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asherlockstudy · 5 years

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Bran Stark and the Long Night

A “Very Potter Musical” theory

Okay, no I did not lose my mind. This is not a Very Potter Musical theory but it discusses some similarities between Harry Potter and Game of Thrones and ends with a little help from Spotify. By writing this down I prove I have learned nothing from my past mistake of interpeting the questionable plot twists in BBC Sherlock through an optimistic perspective. I need to get it out though and I’ll just hope I won’t get too disappointed in the next episodes. Please keep in mind that opinions and preferences amongst GoT fans vary greatly - who is important or evil in my opinion might not be for you.

This is a long post, so here’s a summary of what is discussed:

Review of the Long Night

Many parallels between Bran Stark and Harry Potter. Bran is a (dark) grey character in this theory.

Arya’s importance and whether she is the promised one or not

Personal predictions about the next episodes. All main characters are discussed. Might or might not contain wishful thinking. A whole lot about the prophecy of Azor Ahai which I REALLY want to see fulfilled properly before the show ends.

Clues from the Spotify Game of Thrones Playlist D&D created for the ending of the show

Some noticeable emphasis on Jaime and Brienne. A LOT of Jaime.

First of all, I belong to the few (?) who loved the episode. I doubt any other TV show will ever manage to achieve anything remotely as ambitious. The cinematography is gorgeous, the actors, the crew, the visual effects, the music... everyone who took part in the making of this episode needs a standing ovation. As for the darkness? It meant to be this way! The darkness was what kept us on edge and it made it harder to understand if a character was dying or not, thus stressing us out even more. The darkness was meant to reinforce the feeling of uncertainty and imminent danger. Whereas Helm’s Deep battle was lit to emphasize on the heroism and the stunts, the battle of Winterfell is darkened to emphasize on its unpredictability and the feeling of death lurking in every corner. So it is unfair to rate this episode with 1s or 2s like so many people do. Even if you didn’t like the ending, there are so many elements here and so much hard work that deserve acknowledgement.

I didn’t like everything though. What did I not like? Well, duh, the ending. I was never interested in the whole “White Walkers” part of the plot and yet Arya killing the Night King in seconds didn’t exactly satisfy even the indifferent me. Don’t get me wrong, I like Arya and she sure is one of the most lethal characters. It just never occurred to me that she could be connected to this particular subplot. The thing, however, that I interpret very differently than most people writing reviews is that to me there was nothing final about this episode. Many fans act as if this was the general ending of the story and I don’t want to be too optimistic but I just don’t see it this way. So what then? Are we going to watch Cersei sip wine for the next four and a half hours until Drogon roasts her in the last second? Are they THAT bad? The fact that the characters in the show consider the Dead their greatest threat does not mean that this is the culmination of the plot. Let alone that the fact that the characters think the threat is gone does not mean the threat is gone. Remember the show we’re watching - the shocking plot twists always happen when you least expect them. If D&D have now become cowards, we must wait until the end to be able to tell. I, for one, consider the fact that they have not left even a mere second, even a still image, even a comment or a sentence about the last three episodes slip as extremely promising. Even the promo for the next episode is literally two scenes and obviously the least important. Anyway, I don’t want to defend them too much because this has been a boomerang for me in the past *cough sherlock cough*.

According to what we got, most have assumed that Bran was the ultimate good guy who had orchestrated everything so Arya, Azor Ahai, would kill the Night King. My main argument is that Bran Stark...just doesn’t strike me like an *entirely* good guy. I know people have had enough of Bran is the Villain theories but I am not speaking about a full-blown villain and also...just consider it for a bit. The Three-Eyed-Raven is supposedly the eternal enemy of the Night King and is a wise entity. There is a problem in Bran’s case though: the Night King leaves his mark on him.

Don’t forget, the Night King is known to create wights simply by touching them. Craster’s living babies. Bloody (though dead) Viserion! The intelligence or the living state of the victim doesn’t seem to be an obstacle. The Night King then assumes complete control over his creations.

Do you know what this mark reminds me of?

This.

Voldemort tried to kill Harry but his curse turned back at him because Lily had just died to save her child (because of love). It left a scar on Harry’s forehead instead of killing him. What happened between Bran and the Night King seems very similar. The Night King wanted to kill or turn into a wight the soon-to-be Third Eyed Raven so he grabbed him by the wrist but Bran wasn’t exactly there so there was an obstacle the Night King couldn’t fully overcome. Bran escapes him and returns to the present with a mark. We’re told that this mark can help the Night King find him. Is this all there is to it though?

It takes five years for Dumbledore to brace himself and reveal to Harry why his scar is a sensor of Voldemort’s presence and extreme mood shifts. The reason is that the day Voldemort tried to kill Harry a part of his already ruined soul was merged with Harry’s soul which made them both have access to each other’s feelings and thoughts to some degree. As time passed, that connection became stronger, especially as Harry and Voldemort became aware of it. By his fifth year in Hogwarts, Harry’s mood is constantly affected by Voldemort’s; he’s often angry and full of inexplicable hate. He laughs and gets furious and has violent urges all of a sudden without understanding why. He starts getting visions where he is Voldemort. The good thing in Harry’s case is that Harry’s soul is a pure whole soul that can’t get easily corrupted and that some powerful people know about this connection more or less and try to guard him against it (Dumbledore, Snape, Sirius etc).

If something similar happens to Bran, he is not that lucky. Nobody understands this connection except maybe the previous Third Eyed Raven who is dead. What’s worse, Bran does not only fight against the Night King’s effect on him. Whereas Harry’s soul was pure and healthy and whole, Bran’s soul and identity collapses under the weight of partly being both the Night King (or controlled by him) and the Third Eyed Raven. His mind fills with the memory and the wisdom of the world as well as with the awareness of the intent of death. Obviously, little Brandon Stark’s emotional and mental world doesn’t even make up 1% of the whole consciousness there is now inside him.

As the Night King gets more powerful day after day, we see an evolution in Bran Stark as well. As the story proceeds, he becomes more and more emotionless and lifeless just like Harry was getting more irritable, envious and violent. Bran starts resembling a dead man. It does not help that the Third Eyed Raven has a pretty neutral stance as well but young Bran suspiciously beats the much older previous Third Eyed Raven in terms of neutrality. When he returns to Winterfell, he has already lost all his feelings for his family. Maybe Bran is still in there but only a last lost hint of him that needs something groundbreaking to happen to cause him to externalize some emotion.

Another proof that Bran has a more special connection with the Night King than just being tracked down by him is offered to us when a panicked marked Bran (when he still could feel) argues with the Third Eyed Raven that the Night King can’t get to him in that sacred place to which the wise entity responds laconically: “He can now”. Well, if the mark was just a track medium then the Night King would get stuck in the opening of the cave, aware that Bran is inside yet unable to enter. If he can now get in, this possibly means he is already in, protected by being carried by an innocent, still pure and very much alive being; Bran. The Night King is inside and thus the wights can now follow him there.

Dumbledore thought it was too cruel to reveal to poor Harry that the only way they could completely kill Voldemort was to kill him too. Aaaand Dumbledore thought it was important that Voldemort killed them both himself. The only difference here is that Bran is both the equivalents of Harry and Dumbledore in one body, so Bran himself was the one who knew what had to be done.

When they are discussing the battle strategy, Bran tells everyone the Night King wants to kill him because he wants to erase the memory of this world. Despite this, Bran requires to be left outside in plain sight so that the Night King will find him and everyone assumes he wants to be the bait, something Bran neither confirms nor denies. But what if he wanted to be the sacrifice instead of the bait? Think about it, Bran’s plan makes the Night King supposedly more vulnerable but it also makes the Third Eyed Raven way easier to kill. If Bran waits for him in the open, it’s very easy for the Night King to reach him quickly with the dragon and if he does, then all the living die anyway! If Bran was in the crypts, the Night King would have a much longer way to go into the castle, thus having to confront many more living that could hopefully take him down. Honestly, Bran’s plan just makes the Night King’s job easier. Moreover, Bran does not ask protection. Theon takes the initiative and swears to protect him and Bran once again says nothing because he doesn’t want to cause disagreements and end up protected in the crypts or with a more skilled fighter to guard him. At this moment Bran realises Theon is about to die for his cause and he allows it to happen for either the greater good or the greater evil. Bran says he doesn’t know if dragon fire can kill the Night King because nobody has tried, therefore making Jon and Daenerys waste all their contribution at trying to take him out in this way. When Daenerys dracarys at him, the Night King shows human traits and smiles sinisterly at her.

Hehe, tricked ya! Has he ever displayed so particular human reactions before?

In short, I believe Bran wanted to die in this battle. What’s questionable is Bran’s allegiances. Does Bran want to die to save everyone else or to ensure the Night King’s plan is successful? I tend to believe the answer is...both. The Raven inside him wants the Night King to fail but Night King’s consiousness inside him wants him to succeed. Either way Bran must die. However, I think currently the Night King’s will inside Bran is winning because Bran would try to pass on somebody else his gift before sacrificing himself. Another question is, is Bran totally honest? What if the Night King's actual plan was to resurrect him or merge with him after killing him which as a result would mean that the Night King would become the Third Eyed Raven, accumulating enormous god-like power?

Arya prevented Bran’s plan whether his intent was good or bad. With this reasoning, Arya is not Azor Ahai because either she delayed the salvation of the living or she didn’t completely beat the “Final Boss”. Of course, there are problems in this theory. Why did Bran want to save himself in the past, why did he not head alone in the north to find the Night King first and end this without so much mayhem? Also, what about Arya and the dagger he gave her?

Possible answers:

Bran’s high consciousness as well as his connection to the Night King get stronger minute after minute. It might have taken him some time to process what he needed or wanted to do and how he would achieve it.

Well, he is a boy in a wheelchair. Nobody will let him just go find the Night King. He can’t escape their notice. Before this, Meera would never agree to take him north obviously.

The dagger thing is the hardest. Can we still assume there is a limit to what Bran knows and can predict? He doesn’t know everything. I think at this point I believe there is truly a God in the ASOIAF world and it seems he has a design for this world indeed. Bran might be more powerful than a regular person but he still is a tool in the divine plan. Besides, upon planning the tactics for the battle, Bran does not seem exactly sure of the outcome. Bran seems to know vaguely who is important but he does not know exactly how. Perhaps Three Eyed Raven Bran sensed Arya was meant to have that dagger but he didn’t know yet what for and whether it would benefit his Night King side or not. Furthermore, back then the Night King’s effect on him was weaker so that Bran was a better entity than he is now.

Now let’s talk about the actual battle. When Melisandre sets the trench on fire, Theon seals his death by telling Bran that the fire is lit and the wights can not proceed (and therefore reach to them). Then - oh so coincidentally - Bran is like “OK thanx Theon gotta go now bye”. He then wargs into ravens and he leads them straight to the Night King. The ravens reach him and then and only then the Night King commands the wights to fall in the fire and create a bridge for the rest to cross. We see this on screen clearly so I wonder why people don’t talk about it at all. I would make a gif but it’s too damn dark! (Taking back all good words I said for the darkness lol). In short, Bran gets close to the Night King and sets him into action. Bran betrays them all. Is this a necessary evil for the greater good or just plain evil? Almost everyone was slaughtered after this, so I doubt Bran didn’t want to be in the crypts so more people would survive...bullshit. (Of course, all these apply if we blindly accept that the battle strategy was not just badly written.)

A similar scene happens in the seventh season when Bran wargs ravens to spy on the Dead and although they all are motionless, standing corpses, when the ravens arrive the Night King abruptly jumps to...errr...life and looks at them as if fully aware it’s Bran inside them. This terrifies Bran but also probably allows him to learn about the special nature of his connection with him.

In Dragonstone, the first episode of the seventh season, the second scene is the dead marching South and the scene cuts to Bran warging while Meera drags him to the Wall.

Back in the Long Night, Bran stays at warg state throughout the whole battle after this point. Now look... if you can. Apologies for terrible quality.

Bran never leaves his warg state until the exact moment the Night King arrives and has direct eye contact with him. Therefore, Bran does not need to guide him anymore. He returns to himself and thanks Theon essentially for dying for nothing. However, Theon serves his purpose, delaying Bran’s death until Arya arrives. Then he dies betrayed, paying for his betrayal of Robb Stark. Bran then waits passively for the Night King to kill him. Their interaction is basically all but hateful. The Night King just stares at him with something close to content in his face, while Bran looks...happy?

This is Bran’s happy face. I can’t unsee it!!!!! It’s excited or impatient or something like that... and Bran makes something like nod with his eyes and then the Night King tries to grab his sword..... but Arya arrives out of nowhere and kills him. Look at Bran. He doesn't look at the least bit happy or grateful. His - granted - blank expression somehow shows me he was thinking "How the fuck do I undo this now?". Look at Arya smiling at him after they are all saved and Bran’s reaction.

You’re safe now, brother!

Yeah, I am so happy right now I could cut you with the dagger I gave you..

For an extremely expressionless face, I feel like Bran is probably screaming internally here. Tell me, does he look happier with the Night King or Arya?!

Let’s focus on Arya now. As a start, Arya does not fit any of the criteria for Azor Ahai except maybe the first one (Braavos' water dance fight style and strong connection of the city with water???). She hasn't killed a Lannister-lion yet and the Nissa Nissa thing makes the probabilities even slimmer. Furthermore, she doesn't kill the Night King with her Needle but with a dagger instead. No fire, no red colour, nothing. Actually, we see her repeatedly asking Gendry to make her the weapon. We’ve therefore been told that Arya won’t have her sword so she doesn't have a Lightbringer either. Three swords get a lot of mentions in the show: the Needle which Arya did not use at all throughout the battle (she literally uses every possible weapon except the Needle), Heartsbane which Sam gives to Jorah who then falls and Oathkeeper which Jaime gives to Brienne as a token of his love.

Arya was not Azor Ahai but she still functioned according to the God's plan. The God (whoever he is, the old, the 7, the Lord of Light or the Many-faced one) doesn’t want the memory of this world to be lost. What perhaps Bran had not thought (or did not want) is that he should not die until he passed his gift to someone else. If Bran's plan worked, the world as everyone knew it would change forever. When Bran explains what he is now to everyone, Sam interferes and says they should never let him die. Someone must be the Third Eyed Raven so that the humans will keep being exactly that - humans with history, backgrounds and memories. Here we might be getting the answer about why on earth Sam did not die in the battle. Sam understands better than anyone the importance of this entity. This might hint that he is going to become the Third Eyed Raven once Bran dies or contribute to find the chosen one. The archmaester in the Citadel told Sam something similar: “We are the memory of this world.”

So, things were not going according to plan and also the real Azor Ahai had not showed up yet thus Arya was meant to save the day. Everything Arya did led up to this. She was filled with hate when her father was executed by Joffrey so that she would find the most skilled assassins to train her for revenge. Arya prepares the way for Azor Ahai. Beric was brought up to life to save Arya. The Hound was not killed by Brienne or Arya in order to then save the latter. The Hound most likely has more to do in the story (face Mountain) which is why Beric dies and Sandor does not.

Let’s go to the plot armour. Arya's timing saves Sansa, Tyrion, Missandei and Varys. During the battle, something of utmost importance happens in the crypts. Sansa plants an idea in Tyrion's mind - Daenerys is the obstacle in their way to be a couple. What's next; clever Tyrion will once again be the victim of a woman who promised him love and this is how Daenerys will be betrayed for love, fulfilling the prophecy. Tywin always admitted Tyrion's intelligence but despised him for being so weak in front of his vices; women and alcohol. Tywin cruelly tried to teach him a lesson twice, first with Tysha and then with Shae. But Tyrion did not pay attention and maybe his ultimate downfall is going to be Sansa. Missandei overheard what they said and she is still loyal to Daenerys. Tyrion is in danger. Varys heard them too but he might side with Tyrion. Let's see if mighty Tywin was cruel but spot on.

Arya's timing saves Greyworm who has promised to protect Missandei. Missandei is in danger now that Sansa knows she can rush to her Queen and tell her what she heard. Perhaps Greyworm survived so that the truth will reach Deanerys.

Arya's timing did not save Jorah but he held on enough to protect his Queen . Daenerys loses her last truly unyielding supporter. She is now more powerless than ever. Sansa has the upper hand in the North and if Dany opposes to Jon Snow, her fate seems doomed no matter what Missandei and Greyworm do. Then again, if Sansa finds out about Jon’s heritage, she might start being less friendly too. A cousin starts getting too distant especially when power is involved.

Arya's timing saves Jon, the heir, whose purpose however was not to defeat the White Walkers. His purpose was to tell the world of their existence or he might have a great part to play in the last war.

Arya's timing saves Tormund, Jaime, Brienne and Podrick. Out of all these only Brienne and Tormund naturally make sense to be still alive because of their strength and skill. And then we have one-handed Jaime and Podrick who honestly should have died in the first ten minutes. While everyone else fights for their life, Brienne and Jaime keep constantly saving each other almost like they are in their own world. Podrick surviving is very weird but we have already been shown that the boy has hidden talents. Podrick has not completed his arc.

As for Jaime, Bran told him he shouldn't have him killed before he got to help “them”. And then the battle comes and he merely survives. Arya's timing saves him (and his love) in the last second. Jaime did nothing important for or against the Night King or Bran yet. Jaime was trapped in the battle, hardly able to survive let alone reach to Bran. Sure, Jaime killed probably hundreds of wights that night but he didn’t affect the grand scheme of things in this battle like Bran implied. Yet, Bran literally waited for him a whole night out in the dark cold. This must mean we have a lot more to see in the next episodes.

Arya's timing saves Gendry and Sam but not Edd. Gendry still has a claim to the throne. Edd died so that Sam could live. I already spoke of Sam's importance. But something weird happens when Edd saves Sam. Sam falls down exhausted but something catches his attention. See the gifs in @nochancennochoice ‘s post: there is some debate on whether Sam sees Brienne, Jaime fighting with his two hands oooor Jaime fighting with a right hand. I think it looks like the third option is the right one and it would explain why confused Sam has a pausing moment in all this mayhem and forgets the world around him until Edd calls him back to reality. Sam sees Jaime through the flames, being in a delirious state, fighting like crazy with what looks like his right hand suspiciously a lot. We can be sure Jaime did not use his non-existent hand though - so could this be a vision in the flames by the Lord of Light...you know...a more accurate one than the ones Melisandre sees? Jaime was indeed fighting like crazy but Sam sees a changed image through the fire that puzzles him quite a bit. We’ll soon see if there was hidden importance in this oddly specific scene and, once more, it would explain why Samwell Tarly would survive the long night.

This does not mean Jaime is definitely the legendary warrior. However, he is the most likely contender in my opinion because a) he leaves his false vile identity in the past inside smoke and water (let’s pretend the baths had salts), b) he indirectly kills a lion, his father, c) he's truly the only character who is basically exclusively driven by love and we know Azor Ahai must make the ultimate sacrifice. Perhaps though and dreadfully so, Jaime still hasn't killed a lion because his father's murder is not on him. This might be the fulfilment of the Valonqar prophecy and Jaime gets to kill Cersei. At this point the story will have proceeded a lot and Jaime and Brienne will have confessed their love or acted upon it. Jaime has saved Brienne more times than we can count and especially in the first incidents Brienne asks him why, both in the show and the books. Jaime never responds in the show but in the books we see that he has meaningful dreams that lead his way. Jaime was destined to find Brienne, love her and keep her alive. Jaime gives her his sword and Brienne bonds with it so much that it almost already is part of her entity. The last challenge for Azor Ahai is to sacrifice his willing loving wife Nissa Nissa whose soul will become one with the sword and this will create the Lightbringer. It pains me to even think about it but Nissa Nissa doesn't sound like Cersei. Brienne will die so that Jaime can meet his fate.

Three guesses who.

After that Jaime and Oathkeeper will end this story by killing Bran. Bran still has a good side in him and it’s probable that he will guide Jaime to do it. I'm gonna cheat here with my evidence but this kinda explains why Nikolaj Coster Waldau loves the conclusion of the story but seems kinda sympathetic when Gwendoline Christie says she had trouble processing the end of her character and needed long walks at the beach and such. When asked, Nikolaj probably revealed too much at some point because he said the story is about that good guy Jaime and that Bran boy who sacrificed himself to save the world. Of course, it’s Nik. He might as well be saying what he wants the end to be lol. However... Bran did not technically sacrifice himself in the Long Night, right? If he knew Arya was coming, then he definitely did not. Either way, the outcome is the same - Bran has not sacrificed himself yet.

Back to Bran and the Night King. People in and out of the show wonder why the wights became so powerful and persistent in this era. Furthermore, the Night King seems much more conscious and lifelike than all the other moving corpses. Maybe we can conclude the explanation with the help of Hodor's backstory. Everyone kept telling Bran to not lose himself in the visions but he ignored them just like he ignored Catelyn and kept climbing towers. Everyone is paying Bran's disobedience and he is going to pay with his life. When the Third Eyed Raven was asleep, Bran travelled into an indefinite time period and got his mark from the Night King. This might have happened long before Bran was even born or before he got paralysed. Therefore the Night King already was connected to Bran but Bran had to get the mark first to start realising and reinforcing the connection. The connection the Night King has to Bran gives him some glimpses of a human living self which is why he is superior to the wights and the White Walkers and shows rudimentary human logic and sense of purpose and identity. With the same reasoning, it’s only after the mark that Bran loses all emotions and vigor.

Upon first meeting Jaime, Jaime who is probably Azor Ahai immediately tried to kill Bran. When Catelyn asked him much later why he threw her son out of the window, Jaime did not respond even though soon afterwards he confessed he sleeps with his sister so hiding this was not the reason he did not respond. It was fate that drove Jaime's hand because even though he doesn't know it, Jaime is driven by a force to become the leader against the darkness. Bran did not die from an 100% deadly fall because although it was Jaime who did it, it was not the right time yet because he wasn’t yet reborn as Azor Ahai and the Night King did not yet live through Bran. Bran's first encounter with the fighter of the Lord of Light is the beginning for his journey to meet his destiny and as soon as Jaime cripples him, he starts getting visions that call him to the North. We might say that Jaime sets the evil going in order for good to fight back and prevail. The things I do for love... Fighting evil?

And now...some more evidence about the story can be taken from the spotify playlist that hints at the ending of the show according to D&D. Let’s see the songs in the very end of the list:

Gold Lion... In the “Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” Tyrion and Jaime reminince on their past “glorious” days when Jaime was a Golden Lion and Tyrion was a whoremonger. Jaime specifically says his golden lion days belong to the past (which is like the most basic foreshadowing of tragic irony) but the playlist disagrees. Here are some lyrics from the song:

Gold lion's gonna tell me where the light is... Tell me what you saw... We'll build a fire in your eyes...

If this is not the most ultimate “Jaime is Azor Ahai with Lightbringer” evidence, I don’t know what is.

Then we have Here’s Your Future, which is a song in which God basically is considered responsible for burdening his children with sin. God forces them to sin so that the duty of atoning and cleansing the world falls on them in order to get worthy of the future God has prepared for them. This really sounds like the Lord of Light so I do believe we’re going to have Azor Ahai by the end of the show. It is very similar to the concept of Jaime being destined to be depraved only to be led in the way of atonement, redemption and then glory. Melisandre and all sorts of God faith have been given a huge part to be totally meaningless.

Since I mentioned Melisandre, she was meant to die. Maybe this was the only vision R’hllor truly had for her; that she should die after this fight in the snow. Why? Ser Davos is the last main character Arya saves repeatedly. Ser Davos and Melisandre’s fates have been interwined for long even though they hate each other. Ser Davos witnesses her suicide. Why did Melisandre have to die, in terms of fate? Maybe because, from now on, there aren’t going to be any resurrections. Whoever dies, dies. Why did they change the plot so that Melisandre would need a magical necklace to stay alive?

Maybe because only one character will have the chance to defy death from now on. Chances are it will be a woman. Why is Ser Davos who literally can’t fight still alive all those years? Maybe because he saw Melisandre drop the necklace and then age and die rapidly. Davos will keep the necklace and probably save a woman he deems worthy of a second chance in life.

And then of course “Love is Blindness”. There are only two couples this could apply to; Jaime and Brienne and Tyrion and Sansa but I’m positive Sansa only wants to use Tyrion to weaken Daenerys and fight Cersei. So the only truly fitting love story is that of Jaime and Brienne.

As if all this was not wishful thinking...imagine Brienne sacrificing herself, Jaime becoming a heartbroken Azor Ahai and the ever surviving Davos putting the necklace around her neck, to the one he seemed to be so appreciative and fond of back in the fireplace...

Okay, okay aren’t all theories partly what we wish it happens? It’s perfectly reasonable if you find this way too much, way too complicated, way too wishful and subjective. If there’s something in here that makes sense to you, you can take this and leave all the rest. I am aware I completely dismissed some basic characters. Let’s say something short about them: Daenerys in my opinion won’t make it to the throne. Not only that but she’s going to be one of the first main characters to die. Even next episode seems probable to me. Arya soon will have her arc completed. I think she reached the peak of her importance. Of all the Starks, I think Sansa is the one who has a chance for the Iron Throne somehow. Right now, she is the most competent in the game of thrones. Littlefinger lives through her. She has admitted to admiring Cersei. One Stark will survive because there must always be a Stark in Winterfell. I honestly have no idea what will happen to Jon Snow. Everyone is sure he’s Azor Ahai but actually there is no evidence the Prince who was Promised and Azor Ahai are the same person. Targaryen heritage is only mentioned in the PWWP prophecy, not that of Azor Ahai. Nevertheless, Jon literally prays to die again. I don’t know if I feel content with the idea of him sitting on the Iron Throne and being depressed all his life because of it.

Cersei of course will die. Tyrion won’t be the one to do it. I would hate it if Arya was the one to do it by wearing one of the brothers’ face. It would be so emotionally anti-climactic and Arya already had her huge killing moment however in the Spotify list there is a song named “Dead Skin Mask” under the “Killer Wolf” one. God forbid. I hope she uses her skills to someone other than a Lannister because there is also an extremely disturbing and explicit song which is named “Sister” and guess what, the rather problematic lyrics are about a young boy who slept with his much older sister who is...nuts.

I was only sixteen but I guess that's no excuse

Oh, sister Don't put me on the street again Oh, sister I just want to be your friend

These were the most tolerable lyrics. (Wtf Prince?) I mean, the point of the song in the list is pretty clear. Jaime will meet Cersei once more and let’s hope he’ll kill her for ruining 20+ years of his life. Right now, Jaime doesn’t look particularly interested in Cersei. It seems as if everything regarding her has died inside him. Therefore, something will happen that will fill Jaime with wrath. The scenarios are two:

Bronn kills Tyrion.

Bronn tries to kill Jaime, Brienne defends him and falls.

Both heartbreaking possibilities (although admit it, they are awesome in terms of dramaturgy). Both are terrifying to me but my desperation makes me wish for the first option. The fact that Bronn said in the fifth season that he does not kill women really DOES NOT help. However, if Brienne is Nissa Nissa then Brienne will die after Cersei so Bronn might indeed kill Tyrion. Besides, Nissa Nissa’s sacrifice could also have some figurative meaning instead of foreseeing a literal death.

All these of course are just personal speculations and wishes. Cersei might be Nissa Nissa. Or Arya might have indeed been Azor Ahai. Jaime and Brienne might just live happily ever after (without Davos’ help) or Jaime might fall heroically. Daenerys might live and rule. Bran maybe is an awesome dude.

I will just say that judging from the way the eighth season is structured, I think D&D played a little game. They featured the huge, foretold battle in the third episode. If the heroes of the whole story were also the heroes of this episode (Arya, Bran, Melisandre) then perhaps it would be wiser if this episode was the fifth or at least the fourth. We are still not exactly in the middle of the season since the total duration of the last three episodes is going to be longer. So if this was the decisive turn of the plot, why would it be featured in the first half of the season? Furthermore, D&D promoted the third episode beyond belief while they kept the next episodes entirely in the dark. That’s got to mean something. Hopefully, D&D planned to create huge expectations for the third episode, therefore not allowing the viewers to build defenses for what would happen next. They tried to satisfy those expectations for the third episode with the exceptional cinematography, direction, music and unprecedented ominous atmosphere they created. This could potentially be the most important deviation from Martin’s future version, in which the Long Night might indeed be the prophecised event that would make Azor Ahai rise and most main characters die. D&D though want the show to be as unpredictable as possible and they have an Iron Throne to give which might mean they used the Long Night as a distraction, however epic.

#jaime lannister #bran stark #brienne of tarth #braime #game of thrones #got season 8 #samwell tarly #ser davos seaworth #azor ahai #jaime x brienne #got spoilers #everyone loves the starks and the targaryens and I just...don't

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sieben9 · 5 years

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“the black fairy” impressions

{Quick request to anyone reading: I’m watching OUaT for the first time, and I want to avoid spoilers. So, if you want to discuss something spoilery, I’d be grateful if you could start a new post for that. Thank you!}

Wow, you really weren't kidding about this being one hell of a ride. ::pokes shattered remains of my heart:: Good thing I don't need that one, huh?

All joking aside, I loved this episode so much. I mean, yes, I do have some issues with specific bits, but overall it was 40 minutes of a good script, performed wonderfully, especially by Robert Carlyle, who should be legally forbidden to ever cry on screen again. (I am kidding, he is fantastic.)

More under the cut. It's mostly gushing, to be honest. Except about Blue. Screw Blue. Also, screw the Black Fairy, but that's nothing new.

Alright, before I get into the whole Rumple-related bit of the episode (which is also most of the episode, obviously), I just wanted to mention the amazing snark-off/witch-off in front of Granny’s with its tonally very appropriate ending.

can I call it the zucchini-mobile?

It was perfect. I loved it. Regina being about 90% unimpressed with the Black Fairy's trash talk and being just about ready to tear her apart in the middle of the road? Perfect.

And yes, Zelena's timely intervention via dubious looking car was hilarious and I laughed out loud. This whole scene was good

In fact, the whole subplot was surprisingly funny, considering what went on. But the somewhat dark humour of the characters' lines and the excellent delivery by all actors really made it work. Special mention goes to the "put on your Mayor Pants"--"excuse me?" exchange, because, just... excellent comedic timing. Well done, that.

And another honourable mention goes to Snow’s very belated realisation that yes, you should all have safewords! Like… someone gets impersonated roughly every other week, and now is when you figure that out? I mean, better late than never, but damn, this was pretty late, guys. Did none of you read Harry Potter even once?

Honestly, I despair of you human disasters, sometimes.

Over in the flashback:

too tiny! this is too tiny a person for me to deal with!

What do you mean “he’s the Saviour”??

Or “a” Saviour, as the title is clearly not unique or even exclusive at any single point in time. Still, that was one hell of a wham line. I so want the conversation where he and Emma talk about the fact that he basically “made” his successor/replacement. I know I’m not getting it (with about 98% certainty), but I can dream, right?

speaking of which…

And one of the reasons I want the conversation is that this episode reminded me how much I loved Emma’s and Rumple’s interactions back in the early seasons. These two are so similar, yet so different in a few crucial aspects that make them clash in the most interesting ways. It’s fantastic. Rumple going “nope, I just brought you because I didn’t want to do this alone and didn’t want to risk Belle I don’t want you starting shit in the waking world”, and Emma bantering with him, because well, she’s here anyway, so why not go along with it. Or Emma pushing him to confront his fear and deep-seated hurt about being abandoned by his mother. The “we are bad at being vulnerable” line, and the fact that she never once judged him for being afraid of his past, but showed understanding and compassion and, ugh, damnit, why can’t this be the show every week?

Just an aside: I don’t have a clear enough recollection of all the prior episodes, but I think this might be only the second time the flashback is actually integrated directly into the episode. As in, something the characters experience themselves. And I’m hesitant to count the first, because that wasn’t a flashback, that was time travel. (Meaning the 3B finale)

Anyway, it was a neat little touch, and I liked it a lot, even if the actual content hurt my heart.

Like this:

I just keep thinking that this is the first time he’s met his son on actually equal terms. No lies, no mistrust, no missing heart to force them apart… and it was beautiful and perfect and I loved it, but it was also sad, because the whole situation is incredibly fucked up. Even if the Black Fairy didn’t have his heart, there’s the matter of the 28 years she stole from Gideon and his parents. Like Belle said, they’re not getting those back, and just… ugh. Pain. Lots of.

And that is why I still don't find Fiona sympathetic. Not as she is currently, because... yeah, she might have had the best intentions, but the road to hell and all that. She kidnaps children to enslave and torture them. That's just on its own level of evil, right next to Pan, which... damn, Rumple, do you need another hug?

I feel like there should be more hugging

Like I said: she’s only more sympathetic than Pan in that she at least had selfless intentions to start with, even if they brought her to the place where she is now. With Blue’s help.

Yeah, let’s talk about that.

Because from where I’m standing, the story goes like this: to a happy young couple, a child with a great destiny is born. Two fairies visit the couple, to declare that they will watch over this child, because of his great destiny. In the process, though, they reveal that part of the child’s destiny is to die in battle against a great evil and then… basically leave her alone with that. No consolation, no offer to help her deal with the horrible truth, just “oops, I shouldn’t have said that” without further acknowledgment of responsibility. I’m willing to let Red at least partially off the hook, because she had her hands full with damage control, and didn’t realise how far Fiona had gone in her quest to save her son’s life (which makes me think that she hasn’t worked with many parents before, but nevermind that.) And in the end, the mother does find a way: sever her child’s fate, so he will never have to face the evil that she has become. It’s a flawed solution, but it works.

Which is when Blue pushes her through the portal, and then drops the child like a hot potato. In fact, she doesn’t even leave Red behind to watch over the little guy, who is now in the care of a father who professed to hate him right in front of their noses. Like… they were in the room. There’s no way they didn’t realise what that would mean.

Great fairy-godmothering, right there. And weird how Blue dropped this completely innocent child like a hot potato the moment he was no longer the Saviour (read: "useful to her").

I mean... damn. We're absolutely sure she isn't evil?

And all that doesn’t even go to the way Blue interacted with Rumple afterwards. I would love to go there, but at the same time I doubt this was meant to be part of their history until maybe ten episodes ago, so it feels a little nitpicky. Blue is just not a very good person. Or even a good fairy, if you ask me.

By the way, after seeing all that, doing all that soul searching, after being so painfully reminded of what the Black Fairy did to his son…

…I’m supposed to believe that Rumple would work with her? Yeah, get out, show, nobody buys that. He either already has a specific plan for stabbing her in the back or he’s hanging around until he gets an opportunity. I mean… that whole speech sounded suspicious as hell and I cannot believe neither Belle nor Gideon noticed that, but I’d like to believe that my reading of “I have a plan, please trust me, even if it looks really bad for a while” is the correct one.

The only thing that worries me: if I find this ploy painfully transparent, you would assume the Black Fairy might catch on to it, as well. Yes, the villain gets to hold the idiot ball on occasion, but if she doesn’t… well, let’s say I really hope that was Gideon’s actual heart Rumple gave back to him. He’s pulled that trick himself before, I hope it stays a one-off.

scheming seems to run in the family…

So. I gather next episode is the wedding? Or at least an attempt at a wedding. I’d be extremely suspicious if this goes off without a hitch (no pun intended) because that is not how Drama works. If you want a quiet wedding, have it after the finale. If you want an awesome wedding, have it during. “Before” is just asking for trouble. Look at Snowing!

#ouat #once upon a time #the black fairy #sieben watches ouat #sieben talks #anti cs #jokingly but hey #if that's not your cup of tea then be aware

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creepygamerpasta · 5 years

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My Defense of Dear Evan Hansen

Okay, disclaimer: I wasn’t really into Dear Evan Hansen, so I don’t know the musical itself all too well (except of course, like everyone, “Sincerely, Me”). I recently read the novel of it (which was written by the creators, so I think the only difference is the fact that the prose doesn’t rhyme). I’m not a “day-one, die-hard fan,” and I do not have an obsession with it. That being said, I enjoyed the novel a lot. It’s not usually a genre I read, but it certainly piqued my interest for YA mental health novels.

Why, then, do people hate it?

I’ve looked online for this answer, and I’ve been able to find some recurring arguments, which are quite valid even if you don’t agree. (Not everyone has to like the same things, I know.) So, here are my responses and counter-arguments. (Note, contains spoilers, and I won’t necessarily outright disagree with everything.)

1. The fanbase is annoying, toxic, etc.

This is probably the easiest to get out of the way. Yes, there will always be people within a fanbase whose entire lives revolve around their fandom. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing; who can fault you for being passionate about something? But it’s when that passion turns into hate or putting someone else’s tastes or general completely down because that person doesn’t like exactly what the fan likes when people get really angry. I’ll use an unrelated scenario to DEH as an example:

Person A: Do you like Taylor Swift?

Me: Eh, I’m not really into her music. I’m more into metal and stuff.

Person A: Oh, okay, cool. :)

Person B: OMG WTF stop being a HATER. Metal SUCKS. You’re just JEALOUS that she has TALENT.

...See? This is the same sort of reactions that people get, not just from DEH fans but from all sorts of fans. (I’ve gotten both of these exact reactions from various fans of different singers, actors, celebrities, movies, TV shows, etc.)

2. The musical is not that great, as in the scores and stuff.

I don’t see why this particularly angers people. I see this more as an evolution of the types of music in musicals. Maybe there’s something I’m missing here, but musicals exist for people to want to see them. And if the target audience is the younger generation, then it does not make sense to use music that most of them A) won’t like and B) won’t understand. I mean, Hamilton is known for its use of rap, (dare I say) “nontraditional” music in the theatre world. And people like it.

Which brings me to the next point...

3. Young people (who obviously cannot have appreciation for true theatre) will expect musicals like Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen to become the norm and for there to be a “big” musical every year.

...okay? So? Look, if people want to go to a musical, then they’ll go. If they want to go to another musical, then they’ll go to that one. It’s not rocket science. And as for this sometimes-unspoken assumption that young people can’t understand/appreciate theatre... Last time I checked, there were still theatre kids in schools across the country, so at least some people can.

And now, we go to the part of the defense where I rely more on the novel.

4. The main character (Evan) is neither compelling nor a good person, and thus, should not be the main character (and, by extension, the entire musical should not exist).

In the book, it is made very clear that Evan is not a perfect character. He’s a human being and has flaws just like everyone. His whole “pretending to be Connor’s friend thing” is less a manipulative move and more of “wrong place, wrong time, and I don’t know how to explain.” Though he’s supposed to be relatable, you are not expected to like him. Other characters question his motives for The Connor Project and his relationship to Connor, but with the first person, inner-thoughts, deepest-darkest-secrets style that the book has, it is very clear that Evan is (in his complex way) trying to help the Murphys with their loss. He does get a bit carried away, probably without realizing it, but even though he did not mean to hurt them, the guilt of his lies eats away at him the entire book.

Evan admits to lying, in person at the Murhpys. He knows that even though his longtime crush and now girlfriend (he even describes her as his soulmate and wants to marry her) will hate him, not to mention her parents, he cannot keep lying to them.

I think one of the problems with DEH specific to this problem is the hype about Evan himself. As the audience, we want to paint Evan as a hero. Descriptions put him in that light. He does overcome a lot through the novel and goes through quite a bit of change, but he is not the flawless hero (or the one-flaw antihero) people want him to be. He is a human being, and I think fans and haters forget this or overlook this, despite it being such an important part of the novel/musical.

5. DEH makes fun of mental illness and doesn’t take it seriously. It falsely portrays people with depression, anxiety, suicidal tendencies, etc.

This grinds a lot of my gears. Mental illnesses are different for everyone. Is there some assumption people have that I’m not aware of? The assumption that people actually think that everyone who has anxiety or is suicidal will act exactly like Evan and Connor? It might not match up with every individual’s experience/struggle with a mental illness, but that’s kind of one of the themes of DEH: that people have different lives, different struggles, different baggage, and different ways of coping, healthy or unhealthy. Everyone has a different story, and no one should be left to deal while feeling alone. Pay attention to those around you.

The lighter-hearted music seems to also make people perceive DEH to be making fun of/not taking mental health seriously. Which is ridiculous. There are some serious songs in that soundtrack, and the upbeat “Sincerely, Me” is supposed to be from fake personas. Connor’s persona in that song is supposed to be feeling better as days go by with the help of his “friend” Evan. So, yes, it makes sense that would be cheerful because it is not from the perspective of the real Connor. If it were, the song would probably be a lot darker.

6. The musical is homophobic and makes fun of the LGBT+ community.

If you were to walk into an elementary, middle, or high school right now and overhear every conversation, I gaurantee you, gaurantee you, that some students would be using “gay” as some sort of put-down or otherwise make fun of LGBT+ people. That doesn’t mean it’s right or acceptable, but having two high school guys (or really one, seeing as how Evan does not go along with the joke) make remarks about two (supposedly) close guys being gay is not something new. This complaint probably mainly comes from the line in “Sincerely, Me” in which Connor’s and Evan’s personas deny being close for anything other than friendship. And honestly? As a member of the LGBT+ community, this confusion comes up a lot. Whether you are out or not, closeness between friends is often interpreted as a romantic or sexual relationship, which of course is not the case.

Last time I checked, there wasn’t anything hateful toward the LGBT+ community. Jared’s jokes, while horribly sexual and inappropriate, were just immature. His jokes are essentially the high school equivalent of “That’s what she said.” I mean, who doesn’t know someone like that in their life? If I’m wrong, feel free to correct me.

Oh, and also? It is revealed in the novel that Connor did in fact have a relationship with a guy, Miguel.

7. People talk about the relatability of the musical without actually relating.

Okay, yes, annoying, but I don’t see why people should immediately fault this. You do not know the experiences or thoughts of people online and on social media, but this means that you can’t judge whether or not they do relate to something. The first thing that comes to mind with the word “relatable” when it comes to this musical would, of course, be mental health. Since the most notable characters both struggle with mental illnesses, it makes sense that you would expect the people who relate to this musical to also struggle with mental illness(es). But there is no law that everyone who relates to a character has to be exactly like that character.

I’ll use another example from a different work, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. (Quick little note: Frankenstein is the scientist, not the creature. The Creature is actually quite complex and a deep character that is not the mindless monster from movies.)

Frankenstein: wealthy, a genius, comes from a high(ish) class, (presumably) handsome

Creature: neglected, hated for his ugliness, abandoned by Frankenstein, feared, smart

I doubt anyone was stitched together from dead bodies and then somehow reanimated. But you might relate to the fact that the Creature was abandoned or that people fear and hate him because of his looks. I also doubt that anyone has figured out the secret to reanimating dead bodies after taking them apart and stitching them together. But you might also (or solely) relate to Frankenstein because he lost his mother or because he feels responsible for a family member’s death. Those are some examples.

And there are plenty of characters that you could relate to or aspects of characters that speak to you. Maybe you’ve built a tangle of lies like Evan without meaning to, or maybe you have gone through a hard divorce and try so hard to get through to your child without success like Heidi, or maybe you really care about making a difference and don’t feel like the people who are supposed to help you take that seriously like Alana.

That about wraps it up. If I’ve missed anything, feel free to tell me, and I’ll make a follow-up post.

Again, I’m not demanding that you agree with me, but hopefully, whether a fan or critic, you have now seen a different perspective.

#dear evan hansen #evan hansen #connor murphy #musicals #spoilers #please reply

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soberrnatural · 7 years

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Back of the Mind

Pairing: Sam x Reader

Summary: Sam and Reader graduate from Stanford in less than two months. All seems to be going great for the two of them. Until Y/N hears something coming from the living room whilst the two of them are home alone and together in the bedroom...

Warnings: fluff, mentions of miscarriage, briefest bit of smut, minimal angst

Words: 6,287

A/N: There is not enough words to explain how sorry I am for not posting the past month. I’m not going to use the excuse that I was disabled for the past month and a half (I’m on crutches, nothing serious!), because that should’ve given me more of an excuse to write more. But honestly, I’ve been procrastinating. I guess writer’s block is in the mix, too. But really, it was just me shying away from writing further.

Honestly though, I think it’s because this part of the year is when I lost my cousin and then my best friend’s birthday is coming up and normally I’d be planning a massive party for the shittard, but I won’t be able to do that this year or any other year. Kind of sucks but I don’t know, I just feel useless at this very moment. So, I’m sorry. There is really no real excuse for my lack of writing.

But on a good note; I’m going to start writing a book! Nothing to do with any television series or hot as fuck actors and actresses. I’ve actually decided to fulfil my dream to become an author and write a book. So, I’ll probably be posting less on here and focusing more on that. Another reason why I haven’t been posting as much as I used to. I’m so very sorry, But I promise I’ll try get what was requested posted and fulfil your needs.

Thank you for being patient with me. Also, I apologise for any grammar or punctuation mistakes. And I’m also sorry if none of this makes sense, I had written the first half of it like weeks ago and then I only just finished the second half today and it’s probably a fucking mess. But yolo.

I hope you enjoy the last part of the Back of the... Series! I’ve had people ask if they could have a spin-off to have an insight of Dean and Carmen’s little love story. Is that what people want? Because I can totally pull that off for you lovely readers.

ALSO, any Riverdale fans out there? I decided to check it out and I’m hooked. Am I the only one who ships Jughead and Betty? I SCREAMED WHEN THEY KISSED OMFG! Btw, Jughead is the loml. Does anyone else think Madalaine (Cheryl Blossom) kind of looks like Holland Roden (Lydia from Teen Wolf)?

MASTERLIST

“Where’s mummy?”

You heard the little voice ask Sam. You couldn’t help but smile and wait for his answer. You were hiding in the kitchen and standing in front of the freezer to soak in the cold air that cooled your hot skin. It was a rather hot day and the air conditioner wasn’t doing much justice. If it weren’t for the four year old boy in your living room, you’d be stark naked and laying underneath the aircon.

“She’s busying saving the world with her superhuman powers. But she’ll be here soon, okay?”

The giggle that left your mouth couldn’t be prevented. Sam had always come up with different ideas to steer the child away from being upset about the absence of his mother. You adored Sam and the way he was with children. No amount of compliments could convince him that he was brilliant with children and that he would be the best father in the world.

“I have the bestest mummy,” Jackson, the little boy, had sighed in contentment.

Closing the freezer door, you walked back out into the living room and smiled at the sight. Jackson and Sam were drawing at the coffee table and crayons had littered the floor around them, as well as countless papers with Jackson’s scribbles on them. You leaned against the doorframe and watched them fight over a blue crayon.

Sam looked up when he felt your eyes on him and a grin plastered his face immediately. He let Jackson have the blue crayon and got up before walking over to you. He bent down to peck your lips quickly before standing behind you and watching the little boy stick his tongue out and draw some more. Sam rested his head on your shoulder and wrapped his arms around you.

“He’s adorable,” he cooed into your ear, “I want one.”

Your cheeks heated at his comment as you turned your head to glance at him. He had the cutest grin adorning his perfect face and you couldn’t help but lean forward and kiss him again.

“Slow down, cowboy,” you giggled, “Let’s finish school first.”

“We graduate in less than two months,” he pointed out as he buried his face into the crook of your neck, “Might as well start trying.”

“I don’t want to look fat in my wedding dress,” you truthfully told him as you looked down at your engagement ring. There wasn’t a day that goes by where you hadn’t looked down at your hand and admired to simple ring on your finger. From the day he got down on one knee nearly a year ago, you were giddy and ready to claim his last name as your own.

But the two of you decided to take it slow and enjoy the excitement of being an engaged couple. The planning was hard work as it is and having a year to plan the wedding worked out great with the two of you and your busy schedules. That didn’t stop either of you second guessing the long wait. There had been a day when Sam wanted to put everything on a halt and get married straight away. You couldn’t blame him, there had always been days when you wanted to just take him to a church and wed him in an instance.

“You will still look absolutely beautiful to me,” Sam pecked under your ear before he reluctantly pulled away and walked back over to Jackson who had ran out of paper to draw on.

Your gaze followed his tall figure as he plonked down beside the blonde boy and helped him pack up the crayons. Little whines came from Jackson, saying he wanted to draw some more, but Sam had told him that we were going to order some pizza for dinner and watch a movie of his choice. That caught Jackson’s attention and he moved in lightning speed to clean up the mess he and Sam had made.

“Stop being so cheesy,” you complained in which made him turn to look at you, but secretly you loved it way too much. Although, he didn’t need to know that his words corrupted a zoo inside of your belly, “You know I’m lactose intolerant.”

“You’re not the only one” he said, referring to himself, with a grin plastered on his gorgeous face, “Maybe that’s why we’re so perfect together.”

“Because needing to use the bathroom at the same time after eating diary makes us perfect together,” you cocked your eyebrow as a chuckle emitted from his mouth with a mumbled “You know what I mean.”

You couldn’t help but laugh at him before turning away and walking back into the kitchen to order the three of you dinner. It hadn’t taken long to call up and order the pizzas and it hadn’t taken long for the pizza to be delivered either. The three of you sat in the living room with a box of pizza on your laps – well, Jackson had a plate with two slices of your pizza – whilst you watched Snow White on the small screen.

Sam thought your attention was on the princess on the screen but it was very much caught by him. He was watching Jackson smile at the screen as he sat on the edge of the couch and pointed at the TV whenever something funny had happened. At one point, Jackson had said that he wished animals liked him enough to clean his bedroom. You giggled at the little boy before turning your attention back to the movie rather than your fiancé who was grinning at the small child.

Watching him interact with Jackson made you upset as you thought back to night you were both reunited. The scare was enough to keep you both wide awake all night as you panicked at the thought of being pregnant during your first year of college. You’d taken the morning after pill and felt relieved knowing there was no chance you’d be pregnant now.

Fate likes playing tricks, though. Four weeks had passed and you were with Carmen when you puked up the meal you had. Obviously, you shrugged it off and thought it was probably food poisoning. But the sickness continued for a week and it hadn’t passed. Carmen had eventually forced you to go to the doctors and that’s when fate decided to mess with your life.

“We found the cause to your constant vomiting,” the doctor had told you, “Congratulations, you’re pregnant, Miss Y/L/N.”

When you had told Sam the news, he was a mix of happy and distraught. Neither of you were ready to raise a child, though that was completely understandable. You were both young and clueless but nonetheless, you both decided to deal with the consequence of not wearing a condom and agreed to keep the growing infant inside of you.

You had just reached sixteen weeks and you had a small bump adorning your stomach. Sam found it was the most beautiful thing he had ever witnessed. He couldn’t take his eyes off your stomach as he watched the bump grow bigger with each passing week. You were never sure about your decision on keeping the baby, but after your first ultrasound, you couldn’t help but already feel attached. You had two beating hearts in you and the idea of being a mother had warmed your heart.

When the doctor told you that you were expecting a baby girl, neither of you could hold back the proud cries as you grinned at one another before looking back at the screen that showed your princess. You were having a baby girl and the first thought that had popped into your head was; “I hope she ends up with Sam’s hair.” The giggle that left your mouth caused confusion to embed in Sam’s features as he glanced over at you.

Isn’t it strange? That a thump, a sound, in regular motion within the confines of your body would bring such happiness to your everyday life? Does it not give you a smile? Every experience is shared, all feelings connected, the warmth of a newborn, like the glow of sunlight: precious. But in due time, the sudden loss of the second beating heart, before your princess starts her dance, her first step, the smallest but greatest, would have faded into oblivion. You had drowned in despair at the loss of your loved one. A half-hearted living being, empty at the core. All purposes lost to the wound on your soul as time passes by you. At eighteen weeks, you were carrying a dead infant. Carmen had been there to constantly remind you not to worry, always telling you that your little one will enter the gates amongst a grand parade. The heavens will watch her dance. A standing ovation awaits and she would merrily dance again. Sam would say that God had missed his Angel too much that he wanted her back home. You appreciated their comforting words but it hadn’t made you feel better, you doubt anything would have. Your loss was Heaven's gain and you couldn’t help but feel that God was too greedy, wanting all of the precious souls that walked among this Earth. In your case, the precious soul inside you hadn’t gotten a chance to walk this Earth, and for that, he was greedy.

“Baby,” Sam’s voice snapped you out of your train of thoughts and it was only then you realized that the movie had finished. You furrowed your brows at the credits and wondered how you managed to zone out for the rest of the movie. Feeling Sam squeeze your hand gently, you turned to look at him and gaze into his concern eyes.

You were about to open your mouth to tell him that you were okay, truly, when a knock sounded on the front door. It was then that you noticed the now sleeping boy on Sam’s chest with his thumb in his mouth. A small smile made its way onto your face as you admired the scene in front of you. But another knock sounded on the door and reminded you that it was Jackson’s mother ready to pick her son up.

You stood and pried the sleeping boy from Sam’s arms gently before slowly walking over to the front door and unlocking it. Once you opened the door, you were greeted with a blonde haired woman with strikingly beautiful grey eyes. She quietly cooed at the sight of her child sleeping soundlessly in your arms before stepping forward and taking Jackson into her arms.

“Was he good? I’m sorry if he made a mess,” Emeli whispered as she rubbed Jackson’s back when he begun to stir in his sleep.

“No honey, he was great. Sam and he drew and then we ate some pizza whilst watching a Disney movie, so everything was good!” You assured her as you leaned against the doorframe and folded your arms across your chest.

“Oh, thank the Lord. I’ll transfer the money over to your bank once I get home, okay?” She smiled at you as she waited for your protest.

Emeli was always so persistent that she owed you money for babysitting her child. You had known her since you first started your job at the popular restaurant in town. Even before becoming pregnant, she was persistent with handing you money for simple things like helping her choose an outfit for her date or doing her makeup. But to you, looking after Jackson wasn’t a job so you saw no need for her to pay you. You enjoyed looking after the gracious four years old that you had adored so much. Plus, seeing Sam play with him warmed your heart.

“Keep your money; we don’t need it, sweet pea.” You reminded her, smirking a little when you noticed her stomp her foot lightly. She was such a child for a twenty-four year old and you loved it.

“It’s the least I can do for looking after the devil’s spawn,” Emeli raised an eyebrow as you chuckled at her comment. You shook your head and pleaded that she’d stop calling him the devil’s spawn when in actual fact; her son was a blessing from the greedy man up above.

“He’s God’s Angel, Sam and I adore him. Instead of money, though, you could say yes to coming to my bridal shower,” you wiggled your eyebrows at her and hoped it’d convince her to say yes this time.

No amount of convincing could change Emeli’s mind about coming to your bridal shower. She had been worried about leaving Jackson with somebody else considering she had always come to you when she needed babysitting. You had told her countless times that she could bring him along and let him enjoy the attention of the countless women that were going. But she’d always glare at you and say “I’m not allowing my son to be around drunken women.”

“Fine! It’s a deal, babe. I’ll catch you around!” She gave in and let out an exaggerated sigh before she leant forward and hugged you softly. She turned around and walked across the road to her house. You watched to make sure she made it safely before closing the door and locking it behind you. You didn’t get the chance to turn around before you felt a pair of arms wrap around your waist and pull you flush against his torso. You let out a squeal of surprise as he lifted you off the ground and spun you around.

“We’re alone, at last!” Sam shouted before he placed you back on your feet again. Your hands gripped his arms as you turned your head to the side to look up at the handsome man you were lucky to call your fiancé.

“Selfish bugger,” you giggled as started to pull him towards the bedroom.

His arms tightened around your waist as he tried to pull even closer to his body before leaning down and kissing your lips gently. You brought a hand up to cup the back of his head as you kissed him back. A satisfied hum left his lips as your fingers tugged softly at his chestnut locks.

“I’m sorry, but I just really love you,” he murmured against your mouth and you felt him smile before pecking your lips again.

“It’s okay, I happen to really love you, too,” you spoke between kisses before he pulled away with a large grin on his face. It almost made you question his antics, but you knew better. He was in a playful mood and that usually meant he was going to attempt to outlast his stamina.

“You better,” he teased before tucking face into the crook of your neck and biting down softly on the skin as he hands begun to roam your sides. You wanted to move out of reach from his hands knowing that he was about to tickle you but you wanted to remain in his arms with his lips on your neck. Life was just so complicated when you were engaged to the younger Winchester.

“Sam!” You yelped as his fingers dug into your sides, making you squirm but his grip held you tight against him. His warm breath brushed against your neck as he chuckled, absentmindedly leading you towards the bedroom. Your laugh filled the silent house as he continued to tickle your sides before he managed to press you up against the back of the bedroom door.

And soon enough, your laughs were morphed into moans as he ravished you for hours. This time, you hadn’t needed to worry about wearing a condom as you were now on the pill. In the back of the mind, you knew that the pill wasn’t a hundred percent trustworthy, but you wanted the pill to fail you both so you could begin to make a family with the man on top of you.

His kind words reminded you that you’d look beautiful no matter what. He assured you constantly that he wouldn’t mind having you walk down the aisle with a massive belly only to meet him at the end. He told you that it’d be like vowing to the both of you that he’ll love you for the rest of his life and that he’ll never leave you. Of course, his theory would always rethink your decisions about pushing the family making further away. It didn’t sound so bad, after all.

So, here the two of you were, making love between the sheets with mouth-made marks and scratches from sharp fingernails. You could feel him fill every inch of you, making your walls clasp tightly around his long, thick shaft. It hadn’t matter what position you’d been in or the limited time you had or even the countless orgasms you already had, he had always managed to bring you to your climax within a record time. The words he spoke were enough to have you screaming his name at the top of your lungs and cling tightly to him as your body trembled with pleasure. Multiple rounds later and stolen breathless kisses, you’d both laid in bed bare for the world to see. Your chests were rising unevenly from your ragged breaths and your hearts were beating far too fast.

Neither of you seemed to care as you basked in the other’s satisfaction. You were lazily wrapped around Sam’s sweaty body as his hand absentmindedly drew patterns into your bare back. You felt far too weak to move and were glad that it was nightfall so there’d be no interruptions as you close your eyes and wait for slumber to reel you in.

But there had been an interruption that caused you to snap your eyes open and jolt your body up. Something had been knocked over in living room and you knew Sam had heard it too as he slowly sat up and peered over at you. Fear was written in his features as he listened to the intruder walk around the house.

“I think we’re being robbed,” you whispered to him, although something in the back of your mind kept telling you that it wasn’t someone robbing us, but much rather a something trying to get revenge.

“Yeah,” he frowned, “Stay here. I’ll go check it out.”

You wanted to protest and tell him to get back into bed. Whether it was because you didn’t want him to get harmed or you hadn’t wanted to be left alone in the bedroom for an unarticulated reason. You wanted to scream out to him when he opened the door and walked out unarmed. You wanted to run out and save him from any possible danger out there.

Sitting on the bed quietly, you listen for anything to give away the trouble that Sam was walking into. But you were greeted with silence and even after minutes had passed, there was nothing to assured you Sam was okay. Quickly, you got up and threw on a shirt and your underwear before you silently walked out of the room and kept your back pressed against the wall.

It was only when you got closer to the living room did you hear hushed voices talking to each other. You knew one of them belonged to your fiancé but the other remained a mystery. They didn’t seem to be arguing but it wasn’t a polite conversation either. You had heard Sam interrogating the mystery man, asking what he was doing in his house. The man only replied that he needed to see Sam, that it was an emergency.

“Sam?” It was then that you chose to call out your lover’s name and step out from the dark. Sam looked over the man’s shoulder and over to you with a soft smile on his face at the sight of you. The mystery man turned around, making you narrow your eyes at him, trying to find recognition in the familiar figure. And then it hit you.

“Dean!”

A smile warped your face as you ran over and pulled him into a tight embrace. You hadn’t seen him since you were sixteen and it saddened you that Sam hadn’t spoken of him since the two of you had gotten together. He seemed hesitant at first before wrapping his arms around your waist and placing a gentle kiss to the crown of your head.

“I can’t believe it’s you, Y/N,” Dean muttered as he pulled back and glanced over your body, clearly noting that you were only wearing Sam’s shirt and smirked at the thought of his brother getting some action.

“Yeah, I found her,” Sam mumbled more to himself than to his brother. But Dean had heard him as he pulled back and turned to look at his younger brother again with a frown imprinted in his facial features.

“How come you never told me?”

“We barely spoke and I didn’t want to distract you from work,” Sam muttered and you were about to question him but a pounding on the front door distracted you from doing so. Dean stood silent as he watched the door; Sam was peeping through the living room window and noticed the same car that gets parked there basically every day. He begun to converse with Dean again, already knowing who was pounding at the door.

“Y/N! Open this fucking door!” You heard from behind the door and it made you want to whine at everyone for interrupting your alone time with your fiancé. Maybe you could ignore her and pretend you weren’t here and then maybe she’d storm away, but that idea ceased to exist when she yelled again, “I can hear Sam talking to you and the lights are on!”

“What is this? A reunion party?” You muttered to yourself as you trudged over to the entrance and opened the door for your annoying best friend. The brunette woman pushed right past you with her hand in her hair and a frantic look on her face. Immediately, you knew something was wrong if she was stressing out easily. Normally, she was chilled back and relaxed.

She paced back and forth, her fingers clasping her dark brown locks as she tugged at them frustratingly. She was stammering and it was obvious that she hadn’t known where to begin. Her face paled and she stood still as she must’ve just thought of the worst outcome of what was troubling her.

“Carmen, what’s wrong?” You closed the door again and walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She tensed under your touch before relaxing. But then she remembered why she was here and her body tensed up again.

“There’s an emergency,” she puffed out as her hands fell to her sides after I pried them away from tugging her own hair further more. My brows furrowed as I took in her statement and she was about to open her mouth before she got interrupted–

“Carmen?”

Carmen’s head turned in the direction from where the voice came from and almost instantly her body relaxed again. She let out breath, one that she seemed to have been holding in, before she walked over to the man wearing the same worn out jacket he wore when she first met him.

“No fucking way,” she said, “Dean?”

Her hands reached out to touch his face as if she hadn’t believed that he was actually in front of her in that current moment. Dean’s head slightly leaned into her touch and it hadn’t gone unnoticed by either you or Sam. The two of you remained silent as watch the scene unfold in front of you. By then, you had absentmindedly walked over to stand beside your fiancé as you watched your best friend’s eyes well with tears.

“Fuck me,” Dean whispered and coughed to cover the crack in his tone, “You haven’t changed a single bit.”

“You’re still a hot mess,” her hand fell to her side as she smirked up at him and stood up straighter.

The pain that ghosted behind her eyes was immediately replaced with joy. You had known how sad she had become since she found out that you came across Sam. Carmen had admitted that she had envied you but told you that she was glad that you were happy. Right now, she was standing right in front of her happiness and you couldn’t have been any gladder with her choice of timing.

“Ehem,” Sam coughed, “Why are you two here?”

You elbowed his side and narrowed your eyes in his direction, silently cursing him for destroying their bittersweet reunion. He winced and rubbed his side as he glared at you, his eyes telling you that he wanted them gone. You begged with pleading eyes to keep watching them rekindle their love, but he simply shook his head before turning back to the two in front of us. With a huff of annoyance, you turned your gaze back to Carmen and Dean and noticed that they had witnessed the two of you telepathically yelling at each other.

“Well I’m here to tell Y/N important news,” Carmen finally spoke up after an awkward minute of silence passed you all by.

“And I’m here to tell you important news,” Dean told Sam, gaining a questioning glance from his long lost love beside him.

“Okay, so tell us,” Sam prodded, only receiving an eye roll from you at his impatience.

Carmen’s eyes flickered from Sam to Dean before landing on you. Dean’s gaze happened to flicker from you to Carmen before landing on his younger brother and it was obvious that what the two of them didn’t want to share what they wanted to say openly. Panic lit up behind Carmen’s eyes as she stared at you. Sam’s foot irritatingly tapped on the floor and you knew it was a sign of annoyance.

“Dad’s on a hunting trip and he hasn’t been home in a few days,” Carmen and Dean spoke once they noticed Sam’s impatient glare. All four pair of eyes widened in that moment.

“You guys are hunters?” Dean choked out as he stared at the two of you ladies in disbelief.

Sam remained silent and watched the commotion. You couldn’t meet his gaze because you knew that behind those hazel would lay multiple emotions; betrayal, disbelief and hurt. You hadn’t shared with him a large amount of your life but neither had he. You knew why he hadn’t told you, they were the same reasons as your own. You didn’t want to drag him into a dangerous life. But now you know; he was always in the same dangerous life you were in.

“This explains what he meant,” you mumbled to yourself as you begun to distant yourself from your fiancé. You balled your fists tightly as the thought of their father harming your own flooded your mind. You remembered your father talking about another hunter who left him to nearly die on a hunt but Belle, Carmen’s mother, had came across him just in time.

“What who meant?” Dean spoke up as he studied your actions.

“Your fucking dad,” you wanted it to come out as a growl, but it came out as a mere whimper. You couldn’t bear the thought of losing your father, too. If that son of a bitch got a hold of your father, you’d make his death a slow and painful one. Even if that meant losing the two brothers in the process.

“Excuse me?” Dean growled and stepped forward but Carmen grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

“That night when you first took me to Bobby’s,” you turned to Sam who had remained silent the entire time, “When your dad took me outside to talk. He mentioned that he knew my father and that if I didn’t stay away from you then there would be consequences. I didn’t think much of it.”

“He said that to you and you never told me this?” Sam frowned and stepped closer to you. You didn’t bother moving away from him, you wanted him to hold you. After all, you weren’t mad him, but much rather his father.

“First of all, how was I meant to tell you without you questioning why he said that? Secondly, I didn’t want you worrying. I simply just wanted to be with you and live a normal life,” you whispered to him as he pulled you against him, wrapping his arms tightly around you.

And it was sincere – all that you said. There had not been a day that had gone by without you questioning if you should tell your teenaged lover the truth about your life. Though, the guilt that you felt when he left without knowing your true identity soon subsided and you believed that leaving him in the dark was for the best. Having someone know about a huntress’s lifestyle was perilous. Being exposed in this lifestyle made you a target – it made everyone you knew a weakness to your system, it made them a target.

From the moment Sam walked into your life, you knew from that moment that you were going to shelter him from your dark storyline. You weren’t going to expose him to the monsters that lurked beyond the shadows. You weren’t going to risk losing him to a creature that was better off dead. So, you kept it hidden. You vowed you’d never tell him the truth.

But here you were now with the truth spilled on the floor in an impure mess of disbelief, hurt and tragedy. Everything that you kept locked away for many years was leaking out of your pores and there was no point in closing them back in. The love of your life had just revealed that he lived in the same lifestyle and you were going to be honest with him one hundred percent from now on.

“What about you Carmen?” Dean asked, breaking you from your train of thought.

“My mother hunted alongside her father and we met when my mother dropped me off at her place,” the brunette woman answered the emerald eyed man with a stern voice and straightened her posture; the action warning you that she was trying to close up the hurt she felt.

“You told me you met her through tutoring her,” Dean frowned at the thought of the woman he loved lying to him.

But you knew from the look on his face that he couldn’t blame her for doing so; he, too, lied to the love of his life. That seemed to be the main problem in the hunting life; heck, in your opinion, the biggest problem you’ll come across is unfolding the untold truths from those involved in your life. Hopefully though, from now on, neither of you will see the need to lie to the other. It’d make life simpler.

“That wasn’t technically a lie,” she replied with pursed lips, “That same night she was studying and she was struggling in a subject and so I helped her.”

“Hold up, why did you say dad? You two aren’t sisters?” Sam pulled back, but still left one arm wrapped around you as he held you to his side. You looked up at him and took him his puzzled gaze, you couldn’t help but giggle. He looked adorable when he was confused.

“No, but her father acted like more of a father than my biological father ever did,” Carmen answered him, making you look over at her and smile softly. Her body was still rigid and you knew her too well to know that she was about to shut down if we kept talking about things that made her feel like breaking down.

You noticed Dean looking at her with pain written in his features and you wanted nothing more than to scream at him to pull her into his embrace. But he remained glued to his place, being sure to keep a safe distance between the two of them. His gaze met yours for a second and you silently screamed for him to change the topic before the inevitable break down that your best friend will have.

“Wait, so why did you live with your grandparents?” He asked, diverting the conversation away from Carmen, not before glancing in her direction again.

“Because my father was always away hunting,” you answered him and leaned into Sam’s side. His hand tightened on your hip and you were grateful for the action, for you knew what direction this conversation was about to head in.

“What about your mother? Didn’t you live with her?”

The question was a simple one but the answer was most difficult to reply with. You could lie like you did with many others and say that your mother left you when you were younger and spare yourself the heartache. But all the truths you had kept bottled up for your whole life had already piled up on the floor beneath you; there wasn’t any point in lying anymore.

“She died when I was five months old,” you choked out, your sight becoming blurred from the unshed tears in your eyes, “Carmen’s mother died the same way a year after you two left.”

“How did they die, if you don’t mind me asking?” Dean asked you both and you looked over to Carmen to see that she was already looking at you. She raised her eyebrow to ask for permission to give out the truth behind our mother’s absent presence.

“Burned on the ceiling,” Carmen seethed, “By that stupid fucking Azazel prick.”

Sam’s arm loosened around you as he stood up straighter and looked over at Dean. The two had locked gazes and it hadn’t gone unnoticed by either you or Carmen. She eyed them curiously as you looked up at your fiancé. His gaze dropped from his older brother’s to yours and you knew that whatever the two were telepathically conversing about was indeed about the yellow eyed demon.

“This guy didn’t happen to have yellow eyes, did he?” Sam asked the two of you ladies, but his eyes remained on your face. In any other situation, your cheeks would’ve heated up by now due to the intense look on his face. But instead, you frowned and studied his features to try figure out how he had known that.

“How did you know?” Carmen asked the question you were thinking of.

God bless her for being so nosy, you thought.

“He killed our mother when Sammy was six months old.”

The silence that remained after Dean’s statement was suffocating. Carmen had sucked in a breath at her train of thought and was staring at the emerald eyed man with questioning eyes. He noticed this and clearly understood her silent query as he nodded softly in her direction. Within a second, she wrapped her arms around him tightly as she whispered incoherent things into his ear. You

You looked away from them and up at your fiancé again who was studying the scene in front of him. He must’ve felt you staring at him as he turned to look at you. You, too, had wrapped your arms around the love of your life and squeeze every ounce of love you could give into the embrace. His pressed a kiss to your forehead and mumbled that he was sorry about your mother just as you did the same.

Neither of you needed to apologize, though. What was there to apologize for? Things happen for a reason and you’d never question Fate’s choices, but the reason behind your mother’s death would always remain a mystery. You’d just hope you won’t die trying to figure it out.

“So, dad’s missing,” Carmen interjected after a couple of minute’s silence. She wiped her cheeks and pulled away from Dean who gave her a weak smile. Though, you hadn’t pulled away from Sam’s embrace, you decided to stay in the warmth of his arms.

“So is our father,” Sam rested his head on top of your own as he relaxed under your fingertips drawing patterns on his back. Your ear was pressed to his chest and you could hear the beat of his heart fasten. You couldn’t suppress the giggle that left your mouth, which in return gained a confused glance from Dean and an eyebrow waggle from Carmen. Sam’s chest vibrated from the soft chuckle that emitted from his mouth, knowing why you were giggling.

“So, what do we do?” You coughed to ease the awkwardness.

You wanted nothing more than to pull away from Sam and punch Dean in the arm when you caught him rolling his eyes at you. Well, in your defense, there are many other options to choose from in this situation so the question was well needed. But Dean had clearly thought that you must’ve been stupid from the lame question you had asked.

“We go look for them both and haul their asses out of the crap they’re in.”

The moment Dean opened his mouth; you knew immediately what he was going to say. If it weren’t for the fact that your father was missing, you would’ve declined and stay behind to finish school. But this wasn’t just your father missing; it was also your fiancé’s father who had dropped off the face of the earth. You weren’t just going to sit back and let them do the work, you were going to drop the opportunity to live a normal life and go and find your father. Plus, it’s a bonus that you were going to be crisscrossing the country with three of your favourite people.

Looks like we’re going on a road trip, you inwardly yelled in glee.

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sueboohscorner · 7 years

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The Vampire Diaries 815 Recap “We’re Planning a June Wedding” #TVD

Episode grade: 10.

We’re down to the final weeks of this wonderful series, and I am going to miss spending time with these characters! Thank goodness for the modern age, with Blu-ray box sets and Netflix-CW deals, allowing us to watch the best shows over and over again for all time. Remember when we had to make our own tapes of shows, with the VCR, and they’d either preserve the commercials, or you’d have to carefully hit pause on the recording and restart it at just the right time? Just me? All right, never mind.

In the final season’s blast from the past parade, we start by welcoming Matt’s crappy mom back to Mystic Falls. Remember Kelly Donovan? Drunk and embarrassing, neither providing a good example for her kids nor watching over them? Yeah, she hasn’t been exactly missed. Including by Matt, who reacts to his long lost mom in about the same way you might react to running into your high school bully at a chain restaurant. She’s apparently here with Peter, because contemplating hell makes one want to reach out to the wives they abandoned and make some amends, I guess.

Our heroes are hatching a plan to deal with the imminent return of Katherine, and it’s Damon who suggests that Katherine would be helpless to resist ruining Stefan’s wedding. I think there’s a little more to this, of course, that Damon is determined to see Stefan get a happy ending, and he knows that in their lives, the longer you wait to start your happy ending, the less likely you are to get there at all. So he chooses a Katherine plan that conveniently also lets him celebrate his little brother’s humanity and happiness. Notably, though, Caroline is not quite as sure about this plan. She says it’s because she wanted a big, beautiful wedding with time to plan (and no super-villain waiting in the wings), but it’s hard not to read a little uncertainty into her reluctance.

Stefan overhears Bonnie and Caroline in a moment of girl talk, and while the text is clearly about why Bonnie won’t be there as maid-of-honor (no offense, bestie, but you’re marrying the man who murdered my true love a couple of weeks ago), the subtext is unmistakably that Caroline isn’t really sure about this pairing. I think there’s a chance she’d back out if she actually believed the wedding was going to occur; she’s kind of rolling with this, because she’s pretty sure the ceremony won’t be completed. From the look on Stefan’s face, I think he’s reading her the same way I am.

Also instrumental to the Katherine plan? An actual instrument with which to bring about her bitter end. Taking their inspiration from the Cade blade, they note that luck is on their side for once–Katherine’s body was burned here in Mystic Falls, so her bones are still around to turn into weapons. Peter Maxwell finally gets to be useful, because he’s a legacy metalworker, so he’s given the crucial task of forging the weapon. Don’t screw this up, bad dad.

Bad dad’s task leaves Matt alone with his crappy mom, giving us a chance to see her cough up some black goo and kill the hell out of a random chick, because Kelly Donovan is actually back…from hell!

Back at the mansion, Caroline finds a gift that is 100% obviously from Katherine, but she won’t realize that, because plot and stuff. I mean, seriously, it’s a printed card, not written, so there’s no handwriting to recognize, it’s addressed simply “To the Bride,” which is ominous AF, and inside the card, the typed message of “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue,” has the first phrase circled. Get a clue, Caroline. But hey, she’s got stuff on her mind.

Here comes Damon, a very drunk Stefan in tow…no vampire metabolism anymore means rediscovering the experience of drinking yourself into a stupor and waking up hungover. Um…yay humanity? While Stefan is passed out, Damon and Caroline share a lovely moment. He puts her through a series of no doubt hilarious practice toasts for the reception, but we only see the last of them; he gets real and toasts to his dear friend Liz Forbes, who raised this strong, wonderful woman he is now honored to call his family. This is the truest smile from Caroline yet–even if she’s not 100% sure about Stefan, she can’t deny that being Damon’s sister-in-law is a-okay.

Damon puts Elena’s necklace on Caroline’s wrist, adding the “something borrowed,” and ensuring her friend is part of her day in some way. Damon, I’ll miss you most of all.

Caroline is getting ready for the wedding, and she opens a gift from Bonnie–here’s the something new! It’s a gorgeous tiara, because Bonnie’s a good friend who knows this isn’t the wedding Caroline has dreamed of…but that doesn’t mean she can’t still be a princess.

As another surprise gift to Caroline, Lizzie and Josie come running in, all dressed up for the big day! Alaric explains that Katherine would smell a rat if Caroline’s own daughters weren’t at the wedding, so Valerie did a protection spell to keep them safe that day.

He, on the other hand, will not be there…Alaric was, after all, engaged to Caroline a few years ago himself. And just last week, before Stefan again showed up to screw him over, Alaric had been reaching out to Caroline about building a future together, centered around their kids…while it wasn’t overtly romantic, you could see the light in his eyes when he looked at her. I should note that I’m not often a fan of a storyline about a wistful love triangle and marrying the wrong person, but this really works for me. Alaric is such the better man! And while it made some sense that she had unfinished business with Stefan because of his having to go on the run, and it made some sense for vampires to be together…those aren’t factors anymore. She could have been free of her obligation to Stefan, but he came back and begged her to marry him anyway, and Caroline’s defining characteristic has always been steadfastness. She is being fairly railroaded into this wedding ceremony, and Alaric’s heartache is reasonable, not to mention beautifully acted.

Guests are arriving, starting with Matt’s lousy parents. Kelly Donovan greets her ex, Peter Maxwell, then instantly pries for details on the weapon he’s been forging to kill Katherine. When he acknowledges he’s already delivered it to Stefan, he is rendered useless to this hellcat, and she slashes his throat.

Bonnie again proves what an amazing person she is, showing up to the wedding to support Caroline. Enzo’s been the angel on her shoulder, begging her to put aside her anger toward a version of Stefan that no longer even exists. Aside: Enzo and Damon are both really good at compartmentalizing Ripper vs. Stefan, and that’s really because they are not like Stefan. Being a Ripper puts Stefan in a completely different category of vampire. Enzo and Damon can flip their switches and be legitimately different people than they were a moment before. Stefan is a Ripper, so his evil is a more ingrained part of his personality, not just a position on his humanity lever. But bless them, they don’t have his weakness, so they give him the benefit of the doubt.

Because Matt Davis is a truly spectacular actor, one of the best scenes in the episode is Alaric’s monologue to Dorian, remembering the long and winding road that brought him into these people’s overly complicated lives. I’m so grateful TVD made time for this quiet moment with one of my all-time favorite characters.

The wedding is getting started, and Caroline looks gorgeous walking down the aisle, of course! But when she takes her place beside Stefan, he recognizes the cameo necklace she’s wearing, and just as the audience knew, it was totally sent to her by Katherine. She freaks out, but Stefan says to leave it on, because Katherine will hate seeing it on her.

Sitting out in the crowd, Matt whispers to his lousy mom about how his dad should be there by now. Hilariously, she makes a well, isn’t that just like your dad? face, which is recognizable to any child of divorce.

Damon, acting as the officiant, loudly invites anyone to voice their objections to this union. When Katherine fails to show, Caroline’s moment of panic is evident–she really didn’t expect to have to go through with this wedding. But it’s too late now!

Because they expected this to be interrupted by now, and perhaps because neither of them really believed the wedding was a great idea, the bride and groom have failed to prepare vows. Oops. Credit to Stefan for coming up with something charming enough to win Caroline over in the moment. By the time he kisses the bride, it seems like they’re both in the spirit of the event again, despite all the craziness.

There’s a little timeline weirdness here, in that Kelly Donovan runs out before the daytime wedding is over, yet it’s full dark out and well into the reception before Matt is seriously looking for her. Fortunately for Peter, she didn’t strike too deeply with her scary knife; Matt finds him alive and learns the truth about mom.

No one else knows yet, so we’re treated to a drunken toast from Kelly Donovan in the reception tent. She rants about how this crappy town never gave her a chance, and she reminds Damon of that time they made out (ha!). Then she brings up what he did to Vicki, who “never hurt anyone” (this is important). Finally, she gets in Matt’s face about how he cared for her so little that he didn’t even know she was dead. And the penny drops.

Confronted with the question of what Katherine is up to, Kelly honestly says she has no idea; she was too busy starting a gas leak in the house. Caroline knows that Bonnie just took Lizzie and Josie in to use the bathroom, so they’re all in a house about to explode…which it does.

Inside the blazing mansion, Bonnie and the girls are standing in a bubble of safety. The girls are magic siphons, after all, and holding Bonnie’s hands gives them access to her latent magic. Enzo appears to her to say his goodbyes; letting her magic get siphoned will save her life and the girls’, but it will also sever her connection to his pocket dimension. She doesn’t want to give him up, but the alternative is death, and he talks her into living. It’s heartbreaking. Enzo, you were the best vampire.

With the girls and Bonnie safe from the fire, it’s time to get back to squeezing Kelly Donovan for information. She took a deal from Katherine in exchange for a true death, returning to oblivion rather than more torture in hell. She reveals what else she knows of the master plan: Katherine is using the Maxwell hell bell!

But wait, it can only be rung by someone in the Maxwell family line…and Kelly reveals that Vicki has also come back from hell for this assignment. And here’s where I again question the bizarrely selective quality of hell. Vicki died as a vampire, and she died long before the Other Side was destroyed. It makes sense that Katherine was so bad she was sucked into hell, but Vicki really wasn’t a bad person! Her mom just made a point of that in her drunken toast. I mean, I’ll take it–nice to see you again, Vicki–but I’m not sure it makes total sense. (Granted, I do recall Jeremy’s visits from ghost-Vicki who begged for help because she was in pain, and that fits with hell…but I’d still like an explanation of how she wound up there.)

Ah, TVD, I’m going to miss you. One more week of this gloriously well-written and well-acted series. Thanks to The CW for giving us The Vampire Diaries, and for letting it end with a plan, honoring the show as it deserves.

Who will you miss most of all? Comment with your favorite character!

#The Vampire Diaries #The CW #Michael Malarkey #Matt Davis #Ian Somerhalder #Candice King #Kat Graham #Paul Wesley #Damon Salvatore #Stefan Salvatore #Caroline Forbes #Bonnie Bennett #Enzo #Alaric Saltzman #Matt Donovan #Zach Roerig

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