#and don't worry about how old the cast is when it very clearly isn't that much of an issue anywhere else lmao

[hawkinslibrary]

i don't think the jokes about the "kids" being too old now are ever going to be funny to me. of course they're older? we're lucky they were ever age accurate to begin with, the way things usually go. but just looking at natalia, charlie, and joe -- they were literally in their 20s playing teens in s1. none of the people making these jokes ever mention that. if anything, to me, this just brings it even more full circle considering the "kids" this season are going to be closer to nancy, jonathan, and steve's age when the show first started. and the six of them are young 20s. as if teens in Most other shows aren't being played by people in their 20s and 30s. it's such a weird thing to fixate on

[salix-triandra]

for the ask - Sam Butler from mismag! (this is ivy btw just on my extremely old technically-main blog 💀)

Thank youuuu I would love to talk about the wondrous and incandescent Sam Butler:

I feel like Sam is getting her flowers in Season 2 and flew under the radar a bit in Season 1, but Season 1 established that Sam's strength lies in seeing the emotional connections between people and that she has a very strong emotional intelligence. She sees how people matter to each other, but her insecurities break my heart as they don't let her internalize how those connections often spread from HER. S2 shows us that she has spent so much time convinced that people don't actually like her but are liking a spell she is casting on them, even though the reality is that people genuinely like her. She is charming, but she isn't just charming; she has a strong desire to know things about others.

I've only ever shipped Sam with Evan, I'll be honest-- in season 1, she was the first person to say hi to him and attempt to include him the moment she met him. Sam literally talked demons out of possessing him. It blindsided me when Evan and K were the pairing in S1 (though by the time S2 began, they'd broken up) because I saw Sam's genuine care and affection for the person Evan was and I saw K's more surface-level fascination with Evan's situation and sad-boy deal over his person-ness. No K hate, it's literally their arc. And in season 2, that care and affection has continued to grow between Sam and Evan from the start, as early as episode 2 when Sam sees Evan giving into a violent urge and stops him bc she's worried about him, when she notices Evan is being really violent with his shadow, and when Evan carries Sam across a sea of lava and they have an emotional talk about wanting to be in each other's lives. And the whole time K and Sam are talking about what Sam wants in a partner it keeps cutting to Evan doing something off to the side... and then epsidoe 3 happens where Evan fucking dies and Sam is the only person who can look at the shadow version of him? And how she's the one to ask all the right questions to determine how to get Evan back to life? And from that point onward, we see them both prioritizing each other first in everything: in combat, in emotional scenes; they gravitate towards each other before others. I could talk about this part forever but won't bc this is about SAM and not the two of them as a couple. She is so attentive, caring, and loving; it shows in the way she sees Evan as a normal person, and he validates that for her by showing that he consistently sees to the core of her.

Non-romantic OTP, K Tanaka and Sam are Pink Pals forever, childhood friends that were super close, grew apart in adolescence, and then re-connected as 17 year-olds. They care for each other a lot and are able to have tough conversations together even if it means getting a little tense because it matters to them.

I know this doesn't count as an unpopular opinion about Sam the character, but seeing as how I don't have any, I would love to see more art of Sam with her natural hair or, at the very least, with some of the protective styles she would wear under her wigs! I'll contribue myself sometime soon, but I'd love to see it from other people, too!

I would have loved to see Sam get to have more time with Fergus Pontz, a character who she dated in S1 and then saw very briefly in episode 3 after Evan got killed-- we find out he followed the Pilot Program's pathing from island to island and then ended up somewhere with bomb in his chest?? and he died??? so she never got to meet back up with him and find out how he survived things; clearly something in their old dynamic was haunting her and it would have been nice for her to get that closure with him.

Thank you again for asking!!!! I loooove this series very much and Sam most of all :)

[variations-on-a-flat]

As CR3 wraps up, here are some of my thoughts on the character development. It's not awfully cohesive and is very long

Nothing was ever wrong with the characters themselves. I don't get what people mean when they say they were all crazy? It's not a party of clowns. Individually they each had a really interesting potential.

Fearne and her Feywild/fire connection had a lot of potential, with the possibility a player character would go darkside and how everyone would deal with that. Her chaos and pick-pocketing is endearing, loved that she occasionally leaned into growing up with an entirely different moral compass too.

FCG was our first warforged/aeormaton, wanted to know why someone would wake him up, wanted to see if he could defuse the trigger that made him dangerous (which I know the players knew they could handle after the first time, but I'm not sure anyone ever asked FCG if this was triggering or traumatizing for him and he wanted to take time to turn it off). But him examining what it meant to gain sentience and interact with humans while everyone pressed him not to take a servant role was interesting.

Bertrand Bell was annoying in C1 and in C3, but he had an excellent little closure and opened up the possibility that player characters could die in this campaign, something which can be freeing if the DM and players agree that the cast can be a bit more rotating door as needed (ie Scanlan leaving, Molly dying, even Ashley's unfortunate absences were all memorable and affected how the party played).

Chetney is one of my favorite characters this campaign. I love that he's just there for the ride, it's another adventure. His backstory was lighthearted but had real emotional beats (even his age is so fun, unusual, and plays into his willingness to just live without worrying about living. Also love how every time any of the younger ones come to him for advice he's like, I don't have any! which for these characters is its own kind of advice).

Imogen's story is trying to be the eventual focus the way Caleb's connection to the Cerberus assembly, which would have been a wonderful showcase of the marvelous laura bailey. It's normal for her to be afraid while also loving her powers, interesting for her to have a messy family dynamic, and no issues for storytelling if there's a push/pull between her wondering what will happen to her if she embraces her powers.

Laudna's backstory was also one of my favorites, I thought the emotional turmoil was expressed so beautifully by Marisha. It felt a little cliche at first to have an og big bad return, but even that ended up making sense the more Marisha played with it. I love that the ritual to bring her back involved submerging delilah but that she came back, it felt appropriate for the level the party was when they did the ritual.

Orym is a quiet person it seems naturally, and there was lots of potential to explore what we saw a few instances of, the old grief and quietly simmering anger at having loved ones ripped away like he had. Also, his backstory as an Ashari guard made a lot of sense to connecting with C1 characters to get help if needed. He also had a lot of potential as a sort of outsourcer for Keyleth? Like it makes sense for the Ashari to send a wandering member or allow them to pursue a vendetta and do some investigating. (For him, I also was hoping for more examination of how clearly upset he is to have his family be collateral damage, which ties in with Laudna's story too and none of this ever got brought up)

Ashton had an excellent concept. I read someone else call him a "contrarian brat" but I don't think this was a bad thing! Loved the new barbarian subclass, loved Ashton trying to find his missing memories, really liked having a character who had chronic pain, liked the interplay with dunamancy. His punk aesthetic isn't contrary to the rest of the party either, and I think Taliesin did try to show Ashton getting closer to the group and finding the balance between independence and cooperation.

And Dorian!! I loved the EXU short campaigns and his backstory. However, I haven't gotten to the episodes where he comes back. But he lifts the party when he's there, brings Orym out of his shell, and Robbie is just an excellent actor.

There is however potential vs reality and I have a preference for literary analysis. However, this is also a live game. I don't want to criticize the players. I think they still tried to play within the limits they could, but the game play is something that effects the show since it's all live improv.

From the beginning, you can tell that many of these characters have a deep "scar". It's not uncommon for dnd characters and is a reasonable narrative beat, Ashton was abandoned when he was injured, Laudna was a Thing In the Woods for a long time, Orym lost his husband and father figure to an assassination attempt that wasn't even directed at them, FCG doesn't know why he's alive here and now and wants purpose, Imogen was abandoned by her mom and her father was emotionally distant because he feared her, Fearne also was abandoned by her parents (and had a great emotional payoff of finding them, talking about it, and getting a reasonable explanation for why).

However, these instances were all distant (compared to ie M9 who were in the thick of the aftermath of several traumatizing experiences, or VM who experienced new traumatic experiences in real time during the campaign). They're the kinds of experiences that colors the characters interactions with others and day-to-day life (like Imogen being careful about where she opens her mind, or having to decide when/whether to mind-read), but may be harder to talk about compared to ie Beau's "oh my father recently had me kidnapped into a controlling boarding school where I lashed out and ran away because it's at least my choice".

To compare characters, M9 is accessible right away because they're very much "Don't ask me about my problems (PLEASE ask me about my problems)" with abrasive or nosey personalities that won't take no for an answer. BH are not. These are people who have largely been hurt by abandonment or lack of purpose, who really sincerely do not want to talk about their issues because it makes them vulnerable.

And while the BH members may also be curious enough to want to see what's going on with their party members, there's enough emotional intelligence to go around that 1. the characters will and do back off if their questions obviously make the other person uncomfortable, partly because they understand that feeling 2. they can tell pushing too hard might make a party member want/need to run away 3. they ran out of time to ask these questions with the solstice deadline looming while they still didn't trust one another. So by the time we get to major events like the Solstice, they don't know one another very well and neither do we. Some of the best episodes early on were when the witches all went to flirt with Pretty, or when they all rode horses to a new town, lower stakes compared to Ruidus, but important to the characters, it hinted at build-up to hunting Orym's family's killers, it gave us our first touches of Delilah's influence on Laudna, and also had a fey connection.

Nana Mori's and FCG's trust exercise was a GREAT idea narratively. It was the players and GM acknowledging that the characters have issues they Do Not Talk About with one another.

And it's not a bad thing to have characters who need help communicating, it's just different than M9 who aggressively pointed swords and staffs and fire and yelled at one another when the others did something scary or suspicious, or VM who we saw as people who knew one another and already mostly felt entangled.

Ashton's attempt to absorb the core was excellent dnd, Fearne's reaction was an excellent response. Unfortunately, the "trust exercises" mostly seemed like a pressure-valve, which can still be good storytelling, if there is some acknowledgement still of those issues and/or narrative-consequences for a group that trusts one another in combat but does not have the same problem-solving approaches, and struggles to communicate emotionally (partly why I like Chetney so much is he will admit to emotional turmoil, but also isn't all that scared of talking about it.) I'm still stuck just after their Feywild visit however so someone else might have to say whether we get this payoff or not.

From the beginning there was just a really obvious disconnect between characters that promised emotional payoff but I wasn't sure they had time to deal with it since they got thrown into a world-changing situation. There's nothing wrong with being a bunch of nobodies asked to solve a problem way above their paygrade, but this makes BH a far more grassroots team than VM (which was heirs to several legacies, tops of their fields, or related to sources of power proving themselves as devoted to Isylra at large) or M9 (which was full of more normal people, but still those who were many students to great powers, or related to some really unique sources of power). When you're grassroots, especially if they're making decisions for a whole world, it makes sense to have interacted with npc's? (the players are the world so it's a little strangely meta where the players need to be okay with this and they're the ones who count, but from a character POV it would make sense to perhaps know some farmers or craftsmen of Jrusar or the riders of Bassuras thing about the gods and religion etc)

However, I do understand that BH at this point knows more about Predathos and the gods, which is hard to pitch to normal people npc's, and they're in a weird place where the more powerful people might just kill them if they try to have this conversation.

To compare characters, M9 is accessible right away because they're very much "Don't ask me about my problems (PLEASE ask me about my problems)" with abrasive or nosey personalities that won't take no for an answer. BH are not. These are people who have largely been hurt by abandonment or lack of purpose, who really sincerely do not want to talk about their issues because it makes them vulnerable.

And while the BH members may also be curious enough to want to see what's going on with their party members, there's enough emotional intelligence to go around that 1. the characters will and do back off if their questions obviously make the other person uncomfortable, partly because they understand that feeling 2. they can tell pushing too hard might make a party member want/need to run away 3. they ran out of time to ask these questions with the solstice deadline looming while they still didn't trust one another. So by the time we get to major events like the Solstice, they don't know one another very well and neither do we. Some of the best episodes early on were when the witches all went to flirt with Pretty, or when they all rode horses to a new town, lower stakes compared to Ruidus, but important to the characters, it hinted at build-up to hunting Orym's family's killers, it gave us our first touches of Delilah's influence on Laudna, and also had a fey connection.

Nana Mori's and FCG's trust exercise was a GREAT idea narratively. It was the players and GM acknowledging that the characters have issues they Do Not Talk About with one another.

And it's not a bad thing to have characters who need help communicating, it's just different than M9 who aggressively pointed swords and staffs and fire and yelled at one another when the others did something scary or suspicious, or VM who we saw as people who knew one another and already mostly felt entangled.

Ashton's attempt to absorb the core was excellent dnd, Fearne's reaction was an excellent response. Unfortunately, the "trust exercises" mostly seemed like a pressure-valve, which can still be good storytelling, if there is some acknowledgement still of those issues and/or narrative-consequences for a group that trusts one another in combat but does not have the same problem-solving approaches, and struggles to communicate emotionally (partly why I like Chetney so much is he will admit to emotional turmoil, but also isn't all that scared of talking about it.) I'm still stuck just after their Feywild visit however so someone else might have to say whether we get this payoff or not.

From the beginning there was just a really obvious disconnect between characters that promised emotional payoff but I wasn't sure they had time to deal with it since they got thrown into a world-changing situation. There's nothing wrong with being a bunch of nobodies asked to solve a problem way above their paygrade, but this makes BH a far more grassroots team than VM (which was heirs to several legacies, tops of their fields, or related to sources of power proving themselves as devoted to Isylra at large) or M9 (which was full of more normal people, but still those who were many students to great powers, or related to some really unique sources of power). When you're grassroots, especially if they're making decisions for a whole world, it makes sense to have interacted with npc's? (the players are the world so it's a little strangely meta where the players need to be okay with this and they're the ones who count, but from a character POV it would make sense to perhaps know some farmers or craftsmen of Jrusar or the riders of Bassuras thing about the gods and religion etc)

However, I do understand that BH at this point knows more about Predathos and the gods, which is hard to pitch to normal people npc's, and they're in a weird place where the more powerful people might just kill them if they try to have this conversation.

[trelinha9]

Every time I see a Friede x Amethio post, ten of my neurons die. I know these posts come from new fans who only watched the episodes released on Netflix (which goes up to 13 if I'm not mistaken), and he's only appeared in 6 episodes at this point (which is a crime against my mental health. What the hell is he doing in that time offscream? I WANT ANSWERS!!!) I remember in the first episodes of Horizontes, that Tumblr and AO3 were full of posts and fics about Friede x Amethio, and they disappeared over time as the episodes went on.

It's funny, because nowadays, almost a year after Horizons officially started, fans who watch the subtitled episodes are all worried about the mental health of this teenager and wondering why the heck they are in Exploradores, while the new fans are in the same boat as most of the old ones were and abandoned, shipping the poor guy with Friede.

I personally never shipped them because:

1: Amethio is, canonically, and confirmed by his original voice actor, a teenager (on bulbapedia it said he was between 13 and 19, but now they removed that part and only added the fact that he is a teenager, without mentioning a possible age) I headcanon him as 16, because, for me, it's the age that makes the most sense for his behavior and mannerisms, but that's just me. You can imagine him as 18 or 19 if that makes you feel more comfortable shipping him with Friede, but it doesn't change the fact that he's still a young and emotionally immature person, with no apparent emotional support base other than his Pokémon and his subordinates (Zir and Conia will get there someday, I know they will), while Friede is a fully grown adult, and clearly more mature than Amethio (there's even a line about it in episode 25). Friede had already been a Pokémon teacher for probably a reasonable amount of time when Liko was around 5 to 7 years old (we find out about this in episode 18), and honestly, Amethio doesn't look that much older than Liko. The clear age difference between them makes me uncomfortable. There are a lot of adults in the Horizons cast to be shipped with Friede, leave the traumatized teenager alone.

2: The way Friede, especially in the first arc, keeps teasing Amethio, even though he's clearly irritated and on edge, makes me want to punch him. I love Friede. But the way he interacts with Amethio, one minute he's having a good time taking care of Liko and Roy, and the next he's ready to annoy the shit out of a teenager make me so angry. I love this idea that Friede is a complete social disaster who doesn't really know how to pick up cues (scareing a deaf girl, for example, is definitely something he would do by accident 👀), but there's no way he can't see how negatively his actions and words affect Amethio. Amethio wants to prove himself. He wants to fulfill the mission ordered to him, and this idiot adult, in addition to getting in the way, bothers him every chance he gets (ep 5, ep 22 and ep 25 are the best examples). I'm amazed at how Friede either doesn't really realize the harm his actions cause to Amethio, or he does and simply decides to keep doing it.

This post may make it seem like I don't like Friede, which isn't true. I love Friede. I think he's a very funny character, but he also has a lot of flaws, and bullying a teenager is one of them.

I don't want to start fights about ships, because I'm not in Horizontes for the ships, but for the story and the characters. The only ship I really like is Friede with a certain Explorer who erased a child's memory (because for the love of god, they couldn't have made their battle in the last episode any less gay, could they) I don't want to offend anyone who ships Friede and Amethio, I just wanted to give my opinion on the matter and why I, with my interpretation of the story and characters, hate this ship. (Hate is a strong word, but I feel uncomfortable whenever I see this ship somewhere)

I'm really sorry if I offended anyone at any point in this post, I just don't like seeing a teenager and an adult being shiped.

[windalchemist001]

So I don't know if I talked about it yet if the twisted cast meet the next generation but when most don't have trama so like when their tiny little ones 3, 4 and 5 for the first, second and third years

Diasomnia

Since it's just Brigitte she would most likely be riding on the back of a deer or something that takes her to silver while she clings to her stuff animal that her dad gave her. I feel ilia would just cool at her and malleus would be touched that she calls him uncle and she just clings to silver and doesn't seem to be scared of sebek and she just seems rather chill. And so they don't have to worry to much

Ignihyde

Since it's again just meri she might just be found in the green house with a tablet and giggling and playing with flora fairy (boy) and she's giggling ans smiling and showing how she hacked the school system to go on the wolds version of YouTube she was found because she did in fact trip a few things because she is four and ortho is the one who finds her and drags her to her dad because she still has the shroud hair so kind of clear what her blood line is. She just chill and sort of gives spoilers that her parents meet at a con and that they love each ver much but its more ortho dealing with her and idia is just freaking out the whole time.

Pomefiore

Henry is found just sitting in a chair staring blanking at the wall glmices of him be a child Is there but over all just like porcelain doll. It is rather concerning he does respond and interact but only rook and vil seem to notice that the child isn't fully there all the other pomefiore don't notice what so ever and epel doesn't know what is up but know something is up with the boy, over all it is okish

Scarabia

So this one is where we get a older kid watching the babies though not much older since Farah is only nine and she's watching over a five (rotem) and four (chaim) year old. And she is actual very weary of her father and trust Jamil more since he's clearly a viper and thus she knows they are meant to serve her family and while she doesn't remember all her uncles and aunts but it wouldn't be the first time they tried to hurt her or her brother. But over all she doesn't fully trust either of them. And when she gets a chance she does ask Jamil how much does his loyalty cost, for she longs to know how trust worthy he is. Farah holds herself like she believes her mother would and is trying her best to make sure her brother and rotem stay safe since one is her baby brother and the other feels like family. The over all thing would be very tension filled mostly due to Farah and the boys seem alright but when she figures out that kailm is her father she will make sure to ask her father to be kind and playful in the future because for once her baby brother feels loved by their dad and it hurts her to see how happy he is and know that it won't be the same when they get back that it hurts her heart.

Octavinelle

The sad thing is Mona doesn't realize that azul isn't his older self since she mostly sees him via old photos so she sees him and goes to hug azul and refuses to let go. Because it has been a while since she's seen him and she refuses to let go the mini twins are glaring at azul the whole time when their not wobbly on their feet or messing with their uncle and father. Mona is actually very good when it comes to walking and honestly is able to run cicles around the twins and does tease them every once in a while when they try to catch her (when jade or floyd peel her off and before she re attaches to her dad.) She does also tell her dad about all the things she's does and what not but hopes her dad is proud of her. So over the thing is a bit bothersome but over ok

Savanaclaw

Has the oldest of the next generation what with sefu being fifteen, imani is five and her little brother Baraka is two. Also Rama is also five. Since their beast men they would be the small children would figure it out who their dad is so Rama would go to his dad and try to play with him. Sefu would be like "cool dad isn't old... well not an geezer I'm going to go prove how cool I am to him" and than proceed to some how end up on his face after rolling a few times from falling down. Thus waddle to two year old and five year old said five year old going though a backpack to give her eldest brother a bandaid and do her little best to scold him before trying to give him his meds when an alarm goes off and when ruggie starts laughing she goes to scold him for being mean. So imani does her best to keep an eye on both her brothers and after much trouble she does end up napping near Leona. So the whole this is a bit crazy but over all ok

Heartslabyul

Mina being ten is hold Samantha's (three) hand while also holding David who is (months old) followed by Lewis who seems to want to know whats going on. Lewis causes a bunch of trouble to both of his fathers. And mina just talks with her dad and tend to her siblings over all it is 50/50 because mina takes care of her siblings and is pretty good while ace and riddle are tried after running after Lewis

[puppy-coded]

Fry Bread{D.H.}

✰ 𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: Established relationship, Dustin and reader are 18, food mentions!!! Like a lot

✰ 𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: Aged up!Dustin Henderson x native!reader

✰ 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 585 words

✰ 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: You have a craving and a boyfriend with the palette of a five year old, you can fix both with one recipe.(moodboard by @mad-elia)

You, in your infinite wisdom and key having, decided to make your boyfriends life better. And also, cravings are a bitch and so is fry bread.

Extremely worth it food but it's hard to make, maybe due to incredible impatience on your end. It's a symbol of love when you make someone you love fry bread.

Especially if that "someone you love" is Dustin Henderson. He's so cute ans squishy and stressed from Hellfire.

All of that lead you to this moment.

Mixing your next batch of fry bread while your first batch was frying and singing in the kitchen.

Not your own kitchen mind you, Dustin's kitchen.

"Makin' up some fry bread for my boyfriend. Makin' up some fry bread for the Dungeon Master. Makin' up some fry bread for my boyfriend at Hellfire!" You sang, using your wooden spoon as a microphone.

"What are you doing?" Asked a familiar voice, causing you to turn quickly and almost dropping your bowl. Dustin had his hands on his hips and a very confused look on his face.

You gestured to everything going on in the kitchen with your wooden spoon. "Breaking into your house."

"I see that but why are you doing this in my house?" He asked, cleaning the counter a little.

You shrugged with a smile. "Fry bread because I feel like it."

"What?" He asked, coming up behind you and watching as you mixed your batter. He leaned on the counter and watched you intently.

"Have you never had fry bread?" You asked incredulously.

Dustin just put his hands up, clearly not knowing what you were talking about. "What's fry bread?"

You shook your head slightly and gave him a slightly confused look. "Dustin have you... never had food that isn't fries, chicken nuggets, and pancakes?"

Dustin glared at you for that one. "Oh quit. I've just... never had anything-"

"Not made by a white person?" You asked, putting a bit of batter into the oil.

"Yeah..."

You peeled off the paper towel from the top of a few donut-like puffs and put one on a plate for Dustin. "Lucky you I just made my first batch!"

"Is that oil that's cracklin' and poppin'?" He asked, looking over your shoulder.

You nodded, drizzling a bit of honey on top of the fry bread. "Yes it is. I'll clean your parents pan, don't worry."

"I wasn't but thank you." He smiled, taking the plate and planting a kiss to your forehead.

"Just... Try it. Shut up and eat it." You urged, placing your head in your hands, staring excitedly.

He took a bite and it was like watching him discover fireworks. "That's... good."

"I win!" You said excitedly, pumping your fists in the air.

Dustin quickly finished the dessert and leaned on the counter, struggling for something to say. "It was like... Jesus in food form."

"Right? I love fry bread!" You said happily, going back to the cast iron with oil in it.

Dustin took another from the first batch and put honey on it, standing incredibly close to you. "How much are you making?"

You shrugged and flipped them as they puffed slightly. "Enough to last me until my craving is quenched. And tomorrow, I'm making indian tacos," You told him. "So come over for dinner."

"You're making what?" He asked, his mouth full and his expression, once again, confused.

"Oh you're so sheltered." You mock-pouted.

[bengiyo]

The Director Who Buys Me Dinner Eps 5 & 6 Stray Thoughts

Last week was a lot easier to track, and I'm having fun with the different kinds of performances we're getting out of the actors here. I'm also enjoying the conceit that God wants these two to be together, and they will die if they don't make it happen. I'm very worried about that aging idol, though. He is not well.

Episode 5

Seol Dongbaek is so valid for being frustrated about the emotional manipulation with the cast.

I get why he wants to have these moments in his office, but I'm very mixed about the approach. He may be 300 years old, but Dongbaek is from our time. Having your boss pursuing you this aggressively is an HR nightmare.

What is up with the corporate culture in Korea. Both this and The New Employee feature people from other divisions assigning tasks to junior personnel?

Damn, they was all excited to have him come in and help, and no one stayed late? I don't know about that.

The monumental nature of the choice to see director Min works for me here, because there's a lot of weird stuff going on for Dongbaek.

Episode 6

The preview for this episode said Denis was going to cause problems on purpose.

Denis knows he's leaving, and has decided to fuck with Min Youtan on the way out. Director Min has been stern, but he hasn't seemed unreasonable.

Denis is clearly flirting, and also negging.

It is fun hearing when someone is being rude about the absence of honorifics, or use of rude ones.

I feel like there's a twisted parody going on by using lens flares with these forced kisses with the light on the set. The artificial light reinforces how fake it is.

Denis is being so forward. On the one hand, I like that such a short show isn't doing a lot of navel gazing. On the other hand, everyone is so aggressive with Seol Dongbaek, and he does not seem to like it .

Of course Min Youtan shows up ready to fight.

I'm really struggling to believe in Denis's sincerity.

Soel Dongbaek is so fascinating. I like him being clear that he is frustrated with Min Youtan, and also directly expresses how he'd like to be cared for. He even offers an opportunity for reconciliation.

Ooo period costumes next week. A win for the girlies

[llycaons]

ep9: dafan wens my friends the dafan wens

imo this is def the weakest arc in the show. this episode was fun but whew, I think ep8 might have been my least favorite and we're still getting out of it

he asks this question way later in eps 20 and 43 or something and each time lwj is like 'we just gotta rush them' king of rigid problem-solving and only having one solution to any problem <3

threatening jc with lwj is kind of funny but on a rewatch it's like. ah

credit where it is due. jc almost expressed concern here for wwx

wwx defending lwj for zero reason and then turning and giving him such a sweet smile. bud you are so far gone <3

NOW IT'S DAYTIME?? not even dawn but BROAD daylight. mama mia

yeah, I feel like putting the zombied people in the cage would have been safer than putting the healthy ones in

IS HE. HMM

god this is so sad. look how miserable wq looks to see her popo like this

I don't like any of the surreal, drawn-out, misty sequences interspersed with fight scenes. I mean the waterborne abyss. I mean this forest fight. I mean a chunk of yi city. I mean the maze forest. I just hate the hazy atmosphere and there's usually no good character moments and there's a ton of worldbuilding magic that I can't follow very well and don't rly care for

this fight isn't bad tho! there's some fun banter and some cool angles, like the one above

ANOTHER ATTEMPT AT STRANGLING WWX. WHEN WILL HE CATCH A BREAK. this is the first of...four? jc, wrh, and jgy way later...let wwx breathe 2k23

also this is a VERY funny thing to worry about. lwj is very good at going Heady Empty (meditation) but wwx found it challenging due to having so many thoughts

I SEE BABY A-YUAN!!!!!!!!!!! HELLO!!!!!!!!

as much as I complain about him as a character I was THRILLED to see this little guy. I LOVE baby a-yuan and I think he's just precious. his survival was one of the things I needed to be spoiled for in order to watch the show without significant distress

though given the timeline this can't be a-yuan...he'd be way too old by the time the post-sunshot timeline rolls around. that's at least two years later. so I guess this is his older sister who looks the same as him. god but that's a cute little actor. love him and his big chubby cheeks and his little fingers and his baby wig

GREAT choice for little wn and wq too. they look just like their adult versions. actually I think the casting for all the kids versions of the adult characters was perfect except for a-yuan doesn't look a great deal like lsz imo

HA. wrh may be power-hungry and getting more unhinged by the day with the magic of the yin iron but he's still a more savvy political actor than his stupid fucking son. 'of course wen qing is going to intervene if you mess with her family, you fuckhead' lmao

SUCH a pretty shot I love how saturated the colors are for their outfits and headpieces

literally such a fucking funny scene. well-dressed young nobles hunting in the woods for a chicken. and wwx being so clever and getting wq alone so he and lwj can question her in private. curious how quick he was to cut nhs and jc out. nhs isn't from either of their sects, but jc should theoretically be trustworthy. except! wwx doesn't trust him. hmmm. even this early, he and lwj act as a unit. lwj's entirely given up trying to go it alone and now they work together nearly seamlessly

literally seconds apart. I fucking give up. and I don't think it's the translations because this has been a consistent issue in all the versions I've watched. it's 10! wq and wn are clearly around the age of the others so it's not 20

remember that post that's like 'jc: lady wen may I rub thine shoulders? massage your feet? feed you grapes? vs. wwx and wq doing a six-step handshake and laughing together' that NAILED it. jc trying to be attentive and gentlemanly bc he views her as a Woman and he's trying to fulfill the role he understands to be expected of him, as a man, in society ( to Intervene and Protect). meanwhile wwx views her as an independent actor in this shitty situation they're in. dgmw wwx is also sexist but he treats women more like human people than jc does, esp wq. he also thinks out of the box and isn't afraid to challenge social norms, unlike jc who's guided by social expectations because his parents haven't given him strong positive role modeling and he doesn't have strong instincts on how to behave outside of what he's been taught by society in general

but like I said. still sexist. it's not like being a creative and original thinker can save him from Living In A Society

lwj is very polite to wq, as he appears to be to all women, but I don't think he'd get close with any women because he doesn't get close with anyone at all. also I don't think he meets many women so he doesn't have much interaction with them outside of professional and impersonal settings so they've been at an arm's length from him since he mama died

jc is consistently so unpleasant to wwx. like would it kill you to be supportive of your brother when he's trying to solve a mystery. for ONCE

I like this waiter <3

be nice to the waiter my GOD jc. chill out. he's just telling a story

ohhh cinematic parallels to post-sunshot hmm 👀

overall the yin iron plot is overly complex, kind of silly, and imo feels extraneous, and I can def tell why novel fans dislike it. but it did give the boys and girl some quality time together and an excuse for exposition/backstory development and really, that's all the purpose it needed to serve before its bigger role later. now if only jyl was on more of these trips :( I miss my girl. I love wq but jyl is probably my favorite female character

personal highlights

wwx's cute little smile directed at lwj for no other reason than that he likes him

wwx finding it hard to concentrate in the woods because he just has too many thoughts, which he interprets are being so so smart (and he IS I love you wei wuxian)

nhs and jc going chicken-hunting in the woods

BABY A-YUAN DEBUT!!!!!

[xo-alie-xo]

PORTWELL LONG GAME OR RINA SLOWBURN.

You can only choose one poison.🍷

Listen up my Wildcats.🐱

We all ship each character with happiness. No matter how much you love to hate them, a majority of us simply adores the characters and want the best for them. Then comes relationships and it's okay to ship our favorites.⛴

I'm a diehard Rina shipper and I know in my heart that they are series endgame. The set up, the natural chemistry, their mutual understanding, the surprises and angst literally put me on chokehold. So I'm 100% a Rina shipper till the end. I'm here for the slowburn and their development rather than one shots. They are worth the pain. 😭❤

Let me start with Ricky Bowen now.

Ricky shouldn't to be with Gina because he's hurting her mentality. He's not insensitive on purpose. Like when he tried to stop Big Red from telling her his message to Nina because he KNOWS it'll hurt her.

If you think, that Ricky didn't understand clearly when Gina confessed, think again. He shushed her. Kept their thing a secret from everyone. He knows he feels some type of way and she feels something too. But this boy is so used to safeguarding his childhood norms and has very little adaptability. Hence, he pretended to ignore everything between them because his home stability was falling apart and he clinged on to Nina, his constant childhood love.

He's a traumatised 16-17 year old boy that needs to heal and grow. This episode was heartbreaking because he had to accept that he had to let Nina go because their once upon a time fairytale had become toxic.

People change. I'm not the same person I was when I was 16 lmao. Being together as childhood lovers means growing together and accepting each other's growth. Which Ricky couldn't. He clutched to the idea of Nini. Even his love confession. It was sooo sweet but all he did was focus on their history.

This boy needs time to heal and maybe seek professional therapy. It would be so DAMN HISTORIC if Disney decides to take psychological issues seriously and show how he's dealing with his anxiety, pills and psychotherapy. He needs to breathe before he can be with any girl for that matter. He's hurting and isn't trying to hurt anyone on purpose. Including Gina.

Him asking her for advice on Nini was a dumb, insensitive move. But he's trying to find a way to build some supportive friendship that they shared in early season one.

As for now, this boy needs to get his own grip on life and heal.

As for our Queen Gina

In Gina's confession, she focuses on their future. She basically said, "I wouldn't quit on a possible future of us being together despite obstacles. Because I never quit. But moving away isn't in my control." Ricky deep down knows this, encouraged her to say it, teary eyed, despite right after getting back together with Nini. Gina is his future. She went to his new house. And I also have this feeling that when she was given a chance to stay, she stayed partly because of Ricky. She left a chance to be with her mom because she prioritised their relationship. Because she never quits. 💪🏼

But she came back and found out Ricky has gotten back together with Nini.😭 What she doesn't know is Ricky got together with Nina before her confession, and after Gina kept dodging his messages. She's hurt and questions why she returned because she isn't particularly close to anyone. Hence, she was so silent at the after party. She thinks it'll be fine, "she'll live", and finds other reasons to find permanence. Her arc this season has been settling down in East High, despite the pain of losing and being 'betrayed' by Ricky, she finds other reasons to stay. 🏡

This kind of contrasts her with Nina. Nina left her dream school and came to Salt Lake because she missed her established home, and not just because of Ricky. Nina returned and was loved and embraced by Ricky Bowen.💕 Gina came back to a semi new place called Salt Lake because of her promise of a future to Ricky. But she got stabbed and she bled. 💔🗡

Think about her situation. She feels confused, alone, heartbroken, out of place and seperated from her mom. She's broken and hurting too. And she doesn't need more from Ricky's accidental or intentional 'sick burns'. That's the one line where he was such a jerk and I can't defend him here. 😠

Here comes the Caswells.

Her second family. A place of healthy stability. A home that accepted her. Ashlyn, her roomie and her confidante. EJ, the misunderstood boy who saw her value and bought her plane ticket.

Let's get to EJ.

At first, I wasn't too keen on seeing Portwell's development. But then that video chat where they talk about the possibility of her staying and him convincing her. Had me sold for a solid brother-sister relationship. Few episodes later, when Gina's pain seemed to be oblivious to everyone, he was the only one who asked her how she was, and saw her glow. The comfort she must've felt.

Not that she needs a man's validation, but she must be feeling like a second choice and feeling a little insecure because of Ricky. But EJ lifts her up and I genuinely saw her smile. This boy has her back whenever. The man she can lean on and truly sees how special she is. She no longer feels alone now that she has his entire fam and other friends. She genuinely feels a place of belonging and happiness when she's the apple of his eye. Notice how happy she is? How happy this boy is? She's going through her own issues and she has found ground with EJ.

I was very doubtful when they started hinting at a romantic direction. Because EJ would be used as plot device again for a girl to get to Ricky.😤 This man doesn't deserve to be second best to anyone, just like Gina.😑 That's why I'm still hesitant on shipping them at least temporarily. EJ needs to be something even more special to Gina. They need to show each other how special and treasured they are to each other despite feeling like rejects. They are each other's source of comfort.

I'm sure they can keep EJ at East High for the next season. Whether it's the drama club, or the AV club or going to a local college. So he will be there for Gina. I don't know how they can work out a relationship with much distance as Rini's fell out when she moved away. So, if EJ leaves again, it'll again shake up Gina. Her being worried whether he'll date college girls, second thoughts, etc. I don't want them to go through that. And if they do move on to romantic Portwell, make sure it's not plot device for Rina. So you can either have Portwell endgame or Rina Endgame.

Basically I want Gina to be treated so right that she understands she doesn't need Ricky. And when he does ask her out, and he makes her feel like a second choice or a rebound, she says NO. Because EJ has helped regain her self assurance. Eventually I want Gina to confide in EJ about her and Ricky. EJ is jealous but also angry about how Ricky has been hurting her. And becomes damn protective of his 'babe'. Ricky gets jealous of their relationship, restarting Ricky and EJ's old rivalry. But this time, it's not because Gina is his girlfriend, but because she's EJ's best friend who he has a crush on and wants what's best for her.

If it's meant to be Rina endgame

EJ- RICKY, YOU IDIOT! You have no clue how to treat her right. You don't put her first. You mislead her. Get the hell away from her! She's too powerful and beautiful, she doesn't deserve your scraps. I know how she feels for you. I wish I were you. I would treat her like a queen. I don't mind even waiting years till she's ready. She deserves that. You're so lucky you have even a small chance that I may never have. So get your act together, prove you're worth it to win her over. All I want is for her to be happy. Even if it's with someone else. And maybe then I'll stop threatening you to stay away from her.😠

Ricky- .....I don't know what I'm more scared of. Change, or losing the girl I fell for or YOU. Okay, losing her but you're a close second.😬

If it's Portwell endgame.

Ricky- I messed up. Make sure you don't mess up with her. You'll regret it forever.

EJ- I'd rather get hit by thousand basketballs than ever hurt her. I'll be her plus one and her best friend until she's ready to be with me. I know she's ready now too. But I want her to know I'm willing to wait till she graduates before we make it official. I'm in it for the long game.

As for their age gap. I'm 100% sure Portwell won't kiss this season. If they do, it'll be next when Sofia turns 18. They are professional actors who are cast because they are the perfect fit for the role and are expected to carry out the storyline. But I suppose fearing some outbursts, they might delay Sofia kissing anyone till next season. It's so weird because Olivia was maybe 17 when Matt was 21-22 when they kissed in season one. But no one had a problem with that. But for this, they do. Remember, they are professional actors. They are acting! Sometimes, actors are over 10 years apart (but above 18) and act as romantic partners.

As for their characters, they are only two years apart. That's hardly any difference once you're over the age of 18. Age of consent is 16. But adults above 18 are only allowed to have sex with adults above 18. So, age isn't a problem here because EJ is a gentleman and is genuinely interested in her and isn't trying to get in her pants. So age isn't the issue when it comes to dating. It's the maturity. Gina is very mature and gives very sound advice. But I can see EJ being patient enough till she turns 18 just to kiss her because he loves her. 😚

As for the Ashlyn remark, "You look like a kid to me rn". He was JOKING.😂 Don't take things out of context. I tell my cousin sister that all the time. But she's three years younger than me and a grown adult. I don't see her as a kid but it's just a cousin teasing her younger cousin that's she's a little immature. I'm Matt's age and I'm very mature for my age and since I was a teenager, I always matched up with boys a little older than me. Now that I'm in my early 20s, I've dated boys even close to 30. So age is just a number.

EJ dating Gina and giving her quick kisses is fine. But to have a strong sexual element in their relationship (including making out), he'll have to wait till she's 18+. And I'm sure for that he'll wait till she's ready even past her early 20s. Age is really just a number and we can't help who we fall in love with. Trust me, I've been there.😂 So I can see EJ feeling conflicted about his feelings that are clear at this point.

They might not be a perfect fit, but they make each other sooo happy. They deserve a lot more than a short lived fling.😟 They are either endgame or Rina is. You can't have both as a Rina unless you're an EJ hater who wants him to exist as plot device. Nope! He's sooo much more precious than that.

But Jack on the other hand....I'm okay if he's the one to make Ricky or EJ jealous. Because he's just been introduced and it's okay if a character is used, but only once, for someone else to realize their feelings. 💁🏽‍♀️

In short.

Ricky needs help and needs to be on his own. No girlfriends allowed.🙅🏽‍♀️🚫

Needs to give both Gina and Nina space for them to grow on their own too.🌳

Ricky needs to understand the core of his problems and become more adaptable via therapy. Maybe the psychologist will point out his unresolved feelings for Gina, or he will conclude it himself. And in comes Ricky-pining-for-Gina season three.

Ricky needs to fully get over Nina before he moves on to anyone. Same for Gina if Portwell were to happen. No one deserves to be second choice.

Gina isn't Ricky's cushion. She's a living person with strong feelings for him and shouldn't be subjected to share his pain. She already struggles with her own issues.

Ricky needs to stay single till he wins back Gina and prove he's worth it. He needs to show even if another girl wants him, he'll never quit on Gina ever again. Even if he has to watch her be with someone else. *cough parallels*.

It's either romantic Rina then Portwell endgame OR Portwell flirty besties but Rina endgame. You and I can choose only one because my boy EJ shouldn't be used as plot device for a girl to leave for Ricky ever again.

Portwell's age difference can be practically solved and isn't much of an issue unless they get hot and heavy before Gina turns 18 which is impossible considering this is Disney. 🤣🤣

Jack and Gina will be plot device material and purely so sentimental to us OG Andi Mack fans. More than any ship, this is what I'm looking for. Sort of an Andi Mack crack ship for season 3a. It's gonna be soooo funny. 😍😂

I respect everyone's ship. I see what you're seeing. And I'm not going to invalidate your ship. But unless it's done right, I won't jump from the Rina ship. I liked Rini. I like Portwell. I like AU Juffy crackship haha.😂 But as for me, I'm still holding on to Rina slowburn.

Preparing myself for the pain. 😭🔥

(But if I had to pair two characters without Disney getting in the way, it would be Gini. The power duo. Undeniable chemistry. They can be written so well because of their layered relationship and contrasting personalities.🤩 The classic rivals to friends to lovers. But that's a talk for another day lmao.)

Thanks for reading my opinion, Wildcat!🐱❤

[youarestellarverse]

It's not actually Trivia Tuesday, but I don't care; Barricade Day is an exception for obvious reasons.

SO I'M JUST GONNA RAMBLE REAL QUICK!

Thalia never has an instant of concern over whether Nico can carry Frank, who is nearly a foot taller and easily twice as heavy. The reason she isn't worried about it is because they go to the same dojo and she's seen him flip someone bigger. (He passes his black belt test shortly after the show.)

I don't know who's playing Courfreyrac at this juncture (I thought Clarisse, but that was when Beckendorf was Combferre and I have since gone with him being too old for other reasons), but as he carries the flag in One Day More, I DO know that whoever it is, they're also captain of the colorguard.

Beckendorf does, however, mentor Annabeth through the engineering aspects of the turntable. He also functions as the bridge between her and the cast, so she rarely has to address Percy directly even in a group. (see HiOB, chapter 19.)

Paul choreographed all of the stage combat. This did not prepare him in any way, shape or form for actually watching The Final Battle in all its heart-rending glory.

He cried. A lot. Percy was very embarrassed, but also deeply touched, and definitely did not cry a little afterwards himself. Nope. No way, no how. (lies.)

There's an exchange between Nico's dad, stepmother and stepgrandma during intermission where the women rightfully shame him for being completely and totally shocked that his son can sing like that.

"That's because you don't pay enough attention to him" "And look how skinny the poor boy is! He's clearly not eating enough wheaties /fussfuss"

Sally is also very close with Nico, because up until Les Mis, he was always the other assistant stage manager. She made a point of tracking him down and showering praise on him because he's kind of her baby too and she couldn't be prouder 🥺

Nico occasionally holds Estelle, then about 6-8 months old, while learning music. Many years later, he explains to her why she always gets drowsy every time she hears Bring Him Home.

Estelle kind of becomes the cast mascot by hanging around at rehearsal. She's a charmer baby who makes friends everywhere she goes.

Grover does wardrobe for the drama department. He designs all the costumes and sews the majority of them, with some help from Juniper.

Piper and Thalia totally use the same locket for Fantine. Thalia and Piper grow pretty close over the run of the show, because Thalia is going to have Jason Feelings come up every time she thinks of Fantine for the rest of her life.

Actually, Thalia auditioned for Eponine, and she was pissed when Luke cast her as Fantine. She demanded to know why he would do that to her, and he told her she was the only one who made him believe her.

Speaking of Luke, Percy absolutely based some of Enjolras on him— specifically "a charismatic young man capable of being terrible". Everyone who knew Luke knows this because it's blatantly obvious, but nobody ever talks about it.

Will plays Joly (because I'm obvious and the medical connection), but also plays Monsieur Fauchelevent, which is a tiny bit of a problem because it means 99% of their stage time together is him lying helpless and watching Nico flex. 😳

(Lou Ellen has to close his mouth for him the first time he hears Nico belt a sustained high note.)

I think Anubis cameos and plays the Jean Valjean lookalike, on account of him bearing an eerie resemblance to Nico.

I also kind of want Annabeth to briefly date Carter Kane in college (maybe they take a semester abroad together and end up on the same archeological dig?), but it's mostly to distract herself from Piper. They stay friends, though!

That's all I have at the moment. Feel free to ask me about shit, though, I have the full symphonic soundtrack going (I'm on Fantine's Death 😭) and I'm In A Mood.

[rogue-durin-16]

STICK TOGETHER

Summary: When Fred finds out Y/n is planning on leaving the Wizarding World, he canalizes his feelings in the worst way possible, which leads to a terrible outcome that seems unfixable.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Slytherin!Reader

Genre: angst

Tags:

Fred Weasley: @whiskeyn-rain @lumos-solemn

Permanent taglist: @elia-the-bibliophile @randomparanoid @karlthecat15722 @thebutchersdaughtersblog @amourtentiaa @just-here-to-escape-from-reality

Warnings: swearing

A/N: @meph1stophelian is here putting pressure on me to post this already so I'm apologizing for the poorly written ending lmaoo enjoy <3

Rogue-durin-16 masterlist

"Fred, calm down." George begged me; he walked by my side, trying to talk some sense into me, but it was not the moment. "You gotta understand her— throwing a fit isn't going to help anyone—" I didn't even look in my twin's direction while he spoke. "Bloody hell, Fred—"

"Y/n!" I quickened my pace, leaving George behind after spotting her in one of the corridors, having a chat with a couple of Ravenclaws. "Can I have a word?"

"Sure— Oi!" I hadn't waited for her to reply before grabbing her hand and snatching her away to pull her into the nearest broom closet. "What was that about?"

"Tell me I heard Katie wrong and you're not actually leaving."

"I can't tell you that." She plainly responded, her voice steady.

A single, gobsmacked snide left my throat. "You're joking, right?" My heart ached as if it was being constricted when she shook her head no. "So you're fleeing?"

"What?"

"Things are getting ugly so you're running away."

Her eyes dug into mines as she stayed in a very uncomfortable silence before replying with. "So what if I am?" When I averted my eyes from hers, she called my name. Her eyes were somewhat softer now, with a gleam of plea in them. "For the last two years we had nothing but tragedy. Diggory died, You-Know-Who is back and recruiting, the ministry is full on going against a teenager, this pink colored nasty toad is physically abusing us, and on top of that, I have to put up with my housemates' bullshit for having muggle blood— I'm tired!" Her voice had raised a bit, enough for me to know she was struggling to keep it at bay, but still managed to. "If I can have a life out of this then—"

"You're a coward."

"Fred." there was a warning on her tone, but I couldn't listen.

"You're leaving... people behind," she attempted to reason; I didn't let her. "Dunno why I'm surprised, really. At the end of the day you're a Slytherin for a reason."

Her eyes started to well up, and I couldn't tell if it was with anguish or fury. I knew I was getting under her skin, but that was exactly what I intended to do; if I was going to leave that room scarred, so would she.

"Self-preservation, you call it." I scoffed, feeling my own rage building up faster each passing second. "Pure cowardy."

"Is that what you think?" Her tone wasn't steady anymore; she was holding back the poison of her words, for my sake.

"Yeah." I wasn't capable of doing the same thing for hers. "And I don't want your cheap excuses and emotional manipulation to convince me otherwise." My face was probably red due to the anger, my jaw and fists hurt from clenching them; I was off the rails, and the person who would usually stop me was standing in front of me. "Better leave now so you don't have the chance to sell us out when shit goes down."

Silence fell upon us, our gazes locked, equally watery and with the same amount of fury and sadness within them.

And finally she snapped. "Maybe I'm a coward, but you're a self-absorbed prat who's not able to see beyond your own ego!" The way she said it hurt me more than the sentence itself. "This is not gonna be a DADA class, Fred! I don't want to fucking die because I was too slow casting Protego."

"Good luck, Y/l/n." I curtly wished her before stalking out of the broom closet I have initially dragged her into.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

We avoided each other for a week. The following Monday, when I entered the Great Hall, I found George and Katie quite depressed.

"What's gotten into you?"

They shared a look before my brother turned to me, deciding to break the news himself.

"Y/n left last night." He gave me an apologetic look. "Thought she'd wait until the graduation—"

"But she's had enough." Katie finished, toying with her breakfast. "Honestly, I wish I had a life in the muggle world too."

My lungs were refusing to take the air inside; I felt as if I would choke if I stayed there, so I stormed out, jogging to reach the countryard.

I needed to breathe.

Even after the wind hit my face, that vital task felt like the most difficult thing in the world to accomplish.

I hate her I hate her I hate her I hate her.

A sob escaped my chest, realising the harsh words I had spat at her were probably the last ones she would ever hear from me.

I love her.

A Year And A Half Later

READER'S P. O. V.

I managed to apparate somewhere in the cornfield —the only place around the Burrow I remembered clearly.

I should have landed with a broom, but apparently, Mad-Eye didn't inform Lupin that I would serve as an extra escort for Harry if they were ambushed, so my broom was now smashed somewhere down the muggle road we had flown over.

Mentally cursing the damn moment in which I spoke to Shacklebolt in hopes of being useful in this war, I looked for the entrance of the Weasley home, which took me quite a while.

Funnily enough, it was Lupin who stepped out, wielding his wand and casting yet another hex at me that I somehow managed to block.

With a swift wave of my hand, he was propelled back into the house. "YOU!" A long-haired redhead I recognized as the eldest Weasley helped my old Professor up as I stalked to them with my wand up. "YOU HEXED MY BLOODY BROOM! I'M LUCKY TO BE ALIVE!"

"Y/n, calm down—" Shacklebolt was now besides me with his hands up. "He didn't know you were coming— he was trying to protect George from further harm."

My brain was slow to process his words, but as soon as it did, I started to down my arm. "What happened?"

"Snape hit him with the sectumsempra." My eyes widened at Lupin's heavy words.

"Did everyone else make it?" The three of them remained silent, the ginger shaking his head no.

My breath caught up in my throat, but before I could ask if Fred was alright, another tall ginger flashed the corner of my eye, and my head snapped to the living room's door.

FRED'S P. O. V.

Everyone was scattered around the house. Ginny took Hermione and Fleur to her room; Ron and Harry made its way up too; Tonks went out —she needed a moment alone to mourn Mad-Eye—, and, while my parents and I stayed with George, Lupin, Shacklebolt and Bill went to guard the entrance.

I was still kneeling by George's side, holding his hand while our mother healed his wound the best she could, when we heard a yell followed by a strong blow in the kitchen.

I looked at my mum and dad, my eyes flickering to my twin while I reached for my wand.

As I got up, more yells were heard, this time clearer; the voice was familiar— I knew that voice all too well.

There she stood, at the entrance of my home.

Her eyes met mines as soon as she caught a glimpse of me, and my head started to spin. I knew I had no right to do what I was about to do, but after that night's events, in which the war became very much real, I couldn't help but rush to her and engulf her in a tight hug.

Surprisingly enough, I couldn't take more than two steps forward, since she did what I intended to do first.

"You're alright." She mumbled against my shoulder. My eyes shut, trying to block the tears that threatened to fall. "How's he?" She inquired whilst pulling away with a concerned frown.

Not trusting my voice, I nodded in the living room's direction. A quiet sough escaped my lips as she passed by, her hands lingering on my arms for a brief instant before she entered the room and took careful steps towards the settee.

I barely caught a couple of words from George and Y/n's exchange, my mind still buzzing due to the shock.

"What do you say, Freddie?" I frowned at my twin, regretting not listening to the conversation. "She can take my bed, right? I'm not gonna get far anyway."

"Right." I agreed, struggling for my voice to come out steady. It was Y/n we were talking about; I had known her since our fourth year, I had been friends and more with her, seeing her shouldn't be that nerve-wracking.

A couple of minutes later, we were all heading to our respective rooms, and as I closed my room's door behind me and Y/n, it dawned on me that I had underestimated the anxiety that could cause me being left alone with her.

Get it together, Fred.

"If you want, you can grab a shirt from the drawer." I finally managed to speak, motioning at the chest besides the window. She nodded and turned to it to look for one she could sleep in.

Now that I had the opportunity, I carefully observed her, and soon realized how much she had changed in the time we were apart. Not only when it came to her physical appearance; she stood a bit straighter, talked a little calmer; the joy with which she used to sparkle was dim now, eclipsed by a severe, worried attitude— a sign of us no longer being the kids who messed around at Hogwarts.

"I missed you" I knew right away that wasn't the best start for the conversation.

"It sure didn't seem like it." The bitterness in her tone stung my heart harsher than I expected.

"You're still mad?" The way I was conducting the conversation was making me want to bang my head against the wall.

She sighed, turning around now that she had the shirt on to meet my gaze. "A year and a half, Fred. You didn't contact me for a year and a half. I thought we were friends."

"You left me behind!" I talked back, partly because I panicked, but also because I, to my surprise, was still mad too. "What did you even expect?"

"A letter?" She questioned, throwing herself down on the bed. "I mean— I didn't really expect anything, but a letter would have been a good way to let me know you didn't fucking hate me." My eyes, now fixed on my lap, went wide when Y/n's voice broke at her last three words.

"I'm sorry." I mumbled, quite ashamed of having to apologise while also being scared of saying anything that could harm her further. "I'm sorry about not writing and- uh... I'm sorry about what I said to you. I know it's not an excuse but I was really mad and..." I cleared my throat and felt the blush creeping up my neck even before I finished the sentence. "... and hurt 'cause you- I thought that maybe I wasn't important enough to you and- yeah, I'm sorry about what I said." I tried meeting her eyes but they were fixed on the wall before her.

"It's fine." She shrugged, "I guess you were right anyway."

"I wasn't right-"

"You were." She hugged her knees to her chest and hid her face there. "Wanna know why I'm back?" She didn't need my response. "They're hunting down my family." My heart stopped beating for a second due to the shockingly deadpanning tone. "A friend gave me a tip-off— they were tracking them down. I got to them just in time." I refrained myself from asking about them —the less I knew, the better. "So yeah, you're right, I was a coward and left people behind."

My body shot up and my legs carried me to George's bed; without me being fully aware of what I was doing or which consequences it could have, I sat down and pulled Y/n into my arms.

Though she was shocked at first, her body soon relaxed into the familiarity of my arms, and she let out a relieved sigh. "You're not alone on this." I whispered, pecking her crown. "I'm here, okay?"

"So you don't hate me?" She murmured against my chest.

Maybe it was the fragility of her voice, or the warmth of her embrace I missed so much; maybe it was this past year and a half of regret, or the night's events, but I couldn't hold back my words.

"I love you."

And even though she went stiff, even if I had just blurted them out almost in accident, I didn't regret saying them, because I, in fact, loved her.

She pulled away to look into my eyes. "You mean it?"

"Yeah." I replied, calmer than I had been in a while. "And I'm really sorry about everything, if I could turn back time—" words and air were cut off by her lips crashing against mines.

We had kissed before, but it was on a bet's behalf or to prank someone; this was different, this was her pouring her 'I love you' into actions, and I embrace it gladly.

"No more running away." I commanded when she pulled back. "From now on, we stick together." She nodded, her forehead resting against mine and her palms on my chest.

[agathaslittle]

Bad Dream - Little!Reader x Agatha Harkness

Summary: You slip into your headspace and have a bad dream while Agatha isn't home.

Requested by Anon: "Wondered if you’d write something for either 30, 38 or 50 from those fluff prompts?"

30. “I’m never going to leave you again. I promise.” 38. “You’re safe now, I’m here.” 50. “Its okay, I couldn’t sleep anyway.”

Word Count: 996

Trigger Warnings: Age Regress.

A/N: Instead of choosing only one of those prompts, I decided to use all of them, hope you don't mind.

Requests are still open!

Sometimes Agatha disappeared.

Not in the most literal sense of the word, but that's how you felt.

A few times a year the witch would just tell you that she would be gone for a while and leave without saying much more. You knew this was because she didn't want to involve you in her plans, as Agatha was afraid someone would use you against her. So the less you knew, the better it would be.

Most of the time she came back in a week or so, always more powerful and clearly proud of herself, and even though part of you didn't understand why the witch was so obsessed with getting more and more power, you were also proud of her.

But then you started to regress and the witch started being even more careful about when she left, always making sure you were big before she left.

And then WestView happened. The biggest surge of power Agatha had ever felt in her entire life.

You were about to say you felt yourself slipping that afternoon when she gasped, getting up from the table without even finishing her lunch. She looked so anxious when she told you she had to go, that you didn't have the heart to stop her and trap her there with little you.

Surely you could hold out for only a few hours, the time the brunette promised you she would be gone.

Yes, you could handle it. Anything to see her happy.

And her idea really was just to scan the area, gather some information, and then go home. But when Agatha realized it, she was already cast as one of the main characters for the disturbing sitcom of none other than Wanda Maximoff.

And to make matters worse, time passed differently inside the Hex, and then in the blink of an eye it was nightfall, making all the neighbourhood to fall into a deep slumber, but Agatha couldn't close her eyes, thinking about you.

She didn't want to bring you to the madness that was that town, or risk the other witch hurting you in any way. But at the same time the brunette also couldn't sleep, knowing that she had made a promise that she would be back soon. Not knowing how you were was consuming the witch from the inside out.

And the truth was, you weren't doing very well.

In the beginning it was easy to stay big. You sat on the couch to watch a series so you would stay focused on something so the hours would pass more easily. And soon she'd would be back.

As the scenes played on television, you began to feel restless, squirming on the couch, seeking Agatha's embrace. Shaking your head you got up, going to your room to get Scratchy Junior.

I won't slip, you tried to convince yourself. You just needed something to cuddle with, that's all. Only until Agatha was back.

But then night came and as you had to accept that she wasn't coming back. The realization made you want to cry, sapping your willpower to stay big.

The tears only started to fall, however, after you layed in bed and fell asleep, dreaming that your mommy would never come back and that monsters could get you now that you were all alone.

You knew you shouldn't pester Agatha when she was away, unless it was an emergency. But as your eyes opened, still blurry with tears, and all you saw was darkness, it felt like a very urgent emergency.

With shaking hands you opened her necklace pendant, coming face to face with the mirror she had enchanted for you. It was connected to the mirror inside Agatha's brooch, the most convenient object for her, as she always took it with her. That way you would always have a way to communicate with her, without worrying about phone signals or whatever.

Agatha didn't need another second after hearing little you cry "m-mommy" to teleport back home, her heart breaking as she appeared beside the bed, watching your body shake under the blanket from the force of your sobs.

And your crying got even worse when the blanket was pulled down to uncover her face, making you scream in despair "MOMMY!" and thrash against the arms that suddenly enveloped you.

"You're safe now, I'm here," Agatha hugged you even tighter, waiting for your heart to slow down and for you to realize she really was there with you. You stopped struggling and buried your face on her neck, still sobbing heavily.

"I-I thought you w-wouldn't come back anym-more, mommy," you stuttered the almost incomprehensible sentence, letting more tears wet the old-fashioned dress she was wearing.

"I'll always come back for you, baby, always," she kissed your temple and then your cheek, tasting the salt of your tears. She had caused this pain in you and wouldn't forgive herself if she did it again, “I'm never going to leave you again. I promise."

"You won't let the monsters get me, r-right?" You pouted.

"If any monster tries to get my girl, I'll kick their ass," she smirked.

You giggled, whispering an adorable "okay then," before yawning, the tiredness from crying finally taking its toll.

"It's late, angel, go back to sleep, I'm not leaving your side," Agatha told you, stroking your hair soothingly.

The mention of the time made your eyes open again, searching hers, "did I wake you mommy?"

She shook her head, "It's okay, I couldn't sleep anyway," she kissed your eyes as they closed once again, "but now I know I'll sleep very well with my baby beside me."

Agatha knew that sooner or later she would have to take you inside the Hex, not wanting to risk leaving you alone again.

But that's a problem for tomorrow's Agatha, she thought as your soft breath lulled her to her own sleep, her arms still protectively around you, so no monsters would ever reach you.

[elcorhamletlive]

re Will and your posts about him getting a bf, it’s been months but I just came across them and I agree so much. I can’t stand how so many people still want him to be miserable and pining, or essentially a second choice where b*ler is a thing, and violently oppose the idea of him finding someone else who actually cares about him that way. Idk it’s all very teenaged “first love/crush is the only thing that matters.” I get it’s shipping which in itself is harmless, but the insistence that Mike the only way Will can be happy I really disagree with.

Hey anon! Absolutely don't worry about the posts being months old, lol, unfortunately for myself this is a topic my mind keeps coming back to; and I'm always happy to hear from people who feel similarly.

I think what makes it especially frustrating, when it comes to discussing Will's future in the show, is that I do think 95% of the resistance to the idea of him moving on from Mike is due to the belief that mutual, canon B*l*r is a possibility. Like I think most Will fans would hate if his ending was pining sadly for Mike as he continues to be with El for the rest of their lives. I think if most of them were presented with the reality of "hey, it's either he gets with a new character or this" than most of them would choose the new character route. All of the "it's OOC for Will to move on, it makes no sense!" talk is just window dressing - deep down, what they want is for Will to not have to move on at all because his feelings will be reciprocated.

And while think this is very annoying, I also find it somewhat sad, because it reveals how deep in denial some Will fans are in regards to his role in the show. Like on some level, I can empathise with these people because I can read between the lines of what they say: when they say they don't want Will to have a new love interest, they mean they don't want Will's romantic storyline to not be on the same level as everyone else's in the show. They want him to date someone who is a part of the core cast. They want his romance to be central to the story. They want him to experience this epic, angst-filled, slow burn through multiple seasons romantic narrative. And they haven't been able to bring themselves to accept that this is just not going to happen. This is why they cling so hard to the idea of B*l*r: because the thought of "yeah, the best Will is going to get at this point is a new character who we will only get to see interacting with him for one season (if that)" is too depressing.

But it's also... probably true. Like, I have said multiple times that I do not think canon B*l*r would work as a narrative choice, I do think Mike as a romantic interest is just not ideal for Will's character development, and I most definitely think being with him is not the only way for Will to be happy; but I understand the urge for your favorite character (and the only gay boy) to get a romance on par with the other couples in the story. If I was the writer, Stranger Things would be Will's show. However, accepting that it isn't, and the writers clearly have very different narrative priorities than I do, is part of engaging with media in a reasonable manner.

I think there is a lot of resistance from certain fans to the idea that, sometimes, the show you love can just let you down. It reminds me of when Sherlock fans would insist that all those "hahaha don't they look gay?" jokes in their show were excusable because they were all part of a plan to tell the story of an epic gay romance. These fans simply didn't want to accept that the narrative wasn't in their side. In a similar vein, B*l*r shippers don't want to accept that we will most likely never see Will's first kiss. They don't want Will to be a secondary character. They don't want the writers to have forgotten his birthday. So they make up an alternative explanation for why all those things aren't true, actually, even if they 100% seem true when you look at objectively; because the truth makes them sad and they don't want to be sad.

Which I am sympathetic to, but I also think harms the discourse and hinders potentially useful criticism of the show. It also poisons people's expectations. If you are not expecting Will to be a part of an 530k slow burn love story, then I think you have a better chance of enjoying whatever will actually happen to him in S5, and have a positive experience. Right now I'm just hoping we actually get to see some scenes between him and a future love interest, to get to watch an actual dynamic, as opposed to the "nameless dude in flashforward epilogue" possibility that, unfortunately, I do think is very likely.

(Also, I didn't find a way to weave this organically into the reply, but I just want to say that I think you're spot on on the comment about how, even if B*l*r happens, it would be Will being a second choice. Which I think would, honestly, be shitty to every character involved.)

[fuckingfuckityfuck]

First

A/N: Originally,this was supposed to be a story but then my drafts got deleted idek why or how.I tried to write it the way how I remembered it.Let me know your thoughts on this one.✨

Pairing/s : Jeffrey Dean Morgan x reader, Negan x reader

Warning/s: mentions of sex

Tomorrow will be my second week portraying one of Negan's wives on the walking dead.

My first scene was easy.I had one line and that was it.The rest was either me walking around or sitting pretty.

Jeffrey made sure that I was comfortable with him.That's why he decided to have sessions with me before doing the actual scenes.And you were fine with it.

The other casts and staffs were very friendly and fun to work with.They welcomed me with big open arms into their family.

Since this was your first ever show,Kirkman thought it would be fun experimenting with your character.

You knew how wild his imagination was and you were pretty excited with how your character is going to be portrayed.

He wanted your character to be lively and very sarcastic.He wanted you to have that power over Negan.Your character is Negan's favorite wife.

At first,it was hard to act intimidating infront of Jeffrey.Hell,you were intimidated by him.

A knock on the door pulled you away from your thoughts.I stood up and opened the door to see Jeffrey standing there with papers in his hands.

"Time for rehearsals?" He said and I mentally face palmed myself.

"Oh god." I muttered.

Jeffrey chuckled and patted my shoulders.

"I see,you're not the only one stressed out here.Angela wanted to know if you're fine with our next scene." He asked.

And I totally forgot the most important thing.My love making scene with Jeffrey will be tonight.

"What's wrong with me and my memory today.I totally forgot that it's today." I said and Jeffrey laughed.

"I feel like you're the old one here and not me." He joked and I nervously laughed.

"Why don't we get inside and start our rehearsal?That way we can discuss our scene?" Jeffrey continued and I nodded at his suggestion,which is good.

Mostly,for our scenes,I just follow his lead.I told him that and he knows.

She couldn't believe the rage building inside her.She wasn't acting like herself but she couldn't stop the words coming out from her mouth.

For some reason,she wanted to test how far Negan would go.

Twirling around to grab the door knob,she heard a slam on the table.

"Don't you even fucking dare leave this room without fixing the shit you caused" Negan angrily said in a loud voice.

Holy shit,calm yourself y/n.Just like you practiced,you will be fine.

Breathing heavily,you slowly turned around to see Negan glaring up at you.

"Can't you just let me go?You said it yourself that if we don't feel like we belong here anymore,then we can just go.There are walkers everywhere,Negan." You said in a low voice,not wanting to increase the tension building between you two.

"That's the real threat,not me walking away from your overprotective and jealous ass.I just don't get why you have to punish every single man who comes across me?It's not like I'll cheat on you or anything." You continued explaining to him.

It was starting to frustrate you everytime you hear someone gets a hot iron on their face or a lash on their back just because Negan apparently saw them checking you out.

"I don't even know if this is marriage to you,it clearly isn't one.We're supposed to be partners.Not you owning me,telling me to just be here when I fully know that I can be out there too.Earlier,what I did,I had to prove to myself that I can do it too.And I did." You said and saw his eyes soften a little bit.

Slowly,Negan stood up from the couch and went to stand in front of you.

You felt his hand on your chin,tilting your head up so he could look at your face.

You saw his eyes glimmer with humor and lust?

"So you want us to be like a normal married couple?Not this apocalyptic survival mode marriage?Do I have to bring you breakfast in bed?" Negan mumbled and you wanted to punch him right there and then.

"I can't even talk to you properly.You always have these crazy ass jokes.Am I a joke to you?"

"Oh kitten,you are not a joke to me.You are my lifeline.Jokes aside,i also happen to love your pussy.Which brings me to ask,what time does your pussy open?" Negan said as he put his hand on your waist,pulling you closer to him.You giggled and looked up at him.

And that's where you lost it.You pulled his face and kissed him hungrily.Following the script,Jeffrey held your face between his hands.You felt his tongue on your lips,asking for permission.

You moaned out when you felt his hand on your waist,going lower to your ass.

Negan growled when he felt your hand on his growing bulge.He missed her like hell.

Being able to do this with her after being gone for weeks makes him want to slam his dick in her wet pussy right there and then.

But he needs to feel her,touch her,savor every inch of her body that he missed.

"God,i fucking miss this,kitten." Negan mumbled while trying to unclasp your bra.

With one movement,he pulled down your bra,leaving your chest bare for him to see.

Negan wasted no time and went to suck one of your boobs,his left hand playing with the other one.Your hands are tugging at his hair,feeling a wet sensation pooling between your legs.

"Negan,please" You moaned out,forcing him down to your legs.

Jeffrey looked up at you,at that moment,you didn't know what to feel when you saw his face.You wanted to pounce on him,feel him between you,slamming his huge dick in a hard thrust of his hips.You totally forgot that you were just filming a scene.

"I love it when you say my name like that,makes me want to ram my big,fat,juicy cock inside your wet little cunt.Do you want that?" Negan growled while fondling with the hem of your panties.

You nodded,not having the voice to speak out.You just wanted to lay down and let him have his way on you.

"Fuck,you're already dripping wet on my fingers and that's just me playing with your delicious breasts" Negan said as he put one finger inside of you.

Good lord,as much as you wanted him to pounce on you,there were people everywhere.You can feel everyone's eyes at the both of you.But here's Jeffrey not even caring about anyone.

"Cut! Next scene we'll have you lay down on Negan's bed.Take a break for 30 minutes." Greg yelled using a microphone.

People shuffled around,leaving you and Jeffrey alone.

"That was hot"Jeffrey said as he threw you a bathrobe while putting his over his body.

You rolled your eyes and chuckled.

"I hope i looked fine.I feel like my hair's everywhere.We still have to do the main scene and that's where I'm worried most." You said.

Jeffrey shook his head."You look absolutely stunning with your hair all over the place.You look like you're about to get fucked"

You sighed.

It was hard to pretend that it's not affecting you,but it does.Every scene that you do with him,gets harder for you.You just hoped that no one would notice.Even Jeffrey.

masterlist

[flowerbloom-arts]

A 2434 word long fic about Fuddler talking to a maybe not actually real version of his father after trying to escape from a recent event in his life and failing. Now I would've written a 50s sitcom episode of Fuddler's family that would've lead up to this point if I had the motivation, but I didn't, so here you go. I hope you enjoy this!

---

The set of the show had become undone and the fourth wall was nothing but a non-existent window into the stage, the Muddler, tear stained and tired of his child's shenanigans, went up from the table he was crying at and walked to the empty director's chair with 'The Fuddler' embroidered on the back and sat on it. The Muddler grabbed the megaphone that sat on one of the armrests and spoke into it in a very clearly annoyed tone of voice: 'Cut. Take 2. Excuse me! That wasn't a bad first take but all of you really fell apart at scene 15.'

But the rest of the cast had been frozen in place, basically mannequins, all except Fuddler, who was in fact the mastermind behind this mess. The small and fuddly creature looked around in a slight bit of confusion and decided to walk up to his father on his director's chair, it did have his name on it afterall. 'Excuse me, aren't I supposed to be sitting there?' he asked rather sheepishly, there was a thought in the back of his head that knows exactly why but he's too afraid to make that thought even slightly tangible.

'Well, yes,' answered the Muddler matter-of-factly 'but due to poor management someone else had to take over.' he added, he spun the megaphone around and inspecting it in a rather disinterested manner. If it's anyone, it really didn't seem to be the father that Fuddler knew, even if he was stained with dark brown tears on his face and wore ragged feminine attire indicative of a mental breakdown, which was a sight that would only be familiar as the Muddler.

'Maybe. Though we should probably take a break, that breakdown didn't look all that... The breakdown seemed very exhausting to act out,' Said the Fuddler, trying to avoid going over this episode another time.

'Sure,' Muddler said, he didn't even care to glance at his child, he put down the megaphone on the floor and rested his face on his paw resting on the armrest, looking off to the black void beyond the set or nearby part of the studio.

Fuddler sighed with relief and a tinge of discomfort, he decided it was best to sit down next to his father and look back at the scene that was frozen in time. It was not even the slightest bit amusing to say the least, it's just everyone looking concerned over Muddler having a breakdown but Muddler isn't even there, you could see the Fuzzy, Fuddler's mother, placing a hand on what was Muddler's back, great uncle Hodgkins and Sniff are looking on confused and concerned, and Moomintroll had just walked in with not even the slightest idea of what's going on. The Fuddler stared at it for a few moments before saying what was on his mind while the scene was happening 'That... That breakdown... It wasn't in the script.'

'What script?' Muddler asked as if Fuddler was too dumb to even remember he didn't even make one. Of course there wasn't any script to speak of.

'I- I dunno!' Fuddler blurted out with the realization 'You guys were basically reading my mind anyway! I thought that was something like reading a script-!'

'Were we reading your mind or were you controlling us?' Muddler asked, almost cutting him off.

Fuddler was a bit surprised at the sudden interruption, it's really unlike his father to act anything close to this, is this even his father? Fuddler started to actually question everything about this, as if it wasn't a very obvious thing he should've questioned at the start. He looked down and curled up into a more fetus-like sitting position, kind of avoiding answering the question.

'Now tell me, child, why this?' Muddler gestures vaguely toward the set.

'What do you mean?' Fuddler looked up at Muddler and asked innocently.

'Why the television show?' he clarified, he lowered his resting paw and finally looked at Fuddler for once, though he did look very... unpleasant.

Fuddler felt very uncomfortable at the question and simply answered with an 'I dunno...' like a small child, he certainly looked and acted like one either way despite being an adult.

Muddler sighed disappointedly and went back to staring at the set 'Is this really how you're gonna deal with what happened? What even did happen, anyway?' he asked, even he was unsure of the origins of this.

'I... I actually don't remember... Excuse me, sorry, oh dear... What was I thinking?' Fuddler asked, he was mostly asking himself that.

'That's right, what were you thinking?' Muddler repeated Fuddler with annoyance 'Did you really think you could reduce your own family into cheap tropes and live like that?'

'I wasn't trying to do that!' Fuddler cried 'I just thought...! I thought if I could live just one happy day after 10 years of nonstop misery-!'

'And you did that by retreating into some ideal version of reality the city gave you through a light box?'

'Yes!' Fuddler blurted out, he realised what he said outloud and slowly went back into a balled up position on the floor 'Just... Atleast those people on TV seemed happier... Happier than we ever could've been when we moved to the city,' Fuddler argued with a quieter but ultimately defeated tone, this wasn't how things were supposed to go in his mind.

'Is that why you wanted to move away so badly?' Muddler asked in a more sincere and worried tone of voice, much more like his regular self and what Fuddler would be used to.

'Maybe,' Fuddler answered simply 'Or I guess there were other things too...' he added.

'Oh I could definitely list them off for you,' Muddler suddenly went back to a menacing tone.

Fuddler suddenly felt a great shock to his system and did not want anything Muddler could be implying 'Please don't-'

'Well first of all,' Muddler didn't let his child finish and he didn't seem to care in the slightest 'you didn't like other creatures shoehorning you into their ideas of what you should be, you didn't like the boring concrete buildings, you hated the constant noisiness of that wretched city, you couldn't bare the constant mockery from your own peers, they kept thinking you were a twelve year old - which you never grew out of being one after all these years by the way - and kept thinking you were lying when you said you weren't, you didn't like the lack of frogs or swamps or free things to collect off the street, you were being discriminated against for being a clumsy little mut, and most of all-'

'Please stop!' Fuddler cried.

'MOST OF ALL,' Muddler repeated louder to talk over Fuddler 'You hated me. Your own father. Simply because he couldn't land a simple job and was too feminine for anyone's liking!'

'NO!' Fuddler jumped up and tried to hold onto his dad's arm, but Muddler quickly got it away from him.

'YES! You kept having the same negative comments and jokes repeated to you over and over and you thought they were making fun of you by association! You don't want anything to do with the way I am and yet you keep chugging along the same way I did!' Muddler cried 'You were happy enough to tell my dear old friend mr. Moomin that people said you took after me and leave it at that! What if he asked you even further? Would you have talked about me in a good way!?'

'STOP! PLEASE!' Fuddler was almost in tears at this.

'Oh I see how it is! Just admit it! You hate me! Why else would you shove me in as the comic relief? Why else would I break out of character if you didn't know it'd be completely out of line for who I actually am!? I am anything BUT happy and you know this! No matter how hard you try I will cry eventually because I'm that dumb and sensitive about everything! The only things that you got right about me is that I'm clumsy and that I love you!' Muddler started tearing up through all the yelling 'You know deep down I love you... It's not your fault... right?'

Fuddler wanted to cover his face in his saucepan but unfortunately he was in his sitcom costume which lacked it completely, all he could really do was bury his face in his paws and try not to cry, muddler tears are much like that of a dog's, mixed in with blood waste and it stains your face, you'd need some cloth and water to clean it. Very inconvenient for a man, they aren't supposed to cry, and the stains make it very obvious you did.

'Fuddler... Did you really think this was going to solve anything?' Muddler got up from the director's chair to kneel down and lowered Fuddler's paws away from his face, Muddler's face was... trying to be comforting but that got ruined by the tear stains, which was being added onto by him crying at this very moment, he looked down at Fuddler's paws, looked back up at his face and added '... At all?'

Fuddler didn't make an attempt to make eye contact with his father, those strange 'u' shaped pupils were familiar but the idea of them not being normal at all still brought him some form of discomfort '... I just... Excuse me. I just thought that maybe... If I could feel better, somehow, maybe the problem would be less of a problem...'

'Fuddler, you don't even remember what the problem was,' Muddler said, he held his child's chin up to make him look at him directly 'You know this.'

'I know...' Fuddler admitted 'I think the cause is starting to come back to me... I think... It's still a little foggy...'

Muddler sighed 'How many times have you done something like this?'

'I...' Fuddler started thinking 'I don't know... I never bothered counting.'

'So this clearly isn't the first time.'

'It definitely doesn't feel like the first time... say for the addition of a few cast members,' Fuddler added the last part as a sly attempt at humor, he was referring to Moomintroll, Jumble and Sniff.

'Of course,' Muddler said with a touch of melancholy and sat on the floor beside Fuddler, Fuddler followed suit 'Do you think this is normal?'

'Dad, I moved to Moominvalley to get away from 'normal'!'

'You moved to Moominvalley to feel normal, there's a difference. And that's an important difference to realise,' said the Muddler, the black and white studio faded into a sepia tone as it seemed to transition into a lake sort of scene, almost unnoticeably to the Fuddler.

'Why's that?' Fuddler asked.

Muddler picked up a flower that happened to be next him, well- not actually, a sort of ethereal copy of the flower formed which left the real one untouched, Muddler looked thoughtfully at the flower in his hands 'If you know the difference, then maybe you can appreciate the specific thing that makes this place feel like you feel normal.'

Fuddler stared at the flower and glanced up at his father '... You're not really my dad, are you?'

'You think that now?' Muddler questioned with an amused undertone.

Fuddler felt almost silly about it, of course this Muddler isn't real, why would he think otherwise? 'I dunno... I guess I got cought up in the all the acting that... I forgot I'm just talking to myself...'

'Does it really matter, though?' Muddler raised an eyebrow with a slight smile on his face 'Atleast you got it out of your system, you twelve year old.'

'Don't call me a twelve year old!' Fuddler cried in defense.

'Then why do you act like one?'

'How can I not act like one if I look like one?' he said, slightly furious at the subject being brought up.

'People can turn invisible if they're abused enough, maybe this is something similar?' Muddler suggested.

'Tsch, magic, sure.' Fuddler waved off dismissively.

'You stayed as the same Fuddler that you were when we lost Sniff, excuse me but you really don't think there's something connected here?' Muddler asked rather rhetorically 'You graduated college with a degree in biology and live by yourself in the coffee tin you inherited from me and yet you still chase after a woman like you have a preteen crush on her with absolutely no clue as to how to talk to a girl.'

Fuddler cringed at the memory of his attempted courtship of the Mymble and recoiled back into a ball position.

'But atleast it seems like you learned from it, just... Don't let things paint your views so easily, sir,' Muddler placed the flower on Fuddler's head.

'Don't use 'sir' on me...' Fuddler muttered quietly.

'Well, what do you want me to refer to you as? Ma'am?'

'That's even worse!' Fuddler shut down the idea almost immediately, he grabbed the flower from his head and looked at it 'Neither of them feel all that right...'

'Right,' Muddler said 'It's fine if you don't want to be referred to as either of those.'

'It's not just that... I don't really feel like a... A man. Atleast not how the world seems to think of one.'

'You're a button collector, Fuddler. Maybe you should start calling yourself that instead.'

'You can do that?' Fuddler seems to be almost bewildered but not totally against the idea.

'Fuddler, I'm a half woman who calls itself a man, anyone can be anything, especially in places like this valley. You don't have to define yourself by those standards anymore.' Muddler explained.

Fuddler stared at his father with a thoughtful expression on his face 'Like I don't have to define my family by any of those standards...' he looks back down at the flower in his paw.

'That's the spirit!' Muddler punches his child lightly on the shoulder 'And whatever the problem was... I hope you can fix it, it's not easy but... It'll be better for the long run.'

'Right...' Fuddler flicked the flower into the lake, it simply dissolves in mid-air rather than land into the water or anything 'I'm sorry about... Everything. I'm still very, very dumb.'

The Muddler laughed ever so slightly 'You'll get it in time, I promise.'

'... Maybe.' Fuddler said rather hopefully. The Muddler seemed to dissolve away like the flower did and the world faded into full color. It looks like that episode was a wrap, one might say. Now it's time to figure out why it had to be made.

[brycelahelalover]

Relightning the spark

Pairing: Bryce × f!MC( Tesse Sterling )

Author's note: Hello!! I'm back witn another fanfic, though this one is going to be special to me. If you want to know why, stick around to the VERY end to know. Enjoy.

Warning: Angst.

Part 2 Part 3

The past

"... and Cinderella and Prince charming lived a happy life together. The end." Tesse concluded, closing the book.

"That story is.. lame." Snarked Keiki, rolling her eyes.

"But you chose it..." Said Bryce.

"Yeah, in hopes that it might be less lamer than the movie. But jokes on me, it was worse.. I don't know why mom insists on buying me this kind of books. I'm really not interested in reading stories about a Prince swiping the poor women off her feet." Responded Keiki while rolling her eyes again.

"You're a six years old girl." Said Bryce.

"Your point being?" Asked Keiki while arching her brow.

"You should like this kind of stories. About the princes and princesses and whatnot." Said Bryce like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"She SHOULDN'T like anything. And I agree with her. All Disney princesses stories are sexist. They all represent the girl as this fragile creature that needs the help of the man to get out of her miserable life." Added his girlfriend.

"See? Tesse gets it." Said Keiki while giving her brother a pointed look.

They continued bantering over which one of the Disney movies is less sexist when they heard a loud bang followed by a scream.

"Is that your mom?!" Tesse asked Bryce frantically.

"Yeah.. Tesse, Keiki, you two should stay here and lock the door after i leave." He said while looking in the door's direction.

"What? No, I'm coming with you." Replied Tesse, following him up from the foot of Keiki's bed.

"Tesse.."

"Bryce, no. I'm coming with you. End of story."

"You're a real pain sometimes, but fine... Keiki, you stay here. Quiet. We'll come back as soon as we can, alright?" Said Bryce.

"Okay." Responded Keiki, looking scared.

Bryce kissed his sister's forehead and then went and opened the door slightly, checking the hallway. Tesse followed him but not before giving the little girl a tight hug.

"You're going to be alright, okay?" She told her before her and Bryce left the room.

Bryce and Tesse walked the rest of the hallway quietly, as to not alert the intruder. But what they saw upon making it to the staircase was still up to debate, whether be it better than a burglar or not.

The grand hall was filled with armed police men. All of whom surrounding Akoni Lahela. Bryce's father.

"What's going on?" Said Akoni while one of the police officers is putting handcuffs on him, sounding enraged. But if you strain a little bit, you could hear the panic in his voice.

"Akoni Lahela, you are under arrest for charges of insider trading." Said the oldest looking officer, giving off an air of authority.

"WHAT?" Said everyone at the same time.

"There must be a mistake.." Said Akoni, looking around frantically as if searching for an escape.

"Save the act, Lahela. I'm not interested in hearing whatever story you're going to come up with." Said the officer, sounding even more agitated than before.

Then he turned to Bryce's mother, Rosalind, and addressed her.

"Mrs. Lahela, your presence is requested at the police station tomorrow."

"I didn't do anything." Rosalind said.

"That's still up for debate. Now.." The officer said before mentioning to the one holding Akoni to follow him.

Bryce ran down the stairs, stopping before the older policeman.

"Excuse me, I'm sorry but there has to be a mistake.. he.. we.. how?"

The officer laid a hand on Bryce's shoulder, speaking more softly.

"Son, your father DID that."

He patted the teenager's shoulder before turning to his father.

"Come on, off we go."

"I want to call my lawyer." Said Akoni through gritted teeth.

"Don't worry, Lahela. You'll get your call. Though not before you're put in a cell." He replied while leading the way out of the door.

Soon, their voices were replaced by the roaring engine of the retreating police cars and the grand hall became empty expect for Tesse, Bryce and his mother.

"Mom? What were they talking about?" Asked Bryce.

"Why are you asking me? I know nothing about that. Now.." Rosalind said before turning to Tesse.

"You're still here? Don't you have a home to go back to?" She added, turning up her nose to the girl.

"Don't you talk to her like that!" Said Bryce, glaring daggers at his mother.

"Bryce, it doesn't matter.." Said Tesse.

Indeed it didn't, since Rosalind was already marching up the stairs, looking like.. well, like someone whose husband didn't get arrested just a few minutes ago.

Tesse squeezed Bryce's hand, drawing his attention back to her.

"It's okay, and I should go home anyway."

"You can stay if you want to.." Said Bryce, drawing her to his arms.

"Nah, I really should go. Unless I want MY mom to rip me a new one." She said, hugging him back.

"Alright, I'll take you back, we should check on Keiki first though."

30 minutes later, they were standing in front of Tesse's house. They both got off the motorcycle and started walking towards the door in silence, holding hands. Upon making it there, Tesse stopped and then turned to her boyfriend.

"Do you want to come in and talk about.. earlier? I'm sure my parents wouldn't mind."

"Nah, I'd rather sleep it off."

"You sure?"

"Yup."

"I'll see you tomorrow then?"

"Yeah, I'll come pick you up like usual."

He said before bringing her lips to his in a sweet kiss after which Bryce turned and marched back to his bike. Tesse watched his retreating back before going inside.

The next day, upon setting their feet down into the school grounds, the stares and dirty looks started. It's like everyone decided that they were the most important people in the planet. True, Bryce and Tesse were among the "popular kids" but they weren't popular enough to claim this much attention. And Bryce knows what changed that.

"Everyone is looking at us." Said Tesse, looking between all her fellow students that are surrounding them.

"Of course they are." Replied her boyfriend.

"What do you mean?"

"You really need to start watching some news."

At her shrug, Bryce continued.

"The news of my father's arrest and the reason why got aired this morning. Everyone probably saw the headlines."

"Oh my god, Bryce. Are you okay?"

"As well as you'd expect."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Nah, plus the bell just rang so we should hurry up."

Tesse cast a worried glance toward her boyfriend before they made their way towards class amongst all the whispers and dirty looks and pointed fingers which lasted the whole day and seemed to intensify with every new one. But what bothred Bryce the most were the comments Tesse was receiving from her supposed friends and practically every other person in school. He didn't care that much about the comments he was receiving, or didn't care as much as he can, since he felt a responsibility for what his father did. He couldn't say anything, especially to the kids who claimed that his father's deeds ruined their lives. But to have Tesse on the receiving end of that kind of treatment as well, that wasn't fair to her.

One of the times Bryce was present when few of the remarks were thrown at her was the Monday leading to prom. The two girls were pretending to be whispering behind their hands even though their voices could be heard clearly from Bryce and Tesse's spot just a few feet away.

"Isn't she planning to break up with him?" The first girl asked.

"Why would she?" Replied the second girl with a question of her own.

"His dad is a criminal."

"She's probably a part of what they did."

Bryce couldn't hold it in anymore. He turned to the girls, giving each of them a glare that could melt steel.

"Oh for goodness sake, would you two cut this rubbish.."

He could feel Tesse's grip in his elbow, trying to get his attention.

"Bryce, it's fine.."

"What? No, Tesse. It's not fine. Did you hear what they were saying about you?"

"Well, that's rich coming from the guy who refuses to speak up about himself."

"That's different."

"No, it's not." She said before sliding her backpack on her shoulder and making her way toward her next class.

And from there on out, Bryce tried to be with her as much as he can, even though Tesse wouldn't let him speak for her, not even once to the comments that were getting even harsher by the day.

It was the night before prom when he decided what he should do.

"Wanna go to our spot?"

Bryce sent the text that was answered a few minutes later.

"Sure."

"I'll come pick you up."

A few minutes later, Bryce was driving his bike to Tesse's house. And then they were making their way to their "spot" on companionable silence.

It was a cliff that overlooked Maui. They found it on their third date sophomore year. It wasn't that far from Tesse's home. Upon making it there, Bryce parked his motorcycle so that they can lean on it while looking at the view in front of them.

After a few beats, Tesse turned to him with a smile on her face.

"So, you ready for tomorrow?" She asked.

"About that.." He said while running his hand through his shoulder long hair.

"Yeah?"

"Tesse.. I don't think I can do this anymore." He whispered, barely keeping his tears at bay.

"What?" She said in a quiet voice.

"I think we should call it quits." Replied Bryce while looking at anything but her.

"Bryce.. are you joking?" Tesse said in a voice that betrayed the fact that she was trying to hold in her sobs as well.

"No."

"Why? Three years, Bryce. What could've made you do this now." She said, the tears having already escaped.

"Tesse, I'm not the person for you."

"And how do you know that?"

"Tesse, my dad is a criminal."

"I'm aware. And you're telling me that why? Bryce, I'm dating you, not your dad."

"Yeah. But as long as we're going to be together, you're going to be hurt from what people are going to say and your name is going to be dragged through the mud alongside mine. And you don't deserve that, Tesse. You deserve only the best." Bryce said, clutching her upper arms.

"But If the best isn't you, i dont want it." Said Tesse through sobs.

"Believe me, you don't to be with me right now." Said Bryce before kissing her forehead.

"Bryce, no.." Said Tesse, clutching his shirt in her fists.

Bryce extracted himself from her grasp before he climbed his bike and drove off into the distance. Leaving a broken heart in his dust while trying to convince himself that he did the right thing.

A/N: Hi, again. So this fanfic is going to have 2 parts, maybe more, I don't know. So as I said earlier, this fanfic is special to me because it's a collab between me and @tyrilsnightbloom who is going to be writing the next part.

P.S: want to be tagged? Tell me😊.

Tagging: @tyrilsnightbloom