#plus i feel bad for Ronin :(

[gritsandbrits]

[decadentjellojaloppy29]

Epic 2013 because.

Writing a Ronin x reader fanfic because I can and because I’m obsessed with the movie right now even thought the fandom is dead and cause I can. Is this self indulgent? Yes, extremely.

Ronin x female leaf man reader.

warnings : FLIRTING

You and Nod had been patrolling around the forest making sure the boggans were kept at bay. Nim Galuu was having some sort of celebration tonight for the summer solstice and all leafmen were working overtime to make sure all went well.To your dismay Nod was getting wrestles and when that happened trouble was sure to follow. Or at least a bunch of witty (annoying) remarks.

“So ahhhh, staring at the tree line is fun and all but actually going to the event might be funner.” He said throwing rocks off the side of the branch to see if they’d hit anyone. You let out a breath of frustration, “One, funner isn’t a word and two, I get that this isn’t what you had in mind but we’ll be at Nim Galuu’s soon enough we just gotta wait for the signal. Why are you so antsy anyway?”. Nod scratches the back of his head as he makes his way over to you, avoiding eye contact. You smirk, “It wouldn’t have anything to do with a certain… MK…. Would it?”, you already knew the answer. “Maybe, but I mean come on with charisma like this how could she stay away, plus you know she was hooked after she saw me win that race last week. But hey who could blame her, leafman, expert flyer and a sense of humor I mean come on.” Nod practically pat himself on the back. You rolled you eyes and smiled. Nod threw the rest of the rocks before he walked up behind you with a mischievous look on his face, “Besides I’m more interested in what’s going on with you and a certain general buzz kill I know.” You stiffened elbowing him in the ribs. “Yeah, yeah don’t you worry your overly quaffed head about that.” You said grinning trying to come away from the subject.

Speaking of the buzz kill in question you both heard the flap of a humming birds wings headed toward you. Your muscles clenched at the arrival of Ronin. You weren’t nervous around him per se just excited. And how could you not be? Everyone and they’re mom knew about your and his current….flirtationship. Thinking about that made your cheeks heat up and run a hand through your hair. Maybe you needed to be a little more subtle. The other leafmen were always giving you a hard time for it which you were alright with Ronin on the other hand made sure they knew their place. That scowl could set a whole tree on fire, but that smile could make the forest sing, or at the very least your heart. You tried to shake off the antsy feeling his arrival gave you so you could stand at attention but it was easier said than done.

the bird landed as you tried to get your head out of the clouds and back to business. “Nim Galuu’s party is in a few minutes so we gotta hustle. We’ll be protecting the trees boarder so no Boggans get in. Which means no fooling around or running off no matter how much you like her red hair.” Ronin said walking up to the two of you, mostly looking at Nod so he’d get the message. “For some reason I feel like that was directed at me unless MK is waiting for y/n tonight.” Nod said sarcastically, Ronin raised an eyebrow at Nod giving him a look that said ‘Really?’. Nod held his hands up in surrender of Ronins stern look. “This one givin you any trouble today?” Ronin asked patting Nods shoulder. “No more that you give me.” You replied letting your body relax around him. Nod gave a knowing look between the two of you before walking off to get his bird ready for the trip. Ronin stepped closer, “I couldn’t be that bad could I? I’ve got appearances to keep up that alone has gotta make it easier for you.”

“You’re more trouble than you’d like to think. And really? Appearances?” You smiled stepping even closer. He rested his wrist on the hilt of his sword and said, “Uh huh, appearances those of which I’ve been told you like.” “Oh really? Is that to say you think I enjoy your presence?” You asked faking curiosity. Ronin shrugged “Presence, looks…voice, any of those really.” He was being cheeky.

You put your hand to your chest to feign innocence, “I would never say that about a commanding officer besides Who exactly are your sources on that matter?”. Ronin looked around for his subordinate. Your eyes followed his hand as it landed on Nod. Nod noticed looking up at the two of you before realizing what was going on. “Oh what as if everyone didn’t know. if I’m a source then half of the forest is too. Plus I patrol with both of you I hear stuff.” Nod said hopping on his bird and putting on his helmet. “Are we that obvious?” You asked nudging Ronin’s arm. “Couldn’t be us.”Ronin said winking. As you walked toward your bird you flicked Nods elbow. “We’ve got things to discuss the next time we patrol, I need ammunition.” You said gesturing between you and Ronin, Nod winked in understanding. Ronin and you walked over to your bird, He helped you up to your saddle, his hand lingering on your leg. The sunlight shining through the leaves, casting a green tint over the two of you. The slight breeze shaking the trees the sounds of the forest and the way he looked at you. The slight smile he had, the bruise that was still healing from his last run in with the boggans, his silver hair catching the light ever so slightly. You could just-

“AHEM!”. You both broke eye contact and out of the moment to look over at Nod. “Not that I’m not loving this and the fact that it’s taking forever buuuuuut do you think we could hurry this up? I’m kinda on a time crunch plus I bet MK I could get to the party before she does and I put money on it sooooo.” You and Ronin look at Nod in frustration, both of you wanting to strangle him for ruining the moment.

“Not a party a mission.” Ronin corrected. “Yeah, yeah a mission that I can slack off in for at least 20 minutes?” Nod asked swaying his hand in the air and shrugging his shoulders. “How bout 5?” Ronin asked, “Make it 15.” Nod tried to haggle him. “10 take it or leave it.” Ronin offered although it was more of an order than anything. Nod feigned thinking putting some “hm’s” in there for good measure. You at this point were SO done with him, “I’ll race you there now and if you win I’ll give you $20.” You said. “Sold!” Nod yelped before speeding off to the party with his bird.

Ronin leaned on your bird and looked up at you with a grin, “You’re not gonna race him are you?”. “And he’s not getting $20 either.” You smiled back. Ronin shook his head, laughing a bit and crossing his arms, “See this is why we can’t race, I’d always lose.” He said. You looked at him questioningly, “What I’m just that good?” You asked looking down at him. He met your eyes saying, “No, because if I ever got in front I couldn’t look at you anymore. What fun is that?”. You looked away and couldn’t believe he just said something so cheesy but you also couldn’t help the heat that rose to your cheeks especially when noticing the pink on the tips of his ears, apparently he thought it was as cheesy as you did.

“Shut up.” You said pushing him away with the toe of your boot, both of you laughing quietly.

[angelmichelangelo]

I hate how tmnt will only ever give Mikey development in the comics like he has phased out into a background character at this point who is barley relevant in fact the only reason they add him is because he's part of a package deal and it would be hard to get rid of him even though it's become obvious they don't want Mikey a part of the series what so ever so they do everything in their power to make him as less relevant as they can. Also isn't it suspicious how when any big Mikey projects are in production of being made they suddenly get cancelled.? there was supposed to be a foot solider Mikey movie that got cancelled and the last Ronin was actually in production of being Mikey since the 90s there was another Mikey centric movie were his bros and sensei reverted back to turtles but guess what it got cancelled anything Mikey related that's important either gets \cancelled or thrown into the comics also rise actually had multiple Mikey centric eps on hand but the show got cancelled like it's honestly starting to get annoying let my boy live.

oh yeah, it’s definitely an unfortunate cycle of mikey being cut for time in almost any iteration outside of the comics. i think whilst a lot of people are familiar with all the ninja turtles outside of the realm of fandom, mikey is pretty much “the face man” of the franchise. he’s the one that most kids grew up having as their favourite. he’s gonna be front and center on lunchboxes and kiddie pyjamas. i think in that sense he’s pretty safe from ever being killed off or chopped from the actual franchise itself (plus if they ever did that permanently to any of the turtles, it would cause pretty big uproar) but it means as a result, he’s taken less seriously

i think it just unfortunately falls under the fact that whatever show/movie you’re watching, it quickly becomes apparent what turtle was the favourite of the writers and directors. pretty sure i’ve mentioned this before but the 2003 writers openly expressed how much they enjoyed leo + donnie as characters. you watch the 2003 series and that’s really plainly obvious. it’s not a bad thing, but again, every writer does it. heck, i do it. i write more mikey centric fics than i do, say, donnie, because it’s just more fun that way. a character will ultimately have to suffer at the hands of a writers bias, and sadly it’s always mikey that ends up suffering. just not in the way we want him to lol

that being said it gives me a little hope for the mutant mayhem series and sequel since seth rogan has voiced his favourite being mikey multiple times. i don’t think mutant mayhem solely focused on any one turtle, which i enjoyed, but going into future mediums for that branch of the franchise, i’m keeping my hopes high that he does just something with mikey. the potential is there. i would love to see what he does with it

but yeah. looking back, poor mike gets the short end of the stick. it’s funny, whenever i go back and do a 2012 rewatch, i get about halfway through the space arc and start to feel my enthusiasm dwindle, mostly because “journey to the centre of mikey’s mind” is like. the LAST mikey centric episode of the entire rest of the series (granted he has cool moments in later eps and isn’t totally under-utilised) but if you want an ep that’s just for him, it sadly ends right there.

same with 2003. i adore 2003 mikey but he doesn’t have a whole lot of episode focused on him. i was surprised going into rise that, even though it was considerably shorter than other shows, he still managed to have just a sparing amount of focused episodes on him alone. and then when looking into the deleted episodes, it didn’t really come as a big shock to me that a lot of those deleted episodes were mikey episodes (man i would have really really loved to have seen the robo pet one!!)

it’s also pretty consistent that whatever show or movie, the writers often talk about a plot where mikey’s brothers either end up de-mutated or de-aged and mike has to be the one to save them. kinda funny because it’s like: here’s this opportunity to have mikey really prove himself as more than capable and not just a goof — and yet, multiple times now that idea has been cut and he hasn’t had his chance to prove himself that way

i’m a mikey fan. i love all the turtles the same but i definitely am a mikey fan through and through. of course i’m gonna want a mikey centric plot and arc and all this. i know the chances of ever getting it are very slim but. yknow. i have the last ronin at least…… *sobs*

ANYWAY THAT GOT LONG i hope i didn’t sound like i was coming off like a real curmudgeon there i do still love what mikey we have been given in the last. 40 odd years.. but JUSTICE FOR MIKEY!!! he needs to be given his flowers. someone put him through the emotional meat grinder or i will <3

thanks for this ask anon!!

[chilledninjahangout]

Ninjago Headcanons

What I think each ninjago character smells like

Kai: Smells like smoke and ash, but also like undertones of hair gel or hair product and cologne. But like, a very decent amount of it.

Cole: Earthy musk and leather with sweet undertones, plus sweat because I think he would be that person that just sweats alot. I feel like if he did wear deodorant, it would be one of those sweet but fresh kind of smelling types.

Jay: The distinct smell of electricity, kind of like when you smell an old TV screen and you can smell the static. Also, lowkey kind of bad because homeboy doesn't brush his teeth and I can imagine he thinks deodorant is a shower because he lacks social skills from growing up isolated. And oil and other substances related to machines.

Zane: Either smells like nothing or smells like motor oil OR smells like cooking and lavender because I think he enjoys burning a lot of incense. And also metallic.

Echo Zane: Heavily of oil, rust, metal and water damage

Pixal: Motor oil and metal OR like nothing. I don't think she would care really what she smelled like.

Nya: Smells like the Sea, kinda salty, and also like motor oil. Also with her deodorant would be the more musky or "masculine " type scents, not the sweet or flowery ones.

Lloyd: He would smell like mint, leather, and spice. Like, he just smells warm and it's like very subtle, unlike everyone else (especially Jay). Also feel like his skin tho would smell like that distinct reptile smell, like earthy but tangy. It's not very strong but I think he would be self conscious about it.

Sensei Wu: That old man smell, but bad, and like dried tea leaves and that old library smell. And again, like Lloyd, his skin smells like a reptile expect a bit more sour.

Sensei Garmadon: Also that old man smell, but one that actually smells really nice and nostalgic, very warm. Also smells of incense, and probably fresh laundry kind of vibes. He is hard to pin point but think warmth and comfort kind of smells. Just really good. Also shaving cream.

Evil Garmadon: Foul, stinky boi. Smells like tar and molasses, with like hints of burning rubber.

Dareth: Like Jay, I think he really stinks of sweat and BO because he doesn't shower and thinks strong, overpowering deodorant will hide it. It doesn't, it just makes it worse.

Ronin: Homeboy would smell like metal, old spice, kind of bad because he doesn't get much opportunity to shower much. Maybe a tad salty from being out at sea.

[mondothebombo]

mondo i have a question for you. i know that your skybound fic follows a principle of plus (add details and depth etc) and (relatively) never subtract (dont redact or change details from canon and avoid divergence). but. is there anything from skybound as a season that you would Like to change? beyond making jays torture worse. i think that one goes without saying. is there anything in the plot that you wish hadnt happened or happened differently. ive been curious about this for a while admittedly

WHOOO BOY IS THERE!!!

this is such a great ask and i’m so happy to talk abt it so hold on cuz this might be long.

you’re right, the whole goal of my fic is to add to the canon story, rather than fix or take out parts. the only parts i actually nixed were unnecessary to the plot and just put in bc 1) it’s a kids show and 2) just for (imo) poorly timed comedic relief. like the whole recruiting of the ninja replacements montage. i absolutely hate that part lmao bc it’s so somber when jay leaves his parents and then boom. funny montage. so i didn’t write that in lmao.

it’s no secret skybound is pretty objectively bad, like even those who love the szn (including myself) can see it has some pretty big flaws. in terms of what i would change?? the fucking time reversal. i legitimately hate that jay and nya went through all that, just for the others to forget, it’s awful. it just feels like the writers dug themselves so deep into a hole, the only way out was to turn back time. no hate to the trope, i just think it’s lazy writing for a big piece of media like ninjago. i don’t think it’s fair for jay to have gone through all that character development and have no one but nya know.

i also don’t like the forced marriage thg tbh. it’s weird and creepy and leaves a bad taste in my mouth, especially since this is a kids show. i’ve seen several interpretations of ppl rewriting skybound where nadakhan is after nya bc she destroyed the cursed realm, which is a take i personally love. idk it’s just w nya’s whole thg about wanting to have her own agency and be able to make decisions for herself, it doesn’t rlly make sense to me that she still ends up being the “damsel in distress.” but ig if i squint i can work w it as her letting herself be saved?

there’s a couple other minor things like dareth being a misogynist, jay taking a chill pill, but that stems from the love triangle which is a WHOLE other issue, ronin arresting them, more detail abt what happened to jay on the ship, jay getting proper medical attention, and echo zane getting a resolution, or at least not forgetting abt him.

skybound is by no means perfect, but i still love it, despite the flaws. i actually have plans to write an alternate ending either where time doesn’t reset or it does but everyone remembers instead of just jay and nya. it’ll be set in the “when you think you’re all alone” universe of sorts so everything i put in the story is addressed, but i actually wanna finish this fic first before i start another. thank you so much for the question though!!! i’ve actually been thinking a lot abt it

[ciaossu-imagines]

I started my rewatch of Class of the Titans and it’s so wild to see things I remember so vividly but also not at all. I definitely forgot how witty the dialogue is though. I always have my expectations low for older shows like this (when I rewatched Winx club a few years back I definitely found myself cringing at times) but I think this aged quite well and even made me chuckle a few times.

One thing I also forgot was the fact that Neil is the descendant of Narcissus lol. For some reason in my mind, I remembered him being related to Aphrodite but I guess it’s because she’s his mentor. That being said, I forgot how lovable the whole cast is. Their friendship and dynamics with each other, even just from the first three episodes, is really great!

Can I ask what are some of your favourite platonic relationships in the show?

- R

Oh my gosh! That makes me really excited to hear! I can definitely see why you set your expectations low for some of the older shows, the ones at least I grew up in because they can be so corny in their dialogue. I mean, I am the hugest Ronin Warriors fan and am currently rewatching that, among some other shows, for probably the thousandth time, but some of the dialogue is so corny that it's hilarious because of bad dubbing but I still love it, maybe even because of that. That being said, I always felt the writing for Class of the Titans was definitely solid. They might have lacked, a little, in my humble opinion, in some of the world-building and story-building, mostly in the second season, but overall, I feel the show is just solid and stands the test of time.

I can so see why, if you haven't watched it in a really long time, you'd forget that Neil was descending from Narcissus because, other than the ego (which Aphrodite also had), nothing was really made of Neil and Narcissus' familial bond. Though I will say, I love Aphrodite and Neil's mentor-student bond and think they are just so adorable and chill. There's no real care about this great big battle against Cronus really with them, they just want to talk and gossip and do skincare and feel more like friends than anything. And yes to the dynamic between the whole group of them. They all have their roles to play, it doesn't feel, at least in the first season, that anyone is more important than anyone else or given more attention than anyone else, and it's just lovely.

I admit to having a real soft spot for the friendship between Odie and Herry. They're just polar opposites, when you sit down and think about it, in terms of interests and temperaments but they just fall into an easy friendship and balance each other out nicely. Plus, they really do have in common, hinted at here and there in episodes, that neither of them really had friends before the group came together, and you can tell how much each of them values their friendship, not just with the other boy, but also with people overall.

Also, while it did become a romantic relationship, I loved the even just platonic bond that Archie and Atlanta had right away. Even when it was clear that Archie started to have a crush on her, there was never any hints that he saw their friendship as a second-place prize or anything…they truly and honestly cared about each other and took a lot of time to really build a good, solid friendship with each other before either even considered seriously taking it further and it's clear their actual friendship matters the most to both of them.

Also, I love Neil, I really do. All the different ways he interacts with each of the others, how he kind of binds them together in a way…I adore his bonds with everyone and if you want an honest headcanon, I think he's in the group with Herry and Odie, who never really had a true friend before meeting the others and I think they all mean a whole awful lot to him.

[melonpalooza]

Author Never Have I Ever:

--Written myself into a story as a bit player.

--Made myself cry while writing a scene

--Written a story to trap a kid-phobic character into parenthood.

--Set a story's premise to deliberately upend some popular bit of fanon.

Written myself into a story as a bit player.

I have not!

Made myself cry while writing a scene

Not cry but definitely have made myself very sad! Most recent is this one shot in Addendums! It's in the Discord Admin universe!

Written a story to trap a kid-phobic character into parenthood.

Nope! All kiddie acquisitions written feature people that either like kids or indifferent and warms up to them

Set a story's premise to deliberately upend some popular bit of fanon.

Hm, not really? Like. The closest thing I've done is make the love triangle in 2012 into a loving polycule but I'm not remotely close to being the first one to do that. Plus I feel like the "popular" fanon part of making April be the "bad guy" because she's "manipulative" belongs to a small but very vocal group of fans.

[absenthiium]

Re the ask game...1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 (take the noose off, wrap it tight around my hand, which I will never not adore), 12, 13, 14 (for your war is the context (god is a boy) stories that I also adore), 16 (for εἴδωλον), 17, 20, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26 (for παλλακή), 27, 28, 29, 33, 35, 36, 37, 38, 40, 41, 42 (for take the noose off, wrap it tight around my hand and i’ll lay on the floor, touch me ‘till i vomit, again my beloveds), 44, 45, 46 (i’ll lay on the floor, touch me ‘till i vomit, I only feel more insane about that one after starting my Ethel Cain phrase), 47 (for "suffering is nigh, drawing to me" or any Ptolemaea lyric because I feel that is such a Leo song), 48, 49.

(I am so sorry if this feels like too much, please don't feel pressured to answer any of these, but you said you like asks and I love your writing so much, so)

twelve. my very first one was a terrible merge between pandora hearts and dante's inferno, if i remember correctly.

4. definitely angst (and i love post-apocalyptic stories, but i'm yet to include the genre in a fanfiction, i've mostly done so in my original work).

5. i don’t have many, so i’m not sure. but she will talk like a friend (she will kiss like a man) has a special place in my heart (and i really need to continue it!).

6. for those i’ve posted on ao3, maybe my first one? it’s a good omens fic i translated (badly) from italian, it’s very trope-y and not really my thing anymore. 

7. i write whenever the need to strikes, so i’m almost constantly scribbling. but when it comes to writing from start to end, it’s mostly at night (might be ‘cause it’s the time of day i have less to do).

8. a lot of things! most of it comes from music, some from my own state of being or random things i've experienced. plus, books or poetry. sometimes, as i write, i keep a few books close for inspiration (these days, it’s mostly T.S. Eliot's the wasteland, Richard Siken's crush, Beppe Fenoglio's a private affair; plus, and I'm mentioning it mostly since it directly impacted take the noose of, wrap it tight, 4.48 psychosis by Sarah Kane).

9. part xii, the one about medications, was done through a lot of research on topics i’m wholly unfamiliar with, so it was interesting, and quite fun (plus, reading Sarah Kane at night while listening to Ethel Cain which was. something). plus, the last part! i think it’s really representative of the style i’m going for.

12. I go through phases of concentrating on a single character, and at the moment it's Leonardo from TMNT (who would've thought). other characters have been Izzy Hands from our flag means death, Jesse from breaking bad, and Spadino from that shitshow (affectionate) that was Suburra. 

13. i tend to avoid the issue by. not writing them, i guess. but at the moment, maybe Donatello from TMNT. i like him a lot, but i still haven’t figured out how to write him.

14. all the titles come from Norma Jeane baker of Troy by Anne Carson! i really like that book, and it has some chapters focused on explaining a few ancient greek words, while still tying the explanation to the myth of Helen of Troy.

16. it’s actually very much inspired by a concept i’m exploring in an original novel of mine, which follows, among other things, the relationship between the protagonist and his aging father, gone mad after experiencing the death of three of his kids in a war. the novel itself is inspired by the last ronin so i guess the cycle is complete.

17. “the last thing Leo remembers was taking the shovel from Raph’s unsteady hands and digging a grave deep enough to bury a secret - their arms brushed, in passing, and it stung.”

(the WIP in question is, by the way, inspired by your incredible i see things that nobody else sees, that i just adore  too much for my own good).

20. not really, but there are a few things i would've changed in execution.

21. i’m pretty much in awe at a lot of people whose works i’ve read on ao3 (or other places), there’s just so much creativity and sheer talent. oh, and there’s this writer i really admire that writes an incredible range of styles and characters, consistently creating amazing stories, and whose writing has impacted me and my own work a lot. plus, she’s very kind and sends nice asks and, oh, look! it’s you!

23. i listen to music, generally the same song, on repeat, for hours.

24. not my favorite thing. i’m alright with making them not very explicit, otherwise i kind of cringe. not sure why.

25. i don’t think so, but i might if i keep up with the angst (i will).

26. the whole concept was very hard to tackle, because i wanted it to be very raw but not misrepresent the issue. other than that, maybe the final line. it’s just a handful of words, but i rewrote it many times before i got it right.

27. a go with the flow guy! i start with a concept, with a very minimal outline, and than just go until it feels done.

28. i wish i’d been capable of not attaching my stories’ worth to how many hits or kudos they get from the start. obviously i’m glad whenever a story of mine gets attention, but i want to learn to write for myself, mostly, not only to feel rewarded. but i’m getting better at this.

29. not sure, maybe παλλακή? but i do understand it’s based on a concept not many are comfortable reading about. plus, maybe my Suburra fics, but i probably can’t expect much since they are from an almost dead fandom and in italian (and quite untranslatable, since the dialogues are in Rome’s dialect).

33. first things that comes to my mind are some comments i’ve gotten on got a good look and measured my answer. many people told me it made them feel seen at a very visceral level, and, i don’t know, it moved me a lot. 

35. i don’t really talk about my story ideas to people. my cats know all about them, though.

36. i have a few, but for now it’s mostly ideas -but i really wanna try writing something about across the spiderverse.

37. there’s a few fics i’ve improvised (both by writing and recording) with a friend of mine -they were a messy mix of disney characters and tropes. one of those predicted the Queen’s death. funny times.

38. never thought of it, so i don’t have a specific person in mind, but i’d be very interested in trying! i’ve done a collab only once with an irl friend, and i’m definitely open to do one again.

40. a couple of my irl friends do, but they haven’t read anything.

41. i have this pre-canon fic about Eddie Munson (from stranger things) that i’ve been meaning to complete for a while, and i love working on it. very coming-of-age, smalltown queer boy-ish. i hope i’ll finally get around to finish it.

42. a whole ass fixation on Ethel Cain’s music, particularly Family Tree and Inbred. i listen to those two a lot while writing, in general.

44. not from a fic but: “this room’s a narrow place. everyone is talking.”

45. i have many words to say, and i love saying them. not much more, i think.

46. the sequels are, in fact, in the making! (i hope). no spoilers, but it’s a few missing moments from the first two stories and a bit of development on Leo’s state (from very bad to normal bad, i guess).

47. so, so Leo! you’re, as usual, very correct. plus, by mentioning Ptolemea, you’ve kickstarted a whole inspiration process in my brain, and i’m definitely writing something about it. not sure about the specifics, but i’m thinking: some feral behavior; Leo being his usual mother/widow self; someone’s getting eaten alive.

48. is angst a trope? if so, angst. 

49. a mildly explicit Inuyasha fic that involved stalking and divinity. read it on my mom’s phone at a family dinner at about eleven.

(thank you for the questions!)

[greatrunner]

"You've given them the semblance of a choice. That's enough".

Count on Lan to be honest about the lack of honesty, lmao

Alright so, I reached the end of the Wheel of Time last night, and it's honestly making me wonder why this series was eight episodes instead, I dunno, 13 or 22?

Looking back, if this was a mere miniseries, I could understand the truncated, "let's get to Point A to Point B" number of episodes. I mean, eight (as I remember) was the hardline definition of a miniseries if it wasn't six, five, four, three, or two.

The show spends a lot of time introducing new ideas, flashbacks, and whatnot. Some of it gets paid off alright, but the rest feels more like a "please renew us" ploy than anything beneficial to the story. I like the idea that this isn't just a basic generic fantasy world. That, at some point, the world reached a "Society If [Blank] Happened" type of reality, then I guess, did a whole walk backward into the Renaissance Fair. That's cool, I wanna see more of that idea explored in the story.

But, what was the point of that false dragon narrative outside of setting up the dynamics of the white tower (specifically, giving a lot of face time to the one Team Red character who's apparently supposed to represent Misandry (????), until Moraine threatens to snitch about her male side piece, which made me cackle)?

That's not a bad thing, but with the way the character got a whole intro, I would've assumed he would've got a lot more than "Mini-Boss demoted to Jobber".

They really dragged out the whole "Who is the Dragon Reborn" nonsense until the second to last episode, then revealed it with what feels like the intention to do a speedrun of a Souls Boss Battle, right down to the "Big Fight Separates the Group" bit.

I'm not really understanding the whole Nynaeve/Lan subplot. One character says, "She likes you", and there's almost zero interaction between these characters outside of homegirl's contempt and mistrust of him and Moraine. Maybe some fireside time with the other Warders. I viewed the latter as Nynaeave becoming a little less distrustful of people, but not a foundation for a romance.

I had half a suspicion they were gonna try to pair her off with Stephin (the white guy who lost his Channeler) before I even considered Lan was a potential love interest?

But now the last couple of episodes are like, "Welp, let's run with this" and on top of the doldrums that is Moraine's #1 Stan and Angry Ginger's drama (plus the guy who gutted his wife), I'm just not here for this nonsense. (Understandably, I know that moment was just friends slinging mud at each other, but they really went Felicity with the whole thing.)

Like, when the hell in the last six episodes before that comment was the audience supposed to pick on "Tsundre Nynaeve Has a Crush on Stoic Bodyguard and Edward Cullen Stalks Him Everywhere"?

(Makes no damn sense. It displeases me.)

On the other end of things, I kinda like how Moraine's story arc ended (as far as season one goes). Like, I didn't want her to lose her connection to the one power, but it also kinda felt like a consequence of every choice she's made in the show (so far). And, ironic (I guess????). Rosamund Pike really sold the loss, and Danie Henney made it worse with the "Can you unmute me, please?" And she's all ;_;

Throughout the show, she's had great chemistry with the five Ronin Warriors she picked up. The show certainly squandered the dynamic between Moraine and Angry Ginger (I wanna call him Josh, but that's the actor's name). That whole "Last Stand" against the Dark One would've been way more compelling if, again, the show's first season chose length over expediency.

(The Dark One could be an interesting character since Ginger didn't kill him but released him. But I get the feeling he's just gonna be a pretentious version of HEROES's Sylar, who was already up-his-own-ass to begin with if you get me.)

The show tries to incorporate that into the story. Moraine's general lack of interest in anyone except that one woman who trusts her immediately after learning about the One Power. How that sends her up Shit Creek when she realizes the Dragon is that one dude she ignored. To some degree, it works, but it also just feels like them covering their asses.

Ultimately, the end of the season felt, not like the end of a story chapter, but very television-y. Moraine saying, "This wasn't the last battle. This was just the beginning", threw me into a Dragon Ball Z flashback. Specifically, the one where Gohan hits SS2 and Dale Kelly (the OG DBZ narrator) is selling the "tune in next time!" moment.

I'll probably wait until the second season's done airing to watch all of it. Overall, Wheel of Time is a decent show. Not at all like Game of Thrones outside of how the writing seems to be taking visual cues from explicitly not white cultures and framing them in questionably malicious ways in contrast to the Eurocentric White Tower girlies.

[viewfromplanetx]

Samurai movies 5

Roruoni Kenshin - Not your typical spaghetti western. Sure, you got your good-bad guys—former bad guys turned good. You got your bad-bad guys who just want to go back to the olden days when the world was full of hot chicks and retards and you could spill guts freely. And, of course you have your ugly-bad guys, who are just retards. One of the big differences here is that all the good-bad guys are female. The title character Kenshin is played by the beautiful Maggie Q. Her Vietnamese Kung Fu is well utilized here with flying kicks, flying fists, and flying flying. What are the films values? Good? Bad? Ugly? Doesn't matter, it's all about the trickiness of redemption.

Lady Snowblood - I was pleasantly surprised. Seriously—every scene, shot, line, look, glance and gesture is beautiful. She's an Asura, which is Japanese for "Jedi"—no attachments, no emotions, remorseless and violent. The message here is that vengeance is tricky. That nut-sack for a chin Tarantino could've learnt a lot from this flick.

The Yakuza - I won't lie, it takes a bit to get past the 70s aesthetic. This is a classic story of loyalty and honor with katanas and blood. Of course there's also a hot chick, a MILF, some retards playing dice, plus Robert Mitchem and Ken Takakura, who turn in top performances. I have seen this movie so many times and still choke up at the ending. My takeaway, apologizing is tricky.

The Hidden Blade - Hey, wait a hot minute. They right off engage in witty sarcastic banter. I was told... never mind. Anyway, it's no Hidden Blade. Time passes on screen, not much happens, you feel all mushy at the ending.

Love and Honor - They say this is the third installment in the Twilight Samurai series. Don't know how it's a series. Different stories, different characters, different actors. Same values? The dad in this case is a food taster at the palace. Due to some shenanigans and hi-jinks in the kitchen he is accidentally blinded. Not to give too much away, but this does not please his honey. Apparently, making non-poisonous food is tricky.

13 Assassins - Whoa, this might be the greatest thing since 47 Ronin! The action that is. The story, meh. Twelve Ronin and a retard team up for vengeance against an evil lord. Blah, blah, blah heard it before. Luckily, there's no lack of action, as mentioned--swords, spears, blunt objects, guts, heads, spiky traps, flaming arrows, things blowing up. H-h-h-holy c-c-c-cow... just see it!

The Eyes of Laura Mars - Not sure how this got on the list. No Samurai, no swords, no retards, but it does have some very hot chicks—super models actually. It’s an olden film, made about the same time as the classics, so 60s. I guess it’s David Cronenburg’s first attempt at horror. As you can imagine it’s not very scary. Just a who-done-it crime/detective story with the usual Cronenburg psycho-delics,  psychoer chicks (ed: now you’re just making up words?) and creepy cinematography. That infomercial about creepy skin is scarier.

Okay, yeah, I'm taking a break from Samurai for a bit. (ed: Really, hmmm) These are some other movies that I can recommend.

Heat - Robert De Niro and Al Pacino, are you effing kidding me? And, it can't be the same Val Kilmer who plays a retard in Willow and the asshole in Top Gun. This is one of those odd flicks where you want to root for the bad guys, even though they are murdering thieves. Apparently, murdering and thieving are tricky.

Reality - From the trailer, I honestly thought she was the winner of some reality show. Nope, her name is Reality Winner :] Unbelievably tense. You will be rivetted just by watching Sydney Sweeney's face and won't believe 100 minutes just went by. Phew...

John Carter - If you're into sci-fi with a steampunk aesthetic, you will certainly enjoy this flick. The Princess of Mars is smokin hot and John isn't too hard to look at either. The CGI has aged well for older technology. The green six-limbed Tharks look real enough to me. As do the flying machines, fantastical cities, and space-angel temples. That dog-monster is hilarious.

Prince of Persia - Another hottie princess and good lookin prince. Good sword play, lots of parkour, gorgeous landscapes and pretty horses. I don't know how Disney gets away with so many racist stereotypes. I guess they never really say the bad-bad guys are Arabs. They call them Hassansins or something like that. The good-bad guys are Persians (Iranians) and Gandhi plays the ugly-bad guy.

The Banshees of Inisherin - Nope nuh-uh. Cannot more highly not recommend this movie. I can't believe I'm saying this, but there can be too many retards. Apparently, for some people, making a good movie is tricky. If I ever meet the wee-brained sonofabitch that made this flick, I swear I’m gonna punch him on his hairy nut-sack chin.

[ineeddream25]

I didn’t expect to be waken up by a lightning strike next to me.

[Imposter!Sagau thing] / [This is literally my first time writing so yeah] / [I write this only for fun tho] / [Not some deep story, just some light comedy in this dark Imposter AU cuz we already has so many angst :’)]

[NEXT]

Waking up in the middle of the storms are not one of the thing in your list of life that you expected to happen. Like, getting a spouse that is nice and caring? Yes. Waking up in the middle of nowhere in a fucking storm?? Nope.

Yeah, You’re sure you didn’t register to anything that has anything to do in trying to survive in the unknown.

Maybe God was playing with you in your dreams?? Maybe that’s what happened. Maybe you can continue to sleep.

A lightning lands beside you

or not.

Groggily (and fearfuly), you opened your eyes, tries to get away far from there and clear your head from the ringing of the lightning. It’s not the best ringtone for an alarm if you ever set one, to be honest. Looking around, you realized that  the wilderness around you is kinda familiar looking. A sweet flower? Three lavender melons in the ground? Kaburagis in the distance training despite one of their teammate get hit by the lightning and continue to stand like nothing has happened?

Oh you know where this is.

Or what you assumed this place must be.

Genshin Fucking Impact.

Are anyone has the contact to celestia right now? Cause I’m about to complain!

A lighting strike again near you.

Or maybe after we get out of this place.

---

You tried to go to the samurai.. er- ronins?, seeing that they are the only intelligent creature near here. You tried to ask some question, maybe you could have some answer! But nope, one of them really just rush to you and you do your best to dodge so you wouldn’t be sabitonare’d by some random ronin. You’re very much still wanted to be alive.

”WHY DO YOU SUDDENLY ATTACK ME?! I DON’T BRING ANY WEAPON!”

“Because, you look like the creator!”

Excuse me who?

You tried to ask them again. But one of their friends just suggested that they try to sell you to the black market! Something about your face and your likeness to the creator that may have gotten them some fortunes! And maybe some money to heal their friends that just got hit by a lightning strike.

“Hey man, dude, samurai, whatever. It’s rude to plan about kidnapping someone when the someone you plan to kidnap is right in front of you. Anyway, I’m not that worth kidnapping, brodudes. Even I’ll be surprised if someone see some worth in me. My price could be only one potato chips! Plus who is this creator you talkin’ about?”

The samurai’s look at you as if you’re an idiot. You felt offended. “Hey! I just arrived here with no memories on how do I get here. Cut off some slack will ya?”

To your surprise they really considered that. Huh, maybe they really aren’t as bad as you think they would be. Maybe you should try to reduce the amount of time you farm for their handguard.

One of the nobushi in the back suddenly go forward to you. His face looking weirdly somber. “You... didn’t remember anything? Poor one, I know how that feels...” Choruses of ‘Not this again...’ can be heard in the back. The leader smacked his forehead in some tired resignation.

“Nobu, you know we can’t...” But ‘Nobu’ who you assumed was the one standing in front of you, yelled back. “No, We can leader! This poor little one right here is amnesiac in the middle of the storm! You know how we all started right? We have no one and no where. We stays and recruit people and we survived together until today! Are we really going to abandon them?!”

Wow, uh... this is really turning into some anime sad moments right now. Well, this is one of your chance to survive.

“Hello Mr, Leader sir! I really have no idea how I get here. Can I stay with your group?? I promise, doing something nice will bring you great luck today!” You hoped it would convince him, with the nobushi in front of you making a weird begging face too. Man, you didn’t know these npcs are so expressive. The leader sighs.

“Right, you wouldn’t listen to me anyway. Alright brat, you win. Okay now, what’s your name kiddo?” 

The towering height of the leader is unnerving you. WHAT DID THESE PEOPLE EAT? And how about your name? Is it save to give them your real name? Not worth the danger.

“I’m... Bob.” The leader looks at you with more suspicion. “Family name?”

“Uhm... The builder?” Sweats are rolling to your jaws. Curse you and your stupid naming sense in the middle of danger!

“Right... Bob the.. Builder. We are going somewhere urgent. You follow us and maybe we’ll find a role for you. Let’s see if your so called speech in me doing nice thing will give us some luck,” says the leader sarcastically. You laugh in a nervous way, praying to whatever deities or Gods in this place that your bullshit was going to go smooth. “Aye aye sir.”

What you didn’t expect was the bullshit, it was working. Not long after you followed them, no bad thing have happened to you all. In your journey. There is no monster who is getting close to your group. The leader even said maybe you’re quite the lucky charm. You grinned, and quickly try to establish some kind of friendly relationship with them. Especially the nobushi who tried to rescue you. He is just some amnesiac kid in the past and the leader saved him too. That was the reason he tried to take you and you really appreciate that.

And not after long, your group was stopping. They said they need to meet some important client. Nobu, the chad, explains their transaction.

“We kinda work with the Kamisato family to keep eyes on the more rough and aggressive ronins. We are going to give the reports to them right now. He said, if we do this job for them for a long time, They will guarantee a living quarter for all of us when we turned old! It was such a great deal. We thank him for that!”

Oh this group is kinda nice. You do are lucky, also it seemed the storms are already ending. Huh, that’s quite fast considering when you’re scared a moment ago it’s still raining heavily. Meh, maybe it’s the raiden shogun and her mood swings.

“Uh... Konnichiwa?”

‘Wait, Nobu, who is him?” You notice this mysterious figure mentioned in the line of someone who is working with your group. Nobu opened his mouth, but he’s interrupted by some man just poofing into existence from out of nowhere and it scared the bejeebus out of you.

“Kai’s group, you bring those reports?” The leader rolls his eye. “You guys are always dramatic. Here,” He give them a stack of rolled paper, each one with the information of ronins around kamisato estate and Konda Village. 

The ninjas immidiatelly secured the scrolls. “we thank you for your cooperation...” He suddenly became quite. The ninjas are looking right into you. You squirmed in your place, slowly goes behind Nobu to hide from their stares. 

They wield their weapon at once. ‘WHO ARE YOU? WHY ARE YOU IMPERSONATING THE CREATOR?!”

The ninjas stopped. The fearful look in their face as the cloud began to surround you and lightnings trying to hit them. They are terrified and starting to doubt their accusation. You, who was not aware of everything happening around due to the adrenaline, only smiles in satisfaction seeing they finally listen to you.

Oh fuck. The group hasn’t explained who is this fucking creator. One of the shuriken lands near your feet. And you leapt back. 

“HEY! I’m not this-” You dodge a shuriken. “--Creator you talkin about--” another shuriken, “--LISTEN TO ME YOU NARUTO RIP OFFS” The thunder and storms is already coming back. Clouding the area where you all was staying. 

“Now, that’s a good manner. Don’t go around swinging those weapon at some random people will you? I don’t like getting hurt,” The ninjas nodded quickly. Some of the nobushi, in the command of the leader who sense there are something peculiar about you, made a formation to protect from any further harm.

Then, you heard someone walking from behind. The sound of rustling clothes and you heard the sound of someone sipping something. Oh no, there is only one man in the entire Genshin cast that drinks in the middle of the road.

The leader walks up behind you, “Ya sure ya ain’t someone kid? Weather don’t react that way when someone ordinary is angry,” He said while pointing the clouds that has began to disperse after circling you. 

“Huh, no idea. What I remember I’m just an ordinary someone,” you shrug. Hey, you already need to deal being isekai’d to Genshin. You have no other reason to think why the weather is stormy. You’re not a forecaster. 

“Gentlemen, Is there something I can help you with?”

Look and Behold! The famous Mr, Kamisato is here! The man himself is sipping the boba tea that he just took out from his sleeve.

How the fuck the does that is still unknown to you.

One of the ninjas that previously attack you is already beside him. He is whispering something to the Kamisato Lord, while eyeing you disdainfully. Which earned a middle finger from you.

“Wow, great, I’m being accused. So fun.” “Shut up, Bob the Builder!” The leader whacked you in the head for talking disrespectfully in front of the Kamisato head, which make you yelp in pain.

“Hey Leader, he started it!” You pout. You have your pride and there is no way you would let somebody accuse you of anything. 

Ayato looks at you. A weird clothes. Disheveled and messy. Also a bit damp from the rain. But the fact that your face literally looks like the creator is also unnerving. But your name, Bob the Builder? Huh...

“Excuse us, it seems that our ninja here mistakes you impersonating our creator. We deeply apologize,” Ayato took another calculating look towards you. The warmth of the creator vanished moments ago. Lots of people are trying to investigate what happened, Ayato included. But then, you came. Someone who resembles the creator. Ayato also see what happened when you got mad before. He sees the cloud’s that’s circling you. He needs more information.

“Our creator, [Name], is the divine god all of us worship. Surely you understand why we have gotten suspicious, right, Bob the Builder?”

The confused expression in your face is the answer he’s looking for. You mouthed something along “How does he knows my name?”. Ayato smiled deviously. If his assumption is correct, “Our creator last mention about how they are happy at getting the Haran Gepakku Futsu sword after getting me as their vessel in 50 pulls. maybe they are celebrating that so that’s the reason they get away...” Ayato looks at your offended face.

“HEY NO WAY. I GOT SPOOKED WITH A FUCKING ELEGY! AYATO’S AWORD IS BLACK CLIFF NOW---” You eyes widen and you suddenly closed your mouth with your hands. Ayato smiled, he then once asked again, now with his black cliff sword out in the open. “Oh my, How do you know that? That information is only known by me and the creator,...” 

All attention now on to you. Nobu is looking for you in astonishment. 

“Bob... Are you?” 

“On my defense, I still don’t know who is this creator you talking about.” You slowly walked away from all of them. But some of the ninja’s restrained you. Your face is getting paler.

Kamisato Ayato’s eyes gleamed. Is this the reason their creator’s warmth is gone? So they chose to ascend to teyvat? Ayato walks forward. He kneels in front of you and slowly took your hand and kissed it softly. A strong possessive looks in his eyes makes you flinch. What is happening?

“Oh my lovely creator... Welcome. Such an honor to be the first vessel who meets you in this form...” You looks even paler. Your character knows you? You’re their creator? The sudden influx of information is making you dizzy. You looks at the samurai group that has been your traveling company. Eyes pleading for help but they look frozen. Nobu suddenly shouts.

“WAIT, THEY ARE THE CREATOR?!”

Or Maybe, this is all real?

Kamisato Ayato chuckled. How fortunate. It seems this group is really worth the investing. He never knew this little plan of his would result in something so fruitful. 

Your head is spinning. You don’t even know where to start thinking. Ayato took this as a chance to whisk you away to the Kamisato estate. “Oh estemeed creator, you seemed tired. How about we go to the Kamisato estate. I’m sure you will be delighted there!” You look at the men who surrounds you. Yeah, this is really confusing, but hey, a chance to rest is something you need right now. Maybe all of this is really just a surreal dream. Maybe you will wake up after this in your cozy bedroom.

[dracosollicitus]

I've been having a very specific Bucky Barnes Thought™ the last few days.

How has the Disney Plus TV branch of the MCU written themselves into an ethical corner wherein:

the brainwashed, tortured prisoner of war spends almost his entire narrative arc in his show (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) struggling to atone for the crimes he committed when he wasn't in control of his mind and body, and not spend a lot of time, y'know, actively healing (minus the famous Ayo scene)

the same tortured POW struggles with autonomy, PTSD, and constant guilt, and isn't really comforted by anyone on that specific front, despite them having great opportunities to assert that he isn't in any way responsible for what he did, and that while it's great that he wants to do good, he's a victim of Hydra's violence as well and doesn't need to continue doing their work by torturing himself with anger and self-hatred

BUT, in a subsequent show, an assassin who willingly murdered who-knows-how-many people gets to have a frolicking good time at Christmas as he attempts to hide his past work as an assassin who willingly murdered who-knows-how-many people

his main concerns are: upholding the promise he made to his children to be home for fun Christmas traditions; mourning the death of his supposed best friend a bare handful of times in cheapened ways that feel more guilt-based than grief-based (don't think I'm faulting Jeremy Renner here - this is more of a quibble with the script); and so far, apparently wanting to reclaim the Ronin costume to hide his culpability in the whole "murdered probably dozens of people extra-judiciously because I consciously convinced myself that it was my job to murder people when I was sad, and it was OK because they were baddies that I deemed bad enough" thing.

Every time I think about it, I'm left with the same conclusion where Disney wants us to accept that a victim is someone who should feel guilt for what's been done to them and for what they've done as a result; and a hero is someone who does terrible and violent things because they are convinced they're right, and that extrajudicial murder is good and just when you are a hero, a fun circular piece of logic.

Sure, there's three more episodes of Hawkeye, so we'll see if they fix this bizarre ethics system the MCU has constructed, but it's not like the problem began with this show or TFATWS.

[the-other-art-blog]

Hawkeye season finale!!!! SPOILERS

By now I have come to terms with the fact that no matter how much content Marvel gives me of Clint (and Laura), it will never be enough. I just love him too much.

I was satisfied with Wandavision, FATWS and Loki, cause I knew we’re gonna seen them again. But I’m not sure about Clint. Kate, Yelena, Maya, they will come back for sure. However, unless we get a season 2 or some series I don’t see Clint popping up in another project, and even less Laura.

That being said, I pray we get a season 2 announcement. I was hoping to see it at the end of the credits, but nothing. I think a lot of people would love to see them again, even if it’s not as the lead characters. Could they be training the next generation???

I’m gonna be reading as much fanfic content as possible this holidays. Maybe someone will write a coworkers-to-lovers story for ClintxLaura??? I know there are some of them, but it doesn’t hurt to have more.

You know, sometimes dying is the best thing it could happen to someone, at least to save their reputation. Kate’s father died and it made him a saint in her eyes. I know, I KNOW, Eleanor killed Armand, framed Jack and sent Yelena to kill Clint. HOWEVER, it was her husband who got her into that mess. He’s the one who acquired debt from Kingpin. Maybe he was also a shady guy, or maybe he just made horrible decisions and trusted the wrong people.

Clint making his own arrows!!!! YES! YES!!!!!!! Hell yes!!!!!

I love that. Ever since I saw it in the trailers, I was so happy. Clint Barton is so smart and I’m so fucking tired of people thinking of him as a stupid person. In Fury’s words, he’s one of “the sharpest men” he knows.

Also, I love that both Stark and Scott gave him tech. I don’t know how aware of that is Hank Pym, though.

Love Kate labeling the arrows.

Jack vs Armand VII

Eleanor’s dress!

Jack, sweetheart, finally some action from the Swordsman. I still don’t like they didn’t make him Clint’s mentor at the circus. But maybe he can mentor Kate now? I’d allow it.

Yelena and the mother of all braids!!!!

She looked so beautiful and badass.

As someone who loves wearing braids, I need a tutorial for that one!

The whole elevator scene was so funny.

It’s ok if you punch her or try to kill her. But don’t slap Yelena, that’s just too aggressive!

Clint stuck on a tree.

So many bros!!! They just kept coming!

Kate and that bro guy!!!

Clint did the trick with the wood arrow!!!!! I wish we would have gotten Kate’s reaction.

So the owl eat those bros, right? This show is dark.

Scott mention! I can’t believe we never got a bonding scene between Clint and Scott. They would have been bffs, talking about their kids and all. But I think this establishes that they are good friends, not just co workers.

Clint vs Yelena

I feel like Clint spent more time pulling his punches in the MCU than proving how good of a fighter he is. That’s also why it was cool to see him as Ronin. He is effective and deadly when he wants to.

But of course he wasn’t gonna really fight Yelena.

The WHISTLE!!!!!!!!

“You had so much time with her”

It was Nat’s choice!!!

Clint honestly considering Kate his partner!

He made it to Christmas morning!

Clint and Laura!

Agent 19!!! She’s Mockingbird! I think they didn’t want to have AOS fans hating on the show so they only teased it. Bobbi Morse could still exist. I like the theory that Mockingbird is like SHIELD’s Black Widow code. Like an elite female agent.

That last shot and conversation was perfect!

I think I’m in the minority here, but I loved the musical!!!!! It’s so bad that it becomes good. Its ridiculousness makes it good.

Now, there was something pretty disappointing and that was Kingpin. I don’t remember almost anything from Daredevil season 2. But they kept teasing this incredibly dangerous guy. Clint and Laura were genuinely afraid of him.

Yet, an amateur superhero like Kate defeated him in 2 minutes! Plus, he should have died. Kate shot an arrow at his chest, then the explosion! And it’s obvious he’s still alive.

We also never really learned why he was so interested in the watch. What did Laura did that he wanted to know who she was? Clint didn’t even saw him. It was disappointing. Fanfic writers, I’m counting on you.

Also, where is Clint’s backstory?!?!!? I would have really loved to see flashbacks about his difficult childhood and how he overcame that, became a good man, husband and father. It would have given so much more meaning to why he wanted to go back to his family.

Clint is a guy who could have became like his father, he could have continued the cycle of violence, but he didn’t. He also could have been alone, or never married at least. That’s what usually happen in this cases in series and movies. Instead, he became the best husband and dad ever, and a person who is always giving second chances. He’s a tough guy for sure, but he’s also so incredibly loving and caring. And that’s rare.

[randominagines]

Ok I'm sending this your way 👁👁 Bucky x Steve's ex. Post tfatws sam and bucky apprehend a vigilante killer that can't be killed, any injury she get heals/regenerates. Bucky realises it's Steve's first proper girl friend who broke Steve's heart after she mysteriously disappeared, what's more is that bucky had some unresolved feelings for her back in the day. But the sweet, gentle young woman that Steve had loved is now a lonely near immortal killer. Maybe with flashbacks, pre-serum Steve wasn't popular with the ladies but when he met her he fell hard, and when bucky met her a part of him was interested but that makes his new found reunion with her all the more conflicting. I image reader to look in her mid 20s, average looking but with old eyes that interested bucky, maybe 300 years old never one to stay in the same place, not one to have relationships or flings for that matter but Steve was so sweet he made her feel hopeful but she had to leave for safety this was a few years before he became captain America. Reader is old fashioned too like bucky n steve lots of Angst please cos she still feels bad about Steve plus bucky doesn't trust her cos of how she hurt Steve plus she's a vigilante  (Like punisher/daredevil or Clint as Ronin) but now she's tasked with helping bucky n Sam track down human traffickers that she has insider info on from her time undercover, basically she's spent her years infiltrating n hunting human traffickers/organised crime syndicates . I can image the tension, the pinning and guilt,gotta have a lot of guilt I don't usually go for romantic fics but I like this idea also she's based on my oc 👁👁 hope it sparks an interest in you.😊

THIS IS LITERALLY SO CREATIVE THANK YOU! I added a little plot twist, hope you don't mind, and I combined this request with this⬇️

And thanks to anon too for the request!

Pairing: Bucky Barnes X Fem!reader (Steve's ex)

Setting: After FATWS

Warning: obviously a lot of angst and a bit of smut

P.s. if you find any mistake please correct me, English is not my mother tongue and I want to improve. Reblog, if you can, it helps a lot, thank you💕

P.p.s. gifs belong to the creators.

The Vigilante

When Sam told Bucky about the mysterious Vigilante that was practically exterminating every single organised crime syndicate he was kinda sceptical. Why would someone so apparently powerful and slippery help them? Sam looked so enthusiastic that Bucky didn't feel like tearing him down.

"Relax, he is probably a nice guy." Sam said while stepping into the abandoned parking: that was the meeting point jointly agreed. Bucky rolled his eyes, his hands in his pocket. "We don't need help." He said but his best friend shook his head. "We totally do. These arms dealers are different, these are not amateur, so we need a professional too." He concluded while opening the fascicles he had written about these man: Sam had brought them for the Vigilante to read. Bucky puffed. "Whatever." He said.

In that moment, a figure practically landed in front of them: the Vigilante was wearing a pair of black cargo trousers, two guns at her belt and the hilt of knife sticking out of her boot. The Vigilante had a black shirt with a black leather jacket and a mask that covered most of their face and head. The only thing exposed was their neck. The figure looked at them, deep y/e/c eyes scanning their figure, while pointing a gun against them.

Sam raised his hand and Bucky frowned. "Woah, was this necessary?" Sam asked and the Vigilante tilted her head before lowering the gun. "I had to make sure you were not impostors." They said, their voice alternated by some weird device. Sam nodded, but before he could say anything, Bucky took a step forward and the Vigilante finally saw him: a gasp escaped their mouth. "James Buchanan Barnes..." The Vigilante whispered, their voice filled with tension. Bucky walked toward them, his hand already on his gun. "How do you know my full name?" He asked while extracting the gun, his eyes widened. The Vigilante shook their head. "You know me too..." They said and pressed a button behind their mask: it opened with a click and Bucky looked at them: he stumbled back, his mouth parted and his hand lowering. "This is not possible..." He whispered in panic.

Sam looked at the Vigilante and tilted his head. "Mmh, a girl." He simply said while she kept staring at Bucky, her eyes getting watery. "You're alive." She simply said and Sam raised his arms. "Wait a second, how do you know each other?" He asked and looked at his friend, but he was like petrified.

The girl sighed. "I was Steve's girlfriend back in 1940." She said and Sam widened his eyes. "What the fuck?!" He simply said and Bucky stepped forward to look at her: she looked exactly the same, her y/h/c were slightly longer but still the same colour, her lips still pink petal and her eyes still intense, even if there was something different in her sight. "Y/n," he whispered her name, it was almost weird to pronounce after all those years. "I thought you were dead." He said, his jaw clenched. Y/n shook her head. "I had to make Steve believe it, it was too dangerous to stay with him." She explained.

Bucky felt a burning anger growing inside of him. He looked at Sam. "We're not working with her." He said and rushed out of the parking. Sam raised his hands while staring at y/n. "I'll be right back, read this in the meantime." He said and passed the fascicles to her before running to his friend. "Bucky, stop." He commanded but Bucky kept walking. "I'm not working with her." He repeated and stopped to look at Sam, he shook his head. "We need her, we have been trying to stop those dealers for months." He trying to help his friend reasoning but Bucky was adamant. "There is no way, Sam." He said and Sam rolled his eyes. "But why..." He asked but Bucky started walking away. "You don't wanna know." He said, Sam walked in front of him. "Just tell me, I can't understand why--" he tried to insist, but Bucky grabbed his arms and looked at him. "Because I loved her!" He screamed, his voice filled with anger. He shook his head and bit his lower lip, his expression resigned.

Sam widened his eyes and stepped back while Bucky sighed. "I was in love with her and it cost me a lot to never say this. Steve was so happy to have her, he liked her since the beginning, and I liked her too. Living their relationship in front row made me get attached to her too and I realized that I loved her," he said, his voice a whisper. "Then, one day, she left him out of the blue, telling him that she was about to move in Europe. Steve couldn't resign, he kept insisting to have another chance. She looked so torn, then one day, her friends told us that she was found dead after a car accident. Those were weird years, cars were still such a new thing and couldn't be trusted. We never saw the body but we attended her funeral," he said, the memory of that day still fresh in his mind. "Steve was in pieces, and I was destroyed. The person I loved was gone and I couldn't tell anyone about that, not even to my best friend. And the worst part is that I've never been completely honest about the reason why me and her were so close..." He concluded, eyes watery and his hands nervously entwined. He never told Steve that, the day he introduced her as his girlfriend, was not the first time Bucky saw her: he met her weeks before, they had a one night stand but he never forgot her. He didn't even know her name, but those eyes had been in his thoughts for weeks, untill he saw her again, but next to Steve. It was too late to say anything, and that had been their secret for two years, the amount of time she had been Steve's girlfriend. Sam put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, mate." He whispered and Bucky nodded.

In that moment, y/n walked to them, the fascicles in her hand. "I read them. I've been trying to stop this organisation for months, then I was recruited for another mission two years ago and I've left USA since then," she explained while shaking her head. "They apparently are still around. It's quite personal to me, since their boss was my boyfriend and--" Sam almost choked on his own saliva. "What?!" He asked and she shrugged. "I pretended to be interested in him for the sake of the mission, he was an awful man, always treating me like his funny little toy. I simply dumped him with the excuse of having to move." She said and looked at Bucky, a bit of guilty in her eyes. He shook his head. "That's your modus operandi then, you make people fall in love with you and you dump them with this silly excuse when you're tired of them, just like you did with St--" he was saying, but she snapped: she grabbed her knife and pointed it to his throat, her movement so fast and gracious that they didn't even realize. She looked at him in the eyes. "Not another word, Steve has been the only real thing I've ever had. Leaving him was the most difficult decision I've ever made." She said and he chuckled, the tip of the knife scratching his throat. "Then why did you?" He asked and she took a breath, her eyes not showing any emotion at all. "Because I was getting weak. Having sentimental attachment was not a thing accepted by my boss. He threatened me to kill Steve, and you..." She said and he tilted his head. "Me?" He asked in surprise and she nodded. "You're free to not believe me, but I cared about you too, and also very much." She concluded and lowered her knife, Bucky's body relaxed. Sam looked at them both, standing one a couple of centimetres away from the other: they were lost in each other's eyes, the sexual tension between them almost palpable. Sam held his breath. "Okay, enough drama for today. What about going home, sleeping on this and we meet tomorrow at Bucky's apartment to discuss the mission?" He said, trying to defuse the atmosphere. Y/n nodded, her eyes still on Bucky. "I'll keep the fascicles, see you tomorrow." She said and practically disappeared in the darkness of the parking, there was no trace of her.

Bucky let out a breath, his stomach twisted and his heart pounding faster in his chest. Sam tilted his head. "Do you have to tell me something else?" He asked but Bucky started walking away, not another word escaped his mouth for the rest of the night.

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

Bucky could always tell when he was dreaming, there was something in the way he perceived feelings that was surreal. He used to have the most vivid flashbacks of when he was still the Winter Soldier, filled with violence and pain, so it was easy to tell that it was not who he was anymore. But this time, it was different: after decades, he was dreaming of y/n again and it felt real. It was a pure memory, of the night he had sex with her...

He was lying on his bed, his chest covered in tiny drops of sweat while it was raising and lowering fastly, he was out of breath. She was still sitting on his, her legs spread and her torso lowering to kiss him, a quick but intense kiss on his lips, before she rolled on the bed next to him. He looked at her and smiled: her hair were messy, her breast covered in small bites and her hands pulling the sheets to cover her naked body. Bucky scanned her. "Don't, you look beautiful." He said and grabbed her by her hip, his lips pressing on her shoulder. She smiled. "You don't look bad yourself, James." She said and ran her fingers through his short hair, he shook his head. "It's unfair, you know my name and I don't know yours." He protested and she shrugged while slowly kissing his neck, her hand tracing his pectorals. "I could tell you, but where would be the fun?" She joked while biting his neck, her warm breath sending shivers down his spine. "You act so mysterious." He whispered, a small moan escaping his lips as her hand travelled down his stomach.

She smirked. "Don't you like it?" She asked and he looked at her, his eyes filled with lust while he climbed on the top of her, his legs spreading hers. "I love it." He whispered and kissed her, his lips searching for hers with passion. She kissed him back, her legs crossing around his lap and her hands scratching his back. "You are so hot, has anyone told you that?" She asked while looking at his naked body, he really was perfect. He grinned in confidence but his lips turned pink. "Well, have you seen yourself?." He asked while his hands travelled on her body and he looked at her with pure adoration, his eyes on her making her feel kinda of worshiped.

She smiled. "You look like you're in the mood for a second round." She provoked him and pulled him closer. He smirked, his fingers tracing her breast. "Even a third." He said and grabbed her leg, his lips leaving a trace of tiny kisses on it while she smiled, feeling happy and wanted for the first time in forever.

Bucky woke up, his eyes widened and his body authomatically sitting up. He was out of breath, his irregular heartbeat making him feel full of adrenaline. He shook his head, his hands running through his hair.

Bucky had never thought about that night again since y/n's funeral: the fact that he dreamt of it again was almost disturbing to him. He clearly remembered how the following day he woke up and she was gone, he tried to search for her for days but no one knew her name, she was like a ghost, disappeared without leaving a single trace behind. Bucky couldn't forget the day he saw her again: Steve was proudly holding her hand, his blue eyes filled with love and affection while he looked at her.

"This is y/n, my girlfriend." He said and smiled in pride. Y/n widened her eyes while staring at Bucky and he did the same, his throat so dry that he thought he was not going to be able to talk. In the end, she reached her hand. "Nice to meet you, Bucky, Steve always talks about you." She said, underlining the name Bucky since she knew him as James. He shook her hand and nodded. "Nice to meet you, Steve told me that you are an amazing person, y/n." He said and put emphasis on her name too, since he didn't know it.

Bucky didn't realize at the time, but he was already so captured by her: it had been just one night, but the way they connected had been so intense. Making love, talking about random stuff, sharing life moments through stories; all of those things had been powerful and deep for Bucky. He couldn't help but falling for her, even though she was with Steve.

He stood up and looked at his clock: 4 in the morning. He sighed, it was impossible to go back to sleep, so he went to the kitchen and grabbed a glass to fill it with milk. In that moment, someone knocked at his door: he frowned and grabbed a gun that he had hidden behind the microwave, who on Earth would knock at 4 a.m.? He walked to the door slowly, his hands pointing the gun, then he heard a voice. "I know you're awake, it's me." Y/n said from the other side of the door. Bucky's heart almost skipped a beat: he put the gun down and opened the door. Y/n was standing there, her hands in his pocket and the hood of her hoodie on. She walked inside and put the hood down while staring at him. "I'm sorry to show up like this, but I needed to see you." She said and he shook his head. "How did you know I was awake?" He asked while putting the gun back behind the microwave. She shook her head. "Because I couldn't sleep too. Plus, I clearly heard the click of your gun when I knocked, amateur shit." She said and sat on his couch.

Bucky shook his head and sat in front of her. "What do you want?" He asked, his tone filled with tension. She took a deep breath. "To apologize. I know I hurt Steve, and maybe you too but--" she tried to say but he laughed. "Tell me one thing: did you know I was Steve's best friend the night we fucked?" He brutally asked, his voice firm. She shook her head. "I didn't, it was just a coincidence." She honestly said while having vivid flashbacks of that night, her stomach filling with a weird sensation. "Coincidences do not exist." Bucky bitterly said and she sighed. "Sometimes, they do. I didn't intend to end up with Steve, but when I met him he was sweet, thoughtful, sincere... I wasn't allowed to get attached to people, but he was so special. I got involved and when I saw you the night he introduced me to you, I almost thought about breaking up with him..." She confessed, her voice shaking. He didn't interrupt her and gave her the time to take a breath. "I liked you, Bucky. That night had been important to me, believe it or not. I used to have sex with people and leaving the following morning was easy, but that morning I hesitated. But then I already was a Vigilante, I had responsibilities and my life was a constant danger, so I left your apartment. I thought about you for days, then I met Steve and I was probably opened to the idea of love because of how you made me feel, like I could be worthy of love after all and like I didn't have to give up on human basic experience just because of my job." She concluded, her eyes stuck into his and her hands playing with one of the pillows.

Bucky felt his stomach twisting: that night had been important to her too, then. All those years thinking about how stupid he had been to believe that it mattered something and here he was, listening to her talking about that damn night spent together. "I thought about you too." Bucky confessed, his voice a whisper and his eyes travelling to his own hands. She parted her mouth. "You did?" She asked and he nodded. "Why didn't you tell me?" She asked and regretted a second later, it was obvious. He shook his head. "Because you were my best friend's girlfriend. He had never been happier and I didn't want to interfere." He said, thinking about how much Steve actually loved her. He felt guilty of loving her too.

She let out a breath and tilted her head. "I feel bad for lying to him, to you. I saw you at my funeral and I felt the worst person ever." She admitted and Bucky nervously chuckled. "How to blame you? Steve was destroyed." He said and she nodded. "I know, but if I had stayed he would have been killed. He became a hero, instead." She said and thought about Captain America. Bucky nodded, eyes staring at the void. "And I became a monster." He said and she bit her lower lip. "You were the Winter Soldier, weren't you?" She asked, finally connecting all the dots. He nodded, those words still hurting. "I was." He said and she grabbed his hand. Their first physical contact since the night they had sex and Bucky felt it all: his stomach twisted and his eyes travelled back on her face. "I'm sorry, you didn't deserve that, we didn't deserve to be experiments." She sighed and he frowned. "I suppose they used the serum on you too." He guessed and she nodded. "Yes, two hundred years before they did on you." She confessed, thinking about how many epochs she had been through. He widened his eyes. "Wait... Are you three hundred years old?" He asked in disbelief. She looked at him and nodded, a tiny smile curving her lips. Bucky felt weird, he hadn't seen that smile since the last time he had seen her with Steve, he used to love that smile.

She shook her head. "So, now that we told the untold, can we work together?" She asked and reached her hand to shake it, he hesitated, he wasn't sure he could, but she was just someone from his past and he didn't love her anymore, didn't he? They had been lovers for a night and friends for two years, but there was always something unclear between them. He shook her hand. "We can." He said and she finally smiled, a full and bright smile that reminded Bucky of the good old times. "Okay," she said and stood up, he did the same. "So, see you tomorrow." She said and hugged him. Bucky tensed up for a moment, his body freezing between her arms, but it was just a second: he hugged her back, his arms wrapping around her torso while he hid his face in the crook of her neck: she had the same smell, the same familiar sweet scent. She looked at him, and for a second she thought about kissing him again, those eyes still mesmerising and his lips so soft. He was looking at her too, his eyes travelling from her lips to her eyes. They didn't realize but they both leaned forward, their lips barely touched and y/n took a step forward. "I should go." She said and took a deep breath. Bucky sighed and nodded, his hands falling long his body. "Yes, you should." He said, feeling guilty for still wanting her so bad. She smiled at him and left, the noise of her footsteps filling the stairs. Bucky sighed, his hands covering his face while lying down on his couch, thinking that he was still in love with her.

Part 2

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Alright, that’s two episodes of Hawkeye. So far, so good! I’m not gonna lie, this has the potential to be the best of the Disney Plus shows based solely on Clint and Kate’s relationship. It feels nice to step away from the grander/experimental side of Marvel in order to do a more character-driven tale. It’s familiar, but it works. Like, I’m invested in just seeing Clint and Kate talk, that’s how well they work off each other and how strong the show can potentially be since it doesn’t need the grander, Marvel universe elements in order to make it compelling.

In terms of plot, it looks like we have two main storylines happening:

1) Echo and the Tracksuit Mafia want Ronin 

2) Kate needs to find out who killed Armand Duquesne.

So having two storylines makes sense since they both correspond to a specific Hawkeye. The Echo storyline is obviously Clint’s story while Armand’s storyline is Kate’s story. We’ll see how this goes but it shouldn’t be that hard to merge the storylines together. In fact, you could say that in order to bring all the villains together...you need to put them under a “kingpin”. Nudge nudge, wink wink.

Anyways, in terms of where we are in the season, I’d rank Hawkeye this way:

1) Loki still has the best first act of the MCU Disney Plus shows. 

2) Hawkeye is a close second

3) WandaVision didn’t have a bad first act, but it took them more episodes to get to where I feel Loki and Hawkeye are at now

4) Falcon and the Winter Soldier didn’t really hit its stride until episode 4. 

[blursed-ninjago-ideas]

Occurs to me I should post the next part of this. 

So nobody figured out where Kai was heading. Someone guessed Chen’s island which wouldn’t work because 1, That is west, not east and 2 That’s a brilliant idea, not a bad one.

An ally alright

--

“Fancy hearing from you!” Ronin said, holding the phone too tightly.

They didn’t know Kai was with him, did they?

“We need a favor.” Nya said in tight voice.

“What’s up?” Ronin asked, eyeing Kai.

The kid was passed out on his couch, looking like it was the first real sleep he’d gotten since he ran off. Ronin had to admit the kid looked awful. He thought Kai looked bad when he’s showed up at his doorstep begging for a place to hide, but he only looked worse in his sleep. He couldn’t hide his thin face and dark bags behind a strong expression. Now that he wasn’t standing in a defensive position, Ronin could see how frail he was. Not to mention that he was running a fever and his voice sounded raw and scratchy, but he’d refused any medicine Ronin tried to give him.

“It’s Kai. He’s gone off on his own, and last we heard he was heading east. We figured since it’s your turf that if anybody would know anything, it would be you. So, have you heard anything? Where he is? Where he’s going?”

Ronin bit his lip.

Kai had been adamant about not telling the others where he was. Even though Nya sounded so worried about him.

“Do you think he’s coming to Stiix?” Ronin asked.

Not a lie. He just asked her what she thought.

“Normally, I wouldn’t think so because of his Thalassophobia, but with how he’s been acting, he might.” Nya said.

“How he’s been acting?” Ronin asked.

“We think Kai’s suffering from a mental break right now. He’s having delusions and is convinced we’re not safe. We’ve tried everything to get him to understand that we just want to help him, but he won’t listen! Please Ronin. From what I’ve seen he’s not eating or sleeping, and he needs help. He’s suffering right now, and he needs to come home so we can help him get better.”

Ronin’s lip took another round of abuse.

He had to admit, Kai did look worse for wear. He hadn’t sounded the most rational when he’d explained things either.

“Last we heard he was injured too. He can’t keep running like that. He’s going to hurt himself and if we can’t find him when that happens…”

“Bed news.” Ronin guessed.

He looked at Kai’s swelling ankle. The pale, sweating skin. The way he was flinching in his sleep. The filth and dirt that covered him. Thought about how light he was when Ronin helped him hopple to the couch.

He’d been so desperate to hide from his family. He assured Ronin there was a good reason for it, but what if there wasn’t? What if the kid was just in a messed-up place and couldn’t tell up from down?

“Like I said, I don’t think Kai would go to Stiix, but he hasn’t exactly been acting right. I’m worried he’s going to do something crazy!”

Kai had already done crazy and then some. Plus, he had in fact, gone to Stiix. Something already wildly out of character.

Ronin didn’t want to betray him. Kai had made him swear not to tell the ninja where he was, practically begged. He was clearly afraid of something. Something was scaring him so much he felt safer surrounded by deep water than he did with his family.

But maybe it would be more of a betrayal to enable him. If Kai really was just hurting himself, and he seemed to be, then he needed to be brought home.

“Hypothetically speaking, if I, let’s say, knew where the kid was right now. What would I get in return for telling you?”

Talking profit was the only way he could cover for the genuine emotions he was feeling. He could pretend he wasn’t worried about Kai’s well being if he got something out of it.

“Ronin, do you know where my brother is?” Nya asked in a teary voice.

Ronin sighed. He was going soft.

“I do.” He admitted. “He’s at my place.”

“He’s in Stiix!? With all that water!? What was he thinking!?!?” Nya yelled in a panic.

Ronin could hear her shuffling around, already getting ready to come collect her brother.

“He’s injured. You’re intel was right on that one. His ankle is in bad shape and I’m pretty sure he’s sick. That’s to say nothing of how sleep deprived and skinny he is.” Ronin said, feeling very tired all of a sudden.

“We’ll be there by sundown. Can you keep him there until then?” Nya asked.

Ronin sighed.

“Yeah. He’s already pretty out of it, but I’ll do what I can to keep him still.”

“Thank you, Ronin! Thank you!” Nya was crying.

Ronin hung up on her. He hoped he was making the right choice.

He threw a blanket onto Kai and went about making him some laced soup to be sure he stayed unconscious.

--

Ironically Ronin didn’t betray Kai for profit, he did it out of concern.