#and they’re lucky that what black people are looking for is equality and not revenge.

[cyarskj1899]

That. Very. Last. Sentence. This Black Queen needs to be writing speeches from her office in the West Wing. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🖤🖤🖤

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤ FUCK YASS. ✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿✊🏿

And that last line… that last motherfqucking line

...and they’re lucky that what black people are looking for is equality and not revenge...”

OUUUUUU!!!

[slytherinsnekxvii]

let's talk about lily evans and the marauders, aka moony, wormtail, padfoot and prongs. given that i didn't use their actual names, i think you can figure out where this is going. it's also long as hell, so. canon vs fanon, marauder edition, except snek is sleep deprived.

now, before we begin, i don't dislike the marauders. or lily, tbh. if I'm being perfectly, genuinely honest, i still go back and forth sometimes but they've been growing on me for a while now. the canon versions, at least. fanon does them real dirty, and that's part of why i'm writing this, because i'm genuinely tired of it. it's an injustice.

you can at least make excuses for james and lily, who were so undeveloped that jkr practically dropped a fill-in-the-blank sheet of character information in our laps, but sirius, remus and peter were around long enough for y'all to get real acquainted with them.

in canon, sirius black is an unhinged mf. genuinely. this isn't to say he's a bad guy, in fact, we see that he's still capable of doing good things, still capable of love, still capable of all the things that prove he's actually not bad at heart, just,,, severely traumatised and very steeped in negativity from his time with the dementors. what i'm saying is that this man is absolutely, no questions asked, no holds barred demented, and how could he not be? the guy sat wrongfully imprisoned in azkaban for twelve years, a good portion of which he spent as a dog in order to protect himself from the dementors. he certainly wasn't completely insane, but you cannot tell me that he was all there. he got out of azkaban fuelled almost solely by the intent to get revenge on pettigrew, tried to commit murder in front of three witnesses who were also children—one of whom was his godson—ate rats and was also malnourished, which i'm certain did not help the situation any. this man is off his goddamn rocker, and you know what? you love to see it. good for him.

oh, but, snek, that's what he's like as an adult. what about when they were at school? before azkaban? my guy, the reaction he has to grimmauld place is not the reaction of someone without trauma. i don't believe that walburga and orion were the type to physically abuse their children, but whatever happened in that house helped to fuck him up enough that he skipped the joke of part of practical joke, and pranked snape by telling him how to meet a werewolf that he knew would be fully transformed and dangerous to humans. more than that, the werewolf was remus, whom he's friends with, and who—best case scenario—would be facing a trial if james hadn't stepped in. you can say that maybe he didn't think about or understand the gravitas of his actions, but at the end of it, that's not how properly sane people react to people they dislike, and that's not how they treat their friends. if anything, it reads like he was in the middle of a breakdown and absolutely losing his shit and he wasn't thinking at all.

my guy went through some serious shit, and was in no way completely mentally stable. we can see pretty clearly that he's got a serious dark side to him that probably would have gone unbridled had he not disagreed with his family, and yet, fanon took one look at him and went, "teehee, uwu bad boi go vroom."

fanon said padfoot is a pretty boy with nice hair who is tastefully traumatised from his horribly abusive household. sirius rides his motorcycle and plays jokes and flirts with anything that moves, but he can do no real wrong and always comes back to his soft, bookish, chocolate-loving boyfriend remus, who will laugh about his lycanthropy and quietly disapprove but secretly laugh at his friends' antics while hiding his smile in his cardigan.

respectfully, what in the absolute fuck.

i'd put that meme in here if i could, the one that's like, "well done, you've broken _______ down to its bare essentials," but no. i can't bc it doesn't even apply. this isn't a meme, it's theseus' fucking ship.

fanon broke it down, and replaced the pieces one by one until we got to this point, where we need to sit down and ask ourselves, "is this even the same character?"

the answer is no, by the way. it isn't. when people talk about woobifying characters—you know, taking away every flaw they have, romanticising everything they do and making them only capable of doing good, wonderful, lovely things?—this is what we mean.

and it'd be one thing if it was just the one character, but, no. fanon went all in and made them all squeaky clean and boring, especially peter, who draws the shortest of the straws.

remus got fucked, too. not just because fanon insists on sticking him into a relationship with sirius. which, we'll tackle wolfstar in a bit, but that's not even the worst of it. here, we have yet another example of blatant, rampant woobifying. again, is he a bad person? no. we know he's a good guy, we know he's generally kind and well-mannered, we know that he wants to fo the right thing but hey, fun fact. did you know that you can be nice and a coward? did you know that you can be benevolent and good and kindly and have the greatest of intentions and still be shady as fuck? no? ask dumbledore. the man played people like chess pieces when he needed to, and he was a twinkly grandpa. these are things that can coexist.

teenage remus is a coward who, understandably, does not stand up to his friends, likely for fear of being ostracised, and doesn't uphold his prefect duties as he should and takes part in their bullying of snape as a result. he lets them romp with him in werewolf form while they are in their animagus forms and then, he lets them continue to do so even after they have multiple close calls, which, again, had anything happened, would have resulted in a trial in the best case scenario.

grownup remus is still a coward, he tells no one that sirius can move about the school in his animagus form despite wholeheartedly believing that he's a mass murderer, he tries to run out on his wife and unborn kid. he isn't deliberately making attempts to harm anyone, but he's content to sit back and let things happen to him and around him so he doesn't rock the boat, although he is capable of action, which we see when he is more than willing to help sirius merk pettigrew in the shack. he can be careless, he runs out to the shack knowing he hasn't taken his wolfsbane and ends up transforming in front of the students he, as a teacher, is meant to be protecting. of course, this doesn't negate his good qualities, it just bears repeating that his flaws do exist, and they're pretty serious.

fanon moony is always pleasant and kind and soft-spoken and bookish, and he always has to have his chocolate. he knows when to tell off his friends, and he'll do it, even if he's secretly amused by everything they do and laughs about it with his best friend, lily evans, who coincidentally spends all her time with them so he and sirius can go on double dates with james and lily and no one has to remember peter exists.

why. theseus' ship 2.0. does the actual character still exist or is this something entirely different thing bearing the same name?

as for peter, who needs peter pettigrew, the actual, legitimate, fourth marauder when you have lily evans? canon pettigrew is opportunistic as fuck. he's latching himself to the biggest bad on the block and he's going all in. for teenage peter, that was james and sirius, and for adult peter, that's voldemort. canon peter is good enough at transfiguration to master the animagus transformation, just like his friends, and he's good enough at potions to brew the potion that gives voldemort a body. and honestly, you can't say he wasn't brave. he could've run off somewhere and died, or changed his identity or something after he faked his death and framed sirius, but, no. he goes and resurrects voldemort. that's fucked up, yeah, but it happened and honestly, i respect that it. he stuck to his guns.

fanon wormtail is lucky if he exists beyond being a spineless sycophant for james and sirius, or an evil conniving little rat who's looking to toss his entire friend group to the wolves at eleven.

of course, this isn't meant to negate his bad qualities, he still murdered people and framed sirius and sold out the potters to die, but his good characteristics do exist, and james, sirius and remus genuinely were his friends.

and now, we get to lily and james.

we have hardly any information on either of them. they're a pair of cardboard cutouts that we can paint and stick flyers to and colour outside the lines however we want. we can do whatever the fuck, as long lily is brave and smart and somewhat kind and james is brave and willing to die for his family. we were essentially handed a pair of ocs.

and yet.

what little bits of canon we have are thrown out of the window regardless.

james is privileged and rich, and he throws hexes for fun. he's willing to hex lily when she disagrees with him, and then, he goes behind her back to continue hexing snape after she believes that he's stopped doing so. and that's all we know about him until he dies for his family at twenty-one years old. once again, say it with me: this does not negate his good qualities. he definitely had them, he took sirius in when sirius ran away from home, he became an animagus to keep remus company as a wolf, and he saved snape in the shack, thereby saving remus and sirius by extension. him having flaws does not make him a bad person.

fanon prongs is a feminist. he fights for equal rights for women everywhere, and he constantly treats his girlfriend, lily, like an absolute queen. he's the hottest boy in school and everyone claps when he walks through the halls. mcgonagall and dumbledore are always patting him on the back and making jokes with him. he has a built-in dark detector that helps him sense when someone is a evil and needs to he punished.

give me a break. the dude's cool and all, but was the gary stu treatment necessary?

...oh, he needed to match fanon lily? right, right.

canon lily is a contradiction unto herself. she's supposedly a great friend, but since we see her at a point where they were already drifting apart, we see her putting little effort into keeping their friendship afloat. she victim blames based on rumours, she doesn't seem to care over much about what snape has to say about the people who have been tormenting him since day one. and she's justified, of course, she doesn't have to stick around. canon lily is a bit of hypocrite, she says that snape calls everyone of her birth mudblood, but then that begs the question why she still hangs around with him if that's the case. he calls her mudblood, she retaliates by calling him snivellus, and finishes up with a dig about his underwear, which, sure, it's kicking a man with a rusty spoon and pouring salt in the wound, but she's, again, justified. i get where she was coming from. and then, of course, she dies for her kid after marrying the guy who relentlessly bullied her quote-unquote best friend for their entire school careers. but, like i said, canon lily is, in many ways, a contradiction.

lily is basically a plot device. she pushes everyone's narrative but her own, and does little else.

of course, this trend would continue in fanon. fanon lily exists to be the perfect girl who gets really angry over the slightest injustice, and of course, she gets to be one half of one of the oldest enemies-to-lovers "it was just sexual tension" cliche pairings in the book. she's just,,, a mary sue. in so many fics, so many headcanons, she's just pettigrew's stand-in, a girl to form a gang with marlene, mary and dorcas—who happen to be more undeveloped ocs who also get the woobify mary sue treatment—to parallel the marauders. there is nothing compelling about her character when she's presented as a saint, and even less when she's supposedly the other moral compass for the marauders that doesn't actually work because she thinks that james is cute.

and this brings me to the next topic. jily. what, why, how. this was supposed to be a healthy, happy relationship that would have lasted in the long run? absolutely not. even for its time, i can't say that i see it lasting.

first of all, jkr presents james' crush on lily as just that: a crush. a mildly obsessive one, but a crush nonetheless, which she tries to liken to the pulling of pigtails. and then, we see that james' way of getting her to go out with him consists of blackmail, and when that doesn't work, he resorts to threatening her. this could have been set aside if he had actually, genuinely changed when they started spending more time together, but as we're told by sirius and remus, he didn't. he just got better at hiding what he was up to. and it has to be that he hid it, because if she knew, this further damages the character that she's set up to have and paints her out to be either unable to stand up to him or an enabler.

regardless, they get married. and while i have trouble believing that it was out of genuine love, there are scenarios that could make some semblance of sense. it's wartime, after all, and maybe lily is worried about her stability in the wizarding world, so why not marry into an established family whose son is already showing interest? or perhaps, she falls into the trap of every bad boy cliche ever, and she thinks to herself, well, i got him to be better then, maybe i can get him to do even better in the future. or maybe, she doesn't get into a relationship with him immediately and sees him on and off, until eventually, she accidentally gets pregnant and they scramble to have a shotgun wedding so as not to leave lily alone at nineteen with a baby. or maybe they marry each other because they're there and sure, neither of then is ready and they don't know what love even is but what else is there to do when there's a dark lord about? anyways, the point is, they get married.

and then what? if we count pottermore into canon, he goes on to further damage her relationship with petunia and vernon, to the point where she ends up crying. if we don't, she fades into the background enough that nobody has anything to say about her. she's harry's mum, she's james' wife, lily potter, she was kind and smart and brave and that's it. her agency is gone, anything else we have of her personality is gone.

jily just,,, wasn't built to last. and, yeah, this,,, this is a hill i'll die on.

same with wolfstar, honestly. there are so many reasons why it wouldn't work, but fanon has made it so fucking prevalent that it's literally everywhere no matter where you look.

first of all, i've said it before and i'll say it again. sirius is more likely to get with james that he is to ever end up in a relationship with remus. their chemistry is just,,, underdeveloped. net zero for a relationship.

secondly, sirius instigated the werewolf prank, and lupin would have paid the price for it. this could have been overlooked, but he doesn't seem the slightest bit guilty about any of it when it's brought up in poa. he could have been responsible for lupin losing the security of his place at hogwarts in the best case scenario, and in the worst case, his life. and he seems to look forward to full moons, even though they clearly aren't pleasant for remus, which,,, yeah, you're going to have fun, but like, maybe be concerned about the fact that your friend undergoes excruciating pain and it isn't a pleasant time for him? read the room, my g.

thirdly, they don't trust each other as much as fanon seems to think they do. they were both willing to believe each other the traitor before ever suspecting pettigrew. sirius thought remus gave away the potters, hell, he thought remus was a spy for voldemort, and remus was convinced that sirius was a mass murderer. neither of them needed to be convinced.

fourthly, maybe i'm reading too much into it, but like. sirius had money. remus had no money, since, yk, he was a werewolf and struggling for cash and still, sirius,,, did not leave him any money. i feel like if you had money to spare, you would give to your friend who is literally poor. but, again, maybe i'm reading too much into it and this isn't as valid a point as i think it is.

and ehh, the fifth reason is that it's,,, actually very much not the representation for the ltgbt community that fanon says it is but y'all aren't ready for that conversation.

anyways, just,,, even when you set the couple shit aside, the power dynamics between everyone here is fucked. like, james and sirius are clearly at the top of food chain calling the shots and egging each other on. then there's lily, who isn't even a marauder, but is always ever-so-slightly above remus but still not on their level, because, well. neither of them actually listen to her. remus is the novelty friend, the friend who's,,, alright, i guess, but you keep them around specifically because they're funny or they can dance or they have something that you can either show off to other people or keep as your little inside joke, your little secret, yk? and peter is just sort of there. like, yeah, he can do what we can but does that make him as good as we are? no. does he have a funny little something about him that we can exploit? nah. therefore he sits at the bottom. and like, yeah, james and sirius are on the same level, but james is yanking sirius' chain, not the other way around. anyways, like i said. power dynamic's fucked and it bothers me that we were given all of this, and fanon decided to take it all and throw it away so they could give us flamboyant!badboi!sirius black x softboi!motherhen!remus lupin going on double dates with feminist!trustfundbaby!james potter and saint!lily evans while ignoring peter pettiwho?

theseus' fucking ship, indeed.

anyways, this needed to be said. it might not make as much sense as i want it to, considering it's 4:12 in the morning as i'm posting this, after taking a break from writing to do some research and coming across way too much content about fanon marauders, but it's here and it still makes enough sense that you can read it and understand what i mean. and like, at the end of the day, you can go ahead and headcanon whatever you please, you can write fic and make art and do whatever you like, just,,, remember that they're exactly that. headcanons. stop presenting fanon as canon. please. i'm literally begging. we actually have evidence against it. just,,, acknowledge that they're headcanons and stop putting them forward as though they're able to fit into canon. please.

[sassycassie-s-writing]

My Favorite Smile

By: SassyShoulderAngel319

Fandom/Character(s): DC/BatFam - Jason Todd/Red Hood

Rating: PG-11/T- (this one has a couple ✨swear words✨ in it lol. I don’t usually write them out, but sometimes you just gotta say what you mean)

Original Idea: X (Obsessed with this channel right now)

Notes: (Masterlist)(By Character)(About Me) 2,182 words... it’s a longer one again. I casually wrote this in, like, two hours. @welovegroot @jason-redhood @jason-todd-squad

^^^^^

Holding his coffee and croissant, Jason looked around the crowded café for a place to sit. Every table was occupied by at least one person, and the rules of personal space in public said the couches were full, with one person sitting on either end.

His eyes fell on a table with a single occupant.

His heart stuttered to a stop. Wait… is that her? Damn, she looks good this time. He scoffed at himself. Who am I kidding? She looks good every time. Should I talk to her? Should I tell her? She didn’t believe me last time… and I don’t know if I can stand another lifetime without her… but last life we didn’t meet till I was almost fifty. I really wasn’t expecting to find her this early.

He straightened up and strode over to her table. “Excuse me, is it alright if I sit here? The café’s pretty crowded and the other tables are full.”

She looked up and Jason’s brain stopped working as she met his eyes. She was just as incredible as she always was. Thousands upon thousands of years, and he still never got over how beautiful she was. “Sure, go ahead,” she said with a smile before going back to her phone.

—

“I’m Jason, by the way,” the man said, sitting down.

I glanced back up and gave him my name in return.

He smiled. He had a handsome smile. Just looking at him… something tugged in the back of my mind. “That’s a pretty name,” he said.

My ears warmed and I looked away. “Thanks,” I muttered. I looked back at him. “Sorry if this sounds… weird—but have we met before?” I cringed but smiled. If we had…oh it’d be so embarrassing if I’d forgotten him. And a man as handsome as him—how could I have forgotten?

But a look of delight crossed his face, before being replaced by one of neutrality. “Not in this lifetime,” he replied.

“Kind of an odd way to word it,” I remarked before I could overthink whether that sounded really rude or not.

Jason’s ears turned red. “Well… yeah I guess so. Sorry.” He looked down at his coffee cup and croissant and chose to take a sip of his drink. After swallowing, he looked back up at me. “This is probably gonna sound really creepy, but please just hear me out for a few minutes. Do you believe in soulmates?”

I reached up and scratched an itch just behind my ear. “I mean… kind of? I think maybe they exist for some people, and other people could be matched equally well with multiple potential partners,” I said.

His shoulders slouched with a sigh of what might have been relief. “Thank goodness,” he said. He met my eyes. “Because… we’re soulmates. You and I. Sometimes—very rarely—two people are so destined to be together, that they’re reborn over and over to stay together throughout thousands of years’ worth of lifetimes. Sometimes we both remember, sometimes only one of us does. I don’t think there’s ever been a lifetime where neither of us remember. Besides the first, I guess. Back when we didn’t know we’d be reborn. We never look the same twice—different bodies, different backgrounds. But we always have the same soul.”

A reasonable person would have thought he was making up a really long, bad pickup line. But I stared at him with rapt attention. Like some missing puzzle piece I’d been looking for my entire life fell into place. It just sounded… right.

“How do we find each other, if we look different every time?”

He took a deep breath. “Well… when one or both of us remember, we can… kind of sense it? Kind of see it? Like, right now, I see you, but I also see every face of yours that I’ve seen across every lifetime.” He cleared his throat. “Sometimes we don’t. Find each other, I mean. The distance between where we’re born or the timing of our rebirths keep us apart. But there’s only been… three of those, if I remember right.” He laughed. “So glad you believed me this time. It would have sucked if you got a restraining order—because those are a thing now—and I had to spend this life without you.”

I leaned forward, shoving my phone in my pocket. “Tell me more,” I said.

“Where do you want me to start?”

“Um… I don’t know. The beginning? Our first life?”

He nodded. “Ancient Greece,” he said. “Like, really early in Ancient Greece’s history. The gods blessed us. Bound our souls for eternity. Your hair is actually the same color now as it was back then. Kind of a… nostalgic favorite of mine. You’re absolutely stunning every time I see you, but I have some favorites. You do too.”

I snickered. “Oh really? Like what?”

“Well… I always think you’re adorable with dimples or freckles. Green eyes are a favorite of mine too. And your current hair color is my favorite. There were also a few times where you were a little taller than me. Those were nice. You’re most comfortable to hug that way. But, without fail, every single lifetime I see your smile and I think, ‘That one. That one’s my new favorite.’” He chuckled. “As for you, you’ve told me that you like me best with brown eyes—even though you don’t like brown eyes normally. Um… you also like it when my hair is curly.” He gestured to his black hair, slightly curled, with two white curls arcing down the center of his forehead. “You told me… seven lifetimes ago? That you like me best with piercings and tattoos, but when I brought it up last lifetime you said even when I have them I still look like, and I quote, a ‘giant nerd.’”

We both laughed. Jason sighed and shook his head.

“Then again, you said that was your favorite during our pirate lifetime. And I can also say hot damn you looked good with tattoos and a big hat.”

I gasped out a laugh. “We were pirates?”

He laughed too. “Yeah. Well, you were. To start with, anyway. You and your crew were visiting my town and you, absolutely drunk, stumbled into my house. I was a carpenter that time. Thank the gods we both remembered that lifetime or I probably would have shot you. You spent half the night drunkenly blathering about how much you hated my hair when it was long the way it was and that you’d cut it off if I didn’t. The next morning, when you’d sobered up, you apologized. And I’d said it was fine. And… you asked me to come with you. I’ve spent dozens of lifetimes endlessly in love with you. So, like the lovesick fool I am and was, I said yes.

“It… was not a long lifetime. Pirates rarely made it to old age. We were both killed when a Royal Navy ship attacked us. I went down first. You told me in our next lifetime that you single-handedly killed half of that crew’s sailors in revenge even though you knew you’d see me again—because you’d been having so much fun that life and they ruined it. Eventually their captain killed you himself.” He took a bite of his croissant.

It was certainly a lot to take in. But everything he said was so vivid… I wasn’t sure if it was my imagination coming up with the images or… memories that had merely been locked away somewhere deep inside. The sea. The deck of a ship. An octopus tattoo on my left forearm, tentacles reaching to the back of my hand, a similar one on his tanned, scarred neck. Curly auburn hair, a scruffy beard. Brown leather coat and blood under his nails. Pierced ear and eyebrow. A tattoo of a mermaid with a face and wild hair that I knew must have been mine on his right thigh as we found alone time together in my cabin—a pile of leather clothes in a heap on the floor, topped by a big hat with a big feather.

I met his eyes again. “Tell me about another one.”

He smiled. “Well… there was another time I was a soldier. You remembered. I didn’t. I passed through your town on my way to report for duty, and the weather got bad. Your family owned a tavern that doubled as an inn. So, that was where I stayed. You didn’t tell me. I fell in love with you anyway. You would tell me stories and sing for me and make me food in private. When the weather improved, I went off to war and, miraculously, I survived. Even though I spent most of my time that fight thinking about you. I came back to your inn and asked you to marry me. You said yes. We were married soon after. I had to leave a lot. Fighting battles I didn’t care about. Eventually, I came home injured and dying. You held my hand and promised you’d see me soon. I thought you meant heaven or just said it to comfort me. You never told me we were endlessly-reborn soulmates.

“When I was about fifteen my next lifetime, all my memories came back. We both remembered that time, actually. When we ran into each other again we got into such a big argument about you not telling me. Literally picked up right where we left off. Two twenty-year-olds bickering like the old married couple we were. The life after I don’t remember is always a bit of a wild ride as all my memories come back. I imagine it’s similar for you. It’ll be similar for you.”

He reached across the table and took my hand. I squeezed his fingers. Our hands fit together perfectly. I wondered why I’d told him I liked him best with brown eyes when his blue eyes were absolutely gorgeous. “So… what now?” I asked.

He made a face. “Beginnings are always hard when one of us doesn’t remember. Because I have thousands of years of love for you, and you don’t even know me.” His fingers tightened around mine. “I’d like to take you out on a date, if you’ll let me.”

“Does it count as a first date?”

He smiled. It was a sad smile. “It can. It does for this life.”

“Have we… ever had children? Together?”

Jason regarded me thoughtfully. “We have,” he said. “But our bloodlines never last long. Usually we’re lucky to get great-grandchildren. We’re blessed to be together forever, but our families die off quickly. You speculated once that it’s the blessing’s attempt to make sure we’re not reborn into our own bloodline.”

“So we have no living descendants.”

“No. It’d be a little weird if we did. Like ‘Hey, kiddo, you’re our great-great-great-grandson! I know we’re younger than you but trust us!’” Jason laughed.

I could get drunk on that laugh. “I’d… I’d like to go on that date.”

He looked elated—and relieved. “Me too. I’d like to get to know you again.” He glanced around the crowded café. “What do you say we get out of here and go somewhere quiet and I can tell you more stories about our lives? You’ve always been the far superior storyteller, but I learned from the best.”

I smiled. “Yeah. Let’s get out of here. I want to hear everything.”

He helped me to my feet. I gathered my jacket, cup, and phone. “Great. I can’t wait to tell you about the time I was a magician.”

I giggled. “My place or yours?”

“Mine. I have a memento from our most recent past life that I tracked down. I’d like you to have it.”

“What is it?”

Jason didn’t answer immediately. Just held my hand as we left the café. Gotham’s overcast autumn sky was chilly. “I… I want it to be a surprise but I’m also too excited to tell you.” He bit his lower lip, staring at me. “Gah. Fine. It’s your wedding ring. I found it at an antique shop not far from where our oldest niece lived. We didn’t have any kids, last life. We didn’t meet till I was forty-nine and you were forty-three. We both decided it was too late for kids. But I had a few nieces and nephews. Our oldest niece was in charge of our estate. We died in the eighties. But I found your ring. You can use it again, eventually, if you want. Or we can get you a new one.” His face reddened. “I don’t mean to presume. But I don’t know if I can live without you this lifetime after having you for such a short time last life.”

I squeezed his hand. “Let’s try that first date first. I feel this pull toward you I can’t explain, but we’ll build up to the soulmate thing. Okay?” I smiled at him.

—

Jason couldn’t help but stare at her. Those eyes, that stunning face. This one, he thought. This smile is my favorite.

[nevermindirah]

FATWS ep 4: The Whole World is Watching

I sobbed through the end credits.

They’re really, actually going there.

We had such good reason not to trust a fucking Disney property to go there. I think half of why I was crying was I was so surprised — I was grateful — that a piece of corporate media would make a nuanced and radical and open-hearted political point.

Sam Wilson actually got to say, out loud, that Karli Morgenthau has a point.

That moment in Civil War when Steve holds the shield over Tony’s head, pauses with this look in his eye, slams the shield down, and the camera pans out to show the shield through the arc reactor — I never believed Steve would hit Tony in the head with the shield, but I didn’t trust the corporations ultimately responsible for this content not to make him do it. The director of this show was clearly setting up shots specifically so we can make parallels gifsets here on tumblr dot com, Walker kicking in a door to Sam and Bucky’s hotel room like Steve kicked in a door at von Strucker’s castle in AOU, Walker pointing a gun over the shield like Steve did in his first Cap action scene in CATFA, probably others I’m not remembering right now. And then that hold-your-breath moment in Civil War. But John Walker took the serum, and he brutally murdered someone he considered an enemy combatant, who was retreating, out of vengeance.

The Avengers are called that, and in the movie with that name Tony says if they can’t defend the Earth they’ll avenge it, but Tony’s politics were always a big ball of yikes. Steve was never, ever about vengeance, not even against Nazis, not even against Thanos. Stop people from committing atrocities, absolutely, and with deadly force that Steve says in CATWS makes him not sleep so good sometimes, but only to stop the harm, never for revenge.

It makes me think of that quote, that white Americans are lucky that Black Americans just want equality and not revenge. I had to look it up: Kimberly Latrice Jones said this last summer, here’s the video, here’s a transcript. Here’s the full quote: “As far as I’m concerned, they could burn this bitch to the ground. And it still wouldn’t be enough. And they are lucky that what Black people are looking for is equality and not revenge.”

Sam Wilson and Karli Morgenthau have a lot in common. They had two one-on-one conversations about it. You could see on Karli’s face how devastated and overwhelmed and regretful she was over killing Lemar Hoskins. What Sam said to her wasn’t manipulation, he really believes everything he said, and she felt it, and those words are digging under her skin. There are two episodes left and I don’t think this is the last time these two people are going to have an honest conversation about all the ways the world’s power structures have used and ignored and failed them and what they could do together to change it.

Karli Morgenthau is a good person who is so desperate that she’s starting to do some very, very bad things.

Zemo is a terrible person, but he did a very, very good thing in destroying that serum.

That moment the now-murdered Flag Smasher and Karli had over his grandfather’s grave is the crux of the whole thing: it’s rare for good and bad to be clear-cut. There’s even an argument to be made that the vengeful way the Allies tried to extract financial reparations from Germany following WWI created the environment Nazis arose from.

Good people making hard choices in a fucked-up world is why I fell in love with Steve Rogers ten years ago, and why I love Sam Wilson, and why I love CATWS, and they are really. fucking. going. there. with The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.

Before I make myself cry again, I’ll leave y’all with this list of gifsets I desperately want to reblog the shit out of following this episode:

the Dora Milaje beating Walmart Cap’s ass

one of Ayo’s fellow soldiers (what is her name??) kicking the shield up off the floor and holding it (oh my GOD I jumped up off my couch and shouted)

actually every single moment Ayo or any other Dora Milaje was on screen

Karli Morgenthau and Sarah Wilson parallels

“She’s just a kid”: Wanda made a devastating mistake in CACW and Steve was right to say it then; Karli made a devastating mistake in the last episode and another one in this one and Sam is right to say it now

[saddiedotdk]

How Can We Win Kimberly Jones Video Full Length David Jones Media Clean ...

Full Transcript (For people who may need it and can't hear it. Edited to fix typos.) 

So, I've been seeing a lot of things talking and people making commentary—interestingly enough, the one's I've noticed that have been making the commentary are wealthy black people—making the commentary that you should not be rioting, you should not be looting, you should not be tearing up your own communities. And then, there's been the argument of the other side that we should be hitting them in the pocket, we should be focusing on the black out days where we don't spend money. But, you know, I feel like we should do both. And, I feel like I support both. And, I will tell you why I support both. 

I support both because when you have a civil unrest like this there are three types of people in the streets: there are the protesters, there are the rioters, and there are the looters. 

The protesters are there because they actually care about what is happening in the community, they want to raise their voices, and they're there strictly to protest. 

You have the rioters who are angry, who are anarchists, who really just want to fuck shit up, and that is what they are going to do regardless. 

And then you have the looters. And, the looters almost exclusively are just there to do that: to loot. And now, people are like: "What did you gain?" "What did you get from looting?" 

I think that as long as we are focusing on the what we're not focusing on the why and that is my issue with that. As long as we are focusing on what they are doing, we are not focusing on why they are doing. Some people are like, "Well those aren't people who are legitimately angry about what's happening. Those are people who just want to get stuff." 

Ok, well then, let's go with that, let's say that's what it is. Let's ask ourselves why, in this country, in 2020, the financial gap between poor blacks and the rest of world is at such a distance that people feel like that their only help and only opportunity to get some of the things that we flaunt and flash in front of them all the time is to walk through a broken glass window and get it. They are so hopeless that getting that necklace, getting that tv, getting that change, getting that bag, getting that phone, whatever it is that they are going to get, is that in that moment when the riots happen and they are presented with an opportunity of looting that is their only opportunity to get it. 

We need to be questioning that why. Why are people that poor? Why are people that broke? Why are people that food insecure? That clothing insecure? That they feel like their only shot that they're shooting their shot by walking through a broken glass window to get what they need. And then, people want to talk about there are plenty of people who pulled themselves up by their bootstraps and got it on their own. Why can't they do that?

Let me explain something about economics in America. (And, I'm so glad that as a child an opportunity to spend time at PUSH where they taught me this.) It's that we must never forget that economics was the reason that black people were brought to this country. We came to do the agricultural work in the South and the textile work in the North. Do you understand that? That is what we came to do. We came to do the agricultural work in the South and the textile work in the North. 

Now, if I right now, if I right now decided that I wanted to play Monopoly with you and 400 rounds of playing Monopoly I didn't allow you to have any money. I didn't allow you to have anything on the board. I didn't allow for you to have anything and then we played another 50 rounds of Monopoly and every thing that you gained and you earned while you were playing that round of monopoly was taken from you. That was Tulsa. That was Rosewood. Those are places where we built Black economic wealth. We were self sufficient. Where we owned our stores. Where we owned our property. And, they burned them to the ground. 

So that's four-hundred and fifty years, so for 400 rounds of Monopoly you don't get to play at all. Not only do you not get to play, you have to play on the behalf of the person that you're playing against. You have to play and make money and earn wealth for them and then you have to turn it over to them. 

So, then for 50 years you finally get a little bit and you're allowed to play and every time they don't like the way that you're playing or that you're catching up or what you're doing to be self-sufficient, they burn your game. They burn your cards. They burn your monopoly money. And then, finally, after release and the onset of that they allow you to play and they say "Ok now you catch up." At this point the only way you're going to catch up in the game is if the person shares the wealth. Correct? But what if every time you share the wealth, then there is psychological warfare against you to say: "Oh, you're an equal opportunity hire." 

So, if I play 400 rounds of monopoly with you and I have to play and give you every dime that I make and then for 50 years every time that I play and if you didn't like what I did you got to burn like they did in Tulsa and like they did in Rosewood. How can you win? How can you win? You can't win. The game is fixed. 

So, when they say why do you burn the community? Why burn down your own neighborhood? It's not ours! We don't own anything! We don't own anything! There is... Trevor Noah said it so beautifully last night. There is a social contract that we all have that if you steal or if I steal then the person who is the authority comes in and they fix the situation. But, the person that fixes this situation is killing us! So, the social contract is broken! And if the social contract is broken, why the fuck do I give a shit about burning the fucking football hall of fame or about burning a fucking Target? 

You broke the contract when you killed us in the street and didn't give a fuck! You broke the contract when for 400 years we played your game and built your wealth! 

 You broke the contract when we built our wealth again on our own, on our bootstraps in Tulsa and you dropped bombs on us! We built it in Rosewood and you came in and you slaughtered us! You broke the contract! 

So, fuck your Target! Fuck your hall of fame! As far as I'm concerned they could burn this bitch to the ground. And it still wouldn't be enough. 

And, they are lucky that what black people are looking for is equality and not revenge.

[miguel-manbemel]

Aspects & Fanfics Ep. 55: Return to the Cave of Doom Part 3 - The Defile of Tragedy

Going with the third part of this story that will serve as finale for the season two of this fanfic inspired on Sanders Sides, by Thomas Sanders and Joan S. And before we get into it, one warning. We're getting into one of those angstier episodes were one of the characters in the story is gonna pass away. So expect a lot of angst in this entry of the story. Next entry, by the way, will be the final conclusion of this season. I hope you're enjoying this finale and without further ado, let's get into the story. Until next time.

SYNOPSIS: The gang decides to go to the way the had chosen, through a dangerous defile where they will be unprotected and more vulnerable. Twelve people, including humans, Sides and ghouls, are going to enter it, but they are all very conscious that not all of these 12 will probably make it to the other side... alive.

WARNINGS: Death of a character, therefore lots of angst; romantic moments between Thomas and Nico.

EPISODE INDEX

[Roman’s voice is heard narrating as flashback scenes from the previous episode are shown]

ROMAN: After the tough experience in the Core, we finally were ready to enter the Cave of Doom. However before we could do that, we had to convince Vertigo that it would be safe to enter, as he tried everything he could to delay us, including inducing a state of vertigo into Nico, who got really sick, all because he feared that as soon as we opened the door, he would turn back into Paranoia’s puppet. We finally convinced him that wouldn’t be the case and so we entered the cave. But when we were in our way, we suddenly encountered a rock slide that blocked our way. Virgil told us that there were two alternate routes. One of them was safe, but so long that it would leave us with a very little margin of time to rescue Dillon once we got to the castle. The other route was faster, but much more dangerous as it involved crossing a defile surrounded by two deep pits where we would be almost defenseless against an ambush. We decided to make a choice democratically, and so everyone of us voted which way we wanted to go. But still, there was a tie in the voting, so Nico proposed to draw the result, as there was an equal number of ballots for each option. And so, he picked one of the ballots and he ultimately chose Remus’ ballot, where he voted for going to the defile. How we knew it was Remus’ ballot if the votes were secret? Well, who else would have drawn that obscenity in the ballot just to piss us. No, don’t ask me, I won’t show you that drawing, not even on flashback. The point is that Lady Luck had decided that we should go through the defile, and so we headed our way in that direction.

[intro sequence]

[Thomas and his friends keep walking down the gallery Virgil is guiding them through]

THOMAS: So far, this gallery seems to be quite long, Virgil. Are you sure you didn’t get the long way by mistake?

VIRGIL: Trust me, Thomas. If this way seems long to you, imagine how long the other way was.

THOMAS: … Okay…

[then the gallery slowly goes flat and the walls start getting more far away from each other as they walk]

REJECTION: The gallery is widening. Does that mean that…?

VIRGIL: Yes, we’re approaching the defile. Keep your eyes open now, guys.

[finally, they enter a huge cavern. The ground under their feet turns into a defile where only one person fits, and they can’t see the bottom of the pits on both sides of the defile. Far away on the walls, several meters away from the defile, there are holes, or windows, that seem to communicate with galleries behind them]

JANUS: You were quite right, Virgil. This place is perfect for an ambush. They could attack us with all kinds of projectiles from these windows on the walls. I’m not sure if we made the right choice, guys. Going this way seems suicidal to me, we’re too exposed and almost unable to defend ourselves.

THOMAS: Maybe so… but the choice has been made. We can’t turn back now, we wouldn’t arrive in time to save Dillon. We need to cross this defile and hope for the best.

JANUS: Okay, if we’re doing this, Thomas and Nico, you two must walk together. The rest of us will be ahead or behind you, just in case.

VIRGIL: I doubt that would work for anything as the danger comes from the sides not from the front or the back.

JANUS: At least we’ll have the front and the back covered in case they decided to enter the defile by foot. We’ll still be unprotected from the sides, but the front and the back won’t be unprotected anymore.

VIRGIL: Okay, you may have a point.

[the gang places themselves as Janus suggested, from front to back, in order, Virgil, Roman, Remus, Logan, Patton, Thomas, Nico, Ian, Janus, Height, Vertigo and Rejection. Like that, in single file, they enter the defile. They keep their eyes on the windows that surround them from the walls, trying to avoid looking down. However, Thomas starts shaking, until he stops walking altogether]

NICO: Thomas, are you okay?

THOMAS: I can’t walk any further… I thought I could but I just can’t stand heights… It’s too much for me…

HEIGHT: I wish I could turn myself off for a moment, Thomas. But I can’t control myself.

THOMAS: I know, I’m not blaming you. I wish I could be stronger…

PATTON: Kiddo, remember that we already went through this when we were rescuing Chris. Remember when we had to get to the Mind Palace Center the first time, through that path suspended several feet over the labyrinth? Back then, you were able to control your fears. You just gotta do the same now.

THOMAS: Except that this time it’s not that easy, Patton. Last time, I could evade myself, imagine that the pathway wasn’t so high and just keep walking like an automaton… But now I can’t do that, when I have to keep concentrated on the windows and not tripping on this rocky defile at the same time…

JANUS: [yelling] Well, Thomas, you better put yourself together now, cause we’ve got company! Guys, protect yourselves!

[the windows suddenly get filled with hundreds of ghouls, throwing arrows, stones and everything on hand to the team. They just try to evade the attacks the best they can]

IAN: We won’t last much in this situation! If only Chris was here, he would have taken care of them, he’s the best archer among all of us!

VIRGIL: I know, but we didn’t have time to go to Sandersia and fetch him from his fencing training with Roland. Guys, we gotta resist somehow!

ROMAN: Thomas, you could help us! You could bring out that white shield of yours to protect us, remember? Thomas? Are you listening? Thomas!

[but Thomas is completely frozen, almost like catatonic, with a face of huge fear, looking at the pits around him]

REMUS: Did you realize, guys? Nobody among those ghouls is aiming at Thomas. They’re avoiding to attack him on purpose!

LOGAN: That’s logical, considering that if they made him fall into the pit to his death, we would all die and this place would banish. They don’t wanna take that risk. It’s lucky for Thomas, because he seems to be in panic over his fear of heights.

REMUS: Thomas! Wake up, for f*ck’s sake! We need you!

[a scream of pain is heard from behind. They all look behind and see that Rejection has been hit by a stone on the forehead. A stream of blood falls down is hair. Then he stumbles and falls. Vertigo manages to grab him before he falls into the abyss and keeps him suspended over the pit, holding him by one foot. Rejection shakes his head and recovers full consciousness, realizing what has happened]

REJECTION: Oh, no…

VERTIGO: [trying to rise him up] Don’t worry, I got you, I won’t let you fall!

[Rejection looks at the nearest window to them. There’s a ghoul tensing his arrow, pointing at Vertigo’s chest]

REJECTION: But you must, Vertigo! You must let me fall or they’ll kill you!

VERTIGO: What? No! I won’t let you fall!

REJECTION: If you don’t, then we will both perish! You must do it, Vertigo!

HEIGHT: Look out, he’s gonna shoot!

[Rejection shows a face of determination and, with some struggle, starts untying the boot that Vertigo is holding]

VERTIGO: What are you doing!? Don’t do that! You’ll fall!

REJECTION: It has been great being part of this mission, and it was great that at least I got to see you, Vertigo, one of our friends, free from Paranoia. Please, save the others. Do it for me. Farewell…

VERTIGO: [screeching] Rejection, don’t!

[but Rejection finishes untying his boot and slips out of it, falling into the pit. He doesn’t make a sound, and just smiles at Vertigo until he gets lost in the abysmal darkness. Vertigo doesn’t have time to react to the tragedy as the ghoul by the window shoots his arrow. Vertigo protects himself with Rejection’s boot, and the arrow pierces safely in it]

IAN: I can’t believe this is happening…

VIRGIL: There’s no time for mourning! There’s more ghouls every minute! Soon we will all follow Rejection’s destiny if we don’t do something! We need to make Thomas react now!

NICO: Thomas! Thomas!

[but Thomas has a very different face from before. He’s no longer afraid. On the contrary, he’s looking at the place where Rejection fell and his gesture is of pure anger and wrath]

NICO: Guys, something’s wrong with Thomas.

VIRGIL: Oh, no! What happened to Rejection is… I think, out of anger, Thomas’ letting the Dark Master dominate him again! Thomas, fight him!

[but Thomas’ eyes have already turned green and started glowing. He shows his teeth in a grotesque gesture, and he growls with a demonic voice. He points with his finger at the ghoul that shot at Vertigo]

JANUS: [horrified] I know that gesture! Don’t do that!

[Thomas throws a black beam from his finger. It hits the ghoul on the shoulder. He screams in pain and falls back]

JANUS: Thank goodness he didn’t hit him in the chest, or otherwise, that ghoul would be dead, like it happened to Ira! Thomas, calm down!

NICO: Thomas, I know it hurts, and I know you want revenge, but this is not the way! [holding Thomas’ face with both hands and making him look at him] Thomas, look at me! Remember what the Core told us!

[The ferociousness of Thomas’ gesture slowly disappears]

NICO: This is not a battle we can win if we let ourselves loose in hatred. These on the windows are our friends too and don’t know what they’re doing. We need to save them too or everything will have gone to waste. Remember that the only way we can win is with love, not with hate. Put yourself together, Thomas. We need you, the real you, not the dark you.

[Thomas’ eyes turn back to brown and a tear falls down his cheek. He then kisses Nico]

VIRGIL: Thank goodness that he came back to his senses, although our situation is still not any better…

[while Thomas and Nico are kissing a lightning aura surrounds them. Everyone stops to look at the mystic brightness, even the ghouls. The aura gets brighter and brighter, then suddenly gets unleashed as a wave that spreads around at light speed all around the place. The ghouls are hit by the wave and fall down growling, except Height and Vertigo who remain totally unharmed. They stop kissing and look at what has happened, in shock]

THOMAS: What happened here?

NICO: Seems we unleashed our special weapon by accident, the one we were reserving for the Paladin. [smirks] It’s not my fault that you make me feel such strong emotions just with your kissing, Thomas.

THOMAS: [smirks back] Look who’s talking.

[ghouls on the windows start rising up slowly]

GHOUL #1: What has happened?

GHOUL #2: I… I’m free? I’m free at last?

GHOUL #3: We’re free from Paranoia! Free at last!

VIRGIL: Oh, wow, didn’t expect this to happen…

HEIGHT: Guys, are you okay!? You’re really free!?

GHOUL #2: I think so, Height! We’re so sorry, we couldn’t control ourselves!

[the ghoul that was shot by Thomas rises up. He has tears in his eyes, not of pain but of guilt]

SHOT GHOUL: I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry… It was my fault that Rejection…

VERTIGO: [with tears in his eyes] It’s not your fault. You were just being controlled like everyone else. It’s the Paladin who’s to blame and we’ll make him pay for this. I only wish Rejection was here to see his wish of seeing you all free come true.

THOMAS: And I’m sorry for shooting at you. I wasn’t myself either.

GHOUL #3: We’ll tend his wounds and go somewhere safe to gain strength, but don’t worry, we’ll be there to help you when the final battle unleashes. You guys, be careful now.

VIRGIL: Take care, guys. Thank you.

[the ghouls retreat and everything would have been silent, if it wasn’t for the sound of faint hurtful whining that startled them all. They all looked at the source of this sound. Patton was there, lying down in pain]

THOMAS: Patton! What’s wrong with you!? Did they hit you before…?

[Patton rises his face, his cheeks are full of tears and he has a grimace of pure pain, but still he manages to smile]

PATTON: It’s… it’s okay, kiddos… don’t worry…

LOGAN: [scared] No, it’s not okay, Patton! What is happening to you!

PATTON: It’s just that… your true love is so pure and so strong… and it all was unleashed so suddenly… that I got heavily overloaded. Aw, it hurts… but it will pass… although I don’t know if I could take it a second time…

THOMAS: Oh, dear, we’re so sorry, Patton.

PATTON: Don’t be… this is what had to be done, and so many ghouls got free from the spell, it can only count as a blessing. This is just my fault, because I’m not good enough to store your feelings, that’s all. You’ve got so much love to give, it was already difficult for me to hold it all, and now that I have to deal with love enough for two, it’s just impossible for me to hold it all together. I need to train to be better and I’m only sorry I didn’t do it earlier.

THOMAS: Don’t speak like that, you’re doing your best, just like anyone of us.

[Patton rises up, his grimace has softened up a little]

PATTON: Yes, but this is not the first time this has happened, I should have prepared myself in advance. My bad. But it was mandatory to use that attack this time, so do not hesitate in using it if need be. It will be better than the alternative of letting the Dark Master on the loose again.

NICO: Still, if this attack has so devastating effects on you, we mustn’t use it lightly anymore. Thomas, I think we must reserve it to attack the Paladin and only the Paladin. The rest of the way, we’ll have to count on our own regular strength, for Patton’s sake.

THOMAS: You’re right. We’re not void of resources. Until we get there, we’ll avoid that attack.

PATTON: Don’t worry about me, kiddos. I’m in pain, but I’m fine. I can cope, eventually.

THOMAS: There’s no need for you to cope to such strong pain unless it’s absolutely necessary. Don’t worry, Patton.

PATTON: As you wish kiddos. I’m feeling fine already, so we should get moving.

[they all start walking, but after a couple steps they look back. Vertigo is on his knees, looking at the boot with the arrow and at the pit]

VIRGIL: Vertigo…

VERTIGO: He sacrificed himself… for me… After how much of a coward I was earlier, he sacrificed himself for me. Why? I didn’t deserve it…

HEIGHT: Hey, my love, we need to keep going. Remember what Rejection told you before… that he counted on us to save our friends. He counted on you too, Vertigo, so put yourself together and make him proud, okay?

[Height kisses Vertigo in the cheek. Vertigo just shows a bittersweet smile and nods, then he stands up and throws the boot to the pit]

VERTIGO: Farewell, my friend. I swear your sacrifice won’t be in vain.

[they look at the pit for a couple of seconds, then they start walking]

NICO: How are you feeling now, Thomas?

THOMAS: I’m feeling okay. I’m so overwhelmed by all that has just happened that there’s simply no room in my brain for stupid phobias anymore. I’ll have time to feel the fear later when this is all over. Now I just need to keep on walking.

NICO: Okay…

THOMAS: But how are you feeling, Nico? This is the first time you have been witness of something like this in my Mind Palace. Are you okay?

NICO: I’m not gonna deny it, it’s taken a toll on me. But I can cope. It’s never easy to see someone die like this in front of your own eyes and not being able to do anything about it. But I’ll survive, I guess…

THOMAS: Again, I’m sorry I’m making you go through this. I feel so guilty…

NICO: And again, I’m telling you I’ll go with you to the end of the world. You’re no longer having to go through this kind of bad experiences on your own. Capiche?

THOMAS: Capiche…

[after some time walking through the defile, they reach the other side, which ends in a wider gallery]

IAN: Gosh, it feels so great to be able to walk again without the fear of falling, even if we’re surrounded again by walls up and down, left and right.

VIRGIL: Yep, and the best is this means we’re getting closer to the castle, guys. The battle is far from over, but we’re not far from starting it anymore.

REMUS: Roman, can I talk to you in private?

ROMAN: What? Now?

REMUS: It’s important.

ROMAN: Okay. Guys, go ahead, we’ll catch you in a minute.

VIRGIL: We can’t spread out, guys. Remember the illusions are not over, even if we’ve passed that defile. We’ll wait for you here a few steps away so you can talk, but be quick, please.

ROMAN: Okay…

[the rest of the gang moves away a few steps, while Roman and Remus get closer to the gate to the defile they left behind]

ROMAN: Well, what is it?

REMUS: This is killing me inside… and I needed to level with you.

ROMAN: About what?

REMUS: Well…

ROMAN: Remus, what did you do? Speak now, please, we don’t have much time.

REMUS: I feel guilty over Rejection’s death. It’s my fault.

ROMAN: What do you mean it’s your fault?

REMUS: Had I not put that ballot in the hat, we would have gone the other way and Rejection would be alive now.

ROMAN: Remus, we talked about this. Remember? It was luck which decided that your ballot was the chosen one to decide which way to go. It’s not your fault as you had your right to cast your vote however you wanted. No one’s blaming you. It is a group choice, remember?

REMUS: No it wasn’t, that’s what I was trying to tell you. It wasn’t luck what decided the way.

ROMAN: What? What do you mean? [realization] Wait a minute… you’re not gonna tell me that…

REMUS: I rigged the draw. I replaced all the ballots in the hat with copies of my own ballot.

ROMAN: [yelling] WHAT!? Why did you do that!?

REMUS: Because I feared for Dillon’s life! He… he’s my nephew, Roman. I was afraid that if we went through the longest route, we wouldn’t arrive in time to save him. I didn’t take into consideration your safety and worried only about Dillon’s. I beg you to forgive me, Roman.

[Roman just looks at Remus, then sighs]

ROMAN: Remus… Why do you always have to do anything you want without fair warning… I… it’s not to me to whom you have to apologize, you know? Besides, I’m no one to judge you when I have rigged so many votings in that same hat in the past. I would be a hypocrite if I criticized you for that… but you’re right. When you rigged the draw you put on your shoulders the responsibility of everything that happened, including Rejection’s death.

JANUS: May I speak before you come to conclusions, Roman?

REMUS: You were listening?

JANUS: Hard not to, you both were shouting and we weren’t too far away. Everyone has heard you.

[everyone is looking at Remus with faces of disappointment]

JANUS: Guys, before you start judging him, let me speak. The draw was fair and clean.

REMUS: What?

JANUS: Did you think I wouldn’t know what you were trying to do, Remus? I know you. I know you always show that glance of mischievousness when you’re planning on doing something in covert and I saw how you looked at the hat, so I guessed your plan all along… and replaced back all the ballots as they were just a second after you replaced them. It was only luck that it was precisely your ballot what was chosen.

REMUS: Seriously?

JANUS: Yep, though it was good that you mortified yourself over what happened for a few minutes. I doubt that it would teach you a lesson, you’re Remus after all, but at least you got time to reflect on your actions for a change.

HEIGHT: [angry] Well, the draw may have been fair, but that doesn’t change the fact that he actively tried to rig it! He still has some blame of what happened in my eyes!

JANUS: Before we go on casting blames, may I remind you that it was you and Rejection who started all of this in the first place, when you kidnapped Chris? It’s not like your hands are clean to give lessons about morality.

[Height gets in silence with a face of guilt, but still showing anger]

JANUS: And none of our hands are clean, for the record. There’s not a single innocent person in this room… or gallery. We will all always have something to be blamed for, even if it’s ourselves who put the blame on ourselves. We could go on with this debate as long as you want, but I think it would be better if we just move on, because Remus was right in one thing. Dillon is running out of time and we can’t waste it.

REMUS: Janus!

JANUS: What?

REMUS: Thank you for defending me, and for doing the right thing in my place… but I need to say something.

JANUS: Okay, sorry, go ahead.

REMUS: It’s true that I tried to rig the voting. It was a decision I made on the fly, like most of mine. And I want to apologize for that. I consciously put all of our lives in danger and one of us lost his. Even if Janus fixed it, that’s no excuse for me because I’m still guilty in the grade of tentative. So, I’m sorry. I know my apologies won’t bring Rejection back and I’ll understand if, when this is all over, you just want me to return to my room and never come back. I’ll accept it. I’m used to loneliness, anyway.

[the group looks at Remus in silence, before Thomas speaks]

THOMAS: Remus, what you did was serious, very serious. Had Janus not fixed it, Rejection’s death would have been your entire fault. I hope you are conscious of that. If we did the voting and then the draw was precisely to avoid this, to not put on someone’s shoulders all the weight of what eventually ended happening. And you disregarded that good intention to name yourself the only one capable to decide in the name of the whole group. You tried to impose your opinion over the majority, and that’s something I won’t tolerate to happen as long as I’m the owner of this Mind Palace.

REMUS: You’re right, and I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to say.

THOMAS: [beat] On the other hand, I know your intentions were good. We are all really worried about Dillon. We try to do what’s best for him, and I can only understand that the fear over his security can blur our reason. And besides, Janus fixed it and in the end it was luck, as intended, what decided our destinies anyway. I can’t speak for the whole group, but on my part, if you promise that you won’t do something like this again, I’m willing to forgive you.

REMUS: Thank you, Thomas. If it serves for something, I won’t put your lives in danger like this ever again. I promise.

THOMAS: What do you say, guys?

[one by one, the Sides and Nico nod in agreement with Thomas. Height, however, remains silent]

THOMAS: Height?

HEIGHT: It’s that easy? Just putting a pouty face and whining “sorry” fixes everything with the Sides? Rejection is dead! Your apologies won’t bring him back to life!

REMUS: I understand.

HEIGHT: [yelling] And don’t act all innocent now, for f*ck’s sake! Don’t act as if you were the victim, because you weren’t! You are a danger for everyone around you, and I don’t want to have anything to do with you! I…

VIRGIL: Height!

[Height looks at Virgil, in anger]

VIRGIL: Remus didn’t kill Rejection. You have a right to be angry, but in the end he didn’t kill him. It was something that could have happened to anyone of us from the moment we set a foot on this cave, and you all knew it. If it happened before or after a voting or a draw is irrelevant. We all know the risks we are taking. Rejection knew them too. The draw eventually was fair, so no matter what, the choice of following that route is still a group choice and that wasn’t changed. I know you’re angry, but if you want to be angry at someone, be angry at the Paladin who set the attack in the first place. That’s our common enemy and the one we must face now. We must stay together as a team or we’ll never succeed.

[Height looks at Virgil with the same face of anger]

HEIGHT: I’ll follow your command as always, your majesty. But you can’t ask me to forgive, because it doesn’t come naturally to me to do so. I’ll do as you want and continue our mission, but after it’s over, I don’t want to have anything to do with him, and nothing can change that.

REMUS: You don’t have to worry about that. After our mission is complete, I’ll never return to the Cave of Doom, so you’ll never have to see me again.

HEIGHT: [voice full of hatred and resentment] Finally some good news. I can’t wait for you to be away from my sight and back into your own filthy nest of worms, like the filthy worm you yourself are…

[Remus shows a face of anger that quickly evolves into a ferocious face that makes the others shiver, as it reminds them of the old Remus they faced in the castle]

REMUS: But until then, we must work together. I don’t care if you hate me, ghoul. I never cared about anyone’s opinions about me. [threatening voice, walking towards Height until he’s face to face with him] But if your hatred puts my nephew in danger, I’ll make sure that you have fair reasons to hate me, is that clear?

HEIGHT: How dare you…?

[Remus grabs Height by the neck, and his green tentacles suddenly appear on his back and point menacingly at Height]

REMUS: [yelling at Height] Is that clear!?

ROMAN: Remus!

REMUS: Shut up, Roman! This is between the ghoul and me, so don’t meddle! [beat, then to Height, with low voice]Don’t put my good will to the test, ghoul. I confessed what I had done because I thought the team had the right to know, but don’t ever think that, if you belittle me so lightly, I won’t bite back. As a friend, I can be a very good friend, but if you decide to make an enemy out of me, I can turn your life into a nightmare and the other Sides can attest that I’m saying the truth. I may be friendly now towards my friends and loved ones, and that sentiment is genuine, but don’t get it wrong, ghoul. [low pitch voice, approaching his face to Height’s until their noses almost boop] I’m. Still. A. Dark. Side. The last Dark Side in this f*cking Mind Palace, and I demand some respect. I won’t let anyone trample on my pride, much less someone who isn’t even a Side like you, ghoul. Not anymore! So stay in your lane, respect my boundaries, and you’ll keep your neck intact. And if you do your part of the mission and help rescue my nephew without hindering anything because of your thoughts about me, we’ll both live our lives afterwards away from each other as we both can’t wait to do. But if you don’t, and the mission fails because of you, I’ll make sure you join your friend on the bottom of that pit. Again, is that clear?

HEIGHT: [hateful voice] Crystal clear, Dark Side.

REMUS: [dropping Height’s neck and retracting his tentacles which disappear into his back] Good, because I’m tired of you wasting Dillon’s time in stupid quarrels. It’s time we get moving, and we’ll start moving now! Off we go, everyone! There’s no time to waste!

VIRGIL: [sighs] Remus is right. Let’s go. The Paladin’s castle is not too far already and the time to face him is arriving at last.

[to be concluded, guys, gals and non binary pals]

[the gang are walking down a very steep gallery. Virgil leads the way followed by the Sides and the ghouls. Remus is a couple steps back of the group, in silence. Roman notices this and joins him]

ROMAN: What’s up, brother?

REMUS: What’s up about what, Roman?

ROMAN: You know very well. Are you okay?

REMUS: That doesn’t matter now. Not until we rescue my nephew.

ROMAN: Hey, it’s my son too. And worrying about him doesn’t mean I can’t worry about you any less. There’s room in my heart for all of my family.

[Remus scoffs, trying to pretend he doesn’t care]

ROMAN: You know what, Remus? It’s not very you trying to hide things from us. If I remember correctly, you were always the one who always said whatever he wanted…

REMUS: …whenever it pleased me. I know. And now, it doesn’t please me to talk about the issue, so I don’t talk. It’s just as simple as that.

ROMAN: However I need to talk about it, because I’m worrying about you.

REMUS: You do? Heh… Who would have thought?

ROMAN: That’s not fair, after all we’ve been through. You know I love you and I care about you. You’re my brother.

REMUS: There was a time you wouldn’t even call me brother, and I still remember it crystal clear.

ROMAN: But that time is long gone. Neither you nor I are the same as back then. Which leads me to wonder why did you do that earlier. You reacted like… like your old self, almost. You even scared me for a second.

REMUS: I didn’t attack first. It was him who went hostile in the first place. I just set my boundaries, that’s all.

ROMAN: Setting your boundaries includes death-threatening Height? He was just upset over his loss. I’m sure in time he would have calmed down and apologized.

REMUS: Maybe, or maybe not. We’ll never know, I guess. But it was also that their useless quarreling was holding us back. And Dillon doesn’t have that much time left.

ROMAN: Even so, it was unnecessary to show such an abrupt fit of violence.

REMUS: [mocking voice] Well, I’m sorry, big brother. I promise I’ll apologize to them and that I’ll copy a hundred times in a notebook that “I mustn’t threaten my little fwiends anymore.”

ROMAN: Remus, I’m serious. [sighs] Gosh, why is it that you always spill your thoughts in the most random instances, but when you really need it the most, you just won’t let me get to your heart?

REMUS: Who knows? Perhaps I don’t have a heart. Like I said, I’m still a Dark Side, remember? Perhaps I am just like that, meant to be mean and evil and when I try to blend in with you, I’m just acting against my nature. [shows a face of hurt] That’s what all of you think about me, am I wrong?

ROMAN: Remus, that’s not…

REMUS: Is it not? Then why have I always had the feeling that I don’t fit in with any of you? Why have always had the feeling that, no matter what I do and no matter what I say, I’ll always be an outcast to some degree? I just decided to act like how you all ultimately think I am, that’s all.

ROMAN: It hurts me that you have those ideas about yourself and us. We don’t think about you like that. I don’t think about you like that.

REMUS: It would be so happy-papi-cute to believe you, Roman. But I just can’t.

ROMAN: Perhaps because it’s all in your mind and it’s really you who outcasts yourself from us, because it is you who doesn’t believe to deserve to be with us. And I think I got to the key of this issue. You reacted like that, because Height treated you the way you really think we all would want to treat you. It’s like your biggest fear suddenly came true and you reacted instinctively, am I right?

REMUS: No, I…

ROMAN: Yes, I am right. You can’t fool me. I know you inside out. You were a part of me, remember? Remus, I…

VIRGIL: Guys, we’ve arrived to our destination!

ROMAN: …well, it’s a shame we have to stop this conversation so abruptly, but you can bet that when this is all over, we’re gonna have a brother-to-brother extensive talk, okay?

REMUS: Do as you want, even though I don’t think we’ll get anything useful from it. Now, it’s not the time to talk. The Paladin is waiting.

ROMAN: Yes. The final battle is here at last.

[mentesimploria]

this. is. the. most. powerful. thing. I. have. ever. watched.

““Why do you burn down the community? Why do you burn down your own neighborhood?” It’s not ours! We don’t own anything! We don’t own ANYTHING! There is - Trevor Noah said it so beautifully last night, there’s a social contract that we all have that if you steal, or if I steal, then the person who is the authority comes in and they fix the situation, but the person who fixes the situation is KILLING US! So the social contract is broken! And if the social contract is broken why the fuck do I give a shit about burning the fucking Football Hall of Fame, about burning a fucking Target? You broke the contract when you killed us in the streets and didn’t give a fuck! You broke the contract when for 400 years we played your game and built your wealth. You broke the contract when we built our wealth again, on our own, by our bootstraps, in Tulsa, and you dropped bombs on us! When we built it in Rosewood and you came in and you slaughtered us! YOU broke the contract. So fuck your Target! Fuck your Hall if Fame! Far as I’m concerned, they can burn this bitch to the ground. And it still wouldn’t be enough. And they’re LUCKY that what black people are looking for is equality and not revenge.”  Kimberly Jones.

[bbbarneswrites]

In which there’s a places-to-go list, sunny springtime walks in the park and analog film shots with Bucky.

Bucky Barnes x Reader

Bucky doesn’t remember New York ever looking this pretty. It’s just the early days of Spring but some of the chic, pricey, high-end streets of Brooklyn are just blooming with various shades of pink and purple, Magnolia trees dotting the sidewalks, bright green bushes decorating make-shift little gardens in front of brownstones and townhouses. After spending years away in Romania and then Wakanda, avoiding his supposed home for years, he almost feels bad for not coming back soon enough.

But then again, when’s a better time to be home than now? A random Saturday morning where you’re off from university, he doesn’t have any missions or training shifts, and it already feels like a perfect day to fulfill a mission. On the bottom of your tote bag slung over Bucky’s mechanical shoulder, there’s a crumpled lilac paper, a list of places-to-go written with a glitter blue gel pen.   Park Slope is the first stop. Light breeze getting caught in your hair, his black bomber jacket completely covering the short hem of your sundress because even though the sun lights up the city, it’s through shy, faint beams. Hand in hand with each other, matching steps under your red high-top Converse and his combat boots, a quick stop to a coffee shop with to-go cups and blueberry muffins. The track of time is completely lost in the few blocks of the fancy neighborhood as you entertain yourself with your analog camera. Under colorful flowers and stylish brick buildings, Bucky makes a pretty sweet model for two of your film rolls. There’s some shots with Magnolia trees decorating the background, some in which he forcefully poses for in front of millions worth townhouses like a proper Carrie Bradshaw. There’s an attempt of a selfie here, Bucky’s lips pressed to your cheek under the lenses, and a proper cheesy couple portrait there, your arms around his waist, big smiles as you pose to a fellow tourist who snaps the moment for you. A few hours later and the Grand Army Plaza make it to your view, signaling the end of your first stop. Lunchtime is just around as your stomach growls and you drag Bucky down to a little, almost hidden restaurant that has possibly the best burgers in all of Brooklyn. You might spent some shots of your camera over Bucky stuffing his face with a very generous triple cheeseburger, just so he can get his revenge over your mild incident with a bowl of Nutella ice cream later. Prospect Park is the second stop. Given how much the park has changed since Bucky last visited in the 30s and your unquiet curiosity over supposed secret spots, the visit feels like a treat. There’s no denying that the park is beautiful in springtime and despite its minor flaws, the enjoyment isn't lessened as you wander through the fields of vivid greens, Bucky’s left arm over your shoulder and your head resting on his shoulder, with one more film roll serving artsy shots of all the new discovered places. A quick walk through the park’s zoo gets Bucky recognized by a little girl who is absolutely in love with him, and after a few pictures taken by her mother and puppy loving glances, the carousel is your next destination with teasing, equally loving jabs from you and disgruntled, timid glances from him. Even though Bucky completely refuses to properly enjoy the carousel ride, his heart does skip a few beats as watching you have fun enough for two. Midway through the afternoon and every corner of the park is brimming with all families.  Under a fiery tree near the lake, in the most secluded spot between the mass of people, Bucky’s got his head resting on your lap, your back against the tree as you both soak up the lukewarm sunshine. Flesh fingertips waving through his brown, long locks to vibranium fingertips tracing gentle lines all over your legs, just sometimes playing up with the ruffled hem of your dress to earn a startled yelp from your mouth, mischievous plump lips of a super soldier brushing your inner thighs. Though it’s left unspoken, both of you know how much this moment means to your lives.

What it felt like five minutes to both of you, were actual five years for the people who stayed. Bucky has his fair share of bad memories and you have your own fair share of disappointments, but neither of you had to witness the world world turn lifeless in just a matter of seconds and then live through it.  What’s really lost to you? Sure, maybe your bachelor’s degree got delayed by five years while Bucky got five years older in Earth’s time. What’s that compared to half a decade of grief and loss? Despite all demons and mishaps, you’re now the lucky ones. Soon enough, with the next spot of your list in mind but under heavy hesitation to abandon the blissful moment, promises are made for a comeback as you leave the park. As the sun starts to weaken, the city falling to its familiar, chilly temperatures, you're cuddled up to Bucky’s side as he tightens his arms around your frame, kisses pressed to your hair until giddy smiles are curling your lips. Brooklyn Public Library is the third stop. Not very far from the park, the walk is quiet and unhurried.

By now, there’s only an hour left before it closes but knowing by heart every hallway of the place, you make it a tactical visit. Bucky trails slowly behind you through the books, smart eyes scanning the many titles until he stops upon the ones that strike his interest, thumbing a few pages to make a final decision. It makes you feel warm and calm, to watch him read through the descriptions, eyebrows furrowed in curiosity rather than worry. Checked under your card for three weeks, you end up getting four books, Bucky ends up getting three books, and in the farthest hallway in the back of the library, he might have pushed you against a shelf with a sudden kiss that makes you giggle against his mouth. A little secret that nobody but your hearts need to know. Bittersweet is the right word to describe the end of your day. Some places are still unchecked on the list but it only takes a knowing look from Bucky to know that you are fulfilling it off together, no matter how many Saturdays it takes.  Manhattan is the last stop. Bucky’s apartment is decidedly closer to crash, you’re definitely acquainted to his little brownstone building but it only takes a well placed kiss to his neck, a sweet word and a pleading glance for him to board the Q train to Manhattan with a grinning you by his side. Never mind that you share a pricey apartment near NYU with two more roommates, all you care about is having him in your bed next morning, just so you can enjoy every bit of his presence before another week of busy studies wrecks you. Due the station and current hour, the train is partially crowded with tourists and visitors, people on the way to the city for a night out, a few workaholics here and there. And once backed up near a door, your arms close loosely around Bucky’s waist, pulling him closer until he’s stumbling on his boots and you’re grinning to each other. Halfway through the trip, a street performer comes in with a Kings of Leon song and you playfully mouth along the words, Bucky watching with so much attentiveness that makes your cheeks burn at some point. How funny is to notice that a simple thing such as a train ride can become so intimate.

Your fingertips reaching out to push a strand of hair behind his ear, a tap to his stubbly chin with your index finger. Hands on his lower back, fingertips hanging on his belt loops, fiddling with the button of his henley. Bucky’s lips pressing a kiss to your temple, the toes of his boots bumping with your bright sneakers, a gentle hand to your hips as the door opens behind you.

Arriving in the city under shy moonlight, a short walk gets to your little building.

The apartment is thankfully empty and you promptly read him a note from your roommates with a coy glance, no company at all until Sunday night as they’re out to a short trip upstate with a group of friends.

To take advantage of your momentary privacy, a little make-out might happen in the kitchen counter as you wait for a pizza. And it might happen again on the couch as you catch Bucky up to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off on Netflix. Just maybe on your single bed too, with his broad frame making a cute sight as he barely fits to your mattress.

You’re a good kind of tired when falling asleep in Bucky’s arms a few hours later.

Bucky’s completely at peace when falling asleep with you in his arms.

Lucky ones.

[littlemisssquiggles]

Pinehead Headcanons: Oscar’s Surrender

tomecko replied to your post “Do you think that based off the end credits scene in volume 6 that we...”

Oh man, but what if they lay siege to Atlas to demand Ozpin be handed over, and everyone else swears to Oscar that they'll protect him, but Oscar sees the damage the Beringels are doing to innocent civilians and nobly surrenders himself?

Squiggles Answers:

That’s actually the idea I had in mind @tomecko. But now that I think about it a little more, I’ve got a better idea. You see I sort of imagined it as Salem sending forth a couple of flying Beringels into the city to prove a point. Though the heroes managed to take down the Beringels, as I recall from the RWBY Volume 4 Character Short, the Beringels are quite the adversary and their feral ferocity make them a challenge in battle as we saw with Ruby.

The heroes take down the first small flock of Beringels and even managed to capture one since, let’s say the Atlesians wanted to experiment on the things since they’ve never seen a species of Grimm like the winged Beringels before since they’re used to them not having wings.

While in custody, Salem speaks to the heroes through the captive Beringel. Through her beast, Salem makes a threat to Atlas that if they don’t surrender Ozpin meaning Oscar to her forces she will destroy all of Atlas. Picture an army of not thousands of Beringels but millions just lingering on the outskirts of Atlas waiting for Salem to give the command.

Picture the Atlesian air forces spotting a couple of them first on the outer borders and immediately inform General Ironwood. Naturally, Ironwood retaliates and orders his air forces to take down the few Beringels spotted. However, unfortunately for Ironwood, that is exactly what Salem anticipated he would do because the instant his soldiers moved in, the Beringels suddenly multiplied revealing their devastating high numbers. To the horror of Ironwood and the heroes who were observing the scene through some kind of Atlesian holographic telecommunication device., the Beringels easily decimated the forces with the slightest of ease.

It is then when Salem returns to her threat. She informs the General that all of Atlas will befall the same fate unless Oscar is given up. And to make matters worse, she gives them a timeline. 3 days.

The number three is significant with the winged monkeys since they could be summoned three times with the Golden Cap. So Salem slaps Atlas with 3 days---72 hours to give up Oscar otherwise Atlas will fall.

Obviously the three days pass and Atlas prepares itself to fight. But of course, all of it is done in vain. The minute Oscar witnessed all the destruction caused to the people by Beringels and all the pain inflicted on his comrades who all went down trying to protect him, it is only when a Beringel threatened to take Qrow’s life right before Oscar’s eyes when he finally yelled for Salem to stop.

‘You win,’ Oscar says, ‘I…surrender’

So Oscar gives himself up. But as the Beringel take Oscar, Ruby tries to save him but gets blindsided by Tyrian Callows who comes in and stings her from behind.

It is then when Salem remembered that she also wanted the Silver Eyed girl and demands that she be taken as well. The last thing Ruby remembers is seeing Atlas under fire, her friends divided up and nowhere in sight to help her, the bloodied and slowly dying bodies of her uncle and Ironwood lying helplessly on the group and Oscar’s shrill screams calling out to her before she fell unconscious.

When Ruby finally came to, she woke up inside a steel cage. She is visited by Tyrian who informed her of how lucky she was that his goddess wanted her alive. Turns out Tyrian had only stung her enough to knock her out, not poison her.

Ruby then demands where Oscar is only to have Tyrian laugh in her face. He doesn’t tell her where he is but he at least let’s her know that he’s with her …locked somewhere else indicating that Oscar was being held in a separate cage in another part of the ship.

I’m picturing Tyrian getting a real kick out of taunting Ruby while she’s imprisoned. He even has Crescent Rose which he pilfered from Ruby as a souvenir seeing as the Silver Eyed girl wasn’t going to be needing her trademark weapon where she was going.

Tyrian also had the Oz-cane in his possession as well. He took both kids’ weapons as trinkets of his conquest. Even if we did get a Dark Domain Arc with the Rosebuds, I don’t exactly want Ruby and Oscar to be stranded without their weapons or at least I can’t see the CRWBY Writers being this ballsy.

Apart from weapons and a semblance, Ruby and Oscar are the two huntsmen with their own ability unique to them. Ruby has her silver eyes and Oscar has magic. While watching an entire season of Ruby and Oscar learning to fight without their weapons while honing and mastering complete control of their individual abilities would be cool; again I feel like the Writers are more expected the pull the almighty power of convenience and have the villains take their weapons after capturing them.

Of course, Ruby manages to outsmart Tyrian and escape her cage. I like the idea of Ruby pulling the ole fake out. She makes Tyrian believe that she escaped which forces Tyrian to inspect the cage thoroughly and while he’s off guard, Ruby falls from the ceiling, tussles with Tyrian, grabs Crescent Rose and the Oz-cane in the process and locks Tyrians in the cage in her place in one go.

After that, Ruby goes in search of Oscar. She finds the poor boy curled up locked inside a cell in a room not too far from Ruby’s. You can imagine the look of sheer relief on Oscar’s face seeing Ruby’s equally relieved face smiling before him. So much so that Oscar nearly tackles Ruby to the ground as the two best friends embraced each other.

However, the Rosebuds’ reunion is cut short as Tyrian, who had escaped his cell, returns. Long story short, Tyrian and the Rosebuds have a confrontation on the ship which results in the controls getting damaged; sending it plummeting to the grounds before the Dark Domain.

Fortunately Ruby and Oscar manage to make a daring jump before the plane crashed. Using the magic of the Oz-cane, Oscar conjures a bubble shield which protects him and Ruby and Oscar managed to land them safely on the ground. Although the two survived the plane crash, they are far from celebrating.

Picture… Ruby and Oscar standing on the edge of a cliff overlooking a desert wasteland---a blood red sky hanging above them and the petrifying screams of Grimm in the distance. It is in this moment, the two realize that they are no longer in Atlas anymore.

Picture… the camera focusing on Ruby and Oscar’s hands as Ruby’s reassuring hands reaches out to take Oscar’s trembling ones as the realization of the perilous journey they were about to take together.

And cut to black. Volume ends.

The after credit scene is Tyrian’s bloodied body crawling out of the wreckage of the airship. Although he had managed to survive too, he was in very poor shape with one of his arms even broken beyond healing. But just as Tyrian thought his luck couldn’t get any worse, he runs into the winged Beringels. The creatures all swarm themselves around Tyrian, perched upon rocks looking down at him  scolding him in silence.

Like before, Salem consults Tyrian through the Beringels. She demands that he tells her where the children were. Where were Ozpin’s vessel and the Silver Eyed girl? Of course Tyrian is forced to inform Salem that he had lost the children. For a second time, he had failed her.

I can see this going one of two ways for Tyrian---either Salem could kill him off then and there or…do the purposefully heartless thing. Turn her back on Tyrian. As evidenced by V4, Salem’s disappointment is a far worst punishment for Tyrian than any kind of brutal beating.

Imagine how broken Tyrian would feel if Salem completely disowned him; informing him that she no longer required his services and that he was never to return to her side. Imagine how Tyrian would feel if his goddess abandoned him. Tyrian already seems to have a couple of screws loose held together by a very thin thread which is his undying loyalty Salem.

If Salem leaves Tyrian out and hurt in the cold, that could send him off the deep end which would make him a very deadly threat should he find Ruby and Oscar again. Especially Ruby. If Tyrian didn’t want to kill Ruby before, he’d certainly wish to kill her now especially since he wouldn’t have Salem holding him back by a leash anymore.

That could be really exciting. Salem sending her Beringels to recapture the kids with a psychotic and bloodthirsty Tyrian Callows also hunting them down for revenge are just two ideas for the things that could threaten Ruby and Oscar in a Dark Domain Arc.

But of course…y’know, these are just my ideas. We can only wait and see what the Writers have in store for us going forward. But it would be cool to see something like this done, if possible.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2019)

[pomegranate-belle]

For Day 3 of MattFoggy Week: Matt Murdock Appreciation/Favorite Matt Moment

This is... Kinda late in the day to post, but I waffled for a long time. The next chapter of the Netflix/616 crossover would’ve been perfect for today’s theme, but it’s just not done yet. Instead, have some little bits and pieces from my WIP for the Marvel TV Bang, including one of my favorite Matt moments (who could choose just one??) aka Baby’s First Act of Vigilantism; apologies to the mods if these are still supposed to be anonymous but I figured that was just for art claims purposes--

((The premise of this fic is that NYC summons Matt to protect itself from Fisk (also a demon). Since the City has no soul of its own to sell, it lets Matt choose any person he wants. ;) Three guesses who the lucky winner ends up being--))

--

When Matthew Murdock dies, his hands are inches from the throat of the man who ordered his father’s murder, close enough that he can feel Roscoe Sweeney’s body heat against the pads of his fingers, pulsing like blood. They get no closer than that.

He takes a single bullet to the base of his skull, and can still feel the burn of it when he no longer has a skull to feel at all.

Matthew Murdock falls through the cracks, the way he always has. His body is destroyed beyond recognition and dumped without ceremony or care into the East River. There’s no one to miss him. No one to wonder if his soul has passed on.

It hasn’t.

The devil in him claws to the surface, clings to the City, clings to revenge, laughs at the way the City – webbed with energy and darkness and pain like a cracked windowpane – clings back. And even when the rest falls away, all the senses that remain falling silent with no input at all, there’s a piece the City in Matt and a piece of Matt in the City. A seed of each one in the other, a place where they’re the same – ravenous, protective, wounded.

And so perhaps in the end that’s the reason – the reason that, eleven years later when the City feels its first stirrings of true fear, it pulls Matthew Murdock out of the nothing, out of the void, out of the Ether. Draws him like a blade from that empty realm of demons and offers him anything he asks for.

--

The first thing he hears as he gasps in his first breath is screaming. Everything screaming. Himself, screaming. Every sense warring with the unprecedented, sudden onslaught of information. It’s like being blinded all over again.

… All over again.

Because he was. Blind. Before, yes. Before the aching gulf of nothing, before the Ether. Before it, he’d been… He’d been…

Matthew, the City seems to sing, soothing him from its barrage of sounds and smells and textures. Matthew Michael Murdock.

Yes. It all comes back to him, leeching through him like blood through veins – Jack Murdock, the accident, the orphanage, Stick… The mobsters.

The gun.

One shaking hand reaches for the back of his neck, but there’s no scar beneath his sensitive fingertips. Just soft skin and the wispy, silken brush of hair. The City has made him whole again. Bright and shiny and new.

And older. He must… He must be older, he thinks to himself, because he had been only seventeen when he died and he feels sturdier, a little taller than he did then. When Matt rubs a hand across his face, shakily assessing the differences in his body, he feels the itchy rasp of stubble where before there had been nothing but smooth skin.

The clothes he’s wearing are different too, not the simple, threadbare things he’d had on – hand-me-downs from the orphanage. Instead, the fabric against his skin is soft, gentle. High in quality, fitted like a dream. A button-up shirt, a silk tie, a suit jacket and slacks. Dress shoes. There are a pair of glasses perched on his nose. He pulls them off slowly, runs the pad of his thumb along the edge of the frames. Round. Matt slips them back onto his face. He tries to imagine the picture he makes. Professional, maybe. Like the lawyer his dad always wanted him to be.

A strange, contented feeling fills him that he knows is not his own. It’s the City, taking pride in its work, telling him, Look what We have made of you, feel the strength We have given you. And there is strength. A well of power so deep it almost scares him, thrumming under his skin, between muscle and bone.

The power of a demon.

Because that’s what he is now, he realizes with a shudder. A demon. One of the more-than-human creatures that stalk the streets of the City, that leave black Marks on the skin of the people living in it like dirty fingerprints.

The City has always had demons in it, and they have always had magic, but this? It’s beyond anything Matt recalls hearing about as a child or a young man. What he’s been given is fathomless. He could do anything with this power. Rip the world apart and put it back together.

But even with so much magic at his beck and call, he’s— cold. It’s like a hunger but it aches in his fingers and his heart instead of his belly. He… Needs something. Something…

The asphalt is warm under his feet, hums with life and energy, but not enough. The City can’t give Matt what he needs. What he needs…

That’s right, he thinks to himself. That’s right. A soul. He needs a soul. But even if the City is full of souls, it doesn’t have one of its own to keep Matt warm.

What warmth it does have surrounds Matt, strokes a summer breeze against his cheek and says— It’s ok. Choose one. Any one you want is yours, if you do as We ask.

And Matt is so desperately hungry for that warmth, and he loves his City – remembers, from Before, having always loved it, having learned that love from his father and from the people around him – that he says yes without any hesitation at all.

The deal is struck.

The City needs a protector, and Matt needs a soul, and then… Then the screams inside them both will stop.

--

It’s not long into his summoning that Matt hears the girl crying. Every night, crying. Her father comes into her room at night, and terrible things happen, and she cries.

The City is used to those sobs, even if it doesn’t like them. To Matt, though, they’re grating. They fray his nerves, rub them raw. But this isn’t in his deal, this isn’t part of the plan.

Still, it… It doesn’t always take demon magic to fix the world’s problems. Matt phones in an anonymous tip. He waits, he hopes.

The crying doesn’t stop. It actually gets worse – silent and gasping and painful. Helpless rage burns in his stomach like cold fire, only enhancing the chills that shiver through his body. But there is nothing he can do, no part of this that he can wrestle under the heading of the City’s deal. And the City is used to the crying, even when it hates it. It has to live with every person in it, the girl’s father included – the City doesn’t love him, but he’s still a part of it, one flickering flame among millions. And the only ones Matt is allowed to harm are the ones the City summoned him to. There’s no cruelty to the way it ushers Matt far from the girl’s window, but it still hurts. Aches inside him like a festering wound that Matt worries will never be healed.

Until the girl does something new. Until the night that she sets a book, dank with mildew, on her bedroom floor with a heavy thump. Scribbles something into the wood of the floorboards in firm strokes of what must be, by smell and sound, chalk. Dark energy fizzles in the air that night, a summoning to be done, a deal to be made. A deal born of vengeance and terror and the desperation of a child betrayed. A deal that sings for him. And Matt is clever, and he’s powerful, and he’s the City’s favorite. The deal is his almost before he can think to ask for it.

--

Matt’s hands are wrapped with cloth but the man’s blood seeps through them. It’s hot and soothing against his skin. He wants to bathe in it, use it to drive away the chill that still haunts his bones. When Matt flashes his victim a smile, his teeth are fangs and there are huge, twisted horns sprouting from his skull.

“Touch your daughter again and I’ll know,” Matt breathes, pressing a burning hand to the man’s jaw and leaving behind his Mark; a warning, a brand – equal and opposite to the one hidden beneath his daughter’s sleeve, a jagged mirror of Matt’s Mark that flares with malevolence instead of protection. “Touch her again and you die.”

“W-who are you?” the man demands, terror laced through every breath.

Demons don’t have names. Don’t remember them. They choose new ones, when they surface. And even though the City returned his name to him, Matt knows what he wants to say. Knows the message he wants to send this man and anyone like him.

Those Murdock boys, he remembers his grandmother saying, can almost remember the way the wrinkles creased her face, they got the Devil in ‘em. There’s nothing in Matt now – not even a soul – so he knows there’s no Devil in him.

Matt grins, savors the stinging, already-healing pain of the split in his lip.

“Me? I’m the Devil.”

And as long as that means he can keep the City safe, keep people like Eva safe… Well, Matt’s just fine with that.

--

Karen’s companion smells heady and sweet, enough that Matt can almost taste it on his tongue. Enough that his fingers twitch with desire when he considers burying his nose in the man’s neck to better inhale his scent. Even more alluringly, the man’s soul swirls with magic – Matt is put in mind of photos of the galaxy that he saw as a child. It’s blazingly warm, like sunlight on the skin, and it dances when the man laughs a perfect, glittering laugh. A tremble born of arousal, of hunger, chases its way through Matt’s body at the sound.

 --

“Are, um,” Karen asks hesitantly. “Are demon Marks always black?”

“What kind of question is that?”

The stranger sounds puzzled, concerned, and the tone of his voice – so full of care, love – sends another shiver of pleasure down Matt’s spine. He wants that tone with a greed that borders on terrifying. Wants it directed at himself.

“Well.” Karen’s voice breaks Matt out of the trance. “Well, say one was… Red. What might that mean?”

The rhythm of the man’s steps stutters, halts.

“Karen, I have literally never heard of a red Mark in my life. Is there… Something you want to tell me? You didn’t, you know, make a deal or something, did you?”

“No!” Karen lies. “No. Just, you know, curious, I suppose.”

“Right.” Her companion doesn’t sound at all convinced. “Well, you know… You know you can tell me anything, right?”

“Yeah, Foggy, of course. Of course I do. Really, it’s nothing.”

 --

Foggy, Matt mouths to himself, feels the shape of the name on his tongue. Foggy Nelson. It’s… Silly. Whimsical, and gentle, and sweet. Like the man it belongs to. Perfect.

Franklin Percy Nelson, the City purrs proudly – first-middle-last with no hesitation, not even considering the power that name could give Matt over the man strolling, unaware, down the street below him. The power to break free of any spell he casts, to thwart any exorcism he attempts… Even to bewitch or enchant him. It’s an intimate knowledge, but it’s not one Matt wants from the City – it’s not something he wants to use or exploit.

And anyway, he… He likes ‘Foggy’ better than Franklin.

But while Matt might be— enamored, he’s not a fool. Very rarely is anything as it seems at first— Er. Well. Matt isn’t much for glancing. But the point is that people aren’t always what they seem. And as much as he doesn’t want to think that this could be the case with Foggy… Matt’s not used to good things falling into his lap. He wants to be sure, to be absolutely certain, before he makes his choice.

He’s got a little recon to do. The City seems amused with he whole thing, and it doesn’t protest. Actually even seems eager to find out what Matt will do next. He takes this show of interest as the gift it is, and temporarily shifts his focus, from the City’s deal to Foggy.

[realityhelixcreates]

Lasabrjotr Chapter 10: Put Your Foot Down

Chapters: 10/? Fandom: Thor (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe Rating: Teen And Up Warnings: Appearance of a (fake) snake (Fnake?) Relationships: Loki x Reader (But not yet) Characters: Loki (Marvel), Thor (Marvel), OFC, Brunnhilde/Valkyrie(Marvel), Pepper Pots, Steve Rogers/ Captain America Additional Tags: Post-Endgame: Best Possible Ending, Loki is Not Acting Like a Responsible Prince Right Now, Reader Fights Back, Brunnhilde Approves, Time for a Check In  Summary: Loki is reminded that Reader is not a subject of Asgard, and Doesn’t Enjoy It, pranks are played, Andsvarr is as earnest as ever, and Captain America has some advice

“And the Aether was one of the stones, only in liquid form?” You asked. “That’s just a thing that can happen?”

“It was the Reality stone, so yeah, I guess so.”

“And it was just…inside a person. Like blood. “

“I don’t know how it happened, I was across the universe at the time. Ask Loki, he was there.” Brunnhilde closed the book she had been reading to you from, hiding a terrifying picture of a being labeled ‘Kurse’. “I was under the impression that you might know about her. She’s a mortal lady, and she had a thing with the king for a little while.”

“Well…I might have heard of her, but I don’t really follow celebrity gossip, you know? It seems kinda skeevy.”

Brunnhilde laughed. “Girl, I’ve seen skeevy. I’ve been skeevy! You want skeevy, I could tell you some stories that would…probably scar you for life, actually. So never mind.”

“Look, I just don’t understand how ‘ Picture-Taking Creepo Stalker’ is a legal profession when it comes to celebrities, but a literal crime when it comes to everyone else.” You shrugged. “I hate that kind of double standard, and I won’t support it.”

“In that case, never leave the city with the prince at your side.” Brunnhilde warned. “There are some pretty obsessive people hanging out around the city, and we don’t know for sure what they might be capable of.”

“Hey, I met some of those people. And I can’t really argue with you, I guess. One of them was really nice! Like, above and beyond nice. And I’m sure most of them are. But there were some mean ones too. I, uh, I don’t think you’d get along with their crowd.”

“If by ‘get along’ you mean ‘crush under my heel’ then yeah, probably.”

“Yeah, probably.” You echoed. A bunch of campers probably didn’t stand much chance against a warrior goddess, no matter how much umbrage some of them might take with her skin color.

“I kinda miss them though.” Other humans. People who understood your world, and who couldn’t snap your bones by grabbing you too hard.

“Even the mean ones?”

“Ehh, well, I can’t say I feel all that sorry for that guy. He was really rude to me. But Loki taught him a hard lesson, and I can only hope he learned something from it.”

“Rather like the hard lessons the Svartalfari taught us, for our past invasion attempts.” Brunnhilde grabbed another book, opening it to a specially marked page. “Ha, you see what I did there?”

“I did. Very clever. So what am I looking at? I can’t read it.”

“Oh right. Well, this is Svartalfari writing on this page, and the Asgardian translation on the opposite page.  I can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but I wish Loki was here. His projections are very useful , since you can’t read any of this.”

Loki slid around a bookcase. “I heard that.” He purred smugly.

Brunnhilde groaned and rolled her eyes, dropping her face into her hands.

“Norns, cut my string.” She begged. “Well, since you’re here, care to pull up Svartalfheim?”

“Perhaps later. For now, _____ come with me. You are to use our computer, and contact this forum of yours-“

“No.” You said.

There was a moment of silence.

“What?” Loki asked, incredulous. A look of glee spread across the Valkyrie’s face.

“I said no.” Maybe it was a bad idea to challenge him so abruptly like this, but the imperious tone he’d been using raised your hackles. Ordering you around was not a habit you could allow him to get into.

“What’s brought this on?” He demanded, indignant.

“There’s just no call to talk to me like that, that’s all.”

He slid onto the bench next to you, graceful as a panther, and projecting just as much danger. You glared straight into his eyes, watching his expression fill with irritation. And just like that, you were in a stand-off.

“You are not my equal.” He said, voice velvety and threatening. Don’t back down now, don’t back down…

“I’m not.” You said calmly. You dealt with irate customers all the time. All you had to do was keep a calm façade. “But I’m also not your subject or your servant. I’m not even your employee. Therefore, I decide what orders I obey. It’s not going to be all of them, no matter what you want.”

He looked completely taken aback. Clearly, he had been getting too used to your obedience. Nip it in the bud.

His stare was getting a little too intense. You looked away, just to see Brunnhilde practically sprawled across the table, chin balanced in her palms. Her delighted expression only brightened as she noticed your attention, gaze spearing Loki as she silently dared him to do anything.

“Fine.” He huffed. “Since you are being so particular, I don’t suppose you’d at least tell me why you won’t contact them? I assume it’s more than just a sudden burst of childish contrariness?”

Brunnhilde snorted.

“I can’t contact them because I’ve been blocked on the forums. You know, kicked out? Banished? Because of you. I can’t even access the pages. And you can’t make an account. You’re the reason they shunned me, you think they’ll talk to you? These people are paranoid, your Highness, they’re conspiracy theorists. Some of them have been institutionalized because of what they remember, and the rest are afraid that the same will be done to them. Not only do they have to live with the terrible things they remember, but they have to fear what might be done to them because of it.”

“I can provide them validation. Confirm that what they remember was real, and give them an explanation.” He pointed out, but you shook your head.

“They aren’t going to trust you, and you can’t reason with someone if they don’t trust you. And I can’t reach them anymore. The security footage from my work has gone viral. Anyone I talk to is going to think that you’re holding me hostage and making me say whatever you want.”

“Ugh, you really are useless!”

“Your reputation is not my fault. And besides, what are you even going to do with them? Tell them they all might be magic? And then what? You wanna teach them magic things? Where are you going to house them? Do you have a school? Are you just going to hunt down and kidnap the ones who don’t want to come? What’s your plan?”

“All I asked-“

“Ordered.”

“-was that you contact them. I never said I was going to go on a people-snatching rampage!”

“Google your name right now! You are already famous for doing exactly that!”

“To save your life!” He shouted.

“Nobody knows that!” You shouted back.

He threw his hands into the air. “Enough! I’m leaving! Stay and see if you can’t learn something through your burgeoning contrariety, I’ll be seeking out reasonable company!”

He stormed away through the library, ignoring the attention he’d brought on himself. The library doors weren’t the kind that could be slammed, but he made a spirited try.

You blew out a long breath, willing your heart to stop pounding. Brunnhilde actually giggled.

“That was delightful.” She praised.

“I’m so dead.” You moaned. “My stupid temper always gets me in trouble. I’m a goddamn adult, why can’t I keep my mouth shut?”

“You’re pretty when you’re mad.” She pointed out. “Not everyone’s so lucky. Besides, he’s just pissed because he mistook a few days of you being mostly obedient due to shock, as you two getting along perfectly.”

“He’s gonna kick my ass. Not literally, probably. He doesn’t seem like the kind to punch a woman for disobedience, but somehow…”

“Yeah, you’re pretty much guaranteed to find a snake in your bed tonight.” She agreed.

“Joke’s on him; I like snakes.”

“Do you really? Well, allow me to teach you about the supermassive black hole we’ve described as ‘gnawing the roots of Yggdrasil’. It’s swallowed multiple galaxies, and shows no signs of stopping. And so, we have named it Niddhogg…”

                                                                                      *****

 The snake was not in your bed, but in your bath; very large, and very green, it circled the entire tub. You paused upon seeing it, unsure if it was real. Were there any snakes in Iceland? You would say it was too cold, but you had seen common garden snakes in the snow before, and it was perfectly warm in here.

You finally decided that it could not be real. It was far too big to have gotten in without being seen. You stepped past it into the water. It hissed, and then disappeared into a sparkle of green light.

The next one might be real though.

However, if simple little pranks like that were all you received in revenge for flouting the prince, you could handle it.

The shampoo fizzled oddly as you massaged your scalp. Your hair would smell like him against your pillow, something that still made you uncomfortable.

You hadn’t gone to dinner, just asked for a sandwich to be sent to the library while you tried to make sense of the illustrations you’d been shown. You had never gotten around to finishing the lesson on Svartalfheim.

You still had to wear his bathrobes. Everything here was his. You had to make sure you didn’t get added to the collection.

Passing his long mirror, you noticed that the fizzing shampoo had done something drastic to your hair.

It was green.

Fury rose in you, but you stamped it down. He wanted you to react. Yes, you were disgusted that he had physically altered your body without your permission, but if you just didn’t react, he might give up. Or he might try to do even worse things.

You went straight to bed after your bath, but found that your blankets held no warmth.

What a little bastard.

                                                                                   *****

The next day found you tired, cold, and stiff, with dark circles under your eyes. Your hair was still green. Saldis very kindly said nothing about any of this when she brought your clothes and breakfast. More tasty oatmeal, and more conspicuous green and black clothing.

“Any more books?” You asked.

She shook her head. “Nothing new, I’m afraid. Is there anything else I can get for you instead?”

“Well, I don’t want to ask for too much, but if you have any art supplies lying around…”

“I’ll see what I can scrounge up. I know for sure we have plenty of pencils and paper. Seems like we are in a new era of kingship, where great battles are won on paper and with words. I prefer it, but don’t tell anyone I said so. My mother and father are too fond of their swords.”

“Not much call for sword battles around here anymore.”

“Let’s hope it stays that way. But just in case it does not, my parents still know how to swing theirs. Need any help with dressing?”

“Oh, no. I can definitely put on my own clothes.” You refrained from mentioning your wrongful placement of the jewelry earlier. “But while I’m dressing, could you tell me about yourself? “

And tell me if I’m wearing something wrong?

“Not all that much to tell, really. My mother is a palace servant, my father a guardsman. It’s a pretty common arrangement. I have mediocre swordmanship, but I’m very good at multitasking, so it was pretty obvious who I took more after. I went into training for the palace just after my schooling was completed.”

“Servants go to school too?” You asked.

“Certainly. Didn’t you?”

“Oh yeah, twelve years of it. But it wasn’t always like that. I think public schooling for everyone is pretty recent. And I’m not sure every country has it.”

“Well, we do. The law was set into place by Allfather Borr, about fifty thousand years ago. If I’m counting Midgardian years correctly.”

“Fifty thousand? “ You almost shouted. “But wasn’t he Loki-er, the Prince’s grandfather? He fought with the Vanir? It was that long ago?”

“Oh, have you been learning our history? That’s great! Yes, he was king before Allfather Odin, and he did a lot of great things. Pacifying and making reparations to the Vanir was one of them. Good thing too; they may not be as powerful as us, but they live even longer, so their memories don’t fade quickly. No one holds a grudge like a Vanir.”

You finished dressing and held your arms out from your sides for inspection. She declared you adequate, but decided to finish you up with some braids.

It turned out that Saldis was a braiding master. She knew dozens of ways to braid, for all hair lengths and textures.

Even though your hair was still green, and you still had sleep-sunken eyes, you felt fresher and less stiff. The breakfast helped tremendously. You almost felt presentable when you stepped out of your room.

Loki was in the small library again, still studying the Alfar book. He glanced at you briefly, smug smile crossing his features as he took in your green hair.

Don’t react.

“Will I be having more lessons today?” You asked.

“Not with me.” He said. “And likely not with Brunnhilde either. We’re both busy.”

“Oh. Nothing at all for me to do then?”

“Just stay put and be patient. Perhaps contact your captain, so that he doesn’t start thinking you’re trapped in my evil clutches, or some nonsense.”

Am I not?

“Sure. Do I just…you said there was a computer? I guess I could make a skype call or something. Do I need an escort?”

“Of course you do. You’re you. If I send you out on your own you’ll probably end up in Newfoundland.”

“It was one time!” You protested. “And it was your guards that kicked me out, might I remind you!”

“Speaking of…Andsvarr.” He called, and the young guard poked his head in. Loki spoke to him in their own language, lovely flowing sounds both foreign and soothing. Andsvarr nodded, bowed, then indicated that you should follow him.

“You speak with friends, yes? “ He asked on the way down the corridors. “Tell good times here?”

“Yeah, it hasn’t been bad so far. Kinda weird, but not bad. I feel like I should be freaking out a bit more than I am, but I’ve had it pointed out that I might be kinda in shock, which I guess makes sense.”

“Ah! Slow! Please.” Andsvarr begged, flipping through his little book. “Please. What ‘freaking’? Do not see.”

“Oh, sorry!” Loki had said he learned fast, but that didn’t mean he knew it all yet. Frankly, you were impressed he knew as much as he did in such a short time. You could barely pick out ‘yes’ or ‘no’ in Asgardian. “That means to be scared. So much, you can’t think.”

“Scared, yes. You are?”

“I should be. More than I am, anyway. Maybe it just hasn’t come yet.”

“I will guard.” Andsvarr promised, and you smiled. What a sweet kid.

He led you into a little room, flanked on both sides by more guards, who only let you pass after you held out your hand, and Andsvarr explained what you were to do here. You assumed, anyway. One of them left before the other opened the door.

Inside the room were a few chairs, and one completely average computer, the kind you used to use at school.

“King knows how to work it.” Andsvarr said. “We wait for him now.”

You grinned wide, and poked the power button. Andsvarr gasped as the machine booted up.

“Midgardian technology.” You explained. “I grew up with this.”

He slapped his forehead. “Yes!” He laughed.

“You will still need my password, I’m afraid.” Thor said, stepping into the room. How did a man so large make so little noise? Andsvarr bowed deeply.

“You’re Alarr’s boy, aren’t you?” Thor asked. Andsvarr answered quickly and nervously, gesturing at you. You thought you heard Loki’s name in the flow of unfamiliar words.

“Oh, really? Well, good for you! It can be very difficult, not following your fathers path, but you seem to be doing quite well for yourself.”

Something strange was going on here. Andsvarr didn’t understand that much English, spoken that fast, but he seemed to understand Thor just fine. You didn’t know why the king was using your language to talk to one of his own people.

Thor typed in his password, and you started up the video call on your own. Both men hovered on the periphery, waiting to see what happened. It was amusing, but you didn’t want whoever picked up to think you were being monitored for content.

The screen lit up with the face of a lovely ginger lady.

“Well!” She said. “You’re not the king of Asgard.”

“Definitely not.”

“But I am.” Thor leaned over your shoulder. Greetings, Lady Potts, are Tony or Steve available? We have business.”

“So I’ve heard. You must be _____ _______.”

“Yes ma’am. I’m supposed to check in every week. So here I am!”

Andsvarr asked something.

“New York. It’s a city in a country across the sea.” Thor answered.

Andsvarr asked something else.

“No, their technology comes from a different source. It’s mostly electricity based.”

“Let me go get Steve.”

“Hey, what’s going on with that?” You asked while she was gone. “You’re talking to him, but in English?”

“It’s not English. Literally everything can understand me when I speak, if I want them to. It comes with being Asgardian royalty. Loki can do it too, but he doesn’t always use the ability. He likes keeping a few secrets.”

He would want to be able to say things you couldn’t understand. Give orders you wouldn’t know about. Set up things without you being able to see it coming.

 Captain America-Steve Rogers appeared on the screen. Your insides filled with butterflies. Here was your favorite hero, once again! He wasn’t even wearing his mask.

“Good morning. Mrs. Potts tells me you’re here for your check in? Hello Thor. Young man.”

Andsvarr looked at Thor, who grinned genuinely.

“Good to see you again! Keeping busy? You see we are keeping up our end of the bargain.”

“I see. Look, not to be rude, but could you and your man-“

“Get the Hel out? I figured it would be like that. If you have time for a chat afterwards…?”

“Actually, I do. We really need to catch up.”

Thor agreed, and led Andsvarr out.

“How are you doing?”

“So much better than I was. You said you guys contacted my dad? He told you I was sick, right? Like, barely able to get out of bed, sick?”

“Yes, he did say that.”

“We’ve figured out part of what caused it.”

“Did it have something with your meeting with Loki about six months ago?”

“Er, yeah. I wouldn’t call it a meeting really, I didn’t know it was him at the time. All of that really was an accident. But hey, do you know anything about magic?”

“If you’re expecting me to say I don’t believe in it, I can’t. Seen too much.”

“Well, that makes talking about this a bit easier then. It turns out I can do magic. Or I will be able to do magic, once I learn how.”

You explained nearly everything to him, save for your remembrance of the Tragedy that Never Was, and your conflicting thoughts about Loki-those fears were not yet founded and didn’t need bringing up.

He had messages from your father and Tara, from your coworkers. You cried a little at that point, missing them all, even your old job. Then you had to reassure him that you were fine, being treated well, that no one had caused you any harm. He had a lot of questions about Loki, most of which you couldn’t answer. Somehow, neither him, nor anyone else had offered any comment on your green hair.

“Are you comfortable with showing me this mark?” He asked you, and you nodded, holding out your hand. At least the damn thing wasn’t in some embarrassing place. “We can do some research as well, just in case Loki isn’t entirely on the level about helping you out. How has it been affecting you?”

“The past few days I’ve been mostly just eating and sleeping a whole lot. I look healthier now, but it’s not all me. There’s some kind of…energy transfer, I guess? I don’t really understand it yet, but I guess I’m kinda leeching energy from Loki right now. Probably will be until I get healthy on my own again. But that’s the real reason I can’t leave. If I get too far away from him, I get sick again. I’ve already tested this; it’s true.”

“Experimental medical procedure?”

“Very experimental. But I’m okay here, I really am. No one has been cruel to me. Even Loki has been…tolerable at worst, pretty decent mostly.”

“He’s unpredictable.” He warned.

“I know. I’ve seen a bit of it. But I haven’t been hurt. I think maybe you might talk to Thor about that a little? Stuff might have happened out in space, you know?”

“Is that your way of saying you’re done talking to me?”

“Sorry! I just don’t have anything else to report. But these are good people here. Different, but good. So far, everyone’s been so kind to me, and they really didn’t have to be. I’m just some stranger their prince brought home, after all. But they’ve all been really responsible and nice. So like, if there’s ever anything that can be done for them-“

“Don’t worry about that. Thor has allies here, and all the Nordic countries have acted very positively towards this new Asgard. They have support. You just see to yourself. Make sure to tell us if anything causes you trouble, anything at all. I don’t doubt that these are good people-mostly. But they are not human, and they may not all see you as a life worth valuing. Loki himself might change his mind at any time. I’m sure Thor will try to keep him under control, but he has not always succeeded at that.”

‘I’ve been known to change my mind on less than a whim.’

“I’ll try to keep it in mind.”

“You do that, Miss. I’ll talk to you again in about a week.”

You nodded and said your goodbyes, then you went and fetched Thor, leaving him to talk, while Andsvarr escorted you back to Loki’s rooms.

[fandom-blerd-life]

Black Lightning 1.12: This time baby I’ll be...bulletproof!

Last weekend, I (along with about 4,000 other people) had the pleasure of attending the second annual Clexacon. To say it was one of the best weekends of my life would be doing it a disservice. I actually don’t know if I have the words to adequately sum up how deeply my soul was touched by that weekend. Being surrounded by so many friends with similar interests, in a safe place where we were free to just...be. It was life-changing. On the Saturday of the con, I was lucky enough to meet Nafessa Williams. That’s right, I hugged Anissa. Let me tell you, she is the real deal. She gets it. She understands how important this role is. She knows that representation matters. I don’t remember everything I said to her, but I thanked her for the impact she has had on my life and on the lives of so many girls who look up to Thunder. We are so lucky to have her, y’all.

And now..the penultimate episode of the first season of Black Lightning!

Previously on Black Lightning, Khalil got shot and was paralyzed, Tobias offered to help Khalil get revenge on Black Lightning, La La walked around undead, Anissa discovered that the missing kids were being kept in a suspended state in pods, and Jennifer got even more powerful.

Oh hello there Tobias, it’s been awhile! The last time we saw Tobias, he was nursing injuries caused by Black Lightning. This time, he’s fine and well, with just a few burn marks as memories of that fight. He goes to see Martin Proctor who appears to have nursed Tobias back to health. Now that Lady Eve is gone, there’s an opening for the leader of the streets. Proctors explains yet again about the vaccine, that its purpose was to control the citizens of Freeland, but OOPS they accidentally turned some folks into metas. The problem with their test subjects however, was that they kept dying. So what did they do? They tweaked the formula and created Green Light. Unlike the other subjects, Black Lightning received the vaccine but he didn’t die. Proctor needs to know why, so he instructs Tobias to bring Black Lightning to him alive. But he won’t be alone. Proctor finished some project that Tobias was working on and HOLY SHIT IT’S KHALIL AND HE CAN WALK (also he has super long dreads now?)!!

At the house, Lynn calls Jeff because she needs his help. There’s an emergency and he needs to get there right away and LOL just kidding! Lynn is waiting in some lingerie with romantic music playing. While they kiss, lightning courses through Jefferson and he transfers it to Lynn. They’re electric, y’all! (I’m so sorry)

In bed, Jeff wants to know why Lynn changed her mind about the two of them getting back together. She realized that when Black Lightning came back, she expected their family to be torn apart, but she feels closer to him than ever before. They two decide that they’re not going to tell the girls yet. Not until they’re sure. Because THAT always works out…

As Jefferson drives through Freeland, he is shocked to see Khalil. He’s even more shocked to see Khalil walking. Once he gets over the initial surprise, Jefferson asks if Khalil is going back to school. Khalil isn’t having any of Jeff’s speeches though. He accuses Jeff of not actually caring about any of the poor kids at Garfield High. Of disappearing once Khalil could no longer perform. Jeff sees through Khalil though. He knows strings had to be pulled in order for Khalil to walk again and he plans to find out exactly how it happened.

Back in the Lightning Lair, Jeff recounts his conversation with Khalil to Anissa and Gambi. Anissa is at the computer like some kind of Felicity Smoak, digging into the disappearance of the kids. There are 42 kids missing, plus Neema, minus 3 dozen pods, equals 7 dead? Maybe? I’m from the Emily Andras School of No Math so I’ll trust Anissa on this one. Jefferson hopes that Khalil will accidentally lead them to Proctor, and Gambi decides to follow up with one more lead: the weapons maker.

Lynn and Jennifer are having some mother/daughter time at the lab while Lynn takes Jenn’s blood. We find out later than Lynn is trying to isolate the meta-gene in hopes of getting rid of it so Jenn can go back to how she was before. Jenn jokes that she can’t do any competitive extracurricular activities for fear of setting people on fire. Maybe she can take up needlepoint though!

Jeff goes to see Khalil’s mom who has no idea that her son is back from California. You see, he was out there getting a super rare implant that would help him walk again. He was asked by a “Mr. Martin” to participate in a pilot program, but his mother couldn’t be with him because the risk of infection is too high. Jefferson knows all of this was a cover and asks for this “Mr. Martin’s” information.

Meanwhile, Gambi goes to threaten the weapons maker in hopes of getting information on Proctor. No such luck.

Back at the house, Jefferson goes to tell Jennifer that he saw Khalil and he was walking again. Before his daughter can get too excited, Jeff tells her that he’s not the same person she remembered. He looks and acts different (he leaves out the dreads though). Jeff knows that the medical treatment Khalil received is hella rare and that might mean he’s involved with whoever is looking for kids like Jennifer. Kids with abilities. Well, it’s a damn good thing Lynn is working on isolating that meta gene. ::record scratch:: Say what?? Jefferson is less than pleased to hear this and goes to confront Lynn. He is furious that Lynn is trying to change Jennifer. That she’s treating their daughter as if she has a disease. Lynn doesn’t see it that way though. She just wants to give Jennifer options in case this isn’t something she wants.

Jennifer is back at the Pierce’s house to meet Khalil at their spot on the roof. She must have taken a little part of Jefferson’s warning to heart because she doesn’t tell Khalil the real reason they’re not staying at the house. Khalil excitedly shows her the spine implant and explains that he’s the first one to get one. He also gives us an explanation for his rapid hair growth! Apparently the pills they gave him for regeneration also made his hair grow super fast. Okay. ::shrug:: Jenn wants to know just how he was chosen for this procedure. Khalil lashes out at her and accuses her of doing her father’s dirty work. And then, he jumps off the roof. Because that’s the way to convince your ex-girlfriend that there is nothing weird going on with you, I guess.

In an effort to draw Black Lightning out, Tobias tells Khalil to go to Garfield High and cause some damage. To remember what they did to him. Remember the anger.

It’s been awhile since we’ve seen La La, and oh look, he’s still holding court with his drug dealers. He gets a weird phone call though. The garbled voice on the other end says “The devil deals the cards.” La La gets a weird look on his face, leaves, and goes to see the weapons maker.

Down in the Lightning Lair, Anissa is killing me again by talking all sciencey to Jeff and Gambi. She was able to get help from one of her high school friends to track some kind of electromagnetic activity. Before she can explain any further, they hear over the police radio that someone is attacking the school.

At Garfield, it is chaos. Students are running everywhere. Khalil is there with arm blasters, throwing both students and teachers everywhere. He runs into Jennifer who tries her best to stop him, but nothing she says slows him down.

Black Lightning and Thunder show up and decide to split up to cover more ground. Syonide has a bunch of students hostage in a classroom and the look on Thunder’s face when she sees her. She’s like, “DAFUQ?!” It was pure gold. The students run out and Syonide starts shooting at Thunder. Too bad because SHE IS BULLETPROOF BITCH!! In a post-Lexa world, I will never tire of yelling that we have a bulletproof Black lesbian superhero. What a damn time to be alive!

Out in the hall, Tobias and Black Lightning are having a fight of their own. Tobias is wearing a suit that renders lightning attacks ineffective, so they fight the old fashioned way. We cut back to Thunder beating Syonide’s ass. Meanwhile, Jennifer is in the hallway trying to summon her powers to help her father and her sister. Thunder knocks Syonide out and goes to help Black Lightning who is getting taken down by both Tobias and Khalil. Khalil punches Black Lightning, hard, and he flatlines.

Anissa slides in to block bullets from hitting her father and Jennifer runs over to discover him unconscious. Her emotions were so strong that a shock radiates through her hands and jolts Jefferson. One more big shock and he starts breathing again! Jennifer saved the day!

The crew sets up in the safe house, increasing security, cloaking themselves, and ensuring they can’t be found.

Kara is with Proctor and tells him that some students claimed to see Black Lightning die. Proctor wants Black Lightning’s body, and he wants Thunder. Dead or alive.

At Tobias’, Syonide brings La La face to face with the man who killed him. For the first time, we see a trace of genuine emotion on La La’s face. Tobias reminds him that the devil deals the cards. They killed Lady Eve to get a seat, but now they need to take out Proctor to get the entire table.

What did you think of this episode?? Next week is the finale and I don’t know about you, but I AM NOT READY!!! Hit me up on Twitter @njnic23 to talk all things Black Lightning!

[surveysonfleek]

825.

sin #1: lust 
1. Who was the last person you checked out? Did they check you out too?:
 my boyfriend. i couldn’t check him out properly because i was in the back seat.

2. Who was the last person you desired, but they didn’t feel the same?: 
 eh, probably some instagram model. i haven’t had true feelings for anyone since i started dating my boyfriend.

3. Ever cheated on a significant other? If so, have you learned from it?:
 nope.

4. Do you watch porn?:
 i have but very rarely.

5. Do you masturbate?:
 yes.

6. Best physical features on your preferred sex?:
 face.

7. Who are some celebrities that you think are totally hot?: michael b jordan in black panther oh my. that body.

8. Did you ever lust after a best friend’s significant other? How did it turn out?: nope.

9. When was the last time you had sex?: on the weekend.

10. Ever pursued someone, even though they were taken?:
 no.

sin #2: gluttony
 1. When did you last eat at a restaurant? What restaurant was it?: eh, technically today. it was an engagement party at a restaurant. 

2. When did you last have fast food? Where did you get it?: tonight lol. i had a mcdouble from mcdonalds.

3. What was the biggest meal you had all day?: lunch. i had sushi.

4. Do you have too many clothes? How often do you go shopping?:
 i don’t havbe that many tbh. i go shopping a couple times a month but i don’t always buy clothes.

5. What’s something you have a LOT of?: perfumes.

6. Do you eat a lot?:
 not as much as i used to.

7. What was the last thing you splurged (spent a lot of money) on?:
 a mini holiday.

8. What do you spend most of your money on (besides bills and anything necessary like that)?:
 food.

9. Last time you ate candy? What was it?:
 i don’t remember. i don’t usually eat candy.

10. Last thing you ate too much of?:
 canapes at the engagement party lol.

sin #3: greed
 1. Do you share things? How often?: no. i’ll share stuff like clothes and nail polish. with my sister but i’m not used to sharing anything else.

2. Someone asks you for a piece of your cookie. You break it in half, but the pieces aren’t equal. Who gets the bigger piece?:
 depends who the person is. i usually give my boyfriend the bigger half.

3. When you see change on the ground, do you pick it up?:
 if it’s gold, yes haha.

4. How often do you lend money to people?:
 not often. once in a blue moon.

5. Do you loooove money?:
 i don’t love it but it’s a necessity.

6. If someone offers to pay for you, do you decline or readily accept?: 
 i always decline when it’s my friends. i let my family and boyfriend pay for me coz i know i’ll shout them back eventually.

7. Which of your friends is the wealthiest?:
 probably andrew.

8. Would you take a high-paying job that you didn’t really like just for the money and benefits?:
 i’m in that situation now but i hate it. i have no desire to move up in my position.

9. Ever stole from anyone? What about stole from a store? What happened?:
 never stolen from anyone. i went through this klepto phase as a teenager but i never stole anything of significant value. it was always makeup and sunglasses lol. never again.

10. Do you ever have enough money?:
 i haven’t in a long time.

sin #4: sloth
 1. Last thing you procrastinated on?:
 finding a new job.

2. When you’re at a strip mall and the next store you want to go to is at the other side, do you drive over there instead of take a short walk?:
 there aren’t many strip malls in sydney so i just walk everywhere.

3. What’s a typical day off of school and/or work like for you?: i usually pamper myself. do my nails, face mask etc. or i’ll hang with friends.

4. What’s one talent you have that you don’t really work on, even though you have the ability to be good at it?: graphic design.

5. How many hours of television do you watch a day?:
 none. if i really want to watch something i’ll stream it.

6. What about the amount of time you spend on the internet a day?:
 a couple hours.

7. How many hours of sleep do you get a day? Do you sleep in late?: between 5-8 is enough for me. sometimes less if i’m really busy.

8. Do you drive to places that are less than three blocks away?:
 not usually. i hate parking.

9. When was the last time you exercised?: this week.

10. Ever copied and pasted your homework from a website on the internet?:
 no.

sin #5: wrath
 1. If you could kill one person and get away with it, would you do it?:
 no.

2. Is there anyone you honestly and truly can say that you hate?:
 no.

3. Is there anyone you want revenge on, whether you want to get them back big-time or just play a little prank on them for hurting your feelings?:
 lol i have vindictive thoughts but i never really follow through with it.

4. Are you fighting with any friends right now? Why?:
 nope.

5. Last time you were really angry? What happened?: i forgot.

6. When you’re angry, what do you do to calm yourself down?:
 sleep it off.

7. “Hate is just the fear of loving someone.” true or false?:
 false.

8. What’s the best revenge you ever got on someone?: being a better person than them i guess.

9. Was there any hard feelings after your last break-up? On whose end was it on?:
 nah.

10. Ever been cheated on? How did that make you feel?:
 no.

sin #6: envy
 1. Is there anyone you’re jealous of? Name a person and tell us why.:
 no. there’s people that make me think, ‘omg they’re so lucky’ but i don’t wish to be them or anything.

2. List three physical features some other people have that you’re envious of (no need to get specific and name people; you can just say something like “brown eyes” or “having perfect eyebrows”): good body, good skin, nice hair.

3. List three personality features that other people have that you’re envious of:
 confident, friendly, patient.

4. Are you a jealous significant other?:
 nah.

5. Could you date someone who was really jealous?:
 nope.

6. What celebrity’s looks do you envy the most?:
 rihanna.

7. Do you think anyone is envious of you? In your opinion, what charactertistics (physical and mental) do you possess that you think someone might be envious of?:
 i doubt it. i guess i’m well traveled but anyone can do that if they put work into it.

8. What are a few things you wish you were good at?: singing, cooking, makeup.

9. Did you ever date someone, break up, and then see them dating someone very attractive a few days later? Were you jealous of that person?:
 no.

10. When looking at a love interest’s exes, do you often find yourself jealous of their good-looking exes?:
 no.

sin #7: pride
 1. What’s something you brag about a lot (be honest—we all brag sometimes)?: i guess how much i make from doing shit all.

2. What physical features do you take the most pride in?: well it was my skin but it’s been so bad lately so my self esteem is at an all time low.

3. Are you satisfied with what you have?:
 i am. things can be better but i’m content.



4. Be honest… when someone is telling you something, do you often change the subject so it’s about you and your accomplishments instead?: 
 no.

5. Do you like talking about your achievements?:
 i don’t really have much to talk about.

6. Do your parents tend to brag about how well you came out?:
 haha i haven’t heard anything in awhile.

7. Do you strive to be better than others? Do you think competing with others is healthy?:
 i don’t like competing with others. i prefer just aiming to achieve my own goals.

8. What do you do better than most people?:
 idk anymore haha.

9. Do you believe in taking pride in things you can’t control (ex. being proud of your heritage, being proud of your skin color, being proud of your natural artistic ability)?: of course. it’s better than being ashamed of it.

10. Who are you competing with right now (it could be anything—classmates for a grade, co-workers for a position, other girl for a guy, etc.)?: no one.

[khalilhumam]

Why Juneteenth is a Rallying Cry for Reparations

Register at https://mignation.com The Only Social Network for Migrants. #Immigration, #Migration, #Mignation ---

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Why Juneteenth is a Rallying Cry for Reparations

By Rashawn Ray “They’re lucky black people are looking for equality and not revenge.” Kimberly Jones made this statement following the killing of George Floyd. Lebron James echoed her sentiments stating, “Kimberly I’m here for you!!!! And more importantly I hear you and will make change for US!! I will not stop until I see it.”    Jones’ words seem like the type of statement a newly liberated Black person would have made on one of those Juneteenth days in Texas. On June 19, 1865, Black people in Galveston learned of their freedom. This occurred nearly two years after the Emancipation Proclamation issued by President Abraham Lincoln that freed enslaved Blacks in the Confederate States of America and six months before the Thirteenth Amendment was ratified to officially end slavery in the United States.  Celebrated as a Freedom, Liberation, and Emancipation Day among descendants of enslaved Black Americans, the holiday became known as Juneteenth. Juneteenth is a holiday that all Americans should truly celebrate: an end to the most horrific racist chapter on the planet—the brutal and deadly enslavement of Black people in the United States. Corporations and universities from Twitter to University of Maryland are finally commemorating the holiday are giving employees the day off for a day of reflection, education, and healing. Similar to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s holiday, a day on might be appropriate for people to continue to embark on this next chapter of America’s racial awakening.   Americans have a long way to go to truly become what I call “racial equity learners.” For many Black Americans, bondage did not end with Juneteenth. Rather, shackles and whips were exchanged for handcuffs and batons. Picking cotton was exchanged for the railroad chain gang during convict leasing. Subpar education and housing continued and continues. De facto redlining commemorates a systemic form of racial segregation that manifests in Blacks over exposure to COVID-19.    For many, Black bondage has been continuously repacked with a different wrapper like a company that has scandals and changes its name. Convict leasing and lynching replaced slavery throughout much of the south, and even spread to the west and east coasts. In fact, about 75% of Alabama’s state revenue came from convict leasing. The legacy of convict leasing lives on today as incarcerated people make products for companies, including some universities. In college, your baby could be sleeping in a bed made by a prisoner for a company that is shopped and traded on the New York Stock Exchange.   For similar behaviors, Blacks are more likely than whites to be profiled by police, stopped by police, brutalized by police, arrested by police, charged with crimes by district attorneys and juries, and given longer sentences by judges. The criminalization of Black bodies often start with a jog and end with a death sentence. These outcomes are not in 1865. They are in 2020.    Black people are 3.5 times more likely than whites to be killed by police when we are not attacking or have a weapon. Black people are roughly three times more likely to die from COVID-19. Black people are six times more likely than whites to be turned away from hospitals for COVID-19 testing. Black people have 10 times less wealth than whites. Black college graduates have seven times less wealth than whites.   These disparities should not be surprising. They are structurally predictable and baked into the land that my ancestors pruned and bled on and manifest in where we live and the schools we attend. Houses in predominately Black neighborhoods relative to similar houses in predominately white neighborhoods have nearly $50,000 less home value. “Non-white school districts, compared to predominately white districts, receive $23 billion less in funding.”  It is an empirical fact that many average Americans living great lives do so because of economic catapults that shot them out of a rocket. These catapults have historically evaded and currently evade Black people due to racialized and structural failures with social policy. Forty acres and a mule after the Civil War, miss. The New Deal after The Great Depression, miss. Payment Protection Program funding during the COVID-19 pandemic, miss.   Despite these disparities rotted in structural racism, Black people have always persevered and contributed to America and the world in ways that should be lauded. Black people have invented the X-ray spectrometer, folding bed, ironing board, gas mask, traffic light, microphone, carbon light bulb filament, heart pace maker control unit, home security system, rotary-blade lawn mower, HVAC systems, computer processor, computer monitor, wooden golf tee, amputee self-feeding device, super soaker, refrigerated truck systems, video game cartridge, whiskey, lubricator for engines, and electric elevator doors. Black people made these accomplishments during slavery, Jim Crow, and mass incarceration. Imagine if racial equity actually existed. To this day though, Black people are less likely to receive patents and loans for inventions and small businesses.    As we celebrate Juneteenth, we have a lot of work to do as a nation to make-up for Black plight since 1619. Black people’s Americanness has never been fully acknowledged. We have fought in every war and died to defend a utopian way of life that we never truly benefited from. We love America, but America has never truly loved us back. Reparations is the only path toward true racial equity in the United States of America. 

[theimpatientwolf]

(Full Transcript) 

 “So, I’ve been seeing a lot of things talking, people making commentary, interestingly enough, the ones...

[weekendwarriorblog]

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND June 21, 2019  - WILD ROSE, TOY STORY 4, CHILD’S PLAY, ANNA

Before I get to this week’s usual column, I want to draw some extra attention to a movie opening this weekend, NEON’s WILD ROSE, a terrific musical drama starring newcomer

Jessie Buckley as Rose-Lynn, a single mother from Glasgow, Scotland who has just got out of prison after spending a year there. She’s a talented singer who has big dreams of being a country star at Nashville’s Grand Ol’ Opry, but she constantly has to choose between this dream career and her two young children.

Directed by Tom Harper (“Peaky Blinders”), the film is pretty amazing, especially to watch Rose-Lynn’s story unfold and how much energy Buckley brings to the role. It’s almost impossible not to love Rose-Lynn’s feisty take-no-shit attitude, which really drives the film but it’s also nice to see Julie Walters as her mother, who is tired of her daughter neglecting her two kids.

This really has been amazing year for musical films between Rocketman, this and the upcoming Yesterday, and I hope that continues since I love inspirational music films. I really hope people seek this one, although I do worry that in some of the places where country music flourishes, audiences might have trouble with the difficult Glaswegian brogue, though I do hope that isn’t a hindrance, since the movie is quite wonderful.

Rating: 8.5/10

Now, let’s get to the other new movies in wide release, and I’m afraid to say that I don’t have a ton to say about any of them other than my actual reviews. Obviously, Disney and Pixar Animation’s TOY STORY 4 (Disney-Pixar) is going to be the big movie of the weekend, and I’ve already reviewed it and loved it. I won’t have a chance to see Orion Pictures and U.A. Releasing’s remake of CHILD’S PLAY until late Wednesday night, but I’m a little trepidatious of it other than the fact it stars the wonderful Aubrey Plaza. (MY REVIEW of Child’s Play is now live.)I guess we’ll see how it goes, but my review will be on The Beat on Thursday at noon.  Lastly, there’s Luc Besson’s new action movie ANNA (Lionsgate), starring Sasha Luss from Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets, which I actually won’t be able to see before Thursday night but I hope to have a review of that over at The Beat, too.

I talk more about the upcoming wide releases over at The Beat, so do check that column out as well, but if you’re still here, than you know that there’s lots of other stuff to city, especially if you’re lucky enough to live in New York and L.A.

LIMITED RELEASES

Some really great docs opening this weekend, and I want to focus on those first. First up is Timothy Greenfield-Sanders’s TONI MORRISON: THE PIECES I AM (Magnolia), an amazing doc about the influential and inspirational author of books like “Beloved,” “The Bluest Eye” and “Sula,” none of which I’ve read, but I’m definitely more intrigued after reading about the influence she’s had on black culture as well as promoting black writers since her editing career began in the late ‘40s. The movie isn’t just about her history or her process, though, and in some ways it reminded me of Raoul Peck’s I Am Not Your Negro to show how important Morrison has been to literature and the Civil Rights movement. This movie opens Friday at the Film Forum and Film at Lincoln Center in New York and Pacific Arclight and Landmark 12 in L.A., and I highly recommend it.  I’m hoping Magnolia will be able to get this out there, and it looks like they have a fairly robust release plan, so definitely seek it out if it plays in your city.

Equally enticing is Oliver Murray’s doc THE QUIET ONE (Sundance Selects), which takes a look inside the amazing archival efforts made by Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman. I’m a pretty big Stones fan and have been for decades and the access Murray gets to his archive of pictures and films really helps painting a picture of his time with the Stones. While I think this will be more interest to Stones fans than anyone else, I do recommend it. It will open at the IFC CenterFriday, as well as in Boston, L.A. and San Francisco and then will be on VOD on June 28. Both of the opened played at the recent Tribeca Film Festival.

It’s kind of crazy that Jordan Roberts’ BURN YOUR MAPS (Vertical Entertainment) (based on the short story by Robyn Joy Leff) premiered at the Toronto Film Festival way back in 2016 and it’s finally being released now, but hey, it happens. It stars Jacob Tremblay as an 8-year-old boy -- Tremblay is now 12 – named Wes who has dreams of becoming a Mongolian goat herder, befriending an Indian immigrant (Suraj Sharma from Life of Pi) and they travel to Mongolia together. Also starring Vera Farmiga and Virginia Madsen, it will be in select cities and On Demand.

Matthias Schoenaerts, Léa Seydoux, Peter Simonischek, Max von Sydow and Colin Firth (woo, what a cast!) star in Thomas Winterberg’s THE COMMAND (Saban Films). It tells the story of the Russian flagship nuclear submarine K-1413 KURSK  that sank to the bottom of the Barents Sea in August 2000, and like Saban’s other films, it will get a nomination theatrical release but mainly be seen on VOD.

Let’s get to some fun genre stuff….

A new horror anthology worth checking out is NIGHTMARE CINEMA (Good Deed Entertainment), which premiered at last year’s Fantasia Fest. The premise that ties the five chapters together involves five strangers who come to an abandoned theater to face their greatest fears with Mickey Rourke playing a mysterious character called the Projectionist. The episodes of the anthology are directed by Juan of the Dead’s Alejandro Brugués; the legendary Joe Dante; David Slade, who has directed “Hannibal,” “American Gods” and “Black Mirror” (including Bandersnatch!); Japanese filmmaker Ryuhei Kitamura and the man who put it all together, Mick Garris. It will be in theaters and On Demand Friday.

A late addition to the weekend is Israeli director Guilhad Emilio Schenker’s Madam Yankelova’s Fine Literature Club (Rock Salt Releasing), which premiered at Fantastic Fest last year. It’s about a woman named Sophie who is getting older but who only has to seduce one more victim in order to achieve the rank of Lordess.

Lastly, there’s Carolina Hellsgård’s “post-apocalyptic feminist gothic fairy tale” Endzeit Ever After (Juno Films) follows two young women who develop a friendship while trying to survive after zombies overrun the Earth as they’re stranded in the Black Forest.  This opens at the IFC Center Friday and in L.A. at the Laemlle on June 28.

STREAMING AND CABLE

Streaming Weds on Netflix (and opening at the IFC Center in New York) is Petra Costa’s documentary THE EDGE OF DEMOCRACY, which I’m mainly interested since I have family in Brazil who are quite political and this looks at what happened that cause two Brazilian presidencies to unravel.

REPERTORY

METROGRAPH (NYC):

On Friday, Metrograph Pictures releases a 4k restoration of Jack Hazan’s 1974 film A Bigger Splash, an intimate portrait of British artist David Hockney at a pivotal time in his life after he breaks up with his boyfriend and muse Peter Schlesinger and is trying to complete his painting “Portrait of an Artist (Pool with Two Figures)”, which sold last year at auction for $93 million (!!!) The Metrograph will have all sorts of guests and QnAs at the screenings of the movie over the weekend.

This week’s Late Nites at Metrograph  is the influential Japanese thriller Battle Royale (2000), while Playtime: Family Matinees  will screen Tim Burton’s 1995 family comedy Pee Wee’s Big Adventure. Over the weekend, the Metrograph will also screen two films by Juleen Compton, 1965’s Stranded and 1966’s The Plastic Dome of Norma Jean, neither which I’ve seen so I don’t have much to add.

THE NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

Besides the Weds. matinee of Alfred Hitchcock’s Torn Curtain (1966), starring Paul Newman and Julie Andrews, the New Bev is doing a double feature of Lady in Cement (1968) and Pretty in Poison (1968) on Weds and Thursday, then Paul Mazursky’s Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice (1969) with Cactus Flower  (1969) on Friday and Saturday. Friday’s Midnight movie is Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, while Saturday’s Midnight is something called Candy (1968), co-written by Buck Henry.  The KIDDEE MATINEE this weekend is one of my personal childhood favorites Chitty Chitty Bang Bang  (1968), starring Dick Van Dyke. Sunday and Monday, the theater is showing the Shirley MacLaine/Bob Fosse film Sweet Charity (1969) and Monday is a matinee of Ocean’s 11. No, not the one from 1960 as that would screw up the Bev’s late ‘60s motif.. it’s Steven Soderbergh’s movie from 2001 starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts and Matt Damon. The Tuesday Grindhouse is off next week replaced by a double feature of Peter Sellers and Goldie Hawn’s There’s a Girl in My Soup (1970) and Don Knotts’ The Love God? (1969).

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

Out in Astoria, they’re beginning the series Grit and Glitter: Before and After Stonewall in conjunction with the 50th anniversary with screenings of Jack Smith’s Flaming Creatures  (1962) with two George Kuchar shorts on Friday, Tony Richardson’s 1961 film A Taste of Honey and Kon Ichikawa’s 1963 An Actor’s Revenge on Saturday and Shirley Clarke’s Portrait of Jason  (1967) and Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1968 film Taorema on Sunday. (All of these are screened separately with separate entrance fees.) On Saturday and Sunday, MOMI screens a special The Muppet Movie 40thAnniversary Celebration, as well as a screening of 1979’s The Muppets Go Hollywood on Saturday. As part of the See It Big! Action series on Saturday, they’re showing Shaft director Gordon Parks, Jr.’s 1974 film Three the Hard Way.

FILM FORUM (NYC):

A new restoration of Jennie Livingston’s 1991 film Paris is Burning continues to play as part of Pride Month and the 50thanniversary of Stonewall, and Alain Resnais’Last Year at Marienbad will continue to play through Thursday. This weekend’s Film Forum Jr. is Gurinder Chada’s 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham starring a very young Keira Knightley. Next Tuesday night, the Film Forum is screening a double feature of Dean Hargrove’s 2015 film Tap World along with his 2004 short Tap Heat.

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

On Thursday, the never-ending Scorsese/Cassavetes series continues with Faces  (1968) and Mean Streets (1973)  and maybe this is the end of that series. Friday night is a screening of Eric Rohmer’s La Collectionneuse (1967) and on Sunday, the Art Directors Guild Film Society screens Steven Spielberg’s 1977 film Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

AERO  (LA):

On Thursday, Cinematic Void is screening a double feature of Brian De Palma’s The Phantom of the Paradise (1974) and Dwight Little’s 1989 The Phantom of the Opera (with Little in person). Friday starts a Tying the Coen Brothers Together series in conjunction with Adam Layman’s fantastic Coen Brothers book with double features of No Country for Old Men and Blood Simple on Friday, The Big Lebowski and The Man Who Wasn’t There on Saturday and Fargo with A Serious Man on Sunday. Adam Nayman will be in person for the first two and actor Fred Melamed will be there for the latter.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

On Friday, the Quad premieres a new 2k restoration of Greta Schiller and Robert Rosenberg’s 1984 film Before Stonewall as well as a new series called Queer Kino playing through June 27, including Frank Ripploh’s German film Taxi zum Klo (1980), Wieland Speck’s Coming Out (1989) and more.

ROXY CINEMA (NYC)

This weekend, the Tribeca theaters is showing Toshio Matsumoto’s 1969 film Funeral Parade of Roses, the Wachowski’s Bound (1996), a 20thAnniversary screening of the thriller Jawbreaker with director Darren Stein and a few more recent movies including Booksmart. Not a bad line-up for this upstart arthouse theater.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

This week’s Waverly Midnights: Parental Guidance is David Lynch’s Eraserhead (again) and Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook,Weekend Classics: LoveMom and Dad screens Douglas Sirk’s Imitation of Life  (1959), while Late Night Favorites: Springscreens Pulp Fiction, Alien (again) and Jaws.

FILM OF LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

The Ermanno Olmi series continues through June 26.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART  (LA):

This week’s Friday midnight is Stanley Kubrick’s classic The Shining.

Next week, the month of June closes off with the threequel Annabelle Comes Homeand Danny Boyle/Richard Curtis’ musical rom-com Yesterday.