#you were shown why they were the bad guys still even if they themselves didn't believe it

[foulfirerebel]

So my head tried to put this together.

In other words, or TL;DR: I agree and expanded my thoughts under the read more for people that want to read it and spoilers for everything involved here.

Ahsoka: Has Baylon Skol and Shin, two darksiders. Baylon is well spoken, but very clearly a darksider. If the narrative is trying to get me to agee with diet Kreia and his associate, then that's a fail because he doesn't say anything of substance. The less said about the Anakin apologia, the better.

Mando S3: Has the entire episode dedicated to the cloning doctor guy. Tries to end on a "The NR is exactly like the Empire, just with steps removed". It's stupid and doesn't work, but that's just me. The Acolyte: Many people like @nateofgreat and @short-wooloo have made the case for that one being put here. When the creator doesn't believe in the concept of good and evil in Star Wars, yet goes on to (as far as what my mutuals have said), make the Jedi look evil and the controlling witch cult/coven look good...? Yeah, no.

Tales of the Jedi: I rather think Dooku was someone that needed his ego and temper checked, but somehow I'm meant to see that the dude who would go on to literally start the Clone War somehow in some way has a point because he got passed up on a promotion? Also that BS with Anakin and Ahsoka's "training" in episode 5 can go straight to hell. I know @david-talks-sw and @gffa have a lot more to say then I do.

Tales of the Empire: Morgan Elsbeth is not an interesting character to me and never will be. I felt bad seeing the slaughter of the Nightsisters, but that evaporated upon seeing her fully embrace the Imperial lifestyle. Barris' parts were the good parts to me, and that showed just how awful the Inquisitors were.

Other than those examples, I can't think of anymore from stuff like Obi-Wan Kenobi, The Bad Batch, Visions, The High Republic, Andor, nor Jedi Fallen Order or Survivor. Please inform me if there's anymore.

And do correct me if I've gotten anything wrong. It's been a hot minute since I watched all of those and haven't seen The Acolyte at all.

is it just me, or is anyone else sick of all the new SW shows being about how the space fascists have a point, actually? 😑

[magicalmanhattanproject]

Bad's Choice Is His Own

Badboyhalo family guy death pose dot jpeg. Now what?

I've seen a couple posts already talking about how Bad has been cast out of Heaven by a cruel, harsh, judging Father with impossible standards whom Bad is now rejecting because his own love as a Father is greater than that Father's love for him and like I don't want to say anyone else's read is wrong, but it's not what I saw at all.

So, let's talk about what we all saw. First, the scales.

[ID: Towering gold scales, level. Nothing on either side. End ID]

To one side of the scales, the gates. We know from Bad's dialogue these have been chained every other time he has died.

[ID: Towering grey gates, framed in gold with gold handles. End ID]

Then, on the other side of the scales, the way back to Earth.

[ID: Small passageway framed in gold and black with flames at the base. End ID]

The first thing that really struck me about this scene is that the scales were empty and level. With the ankh on Bad's back, the first thing I thought of was Ancient Egyptian religion, where the heart of the dead would be weighed against a feather and only those whose hearts were lighter would be allowed to pass.

This doesn't happen. Nor does anything else touch the scales nor do they ever come off level. There are no other voices besides Bad's in this scene, nor any indication that he is hearing anyone except himself. He is making guesses about what is going based on the environment, but he has nothing but the environment to confirm his guesses.

There is no one else here to sit in judgement against Bad.

So what are the scales for then?

Well, there's one other line that references weighing to me, if not quite directly, it still stuck out to me.

"Why are you cutting my happiness in half?"

In half. Two sides of his happiness, each with equal weight, each set on one side of the scales, which stand equal.

I don't think Bad is being punished by being forced to choose. I think he's in a truly brutal position and being gifted the chance to choose for himself.

How many fallen angels who claw their way back to heaven would hesitate? How many of them want anything besides to fling open the gates back home? How many of them manage to teach themselves to endure the light again for any reason other than true longing and desire for the light itself? For them, there is no need for a choice. The scales weight towards Heaven and they have no reason to even glance behind.

But not Bad. It's not God cutting his happiness in half. It's just the fact that his happiness didn't come from God. It came from his children. Half his heart is on Heaven half is on Earth.

I don't think the gates will be closed to him again unless he really beefs it this time around. He's shown that he loves. He's shown that his love is enough to carry him home. But it's enough to build him a new home too, a home from which it would be cruel to wrench him away. Either choice would have been correct. The scales weigh level.

But, Bad doesn't know this. He only knows that his heart has been split in half but his children need him.

[hellodragonkit]

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Opinions and Points.

SPOILERS... obviously.

Ok I watched the movie, and ... some things that are my own personal thoughts and possible points I noticed. And some things I have seen others point out to where this is just my over all opinion and its kinda long.

The backstory lets not forget beetle is a unreliable narrator as proven by the first movie as Julliard and Harvard did not exist while he was alive, and unless he was possessing someone when they graduated its unlikely he said the truth. - so I don't think he gave us the full backstory. Maybe yes he did marry her, but given he never dies on screen and previously stated point. I just find it hard to believe that he drank a poison then had enough strength to chop her up as much as she was, if it was actually effecting him. i find it far more possible he had already been poisoned so often he was immune at that point. and was just pissed his new wife tried to do him in. Also in first movie it was suggested with the red mark he hung himself... maybe he tried to take over the death cult and had to do himself in for a quicker death?

the Newspapper. Yes it did say people were falsely accused of offing themselves at death, I think this was to help clear up the plot hole that would have been with Astrid's dad. And maybe be a red haring for Beetle. Next few points are BeetleBabes related so if you don't like the ship, please move on.

He gave her autonomy in his power. During the therapist scene when he "sewn" her mouth shut, it was less truly sewn and more duct taped. She had the ability to remove it, yeah he had it stick long enough for a gag, but not much more. He didn't force her.

The Contract and Nullification of it. Beetle wrote the contract, and he worked as a dead con man for years, he knew the handbook inside and out. He wrote up the contract for Lydia to sign and save her daughter, knowing there was a Massive Loop hole. even blowing a hole in the "back door" of the Neither to insure the loop hole was as big as it could be the second he had her sign, obviously with a bit of theatrics for both signing and explosions. But would we expect anything else from him?

Delia calling him: when Delia died, she called him asking to go to Lyd's wedding. He did so no questions no strings. Any other deal he always asked for something in return but for Lyd's step mom he didn't charge a dime, possibly because he felt Lyds would be upset if she missed it, and didn't get to say good bye.

Rory Beetle obviously didn't like him, could tell he was scamming Lyds, and yeah he probably could have sent him off but instead had to prove to Lydia why that guy was bad, hence why he used truth serum. He need to make sure she wouldn't go back to that guy once he was gone again. It was even hinted he heard her talking in the graveyard rushing to the church that she was not ready to marry.

He planed to go away. His song at the end, was not one of love and togetherness. MacArthur Park is more of loss and remorse. He was saying Goodbye to Lydia! Not permanently anyway

He set up sending away Deloris and helped the contract become Null When Deloris burst in through the door, the wind didn't effect Lydia, or Beetle, or Delia but the book slid to Astrid as easily as it had moved away, He moved it to her, conveniently on the page to summon sand-worms and how to brake the contract.

He stalled for the cops I find it funny how in the first movie he summoned a Man of the cloth and the guests. But this time he had both, and unlike the first time he wasn't rushing... he took his time to sing a whole song and to let the Neither cops show up, possibly also baiting Deloris to take care of her but I'm still not sure on that bit. ether way He had won, he had Lydia, the pastor, and guests. But instead he did a song and dance, a song that I already pointed out was one more of goodbye.

He let Lydia send him away. Beetle loves to make a entrance, he also may love to make a exit. he has also shown he can silence someone for just saying his name once. But instead of silencing her or taking over her voice as he had before. He started a dramatic plea, showing her he was getting sent away, showing her he was going to let her send him off.

The ending given the fact he may have over heard about Rory, And all the other notes, he could probably see Lydia wasn't wanting marriage at that time. But I also feel... he just likes the chase. What fun would it be if the Coyote already caught the road runner? he didn't mind her sending him away, because it means he could keep trying to get her to call him willingly. Over all this is just my ramblings that I don't have any friends irl who may appreciate them or be able to properly counter lol And if you made it this far thank you. And I hope you liked the movie as much as I did.

[bibibbon]

I don't think a lot of Aizawa stans realize or care about how all-take-and-no-give his relationships with Mic and Midnight are.

I read somewhere that Mic and Oboro were friends longer than either of them had known Aizawa, and Aizawa's over here acting like only he lost him. Mic canonically put his own grief on the back burner to be there for Aizawa, and how is he thanked? By constantly being told to shut up and being belittled.

Midnight (maybe?) gave Aizawa the teaching position at UA to help with his grief. Now, she shouldn't have done that, especially since Aizawa had made it clear that he didn't want to teach, but he could have put his foot down and not taken the position! Instead, he makes an ass of himself to everyone around him - his students in particular. In a setting where common sense exists, this would give Midnight a bad look, but you know Aizawa doesn't care about that. He doesn't even seem to care that Midnight DIED, though that's mostly due to her death being purely for shock value 🙄.

Again, in a setting where common sense exists, Mic and Midnight would have called him out on his bullshit a long time ago and probably would have asked themselves, "why are we still friends with this guy?" It's especially upsetting, since he's compared to Kakashi so much. Kakashi has plenty of his own issues, but he's way more of a genuine friend to Guy than Aizawa supposedly is to Mic and Midnight.

Hi @nutzgunray-lvt 👋

Iam not sure if it is canon that present mic and oboro have been friends for a longer time but if it is thats not a good look on aizawa.

From the little we see of the rooftop squads friendship a lot of it does consist of present mic and midnight giving to aizawa than aizawa giving to either of the two.

For example, present mic was there for Eraserhead after the first war arc and present mic was also there for eraser after the usj arc. Midnight did recommend and nudge aizawa into becoming a teacher at UA and in the vigilantes manga it was thanks to her that oboro, mic and aizawa got an internship at a hero agency.

However, this begs the question what does aizawa do for his friends?

Nothing. (Or well canon doesn't show us that he does anything. Do correct me if Iam wrong of course)

Now sure you can definitely point fingers at horikoshi and say that he simply didn't actively include present mic and midnight in his story and that they were mainly there to prop up or almost be tools for aizawa and his development and to that I do agree but it doesn't change the fact that this is the dynamic that canon seems to establish between these characters.

I suppose you're talking about this scene when aizawa interrupts present mic telling him that midnight died and also present mic expressing his grief.

Now I won't deny that this is incredibly rude on aizawas part and that if aizawa were to listen and offer support it would at least show that he does give back to his friends but I suppose horikoshi thought it would be more important to give us "dadzawa". Personally, I do believe that there could of been a balance that we could of indeed received present mic expressing his feelings and aizawa offering support while having them talk and debrief about the entire situation yet we didn't get that.

I have seen the rebuttal that aizawa only did this because he didn't want to hear that midnight died and that he was also burying his emotions but I do suppose that's up to interpretation. My main problem is that midnight's death doesn't get brought up again after this moment between this duo/trio (if they count kurogiri).

In the end even after kurogiri dies due to bakugo it all feels empty and it's not properly talked about between mic and eraser who witnessed this moment.

I think that the kurogiri/oboro reveal really could of shown us more of all the characters sides. It could of shown us then caring and supporting eachother and also seeking comfort in eachother. There were many moments where we could of seen aizawa comfort or give to his friends but we don't and I really don't think that's supposed to be intentional writing from horikoshi.

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

so i just found some old interviews of spop, especially ones after the finale, and i just wanted to dissect some of the interesting parts:

the crew themselves keep reinforcing the idea that only catra saw adora for who she is, when the show itself says otherwise multiple times. catra, who mocked adora for never being a true hero, who kept hurting adora because she resented her for being she-ra, who kept saying that adora has a hero complex and that she is full of herself. that catra “motivated and inspired” adora?

“i wanted their romance to be the central arc”

this explains everything. the fact that they took an existing show with an intriguing fantasy world and so much potential and then reduced it to “cute lesbians kiss haha”. if you're gonna write a show about romance, do that. you don't have to butcher an already existing series for that.

“it reveals how that arc has been built”

what arc? is the arc we're talking about in the same room as us? because from what i can see, they put in zero effort to make c//a's development even halfway coherent. catgirl tortures hero for four seasons, gets saved by said hero and joins the good guys, continues torturing hero. how is that an arc?

so.. they have the right idea here. catra and adora did indeed need to take their time away from each other and deal with their problems. but did they? adora came close to building her self-esteem and realizing that she didn't have to take responsibility for everything around her. but then all that was reversed in s5 when she was forced into a relationship with the same person who ruined her sense of self-worth in the first place.

catra.. doesn't even try. the closest she got to moving on from her past was during her time in the crimson waste but then she ends up spiralling even deeper into toxicity, adding more and more into her list of crimes. in s5, she is shown to reflect on her relationship with adora but does she learn anything from it? nope. she continues abusing and berating adora, she continues giving adora mixed signals and relying on adora to do all the work in the relationship.

so the crew seemingly had the right idea (although i'd say they still shouldn't get into a relationship, even after they've worked on their issues) but never followed through. instead they gave us a lazy and rushed redemption, where the wrongdoer never works on their flaws and instead puts all the blame on their partner. amazing.

so nate himself admits that not all of catra's actions were justified. but then, why does the show try to justify them? why does the show justify catra abusing adora by implying that it's because adora abandoned her? why does the show justify all of catra's toxic and abusive behaviour by blaming it solely on shadow weaver? if catra's actions cannot be justified, the narrative should keep her accountable, which they don't.

secondly, i'll try not to assume the worst of nate's personality from what he said, and just get to the important part.

“It's other people's decision to forgive you, that's not a given, but also there are ways for you to fix what's broken. You have to work hard to prove yourself again, you have to actually actively fix what's done, it's not as simple as a sacrifice.”

i'm so confused. the way nate says it, you'd think he applied all of this to catra's arc. but he didn't. “it's not as simple as a sacrifice” but a sacrifice was all it took for catra to be forgiven by her victims. she doesn't work on herself, her apologies were shallow, and she continues repeating the same mistakes. “it's other people's decision to forgive you” yet every single character forgives catra immediately and none of them are allowed to stay mad at her.

how could you write such a bad redemption and then talk about it as if it had all the details and nuance it was lacking? again, when speaking, nate seems to have the right idea of how to write a redemption arc. why did they fumble so badly when it came to actually executing it in the story? the only answer i can think of is that none of the writers in the crew are good at writing.

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

AITA for being harsh to one of my group mates?

(📳🎓)

For context, this is in uni, and most of us are between 18 to 20 years old. We've been assigned a group project we need to do basically, and while there were originally 8 of us, for the longest time there were only 5 of us. The other 3 were unavailable for a variety of reasons - until within the past two or so weeks, one of them (I'll call A) started showing up to some lectures. Not all of them mind you, but a couple of them.

Initially I was a bit 'ehhh' on A, simply because he hasn't shown up until now. However the rest of the group wanted to give him a chance, and for the sake of fairness we did. And for the most part, imo, he's been unreliable. He showed up recently to one of our more important sessions (the session essentially being producing a bulk of the work we'd need to do) and was genuinely helpful, but for me the pressing issues I have with him are that

1. He's inconsistent. He only got to that session because we prodded him about it on WhatsApp, and I'm sure that if we didn't he wouldn't have turned up at all

2. He rarely if at all communicates with us. He responded to one person (who I'll call D) twice and another person once. While in person he's a lot better, getting in touch with him otherwise is essentially impossible.

The kicker recently is that in person, we agreed to have a one on one meeting where we'd talk about what we've done so far and what he'll be able to help out with in the future. I arrived to the location, and waited... He never showed up. I texted him multiple times to let him know that if he's late he needs to tell me, and as I'm writing this he still hasn't even bothered to read the messages at all. I let D, who's our group leader, know and they believe he shouldnt share our grade. I agree.

However, the reason why I feel I'm the AH is because he says he's been having some mental health issues. He didn't specify what, just that it's 'been hard getting out of bed' and the like. He may have mentioned depression, but I also can't 100% confirm it. The rest of the group believe we should give him another chance, saying that depression is hard and that we can't expect him to be fine 100% now, and they've even said that D themself is inconsistent when it comes to showing up to meetings, which is true. They say that they themselves have had similar struggles in the past and they sympathise.

While that's fair, I'm also of the opinion that well... He hasn't even done a lot of work. Like at all. He helped during that session but has otherwise done fuck all. From a practical standpoint he doesn't deserve a grade simply because he's done essentially nothing since we started, even if it is because he's been having a bad time. However, he also hasn't had much time to prove himself that he is capable of helping, so it could be that I'm just pre-judging him out of cynicism.

It might also not help that I'm a very practical person when it comes to mental health - I deal with my own shit, tend not to burden anyone with my issues if I can, and just get on with things. My anxieties were rough before uni, and while it's gotten better in some areas it's gotten worse in others. Yknow, stuff like money, if I'm even eating properly, general life, personal circumstances, all that shit. However it might be that A is the type to get buried in his feelings, and my more practical viewpoint is me being way too harsh on someone who is struggling.

While I understand where my group is coming from, I still don't think A should share our grade. Imo he hasnt shown much initiative if at all for the group, and even if he was struggling the fact that he just generally hasn't done anything means I don't think he should share our grade. AITA?

TLDR: Guy in a group has done not much in terms of participating in our group project, because he's been struggling mentally up until now. Group is mostly sympathetic and wants to give him another chance, while I think otherwise, believing he's had enough chances already.

What are these acronyms?

[shantechni]

One thing I greatly appreciate about the 2012 series is that Raph's temper is rarely ever shown to be entirely on him, which might be hard to believe, but it's true.

Pivotal episodes that focus on Raph's temper are Turtle Temper, Slash and Destroy, The Good, the Bad and Casey Jones, Newtralized!, and Mutant Gangland.

Turtle Temper

We get our first front row seat to how Raph tends to let his anger carry him away to the point that the mission and his brothers became an afterthought, and everyone is right to be upset with him. A random, smacktalking slob isn't the end of the world, but after 15 years of hardly interacting with anyone other than your family, it only makes sense for him to be angry that this total stranger is managing to tick him off. But no one downplays the situation or tells him to just, "stop getting mad," they more or less told him to stop letting his anger do the work. Splinter said it best: "It was I who made his [Shredder's] words into weapons. That's the choice I made. What choice will you make?" Translation, you're allowed to be angry, but it's what you do with that anger that determines the outcome of things.

Slash and Destroy

This will always be in my top 10 favorite episodes solely for being such a good scenario of Raph's anger being a poison to someone he cares for, not just his family, but Spike. Firstly with his family, he's right to get mad when his comics are ruined, or when Leo constantly sticks up for Mikey, or when Donnie's experiment gets out of control and nearly hurts Spike. It's the accumulation of those things that makes him lash out and eventually take the mutagen to his room, greatly to the dismay of an already apologetic Donnie. Anyone who lives in a full house knows: he feels disrespected and stifled, going so far to wish he were out on his own.

Now for Spike, we obviously know the mutagen messed with him in more than a physical sense, but it's clear that Raph's angry venting didn't help either. Not only did Raph push his brothers away when they weren't intentionally agitating him, namely Donnie, but he's largely responsible for Slash's desire to get rid of his brothers. Slash thinks his and Raph's tempers are what make them stronger and better than the others, that they could be doing so much more without them. Raph doesn't agree with him, not even a little, because for as much as his family gets on his nerves, he'd miss them way too much to ever leave them.

When Splinter told him to meditate on it, he wasn't dismissing the fact that Raph was rightfully upset, but that he was letting his anger run on again. He needed to stop and think about why he was angry, and understand that Donnie didn't mean to nearly hurt Spike. That even though he treasures those comics, they're just comics at the end of the day. Whether or not he would've reached that conclusion without the loss of Spike is up to interpretation, but Splinter reminds Raph that he still has his brothers.

The Good, the Bad and the Casey Jones

It's a tried and true concept, but it never fails to be a good concept when Raph and Casey's tempers clash. Before that though, we once again see Raph lose control of himself due to his family and he's clearly bent out of shape over his lack of control, the guy attacked Leo without warning and has his brothers flinching away when he yells at them. His statement is an interesting one: "This always happens. I'm fine until those guys push my buttons. It's not like I was trying to hurt Leo. They just don't get it." Now couple it with this one from Leo: "What are you saying, Raph? It's not that you are angry, but we make you angry?" Raph goes on to refute that question before somewhat proving himself wrong when he snaps at their teasing.

The situation is never truly resolved because Casey leads some Foot Bots to the lair, but it's clear that Raph is half accepting and half in denial of having anger issues, and his brothers don't quite understand it themselves (explained by why they teased him and unknowingly made him feel like they weren't taking him seriously). But Leo seemed to get an idea from the earlier teasing when he tells Raph they were just "busting his shell." He doesn't say it with malice or like he was wronged, he's fairly apologetic despite the humor written all over him. And, in a way, Donnie and Mikey alleviate the situation in their own way by not reacting too much to Raph's outburst, or even when he returns. Donnie slips out a short quip and leaves it at that, because they know Raph just needed some time to himself without them messing around.

Newtralized!

The bigger focus of this episode is obviously the Newtralizer's plot for the Kraang and Slash's redemption, but Raph's temper is still front and center from the first minute of the episode. Though it's a fact that we've seen on display before, Raph getting angry because someone he cares for isn't being careful enough is still an important point, especially now since Raph is close enough to Casey to be angrily worried about his wellbeing. Though it's never directly addressed (Raph's argument is that Casey is holding them back and getting in the way), Raph learns over the course of the episode to not exclude Casey just because he's not as skilled as them.

Mutant Gangland

Lesgooo another favorite--starts rubbing my hands together. It might even be slightly higher than Slash and Destroy because Raph is less angry and more frustrated that he's stuck in the training phase with his brothers, feeling like they aren't doing any better when they can't go all out on each other. It's understandable, they just barely saved Earth from the Triceratons but most of that can only be attributed to Fugitoid's "sacrifice", then the Triceratons were the ones who finally put an end to the Kraang, not the turtles, and Shredder is still out there somewhere with his henchmen roaming the streets. Outside of feeling outclassed during their conflicts in outer space, Raph feels like they aren't doing enough.

But, since Raph pinned the blame on Splinter taking Leo's side, saying he's forcing them to hold back and that they clearly don't understand how he feels, Donnie saw an opportunity and shot back at Raph with the usual insult of him complaining about Leo all the time. That obviously makes him feel worse, and he storms out in typical Raph fashion. Splinter sets the boys straight though; aside from telling them that he won't always be there to play mediator, he tells Donnie straight up that he should grow up and could've responded in a more mature manner. They all need to learn to stop feuling the fire that is Raph and understand where he's coming from, and Donnie sees this in person when him and Mondo go after Raph and Raph doesn't immediately accept his apology.

(Excuse me as I geek out over season 4 being the season where we see them grow out of their bad habits, like Leo rushing Donnie to do something, the guys unnecessarily angering Raph, them underestimating Leo, and not taking Mikey seriously. Like, they still happen, but the boys quickly recognize when they've messed up and I just-)

Don Vizioso and his gang blows a hole in everyone's day of course, but by the end of the episode, Leo and Donnie apologize to Raph (who wasn't used to getting so many apologies at once), and Splinter reminds the turtles to not let their conflict separate them from each other.

-----

...So yeah I just really like that Raph's temper is handled nicely when it's threaded with the conflict of the episode, idk lol-

[ahungeringknife]

365 May 3-6

After a point Desmond just came to the understanding that his life was weird and he really didn't feel like arguing with it anymore. Coming back from the dead? Near death? Limbo? Whatever did that to a person. He was so beyond his life throwing arguably impossible shit at him.

"I'm home," he said looking at the living room of his apartment that absolutely should not fit as many people in it as it did. And yet.

The first week it'd happened he was sure he was having a new mental break down. But no. That'd have been a reasonable explanation for a bunch of murderers showing up at his door looking like people out of a ren fair. He didn't know why they were there. They didn't know why they were there. When Desmond asked they just grabbed his blackened hand or arm. They were drawn to it. Somehow? For some reason?

Seven languages all roughly saying, "Welcome back," came in a chorus. They could all understand him at least. Whatever fucked up magic or whatever had given him that at least so he didn't have to sift through seven different tongues in his head to pull out the one he wanted.

"I brought bread," he said which got everyone interested. He didn't anticipate people from previous centuries to be picky eaters but they absolutely were. And that didn't even cover Ezio's insanely high standards for olive oil, which he basically drank. But everyone ate bread. Thank god. He always had to go down a few blocks for an actual bakery because of course they wouldn't eat store bread. The bakery knew him on sight now since he'd been going there every other day for a month and bought the exact same arrangement of bread. When they saw him coming in they just packed up his order for him.

"Everyone get their shit done while I was gone?" he asked amid some talking. Some of them could communicate but it was a near thing. Some of them even spoke English, which was cool.

"It was boring, but yes," Ezio said.

"Good. Who wants to make dinner?" Desmond asked, going into the kitchen and taking the bread out.

"Everyone stop looking at me," Evie said. "Just because I'm a woman."

Desmond didn't engage while Jacob was defending his sister's honor, or whatever. After a bit of bickering he called out, "Fine then we're all going to be unhappy and Altair will cook." There was some groaning.

"Fools," Altair said and Desmond was the only one who understood. He got up from where he was sitting on the floor and entered the little kitchen with Desmond. "My cooking isn't that bad... now," he added. Altair, like the rest of them, were not how Desmond remembered them from the memories as mostly wild and blood thirsty twenty-somethings. They were all older. In their thirties or forties. It was still weird seeing Altair in a beard. At least he wore it better than Ezio.

"Yeah you don't burn my pans now," Desmond said. Desmond still helped him figure out what to do. They all knew how to use the appliances by now but other than Connor, Bayek, and Evie none of them had ever had to cook for themselves until they'd shown up in Desmond's life. But like good Assassins they all took to instruction quickly and Desmond just had to tell them what to do and they figured it out.

"How much longer are we staying here?" Arno had come around to the kitchen while Altair was cutting onions with freakish laser precision. Desmond wasn't sure Altair couldn't understand French but he always acted like he couldn't so he didn't push it.

"I dunno. Until you guys fucking leave?" Desmond said. Who knew when that would be. Who knew why that would be or how!

Arno gave him an annoyed look. "I know that. But this is unsustainable," he motioned to the living room which had all the furniture shoved into the corners to make enough room for everyone to sleep. Desmond's bedroom also had some sleeping space on the floor. "Even at our lowest this is too much."

"Well if I want to break my lease I need to pay a fee. And then I have to find a new place that I can afford. And if you guys all fucking vanish one day I'm going to be in a big place all by myself unable to pay. I don't mind having roommates from former head mates but actual normal people? I'd rather die."

"That can be arranged," Altair said behind him.

"Shut it, you," Desmond frowned at him but Altair wasn't even looking at him.

Arno was also frowning. "Well perhaps it would be more useful if we put our minds to figuring out what happened to bring us here instead of what you have us doing."

"If you want to go ahead but I can't afford to feed someone who isn't helping," Desmond said, folding his arms. Because magic that they could all understand his spoken English they could also understand written English. Desmond had found all of them some reasonable paying translation gig work. Desmond knew they all hated it but also had no idea what to do in this century, let alone how to cross a street without almost being run over by a car.

Arno also folded his arms and mirroring Desmond. "I am not a stranger to hardship. But I'm tired of waking up with someone's feet in my face. Also Jacob snores; loudly," he put a pained look on his face.

Desmond grimaced. He could sympathize. Before he could keep going with Jacob Altair tugged his sleeve. He turned around. "Is this right?" and it was still so baffling hearing a hard ass like Altair ask him something so kindly.

Desmond looked over the chopped vegetables Altair had in the pan. He'd added raisins. Always with the fucking raisins with Altair. "Looks fine. Don't cook it too long or it'll turn to mush." He turned back to Jacob. "Look I'm not unsympathetic. I just don't know what to do myself," he said.

"Can we help you? Clearly we're supposed to be here? So we should help you."

Desmond sighed, "I would love that but none of you know how to use a computer."

"... A what?"

"Exactly."

"Is that the little glass tablet you carry around with you?" Arno asked.

"Yes."

Arno looked conflicted. "It seems... confusing but I'm willing to figure it out if it gets me into an actual bed."

"Fine," Desmond said and already knew it was going to give him a headache. "This weekend when I'm free."

Arno smiled. "Great," and he walked off.

Desmond sighed dramatically. "Punk," Altair grumbled, or about as close an approximation as Desmond could translate out.

"I knew you could speak French," and Desmond punched his arm.

"My wife is French, of course I can," Altair said with a grunt. "His accent is so snooty. I hate it."

"He's Parisian," Desmond said.

"No wonder he sounds like a prick," Altair grumbled and Desmond laughed.

--------

Having seven people crowding your space while trying to use your laptop was... something. It sure was something. Somehow they all managed to perch around him without getting in each other's way too and were all staring intently at the screen. Desmond had been talking to them, very slowly, for about three hours now explaining how a computer worked. He typically had all their translation work printed out and then on his days off typed it all into the programs or emails for the clients.

Surprisingly the one who seemed to understand it the best were the two old guys Altair and Bayek. Bayek was especially insane because he was from before the common era. Like the numbers ticked down on the grand time line of human civilization from where Bayek was from. Desmond wasn't particularly surprised by Altair who'd had his head in the future through the Apple for decades. That didn't mean either of them were good at it but they asked the least questions when he asked if they understood.

"I think that's about as much as I can just explain. You have to try it now. Who wants a go?" Desmond asked. He expected Arno to immediately volunteer. Hadn't he been the one excited to help him find a new apartment?

"I do," Bayek said.

"Weren't they still playing with sticks and rocks in your time?" Jacob asked, not knowing what Bayek was saying but getting the idea. Evie smacked his arm, hard, making him complain.

"Sit," Bayek sat. "It's light, hold onto the keyboard area so it doesn't fall off your lap," Desmond said and put the laptop on Bayek's crossed legs. There was a moment of confusion as Bayek figured out how to use the touch pad but then he got it. "I'm surprised you're at all good with this," Desmond said casually.

His answer absolutely floored Desmond. "This is nothing compared to the Isu ruins." Desmond hadn't personally lived through Bayek but he'd been told the story. Bayek was really good at telling stories. "That is actual confusing shit."

"What'd he say?" Ezio asked.

"He said it's nothing compared to Those Who Came Before," he said. "Didn't know Egypt had that sort of tech involvement with the Isu," he said thoughtfully.

"Ask him if it's as easy as it appeared when you did it," Arno said.

Desmond did and relayed it back while Bayek was clicking around on the computer and internet. "He said it's like reading a scroll where the words and pictures move with your thoughts."

"How poetic," Arno said.

"I also wanna try," Evie said.

"Yes, and I," Ezio said.

"Give him a few minutes," Desmond said.

"The keyboard is... confusing. I know what these letters mean but their arrangement is-- quite stupid," Bayek said.

"Yeah, basically," Desmond agreed.

"It also hurts my eyes."

"Yeap. It'll do that too," and he took the laptop back. Then Evie got to mess around with it while Bayek rubbed his eyes. He hadn't blinked the entire time. Then it was Ezio's turn once she'd had a go at it.

"Is there a way to see these mmm- webbed sites in Italian?" Ezio asked.

"Sort of? Just type into the text box in Italian. It should pull up Italian sites."

Watching Ezio pick and poke through what he wanted to ask Google was excruciating. "Ha! Italian," and he scrolled through the search results. Desmond leaned over to see what he was looking at.

"Hey!" Desmond snatched the laptop away. He switched into Italian himself to scold him and god he sounded a lot like Claudia by the way Ezio wilted. "Don't look up boobs on my fucking laptop. Of course I leave you alone for a minute and you're trying to see some tits. What are you? Seventeen again?"

He was going to have to put child locks or something on this thing so these Assassins didn't give his laptop a fucking virus looking up porn. "What can I say. I'm a man of simple pleasures?" Ezio said with a wry grin.

"Banned," Desmond pointed at him in annoyance.

He let everyone try out the laptop. No one was as taken with it as Bayek and Connor somehow almost broke it. Arno at least came away from the lesson and hands on part being slightly confidant in using it. Everyone also complained it hurt their eyes. Because none of them blinked while using the laptop. Blue light was hell of a thing.

They dispersed after that. Bayek, who still sat next to him, said, "Can you show me more things?"

"Sure? Like what?"

"I want to know what happened to Egypt," he said. "And the Romans. And the Greeks. Are they still around?"

"Well Ezio is what you could call Roman," Desmond said slowly. "He lived in Rome, the city, for a while."

"Is Rome no longer an empire?"

Desmond chuckled, "Buddy, they wish."

"... I would like to see what made Rome fall," he said, not in a sad way but rather he was very interested. "And what happened to Julius," his eyes narrowed.

"You're going to love what happened to Cesare," Desmond said and pulled up some wikipedia articles. He showed Bayek how to navigate the site, what the colors meant, what the little numbers next to words meant, and the sources at the bottom. After that Bayek was glued to it. "And make sure you blink," Desmond added. Bayek nodded.

Desmond got off the couch and wandered into his room, flopping down onto his bed. That had taken so long. He picked up his phone and looked at it. It was only mid afternoon. He had a few missed texts. It looked like they were from work. He ignored them. He wasn't paid enough to answer texts on his day off.

----

Desmond was used to being watched at this point even if he couldn't see them. Didn't bother him. This time when he looked across the Goodwill it was Jacob staring right at him looking like he was dying while Evie was trying to find some clothes. Seemed that even after a few hundred years brothers still would rather die than shop with their sisters. He chuckled to himself and went back to ignoring him.

Desmond was more concerned with convincing Bayek and Connor that no they couldn't just walk around shirtless or tank tops all the time.

"But it will get in the way of my movement," Bayek said about the long sleeved shirt Desmond was trying to get him in. It was summer so was pretty warm and Bayek had never existed in any sort of cold weather in his life. His logic was sound for Egypt.

"Yeah but you can't enter most stores without a shirt, dude," Desmond said. Connor was more accepting of full shirts having grown up around Westerners but Desmond remembered being in his head. He always felt too big for in his clothes. Especially Achilles' old uniform that he'd nearly ripped several times from just how thick his arms were.

"But it's hot out. We don't need sleeves until later in the year," Connor said.

"What'd he say?" Bayek asked and Desmond repeated it. Honestly a lot of the time he was just repeating what everyone said so any two of them could hold a conversation. "Why would the time of year matter?"

"Winter?"

"... What is that?"

Desmond pinched the bridge of his nose. "Think like the flood season but instead it gets cold."

"It would get cold in Egypt sometimes," Bayek said.

"No like water turns into ice," Desmond explained.

"But it's not like that now? And there's so much clothes here surely I won't want for them," Bayek said. Everyone had been pretty stunned when Desmond had brought them to Goodwill and it was just filled with more clothes than any of them had seen in one place.

"In winter cold weather clothes tend to go quick," Desmond said.

"Hmm-

"Desmond," he looked over at Evie's voice as she came through the aisle. Jacob was sulking a ways away.

"Sup."

"My brother is useless as ever. I need input on these modern clothes," she said.

"Sure."

Evie showed him two shirts. They looked pretty nice and were fairly subdued, which he expected. One was a feathery blouse, the other was a thin sweater. They complimented her skin color. Desmond didn't know a lot about fashion but he'd seen enough women come into a bar to know what was good. "Which one?"

"I like them both," Desmond said.

"That is not helpful," she said.

Desmond reached over and grabbed the tags. They were both five bucks each. "Do you like them?"

"Yes."

"Then you can get both-

"What?" she asked, confused. "But these are so fancy and high quality," she said. Desmond knew the Industrial Revolution had been going on during Evie's time but fast fashion was a hell of a thing.

"It's fine, they're just a few dollars-

"That's expensive! Are you sure?" she asked.

He chuckled. "Yeah. If you like them we can get them. Make sure you find some bottoms you like too to match."

"Are you really sure?" she asked.

"Yes. And tell your brother to stop looking like a creep and pick out some clothes too," Desmond said.

She rolled her eyes. "He knows no other way. But yes, thank you," she held the clothes to her and walked off.

"Those are expensive though, are you sure?" Connor asked. He understood modern money better than Bayek who was ignoring them and looking at clothes.

"It's about the equivalent of fifteen cents," Desmond said, knowing Connor would understand that.

"Oh! Really?"

"Yeah. Inflation is hell of a thing-- don't worry about it, it's economics," he told Connor who just looked so confused.

"I think I like this one," Bayek said and Desmond sighed when he pulled out the most Dad shirt he could have found. It was a tie die tank top. "Finally something brightly colored. This time is so drab," he scoffed. The worst part was Desmond knew he'd absolutely wear it.

"Okay," Desmond said, defeated. Then he groaned at the sound of some very angry Arabic a few rows over. "Now what?" he looked and saw Ezio harassing Altair about... something? "Excuse me. Before Altair kills his biggest fan boy," Desmond said. "Find a shirt that fits you, Connor," he told Connor and went over to where Altair very nearly had his hands on Ezio's neck.

Desmond easily slotted himself between the two of them. "What's this about?" he asked.

"Ezio says I dress like a woman," Altair pointed at Ezio furiously.

"... What? Also how do you know what he's saying?"

"He's just speaking a different version of Latin," Altair said. "That isn't the point!"

Desmond turned to Ezio. "Did you say he's dressing like a girl?"

"I said he'd look like a fancy lady with his dress," Ezio said and yeah Desmond got why Altair was about to kill him.

"Take like twenty steps back while I defuse this bomb you made," Desmond told Ezio.

"I resent that," Altair growled at him.

Ezio did step back and Desmond turned around to him. "So what did he get you about?" Altair raised a shapeless dress that was very much a dress but it was also shaped like a thobe which was traditionally exactly what an old guy like Altair would wear. "Looks like a thobe to me," Desmond said, realizing what Altair was going for.

"Yes. That's what I tried to tell him."

"But it's a dress too."

"So?"

"Look I don't care," Desmond raised his hands before Altair bit his head off. "You'll get looks if you wear that though and I know you hate being perceived." Altair grimaced at that. "If you want a thobe I'll order you one or find one at a Middle East bodega or something but you should just find some pants and a shirt." Altair huffed in annoyance. "Yeah I know, you hate rules. Get over it," Desmond rolled his eyes.

"I am more annoyed you know me better than myself at times," Altair grumbled, arms folded. "Same as the rest."

"Trust me I really wish I didn't. Either way, we can still get it if you want but I would suggest pants."

"Fine," Altair huffed.

"Connor, Connor," he heard Bayek calling from the end of the aisle. At the least that was something they could do. Desmond watched Connor join Bayek down the aisle and Bayek triumphantly held up an old sleeveless Laker's jersey. Desmond snickered imagining Connor's face of horror at the yellow and purple monstrosity. Connor for his part waved his hands like he didn't want it.

An hour or so later Desmond was finally in line for check out with the others. Evie had taken what he'd said to heart and found a bunch of stuff but everyone else was still too stunned by the variety to pick more than three or four pieces. The cashier was pleasant and had clearly seen weirder shit than a guy like Desmond shepherding a bunch of adults forward to have their clothes rung up and then put into individual bags. The total wasn't even that bad for buying clothes for seven people. The more modern Assassins still gasped or gagged at the price but Desmond didn't flinch at the hundred and seventy dollar price tag.

"That had to be wrong," Connor said once they were leaving.

"What was?" Desmond asked.

"The price-

"You said not to worry. That was a fortune!" Evie cried.

"It was like five dollars," Desmond said.

"That's not what the cash register said," Evie insisted.

"It's the equivalent of five dollars," Desmond rolled his eyes.

"Seriously?" Jacob asked.

"Yes. Seriously."

"That's still a lot of money," Arno said.

"For seven people buying clothes that is a steal. I've seen people buy a single shirt for five dollars," and he chuckled when Evie, Jacob, Arno, and Connor looked appropriately disgusted. Bayek, Ezio, and Altair just looked confused.

"Are these dollars worth a lot?" Ezio asked as they walked down the sidewalk.

"I do not have the brain power to convert to florins," Desmond groaned. "Or dinars or deben across like a thousand plus years okay?" he asked. "Like a shilling?"

"Ah," Ezio nodded.

"If you aren't worried about it neither am I," Bayek said.

"Sounds like a bunch of poor people to me," Altair said, specifically in Latin.

"I would agree," Ezio said absently. Desmond slapped his hand over his face.

"I wasn't poor. That's still a lot," Arno said in something recognizing Latin. Both Ezio and Altair laughed at him. "What?"

"Your accent," Desmond said.

"What of it?"

"Sounds like he's talking without moving his lips," Ezio chuckled. "Open your mouth when you speak," he said loudly. "Or speak with your hands. I can understand you better if you do," and he did indeed wave one hand while talking.

"Can we not do this?" Desmond groaned as they got to the parking lot. He'd rented an actual van for the day just to avoid public transport. He'd gotten them all on a bus or subway individually as they'd appeared but he didn't want to have to watch all of them at once on a subway. He knew somehow, someway, someone would get lost and he didn't want to hunt down an Assassin in a big city. Especially not these guys who could be... a bit stab happy if you bothered them too much. Well except Connor.

They all loaded into the van and Desmond reached into the center console to grab the single dose of pain killers he'd made sure to bring with him. Because he knew and had been right; by the end of this shopping trip he could feel the start of a headache. "Okay everyone buckled in?" Desmond turned around once he'd taken the pain killer. There was still some confusion about buckles for Bayek but Jacob had gotten it for him. They all gave him a thumbs up to cut down on the cacophony. "Great. Who wants lunch?" More thumbs up. "How about McDonalds?"

"What's that?" Jacob asked.

Desmond chuckled. "You'll see," he said and backed the car out of the parking spot and drove off from Goodwill.

-----------------

Desmond was looking over rental listings drinking his morning coffee in bed. Altair and Bayek were both on a blow up mattress on the floor. He'd bought a few over the past month but there was still only so much room. It was going to be so expensive to move. Thankfully now that everyone could operate the laptop or tablet now they could input their own gig work so could do more so long as they weren't blinded by boredom. A single bedroom apartment wasn't enough for eight full grown adults.

There wasn't much reasonable in the city itself but outside the city he could rent a full house. That was doable. And about as expensive as his current apartment actually. He scrolled listings on his phone but did consider just picking a neighborhood outside of the city and calling a realtor to find him a rental house. He didn't even care what it was.

He knew it was light out because Bayek woke up. He was punctual and even with the curtains over the windows Bayek always woke up at dawn. He sat up blearily. "Coffee?" it was the one English word he could say because the word didn't exist in any language he knew. It wouldn't have been invented for another sixteen hundred years for him. Didn't mean he hadn't immediately become addicted just like everyone else.

"Full pot in the kitchen," Desmond said, sipping his mug.

Bayek got off the inflatable gingerly and left the room. Desmond didn't have the heart to tell him no matter how careful he was about it Altair always woke up after he left. On the bed Altair huffed, awake now as well. "You could just go back to sleep," Desmond said.

"No," Altair said softly and that tracked. He sat up. "Do you ever worry?"

"I grew up in the twenty first century, my entire body is just made out of anxiety," Desmond said.

Altair grimaced. "I mean why we're here?"

"Nope."

"Really?"

"Nope."

"Why not?"

"After the shit I've seen this isn't even the worst of it," Desmond said, sipping his coffee, barely paying attention to Altair.

"How is that possible?"

Desmond looked at him now. "I died, you know," he said casually, like discussing the weather. The only indication that had actually happened was his left arm was fucked up beyond belief. "And coming back from death? Nothing really bothers you," he shrugged. "Certainly not some old head mates."

"Which you won't tell us what that means," Altair said.

Desmond shrugged. "Better that way."

"So you really don't care? Why we're here? Where we came from?"

"Not even a little," Desmond was done looking at rentals. He'd just call a realtor, get them to find him a three bed two and a half bath with a yard. He switched over to Twitter. Perfect turn your brain off activity.

They sat in the dark quiet of Desmond's room for a bit. "What's it like, being dead?" Altair asked after a few minutes. Desmond didn't answer him. "Desmond?" he looked over because Altair's voice was close. He had moved to be next to Desmond's bed.

"You should know what death is like, you've killed more people than me," Desmond said off handedly.

"I've sent people to the afterlife. I've never been to one. The others have grand Catholic ideas. Bayek said he fought gods in his afterlife. But you've died. What's that like?"

"Nothing," was all Desmond said.

"It was nothing?"

"Sure. We'll go with that."

Altair scowled at him. "You're being annoyingly obtuse, young man," he growled.

Desmond looked right at him. "Don't with me," he said in a serious way. It must have been plain on his face because Altair didn't press the subject.

Light spilled in from the living room when Bayek opened the door but it was Ezio behind him who spoke up, "Desmond, Jacob drank all the coffee and there's no more left."

"I made a pot. How'd he drink an entire pot?" Desmond groaned. "Also I know you idiots know how to use the coffee machine."

"No powder," Bayek said in his Dad tie dye tank top.

Desmond sighed. "Okay I'll go to the store," he got out of bed and rummaged around for some pants. Ezio and Bayek left the doorway. "Jacob," he yelled into the main room, "you're coming with me for drinking all the coffee."

"I didn't do shit!" Jacob yelled back.

"You better be dressed when I get out there or I'm dragging your ass to the corner store in your skivies!" and it was a real threat. Desmond changed his shirt and his dead beat dad would have been so proud of him tucking his long sleeved shirt in all the time now. He didn't like it rising up when he lifted his arm, you could see the death damage on his flank too, horrible thick black veins and old burst capillaries. He also always wore a glove now.

Jacob was fuming standing in the living room when Desmond came out of the bedroom but he was fully dressed. The inflatable mattresses had been put away already and the only person with coffee was Bayek since he'd woken up first. "I didn't even drink it all," Jacob complained. "Ezio just says whatever he wants and you believe it."

"Contrary to what he thinks its because the guy can't lie to save his life. Least of all to me," Desmond said. "Now stop complaining," he pulled on his shoes.

When he opened the door to walk out he almost bumped into someone. It was a woman. She was tall for a woman with ash brown hair and old eyes wearing an insanely sharp pant suit. "Veronica?" Jacob said next to him.

"Jacob?" she said with an accent Desmond couldn't place.

"Holy shit what are you doing here?" Jacob asked.

The woman, Veronica?, looked at Desmond, then at Jacob, "That's my question." She looked over Desmond's shoulder then back at Desmond, her eyes wide in an expression just from the way she held herself Desmond took as she wasn't surprised easily. "What are they doing here?"

"Uh... they're my friends?" Desmond said, confused by the line of questioning also who the fuck was this lady? For a moment he thought she was like the others but there was no befuddlement to her, no wide eyed bewilderment. They'd all appeared looking out of time and place. She was not. She was something else.

"Who's at the door?" Ezio came around. "Ah? Maria?" he asked.

"You also recognize her?" Desmond asked.

"That's Veronica," Jacob said. Now the others were coming around.

Desmond looked at the woman who was looking right back. "You also shouldn't be here," she said and it stuck him right in the chest.

"Well that's rude," Evie said. "Don't be mean to our friend, Veronica."

"Do you all recognize this lady?" Desmond asked the Assassins and stepped back into his apartment. He felt better being surrounded by them. Whoever or whatever she was wouldn't be able to fight off seven Master Assassins.

"Of course."

"She was our friend."

"She helped me."

"She knew my father."

"She helped me complete my mission."

They all said almost at once. What the actual fuck? He'd never seen this lady in any of the memories he had but apparently they all knew her. She was a friend. They all knew her by a different name though. "What are you doing here, Melite?" Altair was the only one asking a serious question.

The woman just sort of smiled apologetically. "My name is Kassandra actually," she said. Then she looked at Desmond. "I think we need to talk."

---------

And… that’s it lol Oops sorry If you want to see other scenes maybe suggest some? We should talk about it

[kariachi]

I still love that Argit 10 was entirely unbothered by the villain side of that two-parter.

Because here's the thing- Paradox takes No-Watch Ben to five dimensions for this 'good guy specific' recruitment drive.

Prime Ben's. He's unquestionably one of the good guys.

Ben 10k's. He's unquestionably one of the good guys.

Gwen 10's. She's unquestionably one of the good guys.

Ben 23's. He was engaging in villainous behavior (and given we know that there were already aliens living peacefully on Earth before the Omnitrix, yeah this kid definitely made their lives that much harder by encouraging violent anti-alien sentiment among the populace and given his 'wait some aliens aren't pure evil?!' reactions he probably attacked at least some innocent fuckers in his time- good intentions doesn't mean good) up until a recent turnaround, and it's shown with the villains trying to force him back into the fold, but now he's one of the good guys.

And Argit 10's. Who was shown Scrooge McDucking it, but with two key features.

Paradox brought them there. Remember, this whole interdimensional trip is specifically stated by Paradox to be to gather up the good Omnitrix Wielders.

There's no sign of the villains. After 23 turned his life around and they still tried to recruit his ass, by force if necessary, there's nothing to suggest Argit has even been bothered.

The first one is important because it sets a very important stage- Paradox considers Argit 10 one of the good guys. Everyone else he brings No-Watch to is either undoubtedly a good guy or has turned themselves around to become a proper good guy. Not neutral, not 'maybe we can bribe him', he specifically says they looking for the good ones, and then brings them there.

The second one is important because after seeing the villains trying to force 23- the only one on Team Good with his own track record- to join their ranks, that leaves only a few options for why Argit wouldn't have been bothered.

Argit is firmly enough on the good side that they didn't bother- a la Gwen 10, 10k, Prime

Argit is iffy but not about to join Team Bad- a la 23- and avoided the 'we don't take no for an answer' fight by quilling a bitch as soon as they didn't take a no

Argit is iffy- a la 23- but the villains also took one look and said 'fuck that', which honestly I doubt because if nothing else you would think since one would probably assume he was highly bribeable at first glance he'd be a prime target to try to get for Team Bad, that'd be an easy recruitment there

So, yeah. Argit 10 can be reasonably assumed to be one of the good guys, or at worst iffy-leaning-towards-good, and may not even have been considered by the villains- unlike our dear 23- though we can't know whether that was due to morality levels or just everybody looking at him and going 'no thank you'.

It's a brief scene, and it's used as a gag, but it really is interesting and opens some potential doors for our rat.

[amazing-spiderling]

For the character ask game, Scott Summers and/or Kurt Wagner, #7 & #12

<3

7. What’s something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you like?

Scott: People making jokes about Scott yelling "JEAAAAN :00000" all the time will never not be funny to me. IDK there's just something about people who end up marrying their high school sweethearts that's a little wacky. And as much as I enjoy ragging on the guy, I am glad that the fandom has come around and is appreciating his character development, especially from the last 20 years of comics.

Kurt: I've literally never met an X-Men/comics fan that doesn't like Kurt. Like he may not be their FAVORITE, but he's kinda the unproblematic fave of the fandom, so if you bring him up, the odds of people having something positive to say are pretty high. If anything, I think people are better about criticizing a bad writer or bad production decisions for any wonky characterization, rather than jumping to, "this is why this character sucks" like I've seen them do for other characters in comics.

12. What’s a headcanon you have for this character?

Scott: Wow, my feelings about Scott are kind of a jumble. I haven't read that many comics that focused on him specifically, so I feel like I'm drawing from all of the various media interpretations... I hesitate to make a claim about comics Scott because I'll say something like, "he writes a blog about baking" and someone is going to come in and be like, "X-Factor explicitly stated that he writes about gardening".

Okay, upon a little thought, I do have one. After he was resurrected following whatever the hell was going on between the Inhumans and Mutants in "Death of X", Scott felt REALLY BAD about what happened to my boy Alchemy, and we didn't see it, but offscreen he made sure that Tom was at the front of the line for Mutants to bring back to life on Krakoa. He yelled at Emma about it, too. (That last part probably was elaborated on, but I want to imagine that he was mad about that death in particular, since she used his voice/commanding personality so heavily and ended up getting Alchemy killed without a second thought.)

Kurt: I guess I'm not really sure if this is a headcanon or just like, a gut feeling- but... I don't see Kurt ever settling down, getting married, having kids. Which is kind of a wild thing to say because the man is HUSBAND MATERIAL THROUGH AND THROUGH and Marvel writers who get to take a swing at future versions of the X-Men love giving him a family... but he's always married to some rando who showed up in one (1) forgettable comic from 30 years ago that nobody remembers. It's sort of the problem of having chemistry with everyone, but then maybe not having a "spark" with one person in particular.

My use of the word "spark" here is intentional- as those familiar with his arc during the recent Krakoa era of X-Men comics might have picked up. Kurt creates the idea of a "spark" as a universal concept for Mutants of any/all faiths to embrace, a means to protect the sanctity and respect for the miracle of life. He was one of the few to recognize the need for Mutants to have something outside of themselves to pursue, and it came at no small cost to himself. In fact, he became something of an outsider, observing the community he loved, so that he could better serve them- and that I think is the crux of the issue. His "true love" is not another person, it's the preservation of a dream, and providing hope to all mutants. Even in the alternate world where he married Wanda and they had TJ, the couple lives apart from one another, each a part of their own respective teams because while they loved each other, they realized they could not focus on their duty when they were together. The mission still came first. I don't know that I mean he should join the conventional priesthood (if only because time has shown not enough comics writers are well versed enough in organized religion to write convincing and compelling comic stories about it) but his devotion to the Legionaries was close enough for me.

It's a bit of a double edged sword- I think it's something that makes his character unique, and I could turn this idea over and over in my head endlessly, but it comes at a bit of a cost from a meta perspective. I think part of the reason there's not as much fiction for the poor boy is because he doesn't have really solid canon ship fodder (NightWolves shippers have all my respect, mind you, but somehow it seems to draw a niche crowd?), so he tends to sit in the background like charming blue set dressing. It's okay though, we all still love him.

[valkyrieandstrangeridingaragorn]

tEaM cAp BaD, tOnY gOoD

The fact that takes like this are still being spewed 7 years after Civil War maddens me.

OMG where do I even start... You know, maybe this is the result of the MCU not knowing where they stand in regards to heroism. In the past we used to watch superhero movies that were very clear on defending the heroes and keeping the villains accountable, but for some reason the MCU seems to enjoy questioning their heroes and framing them in a negative light while justifying the bad guys - so I'm not surprised to read these takes.

OP says "Hydra didn't hide themselves after the reveal". Uh, yes, they did, actually. And with good reason. If you have been infiltrating an American intelligence agency for decades and you're finally outed, why exactly would anyone go out there and happily advertise they're Hydra? That... makes no sense.

I honestly have no interest in talking about "Did Wanda and Pietro know or not?". I'll just leave this here.

In the same comment OP shows his anger at Wanda for not facing any consequences for her actions, he defends Stark "not selling more weapons" as enough accountability for his. So he can spend his whole life willfully ignorant of where his wealth is coming from, he only decides to stop selling when those weapons kill Americans (he didn't give a fuck if they hurt other people), he can literally tell the government to suck it when they request his tech (which I'm okay with, but damn, nice display of hypocrisy right there when these stans claim the heroes are awful for not signing the Accords in CW)... and all this shit is enough for Stark to be off the hook?

They want Wanda, sometimes even Steve, to be jailed and punished but when it comes to Stark, if he pouts for a while they call it a day and that's enough accountability for him 🤦‍♀️

OP's line about Edith is even worse: "Edith is designed as a planetary defense system." I always think of Zola's line in TWS whenever I read a take like that one: "HYDRA created a world so chaotic that humanity is finally ready to sacrifice its freedom to gain its security."

More control doesn't equate more safety, it tends to cause the opposite thing, actually. But of course NWH never addressed the morality of this device so many fans think its existence okay. If they had handled it like Nolan did their ideas would be different. Edith is another Project Insight and Stark was still defending this "control is safety" years after CW 👇

That's Hydra rhetoric. I couldn't care less if it's a so-called "hero" saying it, that line could be said by Zola or Red Skull or Rumlow, that's how messed up it is. But all of a sudden it's Stark saying it and that makes it okay?

OP: "Steve Rogers [...] solves problems by punching things [...] He has no fucking idea how to handle a situation involving a bioweapon or a terrorist." Tell me you don't understand Steve's character without telling me you don't understand him. This stan is one of those who thinks Steve is just a buff guy with no brains who can only punch his way out of things, which is hilarious because he has been shown to be the exact opposite of that.

A guy who figured out how to take that flag from Camp Lehigh, who could easily tell he was being deceived after being defrosted when that Shield woman approached him in the med bay, who figured out Loki's sceptre worked like a Hydra weapon (linking the space and mind stones & how they worked), who knows military regulations well enough to know where a building is built in the wrong place, who can figure out he's going to be attacked in an elevator after only a few seconds...

Sure, he only knows how to punch things 🙄

[seriousbrat]

Hear me out on this theory and lemme know what you think!😏😏😏 Ik you love Snape this is no hate love your blog😘 but what if Snape was the one who started bullying the Marauders and that’s how they found out about the spell (Levicorpus) bc aint Lupin say it was a very popular one used amongst students🤨🤨🤨 someone mustve started it 😏 (also a bit weird how its only bullying when its done to Snape eeh)

Hello! Thank you for the message and the love! I don't really agree but I don't mind answering and talking about it!

The thing is that we see how the bullying originated in Prince's Tale, and it wasn't Snape lol. I've said this a lot but we have to think about why the author chose to show what she did, and everything points to the fact that the Marauders victimised Snape at school. If it was supposed to be that Snape started it all/secretly deserved everything, that's what we would have been shown.

Regarding Levicorpus (and Sectumsempra) there's a high likelihood that Snape invented those spells out of a need for self-defence, at least partially. Sectumsempra being "for enemies" and the fact that he uses it on James in SWM is evidence of this. For me this doesn't necessarily mean that he never used those spells maliciously or unprovoked, but the thing is that even if he did it doesn't change the fact that he was bullied, or that what the Marauders did was wrong.

Obviously the Marauders didn't know that Snape invented Levicorpus, so it does seem like it spread independently. Perhaps Snape told Mulciber and Avery about it, perhaps he used it on someone unrelated to the Marauders and someone saw him and it spread from there, who knows. It's not really relevant though imo. Victims of bullying can do shitty things or even be bullies themselves, it's not a black and white situation.

I don't think anyone has claimed that it's only bullying if it's Snape. For instance I think it can be reasonably argued that Snape trying to expose Remus and get him kicked out for being a werewolf is a form of bullying. Later in life he definitely bullied his students. Bullying is just much more complex than "this is the bully and this is the good guy." I get that it's comforting to believe your favourite characters never did anything wrong or that they were justified, but the thing is that it's unnecessary. These aren't real people that you choose to support, they're fictional characters and it's fine to like them even though they did bad things! Realising this will ultimately be more comforting because you won't be fighting a losing battle against your own sense of morality haha. Objectively James and Sirius did bad things, it's just how it is, and they're still good characters.

[morangoowada]

Wait because as my official Mondo moots i HAVE to ask your opinion on :

Mondo and Leon's relation

Mondo and Chihiro's relation

And finally, i feel like it's the most touchy for me, but Mondo and Daiya's

(You can separate this ask into 3 post if it's better for you, i will see them all anyway)

(Ps : You can come and ask me question if you want too, i dont mind :3)

In less than one week I already got called CEO of Ishimondo and now the official Mondo Moot? 😭 Thank you guys so much, it's an honor to know you like my Mondo takes.... But anyway, I'll talk about how I view each of the relationships you asked!!

First with Mondo and Leon. They're not shown together a lot in THH because of obvious reasons, but I remember that in the game itself they show a picture of Leon, Mondo and Chihiro together before the killing game, plus they also have some interactions in Ultimate Development Plan and Summer Camp I think. Based on all of this I think they were definitely friends, I like to think of them as those types of friends that are always teasing and fighting with each other but they do care about the other, most of the time I make Leon be like one of Mondo's best friends together with Taka, Chihiro and Hiro. I view Leon and Mondo as platonic, probably besties who get into trouble together, but I don't mind their ship

Chihiro and Mondo.... Oh boy that's a tough one to discuss. They get along well, hot take to some people, but the events of chapter 2 didn't happen because Mondo didn't like Chihiro or had a disrespectful view towards her identity and gender, but rather because Mondo is a PTSD mess and he thought Chihiro was shoving his weakness on his face, like even I would react badly if someone told me "You're so strong, it can't hurt you" to something that I struggle A LOT about, and even after Mondo did what he did, he still tried to keep Chihiro's secret and protect it, Mondo cared for Chihiro and the reason for why he killed her wasn't because he doesn't like her. We see them getting along in the other games where the Killing game doesn't happen, showing that if it weren't for that context they would get along and Mondo would also help Chihiro reveal her secret and get stronger physically, they could be friends. But even so, I can't think of Chimondo as a romantic couple, I don't think their relationship could work and I believe it would be a toxic dynamic without them even knowing it. Relationships can be toxic in various ways, not just with abuse and such, but with also the relationship not working even if the people in it like each other. Chihiro and Mondo both envy each other, they both put each other on a high pedestal while treating themselves as inferior. Chihiro views Mondo as something he isn't, she views him as the strong facade he pretends to be and admires that facade of his and that makes Mondo uncomfortable, he doesn't want to be seen as that, he doesn't want to be admired or to be thought of as "strong" because he doesn't believe himself to be like that. Mondo envys Chihiro, he envys her ability to accept her "weak" self and try to be better, her ability to stop ignoring and avoiding the issue, he doesn't think he's able to do that and so he feels envy, I can feel he also feels weak around her because of that. For these reasons I don't think they could work in a romantic setting, like dating someone you feel envious about is NOT healthy, I think they could only work as platonic, but of course that's just how I view them.

Mondo and Daiya is another relationship that's difficult to discuss, but for other reasons. Daiya... doesn't have that much canon content about him and we can only judge how he was based on what we see Mondo mentioning of him, which doesn't happen a lot because he probably feels bad when remembering his bro, and also because Mondo seems like an unreliable narrator because of how much he admires Daiya. One of the things we can be certain about is that these two cared A LOT about each other, it's mentioned that the only person Mondo considered a family was his brother, he mentions how Daiya teached him about promises, about not being a dick to women, every time he mentions his brother he seems to talk with a lot of affection in regards to Daiya, also his death really affects Mondo, so I guess it's already obvious enough that Mondo cares about Daiya, and that care is reciprocated. As I mentioned we don't see much about Daiya, but I have no doubts that he also cared about Mondo, I mean the fact that he was probably the only person taking care of Mondo when they were younger is already telling, but we also need to remember that he sacrificed himself. Unlike what Mondo believes, he didn't kill his brother, Daiya CHOSE himself to save Mondo, he preferred to sacrifice himself than to let Mondo die.... There's no doubt to me that Mondo was the most important thing to him, and Daiya was the most important thing to Mondo. These two really loved each other and 😭 they make me so emotional just thinking about them... The Diamond Bros deserve more content man... It makes things much worse when you reflect that they might be kinda close to each other's ages, and that means that Daiya was taking care of Mondo when they were both kids, meaning that he was performing a parental role when he was just a kid who could've been enjoying his young years but sacrificed those for the sake of Mondo, it's like Daiya sacrificed a lot of things for Mondo's sake, not just his life

[foxoftheninetails]

I was just about to go to bed. I was thinking about all the time ive spent the last few weeks with my friends. We talk, we play games together, we stream, we watch videos and trade stupid memes. We support each other. Then I had a realization.

A bit of backstory first, for anyone who doesn't know (how could you not? I never shut up). Growing up, my dad worked all the time to provide for us, so I spent all of my time with my mother and sister. Over time, this developed in to "I dont know how to interact with guys." I mean, I do. Now. As long as its not the hypertoxic, hyper masculine nightmare that I have abhored since I was young.

I have always hung out with girls. In school, 4 of my closest friends were girls. I was always surrounded by a group of girls. I'd rather sit with them. Yeah, I know they can be toxic and vicious and gross too. But for whatever reason, I can talk to girls in a way that I can't talk to guys. (There are always exceptions to the rule, and yes, a couple of my dearest friends are guys, and we can vibe)

Anyway, on to my realization. A large portion of my friends are trans. There is an inside joke about this that is way too funny, and I still giggle when I think about it. Some of my friends I knew before they figured out that they are trans, some I met just after, and some have been on HRT for a time.

I have surrounded myself with people who have every right to be angry, to hurt others, to hate the world. Not for who they are, but for how they are perceived and treated. What the US government is doing might be the most disgusting thing I have heard about since the 1930s. My friends have been spat on, they cant go outside as themselves, some have been verbally and physically attacked. And every other trans person has to live woth that thought every day. They have every right in the world to want to destroy people like me. Cis, White, American males who have grown up knowing little to no hardship (I do whine a lot, but that's for the other bits of my blog) and being happy and comfortabla and feeling at home in my skin.

But they don't. They aren't mean. They are warm, and genuine, and wholesome, and caring, and doting, and loving. Every single trans person I know, without fail, is a lovely human being.

From personal experience alone, they have gone out of their way to make me feel included, and important. They help me when I need help, they spend time with me, they do things that I'm interested in and talk about my topics of interest. They support me in new and ever expanding ways. And they're happy to do it. Its not false, they aren't trying to get something out of it. In all reality, I dont have a lot to offer and I'm pretty clear about that when I start talking to new people.

They are just kind. I can't say for sure why that is, but I strongly suspect they get up every day and see the hatred aimed at them and consciously decide to be a positive force in the universe, even when they're being beaten down.

I am awe inspired. I want to be a better person and a better friend because my friends are so good to me. And frankly, I dont deserve them.

I was a terrible fucking person just 5 or 6 years ago. All the usual tropes apply, I'm not going into it here. If you care enough ask in the comments.

But for all of that, and yes, I have talked with each of them about what a PoS I was, they still show me love and kindness. I dont deserve friends like that, but I will forever try to earn the love and respect they have shown me.

Please, if you can, please hug your trans friend for me today. Because none of mine are close enough, and the only thing I want in this world is to show them that they are genuinely loved. And who doesn't like hugs?

Growing up, I had friends. Who doesn't? Some were good, some were better, some were bad. But what I never had was a family. And that's exactly what this is. I hate calling it a found family, because I didn't "find" them, they saved me. We are together, as a cooperative group for the betterment of each other and the world around us.

I will endeavor every single day to make the world around me better, and try to show the genuine compassion and caring my family has shown me, to others.

That joke? My handle across every single platform is Fox, in one manner or another. I have adopted it, and for all intents and purposes it is me. Foxes like eggs. Its a small thing, but when my friend said it to me, I thought my heart exploded. I was allowed to be included. I am included, I'm not secondary or tertiary, I'm not on the sidelines. I may forever be the wallflower of the family, the one who is willing to walk behind everyone else because the sidewalk isnt wide enough, but I will forever sleep better because you let me be part of the family.

I have unconsciously surrounded myself with people who will show me patience and kindness, compassion and love. I might not have gotten enough of that growing up and that's why I searched it out. But I have found the place I belong, and it's only fair that everyone else does too.

I say this all the time, but I hope its not too old. Thank you for letting me be a part of your lives, letting yourself be shared with me. I love you so dearly (this goes for all of my family and friends, but i bet you already knew that) that my heart feels it might burst.

And seriously, go hug your trans friend today. Just pick one, give them a warm, attentive hug, and when you pull apart, tell them you love them. Dont ever stop telling your friends you love them.

I generally dont farm interactions, it feels cheap. I mean this with all sincerity: tell me about your trans friend in the comments. I dont care if its one sentence or one thousand, I want to hear something you love about them.

So for once, new rule: do interact, do comment and repost. I want to hear about them.

💚

[dbphantom]

Oh no, that was terrible

Marinette why are you lying to Adrien about his shitty dad other than to benefit from his grief at losing another parent (and why is nobody questioning his mom being alive now? Was the universe rewritten to fix the peacock miraculous and that's it, so Adrien's mom was alive the whole time, but somehow nothing actually changed with Gabriel, msaning he would've gone down this path no matter what actually happened to his wife? Meaning he really is just a shit person?) YOUR RELATIONSHIP IS BEING FOUNDED ON LIES, MARINETTE! Let Adrien know what really happened!!!!

And why was Adrien written out of HIS family's entire arc finale??? And Kagami??? (I still don't even fully understand why her and Felix were introduced from a writing perspective in the first place other than to make things even more convoluted... I liked Felix's character don't get me wrong, but Kagami was always done really dirty, especially now). Marinette is taking away Adrien's agency by lying to his face about what his father was really like, and we are supposed to be cool with that?

And why didn't we get an identity reveal with Adrien and his dad???? The whole arc was building up to this point of conflict and then they just ignore it! Adrien could've been partially responsible for his father's death with the cataclysm and they just IGNORE IT!!!!!! His worst nightmare is hurting the people he loves AND THEY JUST IGNORE THAT HE DID THAT EXACT THING AND HIS DAD DECIDED TO SACRIFICE HIMSELF BECAUSE OF IT. Is that why they think Marinette lying to Adrien about all the suffering caused by father is worth it??? Because it's not!

Also why didn't the universe rewriting for the wish actually change anything?? I thought that was a huge thing they established before now- that making a wish rewrites the universe and destroys the current one. But nothing actually changed beyond the peacock not being broken!!! As far as we're shown the fight with Monarch still happened, which means Marinette DOES remember everything! So what the hell?? Why isn't she saying anything?! Why did she let Gabriel get away with causing all that suffering and letting him be remembered as a hero? WTF?! DEATH SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED REDEMPTION, THIS IS EXACTLY WHY!!

And if the universe DID rewrite, then this is not OUR Marinette or Adrien, because they have grown up with very different lives (no dead mom, for one) and the previous two were ERASED. Except Monarch was still a thing, and Lyla found the butterfly miraculous at the house, which means the fight DID happen, and if Gabriel 'sacrificed himself' during the fight then the same fight happened. Marinette even mentions looking for the butterfly in the water, so she clearly DOES remember the fight.

Or are we supposed to believe Adrien's mom was Monarch now or something and Gabriel really did sacrifice himself in this rewritten universe, and that's why Marinette isn't saying anything about how Gabriel was actually a bad guy? Then why tf is Emilie just chilling by the pool in the final scene?! Or is the Monarch in this new universe a total stranger now???

Why do I have to come up with these convoluted scenarios to explain why Marinette is going along with this random, bullshit redemption arc for no good reason??? Is she just supposed to be content that at the very end he decides to kill himself instead of Natalie, and everyone, including Natalie and Emilie, is just fine lying to Adrien about what his father was actually like???? Or did she try to tell him and physically couldn't because of the rewrite/the wish??? Is that why it wasn't actually spoken, so the writers can just "oh, it's the wish's fault" themselves out of every issue in the next 10 seasons?

But no instead of clarifying anything we just get 1000 scenes of side characters no one actually gave a shit about, all fighting the same copy-pasted enemy 30 times because we want our Avengers Endgame moment without having to work for it.

AND NO IDENTITY REVEAL FOR THE LOVE SQUARE! I'M ACTUALLY MAD ABOUT THAT ONE! MONARCH IS GONE!!! THIS WAS THE TIME!!!!!!

WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THE PAST 5 SEASONS IF EVERYONE'S JUST HAPPY LIKE THIS????????? PLEASE TELL ME SEASON 6 IS GOING TO BE THEM SHATTERING THIS 'PERFECT HAPPY ENDING' FACADE AND NOT JUST THROWING LYLA INTO THE SAME FUCKING POSITION AS MONARCH SO THEY DON'T HAVE TO CHANGE THE STATUS QUO EVER!

Also lmao they really shipped Chloe off and then Never Mentioned Her Again. That'd be hilarious if it wasn't so depressing.

Well... At least the animation was good. And the ladybug chat noir fusion looked cool as hell (besides the goofy eyes). And Gabriel was rocking those earrings. He should've worn earrings more. We were both like 'damn, he actually makes those look good'. It was such an upgrade from his silly little bald cap. I would've accepted Gabriel redemption if he wore earrings more often <- joke

Update: I'm seeing posts that the woman by the pool might not even be Emilie, but in fact her sister. That... Might be even worse. So Gabriel used his wish not to fix the peacock miraculous in the past, but instead just return Natalie to health. Shit that might be EVEN WORSE than just killing himself to bring Adrien's mom back by retroactively fixing the miraculous that killed her and almost killed Natalie. Dude just caused all that suffering for NOTHING and left Adrien an orphan. Wowza.

[raquellemonsta]

the sweet things in life (tsukishima x reader)

previous || next

chapter 6: study time

You walked into class half-tired and went directly over to your desk to lay your head down. Some of your classmates had given you confused looks, but you didn't care. The practice match the guys had played yesterday had successfully exhausted you.

The boys had played Aoba Johsai, and to say that team was interesting would be an understatement. Especially because apparently there was history with Kageyama and the other team's egotistical setter, Oikawa Tooru.

He hadn't even shown up until the very last set, but that didn't stop him from showing off his skill. He was a very impressive player, but his attitude was annoying to even his own team at times. One of the other reasons you weren't very fond of him was due to something after the game, that you hadn't told anyone about.

You had been waiting for your team to come outside and join you in waiting for the bus. Honestly thinking back on it, you weren't too sure how you had ended up by yourself. Maybe you shouldn't have rushed through your post-game duties so quickly.

"Hey there, you must be a new manager for the misfits" came a silky, smooth voice. You weren't surprised to look up and see Seijoh's captain.

"What's that supposed to mean? We beat you" you genuinely responded. Who does this guy think he is? To your statement, he merely chuckled and shook his head.

"You might've beaten us but who's to say we were even really trying? Why pull out all the stops for a silly little practice match? It's just bad strategy." You didn't really understand how this guy had so many girls falling over themselves for him. He's conventionally attractive, that you won't deny. But the second he opens his mouth it's all ruined.

"So cocky. Take your loss and let your actual playing speak for you. It's far better than your voice," you pushed. He gave you a strange look, both confused and intrigued with you, when you decided to hit him with something that had just come to mind.

"Why are you talking to me anyway? Did you have something to say or did you just want to try and intimidate me into becoming one of your fangirls?" you sneered. Usually, you weren't nasty like this with people, but him badmouthing your team pissed you off enough to just let it all out.

"Your setter will be the end of you" he suddenly became very serious. It spooked you to hear the change in his tone. You didn't really understand what he meant by that either. What was wrong with Kageyama? You opened your mouth again to speak but you were interrupted by another person.

"Hey loser! Leave the poor girl alone" came a voice from the doorway. Seijoh's ace, Iwaizumi if you remembered correctly. He was looking directly at Oikawa, whose head had jerked up at Iwaizumi's voice.

"If you say so Iwa!" Reaching down, he grabs your hand, closes it, and kisses your knuckle (flirtatiously? threateningly?) before walking back through the open door, not before giving you a mischievous grin.

What the hell had just happened?

When you got off the bus after you guys got back, Ukai had an announcement for everyone.

"Alright everyone keep it down" he began, "we've been invited to a training camp in Tokyo two weekends from now. There's gonna be a lot of strong teams there, so it'll be a great opportunity to improve your skills and get some good practice matches in."

There were some excited shouts and cheers, and it was clear this was a very big deal.

You had spent the rest of the weekend doing some studying and barely being able to get any sleep. With your finals coming up, it was important for you to study, but you might have gone a little overboard. Though you weren't really struggling with any topic, you still thought it would be a good idea to make sure you understood everything.

The teacher was giving you time today to study since finals would be at the end of this week. You guys weren't learning any new material until after the upcoming break.

Finally picking your head up, you looked all over the room. You assumed a lot of kids must have gone to the library or other classrooms, because a lot of desks were empty. Across the room, you saw that Tsukishima had moved to Yamaguchi's desk and they seemed to just be talking for now.

"Hey guys" you had walked over to them after some mental debate.

"Hi (L/n)!" Yamaguchi happily greeted. Tsukishima only made eye contact with you and waited for you to speak again.

"Mind if I sit?" you asked, though you figured you could anyway.

"Of course not" Yamaguchi replied again, so you pulled up a chair to sit opposite Tsukki. They then explained to you that they were just working on some math practice problems. You grabbed your practice sheet from your folder and started to work through them, occasionally you talked with the two boys.

To your surprise, Kageyama and Hinata entered your classroom without warning and made a ruckus in the small amount of time they had been in there.

"Tsukishima, please help us study for our exams!" Hinata shouted. You couldn't help but snicker at him practically begging Tsukishima of all people for help.

"Will you quiet down!? You're attracting too much attention," Tsukishima hissed.

"Please! We have to pass them!" he again begged. Kageyama's cheeks were slightly pink, likely embarrassed at having to ask for help despite not having said anything.

"Why do you guys suddenly care so much about actually doing well?" Yamaguchi interjected. It was a genuine question, which might have sounded rude if anyone but Yamaguchi had asked it.

"Coach told us that we can't go if we fail our exams, because the supplemental ones take place the same day we would be leaving" Kageyama explained. You felt kind of bad for the two. This training camp was a big opportunity that all the boys were very excited about, especially Kageyama and Hinata. They loved showing off their quick attack.

"I'm not helping you" Tsukishima flatly stated. The two boys looked at him in surprise even though they hadn't been expecting him to easily comply.

"Why not?!" Hinata again shouted. You quietly shushed him since you guys started getting looks again.

"I have no reason to? Also I don't want to" he said, turning back to his math work.

"Come on you jerk, please!" Hinata tried once more.

You looked over at Tsukishima, and saw him just staring down at his paper before suddenly smirking and looking back up at the two.

"I'll do it if Kageyama begs" he smirked. You raised an eyebrow and made eye contact with Yamaguchi, who only shrugged. Kageyama looked mortified.

"No" he simply stated.

"Then I'm not helping you" Tsukki turned away again.

"I don't need your help" Kageyama coldly stated before turning around and walking back out the door. Hinata quickly followed after him. You looked back at them in pity.

"You could've been a little bit nicer to them" you told him. While you by no means expected him to actually help them, you didn't think he had gone about it in the best way.

"Whatever" he coldly responded and ignored you. Your heart squeezed at this response, but you tried not to think about it. Luckily, Yamaguchi distracted you with some nicer conversation and the rest of your studying passed by quickly.

You guys had decided to leave for practice early (with permission from the teacher of course). You passed by the classroom for 1-5, and had to do a double take that made you stop in your tracks. Sure enough, you had seen Hinata and Kageyama sat down with a blonde girl. She appeared to be helping them study, as they were intently listening to her even though she seemed very nervous.

"Aw, she looks cute" you said.

"Yeah..." Yamaguchi breathed out. You gave him a knowing look but he was too busy looking through the door. Tsukishima was not impressed. He let out a 'tch' and continued walking, so you followed him with Yamaguchi soon behind.

You waited a little while for everyone to show up. Kiyoko usually gave you small jobs to do, so you walked over to her when she showed up. Rather than have anything for you to do, she let you know that the team would be gaining yet another manager, who was also a first year. Her name was Yachi Hitoka, and she had no experience with volleyball but was very excited to play a part.

"I'm actually introducing her to the team today, she should be here any minute" she told you. The doors opened, and in walked Kageyama and Hinata, followed by the new manager.

The girl was the same one that you had seen Kageyama and Hinata studying with earlier.  Compared to her nerves earlier, she looked entirely terrified now. Kiyoko had her introduce herself to the team.

"I'm Yachi Hitoka! I'm excited to be a manager, I-I hope we can work together well" she stuttered out. She was clearly very nervous and tripped over her words a little but mostly held up.

That was until the boys started closing in on her, introducing themselves. You swore you heard her say something about how big and scary everyone was, which caused you to chuckle a little. She wasn't wrong.

"Let her breathe everyone" Kiyoko came to her rescue. She took her arm and brought her over to you, while the guys started their practice. The girl gave you another nervous look, though different from the one she gave to the guys. It would probably best be described as awe and admiration.

"This is the other manager I was telling you about," Kiyoko began, "she's in the class one higher" she said, mostly to explain to Yachi that you were also a first year and she didn't need to be so afraid.

"(L/n) (Y/n), it's nice to meet you Yachi" you introduced yourself. She already looked like she was going to burst into flames.

"You're really pretty" she told you absent-mindedly. You felt yourself heat up at the unexpected compliment.

"Oh, thank you" you giggled. "You're very sweet."

"Anyway, I'll show you what I do and then have you help (L/n) with some tasks to see how you like it" Kiyoko said, saving the slightly awkward moment.

"O-okay!" Yachi accepted.

She was a very sweet girl, to be sure.