#(with the added element that he was completely convinced that everything he did was his own idea)

[bloody-cupcakes]

Joe Goldberg x yandere/dark! reader; you kidnap him after he finds out about your secret

Tw: yandere/dark content, gender neutral reader, mentioned murder, kidnapping, obsessive and possessive behavior displayed by the reader, restraints in the form of a literal ball and chain (medieval, I know), implied Stockholm syndrome, whump elements (there's some gore/violence. it's up to you to interpret whether it was accidental or not)

He wasn't supposed to find out about the killings you'd committed for him. Unfortunately for you, he did.

You knew about his, of course. You knew everything about him, all of his dirty little secrets that he so desperately tried to hide from you.

You knew about him stalking you, about him stealing your things to keep as trophies, yet you still accepted and loved him for who he was. So why couldn't he do the same thing for you?

When he told you he was going to leave is when you knew you had to act fast. You didn't want to knock him unconscious, but what other choice did you have?

It was a lucky break for you that he already had a glass cage constructed to keep people in, though you were quite certain he never in a million years expected to be trapped in there himself.

Joe was determined to get out, even if he didn't know how yet. In the meantime, he thought that maybe by using his expert manipulation skills he could convince you to set him free. He was sorely mistaken.

You had absolutely no intention of letting him go, as he quickly realized, but you still couldn't help teasing him, making him think that one day he might get the chance to leave. Yeah, right.

Was it cruel of you to mess with his head like that? Maybe, but you just couldn't help yourself. After all, he was so cute when he begged for his freedom.

"Let me go," he demanded as he banged his fists against the side of the glass cage, clearly desperate.

"Knock it off, Joe. You're not coming out right now." It was initially adorable to listen to his whining, but after a while it started to get old.

One thing you'd done that he hadn't was adding a ball and chain, quite literally. It took you ages to get everything set up perfectly in his new little home, and that aspect was certainly no exception. It was completely worth it, however, because it meant that you could leave the door to the cage open so you could come and go as you pleased without having to worry about him slipping out.

Like now, for example. He'd recently torn up his blanket during one of his little fits, so you had to get him a new one. "Stay in your corner, Joe," you commanded as you unlocked the door and grabbed a blanket to take inside.

Just because he was restrained didn't mean he couldn't still be aggravating. You knew that from all the times he'd grabbed onto you and refused to let go until you threatened him with solitary confinement.

He reluctantly did as you said, sitting in the corner with his arms crossed as he watched you make his bed. You put the new blanket down after picking up the shredded pieces of his old one, tsking lightly in disapproval.

"I should really make you go without one so it'll teach you not to misbehave," you mused out loud as you got together the old blanket scraps and put them in a garbage bag.

He didn't say anything in return, too busy pouting. You could tell he didn't like being scolded from the way he crossed his arms and glared at the floor.

"There you go, good as new," you announced once you'd fixed up his little room. "I don't want you to tear up your bed again, do you hear me?"

He was about to reply with a snarky comment when he saw you getting ready to leave. "Where are you going?" He asked suddenly, seeming a little panicked.

"I'm going back upstairs for right now. You don't deserve to have company after the mess you made." Before you could leave, however, he lunged himself forward, falling on the floor as he grabbed onto your ankle.

"Please don't leave me," he pleaded as he looked up at you with a pitiful expression. "I'm sorry, okay? I won't do it again."

Joe wasn't usually this clingy, but he also wasn't used to not having the freedom to do whatever he wanted. Not to mention his anger towards you for putting him there was starting to fizzle out, slowly but surely being replaced with a twisted form of love, one that was even more codependent than the one you guys had previously.

"I know you are, but that still doesn't excuse your behavior. Now, let go." Your tone was firm and cold, one that you only ever used when you were truly upset with him. He knew you didn't like it when he tried to physically keep you down there, but his desperation for human contact was currently outweighing his better judgement.

"Please, I'll do anything. I won't mess up my room again, just don't go." His undeniable neediness would've been cute if it wasn't so annoying.

"Let go of my ankle, now. I'm not going to ask you again." Any other time he would've listened to you, but not this time. This time he flat out refused, determined to get you to stay.

"Please-" He started to beg again before being quickly cut off.

"I said, let go."

When he didn't listen, you brought your foot down on his face, hard. There was a loud, sickening crunch followed by a sudden scream of agony. Blood streamed down his face and pooled into his hands, which he was using to cover the injured area. In one swift movement, one single act, you'd broken his nose.

At least it had the desired effect that you'd hoped for. You'd successfully gotten him to let go of your ankle.

"Goddamn it, Joe," you sighed as you watched him whimper on the ground in pain. "Now look what you've done."

[fiddleturnips]

Backupsmore University

Okay, so. The following is not very well written and has been heavily edited in my actual draft - the chapter it was in has been broken up and spread between like three different chapters. However, I realized that the context for Why Fiddleford Is Like That is sort of important for my other snippets to make sense.

Content warning for depression, but this section does not contain graphic detail. Further content warning for the American Public School System in the Nineteen-Seventies. (Specifically: the school system's relative inability to absorb non-average children.)

"Ah. Right." Stanford sat back down. The broken mug scraped across the tiles and clattered as Fiddleford swept. "Well, we were in high school. It was close to graduation. We'd been fighting anyway. Big time for me, because it was around the Science Fair-"

"Scholarship season."

"Yes."

"Your family weren't that well off, am I rembering right? I seem to recall you were seeking a full ride and couldn't get it."

"I was going to go to Westmore. If I could afford it, I would have anyway. But Backupsmore was a lot more manageable."

Fiddleford laughed. "Ain't that the truth."

"Wait, you were full ride. And you were, what, seventeen Freshman year? What were you doing there?"

"They weren't that strict on school transcripts," Fiddleford said. "A lot more welcoming of science and engineering portfolios. And I needed full ride, I wasn't getting a dime after a bug came by and wiped out my school stock."

"Your… your what?"

"Oh, you wouldn't have this sort of thing. Some of us livestock breeders, when a kid's young, we'll start to set some animals aside for them. You invest in a couple of pigs, add to the herd when you can, teach the kid to care for 'em, and when it comes time for high school graduation you can get a sturdy few grand even if it's just a small herd, then if you invest it right and keep an eye on the price of pork, you can pay a kid through college with a bit to spare. Only mine all got sick and died out."

"That is fascinating and tragic. You never talked about this."

"Yeah, I never talked to the Yankee kids about the fact that I was going to a bum school because my papa couldn't afford a better one because my pigs died and I didn't have school transcripts 'cause I didn't go to school. How do you think that woulda gone over?"

Stanford did know about Fiddleford's school history. At this moment, he was significantly exaggerating. He had gone to school, and he had excelled at school - for about two thirds as long as any other kid, if you combined all of the months.

Pines and McGucket were close college friends, in a lot of the same classes and clubs, spending study hours together in the tucked-away rooms that let them get as loud and melodramatic as they wanted. At first, Fiddleford had joked that he'd done a lot of special programs for county fairs as a kid. Then, he'd joked that nobody taught him per se as he'd just up and swallowed a library one summer and they all figured that was probably that. Then he'd joked that he was a dropout, and when pressed on that he'd grudgingly admit that no, he was homeschooled.

Then eventually the two boys got close enough and he got tipsy enough for it all to come out. The whole story was that the older he got, the more he skipped grades and got shifted to advanced classes and eventually got stuck in the school's Special Education department because as it was they had no idea what the hell else to do with him, the more he'd get bored and start stealing books from older kids and building things out of school supplies and on one memorable occasion stuck a fork in the electrical outlet - he'd been found with third-degree burns on his hand and a paper beside him calculating the exact voltage available from the wall outlet in comparison to the shock a human being could survive - anyway, the more all of that happened, the earlier in the year his Ma and Pa would have the hard conversation that the trouble he could cause at home was nothing like the trouble he was already causing in the classroom.

By high school, his Ma had sat him down and said: Look. You need an education. Every single word of what they teach you in those there classrooms matters, even the stuff you think is dumb and silly. So you're gonna stay home this year, we're getting permission to let you do experiments in the local tech college's labs for Chemistry and such and the rest you're figuring out on your own. And at the end of the year, you are submitting reports about what you learned to every single teacher in the school, and we'll see if they find fault in your methods.

She'd meant for him to get through Freshman core curriculum. He'd gotten through that most of the electives. The next year, he did the rest of the core curriculum and they rented out some textbooks from the local tech college, plus a special weekly tutoring session with the Language Arts teacher because his critical thinking was a bit underdeveloped and another with the AP Maths guy to whip his self-correction into shape. The year after that, they had a sit-down with a representative of the County and a recruitment man from a university and the principal of the high school he'd dropped out of. He couldn't legally leave the public system until he was at the legal age, but they all agreed that he was doing just fine on his own until then.

He wasn't seventeen when he enrolled at Backupsmore. He was sixteen. And he'd already tested out of Freshman and Sophmore classes, and the only other one there who'd done that was Stanford. The two were friends because up to that point, neither one had ever had a peer.

Stanford Pines was a by-the-book scientist. He'd completed every year of school the way it was intended, on time, and with very high marks. He'd also completed science fair projects and extracurriculars. Once he reached university, he kept a full schedule, his days planned to the minute, with an exercise routine and designated journaling time. His accelerated schooling happened because he did things to the letter, bull-rushed through the political game, took every advantage he could get, and was so damn good at his job that nobody could find a reason to keep him from going at it.

Fiddleford McGucket was a free thinking engineer. He couldn't keep his head on straight enough to follow orders, but he was "such a delight to have in class" and "unfailingly diligent with his homework" and "not afraid to do the hard, boring work that needs doing for a project's success," so he kept getting special treatment anyway.

For Stanford Pines, his combined arrogance with his peers, aggressively growth-minded attitude, relentless self-paced work schedule, and unfailing results put him through twelve doctorates and a self-guided grant program.

For Fiddleford McGucket, the combined inexperience working with others, habit of taking on all the work that was available to him so he could prove he was worthwhile, commitment to doing everything perfectly right the first time no matter how loaded his schedule was, and desperate, desperate need to fit in for once left him plastered to the floor of a bathroom stall trying not to cry out loud while he psyched himself up to get back to the lab every spring and autumn night for a year.

Pines and McGucket had both set astronomical standards for themselves that no normal human could possibly hope to achieve. Difference was, Doctor Stanford Pines had somehow done it.

[ssahotchnerr]

ok what about watching a scary movie that doesnt scare YOU but it scares the shit out aaron?😭 or at least creeps him out more than the murders he sees 24/7

keep the light on

AWWWW omg cw; horror movie details, poor aaron baby is uneasy </3

you reached over to switch off the light, but a sudden hand on your waist halts you.

"wait."

your hand stilled, fingers pulling back an inch or two but lingering within the vicinity of the lampshade. the abrupt stop caused your half of the comforter to dip downward off your body, your eyebrows furrowing in question as you peered behind at aaron.

"can you leave it on?"

"yeah," you fully pulled your hand away and turned your body, switching to your other side and supporting your weight on your elbow. this allowed you to have a clearer, better view of him. "is everything alright?"

"fine." aaron shrugged, a rather forced, nonchalant manner to his action, and in his voice. his head eased back against his pillow, searching for that comfortable spot. "just want it on tonight."

"okay." your fingers stroked through his hair, your nails scratching at his scalp gently. aaron leaned into your touch, his facial features relaxing at the contact; the small lines caused by uneasiness beginning to fade away.

the soft gesture also aided to him voicing his thoughts; safe and secure with you. but first, he stared at you, his brown eyes bordered with a hint of surprise.

confusion arose on your face. "what?"

"are you seriously not freaked out?"

"freaked out...?"

"the movie?"

"oh," you pondered, your fingers slowing as you did so. the horror film the two of you had just finished, not even an hour ago, was already long forgotten in your mind. it had been pretty standard - set in a small town, a psychotic killer on the hunt for victims, some paranormal elements to it. "i mean, not really. why, are you?"

you received a soft grunt in response, aaron now being the one to turn on his side, facing away from you.

"no!" you grabbed at his shoulder, eagerly attempting to readjust him but ultimately failing as he was much stronger than you. but after a bit of struggle, he assisted, easily succumbing and rolling back onto his back, his soft eyes gazing up at you. "are you?"

"a bit." he admitted, chuckling softly in embarrassment, despite not having a reason to be - especially not with you.

"aw," you laughed softly, a small, pitiful smile forming on your face. "i'm sorry love."

"it just..." he shivered vaguely in place, and you continued to run your fingers through his hair soothingly. "too realistic, believe me. that one scene, with the," his face scrunched a bit in disgust. "the gore, to put it simply. seen something like that before."

your face, and heart, dropped. "i'm sorry, i would've shut it off if-"

he moved his head, causing your hand to drop so he could kiss your palm. "i know. it's fine - i'm fine - really."

"are you positive?" your hand moved to his cheek, cupping it, the pad of your thumb grazing along the surface of his skin.

"completely." aaron nodded, the ends of his lips twitching into a barely there smile. his hand slid to your hip, giving it a gentle pat. "just keep the light on for me, please."

part of him still didn't sound like himself, nor was his current expression convincing at all, so you quickly decided to offer the usual, always successful reinforcement, "want me to get jack?"

jack had gone to bed hours ago, but it wasn't uncommon, in times of uneasiness, for one of you to retrieve him in the middle of the night to sleep soundly between the two of you. the close proximity, the added company, was the only thing needed, sometimes.

aaron quieted. an answer within itself.

you brushed his cowlicks away from his forehead, a kiss following afterwards. you kicked off the comforter, quickly getting out of bed. "gimme a sec."

[inbarfink]

Okay, after that last lil goof of a post, I started to have some more Thoughts about Tak…

I’m pretty sure I’ve already talked at length about how Zim is, in actuality, perfectly competent on paper. He’s technically got all the skills that Irken Society value, but his extreme personality flaws (especially his ego, his inability to assert threats and his pettiness) override any usefulness he might have and make him the incompetent laughingstock we all know and love. 

And I think, in a way… Tak is actually very much the same. It’s kind of the same core concept but with the skills and abilities being turned way up and the flaws being a lot more subtle. So she generally manages to be a lot more genuinely competent - but these are still the same core flaws that brought on her downfall.

Tak insists that her plan is not a matter of revenge, she’s trying to frame it like Zim’s just kinda in the way of her practical, impersonal scheme to become an Invader - but, like… I think she very clearly just doesn’t want to admit she’s seeking revenge against someone as pathetic as Zim. 

Now there is a discussion to be had about, like, wouldn’t it have been more worthwhile for Tak to grab a more valuable planet from the get-go, versus the consequences of ‘stealing’ a planet from an Actual Real Invader, versus the number of planets that must be out there, versus whether any of those planets are viable for any number of reasons, versus the potential consequences of removing Earth’s vital importance to the Irken Empire as A Thing to Keep Zim Too Distracted to Ruin Everything Again, versus the possibility the Tallests will just let out all of their frustrations about that unto Zim whom they already hate and not the taller and more competent Irken who just gave them snacks…. It can kinda go on forever, is the point. 

So I don’t necessarily wanna focus on the question of whether Tak should’ve chosen Earth for her Snack Plan or not - instead I wanna point out that Earth is just a really really big place. There doesn’t seem to be a reason why Tak had to set up her plan in the same city Zim lives in, or why she had to enroll in his class, or ‘date’ him. The only real reasons seem to be that she wanted to personally torment Zim for a while, and that was worthwhile enough for her to put her plan at risk. 

And it’s not just that she placed the nexus of her plan within walking distance of Zim. I mean, she did probably need to disable his base - and maybe you can say that enrolling in Zim’s school was her attempt at assessing his threat level before her plan kicked into full gear. But even so, the conclusion of this little round of espionage was that Zim was so much of a non-threat that she quite literally went up to his front door to inform him of who she is and what she is planning

If Tak just built her Magma Pump/Evil Weenie Stand on the other side of the world, or even just didn’t tell Zim that she’s an Irken out to steal his gig - Zim would have had no idea what’s going on until it was far too late. but instead of keeping that element of surprise, Tak literally walked over to his base to explain to him everything that she has done and is planning to do. She would’ve explained basically everything if not for Zim’s own hysterics. 

Look at this insistence! She was trying so hard to tell Zim her entire damn plan! And why? Because she was just thoroughly convinced that this clownish buffoon could not possibly be a threat to her. And because this was an essential part of her revenge. Due to Zim’s rush and destructive nature, she was trapped in her room and forced to watch just how callously Zim ignored her cries for help

And she wants to replicate that sort of feelings for Zim

So for her revenge to feel complete for her - she needs Zim to know who she is and why she’s doing it, and he needs to know what’s going on so he can watch on helplessly. And so for the sake of her revenge, she added a bunch of incredibly stupid steps in her plan - but hey, it’s no big deal! Zim clearly is far too incompetent to do anything about her plan by now, right?

And, like, the majority of what Zim had to spend his time on during the episode was actually figuring out what is Tak’s plan is. If Zim was just a little less hysterical when Tak came to visit (which isn’t unthinkable. Zim’s emotional state is pretty capricious) then maybe he could’ve defeated Tak much more quickly and thoroughly. Even disabling Zim’s base didn’t seem to do much considering it was at least partially operational by the time her plan actually came to fruition. She might’ve also underestimated the tech at his disposal or maybe just his repair skills. 

And if Tak somewhat underestimated Zim’s threat level, she sure as hell dismissed Dib's threat level completely. I think the implication is that she only hanging out with him to get more information on Zim and to torment Zim some more

And all of their interactions are dripping with condescension, she’s not even the least bit worried about having this human who discovered her secret. I mean, she already sees Zim as a total non-threat - obviously she’d have even less regard for the person who’s been repeatedly failing to stop him. Especially if there’s also a bit of this Irken Supremacy mindset that’s playing a factor. No way a stupid human child that has repeatedly failed to stop the Worst of the Irken Empire could be a threat to her, right????

And Gaz… oh man, Gaz. I mean, I’ve been going on about how Tak has underestimated Dib and Zim’s threat levels and they’ve proved her wrong by defeating her. But let’s be real here, Gaz is undoubtedly the one person most responsible for defeating Tak

And she barely registered on Tak's radar as anything but ‘Dib’s little sister’. She didn’t even think of her as a factor. And that was her downfall. 

And thinking about this…a lot of fans love to speculate about how Tak’s story arc would’ve continued had the show’s run been not cut so short. And I guess I think it would’ve been very interesting to focus on the parts of Tak’s character which mirror Zim. I mean, she has just been thoroughly humiliated by the Irken she dismissed as a joke and two human children. Her ego is more bruised than ever and now she’s even more focused on revenge

So I think it would’ve been a compelling and darkly ironic arc for Tak to have her gradually… Zimmify. The more she keeps losing to the two Biggest Losers in the Galaxy (and also Gaz), the more she becomes frustrated with Zim, the more she becomes obsessed with getting her revenge and proving her superiority and the more she clings to her ego and to the idea that the main characters can’t, shouldn’t be threats to her…

the more she gradually becomes just as pathetic and irrational as her most loathed enemy, Zim. Until she is a shadow of the hypercompetent badass we met in her introductory episode. Zim basically drags her down to his level through his ability to be so loathsome and so frustrating and so pathetic and yet still find a way to survive and win. Until the dignified and competent would-be Invader we first met is nearly unrecognizable.

You can even play with stuff with Tak’s Ship or some other gizmo she could’ve put her brains into - who would retain her original level-headedness compared to what the Real Tak has become....

[galactiquest]

Unexpected Waltz

Fandom: Trigun Pairing: Millions Knives x Reader Other Characters: None Notes: So ummm... Hi!!! I’ve been quiet on this blog for a while because I’ve been hemming and hawing about whether I want to keep participating in this community with others (I haven’t had a whole lot of good experiences tbh) but... I decided to whip up a little Knives x Reader for old time’s sake. Please enjoy! Also, this song inspired the title and general feel. Word count: 921

Warnings: None, just some dancing and a semi-established relationship. And maybe very slightly out of character Knives but this is my house and I get to decide how Knives talks.

[Also crossposted to AO3!]

“I see no point to the task of dancing.”

Millions Knives, the Plant who was forever unconvinced that there was any substance to be taken from extraneous activities and pastimes of humans. And you, the human who loved him and desperately wanted him to do something nice with you.

You knew there’d be a rift between your worlds the moment you met him, regardless of whether that led to a relationship or not. Knives was just so convinced that he was different that he couldn’t fathom partaking in any sort of human activity.

Which, at first, you didn’t really mind–you wouldn’t push him, and he wouldn’t push you. Most of the time.But today, you really wanted to dance with him. Everything felt right, but he stayed stiff as a board on the other side of the room, arms crossed as crackly music came from the record player.

“Come on,” you huffed, mirroring his pout. “Just one little dance won’t kill you, you know.”

“Waste of energy,” Knives added. “Waste of time. All of it, a waste.”

“You said the same thing about kissing and hugging and cuddling at night.”

“And I’m still right,” he snided. “But it’s beneficial to you. That kind of contact releases oxycontin, a critical chemical for your wellbeing.”

“And you don’t feel even a little nice when we do it?”

Knives closed his eyes and refused to answer.

“Well. Dancing feels good, for one. It’s nice to move your body in a rhythmic fashion.” You spun around a little. “Humans have developed a multitude of dancing styles, both for music and without music. Some dances are sacred and used to tell stories, while others are just for fun.”

“...So it’s important.” He was looking away, but had a slight quirk to his lip that could imply a smile–the I’m-not-interested-but-since-it’s-with-you-and-I-like-you smile.

“To me, at least.” You held out a hand. “Will you at least try it? Just once?”

Something he’d heard a lot. When you urged him to take a bite of your cooking, or to draw on some scrap paper, or read a book that wasn’t another tome full of boring nonsense. And every time, he’d groan and lament about how you were expecting too much out of his greatness, how he shouldn’t bother with these things–but he’d still do them, so who was the real winner?

Both of you, actually. He just refused to admit that he’d both lost and won.

After a moment of hesitation, he approached, putting his hand in yours. Ever so gently.

That was the one far cry of the Knives that stayed in your house and laid in your bed from the one that used to be in the elements of the desert–he was gentle in most everything he did, despite his cruelty before, despite the harshness in his words. Maybe he knew that you were human and mortal, and you could only handle a mere fraction of his power before snapping. Maybe he really didn’t want you to break, because he finally found someone who could hear him.

Maybe he didn’t want to be alone.

You placed his hand on your shoulder, reaching the matching one on your side to his hip (his shoulder was far too high to hold comfortably) and interlacing fingers on the other side.

“I’ll lead us, okay?” You were alright with dancing–not an expert, but not completely clueless, either. A simple step would be fine.

“...Alright.” Knives usually hated relinquishing control, but he had extremely barebones dancing skills, if any at all, and didn’t want to step on your toes. Literally or figuratively.

Slowly, you moved your feet to the beat of the music, letting Knives follow in your footsteps. He was able to pick up the rhythm easily, though he was primarily just copying what you were doing. You took him around the room, spinning gently, watching his unmoving expression as he stared at you. There was a slight gleam in his eye–the gleam of I-like-you-but-I’m-trying-not-to-show-it.

As the music continued, you pulled away from him slightly, twirling yourself around his arm. He seemed a bit confused, but your smile was enough for him to allow this to happen. There was a certain warmth in his chest that came from his hand on your shoulder, your hand on his waist, and the other hands intertwined to the side. It felt nice, as much as he loathed to admit it. Knives almost wanted the music to last forever, but it was coming to an end.

“I’m gonna dip you!” You said, bracing your hand behind his waist.

Knives sort of knew this move. He wanted to make some kind of remark, one along the lines of you won’t be able to hold me up, but his body reacted before he made up his mind. He fell backwards, letting you keep him close with one arm. You still strained against his weight–how can one man be so dense, you wondered–but were able to hold the move for a few seconds until the needle bumped itself off the record, music stopping.

Knives stood up, partially taking you with him as you slid off of him.

“Well? What did you think?” You asked, grinning up at him.

Knives huffed out of his nose, then replied. “It… Wasn’t that bad. But don’t expect me to do it again.”

The tiniest smile formed on his face as he turned away. I want to do it again so badly! Please dance with me again!

You knew him too well by now.

[iamvegorott]

Meeting A Magical Man Pt. 64

Part 1: Link Prev: Link Next: Link

It wasn’t that hard to find a seven-foot-tall man in the park. They saw Robbie sitting on a swinging bench, one hand holding the chain, and the other arm was across the back of the bench. Another man was sitting on the bench with him, and they laughed at a joke Robbie said. 

“I feel like I’m interrupting a date,” Marvin said. 

“Don’t tell Hen, or he’ll flip.” Chase chuckled. 

“Flip because Robbie’s on a date or that we’re interrupting it?” Jackie asked.

“On a date.” Chase and Marvin answered. 

“You’d think he’d be more worried about us taking him to fight an army,” Jackie said. 

“Easier to fix a broken bone than a broken heart,” Chase said with a shrug.

“That’s fair.”

“Healing bone is still a pain in the ass.” Phantom clicked his tongue.

“Hey, Robbie!” Marvin called out, watching as Robbie and the other man flinched and turned. 

“Uncle Marv?” Robbie said as he stood up. 

“I thought you said you only had two uncles.” The man chuckled as he stood as well. 

“I do.” Robbie and the man walked over to the others. “Blank, this is my Uncle Marvin and Uncle Chase. And these are their friends, Jackie and Phantom.” 

“Sup?” The man, Blank, gave a big smile. 

His personality seemed a lot brighter and more cheerful than his clothing. His shirt and pants were black, the jeans torn at the knees, and the sleeves of his shirt looked torn off as well. He had several thick black bracelets on his wrists, multiple piercings in his ears, and one in his eyebrow. 

Marvin also noticed the number of bracelets on each wrist was uneven, that his left wrist seemed to be missing one, and Robbie now had a new accessory that didn’t match his usual attire. 

“Aw, we did interrupt a date,” Marvin said. 

“No, no, you didn’t.” Robbie shook his head. “We’re just friends, calm down.” 

“Yep. Just friends.” Blank’s echo was the polar opposite of convincing. 

“Oh~?”

“Save the teasing for later.” Phantom stepped between Marvin and Robbie. “Mad got taken by Actor, and Mare went to confront him. Apparently, he’s got a whole ass army where they are. Would you want to come kick some ass with us?” 

“Yeah!” Robbie turned to Blank. “I’ll call ya later?”

“Sounds good. Don’t die.” Blank chuckled.

“Don’t worry, we’ll keep your boyfriend safe.” Marvin giggled.

“We are not dating!” Robbie snapped as Marvin snapped his fingers and sent them all to the street where the building Mare had gone to was.

“That place is fucking massive,” Chase said, looking at the building at the end of the street. “If that’s not the building we’re looking for, Actor missed out.” 

“Three floors. The third one looks like an attic. He’s probably on the second, and most of his workers are on the first.” Marvin stated, taking his phone out and seeing that Anti was calling. Without much thought, he sent Anti straight to voicemail. 

“We might be able to get a peek into the first floor through one of those windows, but we can’t look at the second,” Phantom said. 

“I could climb that tree.” Jackie offered with a point. 

“I don’t think that’s close enough to get a good look; if it is, they might see you and knock you out of it,” Marvin said. 

“I’d catch you with magic, but that will completely give us away,” Phantom added. 

“Our element of surprise is gone at the first spell.” Marvin paused in thought. “But, maybe Jackie should be the one to look into the first floor.”

“Why Jackie?” Chase asked.

“Actor’s never seen Jackie. He’s seen you, me, and Robbie, and Phantom looks like Mare. If Jackie does get caught, they’ll think it’s just some guy looking and not us coming in to get Mad and Mare.” Marvin explained. 

“I can be sneaky.” Jackie puffed his chest out. 

“A quick look, and then you’re right back to us,” Phantom said. 

“Speedy and quiet, got it.” Jackie nodded, and he jogged off. 

“It’s taking everything in you not to just break in there, isn’t it?” Marvin asked. 

“My brother’s in there. I want to set that building on fire after I get him out.” Phantom said. 

“And Mad?” Robbie asked. 

“Mad’s implied with the brother part. They’re a two-for-one.” Phantom shrugged. 

“Jackie saw something,” Chase said, watching Jackie stiffen and book it back to them. 

“There’s like a lot of dudes, armed, and some of them walked Mare up the stairs,” Jackie reported. 

“We have to get in there now,” Phantom said. 

“Do you know how to snap metal?” Marvin asked. “If we cast that spell together, we can snap all of their guns.” 

“Then that’ll bring them to our level,” Chase said.

“Oh no, darling, they’ll be at a disadvantage. We’re going to fucking destroy them.” Marvin’s voice dropped, and Chase’s eyes widened. 

“That should not have been as hot as it was.” Chase breathed out. 

“Later, lover-boy.” Phantom snapped his fingers in Chase’s face to bring him back to the present. “We have Robbie bust down the door, and then we fuck up their guns?” He said to Marvin. 

“Are you okay with that, Robbie?” Marvin asked. “Kick the door open and then get out of the way until we clear out the guns.”

“Easy.” Robbie squeezed his wrist, covering the bracelet and taking a breath. 

“You two wait as well,” Marvin directed his words to Chase and Jackie. “I know you want to fight, but you’re not allowed to get shot.” 

“We promise not to get shot.” Chase placed a hand on his chest and held the other in the air. 

“It doesn’t sound that fun, either,” Jackie added. 

“If it gets to be too much, you guys can leave,” Marvin offered.

“There’s no shame in running off to stay safe.” Phantom agreed. 

“You’re not getting rid of me that easily.” Chase winked. 

“Have some faith in your men.” Jackie chuckled, bumping his hip to Phantom’s. 

“Alright. Let’s go fuck some shit up.” Marvin said with a grin. 

----------

Tags: @brokentimewatch @bookwormscififan @d-structive @rainymae523 @ashtonisvibing

[thesherrinfordfacility]

orwellian's a great word for it actually. "appropriate raiments will be provided" is the most disturbing thing in the whole series and i stand by that. this interpretation of heaven has definitely coloured my reading of the show especially how i see the fall so it's cool to see someone who agrees!

hard agree that pure coercion would be a total cop out. it's just that he does seem nervous so i do think he's aware of a certain degree of potential danger. i initially thought the metatron must have let slip an implication somewhere but i much prefer your idea that he suspected something. and well. i've been saying basically since season 2 came out that accepting the offer doesn't equal having completely fallen for it. will come back to that in my thoughts on the whole mess that was that domestic.

the blanket permission to come scream at you is greatly appreciated and i'll definitely make use of it; i love this kind of media dissection and speculation. 🦭

(p.s. i did indeed end up making the chekov's list since my ocd never can leave well enough alone lol. brace yourself: incoming!)

hihi again, 🦭 anon!!!✨

yes!!! in the context of 1984, especially, that line really is ominous; obviously there is a fine line between a corporate uniform and dictated dress, especially as the only scene where we see all of the angels look the same (iirc) is the waiting platoon in s1. otherwise, all of the angels do have individual dress/style (but similar enough to show belonging), even in the job scene, even if certain elements of their designs indicate shared rank or moral alignment... but the implication of subjugation made by clothes being specifically chosen for the prospective mind-wiped gabriel is... interesting.

and of course - aziraphale's outfit is very different to that of the other angels, in it being actual human clothing, and showing unashamed signs of wear and comfort. i remarked in a post that in job especially, his jobes (job robes) are very similar in aesthetic to that of michael and gabriel compared to say muriel's. could be that it's the appropriate dress of a principality rank, but im not... wholly convinced.

anyway, let's get on with your list!!! a herculean effort, truly!!! hope you don't mind, but a) ive copied and pasted it under the cut, because b) id love to use it as a checklist for myself (and of course if anyone else does!) re: things ive talked about, or indeed things that i have Thoughts on... or even things that i haven't thought to talk about and will probably look into doing so in the future!!!✨✨

episode 1:

starting with the big one there's the pre-fall sequence. the fall itself. talked a lot about these two things/the whole theme in general, found under the #the fall/the great war spec tag

maggie's spelling under the #we need to talk about maggie theory tag - babygirl is an angel, im convinced of it

"what's the point of it all" i mean, kinda talked about this in connection with stuff under the #god is dead theory tag, and in a couple of different asks; mainly that god doesn't give two hoots about any of it, and just wanted to give everyone and everything free will - and they have to work out the consequences for themselves (whilst she throws in a few chaotic sprinkles to keep things interesting)

shax's insider information about heaven ive definitely not discussed shax at all really, and i definitely have a few things id like to work out... main one being, for me, how she went from wondering where aziraphale was in ep3, to suddenly knowing how to exactly triangulate his position in ep4 finally talked about her in the #shax meta tag!!!

the demons being on half rations didn't really think to look at this!!! that could be interesting, especially with the short-staffed comment... someone did put to me that bc the apocalypse failed, everyone on earth continues dying and adding to the population of the Damned, so the work vs demon ration is steadily getting outweighed... but hm, could be something more than that!

"something terrible" because are we sure we're sure that that was about the stuff we've already seen you know, i wondered this too after ep6!!! it was a very interesting choice of words for me, bc whilst yes gabriel's fate was looking pretty shit, the line was almost a bit... well, over-announced? they kept repeating it? like, gabriel said he had to bring the box to aziraphale/the bookshop otherwise something terrible would happen... but why specifically the shop? is it just because aziraphale is the only angel/sanctuary on earth? is it because he was drawn to an angel that's also fallen for a demon? is it because aziraphale is simply kind? i don't trust that it's any of these explanations at all (or maybe all of them and another besides)... and tbh i think god has something to do with it. another speculation for the to-do list!!!

the book of life this one ive remarked on a fair bit under the #book of life theory tag, but it's fairly disjointed from other bits and pieces - tbh i probably need to do a long post at some point as to where all my theories etc join up... bc for the moment all of them are full of loopholes

michael and uriel's power politics oooooh i literally don't have a single scooby on this... id have to think on this a little more

the very highlighted matchbox quote this one ive had sat in the drafts for ages bc i can't quite parse it out - where does leviathan come into it? is it a reference to crowley-as-aziraphale spitting fire during the execution? why would it be on a matchbox of a bloody pub? is it a clue from god? is god linked to jim/gabriel somehow? gahd this one is still giving me a headache kinda? wrote about this - here, no tag for this specifically - and im still not fully satisfied that is the meaning of the matchbox but i think (hope) it might be somewhere near the mark?

1650 i speculated (or, well, dreamt up a hc) as to what this potential flashback could entail in a LWA response somewhere - in any case, give me the boys in cromwellian england and give it to me Now

the 25 lazarii miracle my batshit theory (and yet it makes complete sense to me, i stand by it) is in my #25 lazarii theory tag

episode 2:

heaven and hell working together as a single good cop bad cop system this is similarly stagnating in my drafts at the moment!!! but it's a bit of a mindbender for me bc it means i need to pick apart what everything thinks the job/satan bet was actually about... basically, i think it all comes back to understanding god's will - and all of them (yes, even crowley) have it wrong because imo god is completely amoral and is just the strongest advocate for free will... weirdly, i think the person that had the most right of it was gabriel.

"forces them under an awning together" god i hope this happens in s3... i mean there's no way it won't, right? and so many juicy possibilities (for my money itll be the bandstand, but equally would love, like, the stoop of the bookshop, and then have it mirrored again under like the porch of the south downs cottage) 🥺

gabriel's eyes glowing statements this tbh harks back to what i posted under the #25 lazarii theory tag - definitely something weird going on, and i have a gut feeling the boys accidentally made it even worse lmao

tricking heaven with a sleight of hand this is also going to require a bit more thought!!!

episode 3:

aziraphale's chekhov's diaries see im not sure how important i truly think theyre going to be, but if we go by the prominent influence of the crow road, it definitely has to be a s3 plot device, right? the only thing im scared of is that aziraphale's memory gets wiped, or he goes missing, and the books are key to getting back his memory/finding him... hmmm

crowley's consciousness extending into the bentley i think the crank is certainly important, even if just symbolic of his power - uses it to create nebulae, it survived the s1 explosion, etc. i do think bentley has its own kind of personality, but think it's borne out of proximity, use, and influence of her demon owner... obviously i could be entirely wrong, but i kinda hope it's more that he made her, and her allegiance as a sentient being is with him (and of course aziraphale by extension), mainly bc i want something to look after crowley... but then is it more poetic that the bentley is basically just him, and representative of him finding comfort in himself? idk tbh but she's a bad bitch and i love her

general resurrection themes ive talked a fair bit about the second coming aspect, but not about the resurrection and last judgement so much, so this is one for the list

gabriel's glowing eyes statements part 2 as above (and i realise that you might be talking about what he specifically says, not the general thing itself, 🦭 anon, but in a way what is being said is fairly self-explanatory imo, but why is the heftier question)

shax can sense gabriel in a way the archangels couldn't i personally don't think there's much by way of implication in the method in which she senses him (ie... smell? vs michael's weird sixth sense), but i do think there is something about the fact they can sense him at all... talked about in #25 lazarii spec and the #shax meta tag!!!

"it's always too late" oh god 💀 i had the most batshit theory about this that i don't even want to talk about BUT im with you that it's... an odd line. i love that it potentially references line in the book about crowley's watch being set to hell's time, which is set at "too late", but beyond that... not entirely sure why the line was said or said so... blatantly? feels like something obvious would explain it

rumours that aziraphale and crowley were an item that so far don't seem justified based on what hell knew. rumours that apparently had no major consequences for crowley despite one harmless photo warranting a legion to collect him [screams at 1941 truther sign] yeah this is how it read to me too, 🦭! something definitely happened after that dinner, and im not saying a move was made (and potentially witnessed by a couple of errant nazi zombies) but i think a move was made (and witnessed by a couple of errant nazi zombies) - #1941 spec tag

the literal chekhov's gun in the bookshop this one has flummoxed me, but i did read a speculation about continuing the 1941 flashback today, which was utter genius (and so much better than what i managed to dream up in the above tag), and suggested the derringer will make an appearance in a fight-ish scenario in that scene... which is frankly bloody inspired tbh, and im very much convinced by

the miracle blocker oooooh i don't have a dedicated tag for this but i definitely talked about it in a post under the #sanctuary/bentley theory tag!!! i think it was potentially a chekhov's gun that we didn't see get fired

sleight hand to trick hell probably one to look at in hand with the one above about tricking heaven

the zombies just running around london kinda as i said above tbh, not sure what'll happen to them afterwards but presumably a grisly end being eaten and pooped out by a spider

1941 full stop. we have not seen the last of that night. goddamn right we havent [skips around the 1941 truther sign]

episode 5:

the lack of demons available for the attack pretty much what i said above in ep1 about being short staffed bc the Damned population keeps increasing... maybe? still one to look at in more detail though!!!

"i know. do it anyway" "i know. looking at where the furniture isn't" not necessarily in reference to these quotes specifically, but in the general context - discussed this (and potential crowley memory loss) in the #the fall/the great war spec and #book of life theory tags

"if it happens twice it might seem like an institutional problem" oh. OH. THIRD EYE HAS OPENED. because we know two things, right? gabriel didnt fall/wasnt intended to, so the 'happens twice' isn't realised. and heaven does have an institutional problem, practically embodies the term. so if this is foreshadowing. does aziraphale fall. oh no. Oh No (ive sort of discussed this in #scapegoat theory tag but that was strictly pre-eden context...) this however has actually just made me realise that this is a chekhov's gun literally pointed at aziraphale's head... shitshitshitshitshjthka

mrs cheng's weird look across the street see this is on my list but waaaay down it. think she could be a demon. will work on it at some point edit: talked a little bit about this in the #shax meta tag, but possibly needs a dedicated post, idk

nina and maggie's semi immunity to miracles so the bit where aziraphale can't miracle them? that to me is potentially the same explanation as the miracle blocker post (like it all connects). maggie is more immune than normal to the ball miracle? see #we need to talk about maggie theory tag. as for nina... im still not sure on. idk if she's a demon (which for me is a Thought if we consider that hell are short-staffed; she could be one of Many) but it feels a little on the nose... one for the list edit: talked a little bit about nina in the #shax meta tag, but definitely needs a separate post at some point

shax saying the shop isn't an embassy anymore but the demons still unable to get in i didn't think of it from this angle, but i think my theory still stands - under the #sanctuary/bentley theory tag

nina and maggie's immunity to miracles part 2 oh oops - see above

episode 6:

maggie being able to invite the demons into the shop i think she's an angeeeeeeellllll (see #we need to talk about maggie tag)

the speed at which the portal opens and it's potential as a means of spying my latest galaxy brain moment (i hope) - #sanctuary/bentley theory tag

haloes and the potential consequences of blowing them up this one is in the #halo theory tag

crowley opening the files not quite sure what you mean by this one, 🦭!!! do you mean about his rank? definitely tried parsing this particular headscratcher in the #AWCW spec tag

heaven was trying to restart armageddon in a way that seems awfully unofficial oooooohhh.... haven't looked at it this way, but definitely will be!!! might link in with #god is dead theory stuff, but will need more exploring!!!

saraqael having their own agenda honestly saraqael is my newest bad bitch (gn) and if my #saraqael spec is even halfway true, im going to explode i love them

"i'm the only first order archangel in the universe" *camera cuts to crowley* kinda talk about this in the #AWCW spec tag but since neil cremated the lucifer theory (rip) ive kinda left this aspect alone... tbh i don't think he was as important as he's set out to have been

"i'm the only first order archangel in the universe" full stop. statement's plenty suspicious on its own too. this is....... potentially very intriguing

memory wiping as just a thing heaven does when someone disobeys i need to reconcile #book of life theory with this tbh - like, the focus on memory is so strong in s2 that i strongly believe it has connection to falling... at which point, where does gabriel demotion/mem wipe punishment fit in? and where does saraqael fit in, too?

muriel having the same kind of position gabriel was going to be demoted to vaguely looked at this in #book of life theory tag posts i think, especially in reference to how their potential punishments (in muriel's case) mirror each other

heaven and hell are technically at war now. its not like anyone with authority actually called it off danced around this in the #halo theory tag, in reference to aziraphale declaring this new war, and yet they've been at war for a long time? yes the reflection of it being a cold war but still... interesting to think about especially when framed like this

it's possible to remove your essence and store it elsewhere definitely need to explore the possibilities and implications of this at some point, but the suggestion i made in the #25 lazarii theory post somewhat starts to look at this

hell is understaffed as already mentioned above

the shax furfur alliance not quite sure what to think about this, and whether it necessarily means anything more than it's put across (ie just that they are the danger duo of hell in s3?) idk tbh i just need to look at them both as individual characters a bit more first #shax meta tag!!!

the many strange things that could indicate something going on in the last fifteen minutes god.... just anything in the #feral domestic/final fifteen meta tag tbh

"does anyone ever ask for death" idk whether or not to take this as meaning anything deeper than metatron just idly thinking "hmmm aziraphale could refuse my coffee, refuse a chat... at which point ill probably need to destroy him etc. hey, i wonder if anyone - instead of coffee - has ever actually asked for death? funny name for a coffee shop"... and possibly a double meaning meant by Nina saying 'everything else was taken'?

saraqael being the only one other than crowley who recognises the metatron and their reaction well theres my school of thought that saraqael is potentially closer to metatron that we maybe thought (#saraqael spec tag), but then again - and this exact sentence just reminded me - i think in this particular instance, both saraqael and crowley have just come fresh from watching the trial, so that's why they both remember metatron... which begs the question of what happened between the trial and the final fifteen to make them forget? hmmm

almond syrup imo, #omelas theory

the possible miracle chime ehhhh i know i wrote about this but im still like 50/50 on it... but it fits my theory (in the #feral domestic/final fifteen tag) so im rolling with it - i think there might be a chime and i think it might be a failed miracle to change the coffee

the metatron and crowley seeming to have some kind of history lmao anything in #metatron spec or indeed #the fall/the great war spec tags tbh

aziraphale's peculiar mannerisms im getting so lazy with these responses now 🦭 anon im so sorry, but again recently speculated in the #feral domestic/final fifteen meta tag

the way the conversation between aziraphale and the metatron is only reported and very strangely transitioned in and out of as above

the nothing to see here shooting of the kiss this one...

i know ng said it was a continuity error but. the time skip on the clocks ...and this one ive looked at in the #time-stop theory tag, and im the same - not trusting continuity error on this... not just yet

the something's up vibes of metatron. the general scheming and manipulativeness. the framing as the wizard of oz. the colour scheme and the dice on his tie. the sigh of relief in the elevator lol #metatron spec

the credits scene i haven't really gone into this in any detail and tbh idk if it needs it - i think it's pretty reflective of some stuff ive talked about in the #aziraphale meta and the #feral domestic/final fifteen meta tags

plus special mention: not technically in the episode but the distinctly ominous madonna/crucifixion promo photos aaaaaaaand this one is in the #mary/pieta spec tag

again 🦭 anon im really sorry it got a little lazy towards the end!!! but im very, very grateful that you put this all in a list, because ive definitely got some stuff in mind that id like to parse out!!! and as ever - more than happy to scream about things so pop on back if you feel the need to scream with me!!!✨

[vellichor-d]

book review: the mysterious benedict society

last night, i was up way later than i should have been, desperate to see what happened to the four protagonists of the mysterious benedict society, written by trenton lee stewart. this children's novel is 485 pages of twists, puzzles, and mayhem, and it is a book that i greatly enjoyed reading, even as an 18 year old adult.

to summarize without spoilers, the mysterious benedict society is a book about a young boy named reynie, an orphan who is very gifted academically. when he finds out in the newspaper about a test designed for gifted children, he leaps at the chance for new opportunities to use his intellect. along the way, he meets three other children who become his closest confidantes: sticky (a boy with extreme anxiety, a heart of gold, and an impossibly quick brain), kate (a girl who is so resourceful that she can use the ordinary items in her bucket to solve any problem, brash and brazen, but brave and selfless), and constance (a girl who is so stubborn that nobody can convince her of anything, rude and dismissive, but undeniably witty). these four friends find themselves in a much bigger situation than they ever anticipated: one where the entire world is at stake. with the help of the elusive but friendly mr. benedict and his found family, reynie and his friends really have to put their minds, and their hearts, to the test in order to save the world.

(SPOILERS BELOW)

★★★★☆

i give this book four out of five stars. it was an amazing read with a plot that kept me guessing, with engaging characters that i thought to be quite unique. i really enjoyed all of the riddles and puzzles that were placed within the book because it added an interactive element to the story- trying to guess the answers yourself. even though practically all of my attempts were completely wrong, i still had fun trying. the story was crafted expertly, and i didn't notice any glaring plot holes.

i adored all four protagonists, especially kate and constance. kate's resourcefulness was really fun to read about, and i loved her chipper, can-do attitude in the face of everything thrown at her. constance, despite her extreme rudeness, was inherently likable to me because of her determination, and the little nuances in her character that showed that she really did care about her friends. i also thought it was absolutely hilarious when they revealed in the end that for the entire duration of the book, she was only two years old. what a twist!

the villain, mr. curtain, was wonderfully believable, and his character seemed to be a parallel to a lot of political figures in today's world. people want control, and use fear to get it. though this sort of villain is slightly overdone, it's one of my favorite villain tropes, and i can't get enough of it. i really like how they made him mr. benedict's twin- that was super interesting!

overall, a lot of these character traits were unexpected and fresh. i never quite knew what was coming next, which is something i love.

now, you may be asking, ezreal, why does this book only have four stars? you've been raving about it like crazy! well, there are two answers to that:

i am super critical when it comes to reading, and it's rare for me to find a book that is actually perfect and i have no notes on, which leads into number 2.

i have a problem with reynie muldoon.

my problem with reynie muldoon isn't that he's unlikable. quite the opposite. he's a very sweet person, and i love his balance of wittiness, intellect, and modesty. it's perfect, and that's my problem.

reynie doesn't have any obvious character flaws besides his crippling insecurity, which honestly, is a very bland character flaw in my opinion. he's the one who solves the riddles and puzzles roughly 80% of the time, which made me roll my eyes while i was reading. of course, sticky, kate, and constance had their moments in the spotlight, but i found myself rooting for them to find answers more than reynie because of how often reynie was doing it. they were supposed to be a team, but it seemed like all the big revelations and exciting riddle solving was reserved for reynie. as much as i enjoyed his character, i wish he had a more defined character flaw, and i wish there was more balance between him and the other protagonists.

but on a brighter note, this book really was very close to five stars. i am just very picky about my characters, especially my protagonists! the author's voice was super unique, and everything was so smart in how it was planned out and spread throughout the books from the riddles to the schemes. i've never seen anything like it. that is why i wholeheartedly recommend the mysterious benedict society for anybody who is looking for something new to read that will bend their minds and inspire them to pursue knowledge!

[pink-bird-30]

Titans 4x04

SPOILERS AHEAD

READ AT OWN RISK!!!!

Let's dive in, shall we?

-I can't tell if Dick is in complete denial or he genuinely is scared of everything going on since he's completely out of his element. He's always used to being the guy who can fight villains with his fists, but now he's facing a situation where he can't do that. Hell, even Connor is struggling against this new foe.

-Dick's attitude towards Kori worries me; the vision and the music from the jukebox...These are obvious signs of Kori's destiny and Dick is adamant that they should graze over it, and that it's nothing to worry about. But man, I am WORRIED.

-I just love how the Titans just pick up strays along the way. Sebastian being their newest edition, beside Jinx, but I'm really invested in his story. His interaction with Rachel was interesting. You can see there is a connection there already, even before we discover he is her "brother".

-I'm unsure how I feel about Connor and Jinx, I'm gonna let that one ride out on its own.

-Tim being the ultimate fanboy will always be my favorite thing about him. If I were in his position, I would probably be spitting random facts all the time about heroes too.

-Not us going back to the asylum?! Kori ad Dick are responsible for members of the Organization escaping, especially Mother Mayhem?!?! There are points in this series where I just don't understand how it all makes sense, but this fucking moment threw me to the floor. Are you kidding me? We just connected back to season 1!!!!

-Sebastian's backstory is honestly heartbreaking. There was so much to unpack there that I don't think I really can break it all down, so bare with me. From my understanding, Trigon's heir/child that would fulfill the prophecy was to be a daughter. But then Mother Mayhem had Sebastian, which made him not be the prophetic child Trigon spoke of. So she was no longer relevant to him and eventually found Rachel's mother. But what confuses me is: Did mother Mayhem do something to make Sebastian the chosen one? Did her influence create him to fit into Trigon's prophecy? If someone wants to clarify this for me, that would be great. Or I could just go back and watch the episode again.

-"Super Super Mart" is this the DC version of "Spirit Halloween"? Old buildings turning into Super Super Marts lol.

-Zombies...I didn't think I would be writing this sentence in regards to Titans, but I guess I am. Kori's powers malfunctioning in that moment is very interesting. They were the only thing that worked against Mother Mayhem's powers two episodes ago, but against the zombies, they hardly flinched. What does this mean? Do this have to do with the book and the red moon?

-Oh, oh the fucking children's book. First off, the illustrations were great. Second, the meaning behind the illustrations is worrisome for sure. Kori will die, Sebastian is the chosen one, and the Titans will fall. And this is to happen 8 hours from now. 8 fucking hours!?!?

-Also, again. Titans has some weird obsession with not having accurate ages for these characters. You're gonna tell me Sebastian is 25 years old?!?!?! I'm literally a 26 year old and when the screen said 1997 I had to do a double take to understand another weird age has now entered the chat. No one, and I mean NO ONE, on this planet can convince me that Joseph Morgan can pass for a 25 year old man. There is no way.

-It was great to see Deathstroke again, I hope this isn't that last of him. Even thought he's a zombie I still have a soft spot for that unhinged maniac.

-I'm really curious to see what will happened to Connor. I think he vomited up that serpent because of Slade stabbing him with that dagger. But it makes me question: does Mother Mayhem now have some sort of connection to Connor? or is it simply him being a Super and their weakness to magic?

-The last scene at S.T.A.R. labs really brought it home for me that we are in a The End era. There is no ways around it. It was a 100% a rewrite of Teen Titans and the scene where Robin takes Raven to the special containment are for her 16th birthday. But in this case, Benard leading Rachel and Sebastian into hiding to ride out the red moon. It's all coming together and I'm ready for next week!

[castleclerics]

byler have already been romantically involved theory

(or kissed or had little moments but regardless they’re both too scared to speak of it again)

gonna be adding on to my headcannon about mike and will kissing before but the audience not knowing yet which i’m starting to think could be possible.

let’s start with the rain fight scene

one of the first times i ever watched it (a few days after s3 for ref) i literally thought some lines implied that they’ve had a thing before/kissed. and this was only when i knew will was gay i never even considered him liking mike at this point or them ever being together which is super interesting. so, going off my very first instinct of this scene i’m gonna break it down.

first off watching this scene with this perspective in mind kind of makes so much sense it feels like everything falls into place. also realizing this is just another part of their miscommunication trope.

“—so you can swap spit with some stupid girl?”

will thought they were on the same page in their relationship which is why he’s so confused as to why mike wants to do nothing but makeout with el all the time. he thought they were in this together even if they unofficially were together romantically.

“it’s not my fault you don’t like girls”

mike basically saying “it’s not my fault you didn’t move on from that one time we kissed. i moved on you were supposed to too, i’m not actually gay that was me just experimenting i’m not actually gay like you, you got the wrong idea” his insecurities are showing, he’s trying to keep on a normal not gay path, (even though we all know he’s never stopped liking will) probably because him being vulnerable with will before freaked him out because he realized his feelings for him we’re all too real.

will’s face captures a huge range of emotions but i do remember thinking there was an element of disbelief. especially in terms that he couldn’t believe mike was leaving him alone in all of this and that now he has to go through his queerness and love for his friend alone, when mike possibly told him otherwise.

“but we’re not kids anymore”

possibly implying that them kissing or showing their feelings for one another was just a “kid thing” and now since they’re growing up more will should be on the same page as him.

“i mean what did you think really? that we were never gonna get girlfriends? that we were just gonna sit in my basement and play games for the rest of our lives?”

who wants to bet mike and will agreed at some point that this would be their life together, hence why it’s talked about so much in the show. but now mike is backtracking. and that’s why will goes “yeah, i guess i did. i really did.” as in “i did because you’re the one who TOLD me this is how it would be for us” especially with his passive aggressive facial expression which completely explains why he would make that face and why the delivery of that line implied they’ve discussed before that this is what they both wanted, or something along those lines. it honestly doesn’t make much sense if it’s not because of this. also damn this has strong brokeback vibes. like they literally reflect the character’s struggles i’m convinced they definitely got inspo from this scene https://youtu.be/KVK6yLqY54w

like i said in my headcanon, the roller rink argument is also really telling. from the panic in mike’s voice and face when he says “what” to will straight up asking what they are to mike’s “we’re friends! we’re friends.” again, mike being like “god stop getting the wrong idea also stop digging so deep i’m trying to appear straight and you’re ruining it for me.”

now let’s look at their POVS in s4 quickly:

the first couple times mike talks about el to will it seems pretty normal but after that it’s almost like he’s testing the waters, to see will’s reaction, trying to gage if will feels anything for him at all anymore especially after their fights even though they made up. and since will keeps pushing for mike to be with el he’s convinced he has nothing there for him anymore.

will thinks he has a chance of something more being there between them again when he grabs the painting because they literally just flirted, but will slowly realizes over the roadtrip that mike is still hung up on el. that’s why he was selfless because he for the final time gets confirmation that mike doesn’t have any feelings whatsoever for him anymore. maybe that’s why it’s extra painful because they we’re so close to actually being together at one point but now will thinks he’s just lost that forever.

here’s when they flirt for ref. also just wanna say the way mike says and emphasizes “best friends” sounds like he’s implying something more lmao. also i’ve always thought it was interesting how they both are literally comfortable with flirting with each other and now i’m realizing if i’m right about this theory it’s because they’ve done it before. it’s like they’re used to it. we as an audience just don’t know that yet.

so, with all this in mind, what if when they actually confess it’s less of a “i’ve loved you this whole time” and more of a “i never stopped loving you.” LIKEEE

it also just feels like we’re purposefully left out of the loop of something more happening between them like if you watch all their scenes with that perspective it feels extremely plausible.

feel free to add onto this i’m curious if any of you can catch anything else i haven’t said i’ve been theorizing about other stuff for days on end my brain is mush at this point 😭😭 this is also one of my less srs theories and i haven’t checked for holes either bc honestly i cannot be bothered to think anymore about this theory but still !!

[uglypastels]

hello ! okay, i'm falling deep for joseph quinn and and eddie munson. And i really LOVE what you did with my ask. I don't know if you get many many asks but i'm here asking for more. So here it is : being friends with Nancy, Steve and Robin (same age), flirting with Eddie, loving his "D&D master" dom side, but melt really fast when he's soft and cute and when he smiles. Being there for him when murder assumptions fell, help him and maybe finally dating him during Vecna hunt

Ok, so I wasn't sure what to do with this ask because it is pretty broad, but eventually thought that a headcanon could be the best :))  (i say this... knowing fully well i don´t know how to write headcanons lol. but we´re having a great time.

no explicit warnings. Content Spoilers for season 4 (vol. 1), swearing.

Eddie Munson requests open!!// taglist sig up// support with reblog and comment!!

Maybe you met everyone through Robin. You were also in band and so go to know her through then, and then very quickly met Nancy and Steve. 

But with Eddie, it was a bit different. 

Because you cannot tell me that Robin doesn't smoke. So, she needs a dealer. And one day she manages to convince you to come with her to deal. Even though it wasn't anything dangerous and, in reality, Eddie is a super nice guy, Robin being Robin played it out to be some dangerous drug deal. 

'You always need to bring someone with you to stuff like this, in case things go wrong, you might need a witness.' Which is usually the exact opposite of how a drug deal is supposed to go, but you didn't want to leave your friend behind when she was going into the woods with some guy??

 But of course, as soon as you heard Eddie speak, you realised Robin was just leading you on. He was actually so funny and charming. You couldn't stop laughing, or at least smiling, when you were around him. 

And then, you know how when you learn something new and suddenly you start noticing it everywhere? That's kind of what happened with you and Eddie. Suddenly you saw him everywhere around the school. You'd see him walking in the hallway, hear his antics in the cafeteria, you'd catch him smoking outside the gym hall between classes and… had he always been in your history class? Had you really completely missed him sitting there for the past few weeks? Perhaps because he always sat in the back and you preferred to be a bit more upfront in the room (not the first row, though. Absolutely not). 

All these spottings had made you gain quite an interest in Eddie. He was just so… different from everyone else you knew and grew up with. And every other thing he did just added to that. You really couldn't place him in any box or type. He was just Eddie and that very much intrigued you. So when you were paired up together for a history project… you couldn't be more excited to get to know him. 

What ended up with a very solid B- group paper, became the start of a glorious friendship. Eddie was very talkative, so very quickly you learned about most of his interests, in-depth, and in particular about Hellfire Club. He told you everything about the game; the rules, the lore, the history, and his role as Dungeon Master. 

One time he let you sit in on a game, mostly as a sub, and he had given you a small role in the campaign so you could ease into it a bit, and as much fun as you had, nothing compared to seeing the pure bliss that evoked from Eddie being completely in his element. 

That was, perhaps, the moment you realised you might have a small crush on him. 

And it didn't help that your relationship with Eddie always consisted of a bit of… flirtatious undertones. 

You were both very touchy with each other. Nothing inappropriate, of course. There would always just be a lot of hugging and playing with each other's hair, even holding hands, just small things like that that made everyone think you had already been going out with each other for months. 

The number of times you had to tell Steve that you were "just friends" with Eddie was actually ridiculous. But he didn't buy any of it. 

'No, you two are definitely… something else.' 

'That might just be the stupidest thing I've ever heard, Steve,' you rolled your eyes at him. The main reason why you were so argumentative and against this idea, is that you were scared. Because you have liked Eddie, for a while now, but there was no way he could like you like that, right? And you couldn't just go up to him and ask him out. It would just make things awkward. 

But then shit hit the fan worse than anyone had ever imagined. 

The night of the Championship game. Everyone from school was there, except the Hellfire Club, of course. You knew they had the final session of their campaign planned for that evening. Afterwards, when people were going home, you even saw Eddie, walked over to him, and ask to exchange experiences of the night. 

'Wanna go back to my place? My parents aren't home and we could watch a movie or something?'

'Oh, actually, I got this thing with Chrissy I got to take care of, but I'll come around tomorrow.' He seemed genuinely excited to come over the next day, but your enthusiasm had slightly deflated. Chrissy? As in the headcheerleader Chrrisy Cunningham? What was Eddie up to with her? 

And then the next day Eddie didn't show up at your house, and when you turned on the tv every channel was showing the exact same thing. Cops, right outside of Eddie's trailer. Panic rushed over you, at first thinking that the dead Hawkins High student the police were talking about was Eddie, but then you remembered Chrissy… 

With no way of reaching him, and being all alone, you went to the one place where you knew someone would be that you could talk to. But before you even got to reach for your car keys, the phone rang. 

'Hello?' you answered the phone to hear a very stressed-out Dustin Henderson. 

'y/n! Thank god. Do you know where Eddie is?' 

'No. I was just about to- why?' you were scared to say anything. Did Dustin think Eddie could have possibly done something to Chrissy? 

'We think he's in danger and are trying to find him before the cops do.' 

'In danger? What do you mean? And who's we?' 

'y/n,' Robin had taken over the phone, 'get your ass to the video store. Right now.' And so you drove as fast as you could. But as you did, you realised that you might actually know where Eddie was hiding. Well, not exactly where, but you had an idea. So, when you reached the store, the first thing you told your friends was about Reefer Rick. It wasn't much to go off of, as you didn't even know where this Reefer Rick lived, but Eddie had told you how he crashed there sometimes, and since Reefer was who he was, it must have been a secluded location. Thankfully, to the cataloguing system of the store, and the lack of care Robin and Steve had for their customer privacy, you found the address quickly enough.

At first, Steve didn't want you to go but you shut him down quickly.

'You're not going to stop me from seeing him, Harrington, I swear to god.' And with that, you got into your car. 

At Reefer Rick's house, the place looked like a dump, but from the food that had been lying out on the table and countertop, you could tell it had been Eddie who was stress eating. 

'He was here, definitely.' And then you saw the light in front of the boathouse through the window. 

Eddie was an absolute mess, and that is excluding the attack on Steves's throat with a shattered bottle. He was shaking, fidgety, looking as if he had at least ten cups of coffee and had most definitely not slept. 

'Eddie, we're here for you, ok?' You slowly sat down next to him and it hurt you to see him flinch away. But you placed your hand on his arm, pulling him close to you, and then he fully gave into your embrace. 'It's gonna be ok.'

But then the rest told the both of you how come they believed that Eddie wasn't the killer (something you hadn't even thought to think about). And suddenly your whole world turned upside down. Eddie listened to what they were talking about, answered their questions, but then turned to you as you had been very quiet. 

'Did you know about this?'

'No, I had no idea.' 

Then the group had to leave, but you offered to stay behind with him. You just couldn't let him be alone now. He needed someone around him.

'How come you didn't think I did it? If you didn't even know about all that monster shit Henderson talked about.' Eddie asked after a while. You had cosied up in the boat, not really having any other place to sit comfortably. You used the life vests as pillows and Eddie had been eating some cereal he smuggled out of the house. 

'Call me naive, but I just couldn't believe you would do something like that. I know you and… what they were saying on the news… that is most definitely not you. That is not my Eddie.' 

'Oh, so suddenly I'm yours?' 

'Shut up, you know what I mean.' you laughed and for the first time, that day so did Eddie. It was just the tiniest of grins, the dimple in his cheek barely visible, but it was enough for now. 

'You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to,' you said carefully, 'but… why was Chrissy even there? At your trailer, I mean.' 

'She wanted to buy some Special K.' He grabbed another handful of cereal and stuffed it into his mouth. 

'Oh.' She just wanted to buy drugs. That was it? The relief escaped your shoulders and Eddie must have seen it because he raised an eyebrow. 

'Why what did you think?' 

'No nothing.' you shrugged, 'I mean, I guess I thought you were… I don't know.' 

'Wait… are you jealous?' Perhaps in a less stressful situation, he would have laughed and made fun of you, but now he just sat up and looked at you with those big brown eyes. 

'No! What? No. Of course I wasn't.' You tried to convince both him and yourself, but he wasn't buying it. 

'Why would you be jealous of Chrissy going over to my place?' 

'I wasn't jealous!'

'I would beg to differ.' The Eddie you knew and loved was slowly coming back, so for that, you could endure what he was doing to you. 'Do you like me?'

'Of course I like you, what a dumb question.' you laughed. 

'No but, do you like like me?' 

'How old are you, Munson?' 

'Answer the question… Please.' 

So you do. And you admit your feelings. And Eddie is, of course, taken aback. Not by your confession of having felt like you wanted to be more than friends for a long time now, but because he had thought the exact same thing but had just been too much of a coward to go for it and just ask you out and now that you have finally admitted it to each other, he is on the run from the police and being hunted down for murder. 

Not the most perfect beginning of a relationship but you could make it work. 

Eddie Munson requests open!!// taglist sig up// support with reblog and comment!!

masterlist is linked in bio and navigation post <3

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[unholykazoo]

MELIORA - Track by Track

"The idea for this album was since it began, to write, to make an album that sounded "futuristic / pre-apocalyptic".

Spirit - It is the first song that was written for the album, and pretends to be an introduction with a melody of terror in tech-esque Ed Wood sci-fi. Lyrically, it pretends to be a hallucinogenic trip to the spheres of demons and devils, guided by the green muse. Situate in 1929, just before the crash: The New York sky illuminated at night. An office inside the Empire State Building. A big fish tasting absinthe before jumping from a cornice. His first look at the wells of hell.

From the Pinnacle to the Pit - We've always craved a truly thunderous song based on riffs, Led Zeppelin style. Something that sounds great to hear coming out of the stereo of a car in the parking lot of an American high school. Lyrically, it is about the classic tale of Icarus and Lucifer to illustrate how ultimately souls are ambitious, according to the myth, when facing the fall

Cirice - Initially this song was thought of as a complete dome theme, with an even longer intro (see Devil Church). As we already had other songs that had these great refrains we thought about the song that we could leave the long choruses out ... But in a coffee shop, the chorus appeared out of nowhere and we put aside our dome theme without chorus and ended with a ballad of heavy power. Lyrically, it is a simulation of the relationship between religious authority (church or sect) against the small person who can not differentiate empathy from pure manipulation. Everything disguised as a love song.

Spöksonat - At the beginning of the preproduction we had clear the need to introduce an interlude between a couple of very intense songs, so we took a fragment of a song that is not in this album (which we, as we often do, leave for later) . The first half of the song is a small piece like a climbing spider that comes from a song called RATS, that you will know in a couple of years.

He Is - This is the oldest song on the album, written 8 years ago (in 2007) and originally was not intended for Ghost. We have always felt proud of ourselves for being blind and for trying to think with originality when we try to see how our songs are supposed to sound, but it seemed a little distant and not something that would fit. However, in 2010, after a dazzling afternoon accompanied by friends (other musicians, the Swedish band In Solitude and the Dutch The Devil's Blood), where we played several songs for others and we could hear the demo of this song, Originally titled "Lei è (she is). Selim from The Devil's Blood insisted that this song had to be registered as a Ghost song so we had to change our mind. And in the end we did it, with the help of our friends. We tried to make a demo for Infestissumam but we never felt comfortable with this version and decided to leave it aside to use it better in the future. Unfortunately our friend Selim committed suicide a few years later and inspired us even more to make the song for this album. Lyrically, it is a love song inspired by Romeo and Juliet in which one of the lovers guides them towards the belief that there will be some beautiful place in some place where their love can prosper without contact with the outside world. It is a song about faith and devotion. [Selim Lemouchi (1980-2014).]

Mummy Dust - The idea for this song was already in the mix when we recorded the Opus Eponymous but it did not convince us and we left it for a better day. When the theme for this new album came a couple of years ago, adding also elements of "urban night sky", everything took on a perfect sense to give another opportunity in this album. Lyrically, it talks about the only god in which modern people believe (and venerate); Mammon.

Majesty - It is not very different from the pinnacle to pit, it was a song based on a riff, but currently it is supported by riffs around a vocal base on which the song is supported (it is the way of composing of Ghost). Lyrically speaking, it is to our understanding, on the one hand, a song (or hymn) about the dark lord of the underworld. On the other hand, it shapes a matrix of people, in a completely destroyed or disastrous world, idolizing an authority or dictator who is clearly above them. It's like loving something that hates you.

Devil Church - This little instrumental piece was originally written as the beginning or first part of Cirice, but when the song grew and became longer and longer (and better) we decided to separate it into two tracks, it could not be a single song since Devils Church stands alone as an autonomous piece of music.

Absolution - Another song based on a bass line. Like the third song of the disc has a chorus with five measures, unlike the typical four.

An easily understandable vocal line is added, and we complicate things below the musical base, as we like to do so much. Lyrically speaking it is a lament of the modern woman or man, who spend their lives thinking that their possessions have that something else that allows them to be above any responsibility.

Deus in Absentia - First, the structure of this song was written in a piano backstage at the Grand Sierra Resort Hotel, in Reno, Nevada, during our tour along with Mastodon and Opeth. The simple guitar riffs probably come from the fact that they were composed in "claviature", which usually means, from a guitarist's point of view, that you penetrate the song from a different angle to be able to compose it that way. Lyrically speaking, this song speaks about a modern and ambitious person, just at the time of his death, or, possibly, at one of those crossroads of life in which you feel or think you are seeing or reaching the end, like Satan speaking with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, where they are talking very close."

(x)

[kisilinramblings]

Nathalie

I often see posts saying Nathalie is being used by Gabriel. Mostly, what bugs me with this interpretation is that it deprives her from her agenda. She is a victim of her own feelings and her own decisions, yes, but she is a character who accepts the consequences of her actions. Whereas Gabriel is a character who ignores the consequences and keep pushing, especially if his actions gives him results. 

I mean, from almost two whole seasons, Nathalie was the assistant in charge of managing everyone’s schedule and making arrangements. Nathalie backed Gabriel up, managing his everyday obligations while he was off attempting to get LB and CN’s Miraculous. And she was taking orders from him as he was her employer, the authority figure of the household. But there were moments where we did see her handling things and reason with Gabriel. Like how she convinced Gabriel to let Adrien go to school (probably by informing him of the advantages of having Adrien out of the house during the day while also knowing where he was, but since that happened off-screen we will probably never know). And in the Special Christmas, she reminds Gabriel about his obligations as a parent. 

During Collector, we realized she knew of Gabriel’s secret the whole time. We first got the hint with the book.

Gabriel (to Nathalie) : You know where this goes.

Then at the end, as she watches Gabriel enters his lair.

She gives off excuses, justifying his absences, so no one suspects anything. She had his back the whole time. In a webepisode, we learned Nathalie and Gabriel actually knew each other for a long time. She even helped him find the two Miraculous. She was more than just an employee. She was a trusted ally. And as she said during Stormy Weather 2, she grew attached to the Agreste family. For her, it was just a job and it became something much more important to her, enough to not give up, to not abandon Gabriel, Emilie and Adrien. She could have decided it was enough and to leave, but she doesn’t. She deals with the consequences. She solves problems. She acts as a mediator between the father and the son. She is too deep in, too involved. To me, it feels like she cannot leave them otherwise she would regret it as if she hasn’t done enough for Gabriel, for Adrien, for the Agreste family. 

After Queen Wasp, after Gabriel renounced to give up and continue his quest, something in Nathalie’s changed as well. 

Emilie will always come first. Nathalie realized this. 

And we find out during Catalyst that she has decided to step in. She has decided to help Gabriel even more, to be part of his plan and enable even more HM’s power. If she cannot have Gabriel’s love, at least, she will help him in order to make him happy. (Which remind me of a certain boy in Frozer). 

(Btw, I love how this scene is filmed like a wedding ceremony).

I need to remind everyone than before that very moment, Gabriel/HM asked Nathalie twice if she truly wanted to do this. Meaning Nathalie gave her consent and was never forced into this. Like, we have seen Gabriel manipulate the situation to his advantage before. Heck, we have seen the orchestration he has put behind Lila’s akumatization in the very same episode, exploiting her hate against Ladybug to turn it to his advantage. But with Nathalie? He actually shows concerns and double-check things with her. He is not trying to convince her, but he doesn’t dissuade her either. 

Anyway, unlike the akumatized victims to this point (except Collector), Nathalie chose this herself. She is ready to do whatever it takes so Gabriel succeeds. And the staging illustrates their partnership. Because, as Catalyst and later as Mayura, Nathalie becomes HM’s partner in crime. For the better and for the worse. Seriously, have fun spotting how HM and Mayura are staged during S3.

Like, let’s take this scene from Reflekdoll.

The camera pans to reveal Nathalie behind Hawkmoth. She is in the far back of the room and advances to place herself next to HM. In other words, she doesn’t stay behind or hidden anymore, she instead steps in to stand by HM’s side. Becoming HM’s equal instead of his subordinate. So, HM is asking her for her help and she accepts willingly to use a damaged Miraculous. She again isn’t forced to do this, she chose to do this. And her transformation reflects that. 

As we know the transformation sequences are highly symbolic. The sequence are adapted for each character, revealing a part of themselves. 

There are three key moments in Mayura’s transformation : when she takes her glasses off, when she puts her foot down and when she hides half of her face with her fan. 

First, when she takes her glasses off. Glasses correct vision. So, someone who needs glasses see things less clearly without them. There can also be a nod to Clark Kent, who also takes off his glasses to become Superman. But as far as I know, he never throws away his glasses like Nathalie does. It is as if Nathalie is taking off her assistant persona we know her for and is throwing it out the window. And she also blinds herself to her objective, not seeing anything else. She is willing to do everything to help Gabriel, no matter the toll on her body for using a broken Miraculous.

Interestingly enough, the glasses comes back into play during the last scene between Gabriel and Nathalie at the end of Ladybug. 

As Gabriel is scolding Nathalie, she coughs and her glasses fall off on the ground, reminding Gabriel she is in this state because of the help she provides to him as Mayura to begin with. Gabriel stays silent one moment before he puts himself to Nathalie’s level, talking to her like his equal, not like to a subordinate like he started to do so at the beginning of the scene. Gabriel then puts his hand on Nathalie’s arm -- making contact, reaching her -- picks up her glasses on the floor and puts them back on Nathalie as he praises her and tells her: “You don’t need a Miraculous to help me”.

He is basically asking Nathalie to sit down on being Mayura (or at least, to not endanger herself like that without his approbation) and to simply continue help him out as Nathalie instead. 

Alright, end of the parathesis. All of that to say that when Nathalie doesn’t have her glasses on, it symbolizes her resolve to be Mayura. And this is supported by the next key element of her transformation sequence.

Nathalie both symbolically and litteraly put her foot down to activate the apparition of her costume. Not only does she has a resolve to help, she is asserting herself in the process.

And finally, toward the end of her transformation, she hides half of her face with her fan.

Tbh, that last bit could be up to interpretation. But in the context of Reflekdoll (because this should have been the initial episode Mayura’s transformation would have been revealed). there is an another meaning added to the whole sequence. After all, Reflekdoll’s theme revolves around being in someone’s shoes. And since we know Emilie have been using the Peacock Miraculous long before Nathalie, the whole transformation sequence gets an added meaning that Nathalie is trying to substitute Emilie in a way, but since she is not like the previous Peacock Holder, she cannot completely fulfill that role. 

The shot itself reminds me someone putting up a façade. Nathalie / Mayura is only showing a brave and content face, while also hiding the other half of the situation, hiding the downside of becoming Mayura, hiding her pain.

Anyway, throughout S3, Nathalie did grow as an equal to Gabriel and while, yes, Gabriel does lead, it doesn’t mean Nathalie is helpless. She chooses this path while being aware of the consequences. She knew using a broken Miraculous was dangerous, but she also was ready to do it in order to help Gabriel, and while yes, he didn’t dissuade her much, he didn’t pushed her or manipulated to use a broken Miraculous either. 

[amimimi]

dreams; kyan reki

synposis: in which you tend to reki’s wounds after his second beef with adam; second part to this fic but it can be read on it’s own! takes place after episode 11

pairings: gn! reader x reki

genre: fluff. just fluff. and caretaking.

warnings: mentions of injuries. swearing. brief nudity (?) sap, so sappy.

word count: 3.5k

notes: i loved the series so much! reki has suffered enough, so i decided to show his some love. i was so so proud of him during episode 11. again, i apologize in advance for grammatical/spelling errors. i'm pretty busy with school so i'm just churning fics out at this point.

“i’m not letting you lift a finger for a month” you moan as you help seat reki on his bed. you’re both mostly dried from the rain, save for your hair and clothes. he only giggles in response and you can’t help it when you lean down to gingerly place your hands up to his face, kissing the bridge of his nose. “a month”

“ahh, i don’t think that’s gonna work” reki gives you an easy grin, before placing a kiss on the side of you mouth. “i got a shift tomorrow”

“i’ll cover your shift” you say, stone-faced. disbelief momentarily flashes across reki’s face before he breaks out into uncontrollable giggles—the kind that erupts straight from your stomach. your hands drop from his face. “shh! i’m serious!”

he hangs his head forward and brings a hand up to his mouth, attempting to quell his giggles. “you don’t even work there, y/n!” he manages to say before delving into yet another fit of giggles. reki must’ve curled in too far because his laughter is cut off by strangled cry. immediately, you surge forward, gingerly placing your hands on his shoulders.

it wasn’t unusual for reki to be banged up from skateboarding—everything from scrapes to fractures were all pretty common for him. in the beginning of your relationship with reki, it worried you to no end, and you even begged him to wear a helmet (he said no, of course). eventually you came to accept that injuries were going to be a normal occurrence for reki. but his injuries this time were slightly different.

reki had his second beef with adam earlier that night. technically reki had lost, but it felt more like a victory instead. he came so close, and he did so well. and he was happy. seeing him like that in his element, gleaming with joy, eyes lit a flame with passion—you felt like ten years was added to your lifespan. of course, reki took quite the beating but no where near the damage of last time.

“m’fine!” he wheezes, placing a hand over his stomach. “it’s just a bruise.”

you’re not convinced and it shows on your face because reki gently places his hand on the back of your head, pulling your forehead up against his. “i’m fine, baby”

you let yourself stay there, forehead pressed against reki’s and staring right into each other’s eyes. for the first time in weeks, you felt the tightness in your chest completely dissipate. because here you were gazing into his eyes—reki’s eyes, in his darkened room, knowing he was safe and okay.

“okay,” you whisper. reki gazes at you with half-lidded eyes and attempts to press his forehead closer (if that was even possible), brushing his nose against yours. “but i gotta patch you up”.

you wiggle out of reki’s grasp, who whimpers at the loss of contact, to grab the first aid kit he’d kept in his drawer. stumbling in the dark, you feel around for his desk, flicking on the lamp. reki watches you sift through the contents of his drawer, overtaken by a sudden wave of fondness. he loves you, always has. but suddenly, in this moment, he feels the love he has for you in a new way. it pools in his stomach, warm and fuzzy, and he feels so full, so content, like he ate a whole meal.

“i love you from my stomach” reki blurts out before he’s aware of what he’s saying. from over your shoulder, you glance at him quizzically and he feels a new sensation—mortification, burn all over his face. later, he’s going to blame his misspeaking on the fact that it was so late into the night and that every inch of his body was practically throbbing in pain. but right now, he can’t form any thoughts, let alone excuses.

“huh?” you’re facing him now, first aid kit in hand and your face twitching with the urge to smile. feeling his ears burn up, reki presses his lips and shakes his head, refusing to repeat what he said. “reki~! what did you say?”

he turns his head to the side as you make your way over to the bed. “i forgot”

“no you didn’t!” you whine, throwing the first aid kit on the bed and placing your hands over his cheeks. “say it again, please?”

“ahh, i meant it like—”reki pauses, thinking about how to put his feelings into words. “i-i don’t know! i love you, but sometimes i feel it in my stomach”

“oh”, you plop down right next to him on the bed, pulling your legs up to sit crisscross. reki follows your movement, pulling his legs up on the bed and crossing them. he’s looking at expectantly. “like butterflies, yeah?”

“no, not that. this feels warm—and kinda heavy”

“oh”, you tilt your head to one side and smile coyly. “so, desire then?”

reki rolls his eyes at you, his ears still red. “you’re so—”

“desperately in love with you?” you offer with a grin before leaning and catching his lips in a noisy kiss. you pull back, but not before kissing the tip of his nose just to see his reaction. reki fights back a smile, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards as he shakes his head.

“j-just patch me up, please”, he sighs as his lips finally quirk into a smile.

“can I change first?” you ask. wet jeans felt like murder and your shirt was starting to stick in uncomfortable places on your torso. reki nods and points to his closet.

“i have clean shirts and sweatpants folded in there” he informs you, watching as you sit up and make your way over to his closet. reki’s not surprised when you grab his pink dope sketch shirt, shooting him a cheeky grin.

you start tugging off your jeans and reki looks away to give your privacy. “you’re so precious, reki” you coo at him. reki only smiles at the opposite wall and shakes his head. when you’re done, you drop your wet clothes in his laundry and walk over to him. “i’m decent!”

reki looks back at you and his heart twists at the sight of you, clad in his work shirt, hanging just above your knees and slightly hugging your waist. he prays he isn’t blushing and gulps.

“i have sweatpants if you want some, sweetheart”, he reminds you weakly, trying to stop staring.

you blink at him, lost and then you gasp. “oh, sorry! I didn’t meant to make you uncomfortable!” you rush. “i’ll put some pants on—”

“no!” he practically shouts, before squeezing his lips shut. you both hold your breaths when you hear his little sister in the next room, groan and shift in her sleep. waiting, until he’s sure it’s safe, he continues much quietly. “i’m not uncomfortable. you look really good, i love you like this. i just want you to feel comfortable”

adoration surges in your chest as you watch your boyfriend clumsily and earnestly explain himself, a blush adorned on his face. “i feel the most comfortable when i’m with you” you admit with a shy smile, your face growing warm.

reki blinks up at you for a second, looking momentarily stunned before his face morphs into a soft grin. his eyes twinkle as he holds his hands out for you, sure and steady. placing your hands in his calloused ones, you sit down beside on the bed and sit criss crossed.

the both of you sit like that for a while, staring lovingly at one another and taking turn squeezing each other’s hands. finally, you bring reki’s hands up to your lips, littering his knuckles with kisses before giving them a quick squeeze.

“where do you hurt the most?” you question, sliding your hands out of his to open the first aid kit. you skim over his injuries, not even knowing where to start. there’s a line of dried blood and a bruise forming on the right side of his face, must be a small laceration under his headband. you know his back is cut up pretty badly and you hope it’s nothing too deep.

“my whole body is sore, if i’m going to be honest” he replies sheepishly. frowning, you gently tug off his headband to assess the damage. just as you suspected, a small cut right under his hairline. the area is beginning to bruise too. you remember adam repeatedly punching him at one point, as reki had locked his arms around him... maybe reki should go to a hospital?

“I promise you i’m fine”, reki assures you, having picked up on the mounting worry on your face. he takes your hand in his, rubbing the roughened pad of his thumb over the back of your hand. “trust me! i’ve had worse. i was jumped and hit with a car all in one day and i didn’t even get a concussion”.

despite reki’s face beaming with pride, you frown deeper and fidget at the thought of reki getting hurt like that. “please don’t remind me...” you sigh, sitting up off the bed to grab a face towel from his closet. “i’m gonna run this under water, okay?”

“alright”, reki answered, watching you step out of his room to make your way to the bathroom. you hurry back, the wet towel dripping water down your forearm, and gently seat yourself on the bed.

you arrange yourself so that you are sitting criss cross in front of reki. “I’m going to clean it, alright?” you say, before leaning into give him a peck.

“okay” he murmurs, placing his hand on your knee. reki squeezes hard when you gently press the wet towel against his wound. you do this repeatedly until you make sure there’s no visible dirt around the wound before placing the towel on reki’s bedside table. you’re quick to patch up his forehead before placing a gentle kiss over the bandage. he snickers through his nose at this, squeezing your knee once more.

“now for your back...” you purse your lips. “take your shirt off.”

you’ve seen reki shirtless a thousand times before and he knows this. still, he can’t help but squirm under your gaze as he works at removing the layers of clothing he’s wearing. he takes his jacket off fine but he struggles a bit with his hoodie, still damp from the rain, wincing as he tugs upward on the fabric.

“here, lemme help you”, you murmur, sitting forward on your knees to tug his hoodie upwards and over his head. you work at the white t-shirt he had on under his hoodie next. gently as you could, you peeled the shirt off reki’s torso trying not to disturb his wounds. but he still flinches, sucking a quick breath in. “sorry! i’m sorry!”

“no, no! you’re fine, it just stung a little” reki promises you, giving your thigh a squeeze. you tug the t-shirt over his head, grimacing. his torso is littered with bruises and a few scrapes, but nothing too worrisome.

“okay, lemme see your back”, you tell him, bracing yourself as you crawl around him get a full glimpse. just as you thought, his back is scraped up and still bleeding lightly—nothing too deep. you grab the wet towel on his bedside table and hop off the bed to go run it under the bathroom facet.

when you return, reki is sitting on his bed exactly like you left, watching you tip toe over to him. “do you wanna take off your pants?” you ask, folding the wet towel. “maybe change into something dry?”

“um, yeah actually...” reki mutters, fumbling with his belt. “c-could you grab me some sweatpants? please?”

with the wet towel in one hand, you grab a pair of gray sweatpants from reki’s closet with your other hand. you can hear reki shuffling out of his pants as you walk over to the bed, with your face turned away.

you hold the sweatpants out for him, your face turned to the side. “you don’t have to look away if you don’t want to”, reki tells you and you can hear the smile in his voice. he takes the sweatpants from your hands.

“you gave me privacy, so i’m returning to the favor—give me your wet clothes, i’ll put them in the hamper”

you trade off the wet towel for reki’s clothes, wheeling around to place them in his hamper. when you turn back, reki is sitting with his legs hanging over the edge of the bed, wearing just his sweatpants and holding the wet towel in one hand.

“whenever you’re ready, nurse y/n”, he smiles at you, showing his teeth. you squint your eyes at him playfully and shuffle over to his bed. accepting the wet towel from reki, you crawl behind him so that you have full access to his back.

“okay, i’m going to clean your wounds, let me know if i’m hurting you”, you warn him, folding your legs underneath you. he grunts in response. taking a breath to steel yourself, you gently press the towel against the abrasions. suddenly, reki gasps loudly. you squeak and pull back almost immediately, your heart in your throat. “what?”

reki’s back is shaking and to your relief (and horror), you realize reki is laughing. he turns his head around to catch a glimpse at your expression and laughs so hard, he snorts and it almost makes you laugh—almost.

“i’m sorry, i couldn’t help it”, he gasps between laughs.

you suck your teeth. “well, now that it’s out of your system, can you hold still? i seriously don’t want to hurt you” you reposition yourself, heart still hammering in your chest.

“sorry, angel, go ahead”, he stifles a giggle, holding still. hesitantly, you press the wet towel to abrasions on his back.

“that okay?” you question and he nods. taking another breath, you dab his entire span of his back with the towel, stopping every now and then to check in on him. once you’ve cleaned his wounds up, you dig around in the first aid kit for some gauze sponges to pat his back dry. “i’m gonna wrap you up for tonight but you should let it dry tomorrow, okay?”

“you got it, nurse” reki chimes back and you bite back a smile, reaching for the gauze dressing in the first aid kit. once you’ve placed the dressing over the worst of his wounds, you grab the gauze roll and begin to wrap it around reki’s torso.

at one point, your fingers brush up against his side and his breath slightly hitches. you freeze, giving him a concerned hum.

“i’m ticklish” he whispers sheepishly and you smirk, continuing to wrap the gauze around his torso.

“storing this information for later, thank you!” you tease causing reki groans. “i didn’t wrap it too tight, did i? can you breathe?”

“i can breathe fine, don’t worry” reki sighs, as you loosely tie the gauze. “you did great, thank you”

once you’re done tying the gauze, you place your hands on top of reki’s shoulders. “good?” you ask.

“good”, reki nods. you take in reki’s bandaged back, his slightly toned shoulders, his red hair pressed against nape of his neck, even the back of his head. he look’s so good with his hair down.

before you even know what you’re doing, you gently press your lips against the nape of his neck. reki freezes, his shoulder tensing before you press another kiss along the back of his neck. he shivers and his whole body melts. you kiss again, this time further up the nape of his neck and into his hair and he lets his head hang forward, sighing slightly. another kiss is placed where his neck meets his shoulder, and he has to bite back a whimper.

“i’m so proud of you”, you whisper into the back of his neck. he reaches around to squeeze your hand. “you did so great tonight—you’re always so great, you never fail to amaze me.”

upon hearing your words, reki feels a lump form in his throat. you always told him that, how proud you were of him for doing things he thought were exceedingly mundane. he remembers that night he was panicking in your bathroom, shaking on his legs like a newborn deer and barely managing to control his breathing. how even then, you were proud of him, for what exactly? he couldn’t answer.

but now, when you tell him that with your lips soft against his nape, in the darkness of his room, he believes you. he’s banged up and unbelievably sore, but he believes you. and further more, he’s feeling proud of himself too, for not disappointing himself, for doing what he had come to do at that beef.

reki shifts around, so that he’s facing you to see that you're smiling at him in a way that he could only describe as pure adoration.

“and...” you start, pushing his bangs back from his forehead. “you looked so fucking hot”.

reki eyes widened slightly before he blows air out of his mouth and rolls his eyes. you grab his face, forcing him to look at you.

“no, no! but you actually looked really good?” you giggled, squeezing his cheeks between your hands. “like, when you nailed that landing off that cliff? and when you dodged him like that? like, i knew you could move, but you were really moving, you know—?”

“y/n—”reki starts, grinning pretty hard as he tries to advert his gaze from yours.

“and you were smiling so hard, like you were actually glowing—beaming! i don’t know, something about the way you looked under those lights they have at S...i actually wanted to bark, like wow—”

“y/n, shut up!” reki is giggling now, flushed right down to his chest. he tries to wrestle your hands from off his face, but you kept your grip.

“don’t act all shy now, mister! you knew exactly what you were doing! when you were like ‘and you’d better remember it’, i was this close to dropping to my knees—”

“y/n—”

“and every one was screaming your name and i was just like ‘yea, that’s my boyfriend! my man! my prince—!’”

suddenly, reki flips you over pinning you arms right beside your head, the both of you giggling.

“oh my god, why are you still going” reki half groans between giggles as you continue to cackle.

“my sweetheart, my baby, my sweat pea, my darling, the future of father of my children, my honey bunch, my sugar pie, the apple of my eye, the light of my life—” you list off, delirious with laughter, not even fighting against reki’s grip on your forearms. he hovers over you, laughing too, his eyes shining and his face beaming

“you need to stop” reki shakes his head slightly, his bangs falling onto your forehead as he leans in for a kiss. he pulls back and you're silent for a moment...until you start rattling off corny pet names again, but this time less giggly.

“my sun, my moon, my stars, my whole world—” you murmur before reki presses his lips against yours. he pulls away and kisses the tip of your nose, the skin slightly under your right eye, and onto your left eyelid.

“you’re so annoying”, reki whispers, letting go of your forearms to hold your face instead.

“you kinda are too”, you whisper back, placing your hands over his, rubbing your thumbs along the back of his hand.

“mmm, i guess we’re destined for one another then” he murmurs and you nod, fervently. reki kisses you sweetly and you hum against his lips. “i love you so much”.

“i love you too, baby” you sigh, putty in reki’s hands. he looks so pretty above you, the lamplight reflecting his eyes and his cheeks still flushed. he looks like the human embodiment of honey.

you turn your head over to glimpse at the alarm clock on his bed side table. 3:37 AM

“our sleeping schedules are so messed up” you groan turning your head back to look up at reki. he blinks, following your gaze towards the alarm clock.

“oh, i usually sleep around his time anyway” he shrugs.

“okay, but you have injuries...so you need to rest to heal” you reason while sitting up slightly, forcing reki to sit up with you. “are you still in pain? i can get you a tylenol”

“i’ll need one in the morning, but i’m fine for now”, he assures you with a grin.

you both climb under his blankets, but he wants for you to sit back against his pillows. already knowing, you hold your arms out for him and he lays between your legs, wrapping his arms around your torso. reki presses his ear to chest, taking in the steady rhythm of your heartbeat, as you smooth his hair back.

“goodnight, sweetheart” you whisper, leaving your hand in his hair.

“goodnight, baby” he murmurs into you chest, pressing a kiss there. “i love you, i can’t wait to wake up and see you tomorrow”

you chuckle tiredly. “i love you too, i’ll see you in the morning”.

notes: this was also, long as hell. i apologize! this is honestly the sappiest sh*t i’ve ever written, idk if it can get any sappier than this (it probably can, and will >:3) .

[maldiaaym]

Why do I think Lily Evans (Potter) was not a good friend?

Until recently, the general opinion of the fandom was that Lily Potter was a good girl, deified and the representation of purity and goodness. But, doing a more exhaustive study of the character, we can get to see how Lily evans maybe was not so holy and made mistakes due to her education and, possibly, depending on the stage of her life where she found herself when she made those mistakes.

In relation to Severus Snape, I think she was not a good friend. Regardless of his age, which we all understand that we do not see friendship in childhood, adolescence or adulthood, she also had defects that compared to other characters in the saga, they were not a role model.

Starting from the little we know about her through the worst memory and Snape's memories, we are going to take some situations into account to assess her defects:

She blamed Snape for the letter Petunia sent to Dumbledore.

She got mad at Snape for dropping a branch on Petunia, even though he did so unconsciously and Petunia was rude to him.

The discussion with Snape about what happened with Remus (werewolf accident), his distrust of who was her friend and believing others before, not caring about Snape.

The lake scene, where she never addressed Snape once, as if he didn't know him and was just another boy to help.

The same lake scene, where she taunted Snape after he called her "Mudblood".

Now, let's talk about the problems at different levels (social, emotional, mental, physical and cultural):

Social: Snape comes from a lower social class than Lily and, although at first the girl Lily did not see the difference, I suppose that as time passed she realized that it did not look good for Snape to wear second hand clothes (surely ), he had serious problems in the family sphere, Snape's own unsociable nature that did not allow him to have a larger group of friends. In childhood we do not usually take into account the social variable when making friends with other children (pre-Hogwarts), but as she became related to the peer group at Hogwarts, she surely could not help feeling somewhat ashamed of the friendship with Snape . Let me explain, in Snape's adulthood it seems that no one knew about Lily and Snape's friendship, so it would be a secret friendship (and we all know that shame towards the other is what leads to secret friendships and relationships).

Emotional: Lily quickly connected with Snape because there was something she needed from him, and it was the knowledge and the desire to be accepted in a place like Hogwarts. Hogwarts was a new world that she did not know and Snape could offer her the security of knowing that world ... But, when she knew what she had to know, Snape had nothing more to offer her, but a clandestine and unrewarding friendship for her. It is not a mistake to think this, but it does show that she deliberately used Snape and that their friendship deteriorated over time. I think she might have felt friendship for Snape in a pure way, but when she began to be friends with the marauders, her emotional level turned towards these guys and she began to move away from Snape. I think the dark arts were an excuse to end the friendship, wanting to get away from him in an interested way ... it's easy to think that, when you really feel empathy for someone, you try to make the effort to understand that person, to know why him he likes the dark arts. However, she Lily was not able to understand him, understand his fears, his insecurities and the need to flee from the hell where he was stuck.Referring to the lake scene, I think Lily had a complete dissociation from Snape by now, she didn't defend being his friend, she didn't speak to him directly even once, and when he made a mistake due to the situation, she scoffed of him and "flirted" with James.

Mental: I think Lily never understood the true meaning of friendship, not at least as she later taught us Harry by understanding Ron and Hermione and accepting his flaws, even when this child was only 11 years old. I think that Lily, as soon as she could, got rid of Snape because she no longer wanted to have an uncomfortable friend, a friend who surely helped her for years in her studies at Hogwarts (I mean surely potions). Snape was like a teacher for Lily in her access to the magical world, he helped her in the study and knowledge of the magical world and I think that Lily stopped seeing usefulness when she already found in Gryffindor and the marauders the way to go her way . I mean, I think she coldly weighed whether or not she was interested in staying friends with Snape and she conveniently cut off the friendship when she got the chance. Lily showed herself to be a cold person who did not understand what Snape was in her whole and who did not appreciate all that he had done for her.I know that calling her "Mudbloods" was not right, but instead of trying to understand the shame and harassment that Snape felt at that time, she broke off the friendship and remained friends with the stalker, the one who emotionally blackmailed her and who continued to be a bully. No one can convince me otherwise.

Physical: here we will talk about the implications of a person who is not really physically attractive. There are studies that determine that people who do not fit the standards of beauty tend to have fewer opportunities in social relationships, love relationships or even find a job. With all this I mean that, when we are children, we do not care about anyone's physical appearance, but when we reach adolescence, our group of equals teach us the canons of beauty, which is considered handsome or what not. In this case, I think Lily was superficial. That is to say, Snape was not physically attractive, surely he did not look comfortable being with him because she was a popular, pretty girl, and he was attracted to a boy who was much more attractive than Snape (even though James was, in my opinion, uglier emotionally and disrespectful to others, adding being a bully). Lily preferred to go for the handsome boy rather than choose a loyal friend who was unattractive.

Cultural: At this level many factors enter, but here I will choose to talk about the differences of ideologies and different culture between Slytherin and Gryffindor. As we know, both houses were enemies, they were the contrast between good and evil in the Harry Potter saga. Slytherin represented everything bad and Gryffindor everything good. Here we also talk about the peer group (that is, a group of people that we consider our equals and from whom we learn cultural, social, emotional and behavioral factors), where Lily in the end ended up choosing to choose Gryffindor and be immersed in ideas prefabs that already existed about Slytherin even though, surely, many ideas were not true. Some of these ideas were hatred towards the "dirty bloods", defending the purity of blood, ambition as a negative element and cunning as if it were something bad that always leads to cheating.Where I see these preconceptions most clearly is in the scene where Lily argues with Snape for defending Mulciber, etc ... in this scene it seems that Lily puts the marauders before (she is supposed to talk about them) because they are from her house and believes that what Mulciber does is worse because he is in Slytherin. Being in Gryffindor, she is believed to have the moral superiority and the right to claim Snape to choose a position, when obviously Snape, like Lily, will choose their peer group. The point here is that Lily prefers to believe the marauders and put Snape in the guilty position, without even asking if his friend is okay or asking him what he saw ... Lily is not interested in knowing what happened because surely he was content with James's version and would always doubt any version Snape could give it.

Up to here, I did my study. It is a bit lazy, I wrote it on the fly and remembering some of the knowledge I acquired when I was studying Pedagogy. But, in essence, I hope you have understood. In the end, Lily opted for what she considered to be okay based on ideas and beliefs that she ended up having with her peer group. She put her friendship with the marauders first and decided to coldly and selfishly eliminate her friendship with Snape. In the end, we have all had friends from whom we have moved away because they no longer shared things with us (although I can presume that I never alienated anyone for thinking differently or liking things that I did not like), but also friends that we have from all our lives, with those of us who do not like things about them, but accept them and try to understand them, where the company of that person is valued more and we do not care what they tell us. It is true that the "peer group" exerts a lot of influence on us, despising those who consider strange people or have unusual habits for the majority of the population. But Snape and Lily met in childhood, this factor should not have been decisive for their estrangement and, I am afraid, that in the almost of Lily, he ended up accepting the conditions of his peer group to the detriment of maintaining a friendship that so much contributed. I don't hate Lily, I have no problem with her, for me she really is a flat character, too overrated and that only has a few three lines in the entire Harry Potter saga. It is impossible to empathize with her as we would with other characters and she hardly has any development of her. The most remarkable thing about her is that she gave her life for her son, otherwise she showed us a girl who had a strange friendship with Snape and who married the popular boy of her time.

[andraaste]

I am not your enemy - Lance fanfiction part 14

And finally, it’s doooone ! Forgive me for the wait 💕

Chapter 14 : I just stopped hoping for your awakening

- Andraste, is everything okay ? Nevra asked, somewhat surprised at my sudden reaction.

I was about to tell him that it was none of his business when the pain, much more throbbing, resumed again, literally cutting my breath. Without warning, panic started to take me over and it was with confusion that I stood up and dodged his piercing gaze as he remained leaning over me, being too ashamed to tell him everything that was wrong with me.

The vampire still maintained the idea of ​​helping me to stand up completely and, when his hand finally let go of my shoulder, I immediately stepped back in order to establish sufficient distance between us, which didn’t escape him.

- Yes, it's nothing, I finally replied, feigned levity.

Falling back into the void, his hand remained inert along his side as his mouth opened and closed again without any sound coming out.

A wind much colder than before I fell asleep began to blow between us, causing my hair to fly and goosebumps on my bare arms. In order to warm myself up, I put my hands on them as the chills that ran through my skin burned my back unpleasantly.

I think my head was starting to spin.

- Are you sure everything is fine ? Didn't you hurt yourself somewhere or anything ?

- No, don't worry, I replied quickly. I hadn't planned to doze off here, the ground was too hard and I must have hurt a bit, but nothing serious.

I especially didn't want Nevra to know what was happening to me, I didn't think I would be able to bear this shame again in the eyes of another person.

Much to my dismay, the vampire didn't seem convinced. He took a step in my direction, reducing the distance I had deliberately created. An eyebrow raised, his gaze fell on mine.

- Do you know that I still know you by heart ? I can see you're in pain, there's no point in trying to hide it from me.

I breathed out as much air as possible against my poor acting skills. He would never let go, I was sure.

We had left each other angry earlier, though, so why didn't he take his eyes off me right now ? I felt confused, I didn't know how to react.

What's more, I had to admit that I was seriously starting to wonder if constantly blowing hot and cold wasn’t an Eldaryan custom.

Or maybe I was drawn to complicated relationships, who knows.

- Really, it's my luck, I said ironically. So you decided that I existed in your eyes, today ?

His features imperceptibly hardened as his gaze darkened so quickly that I thought I was dreaming for a moment.

- Andraste...

- What Nevra ? Are you going to tell me to pretend nothing has happened ? I was starting to get carried away. It's all well and good to behave towards me as you see fit, but it doesn't work that way.

It was his turn to exhale for a long time. Coming even closer, he took me completely by surprise, lowering his head until he came to rest his forehead against my shoulder, his dark hair brushing my shoulder blade. I remained frozen in place, unable to make the slightest movement as his breath caressed my skin.

I could no longer get my ideas clear.

- Listen, I don't know how to behave when I see you anymore, he finally blurted out, his voice slightly muffled by his probably uncomfortable position. You were the center of my world and overnight I had to relearn how to evolve without you by my side. Everyone was only talking about your sacrifice, he almost spat, but all I wanted was for you to come back to me.

He slowly lifted his head from my shoulder and came back to fix his gaze on mine. I was hanging from his lips, totally mesmerized by the words he finally addressed to me.

- Every day, for a little over a year, I didn’t stop making this wish, however selfish. Sometimes I would spend hours watching you, convincing myself that at any moment you were going to wake up. Except that it never happened, he added quietly, as if saying it out loud could shatter the dreams of this memory of him. I ended up decreasing over time my visits to the Crystal Room, I could no longer distinguish a vague sleeping figure. So to protect myself, I think I just stopped hoping for you to wake up.

The emotion Nevra was feeling at that moment overwhelmed me. I suspected that he must have suffered from this situation, but given his behavior towards me since I woke up, I had difficulty in realizing how he felt. On the other hand, I hadn’t imagined for a single second that it could still affect him at this point now.

- I didn't know all this, Nevra, you never told me about it until now. I never imagined you could feel this, I'm so sorry...

A wistful smile appeared on his lips.

- It's in the past now, even if I don't hide from you that I thought I had serious hallucinations when I saw you again.

Following these words, the vampire leaned down until his face was only inches from mine, allowing me to admire his scarred gaze under his thick black hair.

- I was a complete idiot to you, Andraste. I only took my feelings into account regardless of yours, but it was the only way I found to protect myself again. I'm terribly sorry, you absolutely don’t deserve this indifference, he confessed to me while placing a light and icy hand on my cheek. I hope you will forgive me.

Nevra was standing close, way too close for my breathing to calm down. I swallowed the air with more and more difficulty and, seized by strong emotions, the currents of energy began to circulate again in anarchy under my skin.

The young man finally withdrew his hand before standing up to his full height. Looking up at the sky, he quickly returned to plant them in mine with deep attention.

- Night has almost fallen, we better get back to HQ, he said softly.

I nodded and turned in the direction of HQ when his hand grabbed my arm the same way it had several hours earlier.

I was taken aback to find that his face had suddenly closed completely, brows furrowed.

- You're bleeding, what's happening to you ?

I widened my eyes.

- What ?

- I can smell your blood, it's not normal, he explained to me while making me rotate back to him.

Instinctively, I slapped a hand on the small of my back as my fingers slid over the thick streaks of liquid that flowed against my top.

No.

Not now, it wasn’t possible.

Nevra only took a fraction of a second to react when he saw my fingers red with hemoglobin.

A strong concern marked the tone of his voice as he spoke again :

- What's the matter with your back ? You tell me that everything has been fine since earlier, and now you start to piss blood !

- It's nothing serious, I promise. I just have to go see Eweleïn, she'll know what to do.

I still had the words he'd had when he saw me come out of the infirmary, but I think I just had no choice but to have to go back.

- I'll take you there immediately.

Binding action to word, he grabbed me under the knees and lifted me off the ground to carry me in his arms. The journey was surprisingly short to the entrance of the large building of the HQ while the abundant loss of blood finally got the better of my lucidity.

When they reached the door of the infirmary, Nevra began to pound forcefully on the door. It opened wide, revealing an Eweleïn with suddenly astonished features.

- Nevra, what happened to her ?

The vampire quickly explained the facts to her as he laid me down on the bed. The ground was turning dangerously, or maybe it was just my head that couldn't follow.

- Turn around, the nurse ordered him with authority, before leaning over me. Andraste, we're going to have to take this garment off.

I let her withdraw my sticky top without flinching before falling into a deep sleep.

*

I blinked several times in an attempt to focus, only seeing blurry elements around me. It was far from the first time I had woken up in this bed in the past few days and it made my lips pursed in frustration.

How did I end up in the infirmary again ?

Head heavy, I struggled to sit up on the soft mattress, looking for any sign of life in the room. But no one seemed to be standing here. Swallowing my saliva with difficulty, I realized that my throat was so dry that no sound could have come out anyway immediately, I felt like I had swallowed razor blades.

Feeling obstructed, I lifted my top and found a large bandage wrapped around my chest, with red spots marking the fabric as far as I could see. I was really hoping that my miraculous healing system had reactivated, like the time my stomach wound closed on its own in a very short time, because I wasn’t going to put up with this situation much longer. Moving slightly, I noticed that the pain had practically disappeared. I lowered the garment over my wounds then stood up slowly. The world was still spinning a little too fast for my liking, but I felt fit to get out of here.

I was finishing putting on my shoes when the door finally opened, revealing a long white hair in my field of vision.

- Oh hello Andraste, you're finally awake. How do you feel ? the elf asked with a soft smile.

- Hello Ewe, I think I’m okay. I’m not feeling at my best, but I’m no longer in pain.

- Perfect, I'll give you a quick test but I think you're fit to go out.

Sitting back on the bed, I let the nurse auscultate me without batting an eyelid.

- Your back is much better, even your skin has started to reform normally. I hope this story of stuck wings will get better soon.

- Oh reassure you, I hope so too, I said in a mirthless laugh. Can I go, now ?

- Yes, just a second.

She grabbed the same jar of cream as the last time and handed it to me, a smile on her lips.

- Here, you’ll have to brush your back with this until your skin is better.

- Very good, but it may be rather complicated, since it’s not an area necessarily accessible for me...

I saw Eweleïn's smile widen even more.

- Oh, I understood that someone could take care of it for you, but if it doesn't, you just have to come see me and I'll take care of it.

I narrowed my eyes at her suspicious expression.

- What are you talking about ?

- Nothing at all, and hurry up to see me if it starts again, don't wait any longer to bleed ! Come on, go, she ordered me with a wink.

Too tired to try to understand, I opened the door to rush into the hallway. But how long had I slept, exactly ? It was still dark !

Entering the guard corridor, I walked past several doors until I reached Lance's room, just before mine. I paused for a moment, hesitating, observing thoughtfully the image of the dragon towering over it at full length. Was he busy, right now ?

Heart pounding, I was about to knock when my arm caught in the air.

I didn't have to turn around to see who it was, letting myself be completely taken in by his mere presence.

- Good evening, my little dragon, his voice whispered with an amused grin.

Light streaks of ice were already drawing a multitude of abstract shapes on my skin as my lips stretched on their own.

Giving way to a huge smile on my face.

(Chapter 15)