#the reason why Lance left i think was because all the frustration from war missing earth and Keith repeatedly leaving and other such factors

[empty-blog-for-lurking]

how will keith react when lance eventually shows up in a cowboy hat, flanked by a shiro doppleganger and also his child who he didnt even know existed? thats gonna be one hell of a conversation lmao....... UNLESS kid goes apeshit and kicks him in the face before anyone can start explaining anything. thats a real possibility in this situation i think

Oh it is definately the latter just this-

And everyone else is like, What The Fuck?!? And Kuron is running in and dragging Lance with him and is like "Sorry! Sorry! We did talk to her about this. Though to be fair this was funny though, amirite hahaha 😅😅😅?" Which gets even more What The FUCK??? Cause Shiro? Shiro Not Shiro? Second Shiro? Cowboy Shiro? What is goin-LANCE?!?!? IS THAT YOU???

And things going to be so fucking awkward after this, cause apparently Keith has A DAUGHTER(!!!!!!!!!!!!) with a partner whom he ghosted(😒😒) and tried to tell him about it but couldnt REACH HIM(!!) And Shiro has a CLONE(!!!!!!!!!) And apparently the Galran were CLONING SHIRO(!!!!!!!!!!!!) ALSO LANCE IS STILL ALIVE(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and didnt want to see any of them(🥺😡🥺😡🥺😡🥺) [Also why are all of them cowboys????)

[lonewolf34500]

The plot thickens and this might of have left off in a cliffhanger. Drew I am so sorry and Kat you gave the motivation I needed to complete this. With that said I have no idea how long it will take me to write the next part since I am starting school again. I forgot to add what their tail designs are: Lucifer is the eastern blue devil, Gabriel is a rainbow parrot fish, and Raphael is a yellow fin tuna. The rest of this series can be found here and the rest of the story down below.

Panel 1: Council meeting

Lucifer: This is the fifth time I brought her a gift and she just thanked me and swam away. Like what is her deal I…

Ralph: This is a stupid rant! We are here to discuss a very important issue according to Michael.

Gabriel: This is so boring; I want to go eat some sweet snails, mangos, or a papaya right about now rather than be at this meeting. If this meeting doesn't happen any time soon I am leaving. 

Michael: As they enter the council chambers he hears his brothers arguing and whispers to Adam, “They are at it again.” He says much louder so his brothers will hear, “Hey, enough!” 

Panel 2:  Meeting Adam

Gabe: He is the first to speak after seeing his brother holding the other merman’s hand, “You two are holding hands! Is Mikey getting laid...finally!” He has a face splitting grin.

Lucifer: He grins and lets out a low chuckle, “Mikey is definitely getting laid. I like the new arm candy. Maybe I can take a turn with him and rough him up a bit.” He cackles at his brother's expression.

Michael: He grips his lance tighter, everything is telling him to throw it at Lucifer. He knew of the rumors but there was never any evidence. “Just because you are my brother does not mean you get to get away with comments like that. Adam will be shown respect as much as you show me,” he declares as he looks at his brothers. 

Gabe was smiling, but he was just happy for his brother. Raphael, as always, looked indifferent but silently he was happy for Michael, too. Lucifer was unfazed by his brother’s declaration. He rakes his eyes across Adam’s body and licks his lips hungrily. 

Adam: He  tries to not react to Lucifer’s behavior  but he still squeezes Michael’s hand for reassurance. “Michael has something to tell you that is why he called this meeting not so you could make rude comments,” Adam says as he crosses his arms. 

Michael: His brothers turn towards him waiting for him to speak, he takes a deep breath and lets it out, “Thank you Adam. Yes, I do have something to tell you and we need a plan so no fighting among yourselves. Leviathans are attacking other colonies, we need to protect them and stop them from attacking.” Michael looks at his brothers at some point Lucifer had actually started to listen to him and now had a blank expression. Gabe looks confused and Ralphael is furious, his hand is hovering close to his sword. 

“Why are you just telling us now! How long have you known?” asks Ralphael accusingly. 

“ Aren’t Leviathans stories we tell kids before they go to bed?” asks Gabriel at the same time.

“They are not just stories Gabe, they are real monsters that wage war on the colonies a long time ago. Father did not want you and Castiel to know I don’t know his reasons but he forbade us from talking about the subject and they became a scary story. Raphael I have known for some time when I received a report from a patrol of one of our smaller colonies had been attacked. I told you it was just a shark attack but it wasn't.” Michael finishes speaking still looking at the ground unable to look at his brothers. He feels Adam slip his hand in his and intertwined their fingers again and squeezes his hand. 

“Michel is okay, I know father was not the greatest dad ever anyways plus now we got a cool looking monster to fight,” jokes Gabriel giving a humorless laugh. 

“I hate that you lie to me but I have double patrols even though you told me not to because of all of this “shark attacks” but it is okay now we can come up with a plan together,” says Raphael. Michael slowly looks at them. He still sees Gabe’s pain behind his smile and a bit of anger but it is mostly targeted at their father, hopefully. Raphael is still angry at being lied to but he still wants to protect the colonies and he will calm down eventually. 

“Lucifer you haven’t said anything,” says Michael now looking at Lucifer’s still blank face.

“I have nothing to add it all has been said you are a liar and put everyone in danger all because you have been getting down and dirty with some common merfolk,” hisses Lucifer. 

“One more comment like that Lucifer I will kick you out of this meeting and your opinion will not matter understood,” Michael growls. Lucifer shrugs and remains silent. 

Panel 3: Meeting Dean and the hatchling and an egg

Dean: They swim to the Council Chambers as they come in they hear someone ask, “So what is the plan?” 

Cas leans towards Dean and whispers,” Let me do most of the talking and introduce you to them; they don’t know you are my mate.” He nods and follows Cas to the meeting room where he sees his brother Adam and four other mermen; they must be Cas’ brothers. Cas clutches the egg closer to his chest as he lets their presence known, “Hello.” All the mermen turn towards them stopping in mid sentences.

The first to speak was Michael, “Cassie what is going on? Why are you here?”

“Dean, you have kids now?” asks Adam, shocked to see his older brother being clutch by a hatchling by his tail. 

“ First, this is Dean my mate. Dean, these are my brothers. The one with the lance is Michael the leader of the colony, right behind him is Raphael the main healer. Gabriel is our head scholar, and then there is Lucifer, the one that deals the punishment when someone breaks the laws,” says Cas. Dean looks at them again, Michael has a stern face but a slight smile but if you weren't looking closely you will miss it and Raphael just looked stern. While Gabriel has a wide smile and Lucifer looks like he woke up on the wrong side of the nest.

“Nice to meet you Dean but this doesn't explain why you have hatchlings,” says Michael. 

“Before you answer that Cas, why are you here Adam?” asks Dean, still confused by Adam’s presence at this meeting.

“I am with Michael,” Adam says shyly.

Michael wraps one arm possessively around Adam, “Yes I am courting him,” he confirms as he nuzzles behind Adam’s fin making Adam blush. 

The whole room fills up with Gabriel’s laughter, “Why not pee on him while you are at it Micky. This meeting is the most interesting one ever first Leviathans, Cassie has swam off and mated with hatchlings, and Micky is now marking his territory.”

“Speaking of hatchlings can we get back to the issues at hand,” says Raphael. 

“Right we found a nesting area that was completely destroyed by something. The only thing that remained was this egg and this hatchling. We just wanted to tell you about it and we are also adopting them,” Dean explains as he puts his hand on the little hatchling's head. 

Panel 4: Meeting Crowley

Dean:  They were interrupted again before anyone could say anything again by an octopus looking creature. “Hello darlings,” says the man with an odd accent. Raphael takes out his sword and Michael grips his lance firmer while pulling Adam closer. Castiel holds the egg close while shielding Dean from the stranger as Dean pulls him close and pushes their little girl behind him. Lucifer balls his hand into a fist and looks furious and Gabe just observes the stranger with curiosity and intrigued. 

“Who are you? This a private meeting, how did you get past the patrols and guards,” asks Michael calmly but his stares intently. 

“Let me introduce myself the name is Crowley. Your patrols are predictable so it is easy to get in and your guards are asleep with a little bit of magic, it helps being the son of a witch,” Crowley smirks, “Anyways I came to make a deal but it looks like you have some eels among you.”

“What are you talking about man?” asks Dean not sure about the new comer.

“I think Michael and tentacles here should go talk in private,” suggests Gabriel. 

“I should go with Michael. I am not letting him,” says Raphael pointing his sword towards Crowley, “Out of my sight especially around Michael.” 

“Dean and Castiel take your hatchlings to your den. I will talk to you both later,” Michael says looking at Dean. Dean mumbles under his breath, not happy at being dismissed but he does need to protect his family so he nodes as he ushers them out of the chambers.

Michael: Sees his brother go before looking at the rest of the room. “Okay Raphael and Gabriel you are coming with me. Adam go and wait for me in my den. Lucifer go and get a report on the patrols, also check on the guards to make sure they are going to be fine.”

“Why am I the one to go check on them? I am going with all of you,” Lucifer growls.

“ I need someone to check on them and we are just listening to him not making a decision,” explains Michael.

“No you are dismissing me like always,” says Lucifer with fury in his eyes.

“You just insulted Adam multiple times, you keep arguing with me, always wanting to be right and you never listen to anyone else’s opinion besides yours,” says Michael, growing more frustrated with his brother.

“Lucifer please just go and check on the guards and patrols we will tell you later what he has to say like Michael said we are just listening not making a final decision,” says Gabriel trying to diffuse the situation. 

“Whatever,” mutters Lucifer under his breath and swims off. 

“I will be waiting for you,” says Adam as he kisses Michael’s cheek and swims off too. 

“Are we done with all the mushy, feely, sappy stuff and temper tantrums because we have more important stuff to discuss,” sighs Crowley. 

Michael takes them to a smaller room and Raphael stands guard behind Crowley, “Alright what is it that you want?”asks Michael.

“Like I said I want to make a deal as you know the Leviathans are back I will give you more information about them,” answers Crowley.

“Why would you have information about them? How do we know it is reliable and you are not just lying?”Michael  prompts further.

“I have worked with them so they don’t attack the pack but I kind of have been overthrown and well I am willing to give information,'' replies Crowley.

“What is the catch? I don’t think you are just giving this information away out of the goodness of your heart,” snides Raphael. 

“Well you are not just the silent type you have a funny bone in there glad to see it didn’t go all to waste on shorty over there,” says Crowley smirking as he tilts his head towards Gabriel.

“Look who is calling someone short shorty, tentacles,” Gabe snarks back. 

“Can we focus or are we just going to do this all night,” says Michael. 

“Right yes there is a catch you have to provide protection and a den for me to stay until the threat is dealt with and I can potentially return to the pack. In return I will give you all the information I know,” concludes Crowley.

“This sounds reasonable but we will like to discuss this with the full council present but for now you will be given a den with guards outside and no magic to get away. You will be allowed to move around with escorts until we have made a final decision,” says Michael sternly.

“I will not talk to the eel although there are more of them.You will be wise to not to give up the upper hand away just like that, do not tell him anything,” warns Crowley. Michael knows this could be true; he remembers all the complaints and reports of missing, dead, or heavily traumatized merfolk that wouldn’t talk even now.   

“We will go with what Michael said and we will come up with something to tell Lucifer, perhaps we could partially lie to him so some truth but not all of it,” suggested Gabriel.

“Does he know who you are? Are you in danger from him?” asks Raphael. 

“I am not sure if he knows who I am but I am going to assume he does and I might indeed be in danger from him and every other bloody thing that is trying to kill me,” scoffs Crowley.

“One more question, do you know who the other eels are?” asks Raphael.

“I know he has a pack that follows all of his orders. The only names I have heard are Azazel, Alastair, and Lilith but I am sure there are more,” answers Crowley.

“Thank you Crowley for this information and we will try to keep you safe. That will be it for this meeting,” declares Michael. Michael gives his soldiers the orders before he goes to his den to meet Adam as his brothers leave to tend to other things in the colony. Michael enters his den to find Adam curled up on himself and badly bruised and bloody. 

Tagging: @shadowywerewolfqueen @peanutbutterandgrapejelly @fantastikitty7 @deservetobesaved @katishereintown

[kassies-take]

1108 AD

A/N: Mostly historically accurate. Ava and Sara are best friends, never dated and Sara is still in her old habits.

Warning: Slight NSFW

Sara Lance x LeagueofAssassins!Reader

Word Count: 1615

“Captain I have found an anachronism in the year 1108 AD. Should I plot a course?”

“Yeah, while you’re on it notify the team that we are going to time jump,” Sara said as she marched to the Captain’s chair from her office.

The Legends entered the Bridge and pulled the safety harnesses over their heads.

“Where are we going now?” Mick grumbled.

“It’s not where but when,” Sara calibrated the control panel a bit more.

“I wonder when we’re going,” Ray grinned. “World War II, Gutenberg’s Printing Press, oh maybe Pax Romana,” Ray listed.

“Did you know that Pax Romana was the period of relative peace in the Roman Empire for about two hundred years, which is shocking because the Roman Empire loved fights and bloodshed. Road, postal systems, arch, plumbing, and other cultural advances developed during this time,” Nate rambled in his area of expertise.

Sara breathed a sigh, rolled her eyes and was ready to pilot the ship through the temporal zone.

“How big is this anachronism?” Amaya ask.

“At this point I don’t even care, I’m starting to get a massive headache.” Zari complained.

“Shut up!” Mick grunted with a beer in his hand.

“It’s a level 14, you’re still getting use to time jumping, and I agree with Mick everyone shut up so I can pilot!” Sara answered respectively.

Sara pushed the pilot lever forward and was met with a golden yellow light of the time jump. She parked the Waverider just outside the city —well buildings made out of bricks, sticks and mud, roads just dirt and a couple of stones. Sara cloaked the ship, pushed the harness up and headed towards the octagon control panel. The Legends right on her tail.

“What do we have Gideon?” Sara places both her hands on each side of a panel.

“King Louis VI was kidnapped the morning of his coronation,” Gideon explained.

“Ooh fun fact King Louis VI is the Great great great great great great great great great-” Nate counted on his fingers till twenty three. “Grandfather of King Louis XVI. Sorry Gideon continue.”

“In this version of history the royal power was never centralized for instruction, King Louis XVI was never born, France never helps the United States with the Revolution,the United States remains a monarchy and France falls into anarchy.”

“Alright Jax and Stein quarterback on the ship first sign of trouble you firestorm up, Nate, Amaya and I need you to pose as a merchant setting up shop in the square, Ray I need you to shrink down and run reconnaissance while guarding Louis VI with Mick,” the Legends nodded at the captain’s orders. “Zari you’re with me in the town to run reconnaissance. Alright let’s go save the world.”

Amaya and Nate set up a bakery, Amaya mainly bake or displayed the middle age pastries Gideon fabricated as Nate set up the fabricated sign that read ‘The Muffin Man’. As Nate finished with the sign he climbed down the ladder and opened the door for you.

Amaya smiled at you as you looked around the shop. To Amaya and Nate you were just looking around, however as League training you scanned the area for escape routes as well as Amaya and Nate’s actions.

The League was more advanced with its technology as you wore your custom made League of Assassins suit, fitted with leather tunics under the long, fairly-wide green over-garment with the cotte hardie pinned by a girdle to easily hide your weapons.

“Are you two new to the business?” You spoke in French. Amaya gave you a piece of bread to try.

“Yes, we traveled from England,” Nate replied cautiously.

“Well I must know your names and let the word spread that there are new bakers in town.”

“Nathanial and Marie Antoinette,” Nate introduced. 

“How funny, the real Marie Antoinette loved cakes while the fake baked cakes.” Jax laughed on coms

“You have a beautiful name Marie Antoinette,” you smiled and ogled at Amaya’s body without the two noticing. “My name is Shamara Zurisada.”

You passed a few small silver pennies over to Amaya who gladly accepted them with a smile.

“What a nice lady,” Nate said once you were out of sight.

A short static buzzed in their coms before Sara spoke up.

“Anything with you guys, Nate?” Sara asked.

“Nope, but we had our first customer Shamara Zurisada,” Sara froze in realization. “Hello? Captain? Earth to Sara?”

“Nate, I need you to follow her. We just found our white whale and the reason Louis VI went missing before his coronation, he gets killed by the League of Assassins,” Sara filled in the whole team.

“You want me to follow an assassin?” Nate asked doubtfully.

You walked into the crowded square knowing full well who the Legends were. One important thing Sara didn’t tell the Legends was that Shamara Zurisada, you, were important to League history.

“According to the Shadow Records, Shamara Zurisada was an assassin that strengthened the League, in which the Demon Head even feared. Though a part of the League she was allowed to do whatever she wanted, due to her said power being able to see through out all of history. She supposedly disappeared without a trace and reappeared throughout the League history as an immortal warrior,”  Stein explained as Nate turned the other way as he lost courage to continue walking.

“Wow the Shadow Records say all that.” Zari rolled her eyes at Ray’s bubbly comment.

“The Shadow Records are names of assassins and when they joined,” Sara retorted.

“My mistake I was reading off the League’s history. However the Shadow Record does not say when Shamara Zurisada joined the League, only that she joined.”

Sara caught a glimpse of your black robes, what she didn’t expect was to find you staring back at her with a smirk. A couple of French men and women blocked the path between you and Sara and that was when you climbed up the stone steps above the square’s walls.

You watched as the city was filled with laughter and music all ready for the new King. The crunch of gravel came from behind you, without turning you spoke.

“Ta-er Al-Sahfer,” No one dared to speak afterwards.

You threw a dagger towards Sara. While she was distracted by the weapon you executed a double roundhouse to her chest. Sara ran out of room to dodge as the walls came closer to her. She continued retreat; you continued to advance.

Sara didn’t know how it happened but a sharp gasp escaped her lips. The stones and sticks dug into her back in random places. You pulled Sara to her feet, almost tearing her collar off the middle age dress. She heard the slight rasps of material ripping before her back slammed against the wall.

You pinned Sara against the door by her wrist a smirk written on your face.

“Why do you want to kill the King?” Sara panted.

“It got boring and I went looking for trouble, well looking for you.” You whispered the latter half in her ear.

Sara’s infamous smirk appeared as you pushed against the door to open it. You and Sara immediately locked lips as Sara kicked the door closed. Sara bit your lower lip and allowed herself to slip her tongue in your mouth. With the slight advantage Sara pushed you onto the bed. Sara pinned you down by straddling your waist and held your wrists above your head. Her head flew towards the sweet spot on your neck and you threw your head back to let out a moan.

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

“To a successful mission!” Ray cheered as the Legends entered the Bridge from the Cargo Bay.

“Do we really need a new member of the team?” Zari grumbled.

“You’re on the ship to help Amaya with her totem problem and Shamara Zurisada is on the ship to help with mine,” Sara explained.

“(Y/N),” you crossed your arms and leaned against the Bridge entrance.

“What problem?” Amaya asked with concern.

“N-nothing,” Sara stuttered.

“Her sexual frustration problem,” you pushed off the wall.

“Ha! A fuck buddy!” Mick took a sip of his beer.

The Legends froze and stared at Sara who had flushed cheeks.

“Well regardless, Welcome to the team,” Ray beamed and tried to hug you.

He landed on the floor with a thud and a groan. You maintained a straight face and crossed your arms.

“I like her,” Mick pointed to you and sipped his beer once again.

“Just keep your room soundproof Captain,” Nate shot it finger gun, clicked his tongue and headed towards the library.

“I am so moving to the room at the other end of the hall,” Jax shook his head.

“Remarkable, by taking (Y/N) onto the Waverider she lives the myth of the immortal warrior. Truly astonishing!” Stein followed Jax to clear his room.

The Legends slowly left the Bridge with you and Sara the last two standing.

“You’re welcome to show me around or we could just head straight to your room,” you whispered in Sara’s ear

“Actually I was thinking about round two,” Sara was met with your smirked grin. “I was thinking more of sparring!” Sara rolled her eyes. “Besides we should wait till Gideon, our artificial intelligence, robot....” Sara tried to explain.

“I know what an A.I is Lance. I can see around time remember.”

“Right. As I was saying we should wait for the room to be soundproof first, you’re really load.”

You raised your eyebrows, dropped your crossed arms and placed them on your hips. “Is that a challenge, Ta-er Al-Sahfer?”

Sara shrugged her shoulders, “We will have to see.”  

[thegizka]

We Speak In Silence

Chapter 3:  Flickering Shadows

Sasuke can't view Sakura's visit as anything more than a routine checkup. She'd been distant and professional. They hadn't made small talk. She'd just been a medical shinobi performing her duty. But Naruto seems to think he's missing something, and when Sakura returns to check on him again, Sasuke begins to think his best friend might be right.

Note:  I do not own any aspect of Naruto.

Read it on Ao3.

“So,” Naruto grinned.  When he grinned, you heard it in his voice.

“So what?” Sasuke asked.

“Sakura-chan!  She came to visit, right?”

“She came to make sure I’m healing properly, not to visit.”  He leaned back until his head touched the wall.

“You didn’t talk about stuff?”

“What is there to talk about?”

“You know, stuff,” he said in that irritating way he had when he thought something was obvious.  “There’s always something to talk about.”

“That’s because you never shut up, usuratonkachi.”

“Well you don’t say enough,” he countered.  “Maybe she’s waiting for you to take the lead.”

“Maybe she’s not interested in talking to me.”

“It’s not complicated.  Anyone could have checked on you, but she came.  Sakura-chan doesn’t do things for no reason.  You’re part of our team, Sasuke.  She cares about you.  These aren’t things that you can just ignore.”

“Yeah, well, things have changed.”

“Things haven’t changed as much as you think.  You’re still a stubborn idiot.”

“That’s rich coming from you.”

“All I’m saying is you should have more faith in her.  She’s kept her faith in you.”

Sasuke wondered how he could be so sure, but Naruto’s visiting time was up, and he didn’t think he wanted to continue this conversation right now.

By his best guess, it had been four days since Sakura had been here.  He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t thought about it in many of the moments he was left to himself.  He’d replayed their interactions in his mind, searching for answers to questions he hadn’t thought to ask in the moment.

She hadn’t seemed particularly interested in chatting.  She’d been distant and clinical.  True, he hadn’t made much of an attempt to break the ice, but what could he say?  “Hey Sakura, nice to see you, except not really because my eyes are sealed away since I’m a criminal.  Sorry for ignoring you and breaking your heart and trying to kill you.  How have you been?”

Somehow he didn’t think that would go over well.

With a frustrated exhale, Sasuke hauled himself to his feet.  Sakura had told him to get up and walk around, so he made a point of doing so.  Shuffling around with his eyes covered and arms tied was frustrating, but after several stubbed toes, he’d determined the dimensions of his cell and could pace unhindered.  The exercise felt pointless, but after ignoring Sakura’s pleas for so long, he had decided to listen to her for once.  This, at least, was something he could do for her.

She couldn’t expect anything more.  Her aloof professionalism seemed to confirm this.  Sasuke thought it was for the best.  After all, he was a walking deadman for all they knew.  He was a criminal.  Naruto seemed to think this was no more important than the color of his hair, but Sakura was smarter.  She was practical.  She knew as well as he did that he had no future to speak of.  And even if the council was lenient and let him live, his past had stained him.  He would be notorious, and any association with him would only bring pain.

Sasuke’s mind flickered to his brother, and he felt a twinge of pain at his temples.  Itachi had lived as a rogue shinobi, hated by his village and his brother.  He hadn’t deserved it.  The machinations of those in power had forced the infamy upon him.  Sasuke had brought all of this upon himself.

What would Itachi think of him?  This was another train of thought the darkness seemed to welcome.  Sasuke wondered how much he’d really known his brother.  It frustrated him that Naruto seemed to have had a rapport with Itachi, however complicated and short-lived it had been.  He’d had a chance to understand him.  Sasuke had always been chasing his brother without quite reaching him.  It was only now that he was beginning to feel close to him.

Sasuke stepped forward until his forehead pressed against the cool stone of the cell wall, willing it to cool his thoughts.  Memories of his brother still incited strong emotions in him.  His initial hatred had been redirected towards the world that had made Itachi a sacrifice for their power.  Since he had allowed this world a second chance, where could he direct his anger now?

“Sasuke-kun?”

Instinctively he clenched his jaw, though whether in irritation or surprise, he couldn’t say.  He turned toward the door as he heard it open, unsure what to expect.

“Medical visit,” one of the guards announced, but he barely registered the words.  Sakura had gone straight to his side and drawn his full attention.

“Are you okay?” she asked with gentle but urgent concern.

“Yeah.”  He was a little surprised.  She seemed less guarded than she had since they’d reunited, yet as far as he could tell, nothing had changed between them.

“Is it your eyes?”

He felt her reach for him and flinched back instinctively.  She froze for a moment before lowering her hands.  Sasuke could feel the air between them cool.

“I was just walking around a bit like you told me to.”

“Ah.”  She knew he wasn’t telling her everything, but she didn’t push him.  “Have a seat.”

Sasuke stepped towards the bench, but he must have misjudged the direction because he bumped into Sakura.

“Sorry,” he said, jerking away in respect for her personal space, but he bashed his skin against the bench, lost his balance, and fell, unable to rebalance in time with his arms tied.  But before he could faceplant on the rough stone floor, he fell against someone’s shoulder, and strong arms wrapped around him.

Sakura.  He could smell the freshness of her shampoo as his cheek brushed against her hair.  He hadn’t been close enough to smell it since the war when he’d been the one catching her.  Even under the dirt and grime of battle, he’d still recognized it.  The memory of that scent had been one of the few things he hadn’t been able to leave behind when he turned his back on the village all those years ago.

Sasuke realized she was trembling as she guided him to sit on the bench.  He must have hurt her or scared her somehow, and guilt lanced through him.

“I’m sor-”

“Careful,” Sakura said, and the rest of the apology dissolved on his tongue.  He couldn’t believe it.  She was laughing.  Or rather, she was trying not to, but he had heard the mirth in the tone of her voice.  He was relieved he hadn’t caused her any more pain, but the relief quickly gave way to annoyance.

“Sakura,” he said as she began undoing the buckles on the straitjacket.

“Hm?”  Her tone was purposefully innocent.  He waited in meaningful silence so she’d be forced to address it.

“I’m sorry Sasuke-kun,” she finally chuckled.  “It was just so awkward, and your face…”  More giggles overtook her words.  He sighed.

“You’re so annoying.”

The laughter died on her lips and her fingers stilled.  Sasuke felt the air cool between them again.  Evidently those words meant something different to Sakura than they did to him.  She was so much harder to read than Naruto.

After a tense moment, her fingers started moving again, pulling aside the jacket and beginning to unwrap his arm.

“How is the pain?” she asked, voice back to being distant and professional.

“Fine,” he said, then amended it to “better.”

“You do look better,” Sakura observed.  Her fingers ghosted over the still-tender skin, chakra bathing it in comfort and warmth.  Sasuke was struck by how intimate medical ninjutsu was.  To literally pour one’s energy and strength into another, to intertwine one’s essence with one’s patient, it was to join lives in a way.  The chakra pouring into him felt like Sakura, was Sakura, and he could read her identity in it.  It made him uncomfortable, but he craved more when she drew her hands away.

“And how have you been sleeping?”

“About the same.”  Which was to say he hadn’t been sleeping really.  It was so hard to tell when his world was darkness and his thoughts shouted into the void.  He’d caught himself dozing a few times, but he couldn’t remember anything more restful.

“You should learn to let your mind rest,” she suggested as she carefully wrapped a new bandage around his arm.    “Naruto says you’ve been thinking too much.”

“Naruto doesn’t think at all,” he grumbled, feeling like his friend was tattling on him to their teammate, but also a little pleased to know they were talking about him.  Then again, half of the shinobi world probably was.

“True,” Sakura agreed, a spark of amusement returning to her voice and leading Sasuke’s mind back to the present.  “But he is unnervingly perceptive about what’s important.”

“My sleep patterns aren’t important.”

“They are!” she insisted with a force that surprised him.  “You’ve been under a lot of stress lately between the intel interrogations, your injuries, and having so much of your chakra sealed away.  Your body and mind need rest to maintain their strength.  Your ninja way is all about getting stronger right?”

Was it?  Sasuke was no longer sure.  Every time he thought he was close to achieving his goal, something tore it down and changed it.  None of the strength he’d gained had brought him to the answers he wanted.  But at this point, what else did he have?

“If you want to get stronger you need to rest.  Otherwise you’ll find yourself behind Naruto again when you get out of here.”

“I was never behind Naruto,” he growled instinctively.  But he was more hung up on the end of that sentence.  When you get out of here.  Was it a slip of the tongue?  Did she know something about the council’s deliberations?  Or was she simply hoping, and why would Sakura hope for that?

“You think I’ll get out of here?” he asked quietly.

Her hands slowed before she began pulling the straitjacket back in place.

“Naruto thinks so,” Sakura finally answered.

“I wasn’t asking about Naruto.”

She remained silent, and time stilled as her fingers moved to his throat.  He counted her quiet breaths as she counted the beats of his heart, waiting patiently.

“Maybe,” she admitted quietly when she withdrew.  It surprised him.  Sakura was practical and smart, yet even she thought it possible for him to be pardoned enough to be released.

“Try to get some sleep,” she instructed, back to business mode.  “And keep up the exercise.  Let someone know if the pain worsens.”

“Sakura,” he called as she turned to go.  “Next time…”

“Yes, Sasuke-kun?” she coaxed as he hesitated.

“Next time, maybe you could tell me more about what you think.”

He heard her turn back towards him and felt her eyes study him.

“Perhaps,” she finally said before leaving.  He hadn’t been able to read the emotions in her tone of voice, but she hadn’t rejected the possibility.  Maybe she was more open to talking with him than he’d thought.  What would he say to her if they did have a chance to chat?  He’d have to think about it.

But first, he’d try to get some sleep.  If he was going to get out of here someday, he sure as hell wasn’t going to let Naruto get ahead of him.

[minttoy]

Wayward (End)

CHAPTER THREE

Summary: The night at the Goddess Tower, Dimitri wished for a world in which no one would be unjustly taken away. Byleth made her wish in silence - that one day she would see him freed from his darkness.

She wakes up five years later, only to learn the world hasn’t been kind.

Missing scenes post time skip (Blue Lions route).

Pairings: Dimitri/Byleth

Genre: Romance/Angst

Click here to read on FF.net.

Click here to read on AO3.

----------

I entrust the young prince, and the future of Faerghus to you.

The clash at Gronder Field feels like an uphill battle. Soon the ground lays waste to students she once knew. There’s no use turning the hands of time. Things won’t go back to normal, if it ever was. Victory in war has always been paid with lives and spilt blood.

All I ask is that you continue to rein in Dimitri’s manic desire for revenge.

The battle is punctuated with a death of their own. Rodrigue is killed shielding Dimitri, bound to the same fate as Glenn. He’s now fulfilled his promise to the late King. Byleth bites her lip as he whispers his dying words – apologies to Felix, urging Dimitri to live for himself. He briefly glances in her direction and she nods, acknowledging what he asked of her.

Afterwards, Dimitri stays on his knees. His eye is closed. His hair falls and covers his face. She hopes he sees now that revenge comes a cost. Byleth knows it will be the same with Edelgard. She will haunt him just the same.

I’m glad you were the one to lead the Blue Lion house, Professor.

Rodrigue has passed her the torch to guide the prince in his stead. She won’t fail him.

----------

The journey back to Garreg Mach is quiet.

Felix insists he needs nothing. He refuses apologies or condolences from soldiers. He won’t be coddled or treated differently by his teammates. Dimitri is just the same, except he won’t say anything at all. How unfortunate, because if not for Dimitri’s temperament or Felix’s stubbornness, Byleth thinks their shared grief could help each other the most.

Felix hides behind a façade of exhaustion. His family has served the Blaiddyd bloodline for generations, but it has left him without a brother and father. He might care and believe Dimitri will have a change of heart, but Byleth still wishes with fervent desperation his hope doesn’t wane.

Perhaps Dimitri feels the same. The somber look he shoots his stubborn friend on a lucid day is more than telling. As if he wouldn’t blame him for abandoning him or his noble station at all, even if they’d been best friends at one time.

----------

It’s raining. He can hear the pitter-patter of drops against the window pane. The clouds filter away the sun, making the room dim and dank, but it’s almost calming. He’s used to this kind of darkness. When Dimitri opens his eyes, he registers he’s lying on one of the infirmary beds. When he turns to the window to glance at the rain, he startles.

There’s a woman standing there, her vacant gaze locked to the view of the monastery.

Silver white hair. Gowned in red. She wears horns for a crown.

He hates the sight of her. Grunting, he reaches for his lance, which stands against the wall at his bedside. He winces when he moves, but he grits his teeth and bears it.

“Don’t move. You’ll reopen your wounds.”

She sounds the same. The tone of her voice strict and commanding. Edelgard was never gentle with him, even when they were children. Even at the academy, where she scoffed at his concerns. The sound of her voice grates his ears now.

He ignores her and sits up anyway, ignoring the blood rushing from his head, leaving him with a throbbing headache. He questions what she’s doing here. She’s supposed to be in Enbarr, devising tactics and scheming to get Fódlan under her control. He’s supposed to meet her there.

“Hmm. You’re not even real,” he says gruffly.

“How cruel,” she says, feigning an affronted look.

He despises how she tries to manipulate him even now. “Leave me.”

“I’m afraid I have no choice in the matter.” Edelgard turns to him with a sigh, heavy cape swishing behind her. Her arms are crossed around her middle. The heels of her boots thump against the hardwood floors as she draws closer. She has the gall to take the stool at his bedside. He attempts to erase her from his mind, but it’s to no avail.

“Oh, my dear brother…” she starts, eyes glazing and inspecting him whole. She sees him now – his body covered with scars, fingers bent and broken, eye gauged and rendered useless from battle. She settles on his face where darkness colours the skin under his eyes. He can’t stop her, even though he wants nothing more than to wipe the pity off her face.

“Edelgard. Leave me. Now,” he repeats, a looming threat in his voice this time round.

“I’ve told you already,” she says coolly, unfazed by his crazed disposition. “It is you who lacks the will to leave me. Even after all this time, you still cannot let me go.”

Let her go? He knows no reason why she would be here except…No. Has she become one of his ghosts? Is she…dead? Was he the one who…?

She reads his mind and clears her throat, forcing him to look. When he turns, she opens her arms and lets him see for himself. His nose crinkles and lips curl in disgust.

A bloody wound is carved below her chest, splitting her skin apart. The soaked patch of blood in her stomach grows, seeping down to her legs and knees. Even now her wound still oozes and festers. Life withers out of her as they speak. He looks to her face in search for answers.

“Did I-” He hesitates and gags a little, not knowing why he falters when this is what he wanted. “Tell me. Did I do that to you?”

Edelgard doesn’t let up, even for a moment. She pulls down the neckline of her dress, revealing the jagged and uneven slits at her throat. Angry red lines and unclean, serrated edges. How hasty he must have been when he severed her head from her body. Even after all this, he finds no arrogance or haughtiness in her face. Instead, her features are scrunched in pain, like these wounds still hurt even after she’s passed.

He retches. The sight finally does him in and he looks away. So it’s true. She haunts him too.

“I…I don’t understand…” He buries his face in his hands and sighs in defeat. Why does he sting with regret after wanting her death for so long? Why does she haunt him? “El, I…I’m…” He thinks back on their childhood days when he encouraged her to live for herself. “I-I’m so sorry,” is the first thing that comes to his mind, absurd as it is.

“You apologize for murder?” She raises him a brow, rightfully so. He must sound foolish. His apology irks her, because she stiffens in her seat and expression hardens. “You are deluded. How much did my life matter then?”

Dimitri is unable to look her in the eye, even as she rains down on him.

He hears her sigh in exasperation. She continues without mercy. “Was it worth it? To hear the scream tearing from my lips? To see blood gushing from my chest?”

He doesn’t miss the cruelty in her words. He thinks he deserves it. Instead he looks down at his hands, thinking of the destruction and death they’ve caused. The throbbing in his head pounds harder the more she scorns him.

“How naïve of you to believe the voices would stop. To think that my death would be your salvation. Everything you have done has become in vain! Pitiful you are,” she spits harsh and unapologetic. “Am I not here by your own hands? Your own undoing? Tell me, Dimitri. Have I not become someone else you failed to save?”

He makes a frustrated noise as he cradles his head. “Stop or I will silence you myself!”

She laughs. “Ha! Silence me? So long as you tread in darkness, you will never be rid of me. I swear it.”

He refuses to look, but she must be leaning closer now. Her sharp words are so clear and certain, echoing loud in his ears.

“You are a failure, dear brother. How could someone as weak and pathetic as yourself ever hope to become King? I would never bow to you. You can hardly control your own nature, or save your own kin…”

Her voice hitches at the last part. He remember now she was once precious to him. He used to cherish their childhood. They shared a mother. He once gifted her something so important.

He listens to her footsteps as they fade into the background. She’s leaving, he realizes. After a while, he cautiously peers upwards, finding relief when she’s gone. He still wishes this would stop.

Soon there’s light humming on his other side. Fatigued, he looks to his right. A young girl sits, carefully examining a weapon in her hands. He was foolish to think she would leave him so easily, even though this one is different. There’s innocence in her eyes. Purple ribbons in her hair. Seeing the brown colour of her hair reminds him she harboured her own darkness.

She notices him staring. “Oh, you’re awake now.” This time, her voice doesn’t bother him at all. He watches as a young Edelgard hops off the stool and stands at the edge of his bedside. She holds the weapon out to him, perhaps to give it back. “I’ve been meaning to ask. Why did you give this to me? I don’t know how to use it.”

He groans lightly. As much as a part of him wants to take the dagger, carve out her heart and sever her head with it, he cannot do it. She is a mere child. She has committed no bloodshed. All his memories of this girl are fond and cherished. Instead, he tries to soften the hard edges on his face.

“You…you’re supposed to use it to carve your future,” he explains wearily. The concept seems jaded now, maybe even backfired on him, but it meant the world when he gave it to her.

She purses her lips. “My future? How?”

He shakes his head. “It’s symbolic. More of a gesture…I gave it to you so you could decide your own path. Don’t let others decide for you. You have to do it yourself.”

“Oh…” There’s a light in her eyes now, one that he never saw at the academy. She looks at the weapon with new understanding, admiring it now. “…I can do anything I want?”

He gulps. It breaks his heart, because even after all the death and destruction committed by her misguided hands, he still feels the same. She deserves that very right. “Yes. Anything.”

She beams and he misses her. He remembers the time they spent as children, misses the stories they shared of their mother. He wants her to stay, before she disappears and withers with time. Before darkness gets a hold of her. And for a second, he thinks killing her so brutally was a mistake. His most grievous error. Maybe he could still save her. He could offer out his hand, just as the Professor has always-

“Dimitri!”

With a choked-off cry, Dimitri shoots up from the bed, eye flashing wide open. He darts around the room looking for her and finds no blood or lilac eyes. Instead he’s met with the gazes of Ashe and Mercedes at either side, Dedue standing behind the latter. They peer down at him with concern and caution. Ashe removes his hands from his shoulders and Dimitri looks to him in desperation.

“Where is she?”

“Who?”

“El. Where is she?” It comes out before he registers none of them know her by that name. Besides the Professor, no one even knows of their past relations.

“Do you mean…Edelgard?” Mercedes’s soft voice pipes up. He pauses, and she takes his silence as affirmation. “Well, she must be in Enbarr, right?” She looks to Dedue behind her, who nods.

He breathes a heavy sigh of relief. She’s alive then. Dimitri finally glances around the room and at himself. His arms are wrapped in bandages and he winces at a pain at his ribs. He doesn’t remember how he got here, much less what day it is.

“Umm…” Ashe hesitates and it stings, because he knows he’s been prone to lashing out. “You started thrashing in your sleep. We worried you might hurt yourself. That’s why we woke you.”

Mercedes hums in agreement. “That’s right. You gave us quite a scare. You must have been having a terrible dream.”

Dimitri nods slowly. He remembers her bloody form with absolute clarity. “Ah, yes. It was a terrible dream.”

He’s met with strange gazes. They seem…surprised. The past months have been rather hazy – he can hardly recall the long stretches he spent in the cathedral. Perhaps it’s rather abnormal not to find him grumbling and snarling at his peers.

“Your Highness. How do you feel?” Dedue asks.

He clears his throat, dry and coarse all of a sudden. “Better,” he gets out before deciding to say it again, more for his sake. “…I feel better.”

Mercedes puts a hand to her heart. Ashe smiles wide, fear no longer in his eyes. Dedue nods at him. He shifts his gaze to the window where a simple white curtain blows with the wind. Edelgard still walks this world, roaming in a darkness of her own. He clenches his hands at the thought of it and then pushes it to the back of his mind. For now, he focuses on his peers, to whom he owes his life.

“I…Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. For taking care of me. I understand I have not made things easy,” he starts, sounding much like the Dimitri they knew then. Their house leader and friend. “I cannot promise I will never slip back to my darker ways, but…”

Mercedes shakes her head. “Oh, Dimitri. It’s okay.”

He doesn’t need to say anything else, just looks at them with gratitude. He swears to return the favour one day.

“I’ll go inform our Professor he’s woken up,” Ashe pipes up, already turning his heel for the door.

Ah, the Professor...Dimitri attempts to turn and swing his legs over the edge, but he stops to hold onto his side, still sore and bruised.

“Please do not overexert yourself, your Highness. Perhaps you should take this time to rest,” Dedue says, ever the voice of reason. Dimitri doesn’t argue. He knows he cannot win this battle and eases himself back to bed.

“Of course.”

----------

His darkness still shows from time to time, but it’s better. Years of harbouring hatred and anger does not leave him so easily, much less overnight. Mercedes and Annette tell her there are days when he seems to hold no darkness at all as he engages in conversation not of war or destruction. But then there are days he wakes up angry. Even if he quiets the voices in his head they still whisper.

Byleth peruses the thought as she ushers the horses into the stable, keeping them away from the rain and pending storm. She rushes a little because she needs to seek shelter herself. Her cloak has become soaked and heavy. It sticks to her back rather uncomfortably. Her boots have gathered water in their soles. She could catch a cold.

She pauses briefly at the sound of footsteps drawing closer. She doesn’t look. She knows the rhythm of Dimitri’s step, knows the heavy metal thuds that make up his gait. She’s become too familiar with his behaviours these past few months. She catches the frown on his face as she locks the bolts to the stable.

He’s withdrawn today, if the brooding look on his face tells her anything.

In this relentless rain, she listens as talks solemnly of the dead. One of his ghosts must have urged him to continue down his path of revenge. He tells her he cannot stop and he must have his vengeance. It’s been nine years in the making. Everything he’s done up until now will help him secure his goal, and she shouldn’t try to convince him otherwise. There’s pain in his confession, because it makes her feel used, ashamed even. Regardless, she tells him what he needs to hear.

He’s wrong. He ought to forgive himself. Live for what he believes.

Somehow, and perhaps because he’s always known, her words find their mark. Finally, he considers the possibility of living – not for retribution’s sake, but for his own sake. He wonder if he’s even deserving of such a precious gift.

Byleth’s answer is the same as it’s always been.

She offers her hand out to him.

He didn’t take it the first time.

This time, he does. It’s not without fear or hesitation, but that’s okay.

She knows now his distaste for fragile things was his fear of himself. It was never a lack of understanding of his own strength, but rather what he was capable of doing when his mind spiralled out of his control. She knows he resents himself for becoming that person. And yet, she sees how delicately he folds her hands in his, and knows he’s not that person anymore.

She looks at their hands, hers wrapped in his larger ones. She lets go, but only to unlatch his metal gauntlet and tuck it under her arm. Gently, she examines the criss-cross marks along his arm and his long calloused fingers. He doesn’t resist as her fingers scour his skin, tracing old scars and wounds.

She holds their hands together again, teaching him to intertwining them.

His gaze is trained on her fingers. He watches as raindrops run along them.

“Your hand is so warm…”

She doesn’t say anything, just squeezes his hand gently.

When he looks up, he finds a new expression. A smile that reaches even her eyes, captures her joy, and bares her soul. He’s drawn to it, mesmerized by it. He thinks it holds enough light for the whole world.

A calm settles inside and he memorizes her face, just as he did when he was a student. Gently, he squeezes her hand back, just as she hoped when his darkness breaks free.

----------

Dimitri shows up the next meeting and for the first time, he seems nervous. When he asks a moment of their time, he wishes to give his sincerest apologies. He knows words are insufficient, but it’s all he can offer. Instead, he promises to do the right thing moving forward.

Finally, he turns from Edelgard. He agrees to take back Fhirdiad. If he’s uncomfortable with the idea, it doesn’t show, even though she knows he has his reservations. The last time he’d been at the Kingdom capital was a difficult time.

When the meeting is over, he apologizes again to Felix, who hardly accepts it. In turn, he tells him to stop grovelling and then calls him a boar, albeit Byleth thinks it’s on friendlier terms. Even now, Dimitri doesn’t correct him. Perhaps the familiarity is more comforting than it seems.

----------

Later, when victory rings in the streets of Fhirdiad, they hold a feast to mark the celebration. She lets them have it. They deserve the small luxury. She doesn’t heart to tell anyone she’s out of her comfort zone when they shove a wine glass in her hands or invite her for conversation. She only slips out when she sees the moon and stars have become visible in the sky.

The balcony is empty, but she shivers and wraps her cloak tighter to fend off the chill. It’s cold enough her breath condenses when she blows heat into her hands. She hardly took up mercenary contracts here for this reason. She doesn’t like to admit how she struggles with the cooler temperatures either. It’s most noticeable during battle where suddenly, she’s low on stamina and gasping for air crumbs. Her students seemed rather comfortable though.

She feels a sudden weight on her shoulders.

Warmth.

Around her, she finds the black and white furry tendrils of his cloak draped across her shoulders. Grateful, she pulls it securely around her and breathes in his scent. Dimitri moves to her side where she murmurs him a soft thanks. He stands there with only his armour, gaze trained to the night sky.

They stay like that for a moment. Staring the stars. Bathed in moonlight.

“I came here to thank you,” he says, breaking silence.

She keeps her absent stare on a particularly bright star. “Hmm. You’re welcome.”

He snorts and laughs a little, distracting her. When she turns to him, he waves her concern away. “It’s nothing. It’s just…I wanted to explain.”

Her expression crinkles apologetically. “Oh. I’m sorry.”

Dimitri chuckles at the nostalgia. Even after all this hardship, his Professor is very much the same. She has strength in all the ways that matter, but struggles sometimes with human conversation. He finds it rather endearing, even as she considers it her weakness.

“I want…no, I need you to understand how grateful I am,” he starts finally. She listens on with silence and peers up at him thoughtfully. “You saved me from myself, pulled me from my darkness. I see now how misguided and destructive I was, even to the point of hurting you. Truly, I do not understand how you kept faith in me.”

She nods and takes in every word, wondering how long he’s been working up to say these things.

He clears his throat. “I hope you will accept my apologies. I am terribly sorry for the pain I caused. To be honest, I feel very undeserving of you.”

She shakes her head. There’s kindness in her eyes when she tells him not to dwell on such things. He doesn’t argue, having accepted internally that his Professor always has the answers. Instead, he searches her face with a heavy-set gaze. She can be troubling to read at times, and she hasn’t said a word since he started.

“How are you feeling?” he decides to ask.

A small smile tugs at her lips and her eyes are bright. “Happy.” She tips her head to him. “And you?”

He chuckles, thinking he could ramble on and on about how he feels in this moment. “I feel grateful, relieved, glad, satisfied even…and happy as well. Is that too much?”

She shakes her head and remembers his beating heart. “Not at all.”

A chilly breeze brushes past them, and she wraps his cloak even tighter. He has seen her struggling to adjust to the cooler temperatures, but the sight of her cocooned in his oversized cloak is charming. He hopes it doesn’t deter her from staying.

Impulsively, he slips an arm around her and pulls her closer to his side. His heart thunders painfully against his chest, but Byleth doesn’t pull away. She ducks her head and molds herself to him instead, and he finally sees how much she’s shivering. Just for this moment, he allows himself to nuzzle against her hair, determined to share his warmth just as she’s done for him.

When they pull away, he settles for her hand and intertwines their fingers.

“Thank you,” he says again. “For saving me, day after day.” He looks up at the stars again, a calm resolve fixed on his features. “Once the war is over, I hope you will allow me to do the same for you.”

She squeezes his hand and follows his gaze to the moonlit sky. “Okay.”

In this quiet night, where the moon is bright and the stars are gleaming, she imagines this is what the world must be like when the war is said and done. A steady breeze caressing her face. Listening to the quiet hums of nature. Watching the moon illuminate the sky. She can look up to the stars and remember the nights she spent in quiet prayer. Prayers for peace. For safety. For him to embrace light.

Tonight, she thanks her lucky stars her wish came true.

----------

Thank you for reading! Dimitri’s brokenness is so significant and essential to the Blue Lion arc that I desperately wanted to explore it. I want to thank all the lovely readers who left their thoughts and taken interest. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. – Mint

[raywritesthings]

In the Dead of Night 2/9

My Writing Fandom: Arrow Characters: Laurel Lance, Oliver Queen, Tommy Merlyn, John Diggle, Quentin Lance, Lucas Hilton, Sara Lance, Dinah Lance, Thea Queen, Malcolm Merlyn Pairing: Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen (Eventual) Summary: Oliver Queen returns to Starling City after five years away, three years after Sara Lance was found and rescued by her mother. More troubling to him is Laurel’s abrupt and unexplained absence from the city for the same length of time that her sister’s been home. Three years into the past, Dinah Lance makes a terrible choice. *Can be read on my AO3 or FFN (links to both accounts are in bio)*

Present day

John could admit that Oliver had some impressive skills when it came to strategy and planning. But sometimes he was just freaky.

“So you set Lance up to open an investigation into his daughter?”

Oliver looked away from the news report he was watching on mute. A picture of Laurel Lance was displayed along with a banner declaring, Police Open Investigation into Woman’s Three-Year Disappearance. “I knew I wouldn’t get very far asking questions myself and that he had the credibility as her father and the connections to do it. Lance may have been kicked off the force for his drinking, but he’s got a sharp mind when he uses it. Give him a case, and he’s a dog with a bone.”

“Yeah, guess you two have that in common.”

Oliver made a face but didn’t reply.

“He won’t be splitting his time between two missions, though. Speaking of, what’s next in your grand plan to save the city? You could put some pressure on Simon Stagg. Thanks to him there’s a legal aid office that’s closing in the Glades.”

“Stagg isn’t on the list, surprisingly,” Oliver said. “And the Hood can’t exactly attack him for deciding to cancel his donations.”

“So CNRI is just a casualty.” John shook his head. He should have figured. It had been hard enough to convince Oliver to take on the Royal Flush Gang the other night, and even that had ended up connecting back to Robert Queen.

And any other plans went out the window when a motorcyclist nearly shot Moira Queen the next afternoon. Oliver had intel that pointed to a connection with the Bertinelli mafia family, and he decided to investigate as himself. John didn’t see him until the next day.

“So what happened?”

“It’s the daughter, Helena. We were attacked and had to fight our way out. She knows my identity.”

“So what happens now?”

“I tried to reason with her. Her methods are too reckless, and if she’s not careful she could ignite a gang war. She’s coming to the base today.”

Oliver tried to train Helena and be a friend to her, but she was too consumed with the need for revenge against her father. When she went to kill Frank Bertinelli at his home, Oliver was forced to drive her off. She couldn’t stay in Starling City now that her identity had been exposed anyway.

With the holidays now approaching, John wasn’t sure where exactly his friend’s focus was. He still went out as the Hood, and he was still working on developing the club. But for once, John didn’t have to suggest to his friend to take some time off to be at home, as Oliver was also spending time pushing the idea of a holiday party.

“I don’t know, Ollie,” he overheard Tommy Merlyn saying as he drove the two to lunch. John was just glad they weren’t checking out another club, since the last time that had happened he had found them getting roughed up by the owner’s goons out back. “Christmas just hasn’t been the same the last five years without you. And now that the news is saying Laurel’s missing, it’s hard to find the spirit. What do you think happened?”

“I really don’t know, Tommy.”

“It’s scary how people you care about can just disappear like that. You remember when my dad ditched for two years after my mom died?”

“I remember,” Oliver replied.

“I heard nothing from him for two years, and then one day he was just back. No explanation, no reason. I guess I always hoped Laurel was gonna do the same at some point.” Tommy scoffed at himself. “Probably a dumb hope, right?”

“Hey, I’m hoping she comes back okay, too.”

Later on in the base, John had to ask, “So why the party?”

“Because Sara’s coming to Starling for the holidays this year,” Oliver answered. “There’s no chance I could talk to her in Lance’s home, but an invitation to a party is the perfect excuse to get her to the manor.”

“And you think she’ll have something to tell you about her sister.”

“The timing is just too close. I mean, Sara was brought back by her mother less than a week after Laurel supposedly left.” Oliver shook his head. “At the least, she might have a better understanding of what was going on at the time. I can’t imagine that she hasn’t wondered.”

“Or she could just be grateful her sister’s not here to let her have it.” He personally couldn’t imagine how someone could have done that to their own family, but youth and hormones were a trip. Hopefully, she’d learned her lesson. Oliver clearly had.

The party was given the okay by Moira Queen and Walter Steele, and Oliver himself handled the invitations. Thea sat on her phone as John helped him go through the RSVPs one afternoon.

“Sara Lance, no plus one,” he announced, holding one envelope out to Oliver.

Just as he took it, Thea sat up. “You really thought that was a good idea?”

“I’ve been meaning to talk to Sara,” Oliver said. “She’s only going to be in town for a little while, so this seemed the best opportunity.”

“Unbelievable.” Thea stood up and continued over her shoulder, “You know, not that I’m glad it turns out she’s missing, but it’s probably for the best Laurel isn’t here right now.”

Oliver winced, but let her go without replying. John returned his focus to sifting through invites.

In the lead up to the party, an unknown imposter started murdering the people on the list who Oliver had already targeted. He had to wonder if maybe they were trying to juggle too much. Without access to any of the copycat’s arrows, however, they just had to wait and hope to catch him in the act.

The night of the party arrived, and John made sure to keep near Oliver without crowding him while he greeted the guests. At one point the Queens and Walter all posed for a family picture. So far so good.

But he noticed a few whispers start up around the room at the approach of a woman John only knew from a few online articles.

John wasn’t sure what he’d expected the infamous Sara Lance to be like. Smiling and cheerful, more mature, flirtatious even?

The young woman that walked up to Oliver was none of those things. Without ever having known her before, John could say without doubt that she was a shadow of herself. Thin and with a drawn face, she looked out of place amongst all the Christmas cheer.

“Hey, Ollie,” she greeted him quietly, so quiet John had to strain to hear even from where he was standing a few feet away.

If Oliver was surprised by how she looked, he hid it well. “Sara. It’s good to see you.”

“You too. Um, thanks for inviting me.”

Oliver shrugged it off. “I heard you were gonna be in town, so I thought we should meet up.”

“Yeah. I’m sorry you were lost for longer. If I’d known you survived the Amazo—”

“Sara, that’s okay,” Oliver interrupted her, which was unfortunate since John was really curious as to why she had just mentioned a totally different boat. “Neither of us could’ve known. I’m just glad we both made it back.”

“Yeah.”

“And I’m sorry for everything it did to your family. It was stupid and selfish of me, and I never intended for any of that to happen.”

Sara’s gaze was on the floor as she answered, “Well, we’re getting by. Mom’s doing pretty good. Dad’s, you know.”

“Laurel’s missing,” said Oliver pointedly.

“Yeah, well, that was news to everybody,” said Sara, still not lifting her gaze. “She was gone when I got back, you know.”

“Yeah, right before you got back. I’ve been wondering about that.”

Sara froze and finally raised her head. “You think I know something. That’s why you really invited me here, isn’t it?” She huffed a short laugh, but there was a suspiciously wet sheen to her eyes. “I should have figured. You and her, always and forever.”

To his credit, Oliver didn’t try to make an excuse. “Do you know something?”

Her lip trembled, but she backed away. “I can’t do this here.”

“Sara,” said Oliver. He took a step after her but seemed to notice a few of the looks other guests were giving him. Oliver frowned and stalked off in the other direction, quicker than John could follow him.

He stepped into an unoccupied side room with a television and switched it on to check for any news about their imposter, which got him far more than he’d bargained for. A man in a black hood and mask was declaring himself the copycat on TV and challenging the Hood to a duel while he held nine people hostage. Oliver needed to get on this now.

John found him upstairs kicking a boy out of Thea’s room, which had her pretty livid.

“Seriously? You’re gonna invite Sara to this party and then lecture me about my life choices?” Thea shoved past her brother, stalked down the hall and out of sight.

Oliver turned, frustration evident, but froze at the look on John’s face.

“You gotta see this.”

He led him to the television, and Oliver watched with a grim expression. His friend left soon after, and John followed in a van.

By the time he worked his way past the police perimeter, the hostages had been rescued, but Oliver was lying in a heap on the floor of an alley. John loaded him into the van and got to work removing his suit and any other evidence of the true source of his injuries, then rushed to the hospital. This wasn’t something that could be cured with a night of rest at the base.

Later, when Oliver was awake and his family had all gone home, he confessed to John his feeling of failure. John didn’t know what he could say to comfort him. In both his efforts as the Hood and his investigation into the disappearance of Laurel Lance, Oliver had hit a wall.

---

Sara couldn’t sleep that night. Truthfully, she’d gotten very little sleep since she’d arrived in Starling. Maybe since the announcement.

Laurel was missing, and now it was public knowledge. In equal parts, she had been hoping and dreading this day might come.

“Don’t say anything to your father,” her mother had cautioned her as she packed. “If he ever knew the truth—”

“I know, mom.” She’d been hearing the same refrain for the last three years. But what if he did know? What if she could finally come clean to someone?

When she had gotten into Starling and seen him, she hadn’t had the heart. He’d been showing her all the files and bits of information he’d written down spread out all over the coffee table, energized in a way she hadn’t known him to be for five years.

“They haven’t found anything solid yet, but this is a three year-old trail we’re talking about. These things take time. But they’ll find something.” Her dad had sounded as though he was trying to convince himself as much as anything, and Sara’s insides had squirmed with guilt. He didn’t know it was hopeless. She couldn’t tell him that. So she’d picked at the food he’d made and kept quiet.

She turned over in the bed again. Chances were, he wouldn’t even believe what Sara told him. He’d want to see the proof with his own eyes, and he couldn’t. It was too dangerous.

But there was someone who could possibly brave that danger. Someone who was just as interested in knowing the truth.

Sara had accepted long ago that she and Oliver weren’t actually in love. They’d been a couple of dumb kids, high on the rush of sneaking around and not getting caught. When she’d confessed on the island, she’d been trying to make some sense out of the chaos of their lives. Maybe they had ended up on that island for a reason. Maybe it had been her who survived, and not Shado, for a reason. Maybe it had been her, and not Laurel—

Sara flopped onto her back. Then finally, with a groan, threw the covers off herself and slipped into her shoes and a coat as she left the apartment. She couldn’t live like this anymore.

It wasn’t too hard for her to sneak into the hospital. She waited until the hall was deserted before approaching Oliver’s room and slipping inside.

He was asleep, judging by the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest. She approached slowly and tapped his shoulder. “Oliver?”

Sara backed off with a gasp as one of his arms reached out, grasping at air where her neck had been moments ago.

“Oliver, it’s me.”

“Sara?” He peered at her through the darkness, like he was trying to decide if she was real. “What are you doing here?”

“It’s you they’ve been talking about on the TV, right? You’ve been going out in Shado’s hood.”

He grimaced. “What about it?”

“You got beaten tonight by that man. The copycat archer everyone’s talking about.”

She’d nearly jumped out of her skin when she’d gotten back from the Queen’s party and seen that uniform on the news.

“What about it?” He repeated, more tersely this time.

“Could you beat him if you met him again? Because if you can’t beat someone of that caliber, Laurel’s gonna stay missing.”

He sat up sharply and let out a hiss of pain, one hand resting over his ribs. “Sara, what do you know?”

“It wasn’t my idea. You gotta believe me about that, Ollie. I didn’t want it to happen. I just wanted to go home. After Ivo, after Slade, I- I—” Her eyes were stinging and her voice was already wavering badly. She honestly didn’t know if she could make it through talking about this. She’d never tried before. It was a taboo subject even at home with her mother.

“Sara.” She could tell he was working to keep his voice calm and even. “Just tell me. What happened to your sister?”

“It was mom,” she blurted. “When she found me, there was a choice, and she made it. I tried to tell her it wasn’t right, but God, Ollie, I was just so tired and afraid. I didn’t want to stay with them, and I let her- I let her—”

Her throat was closing up, refusing to say the words. She kept having to take great gasps of air.

“Just calm down,” Oliver urged, his eyes flickering to the door. “Start from the beginning. How did your mom find you, and what happened when she did?”

“You’re gonna hate me for this,” she said in a low tone. “I’ve hated myself for three years.”

“Whatever’s happened, the first step to making it right is to tell the truth,” he said. “Please, Sara.”

She drew in a breath and began. “The first thing you gotta understand is that my mom knew I went on the boat. She caught me packing and let me go with you, even though you were seeing Laurel.” She didn’t miss his shocked expression at that admission. If he only knew just how bad it was going to get. “I think she blamed herself after the shipwreck, and that’s what drove her to looking for me. She didn’t want to believe she’d let me go off to drown with my sister’s boyfriend. So she started looking…”

[alsolfu]

Pink Skies (Part Two)

(Part One) (AO3)

Unlike Rhea’s promise to Lorenz, Seteth didn’t offer tea when Byleth took a seat in front of his desk. Seteth didn’t so much as offer a smile. Or take his own seat. Or do anything beyond stand next to his desk, cross his arms, and stare at her. Typical.

“You can’t ask me to marry one of my former students.” There, she thought. Start off strong. It was a valid point, and he knew that.

Seteth arched an eyebrow. “Your student, sure. For a single term, half a decade ago. He is far from that child, don’t you think?”

Byleth resisted a heavy sigh. Lorenz had never been a child, not for as long as she’d known him. That wasn’t the argument she was trying to make at all. This was already verging on frustrating, and she’d only just sat down.

“All right,” she said, tilting her chin up. “As a person, Lorenz is a good friend. But that doesn’t mean we should marry each other.”

“You’re purposely ignoring the obvious,” he was quick to reply. “In considering him as not just a person, but as a man.”

Byleth blinked, then looked down at her hands, which tangled in her lap just like they had in the advisory room. For a moment, she thought he made a good point. Lorenz was certainly a man, but it didn’t really make sense. Because Lorenz was a man, she should’ve considered marrying him? For the good of Unified Fodlan?

Stretching out her fingers, she skimmed her hands over her knees and straightened her back. “I know what he is. A man, a noble, and a soldier.”

“Soon to be a king.”

Byleth’s expression flattened. “Right, how forgetful of me.”

Seteth uncrossed his arms, but it didn’t make him any less imposing, looking down at her that way. “The king of a newly formed kingdom needs a strong partner at his side.”

She bristled. “So marry him yourself.”

Closing his eyes, Seteth let out a long sigh. She waited while he rested a hand on his desk, as if the conversation was physically tiring him. He’d wanted this, to talk privately in apparent hope to persuade her, and he looked ready to end despite how they’d only begun.

Good. This wouldn’t take long.

He opened his eyes, his frown evening out into a flat line. Then he rounded his desk and took a seat. Byleth didn’t like the look of that, of him settling in and resting his forearms on the desktop.

“I fail to understand your adamant rejection of our proposal,” he finally said. “By all appearances, you and Lorenz make a formidable match. You fought side by side throughout the war—”

“Which only just ended.”

“Hence the need to combine your strengths.”

“Or to focus on rebuilding.”

Seteth’s lips pinched, likely fighting another sigh. “Alright, professor. I see this won’t be easily accomplished.”

“Or at all,” she cut in.

He lifted a hand to pinch the arch of his nose between his eyes. “All I ask is your reason as to why.”

Oh, it was that simple now? He needed reasons for why she wouldn’t marry Lorenz, and he’d let it go? She had more than one reason, most of which had nothing to do with Lorenz himself. Marriage wasn’t something she’d ever given a thought. With anyone. Romance, maybe in passing. Once or twice. Physical attraction was an unrelated subject entirely.

She’d always had too many more important things than marriage to worry about. The end of the war had shoveled even more onto her plate. Every bit of this was asinine, and she had no doubt that Lorenz probably found it just as insulting.

Taking a deep breath, Byleth sat back in the chair and crossed one leg over the other. “Lorenz is unbearably arrogant.”

⁂

She’d barely gotten a word in since arriving to Garreg Mach Monastery. It was fine; she’d always been a woman of few words. But to be met with question after question, introduction after introduction, only to be moved along to the next person in another part of the academy without reprieve, was exhausting.

Now, standing in front of one of the students Rhea had sent her to talk to, she felt like screaming. Which was something that she tended not to do unless delivering a death blow. The guy in front of her had a hand on his hip and a wide grin. What could be so amusing, Byleth wanted to know.

She nodded when he seemed to be done speaking, and he arched his eyebrows.

“Oh, yeah? Who did you want to hear about?”

Her eyes fluttered, partially in embarrassment, mostly in confusion. “Ah.”

She looked around, taken by surprise at the sudden chance to speak. Her gaze stopped on a tall figure standing across the courtyard. It was the rose at his lapel, deep red and hard to miss, that made her pause. He spoke with another student, a girl by the look of the uniform, who crossed her arms and shook her head at whatever he was saying.

Eyes snapping back to the student in front of her—his name was Claude, she reminded herself—Byleth hoped the tall, flowered boy was in his class. “Him.”

Claude glanced in that direction, his smile unwavering. “Lorenz? He’s the heir of Gloucester territory. If you haven’t already picked up on it, he’s a bit arrogant and fancies himself a ladies man.”

Was that right? She looked at the student again, just in time to catch the girl storming away from him. Lorenz the Ladies Man, huh? He scoffed, then looked at his fingernails with pursed lips. It didn’t dawn on Byleth that she was staring until his head tilted a moment later, his short hair bobbing as he looked in her direction. 

Not driven to avoid eye contact for any reason, she maintained it and bore the growing curiosity on his face. His eyes were as purple as his hair, the angles of his face just as sharp. In a slow drop to his side, his fingers curled and uncurled.

“Anyone else?” Claude spoke up, regaining her attention.

She tore her gaze from Lorenz to another student who seemed awfully close to the Golden Deer classroom. “How about them?”

⁂

“My name is Lorenz Hellman Gloucester. You would do well to remember it.”

Byleth was certain she wouldn’t forget an introduction like that, although she could try. As his new professor, she wasn’t sure if she should’ve expected him to behave differently, but the attitude remained. She wouldn’t quite call it haughty. She knew haughty. The nobles who would sometimes give Geralt’s mercenaries work, looking down their noses at others, no kindnesses to spare for those less fortunate— they were haughty. Lorenz was prideful, but he’d never been disrespectful insofar as asking too many questions in class.

For the most part, she couldn’t take him seriously enough to consider him with the amount of contempt that others—the commoners and young women of the monastery, in particular—seemed to hold for the young nobleman.

Seteth held a seminar halfway through the first month of her stay. She was in awe throughout, new battle tactics being brought to her attention in a way they’d never been before. Typically, it would be firsthand accounts, either from the other men led by her father, or from facing enemies herself. Mostly from the latter, if she were honest. The seminar was a first for her; an appreciated reprieve.

She was deep in thought when leaving the classroom. She’d known next to nothing about fighting with a lance before Seteth had drawn several, potentially unnecessary diagrams onto the chalkboard. She had ideas for lance fighting styles that she couldn’t wait to put into practice.

The day was warm, half over now with the sun sitting high in the cloudy sky. A deep breath in, and she felt like she could work on her next lesson plan at one of the tea tables until dinner.

“I merely meant to bring to attention how striking you are from this angle.”

Byleth stopped mid-step at the voice and looked around. Just beyond a pillar, she noticed Lorenz standing in front of another student. Wearing the usual displeased expression, the girl huffed. Byleth could laugh. Almost.

She smiled and watched as Lorenz failed to win the girl over. It wasn’t the first time she’d witnessed his decimation, and it wouldn’t be the last. Awful professor that it made her, her amusement over it only deeped each time. His tenacity was to be admired, but she thought it would be better put to use elsewhere. Such as the classroom, if not the battlefield.

Byleth’s smile faded when the girl stormed past her. Holding her notes and text close to her side, Byleth rounded the pillar. As much as she wasn’t actively attempting to, she met eyes with Lorenz on her way toward the gazebos.

His expression was pinched, eyes narrowed and lips in a tight frown. Already an entire head over her, he looked down on her without trying.

“Lorenz,” she greeted in passing.

He nodded promptly. “Professor.”

Byleth traversed the walkways and crossed through a gate that led to the gazebos before letting herself smile again. She was probably going to need to talk to him about this behavior eventually. Until it became necessary to put a stop to his misfortune, she’d keep finding humor in it.

⁂

Pleasant wasn’t a word Byleth used for many things. The quaint village just outside of Garreg Mach, though, fit the bill. She didn’t have to find reasons to walk the cobblestone streets. She’d yet to make friends, had stocked up in the market that morning, and had no seminars to look forward to.

So she wandered the village, taking in its… pleasantness.

“Why, just look at these soft, delicate fingertips you have.”

Oh. Oh, no. That voice.

Byleth approached the end of an alley that opened into a wider street and considered turning around. With the number of times she’d experienced the second-hand embarrassment on Lorenz’ behalf in the single month she’s lived in the monastery, she couldn’t guarantee she’d remain calm, even in passing.

“It’s as though they could blossom into flagrant lillies before my very eyes.”

Oh, no. Byleth closed her eyes and fought a smile. Terrible. He needed to be stopped, and as much as she wished it weren’t true, she knew she’d have to be the one to do it. Opening her eyes, she rolled her shoulders and left the alleyway just in time to hear the response of the woman he was so artlessly flirting with.

“If you’re so wild about flowers, why don’t you try a flower shop?!” The woman walked away, leaving Lorenz in a wide-eyed state of disbelief.

Byleth watched his expression smooth over within seconds, his eyes rolling as a twinge of pink began to mottle his cheeks. She stopped in front of him, not exactly but close enough to where the woman had been moments before. Lorenz, to his credit, didn’t look surprised to see her beyond the arch of an eyebrow.

“That was rough,” Byleth said plainly. “Are you going to be okay?”

Lorenz blushed slightly deeper, and she realized then that she shouldn’t have opened her mouth. He cleared his throat, his hands coming to his chest to smooth down his shirt and fix the rose on his lapel unnecessarily. Byleth couldn’t explain why this made her smile, but for the first time since meeting him, she let him see it.

He was actually a messy bit of chaos, wasn’t he? It was hidden behind poorly constructed compliments and perfectly placed roses, but it was there, urging him to say the most insane things with a straight face. Lorenz the ladies man, approaching all aspects of life with a heightened sense of importance of which Byleth was certain he could never retain on his own. Not in the face of any woman on this side of Fodlan, at least. The longer she looked at him, the harder it was to keep the smile tame, and he ruined it by speaking up.

“I’m all right, professor.” Chin up, he looked assured but did little to keep the blush from his face. “Any woman who is taken in by such simple flattery is ill-suited to my noble disposition.”

Byleth pinched her lips between her front teeth and arched her brows. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t  not  laugh at him if he didn’t stop. Giving herself a moment to swallow down the amusement, she forced a frown at him.

“Lorenz, I strongly suggest you work on your courting lines until you’ve perfected them before you approach another woman.” She lifted a hand to hush him before he could interrupt. This was difficult; she was going to miss witnessing his silliness, but it shouldn’t have to come at the expense of every woman he came into contact with. “There have been complaints around the monastery, and now I see you’re approaching people in the village, as well?”

She tried for her best disapproving look, which she felt was working until his face grew a deeper shade of red.

“Ah, you’re misunderstanding, Professor—”

“I’m not. You need to stop.”

“Finding a suitable wife is one of my greatest duties—”

A snort escaped Byleth. “Lorenz, I’m serious.”

“You don’t seem it.” His brow furrowed, but she couldn’t be made to feel bad.

“I am,” she said through a growing smile. She was the worst professor in existence. If he weren’t her student, she would’ve flayed him like she had so many of her peers when they failed to land dates. “I’m so serious, Lorenz.”

“Repeating it doesn’t make it true.”

Bubbling up from deep in her chest, a laugh tumbled out of her. She put a hand over her mouth, her stomach clenching to keep it in fruitlessly. The laugh spilled through, right into her palm.

Lorenz crossed his arms. “What could be so amusing?”

Faced with his ire, she laughed harder. It felt good to finally let this out, and to do it right in front of him was cathartic. She was, without a doubt, the worst professor, and for the moment, as laughter shook her shoulders, she didn’t care.

“Professor, are you  all right?”

Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She wiped them away and inhaled deeply to calm her amusement. “You’re very funny, Lorenz.”

He blinked, as if startled by what she’d said. “Me?”

Finally free of the intensity of her amusement, Byleth cleared her throat and nodded. “Hysterical. Now, remember what I said. No more romantic advances on unsuspecting women.”

He didn’t appear impressed. “You say I have to improve, but how is that possible when I’m obliged to reign myself in? I’m not one to talk to myself.”

She considered him, then said. “If you have to, practice on me.”

“I can��t possibly do that.” His precious face grew red all over again. “You’re my professor.”

“Exactly. That’s what I’m here for.” She rounded him, ready to end the conversation. It was the longest one she’d had with him yet, and she hadn’t been as solidly put off by his prolonged presence as she’d expected. “See you in class, Lorenz.”

⁂

Seteth lifted a hand from his desk to rest his chin in his palm. “That’s a telling anecdote, but I’m afraid it doesn’t convince me of your argument.”

Byleth sighed through her nose. “You’re not convinced that I just don’t want to marry him?”

“You find him hysterical.” Seteth was becoming flippant now, as if goading her. “You said so yourself. You went so far as to invite him to practice romantic advances on you.”

“Better it was me than let him continue harassing every female student in sight.”

“Perhaps.” Seteth said this, but it was clear he wasn’t accepting anything she’d said so far.

Byleth once again felt like yelling. She had things to do. Actual things that mattered. “You should make tea.”

Seteth’s chin lifted from his hand, his eyebrows arching. “Oh? You’re going to share something of value, then?”

She rolled a shrug over her shoulders. “I’ll give every reason I have, if that’s what it’ll take for you to see what a bad idea this is.”

He pursed his lips, then came to a stand. “Just a moment.”

While Seteth prepared tea, Byleth wondered how Lorenz was faring back in the advisory room. He must’ve been much more insulted, all things considered. She could picture him talking about finding a wife being his personal burden and honor. Someone he chose, he was probably saying to Rhea now. A partner he’d find on his own merit, without the added confusion of past transgressions.

Byleth sighed into the empty room. This was going to be a long day.

(Part Three)

[b-kitsune]

Many ways to say I love you: Day Twenty Five.

Kidge-a-palooza 2019 Prompt: Longing. Pairing: Kidge (VLD) Universe: Post canon. Status: Part 6/7

For the past five years, Keith was always clear that the war had left serious consequences in himself, many of which cannot be seen physically. After all, it was inevitable when fighting a 10,000-year-old empire, but not all of them usually hold negative characteristics.

One of them is his impeccable ability to react to critical situations with enviable speed and serenity, always giving the best option when his judgment is warranted.

But at that time, while being accompanied by Ezor and Zethrid through the aisles of the garrison with palpable anxiety, he may end up fainting right there.

Both women were worried about him, being their leader both in the intergalactic aid program, and in the control of Marmora leaf missions, so seeing him with the nerves to the surface is not something that can be considered good.

The message that the green paladin sent hours ago had certainly worried him, but Keith declined to mention anything about its content.

When they reached the restroom, they met Lance chatting animatedly with a couple of cadets who were part of a project that he was probably leading in his spare time. Keith ran quickly to him as if life were going out of it.

''Hi! I thought you would arrive in a few more weeks...''

''Lance, Where is Pidge?'' Lance looked at him in dismay, and with some fun on his face.

''Apparently, you read her message recently, right?''

''I don't have time for your games, tell me where it is!'' He asked anxiously, drawing the attention of Ezor and Zethrid.

''Hey calm down buddy, today is her day off, she must surely be at her parents' house.''

''Thank you.'' Without paying attention to Lance's questions, he went immediately to the exit, without first asking his companions not to follow him for any reason and disregarding congratulations on Lance's high before leaving the room.

''Did something happen with Miss Holt, Mr. McClain?'' One of the cadets asked.

''Nothing important, Pidge probably played a joke on our friend.''

''What type of joke?'' Ezor inquired, curious about the whole thing. ''Did say she was dying?''

''Nah, she will surely have told him that was a father.''

The screams of both girls were stuck in her throat as Lance approached the screen of his cell phone, and a sweet awww came out in their place on the part of everyone to see the images taken a couple of days ago.

 ...

 When he arrived at the residence of the Holt family, he realized that his hands were sweating profusely, he didn't know very well what would do when he saw her after several months of absence on earth. Colleen received him happy to see him earlier than planned at the door, and without knowing what to say, he followed her silently inside the residence.

There, in the middle of many familiar faces, he could see Pidge sitting on the floor next to Kosmo and Bae Bae, surprised by his appearance.

''I'm glad you came back early! Did you read my message?''

''Hello...'' It was the only thing he could articulate while taking her hands tightly. He was shaking but dared not hug her in front of her parents at that moment. ''So it is true?''

''Of course, I couldn't believe it either.'' She brings him closer to their pets. ''Look, don't you think they are the cutest thing you've ever seen in the universe?''

Keith didn't give credit, he didn't know if it was because of the little puppies that surrounded his partner on her stomach, or the vile scam of the message Pidge had sent him. Kosmo had had a litter of four small wolverines, whose colors varied from white to dark blue that characterized it. The face of desolation was palpable, making Matt and Shiro laugh loudly, who had already guessed what Pidge had told him to force him to return earlier than expected.

''I am going to kill you.'' He said at last. Pidge, however, was falsely surprised by his threat, moving away from him to take one of the puppies in her hands.

''As you wish, but first we have to put names to our little babies.''

''Pidge...''

''Keith breathes.'' Shiro patted him on his back, seeing as a vein protruded over his hundred. ''If it had been true what I think Katie sent you, she wouldn't have told you by courier.''

''Already at this point, I think I have lost all faith in her, we will break.''

''Dramatic.''

''Learn not to scare people, damn it!'' Before pouncing on Pidge, she was approached by the puppy she had in her arms excited. He took it doubtfully after a few seconds, not even Kosmo had been as small as he did when he found him in the quantum abysm next to his mother, which touched him for a moment, slightly fading his frustration. ''It's... Too fragile.''

A loud sigh came out of his lungs as soon as he relaxed, calming the mood of the room, to sit next to Pidge and look more closely at the other puppies.

They searched for their mother's chest awkwardly, and barely had enough strength to open their eyes as they climbed on top of each other, complaining in the attempt. Keith laughed when one of them turned to try to get away from his brothers, completely relieving his annoyance with Pidge's lie.

He pulled her to his lap to lean on her shoulder when she told him how difficult it had been to help his space wolf to give birth, since that same night, a heavy storm fell that alerted Kosmo for many hours. Matt and Shiro had decided it was time to leave them alone, to give them some privacy.

''I'm very sorry that you took it so hard, I thought it wouldn't be so bad. '' Keith kissed the contour of her shoulder, in response to having been forgiven many minutes ago, Pidge sighed in relief. ''Aren't they beautiful?''

''They are, but ... What will we do with them as soon as they grow up? It is already difficult to take care of Kosmo and BaeBae when we are working.''

'' Well...'' Pidge turned to stare at him. ''Mom commented that it would be best to give them up for adoption.''

''Why?'' Keith couldn't help the trouble in his tone of voice. ''They are Kosmo's children, I will not get rid of them.''

''Okay, listen.'' She settled on the back of the chair to see his head-on. ''I knew you wouldn't like the sound of this, but you have to understand that having four cosmic wolf cubs is not a game, Keith. They need care, food and a lot of attention when they are young, we hardly pay attention to ours. How do you think they would feel seeing us only three hours a day?''

''Yeah, but...'' Keith felt doubtful about the issue. Pidge gave him a soft kiss on his cheek to appease the atmosphere that had tensed in a few minutes. ''I don't like how that sounds… I couldn't leave them.''

''You won't, in fact, when Mom mentioned the idea, it had occurred to me who could have the privilege of having a beautiful Kogane-Holt puppy.''

''Okay, I hear you.'' He replied laughing at the last. Hearing their last names from Pidge's mouth sounded temptingly pleasant.

''First, one of them is ours, right Kosmo?'' The wolf growled affirmatively; Keith's eyes shone with happiness knowing that they would stay with a puppy. ''Shiro said he planned to talk to Curtis to adopt one of them.''

''Seriously?'' Keith couldn't agree more with that decision. Pidge nodded animatedly.

''Before you arrived, he told me that he would tell him this week on his day off, so, if that were the case, Shiro would be the new home of one of the puppies.'' Both were satisfied with that decision, knowing that Shiro's home would be as ideal as being with them. ''One can go to the McClain family.''

''But Lance doesn't like Kosmo. And... Dogs in general.'' He commented skeptically. ''Why would he want one?''

''Because Lance didn't ask me, but Veronica. She said her family needs to have a guardian for the animals when they are not at home, and her nephews would do well to grow up with a pet.'' Keith nodded pleased once he thought carefully. It was a good idea, also considering that Lance's family was numerous and friendly, his puppy wouldn't feel alone at any time. So far, the options were adequate and close, so he felt no problem giving them to them. ''The other…''

''Who else? ¿Hunk? Koran?'' She slowly denied.

''Hunk said he didn't have time to have a recipe eater when he constantly travels through space. And Coran is not very interested in having a partner having the mice, and could eat his comb for the mustache.'' She sighed softly to say the last proposal, hoping that Keith wouldn't take it so badly.  ''It's Iverson.''

 ...

 Two months passed quickly since the last time Keith had embarked on land.

Many times, while in space, he didn't feel truly close to his planet. His family was close to him, complying with the control of the government of the galras, while his companions accompanied him on interstellar travel. Logically, he missed his friends more than he would admit out loud, but if by any chance of fate, Atlas returned to sail with all his neighbors inside, Keith would leave nothing behind to bind him on earth.

That thought was slowly eating him up. Somehow, he wanted to have what his friends missed when they walked away during diplomatic missions. Family memories, endearing sensations that would take him to a past day, and especially, a place where he could return when he was not busy. Those kinds of ideas had come as soon as Pidge had thrown that ridiculous joke that even her parents recriminated once they had heard.

For several days, Keith had the feeling that his first emotion upon knowing that lie was a disappointment, but he couldn't understand why.

''You have a strange face.'' Acxa let her look at the data on her screen to avert his gaze to Keith, worried when he didn't answer her in any way while still looking at nothing. ''Does something happen?''

''I... I've only been thinking a lot.''

''About the puppies?''

''What?'' He looked up confused.

''They have already turned three months. Veronica told me to take it this week because your wolf no longer breastfeeds them.''

''Oh yeah, you're right.'' He sighed wistfully to remember that fact, he had been close to the puppies to spend their last days with them, a soft smile was drawn on his face, making Acxa growl.

''You don't trust in me.''

''I do.''

He stopped her quickly, if something he had learned working with her, is that Acxa easily resented the minimum questioning of trust. He didn't recriminate her for that and had learned to cope with it. Working with Lotor had left sequels in her as in Keith with the war.

''I'm confused.''

''About Kosmo?''

''It's not about Kosmo!'' Keith sighed heavily before continuing, at least she seemed more relaxed. ''I... I received a message from Pidge before embarking on the Garrison.''

''I heard from Ezor, she told you that you were a father.'' Keith nodded silently.

''I thought it was she who was pregnant, and I think I lost my mind a bit in the process because I haven't stopped thinking about it.'' Keith was silent for a few seconds, saying it out loud felt lighter than many weeks ago, Acxa meanwhile, waited. ''I guess maybe I got more excited about it.''

''Well, who among us wouldn't want a family? It's something we never had when we grew up.''

A family.

Keith's mind stopped working at those words... As if he hadn't seen something too obvious that was written in his nose.

But before continuing to talk, Pidge and Iverson approached them.

''The ship will be ready to leave in another week for the A-78 galaxy, so we are loading the latest power supplies.''

''Thanks, Pidge.'' Keith mentioned while Acxa accepted the latest reports from his hand.

''I'll go show it to Kolivan so that everything is in order and we leave without contingencies.''

And with a soft smile towards Keith in an attempt to comfort, Acxa withdrew into the room. Seizing the opportunity, before Iverson said goodbye to Pidge and continued his work, Keith stopped him.

''Sir, I would like to speak with you.''

''What is it about?'' Inquired severely.

''Are you still interested in adopting one of Kosmo's puppies?'' Iverson was slightly confused for a few seconds, and with a drastically lower voice, he asked.

''I ... I didn't know if it would be considered.''

''When we first arrived on earth, you treated my wolf kindlier than many people. I really believe that our puppy would be in good hands if you wanted to.'' If there was some emotion in Iverson's eyes when Keith finished, it was immediately changed to a neutral face, although his smile remained.

''Well ... Yes, I'd love to.'' Pidge's smile widened at his response. ''Now, if you'll excuse me, I have issues to attend to.'' Pidge gave him a soft hug as they watched the officer entered through the hallways of the Garrison, clearly happier than normal.

''That was very sweet Keith, I thought you wouldn't want to give it to him.''

''What I said was true, Iverson loved Kosmo as soon as he saw her. After thinking about it for a few days, I didn't think it was a bad idea.''

Keith circled her waist while Pidge rested her arms on his shoulders, giving them a feeling of intimate comfort. There was nothing but machines and airplanes parked outside, with a few people who had more interesting things to do than observe them. So it was one of the few moments that could be affectionate outside the home without feeling uncomfortable.

''You're a mature man, Keith Kogane.'' Pidge smiled sweetly. So, Keith thought that moment would be ideal to let his worries out.

''You know, I've been thinking a lot about something.''

''Yeah, me too.'' Keith was surprised by the seriousness of her face, lightly squeezing his hands on her waist, had Pidge also had his same concerns all this time? ''How did BaeBae manage to breed Kosmo? Isn't she, like, three times bigger than my dog?''

''Oh my god, Pidge.'' He growled loudly, dropping onto her shoulder.

''What!? It is a genuine question.''

''I want a family.'' There he was, his low impulses acting again. He felt her back tighten on his fingers at that statement. So, without being able to continue fucking anymore, he continued. ''Not puppies, or rare machines that you do in your spare time, I want a family with children... And maybe more puppies, because they were very cute.'' When he looked up, he could see the alert in her eyes. Pidge was scared, or confused, he didn't know very well which of the two won her heart at that moment. ''I... I'll understand that you don't want to say anything for now, or send me to hell. But I want you to know that I have thought about it a lot, there is no one with whom I want to have a family, then with you, Ka-''

''Yes.'' It had been a whisper, almost inaudible if it wasn't for the proximity. Keith felt his heart pound so fast it would explode inside.

''Y-yes?''

''Yes... I would like to have a family with you.'' Pidge laughed while he saw Keith's face lighting up with joy, but before he wanted to kiss her, she pulled it away with a wave of her hand. ''But you have to talk seriously, not here. At home, both alone.'' He took hir fingers to give them a strong kiss on her yolks.

''Of course.''

Both smiled, with a project waiting to be evaluated in privacy.

[everlarkficexchange]

To be Her O.A.O. (one-and-only) - Chapter 2

written by: @noneyabidnes

Rating: Mature

Prompt 73: Katniss marries Gale before he’s sent to fight WWII. Gale sends home his buddy Peeta to break the news to his wife and family that he’s fallen in love with someone else in Europe and is staying there after the war… Peeta is under the impression Katniss is a cold woman that only married his friend out of obligation but finds out the other side of the story soon enough. [submitted by @alliswell21]

Tags: era-appropriate derogatory terms for Axis powers, angst

–//–//–//–//–//–//–//–

Chapter 2

The shadows are stretching long by the time we hear hooves coming up the road.  Prim jumps out of her seat saying she needs to check on the sheep as Katniss continues dinner preparations in the small kitchen.  I try to stand up to help just to have her shush me back down again.  I’ve offered more than once, but somewhere in the last couple hours, as we’ve talked about nothing in particular, she’s come to decide I’m an acceptable guest, and I’ve barely been able to take my eyes off her.  As she turns her back to me, I snag the rumpled photo back off the table and slip it in my pocket

It’s become my personal challenge to get her to smile as much as I can, telling stories about every Good-time Charley and cracked egg I met in the service.  I even managed a blush out of her, and Prim for that matter, delicately explaining why most guys referred to letters from their girls back home as sugar reports.  It prompted her to ask me about my own special someone, of which I had to admit I had none.  Delly Cartwright and I used to pal around a bit, but last I’d heard she’d gone and hitched up with Thom Quinn after he’d come back from France.  I wasn’t surprised to hear she’d fallen for the flyboy, nor was I hurt.  She and I weren’t cut out for one-and-only.

I’m still watching Katniss push onions around a pan when she starts to sing quietly to herself.  It’s a song from before the war, one I haven’t heard since before I shipped out to Parris Island, but what catches me isn’t sentimentality toward the song, but the rich tone of her voice.  Gale never mentioned she could sing.  He spoke endlessly about her hunting acumen, how sensible she was, if a bit distant and frigid in her demeanor.  He made it seem like getting any affection from her was hard-fought.  That even after they had married, he still didn’t think she really felt much love for him.  To hear the emotion in her voice as she sings, I know how wrong he was.  Not that she was in love—it does seem clear that wasn’t the case—but that she wears her heart where it can get trampled.  That this ‘cold woman with a hard stare’ as he often put it, is in fact a woman full of warmth.  Each smile I’ve earned from her has felt like a victory and now, to hear her singing as though she’s perfectly comfortable with me in her kitchen, I can’t imagine ever being able to tear myself away from this shack on this rock outcrop of a mountain.  From her.

And I immediately fill with shame for feeling it.  I shouldn’t be a goner for my best friend’s not-an-ex-wife.  We’ve only just met.  We know nothing about one another beyond the pleasantries we’ve exchanged these past couple hours.  There’s no way I could ever convince her that I’m an upstanding man if I were to tell her the thoughts running through my mind.  I’d only confirm her initial misgivings of having me here in the first place.

Prim stomps back through the door with a tall young man on her heels who is the spitting image of his older brother.  This must be Rory, the one Gale always speaks about with equal parts pride and frustration.  I carefully stand on one leg to shake his hand as he towers over me and Katniss gasps.

“We never went to your mother’s house! Oh no, we got so caught up talking about…what were we even talking about?”  She looks to me to fill in the gap and I return Rory’s solid handshake.

“Matters of deep importance, if I do recall.  Rory, I presume.  Your brother didn’t lie about how strong you are, but I doubt he realizes how tall you’ve gotten.  He was always proud of having a coupla inches on you.  I daresay you’re taller’an him now.  You must have been stealin’ rations.”

A grin breaks out on Rory’s face before he pulls me in for a quick, surprising hug, knocking me slightly off balance.  “It’s all the squirrel Katniss keeps feedin’ us.  Where is he?  Prim wouldn’t tell me anything.”  He hasn’t let go of my hand, but he’s looking around the shack, as though the Lance Corporal will appear any moment.

“We should go talk to you mother.” Katniss jumps in.  She turns back to the stove and shuffles pans away from the heat.  “Come on.  Let’s head over there.  Rory, can you help Peeta walk?”

“Peter?” He glances back at me and his eyes trail down to my prosthetic propped against the wall by my chair.

“Peeta,” she corrects before I can, and I have to fight the smile that threatens to take over my face at how natural my name sounds on her lips.  Lips I’m not supposed to be staring at.  The guilt flares again.  I have got to get a handle on myself.

“Peeta Mellark,” I fill in.  “Your brother and I served together for over two years.  Not many guys I can say that about, unfortunately.”

“But he’s okay, right?”

“Yes.  Likely already back in Japan with the occupying forces.  I would be there too, if it weren’t for my leg.”

His eyes widen, taking in the full extent of the situation.  Prim steps up.  “I told you, he walked all the way up here.  He can’t put weight on it for a coupla days.”

“Can you mount a horse?”

“Sorry, city boy here.  I’ve never been within twenty feet of a horse.”

“Huh.  Hard to imagine life without one ‘round here.  Okay, let’s see here.”

As Rory’s scratching his head, Katniss turns back to the stove and shuffles things around again.

“Rory, just go run and get your mother and bring the crew back here.  You can all eat here tonight.  I was just tossin’ together some stew anyway.” 

He nods at the order as though Katniss were his CO and Gale’s words about her strength pop back into my head.  He’s out the door before I can say anything else. 

“You run a tight ship ‘round here.”

“Hardly, but I’m his big sister, whether we share blood or not.  I carried that boy on my hip as much as any other woman on this mountain, and his little brother even more so.  They know better’an to give me lip.”

“Yes ma’am.” I salute her quickly before I return to my seat, surprised by how much standing for the short period on one leg has exhausted me.  I feel so far from the strong boot I was so few months ago.

She graces me with another small smile and I find myself berating Gale in my mind.  How dare you call this woman cold?  With the exception of her pointing an arrow at me when I first appeared on the mountain, she’s been nothing if not understanding and warm.  And she sings!  How could anyone walk away from her? Just as quickly the scolding turns back on myself.  She’s married, you cracked egg!  To your best friend!  Let it go!

In no time, Rory is back through the door with an even younger version of Gale in tow as well as a young girl who must be Posy.  I can see immediately why he is so protective of her.  Delicate features that are slightly gaunt, pointing to a rough life.  So beautiful and sweet in her countenance.  Her large grey eyes take me in and immediately turn back to her big brother. 

“He’s Gale’s friend?  Where’s Gale?”  Rory puts his index finger up to his lips and she falls silent.  I reach out a hand toward her.

“Hi Posy.  Yes, I’m Gale’s friend Peeta.  He sent me here to make sure you were all doin’ well.  He misses you so much, li’l sweetheart.  He told me lots about you, including how beautiful you are.  I’m sorry he’s not here himself.”

Katniss cuts in before I can say anything more. “Where’s your Ma?”

“She put herself to bed early and Vick couldn’t get her to crack an eye when he went in to wake her.”

Silence fills the small room.  What would they have done for dinner if Katniss hadn’t invited them over?  Looking at the boys, I’m sure they can fend for themselves, but it still reinforces the reason Gale wanted to marry Katniss before he left.  She’s the one who makes sure these kids are taken care of.

“Well, I guess there’s no reason to keep it hush-hush,” Katniss starts.  “Gale’s doing fine.  He got injured back on Okinawa, but he’s back with his battalion over in Japan now.  Thing is, he’s not gonna be comin’ home after he’s done over there.  He found a lady on an island that loves him and they’re havin’ a baby.  He’s gonna stay and live with her after he’s done his tour.”

Posy’s innocence cuts to the heart of it. “But I thought he was gonna have babies with you?”

Katniss shakes her head.  “No, Pose, me and Gale never was gonna have kids.  We’ve got you guys.  You’re all the family we ever wanted.  Don’t need no babies underfoot when I’m huntin’ or milkin’ the goats.”

“But you guys love each other.”

Katniss reaches out and pulls Posy into her lap like she’s done it a thousand times.  My heart breaks to see the comfort between them.  This is Gale’s family.  He should be here.  How did he walk away from this?

“Ya’ know Posy, you’re right.  Gale and I do love each other, but not the way your Ma and Pa loved each other.  Not the way Prim and Rory love each other.  Gale and I, we know, knew each other inside and out, but we were never big into kissing and hugging.  And this lady he met, he loves her much bigger than he loves me.  And that’s alright.  I’m happy for him Posy, ya’ hear?  Happy he gets to have someone who loves him like he’s the most important guy on this here Earth.  Someone who can give him babies and make him smile, because he deserves that, don’t he, Pose?”

The little one rests her head on Katniss’s shoulder and snuggles in tighter.  “Will you still give me hugs and kisses?”

“Oh, sugar, you and I? We’re together ‘til you can’t stand me, ya’ hear?  We’re family.  That had nothin’ to do with Gale and everythin’ to do with bein’ there for your first steps and first words, and holdin’ your hand on the way to school.  Gale can go have his big adventure.  We’ll keep being family here, no matter.”

“So he’s not takin’ you away?” The sweet girl points at me and Katniss’s eyes widen briefly before a soft smile graces her face.

“No, he’s not takin’ me anywhere.  Gale sent him here to make sure I was okay, to make sure we all are.  He doesn’t want us to be angry with him for stayin’ there.  And we’re not, are we?”

Posy shakes her head slowly against Katniss’s shoulder, her hand absently playing with the end of Katniss’s braid.

“Ma’s gonna be angry,” Vick speaks up and all eyes turn to him.

“Well, she’ll jus’ have to take that up with me,” Katniss states, leaving no room for argument.  “Now, if you wanna know how your brother’s doin’, this nice gentleman here, Mr. Peeta, can answer all your questions.  I recommend you ask ‘em one on top of ‘nother so that he can hardly keep up.”

She slides Posy off her lap and turns back toward the pots on the stove, but not before I catch the glint of mischief in her eyes.  Posy doesn’t disappoint, asking everything from what color Gale’s clothes are these days to what the baby’s name will be.  She keeps going all the way through dinner and up to the moment Rory picks her up to carry her tired frame back across the field to their home.

Prim follows them out the door, her hand resting on the small of Rory’s back.  I’ll have to write to Gale to let him know that Rory’s found his O.A.O., his one-and-only.  I wonder how he’ll react to it being Prim.  And I’ll have to fill him in on Posy’s interrogation. 

Behind me I can hear Katniss shuffling around by the small couch that Prim called her bed.  Just moments before Vick was sitting on it with Katniss and as I turn to watch I notice the threadbare sheets that are creating a home for me tonight.

“I know Prim didn’t really give you much choice, but if you’re more comfortable, I can sleep outside or in the barn.  I’m usta sleepin’ sittin’ up at this point.  I don’t need to be in your space.”

“Don’t you know better than to turn down mountain hospitality?  No, I don’t mind you being here.  It may not make much sense, but I kinda like havin’ you here.  The house feels a little safer, a little fuller.  I don’t know, maybe it’s just all those stories you told about Gale and the rest of the guys, but I feel like I already know you.  Like you’re just a long-lost friend that Gale managed to wrangle back to the mountain.”

She’ll never know how much those words mean to me, or how she’s brought hope to a man that has felt his worth in the world dwindling by the day, but I try to express at least a little of it.  “Thank you.  Gale told me you were fiercely protective of your brood up here.  I can see why, but yeah, from all his stories I kinda feel like I know all of you as well, although you’re a bit of a surprise.”

She turns to catch my eyes, a question on her lips so I plunge ahead. 

“I didn’t know how you would handle the news.  Most gals don’t take kindly to word their man’s shacked up with another girl.  Since I’ve told you, I’ve seen you smile and sing.  I dare say you’re genuinely happy for him.”

Bringing herself up straight and rigid, she rolls her shoulders back, incidentally drawing my attention to areas I’m better off not noticing.  “Ya’know Corporal, I am happy.  When we got married, I felt like I’d been trapped.  I knew it was the right thing to do.  I understood why he’d suggested it, but he, well, he had these feelings that I just didn’t have.  Only time we ever kissed was after the preacher finished our vows.  Shouldn’t a wife want to kiss her husband?  We didn’t even sleep in the same house that night!  He tried to…well, I shoun’t be tellin’ you all this.”

“You weren’t in love with him and he wanted you to be.”

She nods solemnly.  “We needed each other to survive for those many years after our Pa’s died, and he knew I’d take care o’ his family while he was gone.  I wasn’t lyin’ to Posy.  They’re my family, no matter what.  I didn’t need to marry him for that to be so.  But he wanted ta make sure his pay came here and that his mother didn’t drink it.”

“If you don’t mind my askin’, has there been a guy you did want?”

Her eyebrow raises, almost like a challenge.  “Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“Just wantin’ to make sure no one’s showing up with a shotgun while I’m sleepin’ in your house.  I’ve already been shot at enough in this life.”

She drops to the edge of the bed and levels me with her stare.  “You grew up in a city, so I’ll excuse you not knowin’ anything about small towns, but let me just tell ya, I’ve known ev’ry boy in this town since the days when they still ran around in nappies.  You’re the first new man I’ve met since before the war—ain’t no young fellas been around.  They all took off to fight the Jerries and the Japs, and those that stayed behind were chickens and ‘shiners.  No, Corporal Mellark, there’s no one poundin’ down our door in the middle of the night who’ll batt an eye at you on our cot, and if they did, I’d point my arrow right back at’em.”

“Hell, you’re like Artemis herself.  How could any man resist that?” I retort.

Happy with herself, the grin that splits her cheeks makes up for every bad thing I’ve seen in the last three years.  The heavy silence that sits between us stretches on until I wonder if I’m not the only one feeling awake and alive in a new way. 

When Prim pushes through the door several minutes later, she finds us still smiling silently at one another.  Shaking her head, she walks past us and into the back of the house to where I presume Katniss’s bedroom must be.  The spell is broken, but the smiles remain.

“I should be gettin’ to bed, Miss Everdeen.  My nurse says I have to rest up and I want to make sure I can help out while I’m here.  You got the fixin’s for pancakes in the morning?”  I don’t think my use of her maiden name goes unnoticed as she leans in so slightly toward me.

“You just have to sweet talk the chickens into givin’ you a coupla eggs, but I doubt that’ll be a problem for you, Corporal.”  Something about the way she says my rank sounds oh so good and my thoughts take a decidedly un-Christian turn, particularly with her sitting just across from me on what sure as hell looks like a bed.  Luckily, she takes that moment to stand. 

“Goodnight Corporal Peeta Mellark.” It rolls off her tongue, leaving me wondering if the innuendo is all in my head.  It has to be, right?  No way this beautiful woman could be flirting with someone as damaged as me.

My “Goodnight Katniss” as her skirt swishes past my knees comes out just shy of a whisper, but I swear she pauses to smile again. 

I’ve slept sitting up in the pouring rain as machine-gun fire bounced around me.  How in the world am I going to sleep tonight?

[jbuffyangel]

It Ain't Nothing but a Family Thing: Arrow 7x17 Review (Inheritance)

“Inheritance” is equal parts necessary exposition and filler episode. Not quite sure how the writers accomplished that, but they did.

Let’s dig in…

Emiko and Oliver

Soooo… here’s the problem guys. I don’t really care about Emiko. The whole time I’m watching this plot line unfold I am thinking, “Couldn’t Thea have gone all evil?” 

Take a pause and give that a good think. How awesome would it have been for Thea to take a deep dive down the evil hole? It would have been amazing, which is why I loudly demanded it for the six years Willa Holland was on the show. 

Watching Oliver try to pull Thea away from the Ninth Circle would have been a good time.

Not so much with Replacement Thea. The problem is I just met Emiko this season. I understand that’s typically the case when it comes to Arrow villains, but I’m supposed to bond with her character as Oliver’s sister and then be horrified when she turns out to be a villain.

Arrow even tried to fast track my bonding by making Emiko into Oliver 2.0.  I’m not really seeing the individualism except for evil. Every week the writers were hanging a sign out that said, “SEE? SHE’S JUST LIKE OLIVER!” by mimicking previous OG Oliver Queen scenes. Just in case you missed any of the visual cues or copied verbatim scenes, the other characters are here to verbally proclaim Emiko is just like her brother. 

Eh… keep it. Unfortunately, none of this has accomplished Arrow’s intended goal which is for me to give a crap about Emiko.

It should be noted that when Arrow does the “SEE? SHE’S JUST LIKE OLIVER” with Mia or “SEE? HE’S JUST LIKE FELICITY!” with William (and vice versus) I love it. Yes, I am aware this is a double standard. Maybe it’s because the kids have more personality than cardboard. Sorry Emiko. Facts are facts. Maybe it’s because they are Olicity’s kids and therefore my investment is virtually guaranteed. I don’t know. I don’t care. It’s Season 7 and I’m gonna do me.

The only thing keeping me mildly entertained with Emiko is that she is evil. I’m not really interested in watching her be redeemed either. I know I know. The season theme is redemption, but come on! Someone has to burn in the fires of Hades for all eternity. It doesn’t mean anything if every character is redeemed.

Typically, I am down for Robert Queen flashbacks whenever possible, but in order to make this storyline work they had to turn Oliver’s father into a tremendous pile of stinking douchebag. Robert was always kind of a douchebag what with the whole killing a man by accident, lying about it and then getting embroiled in Merlyn’s plot to destroy half the city because of his guilt. 

But he had gravitas. The class of an elder statesman. Maybe it’s the silver hair and grumbly grandpa voice I pray Oliver Queen will have some day. Maybe it’s because he put a bullet in his head to save his son. Annnnd… also murdered someone else in the process. Alright. Robert was a douchebag, but he was a mildly noble douchebag and I love him okay? I DON’T KNOW WHY!

But the Robert Queen in “Inheritance” is a misogynistic, slimy, cheating, coward who kicks his mistress and love child out of the swanky apartment he was putting them up at and tells his daughter, “Life isn’t fair. We don’t always get what we want.” Wow. 

That’s a great way to create a villain, Robert. Watch Batman or Star Wars or ANY HERO STORY EVER and learn fool.

Emiko worked hard to get her father’s approval or acknowledgement of her existence to the world. She wanted to run Queen Consolidated, but nope that’s a man’s job sweetie. Oliver Queen and his penis, which was whoring its way through Starling City at the time, are destined for CEO.  Emiko takes Robert’s misogyny in stride and simply asks him to back a company of her own, but he balks at that too. This is the last straw in a very long line of straws.

Unfortunately, Emiko doesn’t tell her father where to stick it and cut off all contact. No, that would be reasonable. Instead, she decides to go super villain on him. She impresses Dante after stealing from him and he agrees to train her. Emiko vacillates between being a Queen and joining the Ninth Circle for years, but the final brush off from Robert is the tipping point. She decides Dante is right and the Ninth Circle is her real family.

Oliver follows Emiko after Bl*ck S*ren warns she may not be playing for the home team and he sees her with Dante. Oliver confronts Emiko and she sings some song and dance about not knowing who the real Dante was when she signed up with him. Now she’s trapped. It works. Oliver buys it hook line and sinker, because blindly ignoring blatant warning signs is what he does when it comes to the Queen family.

He smartens up once he figures out Emiko sabotaged Felicity’s Archer program to protect Dante’s location. DO NOT MESS WITH THE WIFEY’S TOYS. 

Oliver and Emiko face off in a fight that’s a lot about her ponytail. It had a life of its own.

Sadly, this is one of the worst fights I’ve seen in Arrow’s history. I really hope Sea Shimooka isn’t taking acting tips from KC, because it sure looks like it. 

WHO IS SHE LOOKING AT? I’m not putting all the blame at her feet. Stephen upped his cheese factor about ten notches too. The whole scene felt awkward, choppy and forced.

Source: smoakmonster 

Diggle sits Oliver down for a much needed Yoda talk. John warns him not to be so invested in Emiko’s redemption that he ignores the threat she poses. Ah yes, the evil sibling plot line also happened in Season 4 with Diggle and Andy. 

Yeesh, alright it’s time for this show to end. John’s need to save his brother ultimately cost L*urel her life and he doesn’t want Oliver to make the same mistake. 

It’s time you left yourself off the hook on that one, Diggle. 

It was all win from where I sat, so stop being so hard on yourself.

UGH.  I tell the man to be Jesus and then he starts acting like Jesus!!! The nerve. Oliver, being a fully realized superhero doesn’t mean you save EVERYONE. Jesus didn’t save every – never mind. The point is, after seven seasons, now the pine tree listens to me? He could’ve popped the question in Season 3 and I’d be on my way to a second set of triplets, but nooooo.

Oliver wants to redeem Emiko because then it means he’s redeemed the family in some way. 

Source: olivergifs 

Why isn’t enough that you’ve redeemed yourself Oliver? You’re a Queen. You count. Yes, you were a massive douchebag once upon a time, but you stopped sleeping with Lance sisters (thank God), fell in love with sunshine, and embraced monogamy & commitment like the squishy teddy bear with abs we always knew you were. You also fight for the city, save lives, and cook your pregnant wife yummy veggies to munch on. You’re evolved dude. Cut yourself a break. And Thea isn’t exactly the Mistress of Satan. She’s off saving the world too. Two out of three ain’t bad.

This whole “Right my wrongs” needs clarification. First it was the list, but it morphed into saving the Glades. Then Tommy died and things kind of snowballed. So, how many wrongs are we talking Bobby? Let’s get specific. We’ve only got 15 episodes left. Did you sell Iran nuclear weapons? Use Moira’s toothbrush and not tell her? Steal candy from babies? Are there a dozen more Robert Queen kiddos intent on world destruction? 

Time is a wasting. I have a spin off coming and it needs to not be about your bullshit man.

Team Arrow ultimately foils Emiko’s plan. Well… kind of. They miss one drone, but no worries! It was just a demonstration. They’re worried about the next time, when it’s not a demonstration, but I was more focused on the few extra tidbits delivered in the final moments of the episode

Not only does Emiko choose the Ninth Circle, she is their leader.

She is also targeting the Archer program, which means nothing good for Oliver, Felicity and their children. Despite, my frustrations with Emiko’s character I am glad they are tying this all back to Robert and the Queens. Family is where this story began and it’s where it should end. 

Dante gave Emiko a gift when she was struggling between being a Queen or joining the Ninth Circle. It was the most hilariously unrealistic looking invoice from Merlyn Global, but it showed the location of the bombs on the Queen’s Gambit. Emiko knew about Merlyn’s plan and she could have saved her father’s life if she simply passed on the information at their meeting. But he rejected her once more, so Emiko sent Robert to his death and unknowingly condemned her brother to five years of hell. Damn.

What Emiko doesn’t realize is that by keeping quiet about the bombs on the Queen’s Gambit she helped set her brother on a path to become someone who can stop her. In the immortal words of Leo McGarry, “ "It ain't nothing but a family thing.”

Felicity Smoak

Source: felicitysmoakgifs

Felicity wins Walter White. 

This is something many fans have been saying for years, including yours truly, so I am quite happy the writers agree.  

Felicity continues to slay at all three, but a key part to “having it all” is knowing when you need help. Felicity asks her friend Alena to join the company as CTO.  Look how excited this human rainbow is. She melts my heart.  

Source:  felicittysqueen

Unfortunately, I don’t really trust Alena. Yes, I know she’s helped Felicity in the past, but I still feel uneasy about her. Perhaps that distrust is unnecessary and her interactions with Felicity will continue to be adorable and on the up and up. But Archer is corrupted somehow in the future and I’m keeping an eye on Alena in present day.

Concerns aside, I did have myself a petty little cackle. Technically speaking, Felicity had a built in CTO for Smoak Tech on Team Arrow – Curtis Holt. Instead, the writers ship him off to D.C. and bring in Alena who, shady or not, is far preferable to Curtis. I just didn’t think Beth would agree with me. She’s like friggin Santa Claus.

The biggest issue I had with the spinal technology was it didn’t really connect to the Team Arrow storyline. A character feels isolated on their own show whenever that happens. My concern was Felicity’s great individual storyline was going to cut her off from the action. 

The genius of this season, and the retooling of Felicity’s company, is the writers have found a way to weave it in with the vigilante storyline. Smoak Tech no longer feels like an island they are placing Felicity on, but rather it permeates almost every facet of the show – both past and present. This means Felicity permeates every facet of the show.

Last, but certainly not least, Felicity continues to be a bad ass wife as she manages more Queen family drama.  The man is an Adonis who cooks, but oy does he come with family baggage. At least, Oliver’s reaction to this type of drama is predictable and Felicity doesn’t miss a beat.

When he comes back from the field empty handed Felicity knows immediately how to make him smile.

Source: olicitygifs

She tells Oliver he’s hot. That’s it. That’s how Felicity cheers him up.

He compartmentalizes and hyper focuses on stopping Emiko, but Felicity tells Oliver to take a beat and process. 

Source: olicitygifs

Of course, Oliver ignores her and becomes frustrated with the team when they aren’t moving fast enough. So, Felicity tells him to cool it. 

He ignores her AGAIN, but at least we are blessed with this glorious response. 

Source: oliverxfelicity

Where has this gif been for the last seven years? If Oliver is going to be a stubborn ass then at the very least his wife is going to drag him for it with some patented Felicity Smoak snark.

I think Felicity and Diggle have a system for deciding who talks to Oliver. Maybe it depends on circumstance. Diggle seems like the obvious choice because he had an evil sibling too. Maybe they rock paper scissors. Whatever the system, it was Diggle talking down their boy this week. 

We did, however, get some quality husband and wife crime fighting team work. YOUR OTP WOULD NEVER.

Source: olivergifs

After a long day of supporting her husband, incubating their child and stopping criminals, Felicity returns to the loft to work on Archer with Alena. And this was a light Felicity Smoak episode. Damn. Queen of DCTV is right.

Sweet holy Moses, how are we going to do ten episodes without her? 

I love Oliver Queen. He is my favorite character, but I think we can all agree Felicity Smoak makes him infinitely more tolerable. Oliver can be stubborn, grumpy pine tree left to his own devices. Hopefully, he’s evolved enough that all of Felicity’s hard work doesn’t go down the tubes the moment they are separated. He is supposed to be Jesus now. I think Slabside is evidence it won’t, but ten episodes without Felicity Smoak feels like a daunting task. It feels like climbing a mountain...

only to get stabbed in the chest and chucked off the edge once we reach the top.

Bl*ck S*ren

BS decides to follow Emiko and gets spliced with an arrow because she sucks at covert ops. 

Source:  nyssaalghl

She goes to Olicity’s apartment to speak to Felicity about her Emiko suspicions, but unfortunately the wifey isn’t home. Bl*ck S*ren turns to leave when she realizes the only person available to discuss her suspicions with is Oliver. I believe there's 0% chance of L*urel falling in love with Oliver and 99.99% chance she's already in love with Felicity.

Not to be outdone, Oliver offers to bandage up her bleeding wound. He takes out antibiotic and gauze and SETS. IT. ON. THE. KITCHEN. COUNTER. 

It’s a very large kitchen counter too, so it creates the wide berth these two require to stand being in a room together.  

 Source:  nyssaalghl 

We’ve gone from main love interest to stay on your side of the room. I died. 

I don’t know how we got here family, but we’re here and it’s fabulous. 

The writers are more anti L*uriver than I am, which is an impressive level of hate - if I’m being honest.

I need to put on a sweater whenever Stephen and KC film a scene because brr it’s cold! 

The L*uriver fans expecting sexy bandage time must have been deeply disappointed. Or at least the two fans left were deeply disappointed.

Of course, Oliver doesn’t believe BS because duh. My dog could’ve called that one. He tells her to mind her own business and pretty much kicks her out the apartment. Obviously, L*urel is right about Emiko, but Oliver telling her to shove it never gets old under any circumstances.

Then Dinah accuses her of murdering a witness 

Source:  nyssaalghl 

and L&urel is righteously indignant.

Of course, L*urel is right. It’s not like she has ever murdered before. Why on earth would anyone ever think that? 

Dinah even has the nerve to bring up her dead boyfriend again. She really needs to let this Vince thing go because L*urel played lawyer for the last seven months and helped get Oliver out of a jail. See? All better.

BS is redeemed now, so Dinah really needs to stop bitching. Arrow is my life tutor, so following that same logic I’m going to murder a baby and then buy a puppy because it will even the cosmic balance. 

The best moment is when Emiko releases images of Savior of the World L*urel L*nce meeting with Ricardo Diaz. 

Source:  nyssaalghl 

It’s going to be pretty tough for BS to keep up the pretense she is law abiding, justice yielding District Attorney L&urel L*nce when she’s hanging out with one of Star City’s most notorious criminals.  I take it back. Emiko is awesome.

Of course, I’m not delusional enough to believe Arrow is going to give BS an arc that actually qualifies as redemptive. Helping Felicity was a good start, but it doesn’t wipe the slate clean for me. Not by a long shot. Neither does being a fake lawyer. I would like to see L*urel pay for her crimes the same way Oliver paid for his by going to PRISON, but I doubt the writers will give me that much Christmas. I am very curious to see how “Lost Canary” shakes out. That said, I have very little doubt BS will betray her one true love.

Stray Thoughts

“Which doesn’t mean she’s bad.” I told you Olicity wouldn’t care Emiko killed Diaz. They brought the marshmallows to his bonfire party.

“On your own.” Stephen read that line super diva and it cracked me up.

“Being a father is more than just blood.” I hate to agree with a villain but damn he’s right.

Every time Felicity touches her stomach I happy clap. Source: olicitygifs

L*urel’s shoulder pads have to be stopped. Just say no wardrobe department.

Forcing me to go without this adorableness for an additional ten episodes is not oka. I’ll go through Felicity Smoak withdrawal which is hazardous.  Source: ebett

Does Emiko visiting her father’s grave make a damn bit of sense now that we know she played a role in his death? Nope. Didn’t think so.

Disclaimer: Any gifs on the blog are not mine. If you would like a gif removed from my reviews, please message me. 7x17 gifs credited.

If you’d like to support the blog, please buy me a cup of tea!

[kcwcommentary]

VLD4x01 – “Code of Honor”

4x01 – “Code of Honor”

This episode infuriates me. My criticism for this episode is enough on its own, but it becomes even more egregious given what happens in the next episode. These two episodes back-to-back make explicit a double-standard in this show’s writing. The freedoms and acceptance given to Pidge next episode are not given to Keith in this episode. That makes this pair of episodes yet another demonstration of the inconsistency of the writing of this show.

A Galra cruiser arrives at an underwater base. According to a Galra there, the base is apparently so old they’re surprised the equipment and systems of the base still function. They’re apparently here specifically because of having been driven off of another base by rebels. One Galra says that “the rebels overran the Sigma-3 Quadrant. [This base is] all we have left in the system.” This poorly written line of dialog combines both a “quadrant” and “system.” Given the elliptical shape (technically, planets orbit in a vortex, not an ellipse, but for the sake of this argument, let’s say ellipse) of planetary orbits, the concept of a “quadrant” in a solar system is nonsensical. This line demonstrates that this show just uses words without ever thinking about what words mean.

Members of the Blade of Marmora are in the base gathering intelligence on Galra activity. They ponder how the Galra, despite the destruction of the komar, are still producing a lot of quintessence. One of the Blades has a tail: So far, we’ve seen Antok and the half-Galra Narti with tails. I don’t feel like I understand the scope of polymorphism that occurs in the Galra species. Is everyone with a tail only partially Galra? Without the details of their polymorphism defined, I can’t help but feel that character design for Galra are inconsistent. It prevents me from feeling like I have a clear concept as to what the parameters of their species are. (I think it’s mostly that the show never bothered to actually define those parameters.)

Sentries interrupt the operation, so the Blades extract themselves from the base and leave. Keith breaks protocol in the process to help Regris who wasn’t making it to their rendezvous. Kolivan chastises Keith for doing so. Keith counters that Regris had the intelligence they came there for, so had he not gone to rescue him they would have lost the intelligence gathered. This demonstrates Keith’s mental investment in his actions. He is working with the Blades specifically for the benefit that doing so is gaining intelligence useful in the fight against the Galra Empire.

The Paladins are based on Olkarion. Shiro informs Keith that the Paladins are on a mission and for Keith to join them. Keith reports about the content of the intelligence he and the Blades gathered. Shiro wants to postpone discussing it until after the current Voltron mission of escorting refugees, but Keith thinks the connection of this intelligence to Lotor is more significant. Why is the Castle Ship just sitting here on Olkarion? If this Voltron mission is so important, why isn’t the Castle Ship a part of it? The Castle Ship is essentially a highly mobile defense platform; it would seem to me that it would be even more valuable in protecting refugees than Voltron itself would be. Yet it just sits here on Olkarion.

The show writes Shiro to be annoyed with Keith. “This isn’t a request, Keith,” he says. So, we go to where the Paladins are. They’re not escorting at all, they’re literally using the Lions to grab and carry ships. Maybe Keith would have been less resistant had Shiro correctly explained what this mission the Paladins were on was. There’s a difference between escorting a ship and having to rescue a ship because it doesn’t have power. It’s even more senseless now that the Castle Ship is on Olkarion. If these ships the Lions are carrying lack power to move themselves, then they could just be loaded into the Castle’s sizable shuttle bays and the Castle could transport them.

The writing of this episode wants to contrive an excuse to have everyone yell at Keith though, and yell at him they do. Pidge, Hunk, and Lance are all unjustifiably obnoxious. Pidge says, “Well look who decided to show up.” Lance says, “Are you even taking this seriously?” And Hunk has look on his face. Only four ships are shown, one each for Pidge, Lance, Hunk, and Keith. Where’s Allura? If there were only four ships for the Lions to carry, then with Allura they wouldn’t have needed Keith. (And again, with the Castle Ship, they wouldn’t have needed any of the Lions.)

Keith and Shiro talk again; Shiro has talked to Kolivan about the intel. Shiro says, “We need to find out all we can about that quintessence, but more importantly, Voltron needs a strong leader.” This feels so contrived and/or inconsistent. Just two scenes ago, they had Shiro yelling that he was giving an order, now he’s complaining that Keith isn’t being a leader. It’s like the show itself can’t decide on what it wants the command structure of Voltron to be. It’s frustrating to watch because it makes the narrative spastic. The show doesn’t allow me to understand the dynamics between characters because it changes them from one scene to the next.

Keith again says that Voltron’s leader should be Shiro. Well, since he gave the order in the previous scene, that would suggest that he is acting as the leader of Voltron. But here, Shiro is now saying that the leader has to be Keith because “the Black Lion chose” him. Ugh. Shiro says, “We all have a part to play, this is mine now. I’ve come to terms with that.” The show doesn’t bother to show him doing so; if you’re ever curious about what the well-known advice in writing  of “show, don’t tell” is about, here’s a demonstration of it. They’re telling us Shiro’s come to be okay with not being Black Paladin, they didn’t show us him going through that process. That’s because this show is all about narrative shortcuts. Writing Voltron Legendary Defender to show rather than tell takes too much work and time, so they’d rather just use telling as a cheat to get around that work.

Shiro says, “I support your decision to continue with your Marmora training but not at the expense of the team.” Keith isn’t training though. Keith was not away on a training exercise. This was an intelligence gathering mission. It was a mission that explicitly was for the benefit of Voltron’s effort in fighting the war against the Galra Empire. Keith wasn’t just playing around, he was doing work to benefit the team. I fault the writers for writing the Paladins to be adversarial toward Keith in this. The writers are creating artificial drama by making the Paladins’ behavior in this episode unrealistic. And if we are to view the Paladins’ behavior as genuine and not just the manifestation of bad writing, then all the other Paladins are demonstrating a severe lack of understanding in this episode. But truly though, this intrateam conflict feels thoroughly contrived.

Coran announces that the Paladins are heading to a newly liberated planet (demonstrating that there was no reason for the Castle Ship to have been grounded on Olkarion). Keith justifiably objects: “We’re basically the grand martial of a parade.” Coran counters, “Not a parade, a show of arms.” First, military parades are terribly propagandistic, but it makes sense that this season starts with this since Team Voltron producing war promotional material is a significant part of this season. It doesn’t make Team Voltron look like the good guys to be engaging in these propagandistic efforts though, so I don’t know why the writers thought this on-going plotline was a good one. Even Pidge objects to this parade, having already conducted another one this week.

“I know it’s not exactly battling the Galra, but believe it or not, this helps us boost moral and strengthen alliances,” Allura says. Oh, there’s Allura. Where was she when Keith was being yelled at for not being part of the ship-carrying mission? I don’t see her being yelled at the way Keith was for having not been there, and Keith was only just slightly late. Allura, who has previously been depicted as aggressively focused on fighting the Galra is now, suddenly okay with engaging in more passive action? This could be a retcon of her character, which wouldn’t be surprising since this passivity coincides with the show demoting Allura to a non-leadership position as the Blue Paladin. Or, it could be more of this show being written inconsistently.

Team Voltron is not a marketing department. Team Voltron is special forces. They’re not average, everyday soldiers. They’re the few, the advanced team who comes in to deal with military problems that the main forces can’t. As such, it is totally absurd that the team is busy with parades. Lance wants to go over “Lion choreography” again. At least it’s consistent with Lance to want the adoration of a parade.

Kolivan contacts Shiro with an “urgent matter.” Again, incoming communications do not have to be answered by someone on the Castle, they just start. Good thing they weren’t in the middle of a private conversation that whomever was calling shouldn’t be privy to. A Galra supply ship is in “quadrant Omega Radar Six.” Pardon me while I growl at the use of “quadrant” here. Shiro offers to send Voltron to intercept the Galra ship, but Kolivan thinks an infiltration mission would be more useful so they can plant a tracker on the ship and see precisely the extent of this unexpected shipping line. Kolivan says that given all the work the Blades are doing, his agents are spread thin, so Keith volunteers for the mission.

Lance immediately complains, “What about our performance? We can’t razzle-dazzle the crowd with just four Lions!” Did Lance miss the part where Shiro was going to send the whole of Voltron for this mission? If Lance wants to be in his damn parade, this is how it can happen, otherwise, no Lions would be in the parade.

On Reiphod, which it feels nice to note looks like an actual planet, Voltron is busy with their propaganda event. Coran for some reason forgot Keith wasn’t there. Good to know that Coran cares about Keith and his safety so much that he literally forgot he was away on a dangerous intelligence gathering mission. Lance rants about how Keith’s not being there “is going to ruin our show.” Allura tries to act like this propaganda show has some higher purpose for the fight against Zarkon. Guess what’s directly important for that fight: Intelligence, which is what Keith is, again, risking his life to provide.

Keith, Kolivan, and Regris conduct their mission. The Galra ship is empty, and Kolivan feels something is off about the situation. Keith plants the tracker on the ship, while Regris goes to check ship logs. The ship turns out to be a trapped, rigged to blow up and kill them. Kolivan grabs Keith and pulls him to safety, but Regris is killed. (With Lotor eventually killing Narti, Regris’s death here, and Antok’s death in season two, this show really does like killing Galra who have tails.) Keith’s suit is torn, so he’s leaking breathable air.

Keith’s struggle to survive is juxtaposed with the rest of Team Voltron enjoying their party. The effect for me interweaving these scenes is to condemn the rest of the Paladins for their behavior, but the show never actually calls them down for it. It’s not like Lance and the others realize they’re in the wrong. So, while this scene produces an effect for me, I don’t think that that’s what the writing of this episode is intending.

The propaganda show abruptly pauses because Coran again forgets Keith is risking his life for them while they party. For some reason, the cheering crowd unrealistically uniformly goes silent because the Lions don’t form Voltron. Coran describes Voltron to them. I guess it’s supposed to be funny, but it’s not. Shiro has a grumpy look on his face. Sorry, Shiro, that your best friend is not at your party, but he’s busy nearly dying while fighting in a war.

Then, we’re apparently back on Olkarion for Keith’s return. When did Voltron decide to locate in one place like this? The whole point of the Castle Ship is that it’s mobile.

Keith runs into Allura, and she actually says she’s sorry to hear what happened (more of this please.) She then tries to complain about Keith’s not being there. “I said I didn’t want a lecture,” Keith calmly, but firmly interrupts. She gives a lecture anyway, talking about how Voltron has become “more than a weapon, it’s a symbol of freedom.” Okay, writers of the show, a weapon being a symbol of freedom does not work. Calling a weapon a symbol of freedom fits well in constructing propaganda, but it’s not something that those who value democracy should be doing. “I suppose what I’m trying to say is, the Marmora can go on without you. They have for thousands of years. Voltron cannot. We cannot.”

Keith returns from a mission in which he almost died, a mission in which a friend of his did die, a mission through which he was working to gain actionable intelligence for the war against the Galra, and Allura is going to lecture him about how they needed him for a damn parade? This scene again makes Allura’s character seem retconned, that the show has removed any sense of leadership from her, any sense of her drive to fight the Galra, all so they could manufacture an story to have everyone berating Keith for continuing to do the work they no longer want to do.

Keith does continue with dangerous missions with the Blades. Meanwhile, Voltron is engaging in humanitarian relief efforts. There is no reason for Voltron, the elite military unit, to be involved in humanitarian relief. That’s not to say that humanitarian relief isn’t necessary, but this is the entire point of building the coalition: Those who’ve joined the coalition should be the ones conducting humanitarian relief, not Voltron. You don’t send the Navy Seals to do the work of the Red Cross. The writing of the other Paladins in this episode is like they don’t care about fighting the Galra anymore.

Haggar calls in to Lotor’s ship to berate him for not caring about fallen outposts. She effectively complains that he’s not like his father. “An Emperor must be seen,” she says. This scene reaffirms for me that Haggar has only seen Lotor as a puppet for her to control, and she doesn’t like that he dares to push back against her. Well, Haggar/Honerva has always had the personality of a dictator.

Galra are ambushing some medical supply ships. “Voltron can keep those cruisers occupied,” Allura says. And then Pidge speaks. Pidge really should not be complaining given what she does in the next episode. But here, she says, “Actually, Voltron can’t. Keith is gone.” One, there’s more to Voltron than Keith. You still have four Lions, which have demonstrated that they can destroy dozens of ships with a single weapon’s blast. You also have the mobile defense platform that is the Castle Ship, which has significant weaponry too. You should be able to handle this without Keith. The fact that everyone is suddenly so incapable without Keith defies what this show has shown us in the past. Shiro sends the rest of the Paladins, but apparently the Castle Ship is just going to continue to sit around doing nothing.

The Galra ships involved in the attack on the supply ships are just three cruisers. One Lion should be able to handle them, given how this show has depicted them in the past. Hunk is overwhelmed by how many fighters are coming at him, so he just runs away rather than blasting them. Five more Galra cruisers show up, but this still shouldn’t be a problem for them, given what the show’s shown them to be capable of.

Shiro gets into the Black Lion and, while listening to the other Paladins’ continuing to have trouble, begs Black to let him pilot her. I’m torn on this scene. It infuriates me that the other Paladins are written to now being totally incapable. But I love how Shiro begs the Black Lion to “trust” him. Contextualizing the scene knowing that this is the clone, it shows that Black does trust him. This contributes to why it is so infuriating that the show eventually declares the clone to be an “evil thing.” The Black Lion knows this is a clone, and she still accepts him. Viewing the scene for the first time, we’re supposed to think that this is the real Shiro. So that creates the problem of the show not explaining why Black would not let him pilot her last season but will now. Nothing has changed between Shiro and Black. Since piloting a Lion is supposed to be about the bond between Lion and pilot, the situation being one in which Shiro is desperate should not have anything to do with Black’s willingness. It makes the progression of this storyline from Black rejecting Shiro to accepting him now spastic and inconsistent. But I do love that Black does now accept him. And I love what recontextualizing this scene, knowing that this is the clone, tells us about the clone: that he is not an “evil thing,” even if the show tries to write him off as such to justify the show’s callously killing him. The clone is a good man. He desperately wants to protect people, and he begs to be allowed to fight to do so.

“There’s no way we can beat all these fighters with only four Lions,” Hunk says, and the show ignores the fact that they’ve explicitly depicted a single Lion destroying dozens of ships with a single weapon blast before. Shiro swoops in with the Black Lion and takes out eight fighters behind Hunk just by flying past them (I assume he used the jawblade). So even in this episode, a single Lion is depicted as being able to take out many fighters with a single attack run. Again, inconsistent, even within a single episode.

They form Voltron and easily destroy everything.

Back on Olkarion, everyone gathers to being angry at Keith.

“You keep saying you’re sorry, but your actions say otherwise. Do you realize that your absence put the team in jeopardy?” Allura angrily rants. He’s trying to fight your war, Allura, the one that you all stopped caring about because you’ve been enjoying throwing parades lately.

Lance joins in on yelling.

Pidge joins in, “Matter of fact, the entire quadrant was in danger.” Pidge, given what you do next episode, you really shouldn’t be speaking.

Keith responds. He’s quiet, which given Keith’s characteristic sharp temper in the past, says something. He points out how his “absence allowed Shiro to reestablish his bond with the Black Lion.” Of course, this would work better if the show didn’t make Paladin-Lion bonds mostly meaningless through switching around who pilots which Lion. But still, Keith’s not wrong.

“Is that why you’ve been pulling away from us?” Allura asks. No, he’s been busy risking his life gaining actionable intelligence for the war. You know, the one you’re supposed to be fighting instead of having parades. The rest of you might have decided to have fun partying, but Keith’s been continuing the fight. Also, you all have been yelling at him every time you see him, so why should he want to spend time with any of you?

Keith even specifically tells the group that part of why he’s been away from the Paladins is because of the work he’s doing with the Blades, trying to track the new quintessence shipments, gathering intelligence, specifically in effort to track Lotor. This is all something that everyone should have already understood and supported him doing, but the rest of the Paladins were written to be so obnoxiously ignorant of Keith’s actions just so that they could be artificially made by the writing to treat Keith like crap in this episode.

Keith is going to work with the Blades on a long-term mission. Keith affirms that he feels Shiro is supposed to be the Black Paladin (of course the EPs of the show disagree with Keith).

The writing then has Shiro speak inconsistent with how he was written earlier in the episode. Now, Shiro says, “Keith, if this is what you feel is right, then we won’t try to stop you. Just know that we’re here for you whenever you need us.” They have all, Shiro included, spent the entire episode denying the validity of Keith’s work in this episode. Shiro yelled at Keith earlier in this episode, but now he wants Keith to do what Keith feels is right? He didn’t care about Keith’s convictions earlier. None of the Paladins cared. But now, suddenly, with no character work done on the part of the other Paladins, they have changed to behave totally differently with how they’ve behaved in the rest of the episode.

Everyone hugs Keith. Hunk, Pidge, and Coran cry. They act like they care about Keith now, when they’ve spent the whole episode treating him like crap. I do not whatsoever buy that they care about him. He’s been risking his life this whole episode, so don’t now pretend that you care about the risk he’s going to be facing on his next mission. Everyone’s emotional, and Keith leaves.

So now we get the next episode. After having spent most of this episode with everyone yelling at Keith, who’s been risking his life for the benefit of his team, trying to gather intelligence for them to use in the war, next episode, the inconsistency of the writing continues. This episode was written to make Team Voltron have problem with a single member not being constantly present. Let’s revisit what Pidge says in her rants this episode.

One, “Well look who decided to show up,” when Keith was just slightly late for carrying ships.

Two, “Actually, Voltron can’t. Keith is gone,” when she complains about not being able to form Voltron without all five Paladins present.

Three, “Matter of fact, the entire quadrant was in danger,” she yells at Keith when he shows up after the final battle but before she is spastically written with the other Paladins to suddenly change their minds from yelling at Keith to pretending they care about him.

Everyone yells at Keith for his going off away from the group in this episode. Pidge specifically yells at him about his doing so.

And what happens next episode?

Pidge goes off, separate from the group, on a mission for herself. No one yells at Pidge for her abandoning the team to go off on a mission without them. Pidge doing so, after having just in this episode yelled at Keith for doing so, makes Pidge a hypocrite. Everyone yelling at Keith for his doing so yet not having a problem with Pidge doing so makes them all hypocrites too. Keith’s missions in this episode were to gain them all intelligence for the war. He was fighting for others. Pidge’s mission next episode is personal for her, being her pursuit of her family. There’s nothing wrong with her wanting to find her family, but she’s doing it for her personal benefit, not for the benefit of Voltron or the fight against the Galra.

This is one of my greatest criticisms about this show: Voltron Legendary Defender is written with such blatant, amateurish inconsistency, and this episode is some of the worst.

[rainforestgeek]

If you lose your strength to stand (I’m gonna reach for your hand) pt. 10 “Don’t You Dare Break Now”

Part 9

AO3 link

--

Pidge and Lance found Allura and Hunk in the hallway outside the construction hangar that held the sincline ships they were working on with Lotor, and excitedly shared their idea, that they could connect with Shiro’s spirit through Voltron because he was still bonded to Black.

Allura was firmly unconvinced. The mood in the room soured immediately and Lance started getting on the defensive. It quickly devolved into an argument between them. The sudden change nearly gave Pidge whiplash, and she and Hunk could only look on in horrified fascination while the blue and red paladins got progressively louder and redder in the face.

“Allura, don’t you remember when we were trapped in that huge root ball and we all went into that void thingy? Shiro was there, with us! The real Shiro is alive and he’s out there!”

“If the clone could pilot the Black Lion, then there’s no reason to believe he couldn’t connect to Voltron the same way,” Allura replied firmly.

“But the clone doesn’t remember any of it! And when we were all connected like that, that was the first time it felt like Shiro in phoebes. I know it was him.”

“Do you have anything to base this off other than a feeling Lance?”

“He was talking to me.”

“Let’s say you’re right, that Shiro is alive and we could talk to him. What then? We would’nt have time to do anything about it. We’re already en route to Oriande. Sacrificing any time or people is not an option when Haggar may already have learned the deepest secrets of Altean alchemy.”

“But we’re missing a Black paladin. What good will Voltron be against an immortal crazy witch if we can’t form Voltron?”

“We’ve been through this before! Keith searched for movements and couldn’t find any trace of Shiro. We have to accept now that he’s…gone. And it’s terrible. But this time around we still have five paladins.”

“You’re not seriously going to make Keith pilot Black again? Did you forget back when he ran off with his ninja buddies just to get away from that?”

“Of course not. He left behind another Black Paladin that time. You should be more confident that Keith will follow his sense of duty – and we cannot afford to lose more time when we can already form Voltron.”

“Afford to lo – this is Shiro, not some lost cause! He’s rescued you and all our butts more times than I can count. We need him.”

“Keith is more than capable – ”

“Trying to be the leader almost killed him, Allura!”

“Do not interrupt me, Lance!”

“I will not stand aside and let Keith get burned out for good this time! If you cared at all about him you wouldn’t force – ”

“Guys, knock it off.” Hunk pushed his way between them with his hands up like he was negotiating a ceasefire. “We need to table this discussion until Keith’s here to talk about it, too.”

Pidge had never seen Lance and Allura fight like this. “We should remain on course for Oriande,” Allura said. “This time just close enough so Pidge can scan the area for any sign of Haggar, without the energy tear apart the Castle. It’s time we defeated her once and for all.”

Pidge was already thinking about the problems with engaging in battle so close to a white hole. Something pushed her to jump into the conversation. “Ask Lotor if he knows how big her fleet – wait wait wait!” She smacked Lance’s arm with the back of her hand. “Haggar replicated Shiro’s consciousness almost perfectly. There has to be clues on her ships about what happened to him. She might even have him!”

Hunk looked doubtful. “The druids have extensive data on Shiro’s physiology from his time in the gladiator pits. I bet anything that included all the brain scans in existence.”

“You don’t know that! So maybe Shiro’s not there but there still might be some indication about what really happened to him!”

“Allura, please. It’s at least worth a try.” Lance said.

Pidge looked between them. “If Shiro’s alive and we contact him, we could know for sure if we’ll find him when we reach Haggar.”

Allura looked at Lance for several seconds with a mask of royal composure on her face, and flicked her eyes to Pidge. It made Pidge fidget uncomfortably with the hems of her sleeves.

Finally the princess relented. “You’re right. Find Keith, please, we should need him as well.”

“On it.” Lance left.

Allura had the bridge of her nose pinched between her thumb and forefinger. (It was so weird Alteans had the exact same fingers as humans – sometimes the similarities legitimately scared Pidge.) Hunk hesitated at the door, looking at her with furrowed eyebrows.

“You go on and work on the quintessence ships with Lotor, Hunk. I need a moment.”

He did so but didn’t look happy about it. Pidge stayed exactly where she was, while Allura sank onto the nearest chair with her head in her hands and sighed heavily.

Pidge debated with herself internally. Allura was clearly exhausted and frustrated – that was, like, Body Language 101 – and maybe she needed to be left alone but maybe not? And Pidge wasn’t usually helpful in emotional situations. “What’s wrong? I mean, I know there’s everything and their mother going on right now, but is there something specific making you all…” she gestured awkwardly at Allura’s stance, “…morose?”

“I’m fine, Pidge.”

That’s a non-answer. “You don’t look fine. And back home, Matt used to make me talk about it when I was upset and it actually helped. So if you need to talk. I’m here.”

Allura stared into the middle distance. “Voltron needs to be united to win this war. All this squabbling puts us at serious risk.”

“I think we argue to figure out what’s the best choice. We’re still one team.”

“And what if those decisions aren’t the right ones? What if I’m dishonoring my people, my parents, by compromising instead of winning? What if we’re making too many sacrifices to broker peace?”

Pidge couldn’t wrap her mind around the agony the princess must feel about being one of two sole survivors of a genocide. “It makes sense that you feel alone. I know we’re not your family, but you’ve got all of us.”

Allura surprised Pidge by standing and pulling her into a hug. “You are my family, Pidge, all of you. Though I fear I’m losing Lance.” She said the last part so quietly Pidge would’ve missed it were she not talking right in her ear.

Pidge patted her on the shoulder then pulled away as gently as she could. “You don’t get rid of Lance. Once he likes you he latches onto you and it’s impossible to get him off. Believe me, I’ve tried.”

“Perhaps. But I broke his heart and he’s angry with me.”

Goddammit. There were way too many feelings to keep track of now and it made Pidge uncomfortable. Not least because apparently some of them were hers. She chewed her tongue and thought carefully about her response.

Finally, she said, “You did the right thing. Falling in love with you made him miserable, and frankly, it was really annoying for the rest of us. You gave him permission to move on and he is.”

Allura grinned weakly but her eyes looked brighter. Thank God. “I hope so. And thank you, Pidge. I couldn’t ask for someone more like a sister.”

And that? That made all the uncomfortable awkwardness worth everything. Pidge smiled. “Let’s go find a magical solution to an economic disaster.”

--

When Lance got to the elevator, the door slid open and Matt tromped out. He had his arms crossed, hands balled into fists, and everything about him looked tense and just that much closer to snapping.

Good God, why were all the Holts so scary? Sam wasn’t this frightening. Lance’s stomach contracted at the thought of meeting their mother – she’s gotta be a wildfire of a woman if she raised kids like this.

“What’s wrong?”

“I hate interrogations,” Matt grumbled.

“She get under your skin?” When he got no response, Lance cleared his throat and changed the subject, “Is Keith still down there? I need him for something.”

“I don’t know. He seemed pretty upset by what Ezor said about Shiro…Shiro being dead. He left to cool off.”

Lance narrowed his eyes. “Left as in ‘stomped off without an explanation?’”

“Yeah, so?”

A deep, long-suffering groan traveled from the dark recesses of Lance’s soul and out of his mouth like a sick Kaltenecker. Keith was going to make him tear his hair out one day and he’ll never forgive him for it.

“What?”

“He’s not cooling off, he ran off! He’s probably scouring the universe for Shiro right now!”

For Keith, the violet light and soft humming of the Black Lion’s cockpit felt like remembering his dad. A bitter familiarity of lost love lingering in his heart.

When the fuck had he become a poet?

He touched down in the hangar for the Blade of Marmora headquarters. A number of Blades congregated around Black as he disembarked, so it was easy to find a commander to fill him in on what he needed to know.

Keith paced the familiar trail to one of the main tactical chambers, pressed the door buzzer, and entered at the go-ahead. Both Kolivan and Krolia looked up from their work at him. Their faces were both unreadable.

“Kolivan, I need to talk to my mother alone, please.”

The old galra nodded in assent and exited unceremoniously, the door swishing shut behind him.

Krolia took a step closer to him then hesitated. Keith had infrequently known galra to act nervous, but she stood awkwardly like she didn’t know what to do next. She was rubbing her thumb over her closed fist at her side, something Keith did too when he was anxious. Seeing her in front of him felt so strange but so familiar. Like she was an old, half-forgotten dream.

“Keith.”

“How did you meet my dad?”

Part 11

[sol1056]

git along little nonnies

Got a whole bunch of you on related themes, so I’m just gonna do this all at once: a bunch of questions about DW, spinoffs, merchandise, business, management, support (and protest) and whatnot. In no particular order.

Ok there are petitions and peaceful boycotts directed at DW but problem is they aren’t addressing the EPs and things they, not DW, did so how are we to sign them, how to handle this when this could at best confuse the situation and not give any results and at worst, make matters even worse about what we want regarding DW addressing things? 

Here’s what companies care about: money. Everything else is gravy.

If you want a corporation to pay attention to your complaints, then you need to figure out their sources of income, and find a way to threaten that. If the social reprobation is high enough, damage to the brand can translate into lost sales, but the tempest required to make that happen must be much, much larger than anything I’ve seen the fandom manage. 

I’ve been saying this all along: voices are far more powerful than signatures. If twenty thousand people wrote or called in, and said what they liked vs what upset them, that would have a far greater impact. Certainly a lot more than a list of names with no emotion beyond a request that may not even be something DW can, or would, fulfill.  

And don’t even get me started on mailing stuff in. Cute, but hardly actionable.  

Do you know what kind of contracts DW sign, as in, are they obligated to air all seasons, can they choose not to air them, do the companies they work with (netflix, wep) have a say or more say than them? Who gets the last word? Is airing all seasons squarely on DW or more? 

As I’m not a corporate lawyer employed by any of the signatories, I can’t tell you what the contract stipulated. What I can tell you is that a contract of the magnitude of the DW-WEP-Netflix agreement probably had a dissertation worth of riders covering the different types of possible defaults or breaches, and the penalties for each. Additionally, the contract also likely covered what constituted ‘satisfactory delivery’ of the product. 

To take it down to a really simple level: you place an order at a restaurant. You expect to get it, eat it, and pay for it. You don’t expect to be told, “hey, we burnt your steak and we’re out of butter for your sweet potatoes, so have some green beans instead,” and then be told you still owe the full amount, anyway. 

Netflix wouldn’t settle for ordering (and paying for) something never delivered, anymore than you would. Sure, any corporation worth their over-inflated stock options would try --- but that’s the point of contracts, to make sure they can’t. 

Netflix paid, DW delivers, end of story.  

 ...do you think ppl in charge didn't think EPs would tell they made changes and also thought they'd manage to bury it? And then they got in trouble and DW is going thru changes for that reason? -waves at DW goings on and silence.

I got lost in all the pronouns, there. Who’s the first ‘they,’ the EPs or DW execs? Is the second ‘they’ referring to the same as the first? So... I’m not really sure what you’re positing, but if the ‘DW is going through changes’ is implying DW’s got a shakeup and/or is promoting its head-of-TV to president and that’s somehow connected to two newbie EPs screwing up?

I’d say the chances are so infinitesimal as to be nearly in the negative. (I should also note, the press release listed successful shows Cohn oversaw, yet oddly did not include VLD.) DW is not a three-person start up; it has stakeholders and a board and a C-suite to satisfy. Cohn got that promotion ‘cause she’s got a track record going back thirty years, most recently growing DW’s TV division from 8 to 800 in five years. 

Most corporations tend to announce their new CEO or President like someone woke up that morning and went, hey, I’ve got a great idea. Truth is, it’s usually in the works for at least a year, sometimes several years, or more. The only thing that has me side-eyeing the announcement is the silence around who’ll fill Cohn’s previous position. 

But that’s again less to do with a single series, and more to do with what it says about DW as a whole, business-wise. 

What meaningful changes could the new president Margie Cohn make that would be different than the last one? Also I'm sorry if your getting a bunch of Voltron/DW questions lately, you just seem to be the most knowledgeable person on this platform.

I’d be willing to bet I’m far from the most knowledgeable person; I’m just someone not bound by an NDA, and curious enough to do a bit of digging and jaded enough to talk about (most) of what I find. 

A president can have immense impact on a company’s direction; that’s kinda why they exist, to set that high-level strategy. That said, Cohn will be bound by all contracts signed by her predecessor. The TV side (barring someone filling the shoes she left) will probably continue as it was. The theatrical side (which she’s taking over) will be where we’ll probably see any major changes. 

And even those aren’t likely to be on films currently in production. Hell, given theatrical animation can take up to five years, I’m not sure that’d show much change, either. Look instead to changes in investors, new deals, and new properties. 

What do you think DW will do about a sequel if there’s really no bible? Theres tons of plot holes & abandoned storylines. VLD will never feel satisfying, and fans already argued with different interpretations based on conflicting content, without a nice satisfying explanation...

I know this is the first of a three-part ask, but I’m skipping the rest because the only answer possible is to your very first question: the bible doesn’t matter. 

Any new series --- even a continuation --- will construct its own bible. Same as we’d do in fandom: they’ll patch together what they can, fill in blanks as they need, and gloss the rest, or retcon it outright. Even if there were a bible, diligently followed, that doesn’t mean the next series is automatically beholden to it. Some franchises would care (ie Star Wars) while others might let a reboot mess with the details (ie Star Trek). 

For every continuation, there’s gradations in between, since otherwise what’s the interest for creative minds, if you’re obligated to follow someone else’s script exactly? So, no. The absence of a story bible doesn’t preclude the next iteration making its own, as it needs, to whatever extent it requires. 

I was wandering around the hot topic online store, and i noticed a shirt that raised a few flags and questions. it's the 'Voltron Location' shirt. it has all the paladins in different places in a star globe chart thing? with what might possibly be planet designations. plus Lance is the only one not inside his blue colored bubble. Keith is in Red and Shiro in Black again. it's interesting at least.

Nearly all the shirts use the same base images, just changed up. It feels a little like someone handed a designer a half-dozen images with a request for forty-something designs --- and now HT is just throwing them all at the wall to see what sticks (or sells). 

HT’s stuff has been pretty consistent, from what I’ve heard: Shiro is Black, Keith is Red, etc. Considering the t-shirts seem to be selling out regularly (along with various other sidelines), I’d say someone is savvy as to the fact that the segment of fandom spending the most money is also the segment that prefers the S1/S2 lineup. 

If that’s what customers want, it’s smart business for DW to provide.

(Yes, that applies on more than one level.)

There are VLD comic books being released by LionForge Comics, are those considered canon? Do LM and JDS have any involvement? They take place before Season 7and8 but I don't wanna support the original EPs.

Every fandom has its own stand on what counts as canon. Sometimes (especially with adaptations) you’ll find fandoms being explicit as to whether they’re book or movie (ie HP and LotR). I expect the same will eventually shake out in VLD’s fandom, too. 

From everything I’ve heard, Hedrick and Iverson were handed the comics and ran with it. I suppose that would argue for seeing the comics as canon, being they were written by people also writing the main series... but from what I can tell, it’s one-way. The show affected the comics, but nothing in the comics ever affected the series.

That said, your purchases have nothing to do with the original EPs. All you’re doing is telling DW you like the VLD-iteration of Voltron.

What are your thoughts on the final vld poster? I feel like it’s missing the end. Allura is randomly staring back into nothing.

It’s a clever idea to do a poster for each season, but it’s not something I’ve ever paid any attention to, really. If it were drawn by the head writer? That might mean the artist had more insight than, say, a storyboarder or animator. But even then... cool picture, still not-canon. I’m only interested in canon.

Do you think that Voltron was rushed purposely by the EP's. [...] Wouldn't this effect the quality of, well, everything? I feel as if they got frustrated with the show at that point and just wanted out.

Dude. There are times I sit here and just stare into space, bewildered yet again not just at the thought of 39 episodes released in one year --- but doing that with 26 as a last-minute cut-and-paste rearrangement. All I can tell you is that what I’ve seen from animation people and aficionados (and friends) is that three full seasons in one calendar year is just bonkers. 

If DW hadn’t wanted the schedule that packed, the EPs aren’t the ones getting the say. That’s a DW-Netflix thing. I really wonder whether DW used VLD as a guinea pig. TH went a year between S1 and S2, and the numbers slumped badly. Perhaps DW wanted to know if more episodes, more often, would keep fan interest high? DW has experienced execs, but they’re all from broadcast; how you arrange and time things in the brave new world of binge-watching is a completely different beast. 

So, it’s possible it was less of a rush job to get the show out, and more from a desire to see what'd happen to release so much, so close together. 

I still think it’s a bonkers schedule, though.

"Relaunch the whole property" sounds like they won't continue expanding the whole vld universe and they'll make a new itineration. Though if they do a spin-off it'd likely be on the vld universe surrounding the new "Legendary Defenders" from the epilogue. And "especially given the response" do you think after the negative response from s8, wouldn't be better for WEP to not keep working with Dreamworks? Or maybe they need to clean their brand from vld fiasco? What can you say about all of this?

I can say you might try re-reading, because boy is that a radical interpretation of the text. Remember, Jeremy was speaking before S8, and all indication is that he was caught off-guard as much as the fans. Re-read in light of Jeremy (at the time) appearing to expect S8 to be a crowd-pleaser.   

...I'm becoming more confident in my belief that DW has something planned for Voltron. I mean they are still heavily promoting the show, LionForge is still publishing Voltron comics, and merchandise is still being made. These don't seem like the actions of a company trying to get people to forget a show. 

You’re not wrong. Up to the last few days of 2018, DW gave every indication they wanted S8 quietly buried. Nothing they’ve done since has fit that pattern --- including the anomaly of failing to announce their 2019 series. Something is going on, that’s for certain. 

Did DW really just throw the VAs to the wolves [for] three days? and there's still no official stance? One panel was enough. They had [the VAs] take the heat for them? But thankfully fans felt sorry for them? Which could also have been the goal, shut the fans up [with] the VAs of the characters who got the worst treatment and who love their characters ... Yes DW this really makes me trust you /sarcasm/

I don’t think that was the original plan. Let’s pretend DW released its 2019 schedule via press release in the first few days of January, and among those was an announcement of a VLD sequel or spinoff, coming late 2019. 

People wouldn’t be fussing over putting the VAs through three panels. They’d be complaining we didn’t get the biggest room for every panel. The majority of the fandom doesn’t trust the EPs, and is wary of DW --- really, the only ones who retain any goodwill, at this point, are the VAs. So who better than to assure a nervous fandom about the goodness of the second iteration than the VAs whose characters were most shafted by the first iteration?

What breaks this is that immediately after S8 dropped, Josh and Kimberly went silent on twitter. AJ slipped into passive-aggressive snarking; Jeremy fell off the radar and usually he’s pretty interactive with his fans. Bex pretty much wiped  VLD from her stream, possibly including deleting older tweets. Neil tried to engage and made a hash of it, bless his heart. 

Josh and Kimberly are consummate professionals who reliably promote the series after every season drop, but their radio silence continued for almost two weeks. This wasn’t the first season that came saddled with controversy; if there was a time to go quiet, it was after S7. Something else was going on. 

I have strong suspicions backed by research, but if I’m right, I’d be stepping on a major legal landmine. In the interest of not getting blown up, I’ll only say that the VAs appearing for those three panels (and their low-key and mostly diplomatic hedging around VLD’s conclusion) was a good sign that all parties involved are willing to work things out.   

[DW was] quick to handle the Season 7 backlash and have stayed mum on what is arguably a much worse reaction to the 8th and final season.

and

I believe the S8 of voltron we got was not the original ending we were supposed to get and highly edited. My question is why? What was the point of changing the original ending? [The] radio silence from DW and the cast is driving me nuts. I wish DW would make a statement.

DW is in an interesting place. Its TV side is barely five years old, but dominated by execs with long-time broadcast experience, predating vibrant interactivity afforded by platforms like twitter, tumblr, or instagram. DW’s background as a theatrical company also seems to incline it away from any ongoing engagement with the audience. It releases a movie and by the time that hits theaters, DW is onto the next thing. 

It’s a strong contrast with production studios like Zagtoon (Miraculous), who penned an open letter to their fandom about production delays. Or little studios like Wonderstorm (The Dragon Prince) whose deft use of twitter and tumblr sets their brand apart. Or Federator (Castlevania), with their witty marketing campaigns and willingness to engage with fans. Even Disney was willing to be open about its errors with Tiana, and to make clear how it was striving to do better --- so there’s no excuse that only small studios do such outreach.

My guess is that DW's core leadership is from the school of business in which admitting a mistake is tantamount to ritual suicide. Don’t blink first, or maybe the rule is never let them see you sweat, but whatever it is, DW is turning into a textbook case of how silence can damage a brand. 

Companies have multiple avenues to reach customers directly, now. Our modern technologies are a two-way street, and good companies leverage that to create not passive fandoms but active communities. It takes work, careful planning, and some level of transparency --- something old-school execs find highly uncomfortable, to be honest --- but in this day and age, those are crucial building-blocks to achieving any kind of audience loyalty.

DW isn’t going to render itself obsolete (at least not overnight), but it's on a track to end up as the studio whose work audiences only watch when there’s nothing better being offered. Unfortunately for DW, there’s a hell of a lot of other studios out there, and they're all offering something better. 

[sasuhinasno1fan]

The ultimate change

I kinda hate this but have no time to rewrite it. I'm sorry there isn't much klance except for a bit of bonding. Cannon Divergance

How did it come to this? It seemed like a week ago, Lance was just trying to prove he deserved his place in the fighter pilot program, though a certain asshole named James liked trying to prove he didn’t. he and Hunk had planned on grabbing Pidge and just going to town. Instead they found Pidge on the roof searching for something and hearing about Voltron. Then, Shiro came crashing down in his escape pod. Alive, with a bit of white and a new arm, but alive. But the Garrison wasn’t interested in listening to what had happened to him. they wanted answers on Shiro’s arm more. Lance lead them down to try and stop them only to see his own cousin Adam knocking Iverson to his ass.

“I thought you said you didn’t like him anymore?” Lance asked as he helped Adam drag the unconscious pilot to a nearby Jeep to get away from the Garrison.

“Not the time Lance.”

“I’m just saying. You two were engaged and you weren’t over him when he left and you’re risking your job to save him.”

“Lance, be quiet!”

Adam drove them to the house of an old Garrison professor, who apparently had a lot of secrets.

“He married an alien? Like an actual alien?” Lance asked, even as he looked at the picture in his hands. He also noticed the young baby in the woman’s arms.

“He told us that his wife had come here trying to make sure no one found this ship. We don’t exactly know where it is, just nearby.” Shiro explained. “In order to make sure no one found it, she had to leave and she took their kid with them. We could tell it still affected even though she promised he’d be safe. He made us promise that if something happened, we’d make sure this ship wasn’t taken. And I’m sure this ship we was talking about is part of Voltron.”

“Luckily for us,” Pidge said, looking at the paperwork that Adam had located that they were scanning into their laptop, “he left us with a lot of clues.”

“Plus with the info Pidge had in his diary,” Hunk started, ignoring the fiery glare he was getting from Pidge, “I can track the energy.”

So they followed Hunk’s tracker to the cave and after Lance activated the seal, found the Blue Lion. He had flown it from Earth and away from the Galra as Blue wormholed her way back to the castle. They then awoke Princess Allura and Coran and found out what was actually happening. Then Adam dropped more surprises on them.

“This woman, the one you said found the Blue Lion, was Galra?” Allura asked, her voice hard.

“Princess look, I get that you are angry with the Galra for what they’ve done, but you can’t tell me that the idea that a rebel group within their ranks isn’t too hard to believe?”

“The Galra are all the same.”

Adam looked frustrated. “Here’s a history lesson for you. Earth had a guy almost as bad as Zarkon. Believed that his race was superior to everyone and was responsible for thousands of deaths through genocide. But not everyone in his ranks were on his side. There were people who would be killed for hiding those people he believed were less than them but they did it anyway because they knew that man was wrong. Don’t stand there and tell me they’re all the same when what you’d considered to be a primitive race managed to look past that.”

In the end, the princess agreed to give them a chance and paired them up with a lion. Lance and Hunk got the Yellow Lion, Shiro and Pidge found the Green and Adam stayed with the Princess, who still couldn’t locate the Red Lion. Once they were back at the castle, they decided to leave Arus.

“That ship that was after the Blue Lion will no doubt still be tracking us and I don’t think 3 Lions is enough to take it out, judging from it’s size.” Adam pointed out.

“You’re right. The Black Lion is still under lockdown until we can find the Red Lion. My father was its Paladin. It’s possible that Zarkon could have taken it.”

“Well let’s hope it’s not on his ship then. The Blade of Mamora might be able to help us track it.” Shiro said, Allura still looking sour at the thought of having to work with Galra.

So here they were, on a set course to the coordinates that was left in that pile of papers the former professor left. God, he didn’t even know his name. Adam and Shiro said that he told them to call him Texas, never giving his real name. after he left being a professor, he’d become a fire fighter but died saving a family. Did his wife and child even know? Did they keep contact after they left? This was making Lance truly think about relationships. He never had a stable one, people calling him clingy and immature. He’d idealized Adam and Shiro’s relationship, but he saw how Adam’s worried made Shiro think Adam didn’t trust him and they split. He knew they still had feelings for each other; Adam had been inconsolable when the news about Shiro and he’d seen Shiro staring at Adam when he wasn’t looking. Their love was real but they weren’t trying to fix it. Texas obviously loved his wife, despite she was from a completely different planet. He loved her enough to let her go, so she could keep him safe. Lance didn’t want to take risks that would cause him to lose the person that mattered the most to him, whoever that might be. If he had the chance to be with that person, then he was going to take it. He was involved in a war now and now more than ever was no reason to be scared of taking chances.

Allura had been mad when the Blade on the other line said only one lion could come in, even more so when they decided Shiro would go with Blue and by default, Lance.

“I should be the one to talk to them.”

“Princess, I’m sorry, but you haven’t exactly shown a good spirit about this. We need their help and if you stand there spitting at them for something they can’t control we won’t get anywhere. You said the Black Lion would pair with me so that makes me leader and I’m doing this for the good of everyone. Lance is a good pilot. I trust him to get us there safely and I know he can provide support if I need it.”

Allura didn’t look too convinced. “Fine.”

They were on the path when Lance thanked Shiro.

“I know you and Adam aren’t really together anymore, but it’s nice to know you still trust me.”

“My relationship with Adam isn’t going to change your skill. You earned your place amongst the fighter pilots Lance. Blue choose you out of everyone and I think that counts for something. Besides, like your cousin, you have an open mind and the ability to make people feel comfortable around you. I feel like we’re going to need that.”

“You know, you could use this as an excuse to make up with Adam.”

“Lance, I appreciate it, but no. I don’t think Adam and I have a chance.”

“Even though this is a war, you’re not even going to try?”

Shiro smiled down at Lance. “You really want everyone to have a happy moment, don’t you?”

“I mean I think at the very least we deserve it.”

They reached the base and walked in carefully cautious. They entered a hall filled with masked beings of different sizes and builds.

“You claim to be Voltron, but what I question is how you ended up finding us?” the one in the middle asked.

“We followed coordinates left by one of your members. She crash landed on Earth and met someone who protected her. It was because of him we found out where the Blue Lion was.” Shiro explained.

“One of our members?”

“Yes, I believe her name was Krolia?”

One of the members moved away from their rank. They were much smaller than the rest of the group. Lance and Shiro watched as the mask dematerialized and a human face stared back at them, purple marks on either side of his cheek. Lance had only seen Krolia’s picture fully once but he could tell this person was almost her carbon copy.

“How do you know about my mother?”

Keith, as he told them, stared at the picture Lance had known. Shiro thought they should at least take it from the cabin so they had proof of who Krolia was. Lance sat next to him quiet, glancing over at where Shiro stood speaking with the head of the Blades, Kolivan. Another Galra, Ulaz, was also nearby. Ulaz had been the one to get Shiro out of capture from the Galra and sent him to Earth.

“My mother told me about my dad but I never knew him. I was still a baby when we left.” Keith said.

“According to Shiro, he talked about you a lot. He could tell your dad missed the two of you.”

“I wish I could have met him.” Keith said, eyes trained on the man he never knew. “Can I keep this?”

“I don’t see why not.”

“Thanks. It’s just, my mom gave me the only photo I have of him but I keep it on me and got hurt during a mission. It was pretty soaked with blood.”

“Keep it.” Lance insisted. Keith was certainly different. For one, he seemed to fight against everything Kolivan said, so he had a rebellious streak a mile wide. Lance wasn’t gonna deny he seemed pretty and really fit. He also seemed like he needed a friend. The Blades seemed protective of their members but the way Keith fought against Kolivan, something told Lance he kept to himself.

“So why haven’t we heard about anything from Voltron until now?”

“Well, we’re still missing one Lion, which in turn keeps the Black Lion locked up still.” Lance confessed.

“What colour?” Keith asked.

“Huh?”

“What colour is the Lion?”

“Red, why?”

“My uncle, well he’s not actually my uncle but my mom grew up with him so their like siblings and he helped raise me so-”

Lance cut him off, crying to stop a smile from coming on his face. For a guy who seemed pretty serious, he rambled on a lot. It was really cute. “It’s ok, I get it trust me. Your uncle?”

“Right, he’s in Zarkon’s ranks as a spy right now. He said that he heard the Red Lion had been transferred onto Commander Sendak’s ship as a way of trying to track the other lions. I don’t think it worked since he never found the others except the Blue Lion from what we heard.”

“Then he must have been the guy chasing after us when I got Blue off Earth. He’s been chasing after us and he had what we needed this whole time. Does Kolivan know this?”

“Yeah, Thace only told me because I asked. If Kolivan’s smart, he’d send some of us with you guys to get it.”

And he did. The plan was that Lance and Hunk would distract Sendak and Pidge, who implanted the training mazes invisibility into the Green Lion, would take Shiro and the small group of Blade members onto Sendak’s ship. As Lance piloted Blue in the direction of Sendak’s ship, a private line came onto his coms.

“Lance?”

It was Keith.

“What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m just…nervous I guess and I trust you and wanted to talk a bit.”

The fact that Keith trusted him after such a short amount of time made him feel good. “Hey, your going to be fine.”

“I know, it’s just, I have this weird feeling. Like something’s gonna happen.”

“Something bad?”

“No, not bad exactly. Something big is gonna happen. I can feel it and I feel like it’s gonna change everything.”

“Well be careful ok? You said your mom was undercover as well, I think she’d like to come back to you in one piece. I know I would.”

Keith laughed a bit, brightening Lance’s mood more. “I’ll try my best. I do have a habit of getting into trouble.”

“Well try to curb the desire.”

“We’re at the ship.” Keith announced the jokes in his voice disappearing.

“And we’re nearby. Good luck.”

“You too.”

He’d been piloting Blue away from the fighters, waiting for an answer on where the Red Lion was when she burst out of the ship, quickly taking out fighter ships.

“Lance!”

“Keith? Wait, are you?” Lance asked looking as the Red Lion flew near Blue.

“Yeah. Let’s get to the castle to get the Black Lion first ok?”

While Allura certainly wasn’t happy about a member of the Blade being the chosen pilot, they quickly released the Black Lion and in a feat of desperation, were able to form Voltron and destroy the ship.

Lance found Keith in the hanger for the Red Lion.

“Well, you are certainly full of surprises, aren’t you?” Lance asked in a teasing voice.

“That’s one word for it.” Keith said, patting the ground next to him. “I guess I was right when I said I felt like everything was gonna change.”

“Change is good. It’s scary as hell yeah, but sometimes you just have to go for it. Kinda like love, the ultimate change.”

Keith got a wistful smile on his face. “My mom would say how she could have turned her back on almost everything if it meant staying with my dad. She loved him that much that she questioned her mission as a Blade. Just for those few years of happiness. Part of me wondered if it was worth it but now being a Paladin, I know it is. I’ll be doing something good and learning as I go and that makes me pretty happy.”

“I’m glad. You’re gonna do great.”

“Thanks. So, I’m gonna need some help figuring all this Paladin stuff out. Think you can help me?”

“Get ready for you first lesson in human culture Keith, the person you know and love who won’t leave you alone.”

[atenementfunster]

all the more reason, chapter 7

ao3 link here!

Roger Taylor, dead as a doorknob, and his best friend John Deacon (also dead) meet some blokes who are decidedly NOT. Dead, that is.

(aka That Ghost Au that no one asked for, featuring Gay Panic™, John’s sass, and Brian being too endearing for this world. the overall vibe of the fic is not sad, if that’s a concern for you, but it does get rather melancholic. they are dead, after all.)

The grounds are beautiful for once, lit by the sun shining down on a clear day, with students lounging across the greenbelts all along the campus enjoying the rare warmth. Roger’s one of them, in a patch of sun a ways from one of the little fountains that so many like to flock around, mostly to avoid someone sitting on top of him. John’s nowhere to be found, which is reasonable, but Roger still misses him something fierce. Laying across the grass alone has its own comforts, though, and for a few minutes he shuts his eyes and loses himself in the muted bustle of the living around him, a happy illusion that he’s still part of it all.

“I can’t decide if it’s impressive or sad that a dead biology student still hangs around the uni grounds.”

Roger squints up at the figure a few yards away, adorned in a black blazer lined with stitched flowers and velvet slacks. He must be hot, Roger supposes, then he decides he doesn’t really care. True to his thoughts, Freddie sheds the blazer once he reaches Roger’s knees, dropping it in the grass with a light thud.

Roger can’t decide if he wants to laugh or punch him in the face. He tells Freddie as much, which gets him a chuckle in reply. “Fair enough, I deserved that.”

“Are you gonna tell me how you can see me?” Roger's question is frank and flat, looking up at Freddie as he rises up on his elbows. Freddie wrinkles his nose and puts his hands on his hips, seemingly content to tower over Roger.

“You gonna tell me why that pretty thing who was at your elbow yesterday is hiding from me?”

It’s said with cavalier, and Roger glares up at him, dropping the shredded blades and thinking about rising and grabbing Freddie by his thin top. “You really gonna ask me that?”

Freddie holds his ground for a moment before his shoulders drop a bit, and he leans over before lowering himself to the ground with a huff. Roger doesn’t look at him, and Freddie sighs. “No, that was cruel.”

The silence waxing between them isn’t quite uncomfortable, but it has Roger shifting in place all the same. He has so many questions, all warring at the surface of his mind, clamoring to be released. What eventually makes it out first is, “how long have you been able to see us?”

The question seems to take Freddie aback, and he’s looking over at Roger now, eyes wide and lips pursed. “I suppose all my life,” he says, leaning back on his hands. “As long as I can remember, anyway. It comes and goes - sometimes I have to focus to see anyone, and other times all I think I’m seeing are the dead.”

His tone is light, but Roger swallows at the implications. “Sorry to say, but you might be haunted,” he jokes, because he isn’t sure how to handle a thought like that. Freddie sniggers, squinting over at Roger, a bit of smudged eyeliner from last night still accenting his large eyes.

“Must be.” He looks up at the sky, and Roger wonders what it might be like to still feel the sun warm his skin through the chilly winter breeze, and finds he’s glad he remembers the sensation.

The quiet stretches again, this time a little more relaxed, an odd sort of peace between them. Clearly neither of them do well in the silence, though, because Freddie breaks it after a minute. “How long have you known Brian?”

For the first time since they’ve met, Roger hears a tone in Freddie’s voice that brooks no retreat, and Roger sits up fully, crossing his legs beneath him and hunching over with his elbows on his knees. “Three days,” he admits, and for some reason he feels an odd blossom of shame unfurl in his chest. It’s only been three days, but he’s chasing him like a lovesick hound.

Freddie doesn’t seem to share his concerns, nodding and leaning back, pressing his hands into the grass as he looks skyward again.

“Do you know why he can see me, then?” Roger presses when Freddie says nothing. Pursing his lips, he shakes his head, mane of dark ironed hair brushing his bared shoulders as he cranes his neck to look back at Roger. Which is good, because the anxiety that’s blooming alongside the shame feels like it’s about to take hold of his voice and start screaming at the guy to stop being so relaxed about something that’s literally changing his existence.

In truth, the relaxed posture seems to belay the fact that Freddie is on just as uneven ground as Roger is. “I didn’t know anyone could except me,” he admits, and there’s something vulnerable in his face that has Roger’s hackles lowering almost immediately. “Oh, it’s not all as dramatic as it sounds,” Freddie adds, waving a hand right as a gust of wind tosses his hair and ripples at the neck of his top. “I’ve not done much with it, at any rate. Chatted up plenty, sure, but I learned that it’s rather hard to keep it going. Some pretty major differences between me and a bloke who’d had a heart attack three weeks ago. Getting attached, trying to help - not much has come of it, dear, so you learn to stop trying.”

The forced lightness in his tone betrays the memories shining in his eyes, impossibly dark and vulnerable all at once. Roger has to take a moment to try and remove himself, because the words cut deep. You’re not worth the time to spend time with, there’s nothing that can be done for you, you don’t belong together.

Clenching his teeth and his fists, Roger stares down at his feet, at the shoes he’s stared at for over a year now, and tries to be objective.

Freddie’s been forced to see the dead as they are - unchanging, lost, and ultimately unfulfilling. But, he’s not really had much of a choice, not with the sheer number of dead lining the streets. If he looked up, Roger’s sure he’d see another walking through alleys they’d once known, sleeping on the sidewalk they’d maybe never woken up from.

Roger thinks of his own death, of John’s, how they’re still people, they’re still here, and turns to Freddie fully. Freddie, who looks wary, but accepting of whatever frustrations or griefs Roger’s about to unleash on him. Roger wonders if he’s had this conversation before.

“I get that,” he says, surprising both of them. Freddie’s mouth falls open and everything. “It sucks,” he adds, tone flat and eyes half lidded, acceding what they both know, “and it’s not fair. I can’t imagine seeing dead blokes and birds all your life, so many desperate for something more, and not knowing how to ask. Ignoring it is easier.”

“It’s not,” Freddie interrupts, that vulnerable look shining in his eyes again. He speaks with his whole body, shoulders turned toward Roger, hands clenched, back rigid. This means something to him, Roger realizes with a jolt, and it opens his mind enough to listen.

“It became necessary, after too long. I wasn't helping, I was only drowning myself in their losses. All these people, who'd had the chance to love, all that potential gone. Instead of possibility, all they had was me, a ponce from Zanzibar who could only see and touch and listen.” Freddie looks down at the ground, pouty lips curled over his teeth. There's too much history there, too many ghosts in the taut lines of Freddie's muscles, in the gaunt hollows of his cheeks, in his trembling fingers. Roger stares, tires to imagine it, and fails.

The lost expression Freddie's wearing melts away as he blinks, an intentional transformation as he smiles across at Roger. Surprisingly, it reaches his eyes. “These are all meandering platitudes, of course. I’m sorry dear - here you are, the dead one, and I’m off feeling sorry for myself!” He flings out a hand, casual as can be, and pats Roger’s shoulder.

What little agitation Roger had left for Freddie melts away beneath his hand.

“Call me ‘the dead one’ again and I’ll give you a reason to really feel sorry for yourself,” Roger says, leaning into Freddie’s grip and smiling with as many teeth as possible. The laugh he gets in reply reminds him of wind chimes, Freddie’s shoulders thrown back as he laughs, overbite on display. It’s a lovely, unguarded thing, and Roger leans back on his hands, palms pressed into grass he can’t feel, and breathes deep.

It's a lot to handle, sure. Three days ago, Roger's world was uprooted by a slight man with too much hair and a shy smile, and he'd thought his new life couldn't get any crazier than that. Now, here's a whirlwind of a man, disclosing personal shit - incredibly relevant shit - as he tries to bring comfort without asking for any in return. Not for the first time today, Roger misses John, his steady company, his understanding smiles and easy countenance.

“You know,” Freddie says once his amusement has faded, looking around for a moment before turning back to Roger, “you don’t have to wear the same clothes every day. Not that you can’t, it’s a perfectly fine look, I just wonder if you’ve grown tired of it, is all.”

Irritation lances white-hot through Roger’s chest. “I don’t exactly have a closet to pilfer from, Freddie.”

Instead of the expected apology, Freddie’s eyes go a bit soft around the edges, a sad little smile as he nods. “No closet needed, my dear. You remembered what you were wearing, and your brain is convinced there’s no other option.”

Freddie doesn’t say it, but the words hit deep anyway. He’s still wearing what he died in, and though they’re bloodless and tear-free, the blazer and slacks still serve as a pretty shit reminder. Something aggrieved must show on his face, because Freddie adds hastily, “It’s perfectly normal, darling, you don’t exactly have anyone telling you this sort of thing.”

Like a cresting wave, Roger’s anger peaks and falls, washing away with little sign it was ever there at all. In its place is an odd sort of grief, the same as he’s used to feeling but watered down, mollified by Freddie’s sympathetic and cautious smile. “I guess I do now.” Roger’s reply is brusque, but he knows there’s gratitude in the lines of his face. Taking chances isn’t something he’s ever shied much away from, and this is no exception.

Everything Freddie does is with a particular sort of flair, and shifting with embarrassment is no different. Hair swinging in his face as he shifts forward, he smiles with lips curled over his teeth, hands clasped in his lap. “I thought you were supposed to be mad at me, Roger Taylor,” Freddie says, looking up at him through his lashes, grin a sardonic little thing.

Roger lifts one brow. John would be proud. “We can go back to that, if you’d like.”

“Oh no, you were much duller when you were spitting like a cat,” Freddie brushes him off with a little wave, then glances around again. In a flash, Roger understands why he’s been looking around the quad every other minute - must look quite mad, talking and laughing with a tree.

Before he can suggest they move somewhere a bit more private, Freddie’s continuing, a whirlwind that Roger is surprised he’s looking forward to keep up with. “Just think of this,” he says animatedly, gesturing up and down Roger’s torso, “as all in your head. I’d say start with picturing yourself naked, but I’m not sure we’re at that stage of our relationship yet.” A wink, a touch to his arm, and Roger feels hope and delight alight in his chest, rising to his face in a toothy grin.

“Try something you owned, something you wore often. It’ll be easier that way, I should think.” Freddie’s smile is encouraging as much as it is flirtatious, shoulders squared as he leans forward; he’s entirely serious, and Roger’s nodding before he can refute what’s bound to be a hopeless endeavor.

Staring down at the grayed out grass, he thinks back on what he used to feel good in - the textures, the colors, the confidence both gave him. Freddie’s gasp makes him jump, and Roger looks over at him with a glare, nose wrinkled and ready to scold him for distracting him. Before he can, though, Freddie claps his hands together, eyes lit with glee.

“Much better! If I could, I’d steal that from you, darling, it’s marvelous.”

Roger looks down, and his eyebrows vanish into his hairline.

Where a light navy button-up and heavier denim trousers used to be, Roger’s now looking at one of his favorite blazers, black with red velvet trimmings, unbuttoned to show a thin light blue top and his collarbones just beneath. His crossed legs are adorned with soft dark kecks, and feet with brown oxfords.

He looks up at Freddie, whose eyes are still wide with delight, then back down at some of his favorite clothes - clothes he thought were lost to him - and thinks he might cry.

“There there love,” Freddie says, leaning close and setting his manicured hand atop Roger’s, which are both currently clinging to his bared ankle. “The change is nice, right?”

Roger wonders how many people Freddie’s done this for. How many have been stumbling through this sham of a second life, alone in all the ways that matter, and seen this beacon of a man that’s selfless enough to try and help. A change of clothes is nothing in the scheme of things, but to Roger it’s everything.

Part of him wants to tell Freddie this, make him understand how much this means to him, but there aren’t enough words for it. “I forgot to remember socks,” is what he winds up saying, eyes burning but smile bright as he chuckles through the tears threatening to choke him.

Freddie, mindless of the living and breathing people around him, leans forward and pulls Roger into a tight hug, face buried in his hair as he laughs right along with him.

[stuffandnosense]

Everything is Different - Plance

Description: I didn’t see Lance’s grandparents anywhere, they’ve all got a lot to deal with after coming back to a Galra-occupied Earth, and I also needed some Plance...so have some post-S7 angsty Plance fluff in the hospital.

Words: 1700

-----

The silence of the Garrison hospital’s night is broken by a scream - the unmistakable sound of someone woken from the kind of nightmare no one would ever wish on anyone else.

The sound yanks Pidge from her own uneasy sleep, sending a shiver down her spine that’s only made worse by the fact that she’s alone in here. Visiting hours long since over, her usually-crowded room is achingly empty.

She sits straight up when she processes the sound that woke her.

Lance. She would know that voice anywhere.

When she clamors from her bed and out into the hallway, she isn’t alone. Hunk is already hovering outside his door to her left, and across the way Allura’s door is just sliding open. They look at each other, but they don’t have time to say anything before banging sounds from behind the door beside Allura’s send all of their eyebrows up.

Another moment, and that door opens too. Keith stumbles out, using the doorway for support. There are still bandages around his head, whereas Hunk’s bandages disappeared a day or two ago.

“Quiznak, Keith,” Pidge scolds quietly. “You shouldn’t be up.”

“I’m fine,” he insists. “Lance…”

“I’ve got it. Allura, can you get him back in bed?”

Keith is starting to slide down the doorway, probably very much against his will. His face is already scrunching in frustration when Allura catches him and urges him back into his room.

Pidge lets out a breath when the door closes behind them, and glances at Hunk. “You should rest too, okay?” He may not be as bad off as Keith still seems to be, but he looks so tired just standing there.

“Okay...just...call me if Lance needs me, okay? Promise.”

“I promise.” She hugs him before shooing him back into his room.

She pauses outside Lance’s door to take a breath. She can already hear the soft sounds of crying from the other side, and when she goes in he’s curled on his side, facing away from her. She should have expected that.

“Lance…?”

His shoulders stiffen at her voice, and she knows he’s trying to stop crying. The sniffing and temporarily held breaths are a giveaway.

“I’m...I’m fine…”

Pidge sighs. “No, you’re not.”

He doesn’t move when she sits on the edge of his bed, and she lets her eyes scan his hospital room for a moment. The window sill bench and nearly every other chair or piece of furniture in the room is covered in jackets and snack packages and magazines, coloring books and water bottles...all the things his family leaves behind every night when they have to be all but forced out by the nurses.

There are things that aren’t hers in Pidge’s room, too, but not nearly as much scattered paraphernalia as this. She sees his large family coming and going, every day, and she almost wonders how the room isn’t even more cluttered.

Still...there are at least one or two members of Lance’s family that she hasn’t seen. Not even when they were back at the Garrison. And she hasn’t asked. She’s pretty sure none of the others have, either.

They were in the middle of a war. There wasn’t time. And now...now she just doesn’t want to make it worse.

“It’s okay, Lance,” she whispers. To be sad. To cry. He’s still trying to stop.

When he doesn’t answer Pidge gets up on her knees on the bed so it’s easier to flop over him - to roll and land on the other side of his curled body.

“Ow! Pidge, what are you - I’ve still got bruises everywhere!”

“We’ve all got bruises everywhere.” Her side and one of her arms are twinging at her even now, and her joints still ache, but the surprised look on Lance’s face that’s starting to chase away the tears is worth it. Crying is okay, but helping is good too.

“What are you doing?” he mumbles, swiping at his cheeks.

“Being here. They put our rooms all next to each other for a reason, you know.”

Lance lets out a breath that’s almost a laugh. It’s something. “I just...it was just a bad dream.”

Pidge lets her head rest on the pillow beside his, and raises an eyebrow at him. “It was about something, though. I mean you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to but...you can.”

He doesn’t answer at first. He lies there beside her, his arms still wrapped tightly around himself, and she’s ready to just lie there with him in the silence so he isn’t alone.

“I wouldn’t know where to start,” he whispers finally.

“What do you mean?” She has an idea. But maybe he needs to say it. All of it.

She isn’t sure how many times she’s already cried, herself. Mostly all over her mom, and Matt since he got here. She cried when she saw Matt, the first time. He’d changed again. She’d known he would have aged those three years or more that the rest of them didn’t, but it was still a shock to see it. It was worse than the first time she’d found him again.

“I...I don’t know. It’s just...I-I’ll think about...about how much of my family’s lives I missed, or how much they went through being stuck on a Galra-occupied planet for three years, o-or how many times we’ve almost died, or…” He squeezes his eyes shut for a moment. “Somehow the nightmares are just kinda all of it.”

“I know…”

“And-and I don’t wanna do this during the day when they’re all here.” He motions vaguely at the room around him, where his family will crowd in again in the morning. “They’ve been through enough! They need...they need me to be strong, you know? Especially the kids. I just…”

Pidge blinks. That part she wasn’t expecting. “Lance…” She’s reaching for his now-flailing hands before she can really think about it, clasping them tightly when she catches them. “Lance, what are you talking about?”

When they first got back she was so focused on her parents, crying into her mother’s shoulder, but thinking back...Lance didn’t cry. Not really. Not even then. A few tears, maybe, and then they were gone and he was smiling and that’s all she’s seen from him since, around his family. Loving them. Happy to be with them again.

“They don’t need me bringing it all up again, Pidge. How...how hard it was. And…” His breath hitches. “A-and my grandparents. And—” His throat seems to close off.

Pidge swallows. Well if he was going to bring it up anyway…

“Have they told you what happened?” she asks quietly.

He shakes his head and sobs once. “I-I tried to ask and they just looked sad. I can’t...do that to them. I can’t—”

“You shouldn’t be afraid to talk to your family, Lance. You don’t have to be strong for them ALL the time. That’s why you have each other in the first place. I thought you’d be the one who’d be an expert at this...you’re so much better at dealing with people than I am…”

“But it’s different now, Pidge. I’m a paladin of Voltron it’s...different. Aren’t I supposed to be—”

“Human? Yourself?”

“You know what I mean,” he sighs, making a face at the bedsheets.

“I know what you mean, but what you mean is stupid.”

Lance pulls his hands free of hers and sits up slowly, scrubbing at his face again. “Pidge, come on…”

She sits up beside him, but he’s already talking again before she can answer.

“What do you want me to tell them? That I haven’t gone a night without crying since we got back to Earth? They don’t need to know that! I’m supposed to be glad to be home. I AM glad to be home; i-it shouldn’t matter that it’s not the home I remember. My family is here...most of them.”

His fingers twist in the blankets over his legs. “And I’m...I’m not the only one who’s lost people. Everyone has. Everything is different now.” His eyes close, and she doesn’t think he’s really trying to answer her anymore. Fresh tears slip from the corners of his eyes. “Everything is different now…”

Pidge rubs at his back gently. “It’s okay to be upset about that.”

Lance sobs again, and this time it doesn’t sound like he’s fighting it so hard. “I don’t even know if the farm is in one piece. Nothing here looks the same anymore...who knows what Varadero Beach looks like. And I’ll...I’ll n-never see my grandparents again...never taste my grandmother’s cooking...we’ll never all be together again…”

“I’m so sorry, Lance.” She latches the arm she’d been rubbing his back with around his shoulders, and rests a cheek on his arm. “I know everything’s changed...but you don’t have to go through dealing with it alone, okay?”

“I don’t know what’s wrong,” he cries. “When will I not feel like this?”

Pidge swallows again, because her own throat is getting tight now. “I don’t know. Stuff takes time, you know?”

“I just...keep doing this…”

“You can cry about something as many time as you need to, Lance. Nobody said you could only cry about something once. That’s not how healing works. I-It’s not like a neat little...straight line. That’d be nice…I’m sorry if I suck at this.”

Lance doubles over, a strained laugh mixing with his sobs for a moment. “You’re fine.”

Then he’s just crying, harder than before too, she thinks, but maybe that’s good right now. Maybe that means he listened.

Pidge wraps both arms around him and holds on tight, because that’s all she can do. But it certainly isn’t nothing. And when she cries herself, Lance shifts enough to hold onto her, too.

“Hunk said to call if we needed him…” she says, a little later.

Lance is still sniffling, face buried in her shoulder. His just nods. Pidge smiles a little, and reaches for the call panel at the head of the bed.

Everything may be different now, but they still have each other.