to finish to prepare the restraints for them during the flight, and then motioned to Clarke, Michelle and Bellamy, urging them to go put their helmets on and come with her. They geared up and went out. They could see the tower stretch out in the sky and according to Raven, it was less than a mile away. She repeated the instructions; all they had to do was plug a device into the junction box, at the base of the tower. Simple enough said like that. Once the tablet would be connected, it would align itself with the ark. She gave the rest of the directions. “Are there any questions?”

“Yeah. Why are you smiling?” Clarke wondered.

“Because without comms, even with the power on, we still can’t open that hangar bay door from inside the rocket.”

“Wait, how is that a good thing?”

“She gets to take her space walk.” Michelle was staring at Raven as she figured what Bellamy had been failing to understand, bringing the two others’ gazes on her. In the distance, behind Raven, they saw Murphy carrying the generator they needed, and they rushed towards him. He was panting loudly and struggling with how heavy that things was, eventually falling over. But something concerning that they noticed, was that Monty wasn’t there with him. Murphy was about to help himself up but took Michelle’s hand as she stretched it out to him. He told them that Monty was in trouble and had passed out in the forest. His hands had been touched by the radiations.

“If we go back now, we can get to him.” He pointed at the trees behind him. “You can be impressed with me later, we gotta go.”

“Alignign the dish is a one-person job. Clarke can handle it.” Raven said. “Michelle will help me with the generator.”

“Bellamy—”

“Clarke, if it’s one of those moments where you tell me to use my head—”

“No. I was just gonna say, hurry.”

“You, too. Lead the way.” He ran to the forest, following Murphy while Clarke went to the tower and Raven and Michelle carried the machine back to the laboratory to set it in the rocket. Eventually, Bellamy and Murphy came in, carrying Monty and sat him down to the side. Emory was relieved to see Murphy safe and sound and wrapped her arms around him. Harper rushed to Monty, wanting to look at his hands but there was no time. They would take care of it once on the Ark. They had just 5 minutes left ahead of them. “Clarke’s not back yet.”

“By now she should be on her way.” They had to finish getting ready for launch. Raven led them to the rocket, telling them all to refill their oxygen tanks and load up for the flight. She would tell them when to turn them on, so as not to waste any air, given they would have only an hour each.

“Where’s Echo?” Bellamy wondered. Only then did Michelle realize the grounder wasn’t with them. He left to find her while they all got strapped in. When Echo joined them, they only had 2 minutes left. Clarke was still not here. They waited until the countdown ran out, but Bellamy was still waiting outside the rocket, staring at the stairs, hoping she would appear any second now, but they had to go. The radiations outside were already affecting the ship’s avionics, so if they wanted to successfully reach space, it was now or never. He got in and reluctantly closed the cockpit door.

“Can we give her another minute?” Emory asked.

“We’re out of time.” Bellamy sat down next to Michelle and strapped himself in. Michelle looked down, hoping her best friend would somehow survive out there. “This is what Clarke would want us to do. If we wait, then we die.”

“Wait. How are we gonna know she got the power on, then?” Murphy wondered.

“We’ll know when we get there.” Raven closed her helmet, ordering the opening of the launching door. She initiated the countdown until lauch, anxiously listening to the numbers being spoken by the robotic voice. Michelle and Bellamy held each other’s hand, looking out the porthole. It broke their hearts to have to leave Clarke behind, but there was no other choice. The rocket fired up and flew out of the bunker. The ship shook a lot during the flight until they reached space.

“Welcome to zero G, boys and girls.” Raven smiled. She took control of the navigation, setting the rings’ coordinates and a few seconds later, they saw it on the screen, still quite a bit far away from them but they were getting there. The ring was dark, meaning Clarke must have had some problems with connecting the tablet to the tower and set the power on. But Bellamy and Michelle, though not entirely confident, knew she would have it done. She had to.

“Ready for a spacewalk, Raven?” He asked.

“You know I am, but if Clarke doesn’t get the power on—” One glance from him and she cut herself off. “Suiting up.” She detached herself from her seat and flew through the hatch in the floor and went outside. Michelle watched him as Bellamy got off his seat to float up to the porthole and take a look out. She observed his face, practically holding her breath until joining him to the window.

“I left her behind.” He mumbled, tilting his head forward in guilt. Michelle put her hand on his arm.

“She would’ve wanted us to do this. You said it yourself, and you know it’s true.”

“No, I left her behind, and we all die, anyway.”

“Guys, look.” They glanced at Monty before looking out the window again. The ark was lit up. She had done it. She managed to set the power on. Raven managed to open the hangar door. She pulled herself back to the rocket and drove it inside the hangar before closing the door, allowing everyone out. Home sweet home, as said Murphy as they entered. Raven was the first to be running out of air and Emory shared hers. The next to hear a beeping sound was Michelle. The oxygen level on the watch connected to her suit and oxygen tank showed she had almost nothing left.

“Bellamy, hurry up. Michelle’s running out of air.” Upon hearing Monty, Bellamy widened his eyes in worry and looked at her. Echo pushed him aside to open the vent quicker. She tore it off the wall. Michelle couldn’t breathe and let herself fall against the wall. Monty kneeled beside her, urging Bellamy to get the tubes and connect the generator. She was gasping for air. Monty couldn’t grab things because of his hand so Echo took off her helmet and gave her air from another tank. She inhaled deeply and shared it with Echo, taking one breath after the other. But they quickly ran out and were all on the verge of passing out. Michelle head rolled to the side and fell on Echo’s shoulder before her eyes closed. She came back to her senses, opening her eyes wide, panting and gasping and she looked around and stumbled towards Bellamy, collapsed on the ground. She groaned, pulling his helmet off of him so he wouldn’t suffocate in his suit. He looked up, breathing quickly, and held Michelle’s hand. They would be fine now.

After taking off his suit, Bellamy found an empty bottle by a window, looking down on the earth, now just a scorching ball of fire. Michelle walked up to him, touching his hand with the back of hers as they were joined by Raven.

“She saved us again.” She spoke under her breath. “Think we can do this without her?”

“If we don’t, she died in vain. And I’m not gonna let that happen.” Bellamy couldn’t take his eyes off the planet before them. It was unrecognizable. No blue or green left to see. “You with me?”

The two young women glanced at each other, and turned their head to him, “Always.” Michelle nodded, and though she said nothing else, she didn’t think any less. She would never give up on Bellamy and he knew it. She felt him grab her hand and she brought her other hand to his arm as they intertwined their fingers. It was the end of the world they had grown accustomed too, but, hopefully, not the end of the entire world.

[To be continued…]  

Previous Chapter / Next Chapter (09/27/2024)

Published (08/30/2024) by Andrea

Taglist:  @mirellef2001

[ploppythespaceship]

Superman & Lois failed Jonathan Kent

Since day one, I have felt that giving Jonathan powers would be absolutely, 100% the wrong move for this show. The setup is that one twin has powers and the other doesn’t, and altering that would fundamentally and irrevocably change the entire family dynamic.

So when Season 4’s third episode saw Jonathan spontaneously develop all of his powers… yeah. I was skeptical. But I decided I would let them cook. I would see where the writers were taking this before coming down too hard.

Well, the season is done now. And I still don’t understand this decision. Giving Jonathan powers has utterly let down what was once an excellent character.

This got long. Spoilers for all of Season 4 under the cut.

I usually see two arguments for why Jon should get powers. The first is that it’s more “comics accurate.” And I’m sorry, but that just doesn’t work here. The DC TV shows have never prioritized comic accuracy, and this show follows suit. Morgan Edge is not Clark’s Kryptonian half-brother in the comics. John Henry does not have a daughter with another Earth’s Lois in the comics. Bizarro is not from a parallel dimension in the comics, nor does he become Doomsday. This show’s entire thing is taking the original ideas and putting a fresh spin on them, while remaining true to the core themes of Superman. Being internally consistent and interesting is much more important than remaining true to the comics.

The other common argument is that it’s just not fair that Jon doesn’t get powers. He’s the more level-headed of the twins, the more openly warm and compassionate, the one whose temperament better suits being a hero. And my response is – yes! All of those things are true. It’s deeply unfair. And that was what made it interesting. Seeing how he deals with the lot life handed him is where his character shines through best.

We see how this affects him throughout Season 1, how watching Jordan take over his place as the star of the football team hurts. We also see him put that aside more than once in order to be there for his brother. But constantly pushing his own feelings aside for the sake of others leads to Season 2 – he turns to X-K out of desperation to feel special again, which only makes him crash even harder than before. He realizes he messed up, he tries to do the right thing to protect Candice, but it only makes everything worse. He’s expelled, everyone is upset with him for ruining the football season and for lying about the X-K. The season leaves him in a pretty bad spot, trying to figure out what his place even is now that he doesn’t have football, he doesn’t have powers, he doesn’t have much of anything, really. Which is where Season 3 starts to look up for him. He volunteers at the fire department. He finds a sense of purpose and belonging there that he’s never had before. And best of all, it’s completely unrelated to his dad or his brother. It’s something that he does just for himself.

I am not saying that Seasons 2 and 3 were flawlessly written. I could complain about Season 2’s messy arcs for days, and Season 3 just doesn’t devote enough time to this. But the overall direction for Jon as a character is still consistent, and it’s more or less satisfying to watch.

Then Season 4 comes and negates all of this without any good reason.

Now not only does Jon get powers, he masters them all almost immediately. He takes over Jordan’s role as Superboy pretty much right away, with no real struggle to speak of. And I do get it, to some extent. Jon has always pushed his own feelings aside for the benefit of others, so the first time he really just lets loose and stops holding back how he feels is when his powers activate. It’s almost like he was subconsciously suppressing them, and letting go is what allows them to finally spark. But it’s still weird to me, because all of those big feelings that lead to his powers developing then just evaporate. He goes from being so overwhelmed that he’s screaming and crying and punching the walls… to being completely fine and calm. What happened to those emotions? Does being able to fly magically cure all ills?

The only real conflict Jon has with his new powers is in Episode 5, where he struggles to balance his new obligations as a hero with the rest of his life. This puts strain on his relationship with Candice, where he debates whether or not to tell her the truth. And this could be interesting, if we hadn’t already done this with Jordan in Season 2, with little variation. Jon should get his own arcs that work for him as a unique character, not just the speedrun versions of what Jordan already got.

That’s another issue, to be frank. Jonathan and Jordan used to feel like much more distinct characters. And they do definitely still have different personalities, but with them both having powers and both having similar struggles, it no longer feels worthwhile to even have two brothers. Jonathan has almost become Diet Jordan.

What makes all this so much worse is how good Jordan’s arc is in Season 4. After Season 3 had him using his powers for all the wrong reasons, seeking fame and attention instead of genuinely wanting to help others, Season 4 sees him humbled. He recognizes that he isn’t ready to be a hero, and willingly gives up his suit until he is. And it comes full circle in Episode 9, when he helps Vicky May through her panic attack in the diner. He’s stepped up to become a hero in a way he never could before, and it feels earned. We know what it took for him to reach that point, the struggles he went through and how he’s changed since the beginning of the show. It’s incredibly satisfying to trace his character back through all the seasons and see what brought him here.

Jonathan, on the other hand? There’s no full circle moment for him. Because he doesn’t have struggles anymore. Getting super powers completely fixed everything in his life, apparently. He gets cool moments to be a hero, sure, but they don’t feel earned in nearly the same way Jordan’s do. The only thing he had to overcome to reach that point was not having powers, which just happened randomly, not due to any character choices he made. His character in Season 4 is just so bland now that he doesn’t have internal conflicts to overcome.

Also, I think Clark revealing his secret identity would have been more interesting if there was still one son without powers. It would elevate Jonathan’s internal conflicts to an even grander scale, put him through new struggles that we could then see him overcome. He can prove to the entire world that he does not need powers to be special – he has only ever needed to be himself.

And what gets me most is that if the writers absolutely insisted on giving Jon powers, there are ways to do it that don’t completely undermine everything that came before. Here are just a few ideas, some of which can be combined:

A simple one – what if Jon doesn’t master all his powers right away? With Clark gone, then weakened, Jordan is forced to step up and help train his brother. This would tie nicely into Jordan’s arc for the season, and lead to some great bonding moments between the two.

What if Jon and Jordan are each better and worse at different abilities? This was lightly implied at points, but could have been leaned into way more. Maybe Jon is naturally a strong flier and relies more on his strength and speed, while Jordan has sharper senses and relies more on finding clever solutions. Seeing them learn to work together and complement each other’s styles would have been incredibly interesting. (Admittedly, this is more an issue with the season’s pacing as a whole, not just Jon’s arc.)

What if Jon realizes that having powers kinda sucks sometimes? What if he learns that having super hearing that never turns off is actually horrible? Or that heat vision is surprisingly hard to control? What if he reaches a point where he realizes he doesn’t really want powers, and has to learn to accept his new normal?

Jon’s previous arcs have been about feeling helpless and unspecial. What if having powers doesn’t actually fix that? He can fly now, but he still can’t stop Lex, or bring his dad back, or regain people’s trust that he lost all the way back in Season 2. He learns that powers weren’t the answer to these feelings he has, and still has to find his own path to feel at peace with himself.

These are just a few things I thought of, but I am not a staff of professional writers! I’m sure there are much better ways to handle this.

It is just so, so frustrating to me that one of my favorite characters went so downhill in this final season. I can sort of understand why people were so excited to see him have powers, but for me, it will always be the biggest misstep of the entire show.

[tealeaf29]

ARCANE SEASON 1 AND 2 SPOILERS

Y’know what? I’m gonna say it:

As a system myself, Jinx/Powder is a system.

It’s difficult to pin point the exact point of the split, and whether or not it even happens on screen, but I’m gonna say Powder’s breakdown in season 1 episode 3 is the first time we see Jinx fronting.

Throughout most of season 1, Jinx is in front. Not all the time, but a lot of the time.

People already talk quite a bit about how the arcane animators put time and effort into differentiating Powder and Jinx as two separate entities, is it really a stretch to call them a system?

Here’s the part that’s tripping me up though.

“Jinx is dead.”

I’m not sure who says that line.

Personally, I think it’s Jinx we see bonding with Isha. I think it’s Jinx we see talking about Powder being a stupid name. I think it’s Jinx we see saying Jinx is dead.

The best scene I think for showing the concept that Ninx and Powder are separate people, separate alters, is season 1 episode 6, when Vi and her sister reunite. It’s Powder that sets off the flare. It’s Jinx who angrily throws the flare on the ground. It’s Powder who fronts when Vi says her name and it’s Powder Vi hugs. But it’s Jinx who points PowPow at Vi. It’s Jinx who fires upon the Firelights with a smile on her face. It’s Powder who watches her sister get taken, and it’s Jinx who cries out in outrage moments later.

Second best scene for this is season 1 episode 9’s tea party scene. I don’t think I need to really explain that one too much, and there’s so much more I wanna say and I don’t want this to be too long.

Now, bare with me, it’s been a minute since my last rewatch but hear me out:

I think the last time we see Jinx is season 2 episode 4. Everything, and I do mean everything after she realizes she’s fighting Vander is Powder.

Do I think Jinx is gone? No. I just think she realized she doesn’t have to protect Powder anymore.

And I think there are two scenes that support this idea.

Season 2 episode 8, when Vi goes to break her out of prison and convince her sister to fight.

Vi pointedly calls her “Jinx”. Like a person trying to show they’re learning. I’ve seen this very thing myself as a system. Someone gets used to a new alter(in this case, Jinx) fronting, that they accidentally call another alter(in this case, Powder) by the wrong name.

She goes on to say “maybe we can rewrite your story, just like you rewrote Zaun’s.”

She’s saying “we can erase Powder, Jinx is all that matters, right?”

And, from an outside perspective, that’s not only a fair thing to say, but honestly super cute of her as a sister. I’ve seen people reading Jinx as a trans allegory, ESPECIALLY season 1 Jinx, and if it were, this would be a super great thing for Vi to say. But it’s not. At least, not by this point in season 2. If we do want to look at it as a gender allegory, then it works really well as a genderfluid allegory. But that’s not what I’m talking about.

No, Vi says the wrong thing here. She makes it clear she views her sister as a singular entity. Either Powder or Jinx. The issue is, especially at this point in the story, she’s not. And that’s not even me being like “I’m gonna state my personal headcanon/analysis as fact.” That’s just true. Schnee on YouTube does a much better job of explaining the dichotomy between the two identities in his “How EKKO Redefines Time” video that I 100% recommend(this video is actually what got me thinking about Jinx/Powder as a system).

The other scene, is Ekko trying to convince her to help. Ekko says two things here that are important. First, he says “Pow- Jinx.”

He doesn’t view them as a singular entity.

To the trans allegory thing for a moment, this is a really good line if you wanna read Jinx that way, because almost every single trans person who’s changed their name has likely heard “Deadna- Name” at least once(substitute for appropriate names of course). And it’s cute that Ekko corrects himself if that’s how you’re choosing to view it.

But it’s this line that gives her pause.

Ekko then goes on to say “no matter what happened in the past, it’s never too late to build something new.”

He’s not saying to erase the past. To erase Powder. He’s saying to move on from the past. To accept that Powder and Jinx are both present.

That is what convinces her to fight. Ekko telling her “it doesn’t matter, Jinx, Powder, whoever you are, whoever you choose to be, it’s not too late for you.”

Am I little biased when I claim Ekko is the only reason Jinx fights? Maybe a little, TimeBomb are one of my favourite ships in Arcane(though post-season 2 I stumbled upon LightCannon and I think they might be my fav Jinx ship now). But I don’t think that matters.

Do I think the writers intended Jinx to have DID? Definitely not.

Do I think the writers intended Jinx to be an allegory for DID? Maybe.

But it’s fun to analyze, and read representation in characters that wasn’t necessarily intended.

But, yeah, Jinx/Powder is now a system in my headcanon and you can’t convince me otherwise because it’s a headcanon and I can do what I want in my headcanons.

[ngray192]

Ok, Chaos Theory came out and I watched ALL OF IT.

So, I'm gonna share every thought I had while watching, with no context whatsoever!

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT!!!!

• Brooklyn is already dead ig

• The animation is beautiful

• Darius to the rescue!!

• He's so grown up

• Hes still so Darius

• Sammy would be proud

• This animation is gorgeous omg

• He took mannerisms from his friends omg

• Allosaurus killed Brooklyn!!!?!?

• Omg this show is darker than the first

• His groceries are gonna fly out

• Curse, I know you want to

• Is it a gun gun or tranq gun?

• Omg is he leaving voicemails to Dead Brooklyn??

• Did they get Jenna Ortega back or no?

• He's got a little cabin

• Wtf is that gun??

• Brand!!

• He's like 20 rn?

• CAMP FAM

• Kenji and Darius had a falling out??

• AAAA NEWS VIDEOS

• I miss them

• Someone do the "despite everything it's still you"

• Ok he slayed that electric staff whip tho

• BEN

• He's anxious af

• HES STILL WEARING A FANNY PACK

• God this is so sad wtf

• Ofc there's a site caller Dark Jurassic

• I saw this scene in the clip already

• Teamwork

• That was the whole episode?!

2

• "Aw crud"

• Someone broke the fence

• Why did you park so far away??

• Ofc he drives a van

• The eyessss

• Lockwood Estate mentioned

• Always the logical one

• He wrote down his theories

• Boyfriends??

• "Dork pouch"

• BUMPY DRAEN ON THE WHITEBOARD

• NO HESITATION LMAO

• He's so goofy I love him

• Facial expressions on point

• SHE SENDS CARE PACKAGES

• "Yee-haw"

• Do they only have one picture of them all?

• It's a female voice??

• Oh it was Brooklyn

• They didn't even try to make her sound the same

• I don't like her hair

• She's still Brooklyn

• Isn't that the plot of someone's fanfic on the Discord??

• Someone's gonna read that scene as romantic

• Ben is a reckless driver god damn

• Where are they that they can drive to Texas easily?

• Move dino move!!

• No rear view mirror doesn't sound safe

• Let this boy pee

• BENJAMIN

• He's so done with him

• Hes giving season 4 episode 2

• Boyfriends??

• NERDS

• OMG FIRE

• Hero Ben!!

• Ew the face

• Camp fammmmm

• THE HEAT WAVES this animation is everything

• We get different end-credits every ep??

3

• Cows!

• "Chip me"

• He's so happy to see the ranch

• The ranch is so Sammy

• Awww she's so Farm Girl

• She's STRONG

• She got tall lmao

• Bessie had a calf?!?

• Do Yaz and Sammy usually live together?!!

• "Ding-dong"

• NO FUCKING WAY

• ITS BUMPY!!!!!!

• THE PUPILS

• THIS IS EVERYTHING

• Is Mantah Corp back??

• KILL HIM BUMPY

• Boooo Sammy

• Fuck Carl

• She's an herbivore tf

• Me and Ben on the same wavelength fr

• Tell him, Sammy

• Let this girl have her pie

• She's Sammy, but she's grown up a lot

• She still has her jacketttt

• What happened to her???

• She's so saddd

• Why aren't her parents talking to her??

• NOT YAZ PULLING AWAY

• Don't split up!!

• Omg Carl

• Communication through hand signalsss

• That shot with the raptor and the moon tho

• We haven't had many cute moments yet, it's really about survival now, they've really grown up

• Not the pieeee

• The genuine fear in her eyes holy shit

• BUMPY

• No more Beanie Ben

• So now he has a rear view mirror

• This reminds me a lot of Jurassic Park 2

4

• This episode is titled Brothers

• Season 3 episode 7 vibes

• I love how Ben loves Bumpy

• Their faces are so close

• BENJAMIN

• HE HAS A GIRLFRIEND

• Fucking liar lmao

• Does Kenji blame him???

• THEY STILL GLOW

• God I cannot get over the animation

• Poor boy kenji???

• The kick lmao

• He almost sounds like Ryan Porter

• He's not the tallest anymoreeee

• Benji???

• He doesn't act like Kenji 100% but it's still there

• I miss Ryan Porter

• Another framed photo!!

• They use the words "death" and "dead" a lot, but not "died" or "killed"

• DANIEL KON?!??!

• Yes, go get your girl

• Ok but Sammy and Ben are so Mom and Dad

• Good thing he just had spare gear???

• Oh it's probably for Brooklyn

• That shot he looked so much like Little Darius

• Oh no they broke up, so sad 😐

• Woah

• Valid reason to break up

• He's completely valid for being mad idc

• NOOO DONT GET BUMPY

5

• COMPIES

• Ofc he loves this kind of music

• You guys are supposed to be family tho

• DAMN THATS COLD

• EVERY WEEK I love Kenji

• "Love you" awwww

• She's so sassy I love her

• The head sway omgggg

• The carobbbb

• These background characters are way too hyped for this

• Bobby Nublar?

• Awww poor baby dino

• Free the dinos!!

• Oh he got OLD

• Damn straight in there

• She's so hurt :(

• He only thought Sammy was suspicious

• Creepy ass big ass forehead bitch

• Daniel Kon is a LIAR

• We should've gotten Kenji speaking Japanese in JWCC

• Love sassy Kenji

• "Yeah ok, I'll get my violin" GIRL

• Omg he almost punched Ben

• Yesss Sammy beat the shit out of him

• Those are the smallest corn dogs ever

• You're a shit dad

• What?! Brooklyn would never

• Kenji and I are on the same wavelength

• Different? Was it her voice?

• Are those lillies?

• These bitches are everywhere

• Kill Daniel

• He's old af hes about to have a heart attack anyway

• DAWG WHO TF ARE YOU

• CREEPY ASS BITCH

• Shitttt Daniel tackled that raptor

• Holy shit they killed Kenji's dad

• She's so fucking creepy omg

• I hope she's not from Dominion cause I haven't watched that

• Who's driving the car???!

6

• YAZ

• She's coping!!

• She wants to make it work!!!

• Ok but the crop top on Yaz???

• THE PICTURE ON HER PHONE

• Ben is everything this season

• "Love you too" AWWWW

• Where is there an island in Wyoming??

• She's so nervous/excited

• They're perfect together

• "Fadoula"

• She's happy here. Writers, let her be happy

• "Benny-boy"

• She's so geeky

• "Your favorite"

• They're all the same but so grown up

• Ben's scream lmao

• BENS SO SUPPORTIVE

• So Brooklyn has been dead less that 14 months

• They're both valid in this argument

• Ok but Ben and Yaz friendshipppp

• Is Ben actually dating someone??

• Ooo that's a cool dino

• Omg this show is darker than the og

• How did she walk so far??

• Yaz holding Ben's arm is cute tho

• Girlfriendssss

• BIG BEN

• Dumbass DPW

• Wtf??

• Omg

7

• Therapy girlfriend to the rescue

• Omg I forgot about Darius and Kenji

• Noooo baby boy Kenji

• Wow 2 major deaths already

• God I love Ben

• I feel like they should've drowned by now

• They held hands while swimming up

• Aw he has a daughter

• He lowkey sounds like Ryan Porter

• Idc about this Brooklyn death backstory

• Sammy looks fucking crazy in their one picture of the 6

• Ben 3rd wheeling just like all of season 5

• Their heads SLAMMED together

• He's so weird about this car lmao

• The car scene is funny

• They're in Colorado now??

• This hill is STEEP

• He's been waiting to throw those phones for DAYS

• Why tf would he be coming with you?

• Why did I believe the voicemail?? I saw her phone get ruined

• Darius CALM DOWN let kenji have at least something about Brooklyn DAMN

• Dude this mystery is DEEP

8

• Reminds me of Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom

• Gonna barf because of this "bwookie bear" scene

• He always has been a bad liar

• Sammy is physically fight for EVERYBODY'S lives

• Omg we're actually doing the Darius×Brooklyn plot??

• So that means no Ben×Darius plot???

• BUMPY (again)

• What did they do to you, Bumps???

• "Oh heyyyy" "boo" I LOVE THEM

• I love a good chase scene

• If a car can just drive through it, that fence was shit

• Nobody does a stampede like this show does

• Lots of death (even if they're all cutaways)

9

• God I'm flying through this show

• The heartbeating is EVERYTHING

• Anxious girlfriends

• More good camerawork and angles

• Ofc they'd be good at charades

• Are there still no male dinosaurs?

• Big Eatie mentioned

• "Ok I get it, you're a climber"

• Oh are Camp Fam at the same place?

• She's sick???

• If Bumpy dies I'll kms

• Why is he just carrying a stick?

• GIRL STOP KICKING THINGS

• I love reunions

• No cause why am I sad

• Did he call her "MICROBANGS"

• They're still the same kids from the island and I love that

• Once again, they're so Mom and Dad

• Is she in labor?!?!?!

• YOU CANNOT SCARE US LIKE THAT

• What're they gonna name the egg?!??!

10

• Last episodeeee

• Oh shit we used the word "killed"

• His hat is so tall

• Omg he shocked Ben

• Benji?

• We have so much to wrap up in 23 minutes

• This is lowkey scary

• This is so suspenseful

• She looks familiar

• THE FIRST PERSON SHOTS IN THISSSS

• Is she just dead then???

• Toro!!

• THE EXPLOSION BEHIND THE T-REX IM SORRY THAT WAS AWESOME

• THEY'RE ADORABLE

• The slow-motion scene is so cool

• Coolest dino fight ever

• FUCKING CREEPY BITCH

• Awww she's bonding? with her guard-raptors? I don't care

• Wait is that it??

• They better make another season

• Everyone's so happy for Darius being in love

• She didn't feel the same?! THATS why he didn't show???

• I fucking knew she was still alive

• SHE LOST AN ARM?!

• Her hair got even worse

• So we're getting another season???

[dandadananalysis]

DANDADAN analysis main post!

If you love Dandadan, this blog is for you!

If you love romcom anime, you are interested in occult phenomena - such as spirits/yokais and aliens/astrology - mysteries in general, this Autumn 2024 anime, Dandadan, is for you! This anime is an adaptation from the manga of the same name, whose author is Tatsu Yukinobu, the one working as an assisstant for the anime/manga Chainsaw Man, by Fujimoto Tatsuki.

[SPOILERS WARNINGS!] R17+

It's a story about a nerdy, but lonely boy named Takakura Ken (later Momo calls him by Okarun), who believes in aliens, befriends with an out-going girl named Ayase Momo, who believes in spirits & ghosts, and a great fan of Takakura Ken, a famous actor. When they first went head-to-head, both of them dared the other that if they find out aliens/ghosts are real, they will become the other's slave. And turns out, both the aliens and ghosts are real!

Okarun was possessed and cursed by a spirit named Turbo Granny, and eventually, he lost his b@lls/kintama (Japanese for Golden ball), but he gains Granny's speed and her power; while Momo was abducted by aliens who called themselves as the Serpoians/Serpos, but luckily, she unlocked her inner energy/power (?), which is her special psychokinesis ability, and escaped successfully. The two of them worked together to help Okarun find his kintama back thanks to the help with their friends, though they have to come across many spiritual situation, alien invasion... And sooner or later, y'know, they actually become close friends, love and care for each other. [ya know what ima talking abt]

So basically, a story about the main male character on an "adventure" to find his b@lls :)))

As I mentioned before, same as my 2nd blog, @spyxfamilyanalysis, there will be a pin post for this blog as well. There are analysis of the episodes & chapters, descriptions of the characters & relationships, facts about occults: yokais, aliens, and other stuffs in the future.

Analysis:

¬ Season 1: 3rd October, 2024 - 26th December, 2024

Turbo Granny Arc (chapter 1-8): analysis

1. That's How Love Starts, Ya Know!

2. That's A Space Alien, Ain't It?!

3. It's a Granny Vs. Granny Clash!

4. Kicking Turbo Granny's Ass

Acrobatic Sliky Arc (chapter 9-17): analysis

5. Like, Where are Your Balls?!

6. A Dangerous Woman Arrives

7. To a Kinder World

Serpo Arc (chapter 18-27): review + analysis

8. I've Got This Funny Feeling [pt.1 (review)]

9. Merge! Serpo Dover Demon Nessie! [pt.2 (review)]

10. Have You Ever Seen a Cattle Mutilation? [pt.3 (review)]

Cursed House Arc (chapter 28-33)

11. First Love (watch live) [pt.1.1 (review delayed)]

12. Let's Go To The Cursed House

¬ Season 2 (July 2025) Huge announcement!, Official trailer

Cursed House Arc (cont.) (chapter 34-50)

Evil Eye Arc (chapter 51-62)

Kaiju Arc (chapter 63-73?)

Full description of character: (not yet)

Facts: Chapter 30, love Turbo Granny Meow meow :3, Chapter 176, Chapter 177, 177 Cont.1

Facebook: Discussion Turbo Granny, Woofkarun

Polls: What post should I continue work on?

Other stuffs: Welcome!, The reason why this blog is made, My blogs~, 100+1 posts reached, nearly 2AM post: good night, uni life killin' me (?), teacher, why :"))), updating main post (cursed house arc), update my temporary pin post, thank you 250 likes

Thank you for 53 followers 🥰