#gabriel never fails to terrify me

[vroomvroomwee]

I don't think enough people realise how incredible Aziraphale is.

He's always known how good and kind Crowley is. Even from the beginning. Now imagine being in his place, after meeting such a wonderful and sweet angel, and hearing that he's fallen, that he's evil and wicked. No wonder he was sceptical and on edge at the garden... except Crowley was still the same, chatty, witty, and funny angel he met before the beginning. Crowleys fall terrifies him because in his mind, if someone like that can get sent to Hell, then what hope is there for me?

So he learns just how thin the line is between being an angel and a demon, just how close he's cutting it, just how little it takes for him to fall as well.

In his eyes, Crowley's brilliant. He's resourceful, intelligent, capable, everything he wants to be. Everything he's told he should be. And it creates so much confusion in his mind. How can someone like that fall while I'm still here? And it doesn't help one single bit that he's falling in love with him.

Aziraphale isn't stupid. Despite what everyone says, he's very in tune with his emotions. So much so that Crowley fails to keep up with his logic and decision-making. He realises that he's falling in love with Crowley, and that causes panick in him. He's an angel. He's not supposed to fall for temptation.

So he has two options: try to prove to himself Crowley's good and therefore justify his own feelings, or to prove Crowley's evil, and that's why he fell. So... in a way, he does both.

Every time Crowley tries to convince him of his malice, Aziraphale proves him wrong, sees right through him. All the while constantly putting a wedge between them, of good and evil. "But, you, are fallen." "I'm good, you, are evil." Even though he knows deep down that's not the truth, which is precisely why he's saying it, he knows Crowley is good, just as he knows he himself isn't fully. And no one must ever find that out.

Not only is he keeping Crowley at a distance for his own safety, but also for Crowleys. Sacrificing both their happiness for each others safety. He knows precisely what Hell will do to him if they ever find out how kind he really is.

And it would be very very simple if he just stopped hanging out with Crowley, except... he can't. No matter how hard he tries he's always pulled back to him. And over time he's testing his limits, what can I do? Am I allowed to do this? Food? That's forbidden? The Arangement? etc.

And you can't really blame him for fearing Falling. Not just burning in boiling sulfur as each of his cells is being transformed in the most agonising way, but also having to spend eternity there as well as the humiliation and resentment he'll get from Heaven. "My lot don't send rude notes." he knows how horrible and terrifying it is down there, and he is all too aware how he won't be able to cope. Too weak, too mellow, too soft.

Crowleys kindness is constantly putting him on edge because he just can't understand why he's a demon. While angels like Gabriel and Michael, who always put him down, are apathetic towards humanity, are narcissistic and emotionless... are still up there. 6000 years he's spent wondering when his time will come. When he'll be pulled down to Hell.

He's so goddamn kind that it took him 6000 years to realise Heaven is not all that it should be. Kinder than Heaven could ever hope to be (and after the "stay back" from ep6 we can see how thay he is capable of being harsh and ruthless, which means he actively chooses to be kind, which makes him all the more extraordinary and astonishing for it). And I'm not even going to go into the strength it takes to manage to break out of the brainwashing that Heaven has done to him. Thousands of years of being humiliated, feeling worthless, not good enough, not angelic enough, not even appreciated. And despite all that feedback and ridicule, he's never given in, never relented, never let anyone modify or change him, has never lost his kindness, his softness, his generosity even after all that he's seen and been through. And that is so fucking incredible.

Validation and praise being at his fingertips, if only he could let go of his individuality, his uniqueness. Of himself. Thousands of years of it, and he has never surrendered to it. Never betrayed himself, kept his pride and his self-worth despite other people trying to rid him of it.

And he knows this. He's too clever not to. He knows just how thin the ice is he's standing on. Even at the beginning, which is not long after the Fall if I might point out, he's defying orders and keeping Adam and Eve safe, risking his own safety for the safety of others. And he still doesn't back down.

But he can't for the life of him keep away from Crowley. Because of how much love he has for him, how much affection. "He's risking his entire existence," and he'll do it again because that's who he is. (Not many people will put their lives on the line for the person that tried to annihilate them, completely destroy them in every plane of existence. Actually, no one ever will. Except him.)

He. Never. Backs. Down. Not from Armaggedon and not from the Second Coming.

It's not that he doesn't love Crowley enough, it's that he loves him too much. This is an angel so full of love that he's scattering himself, breaking himself, tearing himself apart, trying to give it to everyone. To Crowley, to humanity, to Earth. He's risking destruction for the things he loves. Both physically and emotionally. He would sacrifice his own happiness, his own future with Crowley just to save humanity. And he does it again and again and that is so fucking amazing, so fucking incredible that I don't believe such a selfless character exists in any other piece of media or television.

(Also, this is all mostly referring to his emotional strength, but let's not forget how he faced literal Satan and smote around 20 demons in just a matter of seconds.)

Edit: Just wanted to add what one of you pointed out in the comments.

Aziraphale realises that running away with Crowley isn't really a relaxing and peaceful life as Crowley thinks it is. Far away from humanity and it's pleasures that they both love and engage with, something that brought them close in the first place due to their shared love for it, and constantly on the run from Heaven and Hell. Aziraphale is doing this for Crowley, so that he can be happy, so that both of them can be together. Not only that but he offered Crowley his angel status back, since he thought that would make him happy again, since he hoped that he could one day see that same smile that Crowley had when they first met, that smile that he hasn't been able to bring back all these years.

Aziraphale is now in Heaven, the last place he wants to be, the place he barely escaped with his life from, a place that hates him, filled with angels that despise him and want to see him suffer or worse, and he's utterly and completely alone.

He's trying to save the entire universe alone.

Think about that for a little bit.

Edit 2: I think it's worth noting that Aziraphale isn't perfect. And that's the point. He doesn't need to be perfect. He's naive and gullible and sees the world in black and white. He still needs to learn, to grow, to deal with these things. Soon enough, he'll realise that despite all the hope he has that he could fix Heaven, it just can't be mended, something Crowley has learned a long time ago and desperately tries to shoe him. He'll realise the system is corrupt, and no matter how hard he tries, it won't change because it wasn't designed that way. And it just makes him all the more brilliant. He isn't perfect. He has flaws, and he makes mistakes. He's an angel, but he's the most human of them all. And he's incredible all the more for it.

[aziraphales-library]

I *love* any fics where Crowley is hurt incredibly bad and Aziraphale must save him or bring him back to health. I also LOVE fics that delve into trauma or mental health which stripes the characters of their mask and they must rely on someone/each other. Do you have any recommendations for fics that are either, or both? Happy endings are a major must for me, but I am open to any suggestions!

You'll want to check our #crowley whump, #hurt crowley, and #protective aziraphale tags for loads of fics like this. Here are some that may or may not have been recommended before, but mind the tags on all of these!...

Where's My Mind? by ebullience24 (T)

See, the thing is: Crowley is tall. His height had caused a few stares back in the days where the tallest man stood at five foot five. And, because of his height, one might be inclined to describe him as slender with spindly fingers and snake-hips. The pun is never intended on that last one but it stands true nonetheless. And Crowley would be likely to agree with these statements: he is tall and slender and spindly and snake-hipped. But what Crowley would be less likely to agree upon is the statement that he, Anthony J Crowley, is underweight. OR: Crowley has an eating disorder. Trigger Warnings now and at the beginning of each chapter.

Safe Haven by McRaider (T)

When Anthony Crowley stepped back into Aziraphale's life for the first time after eight long years missing, it became exceedingly clear with him came a world of trouble and heartache. But Aziraphale never could say no to his beloved Crowley. Can he help Crowley heal after a failed marriage, a gas-lighting ex-wife with an evil plan?

To Speak the Unspoken by ihamtmus (T)

“Uhhhh… Hi,” Crowley started lamely, scrambling to find a way to explain the situation as quickly as possible. His mind was refusing to work properly, thoughts slow as if doused in oil. He hadn’t really thought about what to say on his way here – he’d been too busy focusing on the getting here part before he would collapse. “I was wondering if I could… If I could maybe die in here, if you don’t mind..?” The expression on Aziraphale’s face changed abruptly, telling him that the angel did, in fact, mind. (In which a mortally wounded demon just wants to get somewhere quiet to die but his Adversary will have none of it. A story of how they both learn just how much they care.)

Death in Love by Aspirina_Effervescente & Cyanidechan (M)

After tempting a composer to fame and success, Crowley is cursed by his wife and tormented by her ghost until the end of his days. Aziraphale would do anything to save him, the only problem is that he doesn't know what's going on and, anyway, the problem could be much more complicated than it seems. Inspired by Giuseppe Tartini’s Sonata “the Devil’s trill”

Drops of Sorrow by EdosianOrchids901 (M)

Ten years after the failed Apocalypse, Crowley is captured by Heaven. Gabriel plans to use him as bait to lure Aziraphale into a fight. Can Crowley survive captivity, and will Aziraphale be able to rescue him without walking into the trap?

A Touch of Heaven by IneffableToreshi (E)

A despondent and defeated Crowley has been through the ringer, moreso even than his roommate, Newt, realizes. After a car accident puts him though a number of surgeries and a temporary - but terrifying - few weeks of blindness, the club owner wants nothing more than to curl up in his bed and refuse to move until things return to normal...or as normal as they'll ever be again. Newt - and his cafe-owning girlfriend, Anathema - have other plans. They think that Crowley just needs some care and pampering, so Anathema schedules him a special, off-hours appointment with a friend of hers who is a rather sought-after masseur. Crowley is hesitant and stubborn, but Aziraphale's soothing voice and comforting nature soon win him over, in more ways than one...

- Mod D

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Lila being the new Hawk Moth doesn't make any sense. It makes more sense for either Nathalie or Tomoe to become the new Hawk Moth. It even makes more sense for Chloe to be the new Hawk Moth than Lila.

I think it says a lot that I've never read a fanfic that even tried to pull off Lila becoming the butterfly and I've read a lot of Lila takedowns. Almost everything staring her is about her lies being outed, leading to her defeat. Even the rare fics that do try to make her the butterfly don't show her becoming the butterfly. She just has it somehow because her getting it was hard to picture. Even canon couldn't come up with a logical reason.

This tells you how the fandom views the character. She is not seen as a manipulative mastermind. She's seen as a petty child who would be relatively easily defeated. In other words, the writers have completely failed to set her up as a solid, terrifying threat. Instead, she's OP in an aggravating, unbelievable way that makes her new status as magical villain the source of a headache, not excitement. All her power comes from everyone else being stupid and is anyone looking forward to three seasons of that? (Miraculous has been confirmed to have 8 seasons planned and I'm assuming she'll be the lead for all of them given how long Gabriel was dragged out)

Tomoe or Nathalie being the new magical villain makes so much more sense and would have been so much more exciting than Lila, the girl who can say whatever she wants and everyone will believe it because plot. I'd even take Chloe over Lila. It would still be awkward to get the butterfly into her hands, but at least Chloe has character development and a clear motivation. We have no idea who Lila even is and, at this point, I really don't care. It's not like she's a new character. They literally had four seasons to make me care about her, how much more time do they need to setup a villain?

[starguardianniom]

The Emodrien and Emonette scene

Ok so yesterday while rewatching this scene something caught my attention, when Shadybug sees it's Adrien Agreste that is Claw Noir, she goes to touch his cheek and sees makeup covering the black veins on his face, and says that she should have known.

Now that is an important detail, because at first I wasn't sure what she was talking about.

Then when she detransforms and tries to make a wish, it fails and she is send crashing against the mirror and we see dark veins that now goes from her neck to her face.

If you noticed though, when she crashes into the mirror, she loses the scarf she has around her neck.

Now when she looks in the mirror she gets a sad look at seeing the veins, but doesn't seem surprised to see them there.

I'm thinking that she also had the black veins showing to her neck hence why she was wearing a scarf to hide them, and with the wish backfiring on her, it spread to her face, and now she can't cover it up.

Probably why she breaks down after that, she realise she is on a close timer and is beyond terrified of dying.

Heck now it reminds me of the line she said earlier when she and Claw Noir were fighting in the street before getting Monarch's attention, she said that she would be the one the Supreme would spare, was it because she thought the black veins were probably gonna kill her and the Supreme told her that she would be saved if she brought back the Butterfly Miraculous?

Like she wasn't aware why of how she got her veins turning black and showing but the Supreme probably promised her to take care of it if she did what she was told?

Given Claw Noir was in a similar predicament, did he put them against each other in order to give only one of them a chance at living? If he ever had any intention of curing them in the first place, which I highly doubt in all honesty.

Also, the implications of why they would get miraculouses when Betterfly outright says the Supreme gives them to those in his closest circles seems weird, until you remember that Gabriel was part of it before he betrayed the Supreme and stole 2 miraculouses, remembered it from reading about it on Tv. Tropes in the Fridge Logic section.

After that, the Supreme probably trusted his close circles less, so he decided to give miraculouses to young teens that would get themselves killed by their powers and nobody would care much, they would be desperate and eager to prove themselves while also being merciless as they were hurt and angry at the world and wanted to lash out about the unfairness of it all.

Perfect preys were Emonette and Emodrien.

Emonette only knew pain and suffering from Chloé Bourgeois and never had anyone in her life caring about her which made her a good candidate to get a miraculous, she would be happy to finally have something to defend herself, power, while also feeling important, but also her having no one close in her life would make sure her presence wouldn't be missed when she would die, apart maybe Chloé missing her favorite victim though I'm sure she would have found someone else soon enough.

Emodrien being the son of Gabriel the traitor and his mother being dead by the Supreme's hand was also a good candidate, punishing Gabriel's betrayal via proxy through his son slowly dying without any of them being none the wiser. If Gabriel hadn't went to the other universe, he might have gone to bury his own son alongside his wife soon.

So now everything falls into place.

Why Emonette and Emodrien are Shadybug and Claw Noir and not some adults like maybe an alternate André Bourgeois and Audrey Bourgeois.

[magpigment]

gabe montez to me is a deeply angry and deeply scared character.

i honestly think he uses anger as a coping mechanism so he doesn’t have to deal w how awful everything is all the time- when he’s caught off guard he drops it, before doubling down so he doesn’t have to think about what he’s doing.

he’s perpetually trying desperately to keep going, to keep doing what he’s been ordered to do, because from day one he was intimately familiarized with what is at stake if he fails.

he was so panicked at the prospect of failing episode one, when he accidentally sired emizel, but he hesitated. despite his newfound vampirism, he still had humanity- and he was punished HORRIFICALLY for it.

he didn’t hesitate next time. or the next. but he still couldn’t seem to get it right.

i think he resented emizel for not being killed- and then later, for not staying dead.

he’s terrified of failing to live up to his potential, sure, but i think he’s just terrified of failing in general. cuz he knows that the best case scenario is he gets killed. the worst case scenario? well, he never wants it to happen again.

he spent most of his time as a vampire in a cage, or an operating table. he’s 19 at the oldest.

when fighting emizel in episode nine, he says, with no doubt, that they shouldn’t try to escape because they’d absolutely kill the two if they did.

his autonomy has been stripped to the point that his body isn’t his own, much less his choices.

he wishes so badly that he had killed emizel, cuz it’s easier to process that then to accept that the people who want him to kill emizel have been torturing him. but in the vampire world, that’s all he’s ever known.

just. gabriel fucking montez, man.

[untitled-writer-013]

Hey! How you doin? I hope it's good :D

Can you do a lil thing where Y/N realises that Gabriel is an Alternate and tries to kill him, and then gets punished? Oh and can you use gender neutral pronouns for y/n? Please and thank you!

Yandere!Alt Gabriel x GN!Rebellious!Reader

warning(s): yandere themes, paranoia, manipulation, death, unsettling themes.

Gabriel had been around for quite a long time. He had fooled the human race into thinking that he was their true savior, and had unleashed his creations onto the Earth. Soon enough, he would completely wipe out the human race, it was only a matter of time. But, he met someone.

Gabriel had met (Y/n) when he had broken into their home, and something within him was drawn to them. The idea of them dying at the hands of one of his alternates made him sick. It confused him, he had never felt that way about a human before. And yet, he found himself stalking after them every day, making sure to play his cards right so they would fall for him all on their own.

But one day, he had messed up. 

Gabriel had been tormenting one of his darling’s friends, using his true form to make them MAD, when (Y/n) had opened the door. They had yelled before tackling him, catching him off guard as his signature grin pulled at his face, his eyes melting slightly, the sounds of static mixing with the hiss he let out as he picked them up, holding them by the collar of their shirt. Gabriel immediately killed (Y/n)’s friend, making them scream as they tried lunging at Gabriel, kicking and screaming as Gabriel left. He held them tightly against his chest, flying to the nearby abandoned church that he had been using as his ‘home’.

Once they had arrived, Gabriel had made sure to lock any possible exits before letting (Y/n) fall to the floor, making them grunt slightly as they landed on their side. Gabriel watched as (Y/n) stood up, glaring at him as they shouted at him. He stood there as they yelled, his grin pulling at the corners of his mouth as he watched them try to hit and kick him. (Y/n) became more frustrated when they didn’t get any reaction from Gabriel, tears running down their face as they hit against his chest, even attempting to grab at his wings but failing. 

Gabriel waited until (Y/n) had tired themselves out, their hits getting weak as they let out angry sobs. He finally dropped his grin, a small frown on his face as he hugged them. He rubbed their back, ignoring the feeble attempts to push him away as he rubbed their back slowly. He gently hushed them, closing his eyes as he continued to comfort them, relishing the feeling when (Y/n) had finally given in to him.

“There’s nothing to worry about now, (Y/n). My poor human, you’ve riled yourself up so much. Do as I say and relax.” Gabriel stated, cooing at them as he pressed a kiss to the top of their head.

“My darling, don’t ever try to do that ever again. You will not win, and next time I will not be so nice. Do you understand me?” Gabriel stated, his wings puffing up slightly as his voice fluctuated in tone, his expression eerily neutral as he stared down at them, forcing them to hold eye contact with him.

(Y/n) froze in fear, the eye contact keeping them in place as they nodded, their heart hammering against their chest as Gabriel let his expression soften, a soft smile on his face as he pressed a kiss to their forehead. 

“Good, now then, I think it’s time you went to bed, alright?” Gabriel stated, standing up as he scooped them up into his arms, beginning to lead them down to the cellar of the church, which he had cleaned up and set up for his darling to stay with him. 

Gabriel would never let his darling feel confident enough to try and attack him again. From babying them when they protest against him, to giving them that terrifying stare whenever he suspects they’re planning something, he makes sure that they are too scared to try something again.

He’ll make sure that they know their place, no matter what.

~fin~

author’s note: i think Gabriel would absolutely make his darling doubt themselves to the point that they don’t believe they can take him down. i even think that Gabriel could give them a weapon (knife, cord, etc), and (Y/n) would hand it back to him after using it. gotta love a manipulative angel <33

[theerurishipper]

After learning about the leaks about Paris special, I just want to say that all of the comics and headcanons fans created speculating how they would be in emoverse are much better than what we got. Wouldn't it be ironic to say that they're born evil like Chloe in ogverse and that some backstory doesn't justify their wrongdoings. They are evil and very much proud of it with either their cringe worthy fails or terrifying terrorism

Agreed. Like, I don't mind the arc they were intending for with Chloe, I don't mind them showing that some people can't change, but then they'll redeem the terrorist/abuser. And they'd rather say that Chloe is just inherently evil without exploring or acknowledging the backstory and motivations they wrote for her. That's the issue here. And now Shadybug and Claw Noir are going to get some half-assed redemption. Honestly, I would have preferred them being evil, you know, like an everyone has a good and bad side in them and who you are depends on the choices you make kind of thing, especially since Miraculous is so fond of redemptions.

I get it, that's just my wish and the show doesn't have to follow my exact preferred storyline to be good, but the information we have doesn't paint a very promising picture either way. Considering the bullshittery of the Season 5 finale and Gabriel's shitty-ass redemption, it really just feels like this special is pushing the Gabe Is Good agenda in our face, you know? I mean, Guardian Angel? For the child abuser in our main continuity? The one who doesn't seem like he did a good job in the alternate timeline either seeing as his son was so unable to process his grief that he became a magical terrorist? This guy is called Guardian Angel? I mean, maybe he did his best, but we won't know until we watch the special, and the show has a habit of blaming Adrien for Gabriel's actions anyway, so. It just feels like it's pushing the "some people are good and some people are evil no matter in what continuity, and Marinette and Adrien are good deep down, and so is Gabriel. But Chloe is just always evil lmaooooo." I don't mind it too much, but shit's still kinda weird, man.

And like, what do you mean "Shadybug and Claw Noir don't even like each other?" That's kind of the whole appeal for a lot of people lmao, and they hate each other? I mean, I'm not going to judge it based on my expectations and say it's bad just because I didn't get what I wanted, but... really? And I'm also gonna go out on a limb and say Hesperia and Claw Noir have no personal interaction despite them being father and son and Adrien's motivation being to bring Emelie back. Like, at a certain point, it crosses the line from being my insignificant expectation to being just... bad choices and an inability to create proper payoff. I think Hesperia interacts more with Marinette than Adrien in this special. Getting major Season 5 finale-esque "Marinette replaces Adrien in his arc" vibes.

But I'm not disappointed, surprising as that sounds. I never expected it to be good. I was always just here to see Claw Noir on screen so I can properly pick him up and toss him into my fanfics. I was excited for the special, sure, but I didn't have my hopes up and the leaks seem to have proved me right. Idk, maybe they'll surprise me. I doubt it though.

Thank you for your ask!

[ivory--raven]

Dagon has a pretty good excuse as to why she's not coming home... companion to this post

“He’zz gone,” says Beelzebub, their voice rough. There are tears streaming down their cheeks, smudging their makeup. Dagon didn’t know that was even possible.

“Who’s gone?” Dagon isn’t sure why she’s here. Beelzebub had summoned her to their office, and was clearly devastated about something. She’s never seen them so sad, so hopeless, and she saw them immediately after the failed Armageddon.

A fresh wave of sobs. Dagon inches around their desk, brushes against them tentatively. When she isn’t immediately stabbed, she grows bolder and pats them on the shoulder. They lean in. So it’s one of those days. They want to be touched. Dagon wraps her arms around them and squeezes their shaking body. They seem to calm down a little. “Hey,” she says. It was the wrong thing to say. A horribly sad high-pitched noise comes out of their mouth.

“Zzey lozzt him,” they gasp out. “I lozzt him.”

“Okay,” says Dagon, sliding onto the edge of Beelzebub’s chair to hold them better.

“I love him,” wails Beelzebub, their chest heaving like the sea during a hurricane, like they’re suffocating, desperately scrambling for something.

Dagon knows who this is about now. This is about Gabriel. She’s not sure what they see in him, he is the source of many of Michael’s complaints about work, but Michael has said he’s been happier lately. So has Beelzebub. Dagon’s been catching them staring into space and smiling.

They’re not smiling now. They’re crying like nothing will ever be okay again.

“I’m sure he loves you,” she says, because hasn’t Michael said she can feel it rolling off him? That he isn’t subtle at all, even though he thinks he is?

“He’zz gone,” Beelzebub sobs, “he’zz mizzing! Zz-zey could have-” they can’t finish the sentence. They don’t need to. Dagon knows. Heaven is terrifying. She worries enough about her own angel, her own Michael, and nothing has ever really happened to Michael.

“He’s missing from Heaven?” Dagon checks. Beelzebub nods against her. “We’ll find him,” Dagon says, even though she isn’t sure, because if Gabriel is hiding somewhere (is hidden somewhere, says an even more pessimistic voice in her head) he could be anywhere. Still, that means… “He’s got to be somewhere.”

“He’zz zo zilly,” chokes Beelzebub.

Someone knocks on the door. Beelzebub wildly scrubs at their face, like they’re going to erase the evidence. It’s hopeless, they only succeed in making themself look even more disheveled. “Ignore them,” Dagon says. Beelzebub makes a miserable noise. “Why don’t you tell me your favourite thing about Gabriel?”

“He… he makezz these fazzezz…” Beelzebub takes a shuddering breath, collapses crying again. “He zayzz…”

They buzz something Dagon can’t make out. They’re more crying than talking, really, until they’re just buzzing rhythmically and their eyes flutter shut and they’re asleep. They’re actually asleep. They’ve cried themselves to sleep. Dagon didn’t know that was possible. It’s probably best this way. They look much less distressed. She’s stuck here now, she can’t leave them asleep in their office alone. Not while they’re this vulnerable.

Dagon waves a hand, summons one of her guns. It’s a flintlock pistol she got in the 1770s. It’s already loaded, in case she needs to shoot someone.

[fallout4-reacts]

k-peasants asked: An actual prompt this time! I know you're busy and have plenty of things to write yet, take your time. Soo I was thinking that maybe companions (and Maxson) horribly failing at confessing to Sole. Like for example they could clear out some Raiders, companion is impressed, tries to confess BAM Sole gets fucking decked by random raider they didn't kill. I feel like you could get pretty creative with that one. Like deathclaws, something exploding, just settlers running in, other companions interrupting etc.

Dunno why, but I seems to experience a bug and Tumblr didn't let me add more ... it will be a long ask if I had to add all the companion on one distinctive post after they other... Anyway for now

Part 3

X6-88

(Part 1 : Danse, Deacon, Nick Valentine)

(Part 2 : Hancock, Preston, Strong)

(Part 4 : Gage, MacCready, Piper)

(Part 5 : Cait, Curie, Codsworth, Dogmeat, Elder Maxson)

X6-88 : Since Father assigned him to Sole's protection, the Courser has gone a long way, both literally and morally. Far from it, not everything went as smoothly as butter in the pan.

First, before even learning that he would be the companion of this weird individual, X6 had a very negative view of them on their first expedition together. Sole was paralyzed for a long time in front of the flow of the waves on Libertalia, explaining to a rogue synth that they were terrified by the sea.

The sea frightens them.

Fear of something so...ineffective.

The rogue had long urged and persuaded Sole that finishing this mission was critical. With cover words that sounded like an unknown language, the underdeveloped machine ultimately persuaded Sole to go collect Gabriel, even though the act clearly stinks to him.

That was a lot of information. X6 should have begun to comprehend. But he had clear directives, and none of them prompted him to doubt Sole's objectives or their manners.

And, following this incidence, Sole proved to be effective enough.

Exactly like any other mission.

Over the next few weeks, X6 admitted to having a moment when he thought he had a malfunction. Only for a little moment. There was only one intermission.

Sole gave him the command to execute a child.

Sole was closely detailled by the Courser. Because of the time he had previously spent with them, it appeared to X6 that asking for such an act was completely against Sole's nature. Despite this, Sole ordered X6 to execute the child who had escaped a super-mutant raid under the Commonwealth sun, away from any witnesses.

And X6 stalled.

And X6 declined.

He has no idea why, how, or what compelled him to refuse to obey a command. However, it was "stronger than him," and he was unable to kill the infant.

Sole's lips curled into a faint smile.

They only said, "I knew it," and hugged X6.

A hug!

Sole transferred the child to safety in Diamond City, where he had a few families, and led X6 into the back aisles, forcing him to confront the annoyed rogue in person. And the rogue appeared annoyed.

"Well, well, well. Well, well, seems like they've got themselves quite the collection. They've got my mug, my moniker, and now you've even managed to snag them my humble abode. There were simpler means to inform me that my company is no longer desired, and employing your Courser was unnecessary."

"This one is different."

Different.

Sole believes that X6 is distinctive.

Sole then drastically changed near X6. They opened up and got more... tactile. They frequently sit with him around the fire, talking about morals and philosophy.

X6 was initially hesitant to respond. X6 was initially hesitant to respond because he was not programmed to ask inquiries.

But time passes, and some questions replace others. Increasingly so. And X6 finally questions the Institute.

He let himself fall heavily onto the visitor's seat one evening when he joined Sole in their office at the back of the Sanctuary's bar. Sole considers the Courser with interest, having never seen him do so before.

"Are you okay?"

"Negative. It is not within acceptable parameters. I have successfully perused the reports you requested. As per your directive, I have engaged in the act of examining and pondering. It is not deemed acceptable. It is not within acceptable parameters. The Institute's directives and visions, their actions, and the truth of the matter. It is no longer within the expanse of likelihood… I am unable to comprehend its meaning any longer."

Sole smiles lightly and sweetly and moves one hand toward X6's. He allows it. He is astounded by how much he has grown acclimated to Sole's contacts, as well as how much he feels the need for them.

"What they're doing is incorrect. And you're grasping it. To be honest, consider how incredible it is that you can determine what is right and wrong on your own. It proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that, contrary to popular belief, you are more than a machine. I've known for a long time that you are a thinking being, X6. A true individual capable of his own morality."

"It was all a lie?"

Sole nods solemnly. X6 is even more befuddled.

"However, the subject of your inquiry revolving around your progeny. You did not prioritize preserving your own son's vision? His work?"

Sole sighs despondently. Sadly, the Courser stares at them for a moment. He wants to break, toss away, and destroy what he sees in Sole's eyes. He wishes he could just glimpse the flame in Sole's eyes. This flame of passion that glows when this person feels they have done the right thing, when they fight to liberate a community from their attackers, and when they speak of a world where all would live in peace, harmony, and perfect collaboration.

He doesn't want to see Sole in such sorrow. Never.

"My son. I'm not sure if that's a proper title. I gave birth to a child whom I adored. I would have given anything for him. I fought the entire world for him. I had to go through hell to find him. But I failed to find my son. My son would have understood logic. Instead of these abominations, my son would have realized the good he could do. I was shocked by the destruction when I first was what happened to the Commonwealth, but I also saw the life that wants to return, the hope that seeps in and clings to it with tenacity. My son only saw an atrocity that he had to finish eliminating. At that moment, I realized—my son died in the vault alongside his mother/father."

The emotion in Sole's voice stirs X6's heart. Their speech is completely unacceptable for a Courser, and X6 should immediately report it to the Institute. But X6 is now aware that he has entirely defeated this condition of mind. He has the impression that Sole is telling the truth. He now realizes that the Institute is bad and that X6 no longer stands for this cause.

He then places his hand on Sole's. This thought came along with something more, very deep and very primary, that he must absolutely let out. He takes a deep breath.

"Sole. I am grateful for your confidence in me, and I shall clarify upon one matter at hand, for it is imperative that—

"Whisky!" exclaims MacCready as he actually jumps into Sole's office.

The mercenary has apparently already abused much of Sole's reserve with the other companions, and the party in the other room has virtually ended at X6's feet. Sole smiles lovingly at the mercenary, whom they name their little brother.

"Whisky!" They take over the choir, picking the man up and taking him into the other room. They glance apologically at X6. "We will continue this conversation another time, I promise you."

"Yeah,” growls X6, not convinced.

[whumpdoyoumean]

Whumptober #14

xxx feed me poison, fill me ‘til i drown

Fucking witches, Gabriel thinks bitterly as his hand darts to one of his many pockets, pulling out a small pouch. He dumps the magenta-colored powder into his palms, barely closing his fingers over it before he turns, opens his hand again, and blows. The three witches near him--nearly the last of them, thankfully--throw their hands up as if somehow that will block the effects of the pink dust; no such luck. All three of them turn on each other with unbridled aggression. He has to look away from the grisly scene. He’s searching for Nathan, trying to block out the snarls and screams, when it suddenly becomes very difficult to breathe.

He blinks a few times in rapid succession as he tries to inhale and his chest hitches, and his eyes go wide. He coughs harshly and it tastes like pennies. He does it again, and this time he coughs water out of his lungs. His hands go instinctively to his throat.

He can’t breathe.

He’s drowning. 

There’s another witch.

He tries to spot whoever's doing it, desperately searching as he coughs and chokes and fails to draw a proper breath. He does see her, eventually, hiding at the treeline, but she’s far away, beyond the reach of his powders and dusts and he doesn’t think he’ll make it to her, not before it’s too late.

That doesn’t mean he won’t try. 

He manages to lurch forward with heavy, uneven footfalls, only a few before he has to stop, doubling over as water spills from his mouth.

His vision is starting to go dark at the edges, chest aching, and he knows he'll be unconscious soon. He manages to find Nathan first, and it's almost as if the young witch feels his gaze because he looks over, locking eyes with Gabriel just as he doubles over, coughing up more water, a torrent of the stuff hitting the ground.

He looks nearly as frightened as Gabriel feels.

“Gabriel!” He doesn’t sound like himself, his voice warped with desperation, and with the fact that Gabriel is dying. “Hang on!”

Gabriel can’t gather the breath he needs to respond. Nathan has spotted the girl now, and is going toward her, and the hope only lasts a split second. His lungs feel like they’re going to burst, and the lack of oxygen has his head hurting so bad that he half expects it to split in two. He feels his knees hit the grass, and then the world tilts up to meet him and for a moment, everything starts to blur and fade. The noise, the fight, the pain…everything. 

And then there’s nothing.

xxx 

“Gabriel! Hang on!” 

The alchemist is staring at him, looking terrified as he coughs up water, hands clutching at his throat.

Nathan barely has time to panic before the rage takes over.

It only takes him a second to spot the witch who’s doing it, can tell it’s her by the way she’s glaring at Gabriel, hands stretched out toward him while her fingers twist and curl, lips moving silently as she works the enchantment. She’s so focused that she doesn’t see Nathan coming. She doesn’t have a chance to fight back, just lets out a startled grunt as Nathan tackles her to the ground. It takes six blows to knock her unconscious.

He can feel the rage, turning his blood hot and his thoughts red, and that part of him wants very much to see this through, to keep punching until there’s nothing left. But the part of him that’s still him remembers that Gabriel needs his help. He’s on his feet in a second, whirling around as he searches for Gabriel. He doesn’t see him at first, and then his eyes travel down and his heart plummets. 

“Gabriel!” He runs. His voice scrapes at his throat. “Gabriel! Gabriel!”

He lands on his knees hard enough that a normal person would have bruised. He doesn’t feel it. Gabriel’s face is pale, his lips gray, and Nathan thinks that even with everything he's been through, he's never been so afraid. 

“What do I do?” He doesn’t know who he’s talking to, doesn’t expect an answer. His heart hammers, his bloodied hands trembling. “What the fuck do I do?” 

Some part of him, something powered by pure instinct, moves his body before his mind even registers what he’s doing; one hand moves over the other, fingers lacing together, and he places the heel of his lower palm in the center of Gabriel’s chest. 

Thirty. The thought comes from somewhere in the recesses of his mind, and he listens to it as he starts compressions, counting each one as he goes. One, two, three--and on, until he’s done thirty of them, and then he tilts Gabriel’s head back, pinching his nose shut. When he places his mouth over Gabriel’s, all he can think is how cool the man’s lips are, how unusually uninviting. Two breaths.

“Come on.”

Gabriel’s still not breathing. 

“Come on, Gabriel.” 

He laces his fingers. 

“Please.” In time with the chest compressions. “Please, please, please.”

One breath, two. 

Nothing. 

“Come on, damn you!” Pleas become curses. He thinks he feels a rib crack. "Fuck you. Fuck you, Gabriel, fucking--fuck!" 

Tears slip down his cheeks now as he once more places his mouth over Gabriel's. 

He’s on his fourth round of compressions when Gabriel’s body shudders and he lets out a choking cough, water erupting from his mouth. 

“Gab-Gabriel?” Nathan’s voice cracks with emotion, relief flooding him as he hurriedly rolls Gabriel onto his side. Gabriel curls in on himself, coughing violently as he expels water from his lungs. Nathan leans back, heart hammering, and he’s glad he’s already sitting because he’s not sure he’d’ve been able to stay on his feet. He puts his head in his hands. “Holy shit. Oh my god.”

“Nathan?” Nathan feels Gabriel’s hand on his arm. His voice is quiet and ragged and he’s breathing heavily. “Are…you okay? You’re…you’re shaking.”

Nathan looks up, wiping at the tears on his cheeks. “Am I okay? Fuck, Gabriel, you--you almost died! You almost--” A sob builds in his chest and he tries to hold it back but it bursts out anyway, a loud and messy thing that he might be embarrassed about if he weren’t already overwhelmed with a thousand other emotions.

“Hey!” Gabriel sits up slowly, grimacing a little. “I’m okay. Nathan…” He puts his hands on either side of Nathan’s face. “Look at me.” Nathan does, and Gabriel stares at him with those blue eyes of his. “I’m okay. I’m okay.”

Nathan cries as Gabriel pulls him into a tight hug, pressing Nathan’s head into his chest and holding him there.

“I’m okay, Nathan,” he murmurs.

“Yeah, well,” Nathan manages to get out. “You’d better stay that way. Because I didn’t know what I was going to do without you.”

Gabriel plants a kiss on the top of his head. “I’ll do my best.”

xxx 

[thesillydoll]

GOS2 SPOILERS

Theory #??? What, 4?

Well.

While crying over how beautiful Ineffable Bureaucracy was, I commented that Anna seemed very socially awkward, and Shelley seemed more forthcoming. I wasn't trying to be disrespectful to Anna or her Beelzebub, in fact I love it. I feel very identified. However, it also seemed strange to me. Why did it change so much?

I mean, we were supposed to have an explanation for Beelzebub's new face, but we only got "They needed a change" "This old thing?" and other comments.

I remember we all talked about how Beelzebub tried to smile in s1. They made strange gestures with them mouth, grimaces, which we collectively interpret as 'attempted smile'.

But now they can smile and make sheep eyes?

I mean, they're in love, that shit (love) does weird things to you. it changes you . . I guess. (See this from my more aromantic side.) But this is all very 'Female Makeover Trope'. . . If we were in some cis comedy. We are not ( i doubt Neil knows what straight means) and I feel that there is something beyond Beel's face/personality change.

They're still Lord Beelzebub and terrifies everyone. Their first meeting with Gabe after the nopocalypse is fluid, somewhat tense, but much more bearable than their previous conversation.

How do we go from our Beelzebub, who we love being socially awkward, to Beelzebub pulling a fly off his tongue? (Very attractive, sorry).

Shelley is amazing, very romantic. Gabe is the one who doesn't know how to feel. A different dynamic than what we would think of Anna with Jon. I can imagine Anna, doing something different. Straighter in the chair, always pending and alert. Looking up at Gabe with those amazing, cold blue eyes. Struggling to smile. Anna and Jon are the definition of Dark curls/ Watercolors eyes. (Gabe at Job's, he's very dark curls, and Beel, well, watercolor eyes) Also, Gabe smiles with all his teeth, as the song says, and the dynamic 'How to smile without looking like a serial killer, 101' would be very beautiful.

I understand. They'll say "Shelley wanted to do her thing". But the script is very precise about its intimacy. The flashbacks wouldn't be the same if Shelley didn't have those beautiful sheep eyes.

Also, Neil made canon a couple taken from fanfictions. 6 minutes was enough for us hahaha. I'm sure Neil had at least a general idea of how we handle Beel in the fics. He wanted to make his own story, but it doesn't seem consistent with the character of the first season.

(I repeat, we know little about Beel, but they're an exceptional demon in many ways compared to the dump they runs.)

My crazy theory, here we go, is that Beel was planning on running off with Gabe. They even seems to hint that they would give their position to Crowley, and they are desperate to find Gabriel. And Gabriel makes warnings regarding something that he should give to Aziraphale and that never materializes.

Beelzebub seems to have planned everything to run at the slightest opportunity. Even knowing about the 'extreme sanctions' for those who help Gabriel, (being erased from the Book of Life), they're run the risk.

Or they just changed their faces just bc. Who knows? Maybe, Neil. Probably, Neil.

It would be a shame not to fix these small "fails/spots" (I don't think Neil or Douglas make it) in the third.

Something must have disturbed Satan and God (or her voice) for them to come together. We know that after they fell in love, they had their own ideas about the Nopocalypse. Gabriel refused to destroy the Earth, mostly because it was their dollhouse.

I mean, they saw an angel endure the flames of Hell and a demon swim in holy water. I would have erased them from the Book of Life and continued with the war.

Maybe God intervened. We do not know. But it should have been talked about. Maybe that's why Gabe and Beel needed to get together. Perhaps the plan was to destroy Zira and Crowley. Or investigate at least.

What doesn't surprise me is Beel's taste in music. They have the best artists in Hell, surely they went through the Bach's torture at some time.

Those kinds of things seem congruent to me. What turns out that the script in general seems incoherent to me.

What do you think? I'm on my 4th cup of coffee and haven't slept in quite a while. I'm going crazy?

Either way, if you read my verbiage, I expect responses.

Kisses, Tor.

[girl4music]

NICOLE: “Waverly! Waverly!”

*groaning in pain*

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “Go home, Nicole Haught. This is none of your concern.”

NICOLE: “None of my concern? You're gonna be my wife.”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “The gate must close, once and for all. And I must be the one to do it.”

NICOLE: “I got left behind before, and I'm not doing that again. Where you go, I go, remember?”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “The Garden is not for your kind. Human.”

NICOLE: “No.”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “I am the Guardian. I am the fail-safe. I must protect the Ghost River Triangle.”

NICOLE: “What about Wynonna?”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “The Champion. The only one who can wield the sword. But she has served enough.”

NICOLE: “Okay, okay, let’s figure this out. I am the Sheriff of Purgatory. Let me extend my watch over all the Ghost River Triangle, in every realm. Let me be the Guardian for all of us, supernatural and human.”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “You’d sacrifice your life to become the Shield?”

NICOLE: “Every day until the end of eternity if it meant keeping you safe.”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “Well, I have already broken the rules once… for John Henry Holliday.”

NICOLE: “Yeah, see? It feels kind of good now and then, right? So what’s one more? Look in the book. Your story is my story.”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “The book was ill begotten. It belongs to the Garden, as do I.”

NICOLE: “Please, just look.

*Dark Angel Waverly looks in the book and gasps*

Am I in there? Are we?”

DARK ANGEL WAVERLY: “It would be a steep price to pay. You’d be bound to the Ghost River Triangle. You could never leave.”

NICOLE: “Everything I love is already here.

*Nicole gets zapped*

I swear to be bound to the Ghost River Triangle for all of my days. I swear to be patient and just, for there is no other way. I swear my life to protecting the Ghost River Triangle. I am the Angel’s Shield.”

*Nicole gets zapped away and falls hard to the ground. Dark Angel Waverly transforms into Waverly and throws the book into the gate to the Garden*

WAVERLY: “NICOLE!

*rushes to her*

Nicole! Baby. Nicole. Come on, Nicole, please. Hey.

*Waverly kisses her. Nicole awakens to kiss her back. Suddenly feels a searing pain in the back of her neck*

What’s wrong?

*checks her neck and sees the mark of the Angel’s Shield branded on her skin like an unhealed tattoo*

Oh, sweetheart. You sacrificed yourself for me.”

NICOLE: “Don’t oversell it, baby. I only committed to a permanent staycation with my girl.”

*they kiss*

I am literally bawling my eyes out right now. That was so beautiful and powerful and just exceptional writing. I don’t even know what to say to express myself but I know one thing’s for sure… This is the greatest WLW relationship that I have seen since Xena and Gabrielle. The declarations of love were just as strong and substantial. The chemistry was off the fucking charts. The emotional connection was really significant. And because Xena and Gabrielle weren’t allowed to be physically intimate - I dare to say that this would be what I would see between them if they were. Because I have never seen any other two actresses depict such a strong, realistic and raw dynamic between them since. But I guess I can’t truly say that anymore because DomKat are really something special.

This was a really beautiful moment between them. I’d take emotional intimacy any day over sexual intimacy. But it’s certainly an achievement that they have both because Xena and Gabrielle didn’t and couldn’t have it even though you could feel the passion between them. Therefore knew that it was right for them to be lovers.

And I never ever want to see Dark Angel Waverly again. She was fucking terrifying as a celestial being. And it wasn’t like Dark Willow. It wasn’t born out of grief or loss or death (thank god) but it was disturbing. This… thing… had absolutely no empathy in her/it. All she/it cared about was her/its responsibility to Guard. But yeah, fuck destiny if the humanity is destroyed. For the greater good or for the greater evil. Fuck off. Dark Willow might have been a villain but least you could still tell that it was Willow under that costume. Someone that could be reached because there was still humanity in her. Still somebody that felt emotion. With Dark Angel Waverly it was like Waverly’s entire personality had been wiped over. All we love about her. It actually took Nicole sacrificing herself to bring her back. To make her get off those stairs and care again.

I suppose that is the price you pay for being an angel and an angel’s lover. Where Waverly goes, Nicole goes.

I am so glad that I decided to take a chance on this show. I have found WLW representation worth my time and attention. And now my undying support.

Consider me part of the WayHaught shipper fandom from this point onwards and WayHaught an additional OTP along with Xabrielle, Tillow and Calliette. And if you know anymore supernatural genre shows with significant WLW representation in them where they last for the whole or a majority of the show - tell me. I don’t mind if it’s not maintext. Subtext is more my thing anyway. But if it’s subtext - no queerbaiting! Don’t recommend non-canon ships like the overrated SuperCorp or SwanQueen. I am really not interested!

Until then, I will consume as much WayHaught and DomKat official media or fan creations as possible.

Please excuse me. I now have a wedding to watch.

[grayblacklight]

Ok so as easy as it is to focus on the how the plotline with Chloe's neglectful mother was basically just dropped in favor of trying to make her a flat, one dimensional, irredeemable villain (and failing, because the writers aren't even good enough to do that without her being outright OOC, and even then she's usually tricked/peer pressured/being stupid like everyone else), there's actually an entire second source of significant potential trauma that the show just ignores. Like, Marinette is traumatized because Chloe shoved her in a locker a few years back (which has never come up until now?) Fair enough, but it looks really freaking weird when you treat this seriously, and ignore all the times that Chloe was a damsel in distress, and an akuma's main target. Clearly there's no way any of that had an effect on her, and the fact that she "deserved it" or "it was her fault they got akumitized" (you know, because Chloe is famously the one making people evil with butterflies) means we shouldn't worry about it. Definitely not a cycle of abuse here. Clearly Asstruck is the greatest writer ever.

No, it's time for another round of "can you write Miraculous Ladybug better than the writers of Miraculous Ladybug?" and today the contestant is ME. And boy would it be embarrassing to be the first person to lose at my own gameshow.

So things start out normally; Chloe acts out, and inadvertently gives Hawkmoth an easy shot at a temporary slave. She gets kidnapped - is a bit more clearly terrified because she is a HOSTAGE - and it turns out the akuma was someone she upset earlier. Obviously that's gonna bother her, but Ladybug saved her! A real life hero, a person she can look up to, and is willing to help someone without any expectations or social obligations, and is just generally really cool! And a catboy was there too I guess! (Ok we can save my closeted/hasn't figured herself out yet lesbian Chloe ideas for later).

Besides, maybe it was a fluke, bad luck, it surely wouldn't happen agaaaand it happened again. And again. And now people are starting to blame her for it, that she brought it upon herself, and she believes them. She tries to be more careful and considerate, to help people when needed - but she doesn't know how. She comes off as sarcastic and condescending, and often her help goes wrong. And that leads to her getting captured again, and again, and again. She becomes paranoid, nervous, anxious, and that causes her to snap at people, suddenly and without clear warning - and Hawkmoth takes notice. He starts spying on her because she is practically a conflict farm that he didn't even realize he had sewn, but is more than happy to reap. Or at least he is at first... After all, as Alphys from Undertale once said, you start to root for someone when you watch them on a screen.

For once, Gabriel Agrest has his conscious start to weigh on his again, as he starts to see that the effects of the damage he causes that Ladybug can't magically reverse, the hell he is putting this girl through, a girl that was once close to his son that he had known since she was in elementary school. When he sees her, he can't even look her in the eyes, won't even address her, tries to ignore her because he can't bring himself to face her... And that's just another person giving Chloe the cold shoulder.

And then, the season finale, in a moment of weakness, bad timing, and poor judgment, after Ladybug saves Chloe, she explodes at her. It's happened way too many times, it keeps looping back to her, something needs to change, Chloe needs to do better.

And naturally, she starts to cry.

"I'M TRYING!"

"YOU AREN'T TRYING HARD ENOUGH!!!"

"I DON'T KNOW HOW!"

"IT'S NOT THAT HARD!!!"

The breaking point, even Ladybug has turned her back on her. This is when Chloe gets Akumitized, she wouldn't let it happen before because Ladybug was one of the only things she could cling to after she pushed so many others away, if not by her behavior than by the fact that she is a danger magnet, she wouldn't let herself be used against her. After all, you can only have your life saved by someone so many times before you start to feel like you owe them something.

For Marinette, kindness comes easy, so she doesn't understand why Chloe is struggling. And because she and Chloe are still enemies at school, (perhaps at one point Chloe tried to extend a bridge and apologize, but Marinette understandably doesn't trust her and thinks it's a trick) so she didn't see those efforts herself. Marinette now has unintentionally pushed someone too far, due to the limits of her knowledge, social skills, and factors outside of her control- the very thing she had, without realizing, just condemned Chloe for doing. Chloe just had those variables skewed against her favor.

After being defeated, this time there's no talk; Chloe immediately runs away. Throughout the next season, Chloe starts avoiding people altogether. She doesn't want anyone to get hurt because of her; not that this actually really affects the rate Hawkmoth can create new Akuma's, as by this point he's gotten over his guilt and has had the idea to manipulate people into conflict himself. Marinette meanwhile is by this point the new popular kid, due to her kindness and success over the course of the series, reversing the original status quo. This leads to enough jealousy that Chloe gets Akumitized, after which she decides to ask her father to have her homeschooled until Hawkmoth is stopped for good.

Lonelier than ever and with the uselessness of her father and the neglect of her mother being even bigger issues than before, it's only a matter of time before she finds herself outside; alone, cold, and depressed. Only then does she meet the master (who is competent in this AU, so instead of picturing him, think Sensei Wu from Ninjago) who decides to comfort her, and finally, her efforts are recognized.

"Thanks, but no. I... I Don't want to hurt you."

"Oh my, that's not quite the response I expected. What makes you think you're so dangerous?"

"I... Keep making people upset. And then they get Akumitized... I've tried to do better but"

"Well, you aren't Hawkmoth are you?"

" N-no?"

"Then it's not your fault people are getting Akumitized. And believe me, he hasn't stopped causing trouble just because you became a social recluse."

"!"

"But I can see how hard you're trying - you have become a person who is willing to put the needs of others before your own. Heh, A few short years ago, and I would have thought myself crazy for even considering this"

"?"

"Do you want to stop Hawkmoth?"

"M-more than anything..."

"Here, this is the bee Miraculous. It's the same type of artifact that gives Ladybug, Chat Noir, and even Hawkmoth their powers, although also entirely unique. The Kwamii will explain more"

"W-what?!?"

"Listen. There's two things you need to know. First off, Hawkmoth must never get his hands on both the Cat and Ladybug miraculous. He intends to use them for a wish, and the consequences of doing so are dire. Got it?"

She nods

"Second, you must keep your identity a secret, to everyone. If you don't, anyone could take the miraculous while you're not transformed- including Hawkmoth, who would use it to further his own goals. If your identity is revealed, to ANYONE, you must return it to either me or Ladybug immediately."

She takes a moment to process everything, then nods again

"Good. Go back to school, start again fresh. You need people you can rely on, and something tells me your parents aren't it"

"Ok... But... Why? Why me, after everything?"

"Because I believe that anyone can be a good person if they try. And I've seen with my own eyes that you are willing to try. And I believe that you can be a good hero, because you care, even if you don't know how to show it. You may stumble a bit at first, but everyone makes mistakes. Just keep moving forward... I believe in you"

[alexiela73]

Can I please have a headcanon for Reaper where he's both excited and scared after learning he's going to be a dad?

Absolutely!

Gabriel Reyes

McCree knew about the pregnancy before Gabe, only because Gabe's s/o was worried about telling them

The two of them had never really gotten as far as children- you'd been dating maybe six months, and as far as the two of them were concerned, wasn't that serious

After all, the two of them were very career motivated and worked a lot

The two of them have always practiced safe sex, and though the two of them could get carried away, neither had really put much thought into this happening

McCree was there when Gabriel was told. It was a lot for him to process, and admittedly, the first thing he'd said was, "But....But I wore a condom..."

Jesse had rolled his eyes. "As you've told me maybe hundreds of times, Gabe...its not a fool-proof thing, condoms," he'd said.

His partner had asked what Gabriel thought they should do, if they should terminate the pregnancy or not

Honestly, Gabriel had just grabbed the nearest bucket and puked

McCree suggested both parties take a few days to sit on the information before coming to a decision. After all, the fetus wasn't going anywhere

Gabe ended up needing to take the next few days off, in which Jesse checked on him periodically. He tried talking to him, but Gabriel was pretty clammed up about the whole thing

What if he was as shitty a father to the baby as his father had been to him? What if he was a bad dad? What if the baby grew up and hated him?

Another part of him though imagined a small infant in his arms, and wondered what it'd be like to have a piece of himself like that. Would he like being a dad? He already had plenty of adult children

Jesse got so worried that finally he told Ana what was going on and sent her to talk to him

Ana had gone to his room and went in. After a few minutes, she'd broken the silence with, "So, you ready to be a father?"

The words had made him groan and he dropped his hands into his head. "No...maybe...I don't know. Can you go away?"

Ana had chuckled, moving to sit in his desk chair. "No, I can't. Gabriel, you have to make a decision sooner then later. If you don't want the baby, that's completely valid. But if you do...then you need to sit down and talk with her. Come to a decision you both can be happy with."

"How am I suppose to decide?" Gabe asked, looking up at her. "What if I go through with this and its one big mistake? What if I fuck up the kid? I...I don't want to be a bad dad."

Raising an eyebrow, Ana had watched him for a moment, before moving to sit next to him and put her hand on his arm. "You wouldn't be a bad father," she said gently. "I know you, Gabe. You are hard working and hard headed- and present. That's what children need."

Gabriel shook his head a bit. "I'm just...scared, I guess," he muttered. "I...I think I want to be a dad. I just don't think I could stand it though if I failed them..."

"The secret is, Gabriel, that you will always worry you've failed them. You will always double question yourself and if you made the right choices. As long as you love them, through thick and thin, that is the most important thing. As long as you support your child, then you will never fail as a parent," Ana said soothing, rubbing his arm and watching him as Gabriel closed his eyes.

Her old friend looked so tired and ragged. This was a big decision, and of course, Ana remembered what it was like when she realized she was pregnant with Fareeha. Its terrifying.

"Plus, you've survived Jesse. At this point, I think you'll survive anything," she said, managing to get a chuckle out of him. "There it is. Think on it a bit longer, okay? But don't keep hiding away."

Gabriel wiped his eyes, before giving her a few pats on the back. "Ya...thanks, Ana. I'll think about it awhile longer," Gabriel said, but he really did feel a bit better after the talk with her.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Tbh fact Gabriel is plan to be redeemed while Chloe is going to be further demonize is really making me thankful that TA never worked on ATLA

OH FUCK THAT"S TERRIFYING

Although yeah I compare Chloé to Zuko and Azula a LOT

And ATLA did it right with the Fire Nation Royals. Ozai? Even if he's a product of his environment he was an asshole even for them and is also a grown ass man who has made his own decisions. Zuko and Azula are kids who are just trying to survive. Zuko managed to escape which is good, Azula didn't and that is a tragedy not an inherent moral failing on her existence.

[lovecolibri]

SaL anon here friend with my thoughts on Tuesday's episode and some other thoughts I'll get to. So the episode was amazing, emotional, so well acted, and basically hitting every kidnapped lover trope in the book to great effect. Slow, horrifying realization by their other half that something is wrong when no one else thinks so. Team up between them and a close relative who grounds them so they can crack the case. Kidnapped lover has a chance to escape but doesn't take it because it lead to

the other getting hurt. Performing CPR on the kidnapped lover because they FUCKING DIED!! Truly a glorious fanfiction come to life and I loved every moment of that part. It goes without saying that I would have gladly traded less Owen for more 126, but the TK and Gabriel team up was amazing. The serial killer aspects were pretty minimal so I didn't need to skip anything (ngl, after seeing the cookie thing in the preview i was terrified), hell Trudy was deranged but kinda sweet. So here we come to my salty thoughts so feel free to ignore if you want. As much as I loved the episode, it was hardly part of any sort of arc for Carlos, if we can even say that there was one. Aside from the basic setup, nothing in it relied on the previous 3 episodes. You could have had Tarlos fight for any reason and Carlos get kidnapped on a case and it would have played out the same way. So if there is any sort of arc for Carlos its in the previous 3 episodes, and I'm having trouble seeing it. An arc (to me) is character has a problem, things happen, resolution has character come out stronger on the other side (see the top tier Buck tsunami arc, Buck feels useless without his job, he saves Chris, discovers he has value to others outside his job.) So what was Carlos's arc? It was supposedly confronting his past but that didn't really happen. He's there for Iris when he thinks he hadn't been, but he would have been for any friend who went missing. If it was about confronting his reasons for getting married shouldn't we have seen a conversation with his parents? Right now the marriage thing isn't even necessary as backstory, we already knew Carlos had these issues in S2. If Tim was going to introduce 5 million plot holes with this info it needed a payoff. Maybe more will be said later in the season, till then i feel like 4x04 is a beautiful work of fan service to vaguely justify Tim's poorly thought out/executed headcanon.

Hello my friend and I'm sorry I'm so late getting to this! My mom had some issues at work and then got sick and then I got like, a weird (for me) amount of energy to Do Something Productive and spent about 6+ hours yesterday sorting The Box Of Important Papers I have been throwing shit into for years and I couldn't stop or I would never start again and it would remain half-sorted for the foreseeable future. But now I've got some time before I start anything else (or just lay around and read/recover for the rest of the day)!

The Tarlos of Tuesday's episode was sooooo so so good! We got delicious angst without being an over the top serial killer torture fest (and yeah Trudy was enabling her son but you can't look at the way he talked to her and tell me he wasn't abusing her and she wasn't just waiting to be the next one he killed the second she failed to "prove" her love for him. Also, am I the only one that assumed when she said his dad "left" and he burnt himself dissolving "something" that he murdered his dad? ANYWAY), we got some truly beautiful lines from both TK and Carlos about their love for each other, and Rafael really just acted his heart out all episode. I loved every minute of their stuff this episode. I was particularly thrilled with the TK/Gabriel scenes and the way he and Andrea just were SO happy to see TK even without Carlos, and were prepared to just have him over to hang out for a bit was SOOOO sweet and speaks volumes about how much closer they have grown. We love to see it! And the parallels to Carlos and Owen looking for TK when he went missing?! *chef's kiss* Get you a father in law who will listen to your concerns about their child and take them seriously and will follow your lead when you Know Something Is Up.

And honestly, Owen had some lines that did make me laugh! I actually think him and O'Brian play off each other really well and I enjoy their reluctant team up. I am just ABSOLUTELY bored to tears with this stupid storyline for them. One is a fire captain and the other is a motorcycle cop! HOW are they both just being totally removed from their first responder world to push this whole boring ass FBI investigation that, from a lot of the comments I've seen around, no one could give two shits about. There are SO MANY procedurals on that revolve around these investigations and a couple other "firefighter" shows that are more about the soap opera level drama than the fun/occasionally serious and painful rescue calls. The 911verse has always stood out for being different, more hopeful and fun, having drama but not being A Drama, and being full of fun and interesting rescues that tie in with what the main characters are going through. And both shows losing their way SO early in their runs is...disappointing. And frustrating that the people in charge have gotten a lot of feedback about what fans AND the GA tune in for (cool/fun emergencies! Some drama but not too OTT, focus on our main characters and their relationships to/with each other!) and have decided they would rather be like every other show out there than to deviate from what they personally want to do because the audience enjoys something they don't think is The Thing Everyone Should Be Enjoying This Much. (Or worse, turn those earnest things that people loved about the show into a joke because they resent their audience and fanbase that gives their show longevity and keeps it trending and pulls in new viewers for some reason. 🙃🙃🙃) ANYWAY, I am READY for this Owen storyline to take a back fucking seat to literally anything. I've been re-watching season 1 and the difference in TK and Owen's relationship then and now is so disappointing to see. I know Ronen said he and RL have a really good TK/Owen episode (or scene? I don't fully remember) so I'm looking forward to that but I really, REALLY need to see more emergencies and first responder moments on this *checks notes* show very specifically about first responders doing their jobs. VERY excited for Marjan to get a storyline this week!

As for your salty thoughts, I'm with you. I don't *hate* the "Carlos married Iris" storyline but it definitely could have been handled better/more seamlessly (especially watching season1 again and the clues they COULD have dropped without revealing what was going on but didn't), and honestly was not needed as a set up for this episode. Actually, as much as what we got was good, I personally think it would have been better being an entirely separate thing from Iris. Like, if they just wanted to have Carlos getting hurt and TK teaming up with Gabriel to find him, they could have cut the whole thing about Iris going missing and put more emergency calls into episode 3 and had TK and Carlos still in a tiff because they're both stressed about Iris not signing the divorce papers yet, and then had Carlos get trapped while at work on a call! He could have been trying to save someone, hell it could have even been Iris! And we could have seen him talking to this person (even BETTER if it was Iris!) about all this love he has for TK and about TK's love for Gwen, and fighting to get out but not quite being able to make it, and even going into cardiac arrest and needing CPR! He still could have been off-duty with no one knowing he was involved at first so TK could still have the talk with the 126 and the call to Grace, and a moment with the Reyes parents and the ultimate team up with Gabriel. I just think there was a way to tie it more into the premise of first responders while still keeping all the good stuff we got!

And you're right about it not really being an "arc" because we...didn't actually get that much from Carlos about HIMSELF. We got the scene where he first tells TK about being married and why he did it, but we still know NOTHING about if they had a true wedding and told everyone or if it's something that they did privately and it came up later when she disappeared, we have no idea if everyone in the family knew it was a sham wedding or found out later, we still don't know when they decided it was cool to date other people and if they ever lived together, or how Carlos felt about watching his best friend start to change and become someone he didn't recognize, we know NOTHING except it is a Thing That Happened and they didn't get a divorce before she disappeared because ??? "reasons" (even though no one batted an eye about her having a long-term relationship with someone else), then she was presumed dead, and then it was because the US healthcare system is a joke. We didn't get to delve much into Carlos' side of things, just hear his version of Iris's side of things! And as you said, if it was about him confronting his past, WHERE was a talk with his parents?! Where was the discussion about his choice to do this and what they did or didn't say or did or didn't know about it all?!

I'm hoping we get some more in the coming weeks because we still don't have a resolution to this arc since Iris still has not applied for an annulment or signed the papers, we haven't seen Carlos talking to his parents, and we didn't get a big growth moment or anything because we didn't get to see TK talking to anyone about how he was trying to be supportive but he was really reeling from the news and wanted to make sure Carlos felt supported and loved but he also needed to vent about it. Like, the only conflict is about if it can happen soon enough for the wedding in 8-ish weeks, because everyone is on board and everyone is fine with things. IDK it just feels like if this was going to be a big thing, it needed to be A Big Thing which you can do without the people in the couple being awful to each other, but you do kind of need to allow them to have big and occasionally messy feelings, and TALK about those feelings, and show some change from the start of the arc to the end. There was never any really true conflict here, so there is...nowhere to grow from. I don't hate this, I just think it could have been handled a little better and more interestingly but SO MUCH TIME is going to this Owen arc that everything else is suffering instead of giving this plot some room to breathe and filling up the time with more emergencies, and giving Owen a more central arc later on. 🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

As always, thanks for your thoughts my friend! I'll be working on our song ask next!