#the team really dies care about oscar and his well being

[rachetmath]

Favorite Jaune Ship

Okay, let me do this. My Jaune ships. Other ships I’ll do later.

Lancaster/SilverKnight (Jaune x Ruby);

This ship still holds a special place in my heart and to me was supposed to be one of the factors of the show. Jaune and Ruby's relationship started at Beacon. Jaune was Ruby’s first friend and was the first thought of being a part of a team besides her sister. Unfortunately, she was stuck with Weiss and Jaune had a crush on her. Ruby has times when she and Jaune talk but were always cut short for reasons. However, after the fall of Beacon, I was happy to see her and Jaune team up. But my hopes were short-lived when Weiss and Oscar came onto the scene. Now, because of them, the one relationship I could support died because the story tries its damndest to push Whiteknight and Rosegarden together. (Like seriously, this is one of the reasons why I hate Oscar to this day. Volume five, to this day, I believe Jaune should have unlocked his semblance for Ruby instead of Weiss.)

DragonKnght/GoldenKnight/DragonSlayer(Jaune x Yang);

Now normally this is a crack ship. This ship is just two people boning for almost no reason, but I can see a story behind this ship with Jaune and Yang being an alternate version of Tai and Raven. Jaune is Raven because both  have supportive semblances, use swords, and have a distaste for Ozpin’s methods. Yang is Tai due to mainly being raised by him alone. Throughout the story, we see how Jaune and Yang interact and how their relationship differs from Tai and Raven’s. How Tai and Raven fell apart and what they should’ve done to maintain it. How Jaune and Yang handle situations differently they’ll always find a way to bounce back by talking it out and giving each other space. Though I believe Bumblebee fans would be offended and probably say, “Blake could add that same effect”, I still stand by this.

SilentKnight(Jaune x Neo)

Cute, deadly, and very sad. I haven't read the book but I have heard about it. Also, I wish they made a movie starring her or gave us an episode but… okay. Back on topic, I find this ship enduring. They have only one thing in common but that's enough to create a dynamic between them. However what makes the ship sad is that Neo will be the only one hurt. Image Neo trying to be Ruby just to be with Jaune only for him not wanting to be with her. Loving and caring for Ruby more than Neo. Neo hates and becomes jealous of Ruby because unlike her Neo has no friends. Roman died. And Cinder betrayed her. Jaune probably being the best thing in her life but she will never have. So sorry folks, Silentknight was a no-go.

Topaz (Jaune x Emerald)

Same as Silent Knight except it's Emerald’s loyalty to Cinder getting in the way of her having any relationship with anyone. Jaune probably would talk to her but trusting her could be too much of a stretch for him. Emerald might as well be one of the few who could talk to Jaune one-on-one and be real with him but still, I don't think neither of them is looking to like each other.

Knightshade (Jaune x Blake)

These two never had a single one-on-one conversation. Like really they barely interact with each other. I would not be surprised if they both got drunk somewhere and were found sleeping in the same bed by accident. But I believe they are good friends.

Knightfall (Jaune x Cinder)

Okay, this can go either way. Jaune is done playing the good guy to a bunch of girls who are favored by everyone and want to destroy the world. Cinder decides to be a good person and wants to redeem herself. I highly doubt this would happen but I love the concept. Imagen Jaune has to tell Cinder to chill out all the time. Then having to be the most patient with her especially when following a plan. Cinder trying to be nice but pushing her feelings down so she doesn't show weakness is funny, sad, and insane.  

Martial Arc and Nora's Arc(Jaune x Ren x Nora)

You two do not deserve him. You had four volumes to talk with this man but you didn't. Ruby knows your leader better. Yang treats your leader better. Shit Weiss treated your leader better. Ya’ll barely maintain a relationship with each other. How will you two be in a relationship with this guy if you can't contribute or commit to it? F*** the both of you.

Whiteknight(Jaune x Weiss)

Okay, now this may be my f*** all worst ship. First, I’ll admit Jaune was just a fanboy seeing his female idol for the first time in real life. But as he continues he eventually gets over her a bit. Then in some way, he does try to get with Pyrrha, who was an upgrade. What I don't like about this ship is unlike Lancaster it feels forced. Like in volume five Weiss got stabbed by Cinder for no reason. It should have been Ruby considering Jaune traveled and spent more time with her than Weiss. And Cinder hates Ruby. Then in volume seven she basically used the man to get away from Bumblebee. And the only time she ever acknowledged this man was in volume nine when he turned out to be her favorite character in a story. I may be wrong but no, this is not my favorite.

[siofra-river]

Ok i feel like i don’t explain the valentine lore enough so here it is.

THE Valentine-056 post!

She was born on November 1st, 2510 (Age 50 as of the year halo infinite takes place) on the planet Jericho VII. She was kidnapped by ONI and placed into the Spartan 2 when she was 7. She’s 7’ft 2” (218.44 cm) outside the armor and 7’5” (226.06 cm) inside the armor.

She’s been in many battles, including the battle against the Insurrection group Freedom League who had set up resistance on her homeplanet, which at the time the visit was…bittersweet. During the fall of Reach, she was with the Red team splinter group Team Delta as they secured CASTLE base. She helped with Operation First Strike, after Master Chief returned to Reach to find any survivors. After that, she returned to Earth to help fight off the Covenant invasion. During the invasion of Earth she was sent to Sydney, Australia to help fight covenant forces and to keep important members of the UEG. She was almost sent to Africa, until they started glassing it. Post Covenant war, she is in charge of a Fireteam working with ONI sector 3 Beta-3 division and Delta-6 division to find and recover alien technologies and occasionally capture of eliminate important targets. Her team , Fireteam Vaquero consists of her, a Swords of Sanghelios member named Rusa ‘Sura, a Spartan IV named Oscar Meer, a Spartan III Gamma Named Esmeralda Miro, A pilot Named Lee Brady and his ship’s smart AI Frank (FRK-1259-4), and the teams medic & xenobiologist Anya Fung. While on a mission to recover old covenant technologies, she found a Huragok named Lingers Above, which has become an unofficial member of her team as well, refusing the leave her side for long when she’s not in a mission.

As she’s began the interact with more people outside of a very stressful war zone she’s realized how strange and unhealthy some of her upbringing was. Not the full extent of it all, but a degree of it. The reason why she wears all her piercings is as a small form of self representation and to help her form a bit of identity outside being a Spartan, she’s experimented with different piercings and haircuts before, including dyeing her hair which went gray early as a result of both stress and family genetics(she started going gray around 25). She is a gay man, and after the war had toyed around with the idea of a relationship, but unlimitedly decided herself too busy and too inexperienced, the only relationship she had was a short unnamed fling with Jorge-052, a few years before he died on reach, she still silently mourns for him.

While not a natural born leader, through the Spartan II training and Human-Covenant war she was taught how to assume that position. She has the outward disposition of a cool and collected head but be riled up somewhat easily compared to other Spartans. She’s very stubborn and has a strong will but has begrudgingly learned how to be flexible, no matter how much it may annoy her. A trait she has that sets her apart from the other Spartan II is the frequency in which she takes off her helmet and how much she talks, she uses that to help bond with her teammates. She doesn’t really care about how the people at ONI perceive her, but to the UNSC personnel she works with and alongside, she doesn’t want to be seen as just a large killing machine. The weapon she has the most interest in using during something like a wargame is the Gravity Hammer, but the weapon she ends up using the most is the DMR.

[sleepyorchidmonster]

Twst Rwby Au, but it's just the twst characters in the plot of rwby.

Silver as Ruby because of the silver eyes, and the fact that they both look up to their parents. Malleus is Yang, but still as awkward as ever, dude can't socialize unless you talk about gargoyles or weapons to him. (Also Yang's name means sunny little dragon, so it's PERFECT)

As for the rest of the team, Leona is Blake because cat people (Farena is the leader of the White Fang but was killed by Adam, so there's this whole revenge quest in later volumes). He and Malleus are a couple just like the bees!

Kalim as Weiss! Both white haired heirs with too much on their shoulders, though he is much nicer than V1 Weiss.

Oz is Crowley because headmasters with ulterior motives and a big relevance to the plot. Yuu is Oscar, they're suffering SO MUCH. Grim is a grimm, but he just behaves like a cat and protects Yuu.

Riddle as Pyrrha. Both talented redheads with potential and a sense of duty that ended up kickstarting the plot (Riddle's overblot and the Fall of Beacon).

Still not sure about the rest of JNPR, since part of me wants to add Trey and Cater as Ren and Nora, while the other wants Jamil and Azul to be part of the team... maybe add Ruggie and just make it a second year team. Or forget renora and let it be just the octotrio annoying Riddle until his untimely demise.

Team STRQ is just all of Malleus and Silver's parents. Meleanor is Summer Rose, still haunting the narrative, Lillia is Qrow, training all the kids and being the fun uncle/parent, Levan is Raven, following the tradition to leave their loved ones for reasons. The Dawn Knight as Tai.

Whether they are all dating or it's just Meleanor/Lillia/Levan with Dawn knight tagging along as the calm uncle it's up for debate.

Rambling a bit here, but Ruggie or Azul for Jaune would be interesting... Ruggie doesn't have a semblance and forged his documents to attend Beacon Academy, but ends up as Riddle's partner, who, despite being mad at the rule breaking, notes that Ruggie is smart and skilled and the lack of semblance shouldn't be a problem, it will come sooner or later (Ruggie made a really good first impression during initiation, also Crowley didn't seem to care for the lie, so no problem).

As for Azul, well, he also forged his documents and is SO SELF-CONSCIOUS of lacking a semblance or not having the best stamina, but his team encourages him and he becomes a talented sniper. Then Riddle dies and it's depression time, especially if we keep the bit where Pyrrha locks Jaune away for his safety. He just thinks he is holding people back and blames himself.

I tried to add a few ships, but mostly went with the characters and themes that matched. It also helps that rwby and twst are based on fairytales, though only a few people actually match. Since we have Kalim as Weiss instead of Neige (the team wouldn't survive if it was three NRC characters with a RSA student).

[kitkatopinions]

ALrighty!

Spoilers for RWBY ep.... 8 I think? Below the keep reading as well as criticism:

So I was wrong about the Cat. I wish it had turned out to be a morally dubious good guy, but whatever, guess the writers wanted yet another 'the person guiding you is actually not trustworthy' plot.

Here's what I'm gonna say - Neo got fucking taken over and possessed the moment that she actually started getting a spotlight as a villain? HATE that shit. I want Neo, not just some conglomerate taken over by the cat? And I don't like that she talked at all. It should've just been the cat's voice.

Idk if Little is dead or not, but I really don't care about or like Little, so if they are dead, okay??? Better than having to see them again tbh.

Seeing people 'resurrected' but all wrong was kind of dissatisfying? Torchwick was the only one of them who was actually used well (because rwby is going through plotpoints at the speed of light in fourteen to sixteen minute eps so of course we can't sit with things,) but his voice acting was off and so it messed with the immersion some. I don't blame them for not being able to get an exact copycat and I don't think they tried very hard since they didn't need Roman for long, but still, I wish his voice actor had done better. The animation of him was pretty good though.

Ruby ascended? Fuck that shit! I have hope that we're actually going to get 'Ruby down in the tree realizing what 'ascension' actually is, but first off, I wanted Ruby to have a breakdown and struggle, not to be full on suicidal and decide to basically kill herself. Second of all, if this means 'no more Ruby' I am going to be so pissed off. This is Ruby's show, right? Or it's supposed to be! Even if this means that we don't get much Ruby for the next two episodes, I'm still gonna be mad. The 'development' we've gotten so far is just Ruby being in pain, and then seemingly dying? I'm trying not to count my chickens before they hatch or whatever, but this could be worst case scenario, people.

The moment where Ruby was getting attacked by everyone who was dead was... Well, first off, it was weird. Because A. Why would Neo bring in Clover, Leo, and Ozpin? Was she just bringing in everyone she thinks that Ruby may have sort of known who died? Second off, why does Neo think Penny cared about Ruby most in the world? When did she have access to that information? How did she know to use Penny that way? Third off, I liked the 'Ruby strikes out at Ozpin, only for Neo to replace him with Oscar' thing in theory but I would be wrong if I didn't point out that once again the only member of Team RWBYJNOR with dark skin gets the most violent things happening, which is a bad pattern. I get that it may be because Oscar is actually more like Ruby's friend than the rest of her team atm (which is sad,) but I just think the writers should be aware that this is a thing they do that they maybe should correct. Maybe they could've had it be Weiss or Yang that Ruby 'accidentally killed' in these visions? Just a thought. Fourth off! I liked how Neo transformed people into Ruby's alive friends and family, judging her for the 'murder.' Fifth off, I just gotta say the combat was not good for me once again. Neo literally has several people there fighting for her, and they all shot like stormtroopers? Ruby's discombobulated and depressed, so her going down without much fight isn't the problem, the problem is that Neo alone by herself should have been able to easily bring her down, let alone with her clones there to help her. Maybe she only knew Roman well enough to really replicate his style, but Neo and Roman? Tag team of the century!

On to... Team WBYJ. I'm not even gonna get into the fact that Blake and Weiss were more sympathetic to Ruby's struggles than Yang was (I am really frustrated with Yang this season,) but they all just stand there and do nothing while Ruby drinks down poison? What the hell? That is not a freaking good look, guys.

Anyway... I don't know how to feel about this episode, but I'm mostly frustrated and disappointed. And on the other hand, I guess we got good pics of Roman and Neo? I'm gonna have to wait to form a concrete opinions on this ep until we can confirm what the frick actually happened next ep, but for now, it's looking like another 3/10. I got some enjoyment, but overall a bad experience once again.

[inchidentally]

tricky asks time! yeeeesh some of these are... yea I did my best and had to censor stuff. (part 1/2)

there's a reason I bundle these together under a cut so please skip if discourse etc is not your thing <3

oh lordddd. so I think (hopefully) this conspiracy theory either died or ppl just decided to live in denial I really do not care either way. I can't comprehend being so far off base with Carlos and Lando's friendship as to think that Lando replying to his teammate with that clip is somehow heinous or askgfasgfsal "unlike him" it's so on brand for him.

Carlos moving to Monaco is pretty overdue tbh and yea, literally a chunk of the grid already live there. I'm sure he'll eventually hang out w Lando but why wouldn't he also hang out w all the other drivers lol. and if he - god I cannot believe ppl think this - is moving "for Lando" then why wait so long? but then you have to start asking why did he go to Ferrari and well. there's no reasoning w that shit.

side note that's very cute that Lando and Max live close together - rly supports the ask I got about how Max is the driver that Lando actually spends the most downtime with even during the offseason.

and yea, Rebecca has been with him when she's not been on modeling gigs and they both posted parallel stories from the Dolomites today. so if ppl are worried about Carlos not having support then his literal gf is there with him so he very much does. the idea that two hot people found each other on dating apps is I guess too simple!! but if they also believe that Ferrari hate Carlos then why divert resources from their already exhausted PR dept (this is Ferrari we're talking about lol) to the point of hiring, paying and arranging an entire relationship for him?? like you've got to fucking laugh this 1D 2012 stan shit off.

agflasgj wow that was a pretty quick flip from thinking Lando's sm is run by PR to now he personally runs his karting IG!

sorry but I haven't stopped laughing since anons informing me how Charles has had a karting brand for years and this is apparently pretty common for drivers to do. everyone kept acting like it was a carlando moment so I just went with it but apparently - shocker! - Carlos made a business decision not based on Lando.

I mean, I don't ?? Carlos has had the exact same dynamic with each of his teammates but what makes the relationship with Lando special is that they're big brother/little brother. Lando latches onto Carlos as a security blanket and Carlos likes having him around and actually is able to shut down his red mist anger in the car when it comes to Lando. apart from that they're mostly relying on the bromance format of friendship that you can see in most of the grid.

so while if Lando and Oscar had chosen to do the bromance/playing gay thing then sure I'd find it cute and ship it but like. the fact that Oscar is carrying around this sweet years-long sort of crush/fanboy thing about Lando and Lando has openly said that Oscar helps him be reminded to just be himself and be calm... like that is so sweet?? they're both so bashful about physically touching but they have this bond of being basically the same age and both being introverts.

sorry but I wouldn't replace that with a facsimile of someone else's friendship personally!

I do not. get it ! this absolute fantasy that Lando and Carlos would've survived let alone thrived being actual direct competition on the same team has got to be someone who doesn't look at anything F1 related ever outside ships. bc I'm literally a fake and even I know that there's no such thing as teammates competing for race wins and championships with zero friction. and like between Carlos and his family airing all that kind of thing on social media and news outlets and the fact that Lando cannot hide anything on his face, moments like this one would've been happening every other weekend. it's precisely because they weren't on the same team that they could get over that as fast as they did !! even ignoring that Carlos Sr has never once hinted at a return to McLaren, Carlos would never want to risk seeming like he's begging for his old spot back AND no way in fuck would Lando accept being the no 2 driver again.

we get plenty of carlando content still and Lando has said over and fucking over how he's been pushed by Oscar to perform at a level he's never seen in himself before. how are ppl mad about that just bc they don't get a few stupid carlando challenges every couple of weeks?

babe, Lando did have a gf and it didn't dampen carlando truthing at all. it just resulted in a breakup and Lando posting that Luisinha had gotten harassment and death threats. Rebecca is literally dating Carlos and there's a full blown conspiracy theory that she's been "bought and is paid for" by Ferrari to beard for Carlos. do not expect girlfriends to ever change that behavior and don't wish it on any woman.

I just. I'm sorry but how many years have to go by where Lando has a more intimate relationship with countless men and women than he's ever had with Carlos before they just accept that Carlos is one of Lando's F1 buddies but he's not one of his closest friends outside of it (Lando's words!!!) like just enjoy carlando for what it is and stop getting into hysterics bc they're still not fucking or dating or married aslfgjslagflsgalfg

for my own sanity I'm going to pray that twitter acc is joking bc the larry/kpop/yaoi/heteronormative fetishizing of homosexuality/the "girl one" must be hairless and look like a teenager and only bottom as if he were a cisgirl has SURELY been left in 2012. it has to be satire?? it's still extremely cringe satire but like. that cannot be real. either way, block and cleanse that tl anon. I'm not going to spend any more time on that in case they're serious bc that would be tragic.

and I've got to say one thing: I'm sure you didn't mean any harm by it but even suggesting that someone being called or assumed gay is an insult or overstepping is not it, babe. we're not here to coddle cishet ppls anxieties and prejudices or pretend that outrage about it is anything but homophobia. but I fully agree that no one should be talking about a celebrities' sexuality or sex life on highly public platforms esp platforms that the celebrity uses - and esp when it isn't censored and could show in their tags.

at least to anyone under 40 tumblr at least is a known no-go area and fandom-only. it's also extremely difficult for google to trawl (I've googled specifically for a post many times and couldn't find them) and you aren't allowed to scroll past a certain point (even on public accs) without being logged in. so there's no risk of 'stumbling' onto anything here even if it gets directly sent to them. unless the person is older in which case they prob have someone else fielding their sm. this is literally THE place to come and be stupid and silly about fandom.

I mean I do have to agree that there's always an element of 'for the image' when it comes to the Sainz family but honestly Lando is so disarmingly sweet and genuine - and they got to know him as a such a baby - that I have to think at least most of their affection for him is real! now if they knew the carlando content they like on instagram and twitter was intended by a lot of fans as gay then bye bye carlando lol. I'm not gonna wade any deeper into that but yea. we should be grateful they don't understand that aspect of the bromance thing.

but as for the DTS thing I have to think that anyone who sees a bromance being danced around so loudly and publicly and thinks that it's actually a secret gay ship complete with paid beards is twelve years old. it makes me too sad and scared to realize these are tax paying grown women driving these narratives alfhlsahff

IKR?? Oscar is out here with an actual form of real life fanboy crush on Lando but he's incredibly happy and content with Lily and doesn't even push himself into Lando's hobbies or life outside of F1 at all!

whereas Carlos says things like "it's weird that you all want me to kiss Lando" and literally cuffs and scolds Lando like a big brother but supposedly that's being "threatened" by a bashful quiet boy who is happily in a LTR and content to just stare at Lando from afar and be his teammate ????

meanwhile Lando is living his best life being petted and bedded and adored by a queue of lovers that stretches the entire globe and Carlos is continuing his years long habit of serially dating beautiful women and spending most of his time outside F1 training with his buddies. everyone's happy folks, let's just accept that!

honestly anon there's a heavy sprinkling of this that I disagree with and I think I've covered why with the other asks. and I do not engage in war of the rpfs bc none of these ships are "real". and as someone who ships carlando I do have to say that there's at least some decent amount of us who don't do the larrying shit. and that Netflix/DTS have as much a role to play in false narratives as "fangirls". they could easily decide to focus more realistically on the sport but they're choosing to appeal to fans with extreme biases.

but the part about the whole yaoi/heteronormative self-insert quality of how certain people ship carlando is pretty damn accurate. I immediately skip a fic if it's clear that Lando's just going to be this empty character reacting to Carlos the whole time. it's the same thing w people who want Lando to have stayed an insecure teenager w social anxiety who leaned on Carlos' personality and experience. that era was cute but Lando grew up and his career and his life are all his own making. he doesn't revolve shit around Carlos or any other person.

like it's fine if that's how ppl choose to ship something in fandom spaces where everyone else can just block it. but it absolutely should NOT carry over publicly and I should not be seeing as much of Lando's content on various accs and platforms flooded w irrelevant comments and gifs about Carlos as I do.

in a weird creepy way, a lot of Lando pages and fan accs have sort of turned him into how they view girlfriends ?? as if Lando can't be allowed to exist without it always being brought back to Carlos and carlando - and sometimes they'll randomly make an entire edit or carousel about carlando for literally no reason ??

ig that's why they get so angry when Lando blatantly has real life intimate friendships and relationships. hence the Martin hatred mentioned above.

anon you've got it in one. even down to how they've both dealt with the latest drama. they did that drive into Maranello together when we now know they were fully aware of what was coming. and then the BTS of their photoshoot for the 2024 race suits. and then Charles stating at the event the other day how he and Carlos have a special relationship and are friends outside racing as well.

it's got to be awkward as fuuuuuck but they're both choosing as always to put it aside and not let the relationship fall apart or into the distant coldness of Ocon and Gasly. they've been through periods similar to this before and always came back to that place of leaving all that drama at the door.

which is so funny bc if it was all just PR, then Carlos and Charles wouldn't bother! teams have never needed their partnerships to be friendly. they just need each driver to go out and get points. so for them to remain friends despite their families and fanbases being constantly at war, they absolutely are choosing to be!

wellll, I have to disagree bc Carlos being called Ferrari's best strategist by fans means that he clearly is able to ignore team orders and is allowed to not be "perfect". honestly I think Carlos' ballsiness and inability to play second to anyone has clearly never served him poorly w Ferrari ?? this is a team very immersed in traditional patriarchal culture and for all that they are the il Predestinato brand in this era, Sainz Sr said this last season that the car had Carlos' input and customization. so idk I feel like Carlos using aggression and decision would if anything be appreciated by Ferrari. (but I do think the hardballing by his dad with the Audi interest was a step too far for them - even though it sounds more and more like the decision to not renew Carlos was already on the table long before that)

whereas I think that very culture is why Charles is both subjected to and "upheld" by it. there's a difference between a brand like Ferrari deciding to hang your banners over the parapets and them actually having your best interests as a driver at heart. I can't find it now but there was a great post about Charles' frenetic and often erratic driving style getting in the way of his obvious skill and talent. idk I feel like if I was smarter I could draw up a commentary on Charles seeing his name and his face and his successes being spread across everything Ferrari and an almost impotence from fans assigning him such unrealistic idolatry and power - while also assuming an untouchable quality that ends up making him appear weak and in need of constant defending, even from his teammates and Ferrari itself.

it's fucked up, anon, we can agree on that. Seb and Carlos suffering the blunt end of Ferrari's cudgel doesn't necessarily mean that Charles is enjoying much if any power in being protected by it. I wish I could express that better salfsgjlaf

obv again I am a fake so I may be WAY off w all of that so that's why I'm burying this at the bottom - pls ignore it if I'm being dumb <3

[maspers]

Anyway

Kermit the Frog was living the good life. He'd had to fight tooth and nail to get it, which was difficult because he had neither, but it had been worth it. In the end, the Muppet Show had placed him and the rest of the team in the lap of luxury, and as they prepared for an Australian tour everything was, for once, looking up.

But Kermit knew there was one last thing to do before everything would be at peace in his heart. There were still people he needed to talk to. Graves he needed to pay respects to. So he bought a plane ticket from LA to New York, hailed a cab, and soon he was there. It was a chilly morning as Kermit walked into the neighborhood that housed the street where he spent his younger years. Back when people read newspapers. 

Sesame Street was unrecognizable.

The sunny days had not swept the clouds away in a long time, it seemed, as a thick blanket of smog covered the sky. The once-bustling district was empty and cold. Windows smashed in, barricades built up and busted through. The remains of explosives pockmarked the streets and buildings. As he swept his eyes over the ruins of what was once the brightest place in New York, Kermit could only gape in astonishment.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't Mister Kermit the Big shot. Can't say I ever expected to see your ugly mug around here ever again. What brings you all the way back from your fancy Hollywood Mansion?"

Kermit turned to look in the direction of the voice, and saw none other than Oscar the Grouch, smirking at him while leaning up against a trash can.

"What happened here, Oscar?"

"Ya mean you don't know? Heh, figures," The Grouch chuckled. "Not like a star like you would care for us humble peasants."

Kermit frowned, but stayed silent. He knew Oscar would elaborate eventually. It was in his nature to complain to anyone who'd listen.

As predicted, Oscar continued. "What you're witnessing, Mister the Frog, is war." He waved a hand in the direction of the ruined streets. "All-out war. The kind where the only shape you're in is a badly drawn one, because there are only two sides. It's torn the street apart. But I suppose it was inevitable, really."

"A war?" Kermit wondered. "Between who?"

"Ha! Who else?" the Grouch grinned. "Bert n' Ernie, that's who."

"Bert and Ernie?!" Kermit reeled in shock. "I know they argue all the time, but never like this!"

"An' you're right. Never like this. But this time was different. This time there was a girl involved," Oscar shrugged. "No idea where she is now. Exactly what happened depends on who you ask. What we do know is one of the boys fell for her. And the other didn't like it very much. Whether he was jealous of the other boy or if he was jealous of the girl, nobody can say, but you could hear them arguing about it for like a week or so before things really got bad."

"And how did things 'get bad', as you say? Care to go into more detail?" Kermit asked, unconsciously slipping back into the tone of voice he'd used as a news reporter, way back at the start of his career.

"Well, as I heard it, Bert tried to kick Ernie out of the house, and it ended with there being no house." Oscar pointed in the distance, where a plume of thick, black smoke emanated into the gray sky. "123 hasn't stopped burning, and Big Bird hasn't been seen since. We think he must've died in there, but nobody's been able to get through the flames long enough to find the corpse. It's been nearly a year. "

"And how did that lead to things being as they are now?"

Oscar grinned. "Well, Bert 'n' Ern did what everyone on this street does when anything goes sideways. They called their friends. And those friends called friends, and soon the entire street has had to pick a side or get caught in the crossfire. Bert's got the major supply sources locked down in his territory, and anyone who wants it has got to follow his crazy rules to the letter. He's got those Martians going around abjucting lawbreakers off the streets. Ernie, on the other hand..." he chuckled "He's claimed the outskirts, and aside from siding with him it's as lawless as you can get. You'll be free to do as you choose, but I can't say it's worth it. You're completely on your own, and that's not good when you enter the Sid's line of sight and he's hungering for dinner. Or lunch. Or breakfast. That monster's never been a picky eater, and his diet has only increased since the stores all ran out of dessert. All in all, you aren't gonna end up in a good place."

"And nobody's done a thing to stop this nonsense?" Kermit didn't bother asking why the Police hadn't gotten involved. As far as the NYPD was concerned, Sesame Street's problems were its own to deal with. That was how it had always been, and they certainly weren't gonna change that now.

"Ha! A couple tried. That so-called Superhero Grover attempted to 'stand for justice' or whatever that means, but Bert took him down with an octagon to the face. Now he's trapped in his own armor, forced to do Bert's bidding as an enforcer. Something similar nearly happened to Von Count, but he put his Castle on lockdown and seems content to just wait it out. He's been around for longer than anyone else on the planet, this probably just seems like a passing inconvenience to him."

Kermit motioned for him to go on.

"Those fairies took that flying schoolhouse of theirs up and away to Boston once they realized their magic would be too dangerous if it got into the wrong hands. Pretty much the only other person willing to fight back against both sides is Elmo, and he isn't really friendly these days."

"Elmo, not friendly?" Kermit responded incredulously. "I'm having trouble imagining 'Tickle Me Elmo' without friends. I only ever heard him get mad at that rock."

"Ha! Don't know what to tell ya. War changes people. And I wouldn't mention the rock. Little Zoe got her legs taken out in the Hooper Store Bombing a couple months back. She claimed the rock would protect her. That combined with Kadabby flying away was enough to force the red kid into seclusion. He's taken an entire block and turned it into his own little world, filled with traps and tripwires and moats stuffed with feral goldfish. Practically everything he can think of is in there, and we both know Elmo has QUITE the imagination. He could take down either Bert or Ernie's forces by himself if he had the chance, but both of them? No dice. I don't blame him for keeping to himself."

"Hmm..." To say Kermit was disgruntled was an understatement. He had checked up on his hometown once or twice, over the internet, and everything had seemed okay. It had comforted him that the cheerful street had been kept far away from the cutthroat politics of Hollywood. Now he wished he could have stayed, if only to prevent this mess from spiraling as far out of control as it had.

He turned to look at Oscar. "And where does that leave you, Oscar? Who's side are you on?"

Oscar laughed. "Ya know me, mister the frog. I'm a Grouch. We don't care about tyranny or anarchy or whatever they're calling each other these days. We stick to the underside. One man's trash is a Grouch's treasure, and I gotta say we Grouches have been making QUITE a profit from all the chaos." His smile turned sinister. "And that profit includes those sad saps who get their lives *tragically* cut short by it all."

KA-CLICK

Kermit tilted his head ever-so-slightly to his right. On his shoulder was Slimey T. Worm, his orange body coiled around a pistol pointed directly at Kermit's skull. Kermit hadn't even felt the worm crawl up there.

He looked at Oscar again, his expression blank. No point in doing anything to set the Grouch off, and pretty much *anything*could potentially set the Grouch off.

They stood there for a good minute or two, in silence.

Eventually, Oscar rolled his eyes. "That's enough Slimey, he gets the idea."

The worm obligingly jumped off Kermit's shoulder.

"And what was that all about?" Kermit asked, an edge seeping into his voice.

Oscar spread his arms placatingly. "Look. Kermit. I like ya. Out of all the nut jobs around here, you at least had the sense to get out and get big when the getting was good. Not really my style, but I can respect that. It helps that we both have an appreciation for flies. But currently us Grouches are building a reputation that I can't really afford to ruin. Can't let one of these things not be like the others, you know how it is."

Kermit nodded. He definitely knew how it was. The phrase "the frog does not belong" still echoed in the back of his mind after all these years.

"So lemme give ya a piece of advice, pal. Turn right back around and head on back to that fancy theater of yours. Leave all this crap alone. Nobody knows you're here, and if you get out quick it'll stay that way. Go have fun with that pig of yours. I know Grouches that would kill for a girl like her. Just saying!" Oscar hastily added when Kermit glared at him. Then he frowned. "But if you do the dumb thing and try to stick your head into everyone's business like you used to with that silly hat and microphone of yours, then your death will be on your own hands. And if me and the other Grouches see you alone on the street when we're out scavenging, don't expect us to be merciful. Not with all that celebrity money you've got in yer pockets."

Kermit frowned. "Message received."

"Good. Welp." Oscar turned and started walking into the shadows of a nearby alleyway. "Seeya around, Kermit. Though honestly, I really hope I don't."

Kermit watched as the Grouch's form vanished. "Well," he muttered to himself "I see he hasn't changed."

There were multiple ways Kermit could have reacted to all this. He could have taken Oscar's advice, and called a cab to take him back to the airport. He could have ran down the street, arms flailing wildly in a panic until he got taken down by one of Bert's gunmen or Ernie's IEDs. 

But now was not the time for the frog that stayed inside drinking tea and proclaiming that nothing was any of his business. Now was not the time for the frog that overreacted when shows went awry.

Now was the time for the frog that had caught jewel thieves, fought pirates, and survived a prison camp in Siberia. A frog that had gathered a crack team of artists from across the country and taken down anything in their way on their rise to international fame. Now was the time for a frog that knew it was not easy being green, but had decided it was what he wanted to be anyway, because nobody made an impact by doing things the easy way. 

Now was the time for Kermit the Frog.

And he was going to take the banjo on his back and sing.

Sing a song.

One that's simple, to last a whole life long.

A song of angry Muppets.

But first... He reached into a pocket of his old, tan, coat, pulled out a cell phone, and dialed a number. 

"Fozzie?"

"Yes, it's me, put down the fart shoes and get the gang altogether. Yes, even Crazy Harry. ESPECIALLY Crazy Harry."

"It's time to get things started."

"Sesame Street."

"TONIGHT."

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #128: Oscar Goes Missing....Again (RWBY)

Rachel: (Sitting next to Oscar on a helicopter) Thanks again for coming along with us on the mission, Oscar.

Oscar: (Smiles Softly) No problem, ma'am. Always happy to help.

Rachel: That's the spirit- wait.....you did tell your friends that you would be gone for a while, did you?

Oscar: They were all asleep when I came by your office. I did wrote a note saying that I'll be gone for a while, though.

Rachel: You think they'll be able to see the note you written for them?

Oscar: Possibly. But I'm sure they'll be fine without me for the day regardless if they read it or not.

Meanwhile.....

Ruby: (Yawns) Good morning everyone...

Yang: Morning, little sis.

Jaune: Anyone has any plans for today?

Blake: Not really...

Nora: (Yawns before getting a little worried) Is Oscar's still asleep?

Ruby: (Walk to Oscar's room) I'll go in and check if he is.

Ren: So what should we do today?

Weiss: We could-

Ruby: (Shrieks) NOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Yang: (Suprised) Ruby?!

Weiss: What's going on?!

Ruby: (Walk back in tears) I-i-it's Oscar...

Nora: (Eyes Widened while getting up from the table) Oscar?!!!!

Ren: Is he okay?!

Ruby: (Points at his empty room) Oscar's missing...... OSCAR'S MISSING AGAIN!!!!!

Everyone: WHAT?!

Once those words came out of Ruby's mouth, all hell starting to break loose in this apartment.

Yang: (Livid) WHO DID THIS?!!! WHICH ONE OF THESE DAMN MOTHER FUCKERS TOOK OUR FARM BOY?!!!

Blake: (Trying her best to calm Yang down) Yang! Calm down please!!!

Nora: (Bawling her eyes out while hugging Ren tightly) My baby!!!!! Where could he has gone, Rennyyyy?!!!!

Ren: (Hugging Nora close while having one tear coming out of his eye) No....he can't be gone....he just can't be....

Jaune: (On his knees in a dramatic fashion while in tears) WHERE DID WE GO WRONGGG?!!

Ruby: (Hugs Weiss to dear life in tears) Where could he have gone, Weiss?

Weiss: (Hugs Ruby back) I honestly don't know, Ruby. I do pray to Oum that he's okay.

Ruby: (Crying Softy) Me too... I don't wanna lose him again, Weiss....I don't wanna....

Weiss: Don't worry, Ruby. We are going to set up a search party right now. And we won't rest until our Oscar is found!

Meanwhile.....

Oscar: Yep. They'll be just fine.

Rachel: If you say so...

@miki-13

@keyenuta

@littlemisssquiggles

@ma-lemons

@journalsandjasminetea

@oscarpineprotectionsquad

@miraculouscorazone

[palaceofpassion]

PAW:ToW

How about a story where Jaune and Pyrrha both get to say something to each other that they didn’t get to since both partners supposedly died in their timeline.

The worst part about this entire situation perhaps, was being alone with someone else. Jaune had been fine, he'd put on a facade of... comfort... though him and Weiss had been clearly freaked out. But... he'd grown good at doing these things. However, these were only things that he could do when he was in a group of people. When he was alone, one on one? That mask quickly broke... like now.

Weiss was with her old team, or new team? He wasn't sure... they had a lot to catch up on, and a lot to discuss. He... he wasn't sure how she was doing it, because he felt like he was going to crumble.

Then he thought he'd get the chance to spend time with all his team. But all he got was Pyrrha... he could understand why. Nora and Ren weren't sure what to say to him. He had been a mere speck in their life from what little they had talked. It wasn't like his relationship with his Ren and Nora. They hadn't spent a year and a half on the road together. No... they'd only been together for a scant few months, which hardly meant anything to the duo, he knew they hadn't been terribly close till they went out in the world.

They were happy to see him! But... but theyw ere closer to Oscar, than they were to him. And that stung a little.

No what really got him was that he was alone, with Pyrrha... and they both obviously had a lot to say.

"So..."

"Yes... well..."

But neither knew how to say it.

Jaune buckled down though, he sucked in some air, and summed his courage. "Hah, you know, I never thought I'd get to see you again... I really thought that... my emotions were better handled than that." His fingers ran against his knees as he kept his grip tight.

"I feel the same... the last time I saw you... you'd tricked me haha... took advantage of uhm... my attempt to get you to safety."

Jaune snickered, "I guess the me from here was smarter..."

"Jaune!" She shouted, obviously not liking his /joke/, "Ple...please don't joke about that..."

"I'm not." He spoke with a stern face, "Pyrrha, how do you think I felt in my world? When... when you stuffed me in that locker, when she did... I don't... I couldn't do anything but watch you as I flew away, weak and helpless..." His nails were thoroughly dug into his pants now.

"I'm sorry... I know how that feels..."

"Yeah... I... I guess you do."

The unnerving silence continued.

"So you and Weiss?"

Till Pyrrha broke it.

"I... maybe? I don't know... I'm not sure where we stand. We never got the chance to talk about it. It kind of just happened, when we were in her manor, and waiting on everything to go to shit." He bit down on his teeth.

He could tell that she was feeling glum, that her eyes weren't meeting him now.

"I never got over you."

Her emerald gaze snapped to him in an instant.

"I... I was left with so much unsaid, and... I never got the chance to tell you how I felt... it hurt... even now. I love Weiss, with all my heart. But... but I also still... it's hard looking at you..." He felt the tears burning his eyes.

PYrrha was just the same, "Me either... I've never... I haven't felt that way, about anyone... and... and it felt like I was the only one that cared and..."

Both of them teetered so close to one another, but neither made a move.

"Are you two going to hug?"

Both suddenly turned to Weiss, "Weiss!"

She rubbed her temples, avoiding an oncoming headache. "Jaune... it's fine... I just... I know this is hard. And well... I guess I don't mind?"

Jaune looked her in the eye and furrowed his brow. "No that's not, that's not right Weiss."

The heiress shrugged, "Eh, I don't really get what a loving family is... and well... I doubt either of you feel love for one another." She phrased it in a way they understood.

Neither were the one they lost, they weren't exactly who they were. And both knew that, they weren't sure what feelings would come in the future. But all they had right now was an understanding.

"Yes."

"Yeah."

They just wanted to let go of the pain.

"So hug. And well..." She sauntered over to Jaune, and placed a hand into his. "We'll see."

Pyrrha fought a blush as the heiress gave her a smile, one that held another meaning to it, it was an odd feeling to feel heated due to Weiss.

Regardless, the hug that Pyrrha and Jaune gave to one another, was one filled with remorse, fear, tears, and a hope to a new friendship.

[eddie-redmayne-italian-blog]

Fotografia di Pierre-Ange Carlotti @Phenomena Styling di Tobias Frericks Grooming di Petra Sellge Produzione di North Six

Eddie  Redmayne for GQ Italia 

Eddie Redmayne torna, di nuovo, a fare sul serio Dopo avere interpretato per la terza volta il ruolo di "Magizoologo" nel franchise di Animali fantastici, uno tra i più validi attori di Hollywood, nonché premio Oscar, è pronto ad affrontare la scena nei panni di un vero criminale

di Jason McBride

27 ottobre 2022

in English:

Last summer after playing The Good Nurse and before starting rehearsals for the Cabaret revival, winner of the Olivier Awards 2022, Eddie Redmayne back to school at the very specific and renowned academic institute  l'École Internationale de Theatre Jacques Lecoq, more know as the Clown school, to Paris.

Redmayne took a  course in theatre of the absurd for two weeks where he spent the time to improvise and play.The course was very demanding and the instructors were extremely honest and even strict.

Redmayne’s classmates were between 18 and 60 years old and all came from professional acting background. He was the only one who won an Oscar and the only one  to have starred in a billion -dollar film franchise, he felt like an absolute amateur (dilettante). This was the point, he wanted to start all over again to get naked and try to free  himself from all the tics of acting patterns accumulated in twenty years.

We are sitting in a suite hotel in Toronto, two days after his son Luke, 4 years old, finally started attending his school  in london, redmayne is a caring  parent and he wouldn’t  miss Luke’s first day for nothing to world, but soon he had to fly  to World Premiere of The Good Nurse.

Redmayne it’s been at TIFF five times and he said is thrilled to be back as well as to have the opportunity to face this particular chat “ I’ve never released a real interview” he says “ that of talking about  a movie you really believe in, is a rather rare occasion”

In  The Good Nurse, Redmayne plays Charles Cullen a nurse who killed as many as 400 patients during the 1990s and early 2000s  murdered his victims with insulin and other drug mixes. Today he lives in New Jersey  prison where he’s serving  18 consecutive life sentences. Cullen remains the most prolific serial killer in Criminal History.

Redmayne plays him as an affable  person, dressed in the classic cardigan, a nice guy, so to speak, but sequence after sequence emerges  more devil side “

“Charlie had really two opposites personality in him” said redmayne, who know him described him as “dissociated” and when this emerged his eyes went in different  directions, “ I spent about  three days in the mirror trying to” says laughing Redmayne “ in the end thought f.....and made my version”

The Good Nurse couldn’t come at a better time in redmayne’s artistic career, he had just finish playing the third part of FB as Newton Scamander, and he longed to act on a smaller set “ It was really liberating for me” Redmayne sais” After trying my hand at so many epic and impactful films that can certainly be fun and spectacular, but they make you lose touch with the human dimension and the intimacy of the production process of a cinematographic work”

Redmayne was struck by the script, loved it, much more when he learned that he was directing by Tobias Lindholm “ He has an extraordinary moral sense” says Redmayne  and Lindholm , in turn, has found a precious ally  in Eddie.

“ I think making a movie is like  being the manager of a football team” says Tobias “ and Eddie is definitely one of those players you would want in your locker room for sure on the pitch too, but this  qualities in the locker room are second to none””

When Redmayne learned that Jessica Chaistain would play Amy he was very happy, they never worked together. “ It can be embarrassing to work with friends, a workplace is a particular space, it’s different, you can getalong when you are with your family and then you clash at work”

According to Redmayne  he and Jessica have the same approach in the way to preparing their characters. “You have to do  a detective work, as accurately as possible” said Redmayne” “ then you throw everthing away and try to act alongside someone” 

Eddie prepared himself  on Charles Graeber’s 2013 book of the same name, but also from the material he gave him, interviewa, court documents and this mean to study all the Cullen footage in circulation. The Ideal would have been to speak with him, but it was impossible. Redmayne just had a zoom with Amy, who today is a grandmother resident  in Florida. 

Before plaiyng Cullen, Redmayne hired Reynolds ( Choreographer who helped him to  capture every specific detail of Hawking’s physical deterioration) which helped analyze and then impersonate the characteristic, step and posture of the nurse. “ It was kind of a question mark” says the actor  worked alongside a  vocal coach to refine the slight New Jersey accent.

With Jessica Chastain  Eddie attented a nursing school where they spent two weeks learning how ro effortlessly insert the picc line in the vein and hang  the saline bags.” I was just a total clumsy ironic, you would never want to see me running to your rescue in a moment of crises” 

Such a thorough and obviously tiring preparation takes a long time. Not all actors do this. but in case of Redmayne its’s synonymous of seriousness  and also works like as a lifeboat or safety belt. “ Some need a short runway to take off, “ he explains, “ others need a long ramp, I must have a very long one”

In the book Graeber defines Cullen as self -deprecating and vulnerable, this description also fits stragely on Redmayne, the acotr often mentions never having attended  an acting school, and tends to describe entire career as a kind o happy accident. “ I don’t have specific plan” he says “ I’m just inprovising”

In fact, his words might even sound like a strange form of boasting.  Redmayne started, so to speak, from the top when he was only 11 years old, thanks to a small role in an Oliver production  portrayed by Jonathan Pryce and directed by Sam Mendes, Then, while still at Eton, he played Viola in a Globe anniversary production of Twelfth Night, starring and directed by Mark Rylance.  His first best-known film roles were Hawking and, a year later, transgender artist Lili Elbe in the film The Danish Girl which earned him, at the age of 30, several nominations for the most prestigious awards.  The Theory of Everything, for example, also earned him a BAFTA and a Golden Globe till to win the Oscar.  After these two films he seemed well on his way to becoming the answer of his generation of Daniel Day Lewis Ralph Fiennes

Participation in the 2016 film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them has in a sense moved him away from that path. Suddenly, Eddie Redmayne found himself in the Harry Potter franchise, a high-budget production with big special effects, with big star like Jude Law, Johnny Depp and Mads Mikkelsen. What kind of preparation is needed to deal more deeply with the role of a Magizoologist? It is not possible to register for a crash course at Hogwarts. Redmayne does not express himself in these terms, of course. When he talks about the Harry Potter spin-off film series, he’s very accommodating and generous. "The moment I accepted to enter that type of universe," he says, "I knew I was ending up inside a mechanism much larger than me. He has given me so much and I have loved acting alongside some of the best and brightest actors in the world. The possibility of continuing to work with them every two years, in an industry that is nomadic and circus, has been an extraordinary experience of continuity ». An undoubted advantage on the human level he says, not necessarily at the level of acting. It has been a fun journey, but perhaps not the ideal place to continue learning. "The thing I'm sure of is that comfort and I don't get along very well," says Redmayne. "So I always try to go beyond the boundaries of my comfort zone." Fantastic Beasts has also been plagued by some controversy of an extracurricular nature: the scandalous views of J.K. Rowling on gender identity, Depp's libel case, the recent arrests of Ezra Miller and a drop in box office results. While Redmayne doesn't want to talk about all of that, the decision to focus on more intimate films like The Good Nurse is the best answer.

During our conversation , Redmayne reflected on his own creative ambiguity, his "cynicism" and "pessimism". When I ask him where this way of feeling comes from, he’s careful not to attribute it to any particular project, but he struggles to identify its true source. "Acting is a strange mix of control and freedom," he specifies, choosing his words. “When you start making a movie, you lose a bit the control . You become a cog. You can work on the script for years, but there comes a time when you have to give up on yourself and that's a complex thing, you know? At best, you do this with someone you trust and it makes you feel completely free. But it doesn't always work like that ».

If Redmayne has always worked hard, he has also, by his own admission, worked little. Now, thanks to Cabaret and The Good Nurse, he probably expects to work even less. "This year has served to make me more demanding," he says, bursting out laughing again. Unlike most artists, he doesn't really know what he'll be up to in the future. However, after finally working with a friend, he would like to do it again. Perhaps with one of his longtime British colleagues, such as Ben Whishaw and Andrew Garfield. Maybe with his Cabaret co-star Jessie Buckley. Or, dare, even in a comedy, the kind of film in which it might come in handy to have attended clown school. «I gave myself a move», he concludes, «and I rediscovered the love for my work that perhaps I had lost a bit».

https://www.gqitalia.it/show/article/eddie-redmayne-intervista

[oddlyhale]

Is Jaune worthy of something? I can´t fully understand all the love he receives from fandom. Is a little sickening being unable to search any other character without seeing at least one thing about jaune.

Take my word with a grain of salt, because I am heavily biased.

I really do not like Jaune. I used to not care about him and his team in the beginning of RWBY, when they were just the b-team that filled the background, but now he's been taking protag status after V3. Definitely at the end of V3 when Pyrrha died, it was mostly Jaune who was emotionally damaged by it. Ruby was right there, witnessing her being turned to dust by Cinder, and she has never once shown how it damaged her.

What makes Jaune so important is that he was the love interest of Pyrrha, the almost-Fall Maiden. As the show says, Maidens are incredibly important keys to the world's survival, and Jaune is one of our guys that happened to be in love with one. Everybody loves Pyrrha - including me - so in a way, Jaune could be that extension to her that the fans hang onto. The show feeds into that as well, what with that hideous statue of Pyrrha standing in the small city in V6, and how Jaune has to let her go instead of mourning all the time.

Jaune feels more human, in a way, because of that.

Ruby never shows that she's hurt, which feels very inhuman. It's not even her trying to cover up her woes with a smile. Ruby is just written horribly shallow and drained of emotion, that even Penny's return was brushed off by her. Ruby's writing makes her feel as if she will instantly forget her dead friends and have no reaction if she sees them again.

Meanwhile, Jaune is humanized to show that he cared for Pyrrha. Granted, he and Penny never spoke once to each other when they got to Atlas, and yet he was the one bestowed the ultimate choice of murdering Penny at the end of V8. Ruby was just tossed into the abyss, right in the middle of fighting Cinder and Neo. Her fall was so quick and dampened by Neo and Cinder's last confrontation that I even forget she was there.

I do believe that, even if fans want to feel as if Ruby matters, it's proven that she's a nothing asset to her own show. Trying to make Ruby matter feels like a pathetic attempt. It's like trying to make an established NPC the protag, but that NPC has literally nothing to show for it and has the personality of a rock, but has this one superpower that nobody else has.

To me, Jaune feels like he's the void that the writers couldn't fill with Ruby. As I've said, he's been humanized throughout the show, from beginning to now. He's remained pretty consistent and his growth has always felt genuine. People can relate to losers like Jaune, and people can relate to trying to move on from losing a loved one. People can relate to having a big family, a dorky voice, and wanting to prove that they're worthy of the journey. Jaune is all those things.

Not only Jaune but his team helped hold up the emotional labor. Ruby has become so shallow that even her team feels like they're just there. Nora and Ren, and Oscar, have to pull their weight in character moments: struggles, anguish, letting go of somebody you love, frustrations, and surviving. All things that are human.

In a way, I can see why this makes Jaune much more appealing, and why he'd have so many fans. Hell, it makes sense as to why so much fanart insists on him being the main character of a harem anime.

Why I don't like Jaune is because he's hogging the spotlight. I mean sure, Team RWBY are garbage characters. However, this is their show. I want to see the girls be humanized just like Team ORNJ. I want to see them be the main characters for once.

But no. He's got to be the one getting the attention, because after all these years, it feels a little too late to fix what they didn't do right for Team RWBY, so they've no choice but to keep relying on Team ORNJ and then throw in some new characters to distract us from the overtly painful fact that Team RWBY has nothing to offer.

[itsclydebitches]

I’ve been seeing an uptick in “anti-RWDE” posts lately  — which is a phenomenon I’d like to comment on at a later date  — but for now one of them (quite unintentionally) made me realize something about the finale that I haven’t seen others discuss yet. 

So RWBYJNOR saves everyone, right? Let’s just put aside the animation for a moment  — which didn’t show any army members making it out  — as well as the forgotten side characters  — Maria, Pietro, Qrow’s group isn’t forgotten, but still left behind  — and take things on good faith here. We’ll read the finale through the thematic intention: RWBYJNOR saved “everyone” in the Kingdom of Atlas in Volume 8, deliberately contrasting them with Ironwood who was willing to sacrifice a chunk of the Kingdom in Volume 7. Forget all the messiness and just accept that regardless of the consequences  — like a destroyed Kingdom and a “dead” team  — the heroes are heroic because they didn’t give into a “lesser evil” thinking and managed to save everyone. 

Now, how was that possible? 

Let’s go back to the beginning of the seventh episode of Volume 8, “War.” Salem’s grimm have just burrowed through Atlas’ defenses and taken them out. The shields are gone. She flies Monstra into the fields and releases an army of darkness that immediately heads for the city. What’s the very first thing Ironwood does? 

Soldier: Yes, sir?

Ironwood: I am evacuating all citizens to the subway. Prepare Manta Squad Omega, and dispatch to every part of Atlas.

Soldier: But sir-

Ironwood: Now!

He evacuates the people, with “the people” meaning all the Atlesians and however many Mantle folk got to the city prior to Salem’s arrival. When this episode aired I mentioned being confused as to why the soldier was so hesitant. Why wouldn’t you want the people to get to safety when a grimm army is heading their way? Fans against Ironwood took the soldier’s side, claiming that Mountain Glenn proved that any underground evacuation is a death sentence and thus he obviously doesn’t really care about the peoples’ safety. Fans in support of/neutral towards Ironwood pointed out that this is a pretty big leap, no one is coming up with a better idea for what he should do instead, and that within these circumstances it reads like the soldiers is illogically against this idea simply because everyone is against Ironwood now. The show wants characters criticizing his decisions and making him out to look like a crazed dictator... even during moments when it doesn’t make any sense to be upset with him. Shooting the councilman yes, trying to keep the people safe no. Basically, this small exchange was a mess, but the rest of the volume proved that this was a sound call. The subway never collapsed and no grimm ever made it to that enclosed space to pick the civilians off like fish in an underground barrel. 

So, why didn’t that happen? Well, one answer is because Oscar and Ozpin destroyed the whale. But how did they have time to do that? Without the people dying while they were being tortured, talking to Hazel, escaping with Emerald, fighting Salem, etc.? A lot happened between Salem starting her attack and Oscar ending it, so why wasn’t 2/3rds of the Kingdom’s population decimated during that time? 

Because Ironwood sent his army out to keep the grimm occupied. 

Outside of Ironwood’s cartoon villain actions  — random murders and bomb threats  — which get the most attention due to how deliberately, over-the-top horrific they are, these are the two actions that get the most negative attention from both the story and the fanbase. The soldier seems horrified by the order to evacuate. Marrow is devastated that young adults are fighting in this battle. The fandom is disgusted by both aspects of Ironwood’s character: giving orders that, as general, he expects to be obeyed and having an army that follows those orders. Putting side that cartoon villainy, this is what supposedly makes Ironwood the antagonist here. These are the qualities that have existed since Volume 2, resulting in a “he was always a bad guy” interpretation. These are the qualities that have resulted in anyone who likes his character being labeled as a “bootlicker.” We know these qualities make the fandom hate him because otherwise, more people would be confused as to why a presumably heroic character randomly shot Oscar. Orders, armies, and general military associations are at the heart of Ironwood’s presumed villainy. 

So let’s remove them. 

Ironwood has no evil army. Ironwood gives no evil orders. Power and control lies solely in the hands of our non-military heroes. Everything is better! 

...well, no. Because we saw in Volume 8 precisely the choices our heroes made when the attack started: half of them focused on saving a single individual (Oscar) and the other half kept to the sidelines. At no point did our RWB group act after sending the message and prior to securing the Staff. AKA, during the attack of Salem’s army. We got a very explicit moment in which Ruby looked out the window at the battle going on and turned away from it, continuing to discuss ethics instead of joining the fight. The people of Atlas (which, again, includes many Mantle citizens) had no one but Ironwood and his army because a third of the group was trying to rescue Oscar (they never even had a plan to blow up Monstra — that was also Ironwood), a third of the group was up in Amity, and a third was sitting in the mansion. They did nothing to help the people of Atlas being attacked by grimm. 

Thus, if you remove Ironwood’s actions, everything goes to hell. There is no longer an order to evacuate to the subway. Maybe some people go there anyway. Most probably don’t. They run in a panic wherever they can. Hide wherever they can. Go back home for some semblance of safety. 

There’s no longer an army. Either it doesn’t exist because we’ve determined it’s simplistically bad despite RWBY’s grimm-specific context, or Ironwood likewise never gives the order to protect Atlas’ border. Salem’s army moves unimpeded through the city, killing countless people as it goes. How do we know? Because they’re civilians who can’t defend themselves and there’s literally no one else to help. Remember: Ironwood is not giving orders, there is no army, RWB is in the mansion, YJOR is in the whale, Penny is out of commission, the Happy Huntresses are in Mantle. Those in Atlas are entirely alone. In time, Oscar destroys the whale, but by then it’s too late. There’s no concrete way to theorize how many have died, but it’s inevitably a lot. Everyone else is scatted across the city, trying to survive. 

So this scene 

no longer exists. 

When the group gets the Staff and creates portals for “everyone” to escape through, Mantle is ready to go. They’ve gotten everyone into the crater and can funnel them straight to Vacuo. Atlas, however, is in chaos. When Jaune enters the subway there’s only a few people there, many of which may be wounded or dying. He’s right back where he started, in Mantle at the beginning of Volume 8: needing to go door-to-door to find where people have hidden themselves, trying to convince them all to follow him (remember Oscar commenting to Ozpin about how difficult that was?). Except now, he and Nora are the only ones trying to get people to safey, the city is filled with far more grimm, a significant amount of time has passed for people to be killed or injured (making evacuating them even harder, both due to injuries and an unwillingness to leave hurt/dead/missing loved ones behind), he’s trying to convince these panicking people to go through magic portals, not just walk to a crater, and he’s aware that there’s a very short time limit for this task. 

Jaune returns in a panic of his own, explaining how difficult it will be to get that 2/3rds of the Kingdom to Vacuo. How many are already dead. Barricaded. Missing. Closeup on Ruby looking horrified, but then she rallies. They can do it. Atlas is falling, but residual dust gives them just enough time to find, calm, and evacuate those people. They’re heroes after all. Beating the odds is what they do. 

Then Cinder attacks. 

Suddenly, the group can’t evacuate people because they’re trying to keep themselves safe from her. Maybe Cinder gets the powers because Jaune was off looking for civilians, leaving Penny without a mercy kill. Maybe Nora dies because she’s still trying to help people on the city that plows into the one below. Regardless of how details might change, they’re not getting a spread out, decimated population through those portals before Cinder changes the wish and makes them disappear.  

In this version, the story starts with Ironwood wanting to sacrifice 1/3rd of the population to save 2/3rds and the future of the war. It ends with 2/3rds of the population dying instead. 

This is what I mean when I say the majority of the fandom wants to view a very complex situation through a ridiculously simple lens. The fandom wants to denounce every bit of RWBY’s fictionalized military, the context issues of that aside. The story wants to paint RWBYJNOR as the only heroes, in part because they succeeded in saving everyone (“everyone”) in the Kingdom when Ironwood gave up. 

But they only managed to save everyone because of Ironwood. Because he kept fighting for his people to the bitter end. This is why, though his horrific actions obviously exist in the story, they make no sense (he’ll threaten to kill his people so he can... save his people?) and mess up what little is working in the finale. The story wants us to celebrate the group for evacuating Mantle and Atlas, but the Atlas evacuation would not have happened if not for Ironwood’s actions  — the actions that are ignored in favor of having Winter blame him for everything and then killing him off. The rescue of “everyone” was very much a joint effort. RWBYJNOR’s win is not actually a contrast to Ironwood’s intended sacrifice, for the simple reason that their win depended entirely on Ironwood’s actions. 

If we’re going to celebrate the group getting everyone to safety, we should probably also celebrate the guy who got them all to an easy evacuation point and ensured they weren’t eaten before then. Does that mean Ironwood never did anything wrong? Of course not. As established, the story went out of its way to make him into a villain. Rather, it means that other parts of the story failed to maintain that black and white view, complicating the heroism of RWBYJNOR in the process. If we want Ironwood to be incapable of heroic action, always the bad guy, nothing good to say about him whatsoever... then we likewise need to accept that the group is rather unheroic in many regards too. That, on their own, they would have failed to save everyone, just as Ironwood’s plan failed to save everyone at the end of Volume 7. Because they chose their friend over a kingdom. Because they sat around in a mansion. Because by the time they took action again and tried to escape, without Ironwood’s help they would have lost a larger majority than they originally insisted be saved. 

[rachetmath]

Lancaster vs Rosegarden

Oscar: Jaune!

Jaune: Oh hi Oscar.

Oscar: You think you better than me?!

Jaune: Wait what?

Oscar: You think just because you're tall, muscler, an awsome semblance, and cool armor that'll make Ruby yours. Well too bad buddy, she's mine.

Jaune: I'm sorry, my mind is wondering where are you going with this.

Oscar: Ruby is mine. She will be mind.

Jaune: Okay. But what does this have to with me.

Oscar: I'm not an idiot Jaune. I see everything.

Jaune: What are you-?

Oscar: The train.

Ruby’s scroll.

Argus

Atlas.

I know what you're thinking and trust me she will soon know that chocolate is better than vanilla.

Jaune: Look Oscar-

Oscar: I'm the goat here. I've gone through shit. I do more for this group than anyone.

Jaune: Okay. Noted. Now Oscar just hear me-

Oscar: I'm better than you in every way.

Jaune: Okay but-

Oscar: I'm-

Jaune pimps’ slaps Oscar across his face. The hand was so strong it almost threw Oscar off. However, once Oscar recovered a little, Jaune slaps him again, knocking the drool off him.

Oscar: Ow!

Jaune: You good? A-are you done? Can I finish?

Oscar: Yeah.

Jaune: Thank you. Now let me tell you something um Pyrrha is dead.

Oscar: Okay, so what? What does she... oh.

Jaune: Yeah, she was reckless, she didn't think and she burdens everything on herself. Does Ruby not do that herself?

Oscar: Um..

Jaune: Okay then shut up. If you like Ruby that much then tell her. This has nothing to do with me. We are not even like that. We're just friends.

Oscar: *feels bad*

Jaune: The only girl I seem to have a relationship with is Yang. And it's not even a romantic one, its playful and sisterly. I mean have you seen her with Blake.

Oscar: True. Wait what about Nora?

Jaune: ... ... ...

Oscar: ... ... ...

Jaune: Teammate. A bit of a sister. Nothing less. Nothing more.

Oscar: Wow. That's low.

Jaune: Now, you are better than me but guess what that ain't much. Like what have you done? What sacrifices have you made? What are your reasons?

Oscar: Um I told James the truth about Salem. I saved everyone at Heaven. I helped in the battle with Cordovan. I saved everyone from Salem.

Jaune: Okay. Ironwood shot you. Cordovan was insane and did not deserve to live or have a job after her recklessness. Plus, Ruby stopped her. You were on a plane. And Ozpin helped more than you in Heaven. And if Hazel didn't buy you any time you would have died. In fact, Hazel is the reason you’re alive.

Me: And the reason your journey started.

Oscar: Well I persuaded him to join the good side.

Jaune: Really, how so?

Oscar: By telling him how to use the lamp. Then he freed me and made me do it myself.

Jaune: So, Hazel just let you go because he didn't believe you?

Oscar: Yep.

Jaune: So, if Hazel called Jinn's name and she appeared, what would have happened then? Like would Hazel have freed you then? Or would he had killed you and just let that be the end?

Oscar: ...

Jaune: So Hazel just showed you pity or you guilt tripped him into helping.

Oscar: I helped with James.

Jaune: Who we jumped.

Oscar: The evacuation.

Jaune: The worse plan we ever made.

Oscar: Oh man.

Jaune: Now, I need to say this, STOP being random. Like first you suck for some reason then you start being cool. Like what the hell?! Oscar, I don't know why I should be wasting my time trying to help you, let alone worry about you if you're somehow going to prove how irrelevant that is. Like I could've been helping Mantle instead of helping you. I could've been trying to talk to James instead of helping you. But no, you're my friend so of course I'll help you.

Oscar: But I'm your partner.

Jaune: No. No you are not. I'm the healer. I'm everybody’s partner.

Me: Basically the brother or the father of the group. No, wait a minute, maybe the mother? Still.

Jaune: Now, for your reason. Why are you here? What is your personal goal?

Oscar: To finish this. This fight with Salem needs to stop. I need to stop the cycle of reincarnation.

Me: Bra, that has nothing to do with you reincarnating. Ozma's mission. Remember?

Oscar: Oh.

Jaune: Basically, until the gods show up and we pass, you have no choices here so... you're here because Ozpin and I fucked up. Mostly me.

Oscar: Oh my brothers.

Jaune: Yeah. Now, listen. Ruby has been going through it. Ask her out. Trust me, you'll be making her day. Believe me. Please, enjoy what little life you might have left because in all honesty you barely have one. Considering your just a mini version of everything I was supposed to be.

Oscar: I'm sorry what?

Jaune: Later. *leaves*

Oscar: Um RatchetMath.

Me: What?

Oscar: Do you hate me?

Me: Yes and no.

Oscar: Why?!

Me: Oscar, I’m not going to lie but in all honesty you should not exist.

Oscar: …

Me: Like I’m not going to cap. You’re just Jaune but with everything else.

Oscar: How?

Me: How? Bra, let me tell you something, have you ever notice how you and Jaune are similar? Like coming into a field with no experience whatsoever. You were getting bullied by others. You were in need a pip talk.

Oscar: But I’m black.

Me: Bra, I’m light skin and I don’t even care for you. I’m fine with black representation but I prefer Ilia over you.

Oscar: What why?

Me: Bra Ilia is black. From a poor neighborhood. Her parents worked in low paying jobs. Her parents are dead. She literally went and lived in Atlas, so she has more awareness of what’s going on there. Plus, team RWBY has one faunus and team JNPR doesn’t. Especially if the said faunus is rich and has some nobility.

Oscar: Shit.

Me: And to be honest Jaune looked like Ozpin. He even looked like Ozma. Other than that if Jaune was Ozpin reincarnation then everything would be some levels the same. Hazel hates Ozpin so will Jaune because what Ozpin has done so far. He sees Ozpin’s life and he would have been even more furious cause none the events needed to happen if Ozpin- no Ozma wasn’t trying to get laid like many so-called heroes. He gets out-casted like he was back at Beacon except Pyrrha’s gone. See where I’m going with this?

Oscar: Yeah.

Me: So, in all honesty Oscar you are just black Jaune Arc. You are just a mere shadow of Jaune’s character. Hint to why I like you. And you know what it’s our fault because we didn’t want Jaune to overshadow Ruby. Even though the sad truth is everyone overshadows Ruby. Plus, our writers refuse to give him a purpose or a character.  

[goldrockyroad]

now that the season is over here are chuang2021 moments i cannot believe are real, a list that only gets longer and in no particular order: 

- that entire bit of them choosing their dorm rooms, including but not limited to:

lin mo copping his double room only to lose it + his mental breakdown after that

almost 20 of them fighting to have hiroto stay in their room

nine and patrick's 'we break up' (only for patrick to move in after 1st round of eliminations) 

ak: ‘does rikimaru snore?’ santa: ‘yeah, very loudly’ ak: ‘oh NOOOO i’m scREWED’ 

- hanfu shop owner liu yu

- han meijuan training base: 

yu gengyin’s ‘i am a proud fishie swimming into your heart’ 

also yu gengyin: ‘i’m a little scared that the debut lineup will end up being 11 han meijuans’ 

zhang xinyao dropping it low. that’s it. 

han peiquan: ‘look at that santa, he can dance so well but can he do this? he can play the drums but ask him to come here, can he do it? no way’ 

the entire “just go where you want” performance including their intro + mentors comments + xie xingyang’s slogans

but even more so “just go where you want” 2.0 LIVE AT THE FINALS 

- the mentors dancing along to ‘vote for me xoxo’ during “just go where you want” 2.0 before carrying and promptly drOPPING zhou shen onto the floor before the rest of them pretend like nothing happened in time for the ending pose 

- “when i’m with you”, “unbreakable love”, “just go where you want” > the actual theme song all day every day 

- don't be shy @/tencent , give me all the clips of gan wangxing singing jing long's “lost you” (diu le ni) + more of the both of them dancing to crab dance backstage

- zhou shen, to shao mingming on the verge of having a meltdown over mean comments about him as practice for “i don’t care” stage: ‘do you want to hear the next comment?’ shao mingming, as the others start laughing: ‘plEASE NO’ zhou shen, reading the comment anyway: ‘he only knows how to cry’ cue maniac laughter from all of them 

- just hanjiang, really 

zhang xinyao, on “feng ding” stage: ‘it was so good. also i wanna add hanjiang you look like huluwa’

to wu yuheng after “i don’t care” team’s performance: ‘there’s only one word to describe you - handsome. first time i saw you i went, woah, handsome. saw you on stage performing - woah, handsome. seriously, handsome’ 

xue bayi, backstage: ‘i think he’s said that to me too’ 

when called up at 2nd eliminations: ‘what’s manga-like man?’ another trainee: ‘ means you look like you came out of a manga’ zhou zhennan: ‘yeah it’s like fei yang yang came out of the page into real life’ 

domineering ceo with all of them either screaming or looking mildly uncomfortable 

literally scREAMING to get people to join “zui kuen” team 

more importantly hanjiang’s dad imitating him scream to get people to join “zui kuen” team to a dAMN T 

- patrick: ‘hello everyone i am your ocean prince patrick!’ wu hai: ‘and i am the ocean’ [for non-chinese speaking fans of chuang, the hai 海 in wu hai means ocean] + the continuation of this on wu hai’s dorm diary

- “unbreakable love” 2.0 !!!! put it on spotify right now !!!!!

- da-geTM bo yuan 

fu sichao, on bo yuan getting 9th for 2nd eliminations: ‘that feeling when your own old man (laughs for a bit) when your old man gets a really good grade, it’s indescribable happiness’

amu: ‘bo yuan’s like my grandpa, and he might as well be’  

eisho’s ‘bo yuan gege’ 

hiroto getting other trainees to call him da-ge on dorm diary but having bo yuan as his da-ge 

or alternatively, yuan-shu [uncle yuan], as seen after using the term fanersai（凡尔赛）[literally means versailles, a slang that means the same thing as flexing / humblebragging in english] 

- gan wangxing unintentional comedian

han peiquan, on his first impressions of gan wangxing: ‘he’s such so good-looking, and then he opens his mouth (disbelievingly rolls his eyes) i almost died right there’ 

on being 11th for 2nd eliminations: ‘in the past, my life plan was that after graduating from university, i’d find a stable job and live a nine-to-five life. and i used to fantasize that in my future i’d be able to find a wife early, drive a car to bring her travelling, we can listen to some music and lift our heads to see the stars’ 

other trainees: laughing and going ‘oOHHHH’, notably including xie xingyang: ‘he’s still fantasizing!’ 

also other trainees, after seeing the video his family sent to cheer him on: ‘where’s the wife? where’s the wife!’ 

also ‘hello, look at me’ coming up everytime he shows up

case in point - the mentors erupting into laughter when gan wangxing steps forward to do his evaluation, notably zhou zhennan: ‘kill me with it!’ [i’m not sure how to translate what he actually said in a better way than that], nene following up by simply going ‘hello’, zhou zhennan immediately picking it up while still laughing: ‘look at me’

holding the umbrella for nene at the end of “it’s raining and i’m thinking of you” stage just for all the trainees backstage to go ‘why’s it you!’ 

Very Passionately telling gong jun what jing long taught him on singing

- ‘andy lau has come to visit our zoo!’ 

- wu yuheng’s quest for chilli sauce in his dorm diary:

wu yuheng and fu sichao terrorising a staff member for chilli sauce until the staff goes to wu yuheng ‘if you wake him (fu sichao) up every morning i’ll make sure you get your chilli sauce’ to which fu sichao says to wu yuheng ‘you know what chilli sauce isn’t that great let’s go’ 

wu yuheng straight up drinking zhou keyu’s chilli sauce because i could never 

- liu yu confessing to lin mo as a dare from shao mingming but lin mo’s in the toilet so liu yu has to awkwardly do it standing outside the cubicle door while shao mingming and xue bayi eat the drama up 

- oscar’s reaction to people finding out his real name + the entire ‘xiong xiong’ saga 

- lelush with a pearl earring 

- rikimaru moments that deserve a segment of their own 

having the first comment on his first solo performance be ‘drop your skincare routine’ [essentially] because the mentors didn’t have anything to critique on his performance 

at the start of his speech at 3rd eliminations, when it was clearly evening: ‘good morning’ 

getting very sad over the fact that yumeri didn't send him a video to cheer him on + being jealous every time someone's sister showing up in the videos

- speaking of sisters, the guys simping over amu's sisters + amu, asking the mentors when trainees had the chance to dedicate a few words to each other during the final livestream: 'can my sisters come next year?'

- santa, on preparation for nana party stage: ‘she (mao xiaotong) learnt the choreography really fast, and even if she made mistakes she’ll be like *makes cute expressions* so even when she did i’d be like “it’s ok! no problem!” she’s so cute’ the staff interviewing him: ‘is this the santa we know?’ 

- “the adventure” team making fun of their female guest before finding out said female guest was meng meiqi aka goddess incarnate AND had been watching them make fun of her through the cameras 

- lin mo’s bat song

- xie xingyang discreetly stealing food from the staff on their movie night that was originally supposed to only be for those who used their beans before a whole group of them [led by jing long, consisting of xie xingyang, wei ziyue, hu yetao and others] just go and outright take it with nine hugging the staff member to let them take the food that entire bts video is a mess and you know what? that’s what i’m here for

- zhou zhennan’s constant ‘wtf’ face 

- that chuang x GQ beach video 

- gong jun’s entire time on chuang, but especially the moments with zhou shen. felt like a fever dream tbh 

[theseerasures]

While you're doing reactions, if you're up for it, how are you feeling about all the finale predictions you made on March 23? By my count, you scored pretty well!

hooooooo boy (the alluded post, for those just catching up)

how i feel about my predictions is that...you’re right and i scored pretty well, but much like the characters doing right in the episode itself, it didn’t matter. part of the reason why the finale made me feel so much--why i loved it, despite still being emotionally hungover from ugly affect--is because i WAS right, but i was so often right but wrong on a smaller scale, or right but wrong because i completely misunderstood the overall thematic stakes, or in one case right but in such a phenomenally cruel and roundabout way that i’m still reeling from it.

more detailed breakdown under the cut (as in “let’s unpack this,” and as in “i have an emotional breakdown”):

WHERE I WAS MOSTLY RIGHT

Team Green, Yang, the non-Robyn Happy Huntresses, Klein and the non-combatant Schnees were gimmes from the beginning, even the ones of whom we didn’t have visual confirmation by the end of Worthy.

Pietro and Maria are still MIA so i’m putting them here, but...Winter’s gonna have to tell Pietro, when he shows up again.

Cinder and the Relics i was correct about, but even though i knew going in that she would win i didn’t imagine the scale of her victory. mostly because i thought she might have learned some self-discipline and just skedaddled with the Relics in an attempt to trap as many people as possible in superhell, but a) she didn’t, and b) she won without needing to.

Salem, Watts, and Ironwood are where i predicted, but i think part of me really bought into the fan theory that maybe Salem would want to keep Atlas around. both Watts and Ironwood lasted much longer through the episode than i expected because i was working from that assumption, but with the direction the episode actually took it makes perfect sense that they exited the stage as Atlas fell--they are, after all, twin architect-destroyers of Atlas. brains and brawn.

Nora ended up in Vacuo, but she’s...uh, not happy about it. not that i expected her to be happy, but this is much much worse. og JNPR is now JUST Renora, and much as i love freewheeling modular megazord JNPR, that’s gonna hit like a truck. last time they lost someone Renora were consciously trying to play supportive teammate to Jaune, who’d just lost his partner, and Nora especially also had to talk Ren off the edge with the Kuroyuri stuff. i expect they’ll swap the dynamic this time, especially since Nora was already planning to go all independent woman before this.

Qrow, Robyn, and the AceOps are stranded, but in transit and not in Mantle, because Mantle the place is no more. and Vine is dead. the reason i posited that the AceOps might be split up was so they could find their team dynamic after it’s been unsettled, and...well. having one of them do a heroic sacrifice should do a similar trick. because i didn’t think Atlas would fall on Mantle i thought Qrow and Robyn (particularly Robyn) would get more to do, but both of them are pretty much exactly in the same place they were in at the beginning of the season: trapped in a cramped environment, cut off from the people they love and uncertain what happened to them, and unable to contribute in a way that they would consider meaningful. i’m guessing we won’t check back in with this crew for a while, but if we do it’ll be interesting to see if the Qrow and Robyn dynamic changes--like, if he has to be the one to talk her down from cabin fever and despair. (before he finds out that he was the one who should have been despairing all along.)

WHERE I WAS MOSTLY WRONG

Neo is in superhell. i had put her in Atlas because i’d overestimated Cinder’s ability to play the long game, but what the show ultimately doubled down on was that Cinder remains at heart a petty and impatient opportunist, and that’s where she’s most effective. which i dig! i dig that she has not so much improved (in means or ends) so much as learned to hold the beneficial and detrimental parts of herself farther and farther apart, because in the end they’re all the same parts, and because presumably she’ll end up starfishing out so much (who knew the way she took care of Winter’s death pigeons was foreshadowing?) that she breaks in two. and i dig Neo in superhell without Cinder, because it’ll be our first chance to see Neo not working for anyone outside of that one time she fought Cinder. if superhell does end up being part afterlife, she might also get some closure with the Torchwick stuff.

Jaune being in superhell points to it being part afterlife, because the chance for HIM to get some closure is also right there. that was always the case, but the reason i made the prediction i did was because i assumed that Jaune would remain the person he has been this whole season--this stolid, clueless but incredibly effective supporting leader. having a Jaune who is at the top of his game meet up with Pyrrha again is obviously appealing, especially to me, a person who scribbles misshapen hearts labeled “Arkos = 5evr” on all my notebooks, but at the time i didn’t think it was necessary to his story...and then the story dramatically shifted his character and threw all my carefully hedged bets off (which is something we’ll also get to with...later).

having a Jaune who has just effectively EUTHANIZED someone meet up with Pyrrha again isn’t just appealing--it’s vital. and it’s vital because the exact parameters of how and why Jaune ended up having to kill Penny is a point-for-point echo and escalation of the way the Amber to Pyrrha transfer was supposed to go. last time Jaune Arc was party to a Maiden transfer process he had no idea what was going on, and he tried to intervene when he worked out that whatever Oz was doing was going to hurt Pyrrha, and that however minute thing contributed to Pyrrha’s death and the Fall of Beacon. this time it’s not just that he knows what’s going on and the stakes of it. it’s not even just that he is the Ozpin operating the Aura Transfer machine. it is that there is no machine--there is just him, holding the knife. he knows the Amber better than the Pyrrha this time, and this time the Amber is his friend, and still whole, and choosing. not just consenting, but asking him. trusting him. so he carries it out. the old Maiden dies, and like Ozpin he dies shortly after, but not before he watches the new Maiden fail.

but he does prevent history from repeating, because a new Maiden is created, and she gets to live. and Cinder Fall has made him a murderer on top of everything else, but she WILL remember him, now.

there are other people i was wrong about, but that’s...for later.

WHERE I WAS RIGHT AND IT DIDN’T MATTER

Ruby, Blake and Weiss are all in superhell, so on paper i was right, but...well. sing it if you know the words. the reason i’m putting them in their own section is because it’s not just that they fell and didn’t jump like i thought; it’s that they would not have jumped, and that changes everything. you know how i realized that we would lose everyone, and not by choice? it was Weiss. it was when Weiss said we have to do this for Yang. Jaune had reminded Nora of what was priority one minutes before, but the implications of that didn’t sink in for me until Weiss confirmed it. they PLANNED for this. not just the eventuality where they would have to die, but the one where they’d have to watch everyone else die and do nothing except keep going.

which...has implications. the best way to read this--and i think we’re all dying for some good news--is that even if it certainly does not feel that way, RWBY was able to snatch a partial victory from Salem’s claws. they lost the Relics, but they got the Maiden powers away, and most importantly: they saved Atlas and Mantle. by the time Jaune intervened Grand Central was empty. there was no one left to evacuate. they didn’t get everyone, but they got a lot. even before Cinder intervened so catastrophically they knew how many things could go wrong, so they made a plan, and largely stuck to it. on a purely material level they only lost one thing vital to the war effort--the Staff. but they got everyone else out, which was priority one. the show in general and this arc in particular has emphasized that our heroes don’t think they should be exceptionalized, that they’ll fight tooth and nail to make sure everyone is given the treatment and respect they deserve, and they’ve made good on that. they’re Huntresses, and Huntresses be thou for the people. they chose, and they won what mattered to THEM.

but on the flip side: they chose, and there’s no way to read this choice as anything but a compromise...and a very Atlesian one at that. when confronted with calculus similar to the one JYR faced after they lost Oscar in War, our heroes chose...the opposite. one, then three, then four, then five, then six for the many. what was that number compared to two entire cities’ worth of people, especially when they’re the ones who signed up for this? i’m not trying to take this down the slippery slope where our heroes are no better than the dictator they just dethroned, because when the time came for sacrifice they chose themselves first. but it remains a sacrifice, which means that when the time came to test the hard moral limit they set for themselves, they...moved. they decided ahead of time that some risks aren’t worth taking. that this is not a situation where everyone wins, so they had to go for the next best thing, then the next best thing after that, and so on. i’m honestly not sure where it points to yet, except my usual refrain that this show is a lot less didactic than it seems, but...yeah. this is going to lead to some invigorating discussions in-universe.

and maybe it’ll start with this: that Jaune and Weiss--the two who had to verbally advocate for leaving the fallen behind--fell last of all, which means they had to watch everyone else go first. and the last person they saw was the same person. Weiss, who executed the plan to brilliant perfection, saw the past--the first family she ever had--streaking after her in an endless void, forsaking the priorities they all agreed upon, for her. Jaune, who followed the plan to execution and broke a part of himself, saw the new Maiden he crowned, backlit and pulled away by the bright future that he ensured was possible, but can no longer access.

QUEENMAKER

i’m starting with Penny, because Penny came first. there has already been a ton of discussion on the ways that she’ll come back, and while i absolutely agree that she will, for now i am not so much interested in that as i am in eulogizing this Penny. the Penny we had just now, not identical but continuous with the Penny we had before that, in the same way that everyone is not identical but continuous with who they were in the past. the Penny who IS dead, her eventual resurrection notwithstanding.

because she DID die, and her death matters. that’s the thing about the deaths in this season, and it furthers my point re: RWBY’s presumed didacticism--the show’s treatment of death has changed as our heroes have changed. it is no longer (and never was) as simple as��“death and sacrifice are always senseless waste,” and more something like...”death has to matter, and we will give it meaning.” Hazel and Vine sacrificed themselves, and the fact both resulted in a “positive” outcome (more lives saved) does not make the deaths any less tragic. but neither should the tragedy of it take away from the fact that they saved lives. what separates our heroes from a Salem or a James Ironwood even now is that they recognize the importance of grievable life even as they accept inevitable death, that what is worth it all about preserving life is not to make sure that lives go on forever, but that lives have meaning and are remembered, that when you’re gone the people who are still here respect you enough to carry that meaning with them. it’s a tenuous balance to walk, but all the more important for that reason.

Penny--though her death can and will be reversed--is much the same. in every arc there has been a Game of Three Maidens (which i guess would make shogi the better metaphor and not chess because--what AM i on about), and in every Game there has been sacrifice. and i thought that would encompass Winter, here. we’d get away with it not being literal death, since Fria already took care of that, but she would be trapped on the other side of the gate--in pretty much the exact same position James Ironwood ended up in the episode itself, actually. it just seemed obvious: she’s the decoy, the one who missed the call by inches, the last revealed defector when there still was an Atlas from which to defect. all of it pointed to Winter’s story ending with one last delay barring her from salvation, of her finally being too late...

and well. i WASN’T wrong in the broad strokes, but first there was Penny Polendina. Penny could have let Jaune try to save her and Weiss die for her, but she knew she had to make a different choice to save as many lives as possible. so she offered herself up as the sacrifice instead. last week i waxed prolonged poetic about how Winter defected so recently, how it has been just IronwoodandWinter for so long, how Winter doesn’t have a team and only the healing shreds of a family, how no one would think to look for her...and then Penny did. you were my friend. (given Winter’s rough age and the hazy creation dates for the PENNY Project, it’s possible that Winter is Penny’s OLDEST friend.) Penny thought of Winter as she was dying, thought about the good Winter could do if Winter had her powers, believed in Winter, and in doing so, saved Winter’s life before anyone else’s.

she ceded the spotlight to Winter in this last episode, but this season as a whole belongs to Penny Polendina--the myriad ways she creates herself, the ways she defends her self-creation, ultimately culminating in her new body, created by no one but herself. but for her final act the Maiden of Creation did something different and no less miraculous: i thought of you. a thought was all it took.

she created someone else.

KINGSLAYER | THE MAIDEN THAT WAS PROMISED

the thing about Winter is that she came first.

no, i’m serious. i checked the fairy tale and everything--Winter came first. as the Wizard’s first visitor she encouraged him to reflect and meditate, and when probed about why she was here at all, she answered: i am waiting for my sisters. Spring and Summer have to wait, too, of course, but. Winter was the first.

Jacques and Willow named their firstborn Winter. it is not the way this story begins, but it is certainly is one of them, because the story begins with Winter, and Winter begins the story--a new retelling, a new cycle of heroism. we’ve since been introduced to other characters in that indeterminate age group between RWBY and STRQ, but Winter--by virtue of being Weiss’ older sister--anchors herself to the new generation in a way those others (even Cinder, who comes closest) do not. she started things, in the mythical emblematic way that this show likes to move, and the way she started things--the way she MADE herself start things, thanks to the house she grew up in--was with love, and protection. she took care of Weiss and laid the groundwork for the person Weiss is today, and conversely: she took care of Weiss, and through Weiss, laid the groundwork for herself and how to take care of everyone. so eventually the steel thread she tied to Weiss she also linked to Whitley, to Penny, to Marrow, to all the people they love, and on and on it goes. Winter loved Weiss, so she made herself learn how to love Weiss, and so when i say she started things what i mean is she started family. a new home, for a new generation of the orphaned.

Winter came first. but as the show demonstrates time and again, especially with Winter: first does not mean best. because being first also means you’re the prototype, a volatile thing that must be tested and tempered and then discarded to make way for what comes after, what gets improved. and it is THIS part of being first that Winter has internalized most of all. Winter, the first Maiden, taught the Wizard peace and prepared the earth so that her sisters could grow and foster and harvest the life within it; Winter, the first Schnee, laid the groundwork in her siblings, but did not wait for them. and let herself fallow in the process. she left, and every time they tried to follow or stay with her she sent them away. (she keeps sending them away; even after defecting and taking down Ironwood, the first thing she says to JNPER is go.) Winter laid the first stone in the foundation, but she cannot take credit for the home her family turned it into, for all the ways it has flourished, because she willfully absented herself of that (birth)right.

and the reason she did this was very simple: she was afraid. she could not bear the thought that while she had to learn how to love she made mistakes, the idea that instead of preparing the earth she might have poisoned the well. so she ran. she turned her face away so she would not have to look, so they would not look to her. she left, and every time one of her siblings superseded her after that, every time she was made to be their Esau--passed over--it just seemed to confirm that she was right to leave. look how well they’ve all done without her.

in the stories, eldest siblings aren’t here to win. they’re here to be made an example of, and Winter...had resigned herself to that. she was prepared to be left behind for good by all the people who have outpaced her.

but then there was Penny Polendina. Penny didn’t follow her, or try to stay; Penny came back for her. Penny remembered Winter when all Winter wanted was to be forgotten, because she’d gotten it in her head that it was what she deserved for all the things she’d done or enabled or failed to do. why did Penny remember Winter? because you were my friend. there is no divine complexity to it, nothing for Winter to fall hopeless short of. there is only the fact that Winter gave Penny something, made something together with Penny, even as she was trying her hardest not to, for fear that she would create something terrible. and this does not take away from all the ways Winter did fall short, but it is still SOMETHING. and it is enough.

it was your power, after all. Penny means the Maiden powers, but she also means THIS Maiden’s power: the power to create. you made this home, Penny is saying to Winter, you should get to reap its fruit, even if you weren’t around for the labor. all you have to do is say yes.

this was a gift. she says yes. she accepts, because in the end Winter Schnee loves her family more than she hates herself.

but then--

(a gift for what? Winter will ask herself wretchedly later, after she has failed in the two tasks she thinks Penny set for her.)

the thing about Winter is that she came first. she taught Weiss everything she knows, and she was so busy doing that she never had the time to show Weiss everything she feels. so in the end what Weiss never predicted was that for all of her team’s painful planning, for all of her own pained enforcement of that plan...none of it was a match for her sister. that when the time came it was would be WINTER who defaults to the absolute ideal of “no one gets left behind,” of “every life” meaning every life, priority one be damned.

or that Winter, in trying to choose both, in finally and fiercely trying, with surely enough power to make a difference, would fail.

what are you doing? Winter heard as she watched Weiss fall into nothingness. my life doesn’t matter.

so here, then, is the story of Winter in The Final Word: a girl returns home after having left it, but in this version it is the home who has changed and the girl who has not. and from this both are unmade. but she gets to live, because she was invited back home. and she gets to go through the portal as its last passenger, into the Promised Land.

and she is still the Maiden of Creation. even after all this, THAT is still her task. to build a refuge for her people, to collect the broken strands of the family she began and her siblings continued and expanded and reinforced, and gather them up again into a new home. it will be impossible, but at the same time: she has done this before.

and this time, she will wait for her sisters.

(a gift for what? for nothing, would be the answer. gifts aren’t FOR anything. they’re gifts.)

[a-simple-gaywitch]

Composed of the Elements

Spencer Reid x Reader

Summary:  When a case takes the team to (Y/N)'s home town, her best friend Spencer helps her leave all the baggage behind.

Title Song: Sweet as Whole, Sara Bareilles

Word Count: 2705

Warnings: high school bullying, brief mentions of a case, smoking

“Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic.” -Oscar Wilde

~

You walked into the bullpen with a coffee in one hand and your phone in the other.

“Morning, (Y/N),” your best friend, Spencer, called from his desk.

“Morning, Spence.” You sat down at your desk. Before you could get settled, JJ announced a case.

“We’ve been called in to a small town in Indiana,” JJ said, clicking on the slide projector.

“Wait. When you say small town…” you said, feeling your body tense.

“We’re going to (L/N)’s hometown,” Hotch confirmed. After going over the details of the case, he said, “Wheels up in thirty.”

Spencer reached for your arm, but you were up and moving to the bullpen before he could catch you. He watched as you grabbed your bag from your desk, ignoring Morgan’s attempts at conversation. Your usual peppy, outgoing self was gone, replaced with a stranger.

When the team gathered on the jet, they discussed the case together. You sat at the back of the cabin, staring out at the clouds, tapping on the table in front of you.

“Hey.” You looked up to see Gideon sitting in front of you. “Are you okay?”

You shook your head. “I never thought I’d be going back there. I thought I could leave and never look back.”

“Hey, I know it isn’t easy, but we need your help. You know this town and the people in it. That can help us.”

You sighed and stood up. “Fine.” Walking over to the team, you said, “One thing you need to know about these people: they don’t like outsiders. At all.”

“What do you mean by outsiders?” Hotch asked.

You scoffed. “Anyone who isn’t born and raised in the town. Even if you’ve lived there for years, if you weren’t born in Newton, you’re not to be trusted. You’ll see first-hand when we meet with the local PD.”

“What about the victims?” Derek asked you.

“I knew both of them in high school,” you said, flicking through the file. “But I don’t know what anyone has been doing with their lives.”

Spencer couldn’t help but notice the sadness in your eyes. Despite his aversion to touch, he reached out and rested his hand on top of yours. You were his safety net. He loved you, as more than just his best friend.

~

When the team got to the police station, you stuck to the back of the group while JJ and Hotch made introductions.

“Detective Miller,” Hotch said, holding his hand out. “I’m Agent Hotchner. You’ve already spoken to Agent Jareau. This is SSA Gideon, Dr. Reid, SSA Morgan, and SSA (L/N).”

“Wait. Little nerdy (Y/N) (L/N)?” the detective said, finally noticing you. “Wow, who would have thought you’d come back to Newton?” You swallowed hard, keeping your eyes down.

“Do you have a place we can set up a case board?” Spencer asked, noticing your unease.

“Sure.”

“Did you know the victims well?” JJ asked him.

The detective nodded. “We all do. Kelly’s my son’s teacher. Julia and I dated in high school. Our kids are friends.”

“Does everyone in town know each other well?” JJ asked as she helped you pin the crime scene photos to the board.

“Of course. We’re like a family. When your town only has 300 people, you have to look out for each other.” You couldn’t hold back your scoff. “You have something to say there, (Y/N)?”

“She’s Agent (L/N) to you,” Gideon interrupted. “JJ, Julia Coleman’s family is here.”

~

“You look different,” Detective Miller said to you as you worked late to help nail down the profile. “You look good.”

“Detective Miller-”

“Come on, you can call me Tim.” He stepped closer to you. “You don’t have to be so professional.”

“Excuse me,” you said, though it was no more than a whisper. You slipped out of the room and stood outside the precinct, leaning against the wall. You pulled a small box out of your jacket pocket.

“Since when do you smoke?” Spencer asked you, coming up next to you.

You lit a cigarette and took a drag before saying, “Since high school.” Seeing Spencer’s concern, you said, “Relax, I haven’t for a while. It’s only when I get really stressed.”

“You know, each cigarette takes about seven minutes off your life.”

“If it’s seven minutes I don’t have to spend with Timothy Miller or anyone else from this damn town, then I don’t care.”

“What did he do to you?”

You shook your head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Come on, (Y/N), it’s me. Talk to me. Please?”

You looked at your best friend’s pleading eyes and sighed. You put out your cigarette and said, “You know I didn’t have a good high school experience. After my mom died, my dad moved us to his childhood home. I moved schools halfway through the first semester. I was the weird new kid who wore all black with braces and clunky glasses and was way too into Stephen King books. I was an easy target.” You cleared your throat. “Julia and Tim were my biggest tormentors. When they dated, it was worse.”

“What do you mean?” Spencer asked.

You chewed your lip. “Tim asked me to the prom when he and Julie were on an off period of their relationship. I got so excited, like an idiot. I mean, I knew he didn’t like me in that way. After all, why would he?” You laughed, but there was no joy behind it. Spencer felt his heart clench at how you saw yourself. He thought you were the most beautiful, amazing woman to ever exist.

“But I thought at least I’d have a friend, you know? I rented a dress and did my hair, all that stuff. Tim said he was going to pick me up. He never came.” Your eyes burned with tears at the memory. “The worst part was, my dad didn’t know there was anything going on. After-after my mom died, he gave up. When he wasn’t working, he was drinking and smoking.” You shook your head. “Tim just brought all those feelings back.”

Spencer reached out and wiped the tears off your cheek. “You didn’t deserve any of that. No one deserves that.”

“Carrie was my favorite book in high school. I wonder what that says about me.”

“Why don’t we head back to the hotel?” Spencer offered, holding his hand out to you. “Rest might help us with the case.”

~

The next morning, the team discovered there was another murder. Misty Lincoln had been killed in the same way as the other two victims. Spencer was graphing the geographical profile while you sat at the table, staring at the crime scene photos.

“You see something?” Hotch asked you.

“I’m not sure. Uh, could I- could I take like two hours? I think there might be something that’ll help us in my dad’s old things.”

“Sure. But you’re not going alone. Take Reid with you.”

You knew better than to argue with your boss. “Yes, sir.”

When you and Spencer got into the SUV, your fingers started tapping the steering wheel as you drove, letting muscle memory guide you. You pulled into the parking lot of a storage facility. Spencer followed behind you as you passed row after row of storage units. When you finally stopped, you flipped through your keychain until you found one you were looking for. You hadn’t spoken to Spencer since getting in the car back at the station, and he was starting to worry.

After you opened the door to the unit, you looked at Spencer. “After my dad died, I moved all his stuff here. I got rid of some stuff, of course. What would I ever do with an old couch that had more cigarette burns than upholstery?” You ran your hand over a white garment bag. The golden lettering was faded, but Spencer could still make out the word bridal, and what he could infer was the word boutique from the few remaining letters. “Some things I just couldn’t get rid of.”

“Hey, can I ask you something?” Spencer asked you, picking up a picture at the top of an open box. You were between who he could only assume were your parents, and you all looked happy. You looked just like your mother. The small you, who couldn’t be much older than 8, clung to the woman’s side. Your father had his arm around your mother’s waist. It all looked very domestic.

“Sure,” you said, digging through a box at the back of the unit.

“Why have you been acting so different since we got here? I mean, you’ve been acting so meek and timid, which isn’t you. I once heard you threaten a cop that you would, and I quote, ‘shove your foot so far up his ass that he would taste the mud on your shoe.’ What’s going on?” He set the frame back on the top of the box.

You shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess… I spent so long trying to distance myself from this place and when I came back, I was back to being a scared little 15-year-old.”

“But, you’re not, (Y/N). You’re strong and confident.” It was then Spencer heard you sniffle and noticed you were crying. “(Y/N)?”

You wiped your face. “Sorry. It’s just… I worked so hard for the image of me that you all see and-and I’m just so afraid that being here is going to erase all that. I worked so hard at the Academy to form an identity that wasn’t this and-”

“(Y/N), (Y/N), hey,” he said, taking your hands in his. “Breathe. Our image of you is not going to change just because your old tormentors are here. I- uh, we, the team, we love you. You’re our family. I think Garcia would riot if Hotch ever tried to get rid of you.” You chuckled at that and it made him smile. “Now, how about we get out of here and work more on our profile?”

~

When you got back to the precinct, Hotch asked you, “Did you find what you were looking for?”

“Yeah.” You pulled an old yearbook out of your bag. “All the victims are from the same graduating class, and they were all in the same extracurriculars. Look.”

“We’re ready to give the profile,” Gideon said after flipping through the book.

Your team gathered the police department to deliver your preliminary profile.

“We’ve come to the conclusion that our unsub can only be a local,” Spencer said. “He-”

“There’s no way,” Officer Miller interrupted. “No one in this town would do that. Besides, why would I trust this walking stick insect over the people I’ve known my whole life? You’re wrong, Stick-Bug.”

“How dare you,” you said, stepping forward. The rest of your team stepped away. They knew what was coming. No one would say it, but they all knew how you and Spencer felt about each other. “How dare you talk to Spencer that way. Captain Bell invited us here to help you find out who’s murdering members of your community. You have no right to talk to my family that way.”

“Your family? These people are your family?”

“A family is anyone who makes you feel loved, and by that definition, yes. These people are my family. And if you ever talk to any of them like that again, I will bring your life crashing down around you with one simple phone call.”

“Oh, look who’s finally got a backbone,” Tim laughed. “Little (Y/N) thinks she sounds all big and threatening.”

“It’s not a threat, Timothy, it’s a promise,” you said. “And I’m sure Captain Bell would take you off this case if I told him you have a conflict of interest. I’m sure he’d love to know you’d had an affair with one of the victims. You and Julia never could stay away from each other, could you?”

Spencer fought a smile at seeing you return to yourself, as well as seeing Timothy’s face pale. He chewed the inside of his cheek, trying to think of a way to thank you.

~

The case was finally over. Like always, Spencer had been right. The unsub was a guy from your graduating class who felt the women from your class shunned and mistreated him. Thankfully, you were able to sympathize with him and get him to come in without any extra violence.

Hotch was giving the team the night in the hotel before heading back to Quantico in the morning. You were flipping through the channels on the hotel’s TV, already in your pajamas by 8:30. You finally settled on some old reruns of Friends when there was a knock at your door. You groaned and extracted yourself from your blanket cocoon and trudged over to the door.

“Spence? What are you doing here?” you asked after opening your door to reveal Spencer, still in his work clothes.

“Come with me, I want to show you something.”

“Spencer, I’m in my pajamas-”

“That doesn’t matter. Just, come with me. Please?”

You tugged your old sweatshirt on and followed Spencer down the hallway, to the elevator.

“Where are we going?” you asked him.

“It’s a surprise.”

“A surprise?”

“You trust me, right?”

“Of course, I do, Spence. You know that.”

“Okay well,” he covered your eyes with his hands and guided you forward. He dropped his hands and said, “surprise.”

You were standing on the patio of the hotel’s restaurant, the tables had been pushed to the side and lights were strung up all around.

“Spence, what’s all this?” you asked as he gently pulled you to the center of the patio.

“A way to say thank you,” he said. When he saw the confusion on your face, he said, “For sticking up for me at the precinct. I know it must have been hard to stand up to Detective Miller. And-and I remember you telling me that you don’t have many good memories here, and then I thought about your prom story, so…” He held his hand out to you as music started playing. “May I have this dance?”

You smiled and took Spencer’s hand. He rested his free hand on your waist, and your free hand rested on his shoulder as the two of you gently swayed to the soft music coming from the patio’s speakers.

“How’d you pull this off?” you asked him.

His smile was a bit sheepish. “Morgan and Garcia helped me pull some strings.”

“Of course they did. Garcia is the all-powerful puppet master.”

Spencer laughed as the two of you continued to dance. When Spencer heard you sniffle, he stopped and pulled away.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” He brushed a tear off your cheek. “Did I do something wrong?”

You shook your head and smiled at him. “No. It’s happy tears.” When you saw that Spencer still looked confused, you explained, “I never thought I’d have someone in my life who cares about me this much. I mean, look at all this. You did this just to make me happy.” You rested your forehead against Spencer’s and wrapped your arms around his neck, your fingers playing with his hair. Spencer’s arms wound around your waist, pulling you closer.

“Of course I did. I love you. I-I mean, I care about you. Because you’re my best friend and-”

“Spence,” you said, stopping his rambling. You pressed a soft kiss to his lips, lingering for just a moment.

Spencer’s brain, which usually worked at three times the speed of the average person, slowed to practically a halt. You had just kissed him. The girl he’s been longing for just kissed him. She kissed him . You were about to say something to him when his brain finally caught up and he kissed you back.

When the two of you pulled apart, you said, “Well, I guess my prom was worth the wait.”

Spencer smiled at you and kissed your forehead before continuing to dance with you.

~

"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." -Anais Nin

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #129: The Farm Boy Have Been Found

Rachel: (Got out of the helicopter) That has got to be the most intense mission we've been on yet...

Oscar: Yeah...but we were still able to complete it. So it's not all bad.

Rachel: (Smiles a little at Oscar) You always look in the brighter things, do you?

Oscar: I try doing so. You know, considering what's the current situation with Salem and stuff...

Rachel: Well, I think you're doing a pretty good job right now, Kiddo.

Oscar: (Smiles Softly) Thanks, ma'am.

Rachel: (Smiles Back before seeing a familiar face coming towards them) Wait...is that Winter?

Winter: (Walking towards the duo with the Atlas' soliders) Thank goodness that you're okay, Oscar. (Her expression turns from soft to stern at the farm boy) You had all of us worried sick!

Oscar: (Confused) I'm sorry?

Rachel: What's going on, Winter?

Winter: Well...

RWBYJNR: (Charging their way towards Oscar with a group hug) OSCARRRRRRRRRR!!!!

Oscar: Oh no-

*Thud*

Ruby: (In Tears) Where have you been?!!!

Yang: (Eyes turned Red in tears) Do you have ANY idea how worried we are of you?!!!

Blake: (Frowns) We thought something terrible had happened to you!

Nora: (Bawling her eyes out while hugging her son tightly) DON'T YOU EVER SCARE US LIKE THAT AGAIN, YOUNG MAN!!!

Ren: (Frowns Sadly at Oscar) You made your mother and I cried this morning...

Jaune: (In Tears) You made ME cried this morning!!

Weiss: (In Tears while glaring at Oscar) You are in so much trouble when we get back to the apartment, mister!!

Oscar: (Overwhelmed by the group hugs) Okay okay!! I'm really sorry I made you all worried all day. But can you please let go for one second?

Ruby: Not a chance, Buster!

Nora: We are not letting go untill you see how truly worried you made us! And you made us a thousand times worried than you should have, mister!!

Weiss: Consider this as part of your punishment, Oscar Pine!

Oscar: (Embarrassed) You guys!!!!

Rachel: Sooo.....

Winter: My sister and her friends realized that Oscar wasn't in his room this morning. So they created a search party to find him, which lasted about almost the entire day.

Rachel: I see...... Welp, I guess I know what I'm doing tomorrow.

Winter: (Curious) Like what exactly?

Rachel: I'm buying that kid a scroll.

After calming down, the team decided to ground Oscar for three weeks. Oscar did had a problem with this, but after seeing the worried looks on his team of friends (and family), he decided not to argue and accept his punishment.

No one never noticed the note Oscar written in the fridge until a few days later.

@miki-13

@ma-lemons

@littlemisssquiggles

@journalsandjasminetea

@oscarpineprotectionsquad

@keyenuta