#the chuck theme of hopelessness

[shallowseeker]

Up and down the stairs; away and towards safety

"Run. Take your brother and go! Now, Dean!"

(The story is after us, Dean. It's after Sam.)

We hear the warning again later in the episode, with the overlaid message from John: "I can never go home" & "We're all in danger!"

And the thing is, they are in danger—all of them—from the story itself. The road, then, becomes armor, and motion becomes safety, insisting that they keep moving. Being in one place? That's what kills them. The idea of going off-road functions like a temptation, a lure. The safety of home is just an illusion.

///

Shelter is down

Even in the pilot, Dean is quite literally a marked impala, a prey animal, always on the run. I really love the contrast of Mary and John running "up" towards the fire and little Dean running away, visually "down," away from the fire.

In trying to escape the fire, Dean descends to safety. It is this need for safety (and the safety of his loved ones) that in a very real sense eventually drives him towards Hell.

///

Later in the episode, we see Dean descend the stairs again, when he's leading Sam away from Sam's apartment (an apartment that has been, unbeknownst to them, marked for death by Azazel).

"Going down" will be a mode of movement that follows Dean pretty much his whole life. Dean goes down into the valley, into the shelter, into Hell.

Dean remains on the move for much of his life, but when he does get a true home of his own, it's underground. When he's on the run from Billie/Death in 15x18, he plunges further still, deeper underground, until he loses the love of his life in his safest spot: the bunker's dungeon.

///

Until then, the car is the safest spot they've got.

But the narrative is at work, trying to take control of the car; trying to chisel and shape its targets the way Constance tries to chisel and shape her targets.

When the car charges them on the bridge, Dean is frantic to get out of the way, diving "down" off the bridge, into the safety of another road—into movement, the churning river.

Meanwhile, Sam keeps hanging on. Sam's Taurus-like personality and stubbornness means that he's always trying to cheat a rigged game. Sam tries to stay in the "high place" and not get burned.

Sam monkey-arms and contorts himself to stay on the bridge...

...and Dean comes crawling out of the river like a drowned rat.

///

We see ups and downs for Constance's family, too.

Sam forces her to go home, taking control of the car (narrative) and hurling her into her ruined, dilapidated house.

Inside, she's faced with her guilt: and her guilt is up.

The deceased family members are upstairs. They went up, but they never came down.

These children have obviously been paralleled to the pain that Sam and Dean go through at the hands of John's cruel overpreparedness, but these two are also an off-key echo of John and Mary's innocence.

The narrative killed its "first children." Mary's body was consumed alongside John's faith in the future. They are the ones who went "up" and were murdered (Mary) and damaged (John).

///

In many ways, Constance's story is a study of opposites to the Winchesters.

Her first children were drowned. The narrative burned its first children.

Dean's mother Mary ran towards the danger (and we will see she continues to haunt her house as a supreme protector of children). In contrast, Constance runs away from her house. She killed her children.

Constance's ghost is out to prove that deep down, everyone is flawed, operating in a Luciferian mode of engineered hopelessness. She haunts the road in a Trickster-tempter-style of hunting, not just preying on "unfaithful men," but trying to prove that in fact, all men are scum, i.e. "Even if you're still faithful, I'll make you unfaithful."

Many of SPN's villains are out to bring out the worst in people; the writer's task is to prove that anyone (everyone) will break under the right circumstances:

KEVIN TRAN (APOCALYPSE): Michael doesn't want to kill you. He wants to break you. He said for me to tell you that, 'Even if you win, you still lose.' I'm sorry. 13x20 Unfinished Business

We get this from Chuck too in 15x09 The Trap, as he works to drain Sam of all hope.

CHUCK: Um, short version – Sammy lost hope, and now I'm free. Hey, take it easy on the kid. It took a lot to beat it out of him. [Chuck crushes the sphere, destroying the spell] 15x09 The Trap

We also see this attitude reflected in many of the angel characters, reaching all the way into SPNwin The Winchesters, with the OG mindset of Gabriel/The Trickster wanting to prove how horrible humans are:

GABRIEL (unhinged): When the chips are down, humanity always chooses the selfish way out! Always! 1x08 Hang on to Your Life

//

As we learn more about Mary, we unravel that she did do some running of her own—running from hunting, from her parents, from her own childhood home. But here, at least, despite being dressed in white, Mary is in many ways Constance's opposite.

John are Dean are the ones doing the running, afraid to go home. In some ways, Constance is more like John than she is Mary, as John is victimized by Mary's lies and mistakes. John, like Constance, is driven into madness and despair. And of course, John breaks so hard that he hurts his own children.

After what happened, Constance went out on the road, looking for monsters. Making monsters, too.

//

The off-key parallels continue:

A married couple burns upstairs; a pair of siblings drowns upstairs.

The Winchester family faces tragedy in the comfort of their pajamas, while Constance's family are in their daily school uniforms—the period clothing giving off an eerie feeling that they're in "work clothes." (The suit and tie on the boy, especially!)

When Constance faces them, they embrace her, loving her as they bring her to justice.

Dean and Sam are "below." Safe. Looking on as the family is reunited and can finally rest together.

//

Sam goes home.

When Sam ascends up the stairs to his apartment, he leaves safety. There are horrors waiting for him "above," as Jess too is on the ceiling, a sacrifice to the narrative gods (the audience).

Like how Zachariah had to put extra pressure on Dean in 4x17 It's a Terrible Life to get Dean back on the road, Azazel has to burn down Sam's home to get him to play ball.

Sam had roots in this little apartment; he was even looking for a way to stay nearby with regards to his interview:

LUIS: So there you go. You are a first-round draft pick. You can go to any law school you want! SAM: Actually, I got an interview here. 

So, Azazel burns the garden.

///

Meanwhile, after he notices his watch stop, Dean rushes back and kicks open the door, much like a firefighter coming to the rescue. Dean is running into the fire the same way both of his parents did, acting in his parents' stead to save Sam:

Dean quickly spots Jess, and susses out that Sam's destiny is after him, and he works immediately to get him to safety—down the stairs.

Afterward, with the memory of Mary heavy on his mind, Dean turns, knowing.

He got Sam out, but like John, Sam isn't okay.

Sam is "down and out," the light of his happiness snuffed out. This was foreshadowed by "Sam's light going out" in the headlight scene:

(We will later see Dean lose his light too, in season 7, after Cas dies.)

Sam is safe from the fire, but he's, in a very real sense, no longer the same Sam. Despite that Dean is the one wearing John's jacket, it is Sam who is now set on the path to revenge, to "becoming" Azazel.

Sam's broken.

SAM: Yeah. I kinda mean, well, like ever since my head broke, and we lost Cas. You ever feel like he's going through the same motions but he's not the same Dean, ya know? 7x09 How to Win Friends and Influence Monsters

Sam's season 7 self could be talking about his season 1 self here! Loss does things to people. (But the narrative did it to Sam so early!)

///

DEAN: So what are you gonna do? You're just gonna live some normal, apple pie life? Is that it? SAM: No. Not normal. Safe. DEAN: And that's why you ran away. 1x01 Pilot

Despite his extreme efforts, John couldn't keep Sam safe from Azazel's designs.

And Dean can't either.

[zosan-secondchances]

The Pirate King of the North: Part 3

Main Themes: Villain Sanji, Alternate Universe, Zosan Ship

Warning: Long post ahead with One Piece spoilers. Contains strong language, drug use and explicit content.

Part 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13

Law

Zoro-ya…

Zoro

DON'T.

Law

We've passed by the same block thrice.

Zoro growls. His fists clench as he continues to stubbornly walk ahead of the other man.

Law

Are you seriously this hopeless at directions?

Zoro

Shut up!! We're here.

Law cautiously looks around. His assumption was correct–the green-head is an idiot.

Law

We're in a damp back alley that smells like piss, in the middle of the night, behind some–

Just as Law is about to take another step, a couple of drunken men get roughly thrown out from a tavern and onto the stone footpath in front of him. The bouncer yells unruly curses their way and slams the door behind him. Law sighs, exasperated, and proceeds to follow Zoro, stepping over the writhing drunkards without a care.

Law

Lovely. Look, just tell me where you want to go and I'll take us there. We've wasted enough time already. Are you even sure that we’re on the right island?

Zoro

Shut up. This is the right place. I’m sure of it…this time.

Oh good, they haven't cleared it out yet.

Zoro confidently walks towards a large metal rubbish bin behind yet another shoddy tavern. He readjusts the swords around his waist, and jumps up onto the container. The top half of his body hangs over the opening and the bottom half flails his legs to offset his balance to make sure he doesn't fall all the way in.

Disgusted, Law covers his face with his arm, glaring at Zoro's behind.

Law

You said you can get us in touch with the Pirate King.

Zoro ignores the man and proceeds to dig through the trash, arms deep. Some of the contents spill over the edge, and some he chucks in random directions by hand.

Law

Ugh… Is digging through the trash really how we get to him? It took us two whole days to travel just to get here for this?

Zoro

FOUND YOU!

With a couple of kicks in the air, Zoro's feet fall on the ground. He has his hands cupped together close to his chest. He quickly shuffles past Law, avoiding eye contact, and begins to whisper into his hands as he finds a quiet dark corner while his back is turned towards the other man.

Zoro

I need you working for me now. Come on.

…

I'm sorry I threw you away. I was afraid that you were tapped. Or that you'll explode.

…

C'mon. Just…I'll feed you extra or something. What do you guys like again?

Law's patience is wearing very thin. He approaches Zoro, tapping him on the shoulder with the handle of his own sword.

Law

Zoro-ya, what's going on?

Zoro jolts. He turns his head to look at Law over his shoulder. His ears have turned red. In the palm of his hand, two tiny curious orbs peek over at the doctor.

Law blinks in surprise, looking at the transponder snail with two curly brows above its eyes.

—

At the other end of the line, a den-den mushi with one eye awakens from its peaceful nap.

Den-den Mushi

Purupurupurupuru

A delicate hand answers the call. He lifts the snail’s handset close to his face.

Sanji

Hello?

My beloved! What can I do for you?

Mhmm… Uh-huh. Huh.

That sounds like fun. Sure, I'll help you.

I'll see you soon, my love.

Den-den Mushi

Click

The call put Sanji in a pleasant mood. He is on his bed, reading a book on his stomach while smoking a joint. The one-eyed transponder snail readjusts its shell happily before hiding inside itself comfortably for another long snooze. Sanji thinks that's a great idea, and snuggles himself further in the overly large pink feather coat that draped over him like a blanket, bumping the wavy red sunglasses that sat on his forehead.

Doflamingo shifts in reaction. He is splayed naked next to him with his hands behind his head, resting comfortably against an especially large pillow that looks proportional to his massive figure.

Doflamingo

“My beloved,” hmm? Who was it?

Sanji

None of your god damn business, you ugly fuck.

Doflamingo lets out a deep sinister chuckle.

Doflamingo

This your new toy?

Sanji

He used to be.

Doflamingo

The swordsman, eh? I'm glad to hear that you're making progress.

Sanji

Thanks, cunt.

Doflamingo turns his head slightly, nodding at Sanji's hand with the stick.

Doflamingo

Pass it here.

Sanji stretches his hand and gently places the joint between Doflamingo's lips, giving him a chance to take a long deep drag.

As thanks, Doflamingo holds the air in his lungs, leans over and captures Sanji's lips onto his to breathe the smoke directly into his mouth, making the other man moan deliciously. He takes the hint and pushes further in, shoving his long pointed tongue further down his throat.

Sanji lets him flip him onto his back, welcoming his full weight by spreading his legs wide so the large man can fit between his figure. He opens his mouth, giving him further access.

After a few moments of exchanging deep penetrating kisses, Sanji exhales the smoke out through his nose. He pulls back slightly to look Doflamingo in the eyes.

Sanji

Don't touch him, okay?

Doflamingo

You're no fun.

Sanji

I'm serious.

At this point, Doflamingo knows when he can push his luck and when he can't, especially with that tone in his voice. He raises a hand, telling the other man that he won't bother him further about it. Shifting back onto his pillow, he returns his gaze to the blue and the green-haired commanders standing guard by the doorway. They'd been assigned to make sure that he behaves himself which is the usual routine, but nevertheless he finds it entertaining that they always refuse to watch the show directly in front of them or make any eye contact at all.

Doflamingo 

Think the blue one will actually let me have a go at him this time?

Sanji

Only if you want your dick bitten off, darling.

----------

A little drink to quench the thirst. Doffy is a big boy.

[dotthings]

Legit reasons why people expected a more satisfying conclusion to spn:

Dean’s long arc telegraphing a movement toward hope. He went from fatalistically believing the only happy ending he could ever get was Sam living a long life while Dean was doomed to die bloody and too soon to believing he could have his own happy ending too with toes in the sand and his closest people there (not just Sam).

Previous experience with spn’s powerful and effective and fuller storytelling

The fact that Dean deserved better than that rebar death at the hand of low budget vampmimes. Dean is the character most short-changed by the ending. People who care are not the ones out of line who don’t comprehend spn.

The fact that Sam deserved better than having every single arc he ever had dropped like a hot potato and all he got was a bad party city wig

The fact that Cas deseved better than to be shut out of the series finale after 12 seasons of being key to all the major mytharc plots and a crucial found family character close to Sam and Dean, especially dear to Dean.

The fact that spn wrote, right into the story, Chuck smirking and pleased about his unsatisfying, miserable, bleak ending while Becky denounced and analyzed why that wouldn’t work narratively and why fans would find it unsatisfying

The found family theme on spn which has been there the entire time and deserved better than to be vanished.

The fact of a global pandemic that screwed up filming of the series finale until all that was left was scraps of the full intention. We’re trying to grade an incomplete. People’s feelings about the finale are valid but otoh, it’s also trying to analyze it is like trying to infer from scraps of parchment what the whole text was about. Personally, I’ve come around to writing it off as an abberation and not forgetting all the good spn gave me along the way. spn deserves a second chance to tell a better ending.

The fact that stories do, in fact, have an obligation to create fulfilling, satisfying endings and people are in their right to object when this obligation fails. This doesn’t mean endings must be free of tragedy or bittersweet notes.

Actually, no, this is not about Sam and Dean and Cas move to the burbs, spec about endings that fall outside of likelihood and spn’s purview and that disregard the actual metaphysical systems the canon always had in place are a distraction. Unfortunately some people weaponized that and used it to start another war, full of their own low media literacy takes and arrogance, shaming others for a legitimate yearning for a more satisfying ending.

This is about spn fulfilling its story promises in a more satisfying way than the aired finale, within the genre and framework spn occupied.

spn was never the style of narrative that was about hopelessness, it was about hope.

It was Campbellian and heroic. spn being about monster hunting doesn’t mean it has no obligations to a fulfilling, satisfying ending that offers some comfort. Stories inspire people.

You can’t have it both ways. When fans keep talking about how spn helps give them hope and inspires them, you don’t turn around and start playing “it’s just fiction so it’s okay if the ending was unsatisfying to most of the fanbase.” You either respect the meaning the story has to people personally or you don’t. Make up your mind if you think the story matters or it doesn’t.

A majority of the fandom was left screwed over, and the people who keep insisting it’s perfect and that anyone who finds it unsatisfying is a Bad Fan keep on demonstrating their disdain for Dean, their ignorance and disregard for spn’s great overall themes, and their narrow-mindedness about spn. I’m not here to be the joy police, I could care less if they enjoyed the series finale, but the actual problem here is the continued aggression, shaming, attempts to stifle all dissent, and demanding universal acceptance of the series finale as “satisfying” via utterly fallacious arguments. They love to troll about it and crave drama because the unhappiness of other lanes pleases this minority who keeps banging on to claim they’re Everyone and all “Normal” fans.

Imagine being that far gone that you think anyone who craves a satisfying ending for a series so many fans are so deeply emotionally attached to after 15 seasons is a freak.

*raises glass* Onward to the future. Here’s to a more satisfying conclusion having its chance to get told in the revival.

[ladyinred2248]

The Offering (Finan x Luna)

Warnings: MATURE themes, MINORS DNI

Word Count: 3.5k

Summary: Finan is spared by a female warrior on the battlefield who turns out to be Sihtric's half sister, and decides to claim her for his own.

****************************************************

Uhtred and his men had waited long hours in the cold for the enemy to arrive after Uhtred had attempted to lure Haesten out of the fortress at Beamfleot. Eventually, there seemed no point in continuing to pace the grounds and his men had grown cold and impatient. Uhtred needed to recover Skade, and Edward had ensured his support of an army though he was nowhere to be found.

“It’s been half a day.” Uhtred said. 

“Maybe he’s scared of the priest,” Finan muttered. Osferth smiled to himself, he was beginning to love the company of these men.

“We leave!” Uhtred shouted to the men as he started trudging in the opposite direction with Finan, Sihtric, and the others.

Osferth stayed knelt down for a moment, and in an instant his eyes grew wide as he caught a glimpse of Haestan’s army, looking to be made of a thousand men.

“Lord!…Lord!” Osferth shouted as he stumbled to gain Uhtred’s attention.

“Run!!!” Uhtred yelled as he saw the army and they made haste in the opposite direction. Eventually, there was no distance that could be put between them. Uhtred could only hope Edward’s army was near. Haestan’s army was nearing them closely now.

“Halt!” Uhtred shouted as he and the men drew their swords. “Two lines! … shields up!”

“Surround them! Give them no escape!” Haestan commanded. “And then we’ll kill every last one of the bastards!”

“Turn!” Uhtred shouted to the men as they became surrounded. “Circle!” Uhtred commanded, bringing the men shoulder to shoulder in preparation as the adrenaline pumped through their veins.

“May the good Lord protect me. Protect us all,” Osferth said to himself and God as he looked on at the hopeless surroundings.

“We hold - We give them no ground!” Uhtred yelled to his men.

“We’ve no ground to give, Lord.” Finan answered.

“Give up Uhtred, and the rest of you will live,” Haestan exclaimed. “All I want is the Dane-Slayer!”

“What you will get Haestan, is my sword - up yer hairy arse!” Finan yelled back at him.

Haestan chucked. “As you wish. You will die on your knees!”

“Lord, where is Edward’s  army? Why are they waiting?” Sihtric said urgently. What they didn’t know is that Alfred and Edward were near, but hesitating.

“I want the head of Uhtred Ragnarsson!!!!” Haestan commanded as the Danes cheered and grew closer. The fight had begun and ensued with brutality as Haestan guided his horse to the sidelines to watch, not fight.

The fight continued as Uhtred’s men fought one on three, four, even five men at a time. Finan said a silent prayer in his head for Edward’s army’s arrival  as he brutalized one Dane after another, his arms feeling heavy and nerves shot only minutes into the battle. Despite the fatigue, Finan moved stealthily, dodging attacks and countering them with devastating blows. 

Finan paused for a moment to search for Skade, remembering the end goal of this battle. Haestan sat atop his horse, staring down at them with Skade doing the same next to him on her horse. “Bloody coward,” Finan thought as he was suddenly knocked off his feet and onto the ground with force enough to surely break something. He hit the ground, and seconds felt like minutes as the fuzziness left by the impact settled.

 “Ah,” he groaned as he held the side he had landed on in pain, and he slowly rolled to his back with his ears ringing. His eyes grew wide as he saw a Dane woman standing before him, presumably the one who had knocked him down, seax in hand, ready to kill him. Finan put his arms up to block, but she hesitated as she looked into his deep brown eyes. She stood there looking at him, seax drawn above him but unmoving, speechless. Finan was so confused in that moment of near death. Had they known each other? He didn’t recognize her, but thought he would surely remember a woman of her stature and beauty. He looked into her eyes and the sounds of the battle stopped for a moment as he gazed at her, standing there with such fierceness and grace. She looked young, fair skin and dark auburn locks that were braided into patterns away from her face. She was covered in blood with weapons drawn, but still held a tantalizing aura of a woman blessed with beauty and much more.

“I am…sorry,” she muttered as she shook her head, blinking multiple times, trying to wrap her head around something it seemed as she slowly stepped away from him.

Finan’s mind came back to battle, and he had begun to spring up from the ground when Sihtric tackled the woman to the ground.

“SIHTRIC! No!” Finan yelled as Sihtric put the woman in an unforgiving chokehold, both of them knelt down as she struggled to breath. “We can take prisoners, Sihtric, she is a woman!”

“Finan, she tried to kill you! She is a bloodthirsty Dane, no different than any other…” Sihtric replied as his elbow region held her throat as she struggled to break contact with him.

Osferth came to them suddenly, a wide look in his eyes as he saw the scene before him. 

Sihtric saw the look on Osferth’s face and released the woman from his chokehold, to which she then fell on the ground coughing and gasping to regain her breathing. Finan had been right, Sihtric didn’t feel as if he could hurt a woman this way, warrior or not. Finan noticed that she had many injuries from the battle already thus far, though none of them fatal he imagined. He heard Uhtred yell from a distance. “Edward! It’s Edward and his army!”

 Edward’s army infiltrated the conflict with great force and gave Uthted’s men relief. Finan stared at the woman on the ground for a second as she caught her breath. She seemed familiar, he thought, but couldn’t really place it, almost like a Deja vu feeling. He wanted to help her up, but stood there instead, observing her. She didn’t waste any time and stormed away from him and the others to fight men of Edward’s army, and Finan still couldn’t understand why she spared him. She looked like a force to be reckoned with as she brought men to the ground with unforgiving blows.

Finan, Sihtric, and Osferth became preoccupied with more fighting as there seemed to be no end in sight yet. Finan came closer yet again to Uhtred, seeking to protect his Lord as he remained the target. They looked up at Haestan’s desperate cries for every man to stand as Edward’s army trampled them.

Finan and Uhtred looked up at Haestan and Skade.

“She’s why we’re here Lord, take her!” Finan exclaimed. Finan resumed fighting as Uhtred and him separated once again. Haestan rode off with Skade as Uhtred got knocked down. “No!” Uhtred yelled as Haestan escaped.

Finan’s mind was brought back to the woman who had spared him on the battlefield. He searched for her, but she was nowhere to be found. He came across Osferth and found him wounded, shifting his mind to worries of his beloved friend. He brought him back to camp, making him comfortable as Osferth’s pain and anxiety got the best of him. Uhtred and Sihtric joined to check on Osferth. Uhtred desired to bring Osferth and his men back to Aethelflaed’s estate for recovery. Uhtred had failed to reclaim Skade, and for now the curse on him remained.

Sihtric returned to the battlefield, searching for any of Uhtred’s men who remained alive, but there had been very few. His eyes caught a sight in the distance. One of Uhtred’s men who had indeed survived was dragging a woman by both of her arms as she cursed him. It was the same woman that had spared Finan earlier in the battle. Sihtric trudged toward the man quickly. “Release the woman,” Sihtric demanded. “She spared my brother, for what reason I do not know, but I’d like to find out.” He said as he glared into her eyes with an untrustworthy gaze. She looked back at him with intensity, but also defeat.

“No, boy. I am claiming this warrior woman as my own!” The man chuckled. Sihtric grew angry at the man’s resentment of his demand. Sihtric didn’t realize Finan was close as he stormed past Sihtric to grab the man by the throat.

“I have already claimed this one,” Finan said in his deep, husky voice. “Hand her over.”

The man didn’t hesitate as his eyes grew wide with Finan towering over him with his hand around his throat. He released the woman and Finan released him. Finan towered over the woman as well, easily a foot or more taller than her. She spat blood as she stood there, looking weak from battle and resentful. She smirked as she thought of Finan being the one to claim her instead. She looked as if she might faint from where she stood, and Finan suddenly caught her with his strong arms.

“What is your name, little one?” He whispered, and she took notice of his deep Irish accent.

She scoffed. She had only spared the Saxon man because she felt some sort of strange connection. When she had knocked him down on the battlefield, she had meant to cut his throat. But when she looked into his eyes, he seemed almost too familiar, like kin, but not truly. She assumed by his accent who he was, for she had heard of Uhtred’s loyal men. Finan the Agile, she thought.

“Luna,” she muttered to him defiantly. “That is my name.”

Sihtric had been observing the scene before him. Suddenly, it hit him. She was one of Kjartan’s daughters. He had known her as a child, but hadn’t seen her in many years. He looked at her in awe. “Luna. We are blood… do you remember me?” Sihtric said.

“I do, Sihtric Kjartansson. I’m sad it had to come to this…” she said as she smiled up at him and chuckled a bit, wiping blood from her lip. Sihtric suddenly felt warm, and happy to see her. He had very little family, if any, which made him feel lost fairly often, despite having his chosen family with Uhtred. She sank lower to the ground as Finan held her, and sighed as she closed her eyes.

“We must get her back to camp,” Sihtric said, and Finan followed by picking her up in his arms as he smiled at Sihtric. He knew that Sihtric felt a special way about her, perhaps remembering better parts of his childhood as he suddenly seemed lighter upon finding her.

Luna’s head rested against Finan’s shoulder as he carried her, staring at the side of his face. He noticed her staring and looked down at her. “Ya all right?” He asked.

“Yes,” she whispered back to him, holding his eye contact. “Thank you.”

Something about the way she looked into his eyes made him stir. She was beautiful, even after the throws of battle. Enchantress, he thought. And more than that, a tease even. He chuckled at himself as these thoughts came to his mind. She smiled as she heard his deep laughter, not knowing exactly why he was laughing but feeling light hearted herself. What a man, she thought as his strong arms held her. She had instantly thought he was attractive. And for a moment, imagined those strong arms holding her down in furs, his hands exploring her body. She sighed.

Finan brought her back to a tent and laid her down on a bed of furs as Uhtred looked at her curiously.

Finan and Sihtric explained the experience to Uhtred as he gazed down at her. She met Uhtred’s eyes, but glanced away as the men kept talking.

“Luna, if you are Sihtric’s blood, we welcome you - if you prove to me your loyalty as Sihtric has, I will offer you my protection.” Uhtred stated.

“Thank you Lord,” she sighed. “I had never meant to be part of that battle. I am only trying to find my way - as a woman and as a warrior.” 

Uhtred smiled. “It is settled then. Get some rest, you will be traveling with me and my men back to Aethelflaed’s estate for recovery.”

She smiled back at Uhtred and he walked out of the tent. Sihtric smiled at her and grabbed her hand. “Get some rest.” He said as he walked out of the tent to follow Uhtred.

She looked up at Finan, his dark eyes staring at her. 

“I thought you had claimed me Lord,” she whispered at him. “You had no aversion to Lord Uhtred’s demands.” She said as she held strong eye contact with him.

“Aye,” he chuckled. “I want ya to join us and journey there, my lady. We leave in the morning.”

She laughed at his statement, his accent was so strong and thick, she rarely heard one as such. She smiled at him, and suddenly her body brought her back to the awareness of pain, shivering from the cold and also the shock following a battle. Finan looked at her and suddenly realized the state she was in. He got up from kneeling down to her, his plan to grab cloth and fresh water for her to clean her wounds. “I will be right back.” He said. 

Finan walked out of the tent and Luna winced as she sat up at the end of the bed. She began to slowly remove her armor and sword belt, moving slowly as she gasped through her teeth. She threw the armor to the side, leaving a light, almost see through shift on her torso. Finan entered the tent again with a bowl of fresh water, cloth, and bandages - he cleared his throat as he gazed at her slightly undressed state, goosebumps creeping up his arms. “I’m sorry, I should have announced myself.” He said as he tried to look away and focus on setting the water and cloth near her. 

“That’s alright, Lord. Thank you.” She smiled at him. He felt the top of his mouth tingle and his legs become restless at her voice. It was soft and feminine, combined with her beauty it made him feel downright lustful. He gazed at the many tattoos adorning her arms -  Norse symbols, bindrunes, and the like. She began trailing the damp cloth along her wounds. Thankfully, she was more bruised than slashed by weapons in this battle, but did have a few slashes along her arms that surely needed to be dressed. 

“Let me help,” he muttered as he took the cloth from her and assisted her in reaching the hard to reach places of her shoulders and upper back. 

“Yes lord,” she whispered. 

God, she makes me feel weak when she addresses me that way, he thought. His attraction to her was strong, and he had only known her for a matter of hours. The way she called him Lord made his cock twitch and his stomach turn. He had rarely had this intense desire so quickly in his life, which intrigued him. He tried not to gaze down at her hardened nipples showing through her thin shift as he cleaned the cuts and scratches on her shoulders. 

“You’re lucky, lady” he muttered. “No wounds of yours are concerning. You should be fit to travel. Although, you might be quite sore from the bruising.” He said.

“Nothing I can’t handle,” she responded. “I will do as you command.” She said as she held his eye contact for seconds that felt like minutes. Finan nodded as he stood to turn and head toward the tent entrance.

“Lord,” she stopped him. “Where are you going?”

“To fetch us some food, lady. ” he smiled. “I will be back.” 

She smiled back at him as he turned to leave the tent. She sighed and thought that this battle must have been a gift from the Gods. Reunited with her half brother whom she had loved deeply as a child. Now a loyal servant to Uhtred, whom she actually admired greatly and had finally been given the chance to meet. And a handsome Irishman caring for her as she recovered, claimed her from another man. She couldn’t wait for what that entailed. She was a strong, self-sufficient warrior - but her heart fluttered at the thought of the Irishman claiming her as his own, taking her as he wanted, taking pleasure from her…

Her thoughts were interrupted as Finan returned. She looked up at him quickly, with a smile. He smirked at her. “Come sit by the fire Luna, and have something to eat.”

She stood from the edge of the bed, reaching for her armor. “No,” he said as he took his cloak off and wrapped it around her. “You should remain comfortable. I assume you don’t have any other clothing?” He asked.

“No, lord, what little belongings I do not carry with me are back at the fortress, and I don’t wish to return.” She replied.

“Very little clothing shouldn’t be a problem,” he muttered as he stared at her deeply and winked. She chuckled as he held his hand out to hers, she joined him as he led her to the fire where the other men gathered.

Uhtred and Sihtric glanced at Finan and Luna hand in hand as they sat down next to each other to join them by the fire. Uhtred and Sihtric looked at each other with a smirk. Sihtric handed them both bread and stew.

“Finan, I heard that you claimed this beautiful woman from another,” Uhtred teased.

“No, lord, I merely saved her from the grasp of Aldmund - the old bastard grabbed her up from the battlefield and thought that she was something to claim.” Finan responded sternly.

Luna looked at him. She knew then that he didn’t regard women as property, even though she wasn’t opposed to belonging to this handsome Irishman from here on.

Sihtric looked at Luna and smiled. She looked up at him and returned the smile as she glanced back at Uhtred. 

Uhtred chucked. “Yes, she is not timid nor something to own,” Uhtred said. “Unless she wants to be.”

Luna's cheeks grew hot as Uhtred teased her and Finan. She could tell that Uhtred was respectful of women as well, but that he enjoyed the kinky conversation and seeing his right hand man squirm as he noticed the obvious liking that Finan had taken to Luna.

“In that case lord, I’ll oblige if she desires me to own her. Time will tell.” Finan replied and winked at Uhtred. The men laughed as Luna shook her head, smiling.

After they were finished eating, Finan had took time to clean himself up as well, and eventually grabbed Luna’s hand and guided her back to the tent. “You need your rest lady,” he said. “We leave at dawn.”

“Yes, lord.” She replied as she took off his cloak and placed it near her bedside. He glanced at her body again and his breath caught in his throat. 

“If you need anything, the men and I will be just outside.” He said sternly, trying to remain collected as he turned to leave.

“Lord, might you stay?” She asked. “I feel somewhat disturbed by the day. It would help me sleep if you were near.” 

Finan nodded. “Yes, lady. I can stay.” He grabbed his bedroll and placed it on the floor next to her bed, his heartbeat feeling strong in his chest by just being near her. He took off his armor, sword belt, and boots and set them on the floor next to his bedroll. It was her turn to admire his body as he stood in just a tunic and trousers. She gazed at the many scars, the firmness of his chest and arms as his muscles contracted and relaxed with his movements. She took a moment to glance over the bulge in his trousers. He glanced at her and caught her staring at him, a slight chuckle coming from his chest.

“What is it, lady?” He asked, teasing her.

“Nothing, Lord.” She replied, her mouth practically watering. “I shall take my rest now. Goodnight Lord.” She said as she laid down, turned to her side to face the other direction away from him. She felt meek and obedient in his strong presence, his deep, accented voice only making it worse. What is wrong with me? She thought. Gods, just hearing his voice makes me wet.

“Goodnight, pretty girl.” He replied as he laid down. 

Luna felt her heart as well as her core throbbing, and took some deep breaths to settle herself. She needed to rest. She eventually drifted off to sleep, listening to Finan’s breathing down below.

Tags: @gemini-mama @sihtricfedaraaahvicius @bhxrdy @valeskafics @king-alfred @persephones-journey @finanhasmyheart @tlkfaerie @mojosdumpingground

You all have inspired me with your amazing writing. Thank you for giving me the courage!

[orangez3st]

*non star wars*

sooo I just watched lotr war of the rohirrim today and godddd it was such a healing moment in these trying times

tbh i was expecting it to be diabolical (the abomination they call the rings of power traumatized me good god i could go about everything wrong in it for h o u r s), not to mention that the existing lore of this movie is only two pages long in return of the king appendices?? i thought tf they doin ova there what more evil incarnate are they creating i was cautiously optimistic nearing hopeless actually...

but they did so well, i'd call it quite faithful to the lore even though they had to put a story for helm's unnamed daughter (im sort of a purist thats why i just wanna chuck amazon down to the fires of mt doom). every time riders of the mark theme came on made me ugly sobbing, it brought so much nostalgia. i wasn't there yet to watch the original trilogy in theaters and to see a piece of it actually healed something in me and it was such an honor.

roughly put this movie is astronomically better than the abomination i mentioned earlier

spoilers and rants:

tho i'd prefer it if hera died with wulf in dramatic duel death for extra angst since her fate afterwards was never known but what we had is beautiful and very good-ending at its best

fréalaf might be my new blorbo beware

to those who read the appendices: ANYONE HERE GETTING EMOTIONAL JUST KNOWING EVERYBODY'S GONNA DIE? THE SONS DIED, THE DAD DIED, JEEZ (this is why i'd prefer hera died too bcs this story was supposed to be tragic all the way to the end)

ugly sobbing for the 10th time when the funeral theme came on i couldnt even sing along bro

my only resentment: OF COURSE they had to use the name haleth and hama, OF COURSE they had to repurpose probably 12 scenes from the original trilogy, OF COURSE they had to use THE WATCHER OF THE WATER AND THE GREAT EAGLES AND SARUMAN AND GANDALF ugh just... could you not namedrop people for one single adaptation (take notes from moon knight probably?) (rings of power did it the worst way possible im not gonna be shy about bullying that excuse of a fanfic) (ssshhh zest is manifesting cancellation)

my not only resentment: miranda otto :3 (alan lee and john howe made their return for the illustrations, the trio exec producers too holy chmeese i pumped my fist in the air)

and they aced in depicting the oliphant so frickin scary i was literally on the edge of my seat

thanks for the nostalgia, lotr wotr cast n crew 💐

[ianthewife]

ok girl. pitch me the silt verses. why should i listen to it. go crazy.

(i trust you because in your other hand you have tlt.)

yippee time to yap about my favorite audio drama, okay okay okay listen so the silt verses are a completed audio-drama (3 seasons, 45 episodes (i myself am on ep. 34 rn)) that starts with two cultists, Sister Carpenter (all-around tired, angry at the world, was born into the church but is losing her faith rn) and Brother Faulkner (a young convert who believes fervently and perhaps thinks himself a prophet) on a road trip— i mean a holy pilgrimage. Cause they are both followers of an illegal river god. And yes this modernish world is chuck full of gods who have a direct influence on the world, and the government basically decides who it is legal to worship or not. The worship in question involves chill and casual human sacrifices and horrific transfigurations (if you like body horror, this is the podcast for u). In fact in the setting people design, develop, commercialize and weaponize gods all the fucking time, so really interesting world-building stuff, seriously i love it here. Not gonna go into the plot progression, but it starts out great and gets better and better with every season, i am on season 3 and just constantly blown away.

The writing all in all is really spectacular, sound design is top notch, voice acting is straight up Insane, like there is quality!! Character interactions are to die for, seriously very dynamic, very entertaining. Btw if you love complicated messy very true sibling dynamics, set up camp right here. Also id say pretty good and fun balance between grim tones of a greek tragedy waiting to happen and insanely funny moments and situations (though im in season 3 and it’s mostly grim somebody send help). And the themes!! The themes! The interconnection between hopelessness and hope, the painful difference between a faith and a religion, horrors of capitalism, tragedy and stupidity of war and sm other good stuff. Character cast grows w the progression of the story, we see different places, different perspectives, so really a lot to dig your teeth into, can recommend!!

Also diversity win! We have an aromantic legend of the cult who is trying so so hard to divorce god, our doomed false prophet of the river is trans, there is a transwoman who is basically jesus if jesus went from marketing job to anarchism, and we have non-binary people from politicians to cultists to literal god-killers—

To a normal person id make a little disclaimer that it might be a bit disorienting a couple of first episodes cause there isnt much exposition from the top but as for a fellow tlt fan i know you have nothing to fear, we went through so much more confusing things during harrow and nona the ninth…

So if you do decide to give it a listen, plsss tell me what you think, tlt is my Favorite Thing Ever and tsv is my Also Favorite Thing Ever

[latinapoetbts]

25 days of Bacalar (Drabble)

KTH x Reader (Y/N) Drabble Idol themed | KTH is Filming in Bacalar for Jinnys Kitchen and meets Mexican Native Y/N. Fluff, feelings, and the start of a sexy, smutty scene... I am definitely going to do part two for my own enjoyment, but I would love to hear if you want me to write more. :) ___________________________________________________ “Tae, I-I (moaning), I–(heavy breathing) think we—(moaning) should stop–”, I felt breathless as he pulled away from my neck. I knew I needed to be honest with myself and honest with him. My heart ached, and heat radiated between my legs. My body was desperate for his touch, and my heart ached because my mind knew we needed to stop. The look in his eyes as he peered into mine was one of lust and wonder.

“Y/N, I’m sorry. Did I make you feel uncomfortable? I—”

“No. Tae you didn’t make me feel uncomfortable, I love, I (nervous), I love kissing you to be honest..I uh, um…sorry I feel embarrassed…”. He instantly placed his palm to my cheek as I felt myself blush. I hated how vulnerable I felt and shy. 

“Y/N, trust me I love kissing you, I- I didn’t want to stop…”. His eyes fell to my lips. It was becoming way too hard to control myself. I needed to just rip the band aid off and say how I felt. 

“I don’t want to stop kissing you but I need to stop.” I felt this hand drop from my cheek the warmth leaving with his hand and a look of sadness flicked in his eyes.

“I’m scared to tell you but I have to say it, I need to say it…”, 

“Ok,”. a sigh escaped his beautiful mouth, his eyes gentle and set on mine.

“Tae, I—wooo, this is hard. (pause. sigh.) I love every moment we have spent together, and right now, I love kissing you, your touch feels soooo good and…and… I want more…of you… of us…but…”, I felt the tears start to swell in my eyes. Fuck, I didn’t want to cry. I imagine I must look crazy, why is my heart like this? I felt his fingers entwined with mine underneath the water. 

“But, you see, um… I don’t give of myself easily annnnd… I feel like you..like you have ripped me open in ways no one has in just a short amount of time. And when I open, it's like I'm standing on the edge of a cliff and….. I alllllways jump all in and its sooo fucking hard for me to get out once I jump in. It’s so hard that I’ve only allowed it once. It hurt so fucking bad when it was over. It was too hard for me to…to get out…Tae…your make me feel  fucking reckless… I love too hard, too deep. I can’t be reckless. I know I’m probably not making any sense and maybe I'm rambling.” I felt his grip tighten in between our fingers, his eyes still locked with mine as his free hand gently swiped at my tears sliding down my cheeks. I leaned into his touch unconsciously. Fuck. Im hopeless , I thought to myself letting out a sigh.

“I’m listening. I know you're nervous, but keep going I want to hear it all”, he gave my hand a reassuring squeeze.

“I can’t with you you know that”, I chuck more tears streaming down my cheeks. A smile pulls slightly at his lips. 

“Why?” He asks as he destroys my resolve by kissing my tear stained cheeks pulling away as quickly as his lips touch.

“Fuck Y/N, I’m sorry I—”, I crash my lips into his silencing him as my tonge pierces between his lips, he opens allowing me to explore him once again. We kiss tongs battle for dominance, moans falling from our mouths until we are forced to part from one another for air.

“Your too fucking perfect. I almost can’t stand it.” I bite my lip turning away from him giving us physical space before I dove into him again knowing I’d snap my last thread holding me together.

“Y/N… I don’t understand…please…help me…out here…” , he said softly and sincerely. 

“Tae. Fuck you make me feel like I’m on fire, like im being consuming by you and honestly I want more….I want you Tae. I can’t help but want to be around you …kiss you….and…I want to jump all in, and I can't. You know this better than anyone. I can’t, I shouldn't. I’m the one who loses the most here.” After the baring of my soul, the slight trembling of my body and the retreat of his hand holding mine, came the deafening silence. His body withdrew from me and his gaze turned towards the water. I turned away from him as well. I felt naked and exposed. The truth really does hurt. I felt such a relief to tell him how I felt but also it was devastating, it was finite. I had spent the most incredible moments of my 28 years of life over the last 25 days with the most beautiful, sexy, sweet and caring man I had ever ment. He had wrecked me in so many ways and today was the first day we had ever even kissed. I’m not sure how much time passed in the silence but I couldn’t take it a second longer. My thoughts were racing in my mind. Thoughts of just throwing all caution to the wind, abandoning my attempt to protect my heart just burying myself in this moment with him. Choosing my recklessness, Surrendering my mind, body and soul to him. My other thoughts, “run”, get as far as away as possible. Finally my body was able to move, I stood up out of the water, reaching for my pool towel.

“I think I’m going to go ahead and take a shower and get dressed. Take your time.” I step out of the pool without taking one glance at him, wrapping up my body and what was left of my heart and soul. 

(.....silence….)

I walked inside and straight to my room tears spilling from my eyes down my chin, I hadn’t even jumped all in yet. I knew I was saving myself the heartbreak of my life. I entered my bathroom and stripped down to nothing, turning the hot water on, I mean I wanted to melt away after all. I step in letting the warm stream over my body warm the ache in my body. And that's when I heard it, the sound of the door opening, the sound of the mental shower rung from the shower curtain scruffing against the shower rode slowly. I could feel how hyper alert my body was, my skin prickling, heart radiating heat between my legs. Just the thought of the idea that he was standing inches from me wearing absolutely nothing had my heart pounding in my chest my cunt lips swelling, and my breath shallow. What was he doing in here with me? Clearly he had rejected me at the pool with his silence. 

And that's when I felt it. His dick hard pressed  against my ass checks, his lips at the shell of my right ear, his hands cupping my hardened nippled breast. I gasped at his searing touch.

“I want you to be reckless. I want you to jump all in. I want you to let me consume all of you.” his words, his breath feathering against my ear, my body melting into him, my back pressed firmly into his chest. His lips moved down my ear over my exposed neck, licking and sucking his way down my collar bone as I continued to be putty in his hands. I couldn't help but the moans pour out of my mouth. 

“(sucking and licking) I fucking want you so bad, (moaning and sucking) please y/n let me have you.” he lets go of my breast spinning me around to face him grabbing the back of my head smashing our mouths together as our tonges battle for sensually dominance. My hands respond by lacing one hand in his hair the other swinging round his neck drawing him close to me. I grutterl moan escapes me the second I feel the tip of his harden dick rub against my swollen wet lips aching between my legs. I feel his free hand cup and squeeze my ass pressing my lips harder against his dick.

“I’ve never wanted someone as badly as I want you. Fuck.” his voice deep and sultry, his hips thrusting against my bare hot wet lips. His mouth sucked deeply and harshly into my neck leaving me bruises that would be on display for days. 

“You make me crazy, Y/N. Please. Be reckless with me.” felt his hand release my ass and slide in between us below the waist. I throw my head back as his fingers swipe slowly over my wet lips. 

“Y/N…oh my god, please, let me have you.” It was over, the plea, the beg in his voice. I’d let him hurt me, break my spirit over and over again.  His fingers teased my lips, edge me by just barely going in. His mouth again on mine moaning deeply into me. 

“Will you let me hurt you as badly as you’ll hurt me?” my heart quaked in my chest. 

“Because, no matter what, we chose it’s going to hurt.”. He was right. 

[veryuselessblog]

Fight club, a book written by the American novelist Chuck Palahniuk. The 1998 movie which was adapted from this very book did not witnessed the anticipated success but this story which the audience ignored at the time turned out to be in the list of must watch- once in a life time.

Without wasting anymore time let us talk about the story. If anyone were to explain the whole synopsis to a simple crowd they would probably have hard time doing it (without giving out the spoilers). Well, it is basically a physiological crime thriller. But it is also much more than that. Capitalism being under extreme scrutiny, the story is developed and forms its own trajectory around that. The character’s passionate rebellion of the society and its norms poses as a sever threat to the existing system. The story challenges that whole system which governs and dictates the life. It is all about breaking those invisible shackles, living by your own rules and also (learning how to make soap) in a tight knitted environment. The protagonist enjoys a cult like following. These followers are again, misfits, misanthropes and other individuals who are labelled as a failure and hopeless case by the society. What strikes me as the most remarkable is the fact that the theme does not every falter anywhere in the whole movie. The directors is extremely vehement about keeping the theme throughout the whole narrative. As I watcher, I’ve never had to remind myself why so and so is doing certain things in the first place. Brad Pitt deserves every bit of credit to the performance. The reason why the story was captivating from the beginning to the end, never once giving away the climax, is because of that guy. It seemed like he dwelled into the very skin of the character.

Fight club does not come under an average movie goer’s taste and likes. You don’t have to be nuanced or fancy enough to understand it. All one needs to have is an open mind with unending curiosity to wards the story. It unlike anything else but could be for better or for worse. I as a matter of fact liked it for better.

[uozlulu]

How I build a playlist:

This song was in the thing: “Kaikai Kitan” by Eve, “EVERYBLUE” by Omoinotake - Blue Jujutsu Kaisen Period playlist This song immediately came to mind: “Heaven Is a Place on Earth” by Belinda Carlisle, “...Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears - OFMD playlist This song was playing while I was reading fanfic and the vibe fit: “Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go” by Soft Cell - BnHA playlist, “Love Dramatic” by Masayuki Suzuki, Rikka Ihara - OFMD The original canon said 80′s rock star and here we are: “Soul Control by Laura Branigan, “Ordinary World” by Duran Duran - Vampire Chronicles AMC playlist This fits a theme of the series: “Chosen Family” by Rina Sawayama, “Land of Confusion” by Disturbed - Black Clover playlist I heard it and realized I had to chuck it in there: “What’s on Your Mind (Pure Energy)” by Information Society - Blue JJK Period, “C7osure (You Like)” by Lil Nas X - Black Clover I associate this with a character: “Innocent” by Fuel (League of Villains) - BnHA, “Dynasty” (Noelle) - Black Clover I associate this with a pairing: “Is This Love” by Whitesnake (Ed/Stede) - OFMD, “We Found Love (In a Hopeless Place)” - Rihanna, Calvin Harris (multiple ships) - VC AMC I associate this with a visual or event: “The Only Exception” by Paramore (panel of Midoriya that looked like the music video kind of) -“Fame” by Irene Cara (billboard ranking) - BnHA I think I’m hilarious: “(I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight” by Cutting Crew - VC AMC

[singmyaubade]

SPEAK NOW

| sypnosis: you attend james potters wedding with a love you hope to save.

| warnings: may contain use of cursing, all fluff

| marauders era

—

you walked inside the church, as nervous as ever, lily evans hugging you almost immediately, “merlin, i wasn’t sure you were attending!” you embraced her back.

you sighed, “and not attend my ex boyfriends wedding with the woman i hate the most? i could never miss it.” you said, lily giving you a frown.

“saying this as his ex too, you guys are meant for eachother.” lily rubbed her arm lightly, “and she is truly the devil including that family of hers.” you both laughed, “well you should join mary and i.” lily invited with a smile.

you smiled back, “of course, i just have to go to the restroom quickly.” lily nodded, sitting down as you went to find the restroom.

you quickly rushed around to find it before the ceremony starts as you bumped someone around the corner, falling to the ground, you muffled an apology before looking to see who’s hard chest you bumped into.

your cheeks blushed red in embarrassment, “james.”

he gave you a smile, reaching his hand out, you received his hand with a silent thank you, “i was hoping you would attend.” he spoke with a smile.

you gave a slight laugh, “and why is that?”

“it’s not everyday that your first love attends the most important day of your life.” he smiles brightly.

you inhale deeply, “i thought lily was your first love.”

“lily is certainly once in a lifetime but you are everything in one, you are the hardest to find, the best prize of all.” he spoke as your breath hitched.

you both paused for a moment, staring at eachother. you could tell he was being truly genuine which made it all even more hopeless and enticing.

“well are you excited?” you asked.

“of course, i am scared to my wits but im sure it will all be a relief soon.” he answered.

“does it feel right?“ you took sharp breaths.

“i like to think so.” he confusingly smiled.

your eyes turned glossy, “could’ve been us.” you chucked lightly.

he gave you a slight smile with a frown, “yeah but right person, wrong time.”

you looked down, “yeah.” you took a deep breath, “you look absolutely handsome.” you smiled.

“i would hope so but you seem to have outstaged me as always.” he looked in your eyes.

you laughed slightly, looking down.

you both were silent for a few minutes.

he swallowed deeply, “i know this might be highly inappropriate.” you looked at him, “but i would’ve been the luckiest and richest man on earth if you were the person i was spending the rest of my life with.”

hearing those words almost made you shatter completely, things shouldn’t have been this way, you felt entirely cursed in this moment.

“james come on!” you heard sirius yell from the dressing room.

he smiled, “i have a woman to marry, i will see you out there.” he took both of your hands, giving you a kiss on the cheek before walking away.

in that moment, you felt as if you just saw your own entire mind, body, and soul walking away from you. you knew you couldn’t let him get away.

you quickly stalked back to your seat, sitting urgently next to lily, “i cant let him go.” you quickly whispered, looking ahead.

“what?” lily whisper shouted.

“he can’t marry her.” you looked at lily.

she saw the look in your eyes as the wedding bells sang and the piano started playing the wedding theme.

james was at the altar with sirius, remus, and peter behind him. he looked nervous as ever and you could tell by the way he was wiping his hands on his pants.

his bride walked down the aisle, one of the most successful, famous, and angelic pureblood to ever exist.

james grabbed both of her hands as the priest started the ceremony.

your hands were trembling as held onto them, calming you down. you felt as if you were going to throw up.

the ceremony was going as fast as it ever could, you felt as if time was slipping out of your hands and you couldn’t get a grasp.

and just for a moment,

only a single moment,

james looked into your eyes, giving you a sign of some sort of hope.

you popped into reality as lily whispered something in your ear. “stand.”

you were confused, “what?”

“stand now!” she whisper yelled to you as you followed the order.

everyone looked at you in shock, some with anger, and some with disbelief.

you could see sirius give remus five galleons:

your heart rate fastened as james looked at you for a second then gave you a slight smile.

“how dare you!” his bride yelled, “you do not get to ruin my moment!” she looked at james, “order them out!”

the bride continued yelling, begging for you to be carried out.

you looked at james with pure hope before he let go of his brides hands and started running towards you with a smile.

“potter!” his bride yelled.

you quickly smiled back as he grabbed your hand, forcing you to run with him.

you quickly yelled before exiting the doors, “i love you lily evans!”

[pray4jensen]

Are you hopeful about Misha being back and Dean returning Cas' feelings? I don't know what to think anymore but I'm not feeling hopeful and it makes me sad. I'm just having a hard time, I want to believe!

Hi anon! I can see how one could be skeptical because they’ve tried so hard to convince us that he wasn’t there for filming, not to mention that they really went all out with the call backs during Cas’ death scene. There was the hand print, the “wings” as the Empty takes him, and of course what definitely sounded like a deathbed one-sided love confession, but hey, they’ve also dropped a lot of clues to suggest otherwise, too! 

1) In 15.09, when Chuck shows Sam the future, it is one where Cas is dead. Cas’ death is shown directly to be the reason why Dean is hopeless in the future. He gives up completely and when he finally agrees to hunt with Sam, they fail because Dean’s unable to give it his best shot. The consequence of that hopelessness is that they get turned into vampires. A future without Cas means a future where Dean becomes the monster at the end of the book and dies, which means it is a future where Chuck wins. That doesn’t really sound like a show about free will, does it? 

2) To follow this, in 15.04, Becky specifically tells the audience that an ending with Sam and Dean dying and Cas absent is a bad ending. Becky is a fan of Supernatural, just like us, and all season, we’ve been told by the cast and crew that we’re going to get an ending that will please the fans. Chuck’s bad ending definitely wouldn’t fly with any fan of the show.

3) All of the above stresses the importance of Cas in the story. They can’t have a happy ending if he’s dead. Fifteen seasons have gone by, and we know one of the main themes of this show is free will. In 15.17, Chuck tells us that Cas is the only one who’s ever had true free will, who’s the only one who’s ever been able to influence Chuck’s story and break free of his control. By that same logic, Cas is the only one who can finally free Sam and Dean. He is the bringer of true free will and he is the only one who can hand it to humanity. 

4) And just beyond narrative reasons foreshadowing Cas’ return, there’s also what the cast has said. Misha’s confirmed Cas is queer, and if Cas died after coming out, we’d be stuck with the Bury Your Gays trope, a mistake that the writers made with Charlie in 10.21. And anon, fans have literally never let them live it down. I don’t think they’d make the same mistake twice; they were booed at Comic Con that year and the cast all saw the backlash. Misha said in his latest panel that he could see Cas’ death as Bury Your Gays, but that he felt this scene meant something more. If Cas came back and got a happy ending, it wouldn’t be Bury Your Gays anymore

5) Misha is also like...a really bad liar. He also fumbled a lot when asked about whether it was his last episode. He emphasized that that had been the last scene he shot for 15.18, not the last scene of the season. Not to mention the cast put on a little celebration for him when he ended his tenure on the show and we know it couldn’t have happened on the same night as 15.18 because when they wrapped for the episode, Misha talked about nearly dying in a plane crash that same night. This is...what truly makes me believe...it’s Misha’s nervous babbling during the interview...

As for whether I think Dean will also return Cas’ feelings with a love confession, there’s evidence for that, too:

1) In 15.09, when Dean loses Cas in purgatory, Dean tells Cas that he has something to say. Cas tells him he heard his prayer, but the look on Dean’s face strongly suggests otherwise. Whatever he has to say, it isn’t in the prayer we heard. It’s a loose end and a very important one at that. All season they’ve stressed the consequences of Dean’s anger and Dean’s prayer was all about anger and release. Bottling up his feelings and leaving that bit of whatever Dean wanted to say unsaid wouldn’t resolve this storyline in a satisfactory way.

2) Even during the confession itself, Dean wanted to say things. He wanted more time, he told Cas not to do this, and he sobbed when Cas got pulled away. If we don’t hear anything more about Dean’s feelings and what he was going to say, it would be HIGHWAY ROBBERY, and again, an unsatisfactory resolution to his story

3) Not to mention during the same episode as the confession, Charlie and Sam both had their girlfriends taken from them. Dean had his friend taken? Um. Try boyfriend. If Dean never confesses and lets the audience know that Cas is his romantic partner, this would be very strange writing...

4) My last piece of evidence is literally the last 12 years. The mixtape, people asking him if he had a break-up whenever he fights with Cas, people asking him who he’s pining for, people asking him if he can imagine having a romantic partner who understands the life and like, just the fact that he literally loses his will to live whenever anyone tries to take Cas away from him. Like listen, I watched the last seven years of this story unfold week by week. In that manner, it’s actually harder to see how much Dean longs for him. But recently, I’ve been rewatching the show with my roommate. When you’re binging it, Dean’s incessant about it. He’s always asking about Cas when Cas is gone. He’s always hopeless, always broken without him. Sam spends like every episode comforting him about it. It would be incredibly foolish for the writers to not address Dean’s side when they went ahead with Cas’ side. Also, I’ll like literally show up at their houses with a pitchfork.

Will it be anything like Cas’ confession? Will there be a kiss? Frankly, I don’t know, but never in my life did I ever imagine something as textual as Cas’ confession either so I’m HOPEFUL, more hopeful than I’ve been in years. I do think 100% Dean will return Cas’ feelings, but whether it will be as obvious as Cas’ confession and whether the show will depict an actual romantic relationship in the finale remains to be seen. 

[wayward-wlw]

When I think about the finale, I always think about Graduation Day from Buffy Season 3.

For context: Season three has Buffy facing her worst villain yet, while dealing with all the trials of graduating high school, and has a running theme of her feeling isolated from others and unable to connect with her more normal peers. Amidst this, she learns that the season’s big bad is going to turn her graduation ceremony into a massive human sacrifice and destroy the whole town. During the ceremony, there’s so much tension, the audience doesn’t know how she’s going to stop it, and then in a huge moment, Every. Single. One of Buffy’s classmates stands up and they’re holding weapons, and they ALL square up to fight the Mayor. Legit when I first saw it, this scene had me cheering out loud, alone in my room.

Now imagine for me, Sam, Dean, and Cas are fighting their worst villain yet, God himself. Things seem hopeless, I mean, what are  dudes going to do against GOD? But then... people start showing up. First Jody and the girls, then the apocalypse world folks, then Garth brings some werewolves, Max and Alicia Banes bring some witch friends who help them get Jack back. The angels are thrown from heaven for refusing to follow god’s orders, and they all seek out Cas, Billie arrives, offers them some help, if they can pull it off. 

We go from the pilot, where when his dad hasn’t been home in a few days, the Only person Dean can go to is Sam, to this shockingly large, larger even than Sam and Dean had realized, group of people willing to help. Obviously the final fight against chuck still comes down to just  tfw, but around that, there’s a massive battle, all of the beloved characters introduced over time, willing to fight for this, and they WIN.

We end with no god. No heaven. just people, doing their best.

[mrs-nate-humphrey]

What do you feel about amandamaryanna’s video on gossip girl and cosplaying poor? It reminds me of those tik tok videos that are about the most insane rich person behavior you’ve experienced. I feel like it’s subjective because the characters Dan Vanessa and Zoya are basing their poor ness around THEIR environment. So yes, there are MANY people who are actually poor but compared to their UES counterparts they would be considered “poor” due to the fact that they do not have the insane amount of disposable wealth that the other characters have and I do not really see that as them trying to cosplay as poor.

Also what are your thoughts on her argument on GG not really talking about class consciousness and POC issues. Even though the characters Ursula, Jane and Raina had short appearances on the show, as a Black person I think that is was great that they added the few POC characters on GG because their identity was not the main focus of their characters. Usually with Black or POC characters they have to go through some racial turmoil as part of the plot and in GG they got to be rich UES-ers simply because they are. Even though GG is very verryy flawed Penelope, Nelly, Kati, Isabelle and Zoe were shown how POC characters can be rich like the white characters in the show as well GG is obviously a fictional show that’s not based on anything so I don’t think that racial income statistics/racial implications need to be talked about 24/7.

so i started watching this video & just ended up reading the transcript instead. anyway. under a read more:

like, yes. i agree with her on one hand - i think gossip girl 2007 messed up by making dan's grievances be connected to financial status, because the humphreys certainly weren't "poor". like i think this point she says makes sense to an extent:

The comparison between outsiders and insiders and gossip girl is all about relativity. To the average viewer it seems absurd that a character like Dan is supposed to represent the outsider when he is so farther in than any of us could get.

But honestly, something i hate is how people who talk about this show act as if everyone who's watching is expected to know the prices of rent in new york city, etc. like i did NOT realise how expensive that loft is until someone else mentioned it to me and i would not have guessed! who is your "average viewer" - is it an American? someone who lives in New York? someone who lives in Brooklyn? you can't just define an average viewer in that way, i feel! like you are making a BIG Assumption there and it's not necessarily accurate. people who aren't american watch american tv! such is the world we are living in.

but keeping that aside, yeah: dan and jenny had stable and secure housing, the guarantee of meals, and were attending expensive private schools, so i think the show's messaging regarding class was a little strange. they definitely weren't in a financially unstable situation.

but also, you're right. like, dan and jenny weren't super duper broke, and at no point do they actually act like they are, tbh. dan is very 'oh my parents sacrificed so much to send me to st jude's' and jenny is very 'damn i wish i was richer' but there isn't really an instance where the humphreys seem to view themselves as being extremely poor, that i remember at least. in s1, jenny says something along the lines of, "we're humphreys; we're not exactly royalty." and like. she is not wrong! they're financially stable kids, but they're ordinary kids living in an environment where everyone else has the safety net of millionnaire parents to fall back on, and however much money rufus has, he isn't that.

so i think it's a grey area, like, YES, the humphreys have wealth related privilege (i don't know if this can be said for v, because honestly we don't know much about her living situation, but we do know that she works as a waitress for a bit in s1, and also that she's homeschooled, so she isn't shelling out big $$ for school fees.) but also dan and jenny are treated as 'less than' because they are considered nobodies.

and i feel like THAT is the angle the show should have taken. not "i am oppressed because i am not rich" but rather, "everyone at school alienates me and treats me different and it's making things so difficult for me." whenever people say that dan and jenny acted like they were more oppressed than they actually were i'm like. they were both, in different ways, made to feel small and insecure and hopeless, at school? like of COURSE they're gonna feel victimised. dan is treated like he doesn't exist, and jenny is treated so horribly that i don't even have an adjective. like. i think the writing of the show would've been much stronger if it had focused on THAT and not made it a class thing.

i haven't watched the reboot beyond ep02, so i'm not gonna comment on that.

so yeah, i don't think it was 'cosplaying poor' as much as it was 'showing wealth related stuff extremely inaccurately.' like an anon told me, portraying nyu as community college is super inaccurate, as well. and it makes no sense? like i don't know why they had to do this and why they couldn't just... shoot at a regular community college. gossip girl 2007 did not care for representing poor people at all, like, if you watch the show you can tell that it just luxuriates in this aesthetic of like: more food than anybody can eat at every meal. so many luxuries. unnecessarily expensive things everywhere. like the show was very much luxury porn. to me it felt like it wasn't cosplaying poor as much as it was offering people a chance to wank off to the rich. & maybe because of that, the humphreys weren't allowed to be poorer. gg 2007 wasn't supposed to represent all of NY, it was supposed to represent the uber rich elite. and then you have dan and jenny humphrey, and vanessa abrams. they weren't allowed to be rich, because we needed a class conflict. but they weren't allowed to be poor, either, because this show was all about rich people aesthetics. so we got something weird & in the middle instead.

people forget that chuck was canonically a billionnaire - like, that is a LOT of money. and he is dan & jenny's peer! sadly, i think solely because of THAT, a lot of the oppression the humphreys face... checks out. like chuck being shitty to both dan and jenny - he' has an unethical, absurd, uncomparable-to-whatever-the-humphreys-have amount of money. he can do whatever he wants & buy his way out of there. rufus humphrey's ten thousand dollars or whatever amount he mentions are like pocket change to that guy. if jenny is gonna be treated like a commodity by everyone around her, do her upper middle class roots and expensive loft really matter? well, not do they matter as much as like. can they protect her? (we've watched the show. we know the answer is no.)

re: the characters of colour... i think it's subjective. i ADORE raina, and honestly, if we'd had a NJBC that was nate, serena, blair & raina, the show would've actually been AMAZING. like raina was such a cool character to me - i liked that she was driven, passionate, intelligent, sensitive, caring, fun-loving, thoughtful.... she wasn't on the show for long, but her character felt really solid and fleshed out. i remember a review (idk who wrote this one) in which someone felt that raina's character was "lazy" because a lot of her traits and her backstory paralleled chuck, but i strongly disagree. on raina, those traits were interesting. on chuck, any backstory and larger motive felt like a carpet to cover the dust that was his predatory nature, and to me, felt forced and off. like. this dude assaulted people, i don't care about his daddy issues. but raina seemed SO amazing. her backstory actually fit her personality and gave her depth, and to me, didn't feel forced.

i liked ursula, too! she was a really minor character, but she had a whole arc, and i liked that a LOT. her friendship with serena was very cute! i sadly do not remember jane. i think she was... someone's assistant? but i don't remember who. but i agree with you about raina and ursula, their arcs were very interesting and did not end up being about racial trauma & all that, which, like you said, is refreshing when done right.

that said, i think blair's minions were, uh, an example of blair's racism, and i think it would've been cool if the show unpacked that. blair uses her minions as a status symbol - her 17th birthday at kati's place which is anime themed (?) leaves a bad taste in my mouth because it feels very tokenising of a culture that blair isn't a part of? it would be different if blair treated her minions with respect and dignity and like they were her equals and peers, but she doesn't. the word "minions" itself makes me flinch because it's such a "oh you're inferior" kind of word. it felt to me very much like - they never got to be characters in their own right. they solely existed to prop up blair. and i think that is racist. there was a sense of "Oh, I can't be racist! I have a Black friend and an Asian friend" from Blair - like that's what kati & is were to her. and i think that is a big problem, especially glossed over like that.

i also do think that racial stuff doesn't always need to be the focus! but i don't think it can ever be completely ignored, either. an example of something that is maybe unintentionally racist, but racist nonetheless, is how dan cuts vanessa out of his life entirely but forgives his white friends for treating him farrrr worse. it's an inherent double standard, because dan kind of went "oh yeah. my threshold for white people fucking me over is really high, but if my Black best friend who's so close we're practically family does something even slightly wrong i'm going to cut her out of my life 4ever." did the writers realise this? i don't know. maybe they just didn't think about it. but this is exactly the sort of double standards and racist bullshit that woc, especially Black women, have to face irl (though of course i don't need to tell you that at all), except here, the narrative doesn't even address that, hey, maybe dan's being a dick by reacting this way. and i think that's a problem, too.

[amethyst-crystalfly]

The stars in your eyes

Pairing| Akaashi Keiji x f! reader

Themes| fluff, tooth rotting fluff, mutual pining, just lots of fluff okay?

Warning| nope none except for Akaashi being adorable

Authour’s note| Hi guys I absolutely enjoyed myself writing this pic as Akaashi Keiji occupies my whole heart. I just really think that Akaashi is the kind of guy who would take you on a classy candle lit dinner as a first date considering the kind of personality he radiates. He would absolutely plan for it days in advance and make sure everything is perfect. He is also the guy your mom would approve of and is basically the ideal guy who also secretly happens to be a hopeless romantic at heart. So here I offer you exactly that through this fic. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did writing it! Thank you for reading! I love youu!

w/c| 2293

The night was clear and the soft late winter wind gently flowed in through your open windows. You had been anticipating for this day. You smiled at your reflection as you finished brushing your hair, satisfied with your outfit, you thought back to the day, just a week ago, when your long-time crush Akaashi finally asked you out on a date.  "Wow this was really happening" you longingly wondered. “Y/n! Akaashi is here to pick you, honey” you heard your mom call. You took a deep breath, checked your reflection for one last time, grabbed your purse and phone and rushed out to meet him. As you stepped in the hallway, you saw your mom talking with him. He had a soft smile on his face as he was telling your mom about college. As he sensed you approaching, he looked up and as your eyes met, he seemed to freeze. You held your breath as he stood up, you offered him a warm smile and at that a blush tinted the tip of his ears and his cheeks. Your mom smiled at the two of you and wished you two a fun date as she decided to head to the other room, giving the two of you some privacy.

You greeted him with a soft yet enthusiastic “hi!”

“Hello, you- “he inhaled as his eyes swept over you once again “you look beautiful y/n”

“You are one to talk Akaashi” you chuckled softly

That earned you a laugh from him, “I am humbled” he said making a casually bowing gesture. “shall we?” he offered his arm with a warm smile.

You happily nodded and looped your arm through his as you both walked out of the door together. You were dressed in a wine-red gown with a thigh high slit on one side and paired it with black heels. You accessorized this outfit with a pair of simple crystal studded ear rings and a matching crystal pendant. Your open hair complemented your outfit perfectly. Beside you, Akaashi was dressed in a white shirt with the top two buttons undone and the sleeves rolled up till his fore arms, giving you a peek at those sculpted arms. His pair of black casual trousers and his silver analog watch tied off his look perfectly. It was so simple yet elegant and classy. His style spoke of his personality perfectly. You both got in the car and headed towards the restaurant Akaashi had already planned on in advance, but of course he had finalized it only after discussing with you, he needed to make sure if you would like it too. However, if you were being honest, you would happily go anywhere this man goes, it didn’t matter where. But for obvious reasons you haven’t told him that, yet. The drive to the restaurant was about 30 mins and you both fully enjoyed those 30 minutes blissfully enjoying each other’s company and taking turns playing your favorite songs for the other. As you got off the car, you looked around admiringly to the tasteful decoration. Akaashi offered you his arm once again and you both made your way towards the reception. He had reserved a seat for the two of you in advance, the waiter led the way to your seats. It was situated beside the window? Wall? You couldn’t decide what to call it since the entire wall was made of glass. It was exquisite! it offered a wonderful view of the city considering that this hotel was situated atop a hill. The place was lit with warm yellow lights and candles, creating a perfect balance of shadows and soft lights. The tables were arranged spaciously providing each group/couple with privacy. The entire place smelled faintly of French vanilla thanks to the scented candles. The entire place appealed to you aesthetically, you really liked it. Akaashi pulled out your chair for you and helped you in. You found that small gesture extremely touching, “damn chivalry ain’t ded” you thought to yourself and suppressed a giggle at your own lame inside joke.

“You are really sweet Akaashi” you told him letting that giggle out

A waitress brought your orders to the table along with a bottle of red wine. She filled both your glasses with the crimson liquid. You both thanked her politely and she smiled and left. The delicious smell of the platter wafted to your nose and it made you realize just how eager you were to dig in but you hesitated, you did not want to do anything awkward it was your first date with Akaashi after all.

It made him blush. It wasn’t just your words that got to him but he was spell bounded by the way the candle light looked on you. The light bounced off your crystal ear rings occasionally when you moved your head. In his eyes you were the most beautiful woman out there. The way a slight blush tinted your features warmed his heart and made a soft smile bloom on his lips. As you looked at him, you were mesmerized by the way the candle light shimmered in his eyes, he looked as if he was sculpted out of alabaster by the renowned ancient Greek artists themselves. He looked so gorgeous that it made you want to be all cheesy, if he kept acting so cute heck you might end up throwing some cheesy ass pick up lines at him.

“Are you shy, Y/n?” Akaashi softly chucked teasing you

“huh-what? No! absolutely not, why would I be shy” you quickly spoke, an embarrassed blush spreading across your face.

He laughed some more, taking a small bite from his plate he casually teased, “Then why aren’t you eating, you must be shy”

You puffed your cheeks, “I am not shy” and you finally picked up a piece of the delicious food with your fork and nibbled on it.

Akaashi let out another soft laugh at your cute expression. He couldn’t resist himself as he extended his left arm adoringly and gently pulled your cheek “You are so adorable, y/n”

“Hmph but I am not shy” you grumbled out, even though your heart was practically doing cartwheels at his words of adoration.

He laughed again pulling away and getting back to his own food. You had never seen Akaashi laughing so much and be so much at ease. He was usually more composed and careful with his words this was a peek at another side of Akaashi. You could just watch him laugh and joke like this all day and be satisfied. You both took little sips of the red wine as you continued eating and talking about various topics. Conversation with Akaashi was easy and fluid, none of you had to put any effort in it, it flowed swiftly from one topic to another. All your reservations were just falling apart watching him be himself with you so easily. It made your heart soar. You both had had two servings of wine each, by the time you finished your dinner. It gave you a slightly heady feeling. As you waited for the bill you both looked out at the massive glass windows. The glistening city lights looked like little fairy orbs scattered all over the city. It was surprising that you hadn’t noticed it earlier in the evening. Maybe you were far too absorbed in Akaashi to notice.

“The city looks beautiful at night doesn’t it?” Akaashi said noticing your awed expression

“Yes, it does, it is as if someone dropped the stars from the heaven” you giggled

He looked at you with slightly dazed eyes and a soft smile illuminating his handsome face, “then you will definitely like the next place I will take you to”

“next place?” you asked turning your face towards him

“Yes, you thought I am gonna let you go so easily? He laughed

“I like the idea of that” you said

“of what?” he enquired

You said it out almost instinctively, “of you not letting me go easily” your face heated as you realized what you just said. And you cleared your throat, “we…umm-we should go”

He looked at you sidelong with an amused smile as you both stood up and prepared to leave. You dared not meet his gaze. You cursed yourself internally, “damnit y/n what are you doing? Now he is gonna think I am a complete weirdo”

As you both existed the lavish hotel the late winter breeze greeted you. The temperature had dropped comparatively. Akaashi moved closer to you and placed a hand around your waist. You did not know this but a smile still lingered on his face from your words. It had made his heart skip and he wanted to kiss you right there and tell you that he did not plan on letting go of you at all. But he resisted himself from doing that since you were in public. As you both reached the car, he opened the door and pulled out his coat from the backseat of the car and swiftly draped it around you.  

“I thought we might need this” he smiled “come let me show you to the place I promised” he led you by your hand.

Your heart was basically hammering in your chest when he draped the coat around you from how close he was. Desire burned through you to just reach up and kiss him. But you shut it out focusing instead on Akaashi’s words. He was telling you how he had come here a few days back to make reservation in person and that’s when he spotted this place. He led you through a path behind the hotel. It was a winding path and was lit with beautiful tall lamp posts, illuminating the road in it’s golden light. It was a ten-minute walk and you found yourself standing at the top of the little hill. The edges were guarded off with railings and. There were trees skirting the edge of the hill and they continued down the hill in rows. As you approached the railings you were spell bounded by the view it offered. The top of the hill was dimly lit compared to the path which led you here. And that was to ensure a clear view of the night sky. The stars twinkled above you just like the city lights glowed beneath. It was absolutely beautiful. The air was filled with the scent of the trees around, a dewy forest like smell. Little fireflies twinkled in the distance among the trees. It was captivating you turned to look at Akaashi and realized he was already staring at you. A soft smile tugged at the corners of his mouth he looked away smiling at being caught. That made your smile spread wider.

You shuffled closer to his side and said “This place is beautiful Akaashi! Thank you for bringing me here”

He looked down at you and said with a smile, “Thank you for agreeing to come with me y/n, I haven’t felt so happy and at ease in a long time”

The closeness with Akaashi already made it so hard to resist yourself and he was just making this harder by being so sweet. You were feeling bold suddenly, was it the wine? Or was it just Akaashi working his charm without even being aware? Either ways you turned to face him fully and looped your arms around his neck and pulled your body closer, the coat falling off your shoulders, but you didn’t care, not right now as you gazed into Akaashi’s surprised eyes. His lips were parted in surprise at your sudden change in behavior, his hands were on your waist. And he looked absolutely irresistible. His desire was evident in his eyes. You reached up slowly and your lips were dangerously close, almost brushing. You could smell his citrus cologne up so close and you wanted nothing more than to be lost in it. His breathing was as heavy as yours as his arms tightened around your waist and you trailed your one hand down his shoulder and up his neck to cup the side of his face. He could not resist himself anymore as he closed the distance between your lips and kissed you. It was a light kiss at first,soft, sweet and careful. You both momentarily pulled away to look into each other’s eyes

“kiss me again Akaashi” you said through your ragged breathing. Looking straight into his eyes.

He did not falter a moment before kissing you passionately, His hands on your back pulling you closer towards him almost lifting you off your feet as if he couldn’t get enough of you. And to be honest he couldn’t, and neither could you. Your one hand stayed around his neck, massaging the nape of his neck and your other hand was tangled in his soft hair. You moaned into the kiss as his one hand snaked up your back to your neck. And that made him groan at how much he loved that soft sound that left you. When you two finally pulled apart both of you were gasping for air and your faces were red. As your eyes met you both let out a laugh at disbelief of what just happened. And you wrapped your arms around his waist and rested your head against his chest listening to the sound of his galloping heart. It was beating as fast as yours. He rested his chin on top your head and left out a content sigh.

“hey y/n”

“umhmm?” you asked, happily watching the city lights twinkle below

“I really don’t plan on letting you go”

“Neither do I, Akaashi” you said snuggling closer to him.

[ianthewife]

hey uh, as a fan of similar fiction podcasts. i don’t mean to put you on the spot but i’d be interested in your opinion. what is the silt verses and what might i find interesting about it?

okay okay okay listen so the silt verses a completed audio-drama (3 seasons, 45 episodes (im myself on ep. 21 rn)) that starts with two cultists, Sister Carpenter (all-around tired, angry at the world, was born into the church but is somewhat losing her faith rn) and Brother Faulkner (a young convert who believes fervently and perhaps thinks himself a prophet) on a road trip— i mean a holy pilgrimage. Cause they are both followers of an illegal river god. And yes this modernish world is chuck full of gods who have a direct influence on the world, and the government basically decides who it is legal to worship or not. The worship in question involves chill and casual human sacrifices and horrific transfigurations (if you like body horror, this is the podcast for u). In fact in the setting people design, develop, commercialize and weaponize gods all the fucking time, so really interesting world-building stuff, seriously i love it here.

The writing all in all is really spectacular, sound design and voice acting (im in love w Carpenter’s voice) are top notch, like there is quality!! Character interactions are to die for, seriously very dynamic, very entertaining. Also id say pretty good and fun balance between grim tones of a greek tragedy waiting to happen and insanely funny moments and situations. And the themes!! The themes! The interconnection between hopelessness and hope, the painful difference between a faith and a religion and sm other good stuff. Character cast grows w the progression of the story, we see different places, different perspectives, so really a lot to dig your teeth into, can recommend!!

btw might be a bit disorienting a couple of first episodes cause there isnt much exposition from the top, i personally got fully-fully locked in at like episode 4 i think, but it’s worth it. So if you do decide to give it a listen, plsss tell me what you think

[norahastuff]

Ok so ever since I heard Bob Singer talk about how if he had any say in the matter, Dean would have a peaceful ending (JIB season 9), I’ve never really had much doubt that this story wasn’t going to end bleakly or as a tragedy. I’m pretty confident this episode just confirmed that.

Supernatural is telling a much different story now than it was in Kripke’s years, and I think Becky underlined the main difference between Kripke’s version of an ending and Dabb’s. How does she describe Chuck’s ending that he’s sure the fans will love? 

“It’s awful. Horrible. It’s hopeless.”

And that’s the key word. Hopeless. 

5x22 was a beautiful ending. It was about love, free will, family, redemption, fighting against seemingly insurmountable odds and winning, however, one thing it wasn’t about was hope. Particularly if 5x22 had been the series finale and ended with Cas and Bobby dead, Sam trapped in hell for eternity and Dean forced to suffer alone with that guilt for the rest of his life.

That’s just not the kind of story this is anymore. If there’s one consistent theme that’s been running through the Dabb era, it’s the promise of hope and a better way. For me, this became particularly evident from the season 11 finale, when Dean set aside the violent and self destructive plan, instead hoping he could reach Amara in a more peaceful way.

Look at Cas’ story in season 12. He spends the season depressed and struggling until Jack gives him hope that things can be better. Or Dean being so broken in the first few episodes of season 13 until Cas returns and he has hope again. Later in the season after he thinks they’ve defeated Michael and Lucifer and gotten their mom back, may be the most hopeful and at peace we’ve ever seen Dean, as he’s dreaming of cocktails on the beach with his brother and Cas. Not to mention 13x21 and Sam feeling almost giddy with hope because he can feel how close they are to some kind of happy ending.

What’s been driving them has been the hope that (and excuse me for this) there’ll be peace when they are done. They’ve been building towards this kind of ending for years now, and by having Chuck completely shut it down this early in the season makes it that much more likely that’s the kind of ending we’re going to get. 

Now another thing that certainly caught my eye. I said above that I’ve never really doubted that Sam and Dean would get a somewhat happy ending, but I can’t say I’ve always been so confident about Cas’ fate. But this episode made me feel, at least somewhat, cautiously optimistic about Cas’ story.

Pretty much all the dolls in Becky’s house were sets of some combination of TFW. Cas was in almost all of them (apologies for the poor screencaps)

 However, in the scene where Chuck writes his drafts, both the first one which Becky criticised for not mentioning Cas as well as the second terrible hopeless one with the tombstone that says Winchester, there are just the two dolls of Sam and Dean. No Cas to be found.

Cas was never really supposed to be a part of Chuck’s story. Chuck’s told him as much before. And just as it was the case back then, it seems to still be the case now. He’s not supposed to be a part of the story Chuck’s writing? Well something tells me that’s not going to stop him from playing his part nonetheless. He’s no stranger to making it up as he goes. 

So yeah, I found the fact that they called attention to this particularly significant. Cas plays an integral role in this story. Cas is family. And the fact that one of the things they explicitly mentioned for why Chuck’s stories were bad and didn’t work was the lack of Cas...well I guess I’m dialled into the themes of Dabb’s Supernatural, because I too have hope.