#the show has have an excellent record giving me what I want
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MANIFESTING FOR TONIGHT!!!
🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️
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🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️ SEE EZRA IN PERSON 🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️
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🕯️🕯️ KALLUZEB MENTION/APPEARANCE 🕯️🕯️
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🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️
#if we get this#I'll have all my wish list come true#the show has have an excellent record giving me what I want#let's not break the streak#i'm talking to you filoni#give me what i want#or else#ahsoka show#sw rebels#kalluzeb#alexsandr kallus#garazeb orrelios#ezra bridger
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How would the MHA characters make the tiktok trend about ranking kisses?
If you don't know what trend I'm referring to, here it is
Characters: Hawks, Bakugo, Denki, Kirishima

Hawks is a sweetheart, we all know that. Additionally, he has a very strong presence on social media.
In the event that your two relationship is already public, he would record the tiktok as soon as you ask and publish it. If it's not public, then he would just test the filter and then save it to drafts.
He loves doing this type of things with you, he thinks it's an excellent mix between quality time and body touch, so when he has time he will please you with these types of activities.
Now, how was the kisses ranking?
1. Neck kiss: Do I have to explain? He just loves to get between your neck and kiss every spot. But he loves it more when you do it to him, it relaxes him and he likes the sensation of tickling and pleasure that it causes. I do not have doubts.
2. Lip kiss: Oh he loves your lips, and you love his, that explosion of love is just his second favorite.
3. French kiss: Ok ok, this was a battle against the kiss on the lips. I mean, they look a lot alike and I think Keigo loves both, but he thinks that the French kiss doesn't express as much feeling as a kiss on the lips can. The French kiss almost always indicates a specific thing, u know?
4. Forehead kiss: It seems to him a very tender sign of love, it is not as profound as the previous ones, it is just a small act that for someone as observant (and sensitive) as him can be the reason for his happiness for the next few hours.
5. Earlobe kiss: He likes the tickling sensation it generates, he finds it a very funny but hot feeling at the same time. He also likes it because he can hear your voice close to his ear.
6. Spiderman kiss: He probably just realized that that's pretty cute, but I firmly believe that after doing this trend he would appear from time to time flying above you to kiss you just like Spiderman does.
7. Cheek kiss: A bit the same as the kiss on the forehead, but the reason why this one is lower on the top is because normally you prefer to kiss him on the forehead, there is something about his hair and his eyes that makes you have the tradition of doing it there and not on the cheek.
8. Hand kiss: He doesn't do it very often, but when one of the two of you decides to do it, he finds it a mix of elegant and sexy, he likes it.
9. Nose kiss: Cute, just that, he finds that just cute.
10. Air kiss: "If you want to send me a kiss, come and give it to me on the lips"

Well, let's say you had to force him to do it. I mean, he likes spending time with you, but he prefers to keep it between the two of you, maybe watching a movie or just talking, but getting all those kisses didn't seem like a totally bad idea to him.
Of course, he didn't publish the video, once again it's because he prefers to leave his romantic moments private, he likes it intimate.
But, his top was like this:
1. French kiss: He likes it when you give him kisses like that, he finds it sexy on your part, and he also likes the combination of roughness and gentleness that exists in that kiss.
2. Earlobe kiss: He likes to be able to listen to you while you show him affection. Plus you usually do it when he's so focused on something that he doesn't listen to you, so it's a surprise to put your lips on his ear, he likes that.
3. Neck kiss: He finds it relaxing when you do it. And as we well know, this boy is not very relaxed, so in times of stress he likes that gesture.
4. Lip kiss: It's the classic one, u know? He can't just not love it. Normally he is the one who decides to kiss you on the lips, he thinks it is simple but at the same time a way to show you his affection without having to get too cheesy. "Your lips taste good."
5. Hand kiss: Call me crazy, but I feel like when Katsuki uses his quirk more than he should, his hands get burns. So I think he likes that you love his hands so much and that you show them that little affection.
6. Top of head kiss: He likes your hair and you're surprised at how soft his is. So for both of you it is a very frequent gesture, usually while you are lying in bed he will give you one. HE LOVES YOU TO TOUCH HIS HAIR.
7. Air kiss: He thinks you look beautiful when you make that gesture, he will never tell you but he loves how your lips come together to pretend to be kissing and how your eyes seem to shine.
8. Bite kiss: Normally one of the two of them does it when they pretend to be upset, and he also does it when he wants to camouflage his blush face. They are just small bites, sometimes on the cheek, nose or hands, just a silly gesture.
9. Cheek kiss: He's not much for enjoying very cheesy affection, but he does like a kiss on the cheek from time to time, just so that spot knows your lips too.
10. Butterfly kiss: The filter made he meet it and nah, in his own words "what is this shit? we look like idiots".

Denki was probably the one with the idea, I mean this guy looks like someone who spends 15 hours on tiktok.
And probably since he's in a relationship with you, his fyp is full of things he wants to try (and probably post) so you should be open to his requests.
And his top was like this:
1. Lip kiss: This man will get together with Mineta, but just look at him, he is a sweetheart, I think Denki likes even the smallest details of affection and love, so when you give him a kiss on the lips for him it is like a moment of pure happiness. "Can you kiss me again? I'm just not sure where I should put this," he said just to get a little more.
2. Cheek kiss: Again, he loves the little details, the little displays of affection, so when you're just walking or talking and you decide to surprise him with a kiss on the cheek it makes a blush cover his face. So yes, a well-deserved 2nd place.
3. Spiderman kiss: "Just imagine baby, I'm lying on the couch, and you come up behind me and kiss me. IT WOULD BE SO SEXY!" He loves it when you grab his chin to lift his head back and join your lips with his.
4. French kiss: I have to explain?
5. Nose kiss: AAAAAAAAAA, he loves it, he does it every chance he can, he finds it so tender.
6. Earlobe kiss: He just can't. He squirm at the sensation a little, but he loves hearing you laugh at the feel of it. It's true that he loves soft and loving, but something spicier doesn't hurt, I mean, he hangs out with Mineta anyway.
7. Neck kiss: The same thing, he love it buuuuut, earlobe>>>>
8. Butterfly kiss: He finds the sensation nice, it tickles him and it makes him laugh to see you so close, he thinks it's a nice way to laugh like the fools that you are.
9. Forehead kiss: He likes it but still prefers the previous ones for the simple fact that the forehead is not such a sensitive area or an area where he can fully feel your lips. "If you want to kiss me, lower your face a little more, you know?"
10. Foot kiss: No words.

This man. If you ask him for something he will do it, it's that simple. If you hear him do this trend he will probably already be bringing a ring light, a top quality camera and a green screen, just in case you need that too.
But when it came time to rank the kisses it was like this:
1. Cheek kiss: Simple is more. With a kiss on Kiri's cheek she would smile like the happiest person in the world. To him that seems so cute, so loving, so soft.
2. Nose kiss: He really likes to do it, it is everyday that to greet you, thank you, say goodbye or simply at any given moment he rubs his nose against yours.
3. Top of the head kiss: He thinks it's cute because that's not habitual. Because of his hairstyle, kisses are normally on the forehead, but when his hair is wet or simply without tons of gelatin, receiving a kiss there is the most beautiful thing he can wish for at that moment.
4. Lips kiss: MAAAN, he loves it, he just loves a little peck before any activity.
5. Forehead kiss: Now yes, this is more common for the two of you and especially for him it is very nice.
6: Hand kiss: BRO, HE'S A GENTLEMAN. He obviously loves kissing your hand like a real man, he's perfect for that, and he also loves when you try to imitate him and give him a kiss on his hand.
7. Neck kiss: I mean, he likes it but you guys don't do it all the time. In fact, they leave that type of affection for more private moments, and in fact at the beginning of their relationship they were too shy to take the initiative in it, but when the time comes he likes it.
8. Air kiss: He thinks it's cute when you throw a kiss and he catches it, it always makes him smile.
9. Butterfly kiss: meh, it's cute but no that much.
10. Bite kiss: JUST A NO.
#hawks x reader#i love hawks#hawks#takami keigo x reader#keigo takami#my hero academia#fanfic#x reader#hawks x you#hawks x yn#hawks x reader fluff#katsuki bakugo x reader#katsuki bakugo mha#bakugo katauki#bakugo x reader#bakugo x reader fluff#denki kaminari#denki x reader#denki x reader fluff#kirishima x reader#mha x reader#kirishima
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Accountant of Theed
Read on AO3
After all is said and done, someone needs to balance these books, and nobody actually told the accounting department how they paid for this new hyperdrive. Mimi really hopes it's not a loan from the Hutts.
Disclaimer: I am not an accountant, but I work in an adjacent field (and have been considering getting a certification, but that's neither here nor there). While I did take some courses on it, I asked an Accounting Person to look over the excel sheet before I went forward with the rest of the fic to make sure it's internally consistent. Thank you to @gnomer-denois for confirming my balance on these works!
The reconciliation sheet does NOT follow contemporary guidelines in terms of format etc, but that is because it is:
In space! Standard practice differs from Modern United States or what have you.
Not the primary balance sheet, just the simplified version made to show to Queen Amidala.
If you'd prefer to view the Excel sheet in a more easily navigable form, there is a google drive link available. This is also your best option if using a screen reader.
-----------------------------------------
Theed is safe. They are rebuilding. There is even financial support, aid, from the Republic.
It comes with strings attached. Oversight. Auditors.
Wouldn’t want Naboo to misuse funding after that nasty mistake with the Trade Federation, right? Sure, Naboo wasn’t the one at fault, but one can never be too careful...
Mimi, as an accountant for the government of Naboo, does not in fact want to commit fraud, or enable corruption, but the rolling audits do feel a little like the Republic is punishing them for getting invaded.
“Hey, boss?”
That tone. Mimi does not like that tone. “Please tell me it’s not another unauthorized purchase with a missing receipt. Which account did they pull from this time?”
“Um... we don’t know?”
Mimi gives them a moment. No elaboration is given.
“You don’t know?”
“We don’t know,” the younger employee repeats.
“What do you mean?” Mimi asks. “People charge things to accounts or cards. They forget to submit receipts. We hunt them down for receipts, and make sure nobody is skimming off the top. That’s how it goes. Unless this is a purchase on a personal and we need to reimburse—”
“Um, maybe?”
“In which—what? That’s just... okay. There’s a process for reimbursements. You aren’t following it, which means... what? What do you mean, you don’t know? Did they use cash, or pull from an account?”
The younger employee looks down at their datapad. Looks back up at her. Looks baffled and a little scared. “Um, it’s... we still don’t have a receipt, but we also don’t know where the money for it came from? But nobody’s put in a reimbursement request and I can’t imagine anyone on the mission had those funds on them, not even the Queen herself.”
“The money for what?”
“Um. It sort of just... showed up?”
“So, it’s some kind of gift?” Mimi presses.
“Too big,” the younger mumbles, refusing to meet her eyes. “It would have to be disclosed.”
“I am giving you five seconds—”
“It’s a hyperdrive!” they yelp.
“...Explain.”
“One of the mechanics was looking over the Royal Cruiser, and found that there was unrecorded repair work to the hyperdrive. The ship took enough damage during the escape that he wasn’t surprised, but then he noticed that it was from an earlier run of the part, and when he checked, the serial number was completely wrong. The hyperdrive was completely replaced.”
Mimi closes her eyes and takes a breath. “The mechanic doesn’t know?”
“He said there’s nothing in the records that matches it at all, and it’s a big enough part that there’s no way it would just slip through the cracks, not when it’s that expensive and going on the Royal Cruiser.”
“So,” Mimi says, “we have a part worth almost as much as the rest of the cruiser combined, that just... came out of nowhere, and nobody claiming for reimbursement.”
“Yes, ma’am. That’s what it looks like.”
Mimi has no interest in fraud.
“Find out who was piloting when Queen Amidala escaped, and see if they have any answers,” Mimi tells them. “If we can keep it to just the hangar staff without drawing in the Royal Retinue, it’ll be easier on all of us.”
“Here’s hoping, ma’am.”
(Continue on AO3)
#phoenix files#star wars#the phantom menace#original characters#naboo#accounting#Padme Amidala#Sabe#Tsabin#Anakin Skywalker#Obi-Wan Kenobi#Shmi does not appear but this is like half about her. and Qui-Gon. and Watto.#so#Shmi Skywalker#Qui Gon Jinn#Watto#receipt reconciliation
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The Tiefling Bachelors Taking Care of Sick! Reader Getting Treatment
A/N: This was sitting in my drafts, finished months ago, but I guess I never posted it? Oh well, it’s here now!
No one asked for this but it came to me as I was getting infused the other day. I really wanted Zevlor to manifest out of thin air and hold my hand ���. Anyway, without further ado… Here we go!
Characters: Dammon/Reader; Rolan/Reader; Zevlor/Reader
Word Count: 1.1k
TW: Brief discussions of illness, some fantasy medical talk
Dammon-
Dammon is probably the most fussy of the trio. He’s bumbling around the tent, ensuring you have enough blankets and water. Or do you want tea? Juice? Whatever it is, love, name it and he will fetch it for you.
He means to be helpful although his nervous waiting on you does create an air of anxiety in the room.
If he gets too manic, the healers have to send him out on an ‘errand’, so that he can collect his nerves and so you have time to yourself.
When he returns, Dammon is much calmer, having been cornered and given a pep talk by one of the elder tieflings or your companions outside.
He’ll sit across from you, and distract you by showing you his latest outlines/blueprints for swords and lathes and such.
If you’re particularly stressed, or truly not feeling well due to the side-effects of the treatment, he might even show you his jewelry designs. Dammon was, of course, planning to give them to you as a present after you’d finished your treatment, but in the meantime, he’d like you to keep them in mind to have something forward to look to.
If you’re sleepy, he’ll just stay at your side while you rest, sketching in his book or making idle chats with the healer.
Dammon excels at ‘parallel play’ kind of dates. He quite enjoys it when the two of you are each doing their respective thing within a shared space. He’s more than comfortable amusing himself while you just chill out right next to him.
Of course, before you leave, he asks the healers a million questions, scrambling down all their answers. How long will this last? What side effects should you look out for? What happens if things get worse? He wants to be prepared after they take their leave, and he sees it as his responsibility to take care of you as you recuperate.
He’s really so sweet, like a little puppy dog. He’s not always the most helpful, and he has a tendency to get in the way, but his efforts never fail to lift your spirits at the end of the day.
Rolan-
Rolan is such a stickler for being an oppositional brat all the time. He gives everyone around him whiplash by turning into the most overbearing parental figure. You’d think he’d been possessed if it wasn’t for that trademark smirk of his.
He’s constantly making you drink. No, he doesn’t care that you’re not thirsty, the healer said to stay hydrated throughout the process. And no, he doesn’t care that it means you have to get up to pee every 15 minutes. Urinary frequency is a small price to pay! Now be a good patient and drink your chamomile tea without any more complaining, yeah?
He watches the healers like a hawk, mentally recording their every word/move. He’s not a cleric or druid, but that doesn’t mean he’s entirely naive to healing magic. He wants to make sure whatever spells or potions you’re being given are up to his standard.
And if the healing isn’t magical in nature... Oh boy, he’s going to be even more of a pill about it. He still hovers of course. But he also makes the occasional ‘helpful’ suggestion like: ‘I know a spell that could do that faster’, ‘Herbs are nothing compared to the power of the Weave’. The healers just roll their eyes and work around him.
If he gets really grouchy, you’re gonna have to put him in a time-out. If not for your sake, then for the poor healers who are just trying to do their job. Rolan argues for a moment, but ultimately agrees, leaving to gather himself.
When he comes back you can tell either Cal or Lia have spoken some sense into him, since he’s calmed down a bit. Rolan will sit with you, read to you, hold your hand if you beg ask, he might even perform a few tricks for you if you’re feeling up to it.
He ushers the healers away as soon as they're done, wanting to just be alone with you. He puts up a tough exterior, but deep down he’s afraid. He cares for you so much. You, Cal, and Lia are his family, he feels it's his job to protect you, but try as he might he cannot protect you from your illnesses, and that hurts him deeply.
You’ll need to comfort him once all this is all over. It’s as much an ordeal for him as it is for you.
Zevlor-
Zevlor is a worry-wart, bless his old paladin heart. His mind is always racing with endless possibilities- about the tieflings, about the grove, about you… It can be a lot for the commander to handle.
But because Zevlor is a paladin and former hellrider, he has a good amount of experience working under pressure. He knows how to keep a level head and act on what is good for those around him, unlike what seems easiest to accomplish.
He’s a very disciplined man, and he tries to get that discipline extended to you as you heal. He sets up a regime, for diet, exercise, and socializing catered especially to your needs and current abilities. He wants you to utilize this time to maximize your healing, and just let yourself trust that you are doing all you can to take care of yourself.
He trusts the healers implicitly, knowing their expertise is much better suited to you and your current priorities. He’ll cater his regime around their recommendations, taking into accommodation your current feelings/moods of course.
He writes out instructions for you to read while he’s away, busy tending to his duties. In the event he’s especially worried about watching over you, he’ll send Tilly or another one of his soldiers to check in on you periodically.
Zevlor would love nothing more than to spend the entire day with you, keeping you safe in his embrace, but he’s wise enough to understand that even amidst these kinds of things, life must go on. He cannot abandon his duties as leader and you cannot abandon your life.
Zevlor tries to maintain the status quo as best as possible, he doesn’t want your illness and treatments to entirely define your life, just as he wishes Elterel will not solely define his.
Once all is said and done, he comes to find you, a warm broth in his hands. He settles down next to you as you sip your meal slowly, his tail coiling around your waist keeping you close to him. He doesn’t say anything, and neither do you, you don’t need to. It’s clear to you what’s in Zevlor’s heart.
The two of you just sit silently together, enjoying each other's company, as you brace yourselves for yet another new dawn.
I hope you enjoyed!
If you like my work, please consider Buying Me A Coffee!
And most importantly, please Like and REBLOG!
#zevlor x reader#dammon x reader#rolan x reader#bg3 x reader#bg3 imagine#bg3 imagines#bg3#hc#zevlor#rolan#dammon
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PRICE OF FAME (PART 7/12)

AHHH HERE SHE IS, i hope you enjoyyy hehe <3
————
18+ — MINORS DNI
pairing: rockstar!eddie x journalist!reader
summary: you and eddie are back to square one...maybe
contains: enemies to lovers trope, themes of sexism/misogyny, smoking, drug and alcohol use, sexual themes, some jealous!eddie, brotherhood, mentions of eddie's dad being shitty, mentions of a sick family member (reader's grandfather), flirting, and eddie being a sorry mf <3
word count: 4.2k
| previous part | next part |
| series masterlist | -main masterlist- |

Eddie very rarely finds the time to go to the studio by himself.
With the busy lifestyle he’s now adopted, he mostly gets his writing done on the road or when he can’t sleep. And Eddie can’t sleep tonight. He doesn’t want to sleep tonight. He can’t seem to find it in himself to give his body and mind the few hours of rest they plead for because Eddie— Eddie fucked up.
The studio is quiet— because nobody in their right mind comes to a recording studio at three in the morning— and Eddie begins to wonder why he even came here if he can’t write a single lyric. Every line that crosses his mind is too little, too much, too mundane— it’s all wrong. Everything is wrong, and Eddie wants to scream.
Eddie takes another hit of the burning cigarette, rubs his eyes in exhaustion, and places his used journal to the side in exchange for his guitar.
He sits on the couch, the quiet room filling out the whirlwind of unsaid words in Eddie’s mind. He strums a soft tune on the wooden instrument, eyes closed and legs propped up on the coffee table. It takes Eddie a few moments to open his eyes when he hears the door open, and he has to blink a few times to clear the fog of fatigue from his eyes.
And Eddie doesn’t even have the energy to roll his eyes and scoff at the sight of Gareth.
He keeps the cigarette between his lips and goes back to plucking his guitar strings, ignoring the shuffling sound of Gareth walking over.
Gareth is quiet for a long time until he clears his throat, “This is good.”
Eddie opens his eyes again and glances over at the brown-haired boy. Eddie’s face pinches in confusion before Gareth raises the journal, and Eddie huffs out a laugh. “No, it’s not.”
Gareth shakes his head, “No, it really is. I like this line,” he points to Eddie’s messy handwriting.
“It’s not going anywhere. I’ve been here for almost two hours.” Eddie brushes it off.
Eddie resumes his peaceful strumming, and Gareth— Gareth just can’t let it go. Because he misses his best friend more than anything in the fucking world, and it hurts. This hurts. The quiet and the unsaid— it hurts.
“I’m sorry.”
And Eddie thinks, fuck, not now.
“Man—” “No, Eddie I… I fucked up.” And Eddie glances at Gareth because Gareth sounds… Gareth sounds like he’s on the verge of something, something that Eddie has rarely seen from his friend.
“I really fucked up, man. And you don’t have to forgive me, but I don’t want you thinking I don’t regret it— because I do.” Gareth looks at Eddie. Clear eyes, so wide and full of what Eddie can only imagine to be sorrow. “I should’ve never done that to you, and I sure as hell shouldn’t have told her— especially because I hadn’t told you.”
And Eddie is so tired of being angry. He’s so tired of feeling the gaping and missing piece of his best friend— and sure, he wishes Gareth never went behind his back and fucked his ex, but he mostly just wishes things would return to normal.
Eddie is silent for a moment, and Gareth almost takes it as an answer, but Eddie finally says, “Did you really love her?”
If Gareth is shocked, he does an excellent job of not showing it. He only swallows and shifts in his seat, “I thought I did… I don’t know, maybe?”
He’s being careful, Eddie knows, and he can’t blame him for it.
“Do you still talk?” Eddie can’t help but ask because he needs to know. He needs to know so he can prepare himself for whatever bullshit he’ll go through later if he ever sees Chrissy again.
To Eddie’s relief, Gareth shakes his head, “No. Not since… no.”
Eddie nods and says nothing else while mindlessly playing his soft tune.
Gareth shifts beside him, glances down at the journal in his hands, and hums, “So… you gonna tell me who this is about?”
Eddie jokingly glares at Gareth and leans forward to set his guitar down. “S’nothing.”
“That’s a lie.”
Eddie raises an eyebrow at his friend, and Gareth takes a deep breath. “Look, man,” he places the journal down, “I’ve seen the way you look at her. And Jeff said he saw you—” “That motherfucker.” Gareth softly laughs but shrugs either way.
Eddie drags a hand over his face and sighs, “I don’t know, it’s… complicated.”
Gareth hums, like he doesn’t believe Eddie, “All I’m saying is if you like her as much as I think you do,” he gestures to the journal, “Then you better act quick.”
And Eddie knows Gareth is right— which is annoying, but he thinks he needs to hear it now more than ever.
Eddie’s not sure when he closed his eyes and dozed off, but by the time he opened them, it was the next day, and Jeff was standing over him with a sly grin. Eddie’s face is twisted in morning confusion and annoyance at Jeff’s proximity, and something heavy is leaning on his side and— “I see you and Gare-bear have made up.” Jeff tips his head to the right of Eddie, and Eddie glances over to where he’s motioned to find Gareth fast asleep with his body leaned against Eddie’s side.
Eddie groans and grimaces as he turns his head, a painful pinch resting at the top of his spine as he shoves his hand against Gareth’s shoulder, voice dry and scratchy from sleep as he speaks, “Shut the fuck up.”
Eddie’s arm tingles under the weight of Gareth, and he grunts, pushing harder at his shoulder, “Gareth, get off me, man; I can’t feel my fucking arm,” Eddie grumbles, shoving the boy off of him, grimacing when Gareth grunts in protest.
Jeff snickers and looks around the room; sheets of paper are scattered across the coffee table, empty beer bottles are strewn on the floor, and a guitar with a busted string lies on the other couch. “Jesus, did I miss the party?” Jeff teases, kicking at an empty beer can as he walks over to the sheet of music on the soundboard, picking it up and glancing over the words.
“What’s this?” Jeff wonders aloud. Gareth opens an eye to see what Jeff is talking about and shifts in his seat as he answers, “Eddie’s apology to the journalist.”
Eddie wipes drool from his mouth as he sits up, leaning over to sift through the rubble for his pack of cigarettes, “Birdie.” He mumbles as he shoves a stick between his lips and lights the end. “Yeah, Birdie.” Gareth sleepily mumbles.
Jeff laughs as he reads over the half-assed written letter. “How drunk were you two shitheads?” He wonders, eyebrows raising at one particular sentence. “And what’d you do that made you finally realize you’re an asshole?”
And Eddie thinks Jeff is asking a lot of questions right now, and Eddie doesn’t have the mental capacity to digest any of them. Gareth snickers beside Eddie, shaking his head with a shrug, moving through Eddie’s cloud of smoke to reach for a beer can, shaking it to see if there’s any drink left before sipping on whatever's there before speaking, “What didn’t he do?” He jokes.
Eddie kicks his heel into the brown-haired boy’s shin, ignoring the spew of curses Gareth sends his way. Jeff tosses the paper back onto the soundboard and turns to the two boys, “Does this have anything to do with her trying to drop the article?”
Gareth shrugs, uninterested in whatever Jeff is insinuating, but the question seems to wake Eddie up quicker than the slow-burning stick between his fingers. “What are you talking about?”
Jeff looks at Eddie as if he’s asked him what two plus two is, “You don’t know?”
Eddie tilts his head, a confused look on his face, irritation lingering on his tone, “Know what, Jeff?”
Jeff’s eyebrows raise, and he lifts his hands in surrender, “Look, Naomi and Birdie were talking at breakfast, and she told Naomi that she’s thinking of dropping the article.” “What do you mean dropping the article, Jeff?”
Jeff gazes at Eddie like he’s lost his mind, “Honestly, man, I don’t know why you’re freaking out when this is literally what you wanted ever since she came along.” He points out, calmly sitting in the desk chair by the soundboard. “I mean, yeah,” Eddie stresses, “But that was before— fuck,” Eddie rubs a hand over his face as he plops back into the plush couch with a heavy sigh. “Before?” Jeff wonders aloud.
“Don’t worry about it.” Eddie snaps.
Gareth snickers again, glancing at Eddie’s depleted state before glaring at Jeff, “Before Eddie fell in love.” He childishly giggles. Eddie glares at his friend, finally finding his shoes and hastily shoving them on, “I’m not in love with her, you fucking idiot,” He swats at Gareth, “I just…” Eddie glances between his two friends before sighing, rubbing his hands over his face again and resting his elbows on his knees. “It’s complicated, okay?”
“Didn’t seem that complicated when I walked in on you two.” Jeff points out, to which Gareth’s jaw drops as he turns to Eddie, “No fucking way. You boned the journalist?—” “Birdie.” “—And Jeff walked in on it? You didn’t tell me that last night!” He exclaims.
Eddie grimaces at Gareth’s words and the fact that he won’t just say your name because, for some weird and obnoxious reason, it pisses Eddie off. “Because it wasn’t like that.” Eddie shakes his head. Jeff makes a face, and Eddie rolls his eyes, “It wasn’t,” Eddie repeats, “Not that it’s any of you fucking losers' business.”
Eddie tries so hard not to seem distracted when they start working on their last song of the album. He tries to put his entire mind, body, and soul into the words and the chorus, but he can’t. Eddie’s mind is somewhere else, wasting away trying to find a way to say sorry and get you to change your mind about abandoning your project because, sure, Eddie’s an asshole when he wants to be, but he has some inkling of remorse and human feelings. He has the ability to feel sorry and know when he’s crossed a line, and clearly, Eddie is far beyond the line.
Eddie’s stomach churns when he thinks about the last night: the look on your face and the tone of your voice, the unmistakable sniffle as you wiped away a stray tear. And Eddie really is a jackass, isn’t he?
Making a kind girl like you cry, telling her she’s ruined everything when all she’s done is stay true to her task. It’s Eddie who’s led you astray, who’s tempted you and poked and prodded until you cracked— and, god, Eddie feels sick to his stomach.
Eddie remembers how that feels. To be pushed and shoved to your breaking point, to where someone breaks you down to the point of giving up. Eddie knows that feeling so well; he dealt with it for so long as a kid before Wayne took him in. Eddie remembers how useless he would feel, how his father would tell him he was stupid and naive for thinking he could be something. And it’s difficult to ignore those harsh words when it’s repeated over and over in your ear, and Eddie can’t believe he let himself do that to you.
Eddie’s kind of frantic when he walks up to you at rehearsals.
He’s fidgety, and he’s aching for a cigarette, and his heart is racing in his chest because Eddie’s not the best at apologies, but he’s also not very fond of the idea of you not being here anymore. As much as Eddie hates to admit it, he likes you being here— because watching you, hearing you, and seeing how you move about a room is addicting. It’s a movie, a show that gets better with every episode, and Eddie has tried so hard to lie and say he can’t stand the show, but fuck, he’s hooked.
You look tired today, uncharacteristically quiet and reserved, making Eddie all the more nervous to break the slight trance you seem to be in. Your lashes flutter as you blink up at him when he approaches you in the backstage hallway, “Can we uh— can we talk?”
You don’t seem eager when he asks, and you don’t sound it either when your eyebrows furrow in distress, and you shake your head, “Honestly, Eddie, I’m not in the mood—” Eddie shakes his head, tone sincere and eyes holding no trace of mischief, “No, I promise it’s not…” Eddie trails off, and you raise your eyebrow, growing impatient with his hesitance.
“It’s about the magazine.” He rushes out. You look confused and unconvinced— and there’s so much going on in the background; staff calling out demands, crew members scrambling to get things done, and Eddie just can’t fucking think. “Well, it’s about you, but it’s also about the magazine— can we step outside?”
Eddie looks away in embarrassment because Eddie doesn’t get flustered very easily these days— there’s not much to get flustered over when you’ve seen it all— but again, Eddie doesn’t do this often— and his neck is heating up, and he knows his cheeks are turning an embarrassing shade of red because you’re looking at him like he’s the biggest idiot known to man.
Eddie drags in a steady breath, teeth digging into his bottom lip, and he grumbles lowly enough for you to hear, thumb brushing the tip of his nose once before speaking, “Come on, don’t make me beg.”
You scoff at that, arms crossing over your chest as you push past him and storm towards the exit, and Eddie follows with a shaky breath.
When Eddie steps out into the alleyway of the venue, you’re leaning against the wall with a deep frown etched across your lips, and Eddie’s fingers twitch for the pack of cigarettes in his pocket. You glare at him, “What’s wrong with you?” You snap. Eddie looks at you silently for a moment, confusion written across his face as he speaks, “Huh?”
You glare as you speak, “You’re being weird.”
Eddie rolls his eyes and clears his throat, shifting on his feet before he starts, “Listen, I uh,” he scratches the back of his neck, “I know we don’t get along and shit but just…” Eddie ignores it when you roll your eyes, “Don’t drop the magazine because of me.”
You’re silent then, for much longer than Eddie would like you to be, and Eddie is thoroughly confused when you scoff, “Excuse me?”
Eddie stuffs his hands in his pockets and glances around the empty alleyway, “Look— believe it or not, we actually kind of need this, and the boys will fucking kill me if I screw it all up, so just… I’m sorry, okay?”
And technically, it’s the truth. It might not be the whole truth as to why Eddie has pulled you aside, but at least there’s some truth to it… right?
You don’t seem too appeased with Eddie’s half-assed apology, considering the way your face doesn't even flinch for what seems like decades. “Well, for starters, I’m not dropping out of the magazine,” and Eddie doesn’t want to unpack the reasoning behind why the tension in his shoulders eased, “And the only reason why I had even debated doing so is because my grandfather is sick, not because some douchebag artist pissed me off.” You snap.
Eddie feels like an ass.
No, he feels worse than an ass, whatever that may be. Eddie feels like he’ll maybe just go back to the hotel and sew his mouth shut because the one time that Eddie tries to fix things, his tongue flaps and spews out bullshit, and then he’s further in the ground than he was, to begin with.
Eddie’s not sure what to do or say because, honestly, he didn’t even think of the possibility that he’s not the reason for you dropping the magazine, and Eddie only then realizes how selfish of a mistake this was. “Can I be honest with you, Eddie?”
Even though you sound and look like you could stab him right now, Eddie thinks you’re absolutely breathtaking. Your eyes are so alive beneath the light of day, and a gentle breeze carries your scent to wrap around Eddie in a dizzying manner. His heart races, and Eddie feels… small.
He hasn’t felt this way in a long time, like he’s damaged things to the point of no return, and it’s all his fault— and usually, it never actually was Eddie’s fault, but this… Eddie can wholeheartedly admit he’s at fault for the agitated look you’re giving him— and Eddie doesn’t know what to do.
Still, Eddie nods— because what else can he do?
“I think we should keep the one-on-ones to a minimum. Better yet, let’s just stop it as a whole.”
“What?”
You take a deep breath, gaze dancing away, seemingly anxious to flee the scene as you speak, “I don’t think this is benefiting either of us— this back and forth. I have work to get done, and honestly, there’s nothing more that I need from you aside from when I interview the band as a group— and seeing as you hate me and I hate you, why don’t we just make our lives easier and stay out of each other's way?”
This isn’t how Eddie imagined things going.
Eddie imagined he would say sorry, and you would give him a pretty smile, and things would go back to… well, not normal, but perhaps something a little better than normal. This is worse than normal. This is so left field of what Eddie had imagined, and Eddie can’t bring himself to say anything.
So, instead, Eddie nods, mumbles a quick agreement, and says nothing more as you leave.
Days pass slower than usual, and you find ways to get busy outside of drafting the magazine. You take frequent walks in Central Park to clear your mind and spend many nights talking to your family over the phone.
Your grandfather is old, and it’s no surprise to the family that he’ll soon see the end of his days, but your mom immediately told you no when you said you would be coming home after getting word of his current state. You weren’t particularly close to your grandfather; you really only saw him once a year around holidays, but you felt the need to be there for your mother, to offer her a shoulder to cry on. However, your mother, ever the sweet lady she is, insisted she would be more than okay with the support of your father and younger sister and demanded that you stay in New York to finish your project.
Still, even though you called home every night, you felt the distance with each goodbye. It ached to be so far from your family at such a time, but the world won’t stop just for you, and time is of the essence in your line of work.
Despite the somewhat gloomy past days you’ve had, each show has given you a moment to breathe and take your mind off the stresses of life. There are two shows of the residency left now, and the boys of Corroded Coffin seem more pumped than ever for the two big nights.
You usually spend time before the show loitering in the green room or waiting out in the crowd, but today, you’ve chosen to have front-row tickets to the chaos that is Corroded Coffin’s dressing room.
There’s a thick fog of smoke dancing through the room; tobacco, weed, and alcohol drenching the walls with their smell as the boys and crew members share drinks and blunts and jokes. You, Jeff, Gareth, and James are gathered in front of the vanity— away from most of the chaos to enjoy light conversation— with Jeff and James sitting in the tall vanity chairs while you and Gareth stand between them both.
“I think we should play something off the new record tonight,” Jeff suggests. Gareth, who’s busy messing with his hair in the mirror, finds the time to respond, “I kind of wanted to do something old. Maybe even a cover?”
James raises an eyebrow, reaching forward onto the vanity desk for a black eyeliner pencil, “You guys are on in like fifteen, man. The stage crew is not gonna be happy about that.” James points out, inspecting the small item before popping the cap off. Gareth snickers as James attempts to apply the eyeliner, “When are they ever happy? Poor guys have to put up with our bullshit every day.”
Naomi comes to stand behind Jeff, draping her arms around his shoulders and resting her chin atop his head. Jeff smirks at her through the mirror, and she smiles, “You agree, right? We should play something new tonight?” Jeff asks his girlfriend, to which she shrugs and glances at both band members, “I don’t see why not. It’s the second to last show, and I’m sure the fans would love it.”
You look over to James as he curses to himself when the pencil tip breaks off. You snicker, not thinking twice, when you step forward to place a hand on his shoulder, “You’re pressing too hard.” You mumble as you gently grab the pencil from him. James watches as you turn to grab the pencil sharpener, shaving off the empty end of the stick until you can see the soft pencil again, “Aw, you’re gonna help me out?” He presses a hand to his chest as you roll your eyes. Whatever conversation Jeff, Gareth, and Naomi are having, you pay no mind to it anymore. “Shut up, take a seat.” You nod to the vanity chair.
James takes a seat, and you shake your head as you step forward, tipping his head back for a good angle as you say, “Remind me again how you’re an artist and still don’t know how to apply eyeliner correctly?” You mumble as you begin softly applying the makeup to his bottom lashline. James smirks, “I can’t be good at everything.” He jokes. You roll your eyes, “Yeah, yeah. Just look up at the ceiling, please.”
And in the corner of your eye, you catch him— Eddie.
He’s watching you and James with the sharpest gaze you’ve ever seen— angry and daring, and it only falters when you turn to look at him. You don’t know why, but your heart seems to rise to your throat, and there is an annoying twist in your stomach when you see how his jaw ticks in anger. You don’t notice it until Eddie’s gaze flickers down, and you suddenly feel the warm heat of James' hand pressed against your waist.
Your body heats at the attention, and you shy away from Eddie’s accusing gaze, returning to your task. Your eyebrows are furrowed in concentration as you apply the makeup, and you try desperately hard to ignore the way James is gazing up at you or the gentle squeezes he gives you when you shift. What’s even harder to ignore is the hole Eddie is burning through your head— and god, why do you feel like this?
Why do you, for some odd reason, wish it was Eddie beneath you? Why do you wish it was Eddie’s hands touching you? Why do you wish Eddie’s brown eyes were gazing at you? Why do you wish it was Eddie’s warm skin beneath your fingertips?
Your body and heart want Eddie for selfish reasons, but deep down, you and Eddie both know it’s best not to venture down the short path you’d started. But that doesn’t mean you don’t think about it. That doesn’t mean you don’t think about what it would be like to have Eddie in all the sinful ways you’d both tasted.
You don’t hear James the first time, but your attention snaps back to him when he gently squeezes your hip, “Huh?” You blink.
James chuckles as you pause your task and gaze down at him. His gaze dances all around your face for a moment, pearly white teeth digging into his smile before he speaks again, “What are you doing tonight after the show?”
And god, why the fuck is James looking at you like that?
You shrug, “Um, I— I don’t know why?” You ask, finishing the last few touches on his makeup. James shrugs, watching as you stand up straight and put the cap back onto the pencil, “I was thinking maybe I can take you out? Like a date?”
You almost choke at that. Your eyes are wide as you blink at James, heart racing and mind a whirlwind of thoughts— and Eddie is still watching you.
You open your mouth to respond, but before you can say anything, Richie bursts through the door with a grin and an exclamation of two words.
Show time.
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part eight
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a/n: ANNNDDD HERE WE ARE, if you've made it to the end and see this, thank you for reading, ilysm and i appreciate any for of feedback, i love to here ur funny, sweet, and smutty thots <3 ALSO A BIG THANK YOU TO @siennamagee FOR THE IDEA OF THE SCENE WITH JAMES, ILY STINK <3 LET THE GROVELING BEGIN !!
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cutie lil taglist: @mastermindmiko @whataboutbibi @ryanmxrie @ihatepeanutss @tlclick73 @motherfckerrr @emxxblog @jesssssmaybankk @eddiesguitarskills @bibieddiesgf @chloe-6123 @micheledawn1975 @demxnicprxncess @emma77645 @sidthedollface2
@daddyhetfield @s-u-t @hereforshmut @mmunson86 @welcometohellsock @lma1986 @birdsinmywalls @animechick555 @sheneedsrocknroll92 @spideydreams00 @lorosette @prestinalove @sirensleepingsoundly @nabiiturner
#HMMMMM#ENJOYYYY#eddie munson x reader#eddie munson#eddie x reader#stranger things fanfic#eddie munson fanfic#eddie munson au#rockstar!eddie munson#eddie munson x fem!reader#eddie x y/n#eddie munson smut#eddie x you#eddie munson fluff#eddie munson blurb#eddie munson headcanon#eddie x fem!reader#stranger things au#rockstar!eddie x reader#rockstar!eddie smut#rockstar!eddie x journalist!reader#journalist!reader
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Cultural Capital #1: Intro + The Basics



One of the biggest privileges I had growing up was access to cultural capital. My parents were expat teachers, which meant that we had access to a lifestyle well above what we would've had if we had stayed in Australia. I got to travel, meet people from various cultures, go to private school, and I subconsciously absorbed that lifestyle as an expectation. This has given me a huge advantage, and since I don't believe in gatekeeping, here's how you can gain some of that knowledge.
0. A note
Some of these are things I strongly disagree with, but this is the way it is. One shouldn't have to change oneself to get ahead, but we often do. This is just a list of western upper-middle class cultural signifiers, and my listing them out doesn't diminish your own culture if it is different from this. Your own cultural capital is just as valuable as what I'm going to share. But we do live in a world where you can get benefits from knowing the dominant culture's valued information, so this is a guide to hacking that system.
1. What is cultural capital?
When people move to a certain place, be it a neighbourhood or a workplace, they need to understand the language, references, and customs of the people around them, otherwise they might be treated negatively. This is cultural capital. Your ability to fit in with the dominant class and culture can benefit you in work and social situations. Your education, who you know, how you speak and dress, which cultural references you make and understand, etc. are all class signifiers, and contribute to cultural capital.
2. Free ways to gain cultural capital
Confidence and vibe. I'm not the best at this, and there are plenty of resources out there for learning it that would probably be better than me. What I will say is that people can tell when you're used to settling for less, and that lowers your cultural capital in these spaces.
Go to a library or Google for research. Topics to research include: major religious stories and Greco-Roman myths, art and music history - especially from the 16th-19th centuries, different cultures and global geography, common idioms and expressions in French/Latin, jargon for your field as well as those of art/dance/music/business, fancy brand names (Quick, is a Ferragamo a shoe or a car?)
Read literary fiction and non fiction. Making references to classic novels shows rich people that you're well read, which in their minds translates to education and therefore intelligence (which isn't true but you know). It's also a shared experience, which gives you something to talk about. Use Libby for free audiobooks, and your local library for print books.
Expanding your vocabulary and speaking with care. The more you can articulate yourself, the more likely people will be to listen to you.
Going to public museums or galleries (if they have them where you live). They're almost always free, and are a great way to spend a weekend.
Watching videos, reading scripts, or listening to recordings of theatrical performances. These can be pretty easily found on the internet and give you material to reference when talking someone up.
Study philosophy. If you want something accessible and fun, watch The Good Place. Philosophy Tube makes excellent, thought provoking videos for free, and I'm sure there's more out there. Expanding your thought process and recognising the literature out there about 'deep' topics can help you not only seem smarter, but actually be smarter.
Learning to eat politely in multiple cultures. What do you eat with your hands vs a fork vs chopsticks? For western cuisine, you should know which fork to use, how to pour wine, what you do with your napkin, etc.
General etiquette. Handshakes, when and how to hold a door, you get the gist.
3. Ways that cost money
Cook something from a different culture every [week/month]. Expanding your palate and becoming familiar with things outside of your immediate circle will make you more 'cultured' in the eyes of people who care about that.
Special exhibitions and paid museums and galleries. Sometimes, a museum will cost money, and if it's interesting and within your budget, it's well worth it. Museums are an engaging way to learn more about history and culture, which will give you knowledge you could benefit from having.
Going to the theatre. Seeing a play, musical, opera, or ballet, especially if it references mythology or is iconic in its own right, can expand your views on universal themes like love, life, death, and revenge. It's also just really fun. You don't have to spend a huge amount either; see what's available in your area.
Dressing professionally. This means having a baseline knowledge on clothing terms and what fits you well, buying well made clothes that will outlast trends, and keeping them well maintained. Tailoring should be considered if it's in your budget; nobody likes an ill fitting suit. Some tips: second hand shops are a good place to start, avoid fast fashion, and remember that a 20 year old Chanel piece has more cultural capital than a brand new H&M piece.
Grooming. Smelling good, looking put together, and having good hygiene will help you immensely. A perfume that suits you is well worth the money, but don't be afraid of dupes if it's not in your budget.
Travelling. This is by far the most expensive thing on this list, but having those new experiences will completely change your viewpoint in a way that other people can recognise.
4. Signifiers that take a long time/effort
Accents. This matters more in some places than in others, but being able to fake a 'posher' accent gets you privilege in certain contexts. My school taught us only in RP English, but the social circles were run by the US military families, so I have a more neutral accent by default. I can also switch between the two, which gives me an advantage here in Australia, where proximity to an RP accent signifies wealth.
Learning a language. Knowing English automatically gives you a ton of cultural capital, since that's the lingua franca for most fields nowadays. But if English is your first language, knowing more than one means education. The unfortunate double standard is that if English is your second language, you need a third to be considered educated, usually a European language.
Straight teeth. This one is up to luck for some people, but having straight teeth usually means you have the money to straighten them. It also takes years and hurts. In my opinion, it's only worth it if your teeth are causing medical problems in your life, in which case you might as well straighten them while you're at it.
Getting a specialised degree in something. Don't worry about seeming silly (arts, humanities) or cold (business, sciences) when choosing a degree. Someone will be weird about it no matter what you pick, so pick one you like.
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Remember, this is specifically for fitting in with the culture I grew up in and around (rich people). There is nothing wrong with the way you are now. This is just for people who are considering adapting to an environment where behaving like this allows for social mobility.
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How Heartsteel would react catching their S/O singing/dancing to “Paranoia” (to their part if applicable)
Inspiration: Me being a dancing/singing/lip syncing fool every time I listen to the damn song, especially while I’m cleaning my apartment.
Genre: Headcanon
Category: FLUFF
Gender: Gender Neutral Reader
TW: Swearing
^^(How did they get this GIF of me dancing?? 😂)
General things:
Setting the scene, let’s say it’s the first time they’re coming home after the song has released so they’re really getting your reaction to the finished song for the first time.
Ok let’s be clear, all of them would be so flattered and would love this.
Having a supportive partner means EVERYTHING TO THEM.
So even if I don’t put “it means a lot to them to catch you doing this, etc…etc…, it’s still implied.
Aphelios:
He’s had a long day in the studio working with Yone on the next album’s instrumentals after doing a debut music show, so he’s very ready to be home with you and to take it easy tonight.
Grins under his mask as he opens the door and hears “Paranoia” blasting on the Bluetooth speaker he got you for your birthday. He knows how much you love to jam to music!
Sneaks to wherever you are, not wanting to disrupt you and absolutely wanting to grab a photo he can send to Alune (after swearing her to secrecy [not that she would send the photo of you to anyone anyway! You and her are good friends too]).
Manages to get an excellent photo of you using the duster as a microphone, a smidge of dust on your cheek.
You’re so absorbed in your “performance” you don’t notice him at all.
Right after you mime the *ding ding ding* of the bell in Sett’s verse, your smart watch buzzes with a text message.
“I hate to disrupt your award-worthy performance, but what would you like for dinner? (Also you have a little dust on your cheek, cutie.)”
When you spin around and finally see him, he’s spinning his mask on his finger and giving you a sly grin, winking as you gasp in surprise and blush at being caught.
He grabs a tissue and gently wipes off your cheek before giving you a gentle kiss hello.
(I have a headcanon that he would primarily communicate to his partner using sign language)
*Signing* “I’m glad you enjoy our work, love!”
Seeing you love something he put so much effort and time into really brings him a LOT of pride and will continue to motivate him.
He helps you clean and asks you more about your thoughts on the song.
You were in the studio while he worked so you’ve heard parts of it, but you and him agreed that you shouldn’t hear the finished song until it released to the public. It was your suggestion actually. He was ready to let you listen to it early but you wanted to experience the full excitement of waiting for their debut just like everyone else.
Which he LOVED.
Ezreal:
This litTLE SHIT (said lovingly)!
Smug man #1
He will NEVER LET YOU FORGET THIS.
The SMIRK he has when he walks through the front door and hears the all-too-familiar intro to the song.
And when he hears you RAPPING along with Kayn’s part??
NO WAY is he missing this!!
He immediately makes his way to wherever you are and positions himself so he can see you without you seeing him.
Phone camera is at the ready.
Starts recording a video right before the pre-chorus begins and his part starts.
He can’t help but smile as you switch to lip syncing, clearly wanting to hear/focus on his voice.
You’ve told him many times how much you adore his singing voice.
(And he’ll never admit to anyone how much hearing you say that means to him but that’s a different story)
It takes every fiber of his being to not reveal himself while he’s recording.
He’s about two seconds from giggling.
Records through the end of the chorus before stopping the recording and immediately sending the video to the Heartsteel group chat with all the members and Alune. They all love you so he knows they’ll love seeing the video.
He puts his phone away and plans to sneak up on you. (Lmao sneak up? I mean flash.)
This man is an EXPERT at surprising you.
Flashes right behind you before the second pre-chorus starts and starts singing, bursting into laughter as you let out a surprised scream.
He gets a well deserved pillow to the face for that.
Later Yone texts you and tells you that he’s “glad you like the song enough to sing and dance to it throughout your daily tasks.”
And Aphelios hits you with the “:)”
And Ez gets another pillow to the face before bed.
Followed by a kiss because he is POUTING.
Kayn:
This SMUG motherfucker!! (Again, said lovingly!!!)
Smug man #2!!
Comes home to you cooking dinner for you and him, using the spatula as a mic.
Does THE shoulder lean against the door frame (y’all know what I mean, especially if you read romance novels) and just watches you with the biggest shit-eating smirk on his face.
That smirk only get bigger as the song ends and restarts and you don’t change it, telling him you’ve had their song on repeat for who knows how long!
If anything, you’re getting even more into it, starting to dance a little more now and adding some little ad libs while he raps.
Ex: “If you try to step to me, it’ll be the last time” You *in rhythm*: “FUCK YEAH”
He absolutely loves it.
Honestly you’re making him fall in love with you all over again.
Also gives him the idea to ask Alune if you can help make up the fan chants (although he’s sad because he knows they’ll have to be a bit more PG)
Can’t help himself as he lets out a chuckle, giving himself away in the process.
Holds his hands up peacefully as you spin around, ready to throw the spatula if needed.
“Sorry baby, I’m afraid you can’t use me for target practice.”
“God Damnit, Kayn, you know I scare easily! How long have you been home?”
“There’s a reason I stayed over here instead of startling you over there where there are a bunch more kitchen utensils you could have reacted with. And to answer your question, enough time for me to understand how much you seem to enjoy our song.”
You playfully, roll your eyes, shake your head, and smile as he comes over and wraps his arms around your waist, kissing you hello.
He’d definitely tell the guys what he saw, but he wouldn’t film or photograph you (this time 😉).
K’Sante:
I get such immaculate vibes from Heartsteel K’Sante.
Like I’m a BTS fan (woot woot ARMY) and I get very very similar energy/vibes from K’Sante and RM.
Like I do not know what it is, but I would trust K’Sante with holding/watching my drink at a club if I needed to run to the restroom. He has that sort of good energy.
I suppose it’s the…safe? energy??
Absolutely hilarious to use that word considering the batshit things they did in that movie studio.😂
But you know what I mean!
And being in a relationship with someone who has this sort of energy would be A++++.
(I know this is a bit of a tangent but I swear it’s relevant to the topic)
K’Sante’s part in “Paranoia” has that same sort of energy to it. (It’s so hard to explain what I meannnn)
And when he catches you singing and dancing along to his part, the bridge of the song, while you’re folding/putting away laundry, I think he’d watch you for a couple moments.
But only a couple.
He’d make his presence known a bit earlier
Because then I think he’d come join you! ☺️
He’d start singing with you and encourage you to keep singing with him.
He’d gently pull you a little closer to him.
And obviously the slower paced part of bridge doesn’t last forever, but even then I think he’d still dance with you once the song ramped up with you (hard to explain but think casual dancing with a partner at a club/bar).
It would be so FUN??? Such a fun sweet moment between the two of you.
He’d of course then help you fold the laundry.
“It’s only fair since I distracted you from it for a bit!”
You’d keep listening to music with him as you both get some chores done around the house.
Definitely making sure to take time for more dance breaks (duhhhh).
Sett:
(A/N: I love the entirety of “Paranoia” but something about Sett’s verse makes me absolutely FERAL!! THE LYRICS. THE VIBE. THE INSTRUMENTALS. PerFECTION! ØZI fucking nailed it.)
When I first started thinking about this, I thought that Sett would be smug guy #3.
Now I’m not quite so stuck to that idea.
Oh don’t get me wrong, he’d definitely hug you and tease you once you saw him watching you and blushed a deep red.
But they would mainly be half-hearted teases.
And internally? You know this man is melting about you and how lucky he is to have you as his partner and how much he loves you.
Sett clearly has such a soft side for the people he truly loves and cares about.
Have you seen how much he adores his Mama???
You are like the only other person who can really bring that soft side out of him.
And catching you already having the lyrics to his verse down 100% is something that would bring that out of him.
Speaking of his Mama…
Sett would absolutely take photos or videos of you.
But they’re only going to one person.
That’s right, to Mama.
We’re going to assume that his mother really likes you and you really like her. (You think this man is going to be with someone his mother doesn’t get along with? BFFR)
Though let me say I think she’d be very easy to get along with.
Like I definitely don’t think she’s the mother-in-law from hell I keep seeing stories about on TikTok.
But anyway, he just wants to show off his favorite person to his other favorite person (who also adores his favorite person).
And little do you and Sett know but that just inspired Mama to knit you a sweater that matches the beanie she made that he wore in the MV. As like a holiday present!
(I’m so sorry this one was admittedly a little self-indulgent but I think it’s so cute!)
Yone:
Oh this man.
Obviously everyone has worked extremely hard so that Heartsteel can debut. Everyone has had late nights and long days on little sleep.
But as Heartsteel’s main producer…
(Not to mention band mom!!)
Yone really had a record number of late nights at the studio.
Reworking a passage over and over and over….
And OVER
Until it’s right (or until Aphelios/Alune drag him out of the studio at 3am telling him to work on it tomorrow with fresh ears).
And he’d never tell you, but you know he’s felt really bad about all those late nights. All those nights he wasn’t with you.
Potential dates missed because of deadlines.
Not that you were angry with him or anything.
You love him and you know how much pressure he’s put on himself.
And the last thing you want to do is potentially add more pressure on him.
In fact, you and him made a routine the past couple months. Whenever he’d have to work on the weekends, you’d come over to his studio each night during the weekend and bring a movie/couple episodes of a show and takeout.
And he gladly lets you pull his attention away from work for other media and cuddles.
(I feel like in private Yone would be more cuddly than one might expect of a stoic man like him.)
But during these media breaks??
This tall man was like a damn koala the way he cuddled you (not that you were complaining).
So seeing you sing and dance to the song he produced…
Even though the production of this song meant you often went to bed alone….
Was so fucking cathartic for him.
It made him feel like every sacrifice was worth it. Just to see how happy you were to dance and sing to the song he put so much of himself into.
His expression would be so soft as he watched you.
And after you noticed him and gave him a smile, he’d come over and give you a hug, burying his face against your neck.
You are his MUSE, and don’t you forget it.
Ahh thank you for reading! This is my first bit of creative writing in over 5 years, so apologies if it’s not great!
Shout out to @coco6420 for telling me on my main account to not stop myself when I talked about being tempted to post headcanons for Arcane/Heartsteel. Well here we go. 😂
#heartsteel#heartsteel headcanons#headcanon#heartsteel aphelios#heartsteel ezreal#heartsteel kayn#heartsteel k'sante#heartsteel sett#heartsteel yone#league of legends#heartsteel x reader
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Merry X-Men Holiday Special Highlights
Happy holidays, everyone! It's been about a year since I started posting about the X-Men on Tumblr and if it wasn't for all the lovely folks who engage and discuss it wouldn't be so enriching. I'm super anti-capitalist and anti cultural Christianity so it's less 'Happy Christmas' and more 'I wish y'all the best.' ❤️💚

I wonder if Lockheed speaks Hebrew
Here's Kitty Pryde celebrating Chanukah in Genosha and remembering her father. Leading the special with an explicitly Jewish character observing a Jewish holiday is great, but the notion of saving the world by becoming president of the USA is a dubious one. The USA is an imperialist entity built on deep seated systemic inequality and worse. Even the most progressive of presidents is beholden to that. It doesn't mean we shouldn't try, but Kitty is kidding herself about 'saving the world the right way.'

Nature Girl hates Christmas, and it's hard to argue with her reasons. The parts about warmth are weird to me because I live in Australia where Christmas is always hot AF. One of the few days I hope for rain, tbh.

I'm not sure if Bobby quite understood what 'eschewing capitalism' means but this looks pretty fun. That tie dye X-Men tee slaps and I want one. I wonder what Kubark thinks of this human holiday.

This story with Magneto coming around on the pointlessness of lighting menorahs does the rounds every now and then, though not as much as I'd expect. The kids are particularly plucky and eloquent, and the one who emphatically tells Magneto he's wrong is a legend. I'm fond of any story where Magneto rethinks his beliefs, and this is a nice one.

It took me a while to notice that this is written by Charlamagne tha God, possibly because it's kinda funny to imagine Ororo knowing who that is. Idk why, I've just never seen any stories indicating that she's into Hip Hop culture. I like that it's a rejection of turning the other cheek where bigoted assholes are concerned. You can't reach some people, and there's no obligation to exhaust yourself trying. Fuck em. The Michelle Obama mention is a bit on the nose.

Old man Logan is cutting firewood and being gruff, as he does. Kurt gives him a picture of himself, which is a baller move. I was under the impression that this Logan was an alternate reality Logan, and doesn't have a particularly close relationship with these X-Men. Nothing about Logans makes sense, sometimes you just have to accept it as cute and cool.

Glob does stuff! Is that meant to be mistletoe? We don't have it down here. He nails up some plant matter and then chills by himself. Little bit depressing, but I can't talk.

Bobby Drake has a party! Interestingly neither Jewish nor Christian, but a pagan holiday that's become a bit more popular (like Christmas and Easter.) Hope is watching Cable do... something, in a recorded message from when she was the universe's most unpopular baby.

Some kids are sharing the rumour that Magneto merked Santa, which is hilarious. It's obviously untrue, not least because Santa is Mags' mutant brother. Kurt lectures them.

Jubilee beats up Arcade (yay!) and quotes Home Alone, rescuing Shogo (who's spending this Christmas as a dragon in Otherworld.) I really don't like Arcade, though he has done two excellent things. Torturing Sinister and creating the Proletarian - worker's hero of the Soviet Union.
Nightcrawler and Storm show up and Christmas is really just a backdrop for a light anti-capitalist tale. Cool! I'd expect Cyclops to be in this book, but no. It's Chuck-less as well.
#x comics#x men#holidays#magneto#wolverine#nightcrawler#storm#jubilee#shogo#iceman#hope summers#domino#cable#glob herman#arcade#charlamagne tha god#kitty pryde#nature girl#genosha#marvel#comics#christmas#chanukah#hannukah#charles xavier#cyclops#beast#the Proletarian
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The OG: Ranty Bitch Vol. 1!
i'm gonna be a ranty bitch for a minute.
tbh i'm turned off even reading new buddie fic despite being a multishipper and have unfollowed a bunch of buddie accounts because i'm sick of the smug attitudes. one ask that i am otherwise not going to publish or respond to ended with 'sorry you don't understand media literacy bestie :)' fuck off. listen INFANT, i have been writing fanfic and original fic AND watching, reading and analyzing queer media since before you were born, i understand how character and story development works, and i know the difference between 'storyline i personally disliked' and 'bad writing.' this was BOTH, and it also was marketed to us as 'carefully crafted bi rep' and 'queer love story that is not about a bunch of pain and conflict FOR ONCE' so we have every right to be upset at the bait-and-switch.
the fact that i'm seeing the same exact posts - 'bt bones buddie CANON' that i saw three seasons ago after the bucktaylor breakup, or every time they thought buck and taylor MIGHT break up - says something. the fact that so many fans seem genuinely convinced (STILL!) that buddie is inevitable because there have been so many 'signs,' and then they rattle off a convoluted theory that would make the most hardcore taylor swift stan say 'wow, that's a bit of a reach,' honestly weirded me out a little when i first joined the 911 fandom. i have never been in a fandom where so many fans are insistent that their ship will be - not might be or could be, but WILL be - canon. i am skeptical both from past experience with other shows mishandling queer storylines or ship-baiting, and tim minnear's proven track record with this one of not really knowing what to do with buck's LI's. but i didn't want to yuck anybody's yum, so i let them have their theories and squee in peace, and unfollowed or blocked certain tags if i was seeing too much of it and getting annoyed. it's too out there for me, but i'm glad they're having fun!
yet they can't give us the same courtesy. they deride us as delusional for thinking that a canon pairing that was presented to us both in promo and the show itself as different and important (eg the bobby approval convo and 'buck getting off the hamster wheel') might last, and we're stupid to have ever liked tommy or lou or be disappointed at how the breakup was written, and if we point out the biphobia it's just sour grapes.
the bucktommy breakup is not the first time 911 has started out strong with an interesting storyline and fumbled it in the 4th quarter either because the writers got bored or in the name of needless drama/a 'gotcha' sudden twist. amir & bobby, eddie's fight club arc, the sperm donor SL, hen vs councilwoman ortiz, whatever the hell is going on with harry, the whole mess with shannon/kim, just to name a few. and especially the past couple of seasons, for me since 6b, the pacing has been off. they seem to have too much happening at once and many of the storylines don't have enough room to breathe to be narratively satisfying, or they get resolved in ways that feel lackluster.
if the toxic buddie stans who have been attacking lou on sm and sending death threats (wtf!) actually get what they want, which i admit is possible, but it's certainly not guaranteed….i don't know why they think the writers won't fumble that just as badly. it's not going to happen precisely the way they want it to because it is impossible to please everybody, that's what fanfic is for. but at this point i have zero faith that it would even be well done at all, and zero trust in the writers not to just sabotage or regress a character for funsies, and that's an excellent reason to stop watching the show. in most of my other fandoms i regard canon as a jumping-off point or a blurry outline at best, and i can have just as much fun in the 911 sandbox without any further input from canon at all, once i'm less angry.
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zaun high school- a viktor fic.
season one, episode one- pilot

[episodes][audio&subtitles][next episode]
“So. Who are you? Let’s start with that.” An unknown voice speaks behind the scenes. A prestigious and kind looking woman sits in front of the camera. “My name is Mel Medarda, Principal M. Ms. Mel. Whatever you’d like to call me is fine.” She smiles, her eyes crinkling softly. Her hands folded and sat in her crossed legs.
“And why are we here, today?” The cameraman asks and Mel clears her throat. Lifting her torso. “Well, I got an email from a… friend who told me you guys were looking for a school to make a documentary on and I think my school is extraordinary and deserves this.” She exclaims proudly.
The camera pans out to show parts of her office walls slightly falling apart. She redirects them to look back to her. “I know it may seem like not much but trust me when I say Zaun High School will become one of the best schools this district– no, this country has ever seen.” Mel sounded sincere, like she truly believed what she was saying.
“And you guys already signed the contract for this to become something and you can’t take that back.” She beams, standing from her spot and heading to the closed door. “Follow me and I’ll introduce you to my excellent staff.” She motions and the cameraman lets out a small huff but follows the principal nonetheless.
“I have recently been hired as a principal but over the summer I spent my time getting to know my staff. Getting to know the school and last year I was even able to get to know some of the students.” Mel clasps her hands, her heels clicking on the tile floor of the school’s hall.
“Uh, who are you?” A blue-haired girl speaks as she carries in safety goggles in a clear box. “I’m Mel Medarda, your new school principal. You are?” Mel sticks her hand out politely and the girl glances down then back up. “Powder, Ms. J. You’re in for a hell of a ride here.” She snickers, taking the woman’s hand with a firm grip. “Thank you?”
“Not a good thing, you’ll be clawing your own hair out the first week.” She laughs loudly, strutting down the hall to her class. Mel swallows sharply, muttering out an “okay” to herself.
“Don’t listen to her, you’ll do great, love.” A man snakes his arm around her waist and she smiles weakly up to him. “You think so?” Her eyebrows knit together, her face filled with worry. “Of course, but you do need to know the students here are quite… something.” He pouts out his lips. She sighs, leaning into his touch. “I remember from when I came as a district worker, Jayce.”
She cringes at the memory as she knocks on her fiance’s door first. “Come in!” He shouts from the other end. Mel peers back to the cameraman with a smile, opening the door. Jayce is up on a desk putting up decorations. Mel rushes over to him, her hand grabbing onto his thigh. “What are you doing? That's not safe!” She exclaims.
“I’m almost done, just give me three more seconds.” He waves it off, continuing his unsafe action, quickly taping a string onto the stone wool ceiling. She awkwardly laughs it off in front of the unnamed man beside her that is currently recording this entire thing. “And done!” He jumps off the desk, almost tripping but catching himself on the counter beside it. Mel flinches at the sound but carries on.
“This is Jayce Talis. The social studies teacher, and my fiance!” She introduces him to the “audience,” he wraps an arm around her. “Isn’t that against some sort of… HR regulation?” The cameraman questions quietly, both Mel and Jayce’s faces drop but then quickly pick back up. “It was but I have a vice president who you’ll meet later on. He gives all the orders to Jayce instead of me so we’re safe to work together. I can’t make any decisions on Jayce’s work life.” Mel sweetly explains, patting her partner's side before letting go.
“Let’s go meet the others.” She swiftly says, wanting to get out of this situation. She leads the way to the neighbor class. The door was open so she didn't knock this time. Only doing a small “hii.” This time the teacher was sitting at his desk writing something down on his desk. “Hello, Miss Medarda. What can I help you with?” He speaks with an accent, sounding incredibly formal. He looks up to the woman, also noticing the cameraman but decides to ignore it since he already knew about the whole documentary thing.
“I’m introducing some of the staff!” She does jazz hands, then faces the camera. “This is Viktor. Or Mr. V. He is our lovely chemistry teacher.” The camera pans out to show the room. It was the opposite of the last one. Very bland, only having two posters that were “memes” about science. Everything was neat except for his desk that was pretty cluttered which is surprising because he still has a week before school even starts.
“Hello, I guess.” He waves to the device boredly with a straight face. “Oh, also. There’s a new staff member coming and when she comes in can you please come grab me.” Mel whispers to him and he nods his head. “Sure.”
“Thank you!” She then leads back to the hallway. Continuing on with the tour and introductions to the staff.
Viktor goes back to writing in his notebook that held his planning information for the school year. He was behind on creating the binder due to… his procrastination. Filling his summer with projects he had been wanting to do during the school year but never had the time for them.
A little stupid on his part but he enjoyed his break so that’s all he can truly think about. His writing is cut short… once again as he sees a girl wander in the hall, looking around with an extremely nervous expression. He lets out a small huff of annoyance before standing up, using his cane to do so. Pushing himself toward the door.
“Ahem,” He coughs, startling her. Her eyes widen as she looks over to him. “Sorry, didn’t mean to frighten you. I’m Viktor.” He extends out a hand and she takes it automatically. She seemed extremely flimsy? Very all over the place. He observed the girl before him. Taking in her appearance.
She wears a pink satin button up and a long skirt with a piano design with pink boots and silver jewelry, all representing something to do with instruments. School hadn’t started and she already was wearing teacher-like outfits. He mentally judged it. She seemed to be quite a character already.
“I’m [Name], I- Are you- Sorry.” She takes her hand back, wiping it at her side since she started to feel sweat building up in her palm. “Sweaty, a bit nervous.” She lifts her hand to explain something he hadn’t even asked about. It was a sweet gesture though. “Are you giving me a tour or… is Mel?” She asked, averting eye contact with the man before her. His eyes slightly squinted which made him even more intimidating to her.
“Mel, I'm pretty sure. She’s giving a tour to the… another cameraman.” He comments, glancing at the man that is recording their current interaction. “Right.” She presses her lips in a line tightly, puffing out her cheeks with air. Not knowing what else to respond with. “I’m sure we can find her, let’s go.” He motions with his head for her to come with.
She fixes the bag on her shoulder, stepping after the accented man.
“So, what do you teach?” [Name] tries to strike up a conversation with him. He wanted to sigh, give out a rude response only because he’s upset that he’s away from his work but instead answers in a monotone way. “Chemistry.” She hums, fidgeting with her hands. “That’s cool, I was so bad at science.” She chuckles.
“Mm, it’s not for everyone.” He shrugs, turning the corner. It grows silent between the two of them. Her, figuring that it was better off to keep her mouth shut since he didn’t seem to be in the mood to talk. He, feeling that exact way that she’s thinking. Appreciating that she figured it out too. For some reason though it felt wrong, a tug in his chest that causes him to bow his head for a moment before he speaks up. “What do you teach?”
Her eyes brighten, gazing over at him as she answers. “I’m a music teacher. Band and Orchestra.” She then gesticulates to her clothes and now it makes sense. Viktor doesn’t pay attention to most of the staff in the school so he had no idea that they needed a replacement for the music area. “That’s interesting, your clothes make sense now.” He dryly jokes and she snickers. “Mhm.
“There she is. Ms. Medarda!” He suddenly shouts down the hall, both the cameraman and the principal look in your direction. Mel’s face lights up and she excuses herself. Heading toward the both of them. “Ah, [Name] [Last Name]! You’re here.” She announces the obvious and [Name] grins. Feeling a much more comfortable aura from her than with Viktor’s greeting. “You’re even more beautiful in person!” She compliments and she lets out a shy laugh.
“Oh, you’re one to talk!” She tells her earnestly. “I was doing a small tour for our documentary but we can restart!” She informs the girl. “Okay!” [Name] sticks a thumb up, Mel looks over to Viktor who is leaning against his cane with a patient look. “Thank you, Viktor. You’re excused.” Mel nods and he does the same. Saying a minuscule goodbye.
“Sorry about him, he was in the middle of something.” Mel apologizes for the boy but [Name] just shakes her head. “He was extremely kind, no worries!” She says, partly lying but no one needed to know that.
“Am I nervous for the new girl… Yes. Extremely. The last one left for a good reason.” Mel talks face to face with the camera, standing in front of one of the many brick walls in the school.
The class was filled with students messing around with one another. Playing wrong notes and crumpling up the music sheets to throw them at one another. The teacher at the front of the class who just sat at the piano on their phone. Defeated, and ready for the end of the school year. Done with teaching these bad ass kids.
Mel sighs. “But she comes from the top of her university and even taught elementary kids. I’m pretty confident in her abilities to handle the students this year.” She attempts to smile but it just comes out as if she was gritting her teeth together.
“And this is your room, you have full power over everything in here. We got new instruments and equipment so check it out! If you have any worries I’ll be in my office. Any questions for now?” Mel inquires, standing in the doorway of [Name]’s new classroom that was ten times bigger than the one she used to teach in. “No, I don’t think so.” The new girl steps into the room, scanning it over. Shocked by what she’s seeing. “Awesome! Come see me before you leave, alright? I’d love to hear what you think about everything.” She places a hand on the girl’s shoulder before taking her leave. Whispering to the cameraman to stay with [Name] as she heads to her office.
“Uh, how do I think about Zaun High School? It… is definitely a school.” [Name]’s eyes drop to the ground. “The people are nice. For the most part.” She scratches the back of her neck.
“This is Sevika, she’s the lunch lady. The lady to go to for the food and sometimes even advice surprisingly.” Mel murmurs the last part and Sevika snaps her head towards the both of the girls. “I don’t need to hear your problems. Don’t tell people that.” She snaps. “I get enough of that with the sisters.” She grumbles in irritation. Mel chuckles. [Name] furrows her brows. “The sisters are Powder and Violet. Miss J and Mrs. Kiramman.” Mel tells her and her mouth goes into the shape of an ‘o’ but then she’s confused again.
“I thought Kiramman goes by Dr?” [Name] questions. “I haven’t introduced you to her Mrs.” Mel says and Sevika begins to glare at the both of them. “Are you going to stay here and be useless or do I have to kick you out?” She grunts and Mel takes that as her cue. Leading [Name] out before she has to witness Sevika’s tantrum on her first day here.
“I think it’ll grow on me though.” She smiles. “At least I hope so.” She deadpans.
Sorry for this being so much later than I wanted it to be. I've been so busy and unmotivated :(
taglist: if you want to be added lmk!
@night-fall-moon @donnie-is-here @pxszels @ashuwhat @theuntoldlullaby @urfavlarry
#arcane#arcane fanfic#arcane au#arcane x reader#arcane powder#arcane violet#arcane sevika#arcane mel#arcane jayce#arcane viktor#viktor#sevika#mel#powder#violet#jayce#viktor x reader#viktor x you#viktor x reader fic#viktor x reader au#viktor x y/n#jayce talis#jayce x mel#violet kiramman#caitlyn#arcane vi
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Okay so. The New Beetlejuice Movie.
I have thoughts about Lydia and Beetz, and how Beetlejuice's feelings developed for her.
Yes. I ship them. I don't think I've come out and said it yet, but yeah I'm one of those. Block me if it bothers you. Winona and Micheal ship it, too. For the record.
Analysis under the cut
Okay folks. So, I don't believe for a second that Beetlejuice loved her in the first movie. He doesn't know her, barely interacts with her, doesn't care about her outside of having a means to an end. You can see this in how he treats the wedding, too. He rushes it and does everything in his power to stop everyone from saying his name. I don't even think they had a cake?
Now, this isn't to say he isn't intrigued by Lydia.
"I think I could get along with Edgar Allen Poe's daughter, she gets me."
Let's be real, though. He's a scumbag and a sex pest in the first movie.
This is in stark contrast to the sequel. He calls Lydia the love of his life, keeps a photo of her on his desk, fulfills all his promises to her, helps her get revenge on Rory *after* making him tell the truth about his motivations, and the DANCE SEQUENCE?? If his goal was just to escape the Netherworld, he'd have rushed the wedding vows and gotten it over with as quick as possible. And considering he has *more* motivation to get out than the first movie-- Delores coming to kill him, for real, permenantly-- that makes the second wedding even more romantic. He is down BAD bad.
So, how did we get here?
That's what I've been puzzling over for past couple days. I think it has something to do with the psychic connection Beetlejuice mentions to Bob.
@herefortheships has an excellent post that helped fill in the "why" of the psychic connection. Lydia can see all kinds of ghosts. What makes Beetlejuice different?
It's because they almost completed the wedding in the first movie. Sure, Lydia never said "I do", but they were almost there, and with this marriage ceremony being so powerful as to bring the dead back to life, even an interrupted wedding forms a link between them. Beetlejuice being such a powerhouse himself, and Lydia being naturally psychic, probably strengthens it. The closest comparsion I'd make is never closing out with a Ouija board. A very powerful, horny Ouija board.
So, this gives Beetlejuice a chance to get to know Lydia over the years. He watches her grow up, with a set of ghost parents no less. He sees her powers strengthen, and how she goes on to start a show utilizing her gift. I wonder if the show inspired Beetlejuice to start his own business?
She becomes a wife, a mother, a fully rounded adult who never loses her adoration of the macabre. I think he sees what he originally saw in Delores, and it ignites something, for lack of a better term, long-dead within him. Lydia is a much better person than Delores, too, and Beetlejuice knows that. After all, she originally agreed to marry him to save her (already dead) friends.
No wonder he's fucking smack dizzy in love. He softens, becomes a marginally more respectable person. Keeping a picture of teenage Lydia on his desk is objectively creepy, but that's also when he saw her in person last, so it makes sense.
Something else I noticed, and this kind of a tangent, but it's interesting.
He only started appearing to her again recently. Like, she'd felt him around the corners, but it's only around the start of the film that he tries to actively get her attention. I have a theory as to why. In part, he wanted to make himself better for her before making a grand entrance (reputable businessman and all), but there's something else that's more obvious.
Rory. He knows Rory's bad news, and I wouldn't be surprised if he used his connection with Lydia to spy on him. Beetlejuice probably knew he was planning to marry Lydia for her money soon. Now, he couldn't talk to her properly due to her blatantly trying to push him out, but he could still be loudly present.
Notice how when Rory summons him, Beetlejuice presents as a relationship counselor. He even says "I think there's an enabler here, but we'll talk about that later," which I think is because he wants Rory to know he sees through the emotionally manipulative bullshit.
I think he also knows Lydia was not going to believe him if he said Rory was a creep. I mean, why would she? Beetlejuice bides his time with gross out gags and other typical Beetlejuice antics. It's only after he's proven himself honest enough to stay true to his word by saving Astrid and sending her boyfriend to hell that he gives Rory the truth syrum.
He's really, really grown to genuinely love Lydia, way more than he ever loved Delores I'd say, and it's because he's fallen in love with the woman he got to watch her become.
#beetlegeuse#beetlejuice#beetlebabes#lydia deetz#lydia deetz x beetlejuice#beetlejuice 2024#beetlejuice x lydia#beetlyds#proship#beetlejuice 2#beetlejuice 2 spoilers#spoilers
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"Ordinary"
@pandalilymicrofics - 748 words
part seven - part eight - part nine
“Maman? Who are you talking—Oh! Uncles!” Luna swiped Pandora’s mobile and plopped onto a stool at the counter. Immediately, the conversation took a sharp turn.
Regulus’s face lit up at the sight of his goddaughter. “Ma chérie! L'école va bien? Tu as besoin de quelque chose? Tu as des amis?” (My darling! School is good? You need anything? You have friends?)
“Of course she has friends!” Sirius chastised. “Luna is nature’s child. Who wouldn’t love our moon baby?”
Luna grinned wider than ever. “I do have friends, four of them!”
“You see?” Sirius said, sounding self-satisfied. “She is fine. Stop mothering her.”
“Hush.” Regulus’s voice shifted to a gentle tone as he turned back to Luna. “What can I send you, my sweet? A pretty dress? Oh, I know! you don’t have a tiara!”
Sirius scoffed, “Non! Ce n'est pas une petite fille! (No! She's not a little girl!) She’s a teenager now. You want records and a record player, don’t you? I can send you some of my favourites, ma grenouille.” (my frog)
“Records? You’re a fossil. I have her and Pandora on my Spotify plan,” Regulus said.
Pandora was shaking with silent laughter as the brothers began arguing over the gifts they would send for her birthday. Luna happily watched them bicker with pure, unfiltered adoration splashed over her soft features. They were obnoxiously wealthy and had to be forcefully limited to only sending gifts for holidays. Which meant every ordinary holiday was treated like Christmas and Luna received a pile of gifts. Thankfully, they had excellent taste in clothes and generally bought things that they knew Luna would like. Please do send a tiara. I may have to steal it.
“Hmm, new paint brushes would be nice,” Luna said finally. “I’m working on a mural. Do you want to see?”
“And paint!” Sirius enthused. “Yes! Show us!”
Regulus clicked his tongue in agreement. “Perhaps a smock as well? You're freckled with orange, darling.”
They disappeared up the stairs, chattering like mice plotting to steal cheese from the pantry. Except, she supposed, it was more like mice who intended to fill the pantry with cheese. Pandora huffed at her failed metaphor and focused on the cheese at hand, or rather, on the sandwiches she was making. Croque monsier was one of Luna’s favourites, and her own comfort food.
When the sandwiches were ready, she threw together a small salad for each of them and set the table. Pandora knew that Luna would wander down when she smelled it, so she didn’t bother to interrupt…until she heard the TikTok song that her daughter was singing. Shite. Don’t spin! Don’t spin!
She rushed up the stairs to find Luna spinning wildly as she sang,
I am an alien. My rocket ship is human bone and skin. I’m something smaller, staring out the skull with a panel of wire and buttons. I don’t understand, spamming every one of them. So does being human mean pretending to know what’s going on. Hello? What’s going on? Ohhhh Ahhhhh Hello? Fine! (“What’s Going On?” by madilynmei on TikTok)
Regulus made a strange noise as Pandora pulled the phone from Luna’s hand, then he started breathing heavily. “I-I’m feeling a bit off. Pardon me, my sweet.”
He disappeared from the screen and Sirius took over, grinning broadly. “I love that song, Luna! Give me back to her. Let’s hear it again. How’s it start? I am an alien…”
“Fine, but no more spinning when Uncle Regulus is on the screen, alright? It makes him ill, remember?” Pandora said, reluctantly handing the phone over.
“Sorry, Uncle!” Pandora then launched into the song again, jumping up on her bed to bounce instead.
Pandora sighed, holding back a laugh when Sirius joined in enthusiastically. He was always the one who encouraged her daughter’s chaotic side, while Regulus tended to prefer her whimsical side. Between the two of them and Evan, Luna had a rapt audience for any and everything that popped into her mind.
Watching her daughter thrive on her uncles’ attention warmed her from the inside out. The two of them may live alone, but they were surrounded by so many loving people that it never felt that way. Their family had always felt so full, so supportive and loving. In moments like this, Pandora couldn’t help but feel grateful for every one of them who filled the gap that losing Xeno left behind.
I don’t know what I would do without them. Probably drink.
#pandora lovegood#pandora rosier#pandalily#pandolily#pandalily microfics#pandalily microfic#lily x pandora#pandora lovegood x lily evans#luna lovegood#sirius black#regulus black
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So it's a very common opinion that Big Finish stories are not as good/interesting as they used to be. I don't know if that is actually a dominant opinion, but I see it a lot. I had a realization a few days ago that got me to a point where I feel like I can respectfully explain why I firmly disagree with this opinion.
To be clear! If you hold the opinion that classic Big Finish is better, than I still think that is a very valid opinion! I actually really hope that this post turns into a discussion with the classic Big Finish fans.
So, to clarify, my opinion is that Big Finish has always been good, but has notably increased in quality over time. For the record, my favorite thing Big Finish has done is probably the second half of the Doom Coalition subseries (published 2016-2017). Other favorites include Dalek Universe (2021) and the Purity Trilogy (2022-23).
My understanding of the criticisms of modern Big Finish are as follows: in the early 2000s, Big Finish was incredibly creative and was able to make some really dark and off-the-wall stories and create some really new and compelling characters, whereas today a lot of Big Finish is much more restricted in the sorts of stories they can tell and lean much more heavily on characters from the tv show, leading to stagnation and less interesting stories. I really don't want to be strawmanning here, so if I am mischaracterizing the argument, please let me know!
My main counterargument to this is that Big Finish is currently doing so much more than they were doing in the early 2000s. Back in those days they made what, 20-25 stories a year? These days, it's probably over 100 a year. And so, with this change, the amount of types of stories has allowed to increase dramatically. In my opinion, the really inventive, twisted stories still exist and are still being made frequently. They just aren't the main thing Big Finish does.
I should probably give some examples.
Stranded is a sixteen-part series starring the Eighth Doctor that I've compared to classic Big Finish before for having a lot of stories that are told in unconventional ways and going to personally dark places. The finale of the Purity trillogy, Purity Unbound, is an alternate-timeline cavalcade that feels like an shorter, Earth-based reimagining of the Divergent Universe arc.
But my biggest example is Torchwood. Especially the monthly Torchwood stories (This is the revelation that I had earlier). Big Finish Torchwood has been a massive collection of really dark, imaginative, up off-the-wall stories. And yeah, there are some of classic Big Finish that isn't kid-friendly that they couldn't do on Doctor Who anymore. They didn't stop making stories like that, though! They moved those stories over to the more adult and darker sibling series.
And re-characters - this is mostly from a youtube video I saw. I respect the youtuber (Council of Geeks) a lot, but she said that Big Finish is currently leaning on preexisting characters too much and isn't creating interesting characters like they used to - specifically citing Charley Pollard and Evelyn Smythe as excellent characters Big Finish had created in its classic days.
My counter argument to that is as follows:
New Big Finish characters created for Doctor Who between 1999-2004. Companions are bolded, and arguable companions are italicized: Charley, Evelyn, Erimem, Bev Tarrant, C'rizz, Kro'ka, Hex, Nimrod, Vansell, that unnamed Gallifreyan President, Cassie Schofeild
New Big Finish characters created for Doctor Who between 2020-2025. Companions are bolded: Raven, Naomi Cross, Hebe Harrison, Patrica McBride, Elise Kaplan, Elise's Ron, Tania Bell, Ken and Robin Bright-Thomson, Tony Claire, Tony's Ron, Aisha and Zakia Akhtar, Hieronyma Friend, Case, Callen and Doyle, Valarie Lockwood, Patricia Lockwood, Roanna, Kiera Sanstrom
I define a new character as an individual who appears on audio, is used for multiple releases within that time period, and has no prior appearances. I also restricted myself to stories starring the Doctor - I would be here all day if I went into other Whoniverse stories that didn't star the Doctor.
My point, if it wasn't clear, is that saying that Big Finish is making less characters than it used to is incorrect (unless I'm misunderstanding parameters). If you want to say that the 1999-2004 characters are better or more creative, then that would be a valid opinion to have! I don't agree with that, but that's a valid opinion.
And if you want to point out that Big Finish is also spending more time retreading old ground then it used to, then yeah. It is. But again, Big Finish is just doing so much more than they used to in general. They can do that and also do new stuff.
Okay, that's it for this, I think. If you have a response to my thoughts here, I'd love to hear it!
#doctor who eu#doctor who expanded universe#dweu#dw eu#big finish#big finish doctor who#big finish doctor who audios#big finish audios#heartshaven wrote an essay
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I finished watching The Residence on Thursday (rushing to beat a Netflix pause I set up lol) and I absolutely loved it. It had me riveted from beginning to end, and felt like such a love letter to the detective murder mystery genre, while also refreshing a lot of the building blocks used in such stories. This probably isn’t a very coherent review to follow, and I'm sure it could use a lot of editing, but here’s some of my scattered thoughts and opinions.
Spoilers ahead for the entire show:
Cordelia Cupp is so much of what I wanted to see in a female detective. She gets to be kind yet blunt, eccentric, determined, difficult at times, with her own very specific process, and yet also aware enough to tell when people are discounting her for many of those very same traits they’d more readily accept in a man. She points out the gender imbalance in the room immediately when she meets with the investigative officials and I wanted to applaud. Not to mention the unspoken racial disparity in the room–the three most sympathetic and effective investigative officials are her, Edwin and Dokes and that’s no mistake. It was a much-needed commentary on these disparities in detective stories, investigative teams, law enforcement and more, and was echoed in the disparity between the staff that work in the Residence and the politicians and members of the First Family that they work for during their time there.
Cordelia’s interest and love of birding plays into her methods, which was another element of her character I really enjoyed. She has a life outside her detective work, a passion that informs her professional work. She uses birding journals as detective journals as well, drawing everything, taking notes, jotting down ideas, sketching maps in perhaps the most relatable form of detective work I’ve ever seen portrayed. It’s not all up in some mind palace, abstract and somehow perfectly recalled. While she has an incredible memory for details, she’s also working things out on the page, recording names, sketching her impressions and observations to revisit later. This felt much more real and relatable to me and I enjoyed her all the more for it.
The fact that she goes into the summation without having 100% confirmed or decided on who she believes is the killer is incredible. She employs again her technique of the hawk, circling and waiting to see who will reveal a weakness that gives her further insight. Lilly was one of my top suspects from around the middle of the show’s run all the way to the end, but I was still second guessing myself, not wanting it to be Jasmine, surprised if it was Elliot, deeply saddened and refusing to believe if it was Elysie or Bruce, disappointed if it was all just some hijinks by Tripp (and some of it was, but thankfully not all. If this was all just some bungled accidental manslaughter by him, it would have been way less satisfying.) Lilly’s attempts to still spin the story and evade and throw others under the bus only made you root for her defeat as the villain even more. All along there were hints she was the outlier who hated the house and didn’t respect the people in it, but still you questioned whether she was smart enough, capable enough. I can’t wait to rewatch later on when I’ve forgotten some of the details and see how that foreshadowing hits a second time around.
The White House itself was an excellent and creative setting for a murder mystery, like a big house straight out of Clue, but also very real. It’s both a familiar setting to us and yet a foreign and mysterious one with all the portions of the home that are closed to the public. I have no idea if all the trick doors and closets and stairways are real, but I believed they could be in such a place with such a long and winding history. All the staff felt real and human and I grew to care for so many of them, just like AB did, even with their quirks and difficulties and flaws. Being from the DC area myself, I was delighted to see a mystery set in a city I know and yet still surprise me with new details like the lights on 16th street in the White House windows. So many stories are afraid to be set in DC and have to contend with politics, and yet The Residence handles this so elegantly by creating their own fictional politicians, with whom they can still deliver insightful commentary without having to be beholden to current events to the letter. When most murder mystery shows in the present day are set in New York or London, setting The Residence in DC, somewhere only this particular mystery in this particular house with these particular characters could happen, gave the show such distinct character and contextual nuance and they really used that setting to the fullest here.
I think the only place I was left wanting slightly more was the ending, the denouement, but then again, I always want more at that point, and that’s also a good sign. A sign I didn’t want to leave this story world, that I wasn’t ready to say goodbye to these characters yet. I wanted a promise that Cordelia, Edwin and Dokes would work together again, that maybe Edwin would become Cordelia’s Watson or protege. I didn’t mind the visit with Nan Cox (who had previously turned on a Sherlock Holmes movie or show, yes girl, cooped up in her room with mystery shows?), but when Cordelia goes to stand in the Game Room after, I wished we maybe saw the young boy who spotted the red light getting his White House tour behind her, just one more little nod to close out that story thread.
Other stray thoughts? WHAT WAS UP WITH THE CALLIGRAPHER? Did the poor man have carpal tunnel? Was he so tired of seating and guest changes that he just decided to write illegibly to make the place cards pass for just about anyone? Did he hurt his dominant hand and have to switch suddenly to his other? It was such a funny gag but that was one detail that never played into the mystery at large, and so maybe it was just meant to be a red herring, another nod to mystery conventions, defying the idea that everything has to play into the larger mystery. But when pretty much all of the other small details did, I wanted this one to also, even if in a very minor way. That’s just how compelling most of those details were.
I did find Tripp being responsible for the dragging of the body and cutting of AB’s wrists and the blood in 301 to feel like a little bit of a letdown, but I think after 8 episodes of build up, you want everything to be masterminded and significant perhaps, just like with the Third Man, and yet the real answer ends up being much more human, wacky and unintentional. Maybe a lesson for me in that, and the logic did hold up, so I can’t complain too much. They even managed to give that guy a little bit of pathos, as insufferable as he was normally, with how he cleaned up his act to go to the State Dinner in memory of his mom and her Australian heritage. But he’d been the screw up for too long and his brother refused. Just with that short bit of backstory, he became more than just a clown, well done.
The gingerbread house part still makes me sad. More of people being nice to AB please, that man’s job was so hard and so thankless so often.
Was anyone else picking up maybe a vibe between Cordelia and the tree/forestry lady? It may have just been hi I respect an expert on this topic I know less about, similar to her respect for Anne Dodge the medical examiner, but I dunno, I was getting some sapphic vibes heey. Cordelia is some flavor of queer, but who’s to say what, and I love that for her. If she did date the forestry lady, they’d be an incredible natural expedition team with their knowledge of birds and plants. Benoit Blanc has a cute baker husband, maybe it might be nice for Cordelia to have a partner too, if she wishes. If not, she has a very full life. She was adorable as an auntie with her nephew, being open and honest in talking to him about herself, her personality, her way of thinking, why she does what she does, her relationship with her sister/his mom, and more. Her nephew was also precious, being willing to meet her where she was at, ask questions without much judgment (even if his mom had some feelings on the matter lol), and try to learn from and relate to his aunt. More of them birding together please, they’re very cute and wholesome.
I enjoyed the framing device of the Senate hearing, and appreciated the storytelling options it gave to the mystery, while also giving this mystery a distinct character and acknowledging the setting it was taking place in. Of course a murder in the White House is going to undergo more scrutiny. Of course people will try to use it as a platform to push their political agendas. But by the end, the two lead Senators were just as invested as we were. And I always enjoy when stories play with how we’re given information, whether in the moment, or with someone telling us in hindsight, as they were in the hearings. How the whole Third Man part played out, how Cordelia was able to quit and try to get away from it all, only to end up watching the hearings because Edwin reached out. The fact that Cordelia quit at all, because they wanted to wrap the whole matter up with a bow on their timetable, or Dokes, whom she respected deeply, would be the one penalized for it.
Having to solve the mystery on a timetable that pleased the political factions and law enforcement agencies and others added a different element of urgency and challenge to the case unlike others I’ve seen before. I also enjoyed the whole discussion of a “nemesis bird” versus a “nemesis case”, a concept that I’ve seen before in detective fiction, that case that always sticks with them, but never have heard it described so well, in such a fresh way. The analogies to Cordelia’s birding continue to strengthen the story and its themes and what might have seemed like some irrelevant hobby for characterization, something many of the other characters dismiss early on as some weird quirk and nothing more, is actually highly relevant to the entire story and her process as a whole.
I have no real effective way of wrapping all my rambling up, except to say please watch The Residence on Netflix. If you want to see a queer, likely neurodivergent woman of color getting to be every bit the eccentric, brilliant, human, captivating detective that you so often get to see men like Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Shawn Spencer, Adrian Monk, Benoit Blanc and so on get to be on our screens, then please watch. Even if you somehow don’t care about that, still watch. It’s an excellently crafted mystery that pays homage to the genre (I love the episode titles, the shoutouts to Holmes, Marple, Agatha Christie in general, and Blanc) while also refreshing some of its elements, and it works. It really works. It’s funny, smart, and engaging with very human characters, in a very unique setting, with a well-crafted payoff. What more could you ask of a mystery? I hope she gets a new season every few years, just as much as I always wish for more Benoit Blanc movies.
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For the LonsStar worry crowd.
Q. I did not watch Lone Star but everything I heard/saw gave me terrible secondhand embarrassment and I hate that he's brought some of those writers over to 911. I don't want them writing for my cast.
A. You all do know that the writers are not the ones who decide the plots, right? They're not the ones who decided it should rain frogs, or an asteroid should hit Texas. That would be the show runner. That would be Timothy. The writers do not create the plot. The writers get an outline of the story the show runner and creators want to tell, depending on the show sometimes the director will also get a say. They get told what story and character beats the episode needs to hit and then they have to write a script using the information and instructions they were given. I did watch LoneStar. I watched it from first episode to last episode. And no it is not the same quality as 911, but I don't think Tim wanted it to be that kind of show. I think he wanted it to be a more camp version of the 911 universe. And yes, many of the plotlines were utterly ridiculous, but the relationships between the characters, which is the most important element of the 911 universe, were generally well done. The relationship between Grace and Judd was beautiful. They were amazing and the episodes written about them and their backstory were some of the best ones of the entire series. The character arc overall for Judd was well done. He didn't work the last season because Grace was gone and his character felt lost without her. TK and Carlos were also done well. They got cute, flirty, playful moments, but they were also given relationship growth from season to season. Carlos was woefully underused in general but, his relationship with TK, as well as the friendships he developed with the rest of the 126 were well done for the most part. Charles and Tommy (their Tommy was top tier, she was a badass) was beautiful as well, the relationship they gave her when trying to move on following his death was also well done until the last season when FOX and Tim just didn't care. The friendship between Paul and Marjan was one of the best relationships on the show. That should have been the pair they put together, it was a missed opportunity but their friendship was good. Nancy and Mateo were kind of the outliers. I liked Mateo but never really loved Nancy. They did not work at all together. The problem on LoneStar was Rob Lowe and his noticeable insistence that Captain Strand get focus even in episodes that had nothing to do with him really. He was literally shoehorned into every episode and suffocated the air around him. And I'm sorry but 911 had/has some bad writers as well. They have people who should be replaced. I understand I am a broken record at this point but Kristen is a terrible writer. Go back and look at the episodes she's written, but you need to look no further than the season finales of season 6 and 7. Those were god awful episodes. And she wrote both of them. There is absolutely no reason to freak out about some of the LoneStar writers moving over to 911. If it turns out they can't write for the characters then obviously that would need to be addressed but their work on LoneStar doesn't mean they can't write for this show. The fact they were able to cultivate the relationships they did given some of the plots they were dealing with actually speak pretty well of their capabilities.
Thank you Nonny! 🤗
You guys all know that I haven't watched Lone Star, so I'm just going to follow Ali's judgement here. Experience has taught me that she is really great at making excellent points. 😋
I talked briefly about this topic before though and I also think we should just give these people a fair chance to prove themselves. The plot itself is set out by the showrunner and the writers have to follow that plotline, whether they like it or not. So maybe we should just wait and see how it goes? 🤷♀️
Heads up! For anyone who is giving me the shifty eyes for reposting Ali's updates instead of reblogging. Read this.
Remember, no hate in comments, reblogs or inboxes. Let's keep it civil and respectful. Thank you.
If you are interested in more of Ali’s posts, you can find all of her posts so far under the tag: anonymous blog I love.
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Ben 10 Omniverse isn't a terrible show, but it often misses its mark for the sake of comedy. And it's not even good comedy either; it's the same old "Lol. Ben's so lazy, ignorant, and irresponsible. It's a wonder how he keeps the Omnitrix at all! LMFAO" And it's like, okay, we get it. Everyone thinks Ben is a moron, but if Ben's a moron, what does that make the people who lose to him? 🤨
One of the times Omniverse misses the mark on what could have been a legendary episode akin to Adventures Time's "The Hall of Egress." It is the episode Universe v. Tennyson.
The episode about Ben going to trial for recreating the universe. Besides seeing Alien X fight, the episode doesn't make any sense. And I entirely blame writers. They did not think of the logistics of how a trial of this sort of magnitude would actually go. I wouldn't be surprised if the trial was just an excuse to see the celestialsapiens in action.
They wanted a reason to explain the different art styles and all the retcons. Which in itself is stupid. As the audience, we know why specific changes are made. They didn't need to hand-feed us retconning; it always happens.
But more to the point, the entire trial is a sham. And it pissed me off to no end!
1. Ben was never subpoenaed. Alien or not, you can't part the sky like the Red Sea and drag someone to court. You have to set an official date and time for trial, allow the defense to acquire a lawyer, and build their defense. This is basic shit, and if your excuse is that it's just a kids cartoon, that doesn't excuse bad writing.
I just can't stand when people brush over essential details.
2. Only in certain circumstances can you forcefully take a person to court. And that is if the suspected criminal is considered a danger to the public or a flight risk. And even then, it's an immediate arrest before going to court for a hearing. Ambush arrests are considered a last resort; considering Ben's positions as a plumber and wielder of the Omnitrix, Ben has little to no criminal record.
3. Due process, refering back to my earlier point, the celestial sapiens would have needed to give notice of charges, and Ben would need to be heard in front of an impartial tribunal. The entire universe is not an impartial jury. There's a reason any Rando can't walk into a courtroom and decide whether a person is guilty. What if several people aren't even aware of the trial? That could skewer the vote in favor of the Plaintiff (Celestialsapiens)
If the writers on Omniverse weren't so focused on having a hate boner for the main character, this could have been a great episode. And it is a hate boner because why else would they pick Mr. Baumann as the first witness. This dude had beef with Ben since early childhood before having the Omnitrix. His opinion is beyond biased.
Also, Rook took the first chance to air his petty grievances with Ben in front of the entire universe in a court of law, and that is beyond shitty. Ben being "ignorant of many things" isn't a proven fact; it's a personal opinion. Also, being ignorant is a crime?
And had Ben been sentenced to death or died in the trial by combat, what was the plan afterward? Rook carries Ben's body to his mother and says,
"Sorry, Ms. Tennyson, your minor child didn't have the mental knowledge and fortitude of a 50-year-old veteran; his death was totally justified. "
If Ben is ignorant of many things, it is because he is young and has only just started exploring the universe. Many toddlers should be behind bars if simply being uninformed is a crime. It's like the show constantly forgets that Ben is still young but insists on punishing him for it.
The court case is to decide whether Ben recreated the universe; his lack of knowledge and irresponsibility are not up for debate. Besides, Rook has only known Ben for a few months; I doubt that makes him a sound judge of character.
I wish they had brought different people to the witness stand. They could have made excellent callbacks by bringing characters like
Tetrax- He is literally the guardian of Omnitrix and decided that even at age 10, the Omnitrix was safe in Ben's hands. Also, the fact that Ben restores the planet Petropia can be used to defend Ben's recreation of the universe.
Reinrassig III- I'm sure the word of Highbreed Supreme would hold more weight in court than Mr. Bauman. A small store owner on a tiny planet in the far corner of the galaxy.
Queen Cicely of the Lewodan( ep. Con of Rath) - The mother of the Tiffin, you know, the baby Ben jumped down a man's throat to save. Ben broke the law by doing that but still prevented a massive war.
Magister Hulka- (ep. Basic Training) Hulka is a well-decorated Plumber and was Ben's academy instructor. Ben passed with flying colors despite disobeying orders, saving Hulka's life. He even gave Ben his medal for creativity and effective tactics. His word holds more weight than Rook Blonko's, a literally rookie in the plumber association.
Azmuth- do I even need to say anything?
Maxx and Xylene are more than familiar with the Omnitrix and Ben himself.
Paradox is literally the number one expert on the subject.
Could you imagine the cross-examination with these characters?
And even without proper character witnesses, Ben could argue that what is illegal is not always morally right.
What is the actual crime, the crime of caring too much? And if his crime is recreating the universe without prior permission. The celestialspaiens were a hidden society; how would he have gotten permission?
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?
If Ben was the only living thing left after the universe was destroyed, did he really break the law since no one was there to uphold it?
Especially since he created the universe up until the very moment it was destroyed, so no time would have passed at all.
Ben's other option was leaving that universe for dead, and pulling a Rick and Morty, but he didn't do that cause he's not a sociopath.
The only angle that makes sense for this trial to happen is if it wasn't to prosecute Ben, but to send a message. The message that Celestialsapiens are not to be trifled with and that any attempts will be met with extreme prejudice and even death by combat.
The Celestialsapiens have recreated the universe multiple times, with even more drastic changes than just a smoothie flavor. I mean, Grandpa Max can't even open his eyes, and Azmuth's voice has changed several times. They literally point that out in the episode, and yet this is the first time a trial has ever been broadcasted to the universe.
In fact, this is the first time any other aliens have seen a celestialsapien save for Alien X. And even he was deemed a myth. So why now? Why the grand fan fair? Why broadcast the trial at all? They never notified the universe before.
It's because the celestial aliens were afraid for the first time since their conception. Their entire beings were briefly erased from existence and recreated, and they did not like it! Do you honestly believe that they changed anything about themselves after recreating the universe multiple times? Of course not!
But Ben doing that sent the species into a mental spiral of worry and anguish with the fear of not being completely yourself. The same curse they've placed upon the universe prior without any hint of guilt.
The trial was about establishing dominance to keep Ben from recreating the universe regardless of his reasoning. But also to prevent other aliens from attempting the same thing. That's why the trial was broadcasted through the galaxy. This was just a bunch of dick-swinging, so the celestialsapiens don't have to face any sort of actual accountability.
#ben 10 omniverse#ben tennyson#ben 10#Universe Vs Tennyson#tetrax shard#professor paradox#Azmuth#Alien X#Rook Blonko#personal rant
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