#their relationship is so messy and interesting i want to watch them get a divorce on a loop forever

[bitchthefuck1]

Tom's line about Shiv being selfish and "find[ing] it very hard to think about me" is actually so telling because while it's absolutely true that she rarely takes his position into consideration, Tom never once thinks about what he can do to help Shiv unless it also benefits him.

Every single time he makes a move or sacrifice that might help her, it's always something that he thinks will give him a leg up. He volunteers to take the fall for cruises, not for Shiv, who is in no way implicated, or even for Waystar, but because he thinks it'll ingratiate him to Logan, and the second it seems like he might have to actually follow through on that, he immediately tries to get out of it and even throws Shiv under the bus. Meanwhile, for all that Shiv disregards his interests, there are a number of things she does that only help him, and she's the one who actually sacrifices something and undermines her position with Logan to beg him not to let Tom go to jail.

It just makes it so clear that no matter how much he might love her (and I think he does, in his own compromised way), for him their relationship was always built on the underlying assumption that it's her job to prop him up, but it's not his job to help her.

[viesanterieures]

Locked In Mind

Robert Fischer (Inception) x female Reader

note: Welcome to my third Cillian Character fanfic, hope you like it :) I love plots like Shutter Island and tried to do something similar here & it‘s also a story about parasocial relationships and unrequited love.

summary: The reader is hopelessly in love with her boss Robert Fischer, but he doesn't seem to be interested in her. By an unexpected coincidence, they meet in the city and his sudden intense affection for her confuses her. The reader begins to suspect that something is wrong, and when she finally uncovers the truth about her encounters with Fischer the heartbreaking reality is revealed to her.

word count: 5000+

Masterlist

warnings: mental illness, depression

you don‘t have to watch the movie to understand the story.

It was just half past seven when she heard the familiar footsteps in the corridor approaching the office next door. A key was inserted into the lock and a moment later the door opened.

Glancing around to make sure her workspace wasn't too messy, she threw an old paper cup into the bin before her boss poked his head through the door.

"Good morning, Miss YN, so busy already?" he asked with a tired smile. "It doesn't reflect well on me as a boss to have my assistant here before me. I'm sorry, Monday mornings are always a bit stressful for me."

"No problem, Mr Fischer. I've already sorted the mail for you, it's on your desk," she said kindly, watching him as he took off his coat and hung it on the coat rack, a little damp from the rain.

"Thank you, I can count on you."

He was a very elegant, handsome man, about ten years her senior, with dark hair, blue eyes, high cheekbones and an elegant black suit. She must have stared at him a little too long, because he turned to her with a questioning smile.

Immediately her cheeks flushed and she turned back to her computer screen, but by then Mr Fischer had already approached her and placed some documents on her desk. "Please scan them all and email them to Mr Parker, he's been waiting for them for days," he said to her. It would be best if we sat down together later and quickly discuss my tasks for today, there is a lot to do. If I'm not mistaken, I have a client meeting at three today.

"At two, sir," she corrected him, handing him a planner with today's date thickly underlined.

He started to grin. "You see, this is exactly why I have an assistant."

Fischer disappeared into his office.

She sighed slightly and went to work scanning the documents. She had been working for Fischer Morrow, one of the world's largest energy companies, for barely a month. Their headquarters had moved from Sydney to London after the death of their CEO, Maurice Fischer. Her current boss, Robert Fischer, was a direct descendant.

She liked Fischer Jr a lot. He was friendly, supportive and didn't get angry when things didn't go to plan. But in some ways he always seemed so unapproachable. For example, he never talked about his private life and YN had no idea who he was outside of work. Then again, he was her boss and his private life was none of her business. But deep down she admitted that she was very interested in him.

The days flew by and she finally felt as if she had been employed by Fischer Morrow for an eternity. But who Robert Fischer really was remained a mystery.

One evening, as she was about to leave, she quietly opened the door to Fischer's office. He was sitting in front of his computer, his chin resting on his hands. "Have a nice evening, Mr Fischer." He jumped slightly, obviously not having heard her come in, but then he smiled. "Thank you, you too."

YN looked at her watch. "It's almost half past seven, don't you want to finish your work soon? Don't you have a wife waiting for you?"

Mr Fischer shrugged. "I've been divorced for a few years now, and I only see my daughter at weekends. The only thing waiting for me is an empty, dark apartment."

YN held her breath. It was the first time he had told her anything about his private life. But in the same second, he seemed to regret his words.

"No one waits for me either," she said. "Except for my cat."

Fischer raised an eyebrow with a smile. "At least that's something."

Finally she said goodbye and left the office. But all the way home, she kept thinking about her conversation with Fischer.

Was he perhaps as lonely as she was?

Tired, YN lay in bed. She didn't even have the strength to change her clothes and remove her make up. Although she wanted nothing more than to get out of that itchy, uncomfortable dress and tights. A soft meow sounded beside her and she felt something soft brush against her arm. Smiling, she pulled the cat closer and buried her face in its white fur.

Since leaving her small home village for London, she had no one to talk to. Her old friends had all left her and moved on with their own lives. Robert Fischer was the only one she spoke to regularly, though it was far from a friendship. With the cat in her arms, she turned to the other side. But what if she had feelings for him?

Maybe she should tell him. But wasn't that too much? He was still her boss, after all, and there were probably plenty of women who were interested in him.

She quickly pushed the thought aside and closed her eyes.

Robert Fischer turned curiously when he heard the quick clicking of heels in the corridor. Panting, his assistant opened the door and dropped her bag on the desk.

"Miss YN, are you okay?"

Her hair was messy, her coat hung loosely over her shoulders as if she hadn't had time to put it on properly, and her lipstick was a little smudged.

"I… overslept," she said, panting. "I'm sorry."

Fischer looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "It's okay. But it shouldn't happen again."

"Of course not, sir," she replied immediately.

He quickly disappeared into his office and returned with a thick stack of papers and a folder.

"Would you be so kind as to sort these documents alphabetically for me? They've been on my desk for days. I know it's not an exciting task."

She nodded and took the heavy pile from his hand. Fischer thanked her and hurried back to his office.

Sighing, she set to work. But with each page, she found her concentration fading and her mind wandering. Her head ached, her eyes burned and she felt incredibly tired. But she tried not to show it, kept working as hard as she could and finally put the sorted file back on Mr Fischer's desk.

Exhausted, she walked back to her office, sat down in her chair and buried her face in her hands. She was shivering and her ears were ringing. Was it because she had forgotten to take her medicine today?

"Miss YN?" she heard her boss' voice.

She turned immediately and forced a smile. "Yes, Mr Fischer?"

"I have an job interview scheduled for ten, would you be so kind as to prepare the conference room for it?"

"Of course, sir."

He stopped halfway and looked at Victoria questioningly. "Are you okay? You look so pale." She nodded quickly, forcing a smile. "Everything's fine, Mr Fischer." Fischer looked at her, raised his eyebrows, then handed her the key to the meeting room and disappeared back into his office.

A strange feeling of dizziness spread through her head as she walked down the long corridor leading to the conference rooms.

What was wrong with her today?

When it started to get dark outside, YN finally turned off her computer and grabbed her bag. The strange dizziness had improved during the day, leading her to conclude that she simply needed a break from work. Fortunately, it was Friday. She knocked gently on Fischer's door, as she always did before leaving, to wish him a pleasant evening. He was sitting there as usual, his chin resting on his hand, deep in thought. He glanced up briefly and nodded politely, noticing her in the doorway. He looked stunningly handsome today, even after this long and exhausting day.

"I didn't ask you how the job interviews went this morning," she asked curiously. Fischer shook his head. "Terribly," he said. "None of these people I'd want in my company." His voice was cold and dismissive, and for a moment she thought he was referring to her, even though she knew he meant someone else. She smiled awkwardly and shrugged slightly. "Well, maybe the next one will be better."

Fischer remained silent.

"Have a good weekend, Mr Fischer."

"You too, Miss YN." He gave her a friendly smile.

"Do you have any plans for the weekend? I know a good restaurant, would you like to join me?" The moment she realised what she had just said, she bit her lip, her face turning red. Had she completely lost her mind? She desperately hoped he hadn't heard what she'd asked, but it was too late. She could see Fischer raise his eyebrows in confusion and stare at her.

"No, Miss YN. I'm not interested. I keep my work and personal life strictly separate." She immediately looked down, embarrassed. Thoughts raced through her mind like a rollercoaster and her cheeks felt as if they were on fire. "I'm sorry, Mr Fischer, I shouldn't have asked you that." She finally grabbed her bag and left the office without another word, feeling Fischer's gaze on her back.

It was drizzling lightly as she walked through the busy streets of London. The cold air did her good and she felt her head clear a little.

Why had she done this? It had been clear from the start that a man like him would reject her. But the words had come out of her mouth as if she had completely lost control. She felt a tear roll down her cheek and quickly wiped it away. She didn't want to have a mental breakdown in public, even though it felt like Fischer had torn her heart into a thousand pieces. Suddenly the strange dizziness returned and her vision blurred slightly. The sounds of London became muffled, as if she were incredibly far away.

Miss YN, wait!" she suddenly heard a voice behind her that seemed to be getting closer.

She turned around. The dizziness had disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. Startled, her eyes widened as she saw the person in front of her - it was Mr Fischer. What was he doing here? Had he followed her? She tried to speak, but all she could manage was a hoarse stutter.

"I wanted to apologize, Miss YN. It wasn't very nice of me to brush you off like that," he said with a gentle laugh. His voice sounded strangely different, softer than usual. Wordless and spellbound, she stared into the pair of light blue eyes before her, apologetic and gentle in their expression. She knew Mr Fischer had blue eyes, but she'd never noticed how incredibly bright they were.

"It's okay, don't worry," she managed to say, her knees shaking with excitement.

"No, no, Miss YN. I'll think about the dinner offer, okay? Just because we work together doesn't mean we can't have dinner together, does it?" Fischer suggested, and she nodded slowly, then smiled.

Why this sudden change of mind?

"Well, see you soon." He waved goodbye and YN, still completely confused, raised her hand in response. But before she could form another thought, he had disappeared into the crowd.

Carefully, YN pressed the shutter on her old camera, focusing the lens on the small lake in front of her. Satisfied, she lowered it. She was confident that this snapshot would turn out well. This park was a place she often visited to clear her head and pursue her passion, photography, as it offered many beautiful subjects. Especially now, in autumn, when the trees were covered with colourful leaves and the silence was slowly descending, with only the occasional pedestrian passing by.

Her dizziness had eased a little, but not completely. Fortunately, it was Saturday and she had the whole day to herself. YN sat down on a bench under a tree that looked to be at least a hundred years old.

She sat there for a while, lost in thought. Eventually she got up and made her way to the West End. The streets of London were noisy and busy as she walked, looking for a warm place in a café and something to eat. Crowds of people rushed past her, music played from somewhere and loud voices filled the air. Exhausted, she rubbed her temples. Maybe she should have stayed home and rested.

Suddenly she held her breath as she spotted a familiar face in the crowd. Dark hair, high cheekbones and piercing blue eyes. Fischer. But before she could think, he had already noticed her and started to smile at her.

"Miss YN, how nice to see you! What a coincidence!"

It was the first time she had seen him in his casual clothes rather than one of his business suits. But this was no less elegant and stylish. He was wearing a well-fitting black coat, a grey knitted jumper underneath, black trousers and leather shoes. It was so strange to see him outside his office at Fischer Morrow Company. Suddenly he didn't seem so unapproachable and distant anymore.

"What are you doing here?" she asked curiously.

He paused for a moment. He seemed to be considering whether or not to tell her.

"I brought my little girl to her friend's house for a sleepover. She's been asking me for weeks because her mum won't let her."

"So you're a cool dad," YN replied.

Fischer rolled his eyes. "I'm the one who lets her get away with everything. We had to turn back twice because she realised she had forgotten her favourite stuffed animal and her toothbrush."

She laughed softly. In a strange way, she enjoyed him talking so openly about his life.

"Oh wow, that looks amazing. It's quite old, isn't it?" Mr Fischer pointed to the camera around her neck. "From the 1960s. But it takes incredibly good pictures for that time," she explained. Fischer seemed genuinely impressed. "Do you have more like it?"

"I have quite a few. From the 50s to the 80s, actually, and of course some modern digital cameras. Photography has been my passion since I was a child," she explained. Fischer looked at her with an interested smile. "So there's actually film in there that needs to be developed?" she nodded in confirmation. "Some photo shops still offer that service, yes."

Mr Fischer seemed genuinely interested in her hobby, asking her questions about it as they walked side by side through the streets of London. She felt incredibly comfortable in his presence and hoped he wouldn't leave so soon. Finally he pointed to the camera again. "Would you take a picture of me, please? I'd like a 60's style photo of myself." YN's heart began to race in her chest. What had he just said?

"Of course, Mr Fischer," she replied nervously. "Robert. My name is Robert," he replied. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks, completely surprised. No one at Fischer Morrow Ltd called him by his first name, and outside the company she had only heard his uncle, Peter Browning, call him Robert.

"Let's find a nice spot for the photo," he said, letting his gaze wander until it settled on a beautiful fountain.

Carefully, she picked up the camera, took a few steps back and held it directly in front of Robert's face. "Smile, please," she instructed him, finally pressing the shutter.

A pedestrian who had just passed them looked at YN with a confused expression and shook his head. Frowning, she looked after him before carefully tucking the camera into her handbag.

Are you hungry?" asked Robert. "We could go to a restaurant."

Surprised, she looked at him. "I don't know…" she said hesitantly, chewing her lower lip. In fact, she had never expected to be asked such a question.

He looked at her with raised eyebrows and she could see the disappointment in his eyes. Finally, she worked up the courage to say what was on her mind.

"It's just… To be honest, you told me yesterday that you were someone who kept your work and personal life strictly separate. Maybe it would be better if we did. After all, I'm your employee."

As much as she wanted to spend time with him, she was afraid of developing any more feelings for him. Robert nodded slowly and shoved his hands into his coat pockets.

"I really like you. I just never wanted to show it, that's why I was so reserved with you and told you I wasn't interested in you".

She closed her eyes and let out a sigh as a ton of thoughts went through her head. Robert finally nodded at her with a slightly disappointed look on his face and turned on his heel.

"Wait!" she called after him.

He stopped immediately and looked at her hopefully.

"Let's give it a try, shall we?"

YN… is that a French name?"

Robert's voice sounded slightly tipsy as he grinned curiously at her, twirling his wine glass casually in his hands. The plate in front of him was empty and he had now carefully placed the cutlery on it, waiting for a waitress to take it away.

He had taken her to a rather fancy and expensive place, the walls were dark wood panelling, the chairs were covered in red velvet and soft jazz music was playing on one of the radios. Robert looked hauntingly beautiful that night. His skin seemed incredibly soft and flawless, his jawline even more prominent, and his blue eyes shone almost ghostly in the dim light, almost like he wasn’t real…

She smiled, nodded and took a sip from her glass. "My father is French. I grew up in France but moved to England when I was 15."

He nodded with interest, rubbing his chin with his forefinger.

"And you? I heard you're Australian," she asked curiously.

Robert laughed and ran a hand through his dark hair. "Well, my accent makes it obvious."

YN blushed and looked down at her plate. What a stupid question.

But Robert didn't seem to mind too much, because he started talking about his life in Sydney, how he had finally moved to London after his father's death, and she listened with interest.

But suddenly he stopped and looked at her thoughtfully. "But I'm probably just boring you."

YN immediately shook her head. "No, you're not," she told him. "I find it really interesting to find out all this about you."

At that moment a waitress came to their table with a smile and asked YN in a friendly tone if she had enjoyed her meal. But the waitress paid no attention to Robert, YN noticed with surprise. Perhaps she was just being extra polite to the lady.

YN's date pulled out a black leather purse and rummaged through it. Quickly, YN pulled a few notes out of the bag and handed them to the waitress. "Keep the change," she said.

The waitress looked at her with wide eyes, "Thank you, ma'am," she said gratefully, "have a nice evening.

Then she turned and left the table.

"You didn't have to do that," Robert said. "As a gentleman, it's actually my job to pay."

She shook her head in amusement. "I bet that's never happened to you before, has it?"

Robert shook his head and took the last drink from his glass. There was a moment of silence between them.

"All right. So what's the plan for the rest of the evening?"

She looked at him in surprise. As soon as he said the words, she felt a tingle in her stomach.

The church clock struck twelve as she crossed the street hand in hand with Robert. It was freezing, and she had pulled her scarf so far up her face that only her eyes and nose were visible. Her date looked at her with amusement. "Are you going to rob a bank?" he asked, laughing out loud.

"Shh!" she snapped at him, putting her fingers to his lips. "You'll wake up the whole neighbourhood."

Although it was quite dark and she could only make out Robert, she knew that his typical mischievous grin was back on his face. She pulled him firmly behind her until they reached the small white building.

"Is this where you live?" Robert asked.

She put her finger to his lips for a second time until Robert stopped talking and looked silently into her eyes. Her heart was pounding in her chest as she finally stood on her toes, put her arms around his neck and placed her lips on his. Robert returned the kiss without hesitation and gently pulled her into his arms. YN could hardly believe what was happening. It was everything she had secretly wanted for months. They remained like this for a moment before she finally let go of him and reached for her key.

She felt for Robert's upper arm and finally pulled him into her apartment, closing the door behind him. She immediately wrapped her arms around him and began to kiss him again. His lips were a little cold and tasted of wine. Together they stumbled backwards into her bedroom, taking off his coat, which she tossed carelessly to the floor.

Robert's fingers stroked carefully along her hip and fumbled a little with her belt while she was busy planting little kisses on his neck. With slightly trembling hands she pulled his jumper over his head and Robert took her hand.

"Are you nervous?" he wanted to know. She remained silent.

"Don't be," he whispered softly into her ear, taking her in his arms again and pulling her onto the bed. Breathing softly, she clung to his chest, leaned back and finally closed her eyes as she felt his warm skin against hers.

The sun shone through the half-open curtains, creating a narrow, bright streak across the floor. Blinking, she opened her eyes and stretched. But immediately a sharp pain shot through her head again and she held her forehead tiredly. Confused, she sat up and tried to remember what had happened yesterday.

But when she heard soft breathing next to her, she turned quickly and all the events of last night came back to her. Smiling, she looked over at Robert, snuggled up next to her in her beige blanket, sleeping peacefully. Tenderly stroking his messy hair, she lay down beside him again and then began to caress his chest. Perhaps what they had done was wrong. After all, they were two people who should never have fallen in love. But it had happened, and it felt so right. They remained in this position for some time, Robert asleep and YN lost in thought.

Her eyes swept through the bedroom until they settled on a small white box on her dresser. Quickly sitting up, she reached for it and put a small pill into her mouth. Eventually, Robert began to move a little beside her, opening his eyes tiredly. Smiling broadly, she gave him a small kiss on the tip of his nose.

"Good morning," she whispered.

"Good morning," Robert murmured in a raspy morning voice.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked.

"Yes, wonderfully." He yawned loudly and took her into his arms as she laid her head lovingly on his shoulder.

"Wait, what time is it?" he suddenly wanted to know.

"Quarter past ten, why do you ask?" she replied.

"Shit," Robert muttered as he let go of the hug, jumped out of the bed and started to pick up his clothes, which were strewn all over the floor.

"Wait, wait, where are you going?" she asked, looking at him in confusion.

"I should've picked up my daughter by now," he replied, hurrying to get dressed.

Sighing, she pulled the blanket around her a little tighter. "Can't it wait? Can't you stay for breakfast?"

"I'm sorry, but I'm sure she's already waiting for me.“ Robert dodged her questions, grabbing his coat on the floor and sighing when he saw her disappointed look.

He walked slowly towards her, stroking her chin with his finger, and finally whispered: "We can catch up later." Then he put a soft kiss on her lips before turning around and disappearing through the door. She sank back into the pillows and pulled the blanket over her head.

The rest of Sunday flew by. Mostly because her mind was on Robert and she could hardly wait to see him again tomorrow at work. She had probably never looked forward to a Monday in her life as much as she did that day.

The next morning, YN carefully applied her lipstick and looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. She noticed that the collar of her white blouse was a little crooked and quickly adjusted it. She wanted to look her best for Robert today, so he wouldn't change his mind and lose interest in her.

Humming softly, she put on her black high heels and grabbed her handbag. She quickly put another pill into her mouth and put the box in her bag. Her headache was completely gone and her head finally felt clear and light again. In a good mood, she breathed in the fresh morning air and made her way to work.

Her heels clicked on the floor as she walked down the familiar corridor of Fischer Morrow. The lights were on in Robert's office. She ran a final hand through her hair, smoothed her blouse and opened the door to her own office.

The air was stuffy and hot. Coughing, she ran to the window and opened it.

"Good morning, Miss YN, I hope you had a nice weekend," a familiar voice sounded from behind her.

Startled, she turned to see Robert's face as he stuck his head through the door, as he always did.

Why didn't he call her by her first name? Confused, she stared at him, trying to form a clear sentence. "But… But… we spent it together…" her voice finally broke. Her head suddenly hurt again.

He seemed so different again. Not the Robert she had spent the weekend with, not the one who had apologised for being too rude to her, not the one who had made her laugh and told her about his life. He seemed more like the one she had worked with for months, the one who never revealed anything about himself.

"Miss YN? I haven't seen you since Friday, when you left my office after… asking me that question."

Her heart almost stopped. Suddenly her knees gave way and she sank to the floor.

"Are you okay? Are you feeling unwell?" Concerned, he bent down to her. "Do you want to go home and rest?"

She nodded slightly and wiped a tear from her eye, which had turned her fingers black from the carefully applied mascara. Then she got up and left the office.

At home, she lay motionless on her bed, tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't think straight and her throat felt incredibly dry. The door to her room, which was only ajar, opened gently and something small and white slipped through. Sniffling, she stretched out her arms and lifted her cat onto the bed.

Everything that had happened that weekend had been fake. She had made it all up. And all of this happened because she had forgotten to take the pills she was taking for her delusions. Robert hadn't really followed her on Friday evening; it was all a figment of her imagination. While his real self was still sitting in the office, probably not thinking about her at all. Everything suddenly made sense: why Robert looked a bit different, why his voice sounded different, the waitress who ignored him on Saturday because she couldn’t actually see him, the pedestrian who gave her a confused look because she was talking to herself while taking the photo.

The photo.

She immediately got up, put on her shoes and walked to the photo shop where she had left the film to be developed. Her heart raced as the staff handed her the envelope with the photos. Trembling, she finally grabbed the Saturday night photo, without looking at it herself, and held it up to the staff's face. "What do you see?" she asked.

The young man looked at her in confusion, but remained polite. "The fountain at Piccadilly Circus. Great picture, it turned out really nice."

"Anything else?" she asked.

"No, ma'am," he replied, and it felt like a slap in her face. Fischer had never been there with her. Only her lonely and sad mind had led her to believe that he was interested in her and loved her. Tears welled in her eyes and she left the shop without another word. When she got home, she immediately took the white box of pills from her handbag, rushed into the kitchen, opened the box and poured the pills into the bin.

Crying and with burning eyes, she finally lay down on her bed and buried her head in the pillow as her cat purred softly beside her. She must have stayed like that for hours, as the sun began to set again outside her window. When she finally lifted her head and wiped the tears from her face, she saw a dark-haired man sitting beside her bed, looking at her lovingly with his pale blue eyes. A smile suddenly appeared on her face and she began to laugh, pulling the man into a tight embrace.

some explanations because i know that story is kinda mind-fucking:

• Is Robert Fischer all a creation of the readers mind?

- No he actually exists, he’s her boss and she‘s in love with him, so she imagines dating him.

• When is he real, when is he fake?

- The version Robert Fischer in the office is real, he turns her down when she asks him out, leaving YN heartbroken. The moment she leaves the office, she starts to imagine what it would be like if he apologised to her, so the man who follows her is just her imagination. The real Robert Fischer is still in his office at Fischer-Morrow.

When she visits the city on Saturday and meets "Robert" and goes on a date with him, it's also just her imagination. That's why other people react to her with confusion, because she's basically talking to herself all the time. On Sunday morning, when she wakes up next to him, he's still fake. When she takes her pills, he quickly "disappears" (he says he has to pick up his daughter...) because they stop her delusions.

On Monday morning, when she gets back to her office, the real Robert Fischer is there again, who hadn't seen her since he had rejected her on Friday evening.

When she gets home, she throws away her pills and her delusions begin again. The man who sat next to her on the bed and comforted her is again the imaginary version of Robert.

[creedslove]

🌹Anon here! Sadly things with my step sister hasn't gotten any better, she has blocked my step Dad and everyone on his side, so we cannot contact her whatsover. It has been really difficult to navigate, she is only 11, and we can only pray she comes back to us eventually. Sob story aside, could I get some sweet Dave fluff? Him just being a great dad to his newborn baby. A mercernary with a newborn just making pancakes shirtless while carring the baby in one of those fabric wrap slings. Please and thank you ♥️

Dave York x f!reader

A/N: hi my darling 🌹 anon, it's good seeing you here, although the news aren't the best! I'm so sad to know your step dad's and his daughter's situation isn't great that way! It really sucks, she's so young she doesn't even have a clue about how devastating her behavior towards him is, but hopefully things will work out! I hope they can settle things down and work on their father-daughter relationship properly! I'll be rooting for them, and keep us updated whenever you can, alright?! Love you!

• when you woke up, the first thing was to look for Dave on his side of the bed, but it was empty and cold, meaning he had been up for a while; you checked on the clock and of course he's been up for ages, he still follows his military old habits, so you decided to get up

• but before doing anything else, you went over to your baby's room, wanting to check on little Davie, the little miracle that come over to give Dave's life a new meaning, along with you, and of course he couldn't pass up the opportunity to name his baby boy after himself when you offered it, and from that day on, you had your Dave, soon-to-be husband, and your sweet little Davie

• but Davie wasn't really in his crib, so you paid attention to your surroundings and of course you could hear soft giggles and a delicious smell of pancakes coming from downstairs, so you took the opportunity to freshen up in the bathroom and take some time to wake up before going to your family

• and once you got to the kitchen, of course you found Dave still shirtless, messy bed hair, working on his pancakes as Davie watched everything curiously from his comfortable carrier sling that made him look like the cutest kangaroo baby you'd ever seen

• Davie cooed and giggled, amazed at what his daddy was doing, he didn't actually understand, but he liked the sound of it and once you got closer and greeted your boys, you were welcomed by the sweetest smile you'd ever seen

"here honey, let me handle him, so you can make your pancakes"

• you offered carefully, knowing Dave was handy but still worried to have his son so close to the stove, you quickly helped him untangle your baby from the sling and held him into his arms

"are you hungry for daddy's pancakes, baby? Pancakes are his thing, he makes the best ones in the world!"

• and it was true; Dave's pancakes were delicious and he was great at it, there was a time he would make his daughters from his first marriage some every single Saturday morning, and they'd cheer up and talk about how daddy was the best! Unfortunately, that stopped after his and Carol's traumatic divorce and things took a downhill turn and Dave lost that connection once they got too old for that or just didn't seem so interested in spending time with him

• but things changed again when he began dating you: first of all, you liked his pancakes, and you loved watching him make them. He was always so attentive and focused and god, he looked too handsome doing the most domestic things

• and once you got pregnant, Dave noticed you enjoyed his domestic presence even more: unlike Carol who always complained about how his cologne or aftershave made her nauseous, you just craved his presence, you wanted to be all over him the entire time, and Dave loved that, you two bonded during a time he honestly thought couples drifted apart from his experience, it was magical, and luckily to him, that bond didn't break once little David was born, quite the opposite, the three of you became a stronger little family together

• and he couldn't express how much he loved that, how important it was, he still went out, did his dangerous job and went back home with his pocket full of money, but if there was something he would always do for his family, was definitely making pancakes for his beautiful family 💗

____

[utilitycaster]

Top 5 CR ships... I'm choosing violence

So here's the deal. top 4 nonnegotiable in that they are my top 4; exact placement within that top 4 varies. As with a bunch of things, C3 is hard to judge as an unfinished work with all relationships in fairly early stages so regardless of my personal feelings - and there are ships I like and dislike - I'm leaving it out, because like...Caleb/Essek at episode 2x70? barely on my radar, and so it would be unfair to judge against the finished works.

Fjord/Jester

Percy/Vex

Beau/Yasha

Caleb/Essek

final one is the difficult one:

I think Vax and Keyleth are great for each other and supportive and sweet and have a lot of lovely moments. I also rarely have anything to say about them, though? It's like. They're sweet! They are really good partners for each other! That's about all I have to offer in terms of meta whereas the four above all have me eating drywall or whatever the kids are saying.

I always felt the same about Pike and Scanlan as Vax and Keyleth, perhaps more generously so because of Ashley's scheduling, until the TCSR came out - cute, but not a ton to say. The fact that they are divorced FWB is in my opinion a genius move on Ashley and Sam's part and makes them a million times more interesting. However, that's a brief off-camera scene and a lot of headcanon doing the heavy lifting.

This is also true of Kimallura - in my mind, they are, quite possibly, the wlw D&D answer to Jane Austen's Persuasion. My hc is that they were together but had a messy breakup after most of their party died, complicated by the fact that they genuinely wanted different things at the time. After a few years they got over it and became friends again, but they were living so far apart anyway what with Allura on the council and Kima in Vasselheim that it was largely communication by letter and the occasional sending and even rarer teleport. However, Allura couldn't help but be worried with Kima went missing, hence sending Vox Machina after her, and when they were reunited those feelings all started up again, eventually leading to the pair rekindling their relationship during Campaign 1. HOWEVER this is 100% me filling in the gaps.

Loquatius and Laerryn are fantastic but we don't get a ton of time with them either. It makes perfect sense that they reunite at the end of the world; I just wish there'd been more.

Veth and Yeza had limited screentime for him being a noncombatant NPC but the fact is, In Love and War was the first ever CR episode I stayed up past midnight to watch until the break because their reunion was so well played.

So: with that, I think I have to hand #5 to Veth and Yeza.

[oc3anawrites]

Shattered Reflections

Listening to this while you watch will feed the angst

A/N: Loosely based off of the Marvel Tv Series- MoonKnight. There will definitely be show spoilers but I highly doubt any comic spoilers as I have barely just started reading them. The first few chapters will be used to help the reader understand each character, what they know and don’t in this AU and set up relationships. This is my first time posting a fic and actually letting other people read it so please be nice! Constructive criticism is welcome :) I apologize if it gets slightly boring at some points, I just want to paint a clear picture of what is happening in the story so that no one will be confused on what’s going on or who knows what. As the story goes on you may notice the moonknight boys stray a little from how they are in the show but I tried to keep it as similar as possible while giving differences to create a story that wasn’t just a copy of the show with a different love interest. This fic will have fluff, HEAVY angst, triggering themes, talk about mental health, major character death and contain the relationships marc spector x oc / steven grant x oc and eventually jake lockely x oc. Also it is definitely a slow burn so im sorry. I know a lot of people don't like reading OC's fics so if that's not for you then don't feel forced to read, although you'd be missing out haha. There will be quite a few chapters so I hope you'll tune in. :) also not every chapter is depressing i swear

summary: Amaya Young meets a man named Marc Spector, they fall in love and get married, one day he disappears and a few months later she receives a phone call from a timid british man, steven grant.

please check out my introductory post for my OC, hopefully it'll help you warm up to her. You can find it linked here

Enjoy!

MINORS DNI 18+ !!!! CW- this chapter includes topics such as: toxic relationship, drugs, divorce, alcohol and unaliveing attempt and panic attack

Please read at your own discretion.

Chapter One- The flashback.

10 years ago in Cairo.

The air is cold, silent. The day has been long and boring. Today’s mission of recovering an Ancient Egyptian artifact was a bust.

“This was a waste of time.” Amaya mumbles to herself..

 Grabbing her climbing gear, she headed to the exit of what was supposed to be the tomb of Alexander The Great, but contained nothing more than an empty sarcophagus.

“How am I supposed to pay the bills this month? This was gonna be a great score.” She continued mumbling.

As Amaya exits the underground structure, she spots a man standing tall by the vehicle she used to get here.

“Can I help you?” She asks the man.

 He stands with confidence showing in his posture. He has dark brown hair with slight curls, messy and covered in sand from the desert. His eyes are dark brown with a piercing gaze. His skin is an olive tone, covered in dirt and grime. His white shirt is stained from the sand. He looks rugged and muscular. He is as beautiful as what Amaya imagined a god to look like. 

“Couldn’t find anything huh?” The man replies.

“Bad intel I guess.” She says back, scoffing.

“What’s your name?” The man asks.

“Amaya Young.”�� 

“Hi Amaya, I’m Marc, Marc Spector.”

✦

And that was the day Amaya Young (against her better judgment) fell in love. The relationship had a rocky start as it was clear they were both hiding things but eventually things started to work out.

5 years after meeting Marc, he proposes to her. Another 5 years pass where in that time Amaya finds out about Khonshu and that Marc Spector is his avatar. Over the next course of those 5 years, she and Marc worked side by side to recover ancient artifacts around the world, giving them back to their rightful owners.

Occasionally she’d pocket one or two to pay the bills, each time Marc would give a disappointed scowl but let it happen. Marc randomly disappeared at times for missions, never allowing Amaya to come along. He always stated they were too dangerous.

When Marc worked as Khonshu’s avatar he sported a white, hooded ceremonial suit with a crescent moon symbol on his chest, which added to his mysterious and formidable presence. He called himself Moonknight and said his mission was to “protect the travelers of the night”.

Eventually, Amya and Marc get a place together in London as they were sick of traveling the world, hopping from hotel to hotel. She never found out much about Marc’s past besides that he used to be a mercenary and that he doesn’t have a good relationship with his parents. Marc likes to keep his secrets and while Amaya may not be a fan of it, she puts up with it because she loves him. Their relationship works because unbeknownst to Marc, Amaya has a few secrets of her own.

Besides trying to convince Marc that he should let her go on his missions with him, they are happy, sort of. If only it weren’t for Marc’s ability to do anything but tell the full truth and Amaya’s ability to never let herself be happy. The relationship had its ups and downs but they keep each other grounded. 

However, one day, Amaya wakes up alone. Marc is gone. She assumes Khonshu called him for another mission until 24 hours of missed calls and texts passes. 24 hours turns into a week, which turns into 2 weeks, a month, and then someone knocks on her door.

knock knock

“This is for you Mrs. Spector.” The person hands her paperwork as she opens the door. Divorce papers from Marc.

“He didn’t even have the balls to sign the papers?” She asks as she shuts the door.

A few hours later 

Amaya stared at the paperwork in her hand, “Divorce? Divorce? First he disappears, let’s me think he’s dead and now he wants a divorce?!” She screams out loud talking to herself as if somehow the louder she screamed, the more it would ease the pain. Amaya clutched her chest, she felt like the world around her was crumbling. She couldn’t breathe.

“Breathe, just breathe.” She said, trying to bring herself back to reality. It felt like the world was spinning around her, her vision cloudy her mind full of a million thoughts at once.

‘Fuck it.’ She thinks to herself. Suddenly her vision is clear and her heart rate returns to a normal pace as she grabs a pill bottle on her nightstand. Sometimes, Amaya felt like the less sober she was, the more it was like Marc was there with her. Like the tingling numbness that rushed over her body was Marc’s soft touch, like her blurry vision meant her ‘reality’ is actually just a nightmare and in the real world Marc was in bed next to her. She proceeded to take a handful of pills and felt the bitter taste in her mouth, gagging so much she nearly puked. She pulled out a bottle of vodka from under her bed in hopes to numb the taste of the pills from her mouth. But before she knew it, the bottle was empty too and she was now on the cold, hard tile of her bedroom floor.

A/N: Posting chapter 2 right after this bc i know this is super short!

read chapter 2 here

[goblins-riddles-or-frocks]

@doomsayings I had to make a separate post bc I have too much to say for a reply lmao. But I’M OBSESSED!! I literally only started Housewives to humor a friend but then it got me like immediately lol. I’m not current on either tbh tho. Housewives I’m on season… four? The one where Carlton and Joyce joined. And VPR I’m on season two. I’m trying to watch to keep up with both so that they’re like around the same time ish for any crossover content.

General thoughts, I’m in loooove with Lisa Vanderpump. She’s so sexy 😭😭😭 and she seems like the most genuine and normal of them? Hate that they’re all turning on her rn where I’m at in the season. Like leave her alone!!! She hasn’t done anything wrong ever.

Season one was really funny with the insane Kyle and Camille drama. Probably the only time Kyle has ever been justified imo sjdhdd. It was really cool how Camille turned around and became the least dramaful person over the subsequent seasons tho. Like she ended up leaving the show but Good For Her. It sounds like she had some like capital T Therapy and became way more mature and mellow.

Kyle was fun in like season one? But she’s been kind of pearl clutchy and annoying since idk. It’s good drama ig. But I’m neutral on her. I liked her relationship with Lisa a lot though rip it made a lot of sense why Lisa wanted to step back. And it’s been really funny how Kyle’s legit just acting like a jealous ex over it and being like “but why don’t you love me anymore :C” I was very 👀👀 when they kissed in Paris as a “joke” tho.

Adrienne seemed really chill and level headed at first at least next to the others and then got bizarrely touchy by the end. I love drama but hers seemed really petty all the time, so I was glad she left the show. Also she like transparently absolutely LOATHED her husband from the first episode, so I’m surprised it took her that long to get divorced.

Also past season but the Taylor thing was scary!!! It was insane seeing the “woman yelling at cat” meme in context and it’s like in the middle of her mental breakdown due to her abusive af husband.

I used to like Brandi a lot but she’s spiraled pretty bad? Like on intro she seemed genuinely really nice and just vaguely without a filter (same) and everyone was ganging up on her for objectively really minor things or interpreting her in bad faith all the time. But idk she got genuinely super racist with Joyce. And now she’s being mean to Lisa 💔

Carlton’s fun but insane. Love her weird goth house and how she and her husband are both clearly sleeping with the nanny. Also just all the very gay moments with Brandi and it’s hilarious how much she seems to hate Kyle for no reason?? Kyle could just be like “hi” and she’s like WHY WOULD YOU EVER SAY SOMETHING SO PASSIVE AGRESSIVE?? I’m sad to see her go but also shdhdfd she is just kind of crazy.

Joyce is meh. She’s just kind of boring. But very pretty. I am happy to stare at her. I know she doesn’t last past the one season either.

Yolanda seems deranged in her personal life but the most solid and reasonable in like the friend dynamic and when drama goes down. It’s really insane though how she’ll just say something completely crazy in passing and then gloss over it shdgd I think she also leaves soon? But she’s fun.

Kim’s also eh. She has soooo many issues but she handles them kind of annoyingly. Her life story is so fucked up and interesting though.

Re: VPR Stassi is probably my fave, she’s so messy 😭😭😭 That entire friend group is just awful! The way they have zero boundaries lmao. It’s like sitcom levels where they’re just together all the damn time. It also makes me feel better about adulthood lmao like these people act like insane teenagers!

Stassi is probs my fave. Love her mean girl energy. Scheana is vapid but probably like… the most solid friend? All the others are such assholes lmao. They never show up for each other!

I’m also not like there yet obvs but I have heard of Scandoval. So rn being at the point where Sandoval and Kristen break up (probably for good?) and the initial #vibes with Ariana, loosely knowing how it goes, is insaaaaane.

I also love every time there’s Housewives crossover, and they’re catering a party or something and are like “what the fuck is wrong with these rich people” shdhff like yeah.

So I’m having a great time! I love Mess!

[hms-tardimpala]

Hi! Since you were talking about your latest project, for the ship bingo I'm going to ask: John/Dean? (And if you want to do one extra, may I suggest Philes?)

NARA. I should have known you'd come up with the ship that's not talked about in polite company. Thank you so much!

So, for any anti that might have followed me by accident: I think we're about to part ways. John/Dean here refers to John Winchester and Dean Winchester from Supernatural.

Train wreck but I can't look away: whichever way you look at it, whether it's consenting or not, it's not gonna start well, go well, or end well. No amount of great writing will make this relationship stable or fair. It's doomed.

I'm a casual shipper: this isn't my OTP in this fandom (that spot belongs to Destiel), but I multiship.

INTERESTING COMPELLING COMPLEX SCREECHIBG: Dean took on his mother's role in the family in most ways after her death, why not this too? Have you seen the Winchester family dynamics? None of it is healthy, they're violent creeps with codependance issues. These boys haven't been socialized! So yeah, incest, why not? So many themes to explore with this ship. Abuse, masculinity, free will, homophobia, parenting.

Fandom ruining it: not really. There is amazing fandom content for that ship. But the SPN fandom is extremely divided and confrontational, and John's character is a touchy subject. Most people stop at arguing about whether he is good or bad, and are too busy decrying incestuous ships to provide interesting discussion about Dean/John.

Person A deserves better than person B: hey, John Winchester sucks. He's interesting, but he's the kind of character you watch telling yourself "I wish he'd rot in hell" and guess what? He canonically does!

Could cut the tension with a KNIFE: every room John steps into has tension. Things are already tense and intense and electric with his sons (in different ways) in a story where he doesn't fuck them. Imagine if he wasn't just Dean's father, drill sergeant and personal god, but also the man who taught him to have sex.

FREE SPACE: ew ew omg ewww! This hits the tiny mark between "absolutely disgusting" and "so fucking hot". There are days I can't stomach it, but I stand by it because it's extremely compelling.

Thank you a thousand times for giving me the oportunity to talk about them, it was very exciting.

And now, some Philes as a palate cleanser:

Train wreck but I can't look away: their worldviews and morals are too different and conflicting to build a lasting relationship, it's always going to be messy, and I'm here for it.

THAT one scene. You know the one: the duelling scene, of course. Thurston, what were you thinking? Also, the minotaur fight scene when Fetch realizes Niles is sort of a friend, kinda??

INTERESTING COMPELLING COMPLEX SCREECHIBG: It's because they have such different opinions and goals that they are interesting to see interact. For Fetch and Niles to date or fuck, I think Fetch would have to get more down to earth and less absolute about his views, and that would be an interesting growth. Also, Thurston Niles is a great character to explore and make headcanons about.

They are divorced, possibly not for the first time: these guys fight so much. They're used to each other's presence like you're used to an inconvenience or a flaw in the sidewalk. The way Fetch goes to Niles' house for drinks, and Niles doesn't serve him alcohol, and they antagonize each other but still have a decent time is so Divorced to me.

Could cut the tension with a KNIFE: I love to see the girls fightinnnnnggg. I love that Fetch seems two seconds away from imploding when he's in the same room as Niles. What's interesting is that the tension is brought by Fetch and Niles is chill about their situationship. When they meet on a case of Fetch's, sparks fly and that's awesome.

FREE SPACE: I'm using this space to say a trop I love to imagine for them is "ugh, why did it have to be him of all people?". I like to imagine them both inconvenienced by their attraction.

Thank you so much for playing with me <3

[chloeangelic]

Chloe! I must say that I read ''Ziti'' the day you posted it, but I've been munching on what I wanted to say.

I will start with the smut at the end, because uff!🥵 How Joel finds the reader pleasuring herself, and then she keeps going and lets him see felt so erotic and hot and intimate. They fuck, but with the desire and need they have for each other feels like it goes beyond that. Making it somehow hotter.

With That said, Joel and Ladybug are doomed. It started with mindblowing sex, and the prospect of getting someone to share their bodies and pleasure is a huge bonus, but it's not the only craving. How can they not fall for each other so hard and fast when they have been so lonely and starved of affection? How can they not get addicted to the feeling of simply sharing a meal with real conversation when they're seen and cared for? I can see so easily how messy this will get. How she cannot hide from Joel's careful and watchful eye and how she does without knowing things for Joel no one has done in a long time. The situation is so complex. It would be easy to say ''to hell with everything'' get a divorce, and get together, but it's not that simple. For that to happen, people they love and care about will be hurt, and feelings and truths need to be acknowledged, accepted, and rectified. And I don't feel like they are there yet. Maybe this time together will give them the strength for it. I love how you're picturing all this situation.

I'm wondering about how it will all blow up. I cannot see Joel being able to hide the ''glow''. I wonder if Tommy will be the first to notice the change in his brother as they spend a lot of time together. Or maybe Gwen will surprise us all because despite not having looked properly at Joel in a long time, she knows him, or at least his habits.

I didn't think you could make me as invested as I was with ''Love Me Back'', but it looks like it will be a close match. Thanks for the lovely chapter!♥️♥️♥️

hii! thank you so much!! <3 you're very spot in in your analysis of their connection! i've been very interested in all aspects of intimacy in the last few months, so that's one of the big themes in seeking. them eating together, sharing about their lives, about their relationships, him watching her, the sex itself - those are all different aspects of intimacy and i think people sometimes view intimacy as just sex but it goes far beyond that, and i find myself often realizing more and more examples of intimacy between people.

you'll see how it blows up in the new year :ppp thank you for reading <333

[mapsofnonexistentplaces]

mr. bepop or faye valentine for the character asks 😸

putting it under the cut ^_^

MR BEEPO FIRST

favorite thing about them

ahh i genuinely just think hes like. a very stylish character like perhaps derivative of the whole show's aesthetic but yeah. hes just a cool jazz cowboy who can do tricks and shotcha. i think the way his like. carefree nature is challenged by the end of the show is really good also.... like yeah this dude is reckless and youre kind of meant to suspend your disbelief at first just to see him pull cool stunts and shit but by the end its very much commented on as a specific flaw of his and its like. yeah! clever way to show off a characters problems being enabled and made worse to the point of them being visible to others.... its cool its cool

least favorite thing about them

i think his hair looks STUPID in official art often i like it when its drawn as just like. visibly curled or messy i guess

favorite line

guess i shotcha....

but also "whatever happens happens". :+)

brOTP + OTP

compounding these because my answers the same. i think its funny to interpret him faye and jet as just like. awkward situational polycule LOL mostly just because when i was watching the show i kept making jokes like. Yuup. these guys are all divorced to each other without ever having been married

nOTP

him and vicious im just not big on "enemies who want to fuck each other secretly" type dynamics

random headcanon

schizoid guy swag....! and also i just like. randomly headcanon him as latino because i was listening to a lot of volta when i was watching the show and i very quickly associated frances the mute with his storyline hah. so hes very much tied up with that in my mind

unpopular opinion

uhhhh i think hes cool but not in the way weird old anime fans think hes cool. i think his self destructive habits make him very interesting....

song i associate with them

CYGNUS VISMUND CYGNUS !!!!!!! i also do have a playlist for him hehe

favorite picture of them

first ones that came to mind :+)

faye time now.....

favorite thing about them

I LIKE THAT SHES JUST LIKE. very openly bratty and annoying and that she does anything she wants. like i think the flippant way she treats the rest of the bebop crew rules i like that shes very selfish and just puts herself first. makes the few moments when she actually gets worried about the others really poignant....

least favorite thing about them

wouldnt say i completely dislike it because i do think it was handled tastefully but i think the subplot of like. oooh yeah guy who revived her from her cryosleep or whatever being someone shes very romantically into made me roll my eyes a bit. i do think it makes her like. presence during the timeframe of the show way stronger but from a story writing standpoint im just like Bah a bit lame that shes The Woman and shes constantly Romancing men

favorite line

none that come to mind i just like it when shes mean 👍 oh uh not a line but it was cool when she just ate dog food that one time

brOTP + OTP

see above answer for spike hah

nOTP

most relationships honestly....... i think she deserves to have some genuine connections with people and aside from spike and jet she really doesnt have any hah.

random headcanon

she would love shitty 90s era pop songs.........

unpopular opinion

unpopular opinion uhhhh i think she is a cool character who is not just a sex object

song i associate with them

hmmmm ^_^

favorite picture of them

love pics of her and ein HEHE

[d-lanx]

rewatching wwe punk and his relationships with authority

I've been rewatching old wwe punk stuff and find it very entertaining to watch his relatiohship with authority, cos it's like watching a family dealing with the problem child.

Vince and Heyman are the parents and had a kid: cm punk. Heyman is the proud mother hen and vince isn't happy about that cos they have other kids, too, and he thinks heyman is favouring punk. December to Dismember happens and a spat over cm punk makes vince and heyman divorce.

Punk has to live with vince on smackdown and meets vince's new partner, teddy long. Vince pretty much takes a step back from discipline, sometimes even enabling punk cos he has no idea what teddy is dealing with on a day-to-day basis.

Teddy and Vince already have a kid: undertaker, and teddy will sic him on anyone who's causing trouble, including punk. but at the end of the day, punk always had a soft spot for teddy and while he didn't like him much in the moment, he would later learn to love him and would miss him.

Punk starts getting a bit too difficult to manage (afterall he did start a cult) and punk gets to a point where he's threatening to run away from home due to vince's favouritism towards his other kid, John Cena. Despite vince's best efforts, Punk runs away and takes a sentimental family heirloom with him to really piss them off.

But like lots of kids who run away, he eventually comes back. At which point vince pawns him off on HHH. HHH is having little luck in discipline, as punk is very good at talking back and pissing him off further. So when nash comes along (HHH's ex) and they get back together, nash tries to take over discipline.

"You need to watch your mouth", "I need to whatch my mouth? you need to watch the show! I do and say whatever I want to whomever I please."

Punk sees this more as a challenge and is unbothered and HHH doesn't like that someone else is disciplining his kid, especially so harshly and by going behind his back. Hell, this whole video is nash being like "why are you letting your kid talk to you like that??":

Nash and HHH have a messy break up, and realises that he can get punk to behave when they have a common enemy, at least. He even manages to keep him happy by putting him on commentray that one time.

Then laurinaitis comes along. He's the epitome of the embaressing parent and is absolutely the type to see his kid playing a game and just be like "are you winning, son?" and post facebook minions memes. And punk doesn't like him right from the get-go.

Laurinaitis tries a few methods to deal with punk's behaviour, like taking away his stuff, and calling his bluff, as well as standard punishments. But then after going on a parenting course (in the show he says he took several "management classes") he tries to bond with punk by taking an interest in the things he likes. But after everything that happened between them, it just makes him uncomfortable.

I just love the look of fear on punk's face when laurinaitis starts talking about empowering his talent.

Eventually, laurinaitis stops punk from seeing teddy, which really upsets him. But laurentits is also eventually booted out which punk is very happy about.

Then heyman comes back into punk's life and is once again supporting him, partly out of love, partly out of a need for revenge against his ex, vince.

They cause a load of trouble together until eventually he has enough of punk's bs.

As a last resort, they bring in kane to act as a disciplinarian. He's not part of the family, but like some kind of child behaviour specialist or runs some sort of bootcamp for bad kids. But punk reaches 18 and ends up moving out before they can do much about his behaviour (i.e., he leaves the wwe).

I can't be bothered taking this analogy all through UFC, AEW and the new WWE era. But watching back some of the scenes really does feel like punk is the problem child of an already dysfunctional family, and it's hysterical.

[the-jellicle-duelist]

random movie every week week 2/1498 - The Lobster (2015)

hello, i have a lot of movies and i have not seen that many of them. so every week i will watch a movie at random, and then wright a little blog about it and give it a rating out of 5 stars THE RULES

i can skip any marvel movie i want (because i have seen them and i don't want to watch them again)

i can skip any movie i have seen more than twice (the goal is to watch movies that are new to me, but could be interesting to return to a movie i have only seen once, hence the rule)

ratings are out of 5 stars, with NO HALF STARS. half stars are for babies

If a film is part of a series, i reserve the right to start the film series from the beginning

HERE WE GO

The Lobster (2015)

i had not heard of this film prior to watching it, so i went in not knowing almost anything. it was indeed an A24 film, so i had a certain expectation of like a house style, and it basically met those expectations

the basic plot of the film is in the world, if you are Single for a certain amount of time, at any point, it is illegal. there is a facility which you can go to to potentially meet someone and become married and therefore avoid what seems to be the end result of being single for too long and getting caught: becoming an animal. you do get to pick what animal

the man character of the film (colin farrell; i don't remember his name) is here. he is there for a while, and after getting closer to his scheduled Last Day, he fakes a relationship with a monster of a woman, who forces him to reveal that their relationship is fake.

he ends up in the woods with the Loaners, an equally bad solution to this problem where they live in the woods and they Must be alone, and they Must follow those rules or bad things happen to them.

naturally, colin farrell falls in love with someone, and after that relationship is attempted to be sabotaged by their leader, they run away from the group. if you watch the movie, relationships seem to require a key element that you share, and colin farrell and rachel weisz were both shortsighted. but the leader has her surgically blinded. but they still run away together. colin is about to blind himself in the bathroom with a steak knife, and it is implied he left her in that restaurant because he could not go thru with blinding himself

what i thought:

i was pretty frustrated with this film by the end of it. the film as like Metaphor (how society puts a lot of emphasis on everyone needing to be partnered up, from the way we build our communities to the way we file our taxes, society by and large is designed to support A Couple as a unit, and we are taking this to an extreme.) it mostly works. i see what they were going for. the film's text? the way the film was conveying its themes i felt like it was really messy.

a sticking point throughout was the notion that you cannot build a relationship on a lie. which, yeah that makes sense you probably shouldn't do that. there seemed to be no room for a relationship that you build? together? it seemed so strange to me that at no point two people in that weird facility didn't look at each other and say 'i like you but i can't really pinpoint a singular thing that connects us what if we just say it's racecars and get out of here?"

like is divorce illegal too? can we not just try something out for a while? the definition of relationship seemed pretty defined to the characters, but it was not clear to me, and so therefore when characters made decisions i was just like what the fuck are they doing?

i GET why the facility managers did what they did, and why the leader of the Loaners did what she did: they both wanted to maintain the weird amount of power they had over these people's lives. is that part of the metaphor? are they The Government? are they Society?

the rest of the characters? they way they talked to eachother, and how they interacted with eachother was insane to me. and finally when colin and rachel fell in love, and they almost seemed like they were gonna get out of there, it ends with colin being unable to commit to her even tho now they are differently sighted. and tbh i am not sure how that is supposed to make me feel. and by the end of the movie i basically didn't care.

am i supposed to feel bad for rachel? (i kind of do, she did get blinded against her will.) but also the two of them couldn't not be so incredibly horny in front of the Leader's family? i don't think i do really feel that bad for her. am i supposed to feel bad for colin? sure his brother got murdered in a really disturbing way. but also he was REALLY HORNY. he also said he would be with this girl and now she is blind and alone in a restaurant. am i supposed to hate colin for that?

how the answer to their problem is not 'find something else to bond over, even if it takes times' is so fucking stupid bonkers to me that i can't support what they were trying to get across with this film

i gave this film 2 Stars. it's fine, it probably works for someone. i hate the way the dialogue is written, and it just does not make sense as a film to me.

here is a screenshot of my notes:

Previous Posts Under Read More:

Robocop

[batsarebetterthanpeople]

You're a piece of shit abuse apologist who ships a racist with his victim.

Oh hey it's the anon who's been bugging everyone because you can't Identify an Izzy Stan. Hello!

Let me help you out here. I do not apologize for Izzy, I've made that very clear on my blog which you can tell if you go through the Izzy critical tag on my blog, I am in fact the author of the Izzy is Ed's abuser post, so you're welcome for that talking point. That said, I do like to play with Blackhands as a ship sometimes because I think their divorce core dynamic is very funny to me. They are after all characters in a comedy show. While this show deals with some heavy subject matter it is still a light hearted rom com. I ship Ed and Izzy in the same way that I ship Loustat except that Ed and Izzy are infinitely less serious. I don't ship them in that I want them to end up together, I ship them in that I want to watch them have messy messy gay sex while they ruin each other's lives. I do love a healthy relationship in theory but healthy relationships are somewhat less interesting to put in situations. You'll never catch me writing a fic that takes Izzy's side, you'll never catch me writing a fic where Ed and Izzy end up together. What you will catch me doing is heathers parodies where Izzy blows himself up at the end(coming down the pipe I promise), aus about them getting divorced(also coming down the pipe), and porn art that is specifically a joke about how Ed cut off Izzy's toe with a pair of scissors. If you can't tell the difference between that and a fic that apologizes for Izzy's abuse, you may want to take a break from sending Anon hate and take a media analysis class.

Additionally you're not helping anyone by sending these anons. I don't care if you send them to actual Izzy stans they're annoying and they're skin is paper thin so I'm not gonna fret over it, but it's kind of a waste of time, because they're not gonna be swayed by an aggressive Anon at this point they're just gonna point to it as an instance of harassment and then I have to explain to them that you are just a feature of the internet. And if you send these asks to me and people like me I'm afraid you're waisting your time because your accusations aren't even accurate.

I understand it must be very frustrating that I taught the Izzy Stans how to block you and you can no longer bother them but I think you would be better served by putting your energy somewhere else. Might I suggest taking up anti racism activism or volunteering at an abuse shelter. I think fandom specifically and the internet in general might be an unhealthy space for you.

[thexgrayxlady]

What I Read in July 2024

The Adventures of Amina Al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty - 4.50/5.00

If you could synthesize a book in a lab, just for me, this would be very close to the end result.

This was a fun, swashbuckling adventure, staring a retired pirate and her middle-aged crew. I love how despite being older, the characters are all still hot messes and absolute menaces to society. Amina, despite trying to reform for her kid, is still an adventurer at heart and you feel how much she loves being back on the sea, getting into misadventures. I was having too much of a good time to take too many notes.

Also Raksh sucks so much. He's just the worst. I love him. I want him to keep trying to serve Amina magical divorce papers forever.

It's really just held back by its ties to her previous series, which is mainly a personal grievance because I'm finding interconnected universes, especially when they don't need to be there, increasingly uninteresting. The part on the Peri's island drags a lot and they take a lot of the tension out of the ending.

The book has a fun, Raiders-esque feel to it. The plot unfolds at a pretty fast pace and I never got tired of the hijinks the characters got into getting the band back together.

Voyage of the Basilisk by Marie Brennan - 3.00/5.00

I'm always weirdly disappointed by these books. Like, they're not unenjoyable, but I always feel like there isn't enough focus on the speculative biology of dragons. The pacing for this book is a lot better than the previous entries, it gets right to business on Isabella's voyage around the world to study dragons. It's very accessible and easy to read. When the dragons are on page, they're really interesting. I really liked the illustrations. Unfortunately, I'm just not terribly interested in the politics of this world.

Wicked Beauty by Katee Robert - 3.50/5.00

I gave Katee Robert another chance and I liked this so much better than Electric Idol. Wicked Beauty made for a fun and easy beach read. The characters are less annoying, except for Hermes and Dionysus, who are, yet again, just so irritating. I hated every second they were on page. Fortunately, there was not very much of them.

I really liked Helen, Achilles, and Patroclus. They had a fun dynamic between them. I appreciate that while they come to care about each other, they have incompatible goals at first and they eventually work to figure out how to make their relationship work. They're all messy bisexual assholes and I loved watching them being messy bisexual assholes.

The ratio of porn to plot was a lot better in this book. The plot is kind of dumb, but it's entertainingly dumb and, let's be honest, you're not reading this series for the plot. There are some things from the plot that I would have changed, one of them is genuine and the other is just a personal preference. I wish that Helen defeating Paris had been from her POV and had more time and weight dedicated to it. It felt like the author was rushing to the end here. I also wish there had been more drama around Patroclus' injuries in the second trial, but that's just my preference. Hiding injuries is my catnip. It was dangled in front of me and then jerked away. Like the football. Jail for Katee Robert. Jail for 1000 years!

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson - 2.75/5.00

I see the appeal of these books. They do not appeal to me.

To it's credit, it is very accessible. Maybe a little too much so for my taste. I am, admittedly, a pretentious asshole. This could have been a fun book. At times, it is very close to being a very fun book. Unfortunately it settles for being the MCU of fantasy in both a complementary and a derogatory sense.

The language is very simple, to the point where the few times where complex vocabulary was used, it was somewhat jarring. I think I can count on one hand the number of times figurative language was used. Everything is very surface level, if it's what you're in the mood for, I could see it being very easy to turn your brain off and enjoy this and not have to worry too much about missing out on subtext.

That being said, everything is explained so often that you have to ask yourself if Sanderson thinks his readers are stupid. You just want to tell him that yeah, you got the point like three paragraphs ago, just get on with it. The over explanation of the, admittedly interesting, magic, the simple plot, and the beyond simple characters lead to the book feeling tensionless and bloated.

I actually like the magic system. When it wasn't being explained every other paragraph. Learning about Allomancy became very repetitive fast and I think at least half of it could have been kept in the appendix for a much tighter book. And because it was so overstated, I became kind of pedantic about it. The magic system doesn't even go as far as it could with its own logic. Why can they push and pull non-magnetic metals? Why is that road copper when it could be a much cooler magnetic metal? You could have a road made out of cobalt or neodymium or even nickel if you wanted something more mundane. Why is pewter the metal that makes you stronger when it's really soft and malleable in real life?

The world itself feels more like a themepark version of itself than an actual lived in world. I wouldn't care about this so much, but Sanderson gets so much praise for his worldbuilding and I do not get it. This is due at least in part to how flat and lifeless the characters are.

Vin is wildly inconsistent. She says over and over and over again that she doesn't trust people and she expects to betray her. Yet every time she encounters someone betraying someone else and she becomes surprised pikachu. Like, she should not need to have what noblemen do to Skaa women explained to her. She should not be shocked and appalled by it. She grew up with that threat constantly hanging over her head. She should not like or trust the nobility as much as she does, as quickly as she does. From the very beginning, she feels more like a sheltered noblewoman than a homeless orphan who makes a living by stealing.

I've very rarely encountered a character as annoying as Kelsier. You can practically see him tip his goddamn fedora and hear him say, "M'lady." I'm not sure a whole chapter goes by without one character or another extolling the virtues of the goddamn Mary Sue. He has one pretty good moment, when he returns to the Pits of Hathsin, and another when Sanderson has another all too brief flash of really good writing with Kelsier's death. The first is nearly immediately undercut when Kelsier single-handedly destroys the Pits in two pages and meets so little resistance in doing so that it feels like he could have done that whenever he wanted to. If he could so easily do this, why does the rest of the plan even need to happen?

Sazed's the best character and even then, he's still wish.com Alfred Pennyworth.

Because the main characters are so overpowered and the antagonists have very little presence on the page, plot has no tension. Everything just feels too easy for the characters. Everything more or less goes according to plan. And when it doesn't, it doesn't feel like they have to struggle to get things back on track. At the end, I had to ask myself what was the point of 2/3 of the book spent gathering the army when Vin and Kelsier were going to solo everything.

The tension is not helped by calling the oppressed underclass The Skaa.

The logbook bits at the start of the chapters are the most interesting part of the book because they're allowed to stand more or less on their own and they don't tell the reader everything that happens, then explain it in the narration, then have the characters discuss it again just to make sure that the reader knows what happened.

Admittedly, the last fifty pages are a blast, but you shouldn't have to slog through six hundred pages of repetitive, annoying, beige prose to get there. The Lord Ruler's entrance is really cool and creepy. What Vin does with the metal arrowheads is creative and frankly just nifty. Unfortunately, my copy had several misprinted pages right when it was getting good, so I couldn't really even enjoy that.

At the end of the day, it honestly feels like Sanderson would rather be writing manuals for a TTRPG than a novel.

Mirrored Heavens by Rebecca Roanhorse - 3.50/5.00

The cover is less criminally ugly than Fevered Star!

I want so badly to like this book more than I do. Unfortunately, it inherits too many problems from the previous book to land as effectively as it could. The author still has to scramble to move characters into place because of how much time the previous book wasted futzing around.

The whole Teek storyline feels rushed and I feel like Xiala should have gone through most of it in the previous book. If her mother, aunt, and the matrons were given more time to develop, then their massacre would have had more of an impact. The scene on the beach where she starts to Sing is really good and I wish that it had the impact it deserved. That being said, once it gets off of the Teek islands, watching her come into her powers is pretty cool and her storyline moves much more smoothly. Her reunion with Serapio is very cute and I love their relationship.

Naranpa's storyline ultimately feels superfluous and hastily tacked on as the conflict pivots away from the Crow God and the Sun God. At the end of the last book, I thought we would get at least something interesting happening at the Graveyard of the Gods and it just never happens. I feel like you could cleanly excise her parts from the book and very little would be lost. It's ultimately just so shallow and disconnected from everything else that it's hard to care.

None of Balem's flashbacks were needed and just leave the book feeling bloated. Frankly, I don't think that Balem's POV is needed to begin with. You could get just about everything you needed from that with some minor tweeks to Iktans.

Serapio's POV is easily one of the strongest. There's a scene with the man he thinks is is father that's so good. You get such a strong sense of his religious trauma and why he feels like his destiny is his only option. You really understand why he latches so strongly onto anybody who treats him like an actual human, like Okoa and Xiala.

Like. I loved the first book in this series. I love these characters. This is such an interesting world. I know it doesn't seem like it from this review, but I like this book. There's a lot of very good stuff in here. It's just held back too much by mistakes made in the previous entry and I wanted it to be better.

[l0stfoster]

Casper gives me the chance to oc talk so I’m gonna get funny and throw my cards in too. The art is quick and shitty I had to make a reference for someone.

Technically I've got 3 ocs, the other two just haven't been drawn but to put it playing; Soc and Greaser, secret relationship bc they're gay and different social classes. They act like they hate each other but makeout behind the bleachers /silly I'll draw them in the future and elaborate FOR NOW THOUGH!! SAM!! Lots of shit below the cut, he's the equivalent of my self-insert.

- His full name is Sam Kaiser; their grandfather (dad's side) is German (and their mom's side is Polish) but he and his parents were born in America, so he's pretty disconnected from his heritage bc his parents don't care enough about it. He was 19 during '67 - He's got an 18-year-old brother and a 26-year-old sister. Her brother's been drafted to Vietnam (which he wanted, as he had always been interested in the military ) while his sister took off to New York for college and made it big. - Born in Tulsa, when Sam and their brother were 13 and 12 their parents had a messy divorce. His father took full custody of the kids because their mother wanted nothing to do with them. Their father's pretty shit and all he really does is just pay the house bills and buy himself food or booze, he ignores them unless he needs something or if they aren't listening to him. Their older sister was looked at once for custody consideration when their father got himself into a bit of trouble but turned that shit down fast. Sam still hasn't gotten over that, it was also the last time he'd heard from her. - He/She pronouns both because nobody can figure out what the hell he was born as besides his parents, but she also doesn't know that they/them is an option. Being transgender in the 60's was already looked at negatively; god knows any other kind of gender identity was NOT something they've probably even known about. - Deeply values their freedom and acts out against their father, because although he's pretty neglectful, he still tries to hold an iron fist over him. His piercings (and tattoos) are a part of the ways he chooses to rebel and separate himself. Still wears his dad's dog tags, despite that, because he still loves his father. - Greaser, their father works with the same roofing company as Darry does but on a different team. Sam does a lot of job hopping as he's disabled and can't keep a solid job. Very financially insecure. - Wanted to go to college but their scholarship wasn't enough and couldn't justify going. He wanted to be an astronaut :( You bet your ass this mf cried watching the moon landing in 1969

- I like to imagine Sam and Darry are on friendly terms since they've both had the experience of missing out on college and a chance to escape Tulsa; and Sam also thoroughly respects Darry for stepping up, since she knows how heartbreaking it is to have family refuse you like you're nothing. (I've shipped them before bc I'm cringe and free fuck you /silly) - He's not really part of any specific Greaser gang, he just sort of shows up sometimes and lingers before dipping again. Their brother was popular amongst both socs and greasers (he's just really charming) and Sam was, sort of jealous; but they liked their alone time. They only met the gang through school and other general mischief. Huge klepto, would go on stealing sprees with Two where Sam would distract and Two would take. - While his brother and father are smart with cars, he's very car-stupid. Gave Steve a heart attack because she pulled up with a VERY flat tire and insisted that it wasn't too bad (he should've crashed on the way there) - Got the nickname "Park" because he hates being home, so he'll usually end up at the park if he doesn't want to be around anyone. Usually, he'll either be there in silence or with a little journal. - Resting bitch face galore. He's not very confrontational but has a temper and gets into fights a lot because he runs his mouth and doesn't know when to shut up. He carries a switch his brother bought him but hasn't dared to bring it out in a fight yet. - Throws himself into crime and other shit of the sort as a way to break out of the expectations people have set for him. His sister successfully left Tulsa and made it big while his brother's in the military-- has the middle child stereotype and authority figures always expected him to follow after his siblings. - Sam hates drinking due to their father but has slowly begun taking it up as a way to cope with the social pressures and his own issues. Smokes as well, but tries to do that less due to valuing their lung capacity (He likes to run) - Just a little side fun fact. If he exists in Cursed au he'd either be a Harpy (likely an owl) or invisibility. Thought about shapeshifting but it'd be funny bc the mf only ever uses it for convenience, like getting taller to reach a shelf. - Also in Cursed he'd end up being friendly with Paul bc fuck you I love Paul and so Sam can too /silly

Sorry if any of this is all over the place my brain is fried rn.

Starting a reblog game: RB w/ your own outsiders OC!

if enough folks do, I’ll draw them together or something lol, it’ll be fun!

So these are blatant self inserts for my sister and me

(Info & backstories under the cut because I’ve put waaaay too much thought into this)

and again, pls do reblog/tag me w/ your own Outsiders original/self insert characters! (Drawings and/or written descriptions!) Making OCs was one of my favorite things to do as a kid, so I figured it’d be fun to bring it back here lol

(And to reiterate- if enough of ya’ll do this I’ll draw ‘em all together like a greaser-sona gang! So don’t be shy ok??)

-got sent to Tulsa from Seattle in 1961 at ages 13 and 11 to live with their mildly neglectful uncle, due to their mother getting cancer and being unable to properly care for them. Their father was lost at sea when they were little, so they had no one else to go to.

-in Tulsa they go by their mother’s surname, Biondi, instead of their father’s, because interracial marriage isn’t legalized in Oklahoma until ‘67. They try to pass as just Italian. This works better for Naomi, who takes more after their mother than their father in looks.

-Naomi is good friends w/ Ponyboy- she relates to him a lot, from the dislike of fighting to the love for sunsets (legit Ponyboy reminds me of my sister so much irl) (She’s also low-key got a crush on him and Sodapop which is pretty funny)

-Jesse is closer to Two-Bit, Dally, Steve, and Soda. And he really likes fights. They’re exciting and make him feel tough. When he stops to think about it it does make him a little uneasy how much he’s grown to like them, but usually he just ignores that

-Naomi disapproves of crime. Jesse used to oppose it too, but the more time he spends without good role models and parental figures, the more his morels loosen. Tries hard to be a good example for Naomi though

-Jesse met the gang through Sodapop originally- they were thirteen and some Socs were jumping Soda, and Jesse jumped in and helped him out. Soda explained to him what the deal with Socs and greasers is, because there’s no greasers up North

-Naomi met the gang separately through being classmates with Ponyboy. They were working together on a school project, one with him writing and her drawing

-So Jess and Naomi spent a solid few months hanging out with different members of the same gang, completely unaware they had the same group. They eventually end up running into each other at the Curtis house, and both are totally shocked. Two-Bit, who knew the whole time, nearly died laughing

-Naomi is friends with both Socs and greasers, because she isn’t really either- she’s financially a greaser, but she has a crazy high GPA for someone who has ADHD and dyslexia in the 60s, and besides that, she just doesn’t like what she sees as pointless rivalry

-Jess loves pointless rivalry. At least until people start getting hurt. Then he starts to get angry.

[nunuisancenewt]

Watched Nimona recently and Guardian’s of the Galaxy 3 today.

Nimona’s a well-done short story about being yourself and how society dehumanizes and lashes out at those who are “ different” , but done better then most, I liked that she is shown to be a fire-breather in a quiet scene at the back end of the movie, making her actions feel more subdued and her talk about loving destruction feel like bluff, I also liked the gay relationship and how the love interest stood in for his feelings of obligation to society/the civilians/the institution, It was refreshing to have a middle manager type as a big bad instead of the head of state for a change, also the way they were forced by the society that villanized them to act “ villainous” and eventually “ monstrous” felt very “real”, also it just looks very good and both lead characters are very charming and charismatic.

Guardian’s of the Galaxy 3 is the best of the trilogy but also the most conventional ( heroes rescues friend and takes down tyrannical ruler) , If I wanted nuance and the messiness and misery I would be reading nonfiction, I like fiction for optimistic escapist fantasies about found-families of heroes taking down evil empires by killing the big bad, or kinky sex. The first one had the whole asshole small time criminals team up to Save The Galaxy and learn to care about each other stick( so the cast was not that likable), the last one was just a-lot of daddy issues ( not bad, but a subject I have little desire for)and Chris Pratt at his… Chris Prattiest, and the group was still not fully, reformed yet.

Anyway the thing I really wanted to talk about was the stories depiction of Animal testing, since I saw someone on the r/askvegans subreddit a few days before asking what people thought of it. The plot involves Rocket ( the cyborg raccoon character) being severely injured and knocked unconscious by someone ( working for the organization that “ made” him) trying to kidnap him, Rocket has some sort of anti-tampering self destruction button in him, so they need the organization’s( who is run by a super powerful mad scientist trying to create a new species of perfect sapients to populate his perfect utopia), override code to do surgery, but since the mad scientist is after Rocket they end up not only taking the code but rescuing the other experiments and taking him down.

Even-though the story is critical of the animal testing, it feels too divorced from reality to be any sort of commentary on the real world issue, in the same way that say 101 Dalmatians is. People generally are against animal testing for cosmetics or sanitary items now, the large companies that continue to do so mainly do to comply with Chinese laws. It’s medical research that people defend today, as necessary and ( inaccurately) argue is done under the best conditions possible and never done frivolously ( If you want a good view into how Medical animal testing looks like in the real world from someone who was involved read They All Had Eyes) , the mad scientists actions are the sort of frivolous testing with no pretense of legitimacy the public is already against. The second part is the animals they used, just having the camera linger on a cage of sad white mice would have made it feel more relevant, the vast majority of mammals used in animal testing are mice and rats ( which don’t get the same minimum protections, and aren’t even counted, the way other tested mammals are) , instead the background animals included house cats, tapirs, box turtles, arctic foxes, kangaroos , a tapir, spider monkeys, vampire bats, pigs, pandas…, but no mice or rats. ( or of-course fish). The main side-animals in his backstory included a river otter, walrus, and domestic rabbit, but the domestic rabbit was an unimportant character with a “ sweet but stupid” personality, and was the most heavily cyborg modified animals to almost unrecognizably.

There is a comedic side plot where back at the base where the two put in charge when the main cast left are mad at each-other, and the Soviet talking dogs comments once on how she was left in space to die. That single line is a more substantial criticism of real world issues than the entire main plot.

[prisonguards]

Trying and failing not to think about how every. single. duos. potential win would be made infinitely sexier if the bonds break in the end when I’m an angst and tragedy enjoyer

Tango and Jimmy… forced to kill their partner, the only one who has uplifted them every step of the way, believed in them when no one else would, stood up for eachother through thick and thin. It would break them. They would be inconsolable. Like first of all it would be no small miracle for them to be the final two standing, but just the absolutely crushing devastation. All their joy immediately decimated when the bond breaks and they realize what has to be done. It would have to be a Scarian-style thinly veiled self-sacrifice from one of them because I don’t think they could have the heart to do it for real, to actually fight eachother to the death.

Ren and Bigb… their messy on and off again relationship coming to a head. Could they really ever amicably come back together? After all their issues they’re always reunited by convenience, but will those feelings and frustrations and fears that we saw at Scott’s Relationship Ranch surface again? Will they make a honorable fight of it, or will Ren’s rage and Bigb’s resentment surface again? They were always so good at making issues with eachother when there weren’t really any there...

The Divorce Quartet would all make such interesting face-offs, because it shows the defeat of the system set in place. Cleo or Scott would have already lost their chosen soulmate, so maybe it would be easier for them, less feelings to get in the way of the job that has to be done.

Cleo and Martyn… wouldn’t it be such a grand show of valor, as the Soulbound who couldn’t provide, who endangered his partner, for Martyn to sacrifice himself? To let Cleo win? Though he was never very good at giving Cleo what she wanted or needed or asked for, he always was a bit too selfish, despite what hes always thought

Scott and Pearl… Scott doesn’t seem to think they’re making it to the end again, he’s said he’d rather kill himself than let Pearl wreck havoc as Red. But if they did make it to the end… the hatred between them is so much. Pearl has no sense of self preservation, she would take so many risks, so it could go either way. She could either win because of her lack of hesitation, or not be careful enough and slip that way. Also the concept of a repeat winner in Scott has me shaking, to be the champion of the traffic games by rejecting the very rules each set in place (Boogey and Soulbounds)… It would be incredible.

Joel and Etho… well they’re repeating fate. Last Life again, instead of the others who will repeat 3rd Life. An even more familiar memory. But Joel has been so loyal all season, so loudly devout. When they have to fight, will Joel continue to show servitude, or will his bloodlust get the better of him? Will Etho be able to turn fate and defeat him this time, or will he be forced to relieve it exactly the same? Their fight in Last Life was so satisfying to me too, it would just be a joy to watch them fight no-holds-barred again.

And those who would have to repeat 3rd Life…

Bdubs and Impulse… oh wouldn’t it just be everything? Wouldn’t it just be beautiful? I’ve seen the dash theorizing about Bdubs betrayal all night already, and I’m with you guys, narratively it would be beautiful. A clock couldn’t really save Impulse… Oooh to be doomed to repeat fate, oooh for Bdubs to prove himself a betrayer once again, after all that love. Oooooh for Impulse to either lay down his life and let it happen again, prove his love, or to reject his repeated fate, turn on Bdubs first or harder, not letting himself make the same mistake twice (not the lack of the clock, it was just trusting Bdubs)

Scar and Grian… Scar and Grian.

It seems like this whole game was set up so what happened in 3rd Life could never happen again. So Grian wouldn’t have to beg the ghosts that couldn’t just the both of them win it together? And for that to collapse at the very last moment, to prove that it will always come back to this, that there will always only be one, no matter what the games seem to promise…

It was set up so 3rd Life could never happen again, so Grian wouldn’t have to kill Scar again in the very end, but they’ve been on the rocks the entire game. Grian’s been trying to outrun what fate has given him again, a physical tether to Scar this time, instead of just one of obligation. He’s been trying to outrun it, and now he finally has his out, he’s no longer bound with Scar.

He just has to do it again.

And the result either way, if he repeats it, if he becomes the trafficgames champion, by having to strike down his oldest ally both times… or if he can’t do it again. If instead of Scar hitting at air and letting Grian overtake him, after already offering up his life before the fight, if Grian takes the fall. He lets Scar have this one. His obligation over, his service of a life. They’re even now.