#who's ready to get UNHINGED??? bc i sure am!!!

[dindjarindiaries]

Senator's Shadow - Chapter 3

summary: Things get interesting when Hunter is assigned to escort the senator during the welcome banquet on Eirus.

pairing: hunter (the bad batch) x fem!reader

rating: mature (18+)

tags: bodyguard romance, forbidden love, fluff & angst, emotional & physical hurt/comfort, canon-typical violence, injuries & blood, trauma, eventual/mild smut

word count: 7.610k

chapter 2 ⟸ series masterlist ⟹ chapter 4

chapter 3 ⟹

Hunter was ready for what awaited him when the double doors opened up. Rather than retreating to their rooms, his squad was standing there to greet him, their helmets removed as every single one of them wore a smug grin. Hunter heaved a sigh and gestured with his head to the suite behind him.

“We’re taking shifts on watch.” He looked around the group with severity. “With potential assassination attempts in order, it’s vital that we do so while the senator rests.”

“I bet you’ll want the first shift,” Crosshair teased, tucking a toothpick between his smiling teeth, “won't you, Sarge?”

Hunter raised an eyebrow, unimpressed, even as the other boys snickered. “We’re going according to our usual schedule, which means that Tech has first watch.”

“That is acceptable,” Tech was quick to respond. “I was already planning on staying awake to run an analysis on the senator’s diagram of Eirus as soon as possible.”

Echo gave him an incredulous look. “How did you get that data already?”

Tech blinked at him. “I scanned it while she had it on display. How else would I have gotten it?”

Echo raised his hand defensively. Hunter resisted a sigh and went on. “That’s fine, Tech, but make sure you can still keep an eye out. This is different from keeping watch in hyperspace.” He gestured to their surroundings. “There are some real, dangerous threats after the senator. We need to stay vigilant.”

Crosshair huffed and lowered his voice towards Wrecker, but kept it loud enough for Hunter to hear. “Protective.”

Hunter’s head snapped towards him. “Yeah, and I expect that from the rest of you, too.” He recalled the desperation in your eyes during your private conversation, causing his chest to tighten underneath his armor as he went on. “The senator chose us for this mission because she trusts us. Her fate, and that of this planet, rests with us just as much as it does with her.”

That seemed to straighten the shoulders of the squad. Even Tech finally got his nose out of his datapad as he looked upon Hunter. A small smile of satisfaction took over his lips.

“That being said, we all need rest. Tech, keep an eye on the chrono so you can get your rest in, too.” Hunter’s gaze found Wrecker before he nodded in his direction. “You too, Wrecker.”

Tech nodded while Wrecker offered a salute. “You’ve got it, Sarge!”

Hunter smiled at him and stepped away from the group, his silent signal for them to disband. Each member of the squad, aside from Tech, headed for their rooms—though Hunter still felt a presence behind him as he approached his own door. He turned and saw Echo trailing him, a concerned knit wrinkled in his brow.

“Hunter,” Echo began in a low tone. He tossed a quick look over his shoulder to make sure that no one was watching them. “Is there actually something going on between you and the senator?”

Hunter fought off the initial rush of panic and managed a genuine chuckle. “No, Echo. That’s all in the squad’s heads.”

Echo’s brow shot up. “Are you sure about that?”

Hunter turned to fully face Echo. “Come on, I barely know her.” He gestured with his eyes to the squad’s doors. “The jokes are getting you all carried away.”

Echo raised the corner of his mouth in a smile and nodded. “That’s fair.” He steadied himself with a breath. “All right. Sorry for that. I just…” he chuckled to himself, “you know how I feel about the rules.”

“I do.” Hunter clasped his hand on Echo’s armored shoulder. “Even if we still break them.” He nodded. “We’ve worked with politicians before, Echo. This time won’t be any different.”

Echo returned his nod. Hunter was pleased to see the light of concern fading from his eyes. He had to give it to Echo; the ARC trooper was never afraid to keep him and the others in line.

“Now get some rest.” Hunter jerked his head towards Echo’s room. “I have a feeling we’ve got a big day ahead of us.”

Echo huffed. “I agree.” He then obeyed Hunter’s gentle order, turning away from him to head towards his room. Hunter watched him for a moment before he turned back to his door and opened it.

Inside was quite a generous setup, certainly larger than any room Hunter had ever called his own. With a large bed, refresher, and plenty of storage space for his gear, Hunter had no reason to protest the senator’s kind arrangements for him and his squad. But the silence in the absence of his squad was about to do him more harm than good, especially with Echo’s worries floating around in his head.

Had he lied to Echo about you?

Hunter set down his helmet and ran his forefinger and thumb along the bridge of his nose. It had only been a matter of hours since he met the senator, and he was still low on sleep, despite the rest he had tried to get on the Marauder. Of course seeing someone like you would cause him to be so confused about his own feelings, especially when you were so desperate for his help.

But there was another truth to face, because Hunter observed faces and gazes as well as he did electromagnetic frequencies. That wasn’t the only desperation you had shown. Leadership roles were extremely isolating, and that was something Hunter himself was still coming to terms with. To see someone else struggling with it, and to find some kind of genuine understanding…

Well, it was nice. No matter what it meant, or where it would lead to.

That wasn’t Hunter’s concern. He was already thinking ahead to the welcome banquet tomorrow, which would be a prime opportunity for potential assassins or attackers to strike. It reignited his worry for you during the night, though he could at least trust his squad enough to take care of any threats that might arise while you slept.

Hunter stripped himself of his armor and kept it safely tucked away with his gear, though he kept his blaster and his knife in close reach. He did the same with a comlink, all of which stayed on his bedside table. He considered the temperature of the room before taking off the top half of his blacks as well. Hunter then settled into the bed, willing himself to have a less fitful sleep than before.

Thankfully, his wish was granted. Hunter was actually well-rested when it was his turn to take over the watch, the comlink’s chiming waking him from his deep slumber. He was quick in freshening up and re-dressing himself in his gear and attributed it to his desire for Crosshair to get his necessary rest.

As soon as Hunter stepped out into the corridor, Crosshair was ready to greet him outside your doors. “Morning, Sarge,” he greeted in his usual cool tone, though there was also an evident inflection of amusement. “You look excited for a person who’s about to stand outside some doors for a while.”

Hunter gave his helmeted head a tilt and resisted the urge to sigh. “Get some rest while you still can, Crosshair.”

Crosshair snickered even as he obeyed Hunter’s order. Hunter watched him as he entered his room, and after releasing a heavy breath, he tuned his enhanced senses into all of his surroundings. The first hour or so wouldn’t be so exhausting, but it would take a toll if he had to go on much longer than that.

And he would, because he knew what was at stake. Sleep was your most vulnerable state, and he was the one in charge of making sure no one would take advantage of that.

Hunter tried to keep his mind quiet focused, but the task proved difficult, especially as it wandered to the day’s events. He wasn’t sure what you would have in mind for the welcome banquet, but he was already beginning to put his own pieces in place. They would have to have eyes everywhere, and he would have to get Tech to look up more on Lii Alvani and his former allies so they could recognize any one of them if they tried to work their way inside.

It wasn’t unusual for Hunter to plan ahead like this. As the squad’s leader, it’s what he often had to do. What was different this time was the fierce panic that came with the idea of his plan not working. He would have to leave the calculation of their odds to Tech, if only for his sake.

With his focus diverged in two important directions, Hunter lost track of time until he heard the doors open behind him. He nearly jumped at the sound that roared against his eardrums, thanks to him still being so attuned to his senses. Hunter blinked a few times behind his visor to re-center himself as you stepped through the doors.

You were in a simpler dress than yesterday, no doubt favoring something more comfortable before the formality of the day would begin. It was a simple green, this time with gold embellishments rather than silver. It still framed you in a way that brought a flush to Hunter’s face beneath his helmet before he could stop it, especially as he caught your gaze that glowed at him.

“Good morning, Sergeant,” you greeted, bowing your head at him.

“Senator.” Hunter returned the gesture and tightened one of his fists at his side.

“I hope you haven’t been out here too long.” Your brow furrowed in genuine concern before you gave him a once-over.

“Not at all.” Hunter didn’t bother checking the chrono to see how long it had actually been. “I’m the last rotation in our watch shifts.”

You smiled again at that. “Good.” You held his gaze through his visor for a few distinct heartbeats before exhaling a soft breath. “There’s a lot to attend to today, so I hope you were all able to get some proper rest.”

The corners of Hunter’s mouth began to rise at that. “We were. In fact…” He paused, raising two of his fingers to the side of his helmet and activating the squad’s main comm. “Rise and shine, boys. The senator’s ready to get the day started.”

Almost immediately, the door to Tech’s room slid open, and he walked through with his nose practically buried in his datapad. There was still a slight limp as he made his way over, but Hunter was pleased to see that it had improved even more from the day before. Tech only looked up when he was closer to you and Hunter.

“Good morning, Senator,” he greeted with a nod. “I’m glad to see you are awake and ready. I have been going over the schematics you created, and there are quite a few interesting threads I have pulled together.”

Hunter caught the impressed light in your gaze as you returned Tech’s nod, but he still rolled his eyes at Tech underneath his visor. “Maybe we should let the senator enjoy her morning before we start bombarding her with plans and data, Tech.”

“That’s quite all right, Sergeant.” You lifted your hand to Hunter’s armored shoulder, an eyebrow raised and a small smile pulling at your lips. “I’m just as eager to get down to business.” Your gaze lingered on his visor before you dropped your hand and returned your attention to Tech.

Hunter tilted his helmet, unable to stop looking at you. There had been another light in your eyes he couldn’t quite interpret, and as someone who had mastered the art of studying others, he was itching to identify it.

The sounds of other doors opening brought Hunter out of his brief yet focused reverie. Echo and Wrecker were the next ones to emerge, with Wrecker entering the scene as enthusiastically as ever. “That was the best sleep I’ve ever gotten!” He nodded at the senator with genuine gratitude. “Thank you for the nice rooms, Senator.”

You beamed at Wrecker as you returned the gesture. “I’m very glad to hear that, Wrecker. It’s truly my pleasure.”

Crosshair was the last to join the group, and as he made his way over, Hunter spoke up on behalf of everyone. “Well, Senator, it looks like we’re all ready to report for duty.” He raised his helmet in your direction. “What’s our first order?”

You smiled at him before looking around the group. “Every good soldier needs some nourishment before really starting the day, right?”

Wrecker let out a victorious chuckle and shouldered Echo, who tripped a step at the sudden movement. “I like the sound of that!”

You softly laughed, the sound a beautiful melody to Hunter’s sensitive ears, and began to lead the way ahead. “Then let’s feast.”

Wrecker’s eyes doubled in size. “Feast?”

“Save some for the rest of us, Wrecker,” Crosshair joked as he fell in step alongside his brother.

“There will be plenty for everyone,” you assured them, your voice as warm as the smile you continued to wear.

Hunter couldn’t stop the smile of his own that was growing underneath his helmet. You were treating his squad like they were the high-class diplomats, certainly much better than anyone else had—even those who had created them. There had to be a way to repay you for such kindness.

Succeeding in the mission would no doubt be the most efficient way of doing so. That only made Hunter dwell more on the plans he had been crafting in his mind for hours.

After enjoying the heartiest meal any one of them had no doubt ever had, the group reconvened back at the senator’s suite, where your personal guard waited outside your doors. The squad was gathered around your holotable much like the night before as you brought up new projections, this time the faces of various diplomats and fighters. Each of the squad’s helmets was tucked underneath their arms as they viewed the holoprojections up close.

“These are the main faces we need to be on the lookout for,” the senator instructed them all. “This goes beyond tonight’s banquet. These individuals have long since become leaders of these attacks and are no doubt conspiring directly with Alvani.”

Hunter studied them faithfully, committing each of their images to memory. He silently thanked Tech for making his own copies of the data to reinforce his initial observations.

“Unfortunately…” you let out a defeated breath that created an empathetic ache in Hunter’s chest, “many of them are people who once fought alongside me.”

“How’s that possible?” Hunter couldn’t keep the question to himself.

“They see the Republic as another version of the same evil we defeated.” Your shoulders tensed as you carried on. “They don’t understand that it’s the Separatists who plan on bringing such oppression back to Eirus.”

“Yeah, that seems to be their favorite kind of deception,” Echo muttered.

Hunter raised his brow at you. “They really believe that when you’re the one who’s representing them?”

You gave your head an aimless shake. “Apparently, they do.” Your gaze met Hunter’s and it wasn’t hard to decipher all the darkness hidden within it. He wondered how long you had been holding it all in. “They were the same ones who elected me as senator and sent me away to Coruscant, but… the distance must’ve been enough for them to forget what I once fought for.”

You paused for a moment and shrugged. The gesture did nothing to erase the pain that Hunter had already seen within you.

“Or maybe I made a mistake agreeing to my appointment in the first place.”

“It’s not your fault.” Hunter’s reassurance was out before he could hold it in, as was the hand he lifted to your shoulder. The burning gaze of his squad, however, urged him to lower his hand a few heartbeats later. “The reason why this war’s still going on is because of how good the Separatists are at winning people over.”

“And because of their impressive droid army,” Tech chimed in. “Which only seems to be growing even more advanced as the war goes on.”

Hunter turned his head towards Tech and circled his jaw. “Thanks for that, Tech.”

“We can take ‘em, Senator,” Wrecker offered you his own comfort. “Don’t even worry about it.”

Hunter’s senses picked up on the deep breath you had finally taken, with an exhale that was much lighter than before. “I appreciate it, Wrecker, but it’s more challenging than that.” You gave the squad a serious look. “I don’t want any of them hurt.”

Crosshair took his toothpick between his fingers. “What’s your definition of ‘hurt?’”

“No critical injuries, which means no live rounds.” You gave Hunter a quick look. “I’m sure your sergeant already told you about that.”

“Oh, yeah, you did, Sarge.” Wrecker took his blaster and toggled something on it. “Stun only. Right?”

“Right.” You nodded towards the holographic images. “Not only would injuries sway people away from our cause, but I also still care for them.”

“Even when they’re trying to kill you?” Crosshair clearly couldn’t help himself from asking.

You remained firm as you responded. “Even then.”

Silence sat amongst the group for a long moment. Hunter watched you switch the projection over to a single large room before you continued.

“As for tonight’s banquet, this is the ballroom where it’s taking place.” You pointed at the red circles decorated along the edges of the hologram. “These are all the exit points. People can come in and get out through these doors and windows.”

Hunter fit the diagram within the plans he had already started crafting. “How’s your faith in the security detail?”

You huffed. “Not great.” You flashed him a smile. “That’s why I’m bringing your squad along.”

Hunter let out a low chuckle. At least you were finding some humor in all of this.

“Here’s what I need from all of you.” You pointed at one of the red dots. “Wrecker, I need you to stand post at this entrance. The more we can deter right away, the better.”

Wrecker nodded, an eager light dancing in his gaze as he did so.

“Tech, I need you to monitor the comms. I have no doubt that you can tap into their channel if they’re actively using it.”

“That would be a well-founded conclusion,” Tech agreed.

“Echo, I need you to guard the power room.” You pointed along the outside of one of the rooms. “It was an old tactic of ours to go for the lights and other power fixtures, and I need someone posted there to make sure they don’t resort to that tonight.”

Echo nodded dutifully. “You’ve got it, Senator.”

“Crosshair, I need you to keep watch. You’ll be the first to notice if any one of these faces steps anywhere near the capitol or the ballroom.”

Crosshair put his toothpick back between his teeth and offered a two-fingered salute.

“And Sergeant Hunter.” You turned towards Hunter as you addressed him by name for only the second time. The heartbeat that roared in his ears was solely his own, though he kept himself as composed as ever on the outside. “I need your senses to catch any direct threats in the ballroom.”

Hunter began to reach the conclusion on his own. “So, my position will be…” With the eyes of his squad watching, he couldn’t finish the sentence.

“With me.” You nodded to confirm his unspoken thoughts. “I need at least one of you to escort me to continue the illusion of you serving as my protection, and your senses will no doubt allow you to pick up on anything abnormal that’s happening around us.”

“Convenient,” Crosshair snickered.

Hunter ignored him and nodded at you. “Then I’ll be there.”

Your gaze brightened at him. “Great.” Your eyes lingered on him even as you turned to face the rest of the squad once again. “I have some diplomatic business to attend to for the rest of the day leading up to the banquet, so I’ll leave it to all of you to plan the finer details while my guard escorts me there.”

Hunter’s brow furrowed. “Are you sure you can trust them?”

You tilted your head at him. “For now, yes. I have to give them at least some sort of power to keep them from catching on.”

Hunter exhaled, even if he wasn’t convinced. “Fair enough.”

“I think the senator can handle herself even if things do go sideways,” Echo added.

“Exactly, Echo.” You gave Hunter another one of those quick once-overs that set him and his armor on fire. “Though I do appreciate the concern.”

“That’s good, ‘cause you’ll get a lot of it from him. Hah!” Wrecker walked over to knock his shoulder against Hunter’s. He tried to fight the flush that attempted to overwhelm his face without the refuge of his helmet to hide it.

Tech pushed his goggles further up his nose. “That is certainly one of his specialties.” He pointed at Hunter with a small, knowing smile.

Hunter narrowed his eyes and gently swatted Wrecker’s hand, which had wrapped around his shoulders, away from him. “Glad you’ve all noticed.”

“Well, you are a sergeant. It is only sensible that you have a heightened sense of protection.” Tech paused and let out an amused huff. “Huh. ‘Heightened sense.’ That was not intentional.”

Hunter raised an eyebrow and didn’t bother coating his sarcasm. “Nice one.”

You laughed alongside Hunter, and all his frustration towards his teasing squad melted away as he looked over at you. “As much as I’d love to stay to hear the rest, I’m about to be long overdue for my first meeting.”

Your gaze scanned the squad but, in a way that was becoming quite natural, caught Hunter especially. 

“I have an activated comm on my person so that you can keep track of where I am. I’ll use it in case of an emergency, but I’m not expecting anything to happen now when they have a better opportunity to strike later.”

Hunter tightened his jaw and looked away from the senator. That was a thought he didn’t want to dwell on. He loved seeing action as much as the next person in his squad, but not in this way. Not with the threat of an assassination attempt on someone who was already putting their neck out for the sake of their people. As a leader himself, albeit to a much smaller group, it made him sick to think about.

You didn’t deserve any of this, and Hunter would do whatever he could to help you make it right.

“We’ll reconvene here just before the banquet’s due to begin.” The senator’s voice earned Hunter’s attention again. “Until then… I suppose you have a chance to explore.” You waved a hand towards the door. “I’ll lead the way out.”

You deactivated the holotable and started to head towards the doors. Hunter slid his helmet over his head as he followed you, and the rest of the squad fell in step behind him. He managed to make it to your side as he spoke to you in a low voice. “We won’t be going far, Senator. Don’t be afraid to comm if something feels off.”

You gave him a warm glance, your gaze glimmering as you did so. “There’s that sense of protection your squad was speaking about.” The quiet words were filled with nothing but a sweetness that Hunter was quickly getting addicted to. “I’m sure it’ll be fine, Sergeant, but… I can’t begin to tell you how much your reassurance means to me.” You gave him a subtle nod. “Thank you.”

Hunter returned the gesture. “No need.”

You looked as if you wanted to say more, but you were already at the doors. Hunter watched you transform into your diplomatic image as the doors opened and led you out to where your guards were keeping watch in the corridor. Hunter kept himself and the squad back as you continued on, silently encouraging your guards to follow you. He didn’t miss the pointed look the captain gave him as he walked ahead.

Hunter spoke up before anyone else could. “We’re doing a perimeter sweep, getting a lay of the land.” He spun around to face his squad and nodded. “We have to know what’s out there so we can combat it later.”

Wrecker groaned and threw his hands in the air. “Why can’t it be tonight already so we can see some real action?”

Crosshair snorted in agreement and crossed his arms. “I’m starting to miss the clankers.”

“I’m sorry, boys. I know it’s hard not to be as active as usual.” Hunter allowed himself to agree with them. “But this mission’s important. Like I said last night, the fate of this entire planet is resting on our shoulders.”

“And the fate of the senator.” Tech lifted a finger as he added the thought Hunter wasn’t brave enough to say aloud.

Hunter began to turn back around, but he still managed to respond. “Right.” He gestured with his helmet to the corridor. “Let’s get going. There’s lots out there for us to see.”

The rest of the day, aside from another period of refreshment given at the senator’s request, was spent exploring both the exterior and the interior of the capitol. Tech had scanned as much as he could to make his own diagram, and Crosshair had kept his gaze high to scope out potential sniper spots—for both himself and others. Hunter’s senses were working overtime yet again to make himself more familiar with it all, though he forced himself to stop when he came too close to the edges of an overstimulation migraine.

The squad waited along with your guard outside your doors that evening, ready to escort you to the banquet. Hunter was buzzing with the same kind of adrenaline he always had on high-stakes missions, but he was hit with a whole new wave of it when the doors opened.

You had traded your gown from before with something much more formal. Its colors were the exact opposites of the other’s, trading the gold for green and vice versa. This gown was much more fitting to your form, though there was a slit in each of your legs to allow you more freedom to move around.

It was—no, you were—beautiful in every sense of the word. And there was just no getting around that fact, not even for a Republic clone sergeant.

The senator faced Hunter and his squad with the mask of diplomacy still engaged, thanks to the presence of your guard. Still, there was a light within your eyes that Hunter enjoyed seeing, especially as it shined at his visor. “Thank you again, Clone Force 99, for reinforcing my guard tonight.” You gestured to your guards as they stood on your other side. “It’s appreciated more than you know.”

Hunter bowed his head. “Just doing our duty, Senator.”

You raised your brow and the corners of your mouth at him. “This is above and beyond your usual ‘duty,’ Sergeant, especially your willingness to help the captain escort me.”

“She didn’t have to ask him twice,” Echo muttered to one of the boys from behind Hunter. He rolled his eyes underneath his visor at their snickering.

“It’s no problem, Senator.” Hunter nodded to affirm his words. “Really.” He gave his helmet a fond tilt. “Gives me a bit of a change in scenery.”

You chuckled and gave your head a shake, but Hunter caught the shyness you attempted to hide. “Well, don’t thank me yet, Sergeant. Politics are a whole different type of battlefield.” You broke your gaze with Hunter to glance over at the captain. “We ought to get going, Captain. Would you lead the way? Clone Force 99 will bring up the rear.”

The captain nodded, directing his men as they began to walk down the corridor. The squad fell in place behind you, as the group made its way to the ballroom, each member began to split off. Crosshair was the first, and then Echo as he snuck away to the power room. Tech found a quiet yet nearby place to monitor both the comms and the cams, leaving just Hunter and Wrecker as the group came upon the ballroom.

As the captain turned to face the senator, his brow knit together in confusion at the lack of soldiers behind you. “Sergeant, where are all your men?”

Hunter no doubt had a smile in his voice as he responded. “Covering all our bases. I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you, Captain.”

The captain looked as if he were about to speak, but paused when he caught your gaze. Hunter nodded at Wrecker to dismiss him. He walked off to stand alongside the entrance you had assigned him to earlier that morning.

Your eyes found Hunter’s visor, and he offered you the reassuring nod you needed. “We’re ready when you are, Senator.”

You returned the gesture. “Thank you, Sergeant.” You turned to the captain. “Captain?”

The captain took his place at the front and led the small group through the main entrance. Hunter was quick to observe the ballroom and everyone within it. It had already been packed full of various diplomats and other high-ranking citizens of Eirus. He recognized many of the diplomats from the group that had greeted you during your arrival onworld, particularly the Rodian Prime Minister who had Hunter’s anger spiking just at the sight of him. The room was decorated in the same shades of green, purple, silver, and gold that you often wore, but your golden figure was the one at the center of his vision as you continued your stride inside.

The group hadn’t made it more than a few steps inside when Hunter caught your head turning towards your shoulder, in his direction. Hunter took the cue and stepped closer to you, even though his sensitive eardrums still could have heard your hushed voice from his previous place. “Stay close, Sergeant.” Your words weren’t an order; they were a plea.

There was a tug on each of Hunter’s heartstrings as he stepped close enough to set his hand over your lower back. “I’m right here, Senator.” He lifted his visor to your surroundings as he surveyed the crowd. There was an array of piercing gazes looking your way, and Hunter couldn’t imagine how that made you feel. “I’m watching them. Don’t worry.”

You took a deep breath, a steady inhale and exhale that brushed across Hunter’s soundscape like a sweet caress. He lowered his hand from your back only when you were settled and followed you and your guard to wherever you were heading.

When Hunter realized who you were approaching first, he didn’t bother holding back his annoyed sigh, even if he did keep it to himself. The Prime Minister turned to look at the group with a hospitality so fake that even someone as politically unseasoned as Hunter could recognize the mask he was wearing.

“Senator! Ah, you’ve made it at last!” The Prime Minister reached for your hands and gave them a squeeze.

Hunter took a step closer to you with his hand hovered over his blaster before he could stop it. The movement caught the Rodian’s gaze as he huffed with both indignance and amusement.

“That one behind you is quite jumpy.”

You didn’t miss a beat as you responded. “He’s just doing his job, Prime Minister. Typically, you ask for permission with such a gesture.” Still, you let him off the hook much easier than Hunter would have. “But on account of how lovely you’ve made this gathering for me… I forgive you.”

The Prime Minister dropped your hands and opened his arms in a victorious type of gesture. “I’m very glad you noticed, Senator! I spent a lot of time putting this evening together.” He gave the room an admiring glance. “Only the best for our wonderful senator.”

Hunter narrowed his eyes. His hand was still positioned over his holster, and the hint of sarcasm in the Prime Minister’s voice didn’t motivate him to move it away.

“Did I miss something?” Hunter nearly jumped as the comm went off inside his helmet, alerting him to Crosshair’s cool tone. “Hunter looks ready to fight already.”

“From what I can tell, that is simply his reaction to the Prime Minister,” Tech answered. “Given how… unimpressive the Prime Minister is, I cannot blame Hunter for such a reaction.”

Oh, Hunter didn’t like this. Having to listen in on his brothers’ commentary without him being able to answer, at least not as freely as the rest of the squad could, was going to be a new type of torture. But remembering that frightened look in your eye that you tried to suppress as you pleaded for him to stay close made it more than bearable.

“Aw, man!” Wrecker grumbled. “I’m gonna miss all the interesting stuff, aren’t I?”

“You and me both, Wrecker,” Echo added. “Crosshair, Tech, we’re gonna need some good descriptions.”

Hunter tightened his jaw and lifted his fingers to his helmet. “What you’re gonna need is to focus. Cut the comm chatter. I can barely concentrate on my surroundings.”

He was satisfied when his order was met with silence. It allowed him to focus back on the senator and the other diplomats, who were taking turns exchanging fake pleasantries. Hunter focused less on the words they spoke and more on the other sounds around you. There were many heartbeats and heavy musks to sort through, but Hunter knew what he was looking for. Thankfully, he wasn’t finding it—at least, not yet.

The banquet was pretty uneventful, but Hunter was grateful for that. Tech chimed in from time to time to update the group on any comm activity, but it was usually the security detail that was already working to defend the politicians, diplomats, and other individuals inside the ballroom. Crosshair shared his temptation to shoot down one of the chandeliers just to make something exciting happen, and Echo agreed that it would at least short out something in the power room that he could fix.

You were thankfully unoccupied by company, halfheartedly sipping a libation, when Hunter heard one of the sounds he was listening for: a holster strap. Immediately, his visor scanned the room, each one of his senses reaching out as if they were physical hands pushing people aside to identify the source. It was much too close to be anyone on the other side of the room, but all the people in their immediate vicinity had their hands otherwise occupied.

Then, his gaze slid over to you. One restless movement from your dominant leg proved that it was, in fact, your holster strap he had heard. It had unfastened. If he didn’t alert you to the loosened strap soon, then it would very likely unveil your hidden weapons to the entire room.

The captain and his guard were at a comfortable distance when Hunter approached you. He rested his hand on your back to alert you to his presence before he leaned over to speak to you in a low voice. “Senator, you might want to check your holster.” His gaze flickered over to yours, watching as your eyes widened ever so slightly in silent alarm. “I heard the strap loosen.”

Rather than looking, you moved your leg, and Hunter yet again heard the sound just as you sensed the loose strap against your skin. “Thank the stars for your senses, Sergeant.” You managed a smile, but still let out a stressed exhale. “I have to fix it.”

Hunter gestured with his helmet to the nearest exit point. “I can escort you out.”

You shook your head. “That’ll be too suspicious.” Your gaze scanned the busy crowd. “I have to fix it here.”

Hunter furrowed his brow. “How? That’s not exactly a subtle adjustment to make.”

Your own brow knit together as you considered his words. Your eyes then rose to his visor, and they were filled with an amount of trust that left him breathless. “It has to be you.”

Hunter blinked a few times in surprise before he stammered out his response. “Me?”

You nodded, your voice dropping to a whisper as you went on. “If you stay against the wall and I stand in front of you, it could look like you’re briefing me on something.” Your eyes looked beyond him. “There’s a pretty private corner there.”

Hunter followed your gaze and let out a soft breath before he nodded. “Yeah, that’ll work.” He couldn’t begin to think of the implications of the action yet. All he could focus on was making sure your secret wasn’t revealed.

You turned to the captain and began to address him, causing Hunter’s hand to slip from your back. “Captain, the sergeant says he has an update for me from Clone Force 99. If you could watch our backs while I attend to it, that would be much appreciated.”

The captain bowed his head at you. “Of course, Senator.”

Hunter steadied himself as you turned back to him and followed him over to the corner. He stopped when his back was about to hit the wall and faced you. The proximity was dangerous, but he fought through the haze to follow his own order from before: focus.

Hunter’s hands started to reach out for the slit in your dress, but he was quick to stop himself as his visor found your gaze with ease. “May I?” He gestured to the long strip of exposed skin on your leg.

You smiled at him, and it was the first real one he had seen from you since you had entered the ballroom. “Please, Sergeant.” He caught the hard swallow you took with both his eyes and his ears. “You have full permission to touch me.”

Damn, your choice of words was making it even harder for him to focus the way he intended to. Hunter just nodded and continued, pretending the task was akin to helping Tech and Echo with the wiring on the Marauder. But the hull of the attack shuttle was nowhere near as soft and smooth as your skin, nor as rich as the silk he gently pushed aside to get to it.

It wasn’t your skin he needed to focus on. He found the hanging leather strap and identified the empty buckle that had come undone. Carefully, and while keeping his helmet level so as to not give his gaze away, he began to string the strap inside the buckle, his gloved fingertips brushing your skin.

The action brought an inhale to your lips that made Hunter pause, but more overwhelming was the sudden hammering of a heartbeat that, for once, wasn’t his own. His gaze secretly flickered up to you, just to find that your eyes were on his hands, as if he truly was holding something between the two of you. Even sweeter was the exhale that fell from your parted lips, because it wasn’t one of pain, worry, or anything Hunter was used to hearing as a result of his actions.

No, that was an unmistakable breath of pure pleasure. And he wanted to hear it again, and again, and again.

But this wasn’t the time nor the place, and this wasn’t a moment that was supposed to be happening, anyway. Hunter didn’t let himself get used to it. While he enjoyed the rush of whatever coursed through his body, he focused fully on fixing the holster, taking care not to pull it too tight even as he double checked its security.

Hunter’s words were spoken through a tight throat as he broke your silence. “How’s that?”

You nodded, another genuine smile overtaking your lips. “Perfect. Thank you, Sergeant.”

Hunter returned your nod before he fixed the skirt of your dress back in place, properly concealing your holster from view. His touch lingered before he could stop it. When he dragged his gaze back up to yours, he found that your eyes had been following his own the entire way. His senses should have been attuned to that entire room, but he was tunnel-visioned onto you and the glow of your gaze as you openly admired him.

That’s what it had to be, right? Surely, he wasn’t making that up, but it was the thing he was having trouble identifying. No one else had ever looked at him like that. No one else had ever raised a hand to press against his chestplate the way you were, now.

The moment vanished just as quickly as it arose. “Hunter, if you and the senator are done staring at each other, you’ve got a hostile inbound,” Crosshair warned.

Hunter instantly snapped back into action, and you took notice. He lifted his fingers to his helmet just as you took a step back. “Description?”

“Klatooinian. Making his way in from the east entrance.”

Hunter focused all his senses on that part of the room. Sure enough, he could hear the snarling breath of the Klatooinian, as well as the unmistakable movement of concealed weapons on his person.

“Give the order, and I’ll stun him now.”

Hunter tilted his helmet. “No. We can’t act before he does.”

Your brow furrowed in concern. “Who?”

Hunter remained gentle as he pressed a hand on your shoulder and eased you to the side, stepping in front of you. “We’re about to find out.” He gave you a quick glance. “Keep your hand near your holster, just in case.”

You nodded, allowing Hunter to focus fully on the approaching Klatooinian once again.

“Tech, do you have anything? Comms, cams?”

“It seems he is making use of neither,” Tech answered. “I’m not certain how he avoided the cams, unless he is somehow aware of where each one is placed. No unfamiliar comm channels are being used at the moment.”

“At least he’s alone.” Hunter’s fingers tapped along his blaster before he spoke again. “Echo and Wrecker? Anything?”

“I haven’t seen anyone suspicious,” Wrecker insisted. “Can I come in to help?”

“Negative. Stay at your post for now.”

“No action in the power room,” Echo informed him. “Guess they’re really just sending one tonight.”

Hunter didn’t like the conclusion he was reaching. “He’s their warning.”

He abandoned the blaster to reach for the hilt of the blade on his arm. Hunter waited, listening for the telltale groan of leather on the Klatooinian’s holster. As soon as he heard it, he acted.

One throw was all it took. His aim didn’t let him down as the quick toss of the blade disarmed the Klatooinian across the room, raising sharp gasps from the unexpecting politicians and diplomats. Even the senator let out a breath of surprise, your hand falling on his armored shoulder as you stepped out from behind him.

“Hold on, Senator,” Hunter warned you, using his arm to block you. “He might not be done yet.”

The Klatooinian huffed and attempted to make an escape. Hunter stayed with you and raised his fingers to his helmet.

“Now’s your chance, Wrecker! He’s getting away!”

“Oh yeah!” Wrecker came barreling into the room without hesitation, and it was only a matter of seconds until he had taken the Klatooinian to the ground. The blow alone was enough to knock the Klatooinian out cold, allow Wrecker to toss the man over his shoulder and carry him over to Hunter. “That was a lot easier than tackling a clanker, honestly.”

Hunter huffed at that. “Good work.” He then turned to you, his chest pulling tight at the concern in your eyes. “Are you okay, Senator?”

You nodded, portraying an image of strength as you straightened your shoulders. “Yes, thanks to you and your squad.”

Hunter grimaced underneath his helmet. “Don’t thank us yet.” He activated his comm yet again. “Tech, Crosshair, do a quick surveillance of what’s going on beyond the capitol walls.”

It was mere moments until Tech responded. “Wait. I’m just now picking up on a distress signal from one of the villages. They’ve been attacked.”

Hunter exhaled deeply. “That’s what I thought.” He prepared himself to give you the news, and the deflation of your shoulders already pained him before he did so. “Senator, there’s been an attack on another village.”

Your eyes widened, and as Hunter studied them, he saw you approaching the same conclusion as himself. “That’s why they only sent one person here.”

Hunter’s fists tightened at his sides. “It’s a warning. They can do both at once, and they want you to choose between your safety here and the safety of your people.”

You let your defeat show, if only for a moment. It was enough to make Hunter step closer to you and set a hand on your shoulder.

“You won’t have to make that choice, Senator.” He gestured with his helmet to Wrecker, who was still standing with the Klatooinian nearby. “Not as long as we’re here.”

The look you gave him said everything you couldn’t, especially with your guard quickly coming over and the guests scattering at the sudden chaos. Things were quickly getting even more complicated—for you and Hunter especially.

chapter 2 ⟸ series masterlist ⟹ chapter 4

hunter tag list: @zenrobbins0021 @cw80831 @yunggoblin @maddiedrmr 

senator’s shadow tag list: @violetlilly2020 @jellybeanstacey0519

[melancholicmarionette]

[Oh shit I did something. I wrote Val and Sam as podcasters. Warning: this is fucking stupid. I literally had to just stop writing bc it made less and less sense as I went on. But I love writing dialogue and it’s silly and this is tumblr. here have a little snack my dudes]

Graveyard Girls Episode 12: Roasting Ember’s Beauty Guru Era at 1 AM

“Hello and welcome to Local Ghost Smash or Pass—”

“I will fucking kill you.”

Valerie had to admit that Sam Manson’s ability to keep a completely straight face while saying the most unhinged nonsense was probably one of the reasons their video podcast was so popular. Her own ability to refrain from actually killing her was the reason it still existed at all. How they’d made it to episode twelve, however, still remained at least partially an enigma.

Though it was overall Danny’s kindness that slowly made his trio of friends into a tenuous quartet, Valerie had slowly become accepted by all of them, once she finally came to terms with Danny’s secret. Sam was the last to come around, though by the time they were both seventeen their tension was less due to fighting over a boy and more due to the fact that they could agree on almost nothing.

Most of Graveyard Girls was the two girls arguing, originally spawned by a viral TikTok Tucker posted, in which Valerie—at Danny’s bizarre request—tried to explain The Bachelor franchise to them and Sam being convinced she was making some of it up. People had been interested, and with Amity Park being a niche-but-also-hot topic, a weekly podcast was born.

“Okay but,” Sam leaned back in a vintage-looking office chair, “if I returned as a ghost, would you sma—” Sam cut herself off with a grunt as she dodged a throw pillow.

The show was mostly the two competing to see who could get the other to essentially rage quit, and while Sam’s personality was surprisingly just as strange as those of her best friends, Valerie was competitive enough to be a worthy opponent.

“You might just be, like, the worst person,” Valerie said, expertly catching the throw pillow as it was hurled back at her. “We’re not even three minutes in and I’m so uncomfortable with the energy you’ve created.”

“So our very last episode is three minutes long and titled Valerie Quits, then?”

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you Manson?” For a tense moment they stared each other down. “Say it one more time, see what happens.”

“So what is today’s topic, then?”

It was a challenge, to see if Valerie had forgotten it was her turn to start. She had.

They had the Box Ghost to thank for it, too.

“Okay, so—full disclosure,” she began, and she looked at her phone, “it is…1:16 in the morning. And both of us have been awake for like…”

“More hours than usually recommended,” Sam continued, “for reasons. We wanted to get this episode out on time so we are crunching.”

“And suffering.”

“And suffering quite a bit,” Sam concluded, nodding. “So my topic is that Ember McClain is trying to release eyeshadow palettes.”

“You cannot just drop that on me.”

“It was dropped on me,” Sam told her, “I’ve had to live with this. You don’t read the DMs for our official account so you didn’t see it and this poor lady, she has this indie cosmetics company and she slides into our DMs asking ‘is this person for real? I think she’s a ghost? She wants to collab.’”

“Collab…”

“And she sent me like…a mock up. I’m putting it in the google drive so get ready.”

Valerie picked her phone, opening their shared drive and—sure enough—seeing a digital version of a very Ember-esque palette, showcasing both dark and neon shades.

“She’s unhinged. But like…some of the shimmers on here aren’t terrible.”

“That’s the thing—I don’t like the bright blues and greens but there’s potential here. I could make a look out of it.”

“I’ve got conditions—if she wants to start the beauty guru era of her ‘career’ I need a full press release saying it’s not a complex murder plot,” Valerie said.

“I swear under penalty of perjury that I’m not imprisoning your parents in hamster wheels to power my sound system,” Sam affected an impression that would positively enrage the ghostly pop star as she spun around in her chair.

“My mad power-grab via subliminal mind control is so over, okay? That was the old me. Get to fucking swatching.” Valerie continued, snickering. “We kid, but this is actually peak influencer already.”

“We’re writing her YouTube apology for her,” Sam said, and she trained her eyes on the camera before continuing, “you cannot use this. I know you’re watching, I said your name once, and your Obsession is name-searching the universe. You have to do your own YouTube apology.”

“We should edit her name out before we upload.”

“We should.”

“…We’re not going to.”

“No, and a certain somebody’s gonna be on my ass about it. We should perhaps move on…”

[nalyra-dreaming]

Hi there! I keep seeing this notion that Louis is so out of his mind possessive over Lestat that he would kill Lestat before he lets him be with others. I was wondering where that notion stems from because I don’t recall seeing that indicated in the show at all besides the line I wanted him dead, I wanted him to myself. This line could have been referring to the conflicting feelings within Louis and was a more eloquent way of saying I hate you but I love you and not literal because he was telling Claudia they shouldn't kill Lestat shortly after this scene. I love the notion of Louis being possessive over Lestat to an unhinged degree, we do know he was jealous, but wasn't part of the struggle between Loustat that Louis feigned indifference by refusing to verbalize how much the ongoing “relationship” with Antoinette bothered him? He dug his heels in so deep that he refused to demand Lestat stop seeing her, and he refused to kill her or request Lestat kill her as well, so I'm genuinely confused on where the idea that Louis would kill him just so no one else could have him but Lestat would die for him in the fandom. I never perceived their dynamic to be this way in the books either that I can recall. Quite the opposite, actually. I'm aware he did “kill” him in the show, but that was solely to appease Claudia and not out of possessiveness or jealousy. Am I missing something other than fanon? Thank you for answering!

Hey!

(Is this bc of this post?^^)

I do think the "I wanted him dead, I wanted him to myself." carries more weight than you give it here. Yes, he is trying to stop what is already in motion, but this is not the only indication of Louis being possessive of Lestat after all, which the expression ultimately indicates. Possessiveness.

Otherwise "Come To Me" would not have worked the way it did. And it would not have resulted in the situation it did. Tongue first and all.

Louis expresses this possessiveness often in more subtle ways - looks, initiating kisses in front of audiences -

and sometimes in not so subtle ones - hate sex, open jealousy, revenge cheating, screaming matches.

... Taking his annoying husband by the waist and away from soldiers.

But does that make it less?

Also I strongly disagree that he "killed him to appease Claudia"... I don't think that at all. If the scene holds (and I am not 100% sure since Claudia's diary does not match the shown scene, and they said they would revisit Murder Night and that has not happened yet) - then Louis did it because he had to do it - because it was "until death do us part" for Louis, and very personal. But that might change with s3 still, as said. As such... this is definitely a take born from the show, granted.

Louis is a much more passive character in the books - until he snaps of course. But even there he is the one who goes to hold Lestat's hand through the procedure to disconnect, for example.

When Louis gives Lestat the promise to come and stay with him he uses Ruth1:16, a very powerful and famous passage, one of commitment. It is a statement, also - not a question.

Louis knows that he can literally lay down this commitment when he is ready to do it.

For me that might not spell "possessiveness" in the first impression of the word... but then again, he knew he could. You know?

It's a level of possession of each other that surpasses simple... jealousy or possessiveness. Imho.

The book Louis does not make a show of his possessiveness - because he does not need to. Lestat returns to him, again and again (anyways).

However, that does not mean it doesn't bleed through, imho, in the way Louis fights for Lestat, especially when Lestat himself can not. Louis, begging Maharet in Memnoch at the locked doors, to get in. Armand, telling of how Louis neglects his hunger, seems thin and emaciated because he is guarding Lestat instead.

As per Lestat dying for Louis if need be - yeah. I second that.

He would.

I mean, he goes to the trial and takes to take the blame even in the version we already saw in the show. And he goes, broken and weak to Armand to plead for them in the book. He tries.

And you know how he tries to/accepts to sacrifice his own life later for the other vampires in Blood Communion, and that wasn't even Louis directly.

If it had been necessary for Louis?

Absolutely. Not even a question.

[crimeronan]

Camila horror thoughts. In the horrifically fraught family horrors sense of the term.

What if Vee has specifically warned Camila about Hunter, told her all about what he specifically has done in order to give her a heads up, in a way naturally coloured by the views she has (not unreasonably) built up around Hunter because of all the stuff she's done.

So naturally she's got this wariness of Hunter that does not compute when she sees how genuinely caring he is with Luz even if logically she knows people can act remarkably differently in different contexts and none of it negates all the stuff he did with The Basilisks for Belos. But Camila is still pretty sure that Luz doesn't know, and is terrified that if she knew it might destroy something that she is desperately reliant on, her relationship with Hunter. It probably wouldn't, Luz could probably live with that since well horrible nightmare trauma soulmates and by Luz's standards she's done just as bad in a similar context but Camila and Luz keeping secrets for almost the exact same reason (to protect the people they love from horrors they are too insane to be affected by) appeals to me.

But the problem now arises, Camila's told Luz that she has adopted another kid, and Luz in the spirit of trying her best to reach out does want to see Vee or have her visit with Camila next time she comes or something like that since like, thats a normal thing to do on reconnecting with your estranged mother and finding out you have an adopted sister you've never met.

Vee, bless is not going along with that "don't tell Luz how horrible Hunter is since she is hopelessly codependent on him" bullshit at all. Camila knows that, Vee knows that. Camila knows she cannot ethically or reasonably expect Vee to not spill all of Hunter's darkest secrets to Luz in an attempt to ruin his life since, y'know all the stuff he did to her specifically.

For Vee the nicest most compromise-y thing she can do, is just never meet Luz face to face, and thats only because of her respect for Camila. But there's no way Luz isn't going to to notice or be concerned about this so there's this constant ticking time bomb of "when am i gonna meet Vee' since "oh she's off at college" isn't gonna work forever.

god this is all so good. i've been thinking about it since you sent this ask a few hours ago now. bc like. god. there's So Much....

i think you're 100% right that vee would try to stay out of things. she's like mama respectfully i'm ready to meet her IF i'm allowed to scream a lot of pent-up utterly unhinged bullshit but otherwise i think it's best for me not to be involved.

and camila is SUCH a bad liar. if she tried to say that things were fine with vee, luz would clock that something was wrong immediately. she obviously wouldn't jump to "she's from the isles" when there are so many more obvious conclusions -- maybe vee is jealous of luz for being the first daughter camila loved, maybe she's angry at luz for running away, maybe she's sick of luz monopolizing camila's time now when vee is used to having their mom all to herself....

regardless of what luz thinks is most likely, she's definitely like. Ah. I Am Driving A Wedge Between Them. This Is My Fault. On A Personal Level. Somehow.

and then on camila's end, that's even true to a point.... bc vee is getting increasingly more upset by the idea of protecting luz's feelings. i can absolutely see a very tired vee finally having the stress get to her & snapping, "why do you think she'll CARE?? she isn't going to care. even if she's as nice a person as you think she is, it's not like i'm a human or a witch. i'm nothing. she doesn't know how to care about people like me"

...there is, of course, a delicious and vicious irony in that. like. luz Very Much Does Know how to care about someone who isn't a witch or a human.

Oh God.

and then whenever luz meets vee, when it all finally Does come out.... i feel like it would sort of be worse for vee than anything she'd actually braced for. because luz DOES immediately care, she does act like it matters, she immediately wants to know everything and fix everything and make it all better, she immediately takes on all of the responsibility for everything the empire's ever done, she's so sorry, she didn't know, she would have done something, she can do something now--

--and vee is like well. HE knew. and he sure didn't want to help me!! even though i asked him to!! even though he KNEW WHAT THEY WERE DOING TO ME THE ENTIRE TIME

hunter has wisely remained quiet because he doesn't think he can really defend himself here. and luz has this moment of uncertainty and confusion, and then she looks at hunter's face, and for a second vee thinks that he's just going to straight-up deny it, but he doesn't. and luz seems to understand that it's all true.

and she doesn't look angry. or even betrayed.

and then she's trying to tell vee that hunter was always in danger when they were growing up, that there must have been extenuating circumstances that made rescue impossible, that he would have helped her if he could, that luz KNOWS he would have because he wouldn't just leave vee to suffer for no reason, that's not the kind of person he is,

and hunter is the one to be like luz. stop. she doesn't need to hear that right now. she can hate me. it's fine.

so vee's opinions on luz are like. 1) i hate that you're so nice that i look insane for being angry with you 2) you're a spineless coward who can't hold anyone accountable 3) you've fooled camila into thinking you're some helpless delicate flower by pretending to be sad when you DON'T care 4) if hunter is going to agree with me about anything then i should legally get to shoot him. just like once. i've never touched a gun or had any inclination to do so before today But I Should Get To Shoot Him .

camila's role in mediating this has mainly been to gently steer the conversation into more productive territory when it looks like it might devolve into panic attacks or violence from anyone involved. she's so fucking stressed by trying to keep things from coming to blows that there's like. no Way that she could do a professional-level job of Family Therapy Mediator.

god.

much 2 consider.

[gasolinerainbowreads]

↓ ICON LEGEND ↓

🌈 = title 🪆 = series, multiple parts, etc. 💎 = hidden gem/should have more reblogs/followers imo 🔋 = make sure your vibrator is charged before reading 😈 = Horny Demon Hours™ approved 🥹 = hurts so good/ouch, my feelings 🧠 = did somethin to my brain/altered my brain chemistry

Here's what I read in September along with a comment/thought/favorite excerpt:

@atticrissfinch

🌈 Now I See Daylight ⇨ 🪆🥹 we get punished, and we do not like it. This made me feel VERY BRATTY reading it lmaoooo. DO NOT GIVE ME THE SILENT TREATMENT, DADDY.

@softlyspector

🌈 Moss & Mushrooms ⇨ 😈🧠 IT’S GIVING THE FALL OF THE HOUSE OF USHER WITH BONUS DICK DOWNS, AND I AM GOBBLING IT UP! SUPERB. 🌈 Blush ⇨ 🪆🥹🧠 IMPECCABLE. INSANELY IMMERSIVE. SICKENING TALENT. MAKES ME WANT TO GO TAKE A NAP IN A MUD PIT. GETTING THE SIDE OF THE OREO THAT HAS THE CRÈME FILLING ON THE WAFER. YOUR FAVORITE FLAVOR OF SLURPEE IS READY TO BE DISPENSED. YOUR HANGNAIL DOESN’T TEAR OFF. YOUR SHOELACES DON’T DRAG ON THE GROUND BC THEY’RE TOO LONG. THIS IS THAT. NO I WON’T BE EXPLAINING ANY OF IT.

@thetriumphantpanda

This series really covers a whole lotta kinks for me lmao. Breeding kink. Pregnancy kink. Creampies. Daddy kink. 🌈 Come Away with Me (Tuesday) ⇨🪆���🥹 “Imagine this is it?” He mumbles against the skin of your shoulder, leaning forward, “Imagine the time it takes is the time I fuck you against a tree like this.”  🌈 Come Away with Me (Wednesday) ⇨🪆🔋🥹 “Gonna fill me up, daddy?” You ask, the word slipping out of your mouth before you can catch it.  🌈 Come Away with Me (Thursday) ⇨🪆🔋🥹 “You’re in love with me, aren’t you?” He asks quietly, it’s soft, there isn’t an ounce of judgement or remorse to be found in his voice, and it’s not there in his eyes when you push yourself off his lap and turn to look at him. “Isn’t it obvious?” You ask him, “You’re in love with me too.” You don’t accuse him, it’s a statement of fact, because you know he’s been in love with you since the night he stayed when you were trying for Joshua.

@joelscruff

🌈 Beyond Infatuation ⇨ 🔋🧠 “Jesus,” Tommy mutters, and you open your eyes enough to see them both staring at your fucked-out hole, watching Joel’s come dribble downward into the sheets, “Filled her up real good.”

@swiftispunk

🌈 In My Hometown Headcanons ⇨ 🪆🥹 Omg it's the Lil Sebastian of Joel fics 💕 he can hardly remember how it felt to fear this, to fear being with you. now, he can’t shut up about you, giddy every time he gets to call you that word. it’s such a simple thing, reminds him of being young - “my girlfriend’s pickin’ sarah up tonight,” “my girlfriend chose this shirt for me,” “my girlfriend and i are goin’ out later” - doesn’t matter the context, he loves referring to you that way, even if it’s a little trivial maybe, even if it doesn’t quite capture how deep his feelings really run for you. if he’s honest, it might be that he likes the word “my” better than “girlfriend.” 🌈 Your Summer Dream, Day 6 - Savour ⇨🪆🔋🥹 Get you a man who blows your back out so good he blows his own back out, too lmaoooooo 🌈 Your Summer Dream, Day 3 bonus ⇨ 🪆🔋🥹🧠 my brain skipped the tracks on this one, babes. derailed me for a hot minute. the whole in the doorframe thing just makes my brain go fucking static. 🌈 Mad Love drabble ⇨🔋😈🧠 “kill him,” you say and joel finally looks over at you, sees you with your hand over your cunt, another smirk playing at his lips at the sight.

@ezrasbirdie

my bb rly scratchin that somnophilia itch with these 🌈 Claim ⇨🔋😈 “That’s right, baby, that’s right. Goddamn, you sleep heavy,” he murmurs. He slides another finger in and makes the same noise, fucking you gently with both of them, pulling your legs open further, and repositioning himself between them.  “One more, sweetheart, one more for me,” he says. A harsh sigh emerges from you as he pushes a third digit inside of you.  It almost hurts. You want it to hurt more.  🌈 More ⇨ 🔋😈 the debauchery is unhinged and perfect

@toxicanonymity

🌈 Clock ⇨ 🪆🔋😈 this lil dehydrated, crybaby bitch is the loml some days. 🌈 Needs ⇨🪆💎🔋🥹 Part of her "Finally Fucking Friday". Virginity loss. Soft!Joel. 🌈 Fires ⇨🪆💎🔋🥹 POV switching done well. inadvertently hilarious reader.

@sugarcoated-lame

🌈 untitled ⇨💎🔋🥹 idgaf if this isn't technically a proper fic. it's more of a ramble/thots type thing, but i enjoyed it immensely and am putting it on this list because it made me horny and also bc i fucking want to.

@gracieispunk

🌈 Bloody ⇨ 🪆🔋🥹 my fave menace is back aka tenant girl who is innocent and perfect. the panic at being in missionary sent me. 🌈 Heat Wave ⇨🔋 Joel is just ssooo thoughtful when he hears you moaning in your sleep and decides to help. What a gentleman.

@millerscoffee

🌈 Heat Lightning ⇨ 💎🔋😈🥹 sub!Joel. mommy kink. aftercare.

@bageldaddy

🌈 I Know It When I See It, Pt 5 ⇨🪆🔋😈🥹 HOW THE FUCK DOES THIS JUST KEEP GETTING BETTER?!?!?! --- also, i want to punch the fucking air over the fact that i cannot go onto pornhub and type in "Lucky+Texas+bondage" and have this come up. life is NOT FAIR.

@frannyzooey FREE MY BITCH FROM TUMBLR JAIL!

🌈 In The Dark blurb ⇨ 🪆🔋😈 *screams into the void* --- hot. HOT. I'm obsessed with In The Dark (go read that entire series right now if you haven't. It's so beyond amazing.). This was just icing on the cake. 🌈 Squirming ⇨🔋 the way I would be THRASHING so I could get a "goodnight treat" lmaoooooooo 🌈 Short Days, Long Nights 13 ⇨🪆🔋🥹 The words come pouring out of his mouth before he can stop them, but once they’re out, he can’t stop saying them. Burying his face in your chest, he says the words directly over your pounding heart. “I love you, honey. Fuck, I love you.”

@iamskyereads

🌈 Compulsion, Pt 6 ⇨🪆🔋😈🧠 One of THE BEST versions of Ezra I've ever come across in fic. SO GOOD. SERIOUSLY SO FUCKING GOOD.

@netherfeildren

🌈 The Cassandra Complex, Pt 3 ⇨🪆🔋😈🧠 This story is so well-written, the plot is beautifully crafted, the imagery is wonderful. No surprises there, right? It's Vic lmao. It ain't gonna be anything but amazing! Having said that... the smut in this chapter..... whew. WHEW. You outdid yourself, Vic.

@velvetmud

🌈 home video blurb ⇨🔋😈 But you don’t find the words or the energy to conjure up an answer. You’ve become too lost, too deep in the moment giving your own boyfriend’s dad another long orgasm he’s been saving up just for your face. “Gonna tell him his dad’s thick cock fucked and wrecked this throat all night?” he asks, pointer finger dragging down your aching jaw. He continues with a whisper. “That I split that pussy open on it whenever you come over to see him, too?”

@psychedelic-ink

🌈 Ravish ⇨🪆🔋😈 Okay I love the set up of this story and also the way Joel is chill about ~cam girls~. But I did bust up laughing when she saw his dick and was like wtf idk man idk if that's gonna fit and his ass hits her with the I've seen you shove bigger dildos into your pussy you'll be fine lmaooooooooo.

@tieronecrush

🌈 Only Angel, Ch 2 ⇨🪆🥹 “I’ll be waiting for a call, Javi. And I’ll see you Monday, Professor Peña.” You give him one last look, giggling as you shut the door and he hits the top of the taxi before you drive away, standing there with an idiotic smile on his face.

@cavillscurls

🌈 Eyes on Me ⇨🔋😈 Tommy watches you fuck Joel. Just go read it already! 🌈 Lover Man ⇨🥹 Soft and fluffy. You play with Joel's hair bc he is bb grl and deserves tenderness.

@walkintotheriveranddisappear

🌈 Waiting Room ⇨🪆🥹 I love this series, and this part carries so much of the story. The break down of relationship dynamics and friendships and people just trying to figure shit out was *chef's kiss*

@haylzcyon

🌈 Slow ⇨🔋 *chanting* EZRA EZRA EZRA EZRA “Fuck me slow, Ezra.”

@the-ginger-hedge-witch

🌈 Everything ⇨ 🪆🥹 from one of my all-time fave series Adversity. I'm not going to write too much of a blurb here bc I will go absolutely off the rails about Adversity if prompted lmaooooo.

@mandoblowmybackout

🌈 Eyes on Me ⇨🔋 Ezra gets his ass ate and fingered. *wipes tear* It's just so beautiful.

@leslie-lyman

🌈 Focus ⇨🔋 Ezra hypnokink that makes me very horny every time I read it.

@pascalisbaby

🌈 Heaven ⇨ 🔋 sub!Joel just wants to make us feel good, as he should. 🌈 Control ⇨🔋 now we're subbing and think we wanna dom but you know what sometimes it's just best if Joel doms 😅

@hier--soir

🌈 Whole New Can of Worms ⇨🪆🔋🥹 yyyooooo I wanna be BFF with Joel if it means getting dicked down that good. jesus!

@cupofjoel

🌈 Switching the Positions ⇨🔋🥹 The domesticity. The fluff. The fucking. Perfection.

@chloeangelic

🌈 Reflection of the Moon, Ch 5 ⇨🪆🔋🥹 Joel Miller ascending to baby daddy status. We love to see it.

@the-scandalorian

🌈 Mine ⇨🔋😈 🗣️ PRONE BONE ANAL

@northernbluess

🌈 Art of Healing, Ch 5 ⇨🪆🥹 I. Am. OBSESSED. with this series. Marcus Pike, art therapist. It's a slow build, and the story is PHENOMENAL. I have gone back and re-read chapters of this so many times. I adore this story!!

WHEW HOLY SHIT I DID IT.

I know this is basically a month late. I apologize. I'm gonna go ahead and apologize in advance for whenever the October wrap up rolls around bc I'm pretty sure I read even more this past month than I did in September. *screams into pillow*

If all the writers in this fandom could please stop being so fucking talented and amazing please that would really help my To Be Read list.

😩

SEE Y'ALL NEXT MONTH

[mykoreanlove]

Can I ask one where the reader and Taemin were a couple, broke up and then decided to be friends , but Tae realized he can’t, bc he developed feelings for her again… thanks

“Tae, hurry up! I am starving!”

Your ex-boyfriend hurried up the stairs, your favorite take-out in his hands. “Jesus, y/n, you’re no fun when you’re hungry”, he mocked in a playful tone.

“Yeah, yeah”, you rolled your eyes and grabbed the bag of food.

It was a typical Friday night for you – after getting home from work, taking off your make up and switching into comfy PJs, you always ordered your favorite Chinese take out and ate it together with Taemin.

Years ago, this used to be normal since you were dating him. But now?

“Look at us. Who would have thought that we were better off as friends?”, you cheered happily.

He felt a punch to his stomach. Friends. Taemin was the one who broke your heart about a year ago because he couldn’t handle the intensity of your love anymore. It tore you apart while he seemed to be pretty chill about it. At least that’s what you had thought. He went on vacations, worked on new projects, and even dated around while you were crying your eyes out, ditching your friends and wondered if you could die from heartbreak.

You didn’t notice his changed saddened features and kept on explaining. “You know, back then when you broke up with me? That was the most horrific event in my life. I didn’t know how to be on my own anymore. We’ve been dating for so long, I just got used to being yours. And when you left me, it was hard. Oh, can you pass me the soy sauce?”

Taemin passed you the sauce without saying a word. He hated himself for what he did back then. He was immature and foolish and thought breaking up with you would be for the best. But it was not.

He was just as heartbroken and felt guilty for fucking up the best thing he had ever had in his life. Masking that feeling with vacations, work and other women only did so much.

“But”, you chewed contently on your spring roll, “I got over it and I managed to find a way to stay friends with you. I’m happy now.”

Happy. He was glad that you felt that way, after all he always wanted to see you succeed. But it tore him apart to be excluded from your happiness, at least in the romantical sense.

“Hey, I just read an article last night. It asked what you would do if you knew that you only had one year left to live. What would you do, y/n?”

This question caught you by surprise. That’s what you loved about him – you could goof around but talk about important, deep stuff as well. Taemin always wanted to know what you were thinking, what you liked and what made you, you.

“Can you pass me another beer while I think about it?”

He handed you another bottle and shied away at the touch of your fingers. Luckily, you didn’t notice his cheeks redden.

“Okay. I think I would quit my job and go on vacations for a while. You know all those places on my vision board from back then? I would take all my money and spend it on first class flights, luxurious hotels and once in a lifetime experiences. Oh, and I would take my friends and family with me, so I could share my joy with them.”

Taemin nodded contently. Typical, you always loved to travel, and you always cared for the people in your life.

“Oh, I would call all the people that did me wrong and I would tell them exactly what I think of them. Unhinged. Like the dick that blocked me after he fucked me? Or the mean girls in middle school that bullied me? Or my boss who scolded me for the mistakes of others? Yeah, I’d let them have a piece of my mind. For sure.”

You giggled happily, proud to finally get your vendetta. Taemin watched you and smiled. He always loved your savage side, but you rarely let it come out. He had no idea that all those experiences still lingered in your heart, but he was glad that you were ready to let go of them.

“And, if I only had one year left to live, I’d hope I’d be happy, you know? Knowing that you’re about to die is scary, so I wouldn’t want to ruminate over that. Instead, I would like to count my blessings and live each day as best as I could.”

You took another sip of your beer. Taemin’s eyes didn’t leave you once, he was glued to you. “Why are you looking at me like that? Tae?”

He snapped back to reality and apologized. “Sorry, y/n, I just got lost in my thoughts.”

You clanked your bottle with his and nodded approvingly. “I get it. It’s a tough question after all. So, tell me, what would you do?”

He took a deep breath before answering. Courage was all he needed right now, and he tried his best to gather all of it. Taemin scooched closer to you.

“I would do this”, he said and leaned in for a kiss.

His lips were still as soft as ever, even the touch of his kiss felt familiar. Your head was spinning, your body felt dizzy.

Taemin leaned back and spoke softly, his eyes never leaving yours.

“Y/N, if I had only one year left, I would tell you how I honestly feel about you. Or rather about us. I made the biggest mistake when I broke up with you back then. I hated myself for it, still do. The truth is, I am in love with you. Always have been, always will be.”

Taemin could hear your heart pounding heavily and hoped that was a good sign. You looked flustered, which he didn’t mind. In fact, you were always the most beautiful in his eyes. Your eyes were glistening, intensely focused on his. Was that a good sign? Was there still a chance left for your love?

“Y/N?”

[windupaidoneus]

hi thistle i wanted to ask abt hancock and hlidegarde .. what is their dynamic like what were their first impressions of each other 🤲 <- me with my hands out ready to receive info

OKAY I AM FREE FROM. well everything really. ITS TIME TO TYPE!!!!! HI CLARA BELATED REPLY & do not worry i have not forgotten the other ask either i prommy

also i took like four separate days to actually type all of this my ability to focus is so shot. BUT I DID IT

the first impressions are a little funny bc from my understanding most of my friends' wols had a very different one. HDJSHKJG

so it was in earlyish stb right. we have a hilde who's still in mourning from. well. points at haurche. hes basically a widower at that point since they were engaged. minfilia also just basically died for real, papalymo died, they went to rhalgr's reach & shit got fucked, kind of the maze of torments (as per usual) for him. but hes trying to stay #silly & not think too hard about it so he can be there for lyse & thancred & whatever. he IS considering necromancy at this stage but is still focused on tempering research for the time being

enter hancock whose first interaction is to make a joke about teledji's corpse. i wouldnt say hilde was charmed romantically but like. it caught him off guard & he found it really funny?? it was a bit of an unhinged joke & his friends had all been REALLY serious & sad of late (& i mean himself too but yknow. in his mind he did not have it the worst so he should help others first. the usual) so hancock was a breath of fresh air in that sense. they got on pretty well from that point on despite hancock working for lolorito & hilde's apprehensions as a result, much to tataru's dismay. but ultimately he just wasn't the backstabber or evil schemer type, just a very peculiar autistic man who was given a lot of power & used it for his. autistic ends. so. yeah. it went okay.

on hancock's end i believe hildegarde would've been a rather daunting name to hear about until he first met him. he wasn't really scared, because he has no reason to be in the wol's bad books when he was offering help in the first place!, but it was basically just like meeting a celebrity (who had butted heads with his boss slash father figure of sorts no less), right? so there was some anticipation. but it turned out the warrior was actually a pretty meek-looking sad little thing so he got comfortable pretty quickly. i don't think he expected the joke to be taken as well as it did. not sure what he actually expected if anything at all. probably mostly a sense of unease? or just mild laughter but not much else? i think he was just establishing himself & who he is. & somehow that would be the thing that their dynamic would found itself on. lmao

speaking of their dynamic. it's... they get along very well? scarily so?? they don't really argue or anything. kinda just yes and-ing each other. hancock asks hilde for help while showering him with praise to butter him up & hilde just rolls his eyes with a smile goes to do it before hancock even finishes. whenever hilde has the free time for it he'll visit & they spend a few days together (before emet comes back. after he does emet is also spending a few days together with them). hilde tends to tease him a fair bit which he takes well initially but progressively gets more prone to getting flustered. he greatly enjoys it bc he is sick in the head

there is some vulnerability with them too though ofc. i don't think it came up much before post shb (THEY DID FUCK IN POST STB THOUGH!!!! IMPORTANT!!) but hilde probably brought up haurche in passing & tried to not delve into it too much. it was still something that needed to be expressed at some point because otherwise he's kinda just... the wol... unaffected by everything that happens to him & he keeps marching on... & i mean. hancock is clever enough to of course know hilde is more than what the tales sing & whatever. but it's still a nice reality check. reminds him the wol is really just a person at the end of the day. & when it's just them in a room together they are on equal footing. it's not a legend & just some merchant. it's two people

post shb is where they really hit the whole getting close thing... yknow. since. hilde comes back after not that long from hancock's pov & yet he's looking FUCKED. UP! & he's clearly beyond exhausted. honestly he's not even that recognisable at that point shb really got him good... but it's him & that's what matters. obviously hancock is worried. even if hilde's only request when he visits is a really unusual one & perhaps even unsettling ("can i drink your blood please" isn't usually something that's said between them but there's a first for everything!! #hewashungry) he kinda has to oblige just out of concern. the explanations come later alongside a good deal of crying & apologising. hilde spends quite a bit of time at his place recuperating from. everything. & everytime he does something he comes back to hancock when hes done. like the werlyt trials. edw is a whole ordeal bc he has to spend so much time away from hancock which is NOT THE WORST I GUESS since emet is in his head by that point (this guy needs a supervisor at all times at that point in time) but god after elpis he needs a fuuucking break. & he doesnt get one!!! he just gets to think really hard about how he wishes he could be with his normal best friend hancock right now & kinda vanishes from front for a little bit

post edw is great because of beautiful mt rokkon though. it was kinda platonic (according to both of them) for the longest time but once they get to spend time together alone on that mountain is where they both get more acutely aware that it's probably not platonic anymore... which is fun bc well emet does come back around that time. so hancock & hilde dont really talk about shit for a while. bc hilde is sorting out whatever awkward shit is going on with emet initially. & then he has to introduce emet to hancock. it doesnt really make things awkward with hancock bc hes kinda fine with everything & honestly im going to say emet being a tall & kinda intimidating guy with a very powerful & imposing aura (& also his bitchy countenance) was probably a bit of a fingertips touching thing to him... insert that one post thats like joining someone elses relationship scoot over i love yall. hancock did this. emet thought there would be some sort of competition (that he would win effortlessly) but turns out the little normal ass guy also wants him. he's fine with this

i got wildly sidetracked. hilde wears the pants ☝️ these three would be a fucking nightmare at a fancy party of sorts they are gossiping the wholeeeee time. & if theyre dragging alisaie & nero with them? dont even get me started. the worst family has shown up

um. oh yeah. they did have feelings for a while but said like Nothing... on hancock's part bc he believed himself out of hilde's league (not in a self deprecating way just. thtas the whole wol mate thats an entirely different level!) & on hilde's part bc well he IS the wol & he's probably going to die young with all the shit they're making him do & it's probably not even reciprocated bc hes kinda lame & honestly he doesnt quite get why hancock puts up with him despite having seen him at his lowest & knowing the myth of the wol is really just a myth. & also getting hancock involved romantically with him would put greater emotional strain on him if anything did happen to hilde. you know how it is!!!!!

[beepsparks]

Okay. Imagine the YDKJ hosts (you can count Bob in, if you want) but their personalities are the complete opposites of what you HC them to be

1:06 am, 4/28/2024

Ooh now this would make for an interesting AU idea…. Might actually doodle this at some point

This is long as hell… wee

Guy would have the most obvious and craziest change, being that he’d be WAY more unfriendly, mean, and possibly angry with just a TOUCH of maybe.. lazy (considering it’s usually hard to get Guy to actually be angry over something and not just his usual reaction to being upset, where in the games which seems to be just CRYING OVER IT), so uh, try to avoid him. You don’t want a man that could snap you in half to be angry at you!!

Now one may assume I’m gonna make Schmitty overly nice, but he IS a nice man given the chance, he’s just grumpy at times and has anger issues, so I’d say if his personality was swapped, he’d probably become hyperactive. Since I normally see him as somewhat calm and a tiny bit laid back (idk sometimes it’s hard to figure out people’s personalities for me diebjebr), if Schmitty’s personality was swapped, he would act like he’s just had 10 cups of coffee and he could fight god, probably pisses off Guy a lot. Also he’d probably talk like that one line in YDKJ TV where Schmitty tries to mimic that really fast commercial voice you hear all the time in TV ads. Also since this is the host of QUIPLASH I guess I should mention his humor, normally Schmitty would laugh at dumb jokes, but if his personality was swapped, you gotta tell him the most clever, well-thought-out joke in all of mankind or else he’ll suddenly stop and stare at you like you did something really weird.

Nate would probably be all “I don’t care anymore”, wouldn’t bother to get himself ready for anything and probably shows disinterest in basically everything (when normally Nate would at least TRY to look energized or something), try to talk to him about ANYTHING and he’d probably be IGNORING whatever you’re saying. Idk tho, again it’s hard for me to EXACTLY catch onto character personalities lol.

Buzz is a difficult one… I know for one thing, he’d probably be way more reserved about his interests and may even attempt to hide them. Maybe he’d be quicker to snap if someone wasn’t treating him right rather than bottle it up and THEN snap? Now this is more based on my experience playing volume 2, but personality-swapped Buzz would probably be a little more mean, too (since he doesn’t even try to insult me in that game tbh). Not sure how his self esteem would be, though… he could either think he’s better than all of the hosts, or he could think he’s the worst host in history. Maybe he swaps between the two constantly, who knows.

Cookie I tend to imagine as a man who’s ego is through the roof, and he’s willing to verbally kick people down in order to keep that confidence. (Idk if that counts as a personality trait tho) So if Cookie’s personality was swapped, this man would be absolutely pathetic and think he’s awful at everything. Also since he hosts Fibbage, I suppose another thing is that he’d be an awful liar. Also he’s probably way less unhinged than normal Cookie is. Despite I’ve seen a lot of Cookie clips, his personality, like the others, can be pretty complex so it’s hard for me to exactly hit the mark lol.

I suppose I’ll throw in Bob bc why not, even if I don’t know much about him or his personality yet… probably doesn’t try too much, either, doesn’t like bright colors, and likely is into REALLY OLD STUFF rather than whatever aesthetic he’s got going on + “whatever the kids seem to like these days so I look more relatable and entertaining”

[rarepairnation]

I love your posts about Denethor and Faramir. I'm always glad to see someone who loves both him and Faramir and gets that Denethor being this hugely impressive tragic figure makes Faramir so much better and more interesting. The relationship between them is so complex and I love it so much. The film versions make me angry as well.

oh man thank you so much...i find it kinda crazy that you're saying this to me bc im pretty sure i have a bunch of posts from your denethor tag sitting around in my drafts so i can look back at them later. many days i feel very much like an Amateur Denethor Enjoyer but i am thrilled that me just kind of being unhinged on the dash has brought you joy. and get ready bc here i go again LOL

yeah exactly what you said...denethor's tragedy informs and is informed by faramir so so so much and it's just kind of wild to me that on the tragedy enjoyers website so many people refuse to see it. on the second-best enjoyers website...the guilt-and-despair enjoyers website...the "the unimaginable has happened and i AM going to kill people and then myself" enjoyers website...i could go on! he is literally doomed by the narrative and just goes well ok fuck you i WILL die at the end but it will NOT be in the way the narrative wants me to.

it is truly the relationship of all time. faramir does love his father and yet because of the strength of his principles he is genuinely incapable of showing it in a way that denethor can understand. and denethor loves him too but after a certain point just cannot show it anymore because duty has to take precedence. he's not allowed to give faramir any quarter even in private. and YES that includes anything that would resemble a normal emotion. ngl i wouldn't be surprised if that's the only way faramir is like. LETTING him communicate with him. like i feel like the final assault on osgiliath is not the first time faramir's taken the "if you want to get me to do something you ARE going to have to order me to do it" stance. and yet denethor tries. at the end he takes trying to an unhinged level. idk it often feels like even in the general fandom insistance on one-dimensionally dickish denethor there's somehow also a lack of understanding that it IS a toxic expression of love but that doesn't make it not love. like He's Not Winning Dad Of The Year that is not what we're saying at all. we're saying is "it was born of love. it was a terrible thing yet born of love." thats all! that's why it's so tragic because it's all about love!!! augh...

ok i don't typically put quotations from my own writing in like real posts but also ive been thinking about the faramir goes to rivendell au 24/7 and i just. HAVE to pull this line bc it kind of captures exactly how i feel about the denethor-and-faramir mutual Character Honing.

Yet he [Faramir] cannot deny that each of them sharpens himself upon the whetstone of the other, and it is a debt he loathes to owe and yet cannot hope to repay.

i mean.......like are you picking up what im putting down! like! AAA! both in-narrative and out of it they are always ALWAYS making each other better (or worse. but worse in a More Interesting Way) but AT WHAT COST!!! he loves his father he would not be the man he is today without his father both in a good and bad way he HATES that these two things are true. faramir and denethor are not foils they're parallels they build each other's characters up when you put them next to each other!! faramir is who denethor wouldve couldve been without the war!! hey hang on a second is denethor who faramir would've become if he were the lord steward during the war of the ring? (this is a little reductive i think faramir's susceptibility to despair is quite different to his father's. and i wonder how long his gentleness would've prevailed / worked side by side with his duty instead of being diametrically opposed to it. but anyway. well i'll be thinking about THAT for the rest of the night. i cannot start another au i cannot i cannot i cannot). anyway you can't get one of them without getting the other and that is all...

man i always say like oh don't get me started on movie faramir and denethor and then the don't think of an elephant effect GETS me and it gets me started. last night i genuinely said like "well i won't get into it" and then three hours later it was 2am and it was so very clear that i had Gotten Into It. i had to tell our other roommate like "tell me when ur going to bed i am talking about denethor and i will be yelling." my roommate just came home and i told her about this post and then i had to explain a detail and she SET ME A THREE MINUTE TIMER bc she was like i have to go study. and that's fair

anyway i hope you are having a good night/day/whatever time it is for you. thank you for this ask it is always fun to see you pop up in my notifs whenever im denethorposting lol

[ciaossu-imagines]

Dunno if i am still on for the "talk to me i feel bad" show but you remember my varia boys right? You remember my oc Ava, Squalos lil brother who may be a lil obsessed?

Yeah i just recently realized that if he was a character in a dating sim two of his bad endings would be related to Squalo. Either the MC becomes a danger to Squalo/hurts him and he cuts them down or just stabs them

OR

they get TOO CLOSE to his brother and Ava ends up slowly (torturingly) choking them to death while saying how much they do not deserve to be by his side bc that is HIS brother and he will be the most important person in his life, fuck you.

Also since I am rewatching reborn, I've had thoughts.

So SOMEONE has to run the varia while the officers and boss arent there during the ring battles, so Squalo (bc xanxus cant be fucking bothered) puts Ser, Lorenzo, Leo and Ava in charge until they are back. Ava is ofc not happy about not being actively there to see his brother fight but ah, he'll take it since they get live transmission on a big screen!

And then Squalos fight occures. First shock: Squalo loses his fight.

Second: he gets eaten by a shark.

And thats when i realized. One of the reasons Dino FUCKING JETS TO CONFIRM SQUALO IS OKAY AND ALIVE would be because

Ava would've lost his mind and likely obliterated the entire remaining Varia. Its not like there are many strong enough to actually stop him when there is NOTHING he has left to lose. Usually he doesnt go unhinged, he doesnt have a reason for it snd as a swordsman he knows to have control over himself and his emotions. But if he loses SQUALO, his ONLY tether to sanity, all bets are off.

So Dino makes sure to save Squalo, not just to find out what actually is going on, or because they are old friends but bc DINO OFC KNOWS AVA, HE IS SQUALOS BROTHER AFTER ALL, THEY MET! and just thinks "FUCK FUCK FUCK FUCK, SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT, I HAVE TO MAKE SURE SQUALO IS ALIVE BEFORE WE GOT A MASSACRE ON HAND!!!"

Meanwhile the situation at HQ is fucking tense as shit. NOBODY dares to say anything or even move at first as they stare at Ava whose eyes are still glued to the static of the screen. Lorenzo, hand slowly to his weapons, is already getting ready to interfere once Ava snaps and Sergey very cautiously just goes

"A-Ava...?"

And then Avas phone rings. He mindlessy takes the call and Dino just loudly blurts

"Ava, he is alive!! We got Squalo and are getting him into medical care right now!"

"Dino...?"

"Yes! Yes, Ava its me! I made sure my men would get a hold of your brother, so you dont need to-- he's alive, okay?!"

"Ah... I see... Thank you, Dino."

Sergey slumps back in his seat, Leo leans against the nearest wall and exhales and Lorenzo relaxes, hands now off his weapons and crossed in front of his chest.

Cavallone better not lie about this, or Ava is going to go for him next.

"Dino." And Avas voice turns cold in a way that is very clearly not very mentaly stable.

"Please make sure that he stays alive and recovers properly."

And for a second everybody tenses again.

"Y-yes of course! Don't worry about that, everything will be allright!!"

The call ends and Sergey feels the cold sweat still on his back.

"Ava, you're fucking terrifying for a 16 year old, you know that?"

--

I just thought its a funny thought. So often the Varia is haled as this organisation of almost superhuman assassins, but it cant just be the main officers and the boss who are absolute maniacs.

You’re still on for that, but gosh the way you put that makes me feel both called out but is so incredibly accurate. I honestly do love how straightforward you are in things and as a person; it’s one of my favourite things about you 😊 Also, oh my good god, can I just say how happy I was to read this and that you sent it in as an ask so all my readers can read about these boys?! The Varia boys honestly have my heart and I adore them!

I love that you thought out what the boys would be like in a dating sim, because that’s just such a cool thought pattern and it’s also something that I love thinking about! It’s just a lot of fun figuring out what the routes would look like for characters, especially people like your Varia boys, where dating definitely isn’t the utmost importance to them and Ava’s bad endings sound heartbreaking and brutal but like things I would playthrough and find cheat guides for just to see them all played out. Also, how goes the rewatch? How far along are you?? Any episodes you were really glad to see again or arcs that you feel aren’t as much your favourites?

Also love your thoughts! The Varia’s missions and base being left to the most elite of the underlings makes perfect sense, especially these boys where they’re all very much trusted by the commanding officers. But at the same time, I feel so bad for Ava because I know he would have killed to be able to be there to see his brother wipe the floor during the Ring Battle and to finally wear the completed Rain Guardian ring…or you know, that’s how everyone figured it would go. All of your thoughts were just so lovely and I had so much fun reading them! Thank you for the smiles and the ‘holy, that’s so interesting’ moments 😊 Also, you write dialogue so well, just saying!

[purplebass]

QUESTIONS okay!

What is your favourite art of Thomastair, Ghostwriter, and Wessa?

Who are your top 5 TSC characters and why?

What's your all time favourite meal?

What's your favourite of your own TSC fics?

Can we have a snippet of a WIP? ❤️

Hey 💜

What is your favourite art of Thomastair, Ghostwriter, and Wessa?

I really love the Thomastair art Sasha Coleman did for CoT with them outside! (And Thomas has freckles too on that one so it's a bonus). I don't have a link because it's not on the artist's IG

I also love @agnes-draws's art of Thomastair with Zachary and little Thomastair 🥹 and a lot of @lekawi's art, esp. the medieval Thomastair piece: https://www.instagram.com/p/CbDjLshrPrN/

My most fave of Ghostwriter is surely this dancing piece by loweana.art because it's ethereal and soft I love realistic style so much! https://www.instagram.com/p/CTfmo_FAAOX/

I also love this by lasq.draws (one of my favorite artists bc of adsom too) https://www.instagram.com/p/CMplzhmJo8f/

Of Wessa I think Charlie Bowater's art for the 2022 TLH calendar it's the best (like I said, I love realistic style a lot!!) https://www.instagram.com/p/CInOWF_HV1-/

Who are your top 5 TSC characters and why?

Well, the first character is Will because he is so deep and he's the first TSC character I've ever liked for longer after I read a book series after years. I love his sense of humor and how he's silly but he is someone who would do anything for the people he loves

Then comes Alastair, who I can relate a lot to because we have a lot of things in common (especially with the past teen me) and we deal with people in a similar manner. We also have a similar familiar situation and Idk when I see Alastair and where he arrived at the end of the series, I have hope that things can get better for me too. I project a lot onto Alastair ehm lol

And on the other side there's Lucie who is like the younger part of me who used to be so excited about life and who has the same hobby I have (writing). I like that she's a bubbly character but she's also fearless and a bit unhinged and that's a part of me I want to find again (the innocent girl)

Then there is Matthew that has a killer fashion style and a great sense of humor and I also project on him. He had an uplifting arc that didn't end tragically (I'm sure another author would've chosen the easy way out) so it was a positive example to me because I am often in a similar spot mentally. So it made me think there is hope

And then let's pretend they are six and not five because I also need to mention Jesse and Thomas. I may not mention it enough but I just love them and they are positive characters to me, comfort characters. Thomas is courageous and he's a little stubborn and he would try to do anything to save the people he loves. And he loves learning languages which is something we often forget!!! I like of Jesse that he's a little arrogant and bookish and that he is reserved. Needles to say I also heavily project on him and I find him relatable as well

What's your all time favourite meal?

Gnocchi for sure <3

What's your favourite of your own TSC fics?

I think Farewell, Farewell. One Kiss and I'll Descend because it was my longest fic and it's a comfort fic

Can we have a snippet of a WIP? ❤️

I don't have any longer wips right now, but I have this piece from a James and Jesse fic where they train together and Jesse confides in James

“I am feeling way better now,” Jesse said after they gathered their things, ready to go back to their rooms to change for dinner. “Thanks for the runes.” “Don’t mention it,” James smiled, but there was still a hint of worry in his golden eyes. “But you should look for help. You could go to the Silent Brothers or if you want privacy, I could call for uncle Jem.”

Thanks for the questions <3

[winderlylandchime]

I actually had QueerAnon as my number 1 podcast omg. Hopefully that tips off Jordan and Randy that they need to get their asses back to recording.

I honestly think the therapist knows about the show. I mean from what my brother has told me about him, the guy is around the same age as my brother and they’ve talked about movies, tv shows and music so I feel like he either knows it since the beginning or went to look it up. But the idea of him not knowing and just knowing my brother will lose his mind when his beloved show is over, is equally funny. I mean my brother vented to him about Brian getting cancer and about Ethan so he’s seen him at his worst throughout this show.

And as for the last few episodes: His plan is to watch them all at once. One after the other. Today. So I hate to report that the ‘straight man watches qaf in the year of our lord 2023’ is officially coming to an end. Do you remember that scene in Finding Nemo when the fishes try to escape from the tank and the starfish says ‘THE TANK IS CLEAN!’? Well he woke up today, walked into the kitchen and quoted the whole scene but changed it a bit, so it was: ‘good morning! Todays the day! The sun is shining, im watching the last episodes and I am finishing the sho- IM WATCHING THE LAST EPISODES!’ He even filmed himself and sent it to our family group chat and to his friends thinking how funny he is and immediately afterwards I got bunch of texts from our cousins, our uncle, our parents and 3 of his friends. And literally every single one of them is worried how he will handle it. My cousins basically said ‘good luck’ (they know how it ends and they also told majority of the family). My uncle is now fully involved (but only for his entertainment purposes) but he does think my brother might experience a mental breakdown after he sees the finale. His husband and him over the weekend watched the finale to try and judge how he will react and according to my uncle when the credits rolled, his husband looked at him and went ‘oh he is soooo fucked.’ And his friends told me that he told them he thinks it will be a happy finale bc no way would anyone do all that and then not make sure they end up happy, together and in love. They even brought up the Iron Man aftermath and im worried they’re right. So heartbreak is inevitable.

I will try my absolute hardest to send updates as soon as we finish the finale. But I apologize in advance if it either ends up being sent really fucking late at night or really fucking early in the morning. I already know I’m gonna be a mess watching the finale (i think I’ve seen it only a handful of times, maybe even less) but i am not ready to witness that first ever heartbreak due to the finale that my brother is only hours away from experiencing. It’s been years since I first saw it and i still remember how much it hurt so rip to the straight man. So who the fuck knows what his reaction will be to literally any of the next 4 episodes but especially the finale.

I'm guessing that the tumblr fandom is responsible for that podcast's listens this year. And I do hope Spotify wrapped sends up the bat signal that they need to make more episodes! C'mon Jordan and Randy!

I agree, it is just as funny for the therapist to think "I have no idea what is going to happen but Brother Anon is so unhinged about this, no matter what, it's going to be a crisis."

RIP to the tag "a straight man watches qaf us 2000 in the year of our lord 2023" after this week. Btw, instant regret for choosing such a long tag but oh well! I'm not even christian! It is NOT the year of my lord... lol.

I'm glad the whole family is aware that this is going to ROUGH (understatement of the year) on your brother. I think having some things to help him immediately will be helpful - an episode of QueerAnon, a bts youtube clip, a favorite fanfic - and maybe letting him know there is a whole group of us cheering him on? Like he's heartbroken but he has friends he never even knew were out there? IDK.

Good luck. Don't worry about what time your messages come in. I have a super busy day tomorrow, so if I don't get to them, that's not a sign of anything. I just have a doctor's appointment (where I will *not* discuss qaf with my doctor) and then a bunch of appointments straight through until night.

Good luck and godspeed dear sweet anon. I have the feeling you're going to need it.

[kusaka6e]

BOYS IN THE BAND

(mha ver) | aot ver | fairy tail ver

band!au

various mha x fem!reader

headcannons about mha characters as hot band member boyfriends <3

sfw

————

bakugou, the drummer

we all know this mf is a menace with a pair of drumsticks in his hand

i think people were so surprised that he got a gf and he hates it LMAOOOO

so many ‘bakugou’s angry ass isn’t single but i am??’ tweets

you were the first person he met that didn’t complain about his abrasive personality and instead you just matched his sarcasm

and just like that he was in love

he is the only person allowed to bully you, if anyone else so much as tries he’s ready to go to jail for what he’d do to them (like the night you had to bail him out because he knocked a reporter out cold during a press conference for speaking negatively about you)

has your initials on his drumsticks for good luck <3

he keeps a separate section on the tour bus for your clothes/supplies for when you’re able to travel with him (he threw kaminari across the bus when denki accidentally used your blanket and now they’re all too scared to touch the drawer)

the boys always joke and say they need you around 24/7 so bakugou will stop yelling

he’s still sarcastic and mean as hell when you’re around but he almost never raises his voice or gets physical, he’s too busy keeping both his hands all over you

he’s super protective of you and has no problem showing anyone and everyone that you’re all his; normally keeps a hand in your back pocket or an arm around you when you two are out in public

he doesn’t sleep too well without you, so when the rest of the band walked onto the tour bus and saw you two cuddled up and KNOCKED out, the pictures they took circulated the internet for months

he’s the epitome of scary dog privilege <33

i like to think he hired kirishima to be security for you when he can’t be with you in person

izuku, the guitarist

he makes you watch shows from backstage so he can’t see you, if he can see you watching him perform he gets the worst stage fright LMFAOOO

sometimes he doesn’t play with a guitar pick on purpose so he can ask you to bandage up the little cuts on his hands from his guitar strings

everyone always knows what color your nails are at any given moment because he always paints his pinkies to match

i think he’d be good at a lot of instruments but guitar is just what he plays for the band; sometimes he’ll come on stage before the actual set with a fkn clarinet or some shit and everyone is like ??? bc he’s still SO GOOD at it

around your birthday, he’ll bring a couple empty cards with him to shows and have fans sign them for you to make sure you get lots of love and appreciation on your special day <3

he gets exhausted staying so positive and upbeat for the sake of his fan base, so ranting/shit talking with you is absolutely one of his favorite pastimes

and it’s SO FUNNY every time oh my god

he has the smartest mouth on the planet like sir where are you keeping all this sass ???

i think it’s easy to forget just how unhinged izuku is so hearing some of the stuff he says about people that get on his nerves never gets old LMFAOOO

bakugou is definitely you two’s gremlin child

he’s typically very nice and personable when you two are out in public and get approached by fans/paparazzi, but he is SO quick to snap on anybody who so much as looks at you the wrong way

todoroki, the bassist

this dense mf

it took him FOREVER to realize that he had feelings for you, and even LONGER to realize you reciprocated those feelings

he was getting so many tweets every day of people telling him to confess to you and he accidentally aired his feelings out for all his fans to see LMFAOOO

you literally had to facetime him like “shoto ??? did your phone get hacked or is this you??”

90% of the fan base stopped trying to hit on him and they all started yelling at him to confess his very obvious crush (and bakugou’s nosy ass was definitely in all their mentions encouraging the chaos)

he really enjoys teaching you how to play the bass, gets so giddy and proud seeing you play :(

his favorite is to sit with you between his legs so he can wrap his arms around you while he shows you which strings to play

100% uses his status to take you on super exclusive dates (shoto is a material girl)

but not in a way that’s like condescending to anyone especially the staff for the places you guys visit

sometimes you’re like “shoto how much did it cost for all this??” or soemthing and he’s like “i’ll get the money back, i just want you to enjoy yourself” <33

sometimes you and the rest of the boys have to practice interviews with him because his blunt ass mouth has gotten him bad press a few times LMFAOOOO

kaminari, the lead singer

he acts like YOU’RE the celebrity in you two’s relationship and it’s the cutest thing

like one time someone interviewing him asked how he felt about all the female attention he was getting and he goes “im getting attention from the hottest girl on the planet, that’s all i care about. have you seen (y/n)?” literally so adorable

he brings you up in every conversation without even realizing it

if you can’t make it to a show he’s talking to all the camera’s on him knowing you’ll see them after the show

“(y/n), baby, when you see this i want you to know this one’s for you, i love you!!”

he’ll jokingly fuss at the boys between songs and be all “can you guys get your shit together? my girl is watching, don’t embarrass me in front of her.”

forces the rest of his band mates to learn your favorite songs so they can surprise you by covering them

has definitely name dropped you in a song named a song after you

you are the only person he’ll let pick out the mics he uses on stage

if you’re artistic he’ll ask you to paint/decorate his mic stand <33

definitely has worn some goofy ass onesie on stage and then brought you out on stage in a matching one to serenade you

bought you a switch so you two can build a minecraft world together even when he’s on the road

[charmixpower]

Rewatching season 1 (and actually paying attention to Sky to figure out what the fuck everyone is talking about): Part 3

EP 11:

"Flora is over doing it, as usual!"

As usual???? We love to hear it

Stella snapping at Bloom than instantly apologizing gives me life

Not Stella's clothes!!

Musa isnt even paying attention jtkwdjje she's too busy lmaooo

Deranged plant mom :))

"ITS ABOUT TIME!!" Tecna is very upset at everyone jtjejr good for her

"Musa??" "Why the fuck would I been in Tecna's closet??"

Tecna: it's alright, I'm fine, I'm chill

Flora: *tells her the plant name*

Tecna: I take it back, I want blood

Tecna taking to her self about how mad she is so amazing

Musa getting up while Bloom Stella and Tecna are arguing to get accidentally yelled at is such background friend behavior

Ever notice how Musa is just kinda there when the girls make group decisions?? Bc I dooo

Stella: I fucking hate mud, why am I here

Bloom: because friendship!!!

Stella: kill me

Stella says she promises she won't wander off, jfkskdke, sure babe

Stella and Musa snipping at eachother my beloved

Musa: so is your outfit. This is a swamp. Not a fashion show

NONE OF YOU PEOPLE ARE WEARING BOOTS

Stella...no brain cells

Flora: *puts her hand over Stella's mouth*

Stella: peace was never an option

Stella is so fucking unhinged. She sees the little water things and says fuck it, and bites Flora

These girls are walking in water with pants on without complaining, unrealistic

"you too big 🥺 we can't invite you in"

STELLA MFJERKWIEJEJEJW "your littleness" girl thinks she's a comedian

Flora is getting so fucking close to these little guys, girlie, back up

Bloom is so ready to help anyone, love her enegry

THESE GIRLS ARE SO DUMB, FLY UP!!!

Love them

DID MUSA GET FUCKING EATEN?!?!?!?!!!?!!

How hasn't she drowned yet???

Tecna: wait.

Tecna: WAIT FUCK GUYS?!

Musa should be coughing up water

Lucius??? Bestie??? How are you doing that

Bloom.....how did you not set this forest on fire

Current s1 thoughts:

Bloom is 80% impulsive passion and 20% angry baby by volume

Tecna is too op /j, who let you have all the brains and the brawn girl? Save some talent for the rest of us

Flora is low key unhinged. Kinda upset that she didn't get to fight the plant monster :(( this could of been her episode

🌟Stella🌟 is that bitch sis ✨

Musa is kinda there in regards to decision making and stuff. She tries to come off as cool but she's hyper emotional and easily scared

EP 12:

Bloom has memories from when she was a baby and I can't even remember what I did yesterday

Fragona is a lying liar!!! *Shakes Winx club* Give me a Griselda character arc or fuck off forever!!!!

Sky will bother Timmy about anything lol

So Flora's doing the evil spell final

Stella doesn't give a fuck about grades, only the local beauty pageant

"what can I do to make you feel sorry for me?" Stella is such a little ktkekdkejsn ya know??

Lucy just needs some self confidence and she'd instantly become hotter, it's about the vibes girl

Stella says rules don't exist

Stormy is annoyed as fuck at this whole party

Why would Lucy even ask Icy and why does Icy care??

Flora and Musa are so fucking ready to help her

"what ever torture you deem necessary, as long as I become the new miss Magixs!"

As someone who's sliced his own finger open and didn't cry, and got his eye brows threaded and had in his eyes. Um, Stella's pain tolerance has to be high as fuck bc beauty shit hurts

*deep sigh* the scene. Skipping. Thank you 4kids dub for changing this

Musa went fucking off putting Stella hair up and curling it, someone get her an award

"yeah but where's the fun if I don't win"

Tecna🤝Stella

Being a sore loser

When Stormy laughs >>>>>

This ultra bubbly cheerleader is a witch and I love her so much y'all

I wonder hole long Lucy has been taking ballet classes

THE FUCKING COWBOY THING

"dance of happiness" SHE DECIDES TO CALL HER YEEHAW DANCE A DANCE OF HAPPINESS I'M LITERALLY SOBBING

Stella: *doing a weird little cow boy dance*

Icy: FUCCCCCK THIS IS AMAZING, WE NEED TO KILL HER NOW

Stella is literally going "Yeehaw!!! Yeehaw!!! Hehehehehe!!!!" And your telling me this is her talent??

Don't you know Stella is too airheaded to notice when she's in mortal danger

Musa is literally dancing in joy for Stella, Musa fans, are you listening???

Stella is literally fucking crying of joy I'm so happy for her

Musa is so ready to celebrate she already fucking forgot about Stella's test I'm sobbing

Stella, babe, you look like shit

Stella can make rain!!!

Wait but she technically passed? The test was to make life on a desolate planet and by God she did...she just fucked up a little. This is at least a passing grade

BUT SHE DID DO THE WORK?! IF SHE DIDNT SHE WOULDN'T OF BEEN ABLE TO MAKE ANY LIFE ON THE PLANET!!

Complaining to your boss rn, give Stella a C or die by my blade

EP 13:

Bloom has finally learned how to capture fire

Awe Mike stopped to say hi to Bloom :)

Alfea's Fall semester starts during Earth summer.....Bloom is currently on Winter break(???) And Mitzi is talking about school so it must be Fall in Gardenia??

Bloom with most people trying to make fun of her (*chough* S1 Riven *chough*) is hyper agressive to the point of (in her opinion) being overly mean

But with Mitzi she still struggles to stand up for herself like she wants to (her arms were shaking hard)

Mitzi: *tries to be a mean girl*

Bloom: i nearly got murdered two weeks ago, I'm not here for it

1) the aura's thing.....yeah ok. Top ten plot points that make no sense and will never be seen again, but more importantly

2) RIVEN?! WITH TITS?! Omg Riven went to Gardena to get top surgery 🥺 good for her good for her

Bloom: OH THESE PEOPLE ARE FUCKING LIARS

Bloom won't even answer why she doesn't like them fjekeje

These two bastards are walking lawsuits

I LOVE HOW ALL DURING BLOOMY'S BREAK SHES HANGING WITH HER FAMILY

Bloom says property damage isn't real

I think most fairys would work in the construction. Like...fixing shit and enchanting magical objects to keep them working. Being a fairy would just be very fancy blue collar work.... amazing

Bloom's parents are great

Bloom has prosthetic dreams????

Mike calling his department then holding his wife

Mike says he will NOT let his child into a burning building alone fjjwjskd

Baby Bloom in the fire...it was love a first sight!!! That baby was gonna get adopted by him and his wife he just knew it!!

Is this guy going to snitch about the magic???

Mike is so quick to help, love that energy

She turned the fire down lmao fjsjdj

This guy's says he won't snitch on the fire lady but he will snitch on his bosses, fuck yeah

Mitzi straight up doesn't have a life

Mike: Hey! Don't make fun of me, I worry about you

Crying in the club yall

I—I don't understand why Mike and Vanessa didn't sit down and tell Bloom this story when they found out she had magic. Like?? Would that not be the time??

We're the too frazzled??

The writers are infecting them

Stella: this chick is a fire fairy

Mike and Vanessa: *PANICK*

Bloom, the only* magical creatures on earth: I'm adopted?!

BLOOMY LOVES HER FAMILY

Bloom was just a little bby

I love how this is a group activity

Tecna and Musa sitting there, while Flora pets Bloom fjjejeekkrr

And Stella is doing her nails jdjeje

Tecna co-signing Flora is amazing

Tecna, realizing that some parents definitely just dumped a baby in the only nonmagical planet with human life: do you really wanna know who your bio parents are????

Bloom: yeah why?

Tecna, to Flora: no one tell her she was abandoned, she'll get issues

Stella: and I'll be right there with you✨✨ after all, sticking my noes in other people's business is my favorite sport!

FRIENDSHIP!! IM SOBBING!!!

EP 14:

LEAVE MIRTA ALONE GRIFFIN

Bloom is apprently taking a combat midterm

AH!!!! BLOOM HAS SAFETY SHORTS!!!!

Very good, thank you Winx club

Fragona looks so threatening, pick me up I'm scared

"the only thing I feel sure of right now is you and the Winx"

Sky, completely missing why this is a bad thing: you need some help?

This is while Sky needs a full time assistant, just to smack him every time he misses something

OH MY FUCKING GOD BLOOM ARE EE BACK ON THIS CLOUD TOWER SHIT??

This girl is so stupid please, last time you figured out it was a prank

Timmy is just down with breaking and entering, love that for him

Sky not looking up: and don't worry "Sky", I will be careful

Brandon glaring at him: Careful my ass. Do you know what will happen to you if you fall 300 ft?? Do you know what will happen to me if you fall 300 ft???

Sky is so weirdly dedicated I love him

Riven is such a weird little gossip, Darcy just has a open line. Do you think he tells her a bunch of useless shit too? Please

....so Riven snitches to Darcy immediately after we cut to Sky picking up Bloom?? I understand why people think this is actually Darcy in disguise now

Wait these two are cute

Lucy is so mean Mirta and for what??? Why the fuck would you call her a loser??? So mean :(((

Lucy is a pick-me MFNSNDNS

The Trix are already going by Trix.... Musa's nickname spread fast

YOU MADE MIRTA CRY, HOW COULD YOU!!!

Mirta says revenge!!!!! Protects her friend!!!! She's trying her best!!!!!

Poor baby Mirta, she needs a cute girlfriend and a hug

THE 3D, PLEASE, ITS SO BAD

Cloud Tower is apparently built like a fucking fortress and for what??

Bloom isn't easily sacred, thats interesting!

Why would cloud tower have this information? A different building would of been fun

"are you sure you wanna do this?" He says, after risking life and limb just to get her there

Oh a lost book? Shouldn't that belong in a secure library or some? Not a highschool? I mean if it was a chollage this would make more sense

Wait...this is fucking Valtor's backstory! They tricked her by making her think she was created like Valtor! Oh thats interesting

Sky looks so uncomfortable and then fucking nothing. No words from Sky. He's just going "THE FUCKING ANCESTRAL WITCHES?? THE ONES THAT KILLED A FULL PLANET OF PEOPLE??? WHAT THE FUCK AM I SUPPOSED TO SAY???" Local man is fucking confused. He does approach her to physically comfort her a couple times but hesitates

Darcy pulling a swap again would of been really fun here tbh, have "Sky" encourage her horrible line of thinking

Musa is so worried about Bloom, scram crying

BLOOM WHY ARE YOU ASLEEP IN A BUSH

She's just walking to Magix's

Mirta is so anxious I love her

Bloom is so friendly and happy to meet Mirta right after thinking she was pure evil, help

Who is your favorite Trix and why is it Stormy?

"Sorry Icy."

Icy = Alpha bitch

Tecna: This is a fucking situation

Flora: WHY ARE YOU JUST STANDING THERE, TRANSFORM

NFKEKDKD THEY TRANSFORMED INTO A POSE AND THEN JUST WALKED AWAY

WHY ARE YOU IN FORMATION WHAT'S GOING ON THIS IS FUCKING AMAZING

They're sharing information!!!!

Stella, practically stimming: Though my sparking beauty and sunny disposition!!!!!!!!!

Stella I love you

Tecna: you done yet? Are you going to do it or what??

Tecna I love you

"I know you'd need my help one of these days!! I'm so beautiful and totally essential!!!"

*points at Stella* symtom!!! SYMTOM!!! HURRY PROJECT ON HER BEFORE SHE GETS AWAY

Mirta: they're a bunch a fucking liars

Bloom: fucking hell, again?

"You two make a really cute couple. Couple of losers!!"

Icy please, Mirta just got out of a multi year relationship, this is not the time

Musa is the only one flying and she looks exhausted, girlie are you ok?

Mirta knows enough about the Winx to make a illusion of them??? I need Mirta with the Winx before this ep now

Darcy fucked up that spell so fast

Stormy and Icy look so pissed that the fell for that illusion

Bloom continues to refuse to transform when she really should

"who's that little girl?" Stella thinks Mirta looks like a middle schooler confirmed

Mirta could of been a bad bitch if they haven't fucking snubbed her

"ohhh she broke my concentration!!"

They all keep calling Mirta a "little girl"

Which implies that Mirta is a freshman?? And their not???

"there's nothing we can do for her. Icy's spell was black magic" wasn't this exact thing on your final???? Except with frogs??

Flora should of been able to break the spell after a few DAYS this is what she took her final on?? Please help me

EP 15:

Musa is so pissed about this pop quiz, she has 6 other fucking classes, she's angry

Bloom gets angry at people laughing at her before upset or scared and then laughs with them when she realizes she has writing on her face

GIVE GIRSELDA A CHARACTER ARC, MAKE HER CHARACTER MORE THAN A ONE NOTE JOKE PLEASE IM BEGGING YOU

Fragona you lying liar!!!

Musa: what kind of fairy are you anyways Flora? You can't even bring Mirta back from her pumpkin state

Flora, sick of it: And you can't even tell a pumpkin from a carrot!!!

Musa: try me.

Musa will get upset/scared and snap at anyone within distance

Mirta snatched Kiko up so quickly jrjekeeke

Daphne is completely ruining Bloom's sleep schedule

"one of the historical Nymphs of Magix's" 16 years ago

The time line is still on fire folks

Daphne was apparently dead so long that her final resting place became a lake

Thank you for finally being helpful Fragona

Sky!!! I will revoke your good guy status!!! Do not test me!!!

why is her phone already glowing? also this isn't the normal phone design is it?

Oh my god it's s1 Riven, someone please save me before I die of second hand embarrassment for this chuckle fuck

Sky and Riven's s1 rivalry would be so much more fun if they were equally jackasses, then they could both have redemption arcs :)) and still fucking hate eachother

I love how Musa plays into Stella's sense of humor some times, things to come when their finally close friends

Flora is team turnips people

CHEATER DORKS, THE LOT OF THEM!!

She's so fucking precious and adorable I'm going to start incoherently sobbing

Musa and Flora are study buddies and I'm objectively correct

Stella: FINALLY A POP QUIZ I ACED

Bloom is getting upset about the parent teacher meeting like her parents can even go though the barrier

[lollytea]

No need to apologise for the derailing loved reading all of it (and as person who tends follow a stream of thoughts i relate)

When it comes to shipping in every fandom the characters / dynamics tend to be simplified for the convince (and bc id be hard to whip out a whole essay about in and out s of their relationship everytime you wanna make a silly joke, but it tends to be so widely and often used that it makes me sometimes think "wait you don t really think that they would act like that right?"But that s something that s just gonna happen ig and who am i to police ppl on jokes🤷

Loved the insignt about his military upbringing and automantically analysing ppl s strenght which i haven t though about but very much agree.

Althought i also think that beside willows powers she has proved to be quite fearless (let s overlook ladybugs / j) especially in front of Hunter where she stood up to Darius and was ready to protect EE with her body. She knew she was gonna lose and that she s weaker than the coven head but that didn t stop her. That s one of the reasons (i think) Hunter recognised fake willow so soon. Because real willow regardless if she s stronger or not overlooks the dangers and focuses on doing everything to save her friends.

And willow + gus being Hunters safe space is so dear to me it s honestly ridiculous

Hopefully after some time in nocedas household he ll have time to relax/heal and be a lil snarky maybe in a form of sibling like banter with luz?

//and back to willow and her strenght there s this hc i have about beta willow. That althought beta universe is way more dangerous/bloody i like to think willow wasn t that much violent there? But unhinged for sure, using plants attacks and refusing to "unspell" them after fight (they are her beloved plants and she s not heartless enough to make them disappear just after bringing them to life) leaving those dangerous creatures (but before the battle she always thinks what kind of flowers would grow the best in this climate/soil etc)

(was the last addition totally off the topic? ... perhaps Is this ask a mess? Very much yes. Sorry!)

I'm happy you liked it!! I appreciate when other people whose thoughts are similarly many but disorganised see my stuff and are like "yeah me too man."

And yeah whenever I make a silly little joke about Huntlow that's not entirely a reflection of how I really see them I always think about that one post that's like "oh no they're gonna think I don't understand themes and narratives!!" But like. I have several essays I can whip out if anyone questions me about it. I am very easily coaxed into writing huntlow essays. Practically dying to at all times. All somebody's gotta do is bring up a specific topic of discussion and their own opinion to get me started and I'll go off the rails.

Willow is SO brave man. And I like to believe that it's character development, going by season 1 where she went into denial over stepping on bones. I think the Eda petrification thing really changed her brain chemistry into understanding that the world they lived in was corrupt and you either gotta learn to protect or get protected.

She's still just a kid tho. You KNOW that deep down she was probably terrified during her confrontation with Darius, especially after it was demonstrated that she was way WAY outmatched in this fight and she hadnt a chance of winning. But she did it anyway because her friends' lives were at stake and somebody had to fight for them. Man Willow is SO cool.

(Something kinda tragic about her eventually giving up and throwing her arms out to shield them and shutting her eyes tight. She thinks she's gonna die protecting them. And it's noble. It really is. But we gotta remember that she blames herself for all of them being in this mess.)

I love this scene a lot because like both the "half-a witch" admissions from earlier, it's a moment between Willow and Hunter where they realize "Oh. You're like me."

They're both brave to a recklessly suicidal extent. They're protectors. They're self sacrificial.

Hunter sees her bravery in this scene and he understands it completely. She was prepared to handle this herself and lose in the process and he begs her to please just let him do it for her. His tone of his voice, the intense eye contact, his use of "Captain" and his plea? He knew she wasn't going to run away unless he begged. It wasn't the kind of person she was.

Hes known her for a DAY!!! But he gets it!!! He fucking gets her!!!!

Of COURSE this was one of the many reasons he realized LR Willow was a fake. After this girl pulled some shit like THAT there is no way she's getting spooked by illusions.

I know Hunter's gonna have some rough times in season 3 but I also know he's not just gonna be angsting the whole time. He's too funny. As much as the crew loves putting him through shit, they also clearly love him in comedic situations. They love Hunter man. You can clearly tell. He's gonna be so snarky he's gonna be so annoying. Hes gonna argue with Luz and probably Gus and maybe even Amity. It's gonna be great.

I'm so excited for s3 Luz and Hunter dynamic. It's coming I know it is. Its gonna be big and everything I ever wanted. Its so interesting to me how, besides Flapjack, Luz is the character Hunter has been the most comfortable around. They just have something special man. They're gonna have their snarky snippy little bickering, I know they will.

Beta stuff isn't really a thing I'm all that interested in. I'm happy people have their fun with the designs and coming up with lore and headcanons for those versions of the characters and the lore but I'm so attached to the canon interpretations that I can't really get invested. But I do love this!! Even in canon itself, I'd love to see Willow be the kind of person who dotes and fawns over her horrifying poison mucus spraying briars or whatever other plants her creatively unhinged little brain conjures up. Like they're her BABIES!!! It makes people uncomfortable but Willow is just so sweet that they don't have the heart to tell her to get rid of them.

[idealisticrealism]

TCL 2x06 recap

Hahahahaahaaaaaaa get ready for more unhinged fangirling (and just so many words omg)

Also thanks so much to those of you who left replies on the previous recaps, I honestly really love seeing them– it’s awesome to know that you guys are actually enjoying my insane ramblings haha. So please keep sharing your thoughts and I’lll keep sharing mine :P

Honestly I am so happy we’re still on the same day as last ep! Though lbr I desperately wish we could have seen what happened between Garrett accepting the deal and Thony getting home– like how did she get home?? Did she drive back to the cleaning storehouse (I’m going to start calling this Cleaning Ladies’ HQ, or CLHQ for short lol) in the truck with Arman and then he dropped her home on his bike??? Or did Garrett insist on driving her home so he could chastise her about her involvement with Arman?? I mean either option would have been great to watch but lbr I would prefer the former lol. But sigh I guess that’s just going to be left to the imagination. But ugh it hurts to see her so upset– she was so steady and brave in the moment while making the deal, but now the reality is setting in, the feeling of once again being caught in a trap. And oooh it wasn’t until she told Fi just now about helping Arman move drugs that I remembered her reaction to Fi’s plan to sell party drugs for Brandon. Feeling like a bit of a hypocrite now, are we Thony?? And maybe a liar, too, considering she tells Fi that Garrett threatened to deport her unless she informed for him again– bc firstly there was zero mention of deportation (I honestly believe that Garrett is done with that threat, and also that he legitimately did actually intend to let Thony go and just take Arman in for the drugs), and secondly, we all know she begged him to agree to her being an informant, in order to keep both herself and Arman safe. But to admit that to Fi would be to reveal even more about the depth of her and Arman’s connection than the events in the motel did (and that was already plenty) and I honestly don’t think Thony is capable of facing that right now.

Ooooh only one person uses the weird kitchen door, which means Hot Detective Flores is back!  Though as much as I like her, she does nothing but cause me stress haha. I‘m glad that the cops seem to have moved on from Thony as a suspect so quickly and easily– unless part of her reason for coming here and telling them about MMM’s disappearance was to see their reaction– but lbr it does look suss that MMM disappeared so soon after a death at his motel (sidenote, him being missing ‘over a week now’ definitely fits with the expected timeline). But aaaaarghhh I was worried that his disappearance would cause the cops to search his apartment and potentially find more videos– honestly, I’m surprised Arman didn’t look at MMM’s license for his address and then find his keys and go to his apartment to search for any sign of the Chris video. Unless maybe he did??? Honestly he’s savvy enough to think of it, and dedicated enough to protecting Thony that he’d absolutely do it. Ok tbh I am adopting the headcanon rn that he actually did go and do all that after disposing of the body, and just didn’t tell Thony bc he didn’t think she needed to know/wanted to let her just forget the whole thing. But anyway tbh it’s kind of funny to hear Flores say reassuringly “We WILL find out how your loved one died” to the three people who were literally present at/involved in his death lol. But also omg Chris how about you don’t yell “they’ll know I did it!!” literally moments after the detective walks out the door??? God you are such a teenager lol. And ok I love Thony’s certainty in saying that that the cops won’t find the body and that “Arman made sure of it”-- but like is that just her having enough trust in him to know he would have taken care of it, or did he actually tell her what he did with the body??? And if so, when??? Doesn’t this show know that I need to be privy to literally every single conversation and interaction between Armony?? C’mon writers be more considerate of a poor fangirl haha

(Also I forget to mention this every single week but I really love the new title screen thing with the soapy water washing away the red from the lettering like it’s washing away blood, leaving the pure white text behind. This show has such style man) 

My thought process as Arman pulls up to the house on his motorbike: ‘oh hey I stood right by that letterbox thing down at the end of the street! Ok wait so these guys didn’t sell the motorbike or  Nadia’s car, despite the severity of their financial issues? Also what is Arman staring at? Is there some kind of evidence that Robert has been at the house?? Omg wait did Nadia throw his stuff out????’ (*literally laughs in delight as the camera pans over his stuff on the ground lol*). Tbh I had fun pausing to check out his various belongings, and while the childhood pic of Adan is cutest, and the squash racquet is hot (I would watch him play that ANY day), the random lamps are definitely my favourite addition. Like are they sentimental lamps?? But anyway oh my goddddd this is a scene I have been hoping for for a long time, and holy shit Eva is legit giving it her all– hell hath no fury indeed. (ngl I’m giggling a little at the fact that she would have had to yell and throw those clothes right into the camera while filming this lol). But omg “What the hell are you doing??” / “What the hell are YOU doing?? I’m doing what I should have done the first time I laid eyes on you with your cleaning lady”-- honestly I love this line, because it is such a great throwback to the moment Nadia first sees them together in 1x02. (I’m ignoring their first scene all together the morning after the party in 1x01, because she was still drunk and didn’t actually see Thony and Arman interact at all; though mannn her 1x01 line “I like her. Give her everything” is particularly impactful now). But in 1x02, Nadia watches as Arman literally drops everything– leaving in the middle of an important meeting with Hayak and Knight– to disappear with a woman he barely knows, when it would have been far easier for him to get one of their guys to take her to the clinic, or even just tell her to go to a hospital instead. And I gotta mention the next time Nadia witnesses them interact as well; in 1x03 where she watches from across the club as Thony gives Luca’s drawing to Arman, and honestly she’s right with what she said– Thony really does look at him like he’s her hero in this moment, while he looks at her with an almost bashful pleasure, which (if Nadia had seen it) she would probably barely recognise, given how rare it must be for him. That was the moment Nadia started to understand something they hadn’t yet seen themselves, and was partly why she brought Thony to the wedding reception with her, to further observe how they would interact. She’s been watching this whole time, and though she’d tried to convince herself that the connection between them didn’t mean anything for her own relationship with Arman (I’m almost certain there was an interview that said Nadia has slept with other women during their marriage, so maybe they’re ~open), the truth is she’s always known that what Thony and Arman have is different. It's real, and she knows it, even if they don't.

Which is exactly why she calls bullshit when he says “There’s nothing going on between Thony and me. You know that!” And gotta say, as much as I love Arman, I kinda call bullshit too. Though while I can imagine some people would say he’s gaslighting her, I actually don’t agree. (“Gaslighting”: to deliberately manipulate someone by psychological means into doubting their own sanity). I think in Arman’s case, he genuinely believes he’s telling the truth, because to him, ‘nothing going on’ means a) he and Thony aren’t sleeping together, and b) that their relationship isn’t going to progress beyond what it is now. He’s aware of his feelings for Thony, and is also aware that she has some kind of feelings for him (even if he doesn’t know exactly how far those feelings extend), and though there is an undeniable pull between them he also knows that there is a line neither of them will cross, one that exists because of Nadia– especially since everything that happened with the prison and the debt, and how much Nadia’s safety and livelihood now depends on him as a result of that. And so that’s what he means with that line– while he and Thony are connected, that connection will never go any further (despite what Nadia clearly believes) as long as he and Nadia are together.  Hence his frustration– she’s accusing him of having the very thing he so desperately wants, but has denied himself ever having. And he genuinely does try to explain what he’s been doing/make her understand about the plan with the drugs, except she won’t let him (damn at the accuracy of her “you’ll take any excuse to be with her” line though, wow), and then just as he’s about to try to convince her of his dedication to her, he sees the ring, and the devious landmine artfully planted by Robert explodes between them. Because while Nadia sees the reality– the inevitability– of Thony and Arman’s connection far better than he does, Arman sees the truth of Robert’s actions better than she does, and that disparity only serves to push them further apart. But omg the way I gasped when she yells “There is no more us!!!” and he just stares at her because he knows her well enough to see the truth, has fought bitterly with her enough times to see that this is different– that this time it might actually be real, that they’ve passed that point of no return and that their marriage is over. He can’t entirely believe it though, doesn’t dare to; because if it’s real, then she has actually just released him from the obligation he has towards her, from the slowly-growing weight of unhappiness that he has been carrying since even before he met Thony. And the irony of it all is that by leaving him, she has given him the freedom to do what he otherwise never would have done– the exact thing she was accusing him of in the first place: be with the woman he loves.  

Okay so Armony are about to have their meet with Garrett to discuss the plan, and honestly I hate when scenes start with both of them already present! Like excuse me I need to know how long they have been waiting and what they have been talking about and how much they have looked at each other etc??? Like did they deliberately arrive earlier than Garrett so they could work out their plan? Have they been texting back and forth since last night trying to figure it out?? No matter how much this show feeds me (and ngl it feeds me well; see the above paragraph for proof lol) I am always going to want more lol. But ugh they have clearly talked it through together and are presenting their little plan as a duo and basically completing each other’s sentences and I love them. But honestly it confuses me a bit that Garrett starts the meeting by asking how they’re going to use Robert to get Cortes, and then only like a minute later he’s signing up for their plan to use Cortes to get Robert?? It just seemed like a sudden and odd priority shift, bc until this moment it seemed like he didn’t care about Robert (despite Robert’s extensive crime-ing) and only saw him as a means to getting Cortes? But tbh I don’t care lol. I just care about this Armony eye contact and the way Arman looked like he wanted to say something before Thony turned and walked away ugh. I’m gonna headcanon that after she gets in the van, he leans against the passenger door and talks to her through the lowered window, maybe arranging a time for them to meet at CLHQ and unpack the drugs from the van? (Also two sidenotes: firstly I’ve never noticed that little semi-bald patch in Arman’s beard over the right side of his jaw– is there a scar there because I would be very into that. And secondly dude I love the leather jacket as much as anyone, trust me, but it is too hot for you to be wearing it all the time! Take it off before you get heatstroke!! …. And while you’re at it, the shirt should probably go too. Just to be safe lol)

“Now that dad’s back in town you guys can get married!” Omg. I cannot describe my love for this scene, firstly for the near parent-trapping, and secondly for the fact that it literally legitimately felt SO real in terms of how a 12 year old would see and react to this situation. Like oh my heart Jazz is so cute and earnest lol, and Fi and JD were so gentle with setting her straight ugh. Bummer about the JD girlfriend, but eh, I’m sure she won’t last haha. I swear the JD and Fi ship (I’m going for “J-Fi” here because I’m lazy lol) is gonna sail by the end of the season– or at least it better, because I love them already ugh

It’s probably ridiculous that it irritates me that Arman changed the money into a different bag? Like why? Though I guess he had to take it all out of the other bag to count it anyway or whatever (also, where did he do that? La Habana??). But ugh yaaaasss that was such a satisfying power move watching him casually drop a ton of money in front of Robert and see Robert be like that meme of the lady who looks confused with all the mathematic equations floating around her lol. (That was terribly described but c’mon, you know the one.)  Honestly I was so happy for Arman here because not only is he a fifth of the way closer to freedom, but he got to show the guy who thinks he has him completely backed into a corner that there is more to him than Robert realises. Robert clearly does not like to feel like he’s been tricked (which is ironic because he’s literally being tricked right now lol) so he immediately goes to Nadia to whine like the spoiled child that he is. I definitely did enjoy Nadia’s face when she learned Arman had paid off so much– yep, he did try to tell you last night, but you wouldn’t listen! Not that that means she wasn’t justified in everything she said last night, bc she was mostly right– there is absolutely 100% something going on with him and Thony– but to be fair to Arman, she’s wrong about what lines they have or haven’t crossed. But even so, his involvement with Thony doesn’t mean he was lying about selling the drugs, or when he said that he was doing this for him and Nadia (aka, for their freedom from Robert). Two things can be true at once Nadia! 

Lol I love seeing Arman putting two relatively small boxes on the stack while in the background Thony is lugging a box off the truck that is practically as big as she is. Girl has got being self-reliant down to an art form. Ngl my brain is still very confused by the ‘how do they have both the money and the drugs in their possession’ question, but whatever, I‘ll roll with it (just like I’m rolling with Thony’s inexplicable outfit change back to what she was wearing at home last night; maybe the blue shirt got dirty between the meet this morning and now?). But who cares about these things when there’s completely unnecessary Armony touching to scream over??? I love that he holds out a hand to help her get down even though she has very clearly been hopping up and down from that van like a lil’ mountain goat all morning unpacking these meds (I also love that his other hand first covered hers on the box for like a split second before she straightened up ugh). But ugh she doesn’t shy away from him or say she’s fine– she just immediately puts her hand in his and lets him help her. Given that stubborn independence and self-reliance (like mentioned above) are some of Thony’s major character traits, I love to see little moments like this, which show that she is learning to accept help from the people that care about her, even when she already knows she could manage alone. (Bc the whole point is that she doesn’t have to anymore).

And so anyway she lets him help her down, and then ughhhhhhh they just… hold on??? And I say they bc honestly while Arman is more overtly deliberate in keeping that contact, it’s not like he’s preventing her from pulling away– his grip is relaxed, and she could have easily slipped her hand out of his the moment she was on solid ground (and without it seeming weird or like she was trying to get away from him), but she didn’t. Instead she just looks up at him, fingers still curled over his and thumb pressing against his skin, and ugh the way he's looking at her??? His fight with Nadia last night had such a feeling of finality to it, and while lbr he doesn't know for sure that she won’t backflip again and take him back when she calms down, he can’t help but let himself have this moment where he isn’t a man torn between obligation to one woman and love for another– he’s just a man looking at the woman he loves, the woman he could finally have a future with. And he shifts closer like he’s being pulled in by the dream of that future, and maybe she is too bc her eyes flick down to his mouth for just a split second– and then it’s like she snaps out of it, like ‘wait shit nope still married' and pulls back, her neck muscles tensing like she’s literally holding her breath??? And then she turns away for all of a second before she’s like  '......unless….…?' lol and turns back to bring up the elephant in the room (or rather, the belongings in the truck haha), aka the signs of the possible dissolution of his marriage??? How uncomfortable must it be for her to acknowledge them, especially when they might actually mean nothing (she's seen the way Arman and Nadia fight, and yet thus far they’ve always still stayed together), or they might mean that things are really over between Arman and Nadia this time, which would open the door for the beginning (lbr, the progression) of something between the two of them??? But despite the awkwardness, it’s more important to her to make sure he’s okay, and ugh the way he steps closer to her again, his eyes on her face and voice all soft as he thanks her…  Never thought I’d say this, but I’m almost glad for the appearance of Robert and Nadia, because oh man I can’t take this tension and all these unspoken truths. Ngl I did have a very brief moment of insanity when she said “If you want–” where I literally thought she was going to offer for him to come stay at her house ahahaha. I love that she did offer him somewhere to stay, though, because she cares about him and wants him to have a roof over his head.  She’s trying to look after him, because that’s what they do for each other; and only a moment later he’s yet again looking after her by telling her to go into the storage room (presumably to have more cover/be closer to the exit on the other side if she needs to run) and ugh the way he puts his hand on his gun, ready to do whatever it takes to keep her safe. Honestly these two and their mutual care and protection of each other are going to be the death of me. 

Anyway ughhh I am SO into this framing of Armony on one side and Nadia and Robert on the other. This is the shift I mentioned in a previous meta, with the Arman/Nadia partnership being severed and the two of them realigning with Thony and Robert (though lbr Arman and Thony were already very much aligned long before this, lol). I also love the framing of the shots inside the storeroom, with Arman behind Thony and his eyes on her rather than on Robert. I appreciate that Robert actually seems fascinated by the discovery of Thony’s actual profession, and the way his gaze flicks to Arman– whose eyes are still focused only on Thony– for confirmation. I also appreciate that he doesn’t actually sound sarcastic when he refers to her as ‘Doctor’; he’d been actually fairly respectful to her the day before, but there’s a new element to it now– maybe it’s that he feels she’s more worthy of respect now that he knows her profession (in which case, he’s a jerk), or maybe it’s just that he realises that he has underestimated the depth to her and is re-evaluating. Honestly I think she has intrigued him from the start and this has only added to that. But aaaaah I love when people who are used to being the one manipulating others– and who see themselves as the untouchable puppetmaster pulling the strings– get played themselves, and damn Armony did an amazing job at having Robert walk right into their trap. Because of course the man who wants to take everything Arman possesses would never be able to resist taking a chunk of his business away from him. (Though seriously, if one of them had been wearing a wire during this interaction, they would have had enough to hand Robert over to the FBI right away… but I guess that would have cut the episode pretty short haha). Anyway I’m so happy that Arman is now free from his deal to work for Robert (of course, so is Nadia, but lbr we all know that working for Robert suited her just fine). But ugh the look Arman gives her after ensuring her freedom from Robert– see, I told you I was doing this for you too– and the expression she’s wearing like she knows there’s more going on here than she understands, but she just can’t see it yet. I love the moment Armony share after Nadia and Robert leave– “You didn’t tell Nadia the plan?” / “No. That’s why it worked.” because a) it just further reiterates that Armony are their own team now and Nadia is not part of that (he literally let his marriage implode rather than defend himself to Nadia and jeopardise the plan), but also b) it’s gotta have Thony wondering what this little business deal will mean for Arman and Nadia’s marriage, and whether Nadia will let him come home now that she realises what he did to get them free of Robert. And while obviously the potential for Arman and Nadia making up is not at all what we want, I want Thony to realise that it’s not what she wants either. 

But ugh of course Arman is immediately thinking about Thony’s safety and trying to convince her that he should go to the meet with Cortes alone– and of course she refuses and insists on coming with him lol. Tbh her argument about being able to answer any questions about the meds is weak (Arman could literally just call her if any came up), and we know the truth, even if she can’t face it herself. Because she’s almost lost Arman twice now– firstly when Hayak blew up his car a month ago and she spent a horrific week thinking he was dead, and then secondly when Hayak had him attacked in the prison (who knows if she’s actually aware of the third time, aka the prison shower showdown)– and both of those near-misses happened at times when they were separated. Since then, she can’t face the idea of him walking into a situation this dangerous on his own, can’t help but be terrified of what might happen to him– so the only (admittedly irrational) way she can control that fear is to be there too. And maybe she’s hoping that Cortes will be less likely to harm Arman if there’s a witness present, especially a woman– after all, her time in Arman’s world has shown her that there is still honour among criminals; and now, for him, she’s staking her life on it.

But anyway okay I’m confused again– why do they need money from the FBI for the drugs? They had no problem buying the drugs before with their limited funds (after all, they’ve said how cheap they are to buy from Mexico), but I guess maybe this time they’re getting way more? Idk. I love that Thony’s mind immediately went to the opportunity to steal from the FBI and take a cut for themselves (I see you’ve learned a few things, haha) and clearly Arman loved it too– ughhhh the way he just stares at her with such wonder and pride, and then abruptly looks away the moment she looks up at him lol. (Sorry, buddy, but not quick enough. She totally saw those heart eyes, but then again, it’s not like you’ve ever been particularly good at hiding them. Unlike her, who is maybe too good at it….)

Omg when did Garrett and Jefferson become such boyfriends???? “I’m an atheist” “sorry Russo, he’s an atheist” / “You’ve got nothing to worry about boss, we got this” and all the giddy little grins? Like geez guys try to be less like completely smitten newlyweds here haha. (Though lbr it’s super cute and I love it). Also my confusion about this entire Robert/Cortes situation continues, because literally last night it seemed like Garrett was going to keep his little teamup with Thony and Arman a secret– like when he said it was a false alarm and turned Jefferson away– but now he’s told the FBI all about it?? I guess maybe he was just waiting to get a clear plan from Thony and Arman that morning before he took it to Russo? Also lol at Russo mentioning Maya having met Thony– you can immediately bet Maya is going to show up at some point, despite Garrett’s assurances lol. Just like the comments about Thony being in danger if Cortes sees the FBI, and Garrett saying that nothing will go wrong. Famous last words lol…

So is La Habana gonna be like a shared custody arrangement, or…? Lol bc apparently rn Arman gets the office overnight and as soon as morning hits, she’s tossing him out. (That little finger click and gesture to get out? That was hot lol). Also I kinda love the clear way we are being shown the division between them, particularly in these shared spaces of theirs. And I love that this scene further reiterates that she was never just the pretty face around the club– they were both equally the pretty face that lured the customers, and the business sharks running the show behind the scenes. But omg, rumpled grumbly Arman all squished onto that too-small couch?? I love it so much haha. But lbr buddy ‘I didn’t have anywhere else to go’ is a lie, Thony made it very clear you were welcome to her bed… ahem, I mean the bed at the clinic. (Shhhh I can dream, lol). Also I will be 100% honest, I definitely stared at his thighs when he threw back the blanket haha, but I was totally just looking for evidence of the scar that should have been there from the explosion in 1x01. I swear :P But anyhow I actually am so happy about this fight, because unlike their fight in front of the house, this isn’t all fire and anger. The things said then could have been put down to heat of the moment, and the writers could have used this scene to have them talk it out and reconcile now that Nadia knows he was telling the truth about the drugs (even if she still doesn’t know the whole story, and she knows that there’s more to it). But instead the same argument is covered again, but with tiredness and resignation rather than furious attacks. ‘What I did was for us, can’t you see that?” / ”No, I can’t see it”-- honestly I feel like when Arman says ‘us’, he doesn’t mean them as a romantic couple; he means both of them, individually. And he has been fighting to free them both, because he cares about her and knows that being near Robert is only going to be bad for her in the long run. (Plus he just hates Robert and can’t stand the thought of Robert feeling like he’s ‘won’ her). But when Nadia hears ‘us’ she takes it to mean their relationship, their connection to each other. Which is why she doesn’t believe he’s fighting for ‘them’. But lbr these two are doomed either way– bc if they remain under the crushing pressure from Robert, they’ll crack under the strain until they shatter apart. And if they get free of Robert and re-establish the level of financial security they had before, then Arman will no longer have the same obligation to protect and provide for her, and he won’t be able to resist the pull towards what he really wants– a life with Thony.

The comment about the ring was interesting though– like whoever puts it on her hand (or more importantly, who she accepts it from) is laying claim to her? Originally it was Arman, but then the ring became Robert’s, and then he gave it to her– and so by her visibly wearing it, it’s now a sign of her connection to/acceptance of him rather than Arman. And lbr she could have put it away somewhere safe or even hocked it when Robert gave it back, but she chose to wear it, even knowing the message it would send to Arman. But ugh the way their voices get all low and he tells her she’s free of Robert, basically implores her not to get caught in his web again, and she holds back tears as she tells him that she knows that what he’s doing is for Thony. The fact that he stops trying to argue against it– he’s accepted that they both know it’s the truth now– and just tries to warn her in the only way he can that being close to Robert is dangerous, that he genuinely is trying to protect her, regardless of the state of their marriage. But ugh the quiet conviction in ‘my safety is not your concern anymore’ and ‘don’t be here when I come back’– we have seen them have many fights by this point, constantly lashing out at each other and pushing each other away, but always coming back to the safety and familiarity of their relationship– but to me, this is the point where their marriage truly ends. After this, I honestly can’t see the writers giving us scenes where they try to come back from this, aka try to ‘make it work’. I think they are definitely going to continue being in each other’s orbit– with La Habana, Robert, the drug business etc, there’s still a lot connecting them– but it will no longer be as a partnership. As allies, maybe, hopefully; but never again as husband and wife. (At least I really, really hope so.)

Omg I am in LOVE with Fi clearly just rolling with the fact that Thony is going to go undercover to meet a drug kingpin (it’s like that John Mulaney quote of “You know those days when you’re like, ‘This might as well happen’” lol), and aw she even goes all in to find her an outfit and make her look the part. Considering Fi has been the one doing most of the freaking out lately, I think it actually helps her (as well as Thony) to take a turn being the strong one, the one who says it’s all going to be okay. Thony’s feeling out of her depth, and so afraid for both Arman and herself– like I said earlier, maybe in the moment when she insisted on coming, she felt that having the two of them there must surely make it safer; as if even a high-level criminal would hesitate before killing two people (especially including a woman) because it doubles the likelihood of someone noticing them missing or knowing where they were last seen. But now she’s terrified that she might be wrong about that, and even more terrified that it might be her messing up somehow that gets them both killed. She insisted on coming because she thought it would protect Arman– but what if it does the opposite? What if he dies because of her?? And ughhh Fi reminds her of how brave and strong she is, and then gives her her ‘armour’ to wear so she can feel the part, and I just love them so much ughhhh. I have said it before that these two are the true centre of the show and I stick by that 

Okay but we were 100% ROBBED of getting to see Arman’s first reaction to Thony in That Outfit. Am I going to fic it? Look, at some point, probably lol. Because you just know that that boy forgot his own damn name for a moment there when he first laid eyes on her. I’m picturing him and Garrett tensely standing at some designated meet point, waiting for her to arrive (maybe there was a bit of final briefing to do or something, idk) and as she pulls up they’re snarking at each other over something, and then when she steps out of the van Arman literally stops talking mid-sentence and just stares. And Garrett makes some teasing comment (like "careful, that puddle of drool will ruin those fancy shoes" or "what's the matter, zebra got your tongue?" Lol) that Arman doesn’t even hear–  he's already walking towards her like he's being drawn by a magnet. Garrett huffs and then follows, then tells Thony that this outfit is much more on the mark than her goth one, but she’s not listening to him either. She’s only looking at Arman, and Garrett rolls his eyes a little and then does some very pointed throat clearing and then is all “Are we going to stand here having a staring competition all day or are we actually going to get this done?” and they snap themselves out of it. But anyway ugh the two of them driving in the caddy looking like that, with that sultry music over the top?? And the line “eye for an eye, heart for a heart, gave you my light, I’ll show you my dark” – like help??? Honestly whoever does the music for this show deserves a goddamn award. I have literally been listening almost solely to playlists of tracks from TCL for months now and I am loving it.  But anyway major kudos to Arman for being able to focus on the road and not on the amount of bare thigh on display in the passenger seat lol; that’s some serious discipline right there. (Though lbr he’s had a lot of practice at trying not to stare at Thony haha, with varying levels of success).

But ugh the way she stays in her seat for a few moments after he gets out of the car, mentally readying herself– and then suddenly he’s there, opening the door for her and holding out a hand to help her onto her feet, and I love the symbolism of him aiding her through this almost as much as I loved the prolonged eye contact and hand holding ugh. The silent reassurance and support in the look he gives her? Help. Honestly I was hoping he’d hold out his arm and she’d take it so they’d walk into the place physically connected, but then it would have made her seem like someone who was more there for decoration than as his equal partner– ugh the power couple vibes were definitely strong. Loved that he continued to check in with her with little looks as they get inside and meet Cortes– also it just further reiterates that invisibility she has when she’s in her cleaning lady persona, considering Cortes saw her literally like 2 days ago in Robert’s office and yet doesn’t recognise her at all. I’ll acknowledge that it’s partly context (even if he thought he recognised her as the cleaning lady he’d seen, his brain would have convinced him that it didn’t make sense for her to be here like this now) but it’s definitely partly that he just didn’t see her, barely even looked at her in the office– even though he’s certainly looking today. This moment definitely highlights the way Arman saw her from the very start, even despite her wearing her cleaning lady invisibility cloak at the time, and it was unfathomable to him that anyone could overlook her. Ugh.  (Also sidenote: hearing Arman say his name with the real accent during their introduction, rather than the Anglicised version, was super hot).  Also omg catch me dying over Cortes saying  “Me, I at least like a date before I jump into bed with someone, if you know what I mean” and the way Armony look at each other as Arman says “We feel exactly the same way.” Bc actually, you guys don’t just like ‘a date’ first, you like to completely entwine your lives and create an unbreakable bond of mutual trust and devotion before you get to the jumping in bed part hahaha. (and while I’m more than happy to wait for that bed part, please god let them it be coming at some point lol). Anyway I love that when they first sit down, he immediately orients his body towards Thony with his arm along the couch behind her, making the distance between them feel smaller ugh. Tbh I was surprised by how quickly their ‘date’ ended; and while he played it cool, Arman was clearly eager to wrap things up and get Thony out of there– and maybe Cortes picked up on that, or maybe not. Either way ugh this is the second time in only a few weeks that Arman has been forced to leave a woman he cares about in the company of a dangerous man; but at least with Nadia and Robert, he knew she was going to be safe. Leaving Thony must have been so much harder for many reasons, and tbh I think if he had seen in her eyes that she couldn’t handle being left behind, he would have done whatever it took to get her out of there with him. But Thony is badass and brave and did what had to be done, and that’s one of the many reasons why he loves her.

(Lol like halfway into the ep and already over 6.5k words. I am a mess. As much as I disapprove of them making Arman disappear for the rest of the ep, I do appreciate that it might be the only thing that saves me from myself haha)

Okay Garrett’s “He left her there” better not have any judgement in it, bc seriously boy you’ve seen how much Arman protects Thony– agreeing to the sting to take down Hayak, arguing for her to be let go when they were caught with the meds, etc– so don’t act like he would just willingly leave her in the clutches of a man like Cortes! Grrr. Anyway I just noticed Garrett is still wearing his wedding ring?? (and that Oliver has a finger tatt, lol). Honestly mate I think you’d be better off giving up on that one… especially since you are clearly not over Maya (wait do I ship it? Oh god maybe a little. gross)

Oh man, forcibly prolonged interactions with strangers are already so awkward, and this is even worse given the whole practically being kept captive thing. Like how much time has passed already? When did they move to sit by the pool?  What have they been talking about? Has he actually asked anything about the drugs, which was her main argument for her being brought along in the first place? (Sidenote: just noticed this actor has forearm tatts that have been covered up, and I think they did the same for the actor playing JD bc I noticed something on his bicep last ep. How rude that they rob me of my chance to be nosy lol). But anyway omg “And how long have you and Arman been together?” / “Just a few months now,” (truth) ”but we’re not together, we’re business partners.” (lie lol). Well I guess it’s not so much a lie as it is not quite the truth. And haha “You could have fooled me” – I love this line because technically they are fooling him rn, but clearly not about their relationship lol. Like seriously, even this aloof criminal who saw them together for like all of five minutes could see what was between them. Ngl everyone can see that there’s something there, including Thony and Arman themselves, but they both refuse to acknowledge it openly because they’re too afraid of what it’ll mean if they do. Because think about it– what if one of them tells the truth about how they feel, and the other chooses not to take their relationship any further? Thony’s all too aware of Arman’s sense of obligation towards Nadia, and Arman’s afraid he’s too much of a liability to be worth the risk to Thony, especially when her family has to come first. And then there’s the even more terrifying option– what if they tell the truth and find that the other wants to be with them too, but then things fall apart later on?? After everything she went through in her relationship with Marco, Thony is afraid to trust someone with her heart (and Luca’s) again, and it would just be so hard to believe that someone used to the kind of upscale, intoxicating life that Arman has led could ever be happy in the simple family life that she has. Meanwhile Arman has always viewed himself as unworthy of her, and is afraid that someday she would realise it and abandon him, like so many others in his life have done. (Isabel, his parents, Hayak, and to an extent, Nadia). And so anyway with all of that, are we really surprised that neither of them will actually step up and say how they feel???  

Wait dude it’s lunch time rn? So this guy has already had two glasses of wine before lunch on a weekday? Sorry bud but I have some professional advice for you regarding the level of your alcohol consumption lol. Also that huge plate of spaghetti and garlic bread is making me wonder how your cholesterol’s looking haha (says the girl who would absolutely demolish that meal given the opportunity lol). But anyway live fast die young I guess lol

Aww I love that Fi called JD! It’s so nice to see her having someone to lean on other than just Thony (who, lbr, is dealing with enough of her own shit) and ugh JD is so steady and kind (and tall. and cute. Have I mentioned lately that I ship it?). Honestly I was so nervous for her when she told him the truth about Chris– the fact that she did shows how close they really must have been when they were together– and his compassion for her made me love him so much. It makes sense that she can trust him about this though; he’d never do anything to hurt Jazz, and having her mother and brother jailed or deported is just about the worst thing he could possibly do to her. And that’s not to mention how much he cares about Fi herself, and Chris too, who he would have been a dad figure to when Chris was only a few years old ugh

And speaking of Chris– oh you foolish boy. You’ve really gone and done it now, putting your face and your name out there. Such a relief that JD got him out of there in time– hopefully they can come up with a plausible excuse for his visit before Flores comes knocking, for example that he came bc he wanted to request that if they found the video of Marco’s death, could they not tell his mom about it because he’s worried that it would hurt her too much to see it. But anyway ugh JD telling Chris he needs to forgive himself for the death he caused– I can imagine that a soldier who spent years at war knows a little about that. As much as I wanted a chance to see Arman bond with Chris, I definitely want to see JD & Chris bonding more (Arman can claim the Hot Uncle role later; let’s work on Hot Husband and Hot Stepdad first lol)

But ugh omg this whole conversation between J-Fi about when they split up and why she didn’t tell him she was undocumented and whether he would have proposed?? Helpp??? I am such a sucker for stories about people who love each other but who are kept apart by circumstances outside of their control– ideally I want the barriers between them resolved pretty quickly (Armony are definitely in this category lol) but I also love those like J-Fi, who get a second chance years later.  So c’mon writers, send the girlfriend on her way and give us the J-Fi we deserve lol

Lol guess who learned something new today? I was all like ‘why does Arman call it Sportsbook when Nadia and Robert both call it Fast Lane??’ –  well fun fact, a sportsbook is an establishment that takes bets on sporting events and pays out winnings. Clearly I am not a gambler or a televised sports enthusiast lol. But anyhow damn, respect to Nadia for dictating the terms of her business arrangement with Robert; she literally rocked up and bossed him around and he practically thanked her for it god I’m starting to get dom/sub vibes here too lol. But anyway Robert makes her feel admired and respected and wanted, whereas lately Arman has (unintentionally) made her feel tolerated rather than appreciated– while he does care for her greatly, I think he holds a subconscious level of resentment towards her, as the thing that stands in the way of what he wants above all else. And she can sense that, even when he’s not aware of it himself. But oooh her expression when Robert commented on the ring and how lovely it looks on her– I think she now sees that Arman was right, and Robert views it as a symbol of her connection to him rather than Arman, proof of him staking his claim. Interested to see what she does with that knowledge– like I said in another meta, I want her to use Robert and then throw him under the bus to take his kingdom right out from under him lol, but I guess I’ll have to wait and see on that one.

The fact that none of the many many guards at this very isolated property have noticed the random car hanging out nearby is a little ridiculous lol. As is the fact that Garrett gets into the compound by sneaking past when their backs are turned– Cortes should definitely fire every one of these goons lol

Ugh Thony looking out the window as if for rescue; makes me think of her “he always shows up when I need him” statement. She knows Arman can’t come for her right now– and in fact, by getting the drug handover done, he is literally doing everything he can to get her her freedom as soon as possible– but she still can’t help but wish for him to appear. And then lol at the ‘well, shit’ expression on her face when Maya walks in. I actually really enjoy the way these two interact, and how they both try to protect the other– Maya by warning her to get out and away from Cortes asap, and Thony by trying to convince her to do the same. Totally in love with the little ‘oh, honey’ look that Thony gives Maya when she learns of her relationship with Garrett; lbr Thony can definitely relate to falling in love with someone she probably shouldn’t have, but at least for her that someone is a man who will literally always put her before himself, which is clearly something Maya didn’t get from Garrett. But while he may be a selfish asshole, Thony knows he really has been trying hard to protect Maya, and that there are good sides to him– certainly far more than Cortes, who is only ever going to hurt her worse and worse until one day she ends up dead. Honestly when Thony said she’d been with someone who hurt her too, I gasped aloud, because I have always believed that Marco (while definitely abusive in multiple other ways) was never physically abusive towards her. I always felt that while Thony accepted/tolerated a certain level of his emotional/financial/social abuse, she would never have tolerated him getting physically violent with her, partly because she has too much fire in her for that, but mainly because she wouldn’t have been able to trust that that violence wouldn’t eventually be turned on Luca, and she could never allow that. So her comment to Maya had me all like omg?!??, and then she added ‘not physically’ and I was just like jesus don’t scare me like that lol. Also later she tells Maya “The way he treats you is not love” and honestly this line says so much. And tbh anyone who judges Thony for ‘cheating’ on Marco– a man who abused her for years and put their son’s health at further risk, and who she could not legally separate herself from/who made it financially almost impossible for her to escape from– can piss right off imo

Anyway omg when Thony had Cortes’ gun to her head ugh… my poor baby deserves all the peace and happiness in the world and yet she gets so much fear and suffering instead. I loved seeing Maya rescue her though, and then Thony immediately trying to rescue her right back– as ever, this show is THE BEST when it comes to women helping other women. And ugh they looked like such a badass duo there facing off against Cortes, Thony staying close by her side and giving her her strength and support. But ugh he did what abusers do and weaseled his way closer until he was almost able to strike– if he’d gotten the gun from Maya, they’d both have been dead in seconds. Which is why I’m pretty much on Garrett’s side when it comes to shooting him tbh; I know that a cop shooting an unarmed man is terrible, but in this context it was the right call, because like I said, he was literally moments from killing them. And to allow one or both of them to be hurt/killed before he could be ‘legally’ taken out is just insane. Damn at Garrett’s trust in his aim though– Cortes and Maya were standing very close– and daaaaaaamn at Thony’s quick thinking (she has learned a few things from being in Arman’s world lol). Honestly so proud of the fact that she did that for Garrett; she and Maya could have just stood there and done nothing, and then told the FBI the truth about what happened– and they would have likely faced no consequences, while Garrett would be hauled away for manslaughter or something (I assume?). But Thony understands that legal and illegal don’t always match up with right and wrong, and she knows that Garrett just saved both of their lives– and so in return, she saves his freedom. It’s going to make their dynamic even more interesting now, and tbh I can’t wait to see more of how they interact and help each other in the future, especially now that he will literally never threaten or blackmail her ever again. 

Anyway, not sure what I’ll be stressing over more between now and next ep– Thony getting caught for her aiding and abetting (because as @enigmaticfox brilliantly pointed out, Thony put the gun in Cortes’ left hand, but we definitely saw earlier that he’s right-handed ugh), or Flores looking into Chris, or the (thankfully unlikely) possibility that Arman had a run-in with Sin Cara when trying to get the drugs and ended up in a world of trouble of his own aaaaahhhh (for once I’m actually tempted to watch the promo for next ep, but nah, I’ll just suffer in suspense instead lol)

Alright that’s all for 2x06, kids. See you in a couple of weeks with a recap which will undoubtedly break 10k based on how quickly things are going downhill with my self control lol