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jcogginsawriter · 3 years

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Hand to Hand: Mark Waid’s Flash

I have been a fan of comic book characters for a long time. I started with the cartoons, and as I got older, I began doing deep dives into wikis, reading fanfiction, and participating in that shallowest of internet past times, the vs debate. I dabbled in writing fanfic for myself, but I spent far more time thinking about writing fanfic instead. I would come up with all these ideas about what I would take from the various different versions of the characters, and don’t get me started on the idea of Crossovers. The point is, I knew a lot of what happened in the comics, but I never read many comics. I didn’t know where my local comic shop was, and even if I did, I wouldn’t have had the money to spend on them. The comics that I did read were usually fan translations of manga. I did read a few comics, big name stories like Death of Superman or Crisis on Infinite Earths, but they were few and far between.

Recently, I’ve begun to change that. I now follow several comics as they come out, most notably the current X-line. This change sprang in part because I began reading a lot more comics criticism. In particular, I followed the blog of a certain Superman fan, and began to eagerly digest his various takes. I wanted to be able to ask him questions about new comics without looking like an idiot (This is how 90 percent of my interactions on comics twitter go, BTW) and that was a kick in the pants for me.

After getting into a steady habit, I decided to look into reading some of the classic runs I’d read so much about throughout life. To go from knowing them second hand, to knowing them first hand. After a bit of hemming and hawing, I’ve settled on Mark Waid’s legendary run of Flash Comics to start off with.

(Spoiler Warning for some 30 year old comics, by the way)

As of this writing, I have read up to the final issue of his story arc Dead Heat, wherein Wally does battle with the speed cultist Savitar. Before we get into things like plot and characters, I want to discuss the art, because no discussion of comic books is really complete without talking about the art. Unfortunately, the art in this run hasn’t done much for me, but that’s not really it’s fault. I read this comics in manner that they were not created to be read, digitally and zoomed in. These comics were drawn with physical issues in mind, and I don’t doubt that they’re good in that format. It also doesn’t help that I’ve read far more manga than I have American comics. American comics have never clicked with me the way manga does. Even now, I still find the layout of manga more legible than the layout of an American comic. That’s not a value judgment, it’s just my personal experience.

I do distinctly recall thinking that the art was better up to issue #79 (The conclusion to the Return of Barry Allen storyline), than it was after. I prefer the less exaggerated character designs, and lighter inks, though it could very well be a case of me having gotten used to the initial style and not liking the change. One thing that thing I can say about the art is that it helped me grasp how Wally’s costume differed from Barry’s. Before this, I was incapable of separating them in my mind, but seeing them side by side made it clear to me how different Wally’s Costume was colored and shaded.

Now, onto the writing of the run, we’ll start with the lead, Wally West. My previous touchstone for Wally was the Justice League series from the DCAU, which I watched a lot as a kid. The Wally in these comics comes off as more serious that his DCAU incarnation. Not too serious, he still cracks jokes, but he’s more on the ball. He takes his adventures as seriously as any hero would, rather than the more carefree attitude I recall his DCAU version having. This is not unsurprising, Wally here is the lead whereas there he was part of an ensemble cast, and here we get his internal monologue which gives us a much more thorough sense of his headspace. Not to mention, the DCAU version was voiced, so we know with no ambiguity what tone his dialogue’s in. In text, tone is more up to interpretation.

Perhaps the biggest thing that set Comic Wally apart from DCAU Wally is that the Wally in the comic was more consistently angry and frustrated. While his DCAU incarnation had hidden depths, I can’t recall a time when he got seriously angry. This Wally is frequently irritated, usually by things which are enitrely understandable. On occasion, his irritability causes him to be rougher with the bad guys than he could be, and that feels uncomfortable sometimes, though thus far he hasn’t gone too far.

Going into this, I knew that one of the issues that Wally had to overcome was his mental block about surpassing Barry, and to my surprise, it wasn’t as much of a through-line as I expected. I was expecting it to be a reoccurring issue that was solved by the Return of Barry Allen storyline, but in reality there are only one or two times something like it comes up, usually in the context of him not being able to do the vibrating through walls trick. In the Return of Barry Allen, it feels more like an issue introduced in that story than a long running plot line. Granted, it may only feel this way because I’m solely reading Mark Waid’s Flash. I didn’t read the issues prior to his take over, so that storyline could have been more apparent there for all I know.

Moving on, starting with Waid’s run had another knock on effect, that being that the character introductions aren’t introductions. I came into this expecting to see when Wally met Linda, when he met Jay Garrick, when Pied Piper redeemed himself, but all of that happened before Waid took over the book, so they’re already part of the cast from the start. Again, not a flaw of the work, it’s just a result of my personal experiences. Now, let’s take a look at some of these characters.

I’ve heard a lot about Linda and Wally’s romance, and so far it’s not bad. I wouldn’t rate it as one of the best of all time, but I haven’t gotten to most of the major moments yet, so that’s not a huge surprise. One thing that’s very apparent is the Lois Lane DNA in her character. Some of that is to be expected, which the love interest to your superhero is a reporter, but I see a lot of similarities in their personality as well. There’s a lot of the same fire in her. Fortunately, the fact that Wally’s identity is public lends a very different arc to their relationship than what you see with Lois and Clark, so Linda doesn’t come off as a Lois rip-off. Linda’s concerns that there’s no place for her in Wally’s wild superhero life is the kind of relationship hurdle that isn’t present in Lois and Clark’s Relationship.

Next, let’s take a look at the first Flash, Jay Garrick. Within this series, Jay is perfectly pleasant, and by no means unlikable, but he also comes across as...kind of superfluous? There are three elderly male speedsters in this comic, and of all of them Jay is by far the least defined and has the least role. Max Mercury is the Wally’s mentor in the ways of speed, the one with the most knowledge of the Speed Force. He’s basically what I expected Jay Garrick to be going into this. The third of the group is Johnny Quick, a speedster who is the father of another speedster, Jesse Quick. Jesse is also very skeptical of Max Mercury’s teachings, which veer from the scientific into the mystical.

Because Johnny takes the role of skeptic, Jay is left without a role in the narrative because being the nicest of Wally’s friend group. Veering over to Hollywood for a second, whenever a book gets adapted into a movie or TV Show, minor characters get lost in the transition. Either they get composited with other characters, or they get cut entirely. Game of Thrones is the most prominent example in recent memory. I bring this up because, if Waid’s Flash were to go through that process, it’s hard to argue that Jay wouldn’t get the ax. Despite being the most important of them in the context of the universe at large, Jay is the least important Speedster in this narrative. Of course, Jay’s importance in the context of the larger universe means that in this hypothetical adaptation, he probably be composited into either max or Johnny. More likely Max, since mentor is the logical position for the first Flash to take in the Third Flash’s narrative.

I mentioned Jess Quick there, so let’s talk about her. Thus far, her most prominent role in the narrative has been to call Wally out and be his critic, though she does have very good reasons to be angry. In the Terminal Velocity storyline, Wally believes he’ll die soon, and tells the Flash Family that Jesse will be his successor, but it turns out to be a lie in order to motivate Bart Allen to take things more seriously. Jesse has remained angry with Wally since then, though it hasn’t seriously impacted her hero work. That’s good, because her continued competence lends legitimacy to her anger within the narrative. She’s not being punished for being mad at Wally for mistreating her. Hopefully it stays that way going forward.

Now let’s take a look at the character Wally chose over Jesse, Bart Allen AKA Impulse. I’ll say up front that I’m not reading Bart’s solo series during this read through, as I didn’t want the hassle of going back and forth between books. As such, the only issues of it that I’ve looked at are the ones that tie into the Dead Heat arc. I feel it’s important for me to say this, because I’m basing my opinions of Bart primarily on his showings in Wally’s book, not his own. In Wally’s book, Bart’s character flaws are more on display.

Bart is a character deliberately designed to be obnoxious, and such characters are a hard tightrope to walk in fiction. Gotta be annyoing enough to get the point across, but not annoying enough to turn people off from the work. Bart in Wally’s book isn’t perfectly balanced, and tends toward the too much pile. Not to an egregious extent, but a little bit. I found myself echoing Wally’s frustration with Bart more than a few times. In Bart’s defense, Wally does share some of the blame here. He doesn’t do a very good job as a mentor, and handing those duties off to Max is probably for the best.

I find it interesting, that a character like Wally who is so defined by inheriting a legacy is a poor mentor, to both Bart and Jesse. He makes different mistakes with both of them, but he still fails both of them. I’m eager to see how that plays out in the future issues.

Now that we’ve discussed the supporting cast, let’s discuss some of the book’s villains. We’ll start with the one who is most infamous, Eobard Thawne. Thawne’s spends the majority of his time in this book thinking he’s Barry Allen, and if I’m being honest, he’s more effective under that guise that he is as Eobard. The scenes where what appears to be Barry Allen turns evil out of jealousy of his successor are powerful, more so than the more traditional villain Eobard displays after the reveal. Not that it would have been a good idea for it to actually be Barry, of course. Much as I prefer Wally to Barry, having Barry go full supervillain would have been very out of character. In any case, this run had a profound impact on Eobard’s character going forward, solidifying him as an agent of toxic fanboyism, making him a dark mirror of Wally West.

The next major villain of the run is the cult slash terrorist organization Kobra. That might bring thoughts of GI Joe to your mind, and you honestly aren’t far off. So far as this run goes, the biggest differences between DC’s Kobra and Hasbro’s is A) DC’s version prefer green over blue, and B) Hasbro’s version has more in the way of distinct characters. Kobra thus far is more of a plot device than anything else. They’re generic terrorists with little to make them distictive. Their storyline, Terminal Velocity, is more notable for it’s introduction of the Speed Force, Wally preparing for his upcoming ‘death’, and Linda going on a revenge quest after said ‘death’. All things that Kobra is incidental to, any villainous organization would have sufficed.

The final, as of my current point in the run, major villain is Savitar. Savitar was formerly a soviet test pilot who gained a connection to a the speedforce, gave himself the name of Hindu god, and started a speed worshipping cult. It says a lot about my mind that my immediate thoughts upon reading Savitar’s origin were. “Huh, an AU where Hal Jordan became a Speedster the same way would be neat.”. Savitar is in some ways an improvement on the Kobra Cult from Terminal Velocity. This time the Cult has a more direct connection to the Flash and his mythos. Dead Heat is by no means a retread of Terminal Velocity, but if you wanted to mesh them into one story, it wouldn’t be hard. And it’d improve on both, in some ways.

One of the things I like to do in my fanfic ideas is connect the other speedsters to Thawne’s theme of Toxic Fandom, and it wouldn’t be hard to do that with Savitar. His entire motivation is to deprive those he considers unworthy of their speed, and that can easily by played as a metaphor for gatekeeping.

Over all, while the run is far from perfect, I must say I’m enjoying these comics a good deal, and if you’re like me and have read a lot about comics without actually reading them, I don’t think you’d regret jumping into them.

#opinions #personal experience #dc comics #The Flash #wally west #mark waid

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stellar-alley · 4 years

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Spider Spaghetti

•Chapter 3•

<<Previous Chapter

(Summary: The day of the Homecoming dance has finally arrived.)

Shout out to my Beta, go find her on Tumblr @scoobydoo-ghoulschool and on ao3 @ theblacklagoon

Also, don’t forget to check out my Instagram Stellar.Cosplays if you want to see more of me and what goes on in my life!

Richie Tozier was normal. That’s it. Literally. No Tricks or plot twists. Richard Went Tozier was as normal as they came. Well aside from his Trashmouth.

So after everything that happened the night before with Spiderman, he realized that he was in over his head. He had no clue what to do about this, or if he could even help.

The wind blew through his dark curls from his spot on the roof of his apartment building. This was the place he went whenever he needed to clear his mind or catch his breath. Sure he loved his room and his parents, they’re great, but everyone needs time for themselves. And that’s exactly what he was getting, up until he heard the soft thump of something behind him.

“Spiderman” Richie said without removing his eyes from the cityview before him.

He could hear the hero stuttering behind him in confusion. “How did you-” Richie turned around to see Spiderman with his head tilted like a lost puppy.

“Who else would just drop out of the sky?” The corner of Richie ‘s lip curved up.

“Uh I don’t know, Superman?” Spiderman shrugged almost sarcastically. Then the hero shook his head, trying to get back on track with what he was saying. “You can’t go to homecoming” He announced.

The mood immediately changed, from a kinda fun banter to serious and confused.

“W-What?” Richie tensed up, confused about what he was being told to do.

“Ri-” Eddie stopped mid-word, to stop himself from saying Richie’s name again. “Dude some serious shit is going to go happen at the dance. So. You. Cannot. Go” Eddie pronounced each word carefully. “You’ll be in immediate danger” Spiderman said, determined.

Richie arched a brow, “what kind of immediate danger?” he questioned.

Spiderman let out an annoyed sigh, “The kind that would end up with you dead!” He exclaimed as he chopped the air with his hand.

“Ahh” He nodded his head as if he suddenly understood what Eddie was talking about, “That kind of immediate danger”. He took a minute, contemplated the idea before he shrugged and said “Nope, no can do Spidey. I’ve got myself a hot date and I literally cannot miss this, unless I wanna get my head chopped off”.

Eddie rolled his eyes from beneath his mask yet he could still feel his cheeks burning. I so would not cut his head off, Eddie wanted to mumble but didn’t.

“Please uh- what's your name?” Eddie tried to play dumb as if he hadn't already called him by his real name twice now.

“Richie” He smirked, almost as if he knew that spiderman already knew that.

“Okay, Richie. Please, do not go to the homecoming dance” Spiderman begged.

Maybe it was the fact that spiderman used his real name, but Richie complied, “Fine” he sighed as he held his hands up in defeat, “I won't go to the dance”.

“Promise?” Spiderman asked.

“Promise” Richie nodded in agreement.

“Lying sack of shit” Eddie grumbled as he watched Richie step out of Maggie Tozier’s blue jeep. His suit was black and sharp, Eddie wanted nothing more than to slow dance with him under the light of the disco ball, but he was still pissed he showed up after promising Spiderman to stay home.

Bill shot him a glance, obviously confused by the comment. Eddie quickly pulled his phone out and waved it, “Sorry, texting someone” he lied. Bill nodded, but if he didn't believe Eddie then he didn't mention it.

The day had finally arrived, the one everyone was waiting for, Homecoming.

Everyone looked good, all the Losers threw on their best attire and had congregated at the front door before they went in together. Eddie thought he had convinced Richie not to come, but he was wrong. Sure he would’ve preferred if it was just him without the other Losers to ensure their safety but he knew that out of all of them, Richie would be the most prone to follow him if/when he left to go kick Carter’s ass. Looks like I’m gonna have to use fucking ninja stealth, whatever, let’s just have fun for now. We are just kids after all.

Instead of questioning why Richie had come, he simply walked up to him with the rest of the Losers.

“Ms Marsh is that a Beverly exclusive that you’re wearing?” Richie asked as if it was a big scandalous act. To the Losers it was a big deal, Beverly had started designing clothes about 2 years ago and only Ben has been given the slightest glance at what she’s been creating. So seeing her now, displaying an entire dress, was a pretty big fucking deal.

The dress was beautiful, it was long and flowy, the fabric was a light pink with puffy sleeves and a V neck line that perfectly displayed her breasts without showing too much cleavage. But that wasn't even the best part, the dress was decorated with little red strawberries. Which Ben had actually matched perfectly to his pink, strawberry type, which Beverly also made.

She stepped back, away from the group and gave them a twirl, displaying her dress in all of its strawberry glory.

“It’s amazing” Ben said in aw.

“Your best one yet!” Richie hollered and whooped as she returned to them.

“You haven’t even seen my other pieces dumbass” She looked away as if it would hide her rosy cheeks. Before any of the other Losers could praise her anymore she wrapped her arms around the boys, 3 on each side, “My boys… Let’s go party like it’s 1999” She smirked as the boys cheered with excitement.

Eddie surveyed the gym where the dance was being held. He scoped out the big room for all the exits and anything that could be a threat, also ya know, the drug lord Mr Carter, who was suspiciously nowhere to be seen. But as he did so he noticed how fancy the gym looked. Streamers hung from the ceiling, making a cool kinda wall that surrounded the dance floor. Of course there was a big disco ball that hung above the dance floor and lights of all colours. The DJ was up on the stage with her obviously big headphones, bopping her head to the song as she spun a record.

“Nice, right?” Richie broke Eddie out from his thoughts.

The hero looked up to his date, “Yeah, they really went all out” he nodded.

“So th-this is where all of the ye-yearbook’s money guh-goes to” Bill rolled his eyes as he fixed the cuff on his suit’s arm. Once his arm was down by his side again, Mike swapped in and linked his arm with Bill’s.

He smiled his iconic Mike Hanlon smile and asked, “Would you like to accompany me on the dance floor?”.

Bill’s ears turned red, his eyes drifted up to meet Mike’s which only made his face hotter, “I-I’d love to” and with that, Mike swept him off to dance.

“Do I have to be that formal or can we just-“ Richie pointed towards the dance floor.

Eddie shook his head with a smile, “Come on trashmouth” He intertwined their fingers and then they were off.

“Well looks like I’m going to go find Patty” Stan nodded then proceeded to go find his girlfriend.

Ben was immediately nervous. Shit now I have to ask Beverly Marsh, to dance with me. But before he could worry any more, his date stepped in front of him, her dress flowing beautifully behind her as she turned and bowed slightly with her arm out.

“May I have this dance, New Kid?” The old nickname brought a smile to both of their faces.

Ben was so busy mentally fangirling about how in love he was with her that he almost forgot to answer. “I’ll always want to dance with you, Beverly” he said, reaching his hand out to meet hers.

The first song was more upbeat, the Losers stayed with their respective partners as they danced together, moving to the beat. The next song though, was more of a party song, more specifically LMFAO’S Party Rock Anthem.

Eddie watched with delight as Richie’s face lit up like a christmas tree. “I LOVE THIS SONG!” He exclaimed. Even though LMFAO hadn't put out a song in over 5 years, the ones they did release were timeless bops.

Fate worked in weird ways, like how the song came on just as all the Losers had subconsciously drifted towards each other on the dance floor. None of them questioned it though, they simply smiled even brighter in the company of their real family. Together they belted out the lyrics, jumped to the beat and danced like no one was watching.

After that song they were all pretty parched, “Wanna get something to drink?” Mike offered, they all agreed and walked over to the table that had snacks and a bowl that was usually filled with punch.

Bev caught the attention of the teacher running the table and asked “No punch this time? thought that was kinda like a staple”.

“Oh yes deery it is. Mr Carter said he would take care of it, you know the science teachers and how good they are at getting the ratios correct when mixing drinks” She explained. Instead the Losers grabbed the water bottles that lined the table and drank from those.

Once all of the Losers were sipping their drinks and chatting, Eddie stepped up towards the table once again, “Sorry but do you know where I could find Mr Carter? I said I would help him with the punch” Eddie lied.

“Oh, sure, he’s just in his classroom, do you need the number?” She inquired.

Eddie politely declined then thanked her before rejoining the Losers. “Guys I’m gonna go use the washroom” he announced, they all gave some sort of simple reply before he slipped out from the noisy gym and into the hallway where the loud music was muffled and he had more space to walk.

Of course he would be the one in charge of the fucking punch- Bev literally said it best, it’s a staple for these kinds of things and everyone has it, even if it tasts like shit. When teens are thirsty they’ll drink literally anything (Literally anything). The punch is a perfect way for him to drug all these students and turn him into whatever super powered army he was trying so hard to create.

Eddie stopped by his locker, got his backpack then stopped in the washroom across from Carter’s room where he slid out of his suit. He carefully folded it and placed it in his bag, hoping he would still use it after he caught this guy. He had worn his Spiderman outfit under his suit which saved him time, all he had to do was put his mask on. Before he left he tossed his bag up, shot off a web and stuck it to the ceiling in hopes of no one finding it.

He was ready and standing in front of Carter's door, he let his spider senses kick in and tried to detect anythin- rapidly Eddie leaped up, off the floor and stuck to the ceiling, just in time to miss the door blowing off of its hinges. He stayed quiet as a being stepped out of the classroom, they looked down the hallway. That’s when Spiderman relaxed his body and fell down onto the figure. He wrapped his legs around their neck in hopes of knocking them out but this guy was quick, and strong.

He raised his arms, reached back, grabbed a fistfull of Spiderman’s hero suit and not only pulled spiderman off of his back but he flung him into the classroom. Eddie groaned when he landed on his back in the science classroom. He looked up to the ceiling he was used to seeing when he was daydreaming in class, but now the usual ceiling tiles were interrupted by someone looking down on the hero.

“See, Spiderman, all this time I had been trying to give my subject new abilities” Carter smirked, towering over the hero. “But turns out I should’ve been enhancing the abilities we already have. That's why your friend Bryce here might be a little bit stronger than you remember” He said with a wink before Eddie’s head snapped up just in time to see Bryce, who was significantly more muscly, grab his ankles and yank him towards him.

“You won’t win” Eddie groaned, looking back at Carter who watched as Bryce’s hands grabbed onto Eddie’s hips and hoisted him into the air.

Spiderman kicked and punched but Bryce was not flinching. He shot off a couple webs but they seemed to simply slip off of his skin.

“Oh I don’t know about that Spiderman” Carter hummed.

Eddie barely had any time to register what was going on as Bryce began to move forward and before he knew it, the hero was being thrown forward, towards the window. The glass broke on impact and spiderman went plummeting towards the cement below.

Just before he hit the ground, he shot off a web, it connected with one of the fire escapes above. He stopped just a foot before he hit the ground. Eddie let out a shaky sigh of relief. His feet dangled back, finding their place on the ground and steadying himself as he stood up. Immediately he scoped out the alley he was in, recognising it as one of the passages behind the school that was almost always empty.

It looked like any other alleyway, dark red bricks, garbage cans, with fire escapes lining the walls.

Spiderman felt the ground shake as something landed behind him. He spun around to see Bryce’s hulking figure as Carterr stepped out from behind him.

Eddie shot another web up onto one of the fire escapes and jumped up into the air. He was halfway up to the fire escape when he felt a hand grab his ankle and yank him back down. His web snapped as he landed flat on his back, again. Bryce stepped over him, one foot on either side of his body.

This is gonna hurt in the morning, Eddie thought as the pain of the impact ripped through his body.

“W-Why are you doing this?” Eddie stuttered, he tried to keep the pain out of his voice but that was hard to do since everything ached.

Mr Carter began to speak as Bryce raised two meaty fists into the air, preparing to smash the spider beneath him.

“Well I always found it unfair that some people got powers, like you. And others didn’t, like me and my parents”.

Just as the fists were about to make contact, the hero shot a web in the space between Bryce’s legs. His 2 fingers pressed into his palm and shot off a web which pulled him out from under Bryce and flung him into the air. He went flying. He was rapidly approaching the fire escape and prepared for landing. Thankfully for his sticky feet, he was able to land safely, giving him a moment to catch his breath.

“So of course I grew up in a household where we praised heroes” Carter continued, unphased by the fight going on before him.

Bryce leaped into the air, determined to catch Spiderman but the spider hopped from the fire escape to the one beside it.

“But what happened when an armed robber broke into our house? Did the heroes we praise come to rescue us? Oh no, no…” his voice drifted off, but he didn’t sound sad. “They let my parents die. Now heroes think they’re these big deals. But what would happen if everyone got powers?”.

Eddie shot a web off towards Carter in hopes of pinning him down. But just as he was about to shoot, the floor fell from beneath him. His hand jerked and the web shot off, hitting some window with a *splat*.

Bryce had gotten onto the fire escape beneath Spiderman and ripped the floor from beneath Eddie’s feet. Eddie shot off a web and hopped he would be able to swing away but Bryce, once again, jumped and grabbed his fucking foot. But this time when he landed, the weight of two supers was too heavy for the poor fire escape. The floor gave out from beneath them and they both went tumbling down to the ground, right in front of Mr Carter.

But Carter barely blinked as the two came tumbling down at his feet. Instead he leaned down, reached out and grabbed a fistfull of Eddie’s super suit and pulled him closer. “If everyone was super, then no one will be ' He whispered to the hero's face. His eyes were filled with ambition and his voice was tainted with determination. Just as quickly as he grabbed the hero, he dropped him. Eddie’s head bounced on the concerte as Carter stood up, dusted off his pants, and began walking away. He had taken a couple steps away when he stopped, turned his head just enough to glance back at Bryce, “Kill him or else I’ll take it all back” He demanded before he continued towards the school. “I have a gym full of students to drug”.

A loud ZAP sound echoed through the alleyway and Carter’s body dropped like a sack of potatoes. Eddie didn’t know what he expected to see in front of Carter, but what he certainly didn’t expect to see was Richie Tozier in his formal suit, with an outstretched hand, holding a tazer.

“Holly shit” the human teen sounded shocked as he let the taser fall from his grasp. It clanked against the ground and sent another little jolt into Mr Carter who hemorrhaged a little.

Spiderman didn’t even have time to celebrate because he was distracted by the heavy breaths of the villain behind him. Bryce now towered over Eddie, his face beaten and his eyes were furious. He looked like a lion about to charge its prey. Eddie was prepared to leap out of the way, to protect Richie, to do anything. But instead his attention was drawn to the woosh sound of a gun firing. Once again the villain fell lifeless at Spiderman’s feet.

This time instead of Richie standing behind the villain, it was a female. She wore a long black trench coat and held out some sort of gun which she quickly slid into the hosliter on her thigh. She had brown hair that fell to her shoulders in bouncy curls.

“Spiderman, happy to finally meet you” She said, her tone wasn’t serious but nor was it as happy as she claimed to be, it was neutral. Eddie could tell she meant business. Before he could respond she stepped over Bryce and towards Richie, “Rich, thanks for calling me” She nodded at him.

“No problem…” Richie said, still semi dazed. He finally started taking careful steps towards the mysterious women. “Anytime auntie” he shook his head, eyes finally focusing again.

“wait- Auntie?” Eddie asaked, confusion laced his voice.

“Yeah kid, I’m Maggie’s sister. Richie’s aunt, I am also the head and leader of a little organization, The Threat Assessment, Reconnaissance and Operations Taskforce, Tarot for short. And I am Alley Red” Her poker face shifted into a small yet proud smile.

“Wait- holy shit you’re the leader of T.A.R.O.T?” Eddie’s eyes go wide beneath his mask as he marvels at the aunt and nephew.

“Yes yes now keep your voice down before you attack unnecessary attention” She waves her hand at Eddie as she surveys the alleyway for spying eyes.

“Yeah shut is Spaghetti” Richie cackled.

Eddie was taken aback by the familiar nickname, “W-What?” he stuttered.

Now it was Richie’s turn to look stunned, “Oh yeah” his shock turned smug, “I know it’s you in there Eds”.

Eddi- Spiderman froze, his entire body went stiff as he stared at the smirking teen.

“Sorry you’ve got the wrong guy-” Eddie began to lie but Richie shook his head.

“The bridge? Spider man mysteriously knowing my name at Liberty? Then him asking me to not go instead of trying to convince the school to cancel the dance? Eddie you, are a terrible liar” Richie smiled proudly at his detective work.

“How’d you know about this?” Spiderman asked, disregarding the fact that his secret identity had just been revealed. Instead he focused on how Richie knew he’d be out here with Carter.

“Well see this was the one thing I didn’t know about. But after you left, I was taking a leak in the upstairs bathroom and somebody’s spidey webs shot the window, so I looked out and saw you getting your ass handed to you and called my favourite aunt-”

“I was not getting my ass handed to me” Eddie crossed his arms and pouted.

Before Eddie could get anything else in, Richie’s aunt spoke up. “Well boys I better be on my way. Can’t just leave a drug lord out here on the street. Eddie, we’ll be in contact alright? T. A. R. O. T. Could use someone like you” She gave Spiderman a nod. With the click of her bracelet a team of people in equally dark trench coats emerged from the dark corners of the alleyway and took the two villains away.

Then the two teens were left alone together.

“So can I see the babe under the mask?” Richie asked curiously.

Eddie hesitated, no one knew about his secret identity. But it was Richie… My best friend and biggest crush. Before the hero could overthink the situation too much he moved his hand up and slid his mask off.

Richie watched as the famous Spider Man took his mask off, revealing Eddie Kaspbrak. Richie’s heart fluttered at the other’s face, his big doe eyes staring back at him through his lashes. “Hey Eds” The taller boy’s voice was warm and his face went soft.

Eddie’s face heated up a little, realizing how close they were. He tried to hold back his smile but failed, “Hey Rich”.

Richie raised his hands up to sit on Eddie’s hips. The hero’s skin tingled at the touch.

Eddie didn’t know what to say, he had just taken down a villain and his identity had been revealed. He felt very exposed, especially under the touch of his best friend and crush. “We should probably go back to the dance before they begin to worry” Eddie decided to break the moment before he could mess anything up.

Richie looked visibly taken aback at the mention of leaving. He was so in the moment that when Eddie stepped away from him, his face was left with a small, disappointed frown. “Oh- yeah, okay” He tried to sound supportive. Dropping his hands from Eddie’s waist, now he felt as if he was trespassing for some reason.

“Well I should uh- go” Eddie took a step back and raised his hand that held his mask.

“Yeah of course” Richie nodded.

Without another word, Eddie slid his mask back on. He turned around and with his hand extended out towards one of the fire escapes above him he shot off a web. He leaped up and landed safely on the metal of the escape.

Richie was still in awe to see Eddie put the mask on, as if that made everything real. Eddie is Spiderman, he thought as he watched Eddie leap up and away. But before he could shoot off another web Riche stepped forward and shouted, “Eddie! Wait!”.

Spiderman stopped where he stood on the railing of the fire escape and looked down at the curly haired teen that was waving up at him. With his sticky feet he simply walked down the railing and stood upside down on the underside of the fire escape. He shot off a web, connecting it to the floor he was hanging on. From there his knees bent and his hands held the web. He hung upside down as he slowly made his way to meet Richie. When he stopped they were perfectly face to face, even if Eddie was hanging upside down.

“Everything alright citizen?” Eddie put on his ‘responsible superhero’ voice, which got a chuckle from Richie.

Richie shrugged, slowly he stepped towards the hero, “Nah, all is good. Just forgot to do something” he said as he carefully placed his hands on either side of Eddie’s face. From there he delicately slid Spiderman’s mask down, exposing only the hero’s lips.

Too late to back out now, Richie thought as he angled his head and leaned in to kiss the superhero. Eddie’s lips were soft and he could feel the breath hitch in his mouth as Eddie waited a moment before he kissed back.

Eddie thought that his powers made him feel something, but the way he was feeling right here, right now, kissing Richie? That made him feel like he could do anything. Sparks and fireworks exploded within both of their chests alongside their racing hearts.

Sometimes fate works in mysterious ways. For example, right at that moment, two things began. First it started lightly drizzling over New york, even when the weatherman said it was supposed to be a clear and mild night. And second of all, just after it started raining, the dance’s DJ randomly started playing Africa By Toto at that very moment.

Richie and Eddie had not stopped kissing, not after they separated to breath, not when it started raining either. But when they heard the muffled (but still audible) tune of Africa’s iconic intro started echoing through the dark alleyway, Eddie could physically feel Richie gasp against his lips. It sent a shiver down Eddie’s spine. He felt Richie’s lips heat up as he blushed against Eddie. Then, only then, did the two break away, the night air filled their lungs and cooled their skin.

“Wanna slow dance with me?” Richie asked, his voice filled with optimism and excitement.

“To Africa by Toto?” Eddie asked, realizing he was still hanging upside down outside of his school’s homecoming dance.

“Why of course! What song would be better for our first slow dance?” Richie arched his eyebrows in a charming manner.

“Oh trashmouth” Eddie sighs happily, he quickly let go of the web he’d been holding onto and flipped backwards, landing on his feet, facing Richie. “You have such a way with words” The hero ripped his mask off, tossed it to the side and smashed his lips up against the other’s.

After a moment their lips separated, instead the two opted to lean their foreheads against each other. Richie’s hands found Eddie’s hips again (something Eddie was liking more every time it happened), holding him close as they slowly swayed back and forth. Eddie's hands drifted up to Richie’s upper half, one hand dangled comfortably off of Richie’s shoulder while the other slid into his forest of dark curls. Even with his suit covering his fingers, he was still able to feel every inch of Richie with his Spidey Senses.

So that’s how it ended, with Richie slow dancing with Spiderman, Eddie, in the alleyway behind his school on the night of the Homecoming dance, in the rain, to Africa by Toto.

The End

Word Count: 4522

Final Word Count: 18598

Bing, Bang, Done! Three chapters, kinda short but I didn’t plan for this fic to be too big, I also know there’s some other Spider Eddie fics out there so I wanted to keep it short and sweet, which I think I achieved.

Overall I’m pretty happy with how this turned out! I’ve always had trouble explaining fighting scenes and such, so this was good practice. I also just adored watching as Richie and Eddie’s relationship evolved and aw, it was so sweet!

As this is the final chapter I’ve gotta remind you guys to go check out my other social medias, Instagram (Stellar.Cosplays), Tumblr, (stellar-cosplays), even my youtube (Alley’s World). Also don’t forget to check out my other fan fictions! Here’s my master list, or go check out my account and you’ll find them all there.

Thank you all for the support this fic has received! I really enjoyed writing this piece and I hope you all enjoyed reading it.

Well looks like the time has come, that’s all from me guys, catch you on the flip side.

So Long and Goodnight

[Taglist]

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ruffiorocks · 5 years

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Kara has always had love, Lena has not.

You know I'm all supportive of not liking a character, RAO knows there's a few I'm not a fan of. But what bothers me is when people only focus on half the narrative of the character they don't like. When the rest of the characters narrative is usually the reason and explaination for why they are the way they are.

Take for instance the comparison of Kara Danvers and Lena Luthor. People who don't like Lena but adore Kara will throw out that Kara is a literal ray of sunshine who has suffered trauma and doesn't whine about it, while Lena has no right to be moody because she's privileged.

Ok, so there's quite a bit to address here.

First off, we (and the show) like to refer to Kara as 'sunny Danvers' and how she is a consistent ball of sunshine that only ever sees the best In people. Now I don't know what fan fic the people who think this have been reading but that just isn't true and the show shows us consistently that it isn't true.

Kara has been seen to be moody, depressed, judgmental, have prejudice, be hot headed, refusing to listen and seeing herself as superior whilst giving herself authority over things and people and feeling put out when people do things she personally doesn't agree with or hasn't sanctioned. But thats OK! It shows that Kara is just as flawed and normal as anybody else.

People will say that Kara lost her planet, her family, her race and she didn't let it get to her, but Lena is kept out of a secret or people don't like her and suddenly she's an awful person?

Erm... Ok, so I've mentioned this before but it's worth stating again. Kara has been adored and loved and privileged since the day she was born. Kara belongs to 'the noble house of El' an elite family of Krypton. Her father was a scientist and her mother was basically the head or the judicial system and her aunt a general. She was also well protected. So yeah, Kara was extremely privileged and had a superior social standing on Krypton. Yes her planet exploded but do you know what happened after that? People still continued to love and adore her. She immediately got placed with a loving family who only wanted to take care of her, even if she was rejected by Kal El. The Danvers weren't exactly poor either. Kara had a loving adopted family to help her through her trauma. Then she grew up to be adored by her Superfriends, was welcomed at the DEO by Jonn who took it upon himself to be her space dad and he always protected her and Alex even when they didnt know. People fall for Kara all the time and fight for her affections. She may have had a difficult relationship with Cat but even she was a mentor and was shown to love Kara, both as Kara and as Supergirl. She's also adored by the world because she's Supergirl, the amount of love and attention she gets shows this. She also has a devoted sister who's life is made up of protecting her. Plus she has a devoted billionaire best friend willing to do anything for her and put her self in danger protecting her because she doesn't know Kara doesn't need protecting. Kara also has statues dedicated to her and has friends from the 31st century who told her what a legend she is in the future. She's had cults dedicated to worshipping her, she has an abundance of Superfriends that adore her. It's an awful lot of love, devotion and respect since the day she landed. So Kara may have trauma but she has all the love in the world to help her through it. Oh it also doesn't hurt that she is a blonde haired, blue eyed Caucasian white woman. I wouldn't normally mention skin color but the show made a point of Jonn mentioning this. Kara didn't believe prejudice against aliens happened much anymore because she (the white woman) didn't experience it.

I'd like to point out that Kara's race survived, she also still has her mother.

Now let's look Lena, Lena was traumatized aged 4 by watching her own mother die and grew up believing it to be her fault. She was taken in by a horrible family she didn't even learn was biologically hers until after her father died and her brother had gone insane. Her father may have liked her but he has also been shown to be an alcoholic, her step mother made it abundantly clear she didn't want Lena around and has kidnapped her several times and though she was dedicated to Lex his diaries show that he saw her as a play thing even when they were children. So unlike Kara, Lena didn't get placed with a loving family. People are so focused on Lena's billionaire status, money doesn't equal love and happiness. Lena has been treated horribly for most of her life. It doesn't matter she went to the best school, maybe ate from a silver platter, she was emotionally abused and not wanted. The total opposite of Kara. Kara got a devoted adopted mother and father and a wonderful devoted sister. Lena got a horrible adopted mother, an alcoholic father and an insane, manipulative, mass murdering, genocidal brother. Lena had to watch her brother decend into madness to the point SHE not Superman managed to set him up and get him caught. But Lena has to suffer for what Lex did. She is cursed by her own name no matter how good she is. Kara's family sat back knowing Krypton would be destroyed, her family nearly enslaved the human race with tech ger father created (Astra and Non). But no one holds it against Kara/Supergirl. Lena's mother and brother try to kill aliens and Lena is instanty under suspicion because she simply breathes. Kara's family basically invade but no one sees Kara any differently. Why? Because she isn't her family, a sentiment no matter how many times she proves it Lena will never earn.

Lena is constantly shot at, treated like shit, manipulated, people try to asssinate her and whenever she does something good or saves the world it's only ever Supergirl that gets acknowledged for it. She even tries to help people and cure Cancer but is constantly taken advantage of. Even when she's trying to cure cancer she's condemned because the tech is used (not by her) for nerfarious purposes. She can't even try to cure cancer without being shat on. She had different opinions to the Superfriends and that makes her instantly bad not only to haters but also the Superfriends. She's framed, footage of 'her' shows her getting Kryptonite and no one cares to hear Kara protest her innocence. But does anyone remember Bizarro? Red daughter? Yeah the Superfriends never doubted for a second that that wasn't Kara. Instant love and respect no matter what, something Lena only had Kara for . Until she didn't.

Kara was the one person to show trust in Lena. That was until Lena did something Kara didn't like, approve of and suddenly felt threatened by even though Lena is one of the very few who has never hurt or threatened her and has always believed in her. That actually included Alex and Jonn. Kara felt threatened because Lena had Kryptonite, but never gave a rats ass that Jonn used Kryptonian cuffs on her, owned a Kryptonian knife, or that Alex shot her out of the sky with Kryptonite bullets and owns a Kryptonite sword. She didn't even care the DEO had a stash of Kryptonite until Kal El kicked up a fuss. The Superfriends, ALL of them have even doubted Kara's ability to succeed at some point. Lena on the other hand has done nothing but encourage her. So Kara was so quick to let fear and prejudice cloud her judgement.

Kara had been treated like she was in charge of all things for so long she started to think she was. Legally having Kryptonite wasn't against the law, it's never been stated that it was. Kara also thought she had the right to tell a civilian business woman that she had to give up her property to Kara's sister all because Kara said so??? This still bothers me. Kara actually doesn't have this kind of authority. Lena works with the DEO out of curtesy. She doesn't actually have to be there.

Kara also decided she had the right to go behind Lena's back and use her relationship, the very one Kara pushed her into against her. It wouldn't surprise me if Lena immediately starts to wonder why she was pushed to date Superman and Supergirls bestie, knowing full well (thanks James, slow clap to you) that Kara used James to spy on her. These things are all ignored because all people want to see is 'bad Luthor with different opinions' and 'sunny Danvers'. People say Lena is portrayed as the victim, but Kara does a good job or making herself one to.

Kara has also been shown to doubt Lena when it comes to HER personally, but in regards to others she tells them that Lena is good and she's usually right . Kara isn't consistent here.

Kara has NEVER had to work to get anyone's love or trust. She just gets given it. The only time she's had to work for it is after the red k incident, and the red daughter charade. But she got it back pretty quick. Lena on the hand constantly works to have trust, she knows she won't get love, but one rumour and it all goes to shit. Lena doesn't have the same support network that Kara does. When Lena makes a mistake she doesn't have lots of people to go to like Kara does. Ultimately the super friends are KARA'S friends first and foremost. Even her boyfriend put Kara first. Lena even has to work just to get respect from Kara and James at work, because neither thought they had to give that to her. Ultimately she got it from Kara who apologized and Lena instantly forgave her because she always does, but she was basically driven out of Cat Co by James. Notice after he refused to do the Lockwood interview and embarrassed her at Thanksgiving also rejecting her love she stopped going to Cat Co and focused her attention at L Corp. Which was sad because remember how excited she was to run Cat Co with Kara?

So Lena will feel betrayed by the secret? I personally think she has ever reason to. She's been used, manipulated, has already been betrayed, judged and kept in the dark by the Superfriends. I'd feel betrayed to. Kara's excuse about it being to protect her because people may use her or hurt her became redundant the moment Lillian told her she knew. It would have been safer for Lena to know at that point so she COULDN'T be used. Lena also had the right to know who she was letting into her life. A choice all the other Superfriends were given the the privilege of making. Lena being around Kara and friends with Supergirl hasn't kept her off people's hit lists. Her not knowing genuinely puts her in more danger.

There's so much more to add but I've made my point. If you're going to mention Kara's trauma DON'T ignore Lena's. Don't ignore the fact that Kara is just given love and respect and people want to protect her and have since the day she was born, whereas Lena has never had that.

Two people with trauma, one who's life is consistently filled with love even when more trauma is happening and one who's life has been full of abuse, assassination attempts, betrayal, being held responsible for others crimes and even being betrayed by the one person who supposedly believes in you. Lena has no such love and devotion to get her through it all.

#supergirl #lena luthor #kara danvers #alex danvers #supercorp #anti james olsen #lex luthor #anti guardiancorp #winn shott #lilian luthor #kara zor el #jonn jonzz

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finderskeepersff · 5 years

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70. Part 8

“So this is how it is, you can call me but I can’t call you?” Celine said “not exactly, I am just checking on my nephew” moving the cheques to the side on my desk “does Sofia know you are calling me, I bet she don’t” I sniggered “what if I ask her if she does? You can snigger all you want” she is funny “she will tell you to fuck off, she don’t fuck with you. I am asking about my nephew, you the one making it something deeper” she is so dumb “no, because I know you. I don’t want to know you but I do because as soon as shit goes sideways you flip the switch on me and make out that it is me when it is you, I am fine with my son now. Happy actually” chewing my on my top lip “not what you wanted to hear right?” things are going to shit for me, there is no fucking doubt about that “like I said I am asking on my nephew” Celine sighed out “you’re upset, do you want a hug? Fly over” clearing my throat “not really, I want you to do me something” Celine scoffed “fuck you, no. I am fine, I don’t want to do anything like that. My son comes first” I snorted laughing “but he don’t, I mean in reality he doesn’t. I mean you have no choice. You’re going to do it either way, Ethan will contact you with the details” sitting back in my seat “do you miss me Cassius, I think you miss my voice. I know you do” licking my lips “I think I got the better cousin, thanks” Celine laughed “she is better looking than me but she ain’t me” rubbing the top of my head “I don’t actually, but it reassures me that I could have you still” Celine chuckled “wow, ok but I think not. Go to your perfect little woman, I don’t really want you and Ethan can fuck off and actually Cassius if you want to kill me then do it, make sure it’s your hands around my neck. You have done that plenty of times” Celine disconnected the call, moving the phone away from my ear and then throwing my phone on the desk, I did generally just wanted to know about my nephew and she made it about her.

Hearing a knock on my office door “what is it?” That ain’t Sofia anyways “it’s me, Josiah” he opened the door a little, waving him in “you said I would hear it last night” I did say that “that bang of the door shutting woke me” pointing at the seat “sit down, yeah. Women for you. I barely did anything, I mean ok I went to the club and had fun, women don’t like you to have fun so she is angry at that” Josiah sat down “I know but she is pregnant, so she is going to be even more sad. I was here when she fell” pulling a face at Josiah “calm down superman, I feel bad she fell I mean of course I do, she carrying my daughter and she fell. I know she is out there waiting to say more shit to me, and I also called Celine” Josiah eyes widened “Cassius, why? She is a bad person, you know that. We don’t fuck with her like that” staring at the desk “I don’t know, but I did and now I’m like why. No matter what, and I said this to Henry, I love Sofia and I do, she has a great heart and she deserves the world but when you’re a guy that is a mess inside, you go to people that are the same as you. Sofia is just not me, Celine is. She is a mess like me, you know. I mean you may not get it but I do” Josiah looked at me in sadness and it looked so genuine “I don’t need your pitty either” Josiah sighed out “I don’t pitty you but I think you like to take pitty on yourself, I mean I could get cussed out right now but hey, I am used to it. You’re at your own pitty party, I ain’t denying that you probably have this weird bond to Celine but you contacting her is not good is it? I think you need to just take it, there is one thing I learnt from mom and dad, when mom was ranting, dad took it because mom was always right, dad was an ass and you’re acting like him” he got balls “how much money do you want now, I told you about what I done” opening the duffle bag “for what?” Josiah said confused “I don’t want money, I am sitting here for you. I mean by all means do what I said, take it and I do think you need to mention you contacted Celine” shaking my head “never, I will never tell her this. Sofia will kick me out of this house, Celine has been a issue for me, for us. I need to call someone, so if you can please” Josiah nodded his head “I will take Cartier out for a while” grabbing my phone from my desk “if you want” he can do what he likes.

Henry wanted to facetime me, like this is different “look at you Cassius, you look so well” Henry said “thank you, I try to be. You look good too, nice beard and shit” I laughed “you like it son, I am trying to connect it but enough of staring at each other. What on earth am I hearing now? I have to see your face, what on earth?” Henry is giving me that displeased look “what did I say about you contacting Celine, this is you asking to enter a dark place” I feel judged “it wasn’t like that, I was asking about my nephew and I needed her to do something for me” I explained “no, this you having a hold onto her, you are creating jobs so you know what she is doing. Start from the beginning what happened? What led you to this?” sitting back in my chair “so that night I called you and we spoke, I didn’t feel any better about myself at all. I did some things and then we done it, I just felt a little not me even though we did it. So we erm, went out, I did. Mind you I didn’t contact Sofia at all, because I wasn’t feeling it. Females were present in my area of the club, but not for me. I got drunk, very drunk that my best friend said I assumed that one of the girls were Sofia and I wouldn’t leave it, I was touchy with her and she was dancing on me, and at that point Kyle was trying to drag me away, I fell, cut myself on the face. So I came back here, I was not in a good mood, took it out on my loved ones because of what I knew I did, told Sofia today and she dragged it out of me that I was aware there was girls there which there was, but that night Sofia fell in the shower and was struggling while I was partying, she is angry with me” I said everything without even looking at the camera “and what did calling Celine solve? Did you feel you needed to call her?” I shrugged “or was she the back up plan because Sofia is angry with you, Cassius. Couples argue, we all do and it’s fine. Celine and you have this very toxic connection and we spoke on this, Sofia and you and that was it. You reaching out was you asking to be in a dark place when you are not there Cassius, you made the mistake and you must fix it. We are all damaged inside and it concerns me that you felt our talk was nothing, it’s making me feel do you want to go back there?” shaking my head “but I don’t, I just don’t want to hear Sofia shouting at me” Henry shook his head “women shout, you want to come and see me or shall I come there. You reaching new levels of money now? When you make more money Cassius you turn into this other guy” putting my head down.

Henry and I have been quiet for a while now “I can’t” I shook my head “can’t what?” Henry said “forgive myself, I just can’t do it. No matter how she erm, looks at me and loves me I can’t, I just no. Not me” shaking my head “say it out loud, say it to me. Cassius, you need to say it a loud. It’s me Henry, I know everything about you” hitting my fist on the chair side with my free hand “I forced Sofia to have sex with me, like I did that and created a fucking baby out of it and it’s a fucking girl, there wasn’t no love making, no love story. I fucked Sofia like I did Celine, like she was shit. I was fucking on drugs and did that, you know. I can’t let it go” shaking my head and wiping the tear that fell “brings back memories don’t it, and you made her get rid of it” slamming the phone down on my desk “it was never to do with the girls, I wanted to be numb. I felt better” placing my hands over my face “Cassius, I want you to have some tablets to calm you down” rubbing my face “I don’t want no tablets Henry, I just want to walk away from the situation. You know, how can someone love a person and do that and still be here” I just don’t get it “maybe she wants you to change, she believes in you. You need to let it go Cassius, moving on in life is letting it go and forgiving yourself, you had to do that for your father now do it for you and your future. Why do we see a good guy and you don’t? Am I wasting my time calling you my son, what do you see when you look in the mirror?” I sighed out “a rich nigga” I smiled to myself “and that is your issue, you’re a father and soon to be a husband. That is what you should see, you need to see you are a good man” the door opened and there stood Sofia just staring at me, she is pissed off “Josiah is taking Cartier out, you can go with them” she slammed the door, that was a big bang “can you pick your phone off of the table so I can see you” Henry asked, picking the phone off of the desk “yeah” looking at Henry’ face “you about to put me into a early grave, you speak to her. On the events that happened. You don’t need to speak about anything else, you don’t go. She wants you too” she is about to cuss me out and I don’t want that either “fine” I would actually go with Josiah.

Sofia walked off as soon as walked over to Josiah “buy my son a toy or something” passing Josiah a few hundreds “no, it’s my nephew. I can get him something myself” nodding my head “if you see my clothes outside then just drive by” Josiah laughed “hey dada boy, look at you. You’re all wrapped up warm ain’t you, you be good for uncle ok” leaning down into the car seat and kissing his cheek “I love you boy” holding his hand, smiling at him “aight, be careful ok?” patting Josiah’ shoulder “you need to be careful, she has banged all of the doors today” I probably need it more than him “I know” rubbing my face, I think I have fucked up a lot today. I don’t know what to say to Sofia but sorry, there is nothing I can do and I feel bad but I hope she isn’t too harsh on me. I really wish I could go with Josiah because I will just make shit worse, turning around to go and find Sofia but from the sound of the banging of the door upstairs, she is there.

Knocking on Cartier bedroom door, I can hear the vacuum cleaner going off in here so she is here. Pushing open the door, and I didn’t step inside I just rested just a little to the side just staring at her. She is acting like she didn’t just near break her hip, she turned the cleaner off “what is it!? I did say for you to go, you run from me anyways” well that is bullshit “not exactly, I thought I would stay behind. I mean obviously we need to talk right?” Sofia shrugged “I don’t know, do we? I am sure you have spoken enough to Henry, huh?. Got your story straight now?” nodding my head “I am just not good enough for you am I? I mean I can’t be, anybody in love would want to come home but you didn’t, I think I have accepted that I won’t be anyways, I won’t be. Never have been good enough for the man I want attention from, it’s crazy how much attention I get from other men, they actually want me but you was in the club calling a girl that I know was less of me my name. I called Amira, she told me what she knows and said you and Kyle are both dumbasses, so if Kyle wasn’t there what would have happened Cassius?” Sofia crossed her arms across her chest “mhmm?” she walked over to me ever so slowly “I want to hear it from your mouth, put the cleaner away. I will be downstairs” Sofia walked by me.

Put the cleaner away she says, I don’t know where this shit goes. It’s a little heavy too, reaching the bottom of the steps “erm, Sofia” she is going to bark at me for not knowing “where does it go?” I asked dragging it along “it’s heavy” Sofia glared at me “heavy huh? I carried that up and you complain that it’s heavy, it goes in the cleaning cupboard where we have the security system” letting out an oh, let me put it back. I didn’t know she put the cleaning things here, placing the cleaner inside and closing the door. I think I am more nervous to speak to Sofia then I was about the shipment, it’s hard having to explain yourself to a loved one. Sofia just sat down on the couch as I got inside the room “so did you get an answer?” walking slowly over to the couch “what was the question?” Sofia placed her cup on the table “don’t make me ask it again” sitting down, but not close to her “I probably would have woke up with another female in my hotel bed” I mean that is the truth, that would have happened “wow! And you want me to be all calm about this, you know how bad that is? So would you like to tell me the real story instead of your half assed fucking shit” I sighed out “you asked me to say it, I am not going out of my way to cheat” I said “I said speak!” she spat, why do women need to shout I just don’t get it “so I went to the warehouse, Kyle said we should celebrate and I was like I mean if that is what everyone wants. So we went, Kyle stayed behind to finish and I went ahead. Went into the club, I mean you have been there it’s your favourite place, there is a VIP section, I went there. The boys also came with me and we got there” rubbing my hands together “and you didn’t think of me at that moment, not even a text, but continue” I sighed out “so the drinks came, we had shots first. I had it, my intentions was to just go there for a while until Kyle came but when I had that first shot, the fact it burned my throat, just the feel of it numbing my insides, I enjoyed the feeling. So I had another shot, and then I had a bottle of Vodka with me, there was females there that wanted to come in, one of the boys asked and I said yes. About ten of them came in, and during that time I was drinking and yes one of them girls was talking to me and yes I was aware but we was just talking, I told her that I have a son and then I remember I was sick. After that it was blurry until I woke up the next day naked, I was naked because Kyle told me I stripped naked and got in bed, I woke up in Kyle’ hotel room, he got me home. I was sick in the morning thinking I did and I was scared, I cried. Then Kyle said I didn’t, but I kept saying she was Sofia but from what I remember she was nothing on you” Sofia rolled her eyes “you men love trash, you just love it. All of you are just that, why couldn’t you come home to me?” that is a hard question to answer.

Clearly Sofia wants me to answer it, she wants me to answer why I couldn’t “the plan was to come home, I was coming home. That is all I want to be is with you both, I just got caught in the moment, I was feeling myself that night and it just escalated Sofia” Sofia glared at me “get Henry on the phone, I want to ask him something. Hurry up about it too” getting my phone out, I wonder what she wants to ask him. Unlocking my phone “why though?” I asked, tapping Henry’ number “you will hear it, you’re here ain’t you” putting it on loud speaker and placing my phone on the table “am I good enough for you Cassius, I am questioning myself about this because I don’t think I am. I think maybe you need something I can’t give you, I am not good enough for you, I think I am right in this” shaking my head “don’t say that” Henry picked the phone up “Sofia wants to speak to you” I said before he even spoke “that is fine, Sofia hello. How are you?” I wonder what she is going to ask him “hi Henry, I am sure he has told you everything. I don’t need to explain to you, but from 1 to 10, with 1 do not care and 10 being the worst case scenario. Do you think Cassius will let me live without him?” Sofia stared at me with every word that she said “ten, I answered for him” I said “I say one” Sofia thinks she is funny “you want to bet?” she said “bet, why you think you’re funny. You’re like the rest, leave me. Do it but you ain’t taking my kids, they with me” I spat “they wouldn’t let some drug dealer have my kids, they are mine” now she is trying to piss me off “now you listen to me Cassius, and you too Henry. You didn’t cheat, good for you. I was fucking here for you while you was in Texas, I sat here looking after your son, keeping your shit together. I sat here faithful to you, and you can’t even repay me by just being normal, by not being a dickhead. Now you hear me out Cassius before you spit your pacifier out, I am leaving for Barbados tomorrow, you either come or you don’t but if you don’t then I think we both have other dreams because this ain’t working Cassius, saying I love you don’t fix anything. You’re busy, you’re too busy being a business man now to care for me. Me? I am still in pain from falling but you see me cleaning, you get on with it. Did you ask me how I feel even after you conditioned your own guilt into taking me to the hospital because you felt bad, now Henry tell your client what to do” Sofia got up from the couch “you men are so full of shit” she walked off, grabbing my phone “I don’t need Henry” throwing my phone.

I cringed hearing his phone break against the wall, I am not going to cry. There is nothing to cry about, I think I have cried all of those tears when I left him in Texas and I needed him, being alone makes me know I am ok, I don’t need him. I have everything I want, it’s a shame because I know Cassius is my soul mate but he is just so far from me, I don’t feel him. He is hot and cold and I can’t deal with it, and I know what is going to happen now. He is going to act out, I haven’t even left him but I have planted that seed in his head, I am going Barbados and it’s either with him or without him, I need a fucking break and I wish he doesn’t come because it will be a good break without him. It’s funny how I haven’t cried about this, it’s just funny because I think I felt it from him. The way he was, the way he became cold to me but was torturing me as well as himself because of his mistake. Closing my bedroom door, he is so angry downstairs, Henry is calling my phone now “hello” answering the phone “yes, he is having a tantrum” I answered “he is still recovering Sofia, you know he won’t take well to letting you go anywhere” Henry said “but it will happen, point blank” I shrugged “what do I need to know, tell me” I asked him “I think Cassius needs more help and I want to see him, he is stuck between wanting to be with you and make more money. I think you could be the hep but also the cause, he keeps on saying he harmed you. But if he wants to go with you to Barbados maybe that is a good thing” this is not fair, I want him to stop bringing that up “you know he don’t want to be lonely, he did what he did and I think we need to see the issue, his intentions was there” the bedroom door opened “if you broke anything downstairs, I swear to god” turning around “sure Henry” disconnecting the call, throwing my phone onto the bed and walking into the bathroom, he can do as he pleases.

I was much more careful with having a shower, the bruise is awful still but I needed a shower and I needed to just de-stress a little bit, just to be away from Cassius. I am not upset, I am not even crying that I care, just angry more than anything. Tightening my towel around my body, I am not big headed about shit but who wouldn’t want to marry me, I am not a crazy bitch and I fucking cook and I am not ugly I just don’t get it. Unless there is something wrong with me and I don’t see it, it must be that. Unlocking the bathroom door, either Cassius is waiting for me or he is on the balcony smoking or he has ran off but I will find out now. Dragging open the door, it was the first option “could have put the heating on” sat here for nothing, making my way to the walk in closet. When Cassius and Josiah said I was banging, it wasn’t even that. I was packing the suitcases, and I dropped them when I tried to get it out of storage. I am preparing for the worst, I have two suitcases, if the worst happens then I am staying in Barbados for as long as I can until I am close to giving birth but if he does come then I will have to cut it short. Pushing the suitcase out of the way to get to my drawer “you really going tomorrow?” Cassius said “yep, me and Cartier” opening my drawer “so you’re taking Cartier away from me?” grabbing my comfy pants, I cannot be bothered with a thong right now “I am taking my son with me, he needs to be with his mother Cassius. Least I know you have decided” closing my drawer turning to him “least we can do this now, get this over with. I think we both do want different things don’t we?” pulling my pants up “it’s fine Cassius, I rather you admit that now then be married to something you really didn’t want in the first place. I guess I can thank you for giving me a second baby, you’re probably thinking why am I not crying about it, I don’t have the tears Cassius, I have cried enough when you was high out of your mind, there is nothing else that can go wrong” walking by Cassius, feeling a hand on my arm “don’t touch me, was this the hand that touched another female huh” turning to him “get off my arm, don’t touch me Cassius. You don’t deserve me, you was touching other girls so get off me” Cassius let my arm go and dropped down to his knees in front of me “don’t leave me” Cassius put his hands over his face as he sobbed out “please don’t leave me” I hate when he cries “you chose what you wanted, I said what I am doing. You just need to choose what you want” I knew I should have walked off because Cassius decided to latch onto my leg “Cassius, please. I don’t have the strength to fight you on this” pushing at his shoulder “I thought it was you Sofia, I thought it was you. I swear Sofia, I thought it was you. I wanted you, I wanted to come to you but I didn’t. Please don’t leave me over this, I want you” rubbing my face “just get off my leg” rolling my eyes as he did.

Moisturising my face while staring at myself in the mirror and yes Cassius right behind me, he is just watching me do everything “you know what Cassius, I don’t think I want you to actually come to Barbados, you don’t want to go so you being there is going to be just negative as shit, you can just stay here. And then hopefully you find a girl that is worthy of you, I just really can’t be bothered, I just want to go tomorrow and I can’t wait. Also you have a business to run” I don’t want to ruin that “this is Cartier’ first time on holiday, on an actual holiday I ain’t missing that” I laughed, I turned around to look at Cassius “I really think we want different things Cassius, I think you want a woman to just not care for things like marriage, dates, to be actually home, to want to be loved. I think you need someone to be a nut rag. What I want from you is not going to happen, it’s not is it” hearing a knock at the door “Sofia, I am back” Josiah said as he knocked on the door again, walking by Cassius “come in!” I spat, I have such a headache right now “he missed momma didn’t you” Josiah said as he walked into my room “awww, how was it. He wasn’t being a pain was he?” Cartier is wide awake, his little face smiling at me “not really, he was good” taking Cartier from Josiah and kissing his cheek “Josiah, tomorrow I will be going to Barbados. So you can stay here if you want, Cassius will be here so don’t worry about it” Josiah let out an oh as he looked behind me “I won’t be here, I am going with you” unzipping Cartier’ jacket “so he says” I mumbled “but I am glad Cartier had a good time, mommy going to make some food for you. You must be hungry and then I can put you to bed early because we got to leave early” wiping just under Cartier’ nose with my hand.

I would say dinner is very awkward, it is so quiet. It is only Cartier that is making all of the noise while I feed him “you like my homemade food don’t you” he is enjoying it “this is nice Sofia, I wonder if Cassius is going to cook like this for me” Cassius side eyed Josiah “I am joking, look are you both going to make up? Y’all like my parents, not in a weird way but I don’t like to see my brother upset as well as you” I shrugged “he does what he wants, who am I” Cassius is hating that I just don’t care "Sofia I am sorry, I don’t say sorry to many people in my life but you I do because I want to make shit right for you, I do Sofia. No girl would be like you” Cartier slapped the table on his high chair “ok, sorry” he is demanding his food “Cassius I can’t help you if you’re going to continue to bring up what I don’t want to hear, I would do so much for you Cassius. I would do anything for you and yet I feel I got half assed shit from you. Why did you want to feel numb, from me?” wiping Cartier’ mouth “from me” he answered “you know what Cassius, I want you to go to sleep early. Because we have a early flight in the morning, I want you to go upstairs and pack your shit and then we will take it from there” smiling at Cartier, he is so damn goofy.

Cassius did go upstairs, he didn’t exactly put his things away because he couldn’t find a suitcase but he left his things on the side but I just put it away. When I went upstairs, he was asleep and I know when Cassius is actually sleeping and when he’s not but he actually was. I was going to give it a few more days before I went Barbados but I want to go, it’s time, I need a break away from this country and this lifestyle. I just need to make sure my house is all clean, I am going to let Josiah stay here, that way he can make sure nothing goes down, I don’t have a time limit on how long, when I feel I want to to come back, I will “you really love my brother don’t you?” wiping the kitchen counter “I wish I didn’t, I am a fool I would say” I really must be “he loves you though, I know he does. He is just lost Sofia, I want him to win because he does deserve it. And also I didn’t want you to leave him here, he would make everyone’s life a living hell, I am happy you are taking him” I snorted laughing “really? So you really happy because I am taking him with me?” Josiah chuckled “Sofia he would be awful, you do have a hold on him. You put him to bed, I ain’t seen that shit since we was in school” shaking my head laughing “I don’t know, see how Barbados goes. Might be able to actually break into him with the fact he can’t just storm out, different vibe and all that” I hope anyways “I hope so too” we are all hoping for one thing.

#Chrianna #Chrianna FF #Fanfic #Fanfiction

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lalobalives · 5 years

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Writing Our Lives is honored to announce its latest partnership with The Rumpus’ Voices on Addiction.

What does this mean?

If you’ve taken a WOL class with Vanessa Mártir, you can submit your personal essay for consideration for publication on The Rumpus’ Voices on Addiction column. Three essays by WOL alum will be selected and published on VOA in April and May.

Submission Period Opens: January 25, 2019 Deadline: March 15, 2019 at 11:59pm

What you should know about VOA: Voices on Addiction is a column devoted to true personal narratives of addiction, curated by Kelly Thompson, and authored by the spectrum of individuals affected by this illness. Through these essays, we hope—in the words of Rebecca Solnit—to break the story by breaking the status quo of addiction: the shame, stigma, and hopelessness, and the lies and myths that surround it. Sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers, adult children, extended family members, spouses, friends, employers or employees, boyfriends, girlfriends, neighbors, victims of crimes, and those who’ve committed crimes as addicts, and the personnel who often serve them, nurses, doctors, social workers, therapists, prison guards, police officers, policy makers and, of course, addicts themselves: Voices on Addiction will feature your stories. Because the story of addiction impacts us all. It’s time we break it.

If you have an essay that fits the bill and you’ve taken a WOL class or workshop, you can submit!

I encourage you to read some of the essays on the VOA column here.

Submission specifics:

Deadline: March 15th, 2019 at 11:59PM

Your essay must be between 1200 and 3500 words.

Your essay should fit the specifications in the VOA blurb.

In your cover letter, include a short bio and what WOL class(es) you’ve taken and what year(s).

Submit your essay as an attachment, as a Word Doc or PDF.

Submission must be double spaced, 12 point font.

Put

title and author name

If accepted, you agree to allow Vanessa Mártir and/or VOA can make minor edits to your essay.

Send your submission, questions about the submission, etc. to [email protected].

Why did I make this partnership happen?

If you’re like me, you have stories about addiction that you wish you didn’t have. Stories of how addiction ravaged your neighborhood, your friends, your family, maybe even you.

I grew up in the crack era of NYC. The buildings that burned during the Fire Wars, whose carcasses were left standing, became crackhouses. There was one across the street from my building on Palmetto Street in Bushwick, Brooklyn. I remember watching the addicts line up, scratching themselves, jonesing for their next hit. They slipped their money into a hole in the wall and were passed a little bag with a candy color topped vial. Those vials littered the gutters and sidewalks. We unknowing children played with those vials until some adult smacked them out of our hands and taught us better.

At 9, I learned the burnt cotton candy smell of crack. I learned to kick the door in to our building hard, because there was always an addict in the foyer, puffing on that pipe, and he or she didn’t care that kids lived in that building. We kicked in the door to startle them. To hurt them into finding another spot to pull on their pipes. I didn’t have much sympathy for addicts then.

The dealers and the fiends took over the playgrounds and handball courts. You couldn’t pass by certain blocks without hearing “Eight ball, eight ball!”

I saw heroin make a come back in the 90s, and crystal meth appeared in the early 2000s.

I admit with some shame that I remained unsympathetic until heroin dug its claws into my brother. My Superman Juan Carlos struggled with a fifteen year addiction that he finally succumbed to in 2013. It was his death that opened my eyes.

If you know someone who’s using or has used, you should know that this isn’t as simple as them making bad decisions. They’re running from something that, to them, seems a whole lot scarier than a needle. Source

I have a new view on addiction, it’s causes and costs, what it does to people, families and communities. This is why this partnership with The Rumpus’ Voices on Addiction is of particular importance to me. This is why I had to make it happen.

We have to stop pretending that addiction doesn’t affect all of us. No healing comes from silence.

I’ve side eyed the growing narrative around addiction that has surfaced now that opiates are affecting white communities in shocking numbers. To be clear, that is a problem that must be addressed, but let’s be real–the narrative wasn’t so gentle and compassionate when it was black and brown folks being destroyed by addiction. It’s up to us to rewrite these narratives; to give them the complexity and humanity we all deserve.

This partnership is one way that I am pushing back, because I believe there is healing in stories and truth telling. Let’s write our stories. Let’s get them out into the world. Let me help you publish them.

Announcement: The Writing Our Lives Workshop is partnering with The Rumpus’ Voices on Addiction Writing Our Lives is honored to announce its latest partnership with The Rumpus’ Voices on Addiction…

#writing our lives #Writing Our Lives Partnership #Writing Our Lives workshop #Writing Our Lives/The Rumpus Voices on Addiction

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kottawrites · 6 years

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Burnt Out

JUSTICE LEAGUE 2017 MOVIE UNIVERSE

Barry Allen & Bruce Wayne (the rest of the team appear briefly)

Words: 2077

There isn't time to worry about blood sugars and metabolism when you are in the middle of a fight. Barry would just have to take the consequences.

The Justice League. The epitome of a of strength and smarts. Each member unique and yet when put together the work like a well oiled machine. Cogs all turning in unison. But that's not to say that they always work perfectly. If life is a learning curve, then forming a team of hero's to stop the forces of evil, well, that's a long harsh drop.

Over time they have worked out the kinks in their team. certain members leaning to hold back until a plan was formed instead of charging in head first. Others learning that they can depend on those around them. The feeling of what its like to actually have friends for the first time.

Learning that there are limits.

Training together during the day, getting the signal that the league is needed in the evening. Its a lot.

On a team made up of a goddess, an alien, an Atlantic warrior, a cybernetically enhanced athlete, Batman and a college kid who got struck by lightning- guess the weakest link.

Barry could feel that he was going slower, he knew he was almost visible to the human eye- more than just a red blur. He was starting to feel out of breath- since when did running make him breathless? He stopped briefly, resting a hand on his knee as we watched the rest of his team fight valiantly against their latest foe.

The league found themselves fighting some kind of large technologically advanced blob of an alien monster. The sort of generic villain thought up by a two year old with a decent imagination and access to an array of crayons. The blob was protecting itself with some kind of purple electronic field, which cyborg had just found the weak spot on.

Batman called in the latest model of bat-fighter-jet (the power of money) and was now shooting relentlessly at the the monsters shield. Superman flew through the air, heat vision focused on the weak spot. Dangling off each of his hands were Wonder Woman and Aquaman, sword and trident gripped in their respective hands, ready to slash the great monster through the middle once the opening was there.

The Flash could see it happen in slow motion. The shield broke. Arthur and Diana swung from Clarks hands, battle cries exploding from their mouths as their weapons broke the slimy skin of the foreign being. But instead of making a strong slice though their foe, they began to get swallowed up by the surface of the monster.

Barry moved with out thinking, Batman and cyborg weren't fast enough to help, Superman (as much as he liked to think he was) wasn’t fast enough either.

He was there in a second, only sharp shocks of lighting tracing his steps. He vibrated his body at such a rate that the monsters surface couldn't get a grip on him, he reached in pulling his friends out from the ooze. Then jumped back himself. All three of them fell to the ground harshly, tumbling and rolling before grinding to a stop. Victor, Bruce and Clark all charged up their weapons, and together dealt a finishing blow to the monster. It let out a shriek and eventually fizzled away to nothing.

Arthur and Diana get up from where they fell and brushed themselves off.

“Thank you, Flash, we can always rely on you to be there when we most need you.” Diana said as she stretched out her muscles, before she noticed her team mate struggling to sit up.

“Hey man, whats wrong?” Arthur said, hurrying over.

Barry managed to sit himself up, he held his head in his hands, eyes clamped shut- was he spinning around? Or was it just the world? Either way he felt sick to his stomach, and like molasses were being poured all over him . “Nothing, nothing I just-” he let out a deep breath “I need a second.” he tried to brush it off but he honestly just sounded pained.

“If you are not well, tell us whats wrong,” Diana said on her approach.

Bruce had now landed. He, Clark and Victor made their way over quickly.

Diana sat behind Barry, supporting his back and holding him up. Bruce knelt in-front of him an held a small light at Barrys face so he could get a better look at the speedster. His eyes were unfocused and his skin looked clammy. “Barry are you hurt anywhere?” Bruce spoke clearly and firmly.

“Only my pride.” Barry sounded like he didn’t really know what he was saying “I’m no match for you guys.” his words were slurred. His eyes rolled back and his head lolled to the side, Diana cradled his head gently.

Victor stepped forward, “Let me run a scan on him.”

Bruce put his hand up to stop him “I’ll take him back to my manor, we have the facilities there to help him, I have a feeling I know whats wrong. Speedsters aren't built to run on empty. Today has been rigorous, we all need time to recuperate.” he turned to Superman “Clark, if you could.”

Clark nodded. Wonder Woman lifted the speedster up with ease, handing him over to Superman who then flew off, up and out of the building.

“I’ll monitor his blood-sugars and make sure he eats enough to feed a small village.” Bruce continued. He seemed calm, but he was kicking himself for not taking in to account the speedsters needs first. He was aware that Barry was at risk of overdoing it, but never really took notice.

Barry didn’t do anything slowly. But waking up from the exhaustion induced sleep he’d fallen in to seemed to take forever. He was semi-conscious for quite some time, he could hear Bruce and Clark talking about what could have gone better on their last mission- listening to them be so serious was very… boring. It was sending Barry back to sleep.

Eventually Clark left, all Barry could hear after that was Bruce typing at the bat-computer. It was quite soothing, he couldn’t remember that last time he felt so calm. But he was also really starting to feel the need to move again, his fingers were twitching with the want to be active.

He groaned and opened his eyes, the batcave was brighter than he remembered. The light giving him a headache instantly. “What I would do for like fifty deep pan ham and pineapple pizzas right now.” He mumbled, voice sounding dry.

“I need to re-evaluate your membership to the league if you like pineapple on your pizza Flash.” Bruce stated, sounding an awful lot like he wasn’t joking.

“Don’t knock it till you try it- We cant all have caviar on our pizzas Mr.billionaire.” Barry ginned.

Bruce exhaled almost fondly in reply before going back in to serious mode “Don’t move too much, your hooked up to a specially mixed IV solution, it took a bit of work to make something to bring your blood sugar levels back to normal. Your metabolism is really something else.”

“I’m a freak I know.” Barry laughs and tries to sit up but he honestly still feels light headed, the laughter only adding to his headache.

“Try not to move for a bit longer. You really burnt yourself out.”

“You're telling me.” Barry rolls head back “I cant remember the last time I was still for so long. I don’t even sleep this long at night- power naps work wonders, even better when you're a speedster.”

“Yesterday-” Bruce began “-how long had you been without eating before the fight?”

“I don’t know- since second breakfast? Maybe? We were really busy.”

“And did you feel your blood sugar affecting you before the fight?” Bruce asked, lips tight in his usual frown.

“I guess. But we didn’t have the time to stop for anything. Its not like I can tell some gooey alien monster thing to stop for a time out ‘cause I gotta grab a pizza or ten.” Barry sighed, he couldn’t help but feel like Batman wasn’t far off of kicking him off the team. Why wouldn't he? He can move at super human speeds, sure, but hes scared of so much and hes the only one who seems to have a limitations.

Bruce was silent as he took in the information.

Barry braced for bad news.

He really didn’t want to leave the team. They were his first real fiends since… well, ever. He felt such a sense of belonging with them, purpose, like he was actually doing something good with his life. Fighting against evil forces. Instead of doing his best and running away before there was any real sense of danger.

“I've made some modifications to your suit so we can avoid situations like this again.” Bruce said, walking over to Barrys uniform, which was spread out on a table near by.

Barry didn't want to think about who got him out of the suit, and how they did so. He felt that it should be one of the only questions that he never found out the answer too. “

Pimp my suit!” Barry joked. When Bruce didn’t respond the speedster felt the need to explain himself- he spoke too much when he felt nervous “Y’know, like- Pimp My Ride? You ever watch that? Is that where you get your ideas for the batmobiles for?”

“Right.” Bruce said, he clearly hadn't listened to whatever Barry had just word-vomited.

He picked up one of the deep red arm guards off the table and showed it to the flash. He clicked a small button on the inner side of the piece of costume and a panel slid back revealing eight small balls. “These are energy balls. Alfred developed the recipe back when I first became Batman, they are extremely useful for giving your body an extra kick when you need it. He changed the mix so it could work with your heightened metabolism. If you ever need more we will keep a supply here, just say the word. But don’t eat these for snacks. I can tell you they don’t taste good and should never replace an actual meal.”

Barry blinked in surprise. He couldn't believe someone, let alone Batman, had done this for him. “Thanks.” was all he could muster, he felt quite speechless.

“-And” Bruce continued going back to the table “Press and hold here for five seconds,” He pressed an area on the left hand shoulder of the Flash uniform. Another compartment but this time on the right side of the outfit opened revealing a small injection. “This, is for emergency situations only. Its a mix much like whats in that IV, but with a concentrated dose of adrenalin also. Again, only use this if you feel it is necessary.”

Barry listened carefully. It was impossible not to listen to Bruce when he spoke in that serious tone. “Bruce, wow.” Barry sat up slightly, he felt his energy slowly returning. “I don’t know what to say. For once.” He chuckled “Thanks for looking out for me. Honestly I thought I was about to get the boot form the team, you guys really don’t need me holding you back.” the sadness in his eyes showed that he really meant what he said.

“Barry, you're stronger than you think and more important to this team than you could ever truly know.” Bruce didn't waste any time getting to his reply, he felt that the youngest of their team could use a boost. Years of being a father to Robins and support from Alfred kept him from being one hundred percent made of stone.

Barry nodded, his famously chatty and chirpy voice failing him. Overwhelmed by the care he had received and also still a bit woozy from recent events.

Bruce understood, silent communication made more sense to him that actual conversation sometimes. “When you're ready, let me know. I’ll call the other league members and we can discuss plans gong forward over dinner. We’ll order pizza, save Alfred cooking enough to feed your ‘snackhole’ as you put it.” Bruce smirked.

“Will do!” Barry smiled laying back, just five more minuets and he’ll be zapping around again no problem. He could listen to Bruce tying on the batcomputer for a bit longer.

He may be the weaker of the justice league members on paper. But he knew he was valued and just as important as his friends.

He could get used to this.

I Hope you enjoyed it! Please like/comment/re-blog to let me know your thoughts! This was originally posed to Ao3 in 2017.

#justice league #justice league 2017 #barry allen #the flash #fanfic #fanficion #bruce wayne #batflash

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stay--satan · 6 years

Text

Rose in Red: CHAPTER 1

This story is loosely based in DC Cinematic Universe before the Batman vs Superman events

Before aliens, super villains groups, kids with super powers, there was a family. They weren’t blood related, but it was his family Until one clown ended all and now they were strangers. One is supposed to be dead, the other one living another life and the last trying to live up by his own name. Five years ago a clown teared his family apart. Bruce learned five years ago that maybe his rules weren’t the thing that made him a better man. Maybe vengeance was all that he had left.

SUMMARY

CHAPTER 1 - Looking back

The man could touch the silence that took over the house. A house once he was so happy and proud. The house where he once thought about raising his children and their children after that.

"BOYS!" He screams with the running in the upstairs hall. The oldest puts his head in the stairs "May I know why you are not ready?" "He's talking to Sophie Smith" the other one said behind the man caughting by surprise "Who's this?" "Dick's girfriend" the boy gives a devilish smile and out of nowhere there is a baseball ball hitting in his stomach. Grunting loudly from the pain he makes his way to uptairs so he could fight back, but is pushed back by his father "No, the only reason you're going up there is to put some pants. God Jason, where are your pants" "I was eating and I didn't want them dirty" he says guilty letting go of his embrace and run back to his room "RICHARD, HELP YOUR BROTHER WITH HIS TIE" "Why am I the one to do it?" Dick whine from his room. Bruce sighs massaging his temples "Because you're both late and Alfred is sick so he can't help you... Also because I said so!" he says the last part a little louder. God he missed Alfred.

Bruce walks in the destroyed home, it's so different then what it used to be. The walls now are covered in criminal's graffiti from the invasion, it had a awful mold smell and it was dark than ever did before. He wonders if it's not because he was alone there. The house never liked to be empty,

"Guys. Living room, now!" The two boys ran their way to the room finding a very interested Alfred and concern Bruce, still dressed as Batman but without the cowl. Dick's the first one to notice something different about him. He sees a girl behind him, not much younger than him with his 16 years. "Everyone, this is Rose." Bruce pushes the girl by the shoulders so she can come forward "She... Something bad happened to her family, so now we're gonna be her family." Jason's expression for the first time isn't angrish. He feels the heaten taking over his cheeks as she timidly smiles to them.

He walks towards where once used to be the kids room. Luckily or not, those were the least demaged places in the house. He first goes to Dick's, opening the door so carefully as he was still there in his privacy. Bruce could see all clearly now, like it was ten years ago. His boy with loud music in his ears while training with a punch bag. He never liked to train in the cave saying it was 'too dark' for him. So he did the basics in his room with the view to outside.

"Do you want to talk about it?" "I thought I said to leave me alone" the boy looks back to his window. Bruce walks to him sitting right beside him "Look, I get it. You're feeling misplaced" "I went away for a few months to help my team and you already find a replacement" he grunts still not looking the man in the eyes "Richard, the situation with Jason is complicated." "Always is" "But I'm not replacing anyone okay?" the boy still acts like he wasn't there. Bruce sighs straighting himself "You found your place, Dick. You can't lie to me and say that you don't miss your team and rather be here. You are now part of something bigger of your own" Dick moves his head staring the floor "And Jason, he is... He is lost. And he really admired you and all your work okay? I just want to give him this part of your life that you had. Not only the Robin situation, but feeling part of something. And if you wanna leave to be a full time part of your team like Barbara did, you'll always be welcome to my home and the family, son." Dick looks at Bruce with such caring words he never heard before, placing the angrish face with a hug to his father.

Now, he looks at the red door in front of him half destroyed. Bruce licks his lips before coming in taking a good look in the dameged. This time, it wasn't the criminals that did it, but the owner of the room. He walks in the next purple and black room, still with marks from ripped posters. He feels now the most organized room of the house now were the most mess. With broken windows and kicked door, he could still hear the scream from that night. But yet, he tried to push that memory a little bit longer remembering another one.

"Why you don't wanna go?" "Because it's a ridiculous captalist event that rich people have so they can press their money in other rich's face" Rosa cross her arm staring at the car's window. Bruce had picked her up from school and saw a group of girls making fun for not having a date to the Debutante Ball. He knew she got the invitation because he got one too "Plus it's pointless the whole idea of 'introducing women to society' as if this will give us some respect" she grunts again Rose was oficially Bruce Wayne's first daughter. She was the only one out of the two boys who accepted Bruce's request to a legal adoption changing her last name and call him a father. She had the nerves of the Batman and the stubborness of Bruce. "Look, I get it. It's embarrassing." he starts "But when I was young, my mother took me when I was 8." she looks at him respectufully. Everytime he talked to her about his parents, she would drop any atitude down to listen. "And as every 8 year old boy, I was bored to pretty much everything. But she still insisted." he smiles remembering "So she putted me in a fancy suit and took me by her arm. And I didn't understand the point of all of this. I saw girls with underage drinking, some heavy action between couples and I thought it was so stupid to pull out a stunt like that I mean, it was a party with a huge excuse to teenagers to do what they couldn't do back in home. But then, they start to annouce the girls and their fathers. And I looked at them, tearing up, clapping loudly and proudly. But they hadn't no idea what was going on behind the curtains. But my mother knew, she was one of them before and she was still there, tearing up and clapping loudly to each girl. I didn't understand why until I was your age and came to one with this girl, Rachel." he gives a corner smile remembering her again "And I was in another view than when I was 8, you know? I was the one who walked down stairs with a girl in my arm feeling like the biggest boy in the place. It wasn't until the dance starts that I realised that the party wasn't about having formal interactions and expansive drinking. It was a celebration for their kids, and for themselves. It was to be able to gush over them about how proud they are and how far they come. Do you understand?"

Rose nodds to him quietly "So as your father, I would very much like to be there for you this day. No one beside us knows your story, but I do. And I want to clap loudly and proudly of how much I am proud to where you are today."

Back in the present, Bruce kneels on the floor finding her necklace on the floor. The same one he gave her as Debutante present. He puts in his pocket taking one last look before heading to the last one, the big red door.

"I thought you would be leaving with Dick?" he says to the boy sitting on his bed reading. He stopped saying brother a while ago since their fight about him not being his father or any of them their brother. It took a while to Bruce get used to, but he was right. His parents were alive, he just didn't want any contact with them and rather stay with Bruce. Also the world's great detective wasn't that dumb. He had noticed stuff "You sure you don't wanna go with me and Rose? We won't be out long" He sees the boy stops reading and stares his bed thinking before shaking his head. Bruce make his way out before hearing Jason call. "Yes?" "Do you ever... Do you ever wanted something you know it's wrong but you don't know what to do to get over it?" Jason talked really low so no one could hear them. Bruce closes the door behind him walking towards to the kid. "What do you mean?" "Like, like when you had that drinking problem. You knew it was bad and disgusting, but eventually you got over it... How did you do it?" Bruce let's out a deep breath before facing the 17 year old teenager again "Are you talking about something physical or feelings?" Jason only stared at him knewing what he meant "Jason, you're not disgusting because of this." "How could I not?" "She's not your sister" "But I live with her! And now I... I-I can't stop thinking about her" "Jason, look at me." he pushs the boy over the shoulders "Since she came in, I see the way you act around her. You might only be realising that now, but I've been longer before you did. Why do you think I made sure you both knew your place in this family?" the boy kept quiet while hearing the old man's words "If there's anything I learned over the years is that family isn't just blood related or nicknames. It's about ties. You're my family Jason because I trust you with my eyes closed and I love you. You're family to her because you both trust each other and are bond to always have each other's back. Not because I adopted her or put you under my wing, but because of trust. But I need to know if you are willing to face this and telling her the same" "Yes, Bruce" "Good, then put your suit. We're leaving in 20 minutes"

"I knew I would found you here, Sir" Bruce turns around to see Alfred grinning to him "I had to come back here" "I know sir, I'm not the one to judge" Bruce takes another look in the room fill with graffitis. But they were different from the others downstairs "I called her for you sir, she is on her way" "Did you tell her?" "No, I believe is not my place..." Bruce sighed taking a looking to the red wall "I am afraid she won't recover from this" "Master Wayne, if I may... Miss Wayne had enough in her life. Her feelings might be shattered, but this is the right thing to do. For the first time in my life, I believe that you made a wise decision. There will be consequences, but it'll be a start" Bruces looks at Alfred finally agreeing. He stares at the wall with his huge symbol painted in red written THINK He had think and the truth was way worse than he expected. "You know how Miss Wayne is about Master Todd. She'll come to her senses sooner than Master Dick."

#rose in red #batfamily x reader #batman x reader #dick grayson x reader #jason todd x reader #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne imagines #rose wayne ofc #rosalinda wayne ofc #rose garcia ofc

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tatooedlaura-blog · 7 years

Text

The Moon

the series read as follows:

Superman … Monday … Cheezy Pouffs … Bacon … Stumbling … Trail Mix … Punch … Friday … Preparation … Uncle Mudler … Normal … Backseat … Mudler-sense … The FBI … Unthinkable … Patience … Elephant Jokes … Cooking … Rickety Tables … Mr. Skimmer … Bert and Ernie ... Midnight Confessions

___________________

There’s some stuff at the end .. fun stuff .. stuff the cat said was inappropriate for virgin eyes ... I told her to go take a nap ...

___________________

Frustration won.

Growling in the darkness, heart racing, mind flying, she banged the mattress with balled-up fists, “stop. I’m sorry. Can you stop?”

Mulder, having felt her getting nowhere fast and the tension building up accordingly, slowed, then stopped his fingers, burying his lips above her ear, whispering through a kiss, “can’t stop thinking, can you?” Wiggling her hips slightly, she waited for him to remove his hand before she dropped her forearm across her eyes, not daring to look at her partner in that moment, choosing dark embarrassment over honest concern. Mulder, however, wasn’t having any of it, reaching up to gently pull her arm away, “hey, it’s okay.”

Groaning now, she hauled herself up, sitting on the edge of the bed, feet resting on bedframe, elbows on knees, head in hand, “really? Because it feels fairly annoying to me.”

1am had its good moments and 1am had its bad moments, “I’m just telling you what I think and I think that maybe you went looking to forget a little too fast.”

“Are you honestly going to psychoanalyze me in the middle of the night?”

“Nope.” He stood up, then took her hand, a little rougher than usual but feeling it necessary to get her to move, “come on.”

“What? Where are we going?”

“To find you some chocolate ice cream and me a can of root beer. I’m making floats and you can’t stop me.”

Resisting as well as she could, she lost when he practically pulled her from the bed, bare feet providing the traction she couldn’t get on soft sheets a moment earlier. Stumbling slightly, she gave in by the time they reached the top of the stairs, asking him quietly to slow down, “I don’t want to fall down the steps.”

He put the brakes on, “sorry,” as he carefully stepped down, “forgot it was dark.” Once in the kitchen, however, he sat her in a stool at the island and leaning across it, “sexual frustration is easier when both parties get to deal with it. I am going to make you a root beer float, then we are going to take a deep breath while I discuss something with you.”

At that moment, she was teetering on the edge. One direction was complete and total annoyance with her partner, ready to yell and chase him out of the house annoyance while the other side of the line held compliance, slight self-depricating humor and ice cream blended with ‘I adore you’ perfection.

She chose the ice cream side.

Propping her chin in her hands, she finally took a deep breath, “will you at least wash your hands first?”

He liked when she chose the ice cream side.

With a small smile, he nodded, “probably not a bad idea considering where these hands have been in the last hour.”

Spontaneous smiles were good, “just be quiet and make me dessert, would you?”

&&&&&&&&&

Soon, he had settled beside her, spooning ice cream concoction from glass to mouth, “so, are you ready for our discussion?”

He made the world better, in every sense, “I think so. Just … don’t be too honest with me. It’s too late or too early for that.”

“How about I do just the right amount of honesty?” Once she involuntarily crooked an eyebrow for a second, he continued, “you need to listen though, absorb, remember, understand?”

“Yes, for the love of God, now will you just tell me.”

Twisting her chin to meet her gaze, “I am happy. I am happy with you. I am happy that sometime in the next 20 years, we may get married. I am happy that sometime in the next 20 years, we may have a dog or a cat or even a set of hermit crabs. I am happy that it’s me and you. I am happy just the way we are. I would be happy if we spent a bunch of money on trying to have a baby. I am happy if we don’t spend a bunch of money on trying to have a baby. I am happy if we buy a house. I am happy if we only ever buy a mattress big enough for two. I am happy if we get fat from eating ice cream and collect pictures of Big Foot and things by Van Gogh.” Seeing her hanging on his words, he went in for the kill, “I am happy with you.” Enjoying her absorbing look, he continued, “I have only ever wanted you. Everything and anything else is proverbial icing on the cake. I never should have ventured into territory like that when I knew you were exhausted and I was an idiot as well for not realizing that when you asked for a way to forget, you were really asking for what I just told you.”

“You have me analyzed down to the atom, don’t you?”

“Nope. Would never even attempt. You’re too complicated and beautiful and confusing and catastrophically brilliant for that but I will hover around the edges and try to remember when you need a root beer float and a cuddle versus when you need reality-altering sex.”

She truly wanted to be annoyed by this whole snowball of events but when she stopped, she discovered he was so damn close to the truth, it hurt. Three spoonfuls of silence passed between them before she gave him a hint of smile, “this float needs red M&Ms.”

With an ‘ah-hah’ finger in the air, he turned, rummaged in a dish, then sent a red M&M sailing across the granite towards her, “will this do?”

Eyes widening in delight, “where did you get that and how did you get it so quick?”

Thumbing over his shoulder, “the kids and I made M&M brownies a few days back and we ate them all so you didn’t get any, not sorry by the way ‘cause they were phenomenal, but I had Betsy and Toby sort the red ones out for me, then they just went and did all the colors for fun.”

“Did you sort them out just for us?”

“Of course. We both need a red M&M every once in a while and might as well have them at the ready.”

Getting up, she beckoned him to her height with a crooked finger and a smile, “you are an odd duck, Agent Mulder.”

“Do you like odd ducks?”

“I happen to love odd ducks.” Finally meeting his mouth, she tasted ice cream and sugar, “and I think I would like to take a leisurely trip out to the hammocks, maybe remove some of these clothes in the process.”

“Trying to forget again?”

Honest blue meeting questioning green, “just trying to have some sex in a hammock.”

“That sounds like the title of a biography.”

Finishing her last spoonful of ice cream, “just get outside, would you or I’ll have to go do it myself.”

Grin spreading, “think it’ll work?”

“Never hurts to try.”

&&&&&&&&&&

“Oh my God, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Scully whispered this as loud as she thought appropriate, given neighbor proximity and listening crickets. She had her hand over Mulder’s hand, which was holding his left jaw, at the exact spot where she’d just kicked him, hard, with her bare foot.

Conventional sex in a hammock was deemed impossible, Scully’s body folded at a weird angle, Mulder’s body not containing the proper, youth-enhanced muscles of years past to make a good, old-fashioned mission position work. Instead, Scully directed Mulder to lay down, v-ing his body and bringing the necessary parts close enough to the deck, sagging the material to the exact height of Scully’s necessary parts.

She carefully swung her leg over both hammock and waiting body, hands firmly on chest as she positioned, re-positioned and finally sank down on him, both more than ready for the sex to ensue.

Mid-rise, mid-move, mid-lean, all hell broke loose.

Mulder forgot to hold still, Scully forgot to move only up and down, both forgot they were on a narrow piece of material that, when more than a quarter inch off-center, would flip and twist wildly, depositing whoever is doing whatever onto the ground.

Scully tried to save them, putting one foot down harder than the other, valiant effort all for naught … as the whole hammock kept going, Mulder’s weight a pendulum swing of naked motion. She thought enough to lift off him as not to break his parts but in doing so, brought her leg forward and smashed directly into Mulder’s jaw.

Neither ever would have assumed her legs were long enough to reach his face but reach they did and well, there was now a de-clothed Mulder lying on the deck, on his side, cross-pipe digging into his back while Scully crouched beside him, equally sans pajamas, doing her best not to giggle in mortification.

“Are you okay?”

Not real happy in that second, “what do you think?”

Her giggling was winning, her face turning red, her shoulders beginning to shake, “I think we should have stuck to the kitchen.”

Mulder scooted over to clear the pipe, “get over here, Scully.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really, get over here because from down here, there is this streak of moonlight going across your left nipple and it’s working for me and I can’t fall down any further than this so come here please and let’s finish what this fucking hammock isn’t letting us.”

Knees be damned, she grinned and climbed back on, bare ass facing the neighbor’s side door, “I like how moonlight does it for you.”

“Tell me something about the Moon.”

“It isn’t round. It’s shaped like an egg.”

Hands on thighs, he ignored the throbbing in his jaw, “another.”

Eyes closed, head drifting back, “the moon has no twilight because it has no atmosphere. Day to night happens instantly.”

Moving quickly towards the inevitable, he bit his lip, thumbs finding purchase on jutting hipbones as she sped her rise and fall substantially, “I love you in twilight.”

Tightening muscles brought her to the edge, “I love you anywhere, anytime.”

“I’d take you to the moon if I could.”

Coming around him, with him, she leaned over, finally able to reach his lips without falling, kissing him hard, “I’m perfect right here.”

#it's not a float without red M&Ms #the moon #msr #xfiles fanfic #xf fanfic #Life part 2 series #my writing

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sicklylittlesnowflake · 7 years

Note

oh dayum that spiderman fic was heavenly. could i possibly suggest another prompt? so how about peter being sick (obvs) when he's out fighting crime etc and he gets hit and thrown against a wall which quickly knocks him out (being weak from his illness and all) and his suit not only tracking him but also his vitals sends an alert to tony who comes to collect the whumpy peter

(Do u know what..despite me being all for the whump I’ve realised this is like only my second time writing injury wtf?? like the first time I did it was like barely even there lmao.. I’m sorry if this wasn’t very cohesive, I’m just back from a holiday and trying to get back into the swing of things!)

Crime was so much bigger than him.

Peter knew this. He knew it too well. He learned a painful lesson through his loss of Uncle Ben that crime was crime, and it had to be stopped. Because not doing anything causes a huge ripple effect, a devastating butterfly effect that would harm many innocent people like himself. In the past, he had been ignorant and unaware of the true consequences of his own actions or lack of, and now that he knew, it was Peter’s mission to look out for the little guy and try his hardest to make sure this wouldn’t happen to anyone else. It was a type of pain he wouldn’t have wished on his worst enemies.

Justice needed to be served. He had to push through anything and everything, because all of this had a devastating ripple effect and Peter’s job was to nip it in the bud. It was his duty. Even if he was sick.

“God, Peter, you look horrible,” Ned frowned as he walked down the corridor with his best friend as the last bell of the day rang.

“I feel it too,” Peter groaned, struggling to keep his heavy eyes from drooping down and shutting for good. He could feel his raging fever, and his body shook ferociously as he sniffled weakly.

Ned eyed him carefully, taking in his sickly features, “You shouldn’t have come in today–or went to the nurse. I guess this means no crime fighting tonight.”

Peter scoffed, tending up defensively, “Ned, you know I can’t do that! I can’t have someone die because I took a sick day.”

Ned rolled his eyes, “Peter, there is barely any crime here anyways. I bet you any comic you want in my collection that nothing will happen tonight. You can take a sick day.”

Peter sighed, coughing into his fist, “Yeah, I guess so. Well, if anything does happen, my sick day is over and I get the Death of Superman, yeah?”

Ned chuckled, “Sure.”

They walked in silence for a while, to Peter’s relief. He was glad he had someone like Ned who knew him well, he knew that Peter had a headache and needed some much needed silence. The rambunctious High School certainly didn’t do that for him.

The two best friends kept walking until they met a point where two roads diverged into different blocks. The point that separated them from their usual walk home. Ned turned over and moved to the right, and gave Peter a gentle smile, “Get better soon, Peter.”

Peter managed a weak smile back and moved left, and continued the trek up to his apartment block where he collapsed into his bed the moment he stepped into his room.

A few hours later Peter woke up to a splitting headache. He groaned, his hand shooting up to his head as he tried to soothe it.

He craved for some aspirin, and medicine to cool down this raging fever. His body felt as if it was being pinned down by a huge mound of rocks, and there was nothing he could do to lift himself off of his bed. He forced his heavy body out of bed, feeling weak to the bones.

Peter sighed and staggered out of his bedroom, to find a post it on his bedroom door that he didn’t notice when he had gotten home.

It read, “Im working late tonight, there’s money on the coffee table for dinner. I larb you! :)”

Peter smiled fondly, and tried to make it to the bathroom as quick as he could so he could find some medicine. Once he managed to get there, he pulled open the cupboard to find nothing but empty packets and medicine boxes.

Peter frowned, sighing. He figured that he would just tough it out for now, but once another surge of pain shot up his head that his body shuddered violently, he knew he needed medicine. He sighed, he needed to buy dinner anyway.

He threw on a coat and a scarf, and his backpack so he could carry his dinner, and quickly grabbed at the money Aunt May had left on the table and staggered out of his apartment, heading out onto the streets.

The cashier frowned worriedly as she scanned Peter’s medicine, as well as a can of soup and OJ. She bagged the products, eyes still lingering on an obviously sick Peter.

“Uh..you okay kid?” She asked worriedly, a little awkwardly.

Peter sniffled, looking up at her with bleary eyes and tried to register what she was saying. He felt extremely drowsy and sluggish, his brain not computing as fast as it normally did.

“..huh..Oh, yeah, I’m okay.”

She nodded worriedly, and took his money and gave him his change. She cleared her throat, “Alright, well, look after yourself, okay?”

Peter managed a weak smile and took his bag of groceries. He quickly stuffed it into his backpack and left the store. He was silent as he left, pulling his jacket closer against himself to try and insulate his body heat. It was a still night and it wasn’t hot or cold, but Peter felt as if it was the dead of winter.

As he was about to turn back to his block, a faint ringing began in his ears.

He felt a weird sensation, suddenly very awake and alarmed. The ringing increased in volume, and then he could hear it. He could hear some sort of ruckus coming from a few blocks away. His senses were heightening. He felt this magnetic urge, a strong desire boiling in his blood. It was drawing him to the only conclusion he could act upon. He had to do something, despite how awful he was feeling. It was his duty.

“Ned owes me a comic,” Peter muttered under his breath as he sprinted towards the alleyway, his head pounding, as he unzipped his backpack to retrieve his suit.

“Why are you doing this?! Who are you?! Please, just take my money!” A middle-aged man cried out, squirming beneath a much larger mans grasp, kicking desperately in an attempt to escape. Tears streamed down his face, nose bleeding and bruises shadowing his skin.

The larger man, his head oddly disfigured and enlarged, his skull misshapen and wide, snarled at him, spitting on him, his fist balling up the man’s shirt viciously, “It doesn’t matter who I am, It doesn’t matter who you are and why I’m doing this, I have orders and that is it. You are going to die, and that is all that matters.”

“Please don’t, I have a family,” The man begged tearfully, his body trembling violently in fear.

“Family ain’t jack shit,” The large man snarled, a slight twinge of a Russian accent coming through. He pulled the gun out of his pocket and raised it to his victim’s head. His fingers grazed the trigger and suddenly a flash of red knocked the weapon out of his hand. The gun flung across the alleyway, far out of his reach.

“What?!” He exclaimed in confusion, bewildered. When he looked up, he was greeted to see the Spiderman.

“You don’t turn your back on family,” Peter said in a mock Vin Diesel voice.

“Who the fuck is this punk ass kid?!” The man hissed.

“Hey! That isn’t very nice, Hammerhead!” Peter shot back, shooting a web-slinger over to a wall, swinging towards the large man and kicking him in the head.

“Go, go!” Peter yelled at the victim, to which he met his eyes which were flooding with so much gratitude and relief. The man sprinted, running as fast as he could, away from it all.

He watched as the victim ran off, a sense of relief in his system. He felt his body begin to settle down, relaxing, his body feeling a bit weaker and fainter. The adrenaline seemed to be fading, and his fever coming back rapidly and spreading.

Before Peter could think much of this, Hammerhead punched him, and Peter hissed as a sharp pain shot up his face, already feeling his eye begin to bruise up.

Before Peter could retaliate, he was being shoved towards the hard cold gravel. His brain was moving too slow, his senses horribly impaired and he couldn’t fight to the standard he was used to. The sharp little clints of the gravel digging into his spine, scratching at his skin. Peter groaned in pain, trying to pick himself off of the ground but found that his dangerously fevered body was too heavy to pick up.

Hammerhead yanked Peter up by the scruff, causing him to feel extremely woozy and dizzy by the sudden, jerking movement. His head throbbed painfully, stabbing at his brains as sharp pains shot up his head. He whimpered, a strangled sob escaping him in pain as Hammerhead punched him repeatedly, and dropping him onto the floor again.

Peter managed to stand up, his legs wobbly and shaking. The world spun rapidly, seeing double, and a sharp rush of pain flooded his senses and he gasped, collapsing on the floor. His body felt like it was on fire, as he gasped for air and clenched his teeth to try and withstand the overwhelming amount of pain he felt. He let out a scream of anguish as he felt warm liquid soaking his suit. He could taste the salty, metallic liquid in his mouth.

Just as he tried to stand again, he was thrust upward and Hammerhead head butted him with what felt like a wrecking ball. He was thrown across the alleyway, head hitting against the concrete wall. Peter tried to scream again, and he wasn’t sure if he was loud enough, because he couldn’t hear anything. His limp body slid down the wall, dropping against the concrete with a sickening thud as his vision went dark.

“Mr Stark, would you like a report on Mr Parkers vitals?”

Tony raised an eyebrow, continuing to tweak at a piece of tech, fully immersed in his work and unavailable.

“Yeah, sure,” He said absentmindedly.

“Mr Parker has a fever of 103.6 degrees and has several bruises, is bleeding from numerous cuts and is currently passed out from a concussion.”

Tony’s heart sank. It was like time had ceased to exist as he froze, his body malfunctioning.

“FRIDAY, please tell me the location of Mr Parker,” Tony breathed out shakily, trying to stay composed as his blood ran cold.

“The coordinates have been sent to your suit, sir. He is still in Queens.”

Tony finally regained his senses and ran towards his suit, quickly donning it and was flying out of Stark Tower and towards Queens as fast as his suit could take him.

“Where are you, where are you,” Tony hissed to himself frustratedly, feeling his heart beat loudly and rapidly. He scanned the area and followed the coordinates given to him.

Soon enough, he was brought to a shady looking alleyway where he quickly landed. Tony ran down the alleyway to find Peter sprawled across the floor, unconscious, and bleeding.

“Shit!” Tony cursed, his chest growing heavy with fear as he ran towards his limp body. He scooped him into his arms and cradled him. He quickly ripped off his mask and gasped at the sight of the bleeding, sickly boy. Just a boy, not a fierce, immortal superhero. Tony saw so much of himself in this kid it sent shivers down his spine.

He was scarily white, bruises dotting his face. He was so weak and limp, Tony feared he was too late. Catastrophic thoughts clouded his mind for a while as his breathing picked up as he frantically felt his forehead, which was scorching hot. He felt for a pulse, and was relieved when he found one, but was still incredibly frightened.

“Oh my god, Peter, Peter, oh god, please be okay,” Tony whispered tearfully, running a hand through Peter’s damp locks in fear that if he were to let him go he would lose him forever.

“FRIDAY, please do a scan,” He choked nervously.

“Mr.Parker requires immediate and extensive care. I have contacted Dr.Sanchez over to the Stark Tower to see to the damage. But, if you complete these tasks Mr Parker should make a steady, albeit slow recovery.”

Tony let out a relieved sigh, but still couldn’t help the guilt pitting and gnawing at his stomach.

Peter was just a kid and he did this to him.

Tony brought him into this horrible world. Peter should be a kid, he should be a kid who went to high school and rested on his sick day. He shouldn’t be fighting crime. Peter was here because of him. He had brought him into this world and he couldn’t take him out of it. He trapped him.

Tony stood up, shakily, but had never held anyone so steadily in his life. He cradled Peter in his arms and took off into flight, trying to speed back to Stark Tower as fast as he could. His heart seemed to be racing against time, racing back home so Peter could be safe.

“Mr Stark..?” Peter stirred, eyes still closed.

“Don’t open your eyes. You need rest,” Tony said shakily. Below them seemed to be the entire world, and the world wasn’t always kind. Peter had a taste of that today, and Tony didn’t want him to look down in fear that if Peter looked down, he’d be lost and overwhelmed in the realisation that the world was so big.

That there was so much more bad out there than either of them could ever imagine.

Peter woke up to a dull ache spread across his body, and a headache booming in his temples. He groaned in pain, lifting a hand to rub his eyes when pain shot up his face as he hissed and withdrew his hand quickly. His eye was most certainly bruised.

He cracked his eyes open tiredly, still feeling feverish and was alarmed to see daylight streaming from the window. His eyes widened and he shot up, looking around at his familiar surroundings and gasping as he realised where he was.

Tony opened the door, his face lighting up as he saw the boy awake. He tried to mask the relief and joy he was feeling, but Peter saw through it.

“You’re alive,” Tony observed.

“Mr Stark–my aunt, the–”

“I called her last night. I had to talk her out of trying to come over here last night. She was really worried,” Tony explained.

He sighed, “I was really worried, Pete.”

Peter shook his head, “Mr Stark, that bad guy got away, we need to–”

“Absolutely not!” Tony hissed.

Peter fell silent.

Tony sighed, sitting down at the edge of the bed and pinching the bridge of his nose, “I’m sorry. I thought I lost you last night, Pete. I’m not sure if this is safe for you, you are just a kid.”

Tears pricked Peter’s eyes as he crossed his arms angrily, “Do you not believe in me, Mr Stark?! I try so hard, all the time! I just want to do the right thing! You can’t just take this away from me!”

Tony widened his eyes, “That’s not what I meant by that, Peter. You’re extraordinary, but you don’t deserve this. You deserve to be safe, I thrust you into this situation to your doom! You’re hurt, look at you, Pete! This wouldn’t have happened if I hadn’t given you that damn suit!”

“I had a suit before this one, Mr Stark! I would still be doing the same thing, with or without you! You gave me a cool suit that helped me along, but you didn’t do this to me. This was my choice, I stand by it!”

Tony let out a shaky sigh, “I’m sorry, Pete..I just..thought I had killed you last night. I couldn’t bare the thought..”

Peter softened, “Fighting evil is much bigger than me. It’s bigger than you. You know that, don’t you, Mr Stark? You know sacrifices are going to have to be made for the greater good. You were my hero growing up, still are, you’ve made sacrifices before. In the grand scheme of things, this is nothing. It’s just the small price we have to pay for something much greater.”

Tony stared at him with a mixture of fear, sorrow, guilt, but also acceptance. He managed a weak smile.

“Then I’ll join you. That way, we can help more people, even if that means one of us might get hurt along the way. We’ll be stronger together,” Tony said firmly.

Peter smiled at him brightly, like he hailed from the sun.

Tony sighed and inched closer to him, pulling Peter in for a warm hug, rubbing his back lovingly, holding him close. He felt a feeling of love in his heart for Peter who felt like a son, and it felt so nice and warm.

He let out a shaky breath, letting himself smile, “You’re a great kid, Peter. You’re really going to make the world turn and put stars in people’s lives. You are going to be great, and I am lucky to be in a world with someone like you.”

#peter parker #tony stark #spiderman homecoming #ned leeds #spiderman #tom holland spiderman #marvel #mcu #whump #sickfic #injury #fever #whump fic #tw violence #tw blood #prompts

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smokeybrandreviews · 4 years

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Smokey brand Reviews: Coin Toss

In my ongoing effort to avoid watching actual, award winning cinema that takes a massive amount of my attention to critique, i’ve decided to re-watch The Witcher on Netflix. Now, i’ve never read the books. At all. I’ve played the games though so i’m aware of the world and i’ve been balls deep in the wiki, so i’m aware of the lore. Being aware of the lore is not the same as understanding the nuance of plot, however, so i’m approaching this as a superficial fan of the series but a well versed critic of cinema. I’d say this is a waste of time but, seeing as how it’s the most popular show in Netflix history, already has a second season ready to begin production, an anime movie adaption in the works, and the actually creator making nice with CD Project Red so we might get a fourth Witcher game, it’s maybe not SO much a waste of time to revisit.

The Best

Yenner. F*cking Yennefer of Vengerberg! Yo, she is easily the best thing about this show. Seriously, it’s called The Witcher but it is basically Yenner’s story from the second she appears onscreen in the second episode. She has the most development, appears in the dopest set pieces, and has the highest stakes among all principal characters. For them to nail the character so perfectly, one needs to have a brilliant performer to embody that spirit, and Anya Chalotra stepped into that responsibility perfectly. Chalotra’s Yennerfer is gorgeous, powerful, brilliant, broken, strong, and vulnerable at the same time. It takes very real talent to convey all of that nuance so effortlessly.

The Good

I was hesitant when they announced Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia and then put off by the production shots with that terrible wig, but dude IS Geralt. I mean, again, i only know the character from the games and what little information i was able to glean from the wiki, but, from what i’ve learned, dude is perfect in the role. He has a presence onscreen that demands your attention, only outshined by Chalotra’s Yennefer. Learning that Cavill, himself, is a massive Witcher nerd, which makes a ton of sense. Superman bailed on being The Man of Steel, specifically to have input on this project so they wouldn’t f*ck up the adaption. I love that passion, man!

I hear that the Jaskier character is completely different in the source material but i wouldn’t know anything about that. All i know is the Jaskier presented in this show and he is absolutely delightful! Portrayed by Joey Batey, Jaskier shows up, sings a diddy, and steals all of the scenes. His chemistry with both Geralt and Yennerfer is palpable and i look forward to where they take this character. Toss a goddamn coin to your Witcher!

I remember reading, way back during the casting call, that hey were trying to Race bend Ciri. Having no real connection to the characters outside of the games, i thought it might be dope to see a brown lead. I, apparently, was in the minority. The fanboys hated that idea. There was this big stink between geeks and SJWs. It exhausted me so i stopped caring. Imagine my surprise when Freya Allen appeared onscreen for the first time in the role. I was mad confused because i was looking for a caramel colored lady or something, not this snow white faye. It took a few episodes for me to understand that this WAS Cirilla Fiona Elen Riannon but, by then, i was in love with Allan’s portrayal. I could see the beginnings of the badass the Ciri i knew from the games in her performance and, indeed, by the end of the season, she was well on her way to being that b*tch. More than anything, i’m looking forward to season two specifically to see where her arc goes.

Surprisingly, in a show with such, great, principal performances, MyAnna Buring as Tissaia de Vries, came with the heat. I was thoroughly surprised by how cold, how calculating, yet, how loving she was as a character. I was actually stunned with her portrayal. I’m a little perturbed by where the show ended up taking the character, but i still enjoyed what she did with the material given to her.

Now, i have to be clear, Yennerfer is my favorite character in this show. She’s my favorite character in the entire franchise but Netflix’s version of Calanthe Fiona Riannon, can give my darling Quadroon a run for her money in that regard. My, goodness, “Lioness of Citra”, indeed! Jodhi May killed this role. I was absolutely enthralled with her portrayal, so much so, i mourned her passing when she kicked the bucket. I was left wanting so much more of her. We’ll see how that work out going forward.

The world, itself, is kind of wondrous. The y way they built these sets and created such a palpable, tangible, reality for such a hard fantasy series, is kind of amazing. The only other show in this genre to even come close to these levels of production was Game of Thrones. I’ve heard Witcher compared to GoT in articles and it’s a relatively apt juxtaposition. The world and lore created by Netflix so far, is a quiet miracle unto itself.

The writing is pretty okay. Considering the source material and type of genre wherein the show takes place, i’m surprised by how natural the dialogue feels in this thing. I mean, who doesn’t love a particularly punctuating “F*ck.”

The overall vision of this show, the grandness of the tale being told, is fantastic. I love that ambition. I love the fact that the challenge of The Witcher, is being taken on with a true reverence of love for the source material. In a world with such terrible Starr Wars films made by Disney and the worst kind of capeflicks coming out of WB, getting such a dope adaption is a breath of fresh air.

The Bad

This show feels cheap as sh*t. I understand you want to capture the “pests” as they’re called, in all that horrid glory but that CG, man, it’s just poor. I gushed about the sets and what they were trying to do, the loving scope of production, but the end product fell just sort of that vision. The Witcher is not a cheap show to produce properly and it feels like Netflix was a little gun-shy to give it what it needed to be properly great.

The way the narrative is told can be wildly confusing. It took me a few episodes to understand that there were multiple points in time being shown and that we were bouncing between them. One of the major complaints i’ve heard is how the show didn’t make any sense and i am more than certain it’s this aspect of the presentation that people were talking about. Once you understand that there are literally three timeless being presented to you at once, there re guides on line, all of a sudden, this show becomes so much easier to digest.

There are certain character that were given such a criminally short amount of screentime. Triss Marigold immediately comes to mind but i’m speaking more about Renri. That sh*t was Refrigerator Syndrome in the clearest sense and it’s the worst. I’m not going to get into the whole politics of what that means because it’s exhausting but, seriously, to just tease us with such amazing characters only to have them relegated to nothing is just cruel.

The Verdict

Overall, The Witcher is a decent show. It’s by no means perfect, there are other, much better shows out there, a few even on Netlfix, but i understand why this one is so popular. There is a ton of potential here and i want to find my way back into this world as soon as possible, but i hope it has a bit more polished on the second outing. At the end of the day, even as cheap as this thing looks at ties, The Witcher is a brilliant, fantasy adventure, with strong set pieces and even stronger characters. The writing is solid, if a little cliche at times, but Yennefer’s journey, alone, is enough to make watching this thing worth. If you’re a fan of fantasy narratives or fantastic characterization, The Witcher will not disappoint.

#Smokey brand Reviews #The Witcher #Geralt of Rivia

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smokeybrand · 4 years

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Smokey brand Reviews: Coin Toss

The Best

The Good

The Bad

The Verdict

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german-killua · 7 years

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Legends of Tomorrow S03 EP1

Oh Boy.

Ohhh boy.

When the shows took a break, so did I. And life was good. Now arrow that was stomping on my balls, a new job, money pouring in…Aside from the Looming Threat of nuclear annihilation, life was good.

Till I made a mistake today. I decided to see how Legends of Tomorrow was doing, loading up the first episode and ready to watch the Season 3 Premiere of one of my favorite shows of the last year.

To say I was disappointed would be an Understatement. A tremendous one in fact.

I am not shy to say that this Premiere was probably one of the worst, if not THE worst episode I have seen of Legends so far. And keep in mind: We had some really bad ones.

When we last left our Team, time was kinda…shakey? Well, I don’t really know how to describe a Los Angels in the year 2017 that was loaded with time-displaced people, buildings, objects and well...Dinosaurs. And I gotta say, that was a fitting cliffhanger for the show. After all, Legends never shied away from being a bit more whacky, a bit more on the fun side than other shows.

What I saw in the first 5 minutes of the premiere of season 3 however, put me on a downward spiral of horrible writing. And that spiral did not stop for the next 35 minutes.

First of all? Rip Hunter is an absolute Asshole now. Apparently, he spends 5 years creating the “Time Bureau” an organization tasked with apprehending and fixing so-called “anachronisms” which is basically a fancy word for time anomalies. How these anomalies are caused are anyone’s guess since the Show does not deliver an explanation beyond: “Interacting with your past self’s screwed shit up” How that leads to Dinosaurs and Julius Cesar roaming through the year 2017 is anyone’s guess though.

For some Reason Rip Hunter has decided that the legends are no longer needed.Which is kinda weird because I can see a lot of uses for Superheroes in an Organisation that..you know..PROTECTS TIME ITSELF!

What comes next is almost unbearable and marks the most idiotic thing I have seen on Television since Felicity Smoak hacked a VHS Tape. (And I am still not over that.)

We see what the Legends are doing after..well being kicked out.

And the suffering begins with Sara Lance Sara works a mind-numbing job at a Bed Bath & Beyond knockoff. Now I did not watch arrow for almost 2 seasons, but I am under the impression that Sara Lance can get a better job than that.

Something that becomes even more baffling since she apparently uses her real name, a fact that is mentioned by her boss who flat-out states that she came back from the dead two times by now. And that she is lucky to be employed here.

Now maybe its just me but I thought that somebody who literally worked for the League of Assassins would have some false identities to, You know…

ASSASSINATE PEOPLE.

And while the show tries to tell us that Sara is just too cool for this job by letting her throw a Knife through the store, it does not make me laugh but rather makes me question this whole set up.

A Person like her should have no problem finding any job under any identity. She was trained to blend into virtually any crowd. And even if that does not work?

Let her works as an Instructor in a GYM! She is an Athlete, a fighter by Nature! Putting her in this ed Bath & Beyond knockoff l, makes no sense because it's completely out of Character for her to be here. Especially as Sara Lance.

Seriously?! Why her real name?

Even worse, however, is Ray Palmer..who basically works for Tindr.

Well, not Tindr. An App that is a rip-off of Tindr. Something they even mention because..funny?

What screws me up even more, however, is that Ray Palmer is literally telling his Boss that he can shrink organic and inorganic matter..To which is Boss responds that “if it's not on a phone, it's not the future”.

So in Hindsight: A guy who was hailed as one of the most brilliant minds on the planet invented a revolutionary device that will forever change the world…And a Company in Silicon Valley just looks at it and goes: “Yeah but it’s not on a phone dude.”

There is making a dumb joke.

And then there is insulting my god damn Intelligence.

And the rest of the legends? Our Beloved Sgt.Steel has become a superhero, yet he picked Star City for his heroic exploits. Kinda weird considering that the city is virtually crawling with speedsters, but hey who am I to complain?

Jefferson went back to School and Dr. Stein went back to his family.

Which leaves me with Rory and Amaya. The latter has left the team off-screen, broke up with Nate off-screen and returned to her timeline, you guessed it, off-screen.

The former remains my saving Grace in this episode and starts off right here. What is Rory doing?

Drinking and chilling on Aruba.

That’s it.

A single Scene and I am already back on the Heatwave train.

Well until he encounters a new Anomaly: Julius Ceaser, literally riding in on his Horse.

Apparently, the Time bureau did not notice of the most important figures of History just leaving his own timeline behind, so the Legends try to warn them.

By entering the obvious, completely open Office Building. Secret Organisation my ass.

And of course..they are met with hostility and literally have guns pointed at their heads. Yeah. I was just as surprised. Way to treat the literal foundation for this whole organization, the people who saved time not once but twice by now.And that was assembled by Rip Hunter himself.

At which point I also have to note that the defeat of Eobard Thawne who literally reshaped Reality to his bidding is treated like a Mistake.In fact, the Bureau flat out calls it a bad job. Because I guess saving the world is not only not a big deal anymore but actively idiotic.

Way to go guys…Way to go…

What happens next is the Time Bureau being idiots.The Legends being Idiots.And well..everybody being idiots.

The Bureau flat out captures a Ceaser Cosplayer and thus believes the legends are lying, who have indisputable proof…but prefer to not show it and just steal the Waverider.

Why? How?

I don’t know.

After that, we see the teams new approach: Being like a scalpel instead of a Chainsaw.

And after proclaiming that its, of course, Sara who beats the everlasting shit out of Julius Ceaser in the middle of a group of Spring Break students.

Precision at its finest Miss Lance.

But Sara seems to have tremendous problems with heir own decisions anyway. After all, it's her who decides to bring Ceaser to the Bureau…after literally having decided against just that not 10 minutes earlier, leading to the legends stealing the Ship in the first place.

But of course, she changes her opinion again. 2 Minutes later.

And everything goes well. Except the fact that Julius Ceaser is able to steal a Book called “The Rise of the Roman Empire” from Nate.

Who literally holds it in his hands and does not notice until back in the Waverider.

Ceaser stole a book from somebody who literally held it in his hands...

Words fail me,

Of course, Time is fucked sideways now so it's up to the Bureau to fix it.

Letting them walk right into a trap set by Julius and his legion.

How a mindwiped Ceaser knew that a time-traveling Bureau was coming is anyone’s guess hough-.It should also be noted that ancient Romans speak fluent English, something the show tries to explain with some sort of time anomaly effect..Bust just as conveniently forgets about later to make a stupid latin joke.

To make a long and very stupid story short: The Legends jump back into action, kill some soldiers and get the book back which somehow fixes everything. How? Why? Who cares at this point?

All questions I can not answer.

Just like the question why Rip Hunter lets the Legends go back into action after literally berating them in every single scene he is in. Hell, they flat out tell them that they will continue with or without his blessing, a claim I have to question since he could just mindwipe them and send them back to their boring, stupid lives.

But then again: Logic went out of the window in the first 5 minutes.

All in all, this was just horrible and I seriously question who came up with this nonsense. The new Status Quo makes no sense since it goes completely against anything we have learned about Rip in the Last 2 Years.

Sara especially comes off as stupid and unlikeable and every attempt to be funny is just nauseating and forced.

I hope that Legends can go back to old forms real quick..because if this episode is any indication of what to come?

Oh, my…

Edit:

If you’re looking for logic Legends is not the show for you it’s literally supposed to be bizarre and illogical. Thats what I think makes it great

Guys, I appreciate your answers...But “illogical” is not the same as “unrealistic”.

Unrealistic is saying “A Man comes from the Planet Krypton and can fly”

Illogical is saying that i can fly because its monday.

Illogical is saying that Superman has heat vision because Batman took a bath.

Its illogical for Sara to work under her real identity because she literally has no reason to do that.

Its illogical that a tech company does not see the value IN A DEVICE THAT CAN SHRINK ANYTHING.

Tremendous difference.

#legends of tomorrow #sara lance #rip hunter

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hale-of-stiles-heart · 7 years

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Superman!Derek here we go. Okay stiles is nothing like lois like Noah fence to her but naaa. So Scott has somehow managed to get into life threatening danger that Derek use just used to having to save him but THIS TIME Scott has a hot friend who doesn't. need. this. And so superman is a little baffled and like almost forgets to save them bc liek have you seen stiles? So then stiles is salty abt being the damsel in distress bc GOD KNOWS he can defend himself he's a sheriff's son. (1)

So, this is officially my first Super!Derek work! (also on ao3!)

Derek was painfully used to having to save Scott McCall's life.

The reporter was still green, a new hire at Argent Enterprises who had only been working for a few months. He was practically right out of journalism school, still wide-eyed and awestruck by Metropolis.

Derek didn't mind Scott at that much, especially since he was more tolerable than most of the other reporters that flocked to crime scenes hoping to get a glimpse of him. Unlike most, Scott was content to simply report on the stories he was given, rather than go chasing after an interview with Superman.

Objectively, Derek understood why so many reporters and photographers wanted five minutes with him, understood the intrigue of having a living, breathing superhero flying around the city. He understood the need to know more and ferret out the answers to incredible mysteries.

But, personally, he hated the way reporters buzzed around like flies on a slab of dead meat, like blood sucking parasites wanting a picture or soundbite of Superman to launch their career and fill their pockets. He hated the way that half the time he had to split his attention between saving the day and saving the overzealous reporters trying to get some footage of the action.

Fortunately, Derek never had to save Scott from those kinds of incidents. Unfortunately, he had to save Scott from other incidents.

The first time Derek had to save Scott it was because the reporter had gotten lost and inadvertently wound up in a rather rough neighborhood. He had gotten shot at by some white guys who lived and breathed the Second Amendment as he tried to get somewhere safe.

He wound up getting lost even deeper in the neighborhood, apparently having no sense of direction whatsoever. Derek found him cowering behind a dumpster when the sound of gunshots drew him to the scene.

Deflecting more gunshots from the ignorant city rednecks, Derek led Scott out of the neighborhood by the back of his shirt like a disapproving father who had caught his son smoking. After ensuring that Scott wasn't hurt in any way, suffering no gunshot wounds or other injuries, Derek had escorted him back to Argent Enterprises' main office, instructing him to stay out of trouble.

A few weeks later, Derek had to save him again.

Somehow Scott had gotten caught up in the middle of a scuffle between two super villains who had apparently gotten into an argument in a local Starbucks. One of them had reportedly cut in front of the other in line, incensing them enough to throw a punch that had the other guy flying through the wall.

Scott had gotten clipped by the punch as well, making him spill all of the coffee he had been picking up for his co-workers. But that was the least of his worries as he wound up as a hostage inside the coffee shop, shaking like a leaf under a small table.

After hauling off the villains to jail, Derek had hurried back to the Starbucks to make sure that everyone was alright. He had cocked a curious brow when he noticed Scott amongst those taken hostage, wincing when he saw the coffee stains on his t-shirt.

A pattern had formed after that, one that consisted of Scott inexplicably getting into trouble and Derek saving him. It had quickly become an almost daily occurrence.

Scott had an uncanny ability to attract danger though he insisted that his friend, whose name he claimed was Stiles, was the real lightning rod for trouble. And lucky Derek got to pull him out of burning buildings and yank him away from more superpowered fights in the middle of the city.

So, when Derek overheard a police radio call detailing that a couple of reporters had somehow gotten themselves trapped on the roof by yet another super villain that called Metropolis home, he immediately knew that one of them must be Scott.

With a quick glance around the office to make sure no one would notice him leave, Derek discreetly gathered his things in his suitcase and rushed to the elevator. Five minutes later, his suitcase was safely tucked away in his apartment and he was soaring over the skies of Metropolis. Super speed definitely had its perks.

He followed the sound of police sirens and fire engines to the scene of the crime where Livewire was hurling balls of concentrated electricity at the first responders. The air crackled with static as currents of electricity raced through her body, sparking blue at her fingertips.

Her ghostly white skin seemed to glow in the bright sunlight of the late morning, making it look even more unnatural than it already was. In stark contrast to her skin, her neon blue hair stood straight up from her scalp, almost resembling a mohawk.

She was barely recognizable, looking nothing like she had when she spent her days hosting her vitriolic radio talk show where she had ranted and raved about everything from abortions to Superman being an illegal immigrant. She could have given Tori Lahren a run for her money.

And there, on the roof an apartment building that had been left vacant for renovations was none other than Scott, looking terrified as he gawked at the electricity bending woman. He had a microphone clutched tightly in his hand as though he had been on the roof when the villainess attacked.

Derek had hoped to spare a few moments analyzing the situation before acting but his plans were spoiled by one of the first responders. One of the police officers had pointed him out and joyously called, "Look! It's Superman."

Despite wanting to roll his eyes at the fact that the officer had just informed Livewire to his presence, Derek launched into action. He dove at Livewire who snarled at him indignantly, flicking a few strikes of electricity at him as he rushed at her.

Fortunately, the electricity didn't do much other than annoy him a bit, sending a few tiny jolts through him. That is, until she intensified the strength of the current, hurling a huge bolt at him that resembled a strike of lightning.

It struck him in the chest, shocking him into a halt and a premature fall to the concrete roof of the apartment building with a loud crack. He heard a few startled gasps from Scott on the other side of the roof as he pushed himself to his feet and shook himself.

He took another minute to reassess the situation as his fingers twitched with the aftershocks of the assault, glancing around the rooftop. The first thing he noticed was that the stone of the roof was crumbling, the second thing he noticed was that Scott wasn't alone.

There was another man on the roof with him, tall and lean in a red plaid shirt and khakis that looked more skintight than Derek's own outfit. His brown hair was artfully disheveled, dark in contrast to the pale white of his mole dotted skin that immediately reminded Derek of a marble statue.

His big brown eyes were alight with a fierce fire of determination as he watched Livewire, his brows furrowed in concentration. Derek noticed that his plush pink lips were moving rapidly as he frantically whispered something to Scott, squeezing the other reporter's shoulder.

Derek was captivated. The man was so gorgeous, the mere sight of him drowned out everything else.

Everything else including Livewire getting ready to zap him with an even stronger hit of electricity, tendrils of blue sparks coiling around her hands to form a large ball. She stalked closer silently, a wide smirk stretching across her dark lips, making her look almost demonic.

Derek never would have even noticed if it hadn't been for the other reporter with Scott. Standing up taller, he cupped his hands around his mouth and called to Derek, "Dude, watch out!"

Derek turned just in time to see Livewire standing over him, a twisted grin on her face as she prepared to shock him. But before she could, Derek swiped her legs out from under her, making her topple to the ground with a banshee-like screech.

They grappled for a few moments, Livewire forgoing using any of her superhuman abilities in the heat of the moment, instead favoring clawing at Derek's face while shrieking. Derek didn't even bother using all of his own preternatural strength to subdue her, able to pin her arms behind her without it.

He secured her wrists with one of the reinforced zip ties his good friend Batman had given him, reminding Derek to send him a fruit basket. Her powers neutralized, Livewire kicked and screamed as Derek carried her down to the street to the army of police officers who took her into custody and Mirandized her.

With Livewire in the backseat of a police cruiser, Derek hurried back to the roof to rescue the two reporters, worried that the roof might cave in. He hovered over the roof as he made his way to Scott and his friend who was grumbling something so quietly that even Derek couldn't hear him.

"Superman!" Scott called out in relief, visibly sagging as he sighed. He looked exhausted, like the slightest breeze might knock him over.

His friend, on the other hand, looked furious. He had his arms crossed over his chest as he glared at Derek, making him hesitate for a moment in fear that the unknown reporter was one of the people who hated Superman.

"Are you two, alright?" Derek asked as he approached them, lighting down on the roof a few feet away from them. He was a bit wary, not sure how the unknown man might react.

"We're fine," the other reporter growled snappishly, giving Derek an unimpressed once over. He sauntered over to Derek, poking him in the chest with every word, "I didn't need you saving me, y'know. My buddy here might be a little helpless, no offense, Scotty, but I can take care of myself."

Derek bit down on a smile, ducking his head at the indignant tone. He could hear fond exasperation underscoring every word so he didn't take any offense, instead pressing his luck and inquiring, "Is there anything I can do to make it up to, Mr..."

"Stilinski," the man answered immediately, a small smirk curling up the corner of his lip. The smirk growing, he tacked on, "And you could start by going to dinner with me this Saturday. Eight o'clock at the diner on Fourth and Kent."

"I'll be there," Derek grinned widely. He had grown used to saving Scott so it was only fitting that Scott's friend saved him from yet another Saturday night alone.

#super!derek #superman!derek #reporter!stiles #superman au #derek saves stiles #incompetent!scott #getting together #first meetings #Anonymous

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timleob · 7 years

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WWE Extreme Rules 2017

Well, another Raw PPV, and yet more idiotic booking from a team of writers and agents who have no fucking clue what they are doing. Let me clarify, there was some good wrestling on this show, but the booking of the finishes and treatment of the babyfaces, Bayley especially, is so fucking infuriating that it makes me wonder what they are trying to achieve here.

Miz and Ambrose was fine, not amazing, but fine. The psychology of the match was great with Miz doing everything he can to get Ambrose disqualified. He got his wife to slap him which failed, he took the turnbuckle pad off which nearly got Ambrose disqualified, and then he shoved Dean into the ref when he was distracted. And then, in a moment that was stupid, the ref goes to march over to the timekeeper to call for the bell, but then Miz hits his finish and gets the clean pinfall win. So what was the point of putting a stip where Ambrose would lose if he was DQ’d and not use it for the finish? For fuck sake.

The mixed tag was, well, it was there. Nothing really spectacular happened here except for, holy fuck, a babyface won a match in his home town! That one must have slipped past Vinnie who will no doubt insist that he be beaten repeatedly for the next 3 months. Also, remember when Sasha was one of the top wrestlers in the company? What happened there?

Bayley vs Alexa Bliss…fuck me. Just..what was the fucking point of this 5 minute match? Remember how as fans we used to joke that when a “divas” match came on it was time for a piss break? Well congratufuckinglations WWE, you’re back to that now. Dont get me wrong, Bliss is a good heel. She has that look of smug confidence and has a perfect condesending tone during her promos and does the best she can with what they give her. And what they give her is fucking terrible (see the This is your life segment on the go home Raw).

Also, what is the deal with Bayley? She is a babyface who cant succeed. For fuck sake WWE, fans fucking HATE dumb baby faces and thats what she is, thanks to your incompetent booking. They did a pole match (wasnt aware Russo was back on creative), got the kendo stick within one minute of the match. They did a spot where Bliss was like “Go on, I’ll give you a free shot” and like a total moron babyface, Bayley goes for it and gets attacked. Then she gets the stick and it leads to a whacky chase spot around the ring, and Bayley finally gets her in the corner.

Alexa played a fantastic heel here, smug and confident when she is up and a coward when she is trapped. Pro-wrestling 101 now states Bayley looks at the stick, remembers everything that has led to this and should beat Alexa to within an inch of her life. But no, Bayley hesistates cause she is just Bayley, she is too sweet and innocent to get extreme. Alexa gets the stick, kills Bayley, hits a DDT and gets the clean pin.

This pissed me off. So much. What are they actually doing with Bayley? They have a chance for this woman to be a hero to little girls worldwide, and they are fucking killing her momentum and burying her on a weekly basis. I’ll go into a longer explination about this at the end of this review.

Next was Hardyz vs Seamus and Cesaro. I have actually enjoyed this series of matches, its turned out some solid performances and helped elevate Seamus and Cesaro as a tag team. That said, this match was slightly overbooked and often made no sense, its a cage match where you can only win via escape not pinfall or submission. Which meant if one guy got out he was basically leaving his partner for dead. So why would you stop one guy from escaping? Surely it would make sense to have one guy escape and then beat the shit out of his partner? Cause if he runs back in to help his team mate, he has put himself back into the match.

This was done when Jeff escaped and Matt was worked over by both Seamus and Cesaro, which I was hoping would lead to the emegence of Broken Matt Hardy. Sadly not today, but soon I hope. The ending helped redeem an otherwise overbooked and somewhat lackluster match. Seamus and Cesaro are climbing up and over after Jeff did that insane whisper in the wind off the top of the cage while Matt drags his brother to the cage door.

It was a dramatic finish but also silly since the faces picked the stipulation. And lost. For those keeping score, that is now 3 faces who have lost on this show, 2 made to look like total geeks in the process.

Crusierweight match. I’ll be honest, WWE have dropped the ball on this division so I have no interest. But there was something that was pissing me off during this match, besides the stipulation and the lack of heat for the match, and then it hit me.

The cruiserweights are working the same slow “big man” style that the heavyweights work. Granted there are alot more top rope moves but come on. How many people remember the cruiserweight division in WCW? That was fantastic fucking wrestling, these guys could take a few clues from that. Its like no one behind that curtain understands what they are doing with this division, and its frustrating! There is some amazing talent that is being squandered here.

Main event, 5 way for the number one contendership for the universal title. Everyone in this match was super over with the crowd. By far the biggest pop went to Seth and of course Roman had the heat from the crowd. The match started with Roman basically cleaning house with everyone and having a fantastic pissed off look. Seriously, just turn the guy heel already and you’ll print money. It ended up leading to a truly fantastic pro wrestling moment with the two heels, Joe and Bray teaming up and getting the heat on all the babyfaces and just destroying them, it was fantastic and the crowd really got into it. Rollins madr a come back and hit a suicide dive on Joe and Bray on the outside with Bray pushing Joe into the firing line.

Joe and Bray turn on each other and it turns into total chaos which leads to the two big spots in the match. Roman charges and spears Joe and Finn through the baricade and the crowd pops big time, even the people who dont like Roman. Bray ends up on an announce table and Rollins hits a frog splash from the ring post and they both go through the table. Leads to the second holy shit chant for the evening.

Rollins and Reigns go at it which has the crowd the entire time, they repeat the fantastic bucklebomb to superman punch from Raw which the crowd ate up yet again. It leads to Finn nailing a slingblade on Roman, followed by a drop kick and the coup de grace. Finn goes in for the pin on Roman, but gets snatched by Joe who locks on the Clutch. Finn refuses to tap and passes out and Joe is the winner.

This match no doubt saved the entire show. It had great action, fantastic story telling and a great finish. Finn would have had it but got caught at the last second and he refused to tap which made him look like a legit god damn badass.

In what I felt was a nice touch to the match was when Joe gets to the top of the ramp after his win and screams LESNAR! It was a great little touch to the story.

Overall, the event felt lackluster, a common trend with Raw PPV’s lately, but thankfully the main event and the promise of a Samoa Joe vs Brock Lesnar match is there. I was hoping this would be the match going forward since these two will basically beat the living fuck out of each other. And we have Paul Heyman to hype the match, this gonna be great.

Now, lets talk about what I mentioned earlier - WWE’s booking of its babyfaces.

In this PPV, Ambrose and Bayley were made to look like total geeks. This is a recurring theme with WWE lately. And its simple as to why it happens. They are trying to replicate the Daniel Bryan rise. They basically were a dick to him and made him look like a total jackass time and time again, but the fans loved and respected him so much that they wouldnt stop demanding he get what they felt he deserved. And in spite of all the bullshit, he rose to the top and became a bonified main event star and became a valuable part of the company.

WWE in its arrogance honestly believes that all of this was their doing and thats why we had to put up with Stephanie McMahon going out and humiliating and belittling every single person on the roster. Every fucking week.

And now we see faces like Bayley being humiliated and belittled and made to look like a geek over and over. And its killing her push, momentum and credibility. But WWE honestly believe its helping her. Fucking idiots.

Anyway, thats enough from me. Leave a like or reblog if you agree and be sure to send the usual idiot hate mail that comes along with having an opinion.

Cheers, Tim

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geektified · 7 years

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New Post has been published on http://www.geektified.com/2017/06/20/the-raw-expose-wwe-presents-death-of-a-friendship-ii-starring-enzo-amore-and-big-cass-6-19-2017/

The Raw Exposé: WWE Presents - Death of a Friendship II Starring Enzo Amore and Big Cass (6-19-2017)

By: Keila Cash

Hello everyone and welcome to another installment of The Raw Exposé. Tonight’s episode of Monday Night Raw emanated from the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. After WWE threw in the towel last week due to Game 5 of the NBA Finals, this was the perfect opportunity for the company to get back on track as the infamous July PPV rapidly approaches. Samoa Joe proved that he’s not scared of Brock Lesnar by going toe-to-toe with The Beast and walking away unscathed. Did the Samoan Badass continue his streak of dominance or did someone decide to rain on his parade? The answer to that question can be found throughout this blog. Without further ado, let’s dissect tonight’s episode of Raw in no particular order.

Raw kicked off with Roman Reigns’ announcement regarding his plans for Summerslam. Reigns wanted to face the winner of the Universal Championship match between Brock Lesnar and Samoa Joe. He declared himself the number one contender because the ring was his yard now.

Samoa Joe came out and was offended that Reigns omitted his name from the title match. He was actually flattered because Reigns never beat him one-on-one. Reigns had a stinging line about how Samoa Joe didn’t live up his Samoan roots and called him “Just Joe” as an insult.

Joe headbutted Reigns and proceeded to toss him into the barricade before rolling him back in the ring.

He tried to lock in the Coquina Clutch but Reigns powered out of the hold and nailed Joe with a Superman Punch as the opening segment came to a close.

This was a good way to start the show. The talking was kept to a minimum as Reigns and Joe traded barbs while coming off like total badasses at the same time. Reigns being a cocky asshole is a good look for him. It generates instant heat whether he’s catering to his fanbase or deliberately pissing off hardcore fans who despise his character. WWE has found the perfect formula when it comes to presenting Reigns as a star who is a lightning rod who generates buzz wherever he goes. Here’s hoping the company stays the course because there is money to be made if they play their cards right.

Samoa Joe fending off claims that he is the black sheep of the Samoan Dynasty continues to fuel him in the best possible way. Joe is not only fighting for the Universal Title but his namesake as well. No one comes for his manhood and gets away with it. Brock Lesnar learned that lesson last week. Will Reigns suffer a similar fate? We shall find out later tonight.

The Hardy Boyz defeated Karl Anderson and Luke Gallows when Jeff Hardy pinned Gallows with the Swanton Bomb in a gusty match. Jeff played the babyface in peril until he laid out Anderson with the Whisper in the Wind. Matt made the hot tag and had things under control until Gallows sucker punched him. This allowed Gallows and Anderson to hit the Boot of Doom for a near fall. Jeff eventually made the blind tag as Gallows was about to take out Matt. Jeff saved his brother which set up the Twist of Fate/Swanton Bomb finish. Nice effort from both teams as WWE teased an Anderson and Gallows win only for them to pick up another loss. Again…

Random Observation: Bo Dallas has an amazing tan. And long luxurious hair. And a beard!

Finn Bálor defeated Bo Dallas with the Coup De Grace in a surprisingly competitive match. Dallas attacked Bálor before the match got underway which gave him the advantage early on. However, Bálor got back on offense by nailing Dallas with a wicked kick to the face before throwing him into the barricade for good measure. He rolled Dallas back in the ring and hit his Slingblade/Running Dropkick/Coup De Grace trifecta for the win. This was a nice showcase for Bálor while Dallas looked good for a grand total of two minutes before eating the pin.

Seth Rollins waxed poetically about being on the cover of WWE 2K18 while renouncing his greedy and egomaniacal ways from three years ago. Bray Wyatt didn’t buy Rollins’ nice guy act as he cut a promo from backstage. Wyatt hated the idea of Rollins being a corporate shill and vowed to make him pay for using his name in vain.

Wyatt made his way to the ring and was about to sacrifice Rollins for the greater good when Rollins laid him out with a crossbody from the top rope onto the floor. Rollins walked away while Wyatt tried to save face by smiling manically as the segment came to an end.

The promo exchange between Rollins and Wyatt was fine, but I am not emotionally invested in their feud because Wyatt has looked weak at every turn. He might gain the advantage every now and then, but he never wins the BIG ONE. Wyatt’s feud with Rollins will deliver similar results. It’s sad but true.

Elias Samson sent quite the message to Finn Bálor when he attacked Bálor from behind during his backstage interview with Charly Caruso. Samson warned Bálor never to upstage him again as D-Von shooed The Drifter away. I think it’s safe to pencil in Bálor vs. Samson at the July PPV That Shall Remain Nameless Unless Absolutely Necessary.

Akira Tozawa defeated TJP with a Senton from the top rope. The match was solid and Titus O’Neil added to Tozawa’s act by being his manager. If this is O’Neil’s career trajectory, why is he a heel?

Based on O’Neil’s rebuttal to Neville after the Cruiserweight Champion vowed to annihilate Tozawa if he continued to stick his nose where it didn’t belong, we might have our answer. O’Neil & Apollo Crews will face Sheamus & Cesaro in a nontitle match. Two heel teams going at it doesn’t make sense unless the creative team decided to turn O’Neil and Crews babyface. We shall find out soon enough.

Samoa Joe defeated Roman Reigns by putting him to sleep with the Coquina Clutch in a very good match. It was hard-hitting and physical throughout which made things even better. Joe had his best match to date since debuting on the main roster while Reigns continues to prove why he’s one of the best performers in WWE.

The counters and near falls were on point as Joe countered Reigns’ Spear attempt with a knee to the face followed by a modified Atomic Drop and Senton. It was a great sequence that popped the crowd something fierce.

Joe tried to finish Reigns off with The Coquina Clutch, but the Big Dog powered out and dropped Joe with a Spear. Joe put his foot on the rope for a near fall which heightened the drama even more.

Joe rolled out of the ring and barely made it back in the ring before the count of ten. Reigns was in position to hit him with another Spear until a beeping sound stopped the match in its tracks.

An ambulance was backing into the arena and lo and behold, BRAUN STROWMAN made his triumphant return to Raw. The distraction allowed Joe to lock in his submission hold for the win.

After the match was over, Strowman made his way to the ring and reminded Reigns that he wasn’t finished with him yet. He laid him out with a Reverse Chokeslam and challenged the Big Dog to an Ambulance Match at the Fire of Great Balls PPV as the segment came to an end.

The match between Samoa Joe and Roman Reigns was great while Strowman’s return pushed things over the top. Joe continues to look strong while the epic Strowman-Reigns feud will come to a head next month. All in all, this was a great piece of business that made me look for to the July PPV That Shall Remain Nameless Unless Absolutely Necessary.

The Miz’s marriage might be on the rocks, but the night wasn’t a total loss as he recruited Bo Dallas and Curtis Axel to join his entourage. Dallas and Axel attacked Dean Ambrose from behind while they were disguised as a pair of bears.

Miz picked the bones as he laid out Ambrose with the Skull Crushing Finale to wrap up the apology segment from hell.

Sheamus and Cesaro defeated Apollo Crews and Titus O’Neil when Cesaro pinned Crews with an assisted White Noise. The match was fine, but the 10:30 Lull Period of Death started to set in as the crowd was muted for the most part.

That Brock Lesnar-Samoa Joe video package was everything. Lesnar talking shit about his opponents never gets old. If only he did it for the live audience on a regular basis. Hmm…

Sasha Banks vs. Nia Jax ended via disqualification after Emma kicked Jax in the stomach after Alexa Bliss moved out of the way. Since Banks was DQ’d, she attacked Emma and Jax until Bliss intervened.

From there, all hell broke loose as Mickie James, Dana Brooke, and Bayley made the save. The babyface crew stood tall while the heels retreated up the ramp.

Bayley got a nice ovation which was refreshing to see. Based on the melee, expect a multi-woman match for Bliss’ Raw Women’s Title at the July PPV That Shall Remain Nameless Unless Absolutely Necessary.

The whodunit mystery involving Enzo Amore and Big Cass finally came to a head when Big Cass was revealed to be the culprit.

Kurt Angle interrogated The Big Show and The Revival but noted investigator Corey Graves provided visual proof that Big Cass was the man behind the backstage attacks.

Security footage revealed that Big Cass staged the attack from last week as Enzo looked on in shock. Cass admitted that he was the man who attacked Enzo from behind because he was tired of carrying his dead weight.

Cass took pity on Enzo because no one liked him. His big mouth was writing checks that his ass couldn’t cash. Cass ended their friendship and nailed Enzo with a big boot to the face. Raw went off the air with Cass standing tall on the main stage while Angle tended to Enzo in the ring.

This was an interesting way to end the show. Big Cass held his own on the mic while Enzo Amore did a wonderful job letting his facial expressions do the talking for him. He even cried on command which is pretty damn remarkable.

It sucks that the team is breaking up, but Enzo’s rebuttal should be a thing of beauty next week. If he’s able to convey his own thoughts, we might have a potential promo of the year contender on our hands. I still have trepidation about both men going solo because they complement each other so well on the mic and in the ring.

However, Vince McMahon sees dollar signs in Big Cass and we shall see how his singles push plays out. As for Enzo, he’s a better talker than a wrestler. His long-term goal should be managing other stars. Enzo has the gift of gab which will serve him well in the future.

On a more somber note, I think it’s safe to say that it’s been a rough year for friendships in WWE. L

Overall, I thought tonight’s episode of Raw was solid. This was a nice bounce back show after last week’s ho-hum effort. The wrestling action ranged from decent to very good with Roman Reigns and Samoa Joe winning match of the night honors.

Braun Strowman returned and went back to what he does best: Destroying Reigns to no end. Their Ambulance Match at Great Balls of Fire the July PPV should be a spectacle, to say the least.

The third hour dragged a bit, but the closing segment ended things on a high note. Big Cass showed his true colors and it should be interesting to see how he fares as a solo star. Enzo’s big mouth will keep him employed for years to come. His in-ring work? Not so much.

WWE is doing a good job building up the Balls of Great Fire PPV. However, the company is 0-4 when it comes to producing quality PPVs post-WrestleMania season. The booking decisions at Payback, Backlash, Extreme Rules and Money in the Bank have been atrocious. Here’s hoping they get their act together next month by booking a show that makes sense from a wrestling and storytelling standpoint. If not, the streak will extend to 0-5 which is a damn shame coming from the biggest wrestling promotion in the world.

On that note, this wraps up another edition of The Raw Exposé. I hope you enjoyed it and I will be back tomorrow night with a brand new installment of The SmackDown Files. See you later, boys and girls!

#Big Cass #Braun Strowman #Enzo Amore #Monday Night Raw #Roman Reigns #Samoa Joe #WWE #WWE Universe

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