#to prove a point to himself and to vent those frustrations. much to think about!

[julesnichols]

Okay okay we all know how God tier the idea of Mark Scout/Helena hatesex is, but hear me out:

What about Mark Scout wanting to be rough with Helena, but being incapable of it? What about him becoming increasingly frustrated with himself because he can only be gentle with someone whose company ruined his life, as far as he's concerned?

[hiraethwrote]

too much — satoru gojo

contents : gn!reader but written with f!reader in mind, one description of reader having longer hair, established relationship, insecure reader, vent piece/self insert hehe, comfort, fluff, no use of y/n — wc 0.7k

“you okay?” satoru asked innocently, tilting his head slightly to get a glimpse of you leaned on his shoulder. a small spark of worry had ignited in him when you had very suddenly turned silent.

“do you think i’m too much?”

“what do you mean ‘too much’?”

with a shy shrug of your shoulders, you opened your mouth again to answer, “you know… too much.”

“not to me, you’re not.”

lifting your head to look at him, your eyes locked instantly. he was wearing a relaxed expression, the tiniest smile at the corner of his lips persevering through his concern.

“you sure?” you blinked.

“has someone told you you’re too much?” he suppressed the small chuckle that bubbled up inside him at the share disbelief of the scenario you were hinting at.

again, you shrugged. “something along those lines.”

an aggressive scoff very abruptly shot past his teeth along with a dramatic roll of the eyes. “it’s not you that’s too much, it’s them who aren’t enough,” he said, slowly starting to rile himself up over the fact that someone would even dare think you were too much.

“oh?” was all you managed to squeak out, satoru quickly having you turn speechless.

“i just mean-“ he cut himself off, licking his lips in frustration, haven taken serious offence at the scenario you had presented. with eyes flittering about, he racked his brain to form his explanation further in hopes he could get his point across. “i suppose, in those relationships, you probably were too much. but not because you’re too much, you know?”

you blinked at him rapidly, “nooo?” you dragged out.

“you’re too much in the sense that you’re too much for them, as they are just not able to handle all the beautiful things that make you you!”

somehow, his frantic rambling was slowly starting to make sense, and he was very clearly going into his speech with his entire heart and body. and with the intensity he explained, he caused your own heart to start beating faster against your chest and clenching your jaw shut, curiously waiting for him to continue.

“whoever said this to you is a glass-“ and again he lost you. “say they’re a glass meant to hold ten ounces, then they are simply too small a glass for you to pour yourself into as you are sixteen ounces.”

“i see,” you whispered, nostrils starting to flare as satoru now had your eyes start to water with threatening tears.

your breath hitched when he reached out to grab your hand in his, thumb stroking comforting lines on the back of your hand, softly securing the grip with a light squeeze.

“it’s not your fault when you end up overfilling a glass that’s just not good enough to hold you,” he said, his tone having returned to a more calm rhythm, holding your gaze. “lucky for you, you have a boyfriend who is a twenty ounce glass,” playful pride carrying his words that had the corners of your lips turn upwards for the first time that evening. “which means i have room to hold all sixteen gorgeous ounces of you, and then some.”

a shaky chuckle tumbled out of you, all his words tugging at your heartstrings in all the right ways. as ridiculous as he was, he always knew how to turn a bad situation around. scaring away any negative thoughts before they settled permanently, he proved once again to be the person you could rely on to be your rock — your safety.

“besides,” he sighed, tucking a stray hair behind your ear, “look who you’re dating. you could never be more than me.”

now you let out a genuine laugh, leaning into his hand as he hand moved it to cup your cheek. “well, true,” you played along, continuing to giggle a little when he softly pinched your cheek as ‘punishment’. “but i think i’m a big enough glass to hold you as well.”

a soft smile painted his face. “i’ve never felt as if i’ve spilled over.”

“that’s good,” you whispered, carefully turning your head to place a chaste kiss agains the palm of his hand. “thank you.”

“always.”

author's note : can yall tell someone recently triggered my insecurities hehe... well i'm bringing myself comfort by writing this then. also, this is inspired by a very sweet ig reel i saw comments and reblogs are appreciated

tags (open — link to taglist form) : @sad-darksoul . @madaqueue . @gdamnackerman . @toadtoru . @harperluvgojo . @nishislcve . @ichore . @sugurunugget

©hiraethwrote 2025 . all rights reserved. reposting, translating and otherwise plagarisim is prohibited

[fangirlanxiety74]

Nah okay, I was gonna keep my vent a vent, but now I see I can't do that, so let's instead try and be coherent about what I'm talking about.

tldr; the way this fandom treats the men is horribly disgusting, and you all really need to figure yourselves out on why.

---

I have been sitting on all of these thoughts for awhile, so I apologize if I come off as angrier than I probably should be. But given how much this story as a whole means to me, it's very frustrating to sit back and watch the fandom slander characters to hell and back that really don't deserve it.

I don't understand where we got this idea from that the men are evil monsters, and thieves, and all around bad people. I don't understand where we got the idea that AM "did nothing" to them, or that Ellen is "the only one worth saving." Do you know just how cruel that is to say???

I will tell you how cruel it is to say! Let's remember this: AM has tortured all of them them for 109 years. Tortured, 24/7, no breaks whatsoever, for 109 years.

What exactly do you guys think torture does to people? Because it's not pretty. And it certainly doesn't leave you unaffected.

And we see that. Ted literally tells us how AM has tortured them all. Did we forget his infamous monologue??? I have a picture for you to remind you all!

Here! Right here! He literally, directly tells us what AM has done.

And sure, you can claim that Ted is lying here, if it weren't for the fact that the rest of the story literally proves he isn't, including Ted himself. The only real lies said here are about Ellen and himself; that Ellen got off easy and likes the punishment AM gives her, and that Ted hasn't been affected. Obviously, we know Ted has been messed with, and that Ellen hates this and is suffering like the rest of them.

But that doesn't mean the men haven't been suffering???

Here's a crazy thing you guys need to realize: People being sympathetic. And empathetic. Towards the Men and AM. Does not take away from the sympathy and empathy we give Ellen.

People saying that the men are victims. Doesn't automatically mean Ellen isn't a victim.

The men are also being tortured. They have also been tortured for 109 years. They are suffering and so is Ellen, and hell, so is AM. That's the point of the story. That's what makes it so tragic and horrifying: Is that they are all victims, and they are all suffering, and there is no end to it.

Saying that "The men are rape victims" doesn't automatically mean Ellen isn't a rape victim. It literally just means the men are also rape victims.

Because yes, AM does do shit to them! He turned Benny from a human and a homosexual to a monkey who cannot consent, because his mind has devolved into acting on animal-instinct at worst, and toddler-behavior at best. He turned Gorrister, a literal peace marcher and human rights activist, into a guy who's comfortable hitting a woman. And with that context in mind, it's not wrong or incorrect to assume Ted was also a normal, everyday guy who got turned into the paranoid, delusional mess he is, who is comfortable thinking those things about a woman.

In fact, I could go on a whole rant about how you guys treat Ted. I could go on for ages about how this fandom's treatment of Ted is distasteful at best, and ableist at worst, but I'll save that for another day. (You all should understand though: Being an unreliable narrator doesn't automatically make the narrator a bad person. It just means that the narrator's pov can't be trusted.)

But that's the point. That's the literal point of the story. The men cannot consent. Ellen cannot consent. All 5 of them have been stripped of their free will and autonomy, and AM has warped them into people they don't recognize. They were all average, everyday people before AM, and then the end of the world happened, and AM tortured them into becoming who we see in the book. If he didn't, AM would ultimately serve no purpose in the story (As he pretty much would just sit there and watch them starve), and Ted having his moment of clarity to mercy-kill them all would not be impactful. You would be erasing core aspects of their character and the story.

I will say it again:

Saying the men are victims doesn't make Ellen any less of a victim.

And I encourage you all to read that sentence, over and over, as many times as you need until you get it through your head.

"But Sara, what about the game!!!"

The game isn't canon. I don't know when we will accept this as a fandom, but it isn't. It is in the same boat as the FNAF movie or the Percy Jackson movies at best, and you wanna know how I know?

This line, right here. That's easy to miss, so I'm not surprised we have this take, but yeah. Benny literally has a line in the game about how he did the whole adventure alone, and clearly he did, or else we wouldn't even have this game, because they'd all be dead and Ted would be a slug.

And if that isn't enough, I want to show y'all this

Which is this! The Gamer Informer, issue 225, where they talk about the characters backstories specifically, and how they were altered from the original story, and how David Sears, one of the designers, did a lot in terms of writing their backstories.

"'I remember having some questions about the story line David Sears had written for Ted, but when I showed it to Harlan, he said that Sears had written a story very different from what they originally discussed,' Mullich says."

Literally right there. David Sears had altered and changed Ted's backstory from what Harlan Ellison had for him, and this is said for the others as well. It's actually really fascinating, and I highly suggest you read about it here if you want.

---

Having been in this fandom for about 2 years, it's really saddening to see this shift into. Needing to put down the men to uplift Ellen, and by extension, AM.

No one was spared from AM's torture. Not a single one of them. No one got to keep their freedom or stayed sane and whole. Because the story wouldn't be impactful otherwise.

And if you disagree with me on any of this, just block me. Just block me and move on. Any sort of argument you make in my DMs/reblogs/comments/asks, etc. will just be ignored, deleted, and make me block you back. I don't want to hear it, and I'm not going to change my mind.

[solariswrites]

Prove It, Oh I will | North/Sonic

Prompt: “Prove it.” "Oh, I will." Pairing: North/Sonic Summary: North gets a push to be bold about his love and desire to be with Sonic but will Sonic accept it? Tags: AU-Post Canon Divergence; Alpha! Sonic; Omega! North; Kissing; Implied Sexual Content, Getting Together AU Notes: - This is set in my au where Winner is pregnant and racing while Dean is back with Hunter X. Unlike day 1 prompt, in this one he now knows that Winner is pregnant with his pup but he is trying to figure out how to win back his mate and pup.

“I’m going to take this.” Sonic smiled and yet the happiness didn’t reach those beautiful dark eyes. As Sonic walked away, North swallowed hard. His own joy seemed to fade along with him. His hands that had been flat on his thighs  closed into fists. Every inch of him wanted to go after him and yank that shiny new phone out of his hand…

“You should just tell him.” Came Dean’s drawl, reminding him he wasn’t alone. 

“There’s nothing to tell.” North stubbornly responded, taking a sip of his victory martini. The one that Sonic insisted he try and had personally ordered from the bar for him. North had felt so special and that familiar yearning feeling that was now settled in his veins from missing Sonic intensified. He wanted…no needed to have Sonic in his life. It was the worst feeling not having Sonic be close.

“Yes there is or when he got a call from French Fry, you’d be fine with it.” Dean pointed out as North felt the heat rising on his cheeks at the nickname Dean must have heard when he’d been venting to Jeff the other day. 

“I…” North tried to deflect, but Dean shook his head. 

“Take it from me. If I’d been honest with Wi-...” Dean started but stopped, trailing off at mentioning Winner. It still hurt him a great deal and North felt bad that he had even made the beta think about his mate. “Let’s just say that if I’d been honest then instead of drinking alone tonight I’d be with my mate enjoying our victory. Don’t you want to be doing that?”

“What if that takes me away?” North couldn’t help but ask. 

“We’re your family, North. Being in Paris with Sonic won’t change that and there are legitimate circuits there that you can race that don't interfere with Babe’s title here.” Dean gave him a look, then plucked the martini from his hands, “Go before he heads back without knowing how you feel.” 

North nodded, licking his lips as he got up to go outside. He found Sonic leaning against the railing. He looked beautiful as he laughed at whatever his friend from fashion school said. The soft lighting of the neon sign illuminated his features, especially how his neck was exposed from the poor coverage of the shiny buttery soft net top he was wearing. Sonic’s white jacket had come off from the heat of the bar inside which had been taunting North all night. Sonic smelled incredible like his own personal summer of vanilla and fresh ferns. The desire that’d been shoved in the far reaches of his mind was back in full force. Dean’s encouragement replayed in his mind. 

Sonic had been aware the moment that North had come outside. He felt a mixture of frustration and happiness. Because the whole reason he’d left was to get away from the omega. North’s happiness smelled so damn good then the way his scent sweetned when accepting the martini, it’d been too much for Sonic. He’d claimed his friend was calling when in reality he’d called him as an excuse to get some fresh air lest he fell prey to his own desire to kiss North stupid right there in front of all their friends. Of course, Lip had taken the opportunity to tease him how stupid he was front running from his omega. 

“Sonic?” Lip’s voice reminded him he was still on the phone even as his gaze was now on North. There was a look in the other male’s eyes that he was sure he'd only fooled himself into thinking was there. Those warm eyes looked avid as they trailed down his body and back up again. Sonic shivered from the weight of it. Sonic licked his lips as Lip called his name again.  

“Yeah, I’m here Lip I…oi! North!” Sonic sputtered as suddenly North approached him, quickly taking  the phone from him. 

“Sorry, P’Lip, Sonic will call you back.” North said before ending the call and stuffing Sonic’s phone in the backpocket of his jeans. 

“North! Just what do you think you’re do-...” Sonic tried to understand why he was doing this but that was quickly forgotten when he felt the firm press of North’s lips against his own. He quickly gripped North’s biceps, gasping which only encouraged North to deepen the kiss. Nothing had ever felt more right for Sonic, not even when he realized that fashion was where his interest truly laid.  North closed the distance between them, bringing them flush together as well as pressing Sonic more into the railing. Not that it mattered because he could feel North’s desire pressing against his thigh.

Sonic knew if he didn’t stop this now there was going back. They’d both been drinking and despite how right it felt this could be a tipsy North that wouldn’t want this when sober. 

The whine he earned as he broke their kiss was firmly burned into brain , especially the sight of North trying to chase his lips for more. “You really shouldn’t have done that, North.” Sonic breathed out. 

“Was it an important call? Is P’Lip alright?” North sobered from the haze of being able to kiss Sonic just how he’d wanted for months. He’d wanted to be bold and clear on what he wanted from Sonic when he kissed him. So he was sure that Sonic wouldn’t misunderstand that this wasn’t him doing this because of their victory drinks. 

“No..” Sonic breathed out, “I meant the kiss you shouldn’t have-”

“Is there someone else you’re meant to be kissing?” North’s sweet maple and pecan scent took on a spicy cinnamon note that made Sonic want to bury his face into North’s neck and never leave. For North, he was confident the answer was no because those lithe hands of Sonic were still grasping his sides firmly; alsohe could feel Sonic's own desire pressing into him still. Their kiss hadn’t just awoken his own body but clearly Sonic’s. 

“No, there isn’t bu-” Sonic started to object but North cut him off. 

“Prove it.” North grinned, gaze dropping to Sonic’s lips. “Prove to me kissing you was the wrong thing to do when it’s all I’ve been dying to do since you came home. It’s what I want to be doing right now instead of talking and before you say it’s the martini it isn’t. I’d been hoping you’d kiss me since the BPS Night Fest and I’m tired of waiting. So prove it.”

“Oh I will.” Sonic responded, the heat that had been simmering low in his belly ignited. The knowledge that he could have had North since that night gave him the courage to stop holding back. Not that the thread had been thick to begin with. North is everything he could ever want. They’d have things they needed to talk about but for now this was enough. He could let his true feelings show and not be afraid of being rejected. 

Sonic leaned back in capturing North’s lips in a heated kiss with him licking his way inside, tasting the martini  once more and the taste that was ultimately North. It was brief though as he fought against the urge to just make out there outside the bar. Instead he opted for taking North home and continuing this in a space where they wouldn’t be interrupted. 

“I thought…” North breathed out, frowning. 

“Don’t worry baby,” Sonic reached for North’s hand. “We’re just heading home instead.”

Read on AO3 Read More of My Works for this Event Read more Event Works on AO3 Join the Writing Event [ Event has Ended ]

[scramblecat]

Hi! Me again, back with another Scramble Ramble. I was listening to a bunch of Narrator’s dialogue again and started thinking about the bucket endings, and how the Narrator reacts to all of them.

Then I made the realization that wait, the Narrator is reacting to most of those, because most of them aren’t planned. And I got to thinking, how in the world did the Narrator get roped into involving himself with fifteen brand new endings in a game which he values its integrity, involving an object that was never meant to have narrative significance in the first place?

So, without further ado, under the cut because it’s another long one, I present to you:

The Bucket, the Narrator, and the Endings of Ultra Deluxe

I highly doubt the Narrator would WILLINGLY talk about the bucket for 20-something endings, knowing how obsessed with the game’s integrity he is. There are few endings that are 100% planned from the start to involve the bucket as a narrative element and not a character— the only ones I can think of are silly birds, freedom, Mariella, and coward. The rest are either reactions (gameshow, broom closet, out of window, comedy, separation, cushion), the Narrator trying to prove a point to Stanley read: the Narrator getting jealous of the bucket and/or trying to convince Stanley to get rid of it and listen to him again, but we’ll talk about that later (bucket destroyer, apartment, bottom of the mind control facility, elevator) and the rest don’t even involve him at all (museum, escape pod, vent)

So it’s not his INTENTION to have the bucket be a pivotal part of the game. It’s his intention to show up the game developers, to prove to Stanley that he’s better than the developers & win him over again, to give him something to project on & an outlet for him to describe in detail how being held by Stanley would feel because despite being something inhuman he sure acts and feels like one I mean what

The bucket becomes a huge part of the game by happenstance alone… unless you take the influence of Gambhorra’ta and apply that.

We already know from the bucket vent ending how exactly the bucket affects people, and the fact that it’s really closely tied in with Gambhorra’ta. There’s absolutely nothing stopping the same thing from happening to the main cast of TSPUD as well! And nothing does stop it.

Seeing how much the bucket changed the Curator and the museum, it’s not difficult to confirm that it’s messing with both Stanley and the Narrator as well, albeit in more minor ways. Unlike the Curator, Stanley and the Narrator still have many of their needs and desires intact, though some are adjusted to fit more within the bucket’s influence— such as Stanley’s inherent human need for connection, and the Narrator’s need for Stanley to listen to him. For the Narrator, there’s also that aspect of control that I’ve talked about before— he needs control over the situation, & he THINKS he’s in control all the time, but not being able to control the situation is a harsh reminder that he’s not, and it stresses him out and even makes him scared.

I think the Narrator comes to see the bucket as a threat— he isn’t able to control Stanley’s attachment to it, and because of it Stanley is no longer listening to him. So he feels fearful about the fact that he’s losing the one person he has to listen to him, his companion, to this bucket, and he feels helpless because he can’t control that, and as a result that translates to despair, frustration, and desperation. I think that’s when that third category of endings starts to come in, where he’s trying everything to get rid of the thing. He created it for Stanley to have a sense of companionship and warmth since he knows Stanley needs those things, being human, and he also knows that he’s unable to provide those things himself. He writes up a few fun little endings for Stanley to be able to experience (planned endings) but the bucket begins to get in the way of things, causing turmoil and uncertainty on the Narrator’s part (reaction endings) and he begins to realize that the bucket is taking all of Stanley’s attention, and as a result Stanley is not listening to him. Maybe, for a bit of added angst, we could say that he’s recalling the skip button ending, and already knows the damage that having nobody to listen to him has caused and what it will cause. That’s when he becomes desperate, trying his best to convince Stanley to get rid of the bucket entirely.

And just like that, despite the fact that the Narrator only meant it to be a prop with a few oneoff gags, with that whole arc— ranging from planned endings to normal endings being disrupted by the presence of the bucket to completely altered endings by the Narrator— now half the endings in the entirety of Ultra Deluxe have been made about the bucket.

I think that’s fascinating to think about from the perspective of the characters and the story, because I’ve only ever really thought of it from an external perspective of ‘a bucket was added that doubles the endings’, and left it there. But fuck, man, Davey continues to surprise me on how well he can wind this stuff into an existing narrative & existing character personalities.

[blluespirit]

NATLA Azula

Please note, this is just my opinion! If you loved this aspect of the show that is absolutely fine, I just need to vent here for a moment.

So, my problem characterising Azula as more... on edge, angry, frustrated, is that that's not the Azula we are introduced to initially. The Azula who is introduced to us in brutally unflappable. She's ruthless and cold and able to manipulate everyone around her. She's an absolutely awesome villain. She's only 14, and she outsmarts all the grown men who think that they can one-up her.

That's what I love about Azula - she's terrifying, she's powerful and she's relentless. And we didn't really see that at all, outside of her telling Zhao what to do (which rung very hollow for me, bc Azula's presence didn't actually alter anything. Zhao did those things himself in canon anyway - but this is another post entirely). And she spent the whole season frazzled and edgy.

Now, I do not at all hate the idea that Azula's motivations and emotions are more fleshed out and that her ultimate downfall is more gradual rather than how sudden it can feel in the OG. In fact, I quite like that concept! I am all for a more detailed Azula story than what we got in the show. What I have an issue with is doing that right off the bat without establishing her as the incredibly cunning, intelligent and powerful villain we know she is.

Because so far, this Azula seems more on edge. She's more desperate, and more reckless. She's desperate to prove herself to Ozai and that makes her vulnerable. Whereas, I think if they'd tried to make Azula more like the original, and have her slowly unravel over the course of the show, as Ozai becomes more demanding, more manipulative, more angry, and power-hungry than that would have been far better story telling in that it would be so much more gut-wrenching and tragic to watch her story unfold and knowing where it ends, and it would have been more reminiscent of the iconic villain that we all love.

Hope I got my point across, but anyway... this is just my opinion, and I've seen several people say that they like this change, and that's completely fair as well!

[yanderes-galore]

PLEASE A YANDERE SPRINGTRAP(yes I know i'm obsessed) PLEASE! Plot: Reader actually escapes by outsmarting him(somehow)

I don' t know who made this but it's funny!

I can try to! Also, yeah, the image is funny. Sorry for the long wait!

This sort of implies you were the first nightguard in Fazbear's Fright and William is getting used to being Springtrap.

You Who Got Away

Yandere! Springtrap Short

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Sadism, Haunted animatronic this time, Start of obsession, Murder mention.

Anger made the haunted bot shudder. He had slipped up, let himself be fooled by you, now you left scot free. He kept twitching with rage.

Oh if he was still human such mistakes wouldn't have been made! Thirty years of rotting and he's lost his senses. He can barely function within his mechanical tomb. It will take some getting used to.

This had been his first encounter with you. The first time he's met you and you've already made him frustrated. Not only had you been able to leave, but you left him feeling strange.

In his past he had been a murderer. Ever since his family fell apart he had been cold. Yet here you are, making him feel strange while he's forced to live here in purgatory.

He was either too stuborn to die or was being kept in this state.

When he was transported here he was unsure how to feel. Up until he realized at night security cameras were on. Then he met you.

What a poor soul you were. Trapped here with him for a measly paycheck. When he laid eyes on you... he stalled.

You were the perfect victim. He knew your fate would be to die at his hands. Yet...

He felt killing you would ruin the fun.

He shouldn't waste you. He knew you and him would have so much fun. He couldn't help himself, he wanted to hunt you.

Your fear was delectable when he stared at you from the window. His dead eyes never leave yours. You were more of a rabbit than him.

You sat there in confused fear, hands tapping about on a tablet while quivering. He tilts his head with a wide grin. You had no idea what, or who, you were dealing with.

He hears a distant laughter in the distance. He glances at your hand on a button with disinterest. Audio meant to fool him? Why would that work?

You glance at the clock to see the time. He then takes the time to move closer from the other side. It was 4:50 AM.

"A new soul for me to slaughter, hm?"

The smell of rot makes you recoil, the rabbit standing in the doorway. You shuffle yourself towards the vent. He doesn't notice yet.

"Oh, dear... I think you'll prove to be a fun toy for me."

As if to prove his point, you dart into the vent. He's puzzled for a moment but engages in this game of chase. He knew you'd prove promising.

That was what became of most your night. You trying to run from Springtrap. The longer the chase went on the more he enjoyed you.

He could kill you when he caught you.... But there was so much more he could do. They probably wouldn't give him a victim as good as you again.

You were so clever. You fooled him by making noise and shuffling away. There were times he thought he'd catch you...

Then you'd come up with some new trick.

By the time that clock dinged and you flew out of those doors, he was left frustrated and stunned. He loved the chase yet now he couldn't stop twitching. He's... disappointed among other things.

He was frustrated he made a fool of himself and let you go. He was satisfied that you fueled his sadistic desires. He was also on edge as he may now never see you again.

He doubted anyone would believe you. A haunted robot? That's just the sleep deprivation. Although he was concerned you'd quit before he caught you.

He stares at the door with consideration. Following you wouldn't work as he would quickly be caught. Instead he stays still in front of the exit.

The idea of you quitting made him shake more, you'd think the springlocks were going off on his bones. He was upset. He gains consciousness again with new life, is tempted with such a treat, then loses it in the same night.

He'll just have to have faith that you'll return. Perhaps you're desperate enough for the money, hm? He'll just have to be patient and wait.

He can't believe he wants you to come back...

However, he knows if you do, he'll be sure you don't get away this time.

[crellanstein]

Prodigious

I find it odd how the fandom focuses so much on Aang’s childhood being ruined when he learned he was the Avatar at 12, but there’s very little talk about how discovering she was the Avatar as a toddler affected Korra’s life and how she was raised.

But we’ll circle back to that...

Because this is a good starting point to talk about one of the most prevalent themes in the story, which the mainstream discussion of tends to only focus on a few characters -- That is the Child Prodigy. 

We’ll start with the two most obvious. The ones we always talk about.

Azula.

The clearest example of your typical child prodigy (if there is anything typical about a prodigy). Azula showed early mastery of very advanced Fire-Bending techniques, and is the only Fire-Bender to use blue flames, which was intended to make her stand out amongst the other villains but is also indicative that her Fire-Bending is more pure and powerful (blue flame is produced when burning pure O2 or fuel without contaminant at a very high temperature). 

All this lead to her being praised and favored by Ozai as a child, but as double-edged swords go, this also meant she had a lot of pressure on her shoulders to never fail, and she rarely did. Her ego matched her talent, and let’s be honest she was the baddest bitch the show had ever seen. Conquering Ba Sing Se, defeating the Avatar in combat, and dropping some of the most devastating lines of dialogue in villain history; she was a force nobody wanted to reckon with. 

And that become a problem for one asshole in particular...

Being jealous of his own child is just one item on a laundry list of reasons why this guy is the worst father in the history of fathers. Azula had begun to outshine him with her victories, and Ozai’s maniacal ego couldn’t handle that, so he left her behind to babysit the Fire Nation while he went out to burn/conquer the world, which also was her idea.

And while this wasn’t the only thing that aided in her demise, it certainly was the final straw which sent her spiraling down into this...

In the end Azula is a sad example of how certain unfair expectations are placed upon talented children, and the more they succeed, the more these expectations grow and weigh on the them until they either disappoint those looking down on them or surpass and embarrass their elders.

It is a lose-lose situation which inevitably destroys them.

There is a similar example of the child prodigy, but his story goes a little different.

Aang.

Even as a twelve/thirteen year-old boy Aang by far has the most impressive stats among any character in the Avatar universe.

Basically mastering 3 of the 4 Elements in less than a year, after mastering Air by the time he is twelve (not to mention inventing his own Air-bending move, the Air scooter). 

Aang is an example of a child prodigy who had too much thrust onto him at too young an age because of the talent he showed; because of this he panicked and ran away, and the world was worse off for it. 

Aang/Sokka/Katara’s story is all about how in times of War, responsibilities normally handled by adults are pushed onto kids who then have to grow up very fast in order to deal with it all.

The message is clear. War robs the young of their childhoods. 

Now, let’s talk about a different kind of child prodigy.

The Unacknowledged. 

Yes, of course I’m talking about Toph, the greatest Earth-Bender to ever live.

Because of her blindness, Toph’s family tried to keep her sheltered and safe by hiding her from the world. Refusing to believe she could ever be more than helpless. Anyone who has seen the show knows that is far from the truth.

But because her potential went unseen, there were some negative effects to her personality. Initially, she resented her parents, and rebelled; which established a certain level of independence, a bad attitude, and a hot-headed streak. Over time spent with the Gaang these behaviors subsided because she finally had friends and they accepted her for who she was. By the end of the series she was fully willing to accept aid from them when she needed it, like holding on to Sokka’s arm in environment where her bending couldn’t help her “see”. 

Toph’s story is a foil to Azula’s, both showed immense talent and badassery, but while recognition of Azula lead to ever-mounting pressure for her to succeed; the lack of recognition for Toph created a need for her to be acknowledged and set an undercurrent of frustration which leads to her acting out in the ways she does.

The lesson to take from Toph’s story is not to shelter your kid from the world out of fear for their safety, and to be open to recognizing their talents, not shun them.

Next are two more Unacknowledged.

Katara and Sokka.       

Their story, and the reason behind their circumstances, is one of the more complicated and nuanced ones in the series, so here we’ll focus on how it fits into the subject of discussion.

Because of the War, Katara was robbed not only of her mother but also of any Southern Masters to train her, and any role models Sokka could have looked up to left with his father to fight. Because of this Katara’s potential and Sokka’s genius went unacknowledged not due to neglect but rather due to circumstance. (Yes, I think Sokka is a genius, how many 15 yr olds do you know that can plan an invasion, design submarines, and spit poetry off the cuff?).

This is a further example of how War robs kids of necessary childhood experiences, and these two robberies had particular effects on both Katara and Sokka’s character developments.

Sokka had the responsibility of protecting his home put upon him at a young age. The men of his tribe leaving prevented him from completing his rite of manhood until the Gaang ran into Bato of the Water Tribe, and early on Sokka was constantly trying to prove himself as a man and a leader. Sokka is one of the smarter characters of the series, but he rarely got credit for it until the third season. Not to mention that because he wasn’t a bender he often seemed less useful than the others. The circumstances of war made his talent go unnoticed and because of that he often was unsure of himself and overcompensated to prove something.

Speaking of talent going unnoticed.

Katara is definitely one of the more talented benders of the series. After training herself for years with little progress, she essentially mastered Water-Bending in a few weeks under Master Pakku. While her anger towards the Fire-Nation mostly centers around the loss of her mother, it can’t be ignored that the delay in her training was a direct result of the Fire-Nations’ actions.  Toph’s anger and frustration vented itself as rebellion. However, the same frustration and anger is within Katara, but because she wasn’t as natural a bender as Toph she sought to learn and be respected, and when that was denied to her is when that anger bubbled to the surface in some terrifying ways. 

While Toph’s talent went unnoticed because of her families neglect, Katara and Sokka’s wasn’t acknowledged because there was nobody to acknowledge it. Because of that both brother and sister wanted to prove themselves to the world.

And then there is Zuko.

I know what you’re thinking. Zuko wasn’t a prodigy, his Fire-Bending skill didn’t catch up with Azula’s until the finale and he never mastered Lightning-Bending, but this section is about the Unacknowledged.

Zuko had many other talents besides Fire-Bending, he was a master swordsmen, and was able to successfully break into every secure facility he attempted in the show (which was almost every secure facility the show featured).  Unfortunately, these talents were never recognized, because the only thing the royal family cared about was bending ability (It’s possible the reason he learned the sword was because he lacked skill in Fire-Bending). 

As per usual with Zuko, this part of his tale is quite sad. Many can relate to being outshined by a sibling, and when it becomes all too clear that one cannot match another’s talent it’s quite understandable to focus on what they do excel at, but even then there is no promise of recognition for their own talent. Zuko was even mocked by his father during the solar eclipse when Ozai tried baiting him into attacking with his swords. 

This lack of recognition is one of many sad aspects of Zuko’s early life, but it is a definitive example of one of the hardest unacknowledged prodigy’s cross to bear. The Outshone prodigy, one whose talents are never noticed because a bigger and brighter star stands in the way of such recognition, and arguably the most frustrating type mentioned here. Toph/Sokka/Katara all came from situations were there was no recognition being given to them or anyone, but Zuko had to bear watching massive amounts of praise be piled on to his sister while he and his accomplishments went by the way side.

Ozai summed up the situation best.

“Azula was born lucky, Zuko was lucky to be born”

Alright now where have I been going with all this?

So, far we’ve covered a lot of wrong ways to treat a child, whether they show talent or not, and how the circumstances of war can also take many things from children.

But what happened to Korra?

(Before we get into to this I should state that I like Korra, and the purpose of this is not to bash her as a character or her arc, but rather to give a little of my insight into it.)

It’s well established that Aang was told of his heritage too young, and that was a detriment on his development into an adult, but what would have happened if he realized his powers himself not long after he could walk? We’ll never know, but we do get to see the effects it had on Korra. 

When she revealed herself as the Avatar, Korra set her entire life in a new direction, and because Aang tasked the White Lotus with finding and training her that direction was out of her control. There are two key differences between Korras’ and other Avatars’ lives.

1. She grew up in isolation on a White Lotus compound.

Every Avatar before Korra we know of spent a portion of their early lives traveling the world in order to master the elements; along this journey they not only learned how to bend the other 3 elements, buy also many things about the 3 other nations and the world they are tasked to protect as a whole. By confining Korra in safety and bringing the masters to her the White Lotus deprived Korra of this opportunity to learn and grow and understand the world and the people within in. It also deprived her of learning modern bending styles until she reached Republic City.

While this might have kept Korra safe from the Red Lotus, it grew within her a naiveté about how the world worked, and because of this when she actually did venture out into the world she was terribly unprepared for it.

2.  She was trained and mastered 3 of the elements by the time she was 16.

Most Avatars don’t know they have this power until they reach 16 and then they spend several years learning to control it. Korra’s natural talent in the bending lead to her training being expedited not by necessity like Aang’s, but due to her talent and eagerness. Korra excelled at the physical part of being the Avatar and because of this by the time she reached maturity she had become over-confident in her abilities and true to what her Fire-Bending master said in Ep.1 she lacked restraint.

I’m not saying her bending isn’t great, but rather because it is so great it’s her go-to solution to anything, and she enjoys that so she uses it with enthusiastic gusto and not a lot of thinking before striking.

This overconfidence coupled with her naiveté of the world is what lead to many of her rash decisions and actions, most of which had negative consequences, and I believe are the reason behind some fan are dissatisfied with her. Aang had been almost the complete opposite, even by the age of twelve he was an experienced world traveler and an incredibly humble guy. 

Some may have been dissatisfied by these character decisions, but they served a purpose, they are only the beginning of her arc. The internal challenge Korra must overcome through 4 seasons is to humble herself before the world, and learn from it. This was finally achieved in the 4th season when the metal poisoning in her body forces her to face others in the world as equals, only then had she completed her journey.

And why did it all go this way?

Because she is a very unique child prodigy, what she demonstrates in the first episode of LOK would be akin to a toddler playing the violin or hitting a three-pointer; she could bend 3 elements close to just after learning to walk. That is the kind of prodigious talent rarely seen because it is mostly impossible. How does a rational person handle a child like that? 

It’s a tough question, and something this essay has been circling around the whole time. Each example here is the wrong way to handle talented and different children, but what is the right way?

As always look to Iroh.

Who treated his surrogate son Zuko with both respect and compassion. 

Unlike Toph’s parents, Iroh worried over Zuko’s well being, but also allowed him to be independent, make his own decisions, and take his own risks.

Unlike the Nomad Leaders, he didn’t want Zuko weighed down by his position in the world and the responsibility that came with, and always encouraged him relax and take advantage of the moment.

Unlike Ozai, Iroh would always be there to support Zuko in his victories and his failures. Iroh shows him the right path but does not force him down it.

And even after Zuko betrayed and abandoned him.

Iroh was never angry with him, and embraced him upon his return.

He wanted Zuko to grow and be a better man. Even if Zuko wasn’t a prodigy like his sister. 

And that is the answer here. The way to raise a prodigy is the same way anyone should raise any child. Love, Support, a Guiding Hand rather than a Forceful Shove, Recognition of What Makes Them Unique, and Forgiveness When They Falter. The problem comes along when you start treating children differently because you see them as different or special. All children are different, all children are special.

Kids are kids, and they all deserve a proper childhood.  

[thisisasupergoodidea]

this is something that came to me like a bolt of lightning to my brain: the part in episode 8 where pat and pran are discussing the mood of a scene in the play. it doesn’t just parallel the end of that episode. it also parallels the end of episode 11.

(and please forgive my sloppy editing skills, i did this all on my phone lol)

first of all, THIS is the scene they’re discussing:

it’s literally, by name, directly referencing episode 11 which occurs in the second act (second half, second semester, take your pick) of the series. and which scene in that episode is the one where our riam finally admits that they have to go home?

the infamous red shirt scene. the one that had so many people convinced that a tragedy was unfolding in front of us. and both toto AND pat in episode 8 point out that they think it’s a sad, miserable scene.

toto tells them to workshop the song together. quite specifically, he tells pat to discuss the feelings they need to be conveying here. and in episode 11…

pat sits down with pran and makes sure to let him know how appreciative he is that pran indulged him on their ‘honeymoon’. but now they’re supposed to be establishing what the core emotion is for a scene that’s considered sad. so what does pat come up with?

truthfully, there can be sadness and misery in loving someone. we’ve seen that many times throughout the series. but those aren’t at the core of pat and pran’s relationship. those are the obstacles, those are what these two have overcome together and will overcome again, because love has made them strong enough to do so. even when they fight, when their own interests are at odds:

when pat gets upset at pran for wanting to keep their relationship secret in episode 8. when pat gets upset at pran for wanting to go home and not being honest about it in episode 11.

(the use of ‘playing’ works a bit better in episode 8 because it’s about pat literally venting his frustration with pran through music. but i think the scene where pran goes after pat and tries to make him feel better in episode 11 has it’s own kind of venting to it, in that pat does pout and fume by himself on the shore for a while, even playing it up a little until he sees that pran is trying his best to be on the same page)

even when facing challenges that feel insurmountable, they will always choose each other. in episode 8, pran gives up the secrecy aspect and lets pat post about them on social media; but pat was also ready to give up his bragging rights for the sake of pran’s comfort. in episode 11, pran concedes his desire to go home, proving to pat beyond any doubt that he is invested in the relationship and will do whatever it takes to stay with him. so then, when pat’s frustration subsides, and he accepts that the honeymoon phase has to end at some point…

then…

this time, pat is the one to say “it’s fine. i’ll be okay. you can have what you want because i love you too much to take it away from you.”

[erimeows]

Blue Cosmos

Optimus Prime hated autumn. While it was a beautiful season with an array of fun holidays, comfortably cool weather, and falling leaves, for the past two years he had been on earth, it had rendered him useless, and this was going to be the third.

The Prime groaned as he rolled over in his berth and coughed up another clump, spitting it out into the bowl that he had on his nightstand and venting deeply, the noise garbled and crackly from the flowers that were currently blocking his airways.

Hanahaki Disease. For humans, it was deadly, but for Cybertronians, it was a seasonal illness that proved to be a minor nuisance for the entirety of fall, sometimes winter if you were particularly unlucky. He had never told anyone, but after the summer he arrived on earth, he’d developed it and kept it hidden away, suffering on his own and hiding away so he wouldn’t risk exposing himself.

Little did he know that soon, his secret would begin falling apart at the seams.

It started when Ratchet came into his room without so much as knocking, bursting in and slamming the door shut behind him with a scowl on his face. The sudden intrusion made Optimus jump up, pulling his covers close to him and scurrying back against the headboard before remembering that the bowl of flowers was right there on his nightstand.

“Prime, why’ve you been avoiding me?” Ratchet demanded with crossed arms, and Optimus rushed to come up with some sort of excuse.

Play dumb, play dumb-

“Huh? Avoiding you?”

Not that dumb!

Ratchet just stared at him and scrutinized his face, clearly unconvinced by his oblivious façade. What he should’ve done was fake sick, say that he just had a sore throat or something, but then again, that would’ve screwed him too, as Ratchet would’ve just dragged him to the med bay and found out about his predicament, but still... Acting stupid probably wasn’t the best idea either, because now, Ratchet was looking at Optimus like he had just shot his turbodog. 

“Avoiding me,” The red and white bot reiterated. “Don’t treat me like I’m stupid. Have I done something to grind your gears?”

“Not at all, Ratchet, I-” Optimus stammered, flooded with guilt. Did Ratchet think he’d done something wrong? That it was his fault Optimus hadn’t been around? “I’ve just been busy.”

“Busy, huh?” Ratchet mused and tapped his digits against his inner arm as he raised his optical ridge in doubt. “You don’t look very busy.”

“I was simply resting.”

“What’s the purpose of this bowl of organic plants just sitting on your night table?” 

The med bot tilted his helm and pointed to the bowl of poppies, those of which were stained pink with energon- hopefully, he wouldn’t notice.

“They’re for, uh...” Defensively, Optimus snatched the bowl and held it close to him with a nervous grin. “Flower crown! Making... Yes, Sari introduced me to it recently. I’m simply saving them to make one.”

“Right,” Ratchet hummed, and then sighed, clearly tired of Optimus skirting around the elephant in the room. “And is there a reason that, for the past three years, you’ve just so happened to start retreating into your room like this and avoiding all of us when autumn rolls around?”

“You’re just imagining thi-” Optimus started, only to be interrupted by a forceful cough, which had him leaning forward and spewing another clump of flowers into the pile. “Slag!”

“Dammit, you dumbass,” Ratchet immediately rushed to his side, kneeling down by the berth and snatching the bowl of flowers, that of which he peered into and groaned- there was energon all over them, meaning that the disease was progressing and, at this point, even though it was only November now, it would have Optimus fully bedridden by the time that December came. The frustration and disbelief that was etched into Ratchet’s features just moments before had shifted into something softer and more caring, concerned. “Who is it?”

“That’s not important, I have no idea what you’re talking about-”

“You have Hanahaki disease and you’re not going to convince me otherwise, so just fess up and tell me who’s doing this to you so we can try to fix it!” Ratchet scolded and put the bowl back on the nightstand before dragging Optimus up and out of the bed, setting the Prime on his stabilizing servos- no doubt to get him up so he could drag him to the med bay. “This isn’t about your pride, you stubborn brat, it’s about your health.”

“Fine, I...” Optimus started, cheeks burning red in embarrassment. “It’s a Decepticon.”

At that, Ratchet’s face turned to a grimace. 

“Oh, Primus, please tell me it isn’t Megatron-”

“It’s Starscream.”

At that, Ratchet blinked, and then fainted, falling forward into Optimus’s arms.

...Well, that wasn’t how he’d expected that to go, but at the very least... He’d gotten out of having to confront the issue for now.

Unfortunately, though, his relief wouldn’t last for long.

Later that day, he found himself out and about on patrol, looking around an abandoned building in Detroit. He didn’t want to be out, but it was his day to do patrol, and he wasn’t one to neglect his responsibilities if he could help it. Plus, the team was pretty sure that they were coming close to finding the Decepticon base- there had been two sightings of Starscream near this very abandoned warehouse, so maybe he could find him...

At the very least, it got him out, which was a relief. He didn’t want to hear Ratchet chew him out for falling for Starscream... At least not yet. He couldn’t imagine the new aft he was going to get torn whenever he ran into the medic again.

He roamed around the dilapidated inside, watching as the walls fell apart, the floor cracked and breaking. It was cold outside, and given that the windows were long broken, a heavy draft began to came in. Feeling a catch in his vents, the Prime sat down and leaned his back against the wall with a huff and groaned.

Why now? Could it have not waited until he got back to the base?

To make the situation even worse, he heard loud, clicking footsteps and looked up to see no other than Starscream coming in through the entryway. He gathered all the effort he could muster and put it into not coughing as the Decepticon started.

“Puny Autobot, I’ve come to-!” Starscream started some declaration, only to be cut off by Optimus’s hacking up a few flowers, those of which he tried to keep in his mouth to hide his condition. But then, he was coughing again and spilling them onto the floor in front of him. “Uh… Autobot?”

“Leave me alone, Starscream!” The Autobot yelled. “The last thing I need right now is for you to come bother me!”

“Clearly you need someone to bother you!” Starscream argued right back and kneeled down in front of his weak form, absolutely dwarfing him in size. Optimus blushed and leaned as far back as he could, only for the back of his helm to hit the wall as Starscream’s nasal brushed against his. As always, the Decepticon seemed to have no knowledge of personal space, but at least they weren’t fighting right now... Though, honestly, he was thinking he might’ve preferred that to whatever this was. “You’re about to hack out a vent, you disgusting little miscreant...”

“This is so not needed right now!” Optimus exclaimed and turned his helm to the side to avoid the other mech’s piercing gaze. More flowers welled up in his throat, but he swallowed them down. “You’ve already done enough damage, can’t you leave me alone for once!?”

“What did I ever do to you? I suppose I did offline you that one time, but that’s aside the point-“

“You’ve done plenty- pit, you offlining me isn’t even the worst of it!”

Silence.

Starscream was staring at him, something uncharacteristically soft and caring in his cherry optics, and Optimus couldn’t help but think back to how he had ended up like this in the first place.

When did the crush on the older mech start? He had no idea. All he knew was that one day, he hated Starscream and everything he stood for, and the next, he was starting to question why he looked forward to seeing the Decepticon when they fought and why he was suddenly paying a lot more attention to how the Decepticon smiled or the shade of cherry that his beautiful optics were, and finally, the crushing realization of what was happening had fallen upon him long after it was already too late.

Then, the next autumn, he had developed seasonal Hanahaki Disease, and even after a couple years, he hadn’t been able to get over his crush nor his illness. 

“Then what is-“ Starscream paused and looked down at the mess of red poppies and cringed. “Oh my Primus, those are…”

“Don’t even start-” Optimus began, convinced that Starscream was about to make fun of him, to tease him for falling in love and being so weak that he had gone and gotten sick and left himself vulnerable because of it. But, before he could finish, Starscream himself began to scratch at his neck and stood up straight, optics flicking around the room as he tried to swallow down a cough to no avail. At first, it sounded like he was simply clearing his throat, but it grew progressively louder and more wet. Concerned, Optimus rose onto his stabilizing servos and made his way in front of the other mech to wrap an arm around him and pat his back. “Woah, wait, are you good?”

“Fine, I-“ Starscream paused in the midst of jerking away from Optimus’s touch to open his mouth, revealing a flurry of blue cosmos that fell onto the floor, all of which were coated on energon and- fuck, that meant it was bad. “Blegh! Dammit, that’s disgusting!”

“Oh, wow.”

After a pause, Starscream straightened up and wiped his mouth with the back of his servo. It seemed like the coughing fit was over- at least for now, but Optimus was wondering what he should do. Was he meant to try to apprehend Starscream? Was it fair to do so while he was sick? He considered it, but as he looked up to meet Starscream’s optics again, he decided against it; there was something new there now, understanding, maybe.

“It seems we’re both… Afflicted.”

“That’s an understatement,” Optimus murmured and looked down at the heap of blue cosmos mixed with pink energon on the ground between Starscream’s stabilizing servos. “Yuck, there’s energon in yours. Have you had it for the whole season?”

“Unfortunately.”

“You know, it’s funny,” Optimus chuckled weakly and placed a servo on Starscream’s shoulder. “I should be fighting you right now, really, but I just don’t have the energy.”

“Nor do I.”

“Whoever’s doing this to you has good taste,” He smiled. “Blue cosmos are my favorite.”

“Oh, is that what they’re called? …Cosmos,” Starscream trailed off and looked to the side, cheeks burning bright red. “I suppose I don’t hate them if you remove the part of the equation where they’re plaguing my vents like parasites.”

“Are you going to leave me in my misery, or are you just going to stand there and watch me while I suffer?” Optimus gave a sardonic laugh, only for the seeker to shrug and offer a crooked grin in return.

“You know what they say, Autobot,” He murmured, cheeks still read as he leaned in, nasal brushing against Optimus’s once again. “Misery enjoys company.”

“Right, well... As much as I’d enjoy your company, I should leave before any of your little friends show up. Don’t tell anyone that this happened and I won’t tell anyone, either.”

“Tch, you’re missing out,” Starscream feigned offense and turned away with crossed arms. “But alas, I’ll agree to your terms... I’ll see you around.”

And things were weird after that.

Optimus left Starscream in that abandoned building and went home. Over the next few days, between Ratchet tearing him a new one and removing the flowers that were in his vents the best he could, dealing with human crooks and Decepticons, and coping with the ever-growing plants in his ventilation systems, he hadn’t a moment of rest and found himself flooded with relief and gratitude when he finally caught a break. He laid back on his berth, ready to recharge when he heard his window opening.

Immediately alarmed by the noise, Optimus looked over to see no other than Starscream crawling in through his large window.

At that, he groaned. He really was too tired for this.

“You!” Starscream whisper-yelled, probably to convey the blatant bitterness and anger that was in his tone the best he could without alerting anyone else that he was there.

“Yes? May I help you?” Optimus felt his vocalizer raise his pitch a bit in his surprise as he sat up from where he had been laying and tossed his legs over the edge of the bed. He sat up straight and realized that he probably looked super awkward and tense, but tried his best to ignore it. “I don’t know what you’re doing now, but I don’t appreciate you just breaking in through the window, you-”

“I don’t give a damn, I’m here to fix this,” Starscream hissed. Optimus relented with a sigh and nodded as he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and servos wrung together, stabilizing servos flat on the floor. “Are you still... Sick? You sound better than last time I saw you, all pitiful and spewing up your slag in my hideout.”

“My medic has been tending to me, so I’m a bit better, but not cured... How about yourself?”

“I’m the same as I was.”

“Why’d you come?”

“I’m-” Starscream began to stammer, but then paused to collect himself and sighed before continuing. “I’m done hiding from you, Autobot-”

“Optimus,” The Prime corrected.

“Optimus...” Starscream murmured, and honestly, his name sounded like a foreign word coming from the seeker’s mouth, but it was foreign in a way that Optimus knew he could get used to very quickly. “You’ve held my spark in your servos for a long time now.”

“Oh...” Optimus trailed off and nodded. Was it really that easy? He never expected for Starscream to return his feelings, but now that he did... Where would they go from here? What would he tell Ratchet when his vents stopped clogging with flowers? What would he tell his friends, and what would the Decepticons think if Starscream began fraternizing with an Autobot? Would they be able to keep their feelings a secret from everyone else? What would happen when the war finally ended and one side came out on top? Optimus nervously tapped his stabilizing servo against the hard floor, only to glance up and see that Starscream was doing the same thing and staring at him with an impatient gaze. “I see... My apologies. I just got lost in thought for a moment there, but I... I, um... Well-”

“Well? Hurry up! I don’t like to be kept waiting. What do you think?”

“What do I think?” Optimus chuckled, something carefree and full of delight as a weight was lifted from his chest. “I think... My vents are suddenly starting to feel a lot less stuffy.”

“Is that so?” 

Starscream’s face was laced with pure shock. Almost as if the entire world had crashed down onto him at once, the Decepticon put his servos on the back of his neck and began to anxiously pace around the room. Finally, the relief that had flooded through Optimus just moments before seemed to dawn on him, as he began to laugh and wipe his eyes with the backs of his digits- lubricant tears, and whether those were from the relief, the shock, or the craziness of it all, Optimus didn’t know. All he knew was that now, Starscream was peering back at him with the softest smile Optimus had ever seen on his face. 

“Care to stay?” 

Optimus tilted his helm, and the seeker shook his own helm at first in response, as if he was going to say no, only to do the opposite.

“I wouldn’t hate it,” Starscream answered and moved to sit next to Optimus on the berth, the red that dusted his cheeks perfectly highlighted by the moon beams that poured in through the open window.

And with that, the two spent the rest of the night together, their vents clearing up and sparks beating fast as they whispered the hours away until sunrise. 

[sky-berrie]

How would the batboys react to a female SO with Paranoid Personality Disorder?

Hi there!

Thanks so much for the ask. I hope this is okay :)

-Sky

Bruce

As a person living with paranoid personality disorder, you might be terrified that people are out to harm you. Your place of residence, Gotham city, does nothing but exacerbate your paranoid thought patterns, since criminals run rampant through the streets. It’s hard to distinguish between paranoid thoughts and substantiated concerns. Is that sketchy person with the full face covering one of Black Mask’s False Face Society members sent to abduct you, or are they just a conscientious citizen taking extra precautions to avoid contracting or transmitting the COVID virus? Being in a state of constant fear prevents you from living your life to the fullest. Luckily, your S/O happens to be Batman in his free time.

Bruce eases your mind just with his presence. He’s probably the smartest, strongest, and most resourceful person you know and being with him makes you feel safe. Bruce is the kind of person who you’d blindly listen to during an emergency – if he told you to jump out of a burning plane, you’d do it without a second thought because he’s never let you down in the past and you’re confident that he never will in the future. If you’re feeling fearful in public, Bruce will grab your hand or put an arm around you securely and soothingly whisper in your ear that he’s right here and there’s nothing to worry about. Having paranoid thoughts means that it’s difficult to reason with you, so you probably aren’t convinced that there is no threat, but you do experience some relief from his soft touch and gentle words. He’ll ask if you want to leave and he’ll take you to your safe space. If you’re feeling fearful in private, Bruce will hold you close and rub your back to reduce your anxiety. If you’re by yourself and start to have those racing, panicked paranoid thoughts, you can always call Bruce. He’ll drop whatever he is doing and come take care of you.

Bruce will teach you self defense to help you feel more comfortable around people. He won’t arm you with any dangerous weapons because he doesn’t want an innocent person to get hurt if you get spooked. Bruce will ask if you want to move into the manor since it has strong security and comes with several vigilantes. If you would rather stay at your own place, Bruce will install a variety of safety systems to make you feel protected. He’ll even spend most nights at your place so you can sleep peacefully. Overall, Bruce is like your lifeline. He’ll know just what to do to help you through your difficult thoughts.

Dick

Dick is a social butterfly who’s had his fair share of romantic partners in the past so it’s natural for you to feel jealous when he spends time with other people. Dick will adamantly declare that he’s with you and only you. At first you might try to ignore the prickly feeling of jealousy because you don’t want to come off as a possessive S/O, but the clues accumulate and suggest that he’s cheating on you. For example, he’ll rarely spend the night with you. You’ll catch him sneaking into bed at ungodly hours of the morning. When confronted, he’ll make up an excuse that he just went to get a drink of water or use the bathroom. You’ll spot bruises scattered over his chest knowing you definitely did not leave those there. He’ll play it off as a gym injury.

When you raise your suspicions, Dick is hesitant to explain. You take this as confirmation of infidelity and you’re ready to walk out. At that point, he has no choice but to come clean about his secret identity as Nightwing. That sounds farfetched and you likely think he’s a pathological liar. Finally, Dick proves it to you and explains that he didn’t want you to be dragged into his dangerous nightlife. While you accept that as the truth, you’ll always wonder if he’s hiding more secrets. Furthermore, you’re probably pissed that he was gaslighting you. Dick will do everything he can to make it up to you. He’ll apologize profusely and in extravagant ways, be more transparent, and shower you with excessive love and affection. It might take a long time, but eventually Dick will worm his way back into your good graces.

It doesn’t take long for the green-eyed monster to rear its’ ugly head again. Now that you’re in the know, you’re hyperaware of the attractive vigilantes that Dick works with and it’s emotionally draining to be jealous all the time. You don’t want to be the type of person who tries to control their partner’s life, but when the suffering becomes too much to bear, you might ask him to stop seeing certain people. Dick will calmly assure you that there isn’t anything going on with any of his vigilante friends. If that doesn’t appease you, he’ll suggest that you hang out with the team and get to know them. He hopes that you’ll see that there aren’t any romantic feelings between them. Whatever you do, please don’t force him to choose between you and his hero life. It will tear him apart.

Jason

Trust is very important to Jason. He doesn’t trust many people as it is and needs a S/O who he can trust wholeheartedly and who will trust him in return. He believes that this relationship will fail if you don’t have confidence in each other. He’ll take it personally if you distrust him. Jason will get defensive and frustrated if you accuse him of being unfaithful, especially if you don’t have a shred of evidence to support your claims. He’ll be offended and deeply hurt that you think so negatively of him but once he’s had some time to cool off, he’ll be able to process everything more objectively. He’ll accept that you can’t control the way you feel. You’d explained it to him once that you do trust him, but there’s a separate voice in your head that tells you otherwise. Jason won’t give up on you though. He’ll come up with a proposition - he’ll agree to install a tracking app on his phone so you can monitor his whereabouts if you’ll promise to work on learning to trust him, whether it be via professional psychotherapy or reading self-help books.

On the other hand, if Jason is one of the only people you trust, he’ll be elated to know that you two have built such a strong connection. It’ll be easy to confide in him because he’ll gladly listen to your worried thoughts with no judgement. At first, he’ll reassure you that nothing bad is going to happen to you – he’s Red Hood and nobody is going to pull anything on you if they value their life. Eventually he’ll realize that trying to reason with you isn’t helpful so he’ll stick to active listening when you’re experiencing paranoid thoughts.

However, if Jason is fresh out of the pit and emotionally unstable, you two will probably bond over your mutual distrust and cynicism about the world. Although you and Jason will get along exceptionally well, it’s possible that your irrational thoughts may feed each other’s paranoia and exacerbate the feelings of mistrust and suspicion. If you find yourself unable to let things go, feel free to vent away when you’re with Jason. He is the king of holding grudges, so he’ll probably support you and even join in on trash talking that person with you when you’re angry. Learning to forgive and forget is something you and Jason can work on together. In a way, it brings you two closer together since you understand each other on a level that others can’t begin to comprehend.

Tim

Tim very compassionate and patient; however, he’s afraid of triggering you so he’s often walking on eggshells around you. He just wants to be the perfect supportive S/O for you and doesn’t want to mess up the relationship. His worst offense (in your eyes) is using ambiguous language that lends to multiple interpretations. For example, he might innocently compliment your clothes/hair/makeup and you might assume that he only likes you for your appearance or that he’s implying that you’re vain for wanting to look nice. The moment you shoot him daggers, he’s realized his mistake and starts to furiously backpedal. He tries to explain himself, but he usually ends up digging himself a deeper hole. Eventually, he gets better at expressing his thoughts carefully so that they can’t be misconstrued.

Tim diligently tries to learn your other triggers and how to help. When you’re stuck in a cycle of paranoid thoughts, Tim will get you to focus on what’s real instead of trying to make you see sense. He’ll help you relax by walking you through breathing exercises, playing soothing music, or whatever strategies you find helpful.

Tim isn’t proud of this, but he’s resorted to deceiving you when necessary. For instance, if you’re experiencing paranoid thought patterns and want to be alone, Tim will hesitantly leave, but he’ll probably secretly monitor you only because he’s worried about your safety. If you’re afraid that others are reading your mind, he might pretend that he invented an anti-mindreading helmet to ease your suspicions. He knows you would feel betrayed if you ever found out about his dishonesty, but he reasons that your safety and comfort are more important in the moment.

Damian

Arguments with Damian are brutal. No matter how insignificant the disagreement is, Damian refuses to back down when he believes he’s right. Paired with your own stubbornness and contentiousness, these quarrels generally result in an impasse. Eventually your anger subsides and the depression sinks in. You might assume that Damian doesn’t love you anymore and that fight was the end of your relationship. Maybe you start packing your belongings to move out right away. Damian comes up behind you and asks what you’re doing. When you tell him that you’re leaving because he doesn’t want you anymore, he’s instantly remorseful. He takes your bags out of your hands and proceeds to pull you in close as he tells you how much he loves you. He assures you that two people can disagree and still love each other.

Damian doesn’t want to argue with you and he certainly doesn’t want to see you upset so he’ll always excuse himself before the argument becomes too heated. He hopes that some time apart will allow you both to calm down and come to a compromise, but it’s never that simple. Most of the time, you’ll need a third-party mediator, like a therapist, to resolve your dispute. The act of seeking out a therapist will be a huge accomplishment for your relationship. Damian likes his privacy and doesn’t want someone else in his business and you might be afraid to share intimate information with a stranger in fear that it will be used against you. Nevertheless, you both want to make this relationship work, so you’ll continue to seek help.

Damian has a habit of being blunt. He doesn’t mean to criticize or insult you – in his mind, he is only stating the facts or his opinion for the purpose of helping you improve. Despite his goodhearted intentions, it’s easy for you to take his comments the wrong way and perceive it as a personal attack. If he sees that his remarks have upset you, he’ll acknowledge all the positive aspects of your performance. Still, you might cling to the disparaging comments and ignore the praise. Going forward, Damian will try to be more encouraging and constructive and will only express feedback if you invite him to do so.

[darthkruge]

Okay okay okay so imagine Reader is abducted by the separatists because she ( or nb reader ) is a very well loved member of the senate. So obviously Anakin goes to save her, but his idiot plan gets him captured as well so then it's up to Reader to talk her way out of this mess, get to her idiot boyfriend, free him and then both of them try to make it out alive. Bonus points for Obi-Wan looking very tired and sick of Anakin's ideas in the background. What do you think?

Anakin Skywalker x Fem!Reader ~ Rescue Operations?

Summary: After the Reader is captured by the Separatists, Anakin rushes to save her. When this doesn’t work out, the Reader has to get her and her boyfriend out of this mess. 

Warnings: Language, whump, one scene where the Reader gets beat up, Reader is a badass, Anakin is completely in love with his badass girlfriend and we love that for him

Words: 3.8k

A/N: Catherine, my love!! I’m sorry this took me so long, I have nothing to say for myself other than my poor organization skills. But I’m obsessed with this request, I hope I did it justice <3

gif credit (x)

You groaned as you opened your eyes and attempted to shake the drowsiness that seemed to cling to your very bones. You blinked, trying to get your bearings and remember what had happened. You were preparing for your speech at the Senate, trying to pass a peace treaty between the Republic and some smaller territories that were debating joining the fight against the Separatists. You’d been fighting for support for the treaty for months and you finally had the chance to give one last speech before the vote. 

You’d been pacing in your Coruscant apartment, practicing the speech for your boyfriend a million times. After you finished your recitation, you exited the room, needing to get your notes that you’d seemed to misplace. So you went into your office and… nothing.

Why couldn’t you remember after that?! You opened the door to your office, walked inside, and… 

You sighed as you came back to the present, leaning against the wall behind you and looking around. You were clearly in a cell of some sort and the Separatists were almost certainly behind this. You were still in your Senate attire, although it had been thoroughly scuffed up, and they’d taken your datapad and other communication devices. You felt around your boot and smiled. Your knife was still there. They must have assumed you wouldn’t be carrying a weapon to your speech and not done a thorough enough check. Whatever the reason, you were thanking the Maker it was still there. 

Back in Coruscant, Anakin was walking the Temple halls in a crazed state. When you didn’t show up for your speech, he immediately panicked. He knew how important this treaty was for you and the entire Republic; you’d been going over it for forever and there is no way you’d just blow it off without telling anyone. The rest of the Senate was also concerned. You’d grown up in one of the poorer districts and, thus, had a sense of relatability and humility that most were drawn to. Whether or not they agreed with your policies, almost everyone could understand that you always kept the interest of the people at the forefront of your mind. 

When Obi-Wan walked up to him with a ripped piece of your clothes and your scattered and crumpled notes, Anakin felt his heart drop. 

“It was the Separatists. They must have knocked her out in her office and escaped through the vents.”

Upon seeing his absolutely heartbroken expression, Obi-Wan added, “We’ll get her back, Anakin. I promise.”

Anakin could only nod, ideas for a plan to save you already running round his head. 

You’d been in this kriffing cell for four days now. Or maybe it was five? You were desperately trying to keep your wits about you but it was so hard; they brought you a tiny ration of food and water once a day and it was not near enough to keep your strength up. You’d spent your time trying to carve your way through the bars but your knife was no match and you quickly gave up, not wanting to dull the blade. You’d found a loose brick hidden around the floor and used the knife to cut it out, allowing you to hide your weapon under it on the off chance they searched you again. 

You tried to think of a plan to escape but they hadn’t even opened your door yet. There was no way you could get out by yourself and, until someone came in that you could attack, it was pointless to even try. They kept you in complete darkness and silence, no way to tell how much time had passed aside from the daily rations. You assumed you were on a Separatist base but that proved unhelpful; they were widespread and the cell held no defining features of climate or location. You had tried calling out to see if anyone else was around. Each time, you were met with your own echo. 

You stilled, hearing footsteps approach you. A Separatist guard opened your cell door, roughly pulling you out. You yelped, legs not cooperating after so long of sitting in the cramped cell. He led you into another room that was barely brighter than your own. Sizing up the guard, you felt fear creep in. No matter how hard you tried to banish your anxieties, knowing they’d only serve to lessen your already shaken focus, it was sometimes impossible. 

“Tell us which planets are deserting.” He commanded.

You met his stare evenly, refusing to let your fear betray you. There was absolutely no chance you’d tell him anything. As soon as the Separatists learned which planets were thinking about joining the Republic, they’d send armies to wipe them out immediately. You refused to let that happen.

“Fine. Be that way.” The man pulled his fist back and sent it into your cheek, the impact sending sparks of pain throughout your entire body. He brought his foot up, kicking you in the gut and you fell harshly onto the floor. He grabbed you by your hair, hoisting up your body as if it were a ragdoll. You gathered your strength and spit in his face, enjoying the way his smug look disappeared. In retaliation, he slammed you into the wall, the impact making stars cloud your vision. 

The man released you and you fell, your consciousness already starting to detach from your body. You tried to reason with yourself, hoping logic would aid you. This is a trauma response. I’m not going to die. My body can take this. I will black out, but I will wake up again. They’re not going to kill me. They need me alive. I’m not going to die. I’m not going to die. Somehow, the hardest part is this was banishing the thoughts of that beautiful boy from your head. You knew that if you allowed yourself to think of him, to fathom how he would blame himself should this be your end, you would give in. 

Instead, you focussed on the physical pain you felt, on the rage you channeled to this guard. You hated how weak you felt, how exhausted you were. You allowed your mind to hone in on all the ways you could hurt this man, given you had your full strength. You let yourself hate yourself, appalled at how you couldn’t even fight back. With every punch he threw at you, you went further into your head, into the one place this man couldn’t touch. Eventually, your mind started spinning from dehydration, pain, and overexertion. All you could do was curl into a fetal position and hope it somehow stopped. 

“What do you mean you’re going to find her?” Obi-Wan said, running after Anakin.

“It’s been days, Obi-Wan, days. There are only so many Separatist bases in the galaxy and Y/N’s on one of them.”

“Anakin, don’t you think they’ve planned for a rescue mission?! This is Senator L/N we’re talking about! And they took her right before the vote, this was clearly a thought-out attack, stop acting like it’s simple!”

“It is simple! Those Separatist assholes have Y/N. And it’s been days. What if she thinks we forgot about her? What if she thinks we’ve given up? They could be doing fucking anything to her and I’m not going to let her stay there for another minute!”

“Anakin-” Obi-Wan began but Anakin waved him off.

“I’m sorry, Master. But if the Council won’t do anything, I will.”

“Anakin, the Council is trying! They just don’t have enough troops right now to send a full rescue mission after one Senator. They just want a few more days, then some troops should be back from their missions and you can have your full battalion.” Obi-Wan took a breath and lowered his voice, empathy for his friend clear in his words. “I know you love her. I want her back, too, you know. I’ve grown quite fond of her; her friendship is quite dear to me. All I’m asking is you be careful and think this through.”

“Believe me, I have thought this through. I wouldn’t do anything to put her in danger, we both know that. And while a few days doesn’t seem like much to the Council, we’ve seen the harm these Separatists can inflict in far less. Listen, it might not be the strongest plan I’ve ever made but, if it’s between a semi-formed plan and none at all, the choice is already made.”

With that, Anakin jumped into his ship and took off into the night. Obi-Wan sighed, leaning his head into his palm. He knew how much you meant to him and he knew of Anakin’s frustration with the Council. They moved slowly, wanting to figure out every angle before jumping into a decision. While Anakin was a brilliant strategist, he tended to act impulsively when someone he loved was in danger. As Anakin traveled further and further from Coruscant, the older Jedi could only hope that the both of you returned home quickly and safely. 

Anakin looked at his ship’s display and cursed when he realized he was low on fuel. He’d been piloting for hours and there was still no sign of you. He was searching out for you with the Force and, still, nothing. Finally, he felt a faint energy pulse through the Force. He followed it to what was supposed to be an old abandoned Separatist base, concerned by how weak your lifeforce felt. 

He parked the ship and got out carefully, trying not to alert anyone to his presence. He pulled out his lightsaber but was careful not to ignite it. He saw an open door and ran through it, relief blinding him as he felt your energy grow stronger with each step he took. He turned the corner and saw a crumpled body on the floor of a tiny cell.

No, Anakin thought, it can’t be her. 

Without thinking, Anakin ignited his lightsaber, wanting to use the light to discern if the figure was truly you. The noise bounced off the walls and startled you awake. He mentally cursed himself and instinctively turned off the saber, not missing the even louder noise it made with it turned off. He inwardly facepalmed, realizing if he hadn’t alerted the guards before, they sure as hell knew now. 

You blinked groggily, wincing at your immense injuries and bruises. You remembered passing out while that asshole beat you and now you-

Wait, You thought, is that a fucking lightsaber?

You knew you must have heard it wrong, there’s no way the Council would have approved a relief mission this quickly. Further, there is no way it would consist of just one Jedi. 

Suddenly, the lightsaber re-lit, illuminating your boyfriend’s face. His determined expression grew stronger as he noticed the 10 guards surrounding him and pointing their blasters directly at his head. You smiled. He could take out ten guards with his eyes closed. You called to him in shock, hardly believing your eyes. He looked at you and immediately widened his eyes as he saw a guard come up behind you and point a blaster directly at you from outside your cell. 

“Lightsaber on the floor, Jedi, or the girl dies.” The guard growled. 

He looked at you in anguish and you could tell he was already beating himself up for “messing up” your escape plan. You shook your head, hoping he understood your message: this isn’t your fault. 

“Anakin don’t-” You couldn’t even finish the sentence before his weapon was on the floor. He put his hands on his head. As they grabbed him, you stood in helpless silence as they threw him in the cell beside you. They locked the doors and, once again, you were in darkness. 

You desperately crawled to the edge of your cell, trying to reach out to him. He was doing the same and when you felt his fingertips against yours, you almost started sobbing. You weren’t alone anymore.

“You came for me.” Your voice was soft, disbelief lacing your words. 

“Of course I did, my love.”

Then, as if everything finally registered in your brain, you reached out and tried to slap his arm. “Anakin, what about the Council? They’ll kill you when they realize you went on a rescue mission, alone, and without approval! Ani, the only thing keeping me going in here was knowing that you were safe! And now you’ve gotten yourself thrown right next to me, no weapons, no light, no food, no water, no escape! What the fuck are we going to do?!”

Anakin had opened and closed his mouth multiple times throughout your speech, trying to find a way to plead his case but was left without one. 

“I just wanted to save you.” The grief in his voice made you sigh and take a step back. This was your Anakin you were talking about. Your safety was his priority, always. Besides, doing all this because he was afraid for you? You couldn’t possibly stay mad. You smiled, despite yourself. Anakin. You thought, slightly shaking your head. 

“Fuck, I love you. Is it selfish that there’s a small part of me that’s glad you’re here with me?” You said, breaking the silence. 

Anakin breathed out a sigh of relief, glad you weren’t upset with him anymore. “Not at all, my love. So long as it isn’t bad that my least favorite part of this is not being able to see or kiss you properly because of this damn darkness.”

You chuckled, lacing your fingers with his once again. “You wouldn’t want to see me right now.”

Anakin froze. “Y/N? What are you talking about?” His voice was serious, clipped. He knew you would try and make it seem less than it was. You winced, realizing there was no way to lie your way out of this one.

“Just what the Separatists would call aggressive negotiations, I presume.”

“How bad?”

“It’s fine, Ani, I promise. Let’s just focus on getting out of here, okay?”

Anakin took a deep breath, collecting himself. “Alright. But as soon as we get back you’re going to a medical droid.”

You groaned. “Anakin I hate-”

“I know you hate the medical droids. But that’s only because they always rat you out when you try and lie to me about the extensiveness of your injuries.”

“You lie about how bad your injuries are, too! Remember that one time you came back from Kamino?!”

Anakin laughed, despite himself. “You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

“You were literally bleeding from the head! And you said, and I quote, ‘it’s just a scratch’” Every time you thought back to that day, you were incredulous. 

“Alright, alright! Let’s just focus on getting out of here.”

“That’s my line!”

“Y/N,” He warned.

You smiled. Maker, you missed him. You honestly didn’t think that anyone else would have you laughing while you were beaten and captured. 

“Okay. What’s the plan?” Anakin said, back to the matter at hand.

You lowered your voice, leaning toward his cell so you could talk without being heard. “I snuck a knife in with me and I’ve been able to keep it a secret. Now that you’re here, it might actually come in handy. The problem was that I couldn’t stab anyone because no one would come into the cell. I need you to get them here. Push them against the side of your cell, the one closest to me, and I’ll stab them. Then while they’re hurt, you run out, unlatch my cell, and we’ll go.”

“I’m dating a fucking genius!” You could just about hear the smile in his voice. 

You smirked. All things considered, you were pretty proud of yourself. 

“When do you want to do this?”

“They bring daily food and water rations in the morning, I think? I can’t exactly tell what time it is, they’ve kept it so dark and isolated. Regardless, the next time they come by I need you to get them in here. They normally just leave the food outside and push it under the door.”

Anakin could hear the disorientation in your words and wanted nothing more than to be able to see you, to be able to hold you and reassure you that it would all be alright. 

“Okay, angel. Got it.”

“Anakin?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for coming to get me. It’s really good to hear your voice.”

“Always, my love.”

Both of you silenced when you heard those footsteps. You smiled for the first time as you heard them. We’re going to get out of here.

“Yeah, that’s a great idea, Y/N! This brick in here is loose!” Anakin announced loudly. You bit your cheek to suppress a smile as you watched Anakin catch the guard’s attention.

“What did you say, Jedi?!”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Anakin responded, dramatically feigning innocence. 

The guard huffed and you internally cheered as he roughly opened the door. He walked over to your boyfriend, keeping the blaster pointed at him. As soon as the guard’s attention shifted to the “loose” brick, Anakin used the force to knock the blaster out of his hand and push him against the wall of the cell where you slashed his Achilles tendons. 

The guard howled in pain and you knew you had to work quickly if you were to get out of here before the rest of the Separatists found you. Anakin fumbled with the latch on your cell, the immense darkness making it difficult. Finally, he got it open and ushered you out. The both of you took off in a run and he gripped your hand with his metal one as you did so. 

You immediately stopped as you felt his hand roughly pulled from yours. 

“We’ve got you now, Skywalker” The guard said.

“Y/N, you ready?”

You blinked, unsure what he was referring to. Then, you heard an object whipping through the air and on instinct shot your hand out, catching it. You ignited Anakin’s lightsaber that he had summoned to you with the Force, it’s signature buzz making you feel powerful beyond words. 

The light caught you off guard and you squinted until your eyes adjusted. You saw Anakin held back by two guards. Hearing faint footsteps, you took off in a run. Anakin ducked as you swung wildly, hitting and taking out both guards.

“You done holding us up?” You said, extending your hand toward him once more and passing him his lightsaber. 

Anakin smiled, accepting it. “My sincerest apologies.” 

You both ran, hand-in-hand, until you finally made it to the exit.

“What?” You said, as Anakin stopped abruptly and looked at you, panicked. 

“The ship! It’s out of fuel!”

“It’s what?!”

“I-” Anakin and you stared at each other, flickers of doubt coming into your gaze. You can’t believe that you’d been able to escape for nothing. 

“Anakin! Y/N!”

You whipped your head around at the sound and were met with another ship a few meters down, Obi-Wan piloting it.

“Well? Are you coming, or what?” You and Anakin looked at each other in shock before taking off in a sprint, one guard now close behind you. 

He started shooting and Anakin pulled out his lightsaber, deflecting some of the shots. As he focused on that, you pulled your knife back out of your boot and sent it flying into the guard’s chest, effectively stopping his pursuit. 

Anakin smirked at you, awestruck. You shrugged before jumping into the ship, extending your arm to Anakin and helping to pull him up with you. You entered and immediately leaned against the wall of the ship, relief coursing through you. You laughed and Anakin joined in. He immediately pulled you into him, kissing you hard. 

He broke away from the kiss, looking at you with adoration. “You are a fucking badass!! You’ve never even held a lightsaber and between that and your fucking tiny knife you took out four guards!! I didn’t even get any! I’m not going to lie, Y/N, I’m a bit jealous.”

You laughed, leaning into him but wincing. As the adrenaline wore off, your pain was suddenly quite palpable. He noticed and pulled back, scanning your face and body. 

His smile fell as the extent of your injuries sunk in. Your busted cheek, scratched face, and ripped clothing that exposed some of your many bruises across your torso and limbs were overwhelming. 

“You kids alright in there?” Obi-Wan said, walking in from the cockpit. His smile died on his face as well as he took in your form.

“I’m alright, guys. It’s not as bad as it looks.” You said dismissively.

“That doesn’t look like nothing!” Anakin shot back. 

Obi-Wan looked at you apologetically. “Anakin’s right, Y/N. Please, rest. We’ll be back to Coruscant soon.” 

Coruscant! The Senate! “My speech!! Fuck, I had to present my speech! I’ve been gone, what, a week? They’ve probably already voted, Kriff.”

Obi-Wan shook his head. “They decided to suspend the vote until you were back, Senator. They truly care for you and your policies.”

Your heart swelled at Obi-Wan’s words. You looked into Anakin’s eyes and saw that he agreed with the statement full heartedly. He took your hand and gently ran his thumb up and down its back. 

“Rest, my love.” He whispered to you, coaxing you to lie down on the coach and pulling off his Jedi cloak. He wrapped it around you as a makeshift blanket, smiling as you pulled it closer to you and drifted off. 

Obi-Wan walked up to Anakin and placed his hand on his shoulder. “Let’s leave her be, okay?”

“I don’t want her to wake up when I’m not here.”

The elder Jedi nodded in understanding. “She’s exhausted, she won’t awaken until we get back to the temple, I assure you. And if she does, you’ll just be in the other room.”

Anakin looked at you once more before smoothing the hair back from your face and gently placing a kiss on your forehead. He let his palm run down your cheek before he finally pulled himself away and walked into the cockpit with Obi-Wan. 

“So, how did you plan pan out?”

Anakin looked at his former Master, unamused. “I think you already know. How’d you know to come get us, anyway?”

“Well, when you didn’t come back or even attempt to contact the Council for over a day I assumed something had happened. I tracked your ship.”

Anakin nodded. “If not for Y/N, we’d probably both be dead.”

Obi-Wan laughed. “I heard! Four guards?! You’ve found yourself a good one.”

Anakin smiled. No words were needed, everyone knew that was completely and utterly true.

------

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[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hello!! Can I request some headcanons about Rantaro, Mukuro, Kazu, Taka, Kokichi, Nagito and Leon with SHSL Moodkeeper/Caregiver (i dont know the word)? They is, like, always on a guard to calmly end every arguments and tences in their group, and to give a hand or shoulder for cry to anyone who is in a bad mood. Ultimate stress-relive person, i guess? Also, they has good empathy, but still is very bad in guessing ofters opinion about them, so they really didnt notice someone loving them. Thx!!

I’d say they’re a SHSL Peacekeeper! ^^

.......

Rantaro

He likes how you mediate situations when they start getting out of hand.

Of course, he’s good at calming people down, too, though he’s glad to see you step in as well.

The fact you could settle conflicts between the rowdy ones like Kaito, Miu, and Kokichi so easily is like a miracle.

You also swiftly came to Kaede’s defense when everyone got upset with her for forcing them through the Death Road of Despair. 

Before leaving, Rantaro witnessed you hugging the pianist as she cried.

You’re just so kind and caring to everybody.

It was those positive qualities of yours that just naturally...drew him to you.

And eventually they made him fall for you completely.

But despite your talent of reading people like open books...you aren’t too certain about what they think of you.

So when Rantaro hangs out with you more, you just believe he’s a close friend and nothing more.

Though when he visits your lab one day with your favorite gift and asks you out...you pretty much short-circuit.

Someone as sweet and as handsome as him??? Liking you?????

Mukuro

Watching you resolve conflicts without violence is an eye-opening experience for her.

You mean you don’t have to threaten to stab someone??? Or prepare yourself for an attack???

So when you break up a fight between her and Junko with just your words alone, she’s completely baffled.

You feel bad for Mukuro, helping her up when her sister kicks her down, saying she doesn’t deserve to be degraded so much.

She’s even more confused because she thought the insults were Junko’s way of showing familial love.

But perhaps..the soldier was wrong about that.

Over time, she starts giving you more of her attention.

Makoto smiling at her was one thing..but for you to actually care about her?

She just wants to give every bit of her heart to you.

But you aren’t sure what she exactly thinks of you, so...for a while you don’t notice.

She’ll never get past admiration from a distance, though, as she doesn’t know how to express those feelings to you.

Eventually, you’ll notice and reciprocate them.

Kazuichi

He’s perplexed at how the hell you manage to keep so calm all the time, especially when almost everyone was panicking on the island..

No matter how much the class argues, you always end those debates peacefully somehow--even in trials.

After spending some time with you, he eventually confides in you about his insecurities and such.

And you always listen no matter how much he pours his heart out to you.

You just pat his back and offer your sympathy whenever he gets emotional, never judging him.

He’s glad he can someone to rely on..to the point where he feels like he can be his true self around you.

He grows to like you for more than just your talent, though.

You have great looks and a cool personality!

Unfortunately you’re kinda oblivious, so he’s nervous to confess in fear you won’t return the feelings.

He’ll probably need advice from his buddies.

Taka

Like him, you always strive to reach the best compromise among your peers.

And he admires that a lot!

You usually solve conflicts sooner than he does (probably because you aren’t always yelling and can read the room better).

Plus, you’ve taken a sort of therapist role in the class, having a lot of empathy (which Taka himself sometimes lacks) and always willing to help people out.

Sometimes he’ll go to you just to rant about the stress of his studies and whatever else he’s dealing with.

He trusts you enough and thinks venting is a healthy way to get his emotions out.

The talks often end with you hugging him while he cries into your shoulder.

But he always feels a hundred times better afterwards.

It’s not long before he finds himself catching feelings for you.

He can hardly look you in the eyes while you’re speaking, tending to blush when you just smile in his general direction.

Like Kaz, he’ll probably need advice from someone because he doesn’t know how to confront these new feelings.

Kokichi

You two are basically polar opposites.

He’s a little shithead that gets people riled up on purpose.

While you’re the mediator who reassures them he just wants to cause mischief.

Not even he can say he’s lying about that.

So he makes it his mission to get you annoyed with him.

He’ll try speaking over you by blurting out another lie in trials...

Only to pout when you ignore him.

Then he tries cheating in games he plays with you..

Only for you to explain how it’s more fun when everyone plays fairly.

There’s just no winning for him, so he eventually stops and huffs.

You definitely like playing hard-to-get.

Especially when he realizes you’ve become more than just a “friend he can annoy” in his eyes.

He’ll get frustrated when you don’t immediately realize that, too, though.

Nagito

Of all the talents he’s observed, he finds yours most admirable.

Insists you should never let yourself--or anyone--take your talent for granted (and of course, you don’t).

He sees you lending a helping hand to anyone who needs it and is awestruck

You’re truly a shining example of hope.

He’s hesitant to come to you with any of his troubles, convinced trash like him isn’t worth your time.

But you empathize with him and understand why he feels that way.

He’s been stuck in a cycle of luck all his life, usually hurting or killing those close to him.

As time goes on, though, you get him to open up.

Soon he falls in love with not only your hope...but also, well, you.

He’d tell you directly, but...it would be more interesting to watch you figure that out yourself.

Leon

He's surprised how easily you can settle disputes with everyone.

Doesn’t it get tiring for you?

Though you always tell him it’s never a bother.

You understand everyone has their insecurities and tend to lash out.

He gets a bit defensive when he realizes you mean him, too.

But he just proved your point.

Sometimes he’ll rant to you about baseball practice giving him unneeded pressure and his uncertainties about what he really wants to do in life.

You suggest he feels misguided due to his attempts to impress random girls instead of focusing on himself.

He’s stunned you could read him like an open book.

Before long, he finds himself lovestruck yet again--not just because of your looks but also because of your sweet and upbeat nature.

So he tries improving himself first before he’s ready to ask you out.

Though when you don’t know for sure how he feels around you...he’ll get agitated and ends up blurting out his confession.

[nothidd3n]

               You could tell how different Mobius is from the rest of the TVA the instant he was presented because I believe a lot of them lost their humanity, which I think was worn off after a while since they've been doing this for eons. But he didn't lose his; he's a smart man with a nice heart who isn't scared to express his kindness. He also avoids using force and is highly sympathetic while interacting with others. When it comes to dealing with variants and even random citizens, you can see how merciless some of the hunters and even the judges are. But Mobius takes a different approach when it comes to people, he’s kinder with them than the hunters and judges. Which is amazing since he could’ve been just as heartless as his colleagues. He's totally comfortable having his heart on his sleeve since he's just full of good intentions and trust in what he does, so he does everything to the best of his ability and with his whole heart.

               Despite the fact that the hunters and judge Renslayer are set on just resetting or pruning variants and have no regard for the people around them, he is this voice of reason. The hunters are portrayed to be hostile in certain scenes, and he is the one who holds them back and talks to them. This can be seen in the supermarket and church scenes. Yeah, he's only a guy, but he's a guy who is proven to be one of the most kind-hearted individuals in the series, and some people don't really see him as the person who survived in the void despite the fact that Lokis are the only beings who seem to thrive and survive there but just a funky man who likes jet skis.

               He can't fight, but he's got brains and can rip people apart emotionally and mentally, this can be seen from his interrogation scene with Loki. He has the ability to break down all Lokis barriers without making him feel bad about it. He makes him see things in himself that he didn't really want to confront before, and he doesn't make Loki feel bad about everything. On the contrary he actually helped Loki accept himself.  I believe that sort of talent is impressive because he gets his point through while making you feel as though you aren't being really criticized for it. He's proven himself to be one of the best analysts in the TVA so it really is no surprise how clever this man is, intellectually and emotionally.

               But, like everyone else, he has moments when he lets his guard down and loses his temper, even if it's only for a second. He was on edge after being 'betrayed' by Loki at the store, and I believe that when they eventually got Loki and Sylvie, he vented his frustrations on Loki and made some conclusions about them that are somewhat accurate. But at the end those feelings weren’t mutual and are used to betray Loki.

               He refers to this 'attraction' by a variety of names, the most of which are negative, such as 'demented' and that “it’s destroying his reality". He continues to speak with a tone of rage in his voice and a hint of animosity in his body language. This scene, I believe, demonstrates how much of a person he is; yes, he's a guy, but I mean a person, a human not made for the TVA, but someone with a breaking point, someone who cares, someone who can be jealous or angry, and someone who allows their emotions to cloud their actions and words for a moment.

             To be honest, their entire relationship just serves to demonstrate how Mobius is one of the series' best characters in terms of, well, everything. He can keep up with a god, even if that god is the God of Mischief, who is famed for his deceit and manipulative skills. Even yet, he can see right through the God of Mischief. Not only can he see right through his nonsense, but he also understands how to press his buttons and what the God requires, as well as how to reply to him in situations when one incorrect word may cause him to shut down or refuse to cooperate with the TVA.

            In Lokis point of view, this man knows everything about him, including the aspects that he believes could cause concern in others, the parts that he despises. But this man didn't run away, he didn't even flinch, and he even formed this sort relationship with him. He has improved Loki and provides him with what the god always desired.

           For someone to finally tell him how valuable he is or what he is to them. Someone who can tell him when he did well. And that he has the potential to be something excellent, and for someone to not condemn you after studying your entire life and witnessing all you've done, as well as developing a connection with each other in which Loki has complete trust in Mobius and in return Mobius has his complete faith in him.

           After all, Mobius demonstrates that Loki isn't alone, despite being told over and over in the time loop with Sif that he would always be alone even showing up right after Sif tells him the line “you are alone and you’ll always will be” proving that he’s there for Loki when no one is. It only goes to demonstrate how their relationship is based on a solid basis without dishonesty or manipulation to achieve their goals. On both sides, there is true progress as they learn from one another.

[sunnyasswaffles]

KNY characters playing among us

these headcanons are entirely for joke purposes and because im bored

Tanjiro

- as a crewmate this dude would be set on doing all of his tasks as well as keeping a good eye out for anything suspicious. whoever the imp is, would probably get annoyed with his ass cuz they cant hide anything from this mf. everyone believes him too. He usually is never the one to get killed at the beginning because everyone else will come for the imposters ass

- as an imposter he would either:

1. do absolutely nothing and kill no one because he would feel bad

or

2. kill someone, report it, and come clean because he can’t lie and he probably feels bad

if there are multiple imposters he would probably just sabotage and let his partner(s) do all the dirty work.

Nezuko

as a crewmate she would probably just follow tanjiro around not caring about doing her tasks or not unless she dies. if someone managed to kill tanjiro before her she would flip shit, as well as literally everyone playing-

as an imposter killing would be hella hard for her as tanjiro is following her everywhere but once she manages to get away she’s a literal god until tanjiro catches on and rats her out. she may be good but she doesnt last long as an imp 😔✋

Zenitsu

as a crewmate he would either be glued to tanjiro or too scared to be near literally anyone. He’s that one player that freaks out when someone starts following him for .5 seconds.

as an imposter he wouldnt last long cuz he would sound way too nervous when trying to defend himself and the other players would be like “yeah its him 😐”

Inosuke

as a crewmate he would be set on finding the imposter(s) he gets called out a lot cuz people think he’s the imposter cuz he’s following people around all the time. Never does his tasks and throws out dumb assumptions about random people because he finds everything suspicious. the mf would probably say something like “i saw sanemi walk out of medbay, the dude vented!” right after genya said he watched him scan. he uses “sus” unironically

as an imposter he would literally sabotage everything (if he has a partner this would annoy the everliving fuck out of them) and kill anyone on sight. probably makes stupid decisions like killing/venting in front of people without meaning to and then getting hella defensive when people sus him out. he sometimes tries to shift the blame or blames them before they have a chance to speak but gets caught anyways.

Genya

as a crewmate he would just do his tasks and not give a fuck about anyone unless someone tries to blame him for something or sus him out he gets really defensive and angry, if theyre playing through a voice call you cant understand what he’s saying because he’s yelling and his mic is ass so it just sounds like bass boosted tv static.

as an imposter he’s good but the dude can’t lie for shit so as soon as someone catches him in a loop he either says nothing cuz he dunno what to say or gets mad and defensive trying to put the blame on the other dude.

Giyuu

as a crewmate he’s either the first one to get killed or he gets blamed for killing and voted out. Tanjiro and Nezuko are probably the only one’s who defend him.

as an imposter he either goes god mode and kills like 5 people before a body is reported or gets voted out at the beginning.

Shinobu

does her tasks first thing as a crewmate and often complains in frustration at whoever called a meeting/reported a body while she was in the middle of a download task. (i dont blame you shinobu that shits annoying) she also tries to find reasons to frame giyuu.

as an imposter this bitch is a literal GOD she’ll kill everybody and no one will suspect her. a smart and manipulative imposter indeed-

Rengoku

as a crewmate he would definitely be set on completely his tasks first. pretty observant and calls people out on their bs (nicely ofc). is usually the first one to check ppl do shields/trash/weapons etc. If anyone tries to blame him for something he would defend himself lookin like 😃 the whole time. if its in a voice call he’s probably one of the mfs that eats into the mic.

as an imposter he wouldn’t kill anyone he would call an emergency meeting and come clean because “killing people is wrong” i can also see him ratting out his partner too if he has one 😬

Tokito

as a crewmate he would mind his business and not talk in chat unless he had a reason to but his responses are always dry and short like “no” or “no i didn’t” he doesn’t even give a reason even if he’s innocent which gets him voted off a lot of the time. he also would defend literally anything tanjiro says.

as an imposter he would be okay at killing people but if people would call him out he would just be like “yeah i killed them 😐” he doesn’t even try to lie about it.

Sanemi

like his brother, this mf would get easily angry and defensive if you tried to call him suspicious or frame him when he is a crewmate. probably cant understand what he’s saying either cuz this dude is loud as hell. he yells and cusses at people who try to prove him wrong or counter argues with him. he gets voted off a lot because of how defensive he is :/ he also insults people. 😁 he finds reasons to frame giyuu with.

as an imposter he’s really good at killing and covering up his tracks but as soon as someone thinks its him he gets pissed and defensive (likely calling them a stupid dumbass or sumn), which is what usually gets hime voted off. the dude probably slams on his keyboard and cries when he’s voted off.

Obanai

like tokito if this dude was a crewmate he would mind his own business and not talk in chat unless he was being blamed or being called suspicious. he doesnt get defensive but he wouod probably get annoyed and call whoever was blaming him stupid. follows mitsuri everywhere and defends her with his entire soul because he’s a simp. also likes to frame giyuu

as an imposter he would still stick with mitsuri and she wouldn’t snitch ✋ they would team even if they’re on different teams and he would end up killing everyone except her. people get annoyed when they play with them together. but if mitsuri wasn’t playing he would be those imposters that would kill and say nothing in the chat but gets away with it somehow.

Mitsuri

as a crewmate she wouldn’t care much about tasks but would still do them to pass the time. sticks with obanai, rengoku, or shinobu depending on who’s playing. always trusts and defends her friends which sometimes ends up getting her killed- also someone who would probably eat into their mic

as an imposter she would stick with obanai and team with him (lord help when theyre both imposters theres no escape) she wouldnt kill any of her friends tho so if she has a partner she’ll leave that to them but feel guilty about it.

Uzui

as a crewmate he would preferably go on his own and avoid people. is the crewmate that forgets the map and whenever someone asks where he was he can’t answer and gets voted out sometimes. and excellent lie detector, he calls people out on their bullshit. uses terms like “sus”, “noob”, “cap”/“no cap”, etc. so much to the point where its painfully cringy.

as an imposter he would be an excellent liar but if he ended up getting caught red handed he would just come clean. would kill his friends first because he thinks its funny.

Akaza

as a crewmate he would only do the easy tasks because he doesn’t have the patience to deal with download or time consuming tasks. like sanemi, this dude gets easily defensive and pissed when people try to frame him but he confronts them in a passive aggressive condescending way cuz he’s petty. sometimes frames people for fun, mainly tries to frame douma. follows rengoku around in an attempt to annoy him

as an imposter he is good but he tries to kill douma every time he’s an imposter so if douma’s dead at the beginning of the round everyone suspects him. often goes after zenitsu too, doesn’t kill the girls if they’re are any playing.

Douma

as a crewmate this mf is annoying as hell to play with. he’s the crewmate that plays devil’s advocate to confuse people for the fun of it. also tries to frame random people for drama and often gets voted out of it-

as an imposter this dude is an og- he’s good at playing innocent and will gaslight/manipulate people that try to call him out. Akaza, Shinobu, and him argue the whole meeting pretty much.

[littlespoonevan]

Top 5 Buddie moments? ☺️🥰

oh my godddd where do i start???? can i even pick 5????????? *Edit upon finishing writing: most of these ended up focusing on Eddie’s feelings towards Buck I feel??? and I definitely have Things to say about their reunion in 3x06 and the kitchen scene bc they’re also up there as my faves so I could possibly also do an alternative top 5 that’s more Buck caring about Eddie but anyway here you go!

5. 2x04 - Buck introduces Eddie to Carla

Honestly every single interaction between them in this ep is my favourite because Buck supports Eddie so much throughout the whole ep????? Taking him to the hospital, telling Maddie what a great dad he is, giving Bobby the heads up when Eddie has to bring Chris to the station, it's all So Good. Especially when you remember they're still only just becoming friends at this point. But Buck introducing him to Carla has to be the icing on the cake for me. It's just- we've seen how smothered Eddie has felt in the past when it comes to caring for Christopher, how his parents have continually tried to take over or make him feel like he's doing something wrong, and I just really, really love that Buck offers him this support and this magic fix but in a way that doesn't undermine Eddie as a parent at all??????? Like he helps him but not because he thinks Eddie can't handle it but because he thinks Eddie deserves a break and wants to make things easier for him. It's amazing and I loVE IT

4. 3x18 - His fiancée's AbBy

sakljdfhs okay look. Listen. I love this scene so much and I think only recently sort of understand why. It's the first time we really see Eddie lose his calm during an emergency and the first time we see him specifically lose his calm over Buck. Because Eddie clearly knows how to compartmentalise and because of that we generally only see him look worried but not really outwardly react when Buck is in danger. But this scene akjsdh he's so aNNOYED and frustrated and it's fascinating because you have to wonder how much he knows about Abby and who's told him what. But what we do know is he knows Abby broke his best friend's heart and he knows Buck is willing to sacrifice himself for anyone but no way in hell is Eddie about to let him become collateral damage for someone who doesn't deserve it (and now we know he'd already changed/or was changing his will during this time *screams*). And yeah it's fun to call it jealousy but ultimately I think it was a lot of worry and a lot of frustration on Eddie's part because it's a very clear example of Buck believing he's expendable and Eddie wanting to shout, "You're wrong!!!!". Just. What a good fucking scene.

3. 3x03 - There’s nobody in this world I trust with my son more than you

I mean how could I not include this scene?????? It’s just- everything. All of it. From Buck’s voiceover to photograph playing in the background to the way Eddie all but bulldozes his way through casual conversation in the hopes of not having to explain. It’s about the absolutely unconditional way Eddie forgives him, like it’s not even a question, and the way Buck is so clearly torn up and can’t understand why Eddie doesn’t toss him aside. I’ll never get over “A few choice words can be the life raft that gets you home” combined with “There is nobody in this world I trust with my son more than you.” And obviously we know just how true that is later on but in this scene, you can tell Buck hears him even if he can’t quite allow himself to believe it yet. And it’s so soft and so gentle and just another one of those examples that prove to us that Eddie always seems to know exactly what to say to Buck to bring him back to the surface :’)

2. 4x04 - The gym scene

Honestly if it wasn’t for the season 4 finale this would be my number one. How do I love this scene? Let me count the ways. Just sakdjhfa fuck!!!!! it’s the first time we’ve ever seen Buck angry and I know obviously Eddie’s his confidant but it’s so good to actually see Eddie being his confidant. To see that Eddie’s the one he wants to vent to and that Eddie’s the one he trusts with his anger and Eddie just remains such a calming presence in the face of it all????? From the gentle way he talks to the way his foot holds down the punching bag while Buck hits it - I am on the floor. And also!!!!!! Eddie just repeatedly validating Buck’s feelings - “What do you have to apologise for? If that’s how you feel - how they made you feel - then you have every right to say so.” askdjfhas I think it’s really important actually because Buck is always called out for thinking before he acts and yeah, obviously sometimes he should apologise but I really love that Eddie takes the time to make it clear this is different. That Buck didn’t do anything wrong and is allowed to be upset. Also Eddie stopping Buck from hitting the punching bag when Buck says “I just want to hit things” and saying “I’ve been down that road. I don’t recommend it” goodbye???????????? He cares about Buck so much let me be. 

1. 4x14 - You think you’re expendable...but you’re wrong

askdjfha is there anything I can say about this scene that hasn’t already been said?????? It’s stunning. It’s so beautiful and so significant and I will never recover. Eddie is someone who struggles so much to talk about his feelings but he’s the one who initiates the conversation because this is important to him. And I said this yesterday but it really is a declaration of love????? I’ve written before about how the scene sort of parallels/answers Buck’s “Love me anyway” plea but one thing I noticed when rewatching Buck Begins is that when Buck gets hurt Margaret yells at him and says “You think you’re indestructible but you’re not” and it’s such a contrast to Eddie saying “You think you’re expendable...but you’re wrong.” even though the two sentences are almost identical. I’ve talked a lot about how significant the word “expendable” is and that parallel sort of reinforced it for me because Margaret is chastising Buck. She’s admonishing him for being reckless with himself and his body and it’s inarguably tied to Daniel. Whereas Eddie uses the word expendable because he knows Buck’s recklessness comes from a place of not feeling wanted. So he tells him I want you and I love you and you can’t get hurt because me and Christopher need you and Buck hears him. And I mean, that’s not even getting into the wILL of it all???? Like, hello???????? but I’m gonna stop now because I’m rambling but aksjdfhsja honestly this scene has broken me beyond repair and I for one am so grateful