#where was Connie during this scene again

[lover-of-mine]

Okay, last week I made this post and in it, I said that what makes buddie is time, everything that happened to them, and then I corrected myself by saying what actually makes them something you can't fight against was Christopher but that that was a different post. Well, this is that different post.

So buddie. We have 2 main characters whose main screen partners are each other. Something that makes Buck and Eddie different is that Eddie was written in for Buck. Connie leaving left a gap on the show, they lost the dispatcher and Buck lost the thing he was written for, since s1 Buck is very much there to be the love interest, to give Abby something, and the bridge between the firehouse and dispatch. Since the space was surrounding Buck, they filled that space through him. They added Maddie in. But Maddie alone didn't really fill the void, a sibling dynamic doesn't really fill that space because Buck would need a more constant scene partner, so in comes Eddie. Giving him a partner in the field plus adding Maddie in fills that gap. So they gave Buck a best friend.

The thing is, in a universe where Christopher isn't a variable, where Eddie is just some guy Buck's age going through a messy divorce at the same time Buck is coming to terms with Abby abandoning him making them bond, the basis of their relationship is something completely different, and it is something you can fight against if you really want to separate them and give them other endgame love interests. If they are just best friends, you have a lot less at stake, so you can put the space between them a lot easier if necessary. A new love interest would be fighting against one person. That's a fair fight. That's a fight a new person can win if introduced correctly.

But in the universe we have, Christopher is the thing that makes them bond. The foundation of their relationship is Buck stepping up to help Eddie and Eddie deciding that that would warrant Buck his full loyalty and the relationship builds on that. Major movements in their dynamic are marked by Chris (and death, but again, different post). Chris' existence brings them together, with Buck deciding to introduce Eddie to Carla, then the tsunami shows us that there is a deeper trust between them, and then the will reveal intensifies all that and seals them together as an unconventional family (it all makes me wonder about the way they took Chris off the board, why would they do that if they aren't about to use him to snap the last piece into place to get them together since Eddie makes statements through Chris).

All this means that a love interest isn't fighting a best friend, which is something you can make work, a love interest is up against a life partner and child. Since Eddie is a single parent and the person that Buck turns to, they aren't really best friends to the audience, they are partners. And the show made a conscious effort to develop Buck's bond with Christopher outside of his relationship with Eddie. They have been adding that in since Eddie's introduction, the tsunami makes it clear, but season 4 is the one that puts the focus on Buck and Chris by showing us Buck at the house in a casual setting then making Buck a trusted adult Chris runs when upset with Eddie to then making Buck step up to take care of Chris before he knew about the will. They built upon that in s5 and then during s6 they really drove home the point that Buck sees Chris as his and that's when we start getting casually parenting, with the cookies, then the conversation they have in s7. The 3 of them have their individual connections, so for all intents and purposes, they are a family.

The chances of you actually convincing an audience that a new person (especially a new person that only exists as a love interest, since we established on the other post that audiences aren't inclined to care about characters they don't see a lot) is a better fit than an established family unit are null. It will literally not happen.

To give someone new a chance they would need to separate Buck and Eddie, they need to effectively break their partnership while building the fuck out of the new person, but that means making Buck abandon Christopher. And that's the point that would make audiences riot. The whole time Chris has been on the show, Buck was made into someone Christopher could count on like a parent. By s3 Buck and Eddie were having custody battles at a grocery store. And if you need to keep Buck in Chris' life, you can't separate Buck from Eddie. And that's what makes them IT. They can get away with separating Buck and Eddie, they cannot get away with making Buck step out on Christopher. So there's no way around them into someone else. It would never feel as satisfying because they can't really exist in a space that's like "I'm Eddie, this is my husband Buck, that's our kid Christopher, and that's Buck's boyfriend whatever" it gets boring. Especially when the show isn't exactly trying to establish the other love interest as someone worth rooting for, as explained on the other post.

[104cadetlauren]

Levi Hoped That Hange Would Make It Out Alive After Chapter 132

I’ve read a lot of meta analyses about Levi’s pain in Chapter 132, and I agree with most of them. But I want to add something of my own.

I will try to use the manga and the anime to try to be as objective as possible. But be warned that this is head canon territory. The scene could be interpreted differently, depending on the viewer/reader.

Moving on…

Most interpretations say Levi hesitated to look at Hange as she stepped forward to buy time for the Alliance because he couldn’t bear to watch her die. What’s worse he couldn't do anything about it.

In the two panels below, Levi could be seen watching as Hange fights of Colossal Titans. When Hange managed to kill some of the titans, the others cheered for her (you can see Connie lifting his fist). He didn’t join the cheers. He just stood there. Watching.

In that silence, I like to think something flickered to life in him—a sliver of hope. That maybe, somehow, Hange would survive this one too. Maybe that’s why he didn’t look away, why he watched her in silence. Maybe the cheers around him gave him that fragile, fleeting hope.

He only looked away when the plane was about to take off. And unlike the others, he didn’t rush to the window to watch her final stand. From keeping his eyes on her every move to suddenly refusing to look at all. It speaks volumes.

Before she left, Levi never said goodbye. He opted for ‘See you, Hange’, like they would still see each other again, soon.

Maybe... because he was still holding on.

And when he boarded that plane, I think that’s what he told himself. Maybe she’ll make it out alive. She always does.

We can’t blame him. Hange has her way of escaping death.

Let me site two of the major examples of Hange almost brushed her shoulders with death.

During the Uprising Arc, Traute Caven, a member of Kenny’s Anti-Personnel Squad, slammed her into one of the stone pillars beneath the Reiss chapel. It looked brutal. But she survived.

Then again, in the Return to Shiganshina Arc, there was the explosion when Bertholdt transformed. Levi knew Hange’s squad had been close to the blast. He thought she had been caught in it. He feared the worst. And just when he was at his lowest, thinking he had lost both Hange and Erwin on the same day, while fighting off titans and the Beast Titan alone. He was exhausted. That’s why Mikasa was able to pin him down. (Also, I don’t believe he would ever want to hurt her.)

Then, suddenly, Hange appeared, stopping Mikasa from pinning him down any further. He was relieved to see her because like I stated, he thought she was dead, but she survived (due to Moblit’s sacrifice).

In Chapter 132, when she stayed behind, Levi clung to a fragile hope—that maybe, just maybe, this wouldn’t be the end. That it wouldn’t be her final moment. That’s why he didn’t say goodbye, even as the plane lifted off. Even as the others pressed their faces to the windows, tears streaming, desperate to catch a glimpse of Hange, trying to see if she was okay. Levi couldn’t bring himself to look. Even as they wept in despair, he refused to ask if she was alright, because doing so would mean acknowledging the truth. And a small part of him still refused to believe she wouldn’t make it.

He never told anyone. He didn’t need to. Pretending she wasn’t really gone helped him keep going. Even when he was broken. Even when he was barely standing. He held onto that hope. There was no time to grieve. They had to move, to plan, to survive.

But during the Battle of Heaven and Earth, there were moments when you could see it. Moments where he almost gave up. Maybe it was the physical pain. Maybe it was the psychological one. Maybe both. He was tired. He was battered. He was near his limits. And yet he kept fighting. Not for himself but so that the Alliance could still stop Eren. So that they could make it out alive. He held on for them.

After the battle, when everyone reunited with their loved ones, Levi sat alone.

Armin had Mikasa. Jean had Connie. But Levi? He had no one. He was left alone to mourn. The exhaustion of it all is finally creeping in.

And then the mist came.

The veterans appeared, his fallen comrades. Among them, Hange stood in front. Smiling.

In both the anime and manga, her expression was warm.

When Levi saw Hange in the mist, alongside Erwin, Petra, Miche, Nanaba and Moblit, he finally confirmed what he was denying to himself: she was truly gone.

Any sliver of he had of her surviving is now gone. And it broke him.

Seeing Levi’s brokenness, there was a shift in Hange’s expression. Unlike Erwin, Moblit, Petra—Hange looked visibly sad. She was glad that he’s alive, but seeing his brokenness, it also broke her. She didn’t want to die. She didn’t want to leave him, but duty called, and she had no choice.

In this moment, it feels as though their gazes are speaking to each other, communicating a grief too heavy for words. Only in death were they finally able to meet each other’s eyes, to share a silent understanding that transcended everything else.

And only then, upon confirmation that he will never see Hange alive again, he did the final salute, and allowed himself to cry.

In the anime, his lips trembled quivered before the tears fell from his eyes. In the manga panel below, it looks like he’s still trying to control himself from crying, it was all too much, too sudden.

The one person he had hope would make it. The one he couldn’t say goodbye to. She was gone.

Everything he had been holding back, from the plane, to the battle, to the very last step—finally broke. And realizing this… this already devastating scene somehow became even more heartbreaking.

For me, no matter how many times I rewatch it, I still shed a tear.

theDogs playing in the background makes the scene even more painful, more depressing.

Do you believe that we can just kill them all?

Do you believe that we can conquer this?

Can't delete all the mess that I have see

Fall in the fire, but this burns will heal you.

Can we just give Levi a collective hug? He deserves the world.

[maxie-pallet]

Rodger’s World AU | Rodger’s Detective Agency

Rodger is my favorite Dandy’s World character aside from Connie and I had this idea because of a DIFFERENT universe that me and my moots have. I’ve been working on expanding the main Rodger’s World concept because of that. I may post more about it if people are interested!

Character summaries below the cut

Rodger

“The main character of Rodger’s World. Formed the team that is the Gardenview Detectives. It’s all his fault.”

Rodger is extremely different in this AU from his canon counterpart. His in show personality is much like his canon game personality just with a little bit more enthusiasm, but his toon counterpart is significantly different. Instead of insisting on working alone cause of a sense of confidence, he more wants to work alone because he doesn’t want to drag people into things they aren’t ready for. Instead of being stoic and wise, he’s in-your-face enthusiastic and bubbly to an almost concerning degree. The kids who used to visit Gardenview liked the kinder Rodger, but it unsettled the other mains who knew something wasn’t quite right.

After the center closed, Rodger closed himself off from others but insisted he had a plan to make things right.

Brightney

“A main character of Rodger’s World. Her role in the detective’s agency is to answer and react to calls for help, making sure the crew and any one else that’s needed to help for the case is there when they’re needed. Considering herself a secretary of sorts, she also takes brief notes of everything important mentioned during investigations.”

Brightney, in episodes not focusing on a group mystery, was often paired with the more popular Connie (who in the show, haunts Brightney’s library home). As toons, Brightney and Connie are very close (yes this au is still ghostlight propaganda), but Connie can tell how much it bothers Brightney to be less liked as in other toon & main duos, the main was still more popular. She tries to push down these inferior feelings though, instead trying to focus on helping wherever she can in gardenview.

After the center closed and Rodger began to close himself off more, Brightney was the one to try and motivate the other toons again, pulling together a team to try and solve why Gardenview closed, though only really was effective after the more influential Teagan and Glisten stood with her.

Glisten

“A main character of Rodger’s World. His role in the detective’s agency is to help with crime scene investigation. Glisten has an extreme eye for detail. He’s able to scope out any suspicious objects that would be out of place in the scene thanks to his detail oriented mind.”

Glisten, before joining the detective agency, was a dancer and good friends with Boxten, a composer. Boxten often wrote and performed the music that Glisten would dance to. Even after Glisten left to join the detective agency, the two remained friends and Glisten would perform on nights where he was free. However, this would unintentionally pull Boxten into cases he had no involvement in. As toons this connection remained (the two are essentially Sprout and Cosmo).

Glisten tried to be an emotional crutch for Rodger after Gardenview closed but it didn’t take long for him to realize Rodger still had the stubbornness he was written with and no amount of talking was going to change his mind. So, Glisten gave up and joined Brightney’s plan to figure out why Gardenview closed.

Teagan

“A main character of Rodger’s World. Her role in the detective’s agency is to interview people related to the case. As a former member of rich nobility, Teagan is trained in the art of conversing, able to get information from suspects and witnesses through pleasant chats and formalities.”

Teagan keeps a lot of her motherly qualities in this version, though has more moments reminiscent of Toriel from Undertale, where she’s loving, but can be overbearing, and can be very scary at times too. Her and Rodger were written as pseudo love interests within the show, never explicitly saying they were together or having any flirting, just generally giving the impression that they were a couple (to the point many kids and parents were surprised to hear that they weren’t when visiting Gardenview).

This unfortunately has given them a dynamic similar to an awkwardly divorced couple post-shutdown, where Rodger tries to be overly nice and Teagan is more disgusted than anything. She sees Rodger closing himself off as cowardly and his kindness when he does see people as a facade. She wants to help the rest of the toons but less for their sake and more to show that she’s not second to Rodger.

Tisha

“A main character of Rodger’s World. Her role in the detective’s agency is to keep things neat and tidy around the office and during cases! She always keeps track of the evidence found so that nothing gets overlooked! Without her, things would be in complete chaos!”

Tisha is the least popular of the mains. She’s essentially a janitor or maid in show after all, but she doesn’t mind it as much as Brightney. She has her cult following and that’s enough for her. She finds humans to be extremely unpredictable in a way she doesn’t like, making her seem kind of rude to visitors. She tends to attract kids who are neurodivergent since they relate to various parts of her character, whether it be her need for organization or her more closed off and mellow personality compared to the rest of the mains. It’s made her question whether she was written to be neurodivergent herself.

She wasn’t as panicked as everyone else when Gardenview closed, but as time went on she got more anxious about what it meant for them in the long run, not to mention the change in everyone’s behaviors, and she hopped on very fast when Brightney suggested trying to figure out what happened.

Toodles & Spots

“A main character of Rodger’s World. Her role in the detective’s agency is to… well, she doesn’t actually have a role. She’s more like Rodger’s sidekick, since she isn’t quite old enough to do much work herself! Luckily, she has her Imaginary Friend and stuffed animal Spots by her side! Together, they always end up solving the final piece of the puzzle!”

Toodles had a very comedic role in the show as she was often left behind with her babysitters, Scraps and Goob, and had to find increasingly more creative ways to escape them and go to help with the case. Of course none of this could be possible without the help of Spots, her plush dog. As well as being her plush, Spots was also Toodles’ imaginary friend. Spots sort of was like an audience self insert in a way, where somehow he could figure out things about the case others couldn’t, tell Toodles, and Toodles would tell Rodger to help him solve the cases, always being justified with Toodles having a mind like no other.

Toodles was incredibly distressed after Gardenview closed, as it wasn’t only the visitors that stopped appearing, but Toodles lost spots around the same time and couldn’t see him in her imagination without the physical toy there. All the other mains tried to comfort her as best as possible, but what hurt the most was the distance that her father figure, Rodger, was taking from everyone. Though he always reassured her everything would be ok, that they would find spots and everything would go back to normal, Toodles was smart enough to know that wasn’t going to happen.

Shortly after Brightney’s search team is formed, Toodles disappears.

[cosmicjoke]

when comforting someone who's crying, do u think levi would be the type to be like "hey what, no, stop, dont cry" or would he just let them cry their hearts out

Mmm, well, I think people have a tendency to grossly mischaracterize Levi when it comes to this sort of thing, which really confuses me, because if you pay even he most minimal attention to his character, that shouldn't happen. I often see people assume that Levi would shut someone down who's crying and tell them to toughen up or stop acting like a baby, but Levi actually almost always does the opposite. He's incredibly compassionate and understanding toward people having emotional breakdowns.

Take the soldier during the Female Titan arc who endangered their whole unit by going back for Ivan's body, for example. Instead of scolding him and getting angry at him for endangering them, Levi instead gave him Petra's badge and told him it was Ivan's. He saw how much emotional distress that kid was in, and he showed him incredible compassion and tried to help him in any way he could, and at his own expense.

He does the same for Eren multiple times throughout the story. When Eren first joins Levi's squad, and he has that incident where he manifests a Titan arm, and his squad reacts with hostility, in the aftermath, Levi does his best to comfort Eren by explaining his squad's reaction and letting him know it isn't Eren's fault or anything to do with him personally, but more so a result of his squad's learned experience from surviving so many dangerous situations. Levi again comforts Eren after the disastrous encounter with the Female Titan. He sees how upset Eren is, how much he's beating himself up over what happened to Levi's squad, and instead on blaming Eren like Levi could, he instead cracks a joke about Erwin being late, trying to make Eren laugh. And again, during the Uprising arc, when the cavern they're all in is about to come down on their heads, while everyone else is screaming at Eren and chastising him for crying, and telling him to man up, Levi apologizes to Eren for having to ask for his help again. He doesn't yell at Eren for crying, or put him down for being emotional. He understands completely why Eren is upset and he extends him a great show of sympathy and kindness. And afterward, he makes sure to thank Eren for saving them and also gives him the credit for them being able to finally take a step forward in the fight for humanity. And finally we all know of the moment when Hange pushes Eren too hard during the Titan experiments, and it's Levi who notices Eren isn't doing well physically and tells Hange they need to give him a break. The same, again, after the RtS arc, when Eren is losing his cool while locked up in the cell, and Hange is basically harassing him over it, and Levi tells her to just give Eren a break.

Or Levi being the only person to thank Connie for helping them confirm that Titan's are in fact human beings. Levi was aware of how hard that was for Connie, given the way they confirmed it was through him having to identify his mother, and he wanted to make sure Connie was aware that his courage and dedication went noticed and appreciated. Again, Levi was the only one who noticed and took the time to thank him. We see this with Levi multiple times throughout, like when he thanks Nifa for riding all night to deliver Erwin's message to him and his squad, or when he takes the time to apologize to Hange over her squad getting killed during the encounter with Kenny. Or when he understands Mikasa's emotional outburst at him during the Female Titan arc. Mikasa is downright unkind and incredibly disrespectful toward Levi during that scene, but Levi understands she's upset because Eren has been taken and might be dead. He doesn't yell at her or try to defend himself, he just tells her how they're going to try and get Eren back, and helps her. This after Levi has just had to observe the dead bodies of his own squad. And yet another example is when Hange is laying into Shadis for his admission about his own weakness and his failure to live up to his role as Commander of the SC, and again, it's Levi who tells Hange to give him a break, showing compassion toward Shadis for his struggles. Of course there's the pivotal moment of Levi's great compassion during the RtS arc with Erwin, and allowing Erwin to rest and showing him incredible respect and forgiveness for Erwin's very human foibles and weakness.

If Levi sees that someone's emotional distress is real and warranted, he's always going to show compassion and understanding. That's something so many people miss about his character, all because he has a gruff manner and way of speaking, and it's such a shame people make this mistake with him, because it's really what defines Levi. He's such a good person. He isn't mean or cruel or dismissive of people's feelings. He's literally the opposite. He's more aware and empathetic toward people's feelings than anyone.

So, to answer your question, Levi is definitely the sort of person that will allow someone to cry their heart out if he really believes they're in pain or otherwise distressed in some way. I don't even think that's up for debate. There's so many examples of just that in the story itself.

[tcustodisart]

What are some cute moments that occur throughout the different acts that aren’t necessarily in the game but live in your head rent free?

Oh, this one is going to be a long answer, because there's a lot of squatters in my head and there's a lot to be unleashed. Let's start with this doodle with the boys playing lanceboard at camp and continue under the cut. Lots of cringe and brainrot incoming, so brace yourself.

Act 1:

Connie is constantly bickering with Astarion over him stealing his journal. Gale suggest to cast arcane lock on it, but Connie knows it won't stop that gremlin from reading it so why bother.

This sad pile of rugs is where I imagine Connie sleeps in Act 1. Additional Astarion line: "Damn darling, you live like this?"

During the first romance scene Connie tells Shart about his family, about how he and his brother know the city inside and out, about his parents and the tavern they run, about the trap incident. It's the most he talked to someone who wasn't his family or his crow in years. He wishes that night would never end.

Connie sends letters to his family via Faust, he stops after entering Underdark.

Act 2:

I mentioned it before that Connie is not taking the Shadow Curse very well. He misses the sun, misses the grass, he's unable to contact his family, Shart has distanced herself from him. Karlach notices it and tries to cheer him up. They end up having long talks almost every night. That's the moment their friendship evolves from just friends to besties.

When Connie finds the second warding bond ring, he wishes he could give the other one to Shadowheart, but finds the moment inappropriate. He ends up giving her the ring at the beginning of Act 3.

Act 3:

I have a lot of stuff for this act.

This is inspired by one of Jaheira's lines: "'The Cub and the Crow'- sounds like a cautionary tale. As it probably should." Connie draws her a mock up cover for a kids book. Jaheira sticks it to the traveling chest (I mostly store food there, so to me traveling chest = fridge).

Connie goes through a serious breakdown at the start of this act (after a companion is abducted), he ends up crying and saying that for the first time he doesn't believe they're going to make it, that he'll never hug his mom, never hear his brother sing again, won't be able to tell his step dad that he saw Darkmaw the Wicked. He's being comforted first by Jaheira and then by the rest of his party.

His favorite armor gets damaged one time, he's very upset about it. But the next morning he finds it magically repaired (Astarion fixed it, from the start of Act 3 they become besties).

This wip that I'm very slowly working on happens during act 3. Connie makes some flower crowns and talks about how his mom taught him to do that. I'm not going to say more, because I really want to finish that comic.

Connie has a deal with Popper that he'll pay him double for every night orchid he finds (I actually did that in game, I bantered him more money for the flower than he asked for, I love that little guy so much).

This one is more funny than cute but when Connecticut Tav was younger and still lived in Baldur's Gate he used to visit Sharess's Caress pretty regularly because it was the best way to practice drawing people. He really enjoyed talking with the workers there, he eventually convinced them that maybe creating an union isn't such a bad idea. He ended up being banned from entering the brothel because of that. So when the party approaches it to meet Voss, he's very nervous that the owner will remember him (she does). There's a dialogue in my head but it would work better with some visuals, so maybe one time I'm going to draw it.

In my head, the cottage they end up living in is Connie's old hunting hut. So after the conversation with Shadowheart about her plans for after defeating the brain, he suggest that it would be the perfect place to go. He then draws the house to show her how it looks like, tells her that it's surrounded by a forest, there's a lake nearby, a small stable that can be turned into a barn if needed, and that he's not sure about the quality of the soil, but he did grow some herbs there, so maybe it's going to be good enough to grow flowers.

At the end of the game Connie decides to stay in Baldur's Gate for a while to help his family fix their tavern (which was heavily damaged). He tells Shart to go the house I mentioned before, because he wants her to start her new life as soon as possible + because it would be better for her parents. He stealthily puts his journal in her stuff with a note attached to it saying that he finished it this morning and she can read it if she wants to. He also gives her Faust so she can write him letters whenever she wants to. After 2 tendays he arrives at the cottage with some gifts (night orchid bulbs and a pamphlet about how to take care of them, there was supposed to be another gift, but he wasn't able to find it just yet, but that's for another story).

Epilogue party (because I'm that insane):

It's been sitting in my wips for more than two months, so I don't know if I'll be able to finish it. But during the party Connie and Shadowheart take 10 minute brake to visit the place from the first romance scene. They have a very similar conversation like before, but their roles are reversed now - It's Connie asking questions about Shart's current life. "Tell me something about yourself, but no tadpoles, weird artifacts, petty goddesses. Something about you."

[aruanimess]

On Erwin, Armin and... Annie

Okay, so I've given up on writing this meta in a concise manner so I'm just gonna say it: Erwin is meant to be a parallel character to Annie as well as Armin.

These three characters exist in a triangular conversation with each other, especially during the Female Titan arc. Now, the commonalities between Armin and Erwin have been discussed quite exhaustively in various metas and in canon itself, so I’m going to focus more on the Annie-Erwin side of the argument.

The thought first occurred to me while reading Opening the Gate, the chapter with the gear inspection scene. When asked for advice on which military branch to choose Annie responds with a question: would you be willing to die on command? Connie, the one who was asking for advice, doesn’t understand why he’s being asked that. Armin, however, does; this is what’s at stake if one joins the Survey Corps, you don’t get a choice anymore, your life is tied to the cause. 

Later, this line is repeated by none other than Erwin himself. 

Both characters say this line independently, but they both use it to describe the same concept. This is meant to showcase their inherent pragmatism, and also their dedication to their mission. We don’t know it when we first encounter this in the story, but Annie’s choice of the Military Police is not motivated by self-interest at all. Much like Erwin, much like Armin later in this chapter, she’s committed to something larger than herself. 

Then we have the Titan Forest chapter, where Armin delivers his famous speech, “A person who cannot sacrifice anything, cannot change anything.”

This quote refers specifically to the ability to abandon your humanity when the situation calls for it. This speech is about Erwin yes, but it is also about Annie. The panel even cuts to her face as the final lines are being spoken:

At first, I thought this was meant to say that Annie was one of those people unable to make a difference. She couldn’t leave her home behind, so she wasn’t willing to make a sacrifice, therefore she couldn’t enact change.

But no! Because later we get this:

Annie was willing to sacrifice her life again and again and again. Even in the end of this arc, she chooses to trap herself in a prison of her own creation to protect her mission and keep her titan away from the Paradisians’ reach (we all know what happened to Bertolt). She’s making this move in order to protect her comrades, choosing not to betray their identities, and to give them a chance to escape. 

In Midnight Sun, Armin and Erwin giving up their lives for the cause is obviously paralleled. I’d argue that Annie’s fate complements and foreshadows their own, highlighting the extreme lengths all three are willing to go to achieve their goals. 

Annie is the third vertex in this triangle of sacrifice, pragmatism and inhumanity. 

[aemiron-main]

The Vanishing of Argyle (Byers?): Where Is Argyle?

So, I know Eduardo said that he hasn’t gotten a call for Argyle for ST5. And while I won’t be surprised if they call him in later, esp with how ST tends to be bizarrely secretive towards their cast (see: not even telling Raphael Luce that he was playing 001, and at least one of the girls who were cast as Alice in TFS didn’t get told they were cast until like a month before the previews’ opening night iirc), this has made me realize just how weird the last time we see Argyle in the show is.

So, this is the last time we see Argyle:

He never shows up again after that shot of him in the forest.

But they DID keep showing us his pizza van- right in front of Stinson’s car, as you can see in that last screenshot.

But that’s not the first time we see Stinson’s car during this scene. The first time we see Stinson’s car is when it rolls up behind Argyle’s van:

Is it just me, or does anyone else find it weird as fuck that we literally never see Argyle again right after a government vehicle rolls up to drop Hopper and Joyce off???

And again, it’s so weird how they repeatedly go out of their way to show Argyle’s pizza van in the same shot as Stinson’s car:

Its suspicious. I don’t fully know what’s going on here, but for Argyle to disappear into the woods (see: s1 Will getting “lost in the woods” & argyle’s alice in wonderland imagery vs alice disappearing into wonderland) after a government agent shows up?? Stinson seems nice enough, but I sure as hell don’t fully trust her, especially not with her Connie Frazier vibes/parallels. There’s just something weird about the whole thing.

[lemotmo]

I don't know your anon blog but if yuo/anon can help me with this puzzle I'd appreciate it. Why did the network tell TM to remove the direct references to Abby that naturally come about with Buck moving into Eddie's as he said in one of his post ep interviews? If they were fully on board with buddie, surely they wouldn't care and would encourage it rather than making him change the script. His line about it being confusing to them was clearly a lie. They knew the importance of it and refused to let it pass through the scripting approval process. Because it's things like this where I'm still not 100% convinced there's full support behind buddie at the networks. Press is press, it brings in views. They really won't care if they go canon or not.

Well Nonny, I've read that specific part of the interview again and again and I admit that I still don't quite understand it. I can't wrap my head around it. It might be the 'non native speaker' in me that might be misinterpreting that part of the interview or it could be the fact that I have the viral respiratory infection from hell right now that has me coughing up my lungs and that has my sinuses clogged up completely. It could be either really. 🤷‍♀️

But I don't think it has anything to do with ABC not wanting Buddie. They have been behind it from day one, that's obvious. It'll bring on new viewers and that means more money. So it has to be something else.

I'll see if I can ask Ali about it to see what her thoughts are, because I am also intrigued here. 🤔

EDIT - Okay Nonny, I asked Ali for her thoughts on this conundrum. Here they are:

That interview is a mess, lol. First of all his Connie Britton nonsense confused lots of people making them believe they had killed Abby off of the show when what he was saying was years ago she starred on a show called Nashville and her character on that show died, so he attempted to joke that they should cast Connie on 911 Nashville as that characters long lost twin sister. It made no sense.

As for the reference to Abby being cut, I think it had more to do with how the line would come across in that particular moment. They weren't going to be able to have Buck bring her up because that would have been way too obvious about where Buck's head is at, and he's not quite there yet, show wise. So that means Eddie would have had to bring her up and the only way to really do that would be for him to say it during their argument, so something like 'I'm not Abby' which frankly would have been cruel and taken away from everything else that scene was saying. An Abby reference there would have felt forced and out of place. They already had one line like that in the episode, the 'out you' line from Buck to Eddie. Having another one in that scene would kind of stopped the flow of that scene. And Buck wasn't supposed to be angry or upset during that moment. That moment was about letting Eddie go. Comparing anything to Abby in that scene would have been out of place. Does that make sense?

Buck didn't do what he did because of Abby. He loves Eddie enough to understand that letting him go was what Eddie needed from him in that moment. Abby didn't belong in that moment. That moment was about Buck and Eddie.

At least that's what I think. As always with Tim interviews, the truth is somewhere in the middle of what he actually says.

This does make sense to me. Very interesting. Thank you Ali!

[vividiana]

Questions from Fanfic/Author Ask Game!!

5, 9, 13, 15, 23, 27, and 30!!!

thank you so much Emma, I love to yap about my writing 😭❤️ (the questions are from this post if anyone would like to participate!)

5. What’s something you learned while researching a fic? there is a bunch, from perfumery basics to knife-throwing techniques, but the most recent one was how to eat escargot and also why people smell wine corks before drinking 😅 (this was for a chapter of my post-canon fic where Eve and Astarion go to a very fancy restaurant)

9. How did you get into writing fanfiction? 'twas November of 2023. I was towards the end of my redeemed Durge playthrough, I got to the finale of Durge's personal quest, and I just thought that the dialogue with the companions afterwards (especially romanced Astarion) was kind of lackluster/anticlimactic. so I had an idea for a scene that took place when they got back to the Elfsong Tavern that night, and how Astarion finally broke and let down the facade and went on this rambling monologue for how utterly scared he was for Durge that night and how it all shook him up. that has become the first chapter of my first ever fic "the blood on my hands (scares me to death.)" I just wanted to give my Durge some more closure, and then I became obsessed with her and Astarion’s dynamic. and now here we are, 14 months and 100k words later, and I have a whole series written about them ❤️

13. Do you have an 'official' creative writing background such as a degree or previous experience publishing? not really. I went to a liberal arts school in the US, so I was able to take a bunch of different classes outside my major (sociology,) and I ended up taking two creative writing courses: an intro class and then a class on creative non-fiction. I also worked as a writing tutor for two years during college and helped people with their writing, but that was mostly essays and research papers. that’s the extent of my "official" writing experience.

15. Does anyone you know in real life know you write fanfiction? oh yes, I’m very vocal about it 😅 I’ve had a couple friends read my fics. also, my good friend beta reads everything and helps me brainstorm the stories. she has never played the game, but she’s an avid reader of fantasy romance books, so she is super on board. she’s the reason I decided to post my fics in the first place and she’s kept me going through high and lows (love you, Connie!)

also, my parents know about it 😅 I shared parts of my fics with them, but despite their interest, they couldn’t get through it because of the language barrier (I’m Polish.) they’re both very supportive, though, and keep asking me how it’s going. my dad says I should publish it and make some money off of it and I’ve tried to explain to him that that’s not how it works, but he is very insistent 😂

23. What’s a story you’d love to write but haven’t even started yet? I would love to write a fic from Lae'zel's pov. after Astarion she’s my favorite bg3 character. but I feel like before I do that, I should play the game as her, just to get more insight on her character. I have no idea when that will happen because after 700 hours I can’t stand to start act 1 yet again. but it will happen one day!! 27. Are any of your stories inspired by personal experience? I’ve talked a bit about this in some previous asks, but basically a lot of what inspires my fluffy comfort post-canon fic are my past experiences in relationships—especially the disappointments and unmet needs and in general how I wish things had gone differently ❤️ I'm also a very anxious and overthinking person and I've poured a lot of that into Eve's character. 30. Have you noticed your style change over time? I have only been writing fic for a year or so, but when I compare my first fic to what I’m writing now, I feel like I have more of a grasp on Eve and Astarion’s voices and the dialogue comes to me more naturally. I also feel like I write shorter and more dynamic paragraphs and the writing is overall wittier and more dialogue-focused, though that might just be the change in subject—I mostly write post-canon fluff now and I started with act 3 angst, so as we have moved away from The Horrors, the tone shifted along with the story.

[sadiecoocoo]

Attack on Titan Fanfiction - The Sorrows We Drown Chp. 1

Summary - Two years after the Rumbling, the alliance has been going back and forth between Paradis and the rest of the world. On a week off, disaster strikes. People start getting sick, rumored to have caught a plague from the dead bodies still yet to be cleaned on the edges of the Rumbling's reach.

a few days later, titans destroy the new city of Liberio.

Relationships - Reiner Braun/Jean Kirstein, Reiner Braun & Connie Springer, Jean Kirstein & Connie Springer, Reiner Braun & Jean Kirstein & Connie Springer, Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart

Tags - Whump, Hurt/Comfort, Psychological Horror, Horror, Blood and Injury, Blood and Gore, Reiner Braun Needs a Hug, Reiner Braun Has Issues, sad Reiner Braun, Protective Jean Kirstein, Soft Jean Kirstein, Connie Springer is a Little Shit, could be reiner/connie/jean, still debating that, Roadtrip, but the violent running from the law kind, Post-Rumbling (Shingeki no Kyojin), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Post-Canon, Minor Armin Arlert/Annie Leonhart

Word Count - 2,583

Read on AO3

Notes: This could be seen as Connie/Reiner/Jean but I haven't explicitly tagged that and so far haven't written any intimate scenes between all three of them. honestly Connie is just an oblivious third-wheel during the apocalypse. the title is from the song, Writing on the Wall, by Will Stetson. it's meant to symbolize how Reiner gives himself up to protect others as a way to try and atone, and if you've listened to the Alhaitham version of the song, how Jean wants to help him. this is gonna have a bit of gore, but this chp. is mainly build up, and I do have a few chapters written already so they'll be a few weekly uploads before I catch up to where I've left off (if I don't finish it by then lol) anyways, please enjoy!

Armin hummed along to the slow, yet upbeat tune coming from the radio as he helped make dinner. It wasn’t anything fancy. Really, he hadn’t had much better than the rations from his scout days, even after the world started to heal from the Rumbling.

It had been about two years since then. In that time, Armin and the rest of the Alliance had been going back and forth between Paradis and the rest of the world for peace negotiations.

 Overall, Eldians were being treated better too. There was still some resentment, bigotry didn’t go away that easily, but it was fading as time went on.

Armin and Annie had moved in together recently too. Though both of them had their own duties to take care of, they still spent plenty of time together. Sometimes he was still amazed that he and Annie, of all people, were able to work out a healthy relationship. He cherished it greatly.

The others were all doing well too. Connie, Jean, and Reiner were all living together. They visited often when there weren’t any politics to worry about. Pieck had stayed with her father, but still went with them all on diplomatic missions when needed. 

Levi was healing well, though he was still bound to a wheelchair. The former captain had been staying with Gabi and Falco’s families in another town. He sent the bare minimum of letters, but they all knew he cared.

Mikasa was the only one Armin wasn’t entirely sure about how she was doing. Last time they saw each other, she had grown out her hair again, and seemed to have permanently given up being a soldier. She still had a gloomy aura around, and he doubted that would go away any time soon.

As Armin was cutting up some potatoes, there was a loud crash outside. He jumped, and accidentally cut his finger in the process. The knife clattered to the floor in his moment of panic.

“Shit,” he muttered, grabbing a cloth and placing it on his bleeding finger. He leant over to pick up the knife, then placed it in the sink to wash later.

Armin went over to the window after the crash was followed by yelling. He let out a sigh, hoping it was just another incident of road rage. There hadn’t been cars that survived the rumbling, and the roads were mangled still, but some people managed to afford one of the vehicles left.

Peering out the window, he discovered that it was indeed a small car accident. He couldn’t tell if anyone was hurt from his view, and debated for a moment going outside to check on things. He lived on the second-story of an apartment complex, so he at least got a decent bird's-eye-view.

There was muffled yelling as one man got out of his car and started towards the other. Armin was starting to get the feeling that he might be needed to break up a fight, given how the man seemed to stalk towards the car with his arms waving wildly.

He stepped away and headed towards the door. Armin left the bloodied cloth on the counter, first checking to see if his finger had stopped bleeding. It wasn’t hurting and had already scabbed over, so he figured it would be fine. He guessed he hadn’t cut too deep, despite the amount of blood at first.

Grabbing his coat, he swung it around his shoulders and walked briskly through the halls. It was a dingy place, really, with stains on the walls and wet patches on the carpet from leaking pipes. A majority of the rooms were the same story, though Armin and Annie had managed to get fairly lucky.

After rushing down the steps and heading through the small lobby, Armin opened the front door to the outside world. For a moment the change in lighting made him squint, but he quickly adjusted. It was a nice day, despite the small car crash currently in front of his apartment building.

“Hey, is everyone okay?” He yelled over to the man.

Armin jogged over to the other vehicle. The first man was standing in front of the open door, his shoulders strangely slumped. Armin stopped behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“Sir, are you alright-” He stopped as soon as he saw what was happening in the driver’s seat of the vehicle.

Armin urgently pushed the first man out the way, and he backed up obediently. The driver, another man, looked to be in his late twenties to early thirties, was sat convulsing. His mouth was agape; a line of drool went down to his chin, and his eyes were rolled so far back Armin wondered if perhaps he could see his own brain.

“Get a doctor!” Armin yelled urgently, turning towards the bystanders in the streets. “Someone go get a doctor now!” He repeated.

Someone was crying in the backseat, though he hadn’t noticed it before. He rushed to the back of the car and started to pry the door open.

In the backseat there was a little girl bawling her eyes out. Armin tried to shush her gently, to reassure her that everything would be okay. He reached towards her with as calming a smile as he could muster, and she quickly leapt into his embrace. This girl couldn’t have been older than seven.

“Shh, it’ll be okay. We’ll get your Daddy some help, sweetie.” He said, rubbing her back gently. He pulled her out of the vehicle and set her on the ground, where, thankfully, a kind lady knelt down to help look after her.

As he extracted the girl from his arm, his eyes landed on his cut finger. The scab was completely gone. It had only been a few minutes since he had even been cut in the first place. If he really looked close, he thought he could see wisps of something rising from his finger.

Steam.

Doctors are not certain of the cause of the strange new affliction, but hospitals are full of its victims! It is unsure if the sickness is contagious or not, but it is recommended that people stay in their own homes for the time being. If you are experiencing symptoms of great fatigue, chills, nausea, dizziness, or seizures, do not wait to get help!

Jean put down the paper. It landed on the table with a light slap, causing Reiner and Connie to both lift their heads up expectantly. 

They were just trying to have dinner. A nice meal of Butternut Squash Pasta, something only recently shown to Jean and Connie. Sometimes he wondered how Reiner could stand the transition to such shitty food, then he remembered that to Reiner this was probably a meal saved for holidays.

“Something the matter?” Reiner asked with an arched brow. The blonde had recently shaved his beard, having decided after too much teasing from both Connie and Jean that it really did make him look too old for his age.

Without answering, Jean slid the paper over to Reiner. Connie leaned over to read it as well. Jean could only put his head in his hands as he waited for their own reactions.

“There had been a few cases of plague where the cleanup wasn’t as thorough.” Reiner muttered after a moment, almost as though he were speaking to himself.

“Are seizures really symptoms for a plague, though?” Connie asked, his nose scrunched worriedly. Reiner only shrugged.

“How could this have popped up so suddenly? And so quickly?” Jean asked, though he knew none of them would have the answer. Reiner looked at him as if he were sorry he wasn’t all knowing, and Jean suppressed an eye roll. 

He was so tired of Reiner looking sorry all the time. At least now the brute smiled more often.

Jean was starting to feel like he had truly gotten to know Reiner, not the Scout Reiner, or Warrior Reiner, or Titan Reiner, just Reiner. It was honestly refreshing.

 He was a lot more sheepish than anyone would have guessed back in training. When he wasn’t moping around feeling guilty, he was surprisingly sweet too, and most of the time it looked like he didn’t even put any effort into it.

Jean was glad that the three of them had decided to move in together. There was no way he’d be able to survive Connie’s annoying dumbass without someone to suffer through it with, and he would prefer to not live alone.

“Either way,” Reiner started, heaving out a sigh, “There isn’t much we can do about it other than try not to catch it.” He said. The blonde had started pushing his food around on his fork mindlessly.

“Right,” Connie agreed uneasily. Jean felt bad just brushing it off like that, but they all knew, logically, plagues weren’t something that veteran soldiers and peace ambassadors could fix.

The rest of their dinner went on in relative silence. Eventually Connie started to talk about what all he saw at the ever-growing market. It seemed like every day a new part of Liberio was being rebuilt. It felt like it was in such little time too.

Once they’re all done eating, Jean takes it upon himself to clean up the kitchen. They had all fallen into a strange routine, somehow wordlessly. Connie would go to the market and get whatever they needed; sometimes they’d talk about it beforehand and sometimes the numbskull would just grab whatever for them to experiment with. Reiner would cook most often, he had a strange talent for it, despite his lack of experience. Finally, Jean would clean everything up. Of course, none of this was set in stone, it just happened naturally half the time.

Once, Reiner had gotten sick with a light fever. Both Connie and Jean were paranoid that they’d catch it, so they decided to try making something simple. It may or may not have ended with small fire, and them being banned from the kitchen unless they were preparing war rations.

Either way, they all helped around. It was a fair solution, and still gave them all plenty of time to do their own thing later, even if they had gotten a ton of paperwork to do.

Jean had picked up art again in his free time. Connie really just did whatever he was in the mood for, which was usually either annoying one of them or getting them to play some card game. He had noticed that Reiner read a lot, and occasionally saw him writing down a few things in a small journal.

Once, Jean had peeked over the blonde’s shoulder. The journal had been filled with neat cursive handwriting in what he assumed to be the Marleyan written language. He could only make out every few words, the written language was still a pain to memorize.

“Do you think we should check on Peick?” Jean asked over his shoulder as he worked on scrubbing up an annoying piece of gunk off one of the plates. “Y’know since her dad is already sick?” he added.

“Nah, don’t wanna risk giving it to them.” Reiner answered. “I’ll send a quick letter, though.” he decided. 

Jean hummed to himself and went back to work.

Several hours later, long past midnight, Jean had woken up in the night with a parched throat that he couldn’t ignore. He dragged himself out of bed and slunk through the short hallway and into the kitchen again.

He poured himself a small glass of water and chugged it. He finished with a soft sigh. Jena filled the cup again and took it with him back to his bedroom.

As he was passing the bathroom, however, he heard the telltale sound of someone dry heaving. He groaned internally at the obstacle between him and going back to sleep, but knocked lightly on the door anyway.

“Hey, you okay?” He asked through the door. His voice sounded a bit deeper from sleep.

There was a sputtering cough behind the door, and Jean fought the urge to just barge in. at the lack of whinging, Jean guessed Reiner was the unfortunate soul to be getting sick.

“‘M fine!” the blonde finally answered. Though, by the way his voice shook, and the declaration was quickly followed by more coughing and dry heaving, Jean sincerely doubted that he was fine.

“You decent?” Jean asked. He was soon answered by a very pathetic sounding affirmation.

Jean quietly opened the door to see the sad sight of Reiner leaning over the toilet and fighting to not throw up. Jean shut the door behind him as he moved to the sink and turned on the water. He threw a washcloth in the sink as it ran.

After the water felt somewhat warm, he wrung out the washcloth. Jean moved to kneel down next to Riener.

He placed the warm washcloth on Reiner’s nape, trying to soothe the nausea. He rubbed Reiner’s back as well, tracing calming circles and smoothing out wrinkles in the fabric.

“Food bad, or are you getting sick?” He asked after a minute or two of relative silence.

“‘M hoping it’s the food.” Reiner answered, turning his head up ever so slightly to look at Jean. The bags under his eyes seemed impossibly darker, and Jean felt a pang of worry tighten in his chest.

His still sleep-addled mind finally remembered the damn paper. If Reiner had somehow caught the plague going around, they were all screwed. The blonde had explained that his titan would mostly keep him from being sick along with healing injuries, so his immune system was shot. Jean didn’t want to know what this new plague looked like on someone who could barely handle more than a cold.

“Yeah,” Jean mumbled in response. He continued to rub Reiner’s back, and at some point the brute had leaned into his half embrace. His head was resting on Jean’s shoulder now.

“Think you can go back to bed?” Jean asked softly. Reiner hummed a quiet affirmative in response.

It wasn’t long before Jean had helped Reiner up and gotten him to his room. Reiner staggered over to his bed and plopped face first into his pillow. He let out a groan as he reached his hand back and flung the blanket over himself haphazardly.

Jean could help the breathy laugh that escaped him. Reiner never complained about anything until he got sick, then the entire world had to know of his suffering.

Jean moved to readjust the blanket, pulling it over Reiner’s shoulders. The younger man then sat down on the edge of the bed and patted Reiner’s head playfully. The blonde leaned ever so slightly into the touch.

“If you still feel bad in the morning we should get you to a doctor.” Jean suggested softly. He knew Reiner wasn’t particularly fond of hospitals, but if there was the possibility of him having caught the plague, he would have to ignore his discomfort.

“Whatever.” Reiner mumbled into his pillow, almost quiet enough for Jean to not hear it. He lifted his hand and gave the smallest of waves, “see you in the morning.”

Jean let out another soft laugh as he patted Reiner’s head again and got up. He closed the door to Reiner’s room softly before heading back to his own room.

As he laid down on his bed, he couldn’t ignore the knot of worry worming itself in his gut.

End Notes: yay I set up some exposition!!! and gave you guys a soft moment between Reiner and Jean and also showed them living a nice and happy life… it'll TOTALLY last anyways, gore in the next chapter <3

lmk if anyone would like to be tagged in the next chapter, I'd be happy to do it!

Chp. 2

[my-mt-heart]

So from the sides (that were removed) and the way Daryl and Isabel were looking at each other last season it appears they were setting them up. Now they have them planning to go back to America together 🙄🙄 Why add these things if caryl are getting together. It’s Connie all over again!!

Well, Nicotero hates Caryl from what I know and he talked about how much he loved the "glances" between Daryl and Isabelle at NYCC last year, so my guess is he's the one pushing that "romance" the hardest even if AMC would never approve of that being canon and probably pushing a platonic friendship between Caryl the hardest too. He was the one in charge of production during the WGA strike, so what that did to the story in S2, I'm not sure.

Zabel comes from broadcast TV where the formula is always to tease everything and deliver nothing. Obviously from these sides and some of the scenes in S1, he set up the possibility of something between Daryl and Isabelle while at the same time hinting at something existing between Daryl and Carol (the pigeon scene, the parallels to the kid in 105 wanting to get back to his "girl"). It ties into the idea of Daryl being "torn" between two families, which to me, makes it obvious Zabel doesn't understand who Daryl is.

Melissa has a much different understanding of Carol's and Daryl's story than those two, which I thought was pretty apparent over the weekend. I think it's a matter of how the contrasting visions manage to come together in the show, so that's scary. The trailer was definitely not Melissa/Carol/Caryl friendly....

(I'll give my thoughts on the trailer later)

[seeingivy]

my lovely ronnie, have you watched Bridgerton and if so, what are your fancasts in the show?

i love you and i can’t wait for the next method acting chapter 💘💘

my LOVELY nonnie,

I rambled again so read break

have I watched bridgerton?? OH IVE WATCHED BRIDGERTON. that being said, thank you for all the love on the story (spoiler alert: you will not have to wait too long for the next chapter...hehe)

bridgerton season one

the duke and daphne, oh the icons that you are

they give me more of a classic, romatic love story vibes so i'm going to give this one to jeankasa

mikasa is slaying the house down as the diamond of the season, esp that one scene where she drops the fan and makes the prince pick it up

jean is too good at playing an angsty little emo boy, esp in that one scene where he gets to pretend to duel with anthony

bridgerton season two

kate sharma and anthony bridgerton, oh the superstars that YOU are

this one is going straight to our beloveds, sukuna and y/n

sukuna is TOO good at playing anthony as an asshole in season one, and far better at playing him as the sensitive sweet soul that he is in season two

half of the banter between them is literally not even in the script, they're actually just fighting with each other in period clothes

eren's eyes are closed during the sex scenes and he is infinitely thankful that you and sukuna were NOT the duke and daphne bc lord have mercy that one wildest dreams scene was SO OUT OF POCKET JFDKLJF

bridgerton season three

colin and pen? you mean...sasha and sweet baby boy nico

(this will make more sense after the chapter, trust)

but I feel like sasha and nico can relate to that dynamic so hard of being best friends first, sasha feeling inadequate because maybe she's not treated the same as other girls but nico always loves her (maybe if he isn't ENTIRELY aware of it)

sasha would so be lady whistledown too + connie is her accomplice that helps her!!!

bridgerton prequel

queen charlotte and george!!!

obviously going to the loves of our lives, sweet levihan. yup.

notable mentions

connie is benedict. I take no further criticism actually that one scene of him being high at that dinner is connie coded (no shade to connie, our pookie is sober now but I just mean that he's a very unserious king like benedict)

gabi hyacinth then what??? then what??

[darklcy]

𝐀𝐥𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐜 : 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟑 | 𝐏𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐲

𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭 | 𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 : armin arlert x reader 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭 : 2.3k words 𝐭𝐚𝐠𝐬: slow burn, bad language, reader experiences low self esteem, negative habits, skipping meals, lack of sleep. 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: soldier life is catching up, but almost drowns you in the process. fortunately, you don't have to face it alone. 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 | 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭

Keith Shadis stood at the forest entrance patiently, waiting for the ambush of cadets to line up and commence maneuver gear training. On his mark, he released the trainees free to the skies and into the towers of trees, trailing behind on his own set of gear to inspect, like a hawk tracking its prey. 

Today was dedicated solely to drills and Titan-target practices, as well as a test of endurance and stamina. Lectures upon lectures on maneuver gear safety always repeated themselves before take off, as rules must be obeyed to prevent any measly accidents. 

But all to be focused on right now was losing your sense of reality to the wind and the trees. The satisfactory sensation of feeling weightless to the wires that pulled your body from trunk to trunk. So light and fresh like a leaf floating down to the forest floor. Funny, this machine taught you to kill, and yet it worked so beautifully. You’d never get tired from this.

In the distant right, Sasha’s cackles echoed along the branches, meshing together with Connie’s and Jean’s hollers. Up ahead, the infamous Shiganshina trio grouped together like a pack of wolves. Somewhere far off you could pick up the occasional yell of a stray trainee who’d crash landed. It was during these trying times where trainees who weren’t capable fell out and returned to their homes. 

As you sharply swung along a corner, your sights locked on the familiar wooden cut-out of a fifteen-meter Titan, the nape of the neck clean of wounds. You readied your swords from their sheaths with a pump of gas, boosting acceleration. Arms raised in the air, you prepared yourself. 

A shout escaped your throat as the swords sliced down on the neck, carving a precise cut on the makeshift Titan. The wood tumbled to the dirt below. A perfect kill..!

You almost laughed as you abandoned the Titan to pursue the hunt. Not too far away from the cutout, a zip of wires grew louder from behind. A certain roommate beamed at you as she neared.

“Hey [Y/N]! Mind if I tag along?”

You cocked your head. 

“You just want to latch onto my kills!”

Mina dramatically gasped.

“Can’t we just hangout like the friends we are?”

You pressed on the gas trigger and propelled forward.

“Nope, I don’t trust you.”

Mina huffed at the playful tone in your voice, soon gliding away to resume her hunt elsewhere. 

A little while after the brief encounter, another Titan stood in the distance. The size was a bit shorter this time, standing at around ten-meters, and once again, unscathed nape. 

Seems like luck was at your beckoning today. Gripping onto the swords, you launched your hook grabbles and braced yourself to make the cut. 

SHIIING

…Only for the kill to be stolen.

“Hahaha sorry [Y/N]! Couldn’t resist!”

The hooks released from the cutout and into the tree trunk beside you, allowing you to softly swing as you watched Mina fly away, a trail of steam dissipating behind her. A scoff of disbelief was all you could muster.

What the fuck? 

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅──╮

End results noted a total of seven Titan kills. 

A comparable score, considering the hunting was done solo. 

“We managed to get ten kills! Not to mention, when we’d split up, we covered more ground. A success, I’d say.”

Connie bragged while Sasha enthusiastically ate her porridge, lifting a spoon to emphasize his point. Jean made a scene to stick his nose into the conversation.

“Allow me to add that I got a higher score on technique, so if you need any maneuver gear lessons, I’m your guy.”

Connie swatted at his chest.

“Shut up, you wish.”

You heard Mina giggle beside you. Her elbow gently nudged your side.

“Did you hear how much Mikasa got? Thirteen.”

Thirteen..?

“Holy shit, really?”

Connie barged in from across the table.

“Yes! She’s amazing.”

Sasha planted her palms onto the wood to lean in. 

“I saw her in action! She flies so fast, it’s like you can barely see her coming.”

Jean’s face warmed noticeably. “She’s incredible.”

The group unanimously agreed. Mikasa denied the laws of nature and succeeded in winning at any obstacle thrown at her. Some theorized she wasn’t human. 

You threw a glance her way. Such straight posture, no hint of life beside the occasional blink, calmly eating her meal like she was at the King’s tea time. Where every cadet appeared exhausted, her skin radiated without any bruises, sweat, and dirt. Maybe she was non-human. 

A frown weighs the corners of your mouth when you turn back to your dinner.

 Seven gets lost in thirteen.

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅──╮

WHAM

Your spine smacked the rough clay as you tumbled ridiculously, legs falling over your head when it came to a stop. Annie was a ferocious partner, not breaking a single worry in this pitiful battle you were putting up. Throwing a leg over your waist, pinning you to the Earth, she jabs the wooden knife into your chest.

“I win.”

You blinked a few times. All you could respond with was a weak groan. 

The girl doesn’t hold out a hand to help you get up. Instead, she saunters off to find a new opponent, one more worthy of a fight, you presumed. Rolling to your stomach, the tension in your thighs feel like it could snap. You shakily stand back up.

“She’s a tough one.”

Reiner towers over your shoulder with hands on his hips. You notice him watching the said girl with an unreadable expression. He claps a palm on your shoulder. It almost knocks you over.

“You okay?”

You nod. “..M’ fine.”

“Don’t be too harsh on yourself. I can see it happening already.”

He points with his chin towards Annie again. 

“She wins against everyone. She’s just strong like that.”

Strong.

“Huh..”

You feel him give your back two heavy pats. 

“You got this.”

He stomps away after that. Watching him leave, that same frown comes back. 

..

“[Y/N], did you see what happened today? I was training with Connie, and we came up with this new fighting technique! I swear it’s like we can read each other’s minds or something.”

All you could hear was noise, loud, blatant noise. Sasha plopped your bread in her mouth. You didn’t even notice.

“Also, last night I had the strangest dream. I was back home in the forest, and I was hunting game with my father like the ol’ days, but then this huge bear came out of nowhere…and then…”

The Dauper girl’s story faded through your ears into the files of your brain. Dinner had gone cold by now, your silverware limp in your hold. The bowl of vegetable stew encaptured your gaze in a trance, and if you looked away you were sure to be cursed.

“Hey, you alright?”

Mina gently caressed your shoulder, breaking you free from hypnosis.

“Yeah, yeah..I’m fine.”

Your words dripped with uncertainty. Both tablemates frowned, but nonetheless carried on with their meal. Spooning up a bit of soup, you grimaced when you swallowed. Cold..

╭── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅──╮

Seven knocks down to two or three in the passing weeks. The downturn of lips becomes more permanent than temporary. More bruises and wounds make home underneath your uniform. And somehow at the end of the day, the exhaustion feels more intense than the day before. 

A cadet’s routine was never advertised as glamorous, but everywhere you looked, no one else appeared to be drowning. The break in the water was close, just an arm’s length away if you stretched hard enough. The waves swarmed your body with a strong turbulence, but you kept pushing and pushing, fingertips raised above to graze the surface.

 And for a moment you can breathe, a deep inhale relieving your lungs from the strain of water…but it’s in that bliss when the water controls you again, pulling you deeper into an abyss.

Shadis imprinted the hairs on your neck to forever remain stiff, on edge and paranoid for more lecturing and criticism. In the midst of your drowning, did the man see the effort? Was this war amongst yourself just in your head, an illusion, or did he perceive the strength you were desperately wanting? Craving?

The mystery is frustrating. 

….

The empty room draws a deep frown. The bunks usually covered in strewn blankets, harness straps and roommates gossiping were vacant and darkened with the night. Your eyebrows furrow, a puff of air flowing out your nose. The room felt wrong without the presence of comrades. Stepping out of the cabin, the door closes with a creak. 

The wooden steps became the next best solace as you perched yourself at the top, arms wrapping around pulled up knees, chin resting on top. The mess hall served as a beacon of light compared to the isolated bubble you resided in. Through the warm toned windows you could see the cadets enjoying themselves with the same vegetable stew and loaf of bread that was prepared each night. 

…Maybe this time alone was a blessing in disguise. Perhaps that’s what you needed. A break from all the noise. 

Raising your hands to rest on your head, your eyelids drooped until they closed, weariness grabbing the reins. A distant cry of crickets join you in the dark, their chorus bellowing beyond the pitch black forest. Behind shut doors, the moon glistens her rays on your skin like a comforting embrace, welcoming you to raise your head and let her caress your face. 

It’s tempting. Her touch is soft and gentle, approaching you carefully as if not to spook you. 

“...[Y/N]..?”

It threatens the emotion in your chest. Her spotlight paints the reminder of your solidarity on the wooden steps. And yet she’s pushing you, cheering you on from her place in the sky. With that, she briefly leaves, the clouds swooping in to conceal her light.

Your face rolls over on your knees, cheek now smushed against sleeves. 

“[Y/N]?”

…?

Has she come back?

Your eyes meet blue as you lift your head. 

…The blonde stood uncomfortably a few feet away from the porch. His fingers pulled at his sleeves before his arms decided to cross behind his back. His eyes, so large and worried, blinked at you in rhythms; twice, once, twice, once.

You blinked back.

“...Hey, Armin.”

He glances to the beacon of light.

“Aren’t you heading to dinner..?”

Your hand falls to dangle by your shoe.

“..Not tonight. I’m not hungry.”

He pops his knuckles at his sides. 

“You sure? Skipping meals isn’t good for you..”

“I’m sure.”

His frown deepens. 

You’ve nestled back into your home already, staring upon the shadows filtering throughout the camp. 

..His footsteps trudge over to the steps, and you face him when he sits beside you, body position matching yours. Armin lost his stare into the forest, fingers tapping sporadically from where they laid over his biceps. He doesn’t mind that you observe him. 

You followed him into the trees and rested there, the wind and crickets harmonizing in a beautiful symphony. 

Armin was a calm in the storm type of person. His best friend seemed to speak for three, never afraid to holler his frustrations, but on the other side of the spectrum lay this boy, the polite boy who loved to read. He’d apologize for existing, apologize for taking up space, before he ever sat down to introduce himself. 

“You’re easy to watch.”

It took everything in you to not choke. Armin instantly panicked.

“I-In training, I mean..! When we’re doing drills? Combat drills?”

His words puddled out in a hurry, the skin of his cheeks blaring bright red. 

"Pfft.."

“I just mean, you’re impressive! Or, inspiring? I uh, I’m not good at that stuff, so-,”

Your sudden boisterous laughter made him freeze. Armin couldn’t see your face anymore now that it was ducked over your thighs, shoulders trembling with cackles. Your arms caressed your aching stomach as if it could cease the attack, but it just kept advancing. 

“Uh…”

Finally rising off your thighs, you swooped in deep breaths to calm your heartbeat, a couple giggles escaping here and there.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you laugh..”

You waved him off with a hand. 

“No, no, don’t be. I liked it.”

His face was a never ending tomato. Now it looked like he was sweating a bit. 

“But, what you were saying…you watch me?”

Armin smacked both palms to his face. “I was trying to compliment your skills, but I apologize that it came off as stalkerish.”

Another wave of laughs pass through your smile. “It didn’t, it just caught me really off guard.”

He reveals his blue eyes to you again. “That’s good, I guess..”

Your expression slightly dims when you turn away from him.

“Well, thank you.”

Armin’s lips part, but then close.

Wafting through the crevices, the moon rejoins you on the steps, this time encasing Armin in her light. By now, the mess hall was dismissed, sending cadets off to bed to end the day and rest for tomorrow. 

“Guess dinner’s over..”

His comment reawakes your reality, that tomorrow brings new hardships and restless nights. It makes you wince.  

“I’m gonna..head off to bed.”

He twists to you while you stand. He’s caught in perplexity, you can see it clearly, but his mouth doesn’t move.

“...Goodnight, Armin.”

Armin perks up.

“For sure..! See you tomorrow.”

He rises to his feet and moves down the steps in a swift motion, his blonde hair vanishing the further he walks away.

His departure has you glued to the entrance door, hand wrapped around the handle but still staring off the direction Armin went. Your brows worry themselves on your forehead, unsure to be confused, sad, or drowsy.

Hauling the door open, you decide the latter. 

[onigiri-dorkk]

It's very interesting that it's 2023 and there are still people who say that Mikasa hates Levi/vice versa.

They based that on the few scenes in the first few episodes where Mikasa is angry at Levi beating up Eren in the courthouse.

One, Levi has never once hated Mikasa. He had many opportunities to be angry with her as a captain, but he has never done that. He could have punished her easily just for how she looked at him in the courthouse -- much more for her insubordination multiple times when she was a young soldier.

But then what happens?

When Levi gets injured due to Mikasa not trusting him, acting on her own and not listening to his orders during battle, and him having to save her life, the Scouts lose their captain and best soldier in a crucial time. Mikasa feels the huge weight of that on her shoulders -- she is very aware of how important Levi is to the Scouts and she makes a conscious decision in Season 2 to step up to fill his shoes, to make up for her mistake while he recovers. She now realizes that her selfish actions to protect/be with Eren come with consequences, and it takes her out of her tunnel vision for Eren. She's at this point where she realizes she should have trusted Levi more.

In the Uprising Arc is where we really see Mikasa's perspective to Levi/leadership really change, which also reflects her inward growth. She's placed in Levi Squad. When ordered to fight and kill Kenny and team, all the Levi Squad doubt Levi's orders and think he's cruel. Who's the first one who steps up and listens to Levi's orders immediately? Mikasa. She's the first one to say yes, and she doesn't even question it -- she goes in for the kill.

When they gather and reflect about their first kills, Jean, Sasha, Connie and even Armin are still apprehensive about what they were ordered to do. It is Mikasa who tells them that they need to make the choice to trust Captain Levi, and that they should trust him.

In the same arc, Levi is shown many times as being able to calm Mikasa down and stop her from acting impulsively, and she listens more. In battle, she is his literal right-hand soldier and enters the battlefield/crystal caverns with him first and by his side. Mikasa is to Levi what Caven is to Kenny. They are each others' most trusted and skilled and respected soldiers -- Levi can rely on Mikasa to live and carry out everything, and vice versa.

At this point, clearly they don't hate each other. If anything, they've gotten so much closer with a quiet respect and bond, and this happened in the absence of Eren.

Ackerbrawl sounds violent but they both held back from hurting each other -- even though they both had reasons to fight for that serum, they didn't actually. And it's easy to conclude it's because even just as comrades, they are important to each other. She served some time behind bars with Eren, but it was only because that was a formality -- Levi had mentioned when they were up on the walls that he was fine. Again, he had reason to be pissed at her, but he never took that route. He's very gracious with Mikasa.

Fast forward. Marley shit. That's four more years of Mikasa being Levi's right-hand. Do y'all REALLY think she would still hate him at this point? Really? Mikasa is now a high-ranking military soldier and has now been Levi's right-hand for more than five years. Then Eren disappears and leaves them. Mikasa never stopped being Levi's right-hand -- she must've been devastated when Eren disappeared, and in my opinion the only ones who can keep her in check while she deals with her emotions are Levi and Armin. 100% they got even closer.

They battle in Liberio together; Levi entrusts Mikasa to battle with Eren, and when things go awry with the Jaw, Levi swoops in and saves everything -- he was keeping watch on things. When they get back on the airship, Levi kicks Eren and reprimands him again -- Mikasa doesn't do anything because she trusts Levi more than she feels the need to protect Eren at that moment.

I don't even have to describe the rest. They go into battle of heaven and earth -- Levi and Mikasa are the final ones left. They save each other. They support each other. They aide each other. And they successfully killed Eren and saved what was left of the world together. Mikasa goes from distrusting Levi and his leadership, to trusting him the most. Levi goes from distrusting Mikasa's decisions, to trusting her to make the right decisions on her own now for him to support.

AND they survived together. AND they're shown to reunite again after war.

Now how in the flying fuck do people, in 2023, still say that Levi and Mikasa hate each other? Because I am not seeing it. The only reason people say that is to try to discredit shippers but the reality is there is sooooo much depth there.

Those are some fucking good crumbs, I gotta say!!

Long live Rivamika, bitches

[mesillusionssousecstasy]

TSITP 2x08 - "Love Triangle" : Review

First let me tell you it was a JELLY FEST episode. I didn't know we could have even a better kiss than last week episode. Jeremiah was right, once he has kissed Belly, he really cannot stop.

They are a perfect couple. This is what a healthy, genuine and happy relationship should be! Apart they are miserable, but together they shine. I know I should stay realistic knowing the books' ending, but I cannot kill the little hope that I have in me after seeing so many clues for their endgame (which I'm going to do on another post), even the songs were synch. And I think at this point, we had more kisses between Belly and Jeremiah in the show than in the books (1-2)? Also, let's not forget that Belly made out first with Jeremiah then Conrad, then Jeremiah again, as in the book it's first Conrad then Jeremiah, then Conrad. Does it mean something? Who knows? But for all the Jelly ship, this episode was a little victory, because let's face it, this could have been the last episode of the series and I wouldn't mind (and the contrary).

As for the rest : - I didn't where Steven and Connie's sudden friendship came from? (Apparently the actors shared a commun room this time together). - The scene in the car was weird as fuck and the complet opposite of episode 7 where everyone was smiling and laughing. - Conrad was a dangerous jackass in the car, trying to disturb someone who was literally driving, especially on a motorway. - As a "first date" Taylor and Steven were so damn bad to each other, but their conversation about team Jelly and team Bonrad was so good especially Taylor argument, "as her brother how can you vouch for someone whom has literally broken your little sister's heart?" - Just not believable that Jeremiah, her best friend do not know Belly's favourite snack! Come one! - Was expecting Jeremiah to join Belly either under the shower or next to her in bed at some point. - Didn't like that we had to see the three letters with each of their name on it (Belly, Jeremiah and Conrad), as a foreshadowing of the books. - I was expecting to see Cleveland once more before the end, what happened? - I'm definitively a Team Staylor's shipper, but I didn't understand why Steven hasn't stayed for her girlfriend camp. - I just learned that this entire season took place during one week only and the fourth of July is almost there. - I'm pretty sure that Belly was confident about her choice the moment she has put the "Flinch" sweater, then brushing her teeth. - Did you notice that she was wearing a tote bag with a whale as a reference to Cam Cameroun (going on the boat)?

ps: Is Taylor Swift realising a new album soon that's why the show is doing such a promotion for her songs? Otherwise, I really don't see it. Let's not forget that she is train wrack

[arcadianambivalence]

World on Fire Season 2, Episode 1

Well folks, it’s finally back. After the first season aired in Britain in 2019 and in the U.S. in early 2020, the world has been…going through things. Between lockdowns, travel restrictions, scheduling conflicts, and all the behind-the-scenes difficulty related to these things, World on Fire finally returns for season 2, albeit somewhat different from creator Peter Bowker’s original plans released shortly after season 1. While the cast and crew have worked tirelessly to smooth over the gaps of characters whose actors are not returning, their absences are as obvious as the gaping hole in the Bennett home.

And yet, while you can see where new members of the cast are stepping into the footprints of those who are not returning for the season, the first episode of season 2 breathes a fresh sense of urgency and humanity to the plot. More importantly, it brings new opportunities to the remaining characters while raising the stakes.

The first go is the most obvious: Sean Bean. In true Sean Bean fashion, the Bennett father does not make it to season 2, leaving his children (and granddaughter) to maneuver their new daily perils without him. All jokes about our premature relief that he survived last season aside, the reminder that Douglas would have died reliving his worst experiences from the First World War is particularly distressing. 

When his son Tom arrives back in Manchester, having made it out of Occupied France by way of Fascist Spain, he comes home to a crater where the Bennett home once stood. He learns of Douglas’s death from Lois, who is now staying with Connie and baby Vera. The two begin arguing to cover up their grief, just as they frequently did last season. Anger and blame are more familiar companions than remorse.

Also arriving after an offscreen escape from Occupied Poland are Kasia and Harry, emotionally picking up where we left them last season. Still the romantic, Harry wants to reunite Kasia with her brothers and give her a place to stay at Robina’s. Although he will have to leave soon to a posting in Egypt, he wants to ensure Kasia’s safety (and love) before being separated once again. 

Meanwhile, Kasia is showing signs of Complex PTSD after nearly a year of one traumatic event after another. Between her mother being murdered by a German soldier, her friend and fellow Resistance fighter Thomasz being arrested and killed, her vengeful and soul-crushing routine of luring German soldiers to their deaths, and her own near-brushes with death are taking their toll. 

When introduced to any established character, she reacts with distance and resignation. Her mother-in-law is rude, off putting, and xenophobic? Okay. Her little brother Jan acts more like a young British gentleman than a Polish boy? Sure. Her husband had an affair with a local girl who has given birth to a baby? That’s a thing that happened. But one thing she cannot resign herself to is the blatant hatred some of the local Brits have for “The Other.” Meeting Grzegorz and Jan in a teashop, Kasia gets into a scuffle with a local man after he makes several xenophobic comments towards the siblings. The potential legal action, Kasia’s nightmares, attempts to speak Polish with Jan, and mere existence has bristled Robina’s feathers. It seems Robina has suffered a backslide in the months between the end of season 1 and the beginning of season 2.

Speaking of backslides, Lois is also not doing well. Not only has she lost her father during an air raid, but her pilot fiance has perished as well. While Connie tries to get Lois to talk about it during their work in the ARP, as an air warden and ambulance driver respectively, Lois has returned to her knee-jerk reaction: deflect, say something sharp, and engage in risky behavior. This time, she puts more than her own health at risk, though. As an ambulance driver, it is her duty to take injured survivors from bomb attacks to a hospital or medical station. While she does this, Lois takes unnecessary risks, driving fast and recklessly through rubble-strewn streets or beside collapsing buildings. Seeing Harry for the first time since her last conversation, where Harry made plans to have Lois inherit some of his money if he were to die parachuting into Poland, Lois is unfortunately still into him, if the sweeping camera zoom on her glowing face is any indication. 

The two secretly meet in a canteen, where Lois urges Harry to make things right with Kasia, something she never could with Douglas. While this would sound like a helpful piece of hard-won wisdom, Lois’s desire to know that Harry will be okay, coupled with the risks taken on the job and the danger of her line of work…sounds like Lois is resigning herself to dying in an air raid. Indeed, when responding to a bombed flat one night, Lois helps the last survivor (a grandfather) out then runs back into the building to grab the man’s prosthetic teeth. Eyes drawn to a massive hole in the burning ceiling and a dogfight in the skies overhead, she steadies herself and lets the house collapse around her.

But this is World on Fire, where she’s one of the main characters (and based off Peter Bowker’s grandmother) so of course she’s going to live!

Less certain, though, are the lives of two new characters, the pilots David and someone with the callsign “Shortbread,” whose name I cannot remember. David is a brash, womanizing, and jovial pilot taking the place of Randy or Vernon with such confidence and presence, you’d think he’d been here all along. Grzegorz, working as a crew member at the local base (not sure what his specific job is yet), is a friend. While I’d love to see a subplot with these two bonding over their shared interests and feelings of being outsiders (with Grzegorz as a refugee and David as a Jewish man surrounded by Gentiles who aren’t so gentle), the preview for season 2 seems to imply a different path for these guys. (A shame, as I want to see Grzegorz happy after all he’s been through! Can’t somebody be happy?)

But having Grzegorz on the air base, representing the significant role that Polish pilots and crew members had on the defense of Britain during the Blitz is what I wanted most for this character, so Bowker, I thank you for this.

. . .

One aspect of history I did not expect this show (or any show) to actually cover is another disturbing aspect of Nazi Germany’s eugenics programs, the Lebensborn program. A new character, Marga, is proud to be chosen for her “duty” to the nation as a young and healthy woman meeting the beauty standards of the day. This means more than pageantry and propaganda, though, she’s already gotten plenty of that in school and as a member of the League of German Girls. No, what it really means (and what everyone else seems to understand but not explicitly tell her) is that she is going to be forced to have a child with a complete stranger who has also been chosen for his apparent health and attractiveness. Or, to quote her concerned teacher, the government will rape this teenaged girl.

Yes, you read that correctly. Yes, this did happen. There were also many children taken from occupied countries and made to live in Germany with German families, and not as an act of kindness for poor abandoned orphan refugees.

So…this is going to be a rough storyline. It makes the flimsy Mancurian love triangle look even more out of place with the tone and content of this show.

(Can you tell I’m not a fan? Can you tell I think Lois and Harry are at their least interesting together? Can you tell I think that a show called World on Fire should focus on bringing together different characters of different backgrounds and different countries?)

. . .

Speaking of bringing together characters from different backgrounds and different countries, there is one more storyline introduced this season that will have plenty of hair-raising action scenes. The North African front, or more specifically, the battlefields along the border of Egypt and Libya. We follow a familiar character, Stan (Harry’s sergeant), and a new one, Rajib, head of a Sapper unit for the British Indian Army. The Sapper unit is responsible for locating, defusing, and removing landmines left by the retreating German army.

Keeping with the show’s focus on overlooked points of view and experiences during the Second World War, the character of Rajib brings the viewer to a world of the unfamiliar and terrifying. From the (green screen) sandstorms to hidden explosives to recognition of the importance of the Commonwealth forces, Rajib is another welcome addition. A brilliant engineer who leads by example and looks at everything as if it may be the last thing he sees (and in this line of work, honestly could be), Rajib and his storyline are a reminder of the unacknowledged risks and sacrifices made to get the Allied forces one step closer to the Axis powers in the North African campaign. 

Even Stan, who let’s remember casually spouted off some racist and ableist language last season, seems moved by the bravery of the Sapper unit and the total lack of protection given to them by their (white) British commanders. Is this a character arc I see before me? I guess we’ll just have to keep watching…

. . .

There are two other conspicuously absent storylines: the American journalist Nancy and the band of French medical workers in Occupied France. While the episode 2 preview promises an answer for questions about one, it's still unclear what will be revealed about the other.