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goddessofmischief · 6 months

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SPEAK NOW - SHANKS X READER (+ BUGGY)

A/N: This is part of this series, which requests are open for! These fics are all one-shots, so they can be read separately. Also, I highly recommend listening to the song linked in the title while you read.

I need a man. You are still just a boy.

These words tattooed themselves into the back of Shanks' mind until they were all he could remember, burned into him forever. In a short time, that one moment had become his creed and code, his reason for living.

And yet, he had given up on you.

He hadn’t given up on you as a person, or you as a friend - he still cared for you greatly, and respected you greatly. But he had given up any romantic pursuit of you. All he desired now was to become the best man he could be, and to stand by your side while you married Mihawk.

It was right. It felt right.

There was just so much to do, these days, and such little time to do them - normal piracy business of course, but in addition to that, the management of Roger’s health and the planning of a wedding had weighed heavily on his thoughts.

And now it was that day.

You had been getting ready for several hours when Shanks thought maybe he should visit you - that maybe you needed someone, and maybe he should be that someone.

He rose from his seat in the cathedral-

"Buggy, stay with Roger-"

"Hey, what're you doing?"

"I'm going to help her get ready," Shanks responded. "Usually people have bridesmaids for that."

Buggy just grumbled something under his breath.

You'd want him, wouldn't you? You'd want him there? You would want him to help you, like he had always done and would always be there to do, before you took your first steps into a new life?

Shanks was betting that you would.

...

Three knocks at the door.

"Come in," you called out, assuming it wouldn't be Marines or rival pirates or anyone else, assuming that the cathedral filled with the most feared pirates of your time would be enough to protect you.

You were correct in that assumption.

"Feels wrong to see you," Shanks said, closing the door behind him. "Though I guess it shouldn't."

"Is it... is it okay?" you asked, spinning a bit in your dress.

"It's lovely," he said.

"Thanks. Buggy helped me pick it out."

Buggy? Well, he shouldn't have been surprised. He knew you trusted Buggy with things you wouldn't tell him, or perhaps things you felt would be a waste of his time.

"Anything else?" you said, eyes tracing over him.

Yes. Yes. So much else.

"No," he said. "You're perfect."

Shanks was the bigger man. He always had been. In quarrels with Buggy, in competing with Mihawk, in not letting his love for you get in the way of your life. Above all, he refused to let anything keep him from being kind. He refused to cause your unhappiness, even if it met letting you get married without telling you everything he truly felt.

What was there to say, anyway? Later on, Shanks would marvel at the messiness of that age, and how he managed to conduct himself in the first place: his thoughts, his affections, were so new, so unformed. Even if he had insisted you hear him out right then, he wouldn't have even known what to say.

That you were beautiful? The smartest pirate he knew? That he wanted to have you by his side forever?

...Well, maybe he could've started there.

For now, you smiled at him brightly, and moved to kiss him on the cheek. But he moved, right then, as he'd noticed a stray blue hair on your white skirt, and meant to pick it off before you left-

And you kissed him on the mouth, just kissed him, and it was completely on accident but totally on purpose, and it lasted for a long time, maybe forever, maybe two seconds.

"I'm sorry," Shanks said as you broke apart, and you couldn't look at him. Nothing hurt quite as much as that. You held your hand to your mouth, seemingly unable to process what had just happened, and what it meant, and if it really had to mean anything, and you couldn't look at him, and really, nothing hurt quite as much as that.

"It was an accident."

"Yeah, it was," he reassured you. "That's all it was."

He was telling you he'd keep it a secret, that it would never be known, that you could get married and never kiss anyone else again and be a good girl all your life with an unblemished record, and Mihawk would never ever have to know, and every time Shanks looked at you he would want to die, but he would take the secret of that kiss and all that it meant to him to his grave. This was his promise to you, the one he made in the few breaths between sentences, in the breaths between you as you had pulled away.

You nodded to him, and he nodded back.

"Do you want me to get Roger?" Shanks asked finally. "Everyone's out there-"

Suddenly, Buggy burst through the curtains, red-faced.

"Shanks, I need to talk to you."

"What's going on? Where's Roger?"

"Shanks," repeated Buggy, warningly.

"Anything you have to say, you can say it in front of her."

Buggy's eyes flitted from you to Shanks, feeling guilty for what he was about to do.

"Mihawk isn't here," Buggy said, and your heart sank. "...He didn't come."

"He's probably just held up," Shanks assured you. "Maybe he got in a fight or something."

"He sent a letter."

You collapsed to the floor, white dress spilling around you. Shanks stared down at you.

"Alright," said Shanks, rubbing his temple. "...Where the hell is this letter?"

...

Darling,

By the time you read this, I will be gone.

I must start by saying I am madly in love with you, and always will be. I wish more than anything I were there with you now.

Regrettably, I attracted some Marine trouble on my last job. I did not wish to bring it back to you, but I would be lying if I did not confess that is not the only reason why I am not with you today.

The bitter truth is, my name has become more known than I could have predicted. I had planned to be a swordsman, a pirate, and most of all, your husband - but fate has disrupted those plans, making it impossible to return to you now. After I became known as the World's Greatest Swordsman this past summer, thousands have come looking to challenge me and my bounty has tripled. It occurred to me that it would be unwise to lead anything but a solitary life for as long as I am such a wanted man.

Please do not believe this has anything to do with you. I still mean every word of all that I told you. You are the love of my life.

Do not wait for me. I do not know if I can ever return to you, and certainly not how long it will take. My best wishes to your family, and please inform Shanks and Roger of my regrets. They are good people, and I am sorry to have hurt them.

In the meantime, I will think of you.

Yours,

Mihawk.

...

You were inconsolable for days.

It didn't matter how many fights you'd been in, or how much you had escaped, nothing petrified you more than the moment you had to walk back down that aisle, Shanks and Buggy flanking you from either side, while you told all the guests that the groom would not be attending his own wedding.

That Dracule Mihawk had left you.

It took all the convincing in the world from Shanks and Rayleigh to convince Roger not to go after him himself. He couldn't, in his condition, and Shanks was sure it would be the thing that killed him. Besides, Shanks wanted the honor himself, even though he wouldn't allow himself to have it.

He's the bigger man, right? Right?

But he hated how much you wept. It rocked the ship, feeling like the storm was inside the walls rather than in the ocean. You were being torn apart, punished, killed.

"Did I cause it somehow?" you wondered aloud, voicing to Shanks the irrational fear that had been clouding your mind for days. "Did he know that I would-"

"No, don't say that. Please don't say that," he pleaded, softer than you imagined he would. "He sent that letter days before."

Shanks couldn't let the thing that had hurt you the most be his fault.

"Still, is it because he thought-"

"He's a very direct man. If it were anything else, any other reason, he would have said exactly that."

It was true, you knew. He would have. It was something you loved about-

Loved. There it was, that word again. You love Mihawk, present tense. You wouldn't allow yourself to say you loved him. That would mean it was really over, and you couldn't accept that just yet.

And for the fifth time that week, Shanks left your room, feeling more torn up than before, still unable to fully put that kiss into words. It could not be spoken, as that would make it true.

For the first time, Buggy was waiting outside. He and Shanks exchanged looks.

"Is she... better?"

"No," said Shanks. "More of the same."

"Should I...?" Buggy cleared his throat. "Alright. I'll talk to her."

Buggy knew rejection - he felt it a lot - not just from you, but from the world. If anything, you had accepted him the most. Maybe he could offer a fresh perspective.

Whatever he expected to see when he opened that door, it wasn't this. You were still in your dress - the one he picked for you, he remembered with a pang - and lying flat on the floor. Without hesitation, Buggy laid down next to you.

"Well, you look rough."

For the first time since, you laughed. Something about the way he said it, something about the way it struck you. You did look rough, and Mihawk wasn't coming back. The truth was easier to accept when it came from Buggy.

"I'm sorry I've disappeared," you admitted. "It's just been too much."

"I know. It's time to come back, though. Things are getting serious with Roger."

Shanks had declined to share that information with you.

"Is he...?"

"We're disbanding in a week," Buggy confirmed. "After that, I don't know - he's talked about sitting down each of us, so I think he's gonna do something."

"I think he's going to turn himself in," you confessed.

"No way."

"That's what Rayleigh told me he was thinking about."

"Rayleigh never tells me anything. He hates me."

"That's not true."

"...I don't mind."

For awhile, you both sat in silence. It was nice.

And you decide you might change your clothes tomorrow.

taglist:

@sawendel @twinklesnake @literaturewithliz @sordidmusings @foggyturtleknightangel @toertchen @96jnie @lunanight1021

#shanks x reader #mihawk x reader #shanks #mihawk #it was rare i was there #buggy x reader #buggy #dracule mihawk x reader

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givemewallywestorgivemedeath · 11 months

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Hi! As the Tumblr expert of the Flashfam, would you say that they're capable of solo-ing other members of the Justice League if they wanted to? I mean, from reading the Flash War, Superman couldn't even keep up with the Flashes because they're too fast. Doesn't that mean they could beat Superman and other heroes easily?

Hey! Thanks for the question!

To start this off I first want to say that there is a meta answer to this and a in-universe answer to this.

The meta answer is: it depends on the series. For example, it is extremely unlikely that a series dedicated to a specific hero or team would have said team losing to a speedster, solely because heroes are supposed to win. It doesn't make sense for, let's say Superman, to lose a fight against Eobard Thawne in a Superman book. Even though Eobard would be capable of taking Superman out, it's Superman's story, and the hero always wins. But if it's a Flash story? Hell yeah, definitely. Also in crises/crossover series you can generally see speedsters being used to their full potential. (For example, Eobard demolishing Batman)

But that's no fun so let's look at the odds in-universe.

Because there are so many different Leaguers I'm going to separate them into categories to make it easier:

The Non-Powered Heroes:

The Non-Powered Hero is always a fan favorite. In a world full of gods it is fun to see the average human being the smartest and most capable person in the room. People like to root for the underdog. Unfortunately for them, they are extremely unlikely to win against a speedster in a fight. They would need Dues Ex Machina levels of gadgets specifically tailored to speedsters to even have a shot. Like I said before, Batman went toe-to-toe with Eobard in the batcave (where all of his gadgets are) and the man was decimated. Being smart and having gear and skills doesn't do much when you look like a frozen statue to the person you are fighting.

The 'I Got One Thing' Heroes:

These heroes are really interesting and cool. Their ranks are filled out by heroes like Black Canary, Black Lightning, Beast Boy, Signal, ect. However, even if their powers would hinder a speedster they are A) extremely unlikely to use their powers fast enough and B) extremely unlikely to actually hit a speedster. Speedsters also have a lot of experience fighting people with just one really strong power and they typically fight 6-20 of those guys at the same time and win. Even super strong heroes like Black Lightning are out of luck because speedsters feed on electricity.

The Strong and Invulnerable Heroes:

Honestly? If I am being completely real here? The Strong and Invulnerable Heroes don't have a chance in hell. I'm sorry but heroes like Wonder Woman and Superman are built to be tanks. They excel at fighting physical threats. They can't do anything against reality bending. That is even how speedsters have historically dealt with Kryptonians in the past. They teleport them into another dimension with no yellow sun and just leave them there. A skilled speedster would have them in a pocket dimension or 20 thousand years in the past before Supes could even blink.

The Lanterns:

Speedster and Lantern relations demand that Lanterns get their own category. First of all, the location of the fight would matter. Speedsters would have an extremely hard time winning against a Lantern in their natural element of space. The Lanterns, however, would have an extremely hard time winning against a Speedster on a planet. Speedsters can phase through and break constructs so there isn't a lot that can be done. So it's entirely dependent on location in my opinion.

Additionally, the Lanterns and Speedsters know A LOT of shit about each other so this would be an interesting fight. The Speedsters know the Lantern's color weaknesses and they know about the battery life of their rings (which they might be able to drain tbh, Barry's worked with the energy in Hal's ring multiple times before and has manipulated it). But, conversely, the Lanterns know that Speedsters don't do well in the cold and that the more energy they expend the more unstable they get. So, it would be a wild fight, especially because the Lanterns can fly so there's a possibility that a Speedster couldn't reach them to take them out immediately.

Psychics:

Speedsters do have a little bit of an advantage against Psychics. In the past Speedsters have sped up their minds so fast that their speeding thoughts actually injured people in their minds. But to be frank they have no skill or expertise in this area and, historically, strong and skilled Psychics can easily grab control of Speedsters. For example, Gorilla Grodd. When fighting Gorilla Grodd the main tactic of the Speedsters is to take him out before he has time to think, ie moving faster than the speed of thought. That doesn't always succeed. So a very strong Psychic would have a pretty good shot against a Speedster.

Magic Users:

It REALLY depends on how strong the Magic User is. Raven, Zatanna and Dr. Fate would all have a 50/50 shot against a Speedster in my opinion. Any magic user that can bend reality and do super strong spells would have a really good fighting chance because they are the exact same brand of fucked up as the Speedsters. Also Speedsters don't really have a counter against curses or spells. They have zero magical expertise. So it's really just a matter of if the Speedster can knock them out (or gag them in Zatanna's case) before they can get a spell out.

So when it comes down to it Speedsters are the experts of fighting large groups of people at the same time. They know how to prioritize and they are fast enough to take out the heavy hitters before they can even react. I think it would largely depend on the Justice League roster at the time (for example, the JL cartoon roster of Bats, Supes, WW, Hawkgirl, GL and MMH wouldn't stand a chance as only MMH would be a threat but a team consisting of MMH, Miss M, Zatanna, Dr. Fate, Raven and Deadman would probably take a Speedster out fairly quickly.)

Their main weaknesses are extreme cold, magic and mental attacks, so a team entirely filled with heavy hitting Magic Users and Psychics would excel at fighting a Speedster. So to answer your question, yes a Flash could probably take out a typical Justice League roster solo (unless the roster was tailor made to exploit their weaknesses).

#dc #dc comics #the flash #kid flash #impulse #flash fam #flash family #speedsters #i debated putting Billy in because he IS magic #but the kid doesn't really do offensive spellcasting besides his lightning #and.... speedsters absorb lightning for energy... so he would just make them more powerful....

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stxrvel · 10 months

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what is it with all these secrets? (6)

series summary: you woke up from a long coma with no memory of a part of your life only to be told by your teammates that you're married to the man you hated seven years ago. even though that seemed to be the only problem, as time goes on you're realizing there's a lot more history and mystery behind the accident that left you in medical care for months. blackouts, more memory loss, mistrust and a strange man who seems to be connected to everything. every day it gets harder to trust anyone around you, but you won't stop until you can finally uncover the truth behind the accident.

chapter summary: everything starts being suspicious when everyone in the complex dissappears. but just then, you learned some things that may be or not connected to something from your past.

pairing: bucky barnes x f!reader

words: counting

warnings: just some bad words.

note: hi guys. i can't believe i got this out in one night, but i hope it is as good as i think it is inside my head. im really tired rn because i got sick and my whole body's just exhausted. so here it is for you guys! hope you like it and see you next time 💜

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You hadn't seen Bucky in two days. You had gone through and tossed and turned every room in the Complex, but he seemed to have simply disappeared. He'd been swallowed up out of the ground, as if he'd never been there at all.

And, being honest, at this point in the game you had no idea what to think. There was a jumble of thoughts and emotions inside your chest, all so crazy and frantic that you couldn't quite conjecture. That Bucky really hadn't existed would make as much sense in your head as the reality of that strange voice you'd heard out of nowhere in the middle of astral travel less than five days ago.

What the fuck was going on? Why couldn't you find Bucky? Why'd you had those memories when they weren't even yours? Whose voice was it? Why did it make you so suspicious of the team? Why did it seem like you were agreeing with it…?

Being alone with your thoughts wasn't the smartest choice of all, but Dr. Cho was done with the exams for the day and you had absolutely nothing to do. Probably by that time you had memorized every path, door and room in the Complex and were close to learning the color of every wall on every floor. The boredom was extreme and the ignorance did not make up for it.

Oddly enough, you hadn't met any of the team either.

It just seemed that every person you knew had disappeared from the Complex.

Alone with your luck, you wandered through every corner of the huge building until your head completely consumed you. You had in your mind only the memories of the last two weeks and that anything further back than that had disappeared. And you had tried to force the memories to come out, to give you answers and explanations, because no one around you seemed to have them or didn't want to give them to you. You had meditated, done grounding, watched hypnosis videos on YouTube, but you only got weird dreams in response. You tried everything, but it seemed like you simply hadn't had a life before the last two weeks. Were it not for the fact that it was impossible, you'd even doubt the few memories Bucky and some of the team had shared with you.

Like when one of the afternoons of the first week after several studies when Natasha and Steve came to keep you company and, among some of the things you were able to get out of them, they told you that you had once donated hundreds of dollars anonymously to several animal shelters that were about to close due to lack of funds across the country. Natasha also shared with you that one time when you were out on a girls' night out with the other girls on the team, you got so drunk that you bought five rounds in a row to everyone in the bar. The club gave you a membership after that.

Another day, Clint told you that you had rescued the two dogs that lived with his family in the field and for that alone his children considered you a real hero. He also told you that you had picked out many of the tattoos he had on his arm.

You also got Carol to tell you some things the first and last time you saw her. She told you that you two met in the middle of a fight and that you had beaten her. At that moment you remembered that you had laughed and asked her genuinely surprised how it was possible that someone with your physique and little fighting ability had been able to defeat one of the most powerful avengers, and she had only told you that you had caught her off guard. You didn't know it before, but you should have.

Tony was the one who shared one of the best memories with you. Your wedding day with Bucky. You hadn't even been able to get that information out of your own husband. He told you minute by minute what had happened that day, as if it had been his own. He told you how you had been nervous but confident since the morning, between hair and makeup, accompanied by your bridesmaids and him. He described the moments from the time you finished fixing your dress until you walked down the aisle and when you and Bucky said yes. He laughingly told you that Sam Wilson had gotten drunk on Asgardian liquor and gave the craziest and funniest speech of the night; he assured you that one of those days he would show it to you.

Between those and a handful of other stories, it was the only thing you had that assured you that you'd had a life before. And you were glad to know that you seemed to have lived it to the fullest, but that joy was mixed with a sour uneasiness in your chest that increased within you the desire for everything to go on as it had been before. But life being as unfair as only it could, you could only settle for imagining those memories that at some point you were able to evoke so vividly in your memory.

You also tried to ask questions about the blessed accident, about what had happened that day, but you never got a concrete answer. It seemed that every time you asked about it everything lined up around you so that the people you were with had to leave or simply left on their own with excuses that were too lame.

So, even though it seemed like you had maintained a good relationship with the team members and you had been a part of their lives and they had been a fundamental part of your life, you didn't trust them at the time. None of them. They never gave you any reason to trust, other than to talk about things in the past, and that maybe gave them the benefit of the doubt, but they hadn't done much on your behalf, so you weren't going to do it. You preferred to cling to doubt because it seemed to be the only certain thing among so much darkness.

Bucky seemed to be the only person you could really trust, that's why you had confessed to him what had happened in that hallway. But seeing now how he just disappeared, what were you supposed to think? In a situation like that, being the person you thought you were, you couldn't afford to trust just anyone. Especially when you didn't remember anything about anyone. Maybe you knew them well before, but what about now?

You went back to the control room when your feet started to hurt, the place where you started to spend more time those almost three days, mainly because you had magnificent view of all the cameras in the Complex and because your footprint was still registered with free access to the room, for some reason. It was past noon and you got tired of searching for answers in that meaningless labyrinth.

There was always a TV in the background on mute. You didn't know why. Maybe the person who should have been there instead of you liked to watch the news on mute. That seemed rather strange to you, almost suspicious. That every time you walked into the room there was no one there. You didn't even know if someone came in after you left or before you came in because you never saw anyone near its vicinity. But that didn't hold you back enough not to satisfy your curiosity.

You were watching that little screen when some familiar people started to appear in a corner of the newscast.

It was Steve and Carol.

With a frown you reached for the TV remote, which wasn't too far from the camera panels. You unmuted it and the words began to come fast.

“… the Avengers seemed to be having trouble with it. It's been over a year and it looks like this is a threat we won't be able to get rid of.”

As the presenter finished speaking, videos of the Avengers, many half-recorded with lousy cell phones and others with aerial views, took over the big screen. They seemed to be in different parts of the world, but the panorama was always the same: destruction and total chaos. Another voice began to narrate over the videos.

“October 27, 2022 is the day everyone remembers as judgment day. The sky turned purple and darkness surrounded the planet for seven whole days. Although scientists searched for answers, they did not think to look outside this planet. One man, an extraterrestrial, with immeasurable powers of destruction, has unleashed chaos on the planet ever since. He has not been credited with a name, but people call him-”

The screen went black and all you could see was your own stupefied reflection.

“What are you doing here?”

That voice stunned you.

You'd never heard it before, nor had you ever tried to get close enough to do so. For some reason you always preferred to stay away. And to have her show up now, right at that moment…

Still, even though she was the person you trusted the least on the team, and only because she had turned the TV off on you when you were discovering something that everyone had surely kept hidden from you and that had generated quite a bit of annoyance, you turned around and faced her.

“Who was that man?”

Wanda Maximoff didn't seem surprised by your question and your coarse tone of voice. She had indifferent features on her face, an unflappable seriousness that a person could only maintain after years of disappointments and suffering. At that moment you wondered if it had been the right thing to expel completely from your memory the fact that she had been one of your bridesmaids.

“A very bad man.”

“I'm not a child. Who is he?”

“No one you should care about.”

“Then why the hell did you turn off the TV? And why did you show up just then? Were you spying on me?”

Wanda didn't answer you, only focused on the control of the device she had levitating with one of her hands surrounded by that reddish mist so characteristic of hers. A shiver ran through your body, because you didn't even realize the moment she took it. Her eyes never left yours, and though you tried to keep your composure, she was too intimidating.

“Stop asking so many questions.”

Her open palm closed and with it she shattered the control. Its pieces fell noisily to the floor, interrupting the heavy silence that followed her words. If you had any doubts about taking that as a threat or not, you were left with none when you looked up from the floor, from the shards of the control ruined by her telekinesis, to see her face enserrated with eyes so dark you felt they could devour you.

Wanda wasn't playing around. For some reason she didn't want you to know anything about that man on the news.

Regardless of what she did or said, one thing that was certain was that this man was diabolical. The pictures and videos of the disasters, massacres and general destruction spoke for themselves. And even more so the fact that it seemed that the Avengers, united, had been unable to defeat him. The mere thought of his power, such that an entire group of super people couldn't stop him, made you shudder.

“Who do you think you are to say such things to me?”

Wanda rolled her eyes, and you saw her determined to turn around and head for the exit at once, as if that conversation with you wasn't even worth the effort, so you raised your voice:

“Does he have anything to do with what happened to me?”

You saw her stop on her feet, face inscrutable but her eyes glinted slightly. A small glint of surprise that gave her away. You almost pointed your index finger at her. It disappeared as fast as it could, but it had been there, you were sure. And her defensive stance didn't help her to maintain her nonchalant posture. You had hit the nail on the head. You didn't want to say you were right, but….

“It does have to do,” you mused.

“No,” Wanda spoke up, but too late for her liking. She had already changed and now looked like she wanted to rip her tongue out just because she had set out to answer your questions in the first place.

“Why is he related to me, is he to blame for me not remembering anything?”

“Stop it. That man has nothing to do with it.”

“You are a very bad liar.”

Wanda's eyes suddenly looked surprised, as if your words had been the answer to a problem she'd been searching for a solution to for years. Suddenly she didn't look terrified but… hurt. You couldn't help but compare that expression to the one Bucky wore the few times he had talked to you about things you didn't remember.

But her mask came back quickly and with a scowl she pointed accusingly at you.

“Stop asking questions and shut up.”

That time she left the room without you being able to think of anything to stop her.

You didn't know what to do anymore. You had spent hours thinking about what you had discovered and Wanda's expressions, but you couldn't find a connection that was big enough to justify the drama everyone was making about the accident. If she had tried to hide it from you like that it must be related. That, or maybe it was simply someone who had hurt her deeply and she couldn't bear to see him or talk about him.

Mmm…

So, if what had happened to you was because of him, that man personification of chaos, there was only one way to put it together: being an Avenger, you were sent on a mission to fight this great villain, but in the course of the fight you couldn't defeat him and he left you so wounded that you had that memory problem.

That's it. That must have been it, right?

But… it sounded so small compared to the fuss that seemed to surround the accident.

No one ever mentioned it, nor did it ever escape their attention, even if they were distracted. They were trying to avoid the subject at all costs and run out of your reach as fast as they could. That they did those things, that they avoided the subject like the plague, didn't fit so well that in the end that was the simple explanation. It had been a fatal accident in the field, surely it had happened to them before. It was an occupational hazard. So why were they hiding it from you like that?

There must have been something else going on, and you had no way of finding out about it, because you didn't happen to have a cell phone or internet access. You'd never questioned it before because it seemed like the logical thing to do, seeing what you were recovering from and they didn't want you to have information overload, but now it just seemed too suspicious.

With so many things inside your head, you decided to leave the Complex. You had never gone farther than the distance of the parking lot within what you could remember, but you knew that the back was full of trees and surely green trails that your peace of mind would enjoy very much in those moments.

There, as you walked away from the building, your mind went back to Bucky.

He was the person you least wanted to stop trusting, but for him to disappear from your sight after what you said to him was so strange. And that the others weren't present either was also suspicious. Bucky had done nothing but support you during that short time you remembered and all the memories you had of him only focused on his kindness and understanding. There was no way to paint him as the bad guy in the story.

Then, there was the other thing you really didn't want to think about…that voice… what it had said…

Whoop, wait.

What's that?

You stopped in the middle of the trees.

You didn't know how far you'd walked, but it couldn't have been more than fifteen minutes since you left the Complex. You had been so focused on distracting your mind that you narrowly missed the strange thing that seemed to be in front of you.

An iridescent glow appeared a few feet away. It appeared and disappeared. It appeared somewhere else and disappeared. It was like bubbles. Or like the light that caused refraction when the sun rested directly on a clock or a mirror.

They weren't very powerful, you could barely notice the colors. But it did seem to be everywhere at the same time.

As you got closer, you noticed that your vision started to get a little blurry. Even though you touched your eyes, it wouldn't go away.

When you finally got close to it, to that kind of anomaly, you could notice that indeed the colors seemed to be everywhere because of the sunlight filtering through the leaves of the trees.

You also noticed that the blur did not disappear. But with a quick glance back and sideways, you realized that that strip stretched the length of the forest, and seemed to curve a few miles into the background.

What the hell was that? Your head was hammering for an answer, but you really couldn't understand what you were seeing. You could only process surprise and fear.

You raised a hand to reach through the blurry blanket and…

And…

You couldn't.

It was hard.

Too hard.

You moved your hand again, this time with your palm extended forward, and as soon as you made contact you could see ripples move from where your hand was upward.

That was a barrier.

And seeing how it extended sideways and upwards…

It had to be a dome.

But why was there a dome surrounding the Complex?

Your mind had barely begun to ask the important questions when you felt it. Everything happened very slowly.

An electric current passed from the barrier to your fingertips. You saw it coming from above. From your fingers it moved quickly to your arms and suddenly seemed like shock waves. You felt five currents, there gawking and dumbfounded, until the sixth electric current was so strong that it sent you flying a few meters back.

Surprised, you couldn't even react. You felt the emptiness of a fall as your body moved backwards, until you finally hit solid ground making a loud, elongated sound. You had crawled a little on the grass. In pain, you writhed on the ground, letting out slight groans. What was that supposed to be? Why had it thrown you like that? You hadn't even gotten out of a few questions and you were already entering another pile of questions.

When you sat down on the grass expecting to see the dome a few feet away, you were struck dumb when you saw that you were a long way from the trees. And several of them looked like they were cut down, very specifically they looked like they were cut in the direction you were thrown.

Without taking your eyes off that long path you stood up. It seemed to be that the current from the dome had thrown you so hard that you had gone all the way through the trees back to the entrance of the path. Even in the distance you could still glimpse the iridescent glows of the dome.

You were too surprised that you felt pain, but not too much. How could you not be in tremendous pain after crossing through fifty or so trees that fast?

But before you could continue thinking about the unreal situation you were going through, you heard a commotion in the back. In the parking lot. Being that the entrance to the trail was relatively close to the parking lot, you didn't have to walk too far until you began to make out faces.

They were the faces of the Avengers, especially Bucky.

You started walking faster when you spotted him and he wasn't far behind. It looked like he'd seen you sooner because he was already trotting towards where you were.

“Where were you?” you spoke quickly when he reached your side.

He didn't respond, just kept his gaze fixed on you. You barely noticed the dirt smudges on his face, and with a quick inspection he didn't seem to have any serious injuries on his body.

“Bucky?” you spoke again after several seconds with no response.

His body seemed frozen with his longing gaze fixed on your face. You missed his attitude, but at that moment you had important things to ask.

“Bucky, did you know there's a dome over the Complex?”

The aforementioned shook his head slightly. That question seemed to snap him out of his trance.

“And I saw someone on the news today. A man. Very destructive and evil.”

Bucky discomposed his face more and more. Suddenly, it looked like only fear and confusion made his expression. You didn't know if the right thing to do was to press on with asking or wait for him to say something.

The rest of the team, instead of entering the Complex, stood behind Bucky. You barely glanced past everyone because you really didn't want to see them, and you didn't want to have that conversation there either.

“Why don't we go inside?” you asked Bucky with pleading eyes as you grabbed his wrist to make him walk.

“There wasn't anything you could do, was there?” Bucky finally spoke, and you wondered for a moment if he was really talking to you or to what was going around in his head, because from the look on his face you could almost swear he was lost in thought.

His eyes were shining, emotions were passing too quickly across his face to identify them carefully. But one stayed with you: heartbreak. He looked like he had just been told that the love of his life had died. You thought for a moment if that was the expression he'd had when he found out about your accident.

The accident.

“Bucky, we have to-”

He embraced you. Hastily, he took your hand that had gripped his wrist and pulled you until he had you contained in his arms. His grip was so tight you feared he might bury your clothes in your skin. Still, his embrace felt like a welcome. Maybe that's how he would have hugged you if you had awakened from your coma with your memories intact. But you also felt desperation pouring from his pores, with the way he moved his hands over your arms and the way his breathing quickened and wouldn't calm down, even though you were so close. It seemed he feared you would disappear, that you would be gone again, out of his reach.

His thumbs caressed your skin, but it felt rough, hard, desperate. Bucky seemed to want to remedy something with that embrace. Maybe his guilt, maybe your pain. Maybe the time together you had lost. His touch almost surrounded the abuse, but his ragged breathing seemed to make up for it.

You wanted to push him away so you could go inside. You wanted to tell him what you had discovered in such a short time, the things you had surmised, but you couldn't find it within yourself to push him away. Not when it seemed he would faint if a millimeter of his skin didn't touch yours. Not when it seemed that your breathing near his ear was the only thing keeping him sane.

“I'm sorry. I really am,” was all he said, after several seconds.

His grip didn't lessen much over time. Rather, it stopped being a little desperate, but it was still strong. He didn't want to let you go.

And, for a moment, you decided to share his feelings. You hugged him back just as hard and also decided not to let go.

You hoped you were making the right decision.

Taglist: @cjand10 @yallgotkik @ruffdog921 @coracal @its-just-kayy @pono-pura-vida @vampiresarezombies @kaz11283 @vicmc624

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes angst #bucky fic #bucky x you #bucky barnes #bucky fluff #james bucky barnes #bucky x reader #bucky x y/n #bucky barnes fanfiction #bucky barnes x you #stxrvel talks #calmly remember

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dreamweaversfavsandthoughs · 6 months

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Rick and Morty S7 Ep. 5: Unmortricken

(Revenge is a dish best served a la mode—or something like that)

Here there be spoilers…

My Favs

The Rick Prime saga has been resolved.

I am overall happy that Harmon and Co. decided to resolve this story now rather than have it milked for another season or two. On top of that, the story was given a somewhat satisfying conclusion or as satisfying a conclusion as a revenge story possibly can be.

Evil Morty

Evil Morty being pulled in as a reluctant ally was not on my season 7 bingo card nor was a glimpse of his origin story but here we are. It was great seeing Morty on the same level intellectually as a Rick and our Rick treats him as an equal. I don’t think we’ll see the last of him since Rick owes him for saving his life and Evil Morty has the schematics to the Omega Device.

Uncle Slo Mobius

I cracked up at both Rick and Rick Prime getting very emotional at the wiping out of Slo Mobius over infinite dimensions. RIP Slo Mobius, gone in all realities but lives on in our hearts.

“You suck at eating pussy!”

And Rick totally owns it, but to be fair, he was young. Satisfying your partner is something you have to learn, even if you’re the smartest man in the universe.

Rick beat down of Rick Prime

When I say this is one of my favorite parts of the episode I mean that I appreciate that I found it gut-churning and difficult to watch. It’s brutal and the animation of Rick Prime’s face as it becomes less and less recognizable as human coupled with a blood-soaked Rick coming out of the room with the light completely gone from his eyes. It’s effective visual storytelling. This was the only possible outcome to Rick’s lifelong quest for vengeance. It did not end triumphantly with a hero’s welcome but, instead, a whimper.

My Not Favs

The Rick Prime saga has been resolved.

So I put this down as a not favorite because there is a part of me that wishes we had the cat-and-mouse game go on a little while longer. Ultimately, the show isn’t really about him or the revenge quest but I wish we had some more time with the character. I say this knowing the season is not over yet and anything could happen but, also, there seems to be a sort of finality to the whole thing that makes me suspect that we are done with him.

My Thoughts

The end of an era.

I had read on an animation news blog that this episode marks the midpoint of the 70 episode order that was created back in 2018 and that, if all goes according to plan, the contract will be completed in three years. I don’t know if it was intentional to have this episode air in the order that it did but I can’t help but notice that it feels like the story is transitioning into a new era. There is a feel that they are starting to wind down and get ready for a potential end to the series ( I know Dan Harmon has expressed continuing to create new seasons indefinitely, but nothing has been confirmed and they are getting close to finishing the writing portion of the order so…).

It makes sense that Rick Prime would be solved as soon as it did and, honestly, I kinda expected them to resolve that thread this season or next. The reason being is that the story of Rick and Morty is not about villains and revenge quests, but about a man who is too smart and too worldly and so ground down by life, trying to find family and connections even when he claims it’s meaningless and that he’s above it all. Rick has sort of been released from this burden and now can forge a new purpose and a new pathway with the rest of his family by his side even if, mentally and emotionally, he is not ready to do that just yet. Also, this episode has opened the door to some new lore that could carry us to the series finale ( if it does end in season 10). I’m specifically thinking about the Omega Device.

Evil Morty has the schematics that he plans on keeping on hand to buy himself some much needed peace and Rick owes him for resurrecting him and neutralizing Rick Prime for the final beat down. Also, if a device could be created to wipe out someone in every timeline then maybe it could be used to create an anti-Omega Device that could bring back those who have been wiped out. Which means we are clearly going to resurrect Uncle Slo Mobius so the two of them can go get some of that elusive McDonald’s Szechuan Sauce!

Or Rick might try to resurrect Diane as an attempt to “complete” his family. Obviously, this is just speculation, but at the same time, with the information we have this feels like a natural next step in Rick’s very slow progression to finally healing from the past and accepting the family that is with him in the present. Healing is rarely linear and I could see Rick falling into another self-destructive hole that he has fooled himself into thinking we solve all his woes. Past family and present family together. Having his cake and eating it too! What could go wrong?

#rick and morty #rick and morty season 7 #RnM #rick and morty spoilers #rnm spoilers #rick sanchez #morty smith #evil morty #rick prime #unmortricken

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ambeauty · 1 year

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I have some many thots and feelings on the season opener of Titans Part 2. I’ve literally had all day to process these thoughts and I hope they come off well intended. Well DCTK was something… I’ll make this a compliment sandwich. In the caul’s folly ep I loved how hands on Dick and Kory were. Dick constantly checking on her meant everything to me. 🥹🥹🥹 That was when I really floated to the ceiling. It is something so wonderful and so beautiful about seeing Dick be a literally shoulder for Kory to lean on, even with how strong she is. That’s how their relationship has always been but not seeing them shy away from each other physically meant a lot to me.

Now Kory not knowing how to read ancient tamaranean was a choice.. and the fact that the vision was not discussed was also a choice… How does the heir to the throne not know their ancient language. I can see if she forgot like when she had amnesia and maybe it would’ve curled over better if she said I can’t translate this right now, it must have gotten loss when I landed. IDK something to prove she hadn’t studied her own race’s native language as the next in line monarch, even if she didn’t want it.

However the Diner scene, when Dick sat next to Kory I have to say I was very pleased. Like that’s really her man without being her man.I can’t deal with them. I love how Kory went ahead of Dick to talk to the cops too. She was gonna use that charm by any means necessary and then Dick stepped in like “Baby, I got this.” 🤭🤭

Now here’s where things get shakey for me. When Kory starts to feel sick and Dick takes her back to the RV, where the hell does he leave her while going to meet with the sheriff? Was he not afraid someone wouldn’t find her after? Idk him going to visit the sheriff alone just didn’t sit right with me. And constantly leaving her “alone” throughout DCTK gave me some friction. Just didn’t seem like the smartest of ideas. But likely she didn’t wander off or get taken.

Ok so here’s my ultimate gripe with the episode. This episode was supposed to be about Dick & Carol & Ted & Kory… and I feel like they only got about a fourth of the episode. I feel like this was an episode full of very flavorful tastings of something reallly really special. I feel like if Tom could’ve written the episode of just Dick & Kory he would’ve went so crazy and I wanna see that version without all of the extra plot points like TimBer and Brother Blood. I wanted Dick & Kory actually communicating about why they put them together as a marry couple since it seemed so outlandish that they could be in bed together 🙄 (y’all have fucked multiple times.. be fucking for real) I would’ve liked you to remember it but yeah idk it was weird. Like funny but weird.

At this late stage of the series the tiptoeing and longing and pining of this ship is tortorous and TIRED. We should not fucking be here. I am sorry. We shouldn’t. Dick should’ve tried to snap Kory out of her spell by telling her some of her memories that intertwined with his. A conversation about the Mar’i vision should’ve been discussed there. I feel like it won’t ever be fully discussed because when do they have the time???

I am just forever upset that so much of s3 could’ve been giving us this but they had to throw Barbara in there for some sick reason. We should’ve gotten all of this pining last season so we weren’t spending majority of our final season there. I feel like the moment we see Dick and Kory happy and in love it’ll be over. Like 5 minutes of it. And what was the point of spending 11 episodes pining. IDK. I know Dick and Kory would have such a beautiful relationship once it’s finally said and done and I am perturbed that I am going to have to spend time exploring it in fic alone.

I just don’t wanna have to write fix it fics because that means that I was unfulfilled by the media and that was fine last season they had time to fix it on their own but the way they went about it here leave so much to be desired.

In conclusion. Dick telling Kory he would never leave her was sooooooooooo sweet. A perfect moments in the midst of a lot of shit and although he didn’t tell Kory directly. She knows how he feels. Idk when they will actually have the talk if they actually have the talk but I am sooo ready to see it. For my little DickKorian heart there’s so much riding on this conclusion. And I hope I can feel satisfied in the end. Right now I feel edged to the end of oblivion not gon hold you.

#dickkory #dc titans s4 #I am happy for y’all i swear #but me on the other hand i just need some more #they didn’t hug #dick held carols hand not Kory’s but yeah the optics can tithe me over #how much longer #how much longer do we have to nibble on these little bits and pieces #i am ready for my whole fucking meal GREGORY

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ericdeggans · 1 year

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The fun and fear of guest hosting All Things Considered

As a longtime NPR nerd, I have often listened to the smooth, smart anchors leading broadcasts of our newsmagazines and wondered: Could I do that?

Last Saturday and Sunday, I found out, when I got the chance to fill in for Michel Martin as guest anchor on Weekend All Things Considered.

I knew from a stint guest hosting CNN’s late, lamented media analysis show Reliable Sources years ago, that even a temporary host can have lots of influence over a show. The key is to assemble a lineup of interviews and stories which are informative and newsy, but also show off the host’s strengths by speaking to their expertise, enthusiasms and abilities.

For me, it was also an opportunity to pull together some dreamed-about interviews, backed by the appeal to the subject of appearing on a newsmagazine which reaches millions of listeners over a weekend. My biggest fear: breaking news which would require lots of live anchoring; fortunately, the news gods smiled down and people seemed to chill out for the holiday weekend.

Here's links to some of the stories we offered over those two days. Their quality is a real testament to the staff at Weekend All Things Considered, who were supportive, understanding of a newbie’s nerves and so good at their jobs, it made speaking to an audience of millions exhilarating and fun – and only a little bit scary.

This is one of my favorite interviews: blerding out on comic book lore with Ryan Coogler, director of Wakanda Forever, which stands at the top of the box office. We talk about the death of Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman, making longtime antihero Namor a Mayan (and those ankle wings!) and how two guys wrote a female centered, big budget Marvel movie. Click here to listen.

I’m a late-night TV nerd. So it was beyond fulfilling to get two of the smartest comics in late night to spend a little time talking about the future of late night TV and whether it makes sense to call out comics out for monologues which seem, for some, to encourage and/or minimize antisemitism or prejudice. The Daily Show’s Roy Wood Jr. and The Amber Ruffin Show’s Jenny Hagel were super smart, super funny and super thoughtful in this discussion, which you can hear by clicking here. Another version can be found in our podcast Consider This.

Flying to Washington DC on Thanksgiving night, I was astonished to see tech journalist Kara Swisher taking apart Twitter’s new owner Elon Musk in a series of tweets where she called him her biggest disappointment in 25 years as a tech reporter. During a staff a meeting the next day, I asked the team: Do you think we could get Swisher to talk with us about what happened? Turns out, they could, and we talked about Elon, whether we’re seeing the twilight of the tech bro and the future of Black Twitter. Listen here.

youtube

One thing NPR does well is spotlight up and coming artists before they become household names. So I was proud and honored to feature a revealing interview with Elegance Bratton, director/writer of the new film The Inspection, a movie based on his own life about a Black, gay homeless man -- rejected by his homophobic mother – who seeks refuge in the Marines. After the interview was done, Elegance told us he had dreamed of being interview by NPR about one of his films for years. We were happy to make that one come true – click here to listen.

A talk with Stephen Fowler of Georgia Public Radio on the start of voting in the state’ contentious Senate runoff election between Democrat Raphael Warnock and Republican Herschel Walker.

A conversation with expert Manuel Zamarripa on how to process the trauma from media coverage of mass shootings.

Discussion of the podcast White Hats, which dissects the complex and often bloody history of a group typically lionized in film and TV shows: The Texas Rangers.

Words with Senator Amy Klobuchar on her plans to convene a hearing on Ticketmaster’s dominance of the concert ticketing industry after their massive failure to sell tickets to Taylor Swift’s new concert tour.

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apocalypticavolition · 2 months

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10 Characters 10 Fandoms 10 5 Tags

Tagged by @iliiuan

Rules: choose 10 favorite characters from 10 different fandoms -- no double dipping! Then tag friends or mutuals to complete the game as well.

(Oh god oh god picking favorites what did I do to deserve this???)

Top 10

Rand al'Thor of Wheel of Time - I know that like, virtually every major character in the series has a bigger following than this boy, but dammit people he's just a regular dude on an epic quest that takes and takes and takes until there's nothing left but it's not done taking yet. I love every POV section he gets and every bit of suffering he has to go through.

Uncle Iroh of Avatar: The Last Airbender - Normally it's your Sokkas or your Zukos or your Tophs who would grab me but in a cast of shining stars Uncle Iroh is a particularly radiant entry. I would die for this man. He makes me feel I'm not drinking enough tea.

Koshirou "Izzy" Izumi of Digimon Adventure - I think part of the reason Digimon stuck with me all this time is the belief the first series had (and really the shows as a whole, but especially the first one) that none of the kids were bad or flawed for being who they were, only for how they might be hurting the others. Izzy was more comfortable with computers than people but his skill set kept the kids alive on plenty of occasions and he was never any less part of the gang for being a nerd except the times he hyperfixated while the others were in need.

Karkat Vantas of Homestuck - Homestuck was... Yeah. That sure was a thing, huh? But Karkat's constant shouting and cross-temporal feud with his past and future selves was endearing, as was his obvious hate-crush on the protagonist that was resolved in the most embarrassing way possible. And frankly, his continued disbelief at the late-comic antics more than made up for how shitty the late parts of the comic were.

Mercymorn of The Locked Tomb - Virtually every character in these books is iconic, but Mercymorn, the Saint of Joy is the sort of character who would have hundreds of gif sets of her if only she existed in a visual medium. Immortality and waging an impossible war give her nothing but contempt for our heroes, our villains, and frankly anyone else she's in the room with.

Jak of Jak & Daxter - I think I just have a thing for dudes who get tortured beyond all reason and struggle between their innate heroism and the corruption that's been burned into them by outside forces. Also he gets some cool guns, you know? Can't argue with cool guns.

Garak of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - An exiled spy doomed to spend his days in a port/fortress owned by one set of enemies and administrated by another? A wide array of possible backstories, each one equally plausible except for how they all contradict each other? A slow onset of madness from the grief and isolation kept at bay only through chemical abuse and a homoerotic relationship with the galaxy's smartest idiot? And he's not even a main character!

Sheila "Dr. Girlfriend" / "Mrs. the Monarch" Fitzcarraldo of The Venture Brothers - Sheila starts out a complete joke (but then, who isn't a complete joke in her series) but grows into one of the most competent and compelling members of the cast. I'm still not quite sure what she sees in the Monarch but I enjoy how she's both fully supportive of his goals while still set very much on her own thing with the Guild of Calamitous Intent as well. I hope the show comes back so we can see what she gets up to next, or at least see her in that pillbox hat one more time.

Max of Sam & Max - Hyperkinetic lagomorphs are always a plus, and I enjoy the way he's pure id in a franchise where superegos are already in short supply. I'm gonna hafta replay the games one of these days.

Susan Ivanova of Babylon 5 - Learn the Babylon 5 mantra: Ivanova is always right. I will listen to Ivanova. I will not ignore Ivanova's recommendations. Ivanova is God. I have nothing else to say on this particular front.

@checkoutmybookshelf

@notmuchtoconceal

@butterflydm

@mashithamel

@bashircore

#favorite characters

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stitchlingbelle · 4 months

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Watching Halo, Episode 2

Episode 2

Ok kids, I binge-watched this entire show and took THIRTEEN PAGES of handwritten notes so I didn’t forget to talk about anything that caught me! So let’s be about it.

First off, may I say how much I appreciate that John is not a good-looking guy? He’s just a dude (the other Spartans likewise) and that sells the whole thing to me more than if they were all pretty. (Granted, I also thought Hiddleston and the cucumber guy were not pretty, so YMMV.)

Speaking of the other Spartans, how many are there? “Silver Team” implies the existence of a “Gold Team”, at the very least. And we open with a flashback to at least one getting away, or trying to—is he the only one to try, or to make it out? John apparently was supposed to go with him, or so Soren thought. He doesn’t (obviously), but he does give Soren a small headstart. (I can only assume that John/Soren is one of the top tags on AO3, this is Serious Emotional Bond stuff.) Why is Soren able to want out? Glad John didn’t shoot him.

In the present, Halsey is plotting something, because of course she is. The Spartans are trying to track John down, seemingly under some protest over whether he actually needs to be tracked down. I pegged Kai as the smartest Spartan last episode, and I’m getting confirmed in that opinion now. She questions and she thinks. Whether this is going to serve John’s arc or the UNSC, I don’t know yet.

Here we are with Kwan and Master Chief, with Kwan asking the real questions, which is a talent of hers. May I take a quick aside to point out that asteroids do not, in fact, float around that close to each other? It’s a very fun SF trope, though. Oh, so THIS is why the place is called “Rubble”. Clever. That is a seriously cool asteroid city design. YAY for someone speaking Hungarian! This show excels at showing that more than people from Iowa made it off the planet. (I appreciate all the accents to this end, as well.)

Uh, the armor’s a bit conspicuous, Chief, shoulda left that on the ship. Wow, they found Soren fast. (Has Kwan ever been off-planet before? She’s looking a little overwhelmed. Which is fair, shit is A Lot right now.) I laughed at the “mind the gap” reference. The tram thing is pure Universal Studios Ride bait.

I have a lot of feelings about Kessler and Laera, in order:

Cute kid and happy family? Oh shit they are doomed.

Otoh, Laera’s pretty glammed up, maybe she’s the sell-them-out type

Pale hair, intense eyes, Covenant destroyed her planet? Is she related to Makee?

Cute little stamp, this kid is DEFINITELY doomed

…unless they get to tragically lose Soren, instead? I TRUST NOTHING HERE

“Soren speaks of you often.” “Not that often,” Soren says flatly to the man he left behind. You talk about him constantly because you two were deeply in love, I’m calling it.

Makee is planning a mission to get the magical alien tech, full of references I would absolutely get if I were a gamer and which I instead absolutely don’t. As a fan of several long-running scifi series in an era when a lot of them are retreading ground (some brilliantly, some not), it’s novel, annoying, and deeply refreshing all at once to have to discover things as the characters do. I am still super obsessed with Makee’s costume design, and the aliens’ appearance is very well-done. They clearly put a lot of effort into making them stand up.

The UNSC brass are politicking and plotting, as the brass in any universe does, and I’m sorry, AI and cloning are never, ever good ideas in settings like this. I feel for Miranda getting constantly shut out, etc. I do wonder what the other Spartans want. Like, what are their goals? What do they think of the different people ordering them around?

Back on Rubble, Soren’s getting churros and saying “I know a guy,” which of course he does. Reth was… a choice. Ngl, this whole bit was deeply uncomfortable for me. We did get some good intel on the object and the Covenant. I absolutely appreciate Soren calling out explicitly the Mommy Dearest-ness of Halsey, she has predator vibes you can see from space. I do wish we knew more about the (apparently very few?) prisoners the Covenant takes and why and how they pick them. YIKES YIKES YIKES what did that thing just do? And who else can activate it?

And there goes John, leaving Kwan behind (so she can tragically die alongside the tragedy-bait kid??) and returning to Halsey and her creepiness. Meanwhile, Makee gets a gratuitous nude scene, which on one hand had me rolling my eyes and on the other had me glued to every detail of the construction design of that costume. So thanks, I guess, director dude.

Credits roll… wait, what do you mean, executive produced by Steven Spielberg???

#halo tv show #for extra fun spot how much more detailed each post gets as I get more and more invested

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bucketinyourwalls · 1 year

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2!Postal Dude Headcanons <3

Summary:

With this version of 2!Postal Dude consists of a mix of my own projections, random stuff I thought of whenever bored, and just how I generally see him. Based on my first run with him, and a mix of the wiki. Anyone that wants to add these to their own lists feel free! :D

General:

Goofy as hell. Still just as insane as the others, but takes it all less seriously.

Either has a list or small journal he carries on him all the time just filled with one-liners, also carries a pen so he can write down any new ones he thinks of.

Fucking dumbass.

Not the smartest guy around, but also not the dumbest. Decent knowledge with some things.

Sometimes pretends to be a full on moron just to annoy the person, or piss them off depending on if it's someone he likes or hates.

Knowledgeable in some subjects, but only if it’s something he has a genuine interest in.

Random hyperfixation on things. Tries to keep himself focused on one or two things at a time and tries to balance everything out, but always fails.

Favorite aesthetics consist of cyberpunk, post-apocalyptic, feralcore, bastardcore, and post-punk.

Feral bastard.

Bites people. Started out as a joke but was slowly integrated into his life.

Humor’s all over the damn place. Mix of whatever he can find on Tumblr and shows like South Park and Beavis and Butthead.

Has a Tumblr and Twitter account. Both just so he can watch everything unfold and doesn’t bother to post anything.

Following list for Twitter mostly consists of gimmick accounts, some of it wholesome, and others being shit he just decided was funny.

Personality built around others' perception of him, whether people he actually knows or just those on the internet.

Personality changes often, but keeps certain aspects for each one.

Bit of a people pleaser.

Mood is always randomized for each day. One day he could be the most calm and patient man in Paradise, and the next he could go on a massacre.

Mood really depends on his morning. Slight inconveniences do have the potential to fuck it all up if there was a major one before, but not on their own.

Very patient with people when younger, but that patience has slowly degraded over the years.

Would never snap at anyone when younger, maybe a few passive aggressive comments.

But now with the degraded patience, much more prone to snapping at people.

Animal lover. Always making sure Champ gets pets and food before he goes off to do his errands and will do his best to take care of strays.

After the beginning cutscene near the start of the game with him kicking Champ for pissing in front of him felt a fuck ton of guilt for the rest of the day. After he got home made sure to do his best to make it up to Champ through whatever means necessary.

Type of video games that he plays is a healthy mix of horror such as Silent Hill and Resident Evil, indie games like Cult of the Lamb and Hollow Knight, and of course shooter games like DOOM and the Call of Duty series.

For Cult of the Lamb he definitely named the cult after himself. Once tried to mod the game himself to add in or replace the decorations to better fit himself but that never ended up happening.

Just about grew up with horror. During highschool he had a fake ID so he could see the Rated R movies without having to bring an adult with him, or would just sneak in (and get caught).

Holds the DOOM series close to his crack-filled heart, with his favorite being the 1993 DOOM as a mix of nostalgia and everything that could be done. Always discovering new secrets on every playthrough.

Probably plays Call of Duty a bit less than the others, and mostly consists of him playing online and just insulting everyone since it’s fun to see their reactions. Barely pays attention to any of the campaigns.

Bisexual and Pangender <3

Age being 27 during the events of Postal 2 (no clue if he has a canon age so for the time being I’m sticking to that).

Music:

Mostly metal and rock.

Korn, Avenged Sevenfold, Rob Zombie, Dope, Limp Bizkit, Skillet, Seether, Slayer, etc.

Favorite songs with them consisting of: “Y’all Want a Single?” by Korn, “Rollin (Air Raid Vehicle” by Limp Bizkit, and “6 Gun Quota” by Seether.

Also has a few other songs in there that seem much out of place, either because he thought it’d be funny or just from him genuinely enjoying them.

Few examples being the “Bisexual Anthem” by Domo Wilson, “Material Girl” by Saucy Santana, “Masquerade” by siouxxie sixxta, ect.

Sings in the shower, most of the time keeps it quiet but will sing loudly as hell just to drive people crazy.

Cannot be trusted with the aux cord.

God help you if you’re on a road trip and he gets a hold of the cord.

Credits:

Credit for both dividers go to @kawaii-lau, after a bit of scrolling finding some dividers saw that they had some cool stuff, so check them out! <3

#postal #postal 2 #postal dude #running with scissors #rws #postal 2 dude #headcanon #just random shit I thought of instead of thinking of headcanons for Phillip Graves #I know he does say that he doesn't like video games but I'm willing to ignore that <3 #and sorry for this writing being incoherent as hell

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mlobsters · 4 months

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supernatural s13e2 the rising son (w. eugenie ross-leming, brad buckner)

kind of pissy and upset that crowley is actually dead-dead and it was such a weird anticlimactic sendoff that i didn't even realize it while watching. so seeing his dumb little topside throne room i'm getting all weird and protective over it being his space.

sure felt like a problem behind the scenes and i was avoiding looking it up and well, this is wholly unsurprising

via screenrant

Not long after the Supernatural Crowley death, there was a moment on X (formerly known as Twitter) in which executive producer Jim Michaels hinted that Crowley and Mark A. Sheppard might not be done with the series for good. However, Sheppard responded by accusing Michaels of intentionally misleading fans and stated bluntly there were no plans for him to come back at any juncture.

oof, and the nycc comments summarized by looper

"Once they decided they needed to do something different [with the direction of the show], they tried to get rid of me without telling me that they were going to get rid of me," Sheppard revealed during a solo panel at 2018's New York Comic Con. Never one to mince words, Sheppard expressed his disappointment with his demise on the show, continuing, "I'd gone from being the smartest character on the show to being the dumbest character on the show in two seasons. They ran out of what to do." Needless to say, he did not leave the show on the best of terms.

oof x2

asmodeus, great, sure ok. now he said it the way i thought it was pronounced originally (asmo-DAYus). and then on the magicians, they pronounced it asMO-deeus. i believe they're all accepted pronunciations?

the magicians s1e10 homecoming

the white suit and the thick accent and the speechifying, it's giving confederate general slash colonel sanders vibes. the foghorn leghorn knives out treatment. also feels like he's doing an impression of someone. i keep thinking mcconnaughey but i don't know why, different accent

eyes rolling into the back of my head

i didn't think the show could get bad enough that i wouldn't be able to finish watching, because i have such a strong attachment to sam and dean... but i feel like that they might be proving me wrong

DEAN You can slow down, you know. That’s stuff’s not gonna disappear. SAM Ever seen you eat, Dean?

seriously. one of my least favorite character traits

that interaction was cute, mainly because jackles seemed way more... i dunno. relaxed? and that little small expression to sam where he widens his eyes to jack getting what teleport is, just feels really natural. also his voice seems slightly different? more like jensen's actual voice dropped a little instead of putting on the voice for dean. less raspy, more resonant and rounded sounding but still deep. well and likely that's been happening and i just didn't notice or they're doing the audio differently

wheezing over the perspective of this making sam look like gandalf with the hobbits on the couch

speaking of resonant voices, donatello the new prophet that i 90% forgot about

JACK Is that why Dean hates me? SAM Dean doesn’t hate you. It… Look, sometimes the wires in Dean’s head get crossed and—and he gets frustrated, and then he mixes frustration with anger, and—and fear. JACK Why would he be afraid? SAM Because Dean feels like it’s his job to protect everyone. And right now, we need to protect you. But we may also need to protect people from you. JACK Maybe I’m not worth all this. SAM Your mom thought you were. So did Cas. So do I.

i'll take sam talking about dean every day of the week but eh. grating on me a bit this thing with sam being calm and reasonable and dean being stubborn, either it has happened a lot in the past couple seasons or i'm being grumpy because i'm unhappy with the show in general

BARTENDER I hated my old man. I ran away myself. See, my mom would never stick up for me. But… (sighs) you know kids. No matter what, they still want the old man’s approval. Well, that’s how it was with me, just… DEAN You know, that’s, uh, that’s how it was with me, too.

frustratingly in-character that dean will dump out his emotional issues to randos. and oh no it was actually the latest bad guy demon

so whatever fic i read that i thought was about purgatory i'm wondering if it was in this hell-au/apocalypse world because this is more like what i was expecting from purgatory. gray and dirt

sitting down to talk through their disagreement in obnoxious slatted light

SAM Point is… if you and I are gonna do this, keep Jack on the right side of things, then—then we have to be on the same page. DEAN Okay. Well, that’s the problem, though, Sam, ‘cause we’re not on the same page. Like, at all. SAM All right. You know what? I know what’s going on here. DEAN Oh. Okay. Well, please, tell me, what’s going on here? SAM You thinking Mom is gone and Cas is gone, and that Jack can’t be saved. Dean, after everything we’ve gone through… We just lost people we love, people who have been in our lives for a long time. Everything’s upside-down. I get it. But we’ve been down before. I mean, rock bottom. And we find a way. We fix it because that’s what we do. And Jack w—wants to do the right thing. Jack’s scared to death of who he is, and he’s scared of you.

very rousing speech, sammy. i'm not feeling it but sure

listen. this is the most ridiculous plot choice. 1) we need to protect jack and take him to the bunker because angels/demons/etc all want him, tried to get him warded via tattoo 2) not-hunter donatello shows up so hey, jack can stay with him because things got tense yesterday. he doesn't need that close of protection that we should tolerate unnecessary tension. 3) oh no. general colonel sanders has found him and now he's gone ;( big sad face

who choreographed this fight scene??? laughing and distressed. stunt person getting some up close and personal time with jackles's (or his stunt double's) crotch/ass

often wondered why they never throw the angel blades, since they're dime a dozen these days. can't have anything too op though right, why they had to melt down the colt. also sam's hair seems to be sort of reverting more to that... s10? styled-ish bob thing

foley of the outside sounds is very nice and interesting location at least

the monsters crawling out of the pit very slowly was so so cheesy, good grief

every time we check in with mary and lucifer i'm wondering how she's not going to die from dehydration. and michael and lucifer are gonna have a little throwdown punchout, sure

SAM These yellow-eyed things just keep on comin’, huh? DEAN Mm—hmm.

how it feels as a viewer too 🥴

this episode had some new angles and lighting and getting a little more creative in shot selection, so that's nice at least. also less music? there's still some score but i think like this sequence not having music is really effective. and hey this guy directed 11x04 baby too

JACK Exactly. What the hell am I? I can’t control… whatever this is. I will hurt someone. DEAN You know, my brother thinks you can be saved. JACK You don’t believe that. DEAN No, I don’t. JACK So… if you’re right? DEAN If I’m right… and it comes to killing you… I’ll be the one to do it.

i'm all for them having a kid, because why not. you know i eat up that domestic bullshit with a spoon. but this very clear setup of a character arc for dean and jack and whatever, just feels very set up.

i keep thinking about how like, if xyz that happened in this episode happened in s4 or something, i think i'd genuinely appreciate it then. but like.. we have been down the same path so many times now, i can't really appreciate the things anymore. i don't want to hate everything, and i'm really trying to come into each episode with limited baggage and appreciate when i can because otherwise i will just give up. this is the only thing i do in the evening after the kids are in bed. if i hate everything about it every day, i'll have to find something else to do sooner rather than later. but i'm also invested in completing it. if i've made it this far.. buh. anyway.

#supernatural #spnwatch #spn 13x02 #spn asmodeus #spnwhinge #the magicians #spn clip #eugenie ross leming #brad buckner #spn crowley #mark sheppard

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melanielocke · 2 years

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The Stars Collide - Chapter 20

I really have to get back to writing this story because now I have no chapters left. I did work really hard at the Witch in the Woods, my Hansel and Gretel retelling, and finished a round of edits today. I'll probably go over it once more and then I'll need some people to beta read it so if anyone's interest, let me know. Next chapter of the Stars Collide will be sometime next week, though I'll have to write it first. AO3 | Chapter list

Alastair felt a little uncomfortable around his sister. He hated that he felt this way, he’d missed her so much over the past six years and was happy she’d come to Fair, but he also hated how she knew what had happened to him.

Cordelia didn’t say anything, likely Thomas had asked her not to, but he could still see the way she looked at him. With worry. With pity. He was older than her, and it had always been his duty to protect her and keep her safe. He’d never wanted her to see how broken he really was, and her trying to protect him felt wrong.

‘I’m really excited to see Lightwood,’ Cordelia said. ‘The biggest forest of the planet. I read that there are lots of small villages and settlements in the woods, nothing like the castle and surrounding cities I’ve seen so far.’

‘There’s lots of farmland too,’ Thomas said. ‘When my sisters and I were little, we used to help pick tomatoes and berries and the like during harvest season. They always needed extra hands for the harvest and my father believed it important for us to help out and get some experience with manual labor. Genie used to eat some of the berries she picked until one time a farmer got really mad at her for it.’

‘I’ve never done anything like that,’ Cordelia said. ‘Is it harvest season right now?’

‘For pumpkins,’ Thomas said. ‘For berries it’s a little late.’

‘Can I sign up to help harvest pumpkins too?’ Cordelia asked. ‘Sounds like fun.’

‘I’m sure you can. I never did, because we used to be in school during pumpkin season, while we had summer break when the berries were harvested.’

‘With some of the larger pumpkins, you can carve them out and put a candle inside,’ Lucie said. ‘They work as charms when I make them and are some of the strongest protective charms I can make. Until the pumpkin expires, that is. Maybe we can decorate the house with those, to keep you safe.’

Alastair listened to the conversation, but didn’t add anything himself, choosing to focus on one of the books he’d borrowed from Thomas. It was a novel set in an ancient world where a young man fell in love with a demon. It fascinated him, because who could love a demon? Who could love something so dark and rotten? But a little later into the book, he’d discovered the demon wasn’t evil, not really. He was just broken and sad and blamed himself for things that had never been his fault. The main character was the first to see the demon for who he really was, the first to take away some of his burden and help him find a way to heal. The main character reminded him of Thomas, in a way. So open, so kind. He had a reckless streak too, and didn’t always make the smartest decisions, but he was determined to prove his demon was not the evil everyone believed him to be. Alastair hoped the two would find a way to be together. Unfortunately, it was only the first in a series and book 2 wasn’t coming out for a few more months.

‘How much longer is it?’ Alastair asked when he finished the book.

‘Two more hours,’ Thomas said. ‘Lightwood is a six hour flight.’

‘You don’t happen to have another book?’

‘We have lots of books in Lightwood,’ Thomas said. ‘Until then we can play a game though. Cordelia has a supply of board games on the ship. Or we can eat. I brought some leftovers from the freezer we can heat up in here.’

‘I could eat,’ Alastair said. ‘What do you have?’

Alastair had weighed himself that morning, and he’d gained ten pounds since marrying Thomas. He was almost at a healthy weight.

‘Eggplant mash, two portions lentil soup and spiced cauliflower and potato,’ Thomas said.

‘That all sounds delicious,’ Alastair said. ‘Can I have the eggplant mash?’

Eggplant was one of his favorite vegetables, something that was commonly eaten on Turan too. Eggplant mash reminded him of home. They all ate dinner, Cordelia putting the plane in autopilot to come eat too. Cordelia returned to the cockpit after dinner, while Lucie stayed behind and decided they would play a game of Rummikub.

‘You’re far too good at this,’ Lucie complained after Alastair had rearranged half the board to put away his last stone. ‘None of this should be allowed.’

‘I followed all of the rules,’ Alastair said. ‘I won.’

‘Come, Lu, we’ll go for place two and three.’

Alastair sat closer to Thomas, looking at his stones and the board. He had one difficult stone, but there were two he should be able to lose once Lucie finished her turn. He looked over the board, analyzing different ways to move the stones, lose the ones Thomas had in hand and have everything turn out complete.

‘You need to rearrange this,’ Alastair said once Lucie had given up and picked a stone from the pile.

‘You’re not allowed to help!’ Lucie yelled.

Alastair wisely shut up and waited until Thomas figured it out himself. It took some time, during which Lucie took out her laptop and started typing, occasionally asking Thomas if he was done yet.

‘Maybe next game we should put a timer during which you’re supposed to make your move,’ Alastair suggested.

‘If you think this is long, you should play Rummikub with my dad,’ Thomas said. ‘During his move you can make tea, come back, finish it, and he still will be looking if there’s really no way to lose that one stone.’

‘Maybe I’ll try,’ Alastair said. ‘I would like to get to know him better, at least.’

With Henry and Charlotte, his relationship had been cordial, yet distant. He was more of an acquaintance to them than family, though he had recently learned Henry did care for him. He hoped to build a better relationship with his new in laws. He’d been so alone during his time with Charles, and Alastair never wanted to feel like that again.

They tried several other games until in the end Lucie settled on a purely luck based game called Ludo. Alastair had too much insight and memory for most of the other games they’d found on board of the plane. He lost magnificently at Ludo, Lucie kept throwing his pawns of the board, making him start over.

It was close to midnight in Lightwood when they landed the plane on a designated spot near Lightwood estate. There was a four hour time difference, and Alastair didn’t feel like sleeping quite yet. They dragged all their belongings to the Lightwood estate, and Thomas showed Alastair to his room first, and then helped Lucie and Cordelia get their bags into the guest room.

Thomas’ bedroom was nice. It was a little bigger than the bedroom of his quarters at Fair palace, but similar in coloring, nice and cozy. The bed was made and everything looked nice and clean. Alastair changed into his pajamas, then found his way to the bathroom to clean himself and brush his teeth before getting into bed. Thomas joined him not long after, and for a moment Alastair considered getting a little closer to him. He had loved being held by Thomas, and he wished Thomas would hold him here too. But he couldn’t ask that. It would be too much, it would scare Thomas away from him.

When Alastair woke the next morning, Thomas was still asleep and Alastair decided to get dressed quietly and leave the bedroom so Thomas could sleep a little more. He soon realized he didn’t know exactly where he was going and after taking a wrong turn somewhere, he entered a room he thought Thomas had said would like to the library, but he was wrong. This was a study, but it looked unused and rather dusty. He was about to turn around, when he noticed the portrait of a young woman. She had brown hair and green eyes, a piercing gaze, a haughty expression on her face. Alastair could have sworn he’d seen her before and yet that didn’t make any sense because he couldn’t figure out when.

‘Who is- oh, Alastair. You must have lost your way?’

Alastair startled. He turned around to see Thomas’ father standing in the doorway.

‘Didn’t mean to scare you,’ Gideon Lightwood said. ‘It’s just, this used to be my father’s study. No one usually comes here. I heard your footsteps.’

‘Thomas told me where to find the library, but I think I misinterpreted his instructions,’ Alastair said.

Now that he went over them again in his head, they were somewhat ambiguous and Alastair had picked one he thought Thomas had meant. He often found it difficult when people were ambiguous in what they meant.

‘That’s alright, you couldn’t have known. Come, I’ll show you to the library.’

‘Wait. Who is that woman over there?’ Alastair asked. ‘I feel like I’m supposed to remember her.’

‘She’s my sister, Tatiana,’ Gideon said. ‘I haven’t seen her in a long time. She left Fair after both our father and her husband died. Last I heard she fled to the Edom empire. I think it’s unlikely you’d have met her.’

‘I guess so,’ Alastair said. ‘With my memory, I would remember. Perhaps I’ve seen her picture before, or just someone who looks like her.’

Still, it bothered Alastair. Why didn’t he remember her? Why would her face be so familiar? She was from Fair originally, but hadn’t lived here in some time. Would it make sense if she had anything to do with the experiments?

‘How long was it ago, that she fled?’

‘Almost thirty years,’ Gideon said. ‘Her husband died shortly after she’d married him, along with my father.’

Gideon’s tone indicated he didn’t want to talk about this any further and Alastair respected that. He could sense there was something difficult there. Maybe Thomas would know more, but Alastair wouldn’t press him about it either for now.

‘I’m sorry about your father.’

‘Don’t be. He was not a good man,’ Gideon said. ‘The library is this way.’

The library was a cozy room with a sofa and several comfortable looking chairs and a coffee table in the middle. The seating arrangement looked out onto the forest through a wall of windows. On the other wall, there were book cases filling the rooms.

‘I love this set up,’ Alastair said. ‘And the view, it’s lovely.’

‘It is beautiful,’ Gideon agreed. ‘The books on the far side are old, but many are newer. It’s not that much compared to the Herondales, but I’d still consider this a big collection. What kind of books do you like?’

‘Oh, all kinds. I used to read a lot about politics, but nowadays I’m getting more into fiction. Thomas had a lot of books I’m enjoying.’

‘That shelf on the right are Thomas’ books,’ Gideon said. ‘Maybe you’ll find something you like there.’

‘I’ll take a look,’ Alastair said. ‘Thank you. But would it be okay if I ate something first? I don’t know where the kitchen is and I’m a little hungry.’

‘Of course. Come, I’ll show you. Is Tom not up yet?’

‘I figured I’d let him sleep. Usually he makes me breakfast, I don’t always eat breakfast. He’s a very good cook, I gained ten pounds since we got married. I used to be really underweight.’

‘He gets that from his mother,’ Gideon said. ‘I never had much talent in the kitchen, I’m afraid, but Sophie is an amazing cook and she taught Thomas. I’m glad you’re eating better, you look healthier than you did at your wedding.’

‘Thanks you,’ Alastair said.

He wondered how Thomas felt about that. Would he find Alastair more attractive now that he’d gained some weight? He looked better than he used to and started to feel a little less insecure about his body. Perhaps foolishly, he still hoped Thomas could develop feelings for him.

@alastaircarstairsdefenselawyer @life-through-the-eyes-of @styxdrawings @justanormaldemon @ipromiseiwillwrite @a-dream-dirty-and-bruised @amchara @all-for-the-fanfiction @imsoftforthomastair @ddepressedbookworm @queenlilith43 @wagner-fell @cant-think-of-anything @laylax13s @tessherongraystairs @boredfangirl16 @artist-in-soul @broodyhawthorne @ikissedsmithparker

#Alastair Carstairs #Thomas Lightwood #Lucie Herondale #Cordelia Carstairs #Gideon Lightwood #the last hours #tlh #the stars collide #fanfiction

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drabbles-mc · 2 years

Text

Tagging Out

Horacio Carrillo & OC Diego Ramírez

Inspired by Day 12 of the August Prompts: island

Part 2, Part 3

Warnings: angsty tension and goodness

Word Count: 3.3k

A/N: Firstly, this is a metaphorical application of today’s prompt lol. Secondly, this is a very OC-centered fic and I totally get if that’s not your bag but I feel like I’ve just got so much I want to do with Diego as a character and I’m finally getting around to doing it. This is one of a million little AUs for him. (Like an AU of Pressing Matters for anyone interested lol). Thirdly, this is a one-shot for now but I feel like it’s gonna become a series lmao. Also this is dedicated to @ashlingnarcos because no one gets Diego quite like she does. Big loves to you 💖

Narcos Taglist: @thesandbeneathmytoes @garbinge @bruxasolta @winchestershiresauce @sizzlingcloudmentality @alm0501 @panagiasikelia @616wilsons @hauntedforsst @mirabee @buckybarneshairpullingkink @boomclapxox @nessamc @southotheborder @supersanelyromantic @padbrookcottage @mysun-n-stars @raincoffeeandfandoms @bport76 @marrianena @passionatewrites @narcolini (If you want to be added to any of my taglists, please let me know!)

There were a million reasons why people in his line of work constantly felt like they were being watched. It was a self-preservation thing first and foremost—operating under that assumption was the way that a lot of them stopped themselves from fucking up, making moves that could not only impact themselves but all the others that they worked with as well. It wasn’t always paranoia, though. Sometimes the tactic wasn’t a tactic, it was the reality of the situation. The men that they were all after had eyes and ears everywhere. More likely than not, wherever they went on the streets of Medellín, someone was listening in or watching.

The feeling of being watched on-base was new, though. And Diego could’ve, quite frankly, gone his whole career without knowing the feeling.

It was such a swift downfall for someone who hadn’t done anything wrong. Not too long ago, he was a bit of a golden boy. Ask any of the officers, and more often than not, they’d have good things to say about him. Not just his work, mind you, but about him. He was a likeable kid. Or, at least, he was, before he ended up with his boss’s ex. Now, he had become a bit of a pariah despite the fact that the quality of his work hadn’t ever wavered.

He’d stuck it out for a while, hoping that the drama and the apparent scandal of it all would blow over. He didn’t know how it got so out of hand, because there wasn’t even a scandal to begin with. But somewhere along the lines of the very unreliable game of telephone that the CNP officers and their wives all played, the details got muddied. And, of course, he was the only one who ever tried to rectify the situation. He was a good man, but he was severely out-numbered. His pride was telling him to push on, to ignore it all because he wasn’t the one in the wrong. But that tiny little voice of self-preservation in the back of his head told him that maybe putting some distance between himself and all of the officers that he had come to know and trust over the years might be the smartest play long-term. It would read horribly, he knew that. He knew the second he submitted his papers it was going to be read as an admission of guilt, an act of cowardice. But at least he wouldn’t have to be around every day and be subjected to it. A new location with fewer prying eyes sounded like heaven at this point.

What that meant, though, was having to knock on the colonel’s office door and have the conversation about him transferring. He knew that Carrillo would be glad to see him go, for a multitude of reasons at this point, but Diego wasn’t necessarily looking forward to the talk that would get him to the end-goal that he had in mind. He wished that he could just stamp Carrillo’s signature on the paperwork and be done with it, but it wasn’t that simple. And, even if it was, Carrillo wouldn’t have let it be. He was going to want his pound of flesh.

Diego stood outside the colonel’s office door, manila folder full of the necessary paperwork clutched tightly in his hand. He thought about it for a moment, second-guessed the move. The Search Bloc was his whole world these last couple of years. Right out academy and into the thick of it all with hardly a beat in between. Putting it on hold indefinitely, perhaps giving it up altogether, felt like he was breaking off a relationship. Which he promptly reminded himself was not the best simile for the situation given the circumstances.

Shaking his head, he forced himself to knock. Life was difficult enough as an officer. If he could ease the extra tensions by not being the epicenter of the talks around Carlos Holguín, he should take the opportunity.

“Come in,” his tone was neutral, which led Diego to believe that he hadn’t seen him walking up to the door.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed the door open and stepped just beyond its threshold. He nodded, “Colonel Carrillo.”

His eyes snapped up from the papers he had previously been looking at, his tightly clenched jaw the only signal to the feelings he harbored towards the officer in front of him, “Ramírez.”

“I need a minute,” he knew that asking would give Carrillo the opportunity to dismiss him, an opportunity the man would gladly take, so he didn’t ask.

Setting his pen down with a surprising amount of care, he nodded and gestured to the chair across from his desk, “A minute, then.”

Diego shut the door behind him, not wanting everyone else to hear what the two of them were discussing. He knew that they had watched him walk over to the door, stared as they all waited to see if Carrillo was going to grant him entrance. Not that the man really had much of a choice, but it was like primetime television happening live on the base. Sure, Escobar and his sicarios were running rampant through the streets, but that wasn’t quite like the immediate drama of two men that they knew personally, that they liked and respected (or at least used to) being locked in this strange stalemate. Diego often wondered if they all knew that the attention they paid to it only served to make matters a whole lot worse. He wondered if they cared.

He sat down across from the colonel, resting the folder atop his legs as he tried to make sure his eye contact with the man didn’t waver. He never used to be afraid of Carrillo. Respected him, absolutely. He knew the man was capable of some intensely alarming things, the epitome of the ends justifying the means, and part of him admired that even if he didn’t necessarily agree with it all of the time. But now, as he sat there knowing that the future of his career rested in the hands of this man who would most definitely be holding a grudge until the way one of them dropped dead, and probably even after that, he was trying not to let his nerves get the best of him.

Carrillo leaned back in his seat, motioning for Diego to say whatever it was that he came there to say, “Yes?”

Diego fought the urge to toy with the edges of the folder in his lap, “I think I should transfer out of Search Bloc,” he was impressed with himself at how certain he sounded.

Carrillo faltered for half of a second, eyebrows lifting lightly before he recovered and took back on his typical, neutrally annoyed expression, “I think you’re right.”

Diego visibly cringed, like he had actually just taken a punch to the stomach from the man sitting across from him. He knew that Carrillo most likely wasn’t going to put up any big fight about it, but the immediate agreement was as close to enthusiasm as the colonel ever showed. All the hours, all the blood and sweat and lost hours of sleep that Diego had put in to try and keep Colombia safe, to keep Carrillo safe. And this was going to be his sendoff. It made his stomach sink.

Trying to recover, he set the folder on Carrillo’s desk, sliding it across to him, “I signed everything. Just needs your signatures.”

He flipped the folder open, leaning forward again to get a better look at the papers in front of him. He leafed through them, a trace of confusion creasing his brows. Looking across the desk to Diego, he said, “You didn’t put in a preference for where you’re being transferred to.”

“I don’t have one,” Diego said honestly, “I just know that…this…isn’t conducive to anything anymore.”

Carrillo nodded, eyes already back on the papers in front of him, “Right. I’ll fill these out, make some calls,” he glanced over to Diego for all of a moment, “I suggest you gather your things, Officer.”

He sucked in a slow, unsteady breath, not really sure what he was supposed to say. His gut reaction was to say something along the lines of thank you, but that didn’t feel right. If the circumstances were different, maybe, but they weren’t. He rose from his chair, “When should I hear—”

“By end of day,” Carrillo didn’t even allow him to finish the question as he picked up his pen and began to fill out the blanks on the papers in front of him.

Diego nodded, not that Carrillo was looking. He felt like he should be saying something, but what was there for him to say? Be almost wanted to apologize, but for what? There was nothing for him to be sorry about, despite how everyone had been trying to make it seem. Even if he was sorry, it wasn’t like Carrillo would want to hear about it. So instead of trying to string together words that Carrillo wouldn’t care to hear, he did what the man had been waiting for him to do for months now, and he walked out of the office, shutting the door behind him when he left.

He tried and failed to ignore the stares. For the newer officers, it was more just out of curiosity—they had no skin in the game, didn’t know the history of it all, just heard the rumors. Diego found that to be more infuriating than anything, that the newbies felt however they felt about him because of things that they weren’t around for, because of people that they didn’t even know. The more senior officers at least had a personal stake with Carrillo, with all of it. So it was frustrating, and hurtful to a point, but Diego could at least try to justify and compartmentalize it. It didn’t help with the intense feeling of isolation, though. He wondered if anything would.

He was heading towards the door of the base, intent on heading to the barracks to follow Carrillo’s suggestion of packing all of his things. He didn’t have much to pack, it wouldn’t take long, but he needed to be out of the four walls he was currently trapped inside.

He was just about to reach the main hall, the door that would free him was in sight. But he was stopped in his tracks by a body blocking his way. Diego had made such a point over the passing weeks to not really look at people, so it took him a moment to stop and realize who it was that was standing in front of him.

The knot in his gut tightened, but he still nodded respectfully, “Trujillo.”

He didn’t return the gesture, “Ramírez.”

The two of them hadn’t been all that close to begin with. They got along well enough, both of them pretty adept at soccer when they played with the other officers in the rare downtime that they had. Diego recognized that Trujillo was a good officer, and vice versa, even if they hadn’t ever really become friends. Now, though, the cold shoulder that he got from Trujillo was enough to inspire frostbite. There was no one else on the base who had the colonel’s back quite like him, and Diego had the unfortunate luck of realizing that that support extended beyond just their professional lives. He’d made enemies out of two men with one decision.

Diego didn’t want to just rudely slide by. Well, he did want to, but he wouldn’t. Raising his eyebrows, he asked, “Something I can do for you, Officer Trujillo?”

The man shook his head, “No.”

There was a beat of the two of them both standing, staring at each other, waiting for the other to say or do something to escalate the situation. Diego wasn’t going to bite, though, especially not on his way out. He was leaving on a sour enough note as it was, he wasn’t going to make matters worse by getting into it with Carrillo’s right hand. So, he stood, and he waited.

After what felt like the longest ten seconds of Diego’s life, Trujillo finally stepped to the side and allowed Diego to pass him. He felt like he was in high school all over again, like he should be preparing for Trujillo to trip him as he walked past. He didn’t, of course, but if it wouldn’t have been so wildly unprofessional to do so, he was sure that the officer might have.

It was tempting to break into a run down the hall to leave, but he refrained. It was the fastest he’d ever walked, though. Pushing the door open with more force than he ever had before, he sucked in a deep breath as he stepped outside. He was hit with a wave of heat, the air heavy, but it still felt more breathable than what he had just been suffocating in.

Taking off down the steps, he made his way towards the barracks to get his things. Perhaps packing was a bit of a generous term for what he was doing. It was more just gathering up the few items in his locker, the couple of stray things in the bunk that was his designated space on nights that he wasn’t able to make it home. It wasn’t much. As he began to arrange everything in his couple of bags, he thought about a joking comment his grandfather always used to throw around when things were a bit anticlimactic, “Well, if that’s not a sad end to a mediocre career.” Diego never really understood the full weight of it, but now a sad chuckle escaped him as he stuffed a stray t-shirt into his bag. He didn’t consider himself or his work to be mediocre by any means, but he was very aware of the fact that he could’ve done more, should’ve been able to do more. But life got in the way.

When he was done, he scanned the tiny room for anything that he might’ve missed. There wasn’t much there to start with for him to forget. He sat down on the small bed situated in the corner of the room, the flimsy mattress just as unforgiving as it had ever been. He wanted to just leave and head home, but he knew that he needed to hang around at least until he got his new location. No one was going to be giving him anything to do in the meantime, though, which was going to make for a very boring and tense few hours of waiting.

He was finally bringing all of his things out to his car. He tossed the duffle bag into the back seat first, followed up by him slipping his backpack from his shoulders and putting that on the seat as well. Shutting the door, he locked the car and made his way back towards the main building of the base.

He was about to cross the floor and head back to Carrillo’s office. He had the feeling that regardless of whatever else was on the man’s plate for the day, transferring him out of Search Bloc was quickly bumped to the top of his priority list. It’d been a couple hours, and Diego was fairly certain that that was more than enough time for Carrillo to decide his fate and file the necessary paperwork for it. He was honest when he said that he didn’t have a preference, not that he thought that Carrillo would grant him his preference even if he did have one. But now he was definitely wondering where Carrillo was planning on sending him.

He didn’t even make it halfway to the office door before the colonel appeared in front of him. The man’s face didn’t give much away, as per usual. He handed the folder back to Diego, but he could tell from the difference in weight of it that he had already sent off whatever paperwork was necessary.

“You’re all set,” Carrillo said as Diego took the folder from him.

He fought the urge to ask, fought the urge to flip open the folder and see what Carrillo had decided was a good fate for him, or a fitting fate might be a better descriptor. Instead, he nodded, “Thank you,” he knew that it was probably too late to be worried about burning the bridge, but he still said, “And thank you for my time here, Colonel. I learned a lot.”

Carrillo folded his arms over his chest, looking Diego up and down as he tried to figure out what he wanted his response to that statement to be, “Let’s hope so.”

That’s the last thing that either of them said to each other. Carrillo turned and headed back towards his office, and Diego couldn’t be certain but he thought he saw something cross the man’s face, some type of emotion, but he couldn’t be sure. It also didn’t feel likely. Taking a deep breath, he flipped open the folder to see where Carrillo was designating him.

The address looked familiar. He kept looking through to find the team that he would be working with. He was expecting to see the names of officers that he was relatively familiar with. After all, being based out of Carlos Holguín for the last few years had given him a leg-up in terms of knowing all the new recruits. Even if he didn’t get to know them all, he saw most of them in passing and had brief conversations with them. Some of them he hadn’t seen since their training ended and they got their more permanent locations, others filtered back in and out every now and then.

But he didn’t see any of those names. The names he saw he recognized, because how could he not. But they weren’t officers. They weren’t people that he saw himself having to report to or work closely with in much of any capacity. There was always a few layers of separation between him and them. Carrillo being one of those layers. He didn’t know what it said that Carrillo took the opportunity of Diego leaving Search Bloc to group him directly with Javier Peña and Steve Murphy, but Diego was definitely on edge about the information.

He hadn’t had a lot of direct interaction with the two DEA agents. Most of that was handled by Carrillo and Trujillo. There was a history of some sort already built there, and Diego was very aware of how that was going to impact the way he was received by his new team. Any relief he’d felt about transferring out immediately dissipated as he closed the folder and started to head back for the door. If he’d felt alone before, on the base that he knew like the back of his hand, he knew that from here on out that feeling was only going to intensify. It was difficult feeling isolated in a sea of officers on base, but to be the only one on the team that he was getting pushed into, that was an entirely different breed of being alone, and with two men who most likely wouldn’t like or trust him very much at that.

He sat down in the driver’s seat of his car, tossing the folder over into the passenger seat. With a sigh, he braced his folded arms against the steering wheel and rested his forehead against them. He shut his eyes for a few moments, trying to get all of his thoughts and feelings in check before attempting to drive off. A large part of him just wanted to go home, but he knew that if he did, he’d never get back out. So instead, he put the key in the ignition. He put the car in drive, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel for a moment like he was really weighing out the options before finally letting off the brake and heading off for whatever was next.

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