#i can't see him because he's invisible but he's there and he's HYPING ME

[fighting-naturalist]

One-man hype squad Cameron Mitchell

[haechurch]

forgetting me, forgetting you

It's not the way that jeno doesn't look at you the same. It's not the way of him chasing after a girl and leaving you behind in the evening downpour. It's not the way jeno said he didn't even love you that night. It's just nothing but your broken heart.

pairing: idol!jeno x fem!reader

genre: smut, fluff (kinda), angstt

wc: 4.8+k

warnings: minors dni, unprotected sex, oral (m, f receive), spitting, kind of meanie jeno, implied exhibitionist, degrading, praising, spanking, teasing, fingering, tons of pet name, hard and soft sex, etc etc, you know when i said idol and fan relationship its just so unreal as well as how their jobs work lmao ((i had a problem to make this at least a lil bit realistic) also not seem too delusional but- just pls dont @ me, i mean its a fic)

! how embarrassing that this shit got posted accidentally (i hate tmblr) my pupils were literally shaking lol. for those who might accidentally saw this (i know theres not even a soul who cares abt it..) ofc i had this to be revised also its inspired by rv song, in my dreams, (originally the title for this one but i changed it!) i might also have songs recommendation, its [coldplay-yellow > conan gray-astronomy > yoari-dice game > exo-hurt > davichi-forgetting you > red velvet-in my dreams]

Everything was pandemonium from the start. You saw jeno in person for the first time in the concert venue. Yes. He is the singer. That singer. A born-talented, handsome, lovable idol from nct. He didn't even know you were there, in the crowd of audience hyping his band up. Never in your dreams you thought you'd met him in person, but fate brings you two together. It was what you believed until then. Fate brings your jeno who has never been yours in the first place to kindly remind you that he will never be yours even at the end of the time.

You worked hard for your pay. You work as an employee (that mostly work for dreamies) under jeno's company after you earned your post graduate title while studying in korea. That point when you made it out, you never even thought that this was a real chance to finally get him.

That's just insane, to get lee jeno, in a somehow, romantic way. But you tried anyway. Ordinary person with an extraordinary person? Or can you just say idols and fans relationship? That jeno from all the people living on this earth? Mostly impossible. Those who live around you will think you're crazy for wanting someone who literally exists in a different world from you. Even though you're 'coexisting' with him and seeing him from time to time, that would not be enough; so near yet so far.

It's so hard to work under the company and let it flow at first. Without a will, you'll never get what you want. Even though this one is nearly impossible, you attempt to keep the mindset that revolves around you: it will work if you try, try, try and try.

But it's useless. Who do you think you are? You can't even be allowed to speak nor get close to him except if it's necessary. It's hard to work with him like a normal acquaintance. To them, to jeno, you're simply invisible. 

However, you did make it clear enough. No surrendering. That's the least you can keep in mind. 

But again, he didn't even spare you a glimpse.

Then there was this day when you two were put together in the same dressing room, waiting for some interviews coming up. There's actually no reason for you to not share the same room because technically, you're their regular staff. The rest of the members and other staff were nowhere to be found, it was you and him. You and jeno all alone in the same room. You nearly choked yourself when you were about to open your mouth as jeno scooted to where you sat. 

"Hi." He lightly started the conversation. You swear to god you can hear your own heartbeat. Keeping yourself calm and professional, you hum and put the sweetest smile to him. "Hello."

"I'm so sorry if i sound rude, but i believe we're around the same age? I've been seen you around and i just knew you're a regular staff in here," you intensely stared at him, eyes widened in disbelief that he just casually- 

"We can be friends if you wan-" 

"We can?!"

-asked you to be his friend.

Realizing you just replied to him in 0,023 seconds, you covered your mouth and muttered 'sorry' to him. He just laughed. Oh. That laugh.

That's when you feel like you two were 'getting closer' as he asked you to be his friend for some idiotic reason (u really have no idea why the universe would gave you this kind of, miracle, you'd say, but you're fucking grateful).

Of course you can be friends with everyone. Also a staff (fan) and an artist couldn't be an exception, right? But once again who are you kidding, lee jeno is super busy, and you should know it could probably the friendship that only lasts for four hours.

You didn't meet jeno for weeks and you missed him so bad. Sometimes you got to talk to him after he befriend you (tho it happens only if you had that rare chance) but both of you didn't get a long time to properly talk and have a good conversation. And it's been a long time, you just missed him.

Did he perhaps miss you too? Did he ever think about you even just for a split second? You shake your head from the thoughts and scoff at yourself. He probably already erased you from his memory. And that night, you drifted into a deep slumber whilst thinking about how he wouldn't remember you.

―

But you were dead wrong. That day was very hot because apparently, it's in the middle of summer, and you were called for a job in a broadcasting house which happened to be the same place for the band to attend their schedule.

You're standing in front of a vending machine, getting a drink when you hear someone call your name. You turned around and found jeno, looking at you with his smiling eyes.

"Jeno!? What are you doing here?" You can't hide your pearly whites when you see him, so please meet him again after a while.

"We're having some jobs here. How about you?" He asked. 

"Um, me too! But mine's still running, i take a little coffee break right before come back to the site. Have you finished yours?"

"Yes, actually," jeno scratched his nape awkwardly before he continued. "Uhh, do you perhaps want to meet me after you are done? Just for a sec?" He asked.

"Sure! I'll text you when i'm done?" 

Yes, you both are having each other's numbers but can't even communicate a single thing through it. He didn't text you. And you, being the one who shamelessly asked for his numbers which he gladly gave it, never once texts him because as you can see, you're being professional enough to keep your words that it's only for the matter of work.

"Cool." You both smiled to each other and stood awkwardly for a good seconds until jeno left. 

So, did he just wait for you until you're done because he said he just finished his schedule? Is that even possible for him to do that?

The answer is yes. Though with a little bit of delay. He asked you to meet him after you're done, just to have you wait for him in the nearby cafe for nearly 20 minutes.

Jeno: uhh hi its jeno

Jeno: im so sorry for keeping you waiting

You: oh hii

You: nah its okayy not a biggie

Jeno: its the manager hyung, i told him i have to go somewhere but you know its hard to cooperate with them :/

Jeno: look i promise it will just need to b arranged real fast okay

You: okaaay i know youre busy you can really take your time tho

Jeno: so sorry ;(((

You: jeno its fine :*

You: :(

Jeno: thanjk you for the understanding ;)

Jeno: ill be there in.. 5 mins?

You: ill be here waiting!

You were smiling like crazy reading his texts. All you did was blushing and heart skipping while replying to him. He was so cute. And it's the first time you guys exchange texts. And he did it first! (how its a big deal for you)

Then there he is. Entering the cafe with a little skip and making a bee line to your table then sit down in front of you. 

"Right on time." He said jokingly. You just chuckled at him.

"Sooo what's up? What is it that you wanted to talk about in your very packed schedule, busy bee?"

He exhaled harshly before replying. "Nothing. Just wanna get out and have some fresh air."

He averted his gaze to yours before continue, "with my new friend." 

You raised one of your eyebrows at the boy. "Yeah? I thought you already forgot me because i was just simply a girl that worked at your company," you talk as you fold your hands.

"Why would i? I'll remember you anyway. You once fell in front of me when you were about to open some door and that actually was funny as hell. Shouldn't laugh but i can't help it. Oops. Should have not told you this part too..."

Your face heated in a second, and yes, you did that and it was humiliating and you felt very stupid. That time you were about to enter the conference room at the company building, but jeno (also the other members were there) was opening the door at the same time, unfortunately you stumbled on your feet and ended up kneeling at his.

He take a glance at you again then continue. "And you're pretty pretty."

You immediately looked up to him. You can't explain how his sudden confession affect you so much and leave your heart throbbing like crazy. 

Fortunately you can keep your act.

You chuckled and replied, "and what's that supposed to mean."

"I'm just saying that you're beautiful." 

He surely knows how to mess with your heart.

"And i'm getting worried that your eyes might have a problem," you laughed, more to laughing at yourself.

"No. I meant it."

You looked at him again, flustered, and he smiled when he saw you taken aback. A mischievous smile to be exact.

"Are you flirting with me?" Of course you were kidding. Asking that kind of question sounds nonchalant, even have no shame. But you had nothing to lose anyway.

"Would you accept it?" 

You blinked rapidly, your heart beating so fast in your chest, your palms were sweaty. He got you questioning yourself on how you can not fall for him even more? It's getting even deeper every minute you spend your time with him. He's dangerous. 

You were stunned for a moment. You felt like your cheeks burned, they're emitting flame. Your head short circuited for a while yet all you can think about is jeno. Jeno jeno jeno and jeno. The moment you can't hold it back from spilling, you just let it burst.

"I like you." 

Oh, you don't even care anymore about your image. The moment you spit that you felt like the most stupid, dense person alive on earth.

"I know." 

He responded in a heartbeat, and you felt fire burn a hole into you.

"You what?"

"I said i know. I noticed. And i do to."

"I'm so lost." You started to believe that you're out of your mind.

"I'm saying that i like you too."

Your pupils doesn't even falter when you stare at his face. You might just scream or gasp or even cry, but you were too stunned to speak, the way you were so calm also surprised yourself. You shake your head as you doubt your hearing and gave him a bitter smile.

"You're joking."

"Yes." 

Your eyes widen from his answer. He's such a prankster. 

"Jeno!"

He laughed. His laugh is so carefree but feels shy at the same time, that is just screaming lee jeno so much.

"So what am i supposed to say? You already heard me."

"I'm just trying to seek clarity." You narrow your eyes playfully. Now you don't even know where the confidence in you came from.

"You're my clarity." 

Now that sounds straight up came from a song lyric.

This whole time you think that you're crazy for wanting lee jeno, but here you are having a little cafe date and knowing him to have the same feeling as you are.

-

"Ah!" you squeal as your head thud against the hard surface.

"Sorry," jeno apologized as he giggled, then continue to peppering kisses down your neck.

Both of you were alone in a room at the backstage, making out like crazy before he bring you to the nearest table and pin you down. You sigh blissfully, thanking heaven every time your bodies this close, that you finally have jeno for your own and not anybody else. It's not the first time that he finally touched you, but every single one of his touches feels like the first time.

Oh, of course that didn't just happen in a night. He's been so sweet and kind to you that you mistaken his deed as something more than platonic relationship.

He bought you food. He told the manager to drop you off at your apartment at night when the schedule's over. You both go to the staff's cafeteria and eat lunch together. You offer him to go cycling together when he's off, and he did. He lent you his airpods when you lost one. You brewed his morning coffee. He called you one night and said that he's missing you. You asked him if you can do the same, texting or calling him as a normal friend would do despite both of your jobs. And that one night where he sneaked out to your apartment just to say that he wanted you.

That moment you thought everything is indeed possible. 

"Jen! Wait!"

He's currently railing you stupid at the backstage.

Now both of your hands were on the wall, legs spread open for him to easily pound you from the back. 

"Shit, this pussy's so tight." He slowed down, dragging his cock precise and keen, watching how his length appeared then disappeared inside your pussy.

"You like that baby?"

Your ears are buzzing, eyes fluttering, you only mewl and all you can hear is squelching sounds from how wet your pussy is before he sped up, skins clapping resonated all over the room.

When you didn't answered, he stopped and brings your hair to a ponytail then yanked your head up so your back is now against him as he whispered, "i said, am i fucking you good, little slut?" Well he can be cruel sometimes, but both of you know his mouth isn't that dirty on daily basis. He's just having his moment.

"Fuck yes," you finally speak.

Jeno railed into you again, he prop you to stand up, right hand on your hip, clamping so hard it'll leave bruises, and left hand grasping at your jaw to make you face him, his lips ghosting between your ear and lips, heavy breathing and all.

When he brushed against your earlobe, he whispered right onto your ear, "open your fucking mouth."

You obliged, as he bent your neck back and you presented all of yourself in front of him, he spit into your mouth. "Perfect. Keep it there like a good girl you are." 

Jeno started to pick up pace again, this time hitting your spot deliciously over and over, sending you to the cloud nine.

You agape as you moan, all while your mouth full of your and his spit, nonetheless making an effort to keep jeno's words but you're already drooling all over your chin.

"J-jen.."

"Shh, no need to say a thing baby girl, keep your pretty mouth shut."

Jeno suddenly lift you up and prop your back against the table. He's hovering over you, tapping your cheek, oblige you to open your mouth again, and spit another glob into yours.

"Now keep that warm and safe, you could do that, right angel?"

He asked and you only nodded in response. "That's it. Now let me make you feel good."

He spread your dangling legs by pushing on your thighs then dragging his hard and big cock along your slit, making a quite lubrication.

You're a whiny mess, never in your life you thought you'd have sex with lee jeno in a random room on their backstage, and he's pretty wild at the moment.

Before you can process a thing, he's already on his knee, eating you out slowly. You tug at his hair and hoist your hip up, but he's keeping you in place. He's taking his time, kitten licking at your opening with a slow pace, sucking softly at the clit, but it already making you tremble and wanting more. He's keeping the act for a while before the frustrations hit you.

"Jeno, hurry the fuck up."

He stop doing his ministrations, and as he pissed off, he suddenly lift you up again, your front pushed to the nearest wall.

"What did i just say to you? Shut your fucking mouth. Don't fucking speak. Why did you speak?"

He landed a couple of hard slap against your ass, making you yelp and shriek, "i-m sorry, please," your head drooped, your body trembling, but not from fear.

It's excitement.

Another slap on your ass. "Please what? Tell me, angel, what is it?

He kneaded your flesh and put his length between your ass cheek, nuzzling it sensually, and it made you bite your lip hard, can't take his teasing no more.

"Please," you almost sob. "Please, jeno, fuck me."

You beg, and he immediately bend you fully over again, both of his hands were on your hips as he fuck you into oblivion.

"Princess wanna get fucked. What she wants, she gets." 

He kissed his teeth before he rammed into you, hitting that sweet spot precisely over and over again it felt so good. Your hands and legs almost gave up, but he grabbed your hip in place. As you moan and scream for him, he keep chanting that he want you to come for him.

"Jeno, i'm fucking close- fuck," your hair is tangled, you're a drooling mess, your eyes rolled up. He fuck you so good it leave you dumb. Jeno's hips never once falter, he keep fucking into you rapidly as you whine non stop.

"Fuck, come all over me. Come on," he encouraged you.

"Coming!" You're a moaning mess, pussy can't help but tightened around him, making him curse under his breath. He continue to pistoning as he chasing his high, prolonged your own orgasm.

"Fuck, gonna cum," his thrust remain steady until it finally stopped, buried so deep inside you as he fill you up to the brim. Jeno finally pulled out, your hands and elbow propped against the wall as you arched your back while bending over, giving him a full sight of your ass and pussy overflowing with his cum. 

"Shit.." jeno cursed as he ran a hand through his fringe.

You felt your bodies emitting fog from the fever, glistening with sweat.

Just after that, you both heard a knock and someone's shouting.

"Are you guys done there? Jeno, get your loud ass out there right now, we're running out of time." 

You wouldn't miss whose voice it was.

It's fucking na jaemin. You felt embarrassment creep down your spine when you realized he found out, although nothing like the rest of the members doesn't know about the relationship you two have. But still, caught red handed fucking in the backstage with his band mate is a little bit..

"That's embarrassing.." you sigh while covering your face, making jeno chuckled as he patted your head.

"He'll get used to it." He smiled like a puppy, as he not merely fuck you senseless just now.

-

You said that it's embarrassing. But it seems like you're liking how unusual things did give you some thrilling sensations you can't explain. Since then, you've had sex with jeno in the void meeting room when everybody's leaving from work. It's giving you anxiety on what if someone's barge in, or the worst-you'd get kicked out from the company and never ever get the same job even at the different place again-but funnily, you can't resist the good feeling jeno made you and the realization that you were actually enjoying the shit, eventually not giving any fuck if someone know.

Another day of you and jeno spending time together in the same room, giving some different kind of affections to each other. And you're just too afraid to say something; to ask him: 'what are we?' Because you couldn't be more happy with what's happening between you two now. And tonight is a bit different because you feel your heart ache in the way he hold you as he won't let go.

"Jeno.." you arched your back when his tongue trailed from your abdomen up to your breasts while he attempted to unclasp your bra.

After freeing the flesh, he mumbled in awe, "beautiful."

He latched his tongue on your nipple, swirling it with purpose, to make you even wet just for him, and him only, just like the way he liked it.

"Fuck, it feels so good, don't stop," you pulled on his hair, a signal for him to keep going. 

"Yeah? You like that, pretty girl?" Jeno kneaded on your swell as he sucked again on your nipple.

"Louder. Moan louder for me." And that's what you did. Your fucked up sounds is a music to his ears, railing him up to the extent where he just wanted to sink in you. 

Jeno cupped your sex, your panties were damp in arousal. "Shit, look at you. So fucking wet." He slid his fingers up and down your panties before he slipped his fingers in. You whimpered when his cold digit met your folds. He only play with your opening and clit, but it already drive you crazy. You're practically drooling, he's collecting your essence on his fingers before he bring it up to his mouth, tasting your arousal. You huff and puff, look already fucked up before him when he barely did anything.

"So pretty. So fucked up. So needy for me."

All you did is fucking whine. Lee jeno is driving you insane.

"Please," you plead. "Jeno,"

"Hm? What is it princess?" He asked with a sweet mocking tone.

"Fingers. Want your fingers inside me." You sternly told him, but your gaze was infirm.

He chuckled then replied, "of course baby, you'll have it. But later. I have to taste you first. Will you let me?"

He asked for your permission and what on earth is stopping you from letting him eat you out? Of course you would never say no.

"Pleasee," your whiny voice made him smile from ear to ear in satisfaction.

"Love it when you beg."

Jeno get down to eye level with your pussy before dive in. Your hips wouldn't stop thrusting up to him and pulling his hair, his strong hands looping on your thighs. At this rate his face buried deep between you legs and tongue prod into your cunt, exploring your hole, lips trying so hard to swallow you up, open mouthed kiss at your pussy, sucking and lapping. He's eating you out like there's no tomorrow. 

"Fuck, i think i'm gonna cum."

Jeno chuckled, "already? So spoilt."

Jeno bring his fingers down and curled the digit expertly inside your pussy, you're wiggling like crazy when he reached that sweet spot that got your pussy tightening around him, then he sucked your clit hard, made you cum in instant at his doing.

You gradually came down from your high and stared at him in the eye, begging.

"Jeno, please, let me suck you off."

He feels like he's flying up the cloud seeing you prettily begged for him. Then he smiled, "can't say no to a pretty girl like you."

You bit your lip before you kneeled in front of him, taking a hand of his hard cock and kissed the tip. You hold onto his balls while you licked and sucked along his shaft until your tongue met with the tip, then sink into his cock, swallowing him whole. You bobbed your head up and down, sucking in intensity. He groaned and bring his hand through your hair, while he got his head thrown back against the headboard.

"You're doing so good baby, keep going."

He hissed painfully, his muscles clenched and his grab on your hair is getting tight. Your left hand massaging his balls, mouth sucking at the tip, the other hand stroking the rest of his shaft.

"Fuck, i'm not gonna last." He hold your head and thrust into your mouth, chasing his high. Your gagged sound heard all over the room, eyes pricked from tears. His groan went louder and that's when he came all over your mouth, and you swallowed all of his seed like a good girl, his good girl.

You lap all of his fluid, cleaning his cock clean, and lick your own lips.

"God you're pretty." His stare full with admiration, then he caged you between his arms, locked your lips with his in a passionate kiss. Tongue dancing with each other, nipping at one's lip. Both of you moan into the kiss, until he break it first.

Your back arched so high, hips pressed against his own, wanted more just than kissing him, but he pushed your belly down and leaned in.

"Need you now. Need to make love to you."

Once again, your heart sank at his confession. You're already tearing up as he pushed his big cock into you, soon picking up a steady pace to thrust between your wall, all while kissing you out. His kiss felt so soft and sweet, but also fragile at the same time. Your bodies met, no space in between. You hug him tightly, so afraid that he might just run away or disappear in the blink of an eye. He made you feel so good you're crying, can't even think or talk straight, your mind felt numb.

That night, you remembered vividly the last word he said before you passed out.

"I love you."

-

The rainy night made you feel all lazy. You wouldn't get up from bed if you just didn't feel the urge to go to the convenience store and fulfill your craving with some warm food. You're definitely starving.

You take out your umbrella because it's still raining, but as you nearly arrived, it's became a drizzle before it came to a stop.

You fold your umbrella as you walk closer, but before entering the place, you definitely saw jeno at the dark aisle between two buildings; making out with who the fuck you don't care, as if someone could've not just pass by and saw them two passionately changing spits.

You froze in your place, can't even walk any closer to where jeno was. You felt anger bubbling up to your chest and at the same time, you can't help your heart from breaking into pieces.

But as someone's controlling you, you suddenly stomped on your feet, making a way to them with balled fists, and you nearly scream when you call him out.

"Jeno."

The two broke the kiss after couple of seconds as if they're unbothered, both dripping from the drizzle. He turned at you, eyes dark and indicating that he wasn't even surprised to see you there. 

But then he opened his mouth, "how th-"

"What the fuck?" You cut him before he talk, spitting your anger out, voice all husky and spiteful, extremely vulnerable at the same time.

"Who the fuck is that?" Your eyes burned from restraining tears roll down your cheeks.

"What happened with the other days when we literally spent time together? Yesterday, you just- we just- fuck, i- i thought you just said that you lo-"

You can't help but blubbering, can't even say the last word you meant from spilling out. It's too much.

The girl he was making out with tried to walk away, but he grabbed her wrist.

You scoffed, speechless.

Did he just stop her?

Sickeningly, he just walked by you as he made a way out while dragging her with him.

You swear you just felt so fucking dumbfounded. He didn't even say a word since earlier.

When you can't hold your tears back again, you break out and scream his name out. 

"LEE JENO!"

He looked back from his shoulder, but he still put the same blank expression in front of you before he chuckled.

"Well. Looks like i've got nothing to explain since you already saw it."

Still standing with the balled fists, you can't even talk as you were trying so hard to figure things out. Why the fuck did he do this? Did this to you?

"I believe you're capable enough to think with your little brain, princess."

Suddenly, the rain started to pouring again, leaving you all soaked up gradually.

He's giving you the nastiest smile he have ever showed you as he made his getaway with the girl and said,

"Wake the fuck up. I have never loved you."

―

And that's when you wake up from your dreams.

As your eyes fluttered, you felt tears running from the corner of your eyes, making your sideburns damp uncomfortably.

This fucking whole thing is a dream. A dream that's so real.

No wonder that all of it was happening so fast; and absurd.

Now you can't even think of jeno the same way anymore if you see him at work. 

You checked your phone. Of course it's december. You laughed bitterly at yourself when you realized you trapped with jeno in your dreams when it's fucking summer. You swear you can even feel the heat. It just felt so true.

You get up on your elbows then cursed under your breath before muttered to yourself, "never thought you'd love and hurt me at the same time."

And it's not even in the real world.

Is it better because it's just a dream? Or is it not because the real thing is even more an awful truth you need to accept?

That's when you realized that the meaning of impossible is literally as it is. It's the time for you to understand that both of you is poles apart, that he is different.

You'll never ever get him, and you need to forget him; as he might already forget you.

[anniflamma]

Man, I'm going a bit crazy with the idea of Mephiboseth and Absalom a bit here like, for starters Mephisboseth has to deal with the whole drama that if it wasn't because he had already been injured that the people who took care of him would have never loved him or let him live long enough as he is now. Cuz he is the heir of Jonathan after all, but also its the exact reason that he is the son of Jonathan that David cares about the boy so much, maybe just as much as Solomon, even though it isn't so noticeable when there's a lot of the problems in the family that arouse due to David's many wives and children.

One of which is of course Absalom. And to an extent I feel like he would become jealous but, I also like to think about he would grow out of that when he sees that 1)Mephisboseth poses no threat to him, heck less threat than his brothers currently do, 2) He seems a bit more lonely in the regard that he is the only heir of a lost family whose only person he could call a familiar being the maid that saved and keeps caring for him like a mother. And 3) Maybe the idea of Tamar being close to Mephisboseth would be nice to write about (but will also add a sadder tone when Mephisboseth can't do anything about what's going to happen to Tamar. 😔) especially considering how her other bothers might be.

Like maybe Mephisboseth is also quite the contrast compared to Absalom who is pompous and extroverted in his own regard. Like even when the deals of the court get to be too much Absalom can go back to Mephisboseth because with him there's no need to put on a show so that he can look better than his two (one really, the second son seems to be as invisible as middle child gets) brothers. After some years he might not care much about his father's favoritism because well, he knows he is great enough by himself. Not as wise as Solomon but enough, probably because Mephisboseth and Tamar hype him up a lot. (And that care that Tamar shows to them probably is what makes Amnon so bitter to the point of committing horrible things in the first place. Because not only is he hurting Tamar, he also hurts Absalom who wasn't present at the one time Tamar needed her, and Mephisboseth who even if he was, wouldn't have been strong enough to help her— or maybe would have tried and ended up getting more hurt because of his disability.)

Either way of how you put the story, the tragedy will so deep throat that I can't stop thinking about it.

And sidenote, the fact that Siba was kept in charge of Mephiboseth during the rebellion of Absalom was just a little note honestly but my mind went to the idea that maybe, because Mephiboseth cares about Absalom so much he would have tried to help him in any way he can, and David— who had met in secret with Jonathan before, who knows the lengths he would have gone for to be with the one he loves– tries to impose him from meeting Absalom in the case that another son of his, the son of *Jonathan*, dies. (Not to mention he would also have broken his covenant with Jonathan if Mephiboseth were to die.)

Sorry mate. I'm so sorry but you are suffering with me after giving me this idea 😔

Hey, I have no problem suffering with you! Where are all my papers on Mephi/Absolom stuff!? 😫

I couldn't agree with you more on this! There are so many themes you could explore with a story about Mephiboseth. The conflicts... The emotional turmoil... aahh! I believe the dynamic between Absolom and Mephi would be such a fascinating aspect.

Mephiboseth suffered greatly from the trauma of his accident and the sudden loss of his father in one single day. Following this, Siba, Saul's servant, tended to him and relocated him to a place literary called “Nothing,” reinforcing Mephi’s belief that he is insignificant. Even in the Bible, his insecurity is evident as he refers to himself as “nothing more than a dead dog.” Therefore, when he gets an summon to David’s palace and meet the king and his family for the first time, I always wonder about what is his perspective? Does Mephi harbor resentment? Is there jealousy towards Absalom and David’s other sons who grew up in a luxurious palace— a life that was meant to be his? And imagine if Jonathan had survived, then Absalom and Mephiboseth would have grown up together as brothers….

And yhea, It is pretty much canon that Absolom and Mephiboseth are the opposite from each other. Like you said, one is beautiful, popular, pompous, extroverted and a prince. And the other is lame, introverted and a "nobody". Which is something I can eat everyday! I just love the opposite attracts trope!

For Absalom, he had grown up in a grand palace that strictly forbade the presence of anyone with disabilities. David, for a really stupid reason, held a strong dislike towards those who were blind or deaf. However, everything took a different turn when David brought a new child into the court, publicly declaring him as his own son and warning sternly that any harm towards the boy would be met with severe consequences. I think this sudden change could leave Absalom confused and somewhat resentful of his father's abrupt favoritism towards this random boy. He probably would feel jealous at first, but probably quickly shifts and not lingering on these emotions for long.

I also see that the relationship between David and Mephiboseth is not entirely healthy. David's protectiveness towards Mephiboseth could even borders to an obsession, stemming from his fear of losing "Jonathan” again. I thinks that Mephi would looks and resembling his father in every way, When Mephiboseth stands before him, David is overcome with emotion.

Picture him trembling on the floor before the king, uncertain of his fate, why he is here. In a surprising turn, David pulls him into a tight embrace, tears streaming down his face, perhaps softly uttering Jonathan's name. Confused and hesitant, Mephiboseth eventually returns the hug. 😭

David has good intentions and cares deeply for Mephiboseth, but his love for him seems to come with conditions. It raises the question of whether David's affection for Mephiboseth would remain unchanged if he were not Jonathan's son. The likely answer is no, something that Mephiboseth probably already knows about. The only reason David lifts the ban on disabled individuals entering the palace is because he desires to have Mephiboseth live with him and his family.

Then we have David's overprotectiveness during the rebellion. Despite being torn between loyalty to Absalom and David, Mephiboseth is forced to remain at the palace due to Siba's influence. Siba, believing that a lame person should not stand beside the King, prevents Mephiboseth from joining David but as well not allowed to follow Absalom. It could be that David might actually be alright with leaving Mephiboseth behind at the palace. A recurring theme in "The Prince’s Psalm" is how others underestimate David and try to forces him to stay low and at home. His family unknowingly hurts him when they are doing it. This mirrors how David unknowingly makes the same the mistreatment he endured from his brothers onto Mephiboseth.

There could be also a theme with David not viewing Mephibosheth as his own person. When Siba lies that Mephibosheth has betrayed David and that he has left the palace, David becomes enraged and gives all the inheritance that he would give to Mephibosheth to Siba instead, not taking time to think or ask for evidence. It also shows that he doesn’t really know Mephibosheth, that he immediately believes someone else's words. It gives the feeling of "putting him on a pedestal." What I'm trying to say here is that David loves Mephibosheth for Jonathan’s sake. It's a beautiful thing between David and Jonathan but not as much for Mephibosheth, if you know what I mean.

And there are so many parallels between David and Jonathan’s story with Absalom and Mephibosheth. It has the same story beats but the roles are reversed. The "shepherd" stays in the castle while the prince is on the run from the king.

Regarding Tamar, it's a very sensitive topic. The assault of Tamar in the Bible is only used as motivation for Absalom to start the rebellion. After that, Tamar isn't important narratively anymore. She is only mentioned once more after the assault, when Absalom names his firstborn after his sister. This act struck me as such sweet thing, cuz it's probably the only time in the Bible where a male character celebrates having a daughter. Personally, I've always been uncomfortable with female characters experiencing trauma solely to drive the motivations of male characters. As well as that a character would sexually abuse another character just to hurt someone else. Amnon comes across as nothing more than a creepy stalker in the bible, and I don't think he doesn't need any additional motivation for assaulting Tamar. Like you said, I really like the idea of having Mephibosheth and Tamar become good friends, leading Amnon to feel jealousy. But it wouldn’t be the main factor why he was harming Tamar in the first place. He was obsessed with her already and resorted to trickery to manipulate David into sending her alone to his bedchamber—a situation that would never have occurred if she hadn't been ordered or coerced into it. I do think that both Absalom and Mephi would blame themselves that they couldn't protect her but then Absalom redirects that resentment towards David. This would happened to Mephi as well but he becomes conflicted. That he don't want to blame David for forcing Tamar to be alone with Amnon at first but then realize it later. I'm not sure about what I could add to Tamar's story…. Perhaps keeping her involved in the story could enhance her character arc? For instance, instead of Siba aiding Mephibosheth in meeting Absalom secretly, maybe Tamar could fulfill this role instead? I dunno, I'm not sure.

Though if Mephibosheth and Absalom's relationship were romantic, then David would probably immediately spot it. 😅 I don’t think that he would mind in the beginning, and even it would make him reminisce his memories with Jonathan. But when Absalom starts the rebellion, he obviously sees him as a threat to Mephibosheth. And after Absalom’s death… Yeah, there we have the sad juice. David mourns for his son's death and we have Mephibosheth mourning too by David's side. It's like a reflection of Saul and Jonathan, but this time, it’s “David” who died. And it's the King and the “prince“ still living.

I WANT THIS TO BE A BOOK SO MUCH! 😫

[bunny-hoodlum]

Sharing this because I feel like it. ☺️ The first 900+ words of Idle Hands (rewrite) so far. 🥹 In case you didn't catch previous now deleted post, I gave up on the 'stressful childhood' direction. Now it's more of a retelling, but I'm still calling it a rewrite. This Naruto is interesting imo. Ahhhh, I hope I'm doing this right? I guess bear with me here. Contradictions may be inevitable, Idk. So, he falls under the Obliviously Evil trope this time around. I'm shooting for 'cheerful yet stressed (traumatized) and actually secretly crazy'. Doesn't fit the standard Dark Naruto depiction, so I can't really say one way or another which he leans the closest to. 😭 He hasn't broken yet, but he's going to get there, so we'll see. 🤭 Hope this instills some hype! :3 Becuz I'm making progress babyyyy~🎵

xxx-xxx-xxx

Idle Hands (2024)

Pairings: NaruHina, eventual NaruHinaSasu

Smut, Freeuse, Dacryphilia

cw: toxic behavior, dubcon, ijime

Summary: There's nothing to do in the sticks. There's even less to do when you're on probation. There's even less than that when: Your dad is the most popular man in town/You've been raised to be a boy and are invisible when you try to be a girl/When your exciting city boy lifestyle has been taken from you.

Or when two losers and a fuckboy choose all the worst ways to have fun. Not that one of them had much of a choice.

There in the middle of an overgrown clearing sat a rusted, abandoned car, wheel-less and sitting atop four cement bricks. The dense forest trees towered in the distance, their foliage deep green and billowing in the wind. Beneath the car, you can follow the remnants of a gravel path out of the clearing, towards an abandoned auto factory – you know, when having an auto factory way the fuck out here somehow made sense. Back before the bubble burst when everything went to shit. But what does he know? He was only six when it happened. Not like that shit ain’t affecting him well into the Y2K or anythin’.

Naruto lounged in the backseat with a nudie magazine and a sage green quilted blanket over his lap, his cheeky eyes devouring the curvaceous models on the pages. Oiled up, lips spread, pouty eyes peering and pleading for his cock.

He nudged his toe in the soft belly beneath the blanket, or maybe he threw it a little harder than he meant to, forcing a slight cough from her throat as her mouth retreated from his cock after gagging.

The blanket rose up from his lap.

“Hey, I didn’t say ‘stop’.” He cupped the back of her head and forced her lips to press against the underside of his rigid girth, teeth sliding and catching against his tender flesh. When the wet, warm vacuum pull of her mouth around his cock returned, he settled back into place, flipping pages like he was reading the newspaper.

Green eyes stared back at him. Earnest, yet cold. White skin framed by black hair. Her tits squished together in a string bikini as she bent forward, her arms crossed underneath their swell.

Shizuka. Didn't matter that she was twenty-four and he was sixteen. There were plenty of ways he could ruin her that life hasn't yet.

His breath quickened, shallow quiet pants puffing past his lips.

Her rich green eyes were growing on him.

Maybe his first girlfriend will have green eyes. If only.

Women like them didn’t exist out here. Not in this dying town of theirs, where their only market street was rows of shuttered-up shops, their storefronts heavily tagged and dirty with runny rust-stains.

Dsy by day, this place was turning into an old person’s home. Or a fucking casket.

Day by day he passed by a chain-smoking mummy, half-deaf and half-blind yet still nosy enough to cuss him out. Every day those same disapproving stares like he was some kind of disease, some kind of curse.

He wanted a woman like Shizuka. He wanted softness like hers to make him forget. He wanted eyes like hers fixed on him in every mundane context, like two lovers, their names signed on the lease just the day before. He wanted her silent worship.

God, he couldn’t wait to get out of here. Couldn’t wait to get a taste of real women.

He was wasting his fucking youth here. His mind too, not that anyone believed he had much of one to begin with.

He imagined someone beautiful, someone way, way, way out of his league taking him inside her, wanting him more than anyone else inside her. She would rewrite his entire history in a single night.

Excitement arced up his spine as pleasure pooled in his groin, building and building–

Naruto grabbed the back of her head. He thrusted into her hot, slimy throat, ignoring her startled whines, the gagging convulsions tightening around his invasive cockhead.

“Gotta train your throat again, huh, Hinata? C’mon, just endure it. I ‘ppreciate you not playing with other dudes while I was away, but you’ve really gotten sloppy. But that’s fine, too, actually. It’s kinda cute.” He threw his head back and closed his eyes, surrendering to the soft, clinging sensations thrumming around his cock. He was melting against her devoted tongue, so persistent to please him no matter what as she licked and laved the ridgid underside with broad sweeps that left echoes of each across his turgid flesh.

Knock knock knock!

A rhythmic tapping on the glass beside his head startled the lewd occupants and Naruto threw his toe into her stomach again.

He lowered the nudie magazine atop her head and turned his face out the window.

Bent over at the hip stood the thorn in his side that his dad personally stabbed in him the moment he found himself in front of the family judge again – no less than two months after his release from the Juvenile Training Facility.

The silver-haired man with the lazy, lidded gaze mimed cranking a handle backwards and Naruto sighed. He reached for the window crank, lowering the window just enough that he and Kakashi could properly exchange words.

“Go to school, Naruto.”

Naruto sank into seat, clearing his face of any hint of expression as he leveled Kakashi with a cold, ignorant stare.

His toe had other ideas, as he nosed around the convergence between her legs, finding the soft resistance of her panty-covered cunt. He idly teased her clit while he waited for the weary douche to give up like he always did.

Not like his father’s favorite student was all that invested in him, anyway. The dude was freaky smart and found ways to make his minor infractions such as truancy go away. Precisely to his father’s satisfaction, and not the system’s.

Obito told him someone like Kakashi would have proposed lifelong marriage to ‘The Rules’ if it had taken the shape he most desired.

The fact that he could give two shits about integrity these days convinced Naruto that his dad knew Kakashi’s state of mind. And that he was exactly what his dad was looking for in a probations officer.

Someone that would take Namikaze Minato’s side, always.

Someone that would protect Namikaze Minato’s image, always.

TBC

[hoodoo12]

Mattoxjuice

In less than an hour, Elliott Mattox will go on for the third time Beetlejuice in the show. I'm so happy he got a chance to do this. He's only one of four actors to play the titular character on stage with an audience, and the only one who didn't also play Dewey Finn.

I would have gone to his debut if I'd been able, but things like work (ugh) and physics (driving takes 7 hours and he went on in 5) (boo) prevented me from going.

However, I was able to see it. After. No, I won't go into details except to give a some observations.

There were no major wig changes (no purple or red wig) but he did have costume changes. No maggot brain, which made me sad. I love that wig.

He riffed/sang through "you're invisible when you're . . . me" instead of "Jason Derrulo" during the rooftop scene, and wasn't carried by the clones at the end. He riffed there too and it was really good.

When the book fell from overhead it dropped in the hole onstage. Elliott said, "This wouldn't happen to Alex Brightman."

He plays Beetlejuice flamboyantly. I didn't get any evil vibe. There's this chaotic birr to him, like he isn't quite sure what to do with himself because of all his energy. Like a kid hyped up on sugar. He definitely did not play the character raging angry or overly perverted. That was interesting to watch, tbh, and puts a different spin on the character to explore.

There was no kissing on the lips between him and David or Kerry!

Elliott is a highly trained dancer, so his Beej moves slightly differently than Alex, Will, or Andrew (I haven't seen any Justin yet).

I would still like to know the reasoning behind the "no beard" decision, out of curiosity. I didn't hate it, and like that it gave him a different look, but his clones had beards.

His vocal range is slightly different and he hits some notes very well. Some of his physical moves were just "extra" compared to Alex's (going back to the dance training).

Elliott never had a put in, so there were a few times he seemed a little stiff, which is completely understandable! I'd love to know if he was more comfortable the second and third time around.

That's my brief summary of Elliott going in. I am hoping Alex will be able to go back for at least the final show; he deserves to close the show that he's been an integral part of since 2017. But if he can't due to a TBI, the role of Beetlejuice is in very good hands no matter which swing dons the stripes at 7:30 on January 8, 2023.

[prowerprojects]

I feel like this is a growing side effect of fans being starved from Tails being the non-action tech guy for so long to where Forces caused a boiling point for so many, some are latching onto Nine or IDW in spite of it. (I argue Tails got drowned out often even back then when characters like Shadow, Silver, and Blaze were a huge talking point back in the 2000s. But still in good standing before Unleashed and Colors.)

While I'm glad the movie and Prime made Tails in general a big talking point again; more positively this time, I am mixed on it coming at the expense of his Modern self. MOSTH and Modern being playable again later in Frontiers is a start, but he's probably not going to really shake this off until he goes solo for a bit in a upfront way. (That, and having more interactions outside of Sonic to show off more of his character. Love their bond, don't love how fans treat it so one-sided when discussing it.)

Anon, you're probably right.

(Though I don't really see what is there to latch onto in idw, he doesn't really do much? I wouldn't even say his characterization is bad, it's just that he kinda. Exists around. I see people hype up idw Tails and I'm like. Wow no wonder people think he's boring and lame if this is what passes for good Tails representation)

The thing with Unleashed and Colors is interesting, because I feel like the characters who had good early portrayals (the aforementioned Blaze, Shadow and Silver) but hadn't appeared since are still remembered as competent and cool characters because this characterization is still fresh in people's minds even though it was so long ago, while due to Tails having more appearances he's more remembered for the more recent ones... (and probably there's a part of "Why can't my supercool fave be in this game, why is Tails here, he's lame!")

I feel there's also the thing that all of those characters had very... impressive introductions. No matter how bad the writing for Shadow gets people can go back to his introductory game and remember what he was invisioned to be as a character, etc.

But Tails's backstory is all in the manual. He even has a little character arc (seeing Sonic, becoming more optimistic and learning to fly/run fast enough to keep up with Sonic, meeting Sonic for the first time and following him into battle), and it's not only only in the manual, it happens before the events of the game itself. Even Knuckles has more of a character arc/involvement in his introductory game plot. (This is how we ended up with early adaptations where Tails thinks that math is yucky and hard despite canon Tails literally being an engineer) Tails just. Doesn't get to make the same impression, and never will, because he's a 30+ old character and that ship has sailed. (And it's ironic to see how people latched onto Nine since he's technically having the same arc, it's just like you know... Show, don't tell. It really works. (And also he's angsty, that helps too))

Yeah... I love people being excited about versions of Tails from adaptations, but it really brings me down when people use them to talk shit about mainline Tails. You know what this reminds me of? When there's a new Scooby Doo adaptation and everyone is like "Finally they fixed Daphne so she's competent and isn't a damsel in distress anymore". And it's like. Do you know anything about Daphne. And. Why are you giving credit to the adaptation for doing something that has always been a thing?

I'm not expecting Frontiers to break through Tails's public image either, but I hope he at least has an enjoyable gameplay so people could be like "Wow that was fun! I wish Sega would make even more games where you could play as Tails!" :3c And then maybe we could get this "solo adventure".

(Though the way it's worded in Frontiers it's more of a "Tails is going to the mountains to train" than "Tails is becoming a solo operation". Like he clearly just wants to get "stronger"(in a broad sense of the word. Though personally I think what he actually needs is to stop basing his self worth on his usefulness and Sonic's opinions. Ironically if he was more like Sonic in this way he would be happier) and is expecting to get back to Sonic at some point. I could live with this though, I don't mind it at all as long as he's actually treated as Sonic's partner afterwards rather than a cute accessory that Sonic talks to so he doesn't look weird talking to the broken robots.)

I love tmosth! Ian Sr is such a good writer, honestly I don't know about his abilities to write a cool adventure plot, but he has the character voices nailed down! (Except for maybe kleptomania jokes with Rouge) But Tails was so good! He was basically a co-protag with Barry (they had a very cute dynamic), we saw him interacting with other characters who aren't Sonic (honestly he and Sonic barely interact with each other there at all), he took charge of the investigation and got to show off his smarts beyond "I fix this broken thing like it's magic"(Though he did that as well!), and he was still shown to be insecure and childish at times, it's just *clenches fist* so good.

Sorry had to take a break to gush, this post was becoming too negative ahaha. Ok back to it.

The Unbreakable Bond thing. Yeah... I also love their relationship, but the fact that Tails doesn't really have developed relationships with the rest of the cast makes him feel very isolated and like his life revolves around Sonic. Even Amy and Knuckles, whose most developed relationships are with Sonic as well, have other characters that they interact with without Sonic being involved, (or at least used to interact with), like Rouge or Cream. Who does Tails have? Professor Pickle? Barry? Please. Tails is getting suffocated by the soulmate bond.

(And I don't love to criticize how other fans engage with the franchise because I also have my silly headcanons and interpretations. Like. I literally hc Tails as nonbinary which he isn't, in canon, as far as I'm aware. But. Yeah sometimes it feels like people are more into the idea of Sonic having a little brother that he can dote on. Rather than, you know. Sonic & Tails's actual relationship. Like I literally saw someone say (genuinely as far as I could guess) "Sonic sacrificed so much to raise Tails" and like. Ok. It's time to step back a little and look at the actual canon content. Sonic didn't even know where Tails's house was in sa1, what exactly is he sacrificing with such attentive parenting I wonder. But I do also love cute brotherly bonding stuff so. (One of the reasons why I love aosth so much, though there are other reasons as well. Also while I'm complaining, nobody understands the "Mom, Dad and the Picket Fence" thing.))

Sorry if this post got a big edgy at times, sometimes I start going and slip into it a little bit, even though I'm generally trying not to complain too much about the stuff I don't like and instead focus on the things I do.

[pvtchurch]

auston matthews and ginger from chicken run (connor mcdavid) for the ask meme ?

auston matthews

first impression: so, this one's kinda specific, but my first impression of him came from a fanart I saw on here. so really I didn't know much (this was before my hockey era) except, oh, the people here are really into shipping him with some other hockey guy. okay. not like I formed a lasting impression off that, but I did think his outfit was really cool, so you know, there's that. he's the first hockey guy to breach containment for me, I was not really interested at the time (this was not even a year ago 😭) but it's kinda special in that way

impression now: in general, seems like a chill guy. you know I try to perceive the leafs as little as possible but I respect him. also, cool outfits. he slays. good for him. however I DID read a fanfic which I'm pretty sure changed my brain chemistry and which starred him as the protagonist! doesn't change the way I see him, he just exists, doing his thing, except now I'm more aware of the leafs narratives. (thanks cody!)

I can't really answer any of the rest of the questions because like. I really don't know this guy. sorry reuben. you (leafs fans) can keep him. I don't wanna get dragged into another rabbit hole.

connor mcdavid

(aka, ginger from chicken run.) the fun begins.

first impression: generally thought he was kind of bland? I was like. that's just a dude. like he's good at hockey, which is fun, but he seems to have the amount of personality (and structural integrity!) of a piece of wet cardboard. so I elected to ignore him. I didn't know what was to come.

impression now: hoooooooly shit. this man occupies every single one of my thoughts and I don't even remember how it happened. genuinely. something clicked in my brain and suddenly I was obsessed with him. ofc there's something to be said about like, this anxious teen with the weight of the world on his shoulders who grew quite awkwardly into his adult frame, but like, people have already said these things. there's the insane hockey plays, of course he's amazing and all that, but idk, maybe it's the anxiety that touched me? he's so anxious and he's still going and you can tell he worked on it, it's not perfect but it's better than before? like the growth? I don't know. I kinda love him. he's quiet. a little pathetic-looking. I got no explanation for this one

favourite moment: I listened to a podcast and he was saying that he always has to remind leon of just how good he is, and he's taken it upon himself to make leon see it, and you can tell he really does care about it (beyond just the game). and it's a small moment but I'm a big fan of bros supporting bros. keep it up king 👑💪

idea for a story: so I was sorta maybe not quite writing something... which may or may not involve hanahaki disease and mcdrai. and it mostly deals in guilt (that's the good stuff) but it's actually kind of leon draisaitl centric, because he's the one with the disease and he's the one struggling to see that he is loved and he is cared for and he feels guilty for dumping this on connor and it's mostly platonic but also kind of not and well. I have like my own version of hanahaki which I did tell one (1) beloved mutual about but the document has been untouched for exactly a week now and my brain has moved onto other things, so. (if you feel like reading some hanahaki may I recommend this one, it's mceichel, I enjoyed it a lot)

favourite relationship: my most beloved mental illness. mcdrai. (which I found really flavourless like a few weeks back. character growth!) there's something to be said about the our stories are linked and our names are tied together aspect of it, and how they've found each other, and leon would find me even if I was invisible and all that. something about connor always hyping up leon to the media, because he sees so much in him, and he's waiting for other people to see it too, but in the end they never will because connor is right there and connor is the best player in the league and it's always about connor. he'll always overshadow leon by being there. connor can try, he can try to be selfless (and how can you not be when you are this good, haven't you internalised by now that it's no fun if you take the whole stage for yourself?) and maybe he would like a break from the constant attention but he won't get it. something else; they are the centre of the whole oilers team. like, and I'm not an oilers fan but I think I can say this, the team would absolutely collapse without them. no question about it. maybe they would be fine with just one or just the other but they would definitely be missing their other half. (and I could talk about how they are BOTH anxious and they are maybe each other's support, but that's for another day because I don't think people have noticed how anxious leon actually is yet.) …you could say I've had a normal amount of thoughts about these two.

favourite headcanon: I'm electing not to answer this one because as you can see from my mcdrai paragraph there are a lot of things I have extrapolated from bits of interviews, body language and the like, also maybe a bit of projecting in there. let's be honest that I'm pretending to know a man that I don't. I'm not even an oilers fan. this is all headcanon.

if anyone actually read this far. hope you had fun. sorry.

[leeclaudine]

He stopped caring for you Claudine. He stopped seeing the good. He stopped doing more than what was asked. He stopped caring for how you feel, considering your opinions, fixing things first.. haven't you noticed? You coming up to him first to solve the situations while he goes aimlessly about arguing and bringing up the past. When it seems you've given in and told him to go be happy. He chose to stay. But why honestly? Is it because he chooses you as a person or because he really has no where else left to go. He could go honestly. He always says he can find better anyways. He will deny that he threatens you, makes you feel small, brings up the past (even when you hadn't at all to begin with).

Why be with someone if they just make you unhappy? You just didn't want to admit you were done with me, unhappy (yes with my choices, but I think you're just unhappy with everything I am). You don't focus on making memories with me anymore. The only time you did is whenever we are with other people. But memories only go so far now as to going out at night and getting fast food together. You didn't even post anything about me on my birthday or a shout-out birthday post or anything.. You only hyped me up in the beginning because you put me on that pedestal of "she's perfect." And not because of 'she's perfect of her imperfections or flaws' but because you literally only think people to have the standard of actually 'being perfect'. You think I don't deserve to be hurt too. You go so far as to constantly blame me every day for something I have to live aimlessly with for the rest of my life feeling like I will never make anyone happy. That I don't and will never deserve that love because of how horrible I am as a person. And for you to recognize my hurt is as if nothing you should understand. Because "you get to be hurt more than me". Which maybe you are hurt a lot to an extent, but that doesn't mean I don't get to be either.

I am hurt. I'm hurt hearing the person I love calling me that name ("cheater") that I've called myself for years. Someone I was never proud of and forced myself to get better at. But to find out there's more to this root cause. You just never knew because you don't see any of that pain I hold, (the invisible pain) nor do I feel you want to see it. So regardless, I choose to push aside my hurt to make you happy and put you first.

Yes, what I did was awful (I can't take what I did back but I wish I hadn't done it). I can't keep looking back at that because it won't allow me to look forward from here, of what could be if we both could actually try to move on and make memories again with each other.

I'd do anything to have that happiness again with you to make memories again together without the blame or hurt. But not knowing that there is any such thing because your partner needs 'some time' to see it.. sigh. It's the matter of what you do in that time.

So far.. I'm not sure if we can both choose to change this perspective to better our relationship any time.. or at least soon..

As if I have to live in silence and bear my pain by myself being the person who did this all. And so I do deserve that. But I can't help to admit it gets pretty lonely at times. I deserve it though. Lonely in THAT kind of pain. That 'people won't see you get any better.'

[taleasnewastime]

hii from your bookish anon again ~~

jimin in growing pains is so incredibly hot, but oc in the wake of your leave? that's a whole different story. her determination and drive is so attractive. the way she behaves is so cool. I love oc. if I were her, I'd never really come back, but she's so strong-willed and determined. role-model worthy, I tell you. and the way you made us FEEL the angst, heartbreak and the yearning-to-be-understood that the oc went through was just 😩🤌. fucking amazing, I swear. I rarely find fanfics or even books with such badass female ocs, and this is the perfect cup of tea for me, I didn't even realize i needed to read about a character like this.

I wouldn't say it's really E2L, for jimin and oc, but I get the tension between them, and their past. it's so.. how do I say it, full of tension. they way you described e2l from your reply on my latest ask would be fitting in their situation (given that there's a happy ending). i am loving this.

- dark romance books aren't everybody's cup of tea, the topic can be a bit heavy at times, because there can be a LOT of triggering stuff. fantasy's really fun to read tho, I loved almost every fantasy book I've come across.

- omg you have the whole shatter me series?? you should read it as soon as u can, it's actually good. i actually finished the first book of the series, you might not like the writing style, but that's what it's like inside the character's head, how she's thinking.

- the invisible life of addie larue is just on a different level than other books (at least for me). the way it's written? poetry. magical. amazing. I loved it. the plot? so intriguing i had to take breaks to take everything in. and the smut wasn't really smut, ik, but the way it focused on her emotions and the things she felt. loved it. bc you see a lot of authors write smut but some are just.... luc I found frustrating, but I can't blame you for liking him. he IS hot and attractive, the way he acts. and Six of Crows is actually on my tbr!!

- my book bf? have a few, but def cardan (cruel prince series). loved him in wicked king, but at the last scene tho... anyways he owns my heart.

- I'm really not a fan of colleen hoover either lmao. read it ends with us and was majorly disappointed with the writing style. you write so much better. idk the hype any her tho. and please I beg of you, if you don't want to come across really really really bad smut and an even worse plot, no development for an imp character, do not even TOUCH the sequel. traumatized me fr. but did u hear abt her wanting to turn the iewu book into a coloring book 💀 like what are we gonna color 💀 the stairs or ryle's fits of rage that didn't end well 💀. also have you heard of the movie adaptation?

- I actually haven't finished any Emily Henry book 😅, but I started/am almost through a few, book lovers, beach read, people we meet on vacation. love her writing.

- I think I prefer a series over a stand-alone. because it has more depth and keeps me busy for a long time (I get bored very easily). but when I just want to read to get my mind of something, I go for stand-alones, when I don't have enough time. what about you? which do u prefer, or does it depend?

-still waiting on the next part of the jimin mafia series tho, it was so good, I will wait forever if that's the time you need, can't imagine drifting away from the series, I keep rereading it!!

have you heard of jimin's online fansign for his new album (I love it I love it I love him)? do you read one book at a time or do you start a lot of books at the same time? what series/stand-alones are you reading now? anything more from your tbr you wanna share? how do you write so well? who is the most admirable/role-model worthy character you've ever read about? which book got you into reading? reading online or physical copy? paperback or hardcover? (if u read online) pdf or epub?

haha it's okay you responded late, you have things to do/going in your life. how was Dublin? I hope you had fun ^~^. anyways, have a great day, and good night, from wherever or whenever you're reading this ask. hope it wasn't too long hehe.

- 📚

Yo! Firstly, thank you so much for your kind words about Growing Pains and In The Wake Of Your Leave, it made me smile. I'm diligently working on the subsequent parts and let me tell you, there's lots more angst to come. Hopefully it'll be out in the not too distant future!! I am a little worry my 'twist' is going to upset some people, but you can't please everyone. I tried to make her as strong willed and someone who doesn't need anyone else as possible, so I'm happy that came across.

Dublin was great thanks! Have you ever been? I drank lots of Guinness and beer. Always makes for a great weekend! I went to Brighton the following weekend so I'm looking forward to some weekends at home chilling. Have you got any holiday plans coming up?

I've put the rest of my answer below the cut

I agree about The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Have you read any other books by V E Schwab?

Oh yeah Carden as a book bf is a good choice. He was a bit rough in the first book, but he redeems himself.

Ah I'm so glad you're also not a fan of Colleen. Not that there's anything wrong with liking her stories but sometimes I feel alone in not enjoying her stuff. looool your comment about the colouring book had me creasing. I have heard about the movie, they have Blake Lively playing the main character? I'll be interested to see how they make the film.

Oh yeah, I do love a series and getting attached to characters and learning more and more about them. But I do also find stand alone books quicker and easier sometimes. It's a tough one because sometimes I want to learn more about characters and I get upset when a book is over but then with series I can find I get too much and I get bored or tired of the characters. Guess it ultimately depends on the writing and whether it's good and keeps me interested.

I tend to only read one book at a time, mainly because I know I'll favour one over the other and the one will go forgotten. I'm not one for DNF'ing, I try and push through no matter what. What's your preference?

I've just finished Icebreaker. Have you read it? I kind of loved it, kind of hated it. lol. I don't want to spoil anything and I would say it's worth a read if the synopsis appeals to you. I'm now onto Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. Only 50ish pages in but I'm loving it. Can see why people rave about it. What are you reading atm?

My tbr is never ending. I am one of these people that views buying books as a hobby in itself, which is not good for my bank balance. I can always see my mum side-eyeing me when I tell her about another book I've bought. Some books on there that I'm excited about are The Kingdom of the Wicked series - I've read books 1 & 2 and I have book 3, might re-read from the start when I come back to it. Half a Soul. The Roughest Draft. A River Enchanted. And I've read Things We Never Got Over and though it wasn't my favourite I do want to read the next one in the 'series'. Have you read any of these? Or anything you think I should be adding?

I've always kind of being into reading, I used to love Twilight and The Hunger Games at school. When I went to uni I didn't read much, I think because I was having to read so much academic stuff the last thing I wanted to do was read in my spare time. It was the pandemic that got me back into reading again. All that time and nothing to do! Was there a specific book or thing in your life that got you into reading?

How do I write so well 😂 Thank you, I'm happy you think I do. Honestly, I don't know. There's lots of things I'm proud of when I read back but I've written but I also think I sometimes go into too much detail and it gets a bit boring. What I'm trying to say is I tend to think up ideas and then just write and hope for the best. I do honestly think reading a lot helps too, seeing writing styles I like and don't like and different ways of plotting a story. Do you write or are you interested in it?

I read both physical and digital books. I prefer paperbacks because they're lighter and I love holding an actual book, but I also have a kindle which is great for holidays. I've never really read pdfs or epub books, do you recommend? Where/what do you read them on?

The boys have been killing us with content recently!! Jimins online fansign!!!! I mean imagine! I can't even imagine what I'd say. I mean I don't speak Korean so I would feel awkward/bad about that. I'd probably plan for ages, stressing about what to say and then not be able to get a word out in the minute I have with him and regret it forever. But, we can dream right - think that's why I write fanfics, just trying to put out into the world everything I know I would never actually do but wish I could.

[tbznewberry]

Hi hi~ I saw your post about yandere requests and thought I'd drop this in here. So what if say.. the yandere (nct's haechan) is spying ease dropping on darling briefly mentioning their interest of a yandere character (anime, tv shows, etc.) in a convo. 💡ding💡 So haechan changes to fit that personality in the hopes of getting their darling, however, it doesn't end the way he'd like.

I hope you received some juicy requests. I can't wait to see future posts. Please take care! 💛🌻 (p.s. sorry if my request is stale)

I did everything for you! | Lee Haechan

Loving someone so badly you're ready lose yourself and become a new person is insane, right? But it guarantees that you get them ... right? Watch how a normal boy turns himself into a psychopath, all in the name of love.

Genre: yandere, horror, angst

Warnings: obsession, psychopathic behavior, stalking

He carefully lifts his phone. Just high enough to take a picture of her without her noticing. He doesn't know why he's hiding it. It's not like he's going to do anything with the picture, he's simply admiring her beauty. 'Well, go up and talk to her instead of taking pics of her like a creep!' the voice in his head shots. Haechan lowers the phone and sighs, looking at the girl. He can't. As soon as he comes close, he's losing all words. He doesn't know what she likes.

"Did you see that new series?" he hears her say and awakens out of his thoughts.

He looks over at her. She's talking to her friend with that sweet voice he loves to listen to. He doesn't like the friend though. At all. Something feels off about her but he can't say what. Maybe because it should be him being that close to her and not that pathetic thing?

"What series?" her friend asked.

"It's about a girl falling in love with a psychopath", Y/N answers. "I know he's really bad, but I kind of have a crush on him. Only because he's fictional though. I promise."

The boy frowns. Who is this mysterious psychopath? And why does she like him? And not Haechan? He decides to watch the series for himself to see what the hype is about.

After he's binge watched the series in the comfort of his own room, he's left with an ache in his stomach and a chill running down his back. This is what Y/N likes, he tells himself. This is who he needs to be if he wants to get her. He writes down the characteristics of the guy and tries to morph it into his own life. It has to be believable. He looks in the mirror with a heavy sigh.

"Don't worry, Y/N, I'll be believable!" he says with a trembling voice. "I'll be the best for you … I'll never make you sad. I'm not comfortable with this role you want me to play … but I'll do anything for you, anything to get you. I'll be believable."

He laughs shortly as tears fall down his cheeks.

After that, he puts his plan in action and finds himself having a harder time separating his role from his own personality. He doesn't know anymore who is real and who's not, but frankly … he doesn't care. He has never been this close to her before and it feeds this illusion that the psychopath is the right one to be, that his real personality never mattered! After putting on the role of the TV-series psychopath he's been feeling much more confident. He's been hiding about this invisible wall of confidence that now is disappearing. He no longer hides, he is the psychopath. And today is the day to get his love, the one he's done all of this for. 

He waits outside the school for her class to finish. She had to stay after school, so she's the only one left. Perfect. He had biology as his last class, but he couldn't concentrate on anything the teacher said. All he could think about was having his darling in his arms as they both understood that each other was all they ever needed. Just the thought makes his heart pound. He looks to the side and sees Y/N come out of the school, black backpack hanging over her shoulders as she looks down into her phone.

"Y/N", he says, catching her attention.

She looks up from her screen. But instead of looking happy, she looks … surprised?

"Hi … how do you know my name?" she asks.

He doesn't answer. Instead, he smiles."

"I really like you … can I be your boyfriend? We'd be perfect together, I already know it!"

"Uh … the thing is … I don't know you. And the vibes you're giving off aren't making me very comfortable."

"B-But … you wanted … you wanted me to act like this."

"When have I said that?"

He wants her to stop looking at him like that, as if she's pitying him. As if he's a lost child that she has to take care of because she's a good person, but would like to dump off to the nearest hospital.

"I heard you …", he says with a weak voice. "You said you liked that character … the psychopath!"

"Because he's fictional. He is not real, he cannot be dangerous for me. This, however, is the real world. You can't be like that …"

Heachan holds his pounding head in his hands and breathes out. What has he done? He's lost himself in the process of becoming someone he hates, only to get the girl he loves.

"You have to be mine", he says. "I can't have done all of this for nothing!"

"Done what?" 

"I did everything for you! I became a person I hated just so I could get you! Because I thought that it was what you liked! You can't say no now!" He grabs her hands. "You can't … you're responsible for the monster you've created, Y/N. All I want is you … I don't want anything else." He starts to cry, heavy sobs running through his body. "P-Please hold me … please …"

And she does, probably too scared to do anything else. She holds his head down into her shoulder and hugs him, but it's an awkward embrace that he can feel she hates.

"D-Don't do this to m-me", he whispers. "Don't you see that I love you? I did everything for you. I'd do anything for you."

"I'm sorry, I can't", she says and is about to let him go, but he holds onto her for dear life.

"I'll change", he promises and wipes his tears with a painted smile on his face. "I'll become the person you want. Even if I don't know myself anymore, I'll do it. I'll be whoever you want. I just want to be yours."

He lets her go past him, knowing in his head that she'll be his one day. There is no rush, they have the rest of their lives anyway.

[A/N: this one is very interesting. You follow the characters feelings, from how he's too shy to go up to the one he likes, to forcing the role onto him, to becoming it himself. Thank you for your request, it was really cool! I hope you like it, take care!]

[father-time-and-baby-new-year]

OFF WITH YOUR HEAD

PART 2 OF HEADS WILL ROLL

SYNOPSIS: Whenever school is in session, Eren will just keep finding new places to corner you.

PAIRING: BULLY! EREN x FEM! READER

DEDICATED TO: you guys, always you guys.

WARNINGS: unedited, slight dubcon, groping, degradation, bullying,

WORD COUNT: 2.4K

Gooooood Morning Paradis Birds! Remember to give a big round of applause to the football team for clutching the victory against reigning champion Marley High! We stay undefeated thanks to our excellent and hardworking team. Special shoutout to Captain Eren Yeager for guiding the team to another flawless victory-

You're half-heartedly paying attention to class, sleepily listening to the school announcements over the speaker until the mention of his name douses you like a shock of ice-cold water.

You can't catch the rest of the announcement because your class erupts into cheer, enthusiastically clapping their hands for the boy of the hour.

The only one not joining is you.

Eren's smile is brighter than 100 kilowatts. In the back of your mind, you wonder where he learned to smile like that. When his emotions became so practiced.

Mr.Berner tries to calm the kids down, especially Sasha who bangs on her desks and howls, creating even more hype and ruckus. The class, now in a chattier mode, excitedly breaks into little conversations.

"Man, thank god. That school is so pretentious, I'm glad we finally have something over them."

"Jeez, I know our team was good, but it's this good-?"

"-Bro, year of XXXX is stacked as fuck. It's literally never been this stacked before. We have a whole team of prodigies, it's insane-especially Eren. "

"Yepp. My dad went to Paradis too and he said shit like this never happened during his time. The academic comps were one thing, but these footballs wins? We're being put on the fucking map."

The announcements are still going on, but it's hard to hear over the noise. You're only able to catch the tail end, a useless tidbit about the word of the day.

pre·mo·ni·tion a strong feeling that something is about to happen, especially something unpleasant. Here is an example: "She had a premonition of imminent disaster" Have a good day folks, hope it's free of any premonitions!

Overhearing the unceasing praise of the boy who pinched your thighs until they bruise blue and purple was a little painful-but you were used to it. After all, he's putting Paradis on the map. Whatever the fuck that means.

While you didn't love sharing this class with him, he was seated far across the room and surrounded by a gaggle of friends. You might as well have been invisible, the way he did not acknowledge you. Maybe you should treat it as a small mercy.

Unwittingly, your eyelids grow heavy. You're sitting in the back of the class, no one would notice if you took a little nap right? Assured by the fact no one will notice, you lower your head into your folded arms and let your thoughts float.

You dream of vaguely nothing but shadows of smiles, tufts of dark hair, and the smell of the wind at sea until a noise confined to the shape of your name breaks the harmony.

"[y/n?]"

"[y/n?]"

You startle awake with pairs of eyes piercing their gazes at you. Swallowing thickly, you apologize to Mr.Berner who looks worried. He's a good teacher, and one of your favorites.

"I'm sorry Mr.Berner. I had a migraine so I laid my head down." You lie smoothly, with more grace than you knew you were capable of. Course, you could have just said you were taking an unprompted nap, but that would disappoint your lovely teacher.

He sighs, "Guess that can't be helped then. Go to the nurse ok?"

Bingo. The nurse was an understanding lady, she'd let you sleep the rest of the period off. You nod, and start to gather your materials, relieved the class' attention on you was beginning to dwindle.

"Wait, Mr.Berner, let me take her. What if she gets disoriented and falls in the hall?"

Fuuuuck. You should have known. You should have expected this because attached to the request dripping with faux concern was none other than the precious jewel of the kingdom. Eren's intrusion makes your peers perk up again at the scene unfolding in front of them.

You smile, lips tightly pressed, "I'll be fine. I don't want to distract anyone from the lesson and it's a short walk-

"It's still potentially dangerous.", Your teacher interrupts, pinching the bridge of the nose, "And while I'm completely surprised by Eren's sudden streak of altruism, he's right. Something could happen. He'll take you there safely."

A very convenient streak of altruism, all right. You think it over in your head, yeah the nurses' office is right down the hall, and once you're there, he'll leave. Sure, he'll taunt you but you can handle a few minutes worth of cruelty.

It's awkward getting up, and walking in front of the class while Eren props the door open like a gentleman. You know what a sharp contrast it must look like, you and him, you cowering into yourself, not meeting any eyes while he stands tall and confident.

"Do you have everything?" His tone is one of reassurance, and for the barest of the moments, feels too familiar. You know he's not being genuine right now, and for the first time, you question if he was genuine back then.

"You can hold onto my arm if you're too dizzy to walk." He says as you guys slip out of the classroom, purposefully a little too loudly. You hear coos from girls and a stray "She's so lucky!"

He must have heard it too, because he lowers his head to whisper into your ear, "Yeah, very lucky, aren't you?" Wisps of dark hair tickle your cheeks. You see the glint of tiny silver hoops and wonder when he had gotten his ears pierced. The illusion breaks and the performative charming prince's reassuring smile is replaced by a sneer.

"Didn't know you could lie like that, by the way. Some good girl you are if you're trying to ditch class like this." Fingers dig deep into your waist as he drags you along the empty hallway that seems to stretch on for miles.

Your breath gets stuck in your throat, "How did you know I was lying?"

Viridian eyes narrow, "I've seen you get migraines before." There's a knock on your heart. As if realizing he was talking about something far away ago, a vindictive edge laces into words pouring out of his mouth, "I bet you wanted this to happen, didn't you? Wanted to get us all alone."

He's trying to get a rise out of you, that much is obvious. So you ignore him to the best of your ability.

...which quickly proved to be futile, as you suddenly find your arm pinned to your back, and your front facing the nearest walls.

"I asked you a fucking question bitch." He's practically growling, "Fucking answer me."

If there was a world record for the shortest temper, best believe Eren Yeager will have collected that accolade too. He's getting too worked up, and you could definitely feel his harness poking the back on your ass, as he grinds into you.

You manage to crane your neck, wanting to have your face shoved into the wall, and then venomously spit out, "You're not looking for answers. You just want me to repeat whatever you think is true."

This position brings back flashbacks to the library when he caged you in against the bookshelves, and like then, he spins you around to face him quite abruptly.

His smile is full of sharp teeth, "No. I know I'm right."

You don't respond. He moves in closer, his breath fanning on your earlobes. Your body can't help but let an involuntary shudder, and you close your eyes, not wanting to see his pleased grin or the way the fluorescent light makes his hoops gleam like silver bullets.

One calloused finger flicks your nipple, "Do you want to know why I'm right?"

At your lack of response, the dark-haired boy rolls your nipple in between his fingers before pinching it painfully, eliciting a small whimper out of your fuckable lips. "N-no", you answer finally. You're wearing your thinnest bra because of the seasonal heat, and you can't help but regret that decision right now. The fact he's only paying attention to one of your nipples is driving you insane. Not that you want it, but you're so fucking sensitive right now. You struggle in his hold, causing him to hold you tighter, and by now his nails were probably embedded into your skin.

He chuckles at your honesty, rewarding you with a thick stripe of his tongue over the collared shirt of your uniform making you gasp. Did he just-, over your shirt too-, you look down and see a very visible wet spot.

Taking advantage of your distracted state, a eager hand snakes under your skirt until it settles in the middle of your panties. He licks your earlobe before speaking, his voice like ice under your heels.

"You were so fucking wet that day in the library while saying you hated me the entire time," he pauses as his fingers scissor you through your panties, as if to drive the message home, "About as wet as you are right now."

There's a wet spot there too, also caused by him. You crush your eyes shut, "Eren...please just take me to the nurse." You're not even struggling anymore, holding onto him out of your own accord, worried that if you don't hold onto anything-you'd fall on your knees.

The very headache you lied about having seemed not so non-existent after all.

Eren hooks his arms under the plush of your thighs, "Yeah. Of course, that's what I came to do, right?"

*

You had hoped you'd be granted a reprieve in the nurses' office but you'd forgotten that luck was never really in your favor. Because while you guys had entered the squeaky-clean office, the nurse was nowhere in sight.

Instead, a note sat on her desk in unassuming frilly cursive that Eren read with glee.

Sorry students! Minor emergency to take care of, and I'll be back by the middle of the next period. If you're badly hurt, see Mr.Ackerman in room 203. If not, just sit tight! Feel free to take up the beds.

Thank you,

Ms.Ral

Eren had turned to you with shining green eyes, "Since no one's here, I guess I'll have to keep you company. Don't want you to hurt yourself."

There was something claustrophobic about how Eren stood in front of the door as if to signify to get out of here, you had to get through him.

"Maybe I can get Mr.Ackerman..."

Eren's sudden bout of laughter makes you wince and retreat inside of yourself, "For what? A fake headache? You really wanna inconvenience him like that? Mr.Ackerman?"

You take slow steps backward until the back of your knees hit the school bed, making you stumble as you clumsily take a seat. Eren's been marching forward with every retreating step you took, and it's no surprise when he pushes you down the bed, strong hands on the side of your head, while his muscular legs force your thighs apart so he can settle himself in between.

"We have some time to kill, you know." Strands of dark hair fall into his eyes, and without thinking, you reach upwards to brush them aside.

He grips your wrist before you make it that far, nearly gritting out a "What are you doing?"

You just stare, not really knowing why that was your impulse either. Finally, you mouth out, "I want you to leave Eren."

The grip on your wrist is tighter than ever, and you very well know that you're going to have new finger-shaped bruises before the old ones even finish healing.

"And I want to stay." He punctuates each word slowly, and all you can think is how being pinned to a bed is much less painful than having the hard surface of wood digging onto your back.

You're fully aware of the heat in your core, and having Eren on top of you doesn't make this it any easier because fuck, he is attractive. Maddeningly so. And maybe you want him to go away so bad because you're afraid that if his fingers are caught inside of you, you'll thank him for it.

As if reading your mind, he lets go of your wrist (making a mental note of your sluggish movements and slipping resistance) and massages your warm hole from your panties.

"Eren please" You grit out. He merely chuckles, "What are you asking for, whore?"

You could feel tears threatening to fall. This was so embarrassing. Did you want this? Yes, yes. yes, yes. You were so wet right now and had enough of the teasing.

He alternated his kneading from slow and soft to fast and rough, and you couldn't help but let out the prettiest little moans Eren's ever heard. Since you lose all pretenses of resistance, his other hand roughly brushes against your hardened nipples, straining against the fabric of your shirt.

Okay, he decided. He's going to make you beg.

"Beg." It's announced like a command, and while you hear it, you don't really register it because your hips are busy chasing the heat, and it's all too much of an utter disappointment when his long thin fingers leave.

"I said beg slut."

"Eren, please, please. I need you so bad." You're blubbering and you don't care. You just want his pretty fingers to shove aside your panties and rub against your folds. You think back to the library, how wet you were, how the stupid fucking phone call from his coach interrupted him pumping his fingers inside of you. And you didn't know if you were happy or mad he left. But now, all you crave is the blissful wave of pleasure- the very pleasure he's been denying you.

Eren looks down at you, green eyes scrutinizing. After a long while of what it seems to be him just staring, he wipes his fingers on your skirt, brushes back his hair with a wayward hand.

"Looks like I should head back to class. See you later."

Too numb to say anything, you watch him leave with a smirk on his face. When you're sure he's walked away, you curl into yourself and cry.

[pathetic-dumpling]

We've Come To A Crossroad (What Do We Do Now?) - Guard Dog AU

Rumors about what guards the casino begin to spread and grow, and based on the fact that no one has been allowed into the prison for months, Techno has a growing suspicion of who the casino's new guard dog is. Rescuing Dream doesn't go quite as planned.

this au belongs to the wonderful @stabbysideblog why has been hyping me up this entire fic tysm bro i really appreciate it (i also have a small tag list as the bottom, which i don't normally do, but if u got a notif at the bottom that's why :D)

Read on AO3 instead!

Warning: extreme dehumanization, manipulation, conditioning, torture, not quackity+sam friendly, PTSD, abuse/ve relationships, unhealthy dynamics, mental instability, referenced force-feeding, the process of throwing up, everyone is handling their trauma poorly, this could be a whumptober fic if I wanted it to be tbh, Dream has a shock collar

The more Technoblade learns about Las Nevadas, the more worried he gets. Not only is the country… empire… estate- whatever it is- becoming an economic powerhouse (a title that should only belong to him and Ranboo- who worked for their wealth), but some nasty rumors have been spreading about the place. Particularly about the fabled dog that guards the casino.

Now, Techno isn't stupid. He knows Sam works for Las Nevadas, and he also knows that Sam is the sole power running the prison. Not only does that kind of absolute power lead to loopholes for prisoner treatment, but nobody has been allowed in or around the prison since the casino opened. Which is worrying. Judging by the vague and fleeting description of the thing lurking in the dark corners of Las Nevadas, Techno has an idea of just what is happening to Dream.

So, as with all of his growing worries, Techno brings it up with the Syndicate. Everyone has something to say about Las Nevadas. Ranboo is worried about Tubbo's potential involvement with the country as it develops, and Niki states that something about it irks her the wrong way. Something about the same kind of sickeningly sweet words of freedom of expression and self that L'manberg was first built on. Phil agrees with Techno on the contracts and overreach of power starting to look a little too close to a government with nothing to rival it. So they decided to rival it and see precisely what they're dealing with.

"Ranboo, Niki…" Techno sighs. His ears flop down apologetically. "I love you guys, and I'm incredibly proud of all of the progress you've made, but I'm not sure I feel comfortable throwing you guys into a hostile environment like this."

"No, no… we- I… I understand, Techno," Niki says. She grips her hidden dagger tightly, pressing her lips together. Techno seems unconvinced.

"The only reason I'm taking Phil with me is because I know I'll be outnumbered, and I know how to work with him, alright? I don't wanna worry about you guys if something goes wrong. Me 'n Phil can and have found our way out of plenty of dire situations. I trust you with my life; I just don't trust your lives with me."

Niki sighs and smiles again, this time a little less tight. "You know I trust your judgment, Techno."

"I know, I know." Techno dips his head bashfully, scratching at his cheek. "Also. Uh. It would look a little suspicious if all of us showed up. We can't have them knowing we know something."

"I'm sure they'll get that message just fine from our strongest members showing up on their doorstep," Ranboo pipes up, handing off the invisibility potions he had been tasked with brewing.

"'Strongest' is a subjective word, Ranboo." Techno takes the potion, passing half to Phil, who is checking over his bowstring. "You two are better than us at plenty of things. You ready to go, Phil?"

"Yep!" Phil gives the group a thumbs up, smiling brightly. "Right. We'll see you guys when we get back from checking this shit out. Take care, don't burn down the house. You know the drill. We'll come back with reports, and we'll go from there."

Phil ruffles Ranboo's hair with a light chuckle and gives Niki a tight hug on his way out. His wings wrap around Niki briefly before he pulls back, ruffling them to puff out his feathers. Techno follows after, lightly bumping his forehead against wherever he can reach on the two before he and Phil are ushered out the door. Techno takes out his invitation to Las Nevadas, checking the ominous set of coordinates in the bottom corner. It seems like everyone had been sent some kind of invitation because nothing about it is personalized, but it gives them the country's location, so Techno can't complain about his random spam mail.

Phil breaks off from his side as soon as they arrive at Las Nevadas. He downs his 8-hour invisibility potion, shucking off all of his armor and tucking it away safely.

"Stay safe, Phil," Techno calls.

"You too, mate!" Phil's voice filters through the air around Techno, landing softly on his ears as Phil's form disappears into the distance. Techno, now alone, walks into the main entrance of Las Nevadas, passing the large sign, flashing in the dull sunlight. Techno follows the road into the country, passing countless large, beautiful, but ultimately empty buildings. The casino lights shine off the sleek metal and polished windows, creating various colors splashed and mixed together. Techno huffs, glancing around for any sight of Phil. There's nothing, not even the distant sound of Phil's wings flapping as he works. It's both comforting and terrifying.

On one hand, Phil and Techno won't get caught scouting out the casino. On the other, Techno is alone, something he's come to be very afraid of.

Techno walks into the casino, immediately greeted by flashing lights, bombarding him with bright colors and loud, repetitive sounds. A voice cuts through the barrage of sights and sounds, and soon enough, Quackity is walking up to Techno with a wide grin. Something glints in his eyes that makes Techno's hand grip where the hilt of his sword usually is. Quackity doesn't seem to notice as his smile widens, pulling at the scar running from his lip to his eye.

"Technoblade!" He says, throwing his arms out. He tosses one around Techno's shoulders the best he can, ushering him into the casino.

"Y'know, pal, I never really thought I'd see you out here," Quackity drawls, his hand tightening against Techno's arm ever so slightly before releasing. Techno's tail swished uncomfortably.

"Well, you know how it is," Techno chuckles. "I thought I'd come to see what the fuss is all about."

Quackity chuckles lightly, mirroring Techno. "Quite the fuss there is." His face rests into something a little more neutral, a closed-lip smile still finding its way onto his face as he regards Techno. Something uncomfortable flashes in his eyes, so brief that an untrained eye would miss it entirely. After a short, uncomfortable second, Quackity releases Techno's arm, taking a few steps back and dusting his hands off with showmanship-like grace.

"Well. I'll leave you to wander, Technoblade. Take your time, see everything Las Nevadas has to offer, and, of course," he chuckles, "spend your money wisely. Couldn't have you going into debt, could we?"

"...Yeah. Of course."

Something uncomfortable wells up in Techno's throat, and it doesn't leave until Quackity is far out of sight. He sighs shakily. His hand moves to grip around his communicator, hidden away in one of his many pockets, feeling for any kind of buzz that would indicate a message from Phil. He shorts when nothing happens, cursing himself for going so utterly alone into a place like this. To be fair, he didn't expect… whatever Quackity was.

He can't focus on that now. Techno has suspicions he needed to act on. Information to gather and people to find. He sets off, glancing around at every corner of the casino that might hide something. Every "staff only" entry, every window that seems suspiciously placed, every piston and dispenser he can't immediately find the use for, anything and everything the casino might have up its sleeve. He plays a few games, of course, but those experiences are primarily miserable. The games are too loud, the lights are too bright, and there are too many people, but he can't just waltz in and spend nothing. It makes Techno sad to see his gold taken from him, but he knows it's for a good cause.

Maybe an hour or so into Techno's exploration, a bit of movement catches his eye. He only saw it briefly, a small flash of the sparkling purple of enchantments, but it was something new. Techno quietly moved over to where he saw the flash of purple, glancing around the corner and stepping carefully. His hoofs scuff against the marble flooring, and Techno's breath catches in his throat.

There stands Dream, in a set of enchanted Netherrite armor that clearly isn't his own. It doesn't fit him at all, body completely dwarfed by the sharp edges. Techno cringes at the bruises he knows that will inevitably form. Techno steps forward, slowly, coming to a stop right in front of Dream. He doesn't acknowledge Techno.

"Dream?" Techno asks softly.

There's no response. Dream's face looks like there's nothing behind it. Like every human part of him was stripped away, and he was left in this dark corner of the casino. Ugly, purple bruises stain under Dream's eyes, and the more Techno states, the more he realizes that the armor Dream wears doesn't fit him because he's nothing more than a skeleton pulled together by a thin layer of skin. Bruises and scars litter every inch on Dream that's visible. His breathing is shallow, almost wet, and it stutters and struggles to leave his chest.

The part that makes Techno want to throw up the most is the collar around Dream's neck. Red, puffy scars bleed together with bruises, and Techno realizes with absolute horror that it's a shock collar. A dog tag fits neatly between too-sharp of collar bones. It doesn't have his name. It doesn't even have his fucking name on it. Just Property of Las Nevadas. Techno reaches out a shaky hand, almost scared that Dream will snap under even the most gentle of holds.

"What happened here, Dream?" He asks. Almost shamefully, Techno's hand stops just above Dream's arm. He's too scared to touch him. "What happened to you?"

There's nothing. There's nothing behind Dream's eyes. No light, no fear, just bone-deep exhaustion and a wild kind of desperation. Techno feels like he's going to vomit.

He pulls out his communicator. Damn being quiet about this and keeping the thing hidden. He calls Phil, eyes anxiously flitting between Dream and the small device as it rings.

"Oh, thank god. Phil?" Techno asks.

"Yes, mate?" Phil's voice crackles through the speakers. "Oh shit. You sound stressed. What happened?"

"Are you done?"

"Wh- uh… Yeah. Yeah, I'm done. Everything's mapped out, just like you wanted. Did you find something?"

Techno swallows. "Yeah. We're- we have to go. We need to start planning."

"Shit. Alright. I'll meet you by the sign."

"Yep. Yep." Techno starts walking through the casino. He rips himself away from Dream, but he feels like he left his heart behind to bleed out the longer he walks.

"Techno. Techno, stop." Phil's voice cuts through the growing panic. Techno stops. "You sound like you're panicking, mate. Take a deep breath. Calm down. Leave slowly and calmly, alright? Whatever the fuck you saw- Quackity can't know that you know. Get out, we'll talk, and then you can panic all you want when we get home, alright?"

Home. Home… right. The Syndicate is waiting for a report. For a plan of action. Techno starts walking, this time slowly, methodically, stepping out of the casino. He tries not to throw a worried glance behind him, but the bright flash of enchanted armor makes him seize up. Techno glances back quickly, but it's not Dream. It's Sam, and he's carrying something, but Techno doesn't want to think about it.

It takes everything he has to not run away from the oppressive feeling of the casino. Techno releases a breath he didn't know he was holding as soon as he reaches the sign, something thick and vile dislodging from his throat and finally allowing him to breathe. Phil appears at his side seconds later, clutching an empty bottle, looking half as bad as Techno feels.

"Holy shit," Phil says. "What the fuck did you see in there?"

Techno swallows. He reaches out, grabbing Phil's hand and holding it tightly. "I'll- I'll tell you later. We have to. We have to get home. We've gotta tear that place apart."

Phil's expression hardens, and he squeezes Techno's hand back. "Let's go, then."

They make it back home. Techno's chest aches. Ranboo and Niki want to know what happened, but he brushes past them, climbing up the ladder into his room. His heart, bleeding out on the casino floor, feels like it's finally caught up to him and lodged itself in his throat, filling it with blood. It makes him gasp for air. He takes out the map Phil had created, the key at the top showing everything Phil had found. Every flaw, every place functionality had been sacrificed for style, everywhere they would hide or place traps. He pulls out his own notes next, scrawled on several sheets of small paper he had taken while exploring.

Techno takes a deep breath. He thinks about Dream's gaunt form, the sheer nothingness behind his eyes, and gets to work.

Niki gingerly passes out the steaming cups of tea, sending a worried glance to Phil and Ranboo. Techno had gotten home days ago from Las Nevadas, and he hasn't left his room since. He looked shaken when he arrived home, but Phil seemed to know just as much as the rest of them.

"What do you think he saw in there?" Ranboo quietly pipes up. He holds his cup of tea gently, content to let the warmth sink into the pads on his fingers and palm. Phil shrugs.

"Whatever it was, it must've been fucked. He called me and just asked me if I was done like he was begging me to leave. It's… I haven't heard Techno sound like that in a while."

Niki hums. She sips on her tea. "Well," she says. "He knows that we'll help with whatever he plans. At least, I hope he knows."

"He knows," Phil soothes. "I've seen Techno isolating because he doesn't trust people. This isn't it- he would've moved out of the house by now. He's probably just shaken. He'll come out soon."

"I hope so," Niki sighs. "I'm worried."

Almost as if on cue, Techno slides down the ladder into the main room. He turns around, facing the Syndicate. They haven't left the cabin since Techno arrived home, and they all look at him with hopeful eyes.

"I… I have a plan," Techno says. He tosses a scroll onto the table, which Phil immediately reaches out and takes.

"Mate, you look exhausted. Did you sleep at all?"

"I actually just napped because I knew you'd say something. But. We need to do this. Like, now."

"Mate…" Phil starts hesitantly. He unrolls the scroll, reading over it quickly. "God, yeah, I guess… Okay. Yeah, let's head out."

Techno sighs, and his shoulders sag.

"Ranboo, Niki, can you guys please stay here in case anything goes wrong?"

Ranboo and Niki share a look, shifting uncomfortably, but they nod.

"We'll take care of everything," Niki says. Ranboo hums in agreement.

They gather supplies. Techno fills his ender chest and tucks one away safely on his utility belt, concealing it with the sash around his waist. Niki offers them golden apples, which Techno takes gratefully. Ranboo vwoops quietly, mimicking a comfort noise as he bumps his head against Techno's shoulder. The action makes him laugh, and Ranboo is relieved to see some tension drain from Techno's posture.

Techno takes Phil's hand tightly, and they head out again, and Ranboo and Niki see them off with kind but worried looks. Phil downs another invisibility potion, not letting go of Techno's hand until they're reached the entrance of Las Nevadas. They part with a quick squeeze before Techno feels the telltale breeze of Phil taking off. His wing had healed well, and as much as it pained Techno to keep Phil's flight a secret from the rest of the Syndicate, he couldn't risk anyone else finding out that Phil could fly just yet. He'll tell them later. Techno sighs and follows the road down to the casino.

He enters mostly unnoticed, only checking in with one of the random employees at the entrance. Techno isn't as nearly careful about discreteness as he was last time, walking swiftly through the casino. He retraces his steps back to where he first found Dream, almost stumbling over himself when Dream is nowhere to be found. His ears perk up, listening closely for the clang of armor or even the slight wetness of Dream's breathing.

He wanders around the casino, looking in every crevice he can with his ears perked. He tries to suppress the small noises that bubble up in his throat. He knows making calls would raise suspicion, more than Techno is already raising, and Dream wouldn't know how to respond to them anyway. His tail thrashes behind him. An hour passes, and there's still nothing. Techno's communicator buzzes with a message from Phil, which provides a small comfort. Okay. Two minutes.

In the middle of his frantic searching, Techno catches sight of Dream walking through the halls of the casino. Dream's eyes look sharp, calculating, but he falters ever so slightly when he sees Techno. He even stumbles in his smooth walk, making Techno cringe at how Dream's armor clangs against his body.

"Dream," Techno sighs. This time, he doesn't fear to reach out and grasps Dream's arm gently. He pulls softly, watching Dream's wide eyes as he allows himself to get pulled along. Or maybe he's too weak to resist. They don't have a lot of time, so they need to leave quickly.

"C'mon, Dream," Techno says softly, and Dream follows.

Techno steps back once, and then he pauses at the sudden look in Dream's eyes.

"Technoblade," Quackity says. Techno stops, looking over his shoulder. Quackity's arms are neatly tucked behind his back, but Techno doesn't miss the look he gives Dream. Dream immediately starts trying to pull his arm away, which prompts Techno to hold on tighter.

"What are you doing, Techno?" Quackity asks. His smile looks a fake sort of polite. It pulls at his face wrong with quietly concealed anger bubbling up to the surface.

"Oh, you know how it is," Techno says. He turns around casually, but he doesn't let go of Dream. "Just checking things out."

Quackity hummed. He straightened his spine out, Techno hadn't even noticed Quackity had leaned forward, and he tilted his head slightly. "You know, I really didn't expect to see you back here. You left before I could say goodbye, and, well… this place doesn't really seem like your scene, does it?"

Techno fixes his own posture. "I had business here," is all he offers.

Quackity hums and Dream pulls again. Techno doesn't let go.

"Well, I help but see you've got a grip on my, uh… employee." Quackity looks directly at Dream now. "He's supposed to be making his rounds of the casino right now. Why don't you let him get back to business?"

"Oh. Well." Techno cocks his head. "I can't socialize?"

"He's on duty," Quackity repeats. A small bite crawls into his voice. Dream tugs harder.

"Well." Techno starts walking, tugging Dream along with him. "I'm sort of on duty, too? I guess? Anyway, long story short, I need Dream for a bit."

"Techno, cut the bullshit-"

"Yeah, yeah, that's great." Techno waves his hand dismissively. Thankfully, before he had found Dream, he had made almost a complete loop back to the casino entrance. He could see the door already, which was a small blessing. Quackity follows behind them, nearly stepping on Dream's heels. He pulls out his communicator, probably dialing Sam.

On cue, Sam appears from behind one of the staff-only doors, skimming the situation before moving in. Steam is gently released from his mask in something Techno thinks is an intimidation method, so he mirrors it with a snort. Dream starts pulling harder than before, trying to move away from Techno and to Sam. Both Sam and Quackity were getting uncomfortably close, and Dream was getting more stressed by the second, tugging desperately against Techno's grip. Techno really didn't want to make a whole scene out of this, it would've been more trouble, and it's worth it to just go guns blazing, but the situation is looking pretty tight. He plucks his ender chest off his belt, tossing it to the ground and pulling out his sword. Sam pulls out his trident in response.

Just then, the door opens behind Techno. Phil appears around Techno, his wings, big and black, almost seeming to absorb the light around him. He holds up a button, drawing the attention away from Techno and Sam.

"Everybody stop!" He yells. "I've got a flying machine loaded with TNT right above this place."

Sam and Quackity pause dead in their tracks. They share an uneasy look. At Phil's words, the various players and guests of the casino stop. They see him, standing with Techno and Dream, standing off with Quackity and Sam, and panic fills the room.

"So let us go without any fuss," Phil adds with an easy smile. "With him, and I won't set it off."

"There's no flying machine above the casino," Quackity challenges. "Somebody would've seen you towing up. Bullshit."

"Who says I towered?" Phil's smile grows, and his wings fluff up behind him. Quackity's expression hardens with something akin to envy. Before he can speak, though, Sam whistles like he would with a dog. Techno's stomach drops at how Dream perks up, looking only at Sam.

"Dream, come," Sam says.

Dream tugs against Techno's hold, trying to walk towards Sam.

"Wh- no. Dream-"

"Come on, Techno," Sam drawls, settling into himself easily. "Dream wants to come back and stay with us. Just let him go, and we can act like nothing ever happened."

"Absolutely not," Techno bites out. He tugs Dream back, resisting the puny, woeful sound that escapes his friend. "He is not going back with you."

Sam hums. He stares Dream down, who pauses in his struggling. "Fetch."

Dream stills, and then he's grabbing Techno's sword out of his hand, nearly dropping it due to the weight. He swings, but Phil grabs Dream, pulling him just out of reach.

"Alright, fuck this," Phil says. "Techno!"

"Got it!"

Techno takes Dream and bolts out the door. Phil presses the butter, and the flying machine above the casino whirrs to life, dropping TNT down onto the building. Everyone runs out of the casino as explosions crash through the ceiling, screaming and yelling. Phil and Techno lead the group, running away from the casino and down the long road. Dream still struggles in their grasp, but being pulled along makes him far too unsteady on his feet for him to sort himself and try to hurt either of them, though.

His grip suddenly tightens on Phil, however, and he falls straight to the ground. Phil stops, looking back to see Dream on his knees, wheezing violently as his body convulses.

"Tech- Techno!" He calls. "What the- what the fuck's happening?"

After just a short glance, Techno knows what's going on. A quiet clicking sound fills the air, in time with every time Dream flinches. "It's his collar," he says. Techno leans down on one knee, holding his hands out calmly. Dream growls at him, but it's cut off by a sharp whimper.

"What? Collar?"

"I'll explain when we get home, Phil, but I need you to keep him still."

Phil, while confused, nods, wrapping his arms around Dream's body and restraining his arms. Techno manages to get his hand by Dream's neck, pulling back when Dream bites him but tries again after Phil gets a hold of his head, too. Techno unbuckles the collar, and it immediately detaches from Dream's frail throat.

"What the fuck," Phil breathes. Techno sighs, gently dragging his hand across Dream's throat as soon as his body goes slack. Techno doesn't know what does it- maybe the shock, the pain, or the months of starvation and abuse it must've taken to put Dream in the state, but he's out cold. He picks Dream up carefully, swallowing something down when he notices how Dream clutches to the collar, even in his sleep.

"I couldn't leave him in there, Phil."

Phil sighs, wings sagging behind him with the movement. "Yeah, I know, mate. You would've told me this was an… extraction… rescue mission. I would've headed over a lot faster."

"I didn't want you to object." Techno ducks away when he says this, ears drooping slightly.

"Mate," Phil breathes. "We all saw how shaken you were when we visited this shit-show the first time. Plus, Dream looks…." Phil trails off, looking pointedly at Dream's neck. "I wouldn't object, mate. I trust you. I trust your judgment."

Silence hangs heavy between them.

"Niki and Ranboo do, too," Phil tacks on, bumping Techno with his wing. Techno nods.

There are no Nether portals to Las Nevadas.

When they arrive home, Dream is still asleep and still clinging to his collar. He whines pathetically every time Techno tries to take it away, and despite what it stands for, Techno doesn't have the heart to take anything else from Dream. Niki and Ranboo had taken care of everything from health potions to food, which Techno was thankful for because Dream certainly needed some of that. Niki greets him at the door, almost screaming when she sees what he has in his arms.

"Techno-" she starts.

"I know, I know. It's a long story, I promise. Thank you so much for preparing everything, but I don't know when he'll wake up or how he'll do around people. He's a little aggressive to Phil and me, and I don't want anyone else getting hurt, so I'm going to have to kick you out now."

"Wh… I…"

"I'll explain everything. Just. Like. Give me a day, please."

Niki's eyes land on Dream's frail body, and Techno can see Niki's concern well up in her chest. At least she isn't demanding that Techno throw Dream outside or give him back to Las Nevadas.

"What has he last eaten?" She asks, stepping to the side and allowing Techno to deposit Dream on the couch.

"I don't know. Me 'n Phil are gonna check over him and see how much work we've gotta do. Where's Ranboo?"

"Uh- he went to the Nether for potion ingredients."

"Great. Can you make sure he doesn't come back to the cabin? I don't want him seeing this."

Niki swallows, and she nods.

"Thank you, Niki." Techno bows his head. "Take care of yourself. I'll explain everything soon."

Niki heads out not long after, squeezing past Phil through the door. Phil closes it gingerly, casting a look towards Techno.

"You've got everything taken care of?"

"I hope so."

Phil nods. He pulls up a stool next to the couch, leaning over Dream's form. His face scrunches as he looks Dream over, murmuring to himself softly as he traces the sharp edges of Dream's body. Obviously, he's been starved, but there's plenty of evidence to add physical abuse to the list. They don't know what kind of conditions Dream was held in for these past few months but based on what little they witnessed, there seems to have been some extreme mind games happening, too.

They do what they can. Dream coughs up almost every health potion they try to give him, and trying to get some food in him is looking like a worse and worse idea the longer they try to treat Dream. He seems even skinnier without his armor, every protruding bone and bruise on display without it. Techno takes the collar out of Dream's hands softly. His heart aches at how Dream's fingers twitch around nothing until Phil moves to inspect his hands. Techno can't take it away- not yet- despite the awful feeling that settles in his stomach because of it. So he does the next best thing. He rips out the small metal prongs and files down the edges, breaking the collar open and disrupting all the Redstone packed inside it. At the very least, the collar isn't functional anymore.

Techno loses track of how long he and Phil work, but when they're finally done, Techno drops Dream off in a bedroom they had created for when Syndicate members stayed the night. The bed is nice and comfortable, and it shouldn't press on Dream's unprotected bones too much. He should be comfortable here. Techno hopes that he'll be happy here, too. He doesn't know what he's just disrupted in Dream's fragile mind by taking him out of Las Nevadas. He knows he had to. Dream was withering away in there, and it would've stayed that way, but he can't help the inevitable guilt that'll come when Dream starts trying to figure himself out again.

---

Dream wakes up in a bed, which is weird. Sam told him dogs don't deserve beds. It's soft and comfortable, and there's more than one blanket and two pillows. Dread grows in Dream's throat. He did something wrong; he just knows it. He's disappointed Sam in some way, and this is punishment. It's a trick, a new way to teach him a lesson; Dream just knows it. His armor is gone. Where is it? It's not hanging anywhere.

Dream nearly falls out of the bed, trying to pull himself off it. He knows he shouldn't be in it, and the longer he is, the more upset Sam will be. He needs to show Sam that he knows his place- that he'll be good. He won't sleep in anything he's not supposed to, and he won't say anything he's not supposed to, and-

This isn't Dream's room. Where is his plant? Why does his neck feel empty? With a sudden spike of panic, Dream notices that his collar is gone. Oh god. He finally did it- he pushed Sam off the edge, and this is the last Dream gets before he's kicked to the stress.

Sam is the only person there for him- what will Dream do? How will he get food? How will he know what to do with himself? He can't- why isn't he in his room? Where is he in the casino? He's never seen this room, and he knows the layout of the building like his life depends on it (it does, it does, Sam will be upset if he gets lost, Quackity will be angry-). What room is this? Where is he?

Through his frantic searching, Dream finds his collar hidden amongst the sheets of the bed. A deep breath releases itself from Dream's chest as his fingers trace over the leather. He still had his collar. Something- something must've happened.

Dream glances around the room as he slips his collar back on. It pushes it against his skin, and Dream checks the tightness just to make sure he's done it right. He can barely get his finger between the leather and his neck. Perfect. Just the way Quackity likes it.

The door creaks behind him, and Dream is suddenly glad he's fallen to his knees like this already. He feels drowsy, and through the panic, he feels slow. He definitely wouldn't be able to react promptly like he should. Dream quietly berates himself, keeping his eyes low as a figure steps into the door. It's obscured slightly, but judging by the broad shoulders, it's Sam.

"Dream?" That's not Sam. Dream tenses, sucking in a sharp breath. Techno? What is he doing?

"Dream, c'mon, buddy." Techno drops to his knees, and he shouldn't, he shouldn't because only dogs belong on the floor, and Techno is so much better than that. "Come on, get up."

Techno's hands are carefully placed onto Dream's shoulders, but he's already scrambling to stand. This has to be a trick, right? Where's Quackity? Dream risks a glance around, but he can't see anyone else.

"Whoah, hold on, okay," Techno chuckles nervously. "Pace yourself here, Dream. Are you… you feeling alright? You hungry?"

Dream's stomach tightens at the mention of food. Okay. Okay. He knows what kind of day it is now. Techno is just… He doesn't know why Techno is here or what he's doing. Maybe he's come along to help. Dream feels sour at the idea of being too much for Quackity and Sam to handle. He tries! He really does. He tries to be good. He swallows back the guilt and nods like he's supposed to. Yes. He's hungry,

Techno sighs with something that sounds like relief and pats Dream's shoulders lightly. "We've got some bread for you if you think you can handle it."

...bread? They've never tried bread before. Quackity likes to stick with steak, meats, anything thick that'll make Dream gag. Sam just uses leftover produce. He wasn't going to voice his confusion, though. He hadn't been given permission to speak, so he just nods again, and Techno smiles. Okay. Good. He's never worked with Techno before. He doesn't know the right answers from wrong. Doing what he's trained to seem to work so far, though.

Techno tells Dream to follow him, which he does without a word and without hesitation. His hip clips a table he hadn't fully registered, and Dream stops dead in his tracks, ready for Techno to turn around and yell at him for being so clumsy. Instead, though, Techno asks if he's okay, and lacking a better response, Dream nods. Techno sighs, and his ears droop, which nearly mesmerized Dream. Sam's ears never flicked or perked like Techno's do.

Techno brings Dream to the kitchen. Phil is there, wings drooped against his back and making some tea. His eyes light up when he sees Techno, then Dream, and his expression morphs into a tight smile. Phil is here. Where's Sam? Where is Dream? He glances around, starting to feel incredibly uneasy at the realization that this isn't the casino.

"Hey, mate," Phil says gently, putting down his cup. Dream's attention snaps back to him. He shouldn't have let himself wander like that. "How are you feelin'?"

Dream's attention turns to Techno. Can he speak? Is he allowed to respond? Techno looks busy, though, and doesn't tell Dream anything. Doesn't even look his way. That's okay, though, because Dream usually knows what to do when he receives nothing for instruction. Well. If it's Quackity. Or Sam. He doesn't know what he's allowed here. So, deciding to play it safe like a good dog, Dream doesn't respond. Phil follows Dream's trail of sight with an uneasy look. His wings pull closer to his spine, fluffing up ever so slightly. Dream doesn't react.

Techno pulls out three chairs but doesn't tell Dream to sit, and dogs don't belong at the table, so Dream stands and waits like he's supposed to. Begging for scraps is what bad dogs do, and Dream is a good dog. His eyes follow Techno's hands, though, tensing when he picks up a knife, but it's never turned on Dream. Techno cuts a slice of bread, steam escaping from the warmth of the inside, and turns back to the table. He looks a little surprised to see Dream still standing.

"You can sit," Techno offers. Dream nods and sits down where he stands, making himself comfortable on the floor. Techno looks… unsettled with this action, casting a worried glance at Phil at the table. He doesn't tell Dream to move or get up, however, so Dream sits still. He meets Techno halfway and reaches out to take the bread when it's handed to him. They've never handed the food to him before. To be fair, that was during Dream's exercises, and he was blindfolded for those, so it would've been a mute sentiment. Techno looks at Dream like he's expecting him to eat, and never one to disappoint, Dream takes a bite.

The bread is… good. It's really good. Dream hasn't tasted something so nice in a long time. It's warm and light but sweet on his tongue, but not in an oppressive way, not like Sam's pies or Quacity's meat. Dream takes another bite. He chews. He swallows. Techno smiles and sits down across from Dream.

"Don't eat too much," Techno gently chides after a few more bites, and Dream immediately stops. Techno looks a little confused and tilts his head. "Are you… done?"

Dream nods because that's what he is supposed to do. He's supposed to stop when he's told. Techno looks... displeased. Dream chose the wrong answer.

"Look, I just don't want you to get sick, is all. Do you feel sick?"

Slowly, Dream shakes his head. He was really enjoying the bread.

"If you can take a couple more bites, I'd say go for it. We kinda need to get some food into ya."

Dream nods again and slowly takes another bite. He watches Techno for any indication that this is the wrong choice, that Dream has made a mistake, but it never comes. He finished the slice, finally starting to feel his stomach cramp, and Dream tucked his hands into his lap.

"Alright." Techno sighs. He leans back on his arms, tilting his head slightly. Dream stares at his hands. Where is Quackity and Sam? Dream isn't in the casino anymore, but they should still be close by, right? He glances around, eyes scanning the room he's in. The walls are bright off-white, with Pella-style windows. It's warm with various finances and chests. Cozy. Small. Not the casino. He already knows that, but outside there's… nothing. Snow. There's not supposed to be snow anywhere near the casino. Quackity doesn't like it.

Panic crashes down on Dream like a tidal wave. Where is Sam? Where's Quackity? How did he get here? What's going on? Why did he wake up in a bed with his collar removed? His collar. Dream touches it, feeling dents in the material. Has Techno done something to his collar? Why haven't Sam and Quackity come for him yet?

Dream's breath picks up until he feels like he's dying, barely able to grasp around the air being forced out of his lungs. Dream tries to scramble away but slips on the wooden floor. He shouldn't be here. He needs to leave, needs to get back to his room, he has duties and work to do at the casino, and- Techno reaches out, using one hand to cup his cheek and makes Dream face him. Dream suppresses the whine that bubbles up in his throat when Techno makes eye contact and won't let him break away. Quackity says he sounds pathetic and disgusting when he whines.

"Hey, hey, what's wrong? You have to tell me what's happening."

Permission to speak. Dream swallows, thick and heavy, and nearly chokes on it. "I don't- I don't understand. Wh- where's Sam?" Dream heaves. He has to get back. They'll be upset. They'll be mad at him for leaving home and abandoning his duties. Memories of yesterday crash down on him, only making it harder and harder to breathe. He had failed. Sam gave him instructions, and he couldn't follow through. He didn't do what Sam wanted, and now the casino is nowhere to be found, and-

"Look," Techno says, gripping Dream's shoulder, "you don't answer to Sam anymore, all right? You don't answer to him. You're out. We took you."

Oh.

Dream stutters over a breath. His grip on Techno's wrists loosened, even though he hadn't even noticed he grabbed on. Dream answers to Technoblade. He understands now. Techno took him, and this is his new job. Panic loosens on his throat the longer the thought settles into Dream's mind. Breathing is still tight, but he knows he's okay because he's supposed to be here. Techno did something to his collar because he belonged to Techno. It makes sense now.

Dream nods. Maybe Techno will be a little more lenient on Dream. Techno's first thing for Dream was to eat, which Sam only let him do as a reward for a job well done. This was his welcome home gift probably. A bonus for coming to his new house. "I understand."

Techno's grip falters. "You… do?"

Dream nods again. He takes a shaky breath, trying to relax into Techno's hold like he would with Sam. He's Techno's now. Techno will look out for him, and he'll be good and earn his keep and his food, and he'll do everything expected of him.

"I understand," Dream confirms. Quackity liked it when he confirmed questions. Maybe Techno will too. "I'll do good, I promise. I'll trust you."

Techno's hands suddenly tighten on Dream's shoulder. It's almost painful, and Dream flinches before he can even process it. Dream feels like he's made a mistake.

"Techno…" Phil starts, but Techno is already pushing himself away from Dream and staggering up. Dream lowers his head, moving his hands to rest palm-up in his lap. He's made a mistake, and these are just the consequences. Phil steps over, and Dream flinches, but he knows this is necessary. He's messed up, he's upset Techno, and he'll be punished, and he'll learn. That's how it's always worked.

"Techno." Phil touches Techno's shoulder, catching his attention and drawing it away from Dream. "Dream might think that we're… you know."

The horror on Techno's face is nothing short of heart-breaking. He grips Phil's hand, almost throwing it off of him. He steps back, eyes catching on Dream's crumpled form.

"No. No, I'm not- I'm not going to own a guy, Phil." Dream's head snaps up. "I'm not- he's not mine, he-"

"Techno." Phil steps forward, taking Techno's hand in his own. "We don't know what he was fucking told in that place. He's waiting on you to speak, Techno. I know. I know, okay, but he's…." Phil looks behind him at Dream, who immediately looks away. "Do you think he can… take care of himself right now?"

"Don't talk about him like he's not here," Techno pleads. His eyes move to Dream. "He's here. He's with us, Phil. He's not… I…"

Techno's gaze lingers on Dream for far too long to be comfortable. He can't just command Dream; he can't act like Dream is nothing but a servant, a personal guard, a fucking guard dog, but… he has to know. "Dream," he says softly. Dream's head snaps up in response. He looks to Techno but never makes eye contact. "Up."

Almost robotically, Dream stands. He tucks his arms into his sides and keeps his attention on Techno. Techno breaths out shakily.

"Oh my god, Phil."

"I know, mate. I know."

Dream glances between them, looking almost confused. He dips his head back down, placing his hands behind his back. Maybe they want him to stand differently? He hadn't been told he was on duty, but perhaps they expected different things from him here. He shifts his stance, moving to stand like he was when Techno first found him. That had been a bad day, and his form was sloppy, so maybe this is better. When he looks up for approval, though, Techno just looks sick. It makes Dream's stomach drop. He doesn't know what to do. What is he doing wrong? He hasn't been given any instructions outside of 'stand.' Isn't that what he's doing?

Swallowing his fear, Dream stutters out, "Instructions, please, Sir."

Techno makes a noise Dream can't recognize, and then he's pushing past Dream. He's ashamed of the sound he makes when Techno's shoulder bumps to his and sends him stumbling to the side. He claps a hand over his mouth, trying to cut the sound off to not make the situation worse on himself. The kitchen falls silent between him and Phil.

Phil steps forward, too, but Dream doesn't move. He's done something very, very wrong. He'll be lucky if it's just Phil who handles his punishments. The ones where both Sam and Quackity were involved were always the worst. Then again, he doesn't know Phil. Phil might be more ruthless and cruel than Sam and Quackity combined. Dream tries to suppress the shaking in his limbs, no matter how fruitless the task may be. Then Phil steps past him, towards the door. Dream's head lifts, confused, looking over his shoulder to Phil.

Phil's hand hovers over the doorknob. He looks to Dream, distress written all over his face. What had Dream done that was so bad? "Dream? Hh… stay- stay here, okay?"

Wordlessly, Dream nods. Phil leaves. Dream stays.

Dream's feet hurt, but he stays. He's hungry, and the bread has gone cold. He has to use the bathroom, so he closes his eyes and breathes deeply. He has to be good. He keeps his hands behind his back except for the occasional fidget, touching his collar or picking at his fingers. Dream stays. Maybe if he doesn't move at all, he'll get punished less. It doesn't matter in the end. He's ready to roll over the second Techno gives the command. He knows he's done something wrong- he'll just have to learn! He'll just have to learn.

It starts snowing outside. A breeze flows through the house. Dream stays. He's thirsty. Dream doesn't know how long he's been standing, but it doesn't matter. He is good, and he will be good, and he'll prove to Techno that he's not a useless dog. He can follow instructions, and he can listen, and he can behave.

He'll learn. He'll behave. He'll stay like a good dog should.

From Dream's position in the kitchen, he can't watch the door, but Dream, he's listening. His heart picked up when he heard two sets of footprints approaching the door, one heavy enough to be Techno and the other light enough to be Phil. Then the door opens slowly, and the hushed voices they two were speaking in come to a complete stop. Dream hears a shaky breath but keeps his head down.

"Fuck," Phil breathes.

"What?"

"Fuck, I- I told him to stay." Phil sounds more dejected than anything. Dream can't figure out what he's doing wrong. He bites the inside of his lip until he draws blood. The taste fills his mouth, continuing to spill even as he swallows it down.

Techno steps around Dream's body, eyes lingering on his form. Dream straightens his back a little more if it were even possible. He's good. He's good- he stayed, he did what they told him to. Techno looks sad, and Dream can't understand why. Why isn't he good enough?

"Dream, did you… were you standing like this the whole time?"

Dream nods. Techno averts his gaze, putting a hand over his mouth and swearing quietly.

"Okay…" Techno drags his hands down his face. He looks at Dream briefly, then starts muttering to himself quietly. "Let's get some health pots in you and then get you in a bed, huh? You look exhausted. Let's get you… let's get you taken care of."

...What? But Dream was bad. He doesn't get potions or care or a bed when he's bad. A sound bubbles in Dream's throat, a small question, but Techno doesn't acknowledge it. Instead, Techno reaches a hand out, briefly, before abandoning the idea. Dream keeps his eyes on the ground, trying not to pick at his hands. Sam didn't like it when he picked. Quackity said it was annoying and that he was getting blood everywhere. Techno leaves, but he doesn't tell Dream to follow, so he stays in the kitchen, waiting for Techno to come back. It's a few long, grueling minutes with Phil hovering in the background, but Dream does his best not to move. He's waited this long, so he can wait a few more minutes. He ignores the ache in his limbs.

Techno returns and hands Dream a health potion. It feels heavy in Dream's hands. He swallows back the fear in his throat, memories of being force-fed potions to keep him from dying every day flooding his mind. Dream can't tell if this is a punishment for a reward yet. There's no malice behind Techno's eyes, no anger, but potions always mean punishment in some form. He can hear Quackity's voice in the back of his head telling him to roll over, but he resists. He'll do what Techno tells him to, and for now, all Techno has asked is that he drinks the potion. It's obscenely sweet-smelling, making Dream want to gag. Regardless, he takes a deep breath and swallows the whole thing down because that's what Techno wants from him.

Not even a second later, Dream feels like he's going to throw up. The familiar taste and smell make his stomach lurch, trying to reject the potion, to stop the pain that always follows it. Dream clamps a hand over his mouth, dropping the bottle onto the hardwood floor. It doesn't shatter, but Dream thinks it cracks, rendering it useless. Dream whimpers, trying to swallow around the gagging and heaving that takes over his throat. Techno is saying something, but he can't hear it. He can't breathe. Dream's chest hurts. Tears prick his eyes, and he curls in on himself, making weak, little sounds and trying to swallow everything down.

Dream gasps as he finally swallows everything down. The hand he pulls away from his mouth feels wet, and Dream can't even begin to imagine how pitiful he looks. His face is probably red, tears are streaming from his eyes, and he's still squeezing in on himself, gasping for air like he'd been choked. It must be pathetic. It must be gross. Dream can imagine how Quackity would berate him for this, repeating the words in his head as he tries to get a hold of himself. He's already done enough. He's broken a bottle, he's upset Techno, he hasn't even been following directions correctly! It's his first day, and he's already done so poorly. It's not his fault! He doesn't know Techno- he doesn't know the way he's supposed to behave! He feels so lost.

Dream misses Sam. Sam was always clear about what he wanted from him. Sam gave orders for anything and everything he wanted. Sam made sure Dream was always kept in line. Dream didn't have to guess for Sam. He's gotten so bad at guessing. Hell, even Quackity knew what he wanted from Dream and demanded it without hesitation. Dream fights back the tears in his eyes. Quackity hated it when he cried about little things like this.

A hand is placed on Dream's back, making him flinch. He drops to his knees immediately, ducking his head before he can be forced into position. He hopes he was good. Dream knows he wasn't perfect like he should be, but maybe he was good enough. Techno didn't want him to get sick, and he'd never really been able to stave off something like that before, so he did something new all to please Techno. Maybe Quackity would've been proud, too- he always got frustrated when Dream got sick. Sam might've given him a small pat or sent him back to his room for it. No. He's not- he's Technoblade's. Sam and Quackity aren't here anymore to watch him. Dream doesn't know if Techno thinks what he's done is worthy of a reward. Probably not.

"Dream…" Techno trails off.

Dream nods. He sniffs, gathering himself quickly. He's done this plenty of times with Quackity to know what to expect at this point. He wipes away a stray tear before straightening out his spine. He looks anywhere but Techno's face as he slowly leans his head back, baring his neck. His tag jingles softly as it hits his collarbone.

"Hold on, what- what are you doing, Dream?" Techno asks softly. "You can, uh, you can answer. Verbally."

"The potion bottle, sir," Dream's voice is scratchy like it's clawing its way out of his mouth. He clears his throat, taking a deep breath through his nose. It always feels different with his head tilted back. "I broke it."

Techno sucks in a sudden breath, dropping to Dream's level and gathering him up. He pulls Dream to stand, making Dream open his eyes in confusion.

"There's no need for that," Techno says, making eye contact with Dream. His voice is slightly strained, which makes Dream swallow nervously. "We're not gonna- we're not gonna put a hand on ya, okay?"

Dream blinks. His brows furrow. How will he know when he's done something wrong, then? How will he learn? How will he get better? If there are no punishments, then how- oh. Wait. Techno likes Sam's approach more. He'll just take away Dream's food when he's bad. That makes sense.

"Dream? You copy?"

Dream nods softly, and Techno breaths out a sigh of relief.

"Alright," he drawls. He looks over Dream, shivering from the cold, struggling to stand, looking halfway in his grave. Techno sends a worried glance to Phil, who gestures encouragingly.

“Alright, well, uh… you look tired, Dream. Why don’t. Why don’t we get you back in bed, and you can sleep until you start feeling better?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Dream nods again. With Dream’s permission- or the hollow form of it that Techno can weasel out of him- Techno takes him back to the spare room. Dream hunches over slightly as he walks, and Techno swears if he had a tail, it’d be tucked between his legs. Techno focuses on the collar around Dream’s neck, though. It looks uncomfortable, and Techno can barely stand seeing it against Dream’s bruised skin. If Techno would burn something just by looking at it, he would.

When they arrive back in the spare room, Techno has to essentially pick Dream up and place him on the bed to keep him from lying down on the floor. He doesn’t address the confused look on Dream’s face or the obvious questions Techno can’t stand to answer right now. He brings the blankets up over Dream’s fragile form, tucking him in tightly to ensure he won’t struggle out and so he’ll stay warm.

“You’re sleeping here,” is all Techno says, and Dream seems to understand. Slowly, his hands reach up and loosen his collar slightly, and Techno has to suppress a gag at the way Dream lovingly traces the edges of the object. Techno is probably right in his thoughts that the collar was used to control Dream, used as a punishment, and the scars and the bruising are enough for him to hate it. Dream touches it lovingly, though, and Techno can’t bear to get rid of something Dream holds that fondly.

Dream falls asleep, laying straight on his back. Techno sighs as soon as Dream’s breath evens out into something a little less strained. The tension drains from his shoulders as he breathes, trying to focus on anything besides what Quackity and Sam have done to Dream. His ears perk at the sound of soft knocking against the doorway, turning around to see Phil with a cup of water cupped gingerly in his hands. He slides into the spot at Techno’s side, offering a tight smile as he places the cup on the bedside table.

“This is a mess,” Techno groans.

“It’s a process, mate,” Phil says. He shrugs, wings moving with his shoulders. “I’m happy to have Dream think that I’m… in charge… if it’s too much for you.”

“Nah.” Techno tries to sound nonchalant, but he knows Phil isn’t buying it. The tips of his fingers burn with the need to help and protect and take that stupid collar off of Dream, but he resists.

“I can do this,” he says. “I have to. It’s… it’s for him. It’s to make him better.”

~

all the people who asked to be tagged or were very excited for this fic and might miss it or something idk:

@karokatten @spookystarfield @imhereformysciencefriends @personalized-radio @purpleglitch @simplepotatofarmer

[eagles-translated]

Analyzing the writing of Eagles

Here's a post I've been wanting to make for a while! I've expressed my thoughts on some of the storylines in previous posts, but I've never done a complete post on the writing of the whole show. I've divided this post into separate parts, focusing on each season and its plot points. Keep reading to see my analysis of the writing in Eagles! 👇 Word Count: 18k

If you've stumbled upon this post from the Young Royals or the Beartown tag (tagged them since I've drawn some parallels from those shows), here's a brief summary of what Eagles is, which you can watch with English subtitles here. This post contains Eagles spoilers from 1x01 - 3x10.

Eagles is a Swedish TV show that revolves around a few teenagers living in the Swedish ice hockey town Oskarshamn while experiencing friendship, love, and rivalry on the ice.

To start this off I would like to say that I have no experience with professional screenwriting and if anything, this is just a way for me to procrastinate on actually writing my own projects.

I love experiencing new stories and when I discover one I really like it's just natural for me to branch off with "what ifs" and to start wondering how the story would've turned out if some things were changed. Sometimes it's with a storyline improvement in mind, and other times it's just out of plain curiosity.

You might feel like this post is leaning towards the critical side, and I can definitely understand why since there are a lot of small details that I've picked apart from all seasons. I added a section for each season with things that I thought were really well done so this post wouldn't be too negative.

I actually did enjoy all seasons and I feel like the quality of not just the writing but every single thing has steadily increased each year.

Season 1: Tropes and clichés

Eagles premiered its first season in 2019 and was, despite many negative reviews, a big success among its target audience. Every episode on SVT Play amassed around 700 000–800 000 views and there didn't seem to be any doubt that the show would get renewed.

What the critics had issues with were that "Eagles rarely takes the unexpected path, and feels like a slightly soulless product of studied target group thinking a little too often," (Karolina Fjellborg in Aftonbladet) and "In Eagles, the characters seem to be locked in the role of a "teenager" but the humanity is missing. They've simplified the construction of the character," (Django Lorentzson in MovieZine).

Eagles was unfortunate enough to constantly be compared to SKAM in its infancy, and that's a tough comparison to live up to. SVT sort of shot themselves in the foot as they were the ones who contributed to it. While the show was still in the casting process, SVT wrote an article hyping the show up as a Swedish SKAM (which has since been edited, but led many to falsely believe that it would involve all the familiar SKAM characters with some hockey elements sprinkled in).

So, why exactly did critics think the first three episodes of the show were predictable and soulless? Well, it's pretty simple. They'd seen it all before. The setting, the characters, the storylines—just in different TV shows and movies.

Season 1 for me is nostalgic and very enjoyable despite its clichéd nature. I also felt like I'd seen the show before due to its generic storylines, but there is a reason why tropes are tropes and why clichés are clichés. It's because they're tried and true, and actually somewhat good writing tools as long as you expand on them. The keyword here is to expand—a story doesn't magically become good simply because you mimic something another writer has done. Tropes are fine to use but you can't just apply them and stop there. Everything in a story needs to be developed in order to be good.

It's safe to say that it's pretty much impossible to write a story without any tropes that have been used before. Striving to avoid clichés at all costs in hopes of making your story as original as possible is harder than it sounds, and almost impossible to boot. Here's a great piece of advice for aspiring writers written by a user on Carvezine:

[...] if you look down at your story and are worried it’s already been told before – don’t spend another second thinking about it. It has. A million times. The only difference is that it hasn’t been told by you. Accept that regurgitation is part of writing, and just do your best not to regurgitate the same way as the guy next to you. We’d all do well to acknowledge there is at least a portion of our stories that are really someone else’s. [...] Beyond that, write with the motivation that if you don’t get around to telling your story, eventually somebody else will.

Even the greatest books have storylines with some clichés. And that's not really a bad thing, either. Think about it. How many times have you decided to binge a TV show solely because it reminded you of another series? Or picked up a book simply because you love a good enemies to lovers romance, a battle between good and evil fantasy, or whatever it might be?

I found this article from Masterclass that perfectly describes what tropes are and why they're used. It's written from the perspective of novel writing but it is still applicable.

A trope in literary terms is a plot device or character attribute that is used so commonly in the genre that it’s seen as commonplace or conventional. For example, a trope in superhero stories is a villain who wants to take over the world. Tropes are popular for a reason—if something has been written about over and over again, there’s a good chance that it’s something readers enjoy reading! Tropes can be helpful, but a novel made up only of tropes will quickly start to feel stale and predictable to readers. That’s why you need to read up on tropes—and then innovate. Deliberately taking a favorite trope and turning it on its head is a great way to put your own unique spin on the genre and keep your readers interested.

Eagles, in its first season, didn't really do a lot of expanding upon the tropes they used and it's understandable that they were still trying to find their footing. I can also imagine it's difficult to do so when you only have eight 20 minute episodes in the season.

However... There definitely should've been more work put into these characters to make them their own. It's tricky, yes, but still achievable if you don't abandon them in their cookie-cutter form and try to actually decorate them with something unique and fresh.

So, how did they write their characters?

Felicia's character and backstory

To start off, Felicia is a famous influencer known for starring in a reality show next to her former NHL professional father. There's already a clear disconnect because it's hard to relate to a character with such a public past and large following. But it is 100% possible if you let the viewer know the character has humane qualities just like the person watching the show.

Look at Wilhelm from Netflix's Young Royals, another Swedish TV show. Wilhelm is the prince of Sweden, set to attend a prestigious elite boarding school, and is the heir to the throne. That doesn't exactly sound like a relatable scenario, does it? And yet the writers make it work because when we're introduced to Wilhelm we realize he's just like everybody else. He wants a normal life, he latches on to his older brother for support, he has anxiety, and he struggles between following his heart versus doing what his family is expecting him to do. A lot of these factors are relatable among the audience.

So, let's look at Felicia Kroon. She is in many ways portrayed as the main character of the show. Eagles starts off with her family having moved to Oskarshamn and the following episodes focus on her developing relationship with Ludde as well as her traumatic past. There's almost too much focus on Felicia here, and I'll get back to that.

Comparing Felicia to Wilhelm from Young Royals, they're both well-known teenagers with famous parents. Of course they have different circumstances considering Felicia is Instagram popular and Wilhelm is a blood royal, but in the grand scheme of things they're similar. Felicia is even referred to as a "Kroon princess" because of her last name Kroon bearing a resemblance to the Swedish word kronprinsessa, meaning crown princess.

The students of their respective schools treat their attendance as a big deal when they first arrive and then Wilhelm and Felicia start spending time with the "popular" crowd despite not really fitting in there.

I personally found it easy to relate to Wilhelm but difficult to relate to Felicia. Some people may feel differently, but her character is basically a popular party girl who attracts the attention of one of the school's star players and is "welcomed" by the popular crowd on her first day of school. I put welcome in quotation marks because Klara, the leader of the girl group, isn't exactly the most welcoming person but she does welcome Felicia to the school. My point is, Felicia doesn't have a lot of relatable traits in the first episodes.

Felicia then goes on a date with the guy she's met, Ludde. Okay, so there haven't been that many layers to her character yet. We're at the third episode and so far she's been kind of flat.

Near the end of the third episode, we get some depth to the character and we hear her back story.

Felicia: [...] We don’t have a good relationship, my dad and I. And that’s probably why we moved from the beginning, because he’s an idiot. We’ve never been close, but… Elias and he have been since they’ve had hockey. [...] And mom has been really involved, so… And I… They’ve never really cared about me. And… And I haven’t really been a problem either. I’ve had good grades, good friends, and… I don’t know why I’m telling you this. I don’t talk about it to people. [...] I just felt so fucking lonely and invisible. I was worried all the time, couldn’t sleep, panicked because I couldn’t sleep… So I started going out more. It went overboard. It started affecting school, my grades slipped… I started taking things to be able to concentrate. Everybody does stuff like that. And then I still couldn’t sleep, so… I started mixing with sleeping pills. And there’s always wine and booze at our place. I don’t want this to come out, that’s really important. Ludde: Of course, I’d never tell. Felicia: One night, something happened that made me… Act out of control more than usual. I woke up the next morning in the hospital. So they sent me to rehab. It was really rough for mom and dad that I was suddenly in focus. When I woke up, dad wasn’t even there. Ludde: What made you take too much that night? Felicia: I’d forgotten my phone at home, so I ran up and got it while my friends were waiting in an Uber. Then I came into the hall and I heard noises. You know, like, when somebody is doing it. Ludde: Okay. Felicia: And I thought it was really weird because mom wasn’t home. So I went into the living room… Dad was fucking my mom’s best friend. On the rug below the couch.

This gives Felicia more layers and does separate her from every other "popular pretty party girl" trope that you see on TV. But this is a huge info dump, and that's a problem. I would've liked to see this happen on-screen instead of only being told what went down. The golden rule of Show don't tell, as people like to say.

Show, don’t tell is a writing technique in which story and characters are related through sensory details and actions rather than exposition. It fosters a style of writing that’s more immersive for the reader, allowing them to “be in the room” with the characters. In his most commonly repeated quote, Chekhov said, “Don’t tell me the moon is shining. Show me the glint of light on broken glass."

This back story could've been more impactful that way if, perhaps, the show began with Felicia in a hospital bed with a strong headache and hazy flashbacks of that night where she saw her dad sleeping with another woman. Then we're introduced to her mother and brother sitting next to the hospital bed tired and worried, and Felicia notices her dad isn't present. They tell her Felicia is being sent to rehab and then there's a time-jump before we see the Kroon family having moved to Oskarshamn.

That's just an idea I threw together at the top of my head, but you get my point. It would've been more interesting if we knew from the beginning that Felicia had a traumatic past like this, leading the viewer to want to know more about what actually happened.

We did get a brief flashback at the very beginning of the show—we see Felicia partying with her friends and taking some pill before lying unconscious on the ground. There's also a glimpse of Ludde's car accident with Andreas yelling at him to get out of there.

That segment only lasts for around 45 seconds and it's easily forgettable upon your first viewing of the show. It's also hard to even recognize Felicia in the dark nightclub setting with the flashing lights. Some dialogue in that short scene could've made it more memorable, because I found that when I first watched season 1 I remembered Andreas yelling at Ludde despite that being drowned out by the music.

Ludde's backstory was way more well-done, in my opinion. We see him having crashed the car and bleeding from his head. He looks terrified and almost frozen by fear, needing to be pulled out of the car by a panicked Andreas yelling at him to bring Ludde back to the reality of the situation. We see Andreas yelling and pointing, telling Ludde he needs to run now. It's more powerful when we get to see it.

And in episode 8, when we learn the truth of what happened, it's not a long and dragged-out monologue. It fits into what's going on in the story. Felicia and Ludde have known each other for a few months now and are much closer than they were on their first date. They've had disagreements and fights, but at this moment they're in a good place.

And it feels like the right moment for Ludde to come clean about what happened to him.

Ludde: Hey… There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you. Felicia: What? Ludde: About… My brother. It’s not really as everybody thinks. Felicia: What do you mean? Ludde: That night when he crashed… It wasn’t Andreas who drove the car. We were on our way home from one of his buddies. We’d had some fun drinking. And then… I’d just started learning how to drive. So I nagged and nagged at him. Felicia: So you were the one driving? But he’s an adult- Ludde: He was drunk as hell. He was going to leave the car, but I thought it was so cold and it was only three blocks away so I thought that I could drive. Felicia: And what happened? Ludde: It was slippery and really dark… And a car came. I hit the brakes in time, but it… Yeah. Right after he pushed me out of the car and yelled that I should run home straight away. He really didn’t want me to get into trouble. So, yeah… It was fucking bad luck. I want to just gather everybody and scream that it was me. Felicia: Hey… I love you. Ludde: I love you too. I love you so fucking much.

As Ludde is telling Felicia what happened as the other car came, we see a silent flashback of it along with Ludde's voice narrating. We see Andreas pulling him out of the car and yelling. Cutting to this scene that we've already seen in the beginning but might've forgotten about is a smart choice and makes the story Ludde is telling more real. We see it unfolding as Ludde is telling this to Felicia. It's a powerful scene.

We then see Felicia hugging Ludde from behind, a sign of support with no words needed. She tells him she loves him and Ludde says it back. It's an honest and sweet moment that comes at a perfect time in the story. It's not too early like Felicia's backstory was.

I sort of understand why Felicia's backstory was info-dumped because it was right before the drama of Mats accidentally spilling the beans to Klara's family. They wanted the audience to know what happened to her early, so they could move on to the plot point of Felicia thinking Ludde was the one who told everybody.

But we don't need every single detail of Felicia's story. Let it come organically. The only thing that was really needed was for Ludde to know that Felicia had struggled with drug use and was sent to rehab for this storyline to work. The reason why could've been saved for later, and it would've made for a more interesting reveal. Maybe just have Felicia allude to seeing something that night, but don't tell the viewers right away what it was.

In 1x06, Felicia is incredibly upset when she hears that her dad was the one who told Klara's family what happened to Felicia in the US. And rightly so.

Felicia: Don’t you get it? You ruined everything! Mats: What? Felicia: You told the whole damn town about me! About the US! Mats: I really didn’t mean to disclose you- Or disclose us. Sorry. Hey, sorry. Flisan, please. Hey. Felicia: Did you tell them you fucked mom’s best friend too? Yes, I saw you.

If this had been the moment where we first find out what Felicia saw, it would've been more surprising. Our reaction would've mirrored Mats's, and it would've been more heart-wrenching to know that Felicia was traumatized by an affair her dad had only to be cheated on herself in the very same episode.

Ludde's problematic nature

One of the scriptwriters of Eagles, Fanny Ekstrand, was interviewed in the behind-the-scenes documentary Edvins Skådisdrömmar. In this interview, she states:

Ludvig, he's the one who's been the easiest to retain the personality of. Because he's so... He's calm and friendly, but he makes dumb decisions. Ludvig isn't a typical hockey guy. He has a bunch of other qualities—music being one of them.

I found myself slightly disagreeing with this take, despite knowing Ekstrand is literally a part of the writing team and most likely helped shaped Ludde's personality. I just interpreted Ludde's character (at least in season 1) differently.

I also didn't find him that much different from any other typical hockey guy just because he happens to have another interest. That's a bit like saying Archie Andrews from The CW's Riverdale isn't a stereotypical jock because he also plays the guitar.

In season 1, we see Ludde break into the rink because he wanted to test out the ice. He just loves hockey that much. He also uses it as a way to express frustration and anger, which we saw in 1x05. He flirts with the new girl in school and in the beginning he even uses it as a tactic to gain a position on the main hockey team. This was confirmed by the creator Stefan H. Lindén in his Q&A, where he said:

My idea has always been that Ludde was blown away by Felicia and that he really likes her but that they both initially interacted and met to go swimming because Felicia knew it would piss her dad off and Ludde knew that it might throw Elias off since they were competing for the same position in the team.

I would say that the characteristics of a typical hockey guy would be someone like Adam—obsessed with the sport, flirting with girls, going to parties, and just spending a lot of time in the rink. Ludde checks off all of these points. However, I will give this the benefit of the doubt since season 2 Ludde seems to change a lot and it's easier to interpret him as the calm and friendly guy he was supposed to be in season 1.

So to me, Ludde wasn't calm and friendly at all. In season 2, yes, but when we're first introduced to him?

Ludde shows anger issues and violent tendencies in 1x05 when he head-butts Elias and breaks his nose. It's violent and messy. He then yells at Felicia to leave when she's trying to communicate with him and belittles her drug problems solely because she's rich. To me, Ludde wasn't a nice person in 1x04 either when he let his friends make suggestive comments about Felicia and what she was like in bed.

Omar: I can tell you one thing - you’re not borrowing my towel today cause I don’t know where that dick has been. Adam: It’s nice when she sucks, right? Omar: Can’t you tell us some more, does she bite you or is it just really, really nice? [...] Adam: Is that what you sound like when you’re coming? What does she sound like?

This was described as "locker room talk" and the writers probably wanted to show an authentic view of what being a hockey player is like. I understand that. But it's a little problematic when it's later swept under the rug and treated like something that we're just supposed to accept.

Elias: [...] it’s not very fun to sit in a hockey locker room where people are talking about how nice it is to fuck my sister. Felicia: Ludde would never say anything like that, you know that. Elias: He wouldn’t? It’s a locker room, Felicia. That’s the only thing they talk about.

It did not sit right with me how Felicia seemed to be the one Elias blamed in this scene, and Ludde and his friends never faced any real consequences for what they said. Elias did lash out at Ludde, but there was no severe consequence for Omar and Adam's comments.

Compare this scenario to another Swedish show, Beartown on HBO. Beartown is similar to Eagles and focuses on a hockey team in a small town with one of the star players hooking up with a girl who's recently moved to their small town.

This girl is raped by the hockey player. And because of his status as the star of the team, he has almost the whole school behind him. The girl however is labeled as a lying slut. It's unfair and frustrating to see it happen, but it's authentic and done in a way that doesn't glamorize the ugly side of hockey culture.

Eagles is not as dark as Beartown so this comparison might be a little unfair. Beartown's whole storyline did revolve around this incident while in Eagles the hockey culture is treated more as a side thought. It's like they decided to throw in a taste of what goes on in a locker room just to create drama without really addressing it further.

Beartown did a much better job of portraying the problematic and toxic elements of hockey culture without making it seem like it's just something normal that we should accept. It was honest and raw. If you haven't seen the show, this short video does a great job of depicting how much thought was put into the toxic hockey culture, winning mentality, and subsequently hockey players thinking they're entitled to do whatever they want.

So, to respond to Ekstrand's quote from Edvins Skådisdrömmar—I did not experience Ludde as a "good guy" who only makes dumb decisions at all. In season 1, he's a bad person for letting his friends sexualize a girl he likes and letting her brother hear their disgusting comments. He's a bad person for fighting with her brother and later yelling at her, saying her drug issues are insignificant despite acting supportive of her only two episodes earlier.

I don't mind conflicts like these because they drive the story forward. I didn't particularly like Ludde in season 1 because of the reasons I just stated, but they're necessary to create drama and make the show interesting.

It's just weird to me how one of the writers is saying that Ludde is a calm person and a good guy when that is not at all how I interpreted his character.

Eagles is a show targeted towards a young audience, among them probably a lot of easily influenced pre-teens. What kind of message does this send to them when the guy letting his friends sexualize a girl he's slept with and on top of that laughing at their inappropriate comments is referred to as the good guy?

Klara is mean... What else?

From the moment we're introduced to Klara, it seems obvious that she'll play a living and breathing version of the infamous Alpha Bitch trope. She's also a prime example of the basic Popular is Evil trope and has her own Girl Posse consisting of Sara and Amie.

Klara feels threatened by the arrival of a potential new popular girl, Felicia, and does everything in her power to bully Felicia to show dominance. She barely shows any good sides of herself.

The only instance I can think of where we sort of see season 1 Klara in a positive light is when she talks to Amie in 1x05 about their friendship and then accompanies Amie to her audition for the school band.

Klara: Ever since Felicia started at school… It’s felt like you only hang out with her and that you’ve forgotten about me. She like took you from me. Amie: But I haven’t forgotten you. Klara: No, but do you get what I mean? Amie: I get it, but I haven’t forgotten you. Klara: No, I know. Amie: I know, but it just turned out that way when school started. Klara: Okay. Amie: But I’m sorry. Klara: It’s fine. Amie: Are you sure? Klara: Yeah. You can make it up to me when you go on your world tour.

Klara is really supportive of Amie's musical endeavors, but she also uses her support as a way to alienate Felicia from the girl group. It's very on the nose and kind of feels suffocating in the way it's written.

Klara: Amie, did you remove the clips? Amie: Yeah, she said they weren’t good. Klara: She’s just jealous. It’s so obvious. I mean, I’m jealous. You sing absolutely amazing. I don’t know, I just think it was really rude of her to sit in the cafeteria and criticize you like that Amie: Yeah, maybe. But she apologized. Klara: But still. That clip of you in the bathroom… Like… Sorry, but I’d be so mad if someone had posted something like that of me. I mean, you were standing there without makeup, completely non-fixed up. And the whole thing with her filming you without you knowing. That’s really weird. You don’t do that. Don’t you think so?

I'm sure there are plenty of people who act like this in real life. And maybe that's part of the problem, because Klara in season 1 really isn't an interesting character. We've met this person before and we know exactly what she's like. There's nothing new to discover. So season 1 is essentially just Klara being petty and rude every chance she gets, and to me it felt like a large part of her character was written just to stir up drama.

In 1x06, we see Klara backstab Amie by filming her making out with Ludde at her Halloween party. But I thought it was established in 1x05 that Klara feels like Amie was taken from her? And if Klara actually cared about Amie and didn't want to lose her as a friend, she wouldn't just stand by and watch with her phone recording the whole thing. It doesn't make a lot of sense.

Klara even made that whole point about how it was really weird of Felicia to film Amie without her knowing. So why would Klara do it, when she expressed that's weird and not something a normal person does? Is that supposed to be foreshadowing? Because if so, that's a clear contradiction and not how foreshadowing works.

When Sara happens to see the video on Klara's phone she immediately says that Klara should delete it.

Sara: What is that? Did they know you were filming? Klara: No, of course they didn’t know. Sara: Oh my god, Klara. You should probably delete it. Klara: I’m going to! But it’s crazy, right? Sara: Yeah, god. But seriously, delete it. Klara: I’m going to.

So Klara says she's going to delete the video. But it's still unclear why it was filmed in the first place if Klara insists that she's going to delete it. It's not like she filmed it just to show it to Sara either, since Sara wasn't meant to see it and only saw it by chance while swiping through Klara's photos on her phone.

It doesn't make sense for Klara to film a video like that of her best friend that she's supposed to care about. It doesn't make sense for Klara to film a video of anybody without their knowledge when she previously made a big deal about how you shouldn't do that.

What Klara's character is, is a bad attempt at the classical mean girl. She's clichéd, boring, and full of tropes.

Even her eventual character development is riddled with tropes like the Heel Realization where a character realizes they're actually one of the bad guys. This realization seems to come in 1x08, where Felicia calls Klara out on her behavior.

Felicia: You know what, Klara. I’m so fucking tired of your fucking comments. You didn’t get to be Lucia this year. Poor you! Was dad unable to fix that? Cry then, Klara. Cry. You’re so fucking mean. Everybody here is tired- Everybody here is scared of you. Even those who liked you once, they can’t take it anymore. Klara: That’s not true. It’s not true. Felicia: Yes, everybody is scared of you. You know what? Look around. Show people some fucking respect. Klara: Well say something, Amie! Amie: What is there to say? She’s right.

Klara needed a wake-up call like this. It's just unfortunate that she goes back to her mean girl behavior and posts the video after Amie insinuated that Klara wasn't a real friend. Klara already knew that Amie felt that way since she said Felicia was right in her assessment of everybody being scared and tired of Klara. So wouldn't it have made more sense for Klara to post the video right after that moment instead of during Amie's performance?

Or rather, why not pull a Subverted Trope and not have Klara post the video at all after she realized how horrible she'd been acting? That would've made me respect her so much more and be a great introduction to her character development in season 2.

The Halloween Incident

To me, the whole Halloween episode was questionable. First off, we never got actual confirmation of what happened in that room between Amie and Ludde. Some viewers insist that they only made out and others believe they went all the way. Here's what the creator of the show, Stefan H. Lindén, had to say about this in a Q&A post he did:

I think if you went into the writers room of Eagles and asked all of us what really happened in that room [between Ludde and Amie at Klara's Halloween party] we would all have different answers.  I know what happened, but I’m not sure we will ever truly know for sure, unless Ludvig or Amie eventually are open enough to admit to anyone what really happened.

This is kind of a vague answer, but that's fair considering that when Stefan did this Q&A the latest episode that had been released was 2x05 and he probably didn't want to spoil anything. However, looking back at this answer knowing how the season turned out I still feel like it's unclear what happened. It's also strange that Stefan seems to be saying that they never actually decided what happened between them since the writers "would all have different answers".

1x06 was just an odd episode for me overall. Lots of things felt rushed and underdeveloped. Let's not forget that this episode also contained, in my opinion, some of the weirdest lines in the whole show (along with Elias's strange monologue about plague vampires).

Ludde: Hey, I only have like 3%. Do you have any power? Adam: Are you wondering if I have a power bank in my shorts? It’s coming-

Ludde: I like shellfish. (said to Amie, wearing a lobster costume)

Up until this episode, Ludde has shown zero interest and attraction towards Amie. We are basically told that Ludde only hooked up with Amie because he was so drunk that he practically had no idea what he was doing.

In 1x02, we see a drunk Amie try to kiss Tobbe and upon getting rejected she moves on to make out with Adam. She gets overly friendly when she's drunk so the fact that she makes out with Ludde later is... Weird, but not entirely out of the realms of possibility.

Ludde on the other hand is moping about Felicia all night. He regrets how he yelled at her at the end of 1x05 and it shows. He's trying to drown all his problems in alcohol and it seems to be working, because when it enters his system he seems to be on top of the world.

What I found kind of ambiguous in this incident was if Ludde even remembered what happened that night. He was drinking so much compared to Amie, who doesn't really need as much alcohol before she reaches her "overly friendly" state. I thought for sure that Ludde was oblivious to the situation when he woke up in his bed the next day and immediately messaged Felicia.

There are just so many questions to unpack here that were never answered. What prompted Amie and Ludde to go into that empty room? Why did Ludde come with her? Why didn't Adam seem to care about this, when he'd been sitting next to Ludde and taking care of him most of the night? And as I wrote before, why would Klara film this video of her best friend when she previously expressed that was a weird thing to do?

There's just too much in 1x06 left unanswered. The Amie/Ludde hook-up was a badly executed plot twist because there wasn't anything hinting that this would happen. It just came out of nowhere.

Unbalanced screentime and Elias's wasted potential

A large portion of season 1 was dedicated to Felicia. This was kind of a let-down for me since I thought more focus would be placed on Eagles as a hockey team (after all, that's what the show is named after). I also thought more attention would be on Elias since he's the talented star player who's supposed to live up to his father's legacy.

The show starts with a couple radio hosts hyping up how Elias Kroon, son of the legendary Mats Kroon, is going to join the Eagles hockey team.

Host #1: [...] It’s finally official. New center in the junior team - Elias Kroon, son to the legendary NHL-pro Mats Kroon, who has now chosen to move home from the US to his hometown where Elias will play in his father’s old club Oskarshamn Eagles. Host #2: This is so freaking cool. Who doesn’t want a Kroon on their team? Host #1: We hope that he’ll take a spot on the A-team.

But we don't learn a lot about who Elias actually is in the first episode. The attention is on Felicia and her interest in Ludde.

Elias is so discarded that he barely has anything to say in the first couple of scenes we see him in. Here are all his eight lines in 1x01, and I'm not even joking.

Elias: Yes. Elias: Shut up. Elias: Ow. Elias: It's fine. Elias: Really? Elias: Fucking hell. Elias: I'll stay here. Elias: No, it's fine.

In 1x02 he has even fewer lines. Three, to be exact, and all he says is that his injury is a sprain and that it's fine. Essentially just an echo of two of the lines he had in the previous episode. It's nothing new.

There's a way to have a character stand out when they don't have many lines, but Elias just fades into the background with every other extra. There's too much time spent on having other characters talk about Elias than us actually getting to know him. So when we do meet him, it's pretty underwhelming.

Compare Elias to his sister who gets so much more attention from the writers. I don't really understand why either, since I thought Elias was a much more interesting character than his influencer sister. Felicia's character only seems to revolve around a guy. I wonder how many times we've seen that before?

In 1x02 we see the Eagles hockey team play their first game, but Elias is unable to play and has to sit in the stands for what was supposed to be his debut match. Why? Because during a hockey practice session in 1x01, Adam rams his stick into Elias to purposely injure him. I mean, fair enough. Adam is trying to get Ludde on the main team since he and Elias are competing for the same position. The shot of Adam smiling after Elias sprains his wrist is a bit too on the nose, but whatever.

What this does is minimize Elias' presence in season 1 by a lot. We don't see the son of the legendary NHL professional play an actual game until 1x05, which is more than halfway into the season. It's kind of disappointing but I understand the injury is done to dramatize his situation.

Elias barely gets his own storylines in the first few episodes. He just has things done to him instead of acting on his own. When we do see him on screen he gets injured by Adam, reprimanded by his father, and later told he can't play in his debut game.

His sweet side (or any side of him, really) isn't shown until 1x03 when Amie wakes up at the Kroon house and Elias reassures her that they didn't do anything together and that she can borrow Felicia's clothes.

Elias doesn't really do much for the plot until he hears Ludde's friends objectify Felicia and he starts a fight with Ludde and confronts Felicia about it. That's when it feels like Elias is actually a part of this show instead of just being an extra shoved into the background. His actions are finally affecting the plot.

Elias's potential in season 1 was hugely wasted. The only episode where we actually got to see him shine was 1x07, when he travels to Karlskrona with Amie. We find out he doesn't want the hockey arrangement his dad has planned for him and that he's actually a pretty goofy guy who likes making jokes (and eating green candy).

If less time was spent with Felicia and the distribution of every episode's 20 minutes was more balanced, season 1 could've been massively improved. It got much better in season 2, but season 1 suffered and made many people think that Felicia was a basic and unentertaining character.

The side characters and their comic relief

So one thing that I found really disappointing with Felicia's amount of screentime is that we barely got enough time for the other main characters, let alone the side characters.

What I mean here is that the only people we really know on the Eagles hockey team are Ludde and Elias. Ludde's friends, Adam and Omar, just feel like comic relief sidekicks. We don't really know what they're like, besides the fact that they like to make jokes and mess around.

This issue is largely created by the short running time the episodes have along with season 1 only having eight episodes in total. That's definitely understandable. It did get better in season 3 where we see Ludde having a deeper conversation with Adam and Omar and they finally don't just feel like the comic relief characters, but actual people with layers.

Ludde: I’m going to quit hockey. Adam: Are you serious? Omar: What the hell are you saying? Ludde: It’s not the same anymore. I’m not passionate about it. I… Yes, it sucks, but… I’ve thought about it for a while now. Omar: We make jokes about it and all, but… Yeah. It wouldn’t be the same without you. Kingelikingen. Adam: I get that it’s a tough choice. But yeah… You’ll work things out. You and Felicia. You always do. Ludde: You guys are pretty awesome sometimes, actually.

This scene was really sweet, and I wish we could've had moments like this between the guys in season 1. Just one scene to show that they're not just the "typical hockey guys". It feels like Ludde was the only person on the team in season 1 who wasn't just a background character. Even Elias, who you would assume should be at the forefront, isn't properly developed until 1x05 where we see him defending his sister and starting a fight with Ludde. Otherwise, it very much felt like Elias was kept in the background.

There are also guys on the team called Herman, Simon, Näslund, Ekbäck, Hoffmann, Berglund (even Montell, which was a fun nod to the show's director)... But who are they, actually? Do you even remember their names? To be honest with you, I don't. Because they're just names—not actual characters.

None of the other guys on the team get any depth. They're just sort of there as extras and to give the audience a sense of comedy with their "hockey team shenanigans". This was illustrated in 1x08, where Adam and Omar make their teammate Liam do a "sexy dance" on a table because he lost his virginity. Or a more extreme example—Jönsson, who only exists to be the comic relief and the unlucky guy who just can't catch a break.

In 2x04, Jönsson is told by Jack to do extra time in the gym and gets told off when he only spends a few minutes on the exercise bike. Later, Jack also makes a joke about how he should get Jönsson a defibrillator. In 2x09 Jönsson invites Ludde, Adam, and Omar to come to his mom's place to hang out. After he's left, Adam makes a comment about how there's no way he's going to "rot" in Jönsson's apartment that doesn't even have a balcony.

Don't get me wrong, these scenes aren't bad and I don't mean they should've been scrapped. Comedy can absolutely have its place in a show like this. Let's take the scene where Ludde flashes a couple of unfortunate old ladies on his first date with Felicia as an example. It feels like something a teenage boy would do to try to make a girl he likes laugh. It's a brief scene and it's nice to see Ludde being able to goof off only moments after talking about Andreas. We know that's a touchy subject for him.

However, it feels slightly overdone sometimes with how almost everybody on the hockey team is only there for comedic purposes and to fill space. It's more refreshing when they're shown to be multi-dimensional. I wish this is something that the writers would've considered when the show is literally titled after the hockey team, yet most of the hockey players are hardly in the story.

To add to this, it felt like Sara and Tobbe completely disappeared from the story in season 2. With Sara we understand that she probably didn't want to hang out with Klara anymore after knowing she filmed the Halloween video and posted it on Instagram, so that's fair. But it would've been nice to see Tobbe stick around in season 2, and I'll get back to why I think that.

The potential of season 1

When I look back on season 1 I feel really nostalgic. No matter how many small details that irked me, I can't deny that the setting of the show is beautiful and I really appreciate the depiction of it. Instead of showing Oskarshamn as a boring small town, we're shown the beauty of it which is incorporated into the storylines.

Some examples would be Ludde and Felicia's first date at Gunnarsö and walk through Havslätt, the gorgeous view of the Oskarshamn harbor from Klara's house Villa Högklint, and Badholmen where the school band performs and we later see Elias and Amie walking by in season 3. All these places are listed on the Eagles Oskarshamn site and I feel like they did a great job tying the storylines in with the locations.

Another aspect of season 1 and its writing that I really enjoyed was Elias and Amie's budding relationship. They just have a natural chemistry together and the dialogue between them also felt authentic and sweet.

Season 1 is just a very polished teen drama overall compared to some of SVT's previous series.

Back in 2007-2010, SVT used to air a soap opera-style show focusing on a few teenagers living in Gothenburg that was called Andra Avenyn (translation: Second Avenue). I was only seven at the time but I watched this show religiously as it aired three times a week. Just mentioning the show brings a lot of nostalgia.

Andra Avenyn amassed around 500 000 viewers per episode and was, just like Eagles, nominated for a Kristallen television award. But how good was it, really? If I take off my rose-colored glasses for a second and actually consider the show's highly dramatized storylines and unlikely scenarios, it had a tendency to drag on (which usually happens with soap operas). It didn't offer a realistic view of teenage life and on IMDb it currently sits at a rating score of 5.6 stars out of 10.

Comparing this old teen series to SVT's newer one, Eagles season 1 was a huge improvement and continues to be the most popular teen series that SVT has aired so far.

This idea and all the characters have lived in Stefan H. Lindéns mind since 2008, while Andra Avenyn was still on the air. It's actually amazing how high the quality of most TV shows has risen since then. Eagles has a rating score of 7.4 out of 10 stars on IMDb and has become internationally known in a way that Andra Avenyn never was.

Eagles season 1 laid the groundwork for SVT's most successful teen series of all time, and that's a huge achievement.

Season 2: "Subverting expectations"

When Eagles came back for season 2, the script made it kind of obvious that the writers had listened to the critique of season 1 being predictable.

I did find season 2 a huge step up from season 1—the directing was so much better and when it came to the script we got a deeper look into all the characters that they hadn't really scratched the surface of in the first season. My main disappointment however was that it felt like they threw in a bunch of weird plot twists just for the sake of "subverting expectations".

The core idea of subverting expectations can be great if done correctly. You lead the audience to believe they know what's going to happen, but then you surprise them with an unexpected and clever twist.

A post in Cinematography written by Mason Leaver defines the phrase of "subverting expectations" as:

[...] a method of surprising the audience with some element of a story, be it the plot, themes, characters, etc. This goes beyond a “twist” in a film. Expectation subversion actively works within the genre of a story, and attempts to reinterpret or subvert the conventions of that genre, breaking patterns in surprising and interesting ways. However, this method of surprising the audience is not always well received- it can sometimes be the source of heavy criticism from fans of the tropes which have been subverted.

This included "unexpected" relationships such as Elias/Klara and Amie/Ludde. The former actually worked, but the latter? Not so much.

Amie's crush on Ludde—make it make sense!

Amie and Ludde were my biggest issue with season 2, and it felt so out of character of Amie to be head over heels for Ludde. They work great as friends but romantically they're a huge mismatch.

But they have music in common, I hear you say. Yes, they do. But having a shared interest doesn't mean people are automatically a good match. You have to consider their chemistry and overall compatibility.

Before actors are cast in a show or movie where their characters will be romantically involved with each other, it's common to do what's called a chemistry read. Here's a neat description from an article in Backstage written by Caroline Liem:

Chemistry is the complex emotional or psychological interaction between two people. If this were a romantic article, it would be about love. Instead, we are discussing the astonishing rapport between two actors, and how that connection is achieved in order to book [...] the role. A chemistry read is an opportunity to read with actors being considered for a role opposite yours, usually lead roles. The main purpose is to see how you instinctively connect and work with the other actor.

This obviously wasn't done for the actors playing Amie and Ludde, since there didn't seem to be any intention of having their characters be involved in a romantic relationship.

That was even confirmed by Stefan H. Lindén in his Q&A of season 2, where he said that a love triangle between Ludde/Felicia/Amie was planned but later scrapped.

I can confirm that from the beginning of development of the series and the first version of the storyline a triangle drama was at some point intended for season 1 but later removed  – however when creating the characters, Ludvigs skill in music and arts was always there from the beginning so by knowing that, we always knew that interactions would appear between them. When looking back at Season 1, in the first scene by the lockers when Amie tells Felicia who Ludvig is, she does know exactly who he is and she is well aware of that his friend Tobias is a music guy that Amie wants to get to know. Also when looking at it, when I was the same age as Ludvig and Amie I, and I am sure a lot of people can relate to it, fact is that we never really knew if it was love or friendship in the beginning.

Knowing that the triangle drama was scrapped for season 1, it makes sense why it seems so arbitrary. There was no groundwork laid down for this pairing before it was hastily thrown together in 1x06 for a cheap plot twist. This continues in season 2, where Amie and Ludde start spending more time together. Yet it's hard to see Ludde as a potential love interest for Amie in the way the writers want us to. They still come off as friends despite having hooked up at a party.

I mentioned that Tobbe should've stuck around for season 2 and here's why. Tobbe was written to be the leader of the school band that Amie later joins, and he was friends with Ludde before the video was posted. He would've been a perfect fit for the Amie/Ludde music storyline but he's completely absent. He had the potential to be the person who could've helped them with the song a little and then later picked up on whatever there was going on between them.

I think the Amie/Ludde storyline could've hugely benefitted from a scene between Amie and Tobbe, where Tobbe asks if she actually has feelings for Ludde and we get to hear exactly what Amie is feeling. Maybe she's torn, not wanting to get together with Ludde because of how much they hurt Felicia, but at the same time finds it hard to suppress her feelings. A scene like that would've allowed us to get into Amie's head and make the Amie/Ludde storyline much clearer.

To add, this storyline was in desperate need of more interest from Ludde's side. There needed to be some indication from him that would make Amie believe he liked him back, even if that wasn't the case. All we get is Ludde complimenting Amie's song and then a hug in 2x05 when Amie says the record label in Stockholm wanted a meeting. And apparently, that was enough for Amie to think Ludde was interested in her despite him blowing off the Stockholm meeting and Amie hearing Ludde say that the Halloween incident was a mistake.

Ludde and Amie don't really mesh as well as Elias/Amie do or even as well as Ludde/Felicia do. Elias and Amie had sparks flying from the very first scene they shared. That pairing is one of the main reasons why the show became popular internationally, and why is that? Because of the actors' chemistry.

Amie and Ludde are a clumsy attempt at throwing together two people who don't really work together with the intention of "subverting expectations". And I suppose that's what the writers wanted to depict—an awkward crush that doesn't really make sense, which I'm sure many people have experienced as a teenager. That part is fine. But what I didn't like about this storyline is that Amie had no good reason to believe Ludde would be interested in anything with her beyond a platonic friendship.

While season 2 was airing, I was convinced that Amie wasn't actually in love with Ludde. She was just lonely after the aftermath of the Halloween video and mistook her feelings for Ludde as love when she just appreciated his company. Here's what I wrote:

So as we know, Amie kissed Ludde in episode 6 when he was in the hospital after having been injured during the hockey game against Karlskrona. She immediately seemed to regret having done that and ran out without an explanation, leaving Ludde alone and confused. I honestly don’t think Amie has any romantic feelings towards Ludde. I think she might mistake her feelings for a crush or something, when in reality she’s just lonely and appreciates Ludde always being there for her and giving her compliments on her musical ability. Ludde was complimenting Amie at the hospital, saying she was amazing, and I think Amie was just really touched by that and maybe wanted to thank him somehow, and ended up kissing him. And then she freaked out and left because oh my god did she really just kiss Ludde. It was an uncomfortable and awkward situation and that’s probably why she ran out. However, I really believe that if she had just stayed to explain and apologize, Ludde would understand and they could’ve just laughed it off. But this is a drama show so of course that wouldn’t happen! Do I think the writers are making them into a couple? No, definitely not. They know that season 1 was sort of predictable and cliché, so they’re making season 2 as different as possible by including these unexpected pairings such as Klara & Elias and Amie & Ludde. But Amie and Ludde won’t ever be a couple, because Ludde is still very much hung up on Felicia. I don’t see them as a couple either - yes, they have music in common, but they work way better as friends than in a relationship.

In Edvins Skådisdrömmar, which is a behind-the-scenes documentary of Eagles season 2, writers Fanny Ekstrand and Michaela Hamilton discuss the writing of the show in the documentary's third episode. The third episode is mostly focused on the lead-up to the scene where Amie kisses Ludde at the hospital. Adrian Öjvindsson, who plays Ludde, says:

Filming the kissing scene was [...] awkward and weird, actually. And that's how it ended up. Yandeh and I haven't really had any intimate scenes. In this case you could take in that it was weird, because that's also what the scene wanted to depict.

When Edvin reads the script, he describes the scene as a "nightmare" scenario. I agree. And the lazy build-up to this Awkward Kiss trope doesn't make it any better, because just like the Halloween incident this doesn't make a lot of sense.

It's supposed to be awkward and weird, just like Adrian said. But he also mentioned one of the most important details: Yandeh and I haven't really had any intimate scenes.

Before this kiss scene, there was nothing that indicated any chemistry between them. No accidental hand-touching, no longing stares, no nothing. Just a friendly hug. A proper build-up to the kiss scene would've made it feel less out of place.

The love confession from Amie to Ludde in 2x10 really threw me off as well. The confession to me made no sense and honestly felt like a prank call. There was no feeling behind it and zero reason for Amie to believe that there was a chance Ludde liked her back.

At the end of 2x08, Felicia goes to Ludde's house after he's confessed the truth to the police about the Andreas situation. Amie happens to overhear the conversation and she hears Ludde very clearly say that he's not interested in Amie.

Ludde: Felicia, there’s nothing between us. Between me and Amie. It was really the biggest mistake of my life. Felicia: Goodbye, Ludde. Ludde: Felicia, please!

Amie, now having her heart broken, crosses Ludde's name off the contract while crying. She knows he doesn't feel the same. So why would Amie even bother to call Ludde up to tell him she's "in love with him"?

Amie: [...] Hey, Ludde… Ludde: Yeah? Amie: It feels really weird to hear our song now. Because I know who the lyrics are about. And… And I… I really like you. Or, well… I’m in love with you. I just need to know how you feel. Or if you feel anything. Just tell me. Ludde: I’ll always want to be your friend, Amie, but… It’s Felicia I’m in love with.

This moment is on par with the awkwardness from the hospital kiss between them in 2x06. The second-hand embarrassment with this one was really rough, and what I don't understand is why this was even added to the script when Amie had already gotten the confirmation that Ludde didn't think of her in a romantic way. This storyline could've ended in 2x08 after Amie overheard the conversation between Ludde and Felicia.

It really didn't need to drag on for the whole season, essentially making Amie's whole storyline in season 2 about a guy. Her moment of finally getting signed to the record label was ruined when it could've been regarded as a fresh start if the storyline had just ended where it should have.

What this storyline did instead was ruining my favorite friendship of season 1, which was Amie/Felicia. This mess made it so hard for them to reconcile and they didn't end up properly addressing it until 3x09, spending almost two whole seasons mad at each other. It sucks that the writers decided to drag out their fighting and disagreements for this long when they could've instead shown two girls in solidarity who don't let a guy get between them and their friendship.

Amie apologized in 3x03 for how she hurt Felicia, but Felicia made it clear in 3x06 that she still harbored ill will towards Amie for what happened at Halloween (which in the timeline of this show was more than a year ago).

Felicia (to Amie): Are you going to start slobbering with [Elias] now too? Just give me back that sweater first, I don’t want slobber on that. Thanks.

I talked about how much I disliked the Amie/Ludde storyline in this post, with my main reason being that it really messed up the character dynamics that were established in season 1.

This storyline [of Ludde and Amie hooking up]—along with Amie falling in love with Ludde—is by far my least favorite one because it messed up the whole character dynamic. I feel like Amie and Felicia won’t ever go back to the kind of friendship they had in season 1 before the Halloween incident because the trust was so broken, and Amie really should’ve tried harder to apologize to Felicia like Ludde did instead of going after her best friend’s ex in season 2.

If there's just one thing I could change about this show, I would 100% get rid of the Amie/Ludde storylines. There is nothing that annoyed me as much as those storylines did.

Amie's musical ambitions

I've talked about this a bit before in another post because this was something that really bugged me about Amie's character in season 2. Here's what I wrote:

I honestly still feel like Amie’s whole storyline with sending in a rather basic demo written by two teenagers with little to no experience and then getting praised on it [by the Stockholm music producers] with comments such as “it’s going to be a real summer hit” felt so unrealistic to me. Maybe they only said that so Amie would accept their offer or something, but that’s still very strange because she would have still said yes without a doubt. I can understand that they thought Amie was marketable as a person and there was this bonus with her having gone viral before on Felicia’s Instagram, but that demo did not seem good enough for me to be immediately released as a single and then have them decide on the spot that Amie would be given a contract. I mean, come on. It never felt earned because we never really saw Amie struggling with her songwriting journey to achieve this dream. Sending in one demo to one record label and having them immediately want to make a whole album with you just doesn’t happen in real life unless the song is extremely good or you have a very unique voice. Amie is really talented but there are hundreds of people just like her, if not thousands. I was never convinced by her getting signed so quickly in season 2. I understand that they wanted to establish her as a successful artist [at the beginning of season 3], but that felt so rushed. I was so sure that the record label would screw her over and steal the song rights to record it with another artist who was already established, and that we’d have to see Amie work even harder to achieve her dreams. But we didn’t get that at all. Where was the struggle? [...] Of course I wanted to see Amie achieve success (and I was happy when she did), but the journey there was so bizarrely easy. She didn’t start to seriously work on making her music career become a reality until season 2. Amie had dabbled in music prior to that, like when she auditioned for the school band and did that performance of Follow, but she didn’t truly start to work towards it until season 2 when she decided to have her work sent to professionals in the business. And then, just five episodes later, she gets contacted by the record label in Stockholm. To put this into context—season 2 took place somewhere around March, and episode 5 around three weeks into April. So when Ludde first started helping Amie it took less than two months for her to get signed. You could argue that the song was just that good or that Amie is just that talented, but it never felt like a realistic storyline to me.

It's tricky to write a storyline like this when you only have ten 20 minute episodes in the season and a limited amount of screentime for every character. All that is understandable. But it's strange that they didn't opt for a time jump to really sell this storyline and make it believable.

Eagles uses time jumps a lot, but somehow this particular plot point was omitted from that and kind of glossed over. I don't really understand how they expected us to buy this storyline. The viewers aren't stupid, and more effort should've been put into this storyline.

In the post where I wrote this, @gajana18 also had an interesting thing to add:

[...] it's equally unrealistic that this huge record company would be hounding Amie, a teenage onehit wonder essentially to come back to the label- don’t they have other bigger artists?

This is a very strong point. Considering how Amie kept expressing that she wanted to finish school and then proceeded to ignore their calls, it's weird that they didn't just decide to discard her contract when Amie clearly wasn't taking her singing career as seriously as they wanted her to.

So, back to season 2. Maybe they could've gone with the record label stealing the rights to Amie's first song and screwing her over. This fuels her to try again and after a time jump of a few months we see Amie having worked really hard on a new and better song. Maybe even a whole album. And this time, she's learned from her past mistakes and improved her songwriting. This time, she's successful in her endeavor and it feels so much more earned after knowing the struggles she's been through to get there.

I also feel like a storyline like that would've made people sympathize with Amie more in season 2. It was really hard to root for her when she had nearly screwed Ludde over by not giving credit to his songwriting and saying "fuck him" when he didn't return Amie's feelings.

Klara's character development

When we're introduced to Klara in season 1, she's a stereotypical mean girl with wealthy parents who is the popular girl at school and has her own followers.

In season 2, the writers decided to develop the character. We find out Klara has issues at home and her mom is barely there. When she is, her parents will start fighting. Klara is feeling really lonely and doesn't really hang out with her friend Sara as much as she used to.

I appreciated the added depth, but it seemed like a drastic shift. The changed perspective could attribute to that but when you step back and really look at s1 Klara and s2 Klara, they're like two completely different people.

Maybe Klara's reputation suffered after she posted the Halloween video? Maybe she had a change of heart after Felicia finally confronted her during Lucia? I mean, I guess.

But what most fans (including me) didn't like about Klara in season 2 was that there were no clear consequences for her after she posted the Halloween video. Klara still hangs out with what seems to be the popular crowd and she has people to go out with. In a post I wrote last year about my thoughts on season 2, I wrote this:

I actually wish that Klara would’ve become more ostracized from her school friends to emphasize how alone she is, but she seems to still be pretty popular so that was kind of disappointing. I thought the fall-out of her posting the video would be worse, but I guess not. Anyway, I like that they’re taking a disliked character and making her into a better person. Feels like it’s been done a few times before, but I still appreciate them doing it. I hated s1 Klara for being so one-dimensional, but s2 Klara is well on her way to being a pretty good and nuanced character.

Her character development sort of comes a little out of nowhere, though. Her reputation wasn't ruined by posting that video and she didn't really lose any friends besides Sara (she had already lost Amie prior to posting that video considering what Amie said to her after Lucia in 1x08).

So what prompted Klara to become this whole new person who actually considers other people's feelings in a relatively short amount of time? Here's a conversation between Felicia and Klara in 2x07.

Felicia: Was there anything in particular you wanted to talk about? I understand that we’re not best friends just because you and Elias are together. We’re not here without a reason, right? Klara: No, I get that this feels weird for you. And if you don’t trust me after everything that’s happened - or that I’ve done. Felicia: Klara… Klara: I know that I haven’t acted like the world’s best person. And I regret that. Sorry.

But why does Klara regret her past behavior? What made her realize she hadn't acted like the "world's best person" if the ramifications from posting the Halloween video were so minimal?

Was it the relationship with Elias that made Klara change? No, I don't think so. When they first start talking at the bar in 2x03, Elias tells Klara that he doesn't always agree with Felicia and that he has his own viewpoints. In 2x07, he says Klara wasn't the one who messed up, but rather Amie and Ludde. And in 2x09, the script tells us that the Elias/Klara relationship seemed to bring more change to Elias rather than Klara.

Felicia: What did you do to him? Klara: What? Felicia: He’s smiling. Elias is like a whole new person since he met you. Klara: Stop. Felicia: I mean it!

So what made Klara change? In 1x08 she's mocking Felicia's drug problems and posts a video that will for sure ruin Amie's reputation. But at the start of season 2, she's suddenly become more withdrawn and considerate of people's feelings.

I can only name one factor that actually makes sense, and that's the fighting between her parents. Klara seems to turn into this quiet child when she has to listen to her mom and dad yelling at each other. This is something that didn't really begin until season 2, when Ola's company GECED started going under. This storyline was very well done.

But the other things, like Klara's reputation and friend group which you would assume would be affected, remain as they were in season 1.

Jack's sudden character change

Jack came into season 2 as a charming and charismatic character, seemingly fooling everybody into thinking he was a good guy. He knew the Kroon family from before and both Felicia and Elias were none the wiser when it came to the eventual reveal of his true colors.

Here's what Stefan H. Lindén had to say about the Jack character in his season 2 Q&A:

Bringing Jack in was actually originally not my idea, it came from my writer colleagues after that they revised my storyline notes for Season 2, while I was still down in Oskarshamn shooting Season 1. We had always intended for a character to come in and raise the stakes but I never imagined it to be Jack. When we started to develop the character, we all started liking him so he was kept in the story. Like with any new character we never really know who they are and what [the] point of them for coming in is [...]

Personally, I feel like the point of Jack's character is pretty obvious. When he first comes to Oskarshamn he is very much the embodiment of the new love interest coming in to date the girl who has broken up with her previous lover, while the previous lover still loves her and does anything he can to get her back although she's dating someone new. Jack is the Romantic False Lead trope who later becomes an alpha-dog Jerkass.

What I found interesting about Jack compared to Klara (in season 1) is that Jack isn't just a bad guy. He's very clever with his manipulation tactics and can easily charm people with his good looks and charisma.

When Felicia accuses Jack of cheating in 2x07, he manages to spin the whole thing around and make Felicia apologize to him and say it was stupid of her to believe he would cheat on her. I talked about this in a post while the season still aired, before Jack's true colors were revealed. Here's what I wrote:

I still don’t know if Jack really is cheating on Felicia with Olivia (the girl that texted him) but I would say he is. Jack is incredibly confident and charming, which makes him able to easily lie and manipulate people. We know he’s not an entirely good person since he’s already lied to Elias about not knowing that Mats would bring him back to Eagles. I wouldn’t be surprised if he really did hook up with Olivia and ended up being a really good liar. The fact is that not only did he deny it but he then shamed Felicia for blaming him and causing a scene, ultimately shifting the focus in the argument to her and making Felicia feel bad that she even confronted him in the first place. Jack says that maybe they shouldn’t even be together, which causes Felicia to backtrack and apologize. It’s actually pretty impressive how Jack was able to spin that around to blame Felicia and make her apologize.

Jack is able to take a small detail and use it as ammunition to get what he wants. In this situation, he brings up the girl in the Stockholm club that Felicia partied with and also kissed.

Jack: You shouldn’t accuse me, either. Felicia: What? Jack: I saw on Instagram, you and some girl in Stockholm. Have I whined about that? Coming here and blaming me for things, it feels really immature. Felicia: Fuck. Sorry, Jack.

Jack wasn't bothered by that at all. It happened before Felicia and Jack were even an official couple, and all they had done was hooking up at a party while Felicia was high. Jack, having cheated on Felicia, couldn't care less about the random girl Felicia kissed. That was just something he used to manipulate her.

When we discover that Jack is actually cheating on Felicia, he immediately reverts to a one-dimensional "evil" character. He's become the 2.0 version of Klara in season 1—written in just to stir up drama.

This "master manipulator" version of him just goes down the drain and Jack turns into a manchild who starts petty fights, files a police report because Ludde pushed him, and says to Felicia "I'm gonna tell on you!". Alright, maybe those weren't his exact words, but you know what I mean. It's a sudden shift and you start wondering how Jack was able to hide this version of himself so well before.

In 3x05, Jack sees Ludde and Andreas after a hockey game and fumbles trying to find any insult he can to hurl at Ludde. Everything he says from that point on is just line after line to really solidify that Jack is the bad guy. You didn't forget that, right? Here, let's have Jack call Felicia a druggie so you know just how shitty he is. And have him call Andreas a junkie later for good measure—there, that should be enough for people to understand that Jack is the villain here.

Jack: Johansson! Ludde: What the hell are you doing here? Jack: What does it look like? Ludde: I guess it’s you I should thank for the victory. Nice work. Jack: What is Felicia doing these days, then? Does she miss me? Ludde: Hey, you’re shutting up now, do you get it?! Jack: Jesus Christ. Do you think you can save her? What do you think she even sees in you? You two play in different leagues, Ludde. Ludde: You have no idea what we’re like. Jack: Come on! You should leave her. While you can. She’ll just pull you down into the dirt with her. You’re no hero, Ludde. Isn’t she still doing drugs? Once a druggie, always a druggie, right?

Jack is a horrible person, but at least he was able to pretend to be a good guy in season 2. And that was actually really fascinating. I wish we could've seen more of Jack's manipulative side that he showed in season 2 instead of making everything coming out of his mouth be a half-assed attempt at insulting the other person. That's a pretty boring villain, in my opinion.

Jack's backstory of his father being an alcoholic and him starting to resent the whole Kroon family because they had everything growing up while he didn't is interesting. It would've also made more sense if his anger was only directed towards the Kroon family since they're the ones he grew up with. They're the ones he was after the whole time.

His anger towards them feels cheapened when Jack also starts insulting Andreas (who he's probably never met before) for no good reason. It's like Jack's human qualities are just gone and all that's left is this empty shell made to start fights. His backstory didn't really make anybody sympathize with him, either.

The improvements of season 2

What I liked about the writing in season 2 was that they explored new ideas and had some solid storylines (besides the mess that was Amie and Ludde). Elias and Klara actually worked pretty well as a couple, even if they were pretty much the 2.0 version of Felicia/Ludde as the "wealthy, popular pretty girl starts dating the star player on the sports team".

Felicia finally gets some more depth. The scene at the end of 2x02, where Felicia and Leila park their car near the harbor and just start crying, is so powerful.

2x05 is also one of my favorite episodes of the show, as well as the ending montage of the 2x10 season finale. In Gameday, we had a very touching scene between Felicia and Mats where they finally communicate. It's not the most understanding conversation but it's a start. It's an interesting contrast between their talk in 1x06 where Felicia revealed she saw Mats cheating on Leila versus the talk they're having now.

Another one of my favorite scenes is when Felicia and Ludde meet up at their bench in 2x10 after Ludde has called her up asking Felicia to come if there's any chance of them getting back together.

The dialogue is simple and to the point. There's no long-winded love confession for the sake of drama. It's a moment that the whole season has been building up for, and when we finally get there we realize that this is how love should be.

Easy and simple.

Ludde: You came back. Felicia: Yeah, I did. Ludde: Do you remember our first date here? Felicia: No. I’ve forgotten. Ludde: I was so freaking nervous. Felicia: Everything you said… Did you mean it? Because you hurt me, Ludvig. And I… I’ve really tried to hurt you back, but… It’s not possible. I can’t… Not love you. Do you think… Do you think it can be us again? Ludde: What do you think? Felicia: I don’t want anything else.

Ludde admitting how nervous he was on their first date is sweet and shows us how much they've been through. Felicia is struggling to find the words to say and she's acknowledging how hurt she was, but still can't seem to find it in her heart to hate Ludde. It's honest.

Another plotline that I think was a little underrated in season 2 is the GECED company going bankrupt and Ola, Klara's dad, is under investigation for financial crime. This isn't a storyline you would usually see in a teen series. It's much more serious. It also gave us a really touching and poignant scene in 2x08 between Ola and Klara sitting on the floor of his office, where Klara has to comfort her father who starts crying.

Ola: When you were little you used to sit like this. On the floor, while I was working. You had your own room, but you wanted to sit with me. “Help daddy work”. Mom’s doing the right thing by leaving for a while, don’t blame her for that. Klara: What, you can’t just leave because things get a little tough. Ola: Maybe you should get away for a while too. You know, I never wanted you two to… That you… Everything’s gone. Klara: It will be fine. It will be fine. Ola: Sorry. I’m sorry.

In 2x09, Klara is at a party when she notices a bunch of missed calls from her dad. She immediately senses something is wrong and rushes home to find her dad having attempted suicide. It's executed very well and I really liked the more serious tone they went for in season 2.

It set up season 3 perfectly, which continued with the darker themes but balanced them very well with the more light-hearted moments.

Season 3: Finding one's footing

Season 3 was a highly anticipated season. I thought the season 2 finale was masterfully done and it left me wanting more. When season 1 finished on its cliffhanger of the video leaking, the focus only seemed to be on that.

But with season 2 there's Felicia/Ludde getting back together and Ludde having been sued by Jack, Jack threatening that he would leak all of the Kroon's family secrets, Klara's dad passing away, Elias deciding to get on the train and go to the draft combine anyway, Amie having finally become a recording artist but being isolated and heartbroken... There's so much to unpack, and it's a lot more interesting than the ending of season 1.

Where's Jack?

Jack is supposed to be the main villain but he's gone for most of the season, failing to show up until 3x05. In the season 2 finale Jack makes a huge deal about how he's going to destroy Felicia's life. He's threatening her in a very violent and abusive way.

Jack: [...] I know a lot about you, Felicia. And your nice family. It’s enough for me to leak to one news site. I can destroy you. Do you get it? I’ll tell them everything. The drugs, the cheating, your abortion! Felicia: Shut up! Jack: Hey. Huh? Did you seriously think I wanted to be with you? The little Kroon princess, who has gotten everything for free her whole fucking life! You and Elias! Like spoiled brats! You don’t understand what it means to fight for something!

In 2x10, Jack decides to report Ludde for assault but he doesn't follow through on destroying this family that he hates. If there's anything Jack seems to despise above all, it should be the Kroon family, right? So why did he fight back with Ludde but not the Kroon family?

I expected Jack to leak all the Kroon secrets at the beginning of season 3, but Felicia seems strangely calm at the funeral which I'm assuming only takes place two weeks or so after Ola's passing in the season 2 finale.

Then, a whole year passes with no indication that Jack is ever going to leak anything. As season 3 was airing, I commented on how strange this felt in an ask I received:

One of my main questions about the time jump is the whole thing with Jack saying he was going to ruin Felicia’s and the Kroon family’s reputation in the press. It seemed like nothing really came of that? I’m pretty sure that detail hasn’t been abandoned entirely and that Jack will come back (we’ve already seen a glimpse of him in the third episode), but it feels strange that Jack threatened to leak all her secrets and then just never did. I got the impression that Jack was a person who, when having his pride wounded, would do pretty much anything to get back at the person who insulted him. And yet there’s no mention of where Jack has been during that time or what he’s been doing. I feel like I would be pretty paranoid about this if I was Felicia, but we don’t see this haunting her until episode 3 when she sees a flash of Jack before realizing it was just some random guy. It seems strange that Felicia was relatively at ease during the funeral (which I assume took place not long after Jack first threatened her) and after the time jump. We don’t really know what’s been going on during that year, but Felicia seems to be fine and like she hasn’t had any thoughts of Jack at all. Maybe she assumed that his threats were empty and that he wouldn’t actually leak anything to the press, which is reasonable but at the same time I don’t understand why Jack has yet to do anything after a year. He was really pissed off in the season 2 finale, after all.

Going to repeat one of the things I wrote here because it deserves to be mentioned twice, and this point is one of my biggest issues.

I got the impression that Jack was a person who, when having his pride wounded, would do pretty much anything to get back at the person who insulted him.

I feel like this was kind of a plot hole that wasn't explained. Jack is ruthless and doesn't hold back at all when his true colors come out. He has no problem talking about the sexual relationship he had with Felicia in front of her father. Jack is just that horrible.

So what prevented him from ruining the Kroon family's lives earlier, when it seems to be the thing he's wanted for years?

Michael's predictable predicament

Michael first appears at the end of 3x04, where he calls Amie up to tell her he's her father.

Man: Hey! Sorry for calling so late. Is it Amie? Amie Condé? Amie: Yeah. Man: I saw you on TV the other day. I’m Michael Condé. I’m your father.

In the next episode, we get a voice-over of the continued conversation between him and Amie.

Michael: [...] I understand if it’s shocking. I’m in Oskarshamn for work for a few weeks and— Could we meet up someday?

So, it's clear what the writers are going for here. It's the estranged father who returns into the child's life when they've become successful. We're made to believe it's a Daddy Had a Good Reason for Abandoning You trope when Michael meets up with Amie and tells her why he left.

Michael: So Petra, she— Has she said anything about me? Amie: Well… That you moved from Sweden before I was born… That you’re working as a lawyer. That you didn’t want to see me. Michael: I was… I was young when we met. Your mom and I. And everything went really fast. I was in love, but she had feelings for somebody else. And when she found out that she— That she was expecting you, then… She didn’t want me there. She said I wasn’t father material. To some degree she might’ve been right, but… I wasn’t much older than you are now. I had just gotten into a law school in Berlin. When I finally came back to Sweden, then… She didn’t let me see you. I had already lost you by then, but I want you to know that I— I’ve thought of you. And about a week ago, I… I’m seeing you. On TV. There you are. With my last name. I’m so proud.

However, it's pretty easy to identify the holes in Michael's story. To be honest this whole storyline was predictable from the very start. Before Michael even came into the story, I made this post which pretty much summed up Michael's whole character when we didn't even know he existed yet (this was when 3x03 was the latest episode that had aired).

I don’t think we’ve heard any mention of Amie’s dad in the whole series except for 3x02 when Amie was being interviewed and was asked about the Condé name where she said that while Samuelsson was from her mother’s side, and Condé was from “the other side”. I found her word choice a little interesting. I don’t think Amie’s dad has passed—but rather that he’s alive and just chosen to not be a part of her life, which is why Petra seemed to be a little offended when asking Amie why she didn’t want her last name anymore. This might also be why Amie said “the other side” rather than “my dad’s side” because they have an estranged relationship. [...] I’m not really sure if they’ll do anything with Amie’s dad (maybe they’ll go for that trope where the parent who previously abandoned their child returns after the child has accomplished something big/something major happened and the parent wants something from them for personal gain?).

When we actually get to meet Michael and hear his explanation of why he left, I wrote this post pointing out some of the holes in this storyline.

Michael meeting Amie only after she’s become famous is a little suspicious, but it’s understandable if he previously thought she didn’t want to meet him and then sees her with his last name on national television. Obviously he would contact her after that. I feel like there were some question marks with Michael’s whole story though, and the fact that his work just conveniently happened to send him to Oskarshamn after he’d just seen Amie on TV. Maybe I’m missing something here, but how did he know Amie had gone back to Oskarshamn if he saw her living as a pop star in Stockholm? Was this information about Amie quitting the tour and going back to her hometown even online? If Elias (who actually witnessed Amie saying she was done and quitting) seemed taken aback when he saw Amie in Oskarshamn, then how did Michael know?

I do think Michael will return for season 4 though, so hopefully this storyline will be straightened out a little. We don't really know what Michael has been up for the past few years and if he has a family of his own. Maybe he'll contact Amie again to tell her she has some younger half-siblings?

They ended on sour terms, but if Michael does have his own family it's something Amie deserves to know and she can decide whatever she wants to do. I'd also like to see a Michael/Petra reunion, but I'm getting a little ahead of myself.

This storyline wasn't bad, and I do appreciate we got to find out what the situation with Amie's dad was. I also liked how I was able to sympathize with Michael. He's not entirely awful, even if he did put a lot of blame on Petra. It's one of those situations where you don't really know what it's like to be in Michael's position unless you've experienced it, and it's very realistic.

Plot holes

Some of the plot holes of season 3 that I've already mentioned are how Jack waited a whole year before leaking the Kroon family's secrets and how Michael conveniently knew Amie was in Oskarshamn when nobody seemed to know she was coming except her mom.

I actually don't mind that it was never explained how Michael got Amie's phone number either, because that's usually pretty easy to find with a Google search. Things like addresses, economic status, and even your criminal history are easily accessible in Sweden when googling someone's name. So finding someone's phone number is probably fairly easy as well.

On the other hand, one of the most glaring plot holes appeared in 3x08. In this episode entitled Lost, the Kroon family is frantically searching for Felicia who has gone missing. Leila and Elias knock on Petra's door to see if Amie is there and might know something about Felicia's whereabouts. Petra tells them Amie isn't there and they leave.

Someone left me an anonymous ask which I answered in this post, pointing out how it was strange that Elias didn't just call Amie to ask her when she wasn't at home. We know Elias has her number because they've been talking on the phone and texting each other several times before in the season.

In 3x08, when Elias and his mom go to Amie's house and ask Petra if Amie has seen or spoken to Felicia or whether she's home, I couldn't help but wonder, uh Elias why not just call Amie and ask her if she has seen or spoken to Felicia? [...] if Elias had called her and she heard how frightened him and his family were and police being involved she would have told him and then there would be no point in the 3x09 episode really.

This is a very strong point. You could argue that maybe Elias just didn't think of that but if they went out of their way to visit Amie's house only to not find her there, it would seem like calling her instead would just be a logical next step in the situation? Here's what I wrote in response to this ask.

This is an issue I had with 3x08 and 3x09 as well. I had a hard time actually enjoying the moment between Felicia, Klara, and Amie knowing that her family was getting increasingly worried for her and even thought for a short moment that Felicia was lying dead at the bottom of the ocean. All that could’ve been avoided. To add, it didn’t make a lot of sense to me that when Klara finally decided to call someone she called Amie instead of Elias. An ex-friend of Felicia’s instead of her brother who could’ve helped a lot more. What was Amie supposed to do when she showed up at the hotel, exactly? I know there was the thing with Klara only knowing Amie’s number off the top of her head, but there is no reason why she couldn’t have gone down to the reception while Felicia was sleeping and asked to use a computer just to get a quick message to Elias. Like, “hey, Felicia attempted something bad but she’s safe with me, we’re at this hotel in this room but she didn’t want me to call anybody, I don’t know what to do”. That would’ve been so much better than keeping quiet about the situation for nearly 24 hours. I know that Klara probably has trauma from leaving her dad at the hospital after his suicide attempt and that she probably didn’t want to go against Felicia’s wishes. I understand the first part 100%. But Felicia was in a very bad place emotionally and was thinking that her whole family hated her when that wasn’t the case. I feel like in a situation like that you kind of have to be the bad guy just to ensure the family that Felicia was safe. Even if everything turned out alright in the end, it could’ve gone so much worse if Felicia had wanted to be kept hidden for longer. [...] Elias calling Amie would’ve been an easy solution to this whole debacle but we would’ve lost the drama. It’s still somewhat of a plot hole though, like you said.

I understand it was done this way for dramatic effect, but that doesn't really patch up the plot hole.

I also found it strange how many people turned on Felicia after Jack ruined her reputation in the press. I talked about this in an ask I received.

I don’t understand why the public turned on Felicia so harshly. And Leila too, for that matter. The way Jack told the story about how these two women had things done to them should indicate that they’re not the ones to be blamed. If I read this article and found out an 18-year-old girl got pregnant by a “violent criminal” who forced her to abort and then abused her I would not be angry with the girl. I would be angry that she was physically abused and also outed on her sexuality for being bi. If I read this article and found out Leila had been cheated on by her husband repeatedly with her best friends, I wouldn’t be angry at her. I would not agree with the decision to turn to alcohol (same as Felicia turning to drugs), but I wouldn’t blame them. And I feel like a lot of people should’ve been on Leila’s side after finding out the reason why they divorced. I don’t understand why people are saying they’re disappointed in Felicia and calling her fake when she’s been through so much trauma in her life. I feel like if this actually happened in real life, all the blame would be shifted to the men because they’re the ones who—in this story—are painted as the bad guys (with the exception of Jack, considering he was anonymous).

I got another anonymous ask sent in after this, pointing out how the anger directed towards Felicia was considerably more about her drug use rather than the abuse she endured. Here was my response to that:

[...] the drug use should’ve been understandable considering the stuff Felicia had been through was also written in that article. I don’t know. I can understand people unfollowing her if they didn’t want their young children to be exposed to all the controversy, but it’s still strange that everything Felicia received was hate messages. Did everybody just skip over the part where the anonymous source stated that Felicia was violently forced to have an abortion by an ex-criminal and probably did so out of fear for her life? Yes, we know this is fake, but why didn’t anybody seem to mention this? [...] they seem to have written this storyline with the idea in mind that the public was against the whole Kroon family. Felicia got comments such as “So fucking disappointed in you and your family”, “What a nasty fucking family”, “You and your family are so fucking disgusting”. So I think Leila received plenty of hate for drinking instead of divorcing her husband sooner and basically turning a blind eye to all the problems her family went through. That’s what Jack told the press, at least. The anger seemed to be directed towards every member of the Kroon family and that didn’t make a lot of sense to me.

Again, this is something the writers did to dramatize the situation and they kind of forgot to consider that what Jack actually told the journalist wasn't as incriminating for Felicia and Leila as it were for Mats and Elias.

The magic of season 3

What season 3 really excelled in, to me, was delving into some more serious topics as well as showing the gradual development of Amie and Elias' relationship. Amie and Elias are the prime example of how a slow burn is so much better than having a couple get together too fast, like Felicia and Ludde did back in season 1.

While season 3 was still airing, I wrote a post dedicated to questions I had received about Elias and Amie. Here's one of the things I said about them:

I think Elias’ interest in her really started to grow after he saw how caring Amie was to Felicia, and later on connecting with her on how they both ended up back in Oskarshamn after following their dreams which didn’t exactly turn out the way they expected. Yes, Elias has always sort of been watching and admiring Amie from afar, but that interest didn’t start growing until he actually got to know her. The experiences they had in the US and Stockholm, respectively, probably changed their mindsets and in my opinion it makes so much more sense for them to get together now than it would’ve in season 1 or season 2.

I still believe that Elias and Amie are the best-written couple of the whole show (at least so far), because they just make sense. We'll see what season 4 has in store for them because we have yet to actually see them in a romantic relationship, but I feel like their personalities and characters just fit together really well.

Another thing I really appreciated was the depiction of Felicia and Ludde's declining relationship. Things like that happen so easily, and I liked how we see Felicia do this huge gesture of planning a picnic for Ludde in 3x04 but there were still underlying problems between them. It's like that in real life too—no matter how big of a romantic gesture you make, communication will always be the number one priority in any relationship and that's where Felicia and Ludde fall short.

The obvious disconnect between them when it comes to money is also important. It's been like this from the beginning, but season 3 gave us an actual conversation about it.

Felicia: Please, I can’t talk about this. Seriously. It was stupid of me to bring this up from the beginning. Fuck, I get such anxiety talking about the future— Ludde: You get anxiety? I’m the one walking around with no money in my account. Mom and dad had to get a loan to pay off mine and Andreas’ fines. I’m playing on a shitty old synth, and living off you like some leech. That’s anxiety. Felicia: Everything isn’t about money. Ludde: Says the one who has money. Felicia: Move out then, if it’s so fucking hard to feel like a leech.

This felt very realistic. Of course a person like Felicia wouldn't think money is everything when she's never experienced financial issues. She's able to move out into her own one-bedroom apartment as soon as she's turned 18, it seems, and doesn't worry at all about the cost of furnishing and decorating it. She didn't even pay for it herself, because Mats mentions he's the one on the mortgage loan. It seems like Felicia has never had an actual job either, and that's starting to worry her because she has no idea what she should be doing.

Felicia: [...] I don’t know what I’ll be or what I’ll do in the future. I don’t know that. Ludde: You’re still an influencer— Felicia: Don’t say I’m an influencer, please. Do you think I want to be that my whole life? It’s not even a career. I'm— I’m graduating next year, and I… My grades suck, and— I have no plan. I only have you. Not like that—I have you. That’s what I have. I want to be here, in Oskarshamn. I don’t want to go to the US and chase some dream and be a hockey wife. That’s not a life. Sometimes I wish neither of us had a plan, just us together here.

Felicia's character finally offers something interesting here, which I've waited for since season 1. She's not just a party girl anymore who has issues with drugs. She's a privileged teenager who is co-dependent on the guys she meets and who has anxiety about the future, to the point where she wishes she could stay in Oskarshamn in her little apartment forever stuck in limbo.

She has to face a harsh reality when Ludde decides to break up with her, and later on when her name is slandered in the press and people all over the country are sending her hate messages. Her own family is furious with her and Felicia has nobody. She's pushed away a lot of people and her mental state is just crumbling in front of our eyes.

It's a strong storyline and actually very well executed. Almost everything gets taken away from her, and at the end of 3x07 you can almost feel what Felicia is feeling. We've been with her through this whole journey, almost, and we understand why she feels like suicide is the only answer.

It's tough to watch that final scene of 3x07. It's greatly amplified by Alva Bratt's superb acting, but the writing of the journey there is also amazing. It's very difficult to write a sensitive storyline like this.

Overall, I don't have a lot of critique towards season 3. I loved most of the episodes. I elaborated on this further in a separate post:

[Episodes 3x04 and 3x05] showcased what Eagles should be all about so well, which is relationships plus the struggles you go through as a teenager in a small town, and then of course hockey. The hockey game episodes are really good, even if I don’t think 3x05 topped 2x05 (the game where Ludde got tackled and knocked out). I loved the contrast in Date night of the budding relationship between Elias and Amie and then that fight between Felicia and Ludde on the cliff. [...] It was interesting to see how this sweet gesture from Felicia turned into a fight between the two of them. I thought that was very realistic, because no matter how big of a gesture Felicia made to apologize there were still underlying problems that they needed to talk about. I also loved the “non-date” between Elias and Amie in this episode. It was cute to see them goofing off before the movie started and then talking about it on the way home. I liked how Elias could connect to her on how they had both returned to Oskarshamn. The recent episodes that dropped last week (3x08 and 3x09) were very strong and discussed some important subject matters [...] They were dark, but not necessarily bad because they needed to happen. However, I have to say that I prefer Eagles when it’s about hockey and teenage relationships. 3x04 and 3x05 made me kind of nostalgic for season 1 and I liked the vibe they both had.

Eagles season 3 is in my opinion the best season of the show so far, and we haven't seen any signs suggesting that there is any reason for season 4 to not be even better.

Season 4: Hopes and wishes

Considering how each season has been increasing in quality bit by bit, I have pretty high hopes for the writing in season 4. I'm excited to see how the transition from teenager to young adult will be portrayed in the main characters, and what their future will hold for them after they've graduated.

My main questions are if Felicia and Ludde will find their way back to each other or if they'll remain broken up (that would be realistic as well), if Klara will reconcile with her mom, what's in store for Elias's hockey career, and if Amie will leave her label and maybe opt for something more independent.

I also want to see how Felicia deals with the new home she's checked in to, and if Ludde will in fact go to the school now that it seems Andreas will be getting into trouble again.

Amie and Klara are kind of wild cards here, because it somewhat feels like they've already reached their happy endings. Amie is famous and successful in her pop music career, and Klara has found her place as a businesswoman following in her father's footsteps. Maybe these developments should've come in season 4 instead of rushing them.

Nonetheless, I have faith in the writers. The writing suffered a little in seasons 1 and 2 but it has gotten better. Most of the things I pointed out about season 3 were just small details in an otherwise stellar season.

In conclusion...

This post was critical, but I tend to be critical of every show I watch. Eagles is still a very special show for me and having grown up in a Swedish small town myself I'm very fond of the show and its characters.

So huge thanks to the creator, Stefan H. Lindén, for making this show a reality and also to the director Carl-Petter Montell for contributing to the writing in season 3. And of course the writers of the show which include Michaela Hamilton, Fanny Ekstrand, and Anton Nyberg (plus Amanda Adolfsson who helped write 1x02 and 1x05 and Simon Ekbäck Nordström who is credited for helping with the hockey scenes in 3x05).

I hope you guys enjoyed this long, long post and major kudos to you if you read this far!

[bisluthq]

Would you mind sharing your thoughts on Coney Island and it's Taylor/Joe meaning, especially with the line about not making him her centerfold. I can't help but think centerfold must be a reference to Karlie

So Joe co-wrote it, right. For me, one of the big shifts this era has been him kinda stepping into the light with her. Like he’s no longer this invisible muse you can ignore. He collaborated on both - writing for both, and now even playing piano. The willow love interest looks like him in the reflections at the start. She really hyped up his contributions in the doccie. And some of y’all said “oh that’s so weird” but in relation to Coney Island I legit don’t think it is.

I’ve said before that Joe probably planned to be famous. The shit she has said about how normal he is... her projecting. You don’t take a starring turn in an Ang Lee movie and feature in magazines that call you the next big thing and then suddenly... stop wanting that just because your girlfriend asked you to. Like he took a conscious step back (Sense of an Ending, after Billy Lynn, was a fucking choice). But in that alma mater interview all he could talk about was fucking Billy Lynn. And idk I think eventually it all got tiring. Like being Mr Taylor Swift - this invisible joke “muse” - probably ended up feeling pretty shit.

Having her fans - not just Gaylors - see him as just an extension of her, like even the ones who are obsessed with him “rescuing” her know fuck all ABOUT HIM and idk I don’t think that felt nice.

So I think to me Coney Island makes sense for that background and is probably them dealing with it and working through it - hence writing it together. “What's a lifetime of achievement / If I pushed you to the edge? / But you were too polite to leave me” sounds like it could legit be those two. Her lifetime of achievement pushing him to the edge but he was kinda too nice to do anything about it for a while. Also “But when I walked up to the podium I think that I forgot to say your name” - she has very famously never given him a s/o. With quarantine these are things they probably talked about.

And him writing depro ass exile and apology anthem betty also fits this stuff.

She tweeted that thing about how it was “the cruelest summer” also. So idk. They could’ve had issues this year. It really does make sense.

Final point: for me Delicate was always for Joe/London Muse so that reference also supports it.

Hope that makes sense! HMU.

[shra-vasti]

Second life

Pairing : Lee Seokmin x reader

Type : Soulmate au, reincarnation au, idol au.

Genre : angst, fluff

Warning : mention of death in previous life.

Word count : 2-3k approx

Soulmate au type : In which when you make eye contact with your soulmate, the world stops and you get to witness the most memorable event of their previous life.

A sigh left your mouth forming a patternless cloud, wearily telling you the arrival of the season of chirstmas. Your gaze was on the streetlights that shined oh so brightly and the ground covered with thin layer of snow. You could see people walking to their respective destinations as they piled themselves with additive layers of clothings. They seemed to enjoy themselves unlike you.

You, who was sitting on your bumped out window seat with your favourite novel in your one hand, the other holding a warm cup of coffee which is already half empty and a soft blanket splayed on your legs although the heater is on. The winter's chillness still somehow ran through your body, you always failed to cope up with winter dispite it being your favorite season. But here you were in your maternal grandmom's house in Korea feeling loneliest you have ever felt.

Winter was your favorite season mainly because of chirstmas and the joyous atmosphere the occasion created. You loved chirstmas, you always look forward to it because you get to roam around the world during this time. Every year you celebrate Christmas in some new country, it started with your parents taking you to vacations for the grand holiday and ended up with you still carrying on the tradition of celebrating Christmas every year in a new country, a tradition long forgotten by your parents because of their work.

This time it was different, although you never celebrated your Christmas in Korea you came here this time mainly because your parents wanted you to spend some time with your grandparents and also to distract you from your thoughts for a while. Thoughts of never being able to find your soulmate. It haunted you because you didn't have any soulmark on your body, neither you had counter nor any sign of their name or you stopped aging. It pained you, watching your friends getting their soulmate mark and some of them already finding them.

You envied them, they had something which you failed to have. Your eye color didn't change and your vision was still the same and the thoughts of not having a soulmate and living your life alone made your heart ache. It wasn't that you hated the idea of being alone but just like others you wanted to feel loved by your significant other. But you didn't have a soulmark and it terrified you.

As time passed the thoughts made you more sad and the fact that majority of your friends were now with their soulmate enjoying their first chirstmas or second one together made you feel vulnerable. This was the first time you weren't smiling or feeling the hype of chirstmas you always felt. Your sadness didn't get unnoticed by your parents who were also soulmates, they understand where you were coming from so they insisted you to spend your chirstmas with your grandparents instead.

You sighed to yourself deciding it was the best if you have a walk outside in the street to keep your mind from wondering. You changed up you clothes into some more warm clothing and head down to inform your grandma that you'll head out for a while. As soon as your feet landed outside the door the chillness of the surrounding, although mild, hit your face making you put your hand in your coat pocket and ultimately taunting you to go back inside the comfort of your room.

Your feet started moving, the destination still unknown but it wasn't like you were supposed to be anywhere right now. Your head was down, cheeks red and hair moving in the most imperfect way forcing your hand to come out of your coat pocket and tuck them behind.

Your steps started slowing down and you look up taking in your surrounding. There were many open shops, selling all of the things required to make your chirstmas merry. So many children with their parents enthusiastically shopping for the holiday, there were food stalls making your stomach grumble but that wasn't the thing to be concerned about at the moment considering you have never being to this place.

You took in your surroundings and turn your head in different direction to see if you remember at least one way out and anxiety started creeping inside you when you realize you were lost.

Panicking you threw your gaze across the street to find at least a bus station only for you to stop when your eyes locked with a stranger who wore a mask which was lowered till his chin, hands cladded in his jeans and a jacket as his honey eyes stared back at you. You felt as if your heart would burst and before you could do anything your vision blurred and everything stopped.

▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️

"Yah Dokyeom where are you taking me?" you heard a voice followed by a loud giggle, you positioned yourself in such a way that you could at least get a glimpse of the owner of the voices.

Your vision steadied and confusion crept inside you when you realized you weren't in the place you were a few minutes ago. You look around to see you have been to some sort of lounge? You quickly hide yourself behind the decorative bush when you heard some noises coming in your direction.

"Just a little bit more." the guy whom you assume was Dokyeom replied.

You squit your eyes to have a better look as he opened the blind fold to the person in front of him. Your eyes widened as you looked at the person accompanying Dokyeom, who looked exactly like you.

You got to have a better look at Dokyeom to realize that he was the same guy with whom you have locked eyes before getting transferred to this place and then it clicked you. You have heard about the stories about meeting your soulmate and being able to experience an event of their previous life. Maybe that guy across the street was your soulmate and here you were witnessing one of the most memorable event of his life.

That wasn't much of a shock to you but the fact that you were also soulmates in your past life made your heart warm and full of love. You shook your head as you tried to think about this soulmate bond more, are you invisible in front of them or they were able to see you were some question dancing across you mind.

A sudden blasting of Balloon scared you and you lost your balance making a loud noise panicking you look towards your past self and dokyeom to see if they noticed but they didn't confirming that they can't see you.

A smile plastered across your face as you made your way towards them to witness the event closely.

"Happy 5 year anniversary." Dokyeom said as he tucked your past self's hair behind the ear and kissed the forehead.

"Happy 5 hear anniversary to you too but you didn't have to do something so extravagant." you found yourself saying as you hugged him tightly.

He shook his head at that taking your hand and leading you towards the dinner table to cut the cake.

You felt yourself smiling as you witnessed everything. The way both of you looked at each other full of love, the way you both shared you smiles whenever you made an eye contact made you realize that you weren't meant to be lonely, that you have been blessed with this amazing person even in your past life and you bet he was as sweet as he was before in his current life too.

The celebration was over, but Dokyeom looked a bit too nervous as you saw him get on one knee when you were not looking towards him and you heard yourself gasped as you finally noticed him. A big smile mixed with nervousness and eyes filled with adoration on his face as he pulled a velvet box out asking if you would like to have a forever with him. You could feel your eyes tear as he put the ring on your left finger, you witnessed everything and you were more than overwhelmed that you were present in his past life's most memorable event.

You shook your head for spacing out like that and made a run towards where you and him were heading. You didn't know when the event will head so that you would be back in your present timezone so you decided to follow them till to are transferred back in your present.

You sat at the back of car witnessing your past self flirting and chatting happily. The car stopped at the green signal and you fiddled with your hands thinking as to why you were still in this time zone. Were you stuck?

A loud screaming could be heard followed by a loud crashing sound making the car flip for a couple of time before finally coming into a halt.

"Babe?" you checked yourself to see you were alright and weren't hurt but when you looked towards Dokyeom and yourself you were sure your past self has stopped breathing.

"Yah wake up, babe?" there was so much blood on your face and on his hands as he tried to slap your face lightly a few time but when you didn't he broke down. You felt your heart break and you look towards his vulnerable state. You guys were engaged before you died.

After a couple of minutes the cries completely stopped, you made your way outside of the car and opened the car door of the driver's side shaking Dokyeom as much as you could but he wasn't alive you conclude, even if he was he wouldn't have been able to hear you anyway.

You got up as sirens started blasting and ran away from the car only for it to blast and create a giant explosion and your vision blurred once again.

▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️

You gasped because of the suddenness of everything and you fell on your knees trying to make your breathing normal. A pair of shoes stopped right in front of you as you look up.

"You alright?" he asked asked as he kneeled in front of you taking your face in both of his hands and scanning your face in concern.

"Dokyeom?" you whispered to which he chuckled shaking his head.

"Dokyeom it is, but I would prefer if you call me Seokmin that's my real name." he said as he raise his eyebrows silently asking you for your name. You told him your name after that clutching on his jacket tightly as if he was going to disappear.

"Did you see the same glimpse as I did of....of us dying?" you questioned with him nodding his head vigorously at that. You chuckled at his antics and hugged him tightly.

He returned the hug with as much passion voluntarily hiding his face inside the mask once he realized he was on the street full of people. You threw a confused gaze at him for wearing his mask as he pulled you up and lead you towards a more scheduled area where there were less people.

"You see I'm a member of Seventeen, a kpop boy group and people here might recognize me therefore I put on my mask." he explained.

"It's okay. Might as well get into some new music from now on." you laughed as he hugged you again, inhaling your scent.

"You know I was so scared that I didn't have any soulmate casue majority of my members had some or the other soulmark except for me and I was terrified thinking I would never meet you." he confessed.

"I used to cry myself to sleep thinking the same but not now. Now I know that you are here, you were always here and I'm so glad to have met you once again in this life." you sighed.

You met him and suddenly you knew which was the best chirstmas of your life. You were glad that your parents sent you here, you were glad you decided to take a walk, you were glad you were lost. This is how destiny works. It works magic you thought smiling to yourself.

"It's getting late I should head home now, my grandparents must be worrying." you told him pouting.

"I'll drop you home." he said as he intertwined your hands with his. You nodded at him as you told him your address and started walking with him.

You were glad that you had him. He was yours and he was perfect. Whatever insecurities you had completely vanished as you walked with him. It was fate that brought you two together and you were thankful for that.

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"Even if a second life that’s different from now comes to me, the one thing I can say is that I’m going to be by your side. On a sudden day when I’m left alone I’ll take my steps towards you again."

[atalienart]

I gotta ask, about the whole 'Can't draw popular characters...' how is Miles popular but not Gwen or Peter? Or by that same token, Harry Potter characters, whose art is everywhere? I'm honestly curious what the difference is.

You know when something is hyped so, so, much, you know, popular at the particular time? And you love that something and you see fanart of it all over the internet, and it’s all brilliant. The minute the thing’s out people draw, write, cosplay and do all that’s possible to show the love for it, and I don’t have this instant ability. What inspires others makes me freeze.And I’m like, omg I want to draw this! But I have a feeling every idea is already out there, whatever I draw it’ll be just a copy... but worse. And there’s a deadline that’s due yesterday because if I don’t contribute to the thing I won’t have an opportunity later because it will be outdated and no one will care anymore.Do you remember when they told Miles to turn invisible on command? That’s the feeling.

I didn’t feel like drawing Gwen and she didn’t turn out the way I wanted, she’s forced. As for Peter, idk, he’s as tired as me so it’s easy to draw him. HP is no longer hip, it’s like... it’s always there and you can draw it whenever and people won’t mind. I don’t feel the time pressure for HP.

But seriously, I don’t get it why I have to explain why I don’t draw Miles. I love this character and I relate to his emotions very much, he’s my favourite character in the movie, but I don’t feel like forcing myself to draw him right now. It’ll only make me frustrated.

Please, stop reading too much into me drawing or not drawing something. If I decide to draw only the Hattifatteners from now on, then I will, and it’s because I feel like it and not because of some made up reason. Why, do you think, I don’t draw Miles? What could be the reason, other than not feeling like drawing him? Do you think I want to make people angry? That I want to take revenge on the Anon that asked me to draw him? I honestly don’t get it xD