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#(at least in a way we understand as humans) anyways id love to know more about V1's thought process independent of the player and how she
sneefsnorf · 5 months
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OH HEY!! do you have final thoguhts on ultrakill and gabriel and the v's and everything :333333 <- my agenda
machine. ive spent my life loved and revered by my people and my church. i trusted my institution and my Father because i never had a reason not to, machine. the council and the people had such high expectations of me and i always rose to meet them. my achievements were many. everything was perfect. and then you took it all from me, machine. i failed ONCE. i wasnt what the church wanted me to be exactly and they tore their love away from me. its not fair. not in the slightest. ive been thinking a lot. ive been reflecting on the churches and the institutions of mankind. so many of them have warped the word of the Father into whatever will give them the most power. they use his teachings to break down and bully those they hate. they grind them into the ground and humiliate them as much as they can, not just for their own self-gain, but for the sake of hatred. this is what the council has done to me, machine, and now i have joined your ranks. all their love for me revoked as soon as i couldnt be what they wanted, thrown from the gates of heaven like the queers and the freaks. i've joined your ranks, machine. i'm less than a person now. and i am filled with so much rage.
anyways thanks for driving me to the abortion clinic machine i really appreciate it
#sneefs asks#cathartidae#sorry for answering your question in writing from gabriels perspective i have issues stemming from how i was treated by a catholic institut#i have issues. im also need to do insane things to him like [EXTENDED CENSOR TONE]. sorry#ANYWAYS its a really good game and i love it lots. i really wanna play it myself but i dunno if my mum would be too pleased with me playing#an incredibly violent first person shooter. she's not too big on those games and i'd be playing it in the same room where she's doing her#phd. she would not appreciate it. which i totally get so ill probably play it once i move out in a few months#ANYWAYS i do wonder how intelligent the V models are. are they mostly just programmed to understand combat pathfinding and basic puzzles?#because if i was designing a robot that needs reaction and processing time as quick as V1 i would only give it the bare minimum for#it to function as intended. being able to understand langauge and emotion or do. idk complex maths calculations seems like extra shit i don#need my killing machine to do#but then there is the thing where V1 can scan text and understand which parts are important. and V2 bowed before their first duel. and she#had such ATTITUDE in the second one. cuz yeah they have emotions and stuff. i do wonder a lot about whether they have theory of mind#ability to recognise or even create art. all that stuf. there is that scene with mirage that is incredibly conceptually abstract and deep#but im not sure how closely that relates to the V models' own brains/GPUs/whatever they have#i think thats probably just something ive picked up from the fandom portraying V1 as not as emotionally aware or intelligent as gabriel.#(at least in a way we understand as humans) anyways id love to know more about V1's thought process independent of the player and how she#experiences emotions. anyways. awesome game. bangin graphics. bangin story. bangin soundtrack#also i would do CRAZY things to a hideous mass i mean WHO SAID THATTTTTTTTT
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orbital-inclination · 8 months
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PLEASE ID LOVE TO HEAR MORE
Picking up where we left off…
In the immediate aftermath of the Incident, Dream and his brother manage to escape the facility. But things are not okay yet.
The developers had tried to remove the part of Nightmare that had learned what it meant to care for others; what they ended up doing was a soft memory wipe.
When you perform a soft memory wipe on a bot, there is a short window in which it’s possible for them to recover the files that you’re trying to overwrite. Dream could not have known this. And with what little freedom he had, he did not have the time he needed to pull off a miracle.
And so what happens is that while bits and pieces of Nightmare’s old personality slowly re-awaken, his memories do not. He doesn’t remember his bond with Dream, (on Dream's end, they've been introduced to each other twice. on Nightmare's, only once) he doesn’t remember all the times he held back or why Dream hesitates now, and he certainly doesn’t remember the old handler he was once so fond of. (Who has since gone missing.) But he possesses information he can't explain. There are commands deep within his archives that contradict themselves. Pathways that lead no where. Orphaned strings of code.
Nightmare feels like he’s been used but he can’t tell by whom. This state of confusion, and the feeling that he is missing large chunks of his own mind, is what leads to the break out and all the violence that occurres during it.
When they finally escape the facility, that alliance ends. In Nightmare's mind, Dream is still an enemy. He is labeled as a threat in his files. (Dream was a participate in the violence done to him. And because he knows he was also a participate in the violence done to Dream, he doesn't understand Dream's insistence on following him anyway, or likewise why Dream helped him escape.)
Nightmare can't trust another bot anymore than he trusts a human. He needs time to sort himself out. Patch himself up and preferably that needs to be done as far away from humans and their constructs as possible, and that includes Dream. They go their separate ways; by which I mean Nightmare warns Dream not to follow him or else. Devastated, Dream lets him go. He tells himself to be content with the knowledge that at least his brother is free. They both are. He has to be happy with that...
He is left alone until the day he meets Ink and Blue.
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maplebean2003 · 6 months
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I went into wish by Disney with an open mind even while knowing people seem to have hated it and we all wish (haha) that the concept ideas were what they stayed with but alas here we are,anyways -
I found this movie genuinely beautiful with the mix of 3d art and 2d art it's the ONLY time I've seen it done so well as if it were concept art painted upon a canvas! It felt very much like classic Disney however it was very unmemorable and I can't see myself rewatching this
There was one song out of the whole movie that I could say I would've enjoyed hearing as a kid but now it's kinda meh
Another song slapped but not hard enough for me to want to sing it
The villain was just...super relatable and frankly I don't understand why he was seen as so bad when he had very valid reasons to be upset - did he take it too far? Absolutely
It almost feels like they forgot half way their plan with his character as I was expecting him to be MUCH worse when in reality he deserved a redemption arc
An apology even from the kingdom for abusing his powers so much and only seeing him for that alone
His song was not a villain song either it was nothing sinister or evil even so that was disappointing
The side kick goat seemed very annoying to me where they tried too hard to make him funny or even likable when he probably could've just not existed and the movie wouldn't have been changed in any way shape or form
The star was cute and I enjoyed how it was a different media form than she was but I found myself not caring if he was captured or not really as I felt I didn't get to bond with it at all in time for the ending to have any impact on me
Though that may be because I am 20 lol but I think even as a child I wouldn't have been bothered by it much
Id rate it a 3/5 but really the three only goes to the art because that's the only thing that saved this movie for me unfortunately
I wanted to like it but at least it wasn't AS bad as people made it out to be
Id say watch it once at least but I watched it in 2x speed sooo...idk lol the plot felt very simple honestly in a bad way
The characters felt human enough but just...very flat at the same time where I just couldn't connect or relate to anyone except the villain
I don't see why he got such a bad wrap when Elsa did pretty much the same thing and she got a redemption
Why's it okay for her but not this man?? Idk it was odd to me
Also Bambi was in it with John from Robin Hood in the background which I actually thought was super cute :)) Bambi is all grown now!
Anyways I'd watch for the art but nothing else
My hopes weren't high to begin with so I wasn't really let down by it
It surprised me twice at least with certain twists and one instance of actually evil action being taken where the king shatters a wish of a woman....but my shock was quickly taken away unfortunately when the wish was immediately brought back like 5 minutes later somehow which didn't make any sense to me at all :// it seemed like they just didnt want anyone to complain but I think it would've been better to depict the woman either repairing her wish with help or having a new one instead of just... immediately having it back just perfectly fine
The other scene that had my jaw drop was a surprise betrayal that I won't tell cause it genuinely surprised me as it was not hinted at in the slightest beforehand
I understand why the betrayal happened though at least so it wasn't half baked like most of the movie seemed to be
But yeah Id say 3 outta 5 or 2.5 out of 5 somewhere between those and no higher as the art was the only thing that REALLY saved it for me
Now being stingy I would've LOVED watching the original plot they had for this movie as a lil star twink guy would've been goals /gender envy to the max but alas I get why
They wanted merch to sell easily most likely so they dumbed it down and made him more marketable ;-; twink death pipeline for sure
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Trimax Thoughts Vol. 7 Pt. 1
I am slowly but surely catching up! More stream of consciousness thoughts below! This one is a doozy... I almost couldn't verbalize my thoughts clearly; I just had so many.
[All images are from Trigun Maximum Vol. 7.]
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[ID: A set of five panels in a row, each a close up of a different face of a crew member. They all look pensive. The panel below is of a nondescript part of the ship's ceiling. The dialogue reads "A great scientific discovery... huh..." End ID.]
...seems like this is not the first time you people have come across a "great scientific discovery"...
Yikes. Rem's trying so hard to keep the twins a secret but her eyes in that scene... she does not trust these people. And I'm pretty sure I know why.
Hjhfdjhf Knives is a little troublemaker. He's so cute.
Interesting that it's Vash who sees Conrad first.
Knives is so happy to be accepted he just started crying... augh...
I do find the way Conrad talks to them is kind of interesting though. Idk, saying "Let's move forward together" isn't really something I'd say to a couple of young kids... it's just that I still think Conrad sees them as a new sentient form of life before just being children, you know? But at least he's being nice to them.
"We can work through a few little differences. If we just talk to each other, we can come to understand one another. Because there's no difference between human hearts and ours." <- Oof. He was so optimistic. I'm paying special attention to the words "we can work through "little" differences" and ""no" difference between them".
...the apparition of the girl there, who I'm going to assume is Tesla, is eerily similar to the strange apparition Vash saw of Conrad being killed in the previous volume. Is it an intentional thing that Knives did? If that's the case, it implies Tesla is intentionally trying to show them something... which uh...
...the flower is fresh. That means Rem is changing it and checking on it. It's kind of a miracle these two didn't follow her into this wing beforehand if she keeps disappearing to do this.
Vash is the first to catch on that something is weird about all this. Or, well, I don't think that's quite true. Knives also seems to know something is up but his face makes me think he doesn't want to admit it.
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[ID: Vash squishes in next to Knives, trying to see the screen, saying "Who?! Why?! What does it mean?!" Knives has a cartoonishly annoyed expression as his hands ready to press on the keyboard, and says "I don't know! Quit pushing, Vash!" End ID.]
Ah... siblings... :')
Oh what the fuck. This is so much worse.
Literally what the fuck. And what makes it so horrible is you can tell these people were so excited by their new discovery that they weren't even listening. We don't actually see any of Tesla's perspective but there is a small panel where she's crying. The "question of ethics" is given a single sentence, like it wasn't even contemplated. These weren't "villains", they were ordinary people. And that is even more terrifying - because all of us would love to believe that the line between good and bad is a firmly drawn thing.
Ah... so this was the inspiration for Vash not eating in Stampede... :/
Rem's perseverance is going to make me cry
Ah... never bring a knife or sharp object around someone who is suicidal...
HOLY FUCK REM. Oh my god. Certified mom moment fr.
Hey. Do you ever think how this is probably the first time Vash has seen real blood (excepting the possibility of maybe some scrapes or bruises but I'm talking actual bleeding). Anyways I just. It clearly triggered thoughts of Tesla and that fear, that trapped feeling, that "lash out before she hurts me" took over, and that upwelling of momentary relief because he's safe only for him to look down and it's Rem's blood, not his, and it's his hands, not hers, holding the weapon and I just ahgjuhbfgsjbhgjbadahhhhhh
I don't even know what to say. I have no insightful commentary I just... Vash clearly got her to the medical area. Eating his food where she can see. Clearly still wary, deeply shaken, gauging for a reaction from her. And she just smiles at him. Augh.
Sorry, is this a Night on the Galactic Railroad reference??? AS IF THIS WASN'T PAINFUL ENOUGH.
*sounds of crying*
*SOUNDS OF CRYING INTENSIFY*
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[ID: First image is of young Vash, with closed eyes, a faint grin and a sweat drop, saying "I don't fully understand though. I've never even seen a train." Second image is of a very cartoony Rem and Vash, Rem at first glaring then grimacing as she says "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" and Vash shocked with sweat drops. End ID.]
The sillies... ok but this is so sweet and tells us a lot about Vash and Rem's dynamic, for all that we only see particular scenes of it - and in spite of everything, it's a good one. Everything that's happened over the past while has been incredibly emotionally charged, and there's definitely no going back to how it was - but Rem is telling him her honest feelings, holding nothing back at this point, and Vash not only clearly listened (you can see the light come back into his eyes... augh), but he is the one who takes the step to break the tension and be a little silly (which I'm going to take a wild guess and say that's something he did before), and Rem sees it for what it is - it's not alright, and it hasn't been resolved (god, could something like this ever?) but she will never give up on him (on either of them) and he doesn't want their relationship to be tense and fraught with conflict. Anyways, that takes a deep level of love and understanding on both sides. I adore them. I adore complicated yet loving parent-child relationships.
...Knives doesn't remember??? WHAT
Sorry, Conrad opposed the experiments??? And the fact that apparently they caused an "uproar" and it was still only given one brief mention in the official report. Ugh.
Knives' breakdown and eventual decision to cause the Big Fall is so so well done. Augh this poor kid...
"I made a completely rational decision" <- me when I lie
"You need to look at the larger picture" <- I think I can finally get around to writing about Knives' trauma now. Oh yeah. It's all comin' together.
Oh this is so weird that the flashback appears to be different... because first we see Knives saying the Plant ships will survive, but now apparently several were "sacrificed". Knives kicks Vash when he accuses him of not "being" human but now it's because he accuses him of "being afraid" of humans. I'm. Confused. Is this the difference between what the brothers remember...? Is it just an extended scene?
"This is not fear. This is anger." <- ME WHEN I LIE
BRO HE ABSORBED HER? WHAT. (Also these panels are so fucking cool. I would include them here but it would literally just be three continuous pages.)
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[ID: Wolfwood has flicked a rubber band at Vash. It hits him in the face. His head moves to one side from the impact but his expression doesn't change. End ID.]
We now interrupt your regularly scheduled doom, trauma and destruction for Wolfwood certified annoying older brother comedy relief moment.
There's something about Wolfwood being the one to break up a potential shootout by playing up Vash's reputation (as Vash himself did in the first volume of Trimax) before a single person can get hurt... but it comes at the expense of continuing to damage Vash emotionally... as I suppose his brand of pacifism always kind of does huh?
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[ID: Vash smiles broadly with closed eyes. It is clearly forced. Wolfwood watches from the entrance, leaning against the Punisher. End ID.]
Ow. Just ow.
I have so many emotions from this scene. I don't even know what to say I feel like I've been pulled in about ten different directions by my heart strings. I will say the lines about taking solace in forgetting your past and that people will one day forget you is in stark contrast to Vash's insistence on remembering...
"Wolfwood, you are really my guide, right?" <- I am experiencing shrimp emotions
Knives knocking out the communications network... that's a good move. Also kind of symbolic lol
"before the end" ugh it really does sound like Vash expects to not make it out of this... but well. there's like... 7 more volumes. so.
Wolfwood: *experiences a viscerally horrifying vision involving him getting impaled and then literally ripped apart* Also Wolfwood: "I'm not gonna say anything I don't want to burden him" (for the love of... talk to each other you two!!! you're stronger together!!!!! we've established this!)
He noticed anyways... and then Wolfwood tried to follow him aghhh
...so Wolfwood didn't kill that man... and somehow that guy's the one who transmitted that weird vision??? ("How did it feel to die" <- either terrible old man transmitted it himself or he knows how it was done.)
Elendira is fascinating. I don't know what she wants really. I don't think she wants to die, but... idk. It seems like she wants to choose how she goes out? That dying along with the whole world in an instant is preferable to... idk what the alternative is. Anyways. She's cool.
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[ID: Knives is leaning against a pillar, sleeping. He is partially draped in what looks like cloth, but it likely an extension of his powers. The limbs, face, and single wing of a dependent Plant can be seen blended in with the folds. End ID.]
Knives finally gets some sleep! ...Do you think absorbing his sister, and her proximity, eased his loneliness enough that he felt safe enough to rest? Rip to her though, she doesn't look too pleased about this.
"finest human specimens" Holy fuck Knives. Do you even understand how you sound. By your own admittance, you sent them in knowing they would fail and die.
The whole "no human could've killed you anyways we're so much stronger and can't coexist" to "when they crush an ant, they don't even notice" -> so which are you? The foot or the ant? He's tried to frame them as both on multiple occasions... or maybe the dependent Plants as "ants" and him and Vash as a foot above the trampling feet... or something. Idk.
Pov: your brother has mutated his own body by clearly absorbing one of your sisters, tells you you're dying with no lead up whatsoever, and then just straight up attacks you. (sorry, sorry. Knives is a little funny to me in a... dark comedy kind of way)
OUGH... it's the lines from Stampede... except it's Vash trying so hard to appeal to Knives... "there's another way"... D':
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[ID: Cartoony drawings of Elendira and Wolfwood. Wolfwood asks "What exactly were ya plannin' to do anyway?" and Elendira, sweat dropping, says "Well..." End ID.]
Love that Elendira latches onto the first decently sane person she finds and immediately starts chatting away to him. Didn't know I needed this dynamic. hhdjfbhsdjf
WHAT. KNIVES THAT IS NOT THE SOLUTION. "I can't make you see things my way so I'll just absorb you" WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK.
...Legato just saved Knives... and him knowing Knives was in danger was the whole reason he was so frantic... in a twisted way, that's... almost sweet...?
I wonder why Vash's gate is so overly powerful compared to Knives'... I have a theory but I'll need to think on it a bit.
I can't believe Knives just left Vash at Legato's mercy... bro wasn't Legato's whole "I want to murder your brother" thing the whole reason you literally crumpled him like a soda can???
...Well. This seems to be going great. I'm going to be doing a quick write-up on Plant anatomy and powers, as well as finally digging into Knives' trauma so if anyone is interested, stay tuned for that! Might take me a little bit though... things have been pretty hectic unfortunately and I'm uh... not in the greatest of moods. But I'm really excited to write them and to catch up! :D
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Because of my heart break over Good Omens season 2, I have been trying to predict what might happen in season 3. Here's what I've got: I think Aziraphale takes on the forces of Heaven. I think Aziraphale is going to realize, the hard way, how toxic Heaven is and is going to fight Heaven to save humanity. And, I think he will start this fight alone.
Aziraphale has constantly shown that he values humanity above Heaven, but he has never really been given the chance to understand that Heaven doesn't have the same values. I mean he's seen it, but he has been told for centuries that Heaven is good - when you're told something so often it makes it hard to unlearn. He will not be able to stand by as Heaven does something to hurt humanity. He also will not be willing to see humanity last only 6000 years. I think there was a bit of foreshadowing that he will fight for Crowley's nebula to get a chance to really grow. I think having him start this battle on his own allows him to get his personal growth, and show Crowley that he is ready to fight for the things he loves (including Crowley). From there everyone will come together. I would also bet that we will get to see a lot more from God in the next season.
Any ways here's to feeding my delusions of everything being fine and Aziraphale and Crowley living happily in love forever.
hi lovely, i know your ask came in a while ago but I've needed to really take a minute to think about it properly!!!✨ I feel like ive been burned by fire as far as prediction goes (ie i got NUFFINK right haha), and think i ought to just stick to analysis lmao💀
however, possible thoughts on s3:
- second coming = greasy johnson, first up
- in terms of aziraphale, i think he's going to get a taste of actually how difficult it truly is to run heaven. i don't think we're suddenly gonna have him self righteous and be pitting himself against all of heaven's bureaucracy, because i think we need to see actually how difficult it is (as much as id hate to feel ANY empathy with any of the archangels). there's going to be red tape, stupid rules that must be followed for the greater good, moral dilemmas that as a lower angel he didnt appreciate had to be made... being a boss is hard. it's not fun, you have to please a lot of people, and make everything fair whilst essentially keeping a business afloat. i think, as it stands, it's pretty obvious that aziraphale is Not Suited for it, but is too much of a good person to not take his opportunity to make things Better
- the motives behind the metatron are going to be interesting to uncover. something tells me sTILL that aziraphale and crowley, together as a unit, are part of the ineffable plan, and this was a plan to separate them in order to prevent certain things coming to fruition (eg metatron references the second coming, but what if he's trying to prevent it???)
- the BoL has to come in again somewhere (the phrase chekovs gun now gives me a Twitch), but again i think that heaven has misunderstood what it actually is. i wonder, as the link says, if it's actually the deciding journal, or at least has a chapter in it, that chooses which angels fall and which don't... which, if aziraphale was meant to fall originally (and crowley took his place - TOTAL headcanon at this point), that could explain a lot about some motives crowley to keep aziraphale from returning to heaven's clutches, a last big secret that could make or break them... anyway i disgress
- idk about god. what really strikes me is the golden glow from heaven in s2e2, vs the sterile white we see now. plus, metatron essentially being de-facto sovereign over heaven? i think god fucked off a long while ago... i suspect she will come back, but maybe not as prominently as we'd like
- idk about crowley's s3 arc, im still thinking about that, he's probably gravitated towards tadfield or the south downs or st... but we're less than 12 hours post s2 release so all a little premature to be thinking about really!!!✨
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mihai-florescu · 3 months
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Do you agree with me that we should get rid of "death of the author" and that we should introduce "death of the audience" instead?
"Oooh but how will other people interpret this-" I don't know! I don't care! I wanna know what goes on inside the brain of the person who actually put their time and effort and soul into this. Not five million other people who Did Not Create the Thing.
(Sorry if this is weird but you feel like the most qualified person i know to have an opinion on this)
Disclaimer, im big on believing 2 things coexist at the same time about everything. My mood swings put me in black and white thinking often, but when i can think clearly from both perspectives im still a contrarian and have counter points for my counter points. Im gonna word vomit an answer, im not good at ordering my thoughts but i hope its fine still.
Oh brother i used to go on rants about this (authorial intent, media consumption, fandom culture etc) all of last semester and it's what ultimately led to me giving up on my degree and serious art altogether... i'll attach a few i found in my archive i think are relevant if youre curious beep meep meow. I was writing these posts at the same time as my thesis paper which was more hopeful and aiming to reframe what we consider escapism, but in the end by the finale (last assessment) the hatred won in my heart and i couldnt make a visual project with an audience in mind. I made something, but it was more like a rant with visuals and absolutely failed the "whats the future of this project?" question. Must it have a future for an audience? Its job was to be a confession and a respite, for my own expression. I dont want an audience, im too much of a misanthropic hater and possessive mother to let others see or interpret my ideas. I know it's selfish and counterproductive but i cant help it. You sending this ask made me laugh since it was so relevant to my struggles this year. Id love to break out of this cycle and mindset but i always go back here to these beliefs.
Anyway... i do think the sensible truth is somewhere in the middle. Reader's interpretation is essential for works to gain life in the world and to outlive their authors, and i revere stories for the ability to touch people's hearts and make them learn things about themselves as well as other's way of thinking (reading is a process of interpretation and contemplation afterall isnt it? Well, active reading at least. Citation to my written thesis). But im not a fan of fandom lens interpretations that so often flatten stories.
I think for our shared stories of interest authorial intent is particularly fun to think about. Commercial works made to sell gacha games but which do have heart and profound messages theyre trying to convey. But also made with an audience in mind. I havent been able to formulate any particularly riveting conclusions, but i would love to know if anyone has focused on such topics. Everything deserves analysis and attempts at understanding... and i find authorial intent an invaluable insight that can never be cast aside. Works gain lives of their own after theyre set free into the world, but they dont spawn fully formed from thin air ready for "consumption"...
Uuu im trying to decide if i should link to you a story about storytelling i wrote and illustrated in a day, and a video about humanity and the power of imagination as salvation and damnation... if i say "i'll share them, but only if you erase from your mind that i wrote them" it'd be hypocritical after everything i just spilled out. But too much knowledge about the author is scary too... not for the audience as much as the author himself. It's the audience who has the final laugh of judgement and interpretation... but it's scary to let others into your mind, to see things you spent time and energy on? I wish i could channel my death of the audience defiance into proudly sharing works without caring who sees them rather than deciding nothing is worth making anymore since im so mistrustful. Alas! Maybe one day i'll stop being a self absorbed, self sabotaging prey animal
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undertow-story · 1 year
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PROLOGUE
SACHIEL
I’ve lived in this place for as long as I can remember now. Which is not very long in the scheme of things. I’ve been in the Undertow for at least a year and a half if I had to guess, but time doesn’t feel like it flows quite right down here.
My name is Sachiel… At least, this is the name I’ve given myself based off the ID I found in my pocket upon waking. I seem to have lost all memory of my former self, and given the information I have, I’m not from around here. If that wasn’t obvious enough, then I would have figured it out given the fact I am the only one of my kind.
I wish I knew what my kind was, admittedly. Claws. Fangs… Ears, cropped like that of the common mongrel leashed around by the thugs and bandits in this city. Tail and horns- piercing thin slitted eyes just like the creatures I hunt.
I must be a monster.
Not that it bothers me. It’s the only fathomable explanation I can assume anyway. I however, seem to be the only one capable of speech out of the creatures I’ve encountered so far. In this place, it’s kill or be killed obviously, as we’re overrun with horrific entities I cannot explain.
This world is best emphasized by the word ‘survive’.
Rather, uh… This sector is described that way. Look, I only know so much, but also it makes sense to me to write down the things I do know so far- in case my brain gets smacked around enough again to lose all the knowledge I’ve got.
The area I reside is called The Undertow, or just Undertow depending on who you talk to. We are the filth. Cast out from the glistening lights of the city above- we’re forced to live in the waste and squalor of the wealthy fucks put themselves above us. Our home is lit by neon, and is dark around every corner. Disease, Crime, Violence… it’s all rampant here. I have not yet seen the sun for more than 2 hours at a time. Which is unfortunate because the creatures residing here love the darkness. I feel pity for the people of this place. So many just trying to live their lives, get by…
Banished to this horrible place just because they’re not good enough by the standards of those above.
I don’t know the name of the place above us.
I’m not meant to. None of us are.
I saw it once from the outskirts when I left on a hit. The upper lands glow so blindingly bright, and it’s much smaller in comparison to the dredges below it. I personally don’t understand how they can live, I’d go blind. Y'know, how the pompous types are. They don’t care about us. The only time they need us is when they want someone dead…
Speaking of, that seems to be the case.
On a board bolted to a wall in the middle of a bustling market, Sachiel looks up from his book, closing it and putting it away as he takes a paper off the board, holding it in his rough hand. The paper reads: “Wanted: Hunter for removal of Important Persons, please send applications to xxxxx_xxx-x we await your chance to take on this ‘Golden Opportunity’.”
What specific wording.
“Reward: 10,000,000c”
Whoo, this guy must have really fucked up for them to ask a price like that.
Here, if you’ve got the skill then people will let you take on jobs for them… they generally involve killing. Usually it’s for monsters that rampage and cause destruction in specific sectors that threaten the foundations that hold the upper city aloft. Sometimes you get hits for persons- and other times you get hits for assholes like this. The ones up above.
I registered to be a Hunter some time back… maybe after a month of eating rats on the street. I decided I would rather at least be able to afford a beer here and there- maybe actual food instead of just whatever I could scrounge up. I don’t care to take on hits against persons- they don’t interest me… Humans aren’t fun to hunt. However, this is an awfully good deal. I could actually get an apartment instead of sleeping in whatever nearby dumpster I can find…
Never hurts to try I suppose.
His ears bent back, he headed off deeper into the city, clearly somewhere in mind.
Another day in paradise.
Tch-I gotta stop saying that it’s becoming a habit.
Next
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icharchivist · 8 months
Text
some detailed thoughts about the Relink's ending (a whole post will be dedicated to coming back to the whole game)
where did i stop. ah yeah. Rolan our Princess in distress. Ouh boy.
-first of all, big hype for the game to have this many fake endings. always keeping in on my toes like "what do you mean it's not over"
-The last official island was so fucking scary. The ambiance was really top notch but at what cost. Truly "there's no reason for the skies to be blue" call back.
-Having to fight dark versions of all the big boss primals we fought so far was really cool, it's fun also to see how much more used we are to them now.
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Io is so funny.
-ID IS MY BEST FRIEND I WANT TO KISS HIS FACE IM SO AAAAAAAAH. When he came to join us i was crying i'm so happy.
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-The reveal about what he is was great though. I did wonder about it before but i thought connecting him directly to Bahamut would have been maybe a little too big. But in the end, that was what the game was going for anyway lmao. But that does explain why Id found a bit of his humanity back by being around Lyria. She probably pulled him out of the mind-restrainer that way.
(speaking of which i mentioned as soon as Lyria appeared with that collar that Id had the same around his neck but no one was bringing it up in game so i thought i was insane about it. So glad i was right. So not glad of how it was confirmed.)
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-This is SOOO RAGAZZO CORE THOUGH.
Like honestly Lilith was a great mix of multiple Granblue antagonists: she has a bit of all the astrals in her like i mentioned earlier, the fact her final boss battle was her fusing with a primal in desperation is really like Freesia, stuff like that....... but her relationship with Id in particular was REALLY a lot like Ferdinand and Ragazzo it was chilling to see.
she "adopted him" and immediately put a mind control collar on his neck, in order to lock a god inside of him because the god thwarted her plans, but she taught Id how to use this power, and have him be her son. so when he betrayed her, she played the whole ":) mom is so sad for your betrayal" which is exactly how Ferdinand played off Ragazzo's betrayal.
So like "grooming children into becoming her pawns and not telling them that in her greater plan there is only pain" is sooo Ferdinand coded--
but it's Id's way of, after realizing the abuse and horrors, still loving his mother so much, but in a way where he understands she needs to be taken down, so it's his responsibility as a son at least to take her down for all the horrors..... this is soooo Ragazzo coded.
also the way Id turns into a dragon form reminds me of Ragazzo's harmonized form which adds to the whole thing. + Lilith actually harming him in order to turn him into a weapon she intends to use, only for him to throw her off the island. again, very Ferdinand&Ragazzo coded.
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the way they all immediately adopted him is making me cry though, always
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Id we have a few people in our crew that started off by kidnapping Lyria and now are our besties. you'll fit right in.
-the two others generals also coming to help us with the bosses + against Lilith waas SO FUCKING COOOOL . I think they're so neat. I love Granblue's insistance on redeeming about everyone.
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-amazing line from Vyrn.
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-Literally would kill for Id.
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-always loving a good power of friendship.
-The boss fight against Lilith was really cool. had a lot of brainworms about astrals' mentality and the way they basically are so self reliant they just see how they get to use others for their own gain, not how they can be helped
-which now makes me think is probably why Rolan felt so ashamed that he did start out "using us" against Lilith instead of just relying on us, knowing that this would be the same result anyway. Like i think it's fine and all but it explains the guilt he felt so much.
-Anyway final fight with Lilith, and she breaks the mindcontrol collar from Id, and if it's manually broken it drives people insane, which, linked to his bond with Bahamut, just unleashes a rampaging Bahamut on the skies. huh oh.
but ofc determined to save Id and all, we go on:
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-This made me chuckle and cry at once. Eugen knows so well the suffering he brought his daughter by being such a shitty father and he knows she doesn't want him to fix it and everything, that now he sees any kid with a failure of a parent and he's like "it's okay i can be your parent now too.". What a guy.
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-btw next ticket went to Ferry
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-cried during this part so took screenshot. Pure quintessential granblue experience.
then we have to fight a rampaging Id and just.
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-Id is a good boy and i love him so much
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-^this was so funny to me. so real.
-ANYWAY NOOOOO ROLAN
-We really need to do something about Danchou's habit of just, jumping into danger without a back up plan.
-Id and Danchou jumped in an alternative dimension trying to repeal the Bahamut inside of Id, and Rolan came to save us out of it...... but was locked behind in the dimension.
-which is horrible.
-he made sure we knew he's alive though so there's still hope we'll get him back
-here's how Lucifer coming back can still win--
so we're adding Rolan to the list of our alternate besties we need to get back. LUCIO COME BACK HERE AND OPEN THOSE FUCKING DOORS.
-Id, of course, has survivor guilt and feels terrible about it. and since he was our enemy he doesn't get why we're so chill with him.
and this was adorable:
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-crying in the club:
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-The ending song was fucking heartbreaking i was just crying through it.
-Anyway post game campaign is basically, we're going back to Folca and people are lost now that Rolan is gone, and Id feels so guilty he wants to take over what Rolan used to do, so we decide to help him out, and tadaa. The more we play the game and sidequests to help Id build his reputation as Mister Fix It the more we'll get some plots about Id reclaiming his own life now and everything.
-All in all the game was just perfect and i cried a lot
-the battles were all so, so damn amazing and it was a blast to play through every time
-what a game.
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troph4eum · 6 months
Text
hey ik its been a while since ive posted but i like that this is always here for when i have something i wanna talk about.
anyways so a while ago i released a song called do you see your god in me and i wanted to talk about the whole concept of the "god" within someone.
just a warning for those who r reading this: this is going to be a more personal post with me talking about more specific things going on in my life as this involves explaining my music which is one of if not the most personal thing to me. if youre not interested in that then youre free to move on. also this is probably gonna be long as fuck just like my other posts on here.
before getting back to the main subject let me give some context.
do you see your god in me was written about shinji and kaworu from evangelion. if you havent seen it then its fine ill be explaining the relevant stuff with them in this post. heres the link to the song if you want to listen to it and heres the genius page if you just want to read the lyrics
okay now on to what i wanted to talk about
so being completely honest i never truly knew what i meant by the "god in someone" until like half an hour ago when i really started to think about it. it was always something i knew like the idea of but could never put it into words so i just always assumed i would understand when im older. which is now proving to be true. i began really asking myself the question of what it means after i released another song called "overcoming toxicity" where theres an interpolation of the chorus from do you see your god in me at the end. ill talk more about that song in another post because it has its own history that requires its own explanation but my point is that it all came to a conclusion not tonight while i was walking around thinking of what i want to eat.
i always knew the god in someone would likely need to be revealed through their death. most likely suicide. that was the idea i had when writing the song at least. this is because in nge kaworu is an angel and he was only truly freed from his fate and was truly able to be himself when he died on his own terms at the hands of shinji. or at least thats how im interpreting those events evangelions symbolism leaves a lot of room for interpretation and tbh idk whats commonly agreed upon i just know how i perceive aspects of the story. anyways a major point in evangelion is humans not being able to understand one another when theyre alive. thats what the third impact is all about where all of humanity essentially dies and forms one collective consciousness with nothing held back. and i think this concept of the "god in someone" has a lot to do with that. but the question the title of the song asks didnt make a lot of sense. because if the god in you is revealed through death what would it mean for someone to see their god in you? thats what i always had trouble understanding and the explanation i have is subject to change and if you have your own explanation of it id love to hear it. but the conclusion i came to revolves around the lies that we tell. humans are liars. now im not saying this in a cynical way i think a lot of the lies we tell are subconscious and mostly harmless. but they do accumulate over time. and its not just the lies we tell others but the lies we tell ourselves whether we know were lying or not. ive always felt like the person inside my head is different than the person whos living my life and i think thats the god in me. the person who exists not as a result of all the lies that they tell and have been told but the person who simply exists.
the reason why i said the god in you is revealed in death and more specifically suicide is because of how brutally honest death is and how vulnerable and honest suicide is. now this isnt me glorifying death or suicide just to be completely clear this is coming from someone whos struggled with suicidal thoughts and contemplation. its because ive dealt with those thoughts that ik how honest it is. its honest to the point its almost scary its like its too real. but my point is the actions you take when approaching death are likely going to be as close as to the real you as possible. any last words or actions will be as genuine as possible because you know you wont have a chance to do anything else. now of course this isnt universal whatever exceptions to what im saying are valid contradictions im not saying this is law im just explaining my thoughts that have already filtered those possibilities out and this is already long enough without me explaining every exception to everything i say.
now the term "god" is used because of the connection to nge with kaworu being an angel but i thought ab it and decided that this definition can be helpful in coming to another conclusion
"the creator and ruler of the universe and source of all moral authority; the supreme being."
the world only exists to us how we perceive it so our minds are actively creating (being used in a loose sense) the universe by experiencing it through our senses and because we can be aware of this our minds dont really exist within the universe as we experience it. so in a way we are our own gods as we can choose (to a certain extent) how to perceive the world around us.
now getting back to the question of "do you see your god in me" i think it all comes down to truly being able to relate to another person and fell comfortable and understood by them and for you to also be relatable, comforting, and able to understand them. its a mutual connection the 2 of you share when theres nothing holding you back. it seems so simple but i think its such a unique and beautiful experience.
tbh thats really all ive figured out about that aspect of it so far. like i said i only really came to understand it recently and everything else i have to say has more to do with overcoming toxicity which honestly deserves its own post bc there are a lot of strong thoughts and feelings involving that song that doesnt just include this topic. so i think im just gonna end it here.
as always if u read all this bullshit ty ik im a generational yapper but it helps alleviate the stress of having it all in my head.
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bitegore · 2 years
Note
I would love to hear of your combiner blorbos. Anything about them you'd really like to talk about?
okay okay like so i am like. literally foaming at the mouth about motormaster all the time lately. for like the last two? weeks ? something like that.
anyway i love this fucking truck so much. he is awful and he sucks, and for some reason this is deeply endearing to me personally. I llove him. I have feelings for and about him. I am going to kill him to dead with my own two bare human hands and he can't stop me. because I love him.
anyway one of the things that makes the stunticons as a whole interesting to me is that they're very young, relatively speaking! they have very little life experience. they're like the terrans in earthspark (fucking psyched to see that by the way) in that they have never seen prewar cybertron, they have never spent any time outside the decpeticons on earth, and they don't really know anything about their past, their culture, their history, or, frankly, anything else. You learn from experience and most of their experience is being kind of ignored and left to their own devices when they're not being ordered to do stuff for megatron. Who's gonna teach them shit?
and like motormaster SUCKS but at least in part because he's like if you gave a 25 year old a giant sword, told him he was meant to be in charge of other people by nature, and then made sure he had zero experience socializing with anyone ever. Like they come out of vector sigma knowing how to fight, but they are not functional people. they suck and they are useless and Motormaster is in charge of them and also the worst, because he's technically an officer so he doesn't have to learn to play nice with the rank and file the same way the others do, and he also doesn't have to work with teammates to avoid getting in trouble like the others do.
Like okay listen. listen. He's stupid as fuck and he's very naive and the Decepticons say their thing is might makes right even though it's really not just might makes right and i hit you if you don't listen, right? They run around lying and cheating and stealing through most of g1 but might makes right. okay sure lord megatron totally. whatever. but this man is ten minutes old and smart as a brick. of course hes gonna buy in. Do you think he has the necessary level of experience to say "my authority figure is lying to me"?
and, like, living on might makes right alone under the thumb makes it really obvious how much of "might makes right" is nonsense, actually. Where under "might makes right" is "hey i got something you want and ill swap it to you if you cover my ass when motormaster asks who broke his cd player", you know? So much of human interaction and simple basic behavior does not fit into the paradigm and its pretty obvious IF YOU ARE UNDER IT. But Motormaster is not under it. And motormaster has no fucking friends.
like. it rots the fuck. it rots your brain. it rots your ability to relate to people when you're classing them "i could beat you" vs "you could beat me" and not "we are both people on the same side who want the same shit". it fucks your ability to socialize when everything is a power game and anything that isnt a fistfight is a prelude to what is obviously the relevant social posturing, aka, a fistfight. it fucks up your ability to even have a normal conversation when you need to hide all your insecurities so you stay on top, and make no mistake, motormaster does not even see an option outside staying on top.
like
like.
if he were older and had a little more going on under the hood id say he were afraid of not being on top but i dont think he's even grasped that that was an OPTION like. i do not think he understands what might makes right MEANS. i don't think he understands that if someone gets the better of him that he's now down under the thumb with the rest of them. I don't think he has ever thought about it. Why should he? He's stronger and they're weaker and that's the natural and correct order of these things, when would that ever change?
(When someone gets a gun, historically speaking.... not exactly a challenge for a fucking decepticon......)
like a lot of these thoughts are really so complex that i cant even communicate them properly in words i have to write fic about it to pin down what i mean. when i say i write fic instead of meta this is what i mean. the relationships the stunticons have are all like. they genuinely clearly care about each other or they would have fucking killed each other within ten minutes of experiencing each other's company i am fucking telling you. breakdown or drag strip would've done it, they're the ones with the most obvious stress lines that motormaster and the others are always pressing on. so there is some reason they haven't done it. and they all seem to really buy into the Cause and the Decepticon Line and for the most part that means they buy into might makes right. whoever strikes the first felling blow wins.
BUT IT DOESNT like the ritual fucking combat between Megatron and Starscream is clearly like
I. I don't know in g1 the violence they do on each other is actually really pretty low-key all things told. more people and more eloquent than i ahve talked about how weird it is that megatron "lets" starscream live but if you assume its pageantry for the troops to remind you that Leader is Strongest(tm) or whatever and Starscream, the only one willing to strike out against Leader, is bold enough to be second in command. when starscream really gets bold about it megatron really escalates too but that's rare for them. they don't do that often. you can sort of put it in as a ritual, it seems like it is, like it's real combat but it's a game. they're not really meaning it every single time. and its clearly on display for a REASON or starscream would just poison Megatron and be done with it. He's probably got his name in the will, you know? SIC inherits if Commander dies unless something is UP.
And we see it with TFTM too. When Megatron is dying and the Decepticons start arguing over who should be leader its couched in terms of strongest-
BUT THEY DON'T ACT LIKE THAT
THEY DON'T THEY JUST DO NOT ACT LIKE MIGHT MAKES PROPER RIGHT. THEY DO NOT. so it doesn't make SENSE to say that the whole army is like that. but its how leadership is transferred and i think it IS reasonable to say that the stunticons don't really get the pageantry yet. So they think Motormaster has to die, and it's sort of allowed, like it's not really but its how it works. And they haven't killed him yet, so there's something else there, like, despite everything they actually give a shit about this stupid idiot truck in charge of them
and i think there's another side to it, too, which is that he understands what his job and the expectations he's meant to meet are very clearly. he is in charge of his team so he represents his team. if his team fucks up that means HE fucks up. If command wants to take it up with anyone they can take it up with HIM (even though he'll go back and take that out on all four of his subordinates because he's mad and hitting them really hard is a convenient outlet. he sucks). His job is to be the guy who Command gives orders to because he is the strongest and he is the guy who Command gives punishment to because he is the strongest. He is the guy who is supposed to defend and stand up for the rest of the team because he is the strongest. Like, he definitely sees himself as like, 'earning' the right to beat the shit out of the other four by defending them from being beaten on by anyone else. If anyone tries to hassle HIS dumbfuck cars they get to fight HIM and he will hurt them until they will not do that ever again. Because that is his job. Because he is the strongest.
I think the other four know this, but like, they still resent him for the rest of it. It's not worth it. At least if they were being picked on by the rest of the faction they could lock them out. Motormaster lives with them. He's inside their heads. There is nowhere for them to go when they need a break unless he decides they deserve one. As you may imagine, no one is happy with this situation except Motormaster
except like he's NOT
he's not happy with this EITHER like you can SEE it he's so fucking unfulfilled and he thinks it's because his team gets in his way and they aren't respected enough and that might be part of it but i really don't think it is. he has no positive social contacts. He has his team but they kind of hate and fear him more than just about anything else, even if they do care about him somewhere in there. He's too busy being competitive and keeping his spot on the pile to have friends outside the faction. And he's too conscious about who lives underneath him and is a subordinate and a target to have any friends in the rank and file. He has cut himself off from every possible angle of positive social feedback and he is too fucking naive and inexperienced to see it because as far as he knows this is just his life! this is how it's always been! why should he want different? what even is there to change?
and the answer is, like, a lot of things, but nothing he thinks is important, you know? Friends is an autobot thing, that's for losers, and he doesn't need anyone anyway. he has his team. and they have him... right?
and then the like. the other bit that gets me is that like. he has no choice. he is this way because he is, not because he chose to be. So it's hard to know what he'd be like if you gave him options. But I don't think he'd choose to be any different now that he's gotten a taste. he likes being on top too much. The minute you concede that might doesn't make right, he loses a lot of the position he has, because he has to admit that the people under him have some kind of right, too, and they can get to him and if he fucks up they can fuck him up even though they're superficially physically weaker. He's got reason to maintain these beliefs. He likes being on top of the pile and I don't think he likes feeling like there's anywhere else he might be.
anyway i am going to eat him like a fucking candy bar. i love him. he sucks.
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lion-buddy · 2 years
Note
Thoughts on the Tanjiro and Nezuko role swap au?
Oh i love the swap au!! I think abt it alot in my own time. Ive always wanted to like, make my own content abt it but i tend to get pretty stuck on the mechanics of everything
Like, taking the world building of kny and applying it to a swap is super interesting to me, and i like trying to work it out. But there are a lot of specifics in kny that are harder to work around in a swap au. But thats not a bad thing! If anything it leads to more interesting story telling because it ensures that the swap isnt to 1 to 1. its just, a lot of work. and would take a lot of planning. If i were to like, write out a timeline of how i think the swap au would go, id have to figure out exactly how the mechanics and all the plot reasoning first. Cuz the way i see, it once you establish the world and lore rules, you can better mold the characters around that. 
To start, demon tanjiro is such an interesting concept on its own. I feel hes the easier of the two to establish a character for, because we have his canon series counterpart to go off of. We can pick and choose from the many traits we’re given in canon and apply them to demon tanjiro, and its really fun reinterpreting them.  Demon tanjiro basically takes the whole Im The Eldest Sibling trait to the extreme, and turning it into what giudes his reasoning now that he's stuck in a demon mindset (presumably similar to canon nezukos). Older Brother tanjiro is the best. :D  
I can still see him being that little ray of sunshine he always is and just, being stuck to nezukos side at all time, whether it be in protection, or just wanting to help her with daily tasks. Like a lost little puppy <:D. Hes just fueled by the desire to be productive and helpful because that's where he thrives, and hes just going to do what feels correct in his little demon mind. I can see him like, taking things out of nezukos hands wordlessly to carry for her because his reasoning is, “little sister shouldnt be the one carrying everything. Im the eldest sibling! I will do the heavy lifting for her!! >:[].” meanwhile nezuko just like, “brother can i pls have my bento box back pls i appreciate ur help but that's not what i need <:3!!” hes just trying to help in anyway he can, even if he doesn't fully understand why/what hes doing. 
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I feel tanjiros presence would also be very important to nezuko. Shes young, and the only one there for her is her demon brother. While hes not able to speak, nezuko would still have one sided conversations with him. And in moments wheres shes unsure of what to do, she’d just think, “what would oniichan do?” because even if he can’t offer advice now, he’s still her older brother, and she looks up to him, demon or not.
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Roleswap nezuko is interesting. We already have such a well established personality for tanjiro, but nezuko can be a little tricky since we dont have a lot to go off of in canon. Theres bits and pieces we can take and interpret to the best of our abilities, and it kinda makes it more fun (for me at least) cuz we get to see how people interpret her character in so many different ways. :]
i actually came up with a design for her! nezuko is canonically good a sewing, or at least knows how to. her haori is made of up her old kimono and obi. i feel the checker pattern is important to keep because its kinda what all the kamados wear. also shorts/hand cropped uniform pants. i wanted to do pants but they didnt mesh well with her black leg wraps </3 (also pluggin my old hair timeline post bc its relevant <3)
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(i didnt design a swap tanjiro bc hed just look like ep 1 tanjiro but muzzled. but he might have an outfit change like nezuko did in ep one.)
My TLDR version of early story swap nezuko is basically: During the beginning of her journey as a official demon slayer, she is veryyyy determined to change tanjiro back to a human as fast as she can, and is essentially bee-lining it from mission to mission. People are fine, but she is not going to linger for too long if she doesnt have to. Shes got her brother! And thats all the company she needs :]. this of course changes as she meets, trains, and fights alongside other people. She learns to slow down and appreciate the people around her more and how they can help her cause too.
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When trying to write out how the events of a swap au would go, i try to take nezukos character into mind ensure her experiences are different from tanjiros. Because they're different characters, different people, even if they face off against the same demon/character, they're going approach it differently, and have different takeaways from the things they experience
Now as much as i would love to write out/draw detailed scenes, that's a lot of work and planning and time that i do not really have atm. And i'd need to figure out A Lot of in world mechanics in order to create something I would be proud of. But in the meantime, i can establish a scene with nezukos' emotional beats to get a feel for her :D!
In the giyu confrontation scene in ep 1, nezukos first “emotional” arc would have a very different setup, almost opposite to tanjiros. When giyu steals the now fully demon tanjiro from nezuko, she’d be really angry at him. Shes angry someone thinks they can just take her brother away from her, dare to hurt him even, just because they think theyre stronger, just because think they know whats right (giyu ofc is just doing his best but. she doesnt know that </3). At first she’d try to retaliate, fight back immediately, in any way she physically can to get tanjiro back, but of course it wouldnt work out very gracefully. Shes no where near skilled enough to face a hashira, but she doesnt care. Her actions are blinded by her grief and rage from any rational thought. All she sees is this man stabbing her brother, threatening to kill him, and shes the only one who can save him. she has too. hes all shes got left. and this man is in threatening that. She’d tire herself out pretty quickly and fall to the ground, to tired to make another move. When giyu sees this, she’d get talked at for being too brash, running into a situation without thinking, without a plan, with only a goal in mind and no way to execute it. In a battle, you need to remember the people that youre trying to protect, not just the target youre trying to destroy. You need to remember who youre fighting for, cuz you cant fight for them if youre dead. Anyway funny axe throw scene now [insert plot things that happen that i have yet yo work out yet because the involve swap tanjiro. hes gonna be intersting] and we’re done. Even if her efforts to save her brother didnt turn out, there is potential to hone that determination into something, and giyu recognizes this. He believes that its something nezuko can effectively use if trained properly, maybe even help her find answers for her brother. After waking up, giyu would send the kamados off to urokodakis to be trained.
TLDR nezuko has really bad tunnel vision <3
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We’re told in canon that Nezuko was not afraid to stand up to an adult if they were being mean, even if she's the smaller one in the situation. This trait is exhibited through her actions in Nezuko vs Daki, and I thought it was good scene to reference for how this scene might play out. i find the situation to be similar here. While it may seem out of her gentle character archetype, weve seen time and time again how fiercely she protects the people she cares about. hell, we even see her do the same thing in this scene in ep 1 when tanjiro is passed out!! In this moment if swap, she’s in shock, having just lost her entire family. she has already broke, this is just pushing it!!
i reallly wanna write more for this post but it is already. long lol. i have a few blurbs of texts about certain topics, and hopefully i can share them someday because i!! really like thinking abt this stuff! i really want to solidify and share my interpretation of demon tanjiro and how he works. things like how nezuko approaches battle and her overall fighting style. how the kamados fight together and help each other protect those they care about. maybe one day!
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planetdemon · 3 years
Text
I just wanted to be a swan
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pairing: bang chan x reader
genre: angst, fluff, but mostly angst
warnings: low self-esteem, body hate/dislike, eating disorders, swearing, food, insecurities, arguing DONT READ IF YOU DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE WITH IT!
wc: 2.003
note: so this scenario has been going through my head for quite a while now, and I tried writing it by myself lol. Hope it's good ;) I've also sent a request to @channienet about the same topic, so make sure to check her interpretation out as well! enjoy!
summary: Due to Chan's heavy working schedule, spending time alone was a thing you couldn't quite befriend with, especially after you've noticed some changes you have gone through. There is a to change it, but it isn't quite... let's say healthy. How will Chan react, after he finds out? Will he even care? (dude I'm shit at writing summary lol)
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Taking a bath was normally something that should be considered relaxing or calming. You've always enjoyed letting the hot water surround your body whilst taking all the dirt and negativity off that you have collected during stressful days at work.
But lately, taking a bath wasn't as enjoyable anymore as it once was. Chris has been working a lot lately, due to the kingdom stage and their nearing comeback. He has been spending more and more time at the company, working on producing new tracks for him and the kids, often staying at the dorms because they were closer to the studio than the apartment you shared. So you were left alone, by yourself.
Even though you wished he would be by your side while you were falling asleep, you couldn't be mad at him. You knew what his work meant to that boy and you would never tell him to stop doing what he loves just so you could spend some time together.
But being alone also meant that you had to kill the boredom somehow and, thanks to Felix's Brownie and Cookie recipes, you had the perfect thing to do in the meantime. Baking and eating delicious desserts.
You were just stepping out of the bathtub, grabbing the towel you had prepared, and drying yourself with it. Once your body was half-dried, you turned around to hang the towel back at the hanger, so it could dry properly.
And at that moment, you knew, you've fucked up. You couldn't avoid looking at your wet, naked body in the hot, steamy mirror near the hangers.
You always hated looking at it, but thanks to the sweets you had been eating lately, looking at yourself only made you feel sicker than it ever did.
You couldn't tear your gaze off the excess of flesh around your tummy and thighs and the stretch marks, that decored your boobs only seemed to scream "Look at me!". You slowly turned around and saw the tiger stripes creeping up your bum and the undersides of your arms.
'Fucking disgusting', that little voice in your head sneered.
'How could I let this come this far?', you thought. At this point, you were somehow happy Chris wasn't here, knowing he would be disgusted with how you've changed.
You've always felt a bit insecure by his side, knowing you could catch up with neither his attractiveness nor his muscular godlike body. But seeing yourself like this destroyed every little self-esteem you had left in your cells.
-
It has been nearly two months since 'the incident' in the bathroom and you couldn't shake that feeling of disgusts off. Not even for one second.
You only wanted to try a one-week detox diet that was blowing up all over social media, hoping you could lose a little bit of weight, so you would be back to normal. But seeing the numbers on the scale dropping so unbelievably quickly only made you realize that you could look even better than you thought you could.
You kept on following the diet and restricting everything that wasn't included, not noticing that restricting also damaged your mind.
One time, Han and Felix asked you if you wanted to have lunch with them and the others, but fear crept up you back as soon as you thought about the food they would have ordered, knowing that you would only gain weight again if you didn't follow the rules.
So you stayed home, keeping yourself isolated from your friends and most importantly, Chan.
You were lying on my bed, scrolling through Tumblr when Chris' Caller ID showed up and your phone started to ring. You sighed lowly, not wanting to talk to him.
Over the past few months, you stopped showing up at the studio, being afraid the boys would notice the changes your body went through, thanks to the diet. You were happy about it, knowing that you were losing weight, but you haven't reached my goal. You were afraid, they would judge you the way you did when you looked at yourself.
"Chris?"
"y/n? Han just told me that you weren't coming over. Are you okay? Y-" Chris's muffled voice appeared and you felt instant regret deep in your guts, knowing how much fun you guys had when you spent time together back in the days.
"Yeah, I'm okay Channie, don't worry. I just feel a little sleepy. I'll come next time. Promise" You tried your best to sound optimistic or at least not too sad, hoping Chris would believe your lie. "Okay," he mumbled, "I love you, baby girl".
-
You knew you were in big troubled the second Chris opened the fridge, seeing no food in there.
He randomly decided to stay over the weekend, saying that he missed you. You weren't ready for this, knowing that you couldn't hide the signs of the 'passion' you had developed in time.
"Why is there no food?" You fumbled with the arms of Chris sweater you were wearing while looking at the ground. "I've forgotten to go grocery shopping" You answered.
"But there is nothing in there, y/n. Nothing" He walked over and took hold of your cold hands while looking you straight in the eyes.
"Why is there no food?" Chris asked again.
"I just told you I forgot to go grocery shopping, Chan. Relax" You snapped back, getting anxious about the fact that he could notice something.
You were nearing your goal, even though you knew that you could never be satisfied with how you looked. He couldn't just come over and ruin all the progress you've made after being not here for so long. He doesn't have the right to do this.
"Don't fuck around, y/n. You always have at least some butter in your house. Where is the butter? Where is Ramen? You must have some food here!"
Your body started to shake as you heard his voice rise, keeping your gaze low, not daring to look him in the eyes right now. He was right.
You always had something at home, so you could quickly cook something when you were hungry. But you didn't saw a point in keeping food at home if you wouldn't eat it anyway. It would just rot.
"Y/n look at me" he whispered, after realizing that you were trembling. Chris gently grabbed your chin to make you look up at him. You were expecting to see anger, but the only thing you saw in his brown orbs was sadness.
You started to tear up after you noticed it, knowing that he put one and one together. You missing out on lunch with the boys, you not showing up at the studio to bring him food and spend with him there, listening to his tracks, you not having any food at home. It was obvious, but you still hoped he wouldn't notice.
Chris slowly took you in his arms, noticing how your figure felt smaller and bonier than before. It made him sick, knowing what you did to yourself. 'Why would my girl do something like this?' he thought 'how could my little princess torture herself this much?' But he couldn't find a 'because'.
In his eyes, you were the best thing that happened to him. You were the prettiest girl on earth. Warm tears were running down his pale cheeks, dropping to the floor.
He couldn't stop blaming himself for what you did. Maybe if he would have been there, he could have stopped you. Maybe if-
"Channie?" You quietly asked, looking up at his tear-stained cheeks. "Channie why are you crying? We can go to the store and grab something if you want. You don't-"
"Why have you been doing this to yourself, y/n?"
"What do you mean?"
"Why haven't you been eating"
Well, shit.
"What are you talking about, Channie?"
"Don't fucking lie to me, it's too obvious for you to do so. Why haven't you been eating?"
"I... I, I'm pressured Chan" You answered, knowing that he wouldn't believe you if you would tell him otherwise. Telling him the truth was the only option at this point, even though you didn't want to.
"Pressured?"
"Yes"
"Princess, I don't understand what you mean by that"
You shook your head and let go of him, before walking over to the couch and sitting down with a low sigh. "Maybe you shouldn't understand," I said.
"Jesus, y/n" I heard him mutter under his breath. He walked over and sat on the floor, in front of you, looking at you with a scared expression.
"Please tell me what's in that pretty little head of yours. I can see that you have lost weight, but I don't understand why. I mean, you are the prettiest human I have ever seen in my whole life, why would you do something like that?"
"Why do you even care? It's not like you here anyway" you simply said, grabbing your phone, trying to ignore him.
After he noticed your intentions, he quickly took your phone out of your hands, placing it on the coffee table behind him.
"Hey! Give me my phone back, you dump a-"
"Fucking stop it, y/n. Stop ignoring me. I care for you because I love you! You are my everything and I know I haven't been home lately, but at least I tried making time for you and inviting you to the studio", he said, "but you never came! Don't act like it's only my fault we haven't seen each other."
You looked at him with wide eyes, shaking your head. He was right, it was also your fault. And you hated the fact that he was right. "I-"
"Please y/n, please stop turning away from me and closing up. I-I know it's not easy to open up, but I'm here for you. I'll always be."
"Well, I... I couldn't, no, I can't feel happy when I look like this, Channie. I mean, look at you, look at your perfect body and your perfect personality and your perfect everything! I don't fit in. I don't fit in, because I am the ugly duck surrounded by beautiful swans. I just... wanted to be a beautiful swan, Channie."
That's it. You've made it. You've told him what was going through your mind all the time.
He slowly pulled you off the couch, into his lap. He could feel your seat humps against his thighs, how bony and strong they were. Chris shook his head in disbelieve, another wave of sadness crushing over him.
"You are perfect, baby girl. You are perfect in every single way. You always were the most beautiful swan I have ever seen in my entire life. I love everything about you, y/n. I love how your thighs wiggle whenever you run towards me when we meet, I love how curves look in that dress I brought you a year ago, I love how your stretch marks are decorating your body like silverish paint. I don't want you to change for me, because you are perfect the way you are. Jesus, even Hyunjin said you are even prettier than himself, and that means a lot. Please don't hurt yourself like this, princess. You are destroying yourself"
He took hold of your hands and kissed your palm.
"I promise I'll stop working so much, so I can spend more time with my beautiful girlfriend, but please... stop hurting yourself" he whispered, searching for any signs of discomfort in your eyes. But you just set in his lap and listened to him.
"Hyunjin thinks I'm prettier than him?" you asked awkwardly.
Chris chuckled and nodded "Is this the only thing that got stuck in your pretty little head?" He asked.
You smiled a bit, leaning your forehead against his while closing your eyes. "I'll try to get better, Chris" you whispered.
It wouldn't be an easy journey going back to 'normal. Once the hole is there, digging is difficult. But it is possible, especially if someones helping you.
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fonulyn · 3 years
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So I'm reading this sad Chreon story - as one does (it's me, I'm one) - and I just had the weirdest epiphany? Like, I dunno, it's probably dumb and far from a hot take or some eye opening character analysis no one has done before but I noticed that people (including myself, so like not saying this in any kind of bad way) tend to write Leon as stand offish, apathetic, and cold. Like this story stated it specifically, said something along the lines of "this is what Leon gets for cultivating a reputation for being unapproachable, apathetic, and indifferent" and the insinuation there is that he's done this on purpose, put on this front to seem unaffected by things when in the presence of others, and I think it's pretty true for his character. Like anything post RE2, Leon is kind of. I dunno, I wanna say deadpan? He seems to express v little emotion, and when he does it's usually in the form of a quip, one-liner, or snarky come back. Sometimes awkward small talk lol. But it feels like he's built this wall, this persona around himself, not just to protect himself from losing more people (bc he probably sees it as some kind of inevitability, and with his track record I certainly wouldn't blame him), but to protect people from him. This poor man has spent so long fighting, trying to save people, and even tho he saves the day in the end, so many people get lost in the process, and Leon feels every single loss personally. Right off the bat we see it every time someone dies in RE2, then again in RE4 with Luis, who he knew for a short period of time and yet mourned so heavily for, and even Krauser to an extent. Leon is someone who is quick to trust, even as he gets older, and we see that in RE Vendetta, too. Like that's probably one of the big reasons he's so devastated after losing his team. Not only was he entrusted with a group (which doesn't happen often, as far as we have seen), but he probably put his trust in them as well, including Petrucio, the man who betrayed them. I just think Leon is such a complex character who hides so much of himself (which is convenient for bad writers at Capcom who can't write good dialogue to save their lives lmao, but I also think it's a decent part of his character now), probably so what happened in RE2 doesn't happen again. Bc that shit was probably so traumatizing, and Leon was still a baby! I'm only a year older then he was at the time of RE2 but like, as humans our brains don't finish growing until age 25, so that kind of trauma at that age is for sure gonna stick with you, and it seems he picked up some unhealthy coping mechanisms from it that's more than just his drinking problem. Anyways I guess I just wanted to rant about how Leon is the most "emotionless" character in RE but in reality he feels and cares so much, so much so that if he doesn't put up that mask of indifference then he'll destroy himself. This man would die so that others could live, he's saved the world multiple times without a care for himself past the need to finish his mission and keep as many people as possible safe. He's such a tragic character and I love him so goddamn much, like he's one of those characters who you aspire to be like, in a way. Selfless, capable, dependable, reliable, smart, passionate, caring. And some of this might be my own character building I've done based off of other headcanons and character analysis posts and stories I've seen, but I do think we see a lot of this in the canon content, too. I just really love Leon S Kennedy, okay? He makes me sad but also so so happy and I love him v much, he is a big time comfort character for me. Sorry for the rant, just needed to scream about this with someone who would understand lol 😅
oh anon, I get you, I dooo. I think that you're right in that Leon has kind of this shell around himself because it's the only way he can cope. but there are so many cracks in his shell, and he lets people in so readily even when it would stand to reason that he shouldn't trust anyone anymore. he gets attached to people lightning fast, and he'd die for them even when he's barely met them.
this borders on headcanon territory, definitely, but I tend to often write him as someone who gets attached easily and falls for people easily (be it friendship or romantic or anything), but then he doesn't know how to properly let people in because he's got his defense mechanisms, he's trying to keep himself from breaking, and what if he truly lets someone past those walls and then another disaster strikes and he never recovers from it?
and I think it shows a lot in how he's so awkward with small talk, he can throw in one-liners and dad jokes and try to keep his own (and anyone else's) spirits up with that. but oh man. beyond that? the boy doesn't know how to naturally talk to people. (even like in Infinite Darkness, with Claire, I think his "don't do anything stupid" was 100% meant to be a joke, both times, but it just didn't exactly land perfectly. poor awkward bby)
but like even though he might put up this unaffected front, he's still so very expressive? like... if you really pay attention to him? he's far from actually an expressionless and cold person. he just isn't very loud about it. (i was just going through ID screencaps yesterday and while Shen May is talking and Leon is on the background, he goes through such a journey in expressions alone :'D)
AND HE CARES. like, for example in Infinite Darkness, he sees Patrick is shaken and the first possible moment he has, he immediately asks him if he's okay and takes a moment to reassure him. they're in a hurry, he's supposed to get going and not check up on a guy he's never even met before, but he does it anyway. and I think it speaks a lot of his character. he's quick to offer support and comfort, and he genuinely tries to be there for others the best he can. he desperately needs someone to listen to him in turn, seriously. give him emotional support, damnit.
and I wanna highlight what you said:
in reality he feels and cares so much, so much so that if he doesn't put up that mask of indifference then he'll destroy himself. This man would die so that others could live, he's saved the world multiple times without a care for himself past the need to finish his mission and keep as many people as possible safe.
because yes. 100%. also this:
he's one of those characters who you aspire to be like, in a way.
like. yes. there was this one meme thing going around which was basically like asking if you feel like you're like your favorite character and I'm just. I fucking wish I was one tenth of what he is :'D
I know not even he is perfect, c'mon, no such thing as perfect people exist (not even in fiction, or if they do then they'd be really damn boring :'D). i'm not trying to claim he has no flaws, or that he never does anything wrong. he has and he does. but the amount of genuine caring he shows and how hard he tries to do the right thing? truly awe inspiring.
i just. I'm right there with you. I love him so damn much. and that's why I spend most of my time writing fic where he gets at least some of that happiness he deserves :'D i need him taken care of, damnit, and if canon doesn't give him good things then i damn sure will.
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halloweenhoneylover · 4 years
Text
the struggle bus
summary: spencer is the kindest human alive, which makes things tough for the reader :/ (spencer reid x fem!reader)
word count: 5.3k (a doozy kinda!)
warnings: i guess angst, but really just idiots in love (my fav trope). reader is kind of a hot mess. also, mention of overdose via multivitamin.
author’s note: hi, it’s been approx 4000 years since i last posted, but it’s just because i have no concept of ‘efficiency’ or ‘speed.’ but it’s okay. some of this is good, some of this is eh, make of that what you will. also, this is supposed to be #funny sometimes so uhhhh, keep that in mind. ALSO, the title is majorly stupid, but it was the title of the google doc, and i couldn’t think of anything else......anyways, love u!
For once, the bullpen was quiet.
Spencer was immersed in some case file, doing some work that you should have probably been doing as well, but it was approaching the late hours of the night, and you would barely be able to keep your eyes open if you came even close to trying to read or write. Your desks were situated against each other, so you shifted your gaze across the small divider to him. His sharp features were softened in the lamplight, a sight that tugged on your heartstrings, and you took a moment to just look at him. Most everyone else was gone or was too focused on getting their work done to pay attention to your reverie. Derek, if he were here, would dub you as ‘lovesick’ and shoot mischievous smirks and wiggling eyebrows in your direction, but luckily for you, he was not. Twisting carelessly in your chair with your feet propped on the desk, you chewed absentmindedly on a pen, lost deep in thought. “Hey, Spencer?”
“Yeah?” He continued scribbling on the file without so much as a glance towards you, but that was perfectly fine by you, more time for not-creepy staring.
“How many of my vitamins do you think I could eat before I died?”
At this, he furrowed his brow and neatly laid his pen down.
“That depends on what vitamin you’re taking. If you’re talking about iron supplements, the limit is somewhere around 20mg of elemental iron per kilogram of body weight. Any more than that will have incredibly unpleasant side effects like abdominal pain, persistent vomiting, rapid breathing, and coma. However, if you’re talking about Vitamin C, it’s virtually impossible to overdose, but you might get a bad headache if you supersede 2000 mg.”
“Okay, what about my gummy vitamins?”
He narrowed his eyes at you. “While it still depends on what vitamins are included, eating a whole bottle of your typical multivitamin could easily result in death.”
You mulled this over. “So, I should definitely not go home and eat the rest of my gummy vitamins tonight?”
Spencer chuckled, “I’m not a medical doctor, but yes, I’d recommend that you don’t do that.”
Tossing your head back and letting out a small groan, you protested, “But Spencer, my gummy vitamins taste so good! And I have no food at home, so I guess I either die by overdose on gummy multivitamins or starvation.”
He couldn’t help but grin at your melodrama. It could be 12:06 in the morning, and you could still somehow make him laugh. He was starting to understand that he was in too deep, but he also had the startling realization that he didn’t mind drowning if it was in you. 
“You’ve got quite the predicament on your hands there, (Y/N). Maybe you should go grocery shopping with me the next time I suggest it, so you don’t end up in this situation again.”
“Oh my god, dude!” you moaned. “I told you I was actually busy; I had to take Oscar to the vet for his vaccines! I try to be a good mother to my dog, and you know I’m not an anti-vaxxer. I’d never decline time with my favorite guy without a good reason.”
Spencer’s heart was doing somersaults at the thought of him being your favorite guy. He’d won plenty of awards and medals in his lifetime, but somehow, none of those measured up to the accomplishment of being your favorite. Pride and butterflies boiled in his stomach. 
“Alright, fine, I’ll let it slide this time.”
You snorted, “I appreciate your unmatched benevolence, Dr. Reid.” Locking eyes with him, you tried to dampen the lava flow of heat in your chest that erupted when he looked at you with the softest expression you’d ever seen, but you failed miserably. You had to clear your throat and look away; it was becoming all too much. “Hey, I’m gonna run to the restroom. Don’t leave without me!”
As you dashed away, a thought crossed Spencer’s mind, and he stood up and set off down the opposite hallway.
You returned a few minutes later to an empty bullpen which made you frown, and your heart sank. You had thought he was going to wait, but guess not. Sighing, you tried to not let it sting too badly when you noticed a light on in JJ’s office. You knocked and pushed the already ajar door with a quick hello? before being met with an exhausted-looking JJ.
“Hey, (Y/N). I thought everyone had left by now.”
“Nope, not quite yet,” you replied, offering a weak smile. JJ noticed and wrote it off as fatigue. “You didn’t happen to see Spencer leave a couple minutes ago, did you?”
“Uh, no, I thought he’d gone too.”
“Hm, okay, thanks anyway!”
You prepared to leave, but she stopped you, cocking her head. “Why do you ask? Is he still here?”
Leaning your head against the doorframe, you sighed. “I’m not sure. He was here when I went to the bathroom, but he wasn’t at his desk when I came back. I’m a little disappointed. We always walk out together because we’re both afraid of the parking garage at night.”
A grin simmered on JJ’s face at that fact. “Well, I could walk you out if you’d like?”
“Nah, that’s okay; I don’t want to bother you.”
There was something behind JJ’s eyes you couldn’t identify as she replied, “Alright, then. Just let me know if you change your mind.” She definitely wasn’t thinking about how you didn’t want her intruding on a you-and-Spencer tradition. Not that she minded! She’d been rooting for you both since the minute you’d stepped into the BAU, and Spencer had looked like he was about ready to melt into the floor at the sight of such a pretty girl.
“Thanks, Jayje.”
Dragging your feet a little, you made your way back to your desk to gather your things, trying to fend off the disappointment. You had gotten your jacket on and were about to pick up your bag when you heard a (Y/N)! from down the hall. Well, that was certainly not JJ. Hesitantly, you called out, “Spencer?”
He finally emerged with his arms loaded with...something, you couldn’t discern what in the dim light. His face lit up like the Vegas strip when he saw you. “(Y/N)! I didn’t want you starving or eating all of your vitamins, so I went down to the vending machine and got you a couple snacks!” Arriving at his desk, he dropped the various bags and packets on his desk, and your eyes widened immensely.
“A couple? Dude, did you buy out the whole machine?”
Slightly breathless from his quick jog back, he waved a dismissive hand. “It was nothing. And hey, look!” He picked up a bag. “Fruit snacks! Just like your vitamins, but without the part where you get really sick.”
You were astonished, to say the least. And minorly speechless too, as evidenced by your mouth that was gaping like a fish. “Spencer...this is so nice. You really didn’t have to.”
“Don’t worry about it; I’m sure you would’ve done the same for me.”
At that, your face nearly split in two, and he mirrored your grin. You thought you might pass out at his kindness, and you knew you’d be thinking about this every day for the next two weeks at least. Your expression then turned mischievous, as you tried to tamp down all of the warmth bubbling in your stomach. “Do you want to help me try to fit all this in my bag?”
“I thought you’d never ask.”
——— 
Garcia had been practicing her ukulele peacefully when she got the call.  (Well, ‘peacefully’ might have been a stretch as she had threatened to smash the object on her coffee table when she simply could not get the finger picking pattern she’d practiced for what seemed like hours, but it was supposed to be a relaxing hobby, so yes, it was peaceful.) Huffing a sigh of relief when the caller ID said [(Y/N/N)!!] with the longest stream of heart emojis and not [hotch >:( ], she picked up with her usual air of cheer. “What can I do ya for, my loveliest, most bewitching—”
She was cut off abruptly by the sounds of your horrible, heart-wrenching sobs, and her brows furrowed in concern. “Oh no, my sweet! What’s wrong?” She had to wait a few moments for your tears to calm (somewhat) while you tried to wrangle in your breath, so you could form some sort of sentence.
“Penny!”—gasp—“Oh my God,”—hiccup—“it looks so bad!” With your last word, you tumbled into incoherent bawling once again.
“Dear, what looks so bad?” She held her phone between her ear and her shoulder as she began to gather up her things. Whatever was wrong, it was clear you needed some good, old-fashioned Garcia TLC, and she was ready to give it.
The sniffling subsided minorly, and you choked out, “Remember when we were talking the other day, and I mentioned that my hair had gotten a little too long for my liking?” Oh no, Garcia could see where this was going. “Well, I figured I’d spend our evening off getting my hair cut, and I went to that new hairdresser, and oh Penelope, it looks awful. I don’t think I can ever go out in public again.” With that, your tears resumed.
“Darling, you know I’ve been where you are, and I know it seems bad right now, but everything will be fine. Let me grab my scissors and I’ll be over faster than you can say, ‘Penny, I love you so much, you truly are my fairy godmother.’”
You paused before whispering into the phone, “Penelope, I do love you so much, and you are my fairy godmother. But please, hurry.”
And hurry, she did.
Garcia was knocking on your door a little over five minutes later, which was incredibly suspicious because she lived at least 10 minutes away on a good day, but in the state of your disarray, you were not inclined to care. She sat you down on the toilet in your bathroom, whipping out her hair care set (she had definitely spent a significant amount of time dabbling in cosmetology, and it was desperate times like this when it came in handy). Squeezing your eyes shut through most of it, she snipped here and there, trying to make the best of this...horribly atrocious cut (seriously, that hairdresser should be sued), and when she was finished, it was not as bad as when they started, but it still wasn’t great. The rest of the evening was spent watching cheesy rom-coms and baking in an attempt to get your mind off of your hair.
Everything was mostly fine until the next morning, when you realized you’d have to go into work like this, and as terrifying as that prospect was in a normal work environment, you also worked in a place with an abnormal amount of hot people. (And you happened to be developing feelings for one of those hot people, but your brain was insistent upon ignoring that for the time being.)
Already anticipating your worries, Penelope had sent a text without your knowledge to a BAU group chat that excluded you (she had one of these for every member, it just made surprise birthday party planning so much easier).
[penelope :)] please DO NOT MENTION (Y/N)’S HAIR!!!! she got a bad haircut and she feels really terrible about it and doesn’t want to think about it so do not talk about it!!!
[jennifer!] Oh, no! :( Lips are sealed!
[rossi ;)] rip.
Emerging from the elevator in the nicest work outfit you own (an attempt to distract from the monstrosity), you scurried to Garcia’s lair before anyone could see you. Once inside, you slammed the door shut, and leaning against it, you slid down and covered your face with the files in your hands. “Pennyyyyy,” you moaned. “I don’t think I can do this!”
She swiveled to face you with a look of empathy. “Sugar, I know you can. It—it doesn’t even look that bad!” But Garcia was a horrible liar, and if looks could kill, she would have been dead instantaneously. 
Heaving yourself up off the floor, you came to sit in the seat next to her. “Can’t I just work in here today? And maybe for the rest of time?”
“You know I would love that, but those other lovely people on our team need you! Especially the young doctor, you know he’d be lonely without you.”
As if her mention had summoned him, Reid opened the door to their secret meeting, files in hand, and your eyes nearly jumped out of their sockets. Garcia stared at him very intensely, attempting to telepathically tell him to not mention the hair, and you looked like a deer in the headlights, trying to figure out a way to hide yourself from him and possibly the entire universe. And poor Reid shifted his gaze between the two of you, helplessly confused as to what he had walked into. “Am I interrupting something?”
“Uh, no!” Garcia said in the least convincing manner.
“Okay,” he responded, not convinced in the slightest. “I just came to give you some files from Hotch.” So, he handed Garcia the papers and then turned to leave when you caught his eye. 
And because he was not the greatest with technology, Spencer had not checked his phone that morning…. Meaning he had not seen Garcia’s text. So he looked at you a moment and cocked his head. “Your hair looks really nice today, (Y/N). Did you get it cut?”
This time, it was Garcia’s turn to glare (because read your texts, dammit!), and you fumbled for a response. As you scanned his face, searching for a sign that he was lying, that he was just saying something to make you feel better, you came up empty. He was telling the truth. He genuinely thought your hair looked nice. “Um, uh—yeah. Yeah, I did. Thanks for noticing.”
“You’re welcome.” He offered you a smile, which you returned easily (a fact that surprised you). “See you.” Retreating from the office because the vibes in there were weird, he shut the door, finally leaving you and Garcia alone again. 
You were reeling.
You thought about when you had gotten dressed that morning, and you had entertained each outfit with great scrutiny, trying to come up with something that might draw attention away from your hair. In that half hour you’d spent, you had realized that you didn’t really mind looking bad in front of Morgan or Emily or Hotch or really anyone on the team. Almost anyone. With an increasing amount of discomfort, you had realized you didn't want to look bad in front of Spencer. Of course, he’d never judge you, but you wanted to look good for him. For your best friend.
And he told you your hair looked nice.
You smiled to yourself.
Garcia turned to you with a look of shock on her face. Had that been anyone else, she was sure you would have curled up in a ball beneath her desk and would not have left until every single other person had left the Federal Bureau of Investigation, but you hadn’t, and she smirked.
Oh, she knew where this was going.
——— 
To put it lightly, it had not been the best of mornings. 
It seemed that everything that could’ve gone wrong did, so you burst past the glass doors of the BAU six minutes late with a coffee-covered shirt, mud-stained pants, soggy shoes, and a most miserable attitude. Hotch, while a sympathetic man, was still your boss with rules to follow and when you stumbled into the bullpen, gave a pointed stare between you and the clock, and you nodded sullenly. You understood his silent admonition, but knowing that he was even slightly disappointed in you, made your knees want to buckle. Swallowing around the slug in your throat, you set your bag down beside your chair and noticed a foreign object sitting on your desk. Interest thoroughly piqued, you reached forward to find it was a book with a satin ribbon tied on it.
It truly was a beautiful book with a deep crimson hardcover and the kind of deckled edges that you loved. Running your fingers along the rough-hewn pages, you finally noted the title, and you gasped. Beloved by Toni Morrison. Your favorite. The cursive words curved in black on the cover to match the ribbon, and you carefully traced the curling letters, wondering where this gorgeous book could have come from.
In the desk across from yours, Spencer watched the scene in front of him with a grin. He couldn’t help but feel pleased at the look of awe on your face as you inspected the book with careful fingers and a gentle gaze, and his heart swelled more and more the longer he looked. “Did you know that Margaret Garner, the woman the character Sethe is based on, her trial was used as part of an effort to dismantle the Fugitive Slave Act?” Your eyes flickered up to meet his, and those stupid freaking butterflies erupted in the pit of your stomach as you realized who had gifted you the book. “The presiding judge didn’t accept her lawyer’s argument that the act violated the right to religious freedom, but it was still somewhat of a turning point in the movement to strike down the law.”
“I did not know that, but thank you. For the fact and the book.”
“You’re welcome.” He had to avert his eyes from your strong gaze because he thought he might melt otherwise.
“Please don’t misinterpret this as me being ungrateful because I’m so, so thankful, but why?”
He shrugged, “I was just in the book store, and it made me think of you.” No, he didn’t keep an eye out specifically for this book on his weekly trip to the bookstore by his apartment after you had briefly mentioned your love of Ms. Morrison’s metaphors. And he definitely didn’t ask the owner Alice if she would let him know if she ever got any new copies.
Frankly, you were at a loss for words. Combing back through your conversations with him, you tried to remember when you had talked about the book, but you couldn’t come up with anything other than a couple words tossed briefly here and there. Suppose it wasn’t really the fact that he had heard, but the fact that he had listened. He listened and remembered things about you, little things tucked in the back of his brain, and it was how he thought about you even when you weren’t around. So, you clutched the book to your chest tightly as if it could meld with your heart and let your thoughts rage with the implications for a minute before smothering your mushy grin and tucking the book into your bag.
(Later, you pulled it out on your ride home on the metro. Spencer had already gotten off at his stop a few minutes before, so you took this moment of solitude to revel in the glory of your new gift. Every time you smoothed a hand over the cover, your mind was overwhelmed with what-ifs. What if he felt the same? What if his stomach rumbled with the same butterflies when you looked at him? What if this means he likes you as more than…. And abruptly, you were doused in doubt once again, muzzling those dangerous, rearing hypotheticals. This was a path that would only lead to disappointment.
Those thoughts only got worse when you read his inscription, though:
Dear (Y/N/N),
I hope you find great joy in reacquainting yourself with the graces of Ms. Morrison’s elegant prose in this new copy. I was inspired by your praise and read this classic again, and I can say that I definitely understand your veneration of her story-telling. Hopefully, we can discuss it soon, so I can try to see all of the details that you so admire. You are always much better at appreciating the finer things in life.
She says that, “something that is loved is never lost.”
I hope you know that you will never be lost to me.
Sincerely,
Spencer
(P.S. I wrote this in pencil, so you can erase and have the clean copy you wanted.)
You would never erase it.)
——— 
“Hey, are you alright?”
You sat at your desk with your head in your hands. Your responding “no” came out muffled. 
Spencer frowned and sat on the edge of your desk. “Is there anything I can help with?”
Running your hands over your face, you finally met his gaze. His eyes were soft as they searched your own, and the expression on his face was not of pity or frustration but empathy, and of course, he was just being his sweet self. Your eyes watered in response, and his heart clenched at the sight. You shifted your eyes somewhere else, anywhere else. “Uh, no.”
It was clearly a lie.
Furrowing his brows at your obfuscation, he scanned your face for any indication of what might be the problem. A small sigh. He came up with nothing. “Alright,” he conceded hesitantly. “May I ask what is wrong?”
“No.”
“Okay.”
You stared down at the files neatly ordered on your desk, trying to mentally shoo him away with the sheer force of your willpower alone. But Spencer Reid was a stubborn man, and you knew this, and you also knew he wasn’t leaving until he knew you were alright. So, you both sat in the silence of the bullpen that only accompanied the arrival of midnight. The glow of your lamp bathed the vicinity in a warm yellow, and the tick of the nearby clock rattled around your chest as you attempted fruitlessly to subdue your incessant thoughts. He was close enough that you could hear the soft susurration of his exhales as his eyes flitted about the room to give you some sort of breathing room, and you shut yours for a moment to appreciate this moment of peace before the inevitable catastrophe to follow.
“I’m—uh, not okay.”
Finally turning back to you with a mildly surprised expression (he didn’t expect you to say anything so soon. Or so bluntly.), he offered you one of his signature tight-lipped smiles as encouragement to continue.
“I’m kind of really struggling…” you trailed off, gaze empty, ensnared in your thoughts.
Ever the gentleman with persistence that could last a thousand years, he gently prompted, “With…?”
A strong gulp and eyes squeezed shut. “With you.”
Well, that was not the answer Spencer was expecting. He felt like he’d had the wind knocked out of him, and he was hollow and shaken and in pain. Gaping, he fumbled hopelessly for an answer, trying to find some reason you could be upset with him. He had always thought you two were the best of friends; he’d never doubted that before. How could he have missed this?
Swallowing hard against the lump in his throat, he strained to ask, “Uh—um, what—what did I do?”
Upon witnessing his struggle, you quickly amended your previous statement. “No, no, no, no, no! I’m not mad at you, well, I kind of am, but you don’t need to feel bad, it’s not your fault.”
“I’m not really sure what to make of that.”
You huffed a sigh and covered your face with your hands in a poor attempt to try to hide the blush rapidly coloring your cheeks. “I’m sorry, I just—you’re so nice!”
Now Spencer was really confused. “You’re mad at me...because you think I’m nice?”
“Yes, Spencer! You’re so nice, and it makes me incredibly frustrated. You see this?” You picked up a book from your desk and waved it frantically. A little intimidated by your crazed look, he nodded timidly. “Do you recognize this book?”
“It’s a special edition of Beloved by Toni Morrison.”
“It’s the special edition of my favorite book that you bought for me because you know how much I love this book.”
Spencer looked like a deer in the headlights. “You always said that your book at home was so messy with your annotations and that a fresh copy would have been nice.”
“You didn’t even buy it for my birthday or a special occasion! You just saw it in the store and said that you thought of me and had to buy it. That’s so unbelievably thoughtful! Not to mention the fact that I can barely look at fruit snacks now without tearing up. And—and the other day! When I got my haircut, I hated it, but I came in the next day, and you were the first person to tell me you liked it. You weren’t even lying to make me feel better; I’m a profiler, and I know that you were telling the truth. And it took no effort or thought because Spencer, you are the most kind-hearted and compassionate and generous person I’ve ever met. You are so—so genuinely good. 
“No, you are the best. You are the best person I know,” you stated with finality, holding his stare with an unshakeable firmness. It was the first time you truly looked at him all night, and his heart felt like it was going to expand past his ribcage and burst open like a balloon. Your resolve melted though and your voice dropped to a near whisper. “And you’re not just nice. You’re nice to me. Which just makes it so hard.”
You deflated, withering into your seat.
“Makes what hard?”
“It makes it so much harder for me to not fall in love with you.”
Stunned silence. 
Until it was shattered by a hiccup, and Spencer finally noticed the tears leaking from the corner of your eyes, and he tried, he tried so hard to puzzle through all of this new information and the fact that you just admitted you’re falling in love with him, and for some reason, you’re crying? He couldn’t even get his stupid genius brain to come with a single word before you started stumbling into an apology. “I know that’s not what you want to hear because we’re supposed to be friends, and I know that you’re just a good person, so you’re nice to everyone. Believe me, I know. And I’m sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable, but I couldn’t keep holding on to this by myself, and I knew if anyone would let me down easy, it’d be you.” You chewed on your lip and avoided his stare at all costs. “So, I’m sorry.” You sniffled. 
The quiet that followed weighed heavy on your chest, and you couldn’t seem to breathe. You had expected rejection; you hadn’t expected complete silence. And this was somehow so much more unbearable. In a voice so faint you weren’t even sure if he could hear, you begged, “Please say something.”
A beat.
“(Y/N), I love you.”
A whisper just barely verging on hopeful, “What?”
“(Y/N), I—I love you so much.” His heart felt like it was in his throat, and his voice broke slightly as he stood. “You’re the first person I think about when I get up in the morning, and you’re the last person before I fall asleep. I dread going home at the end of the day because you’re not there. When you’re not with me, even if you’re in the other room, it feels like I’ve forgotten something, and for the longest time, I couldn’t figure out what I was missing, but it was you. You consume my every thought, which is saying something because I think a lot. Actually, it’s kind of funny,” he chuckled somewhat morosely, “I truly cannot comprehend the fact that you don’t know how much I’ve liked you, how long I’ve loved you because it feels like it’s so obvious and so potent that it seeps out of me, whether I want it to or not.
“And I’m nice to you because no one else is more deserving of kindness. I’d be lucky if you let me be the one to remind you of that, everyday. Because you’re the best person I know.” You looked up at him with shining eyes and the meagerest beginnings of a smile, and he just beamed right back. With a creased brow, he ventured, “You’re my favorite person in the world, you know that, right?
Failing to suppress your growing grin, you nodded your head meekly. “Yeah, I know.”
“Good.”
Spencer felt pleased with himself until he remembered that he had forgotten the most important part. “Would you like to get dinner with me sometime? Like a date?”
Standing from your seat, you wrapped your arms around his neck and burrowed your face into his chest, and he immediately reciprocated, clutching you as close as he could. “I would love that.” It came out muffled, but he understood well enough as he pressed his face into your neck. And you stood like that for a few moments, just existing together, and for the first time in a long time, nothing hurt. There was no worry of unrequited yearning or pain of terrible pining; there were just two people who finally knew peace. Knew that the person they loved most in the world loved them back. Neither ever wanted to leave.
However, sometimes necessary duties like breathing take precedence, so you pulled back from him enough to finally claim some air. Your hands slid down his front, resting on his chest, his on your waist, and you just stared at him. The most beautiful face you’d ever seen looking right back at you with the same expression of awe that made you realize just how lucky you were. And slowly, hesitantly, you both leaned in ever so slightly with heads wavering and tension buzzing. Gingerly and sweetly. Neither could commit, but no one could pull away from fast-approaching revelation. 
Finally, a breath away.
“Can I kiss you?”
You nodded.
When your lips met, your chest heaved with your eager, romantic hopes and dreams bubbling up near your lungs, finally coming to fruition. His hands came up to caress your jaw, and you leaned into him. His touch was so gentle, but he also touched you with intention. For once in his life, Spencer Reid felt no hesitation, kissing the girl of his dreams. And you felt held by him. You were bursting at the seams of your existence, swollen with infatuation and tenderness, yet totally and completely encompassed by him. You could shatter into a million tiny, little pieces, and he would be there to collect every shard. How cheesy.
Both of you grinned into the kiss; the sickly sweet itch in your heart was contagious. You finally released him, and wanting to savor the moment, you tucked yourself into the crook of his neck, so his chin could rest on the crown of your head. “I love you a lot, Dr. Reid.”
He hummed in agreement.
It didn’t need saying.
617 notes · View notes
fumingspice · 4 years
Text
All The Things She Said
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Pairing: Lana Winters x Reader
Request:  student x teacher au fic with lana, billie or cordelia?
Note: Added in a little sparkle with a soulmate AU. Those who are lucky enough to have a soulmate are assigned a necklace with a small pendant. No one knows where they come from or how they’re decided; they just appear and will match your soulmate’s identically. Also, yes the reader is eighteen, and yes there will probably be a part two.
Requests are open!
Your routine was like clock-work; every morning without fail. 5am you would get out of bed and go on a run. There was no reason, really. You weren't someone who was that interested in athletics, it was just a way to clear your mind and wake up your mind and body before going to school and having the energy sucked out of you.
You adored the way the sky looked this early in the morning as you ran through the country park. The heat gave you an extra kick of gratification as you watched the sky dance in colours of orange and pink, painting everything in shades of gold. The sun crept through the mountain like liquid glory and you couldn't get enough of it.
Realising the time, you made your way back to your neighbourhood, waving at neighbours you often saw at this time of morning.
You saw many of the same people on morning runs that you eventually learned by name while running past them, shouting a greeting and waving as you sped past them. This morning, you noticed that the home a few lots down from your own had been purchased; the new inhabitents were outside, speaking with a contractor.
As you ran, you noticed the woman watching you. Breaking your glance, you made a mental note to introduce yourself later.
The shower couldn't come soon enough as you lathered the cool water on your body. Cold showers after a run provided that little extra adrenaline rush that you needed to get you through the day, and boy would you need it today.
After months of persuasion, you had finally given in to skipping the end of school and heading to a gay bar with your friends Emmett and Heather. Being the model student you were, you had declined the offer time and time again; but after catching your boyfriend with another girl and the subsequent break up of one of the most liked couples in school, you decided that now would be the best time for it.
The school day rushed in and at 12pm on the dot, you and Emmett made your way to Heather's car, where she sat impatiently tapping her foot.
"You two took your sweet time," the blonde muttered, pulling on a pair of sunglasses and revving up the engine.
The plan was simple; Heather's parents were out of town for the week so the three of you planned to stay over. Today would be spent getting ready and having a few drinks before hitting the bar in order for you to have a "drink in celebration" for breaking up with your ex-boyfriend.
The bar was lively, and you could smell the mixture of cheap cigarettes, alcohol and weed and hear the music from the street behind. Emmett compared the similarity of the three of you strutting to the bar to the Sanderson sisters from Hocus Pocus.
Heather nudged you yet again, her elbow hitting a nerve in your ribs and making you bounce.
"Will you quit that?" you snapped, realising your fourth cocktail was making you slightly irritable.
Heather glared at you and pulled you over to whisper in your ear. "The brunette at seven o'clock has looked from her phone to you at least four times," she hissed, releasing you and nodding her head in the direction.
You nodded in understanding and gestured for her to tell you what to do. Picking chicks up at a bar wasn't exactly something you were accustomed to, after all.
"Go up to the bar and order something-" she looked at your outift, "-I don't know. Some business casual-sounding drink. Like an Old Fashioned or something. Make a joke about how much you've drank and if she's warm then ask if she's here with someone. Then go in for the kill and Emmett and I will be your wing-people when you break your seal."
"Break my what?"
Heather practically shoved you off your chair.
You shrugged and walked towards the bar, standing close to the brunette, but not close enough so that she knew what you were up to. The bartender approached and you smiled at her.
"Hey, could I get an Old Fashioned pl-"
"And get me another piña colada while you're making your move!" Heather called, acting more drunk than she was in an effort to hint off to the lady. You glared at her, and in return, for some added effect she lent into full view of the lady, shot her a cheesy grin and gave her a thumbs up.
You spun on your heel to see if the lady had noticed, and to your dismay she had. She looked at you with a raised eyebrow.
At least she didn't look disappointed.
"Was that for me?" She chuckled, taking a tip from her class. You grinned as casually as possible, looking down at your hands. You finished off your order and paid, waiting for Heather to get her drink to no avail.
"You know what, yeah I think it was for you actually," you replied. Keeping it cool was the buzz phrase Heather had been using all day. "I'm sorry but my friend claimed that she had seen you checking me out a few times and was pretty insistant that I come over and talk to you."
You sat in the stool, leaving one between you.
The lady chuckled. "It's fine," she said, taking another sip. "I'd be grateful for the company."
"You're alone? You're more than welcome to sit with my friends and I," you offered.
You cut off immediately by Heather collecting her drink, standing between you and muttering, "don't you fucking dare," into your ear before walking over to the woman and leaning over her shoulder.
"Now, you see, Ms- I'm sorry what's your name? Jesus, Y/N! When you flirt it's basic manners to ask for a name," Heather muttered.
"It's Lana," she replied, smiling at you.
Lana. A pretty name.
"Awh, that's a lovely name actually, I wish my parents liked me enough to call me something like that. Anyways, enough about me. So, anyways, my good friend Y/N here just got two-timed by a piece of human trash that she's way hotter than and everyone warned her against dating but hey- you know our Y/N, she's balls-ier than a dodgey testical. So, all I'm really gonna say is we came here because we really want to get her laid so she doesn't need to feel like she got the short end of the bargain so, you know-"
At this stage Heather was trying to communicate through a series of dramatic gestures. Emmett strod over, took Heather by the shoulders and apologised to Lana before walking your drunk friend back to your table.
You were both a little shell-shocked and you feared that Heather's drunken rant had ruined any sembelance of a chance that you had with getting anywhere with this.
"I- I'm so sorry. She doesn't get out much," you said. Lana's smile returned as she waved it off.
"Has anyone ever told you that you look a lot younger than twenty-one?" she asked. You couldn't tell if she was being genuine or if she was trying to hint that she thought you were younger than your ID said.
You nodded. "All the time," you say, it's not like that's a lie. "How old are you? If you're not offended by my asking."
"I'm twenty-nine. I hit the big three-oh in November," she replied. Lana reached into her bag and pulled out a box of Newport cigarettes. "I'm sorry, I've had a long day and I'm dying for a smoke. Care to join me?"
You sat still for a moment before excepting the offer. The club was absolutely packed and you could barely follow Lana through to the balcony without getting separated from her. She noticed and turned around, taking your hand and keeping you close so that you didn't get lost in the crowd.
Lana lent over the metal fence, cupping her hand over her lighter. You watched how her cheeks sucked in, defining her cheekbones and her jawline. You mirrored her position against the fence.
"Hard day at the office?" You asked, declining the cigarette she offered you. "Thanks but I don't smoke."
Lana smiled down at her cigarette. "I like a smart girl. Stay away from these for as long as possible," she took a long draw. "And to answer your question; I moved into a new house today only to find out that none of the plumbing was actually installed and contractor has no idea why."
"My house was like that too; turns out the pipes are just in really weird places," you replied. You turned to face in the opposite direction, laying your elbows onto the bar and watching the crowd. "What do you do? Career wise?"
Lana blew out a puff. "I'm a teacher. French and English Literature."
Ah great; a French student trying to hit on a French teacher. This was gonna be a fun story to tell the group.
"You're kidding? I'm studying French," you replied. 
Lana laughed. "Damn, Y/N. This just has to be written in the stars," she replied, you could sent the well-meant underlying sarcasm in her voice. "You think I have that chance?" You ask, your eyes dart down to her hand. Her ring finger, although bare had an imprint on it as if she had only recently removed a ring. She noticed you looking and brought her hand into a fist.
"Don't look at me like that, Y/N. We're getting divorced," she said. She bit her lip and looked down into the woods beneath. 
You felt slightly guilty. "Oh, I'm sorry." Lana shook her head in response.
"I'm in a gay bar for Christ's sake. We definetly weren't compatiable," she chuckled, reaching for another draw of her cigarette. She turned around, some noise in the background catching her attention. Her sleeve dropped a little bit, revealing two bruises at the side of her wrist that she had clearly tried to cover with foundation. Lana turned back around and you dropped your eyes before you noticed, unaware if it was your place to ask.
"If I'm honest, I don't really like bars. I know this really nice café a few places down. Do you wanna come with me?" You asked. Lana's head cocked slightly, her eyes scanned you as if they were looking for some alterier motive. "I'm not trying to get laid, Lana. I just don't like clubs and I don't think you do either."
Lana's shoulders relaxed, as if trying to decide. "Sure," she nodded. "I'd love to."
You walked back in through the bar, telling Emmett what you were doing. He made you promise to turn on your location and to call him to pick you up when you were ready to leave.
"It's nice that you have friends to watch your back," Lana said as you walked down the street. The air was now cold, nipping at your cheeks and nose. Lana slid her arm through yours after asking if it was okay to do so.
The café in question was small; dimly lit, decorated with plants. It was warm inside and the candles lit everything in orange. It was peaceful. You heard Lana sigh with relaxation as you asked her what she'd like to drink.
Two lattes later, you and Lana lay on the same old, green, springless couch. You giggled and talked for what could have been hours.
Lana noticed your Soul Necklace. “I have one too,” she said, touching the stone delicately. “I’ve never worn it though.”
She told you stories from high school and college while you sat and listened to her in some new form of fascination. You could listen to her talk forever. Your head rested on her shoulder, and hers rested on your head. There was an echo of peace which bounced around the both of you.
Eventually there came a moment when you had finally plucked up enough courage in a moment of silence between you to lift her chin with your finger and close in for a kiss. It was short and sweet, but you could still rellish the feeling of her lips kissing back against yours in a gentle passion.
She waited on you while Emmett drove back to get you, with an extremely drunk Heather in the backseat. 
"Are you free tomorrow night?" Lana asked before she walked away. You nodded. "Would you like to maybe go out? On a date?"
Her final question was asked with a shyness that you found adorable, and giving her a kiss on the cheek as
The next day you went to school in a good mood. Your run was better than ever. Your breakfast was tastier. The sky was more beautiful. You couldn't contain your giggles as Heather drove you and Emmett to school.
"I cannot believe you've landed yourself a date with a teacher," Emmett said as the three with you walked to your French class. You practically danced down the corridor with happiness. The three of you were slightly late to class.
You pushed the door open harder than you intended, making it crash against the wall with a loud bang. You muttered an apology while your friends laughed at you and the teacher settled them down, chuckling under her breath.
That it until she looked up at you.
And you looked up at her.
Lana muttered a profanity under her breath as she realised that she had asked one of her students on a date.
taglist: @its-soph-xx​
170 notes · View notes
wickedpact · 3 years
Note
You can't just drop that "I read Forces Multiplied" bomb on us and not give a ten page written reaction.
[cracks knuckles] if u insist
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nicky cant drive hc: destroyed. rip. also i loved how andy and nile stole those sports cars and were being badass and driving off the bridge & meanwhile joe and nicky were just absolutely vibing in the van
'heres the thing about power: people who have it think they deserve it' [shot of police car] i see u greg
5 whole panels being dedicated to booker not being able to unlock his door. booker not even seeing noriko sitting RIGHT THERE in the window at first. incredible
noriko being 24/7 horny was surprising. like wow all of the stuff i saw she did out of context was 100% equally horny in context as it was out of context. love that for her
i didnt think the 'andy + slavery' thing was handled as badly as everyone made it out to be when telling me about it. tho from the way it was talked about i had kind of figured the conflict between andy and nile re: slavery would be really racially charged (esp considering nile is a black american and would obvs have Thoughts on the subject in that regard) but like,, done in a cringey 'a-white-guy-obviously-wrote-it' kind of way? but it wasnt that. i mean. it makes sense that andy would be implicit in slavery through the years
i mean, like she says, is that not what people just did to each other in the aftermath of battles for thousands of years? and i really like how its pointed out that it was what she was raised with (in the beginning when you see her put shackles on that guy after the battle) but she also accepts responsibility for it and acknowledges that it was wrong and not just 'what people did'.
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i like how from her expressions you can kind of tell baby andy knew it was off but she sets those feelings aside bc she felt angry. it explains how she felt but didnt make her out to be blameless in it. plus i mean. i dont know, the fact that andy was involved in a lot of morally shady stuff for 7000 years is not that wild for me. if you live that long youre just Going to be involved in some shit, and she didnt even have other immortals with her as positive community influences, she literally just did whatever the fuck she wanted for thousands of years
'i was worshipped as a god once' i mean, yeah no shit she wouldve been involved in some seriously fucked up stuff, gods were fucking scary back in the day
tldr it could use some polish but it wasnt that bad
tho everything people said about moose being boring was unfortunately a little true. sorry king i tried to be interested in you
joe and nicky writing verbal fanfiction about nile and moose was iconic. 'you seeing that?' 'i am definitely seeing that'
it was also extremely funny bc that was like 60% of their contribution to the whole comic, besides kidnapping copley. they came, they wrote some fanfic, they left. kings. at least in tog1 they had an excuse to be useless bc they got kidnapped
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joe just found out his old friend who he thought was dead is alive (and also probably wants to murder them) and instead of investigating with andy he stopped to help nile up. champ.
nicky shooting noriko through andy was cool. rip to the concept since it wont happen in tog2
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wanna see mr ejiofor deliver this line
on that note imo copley was. weirdly enough, more interesting in fm than in tog1. to me at least. the fact that andy let him live and he was so haunted by what had happened that he came back and sought them out despite knowing they would likely kill him for it bc he wanted to not only make up for what hed done but also to tell them what theyd done for the world was admittedly more interesting than andy just kind of drafting him to the cause and him going 'okie'
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i like how nicky was drawn in this one. in opening fire he looks like a blob man but in fm he looks more like a very nice grampa with a very good dye job
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'theres no pain like a broken heart' andy 🥺
noriko implying andy's never drowned. .. .idk about that one, she musta drowned sometime
joe and nicky came, they waxed poetic about nile's love life, they waxed poetic about grog, and then they left.
sports bras being a reason humanity is good. i mean..... okay, yeah.
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i mean. wild but you cant exactly tell her shes wrong
i liked how noriko telling andy that their purpose is to make people suffer coincides with joe and nicky finding out that they actually did good all those years
joenicky in opening fire: jail for booker jail for booker for 100 years
joenicky when copley tells them he knows where booker is: WE'LL KILL YOU WHERE IS HE
joenicky when copley comes back: if your vibes come off as even remotely rancid we Will destroy you
joenicky 2 minutes later when copley helped them find booker: he made up some ground :)))) <3 lov you j cops
theyre forgiving af
moose: how old are you?? a hundred??? a thousand???
nile [vine voice]: I M 2 7 ?
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alright andy you got me there
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joe texts like my aunt
i dont know why noriko drowning andy in that car tickled me. Bad And Naughty Andromaches Get Put In The Pear Wiggler To Atone For Their Crimes.
the drowning sequence was cool
copley trying to talk to andy while she was like o_o at him was great
ive hit the picture limit but id seen that panel where nicky goes 'forgive me' as he kills a guy out of context and it was HILARIOUSLY anticlimactic for me to discover that there was literally no context to it. nicky just apologizes to random people he kills. i thought that guy was someone he knew or something. nope its just Some Guy that nicky didnt know from adam
nile's complaint that andy was especially brutal to the guys on the boat... i mean. . , how exactly does one kill a man with an axe and not be brutal about it?
it was funny how noriko kissed andy and the only people who seemed surprised by that were nile and also andy
nicky and joe's complete non-reaction to finding out noriko is alive And Evil Now is endlesly funny. they just left her on that boat and neither cared. i get book and nile not caring but joe and nicky knew her, and they just have 0 input on the subject of what to do with her
pinstripe suit guy!
joe and nicky and booker packing up and leaving with nile
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andy blowing up at nile was A Moment tho
i dont know, i get why people didnt like the ending but its. .. . it makes more sense in the comicverse. bc the squad doesnt really. .. interact outside of jobs? i mean, think of the moon landing story in ttt. that was booker and joe and nicky doing a job and andy only showed up a for a couple minutes after it was done. or the brunch in the first issue of opening fire. the squad arent as tight in the comic, and andy often seems to do her own thing outside of work, so andy saying 'i dont want to do work anymore' and the squad being like 'alright bye then' makes more sense in this universe than the movie one
also i feel like greg was Trying to set up a thing where nile becomes the Leader of The Squad after andy dies but like. its not very well done since. . . i mean, nile hasnt spoken to booker since opening fire, (and she only knew him A Day). and shes known joe and nicky all that time, but there isnt really anything that indicates that they have any relationship at all, much less one that's grown. in all the comicverse the only time nile and nicky speak is in FM, and in that scene nicky tells nile about noriko. nile goes from someone who needs to be set aside to have background knowledge explained to her to being the Leader of the group with nothing in between. it kind of... comes out of nowhere.
on the other hand tho... i felt really bad for andy thru the whole thing. well, i always felt bad for andy, but in this one she seemed so miserable, especially since it really felt like none of the others actually.... cared about her. when noriko came back no one asked andy how she was doing (big question ik, but it wouldve showed they cared at least), nobody ever expressed any concern for her, no one even really seemed to want to be around her. in opening fire everyone was more distant than in the movie of course, but there were little moments where she would joke with joe, or nicky would try and comfort her, or stuff like that, but in FM it really felt like they just didnt really care about her. & in opening fire it felt a lot like andy's relationship with nile breathed some new life into her, but in FM it felt like all they did was argue. i get theyre not *as* close in the comics but it really felt like the only person who cared about andy at all was noriko (which was probably also how andy felt) but it just seemed to come out of nowhere. honestly i was reading and i was honestly agreeing with andy that she might just be better off if she did just die. opening fire, on the other hand, never make me feel that way
tho everyone made it sound like when the squad split up it was one of those cursed 'the found family leaves each other at the end of the journey' tropes. but guys i mean,,, this is the second installment out of three. that isnt the End. theyll come back in the third one and Dramatically Reunite to fight some baddies (probably those 'others' noriko mentioned). im guessing yitzhak fits into that too somehow.
anyways it wasnt That Bad but it made me kind of sad and the only Sweet Found Family vibes in it were when they saved booker. also they shouldve beefed up that nilemoose romance, it underwhelmed me. 6.5/10
i also ABSOLUTELY understand all of greg's comments about how you couldnt make FM directly into a movie, he always said that it had no plot and. i get it now. it really didnt have a plot sdfghjkl
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