#like cool if you want to give them all redemption stories have fun

[lady-of-disdain]

I think that every time I see the take “[insert evil character] doesn’t deserve love before they get a redemption arc” or any variation thereof I’m gonna write Killer getting his dick sucked right after murdering someone.

[jamiedc-they-them]

BEING JOEL’S SURVIVING CHILD AND AN OLDLER SIBLING TO ELLIE PART 1:

CW: Normal Last of Us Swearing/Violence; mention of suicidal thoughts

Sarah and you were best friends. Being twins did that to you.

You were in sync with each other, and you would team up to freak your dad out all the time.

“You’re just jealous you don’t have a twin, dad!” You would say to him when he asked you to stop.

Whatever you wrote, she always hyped it up. She was proud of her twin.

You both stayed up to celebrate your dads birthday.

You both got the money for the watch.

When the apocalypse starts, Sarah goes in front. She’s the fighter, you’re not.

“Dad?” You ask you father when you leave to the car.

“We’ll be ok, baby. I promise.”

You see, but Sarah isn’t so lucky.

There’s a shift in you after that. You fall into a pit.

You’re a fighter, a brutal one.

Your dad and you almost lose yourselves.

Tommy’s heart breaks as he sees how far you’ve gone because of the pain.

He leaves for the firefly’s but offers for you to go with him.

There’s a spark of your humanity when he asks, but you decline. He leaves things off better with you then Joel.

This humanity sometimes appears in the small stories you write.

Joel doesn’t like taking you on jobs, but your size is an advantage.

Tess cares for you like one of her own. Constantly calls you “what we’re fighting for and still keeping ourselves around for.”

It doesn’t make you feel as special as she intends, but it’s a nice gesture if nothing else.

She too tries to encourage your writing. She tries to find material for you. Sometimes Joel does too.

On one run, you meet a girl. A spirited girl named Ellie.

You don’t exactly get along like a house on fire, but you also aren’t cold to her either.

She’s someone you’re taking as cargo, sure. But she’s human.

“He always like this?” She asks you, referencing your dad.

“Most of the time, yeah.” You answer.

“Great.”

You get used to it,” you assure.

Her face doesn’t hold a smile, but she’s grateful internally for your assurance, and just for making conversation with her.

When you get to your hideout, your dad sleeps. Leaving you and Ellie awake.

“So, what is there to do?”

“I normally sit here, watching people.”

“...Can I join?”

“Sure,” you move to make space for her. She notes how you have a little pad and pencil, along with how you curl into yourself; you seem more natural, more relaxed.

“So, now what?”

“Now, I normally just watch people as they go. Sometimes write some ideas in here,” at ‘here’ you gesture to your notepad.

“About them?” she points outside.

You start to shake your head, then pause and look up, “sometimes. Most of the time, just ideas for stories. Sometimes I try and give them backstories.”

“Have you ever read Savage Starlight?”

“When I was younger, sure. Used to write my own little fics about them.”

She chuckles, though in interest, “that’s pretty cool.”

There’s a ghost of a smile on your face, “didn’t think so at the time. But, yeah, they were. One time, Sarah and I made up our own characters,” you don’t even clock the name drop of your dead sister, too clouded with the happiness of the memory, “just, acted out scenes for hours.”

“Sounds like fun,” her voice softens; she knows about Sarah, but she doesn’t say that. She’s lost people too after all.

“Yeah,” you say, “yeah, it was.”

She smiles a bit. She hasn’t had a friend in a longtime. Not since Riley. Though, the feelings for her ran in a different way. She doesn’t want to have you in the way she had a crush on her best friend. She just wants a friend.

You see her infection, and become guarded. But you see the conviction on her face when she says to you about being immune.

Hope is something you rarely let yourself feel, but you did in this moment. Maybe all the pain would be worth something if you could do this. Redemption could be yours.

Joel notices a push and pull with you. You’ll find yourself talking to Ellie, bonding with her, only to then pull away or stop yourself. You’re protective of her too, putting yourself in front of her when in danger. Though, she saves you too, killing zombies that have grabbed you or warning you about on coming ones.

For the first time in a while, Joel sees you smile when she brushes off Joel’s advice and crosses over the beam.

Then…then Tess dies. Both can tell it hurts you. It’s why Joel bans it from conversation.

“I’m sorry,” Ellie says to you, then goes by Joel’s rule.

When walking to Bill’s, she walks near you. She doesn’t say anything, but she hopes her presence can mean something.

Part of it does make her feel a bit safer, and makes the loss of Riley more easy; someone is nearby to just silently say “I’m here”

You give her a small smile in one moment of silence. She returns it, but she sees you’re thankful, not fully being alone with it all.

She just nods, she’s glad it’s helping and that you’re here too silently doing the same thing for her.

When she plays with the fireflies, there’s a smile on your face at her innocence in that moment. Even you have to admit, there’s a beauty to them and this world, despite everything.

Joel’s smile softens a bit when he looks at you. He knows Ellie is filling that void that losing Sarah left for you as well. He can see, with the way you then clear your throat and turn around, that it’s scaring you as much as it is him.

You both made a silent vow to never discuss it, but now that wound is being ripped open, the more you let Ellie in.

Joel knows Bill better than you, but you still warn Ellie about how the man can be.

When Ellie tells you both about the game, you don’t correct her on the (admittedly) small moments of incorrect information. She looks at you with glee, then asking you about it. About the other characters. And you’re honest with what you can remember. Twenty years of survival made you forget a lot of your old life.

You both work together, and it’s the first time the three of you have some (albeit slightly chaotic giving everything going on in the situation) level of synchronization. Ellie throwing you both ammo (she never actually pestered you for a gun, which you’re thankful for), Joel covering you; you giving Ellie a boost up, covering her as best you could, her giving you both warnings. It works.

You chuckle at her comments to Bill. You can see your father finds humour in them too, even if he won’t let himself show it.

When it comes to the bloater, Joel makes sure you get up there as well. Just in case.

With Frank, you find the note and give it to your dad.

“Jesus. Alright, thanks, kid.”

You leave it to him to decide what to do with it.

Despite her assurance that she knows how to pop a clutch, she does ask you in a whisper which one that is. You point if out for her.

“Actually. Y/N, why don’t you get in the car with Ellie? You drive.”

“Oh, c’mon?! Seriously?!” Ellie protests, despite trusting you and all. She thought it would be cool.

“How about you cover us from in there?” You say, bringing out your pistol and handing it to her.

“Y/N, no. That - that ain’t exactly what I had in mind for —“ your dad begins to protest himself. Damn it, he’s gone back in time with how you used to be with Sarah. Rebellious.

“Oh, fuck yes!” Ellie says as she takes the pistol, “I fucking love this plan! Get in, partner!” You do so, and pop the clutch, though almost stall the fucking thing.

“It’s been a while,” you use as an excuse.

“Weren’t you like my age when the world went to shit?”

“…Fair point.”

“I did let them drive once after a run,” Joel says as himself and Bill get ready to push the car.

“Joel…Not. The. Fucking. Time.” He says.

Ellie is a decent shot to be fair. So that’s something, at least.

Still, you make it through the town, and say goodbye to your ‘uncle’ Bill. He just tells you to fuck off when he hears that. You flip him off, not seeing Ellie also join you in that.

You’re her friend, she’s gonna back you up however she can. That, and despite him getting you a car, guy was somewhat of a dick to her, so.

She shows you the magazine, you just laugh. Even harder when she reveals she was just fucking with Joel with her questions.

She moves up to the front after seeing you fall asleep. Joel even pulls over so they both can get you laying down.

“They’re a deep sleeper,” Ellie comments.

“Yeah. Yeah, they ain’t been able to for a long time.”

“Oh. Well, that’s good that they still can though, right?” She asks.

“It is,” it’s the softest Ellie’s heard him speak since she’s met you both. And you look the softest you have yet. Guard completely let down.

Before getting back in the car, she makes sure to put your pistol back in your backpack.

They’re quiet with the music as they drive. It lulls Ellie off to sleep.

When the ambush happens, you wake up at the last minute, meaning it’s a blur to you. It almost gets you killed. After Joel saves Ellie, he sees you almost knocked out. That same fatherly rage overtakes him, and he is brutal with his kill. Ellie, meanwhile, helps move you to some cover, giving you some alcohol and cloth to clean the wounds later. She doesn’t ask if you’re ok, knowing that your now bloodied face is enough of an answer.

As Joel looks for supplies, she helps you with your face.

“You ever have things like this happen when you were younger?” She asks, trying to distract you from the sting you feel.

“To be honest, not really. Sarah and I would sometimes take a fall, that was the extent of our injuries most of the time. Though once or twice we’d get in a fight at school.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Some arsehole or something. We’d hear it, the other wouldn’t, then we’d just see red.”

“Must’ve been nice, having someone watch your back like that.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it is.”

“Well,” she says, pouring a bit more alcohol onto the cloth before dabbing it on your cut on your face, “for as long as we’re on this road trip together, I’ve got your back.”

“You have so far,” you say, and she smiles, “and I’ve got yours too. You’re a good kid. I, uh, I hope you can save the world with this immune thing.”

“It’d be good. I mean, most’ve the kids I knew were never that special in general. I never was in school,” you chuckle a bit - neither were you, “but this might mean something.”

“You want my advice?” She nods, putting the cloth and very little remaining alcohol away in her back pack, and handing you yours from the jeep as you stand up, “you’re already a good person, I’d say that’s special enough for a world like this. Just…try not to lose that, ok?”

The sincerity with your advice makes her nod genuinely, “I’ll do my best.”

“I know you will,” you ruffle her hair, “now, c’mon. Think dad might’ve gotten lost during our bonding time.”

She chuckles, but stays a bit behind you before following, she mules on your words. Of saying ‘dad’ and calling it ‘bonding’ time. In FEDRA, they always talked about them all being siblings, but most were just arseholes. But, you’re the first two people who have treated her like a person. Aside from Riley, but she knows how she felt about her isn’t how she feels about either of you - besides, the age difference is just a big no - but she cares about you both. And you’re more open of your care with her. Joel is more through action and small stories.

She follows, after that short moment of contemplation.

With Joel’s vague “I’ve been on both sides” she does lump you in with that as well. Not that she blames you, Joel is the only family you have left. So she gets why you haven’t left his side.

With the whistling, Joel at first thinks you taught it to her, but you say to him that it’s “all her.”

You do smile a bit at it, knowing she now has a trump card against your dad.

You had the puppy dog eyes, Ellie has the whistle.

You swear you hear you dad grumble under his breath about this same idea.

With the hotel, Joel is separated from you both. You just tell her to “stay close” and she does.

She’s panicking, but at least she isn’t alone.

You witness her killing the man who was fighting Joel. You can tell she’s shaken. You try to comfort her, but her anger at Joel makes her ignore it when she snaps at him.

Things are a bit cold for a moment as go through the rest of the hotel. But then he asks her to cover you both.

“How can I do that for both of you?” She asks, a bit worried of letting you guys down.

“We’ll be smart,” Joel assures as you check your ammo, “besides, if anyone’s gonna be caught, it’s gonna be me.”

“Why’s that?” She asks. Joel looks back at you for a moment, and leans closer to Ellie.

“Feeling my age,” he says. She smirks, but doesn’t say anything. She’ll keep that between them.

Joel jumps first, thanking her in his own way for saving him. After she says he’s welcome, she then looks to you, “I meant what I said,” she tells you.

“I know you did. You’ve got this,” you assure, before jumping down yourself.

“I’ve got this,” she says to herself softly, getting in position, “I’ve got this.”

She does. She really does.

You give her a nod when she’s smart with the pistol, pocketing it. You even share some of your ammo with her.

With Henry and Sam, Ellie notices you distancing yourself a little. You are, to be honest, but oddly it’s Henry who catches you out on it.

“Afraid you’ll lose your sister?” He says, as you all wait in his office to go on the night run.

“Guess it’s best to lose her to a friend than the whole permanent thing,” he notices how you: a) don’t correct him; and b) play with your fingers a bit. He nods, seemingly understanding why you’re being a bit distant now.

“I get what you mean,” he decides to say, “I haven’t seen Sam that happy in a while.”

You nod. Then move the conversation on. Which Henry understands.

You find yourself becoming friends with him quite easily. You both bond over your previous lives and the old world.

It seems to maybe be at an end when he ditches Joel, and Ellie joins you both. But he makes a valid point about him wanting his brother safe and how if the tables would be reversed, would it be the same outcome? He came back, after all.

Being split up in the sewers, Ellie is scared truly for the first time, being away from you both at the same time.

She hears gunshots and just hopes it’s both of you. She lets out a massive sigh of relief when she sees that it is, “thank god,” she says.

As you continue your journey, Ellie sees more of this nostalgic side to you; pointing things out for them that they don’t understand, but you, Joel, and Henry, do.

She finds it odd, and feels a bit left out, but there is a life to your eyes as you laugh about whatever the newest nostalgia object or idea was.

“Hey,” she says to you as you both search a house, “we’re ok, right?”

“Yeah,” you say instantly, “course.”

“Ok, good. That’s good.”

“You’re allowed to have friends, Ellie.”

“I know. I know…But, I’m not replacing you or anything —“

“Ellie,” you say, pausing from looking in a cupboard to look to her, “we’re good, I promise.”

“Ok,” she says, “seems you and Henry are tight.”

“Yeah,” you say, “yeah, he’s a good guy. Aside the whole abandoning thing.”

“He was good with me in the sewers,” she says, “he;s a good guy.”

“He is,” you affirm both her and your previous words.

“Do you…like him? I won’t tell anyone.”

“Nah, he’s just a good guy. Besides, was never into any of that myself.”

“Oh. That’s cool.”

“Yep. What about you, you into any of the whole romantic thing?”

Her mouth opens, and the story of her and Riley almost comes out, but she doesn’t say that. Instead, she says, “not with Sam. Or his whole…thing.”

“Gender?” She nods, “Hm. Cool.”

She feels glad she told someone. It’s another one of those bonding moments. There’s more trust now.

Then Henry and Sam die. You’re just frozen. So is she. Joel goes to the youngest, trying to get Ellie out of her state first. It takes a moment, before she is. Then they both look to you. Your hands are shaking, and you’ve curled into a ball at the wall.

“Careful,” Joel says, “Actually, stay here,” she does, but her worried and tear filled eyes stay on you.

She can’t hear what he says to you, but it takes a moment for you to look at him. You then fall into his arms. He holds you as you cry.

You stand up with him, avoiding looking at the bodies of your dead friends as best you can, before you or go over to Ellie.

“Come on,” you say, voice quiet, and wobbly. She takes your hand, and notes how you keep holding it as you leave.

As you near Tommy’s dam, she sees that it’s hurt you. You clean yourself off in a more shallow part of the water. You’re quieter. Not dispondant, but in your own head more. Like with Tess, only this was a death you saw. Joel’s worried too, you haven’t been like this since Sarah. And that quietness lasted for a few years, then turned into anger. He doesn’t want to see you go through that again.

Every so often, when you’re too much in your head or about to miss something like a jump or whatever, she will either call out your name, or put a hand on your arm to bring you back to the present. She hates how you jump at it.

She brings up the toy burial thing with Joel when she knows you won’t hear it. Even though Joel dismisses it, he does give her a ‘thank you’ a bit further ahead.

You both meet Tommy again, and those feelings of being an outsider and abandonment come up again.

She guesses this is how you felt for a moment with Sam and her, though she doesn’t have someone to talk to this time about anything. Maria tries, but it’s not the same.

Joel goes off with Tommy, and you find yourself going to the stables. Maria takes Ellie for some food. You’re all separated.

In the stable, you allow yourself a moment of vulnerability. With one horse, it approaches you and nudges you. You cry, and it comforts you, nuzzling against you. It’s sweet, and you allow yourself to feel the toll of everything. To not hide it anymore.

Maria radios later whoever it is in the stables, asking for you.

Whoever it is, sends a girl, named Dina, to come get you. She’s nice. She reminds you of Ellie a bit. Empathetic.

She tells you where to go. Offers to take you, but you apologise for taking up her time and go find Ellie.

She sees your eyes being red from crying, but doesn’t ask about it. Maria follows that action.

When the attack comes, you’re on instinct mode. And that has protect within there somewhere. You’re brutal. Ellie’s never seen this side full on. It scares her a bit.

“Are you ok?” Joel asks, getting Ellie calm with her rant. She says she is, but then she looks to you in the corner, sat on the table, blood on parts of your face and jacket, and jeans…you’re not caked in it, but there are splatters of blood on pretty much all of you.

“Y/N…they. They protected me.”

Joel hates that this part has come out again, but he finds himself nodding with Ellie, “yeah,” he says, “can you give us a minute?” She nods, moving aside to let him go to you.

“Dad,” you say, instincts on high and your head shoots up to speak to him, “I had to. I had to keep her safe.”

He’s silent for a minute, trying to find the right words. It’s been a while since you’ve had talks like this, time to actually think about his answer, “I know. You did protect her. But, kid, look at you. I don’t want you to lose yourself to that. I don’t want you to…become who I was.”

“Am I a monster?”

“No, no. God no,” he’s quick and sure of that answer, “just…I think this has taken a toll on you more than it has me.”

You smile a small one, he mirrors it, “guess I’m feeling my age too, huh?”

He snorts, “yeah. I don’t think you’re there yet.”

He’s glad he’s done this. And while he knows leaving Ellie will be hard, he knows this is best. You’re both becoming too attached, and he doesn’t want you to go through that pain again.

To make it easier, Joel asks Maria to get you some fresh clothes and have a wash to try make this easier on himself too. She does so, meaning you have no idea Ellie ran away.

Maria’s gentle with you, not out of fear, but because you’re part of her family, and she sees how much this transfer of having Ellie in your life to not is gonna hurt you.

“Thank you,” she says after you’re dressed and leave the room, “for what you did. I’m sorry it came to that.”

“It’s nothing,” you say, waving it off, “thank you for the clothes and the shower. Haven’t had one like those in god knows how long.”

“Don’t know a good thing til it’s gone, huh?” She says.

“Definitely not,” you say, chuckling, before playing with your fingers a bit.

There’s a beat of silence between you both. Not awkward, just a moment of silence.

“You’re welcome to stay, you know,” she says, “you, Joel, and the kid,” she hates lying, but she’d rather spare you that pain, “there’s some empty houses we’ve got.”

You smile, and there’s a sparkle of life to your eyes. There’s hope.

“I’d like that,” you say.

She goes to say something else, when her radio goes off. It’s Tommy, he was wondering if you could come down to the stables, and that Joel and Ellie are wanting to get another horse for you to get where you want to go.

Internally, she’s relieved. Both for her husband not going, but also for that idea of a happy ending being alive still.

She doesn’t think she’s ever seen someone so hopeful for a happy ending. And, knowing about what Joel and you went through, or all least, what Tommy told her about you both, she doesn’t think there’s someone that deserves one more.

Joel and Ellie agree to keep their little fight a secret too, as they too see how happy you are to be together again as a trio.

Ellie rides on Joel’s horse, you ride your own.

You and your dad both try and explain (American) football to Ellie. God help her, she tries to understand it. To be honest, you barely got it yourself.

Still, this is the closest you three have been. And Joel is pretty happy too. You’ve almost reverted back to how you were, but in a more mature way if that makes sense? You’ve got back your hope and openness, just with this more mature mind now using them.

He even opens up about having Sarah and you pretty young. You never asked him about your mother, he was enough as far as you knew. But, he always said your mother loved you, whatever happened to her. So that was enough for you. Not that you and Sarah didn’t theorize.

While waiting for Joel to reappear to open the gate for you both, you mention that Sarah and her would’ve gotten along really well, and she hopes so. She then asks you about being twins, how it's a bit weird. But you explain to her how you and Sarah weren’t always on the same pages. You were different people, just had your own sibling dynamic. Being the same age, and either of you ever sure of who was the oldest by whoever many minutes, just meant you experienced things at the same time.

When Joel mentions the singing, even you beg him, reminding him of when he did for you and Sarah when younger, “You still remember that, kid?”

“Oh boy, do I. You were a real country singer.”

“I was not.”

“Was too.”

“Was not.”

“Was.

“Not.

“Not.”

“Was.”

“Ha! Got you.”

“Damn it,” Ellie chuckles at you both. Selfishly, she hopes you don’t find the firefly’s, and that she can stay with you. She’ll miss you both a ton.

Though, that wish soon turns into reality. And reality is a nightmare.

Joel gets injured. You both get him out, though barely.

Ellie panics, and you revert back to instinct mode. But this time it’s focused.

You find shelter together, and it’s Ellie this time who lets herself be more open, “what do we do?” She asks, voice trembling a bit in both fear and the coldness. It’s winter.

“I don’t know,” you say, voice neutral.

“You don’t know?”

“You want me to say something else?”

“I want for you to have a plan!”

“Well I don’t fucking have one!”

“Then fucking think of one!”

“Like what?!” She shrinks back a small amount, but still holds your gaze, “Hm?! What do you want me to tell you, Ellie? There’s nothing around here! This whole fucking place has been raided! Maybe we’ll get lucky in our next place. A mall, or something. But, right here? Right here, we have nothing!”

You two don’t talk as you move onto a mall.

“Stay here, I’ll go see if there’s anything,” you say to Ellie, getting your pack ready.

“I’ll go,” she says.

“We can’t both go.”

“Then I’ll go.”

“That’s suicide.”

“I can take care of myself, Y/N,” she says, then grabs your hands in hers, “you use your size to your advantage, I can use mine. You’ve taught me a lot. I can do this. Just, trust me, please?”

You don’t like the idea of this. You’re the older one, you’re the one who is meant to do this. But, you also see how Ellie is pleading. You didn’t even think you taught her a lot, but she’s earnest with her words.

You find yourself nodding; and with her assurance that she’ll be “back in a flash,” she’s gone.

She’s not. It’s a bit longer than that. But she stands corrected that she can take care of herself. She even helps you fend off the hunters that had come looking for you.

She’s determined to keep your father alive. You both work on keeping him that way.

You hand her some alcohol before she does the needle work, “to help keep your hands steady.”

She takes it, it doesn’t taste great, but it does the trick.

You find yourself in a town, hiding in the garage part of a house.

You both communicate through things other than words at this point. You both snuggle close to your dad to share body heat. When one goes on a hunt, the other gives a nod of good luck, sometimes a hug.

One time she takes longer than usual, tells you that she met someone else who gave her some medicine. But that they were “fucking creepy.”

Those creeps come by the next day. You’re awake before Ellie this time. Your rushed moment and knocking something over wakes her up, and she’s alert quickly.

“Stay here, I’ll lead them away.”

“That’s stupid!” She tells you, “You’ll die.”

“Only if they catch me. Look,” you say, crouching down and putting your hands on her shoulders, “I’ll be right back, ok?”

“We both will be,” she says, looking to Joel, “you just don’t die, alright? You motherfucker,” she says to him, before getting up.

“You go one way, I’ll go the other?” She nods at the plan, and you both ride out, before splitting up.

You’re both caught, but David tells her you died. When she rips off his finger, she makes sure it hurts to avenge you.

She gets out, and just mutters to herself, “please don’t be dead. Please don’t be dead,” as she tries to make her way back to Joel.

She can’t lose anyone else.

She finds a cell, one with a fresh dead member of David’s crew, “that’s what you get, you sick fucks,” she says to herself. Proud. It means you’re alive.

She gets caught again, and finds herself truly terrified for the first time in a while. She knew people could be cruel in this world, but not like this. Not like David.

When she kills David, she lets it all out. All that anger. All that pain.

Joel finds her, and she’s still in fighting instinct, but calms when she sees it’s Joel.

She breaks down in her father’s arms.

She then remembers you, and pulls away, and only croaks out the start of your name before Joel shushes her.

“We’ll find them, baby girl, we’ll find them.”

It doesn’t take long.

They find you wandering out on your own.

Joel calls out your name, and you spin around with a revolver in your hand. You look dazed.

But you blink a few times, and your father and sister don’t disappear.

You barrel into them, and the three of you just hold each other.

Joel kisses you both on the head, before you then do the same to Ellie.

“Oh, Ellie,” you say, crouching down. You put your hands on her face, “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.” She feels warm in the hug. Safe. Protected.

This is what family is like, she knows it’s true.

It’s people who put their life on the line for each other. And care about each other deeply.

As a family, you leave that horrible town, and onto your final stretch of your journey.

This time, it’s you who pulls Ellie out of her head. Sometimes you call out her name, sometimes you put a hand on her shoulder. Or sometimes, when trying to have banter with her, you ruffle her hair a bit.

She always gives you a small smile, but it doesn’t fool you.

But you also know if you push it, it may push her overboard.

So you just keep near, making sure she eats, and sleeps well.

Most nights, she goes to sleep with you having a protective arm around her, or running your fingers through her hair to calm her down.

You even try and do her hair at one point, it doesn’t go well, but she does give you a ‘thank you’ for the effort.

“Don’t leave,” she says one night, while falling asleep. Joel is long gone for the night, it’s just you both.

“We won’t.”

“But you will, one day.”

“One day, yeah. But that won’t be for a long, long time,” you assure your little sister.

“How do you know?”

“Because, even when I tried to die, it didn’t work.”

“…What?”

“A bit after Sarah. Dad stopped me. It’s what made the mark on my forehead. I missed.”

“I’m glad you did.”

You smile, “yeah, I’m glad I did too.”

She falls asleep, glad to have met you people. Glad to have found a family.

When she almost drowns, you and Joel are panicking. No one is in control of the sitatuion. Your only thoughts are Ellie and making sure she doesn’t die.

You wake up in the hospital. Marlene visits you, and tells you the story she told Joel. But then, over the radio, you hear about Joel breaking out, and Marlene takes you with her, as “collateral,” she says. She does give you an “I’m sorry, kid” but it doesn’t mean anything.

When Joel gets out the elevator, Marlene has a gun to your head and you on your knees.

“This is your kid, Joel. Ellie won’t feeling anything, I promise.”

Joel pauses, and you see him hesitate for a moment.

A gun goes off twice. One with it being held in the air, the other into Marlene’s stomach.

You keep it pointed at her, put Joel then comes back, and holds out his hand, “go check on Ellie.” He knows what the darkness can do to you.

You nod, going to the car and putting her head on your lap.

She wakes up to you, and you smile down at her.

When Joel tells the lie, she looks at you, searching for any sign of bullshit. She does find some, but doesn’t say anything.

The three of yo arrive at Jackson, more alive than ever.

You give her a boost up to Joel when the log falls, then they both help you up. She jokes at you feeling your age one thirty-something when you put a hand to your back.

She then confides in your both about Riley. And swears you both to tell her that what you said was true.

You both do, and try to help her with her guilt over her friends’ deaths.

She knows your lying, but buries it. She knows she has also lied to you at being able to fully keep her innocence. But, that’s just part of growing up, she supposes.

She has you now. A support system. And she doesn’t like the lie. But you two have to each other and her sometimes on the journey, but your care for each other is real. So, she says the only thing she can think of to keep this bond going.

“Ok.”

[marvel-starwarsfangirl]

Why I Love Crosshair- A Story About Persevering

I talk about Crosshair so much on my blog. With TBB ending in a few days, I wanted to share with y'all why he resonates with me so deeply. This show and these characters have touched the hearts of so many in this fandom. I'm curious, which Batcher has resonated with you? Anyways, here we go!

Crosshair's hot. That's it. I'm a simple woman. Moving on.

He's really freaking cool- I'm not gonna like, seeing Crosshair make those trick shots has me on the edge of my seat. It's just so much fun to watch someone do an incredible skill whether it's dance, playing music, or in Crosshair's case, take out several battle droids with one shot. I love it.

His character arc- Crosshair is one of the most interesting and complex characters I've met in recent years. I'm not going to lie, it's refreshing to see a really well-written morally grey character. Crosshair's one and only loyalty is to his family (plus a few others). He will do anything for them. However, Crosshair isn't drawn to some bigger cause like Echo or Omega are. From my POV, it's something interesting to think about. What makes a good person? How far is one willing to go for someone they love? At what point does that loyalty and love turn selfish or self-destructive? These are all questions that Crosshair's character brings up.

I also appreciate the love and passion put into his character. Jennifer and the team took their time to give Cross a proper redemption. It wasn't as simple as "Crosshair just flips on a dime" or "he dies proving he still loved them." No. The change had to come from Crosshair. Crosshair had to be the one to make the steps towards coming home. It had to be his choice and his choice alone, not something that was forced onto him. I really appreciate that tbh. People are so complex and we all make mistakes. Crosshair made some pretty bad choices (not that he was 100% in control). Still, he had to figure things out for himself and when he was ready, he decided to come home.

His story- Crosshair's story is one of struggle and persevering in my eyes. "The Outpost" is one of the best depictions of what it's like to struggle with mental health. It's why I love it so much. I see a lot of myself in Crosshair. So often, it's much easier to just lie down and quit. But Crosshair doesn't quit. No. He fights. He fights so hard and in the end, he makes it. To see Crosshair come home after so long meant the world to me. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. You can and will make it. And he didn't do it alone. Omega continued to be a light in his life. Crosshair reminds me to never give up. Even when it all seems impossible, we need to keep going and there is hope for the future. When he meditates with Omega, I almost cried. That episode reminded me of my mom because she's constantly encouraging me and supporting me. She always tells me that I have to be the one to help myself. It's difficult and she will be there, but I can't just expect things to fix themselves. Similarly, Omega told Crosshair that he needed to help himself. I don't think I've ever related to a SW character as much as I have with Crosshair.

Crosshair has taught me so much about myself. Through him, I've learned that there's a lot going on in my head that I need to work on. I realized why S1 Hunter pissed me off so much. Because like Cross, there are times at home where I feel like no one listens. He taught me to keep going, to keep fighting, especially in times of great uncertainty. Crosshair and Omega's relationship shows just how special the impact of one person can have. I see their relationship reflected in my life in many ways. There's so much more I can say about Cross, but we would be here forever lol.

I am so grateful for Crosshair. I am so grateful for his story. He might be just a character, but he's really helped me tackle some rough times in my life. I love him with all my heart and will forever be thankful to TBB team for bringing his story to life.

Thank you DBB, Jen, Brad, Michelle, and everyone on TBB team. Thank you for everything ❤️

[theboyandthepeach]

Hi there!

Greetings!

Pelipper Mail is ALLOWED

Magic Anons are NOT ALLOWED (it's my au I do what I want lmao)

This is the ask blog for my Toxic Consequences AU!

Here you can ask questions for the characters in my AU!

Characters Available For Asks:

Kieran

Dokutaro

The Loyal 3 (you can ask them separate questions)

Carmine

Terapagos

Terapagod

Florian and Juliana

Ogerpon

Briar

Giratina

ME, ARI, THE MOD HELLO

Rules:

1. NO NSFW, gore, festishes, all that stuff. I do not tolerate it here

2. Pelipper mail is fine. Just specify who you're giving it to. (They fight over it otherwise)

3. Dokutaro's text is purple like this, it's to tell who's who

4. I'll be drawing things in response to asks, so it might take a while to answer them

5. Long asks take forever to respond to, forgive me for that

6. You can roleplay with your own Kieran AU or any other characters (even ocs)

7. In-character hate is fine, just don't overdo it or have it be out of character, that's not cool

8. All the legendary Pokémon/mythical can talk in this au (Terapagos is baby boi, so his speech is limited)

9. Do not send asks relating to people offing themselves or telling a character to off themselves. That's not cool and is not welcome on my blog. In-character or not, it's a heavy topic that's triggering to a lot of people.

That should be it! Have fun!

STORY TAGS GUIDE:

(Still need to tag some posts, but for now, here)

#Miscellaneous mischief - asks that aren't plot related

#Poisoned mind - Kieran's villain arc seperate from Dokutaro

#Renegade's revenge - Giratina related stuff

#Tera Trouble - Briar and Terapagod related

#Poison Puppeteer - Dokukieran

#Never Rotting Peach- Dokutaro's redemption

#Briar Logs - Logs that Briar made, both before and after her memory loss

#Healing mind - Kieran's not evil arc

[batsarebetterthanpeople]

You know after thinking about it I think my main problem with Izzy stans once you get past the obvious one, which is the way that they are racist to Ed, (Clearly my main problem but not the problem I’m here to talk about) is that they don’t even like Izzy. They like Ed, and they like Black Pete, and they like Calico Jack, but they can’t admit that they like those characters for some reason? (you know why they can’t admit that they like Ed and Black Pete)

Like the ways Ed’s back story gets cannibalized for Izzy in a lot of fics and the way people will swap Izzy and Ed’s personalities is well trod territory. Ed is treated as enjoying violence and having a toxic masculinity problem and Izzy is treated like someone who’s trying desperately to make his working relationship with Ed beneficial when in the show those rolls are switched. You’ve heard this meta before. I just made a whole post about the way that Jack’s roll in Ed’s backstory (i.e. like 90% of the reason he exists as a character) gets ignored in favor of giving that roll to Izzy. And don’t even get me started on Black Pete. Both Izzy and Black Pete struggle with toxic masculinity, are obsessed with Blackbeard, and desperately wants to be in a leadership roll and aren’t very good at it. But so far at least Black Pete is the one undergoing the redemption arc and getting better, and Izzy is the one getting worse. I see people wanting a relationship with Lucius to redeem him and I’m like girl you have that. That’s Black Pete. Like Black Pete chose to get better and he’s still working on it but when he realized that Blackbeard wasn’t who he thought he was he minded his business and he went from complaining about sewing being womens work and worrying about what Blackbeard’s crew would do in episode one to learning through his relationship with Lucius to be sweet and vulnerable. And while Izzy in canon is attracted to Lucius i guarantee you that Lucius will not be playing that roll in his narrative, because it’s the roll he plays for Black Pete. That’s not to say that Lucius fixed him, but they will give Lupete’s dynamic to Izzy for no fucking reason.

So I’m gonna do something I don’t usually do and that’s defend Izzy here. If you’re gonna like Izzy there are tons of things about him that you can like. His psychosexual obsession with Blackbeard and his and Ed’s weird codependency is juicy enough to drive the plot at times. He’s a little freak to the point where he got his toe cut off and he liked it. He’s stubborn. He’s driven. He’s manipulative. He’s plotting and conniving. He sees other people as caricatures of themselves and DOES NOT react well at all to people falling outside of the box he’s made for them. He’s angry all the time. He can’t identify love. He’s jealous of Stede in the way that a child is jealous of their friends’ friends. All of these are wonderful traits in a blorbo (and terrible traits in a person, but a blorbo is not a real boy) They make him interesting and they give him layers. It’s very fun to theorize what happened to him to make him this way. There are many reasons to like Izzy Hands. But it’s kind of annoying when other characters’ cool stuff is ascribed to Izzy and those characters are ignored and maligned in favor of Izzy, especially when those characters are the brown romantic lead and the bald kinda frumpy guy with a lisp, who in 99% of media doesn’t get to be seen as hot but in this media gets to be desired. And it makes me feel bad for your Izzy that you cant like him for him.

[ohnoitsjetster]

jesse!!! hi!! i have one very important question for you: ARE‼️YOU 🫵🏼 DAN🧍‍♂️REYNOLDS🎤⁉️

(okay now for my real question, what’s your fav hatchetfield installment?? it could be a musical or nightmare time ep or even workin’ boys if you’ve seen it :] i’m curious!! oh also if you want you can tell me about orin, i’m vaguely familiar with lsoh but it’s been a while!! so yea, free pass to talk about your lil gay sadist of a dentist <3 this was just an excuse to give you an ask so yk you can really just talk about whatever)

SOL! Hi hi hi hi !! (Sorry for the late response)

OHOHO! A dual fandom ask !! This means another long rambling post for my four most dedicated followers to read!!!! Im sorry in advance!!! this will probably be boring to everyone but me!!!!

I think my favorite might be NPMD. That one changed my brain chemistry for sure. But so did TGWDLM, I really believe that watching Show Stopping Number at the tender age of, like 11… well it just explains a lot about how i turned out ([obligatory “fuck Robert manion”]). I also frequently shake Time Bastard, Killer Track, and Abstinence Camp around in my teeth like a dog like HAUUFHGIGJHJGKKGKFGKRGJ RFRRRGJGG RRHHRHHRHH HREHHEGEGHGRGHRHHHHFFNFHFGGHF like that. But yeah at the present moment I'm being insane about NPMD. The songs are all bangers (Yes all of them) and I am in love with every character (Yes every character). High School is Killing Me is kind of my anthem right now. For no. Particular reason. Also, your honor those three nerds are all literally me and also i am in love with them and also im that fucked up dead bully but in a totally normal way.

So. Speaking of fucked up dead bullies… ‘,:]

Orin Scrivello, DDS <3 my beautiful bbg who has never done anything wrong in his life except for literally everything he did. Worst guy ever. But hey, you can’t choose who you rotate around in your brain, or how many Pinterest boards you make about it. Another instance of “he’s literally me but obviously not actually at all but I think he’s silly so that’s basically the same thing.” A tale as old as time. I don’t know how many queer awakenings one person can have but I was definitely already trans and bi when I saw Orin for the first(?*) time last year, and now, well now im the same but im more pretentious about it and I own a leather jacket. (*I actually saw LSOH a long time ago when i was way younger, but I didn’t remember it almost at all and I’d thought “The Dentist” was like this mad scientist type character, which, not exactly wrong ig, so anyway he’s been swimmin around in my brain making me silly for who knows how long, but yeah probably just since last year). I swear to cope with hyperfixating on such a fucked up character I’ve literally been making au’s in my brain where he’s morally ambiguous, or gets a redemption arc (he does not fucking deserve a redemption arc he deserves to be chopped up and fed to a bitchy gay plant), or where he’s literally just a nice guy. Yeah I’ll sometimes just remove the character from this character to appease the brain demons. But the cool thing about the Not an Asshole™️ AUs is that, in the og, the whole story basically goes south when Seymour justifies killing to feed the plant cause he can kill that jerk Orin, so if he’s not a jerk maybe they all survive?? Idk i just like thinkin. Also… ALSO!.. I made a post a while ago that I might someday make Orin textpost memes using pictures from my actual stage production, and well, that day has come! or, will come, soon. I’ve made the pictures I just have to make the post. It was very fun Im excited to share em. Okay thats all TYSM for the ask bestie!!!

Oh and to address your first question…

I 🧑🏻 AM 💥 DAN🧍‍♂️REYNOLDS 🎤 ✅

[localamblongus]

Can I just say I’m OBSESSED with your new story “You’re Half of Me Now” like I cannot begin to express how much that first chapter drew me in. It’s so SO well written and just, AH so good.

I was wondering! Since Branch’s hair got cut, is it noticeably shorter now, or did it go back to his usual length since it was already extended when cut? Honestly I would love to know more lore behind cutting a trolls hair, and how long it would take to grow back/heal… God I love Branch angst, and your characterization is just to die for.

I’m so excited to see what Chief has planned for Branch… (‘No, I can’t serve you to the kingdom. You’ve got a far better use though.’) Ma’am, MA’AM?!?! WHAT DO YOU MEANNNNN!?! I can only really think of one thing and I’m like, pretty sure that ain’t it???? So what is it???? I’m so so curious.

AND I cannot begin to gush about Creek. Personally I hate when people try to redeem him, not to say it can’t be done, but like, he’s such a bastard of a character, and I like to think he always has been. He 100% gives the vibes of a secret bully when someone (Cough Branch Cough) is alone with him. Mean girl behavior. And you write him so nasty, urgh I love it. Love his characterization.

Branch begging Bridget to help the others (HIS village) in the same breath as telling her to make sure Poppy doesn’t come back for him… this boy. Also love love love Guy Diamond too, him being older (Which makes so much sense in terms of Tiny Diamond), how you can tell he respected Branch during their talk of escape.. Ah I’ve never really thought about him much, but you made me interested in him! I can def see him insisting on getting Branch back as it’s partially (Not really but still) his fault Branch ended up in that situation.

Anyways! Just wanted to gush, because the story is living rent free in my head. Final question, are you cool with fan art of your fanfiction being made as long as ur credited and tagged etc? I was doing some doodles and I just wanted to double check with you :) KEEP UP THE STUNNING WORK!

ahhh first things first I’m so sorry for the late reply I may have maybe possibly forgotten I made a tumblr and I’m awful at replying so I’m sorry!! on branch’s hair I plan to get more in-depth with it later in the story, but I really adore the idea that troll hair is a very sensitive thing (for it to be so strong it’s gotta have some nerves in there) and the idea of it being cut suddenly and without consent being a horrible thing. Branch’s hair is definitely shorter and will stay that way a long while and I’ll get more on that soon!!! also so glad to spread my anti-creek agenda to the masses, he’s such a slimy passive aggressive dick and I despise his ‘redemption’ in the series. Tis bullshit. I had a lot of fun channeling his bastardness, he’s a menace to them all and I hate him.

also very happy to spread my Guy Diamond agenda, he snuck into this fic and took it from my hands and held it hostage and covered it in glitter and wouldn’t let it go. He always seemed older to me idk why, and the whole tiny diamond thing just matched with it well!

ALSO ALSO I would probably actually cry if you made fanart of my fic, as long as it’s credited to me im totally fine with it go wild!

again I’m really sorry for the late reply but I’m glad you’re enjoying my writing and tysm for the ask!!!!

[a-student-out-of-time]

Hi! Do any of you have tips for writing good stories? Thanks!

//That's...a pretty broad question, but here's some advice I've taken to heart, presented in no particular order. Hope it helps!

Characters should primarily be your focus, especially their development. They shouldn't feel like devices to move the plot forward, but naturally push the plot where you want it to go through their choices.

Remove superfluous elements. I find stories work best when all of their elements contribute in some capacity; if there are aspects of a story that don't go anywhere or have no bearing on the plot at large, consider cutting them.

Subtlety is overrated when it comes to messages people need to hear. Tolkien was right when he said allegory is for cowards. If you wanna write about something that may ruffle some feathers, don't use a fictional stand-in to talk about it, just talk about it.

A story doesn't need to be grimdark, mature or even realistic for it to be good. It just needs to tell a compelling story with interesting characters.

Characters don't necessarily have to be good people, but they have to be interesting. Don't rely on overused archetypes in writing, and while it's cool to want to have an expy of a character you like, see if you can instead draw some inspiration from the real world instead.

Don't be afraid to have characters make mistakes or bad decisions, but make sure those decisions are ones they would make as characters. The audience should never feel like decisions are made just because the writer wants them to.

Different people are going to like and dislike different things about your story. Don't write for them, write the kind of story you want to see.

Do your research. Do your research. Do your research.

If there's something in your work that you or your readers come to dislike for whatever reason, don't simply retcon it away. See if you can find ways to make existing and potential problems in your writing a new source of story, drama or character development.

It's impossible to avoid cliches completely. The best you can do is breathe new life into them and see if you can approach them from new angles.

Think through the implications of your worldbuilding before you write into the story, to see if any new idea will completely change the impact or internal logic of the story. If the technology for Faster-Than-Light travel exists, does it have any other impact besides getting people around the galaxy? If there's magic to transmute rocks into gold, why hasn't the gold industry collapsed if anyone can do it?

Fridging is a bad, bad trope.

Characters should be able to stand on their own, and shouldn't be solely defined by their relationships with others. Shipping can be fun, but don't let it completely overtake who your characters are as people.

Redemption arcs are great...when you actually give them an arc and don't just have everyone forgive them 5 episodes after nuking an orphanage.

Morality in a story will depend largely on the sort of theme you're going for, but also on the kind of world you've constructed. A post-apocalyptic wasteland where people are struggling to survive is probably going to have less emphasis on "killing is immoral" than a magical setting where there's an actual God of Justice who takes that rule seriously.

Nobody in a story should be above any sort of consequences for their actions. It can be delayed, it can be mitigated, but never ignored.

Throwing dark, upsetting and potentially triggering material into a story simply for the sake of drama, to be shocking or to convince readers the story is "mature" does exactly the opposite; it's incredibly juvenile and terrible.

Less is more. We don't need to see every detail of a character's daily routine to get a sense of what things are like for them, and we don't need a full description of everything that happens. Sometimes just a single sentence or even a word can be far more effective.

The term "Mary Sue" has, over time, become a pejorative people use when to describe characters they don't like, especially those who are too powerful or have few flaws in their eyes. The real term refers to characters who are functionally the center of their universe; nothing happens that doesn't involve them and they're treated as the most important person of all time. If you don't do that, your character is not a Mary Sue. Still worth considering how you write them, however.

If you're going to write about characters of a particular group and you're not a member of that group (Black, Jewish, American Indian, LGBTQ, Neurodivergent, etc.), do not be afraid to ask questions and get some insight. Also, writing about these characters not equate to needing to focus on bigotry and oppression; if you do, those issues also should not overtake them as characters. They need an identity outside of that.

//Hope all that helps!

[banannabethchase]

My predictions, because I have some batshit crazy ideas:

Beneath a cut, because. Well. You know how much I ramble.

Zero Hour

Yuta vs. Hook - Hook wins, but Yuta beats the shit out of him at the end of it. Danhausen comes out to make the save, but Yuta beats him up. And then Danhausen challenges for the Pure Rules title.

Willow vs. Kris - ONLY IN WRESTLING CAN AN OTP FIGHT EACH OTHER. Stokeley is gonna corrupt Kris against Willow, but not until the women's tag belts are announced will he make his final move. Stokeley, secretly working in the background for the Renegade Twins, will unleash his final blow right before the finals of the women's tag titles tournament, causing Staturday Nightingale to lose, and triggering a full on battle between the two of them, likely culminating in match for the women's world title (RoH, probably.)

20 Man Battle Royal - Okay. I got 3 ideas: Sara's dream book, the best story, and what likely will happen.

Sara's Dream Book: Bucks and Hanger come back. Bucks sabotage everybody else to get Hanger to almost win, then Hanger steps back and lets someone else win but leisurely jumping over the top rope when it's him vs. the other person. "I'm above this championship," he says, taking the mic during the other person's celebration. Offical Superdick Party debut, official heel turn, official idiots.

The Best Story: Only 19 people are in or around the ring. Toward the end, a guy in a hoodie, with his face slightly obscured, shows up. It's Jack Perry. He wins, and cashes in the "any time" clause during the Christian vs. Copeland match.

What Likely Will Happen: Midcardapalooza. A very fun, non champion level person like Komander, AR Fox, Kip Sabian, or Andretti win to create a fun flippy match with the winner of Copeland vs. Christian that they will ultimately lose.

Main Card

Eight Man tag (Jericho/Sammy/Darby/Sting vs. Ricky/Bill/Takeshita/Hobbes) - I really. Look. Lot's of stuff about this match is convoluted. It's mean to take the place of the tag belts, which I understand, but they should have bitten the bullet, dropped the Jericho/Golden Jets story completely, and provided a title chance to an actual tag team.

Eight man tag (Bryan/Claudio/Mark/Danny vs. Lethal/White/Rush/Brody) - I think the BCC and friends win, but I think this may lead to Danny being inducted into the BCC. Otherwise this match is kind of weird. However, it means that everyone in the C2 got a match on the pay-per-view, and I like that.

Andrade vs. Miro - Look I KNOW it's all about Miro's redemption or whatever, but he's pissing me off lately and I want Andrade to win to show that CJ's management is effective. But I also think it could be cool for Andrade to lose, to show that a lack of CJ's management causes him weakness. It could develop a more introspective story of talent vs influence that could be approached by both Miro and Andrade in different directions. But it's wrestling, so I doubt the nuance necessary for the storyline would be possible.

Swerve vs. Dustin - Yeah sorry Dustin. Swerve is gonna KILL you. Super sad to hear about Keith's injury. This match was going to absolutely BANG and him being unable to finish this storyline is a heartache.

Julia vs. Abadon - SPOOKY SHENANIGANS! I hope Skye gets out there and she and Julia do some MK Ultra tag level nonsense. Give me shenanigans. Give me lesbians. I love it.

Copeland vs. Christian - You already saw my idea for Perry, but here I think Copeland wins by pulling unexpected allies out of his back pocket.

Eddie vs. Mox - EDDIE BETTER FUCKING WIN THIS. He deserves to be a three belt holder, to hold up RoH, to continue his work. Mox may be my first AEW love, but Eddie. Eddie deserves it.

Toni vs. Riho - Mariah May shenanigans result in a Toni win, but perhaps Riho has an original in the wings waiting to save her. Crossing my fingers for a Jamie return PLEASE.

MJF vs. Samoa Joe - Joe wins. MJF is injured, shit goes down, the Devil and his goons interfere, and Joe is our new World Champion. We also, we gotta, reveal the Devil.

[polutrope]

🔥⏩🪄💀

🔥 Give us your hottest Silm hot take. Lol you would ask this one. Disclaimer: I don't really like offering hot takes because when I was newer to fandom I'd take them as criticism of my own headcanons and creations despite the illogic of that. So please, if you also do this - reminder that you will never be able to please everyone, and most of us can still enjoy things we don't agree with.

So: Maglor is not an attention-seeking, melodramatic, vain diva. It's funny to use for comedic effect in fanworks, and I have, but as a serious character interpretation I don't care for it. There's just nothing to support it canonically imo. I think it's derived from modern conceptions of musicians and singers that do not directly translate to the world of the Silmarillion. Arrogant and boastful about his talent? Thinks his interpretations of events are the right ones? Willing to use performance to manipulate feeling and opinion? Image-conscious (in ways that are compatible with the ideal warrior/bard image in his culture)? Yes, all that works with the historical bardic traditions he is (fictionally) a part of and I love to see it. But not diva.

⏩ Which section of the Silm did you read through the fastest? (Couldn't put it down!) It was twenty years ago so I don't actually remember, but probably Of the Flight of the Noldor and Of Turin Turambar. Watching characters hurtle towards doom and destruction 👌.

🪄You can change how one (1) Big Event goes down in the Silm - either in favor of something in HoME or something you made up. What happens instead? Tell us the cool stuff! Fix-its are a fun imaginative exercise but I'd never actually want to fix canon because it would make the story either less compelling or just not the same story.

So this is a small one from HoMe, but I'd use the version of the third kinslaying in Annals of Beleriand (The Lost Road) where Amrod and Amras are the main drivers who "ravaged Sirion" and Maedhros and Maglor were only there reluctantly and "sick at heart". It makes A&A more interesting as characters, and it makes M&M's (ultimately unsuccessful) redemption arc more coherent. (Might as well just call these Maglor Asks at this point 😆.)

Maximum chaos bonus question (💀): You have a "Get out of jail 'Doomed by the Narrative' free" card. Who do you give it to? Cheating, but (almost) all the women. Not to get them out of their tragic ends (see above lol), but to give them their own narratives, to raise them above the role of plot device in the stories of male protagonists. But that's what fic is for!

[thousandyearphantombunker]

TFP au where Miko's host family are the Darby-Esquivels- I have a lot of issues with the logic in TFP surrounding miko- inorder to be an exchange student she'd need consistently high grades and while the show tries to make it sound like mikos host family is neglectful and they basically don't exist- that's nonsensical why would anyone volunteer to be a host family and then not hang out with the kid? You don't get paid anything so it can't be about money! it really is about developing a relationship with the exchange student during the duration of the program. In this au, jack and raf are half-brothers, jack's dad divorced his mom and Raf's dad is dead, we get some actual backstory on miko, also here miko cares about her grades- cause if she started failing she'd be forced to drop the exchange program- this also subverts some expectations cause in this au I want miko to actually be punk! And I want to give Jack a bit more oomph, Raf would be heavily rewritten (he stays a shy hacker boy who becomes friends with Bee and Ratchet but can we give him something to work with outside of that?)

Also Silas and MECH and dark energeon aren't dropped from the story- MECH and Silas as villains where genuinely more interesting than the omega keys and artifact crap we got, I'd go as far to say Silas is more interesting than Megatron and after all the stuff we see with starscream being an actually competent scary villain that was also comedic it angered me to see him become so flanderized- so here we take a cyberverse route but do it a bit differently and Unicron stays a major threat (I'm taking some inspiration from armada so in this au sideways replaces arachnid but instead of starscream getting redeemed- well let's say he still doesn't get a happy ending) I changed arachnid out for sideways cause she made little sense in universe.

Raf doesn't understand bumblebee in this and there's at least one story where they have to find alternative means of communication- let be actually be disabled by his lack of a voice box

I'm probably never going to write this but I'd like to see other people add to this au with there own ideas, let's get freaking insane and do the stuff tfp didn't have the balls to do! kill Bulkhead and let him get actual character development so it hurts, give Dreadwing a redemption arc, lets give arcee her time to shine, let's get some gay shit with Knockout and Breakdown let's fucking go!

edit: I was thinking about what problems I have with most human characters in transformers is that they 1 aren't as interesting as the bots are, I understand they want the characters to be relatable but sometimes they make them into flat characters borderline harem protagonist, another problem is a problem more commonly found in YA books- when a 16 year old middle class scrawny white girl with no combat training or superpowers or anything can successfully fight off a room full of vampire fbi agents with no injuries or losses, so my goal is to make the kids badass but in a more believable way, so they aren't just damsels in distress either

like I know jack was chosen because he's suppose to be like a young Orion pax and whatever but like it never felt right to me, they could have drawn the parallels clearer, we can also make Miko's badassery and cool moments more emotionally satisfying and make them feel more...deserved idk how to explain my problems with the humans in transformers too well.

Also can we make this the ultimate found family au? And bringing back some inspiration from transformers animated for Bulkhead- not exactly mind you but I love the idea of miko showing bulkhead something cool/creative for a hobby like how sari showed him art, and in RID15 apparently raf and bee liked watching cowboy movies together so now I'm just imagining pure fluff with these ideas I'm trying to come up with some fun ideas for jack and arcee- I usually don't like fluff but I like seeing friends being friends- it's adorable

More on miko, in this au she'd be the master of malicious compliance and finding loopholes, she's scared of failing and cares about her grades as stated above, but she also has early onset senioritis so she finds her ways, she rarely actually breaks rules or skips out, so she works smarter not harder, she's still got some major flaws, she's got a secret case of overconfidence, she's cynical (I think her parents would be loving but super controlling and never gave her privacy so she became sneaky to get away from them, she might have become a lone wolf in school maybe people thought she was scary or something maybe she tried having friends but her parents scared them away I like the idea that mikos super outgoing but in a way that scares people or she struggles with deeper connections outside of surface level, more on Jack, I'm taking some spiderman inspiration- like the rest of the fanbase I shall torture him for fun, give him some hidden rage, a guilt complex, constantly stress over June Raf and Miko, and here he's going to be a senior, he still lives with June and pays her rent but it's always a little bit extra even though she says he doesn't have to, he remembers the time when his parents first divorced and when Raf's dad got sick in this so he worries about cash a lot and maybe has some depression, he's working out what he wants to do with his life and all around is trying to act stupidly responsible and mature to cope, raf is still a dorky lil baby but he's got a surprisingly dark and unsurprisingly gross sense of humor and is more interested in biology than computers at the start, but starts picking up on stuff real fast, he and bumblebee work on alternative means of communication together(one day the bots can't translate what he's saying so after that they start practicing sign or Morse code or something!) Idk just tell me random stuff that bothered you tfp and RID15 or ideas you guys have that could make this au interesting

[monochromatictoad]

Top 5 characters from the LoS series :)

And, as an extra challenge, top 5 characters from the main games!

LoS!

5. Raisa Volkova

I love her. I love her concept and how she goes about her ways in the game. She misleads both Gabriel and Zobek from figuring out she's Satan's daughter, until the Demon Virus is already spread amongst the city! She led them into wasting one of the cures on her! My only issue with her, is that her brothers don't get nearly as much screentime as she does, making them not as developed as she is. Still a good villain though!

4. The Toymaker

Funny old man, who deserves way more than he got. His story is well thought out, and is actually a fun puzzle! You get more lore on the world through his story in LoS2 and LoS:MoF. His puppets are fun to fight in MoF, and the boss fight in LoS2 is so chaotic and fun! He kinda gives me Eggman vibes from his boss fight! Also, they used the Wallman from OoE as a basis for him!

3. Marie Belmont

The her!!! I wish she had more influence in LoS2, but she's so good!! In LoS1, there is a scene where Laura electrocutes Gabriel, and Gabriel almost gives up right then and there, but Marie holds him through it and reassures him, giving him the strength to keep going. Then in the end, when Zobek kills Gabriel, Marie stands over him, guarding him from the restless souls of those who were trapped because of Satan. And the whole 'I know who you are' scene in LoS2? 😭

2. Laura

This poor girl has gone through it. She deserves a break. A kidnapped child, forced into easily a couple centuries of Vampirism by her 'Mother'. She blocked out memories of her human life, only for them to come back by the display of Marie and Gabriel. You even get to play as her in the DLC! She's capable, but still clearly a child who just wants a family and security. Ya'know.... Something all children should have.

1. Gabriel Belmont

My man. Someone please let this man have a yearlong break and nap. Orphaned boy, who only wanted to live by God and have a family. Who then got betrayed by his 'family' at the Brotherhood, and turned into a monster. In MoF, He is unapologetically evil, but in a sense of like, I'm getting justice from everything you've done to me. Which is why he destroys the village his son had been sent from, which resulted in Sypha's death and Simon's adoption by the Mountain Village. Of course it's toned down in LoS2, but he still eats a family as his first meal, but this time, you see him look ashamed of what he did. He gets his redemption, and he has earned a break with his family.

Main Games

5. Shanoa

Honestly, the whole, 'Raised as a weapon' trope really gets to me. I like her premise, she has a nice design, and she feels and looks natural to the plot of Castlevania. She's a badass, without being a jackass. Also, her and og!Laura are so cute together.

4. Yoko

I love her, even though, much like Shanoa, I don't know much about her. I adore how she seems respectful of Mina and Soma. I've also seen some fandom stuff of her basically adopting Soma as her younger brother, and I love that so much.

3. Simon

My gosh this man needs a nap too. Regardless of what universe he's in, I love his character. He seems like a stoic, yet good man. A heart of gold kinda guy.

2. Isaac

My kinda villain. Absolutely bonkers crazy. I love his unhinged nature, and the 'what ifs' about him. I love the toxicity he exudes, and I love his arrogance. I love him so much.

1. Sara

Underrated and underutilized. She has so much potential in the games from her introduction forward, but they never really go anywhere with it. How cool would it have been for Julius to be talking with Sara, and her helping him relearn who he is? How cool would it have been to have Sara teaching the new Belmonts how to use the VK? Maybe even giving them tips for combos and special moves?

[storiesofsvu]

A Redemption Earned Ch 28

Heather Dunbar x reader Warnings: language, i think that's it?

It was only a few days later when you were making dinner and heard a quiet shriek from Heather’s office, Lily had sent a group text to her and Rob about meeting for a coffee over the weekend. While she had Cody with a sitter, the day still soared above expectations for all parties, a little bit of awkward conversation at first until everyone was relaxed and laughing and comfortable. A few days after that, they cleared schedules to grab coffee again, this time with Cody in tow and to walk through the park, probably stopping at the playground and Cody’s insistence.

You joined Heather this time, to give Cody more comfortability with a group of adults that he didn’t know yet. Becca had nothing better to do and wanted to burn off a little bit of energy, figuring that she could at least play kid with Cody if the older adults needed him distracted if a tricky subject came up. As much as you would always believe that chosen family bonds could be far stronger than actual family, you would say that it was the blood bond that made Cody so instantly comfortable with the Dunbar’s. He greeted you with a giant hug, and politely shook Heather and Rob’s hands, giving Heather an inquisitive look, trying to remember where he’d seen her before. Becca joined you at the entrance to the park and Cody instantly noticed her Frozen phone case, shrieking something about Olaf and the two of them were thick as thieves quoting the movie and discussing theories within minutes.

You were pleased to see that it wasn’t just a ‘grill Heather about making growth’ day and an actual every getting to know each other day. Lily talked about her past, her work, her family, some of the struggles of being a single mom. She asked about Heather and Rob’s careers, smiling at the work Rob had done with the clinic after Jordan’s death. Having someone else who knew Jordan around ended up bringing up a handful of stories about him as well, both him as a young adult, and as a child, and everyone agreed the childhood stories were far superior. Cody would jog back to the group every so often and ask a couple of questions, tell a little story, or even just to show them a really cool bug he found before running off again. He dragged Becca out onto the playground – much to Lily’s relief— for multiple rounds of tag and other fun while the adults finished off their coffees and watched. By the end of round four he’d hopped up onto Becca’s back in a piggy back and instructed her back over to the group.

“Mom can we have pizza for dinner?” He asked with a pleading smile and Lily chuckled.

“We had pizza last night.”

“Chicken nuggets?”

“Only if it’s with veggies.” She replied and he seemed to be thinking it over for a minute before he accepted the deal.

“Okay!” He proceed to climb off Becca’s back and scrambled into Lily’s arms as she propped him on her hip.

“Are you hungry now? You wanna go?” She asked, tickling at his back and he nodded.

“But one more thing first.” He requested and she let out a little sigh, thinking he was about to try to rope everyone into a round of tag or the floor is lava. Instead, he turned to the other adults, “Ms. Heather, you were at dad’s grave last week, did you know him?”

“Uh…” Heather glanced toward Lily who gave her a soft smile and an encouraging nod, signifying she was okay with the truth right off the bat, “I did. Your dad,” she gestured between herself and Rob, “was our son.”

Cody’s brow furrowed for a moment before he glanced to Lily, “I know how family trees work, we did them in art class. Your mom and dad are gramma and grampa.”

“Yup.” She gave him a little squeeze, “and these are your dad’s parents. And Becca was your dad’s sister.”

“So I have two grammas and two grampas like Parker does?”

“You do.” Lily nodded, “but just so no one gets confused we’re gonna call these guys Mimi and Pops, if you like that?”

“Yeah!” He beamed, scrambling down out of her arms to race across and give a big group hug to Heather and Rob. Neither of whom could help the misting in their eyes at the entire exchange and how smoothly things were going.

When you left the park that day, there was a plan for a visit to Rob’s house the following weekend, Cody had heard something about a dog in passing and was in dire need to meet it. With the help of you and Becca, Rob did a quick shopping trip to make sure that he had enough stuff to keep Cody occupied. He already had a couple of video game consoles from playing with Jordan and Becca but picked up some more child friendly games and a couple of extra remotes. He went a little all out in the play sports section, thinking it would be nice to spend some time in the yard, and made sure to pick up a couple of new toys and treats for Steve as well. The day was a smashing success, Cody showing off some of his t-ball skills while Steve played catcher, thankfully Cody didn’t care at all that the ball got covered in dog slobber. In general there was just a lot of running and playing to burn off energy in the back yard before dinner, made by Lily and Heather. Becca managed to get there right in time to get a plate before a couple rounds of Mario Party got played and somehow Cody came out the champion of two outta three rounds.

The entire process was repeated the next weekend at Heather’s. You’d tried your best to convince her she didn’t need the entire backyard playset, saying they were a huge pain to put up and take down and she reminded you she had people to do that for her. She did do her best to not go overboard on the books, toys and movies though, reminding herself that this wasn’t some kind of competition with Rob, it was just to make sure Cody was comfortable and had fun. He spent most of the afternoon playing outside, it was clear that he was an only child, a vivid imagination and he was totally fine being by himself. Though that didn’t stop him from dragging you into a couple of sword matches, and he was more than happy to settle down in the living room to colour with Heather while he rambled on telling her any and all stories he could think of. You took the lead on dinner this time, giving Heather as much grandson time as you could before setting the table. Becca showed up in time for dessert, helping you with the dishes before everyone regrouped to watch Toy Story before dispersing for the night.

There were a few quick dinners, park dates, movie theatre trips throughout the next couple of weeks. Rob, Lily and Cody took a nice trip to the zoo filled with lots of laughs, fun pictures, ice cream and far too much time in the petting zoo. Cody requested the aquarium with Mimi the next weekend and had a blast looking at everything and running through the space. It varied on who was involved, not every meet up was an entire family occasion, breaking up the time accordingly and with who Cody wanted to see and who else was available. You were around for what you could be, but also wanted to give Heather the more solo time for Cody to really get to know her.

Your presence, without an official title or connection to Jordan did pique the curiosity of Cody and while at home eating dinner with Lily one night he asked about why Mimi and Pops didn’t live in the same house. She reminded him about the talks they’d had about different families, how Carter’s mom and dad didn’t live together, but he still spent weekends with his dad a couple of times a month. Cody then mentioned something about how you and Heather held hands and Lily explained that you were partners. He asked if you were in love and she said you were to which he said ‘that’s good. Ms. Summers is my favourite teacher, I’m glad she’s in love.’ Lily couldn’t help but smile, feeling extra proud of her son and made sure to give him extra chocolate sauce on his ice cream for dessert.

**

Heather was sat at the dining room table as she tied up some loose ends on a case, working through paperwork with a glass of wine. You’d disappeared upstairs after dinner; she figured you just needed a bit of time to yourself after a long day at work and hadn’t questioned it. She heard you coming down the stairs and was ready to put away work but you crossed the living room to dig through your purse for your keys, picking up a cardigan from the back of the couch.

“Going somewhere?” She asked and you nearly jumped, figuring she was in the home office.

“Yeah.” You let out a sigh, “I refilled my meds last week, but I grabbed the wrong bottle when I packed. They’re sitting on my kitchen counter, I’ve gotta run home quick. You need anything while I’m out?”

“No. Thank you though.” She smiled softly and you couldn’t help but return one to her. You let out another little sigh, moving towards her, wrapping your free arm around her and dropping a kiss to the top of her head. Her free hand rubbed at your arm as she hummed happily turning her head to kiss your shoulder. You stayed there for a moment, lingering to delay your leaving, even temporarily.

“Isn’t this getting a bit redundant?” You asked and she paused in her work.

“You’d be surprised just how much seemingly useless paperwork lawyers have to do.” She replied and you let out a huff of a laugh, dropping into the chair beside her.

“No. I mean this constant back and fourth between houses. I know we agreed on it so we could each be in our own ‘space’ on a regular basis but we’ve started waiting longer between switching, and our stuff is so scattered between places it’s hard to remember where things even are now.”

“What are you saying?” Her brow furrowed, hand sliding across the table to hold yours.

“I’m finished with my renos, I’ve upgraded that place and could probably get more than it was originally worth on the market. Why don’t I just sell and move in here? I’m here all the time and we’re always together anyways. Cody’s comfortable here, he’s got his toys and that treehouse thing in the yard, it just makes the most sense.” You explained and she practically beamed at you.

“I think that’s an absolutely lovely idea.”

“Really?”

“Yes.” She leant in to steal a kiss from you, “though as much as I adore the thought of truly living with you, I’m not sure if I want you moving in here.”

“Why? Your house is way nicer.”

“More like I want to live somewhere with you that is ours. Somewhere that’s uniquely and equally both of ours together.”

“This part of that whole making sure you’re not in total control thing from therapy?”

“That.” She laughed, “and the fact that I do want it to be something we choose and own together.”

“I dunno if my bank account can keep up with your lavish tastes.” You teased and she rolled her eyes, “Heat… the first family home you ever bought was an eleven million dollar mansion…”

“Point taken.” She chuckled, “I’m sure we’ll be able to find some middle ground, and we can work out the finances then. When do you think you’d want to move?”

“Summer would be best.” You thought for a moment, “it’s not that far off and would give us the time to go through things and decide what we’d keep for a new place. Most of the furniture I have came with the place, I wouldn’t be offended to sell or donate it.”

“Alright.” She smiled, leaning in to press a gentle kiss to your lips, “I’ll call my real estate agent in the morning, see what they’ve got on the market. Are you alright staying in the Chevy Chase area?”

“Yeah, course.” You nodded, “everyone lives up here already, it’s nice to be close to family, and it’s a pretty quick drive to the school.”

“Perfect.” Heather smiled once again and you could feel the love radiating off her.

Before you could say anything else, both of your phones pinged at the same moment. Yours was across the room, so you looked to Heat for which of the group chats was going off. It turned out to be the ‘parental’ one, shared with the two of you, Rob and Lily.

Lily:

‘Cody is asking if it would be possible to sleepover at Pop’s place this weekend? Well, he actually asked for a massive sleepover with everyone at Mimi’s, but everyone includes Steve and I wasn’t sure that was going to happen.’

Heather:

‘Yeah this is an animal free zone. But I am more than happy to head to Rob’s to play some games and help out.’

Rob:

‘I’m so on board! And so is Steve! Becca’s in Europe right now though, so there will unfortunately be no auntie to hangout with.’

Heather:

‘Yn says she thinks she can kinda fill that role?’

Lily:

‘Okay! Perfect! I’ll get him packed and fed after school, what’s the best time to drop him off?’

Rob:

‘Let’s say seven?’

Lily:

‘Sounds great. I’ll pick him up Sunday around noon?’

Rob:

‘Sounds good.’

Heather:

‘Enjoy your solo weekend.’

Lily:

‘oh believe me, I will!’

Heather put the phone down and turned to you with a small smile, “do you think it would be too much if I arranged a maid service for her? To make sure she doesn’t spend her first weekend without Cody in years cleaning?”

“Maybe ask her first?” You shrugged, “she might not want anyone else in the house. Or get them to come Friday when Cody’s at school and she’s at work, so she’s got a clean house to come home to?”

“That’s a better idea. I’ll call her tomorrow.” She nudged at your side gently, “now you get going. I don’t want you to get too tired to drive home and not pick up your meds and deal with a migraine tomorrow.”

“Alright, alright. I’m going.” You chuckled, stealing one last kiss before you scooped up your keys and darted from the house.

________________

@ms-calhoun @naturalxselection @yesterdaysgone @hbkpop @giftedchildturns40 @anya-casablanca @svulife-rl  @swimmingstudentchaos891 @alexusonfire @jamiethetrans @red1culous @oliviaswifey @mysticfalls01 @cmmndrwidw @bumblebear30 @svushots @yourtaletotell @cerberus-spectre @emskisworld @ex-uallyactive @addictedtodinosaurs @imaginaryoperagloves @multifandomlesbianicc @annegilletteslostwh0r3 @bookpillows @drduckthief @whimsicallymad @mmmmokdok @ladysc @momlifebehard @mmemalwa @holycrapraewth @poisonedcrowns @wannabe-fic-reader @when-wolves-howll @dead-of-niight @fighterkimburgess @lannister-slings-and-arrows @borg-queerr @godard-muse  @itisdoctortoyousir @brooklynmhm @nobody-important1212 @emilyprentiss4life @httpjupiterbby

[rosebloodcat]

Ganon-Centric Story Idea

I have no idea whether this would be a game idea or a fanfic that someone could write someday, but I think the idea of some kind of Redemption story for Ganondorf could be really interesting to tackle.

I have had this idea in my brain for years, ever since I read a fic on FF dot net called “Cry for Hyrule”. I thought it was a really cool story, and did a good job of making Ganondorf a more nuanced character without handwaving the bad things he’d done in the past. Or trying to reframe the goddesses/spirits as evil, hateful beings who don’t actually care about the people they’re supposed to be helping/protecting.

(It also tackled some logic problems in the game it was mostly focused on, like Link being thrown in over his head so often. Or the trees the Koroks were planting to lower the waters always dying despite raising Hyrule being one of Ganondorf’s goals. This was a Wind Waker fic, btw)

I’ve always believed that people aren’t born evil, not even as the result of a curse. Which makes thinking about Ganondorf’s original motives and fall from grace really interesting for me.

He could have, at one time, had very good intentions and reasons for his actions. But then Demise’s Curse over Hyrule took those intentions and twisted them until they became unrecognizable.

Reincarnation exists in the Zelda-verse, even if it’s more of a Vishnu style incarnation/avatar situation rather than a full rebirth.

A reincarnation story built around Ganondorf himself could be really cool. And him working to redeem himself of his past actions could be a deeply moving game/story. With him trying to prove/separate himself from the actions of his past life and prove himself as a skilled/capable King of the Gerudo.

Or maybe the evil was scrubbed off from his soul enough to return him (at least partially) to the person he’d been before the curse Twisted him, and looking back at his past actions horrifies/disgusts him. I mean, he’s constantly being walloped with sacred and/or blessed weapons. The idea that, at some point, those could scrape off the evil to bring back the person he used to be seems possible. Or it being done intentionally as some kind of “weaken the bad guy by turning him back to before he got the evil power boost” type of plan.

And this change is enough that the Tri-force goddesses (or maybe even the mystery goddess the Gerudo worshipped back in OoT) are willing to give him a chance. A chance to prove himself. The chance to clean the rest of the evil away. The chance to prove he really is worthy of their blessing.

I think it would be a really cool story to read/play through. And it could be a great chance to expand Ganondorf’s personality and to explore more of the Gerudo’s culture.

I have to admit, the chance to play as Ganondorf in a jrpg type of game would be fascinating. (Maybe one of those ones with a settlement/kingdom builder thing too… For him trying to prove he really is a good leader/King.)

Or one of those branching storyline games, the sort with more than one ending that you get to by making different decisions in game. Good, Neutral, and Bad endings based on choices you make.

God, the more I talk about this, the more I want it…

(For fanfic, the idea of a story or a crossover where Ganondorf is trying to redeem himself by building a new settlement somewhere or trying to help a hero as part of his redemption could be really good.)

(I don’t know why my brain keeps chucking Naruto at me, but him accidentally kidnapping a little Naruto because of how much he looks like the brat who finally stopped/killed him and then raising/training him could be fun. Maybe the goal Ganon thinks he’s supposed to be fulfilling is finding a place to build a new Kingdom to make up for the one he annihilated/raised to the ground, but no. It’s raising this Prophecy child to do better than he would if left to his own devices.)

(Okay, I am done rambling about all this now. Please, someone either make/write this, or help me figure out enough to at least start writing it myself.)

[pink-bird-30]

Titans 4x09

SPOILERS AHEAD

READ AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!!

The fact we got an entire episode dedicated to Garfield Logan has me screeching into the void.  Beast Boy has deserved his flowers for a long time and I am super proud of Ryan for standing his ground and making it a priority that Gar’s story was told.

Alright, let’s get into the thick of it!

First off, we start the episode off with a 10 year old version of Gar.  When I tell you the motherly instincts within me(which are cat mom instincts) wanted to reach into my tv and give that baby a hug…I- fuck whoever made him cry (which we alllll know who did…)

 I also liked the small touch of the Central City mention- “Central City Zoo” 

When Gar wakes up, his reaction is what I needed from the other Titans when they woke up after Sebastian’s attack.  Right away he was wondering where they were, where he was, and what happened. Gar is always asking the right questions.  

I was really excited to see Freedom Beast and how they would tell his story.  I think they did a great job talking about his background and how his powers work and where they originate from.  Seeing the bat lion hybrid was insane.

“One with all beasts”

“I am your freedom”

I just really enjoyed how Freedom Beast was teaching Gar about himself and how to be free and accept the Red. There has been a lot of time spent with Rachel’s development, Dick’s redemption, and Kori’s acceptance of her destiny.  But along the way, we forgot about Gar and that wasn’t fair to him.  Hell, we even got an entire season of Jason before we got a single episode focused on Gar.

“Our shared grief fuels us”

There are a lot of great quotes from Titans, but this is top of the list for me.  Freedom Beast was able to connect with Gar on a different level that I don’t think other people have even tried to on the show.  Yes, he and Raven have a close bond, and Kori has always done the best by him, but there was something about Gar’s entire interaction with Freedom Beast that gave Gar purpose outside of the Titans.  For so long Gar has been part of two different teams, but has he ever taken the time to get to know himself and his abilities? 

In the midst of this, Gar keeps saying, “I need to get back to my friends” my heart was breaking for him.  All I can think of in 4x07 and 4x08 is how little Gar was mentioned.  Their concern did not reach the levels that Gar’s did when he woke up alone.  Every other word from his mouth was asking where his friends were, when he can get back to them, that his family needs him.  This hurt and I hope the Titans appreciate him a little more when they do meet up again.

 I thought it was pretty cool how Freedom Beast explained how all those connected to the red share a bond and then name drop of Vixen!  That was a big moment for me.  I haven’t thought of Vixen since my Legends of Tomorrow days…god I miss that show…

I love even in serious situations, Gar can find the humor in them.  Especially when Freedom Beast hands him the vile to drink, he says a quote that is a great nod to Alice in Wonderland.

Gar tripping was not what I was expecting from that scene, and I can only imagine the absolute fun Ryan must’ve had while filming this scene.  The multiple different versions of Gar tripping was hysterical.

While on his trip, we see Gar interact with Rachel and Jinx.  I was expecting Raven to be someone he saw, but this is not how I expected to see Jinx again this season.

Now for that fight scene:

Gar turned not into 1

not 2

but THREE FRIGGIN ANIMALS?!?!?!?!??!?!? 

IT TOOK 4 SEASONS BUT WE FINALLY GOT A GREAT FIGHT SCENE WITH GAR TRANSFORMING MID FIGHT.

We dreamed to see Gar change while fighting, and it finally happened and I’m so excited that it was  amazing.  Whoever choreographed that fight deserves an Oscar, bravo!

I knew Freedom Beast had great power, but seeing him merge the doctor into the monkey…I- that was terrifying.

Freedom Beast casually dropping both of Gar alias’ “Beast Boy, Changeling” we ate so good this episode, my god.

“Protecting the red is your destiny” 

There is a wholeeeeee lot of destiny being thrown around this season, but hey, I’m all for it if it means my Titans are content in life and no one dies an unnecessary death.

The entire scene when Gar finally gives into the red was really cool.  We saw so many cool easter eggs that I got whiplash.

Shazam

The Flash

Grant Morrison

Stargirl

Listen, I am a grown woman, but seeing Courtney Whitmore grace my screen after saying goodbye a few months ago, I’m tearing up while writing this.  Her interaction with Gar was brief, and I’m not sure how a real crossover between these shows would have panned out, but maybe I’ll write a fic about it?(winks) But regardless, the short interaction alone really solidified how much family means to Gar and Courtney, especially when it comes to your found family.

The second time we are in the red, the easter eggs get even crazier

Swamp Thing

Joker

Teen Titans Go! Beast Boy?

That last one really threw me for a loop

And then finally, the best thing to ever happen and I can’t wait for 4x10:

Cyborg and Beast Boy finally meeting

My childhood dreams coming to my screen.

I hope it is everything we have waited for and more.

I can’t wait to see how the Doom Patrol will fit into the storyline, I kinda figure it has to do with Gar needing to face his demons and the truth that has evaded him this entire time.

Until next time guys, let me know what you think about this episode!

[artsinus]

Bambinata appreciation post

Do you know what day it is? It’s update day! 🥶

Oh, boohoo, that was actually yesterday.

Yes, there was an update for PGR yesterday. Why didn’t I post yesterday then? I was trying to no damage and perfect parry mother structure to give a decent gameplay demonstration, however I am too much of a skill issue so yeah.

The thing is, I DID HAVE THE VIDEO READY YESTERDAY. I literally accidentally deleted though, so after everything i went through in order to get the perfect vid, I just went to sleep at that point.

But i’ve come today for a redemption arc, and i finally have the video…

Except it’s not a perfect parry nor a no damage. I just couldn’t spend more time without getting mentally troubled 😩.

First of all, I really want to speak about her gameplay and design (p.s i don’t know her story since I’m still on cp13) since these are the only thing I can judge on her. I really love how her gameplay ties into her lore, with her forgetting the orbs and then remembering them when she finishes her ultimate. A really nice detail is how Bambinata’s eyes has no highlight in her ultimate until she snaps out of it and remembers, getting the highlights back. It’s a really cool detail I appreciate that Kuro added.

Her gameplay is really agile and she’s really fun to play. Plus she’s basically free from the event grind so really she’s relatively inexpensive to acquire. I really love both her en and jp dub because they both genuinely fit her so well. En dub has its hit or misses, but Bambinata is one of those that hit really hard.

I just really like her design too. The colors are just so consistent and she’s such a unique character with unique weapon type that i’m pretty sure i’ve never seen anywhere before ngl.

Right now, next patch is Lee Hyperreal, and you already know i’m hyped for that. Back to back s classes aswell, Ayla(pink hair) being FREE. It’s nice for Kuro to be this generous on giving us 2 frees s classes within the next few months. I’m particulary for Noctis(red hair) and the BRS collab. The period of Qu’s new frame may be tough, but it’s still a long way, and I still feel I will be able to pull for every character (I may need to skip at least a few however since I do want to max BRS, cuz y’know, limited 😩)