#absolutely criminal that he's barely in season two

[sophsun1]

The Newsreader | Tim + smiling (✿◠‿◠)

[mncxbe]

can i request dazai x reader where the two end up getting side tracked on a mission and end up kissing and stuff the entire time . and reader is nervous because they know kunikida will KILL them if he found out but dazais just chill

oh my I absolutely loved writing this. Also I imagined dazai in that pretty suit he wore at the end of season 3. I hope it's what you were looking for♡ Enjoy

9:31♡

𝑫𝒂𝒛𝒂𝒊 𝒙 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓

𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: fluff♡/ passionate kisses?

It was usual for Dazai to skip work or do the bare minimum. He's good at reading people and he can solve any case in only a few minutes so why bother putting in some extra effort when he can spend time with you instead?

That being said, when the time came for you two to go on a mission, he was more than prepared to slack off.

"Don't worry darling" he said in a playful tone "Let's just enjoy ourselves. After all we finally have privacy"

You were currently sitting at a table at the far end of the dim lit room. The beautifully ornated lampshades were casting dark shadows on the walls; the smell of tobacco filling the room. The restaurant was chic, quite elegant but secluded, exactly the place criminals choose to meet to discuss business.

A few days ago Kunikida received a tip from one of his informants: two underground organizations were planning to join forces in order to rob a bank and they would meet at that certain restaurant to discuss the details. Naturally, your job was to eavesdrop on their conversation and report everything back to Kunikida. Your superior even made a reservation for the table next to their and allowed you to buy a bottle of expensive wine to set the scene.

That said wine was now being poured in your glass by your boyfriend. "I really can't believe that Kunikida was this generous" he chuckled

"Well, it would be suspicious if we just stood here and did nothing"

"Good point darling"

The two of you clinked glasses just as your targets entered the room.

"Osamu, they're here" you spoke lowly. Your boyfriend nonchalantly looked over his shoulder, catching a glimpse of the two men through the wooden shade that separated your tables.

"And now the party starts" He took another sip of his drink, resting his arm over your shoulders.

The targets ordered something and immediately began discussing their plan, not minding the fact that there were people around them; so it was quite easy for you to hear what they were saying. However, only a few minutes later, Dazai's fingers started ghosting over your thigh.

"Tell me, dear. Are you enjoying the wine?"

"Sshhh" you snapped at him "I'm trying to listen"

Your sudden outburst amused him, a sly smile making its way to his lips. "Why so serious, hon? Just relax a bit." He leaned in, cold lips leaving a trail of soft kisses along your neck.

You tried to protest again but he wouldn't buy it. He could tell by the way your pulse incresed that you were as eager as him. You slowly batted your lashes as he tilted your chin to the side, exposing your neck even further. Dazai's lips were warm and wet against your skin, his occasional needy moans driving you crazy. You snapped out of it when his hand slid up your thigh. Your fingers instinctively wrapped around his wrist, pushing his hand away.

"Dazai, can we please focus? Kunikida is going to kill us if we mess this up and~"

He suddenly pressed his lips against yours, earning a muffled moan from you. His arms snaked around your waist as he pulled you closer, teeth nibbling at your lower lip. You felt your body get hotter with each second that passed; the taste of red wine on his lips shutting down your senses. Dazai's kisses always had this effect on you. As soon as his lips pressed against yours, all sounds became distorted, as if you were underwater and all you could do was melt into his embrace.

You kissed for a good number of minutes until you heard the men behind you yell.

"Oi, you two. Get a room for fuck's sake" they cursed. You suddenly became aware of the position you were in, your cheeks taking on a red tint.

"We're so sorry, sirs I~"

"Just shut it, woman" they spoke again before returning to their conversation.

"Assholes" you mumbled under your breath as you turned to face your boyfriend, who was grinning at you.

"See now, bella. Maybe you should be more quiet next time." You didn't find his remark amusing in the slightest, but all you did was pout as you tried to focus on what the targets were saying.

Unfortunately, the two men asked the waitress for the bill, threw a stack of money on the table and left. A sudden wave of despair took over you and you started panicking.

"Shit I didn't catch the time and place. I'm done, I'm so done. I'm gonna get fired"

"Bella, it's alright" Dazai said in a soothing voice, placing a hand on your shoulder "You're lucky you have such an amazing partner, you know? I have all the information we need here" he continued, gently patting his head with a finger.

You exhaled deeply and allowed yourself to rest in his comforting embrace. "Thanks, Osamu. You're amazing. But please, next time don't distract me like that"

"How about you don't let yourself be distracted, pretty girl?"

A scoff left your lips as you rolled your eyes. Your boyfriend chuckled and downed the last sips of wine. "And what now? The mission is done and we still have half a bottle left. It'd be a shame if it went to waste." His slender fingers caressed your thigh again, making you shiver in anticipation "How about we finish the rest at home?"

"Sounds wonderful, dear" you replied in a honeyed voice "But we have to write the report first"

He kissed you one more time, a soft peck that melted your heart "I believe that can wait 'till tomorrow morning, darling"

[reiderwriter]

I'm curious to hear your thoughts about the dom/sub debate when it comes to mr Spencer Reid.I personally lean towards believing he is more of a soft/rough dom depending on the day.And especially since your dom spencer fanfictions are some of my absolute favorites of all time (the margaritas part 2 had me weak on the knees),I would love to hear you profile my favorite profiler as to if he is a dom or a sub,which you believe is more true.(I know which one is like to believe to be more true😂)I would love to read your insight to his brain and how you understand him!Have a great day!! :)

Oh I would LOVE to get into it, and this is going to be a season by season break down so please bare with me lmao

Spoilers (kinda) for season 1-15 of Criminal Minds under the cut, only read up to where you are in the show!

Season One

You may be thinking "surely that is a sub" and you would be right, if he was having sex, which he is very clearly not. He graduated from his third PhD and then immediately joined the BAU, that is a virgin, your honor.

Season Two

At some point in season one, he loses his virginity. Probably to Lila Archer, maybe to Elle (no further questions, there are some amazing fanfictions that fill in this). But whoever he is doing it with is absolutely dominating him, he just doesn't know it.

Season Two Spencer is curious about BDSM, but having what he assumes is Vanilla sex (just because he isn't calling women Mommy yet, he thinks that he is having normal sex, when in reality he's like pathetically whining asking for release).

During his ongoing addiction days, I think he'd be more than happy to just switch off his brain during sex and just follow orders, do what he's told.

Season Three

A sub and he knows it. Still feels unconfident enough to not be in charge in the relationship, he likes switching his brain off when he fucks. But something does start to switch and he's suddenly a little bit more confident this season, so I can see him being a bit of a brat - talks back, doesn't follow rules, really very mouthy in front of other.

((The majority of my sub Spencer smut is set at around this time - I ❤️ whiny brats lmao))

Season Four

This is where I can see him becoming a bit more confident but I don't think he's a dom yet. I do think he's absolutely taking advantage of his leg injury and absolutely loving being ridden, not having to put in any work. I think after all this he decides he really likes the look on the other person's face when they're on the edge of ecstasy and he wants to explore drawing that out a bit.

Season Five

I think we're experimenting here. So many things have happened in his life by this point that I think he needs to gain control in some part of his life, and his sex life is just the easiest option. He's still giving switch energy, but that sudden short haircut? The brattier energy? He's suddenly coming into himself again, and he's definitely comfortable being a little more dominant now. But he's not an experienced dom yet, so I think he's just taking charge and telling his partners what to do, he's not into choking/ punishment/ degradation yet.

I can't remember if its season five or six where he points out he isn't a typical "alpha male." A lot of people take this to mean that he's calling himself a sub, which could definitely be the case, but also, I think he likes being underestimated sexually, because it makes it more exciting for him when he does get the upper hand in the relationship, which he does in that episode (he interviews the wife and then tells her that her husband killed the actual father of her child and makes her stare at their faces until she cracks and breaks down into tears. He offers her no comfort is all I'm saying... 👀)

Season Six

This is controversial, but I think from this point on, Spencer is fully a dom. He has that scare where he thinks he's "developing" Schizophrenia, and his constant headaches, he just needs release and I think he finds it in multiple beds, lmao. He does have that moment of vulnerability at the end of the season when everything happens with Emily, so I think if he's having sex it's back to Vanilla, but like really passionate, and I'm not saying that he'd fall in love with everyone who's bed he falls into but I'm just saying he needs companionship at the end of this season.

Season Seven

This season starts with him literally cutting off the board of directors at the FBI to correct them and standing by his decisions and if that isn't the biggest dick energy ever idk what is. He's angry, and he's frustrated, and he thinks the team overlooks him a little bit, so you know what he's going to do? He's going to dominate whoever he's in bed with to regain some of that control. I can see this as the time that Spencer finally really gets into more aspects of BDSM. He let's demeaning words slip out of his mouth during sex and then notes the positive reaction they get, so he keeps doing it until he can make the other person cum.

((The majority of my dom smut with Spencer is set at around this time.))

Season Eight

This isn't a Dom, this is a dumbass. I'm pretty confident that for the first half of the season, he's not having sex, because he's committed to Maeve and he never meets her. Then after she dies he's too depressed and busy to get out there. I think if he did go out and find someone to keep him company, it'd probably back to the post-Emily-Doyle arc where he just needs to feel someone close to him someone wrapped around him, someone holding him tight, so it's slow. It's passionate and it's loving, but he's still pretty detached about it. He literally doesn't care about finding a release, he'd rather just have the physical touch for a while.

Season Nine

Straight up dom. Will choke a bitch, regularly does. I can see him getting a little bit rougher now, probably gets asked to spank one of his partners and then does NOT want to stop ever doing that. Grows to lightly slapping in the face. He does literally tell Garcia that he has a dominant side, and she straight up ignores him, though, so I think he's pretty comfortable in people "underestimating" him, I guess?

When he gets shot in the last few episodes, he's literally ready to get back out there as soon as possible, and I think that applies to sexual encounters as well. When some of his other "traumatic events" happen, I can see him taking a break for a while, but with this one, he gets medical clearance and is immediately burying his head between someone's legs.

Season Ten

I am only on season 9 of my rewatch, and to be completely honest, nothing of merit really happens to Spencer in Season 10 from my memory, so I'm just going to assume that he's basically the same.

The only thing that really can be cause for concern is Gideon's death, and I think that does truly fuck him up for a while, but that's anger and grief mixed together, so I can see him moving between rough fucks and slow passionate needy sex for a few months while he works through all of that.

Season Eleven

Spencer Reid vs Cat Adams is literally dom on dom crime, the entirety of Entropy is just them trying to be the one topping one another. And we know who wins that battle, so...

Definitely into pet names and calling his partners little sluts, whores, bitches etc. I don't want to say that Morgan babied him, because their relationship really developed a lot over the seasons and deserves it's own non-horny post lmao, but I think Morgan leaving really allowed the writers to let Spencer take more of a dominant role in interrogations, investigations and the like. And he's the last person who really considers Spencer a "kid" (apart from Rossi who literally thinks of them all as children) so he no longer has to, I guess justify? his sexual behavior. He's just all-in on it now.

Season Twelve

Pre-prison Spencer Reid in season twelve is a bad lover. He's inattentive, literally just chasing his own needs, probably pumping and dumping and now really paying attention to the aspects of a role that a dominant really should - the after care and looking after the person who is submitting to him. Then he goes to prison.

When he gets out, I can absolutely see the man suddenly having a breeding kink, wanting to be so close to someone, for someone to have such absolute confidence in him that he can fuck them raw and neither of them will care about the consequences. He's still a little damaged though, so I can see him oscillating between needing slow comforting sex, and harsh sex, really leaning into punishment/reward play and experimenting with different kinks, and maybe even public sex.

After he starts working at the University, I think role-playing and calling him "sir" would also really turn him on, and for a while he'd think it's a little gross as he's literally a teacher, but after a while he doesn't care anymore because it makes him feel so good.

Season 13-15

It's the same as above. He's dominant, but he still needs taking care of, but at this point he's so closed off from the world that he'll never be able to submit to someone again. So slow, sloppy, passionate sex, lasting for hours and hours is probably his way to go. I can see him being the type of soft! Dom that is just asking for "just one more" orgasm, over and over again, and then just overwhelming his partner with aftercare - running them a bath, cleaning them up, making them food or a hot drink, propping some pillows up behind them. He's a real gentleman, and I think his emotional distance could probably break a lot of hearts.

OVERALL

He goes from the whiniest virgin-sub to a bratty switch, all the way to a rough dom and then settles into being a very soft caring dom in his later years.

That's just my opinion though, and I'd love to hear what everyone else thinks!! I really didn't look too much into what happens in each of these seasons because I put approximately 0% research and 100% opinion and what I would want to see (lmao) into this, so if there's something specific that happens that has you thinking that he'd have a certain preference in any season then PLEASE tell me.

[ver0-needs-spxce]

since people absolutely love to ignore how Ajay’s parents abuse also effect her actions, and how Octavio’s actions prompt her REactions, i’ve decided to dedicate a whole rant about it TL;DR AT THE BOTTOM

(i’m the only one that sees her entire character istg)

#1 if Octavio is gonna act like an idiotic, reckless child, then he is going to be treated like one.

ITS NOT INHERENTLY HIS FAULT!!!! but Ajay is not aware of that!! And she’s not obligated to put up with his reckless and compulsive actions! She, before season 12, had barely ever brought up his reckless behavior, and how little he returned her support and care.

Octavio’s actions are his own, yes he was being manipulated by Torres, but Ajay didn’t see it that way, and chose to call him out.

DONT SAY THIS IS WRONG OF HER, BECAUSE OCTAVIO HAD HIS OWN VIEW, and it was “she’s not understanding, because she thinks i’m an idiot”

#2, Octavio owes more to her than any of you seem to acknowledge.

She has been Octavio’s personal doctor and therapist for YEARS. FUCKINgYEARS!!!! If someone who BARELY EVER SUPPORTED me ever were to try and fuck up my mission to stop a terrorist, then i wouldn’t THINK OR EMPATHIZE, i’d??? question?????

The one or two good things Octavio has done for Ajay has kept her putting up with him for their whole friendship, the one time she’s on a breaking point and yells at him is the time she gets perceived as a fucking monster

#3, HE’S NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH TRAUMA THAT AFFECTS HIS ACTIONS??????????????????????

ARE PEOPLE FORGETTING WHEN AJAY LITERALLY ABANDONED HOME FEELING BETRAYED, WAS IN THE FRONTLINES ON A BATTLEFIELD, AND REALIZED THE WEAPONS BEING USED TO HURT INNOCENTS AND HER FRIENDS WERE LITERALLY BEING MADE BY HER PARENTS????

Like, imagine growing up around people who you thought were good DESPITE THEIR ABUSE TO YOU, then finding out they’re MONSTERS??? AND ALMOST BEING KILLED BY TECH THEY MADE?????

Nd people are surprised when she wants people like her parents, like TORRES, to not be put in high positions of power???????

OH WAIR AND NOT TO MENTION OCTAVIO’S ACTIONS INDIRECTLY LED AJAY’S MOM TO TAKE OVER THE CHARITY GROUP AJAY WORKS TIRELESSLY TO FUND????1?/!4!(!;?2!-&@-@/2@

Cherisse “Stereotypical emotionless abuser” Che is now the president of her daughters entire passion and has made it into something completely different??? do u not think Ajay’s going to hold a little resentment to all parties involved???

AND FINALLY, #4, SHE AT LEAST ACKNOWLEDGES HER FUCKED UP ACTIONS.

Octavio denies his dads damage to the outlands, denies that Torres is a terrible person, denies that he did something wrong

ONCE AGAIN, this is because of his manipulation and need for attention, BUT AJAY!!! DOESNT!!!!! SEE THAT!!!!!!

HOW IS SHE SUPPOSED TO SYMPATHIZE WITH SOEMTHINF SHES COMPLETELY IGNROANT TO!1!1!!1!1!1!

At least Ajay has the balls to say “hey, planting the foot is fucked up, i’m aware it’s fucked up, and i’m sorry i’m doing it, but i have to.” she quite literally is only doing this so that she can get a terrorist from having his hands on a planetary system, and to get HER BROTHER BACK.

i don’t even think she cares whether or not Tavi is still friends with her after this, she just cares that he sees Torres for who he really is, and gets out of his situation.

(Also a side rant, i’m aware that Octane doesn’t want to kill Torres because that’s his “dad”, and i’m aware that Ajay technically did the same thing with her mom, but there’s a difference between 20 yr old Ajay who’s still probably processing her whole situation, not wanting to see her mom killed right in front of her, and in front of a bunch of CHILDREN… vs 25 yr old Octavio “Octane” Silva actively preventing a war criminal from taking a throne of power over multiple planets because he heard an audio tape.) [that’s dumbing down Torres’ manipulation but Octane biases haven’t given me any reason to not be jaded] {{i’ve lost sleep over this}} (((also do u not think she considered that if her lil bf tried to fire that bullet then the soldiers and killer attack drones would’ve killed everyone there ?????)))

TL;DR BOTH OCTAVIO AND AJAY ARE FUCKED UP, SHES BETRAYING AND USING HER BESTIE FOR INFO AFTER HE PUT HIS TRUST IN HER AND HE GAVE IP THE WNTIRE PLANETARY SYSTEM TO A CARTOONISHLY EVIL MAN

AJAY ALSO HAS TRAUMA THAT INFLUENCES HER, STOP PRETENDING SHE DOESNT

No Ajay isn’t “more fucked up” than him, i’m not debating this.

oh my god stop comparing her to Duardo his physical mental and emotional abuse could never equate to her calling octane stupid and making him try to see the impact of his actions

also notice how i didn’t put any main octanes tags here bc i’m not an asshole and won’t show people criticism of their comfort characters unprompted omegalol

love u goodbye THIS ISNT OCTANE HATE I LOVE OCTANE AND LIFELINE EQUALLY AND HOW MORALLY IFFY THEY ARE

octane stans please don’t bite me but do please respectfully debate me i lauv talking and bantering abt these two

[newgenog]

REVENGE

Notes: This is part two of chapter five. If you're just stumbling across this, and haven't already done so, please stop and start by reading part one of chapter one.

This #Batwoman AU is based on the ABC tv series #Revenge. In this fic, Ryan Wilder believes she has nothing to lose, and revenge is the only way to get anything back, whish she's willing to do absolutely anything in service to, or so she thinks.

Another hefty chunk of words for part two. A little warning: we're in our angsty season. At least it's not cold outside, though! And I promise to keep it fun when I can.

CHAPTER FIVE - CHARADE (Part Two)

Ryan’s double life continues to challenge her as she’s confronted with the realities of her choices, and the potential for everything she’s worked for to slip through her fingers. 

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5TH, 6:00 AM, THE LOFT

Ryan wakes up feeling like hell, because she’s hardly had the equivalent of a nap. She’d succumb to taking the night off, not by choice, and let herself feel for the first time in a long time. She hated every moment of it, but once she’d opened those flood gates, they were hard to seal back up. The past and the present had collided and knocked her back so hard that she couldn’t get up from her bed. Eventually, she passed out, but the sun was rising by then, and she woke up from an internal alarm that reminded her of everything she had on the line. It was more important than ever that she got things back on track. 

Ryan Cell: Luke, we have a problem. How quickly can you get here?

Luke Cell: Will 10:00 work? It’d be tough to be there sooner. 

Ryan Cell: We’ll make it work. I’ll get started in the meantime.

Luke Cell: Copy

She climbs out of bed and does little more than brush her teeth and pull on the same jeans and plaid shirt she’d barely managed to slide out of before collapsing into bed when she walked through the door. She makes coffee, but nothing else, because the idea of food makes her nauseous. And then, she opens up her laptop, as she should have done last night.

A quick search on Tyler and his time with The Crows gives her some comfort. He’d grown up at the organization, starting as an intern, and had basically moved up by outlasting several of his peers and being a sidekick to Jacob Kane. He’d never accomplished anything earth shattering for them, though. So it would be a bit of a leap for him to crack this case.

This might explain why they needed Sophie’s help. Whether it was because Ryan didn’t want to know more than she had to, or because she had too much respect to pry, she had never done a deep dive on Sophie. Even after quick glimpses at her social media pages from moments of weakness and temptation, she’d quickly swipe out when she remembered she was exposing herself to a life she could never entertain. But she couldn’t put it off anymore. She had to prepare. 

Unsurprisingly, Sophie is a real threat. She absolutely was on her way to being the best investigator National City had ever had, until she’d left for Gotham. She’d uncovered some monumental unsolved mysteries, and dismantled criminal organizations that seemed untouchable before she’d decided to take them on. Her instincts and determination were unmatched. 

A part of Ryan is proud and in awe. Nonetheless, allowing herself to even feel that is way too close to what had wrecked her in the first place. Ryan’s reality is that Sophie Moore is definitely going to be even more of a problem than she’d already become. And worse, Ryan’s usual methods of taking people down before they could get to her won’t work this time, because they are in direct conflict with her promise to protect Sophie at all costs. 

~~~~~

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5TH, 7:00 AM, THE CROWS HEADQUARTERS

Tyler walks into Jacob Kane’s office. He’d put a meeting on the calendar at the end of the day on July 3rd, and Jacob had accepted. He didn’t supply much context, but he did use Leak Update as the meeting’s subject.  

It’s been less than a week since he’s been working with Sophie Moore and he’s frustrated, because he doesn’t see the point in being assigned to this case anymore. She has more clearance than him, and he’s basically become her assistant. He’s at her beck and call, searching for whatever she wants him to on The Crows’ database, or retrieving old files from their storage and archives. 

She was able to set up a face ID and fingerprint scans for materials being provided to her. He’d dig them up, and the information would appear to be redacted on his end, but he’d add them to a shared drive that she could access, and when she logged in, she had permission to see what he could not. She’d even sent him on errands to look up old news clippings at the library, and he feels like he’s taken ten steps backwards in his career. 

He’s surprised to see that Russel Tavaroff is already in Jacob’s office when he arrives. It looks like they were just having a laugh, and Tyler feels like he’s interrupting. 

Tyler: “Apologies, sir. I didn’t realize you had a meeting scheduled before mine.” 

Jacob: “I didn’t. Russel and I ran into each other downstairs, and were just finishing up a conversation.” 

Tyler: “Do you need me to reschedule, or is now still a good time?”

Jacob: “No, it’s fine. Tavaroff, find time on my calendar, so we can continue this, alright?” 

The idea that Jacob Kane was plotting or bonding with Russel Tavaroff has Tyler clenching his teeth, as if he needed more reasons to have this conversation with his boss. Tavaroff was a dirty cop, and he took this job because it paid better. He covered his tracks well, so it was hard to pin any of his wrong doings since joining The Crows on him. Tyler doesn’t subscribe to his methods, so he keeps his distance. If doing so was going to become more difficult, The Crows might not be the organization for him anymore. 

~~~~~

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5TH, 8:00 AM, KANE MANSION

Beth: “Why do you look like death, sissy?”

Kate: “Because my outsides match my insides.” 

Kate’s sitting at the kitchen table with her sisters and only a cup of coffee in front of her. She was going to take the day off of work, but would rather keep herself busy. So she’s decided to make her way into the office, even though it’s proving to be a struggle. No one else should be there, because she declared the week a summer holiday. So she’s dressed in her designer distressed black jeans with holes in the thighs and knees, and a boxy black t-shirt. 

Mary: “What happened to you last night? You totally disappeared? I thought maybe you’d passed out in your room, but when I went to check on you, you weren’t there.” 

Beth: “Did you phone a friend girl to create some fireworks of your own?”

Kate: “That probably would have been a better choice than the one that I made.” 

Catherine walks into the kitchen with the exact opposite energy that her daughters have. None of them are demonstrating the tendencies of morning people, or seem thrilled to be up and about the day after a mid-week party. And yet, for one reason or another, they’re all dressed and preparing to start their day. They look at Catherine as though she’s insane. 

Mary: “And why do you look like you got a visit from your fairy godmother last night, mom?”

Catherine: “Because we all have a choice to greet each new day as if there’s endless potential for it to be a perfect one. I’ve decided that everything will go my way today.” 

Beth: “Oh great. That means she’s come in here to give us orders.” 

Catherine: “You’re not wrong, Beth. Sunday is your father’s and my 20th anniversary dinner, and I’ve come to set some ground rules.” 

Mary: “Wait, you’re still going through with that sham of a celebration.” 

Catherine: “I’ll beg your pardon. We are still very much in a marriage, and have raised three grown daughters, while running successful corporations. I’d say that’s plenty of reason to celebrate 20 years of partnership.” 

Beth: “She has a point, Mary. Contractually, they’re still bound together with all of their assets and things. So, why not throw a party to look happy about it and hide all of the internal collusion and corruption?”

Catherine: “And that’s exactly the kind of talk that I’ll have none of at our dinner. I’m expecting you ladies to be on your very best behavior, and I’d really like it to be something intimate. So you’re not entitled to bring more than one plus one, which I need to approve in advance. Kate, I believe yours will be Tommy, so yours is approved. I’ll need the two of you to confirm who you’re bringing by the end of day tomorrow, so we can reach out to them regarding their dietary accommodations.”

Kate: “You sure Tommy’s not your plus one?” 

Kate says that under her breath, but both of her sisters catch it and snap their heads to stare at her in shock. She waves them off, and drinks her coffee, not in the mood to explain. 

Catherine isn’t interested in any discussion around her instructions. So she leaves the kitchen before anyone can argue, as per her customary last-word having exit. 

Mary: “Kate, seriously, what is going on with you?” 

Kate puts her coffee mug down and looks at Mary with the seriousness she's demanding. 

Kate: “I’m done with all of the charades. I’m not going to this dinner, and I’m not going to argue about it. You know I only live here because you two do, and I can barely stand it. I’m going to do my best to steer clear of both of them from now on. I need a break.” 

Mary: “What did my mom do? I know she’s a bit of a bitch, but that’s not new…So, is all of this because she’s not leaving dad, or something?”

Kate looks at Beth for a while, and then back at Mary. 

Kate: “Mar, she’s been hiding a lot more than their shitty marriage. In fact, covering things up in plain sight is kind of her thing. This is a pattern, and I’m done being a part of it by proximity and association.” 

Mary: “What are you talking about?” 

Kate: “You never wondered why they sent Beth away in the middle of the school year our junior year?”

Mary: “I mean…Beth was always getting into stuff. I figured they were just making her someone else’s problem. No offense.” 

Beth shrugs. The facts were the facts. Whether she’d accepted fulfilling everyone’s expectations of her, decided this way of life was more fun, needed more mental health support than she’d received or was receptive to, or was screaming for something that felt like love in the form of attention, she was who she was. 

Kate: “And what about how I was around that time…? What did you think was happening there?”

Mary: “They sent your twin away, and you’d already lost your mom. You being angry and withdrawn kind of made sense.” 

Beth: “ Mar Bear is making some good points, Katie. The Hamilton women are on it this morning. And, you have to admit that you’ve always been kinda broody.” 

Kate looks at her sister with utter exhaustion for being no help at all. 

Kate: “Those things might have been true, but that wasn’t all of it.” 

Mary: “Well, what did I miss?”

Kate sits back in her chair, not sure if she really wants to dig up this really old story. Beth is more detached, and enjoying the morning tea. So, she decides to finally tell on herself. 

Beth: “My friends and I were involved in a very tragic accident, and mommy dearest covered up my part in it. After doing so, they wanted everyone to forget about my existence, so they sent me far far away to a boarding school that must have been inspired by Fort Knox. And, it seems my twin sissy was so disgusted with the whole thing that she went off to military school, to become a better human, just as soon as we turned 18. She also might have been running away from me, since she conveniently left the day before I got back, but we’ll never know the answer to that part, will we Katie?”

Kate rolls her eyes, and then sits forward to lean over her coffee, before taking one last drink. 

Mary: “Wait, I remember this. That was the woman who ran our kitchen. Ms. Lewis? She was shot or something, right? You were there when it happened?” 

Beth: “I was indeed.” 

Mary: “But you didn’t-”

Beth shakes her head no, to interrupt Mary’s thought.

Beth: “I’m more the type to bring a knife to a gun fight. It wasn’t me.” 

Mary: “I can’t believe she did that. What the hell is wrong with our parents?”

Kate: “I don’t know, but like I said, I’m done. If she’s hidden that, and this stuff with my dad, who knows what else she’s capable of. She offered Tommy a job, by the way, without bothering to say anything to me. And I probably wouldn’t care, but I found out he’s been hiding things, too. So, it sounds like they were made for each other. I’m just over all of it.” 

She gets up from the table, and walks out of the room, leaving Mary and Beth to work out the rest on their own. 

~~~~~

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5TH, 9:00 AM, THE HOLD UP

Sophie walks into The Hold Up, and she doesn’t rush to remove her sunglasses. She thought she’d be walking into an empty bar, but her sister is already behind the counter, rolling silverware. Sophie is on her way to the office, but she stops at the bar to inquire. She places her laptop bag in an empty seat, and takes the one right next to it. 

Jordan: “Coffee?”

Sophie: “Please?”

She takes her shades off, and sets them down. She runs her fingers through her loose braids, and rests her eyes in her hands, pressing them back into her head. Her sister returns with a mug filled with blonde coffee, just the way Sophie likes it. Jordan usually teases her about being more into the sugar from the flavored creamer than the caffeine, but she senses today isn’t the day for that. She sets two advil down next to the mug, too.

Jordan: “Assuming you haven’t done that yet?” 

Sophie: “Thank you. Why are you here?” 

Jordan: “Couldn’t sleep. You?” 

Sophie: “That, and I have a meeting.” 

Jordan: “Another undercover Crow convo?”

Sophie: “You know you can’t tell anyone I’m working with them, right?”

Jordan: “Duh sis. I don’t speak on your business.”

Sophie: “Oh, so we’re lying to each other now?”

Jordan: “Huh? What’d I do?”

Sophie: “Told Mary you think I like Robyn.”

Jordan: “Oh, that…”

Sophie: “Yeah, that…” 

Sophie takes the Advil and drinks down about half of the coffee at once. 

Jordan: “I’d say I’m sorry, but then I’d be lying on purpose. I hope Mary told you to get it together before you lose that girl.” 

Sophie: “Oh, she did, and Luke, too. Apparently, you’re all in this together.” 

Jordan smiles, smugly, proud of herself for pushing her sister. Sophie shakes her head ‘no’ in response.

Sophie: “Na-ah. You don’t get to celebrate.”

Jordan: “What? Why not? What happened?”

She leans in, eager for tea. Sophie drinks the rest of her coffee down, and slides the mug back to her sister with a glance that states she’d need a refill if she was going to get into it. Jordan speed walks to the coffee pot, quickly refills the mug, grabs the creamer out of the small fridge under the bar, and does her sister’s heavy pour, rushing back right after. The whole thing takes less than a minute. She puts the cup in front of Sophie and picks back up where she left off.

Jordan: “Spill.” 

Sophie locks her jaw as she exhales, and then grimaces. 

Sophie: “She gave me her number at dinner last night. The dinner was shitty, and she left earlier than everyone else. So, I came back to the bar to invite her to talk, and she actually showed up.” 

Jordan’s leaning in with her forams on the counter and her fingers woven together, really engaged, and smiling brightly. 

Jordan: “Sis! I’m so proud!”

Sophie: “Nope. Remember, I said you couldn’t do that.”

Jordan: “Wait? Did it go bad or something?” 

She frowns, not sure how to answer. 

Sophie: “I don’t know…” 

Her head is back in her hands, and she looks like she might pull out her hair. 

Jordan: “Sophie. Spit. It. Out. What do you mean you don’t know?” 

Sophie doesn’t look up, and talks to the counter she’s not looking at, because her eyes are shut tight in her palms. 

Sophie: “Kate was in her loft. She came to Robyn’s, drunk and unannounced. She fell asleep on her couch, and Robyn decided to come down and talk to me when I invited her. I think we were about to get somewhere, but then Kate came down, and ran off all hurt from finding us together. Robyn ran after her. That was the end.” 

Jordan: “Damn. Talk about crazy timing. But, you think you were getting somewhere…?”

Sophie: “I think? I don’t know. Nothing made sense. Like, she seemed into it, but she also kinda looked like she wanted to run away, too. And then she got the chance to, and didn’t come back. Maybe I’m just forcing this whole thing.” 

Jordan: “Nah, the vibes are definitely there. Trust me.” 

Sophie: “Wait, what do you know?”

Sophie sits up then, to look her sister in her eyes. 

Jordan: “Well, besides the way she looks at you, like there's a halo surrounding you or something, you two just don’t see how you are when you’re in the same room. It’s almost like the rest of us are background noise that you’re tuning in and out of. Like you’re sharing a private moment, even when you haven’t said anything to each other, yet. I just think…she might be the kind of girl you have to fight for.” 

Jordan seems honestly sympathetic, and Sophie inhales deeply and slowly. The door opens, and there’s a different suited white man than she was expecting walking through it. She drinks down the rest of her coffee, and stands up. 

Sophie: “When I come back, I want to hear about why you couldn’t sleep, but I gotta find out why there’s a new Crow in our bar.”

He starts walking towards Sophie, and she nods in the direction of her office, communicating that he should follow her. She grabs her bag, and they continue the short trip together. On the way, she sees a text from Kate come through on her phone. 

Kate Cell: Going into the office today. So, we'll have to find another day for lunch. I'll let you know.

~~~~~

Sophie: “Who are you, and where’s Tyler?”

Tavaroff: “I'm Russell Tavariff. Tyler couldn’t handle working for a woman of your stature. So I’m his replacement.” 

Sophie sits in her chair, and looks up only slightly surprised.

Sophie: “I knew he’d be a punk about it. So, what’s the deal, then? Are you filled in, or do I need to debrief you? Do you have all the things you need to step in where he left off?”

Tavaroff: “My boss filled me in, so I’m good. I’m mainly here to introduce myself, and because you two had a meeting today, though the topic for it was unclear.”

Sophie: “Hm. We were going to set the strategy for the rest of the week. I’ve been stringing together the common denominators between Candice Long, Arthur Brown, and Roman Soionis. Arthur and Roman were actually kind of easy, but Candice is harder. Really, the Kanes seem to be the only thing all 3 of them share.”

Tavaroff: “Hold on, back up a minute. I thought you were brought on to find out who leaked Sionis’s video. How did these other people come into play?”

Sophie: “Because there’s no such thing as a coincidence. My gut says the fact that these three people are friends with the Kanes, and were recently at events with them before something happened to ruin their careers and reputation didn’t happen by accident.” 

Tavaroff: “Okay. Could be a stretch, but also sounds interesting.” 

Sophie: “The good news is, it’s not your job to determine what is and isn’t a stretch. But, it is your job to help me dig up every interaction the 3 of them had with Catherine Hamilton and Jacob Kane since the start of their friendships.”

Tavaroff: “That’s one hell of an ask.” 

Sophie: “Sounds like you have plenty to keep you busy, then. I want email exchanges, pictures from events, text messages, literally anything you can get me. Save everything to the drive in folders with each of their names, and I’ll let you know if I have follow up instructions or questions.” 

He raises his eyebrows, somewhat understanding of how someone like Tyler could struggle with Sophie Moore’s confidence in exerting her authority. He, on the other hand, liked to let people feel powerful, even though he never did anything more than he wanted to do. For now, his curiosity is piqued, so he’s choosing to move forward with her plan. 

Tavaroff: “Aye aye, Captain.”

He salutes her, and then turns to walk out of the door. On his way out, his eyes land on  a brunette behind the bar that he remembers that she’s Angelique Martin almost instantly. He’d thought she was cute when he arrested her for carrying when he was a beat cop. She’s busy drying glasses, and doesn’t notice him. He doesn’t stop or slow down, because he knows they’re trying to limit the people who are aware of this project, but something tells him her presence here isn’t an accident either. He might have to agree with Sophie on her point: there really wasn’t such a thing as a coincidence. 

~~~~~

WEDNESDAY, JULY 5TH, 10:00 AM, THE LOFT

Ryan is rereading the same article that she's been staring at for 10 minutes, because it's taken that much to digest the story. It's as if she's unlearned how to read, because she seems to only catch every third word, making the sentences incomprehensible. In truth, the new information is struggling to overpower the words her mom said to her in her journal. 

Initially, when she'd found this article, she'd closed her laptop, overwhelmed by its existence. She'd pushed herself away from the table and hurried to her mama's box, hoping she'd find something that could wrap her up, and remind her of her mother's hug. Last night, before the visits that led to her coming undone, she was just starting to read a letter that would help her with her decisions. On the way to finding that page again, she came across the name Andy, and stopped. She'd only read this letter once or twice, because she wasn't sure she'd ever experienced a love like the one her mama had lost. Suddenly, she felt like those words deserved more contemplation. 

Dear Daughter, I had so much fun with you tonight. I love when you watch my Denzel Washington and Danny Glover movies with me. You like to tease me and say I like bad boys who look like good guys, and men with a little bit of power, because they always have some sort of badge or official title. I usually just laugh, and defend my favorite characters. I tell you they only do bad things when they believe it's for the right reasons, or that men with that much potential will always be given a second chance to turn over a new leaf, because they're so few and far between.  You're not entirely wrong about your mama, and based on these girls you keep talking about at school, I'm thinking I might have found a way to rub off on you. I know I haven't told you much about my deceased husband, because even after all of these years, thinking too long about him can send me into a tailspin, and I can't really afford to give that much concentration to those feelings, because I have you to take care of. But you should really know more about the man that could have been your father, if the universe had been a bit kinder to us. We both turned eighteen before we graduated (a Taurus and a Gemini), and were married with little more than his older brother present as a witness. He was also in the military, and agreed that this was the right strategy for us.  He shipped off the day after graduation, and even while I knew he was still mine, in every sense of the word, I felt like I'd given him away at the same time. I'd have to learn to live without him, for his safety and for our future, and I'd just have to pray he'd come back to me. He did come back once, for a beautiful three weeks after basic training, and it felt like no time had passed between us. But then he was deployed, and…I didn't see him again after that. I sent him away to protect him and lost him to something worse. In the time he was home with me, we'd conceived a little boy, that I named AJ, Andrew Junior. Sadly, he didn't make it either. They called it failure to thrive.  You see, I'd received the news about Andy, and gone into delivery at 22 weeks. I hadn't even told him we were expecting, because I didn't know how to fit the words into the brief, occasional conversations we'd had when he could call, and when I tried to write, I didn't know what to say, because what could he do from so far away? He was the type to risk everything for me, and it felt selfish to let him come back for me like I just knew he would.  I used to wonder if our baby died from my broken heart. After losing so much at once, I wasn't sure I could ever bear to risk loving someone again. And, I had to find a way to take care of myself… I'd received a little something from the government from being his wife, but not enough to sustain me. So, I began growing my cooking skills, and spent the rest of my time at church, praying for mercy every single day. Eventually, the women who would help out got tired of watching me sit by myself, staring at the paned glass, and said if I was going to be there all the time, I might as well put my hands to good use. They gave me a purpose again, and I threw myself into those two things: cooking and the church.  Andy's brother called me on my birthday the next year, and told me about a woman who was looking for a good mother for her daughter, who'd be born in a couple of weeks. I was angry with him at first. And then I started hurting all over again…But one day, when I was back on my bench praying, one of the women asked me to consider the possibility that every ounce of pain I'd endured was leading me to this moment. To the chance to be this baby girl's mom.  I liked to cuss the lord out for being so dramatic. I could have had you and them. But if you were destined to be mine regardless, how could I not show up for you?

Whether I knew it, or even liked it at first, God had a plan for me to have healing love and for us to save each other, my blessing of a daughter. And so, no matter how frightening it can feel to love you as much as I do, and let you go out into this world filled with risks each day, I walk with faith that this is the love I'm meant to have, for however long I'm meant to have it.

I love you, daughter.

Your mama,

Cora 

Ryan had placed her hand on the page, as if she was resting it on her mama's hand, and closed the journal while it was still there, not wanting to let go of her. Her throat felt swollen with unshed tears. Her mama wouldn't have changed a thing. She'd still have let the love of her life go to protect him. She'd known that away was the safest place for him, even with him being exposed to every other risk she couldn't control. Sometimes loving someone meant you had to let them go.

She'd put the journal away, and returned the box. Then, she'd taken a few minutes to collect herself. Finally, she'd returned to the article, determined to move forward and accept her fate.

Now, Luke knocks on the door, announcing ‘it’s me,’ right on schedule, and Ryan calls out saying ‘it’s open,’ unwilling to break away from the article on her laptop to greet him properly. She hadn’t realized she’d left the door unlocked overnight until just then. She'd really been a mess.

Luke walks in and takes in the scene. It’s been a long time since he’s seen Ryan so un-put together. It wasn’t the ensemble, itself, but there were tells everywhere. Her hair was up in a lopsided bun. She had no makeup on, and remnants of not completely washed off eyeliner darkened her eyes, which were puffy and swollen too. As if the SOS at sun up hadn’t already had him concerned, seeing someone he'd come to think of as his unbreakable little sister look so worn down shot a spark of protectiveness through him that he rarely had to experience with her.

Luke: “You keep the door unlocked now?”

She doesn’t look up from her computer.

Ryan: “Not usually. Guess I forgot to lock it last night.”

Luke: “You forgot to lock your door? And then didn’t realize until now? Where’s Ryan Wilder and who are you.” 

Ryan: “That’s a good question.”

Luke sits at the table in something other than a three piece suit for a change, but not entirely far from it. He still wears a collar in the form of his Polo shirt, and dark blue, structured jeans. He's staring at her, even though she’s yet to look in his direction. 

Luke: “Welp, I’m officially worried. What’s going on?” 

She turns her laptop around, and shows him an article about Sophie Moore apprehending Eve Teschmacher, member of the elite, underground Leviathan Society and spy for the DOD's biggest threat, Lex Luther. 

Ryan: “This is our problem.”

Luke: “Sophie? Did you text me at 6AM with a dating emergency?”

The mix of emotions that cross her face in less than a second tells him he’s not entirely wrong. 

Ryan: “Jacob Kane has her and his number one, Tyler, working together to find out who leaked the Sionis videos.”

She gives him a moment to put that together. They were good at what they did, but they might not be better than Sophie Moore. 

Luke: “Okay. That explains some things… But, we can figure this out, like we do everything else. Am I supposed to believe this is why you resemble post-release Ryan right now?”

It was a little harsh, but it was also accurate, and he needed her to be clear for once. She got up from the table, taking her mug with her, and went to the coffee pot to replenish. 

Ryan: “Want some?”

Luke: “Sure, but I still need an answer.” 

She doesn’t respond immediately. She makes their coffees and returns to the table with them. She sits down, holds her mug with both hands, and takes a drink from it. When she sets it on the table in front of her, she stares into it when she speaks.

Ryan: “I knew Sophie…before.” 

At first, Luke has to say it back to himself, because he heard it like it was spoken in a language he only understands a few words of. Then, he pieces it together, and so many things start clicking into place that he feels inundated with an overwhelming amount of information and questions at the same time. Not to mention frustration for being excluded from this crucial detail.

Luke: “Knew her in what way?”

Ryan takes a deep breath and answers on an exhale. 

Ryan: “In high school...We were really young, but…I think I loved her.” 

Luke: “Wow…okay. Ryan, that's the kinda thing I probably should have known sooner."

She doesn't move, just continues looking lost in her cup, as if she's watching the past replay in the reflection of the black liquid it contained. She doesn't just look tired or worried, but honestly sad. So many moments pass that he starts to feel a little like an insensitive ass, but just a tiny bit.

Luke: "Alright, I see it's not the time for a lecture. So…you loved her. And…she doesn’t remember you?”

Ryan finally looks at him, and offers a small shrug. 

Ryan: “I don’t know. I mean, she hasn’t up until now. It was a long time ago, and kid Ryan and Robyn Wilde don’t have a lot in common on the surface. But…last night…”

Her voice cracks, and she cuts herself off. She clears her throat and drinks from her cup, as if the liquid will wash the threat of falling apart all over again away.

Luke: “But your ruse isn’t working on her.” 

She gives him an unhappy, glassy eyed, side smile. 

Luke: “And now she’s on a mission to find…you, even though she doesn’t know it’s you. Damn, this just got really complicated.” 

Ryan: “Right.”

Luke: “Ryan, level with me here. Would it really be the worst thing if Sophie knew who you were?”

Ryan: “Are you kidding me? She is Miss Law Enforcement. And nothing about what I’m doing is legal.”

Luke: “Is that the real reason you don’t want her to know, though? Because you think she’ll alert the authorities?”

Ryan doesn’t know the answer to that, but she also would never want to put Sophie in the position to have to make that decision. Regardless, she's made up her mind. Sophie isn't meant to be mixed up in this life of Ryan's. The best thing for both of them is still to keep Sophie as far away from this as possible.

Ryan: “Luke, she can’t know.”

Luke: “How can you be okay with hiding so much from someone you feel this way about? And don’t feed me that bull about you trying to protect her, because clearly Sophie is someone who can take care of herself.”

Ryan: “Luke, this isn’t up for discussion. Either help me figure out what the hell to do, or don’t, but we’re not changing the plan. She can’t know.”

Luke shakes his head in clear disagreement. He knows this is going to blow up in their faces, but he also knows his charge is to stand by Ryan’s side, no matter what. So, of course he’s going to help her.

Luke: “Just let the record reflect that I said this was a bad idea.”

Ryan: “Noted. Now, please use that big brain of yours to find out how close they are to figuring me out.”

Luke's watch lights up and vibrates. His eyebrow peaks at what he reads. He taps it with his finger to read the rest of the message, frowns, and then looks like he makes a choice, sighing audibly.

Luke: "Your angels might be looking out for you, because I think we just got a shot at a Hail Mary."

He chuckles at himself for his double entendre, and Ryan scowls at him, in no mood to decode his lame humor.

Ryan: "Luke. What does any of that mean?"

Luke: "Mary just invited me to The Kanes' for her parents' 20th wedding anniversary this Sunday. She said Catherine wants it small and to approve everyone's plus one. She figures I'm likely to get approved."

Ryan squints at him, thinking there was probably more to Mary's choice in company for the night than limited resistance from her mom, but she didn't have the energy to dig for information about an additional set of people at this time. So she decides to table that for now and focus on their mission."

Ryan: "What are you thinking?"

Luke grins the way he does when he's about to nerd out about some new tech he's excited to try out, and Ryan prepares to be inundated with a different explanation than the one she's really asking for.

~~~~~

THURSDAY, JULY 6TH, 9:00 AM, THE CROWS HEADQUARTERS

Tyler sits at his computer, sorting through someone else’s files, and wondering how he got here. After all he’s given to this organization, how did he go from a stint as Sophie Moore’s lackey to being downgraded to Russel Tavaroff’s fill-in? As much as he’d toyed with the idea of giving Jacob Kane an ultimatum - to establish that he was Sophie Moore’s superior and grant him equal access and clearance, or for them to begin discussions about his future with The Crows - he didn’t anticipate that informing his boss that he was dissatisfied with the situation would get him temporarily demoted. Sure, on paper, his role and level hadn’t changed, but he knew that these cases were at least two levels beneath him. 

He was instructed to review Tavaroff’s drive on the server for cases where he might be able to make headway more quickly; since Tyler had more experience, perhaps he could clear some things off of his desk, so that Tavaroff could take on this bigger, stretch project, and help out Sophie in his stead. Of course Tyler could do that, but this was the equivalent of being given admin work after you shot a firearm at someone. It felt like retaliation. 

Russel sorts is folders by last modified. So, when Tyler is finished looking through one file, and decides it’s not the one he wants to start with, he goes back to the main folder and sees a different one at the top of the list than what he remembered being there before, named Martin. He’s supposed to be working Tavaroff’s older cases, but he’s wondering if he just overlooked this one. In transitioning things over to Tyler, maybe Russel added some information to something he’s supposed to handle now. Realistically, it's more likely this is new, because Tyler is really good at keeping track of what he’s seen. 

Tyler’s retention and recall is actually his competitive advantage. He knows some other detectives are skilled at piecing together information, and uncovering hidden details, but to retain all that they’ve collected, and call upon it when it’s most useful - that’s where others tend to drop the ball. He benefits from being nearby when information is learned or needed, and reminding everyone about the right thing at the right time, which is often what it takes to make sense of a case. So he knows in his gut he didn’t miss this folder. 

If Russel is working something new, when he’s supposed to be working the Sionis files and helping Sophie, this might be what Tyler needs to demonstrate he’s not more cut out for the role… And, if this is something Sophie has asked him to work on, then he can’t help but be curious about it. Even though he didn’t want to work for her, he’d always wanted these answers too. Not being a part of this case has the potential to haunt him after all of his contributions towards it. 

He gives in, and opens the folder. He finds records for Angelique Martin, who has had a run in or two with The Crows: a birth certificate, foster care records, different transfers of guardianship, school admittance records, sentencing to Gotham’s juvenile detention center and release paperwork, arrest records for small carrying charges, apartment applications, job applications, I-9s, and termination records, and a folder labeled photos. There aren’t many pictures, but there is a yearbook picture from her freshman year of high school. Russel had also tracked down a few images from facial scans of different news articles from events, where she’d simply been in the background. 

In one picture, she was standing next to a woman he gets the feeling he’s seen before, but she also looks different enough that he’s not sure if he’s wanting to find familiarity in someone where it doesn’t belong. They’re standing in the background, and it’s blurry, but he can tell it’s O’Malley’s bar, and the clipping from the newspaper dates back to 2014. It’s a photo from the police department’s Holiday Happy Hour, where they were also bidding farewell to one of their retiring officers who wasn’t returning in the new year. They’d done a small piece on his contributions to the city. Martin was behind the bar, and the familiar woman was sitting at it. It looked as though they’d turned towards the camera automatically, probably from several bursts of flash occurring in their peripheral. 

Tyler’s retention and recall has never failed him. He stares a little longer, and then remembers a folder he’d started weeks ago and never went back to. Jacob Kane had asked him to look into Robyn Wilde. He wasn’t finding anything very worthwhile, and when things started going south with the Sionis case, he’d let that request fall to the back of his mind, until now. 

He clicks into his folder, opens it up, and finds the badge photo he’d saved that granted her access to Jet Tower. He puts the two photos next to each other on the screen, and sure enough, there were enough similarities between the two women that it’d be hard to argue they weren’t the same person. Wondering what history Angelique, who had also just moved back here from Freeland and now worked at Sophie Moore’s bar, could possibly have with the current CEO of Jetirian, someone who he hadn’t found any records of having lived in Gotham before this image, he decides to look into Angelique himself. 

It’d been a while since he’d had any field time. Stretching his legs, and getting outside of this office might be exactly what he needs to re-energize him about his choice of career. If he can come back with something noteworthy about Robyn Wilde, maybe he’ll even be able to remind Jacob Kane why he is his number one to begin with. 

~~~~~

THURSDAY, JULY 6TH, 10:00 AM, KANE MANSION

Mary is on the back porch, looking for old news articles about Cora Lewis's death. Even while her family was involved, which really should have made this big news, there was minimal coverage. She doesn't know if that's because the deceased was a Black woman with little family to advocate for her, or if it was because her family kept others quiet.

Catherine walks out, happy to find one of her children. She's still floating around as though she's planning for the most joyous occasion, and the overcompensation is nauseating to observe. Mary wants to sympathize for the woman who created her and sacrificed everything in the early years of her life to ensure she had absolutely every opportunity, because she honestly can't imagine what it must feel like to have your husband participate in an affair and have that become Gotham-elite news. Unfortunately, the realities of who her mom is has Mary leaning towards Karma being a bitch instead.

Catherine: "Good morning, Mary!"

Mary: "Hey."

Catherine: "Goodness, it's really turning out to be a lovely summer. We've hardly had a cloud in the sky…"

Mary: "Did you seriously come out here to chat about the weather?"

Catherine: "Partially. I've decided I want Sunday to be a brunch, starting at 11AM. Why waste these beautiful days having dinner inside? And maybe the sobriety and energy will be different if your sisters haven't had a whole day of dramatics to engage with."

Mary: "Sure, like they're the only ones who engage in dramatics."

Catherine: "And that reminds me. Have you decided who your plus one is?"

Mary: "Luke, if he's still available with the new time. Figured he was safe enough." 

Catherine: "Are you two an item?"

Mary: "Are we really going to pretend we're the Gilmore Girls and we share intimate details around our love lives? You try to pretend you and dad are picture perfect with me, just like you do the rest of Gotham."

Mary hasn't made eye contact with her mother. She's continued scrolling through headlines, and trying to decide if she's ready to confront her mother about what she knows. The temptation is strong, but she's not feeling quite informed enough to go toe-to-toe with Catherine Hamilton, a more than formidable opponent in any confrontation.

Catherine: "You're right, but maybe we can change that. You know, I could really use a spa day. Care to join me?"

Mary: "Thanks, but pass."

Talk about way too little too late. Catherine stares at her daughter for a moment and Mary resists the urge to look over at her for equal fear if caving or exploding. The latter seems to have a few more pebbles weighing the scale down, though.

Catherine: "Alright, well, you'll tell your sisters about brunch? 11 o'clock?"

Mary: "Sure."

She pulls up the iMessage app on her Mac and starts typing. Catherine quietly excuses herself. Mary finally glances up, watching her mom leave, and then returns to her keyboard.

Mary Cell: Sunday's dinner is a brunch now. Mom says we're more likely to show up sober if she can get us before we even leave the house. Who cares about all of the people who have to adjust their lives on short notice? 😒🙄

Beth Cell: Brunch is so boring!!! 

Mary Cell: I think that's the point.

Kate Cell: I'm still not going.

Beth Cell: That might make it a touch more interesting, but I'll miss you Katie Kat

Mary Cell: I don't blame you, but I do hate this for me. She's going to be even more of a pain.

Kate Cell: You know you're not required to appease her?

Mary Cell: Easier said than done, but I'm close to following your lead.

Beth Cell: Maybe I'll claim your seat, Kay Kay, since you aren't using it. And they'd be entitled to your plus one, of course.

Kate Cell: Whatever. I won't be there to care.

~~~~~

THURSDAY, JULY 6TH, 11:00 AM, THE HOLD UP

Jordan walks into the office while frowning at her phone. Sophie looks up at her and watches her text someone, looking uncertain. She observes her sister for almost a minute before her curiosity is too strong to continue waiting.

Sophie: "J, did you need something?"

Jordan finally looks up at Sophie, her expression unchanged.

Jordan: "I think I need Sunday off."

Sophie: "Okay…is something wrong? You don't seem thrilled about it."

Jordan walks around to the chair at Sophie's desk and sits down tentatively. She sets her phone on the desk, face up in front of her, and then grimaces. She blinks a few times, but eventually decides to talk.

Jordan: "I was invited to the Kanes' anniversary."

Sophie raises both eyebrows and sits back in her chair, twirling a pen between her fingers.

Sophie: "That's different."

Jordan knows the unsaid question Sophie's awaiting an answer to.

Jordan: "Um…I'll be Beth's guest."

Sophie: "Wow. Did not see that coming."

Jordan: "Well, technically, I'm Tatiana's plus one, and she's Beth's guest, along with Jonathan Cartwright."

Sophie: "Her little boy toy? Wait…am I tripping or…does this sound like-"

Jordan: "A double date?"

Sophie's eyes grow three sizes, and now Jordan's elbows are on the desk in time for her head to collapse into her hands.

Sophie: "What is happening right now? I'm too smart to be this confused. Is this a date, Jordan?"

Jordan: "I don't know…maybe?"

Sophie's eyes tighten, trying hard to follow along, and really needing the details to this story. 

Sophie: "She's who you hung out with last night, right? Is she gay?"

Jordan peers up, presses her lips together, and nods yes. Sophie's confused forehead creases are only becoming more prominent, and it's clear she's not sure if she should ask what she wants to ask.

Jordan: "We just hung out on her cousin Ocean's boat all night, waiting for the fireworks, and talking. We talked a lot more after the fireworks… for hours... We have a few things in common, like overachieving sisters we have a hard time living up to, and familial responsibilities that feel like they're more important than the unserious lives people our age tend to live. And, eventually, she kissed me."

Sophie takes a beat to process everything her sister just shared and manage her own reaction. She leans forward, placing her elbows on her desk, and weaving her fingers together.

Sophie: "What was that like?"

Jordan: "I didn't hate it…Look, I know what you're thinking and yes I still like guys, I just…I don't know, sometimes I like girls too, I guess."

Sophie reaches over to take her sister's hand, and Jordan sits up enough to let her.

Sophie: "You know that's okay right? Why does it sound like you were worried for me to know that about you? Me of all people?"

Jordan: "I don't know, Sophie. Being gay is kinda your thing. Like how ridiculous am I…the world's most literal copycat?"

Sophie: "My thing? You make it sound like a hobby, like reading books versus gardening. And even if that was the case, it's not like only some people can garden or anyone would think less of you for also liking to garden if I liked that too."

Jordan: "Oh, I can think of one person who'll think less of me…"

Sophie squeezes her sister's hand, fully understanding why Jordan would be worried about their mom's reaction to this information.

Sophie: "Mom definitely doesn't make this specific thing easy, but I just try to sit with gratitude that we're both able to find enough middle ground to stay in each other's lives."

Jordan: "And you think that'll be easier if she feels like we're both hellbound?"

Sophie: "Honestly, I think if she has a problem, it'll be with me, for the 'example' I set. But I'm not worried; I've got a lot of practice dealing with her. I just want you to know everything is going to be okay, no matter what…But wait, so this is why you couldn't sleep?"

Jordan was feeling slightly less nauseous before Sophie brought that last part up.

Jordan: "Kind of. I wasn't worrying about mom, or even telling you, I just…"

She inhales deeply and holds onto the breath. She takes her hand back so she can return to cradling her head.

Sophie: "What happened, sis?"

She releases the breath to talk, but doesn't return her eyes to Sophie's.

Jordan: "I did like kissing her. And I just went with it at first, but at some point, I got really hot, and overwhelmed, and I pulled away, and…I um…I guess you weren't the only one who had a girl run away from you..."

Sophie: "Oh, J…" 

Sophie is filled with sympathy, watching her sister torture herself with regret, and it makes her wonder if Robyn is somewhere feeling similarly.

Jordan: "So, I texted her apologizing in the morning, and asked her if we could have a do over or something, and she took until just now to respond with this invite."

Sophie: "And you want to say yes?"

Jordan sits up again, looking at her sister with a bit of pleading in her eyes.

Jordan: "I think so…"

Sophie: "Then I think we need to also make time for a little shopping, because you can't wear just anything to the Kanes', and especially not if you're going to help this girl feel motivated enough to shoot another shot."

Jordan's entire face lights up, not expecting that response from her sister whatsoever. Sophie pushes the phone towards her and looks down at it, encouraging Jordan to accept the invite, and she quickly complies.

Sophie grabs her own phone and texts Mary.

Sophie Cell: I think I'm going to need your help.

~~~~~

To be continued...

Sooo...things are happening. We're learning more... What's on your mind? Tell me your thoughts!

I added this note after the fact last time, and am repeating it in case you missed it: If you pay super close attention and noticed that the season changed in the high school memory with Angelique before, that's the tricky part about posting as you go. Sometimes, things you wrote before fully ironing out what you plan to write don't fit as neatly as you need them to. It was a tiny edit to the text that made a significant difference in the story. But yes, originally, Angelique defended Ryan earlier in the school year and I changed it to closer to Christmas, because it worked better for this part and more that's to come. Thanks for going with it.

Currently, the goal is to put the next part/conclusion on Ao3. I've been writing, so it's entirely possible, but stay tuned to find out.

For #PrideMonth, the #SaveBatwoman campaign has all kinds of fun topics to chat about on Twitter. Join the conversation.

[downwithpeople]

finished counter/weight

it wasn't bad!

most actual plays do about 0.5 systems - they nominally use dnd 5e but mainly just do freestyle rp. it's wild to hear someone kitbash together what, 6 fucking systems? multiple groups of players operating at multiple levels asymmetrically? what a big swing! it's so fucking ambitious! i don't even know if it's a good idea!

the big downside of the variety in systems means that a huge chunk of the airtime is spent explaining, discussing and negotiating mechanics. the mechnoir portion was the absolute worst for this and i think part of what made the first session or two so rough was the players just not understanding the game or how to effectively use their characters. the benefit of this immense variety of systems is...i don't know? maybe it's fun to play? i didn't feel like the extended kingdom interlude was that interesting and i would have definitely preferred the events of that to be relayed to me in a 10-minute convo rather than negotiated through another system where the players seem barely cognizant of the stakes.

i found it very difficult to understand what was going on with the setting. a lot of setting names are thrown at you very fast and at this point i still don't know if i could confidently describe all of the big movers and shakers in the setting. still not 100% on who the rapid evening are, who diego rose was, who most of the big corps are and why they matter. i don't hate any of what i learned but i'm not sold on the divines in general. rigour is cool because i understand what rigour is and does. i don't get how righteousness works, nor any of the divines which aren't a giant robot. even at the end, when they were saying shit like 'ooh grace won't like that' i still didn't understand what that meant or why it mattered. maybe i'm just too stupid. that said, the parts that i did understand i thought were pretty decent.

i liked the chime and i liked the cast. audy was cool and had some great moments tho as i said, still don't know why their status as a divine matters. aria seemed like an insanely poor fit for the group but i like ali acampora as an entertainer so it balances out. mako was consistently delightful and the introduction of larry was my favourite character beat in the season. cass didn't make that much of an impression on me and it was too easy to forget they were royalty. i think austin should have laid down the law super hard in the first session and been like 'hey you guys are criminals, you are mercenaries, you do crimes for money, be on that wavelength' instead of like, however the fuck he described their deal with orth.

big fucking mistake: the custom XP triggers he worked out. podcast or no, do NOT ever give players a mechanical incentive to play suboptimally. players already play suboptimally; the mechanics should lead them by the nose into optimal play strategies. i would not recommend giving a player like keith an incentive to fuck up the mission with antics unless you want to ruin your friendships.

i think i would have enjoyed a less structured game along the lines of what is actually suggested by the rules of the sprawl. i guess this is just actual play podcasts in general but the thing is, most PBTA games make it pretty explicit that the game works best when you come in with a set of starting positions and assumptions instead of a predetermined storyline. austin can't help but come in with a big sheaf of predetermined storylines, down to specific planned scenes and even fucking maps. i would love to hear a podcast where someone plays the game as written for once.

i have no idea where to go from here. i'm sure as shit not listening to marielda because i know it will make me big nerd angry. i am not so invested in the setting that i absolutely must find out what happens in twilight mirage. if the hieron stuff is good maybe i'll listen to that next but i think i'm gonna give fatt a break for a while.

my OC for counterweight is the candidate of the divine antipathy.

[itwoodbeprefect]

Re the tag game: H50, all of them #25? Also I'm not sure if I'm allowed to ask twice but I wouldn't object to hearing more about Our Mr. Wilson!

thank you for your mercy in crossing out “all of them”, because i think i’d have to skip sleep tonight to get that done. :p but two is absolutely okay!

-

Danny Williams and the Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Neighborhood Barbecue

this is a recent addition to the WIP pile! it’s a post-canon fic in which (obviously) danny still lives with steve, when he discovers that steve barely knows his neighbors. so they throw a barbecue to get to know them better, and then (also obviously) it turns out that all their neighbors think they're a couple. everyone keeps making nice comments to danny about it (“how did you meet?” “your boyfriend is good at the grill, but your pasta salad is my favorite!” “oh, i'm glad to see you finally took the step and moved in - i used to see your car here all the time.” “you guys have adorable kids!” etc.) and danny keeps having to explain that yes, they’re partners, yes, they live together, yes, steve is basically raising his kids with him, but not like that, while every new neighbor he meets has the wrong idea all over again and steve seems oddly chill about it. cue eventual confrontation in the privacy of their kitchen, of course, where danny figures out that maybe steve is chill about it for a reason.

these are the first four paragraphs:

The worst of it is that it’s his own fault, and nobody else’s. While walking Eddie down the street, more to stretch his own legs than because the dog needs any more outdoor time considering all the people it lives with that go for daily jogs (which is two, but that’s plenty), Danny sees the neighbor from three doors down watering plants in her front yard. He stops for a friendly little chat, the way people sometimes do if they’ve been decently socialized through the virtue of having an upbringing in which none of their parents faked their death.

When he and Eddie get back home, he crosses paths with Steve in the kitchen, and when he tells Steve he just talked to Mrs. Hernandez about flowers that look pretty but don’t require too much upkeep, Steve says, “Who?”

Which is how Danny learns that Steve, a man who has lived in this very house for most of the years he’s been alive and also loves not only prying into other people’s business but having all of the facts in every possible situation, doesn’t know most of his own neighbors’ names. “How is that even possible?” Danny asks, at the end of a little rant about how stupid that is, which Steve bears alternately with patience and mildly hurt personal pride. “How have you never once thrown a big barbecue to at least know who’s supposed to be walking around on your street?”

“Huh,” Steve says, like he’s pleasantly surprised by the practicality of that suggestion. Danny is fully ready to take that the wrong way and rant a little more, when Steve cuts him off by pulling a notepad and a pen from a kitchen drawer and asking, “Can you make that macaroni salad you do, but bigger?”

-

Our Dear Mr. Wilson’s Guide To Becoming A Successful Contributing Member Of A Team Of Internationally Renowned High-Tech Do-Gooder Criminals

ooh, i’ve had a lot of fun with this one so far! but it’s also specifically early season 1 leverage redemption fic, so it’s fallen by the wayside a bit after it didn’t get finished fast enough and canon had moved past the point where this idea was immediately relevant. it’s essentially a harry POV numbered list describing what (not) to do when dealing with the leverage team - stuff like don’t anger the guy who used to be a hitman (but definitely don’t anger any of the others, because that’s worse), avoid any performance of sophie’s that’s not related to a con, don’t get between breanna and gummy bears.

here’s a chunk of “don’t try to ask which of your new partners in crime are partners with which other partners in crime”:

“So what’s the deal with Hardison and Parker?”

“What deal?”

“Nothing. Just, I get the impression that you and Parker…”

Eliot does not take the obvious invitation to fill in the gap. He just raises his eyebrows, at once vaguely threatening and threateningly vague.

Harry soldiers on. “And when Hardison was still here, it seemed like you and him were also- Also close.”

Eliot rumbles. It’s unclear if it’s in agreement. “Why? Are you trying to figure out if I’m single? I’m being hit on. Is that what’s happening here?”

Not only can Harry not figure out if Eliot is serious or not, he’s also completely unsure if that undertone of a growl is base level grump, an expression of mutual interest, or rising homicidal rage. Harry smiles. “Never mind,” he says, and beats a hasty retreat.

-

send me the title of one of my WIPs and i'll tell you something about it or post a snippet!

[horrorshow]

happy wincest wednesday suzy!

what's the fic that converted you to wincest? not necessarily the first you remember reading, but the first that impressed you and stayed with you all these years?

happy wincest wednesday vicky😙

This is an easy one for me. It's Howl by Paxlux. it's one of the first fics i read and I couldn't stop once I started, the came-back-from-hell-wrong psychotic only-eyes-for-each-other murder-fire-gasoline-sex-horror-filled roadtrip written like a poetic acid trip got under my skin and didn't leave me alone. I even made a shitty fanmix for it. I haven't read it since, which is like a decade ago, so I have to confess I have no idea what I'd think of it now, but I can safely say I consider Paxlux in general to be my wincest bible that shaped how I see their relationship.

What I love most is that Paxlux ALWAYS writes them as brothers first. There's so much pranking and bickering and just... all those things siblings do and it feels so natural. their dynamic feels so real, THEY ARE FRIENDS, and they find each other so fucking annoying, and they love each other, and they stand on such equal footing with each other (there's NONE of that sam-is-this so dean has to be the opposite-of-that, god bless). and yeah, they fuck. but they are BROTHERS. and they are OBSESSED with each other. This is a world-of-two with all its pros and cons❤️ and i’m in love with it 

like. I’m not kidding. When they say shit like this i feel like eating my whole arm:

“As if they’re a weird Frankenstein experiment, an anatomical study gone wrong, bodies smashed together into one and Sam can’t see anything else without seeing Dean.”

“Sam’s forever the supernova of Dean’s galaxy, exploding and dragging Dean into his destruction, into their shared oblivion, then they do it all over again, and Dean needs Sam to keep creating him and destroying him“

"The thing is, Dean drives Sam insane even on a good day. He is, whatever, fill-in-the-blank, and that’s enough to push Sam over the edge most of the time, the absolute propulsion of Dean’s existence, it blows through Sam like a jet engine."

“Sam laughed, finally looking at his brother, Dean lit by the dashboard and the heavy-rising moon, Dean lit as he talked, smiling and tapping the wheel, Dean so alive in a car and happy, Sam liked to get him like this too when they were standing still, his brother larger than life and the best of the best, his eyes with their shine only for Sam, the way he looked at Sam and how he believed he was conning people into thinking he was holy, charmed, born under a lucky star, but Sam got that his brother was absolutely those things, especially when he looked like this, limned with these lights and shadows and Sam wanted to see him again in the daytime because he got all of Dean, this nighttime version and the daylight one who made Sam smile without realizing it, his brother in any old jalopy, soon-to-be in their very own tried-and-true black treasure of a car, devouring the country, one road at a time, and Sam was his willing accomplice, at his bidding.”  (how is that ONE sentence!!!)

Plus i LOVEEE how they’re almost ALWAYS on the road, those fics are so old and the early seasons vibes are so great in it. 

And all their fics are brilliant? Criminals-AU? On the road between hunts? Sad Stanford era Dean? Girl!Dean? Girl!Sam? They’re both girls? Even this de-aged oh no they’re kids again fic is cute? Help, going through these bookmarks makes me realize I haven’t even read half their fics yet.

I should definitely re-read. Paxlux shaped wincest for me, and while I changed a LOT of my opinions on spn and how I see their relationship since then, this is wincest to me in it’s bare essentials💞. 

[tellmegoodbye]

Hello Harley! nice ask week query for you! give me your top 5 Lone Star scenes please and thank you 💜

Top five scenes??? Gosh, This is hard!!

Before we start, Hello. My name is Harley and I love angst. My choices here probably explain a lot...

I am doing this off the top of my head because I have never put a list together until now. It is also very late so if I forget an iconic scene that would be criminal for me to leave out, I'm sorry. I will definitely correct myself in the morning and add onto this if that is the case.

The best scene in the entire show HAS to be the TK waking up/Grace giving birth sequence, right? I think it's safe to say that nobody is doing it like her. Just the two extremely emotional situations that could only really be described as miracles, both coming to fruition after four episodes of angst. The music choice?? The acting??? TK and Carlos finding their way back to each other and barely having to say anything, and Grace and Judd being able to have this experience together in spite of everything that stood in that path. The pain you can feel from Owen as he watches a new life coming into this world, unaware that his son is waking up at the same exact time. Like the choices that were made here were just brilliant. Push, my beloved, there is a reason I just wrote 23k words about you.

This is a combination of two from the same episode, the first one being that period of silence after Tommy finds Charles in 2x13. It's one of the most emotional scenes I've ever watched in any show, and it does so much without relying on sound. The second one is at the end of the same episode where she is finally able to cry, and this is also one of my favorite musical moments from the show, if you recognized the lyrics in my blog title!

The entire plane landing sequence in 3x08. Another favorite musical moment of mine, but also just an amazing scene in general. I'm a sucker for all the 'begins' type episodes, and the way that scene switches between the past and present is really well done and definitely gets me crying every time.

I absolutely have to include the scene in 2x02 where we get a glimps at each character mourning after Tim's death. It's another one of those scenes that does a lot with very little. Incredible acting, and it gave us that beautiful moment where TK comes home to Carlos and collaspes in his arms. Such a memorable scene for me.

I'm going to be on my Owen bs for a hot second here so please bear with me. It had actually been a while since I watched this scene so I almost forgot how much I enjoyed it, but I watched 3x18 again recently and the scene where Owen is hallucinating talking to Gwyn fucking broke me. As well as the rest of the scene that followed where he's rescued. The best way I could describe their love story is a beautiful tragedy. You can tell Owen has carried around a lot of guilt for how it ended, and you can't help but wonder how different things could have been if they had worked out, and if she had lived. I think it was an incredibly important scene to have as well, if you also take into account everything we learned about Owen in 3x15 and 3x16. His journey over the past two seasons is something I have appreciated immensely. We learned that he lost his brother and his father in different, yet equally tragic ways, he lost the love of his life, he lost a brother AGAIN so soon after metting him, and after all that loss he still had to find a way to focus on the people who were still there. I think that 3x18 scene in particular is beautiful, but it also sums up a lot of the emotions I have surrounding his character and why I love him so much.

Honorable mentions include: soulmates scene, proposal scene, intro scene in 4x18 where they postpone the wedding, the entire being alive sequence, the call between Grace and that astronaut in 1x10, Hen and Owen talking when they're trapped in the mine in 2x03, Carlos crying after the fire, Marjan keeping herself alive by hallucinating her younger self in road kill, and literally any scene from saving grace and shift-less.

Plus many others that I have inevitably forgotten. Please yell at me and tell me what I missed because I can be a ding dong sometimes and I am overdo for a full rewatch.

[sonofthesaiyans]

Seven “Best” Character Arcs in AOT by GameRant

This list is just all over the place, so here’s my two cents..... https://gamerant.com/attack-on-titan-best-character-arcs/ 7) Sasha Freaking Braus earns her rightful place on this list alongside the main three and in actuality is FAR more deserving of her placement there than some of them are. She may be a secondary character but she became a fan favorite for a reason. And I am still not about to shake on my stance that she is EASILY far better developed than Mikasa, despite only get a fraction of focus. Sasha easily could’ve been the main girl of the series and it would’ve been far more satisfying. More testament to what a criminal decision it was to allow Assassin’s Bullet to EVER be published. It was not just a bad call on Isayama’s part, it was an ABUSE. 

6) Armin Arlert certainly earns his spot, going from a shirking coward to arguably a better strategist than Hange Zoe or even Erwin Smith. Too bad the final season undermines this badly with his failure to field the Colossal Titan when it really could’ve come in handy, his nonsensical promotion to commander of the Survey Corps which for all intents and purposes was functionally destroyed by that time, and of course his infamous final exchange with Eren. Nevertheless......Armin does earn his spot for his growth in the story preceding the timeskip. 

5) Like Sasha, Hange Zoe’s demise is one hundred percent UNJUSTIFIED. She is a truly great character (Whether you choose to refer to her as male or female, however you roll) and like Sasha has an infectious personality, not to mention her great intellect which made her an effective warrior against the Titans. But......her character growth is kind of static. And once again, the goddamned timeskip didn’t do her any favors, making her come off as an incompetent commander who failed to subdue a betrayal from the likes of Floch and his fellow Yeagerists, and as many a fan will tell you, she NEVER GOT A BACKSTORY. Too many questions left unanswered about the Regiment’s third or fourth most senior soldier. 

4) Annie Leonhart, you gotta be kidding me. Story takes almost a decade to find a place for her again and she doesn’t regret any of her past actions......And she walked for her crimes despite being partially responsible for provoking Eren into setting off the Rumbling. That’s not character development.......That’s evidence that Annie should’ve died back during the Female Titan Arc. The bare minimum is afforded to her in the timeskip after her rather contrived return. As I’ve said before, TOO LITTLE TOO LATE. 

3) Mikasa Motherfucking Ackerman............Do I really need to repeat myself on this one? On why she doesn’t earn her spot on this list? 

2) Eren Yeager. One word for his arc: BASTARDIZATION. People thought Anakin Skywalker’s transition to Darth Vader was handled clumsily no thanks to the prequels. But that’s peanuts compared to Eren’s descent into madness. One of the biggest criticisms of the ending of Titan is how it completely undermines Eren’s motivations for why he did everything he did, with this insultingly forced predestination subplot that shows he was evil all along......A revelation that subverts everything previously established. And all for a world-destroying revenge scheme that it’s hinted he knew was never gonna truly succeed in the end. That said, I am in the crowd that considers Eren Yeager to be effectively discredited as both a protagonist and antagonist with the events of the timeskip, and he may very well be the weakest link due to its horribly misguided execution. Eren turning evil could’ve worked, but in the end......I have concluded that it was one of the worst bad calls of Attack on Titan. He absolutely should not be on any “Best Of” lists ANYWHERE. 

1) Levi, the only character who truly earned his survival in the end. Too bad he was pretty badly mutilated in the final acts. He is a true badass, but I am going to say I think his character growth is somewhat lacking. Probably because he loses all the friends relevant to his growth. And YET AGAIN, the timeskip did him no favors for sidelining him through the entire War on Paradis Arc. Levi’s saving grace is that he is enough of a badass and complex character to back up the focus he has enjoyed outside of these stumbles, so while I think his growth is lacking, he as a character is still good. And he deserved a better ending than what he got, because it wasn’t satisfying in the slightest. And he’s still an infinitely stronger character than his closest rival and mystery relative, Mikasa. Perhaps the series would’ve benefitted from him being the true main protagonist. 

This list doesn’t really acknowledge the deeper problems that undermines its selections, so it’s overall not reflective of how Titan handled its main cast.

But on the plus side, whoever complied this did not include that bitch Gabi Braun, easily the most unwarranted and unnecessary character in the saga. Too often praised for a character arc that simply DOES NOT MATTER. Sorry Gabi fans, but the payoff you love to tout doesn’t exist, so arguing that she was necessary to the themes and final conclusion of Titan simply hold no water. You cut her out and not much would change, except Sasha and perhaps even Eren would’ve gotten the focus they still needed in place of this bitch. 

Also, NO HISTORIA OR YMIR! Seriously, what the hell? 

Thoughts on this list? Thoughts on my verdicts on this list? Do tell.  

[fragileruns]

Tongue tied!!

Ummm so my names rosie I’m British, I love horror movies and indie music. Primarily sad stuff like phoebe bridgers and boygenius. I’m a bit blunt sometimes and I drink lots of lemon tea when I’m stressed.

I would love a criminal minds ship if that’s okay? And I just have to say it’s so fun to see another phoebe marauders criminal minds loving person on here hahahah

ohmygosh! so, definitely spence or emily, i would say?

spencer would absolutely LOVE to watch horror movies with you. we’ve all seen how this man is on halloween, he lives for that. and while he may be the type to want to talk about how unrealistic things are, or the myths behind everything going on, i think it’d be such a cute little date night or just moment together! i’m not sure how he would feel about the music, mainly because i don’t think he’d have the best taste in music. he just wouldn’t keep up with trends or popular artists. i feel like if he did listen to music, which would be rarely, it’d honestly be something really bad like electronic music (i’m sorry if this is your style if someone else reads this. i’m just not the biggest fan) just because he doesn’t really know anything else? i don’t think he’d listen to it all that much though, he strikes me more as a podcast type of guy when he’s not reading. the bluntness would definitely be a good sort of cancelling out, though! while he rants and rambles a lot, he’s very awkward (at least in the earlier seasons, which is what i’m thinking about here) and he wouldn’t be super outspoken. not purposefully, at least. he might be intimidated by that about you at first, but i think it’d balance the two of you out very nicely. and then the tea 😭 i know this kid is obsessed with coffee, but tea just seems like such a spencer thing aswell! i feel like he’d make it for you all the time if he noticed the signs of you being stressed and just try to help as much as possible :( my sweet lover

as for emily, i don’t know if there’s many scenes of her talking about horror movies? there probably is and i’m just forgetting, but she does strike me as the type to enjoy them! she may not be the biggest fan at first, not wanting to see even more gore than she does already at her job, but she’d quickly get into it. especially franchises and things like scream, where you have to try and figure out the killer and things like that, she’d definitely enjoy. AND PHOEBE BRIDGERS IS SO EMILY CODED!!! i don’t know why but i can see her listening to artists like that. she��d definitely listen to upbeat music as well, but she strikes me as such a lana type of girl and i feel like phoebe would be good aswell. and boygenius!!! this just screams emily to me. you two could share earbuds on the jet!! couple goals! also you being british is so emily’s type. she’s attracted to accents, let me tell you. she hears it once and she’s all heart eyes, slack jaw, in love. the bluntness wouldn’t really cancel out, but it’d impress her! she’d like the fact that you’re willing to speak your opinion and express how you feel and all, especially since she does the same so you don’t have to tiptoe around everything. you don’t like something, you can just say it. and she’d love that so much. as for the lemon tea, i can honestly say i have no idea what emily would drink or enjoy but!! would definitely make it for you. she’d try to downplay it like it’s no big deal, it barely took any time, don’t mention it. seriously, don’t mention it. but it’s just so cute and it’s how you know she likes you!! acts of service is so her love language. (that & quality time)

this was so fun, thank you for this, rosie!!! and it’s lovely to meet someone with the same interests as well :)

[eddiesasspbrak]

Not What I Expected Ch 1

It's Autumn in 1985 and Eddie is being harassed because he sold weed to the wrong girl.  Steve is still trying to get over Nancy and might have found the one person that can help him achieve that goal. Meanwhile, Robin has some secret romantic intentions of her own.

Pre Season 4 and not canon compliant with season 4

3K+ Words

AO3

“I saw that.” Robin said louder than she probably meant to given she was trying to keep the conversation between the two of them.

“Saw what?” Steve asked, his eyebrows knitting together.

“You, checking out Eddie Munson’s ass.” She grinned.

He looked at her dumbstruck and wide eyed like he couldn’t believe the words coming out of her mouth. But of course, he could believe them because he definitely was checking out Eddie’s ass, though he didn’t mean to be so obvious about it.

“I absolutely was not.” He insisted. Just a week ago Steve was still mooning over his first love, Nancy and trying to forget her with any pretty girl that looked his way. It was about two months ago that Steve had first seen Eddie. Really seen Eddie. Of course, he knew he was before then. They went to school together and for a while they were in the same grade, until Steve graduated, and Eddie didn’t. All he’d seen him as back then was the weird kid who played D&D, had a band that played weird music, and sold pot to basically everyone on campus. Then again, he hadn’t paid that much attention to him before. Everything he knew were things that he’d heard from others and in rumors.

Then, two months prior, Eddie had meandered into the Family Video on a Friday night (one of their busiest nights of the week) presumably looking for a movie to watch. Steve did a double take when he saw him walk in and greeted him halfheartedly. He looked basically the same, but also different. His hair was slightly longer, and Steve couldn’t help thinking it suited him. Had he always looked like this? Steve spent his last year of high school so in love with Nancy he’d barely even noticed anyone else existed.

He didn’t return Steve’s greeting or even acknowledge him at all. Probably for the best that he didn’t notice Steve watching him walk through the aisles, running his finger over the covers of VHS boxes. In the end he left without a movie, but he did sneakily exchange something with another guy in one of the back aisles. No one would have noticed if Steve hadn’t been watching him so closely.

When Eddie did leave, Steve snapped out of the trance he’d been in and convinced himself he’d only been watching him because he didn’t trust him. He was a criminal, everyone knew that. He just had to make sure he didn’t steal anything. That’s all.

The next time he saw him was when picking up Dustin from school. They were talking, Dustin turned away from Steve so that he could see Eddie’s face. He was smiling. Before Steve could even process what he was feeling he mumbled out “pretty”, glad that he was alone in the car. He rolled down the window and called out, “Henderson, let’s go, I’ve got a date!” and both boys turned to look at him. Dustin put up a finger for one minute and seemed to say goodbye to Eddie, but Eddie’s eyes were locked on Steve’s. His smile was gone. He almost looked annoyed at being interrupted or maybe just annoyed at his presence. Steve ripped his eyes away as Dustin approached the car.

“What was that about?” Steve asked, pulling away from the curb and leaving Eddie behind.

“What? Me and Eddie? He runs the D&D club in school. The guys and I joined a few weeks ago. He’s pretty cool.” Dustin was still smiling.

“Eddie ‘the freak’ Munson? Cool? Not cooler than me.” Steve half joked.

“He’s not a freak. People just don’t get him.”

“And you do?”

Dustin was quiet for a moment, his smile gone and his eyes a little sad. “More like…he gets me. He’s my friend and I like hanging out with him. We all do.”

Steve made a sound along the lines of “hmph”, but he wasn’t sure exactly what he was hoping to convey through that, so Dustin spoke again. “Don’t be jealous just because I have another older friend, I think is cool. It’s not like I stopped thinking you’re cool. You two are just…different.”

“Hey, I’m not jealous. I’ve just heard things about him. Bad things. So, be careful, ok?”

“They’re just rumors.” Dustin all but pouted.

“Ok?” Steve repeated more sternly.

“Yea, yea. I’ll be careful.”

The notion of Steve being jealous of someone like Eddie Munson was ludicrous. Dustin and the other kids could be friends with whoever they wanted as long as they were good people. If everything Steve had heard was true, Eddie didn’t meet the criteria.

After that it seemed like Steve couldn’t get away from him. Almost everywhere he went, Eddie was there. He was there when he picked the kids up from school, he was there at his job every few days with a different customer of his thinking no one noticed, and he was there at the movies when he took Regina Mackey out on a date. Steve was never sure what days he’d show up at Family Video and he tried to ignore the thrill that went through him when he’d come through that door. Any time a customer came in, Steve’s eyes darted to the door to see who it was. Which was just a part of his job and didn’t mean a thing.

When it was Eddie that came through those doors, Steve could feel his heart leap and his stomach flip. It was just because he was cautious of him, he told himself. It wasn’t anything else. And then Robin began to notice. “Your boyfriend not coming in today?” She’d joke. Steve tried to ignore it and play it off like he didn’t know what she was talking about, but Robin was pretty versed in all things gay. Which is how she noticed the ass staring.

“You totally were!” She practically shrieked, earning stares from all the patrons, including Eddie.

“Will you be quiet?” He said in a harsh but lower register. “I’m just watching to make sure he doesn’t steal anything.”

“Mmhmm, sure you were Steve.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “Why would I, a completely straight dude, be checking out the ass of another completely straight dude?”

“Why don’t you tell me oh king of the straights?”

The two were so lost in their bickering they didn’t even notice Eddie approaching with a tape in his hand until he set it down on the counter. The two looked up at him in unison, Steve’s stomach dropping out of his stomach wondering how much he’d heard and Robin enjoying this far too much.

“Why hello there good sir, I take it you’d like to check out this video today?” She said, trying too hard to appear normal.

“Uh, yes I would my dear lady.” He grinned awkwardly.

“As you wish.” She did something between a curtsey and a bow and took the VHS from the counter.

While she checked him out, Steve tried not to stare, but no matter how he tried to ignore it he could feel Eddie staring at him. He chanced a glance at him, and noticed that he wasn’t actually staring, it was just his imagination, and Steve felt…sad about it. Eddie paid Robin and she handed him the tape and his receipt and as he backed away, he bowed. “May the rest of your night be filled with wonder my lady.” He joked before standing tall, turning on his heel and leaving.

Robin smiled up at Steve. “I like him.” She then leaned in close and whispered so only he could hear. “And it’s ok if you like him too.”

**

Steve thought about what Robin implied for the next several days. What did she mean that it was ok for Steve to like him? Because he was friends with Dustin? Was she saying it was ok for him to like him as a friend? Or did she mean…

Steve shut that thought down before it could even fully form. He was the straightest person in Hawkins, there was no way he had feelings for some guy he used to go to school with. Steve could admit that he was ok to look at but in a totally platonic way. He probably had the weird girls fawning all over him. They could chat about all the girls they get and be each other’s wing man. That was all there was to it. But then why did he feel so sick to his stomach just thinking about him?

A few weeks later when Steve was giving Dustin a ride home again, he was even more confused than he had been before. Eddie still occasionally came into Family Video, wandering the aisles, selling drugs without anyone noticing but Steve. They didn’t talk, though Eddie did greet Robin every so often. He hadn’t checked out another video after the first, though he did return the first through the slot outside.

It was dark, late autumn causing the sun to set so early it felt like midnight, when Steve pulled up to the school. Dustin had had a meeting with the D&D club and Steve was taking him for pizza because his mom worked late. The more time Steve spent with him the more he wished he’d had a little brother, though Dustin was a great substitute.

Steve could see him jogging toward the car, heavy backpack in tow and his club t-shirt a white beacon in the dark.

“Ok don’t be mad.” Dustin started as soon as he opened the car door.

“Why would I be mad?” Steve asked skeptically.

“Just hear me out.”

“Why would I be mad Dustin?” He asked a little more forcefully.

“So, my friend needs a ride home. His van broke down.”

“Ok, and why would that make me mad other than carting around another child like a soccer mom?”

“It’s Eddie.”

The words sliced through Steve in a way he didn’t quite understand. Excitement? Dread? Nervousness? Being in the same room as Eddie was one thing, even having the counter at Family Video separating them was fine. But Eddie being in his car was…intimate.

“Steve?” Dustin called, making him aware he’d just been staring at him.

“He doesn’t have any other friend that could give him a ride?”

“No.”

Steve sighed more dramatically than was necessary for the situation. “Alright, fine.”

Dustin beamed and turned back over his shoulder. “Eddie! He said it’s ok!”

Steve looked past him into the darkness of the school campus and vaguely saw Eddie, blending into the shadows. He put out his cigarette on the sole of his boot before flicking the butt into the night. Steve’s stomach clenched with nerves when he saw his face. Why had he agreed to this?

Dustin climbed into the passenger’s seat while Eddie slid into the back. He perched on the edge of the middle seat and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the backs of the front seats.

“Thanks.” Eddie nodded at Steve in the rearview mirror. Steve could feel his breath on the side of his face.

“I’m doing this as a favor for Dustin.” Why did he feel the need to be so cold?

Eddie sat back in his seat as Steve pulled away. “Never thought I’d be in the car of Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington.” Eddie grinned.

“Yea well I never thought I’d be giving a ride to Eddie ‘The Freak’ Munson.” Steve deadpanned.

“Ok guys, let’s play nice.” Dustin joked, sensing the unnecessary tension.

“Kind of funny how we both have titles, huh?” Eddie asked. “The Freak and The Hair. We could be a crime fighting duo.” He did some mock “karate” moves with his hands.

Dustin laughed at that, and Steve repressed a smile. “And what would my powers be with a name like that?” He tried to sound offended, but it came out more amused.

“Something like Rapunzel, I think. Grow your hair as long as you need in an instant. Use it instead of a grappling hook, that kind of thing.” Eddie chuckled.

“Or maybe like, your hair is hard as a rock so you can use it for protection. Like Captain America’s shield.” Dustin chimed in.

“I’m stuck in the car with a bunch of nerds.” Steve said under his breath, though they definitely still heard him. “Ok, and what power does The Freak have? The power to freak people out?”

“Something like that.” Eddie nodded, his smile basically gone.

“Maybe like the Scarecrow? Use their darkest fears against them?” Dustin suggested.

“Isn’t that a villain though?” Steve asked.

Neither one answered and in the sudden silence Steve felt like maybe he said the wrong thing. He glanced at Dustin who looked sad, his jaw clenched. Stealing a peak in the rearview mirror he could barely see Eddie in the dark but enough to see he was frowning, looking pained. Steve’s heart practically cracked at seeing that face and he was the one who put it there.

“I mean, it would be a pretty cool power. Making bad guys see their worst fears since they terrorize innocence people. With that and my helmet hair, I think we’d make a good team.” He shrugged putting on his dopiest face.

Dustin turned to him and smiled. Eddie perked up a bit in the backseat as well. He wasn’t quite sure why his words had caused such a reaction from the two, but he’d have to grill Dustin about it later.

**

“So, what’s the deal with Munson?” Steve asked. He and Dustin had picked an isolated back corner booth to sit at and put in their order for pizza.

“What do you mean?” Dustin seemed unhappy that the other had been brought up at all.

“I mean, why did you two get all weird and quiet when I asked about a villain?”

“Oh.” His face fell. “There’s just some…stuff going on at school right now.”

“What stuff?”

Dustin looked around to make sure no one was close enough to hear. “If I tell you, you have to swear to me that you won’t tell anyone else. Got it?”

“I swear. Won’t tell a soul.” Steve said, putting up 3 fingers in a scout’s salute.

Dustin sighed and leaned in close. “Do you remember Chrissy Cunningham?”

“Uh…cheerleader, right? Dates that asshole…Jason?”

“Yea. That’s her.” Dustin lowered his voice a bit more causing Steve to have to lean into the table. “About a week ago, Chrissy was seen hanging out with Eddie. Totally innocent except for the fact that she was buying pot from him.”

“Ok. Don’t most people in that school buy from him?”

“Yea but not star student Chrissy Cunningham. Anyway, Jason found out and went ballistic. He accused Eddie of trying to corrupt Chrissy.”

“Isn’t she the one that went to him?”

“Of course. Eddie doesn’t make it a habit to talk to the girlfriends of rabid jocks.” Steve was kind of surprised by his words given that Lucas had recently become one of those “rabid jocks”.

“I don’t understand what the big deal is if she decided she wanted to try smoking, that's her business.”

“Except Jason is convinced that Eddie sought her out and was hitting on her or something. So anyway, Jason and all his cronies are out to get Eddie now. They’re convinced he’s bad for the school. They’re siting all these dumb articles that say D&D is devil worship and saying the Hellfire Club is a satanic cult. It’s so stupid.”

“Sounds stupid. I mean, have they met you guys? You’re like baby kittens. Not satanists.” They stopped speaking as a tired looking older waitress came over to deliver their pizza.

“Anyway,” Dustin began when she walked away. “That’s why Eddie might seem a little sensitive about being compared to a villain.”

Steve nodded, grabbing a slice of hot pizza off the tray between them. He didn’t really know a ton about Eddie. He knew he sold pot, and maybe other things, and that he was a nerd and kind of weird. But he didn’t think he was someone who went after or harassed girls. Especially girls in relationships.

**

Three days later Steve had a full car. Robin was in the passenger's seat with Dustin and Eddie in the back. Steve was beginning to feel like an unpaid chauffeur. It wouldn’t be so bad if he was actually still in high school. But Robin was his best friend, Dustin basically his brother and Eddie…well…he felt bad for him. Dustin had let him know that they thought one of Jason’s friends had messed up his van. He seemed to be an ok guy and he was important to Dustin. If he could ease some of the bullying and harassment he was going through, he would.

Dustin and Eddie slid out the back door, Eddie slapping his shoulder and thanking him for yet another ride. His skin felt warm beneath the fabric of his shirt where Eddie had touched. He watched him climb out of the car and close the door behind him.

When Steve looked back to the passenger’s seat, he saw Robin still sat there with an “I told you so” smirk.

“What?” Steve questioned, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

“Oh nothing. I just think your ‘king of the straights’ crown is slipping.” She grinned.

“Oh my god, will you let it go. That was weeks ago, and I wasn’t checking him out.”

“And you’re giving him rides to and from school because?”

“Because his van isn’t working, and Dustin asked me to.” Actually, Dustin hadn’t asked since that first night.

“And you watching him get out of the car was…what?”

“Just making sure they closed the door and didn’t slam it.”

“Uh huh.” Robin finally opened the car door, but her smirk stayed in place. “When you’re ready to talk about it I’m here. No judgment from me.” She grabbed her bag and stood, sticking her head back in through the door. “Well, some judgement.”

She closed the door before he could say anything in response. Sometimes he felt like she was determined to prove everyone was secretly gay. Except Vickie, who she’d had a crush on since the start of the year. She refused to believe she could be even a little bit into girls even with all the proof Steve had given her.

He looked out the window, scanning the people standing around before going inside the school. Dustin and Eddie were under the shade of a tree with Mike and some other guys Steve didn’t know but seemed to be friends. He couldn’t see Eddie’s face, but he was animated as he spoke, his hands flying about and the others laughing along.

Off the side about 15 feet or so away, Steve saw a flash of green. Standing in a similar huddle were some of the basketball team, matching letterman jackets causing them to blend together. They didn’t seem happy as they spoke, constantly looking over toward Eddie and his friends but seeming nervous to approach. Finally, one broke free and Steve was sure it was Jason. Slowly the others began to follow him. Steve practically dove across the passenger’s seat to roll down the window so he could hear.

He caught the tail end of what Eddie was saying. “I’m not worried. Their one skill is tossing rocks at trashcans.”

“Are you talking about us freak?” Jason asked, his tone aggressive.

Eddie turned and Steve could now see his face. He was smiling as bright as the sun. The word “cute” glossed Steve’s brain before he could stop it and his cheeks colored pink.

“Talking about you? Oh no, I was talking about the slimy, rank smelly goblins in our devil worshiping game.” The others laughed and Jason didn’t seem happy about that.

“They should just kick you out already. You’re an eyesore on this institution.”

Eddie’s smile grew. “Institution? Are you sure you’re not just jealous that your girl came to me and not you?”

“Shut your mouth.”

“I keep telling you, she just needed a little something to help her sleep at night. I can understand why you’d be worried. I mean, look at me. Right?” He turned to his friends when he said this, and they hooted and hollered to hype him up.

Jason surged forward and grabbed the front of Eddie’s shirt in his fist, pulling him forward until they were nose to nose.

“If you wanted to kiss me you could have just asked.” Eddie joked even in this position.

Jason made a fist, drawing it back as if he was going to punch him in the gut. Smart, hit him in a place no teacher would see. Right as he seemed to be ready to throw the punch, the bell rang. Normally that shouldn’t matter but for supposed “do-gooder” and model student Jason Carver, tardiness was not an option. Though Steve had to wonder if he wasn’t secretly afraid to get into a fight with Eddie. Instead, he leaned in close again and said where Steve couldn’t hear, “Stay away from Chrissy or next time I won’t hesitate.”

He shoved Eddie away, causing him to stumble back a few steps. “Hey, Jason.” Eddie called as they began to walk away. He turned to look over his shoulder in time to see Eddie blowing him a kiss with his middle finger high in the air.

[reelvibes91]

The Flash Rogues of War

The Flash series started with a tremendous amount of potential but unfortunately now in the latter part of the run has completely fizzled out into a show that barely resembles its former self.

The newest episode entitled Rogues of War sees The Flash asking former criminals to wave all their years of hard work and steal something. Working with the likes of Pied Piper, Chillblane, The Hotness and Goldface, Barry sends them on a mission to steal a key piece Red Death needs to build her own cosmic treadmill.

It was a very poorly written episode from beginning to end. Barry was making foolish decisions. He was seperated from Iris most of the episode. She seemed barely present. The will they won't between Chester and Allegra was absolutely cringey. Snow, now going by Khione, was an absolute waste of writing time. Chillblane went against Team Flash and realized he was being double crossed. It was very cliché in the way it delivered the action and pay offs.

The only highlight was Javacia Leslie at the end of the episode. That is not even a spoiler as everyone has known for months she is the one in the Red Death costume. Hopefully the next two episodes will have some large payoffs for this storyline which is very true to the character from the comics so far. It is just taking so long to get anywhere meaningful with the Red Death arc. That is something the Arrowverse as a whole struggled with after the early seasons were so thrilling. 

I think I got ahead of myself when I hoped this season would be on par with the early stuff. It pains me to say The Flash may just fizzle out overall as a series and likely should have ended 2 to 3 years ago now when they were still telling interesting stories.

[showyoumyfavoriteobsession]

I finished The Wire today, reasonably spoiler-free (but long and rambly) thoughts under the cut.

“Realism” and “subtlety” are the two words I keep coming back to when thinking about this show, and they tie into each other. It’s undoubtedly one of the most realistic (feeling) shows I’ve ever watched. The characters all feel like real people; people do things for selfish reasons, for emotional reasons, for cold and calculated reasons, for no reason at all. The casting is brilliant in that it’s diverse in every way: age, race, gender, sexuality, appearance. One thing I loved is that there’s barely any non-diegetic music, but the background soundscapes are really deliberate and detailed. There's a lot of times that you'll hear something in the background that ends up in the foreground by the end of the scene. There weren’t big plot twists that came out of nowhere, the rhythm and behavior of criminals and cops alike felt true, it just all feels very grounded in reality.

A big part of that is the subtlety. Very little is spelled out. The most nuanced, morally gray characters on other shows feel like absolute sledgehammers compared to the average corner kid on The Wire. No one is all good or all bad, and you always understand the reason people do things - you may not agree, but you can almost always see how they got there because of their own backgrounds and flaws. It's mundane. People don't think shit through. They're just doing what they have to do, acting selfishly - not earth-shatteringly, but without much thought beyond themselves and the people directly affected by them. Some of the people in authority positions have wider views, but they're still essentially serving their own interests. 

Maybe the most compelling thing about The Wire, throughout all the seasons and all the changes the characters go through, is how relentlessly it shows that there are no good cops.

I wasn’t quite expecting this; I didn’t know how central the policing plots were to the show before going in, I thought the show was primarily about the drug dealers’ side. Some of it I'm not even sure is intentional; I do think the show believes in some form of policing that is ethical and integrated with the community, when it steps back and points out structural issues. But it doesn't change the fact that every single cop on this show is a bastard.

They all lie. They all defend each other. They brutalize, entrap, intimidate, coerce, and manipulate innocent people and criminals alike, while their colleagues turn blind eyes. Many of them are violent meatheads who do all of this with glee and abandon, believing that they're waging war against violent drug lords overrunning their streets. But even the ones who are smart and kind and are trying to "do right" or "bring people to justice" do all of this too.

One character who cleans up his act as the show goes on is still willing to defend another cop for beating a civilian. Another character who's been doggedly pursuing the truth for the whole show becomes perfectly willing to run an illegal wiretap and mess with crime scene evidence to build the case he needs. An entire season’s plotline is kicked off because one viciously petty cop has a personal grudge, and he suffers no consequences throughout the entire show. There are some cops who do good things, or have good motives; but they either get corrupted by the system they’re in, or they end up ousted. There. Are. No. Good. Cops. 

There are points where the show almost says that the ends justify the means, but you always see what the means actually are, and the ends they actually lead to. Nobody’s ever quite satisfied with the outcomes, the status quo goes on, a few more people are killed or put in prison. Some seasons this goes further than others, but it’s always there under the surface.

I would say that the subtlety that I praised, though, is also the show’s biggest flaw. I usually don’t have issues following confusing plot lines and lots of characters, but I read an episode summary of every episode of this show to make sure I wasn’t missing anything (and I missed a lot). They also tend to introduce a whole new heap of characters at the beginning of each season, and it takes a while to get used to all the new faces and remember their roles. I’m already considering rewatching, not because I’m so captured by the story, but because I know I’ll be able to have a better handle on the early season plots now that I know who’s who. The strong Baltimore accents, while obviously adding tremendously to the realism, didn’t help with catching names and understanding plotlines; I wish I had taken the time to find a stream with subtitles.

Anyway, enough pretentious bullshit. I’m glad I watched it, even if I'm still not quite sure how I feel about it as a whole. It’s definitely the show that’s come closest to filling the Lost-shaped hole in my TV repertoire though, which is no small feat. 

[crazypaperwasteland]

MASTERLIST

My writing is not to be taken or posted anywhere else without my express consent, regardless of if you have given me credit or not. Please don’t take credit for someone else’s work, honestly, it’s just discouraging to the original creator. 

Things that I will not write for(I am in no way shaming anyone for what they like reading or what they are into, I just don’t feel comfortable writing the following subjects):

-Threesomes

-Explicit rape or anything of the sort

-Explicit domestic violence

-to be continued....if I find any more of them.

^= Angst   *= Fluff   $=Smut

Call of Duty MW2

Simon “Ghost” Riley

Oneshots

My Heart ^*

Summary: When Grave’s captures Simon’s wife, he spirals into sorrow while he tries to come up with a plan to get her back. When he does, he realizes he wasn’t the only one hurting from their abrupt separation.

Drabbles

The Squeeze of a Hand*

Summary: Simon “Ghost” Riley calms you with the touch of his hand.

Criminal Minds            

Spencer Reid

When Two Geniuses Walk Into A Room ^*

Unsubs and Fish*

Twilight

Jasper Hale

Oneshots

Love Isn’t Dead, Well, Sort of.^*

Bloodlust^*

Old Acquaintances^*

A Promise I Will Always Keep^*

Love in the Memory^*

The Walking Dead

Daryl Dixon

Oneshots

I Didn’t Want to Die^*

Summary: Daryl blamed Y/N for weeks, for leaving his brother behind when she didn’t even know who he was. Y/N somehow wormed her way into his cold, redneck heart, but when the CDC is set to blow up and she decides to stay, Daryl just can’t take losing another person. Daryl makes a decision that she may never forgive him for, will he be able to fix what he broke?

Insanity Left Me Alone^*

Summary: (Y/N) Walsh, Shane’s sister, has struggled with self image ever since her brother’s death. When the people from Woodbury enter the prison, she figures out that she is more like her brother than she thought, so does everyone else. (Y/N) can barely handle the rumors that fly her way, speculation about who her brother was and what she might do to anyone that stands in her way. When she can no longer stands it, a situation presents itself and puts her humanity to the test. There’s only one person in the entire prison that has faith in her in that regard, Daryl fucking Dixon.

MINI SERIES

Not just a Redneck (6/6)COMPLETED!!!

Not just a Redneck is based mainly in season two of the Walking Dead and centers around Daryl Dixon and Y/n Grimes, Rick’s younger sister. Y/n is one of the only people in the group who has never treated Daryl like a misfit or redneck trash and absolutely refuses to leave his side, even when people look down on her for spending so much time with him. Daryl Dixon is feeling things that he has never experienced before, but being who he is, how will he deal with it?

1 ,  2  , 3  , 4  , 5  , 6 

The Originals

Klaus Mikaelson

Oneshots

Power Over Me^*

Summary: Klaus Mikaelson was the villain in everyone’s eyes, and he grew used to everyone thinking the worst of him. So much so that it is near impossible for him to imagine that (Y/N), the love of his life, could see anything but a beast when she looked at him. Even if that was what she saw, he loved her, and would do anything to prove to her that there were no limits to what he would do for her, what he could do.

The Human in Him*

Summary: Klaus was a cruel and manipulative vampire for centuries, even to his own family. But when he returns to New Orleans to take back the city from Marcel Gerard, he is met with an unexpected turn of events when he meets Y/N, a outspoken artist, the one person who sees him for who he is underneath his checkered past, who sees the human in him.

The Big Bad Puppy*

Summary: Y/N was one of Klaus’s hybrids, like any of them, she hated Klaus, for taking away the life she would have had, for killing so many of her friends for minor offenses. After she breaks the sire bond, Klaus finds out, but instead of simply killing her, he spared her life. She is left to wonder why exactly he didn’t kill her. Knowing how he was. One night, Y/N finds Klaus shaking and whining in his sleep, it is then that she finally understands why he showed her mercy, and then some.

I Will Never Hurt You^^*

Summary: Klaus took his formerly abused lover for granted, when he thinks she betrayed him, he snaps and makes her believe he doesn’t love her anymore, propelling her into a panic attack from past trauma. Will he ever be able to make it right? Will she ever forgive him?

The Only One^*

Summary: Y/n Gilbert, Elena’s sister, always seemed to catch Klaus’s attention, and eventually gained his affections. It floored Klaus to have someone who knew him in a way no one else did, but when he gets a phone call that concerns Y/n, it leaves the both of them devastated. Will they be able to work through it and grown from it, or will they just give up?

My Cold Dead Heart*^

Summary: Klaus spent nearly six centuries searching for one thing. His wife. But he never expected that someone would come along and hand her over to him. Him being Klaus, his next actions are driven only by instinct to wake his wife up from her deep slumber.

The Witcher

Geralt of Rivia

Oneshots

Will you always return to me? ****

Summary: Y/n promised to always return to Geralt during the winter months, she promised she would never let anything stop her, and for a century she kept that promise. Up until the day that she didn’t. 

How Geralt Lost Her^^^^^^^ 

Part 1   Part 2

Summary: Geralt unknowingly hurt the person he loved most, leaving her feeling unwanted and forgotten by the people she cared for. Will he ever be able to make it up to her? Or will she leave him and never come back? 

Six of Crows/Shadow and Bone

Kaz Brekker 

Oneshots

Too Fluffy*

Summary: Y/n brings home a puppy, and Kaz is faced with the decision of keeping it or not. 

ACOTAR

Azriel

Oneshots

The Metallic Scent of Blood

Summary: Azriel’s mate, a spy of the Night Court, comes back home, injured and dying. Azriel is faced with the fear of losing her and vows that if she survives, he will protect her for all of eternity. He is also confronted with the notion that Eris might be more than the asshole that Azriel thought he was. 

You Deserve Happiness

Summary: Summary: Azriel is (Y/N)’s anchor, and she is his, they both have some healing to do, but it’s alright, because they have each other. Cassian finds out about their secret love affair and has some things to say about it, though.

Eris

Oneshots

Another Damned Meeting (2/2)

Summary: Beron, the High Lord of the Autumn Court, has a bone to pick with the Night Court, again. Only, will Eris finally show his true colors in order to stop Beron from taking away the thing that he loves most?

Part 1       Part 2

[spencersmagic]

a knife twists at the thought - SR

Prompt: a knife twists at the thought that i should fall short of the mark - Arctic Monkeys

Summary: Spencer is new to this, and the poor boy is terrified

Couple: Fem! Reader x Spencer Reid (i picture season 2/3 Spencer but y’all do you)

Category: angst

Word count: 3086 words

Warnings: general criminal minds stuff, mentions and descriptions of torture, descriptions of loss, HAPPY ENDING!!, my 3am writing, tooth rotting love, uhmm spoilers for Orwell’s 1984 (if anybody hasn’t read it), humiliation, Spencer crying and breaking my heart (lmk if you need anything warned or trigger tagged).

A/N This is very loosely based on 2x15 (VERY LOOSELY). I’m quite proud of this one :)

masterlist // 505 series taglist

*****

They say you never see it coming.

When a tragedy occurs, and someone’s life is turned upside down forever, they never see it coming. It just... hits them. Like an oncoming car ramming into a bystander who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

No one has time to prepare. In our time-starved lives, there is no place for such a warning.

One day, you just wake up. And they’re not next to you. They’ve disappeared, leaving the stickiest, most unforgettable parts of themselves behind for others to grieve to: the smell of their shampoo in the pillows they used to share, the seconds just as you wake when you still feel like you have them - only to gain full consciousness and realise they left you behind - even the fucking jars, which never seem to be open because he’s just not there to do it.

And you feel your heart breaking all over again as your soul sticks to the parts that couldn’t be erased with the rest of him as he left. Because you needed him, you had him, and now he’s gone. No warning, no letter, no signs which could’ve helped you foresee such a tragedy, because how could he? He didn’t disappear on purpose.

She doesn’t understand why he's so absent. So unequivocally missing. And the person she would turn to to ask these riddled questions isn’t there to answer. Because he’s gone.

But they’re not there yet.

And she feels so close to that feeling - the helplessness, the pain, the empty cups next to her bed because he always carried them to the sink when she was finished with her tea the mornings of those rare days they got to sleep in. Those days when they had time. She can practically touch, with the tip of her fingertips, the waves of pain that would surge over her if he was gone for one more fucking minute.

She has to remind herself, over and over again, like a mantra. He’s not gone yet.

The “yet” at the end of her mantra just breaks her all over again.

She was always the one to tell Spencer “if you worry before something happens, in case it goes wrong, and then it does, you’ve managed to suffer twice through something painful for absolutely no reason”. It usually worked. Needless to say, she felt like a hypocrite right about now.

Because Spencer is gone. And she doesn’t know how to bring him back.

She knows only to watch the monitor, never once blinking, taking in everything that happened in that damned livestream - every word, every sound, every reference. She can only try to hear anything over the whimpers and sobs her love was letting out as he’s tortured by that man. She can only hear the cracks of his knuckles against Spencers soft skin, the same soft skin she had kissed mere hours ago before telling him to “be careful”. Her own way of saying the three little words the couple was too young to hear. She can only see his lips parting, sobs rumbling out of his body as the unsub abuses his frame over and over again - same lips which had kissed her forehead before telling her “i always am”.

Then again, she isn’t sure if its his voice which is filling her head with painful sounds or if her mind is playing tricks on her, memorising the horrifying vibrations coming from his chest for her to ever consider anything else. She hasn’t stopped hearing him since she turned on that damned computer.

She isn’t sure she’ll ever stop hearing it.

**

As a man of great intellect, Spencer always recurred to knowledge to understand difficult occurrences in his life. Burying himself in textbooks, novels, poems, and even music to understand pain, and himself having a life filled with it, he was an incredibly knowledgeable man.

He knew much. But right now, he only knew one thing.

In Orwells’ 1984, as Winston was being tortured (much like Spencer is right now), Orwell described the following:

“Never, for any reason on earth, could you wish for an increase of pain. Of pain you could only wish one thing: that it should stop. Nothing in the world was so bad as physical pain. In the face of pain there are no heroes, no heroes”.

And, as a man who had acquired most of his intellect by immersing himself in trivial content in the face of pain, he found himself doing the same thing as the unsub hurt him over and over again, each blow seemingly more painful than the last. As his skin bruised, a causality of his abusers torment, he analysed the seemingly logical quote.

It must depend on the person, he was sure. In fact, a number of factors must be taken into consideration at this statement. For starters, Winston lives in a society incapable of any human feelings. There is only dominance, and those who attempt, in vain, to challenge it. Surely, if he had felt happiness, like the one you feel when the first day of spring rolls around, or like the one that creeps up on you as you look into the eyes of your loved one, surely, he would understand that some things can outweigh pain.

Love.

If Spencer’s mind could make sense of what he was feeling right now, he would understand, something he would figure of were he to leave this damned place, that he was thankful to the Gods, were there any, for having the unsub kidnap him and not Y/N.

Winston hadn’t understood emotional pain because emotions weren’t dealt with regularly. They were discouraged. That’s why he believed that there are no heroes in the face of pain. Because he doesn’t understand emotional pain.

He knew he was suffering. He also knew that Y/N was at the other side of the blinking camera suffering more than he could ever imagine.

**

They say emotional pain lasts 12 minutes. Anything one feels after this would be the aftermath of the cause of the pain in question. Pure emotional pain, the one you practically feel in your chest, the one that says “i can’t think, feel or be. not until this feeling dissipates”.

She had learned this from Spencer.

And she wished it were true. As she watched that damned monitor, she wished that all the venom the unsub was spewing at Spencer, all the verbal abuse, was long forgotten. She wished he could only feel the physical pain. Because the mind is incredibly stronger than the body - it could keep him awake, alive, for just enough time for the team to rescue him.

The entire team had huddled around the monitor around her. She was painfully aware that other people were seeing this. Which meant it wasn’t her imagination. It wasn’t another one of those damned dreams she would have when she slept a little too far away from Spencer’s touch.

They had only been together for two months, but his touch was all that could get her to fall asleep.

She jolted as the unsub landed another slap on Spencer’s cheek, swiftly grabbing his hair for him to look into the camera. He had a cut above his right cheek, just where she would kiss him in the mornings, and bruises all over his neck, jaw and left eye.

“Say hi to your team!” he mocked Spencer, chuckling darkly as he moved his almost lifeless body around for the team to watch in horror. Spencer let out a heartbreaking sob, feeling so vulnerable.

“Why don’t we make this interesting?” he jumped, as if he had gotten an idea. The unsub reached behind himself to grab a pistol, clicking off the magazine safety to put one bullet in one of the eight slots, leaving the other seven free. He pointed it at Spencer’s temple.

Her entire body shook the thought of seeing Spencer’s lifeless body, held up only by the ropes and that sick man’s grip around his curls. The same curls she grabbed as she kissed his face when she wanted his attention.

“I’m going to ask you some questions...” he said, voice dripping with sickening sweetness as he turned the roulette, “and if i don’t like your answer i’ll pull the trigger! Let God decide what I do with you. Sounds good?”. He wanted to humiliate Spencer.

However, Spencer made the mistake of not answering him. He was quickly reminded as the barrel of the gun pointed right between his eyes, pulling the trigger, a loud bang! sound expanding through the barn.

“I asked you a question!” he suddenly yelled into Spencer’s face.

“Y-yes, Sir” he whimpered, shaking at the ease at which the man pulled the trigger.

“Good, you’re learning”.

**

She experienced it by bits. Hotch’s hoarse voice. “Talk to me Garcia”. “We’ve got coordinates”. Everybody rushing to the SUVs. Tripping over her own feet on the way to the car. Morgan’s voice. The iPad, which still carried Spencer’s whimpers and the man mocking tone.

“I’ve got your diary, Spence” his sing-song voice didn’t match the disgusting man she was looking at. Nothing made sense.

“And I wanna know why...” he drew out the ‘y’ as he looked for something between the worn pages between his hands.

Of course she knew Spencer owned a diary. But she was mature enough to keep her hands to herself and her eyes on her own pages as he wrote on his, eyebrows creasing as he recalled all which he had experienced during the day. His face would twitch slightly at the memories, both good and bad, as he basically described his day word by word.

“...why did you wait until you were 24 to lose your virginity?” he asked in a clear attempt to humiliate and ridicule Spencer in front of his team.

“I-I didn't-” he could barely finish a word before a sob wrecking through his body at the humiliation, chest rumbling and voice wavering. “I didn’t want to lose it before, i w-wasn’t in a hurry” he rushed out. The man brought the pistol to his own chin, tapping it as he thought. “Hmm... I’m satisfied with your answer. Let’s dig deeper, shall we?” he asked as he went back into the pages.

“ooh! This one is new” that sick bastard was having fun with this, completely unaware that the team was less than 5 minutes away from their location.

“Care to read what you wrote three days ago? Right here” he turned the pages so Spencer could read them, though he was painfully aware of that entry he was talking about. His body shook violently. “P-please. D-don’t ma-make me do t-this” he whimpered, body feeling defeated.

“Wrong answer” the unsub said before pointing a gun at him and pulling the trigger.

A shriek was heard from the iPad. The SUV went silent.

“He’s alive” she whispered, unable to speak up. “He-” she swallowed. “He’s alive. We’re not there, yet” her mantra became a reminder that she hadn’t been quick enough to help him. She had the tools to save him. Every second she had the knowledge to save him and didn’t was another second she remained impotent at the risk of losing the love of her life.

Spencer’s voice spoke from the iPad.

“C-can you at-at leas-st turn off t-the ca-amera?” he said between sobs.

And it hit her.

What hurt him the most wasn’t the memories he had to relieve, but the fact that the rest of the team would have to hear his most intimate thoughts. His deepest secrets.

He could bare the pain. The humiliation? That broke him.

“Aww” the unsub chuckled mockingly, “are you embarrassed?” he said, slouching down to look into his eyes. “Well too fucking bad!” he screamed into his face, spitting with every word he spewed at him. Spencer’s sobs got louder.

“O-okay okay!” Spencer caved, accepting the journal that got shoved into his face.

“Read, pretty boy” the unsub sang. That son of a bitch was having fun.

“We’re two minutes away, Y/N” Hotch said. Maybe it was he sobs, which were barely audible to herself, having accepted them as second nature after all the heartbreak she was experiencing, but Hotch needed her to be okay.

His own heart thumped into his chest, feeling as helpless as he’d ever felt. Seeing a member of his team - someone he was supposed to take care of, someone he was supposed to keep safe - was sobbing as he was physically and emotionally tortured. But he was painfully aware of the feelings Y/N was experiencing. The sheer fear that was running down her veins at the idea of them running out of time.

After a few sobs, Spencer started reading, interrupting himself occasionally with his whimpers:

“It’s been three months. Today, three months, seven hours and forty-six minutes ago, she did what I didn’t have the courage to do. She asked me out. “I’ve been wanting to ask you pretty much since the day i met you” she had said. Those words keep ringing in my head like a beautifully written symphony, intrinsically designed to make me face my deepest fears. Opening my scars one by one, dissecting them and reaching the simple conclusion that i was a coward.

She didn’t say it, but what she meant was “i’ve been waiting for you to do it, but you never did, so i had to”. We wasted time - a time so precious and sacred - because i was a coward.

I’ve never felt like this before. I never understood a love so deep as to move something so stubborn as the human spirit. I’ve read textbook after textbook, and novel after novel, and still I’ve never learned more than with her. But I was a coward. And i wasted her time. I fear that I still am.

A knife twists at the thought that i should fall short of the mark. It’s impossible for me to ever be enough for her”.

Her heart broke at this confession. Even worse at the thought that he wouldn’t’ve told her, instead inhaling fear and exhaling rejection at every breath he took next to her.

“We’re here” she heard Hotch, looking at her. She grabbed a bottle of water and dropped the iPad, not hearing the teams objections at the lack of vest and preparation and ran into the barn.

She isn’t sure if she’ll ever stop hearing his whimpers. As she runs closer, she hears them louder and louder, decorated with sobs and cries, and small, meaningless replies to his abusers’ mocking words.

She kicked the door down, the loud bang booming across the room, only helping in raising Spencer’s sobs as he feared the sound had been the result of a certain trigger being pulled. As she looks at him, she realises just how much pain he’s been put through.

She remembers Orwells words, much like how Spencer had remembered them mere hours ago. And disagrees, wishing over and over, praying to the Gods that she would be the victim of such atrocious abuse. She wished she could take his pain. Morgan joined her at her side mere seconds later, yelling. “FBI! Put the gun down!”.

Spencer used the last bit of energy to lunge forward, hitting the unsubs stomach with his head, successfully getting him on the floor for Morgan to apprehend. Y/N rushed to Spencer’s side, untying him, as his now nonexistent sobs grew louder and louder, not only at the prospect of getting out of that horrible place alive, but also at the knowledge that Y/N had heard what he had so dreadfully recited.

Spencer collapsed into her arms, crying into her in the same way she was crying into him, and she wondered just how to take away all his pain. So they cried into each other, desperately grasping each others hair, skin, clothes, anything that would make them feel like they wouldn’t have to spend another damned second without the company of each other.

Spencer was the first to break the silence.

“I need-” he stopped, coughing. She reached for the bottle of water she had brought with her because she knew he would need it. She always knew what he needed.

He chugged it desperately, stray drops falling down his chin at his eagerness. He took a deep breath trying to steady his lungs.

“I need to get out of here” he choked out.

She grabbed him under the shoulders, careful not to hurt him - not being successful, realising that there wasn’t much of him the man hadn’t hurt. Y/N pulled him out, sitting down on the grass with him. Their legs intertwined, pulling each other impossibly closer. They kissed, over and over again. Not as an act of any sexual relevance, but as a reminder that they had each other in any way, shape or form. That they weren’t out of time.

The team was certain they would stay there, never letting each other go for another minute.

After what felt like seconds in their time-starved little world, she broke the silence, which had only been filled with their own cries and occasional sobs.

“Spence” she grabbed his chin to look into his eyes. They were dull, red and hooded. He was exhausted. “Mhmm?” he let out, looking into hers. She was his solace.

“How could you ever think you were anything but completely and unequivocally enough?” she whispered the words he dreaded.

But as Spencer looked into her eyes he knew, better than he had ever known anything, that he was enough. And she was enough. He realised that which she had known for the past three months (possibly longer). They fit like two marvellous puzzle pieces.

Her hands grabbed his cheeks slowly, as to not hurt or startle him, pulling his forehead into hers. “Baby, I can’t imagine anybody else waking up to me every morning. You’re so much more than enough”, she planted a small kiss on his forehead before resuming her position. “I’ll remind you every day of the rest of my life if that’s what it takes for you to believe it”.

And with their eyes closed, foreheads and noses pressed together and legs tangled between each other, pulling each other close, closer - around grass and voices and his abuser pressed into the hood of a police car, they only felt each other. With their shaky breaths, even shakier voices, fearing any words that would leave them in case they triggered a cascade of tears down their oh so vulnerable cheeks, they were more than enough.

***

I hope y’all liked it!! Feel free to let me know by liking, reblogging, or sending me a message :) 

super cool kid taglist: @lady-anon-x​ @spencerreid-mgg​​ @eoupe​ @inlovewithbabygirl​ @galaxydefenderjulia​ @username2002​