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lillianofliterature · 2 years

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open fire | luke skywalker x reader

a/n: I’ve been going through my archive and trying to fix a lot of aesthetic and grammar errors in old posts (especially all the spelling errors my old laptop’s word processor didn’t catch), which includes needing to update this a little bit as a fic instead this imagine style it was in. I put it in the wrong post format before and couldn’t add a title when I tried to edit it.

So if this sounds familiar to you, it’s because this is essentially a repost with some revised bits that took it from 1.4K to 1.6K. :P

DO NOT REPOST MY WORK.

[gif not mine, found on google ages ago.]

summary: while being taken prisoner on Cloud City alongside Leia, Chewie, and Han, you get the bright idea to stage an escape.

warnings: fighting, blaster violence, this is before Luke and Leia realize they’re twins lmao and the reader misinterpreted their connection

word count: 1.6K

music: Ben’s Death and TIE Fighter Attack by John Williams

You writhed in the harsh grip of the Stormtroopers as they ushered you down the marbled hall towards what you assumed would be your end. The more you fought to wrench yourself from their grasp, the more their gloved hands dug into your skin and wrinkled the fabric of your shirt. A few feet in front of you, a half dozen more troopers surrounded Princess Leia, leading your small procession toward the cells below the Cloud City palace.

As you grunted while trying to free yourself, you noticed Leia’s head turn to the side, her dark eyes trying to meet yours.

“Stop fighting them, (Y/n). Not here. The more you resist, the more they resort to less affable solutions.” As she uttered the word ‘affable’, her tone turned flout and she sneered at the trooper to her left. Leia’s reply halted your attempts, but in her warning, you caught onto her subtle plan.

Not here. Not yet, anyway.

You stopped fighting momentarily, allowing yourself to process the situation, to run through as many variables as you could. You looked at the troopers in front of you and surveyed their armor; where their guns were, where their armor didn’t quite cover their bodies, with which hands they grasped their weapons. Just above their boots was a break between their calves and their thighs; a window of opportunity. If you could swing your leg up far enough to your left, you could dead-leg the imp whose grip had agonized your arm and send him crashing into the trooper on your right.

“It’s alright, kid. We’ll get out of this, one way or another.” You heard Han add from some distance behind you. The breathy state of his voice revealed that he, too, had tried freeing himself from their clutches. He was eager to find a way to escape and get back to the Falcon. Preferably before you reached the Sith lord eagerly awaiting the arrival of his new prisoners—Darth Vader himself.

You were already planning on it.

As you rounded the corner, you noticed the shadows from the hall grow taller. They were taking you deeper within the city, further from exits, narrowing your chances. Your pulse hitched as you realized this. Adrenaline began coursing through you, quickening your heartbeat and making your skin clammy with sweat.

If you didn’t try now, when would you ever have another chance?

When you were locked away and looney from torture?

Without thinking, you swung your leg up and sent that very same Stormtrooper to the ground with a thud. Although his fall didn’t distract the other on your right enough to lessen his grip, that didn’t stop you. You spun around and yanked down the other’s arm, thrusting the gun from his grasp and kneeing him in the gap under his breastplate. He doubled over and fell on top of the first, his gun clattering onto the ground.

The commotion set in around you almost immediately; the shuffling of boots acclimated and the shouting of their voices through their mechanical helmets echoed around you.

“’Atta girl, (Y/n)! Wahoo!” You heard Han’s shout for victory as he followed suit, attacking his own captors where they were weakest. They fell to the ground in a gathering heap of plastic and metal. Leia did the same, although with much more ease than you had (she had obviously done this before).

The blood rushed to your head and your nerves made your hands tremor as your thrust yourself forward onto the ground for the blaster. As your fingers wrapped around the handle, you swung around and pulled down on the trigger, downing another trooper who had been inches from yanking you up into his chest plate. You fired again and again, in every direction that a suit of white armor moved.

Leia and Han began firing as well and within seconds you were the only three left standing in the corridor, but the relief did not come. Far down the hall, as if from every direction, boots thundered closer. You froze and looked frantically in every direction, unsure of where to go, unsure of which way lessened the chances of being shot…or worse, captured.

“This way!” Leia shouted, directing both of you back in the direction you had come from. Soon enough, the unsettling sounds of pursuit died away into the distance and a tentative silence fell. You looked to Leia for guidance, unsure of the wisest move. Should you make a mad dash for the ship? Or scheme your way out of the city with a cunning plan? Maybe crawl through the vents—could any of you even fit?

Suddenly, another burst of blasts were fired down the hall, their red light reflecting upon the walls. With this chaotic turn of events, you felt a sudden urge of bravery surge through you. You were just a pilot, a girl who could fly ships and fire blasters. But Leia—she was a princess on her way to becoming a general. She wasn’t expendable.

And in a sense, really, neither was Han. He was one of the best pilots in the galaxy and an important ally to the rebellion—and to the princess. With an honorable promotion coming his way, he was destined to do something great for the war effort. His brazen courage had caught the eye of the Rebellion and their leaders, meaning Han would be offered a vital position to serve to rebel forces.

You, on the other hand, were just a star-crossed girl with a fancy for flying ships and a love for the sound of whirring engines. A girl who’d barely seen conflict, who had hardly known the hardships of war. A girl madly in love with a boy sworn to keep himself from any form of attachments…

An image of Luke flashed in your mind, convicting you to act on it. If anything ever happened to Leia, it would crush him. Despite the twinge of jealousy in your heart, you couldn’t bear for Luke to lose the woman he loved. It would destroy him, just as knowing his love was for another was slowly destroying you.

“Han, get Leia out of here! You gotta get to the Falcon! Go through the air ducts!” You spit out orders, your voice breaking the pensive silence between you, accompanying the distant barrage of blaster-fire.

As you took a few steps away, Han gave you a quizzical look, while Leia opened her mouth to object.

“Just get out of here!” You shouted, turning on your heel and taking off down the corridor. You poised your blaster in front of your chest, ready to release a spray of cauterizing death to anything that moved. You could feel your heartbeat deafeningly in your head as your adrenaline surged, pulsing through your limbs like you’d been plugged into a circuit board.

When you rounded the corner, the red light of lasers had subsided somewhat. You stuck to the wall and pinned yourself behind a pillar, peeking out every few seconds. Where had those troopers gone? Why had they retreated so quickly? Sure, your plan was unexpected, but not enough to scare off a whole regiment.

Chancing, another glance around the corner, you hoped you’d find nothing more than a few corpses. To your disappointment, you saw the flash of movement around another doorway just across the hall, and the barrel of a blaster recede with it.

You sucked in your breath as if to hide your presence from the trooper for as long as you could; but what good would hiding do a this point? They knew you were there, they knew their prisoners had staged a mutiny.

Without further thought, you jumped out of concealment and opened fire, which ricocheted off the marble and flared down the hall, leaving scorch marks where it had collided. You kept firing, hoping for the stars to hit something and save Han and Leia’s skins.

The figure jumped behind the pillar with blurred haste, unwilling to risk being mutilated—even by a girl who was currently taking no aim but firing with gumption regardless.

When you felt you had done enough, you lunged back behind the pillar, hoping to dodge their retaliation. You knew better than to assume you’d downed them that quickly. Your chest heaved and you stood as still as you could against the cold wall, praying and hoping whoever, or whatever, got your hint.

Especially if it was another imperial.

You held your blaster to your chest once again, the barrel pointed upwards.

You were ready to open fire once more when the shadow of a figure cascaded by your feet. You stuck your blaster forwards and let out a gasp of air, frightened and unsure of yourself, but no less brave.

One bright flare had left the barrel but never met the mark. It was not the sight before you that halted your finger from crushing the trigger again, but a force of pressure on your muscles that made your entire body freeze against your will. The one blast you had managed to fire hung suspended and burning in the air for a grueling second before it crashed into the adjacent wall, crackling against the smooth stone.

“(Y/n), it’s me! Don’t shoot!” A boyish voice barked.

When you took in the figure’s features, your body relaxed, however, your heart refused to calm its rapid pace. His hand was suspended in the air, his ability to use the Force the only thing having saved him from being shot. His sandy blonde hair was all too familiar, as well as his wonderfully blue eyes.

“Luke?”

tags: @yana-versio @tessaem @izbelross @lilyevans1

#Luke Skywalker #luke skywalker x reader #luke skywalker imagine #leia organa x reader #leia organa imagine #han solo x reader #han solo imagine #cloud city #star wars imagine #star wars x reader #star wars #mark hamill #mark hamill x reader #mark hamill imagine #luke skywalker imagines #star wars imagines

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terriblygrimm · 2 years

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yoooo my gender neutral dudes! i just realized (i knew but i never knew you know?) upon rewatch (for the fifteenth time) that during ben and vader’s fight, ben beautifully begins to match vader. i was so excited with everything else that happened within their reunion that it didnt really hit me until recently. let me explain!

so up until this moment they’ve been playing cat and mouse, but vader finally snuck up on him and they start fighting. and right here is where it starts happening! when vader starts to hammer down on ben’s lightsaber a la luke in rotj, its because ben is actually holding a candle to his strength!

i always thought it was so weird that vader was like grunting right here, since we never really hear him make noise when he fights. it’s all usually so easy for him. but here, we see him resort to banging their lightsabers together in a very.. undignified and almost desperate fighting move. it’s very.. unlike him. it’s not his usual ease of dominance, his confident and all powerful, unfazed fighting style. when they meet blade to blade - ben does begin to hold his own and it catches vader off guard.

so vader has him on his knees now from beating down on him, finally superior again, but as we see ben clearly do, he cleverly switches the way he holds his lightsaber to better distribute strength

then we actually see him pushing back vader’s lightsaber, meeting his parry with all of his might

then we see them actually matched. ben is standing up again, and they’re blade to blade

vader gets pissed here and has to throw ben back with the force, sort of taking an ace out of his bionic sleeve. it’s the only way he gets the upper hand again

i was REALLY pleased to see this taste-of-what’s-to-come, tease into their inevitable second battle. i was so caught up in the magic of this moment i didn’t really see what was happening between them.

bc yes it’s been years, but no matter what they’ve been doing all this time, they still haven’t fought each other up until this point - and neither is prepared for the emotion and the natural tug of war that brings.

ben isn’t prepared for vader’s tremendous strength and bulldozing immovable weight, and vader isn’t prepared for ben’s reserve, spirit and cleverness. ben is used to to his own retired, apathetic pacifism, and vader is used to his own unmatched, monotonous totalitarian power. but their opposition only ends up serving the other in the end! even in this brief encounter!!! vader’s towering strength forces ben to dig deep into the dark, to self preserve and find his strength again. and ben’s practiced intellect drags vader into the light and reminds him that there is more! he once had a past, this person in front of him that anakin knew - the one who can disarm him. light and dark, push & pull, tug of war. within each other and themselves simultaneously.

bc despite being rusty with his physical skills (ben) and despite being mentally unstimulated with a worthy opponent (vader) they’ve both forgotten up until this point that they naturally know each other more intimately than anything. they’re halves of a whole. they’re evenly matched, as vader and ben, or obi-wan and anakin. neither is prepared to feel that balance or to fall into harmony again. and i cannot WAIT to see what these next two eps do and how their fated second battle turns out. this show is brilliant and i owe chow my life

#star wars #obikin #vaderwan #obiwan kenobi #anakin skywalker #i cannot go on #long post #the fuckbois will have you believe this fight was so ‘unmatched’ and obiwan was ‘so weak’ but as usual and as per always #they miss the poetry and subtlety

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grumpyhedgehogs · 3 years

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premonition

Summary: Ten year old Anakin dreams of the future. (It isn't bright.)

Notes: In which little Anakin dreams about Vader killing Obi-Wan on the Death Star. I love to hurt my favorites, what can I say.

Warnings: nightmares, violence, fear/panic, implied/referenced slavery and death.

AO3

Anakin is prone to nightmares, has been since he could barely remember the difference between a dream and reality. They can be vague, like the idea of running from something chasing him, or incredibly realistic, like the nightmares he has about Watto sometimes. Sometimes they’re about things that have actually happened, like the one about the sandstorm that sealed him and his mother inside their hut for weeks once when he was five. They can even be about things that haven’t happened yet--like the one he’d had when he was five that he’d only remembered when he’d had to run across the dunes with a dark figure on a speeder dogging his footsteps.

Those are the ones that make Obi-Wan’s brow pinch and his mouth go tight and thin when Anakin tells him about them. Sometimes he looks like he’s almost angry with Anakin and that’s bad until Obi-Wan kneels down and wraps his arms around Anakin and tells him that Obi-Wan understands how upsetting the future nightmares can be and that he gets them too and it’s going to be alright. Then it’s better because Anakin’s heart starts beating again when he hugs back. So the nightmares come and they go and sometimes they make him tired and mad or scared for a long time, but Obi-Wan is here and he promised to keep Anakin safe. So it’s okay. Obi-Wan is kind and he listens when Anakin gets scared and he doesn’t yell even when Anakin gets mean because he’s angry. Obi-Wan makes sweet smelling tea and reads to him about heroes and monsters and happy endings and he tells him about his own bad dreams and says that it’s okay to be scared as long as one doesn’t let their fear control them. Obi-Wan is really good at meditation and he helps Anakin with it even though it’s hard and he can’t get the hang of dropping into a trance just yet.

But these nightmares are different.

These nightmares always start the same: Anakin is running and his chest burns with exertion and he can’t breathe quite right. The hallways around him are long and winding, all polished black and white and hard grey durasteel. Sometimes there are doors that open and faces peek out at him but they don’t look right: the faces have big black eyes and wide mouths that stretch all the way across, and their outer skin is a hard, blank white. Their heads are bulbous and their limbs are bulky and they wield blasters. Anakin runs even faster when he sees the doors are open. Sometimes there are men and women in grey suits with funny little hats walking in the halls, but Anakin passes right through them when he runs into them. He thinks maybe they’re ghosts, but not real ghosts. Ghosts are people who are dead and the Force whispers to him that they aren’t dead people. Not yet. (Sometimes they are young and the Force tells him they haven’t been born yet but that makes it hard for Anakin to concentrate on running so he tells the Force to shut up.)

Anakin’s legs ache and he trips sometimes. He skids around corners and bumps into walls that make a hollow clang when his body collides with them, like they’re all durasteel. He misses the wide open spaces and light stone of the Temple. If he stops, Anakin coughs from exhaustion, and his breath never comes fast enough and his throat feels like its swollen closed to the size of a straw. So Anakin doesn’t stop much.

At the beginning of the nightmares, he doesn’t know why he’s running or why he is where he is. Anakin always seems to forget the reason it’s so important he runs and doesn’t stop, even though he wakes up and remembers that he’s had this nightmare before every time. But the Force shouts warnings in his head, blaring like a siren, and Anakin knows he has to go. The Force tells him to go, go help, he needs your help, why won’t you help him? And Anakin tells it, mouth too dry to actually form the words, no breath left inside him to speak, I’m going, I’m trying, I want to help please I want to help just tell me how!

But this is a nightmare, so the Force never answers him.

There’s sounds in the nightmares too, shouting and footsteps and sometimes explosions, but mostly he hears blaster fire. (Anakin didn’t used to know what that sound was until a mission with Master Obi-Wan went wrong and Obi-Wan had had to curl himself up around Anakin to keep him safe from the fighting. Afterwards when they were safe he’d gotten down on his knees and his eyebrows were drawn together and his eyes were really big in his face; he’d told Anakin that he was so, so sorry that he’d led Anakin into a life-threatening situation and that they’d have to talk about this because it was alright if Anakin got scared even when they were safe and that it was never okay for an adult to make him feel unsafe and Anakin had thrown his arms around him and held on tight.) Sometimes if the blaster fire goes quiet at the right moment he can hear the ignition sound of a lightsaber. There’s another noise too, one that Anakin always forgets about until he hears it again. It makes his blood run so cold in his veins that he yelps, but his voice is too high and too quiet and all the other noise covers it.

He doesn’t want to go towards the noise that scares him, but the Force says he’s fighting! And Anakin says what can I do to help? But the Force always ignores him, just screams he’s going to lose!

Anakin runs.

His nightmares always end in the same place. It’s a bigger hallway than the ones he starts in, and there are more of those people with funny outfits and strange faces here. He can sometimes glimpse a ship in the background over their shoulders; it’s round and busted up, but it looks like it can still fly and Anakin knows that if he can just keep running, that ship will be a safe place. (Anakin only remembers that he has never made it to the ship when he wakes up.) There are stars out there too, out beyond the edges of his dream, but they are not like the stars he knows. These stars--they’re crying.

In the middle of the big hallway is the source of the sound that Anakin hates, that makes his bones shake and his heart beat so hard it nearly breaks his ribs. The figure is big, bigger than he’s ever seen, even bigger than a Wookie. It looms over him, hulking and distant. It is a black void, cold and angry and hungry. The figure makes that noise that scares Anakin because it gasps and chokes on every breath. The very air they expel and intake becomes a rasping, gagging thing that sucks at Anakin’s Light in the Force and billows out smoky Darkness. The Force tells Anakin that is a person, but not like any person should be: it’s not real, only it’s already real, it has always been real but could never be real if Anakin fixes his nightmare. (Anakin has never figured out how to fix it before he wakes.) It makes Anakin want to scream or cry or hide but the Force pulls his eyes away from the monster to look at Obi-Wan.

Because Obi-Wan is always there in these nightmares. His lightsaber is sometimes more recognizable than his Master’s face and it frightens Anakin. The kyber in the hilt of the blue 'saber sings at him, reaching tendrils of the Force out to caress at his shields, but Anakin knows he can’t open his mind to it because the other kyber crystal, the red one (they aren’t supposed to be red, Obi-Wan said so), screams, constantly and tirelessly, so loud Anakin can barely think.

Obi-Wan is sometimes just like he was when they first met. His hair is short and a Padawan braid brushes past his shoulder, which doesn’t make sense because if he were still a Padawan Anakin couldn’t be his Padawan, which Anakin very much is! His robes are all burned and scorched and he has lost his robe somewhere. He moves differently too; all gangly and awkward and his lightsaber form is too aggressive to match the one Master Obi-Wan picked up when he started training Anakin. His fighting style and youth don’t keep him safe from the crimson ‘saber.

Obi-Wan is sometimes as he is now. (Those nightmares are the worst ones.) His hair has grown out but his cheeks are still round and full. There are circles under his eyes, the ones he keeps telling Anakin not to worry about but Anakin worries about anyway, and his limbs are still a tiny bit awkward. But his ‘saber form matches and his footing is sure. But it isn’t enough and this Obi-Wan only lasts a little longer than Padawan Obi-Wan does, even if he fights harder and smarter.

Obi-Wan is sometimes older than he is now, his hair shorter than a Knight’s haircut and Anakin knows he must be the same as the monster and the people in funny clothes and with funny faces: he’s the ghost from Obi-Wan’s future, who Obi-Wan is going to be after Anakin grows up with him. He has weird bulky armor over his robes with a strange symbol on his forearm, but he moves gracefully, steady and confident even as blood slips from a cut on his temple. He looks like a statue, like he’s carved from stone; Anakin would be scared if he didn’t know it was Obi-Wan. This Obi-Wan shouts when he falls, but goes down fighting.

Obi-Wan is seldom the oldest Anakin has ever seen him. His hair is white and his face is wrinkled. He’s a future ghost too, and every time he has this nightmare the Force screams when Anakin sees him. His mouth is set in a smile which makes Anakin want to cry. His shoulders are rounded and his lightsaber form is once again different from what Anakin knows Master Obi-Wan uses now. His robes are covered in sand and dust and he looks so very tired. This Obi-Wan is the only one who reacts to Anakin’s eyes landing on him.

It always happens at the last second: Anakin slips around the monster and hurls himself towards Obi-Wan only to find his feet locked to the ground, like his boots melted and became one with the floor. He stands, stuck and still, between his Master and the monster. He wants to turn around and look at the monster, wants to see what kind of face a being that Dark in the Force must have, but he remembers the dream about running from a Sith across the sands, and he stays still. Run! He always shouts at his Master through the Force. We have to run! He’ll hurt us!

All the other Obi-Wans don’t listen or even signal that Anakin exists. They pass through him when they clash with the monster just like all the other future ghosts do. Anakin feels tears welling in his eyes but these versions of his Master don’t take notice, don’t stop and try to assess his wellbeing. They don’t know he’s even there.

Then the being surges forward, so fast that Anakin’s hair ruffles and he cringes forward, seeking the warmth of Obi-Wan in front of him, seeking the safety and concern and protectiveness that Obi-Wan has come to symbolize in his life. But the flare of plasma swings over Anakin’s head and even though he screams as the cold fills the space Obi-Wan used to occupy.

But the oldest Obi-Wan looks down at him. He stands still and lets the monster approach instead of meeting it halfway, and in that moment he sees Anakin. He always does the same thing. He raises his lightsaber in the traditional greeting pose Obi-Wan taught Anakin to do before a training match. He lets the blue light flicker and die as he cuts the switch. He smiles. And in Anakin’s mind, through the bond that glows golden and soft in the back of his head, through the Force, Obi-Wan tells him: My dear Anakin, do not be afraid.

In those versions of the nightmare Anakin always wakes up before the monster can strike his Master.

Anakin has had one of those dreams tonight. It’s the first one in several months; perhaps childishly, Anakin had thought he was getting better. (“You’re only ten, Anakin,” Obi-Wan tells him whenever he tries to be more adult. “You’re allowed to be a child.”) He has slept through the night on his own many times and he doesn’t even need a light on in the living area of their quarters anymore. But here he is, panting and sweating and cold and crying. Anakin’s shoulder hitch up around his ears and he feels the sticky tracks his tears make across his skin, cheeks overheating and aching. His legs tremble with phantom pain and his heart pounds so hard he can see it through his nightclothes. The Force is unsettled, swirling and cresting around him and his bond is too quiet, too soft even though it glows with his Master’s presence just on the other side of the wall separating their rooms.

Obi-Wan always leaves the door cracked open; he’d said it was for airflow, but Anakin isn’t stupid. He used to come in here every night to check on his Master. He’d been used to sleeping in the same room as his mother and couldn’t shake the idea that something could happen to Obi-Wan, that something could get to him while Anakin slept on blissfully unaware in the next room. Obi-Wan hated that the door creaked when Anakin opened it, so he left it open all the time. The extra measure was supposed to help Obi-Wan stay asleep when Anakin visited in the night, but every time, without fail, Obi-Wan would open his eyes before Anakin even stepped up to his bedside.

Tonight is no different. Through the shadows of his bedroom, Obi-Wan’s eyes are bright as they fix upon Anakin’s face; he can practically feel Obi-Wan’s brow cinch when he sees the tear stains. “Bad dream?” Obi-Wan’s voice is as soft as their bond, and it curls around Anakin just like his Master’s Force Signature does, soothing the whirling, whimpering Force and bolstering his shields.

“Nightmare.”

Obi-Wan does not point out that his answer comes on the end of a sob and opens his arms instead. The blankets settle around Anakin’s shoulders, almost too hot from Obi-Wan’s body heat. Still he presses closer and Obi-Wan welcomes him, curling an arm around him and rubbing at his back. He sighs, making a wet little noise against the crook of his Master’s neck. Obi-Wan holds on just a little tighter. It makes something in Anakin’s chest clench.

“Rest now, Padawan.”

Before Obi-Wan can finish, before he can say the words Anakin knows he will say because he says them every time, Anakin makes himself a promise. He locks his fingers into the collar of Obi-Wan’s nightshirt and feels the too hot warmth of his skin and hearts the soft breaths above his head and the rustle of the bedclothes as Obi-Wan tucks them both in and he promises himself. He promises, I will keep you safe. He promises, I’ll save you from the monster, Master. He promises, We can fight it together, Obi-Wan.

But the words that fall from Obi-Wan’s lips every time he has a nightmare always make Anakin shake with a cloying, cold darkness he cannot rid himself of.

“My dear Anakin, do not be afraid.”

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some-kindofgnome · 4 years

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Kinktober #2: One Heck of a Twist: Mirio Togata

In which Mirio experiences two new things in the same night.

Characters: Mirio Togata x f!Reader

Warnings: smut (18+ please!), aged up characters, oral sex (f-receiving), strong language, mirio being an absolute ray of sunshine, spoilers for The Empire Strikes Back

Notes: Congratulations! You survived day one! Welcome to day two of Kinktober 2020. Allow me to introduce you to my absolute favourite character to write. Seriously. Count how many times his name appears on my Kinktober masterlist. It’s a problem. Both characters are adults, even if they’re schmucks.

Today’s prompt is ‘Eating Out.’ Bon appetit!

“I can’t believe you never knew that Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker’s father!”

Your exclamation is almost loud enough to draw looks from the rest of the crowd as you filter out of the movie theatre into the damp evening. The city’s glazed by a sheen of rainfall, but it’s as fine as mist and the chill is welcome against your theatre-warmed cheeks.

After finding out that Mirio had never seen Star Wars, you took it upon yourself to show him the original. And when he liked it, you found an independent theatre downtown showing a rerun of The Empire Strikes Back and made a date of it.

“How could I have?” He defends, grabbing your hand so you know he’s keeping it playful. “I’ve never seen it before.”

His hand is as warm and strong as ever, and you feel as safe holding onto it as you might if you were wrapped in his arms.

“Even so,” you continue, “that’s, like… the most common piece of movie trivia knowledge on the planet. How long have you been on this Earth for? And how long has Star Wars been on this Earth for?”

“Well, I know now,” he chuckles, tugging you a little closer by the hand as your shoulders bump. “And it was one heck of a twist.”

This whole holding-hands-in-public thing is kind of new to you, and you’re not quite past the butterflies stage. Then again, you’re pretty sure you’re never going to get past the butterflies stage with Mirio. He’s warm and masculine, funny and charming, but so kind it hurts sometimes. You’ve already been dating a couple of months and he still manages to surprise you all the time.

Take tonight, for instance.

“You must be the king of avoiding spoilers,” you tease, nudging his shoulder with yours again and feeling warm and fulfilled when your bodies connect.

You chat quietly the rest of the way home, walking close to ward off frost in the early fall darkness. For a romance that blossomed in the heat of midsummer, the two of you are weathering the changing seasons smoothly. Then again, you’re pretty sure nothing could ruin him for you at this point.

Silence settles coyly between you as the door of your apartment building draws closer. This wouldn’t be the first time he’d spent the night, but it was the first time you’d actually planned it in advance. The rush of nerves you first got when he showed up with an overnight bag is as fresh as ever, and by the time you get your keys out there’s heat creeping down your neck.

He stops you on the landing with a hand on your arm.

“Hey,” he rumbles, and when you turn back to him he’s standing a couple of steps down from you. He tugs you gently toward the edge of the landing and kisses you so soft it makes your toes curl. These days, every kiss feels like the first one all over again and you let your palms rest against his chest, falling into him.

“Let’s go inside,” you whisper once you’ve pulled away, pushing your forehead forward against his. You can feel the way his chest rumbles with his chuckle and you grin, push off his chest and grab his arm. You make it up the second flight of stairs in record time and he slips his arms around you from behind as you fish for the right key.

He changes gears seamlessly- shifting from sparkling eyes and sunny chuckles to pushing you inside and easily against the nearest wall, kicking the door shut and towering over you.

You ask yourself who the hell you were in your past life to earn this.

“I wanna try something with you,” he mumbles as he draws his nose tenderly up the side of your neck- just a little chilled against your warm skin. You shiver, hard, and you’re pretty sure you would agree to anything right about now.

“Okay,” you answer dumbly.

He responds in kind, slipping his hands under your denim-clad thighs and picking you up effortlessly- so fucking strong. You reward him by cupping his cheeks and kissing him silly while he feels his way into your bedroom, toppling forward onto the bed with you and caging you in until you force your mouth from his, breathless and gasping.

“First things first,” he says, drawing back. He unlaces your boots and lovingly pulls them off, taking your socks with him. He toes out of his own shoes and then he’s on top of you again. His weight and warmth is a world of its own, all-encompassing and complete.

His shadow passes over you, but instead of your lips he goes for your neck, sliding one knee between your thighs as he lets his mouth wander.

He’s already pushing you out of your jacket and nudging the neckline of your sweater down with his chin to nibble at your collar bone. You whimper, shoving your hands into the folds of his coat and wedging it off his shoulders, and he rears back in kind to shrug it off.

Mirio slips his hand up the side of your thigh, fingers just brushing your waistband. He hesitates for a minute, then pulls away again with a bashful expression in the dim light.

“My hands are pretty cold,” he admits. He blows sheepishly into his palms and rubs them back and forth a few times, then presses one to the crook of his neck. He bites his lip, thinking, then he’s on you again.

“Much better,” he purrs, and this time he’s not shy about sliding his fingers under your sweater, dancing them up your ribcage and selfishly thumbing the side of your bra. He uses his elbow to push the hem of your sweater up a little and his face finds home in your neck again.

“Can I?” He mumbles and you melt all over again.

“Go ahead.”

Your sweater comes off in a swath of cotton-blend, and he’s still wearing a t-shirt but you can feel the warmth of his body as he gathers you back into his arms. You’re so in love. So in love. So in love. It’s becoming a real problem.

“You’re so pretty,” he groans, and you giggle, slotting your hips as casually as you can against his. His body stutters against yours and his next breath comes out shaky.

Incredible.

“You said you wanted to try something,” you mumble. He’s holding you so close that your lips brush his hair as you speak, and you nuzzle a little deeper into the blonde mess. Happy to muss its perfect style.

“Right.” He jumps and pulls back, bracing himself on one arm to look down at you with the moon in his eyes. He grins, wolfishly, and suddenly your nerves are spiking again.

“Lemme go down on you.”

Your chest lurches. Hard. For a solid few seconds you don’t say anything, circulating the words inside your head to make sure they mean what you think they mean.

You hear the quiet echo of your name fall from his lips, and when your gaze re-focuses he’s peering down at you with such concern that you wonder if you’ve done something wrong.

“I… uh. Really?”

He laughs. Your cheeks go hot.

“Yeah, really.” He peeks up at you through heavy lids and if you weren’t already horizontal you might have swooned. “Been thinking about it a lot.”

“Okay.” You’ve gone dumb with shock, but he’s picking up the slack, kissing across your cheekbone and digging his thumb into the waistband of your jeans. He flicks the button open smoothly and drags down the fly. You plant your feet and he wiggles them off, grabbing the strap of your black underwear and tugging that down, too.

“Oh-kay,” you sigh again, fumbling with the clasp of your bra as he gets on his belly and slides his hands under your thighs. You push that last garment away and then you’re bare and his breath is there and it sends goosebumps racing straight up your arms and spine.

“God, you’re even prettier down here.” There’s no scrap of innocent charm left in his voice anymore. It’s all raspy baritones and husked little quips from here on out. He hooks one thigh over an elbow, dragging his fingertips over your hip before circling a thumb against your clit. It’s not much, but you’re drowning in him. You were ready to go by the time he got your jacket off.

“F-uck,” you stutter and your upper body gives out, your shoulders and head diving into the pillows behind you. He lowers his head and noses playfully at your thigh. You feel him smiling against you. Then he turns his gaze and just looks at you.

“Lemme taste you, princess.”

Then he licks.

“God,” you sigh, and where he was smiling against your thigh before, you feel him smile against your slit. He does it again, only this time he groans into you- letting the sound vibrate through his chest and all the way down to the tips of your toes. Your back arches clean off the bed and your thighs twitch. He digs his fingers into them, keeping you still.

“Keep going,” you urge, just in case he wasn’t abundantly sure that you were enjoying this, and he takes the note in stride. He settles into an eager rhythm, drawing his tongue up your slit a few more times before his tongue settles over your clit. If it was tender before it’s electric now, the easy flicks and swipes making you dig your feet into the mattress and slide your fingers into his hair.

Both hands comb through the gelled strands as you bite your lip hard and try to figure out what you’re going to do with all this pleasure. Your hips buck smoothly into his face as he keeps a steady pace, and your eyes are screwed shut but you know he’s watching.

His tongue swipes the right spot at the right time and your breathy little sighs shift from heady and high to guttural and clear, and there’s no way you’re holding back when it turns out he’s pretty fucking good at this.

“O-ohgod – there!”

You feel him pause for a heartbeat, but he’s quickly refocusing, repositioning to take the same angle as before. And where he swiped once he’s suddenly laving again and again, and his arms tighten around your thighs and it’s going to be tight but you’re getting there.

“More,” you plead. “Fuck, fuck, I’m gonna cum. Right there. There, there, there, y-“

You babble, but as soon as it hits you the sound dies in your throat. Your climax tips over like spilled wine and everything goes white while waves of pleasure wash over you. You’re pretty sure you’re grabbing his hair and pulling hard, but he doesn’t seem to mind, gathering you in his arms and holding you tight, licking you over and over until you’re squirming underneath him, pushing his head away with a whimper.

Your eyes shift open. The clouds part. He sits up slowly, licking his lips as he eases into your field of view. There are waves of absolute bliss lapping at your extremities and you do not miss the way he swipes the back of his hand across his mouth, sending a fresh throb of arousal straight through your spent body.

“So?”

He breaks the silence as he settles onto his side beside you, resting a hand on the column of your belly.

“So?” You laugh loosely. “When were you gonna tell me that your mouth’s good for more than just talking?”

He’s laughing again and nuzzling you, so loving and tender you might almost forget how thoroughly he just rocked your world.

“I thought it’d be better to show you.”

You turn your head and kiss him. He groans- you’re not shy about tasting yourself- and you roll over, dragging your palm down the front of his shirt. He’s a confident shit when you’re putty in his hands, but irresistibly adorable as soon as the ball’s in your court. You can’t wait.

“In that case,” you growl between kisses, “I think it’s my turn to show you something.”

#my hero academia #mirio x reader #kinktober #jbbKinktober2020 #mirio togata #kinktober 2020 #mirio togata x reader #mirio fanfiction #mirio x you #gnomewrites

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floralguccistyles · 4 years

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nine: aliens, bigfoot, and nerds, oh my!

“Have you been eating, sweetheart? You’ve lost at least ten pounds since the last time I’ve seen you.”

My father rolled his eyes from over my mother’s shoulder as she pulled me into a big hug. Every time I saw my mother, she mentioned how skinny I was getting even though I was sure I had gained about five pounds since the last time I’d seen her. It was usually an excuse to come into my flat and make us a giant dinner, which I would never complain about. Her arms squeezed my shoulders as she released me, pulling back so she could look at my face.

“Pretty as ever, sweetheart.”

“Eva, can I please hug our daughter hello now?”

I laughed as my mother made a big deal of moving out of the way so my father could hug me. His embrace was familiar, his arms the ones I ran to when the bullying in secondary school got too bad to handle on my own. He had wiped my tears away and said “you’re one of a kind, mija, and they’re jealous of that.”

“Was the drive okay?” I asked them, pulling away from my father after he planted a quick kiss on my hairline. Their suitcases (the ones they had owned when they came to England) were decorated with vibrant stickers from Cuba. They were worn now, scratched at the corners, but their color had miraculously remained.

“It was wonderful. It’s been so long since we’ve been to London, and now look at us! We’re here to celebrate our daughter’s book!”

Inviting them to the book release party had been a last minute decision, but I found myself happy that I had. Though I knew they were proud of me, I also knew that they didn’t really understand a lot of the fandom stuff I had discussed in several chapters. They would read it to support me, of that I was sure, but I was uncertain about if they’d actually enjoy it.

“You probably won’t understand a lot of it, Mum.”

“You don’t know that. Your father and I have been watching that Doctor show...what’s it called, Roberto?”

“I don’t know, Eva. I fall asleep when it’s on.”

“It’s called Doctor Who, Mum,” I snorted out, biting back a bigger laugh.

“Whatever it’s called, we’ve been watching it. And we were alive when Star Wars came out, you know. I was there for the Darth Vader reveal and everything. Mamá took me to the theater and got me an extra large popcorn.”

I liked hearing little stories like that. It was almost too easy to picture my mum, sitting there in a little theater in Cuba when the true identity of Darth Vader was revealed. My grandmother had probably grasped her chest with her hand and shouted “¡Dios mío!” at the top of her lungs. If I eventually travelled to Cuba, if the movie theater was still there, I decided I would visit it.

The three of us piled into the Uber I had called for us, which wasn’t hard because their suitcases were so small. On the way to my flat, my parents regaled stories about their drive to London and how she was upset my dad wouldn’t let her listen to Dua Lipa on the radio because “that Dua Lipa girl was very talented, Petra.” We made it back to my flat with only three arguments broken out between them.

“You guys are staying in my room and I’m camping out on the couch,” I informed them, helping my mum to carry her suitcase in. “Sorry it’s so cramped. It’s perfect for me, but unfortunately having guests is a little difficult.”

“We could have stayed in a hotel, baby,” My father commented.

“I’m not going to make my parents pay for a hotel room. I can sleep on the couch for one night and survive, Dad.” They had been to my flat before, but I still showed them where the extra towels and soap was in the bathroom. “The party’s at seven tonight, and dinner will be served. I’ve got to go a little earlier, but I’m just a text away if you need anything.”

“My baby,” my mum said, her eyes glistening, “we are so proud of you!”

I found myself enveloped in another tight hug, this time joined by my father. The lump in my throat grew when I thought of their praise. Too often, I had taken their support for granted. “I love you both.”

“We love you, mija.”

A sudden knock on my door had us pulling apart. “Were you expecting anyone, baby?” my mum asked, going to the front foyer and looking out the foggy windows. “It’s a boy, Roberto!”

“What?”

I moved around my frozen parents to answer the door, swinging it open and greeting Harry Styles’s smiling face with a blank look. I had no idea what Harry was doing here, but he really had very impeccable timing.

And by impeccable, I meant shit.

“Morning! I was thinking about grabbing something to eat at a little bistro around here and thought I’d come by and see what you were up to today. Wanna join?”

Speech wouldn’t come. I felt the stares of my parents behind me, still hidden from Harry’s view, and how they would squeal and gush when they found out I was on somewhat good terms with Harry Styles, something they’d been trying to get me to do for years. “Harry—”

“Harry?” My mum’s voice asked loudly from where she was standing. She marched up behind me and swung the door open a little wider so he could clearly see her. “Oh my goodness! Harry Styles! Petra, it’s Harry Styles!”

“I know who he is, Mum,” I whispered in an embarrassed voice.

“Last time I saw you, you were about four feet tall,” My mother cooed, stepping forward. Before Harry could react, she had him in a tight hug, wrapping her arms around his body. “Petra didn’t tell me you were friends again!”

I bit down the urge to argue that we were never friends, but my mother wouldn’t listen. She never had when it had come to my bullies at school. “Just give them a chance to change, Petra,” she had told me when I would bury my face in her shoulder and cry that I didn’t want to go to school.

“Hi, Mrs. Gallego. I didn’t know you guys were coming to town. Sorry for intruding on family day. I was just coming down to this part of town to grab some lunch and wanted to see if Petra could come. No worries, though. I don’t want to take away—”

“Nonsense!” My father cut in, reaching out his hand for Harry to shake. “Nice to see you again, Harry. Feel free to take Petra to lunch. We’re probably going to nap a little before her release party tonight. The drive was long.”

“Release party?” Harry asked, glancing back and forth between my parents and me.

I awkwardly scratched the side of my head. “My, er, book is being released tonight.”

“What? Petra, that’s amazing!” His smile seemed genuine enough, but all I wanted was to shut the door and rewind the last five minutes. I never would have answered the door in front of my parents if I had known it was going to be Harry on the other side. “If you, um, want to go...it can be a celebratory lunch. And obviously you all are invited, Mr. and Mrs. Gallego.”

“Oh, Harry, we’d love to come, wouldn’t we, Petra?”

My eyes moved between Harry’s cautiously hopeful face and my parents, who were already grabbing my mum’s purse and getting ready to leave. In their eyes, I had already agreed. “Sure,” I said uncomfortably. “That’s fine. Let me just call an Uber for us and we’ll follow behind you.”

“Oh, don’t be silly, Petra. We can call an Uber and you can go with Harry.”

There was no arguing with Eva Gallego when she set her mind to something, so I just nodded. “Okay. Er...I guess that settles that.”

We awkwardly stood around in my foyer until my mum cleared her throat. “Petra, darling, aren’t you going to invite Harry in while we wait for our ride?”

“Right. Come on in, Harry.”

His gaze locked on mine, expression questioning. I knew he felt the tension that was creeping up inside me with having him in the same room as my parents, but I didn’t want to get into it. Not when I knew it would ruin my night. The morning had already started off with self-destructive behavior as I looked back at some of the tweets about my day out with Harry from February. I had never been as aware of my appearance as I was in that moment, scrolling through absolute strangers saying the worst things. I had an extra appointment with Doctor Thorne this week to make up for it.

“How long have you and Petra been hanging out again?” My mum asked as we all sat in my living room.

“A couple of months. She contacted me in January about being on the show. It was an amazing experience.”

“I just love listening to Petra’s podcast,” my father said happily, reaching over and patting my knee. “I have no clue what she’s talking about half the time, but she sounds damn smart saying it.”

“She’s incredibly smart,” Harry agreed, and I ignored the urge to bang my head on the coffee table. I didn’t want him agreeing with my parents about my intelligence. We weren’t really that good of friends, if I even considered us friends yet. I had admitted to myself that Harry had definitely changed for the better, but that didn’t mean the past hurt went away.

“I almost forgot, mija! Your grandma sent you Materva. She said you wrote her an email about it.”

Normally, I would be jumping for joy. The first and only time my grandmother had visited from Cuba, she had brought Materva with her and it had become my favorite drink. With Harry here, however, I felt uncomfortable and self-conscious. I squirmed a little in my seat.

“That was nice of her. I’ll email her and tell her thank you. Want me to put it in the fridge?”

My father went off to my room to grab the Materva and Harry raised a quizzical eyebrow. “What is Moterva?”

“Materva,” my mum corrected with a smile. “It’s a soda.”

“And it’s delicious. Remind Petra to let you try some later,” my father said, returning with a set of six cans. “She sent us more, but we’re selfish and kept the rest of it at home for us.”

He stocked them in my fridge and pulled out his phone when he heard the small chime. “Our Uber is here. We’ll see you two at the restaurant.”

I made sure they made it into their car okay before I hesitantly pulled open the door of Harry’s. We both got ourselves situated, clicking our seatbelts into place.

He didn’t start the car.

“I didn’t know your parents would be here,” he said, offering me an apologetic smile. “I could tell it...it made you uncomfortable.”

“I’m just not used to this.” I gestured back and forth between us with my hand. “And my parents...they mean well, but when I was in secondary school and coming home to them crying, they told me to try and make friends with you guys. They didn’t really understand how hard that would have been. They think I should let bygones be bygones and I want to...but I don’t know if I can just yet.”

“I completely understand.” He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel. “Can I ask you something a little personal?”

“I don’t know if I’ll answer.” Honesty seemed to be the best approach with Harry.

“Why do you seem so embarrassed when your Cuban heritage is mentioned around me? When your dad brought out the soda, it looks like you were going to stab yourself with a fork.”

Go back to where you came from, Gallego. Nathan Penrose’s voice filtered through my thoughts. To them, I wasn’t English enough for England. But it was almost worse to feel that I wasn’t Cuban enough for Cuba.

“It’s about what that prick Nathan said when we were younger, right?” he asked softly, his fingers tightening around the steering wheel remembering it. “I so wish I would have punched him in the face.”

“It’s not just Nathan. That’s a big part of it, but it’s not just you I feel uncomfortable talking about it with.”

“Okay. You don’t have to talk about it, but...just know you can, if you ever want to. I’m serious about trying to be friends, Petra.”

The rest of the car ride was spent in silence, with some pop song playing lowly over the speakers. It wasn’t an uncomfortable silence, per se, but it made me wriggle around in my seat and wish I was sitting at the restaurant already. I wasn’t used to silences with Harry not trying to fill the space with his random thoughts. I appreciated that he was letting me just sit and absorb the moments, but it was also unnerving.

We pulled up to the little bistro right after my parents, who had already decided to get a table for us. Harry walked around to the other side of his car and opened the door for me, holding out his hand to help me out. My parents waved us over from their table outside, pulling out our chairs. I was seated between Harry and my mum, across from my father. It meant that I caught the sly looks they gave me whenever Harry was engrossed with his menu.

“What’s good here, Harry?” My mum asked after a couple moments of looking.

“I like their vegan buffalo wings and macaroni.”

“You’re vegan?” I asked in surprise, raising a brow at him.

“No, but I eat plant based meat when I can. And most places make their vegan wings with cauliflower, which hurts my stomach. This place makes them with mushrooms.”

“Petra loves mushrooms. You should try them, sweetheart.”

I set my menu down without really looking at it. “I’m getting a bagel and their cucumber and edamame salad.” Since both of my parents loved cucumbers, I knew I would be sharing at least a few bites with them. It was normal for us to sample each other’s meals. “What are you getting, Mum?”

“Maybe the chicken breast and mashed potato lunch special. Your father, predictable as ever, is getting a burger.”

My dad shrugged. “Don’t fix what isn’t broken.”

The waitress eyed Harry a little longer than necessary when she came to take our orders, but eventually left. I could tell he would be getting asked to take a picture before he left, despite how unprofessional that was. Then I thought about if it had been Hayden Christensen if I had been the waitress and understood what the fuss was about.

“So, Harry,” my mum said after a long sip of her lemonade, which I knew meant she was going to ask a lot of questions, “what have you been doing now that you’re solo? I ran into your Mum when she was visiting home for a couple of weeks and she showed me one of your music videos. You’re very talented!”

I’d never seen Harry Styles blush, but I noticed a faint twinge of pink on his cheeks. “Thank you, Mrs. Gallego. I’m writing some more music right now, but I’m not sure when the next album will be out.”

“We just love listening to your first album. We listen to your group stuff too,” Mum commented, tapping her nails on her wrist. “Petra has a wonderful singing voice, did you know?”

Before Harry could question the statement, my father and I both snorted. “No, she doesn’t, Eva. No offense, mija.”

“None taken. I sound like a dying animal. Mum, I hate to tell you this, but the last time I sang, you were very intoxicated and would have thought our next door neighbor’s cat was Shakira.”

“Petra’s good at other things, though. She’s awesome on Alien Crossing. And I’m sure her book is going to be fantastic,” Harry supplied helpfully.

“Has she invited you to the party tonight? I know her other friends are coming. Jeremiah, Veronica, and Melody?”

I shifted in my seat. Harry looked pained, like he didn’t want to say anything that would hurt my mum’s feelings. I hadn’t invited him to the book release party because this book was mine, something untainted by the memories of secondary school. Talking about my nerd stuff on AC was one thing, but publishing them on paper was another. “Mum…” I trailed off.

“He could come with us! Are you going to buy a copy of the book, Harry?”

“Mum, he’s not going to buy—”

“Yeah, actually. I preordered it on my phone. And I was going to buy a hard copy, as well.”

Harry’s words had my mouth closing in surprise. I blinked over at him, at his secretive little smile when he raised his soda up to his lips and took a sip. “You preordered it?” I whispered, my throat thick with some emotion I couldn’t identify. “You’re not gonna understand it all.”

“Well, I’ll understand the Lord of the Rings bits now. And anything unfamiliar I come across, I’ll just make a note to watch or read it.”

This action felt more significant than anything that had happened in our hesitant friendship thus far. Even though he had introduced me to John Williams and had brought me a plant, this was the thing that felt essential. I felt like the Grinch in that moment, my heart growing a size bigger and allowing room for hesitant optimism to sink in. Maybe Harry Styles and I actually could be friends.

Which was why when my mum suggested him coming another time, I shyly looked over at him and said, “Of course you can come if you’d like. I’ll text you the details.”

My publisher had rented out the Aldgate Library at my college for the release.

It felt weird stepping back into the library, stumbling a little in my black heels when I accidentally grazed a rock on the sidewalk right outside. The last time I had been here, I had my hair in a messy ponytail and was in tears at midnight trying to study for my last finals of my university career. Now, I was publishing a book. It felt surreal.

I smoothed down the skirt of my red dress, trying my best not to chew on my lip. Veronica had meticulously spread some kind of red lip stain on it that was supposed to be long lasting, but I didn’t trust it’s longevity against my teeth nervously biting at it. Plus, I knew pictures would be taken tonight and the last thing I needed was to have lipstick on my teeth.

“Petra!” My publisher said, walking out of Aldgate in a tailored suit. She was also wearing a little badge that had “Aimee Metcalfe, Dorrance Publishing” printed right underneath a fantastic photo of her. I found myself jealous. My ID photos never came out that great. “What’re you doing standing outside? Come in, you numpty!”

I gave Aimee a quick salute and followed her inside, trying to keep up with her. As familiar as she was walking in heels, it was a new skill set to me entirely. She led me through the front of Aldgate and back into one of the large common area study rooms, which had been transformed for the launch. There was a giant banner hung up on the far left side, with #Aliens #Bigfoot #Nerds printed over it in sparkling letters. In front of the banner was a table decorated with cupcakes and cake pops, each the same color blue as my book cover, which featured a picture of myself that I hated but Aimee had insisted the readers would love. Jeremiah and Zach were shoving their faces with one of the cake pops, while Veronica looked on in disgust. Bailey was chatting with Melody by the photo booth that Aimee had suggested, which when printed, would frame the pictures in the same hashtags the banner provided.

My parents were crying in the corner of the room.

I went to them first, holding out my arms. My mum immediately let out a wail, pulling me into an embrace. “This is supposed to be a happy day, Mum.”

“Oh, I’m so happy for you, sweetheart. You have worked so hard. And you look beautiful.” She pulled back to examine my dress and makeup, pressing her hand to her mouth when she did. “Such a beautiful young woman, inside and out. Oh, how did we get so lucky, Roberto?”

My dad smiled at me. “Proud doesn’t even cover it, mija. Your mum has demanded she be first in the book signing line.”

“Oh, I did not, Roberto!”

“Petra,” Aimee said, interrupting our conversation. She introduced herself to my parents and then led me over to the podium. “You’re going to do the reading, and then Terri and I put together a fun little trivia game about some of the fandoms in the book. Whoever wins that will get a free signed copy. Afterwards, you’re on book signing duty. We’ve got about twelve hundred Sharpies lined up for you. Questions?”

My head was spinning with all the information, but I found myself growing excited. This was something I had put blood, sweat, and tears into. And I was finally getting to share it with the people who meant the most to me. “None so far. I’ll flag you down if any come up.”

“Good. Oh,” she said, reaching into her bag, “keep this close. This is your best friend when you’re up there reading and when you’re signing books.”

She handed me a water bottle with room temperature water, which was apparently better for the vocal cords. Then she was pushing me towards the podium and I hid the water bottle on the hidden shelf on my side. My book was sitting there, my own face staring back at me.

When I looked into the sea of people, I saw my friends giving me encouraging looks and my parents crying happily, my mother now with a tissue from the dessert bar that she pressed underneath her eyes every five seconds. The rest of the people in the room were people who were avid listeners of AC, the ones who sent in messages for me to read. I noticed Daisy Callahan sitting at one of the tables, shooting looks over to Jeremiah and smiling like a smitten school girl. I made a mental note to ask Jeremiah if they were officially together after the reading.

And then, there was Harry Styles.

It looked like he had just come in, dressed in a nice suit in a dark red color. I was so used to seeing him in bright neons when he was dressed up that the muted burgundy almost faded into the background. However, he was still Harry Styles and it was hard for Harry to do anything but stand out. He was fidgeting with his suit jacket, messing around with the collar of it before he looked up and caught my eye.

I wondered what he saw, looking at me standing up on the podium. I knew what my friends and family saw; they saw me finally getting one of my big wishes to come true. But what did Harry Styles, who already got his dream, see?

I didn’t have time to think about it, because Aimee was gesturing for me to start the reading. She was helping usher people to their seats, and I felt the weight of more than just Harry’s eyes on me.

“Good evening everyone,” I said into the small microphone attached in front of me. “Thank you all for coming. This is the culmination of blood, sweat, tears, and other bodily substances I won’t mention. I can’t wait to share it with you. This reading comes from chapter seven, in which I discuss why Game of Thrones actually became so popular and how I think the last season is going to go, amongst other things.”

Jeremiah let out an embarrassing whooping sound and I rolled my eyes.

Then, I read.

If I had expected to be embarrassed standing there in front of a crowd, reading the words I had written, I was wrong. Instead of feeling down, like I had so many times before when I discussed the things I loved, I felt powerful. Because yeah, Nathan Penrose could be a racist asshole all he wanted, and his friends could drop all my books in the puddle. But I had done it. I had written my book, I had a kickass podcast that introduced me to my best friends, and I was filled with an uncharacteristic pride.

So I went along with it. It’s what Doctor Thorne would have wanted. But more importantly, it was what I wanted.

Aimee had been a lifesaver with the water, as I found myself finishing up my excerpt and drinking nearly all of it during the applause. “Thank you,” I said after I had capped the bottle and set it back where I had it hidden. “Thank you to Aimee Metcalfe, my knight in shining armor through this process. Thank you to Terri Patterson, who spent night and day editing. Thank you to everyone at Dorrance Publishing who put up with trying to get copyright issues taken care of because I wrote about some of the biggest money shark companies in here,” I paused for the light laughter that trickled through the room. “But most importantly, thank you to my friends and family and everyone who supported me through this. It means the world. I hope you enjoy the rest of the book.”

There was a small table with stacks and stacks of my book. I didn’t think I’d ever seen that many pictures of me in one place before, including my parents’ house. Aimee started up the trivia game, and I heard the first question asked about what the aliens that destroyed New York in the first Avengers movie was called while I took my seat at the table.

“The book is awesome.” I heard from my left. I turned, seeing Harry standing beside the table, leaning against a pillar. “I could tell you love it when you were reading.”

“It’s a little overwhelming to see it all finished,” I said, awkwardly gesturing to the pile of books in front of me.

“Would you ever want to write fiction?”

I shrugged. “I’m not sure. For now, no. I might change my mind later.” He nodded, fixing his suit jacket again like he had been earlier. “I didn’t expect you to come,” I said after a few moments.

His eyes crinkled and his head tilted to the side, like he was confused. “Why? You invited me and this is important to you. I wouldn’t miss it.”

“It wasn’t hard...with the paps or anything?”

His jaw set and told me everything I needed to know. “I’ve got someone on security here tonight, just in case. I’m not gonna let anything ruin your big night, including paps. There was someone who recognized my car, but I don’t think anyone else is coming.” He unclenched his jaw and looked down at me. A softer look took over his face. “You look gorgeous. That color reminds me of the dress you wore to prom.”

I blinked. “You didn’t talk to me at prom.”

In fact, I had spent most of prom standing in the corner, nursing the lemonade I had gotten myself. Nathan Penrose had spiked it, but not before I had gotten myself a cup. I had saved up all my money for the pretty red spaghetti strap dress, but looking back it was a useless purchase. I didn’t have fun and was home drinking tea and watching Legally Blonde by midnight.

Harry gave me a small smile. “No, but I saw you. I remembered thinking you looked so beautiful and how I was an idiot for how I’d treated you.”

“You did not,” I argued, rolling my eyes at his statement. “You were thinking of your audition and what song you were going to sing. I wasn’t even a blip on your radar.”

He shrugged, bringing his own water up to his lips. “Think what you think. Doesn’t change the fact you looked gorgeous— then and now.”

I fiddled with one of the books in front of me. I didn’t know how to take his compliment. It was something I’d always been bad at, but especially when it came to Harry. Part of me wanted so badly to believe he was telling the truth; he had seen me at prom and thought I looked pretty and was looking at me now and seeing the same thing. The other part of me was hardened and cold, telling myself not to fall for it.

In the end I just decided to ignore his comment. If I didn’t acknowledge it, then I didn’t have to dissect my feelings on it.

“I’ve got to take off. I’m sorry I can’t stay long. I’m flying out to Los Angeles tonight for some meetings. But I wanted to be here.” He held up one of my books and set it in front of me. “Last time I asked, you said you wouldn’t sign it.”

“Wipe that cheeky grin off your face. Of course I’ll sign it.” He slipped a fifty pound note onto the table (more than double what he actually had to pay for the book) and opened up the title page.

The blank page stared at me. There were so many things I could write. Aimee advised me just to sign my name, but that felt too impersonal for Harry. Uncapping the pen, I held down the page with my other hand to keep it steady.

Live long and prosper, my young padawan.

Petra Gallego

He grinned when I handed it back to him. “I’m reading this on my flight to LA.”

“Might put you to sleep.”

“I don’t think it could,” he argued, tucking it under his arm. “Think I could...um...text you while I’m there?”

“I can’t control what you do or don’t do, Harry.”

“Yeah, but I wanted to give you the choice.”

The choice to talk to him. It was something I didn’t have in secondary school, but I realized a small part of me acknowledged that it was something I didn’t have now, either. There was something in me that wanted to see where this friendship with Harry went and if we could make it work.

“Yeah, Harry. You can text me when you’re in LA.”

Which was how I woke up the next morning, with a message reading: Made it to LA. Didn’t stop reading once. And despite what you may think, I didn’t fall asleep either.

A/N: Here is the next installment of AC! I hope you guys liked reading as much as I loved writing. I’m just so happy for Petra!

#ac #1dff #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles ou

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mess-with-a-purpose · 4 years

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When in Doubt, Duel It Out

Word Count: 1151

Summary: Planning a wedding is stressful. Your fiancé, Ted, is trying to be uppity and supportive but the stress of finalizing the seating chart is proving to be a most heinous task. Ted runs an idea by you for the reception and you aren’t too sure how it will play out.

Warnings: none; just cute fluff!

“Hey Ted, babe, will you come in here for a sec?” I shouted from the living room, a large sheet of butcher paper flung on the coffee table as my Sharpie stained hands attempted to map out the reception seating chart. A perfectly good couch rested at my back as I had seated myself on the floor as if getting physically closer to the page would help anything. It’d been hours and the uneven circles that had been anxiously sketched just seemed to mock my indecisiveness.

The wedding wasn’t for another few months but my anxiety brain felt this compulsion to get everything out of the way. My brain normally operated on a “procrastinate-because-it’s-too-overwhelming” mindset, every task would eventually get done but it was just the getting started part that freaked me out the most. I almost felt bad for taking the reins so quickly on the planning but it just made more sense with Bill and Ted getting ready for another Wyld Stallyns gig and designing their university. No matter how much anxiety came with actually getting something started, taking something off of Ted’s concern list was definitely a great motivator.

“Yeah, babe!” I heard some fumbling in our bedroom and chuckled as I rolled my eyes. What did this crazy dork do this time? He poked his head from around the corner of the hallway, his dark hair always falling in his eyes. “Babe?”

“Hmm?” my eyes fell back onto the chart, the Sharpie in my mouth as I chewed absentmindedly on the cap. We couldn’t sit Bill’s dad next to Missy, that’d be too awkward. I scratched out another draft.

“Babe, I have an idea to run by you!” Ted’s shoulders came from behind the corner, his head flipping to get the hair out from his face. He had that same look in his eyes that he did for all of his concepts and ideas.

I glanced over at him, pen cap still between my teeth. “Wha’ ya go’?”

He smiled, pulling out from behind the corner with two pool noodles, each with one end covered in duct tape. He waved them around, making cheesy yet lovable lightsaber noises. I crinkled my eyebrows, a confused smile spreading across my lips.

“What do you think?” Ted gestured to his mock-ups, the red and blue foam dangling slightly.

I took the cap out of my mouth. “Can we save a noodle-saber fight for later, babe?” I gestured to my stress raiser on the table. “I need to finalize this seating chart for the reception.”

My fingers drummed against the paper with the pen tapping in harmony. I pursed my lips attempting to place Missy in the most unproblematic spot. A second passed and the squish of foam tapped my forehead, my hand batting at the noodle. “Ted, really, please. I’m trying to figure out where to put Missy. You know? Your step-mother who happens to have it out with Bill’s dad?”

Another tap, this time under my chin. “Babe, hear me out on this one.” I glanced up at his pleading puppy eyes. Oh God, I knew that look. “Technically, you owe me after that bogus veto over our wedding date.”

I pointed the Sharpie at his chest as he took a seat next to me on the floor. For once he didn’t comment on the fact that I never seem to actually sit on the couch when I work. “Okay, fair enough but remember the logistics of that actually were bogus.”

His eyes met mine, a pool noodle rested by his feet while the other remained in his palm. “No way!” He tapped my hair. “I came up with a time schedule and everything!”

Rolling my eyes, I smiled as I recalled his initial idea to have the wedding on June 9, 1969. His reason being that our anniversary would literally be 6/9/69. “Baby, teleporting all of our guests in that small phone booth would’ve taken up most of the ceremony time! Not to mention that we would’ve run the risk of the antenna breaking and a portion of our guests getting lost in a time loop!” My fingers lovingly brushed his dark hair away from his face, my thumb brushing along his cheek before tracing over his lower lip.

His eyes glanced down, his disappointment voice small. “You gotta admit, it would’ve been most excellent!”

“Of course, babe.” I picked up my Sharpie and resumed chewing on the cap. “Now, wha’ ith yo’ i’ea?”

Ted’s smile quickly returned, the pool noodle in his hand thumping my head once again. “Okay, so remember how I proposed?” It had been during one of those noodle-saber fights but I can’t remember which one of us wielded the red foam.

“Yes, you adorable dingus,” I chuckled, resting my head on his shoulder. His puppy eyes bright as he thumped the noodle on my thighs. “What? Do you want to give everyone a pool noodle as a parting goody?” The Sharpie had covered my hands, smudging along the sides of my palms.

“No, but that would also be rad!” I watched as his hair bobbed with his head. My ink-stained fingers toyed with one of the buttons on his jacket.

I decided to play his game, getting comfortable, and shifted to tuck into his side. I swung my right leg over his thighs, his non-noodle bearing hand stroking my knee. “Okay, are you envisioning us in a duel? Luke and Vader style?”

“Well, if we got enough of these and spent some time making the most excellent duct tape handles⎼”

I burst out laughing, hiding my face in his chest. “Babe, we are NOT going to challenge people to noodle-saber duels just because that’s how we proposed!”

Ted play pouted, dropping the other noodle-saber next to him in defeat. “Then, what’s the point?” His face looked too damn cute like this, even if it was a bluff. I giggled, bringing my face up to his for a quick kiss. He kept up the pouty act afterward.

I sighed, pressing my forehead into his neck. “How about this,” his fingers stroked my calf, his face twitching with intrigue. “I challenge you to a noodle-saber duel. Luke and Vader style.” I poked him in the chest with a noodle, his stupid smile so adorably dopey. “If you win, we make a bogus trip to the store and buy them out of pool noodles and duct tape. If I win, we figure out another reception idea.”

Ted excitedly grabbed his noodle, hopping up so quickly he almost knocked over the table. “That is a most excellent offer from a most bodacious babe!” He reached for me, helping me to my feet and giving me another kiss before I swiped at him with my noodle. “Hey!” He scurried across the living room.

A mischievous grin spread across my face. “Guess I’ll be Vader this go-around.”

#ted logan #ted logan x reader #ted theodore logan #bill and ted fanfic #writing #fluff #bill and ted #keanu reeves #bill s preston esquire #alex winter #when in doubt duel it out #lightsabers #weddings

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alright-anakin · 4 years

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Spotify Wrapped 2020 Writing Prompts

8: Epiphany - Taylor Swift

Just One Single Glimpse of Relief

So… The apprentice lives…

The chilling words had taken root in Ahsoka’s mind as soon as she heard them. She couldn’t forget them, nor could she fully shake their implication. That had been about a week ago. Ezra and Kanan would occasionally ask her if she had gotten any intel on who the Sith that they encountered was, and each time, she told them she hadn’t. But dread sat heavy in her stomach, and she couldn’t quite say with a clear conscious that she didn’t know, or at least suspect, the identity of the dark presence. Meditation brought no relief. Sleeping brought nightmares. There was no escape.

When they visited the Temple on Lothal, she knew. In her mind, she knew. But the heart was not so easily changed. Perhaps there was a part of her that would never fully lose hope. That’s what she wanted to believe anyway. When Rex was talking about him to Ezra, though, she couldn’t handle it. She left, knowing that if she stayed, she wouldn’t have been able to keep her composure

…

“But we have little time. The one they call Vader will be here soon.” The way Maul looked at her brought her back to the last days of the Clone Wars. For a moment, she was seventeen again, facing him down as he told her things she had dismissed at the time.

“There is no law, no order, except for the one that will replace it! The time for the Jedi has passed!” He had been right about that, hadn’t he? What else was he right about? “He has long been groomed for his role, as my master’s new apprentice.”

“You lie!”

He hadn’t lied, had he?

...

“I don’t fear you!”

“Then you will die braver than most.” Ezra was unarmed now, and Ahsoka could sense his fear. “Perhaps I was wrong.” Something snapped in Ahsoka and she knew she had to make her presence known.

“It wouldn’t be the first time.” The black-clad man turned to face her. She couldn’t quite understand why the harsh breathing made her own chest burn.

“It was foretold that you would be here. Our long-awaited meeting has come at last.”

“I’m glad I gave you something to look forward to,” she snipped.

“We need not be adversaries,” the mechanical voice continued. “The Emperor will show you mercy if you tell me where the remaining Jedi can be found.”

“There are no Jedi. You and your Inquisitors have seen to that.”

“Perhaps this child will confess what you will not.” Something in her chest ached more at his words.

“I was beginning to think I knew who you were behind that mask, but it’s impossible.” More fissures cracked down her heart as she stared at the cold black mask that mirrored the heart within his chest. It took everything in her to keep her voice steady. “My master could never be as vile as you.”

“Anakin Skywalker was weak.” No, he was strong, her heart screamed. “I destroyed him.” Her throat closed and her eyes burned. She spoke past the lump in her throat, her voice coming out quiet.

“Then I will avenge his death.”

“Revenge is not the Jedi way.”

“Revenge is not the Jedi way, Ahsoka.” His voice, unmarred by mechanics, echoed in her mind.

“I am no Jedi.” She registered the sound of sabers activating, and realized belatedly that they were her own. Crimson rose to meet her white. She was suddenly angry. She was absolutely furious. How dare he become this… this monster. She had trusted him! She had loved him. Hadn’t he known that? Hadn’t he known how many he had hurt by his actions? Did he not care? Couldn’t he feel their pain?

Couldn’t he feel his own pain?

She could, and it fueled her fury. She didn’t even register her blows until she was falling. He’d flung her off the ledge. That only made her angrier. She climbed back up the stairs, ignoring the pain. She reached the top and saw him about to take the holocron from Ezra and Kanan. She ran. She registered herself moving upwards and she swung, hoping she hit something vital.

They both sprawled onto the floor. She took a moment to get her bearings, and she heard Ezra call for her to come, to follow them. She got to her hands and knees and prepared to get up, to make her escape—

“Ahsoka” She froze. Ice ran through her veins. She turned, almost hesitantly, to look back at him. His breathing was labored. She had probably damaged the respirator when she swung. He turned to look at her head on. Her heart shattered. A singular golden eye stared back at her. “Ahsoka,” he said again. His voice sounded much more like Anakin this time.

“Anakin,” she breathed. They stared at one another, not speaking. Her chest ached and her soul screamed in agony. He was beyond her reach, she knew. Her mind knew, at least. Her heart, though, was stubborn. Her heart was a fool. Because even now, standing before this monstrous version of him, she loved him. “I won’t leave you,” the words left on their own accord, spoken from her bleeding soul. “Not this time.” There was a long silence. She though his gaze softened. But just as hope bloomed, it died. His eye hardened again.

“Then you will die.”

There was nothing but the echo of his words. She could see the intent in the one golden eye. He activated the saber again and she found her gaze drawn to it. She didn’t know what she expected to see when she looked at the hilt, but it was very similar to his old saber. Her stomach clenched at the familiarity.

Ezra was calling to her again. She knew he was running towards her. The door to the Temple was closing as the foundation crumbled around them. She lifted a hand and pushed him back. He would leave. He and Kanan would return to the Rebellion. They would live to fight another day. One day, the light would triumph over the dark. One day, there would be peace.

But she would not be there to see it. Strangely she was alright with that. She had fought hard for so long. She was fourteen when she walked off that ship and met her Master for the first time and ever since then, she did not know a day of true peace. But Ezra would. The Rebels would. A flicker of warning was all she received before the red saber was coming down towards her. She flung her sabers up to block, then turned to fully engage her brother once again.

He was aiming to kill and she was simply biding time. She was mildly surprised that she was able to hold her own against him. She didn’t doubt her abilities, but he was brutal, and his fighting style had changed. Most likely to accommodate the limitations of his prosthetics. He was taller than her by a lot. As he swung from above and she blocked his blow yet again, she laughed. It was a hollow sound. She felt his anger and confusion at her laughter, so after he struck only for her to block again, she decided to explain.

“Have you really forgotten, Anakin?”

“That name holds no meaning for me,” he said. To hear his own familiar voice denounce his very self was just… depressing.

“You taught me how to duel, Anakin,” she chuckled sadly. “Don’t you remember what you told me?” He did not answer. Instead, he struck again. His blows were heavy, and though she was tiring, she still managed to block them. “You taught me how to defeat someone like you. Someone taller and stronger than myself. Someone ruthless.” She could feel his frustration. “And I took those lessons to heart and strengthened my defenses. But I never thought I would have to use your own teaching against you. I never imagined a day where we would be fighting one another, rather than fight side by side.” He stilled, his gaze turning sad for a fraction of a second before hardening again.

“Those days are gone. They ceased to be as soon as you left.” She heard what he did not say. As soon as you left me. Perhaps he was right. More right than she ever wanted to think. Maybe, if she had stayed, he would have never strayed so far.

“I should have never left the Order. I should have never left you alone—” she cut off when her voice broke. He said nothing. She knew her words were too little too late. She could see it in his cold gaze. For a moment, all that could be heard was the horrible wheezing of his damaged respirator. She wondered what had happened to him to land him in that suit, then quickly decided she didn’t want to know. She could feel the burning in his ruined lungs as if it were her own pain, rather than his. “I’m sorry.” For a moment, she didn’t realize she had spoken out loud. There was a new pain she felt from him, a deep ache in his chest that mirrored her own heartache, but after a moment it was gone. Stamped down. Buried beneath rage.

She raised her sabers against his. His blows were faster and stronger despite his pain. He was being driven by hatred and fury. He was gaining on her now. After all, hate and anger served as a great source of stamina. Heartache and regret, unfortunately, did not. She was losing ground and she knew she was not going to last long. But it was alright. She had known the second she heard Anakin’s voice she was not going to leave this place. She had known she wouldn’t be able to kill him as soon as she had looked upon his face.

When he raised his saber again, she saw his intent to kill. His saber would slice her neck if she let it. He was gone. Beyond her reach. He had Fallen too far to pull back to the surface. She needed to do what he never could.

She needed to let go.

She deactivated her sabers. With you I served. He didn’t even pause, though she saw his gaze flicker to her hilts. She did not recognize the monster before her. But as she closed her eyes, every memory she had of him danced across her mind. She let each memory pass, and with them, her grief.

In her final moment, she wondered if this was what it felt like to lose a brother.

With you I fall down.

#spotify wrapped prompts #spotify wrapped 2020 #epiphany #taylor swift #ahsoka tano #anakin skywalker #darth vader #skyguy and snips #snips and skyguy #it's crying about snips and skyguy hours #snips and skyguy feels #if i didn't cry while writing it it's not angsty enough #i cried #just so y'all know

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reylo-musings · 4 years

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The Stoicism of Chanel Boots Luke

I want to speak to the idea of Luke’s characterization feeling “off” or “not like him” in his appearance when he comes to answer Grogu’s call. People have stated that the “Real Luke Skywalker” would have spoken words of comfort, would have gotten down on one knee to speak with Grogu, would have been warm and open, not cold and stoic. My genuine question is this, “Where does this type of understanding of Luke’s characterization come from?”

In Return of the Jedi, Luke shows up in his killer black outfit with Chanel boots serving Straight Looks, speaking with a new-found confidence that is both attractive yet still quite awkward. Luke tells a still-mostly-blind Han that he’s “taken care of everything” and that they have no worries of dying in the Sarlacc pit, and Han’s response is just “Oh. *Rolls eyes* Great.”. Sure, he’s been frozen in carbonite for a while (and can’t see the killer outfit change) but it’s clear that, to Han, Luke is no Savior, no God. He’s just this kid who Han has grown quite attached to who likes to play with laser swords and is into some weird stuff at the moment. Even to those with fully functional eyes, Luke’s fighting style on Jabba’s cruiser is quite green, and not just because of the glow of his saber. He’s awkward, gets shot in the hand, and lacks what some would probably consider to be “Jedi Knight Fighting Finesse”. But completely in his defense, he only first held a lightsaber 4 years prior, and really has only been training for a year at this point.

Even when Luke is tied up in preparation to be a main course at an Ewok feast, he speaks with that same awkward confidence, one that he is honing into but still feels oddly out of touch at this point. You can see that he is beginning to view his purpose in this adventure with his friends quite differently. No longer is he just the kid kinda tagging along while Han is wielding a blaster and running full force into danger with Chewy. Luke is now the one that can use his connection to the Force to aid the adventure in a different way, to offer his own unique brand of help to his friends.

After they’re inducted into the tribe and Luke retreats outside for a quiet moment, Leia inquires as to what’s bothering him and he again speaks in calm measured statements. There is little to no emotion as he tells how he has no memory of his mother - how he fears he is endangering the mission of his friends because of his connection to Vader. These are things that Poncho Luke would have been hysterical over, but Chanel Boots Luke is discovering that his role as Jedi Knight is more than just slicing things with a lightsaber and lifting rocks. It’s about his calm and rationalized approach to his struggles as well as the struggles of the galaxy.

Luke’s first actual show of emotion in this film is when he is overwhelmed by anger, and at the Emperor’s taunting, summons his weapon in an attempt to strike him down. Vader stops the attack, but Luke’s true emotions have already been revealed. Later, the strongest display of this hatred comes from Vader’s taunts about turning Leia if Luke will not surrender to the Dark Side. This results in the most emotional display yet, culminating in the moment where Luke severs Vader’s mechanical hand and sends his saber falling out of sight. Upon rational realization of what he’s done and how he was hurt the same way before, he chooses to break the vicious cycle in that moment and break out of his emotional spiral.

Luke’s return to his friends and the heroes of Rebellion after their victory is one of joyous celebration. Handshakes and hugs with Leia, Han, and Wedge eventually brings him to reflection on those Jedi who have passed - Obi Wan, Yoda, and now Anakin - and the realization of what that means for his personal future.

When Return of the Jedi ends, it is clear to Luke that he feels responsible for restoring the Jedi Order and all that comes with it. This involves not only stepping up to fulfill the galaxy’s idea of what a “Jedi Knight” is, but also establishing and training those who will be the future generations of Jedi. It’s a hefty task, and one that seems quite juxtaposed to the sand rat in A New Hope that just wanted to go to Tosche Station to pick up power converters. But that’s how a literary “call to action” tends to work.

What is ultimately odd for us as viewers and consumers of this story is that we have not yet seen who Luke is in the time between his confrontation with the Emperor and when Rey finds him in solitude 30 years later. THIRTY YEARS! It only took 22 years for Anakin to be born and later turn to the Dark Side. 30 years is plenty of time for someone’s personality to evolve into something completely new!

Sooooo, coming back around to people’s issues with Luke in The Mandalorian. The main point I’m trying to make is that in our most involved interactions with Luke prior to his appearance on Moff Gideon’s ship - his time during Return of the Jedi - he spends most of it quite devoid of outright warm emotion. He speaks with an undertone that reflects his role as a Jedi, but he hasn’t quite figured out how to blend that timbre seamlessly with his own voice yet. It leads to something that feels somewhat awkward and definitely different, but the reality is that this change is not a “bad” one. Many have stated that Chanel Boots Luke is the Luke that sparked many a feeling in people. This is the Luke that is beginning to understand what his destiny is. It’s the Luke that would choose death over betrayal of the Jedi Order. It’s the Luke that is evolving and changing into what he believes the galaxy needs him to be.

There is now something around a 5 year gap between Return of the Jedi and when Luke arrives to find Grogu. We saw just how much Luke changed in the time between Cloud City and Jabba’s Palace, so it fully stands to reason that the change would be even more exaggerated over 5 more years of time.

Also, what DO we know has transpired in these 5 years? We know that Ben was born.

We are told that Ben’s strong connection to the Force was known even while he was still in the womb. For Luke, the bond that he shares with Leia and Han, one of newfound family and friendship forged through rebellion and victory, is now facing a new challenge stronger and more important than a looming galactic power struggle. Ben’s conception, coupled with the Palpatine/Snoke influence that Luke and Leia both feel, pushes Luke to understand the new struggle they are all facing. Full restoration of the Jedi Order is vital, not only to combat the always growing power of the Dark Side, but because he believes the power in Ben MUST be controlled and used in conjunction with the Light Side of the Force, lest the sins of the galaxy repeat themselves, and a new Vader is truly created.

So in preparation for building this new Order, Luke fully embodies what he knows to be the role of a Jedi Knight and Master. We as consumers of the story know what this role looked like at the height of the Jedi Order. There was measured stoicism, following of orders above all emotion, and strong emphasis given to letting go of attachments. It stands to reason that this information was continually passed to Luke through his connections with past Jedi such as Yoda and Obi Wan, the same way he gained experiences while training on Dagobah.

Suddenly, the Luke we saw tear through a battalion of Dark Troopers and calmly state that he is indeed a Jedi seems par for the course. He has been mentally and physically preparing to be what the galaxy needs him to be (and more importantly what Ben needs him to be) for the better part of 5 years. In his mind, and likely the mind of every Jedi he has consulted along the way, the best chance of restoring the Jedi Order to its former glory is through this mystical personification of an ancient religion. The mystery and awe surrounding the Jedi has not been lost from the galaxy in their absence, and it is up to Luke to embody that “god-like savior” that everyone expects him to be. And in that, he is successful - He is the one who saved the galaxy - He becomes a legend.

From Grogu’s perspective, he likely sees this demeanor of Luke’s as quite familiar. It’s not like Mace Windu was kneeling down at the Jedi Temple giving all the younglings fist bumps and hugs all the time. This stoic and rational mindset is what Grogu probably saw constantly during his young training, and that has a comfort to it, as “cold” as it might seem to us. As Grogu signals to Luke that he is ready to be picked up so their journey can begin, the brief moment they share together feels significant. There now exists a solid tangible connection between the Jedi of the past and the new order Luke is attempting to build, and the amount of knowledge that can now be shared is vast. Luke likely sees in Grogu the ability to find even better ways to bring forth this new Jedi Order, ultimately in service of the entire galaxy.

It’s difficult to know what happens in the timeline from here. Luke takes Grogu 5 years prior to Ben beginning his training, so we have to accept that some of the timeline doesn’t make total sense. In speaking to Rey during The Last Jedi, Luke states that he took Ben and a dozen other students and “began” a training temple. So either some form of training was already taking place with Grogu for 5 years prior to Ben’s training and it's just sloshed together in flashback context, or Grogu just tagged along for 5 years before official training began. I’m guessing it's somewhat closer to the previous of the two.

To recap our timelines, we have added two small glimpses of Luke between Return of the Jedi and the sequel trilogy.

1. The small glimpse with Grogu 5 years after ROTJ 2. The flashback of Ben’s turning 18 years after that

(There are pieces of info from novelizations, but I’m just sticking with visual media right now).

There is still a LOT we do not know in the gaps, but I think we can make some solid inferences as to the type of demeanor and disposition Luke possessed, and the types of beliefs he held about how to be a Jedi Master. We see in the final and true iteration of “The Fateful Night” flashback that, at Ben’s turning, Luke once again became emotionally overwhelmed at the idea of those who he loved being harmed by the Dark Side of the Force, exactly as he had on the Death Star when Vader threatened to turn Leia. But as Luke states, it was pure instinct - pure emotion - and as soon as he realized what he’d done, looking down at the mechanical hand holding his saber (a deliberate visual flashback by Rian to the cycle-breaking moment in ROTJ) he was filled with shame. But unlike the last time, he does not walk away from this moment a legend, but instead as a failure. A failure to his nephew, and as Ben turns to become Kylo Ren, a failure to the galaxy.

Ultimately, we know that Ben’s training was unsuccessful at keeping him from the Dark Side, not because Luke was a poor Jedi Master, but because a “Master” wasn’t what Ben truly needed. Instead what he needed was family. He needed love.

I would like to take a quick detour to speak on those who are very much upset about Din removing his helmet in front of a literal room full of people, one of whom is a complete stranger to him. I fully understand why many are saying he would never do something so expressly against his religious beliefs. And you’re correct. The Din Djarin we have seen for so much of this series is the one who put his religious beliefs above all else, despite comfort, desire, convenience, all of it. But at the end of this chapter of his life, the removal of his helmet to share this moment with Grogu is not about abdication from his religion. Rather, it is about his realization that the connection between himself and this child is more important to him than the religious beliefs he had been following without fault for his entire life. Whether you believe this choice he made was “right” or not, the moment is meant to show that this bounty hunter who never had attachment to anything except those beliefs has now found something even more important to him. He has had a change of priorities and is accepting his attachment to Grogu and validating it.

“Just for once, let me look on you with my own eyes” In this related moment, Vader pays the ultimate price to see Luke, he pays with his life, and willingly does so. Acceptance that what was so important before (being alive at the expense of being more machine than man) is no longer the most important thing to Anakin, and rather connection and love of those in our lives becomes the real goal and purpose.

What foreshadowing it might be for Din to set aside his strict religious beliefs and understandings to show just how much he loves and cares for this child. What a lesson that may have struck Luke in his years of solitude that perhaps, if he had just been more like Din Djarin, putting aside old religion in favor of loving and caring for those who are in your life right now, Ben may have never turned. Luke may have never failed.

So as I ramble on into the abyss, my thoughts are these: The stoic Luke Skywalker in Chanel Boots is not a strange “out-of-left-field” characterization. This is the Luke that the galaxy thought it needed, and exactly who Luke thought he needed to be for the galaxy. This progression falls directly in-line with his self-reflections in The Last Jedi, 30 years after his confrontation with Vader and Palpatine. To those who still struggle to accept Luke’s characterization in solitude on Ahch-To, I’ve got plenty more to say on that, but this has already gone on long enough. If anyone is interested in hearing it, I can certainly expound upon that as well.

Bottom line: We don’t know what happens next. That’s both the curse and the thrill of a saga that’s being built in 6 different timelines simultaneously. Here’s to the joy of finding out together.

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hunterscoffee · 5 years

Text

Amongst the Stars - Chapter 5

Masterlist Warnings: Smut/Angst Word Count: 1212

Sleep came easy to you that night. Each of your limbs ached and your mind was at rest, thoughts centred around Thrawn. The peacefulness was a good break from your normal sleepless state. Though your unsavoury thoughts made you uncomfortable, it was better than before, when thoughts about everything were everywhere. He confused you, the Chiss male, his thinking was not like that of the males you had grown up with. He was not childish and stupid.

***

“What did I say about keeping your head down!?” Eli exclaimed, “The Emperor may have sent you here, but do you realise that if you get in trouble with the wrong crowd or framed for something or hurt someone. With influence. Then you will be expelled and Tarkin’s girl is the fastest way to do that!” Eli was off again with one of his ‘be careful about Y/N speeches’. Thrawn had assessed the risk and you didn’t seem able to hurt him. In fact, you seemed the opposite. “Do not worry, my friend,” Thrawn said, sitting down at his desk. Eli was pacing down the side of the two beds, stressing over something that was out of his control.

Eli’s face softened, unlike Thrawn, he wore his emotion plainly, for everyone to see. Thrawn meant what he said to you, Eli was like his brother or the closest thing he had to one now, but his constant worry that you were going to hurt them was bothersome.

***

“You spend a lot of time in here,” Thrawn commented, standing in the doorway of the training room. “And you seem to stand there a lot.” You retort, high kicking the training droid. It was true, he had made a thing of watching you train, though he had never joined in. Nevertheless, you thought it was cute.

“Does my presence unnerve you?” He asks, walking into the room instead of loitering at the door. He places his towel and water bottle next to yours, removing the grey jumper identical to yours, revealing his powerful figure. He too wore a skin-tight shirt and pants. You had never seen him train, though the Chiss were known for how they acted in battle and you knew that he took the same combat lessons as everyone here.

For a while, you had been wondering why he hadn’t joined you in the training room. Instead, he just stood there as if he was waiting for a sign or something. Now you could assess his skill. Thrawn sent two more droids into the room and picked up a metal staff. What weapon one chooses for a battle says a lot about them. Your father used to say that. If there was a table full of weapons, you could tell their intent by the weapon.

A knife? That was personal. A gun or blaster? That’s practical, something anyone could get their hands on. A staff? That was impractical so it must be training, he had been trained to use a staff. No weapon? Either they didn’t need one, they were the weapon or they were overly cocky. A lightsaber? Obvious choice. Everyone would choose a lightsaber, but your father had said that those who resisted the temptation of choosing a lightsaber won the battle. When he had said that you had said; What if they’re a Jedi? Your father had laughed and told you that the Jedi were a myth.

You had never met Vader, though your father spoke highly of him as if he knew him from before the Empire, Vader did fit the Jedi persona. He had a lightsaber and was force sensitive. That was all you knew of the Jedi.

Thrawn’s face was completely serious and focused, not at all like your mindset in a fight. The droids hits began to come in faster, he must’ve turned up the difficulty. Your breath was not yet laboured, but you could tell that if it weren’t for the adrenalin your limbs would ache. Out the corner of your eye, you could see Thrawn’s figure, his form graceful and not limited by his training here like most others. Something the Chiss must teach their young. Your fighting style was also not that of the academy, when you were younger your mother had insisted you took dance and when your brother had been killed she had insisted you learn to fight for your safety. So your style was a combination of 11 years of dance and 8 years of fighting classes, including the forms they taught here.

You weren’t going to lie to yourself, it was kinda hot seeing him fight. You kick a droid in the head and it falls to the ground, programmed to act like a living hostile. That left two droids. You swept a leg, knocking the droid down before bringing your boot down on its head just in time to see Thrawn swing the staff with precision. Knocking the droid to the ground, the deactivated droids moved to their space in the wall as Thrawn circled you. “Oh, so we’re continuing the fight?” You cocked your head as he tucked the staff under his arm.

“The best practice is experience.” He informed you and you smiled lopsidedly.

“Now, now. Are you sure you can take me?” Your arrogance is getting the better of you. “Do not get cocky, it is the only way to surely lose a battle.” Thrawn seemed to speak from experience.

“I can’t help it. It’s the adrenaline.” You smirk.

You were the one to make a move, a sweep of the leg. A good place to start, he had dodged, expecting your move. Don’t think. Just do. You told yourself as if he could read your mind. He moved next: a swing of the staff, aimed for your head. You ducked and he twisted the staff in his hands, bringing back to you. You prepared yourself, grabbing the staff as it neared your side. Your strength surprised him.

One of the advantages of being female. Your mother had said when you were younger, Is that men will always underestimate you. Use that to your advantage. You wrenched the staff out of his hands, hitting the back of his knee, a weak spot. Thrawn fell down to one knee and you pointed the staff at his head. “Do you surrender?” You said a smile playing at your lips. To your surprise, he pulled the staff from your hands, hitting your shin. You fell on top of him, knocking the air out of your lungs. Quickly he used his momentum to flip the two of you over.

“Your mistake is in thinking our biology is the same.” He seemed like he was almost… Smiling?

“Are you smiling?” You asked, your own smile, the one you had lost so long ago returned when you were around him. “I guess I am.” He admits and in a moment of pure instinct you lift your head up softly kissing him, but when he didn’t kiss back you quickly pulled away. “Sorry” You muttered.

“It is okay, I… Liked it.” He seemed almost ashamed. “What was it?” He asked sincerely. “A kiss.” You smiled and this time he lowered his head to yours, gently brushing over yours as you had just done.

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#thrawn #thrawn x reader #thrawn x reader smut #thrawn x reader fluff #thrawn x reader angst #thrawn smut #thrawn fluff #thrawn angst #eli vanto #amongst the stars

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underwaterwoods · 5 years

Text

so i saw the star war

spoilers ahoy

i guess this is just gonna be random bullet points

* i actually feel pretty chill about it. yay for being spoiled. also like.... if you ignore the ridiculous stuff there’s actually a lot to have fun with in this one. i don’t know how i’ll feel about it once i’ve processed it more. i just know i had fun while watching it, which i know isn’t true for everybody. i totally understand the negativity - it all makes sense to me. i’m just glad i sort of.... FORCED myself to have enough distance to just go in like ‘i’M PrepArED fOr wHAtEveR’

*i did like all the jumping around between locations in the first half and how ben would show up everywhere rey was. what a ‘you’re everywhere i go’ pairing. /chef’s kiss/. also having the different locations gives a sense of spaciousness (even if it’s all happening over a short period of time) which i missed in tlj.

*one of the things that gave me the most joy as the hux thing ??? X’’’D it was EXACTLY like that ‘the farce awakens’ ep where hux LITERALLY JOINS THE RESISTANCE cuz he can’t stand kylo. like what kind of fanfic...... how do the hux fans out there feel? (i really love the hux fans they’re a great bunch XD). shame that he was gone right after though.

* i actually enjoyed the trio dynamic? like i get the desire to move away from ‘trio mentality’ but the rey/poe tension with finn as mediator was fun. and finn and poe as joint generals? adorable. shame that the whole finn/poe thing got a bit clouded by.... stormpilot baiting and rose erasure and all the things... Also i’m not anti any character - i like zorii - but.... let poe stay a gay icon? i guess he can still be a queer icon it’s all good i’m down for whatever.

*speaking of finn.... loved seeing more of his humour back. didn’t love that there was no unpacking of how he feels taking out stormtroopers. but loved the found family of jannah and the other ex-stormtroopers. i feel like that gave SOME resolution/depth to finn’s origins. and finn being a non force user but seemingly super attuned to the force and its ways? i can roll with that.

*more speaking of finn... i wonder what they were doing with the ‘thing he wants to tell rey that he never gets to tell rey’. seems like an obvious ‘i love you’ thing. but at the same time we got reylo (/basks in that for a second/). it feels to me like throwing a bone to the finnrey people? like they didn’t get it in this movie but it could be a thing in the future? regaurdless, i did like how finn and rey were very connected and back to that loving friendship they had in tfa. we never quite got the ‘you have a force bond with the supreme leader?!!’ conversation but we got.... SOME conversation.

* speaking of the supreme leader... kinda love that we got renperor AND ben solo TM. i prefer to view ben more holistically (he is both ‘ben’ and ‘kylo’) but i get that making them two distinct identities was a helpful shortcut of sorts. he could ‘kill’ kylo and switch to being ben in a single scene. i always prefer Soft Boi Ben but if we were gonna get Bad Boy Kylo i’m glad they established it right out the gate. it was like ok, this is what to expect; this is where we’re at with this character.

*ben with his costume change at the end....... omg. gave me BIG smuggler!Ben vibes. urgh, give me all the AUs. ben deserves more.

*the amount of swagger when he was fighting the KOR

*idk i feel like i’m not even touching on the big stuff. this was just a ‘get all my side thoughts out of my system’ post.

*adam’s smile after the kiss though......... ... /the most beautiful thing in this world/

*truly iconic that people were right about the strategic, covert introduction of force healing via baby yoda like one month before tros.

*oh yeah it was wILD that so much of the imagery from the trailers/tv spots etc was in like the first five mintues of the movie ??? i totally assumed the ‘i have been every voice you’ve ever heard inside your head’ moment would be climactic rather than right up front

*oh yeah the vader mask.... that didn’t really mean anything in the end then did it?

* re: ben’s death. maybe it’s because i was braced for it but in some ways it’s the best way he could have gone. he was definitely happy and reunited with the light - both through love of rey and of his family. hIGHKey could have done with ben’s force ghost also appearing at the end? the only good thing about not seeing it is.... LF deciding to retcon his death ? ??XD obs they’re not gonna but if you want a crackpot silver lining there it is.

*what exactly does rey’s future look like, may i ask?

* oh yeah, Passing The Saber Through The Force. maybe my favourite moment. the force bond as a bare concept is so romantic to me i would watch a whole trilogy just exploring the magic system of that - it’s limitations and possibilities.

* i do like that jj developed the visual style of the bond. we got to see them occupying the same space, the way each of them would be seeing the other (’can you see my surroundings, i can’t see yours, just you’)

*i miss that rian johnson sound editing on the bond though..... god, the iNTIMACY of the tlj bond scenes....

*’i DID want to take your hand’

*also just the word choice of ‘take your hand’/ ‘i offered you my hand’. it’s extremely marriage.

*there was also a moment in the hanger when ben was like ‘we’re one’ basically? he was saying it in the context of rey’s lineage but still...............the validation. one soul.

*palps was like ‘you live and die together’ which made me REALLY think of skytalkers podcast. obviously assumed they would both have to LIVE together but.... /deep sigh/

*blah this could go on forever i’ll add more later

edit #1:

* OH YEAH! reverse anidala was such a thing! why did it have to be SO reverse anidala though? X’D instead of taking her life, he gives her his own. (i know it’s not clear anakin totally killed padme etc etc but ya feel me)

* ok i hate that ben died obvs obvs but, taking that for what it is, it was very romeo and juliet. i kinda love just the imagery of it. like... the physical blocking/choreography of adam getting daisy into his arms, holding her, then he falls and it’s her holding him. the way she catches his neck. really reminded me of the smoothness of the bridal carry. and rey’s flexed foot in that moment of shock. love the body language. back to that kind of ‘’staccato’’ rey of tfa days.

edit #2:

*lololol @ LF trying to establish how ‘bad’ kylo is by having him kill a bunch of people in the beginning. it was just.... Hot.

edit #3:

* rose deserves better. obviously. she looked so good though. i like that she had some moments with connix too.

* ben called han ‘dad’......

*ben standing there, overlooking the waves, with his leG EXTENDED BEFORE HIM. wanderer above a sea of fog. wanderer above a sea of foggg.

* rey having compassion for the snake thing. we been knew. kinda nice to have it in there. obviously good set up for ~later force healing shenanigans~

* OH YEAH OH YEAH. i kept thinking about atla. i know people have been making comparisons to it from the start and i’ve been DEEPLY INTO those comparisons. but it was truly a blessing for me to remember.... there is a version of this out there that you love and that is Good Content TM. legit i can just go watch atla again to heal from this. omg yeah cuz REY HEALING HIS WOUND ALSO HEALED HIS SCAR. very crystal cave.......... nah but nah but - the ‘you are every jedi’ was EXTREMELY avatar-esk..... like, engage avatar state. i don’t like how it ended up being the same old conflict between jedi and sith - ‘good’ and ‘bad’ - OBVIOUSLY THE POINT IS TO INTEGRATE THE CONFLICTING PARTS OF SELF; THE SHADOW SIDE; TO TRANSCEND OLD DICHOTOMIES - but i did love hearing all the voices from past jedi. that’s some good ‘the ancestors are with you’ shit.

edit #4:

* i think the first thing we hear rey say is ‘be with me’? ngl i was like ‘pls be invoking the force bond’ X’D i am a clown. that was a beautiful shot though. and love that a version of the bond kicked in like two seconds after that.

edit #5:

*there’s that bit where reylo are fighting on the death star ruins and he’s winning and rey kinda falls to her knees panting and lowkey defeated and, not to be a shallow bitch but..... it was Hot.

*also dark rey......... was HOT. SHE WAS SO KIRA, WHATEVER THE FUCK THAT MEANS, AND I WAS INTO IT LIKE HNGGGG

*obvs i wanted rey to be truly no one. but casting jodie comer as rey’s mum ? ????? urgh, pefection, i love it.

*palps was so random i stg..... his plan was.... convoluted to say the least.

*also who was under all those hoods?

*the KOR just kinda... being around again was hilarious. no explaination required. the boys are back in town. ben facing them without a mask and essentially wearing his pjs? loved it.

edit #6:

*seriously though ben’s redemption outfit.............. /heart eyes emoji into the sunset/.......... you can see his collar bone.............. /cares about the important things/.................

edit #7:

*one thing i loved about the reylo was how Space Wizards TM they both were in this movie. it so highlights their connection by making it clear that they are each other’s only peer. i thought it would be a thing of ‘why is the supreme leader constantly interacting with/going after this girl?’ but it’s not because it’s so clear that they are the only two people on each others’ level. no one would dare question the fact that they’re constantly circling each other in a lustful murderous rage.

#tros spoilers #tros reaction #3 #4 #5 #mtp #the rise of skywalker #star wars #this is messy as hell #just getting some thoughts down

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shastlelow · 5 years

Text

The Rise of Kylo Ren (2020)

(This post was originally posted March 11, 2020)

HELLO! YEEAAAHHHHH!

Welcome to This Week in Comics – Star Wars Style!

As mentioned last week, this week there are three books. First up is the new ongoing series, Bounty Hunters #1, telling stories of a band of bounty hunters in the time between Empire and Jedi. There is also the second issue in the ongoing Darth Vader (2020).

Then, there is the conclusion of the limited series The Rise of Kylo Ren (Issue #4 (of 4)), by Charles Soule, illustrated by Will Sliney. This review will be a summary/review of the entire 4 issue series.

SPOILER WARNING: This review/summary may contain spoilers for this issue, as well as any previously released Star Wars media (Films, TV Shows, Novels, Comics, Video Games) released to date, including #NotCanon. Also, this post may CONTAIN ADULT CONTENT!

Long Ago.

The Rise of Kylo Ren #1 (of 4)

“I am called Ren. But that is not my name” The issue opens with a mysterious masked figure. He wears a cape, but no shirt. His mask is non-descript. Silver with some red markings. No facial features to speak of. Chunks of flesh missing on his arms and torso.

He is crouched in front of two brothers. They are hiding from the battle around them. Seems that Secsec and the Knights of Ren have both been looking for these two.

“Ren” appears to be Force sensitive, what he calls “touch the shadow” and he believes that one of the brothers is, too.

The young man shows that he can. The offer to “follow” Ren, who responds, “You don’t follow me, friend, you follow this.” And he ignites a red lightsaber. “The Ren.”

“The Ren doesn’t stop to worry about what it’s burning or the right or wrong of it, or the goals it might achieve. The Ren just is. It lives, and it consumes, and it doesn’t apologize. It is its nature and nothing else.”

Ren believes in that principle on a deep, DEEP level. He grabs the blade with his other hand “SSSizzle” He has, in fact, dedicated his life to it.

The brother could have all this, too. All that is required is a death. When the brother proclaims he’s killed more people than he can count, Ren say, “No. A good death.” It is understood Ren means his brother. As the boy questions this, we see a blaster fire. The young man falls to the ground, his brother the one who fired the blaster. He wants out. Ren comments that he’s “got the attitude. I respect that.”

“But you can’t touch the shadow” and he leaps, lightsaber ignited and kills the other brother.

Now, the Knights of Ren are gathered, dead bodies everywhere, they’ve ended the battle.

“Didn’t work out?” one asks.

“No. If it was easy to join us, everyone would do it. The master will find us someone soon enough”

Now. The Jedi Temple of Luke Skywalker.

We see a burning temple, with Ben Solo looking over it. A starship arrives, carrying Hennix, a Quarren male, Voe, a human female, and Tai, a human male.

They get no readings. Just Ben. They approach him and ask where Master Luke is. Ben responds that Luke attacked him. Tried to kill him in is sleep. “Now he’s dead.” Voe exclaims that this can not be.

Ben replies “What? Don’t think I could do it? I’m stronger than the three of you combined. Skywalker made us act like we were equal, but we’re not. I was the prize student”

Tai tries to speak to Ben. Says it couldn’t be as bad as he says. Ben responds that he is leaving, and they should, too. Hennix and Voe ignite their lightsabers (Blue for Hennix, green for Voe) over Tai’s objection. They can talk this out.

Ben tells them “None of you are Jedi.”

They battle. Tai eventually ignites his blue lightsaber.

Ben tries to leave. The three take him on. Reaching out to the Force, Ben causes debris to fly everywhere away from him, injuring Hennix. He initially looks a little shocked, but he tells them as he walks away “I warned you.”

He then returns to his ship. The three follow.

Ben’s droid asks where they are headed. That he hasn’t entered a destination. He suggests Hosinan Prime, to return “home”

Just then, a dark voice says “It happened, did it not? We both thought it might. Skywalker feared you, your strength. He was always small” and we get Ben’s view of the event as we did in The Last Jedi.

We then see a bit more. Just before the temple explodes. Ben watches it happen, cries NO! and runs to try and save people. “I never… I didn’t want this.”

The voice responds “And you did not choose it, Ben. The Jedi did. Skywalker.

Ben tells his droid that they aren’t going home, they are going somewhere else.

On the ship of the three others. They try to figure out what happened, how Ben could do this. They debate if they should tell Leia. The resolve to try and get to Ben.

Elsewhere.

A holographic planet surrounded by metallic rings yet connected by what appear to be roots.

Ben approaches Snoke, his throne made of stone, surrounded by lush plant life. He is pleased Ben came to him. Ben tells Snoke he’s been thinking….

….about the Knights of Ren.

The Rise of Kylo Ren #2 (of 4)

Issue 2 picks up right where the last issue ended. Snoke speaking to Ben on this strange planet. Snoke implies that while Ben Solo might be interested in the Knights of Ren, they may not be interested in Ben Solo. Ben responds that he hates that name because it is the name of two legends. Feels everyone expects him to BE Obi-wan. They are interrupted by a droid alerting of an incoming transmission from General Hux. Snoke tells the droid that Hux will have to wait, he’s in the midst of an important conversation. Ben is intrigued. Who is this Hux? Snoke states that while he is not the most social person, he does have other friends. He then gets back on point. What is Ben’s true name, then, if not Ben Solo? Snoke says “I was not born Snoke, I became Snoke. Who will you become?” Snoke can sense what Ben is thinking and thinks that is good, very good.

Snoke tells Ben that when he is ready to be called by that name, when he actually kills that part of him, he will be read. Ben leaves the planet.

Years Earlier

We are on a starship. Inside, we have a young Ben Solo, Luke Skywalker, and Lor San Tekka (Lightsabers and wands up, and bells for Max von Sydow). They are looking for a lost Jedi Outpost that Lor has heard about, and he mentions that it is probably High Republic era. Young Ben is visited by the dark voice, showing that it has been with him a while.

They land at a temple on the planet Elphrona. There are some touching scenes with Luke encouraging Ben. They enter what turns out to be a treasure trove of artifacts, including a Jedi Holocron. Luke comments that it may be better than Jocasta Nu’s cache. Just then, both Ben and Luke sense…

Cold.

It is the Knights of Ren. Claiming ownership of all that is there. Luke tells then how wrong they are, that these belong to the Jedi Order, which right now means him. He is the Last Jedi, though not for long.

“Ren” from the last issue states they will show this “old fool” what they can do. Ben interrupts by yelling “This is Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. He is a LEGEND!”

“Ren” responds that the Knights of Ren are LEGENDARY and ignites his red lightsaber.

Luke tells Lor to take Ben. Ben asks “What about you? There are seven of them!”

Luke responds “Oh, I’ll be just fine.”

A fight ensues. Luke handles them handily. It is down to Luke and Ren. Ren tells Luke to come get the blade. He probably can, but that he just activated the kill switch. If it leaves his hand, it will blow everything away.

Ren says he thinks he’ll just take his men and leave. On his way out, he says to Luke “you said you could sense the shadow in all of us – that’s right. We’ve all got it. But you know your apprentice does too, right? Powerful. Can feel it. Better be careful, Jedi Man.”

He then takes off his mask. He questions Ben if he is sure this is the path for him. That there are other paths. As he leaves, he leaves his mask and tells Ben if he ever wants to learn more of the about the shadow, come look them up.

We then are in the “present” – in the same temple on Elphrona. Ben enters and picks up the helmet. He puts it on. The helmet speaks to Ben. “Hey kid. Was wondering if we’d ever hear from you again.” He then tells Ben to go to the Vanrak system.

As he takes the helmet off and is approached by the three padawans, telling him “you have nowhere left to run.”

The Rise of Kylo Ren #3 (of 4)

The Mid Rim. Varnak.

The Knights of Ren are at what appears to be a bar. In walks Ben Solo. The two talk. Ben is presented with the “good death” from Issue #1. Ben says he’s killed a Jedi. Not Luke Skywalker. Ren says maybe the boys would like to hear this story.

Most of this issue is the story of Ben and the other three. Voe “thought the Force was a contest she could win” – Hennix thought the Force “was a Puzzle” and Tai “was just Tai”

Ben is explaining who these people were to him. During the flashed to the fight, it is clear that Ben just wants to leave, but they, especially Voe, won’t let him. At one point, he screams “you think I’m a murderer, Voe? IS THAT WHAT YOU WANT ME TO BE?” It looks like he kills Voe, but in actuality, it is Hennix. He then destroys the outpost.

Ren states that it was a death, but not a good death. Not good enough. Ben protests, but Ren says that he didn’t really want to kill him. But since Snoke vouched for him, they will let him spend some time with them. Maybe he’ll get that good death. But he needs some clothes. He looks like garbage, and the Knights of Ren have a reputation.

We then see Ben in an all-black getup.

We then return to the outpost. Voe and Tai force their way out. They vow to find Ben and end his path. Tai comments that he think’s Ben is already lost.

The Rise of Kylo Ren #4 (of 4)

Mid Rim. The Minemoon of Mimban

Ben, Ren and the Kinghts of Ren have a group of people on their knees. Ren is threatening to kill the leader if he won’t give him the information he desires. Ben stops him and says there could be another way. We see Ben reach out, causing the man great pain. It is the first time he’s done this.

Ben has obtained the information. Ren compliments the move. He then orders the Knights to “release them” Ben is shocked that they have killed them all. Ren says he did.

Ren expresses disappointment in Ben. Perhaps Snoke was wrong. Rai and Voe arrive. When asked who they are, Bn responds “The Past”

Tai tells Voe to go help the people while he takes on Ben. Ren goes on the attack, and Voe stops him. They fight. Meanwhile Ben and Tai are fighting. Ben explains that he has no choice. He is the son of the light and the dark. Tai explains that all paths have two directions. That it’s never too late, there is always hope. Ren and the knights are having a tough time defeating Voe.

Ben and Tai eventually are over a lava pool. Tai pleads with Ben. “Be who you---” and his neck is snapped – by Ren. He once again states that Snoke was wrong about Ben. They have the following exchange.

Ben “You killed Tai”

Ren “I sure did. Snoke was completely wrong about you. You’re fighting this every step of the way.”

Ben “You think so?”

Ren “You don’t want to live in the shadow.”

Ben “True” uses the Force to pick up Tai’s lightsaber. “I am the Shadow”

They fight. The Dark Voice returns “Now you will be who you are. Who you were always meant to be” and it appears to be Palpatine.

The fight continues. Ren saying Ben thinks he’s special. Ben responds that, no, it is everyone else who thought he was. This is a great double page spread. I’ll include it as the image from this issue.

Ben finally understands what Ren meant. “Here’s your good death!” and he kills Ren.

Then, he finds Voe. She says, “you killed the master.” Ben responds “of course I did. I’m a murderer, remember?” and kills her with Ren’s lightsaber. The Knights then all kneel around him.

We then see a shirtless Ben crafting a new lightsaber. He takes the blue crystal, clutches it in his hand, and with a raged strain, fractures it and it “bleeds”

He places it in the saber, and it is wild. It is coming out in odd places. He has an idea. He adds the now iconic hilt. He ignites the saber. The Dark Voice says, “What is your name?”

END

Master Shast LeLow’s Thoughts

This was, overall, a good mini-series. Similar in the tone of the inner voice/conflict of the current Vader run. A good back story that still leaves plenty of room for further expansion. The final issue was exciting, and had some real stunning visuals.

I want to point out that this is the second mention of High Republic that I have come across in my re-reads for these reviews (the other was in the Star Wars title). It’s cool to note, because these issues came out before they announced what Project Luminos was.

When Ren first removes his helmet in issue #2, I originally wrote this. “He looks exactly like an older Ben, with grey hair.” – but I can’t find any corroboration online that this was intentional. In Issue #3 when they are together, they don’t look the same. So maybe it’s just me. Would be curious to hear from others who’ve read it.

‘Til the Spires, and May the Force be with you!

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puroresu-musings · 5 years

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NJPW WRESTLING DONTAKU 2019 Review (May 3rd and 4th, Fukuoka Kokusai Centre)

May 3rd

Tomoaki Honma, Shota Umino & Ren Narita vs. Toa Henare, yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura ***1/4

Jushin Thunder Liger, Tiger Mask, Ryusuke Taguchi & YOSHI-HASHI vs. Minoru Suzuki, Yoshinobu Kanemaru, El Desperado & TAKA Michinoku ***1/4

Kota Ibushi & Roppongi 3K vs. Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI ***1/2

Kazuchika Okada & Tomohiro Ishii vs. SANADA & EVIL ***3/4

NEVER Openweight Title Match: Jeff Cobb (c) vs. Taichi ***1/4

IWGP Jr. Heavyweight Title Match: Dragon Lee (c) vs. Taiji Ishimori ****1/2

May 4th

Shota Umino & Ren Narita vs. Yota Tsuji & Yuya Uemura ***1/4

Dragon Lee & Will Ospreay vs. Taiji Ishimori & El Phantasmo ***1/2

Kota Ibushi & Roppongi 3K vs. Tetsuya Naito, Shingo Takagi & BUSHI ***3/4

Tomohiro Ishii vs. EVIL ****3/4

IWGP Heavyweight Title Match: Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. SANADA ****1/2

Photos.

These shows were the culmination of a great tour that surpassed all expectations, and suitable to form, they were two very fun shows. Night 1 featured some great action, most notably all of the Young Lions in the opener (of both nights, this really is a standout class they have presently), and the continuation of the heated Liger/Suzuki feud. Things got really good with the Ibushi/RPG3K vs. LIJ six-man, which was a fun, all-action battle, just as you’d excpect, and just as they’ve been all tour long (the 10 man elimination tag from May 1st was a **** match and is well worth checking out, by the way). After 11:31 of hot action, Ibushi put BUSHI away with the Kamigoye to win for his team. In the post-match, the I.C. champion demanded an answer from Naito as to when, and if, his challenge will take place. Naito told him to “tranquillo” and he’d let Ibushi know tomorrow. After another mystery man challenged Juice Robinson via video, it was time for the Okada/Ishii vs. SANADA/EVIL doubles clash, which was great stuff. This was all about building to the two big singles matches the next night, and featured some great sequences. After beating the hell out of each other all match, it boiled down to EVIL and Ishii, after the Stone Pitbull was unable to tag out, and found himself locked in the Scorpion Deathlock (the patented move of one of Ishii’s legendary mentors; Riki Choshu), whilst SANADA held Okada at bay with Skull End. Ishii fought valiantly to the ropes, in dramatic fashion, but after being dragged back to the centre of the squared circle, the referee called a stoppage at 16:52.

The NEVER title bout between Jeff Cobb and Taichi was... interesting. I was fixing to hate this thing during the first 10 minutes, as Taichi did his usual stall and cheap-heat tactics, and TAKA and Kanemaru interference, as I felt myself about to lose conciousness through the abject boredom of it all, but it did pick up into a very decent match by the end. However, Taichi wasn’t even the thing I disliked the most about this; Cobb appeared to sleepwalk through this thing. He sold incessantly, Jeff Cobb, an olympian, a SHOOTER, lifelessly sold for Taichi’s pretend Kawada offence in totally baffling fashion. This guy should do the whole Dr. Death/Vader thing and be a monster who only sells when he needs to (yes, he’s short, but he’s a crazy powerhouse with super impressive and believable offence). This gained life with a hot closing stretch, which was very good indeed, culminating in Taichi hitting Black Mephisto on Cobb, and pin him at the 17:50 mark, clean as a sheet, to win the belt. This was inexplicable as I would have kept the belt on Cobb, believing there to be potential in a run with it, but whatever. Taichi is your new NEVER Champion.

The main event of night 1 was a truly excellent high flying display between two of the best junior heavyweights anywhere in the world right now. This started slow but built into a tremendous match, with the crowd super hot for the finishing sequence, which saw Lee hit his snap German off the ropes, but Ishimori popped up and hit a Canadian Destroy, only for Dragon to ‘fighting spirit’ his way up from the move and hit a Falcon Arrow for the double down. The champion hit the double stomp off the top in the corner for a near fall, then Ishimori counters Desnucadora into a cradle for another great near fall. Bone Soldier Reborn locked in the Yes Lock, which Lee did a great job of selling, leading to a dramatic sequence where it looked like the masked man was going to tap, but he eventually made the ropes, to a big pop. After scoring a near fall with a gutbuster, Ishimori went for Bloody Cross, but Lee counters into a reverse rana, hits another snap German, and scored a very believable near fall with a Busaiku Knee strike, which got the stomping treatment from the Fukuoka faithful. From there, Dragon hit Desnucadora to retain in 25:53 of fantastic action, and to cement himself as the rightful champion, having finally scored a pinfall over Ishimori. Also, this was the first time the juniors have main evented a major show in three years, and to say it was a success, both in-ring, and at the box office, would be putting it lightly, which is a good sign for the impending BOSJ, which I’m really excited for.

Night two had a much less entertaining undercard, but the top half was really great. Aside for the good Young Lion opener, the first thing of note on the show was El Phantasmo’s (to the surprise of few) debut in a very good doubles clash, teaming with Ishimori to take on Dragon Lee and ‘good friend’ Will Ospreay. This was all about getting Phantasmo over, and it worked. He was impressive doing his signature rope-walk highspots, with his exchanges with Ospreay being the undoubted highlight. After superkicking an Oscutter attempt out of the sky, Phantasmo hit his old spinning TKO finish, before hitting his new finish, an arm-capture Styles Clash, for the pin in 9:58. Ibushi, SHO and YOH delivered yet another great bout against Naito, Shingo and BUSHI, this time with Naito pinning YOH with Destino at the 13:47 mark. The post match saw Naito challenge Ibushi to an IC Title Match at Dominion, which of course was accepted. These tag matches, whilst fundamentally the same match every time, always deliver the goods, and have been all tour long. Hiroshi Tanahashi made his return next, and let me tell you, this man was rocking a look. He looked just like Patrick Swayze in Point Break, but with added hot pants-esque cycling shorts, and a blazer. He said he’ll be returning to the ring at the June 5th Sumo Hall show, promised to return to full strength and regain the IWGP Heavyweight Title. This brought out that no-good sunuvabitch Jay White, who told Tana to get to the back of the queue if he wants a title shot, then laid him out. He was about to bash the surgically repaired elbow with chairs, but the Young Lions jumped in for the save.

Speaking of delivering, the purported “first time” outing between Ishii and EVIL was an absolute war. The exchanges between these guys all tour have lead you to believe their singles contest would be a classic, and it certainly was. They slammed into each other with hard shoulder tackles and lariats, and forearmed the bejeezus out of each other in glorious fashion for 23:08. EVIL worked over Ishii’s knee, both hit superplexes and locked the other in Scorpion Deathlocks. After a lariat exchange, EVIL escapes a Brainbuster Muto-Hashimoto style, by kneeing his way free, hit a German suplex, but Ishii popped up and laid him out with a massive lariat. Ishii then countered the STO with a German, and another huge Lariat for the doule down. EVIL’s flip-bump sells of the lariats in this were tremendous. After no-selling a lariat, Ishii hit a headbutt, EVIL hit a big half-and-half suplex, and the Stone Pitbull fires back with a stiff looking gamengiri. Ishii hit another massive lariat for a great nearfall, then hit the Vetical Drop Brainbuster for the win. This was the best match on the tour for my money, the best match of EVIL’s career, and just a truly excellent fight. Backstage, Taichi taunted Ishii with the NEVER title, so there’s your next programme for that particular belt. These guys had an excellent match in the NJC, but really I’d like to see Ishii a bit higher up the card at this stage.

The main between Okada and SANADA had a tough act to follow, but they succeeded in producing an excellent match that was completely different in every way. This match will undoubtedly be very divisive, but I really loved it. The crowd started super hot for these guys, and they tempered down soon after as, for the first 15 minutes or so of this thing, they worked an almost entirely mat-based technical contest, reminiscent of a bout between two babyfaces (the Sekimoto-Okabayashi match the next day in BJW was similarly worked too). This worked well as they were trying to weave a compelling story, being the defence based counterpart to the offence based war which preceeded it, with the idea being that each have scouted the other perfectly. This wasn’t as good as their New Japan Cup final (or probably their IWGP Title match last February either), but it was an engrossing wrestling match nonetheless. At 38 minutes, it was maybe a little long, but it never felt like a chore to sit through. It all built to a great closing stretch built around counters. The crowd got super into this again after Okada kept escaping Skull End, SANADA (rocking a new look, and thankfully having shaved that hideous Dr. Zaius beard) hits a Muto Moonsault to the back, goes up for the proper version, but Okada gets the knees up. They trade strikes, which culminated in Okada hitting the John Woo dropkick and a spinning Rainmaker. They each tried Tombstone attempts, but they were continually countered, ending in SANADA getting Skull End on again. Okada escapes, tries a Rainmaker, but SANADA counters into a Rainmaker of his own for a great near fall which the crowd really bought. SANADA locks in Skull End again, but Okada turns that into a Tombstone, then hits the Rainmaker finally, to retain in an excellent match. In the post match, there was yet ANOTHER video package, this time being a returning Chris Jericho, who challenged Okada at Dominion. This was obviously accepted, so there is your Dominion main event. I have no doubt it will be an excellent battle indeed.

NDT

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samprestonbigbadabruce · 6 years

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NXT Takeover: New Orleans - Thoughts and Review...

Sunday 8th April has been a very difficult day, due to my having to avoid any and all spoilers for this show. Normally, I’ll either watch the event live, or watch it at a later date knowing the results. But for a show like this, one that could legitimately be one of the best of the year, I wanted to immerse myself fully into the show, not knowing any results at all. Oh, NXT, you have made me your bitch with ease.

Of course, we have Mauro Ranallo (the one and only legend), Nigel McGuinness (who has really grown into the role fantastically), and Percy Watson (who has demonstrated some good commentary when given the chance), who are probably the strongest 3 man team on the commentary booth. My predictions are at this link.

Ladder Match for the inaugural NXT North American Championship.

EC3 (Ethan Carter III) vs Killian Dain vs Adam Cole vs Velveteen Dream vs Lars Sullivan vs Ricochet

The audience already knows who Ricochet is, his name resonating around the arena, and he gets the first major pop with a tremendous Shooting Star Press to the outside on Dain and Lars. Ricochet is so crisp and beautiful to watch in the ring, he’s instantly fascinating. One of the sub-plots of the match was the build-up to Lars and Dain facing each other, bumping into each other a few times, before an awesome tope onto Lars early on. Watching Lars throw a ladder onto his five opponents was a great moment, he’s starting to convince me he may be more than just a big hoss. He took a great powerbomb from Ricochet, Dream and EC3 off the ladder.

I loved EC3 & Cole, the two snakes who will just as soon betray you as use you, getting along briefly, before EC3 stole Cole’s “bay bay” Schtick, and super kicking EVERYBODY’s face off. The next big moment was Dream’s beautiful Elbow off the ladder onto Lars, some tremendous elevation. Bringing the ladders in so quickly seemed like a better method as it allowed them to hit the ground running. Killian’s Vader Bomb with Cole on his back onto EC3 under a ladder was reminiscent of Rikishi flattening Val Venis off the top of a cage. Lars Sullivan and Killian Dain throwing Ricochet back and forth was akin to two T-Rexes fighting over a pork chop, I laughed, but Lars catching Killain was awe inspiring. And then Ricochet beat it with a moonsault off a falling ladder onto Cole & Dain, that’s Highlight Reel material. Ricochet is coming across very impressive in this match, as I expected.

Dream’s rolling Death Valley Driver on Ricochet onto a ladder was terrifying, but looked amazing, then Lars SMASHING EC3 onto Dream THROUGH a ladder, just raised the bar again, only for Dain to metaphorically go for “Hold My Beer” and put Cole & Ricochet through his own ladder! This is insanity and I love it. I love the subtlety of having the two hosses, Lars & Killain, on one ladder, then the two heels Cole & EC3 on another ladder, and then Dream opening up the third, each ladder representing a different style, culminating in Ricochet joining him. Cole took down EC3, Ricochet took down Dream, and STILL the two beasts were on the ladder. And just as Lars was near victory, Ricochet made the save, the competitors continuously nearing so close, then getting knocked off, before Adam Cole stole the title!

I love how the match allows each style to get their own moment in the sun, either Lars smashing people, Killian’s agile destructions, Ricochet & Dream’s high-flying antics and great bumping, Cole’s smarmy opportunist, or EC3’s arrogant smarts, none were underutilised. I was surprised at the choice for Cole to win, I thought EC3 would make more sense as a heel for the others to chase, but Cole has earned the title, he’ll be The Miz of NXT, elevating the second title. Cole won in character, but everybody looked tremendous. Loved this match.

Adam Cole wins the NXT North American Championship.

Ember Moon defends the NXT Women’s Championship versus Shayna Baszler

Okay, first of all, my favourite band Halestorm opened for Ember and it was awesome, such a rocking tune and great voice from Lzzy Hale. I found that a lot more interesting than Ronda Rousey being in the audience. If only Shayna wasn’t involved…I get that some people may like her, but I’ve found her generic and boring, a flat track bully. To be fair, her knee strikes were making ME feel sore, and it was something a little different, expanding her arsenal. Moon still comes across as the desperate champ struggling with the bully, including a dropkick to force Shayna into the ring steps. I have to admit, seeing Ember turn Shayna’s own elbow stamp onto Shayna was so gratifying.

Seeing Shayna trying to pop her shoulder back into place against the ring post was actually impressive, it feels like they are trying to create sympathy for Shayna, who has been a despicable bully so far. Ember’s finisher onto the outside was excellent, a great moment. Ember’s powerbomb on Shayna was even more impressive, I’ll admit, despite having no interest in this match, these two put in some great work to draw me in. And then, Shayna choked out Ember to win the title. I can’t say I’m surprised, and the match was better than I expected, but I do think it’s a mistake to give her the title so soon. I’m also curious about their decision to push Ronda as the babyface, only for her to be friends with despicable heel Shayna, lack of consistency.

Shayna Baszler wins the NXT Women’s Championship.

Dusty Rhodes Tag Team Classic Final: The Undisputed Era (Adam Cole & Kyle O’Reilly) defend the NXT Tag Team Championship against The Authors Of Pain (Akam and Rezar with Paul Ellering) versus Pete Dunne & Roderick Strong

The Authors Of Pain have gone on strength to strength, improving every match, whilst Strong is consistent and tough, respected by the audience, Dunne is a tough nasty bastard, and The Undisputed Era are heat magnets…this match is such a great choice. The Authors Of Pain instantly come in and destroy the opposition, powerbombing Cole straight through the announce table. O’Reilly simultaneously holding an AOP & Strong in submissions was a great image and makes it believable for him to have to wrestle alone.

O’Reilly being German Suplexed, jumping up screaming, then falling out of the ring, was my favourite moment of the night so far. Dunne and O’Reilly are two hard hitters, and seeing them smash mouth each other was great. Dunne snapping an AOP’s fingers to avoid a move is one of those little character moments that add to a match, very in character. As the match continues, I’m starting to feel that Cole may stir from injury in time to steal the win?

Strong using AOP’s strength and speed against them, including into the steel steps, and then WHAT THE FUCK?! Roderick Strong turned on Pete Dunne and helped The Undisputed Era retain? What a twist, O’Reilly’s reactions are awesome. I remember Strong supposedly being a great heel on the Indie scene, I am legitimately shocked at this development, but it definitely makes things interesting. I assume until Fish heals, Strong and O’Reilly will defend the Tag Team titles?

The Undisputed Era win the Dusty Rhodes Classic and retain the NXT Tag Team titles.

Andrade ‘Cien’ Almas defends the NXT Championship versus Aleister Black.

Almas has already been so impressive as NXT Champion, really raising his game for the title. Black is awesome all round, and comes flying out of the blocks. A tremendous moment where Almas flipped out of a sunset powerbomb off the top rope, only to miss the knees, only to lead into a backsault off the top rope and another Moonsault onto Black, great flow to the match. Almas surprisingly matched Black with some great strikes, until Black kneed his face out of place. Almas has scouted Black tremendously, catching him out every time Black goes to his arsenal. And the few times Black did on top, Zelina spiked Black twice with hurricaranas, playing the ref like a fiddle. Third time should surely lead to Zelina getting Black Massed by Black,

When Black did hit the Black Mass, Zelina saved Almas, she does such an amazing job as a heel manager, saving Almas four times already! Several close shaves, including a tremendous Hammerlock DDT from Almas to Black that I thought would end it. But this leads into the perfect finish, as Zelina tried interfering again, Almas catching her, and turning into Black Mass!

Almas may have only had a brief title reign, but it was very impressive, a 5 Star Classic and a great victory, but Black was the right choice, he’d been on track for the title since he debuted, and he offers a different style to some of the previous Champions. Black has earned this victory, but Almas can take pride in his reign, and I cannot wait to see who Black faces first…maybe a returning Drew McIntyre?

Aleister Black wins the NXT Championship.

Unsanctioned Match: Tommaso Ciampia fights Johnny Gargano A story years in the making, two former friends and brothers, now hated rivals. Johnny Gargano placed his career on the line for the NXT Championship, and lost because of Ciampia. Now, in an unsanctioned match, one where you can only win by pinfall or submission, Johnny Wrestling gets the opportunity for revenge. If he wins, he is reinstated to NXT. If he loses...he’s gone. This won’t be a five star classic, it’ll be a fight.

The atmosphere is engulfing. The punches and kicks that started the match lead into Ciampia getting more vicious, slams against the guardrail, and threatening with an unprotected floor. Johnnny Wrestling, the nice guy, throwing Ciampia into the announce team, really helped sell how consumed by anger and hatred he was. They would tease with one act of violence (suplex on the unprotected floor, suplex on the table) and then subvert it with something just as violent (suplex OFF the announce table onto the mat), sprinkling little Chekhov Guns to come into play later. Seeing the top of the announce table used to be suplexed through was something I hadn’t seen before, these little unique moments really add to the match.

There was one uncomfortable bump where it looked like Gargano landed on his neck after he was Irish-whipped into the corner, flipping upside down and landing on his head. A great touch was when Johnny got to the ropes when Gargano had a submission on him, only for the ref to tell him “No rope breaks”, i loved that! Really adds to the authenticity of the unsanctioned fight. So far, the only element I disagree with is that to me, an Unsanctioned match works better if the wrestlers are in street clothes, but I digress.

So far, the weapons being used really tie back to the history of their rivalry, the announce table from when Ciampia first betrayed Gargano, then the crutches from the crowd tying into Ciampia’s injury and multiple attacks with the crutches. The unprotected mat came back in a vicious way, Johnny going for a slingshot DDT attempt, reversed into Ciampia’s finisher attempt, only for Johnny to slither out and powerbomb Ciampia onto the floor - I admit, I let out an involuntary noise at the sound of Tommaso’s back landing on the floor.

The tired tug of war over the crutch really amplified the war these two are going through, and the cathartic strikes on Ciampia by Gargano, who refused to let go of the crutch even when thrown out, leading to a sickening crack on the head. It was only after that and a slingshot DDT, that I think the first pinfall attempt was made, twenty plus minutes into the match, a great detail for such a volatile fight. The reverses keep on happening again and again, showing how well these two know each other, Johnny even willing to pull on Tommaso’s beard.

Gargano locked in his submission hold, and the rope breaks came into play again, almost reaching ironic glory, and then the roll back into the middle of the ring, ala Benoit/Triple-H at Wrestlemania XX, seemed poised for the ending, only for Tommaso to dig at Gargano’s eyes. The desperation of Tommaso was then intensified by using his wrist rope to try and strangle his opponent.such a brilliantly layered story. A low blow, crutch to the back, then powerbomb backbreaker had me convinced it was over, but Johnny Wrestling kicked out again. I have no idea who will win at this rate.

Johnny using Tommaso’s kneepad to drag himself toward Ciampia was such an iconic image, leading into the lawn dart into the unprotected turnbuckle, then two vicious low superkicks, the second eliciting another unexpected noise from me. I know I said this would be a fight, not a five star classic, but these two are pushing close. Ciampia did another powerbomb backbreaker onto his knees for a massive near fall, and the knee brace has taken damage, these two are going all out. And now the final callback, the removal of Ciampia’s kneepad, ala the Cruiserweight Classic, only for Johnny to smash the brace into Ciampia’s knee!

A brief moment with a callback to the sit down in the ring together, lead to an amazing STF on the knee with the knee brace pulling back on Ciampia’s neck, that looked diabolically painful! And Ciampia tapped, Gargano gets reinstated, Johnny Wrestling has done it! He’s beaten Ciampia, vanquished his demon, and he’s reinstated to NXT! What a brilliant match, such layers and story telling, reversals, hard hits, big moments, character moments, emotional and unforgiving, a rollercoaster ride, but the hero has defeated the psycho.

Johnny Gargano defeats Tommas Ciampia

Yet again, NXT Takeover does an excellent job, great matches, fantastic stories, and even my personal weakest match (the NXT Women’s Championship) is exactly that, a personal indifference, but still a solid match. In fact, I probably couldn’t call any of these a weak match. What a brilliant PPV, NXT just keeps getting better and better and better.

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