#potentially close to where jimmy died

[the--highlanders]

I would just like to thank james drummond for dying so conveniently he solves so many problems <3

[phlying-squirrel]

So We All Know the Canary Curse. But What About Scott?

I've had this thought since Jimmy wasn't the first death in secret life. If he has an established curse where he is meant to die first, could there also be blessings?

It was always in the back of my head that "Oh yeah Jimmy is cursed to die first, Scott is blessed to make it close to the end." Scott or his allies almost always get right up to the end of the game (Top 3 usually). Is it out of the realm of possibility that the listeners or some other power looked at Scott during 3rd life and said "Damn sorry, his ally/husband died. Maybe next time buddy." Or they at least saw his potential and gave him a blessing? This could be an extra explanation as to why Lizzie was the first final death. Maybe Scott's blessing overpowers the canary curse? So when Lizzie tried to kill Scott in the end, the blessing kicked in and protected him, which in turn killed Lizzie. I'm also wondering if there are any other patterns/curses/blessings known of, or bestowed upon players?

It just seems like a fun tidbit or a possibility to play with :]

[goldstargloww]

curses, coincidences, and deity influences

so um. i kinda wrote an essay of some sorts

version that might be easier to read is at https://goldstargloww.neocities.org/goldsaysstuff/

the canary curse

canary call, the first to fall / forever caged in different walls. everyone knows this one - canaries were used in coal mines in the 1900s as a warning to miners that there where toxic gases such carbon dioxide or other asphyxiant gases in the air, which would effect small warm blooded animals faster than larger ones due to their quicker respiratory exchange. canaries were found to be more sensitive and effective than mice as they showed more visible signs of distress. canaries were brought into mines in carriers and cages to save the miners, often at the expense of their own lives (though sometimes they had little oxygen bottles to revive the birds)

this is jimmy. jimmy is always out first, without fail, in every season. he's the first one to be struck with lightning and separated from everyone else.

3rd life; died in a war with his husband despite being in a bunker.

last life; died because he got a bit too greedy as a red life and tried to push his brother-figure into a trap, and then faced the consequences.

double life; got caught and strangled by an enderman, leaving his cursed by proxy soulmate to die alone.

limited life; once again got too greedy as a red life and fell off the bridge along with the tnt minecraft he tried to push off of it. in fact, this wasn't even supposed to ever happen. he was supposed to die earlier, when etho got his boogey kill, but he got the incorrect amount of time subtracted from his total. he wasn't supposed to be alive - he was dead before he hit the ground.

two deaths from trying to keep himself safe, two from fall damage, two from greed. ironic how a bird dies twice from falling to his death, huh?

the canary in the coal mine analogy is actually vaguely referenced in the very first parts of 3rd life session one. martyn's digging down and asks bigb to sing for him so when martyn can't hear him anymore he knows he's dug too deep and it's time to leave

miners attempted to revive their canaries because of how much they relied on them. jimmy, however? no potential for revival there.

attempts to break the curse have been made. they've never succeeded.

jimmy's never seen anyone permadie. he's never seen a dead body. the day he does, if ever, is surely gonna hurt. "that should've been me".

the watcher curse

this one isn't really official, it's more of a pattern, and one harder to 'prove'. those who are watcher aligned (ex. grian) tend to cause themselves and their allies to lose or die early.

grian

grian caused scar's death in 3rd life.

all the southlanders died in last life, hell jimmy and mumbo were to his own hands, the two he was closest to.

he killed bigb in double life despite them being secret soulmates.

all the bad boys and clockers died in limited life, many because of him, notably scar.

the listener blessing

pretty much the opposite to the watcher curse, where everyone who's listener aligned (ex. scott, martyn, pearl) tend to cause themselvs and their allies to win or live longer.

scott

grian won third life with scar as second place - scott was allies with both of them

scott himself won last life with pearl, his closest ally, in the top four

pearl (and technically scott, in a sense) won double life with the other half of the divorce quartet as second or third/fourth place. tilly death do us part!

martyn won limited life by betraying his own mean gill, "and i wouldn't have had it any other way."

scott has been allied with every single person who has won one of these death games up to limited life.

martyn

dogwarts, despite not winning in the end, certaintly got very close to it. and martyn was the last of the king and his hand to die.

he made it to the top four in last life and in double life

he won limited life, maybe not the most honorably, but it's been coming all the way since red winter and his plan for red spring. and the watchers were notably involved in this win, too. "THIS IS A DEATH MATCH FOR A REASON."

the phoenix curse (etho)

every odd numbered season, etho loses his last life to fire/burning. in even numbered seasons, nothing fire/burning related even really happens

unnamed (joel)

joel always tends to end up alone and desperate for kills

the watcher's self fulfilling prophecy

the idea that because us, the watchers, the viewers, believe in these curses and stuff, makes them true

the canary curse

the idea that the watchers pushed jimmy off skynet in limited life to continue the canary curse

the widow curse

sort of ties into the watcher curse and listener blessing. the thought that with grian, he causes his allies to die and him to be left standing. with the listener aligned players, they're the only ones left standing until the end.

referenced by scott and cleo in third life, when their husbands die they'd make the widow's alliance

grian never being boogeyman

grian is a watcher who's inserted himself into the games. if he wasn't ever meant to play, if he was only ever meant to watch, why should he be a valid entry?

could be tied to the amount of lives he got in last life, as well. he wasn't meant to be there in the first place. why let him play longer?

the AFK session (grian)

canonically (to eyesandears), grian was pulled away from his body during the AFK session. "pause, unpause, we paralyze / a vacant stare for wandering eyes."

the watchers are pissed that grian keeps getting to play. they're trying their best to rip him out of the games and return to their grasp.

the border

"here's the thing about being beyond the veil - we're already dead."

being beyond the border doesn't protect you. it only hurts you. grian knows this because he's a watcher

bigb's invisibility

bigb was briefly invisible to scott during a fight in limited life due to a glitch in the game. what if this is just because the watchers hate scott with a passion and wanted to make his life harder? we already know they hate him

the fact that it was bigb, a former evo member, is interesting too…

playing by the rules - compliance and refusal

martyn either tries his hardest and fails, or obliges against his will.

his attempted boogey kill on scott failed and the shadow was very upset with him for this. they gave him one job and he failed.

he was very clearly influenced by the watchers to break the notion that red lives should all of a sudden be honorable at the final few again.

scott's outright denial

scott tried the whole boogeyman thing once in last life, but the next time he straight up refused to play by the rules. he told everyone he was the boogeyman and laid out his plan of playing as normal unless a situation arises where he could steal a kill.

he denied his soulmate in double life and went and got a new one

rushed boogey kill in limited life instead of building up the suspense the watchers wanted

has technically won 2/4 games.

bdubs being unwatched

bdubs didn't record his limited life perspective. he could only have been watched through others's perspectives, or heard about.

[lapetitsorciere]

The Crown… Who now wears the Crown?

It was more than just a terrible idea to bring back the Crown that caused so much trouble before. Pix as an archeologist and a historian, one of his kind on the server should have thought everything through before putting it on, or even before taking it from the place, where it was hidden, he should know more than others do about it and the things that were happening because of it. He shouldn’t have been so naïve at the first place and here are some reasons:

1) The catastrophe which caused the end of all the empires thousands and thousands years ago and the awful things that happened through its fault. 2) There is three villains on the server already: Jimmy (the most safe from all of them), Shelby who isn’t yet sure of what she is doing and proclaimed herself a villain almost for no reason at all (+ she just feels comfortable with her sculk) and Sausage Supreme – one of the most powerful creatures, probably in all dimensions, who is hungry for power and for blood. And it is more than enough, considering the fact that Lizzie has a great villain potential. 3) Goodness Gracious! There are too much people who’d like to try the Crown on and take advantage of the power that it is giving, but it is unknown how exactly would they use it. Pix made it even more tempting to get setting his rule. 4) The Crown itself might be cursed.

Now something about what could the Rulers ask for, wearing the Crown and the consequences of it:

The Ruler – The Rule – The way of getting the Crown – The way of losing it.

King Pix – Bring one item of national importance to your Empire to donate to the museum. – Got the Crown from the chest that was hidden behind the mural in the catacombs. - Was withered away on The Princess Tea Party and became a ghost, so his reign didn’t last long. (There are two possibilities – either it happened because of the Crown itself, or it was a Sausage Supreme move. Yeah, or in was all because of the Fae we know nothing about or something else we have no clue about either.)

King Scott – Build something of your choice in Chromia. – Got the Crown when Pix died, because he was close to the place of his death. – Who knows what can happen to him, because there is too much going on – the evil ones and the people who can decide to get the Crown for themselves for the reasons of their own, and also he is an adventurer, so he may give up the Crown for somebody else, or the mysterious something cam kill him. • From here on no order yet:

Queen Lizzie – ? (Can be anything, including something mischievous) – Probably killed somebody just for fun or made them give it to her to try on for the same reason, or found it when the current owner was away fighting something, which could make them loose the Crown, so they decided to hide it in their Empire somewhere in a safe place, or because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler. – The same as with Scott, except for the traveling aspect and giving the Crown up for somebody else.

King Joel – ? Probably something that can praise him or entertain him. – Probably killed someone, because he wanted to find out how it would feel to be a God and a King at the same time, so it is almost the same as if it was done just for fun. – The same as Lizzie, but also can make a tournament in his own honor.

King Sausage – ? Most likely – the Establishment of peace in all of the Empires (and maybe – build a temple of Saint Pearl in each Empire), and/or assemble the forces to defeat the common enemy. – Either got it, because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler, or because he won the tournament for the Crown, or because he killed its previous owner, because they were possessed by someone or something. – The same as Joel, but would give the Crown up for Pearl if she would be willing to take it.

King Sausage Supreme – To become his slaves and to serve his needs and/or to accept their death. – Most definitely killed the previous owner of the Crown, because wanted to rule the whole world and have his revenge on Sausage, or ordered someone, for example: Shelby to do it for him, for the same reason. – Most likely was defeated by Sausage, or Sausage and Joel, or Pearl, or any other combination of the same people, or by the collective forces of all of the Empires.

King Jimmy – To be finally respected properly and to be returned his normal size (may be also – to bring Tiny Tom to their dimension from the Hermitcraft). – Most likely, because he was close to the place of death of the previous owner of the Crown, because he can hardly do anything properly and the chances that he won’t fail to kill somebody are very, very low. – the same as Lizzie.

King Joey – To get him anything valuable, everything valuable that can be found on server or becoming his crewmates in case of the appearance of Sceletrone. – Most definitely killed the previous Ruler just for fun and to find out whether Katherine would love him now and so he would have a higher position than Shelby to make her go out of his way. – the same as Lizzie, but would give up the Crown to Katherine if she would ask him about it the right way.

Queen Katherine – ? Probably to help her to bring her kingdom back to normal. – Either got it because it was given to her, or because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler, or because she had to kill them for they were possessed by someone or something. – The same as Lizzie.

Queen Shelby - ? Maybe – save her from the sculk if she finally understands that it is not good at all or to follow Sausage Supreme, or to become officially accepted by the witch society. - Either got it because it was given to her, or because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler, or because she had to kill them for any possible reason. – the same as Lizzie, but possibly would give the Crown up for Sausage Supreme if he would manage to convince her to do it.

Queen False – ? Maybe – to get her back to Hermitcraft and/or to restore her memory completely. – Because she was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler (unlikely) or because she found out that someone mysteriously gave the Crown up for her (highly unlikely). – the same as Lizzie, but probably will give it to somebody else, for example to Pix to get read of it. (It is unlikely that she will even get the Crown at the first place.)

King Fwhip – ? (Can be anything, including something mischievous) – Probably killed somebody just for fun or made them give it to her to try on for the same reason, or because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler. – The same as Lizzie.

Queen Gem – ? To get into her Sun religion. – Because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler. – The same as Lizzie.

King Oli – ??? Maybe – to help him to bring up his Dragon-baby? Or to forgive all of his debts? - Because he was close to the place of death of the previous Ruler. – The Same as Lizzie, but if he would decide that it is too much responsibility for him, he would, probably give it to Eddie and establish peace between Empires or to Sausage, hoping for the same thing. (How would he even manage to get the Crown?)

What can even go wrong?

Can we just give the Crown to Hermes? It would be fun and by all means great, and the world wouldn’t face any catastrophes.

P.S. The Fae is an interesting creature – it asks for something and gives something in return, but there is a big But – it causes a lot of damage and harms the one she benefits if the one does something wrong or just not quite the way it was asked to be done. It told Sausage that it appreciates Sanctuary and then asked for help (after him and Joey tried to bring turtles to the isle, because the pirate called it Plantina and decided that it is his child now and sausage is the only one who is a good patent capable of raising a child, so he can give him some good advice), obviously understanding that Joey is not very good at granting its wishes. It asked Joey for help and Joey did it, it asked for help once again and Joey and Sausage did what it asked for, but it didn’t satisfy the Fae for the first time, so Sausage had to sit on the isle and wait for turtle eggs to hatch for a long, long time as a punishment and only then it was satisfied. It asked Jimmy for help and gave him wings when he needed them the most, but he was cursed, when he did what it asked then not completely as it told him, so now he can’t get rid of the Scull of the First Creeper (it doubles each time Jimmy tries to destroy it and he can’t manage to give it to the Fae) and unintentionally destroys everything around him and it almost threatened him. It asked Katherine for help and asked for it again when she and Lizzie fulfilled but nothing else has happened yet. It asked Lizzie for help and told her that it will help her to get a Princess Dress and it did, but Lizzie had to fight a warden to get it. And the other interesting thing is that nobody can hear it, except for the person it talks to. P.P.S.: Plus, there are very few people on the server who know the secret of the Fae (That’s a Behind the Lore bit.) and that’s not a Sausage thing! Sausage confirmed that he knows nothing about it (yes, not as he didn’t ever lie to us for the lore purposes, but now it is most definitely so), Jimmy is as confused as always and as he told on one of his streams he was partially banned from the Empires SMP chat, for sometimes he accidentally leaked the information that was important for the lore (spoilers) and now he sometimes doesn’t know what they are even doing at all, if they forget to tell him and the messages are hidden from him. Who?… What else?… So this is another mystery.

[adina123]

Empires smp avengers au seablings 

Jimmy and Lizzie are a combination of Thor and aqua man they have a human dad and ocean queen mom 

Having kids with a human was a very controversial move from the last queen 

she met her human love many years ago he was a British man that loved to sail he was surprisingly respectful to the ocean at a time in history where that was rare 

The way he treated her reminded her of the days of her youth when she could go to the surface and be treated like a praised goddess and not as a feared monster 

when he died she was heartbroken and after many years of gathering energy she was finally ready to lay her eggs she put them as close to the beach they met as she could with out being close enough to be spotted by humans 

the royal family has a  magical trident that like Thor’s hammer can only be used by a select few in this case anyone with royal blood 

the queen died laying her eggs and a supervillain with a vendetta against the kingdom took the opportunity and tried to kill them so that the line would end and the royal powers could never be used again 

but two eggs survived one shiny and brimming with magic the other cracked barely holding on to life but miraculously still intact 

There aunt was put in charge of watching over the remaining two eggs after there mothers death 

she was unsure if the cracked one still had a living being in it but she held hope that it would pull through 

but even though everyone wanted both eggs to hatch they hoped that the one with more potential hatched first so they could be the heir 

And the shining one did hatch first and from it came out a very powerful baby girl with blue skin and pink hair she looked just like her mother but had her fathers brown eyes the kingdom celebrated and she was immediately brought to the palace to be queen 

there aunt ruled until she was ready and because of that she was unable to watch the second egg but she still had hope and made sure there was always someone watching 

But After much more waiting they gave up hope of the other one making it and left it there 

the aunt was heart broken and though she wished to takeoff work to check it herself she knew they where right and the thought of going back to the place her sister died was to much 

not to mention wasting resources and sending people to watch an egg so close to humans was dangerous 

Lizzie knew she had a sibling and was excited to meet them so when they broke the news to her she was saddened 

she would steak off to visit the egg ever now and then 

But thousands of years later it hatched out came a boy but no one was there to celebrate the miracle 

he found his way to the near by shore and because he took more after there human dad in appearance he was assumed to be a baby human 

And the next time Lizzie went to the egg she found the remains she went straight home to spread the news but no one believed her she was told that it was probably the remains of one of their many potential siblings that they didn’t clear from the area 

she promised to look for her sibling but tragedy struck her again when her aunt died she took the throne and she could no longer search for her sibling but she knew he was out there and hoped he would find his way back there her she swore as soon as they reunited she would be the best sister ever 

the trident is powerful giving the wielder complete control of water that does not just include The ocean but all water like rainstorms and the ability to fly by controlling the water in the air 

 jimmy was brought into the foster care system but ended up being taken out by a secret organization that sought to create assassins he was singled out because of he Atlantean durability and strength they didn’t know he was Atlantean but his inhuman traits caused him to be seen as a perfect candidate for there brutal training program

while going through the harsh training he managed to hold on to his optimism by remembering the cowboy movies he’d obsess over while he was in the system he would think about how they would face obstacles and eventually get there happy ending and comforted himself by saying that he would be just like them and have a happy ending 

he only knows basic knowledge since he was taken out of school and was forced to focus on training they wanted him to be stupid obedient and not ask questions 

he was always ignored and tried to fill the silence with noise with added bonus of getting them to react on occasion 

he is way stronger than n the average Atlantean lizzie is still stronger though

when he got out he became the vigilante sheriff like his mother he loved being respected

 both he and his sister where recruited to join the team and they booth excepted 

eventually they realized they where related when jimmy was able to lift the trident after that a lot of things started to make sense to jimmy the main ones being able to breath underwater and talking to fish 

[majickth]

Future-Tense Ghosts • [1] [2] [3]

-- --

Jimmy doesn’t go alone this time.

Food be damned, he’s not gonna run into the arms of another enderman. He’s not dying again, not when he can almost feel the invisible thread of Everything wrapping around him like a noose.

Instead, out of all the possible people, he manages to convince Joel and Etho to come along with him. The journey is…well, it’s a journey with Joel and Etho.

“I can’t see why you need us to come along,” Joel mutters, idly kicking a rock as he walks beside the two. “Shouldn’t your soulmate be the one holding your hand in the big scary dark?”

“I’m not scared of the dark!” Jimmy pauses, then flushes. “And…and he should, actually, but I don’t know where he is. More importantly, I wanted you lot to come along because—“

There’s the sound of air popping, of something disappearing and reappearing in mere seconds. A shadow moving in the dark. He should know better, but instinct is to raise his eyes up in alarm. A flash of purple, eyes briefly skimming over violet eyes, and then—

“Jimmy!”

The sound of distorted screaming hits him before the claws do.

Jimmy gasps as the enderman slams into him, a half-broken shield raised just in time to block the oncoming blow. Claws dig into wood. A shriek echoes in his ears and creature shoves hard. It’s enough to knock him sideways, his body slamming into a tree with enough force to drive the breath from his lungs. Once more, the air rushes to fill a spot, pops apart, and with a vwoosh, the creature is in his face. It pushes against his shield, hissing through a splintered opening, claws inches from Jimmy’s neck, and…

And he should be scared.

He is, technically, absolutely terrified.

But there’s also a strange comfort in knowing what’s to come. Call it resignation, but he’s been down this route -- literally. He’s been here before. He knows it’ll hurt, a lot, and that in the back of his mind he’ll be screaming apologies to Tango. He knows that when the shield finally breaks, that’ll be it, and once more the canary will die first.

Jimmy closes his eyes.

Only it never comes.

There’s a blur of silver and red, and the weight of the enderman is gone. Jimmy gasps, lifting his head briefly to catch sight of Etho pinning the enderman to the ground, sword sunk deep into its lanky torso. It flails and screams, violet sparks gathering before it teleports behind the masked man for a bite.

The monster is quick; Joel is faster. He’s inbetween the creature and his soulbound in mere seconds, lips pulled in a wolfish grin as he drives the sword straight into the creature’s open maw before it can take a single bite. There’s a hiss, a choking scream, and then…

The forest is silent once more.

“Is it…?” Etho stands, dusting purple dust off his hands with a casual flick.

“Dunno. Let me check.”

Joel shoves the body off his sword. He wrinkles his nose at the corpse, pausing for a moment before driving a hard kick to the creature’s head. It’s supposed to look impressive. Instead, there’s a dull thunk that sends both soulbounds reeling, clutching their shared aching feet.

“Yup,” Joel manages between gasps of pain. “Definitely dead.”

“That was…” Terrifying. Scarring. Potentially how he was supposed to die. Definitely how he was supposed to die. Jimmy can’t find the right words, though Joel is more than happy to provide for him.

“Amazing? Yeah. I know. That’s just how us boat boys roll.” Pain receding, Joel smirks and fist bumps Etho. “No, but seriously, are you alright? You could’ve bloody died. Like actually.”

“I’m, um…” Jimmy looks down at the claw marks in his arms, and the familiar warmth of another’s distant attempts at healing fill his chest. He exhales. “Yeah, I’m, um, great! Just…feeling great. Thanks guys.”

“You can thank me by getting home safe, idiot.” Joel grabs Jimmy and pulls him up, usual cheekiness replaced with surprising concern. “And also giving us some spare sugar cane, if you’ve got any.”

“If I make it home, I’ll give you all of it. Promise.”

Despite everything, Jimmy laughs. It’s a stupid promise to make to Joel of all people, but he doesn’t care. Not now, anyways, because there’s two heartbeats in his chest and they beat with the steadiness of an older vow bound by the thread of everything. Something worth more than sugar cane.

He’s a canary who knows he’s made to die. But it feels so good to live a day longer.

[teaveetamer]

Something among others that bothers me in this fandom is how many blame Rodrigue for anything and everything while saying that Felix is blameless in their issues. Like how when Rodrigue dies, they blame Rodrigue for never reconciling with Felix first when irs Felix who pushed away his dad for years and Felix who never wanted to reconcile. They act like Rodrigue is a dick to focus on Dimitri while dying when he literally died saving Dimitri and Felix isn't in that scene. (Part 1)

Now I'll admit, I think AG handled Felix and Rodrigue 10x better now. Because Rodrigue is playable, he has support, he interacts with Felix more often, and this Felix is more mature too. But simultaneously it does seem to be fixing the issues I had. In the alt path where Rodrigue dies, that cutscene is everything I wanted from AM: Rodrigue even focuses on both Dimitri and Felix, too, while Felix speaks to his dad before Rodrigue dies. AG does both characters very well IMO (part 2)

Oooooh yeah that one always rustles my jimmies. I did a whole post about it awhile back.

TL;DR: While yes, Rodrigue is the adult in this situation, there is still only so much he can do if Felix isn't willing to meet him in the middle. He can't force Felix to be okay with him, and trying could potentially drive the wedge between them further.

Also the argument that Dimitri "stole" Rodrigue from Felix is completely ridiculous on his face. It is 100% undeniable directly stated canon that Dimtiri hasn't even seen Rodrigue in two years when 3H's academy phase begins.

And no, even before that he didn't "steal" Rodrigue. He committed the heinous crime of... checks notes... being a literal child who was traumatized by the massacre of his friends and family and then traumatized again by being forced to witness the genocide that followed (which, despite his best efforts to stop it, he was only able to save one person).

You can argue that Rodrigue should have paid more attention to Felix after Glenn's death if you like, but you are a monster if you genuinely argue that Rodrigue should have just completely ignored this 12/13 year old he viewed as a second son after Dimitri experienced an assassination attempt, dozens of people he was close to (including his own father!) being murdered in front of him, being orphaned, and then a literal genocide... all because Felix had his feelings hurt over the Faeghus equivalent of "he's in a better place now". Is it valid for Felix to have his feelings hurt and be grieving his brother's death? Absolutely. Does it make Rodrigue a bad person to look at Dimitri and say "you know what, this kid needs me right now too"? No, it absolutely does not.

Additionally, Felix's issue with Rodrigue is never about how Rodrigue treated Dimitri after Lambert was murdered. It was entirely about what Rodrigue said to him about Glenn's death. Similarly, Felix's issues with Dimitri are never about Rodrigue. I don't even know how people twisted it so that Felix just hates Dimitri for "stealing his dad". Felix's issue with Dimitri is completely separate from Rodrigue.

And yeah, his death scene in AM has problems... but that's 100% a consequence of permadeath needing to permadeath. Can't have Felix in the scene if Felix is dead (and lol you think they have the budget to make two of these CGs and record an actual meaningful difference in the dialogue? Nah, nah, we had to put that budget into tea time).

I haven't seen the alt path of AG where Rodrigue dies for myself, but I think his relationship with Felix is handled fairly well in AG. I think it does at least demonstrate that Felix needed to grow up and mature a bit before he was in a place where he was able to understand where Rodrigue was coming from (and forgive him). Even though I don't think it was handled perfectly, it was definitely handled better.

[getmemymicroscope]

The stars from the first movie - Vikrant Massey and Taapsee Pannu - return, this time joined by Sunny Kaushal, himself off of a recent role in Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga where he also plays a sort of "what you see is not what you get," and Jimmy Shergill, who doesn't get nearly enough scope as he is sidelined in his quest for justice by ... well, the script, mostly.

Which, well, don't get me wrong. The movie does obviously have twists, which you come to expect based on how twisty Haseen Dillruba was (so twisty, this time around in fact, that even the word 'hasseen' in the title has an additional 's') as we follow our apparently Shakespearean-level 'star-crossed' lovers who, after the ending of the previous movie, are still struggling to just get away from everything and find themselves in each others arms.

Life, though, has other plans. Whilst forced to stay somewhat distant and while both are pursued by others - Taapsee by a lovelorn doctor, "I cut off my hand for love" Vikrant by his "I lost my leg in jumping off of the roof over failed love" landlady - they remain largely committed to each other (more-so than, say, the leads in Sahib Biwi aur Gangster). Another problem arises when the cop from their previous run-in with the law shows up, albeit with a new last name?, and is compounded when a new officer shows up - the uncle of the man that died the first time around. This time, as they say, it is 'personal.' And so the plan that forms in their minds is "Taapsee marries the guy who loves her to get the cops off their back until they can run away." Which, sure - that is most definitely a plan that could've been come up with.

The personal angle unfortunately doesn't carry much weight because, again, Jimmy's mostly sidelined. Sure, he puts two-and-two together after the fact, but that only results in his higher ups telling him to close the case right before we jump ahead 6 months. Then he gets invited to the climax via an inscribed book, where he sees Taapsee jump from unsurvivable heights (spoiler: she survives) and ends up taking in the killer for the multiple crimes committed. And gets to learn a small factoid which could somehow, potentially, play into a sequel. But, mostly, he just sits around as the sorta bland love triangle plays out.

On the plus side, while this movie may not be as chaotic as the first one, it also most definitely does not follow-up with the absurd glorification of sadism/masochism and domestic abuse. So, at least there's that.

Again, though - I know how this sounds so far. But, honestly, given the absence of that aforementioned glorification that really made the first movie hard to watch, and the generally respectable acting of our leads even in the absence of maybe completely ridiculous twists (though, both the twists involving falling into water may be a bit too much to believe, especially the second one), I did enjoy this more than the first go around (which just left an ill taste in my mouth, almost entirely because of what it seemed to glorify).

The 'twist' with Sunny's character which comes out before the climax sequences is maybe just a bit much - are we really supposed to believe that everyone is like that. Sure, they've done that, but the chances they'd also meet someone who is the exact same as them seems pretty slim. The additional twist at the very end, on the airplane, seems more cliché than anything - we'll have to see if it turns into something more significant in part 3, or if it is just a throwaway line to keep him relevant.

Rashomon'ing the scene that ended with them falling into the 'crocodile-infested rivers' was kinda cool; however, after hearing about these crocodiles literally from the start of the movie, having 1 montage of them feeding the crocodiles and then 1 scene of 1 crocodile attacking seems like a bit of a letdown in that regard.

The music was just meh, though the use of the song from Karz was pretty sweet (maybe just cuz I really enjoy those songs). I walked away from the first movie a bit disturbed and uncertain if I'd want to watch more; now, having seen the second, I'm walking away slightly more intrigued and interested in a potential follow-up - though that doesn't change the fact that there's still no way that she would've survived that fall unscathed, or maybe even at all (even if she landed in the water).

[the-firebird69]

Jimmy's in the back with a pocket of high

If you listen close, you can hear him cry

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below (sing it)

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below

Way down below, way down below

Judy's in the front seat picking up trash

Living on the dole, gotta make that cash

Won't be pretty, won't be sweet

She's just sitting here on her feet

Singing oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below (go)

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below (sing)

Oh Lord, tell us so, we belong way down below

Oh Lord, tell us so, we belong way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

I've had better days, man

I've seen better days

I've had better ways, man

I know better ways

One, two, three and four

The devil's knocking at your door

Caught in the eye of a dead man's lie

Start your life with your head held high

Now you're on your knees with your head hung low

Big man tells you where to go

Tell them it's good, tell them okay

Don't do a goddamn thing they say

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below

Oh Lord, tell us so, we belong way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

I've seen better ways, man

I know better ways

I've seen better days, man

I've had better days

Gina's in the back with a pocket of high

If you listen close, you can hear the crying

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below

Oh Lord, tell us so, we belong way down below (sing it)

Oh Lord, heaven knows, we belong way down below

Oh Lord, tell us so, we belong way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

Way down below, way down below

I know what this is this is someone horrified that they have to go down there possibly eventually to face their own clan that disowned them because of their disability and yeah it's a nightmare and horrified horrifying to think that we might have to but they disowned us a long time ago. But I know what it's like it's like being erased but you're not and we had some help from them they sent stuff to us they give us jobs and has two things so we weren't really disowned we were not allowed in the club and he says Ken is kind of not in it and it's not an easy club to be in it's not a club you get in by being a certain race or if you're there kind even it's about being deadly and shrewd and trains and convicted enough not to tell anybody so I understand that now it's natural selection and they didn't want to do it but they had to and the max forced it to try and juice them for weapons and designs and there it says it sits right down there and what you say is there's a lot of stuff that's fully active the boargue The matrix Tron Terminator factories all of this stuff that people say the max took over and we know about that and it might not be massive but they're going after the max nest egg now I'm starting to hear something they're using us to do it and try to use this up and we do understand what you're saying you don't like it either and we know what happens the max went after them and feels a big fight and a lot of them died and they have to do this so I don't really feel bad that we have to that's our mean to us I feel kind of upset it feels like it's all ending and that's what the song says since we've logged down below and the cycle of one of them and they know you're not really but she's saying it and people who hate or die and there has been better ways for it to happen

Garth

I got to tell you that this guy is pretty smart he did figure it out and he can't do anything about it sort of helps plan it and said this is all humongous stuff didn't know about Dave and it's starting to fight a little about something Max we think and that makes sense we have a handle on it and we know what to do and we got to get out of this but he says it's going to be a hall a long haul potentially many years and we get that so it's a wise thing to use your talents to our place to get codependency and try to get along so try to do that and I get it it's not going to be overnight and they're learning stuff and bothering each other and we do hear it and we do have an elders and Ken and Camilla and we need to try and help them and I have the same the same problem I do get that and they say that the same clan and they are he says and a lot of people have horrified but we need to find them a place and get this to work

Singer of the song

[fandomgeeknerd]

I'm seeing a lot of likes so I'll give a little story. but first you guys have to watch all the double life videos that were put out today aka there are spoilers for session 5 in this so I'm hoping you guys read this and have already watched the new eps if not come back to this later and watch them when you have the time now with that out of the way here's the idea. tws/cws: death,

so, what I'm thinking is the pov can be anyone but I'm thinking is, everyone has spawned into a new season of the life series named Next life and very few ppl remember double life, but jimmy is the one that remembers vividly especially how he got him, and tango killed.

and still feels so bad but the thing abt next life is you start out seeing no color aka the trope of you can't see color until you find your soulmate, I'd like to think grain would like to use the soulmate thing again but differently this time and so this trope is used, and bc jimmy remembers how he got him, and jimmy killed he also remembers that he's a bad omen and is cursed and so he closes himself off from the server and just lives with not trying to find his soulmate and hides and seemingly no one can find jimmy and meanwhile tango I'll be honest i haven't thought abt tango's pov yet or anyone else's. all I've come up with is all of that and maybe tango has a suspicion that he maybe soulmates with jimmy again or everyone has run into jimmy but tango either bc jimmy told them not to tell tango where he is, or they don't tell tango bc everyone decides that tango doesn't deserve to be around jimmy again after he died to jimmy last season which is the mean route to take. if you guys like the idea i would love help on developing it and post it on ao3 and yes, this a multiple part story I either want someone with writing experience to take from me or maybe if anyone wants to you guys can dm me on here and we can make a lil group and develop this together i just really don't wanna do this by myself and i really want this not to flop I'll be very sad if this does and no one responds and i know i sound too hopeful. So, with that I'll let Tumblr do its thing and wait it out see what you guys think and if the idea has potential to any of you see ya

[fictionfixations]

Double Life Session 5 [Grian's POV]

Can I just.. talk about this for a second.

HOLY SHIT.

Okay. So I expected that they were going to die, but then they died TWICE- Can I also talk about how it wasn't even a minute in the video but I'm pretty sure it got all of us panicking at that HP bar, like holy-- Imagine they died from the cactus or stalactite [I'm pretty sure the cactus can get rid of your items though so that'd be awful]. That'd be a huge wake up call to the episode. Imagine they just completely died 3 times and was out of the series, they might've gotten a little close there. Just-- DAMN-

And not Grian just stealing Pearl's otherside disc and jukebox lmao and then coming back later for an allyship. Also Grian just kinda outed themselves by being in the WINDOW-- And also I actually can't understand why he couldn't get back in after getting out but maybe it's because jumping mechanics are weird over that and you kinda need to not? If that makes sense.

And then. So. They were HIDING- AND THEY JUST SO HAPPENED TO FIND oh i cant even remember the name's of whose army it was- AND ITS EVEN FUNNIER BUT AWFUL BECAUSE IT WAS A COINCIDENCE- i cant even be mad at them for saying something when the others were close enough and they could actually hear them talking, because WOAH. HOW COULD YOU NOT SAY SOMETHING WHEN YOUR SOULMATES ABOUT TO DIE- and then does die, AND HOLY SHIT THAT WAS A LOT OF ZOMBIES.

and then.. The TNT trap- bait? With the skulk sensor setting it off. THE POTENTIAL. I didn't even think about how skulk sensors could contribute to traps, and honestly I'm not actually sure how they work, but based off of Grian's hermitcraft video where he played around with the skulk sensors for like a jumpscare, they can work even when underground.

I'd imagine it's just a skulk sensor next to TNT or something like that, but does that mean you could do it underground, and then since the proximity mod alerts the skulk sensors with your voice, someone could assumedly just be talking to their viewers while walking down a path and then BOOM setting off a tnt trap and DYING. That'd probably be a little unfair though.

Honestly I thought they were going to shoot Scar off of the bridge though but honestly the tnt is worse. It also though shows what you can do with it and really makes it a threat.

and THEN theres the stalactite kill Grian did against Ren (and BigB), and WOAH. That was fucking sick. I mean I knew that stalactite does a LOT of damage depending on how far away it is from a player [even the intro did that when it almost killed Scar], but honestly I didn't actually expect it to get a kill. I don't think I even saw Ren coming when Grian broke it and it killed him.

W o a h .

I really don't think this season is going to last long. Especially when there are soulmates who share your lives. while it's beneficial since you could be out getting hurt and your soulmates somewhere else and eating for you so your hp goes back up, it also backfires because if your soulmate dies, you die too, and then it just almost doubles how easily it can be to get everyone to red, aka take session 4 for example. I think it'd be better to just have one soulmate go out at a time while another is in a safe place and watching the hp bar carefully to heal you, since if you both were to go it'd make you take double damage, but I also do understand that that can get boring, not to mention could be a bad idea in some cases, and there also isn't a way for you to speak to your soulmate through some soul bond or whatever unless you're near them so you can talk with proximity.

This session really.. showed how dangerous it is, honestly, and how easy it is to die. It was a real big eye opener.

also i completely forgot to mention this but jimmy is cursed. canon.

Quote: "That's the best thing I've ever done! -..Except maybe get married." -Grian sometime after killing Ren

[that-thing-that-feeling]

The over hyping and so much glorification of Steve Harrington has led me to dislike that character. I used to like Steve in season 2 and season 3 so much but now I m getting a little bit annoyed with his character.

Like yeah, he is a great character but there are other characters also that are so much greater than him ,has so much potential and growth than Steve.

And so much memefication of Mom Steve like he is the best mom, best babysitter and what not. Like compared to Joyce, Mom Steve is nothing. Also referring him as the best character where there are other characters like Hopper, Max, Dustin, etc.

On top of that since season 4, some of the fans are also referring to him as the best brother, he is a brother that Max deserves etc,etc

Like seriously ???

And to add that Jimmy and Megan saying Steve fights for everyone and saves them everytime, have they even watched the show ?

You know what I think DB in next season should give Steve, El's power if some of the fans and gp thinks that he is the saviour of Hawkins, Imao

The mom memeification and memeification of Steve has been bad and overhyped and imo also hasn’t served his character well, altho it’s served his popularity. Also the whole thing with making him the best brother and caretaker is annoying when he occasionally babysits them and is a friend to Dustin, which is not the same as Jonathan being parentified and helping to raise Will.

But I like Steve even if he’s not my fave character; he has a charm, if he used to be more layered and isn’t now. I’m loyal to the OG characters and he’s an OG.

~Controversial take~ If anything, the glorification of Eddie is perhaps weirder, as it’s happened so close to the final season. It has also made the audience literally no longer include Jonathan in teen edits or be thought of as one of the teens. He’s been very overhyped and I don’t like new characters overriding any OGs and mains. He’s was a good character and I like Joe Q, but I think people hoping Eddie lived and Max died is ridiculous. It’s also only just dawned on me that because we had “the fruity four” we prob won’t get the four teens as a group in s5, and won’t get the monster hunting trio. So Eddie served as a weird substitute for a lot of things, including development of already existing characters.

But yes, the show both needs to give Steve more layers (not powers!), and balance his screentime so other characters have a shot at being written.

[jtem]

THINGS WE MAY FIND OUT

Okay, for Better Call Saul...

#1.  What if Howard wrote Chuck’s letter to Jimmy?

I know I always said that Kim did, and she makes a lot of sense, but what if they tried to knock us back with a surprising twist? What if, after getting Howard shot, Jimmy finds out that it was him, not Chuck and not Kim, who penned the letter?

#2.  What if Lalo survives?

What if, instead of dying, Lalo picks up the phone and orders a “Dust filter for a Hoover Max extract pressure pro model 60?” It could happen. There’s no proof that he’s alive. The only people looking for him are Gus and Mike, everyone else thinks he died in Mexico. He’s safe from law enforcement, so long as he can get a new identity, and Gus never had a chance of finding him. No, it’s the other way around. Gus is playing a waiting game; waiting for Lalo to come to him! So if instead Lalo just buys that dust filter, he’s gone. Retirement is an option.

#3.  What if Howard lives?

People survive gunshots all the time. People even survive gunshots to the head! So there is a potential for Howard to survive. 

#4.  What if Jimmy dumps Kim?

No, I don’t mean that Jimmy distances himself from Kim to protect her. I mean, what if Jimmy decides, “Hey! This bitch is crazy!” I’m outta here.”

It could happen. Like I said previously, Kim is in this Walter White style downward spiral. 

Remember:  Slipping Jimmy scammed people for profit. It’s how he made his milk money. It was a means to an end. A short cut, yes, but simply his way of putting clothes on his back and food on his table. Kim seems to be doing the exact opposite. She turned away from her own goal, sabotaged her own “end” -- the meeting about funding a Pro Bono law office -- in order to get Howard. 

Remember Walter White? Remember how he was offered a great job and all his medical bills paid and he turned it down in favor of cooking up crystal meth? Well that was what Kim Wexler did. That is what she became. Like Walter White she walked away from the legitimate answer, THE CHARITY, and chose to go for it on her own, even if it wasn’t a legitimate means.

Might Jimmy see this? Might it scare him? And, no, it doesn’t follow that he would have to later spot it in Walter. After all, he wasn’t close to Walter. He didn’t know the whole backstory. He didn’t see all the opportunities that Walter walked away from. But he sees them with Kim. So maybe Kim doesn’t leave and maybe she doesn’t get killed. Maybe Jimmy dumps her.

NOTE:  Jimmy does mention his “Ex Wife” in Breaking Bad. Sure he had other ex wives, but maybe Kim is the one that left him feeling scorched.

#5.  The timelines cross

There’s no reason why the Better Call Saul timeline can’t overlap Breaking Bad. Saul Goodman doesn’t make his first appearance until episode 8 of season 2. Going by when the episodes aired there’s 15 months where the characters of Breaking Bad & Better Call Saul co existed in the same city with little or no knowledge of each other.

NOTE:  Jesse at least knows who Saul Goodman is, and it has been suggested by others he may have had contact with him prior to the Breaking Bad timeline.

[fckinsupreme]

Hello hi ! Can you do a Dady baby Jim mason ? Like the reader have a baby with Jim but they’re not together and y/n had a new boyfriend, and Jim comes to take the baby to spend the weekend but when y/n’a boyfriend go to work , Jim fucked y/n in the shower please 🥺 I love ur fic btw!

You’d met Jim Mason at a wild party on the beach, almost two years ago. That is where the whole mess began, really—you’d both been really drunk, you were both insanely attracted to one another, and you both acted on that attraction. A couple months later, you found out that you were pregnant. You told Jim, of course, who was shocked but also supportive of your decision to keep the baby. The two of you decided not to have an actual relationship, but he was still in your life because of the baby. He went to all the appointments, was there for the first kick, and was even by your side when the baby was born. You gave birth to a darling baby boy, whom you named Christopher, and who was the apple of Jim’s eye.

But that bliss was short lived as soon as you got a new boyfriend.

Jim was crushed, and visibly upset when he discovered the news. It was a few months after Christopher’s birth, and Jim thought that was too soon to be dating someone. But after a minor argument about it, Jim came around and everything was fine between the two of you again. He still didn’t like the circumstances, but he had come around to the situation at hand much more easily. And while you did have someone else in your life now, there was still the matter of Jim and how attracted you still were to him—and, unbeknownst to you, how he felt the same.

Then came a weekend when Jim was supposed to have the baby, and he showed up on time as usual. As always, your boyfriend was at work at the time, and you were home alone. Christopher was with your family at the moment, and you hadn’t a clue when he would be brought back, but you still invited Jim inside and told him to make himself at home while you waited.

“Is Big, Tall, and Stupid at work?” Jim asks, a smirk on his lips that soon dies when he sees the glare you throw at him. “Sorry. I just don’t like that guy.”

“You’ve made it very clear,” you tell him. “But you could still try to be a little nicer.”

“I can’t help it,” Jim says with a deep sigh, rubbing his face. “I just…”

“Just what?” you ask gently. “You can tell me anything, Jimmy. You know that.”

His full attention is on you at the sound of his nickname, and he runs a nervous hand through his hair. “I just…I don’t know. I wish it could have been…you and me.”

You look down at the ground. “Jimmy, you know what happened with us was just—“

“Drunk sex?” Jim asks, and his tone carries a bit of anger with it. “That’s bullshit and you know it, Y/N. We had a child from that night, and you know our feelings run much deeper than just fucking lust.”

You keep your eyes on the floor, too scared and ashamed to look up at him. “Of course it wasn’t just drunk sex,” you say. “I’m sorry I said that. I just…It’s been so long since that’s happened. We have both moved on—“

“No, /you/ moved on,” Jim says bitterly. “With some joker who doesn’t love you, or /our/ son. But I do, Y/N; I love you both more than I’ve ever loved anything or anyone before.”

You’re silent for a long time, trying to process everything he is telling you. Of course you loved him, too; you always had. But it wasn’t as simple anymore, because you had a boyfriend to consider. Even if you did not love him as you loved Jim, he was still someone with feelings. Even still, a life of potential happiness with Jim was better than one of potential misery with the other man, and you knew it.

“I love you, too,” you say, and have to repeat yourself a bit louder as he gestures that he did not hear. “I love you, too! I always have, for as far back as I can remember. But—“

“No,” Jim says. “No buts, Y/N.”

“Yes,” you say, tears in your eyes. “I love you, but we can’t be together. I have another man to think about now. I have a son to consider. I can’t…”

“But you can,” Jim insists as he takes your hand. His face falls as you jerk out of his touch, and he looks to the ground. “I’m Christopher’s father, not that asshole. You love /me/, not him. Why the fuck can’t you?”

“I’m sorry,” you say, sniffling as tears fall down your cheeks. “I’m gonna take a shower. I can’t…I need time alone to think.”

Before Jim has a chance to protest, you rush into the bathroom and close the door. You exhale shakily, taking a moment before starting the shower. As you strip down and step in, your mind turning and heart still breaking, you didn’t notice that you forgot to lock the door behind you. It’s something you came to realize, though, when the door opened as you put the shampoo in your hair. You didn’t hear it open, but as you rinsed, the curtain parted and Jim’s nude form joined you. You didn’t have the energy, nor the desire to be angry or make him leave; you wanted him there. God help it, but you /needed him there/.

“Hey…” Jim says as he holds you, breathing in relief as you embrace him in return. “I’m sorry for everything…”

“Shhh, don’t,” you whisper, rocking against him before looking up into his clear blue eyes. “Don’t be sorry. /I’m/ the one who is sorry, because I really love you, too. I’m sorry for what I said earlier—“

“Shhh, don’t talk,” he begs, pressing his lips to yours in a kiss that was innocent at first, then grew harder within only a few minutes.

You do as he says, but mostly because his kisses—so familiar, so wonderful, so /right/—have left you speechless. You missed this, more than you would probably ever care to admit. You kiss him just as fiercely, as desperately, your arms wrapping around the back of his neck. He holds you so that you don’t slip and fall, his strong arms keeping you in an embrace as your bodies press tightly together. Your eyes close even more tightly, your hands roaming over his body as you soak in every bit of him you can. Jim…/your/ Jim, even if he was never officially yours. You always belonged to him, just as he belonged to you, and that is how it always had been.

“I want you so fucking badly right now, Y/N,” Jim breathes as his lips trail down your neck, not stopping until they reach your breasts. “I want you more than I’ve ever fucking wanted anyone.”

“Take me, then,” you whimper, fisting his wet hair with a whine. “Fucking take me.”

Jim doesn’t need to be asked twice, nor does he ask about your boyfriend. In truth, you didn’t give a fuck about him at this point; you just needed Jim. He pushes inside of you after pinning you to the shower wall, both of you gasping as he fully seats himself. He doesn’t thrust yet, instead locking his eyes into yours and soaking in the intimacy, the closeness, of it all. You can’t believe you’re doing this, but there is part of you that /can/ believe it. After all, this is what you ached for after all this time.

“Y/N,” he says as he begins to thrust, his movements steady yet quick, his eyes still on yours. You inhale sharply, head against the wall as your half-lidded eyes gaze at him. “Be mine. Let’s just make it official and stop kidding ourselves. We want each other; let’s just do it and raise our son together, as it should have been from the start. Please…”

There was nothing for you to do in that moment but smile. All of the bliss you felt, all of the ecstasy that coursed through your body at his touch, quieted you. But you hoped that smile was answer enough, and you cling to him in a hot, heated kiss as he makes love to you beneath that warm spray of water.

———————

Baby taglist: @littledemondani @with-dandelions-in-her-hands @codyfernmorelikedaddyfern @wroteclassicaly @melodylangdon @dark-mei-rose @lovelylangdonx @xavierplymptons @angelicmichael @bloodcoatedeclipse

[nyx-aira]

When two worlds collide

Summary: When Wanda finally snaps and attacks the S.W.O.R.D base, she doesn't expect they would have inhuman support. While the battle rages on Jimmy, Monica and Darcy discover a secret about their colleague that might save the day.

A/N: I've wrote this after episode five came out but in this version S.W.O.R.D threatens Wanda again and she snaps. This isn't canon compliant, at least not 100%. Also I'm not an expert on magic in the MCU, I just took some of the pieces I remembered and put them in there, so it's probably not canon as well.

TW: mind controlled, brief mention of violence, panic attack

You had been in the lab when it happened. Something had breached the barrier. Looking around you saw that nobody was in the lab with you. You knew Monica was in a meeting with Hayward but you didn't know where Jimmy and Darcy went.

Running out of the building you almost fell to the floor, as if you had ran into a barrier. The air was full with magic, it was everywhere, wearing you down, seeping into your bones, lapping at your strength. You tried to regain your breath but it was as if your lungs were full of honey, making it almost impossible to breathe. It was unbearable.

Looking around, trying to find a familiar face, you grabbed the first agent you saw by the arm and asked what was going on.

"Maximoff has breached the barrier, she's turning our own  men against us. Stay inside ma'am, we'll handle it."

Wanda. This wasn't Wanda. You knew her magic, it felt different, like a thunderstorm. Crackling with energy, unpredictable and ever-changing. This, whatever this was, wasn't her, not entirely.

You had known Wanda since you were little, you grew up on the same streets and had benn unseparable, Wanda, you and Pietro. Then Ultron had happened, you had lost the twins as the battle continued to rage on but you had felt their powers all over the city. It had been agony to feel the wave of magic when Wanda cried out. You had felt all of it, her pain, the shock and the rage, so much rage.

Wanda probably thought you were dead as well, thinking you had died in Sokovia all these years ago, but you didn't. She wasn't the only one with abilities, with magic. The only difference, you were born with it, she had been nudged in the right direction by Hydra.

That's why you started running again, following the awful feeling of dread and agony. Hurting you every step you took, sapping at your strength, wearing you down but you continued running. For Wanda.

You rounded another corner when you fell to your knees, that sensation growing stronger the closer you got. Trying to regain your breath you realised someone was taking to you.

"...you okay? Can you get up?"

Blinking up you could make out two people, shaking your head to clear your vision the blurred figures became people. Monica and Darcy, allies, friends, your brain supplied.

"Captain, Doctor." you greeted them, groaning while getting up from the floor.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Monica asked while offering you a hand. "Yeah you look like shit." came the remark from Darcy.

You rubbed your head and dusted off your clothes. "I'm good, don't worry." Looking in the disbelieving faces of your colleagues you couldn't blame them, whatever that was, was sapping up all the magic it could get. So it made sense that normal people wouldn't be affected, they probably didn't even feel a difference. You couldn't imagine how Wanda must be feeling.

"I need to get to her." you heard yourself say before you started to run again, ignoring the calls of your name and the torturous sensation that was making your life a living hell right now. You didn't come far though as you felt a hand grab your shoulder and not so gently halt your attempt at saving your best friend. Turning around you looked in the, now, three concerned faces of your friends.

"Listen I know you believe that this was all a mistake somehow..." Jimmy tried to say but you interrupted him. "It's not her, whatever this is, it's not her." Starting to walk again you heard three sets of footsteps follow you. "What do you mean it's not her?" Darcy prodded. "I can feel it, that's something else." came your curt reply, focusing on the task ahead, trying to shield yourself from the other source of magic you pulled your glamour closer to you. Not ready to show them what was really going on.

"What do you mean you can feel it?" came the cautious question from Monica. "And what something else, is that why you're so affected by what's going on?"

"You have powers too, don't you?"

Turning around you looked at them, you knew you could trust them but there was this nagging feeling in your head that you were losing time, but looking at them again you realised, you couldn't do this alone so you took a deep breath and dropped your glamour, preparing yourself for their reaction.

Taking a deep breath you realised that you were feeling different, the suffocating sensation wasn't as strong and painful anymore, your mind cleared up as well, the feeling of haziness still there but not as present as before.

"Your hands are ...broken...gleaming..?" was Jimmy's confused reaction. Looking down you traced the glowing cracks on your arms, closing your eyes as the familiar feeling of your magic surged through your body. It felt good, after all these weeks, not having to suppress your powers. Taking another breath you willed the glow to go away, only the small white cracks staying visible, you continued marching towards the chaos, your friends not far behind.

"It's a long story but the short version: Wanda isn't the only one with powers here and I probably won't stay as the only magical surprise today."

Continuing your way to the barrier you realised that there were no other agents around, it was completely silent, no sound besides your own footsteps. Something was wrong. The others must have realised that as well, as you could see Monica and Jimmy draw their weapons, Darcy readying her taser. You tapped your foot on the ground, a small wave of energy moving through your surroundings, allowing you to see what your eyes couldn't.

"There's nothing. Not a single person." Scanning your surroundings you started to wonder where all the people went when you hear a deafening bang. Looking at your friends you nod as you all started running towards the noise. It's the sound of gunfire you soon realise and Monica pulled you behind some of the buildings where you could have a good look of what was going on.

You were about 200 meters from the barrier, the open area in front of you a deadly battle. It looked like S.W.O.R.D was fighting their own agents, some being mind controlled, some still with a free will but the numbers were dwindling. Charging into the fight would be a suicide mission, looking at the others they seemed to agree with you. Concern was plastered all over their faces, these people were their colleagues, comrades and friends. Letting your gaze glide through the battle you frantically tried to come up with a plan. You needed to get to Wanda, not having spotted her yet, and try to snap her out of whatever that was. Admittedly the plan wasn't the best but it was the only one you had.

"Can you take her?"

The question snapped you out of your thoughts. "Wanda." Jimmy repeated "Could you beat her in a fight if you had to?"

Now you had the attention of everyone, looking at you with a questioning look. You sighed, rubbing your face, absently tracing the marks on your arms, a nervous habit you had picked up over the years.

"I'd like to believe so. Wanda's raw powers a strong, stronger than mine but its mostly just that, raw strength, raw energy. She isn't properly trained, hasn't worked with other magic users, to my knowledge at least. I was born with these powers, having trained with other sorcerers and mages since I was little. I can tap in energy sources she's probably not even aware of. I'm more in control but she has greater potential." You weren't sure on how big their understanding of magic was, going with Darcy as the one with the most knowledge as she had met some Asgardians.

Magic was alive, it wasn't just something that was simply there. It was in nature, in plants, in trees, in animals, even in humans. Magic was everywhere, you just needed to know how to tap into it. Some drew their power from other dimensions, some used the the power of the Yggdrasil, others used powerful objects as their source of energy and other magic users, including yourself, drew their power from the aether. The aether was an ancient energy source, as old as the planet itself, maybe even older. It was a feral energy, not as defined as the power of the Yggdrasil, it was more difficult to handle as it was closest to nature and the planet. For you it was perfect, the rough, brute, untamed nature of it. Like the stormy see, it's unpredictable, brachial, brute nature was alluring, tempting. You couldn't just use it, you had to work with it, convince it that you were worthy of it's powers. Once you had passed that test your understanding of what was possible would change forever.

The noise of the battle brought you back to reality. Watching the clash you realised that there weren't many S.W.O.R.D agents left standing. Catching a glimpse of red you looked to the far left end of the barrier to see Wanda blast some agents back into the woods.

The woods. You took note of your surroundings and a plan formed in your head. This could actually work, you just needed to get a little bit closer. Getting up from where you were sitting you realised that this was gonna be more difficult then you thought when you felt Monica tackle you to the ground and a spray of bullets hit where seconds ago would have been your head.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed!" she yelled at you but you just pointed to the trees 30 meters in front of you.

"I have a plan but I need to get there."

"In one piece? That's impossible." Darcy exclaimed, fixing you with an incredulous look, Jimmy just shook his head, agreeing with her statement. "If we don't do anything soon there will be no S.W.O.R.D agents left!" You tried to spot Wanda again but could only see the red flares of her magic, at least she hadn't vanished. Seeing the look in Monica's eyes you knew that she agreed with you, they all did. Realising that you needed to do something fast, you told them your plan. They didn't seem thrilled but it was your only option.

Focusing on the task at hand you closed your eyes, preparing yourself for whatever might happen, trying to shield yourself from the sickening feeling of whatever that thing was.

Taking a final breath you opened your eyes to see Monica, Darcy and Jimmy take cover, the scientist giving you an encouraging thumbs up. Looking to the battlefield you tried to blend out all the noise and screams of agony, focusing on your target, the trees and woods surrounding you.

Kneeling to the ground you felt a surge of power flow through your body, welcoming the feeling of the aether, you poured all of your energy into the ground, the presence of the other thing making it harder than it usually was. You felt the ground react to your magic, adapting to your will. The ancient power cursing through your veins and surroundings, making the world slow down, letting you see the battle through different eyes. The soldiers desperately trying not to hurt their friends but realising there's no other way, the mindcontrolled trying to break free of the spell and crying out in agony when they have to hurt their comrades. It was brutal, brutal and beautiful in it's own horrible way. The ground ached when you jumped over the makeshift barricades, groaning and giving in a little bit when you landed in between the trees.

Your magic creating a shock wave, knocking everything down in a 20 meter radius. Looking up from the ground you could feel all eyes on you, the battle had stopped for a moment, everyone staring at the new arrival. As soon as they got out of their trance they started fighting again, charging towards you and the remaining S.W.O.R.D agents. You didn't hear the gunfire when you got up, you didn't feel the bullets trying to hit you when you started walking. Twisting your hand in the air, a shimmering barrier appeared, blocking them off. As you continued to walk into the battle the ground started shaking, cracks started to appear and the trees you had left behind started moving. Groaning and aching as they turned from lifeless vines to enormous giants. Some as high as a three story building, some smaller, they started walking into your direction, steadily going forwards, pushing enemies out of the way with their branch-like arms and shielding your allies.

There were at least six of them, aiding you in your pursuit as you conjured more creatures, small rock giants, trolls and even a small serpent. Making sure they knew what they were doing you started charging in direction of Wanda's red magic, creating cracks in the ground to stop your enemies, you didn't want kill them, just slow them down.

Conjuring a gust of wind to jump the remaining distance you landed in front of Wanda. Looking her in the eyes for the first time in eight years.

If she was surprised to see you she didn't show it, blasting you with a ball of energy. You caught it fairly easy but she just started blasting energy ball after energy ball towards you. Not being able to withstand her assault you threw up a barrier. You didn't want to hurt her, you really didn't but you could feel your shield cracking so you summon a waterspout to knock her back. You both got slammed away from the brute force of the wave, the ground now being covered in a layer of water you froze Wanda to the ground, knowing it wouldn't stop her for too long.

You saw her struggle to blast off the ice, watching her grow more frustrated when it came back stronger than it was before, your spell working against her magic. Cautious you started walking in her direction, wary of her magic and her current state of mind as she grew more agitated every second she was enclosed in the ice. Something was wrong, she could have gotten out of there if she really wanted to in no time. Why was she struggling so much? Getting closer you realised that she was crying, tearing streaming down her face, getting more desperate every second.

"Wanda..." you asked tentatively.

Whipping her head around at the sound of her name she stared at you, mouth hanging agape, not struggling against her bonds anymore. You two were staring at each other, saying nothing.

Suddenly she started shaking her head, letting out a terrified scream. "You're not real, you're not real, you're not real..."

She started repeating the same phrase over and over again, shaking her head, crying, throwing all of her energy into trying to break the ice. Sensing the danger of her actions you made it dissappear, letting her fall into the shallow water. When you looked at her again she was rocking back and forth, still repeating the same phrase over and over again, silent tears streaming down her face.

You crouched down next to her, still keeping a short distance.

"Wanda, I'm here, this isn't fake, please look at me."

She shook her head and an almost not audible "that's what it always says" was heard. "Says who Wanda?" you tried, wanting to dig deeper.

"It's all in my head, it's all in my head. They said I could live my perfect life but it's not true. They lied!" Tears were streaming down your face as well as you pulled her close to you.

Putting your glowing hand on the ground the water started to float, little droplets dancing around in the sky. The tree giants started to walk back to their original positions, shrinking down, becoming normal trees again. The small rock giants burying themselves in the ground, vanishing into the earth. Cracks in the ground the only indicator they were even there. Starting to shimmer and fade away, the trolls gave one last bow in your direction until they too, disappeared. Now the only thing left were you and Wanda, sitting amidst the battle field. S.W.O.R.D agents regaining their free will, getting escorted away by their comrades, happy that their friends were back.

While you were ridding the scene from the marks of the battle Wanda was staring at you in awe.

"It's really you."

"Of course Wands, I promised you I would always come back."

Sniffling she took your hand in hers, examining the glowing marks on your arms, tracing them like you did before the battle.

"I always had a feeling you were special." she whispered, not really believing that you were alive.

"Well what about being special together?" Offering your hand to her you both got up, walking back to the S.W.O.R.D base hand in hand. The small serpent you summoned before slithering towards you, shrinking down until he was wrapped around your finger, molding back into the ring he was before.

Yes there was gonna be a lot to undo but together you were unstoppable, friends by blood but sisters in heart.

[yrmboli]

“Superman: Year One” or “Young Superman”

Source: https://twitter.com/kennnajean/status/1383125755404582912?s=20

So @kennnajean’s recent posts on twitter about Superman inspired me to write this AU. It’s basically Clark starting out as in his first years as Superman, figuring out the ropes of being a Superhero.

-Clark Kent is a college freshman studying journalism at Metropolis University while interning at the Daily Planet.

-Clark is an overall sweetheart. He’s a kind and gentle optimist with a heart of gold. He can be naïve though, holding a strict code of right and wrong with little flexibility. If the law says its wrong, its wrong. Clark is also extremely awkward and quiet. He has bad posture, walks with a heavy slouch, and has tendency to fade into the background. He breaks a lot of stuff too, saying that “he doesn’t know his own strength” a lot of the time.

-His awkward and shy personality led many to believe that Clark wouldn’t make it in the cutthroat environment of Journalism, but what many didn’t know is his knack for getting into trouble. Clark is nosy, sticking his business where it doesn’t belong a lot, and his habit of fading into the background help him hide in plain sight.

-Clark knows of his powers, but he doesn’t know of his true potential. Bullets can’t penetrate his body, but they still hurt and explosions can knock him out. He’s strong, being able to lift a small car with ease, but nowhere near the feats he’s capable of. He can’t fly yet because he doesn’t know how or even that he can fly, so he can just leap buildings in a single bound. He’s not as strong as the Superman that we know, but he can get there. He just has to train his body and lift the mental blocks he’s cultivated over the years to fit in.

-This is where Wonder Woman comes in. Clark has some inciting incident where he starts his superhero career. No one dies, but it’d probably be where he rescues someone and he realizes how great it feels to be a Superhero. Wonder Woman, AKA Diana Prince, notices the exploits of this new “Superman” and goes to Metropolis to Investigate.

-Wonder Woman, in this AU, has been a Superhero since WW1. The World Wars were a sort of a Golden Age for Superheroes back then, with governments sponsoring these groups of remarkable individuals, with the greatest of them being the Justice Society of America, which Wonder Woman was an original member of. This all changed after WW2 and the politics of the Cold War. Superheroes were questioned of their loyalties due to their secret identities and were given the choice of either retiring, become an enemy of the state, or working directly for the government. Diana worked for the government for awhile until she became disillusioned by it all, deciding to go underground and work as a vigilante instead. Superheroes, by Clark’s time are mostly vigilantes and new ones are incredibly rare.

-So Diana sees a new hero come onto the scene and decides to show him the ropes and teach him everything she knows about the job. She also teaches Clark how to fight. Clark can throw a punch and take a hit from a regular person, but his powers are massive crutch for him. Someone like the immortal Wonder Woman, who was raised in a mythical warrior culture and has decades of experience, wipes the floor with Clark easy.

-For Wonder Woman’s costume, I imagined her with her costume from the 2017 movie, but with the addition of a decorated Corinthian style helmet. I think the helmet would help her hide her identity better because there’s very little difference between Wonder Woman and Diana Prince in terms of how they carry themselves. The shy, clumsy, and humble Clark is different from the proud, stoic, and broad chested Superman, but Diana Prince and Wonder Woman are incredibly alike.

-Diana acts as a mentor for Superman and sort of world weary older sister/elder figure. She’s like if your Grandma was also your  buff, ex-Olympic athlete trainer. She can be tough when she needs to, but also kind. She’s a little more cynical than Clark, but almost everybody is.

-Clark also has other mentors. While Wonder Woman teaches him how to be a Hero, Martian Manhunter teaches him his Kryptonian heritage and help him unlock his abilities, while Batman helps him stay human during all this.

-J’onn J’onzz and M’gann M’orzz were Xenoanthropologists back on Mars, with M’gann being the student and J’onn being the chaperone/teacher and originally came to Earth to study its inhabitants. Thanks to their shape shifting and psychic abilities, they were able to embed themselves among the populace and study them closely. They became stranded, however, following what was basically a Martian nuclear war, wiping out their civilization in mere moments. The remaining Martians off world became refugees, J’onn and M’gann among them.

-J’onn studied kryptonians, so he teaches Clark everything he knows about his blood heritage and helps train him to break his mental limits, teaching him to fly, how to shoot lasers from his eyes, freeze stuff with his breath, enhance his vision and hearing, and other abilities of kryptonians. They also talk about their status as Alien immigrants and refugees.

-Batman is around his late 30s to early 40s by this time and has taken Tim Drake and Barbara Gordon under his wing by this time. Batman teaches Superman the gray morals of reality, how the bad guys he’s fighting are still people too, and about humanity. Batman reminds Superman that, despite all his powers and abilities, despite being a Superhero and an Alien, he’s still Clark Kent, the kid from Kansas.

-Lois is a college Junior at Metropolis University also in Journalism, but she actually has a job at the Daily Planet. A small one writing what she calls throwaway articles, but an entry point nonetheless. Lois wants to hit the big leagues and prove herself by pursing the Superman story. Clark admires her headstrong and no nonsense attitude and Lois admires his genuineness.

-Jimmy is Clark’s roommate and got him the internship at the Daily Planet. That’s all I got for Jimmy. Sorry dude.

This is getting long enough, so I’ll leave it at Jimmy. I’ve got a bunch of storylines in my head, but I don’t want to make this any longer.