#just enough time for us to theorize without going mad
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sharonccrter · 4 months ago
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HBO confirming that The Pitt is coming back in January and that their going to keep this as close to network tv as possible; giving the actors a few months break before going back to filming. Is giving me hope that streaming services are realising that making audiences wait literal years between seasons is not working.
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gayofthefae · 2 months ago
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I actually have a take that if Mike just kinda uses their language they'll totally get it immediately without reservation. If Mike's kinda talking about his queerness and hiding it, if he says like
"I tried avoiding it...kinda just made me an asshole"
or something of that nature they'll be like "I CALLED HIM AN ASSHOLE! I REMEMBER SAYING THAT! When did I say that? Season 3?! Wow, they've planned this for a long time it's really threaded back through the story! Not out of the blue, also I forgive you, proceed!"
And I actually write that out I think part of the reason that works is because it gives them the idea that they predicted it. That reference to those unanswered questions in some capacity that everybody called out but said was something else. Give them the chance to go "I KNEW something was off". Right now they're mad they can't say "I called what it is". But let them say "I called THAT there was SOMETHING".
That makes it go from a "fake news. if I didn't see it didn't happen" type of twist to a "UGH, I should have listened to my gut! I dismissed it too early but I CALLED it" type of twist.
From discrediting without fact checking to what it actually is: through clever timing and tricks of the camera, they steered you away from the fact that you were smart enough to see it.
It really is just that people don't want to feel stupid. That's why they don't want it fed to them but it's also why they don't want to be completely surprised. They don't want to feel condescended like you think they won't get it but they also don't want to feel like they didn't get something they were supposed to. But "I saw it and I ignored it", by pointing out to the audience "yes, you did see it" it changes from "bad writers" to "ooh, you sneaky bastards".
And I just remembered 3 twists. They said the 3 twists is so you never get all of them but there's a behind the scenes secret they didn't share. It's also so you'll at least supsect at least one of them. It raises the number you can miss is what they tell you so you feel smart and trusted. But the secret they keep is it also raises the number you get, which raises your enjoyment of it. They're not just trying for you not to get all 3 like they say. They specifically want you to get 1-2/3. Feel like you're part of it, you're playing, to say "gah, I almost had it! You sneaky bastards. But I still get credit for what I did get." And they'll go 'great job, kiddo, yes you did.'
3 twists. The third is what I don't know either, what I spend all my time theorizing about. I don't know the timeline or any details of Mike's experience, I don't know its supernatural ties. Number 2, we do know: he's queer. But that's twist number 2. Number 1 is his sudden change in behavior.
You caught that. That's the one you're meant to catch. So you can credit yourself regardless.
Now that I've remembered their 3 part rule I feel even more secure in them executing this successfully relative to that reception. The people who just want to feel smart. They'll connect it back to what they put in place for those people to notice.
"Hey, remember when I did this?" and they'll go "I do! I caught that! I remember catching that! I didn't know it meant something, go on!" and he'll go "it's because I'm queer" and they'll go "I should have followed my gut and theorized on that! If I had theorized on it I'm sure I would have gotten it."
Of course there will be the inherent pushback from more people now that know other people predicted that second part before they did and will still feel stupid so I guess I say to that: it is in your best interest to not push it right now with people who reject it. "I saw it and you didn't" is what they're hearing. If they don't think about you for 6 months, they'll probably be a lot more receptive when it comes around because they'll be able to pat themselves on the back on how they were ahead on his abnormal behavior instead of thinking about how they were behind you.
The Duffers have everything in place to cater to them. Trust The Duffers to that now and don't hinder the process. They'll only come around if they're not holding on out of spite.
But I have faith that with that, they will do it. They will start with references to things the general audience did catch but didn't think would be followed up on, then maybe remind them of things they forgot, then explain what they mean. But by easing in with that first step, going in that reverse chronological order maybe - starting with the details they know the audience remembers themselves catching, they're setting up for the audience to feel revealed to, not manipulated or hidden from.
As opposed to "I had no idea and therefore it's stupid" giving way for any pride at all is huge (we've all sort of but not really predicted a whodunnit and bragged anyways). To go to the classic "I knew he was queer! - ok well not specifically queer but I knew that something was off, and I dismissed it, but when they brought it back, I KNEW that it was SOMETHING, so that counts really".
But even more faith comes from: think about Will. Will was also famously speculated to be queer, and popularly rejected in that idea. Then season 4 rolled around and very few people say that it was unplanned, even the same who thought it was at the time, even people who maybe still think it started in season 4 received it better. Because even just that single season build up allowed them many opportunities to "call it" before the reveal. And maybe they remembered "I DID notice the homophobia towards Will in season 1, ugh, I should have known that was setup! clever." Or maybe they didn't catch anything until "what if they don't like the truth", but either way, they credited themselves. Because none of those are technically reveals.
All we have to do is make it so when they see the first subtle hint of Mike liking Will, they think of themselves going "I'm calling it, I will have called it" and NOT your voice saying "I told you so". That will ruin it for them, they will continue to not receive it well. That's where the "ugh they're doing the fan service" comes from. It's an avoidance of an internal "I told you so" because if the writers didn't come up with it until you said it, then you weren't right and you aren't smarter than them. They're angry and all-capsing because they hear the prediction they didn't make constantly and because they didn't make it, they don't want it to be right.
So if you do me one favor here: let them call it themselves. Let them forget they didn't think of it first. Sometimes it's not straight up hatred. Sometimes they just need to feel like they're the smartest in the room. And if we lay off and let the room they're in go back to being the real room with their friends who didn't predict it and not the internet, then they are the smartest in the room. And when they come back they'll see themselves as with us in the "community of people who totally called it!" (even if they called it in 5x05).
And as a parting gift, a memory some viewer will bring back up as proud proof(sound on):
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larothoughts · 1 year ago
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qijiu thoughts: complicated codependence
after reading a few more shen jiu fics i figured maybe the diverging point when it comes to fan-interpretation is understanding how codependent qijiu is. like, it's not just qi-ge who won't let go of shen jiu, shen jiu 100% spitefully, unwillingly yet helplessly refuses to let go of qi-ge either. the obvious author answer to this is for sj to remove himself from qi-ge because of toxic codependence (see my rant on anti-qijiu pro-sj fics), except i don't think it's in-character for him to ever do so??
the man literally died twice because he couldn't let go of qi-ge until the very, very end. he'll never give up on him as easily as he does in fic, this man is a canonical stubborn asshole who can't let go of anything. that's his entire problem lol
(first time was obviously after lbh gave him xuan su's shards. sj, who had spent the entire time being tortured refusing to bend, cracks at the realization that qi-ge came this time and died. i forgot if him eating xuan su's shards is canon in the qijiu extras or if it's a fanon theory, but i 100% find this in-character of sj to do as a final f*** you to the universe.)
(second time was the qi deviation that caused shen yuan to take over his life. i'll go over this later, but i believe sqh, who transmigrated decades before, likely tried to nudge qijiu into reconciling and instead made it worse. so while in the og!pidw universe, sj never deviated hard enough to die; in this svsss universe, sqh trying to get sj to face his own heart demons literally caused him to die. oops. system got pretty mad because lbh MUST go into the abyss, and so had to scramble to find a sj replacement lol)
preface
much of this is my own interpretation of things btw. i haven't read the qijiu extras in a while so it's very possible some of these things don't follow canon. especially the whole cognitive dissonance part. i've always leaned towards the 'shen jiu is an unreliable, in-denial narrator of his own story, he can't admit anything to himself until he's literally at death's door' interpretation of sj's tsundereness, so that's 100% my own bias peeking through here.
how qing ding peak made everything worse
this a fanon theory i like that has merit given how long qijiu had problems: things would've been so much different if yue qi wasn't chosen by qing ding. like, literally any other peak, qijiu would've had 75% chance of having a happy ending. i feel like any peak with a halfway decent lord with basic empathy skills would have thought 'hmm yes, if we rescue the friend of this little prodigy we can ensure his loyalty to us for life' instead of 'let's dangle the chance of rescuing his friend as a way to get this kid to work as hard as he can until it's too late, then allow the failure to break him down completely so we can reshape him into the perfect successor.' though to be honest the former sect leader probably didn't expect yue qi to literally be broken down.
my thought is that the sect leader kept putting off the rescue over and over, hoping to drag things out until the inevitable happened. but yue qi, naturally wary of adults, panicked once he realized what his shizun was doing. he tried to pull xuan su without permission to force the leader into acknowledging his strength and letting him go... which then led to the entire soul-binding fiasco we see in canon. sure, the former sect leader could've lost his newest experiment, but throwing him into the caves had the bonus of making him late anyway. so a success all around everyone!
we can further theorize the character of the previous sect leader (and how his grooming of yue qi possibly led to his guilt complex and inability to communicate his honest feelings) but ultimately it was qing ding peak's teachings itself that led to yqy's inability to reconcile with sj. because qing ding is the diplomat's peak. the politics peak. the peak where people often cannot say exactly what they mean, must never overtly show favor to anyone, must control every single thing they do or say else the political fallout ruins their sect's reputation.
so it really didn't help that their reunion happened in the middle of sj committing pretty bad crimes like murdering and looting disciples. yue qi went immediately into political clean-up mode, sj misunderstood yue qi's silence as 'i will never tell you' instead of 'not now sj we need to bury these bodies in the bushes', and then later sj was so scornful yue qi's guilt-complex kicked in and he figured 'sj will never forgive me, obviously he doesn't want to hear excuses.' and as yue qi's political position grew, the less he could overtly support and protect shen jiu. the more careful he was of his words and actions, so far removed from the qi-ge sj once knew that sj can't help but lash out. by the time yqy was mentally well enough to talk about the lingxi cave fiasco (if ever), sj had already built up a protective wall of 'this qi-ge is an imposter, the real qi-ge would not have left me.' and yqy didn't know how to tell him the truth without sj's psyche collapsing in on itself. so... he just continued not to tell him.
in which qi-ge is alive but also dead, as declared by shen jiu
sj barely recognized qi-ge once they reunited. yue qi has always been the peacemaker amongst the rowdy slaves, sure, but he'd always been on sj's side. he told sj everything, things he never told the other slaves, and only really clammed up when they were facing beatings by adults in a true us-versus-them scenario. now, however, he's clamming up with shen jiu. he hates it, this intrinsically qi-ge thing that this fake qi-ge doesn't realize he's doing. more than the shiny clothes and well-fed appearance, this is what makes the chasm between them feel real. qi-ge never came back for him, because qi-ge was dead. cang qiong killed qi-ge and all that's left is this qi-ge puppet going through motions of caring for sj it obviously doesn't understand.
(this is easier for him to accept, because if yue qi wasn't mentally dead than he really did willingly abandon shen jiu in the dirt, and accepting that would make shen jiu lose his mind.)
now what to do when qi-ge is dead and he doesn't need sj to protect him anymore? logically, sj should've stayed long enough to fix his cultivation, save up funds, and then leave to become a rogue cultivator before his past had the chance to catch up to him. but sj is not logical. he's spiteful and angry and contrary. he claws his way up the disciple hierarchy on qing jing and spits in the face of yue qi's awkward overtures. he hates the other qing jing disciples, his own shizun, lqg and a bunch of the other head disciples; in fact, he hates cang qiong as a whole because they were the ones that took qi-ge away from him. but at the end of the day, a dead qi-ge puppet is still kind of qi-ge and even if qi-ge threw sj away that didn't mean the reverse was true. sj will not give even a dead puppet qi-ge up; he belongs to him whether he likes it or not (/spitefully).
so as it becomes clearer and clearer that yue qi will indeed become the next sect leader, sj begrudgingly finds himself stuck in cang qiong. one would think things would get better after the former peak lords ascend, since that meant the evil brainwashing sect leader and the resentful qiu-naming qing jing peak lord would've finally fucked off. but no, things actually get worse.
because now that the former sect leader isn't actively sabotaging qijiu's relationship (sure, he didn't mean to break yue qi's mind that bad, but even the worst broken eggs can be turned into a decent obedient successor, except shen jiu's continued existence is threatening to undo all his hard work) yue qi is more able to try and make overt amends. the problem is, by acting more like the real qi-ge, he's threatening sj's mental defense of 'qi-ge is dead, this qi-ge is a fake.'
when cognitive dissonance gives you qi deviations
the more qi-ge acts like he's honestly sorry, the more shen jiu must accept that qi-ge isn't dead. that he either chose to leave sj behind (devastating given sj's abandonment issues) or was forced to leave sj behind and refused to tell him why (more abandonment issues; does he not trust sj anymore??) worse for peak morale, the more overtly sj rejects yqy, the more annoyed the other peak lords get. doesn't sj know how bad it looks for their sect, to have their top two lords fighting like this?? why is yqy not shutting it down, isn't he a politician?
well yes, but as sect leader he now has the freedom to pick and choose when to put his politicking hat on. lqg follows sqq to a brothel and causes a ruckus in the middle of the street? scold sqq for being so overt, because they both know the best way into the brothel is through the back via code word! they learned how to sneak into brothels as street kids ages ago and sqq could have totally done so discreetly! argue with lqg but refuse to explain himself? sqq please, he can't take your side for no reason, especially in front of all these peak lords who already knows he favors you!!
and because shen jiu is facing the cognitive dissonance of qi-ge's... qi-ge-ness, he sets up tests rigged to fail no matter how yqy responds. this way he is always right! if yqy sides with sj, sj's annoyed because he's clearly trying to placate him like a child. if yqy sides against sj, he's obviously choosing to abandon sj again!!
yqy is fully aware of the trap because yqy is a trained politician capable of reading social cues (and sj hasn't changed all that much from when they were kids, he still has that same spiteful edge to him yqy is so fond of). he intentionally falls for them because (1) he deserves to be hated by sj and (2) being hated by sj keeps him from lashing out too much at the other peak lords. yqy is very used to sj's temper tantrums, it's when he lashes out at other people that things become unmanageable.
(during the latter half of their rule over cang qiong, i feel that yqy learned to stop actively chasing reconciliation. he came around for tea and present-giving, kept things civil, and still let sj get away with all kinds of terrible things. he fell for all of sj's traps with his eyes wide open and it infuriates sj, everything about this drives him mad. he doesn't want this soft, unspoken affection, because this was how qi-ge used to handle sj's tsundereness back when they were on the streets. it's another sign that qi-ge is still qi-ge, and this fact brings sj both selfish comfort and undeniable agony.)
it's an awkward balancing act that continues to sour sj's reputation with the other peak lords, but it's mostly manageable until sqh sticks his nose into their business and pushes sj over the edge.
how transmigrators ruin everything
"maybe yqy did something impulsive, did you think of that? why can't you forgive him, he tried so hard? aren't you tired of being angry all the time?" bitch no, sj has been keeping the worst of the qi deviations away for years by performing mental gymnastics around his walls of denial stOP KNOCKING THEM DOWN. Even worse, lbh arrives on the peak and shen jiu hates him. not just because he's got all the potential shen jiu had stolen away from him, but he's so glad to be here. he's making his mother proud. all while shen jiu was dragged here essentially against his will, trapped himself in this bamboo prison out of spite, and then realized the dead thing he's been looking after for decades isn't dead after all. that qi-ge actually did, for realsies, leave him at the qius. that all these overtures, the silent acceptance of his faults, everything could just be out of guilt (qi-ge is ashamed of him) and not out of a ghost reenacting its former lingering affection (the real qi-ge would've still loved him.)
the dissonance, abandonment issues, frustration and everything culminates in a devastating qi deviation. ironically, now that yqy's rule is mostly secure and sj's reputation has soured enough to start negatively affecting the sect, sj finally feels safe enough to let go. in this moment of emotional clarity, sj finally releases qi-ge from his grasp and decides to die.
that was not supposed to happen.
qi-ge's no good, very bad sacrifice
in another universe where og!sqh was too busy plotting to betray cang qiong mountain, the frosty and emotionally charged stand-off between yqy and sj continues for years. then, lqg dies. i'm torn between yqy believing sj killed lqg or not. either way, i don't think he'd be 'disappointed' in sj as portrayed in some fics. i also don't think it would infuriate sj that yqy thinks he's capable of killing lqg, because if anyone knows how much of a murder kitten shen jiu is, it's yqy. maybe he's offended yqy thinks him dumb enough to kill him in such a sloppy way. maybe he's even more offended that this turns the other peak lords against him and yqy just lets it happen.
or maybe (through my qijiu-tinted glasses) it pisses him off that yqy does tell the peak lords that they should all stand together, and the other peak lords ignore him and hate sj anyway. they're disrespecting yqy because they think he is compromised, and sj worked too goddamn hard to solidify yqy's position to have it undone by a murder he didn't even do.
(ironically, if lqg was alive he'd tell the other peak lords to f*** off for disobeying yqy. lqg's canon respect for yqy is something i feel needs more acknowledgement, likely because i feel half the reason they don't get along is because of sj's utter disrespect of their sect leader. who cares if sj is a street rat or the son of a wealthy family, no one disrespects yue-shixiong!)
now the story of sj's road to becoming lbh's plaything is a well-worn track that everyone knows. i do subscribe to the idea that sj took one look at huan hua's eagerness, lbh's vendetta, and yqy's recklessness and made the same decision he did in the svsss verse: he'd rather qi-ge be free (happy) than dead. this is a battle he cannot win, and he'll be damned if he lets lbh drag cang qiong down with him. when yqy promises him he'll save him from the water prison, sj spits in his face and tells him for the final time that xiao jiu and qi-ge are both dead. he let sj go decades ago, and now sj is letting qi-ge go in return.
sj faces the torture with the tenacious spirit of someone who'd withstood worse torture for years. in fact, he's a bit impressed by lbh taking revenge on him the same way sj took revenge on qiu jianluo. either way, even with more than 50% of his body missing, sj faces his fate in utter defiance. and then lbh shows up with xuan su.
the reveal of qi-ge's failed rescue and demise was devastating for a lot of reasons. most obviously, sj's sacrifice to keep cang qiong safe from the fallout was a failure. everything he'd done and sacrificed to keep qi-ge safe, all the scorn he'd borne as the hated qing jing peak lord was thrown away because qi-ge wanted to be a moron.
the other reason why sj broke was because qi-ge did come for him. he simply failed. and the tiny part of him that always suspected qi-ge was still qi-ge now has confirmation that all those years ago, qi-ge likely did the same. he came for him at the qius, but he failed. the only difference now is lbh's willingness to tell him the truth vs. yqy's decades-long silence. the only difference now is that yqy is actually, physically dead.
sj has been living on borrowed time ever since he looked the new yqy (fake qi-ge) in the eyes and allowed himself to be brought to cang qiong mountain. everything he did was to elevate himself into a position where no one could hurt him (and qi-ge) anymore, the same way he'd acted back when they were on the streets. now that he was in this state and qi-ge was dead, his time was clearly up. and sj refuses to let lbh have the last laugh. as much as he respected lbh for his ruthlessness, it's not enough to stave off sj's spite. he didn't let qjl control him in the end, and he won't let lbh do so either.
final thoughts
some last, disorganized thoughts on qijiu's relationship
rather than yqy telling sj what happened, i think showing him the scars all over his body would be much more impactful. sj knows how worthless words can be; he's likely prefer being able to touch each scar and check the meridians for himself. yqy doesn't need to say a word, his entire body is a testament to the torture he'd endured.
ironically, sj fixing up cang qiong as a tactician and his personal refusal to put himself in weak situations made yqy incapable of showing his care through action. all of his crises were political/reputation-based/etc. all things qing ding's teachings guaranteed yqy to fail all his speech-checks. and yqy is definitely not the type of person to engineer a false crisis just to swoop in to save sj... not because of any moral reasons, but because risking sj in any way would be absolutely unacceptable. in yqy's world, it's sj > the sect > good morals. he does have good morals, yes, but he's also pragmatic and self-aware enough to know when to put the things he cares about first.
there was a theory i read before about yqy and sj's trauma responses being to shut down and say nothing in the face of accusations, and i agree with this. saying nothing often netted less punishment than 'making excuses.' even without this coping mechanism, the mental trauma of having his mind and body broken could've easily stopped yqy from being able to even speak around the topic for years. if he doesn't talk about it and no one sees his scars, he can pretend it never happened. sj's scorn of him is forever a sign that it did happen, but that's fine, he's always made exceptions for shen jiu.
i don't really know where the uncomfortably-creepy-no-boundaries yqy towards sy came from? in the original novel sy clearly like yqy and views him in a positive, big-brother-shape light. even towards the end of the novel when yqy confesses, sy feels more guilty for being an imposter than angry that yqy failed sj. yqy even steps aside for lbh thinking 'well, at least sqq is happy now' because that's what he wanted for sj for so, so long. for him to be happy, even if that meant forgetting qi-ge.
(the no-boundaries thing is something i disagree with in general, because i think yqy's political and social training would make that very unlikely. he doesn't call sqq xiao-jiu as often as he does in fics, i think he did so in canon because he was delirious and exhausted post-drawing-xuan-su. i figured qijiu's latter years cooled off a bit as yqy realized direct overtures weren't working and went the coaxing-stray-cat route to everyone else's befuddlement.)
does qi-ge know sy is not sj? i can go either way with this. the theory that he does know but he's repressing it out of his own mental wellbeing is intriguing; but so is him assuming sj losing his memories means sy is a different person. which means he's always been happier without qi-ge. either way, i do believe yqy no longer views sqq-y the same as sqq-j. after the first few years post-qi-deviation, i think yqy is emotionally mature enough to realize sy is here to stay and that the sj he once knew (either because of his lost memories or whole-soul transplantation) is gone.
i am a qijiu shipper, but i do also like platonic qijiu. my only prerequisite for any other-ship-jiu fic is some kind of qijiu reconciliation. i honestly don't think either of them would have good romantic relationships unless they fix their own relationship first. qi-ge can't marry someone, that would remove sj from being the most important person on qi-ge's list. despite scorning him, sj being number one is one of the only things holding sj together throughout their divorce era. sj cannot marry anyone because that would give qi-ge the false impression that sj is happy and qi-ge is now free. and qi-ge is not allowed to be free. he will belong to sj for as long as sj wants and nothing is allowed to interfere with that impression. lol both of these are sj-based, but sj's always been the dominant party in this relationship. whether or not qi-ge is jealous of sj's new lover is irrelevant; as long as sj is happy, the og!sj-simp qi-ge is also happy.
i have too many qijiu thoughts and not enough time to write a fic about them, alas. i find their relationship fascinating and very integral to their personalities no matter the au or ship.
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goldninja91 · 7 months ago
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Sonic Movie Franchise: 2nd Trilogy Predictions
Obviously, spoilers for Sonic 3 inbound. Read at your own risk XD
All righty, everyone out? Good. Now, let's talk predictions! I'm assuming that everyone here has seen the credits scenes of Sonic 3, and I've been cooking up some ideas as to where the plotlines of future movies could go, even without Eggman as the main villain. We can't hold Jim Carrey hostage forever, after all XD
So obviously we're going to get both Amy and Metal Sonic for Sonic 4. The question is, what game plotline will they be adapting, if any at all? Well, here's my theory/pitch for what Sonic 4 could be.
Metal and Amy both debuted in Sonic CD, a game that heavily used time travel in its plot. Given the fact that Metal found Sonic in what seems to be mere days after the Eclipse Cannon crisis, it almost seems to be too fast for him to have just sprung up on his own. We know that Eggman himself was mostly just wallowing in his defeat at the hands of Super Sonic, so why would he have built a mechanical Sonic and not use him at all in 3's events? Furthermore, where did the 'lesser' Metal Sonic drones come from, and how was it that Amy found Sonic mere moments after Metal did?
My theory is that this Metal Sonic was created by some future version of Eggman, potentially from an alternate timeline, and was sent back in time to just after the events of the Eclipse Cannon. And given how experienced Amy seems to be at handling the Metal Horde, it's possible that she hails from this future as well. I mean, I know she's a massive Sonic fangirl, but it's significantly less probable for her to find him in this universe as opposed to someone like Tails.
As for Metal's role in Sonic 4... I personally hope that he ends up being the main villain. He has so much potential to be more than just Eggman's lackey, especially with his story in Sonic Heroes. I theorize that Sonic 4's story could end up being some kind of combination of both CD and Heroes, with Metal aiming to take over Eggman's position of power and copy everyone's abilities, becoming the true ultimate life form. It also seems like they could be taking inspiration from the Metallix from the Fleetway comics, which would also be incredibly cool.
This could also be a 2nd chance to use the missed opportunity that was Neo Metal Sonic, having that be the final form for Metal instead of the Metal Overlord. Although if they wanted to include it, the Metal Overlord/Metallic Madness could be some kind of metallic kaiju that Metal builds himself to fight the heroes while he stays in his Neo form.
And with that out of the way, I hope you're prepared for even wilder speculation regarding the next two movies! XD There was a vague hint about Shadow's origin in Sonic 3 when they mentioned he fell to Earth in a meteor, which looked suspiciously like a miniature Black Comet. I believe that they could be setting up some kind of Black Arms invasion for a more Shadow-centric Sonic 5. The reason I'm pushing this back to a 5th movie is because it would be incredibly difficult to mash both Metal Sonic and the Black Arms into a single Sonic 4. This is also a chance to integrate Rouge and Omega into the story as Shadow's own team, separate from Sonic's.
(Though now that I think about it, if Paramount does opt for a Shadow/Knuckles tv show, that could take its time to focus on a Black Arms storyline instead. However, this is currently in wild unbased speculation territory.)
As for the final movie in the trilogy... I'm honestly not sure. I have two vague ideas as to what the villain could be, as without Eggman as a factor (even with the possibility of an evil future version of him, somewhat similar to Eggman Nega) the options are somewhat limited. My top two picks are either Dark Gaia or Chaos as the final villain, though considering how the movies scale things I think that Chaos could be more likely, as I don't think they'd be quite bold enough to shatter Earth into 7 pieces just like that.
But both of them offer opportunities to explore more alien lore and more things revolving around the Chaos/Master Emerald as well. Another reason I say Chaos is more likely is because while Unleashed has a great story, it's mainly focused on Sonic and Chip as opposed to the more team/family-centric themes that the movies like to focus on. In that vein of thought, the defeat of Chaos with the positive energies of the Emeralds feels more in line with that family dynamic the movies tend to lean towards.
Buuuut those are just my thoughts. What do y'all think?
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epickiya722 · 9 months ago
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I always loved Sukuna being awful WHILE adding rainbow to him in my fanworks (you know, that gap moe thing) but... A hero? Did they just close their eyes for like... THE WHOLE STORY?!
From the start he's described as a calamity who people had to sacrifice themselves to defeat him. Like you say, the first thing he think about when he wake up is to kill women AND children
Like God it's like, I had the theory that people loved Sukuna this much because he was "domesticated" for most of the show : contained within Yuuji he couldn't do shit and the humiliating situation he was in let the occasion for funny jokes, AU where he does soften up to Yuuji ect
But we all have seen what happen when he can break loose. The second time he could take control of Yuuji, he thoughts about killing Megumi to hurt Yuuji.
Enough talking it's just... Wow the simping is hard huh
How much you beat that if Yuuji was big and muscular they'd think differently. This fandom just shape their opinion based on how strong and sexy z character is anyway.
Yeah, like if you like a character because you find them sexy and strong, I don't mind it honestly. There are some characters I look at and think are attractive. But what sucks is when that's where it stops when favoring a character because then those same people will ignore everything else and be the ones to have the loudest "hot takes" that don't even make sense to the story, let alone the character. Like, they have to conjure up bullshit to make it seem like they know what they're talking about instead of admitting "Yeah, I don't understand the story".
I don't know about anybody else, but I'm not afraid to admit to not understanding a story. I like spending time trying to decipher what could this mean and reading what others (who spend their time even posting) have said who actually do get what's going on.
When it comes to Sukuna, I feel like some people don't care about his character because he is "sexy and strong".
It sucks given that, at least to me, Sukuna is entertaining. Through his actions, his dialogue, design and even the "lack" of a backstory. I'm not allergic to using my imagination in guessing what his life what was like. Sometimes, I don't want the writer to give me everything. I want to guess, I want to theorize and analyze.
That's engagement!
Just because someone has Sukuna as their favorite character and/or understand his actions, it doesn't mean that person condones his actions unless they express it in a way that they do.
As someone who is a fan of both Yuji and Sukuna, it also sucks to see people not recognize that Yuji is just as ruthless as Sukuna. Yuji is my number one JJK favorite because he is just as interesting.
Some people saw that Yuji doesn't crack jokes or smile during a fight like Sukuna does as "boring" without actually looking at how he fights.
Sukuna toys with his opponents. He's predictable in a way that you know he'll kill you.
Yuji? You have to keep guessing because of how quick he is with his martial arts and strategies. And he really doesn't hold back. You have to keep your guard up with him just as you would against Sukuna, but because Yuji is Yuji, you don't realize that until nearly halfway through the fight.
It's like some people see Yuji's sunshine persona and think "well, nothing else to it". They see how he fights and label him as just a "brawler" when he fights no different than even Nanami, Geto and Gojo who mix martial arts into using their techniques.
When you really think about Yuji's overall character, he has some horror and tragic elements like Sukuna (wrote a post about that).
When it comes to having AUs and fanon, I don't mind it. Sometimes, I like making my own AU. Even making one right now with Sukuna for this season.
It's just... when people blur that line between canon and fanon where it gets annoying. Like, when that happens, some get mad that the canon story isn't going how they want it to go and the characters aren't the characters they visualized in their head.
Sadly, characters like Sukuna and yes, even Yuji, are victims of that.
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felinespooky · 1 year ago
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Yet Another Twisted Wonderland Theory
Still about Yuu
I am back on my mad ramblings regarding Twisted Wonderland. This time it’s not gonna be as far fetched as a previous post I did that proved to be nothing more than connecting dots that are never there. I feel like this one actually has some merit though as long as I don’t spiral out of control thought wise. Without further ado, let’s begin.
The theory this time around: The game Yuu is more of a conglomerate of the various manga Yuus.
“But how would that make sense?” I hear you, but before I can answer any of that, we are to hit the necessary bullet point questions:
* What connects the Yuus together?
* Who’s crazy enough to do this?
* What purpose does this serve?
Starting with “What connects the Yuus together,” I would have to say I don’t have all the answers considering that, at the time of writing, one Books 1-3 are out and available. Although, I’m only aware of Books 1 & 2 being in English; I play on EN so everything will be lagging behind all things considered. And to make it easier, I’d advise to have a separate tab that has information about what is canon to Game Yuu (@starsilluminateourgalaxy, @mee-op, and @darkscorpiox are where I find all the information regarding Game Yuu)
**A/N: Now, this is where I’d make a vinn diagram but unfortunately with the busy schedule I have going on, I haven’t been able to sit down properly and go full on MatPat or Theorizer on this section before someone or something demands my brain. I will one day make this list; just one a different post or a future edit.**
Now for “Who’s crazy enough to do this” question. The answer is simple: Crowley, our deadbeat bird dad. It’s been heavily hinted, dare I say proven, that it’s him we heard in the beginning of the game as Spooky Hand TM. Spooky Hand/Crowley does this whole speech right before waking up:
“Ah, my lovely Lord,
The noble and beautiful flower of evil,
You are the most beautiful, number one in this world.
— Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who’s the most…
— For thee, guided by the Mirror of Darkness,
Follow thy heart and take the hand of the one reflected in the mirror.
Flames that turn even stars into ashes,
Ice that imprisons time,
Great tree that swallow even the sky,
Don’t be afraid of the power of darkness,
Come now, show your power,
Mine, theirs, and yours,
There’s only little time left,
Do not let go of that hand, at all cost.”
Now, going by key lines, it seems more like an incantation of sorts. Like, asking Hades to release a soul, and the companion to a flower. As if Yuu/the player is merely a seed that’s in the process of blossoming into whoever you want. Hell the “mine, theirs, and yours” line in particular strikes me as off.
Which brings me to the “what purpose” question. The answer is to merely complete a timeline that doesn’t end in tragedy. I believe there is a “time loop theory” running around in the fandom. Though it doesn’t function like the usual trope like in that one Supernatural episode; it functions more like an Undertale loop. In this case, it’s Crowley being able to do it instead of us. Now, why would this matter? I believe it’s because Crowley feels guilty about what happened the first time, most likely a death to some unknown previous Yuu. He genuinely felt sorry for this kid and decided that until he can figure it out, he’d let them stay. Plus they’re keeping Grim under control… but then they die. Best guess is either the cave he sent us to with Ace and Deuce, though that might’ve been different than the one we know, or Riddle’s Overblot. Regardless, he probably felt guilty about it, so he decided to rewind time. Except, something happened, the kid changed. He’d be confused, but he can’t blow his cover since he’s not supposed to be messing with time. So he takes it by the chin and acts normal. And the timeline does change, this Yuu (Yuuken) survives! But only a little as eventually, this one dies to Leona’s Overblot. However, he’s not letting this piece of Yuu die, he tries again. Except, it’s a different Yuu, Yuuka. The timeline changes just a little, she survives just a bit longer than the other, but she soon succumbs to death. This pattern happens until it’s Game Yuu’s turn. This time, Crowley has decided to create this Yuu, one that’ll survive everything in Twisted Wonderland! One that’ll survive Grim’s Overblot this time around! Maybe for shits and giggles, he forms this one into the image of the very first unknown Yuu. After all, if he just so happens to have something from the previous Yuus, how hard can it be to make life? However, that’s not the only thing that’s changed, he’s changed too. He was probably an actually great dude, but getting too attached to the most unluckiest kid to ever exist has wounded him. So, he tries to keep us busy and away from him. He probably cries seeing our Yuu just living life ignorant of his goal. But sevens forbid he cry, so he acts. All the while he hints at his works, calling himself kind and generous, probably wanting us to remember if possible.
Even if this theory flops like my other hot take, this makes for some hella great Crowley angst. Let the deadbeat crow suffer.
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darkx-the-dragon-kn1ght · 6 months ago
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Chapter 47- Part 17
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Okay, it seems like this was the last room before Radomus, I am going to save and I am going to pass away in my nice soft…well, I sleep on a couch, but it’s still nice and soft. And I’m gonna need that, because I think the lack of sleep has been steadily making me more aggressive...
(And then, without any smooth transition to the next day-)
Okay! I am rested and my brain cells are restored, which is really good because it’s time to finally take on Radomus! I have finished training everyone to the level cap and giving them all items, as you can see:
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Prong, Mal, and Riptide’s items are the same, Karma has the Synthetic Seed because the Magic Coat could help with how frail he is, and Jack and Rue have Persim Berries because chess attacks deal more damage if the target is confused and that’s no good.
I was able to get Rue’s Speed high enough to where she’s the Knight, and everyone else’s roles are the same as before- Prong and Mal as Pawns, Jack as Rook, Karma as King, and Riptide as Queen. So with that and a huge supply of Milk at Xera’s disposal…let’s get this started.
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I don’t like that the music stopped again, why did it go quiet?? And as for that Healing Shard, I’ll save it for after the battle.
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Huh…so we’re up here, the Field is down there, there are the usual chess pieces…you know, this is making me wonder how Chess Arena looks and functions like…in-universe. Are those chess pieces gonna move as we fight in some symbolism way, or are they just taking up space on the battlefield?
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As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess…!
To reiterate: the plan is to Taunt the Trick Room user with Mal, then take it out as soon as possible, and then…we’ll go from there, I guess. Also need to make sure Rue is nice and healthy for whenever the Queen comes out…
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Okay the music came back but it’s- it’s super intense, now!? Huh!? Not even that, it sounds…familiar, somehow, I swear I’ve heard this before…
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Oh! I know this music now! It’s a different Legendary Beasts remix, but it also reminded me of that spooky Obsidia Park theme from way back when. 
That’s neat, but one question- why is this the music that’s playing right before we fight Radomus?? What did they mean by this?? Is it because of how weird he’s been acting since…forever, and because he just took the Pendant for reasons yet unknown? Because while I’m sure Xera’s still mad about that, I don’t think it warrants this much buildup-
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I mean, you all have seen how much time and effort I put into theorizing and planning for Gyms, and trying to plan for stuff during battles, so I like to think I’ve been doing okay at “rising above”.
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……………okay I know I made a joke earlier about Radomus secretly being Anna and Noel’s father, I really was just doing a bit, but looking at the VS. image…that face, that eye color, even that hair color kinda…is it me, or are they all somewhat reminiscent of Noel, especially as he looked in his own VS. image…? Especially the eyes? Am I going crazy, am I just tricking myself? Am I taking El’s place by gaslighting myself, now that he’s been butler-fied?
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Cool, I guessed one of his Pokémon right, we’re all Pawns, and Reuniclus has the Synthetic Seed! Which one can learn Trick Room, though…THEY CAN BOTH LEARN TRICK ROOM, SHOOT.
Okay, okay, it’s a 50/50 guess on who to Taunt, let me see…if Reuniclus is given the Sp. Attack boost, that must mean Radomus is going to use it as the sweeper, which in turn means Malamar is likely the Trick Roomer! So Mal will Taunt Malamar, while Prong Charge Beams Reuniclus (since she can’t one-shot anyways).
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I think I lost the 50/50-
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YUP, OKAY, HERE WE GO-
But actually, this could still work for us, Prong is decently slow. I’ll just switch out Mal for the equally slow Jack and try to Charge Beam the Reuniclus again.
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So the partially Rock-type chess attacks strike again- but no worries, we have Karma and his priority. Plus, Malamar tried to use Superpower on Mal’s slot, but Jack denied it so that’s cool!
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mamaito · 1 year ago
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What are the most surreal and macabre movies you ever watched? Your favorites?
It's hard to actually find more movies where it is both surreal and macabre at the same time, but there's possibly somewhere out there that I haven't seen yet so here's the ones I've personally watched. Some of them are only surreal and the other just macabre so browse at your leisure.
I seem to have forgotten other movies, my bad. I can't really remember some even if I try to put my head around it. I'll be putting a ✯ symbol to signify that it's my favorite:
Alice (1988) - [✯] A surreal, live action mixed with stop motion animation that is a loose adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. It's goal is to create a more surreal and dreamlike adaptation as the director was disappointed that other movies of Alice in Wonderland don't bother leaning into it. It is as you'd expect it to be, it is like having a fever dream but the animations of the various character's and design are amazing.
Eraserhead (1977) - [] Those who are a fan of surreal movies will no doubt mention you Eraserhead as it is a more well known one. It is a black and white movie about a man going to his girlfriend's house to ask for not wanting to visit anymore, he gets invited to a dinner with the family only to then find out she got pregnant and had a kid so now they have to marry.
You should experience it for yourself lol, the fun part is just seeing the over exaggerated menial things to the bizarre. This is not my favorite as I prefer something more interesting to analyze and theorize.
Fantastic Planet (1973) - [] Animated film about large blue aliens with human pets. But the human pet then learns of a group of other living humans with no owners forming a resistance against the blue tyrants and go to an all out war. What is there to say other than you should go watch it and see for yourself, the colors are nice.
Hope / Wish (2013) - [] Korean drama film that's about this young girl, So-won, who was assaulted severely to the point of death and the effects of it on her family. Her life has drastically changed and has started to fear men that her own father can't even hold her so he dresses up in this cartoon character just to be close to her. It is very heart wrenching and depressing.
This is based on the real events that happened which is the "Na-young case", and yes the man who disabled and assaulted her is still alive and free. Yes, he is protected by the government like a president. Yes, I will never visit korea because of this.
It's such a beautiful day (2012) - [✯] an animated film that relies sorely on it's narrator and the stick figures shown to you, it is about a man who is suffering from an unknown illness as his memories and vision slowly disintegrates; I really love this movie as it is relatable, I still remember the trailer I watched on youtube and I was entranced by it (I was engrossed by stick figure animations during that time).
This is a movie that you need to experience for yourself as me just describing it to you won't give it much justice, there's also surreal imagery but I don't think it's leaning too hard on it, just down to earth enough to show you the protagonist's decaying mental state.
Guinea Pig Series: Mermaid in the manhole (1988) - [✯] A live action film about an artist looking for inspiration finds an injured mermaid under a manhole. As expected from a gore movie, it is not without nudity and mutilation. What I like about it is the concept of a mermaid being found in such a filthy location of all things rather interesting as I'm so used to seeing them always in either a vast ocean or a certain magical place.
Mad God (2021) - [✯] Another surreal and macabre stop motion film, the plot or rather the perspective of different characters sewed together to create a film is about these assassins sent from above to head down and search for something to prolong their dying world despite it no longer being a redeemable one.
It is a feast for eye pleasing visuals and the dark atmosphere is pretty good, I really miss these kind of animations, most tend to only be short films but this one was made in over 30 years and managed to finish the entirety of it. Just like Alice and It's such a beautiful day, you should experience it for yourself.
Martrys (2008) - [] Live action psychological horror film, a girl from a young age is found and rescued, only to grow up and take revenge against the people who tormented her that day. Another woman, who also grew up alongside her is also abused but grew dependent on the other as she tries to keep the other from succumbing to the psychological torment she is going through. After all that hardship, many things comes to unravel and the woman is left to see it all and then is chosen as a martyr.
There is a lot of plot twists in this film and it doesn't bother to let you catch your breath. There are many things not said to you out loud but the ending is where almost everyone who saw it keeps debating about. If you also want to know what this movie's about, you should go watch it. This could've been one of my favorites but I feel something is missing but I'm not sure what.
Marquis (1989) - [✯] A surreal live action french film, about the life of Marquis De Sade (Where the word sadism came from) in the bastille prison. Most of the actors are wearing animal masks and this movie has a rather unique sense of humor, if we can call it that.. You see, the main character has a talking penis (Yes..) and it is also a character in itself because Marquis De Sade is a known sexual deviant in real life and so in this film he is contemplating and arguing with his penis, Colin, on whether to succumb to his desires or remain in control and focus on his work, letting his sexual desires remain only in erotic literature, which is writing depraved stories like 120 days of Sodom.
I remember seeing a screenshot from this movie on a chan board years ago, about a female cow being tortured and there was a lot of milk being churned out and I knew right away that I needed to watch it. It took me years to find it but here it is lol. Anyway, I liked it because it's just out there.
Mr. Arashi's Amazing Freak Show / Shoujo Tsubaki (1992) - [✯] Japanese animated eroguro film. This is a story about a young girl named Midori, who has become an orphan after her mother passed, she is then taken by a travelling circus as their own and with no other place to go, she complies. There are all kinds of abuse occurring, especially towards Midori, even when she is given an opportunity to lead a better life, it is taken from her right away. The concept of love is questioned, especially in a lawless place where it is the only option for a lesser evil and to a good life.
I cannot stress enough how much I love this film, especially the eroguro movement. I also admire the creator's dedication to fund and finish his own movie by himself. Eroguro movement tackles taboo subjects that the common people do not want to see or acknowledge. It is about a child led astray too soon and left to her own devices for people to take advantage of, when it comes to choosing a partner, she lacks the ability to assess those around her and in turn leaves her up to be abused by one. At the same time it is asking you if you'll deny Midori the right to be with the dwarf when it is the lesser evil that she will ever experience.
It is not for everyone, but as a fan I love it. There is also a live action one, it has a different ending and it has fleshed out Masamitsu, the dwarf further with some changes to it if you're ever interested.
Paprika (2006) - [✯] Animated surreal japanese film, the plot is very hard to understand at first but it is about these researchers who is studying about dreams using a device called DC and record them. But one of these devices got stolen and now this thief has been invading other people's dream and is trying to bring these said dreams into reality.
Now it is up to Paprika, a persona of one of the lead researchers to enter dreams and find who's causing it with the help of a detective, of course. The music is great too because of course it is, Hirasawa Susumu is the one making the music.
The Lighthouse (2019) - [] Black and white live action film about two lighthouse keepers stuck in a remote island together, but due to the weather, their return back home is constantly delayed. The story focuses on their unequal relationship between boss and worker, the secrets they keep to one another and the eventual decline of their sanity.
Throughout the film, you will question everything you'll hear because the two of them are not trustworthy narrators with stories constantly changing without whim. It is hard to tell who exactly is telling the truth but that's the fun of it.
The Lobster (2015) - [✯] A surreal dark comedy movie about a man looking for love in this world where you are punished for not having a partner in 45 days otherwise you'll turn into an animal of your choosing. The movie criticizes both of the extreme sides, those who believe that happiness can be found through having a partner and the individualists who believe that happiness is found where you are alone. People going out of their way to lie just to find a common interest out of fear of being alone and those punishing others just because you are alone and want others to comply with your beliefs.
It is a funny movie, I give you that. The best part for me is when the isolationists are celebrating and they have to bring their own music and dance by themselves and the movie doesn't bother to put a music of it's own. The ending is left to our interpretation on whether the protagonist really went with it or not and whether his lover will continue to wait for him in that diner alone.
The Thief And The Cobbler (1993) - [] An unfinished animated film. It has surreal visuals but it is not macabre. It is a complete feast for the eyes at how much detail and color it has.
The plot is centered around, as you'd expect, the thief and the cobbler. The thief steals from the cobbler and the man tries to get back at the thief but comes across Zigzag, a powerful advisor of the king.
The wolf house / La Casa Lobo (2020) - [] Surreal stop animation film about a german woman, Maria, seeking refuge in Chile, entering a abandoned house so that she can hide from the wolf looking for her only to find two children, symbolizing as pigs and taking them as her own. It is referencing the Nazi's influence in Chile, though I am not fully well informed regarding the political side of what happened in the country, what I did gather from my viewing is a rather oppressive one that's built from propaganda and the like.
Though she claims to mean well in caring for them, the film shows that she thinks lowly of them and that without her, they wouldn't become civilized or human. To Maria, only when they resemble or look like her are they considered as people and the path to happiness which may also be viewed as the remnants of the cult still rubbing off on her to see it that way. At the same time, she is constantly harassed by said wolf, critizing her abilities to be independent from the cult she was once a part of and her ability to take care of two children on her own.
The ending leaves an ambigious conclusion to the three, and whether she survived or not is up for debate. It presents itself as a fairytale like story telling while letting the clausthrophobic atmosphere of the film give off a constant uneasy feeling.
When the wind blows (1986) - [] An animated film about an elderly british couple living in their home till they hear the news of a incoming nuclear attack, you watch as they try to find ways to keep themselves safe in albeit useless and naive attempts as they are clearly not prepared nor knowledgeable against it, even with the help of their pamphlets where the government advises them what to do during it is rather ill informed and gives out confusing instructions.
You get to watch them slowly disintegrate from the effects of the nuclear fallout and die. I do like the art style though, makes me interested in seeing the creators comic version of this movie, eventually.
120 days of sodom (1975) - [] It is a live action film about the ruling people, the government, deciding to take young boys and girls in a secluded castle in order to commit their depraved fantasies into reality. I would say this is a loose adaptation as the director of this movie has decided to put his own interpretations and turning it as a critique on the italian government on how it treats it citizens.
This is one of those unique films that you would never consider having such high quality production to it, and though many people who are just casual viewers would not think twice on what it's trying to say, it may come off as just typical shock value. It is not my favorite but I get the message it's trying to say.
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highlifeboat · 1 year ago
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Well now you've got me curious: *Would* Angel have done anything to their sibling? The curiosity got sated with their father, at least somewhat, yeah? But tastes like that don't tend to go away very easily... On the other hand, their father *and* their sibling dying when they are also MIA/nearby would be highly suspicious, and they probably would want to avoid that. Versus the murders they were able to more easily dismiss as Lycan/Dimitrescu attacks (barring their mother's own, correct suspicions, of course)
From what you said about their backstory, they never actively harmed their sibling (or at least if they had, it went unmentioned and/or was small/manipulated enough that the siblings would still defend them so strongly as innocent).
Further: What ever happened to the sibling? I mean, they witnessed Angel beating their (old) mother's head in with the Village version of the Bible, and being dragged off by the Village god/cult leader. Did that finally shatter the illusion for them?
Or, perhaps (and mind you, this is just a theory I find fun to imagine, no real basis for truth other than their stalwart defending of Angel)... the sibling was more like Angel than anyone ever realized. They were just more subtle/better about not getting caught.
(Of course, this is all just speculation/analysis, they are your characters and you have final say, after all. I just like theorizing darker characters lol)
First, I enjoy the theory that Angel's sibling was like them. Especially because their mother saw the sibling as the golden child. What are the odds she birthed TWO murderous sociopaths? Pfff.
That said, I honestly think that Angel saw their sibling as useful to them. Without them, it would just be Angel and their Mother, there would be nothing preventing their mother from kicking Angel out, or locking them up, or... getting rid of them somehow. Their sibling was a form of protection, security. Something that guaranteed their place in the home. (And... yes, they did also consider that if their sibling suddenly vanished and it circled back that Angel had been with them, or couldn't be found at the time, it would probably ruin everything. A child killing their father with a gun can be considered a horrendous accident. Their sibling vanishing shortly after is suspicious)
It also aided in driving their mother fucking MAD. Because every time she became suspicious she had her eldest child telling her she was crazy. "[They aren't] a killer, Mama!" (To be fair it didn't help that Angel played innocent very well.)
Oh, they considered the idea of killing their sibling a lot. But sated the thoughts with the murders of strangers. And on one occasion her mother's new lover, who they didn't care for all that much. Among others... It never quite quenched the thirst (if anything it only drove them more), but it provided some kind of catharsis none the less. They did their best not to harm their sibling in anyway that mattered (perhaps the odd... "accident". Engaging in rough housing that maybe sometimes lead to minor injuries that could be dismissed)
To their sibling, Angel was always... well, a little angel pff. If a little weird. They loved them, and they felt terrible that their mother continuously pointed the finger at Angel whenever someone vanished or was killed. Especially because they though Angel never fully recovered from their father, and worked under the assumption that a lot of their strangeness just came from the trauma.
So you can imagine their shock and horror when Angel beats the shit out of their mother. And how that kind of forces off the rose coloured glasses they've been looking at them with. They knew Angel had problems with their mother, they knew the two butted heads, but they never would have thought something like this would come of it.
Angel did see the look on their face, but they can't say they felt much other than wishing they could finish what they'd started. (Once Miranda was physically involved they knew it was over. But GOD it took forever for the anger to settle)
In the aftermath... There isn't much to be said. Sibling felt awful. They apologized over and over to their dying mother. They lost a lot of sleep over it. So much guilt. Of course, this was no proof that Angel had committed the murders their mother had accused them of in the past. But it did make them wonder, and it made them all the more horrified to think about it. Most likely they fell into a drunken stupor, they became horribly depressed over it all.
Angel would never say they actually loved their sibling, but goddamn they aren't sure they would have gotten away with so much without them.
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askthemageofhope · 2 years ago
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MAGE OF HOPE
Sorry for the wait everybody.
The roadmap that I do for this title will be the same four course meal I suspect I will give to all titles I analyze, which will be:
Class --> then aspect --> leading into the title --> and we'll finish off with a large desert! which will be powers, land elaboration, recommended weaponry, Life advice, etc. 
So, without further ado, we're finally doing this!
Mage
The Mage is known as the Active Knowledge class, They are the Understanding class, the Comprehension class. Where other classes may have no idea what their class is or even how it works, we have an intuition or innate understanding of how our class is, how cruel it can be, how good it can be, it's failings and it's importance in the lives of every person for themselves... Their challenge is to share their understanding with others, and do something about it. Talk the talk and walk the walk. Doing so will bring even greater understanding. We must advocate for the aspect we reside in, give a defense for how all of us throughout space and time how to treat their aspect, how it should be used and protected in others. It's as if every aspect is a tool. Meant to be used for recreation, and not war. though... All aspects may be used to hurt others... It is for this reason why Mages exist. 
To tell people how to use their aspect, how it should be treated, and how it can be used to help others. Making this world a better place, comes first through Knowledge.
Hope
Faith, belief, imagination, truth, sincerity, authenticity, optimism, moving forward even in the worst of circumstances, for some it's the feeling of unconditional love... even for your worst enemies.
That's the good side of Hope.
Blind faith, false belief, hypocrisy, naivety, overzealous, "Being a bit much"
That's also Hope.
It's the feeling that there's more to the world than just us. It's the thought aliens exist, its you looking at the end of the street toward home waiting for your ride to arrive, it's the reason why you go to the casino and blow your last paycheck. Hope drives us to theorize, to fill in the gaps, take risks, sail seas.
It leads people to join cults, or join different faiths.
It even leads people to Philosophy.
It's knowing something is true so hard that you felt as if you just believed in it hard enough it WOULD become true. 
What if something was true, that everyone thinks its wrong, fake, a phony. Hope will believe through the madness.
  Which leads me to talk about the very reason as to why we're all here. 
Mage of Hope 
 "What if something was true, that everyone thinks its wrong, fake, a phony. Hope will believe through the madness."
Now what if that person not only believed that something was true, but knew that it was so?
Like, nobody merely believes in gravity, they know it's woven into the very fabric of the universe, from the sun to black holes. From Jupiter to planet Earth and the soil we tread upon we know life exists because Gravity is not just possible but it's here "It's already here." (You could theorize that a Lord is the reason as to why an aspect exists in the first place, but I digress)
A Mage of Hope is that person, the one who believes not just because they're obligated, or incited. They wouldn't ever believe in a god just if someone was talking about said god... a Mage could study that god their whole lives, know every last joint of knowledge. And would never really, truly believe. Because to the Mage of Hope, belief doesn't change the world. and a god is meant to change the world. This Mage doesn't have to see to believe, they don't have to hear, they wouldn't have to taste, smell, or even touch... When they begin to hope in something is when that thing becomes undeniable, to them. You can't deny gravity, haha I mean, one can sure try. But it's still ever presently gonna pull you closer to the earth
One of the biggest milestones in a Mage of Hope's journey is to find that authenticity. That authentic thing, be it gravity, a philosophy, a person, place or thing.
It's going to take a lot of rifling through this mess we call planet earth to really find that spark, to find that thing. And ever if that thing fails you? It would sway them so definitely, because to them at that point? That perfect philosophy they have always followed, has proven to have a notch, a kink, or maybe a big giant hole in that faith would put an equally sized hole in their hope for that thing they thought was so authentic.
THAT'S where a deep depression happens everyone.
But that's the journey of a Mage in general isn't it? We must suffer in order to know. And on top of that, we suffer from within our own selves. Our own hope, be it naivety, useless optimism, or otherwise. Though we may be the last person to join a cult (or at least sniff it out eventually)... The reason for that is that we hate hypocrisy so damn much it's insane, but most often we fear so in ourselves. For the thought of not being authentic, or sincere? Is so maddening that we could never hope to bear lying to save our own skin if it hurt somebody else.
Mages of Hope, are very honest people when the moment calls upon us to be.
______________________________________________________________
Powers
Know - When they know something is true, they can imitate it within themselves. Any aspect, any class, any classpect. But be it only if that Mage believes in them. It's like instead of Jake bringing brain ghost Dirk into reality? they would become Brain Ghost Dirk. And fight just as well, maybe even better...
Believe - A joint power with the power of knowing, and it works the same way but more as an amplifier than anything different. If a Mage of Hope has a heightened opinion about someone? And they Know them so well they can choose to even become them? The opinion will rule. If a Mage of Hope thinks the world of lets say, another classpect, and they were in danger. They will fight worlds for that person
Choose your Battles - Rather than Active, they choose to be Passive. Not unlike Taoism. They are neither ever a hero, nor a villain. So, say Jack Noir faces a Mage of Hope? Kills them. They would not fight. Because why should they? Why would they? A Mage of Hope, though powerful, can hardly face against the GREEN SUN. So? They would just get stabbed, as many times as it takes. For you see the tick tock on the clock. When you fight only for yourself, It cannot be a Just death nor a Heroic death. That is, Just as long as you've not done anything you haven't atoned for. Then the clock will know it isn't your time to die yet. You will keep resurrecting no matter how many times he kills you. And all you have to do is sit there.  Just hope he gets bored.
Battle of YOUR Choice - No More Holding Back. All of the times of choosing your battles is over. You would rather Justly die than to see the one you know get hurt. You. Will. WRECK! It would never be on par with a Page of Hope's final flash, but you best believe it will be the most gnarly fight. Your weapon will swing faster, You yourself will move faster. You will strike with the force and fury of all your hope manifested in each swing. 
Weaponry
Any Mage of Hope will likely choose their weapon based on the qualities of what they Hope most in. They may even choose no weapon if what they hope is evidently pacifism. 
I will define the lands of each Class in another post, I would like to go a little more in depth, I realize. And this post is already long enough.
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luci-in-trenchcoats · 2 months ago
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Here we go! Am I prepared? Maybe?
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*spoiler, she was not prepared*
It was a loop. That’s what he’d figured out when he saw your face in this century – exactly how he remembered you, down to the goddamn smile and stubborn spark in your eyes.
You were the exact same woman who had so recklessly wrecked him in 1942. You hadn’t recognized him, though. And that’s when it hit him – you were living this in the wrong order. Out of sync with him. He’d already had you. Loved you. Lost you. And you… you hadn’t gotten to that part yet.
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I’m four paragraphs in it’s already destroying me. 
He didn’t let it show. Not with the others still arguing behind him, still theorizing like any of them had a fucking clue what it felt like to watch the love of your life disappear while your hands were practically still on her skin.
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BENJAMIN. 
And the second you’d opened your mouth in this timeline and looked at him like a stranger, he’d slowly figured out what he had to do. He’d put the puzzle together, piece by piece. He had to do what was necessary. He was the only one who could do what needed to be done. Trigger it. Push you. Make you angry enough, desperate enough, emotional enough to bounce back again. Back to the past. Back to him. The first version of him. The one who hadn’t ruined everything yet.
BEN.JA.MIN.
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Okay. Okay, this is like, one of the best fics I’ve read? Cause what do you mean he was an ass FOR HER? Just so he could have her in the past? He never stopped loving her, did he? He’s been waiting for her for eighty years. 
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I got sucked in and just…*incoherent screeching* Oh my god, the change in the both of them! The level of cruelty by toying with Ben with death or torture by reader was so unexpected. Ben’s had 80 years to grieve this relationship and she’s had about 8 minutes. I think he’s so spot on with how she could easily turn darkside like he had without him. The stories about her past were funny before but as it went his point came up again. She’s not miss innocent and uses people too, just in a less violent way. I get a sense that, and this doesn’t make the most sense, but that older Ben is more mature. He kept saying over and over how he loves her and yeah he was mad but old Ben would have blown her the hell up whereas this one, she’s his reason for living. 
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God she wants to break him worse than he’s ever been broken. But what if she finds out to do that, she becomes just like the more twisted Ben? Ugh, the layers to this! So many possibilities! Somehow you’ve made me feel bad for awful for modern day Ben in a way I was not expecting. And the team seems like they are more than happy to put Ben on the chopping block now. I feel like something bad will have to happen for them to reconcile and gah, yeah, I’m going to be thinking about this part for a veeeeery long time. 
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*goes to mentally prepare for Part 12 and have heart ripped apart by nuclear blast* 😘
Time After Time – Chapter 11
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Summary: Unable to control your abilities, you’re stuck in the present with Billy Butcher, his team, and America’s first asshole. At this point, you’ve become Soldier Boy’s personal punching bag. But when an accident leaves you stranded in 1942, you run into a familiar face and suddenly rely on your future tormentor’s help as your only hope.
Pairing: Soldier Boy x supe!Reader
Warnings: 18+ for language & violence, reader is a supe with chronokinesis (time manipulation), 2023!!, a lot of time travel, SB being his charming self and everything that comes with it, mentions of smut, lovers to enemies, PTSD, humor & historical name drops, hurt, major angst
Word Count: 11.7k
Posted on Patreon May 9, 2025
A/N: Aaaaah, we're here! It starts funny, but it ends in heartbreak... Either way, I've been so excited for you guys to read this one! 😆 ✨ Chapter title comes from Gone with the Wind (1939)
Main Masterlist || Series Masterlist || Tag List
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Chapter 11: When You’re Slapped, You’ll Take It and Like It
They thought he was asleep. Or at least pretending to be. Either way, no one fucking questioned it.
Curled on the couch, one arm draped over his chest like he might’ve actually nodded off, Soldier Boy kept still, eyes nearly closed, barely breathing – like an antique six-foot paperweight.
A postcard picture of composure.
In the chaotic background, Supreme Court Barbie was talking – again. Wet Nap was nodding along with his girlfriend. Baguette Boy chimed in with another theory, something about quantum entanglement and paradoxical timelines. Mute Ninja Barbie was holding up signs and gesturing shit. The Asshole’s voice, gruff and grounded, cut through the clamor with a string of barely suppressed impatience.
Ben told them you’d come back. Hell, he told himself the same fucking thing, over and over, with the kind of confidence that could make lies sound like goddamn gospel.
It was a loop. That’s what he’d figured out when he saw your face in this century – exactly how he remembered you, down to the goddamn smile and stubborn spark in your eyes.
You were the exact same woman who had so recklessly wrecked him in 1942.
You hadn’t recognized him, though. And that’s when it hit him – you were living this in the wrong order. Out of sync with him. He’d already had you. Loved you. Lost you. And you… you hadn’t gotten to that part yet.
But when you vanished – again – this time on his watch, it hit different. Harder. Like some cruel joke the universe wasn’t finished playing yet.
He’d told himself you’d come back to this moment. This year. This room.
But you could’ve landed anywhere. He didn’t know shit. Not really.
You didn’t control it. Couldn’t. And hell, he didn’t control it either. What made him think he could?
What if you’d fallen through time and landed in the fucking Middle Ages? Or the goddamn Ice Age? What if he just watched you slip through his fingers all over again, except this time it was permanent?
A muscle jumped in his jaw.
He didn’t let it show. Not with the others still arguing behind him, still theorizing like any of them had a fucking clue what it felt like to watch the love of your life disappear while your hands were practically still on her skin.
He hadn’t told them. Not a word. None of them knew who you really were. Who you’d been to him. He didn’t want their sympathy. Didn’t trust them with that piece of himself. They weren’t his friends – they were yours. He knew they just tolerated him because they were fucking scared.
And the second you’d opened your mouth in this timeline and looked at him like a stranger, he’d slowly figured out what he had to do. He’d put the puzzle together, piece by piece. He had to do what was necessary. He was the only one who could do what needed to be done.
Trigger it. Push you.
Make you angry enough, desperate enough, emotional enough to bounce back again. Back to the past. Back to him. The first version of him. The one who hadn’t ruined everything yet.
But the glorious plan came with a teeny-tiny flaw: You might never land here again. You might be lost to him forever. He didn’t know the future. Didn’t know if you were meant to come back to this point here at all. Didn’t know exactly how it worked.
Shit.
Would he have to wait five minutes? A week? Six months? Another eighty fucking years to see you again?
He wasn’t sure he could hold up another round of this insanity.
Ben’s fingers curled into a fist, still resting casually on his chest, like he wasn’t white-knuckling the thought of losing you twice in one lifetime. Once was war. Twice was tragedy.
Every tick of the clock gnawed under his skin. Every breath stretched taut in his chest like wire. You’d vanished thirty-six minutes ago. Thirty-six minutes, forty-four seconds. But who’s counting?
You were supposed to come back here. This time. This place. He’d been so fucking sure.
Minute one: Triumph! He was smug as hell. Happy his plan had finally worked after a goddamn year of waiting and trying every fucking thing in the book – and now, you were gone. Time loop triggered. You’d landed in 1942, and Past Ben, that little shit, had eyes on tango. The loop was closing.
The team, on the other hand, worried and yapped around him, buzzing like a fucking annoying beehive.
Butcher was mid-sentence when MM interrupted with a sharp, “Right, but did anyone check if she actually exists anymore? You know, in our time?”
Soldier Boy smirked. He’d give it another three minutes before MM busted out your whiteboard from the corner.
“She’s not erased,” Annie said. “She’s–… she’s somewhere. She has to be. Her powers kicked in.”
“Yeah, but I mean, she could be anywhere,” Hughie offered, pushing his fingers through his hair. “Or anywhen? Like… French Revolution. Or Ancient Rome. Or Woodstock. Again.”
“Oi, imagine that,” Butcher grunted. “Shows up mid-orgy at Woodstock, starts philosophizin’ about multiverse theory while stoned out of her skull.”
Ben snorted silently. Wouldn’t put it past you.
“No, she’s already done that. She hooked up with one of the Grateful Dead,” Annie said matter-of-factly. “Said he cried during sex.”
The fuck–
“Besides, she told me she never visits a place twice to preserve the timeline. She wouldn’t risk breaking it,” Annie added. “She’s a scientist, not a lunatic.”
“She’s absolutely a bloody lunatic,” Butcher argued with a smirk. “Brilliant, dangerous, unbelievably reckless. And a fuckin’ woman. Which means she’s probably off tryin’ to stop Marie Curie from nuking 'erself.”
Minute five: The peanut gallery fully moved on to your hobbies.
“Didn’t she also once punch Tesla in the mouth?” Hughie asked quietly, scratching the back of his neck like a nervous tic.
Frenchie shook his head. “No, no, petit Hughie, that was Hemingway.”
“Yeah, because he told her girls can’t be physicists,” Annie confirmed, nose wrinkling. “She did say Tesla was hot. Tried to sleep with him. Not like, successfully, but she wanted to see if the rumors were true.”
Hughie furrowed his brow. “What, the celibacy rumors?”
“Yeah.” Annie nodded. “But he was a virgin. She didn’t wanna take that away from him. Apparently, he really was in love with that pigeon.”
“Probably for the best,” MM huffed, arms crossed. “Girl would’ve electrocuted herself on purpose just to time it with an orgasm.”
Ben’s brow wrinkled subtly. He’d never heard that story before. Or any of them. What the fuck exactly had you been doing during all your little adventures? You’d never told him about any of it. Probably because he wasn’t a friend of yours – or really anything to you in this time, except maybe your worst nightmare.
“Imagine her trying to teach physics in Ancient Greece,” Annie said, giggling.
Frenchie laughed and translated something Kimiko signed, “She says our time traveler would be mistaken for a goddess and start a sex cult.”
Ben smirked. He wouldn’t put that past you, either. Walk into Athens, throw on a toga, and start preaching feminism and thermodynamics. He could see it now.
“She’s probably in the fuckin’ Renaissance,” Butcher muttered, half-pacing. “Painted like one of ‘em oily tit angels while da Vinci strokes his beard.”
“Nah, she’d hate that,” MM said. “Way too many dudes named Giovanni telling her she can’t read.”
“Maybe she went to the moon landing,” Hughie offered.
“She’d punch Buzz Aldrin for not letting a woman walk first,” Annie said, grinning.
Yeah, you would…
“Kimiko says maybe she joined the Manhattan Project to slow it down from the inside,” Frenchie translated again.
Yup, you would do that, too.
A part of him wanted to stand up and tell them they were all fucking morons. He knew where you truly were. At least, he hoped he was still right about his own theory.
You’d fallen into his hands in 1942 like a goddamn fever dream – hair wild, eyes fire, lips ready to tell him off with beautiful four-letter-words. You’d broken something open in him back then. Unchained it.
And now? He’d handed you back to time with those same hands like a goddamn idiot.
Minute twelve: It was all theory and nonsense now. The team was trying to keep it light, clearly covering up their own nerves. Most of them were sitting, spread around the room like they were waiting on the results of a bomb squad after your explosion.
And Ben? Well, he was waiting for the goddamn fallout.
“She once said she’d punch Freud in the dick,” MM said, completely deadpan.
Kimiko signed something fast, and Frenchie choked. “She says our little physicist did punch Freud in the dick.”
“That tracks.” Hughie nodded along and gave a shrug. “She once told me she got into a screaming match with a guard at the Berlin Wall because she wanted to ‘see the vibes.’”
“She has terrible impulse control,” Annie agreed.
Ben rolled his jaw. That was true. Too true. You were always a sucker for a cause and a pretty face. You never could keep your genius brain in one lane. You always had to poke holes in history, just to see what spilled out.
“She’s probably off starting a feminist revolution,” Frenchie suggested reverently. “In Paris, 1920. Giving speeches. Wearing pants. Drinking absinthe. Kissing poets.”
“Or burning bras in the sixties,” Hughie proposed.
Oh yes, definitely. Ben vividly remembered your hatred for underwear. Not that it had ever fucking bothered him…
“She always had a feminist agenda,” Frenchie mused and pulled casually on his half-burnt cigarette. “Maybe she is rewriting history. One angry footnote at a time.”
MM nodded in agreement. “Still respect her for trying to start a union in 1890s Chicago.”
“Oui, she is very passionate about labor rights,” Frenchie added, smiling. “Because of her, Butcher gave us more vacation days and health benefits.”
Oh boy, Ben remembered that fun team meeting last year. He also remembered how you did the same thing for the workers in his father’s steel mill.
You could never just leave things well enough alone, could you?
Troublemaker. Liar. Cheater.
“Well, there’s a bloody reason her supe name’s fuckin’ Puck,” Butcher said with that slow, lazy smirk of his. “Fit right in with you chaotic lot.”
Ben wholeheartedly agreed. You’re the fucking embodiment of chaos meeting charm. Puck. Harmless? Debatable.
Minute nineteen: Ben’s worst nightmare started unfolding. Well, after your repeated disappearances from his life and maybe the decades of torture by the fucking Commies, of course.
But this next thing was easily top three. Because Hughie, and God fucking help him, made the mistake and–
“She once told me and Annie over a bottle of wine that if she ever married one man, it’d be JFK.” String Bean fucking shrugged. “Apparently, she has like… a thing for him.”
“Oh, yeah,” Annie confirmed, cackling. “Said he had ‘silver-tongue energy.’ She always joked about his presidential stamina and the devilish charisma.”
Ben’s eyes snapped open. He didn’t move. Didn’t speak. But his jaw tightened just slightly. Something slow and poisonous curled behind his sternum.
Silver-tongue energy? That fucking preening prep school prick? That smug bastard thought he was God’s gift to the Ivy League. Got away with fucking everything. He wore more cologne than Sinatra and couldn’t do ten pushups without wheezing.
Ben beat that wimp in wrestling at Choate. Twice. Back pain. Right. From getting tossed like a fuckin’ sack of potatoes…
Fucking Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, if you were coming back smelling like Camel Lights and Cold War secrets, he’d nuke the whole goddamn state of New York.
“Ah, oui! I know for a fact that she has the audio of the ‘Ask not’ speech on her sex playlist,” Frenchie said with a smirk.
Wait, what?!
“She said that Jackie and Jack always gave her hope that power and romance could exist in the same room,” Annie added wistfully.
Ben let out a quiet scoff. He fucking gave you that. Real chemistry – not magazine spread bullshit.
For Christ’s sake, JFK cheated on Jackie in every goddamn state but Alaska. Ain’t that hard to get a wink outta the guy. He had scoliosis and wore a back brace under every damn suit. Could barely bend down to tie his own fucking shoes.
Ben’s eye twitched. Then he smirked, amused.
Asshole smoked his last cigar because of me…
Kidding! C’mon, kids, if he’d done it, it would’ve been clean. One shot. No questions.
He did fucking clap when it happened, though. Probably how that stupid rumor started in the first place.
But in all seriousness, letting that guy keep running the country would’ve been a national security risk. Shit you not, that idiot once confused Laos with fucking Legos.
Minute twenty-three: The team was debating your sex life like a twisted round of Jeopardy.
Frenchie spoke up again, “She has a bit of a historical kink, no?”
“Yep.” Annie nodded vividly. “Full-on. Rockstars, inventors, revolutionaries. She had a whole spreadsheet once.”
Kimiko signed again.
“She’s more of a Churchill-in-the-streets, Guevara-in-the-sheets kind of girl,” Frenchie translated, laughing with his head thrown back.
“She once told me if she could have a threesome with Feynman and Joan of Arc, she’d die happy,” Hughie noted with a small chuckle.
Ben didn’t doubt it. That sounded exactly like you. God, you were such a nerd. Nerdy and horny – just like he remembered you.
Kimiko typed on her phone and held it up, Hughie reading it out loud, “She always said that discussing the theory of relativity with Einstein had been better than sex. Maybe she went back to sleep with him?”
Ben’s brow furrowed. Better than sex? With who? You?
Bold claim, sweetheart.
Annie shook her head again. “No, she liked his brain but hated his attitude toward women. He was a dick to his first wife. She told me that.”
Ben sighed internally and rolled his eyes. Yeah, you told him that same story in 1942, too.
“Jim Morrison?” Kimiko signed next.
Annie burst out laughing. “Oh God. Don’t remind me. She did not regret that one.”
Ben raised an eyebrow.
Jim Morrison? Really? He vaguely remembered some barefoot burnout who made orgasm noises into a mic and wrote about snakes. That’s what got you fuckin’ going?
“Bogart? Slash? Ronnie Wood?” Hughie threw out more names.
“She does like cigars,” Frenchie chimed in, sighing almost tragically. “And stubborn men with unresolved issues.”
So you had a type, huh?
“Oi, she bloody loves doomed men, alright.” Butcher huffed a dark laugh. “Artists. Rebels. The more dangerous and angsty, the better. Men who fuckin’ burn too fast.”
Ben scowled. What the hell was this? A historical fuck list?
He wasn’t jealous, alright? He was just… aware. And slightly alarmed. You had more notches on your temporal bedpost than most people had in a lifetime. He should fucking know.
Was he just another one on the list? A little tick of fame and war paint? Another checkbox on the damn bingo card?
“She did sleep with Bowie,” Annie noted almost thoughtfully. “But only a little. Said he tasted like velvet and stardust.”
Stardust? And what the hell does “a little” mean? Did Bowie not bust inside you? Anal?
Christ, he hated those people for making him fucking think about this. You’d already lied and kept so many things from him. What the hell else didn’t he know about you?
“You guys really think she’s gone full rock groupie again?” Hughie asked, rubbing his jaw, more serious now. Doubtful.
“She did say she almost slept with Bob Dylan, but the mumbling turned her off,” Annie mused.
“She danced with Mick Jagger once at Studio 54,” Frenchie said, smirking. “And Keith Richards. Same night.”
C’mon!
He’d been there all the goddamn time. Why had you never picked him to dance with you? Welp, hopefully you told Keith to at least lay off the fucking heroin...
“Jesus fuck, she’s probably out there rewriting rock history with her pussy,” MM groaned.
Yeah. Apparently, you’d had your fun with every tragic genius who ever picked up a guitar.
How many famous men had you wrapped around your little finger, sweetheart? How many rockstars had you climbed like a goddamn jungle gym, huh? Had he been just another fucking name on your backstage pass?
The irony. Past him had always assumed you only had three to four lovers before him – max. Laughable. Now he knew why you’d always been so fucking calm when it came to his conquests – you were sneakily hiding your own shit.
Ben couldn’t even be fucking mad about that. Proud, maybe.
“Well, not just rockstars. I mean, she said Ben Franklin had ‘whore energy,’” Hughie said unhelpfully.
You said that about me once too, Ben thought bitterly.
Alright. That was enough. He knew you liked your fun. Hell, he respected it. But did they have to talk about it like you were some groupie for the ghosts of history?
Maybe he was just a notch on your belt, too. You liked danger. You liked history. You liked impact. Ben had all three.
Was he just your goddamn summer fling of 1942 with a side of daddy issues?
Did he even fucking matter?
Fuck ‘em. They didn’t fucking know what they were talking about. He knew you didn’t fake that shit. Didn’t fake that look you always gave him or a single orgasm. Didn’t fake love.
Right?
Minute thirty-one: The existential dread kicked in.
Ben shifted, just a bit. No one noticed. They were still going. Still laughing – like you hadn’t vanished into a glowing void and left his brain short-circuiting.
Butcher was laying odds on whether you joined the Black Panthers or got drunk with Churchill.
But Ben had stopped listening. On the inside, his mind was a goddamn war zone.
What if the loop broke? What if you skipped timelines? What if 1942 glitched and you ended up in 300 BC debating Plato about feminism in physics?
What if you didn’t come back?
What if past him fucked it up?
Fucking shit.
Sure, he’d been a charming devil back then – same as now. But one wrong move, one wrong word, and you actually might throttle the poor fella.
Minute thirty-four: The internal panic crescendoed.
Ben stopped pretending to nap. He wasn’t even hiding it anymore – he was staring at the ceiling like he could will time itself to bend. His plan had been simple. Send you back to the exact moment, close the loop, welcome you into his arms. He was so fucking smug and sure: You’d come back. You always did.
Right?
So where the hell were you?
He could still see the exact spot you’d been standing when you disappeared into thin air. A ghost image of you burned into the room, into the inside of his eyelids every time he blinked. The silence that fell in the second after had fucking gutted him. Still did.
Just like back then, you’d vanished within the storm.
He tried to think back – to the way your skin felt beneath his palms, the way you shook when you came, the way your eyes widened when he whispered marry me and I love you and you just stood there, unable to breathe.
He could still hear your fucking voice in his head like a phantom limb. Could smell the hay and the sweat and you – rain-washed and desperate. He remembered your hands on his chest, clinging to him. Your tears. That last look.
Fuck. Maybe he’d gotten it all wrong.
You left 1942, yeah. But that didn’t mean you returned to this moment. Time travel was tricky fucking bullshit. Unstable. You could’ve reappeared in 1752 for all he knew. Or 2086. Or never.
What if you died somewhere along the way?
What if you landed in his goddamn coffin?
But he’d been waiting eighty-one fucking years for you already. What were another few minutes?
This wasn’t over. It was never over.
Minute thirty-seven: He started timing his breathing. In, out. Calm the fuck down.
The jokes slowed. Everyone was shifting in their seats. Even Kimiko had stopped miming your historical seduction tours. The laughter faded, replaced by uneasy silence.
“She’s gonna come back and yell at us for talking about this,” Hughie said quietly.
“She’s gonna come back and punch him,” Annie muttered, nodding at Ben.
What if you came back and still hated him forever? What if he couldn’t fix it? What if you’d never see in this current version of him what you saw in the old one again?
Ben almost didn’t hear the sound at first. Not even with super-hearing.
A pulse. A sharp, electric crack.
The kind that made his spine straighten and rise from the couch. The kind that made his shoulders tense and muscles flex. The kind that made the hairs on his arms and neck salute and his heart pound furiously fast.
Green eyes snapped up, and there you fucking were. A vision, a dream, ripped straight from his fucking memories.
Not a hallucination. Not a figment of his worst fucking imagination. You were back. You were real.
You stumbled forward three steps like someone had unzipped the air and shoved you through it. Bare feet scuffed against tile, lungs breathing hard like you’d just run a mile underwater, limbs trembling, lips parted, eyes wild and wide, disoriented.
Ben was already on his feet. His heart fucking stopped. He hadn’t expected that. Hadn’t anticipated the most logical fucking thing on this planet.
You looked exactly like the night you left him. Why hadn’t he seen this fucking coming? Of course you’d look the fucking same.
Breathless. Soaked in rain. Dressed in a ghost of his past. Beautiful in the way that haunted dreams.
His dreams.
That navy dress – his dress – clung to your skin. The silk red bow still tangling askew in your wet hair. You smelled like summer thunderstorms and cigarette smoke and his old fucking cologne that they stopped producing sometime in the 60s.
For you, there weren’t eighty years between now and then. No time had passed. The wound was still fresh. Still bleeding and gushing like a fountain and drowning you.
The image of you hit him like a bullet straight through his heart, landing with the force of a hurricane.
And you? You took one shaky step forward like you were just learning how to walk again and locked eyes with him.
For just a moment – just one tiny, impossible, blinding fraction of a moment – he didn’t see the century between you two. Didn’t see the fucking broken pieces.
Just you.
No one else existed. Eight decades melted away in a second.
And him? No suit. No shield. No mask. No sarcasm. No Soldier Boy. Just Ben.
Just him – vulnerable, bare, raw. Same guy that stood in front of you in 1942. That held you when you had nightmares. That watched you sleep with your head on his chest. That always kissed you like the world was fucking ending.
Older, sharper, but still that same damn lazy smirk just waiting to be slapped off.
And you saw it. Saw it all.
He felt it – the heat of betrayal turning you into a fucking wildfire. You knew. It was all over your beautiful face – that flicker of recognition, that heartbreak, that rage crashing through you like a tidal wave.
You didn’t take your eyes off him. Didn’t blink. If your looks could kill like his offspring’s, he’d be a fucking smoldering crater right now with a hole down straight to Earth’s core.
He betrayed you. Deeply. He’d flicked a match and poured gasoline over everything the two of you had once declared sacred in the holy quiet of a bedroom and incinerated it like it never fucking mattered.
But it did. It meant the fucking world.
And if anyone knew what a betrayal this cutting felt like, it was him. Knew what it felt like when the one person you trusted the most, loved the most in this godforsaken fucking world, stabbed you in the back, twisted the knife, and fucking laughed.
And he hated himself for it. Hated to do to you what had been done to him.
He’d never forgiven and forgotten a single fucking prick that ever wronged him. Had ripped apart every heart that ever broke his, including yours. He lived and breathed revenge.
And still, you were fucking better than him, weren’t you? Better in every way imaginable. You could forgive.
Right?
His eyes flicked to the others around you. Silent, stunned, fucking shell-shocked. They hadn’t even noticed you at first, too busy debating their little butterfly effects, paradoxes, and Doctor Who bullshit.
But now, all eyes were on you.
And him.
Because you were still staring at him. Seething. Shaking. Rage in its purest form – and it was all for fucking him.
The mask had to slip back on, but the breath died in his fucking throat and his heart goddamn stuttered. “Told you, she’d be back,” he said, with all the bravado he could fake.
Like he had just woken up from his nap and hadn’t spent the last thirty-seven minutes counting, anticipating, panicking.
The scream came first. Feral, guttural, ancient. Something primal ripped from your throat like it had been building in your bones for eight fucking decades.
You snapped like a wire he’d strung too tight, lunged forward, and decked him clean across the jaw.
The punch snapped across his face, sharp and personal and full of all the fire he remembered. It cracked so loud, the room winced. You were a magnificent angel of vengeance.
God, he fucking missed you.
And Ben took the hit. Didn’t even try to block you. Knew he deserved it. Knew he had it fucking coming.
He staggered back half a step with a grunt, head snapping just slightly from the brutal force of it. Slowly, he turned back to face you, look at you, and then the corners of his mouth twitched upward into a smirk.
Smug. Cocky. Satisfied.
“There she is.” He grinned, then rubbed his jaw like it amused him, inspecting the ache with something between pride and admiration. “Actually fuckin’ felt that one. Good for you, sweetheart. Knew you had it in you.”
Sure, maybe he should dial it down a little, considering you stood in front of him with your chest heaving like you were ready to rip his tendons outta his body and tie them around his throat like a noose.
But who didn’t like a little humor to lighten the mood?
“You knew? All this time?” Your voice cracked, pressing each word out between your teeth like it hurt you. “You fucking knew?!”
But Ben just raised a hand, gave you a cool little warning wag of his finger – just for showmanship, for the peanut gallery that was frozen in place like you’d stopped them in time.
“Careful, sweetheart. Only get that first one for free,” he said.
And maybe that had been his mistake. It was like a challenge. One he should’ve known you’d accept in a heartbeat.
Because throughout this whole goddamn year of pushing your buttons – really since the first day he’d met you in 1942 – you’d never backed down from a single fight. Never flinched. Never faltered.
He beat you down, kicked you while you were there, degraded you, and ripped crater-sized holes out of your heart and spirit. And you’d always gotten back onto your feet and pushed him back just as hard – with sharper words and better insults. Words that burned through his blood and carved into his soul.
“What the fuck happened in your life to turn you into such a miserable, toxic, overbearing, narcissistic, insufferable piece of shit?!”
“You’re just a drug-addicted loser with daddy issues. Nothing more, nothing less.”
“No one likes you! And believe me, asshole, I fucking hate you!”
But you didn’t actually hate him, did you? Or maybe you did. Either way, it was his fucking cross to bear.
You didn’t say anything after that, and he just stared at you. Just stood there, jaw locked, tasting blood in his mouth that wasn’t even from the slap. It was from the fury in your eyes.
The hurt. The fucking grief.
He hadn’t expected that either. It was supposed to be a fuck-and-fling with destiny. And maybe, stupidly, a small part of him had hoped you’d fall into his arms and even thank him for it – for bringing you home and back to him. You hadn’t lost anything – not like he had.
But this clearly wasn’t that.
You’d barely had time to reel before the others closed in – Kimiko brushing past Hughie protectively, Frenchie lingering at your shoulder like he might catch you if you collapsed.
They all stared, but Butcher was the first to speak.
“Christ, sunshine,” he breathed. “You look like a bloody Victorian ghost who drowned ‘erself in a lake.”
“Te revoilà, ma futée!” Frenchie patted your shoulder with a bright grin.
“You alright?” Annie asked gently, eyes narrowing toward Ben. “What happened?”
But something changed. Something was off. Ben could see it.
You looked around the room slowly, like you were seeing it for the first time. Your brows furrowed, muscles slightly recoiling where the others touched you. You glanced at Frenchie, then Kimiko. Then Hughie. Annie. Your friends. But not with recognition. No joyous reunion, no relief.
Only confusion.
Ben watched your face shift – eyes trying to place faces, trying to label people you clearly knew, but with their names just out of reach like distant stars behind clouds. You were squinting at Hughie like he owed you goddamn money and you couldn’t remember from where. You looked through Frenchie like you were trying to find out where you’d parked your fucking car.
You tried to play it cool, nodding like everything was fine, but your eyes betrayed you – lingering on each face a beat too long.
Ben’s smirk faltered. Smugness gone. His heart kicked against his ribs.
Shit. He hadn’t accounted for this – for you coming back fucking broken and brain scrambled. Was this temporary? Permanent? Had it ever happened before? Normal? He didn’t fucking know.
“Yeah, I’m fine. ‘M good, guys.” You gave a half-hearted smile, let your gaze drift over each of them.
But Ben caught it – that little flash of insecurity in your eyes when they averted to your feet for the briefest second. The way you rolled your shoulders back with feigned confidence. He knew you well enough to see it, even if your so-called fucking friends didn’t.
Liar.
You weren’t fucking fine, were you? You weren’t asking them questions. You weren’t using their names. You were fucking faking your memory.
Ben ground his jaw, watching you. Still rattled by the way you looked at him with total clarity and at everyone else like they were fucking strangers at a bus stop. Blank stare.
“What happened?” Hughie parroted his girlfriend with a soft smile, oblivious to the raging chaos within you. “You blinked out of existence. Like… interdimensional poof.”
Ben saw the tension in your muscles, the uncomfortableness in your clenched jaw, the fear in your eyes, so he did the only right thing and drew their attention to him.
“Well, if anyone’s lookin’ for a fuckin’ recap, pretty sure my cum’s still drippin’ outta her.”
“What the–” Hughie’s brows drew together, gaze snapping from you to Ben and back to you again, as if it would somehow reveal the truth. “Jesus fucking Christ! Can we maybe... not lead with that? Please?”
There was a moment of quiet – or recharge.
Because in the following second, you saw fucking red. Deep red. Dark red. Blood red.
Your entire body surged forward, only Kimiko’s iron grip and Annie’s arms around your middle keeping you from tackling Ben to the ground like a ferocious animal.
“YOU MOTHERFUCKING–”
And he flinched. Slightly. Unnoticeable to the untrained eye. But he did.
Alright. Maybe he overshot it a little there. Went an inch too far. But it was all well meant.
“Oi!” Butcher’s voice cut through the hue and cry. “Are you two really goin’ right at it again?”
Silence.
Annie’s grip softened around you, but she didn’t let go. Her touch turned comforting, and it seemed to soothe you a little. Kimiko blinked in slow-motion and then exchanged wide-eyed looks with Frenchie.
“Is it… true?” Hughie was brave enough to ask.
You didn’t respond, eyes locked on Ben like he was your target. And it broke him.
But he didn’t let it show. Couldn’t. Not in front of them.
“Ready to talk like fuckin’ adults now?”
Your lips twitched with the hint of amusement. He swallowed subtly.
“Let me go,” you said quietly in the gentlest voice to both Annie and Kimiko. Not a question but a soft order. They complied.
You crossed the distance to him in three angry steps and looked him dead in the eye. “You cold-hearted, manipulative, narcissistic asshole–”
“Hey! I didn’t manipulate anything,” he snapped, feeling his own walls erect and defend – ready to block your hits. “I did you a fuckin’ favor. How about you stop whining like a goddamn brat and say fuckin’ thanks?”
You scoffed loudly, crossed your arms, shook your head in utter disbelief. “Oh, please,” you gritted mockingly. Then you put your hands on his chest and shoved him. “You did yourself a fucking favor!”
Another shove. This one even made his feet stutter a step.
“Alright, enough.” He laughed it off, trying to uphold the façade, although it cut deeper than he’d ever be willing to admit.
“Fight me.” You pushed him again. Provoked him. Like you wanted him to crack.
“Are you fucking nuts?” He scoffed a chuckle, but the feigned amusement didn’t even reach his eyes.
“Maybe. Do it.” Another shove at his chest.
“Okay, stop it!”
“Why?” You shrugged your shoulders, then smirked – dark and daring. You took another step forward, crowding his space like he was your goddamn dinner. “Why did you fucking do it, huh? What, didn’t wanna risk me screwing up your precious legacy, so you could still play the hero in your own fucked-up little fairy tale?”
His jaw twitched, eyes flickered. Whatever hurt he felt, he tried to swallow. “That what you think, hm?”
Internally, something shattered like glass. Sharp and cutting right to the bone. He shouldn’t have been goddamn surprised you’d think this lowly of him. Hell, this version of him had given you every fucking reason to. But he still thought, after everything, after you finally catching up to him, that you would–
He held your gaze, eyes fixed on you like the moon on Earth. And he could see it then, that brief flicker of hesitation – of uncertainty. You didn’t believe your own words, so maybe it wasn’t too late to still glue the pieces back together and pretend he never broke it in the first place.
“Yeah, I do,” you still snarled and only pushed him harder.
Fucking liar.
This time, he caught your wrists, pinned them down and pressed you against the nearest column, forearm to your collarbone, concrete cracking at your back as he tried to hold you in place.
“Alright, calm the fuck down,” he hissed. “You’re actin’ a little hysterical, sweetheart.”
“Oh, yeah?” you bit with a smirk and callousness between your teeth. “You wanna talk? Let’s talk about how you sound like your fucking daddy.”
That made him bristle. You were aiming fucking low and deep and knew it, too.
“‘M fuckin’ warning you,” he growled, his grip on you turning bruising.
But you didn’t seem to care. Not one bit. You didn’t give a shit anymore.
“There’s not one good fucking bone left in your body. You’re poison inside and out,” you spat, hatred pouring out of you from every pore. “You just wanted history to fucking remember Soldier Boy, the glorious American wet dream, instead of the sad, lonely asshole you really were.”
“You’re fucking wrong.” But a slight flare of his nostrils gave it away. “Don’t fucking push me, sweetheart. You won’t like the outcome.”
“No, I think I fucking will,” you retorted with a defiant fire in your eyes.
“Calm the hell down or–”
“Or what, huh?” you challenged fearlessly. “You’re gonna hurt me? Kill me? Try. I fucking dare you. I’m not scared of you.”
“You should be,” he gritted through clenched teeth and regretted it in that same breath.
“No, you should be.” Then a smirk curled your lips like slow-acting venom.
“I think you’re forgetting who’s fuckin’ stronger,” he growled.
“No, I think you are forgetting. It’s probably the fucking Alzheimer’s,” you retorted. “You know all those endless days I spent in the shed? Remember those, gramps?”
And then, he felt it – that languid crawl up his spine, snaking through his blood like ice water and freezing everything in place.
“I did more than just tinkering in there. I practiced. Trained,” you said smugly.
“Shit,” he muttered under his breath, green eyes flickering to the audience in the cheap seats.
All of them kept a safety distance in case either of you two fucking detonated. But Butcher recognized instantly what was going on, a dark, diabolical chuckle rippling through the office.
“That’s right.” You smirked, mean and vicious. “My powers are fucking back. Better than ever. Guess I do owe you a fucking ‘thank you,’ huh?”
“Un-fucking-freeze me. Now,” Ben threatened and tried to fight against your spell, although he knew it was useless. His body was locked tight.
There was no way back now. He was smack dab in the middle of whatever shitstorm you were brewing. His master plan slowly derailed and broke apart at the seams.
Maybe it was fucking stupid of him to believe you’d come back as damaged as you left. In some ways, you came back even more broken, but in others, pieces had seemingly stitched themselves back together.
“Or what, huh?” you prompted daringly, knowing you had the upper hand.
Ben looked at you, at the rage in your eyes and the hate in your heart, and swallowed harshly. He didn’t want this. Any of it. He just wanted you.
“Look, let’s just talk somewhere, alright? Alone,” he suggested and nodded his head toward the group.
Your gaze followed, same flicker of uncomfortableness in your eyes. Still strangers.
A slight nod. “Fine. You wanna talk alone? Let’s fucking talk alone.”
And then you gripped him tighter and shoved.
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The first thing he felt was the blistering heat.
Then the weight of gravity shifted, pulling at his gut like a slingshot let go. No light, no sound – just the feeling of being ripped through space like paper.
The humidity clung to his skin like spit. Not humid like a summer storm, but wet and dense, the kind of thick that attached to one’s lungs and left sweat crawling down one’s spine before even registering the heat.
The air smelled like rot and soil – something old and still alive. He staggered, boots slipping slightly in the wet dirt beneath them, moss-covered earth hissing with steam and the squelch of rotting vegetation. Monsters of trees stretched upward higher than skyscrapers. Vines as thick as his arms twisted through bark, leaves the size of blankets hanging low.
The sky above him was a bruised, yellow hell with a metallic shimmer on the horizon. Not dawn. Not dusk. Wrong.
Birds – if you could fucking call them that – screamed in the distance. Something howled. Something else answered – alien and prehistoric.
Ben stumbled forward, coughing and blinking like you’d just fucking water-boarded him. “What the fuck…” he muttered, spinning around in slow, uncertain circles, searching for you. “Where the fuck are we?”
You stood ten feet away, arms crossed, a smirk tugging at your lips. “Remember when I told you back then that I’d make you a T-Rex’s fucking chew toy?”
He scowled. “Back then? Sweetheart, we had that conversation barely two hours ago. How fuckin’ scrambled is your brain, huh?”
“My brain’s fine,” you retorted, but he caught the slight quiver of your brow that revealed the truth.
“Coulda fooled me. You’re fucking insane,” he huffed.
“Oh, I know.”
And God help him, you said it with a fucking smile.
“So, what? You dragged me to the goddamn Jurassic to die with the fucking lizards? This it? The big revenge arc?”
“Cretaceous,” you corrected absently. “Should’ve paid more attention in school. Welcome to 65 million years ago. Figured it was a fitting setting for an ancient relic like you.”
“Funny.” He scoffed bitterly. “But bad news, sweetheart, some little dinosaurs ain’t gonna do me in.”
“Oh, I didn’t bring you here for them. I brought you here for this,” you said and pointed skyward behind his shoulder, his gaze following. “It’s not a second sun, you know? It’s an extinction-level meteorite. Same that wiped out the feathered reptiles. Impact is in about thirty-six hours – give or take a few volcanic eruptions.”
“Jesus Christ, you’re fucking serious,” he grunted.
“Deadly,” you said and grinned puckishly. “Figured Russians already tried everything. Burned you, shot you, poisoned you. Nothing stuck. Had to get a little creative. Let the world do it for me.”
Ben squared his stance, masking the unease coiling low in his gut. “You’re just gonna abandon me here? Let a fucking rock do the dirty work for you?”
You smirked cruelly. “That’s the plan.”
His jaw tightened. “Cute trick. But you’re fuckin’ bluffin’. I’m not gonna fucking die here.”
“Maybe, maybe not.” You shrugged like you could care less. “Consider it an experiment. Let’s see if immortal really is an infinite number. Either way, you’re gonna suffer. That’s what I’m counting on. Because, even if you do survive the asteroid, there’s nothing going to be here. You’re gonna be alone. Just you stuck with your thoughts while Earth is rebuilding itself. And hey, if you do make it past the first 30 million years, you’ll have some monkeys here to talk to. Maybe you’ll finally understand your ex-girlfriend then…”
“You fucking–” But Ben stopped himself before giving in to what you so desperately wanted – him being an asshole. Someone easy to blame. “You don’t get to pull this righteous bullshit. Not after what you fuckin’ did.”
“What I did?” You blinked, incredulous. You took a step forward, disbelief twisting back into fury. “You fucking used me! You took everything you ever learned about me and manipulated it against me like I was just a fucking pawn in your sick, temporal chess match.”
But Ben didn’t back down, refusing to show even a flicker of hesitation. He had to get through to you. Had to get you to listen to him.
“No, no, you don’t get to play fucking innocent, sweetheart. You landed in my past. Snooped through my life like I was some goddamn museum exhibit in my father’s mansion. You slept in my fucking bed, planted yourself in my heart like it was fuckin’ nothin’, and played house with the version of me that was still stupid enough to believe in fuckin’ dreams,” he spat. “You think that wasn’t fucking manipulation? You thought you could rewrite history just by spreading your fuckin’ legs and smiling sweet.”
“I wasn’t cruel,” you bit, your crossed arms tightening around you like you were trying to hug yourself harder.
“No, you were fucking worse,” Ben growled. “You made me believe I was worth fucking somethin’. And then you fucking disappeared. No goodbye. No fuckin’ explanation. I thought you fuckin’ died.” He scoffed a dry laugh and rubbed a hand down his face, taking a step closer toward you. “Even worse, I thought my father was fucking right about you. That you left ‘cause you thought I wasn’t good enough. That I was fucking weak.”
Your jaw clenched, tears starting to burn in your eyes – but not falling. Not yet. “I never meant–… I tried to warn you. You wouldn’t listen!”
Ben’s face twitched, lips smacking. And for a brief moment, he just stared at you full of heartbreak.
“I know,” he choked out. “But I didn’t know that till a year ago. I waited eighty fucking years for you. For some goddamn answers. For someone to tell me where you fucking went. Do you know what that fucking does to a person?”
“I know what it did to you,” you replied, gaze raking over him like he was nothing. “And it proves you were never strong enough to be the man I thought you were. Proves none of it ever fucking mattered.”
“That what you believe, hm?” One step closed the distance again to you. “You were trying to change me. Don’t fucking deny it. You thought if you poured enough sugar on it, maybe I wouldn’t rot.”
“I never tried to change you. I just wanted you to stay the same,” you said, voice tight and full of hurt. Disappointment. “Look at you! You became everything he fucking hated. Everything he swore he’d never be. You didn’t just become the worst version of yourself – you fucking perfected it. You let anger rot everything good in you.”
Ben took a shaky breath, jaw locked, fists clenching at his sides, trying to push down that curling little feeling behind his sternum. It was starting to glow, and if you weren’t careful, that fucking comet wouldn’t be the only thing that wiped out these dinosaurs.
“I never stopped loving you.”
“Then why didn’t you stop yourself? Why did you tear it all apart?” Your eyes shined wet, and he knew you were choking back a sob. “You fucking broke me on purpose.”
“You think I wanted that? That it was fucking easy for me to treat you like shit? To watch you fall apart?” he countered. “I hated myself for it. For a whole goddamn fucking year. But I had to. I remembered how it went the first time, alright? I know when you got to 1942, you were fucking running from me. I was the guy, right?”
You gave him the faintest nod but didn’t say anything more.
“You fucking hated me. And if I’d treated you differently, if I’d gone soft like I goddamn wanted to every fucking day since I finally saw you again, maybe you wouldn’t have gone back. Maybe none of it would’ve fucking happened. You wouldn’t remember me. You wouldn’t fall in love with me. I couldn’t fucking risk it.”
By the end of it, Ben’s chest was heaving, but he tried to control whatever wanted to crawl out.
“You could’ve told me! You could’ve given me a choice!” you yelled.
“No, I couldn’t have!” he barked. “Because the version of you that loved me back then? She only loved me because of the fucking loop. And if I broke it… if I changed even one thing, you never would’ve fucking loved me at all. I thought if I just followed the goddamn script, we could have that again.”
“Have what again? The script is fucking broken! I told you that! Were you ever actually fucking listening?” you snapped.
“I was. And I don’t think it’s fucking broken,” he insisted, green eyes drilling into yours. “It’s not. It doesn’t have to be this way. We don’t have to hate each other. You don’t have to hate me. We can pick up where we left off. Better even. There’s no more fucking lies now. Just you and me and fucking honesty.”
“Are you fucking delusional?”
“No.” He shook his head, giving you a weak smile. “Clearer than I ever fucking was. We don’t have to stand in the fucking ruins of what we were. You just have to forgive me like I fucking forgave you.”
“This is fucking over,” you gritted through your teeth. “There’s nothing left to salvage here.”
“Disagree. It’s goddamn everything, and it’ll never be fucking over,” Ben stated firmly. He exhaled a deep breath, trying to stay calm, the ache in his chest a constant buzz. “Look, I know you just got back. I know you’re fucking pissed right now and wanna show me who’s got the bigger dick. That’s fine, sweetheart. I get it. Do what you gotta fuckin’ do. But underneath it all, I know you still love me. I know that feeling doesn’t fucking vanish in five minutes.”
“I don’t love you. I love him. There’s a difference,” you spat defiantly. “You’re not the guy I fell in love with. You’re just the fucking corpse that crawled outta his grave.”
“Bullshit,” Ben said and didn’t waver. Not an inch. No matter how much it fucking hurt. “I am him. Those aren’t just your memories. Those are fucking mine, too. You don’t get to take that away from me. I know what happened. I remember everything. Every second. I was fucking there. I know how you looked at me, how you touched me, how you talked to me like I fucking mattered. You can’t just flip a fucking switch and be done with it.”
“Watch me,” you bit and turned your back, walking away.
Ben followed you every step deeper into the screeching jungle, green eyes darting around everything that whispered and rustled in the eerie brush.
“I know the day you had, okay? I know what we did before you fucking disappeared. How long ago was it when you still felt me inside of you, huh? Fifteen minutes? Maybe thirty, tops? Bet you even still feel me now, don’t you?”
You snapped back around to face him, pointing a warning finger at his chest. “Don’t you fucking dare!”
“No, don’t you fucking dare!” he growled. “You don’t get to fucking erase anything. You think you can just ignore it? That pull you feel? Those feelings? They’re not gonna fucking go anywhere. Trust me. It’s been eighty-one years for me, and it only ever got fucking worse.”
“Guess, we’ll see,” you retorted. The fucking smirk came back – belligerent and hostile. “Since we’re both practically immortal, why don’t you check back with me in eighty years and see how I feel then, huh?”
“You wanna fucking break me? Fine,” he spat, almost coming nose-to-nose with you. “But don’t act like you’re some kind of victim here. You set the loop in motion just as much as I did.”
You took a step back, gaze lifting toward the meteor again. High above the clouds, a bright orange streak cut across the sky like a scar. Slow. Burning. Getting closer.
“You know what I like about this rock?” you asked rhetorically, using your little teacher voice again that he still wasn’t sure if he loved or hated. “It’s clean. Impartial. Doesn’t give a shit who you are or how powerful someone is. It hits, and everything fucking dies. Even you.”
Ben’s voice was quiet, lips twitching. “You don’t have it fucking in you.”
“You sure about that?”
“Yeah, I know you. I know you’re not leaving me here.”
“What, you think you fucking know me because you fucked me eighty years ago? You don’t know fucking anything! Never have,” you snapped harshly. “Wanna know why I can’t fucking love you now? Remember all those nightmares I had every night?”
“Yeah, and I held you through every single one of ‘em,” Ben stated.
You scoffed bitterly. “Yeah, well, they weren’t nightmares at all. Not really. Those were visions of you. Glimpses into the future. Of Soldier Boy. Of every cruel, vile, evil thing you’ve ever said and done.”
“You don’t fucking know shit,” he gritted, but on the inside, something squirmed in his ribcage.
You’d seen the worst parts of him. There was no hiding, no lying, no deflecting or convincing you it wasn’t true. And still, back then, you let him hold you, even though you knew the truth.
“No, I do. I know what kind of monster you truly are,” you said and never broke his gaze. And then, a first tear escaped your eye and streaked your cheek. “There’s no fucking redemption for you.”
Silence stretched between the two of you, brittle and sharp. The jungle screamed again, the earth trembled underneath his boots with something mighty.
“You think you’re better than me, hm? You’re not. You just never had to face the fucking consequences of your goddamn actions before like I did,” Ben said, voice low and cruel, slicing you like a blade. But you needed to fucking hear this. “Probably because no one you ever messed with was still fucking alive to tell the tale when you hopped back. Well, no one until fucking me.”
You didn’t say anything. Just spun around and started marching again as if you had a destination in mind.
“Look, I fuckin’ get it, alright? The world was mean to you and treated you like shit, and this is your little karmic payback,” he continued – persistent, relentless, and not taking fucking no for answer. Just like the first time. He’d wear you down again whether you fucking liked it or not. “This is what you do, right? Play pranks, mess a little with people who wronged you, screw with history. Literally – from what I’ve heard from your little group of nobodies. That’s why they call you Puck, right? Just sprinkle a little chaos everywhere and see what fucking happens.”
“You don’t know anything about me. Stop pretending that you do,” you huffed and kept up your pace.
“You think you’re not harming anyone, but you fucking do. Just because you didn’t rip people apart with your bare hands, doesn’t mean no one ever got fucking hurt,” Ben said, still on your tail, still not giving up. “You wondered what happened to them yet? Hm?”
That made your feet halt and your shoulders tense, but you didn’t turn around to face him. Not yet.
“Dottie? Florence? George?” He paused for a moment, as if to give both of you a chance to brace yourselves. “My mother?”
Your shoulders quivered. Ben could see it. But it didn’t make him stop. Not yet.
“They’re all dead, you know? Every single fucking one of ‘em.”
You glared over your shoulder. “This is why everyone fucking hates you, by the way.”
But Ben didn’t flinch. Didn’t get angry. Just stayed calm. “I’m not saying it to be cruel.”
“Then why the fuck are you saying it?” you snapped, facing him fully. “You know how much they meant to me!”
“Yeah, and they’re not gonna be around when you wake up tomorrow. No one fucking is,” Ben said quietly and could tell realization sunk in. Your face dropped. “But I’m still here. Just you and me left.”
He took a tentative step forward like he was approaching a deer and didn’t want to spook it. You didn’t move, just stayed.
“You and I are not so different, you know? Never were,” he said.
You scoffed, then shook your head. “I punched a few dicks and screwed a few more. So what? What you did borders on mass extinction. You can’t honestly believe that’s the same fucking thing.”
“It’s not. But if you keep up this shit, it will be. Give it a couple more decades, sweetheart, and you’ll be where I am,” Ben said, and it hit a nerve. He could see it by the subtle jump in your jaw. “Everyone you love is gonna be dead. Your so-called friends. You already killed your family – and don’t bullshit me. Dropping them off during a plague is a death sentence. You’re just too fucking cowardly to do it yourself. Just like now.”
“Fuck you,” you spat.
“You even still remember them? The other idiots? What are their names, huh?”
“Of course I do! They’re my fucking friends,” you claimed, but a blind person could see that you were lying through your goddamn teeth.
Ben certainly could.
“You’re forgetting shit, aren’t you?” he taunted, a smirk tugging at his lips.
“I remember you and what you did. That’s all that matters right now,” you said, confirming your little memory muddle.
“Look, I know why you lied back then. It’s the same reason why I didn’t tell you the fucking truth either. We thought the other one couldn’t handle it,” Ben said and swallowed, but he held your stubborn gaze. “And you know what? We were both probably fucking right. I wouldn’t have believed you back then. Or I would’ve been fucking scared of you. And if I had told you the truth, you would’ve thought I was fucking crazy. I could see it in the way you fucking looked at me when you got me outta Russia. You already thought I was. Just some old, forgotten relic, right? You never would’ve gone back. Not for me.”
“Clearly, I was right about the crazy part,” you muttered under your breath, scoffing.
“But you know me now. And I know you. The real you,” he went on, a smile hitching in the corners of his lips for a second. “And I was right back then – I always knew enough. It didn’t change anything. The other shit? It doesn’t fucking matter. It never did.”
You looked at him then, dress still damp, hair a mess, filled with rage and pain from head to fucking toe. And all he could think about was how you still looked fucking beautiful like this.
“There’s no you and me. We’re done,” you stated with all the conviction you could find, but he didn’t believe you. Not even a little.
“You really gonna leave me here and just forget about it? Let that rock drop on my head now?”
“No,” you said, and it sounded almost soft. Like a goodbye. “Turn around.”
And then he could hear it – a clicking sound behind them. A low, guttural hiss.
He saw it then – dinosaur. Velociraptor, probably – not that his knowledge on ancient, extinct reptiles was extensive. He hadn’t even seen fucking Jurassic Park yet.
The thing, whatever it was, was frozen mid-pounce, however – jaws wide and beady eyes locked onto his jugular. It was suspended in a glimmer of warped time like a fly in amber.
“You gotta be shittin' me,” he breathed, but as he turned around to you again, you were fucking gone.
And then, your little time spell lifted, and the raptor lunged.
Ben ducked, grabbed its scaled leg, and slammed it into the ground. But it was fast – snarling, vicious, and bloodthirsty fast. He cursed, rolled, landed a fist to its ribs. The predator screeched, and he pinned it, twisted its neck, and snapped it with a final crunch.
Its body dropped to the steaming earth, and Ben stood, panting just slightly. Not winded, but not untouched either, and he wondered how many more of those things there’d be.
“Fucking cute,” he huffed into the vastness of the prehistoric jungle. “Did you pack that thing for the trip, huh? I told you it’s not gonna fucking stop me. Is that all you fucking got? One little lizard? Gonna have to try fucking harder, sweetheart.”
But there was no answer. Just more screeching, more hissing, more primal noises that made his stomach churn. Just him, a jungle full of reptiles, and a glowing rock above his head that burned like a warning with a countdown.
“Don’t you dare fucking leave me here! You hear me?!”
Exhausted, Ben ran a hand through his hair and scoffed out a breath, sweat from the humidity gathering on his neck and forehead, heart hammering furiously.
Silence. Emptiness. Loneliness.
“I know you’re just trying to fuck with me!” he shouted into the void.
And then, he started saying your name, over and over again, calling for you, screaming it as the panic rose and his voice turned hoarse. But there never came a response. Fucking minutes passed.
“Didn’t take you long to lose your mind.”
You.
He swung around and found you leaning against a big tree, casual and cruel with your arms crossed and a pitying gleam in your eyes.
“I knew you wouldn’t leave me here. You’re just trying to fucking scare me,” he hissed. “It ain’t gonna work.”
“No, but this will,” you said with a sneer and crossed the distance to him in a few easy steps.
And then you fucking pushed him, and time warped again.
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The humidity vanished.
It was sterile now. Stale. Bleach. Rust. Burnt skin. Familiar.
Too fucking familiar.
The dim lighting. The rusted table legs bolted to the concrete floor. That high-frequency hum in the back of his skull. His chest constricted, lungs forgetting how to fill. Strenuously, he dragged in a breath that stung and squinted around, heart pounding. His boots scraped against the cracked tile. The same cracks. He knew each fucking one.
“No,” he muttered, shaking his head as the bile rose in throat.
You appeared behind him, footsteps echoing like gunfire in the cold, one brow cocked like you came to enjoy the show. “Recognize it yet? We’re in 1987. Russia. Figured this place must be burned into that big roid-rage brain of yours. It already broke you once. Might as well let it finish its job.”
“Get me the fuck outta here,” he gritted through his teeth, the burning feeling in his chest not a soft buzz anymore but a roaring drone.
But you only smiled in amusement. “Beg.”
Ben breathed heavily through his nose, chest heaving. “Fuck you.”
You chuckled, unbothered, and sauntered to the metal door, peeking through the small window down the hallway. “Lots of scientists here. I wonder if they’re gonna be thrilled when they find two of you to experiment on.”
“This isn’t you. You’re not this fucking twisted and cruel,” he pressed out between his lips with strain, his body trembling as he braced his palms on the cool metal of the table where he’d been strapped down for years.
“No, but you are. Figured it’s time you get a taste of your own medicine,” you quipped.
And fuck, that smile on your lips might’ve killed him more than this fucking place ever did.
His fingers twitched against the table, eyes stuck on the walls, the drains, the surgical sink stained with blood and memories. And then, he saw the chains. The scorch marks from one of his outbursts. He felt the burn in his veins like it was fucking yesterday.
“How are you doing?” you asked casually as you circled him like a vulture. “Still think you don’t have PTSD?”
His nuclear core gave a low warning whine in his chest, and his body tensed on instinct, muscle memory from thousands hours of being helpless and violated under knives and poison and God knows what else.
“Again – fuck you, sweetheart,” he grunted. “This place didn’t get me the first time. It won’t fucking get me now.”
“No?” You tilted your head and then strolled over to the counter where a radio stood, your fingers skimming over the buttons. “Guess we’ll see.”
And then you turned it on, the room filling with the soft tunes of Russian pop, getting louder and louder till his skull screamed and his brain lit on fire.
The electricity in the air spiked. His hands gripped the edges of the table tighter, metal bending in his grasp. His jaw locked, teeth gritted hard enough to crack. He tried to breathe, tried to tamp it down, but it was rising fast. Burning up through every nerve like napalm.
Nuclear energy rolled off him in pulses. Unstable. Dangerous. Loud.
“You’re gonna fucking blow up both of us,” he hissed. “Turn it the fuck down!”
He wouldn’t die, but you would – or lose your powers. Either way, he’d be fucking stuck here again.
“No, I’ll be long gone by the time you blow,” you replied – still casual, still unbothered, still mocking. You were relentless now, stalking in front of him, the taste of vengeance hot on your tongue. “Who’s fucking weak now, huh?”
“Fuck you.”
He wouldn’t give you the satisfaction of winning. Not even when his knees buckled and he sunk to the floor. Not yet.
You crouched down in front of him, calm and unaffected. “Say it. Say you’re fucking sorry. Beg me to get you out of here.”
“Fuck you,” Ben repeated, but his voice cracked as he fought against the ticking bomb wedged between his ribs. “You wanna fucking leave me here? Fucking fine. Doesn’t change anything. I still fucking love you... Thought about you every day in this fucking shithole. And you came. You got me out. You fucking saved me.”
“Yeah, biggest mistake of my life,” you scoffed. “Should’ve frozen Butcher when he knocked on my door and bolted.”
“You can’t run away forever.”
You came in closer, eyes burning. “You thought I’d fucking crawl back to you, huh? After everything?”
He shook his throbbing head, fighting it. “You need to fucking listen to me. You’re spiraling. It's the fucking serum. It's messing with your head. You ever actually been this long in the past before?"
You didn't respond, but he took your hesitation as a no.
"Just-... just calm the hell down, alright? Think it through–”
“No!” you snapped. “You don’t get to play fucking hero now. You’re not worried about me or anyone else. Never were, so don’t pretend you are now. You abused me and bullied me for a year straight just so I could fall into some fucked up predestined loop with you. That your definition of love, huh?”
“Don’t,” he growled. “Don’t throw that word around like you don’t know what we were. What we fucking are.”
The nuclear hum in his chest flared, pressure building in his sternum, but he forced it down. He couldn’t detonate. Not with you standing three fucking feet away.
“You don’t even know what love is. You just fucking twist it until it serves you,” you replied harshly.
“You don’t get to look at me like that,” he bit out. “Like I’m the fucking monster. You knew who I was back then, too.”
“I did,” you admitted, tears stinging your eyes. Your voice got quieter, barely audible over the radio and the constant crackle of nuclear energy. “And I still fucking trusted you. How stupid was I?”
“I-… I’m sorry,” he forced out, pushed the danger down further with all his might for as long as he could. “I never meant to fucking hurt you. I just wanted you back.”
A smile flashed on your lips. Sad and tragic. “You’ll never get me back. This is the last time you see me again. You understand?”
A beat, and then – he fucking screamed.
Not angry. Not words. Not your name. Just a raw, tortured sound that peeled the chipped paint off the walls. His chest began to glow. His skin shimmered. His vision doubled and whited out around the edges. He was seconds away from exploding.
“Get me the fuck outta here... Please,” he finally rasped with what little strength he had left. His eyes found yours but only witnessed coldness in them. The warmth he once knew and clung to like a lifeline – gone. Forgotten. Erased. “Please, get me out. Don’t fucking leave me here. Please.”
“I’m fucking done with you,” you said.
Your palm reached out and curled on his shoulder, and just like that, you pushed him out of the cold, out of the lab, and back into the present.
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The light twisted. His bones stretched. His stomach turned, and the first thing he saw was you.
“Don’t fucking follow me this time,” you snarled. “I mean it – or I’ll leave you with the fucking Reds.”
And then, you spun on your heel and walked away, leaving him crouching, panting, and burning on the floor. Your eyes flicked across the group and landed on Butcher.
“All yours,” you said. “And by the way, I fucking quit.”
Then the office door slammed shut behind you.
Ben barely had time to lift his head before the rest of the merry fucking band made their way slowly and cautiously toward him. Annie, Kimiko, Hughie, Frenchie, MM – staring like they’d just seen him climb out of a burning orphanage holding a cigarette and a baby skull.
“What the fuck are you staring at?” he huffed and pushed the fury, the fire inside of him, down. He wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of exploding like the petulant, walking nuke they expected him to be. “If you wanna see a show, go find a fucking circus.”
He held it. Dug in. Gritted his teeth and shoved it down. Like choking on fire, like forcing a scream back down his throat until it died in his gut. The glow faded, slow and grudging, retreating like a beaten dog to its cage.
“You alright there, guv?” Butcher asked, voice soaked in that piss-and-vinegar mockery he always wore like cologne. “Bit warm in the cheeks. Heartbreak’ll do that to ya.”
“What-, uh, what happened?” Hughie asked, and for a second, Ben wasn’t sure if the kid was genuinely worried about him.
“None of your goddamn business,” Ben huffed and slowly rose to his feet, slipping the mask back on that fit him like a second skin. A snake that couldn’t shed its scales.
“Let’s go, guys,” Annie said and nodded to the door. The others followed, each of them sending him a little glare on their way out.
But Butcher stayed, lingering in the doorway, smirk curling on his lips like a jackal.
“I know what you’re fucking thinking, asshole,” Ben growled.
“And what’s that?” Butcher asked calmly, clearly enjoying the downfall.
“You think now that she has her powers back, you can turn her against me and take me out,” Ben gritted. “But it’s not gonna work. She’s not gonna fucking kill me. She’s not gonna betray me.”
Butcher’s smirk twitched with amusement. “Guess we’ll see. Didn’t look like she still needs a lotta convincing. Enjoy your evening, mate.”
Ben stood frozen, watching Butcher’s retreating back, and only exhaled the breath he’d been holding in when he was entirely alone. Again.
And for the first time in a year, he wasn’t sure time could fix it, and he wondered how he lost everything, how he ended up here – with nothing.
Without you.
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▶️ Chapter 12: You’re Not Just a Man, You’re a Monument! – JUNE 15
Did you think it'd go down like this? Did you enjoy getting Ben's side of things? Because we're far from done. Next week we get glimpses into Ben's life, starting with the serum and ending with what caused his downfall a little in the 80s 👀
And for a little fun: What was your favorite reader historical story? Punching Freud? JFK? 🤣
Coming Up:
Ben caught a look between the two of them – barely a glance but enough. It was the kind of exchange scientists made when they’d seen what had come before – when they were still pretending the next experiment might not end the same way.
“The serum rewrites you,” Frederick explained proudly. “Not just your body. It makes you what you should have been. The best version.”
Ben looked down at his hands again, trying to control the tremble. “Sounds like a lot of poison for something that’s supposed to help.”
“Poison can be medicine,” Klara stated. “If you survive it.”
Frederick continued flipping pages like he hadn’t just described a dozen men dying on his table. “You’ll undergo rapid metabolic overhaul. Tissue degeneration followed by cellular regeneration. And yes, there will be pain. But afterward, you will have capabilities beyond conventional human limits.”
“How much pain?” Ben asked.
“Enough,” Klara replied. “But you’ll be stronger after. Think of it like being melted down and poured into a new mold. Like steel.”
Ben swallowed hard. “And if the mold doesn’t hold?”
Frederick smiled as if he’d made a joke. “Then you’ll have done your country a great service, young man.”
Ben was quiet for a moment. “You believe this can win the war?”
Frederick nodded surely. “Oh, it will end the war.”
“That’s why you’re here,” Klara said, voice almost gentle. “To become the kind of man who can’t be ignored anymore. You’ll never feel weakness again.”
🚀 Read up to 4 chapters ahead on Patreon now
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Tag List Pt. 1:
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@deansbbyx @foxyjwls007 @ladysparkles78 @roseblue373 @zepskies
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@supernotnatural2005 @stoneyggirl2 @kr804573 @m0e0v0v @youroldfashioned
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helluvabossrewrite45 · 2 years ago
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Hello, I just wanna say that your scene rewrites are amazing. Seeing Stars has got to be one of my favourites.
On the topic of Octavia, I agree that Viv and her team missed an opportunity with Via. To me in the context of the narrative, Octavia can be a tragic character that is screwed over by the writing. It is implied that she takes after Stolas with her love of astronomy as their form of bonding. Yet, she slowly watches her father drift away from them and is probably wondering if they—she even matters to him. You’re just watching a parent that you had a close bond to just leave you behind because they found someone else that captivated their interest. On top of the divorce that is currently going on would leave a child feeling doubtful.
I also just never understood why the writers want to keep having her being mad at her dad, even though they say that Stella has clearly been ruining the family, yet it’s his fault? Half the time the writing seesaws on Stella and Via’s dynamic because the only time she does care is when Stolas is there and…I get that could be counted as gaslighting, but the character lacks subtlety that it’s hard to tell when she’s always yelling. More often she doesn’t even care for her with two episodes implying this.
I just in general feel frustrated with this family because either avenue could be interesting if the writers took it seriously enough but they don’t and instead choose spur of the moment scenes that we have to use as jigsaw puzzle with some pieces not fitting because world building barely matters.
Sorry for the ramble. You’re version or fix it is probably one of my top favourites for the characters because I can definitely see the use of the loosely outlined jigsaw puzzle. Have a nice day/evening.
Thank you anon, im glad you like my rewrites
I agree 100% with via, they did the same thing with moxxie to her, that being repeating the same arc again of her being mad at her dad but forgive him in the end. It kind of shows that just like moxxie, they didnt know what to do with her which is a shame because the small details she has are there to be fully explored, but they never explore them. Like her and music, she oftens listens it even at the dinner table and with stellas reaction to the cheating affair, we can peice a puzzle of her doing it as a coping mechanism; escaping her problems through distraction. And with seeing stars main plot is around via running away to see a meteor shower, it would've been perfect to explore that side of her along with more knowledge of the family in general to piece this puzzle their giving (like the relationship with her mom, her uncle, the rest of their family, how they react to the situation, how their currently dealing with it, etc...) through flashbacks (since the whole point would've been that these issues wont go away no matter how much you try to ignore them) And yes, her closeness with her father drifting away is definitely tragic and its sucks that it wasnt futhered explored, especially with the entire goetta situation as a whole since were in season 2 and we dont even know how they reacted to it. It makes me wonder why even give us these pieces to solve properly if its so little that it makes it pretty impossible without theorizing from any vague info we have and thats not how problem solving works.
And yes, its odd that shes only mad at stolas but never to stella. I mean, i get she would be on her moms side because of him cheating but still with how stella is written, you'd think she'd hate her too. In this rewrite, stella would actually be subtle in her abuse to stolas in a way where you can still recognise it but also understand why other (like via) wouldnt. An example of this would be my first post where her and stolas confront each other about the divorce, the quote; '-or did you forget? Like you always do?'. Its meant to showcase her most common tactics, shaming. From her background (that i'll explain further in her own post), she oftens picks up things from her family, which shaming is included. She would shame stolas whenever he makes a mistake or does something she doesnt approve of (like if he wore a suit she didnt like, she would say; 'you know were meeting your family right? You think they want to see their son of royalty in that sort of wear?' or them arguing on how much time via should spend on her astronomy lessons; 'Shes going to be a future you and what, you wanna just, make her lazy, huh?!' (or even 'I didnt think you'd care that less for your own daughter....') See these are what you could recognise as shaming but also understand why people may not consider it so, potentially using excuses like 'oh shes probably right because its royalty/she just cares about looking good enough for her family' or 'oh she just cares for her daughter and her future' (ironically enough, those are kind of what fans AND the show itself use as an excuse for stolas lmao) but just because via doesnt recognise stella's abusive tendencies, doesnt mean she isnt upset with her. She very much is, mainly with stella's aggressiveness as stella developed anger issues throughout her life and didnt have anything to help it. Via hates it whenever stella yells because of course she would be, no one likes angry loud noises! Its just that unlike with stolas, shes not as open with her frustration to her mother because shes genuinely scared of her from that aggression that makes it much more harder to truly express her feelings about her, instead keeping it to herself along with her feelings towards how the rest of the family is reacting to it given that it just feels too much for her to be involved in. So the reason why shes only open on being mad at stolas is despite what he did, he's the only one she feels safe in being mad about (I mean, she does have andrealphus as someone safe to an extent though he's very dismissive of telling her whats going on with the goetias and definetly doesnt take being wrong well like stella so hes not much better) that way, it'd be more understandable and futher peice the puzzle of their family and their dynamic. Family itself is quite complicated because of the nuances it has behind it and i wanna incorporate that to the goetias were their not fully evil but tend to care about their statuses rather then whats right in front of them (that being them as a family) since i think its interesting to explore and wouldve suit stolas, stella and octavia really well.
No need to apologise for rambling, i like getting asks of peoples thoughts/ideas on helluva. Hell look, im rambling too. I hope you enjoy the future rewrites i have in store, have a nice day/evening too
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koraki-pharmakis · 4 years ago
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10 Myths About Hellenismos
Today, let's address some popular myths (and the truths) about Hellenismos and its deities. Not very surprisingly, most of these things come from Wicca or Christian colonization. You can believe these things if you want, they just aren't from the religion.
Myth 1: Deity work is dangerous
Truth: Deity work, in Hellenismos, isn't any more dangerous than worshiping the Christian god is supposed to be. This notion didn't originate in Hellenismos, and is also a largely neopagan idea. Our theoi aren't monsters or aggressive. They won't kill you over tiny mistakes. Just respect them, do what you can, and you'll be fine.
Remember that even in the mythos, people aren't smited for the wrong offering. They're smited for blatant and deliberate disrespect, which by nature can't be done accidentally.
Our deities genuinely aren't easily angered. They wont be mad if you reach out to them, if you confuse them for something else, if you give them the wrong offering, etc.
Myth 2: You need to look out for entities impersonating deities
Truth: Again, this isn't remotely from Hellenismos. Our gods cannot be impersonated by evil entities. Frankly, we don't really have entities with that desire or power in the religion. If you're contacting a Hellenic deity, and you get an affirmative response, you contacted them. The idea you didn't, or that something else is lying to you, is from outside the religion. Our deities are more powerful than random ghosts, and our religion doesn't have that concept.
Myth 3: Hekate is a moon goddess/crone
Truth: Hekate is associated with the moon, but she is not a goddess of the moon. She is the goddess of one lunar phase--the dark moon, which is on the eve of Hekate's Deipnon. She is also not a crone goddess outside of neopaganism and Wicca. Historically, she was depicted as a maiden. Her triple form was also not maiden/mother/crone, simply a triple maiden-esque figure.
Myth 4: Hestia gave her seat to Dionysos/Apollon took Helios's chariot
Truth: Honestly, it's just a difference in counting. Some deities were and weren't Olympians depending on time, culture, and locations. No seats on Olympos were "given up," it's just that sometimes one is there and sometimes the other isn't.
As for the chariot, no. Apollon didn't replace Helios. They were synchronized, but Apollon didn't "take" the chariot, and Helios was never removed. Helios is still the sun--his name is literally "sun."
Myth 5: The myths are history/Hellenic Polytheists believe in the myths
Truth: The characters in myths are real to us, and some myths are literal, but in general, Hellenic mythology is not meant to be taken fully literally. Most of it is symbolic. Additionally, a lot of the r*pe in the mythos is translation errors. We believe in our heroes and our gods, and we believe there is truth in the myths, but no, our mythology isn't like Christian mythology--it's not expected or really encouraged to believe the myths are strictly true history. The myths aren't even consistent over time and location, so it's simply impossible to believe in all of them at once. But no, our gods do not act the way they do in mythology. Myths are by and for mortals, and do not capture the divine.
Myth 6: It's disrespectful to dress up as or write fiction about the gods
Truth: This is just ridiculous and ahistoric. The majority of Ancient Greek theater was deity cosplay and fanfiction. I said what I said.
This can definitely be done disrespectfully, but isn't inherently disrespectful. You also aren't required to represent the theoi fully accurately in this.
Myth 6: X god is Y orientation/gender
Truth: While you can certainly theorize our theoi's sexuality, and none of our gods are cishet by modern standards, none of the gods can only be interpreted as one gender or orientation. The terms we ascribe to them are based on mythos, portrayals, and modern interpretation of historic social roles.
The most common of these theories are maiden goddesses as aroace (ie. Hestia, Athena, Artemis), erastes (top) gods as bi men (ie. Zeus, Apollon, Patroklos), eromenos (bottom) gods as gay men (ie. Ganymedes, Hyakinthos, Akhilleus), and Artemis as a lesbian.
None of these are wrong, to be clear. It's just not as simple as using our modern labels for them. Erastes and eromenos were both considered straight in Ancient Greece; being a 'virgin' didn't always mean celibate; Artemis can be interpreted as bi, lesbian, and/or aroace based on her myths. You can interpret them however you like--I certainly interpret my gods as queer--but there is no single right answer.
Myth 7: You need a patron or to be devoted to someone, or can only have one patron/be devoted to one god, & devotion is an oath
Truth: Patron deities are more of a principle in neopaganism and Wicca than in Hellenismos. Worshiping the theoi does not require you to find a patron or devote to a deity, ever. Patronage is not particularly important or common, unless you are thinking of a patron god of a trade (ie. if you're a blacksmith your patron is Hephaistos).
Devotion is also not exclusive, and never requires an oath. Oaths in Hellenismos are extremely serious, and should never be taken without extreme caution. If you aren't willing to die if you break the oath, don't make it--find something else. You probably wont die, but that's the necessary level of certainty. Devotion, while serious, is not as serious as being oath-bound. You can be devoted to multiple deities, and devotion can be called off if needed. You can't really call off an oath.
Myth 8: X god is a r*pist!
Truth: Please stop it. Just stop it. No. Especially if you're basing that on Lore Olympus. The mythology isn't fact, weird inaccurate mythology fanfic written by someone who doesn't know anything about the myths isn't fact.
The mythology isn't straight up history. The myths were often mistranslated (the Greek word for r*pe didn't just mean r*pe) and they aren't facts. They were also products of their culture. So. No. They are not. And their worshipers aren't r*pe apologists.
Myth 9: Titans are evil and/or Olympians hate titans
Truth: Titans are fine. Really. They're not evil, they're not going to hurt you. They're just another kind of Theoi. Many of them were actually a large part of the historic religion. Hekate's Deipnon was a monthly festival, after all. And no, Olympians don't hate titans. Remember the point about myths not being literal.
Myth 10: The gods are jealous
Truth: No, the gods will not be jealous if you worship another god. They wont be jealous if you worship another pantheon, or if you need a break. If you're a god consort, they won't be jealous if you're interested in other mortals or deities. If you're a devotee, they won't be upset if you devote to other deities.
The most jealous a god gets is upset if you break an oath, promise, or agreement with them. If you promised them a daily libation but skipped it for another deity without permission, they may get upset. But even then, that's not really jealousy.
Myth 11: If you work with X deity, you can't work with Y
Truth: This is usually based on rivalry in mythology, and isn't true at all. Related to the above jealousy point, no deity in real life hates another deity, especially not enough that if you worship both they'll be upset. You can worship Aphrodite and Persephone. You can honor Hera and Leto.
Most of these gods are actually happy if you honor other theoi. Many of them are family, or share domains.
If enough people are interested, I might make a part two, because this is barely the tip of the iceberg. RBs welcome from pagans and non-pagans alike.
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itstimetotheorize · 4 years ago
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Little Nightmares 2 theory, a winning chance, Shadow Six’s scheme,  the truth behind Six’s betrayal and the childrens "immunity". (warning, prepare yourselves mentally...again, I’m serious)
 Before I start, please know I no longer believe kids are immune to the all seeing eyes control because they have an imaginary world in their minds from which they escape to whenever they come face to face with the horrors of the word, this was something I talked about in a past theory, so know this new theory is not only meant to update my information but piece together everything the theorizing community and I had uncovered thus far in the little nightmares games.
https://itstimetotheorize.tumblr.com/post/656326186770792448/little-nightmares-2-the-eye-entitys-existence-and
Now then, grab a glass of water and lets us begin:
All the kids of the Little Nightmares world are known to have had their fair share of horrific experiences. Over time, they learn to take extreme measures to defend themselves against the monsters of the world. But despite the choices they make, somehow, they are still able to go on without being controlled by the all seeing eye itself, but why?
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We always knew their childlike innocence had something to do with their ability to resist the eye, but we could never fully understand what part of their childish nature protected them from being controlled by it and prevented them from being just as easy to capture as the adults.
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Well,  from what we gather, kids may not fully understand the reality of their situation, let alone the world around them. This lack of understanding appears to prevent them from developing the same corrupted human desires the developers state all the adults share.
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And yet despite the many aggressive tendencies the children displayed/developed towards the monsters of the world, not once are they ever shown to be drawn to the 👁️in the same way the adults are...but why?
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we always theorized the children only ever understood they needed to do whatever it takes to survive, so perhaps the kids only ever viewed their actions as justified rather than a desire they needed to fulfill... no matter how cruel their actions appeared to be. Their acts of survival were never enough to lead them to fully understand their situation, let alone the world around them, so they remained oblivious to the true nature of the world and the one which ruled over it, the all seeing eye.
The developers always said kids of the little nightmares world needed to find someway to survive until adult hood. But as we thought about their message, many of us soon realized even if the kids do survive to adult hood, they may only be fated to fall victim to the eyes control.
As kids journey deeper into the darkness and are forced to grow up faster every day, they inevitably learn more about the true horrors of the world and become doomed to develop natural human desires which will leave them vulnerable enough to be corrupted and manipulated by the eye entity.
It had always been theorized if the kids were ever going to live a life where they would not fall prey to the eye, then they must first find a way to prevent the eye from corrupting them and their desires, but how?...unless...what if Mono and Six already hinted towards this answer.
From what's understood, Mono had some understanding of the world to the point where he understood the world was always cruel, because of this, he knew to fight against it in anyway he could. 
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Near the end of the game when Mono finally grew fed up with the worlds cruelty towards him, we see him not only defeat The Thin Man but drag The Tower, the very source of the madness witnessed in The Pale City, towards himself rather than waste anymore time chasing after it. Even when Mono entered the tower itself and became surrounded by the eyes pure hypnotic light, Mono was still able to resist the eyes hypnotic transmission.
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 Based on what happened to Mono, its possible the childrens first step to victory against the eye is to first feel what Mono felt when he chose to face the world rather than continue to run and hide from it. If the children of the world were to feel just as fed up and angered towards the worlds cruelty towards them, then they may not feel the need to easily accept eyes comforting light. They must harness their anger for the world and abandon their fears of it.
If the eye knew this, then it might've understood it needed to break their spirits before they could finally fall prey to its hypnotic spell. Would this be effective? well...it worked on Mono and Six didn't it? 
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but considering Mono was able to wander the city and tower without being hypnotized, we theorized Mono still had no real desire to escape the world around him in the same way all viewers did...until the end, when he was left emotionally broken over six betraying him.
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Six on the other hand awakened in a world she cant recognize, her lack of understanding had already shielded her from fully grasping her situation and her reality. 
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However, as soon as the eye got a hold of her through the use of the thin man...it forced her to understand she could never outrun the horrors of the world and made her desire comfort and an escape from the cruel world, just as any other viewer did.
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If these children are ever to stand a winning chance against the eye, then its possible they must not only harness their hatred for the world, but discover and understand just what “the all seeing eye” is and what allows it to easily gain control of the residents of the world. 
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If these kids can learn to take control of their own desires and prevent the eye from corrupting them, then maybe they can also learn to find some way to harness their emotions and resist the eyes temptations even as they grow into adults. Allowing them to not only turn against it, but decide for themselves what they want to do rather than submit to whatever expectations and plans the eye has for them, if so, then...is this what happened to Six?
when Six journeyed to the maw, many forget it was never her intention to be there, she was instructed to go there by the part of herself which had been torn from her very body, Shadow Six, aka what we now understand to be her soul!
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However, back when little nightmares 1 released, many assumed Shadow Six was evil, but what we later realized after finishing Little Nightmare 2 was how we never truly saw shadow six do anything evil at all!, our assumptions were purely based on what Six had done, such as when we saw her eating the little nome.
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When we see Shadow Six with Mono, we see her act with the same innocent behavior Six displayed back when she first played on the playground. What does this tell us? its tells us Shadow Six carried with her much of the good and kindness Six had before being captured by The Thin Man.
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And yet despite Mono having freed Six from the eye by breaking the music box (which tied her to “its” control), we see in the secret ending how Shadow Six  remained separated from her body.
As Shadow Six faced Six in the dark empty room, we see her looking towards the maws poster on the floor, telling Six where to go next...but why?...why did Shadow Six want Six to go to the maw?...or rather...what did she know from her time in pale the city and the tower?
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We always theorized the eye had the ability to see into the future. In monster Six’s room, we see pictures of things Six had yet to experience. The only question was, did Six remember these pictures?... or did Shadow Six figure out for herself what these images really meant? 
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If Six had been forced to witness her horrific future aboard the maw while in the tower, then could it be possible Shadow Six had chosen to take advantage of the eyes ability to wander the tower unnoticed in order to sneak a peek into her future and understand what exactly lead her to such a cruel fate aboard the maw? all the while Mono was fighting her body (Monster Six)?...maybe...
I know It may seem odd to consider someone like Shadow Six taking advantage of the eyes ability, but what many forget to consider is how even the eye had weaknesses of its own. When Mono had begun the process of freeing Six from being the eyes host, we see the warped reality eye had created in the tower repeatedly come crumbling down each and every time Mono hit Six’s music box.  
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What does this mean exactly? it means every time Mono came closer and closer to destroying the music box, the very object the eye had used to tie Six to its control, eye would lose its grip on the reality it had created in the tower, forcing it to not only feel weakened as it watched Mono and Six fight each other, but remain oblivious to whatever Shadow Six might've been doing the entire time she was inside of its domain! after all, if eye was dead set on getting Mono to stay in the tower, then it may not have considered worrying about what else was going on its body, allowing Shadow Six to roam around undetected as she continued to search for its secrets...so then....was she successful?
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Well, we had always theorized Six was meant to stay on the maw and fulfill her fate as the next lady. 
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Yet despite having been successful in obtaining the Ladys powers for herself...we see Six choosing to leave it instead, but why?!
We always knew Six belonged elsewhere, but if shadow Six had truly taken advantage of the eyes ability to peer into the future, then perhaps shadow Six had discovered what many suspected all along. Shadow Six...discovered the eye had plans for Six! and those plans meant she had to stay on the maw, as far away from Mono as possible! because so long as Six accepted her fate, she would never help Mono fulfill what it feared the most...its demise. 
 If Shadow Six had truly discovered for herself what the eye had planned for Six, then could Shadow Six have instructed Six to go to the maw in order to find the one solution which would rid Six of her hunger and reunite her with the body she had been torn from? In other words....did shadow Six make plans of her own to go against the will of the eye in order to be made whole once again?! 
Back when little nightmares 2 released, angered fans always believed Six dropped Mono because she was selfish or wanted revenge against him for breaking her music box, that everything she did was only ever for her benefit  alone because she was always trying do whatever she could to survive alone, she's a survivalist...but as we now know from the developers... this was not necessarily the case. 
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Its true Six could survive many situations alone, like when she survived the nest and the maw. But what many forget to realize is how Six was only ever able to survive these places because they had always given the children more of an advantage! Places like the nest and maw always providing a wide variety of locations for kids to easily run and hide, even with the ongoing threat of the residents of the buildings. 
Its why so many children in the comics state they are far safer in places like the maw, because places like the maw were one of the few parts of the world which made sense to survive in, when compared to the chaos faced in the outside world.
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After all, places like the maw and the nest contained what the rest of the world lacked...order, and a system for the kids to easily catch onto so they could plan their escape and survive within the walls. 
So long as the children remained separated and ignorant, they would never understand how their odds of facing the world would increase should they choose to stand together...this... is exactly what the eye wanted and expected of them.
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When Six escapes the nest, we see her struggling not long after she leaving its doors, in the end, the only reason Six was able to get as far as she did after leaving the nest was because she had finally chosen to team up and trust the raincoat girl.
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Despite what some may still believe about Six being nothing but a selfish girl because of what she did to Mono, many forget from time to time of one very crucial part of Six’s character... Six... is by no means stupid... she's smart!
Despite the lack of trust  Six had in the raincoat girl throughout their escape, Six does in fact learn over time, during their chase against the butlers and pretender, how her chances of survival can increase by working with others and how raincoat girl was someone who is not only trustworthy but reliable as well, hence why Six chose to save her from the pretender near the end of the game, rather than leave her.
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Six shows this same behavior with Mono when she first meets him in the hunters cabin. And as the game progresses, we see Six develop a friendship with Mono the more they look to each other for support and the more they conquer the horrors of the world together.
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All throughout little nightmares 2, we see Mono and Six face obstacles and challenges neither one of them could have ever conquered alone. By working together, they beat the hunter, escaped the teacher, burned the doctor and traveled through the city all up until the moment Mono freed the thin man. When the little nightmares 2 twitter page revealed to us how Six and Mono actually stood a far stronger chance surviving together than apart, many of us had soon realized the eye most likely knew this as well.
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When Mono travels through a T.V. for the first time, we see the eye entity staring at him as he travels through. What does this mean exactly?... it means every single t.v. Mono touched, every working t.v. he and Six walked by and through every single t.v. the viewers were seen staring...the eye was always staring back.
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We only ever thought Mono and Six were safe from the eye up until the end, but the reality of it is...the eye was always watching them, it knew exactly where Mono and Six where, it knew what they where up to, it knew how well they worked together... and it didn't like it one bit.
So it chose to make a plan, a plan where it could ensure Monos ongoing fate as the the thin man and one where it would no longer feel threatened by Mono and Six’s victorious teamwork. More on the eyes plan can be read here:
https://itstimetotheorize.tumblr.com/post/657917418942971904/little-nightmares-2-the-issues-surrounding-the
When Mono used his power to drag the tower in front of him, his actions alone might have confirmed what the eye had suspected all along...Mono and Six had the potential to end its reign of terror so long as they stayed together...and for this very reason, it needed them apart.
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If the eye grew to understand its situation in regards to Mono and Six, then perhaps Shadow Six had also learned for herself why it was the eye had planned to leave her body out in the middle of the ocean once she became the new lady of the maw. The eye needed Six to keep the maw running to ensure its survival, it needed her to stay away from Mono to prevent her from  unknowingly aiding him in ending his loop,
Eye needed Six to continue giving into her corrupted desires and continue to struggle in filling the void left by her missing soul (aka Shadow Six) so she would inevitably remain latched to the maw and never feel the need to leave it! because if she left, who knows what she would do and who knows what would become of the maw itself. But of all the things the eye could've expected from Six.... we imagine it never expected her to turn against everything it had planned as she received aid from the one being it never bothered to take note of, shadow Six.
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When Shadow Six appears in little nightmares 1, we see the lights flicker as a way to mark her presence. Because no matter where Six was, as soon as Six began to eat and as soon as those lights flickered... we knew shadow Six would be seen watching nearby.
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And she always was...until the end of little nightmares. When Six absorbs the Ladys powers, we once again see Shadow Six standing next to Six, the closest we had ever seen her!. However !... this is the last we see of Shadow Six as the Ladys powers begin to transfer to Six’s body.
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After Six absorbed the Lady’s powers, well... no matter how much the lights flicker and as we see Six walking through the guests floor... not once do we ever see shadow Six standing nearby....but maybe this was always because Shadow Six had succeeded in her efforts...
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Before killing the guests, we always theorized Six used her newly acquired powers to do now what she couldn't back then... she reunited with the one piece of her life lost during her time in the pale city... Shadow Six herself. 
But if Six truly did become whole once again as she reunite with her lost half then... what did she know now as she made her way up to the maws exit? or rather...what did she remember?. 
In the comics, Six was always stated to have had trouble remembering her life outside the maw. When other kids asked her to try and remember what she saw, she only ever felt the need to keep her memories locked away...but why?
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Was she to afraid of what she might find?...or did she feel a strong overwhelming sense of confusion and mixed feelings to painful to bare should she actually take the time to remember those memories?... 
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Keep in mind, we don't yet know what it was she couldn't bring herself to remember, but considering the events of little nightmares 2, its possible Six felt nothing but pain and suffering waiting for her behind the very memories she only ever felt should be forgotten. 
The pain and suffering she feared most likely originated from everything she faced and saw in the city and was ultimately the result of three major events which transpired, 1. the memories she had of eye forcefully attempting to corrupt her desire for the comfort and escape she craved from her lovely music box and from being warped into the hideous monster we saw in the game as she became infected with escapism, 
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2. the pain and trauma she later experienced as she watched Mono cut her from the perfect false world the eye had made her addicted to by destroying the very object she cherished but continued to tie her to eyes control... the music box... 
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Monster Six always cried out in pain every time Mono hit the music box, but maybe this was always because being torn from the false world eye created was always a situation which would be deeply upsetting and painful for anyone to bare.
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and 3.the pain and sadness she felt as she later contemplated her sudden decision to drop Mono out of anger for him breaking her music box...leaving her with a heavy feeling of regret she just couldn't bare bring herself to understand...until the end of little nightmares 1.
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Where am I going with this? well, if Six and shadow Six had truly been reunited near the end of little nightmares 1, then could it be possible Six’s mind not only began to flood with everything she had tried to resist remembering ...but everything else shadow Six had witnessed herself during her time away?...if she did then... did Six know...EVERYTHING?!
As Six made her way up the maws stairs, did she understand what the eye was and how it needed her to develop a desire for the music box she loved so much, as it was the only way it could corrupt her and leave her just as mindless as the rest of viewers?
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Did she understand the eye had always intended to use her as a temporary host in order to get to Mono? and most of all...did she see just what Mono went through to save her as Shadow Six followed him all throughout the pale city?!
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 And did she understand just what she needed to do as she felt her new incredible power flowing through her?
It had always been said no one could ever escape the lure of the maw and for someone like Six who suffered from extreme hunger pains, one could only ever assume she would stay right were she stood...but she didn't...despite whatever corrupted desires Six had developed during her time in the tower, could it be she no longer felt those desires to leave her tied to the maw? or did she learn to do what the eye had feared anyone would learn to do... Six took control of her own desires. She got fed up with the world just as much as Mono did, and once she did, she decided for herself what she wanted to do rather than submit to whatever the eye expected her to accept. As Six walked through the guests, we see her kill them with no remorse, 
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but if what we theorized is true, then its understandable why she would do so...she wasn't hungry....she was angry!
because for the first time in a long time, Six understood she had been tormented, manipulated and most of all, she had been tricked into focusing her attention on the pain Mono caused her rather than the true source of her suffering, the eye entity itself. 
Perhaps it was always fitting for us to hear the song "togetherness" all throughout Six’s journey in the maw. This song was always a symbol of Mono and Six as we heard the two of them sing together in the Little Nightmares II main menu. So to hear this song near the end of little nightmares 2 and little nightmares 1 well....maybe there really was a part of Six who never wanted to let go of this “togetherness”...
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The only question now is...what will Six do?. Despite having left the maw, we see her realize she is still trapped in the middle of the ocean. However, looking back on her now, one could only ever assume she would have no other choice but to admit defeat...but defeat was never something Six was known for, she was never one to give up so easily, after all...Six is not a normal child...
And as we hear the sound of another boat making its way to the maw near the end of little nightmares 1, who knows what Six will do should she continue her efforts to leave...but at least one thing is for certain...the all seeing eye has no idea the kind of wrath it had awoken within Six.
As for what this could mean for the future of little nightmares? well...I guess we will just have to wait and see, for now...its just a theory...a little nightmares 2 theory!
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foilfreak · 4 years ago
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4 Lords Raise Rose AU Ideas
Not a single person asked for this, but that other post where I talk about the 4 lords adopting Rose but still technically being terrible people got way more popular than I expected it to, so, with about 6 shots of tequila in my system and a terrible urge to spit my thoughts out for all the internet to see and judge, I’ve decided to make a follow up post. Here’s how I think the 4 lords would take care of Rose in the event they rebelled against Mother Miranda and decided to raise Rose as their own instead, but like under the cut after a little bit cuz i accidentally went way too fucking hard with this and I don’t want ppl to get mad at me for making them scroll for an hour to get past this post:
First and foremost, I think they’d do it in stages, and what I mean by this is that Rose would essentially be given to a specific Lord for some period of her life, like a couple years, and then when she was deemed old or strong or annoying enough, she’d be moved to a different lord for some period of time and so on and so forth. They would do this because a) they all live in different areas and have shit to do so it’s easier to have Rose live with one lord at a time and then the other lords can just go visit her there from time to time, rather than try to work out a weekly custody schedule which we all know Alcina and Karl would NEVER be able to agree on so let’s not even bother, and b) because each lord would have either some skill or set of knowledge that would make them the best for caring for Rose at that specific point in her life. This way, all the lords have a (somewhat) equal chance to be a part of Rose’s life and teach her something while she’s with them. So with all that in mind now, let’s get down to who would have Rose and at what point in her life.
1. Starting off with infant Rose, I think she’d end up with the Dimitrescu’s for the first few years of her life, and the reason why I think this is because... well, Alcina IS already a mother to 3 girls, and while we don’t know a terrible amount about Bela, Cassandra, and Daniela’s “upbringing” under Alcina, we can gleam and theorize from her notes that, despite their fully grown bodies, the girls could very well have started out with the mental and physical capabilities of infants, and thus needed to be cared for and brought up in a similar manner as infants or children until they reached a certain point where they could officially be considered adults in mentality and ability, not just in physical appearance. So with this in mind, it’s entirely possible that Alcina could have at least some vague idea of how to care for an infant child through her experiences with the bug sisters; perhaps there’s some gaps in her knowledge, but if nothing else I imagine Alcina would be an infant Rose’s best shot at surviving infancy if only because the other 3 are so incompetent on how to care for a baby that Alcina looks like an expert in comparison. Not to mention that, of the possible locations for an infant to be raised, I do genuinely think that castle Dimitrescu would be the safest place for Rose to be kept during this vulnerable part of her life. Not only that but if Alcina has actually come to care for Rose as though she were one of her own daughters, then she would absolutely spoil Rose rotten with all the nicest clothes and fanciest toys, things that a small infant wouldnt be able to appreciate but would show that she’s loved and cared for nonetheless, and don’t even get me started on the bug sisters, I could see them fawning over Rose for hours on end, playing with her, singing to her, telling her stories of all the man-things they’ve gotten to play with today, and so much more. Overall, Rose would just be the most spoiled and pampered little baby with the Dimitrescus and there’s no changing my mind about this. The only thing I’m struggling to wrap my head around is how they’d feed her, since I doubt a small infant would take very well to blood wine and human flesh. I suppose it wouldn’t be terribly outrageous for them to hire a wet nurse/nanny to care for Rose during the day while the other Dimitrescus go about their daily duties, and when Rose is finally old enough to be introduced to solid food (I.e. fried human flesh cubes) they could do what they always do and turn the nurse into wine too, I guess. It’s not a solid idea but it’s more plausible than anything else I thought of so it’ll work!
2. After spending about 3 years with the Dimitrescus, Rose would then be moved to the Beneviento house. Now, If u don’t know anything about 3 year olds, then you’re probably ignorant to the fact that they are some of the craftiest, sneakiest, and most coniving groups of people to exist on this planet. 3 year olds are masters at getting into and touching just about anything and everything u don’t want them to touch, and worst of all, u won’t realize what they’re doing until they’ve already done it and left a huge mess behind, so while the Dimitrescus love and adore Rose dearly, they know it’s sadly time to hand her over when they find her sitting on top of a pile of dead bodies playing with a metal scythe in the dungeons. Once Rose is dropped off at the Beneviento house, I imagine Donna is her usual stoic self the first few weeks Rose is with her. She’s not cold or distant necessarily, in fact she’s quite happy that it’s finally her turn with precious baby Rose, but Donna isn’t exactly known for being outwardly expressive herself (and even Angie isn’t being quite as forward as she normally is), so things are quiet and peaceful for the first little while that Rose is under her care. It’s not until Rose takes an interest in her doll Angie, and more importantly the things that Donna can do with Angie, that things really start getting fun. By the end of Rose’s first month in the Beneviento house she and Donna are the best of friends and often spend their days either playing dress up and make pretend with Donna’s extensive doll collection, or playing elaborate games of cat and mouse, where Donna will set up lots of puzzles throughout the house for Rose to find and solve (I.e. rose has to match her dress to the doll with the same one as her to find a map telling her which kitchen cabinet Donna hid the chocolate in, or something like that), but be careful little Rose, Angie has been trying to get her hands on that chocolate all day, and if u take too long, she’ll find the map first and eat all the chocolate without saving you a single piece. Just silly little puzzles with enough at stake to engage the mind of a curious 3 year old, but never enough to put rose in any actual danger. Donna is nothing if not a watchful caretaker, so she makes sure she has sight of Rose at all times, occasionally giving her a hint if she’s struggling, and perhaps occasionally making things harder if that day’s puzzle is proving too easy for her. Overall, Rose’s time with Donna, while not as grand and luxurious as the Dimitrescus, was still a fun and enriching experience for the young girl, and there’s nobody in this world who thinks that Donna’s scar is cool more than Rose.
3. After another 3 years with Donna, Rose is now 6 years old and officially far too good at puzzle solving for Donna to keep up with. No matter what she tries or how hard she makes it, Rose just keeps blazing through the puzzles at an almost alarming rate, making it clear that Rose is desperately in need of not only a change in scenery, but also a change in education, and this is where Salvatore finally comes in. After leaving the Beneviento house, I think the next logical place for Rose to stay would be with Salvatore, who, with lore hinting at him perhaps being a scholarly man of some kind, would basically act as her elementary school teacher throughout the duration of her stay. Now, to be fair, Rose could have gone to Heisenburg’s factory, but Heisenberg outright refused to take her and the other 3 lords decide that the factory is simply too dangerous for Rose rn, who thus far hasn’t shown any signs of being anything other than a normal human girl with no noticeable abilities (save for a smart mouth and a terrifying habit of popping up when least expected, a habit she mostly uses to mess with Heisenberg, much to his disdain and Lady Dimitrescu’s delight), so it is to the mutant fish man’s unimaginable delight that he is unanimously voted Roses next caretaker, and the one responsible for her basic education. Despite his initial excitement however, when Rose is finally dropped off at the windmills by Donna, Salvatore realizes that he’s not 100% sure what to do with Rose now that he has her. He’d like to get started on her education right away but at the same time he’s so fearful of Rose hating him because of his disgusting appearance that he kind of just... avoids her entirely at first. He’s never far away from the little girl and is always ready to jump to her rescue should she need it, but other than that Salvatore seldom allows himself to be seen for the first month that Rose is with him, the only sign of him still being around being the platefuls of food that mysteriously appear in Rose’s room 3 times a day, as well as the occasional shiny trinket Salvatore found and thought Rose would like. At first, rose doesn’t seem to mind being left entirely to her own devices, but after every stone, log, and rotting fish corpse within 5 miles of the lake has been turned over and thoroughly examined, Rose decides she’s had quite enough of her Uncle Sal ignoring her, prompting the headstrong little girl to go looking for him herself. She finds Salvatore hiding underneath a patch of floating algae not far away from where she was playing and all but demands that the mutant man come out of the water and give her something to do or she’d tell Mother on him. Salvatore, shocked by the small child’s fearlessly blunt request, hesitates, not wanting to frighten Rose, but ultimately relents, crawling out of the water and timidly suggesting that he teach her how to read and write. Rose quickly agrees, seeming totally unbothered by Salvatore’s grotesque appearance, and the two quickly move to the schoolroom that had been set up specifically for Rose, where Salvatore spends hours upon hours a day teaching Rose everything he knows, filling the little girl’s head up first with the basics, letters and words, then numbers and simple equations, followed later by historical dates and time periods, algebraic formulas, and classic literature analysis, then biology, chemistry, physics, astrology, calculus, ecology, and so much more. Basically, anything there is to know, Salvatore knows at least something about it and he’ll make sure that Rose knows about it too. In the 3 years Rose spends with Salvatore she goes from already sharp as a whip, to being smarter than most adults even, and Salvatore takes immense pride in how intelligent and knowledgable Rose becomes thanks to his surprisingly effective teaching style. Overall, as a caretaker, Salvatore is pretty weird and doubts himself a lot, but Rose thinks he’s funny and loves learning from him so they get along very well and she loves him very dearly! He probs teaches her to swim and fish too.
4. So another 3 years come and go with incredible speed, and its with great sadness on Salvatore’s part that Heisenberg finally comes banging on the fish man’s door, all but demanding that he now be given his turn with Rose. Now, personally, I can see several different arguments being raised by the other 3 lords over why its a terrible idea to let a 9 year old anywhere near Heisenberg, much less be given into his care fully. After about 9 years of seeing his siblings paling around with the constantly growing child, and looking like theyre having the time of their lives all the while, however, Karl decides that perhaps there’s more to this little girl than he originally thought, and, with his interest now piqued (or at the very least looking forward to pissing the other 3 off for entertainment purposes), that its only fair that he be given a turn with her now too, seeing as how he’s the only one who hasn’t been given the chance to be her caretaker yet. This naturally does NOT go over well with the other 3 lords. Alcina all but threatens to kill Karl should he step so much as within 10 ft of Rose, while Donna pipes up and demands to know what his sudden interest in Rose is. Even Salvatore, who is quick to flinch away from direct conflict, goes as far as to harshly point out the plethora of times Karl had outright denied their previous attempts to get him to engage with Rose, so why on earth would they hand her over to him now when he’s previously shown to have absolutely no interest in her? After a long spout of yelling between the 4 siblings, an agreement is reached, wherein Rose herself will be given the chance to decide whether she wants to go with Heisenberg, or whether she’ll return to one of the other 3 lords for the time being. It is to Alcina, Donna, and Salvatore’s absolute horror however, that Rose enthusiastically agrees to go with her Uncle Karl to live in his factory, and with the deal already set, the other lords can do nothing to stop her from going. The trip to drop off Rose at heisenberg’s factory is a long and arduous one, especially for Salvatore, who sobs the whole way there about Rose forgetting about him despite the young girl’s insistence that she’d visit. The first thing Karl does after officially having Rose handed over to him, is give her an extensive list of all the places in the factory in which she is under no circumstances permitted to enter without his permission (which basically only leaves the control room and the old storage closet that acts as her bedroom as viable places for Rose to go and explore). The second thing Karl does is dump her in her new storage closet bedroom and then hightail it for his workshop to work on whatever sick and twisted amalgamation he’s got cooked up this time around. At first, Rose isn’t terribly bothered by this, since she’s used to having something of an “adjustment period” when she’s with a new caretaker, but unfortunately for her, this adjustment period lasts a hell of a lot longer than the others did, and by the time 3 months of almost no meaningful contact with Karl, Rose decides to take matters into her own hands and ascends into the depths of the factory despite the express orders not to do so. Now, going back to the idea that the 4 lords are still pretty terrible people, I doubt Rose has been kept ignorant to the less savory aspects of her caretaker’s lives, and tbh she probably doesn’t think anything of the fact that the Dimitrescus makes wine out of the blood of virgin women or that Salvatore still does cadou experiments (and had her help on occasion), but I imagine even Rose would find the projects Karl works on to be at least a little
4, cont. gruesome and horrifying in nature, especially since Heisenberg is the one she knows the least about. However, instead of turning Rose away from Heisenberg, these terrifying metal creatures she sees locked up only spark her already insatiable curiosity, and by the time she finally tracks Karl down, Rose is all but trembling to learn more about this horrifyingly fascinating metal world. Unfortunately, Karl is not nearly as happy to see Rose as Rose is to see him, and the engineer all but grabs Rose by the scruff of her neck and drags her back up to the control room, yelling and screaming at her all the while about how she was explicitly instructed not to enter these parts of the factory without his permission. Needless to say that Rose does not enjoy this treatment and immediately lashes out, half out of anger and half out of confusion as to why Karl was treating her like this. He was the one who wanted her here in the first place, so why the hell was he just ignoring her now? It didn’t make any sense and it was starting to piss Rose off, so naturally the only thing left for her to do in order to solve this complicated situation would be to continue to disobey Karl until he either gave up and sent her back to one of the other lords, or finally payed some damn attention to her for once. So that’s exactly what she did. Every single day Rose left her room (which Karl kept telling himself he needed to put a lock on, but never did cuz he’s an idiot) and descended down into the depths of the factory looking for something ogle at or tinker with, and every single day Karl would track her down wherever she’d managed to get to and throw her back upstairs threatening to feed her to the lycans if she did it again. This incredibly frustrating cycle continued on for the better part of the next month or so, finally coming to a head when Rose managed to wander into the part of the factory where the... less than successful experiments got put whenever Karl doesn’t have any further use for them but is feeling too lazy to kill them off himself. Long story short, Rose runs into a Sturm that chases her around the factory, causing all manner of mayhem and destruction, and would have torn her to ribbons had it not been for Karl, who jumped in at the last second and was able to fend the damn thing off long enough for Rose to get the ever living fuck out and back up to the control room where it’s safe. There’s a lot of loud noises and explosions coming from deep within the factory that last for what feels like an eternity, but Rose doesn’t dare venture out again until everything has gone eerily quiet and a deep sense of worry has settled in the pit of her stomach over what had become of her latest caretaker. Turns out the Sturm had recognized its creator and, after watching its initial prey escape because of said creator, quickly decided that it fucking hated Karl with every fiber of its being and wanted him dead if it was the last thing it’s propellers did. Now, we all know that Karl is a big strong boy who’s more than capable of handling his own creations and taking down strong enemies, but the Sturm is a creation that even he struggles to control on good days and today is decidedly not a good day so not only does Karl not have the slightest bit of control over the death machine trying to kill him, but its also a lot stronger than Karl initially thought and apparently not picky about the method which causes Karl’s death, which is evidenced by the nearly dead Sturm ramming itself into a power generator as a final act of defiance and nearly blowing up the whole factory and everybody inside. Heisenberg is able to contain the explosion somehow but not without considerable damage to himself first. Rose is, naturally, quite horrified to find Karl passed out in the elevator that had taken him up from the lower levels of the factory where the explosion was, skin burnt nearly to a crisp in certain areas and blood pooling from just about every part of him, and immediately heads over to try and help her injured caretaker.
4, cont. again cuz I physically can’t stop myself. Now, I imagine that any normal 9 year old probably wouldnt be able to handle this sort of situation in any meaningful way, but i think we can all agree that Rose is the furthest thing from normal (especially considering who raised her) and has probably seen enough blood and gore to not be terribly freaked out by it, but this is where things get a little speculative because we don’t know what Rose’s powers are exactly but we do know from the final cutscene that she does have them, perhaps even a plethora of abilities, and I like to think that some of those powers are related to Ethan’s superhuman healing capabilities, but unlike Ethan however, who from what we’ve seen could only heal himself, Rose can actually heal other people (tho this isn’t something she’s aware of at this point in time). The second the elevator door opens to reveal, what looks to be, a half-dead Karl slumped over in the corner, Rose panics and runs to him, doing everything she can think of save for maybe grabbing him by the collar or slapping him across the face, to try and get Karl to wake up, except nothing works, he wont wake up no matter how hard Rose tries and i imagine this must be incredibly distressing for Rose who never intended for something like this to happen or for her caretaker to die because he had to protect her even tho he told her not to go down there because its dangerous and anything down there WOULD kill her if given the opportunity. Anyways Rose is now full on sobbing on top of Karl like only a 9 year old who just discovered that her actions have consequences can, but unbeknownst to her (and technically Karl cuz he’s a little busy bleeding out all over the floor) Karl’s wounds are slowly beginning to close, the burns on his face and hands shift from a bright red to a dark brown before crusting over and flaking off, and even his breathing, which had been labored and inconsistent at first, began to level out slightly. Karl woke up not long after that and was surprised to find that a) he was still alive, which was cool, b) he was injured but not in indescribable pain, also cool, and c) there was a literal sobbing child all but sitting on top of him, which is definitely not something Karl was expecting but he supposed he’s been met with worse things upon waking up after almost dying so why question it. After taking a moment to gather their bearings, the two return to the safer parts of the factory to rest and recover and for the most part this little incident of their’s goes largely unspoken, with Rose not exactly in the mood to talk about how her disobedience nearly got herself and Karl killed, and Karl being too fucking tired to go after her about it, especially since she seems to have learned her lesson. The only downside to this whole thing is that now Karl has a busted up fuckin leg thats gonna take an eternity to heal even for him, and with so much work to still do he’s more or less forced to drag Rose around the factory and use her like the annoying assistant he never wanted (except he did want her, thats how this whole fucking mess started, you lug), except that Rose, who is more than used to playing lab assistant from her time with Salvatore, quickly proves to be a rather capable and handy person to have around, if only because she knows the difference between a philips and a flathead screwdriver even better than he does. An amicable, if still slightly awkward peace settles over Heisenberg’s factory once Karl starts actively engaging with Rose and giving her something to do on a daily basis, even if its just standing around watching him work and occasionally having her questions about what he’s doing answered. It doesn’t take very long after that for Karl to begin realizing that perhaps throwing a huge tantrum to get Rose to come here only to ditch her upstairs by herself for 3 months might not have been the smartest (or most considerate) thing he’s ever done, and even goes as far as to (kinda) apologize to Rose for being such a dick to her since she arrived.
4, last one i swear. Rose forgives him, though not before adding that she already knew he was an asshole from Alcina, which earns her a halfhearted swipe from Karl that Rose easily dodges with a childish giggle. From that point on their relationship improves astronomically as Karl finally gives in and teaches Rose about about engineering and everything else that goes into making the metal horrors that he’s known for. Karl is shocked at how quickly Rose picks up on the trade, getting to the point where Karl wonders if he should start giving Rose her own projects to work on, but quickly rolls his eyes and groans when he remember that Salvatore was the one responsible for her education up until this point, the mere thought of having to give compliments to that “moronic freak” for giving Rose such a good educational foundation makes him want to vomit despite how secretly impressed he is. Overall, Rose’s time with Heisenberg starts out shaky, very shaky even, but after a bit of disaster and some swallowing of the pride on Karl’s part, they end up growing quite close and have a nice fun Uncle and martass Neice dynamic. They make a good team and Karl does genuinely enjoy having a little assistant around to help him with his projects, even if Rose can sound a bit too much like Alcina on some days for his liking.
5. 3 more years come and go and now Rose is a strong and healthy 12 years old, perhaps riddled with a few more scars and smearings of ash and motor oil across her skin than when she first arrived but still strong and capable nonetheless. Going back to that first statement however, this of course means that it’s time for the other 3 lords to come banging on Karl’s door for a change, all but demanding that Rose be handed back over to them. Karl of course refuses, telling them all to fuck off and that Rose didn’t want a leave the factory, so upon realization that all 4 lords were gathered here with the intention of taking Rose back to live with them indefinitely, a fight immediately breaks out between the 4 siblings, as each one makes their case as to why Rose should be returned to them and not the other 3, which of course none of the 4 lords can come to an agreement about because they ALL want Rose to stay with them. So after another long and pointlessly arduous argument, Alcina finally breaks, proclaiming that they’d be here for all eternity of they didn’t make a decision now, and that, like the first time the 4 siblings argued over whether Rose should go with Heisenberg or return to one of the previous lords, Rose would be the one to decide which of her four caretakers she would return to. The agreement is made reluctantly, mostly on the part of Salvatore, Donna, and Heisenberg, but there was seemingly no other way for them to come to a decision, so it would unfortunately have to be up to Rose to decide which of her 4 caretakers she wants to stay with permanently. Rose is quickly brought before the 4 lords and explained the situation, before being given some time to herself to think and make her final decision. A tense and uneasy silence falls over the 4 lords as they wait for the little girl, who they had shown an uncharacteristic amount of mercy and time and devotion and love in the 12 years since Mother Miranda had brought her to the village with the intention of using her to revive an already lost and long-gone baby that she never would have gotten back no matter how hard she tried. Although they refused to admit it to one another, the lords all secretly knew that Rose had wormed her way into each of their cold, dead hearts, reviving an aspect of their humanity that they’d all thought had been lost ages ago. Rose came to the village bringing with her a wave of death and destruction, and yet throughout her childhood she has brought them nothing but light and life, illuminating their previously dark and desolate existences. The 4 lords loved their Rose very dearly and desperately wanted her to be happy, yet each of them possesses a dark and selfish desire to have Rose pick them over the other 3, to come and live with them forever and fill the hole deep inside them that they never knew needed filling. After a short while, Rose comes back out and stands before her 4 beloved caretakers, looking around nervously as she picks at her fingernails. The silence is thick and heavy as the 4 lords stare at the young girl, waiting with bated breaths for her to give her final verdict. Rose continues to say nothing as tears begin to flow from her eyes, sliding down her cheeks in thick streams as the girl begins to sob, dropping her head and clenching her dress. The 4 lords look between one another in confusion, unsure of what to do with this sudden burst of tears. Rose tearfully admits that she can’t and doesn’t want to choose which of the 4 lords she wants to live with permanently because she loves them all very much and wants to be able to see and live with all of them, like they’ve done thus far. Although the lords detest the idea of having to share Rose with anyone, they reluctantly come to an agreement for the girl’s sake, deciding that they would continue with the arrangement they’ve had thus far, only that Rose would switch between caretakers every 3 months instead of every 3 years, giving rose plenty of opportunities to see each of her caretakers just like she wanted. From then on, Rose continues to live her life
5, cont. growing up and learning more and more from each of her beloved caretakers. Although Rose would likely never know what a normal life looks like, living with 4 criminally insane monsters in the remote mountain village in Romania, it would be impossible to say that she wouldn’t have a happy life despite that. Perhaps its because the girl simply doesn’t know any better, so she doesn’t have the ability to see just how messed up her life and her 4 caretakers really are, but i imagine that Rose probably wouldn’t care very much to learn even if she had the opportunity. She’s a happy little girl living a strange but enjoyable life with the only family she’ll ever need. What more could she possibly ask for?
6. As for how Mother Miranda would play into this whole scenario I’ve just drunkenly spat out, im honestly not 100% sure. Ive seen some people suggesting that MM just kinda chills and lets the lords do what they want with Rose, but tbh I honestly don’t see that happening in this universe. MM would still have been just as crazy and driven to get Eva back as she was in canon, so i doubt she’d willingly standby and let her “false children” take away her one shot of getting her real child back simply because they didn’t want to hurt her, i just don’t personally see that happening. The two most likely scenarios i can come up with is that the Lords either banded together and look Miranda on together, their combined forces being enough to take her down and kill her, OR, Ethan is the one to take down MM like he did in canon but he passes out before he can get to rose, giving the lords (who he hadn’t ended up killing but just escaping from i guess) the opportunity to slide in, grab rose, and hightail it out of there, leaving Ethan’s body to be retrieved by Chris, who, due to not seeing or hearing Rose anywhere, believes that Rose must have been accidentally killed along with MM, which he later tells to Ethan and Mia. Regardless of how MM gets taken out of the picture (or if she’s given room to potentially come back later), the 4 lords retreat with Rose and begin the whole cycle I explained up above, but i did want to briefly address how I saw MM fitting into all of this since she is a vital part of the original story and the biggest obstacle to the lords having anything to do with Rose.
Anyways, that was so much longer than I intended it to be but I had so much fun with it just because it gave me the opportunity to spit some fun ideas and potential plot points out about this cool AU that I like and hope someone does SOMETHING with, please god someone do it, I’d do it myself but i have enough projects at the moment unfortunately. If you managed to make it all the way to the bottom, thank you for reading all of that, I appreciate it, and I hope you enjoyed at least some parts of this, and maybe even agree with some of the things I said. Feel free to leave your own ideas in the comments, I’d love to read them and hopefully if enough people like this maybe i will actually do something with it. Who knows? I certainly dont. Anyways thank you for reading all this, i hope you have a great day, and maybe ill see you around in another post. Bye!!! <3
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lokifantasies · 4 years ago
Text
The Time My Dad Went a Little Crazy (Loki/Jade/Reader)
Jade gives a presentation on her own father.
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Read the Mischievous Life series here!
It's the last period of the school day, and Jade is bouncing to get out of her seat and get home – completely annoyed with the lesson for the day, but Mr. Hunter won't quit talking.
"Does everybody have their assignments?" he asks for the hundredth time that period. "Remember, those of you who are courageous enough to bring your parents to your presentation will get double the grade." Jade stares at the paper in her hand and nervously bites her nails. When she finally makes eye contact with her teacher, he gives her a worried look but finally releases the class. "Jade," Mr. Hunter calls out before the eleven-year-old has a chance to run out the door. "Could I have a word?"
Jade rolls her eyes to where her teacher can't see and reluctantly walks to the desk. "What's up?"
"Is everything alright, Jade?" he asks, genuinely worried.
Jade smiles and nods. "Yeah," she says in a very unconvincing way, "just – I can't wait to get home and start this project."
"Hm, alright then," Mr. Hunter says, "I'm sure it will be wonderful."
The poor guy has no idea what he's done.
When Jade gets outside, her dad is waiting for her to get in the car. When she does, she throws her backpack in the backseat, slumps down in the seat, and crosses her arms – refusing to greet or give her dad a hug as she normally would.
"Is everything -,"
"Yes," Jade interrupts Loki. "Can we just go home?"
Loki doesn't argue with his daughter, and the two ride home in silence – Loki attempting to make her laugh here and there, but all Jade will do is stare out the window. Once they pull up in the driveway, Jade snatches her bag and practically sprints inside, slams the front door, and then slams the one to her room.
"What was that about?" you ask Loki, confused at your daughter's attitude.
Loki shrugs and sits down on the couch. "I have no idea. She wouldn't even speak to me." His face shows his saddened heart.
You sit down next to him and rub his back. "Oh, my love," you soothe him. "I'm sure it's just hormones or something – she's getting to be a teenager."
"You're probably right," Loki admits.
You smile and place a kiss on his cheek. "I'm always right."
At dinner that night, Jade still refuses to speak to either one of you, but she'll mutter a few words here and there to you – giving none to her father. It worries him more, but he doesn't say anything – trusting that it's just teenage hormones, as you theorized. When you and Loki go to get the twins ready for bed, Jade is watching television in the living room – promising that she'll go to sleep soon. Once the twins have been washed and put into their pj's, you go into your bedroom, and Loki walks back out into the living room to turn the television off. However, he's met with the sight of his eldest daughter sound asleep on the couch. Carefully, Loki bends down, scoops up the little girl, turns off the television, and then carries Jade to her bed. He pulls her blankets back and gently lays Jade on the sheets – pulling the blankets back up and tucking her in, and kissing her forehead like he used to do when she was little. However, before he turns to walk out, his eye is caught by a piece of paper on her nightstand. He reads it over, and his heart sinks to his feet, and tears spring to his eyes as he looks at his sleeping daughter. Loki walks out of her room without waking her, closes her door, and then heads to the bedroom the two of you share.
"Figured it out," Loki says through a sniff as he throws himself on the bed and hands you the paper. Your heart breaks when you read the slip of paper:
Semester Assignment
Student: Jade
Topic: The 2012 Battle of New York
Paper: 5 paragraphs minimum
Presentation: 10 minutes minimum
"Oh, my Loki," you breathe out as you wrap your arms around your lover's neck. "Sweetheart, she can't be mad at you over this."
Loki scoffs. "And we thought we were protecting her by enrolling her under your last name."
"We did what we thought was best," you remind him. "We had to know this was going to come one day."
"No wonder she wouldn't even look at me," he shakes his head, angry with himself.
"My love, Jade doesn't know the whole story," you tell him. "She knows what everyone else does – we haven't told her your side."
"We aren't going to," he stresses. "She won't listen to me."
You absentmindedly play with the curls in his long hair. "I'll speak to her," you tell him quietly. "You two are too close to let this ruin your relationship."
Loki rests his head on your shoulder – the feeling of you playing with his hair calming his nerves. "I love you."
You bend down and kiss his head. "I love you too."
The next morning, Loki takes the twins out to play in the nearby park so that you and Jade can have a private conversation concerning her semester assignment.
"Hey, mom?" Jade calls out as she approaches you on the couch. "Have you seen my -,"
You hold up the slip of paper. "We did."
"We?" Jade asks as she sits down next to you.
You nod. "Your father saw it when he took you to your bed last night," you tell her.
"Oh," Jade says softly, her eyes dropping to the floor.
You turn to face your eleven-year-old. "Jade, your dad left the house so that you and I could talk about this, so...let's talk about this."
Jade shrugs and keeps her eyes on the floor. "What's there to talk about?" she scoffs. "Dad led an invasion on the Earth, killed thousands of people because he was mad at Thor, and then lost horribly."
"No," you say sternly, reaching for her chin to get her to look at you. "That's part of the story, sweetheart. We thought it was best to wait until you were older to tell you the whole story – to make sure you really understand."
A week later, you're getting dressed and throwing clothes at Loki, who's trying to hide under the blankets and pillows – trying to avoid showing his face.
"No," he moans when you lift a pillow and look at his sleepy face. "You go – I stay and sleep."
You chuckle and fight with the god over the pillow. "Loki, get up – Jade wants us there."
"Wrong," he corrects you, "she wants you there. They don't need to know I'm her father. I'm sure she'll thank us for not embarrassing her – maybe then she'll speak to me." Sick of his attitude, you reach your hand under the blanket and slap his naked ass as hard as you can. "That's cute," he continues to groan.
You sigh in desperation and try to push him out of bed, but of course, the god is stronger than you are. "If you want to have sex while all the kids are gone today, then you'd better get your fine ass out of bed."
Loki's eyes finally open. "Alright, fine – fine – I'm up." He sits up and looks down at the clothes you had thrown on him. Being a showoff, he waves his hand over the clothes, and he's instantly dressed and ready to go – his hair styled and his face washed. When the two of you arrive at Jade's school and classroom, the only way Loki will go is if you agree to sit in the very back with him – hiding from everyone else. When Jade gets up to do her presentation, Loki reaches for your hand and squeezes it tightly – terrified that you might let go. When Jade makes eye contact with you and Loki, she smiles briefly before starting her PowerPoint, and when Loki sees what she titled it, a chuckle escapes his lips.
The Time My Dad Went a Little Crazy
by Jade P. Lokisdottir
Mr. Hunter realizes why Jade had been aggravated when she first got the assignment, and his eyes turn to you and Loki, who are chuckling at the title of your daughter's presentation. When the two of you stop, she begins to speak – making sure to tell the entire story from the very beginning. By the end of her presentation, there weren't many dry eyes left in the room. The vast amount of facts that hadn't been told before start turning the gears in people's minds, and some people turn around to see you and the God of Mischief sitting in the back of the room – most of them with tears in their eyes. One woman mouths the words, "I'm sorry," to the god before turning back around.
"...Overall, it's important to keep an open mind and leave room for the facts that may not be reported within the confines of a book – not only for the sake of historical events – but also for the relationships we nurture with others – especially when you're the daughter of the God of Mischief. And mom, no offense, but I'd like to use my last name from now on," Jade finishes her presentation with a grin – running toward you and Loki and not caring who watches her jump into her father's arms. "I love you, dad," Jade cries on Loki's shoulder as he rubs her back and holds her tightly.
"I love you too, my sweet girl," Loki quietly responds – his eyes closed as he takes in the feel and scent of the daughter he doesn't feel like he deserves.
Thank you to @sunshineyrosie for this wonderful prompt/idea!
Taglist (let me know if you want to be added!)
@radicallyred @holdmytesseract @vicmc624 @mm2305 @nms224 @clockblobber @missdforever @winchestersgirl222
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