#yeah they’ve got to be parallels surely

[puckeruppetra]

Everytime I think of the admins Xara, Romeo and Fred I think their dynamic would’ve been oh so similar to Petra, Jesse and Lukas. Surely someone has done a swap Au of these guys..

Makes what happens with the admins so much more tragic imagining their relationship like them, Romeo being an odd one out for a while, before becoming arguably the strongest. Xara being adventurous, warrior like and deadly, before showing her more softer side, wanting to protect her friends. Even Fred maybe starting off as a coward before becoming braver, even standing up to Romeo before suffering defeat.

Imagine if Petra and Lukas had to work together to defeat Jesse only to fail, Jesse killing Lukas, whilst Petra having to watch, before being stripped of her powers, every ounce of strength and pride she had before being locked away.

Surely it was intentional but at the end of the day both of these trios were just besties, imagine if these groups swapped paths how different it would be.

[moonagedaydreamsofrhiannon]

IN DEFENSE OF TRAVIS MARTINEZ:

Because I’m sick and tired of seeing travis hate everywhere I go.

“Travis was sexist.”

Did he spout some sexist rhetoric in the beginning of the show? Sure. But it’s important to recognize that: A) he changed, and by season 2 he completely stopped, B) he was a teenage boy in the 1990s, and that kind of rhetoric was normal at the time, C) most of his sexist macho tough guy attitude was a complete act that he likely put on to compensate for his insecurity about his own masculinity, and internalized homophobia. (More on that later.)

(Also let’s be real, Travis is basically one of the girls anyway and I’m tired of pretending he’s not.)

2. “Travis didn’t care about Javi.”

Did we watch the same show??? Granted Travis may have had trouble expressing his feelings (also related to his insecurities about masculinity, likely learned from his father, as well as growing up in a patriarchal and homophobic society), but he cared deeply about Javi. In S1E4, Travis literally DUG UP HIS DAD’S GRAVE, through horror, tears, and vomit, in order to retrieve his ring to give to Javi. When Javi disappeared, Travis kept looking for him every day for months, and never gave up, even when logically it would have seemed impossible for him to still be alive. He comforted and reassured Javi when neither of them drew the card. He cradled Javi’s dead body and ate a bite of his raw heart (which was a metaphor for how much he loved him, and a parallel to Shauna eating Jackie’s raw ear.) Maybe Travis wasn’t always there for Javi in the way he needed, but he absolutely loved him, and it’s important to remember that Travis was also a traumatized, grieving, kid who just lost his dad.

3. “Travis slut-shamed Nat.”

As we are literally shown in the show, Travis was not trying to slut shame her, he asked how many times she had done it because he was embarrassed about the fact that he was a virgin, and worried that she would judge him, or that he wouldn’t measure up because he was more inexperienced than her. When she told him she hooked up with Bobby Farleigh, he did not get mad at her because she slept with another guy (he already knew about that, and was fine with it), he got mad because she hooked up with his bully, and then lied to him about it. I don’t blame Nat for this, she didn’t know about it at the time, and didn’t want him to get mad once she found out, but I also don’t blame Travis for being hurt and embarrassed and upset with her for lying about it.

4. “Travis was just kind of a dick.”

Sure, but so were all of them. He acted like kind of a jerk in the first season. So what? Shauna had an affair with her best friend’s boyfriend, lied to her about it for months, and refused to apologize. Misty tried to drug Coach Ben. Nat faked his brother’s death to him (yeah, she was trying to help him move on, but still not cool). All of them called him “Flex” (y’know, the nickname that was used to bully him for years). None of them are perfect or nice or likable all the time, and that’s ok; that’s the whole point. They’re realistic, complex, flawed, morally gray and sometimes unlikable people. They’ve all done bad things, but nothing Travis did is worse than what anyone else on that show has done. He was a traumatized teen whose dad literally just died. Also, me personally, if everyone around me was constantly calling me the mean nickname that was used to bully me since middle school, I would also probably act like a little bit of a dick.

5. “Travis is a straight man.”

Wrong. (Also not really a valid reason to hate someone… But most importantly, just wrong.)

Travis Martinez is clearly a bisexual.

So many of his issues: the insecurity, the bullying, the macho tough guy act, the whole weird complex about his masculinity, all of it stems (at least partly) from the fact that he’s bisexual and has internalized homophobia. The whole “Flex” thing is just thinly veiled homophobia. The main reason why he got bullied is because Bobby Farleigh spread a rumor about him getting back surgery to better suck his own dick. The unsaid implication there is that he’s a man who sucks dick, which is inherently queer, even if it is his own. If you look even slightly past the most surface level interpretation, it’s pretty obvious that Travis was bullied because of homophobia. His performance of stereotypical toxic masculinity was clearly over compensation for the fact that he doesn’t fit into the box of traditional straight masculinity, and was a reaction to the bullying from his peers, abuse from his dad, and internalized homophobia from growing up in a homophobic and patriarchal society. As the show progresses he starts to unlearn that toxic masculinity and internalized homophobia, and he allows himself to be more vulnerable, emotional, and feminine, and as a result, he becomes stronger, more confident, and more respectful of the people around him.

As for Travis being a man… Is he though???

In season 1, Travis is a man (narratively speaking); there is a clear distinction between Travis/Coach Ben and the girls. However, in season 2, we see a stark shift in how Travis is depicted. The separation between Travis and the girls pretty much ceases to exist. Narratively speaking, there is no distinction made between Travis and the other girls; they are one entity—one hive mind. Instead, the emphasis is now placed on the distinction between Coach Ben and the girls/Travis. When Coach Ben watches the Yellowjackets eat Jackie in horror and disbelief, Travis is right there with them, dressed in ancient greek robes along with the rest of them. In season 2, Coach Ben is the only real Man of the group (Travis has narratively become one of the girls, and Javi is just a boy, not a man) and he is shown staying separate from the rest of the group, and growing more and more uncomfortable with the cultish dynamics, while Travis, on the other hand, becomes more and more integrated with the group, as he falls deeper and deeper into cult beliefs, until he is a full-blown devout Lottie worshipper. Of the three males on the show, he is the only one who actually participates in cannibalism with the other Yellowjackets. Also he lost his virginity to a lesbian.

Whether or not you choose to believe that Travis is transfem (I do) you cannot deny that, at least narratively speaking, Travis is literally just a girl.

6. Travis is a victim.

I don’t know why nobody in this fandom seems to acknowledge this, but Travis is a sexual assault victim and I’m tired of people constantly overlooking and ignoring that fact. In Doomcoming, the girls (excluding Jackie, Nat, Tai, and Van) chased him down, sexually assaulted him, and then tried to kill him. That’s not something that’s up for debate or denial, that is literally canon. Stop pretending it didn’t happen. Stop pretending it wasn’t assault. Stop shaming him and making fun of him for struggling with sex, or not always being able to get it up. That’s a normal trauma response after being assaulted/raped. You guys are literally proving the point. This kind of treatment from society towards masculinity and male victims is just playing into the patriarchy and toxic masculinity, and is exactly what made him act the way he did in season 1 in the first place!

[h0neylevi]

Chapter Two

After a major shift, your life has become a series of monotonous routines. Eat, sleep, go to work, repeat. But when you find a man bleeding on the subway with no idea how he got there, things become anything but ordinary.

General content warnings: isekai/parallel universe, modern AU, mentions of blood and canon-typical violence, some light angst, eventual smut.

chapter warnings: brief discussion of human trafficking

word count: 3.2k

“Where did you find him again?”

“On my way home last night on the subway.”

“... And he was–”

“In the full scout uniform, yeah.”

Your friend and fellow nurse, Allie, pauses in the wake of your words, eyes fixed on the door at the other end of the hall where one of the hospital’s doctors took Levi to be examined.

They’ve been back there for over an hour now, and you’re starting to get nervous. If this goes badly, you’re never going to live it down with your coworkers.

“Is he hot?”

Your jaw hangs when Allie’s words register, and you turn back to her with an incredulous look.

“I told you all that and that’s what you take from it?”

She raises her hands up in a defensive gesture. “I’m just saying, if the universe decided to drop a man into my lap that thought he was Erwin Smith, I would take advantage of the situation.”

That, oddly enough, makes you laugh.

“He isn’t Levi Ackerman,” you say once you’ve calmed down. “He probably just hit his head on the way from a costume party and got confused.”

On the other side of the nurse’s station, Allie groans and gets up. “Where’s your sense of adventure?”

“I’m being realistic,” you defend.

“We see weirder things walk into this hospital every day.”

“I think an anime character come to life would surpass anything we’ve ever seen.”

With a defeated little sigh, she grabs a file and rounds the corner. “Well, whatever he is, I have to get back to work.” She taps the file on your shoulder as she passes. “Have fun with Beyblade. Let me know what Paul says.”

Just as she starts down the corridor, the door at the end of the hall opens and Dr. Paul Holloway exits the exam room. His expression is solemn as he gestures for you to join him.

“Thank you again for doing this on such short notice, Dr. Holloway,” you greet him. “Did you find out anything?”

He looks down for a moment at the clipboard in his hand. “Well, the only thing really to note is that he doesn’t seem to know what year it is or where he is, but all of his tests and scans came back normal. Cognition and reflexes otherwise seem to be just fine.”

He rifles through the pages for a moment before continuing. “There are no drugs in his system, and no significant injuries that I could find that would cause this sort of temporary amnesia, so I would have to refer him out to a specialist if you wanted more answers. But as of now, my only guess could be that maybe he was trafficked and escaped. Possibly in a fugue state for so long that he has no recollection of how he got here.”

You listen intently. That wouldn’t explain the clothes you found him in, but it’s worth considering all the same. Large cities were usually hubs for human trafficking. It’s more likely than Allie’s theory at least.

Dr. Holloway seems to sense your thought process. “He should recover his memories soon, but I would suggest maybe filing a police report. I’m sure he has a family out there somewhere who’s missing him.”

You consider it. “Yeah,” you say, nodding. “I’ll mention it. Thanks again, Dr. Holloway.”

“Of course.”

You wait quietly as he opens the exam room door again and beckons Levi out.

He’s just as passive as ever when he sees you waiting. With a departing nod, Dr. Holloway continues down the hall to another exam room.

“So,” you begin, “how are you feeling?”

“Like a test subject,” Levi grumbles, falling into step with you. “Four-Eyes would love this place.”

You turn to look at him. “Huh?”

“Nothing,” he quickly says. “So, are you satisfied now? I can go?”

You walk through the nearby exit door on the side of the building and onto the street.

“Well, Dr. Holloway didn’t find anything wrong, so I guess you’re welcome to go wherever you like,” you say. “But I really think you should go to the police. I think something really bad has happened to you, Levi. They might be able to help you.”

While you speak, Levi looks around, studying the cars as they pass and the tall buildings.

“Somehow, I doubt that,” he sighs. “I think I’m too far from home to go back.”

The recognition that bleeds through his tone makes you curious. “Do you remember where you’re from?”

“It doesn’t matter.” His mouth twists into a frown. “It’s definitely not around here.”

You want to keep pressing but ultimately decide against it. It isn’t as if it’s any of your business, but you feel a sense of responsibility for his well-being. You were the one who found him, and if you have the means to help him get to where he needs to go, you’d be willing to offer. It isn’t as if you’ve got anything else going on in your life, but you can only do so much when he doesn’t want you to pry into his personal life.

“Well...” you trail off, unsure. “I need to get some groceries but once we get back to my place, I can wash your clothes before you leave. That’ll give you some time to decide what you want to do.”

To your surprise, it doesn’t take him long to agree.

“Okay,” he nods. “Let’s go.”

**

The supermarket isn’t far from your apartment, so you get onto the city metro together. It’s a familiar route to you, but it’s clear that Levi isn’t accustomed to the amount of people that cram themselves together into the narrow space at once.

There aren’t any seats when you climb on, so you’re forced to stand together in one of the corner exits. At the very least, Levi remembers to grab onto one of the handrails just before the train starts moving—an action that he still seems to find disgusting despite the necessity.

“What?” you laugh at his pinched expression.

“I think I preferred it the way it was last night,” he remarks, not doing anything to hide his distaste while looking around. “How often do these things get cleaned?”

You blink. “Uh, I don’t know. Probably only when something seriously hazardous happens. Like blood or puke.”

The look on his face only grows.

“Don’t worry. I have sanitizer in my bag. I can give you some when we get off,” you promise. “I never got rid of the habit from covid.”

The way Levi’s brows furrow suggest that he doesn’t know what either of those things are either, but you just shake your head, wordlessly promising to explain later.

Once you’re off the train and back out onto the street, you move to the side to pull the aforementioned bottle out of your bag. Levi watches quietly until you reach and squeeze some of the liquid into his upturned palm.

He lifts it closer to his face. “What is this?”

“It’s sanitizer,” you say, rubbing your hands together. “Just rub it in like this. It kills the germs on your hands that you can get from touching random surfaces.”

He follows your example, albeit a bit more slowly, and you set off again down the street.

The rest of the walk is done mostly in silence. Thankfully, Levi doesn’t seem to mind. He chooses mostly to walk along beside you, occasionally looking up at skyscrapers as you pass them or balk at the occasional interaction on the street. There’s a sense of wonder and curiosity that settles on his face, smoothing out the stern glare that you’ve seen him wear since you first found him on the metro.

It really is like he’s never seen anything like it before, and you wonder again about his history. He doesn’t seem afraid of anything, merely curious as he walks, and he carries himself confidently. Like a soldier…

No, that was Allie influencing your thoughts. There’s no way this man was the Levi Ackerman. Even if he had his hair, his stature, the same sullen expression, and similar mannerisms to ones you’ve seen in the anime. It’s an impossible thought. You’re not even considering it.

“What are you staring at?”

You blink and realize that he’s looking at you now and holy shit, his eyes are even that shade of blue-grey.

You turn forward again just as a crosswalk changes for you to go. “Nothing,” you say quickly. “You just… remind me of someone.”

He doesn’t reply—most likely because he doesn’t care—but you’re grateful that he doesn’t pay it any mind.

But by the time you’ve entered the supermarket and grabbed a cart, your curiosity outweighs your hesitation.

“Can I ask you something?”

Beside you, Levi scans the produce aisle you’re approaching with passive interest. “That depends.”

Ignoring him, you press forward. “Is there some reason you won’t tell me what’s going on?”

You speak and he turns to look at you, his brows furrowed.

“I mean, it’s pretty obvious that there’s more to what happened than you’re letting on,” you continue. “And I know it’s none of my business, but…”

“You’re right. It is none of your business.”

The comment stings more than you expect, but you try to quickly brush it off. You don’t know this man, and in a matter of an hour or so he’ll be gone. You’d promised yourself that as long as he was healthy, you wouldn’t meddle.

But after everything you’ve done for him, it still feels unfair to treat you so dismissively. He acts like you’re a nuisance more than the person who cleaned him up and gave him a place to sleep out of the cold.

The ensuing silence is tense. You push your cart forward, suddenly eager to get out as quickly as possible. The faster you get home, the quicker he leaves. If that’s what he wants after everything you’ve done, he can have it.

You’re moving through the selection of deli cheeses when Levi speaks up again.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” he says in a low voice. “I wouldn’t believe it myself if I wasn’t witnessing it with my own eyes.”

You look around, following his gaze as it skims over the refrigerated walls of pre-packaged meat and cheese.

“What are you talking about? It’s a grocery store.”

He huffs. “That doctor said the year was 2024.”

You change course, leading the way into an aisle of canned goods. “Yeah?”

It’s quiet for a long moment. Levi’s arms are crossed over his chest as he follows along.

“I don’t know how it happened, but I’m not from here.” He pauses for a moment as you pull some cans from a shelf and place them in your cart. “I’m not from this time.”

You stop for a moment and look at him. On his face is the same look he had the night before, that same sincerity when he told you he’d been looking for some sort of headquarters.

You can’t help it. You chuckle. “You’re talking about time travel.”

“If that’s what you want to call it.”

You continue down the aisle and turn into the next one. “Levi, there’s never been a recorded instance of time travel…ever. It’s never happened.”

Levi rolls his eyes. “See? You don’t believe me.”

“It isn’t about believing you. It’s impossible.”

But even as you say it, you don’t feel entirely convinced that it’s true.

Improbable, sure. Very unlikely. Insane that you’re even considering it, but the more you think about it, the more the pieces seem to fall into place.

The way you found him, his clothes, the way he looks around at everything like he’s seeing it all for the first time. There’s no indication that he has a serious head injury, so you can’t fall back on that anymore. And the trafficking? Well… You’ve been trained to look for red flags, and nothing about his situation seems to fit with that explanation.

Plus, there are the coins you found in the pockets of his clothes this morning. Copper and silver ones bearing symbols you don’t recognize. The silhouette of a woman in a crown.

You’d looked up every conceivable country that you could think of that might fit the bill and nothing had matched.

There’s no way that what he’s saying is true though, right? If you believe him, you’d have to believe all of it—meaning that he is Levi Ackerman and that the events of Attack on Titan are real.

No, that’s silly. In all of recorded history, there’s never been a single event that coincides with the existence of man-eating titans. Belief in giants is a fringe theory not backed by actual evidence.

But, still. Just to humor him.

“What time are you from then?” you ask.

“854.”

You stop and stare at him. “You realize that’s…over a thousand years ago, right?”

With his mouth in a thin line, Levi nods.

You continue to stare, waiting for a break in his composure. The inevitable laugh that will surely come, marking this entire conversation as a joke, but it never comes.

“You’re serious,” you finally say.

Levi blinks. “You believe me?”

God, what do you believe? “I…” You bring your hands to your face. The middle of the pasta aisle is not the place to be weighing the possibility of time travel. “No,” you finally say. “I mean, I don’t know…can you prove it?”

Levi raises a brow. “How am I supposed to prove it to you?”

“I don’t know. You’re the one claiming to be over a thousand years old.”

“I’m not claiming to be—” he cuts himself off with an irritated sigh. “You’re just as bad as the brats back home.”

Something in your patience finally snaps.

You start walking again, needing space. “You know, you could stand to be a bit nicer to me considering all I’ve done for you.”

For a long moment, there’s only the rattling sound of the cart’s wheels as they roll down the aisle.

“I am grateful,” Levi finally says, surprisingly still following next to you. “But I didn’t ask you to interfere.”

“Well, most people wouldn’t have just left a man to bleed all over the metro. I’m sorry I have basic human decency.”

“Basic human decency would have been pointing me in the direction of the nearest sink,” he points out. “You let me sleep on your couch.”

You turn to glare at him. “I’m sorry, are you complaining right now?”

“I’m saying that I don’t like owing people,” he says.

You resist the urge to roll your eyes. “You don’t owe me anything. I would have done the same thing for anyone.”

Levi doesn’t look like he completely believes you, but at least he lets the matter rest. 

He follows you the rest of the way through the store in thoughtful silence.

Left to your own devices, you grab things without thinking, relying on muscle memory to lead you to the items you usually buy. It isn’t as if you deviate much from your favorite meals, so the rest of the process is quick.

By the time you’ve grabbed everything you need, your mood has improved enough that you feel a bit remorseful for doubting him.

Even if it was a weird idea, Levi appeared genuine. Like Dr. Holloway had said, he’d probably regain his memories soon. If he really didn’t remember anything about modern life, he was going to need someone to help him.

Maybe he shouldn’t leave so soon.

It isn’t until you turn around to speak that you realize you’re alone. A quick look around the aisle confirms that Levi’s nowhere to be seen. That’s odd. When had he wandered off?

You begin searching back through the aisles and after a few minutes, you spot him. Standing in front of the long, neat shelves lined with tea and coffee. Something akin to dread settles into your stomach at the sight.

He glances over as you approach and places a box back on the shelf. A beat passes before he clears his throat and says, “I’ve never seen so much tea in one place before.”

“Do you want some?” you ask, glancing at the box he put back—a black tea blend. He doesn’t respond, simply skimming over the labels again with a peculiar glint in his eye.

You don’t wait for an answer and pluck the box off of the shelf. He doesn’t stop you as you place it into your cart.

It’s a truce. An apology and an acknowledgment that you’re helping him all in one.

You turn your cart back around and lead the way toward the front. “I’m all done. Let’s go.”

**

The walk back home isn’t as tense as before, but it isn’t exactly comfortable either.

You keep watching Levi every chance you get. He appears more thoughtful. His gaze lingers just as it always has on the buildings and the people walking past. Cars, billboards, restaurants, all of it.

It’s got to be overwhelming. Not that you're believing him, but if he believes that he isn’t from this time, it has to be a shock to see so many unfamiliar things at once.

“What are you thinking about?” you finally ask.

His expression remains passive as he takes a deep breath, like he’s grounding himself. “Everything just looks so…”

“Artificial?” you supply when he pauses, but the look on his face tells you he’s confused by the word you use. You try again. “Uh, not natural?”

“I was going to say clean.” His voice goes soft as he looks around again. “The air is clean.”

Not sure how to respond, you turn forward and continue down the street.

It doesn’t take much longer to reach your apartment.

Levi helps carry the bags of groceries upstairs and into your kitchen, where he stands awkwardly as you unload everything into their respective spots. Luna, still curious, climbs onto the table nearby, making Levi scowl.

Surprisingly, he doesn’t shoo her away when he decides to take a seat, and he even goes so far as to let her sniff him as he looks out of the window.

You smile when you hear her chirp. A noise that you know she makes when she feels like she’s being ignored.

“You can pet her, you know?” you look over your shoulder to tell him.

He meets you with a bored look. “I know. I don’t want to.”

As if she can understand him, Luna meows again.

After you put the last item away in your fridge, you move to sit at the table across from him.

“So what are you going to do?” you ask.

“I don’t know,” he replies, and for the first time, he sounds truly at a loss.

“Well, you’re welcome to keep staying here for a bit longer,” you say, petting Luna when she slinks over to you. “Until we figure something out.”

His eyes narrow slightly. “We,” he repeats.

You meet his gaze evenly. “Look, I don’t know where you came from or how you got here, but you’re here now and you’re still a human being. As long as you’re open to letting me help, I will.”

He seems to think on it for a moment before agreeing. “There are worse things in the world, I suppose.”

And you think that’s as close to a thank you as you’ll get.

[d3pressed-caffiene-addict]

Hazbin Hotel Ep 5&6 Oh My God (Major Spoilers)

I am having so many thoughts, this is just a brain dump

-LUCIFER. He’s so pathetic I love him

-Jeremy Jordan you fucking legend. I’m a big fan of a lot of his work and was excited to see him in this but I was slightly unsure if he was the right casting since I expected Lucifer to be more of a high and mighty/snobby figure, but with the way they characterised him HE IS PERFECT.

-“TAKE THAT DEPRESSION”

-The Lucifer vs Alastor rivalry is beautiful

-“Ha ha, fuck you.”

-Father figure Alastor

-HIS EARS GO BACK LIKE A CAT WHEN HES ANGRY I CANT

-MIMZY’S ARRIVAL. I know most of us know the lore about her and Alastor being developed as a couple before it was scrapped but I really like how they are in the show

-Even if it’s just crumbs I’m so excited to be getting snippets of Alastor’s lore. It’s wild to keep going back and forth between “aw he actually cares for and protects his friends” and “oh my god he’s a fucking psycho”

-Speaking of that the scene with Husk holy shit. Poor man looked terrified

-The confirmation that Alastor’s also stuck working for someone, it has to be Lilith surely. I know some people will call it predictable because a lot of theories are coming true but personally I think it’s from good worldbuilding/foreshadowing

-ALASTOR IN FULL DEMON FORM JUST ANNIHILATING EVERYONE and then he just goes “Ah that was fun, now back to it”

-I kinda like the parallel between Al and Mimzy & Angel and Cherri where they invite their friends to join them if they want to, even if neither of them take it up initially maybe we’ll see them join the hotel in the future?

-BABY CHARLIE

-I really expected Lucifer to be a dickhead and a shitty dad, but he seems to be an overall better guy than most people in hell

-CHERRI BOMB ARRIVAL! And she’s Aussie now fuck yeah represent

-I still love her and Angel’s friendship even if she is a terrible influence. Everyone’s got that friend who’s solution to a bad day is just self-destruction but they mean well at least

-DARREN CHRIS TOO, THE MUSICAL THEATRE/BROADWAY ACTOR CASTING IS STACKED

-Emily is so sweet I love her

-The Molly cameo is so sweet, I was waiting for her to appear somewhere but lowkey forgot she was in heaven. Honestly though how did she get there when the rest of her and Angel’s family got condemned for what they did together? Maybe she left the mob or something idk I just hope we get to meet her properly at some point

-Heaven’s real fucked up? Yeah not shocked

-VAGGIE?? FALLEN ANGEL REVEAL?? AND SHE WAS AN EXTERMINATOR???? I know most of us called it but holy shit I didn’t expect it to be confirmed this soon

-Adam is such a dick but he’s so much fun

-I love that Charlie was gonna start her court presentation with definitions like a high school essay

-“Consent is a good name for a sex club” the gentleman Husk truthers gonna have fun with this one

-Pentious hitting on Cherri is hilarious and totally not the same level of subtlety I flirt with when I’m drunk

-Hearing more and more about how Val treats Angel is so sad especially with how casually he talks about it since it’s just another day for him

-Him parenting drunk Nifty is beautiful

-“You wanna play with the kitty?”

-Valentino is my #1 enemy

-Seeing Angel stand up to him to protect his friends is making me feel feelings. Like he knows that he’s gonna be treated even worse for it but I think he’s reaching his tipping point and shits gonna go down soon

-Also I know there’s a popular theory that he’s gonna die soon and a lot of the theories are coming true so I am scared. I kind of don’t think this one’ll happen though since he’s the fan favourite and its just too soon to take that much of a risk. Plus Vivsie’s admitted he’s the best written character and it’d be such a waste of all that development

-More sweet moments between him and Husk, they’ve gotten me so invested in this ship so fast

-The fact that most of heaven didn’t know about the extermination?? Wild

-Idk how I feel about the timeskip between Ep 4&5, they’re only a month away from the extermination now. Yes it’s making the stakes feel higher but I do wish we’d been able to see more of that time for the relationship development, all the characters seem much closer than before and we’ve only seen bits of how they got there

-I really wish they’d greenlit more than 8 episodes to pace things a little better but I’m glad we have season 2 confirmed

-That last minute ‘reveal Vaggie’s past to Charlie, boot them out of heaven and then cut to credits before she can react’ is gonna torture me until next week

-I don’t disagree with past criticism that Vivzie’s female characters can feel a bit underwritten but I think it’s getting better

-“We’re coming to the hotel first” plus all the theories that someone’s gonna die are fucking stressing me out man

Anyway hope you enjoy the brain dump, this show has once again consumed my thoughts

[kingofanemptyworld]

hello, this is the same anon who asked about your fave wind breaker arc! (I loved your answer btw, you brought up points I hadn’t thought to consider before!) have you had a chance to read the latest wind breaker chapters yet? I think this next is probably gonna be the beginnings of a Sugishita and Sakura forming a friendship arc and I was wondering what your thoughts were on it? (I love reading your takes and thoughts on the characters in wind breaker.) I feel like, with the direction Sugishita’s character is going, that he’ll likely become a close friend to Sakura in the future, once he learns to adapt to the change going on around him.

hello hello wind breaker anon!! finally had the time and energy to read through 165 and immediately came back to answer this. so, Sugishita and sakura friendship! yeah, absolutely, that’s the direction we’re going in. if sakura’s set to be Umemiya’s successor after graduation (which would fulfill both sakura’s original goal and the new one he’s found, to protect the town and the people he loves), then he needs his Four Kings. Nirei’s not likely to take on that role (I assume his fighting will continue to improve but his skillset is more of an advisor than a general) and so that really just leaves Sugishita of the first years, which means his relationship with sakura needs to improve pretty drastically at some point, and this arc is the perfect set up for that.

we’ve already gotten glimpses of sugishita’s attitude changing — telling sakura that he’s left it all to him, when prior to the noroshi arc Sugishita would’ve abandoned him for Umemiya in a heartbeat — and now we’ve been shown that their situations parallel each other pretty neatly. Sugishita didn’t enjoy fighting but did so because people came after him and he was good at it. but then Umemiya stepped in and broadened his horizons, bringing him into his circle of friends, this safe space he’d only ever had with his grandparents before. he sees Umemiya as his savior, and the town’s savior as well, and it’s so obvious now why he clashes so harshly with sakura from the moment he arrived at furin and declared he’d be taking the top spot. Sugishita admires and loves Umemiya so much, and there’s this upstart kid looking to tear down everything Umemiya’s worked for with no regard for anyone else’s feelings.

but! now sugishita sees sakura in a new light. he’s cool — the same way Umemiya’s cool. dependable, someone worth working alongside. and it’s causing some turmoil for Sugishita because Sakura’s encroaching on the feelings he’s only ever had for Umemiya.

back to the friendship but though. sorry, just needed to set all that up lmao. I do think they’ll come out of this closer than they were before — but not how sakura is with Suo or Nirei, where they’ve very open about much they like him and all that. in fact I’m predicting these two are gonna get in a fight, like, full-on brawl mode. because sugishita is sort of in the same category as togame or endo — not an antagonist, obviously, but words will only get either of them so far, and I think an actual fight is necessary for them to sort out the mixed feelings between them. sakura’s surely got some knots of his own to work out, because I doubt he’s forgotten what Sugishita said to him before and after fighting endo.

does any of that make sense? Sorry it got rambly there and I’m not sure it’s all that… coherent. short version is yes I think they’ll get closer, sugishita’s probably going to have a semi-productive conversation with nirei that’ll lead to a more direct confrontation with sakura, and they’ll air some of their issues out, with sugishita ultimately realizing sakura holds the same values that Umemiya does, and that letting other people in doesn’t diminish the place Umemiya occupies in his world any.

[nortism]

doctor who liveblog pt 40

s8 ep1 deep breath

- 12 is that doctor i predicted would be my favourite before i watched the show so no pressure but i have high expectations

- this is partially bc of my belief that only scottish people should be allowed to play the doctor

- yay a dinosaur great start

- a dinosaur in london?! even better

- MADAME VASTRA EVEN BETTER

- ofc it ate the tardis

- i quite like the new intro

- bro got the scrooge bedtime fit

- men are monkeys

- oh jenny and vastra, i love you jenny and vastra

- be kind vastra, clara is trying her best

- WHO SET THE DINOSAUR ON FIRE

- oh yes victorian fit clara

- oh is he remembering pompeii

- he’s scottish

- uh oh restaurant trap

- oh he’s frankensteining him

- HE IS NOT LEAVING HER WTFF

- noo clara

- YES THE DOCTOR

- YES JENNY AND VASTRA

- omg skin balloon

- oh he straight up killed that guy

- ooo he redecorated

- yeah i’m also not sure i like it

- oh shit officially not your boyfriend zoned

- i like the new fit

- nooo clara

- oh hello eleven

- aww hug

- bro ur always a hugging person be serious

- oh the parallels to nine and rose

- MISSYYYYYYY IVE BEEN SO EXCITED FOR HER !!!!!!!!!

s8 ep2 into the dalek

- accidentally deleted all my liveblogging but my main take away is that the dalek pov shots make me laugh

s8 ep3 robot of sherwood

- very excited for this nottingham representation, i was born there

- karl marx looks a little different in this

- another amazing fit from clara, im glad they’ve decided to go back to dressing the companions up for the past, i thought they’d given up on that after s1 ep3

- this is silly as hell

- this is a good point, nottingham is quite miserable

- the doctor is a real hater

- don’t be magic-ing things on fire in medieval times, you’re going to get burnt at the stake

- uh oh medieval robots

- clara oswald i love you

- they are loving the marx references in this episode

- oh shit drowning in the pot of boiling gold

- that was so much fun

[vinylfoxbooks]

July 15 - Accept | @jegulus-microfic | wc: 1066 Part 11 of Medium!James AU Previous Part | First Part

“My ring broke.” Regulus says as he walks into the Gryffindor dorm, holding the ring that James gave him. 

James hums and sits up, “Can I see it?” Regulus nods and walks over to their bed, sitting on it near them and handing over the ring. They furrow their brows, “That’s…”

“I know, I’ve never had a ring break like that, not even wire ones.”

“How did it break?” Sirius asks, peering at the ring in their hands. 

James shows him with a tilt of their hand, “It broke down the middle. Like the crystal came out of the wrapping and the metal… snapped.” 

“That’s never happened.” Pete says, making the others jump as they figured that he was asleep, “You’ve given me so many of those rings before and only the early ones had the crystals fall from the wrapping.”

“And they’ve never snapped like that.” James shakes their head, “And I wrap them secure… This is weird.”

“So it probably means something.” Regulus hums. 

James nods, “Yeah, but the question is what. I want to have you try scrying but…” they look up, taking a deep breath, “I’m trying to figure out the best way for him to do it.”

“You could always have him do bone scrying.” Pete hums, “You like to do that, and I think it fits the Black family more.”

They nod after a second or two, “Yeah, and I like bone scrying when I’m talking to my spirit guides. Reg, would you be willing to do a scrying session?”

“I’m not good at divination.”

“That’s alright,” James smiles, standing up and walking to their trunk, “You don’t have to be, I can help you with it.” They pull out a small, black velvet bag and a rolled up velvet placemat. They set the objects down on the ground and sit down, groaning. Regulus stands up and joins them on the floor, sitting near them. “I’ve got about 15 bones in this bag,” They say, pulling out a bunch of small-ish bones from the bag and placing them gently on the placemat, “You’re going to take as many as you want, put the others aside, and throw them onto the placemat. You don’t have to do it aggressively, just enough to spread them out a bit, then tell me what shapes you see and I’ll help you figure out what the bones are trying to say. Make sure that, when you throw them, you’re thinking of your question.”

Regulus nods and takes about 8 bones in his hands, allowing James to put the others back in the bag, “So what kind of question should I think of?”

“Something like what the warning is, if there’s someone trying to warn you, or if your spirit guide wants to say something. When we have more of an idea, we can ask a couple more questions.” Regulus nods again and tosses the bones in his hand onto the placemat, watching them settle. When the movement has stopped, James hums, “Now, tell me what shapes you see. Triangles, crosses, just lines, parallel lines, everything. And what question you asked the bones.”

“I asked what the warning was.” Regulus says before pointing at an upside down triangle that he sees, “There’s a triangle, that’s a cross, there’s like a T shape, and that’s just a long bone.” Just now does Regulus notice that there are small markings on the bones. 

“Sitting horizontally.” James nods, “I’ll just tell you what each of these shapes typically represent and you can draw your own conclusions. Just use your intuition. Your first gut is the correct one.” They wait until Regulus nods his understanding before they start listing off the shapes, “An upside down triangle means influence or something shrinking away and the sigils on the bone mean childhood, family, and power. A cross means that there’s a strong wish and the bones in it are my love and passion bones, A t-shape means that the top bone, which is the woman bone, is blocking the vertical one, another love one. And a lone bone sitting horizontally typically means some sort of feminine energy, and it’s another power sigil. Does any of that make sense?” 

Regulus thinks for a while before he hears Sirius gasp behind him, “Oh shit.”

“What?” He asks, turning to his brother.

Sirius stands up and walks towards them, crouching down by the placemat. He holds his hand over the triangle, “Mother’s power over you is shrinking.” He moves his hand to the cross, “You’ve got a strong wish for love, platonic, familial, romantic, or whatever.” Then he points to the t-shape, “Mother is stopping your ability to love, and…” then he moves his hand to the lone bone, “Mother is going to do something.”

“Like show up to the train station.” Regulus concludes, looking up at Sirius, “She’s going to be there to make sure that I’m actually at Hogwarts and not going somewhere over the holidays. She refuses to accept that I'm actually planning to stay at Hogwarts.”

“Shit.” Pete swears, “That’ll be an issue.”

“Not if we give him the cloak before we get off the train station. With enough chaos I doubt anyone would notice the cloak as long as we get around carefully.” Remus hums, “I know that you don’t like bringing it when you leave on holidays, but…”

James nods, “It might be our best bet to get him safely off the train.” 

“Wait,” Regulus interrupts, “What cloak?”

“I have an invisibility cloak.” James explains.

“You have an invisibility cloak?” Regulus asks once again, “Is that how you guys get around the school without getting caught?”

“That and another thing.” Sirius shrugs, “But that’s its own can of worms.”

“Either way,” James interjects, “We’ll need to bring the cloak so Regulus can get off the train without running into Walburga. Reg, you’ll have to tell your friends about it, which I’m sure they know that you’re going with us, just in case she asks them since if she’s going to be there, she’ll want to catch you in a lie.”

Remus nods, “And before we get off the train, you’ll have to come to our room so you can get off with us and we can give you the cloak without anybody finding out about it.”

Regulus nods, “I can do that. I’ll… I’ll talk to my friends tonight.”

Next Part

[love-that-we-were-in]

Call An Ambulance... But Not For Me

Luke teaches Percy to drive. Well, kind of.

A/N: this is just some silly goofy while i work through writers block. i MIGHT come back to it. also it's a mortal au so there's that :)

Luke doesn’t know how he got dragged into this. Well, he does. It was very simple actually - he needed money, Annabeth’s friend had a reputation no one wanted to deal with when it came to putting him behind the wheel and a third secret motive he refuses to acknowledge that happened to be back in town for the first time all year. 

He’s not nervous. 

There’s nothing to worry about with Percy Jackson. He’s known the kid since he was twelve, sitting on the floor outside the classroom when there was a perfectly good chair next to him. He’s a good kid – maybe not the brightest or most polite – but good. A great friend, for sure, or Annabeth wouldn’t still be attached. Luke knows what Percy can be like and he knows his car will be perfectly safe, even if he’s in the passenger seat for once. 

“We’re just going to take it slow,” is the first thing he tells Percy, even before the kid has his seatbelt on. “I want you to talk me through everything on the console.”

“Luke, I’ve been behind the wheel before,” Percy laughs, but he does as asked. Indicator, wipers, handbrake. Two and ten. Accelerate, brake, clutch. He knows it all. “Am I allowed to drive now?”

“I had to be sure, okay.”

Percy looks at him like he knows exactly why he’s here. He forgets, sometimes, that they’ve grown up while he’s become an adult. Annabeth and Percy. They’ve learnt more while he’s been gone, become more if he listens to the rumor mill (he’s waiting for Annabeth to tell him herself) and Percy’s always been people-focused. Luke wouldn’t be shocked if the kid knew more about him than anyone.

“I’m not going to crash your car.” Percy turns the ignition on, finally. “Have you got any CDs?” 

“Drive in silence. No distractions.” 

It goes well. He was expecting worse, the way everyone was talking about Percy’s history in his drivers ed class. But it’s fine. They stop at red lights and go at green. He checks his mirrors. He goes the speed limit – there’s moments where Luke can see him itching to press the pedal down further, to go faster, but he doesn’t so it’s a win – and they can make conversation while he does it all. 

Why this was such a big deal to Sally and Annabeth, he doesn’t know. The kid is a fine driver. Luke has no doubt he’ll pass his test (or the actual driving part at least) and he’s only slightly put out that he won’t have to do it a few more times to get Percy up to scratch. 

“Can you parallel park yet?” 

“Do I look like I can parallel park?” Percy answers and it’s the same tone Luke’s heard him use a million times before, the one that says ‘I absolutely did that thing I’m in trouble for but you can’t prove it', so he waits. “I’ve managed it a couple times, yeah.” 

“Wanna give it a go now?” 

They’re almost at Percy’s, the other end of town from where they started, and they’re both safe and calm. Some would call that a huge success. He’s pretty sure Annabeth will call it the bare minimum. They’re pretty much the same thing. 

Luke relaxes into the passenger seat as Percy pulls in front of an empty space. The road is practically empty, he can see maybe three people on the street total. It’s a perfect time to parallel park. He can happily tell Sally that her son will pass his test in a few weeks and pretend it doesn’t suck that he won’t have an excuse to swing by the Jacksons house every week.

It takes him a second to notice Percy mumbling to himself. 

“You okay, buddy?” 

Percy nods and it’s the first time Luke has really seen him concentrate on what he’s doing. There’s an intensity he doesn’t normally carry, a set to his shoulders and fingers tight on the wheel, and Luke sits up a little more. He’s not worried, not after how smooth the drive so far has been, but he’ll match Percy’s energy a little bit more. 

He thinks, somewhere in the back of his mind, that if he’d let the boy play music, he would’ve turnt it down right now. 

“You’ve got time, Percy,” is what he says instead of giving advice. Honestly, he’s not sure what advice he could give until the kid told him what he was nervous about exactly. He’s not actually a driving instructor after all. “Take a breath.” 

He does. 

And another. 

“I’m going to start now.” Percy says and Luke nods. Then he says “okay” because he realizes Percy is looking determinedly at the windshield. 

Forward. Turn the wheel. Reverse. Turn the wheel. 

Luke watches as he makes every move, breathing deeply with each one. He sits in silence, at ease. Finally, finally, Percy starts to relax as he slowly, so slowly, inches his way into the space. A couple more minutes and he’ll be home free. 

Maybe Luke can offer to help him master his parking instead of calling it quits completely. 

Then, just as Percy lets out all of his breath, calmer all of a sudden, he presses down on the accelerator. Just slightly too much. 

A jolt (the hood bashes against the door of another car), the sound of a horn (it takes Luke a moment to realise it’s Percy who’s pressing it, holding it down with his elbow and glaring, and another moment to slap his arm and make it stop) and he squints.

“Did you just crash into your sister?” 

Percy gulps. “Do you think she’ll know it was me if we just leave?” 

Luke sighs. 

“Lesson number two. What to do when you get into an accident.”

[gaybd1]

please ramble about wuko

Wow I mean I’ve probably said this all before but okay

I especially love how they come from entirely different worlds, complete opposites actually, like I think that’s so beautiful and they definitely had to like get over their own judgments and biases and prejudices of each other but also in their own ways they’ve had incredibly difficult lives full of responsibility they shouldn’t have had to take on. I’m sure there’s trauma there as well from both of them losing family members. They bond over that but also they GET EACH OTHER in ways it’s really hard for anyone else to do

I definitely didn’t see at first actually the first several times I watched because Mako hates that guy, right?? Though the more I watched the more I could see Wu obviously having feelings for Mako, like I DID recognize Wu as fruity the minute I saw that little twink

Also gotta admit that I ALWAYS found that recap episode of them in the gym talking about Mako’s exes…. Really pretty gay

Anyway I guess what sold me on it was when I got to understand Mako’s character and personality better. Like he shows love by protecting those closest to him and HELLO?? And the way he worries about him and… yeah. He’s just a grumpy guy but he DOES love that twink

Knowing that, watching the show, the parallels between Korrasami and Wuko are BLINDING, AND it’s WAY gayer in the comics which ALSO makes sense bc the comics were allowed to BE gayer

Like Wuko is def an Intentional Subtext Canon Relationship and that’s what I love about it lol

Wow what else

I love how we see their relationship progress through the show (and comics) and how they get more comfortable around each other like in public. It’s so cute how important it is to Mako that the Krew likes Wu and you can see how Wu starts to fit in more and we get a general vibe that he’s accepted in the group

They’re just… so great and like. Mako deserves to be happy

[cal-daisies-and-briars]

The other theme for this week is the Buddie-Bobby stories! Such wonderful dynamics that you always ace! (And yes 🧟 is here even though Buddie-Bobby isn’t the focus but it’s definitely got that element to it and I did warn you the themes were gonna start to be a bit stretched)

❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️ (I’m really loving this one! The Charlie characterization is so fun and so is his connection with Eddie! It’s already such a fun parallel to Eddie’s relationship with Bobby and I’m already so pumped to see how it all plays out when everything comes to light!)

🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒🚒 (first of all I’m laughing at how long it’s taken to get to the fire truck emoji :p but mostly I’m excited to see where this one goes! I’m sure it’ll be another fabulous addition to your epic collection of Buck-Bobby stories!)

🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟🧟 (oooh Buddie developments! We love to see that! Also WHO’S AT THE LIBRARY?!?! They should know I will fight to protect my fire-fam and their post-apocalyptic haven!)

As always thank you for sharing! You’re a gem!

- PCA <3

Oh love this theme, too!

48 for ❄️ (THANK YOU! I am loving writing it):

---

“He just never said his name, so… I should have put the pieces together.”

“It’s a hell of a coincidence,” Buck says. “I don’t blame you for not even going there, you know?”

Eddie shrugs. “This is all my fault. He wouldn’t have… If this goes badly for Bobby, it’s my fault.”

“I don’t see how that could be true,” Buck says.

“We had this stupid deal,” Eddie groans. 

“What deal?” 

Eddie is teetering dangerously close to an edge he won’t be able to pull himself back over. He needs to be careful. But he feels a little unhinged. 

“I was pressuring him to fix things with his brother,” Eddie explains. “He said he would do it if I… If I addressed something hard in my life. But I didn’t have the nerve.”

“Christopher?” Buck asks. 

“No,” Eddie shakes his head. “I would never make a deal about that. That’s… I have to do it.”

“Okay, so then what?” Buck presses. 

There’s a little edge to his voice. Eddie doesn’t know why. He’s been so gentle about everything else. 

“I…” Eddie struggles. “I can’t tell you.” 

Buck’s face does something strange. Eddie watches the emotions and processing pass over it. Eyes widening. Brows furrowing. Jaw tightening. And then, Eddie realizes. 

Buck understands.

He gets it. 

They’ve always been able to read each other just a little too well. 

“Buck,” Eddie pleads. 

“It’s okay,” Buck says. “I… I won’t… I’ll shut up now.”

“I’m so sorry,” Eddie blabbers. “I’m sorry. It’s so unfair, it’s-”

---

30 for 🚒 (yeah can't promise I won't re-use this emoji eventually....):

---

“You’d really rather be with Tommy?” Bobby asks. “That’s a serious consideration?”

“I thought you liked Tommy,” Buck avoids the question. “You told me you liked Tommy for me. Remember?”

“Yes, I do remember saying that,” Bobby concedes. “My information has now changed. I like Eddie for you better.” 

This is crazy. It’s crazy that they’re discussing this. Like it’s, what? Within the realm of possibility? Something Buck is allowed to consider? Allowed to want? Buck can’t… He’s not supposed to.

“Are you assessing this fairly?” Buck asks.

“What?” Bobby asks. 

“A-are you, like, really thinking about what’s best for me? Or-or are you just on Team Eddie?”

Bobby scowls a little. “What is this? Twilight?”

Buck goes a little red.

“Of course I am thinking about what’s best for you, Buck! Believe it or not, I spend more time thinking about that than for the average employee.”

Oh. 

---

57 for 🧟 (You will find out the answer to that soon!):

---

“Christopher,” Maddie says. “Christopher knows Morse Code.”

“Isn’t the boy seven?” Athena asks. 

“Eddie taught him,” Maddie explains. “That’s how they found Evan’s radio transmission. They were listening and translating.”

“Sounds like our best bet,” Bobby shrugs. 

Athena doesn’t have time to second-guess that assessment.

“Okay,” she says. “Here’s what we do.”

▪️▪️▪️

Not even five minutes later, Hen and Athena walk out of the library with a strip of white cloth waving above their head. A white flag of surrender. Or maybe a message that says, we come in peace. 

Except they don’t. Not really. 

The man in the passenger seat leans over to kill the engine, then gets out of the car. He’s carrying his big, stupid automatic weapon forward like a sort of threat. They might be approaching him in surrender, but he wants them to know he could kill them anyway. 

“We don’t want trouble!” Athena calls. “We’re a peaceful settlement! Just trying to get by!”

As if she speaks for them. She knows she doesn’t. Obviously. But she’s a bit more comfy in a standoff than Hen, and Bobby is busy hooking up that radio. 

“Neither do we,” the man says. “No trouble here.”

“Sounds like we can come to some sort of an agreement, then,” Athena cautions. “Wouldn’t you say?”

The man smiles. He is probably what many would call traditionally handsome. Large, broad. A strong chin. Bright blue eyes and full lips. But somehow, when he smiles, Athena thinks he looks smarmy.

“I think we can,” he says. 

“Why are you here?” Hen asks. Her voice is very tight. She’s not playing the game as well. 

The man smirks. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed. Maybe not, shut up here… But there’s a change coming. The zombies are dying.”

Athena nods. “We’ve heard rumors.”

And she’s seen it for herself. She’s not going to say that though. 

“Fear has been king for almost a year,” the man says. “It’s time for a new leader.”

“You?” Athena asks. 

“Us,” the man replies. 

[the-penguinspy]

Beatrice touches her wrist before jogging across the field to Mary. Camila tracks her retreating back before settling her gaze on Ava, eyes sharp and eyebrow arched, and Ava tries not to squirm under the attention. 

“You and Beatrice are pretty chummy these days, huh?” 

Ava bites down on her bottom lip, but her pleased smile slips through anyway. She hopes that Camila is kind enough not to give her shit for it. 

“Yeah, for sure! We’ve been spending a lot of time together,” Ava says. “That trusty mentor-mentee relationship has got us joined at the hip, you know?” She tucks her hands in the back pockets of her jeans and wills her body language to read as ‘relaxed’. 

The truth is, Ava has noticed a change between them. With Beatrice’s patient coaching and her own eagerness to learn, the past few weeks that they’ve spent together has made them more comfortable existing in each other’s spaces. Once jarring, their initial stilted politeness and tentative trust has smoothed over into something more solid, more substantial.

She’ll be in the kitchen putting the finishing touches on their sandwiches, will turn around to reach for the utensil drawer only to come face-to-face with Beatrice, proffered knife in hand – handle towards Ava, the knife’s centre of mass perfectly balanced on a pivot between thumb and forefinger. Blade aligned parallel to the tendons of her wrist, over the delta of veins that run underneath; the edge of serrated teeth resting on skin that Ava knows, from experience, is yielding and soft. 

So yes, Ava has noticed. She’s about to open her mouth to explain how, exactly, things have changed, but the muscles in her jaw work to overcome the urge to do so.

The fiery fierceness in her chest makes Ava realize that she doesn’t want to share, doesn’t want to divulge this interaction of theirs. With no witnesses aside from themselves, the memory seems sacred, something to be kept between them; to be absorbed under her skin and into her bloodstream, for her heart to pump it throughout her body, distribute it through arteries and networks of capillaries to every muscle, every organ, until the essence of it has been smoothed over and replicated by each cell. Until each part of her body has accepted it - a new and regulated baseline for what is good. 

She settles for something more neutral. 

“Yeah, I guess so.”

[girl4music]

Healthy codependency.

That’s a really good way of putting it.

I often talk about how codependency depicted in this show is bad or negative surrounding the characters of Willow, Riley and even Xander. But codependency in itself is not bad or negative. There is heathy versions just as there are unhealthy versions. And yes, despite how much I can’t stand the way the Scoobies treat Buffy sometimes, she’s definitely better off with them in her life than without them. And vice versa of course.

The main problem I have with Season 7 is really how they don’t consider this even half as much as they used to even though it’s the season where they need to work as a team the most. I mean the ‘father figure’ starts to act like your average Council Watcher again and a lot is taken away from Buffy and Giles’ dynamic because of it. The intelligent nerdy girl and best friend is suffering with her own self-control issues and therefore can’t be as useful as she probably wants to be to the Slayer. Plus their relationship is in shambles following the events of Season 6 and doesn’t get properly reconciled. It’s sort of just skimmed over as a “necessary” requirement to the final plot. And as for Xander… well… perpetual victim mode is just something that never really seems to change for him and as for how that informs his relationship with Buffy… well, let’s just say he deserved to say what he did in ‘Empty Places’ as much as I hate that episode.

I don’t know. They’re all just sort of ‘Scooby Gang but less’ in this final season. They’re so distant and empty. It’s not enjoyable to watch. It’s frustrating because everything just feels forced rather than natural. The organically built significant character interaction just isn’t there between really any of the main characters and because they bring in a load of other characters (the potentials) that may be the focus of the season but don’t really get proper development either, it all plays out like one big chaotic mess. But not like the way it does with Season 6 - which the point is for it to play out like one big chaotic mess for the sake of the main character’s representation and development (both negative and positive). In other words: it feels unintentional and therefore unnecessary. Like the writers didn’t know what they wanted to do but because it was the season to end off the entire show, just did what they thought might be entertaining and compelling but, to me, ended up being anything but.

Yeah, Buffy is one of the greatest superheroines ever. But only when they they knew what they were doing. And I’m not convinced they always did. Still, it’s a hell of a lot better than what we get today with female superheroines - which as you’ve pointed out - may as well be cardboard cut outs given the lack of emotional vulnerability they display on screen.

You’ve got to hand it to Gellar - she definitely knew how to portray a very relatable and human superheroine. And you can see how she was stronger for it, not weaker. That is indeed the problem with depiction of “feminism” on TV today. Which is why I just turn it off. It is not inspiring or motivating to watch. It’s fucking insulting. Well-written characters have layers… depth… nuance. They fluctuate because real people fluctuate. They’re flawed because real people are flawed. Females characters in particular get shafted of all of this characterisation because it’s “feminism” written by people who don’t know or understand how important keeping the balance is.

Sure most of it is because of how she’s written. But Gellar understood the assignment. I just wish they ended the show the way they began it. As a family. You have the parallel shots of Buffy, Willow and Xander walking off side by side together and Giles staying behind and making a witty comment about how “the Earth is doomed” with this rag-tag lot in ‘The Harvest’ and ‘Chosen’ which is meant to be as a tribute to how far they’ve come but that they’re still the same as they always were and it just doesn’t land in the same way because of how much they’re NOT “together” in it. Other people might think that that’s a satisfying conclusion to a wonderful character-driven saga but I don’t feel it because it’s contrived. I like the idea. I like the message. I just don’t like the execution of it all.

[rainsparks29]

Overanalysing Mela's Ace

Last night I wound up thinking about Mela’s rematch team, and specifically her ace, Armarouge. Overanalysing has let me gain a deeper appreciation of her character, and I wanna ramble about it here a little.

In the Starfall Street story, Mela is visited by a Charcadet nicknamed Charlos who she used to play with at the academy. She was close enough with him that, a year and a half later, she still recognises him and can tell what he’s thinking just by watching his flame. Mela also trains other Charcadet, and we know she evolved multiple to power the Starmobiles.

It’s safe to say that Mela has an affinity with the Charcadet line, or at the very least, the game draws a connection between her and the line more than it does with most other trainers and specific Pokémon.

Yet, despite this, Mela’s initial team only consists of Torkoal and her Starmobile. There’s a strange absence of Charcadet for someone who is largely characterised as ‘angry Charcadet girl’. But it’s actually really clear as to why when you look at her rematch team.

Mela’s ace is an Armarouge. This, on its own, doesn’t sound very notable. It’s a fire-type, a gen 9 Pokémon (every Team Star boss bar Penny has a new Pokémon as their ace), fits her colour scheme… No problem. But what makes this interesting is that her ace is not a Pokémon she had on her team previously.

In every other rematch, the boss’ ace is a Pokémon (or evolved form) that they used during the story. Even Giacomo, who, like Mela, only has one regular Pokémon on his initial team - Pawniard - evolves it and has Kingambit as his ace. (Side note - it has Defiant, not Supreme Overlord, which is really funny to me. As though they purposefully nerfed him because he’d always send it out last. The reverse Geeta.)

Anyway, that implies their aces are all Pokémon they’ve known for a long time, and love and trust most of any of their team. It would imply Mela knew her Armarouge longer than other new additions to her team, despite not having a Charcadet on her initial team…

Her Armarouge is Charlos. And it’s all but intentional, too. Why else wouldn’t she have a Charcadet in her first battle, if not solely to show us the Armarouge she eventually uses is not some random Pokémon she already owned, but the very one who tracked her down because it was worried about her? Mela went back to school, reunited with Charlos, and added him to her team. It’s adorable.

Now, I’m sure some people are reading this and thinking, well, yeah, that’s obvious. Which is fair enough. But I’ve got a little more to say. Because Charlos is a Charcadet in the story, and Charcadet has two evolutions. It’s a split evolution depending on whether you use the Malicious (intending or intended to do harm) or Auspicious (conducive to success) Armor.

Ceruledge’s Violet entry: An old set of armor steeped in grudges caused this Pokémon’s evolution. Ceruledge cuts its enemies to pieces without mercy.

Armarouge’s Scarlet entry: Armarouge evolved through the use of a set of armor that belonged to a distinguished warrior. This Pokémon is incredibly loyal.

Mela uses an Armarouge in both versions, despite no major character using a Ceruledge on their team. Which makes me ask, why? Why not change based on the version, or have both on her team, if she’s so heavily associated with the Charcadet line?

Well, if Charcadet evolve based on the emotions imbued into the items you use…

Mela has an Armarouge, not a Ceruledge, because post-game, she’s grown and changed. Her anger and attitude were a defence mechanism against the bullying she faced, but she’s in a better position now. She’s letting go of old grudges and resentment that define Ceruledge and instead embracing being a strong trainer and loyal friend. 

As a character so closely linked with the Charcadet line, the traits of both evolutions have strong parallels with Mela - until the post-game, where she only has an Armarouge, because she’s in a better place, and she’s healing.

Or maybe a Gamefreak employee just thought the colour palette suited her better. Who knows.

[heartstringsduet]

Larkspur for the flower prompts, pleeeeeeeeaaaaaase :)))

Thanks dearyyy. <3 Flower Language Writing Prompt - I'm always taking prompt requests for this. Might want to make it a Flower Bouquet drabble series. 💐 And might challenge myself to make it mostly fluff.

Larkspur. Open heart, levity, lightness, fickleness. - The first time I made you laugh

A sound shakes TK. His ears still ring and his muscles hum from the bellowed, so clearly enunciated HA-HA-HA coming from Carlos. TK’s not the same after. He’s pretty sure the world isn’t the same after. It must stop to listen; then go the tiniest, near imperceptible bit brighter each time the deep belly laugh of Carlos echoes over its surface. 

TK thought he had probably seen Carlos laugh before. They’ve been meeting for a few weeks now. He now knows he was wrong. He would have known, would have been a changed man for longer if he had. 

After this earthshaking laugh, Carlos’ eyes squint and twinkle at him, the corners of his mouth still twitch and he shakes his head just a bit. Carlos laughed. And seems close to doing it again as if it isn’t the most wonderful but lethal weapon in his arsenal. Carlos. Laughed.

And over something so silly, too.

Standing side by side in the bathroom, the morning after he stayed over for the first time, TK faced his mirror image. His eyes roamed from kiss swollen lips to the bite marks on his collarbone, to the tonal difference of Carlos’ skin next to his. Eventually, his gaze got stuck on a large map of creases all over the left side of his face. 

Lines like wrinkles. Parallel , but uneven stripes.

Tilting his face further into the light and slowly running a finger over his pillow creased skin, TK had said, “Well, no wonder you called me tiger the other night.”

Carlos' forehead wrinkled in confusion at first, but then he took in the crease stripes on TK’s cheek and laughed until it echoed off the bathroom tiles.

“Really?” TK asks, trying hard to stay tethered to earth after it was shaken. “You think that was funny?”

“What? You don’t?” Carlos’ smile still blinds him and he has to look away. “You just made that joke.”

“Yeah, but -” TK trails off, shaking his head with a serene smile of his own.

He doesn’t want to ruin this moment. His chest is so full, it might split him and he will leak emotions all over Austin. The husk that remains would float up, after, but Carlos' hand holds his securely. What TK wants to say is, yes, people chuckle when he makes his silly jokes. That’s why he makes them. But it’s never truly at the jokes, is it? It’s always at TK. At him, for making what are clearly unfunny puns or jokes. The roll-your-eyes kind of snort, that downturned half-smile, is what he aims for and receives. And TK likes that. Making people happy, even at his own expense, feels good.

But…Carlos laughs at his jokes. Carlos, somewhat serious, dry humored, pensive Carlos laughs at his jokes.

TK won’t ever ask but in that moment, he wonders if Carlos loves him. He dismisses it instantly. It’s too early for that. They barely know each other. But that thought returns like an echo for how light this thoughtful man becomes around TK. How he near skips through the apartment, on the brink of laughter constantly now that it’s been uttered once. The most unfunny thing cracks Carlos back up for the rest of the day they spend together after TK suddenly felt unable to leave.

And each time, Carlos’ laugh, their joined laugh, turns the world turns just a bit brighter.

[paintingformike]

I got really curious after one of your latest posts about your thoughts on bi mike vs gay mike. what's your main evidence for bi mike?

personally, I was a bi mike truther until I started my latest st rewatch a week ago. I always thought that mike had a genuine crush on el in season 1 but this time I noticed that mike didn't really show any romantic interest in her until lucas pointed out that mike likes el. before that, it was just mike being his friendly and caring self. and idk, every romantic moment between them seemed so forced to me, like mike was just doing what he thought he was supposed to be doing. and yeah, that whole dialogue before their first kiss was also weird. I haven't started season 3 yet, so maybe there will be some moments that'll show that mike is bi but for now, my only evidence of him being bi is byler/rockie parallels because vickie is clearly meant to be bi. I'm just so confused now, honestly, because I was so sure that mike is bi before this rewatch lol

sorry if some of these sentences don't make sense, my English is really bad...

nooo anon dont worry about your english, you’re perfectly understandable! to me personally i do see them portraying mike having genuine (but shallow) feelings for el via the inherently romantic tropes applied to them in s1-s2 (getting interrupted, the tiny bit of tension between them and all that), but that’s it, and the way i interpreted the painting plotline also makes me believe he had a shallow infatuation for el, but i’ve read a lot of gay mike analyses that have made me reconsider my stances on his sexuality and the byler storyline.

the byler/rockie parallels are also strong evidence of bi mike (and byler getting together in general) but it’s not really enough for me to discount the possibility of gay mike in the show considering a lot of points that make me believe they might go that route are narrative choices for his character. one example being the way he only showed interest in el after it was pointed out to him by other people, like you said, the stark contrast in how they make lucas and dustin show interest in multiple women but little to nothing from mike in comparison, they’ve also made him mirror will in this aspect (the way they both react to max in s2 compared to lucas and dustin).

season 3 was the most “i’m just doing what i think i’m supposed to do in typical het romantic relationships” season for mike because...he really was just being coached around by lucas constantly, looking totally clueless without him and most of his actions just him trying to adhere to societal expectations like getting his girlfriend a gift (?) and just. not initiating anything himself out of genuine love for el, he really needed a third party to hold his hand through navigating his relationship 😭 also the byler fight in s4 and how he said “thats because shes my girlfriend will” emphasizing the status of their relationship instead of saying something more genuine like el being important to him so obviously he’d write her letters...the majority of it was just him putting up a performance.

tbh he can still be bi and conforming to whats considered “normal” and thats what i was always firm in, but it can also be that they’re trying to portray how he really has no clue how to act when it comes to girls because he just feels no attraction to them. like the reason he needs his hand held through his relationship with a girl is because as a gay man it was never meant for him from the start, and the reason he can’t tell her he loves her is because...it was always impossible for him to feel anything towards her. he didn’t realize it at first (he wasn’t even sure of the difference between platonic and romantic before they kissed) but by s4 he was fully aware he only felt platonic care for el and was scared of losing her if he was honest about his true feelings (which explains the desert heart to heart he had with will.)

the duffers (or any other person from the writer’s room) have watched shows that portrayed internalized homophobia and characters that dated women while being cloested gay men, such as dawson’s creek and eyewitness, so that’s another factor that makes me think they could be writing mike to be gay because they’ve already gotten ideas of what it’s like, they’re not completely clueless. anyway this got too long (sorry anon i got carried away asjdksj) but the bottomline is i think both bi and gay mike have equal chances of being canon and are strong contenders in their own right, and while i used to think they wouldn’t explicitly confirm his sexuality, i realized they basically have to because they also need to clarify in the plot the true nature of mike’s feelings for el throughout their relationship and if he ever really loved her or felt attracted to her, it goes hand in hand with his sexuality arc and they can’t really just brush this over without leaving some kind of gaping hole in the storyline. mike’s gonna have to express how he really felt about el throughout their relationship so yeah...those are my two cents 👍

[my-mt-heart]

hi mt.

i’ve been reading your posts recently and you’ve been pretty critical towards zabel. as someone who’s watching the show i can’t disagree, there is much i don’t like, but you seem absolutely sure he isn’t acquainted with the original show (and even more so with caryl’s story), but whilst that’s true in terms of daryl’s character, i can’t really say about caryl.

what i mean is, he seems to have done his homework, or at least a part of it: the daryl we see in the spin-off reminds me of the way he was in the first seasons, when he didn’t really trust the group or anyone around him. sure it feels real far from the character he’s grown into during the last seasons, but maybe they thought it’d make sense for him to act the same way in this somehow similar context?

and this brings me to the next point, caryl. if you watch carefully, the hints are all there: episode 1, the flashback, episode 2 daryl blows up some tanks of gas in a way that any diehard twd fan will immediately associate with carol’s terminus scene. and we know there’s another more important flashback of carol and sophia coming up, and for that they even had to do specific casting and everything. Daryl now even carries a knife identical to carol’s signature weapon.

so maybe zabel did do his research? and if not, who do you think is responsible for these tiny details inserted here and there? is it all some sort of shipbaiting to keep caryl fans interested despite all the shit they’ve had thrown their way?

We can assume Zabel read scripts from the first few seasons because on the page, Daryl's scars are first described as cigarette burns and when asked about them in the spinoff, Daryl says his "daddy was a smoker." But that makes me wonder if Zabel only realized when the time came to look at reference photos that the burns never actually made it on screen in the main show, and that's why they're suddenly plain as day in the pilot. Why doesn’t Daryl have the bullet scar on his chest? We see it in 10x07, so did Zabel not watch that far? Does he not know Daryl got shot in S6/S7? Does he not realize Norman’s newer tattoos were visible in S11 and didn’t need covering up? (Side note: if you are going to make the choice to cover them up, make sure they’re consistently covered up 🤦‍♀️)

If the intention was for Daryl to revert back to the "fish out of water" he was in the early seasons, then yes, Zabel would probably have to watch at least parts of those seasons to get a sense of his voice. Fwiw, I think that’s an odd decision because that's not the version of Daryl most fans were drawn to. It was the nuances he started to show during and after the Cherokee rose scene with Carol. I suspect Zabel was following the mandate to “reset” the character, but at the same time, he still should’ve been 💯familiar with the source material. That’s doing the bare minimum, so I don’t excuse him for cutting corners if that’s what he did, and there seem to be too many inconsistencies to prove otherwise.

I also don't doubt he and/or the other writers watched pivotal Caryl scenes because, yes, the parallels are there like you said. Whether they were always intended to set up Caryl’s arc or initially just evoke the same emotions for another character/relationship, well 😒 Keep in mind that contrary to what will inevitably be spun, it was not known from the start that Melissa would come back. Yeah, there's the flashback in the pilot, and Daryl looking at the photo of the Irish man with his wife and daughter, and the Irish man's V.O., but those may not have ever been in the script, they could've just been decided on in post. I can’t be sure, but the point I’m driving at is, if Zabel didn't know he had to set up Carol's return for a good long while, honoring her character and Caryl’s relationship wouldn’t have been his first priority. His fist priority would’ve been the characters he could actually write for. I’m not suggesting he maliciously gave away Caryl’s arc. AMC on the other hand tends to assume women are interchangeable and if one character mirrors our favorite, we'll grow to like that character for the same reasons. Remember Maggie’s jacket that we all said looked like Carol’s? 🤷🏻‍♀️

Obviously we know that Carol is coming back now and at some point Zabel would’ve had to start writing to that which he could’ve done by retroactively adding small bread crumbs in the first half like the flashback, maybe some lines of dialogue, or anything else that wouldn’t have required massive rewrites (or more rewrites than there already were). So if something feels shoehorned in or contradictory (I know people were talking about the scene where Daryl tells Laurent he has “nothing like” a wife and kids), that could definitely be why. Not saying all of this to rain on anyone’s parade. If the small moments bring you comfort, please do take them. After all the “parallels” throughout the Leah arc went absolutely nowhere though, I would personally much rather wait until we get the real deal i.e. an explicit Caryl arc before I bother to watch.

I’ve definitely written too much for someone who’s not watching and I’m trying to wait a few more weeks before I elaborate on anything, but since you asked, I hope this gives you a better sense of where my head is at right now.