#it kicked off today but in my defence she's actually proper in the wrong this time even my DAD called her a bitch and my mum is FUMING

[hella1975]

just full force threw a shoe at my sister's face and when my mum got me alone after she was like 'you shouldn't clobber her. but i get it' 😭

[myblueeyedbuggers]

My Boys

Chapter 8

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7  Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14

Pairings: Reader x Steve Rogers (best friend) Reader x Bucky Barnes

Word Count: 2415

Warnings: Language, Fluff

Summary: After being abandoned by her parents in Brooklyn in 1929, y/n makes a living for herself by working for the Црни лабуд gang until she meets two boys in a back alley and her life slowing begins to change.

So there’ll be a slight change in the Uploading plans, originally I wanted to update daily, but with my college and work it might not be possible on some days, but there will be new ones the following day, As always enjoy ! :) 

Reader POV

Well this isn’t how I thought today was gonna go at all, I hadn’t planned on running and hiding from a pair of idiots with a younger girl all because someone might have said one of the boys laughs like a possessed school girl. Disapproving glances were sent our way by the nurses, not like I’d let somethin’ like that stop the fun, the sound of Becca’s laughing and the boys yelling after us only made me run faster.

“Y/N! GET BACK HERE AND APOLOGISE! MY LAUGH IS AS MANLY AS A LOIN WEARING A LEATHER JACKET AND YA KNOW IT!” Okay what kind of example is that?! “Never Barnes! There’s nothin’ wrong with sounding like a chipmunk on laughing gas! Some girls find it adorable when boys wheeze like an old man!” I felt Becca’s hand slip outta mine, glancing behind me to see her rolling on the floor laughing, Steve was in the exact same state a couple of feet behind her as Bucky looked at both in disbelief.

I couldn’t help myself, a few giggles escaped my mouth at the sight of Bucky’s face, which in turn signed my death sentence when he turned around a glared at me, his eyes narrowing as he started taking a couple of steps towards me. Okay now is not the time to laugh at the poor lad, MOVE YA ASS Y/N! THE BOY IS PISSED I REPEAT THE BOY IS PISSED! I think my natural instincts kicked in, one minute I was frozen on the spot and the next I was half way up the hallway runnin’ for my bloody life. Our footsteps thundered up the corridor, a small scream left my throat when I turned around and realised how close the bugger was, my heart was pumping from both the exercise and excitement as a small laugh left my body.

Out of habit my eyes started searching for the nearest exit, a mischievous smirk spreading across my face as an idea popped into my head, at the last second o turned and dove behind some chairs, leaving the idiot to full on crash into the wall in front of me. Bucky’s eyes widened as soon as he realised what I’d done, thankfully he managed to cover his face before hitting the wall and crashing to the ground. Groans filled the air as I fell to my ass, not being able to support myself from all the laughing going on.

“Okay…as far as I’m concerned no-one saw that, oh Jesus Christ my head is poundin, y/n give me a hand please?” now I felt a tiny bit guilty as I looked down on the poor lad, a slight bruise was formin’ on his forehead. “Yeah sure Buck, no-one except from the staff and people saw you completely each shit, come here ya big lug” his hand grasped mine in a firm grip as I hauled his ass of the floor, once he was completely up right I brushed the hair outta the way of the bruise.  Completely missing the shiver from him when my fingers made contact with his skin, gently I pressed my fingers on his forehead and tried to find the area that might have been hurting him the most. I must have found it, cause Buck let out a small hiss of pain, I quietly apologised giving the bruise one more check before pulling away, his intense gaze fell on my face and I quickly looked away attempting to hide my blush. Dude seriously? Why am I acting like an actual girl?! OH GOD I MUST BE DYING!

“Aren’t ya gonna kiss it better for me Doll?”. This cocky motherf**ker. I turned towards Satan himself with narrowed eyes, and of course he was stood there with a shit-eating grin plastered on him stupid face. “You’d need a miracle for that to happen Barnes” and que the swapping of expressions in 3,2, 1… I raised my eyebrows at him, a smirk on my face as I slowly walked away from him, my eyes trained on his as he began to follow me. Again. “Well if you ask me, it’s only fair considering ya lead me straight into that wall, plus my pride is still wounded from your earlier comment doll.” I rolled my eyes as I turned away from him, though I’m pretty sure he saw the small smile on my face, his arm wrapped around my waist and pulled me into his side, “Even if I wanted to Barnes, I’d need a bloody stepladder to reach your giant head” I swear down if I carry on smirking this much my mouths gonna get stuck like this and I’ll end up looking like a deranged pigeon.

Biting his lip to stop himself from laughin’, Buck started to shake his head as an amused smile spread across his face as he turned to me, somethin’ in his eyes screamed mischief as I cautiously started backing off from him. Well it was more like attempting to back away from him, but my stupid ass forgot he had his arm around me and Buck kindly reminded me by pulling me back to him, “I might be able to help in the height department doll face”. Quickly he wrapped his other arm around the other side of my waist and the next thing I knew I was flying…I’m kidding the bugger decided to pick me up! “Barnes, I swear to god if you don’t put me back on the ground in the next 5 seconds I will kill you! and quit man handling me goddamn it!” naturally the pillock laughs and moves me up higher whilst walking towards the exit.

“Not till ya give me a kiss doll, it takes a lot for a mans pride to recover and you sure did a number on mine, I think half of it’s still spattered on the wall back there” this boy is almost as impossible as me!  “What’s the chances of you not putting me down till I do ?” I think my eyebrows have reached my hairline at this point, “Hmm…Slim to nothin’ , you ain’t getting outta this doll”. For once I didn’t disagree with him, rolling my eyes at him I gently pushed the hair away from his forehead and placed a small but quick kiss on the bruise before pulling back, my gaze was met with a very unimpressed Bucky. “What? I did it didn’t I? why ya sulking Barney boy?” I had to bite the inside of my cheek to stop a laugh coming out, Buck’s face contorted into one of horror at the nickname and a slight shiver passed through his body, in short, he looked like he was gonna throw up. “First off never call me that again! And secondly that wasn’t a proper kiss doll, that was a peck on the head at best.” I shot him an exasperated look, only to be greeted with a triumphant smile, shaking my head I leant in again and pressed my lips to the centre of his forehead, gently cradling his head with one hand as the other rested on his cheek.

3Rd person POV

The young couple were oblivious to the audience they’d gained, the rest of Bucky’s family looked on at the scene from the hospital doors, Mr and Mrs Barnes huddled together, a warm and gentle smile on their faces as they watched. Steve hurriedly grabbed Becca into his arms and covered her eyes from the sight, the little girl protested against this but gave up after a minute to stand in her silent confusion, the older boys face held a grin so wide people would have thought he’d just won the lottery.

The illusion was slowly coming to a close, slowly the older girl pulled away from the brown-haired boy, choosing to rest her forehead against his, both had small smiles on their faces as they gazed each other in the eyes, neither of them broke eye contact as the boy slowly lowered her to the ground again.

Readers POV

Almost reluctantly, Bucky removed his arms from around my waist, I’d already started to miss the feelin’ of his touch. Approaching footsteps broke our eye contact, Mr and Mrs Barnes were heading over to the two of us with Steve and Becca behind them, Steve must of done somethin’ to annoy her cause Becca was glaring at him from the side.

“Come on then Sweetheart, think it’s about time we got back home. Boys! What have I told you about messin’ around at the side of the road?!” well that was short conversation. The feeling of a small hand grabbin’ mine distracted me from the absolute bollocking Steve and Bucky were getting, Becca’s bright eyes met mine as she smiled at me, it’s honestly impossible not to smile at this girl. “Mama said that when we get home we can make cupcakes! Are you gonna help us as well y/n? I promise it’ll be fun!” I know I’ve mentioned that she’s adorable, but dear god she is so cute! I could feel my eyes crinkle as I smiled back at her “Of course I will Sweetie! Oh, how about we ask your mama if we can make them pink?!” Her already bright eyes lit up even more, I have no idea how that was possible, “Yeah! I’ll go ask her now!” with a sweet smile Becca ran over to Mrs Barnes as she jumped up and down excitedly, telling her our plan.

-Time Skip

Everything I owned was in one small box, despite me telling both the boys and Mr Barnes that I could go and get my stuff myself, the insisted that I stay at the house while they went and fetched it with the excuse of “It’s in a really bad area y/n , it’s way too dangerous for you at this time of night”. Don’t get me wrong I was very grateful, but they seemed to forget that I’d been livin’ there for a good couple of years and knew the best way to get around the neighbourhood, they were gone for a fair few hours and came back just as we started serving up dinner.

Afterwards Mrs Barnes sent us away for half an hour, so I took that time to go and unpack whatever I had left from my old life, I mean I knew for a fact it wasn’t much but most of the things I had left were things for self-defence and I didn’t wanna risk Becca seeing them. The only way to tell where’d I’d gone was the occasional creek of the floorboards underneath my feet as I closed to door to mine and Becca’s shared room, as soon as my body hit the bed the lid off the box was torn off.

Oh right, I forgot I had half of this crap… my hand reached for the small handgun carefully packed away in some tissue, the weight felt worryingly welcome in my palm as I turned it over, examining the fine details. Hang on a sec is someone coming upstairs…nope just my imagination, not the time to get distracted y/n! focus for god sake you’ve got half of the army’s Amory on your lap! My attention turned to the remaining items, each and everyone had been “gifted” to me by the gang for good work. A medium hunting knife engraved with my initials was next outta the box, followed by a swiss army knife and my brass knuckles, at some point I’d had to use all of them back at my old place, a shiver made it’s way down my spine as the memories came rushing back to me.

“Y/n? You in here?” oh flipping hell! “Yeah just give us a minute Steve! I’ll be out soon” I don’t know why I keep expecting these boys to listen to me anymore, clearly Steve didn’t listen to a bloody word I said and walked into the room, freezing when he saw all the weapons. “Y/n where did all these come from? And why do you need them?” his tone was deadly serious, wait what the hell? Didn’t he go with the rest to get my things?! , “Erm, Steve I thought you’d already seen them, didn’t you pack up some of my stuff?”. Both of us stared at each other for a few seconds, the pair of us confused by each other, “yeah I did, but Buck’s dad packed your stuff away while we looked around, that still doesn’t answer the question of what the hell you’re doing with all this stuff” ohh that makes sense.

He raised his eyebrows at my silence, moving from one foot to another as he waited for an answer, “ I’d use em for protection back at my old place, the people around there have no concept or wrong or right so it was the perfect place for me to lie low” you’d think that would be about as obvious as a punch in the face but apparently I was wrong. Immediately Steve’s posture changed, his eyes darkened as a frown appeared on his face, his eyes were clouded like he was lost in thought, “I’m sorry y/n, I hate that you had to go through that on your own for so long, I shouldn’t be making judgments on your actions, it’s just what you had to do to live right?” his eyes met mine, a sad understanding present in them as we held each other’s gaze.

“As much as I hate to admit it, that exactly what it was like Stevie, I should of told you and Bucky what you were fetching instead of leaving you in the dark” my feet dragged me over to the blonde boy, a sad smile was shared between us as we closed in for a hug, admittedly it was a tiny bit awkward considering I was a bit taller then the lad, but it was nice enough.

“Kids come back downstairs were about to make the cakes!” the sudden shout made us spring apart, causing us to bump heads with each other, “Bloody hell Rodgers what’s your head made out of?! Friggin’ rock ?!” leave it to me to ruin a moment… despite this, Steve shot me a playful glare followed by a quick shut up as he followed me out the room, the memories of my old life being forgotten and replaced with new ones.

As always, I’m open for requests and imagines, any feedback is welcome too :) Thanks for reading!

Rose xx

[megalony]

Come here

My second Warren Worthington imagine which I hope everyone will like.

Taglist: @marshmallowmae  @langdonzvoid  @butlegendsneverdie  @jennyggggrrr  @luvborhap

Enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Warren had been hesitant at first to come to the school for gifted youngsters, even though there were people like him a lot of them were younger and just beginning to learn about their mutations. None of them had wings like he did, and none of them were as battered as Warren was. He felt out of place as soon as he walked through the doors until his eyes landed on one girl in particular who seemed to steal all of his attention without meaning to. (Y/n) had seemed so captivating to Warren, and she hadn't treated him like he was different or vulnerable like others did. Nor was she wary or scared of him like so many others were, and he wondered if that was because so many kids were hesitant to be around her too. They both seemed to keep to themselves until she plucked up the courage to talk to him, and they had become joined at the hip since.

Considering how everyone at the school was mutant Warren found it weird how they could still act like some mutants were bad or frightening when they were all the same. (Y/n)'s mutation was what warded some of the students away from her, she was telepathic but also had the ability to cause people mental pain making them think that they were actually hurt.

Looking up to Raven who was stood in front of the room Warren felt his jaw tightening at the notion that she was going to randomly partner them up for this defence class which he saw no reason for her to do. Everyone had their respective partners for this class and no one kicked up a fuss, why was she deciding to change everything? Especially when everyone was clearly comfortable with who they were partnered with.

Warren wanted to be with (Y/n) because he knew she hated this class. Due to her kind of mutation Raven and the professor had decided that it would be in her best interests if she learnt hand to hand combat without using her mutation when everyone else was encouraged to use theirs. Learning this Warren immediately partnered with her because he taught her how to do hand to hand combat but he didn't try and fight her. He didn't use his mutation to his advantage or push her because she didn't feel confident in this class. As long as he taught her the basics he saw no reason to move her from her comfort zone to actually fight her. He knew what he was doing, he had been fighting when he was in the cage, that was his life he knew how to fight to stay alive he didn't need this class.

Jean looked to (Y/n) in sympathy at the partner she had gotten paired up with, noticing how Warren's thoughts got a lot louder and his wings seemed to tense as if he was getting into a fighting stance.

"I'll be right over there. Anything happens send me a message." Warren mumbled before his lips pressed to the top of her head, his arm tightening around her middle. Send a message was just a little thing between them meaning telepathically call out to him if she felt she couldn't do this class anymore or needed help or anything at all. Unwinding his arm from around her Warren placed a lasting kiss to her temple, his eyes showing he didn't really want to go. But he knew it was more trouble than it was worth to kick up a fuss so he made his way over to Jean.

(Y/n) didn't say anything when Vince walked over to her, wishing for once that she was able to use her mutation in this class so then this would be over before it had even begun. Vince was good at defence he knew exactly what he was doing and he wasn't about to go easy on her or let her practice without trying to fight back like Warren did. (Y/n) just wasn't good at defence, she didn't see the point when her mutation rendered her enemies useless in a matter of seconds even if it did put a strain on her mentally. She had no need for combat due to her powers and yet Raven and Charles still wanted to put her through this on the off chance her powers simply disappeared.

She could see the tired look on Vince's face as his anger rose. She wasn't fighting him, all she was doing was dodging his punches and kicks without throwing any back at him. Warren watched her in pain as she scuttled around the mat, throwing about one punch in the twenty minutes they had been practising.

"For God's sake (Y/n) can you actually do anything but run?" He sighed in aspiration as her shoulders slumped and she shook her head, unsure if he was telling her or asking her but either way she couldn't do combat. Sighing he motioned his hand for them to start again, not wanting to stop because there was no one else he could partner with and if Raven saw them switching partners she wouldn't be best pleased.

Leaning to the right (Y/n) managed to dodge a punch Vince threw her way, her right leg quickly kicking out in an attempt to catch him off guard since she hadn't really done combat with him today. A gasp leaving her lips when Vince seemed unfazed her foot connecting to his stomach as he simply grabbed her foot instead. Twisting her around and roughly pulling on her leg until she fell forwards onto her stomach, landing on the mat with a huff. The wind was effectively knocked out of her system as Vince suddenly dragged her backwards making her fear levels increase dramatically.

Just when she thought he was stopping and her head turned around he let out such a malicious laugh. Seeing how defenceless she was when she couldn't use her powers to protect her seemed rather funny to him. (Y/n) knew she was horrible at this class but at least with Warren, he never tried to push her limits and he never once thought of making fun of her. Not everyone was good at every class and this simply wasn't one of (Y/n)'s best classes.

"You really are useless aren't you?" Vince stated more of a joke than a question. Reaching out Jean grabbed Warren's arm, her mind quickly halting his actions so he didn't rush over and start a fight. Seeing how his wings suddenly stretched out as they tensed in a fighting stance once again, his hands curling into fists as his shoulders raised at the comment when it reached his ears. Warren couldn't see how someone could talk to her like that, (Y/n) couldn't do combat, not everyone could and that wasn't a bad thing. She didn't ask to be paired with him just like he didn't want to be paired with her.

"He can't fucking talk to her like that." Warren stated in a low voice, knowing Jean felt the same because she was one of (Y/n)'s good friends. He didn't want to stand and watch someone insult his girlfriend and pick on her like that when they clearly saw she was struggling. It wasn't fair and it was grating on Warren's nerves very much.

"Don't start a fight, that won't help her. Now come on." Shrugging off her hand Warren glanced back to his girlfriend one more time before sighing and nodding. All he wanted to do was go over there and give Vince a piece of his mind or to knock some sense into him but at the same time, he couldn't really cause a scene either. Raven was doing her rounds around the room and she would reach (Y/n) and Vince soon enough, he wouldn't dare say or do anything wrong when Raven was within earshot.

"Stop it." (Y/n) stated quietly, her eyes darkening in their colour as she watched Vince suddenly press a hand to his stomach before falling to his knees. Giving her the chance to stand up as she made him think that he had been winded. Using her powers wasn't strictly allowed but they weren't actually fighting right now, Vince was trying to take advantage of her inability to fight and she wasn't having it.

"Fight me then, and don't cheat." He spat back, taking a moment to catch his breath back before they both pushed themselves to their feet.

Glancing her eyes around the room, (Y/n) wondered if she could find the courage to leave the room. Simply walking out would put Raven in a bad mood and get herself into trouble but there wasn't any other option because she couldn't carry on doing this anymore. Vince had the upper hand by a mile and if (Y/n) couldn't use her powers than Raven was rendering her defenceless and she knew it. Everyone knew that when paired with Warren he didn't fight her, he simply tried to help her learn how to punch and kick properly.

Everyone also knew that they couldn't say anything about it or dare tell Raven that Warren was taking it very easy on his girlfriend because he would start a fight with whoever said anything. He wasn't letting them both slack off in class, he was taking a different approach to help (Y/n) and there was nothing wrong with that.

Right now (Y/n)'s rather weak kicks and punches were making no impact to Vince and it was making him more riled up and ready for a proper combat fight. He was starting to get joy out of her weak punches and constant dodges because he had a very big upper hand which was giving him a thrill. Finding it funny that he was put with someone who had no defences who he could quite literally push around without getting told off.

"Vince stop, I've had enough." She growled, anger fueling her words though she didn't sound very convincing or like she was making any kind of impact on his decision making. He was enjoying this too much.

"Oh come on, you haven't done anything but run around like a headless chicken." Her body began to shake when he knocked her onto her back on the mat, lurking over her getting ready to throw another kick to her whilst she was down which was against the rules. "Your little birdie isn't here to save you now." His words sent a new wave of fear washing over (Y/n) like never before, the tidal wave of emotions so harsh that she couldn't find the ability to breathe anymore when she never had to think twice about it before.

(Y/n) didn't know what came over her.

The anxiety that she put up with every day seemed to overload and short circuit her system. Her limbs pulling close to her middle as her eyes burned into the boy leering over her frame. Watching in shock as he suddenly seemed to contort as if trying to morph into a different shape or person altogether. His limbs jerking as he doubled over before pulling back, feeling every punch and kick her mutation was supplying him with without her having to do anything but strain her mind.

When a particularly harsh blow to the nose was impacted on Vince he stumbled backwards until he hit the floor, his hand clutching his face as he shrieked like a banshee. Her mind finally letting go of the hold she had put him under when she saw he was no longer a threat to her anymore.

His sudden shriek caught the attention of a few others around them who stopped to see what was happening. Everyone knowing this was practise, they shouldn't be hurting one another but (Y/n) had no choice, if she didn't hurt him first then he would have hurt her and that wasn't fair. Considering how he had tormented her for over half an hour now with training.

Turning her head to the right (Y/n) locked eyes with Warren who had taken one step closer after hearing what Vince had sneered before he stopped. His expression showing he was conflicted between being proud that she had stood up for herself and pissed with the boy now incapacitated for a moment on the floor. His eyes narrowed when he noticed how (Y/n) was trembling when she finally stood up, her arms wrapping around her middle tightly which he knew she did when she was anxious or upset.

"I- I'm sorry." She mumbled, unsure why she was apologising to him when he deserved to be at the end of her mutation which she only used to stop herself from getting hurt.

"Fucking bitch."

(Y/n) didn't see his advance until it was too late. His hand balled up into a fist and hit her right in the side of her face catching her nose which caused her head to snap to the left. She didn't have time to recover from the shock before his hands were on her to shove her roughly to the ground, watching her land on the wooden floor with a bang.

Warren had had enough.

Seeing how (Y/n) simply curled up on the floor made Warren's heart completely shatter in his chest like a broken mirror. The anger that had been pent up inside of him suddenly exploded like a pipe that had burst in his system. With a rather heavy breath, Warren suddenly barrelled over to Vince, his hands fisting the boy's shirt to yank him closer until Warren's height was towering over him. Without saying one word, he sent his forehead bashing into Vince's nose before letting him drop to the floor like a rag doll. Watching the blood pour from his nose like someone had turned on a tap in his head.

He didn't think twice before sending his foot right into Vince's stomach, winding him for real as opposed to his mind simply being tricked to let all the air out of his lungs. Warren's eyes were burning like they were holding a fire within them. "Don't fucking touch her again." His voice was lower than usual as he bent down to sneer the words at the boy currently bleeding in front of him, trying to catch his breath but it was coming as a struggle.

"Warren!"

Pulling back up Warren pushed past Raven who should have seen something like this coming. She was the teacher, she was meant to look out for them all and understand but every time (Y/n) said that she couldn't do combat and she didn't like this class Raven pushed her to continue. It wasn't fair to push her and not let her use her powers and it wasn't fair to push her out of her comfort zone and put her with someone who had a very clear advantage over her.

"Come here." Warren's voice changed drastically in less than a minute. Going from an intimidating threatening tone to a caring and rather quiet voice as he bent down beside (Y/n). His arms slipped under her frame as he helped to sit her up, their eyes locking before (Y/n) burrowed herself into his chest. Relaxing when she felt Warren's wings suddenly enveloping around her on instinct without him having to think about the action. "I've got you."

[takemedancingmaine]

What, Like It’s Hard?

“You're here early.”

I jumped at his voice behind me.

“Sorry,” he chuckled as I stepped out of whichever one of the warrior poses I was in and turned around, working to catch my breath. It was one of the few yoga moves I knew.

“Holy fork, Brian,” I took a deep breath and wiped my forehead. I had been doing a yoga warm up. With the shakeup to my workout routine, I was trying to take precautions.

“You're here early,” he said again as I rolled up the mat I’d been using and followed him over to the other studio, the one we used for his class.

“I'm a little tense,” I told him, watching as he set his bag down and pulled out an old iPod, one of those black bricks with the circle trackpad. I smiled at the sight of it. It had been a while since I'd seen one of those.

“Mentally or physically?” He asked, his eyebrows picking up and a smirk falling onto his face. He pulled out a stretch band and handed it to me as he plugged in the music. Some Chet Faker started playing through the studio’s sound system.

He pulled out another stretch band and began demonstrating a move for me as he waited for me to answer.

“Both,” I admitted to him.

He nodded and transitioned to a move to stretch my shoulders, knowing that mentally and physically they'd be the tightest bit of me. 

He was right. I could feel my shoulders all day at work today, had constantly been rolling them to try to ease them even a bit.

Louis had asked if I'd slept funny last night at one point today. We’d been eating lunch together at his desk and he kept eyeing me, noticing the tension. It wasn't so much the secret I kept, for the most part, I was getting better at compartmentalising that, but when I compounded that with the kickboxing class, I was unbelievably sore.

It was something I hadn't thought about when I had signed up for the class. I was pretty limber, but constantly having my guard up, constantly throwing punches and jabs in class, and the effect that would have on me didn't register with me until after I'd done the workouts for a few weeks.

I just knew I needed to be stronger and before this, I hadn’t had a reason to stretch my shoulders in such a way. Which was why I so greatly appreciated Brian’s intuition.

“How's that going, by the way?” Brian asked.

“How's what going?” I feigned ignorance.

He shot me a dark glance in the mirror.

I rolled my eyes and sighed, holding the stretch pose, regaining the composed breathing as I sunk my body into the move.

“I still haven't told anyone,” I mumbled out.

“Really?” He asked.

Last week after class I'd confessed that he was the only one that knew that anything had even happened. He was shocked, to say the least, but he didn't say anything; he kept his opinions on it to himself.

Brian was a good person. He was patient with his class, intuitive, and wasn't judgemental. I appreciated his company for the hour a week I was around him. Ever since that first class when he let me participate and then partnered himself with me I got the feeling that he was genuine.

It was clear to anyone that Brian cared for each and every individual that took his class. He learned each of our names, took the time to listen to us and learn our fears and concerns, was working with us so that we genuinely felt better, empowered.

He seemed to take an extra beat for me, clearly understanding that my reason for being in the class wasn't about prevention but about regaining a sense of my own security that I’d lost that night. I didn't have to say that, he just knew, and that was lucky because I wasn't sure I could say that out loud even if pressed to.

“I'm not going to tell anyone.”

“Just me,” he eyed me again.

“Right.”

“I have a sneaky suspicion that if your bruises had healed you wouldn't have told me either,” he smirked.

I nodded.

“Well, that's probably why you're so tense,” he said sarcastically.

He gestured for me to release the pose and showed me another. It pulled, almost uncomfortably, but I knew that would be helpful in the end result.

“I started the morning kickboxing classes after it happened,” I filled him in.

“Oh, Riley’s class?” He asked. “She's great!”

“Yeah, but the class is literally kicking my butt.”

“So it's not just from stress then,” he nodded in understanding. “She’s a bit of a badass. I've taken her class a few times. She really pushes you.” He paused. “Are the classes another way of building yourself up, then?”

I nodded. “I used to run every morning, and I still do on the weekends, but I did switch into them once it happened, yes.”

“You struck me as a cardio person,” he told me. I raised an eyebrow at him and he caught my curious glance in the mirror. “You struggled a bit the first week, but last week you didn't even waiver during the cardio sessions of class. The first week was just because of your throat injury.”

I didn't give him the satisfaction of being right about the injury slowing me down.

“What did happen?”

My breath hitched for just a moment before I gathered myself. I didn't look at Brian, directly or in the mirror. Instead, I looked down at my feet and bit my bottom lip. I could feel my pulse pick up and tried to think of things that would calm me down.

What worked to do it was the thought of Louis bent over a tray of cookies, icing them and singing to himself. He liked singing, especially when he worked.

I could picture us in the bakery, the warmth from the ovens, the smells of whatever he was baking, the sounds of customers up front chatting and eating… it was all enough to distract me from my momentary fear of telling someone what happened.

Because when it came down to it, Brian knew but he didn't really know. Didn't know it was at my home, my safe place. Didn't know just how alone I'd felt. Didn't know the terror that gripped into me and held me immobile and unable to really fight back. The terror that was gone from my mind until I was forced to think about it.

“Right,” I heard him say and I looked up with the tone of his voice. “I will not ask that again,” he gave me a reassuring look in the mirror.

“Thanks,” I mumbled sincerely and he nodded. “What are we doing in class today?” I tried to make my voice as normal as possible.

“We’re gonna discuss and review some of the tactics to being more preventative, and then we’re going to do a small amount of cardio--just a warmup this week--before we get into proper boxing techniques. Fighting stance, punching motions…”

He trailed off as I nodded.

Last week Brian had gone over little things that would keep us safer in the event of something happening, or to take it one step further, prevent things from happening in the first place.

For instance, try not to wear your hair in a long ponytail or braid when going out. It gives a potential attacker a way to grab and hold you. If someone asks for the time while you're walking, don't stop walking even if you do tell them.

We went over things like how being in crowds is actually safer in some ways in that muggers don't like that many potential witnesses if things don't go smoothly for them. We talked about how if you're being threatened with a weapon for your wallet, throw your wallet a good distance from yourself. It gives you time to get away while whoever is after it goes and picks it up.

We talked about how being aware of your surroundings and people when out in public is a bit like when you use your mirrors while driving. You should look every so often and always know where someone is in relation to yourself. We even covered obvious things like never wear headphones while out and try to stay in well-lit areas.

“For the most part,” Brian was saying now, “you don't have to fight someone who's trying to cause you harm. If you show them that you're unafraid and that you have even a basic sense of how to fight back, they'll back off.”

“That's helpful.”

He nodded. “It really is. Especially given that actually fighting should be seen as your last resort.”

I nodded, aware that he was right. Sometimes it was unavoidable, but fighting should always be seen as a last resort. Plus, as he often pointed out, reacting violently could sometimes escalate the situation.

We were learning how to defend ourselves but also learning how to avoid situations in which we’d even have to defend ourselves. I think the fact that Brian was brutally honest about that balance, about the fact that the goal of leaning these tactics was so we would never have to use them, was one of the reasons we all like his class so much.

Not once did he disillusion us about our safety and where we’d be at the end of his class in a few months, but he did care and was genuine and I did enjoy how empowering the classes were.

“What do you do besides teaching self-defence, Brian?” I asked now, shifting the conversation as he transitioned from stretching our shoulders to opening up our chests with a few dynamic moves.

“I’m a law student at Northwestern,” he told me. “In the summers I work as an associate at a firm in the Loop.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“What kind of lawyers do you want to be?” I asked.

“A defence attorney,” he smiled. “I like the challenge.”

“I understand that,” I said. “Completely.”

“And if you tell anyone that I wanted to be a lawyer because I watched Legally Blonde with my sister when we were younger then I'll deny it until my dying breath.”

There was a breath, a pause where everything in the world seemed to stop. And then the world began spinning again and I began to laugh.

I laughed so hard that I had to stop the quad stretch we were doing because I lost my balance and almost fell over.

“Ohhhh, my god,” I was trying so hard to catch my breath, but the indignant look Brian was giving me was only adding to my laughter.

“I'm sorry,” I said eventually once I'd calmed down. “I'm sorry,” I said again. “I don't think there's anything wrong with that. I actually really admire it. I just didn't expect it.”

He smirked and we got back to stretching. “I had to spring it on you somehow.”

“You said it knowing that I would laugh,” I gave him a grumpy face. “You said it hoping I would laugh so that you could make me feel bad.”

“No,” he smiled. “Okay, maybe.”

I narrowed my eyes at him. “That's diabolical,” I shake my head. “I like it.”

He laughed. “Thanks.”

“Do you enjoy it though?” I asked. I'd had to justify my career choices to a lot of people, so I figured I'd ask if he liked the path he was on.

“I do,” he nodded with a smile. “It's great. It's challenging and--without patting myself on the back--I honestly feel like I'm good at it. It's a lot of work, so much work, but it's fun.”

His face lit up. He really did love it. Without a doubt, he loved it. It made me smile.

“And what about you, Ruby? What do you do?”

“I'm an accountant and business manager for my friend’s small bakery chain,” I switched from stretching my right to my left leg. My right leg was much more flexible. The left hurt. It was clearly tenser than the other.

“You work for a bakery?” He asked.

I nodded as he watched in the mirror. “And in one.”

“Your willpower must be tested every day,” Brian gave me an impressed look.

“My willpower has definitely been put through the hoops,” I agreed. “It's a rigorous daily exercise, which is also why I do rigorous daily exercise.” I smiled.

He laughed.

“I do sneak treats occasionally,” I admitted to him. “And only in moderation. But it's hard,” I shrugged. “Some days are harder than others, too. Depending on what Louis is baking that day.”

“I can't imagine,” he shook his head with a bit of a laugh.

“In all seriousness, my job is pretty great though,” I said. “I get to put my economics degree to some use in a way that doesn't suck out my soul and I get to work with one of my best friends.”

“That does sound pretty amazing,” he nodded. “You're living the dream, Ruby,” he said before showing me back into a warrior pose. Now that I was a little more limber and loose, I felt the stretch pose deeper than I had when I'd tried it alone before.

“So, it seems, are you,” I took a deep breath to settled myself in the stretch, felt it as much as I pushed myself to.

“Yeah, you could say that,” he shrugged, but there was a grin on his face that told me he believed it. His schooling might be rigorous and tiring and never-ending, but he clearly enjoyed it. That was plain as day.

We were silent for a few minutes as we continued to stretch ourselves out side-by-side while we waited for class time to roll around.

Just after pushing into the full cobra position, we both noticed as one of the women from class came into the studio, followed by another, ready to start. Brian nodded at me and we held the stretch for a few moments before he got up and then went to fill up his water bottle.

“Thanks.” When he came back over, I handed back the stretch band I'd used and with a nod back at him, I started to turn away to get ready for class. He grabbed my arm gently to hold me back for a moment.

“Would you do me a favour, Ruby?” He asked. He came close to me and I got the idea that Brian could be intimidating if he tried. He wasn't, not even when he was this close to me, holding me back. His presence wasn't intimidating. Instead, it was comforting.

I'd never had a big brother, but with the stand-ins of Louis, Liam, and Harry I knew just how important they could be. At this moment, even though I didn't know Brian all that well, I felt like he was trying to protect me.

I nodded. “Yeah. Of course.”

“Will you at least consider talking to someone?” I made a face and was about to pull from his grasp when he spoke again.

“I know you don't want to. I know you really don't want to,” his earnest look made me check my breathing and calm down despite my serious distaste for the words he was saying. “But I need you to think about it. I know how much talking to someone--me, her friends, a therapist--helped my sister and I can see how much this is weighing on you.”

I made a face.

“No,” he said. “Don't give me that. I know what you're going to say. I can physically see the difference in you before and after class. I just want what's best for you and I think, despite your hesitation, that talking can help you, Ruby.”

I just took in his words and nodded.

“Okay.”

“Okay, you'll think about it or okay you hate me now?” He asked cautiously.

“Just okay,” I said. “And I don't hate you,” I added.

He nodded and gave me a small, reassuring smile.

“You still plan on keeping my secret then?” He asked.

I laughed, an image of him as Emmett from Legally Blonde popped into my head.

He blushed and narrowed his eyes.

“Your dream of becoming Elle Woods is a secret that is fully safe with me.”

He put both hands over his heart and sighed before signing ‘thank you.’ I gave him a nod.

I went to set up my mat and wait for class to start while thinking over the class itinerary Brian had told me before.

Even with his request, he had successfully lightened my mood. It was then that I realised he was trying to. I was so glad I'd found Brian’s class after what had happened to me.

“Yes, mommy,” I sighed into the phone. It was my sister Mehar’s fall break from school--she was an honour student in her junior year at SLU--and my mother had hijacked the phone call halfway through our conversation.

So now, Mehar was sitting next to her phone that mom had put on speaker, and was watching the conversation. She would have this slightly indignant look on her face, but it would be masked just enough so that mom couldn't call her out for it.

Mom had transitioned from asking me question after question about my eating habits and the weather and my friends to talking about home life, not even trying to be subtle that she was trying to guilt me into coming home to visit.

She was just finishing a story about how my dad was cleaning the gutters and how I needed to remind my landlord to clean mine out as well, otherwise, it would be too late and the weather would turn nasty before they could be cleaned.

To which she’d added that I needed to come home and see just how much work dad had done around the house. I could practically see Mehar sat next to her rolling her eyes.

My parents loved that Mehar was close to home for school. They loved that she planned on staying in St. Louis to become a realtor. They adored that she had never had a long term boyfriend--although they didn't know what I knew, which was that Mehar got around a lot--and that she'd been a model daughter in their eyes our whole lives.

I was a good daughter, did what I was told and then some. Until I decided to go to college far from home. And then decided not to get my master’s degree right away. And then decided to move to Chicago for a job both my parents had deemed beneath me.

My mother would try to guilt me into coming back home to visit in hopes that I would stay. I'd go home once every few months, and if Diwali and Holi corresponded with weekends I would go home for those celebrations, but I wasn't incredibly fond living in St. Louis, wasn't incredibly fond of living any nearer to my parents than I already did.

“I assume you're not coming home for Thanksgiving then,” my mother said now. I could hear the sigh that my mom held back, the one she had at her disposal if she needed it. I could practically see Mehar rolling her eyes. I know I rolled my own eyes at our mother’s tactics.

“I should be able to,” I told my mother now. Mehar and I had rolled our eyes because this was the third year in a row that we’d gone through this routine of mom continually asking me if I was going to make it home for said holiday--months in advance.

“I'll have to take a plane. I just have to figure out if I can get there late Wednesday night or if I’ll need to leave early Thursday morning instead. I’ll have to fly back out late Thursday either way though.”

I finally got up from my spot on my counter and pulled out my tub of vegan ice cream. I just wanted a spoonful or two after a long day. Between kickboxing this morning, work, and Brian’s class and now the phone call with my mother? I definitely needed something, and I reserved my whiskey drinking for the weekends alone.

I didn't want to break that just because my mom had started in on the holiday guilt early.

“I have a hard time believing that your boss can’t handle the store for four days without you, Ruby.”

And there it was. Louis transitioned from my friend that mom had asked me about before to ‘my boss’ and my mother’s tone was as bitter as it was clear. I bit my tongue and hit my forehead against my fridge door before I moved to grab a spoon and jumped back up to my spot.

“Well, I’ll work all that weekend,” I told her. This was the third year in a row I was having this conversation. It felt like I was reading from a script at this point. The same words, but I’d maybe change it around a bit each time so as not to sound too repetitive and impersonal.

“I’ll have that Monday and Tuesday off instead because of the holiday rush,” I explained. “People get together the day before Thanksgiving, people get together that weekend. It’s one of our busiest times, and with all of the other holidays right around the corner, I’ll fall behind if I don’t keep up. It’s not that Louis can’t run the bakeries alone, mommy, it’s that I can’t fall behind.”

She sighed and I heard a rustling in the background, probably Mehar shuffling uncomfortably because she’d been forced to listen to this. She couldn’t risk her unlocked phone falling into our mom’s hands though, so she had to stay put and stand watch over it.

“I can come home for a few days in December,” I said now. My mother hadn’t bothered responding to my explanation so I took it upon myself to keep the conversation going. “I’ll be home from the 25th to the 30th,” I added.

“Okay,” my mother said now.

I knew by the clipped tone that she was done with that part of the conversation. Disappointed in the circumstances and by extension me for having chosen these circumstances for myself.

“I have to go fold the laundry now,” my mom said. She followed that up with a quick, “Main tumhe pyaar kartii huun,” and I heard her leave the room before I could say ‘I love you too’ back.

Mehar picked up her phone and I heard her whisper, “One moment.”

I heard an open and then close of a door and before I heard her say anything else.

“She’s been in a mood,” Mehar said now.

“But you're home,” I said confused before I shoved some ice cream into my mouth.

“She was in a mood before I got home,” she groaned. “I walked in the door and she started in on me for my hair not being washed and for my nail polish being all chipped. She even poked my stomach and made a tutting noise and walked off mumbling how I’d never find a husband if I keep eating like I do. Ruby, I’ve lost weight since I’ve last seen her. And then she and dad made some comments about how you’re not seeing anyone and they’d be lucky if either of us ever got married and they could be rid of us. … I just want to go back to school and I only got home yesterday.”

“Hang in there, Me,” I took another spoonful of my ice cream and waved the spoon around a bit, gesturing with my hands as I spoke even though she couldn’t see me.

“You know how mom gets. She’ll be all conflicted about you being home so she’ll come off as brash and rude and then once you leave she’ll be sad and upset that you don’t visit more and that she never gets enough time with you.”

“It would help if you were here,” my sister said now, and I hear the longing in her tone, undisguised. “You always know what to say.”

“Or I just take all the attention away from you,” I countered her point. “I would be getting the same treatment as you if I were there. You would be spared, though because they can only focus on one of us at a time, apparently.”

“Well, I’m sure mom’s riveting conversation about the gutters being cleaned has really instilled a yearning within you to return home,” she laughed.

I closed the carton beside me and laughed with her. “She is trying her hardest to get me home.”

“She’s only succeeding in pushing you away,” she said.

“She's not pushing me anywhere. I like where I am. I'm not running from anywhere and I'm not running to anywhere. I'm happy where I am, Me.”

“I get that,” Mehar said now. “I am happy for you, Ruby, even if I miss you.”

There's a pause where I thought of saying something along the same lines back to her, but she started talking again. “Also, I know you won't tell mom if you are, but have you been seeing anyone?” She asked now, her voice all high pitched with hope.

Immediately I thought of Niall and just as soon as his image flashed in my mind I banished it and shook my head, almost as if I was physically trying to remove it from where it had popped up without my consent.

“No,” I told her. “Not seeing anyone.”

“Oh come on, Ruby,” my sister complained. “You can tell me!”

“Oh, just like you tell me,” I countered.

“I tell you things.”

“That's bull, Mehar. You don't tell me crap about the boys you go with. I find out because you post stories on social media that you probably shouldn't but are too drunk to care about at the time.”

“It's not my fault you don't use any social media!” She countered. “How else am I supposed to find things out about you?”

“I don't know, maybe ask me?”

“I am asking you,” She pointed out. “You're not telling me.”

I laughed at that. “Fair point,” I gave her that win. She deserved it.

“Alright,” I said. “What do you want to know?”

“You're really not seeing anyone?” She asked.

“I'm really not,” I told her.

“Okay,” there was a pause while she thought of more. “Wait, not even Louis? I mean, from what I've seen, Ruby? He's gorgeous.”

I made a gagging sound. “No, no, no, nope. Not even a little bit, okay? No. Ew. Please don't bring him up again in that context. Ever.” I bit back my vomit.

“So, no?” She asked, just to get a rise out of me.

“No.”

“Okay,” I heard her inhale deeply. “Well, have you thought about using dating apps?”

I thought of Cleo's latest misadventure and shuddered.

“I've thought about it, but I don't know. I'm not really that fond of the idea. I'll keep an open mind though if I do decide to use one.”

“I think they're great,” she said.

“I know you do,” I smiled ruefully to myself.

“Hey, I'm living life, having fun, doing whatever the fork I feel like, Ruby. I like sex,” her voice lowered when she said that last part. “Sue me for it.”

“I can't. I like that you're comfortable with yourself.”

“Thank you,” her voice lifted and I could hear the pride. “So you'll think about it? I don't like that you're up there all alone.”

“I'm not alone,” I defended myself. “I have friends.”

“It's not the same, Ruby.”

“You wouldn't know, Me. You don't really have any one either,” I countered. It was harsh, but my sister was not the kind of person to get offended easily.

“Fair, but I still don't spend my nights alone, either,” she said. I could hear the implications of her tone even if I didn't need to in order to understand.

“Right,” I nodded.

“So anything else new?”

It was then that I realized this was the first time I'd talked to my sister since my attack.

“Nothing,” I lied easily to her. Maybe it was the added bonus of it being a phone call, or maybe it was the three weeks I had spent lying to my friends that made it easier. “Literally nothing new.”

“That sounds fun,” I could hear the disgusted tone in her voice.

“Oh come off it,” I groaned. “I do things and go places. I hang out with friends. I have a life, but it's not like I took a trip to Europe or went to see a Broadway musical and kept it from you. I don't really have anything big going on right now.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Mehar admitted.

“Yeah?” I asked rhetorically. “That's kind of what being an adult is about. Big things for me are when I discover a sale on cute dresses at that one independent store I love on the Mag Mile or when I get to Lakeshore early enough to get a spot to hang my hammock and spend the whole day just relaxing.”

“I have to admit, both of those things do sound pretty big,” I honestly couldn't tell if Mehar was teasing me or not at that point. Which was saying something; I knew my little sister pretty well.

“I don't need your sarcasm,” I got up off my counter and put away the tub of ice cream and then, after putting my spoon in the dishwasher, I flicked the light off in my kitchen and went to my bedroom where I flopped backward onto my bed.

“I'm not being sarcastic,” Mehar said. “I do need to go though. I'm going to meet up with Ashley and Nicola after once mom and dad fall asleep and I have to start getting ready.”

“Ohhhhh, sneaking out,” I tutted. “I see not much has changed.”

“What they don't know won't hurt them,” She sang right back to me in a singsong voice. “I'll talk to you later, Ruby! I love you.”

“I love you too, Me,” I said back and then I heard the phone beep.

I was lying in bed for a bit after the call ended.

My parents and I had a good relationship despite the strain of recent years. Until I went to college we'd had a wonderful relationship and I knew they were proud of me, but it would be nice to hear them say it once in a while.

It's not that I disliked time with my parents now. It was just that it tended to add stress to my life. I do love both of them, and nothing beats my mom's homemade samosas and eating a pile of them around the table with my sister, or sitting on the front porch reading and watching my dad meticulously mow the front lawn so that each line was perfectly straight.

I didn't necessarily want them to find out about my sister's nightlife, either because that wouldn't do either of us any good. Maher in a bad light would not colour me any brighter. It would only taint both of us.

I got up and while I was brushing my teeth I went down and checked that all my doors were locked. I sunk into my bed and felt the exhaustion seeping into me, my bones when my phone buzzed.

Cleo was asking the group if we were going to meet up this weekend and what we should do. It could wait until morning. I wanted to take advantage of my exhaustion and my clear head, the clear head that came from going to my self-defence class. I couldn't risk lying awake half the night tonight.

I turned off my ringer and went to sleep.

[comicteaparty]

February 7th, 2019 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on February 7th, 2019, from 5PM - 7PM PST.  The chat focused on MK’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Marika Kapogeorgakis (or MK_Wizard).

Featured Comment:

Chat:

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB START!

Good evening, everyone~! This week’s Thursday Book Club is officially beginning! Today we are discussing MK’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde by Marika Kapogeorgakis (or MK_Wizard)~! (http://mksjekyllandhyde.thecomicseries.com/)

Remember that Thursday discussions are completely freeform! However, every 30 minutes I will drop in OPTIONAL discussion questions in case you’d like a bit of a prompt. If you miss out on one of these prompts, you can find them pinned for the chat’s duration. Additionally, remember that while constructive criticism is allowed, our focus is fun and respectfully appreciating the comic. All that said, let’s begin!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

Archangel

I'd have to say the first real heart-to-heart that Hyde had with Lucy.

MK_Wizard

For me (the writer), my favourite scene was when Jekyll finally stood up for his niece Emily.

khkddn

that was one of my favorites too

MK_Wizard

PS, thanks to everyone who came. You all rock!

khkddn

it was so sad when he didn't stand up for her at first

MK_Wizard

@lomcia (princess_lom) Please don't do that.

lomcia (princess_lom)

so you want me to discrabe which one i like?

MK_Wizard

Yes please.

RebelVampire

for the record images, whether emotes or w/e, dont get archived anyway. so text and links are always better

lomcia (princess_lom)

So. I like when he said that he won't have glasses on his face. World NEVER ihere is making me laugh

MK_Wizard

Yes, but... I don't feel comfortable when people take "snaps" of my pictures and show them elsewhere. It's something I was taught not to do to others.

If you must share, please share through a link.

lomcia (princess_lom)

Act 2 page 21 when they look into a mirror xD he look so happy in first panel and then when he realised that its not him xD i love it

MK_Wizard

That was fun for me to do that part.

lomcia (princess_lom)

Act 3 page 7! When he sees our lovely Lucy

that first panel!

Archangel

I must admit to having a bit of a crush on Lucy myself.

lomcia (princess_lom)

It was perfect

MK_Wizard

I have to admit that Lucy is one of the characters I proudest of. I worked very hard on her to not only make her progressive, but also deep. I wanted to give her a reason for being as she is.

Archangel

More historically plausible in our world than you may realize, too

lomcia (princess_lom)

I prefer as a female Hyde

Archangel

lol

Actually, have we seen any lady trolls?

Can't recall

MK_Wizard

Not yet.

lomcia (princess_lom)

not yet so there will be xD

MK_Wizard

Maybe, maybe not.

lomcia (princess_lom)

I hope Albert Ode will find nice woman

RebelVampire

for me, my favorite scene is probably the one where jekyll is in the mirror having given hyde full control and resigning himself to be gone forever. and then hyde comes back and tells him nah dude well work this out. i really just loved the subtle build-up looks where hyde is looking at things like the letter jekyll was leaving and such. it was also very touching and really showed hyde's heart through all the huffing and puffing

lomcia (princess_lom)

I like him i hope he never change

Rebel that was so sad scene , so emotional!

I really enjoy as I said Albert Ode, I hope to see him more offten, hes charming

Archangel

I think somebody has her own crush.

lomcia (princess_lom)

yeah, on all trolls Albert and Hyde

MK_Wizard

I felt is was high time the world got a version of Hyde who was good and still "Hyde" enough. In every adaptation I've seen, Hyde is always bad. And the very concept Robert Louis Stevenson had on good and evil was deep at the time, but now, we know that it's not true. What I did was bold and maybe "wrong" to some people, but it's the truth.

Archangel

I like how both Doc and Hyde have a plausible and sensible mix of good and bad personal qualities. Their interplay is more akin to 'The Odd Couple" than the usual metaphors of id vs superego or drug addiction that I see in other adaptations of the story.

MK_Wizard

Ha! Well, I like to think that by troll standards, Hyde doe faced.

I did that purpose too. If we did what was expected and made Jekyll completely submit to Hyde, that would be expected and dull.

No offence to webcomic writers who take that route.

Archangel

Well, tropes can either be used to a good purpose, subverted to a good purpose, or just blindly followed.

khkddn

Robert Louis Stevenson's take wasn't true?

MK_Wizard

If anything, I can tell you all this: between the two of them, Hyde is more dependent on Jekyll than Jekyll is on Hyde.

lomcia (princess_lom)

MK I really enjoy your story, and I would love to chat more but my eyes don't listen to me :< I wish you all the best, meaby when I'll wake up I will answer for questions which people left as a feedback for you

MK_Wizard

It was true for the psychological view of human nature at the time. So he was just as right as everyone else. But now, we have come a long way with psychology.

So yes and no @khkddn

Thanks @lomcia (princess_lom)

Archangel

It's been a long time since I read the original, but I seem to recall interpreting Jeckyl as the superego and Hyde as the id

Which could be considered good and evil, respectively, in a Victorian mind? Maybe? Not really my period of history, so I don't feel comfortable being definite.

khkddn

I interpreted it as subverting what people of the time thought the "professional gentlemanly man" was supposed to be

Archangel

Hmm. I see that.

MK_Wizard

It could be interpreted many ways. That's the beauty of the original tale.

khkddn

the victorian professional gentleman was supposed to be all good and proper, but here we have this guy turning into an evil man at night

but that's pretty far removed from mk's version

MK_Wizard

Jekyll and Hyde had a lot of complex themes when it came to duality don't forget such as having dark secrets one would be very ashamed of for the Victorian age especially.

khkddn

it's a happier story for one thing. i like how your writing isn't mean-spirited mk.

like there are mean people who do terrible things, but it's never framed as a funny thing or as just something that happens in life that we can't change

RebelVampire

yes i agree, i like this is a more upbeat version. not to say sad things dont happen, but i dont get the impression that its trying to be dark and edgy just to be dark and edgy. sad things happen right when they should

MK_Wizard

I'm not into meanness. I find at one point in the media, being mean got passed off as cool. I don't like that.

mathtans

Little one is asleep in crib (again). ^^ Happening place tonight! I got as far as end of Act 5.

RebelVampire

hi math~!

MK_Wizard

Hello!

mathtans

Fave bit of what I've read was probably at the ball, when we get the extra whammy of who Emma was with. I hadn't expected that. Then when Jekyll is trying to shrug it off, Emily interjects, that was awesome. I really like Emily.

MK_Wizard

Nice to see an Emily fan. I feared people overlooked her.

Archangel

She's a keeper, for sure

I had actually forgotten about her since we haven't seen her in a while. If it's any consolation, I do that to real people too.

RebelVampire

oh really? i 100% expected emma to be with him cause the world was really intent on kicking jekyll down. what i did enjoy was her trying to put all the blame on jekyll tho. cause that is something real ppl do when they get caught as such.

mathtans

Emily is the kick in the pants that Jekyll needs sometimes. I also like Lucy for similar reasons, actually (standing up for herself, whereas with Emily it's for her uncle).

MK_Wizard

@RebelVampire Definitely. I see it happen all to often with cheaters.

mathtans

Rebel: I guess I hadn't anticipated that plot point to still be dangling. Really felt bad for Jekyll at the start on account of kicking him when he was down though, like ouch. Also, agree, it was true to form.

Archangel

The hardest thing to blame is one's self, after all

RebelVampire

i appreciated that emily didnt forgive jekyll for the tennis thing and for not standing up for her. cause that was a point where i was glad she was gonna stop being an enabler of jekyll's flaws in a more slap in the face wake up call kind of way

mathtans

Like, talking could still be a thing. I know that sometimes people avoid, but when you're proposed to, I think that's the time to talk.

MK_Wizard

In Emily's defence, what Jekyll did was cowardly and hurtful.

Archangel

Def

mathtans

Rebel: Yeah, I'm kind of in the middle of that now, but that hurt. Since she was always standing up for him.

MK_Wizard

And don't forget. Emily's a teenager. She will have teen moments.

Archangel

He did correct his mistake and learn from it. Credit where it's due.

mathtans

Oooh, spoilers. (j/k)

Archangel

Oh right, sorry

hehe

mathtans

Heh, it's cool, talk about all the stuff. I do this every week, and never manage to clear the archive half the time.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 2. Two major themes of the comic are what it means to be a better person in the face of personal flaws and how one might learn to be better. Insofar, what has been your favorite moment of growth for any of the characters showcased in the comic? What about this moment struck you as particularly strong? In the larger picture, do you think Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde really will continue to help each other to grow? Further, in what ways do you think the two characters can grow further as people? Alternatively, might the two reach a limit where they are no longer able to help each other in this manner? What flaws might both still continue to deal with long term? Overall, how do you think these changes will affect how both characters deal with life, and what can we personally learn from it as readers?

MK_Wizard

I'm afraid there's no way I can answer this without giving things away

Archangel

Good God, where to start. Give me a minute.

mathtans

It's kind of interesting, because Hyde never even had a memory before the transformation. So in some sense, he's a blank slate, and thus everything is growth.

In the beginning, Hyde was doing it for himself, but he inadvertantly helped people. Some part of him must have liked that, because now he does it to help and fight against the system.

Archangel

Okay, so obviously each of our protagonists has a massive, salient character flaw that comes out fairly early on. Jeckyl is too afraid of confrontation, and would rather get shafted than make a scene. Meanwhile Hyde, as @mathtans noted, is very self-centered--in rather a childish way, which makes sense in the context that Mat noted.

Each is well-placed to advise the other and point out that he's being a tool and why.

And -- very importantly -- they can't ignore each other

While each man is far from perfect, we're already seeing them improve in the face of the other's prodding, and finding themselves happier for it

mathtans

They have much to "reflect" on.

Archangel

/facedesk

Bravo, sir

Now I have to wipe soda off my monitor

MK_Wizard

I don't deny that there are tons of metaphors and symbolism in my story.

khkddn

there were earlier times when jekyll became more of a courageous person but i liked in act 8 when lanyon showed up at his door pretending to be friendly and jekyll is not having ANY of it

RebelVampire

be careful with that soda cause math is here to be the pun master

Archangel

Noted

Anyway, to @khkddn 's point, I wonder if it's because it was just the two of them? Maybe J's problem is more social anxiety? Interesting thought.

RebelVampire

yeah seeing jekyll just being like nope was a really satisfying in that moment. like seeing your little boy suddenly grow up.

MK_Wizard

It's a lot of things and it's complex which will be explained more and more as the story goes on.

RebelVampire

my favorite moment of growth is actually when hyde apologizes to lucy. because apologies are legit one of the hardest things to do i think for ppl. because thats a lot of stabbing for the personal ego, and the more prideful, the harder it is. so heres hyde, probably one of the most prideful ppl in the comic, admitting that he said some messed up shit and screwed up. that was a beautiful moment cause taking that many stabs to his ego was a showcase of how far hed come that hed go through such a grand gesture and damage his pride.

mathtans

Hyde also really has no filter when he's talking, while Jekyll has like, massive overthinking of everything before he speaks. It's a live-in-the-moment attitude versus thinking about the future. So if there is a "limit" where they can't help each other, I imagine Jekyll would see it coming.

MK_Wizard

They are opposites @mathtans

mathtans

True. I guess I'm saying that's conveyed well.

Archangel

@RebelVampire it also shows just how deeply Hyde cares for Lucy, that he's willing to basically abase himself like that.

khkddn

i agree w @RebelVampire about that scene, it shows that even if hyde is an opposite to jekyll personality wise, he isn't morally opposite and can be a good person who admits mistakes

mathtans

Speaking of opposites, here's a fun thing I realized. Jekyll loses his job, and his girl, and we feel badly for him. That thug guy Tom ALSO loses his "job" and his "girl" (if shaking down stores can be a job), but because he's on the wrong side of the law (and a jerk), we don't feel badly for him.

Archangel

Well, neither of their flaws are really things that need to be completely removed. They just need to be moderated. Hyde needs to learn a bit of impulse control, and Jeckyl needs to learn to loosen up a bit.

mathtans

Yeah, "Tom" might be the moral opposite.

Archangel

But neither of their attitudes towards life are bad per se, so long as they're not taken to extremes... as they have been doing

Huh, interesting

Or perhaps "there but for the grace of God go I" type of thing?

MK_Wizard

@mathtans Tom is a bad person. Do you all remember how he hit Lucy? Imagine how much worse it would have been if Hyde wasn't there.

RebelVampire

yeah im really interested to see if jekyll's biggest challenge in growing is moderation. cause i didnt entirely disagree with him in certain contexts. like at the party, i was kind of on his side that sometimes just letting things go is better and that theres a time and place for certain...coversations as it were.

Archangel

I'm amazed Lucy doesn't carry a knife or something. Most prostitutes in cities carry something for self-defense (if they're smart), and the habit would likely carry over into working at a bar. Plus Victorian ladies' clothes are REALLY good for concealing weapons. You have to see it to believe it

mathtans

Yeah, jerk as I indicated. Just, similar stuff happened to him. Just thought it was interesting. He's more evil than Hyde is, for sure.

Archangel

Oh absolutely

khkddn

tom doesnt have a cool top hat like hyde and that's why i'll never root for him even if he weren't a bad person(edited)

MK_Wizard

@Archangel Lucy does own a knife, but she knows Tom would have overpowered her.

Archangel

If she'd given him a chance. But I see your point.

The hardest part of hurting or killing someone is actually deciding to do so.

Damaging somebody is terrifyingly easy... if you can bring yourself to do it.

Anyway. off topic.

MK_Wizard

There's a reason she has scars. Like Lucy said, her getting slapped wasn't the worst assault a man had ever done on her. She is brave and tough, but she's not super strong. Lots of men can overpower her and have, but she's not prostitute. She's a waitress, but she is poor so that still makes her an easy target.

Archangel

She started out as a sex worker, though, right? Or am I misremembering.

mathtans

Again, to be clear, I don't think anyone should root for Tom. Just, he had similar stuff happen and approached things in a way that neither Jekyll nor Hyde would. (Very wrongly.)

khkddn

lucy would also need an exit strategy if she used the knife on tom. she would probably have to run away and lay low, which could be more dangerous than staying with him.

mathtans

Lucy is kickass. I liked her remark of an apology shouldn't have a "but".

MK_Wizard

She was a showgirl and eventually had to sort of become a prostitute, but she isn't one anymore.

Archangel

Very true, hadn't thought that through

Seebee

is here to show support

Woo, go MK

Archangel

lol

MK_Wizard

Hey Seebee!

Seebee

Yoooo~

MK_Wizard

Glad you could join us.

You rock!

Seebee

GASP, I'MMA ROCK?!

looks at self

no wonder I got craters on my skiiiin

Archangel

Hope you're a pet rock. Then you get a nice box with straw and everything

MK_Wizard

Just because Lucy is no muscle woman doesn't mean she's a pushover. And now that she doesn't have to submit to people to make a living, she sure as heck never does.

RebelVampire

yeah i think that was a great line, @mathtans cause its really such a simplistic but smart way of weeding a good apology from a bad apology

MK_Wizard

Her having her body belong to herself again is something that is very precious to her.

Archangel

Understandably

Not many people could have gone through as much bad as Lucy has and come out walking erect, as the saying goes. I think that's why admire her so much. I don't think I could ever be that strong.

mathtans

(I'm continuing my read in the background, btw. The April Fools strip with the green hair is a riot. Speaking of bodies belonging to other people.)

khkddn

yeah lucy is one of my favorite characters, she's cool

MK_Wizard

She had to be. No one else was there for her. Back in the day, being of mixed ethnicity was a taboo.

That was the reason she had it rough. It's not right, but... it was not uncommon.

khkddn

if a random person during the time saw lucy would they assume she is mixed? or does she pass as not being mixed?

i'm wondering if this would change how she is treated

Archangel

Speaking for the USA, it depended entirely on the place and the person's specific appearance

But rarely would it be ignored

MK_Wizard

Ha. Well.... she's a cartoon, but if she were real, yes. You would tell because her skin is a bit too dark, she has the eyes and lips, as well as the physique.

mathtans

Just an aside on the topic of cartoons, I feel like it takes a while to draw the hairdos. ^^

MK_Wizard

She can't pass off not being mixed. She's one of those very obvious cases.

Oh ho ho ho. Jekyll's hair IS tedious to draw, but it's worth it because it makes him stand out.

Archangel

Also, her hair isn't right. One of the more dominant traits of African heritage is the way hair behaves--very bristly and stand-outy (I don't know the right word). To get it to flow like Lucy's does, one needs a good deal of product every morning. Or so a friend told me once.

mathtans

Well done, MK. Also for having Emily's be similar, what with the family resemblance.

MK_Wizard

Thanks

RebelVampire

QUESTION 3. In the current story, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have become aware of a mysterious alchemist causing trouble. Who exactly is this mysterious alchemist? Why is this alchemist helping Governor Carew? Exactly what do you think this project is that the board of governors is looking to fund by using the alchemist’s talents? Do you think Mr. Hyde’s previous actions will put the board on extra alert for their investigations? How might this affect Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll’s success in stopping Carew’s villainy, if so? Alternatively, how might the various things the alchemist is able to do (like create gold) change the characters’ views on how the world works? All in all, how do you feel this arc of cases will wind up be solved (or go unsolved)?

Archangel

I do know that one of the standard "tests" of somebody's background back in the bad old days was to look at their hair, precisely because this trait is so dominant.

mathtans

Well, I'm obviously not there yet, but I feel like this was set up very well with the mercury poisoning stuff happening in the background of what I have read.

Archangel

Well, creating gold is always a bad idea when the economy is based on gold. Every mage's guild I've ever seen in any universe has a big fat rule against it

MK_Wizard

In Lucy's case, it's her skin, eyes and lips. Plus, her body type as she got older. Don't forget, coloured people go far beyond the hair and skin.

But back to the subject, it was explicitly stated that making your own gold is 100% illegal.

Archangel

So they have to be either utterly stupid or they don't care about devaluing the currency. Not something for men of means (and thus knowledge of at least some finance and economics) to take lightly

My bad, but my second point stands re: their scheme with the unfortunate chickens

RebelVampire

youre making a huge assumption they understand how the economy works. XD i dont get the impression most of the men of means care, as long as they get theirs and get to have their fancy stuff.

MK_Wizard

Plus, the board of governors have a lot of influence.

mathtans

What about making gold for someone else?

Archangel

I'd like to argue with you, RV, but I can't.

Presumably charged as an accessory, @mathtans

MK_Wizard

@Seebee, you got anything to add to this?

Archangel

Given that we're talking chemistry, though, the other classic thing that comes up aside from gold is some sort of immortality potion. I don't recall any hints to that effect, though.

mathtans

"You made a gold chain for my locket?" "Yes, now it's an accessory."

Seebee

Hmmm... not at the moment

I will be honest, I am ded inside from being out all day))

mathtans

I'm reminded of how Jekyll's first attempts at his formula involved trying almost all elements on the periodic table. He must have certain resources that might be helpful for going after an alchemist.

MK_Wizard

That and Jekyll has the most valuable resource of all: his own genius

Archangel

Mmm. He can certainly analyze any samples or whatnot that Hyde acquires.

RebelVampire

maybe thatll be the next arc, where theyre trying to find an immortality potion.

khkddn

i imagine the alchemist is helping governor carew because he's deeply involved w the plan somehow. it'd be weird if he were just a hired alchemist, because, what're they gonna pay him in? gold?? couldn't he just make the gold himself

Archangel

Perhaps the deal is that they'll put him beyond the law

So he can actually get away with it

No point to crime if you can't enjoy the result

MK_Wizard

It's definitely something big and it also shows how heinous the board of governors really are.

RebelVampire

i kind of think the previous arc has made it more difficult though. cause if i was on the board, i would def be on high alert. all it takes is one guy saying "hey i saw hyde snooping around stopping our gold operation"

MK_Wizard

Actually, nobody can say or do anything.

The alchemist burnt the evidence and place to the ground.

mathtans

Everything probably points back to Carew. That guy is shady as anything. (Incidentally, good job emphasizing his character with that statue debacle near the start. Not a nice man.)

RebelVampire

i can only think the alchemist is in it for the secret project. cause i agree with khkddn, its not like the alchemist needs gold

Archangel

I don't think we've seen any bent cops to this point, which means that the Governors either need enough evidence to fool honest cops (not so easy to fake), or to keep mum

MK_Wizard

It's a bit of both. Not enough evidence and some cops are crooked much to Sgt. Drumwell's dismay.

Archangel

There's always a few, and they always get promoted. >_<

Kei Esteban

Hello! Sorry I'm Late!

MK_Wizard

It's cool!

Archangel

*Hi ho

khkddn

heya

Kei Esteban

Thanks

RebelVampire

tbf its not like these are modern csi times. so theres only so many ways they can analyze evidence in the first place

MK_Wizard

Exactly

khkddn

do they even have fingerprint technology at this point?

Archangel

The techniques were fully established by that point, but not so widely accepted

MK_Wizard

They do have a way of detecting fingerprints, but fire destroys everything.

mathtans

Gotta make themselves a time machine.

Archangel

Wiki "Henry Classification System" sometime for an interesting insight into pre-fingerprint policing

khkddn

ah well to get anything out of ashes i think they would need chemical analysis that doesn't exist yet. it'd prolly be faster to build a time machine yep

Archangel

The problem with fire is that it alters the chemical composition of everything

MK_Wizard

Exactly. The alchemist knew precisely what he was doing.

Archangel

So unless you have research data, it's pretty much impossible to ID the source substances.

khkddn

they need chemical analysis that doesn't even exist in OUR time yet

Archangel

Well, the good guys do have a genius (al)chemist on their side...

Speaking of, @MK_Wizard , is there an actual technical distinction between chemistry and alchemy, or is it just po-tay-to/po-tah-to?

mathtans

Maybe someone will Hyde the evidence.

MK_Wizard

Yes and no.

khkddn

if only the chickens could speak english. then the truth would be out there

MK_Wizard

To explain, alchemy has some spirituality and magical properties behind it. Basically, it was the stepping stone to chemistry. People discovered that magic did have a science behind it and upon further research, people discovered that magic had a direct link to nature.

khkddn

i have to work on a school project and this is distracting me way too much so i'm gonna go. it's been fun chatting!

Archangel

glhf

MK_Wizard

With that, human beings who have no magic invented a way to "use magic" without having any themselves. Alchemy. They would use ways of manipulating nature in supernatural ways and through that, they discovered how to make chemicals and made other marvels through science.

@khkddn thanks for joining us

Of course, it wasn't just humans who used magic. Other races did too.

Kei Esteban

Ah, Other than Trolls and Humans, do you have any interest in having other Races show up?

mathtans

Interesting bringing that up, what with trolls being a thing common enough to be known with police. I wondered too.(edited)

MK_Wizard

Definitely. In fact, you already saw two and didn't know it.

Remember the short guy Biggs? He's a gnome.

Archangel

Oh cool

Kei Esteban

Ah Neat ^_^

Archangel

I still say he needs a buddy named Wedge

Kei Esteban

XD

RebelVampire

thats interesting. cause i was curious why everyone was like shrugging to the presence of trolls

XD

MK_Wizard

The other one is Tyler the redhead, but what HE is... you're going to see

mathtans

Now I'm picturing Biggs renting himself out to stand in gardens during the day.

Archangel

"If I parked a tank outside your office, after a week it would be just another car." --one of my vet buddies

Kei Esteban

I look forward to finding out ^_^

Archangel

(as in my buddy who's a vet. I was never in the Service)

Also, London in our world is one of the most metropolitan environments on earth. I bet it's the same in the story.

MK_Wizard

Most definitely,

mathtans

I now kind of wonder about interracial breeding.

MK_Wizard

It's like the "New York" of Europe in my comic. You'll find anyone there.

Archangel

Just like in real life

MK_Wizard

You've seen it already. Sgt. Drumwell is half troll and half human.

mathtans

Like, troll and human must be a thing given how Hyde and Lucy.... oh, yeah? Hummmm.

MK_Wizard

Hence his human appearance, but he has yellow fangs and his eyes.

Kei Esteban

Settings like that are always nice too see

MK_Wizard

It's also why he's compassionate. He was lucky because his parents were very wealthy so their money protected them. Plus, he passes off as a human mostly, but his eyes, teeth and height give him away.

Archangel

Well, it's for MK to say for sure, but one of the definitions of separate species is the inability to interbreed. There are exceptions, but that's the general rule. It would be interesting to see Hyde and Lucy have little ones, though. In due course.

Kei Esteban

indeed

RebelVampire

are laws applied equally or is there inequality as far as different species go? like is there special laws that only exist for trolls, etc.?

mathtans

Actually, Sgt Drumwell is their child. Eventually Jekyll perfects the time machine and sends him back.

MK_Wizard

lol no

Archangel

lmao

MK_Wizard

Here's how it works. It's generally a taboo socially, but if you're very rich, you can get away with a lot. You just won't be respected for it.

For example... there's another non-human you saw without knowing it. Utterson's redheaded wife Camilla. She's a wizard.

AND he married her without making her convert to his faith/human lifestyle. He allows her to continue living openly as a wizard and practicing her culture.

Archangel

Fascinating. And again, makes sense that people would regard sentient species the way they regarded other races at the time.

Kei Esteban

Well he is a Great guy, so that's not too surprising he would be respectful of her completely

MK_Wizard

Her hair was also an Easter Egg to her race. In old lore, red heads were often thought to be witches.

RebelVampire

QUESTION 4. Despite working together, Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll still argue quite often and risk their own safety a lot. How might their shared injury and pain help or hurt their ability to function in their own daily lives in the future? Do you believe that at some point the two’s shared identity of sorts will be revealed? If so, how do you envision this coming about? Given the growing relationship between Mr. Hyde and Lucy, will Mr. Hyde be compelled to tell her at some point? What about Dr. Jekyll with his niece and nephew? Do you think the two’s shared arrangement with the body will work long term, or will they at some point need to make alterations to their living situation? Ultimately, how do you feel their living arrangement will affect their future adventures, whatever you think those future adventures might be?

Kei Esteban

@MK_Wizard Oh no! They are on too me! (I'm a Red head XD)(edited)

MK_Wizard

Ok, for this... I leave entirely up to all of you. So... bring on the fan theories!

Archangel

Let's see. Well, Lucy absolutely has a right to know. How she'll react, I have no idea.

As to Emily & Will... I think Emily should be briefed in, if only so she won't freak out if Hyde has to come get them to prevent a kidnapping or something by the opposition.

MK_Wizard

Keep in mind. Nobody knows yet.

Nobody except Louis and he's not talking.

Archangel

Right. I think Lucy can keep a secret. Emily... honestly don't know her well enough to say.

RebelVampire

yeah i think as far as a long term arrangement, its not gonna work. because assuming hyde wants to marry lucy at some point, thatd be problematic. even worse, what if jekyll meets somebody. they are fooling themselves if they think this can work out indefinitely. so jekyll is gonna need to put that genius to work.

Kei Esteban

I think it would be best in the long run for those closest to them to know. Lucy and Emily would be a great start indeed

Archangel

Knowledge of the situation would be all that Carew & Lanyon need to discredit anything Jeckyl says, ever, so it certainly can't become public knowledge.

MK_Wizard

Lanyon is out of the picture for good. It's the one thing I can confirm. He's defeated for good.

Archangel

Yay!

He was a good bad guy, though

Kei Esteban

I love how he effectively defeated himself! XD

MK_Wizard

That was the point. And it was also karma. Lanyon got successful by riding on Jekyll's tail and taking everything that was his.

In the end, doing this was his undoing.

Sure he didn't have Jekyll's money to do stuff, but it didn't make being a skunk ok especially because Jekyll really did see him as a friend and would have hlped him.

Kei Esteban

It was such a Creative way to end the conflict ^_^

Archangel

I don't think he'd believe you if you'd told him that to his face. People like that seem to get that way because they assume that everybody's out to get everybody. At least in my (blessedly limited) contact with the species.

Kei Esteban

That's an unfortunate way to look at the world. By that i mean the "everybody out to get everybody" bit.(edited)

MK_Wizard

I wanted to show that there are good and bad people from every social standing.

Basically, different kinds of good and bad people.

mathtans

Back. (Had to see to the little one briefly.)

MK_Wizard

Aww

mathtans

In terms of people knowing, would they believe without seeing the transformation?

Archangel

Good question

MK_Wizard

Would you? I don't think so.

mathtans

It's not like people have iPhones to video record it.

Archangel

That might help them keep the secret

mathtans

I mean, there's the argument of they haven't been in the same room together.

RebelVampire

nah i highly doubt it. in fact, far more likely the person claiming this is a thing that happened would get sent to an asylum

MK_Wizard

Yeah, but... who would believe the two share a body that transforms without seeing it?

mathtans

Though I agree with Rebel that they'll need to figure something out so that relationship things don't become an issue.

Someone with MPD?

MK_Wizard

Not talking (teasing)

I will share one tidbit... At the end of the true end of the story, there will be no loose ends.

For anything. And that is all.

mathtans

Just got to the bit with Lanyon, btw, that you were referencing earlier. That was very clever, coming full circle, and good final shot of him in the mirror.

RebelVampire

actually ya know tbf, didnt louis take some of the potion. you could use louis to show its a real thing

in the sense of the transformation

mathtans

Crazy theory time: Jekyll figures out how to shift Hyde to share a body with someone else instead. Hyde and Lucy decide to become "one", and ride off into the sunset.

MK_Wizard

I will say this now... no.

That sounds romantic on paper, but that would actually be bad.

Because how would they be a couple?

mathtans

Kissing mirrors.

Archangel

That'd make it like that one movie where the knight and the lady each shapeshift, but they alternate states at dawn and can never be together. That was one weird movie.

Good curse, though

MK_Wizard

That sounds like the worst kind of hell for two people deeply in love. To be so close, yet completely separate.

Kei Esteban

@MK_Wizard like Garnet, from Steven Universe? XD

Archangel

Actually, what Mat describes would be a truly horrible curse for a couple. I might use that someday.

MK_Wizard

Garnet is not Ruby and Sapphie per se. She is the embodiment of their love.

mathtans

Yeah, you're not wrong. Okay, so Hyde and Poole...?

Archangel

Poole's not getting any younger

What happens when one half dies?

MK_Wizard

They both die.

Kei Esteban

@MK_Wizard Very True (I guess we can't use Gem logic here)(edited)

mathtans

Yeah, I think that was stated. When they hurt, the other hurts too.

RebelVampire

yeah i feel the fact they share pain and death is gonna be weaponized against them. cause if i needed to get rid of hyde, id go for jekyll if i knew that fact. cause whats jekyll gonna do? slap me a little?

Kei Esteban

then how about Hyde and Carew? (Hyde just takes over full time)

MK_Wizard

You all really hit the nail on the head that them sharing a body, but not lives and such is going to become a challenge.

Archangel

Good point. Though you'd have to bump Jeckyl right away rather than keeping him around. Come sunset...

mathtans

Just to talk about Emily again (because she's cool), I feel like she'd understand, if the truth came out. Though I wonder if she'd be hurt that Jekyll didn't say anything sooner.

Archangel

Ooo, I like Kei's idea. Not sure it works that way, though.

MK_Wizard

And I will disprove the theory now.... Hyde and Jekyll cannot suddenly be shifted to another person. Neither soul is a "disease" you can hand onto someone else.

Archangel

@mathtans I agree. My concern would be whether she can keep a secret. She is a teenage girl, after all.

MK_Wizard

They are a person.

Archangel

And keeping a cool secret is hard at any age

MK_Wizard

They are two people.

Kei Esteban

indeed

mathtans

Archangel: She's pretty mature for her age though. Granted, she's also pretty outspoken. I don't think she'd say anything intentionally, but it might come out in the heart of the moment or something. (Which is maybe why she could accept not having been told.)

RebelVampire

i think emily could keep a secret. now will on the otherhand

MK_Wizard

So all theories of them being put onto someone else will not come to pass because that's impossible.

RebelVampire

will i would believe couldnt keep a secret cause hes even younger(edited)

Archangel

Perhaps with the materials to 'construct' a new body, and the proper spellwork, each can be embodied separately? Sort of a siamese twin operation?

Will is right out at his age.

Kei Esteban

Will being a kid, might even think it's cool (Which he would be right)(edited)

mathtans

So maybe one of them decides to sacrifice themselves for the good of the two of them. Jekyll already tried that once.

MK_Wizard

I won't say much about who can keep a secret, but in my experience, it goes with personality not age.

Archangel

I will say that almost nobody under the age of 10 can keep a secret in my experience. But aside from that, agreed.

mathtans

Yeah, I'm pretty sure Nellie couldn't keep a secret.

MK_Wizard

You've also seen that Hyde would never have that. He's not an active killer. And he loves Jekyll as a brother. He wouldn't kill him if he asked him to.

And taking over essentially does that.

Archangel

I'm not sure Nellie's bright enough to grasp the core concept XD

Kei Esteban

XD

Archangel

Here's a really trippy question, MK: do J&D have separate souls, or do they share one?

mathtans

(And I had to go to the cast page to look up the name, and now I see how "half troll" is right there in Drumwell's bio, nice.)

MK_Wizard

They have separate souls.

Archangel

Obviously their minds are separate, but I'm questioning their spiritual state in the technical sense

Okay, so it's reasonable to theorize that they could be separated and embodied separately. It would certainly take high magic, though.

MK_Wizard

The Hyde Formula has magical properties. For example, did you know that in reincarnation, the soul splits? Hence why some people who get reincarnated can be reincarnated as multiple people.

Archangel

I've never heard that.

mathtans

Well, if the original intention was a sort of "Disney" Jekyll and Hyde, maybe there will be a Disney ending? Somehow?

Archangel

Pillars of Eternity has this whole thing about souls fragmenting, but that's more like chips off a rock over time.

MK_Wizard

In the case of Jekyll and Hyde, Hyde came from a piece of Jekyll's own soul, but it became its own unique being.

Yes, You got it!

Archangel

Makes sense.

MK_Wizard

Keep in mind, even Disney endings aren't always perfect.

RebelVampire

the disney ending will be hyde and lucy riding off in a carriage with the just got married sign and jekyll will come to cause they decided to just make it a threesome

although that joke aside i wonder if jekyll and lucy will ever interact

MK_Wizard

Uh, no lol

Lucy is not Jekyll's type and Hyde would not share his woman with anyone.

Nor would Jekyll do that.

Jekyll is as monogamous as they come lol.

mathtans

Hmmm, and is it too late to ship Lucy and Emma?

Archangel

RV is right insofar as it would be interesting to see how Jeckyl and Lucy get along socially. I imagine that after some initial sounding out, they'll manage well enough. After all, Lucy is a lady and Jeckyl is a gentleman. That goes a long way.

lmao

Kei Esteban

It would be nice to see Jekyll meet someone new, that is actually good for him

Archangel

^

MK_Wizard

@mathtans That ship is solely wish fulfilment and a fan fantasy.

RebelVampire

i more wonder the social interaction cause that could make hyde jealous. if jekyll and lucy got along even if it was totally platonic

Archangel

Actually, someone like Emily would be very good for Jeckyl... in the sense of personality, not age.

mathtans

(I always ship the ladies... ) And actually, the thought that it's a fan fantasy already amuses me.

Archangel

Cue the "I ship it, I don't care" song

MK_Wizard

I made this comic knowing people would do ships if the comic caught on. All I say is that, as long as you accept that it is not the official storyline.

mathtans

Maybe Jekyll can be the best man at the Hyde/Lucy wedding?

Archangel

Only if Poole is the Father of the Bride

Otherwise J would slide down to second place IMO

mathtans

What's official is definitely up to the author. All the best with it! It's an interesting take.

MK_Wizard

Thanks

RebelVampire

COMIC TEA PARTY- THURSDAY BOOK CLUB END!

Sadly, this wraps up this week’s Thursday Book Club chat for now. Thank you so much to everyone for reading and joining us! We want to give a special thank you to Marika Kapogeorgakis (or MK_Wizard), as well, for making MK’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. If you liked the comic, make sure to support Marika Kapogeorgakis (or MK_Wizard)’s efforts however you’re able to~!

Read and Comment: http://mksjekyllandhyde.thecomicseries.com/

Marika’s Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MK_Wizard

Marika’s Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/mkwizard

Marika’s Storenvy: https://mkomics.storenvy.com/

Marika’s Gumroad: https://gumroad.com/MK_Wizard

Marika’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/MKJekyllAndHyde

[aion-rsa]

Star Trek: In Defense of Enterprise’s Worst Episode

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Don’t worry, this isn’t a defense of “These Are The Voyages.”* We’re here today to talk about the other “worst episode of Enterprise,” season two’s “A Night In Sickbay.”

“The episode that killed Star Trek.” “One of the worst episodes of the whole Star Trek franchise.” “Almost as bad as ‘These Are The Voyages.’” These and similar opinions of “A Night In Sickbay” are all over the Internet. The episode frequently appears on “worst episodes of all time” lists alongside “Spock’s Brain” from The Original Series and Star Trek: Voyager’s “Threshold.”

I have no intention of arguing that this is a great or outstanding episode of Star Trek – it’s not. But nor is it anything like as bad as those other two notorious examples. Does anyone turn into a lizard? No. Do any crew members abduct other crew members to have lizard sex with them? No. Does anyone’s brain get taken out and yet their body still, inexplicably, functions? No. It’s about time we went over a few of the more common complaints about this episode, to see if it really deserves its terrible reputation.

Complaint 1: Archer behaves like an idiot, and no trained diplomat should behave the way he does.

The episode’s events are kicked off when Archer takes his dog Porthos down to an alien planet on a sensitive diplomatic mission, and then gets upset when the aliens are insulted because the dog peed on one of their sacred trees, while poor Porthos nearly dies after coming into contact with an alien pathogen.

Viewers have complained that Archer’s behaviour in this episode is childish, that no “trained diplomat” should ever think it was appropriate to bring a dog on a sensitive visit, and that the episode makes the Captain look like an idiot. He spends most of the time railing at the aliens, the Kreetassans, avoiding taking any responsibility for what happened, and suggesting that he might refuse to apologise.

Bringing Porthos may not have been the brightest idea in the world, but it isn’t the act of total idiocy critics have made it out to be either. Archer himself points out repeatedly that they told the Kreetassans he was planning on bringing Porthos, and the Kreetassans said nothing about their sacred trees, plus they endangered Porthos’ life by not running proper checks on his genome. Should Archer have known better than to try to bring the dog with him at all, considering an alien species may not understand the nature of the dog-human relationship? Yes, and T’Pol tells him as much in the episode. Is he completely irredeemably stupid for thinking that he’d taken appropriate precautions and wanting to give his dog some exercise? No.

Archer’s reactions are also aggravated by the fact that the Kreetassans are, to put it mildly, gigantic pains in the backside. In their previous encounter, in the first season episode Vox Sola, the Kreetassans took offense because the Enterprise crew ate in front of them, which they consider vulgar. Except the crew didn’t just turn up to their planet touting takeaway – they were eating in their mess hall on their own ship. You know, the room set aside specifically for eating, an important social activity in Earth culture. The Kreetassans’ reaction is ridiculous and made worse by their reluctance to explain the problem, a reluctance they show again in this episode. Sure, Archer should grow up and get over it, but his frustration, while unprofessional, is very human.

It’s also worth bearing in mind the title of the episode – this takes place over the course of a sleepless night during which Archer is afraid Porthos is dying. He is stressed, emotional, and on edge, and he’s lashing out. By morning (and with Porthos thankfully having survived) he has cooled down and started behaving more appropriately again. And none of Archer’s complaints are actually communicated to the Kreetassans – he’s sounding off to his crew and his colleagues about a frustrating situation. He may not be the world’s best diplomat, but there are real life diplomats guilty of worse offences.

Complaint 2: Archer shouldn’t be whining so much about his dog.

How you feel about this one is going to depend partly on how you feel about dogs, or about pets in general. As a person who has slept in the lounge to watch over and comfort a sick dog, I have every sympathy with how Archer feels. If my dog is sick, you can bet I’m not at my best at work, especially if I’ve also had very little sleep. Archer’s way of explaining this, calling Porthos “my beagle, my pal”, may be a cringe-worthy way to put it, but those of us with “subservient quadrupeds” at home really are very attached to them.

Incidentally, given that Phlox’s bizarre treatment for Porthos involves drowning and reviving him, this episode initiates the dog into the grand tradition of Star Trek episodes that “kill” main characters only to bring them back to life again.

Complaint 3: Archer’s romantic feelings for T’Pol come out of nowhere and aren’t convincing.

While many viewers consider Archer’s romantic feelings for T’Pol in this episode to be a one-off story thread that was never picked up again, this is actually the end of a slight romantic thread between the two of them that started in season one, but largely fizzled out afterwards. Archer’s defence of T’Pol in “Fusion” could be assumed to be no more than a Captain protecting a member of his crew, but as well as several aside glances over the first season, they snuggle up together under a blanket in “The Andorian Incident”; in “Fallen Hero,” Vulcan ambassador V’Lar tells them she sees a “great bond” of “friendship” between them, and in “Shockwave Part 1,” T’Pol tells Archer she has his back. That may not sound like much, but in 90s Trek terms, that was practically a relationship.

The suggestion of an Archer/T’Pol romance would come up once more, in season three’s “Twilight.” Nothing to do with sparkly vampires, this episode had originally been suggested as a romantic storyline between Captain Janeway and First Officer Chakotay on Star Trek: Voyager, a couple who flirted mercilessly for seven years before Chakotay was inexplicably paired with Seven of Nine at the last minute. Re-written for Captain Archer and his First Officer, this episode is often considered one of Enterprise’s best – so it’s not the sexual tension between Archer and T’Pol itself that is the issue with “A Night In Sickbay,” merely the sloppy execution.

The main reason the idea of a romance between the two has such a poor reputation is that the way it’s brought up here feels rather strange, with Phlox insisting Archer’s concern for his dog is actually stress caused by underlying sexual tension, and some very dubious “Polarian slips” (“the breast I can,” really? With poor Jolene Blalock in that catsuit?). It’s true that the dream sequence in which Porthos’ funeral becomes a romantic moment between Archer and T’Pol, followed by yet more sexy “decontamination”, is rather silly, but it is just a dream. No one mated with each other and had lizard babies, and dreams are often weird – it’s not that bad a scene.

But the idea in itself isn’t inherently terrible – T’Pol and Archer do work well together and she is an obviously attractive woman. However, when she calmly tells Archer any kind of relationship would be inappropriate he does the right thing and moves on, and that’s the end of that. It’s a simple story of an attraction at work that isn’t pursued.

Complaint 4: The humor doesn’t work.

Some of the episode’s bad reputation is the result of its attempts at humour. The opening panning shot across Hoshi “decontaminating” T’Pol, who is “decontaminating” Archer, who is “decontaminating” Porthos, is presumably meant to be funny. The problem is, the exploitative “decontamination” scenes are so problematic in general, it just isn’t very funny, but rather makes it seem like the show is trying to sexualize the dog.

Similarly, the daft sequence at the end of the episode, where Archer has to go through a bizarre ritual in order to apologise to the Kreetassans, is a simple case of humour gone wrong. It’s too silly, his hairdo is bizarre, and it makes no sense. But again, no one turns into a lizard, or randomly picks a fight with some cavemen. It’s not great, but it’s hardly the worst Star Trek has to offer.

The main sources of humour in the episode are, of course, Phlox’s various shenanigans overnight in sickbay. He trims his toenails, he brushes his tongue, he and Archer chase a bat around. If you don’t find any of that funny, then sure, you may find the episode grating. Perhaps I just have a terrible sense of humour, but what can I say – I thought it was funny. Judging by this episode’s Hugo nomination, I’m not the only one.

This episode is sometimes accused of having “killed Star Trek” and blamed for Enterprise’s dwindling viewing figures and eventual cancellation. It’s true that it has flaws and it won’t be bothering any “Best Of” lists. But it doesn’t deserve its place on all the ‘Worst Of’ lists either. It’s a good chance to get to know Phlox a bit better, a fascinating and genuinely alien character who didn’t get the spotlight often enough. The interaction between Phlox and Archer here is genuinely fun to watch. It’s light and fluffy and silly, and maybe that’s not your bag, but that doesn’t make it bad. It shows Archer at his worst, at his most childish and petulant, but how can we really get to know any character without seeing them at their lowest? By the end of the episode, he has regained his sense of duty and is fulfilling his role as normal once again. He had a bad night – so do we all, sometimes. It’s about time we cut him, and this episode, some slack.

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*Though if that was a season finale, rather than a series finale, and if it hadn’t killed off a major character, it really wouldn’t be that bad either.

The post Star Trek: In Defense of Enterprise’s Worst Episode appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[darlingpetao3]

For Asgard (Chapter 20/?)

A loud crash of thunder roars, closely followed by a thud on Stark's terrace. Thor wears the most irritated looking face known to any man.

“Loki!” Thor calls out in fury. “I bid you to relinquish your hold on these mortals!” Did Loki just roll his eyes at his brother? Thor stomps his way into the apartment. There are shrieks of despair and blasts of alien lasers coming from down below. A gut feeling tells you that you should be down there, aiding the people of New York to safety. Fighting these things. Anything but being caught in a family quarrel between your former psychotic lover and his roided avenging brother.

“I cannot.”

“You will be defeated,” Thor vows. “Mark my words.” Loki aims and shoots a blast at his brother, missing him by a hair.

“You come with me,” Thor says, grabbing you around the waist as Loki tries to lunge for him. Loki wasn't fast enough and you now find yourself flying midair, swerving around buildings, while Thor injures flying Chitauri lowlifes with his lightning charged hammer. There, down below, is the rest of your team in a defence formation. Thor sets you down quite gently, which you appreciate.

“Any luck up there?” Birdman asks. You shake your head solemnly.

“Not even close. Gah! This whole thing is one giant shit show and I'm just so, so- angry!” The engine of a dying motorized vehicle gets closer as a man rides over to your team through a cloud of dust. He looks pretty rough and seriously dirty, but he walks up to Cap like he knows him, so he must not be a threat. Wait... his face. This was the same man Loki was smiling like the Cheshire Cat at through the lab window on the helicarrier.

“Did someone say 'angry'?” he says lightly. The man gestures to you. “Who's this?”

“Long story, but she's with us.” Cap keeps it short and sweet, you like that. “Stark, we got him,” he says with a hand to his earpiece. Stark's voice interjects over your com system.

“Banner? Tell him to suit up. I'm bringing the party to you.” Mere seconds later, a gargantuan, dragon/whale-like, alien monster floats its massive self from around the corner of a building, with Stark leading it your way. Off of it jumps even more Chitauri soldiers who grapple onto buildings on both sides of the street.

“What are you staring at?” Banner wonders.

You point a shaky finger behind him. “That,” voice wavering.

Cap instructs Banner to get angry, but how could that help? This Banner guy is smaller than the rest of the men on this team. What could he possibly do? Banner makes a crack about always being angry. The moment he turns to face the monster, he- what fresh HELL-? First, he's this calm, little white man and when you blink he's a huge, green, enraged and bulging thing making this machine-whale keel over with the power of his fist. Incredible. You thought you'd seen it all. You were sorely mistaken.

Cap covers you and Redhead with his shield from the debris the beast spit forth upon hitting the pavement. It lays unmoving on the ground, but up above, hanging from the buildings is the Chitauri army. They squawk their unnerving voices. Stark touches down next to a hulking Banner and you all stand in a circle, covering all their possible angles of attack. Like total badasses.

As the Avengers.

Another daunting whale-machine descends from the portal in the sky. Great. Cap starts dishing out instructions to each member of the team, but in your head, the volume of his voice dims. In its place, the sound of a child's whimpers catches your attention. Trying to locate the sound, you scan the destroyed area around you. And then you see him. A young boy about age six or seven cowers under a smashed up car. Something inside you kicks in and you high tail it to the boy, leaving your crew behind, all the while smashing and kicking gross Chitauri faces that happen to get in your way. And of course, they do get in your way. Finally, when there are no more obstacles to defeat, and thinking it best to proceed slowly so as to not frighten the little guy even more, you cautiously approach him and crouch down to his level.

“Hey, it's okay. It's okay, the coast is clear.” You extend your hand to him. “Come with me. I'll get you somewhere safe.” The child's bright eyes shift back and forth, checking his surroundings. He takes your hand (after some deliberation), as you help him out from under the wrecked vehicle.

“Where's your mom? Where did you see her last?”

The little boy's face twists in thought as he scratches his head. Shaggy black strands fall in his face. He doesn't answer you (which you can understand because you were taught not to talk to strangers when you were young, too), but he points down the closest street heading east. “Come on, I'll take you to her.” He takes your hand again while you lead the way. Suddenly you feel a surge of more responsibility than you've ever felt before.

You ask him which way next, and he points down an alley. On the other end of it, you can make out the sign of a cafe, where you assume awaits his rightfully frantic mother. Behind you at a distance, an alien garble of words grows louder. The boy's eyes are watering. He gives you a big hug and you think he shoves something haphazardly in your pocket. In a split second, his little legs carry him like he's the fastest boy alive. Now two Chitauri have spotted you and are hurtling your way. You quickly check to make sure the boy made it out of the alley to the cafe, but you no longer see him. Surely he's not that fast... You pray he made it out safely. You pick up a trash can lid just in your reach and let out a huff.

“Bring it, scumbags.”

You pant and smear the blood from your victorious cuts as you scan the interior of the cafe for the little boy's face. He is nowhere to be seen. Even when asking around in a small frenzy, no one here knew of any missing child. That left you uneasy, to say the least.

Out the cafe's window, Cap and Thor stand staring up at the sky in disbelief. You hurry out the door to their side and follow their upward stare. “What'd I miss?”

“Stark redirected a missile into the wormhole,” Cap explains. “Nat's closing- He's not out-”

“No, look!” You point out the falling red and gold sliver from above. The three of you exchange triumphant glances and back to the sky. “Wait, he's not flying. Stark's falling!” Thor winds himself up to fly, but the hulkish Banner luckily catches his colleague like a fly ball.

Banner sets him down, but Stark remains unmoving as the four of you form a huddle around him. The tabloids may have been right about him being a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, but he was more than that. He was the real hero today. The world will miss him greatly-

Stark's body on the ground gasps violently. “What the hell? What just happened?”

“We won.”

If one could believe it or not, it didn't actually feel like you had won, no matter the amount of praise and gratitude received from the people of New York. You smiled through the 'well done' pats on the back. You obviously had been through so much, so fast, with plenty of different and complicated emotions vying for the top spot in your brain.

Maybe you should see a therapist.

After all, upon reflection, you have come to realize the Asgardian witch's prophecy had come true.

“I see a blackness in your future. You will be consumed. Terror. Darkness. Sadness. Death.”

The blackness and darkness, you imagine, was falling through the hole eventually leading to the Otherworld. Terror – the havoc upon New York; Sadness, well that was obvious, and coincides with 'death,' Coulson's in particular. The 'consumed' part is trickier, and the only thing you could pinpoint to it would be how consumed with love you were for Loki that it blinded you...

At the present, you find yourself in Central Park trying to be inconspicuous behind the trunk of a tree. You pull your dark shades up onto your head and peer around the trunk, watching the exchange go down. Tony Stark walks with two briefcases while Thor escorts Loki to the undisclosed meeting place designed by Eyepatch. Since you were not originally and officially a part of the Avengers Initiative from the get go (and being on the wrong team in the beginning, though he never explicitly referred to it), Eyepatch thought it best for you to not be involved with the goings on taking place today. But that sure as hell didn't stop you from spying.

From catching one last glimpse at Loki.

He bears scratches all over his beautiful face and is bound in chains, cuffs and a muzzle. Even after everything, you still fight the urge to run to him. To kiss him. To say a proper goodbye.

Banner takes the Tesseract from one of Stark's briefcases and sets it in a cylindrical glass container. He hands it off to Thor, who then offers the other end of the container's handle to Loki. Loki grabs it roughly like he wants this shit to be over with. In the last moment, before the Tesseract is activated, Loki manages to spot you, like he knows.

He always knows, doesn't he?

His eyes are pleading. Please forgive me, they seem to say. You're not sure if you're ready for that step yet. The blue glow of the Tesseract envelops them and in a second, they vanish from this world and presumably back to Asgard.

And just like that, the deal is done, and the rest of your teammates disperse. Redhead and Birdman joke on their way to an awaiting cab. Banner and Stark laugh as they drive off in Stark's multi-million dollar Acura. And Cap, ever the cool guy, rides off into the sunset on his Harley.

Now that just leaves you. Alone. Sitting at the base of a tree trying to hold in your tears. Someone clears their throat. Looking up, it's Eyepatch. You put your shades back on so your eyes won't betray you in front of him.

“His proposition still stands. I can still make it happen,” he says, a little uncomfortable at your all too apparent sadness. “He would have wanted that for you.”

“Coulson?” His name almost wouldn't leave your lips. “I could really go home after everything?”

He nods. “I think it would be in all our best interests if you did.”

“Okay.”

You remain frozen on your doorstep to your apartment. It feels like the weirdest thing in all the worlds to be back here. To be back at the place you once called home. Strangely enough though, you felt homeless now. Your hand shakes a little while reaching for the doorknob. You brace yourself, but for what, you don't even know. Peeking through upon opening it, you notice the entire place is in complete disarray. Not only from the battle with the Frost Giant on the night you were last here, but an extra mess. Speaking of the Frost Giant, its body was no longer lying lifeless on the floor (thank goodness). You assume you could thank S.H.I.E.L.D. for all of this.

I mean really, would it kill S.H.I.E.L.D. to clean up after they tear my house apart? Automatically you throw your body onto the couch where the cushion is not overturned. In the process a piece of folded paper tumbles out of your pocket. The page is blank after unfolding the paper, but then words magically begin to materialize:

My darling,

I hope this note finds you well and is able to shed some light on a murky subject. I never did discuss much with you the plan I so foolishly kept to myself.

I struck a deal with the Other, telling him what he wished to hear, and developed an alliance with him in order to free us from under his hold in his strange realm. We agreed that if I were to take over New York, then eventually Midgard with his supplied army, he would reward me. Naturally, he was never specific, and I was wary of course. My plan was never to take control of New York City, nor Midgard for that matter, though my outward intentions seemed as such. No, my plan was always to return home to Asgard, to claim what was (and is) rightfully mine, and my hopes that you would be with me still when the time had come. In saying this, I do admit to faking my defeat by the so-called "Avengers" in order to have their agency send me home. To send us home. It is unfortunate that before this was seen through, our ways had parted. I will have returned to my realm by the time you read this message. The only thing missing here is you, my dear.

From the beginning, I have always wanted for you to be happy and safe, please understand this. But now I realize I have caused the opposite effects in my withholding of this information. I lost my way. I lost myself. I committed acts I regret. I caused you great pain and that is something I never wanted to bring to you, but I suppose I should accept my true nature as a harbinger of miserable disaster. I do not deserve your forgiveness, so I do not ask for it, though I hope with all my heart I might be blessed with it one day. Whatever my fate may be, I pray to lay eyes upon you again someday, a sight that will always and forever put me at ease.

I would say 'take care of yourself,' but we are both aware of your capabilities and skill set and I fear your lethal gaze at the very mention of the phrase. Ha, a joke.

Please  know this: I love you past, present, and future in every sense, in every way, and with every fibre of my being.

Always yours,

L

P.S. The small boy you helped that day is in awe of your kindness and bravery. He always had been...

You let a breath go and the words disappear from the page. The piece of paper floats to the ground out of your hands. In your direct line of vision is a familiar worn book on the coffee table.

Norse Mythology, the cover reads.

You echo the words of the man who changed your life and your world:

“They are not merely myths.”

Part 21

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