#saw a post about clark being super useful that inspired this one

[violent138]

Starting to think a cooler headcanon for Clark’s upbringing might just be that the entire town of Smallville collectively decided to just go with it and accept that Martha and John's kid has superpowers, but we don't talk about it.

Someone's tractor gets stuck and nothing can get it out? "Be a dear and run down to the Kents, would you? Ask for Clark?"

"Why Clark, we need a machine--"

"Run along now."

Or if he kicks too hard and the football vanishes into the upper stratosphere, no it didn't, we all collectively saw it land over there *vague hand movements*

[give-me-stuff-to-watch]

Watching Stuff Day 1 - 7/7/2023 - Current Streak: 1

I've been meaning to make myself watch more movies/shows lately since I've found that I haven't really seen all that many compared to my peers and want to broaden my horizons with media. I'm bad at keeping up streaks for goals I set for myself though (this isn't the first time I've tried to do this), and figure if I make this somewhat public then I'm more likely to hold myself accountable. So I'm aiming to both watch a movie/show-pilot I haven't seen yet and write about it here. I've done 2 years at tech school for animation and am majoring in animation when I start college, so I'm probably going to look slightly more into animated productions so I get more familiarity with media that I might end up being asked to use as reference for work in the future. So if you have any recommendations for shows/movies (especially animated ones), please feel free to send them to me! Don't think anything is too mainstream to recommend. I was very sheltered with what media I could watch as a kid which caused me to still not be too adventurous with what genres and media I watch/read now, so even if something is super popular, there's a decent chance I haven't seen it.

Now onto the actual show this first post is about. I decided to see the two-episode premiere of the new animated Superman show, My Adventures with Superman. I haven't seen many super hero shows/movies and only one of them I saw had Superman, so I went in not knowing much other than what I knew from cultural osmosis and a few video essays I had as background noise for work.

I ended up enjoying it quite a bit! I really liked the anime inspired artsyle used for it and the character designs. The animation itself did seem a bit choppy at times but that could've just been some sort of connectivity issue on my end. It does mix in some 3D elements at times for stuff like giant robots and cars. I generally don't mind that much when shows do that, those kind of things can be particularly tedious and time consuming to do in 2D. I just wish they had used a shader that matched the shading style of the 2D elements more, it felt a bit off to me.

As for the show's writing, I really like the work done for the characters and character dynamics. I think they did a good job setting up Clark as someone who can't help but help and support the people around him even before he becomes Superman and setting up his struggles with not knowing where he came from and what his background was before the life he's lived on Earth.

I also liked his dynamic with Lois. They had some cute scenes together and I thought it was interesting how they contrasted their characters by showing that Clark is trying his best to appear normal in his everyday life while Lois wants to be someone extraordinary. It seems like they could do really interesting stuff with that as things go on and the characters start to potentially come into more conflict regarding their investigation into Superman. I also liked the mini character arc Lois had at the beginning with learning to not just rope people into her schemes and to put trust into her new colleagues rather than trying to manipulate them. I think it was a neat way to establish her character while also providing tension for the fate of the group before the characters decide to make-up and stick together in the end.

I don't know how accurate Jimmy is to the source material, but I really liked his character here too! I think him being a conspiracy/outlandish theorist guy gives him an interesting angle as part of their investigative trio and as a comedic character. I do wish he got more of an arc here like Clark and Lois did, but I understand why the pilot episodes would want to focus more on those two characters though.

I also liked the villain they had for these first two episodes. I think they did a good job establishing her character and character flaws. She was shown to be smart and competent by setting up back-up plans like the bombs in the sewers and she was shown to be a capable physical threat because of the tech and combat skills she possesed. However, they also wrote her as arrogant at some points (lines like "yes, I am the smartest person here!" as a retort to what another character said) which makes her defeat more satisfying because her defeat was only possible because of her over-confidence. Her tech/electric attacks seemed to be doing a good job of harming Superman, and if she had kept some distance from him, she might've been able to beat him or at least stun him for a bit so she could try to get away. She could've also potentially bluffed by saying she could also detonate the bombs she placed with the tech she had on her to create a sort of hostage situation in order to make Superman let her get away. But since she was arrogant about her own abilities, she fought him head on and allowed him to get close enough to remove the power core of her suit. I think it would be interesting to see her as a recurring character since they've set-up these character flaws and she could eventually learn to better analyze the options and power she has in situations in order to become a more competent antagonist or potentially a strong circumstantial ally to the heroes against the shady organization that abducted her at the end. I also like how they made tech/weapon dealing and dispersal a part of her character because It also acts as a way to naturally explain how even small-time villains Superman will have to deal with in the future can have high tech weaponry and be a threat.

Some other small stuff I liked but didn't find a way to fit naturally into all that:

I like how Clark's mom made adjustments to his suit. Seems kind of symbolic of how Clark's Kryptonian parents made him and sent him to Earth (made the suit and gave it to Clark) but it was his Earth parents that raised him to be the person he is (added onto to the suit and made it the suit it is now)

I liked the kid's newspaper/intel group. I thought it was cute and funny and hope it continues to show up.

Overall, I really enjoyed it despite not having much knowledge of the source material. Really liked the artstyle and character writing. I'll probably keep watching it as it comes out.

For my next thing I'll watch, I think I'll watch the Nimona movie that recently came out. I've heard good things about it, and read the graphic novel back in middle school, so I'm definitely interested in seeing it. After that I'll probably do something older so I'm not just watching recent and newly on-going things. If you happen to stumble upon this and have any other recommendations for movies/shows, feel free to message me about them.

[biromanticbooknook]

My Most Ambitious Crossover

I got bored by posting only my second gen Amazon AU, so I’ll get back to that tomorrow, but enjoy this one-shot about Chloe and Marinette creating their own trip instead of their class trip in the meantime. Can’t have you all thinking I’m a one-trick pony, can I?

“-and that’s why we think you shouldn’t go on the trip this year.” Mlle. Bustier tried to look apologetic, but it was as much her idea as the students. Between Marinette refusing to set an example and Chloe associating with her, neither of them deserved to go.

“Oh, thank goodness. I was afraid I would have to get my daddy to donate 30% of the funds like he does every year.”

“I’m just glad I don’t have to take 60% of the trip funds out of my commission profits. That will give me a much bigger budget for fabric and accessories.” Everyone blanched at the statements of the 2 girls. They were saying that they paid for 90% of the trip every year, but that couldn’t be right. They worked so hard on fundraisers every year, they must be lying about how much they contribute.

Marinette just ignored them, turning to her seatmate. “Do you think that our other friends would want to go on a trip with us? Most classes take their trips during May, so we could leave at the beginning of June and take the entire summer.”

“Nice thinking, Maribug. With fewer people, prices go down and we can afford more bang for our buck.” They walk out of the classroom, discussing who to ask and when.

The class just made a big mistake.

-----

By the time the weekend rolled around, Marinette and Chloe had their group list finalized. The people going on their trip were themselves, Luka, Kagami, Aurore, Mireille, and Marc. They got together and started brainstorming fundraisers.

Marinette started. “There are the given examples; you know, car wash, bake sale, raffle. What else?”

“We could host a show.” Luka suggested.

“Like an exhibition?” Marinette asked. “We could have you perform, Kagami do a fencing demonstration, and I could do a small fashion show, using Chloe and Marc as models. Aurore and Mireille could be our MCs.”

“To capitalize on money-making, we could sell tickets, food and drink, and merch for Luka’s solo career as well as commission spots for our resident designer.”

“That’s good.” Marinette starts scribbling in the shared notebook.

“At Le Grande Paris, we could host parties. I know days when the grand ballroom is open. We could host an auction, sell lessons and creations and stuff. We could also host a masquerade ball that we sell tickets for. We could charge for food and drink. The pools are open for private reservation quite often, we could have parties there too.” Chloe takes the notebook and starts writing down her ideas, mapping out all the resources needed while muttering.

“We could also host a carnival or a gaming tournament in the ballroom.” Kagami looked thoughtful. “I’ve never actually been to one.”

Chloe added that to the list. “Should we do anything else?”

“We could start a go-fund-me. Artists and writers do it all the time to get their creations off the ground.” Marc murmured.

“That would be great. What’s our goal for this entire endeavor?”

“Our goal, Maribug, is €45,000. That should cover travel, boarding, tours, food, and souvenirs. Whatever we don’t spend gets redistributed to the group.” Chloe supplies.

“Then that should be it. Nice job, guys!”

“My, what a whirlwind of a planning session. I hope nothing rains on our parade. I wonder weather Mlle. Bustier’s class is doing this well.” Aurore beams at them.

“Mm-hmm.” Mireille agrees with Aurore.

“Probably not. Our classmates couldn’t pour water out of a boot with instructions on the heel. They’ll just listen to Lila that the boot will empty by itself through the toe because ‘I worked on patenting this boot’, then they’ll get mad at the boot for not doing it.” Chloe chuckles dryly.

“Be nice.” Marinette reprimands half-heartedly.

-----

Chloe immediately filed the paperwork with the school board so they could go on their trip with no safety or legal concerns. She recruited Mme. Mendeleiev and M. D'Argencourt to be their chaperones, who were more than happy to go on an all-expenses-paid trip to Los Angeles, Star City, Central City, Metropolis, Gotham, New York City, and Tokyo.

They had their first fundraiser at the end of September, a pool party at Le Grande Paris. Even Mlle. Bustier’s class attended, though they didn’t know who had set it up, only that Luka was performing. They hadn’t even started their planning  yet. The group made €3,041.

The next was a car wash in the middle of October. It was cool enough for a car wash to be pleasant while being warm enough that everyone was still out and about. They earned €2,632. Bustier's class was getting ice cream and listening to Lila brag.

They then had an All Hallow’s Eve bake sale, complete with candy decoration reminiscent of the American holiday. They earned €1,800.

During November, they held a carnival, with a full fall theme. It was wildly popular with families from all over Paris, earning them €6,483. It was around this time that Mlle. Bustier’s class held a bake sale, and earned €1,594. They celebrated.

Throughout the holiday season, they took advantage of peoples’ spirit. They held a raffle throughout the 12 Days of Christmas, while also holding a bake sale the day before winter break. Overall, they earned €10,749.

Over winter break, Chloe bought plane tickets and reserved tours and hotels, so all that was left was to get money for the tours and food. They were over halfway to their goal.

During January, they rented a theater, and held their exhibition. They had a crowd of fencing enthusiasts, rock music lovers, and fashion followers. They made €5,830.

They held a date auction and a masquerade to celebrate Valentine’s Day. It was amazing, and they earned €7,284.

They had checked their go-fund-me, and had found that €10,000 was there, putting them €2,819 over their goal. They were ecstatic!

They still held the gaming tournament at the end of April, but let it be free for everyone to enjoy as their celebration of reaching their goal.

-----

Mlle. Butsier’s class had made €7,000 over their 3 fundraisers, and they were pretty proud of themselves. No doubt they would be going somewhere much better than whatever Maribrat and Chloe have planned. Once the girls walked into the classroom, the class started to brag.

“We’ve finished fundraising!”

Marinette smiled and decided to be nice to them. “Cool. Where are you going?”

“We are going to New York City.”

Chloe was not as kind. “Oh, so are we! It was so hard to raise the €45,000 needed for our trip, but we did it. It was so euphoric to meet our goal. How much did you guys raise?”

“We made €7,000.” The smiles slowly slipped off the faces of the class. “What do you mean the €45,000 needed?”

“Well, we needed to cover food, travel, boarding, and tours, and that was just for the 7 of us. I can’t imagine what the budget would’ve been like for an entire class.” Her smile got an edge, like a lioness who knew she had cornered her prey.

Her classmates blanched. “What was our budget, Alya?” Rose looked towards their new class representative, hoping that she had an answer.

“We never had one.”

“Well, at least you filed the paperwork right?”

“What paperwork?”

Marinette responded this time. “The paperwork needed to go on a trip. You were supposed to submit it to the school board for approval of safety and legality. It was on page 17 of the packet I gave you at the beginning of the year. Didn’t you read it, Alya?”

“I-I-no. Lila said that was just extra work that you had given me to throw me off my game. She said you didn’t actually need to do all of that.”

“I didn’t know that Lila had more experience being a class representative than me and Marinette, the only 2 people who have ever been class representative here.” Chloe’s voice became as sharp and sweet as her smile. “Well, have fun with your trip. Marinette and I have to do last-minute checks on our arrangements.”

The class looked at the people that had carried them the previous years, and realized how much they relied on the girls. Lila was cursing herself for pushing away the only people who actually did anything in this class.

-----

The class ended up going to Disneyland Paris, and tried their best to look as upbeat as possible on their social medias. Meanwhile, The group was having the time of their lives.

They stayed in LA for 2 weeks, visiting movie sets and meeting actors. They spent another week just going on everything at Disneyland and California Adventure.

They then spent a week in Star City, touring Queen Industries and having a meet and greet with Oliver Queen and his ward, Roy Harper, who seemed to enjoy Aurore’s outgoing personality. They even saw the vigilantes.

They spent another 2 weeks in Central City, touring STAR Labs and watching the rogues try to fight the Flash family. It was the most meta-filled city in the world, and They toured a forensics lab with Bart Allen. Chloe seemed grimly pleased with seeing the bodies. She might’ve been projecting certain people onto them, not that she would ever admit it.

2 weeks in Metropolis was really fun. They toured the Daily Planet with Clark Kent and Lois Lane. Mireille was amazed by what you could do to report without having to be in front of a screen. They made a scavenger hunt of how many Supers they could find, and they found 2 different superboys. Lex Corp also gave them a tour, although it was more professional than the tour of the Daily Planet.

They spent 1 week in Gotham. They toured Wayne Enterprises and stayed out of the Bats’ way. Luka got the phone number of Tim Drake. Marinette enjoyed the inspiration that the gothic architecture brought her. There wasn’t much of a nightlife scene, considering only fools stay out after dark in Gotham.

Their 1 week in New York City was hectic. The Avengers were all at the tower when they were touring with Pepper Potts by Chloe’s request. Chloe might’ve been unofficially adopted by Tony Stark when she stood up to them and made them ‘cease their bullshit’. The Black Widow also took a liking to the girl. They also ran into these weird teens muttering about monsters when they were waiting for the elevator at the Empire State Building.

2 weeks in Tokyo. Their last stop. They visited the prestigious Ouran Academy, the host club getting Marc to come out of their shell by constantly helping boost his self-esteem. Chloe enjoyed talking business and finances with Kyoya Ootori. Kagami led them all in a traditional tea ceremony, before they all stormed the streets to try the unfamiliar street food.

Marinette ended up being unofficially adopted by 3 heroes, 2 rogues, and 5 billionaires. She was happy getting to spend 7 weeks on the road with only her closest friends.

The class was incredibly jealous of the trip their classmates took. They hoped next year they could go on a trip like that as well, but they had missed their shot.

[hootcifer]

talking about toh | season two, episode six: hunting palismen

i am so sorry this is so late! blame my lazy tendencies, heh. i'd promise this won't happen again, but if i did, i'd be lying.

previous | first | next spoilers under the cut, as always

the beginning

we met a bunch of new characters right off the bat! also, apparently the head of the bard coven uses they/them pronouns, which is super exciting as a user of he/they.

well, i'm not looking forward to the day of unity whatsoever. it sounds kinda neat on paper, but i have a bad, bad feeling about it.

what's wrong with belos? as in, why is he so goopy? and weird? it's terrifying!

it looks like the golden guard is either belos's nephew or his adoptive nephew. i'm going with him simply being his nephew, due to a theory i'll discuss in the "predictions" section.

oh, also, this isn't a point on this part, but i'm gonna refer to the golden guard as the golden guard until i've reached the point of his name reveal, to mirror my thoughts upon my first viewing.

amity's purple hair is in the intro!!! it looks so good!!! so is eda's new outfit, but amity's hair is more noticable.

the plot

i thought it was adorable that luz set up a little cage for the echo mouse. she's so caring.

it was neat seeing the bear from s1e12 make a cameo. and then get its head squeezed off. at least it can't do any more damage.

the fact that eda's mention of luz's classmates is what got her enthusiastic about going to school implies that she was most excited to see one classmate in particular. a newly purple-haired one, perhaps?

i love how luz asks willow about amity. i was sad she wasn't there, though. it makes sense. my guess is that she's either grounded for the hair thing, too scared to go to school and face luz, or both. probably both.

it was so cool to me that eda was helping bump with the palismen. i love their friendship. (but if anyone ships them i will riot.)

i was not expecting to see bump's hair this episode. he looks fabulous, i have to say.

return of the bat queen! i personally love her, even though she's kind of creepy.

i saw a post pointing out that one of the palismen looks like the untitled goose from untitled goose game (it has a bell in its bill) and i think that's the one i would want.

i'm so happy for willow, gus, and everyone who got palismen in this episode! (except maybe boscha. i hate boscha.)

but i think out of all of the ones doled out willow's was my favorite. it looks like a bombyliidae bee fly. look them up, they're some of my favorite creatures. they're the inspiration behind the pokémon cutiefly and ribombee.

i felt really bad for luz, since she didn't get a palisman, but at the same time i didn't think she would. it's too early for her.

it was also unfortunate that we didn't get to see amity get a palisman. however, i saw a leaked image of hers and i absolutely love it. i'll probably talk more about it when it actually appears in the show.

we finally learned where luz is from! connecticut! like connecticut clark! unfortunately, that means my headcanon of her being from gravity falls can't be canon. oh well.

oh! luz's pajamas! super cute! forgot to mention those.

i think it's sweet that luz wanted to take the little rascal back to the nest with the other palismen. i would have expected her to come back in the night solely to find her palisman, but that wasn't her original intention. i like that.

personally, i would love to see luz's magic pet shop. has someone drawn that yet? can i draw that?

this has been pointed out before, but i found it hilarious that the golden guard knows the show's theme. best fourth-wall break ever.

okay, how did the golden guard get back on the ship?! that made no sense to me. am i missing something?

OH IT WAS BECAUSE OF THE STAFF! i'm a dumbass. he literally SAYS that.

very clever of luz to make a glyph with skid marks on the ground. she's very resourceful.

kikimora's hand-dragon-thing is really weird and cool. i kinda like it. can it be my palisman?

i watched this episode with my sister (after my initial viewing) and she thought the golden guard was cute. it was kinda funny. she's 14, so it's less creepy than, say, a 21-year-old.

i loved the scene parodying movies like sleeping beauty and snow white, where it looks like she's about to kiss him but she slaps him instead. hilarious.

when i was younger, my sister would lick my hand when i would cover her mouth with my hand. i thought it was funny that the golden guard did the same.

the bags under the golden guard's eyes remind me of virgil from sanders sides. they're very similar characters, actually.

luz's "too slow" was hilarious. she's great. i love her.

in different circumstances, luz and the golden guard would be best friends, nerding out together about wild magic. i really hope they can be like that in the future.

so the golden guard's name is hunter! honestly, not the most creative name. i saw a headcanon where he didn't really have a name but belos calls him "hunter" because that's what he does. i like that idea.

speaking of which, hunter's name reveal reminded me of janus's name reveal in sanders sides. man, i have sanders sides on the brain, don't i?

i'm glad hunter ended up protecting luz instead of betraying her like he was going to do originally. good for him.

the ending

eda is such a good mom. she robbed the garden club just so luz could make her own palisman.

i wonder if hunter's forehead injury will scar over too. it'd be a cool reminder of how awful the emperor's coven really is

i'm honestly really glad that the little rascal wasn't luz's palisman. good job subverting expectations, owl crew.

predictions

i promised i'd talk about my theories about hunter's origins here, and i'm no liar. i think he's the descendant of phillip wittebane (from the last episode). after all, he mentioned that most of his family didn't have magical ability, like him.

i'm not sure if belos is his actual uncle or not. i think he might be, since we haven't seen him do actual magic without his staff-- and remember, humans can use staffs.

i personally headcanon hunter to also be related to the blight family. maybe he's amity's cousin. i think that would be really funny.

as for luz's palisman, i have no idea what it'll be. probably an owl, but i sincerely hope not. maybe an otter! (with a dark side.)

[ifuckinglovestvincent]

THE FORTY-FIVE: ST. VINCENT

Sleazy, gritty, grimy – these are the words used to describe the latest iteration of St. Vincent, Annie Clark’s alter ego. As she teases the release of her upcoming new album, ‘Daddy’s Home’, Eve Barlow finds out who’s wearing the trousers now.

Photos: Zackery Michael

Yellow may be the colour of gold, the hue of a perfect blonde or the shade of the sun, but when it’s too garish, yellow denotes the stain of sickness and the luridness of sleaze. On ‘Pay Your Way In Pain’ – the first single from St. Vincent’s forthcoming sixth album ‘Daddy’s Home’ – Annie Clark basks in the palette of cheap 1970s yellows; a dirty, salacious yellow that even the most prudish of individuals find difficult to avert their gaze from. It’s a yellow that recalls the smell of cigarettes on fingers, the tape across tomorrow’s crime scene or the dull ache of bad penetration.

The video for the single, which dropped last Thursday, features Clark in a blonde wig and suit, channeling a John Cassavetes anti-heroine (think Gena Rowlands in Gloria) and ‘Fame’-era Bowie. She twists in front of too-bright disco lights. She roughs up her voice. She sings about the price we pay for searching for acceptance while being outcast from society. “So I went to the park just to watch the little children/ The mothers saw my heels and they said I wasn’t welcome,” she coos, and you immediately recognise the scene of a free woman threatening the post-nuclear families aspiring to innocence. Clark is here to pervert them.

She laughs. “That’s how I feel!” From her studio in Los Angeles, she begins quoting lyrics from Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Red House’. “It’s a blues song for 2021.” LA is a city Clark reluctantly only half calls home, and one that is opposed to her vastly preferred New York. “I don’t feel any romantic attachment to Los Angeles,” she says of the place she coined the song ‘Los Ageless’ about on 2017’s ‘Masseduction’ (“The Los Ageless hang out by the bar/ Burn the pages of unwritten memoirs”).“The best that could be said of LA is, ‘Yeah it’s nice.’ And it is! LA is easy and pleasant. But if you were a person the last thing you’d want someone to say about you is: ‘She’s nice!’”

On ‘Daddy’s Home’, Clark writes about a past derelict New York; a place Los Angeles would suffocate in. “The idea of New York, the art that came out of it, and my living there,” she says. “I’ve not given up my card. I don’t feel in any way ready to renounce my New York citizenship. I bought an apartment so I didn’t have to.” Her down-and-out New York is one a true masochist would love, and it’s sleazy in excess. Sleaze is usually the thing men flaunt at a woman’s expense. In 2021, the proverbial Daddy in the title is Clark. But there’s also a literal Daddy. He came home in the winter of 2019.

On the title track, Clark sings about “inmate 502”: her father. He was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his involvement in a $43m stock fraud scheme. He went away in May 2010. Clark reacted by writing her third breakthrough album ‘Strange Mercy’ in 2011; inspired not just by her father’s imprisonment but the effects it had on her life.“I mean it was rough stuff,” she says. “It was a fuck show. Absolutely terrible. Gut-wrenching. Like so many times in life, music saved me from all kinds of personal peril. I was angry. I was devastated. There’s a sort of dullness to incarceration where you don’t have any control. It’s like a thud at the basement of your being. So I wrote all about it,” she says.

Back then, she was aloof about meaning. In an interview we did that year, she called from a hotel rooftop in Phoenix and was fried from analytical questions. She excused her lack of desire to talk about ‘Strange Mercy’ as a means of protecting fans who could interpret it at will. Really she was protecting an audience closer to home. It’s clear now that the title track is about her father’s imprisonment (“Our father in exile/ For God only knows how many years”). Clark’s parents divorced when she was a child, and they have eight children in their mixed family, some of whom were very young when ‘Strange Mercy’ came out. She explains this discretion now as her method of sheltering them.

“I am protective of my family,” she says. “It didn’t feel safe to me. I disliked the fact that it was taken as malicious obfuscations. No.” Clark wanted to deal with the family drama in art but not in press. She managed to remain tight-lipped until she became the subject of a different intrusion. As St. Vincent’s star continued to rocket, Clark found herself in a relationship with British model Cara Delevingne from 2014 to 2016, and attracted celebrity tabloid attention. Details of her family’s past were exposed. The Daily Mail came knocking on her sister’s door in Texas, where Clark is from.

“Luckily I’m super tight with my family and the Daily Mail didn’t find anybody who was gonna sell me out,” she says. “They were looking for it. Clark girls are a fucking impenetrable force. We will cut a bitch.”

Four years later, Clark gets to own the narrative herself in the medium that’s most apt: music. “The story has evolved. I’ve evolved. People have grown up. I would rather be the one to tell my story,” she says, ruminating on the misfortune that this was robbed from her: a story that writes itself. “My father’s release from prison is a great starting point, right?” Between tours and whenever she could manage, Clark would go and visit him in prison and would be signing autographs in the visitation room for the inmates, who all followed her success with every album release, press clipping and late night TV spot. She joked to her sisters that she’d become the belle of the ball there. “I don’t have to make that up,” she says.

There’s an ease to Clark’s interview manner that hasn’t existed before. She seems ready not just to discuss her father’s story, but to own certain elements of herself. “Hell where can you run when the outlaw’s inside you,” she sings on the title track, alluding to her common traits with her father. “I’ve always had a relationship with my dad and a good one. We’re very similar,” she says. “The movies we like, the books, he liked fashion. He’s really funny, he’s a good time.” Her father’s release gave Clark and her brothers and sisters permission to joke. “The title, ‘Daddy’s Home’ makes me laugh. It sounds fucking pervy as hell. But it’s about a real father ten years later. I’m Daddy now!”

The question of who’s fathering who is a serious one, but it’s also not serious. Clark wears the idea of Daddy as a costume. She likes to play. She joins today’s Zoom in a pair of sunglasses wider than her face and a silk scarf framing her head. The sunglasses come off, and the scarf is a tool for distraction. She ties it above her forehead, attempts a neckerchief, eventually tosses it aside. Clark can only be earnest for so long before she seeks some mischief. She doesn’t like to stay in reality for extensive periods. “I like to create a world and then I get to live in it and be somebody new every two or three years,” she says. “Who wants to be themselves all the time?”

‘Daddy’s Home‘ began in New York at Electric Lady studios before COVID hit and was finished in her studio in LA. She worked on it with “my friend Jack” [Jack Antonoff, producer for Lana Del Rey, Lorde, Taylor Swift]. Antonoff and Clark worked on ‘Masseduction’ and found a winning formula, pushing Clark’s guitar-orientated electronic universe to its poppiest maximum, without compromising her idiosyncrasies. “We’re simpatico. He’s a dream,” she says. “He played the hell outta instruments on this record. He’s crushing it on drums, crushing it on Wurlitzer.” The pair let loose. They began with ‘The Holiday Party’, one of the warmest tracks Clark’s ever written. It’s as inviting as a winter fireplace, stoked by soulful horns, acoustic guitar and backing singers. “Every time they sang something I’d say, ‘Yeah but can you do it sleazier? Make your voice sound like you’ve been up for three days.” Clark speaks of an unspoken understanding with Antonoff as regards the vibe: “Familiar sounds. The opposite of my hands coming out of the speaker to choke you till you like it. This is not submission. Just inviting. I can tell a story in a different way.”

The entire record is familiar, giving the listener the satisfaction that they’ve heard the songs before but can’t quite place them. It’s a satisfying accompaniment to a pandemic that encouraged nostalgic listening. Clark was nostalgic too. She reverted to records she enjoyed with her father: Stevie Wonder’s catalogue from the 1970s (‘Songs In The Key Of Life’, ‘Innervisions’, ‘Talking Book’) and Steely Dan. “Not to be the dude at the record store but it’s specifically post-flower child idealism of the ’60s,” she explains. “It’s when it flipped into nihilism, which I much prefer. Pre disco, pre punk. That music is in me in a deep way. It’s in my ears.”

On ‘The Melting Of The Sun’ she has a delicious time creating a psychedelic Pink Floyd odyssey while exploring the path tread by her heroes Marilyn Monroe, Joni Mitchell, Joan Didion and Nina Simone. It’s a series of beautiful vignettes of brilliant women who were met with a hostile environment. Clark considers what they did to overcome that. “I’m thanking all these women for making it easier for me to do it. I hope I didn’t totally let them down.” Clark is often the only woman sharing a stage with rock luminaries such as Dave Grohl, Damon Albarn and David Byrne, and has appeared to have shattered a male-centric glass ceiling. She’s unsure she’s doing enough to redress the imbalance. “There are little things I can do and control,” she says of hiring women on her team. “God! Now I feel like I should do more. What should I do? It’s a big question. You know what I have seen a lot more from when I started to now? Girls playing guitar.”

If one woman reinvented the guitar in the past decade, it’s Clark. Behind her is a rack of them. The pandemic has taken her out of the wild in which she’s accustomed to tantalising audiences at night with her displays of riffing and heel-balancing. Instead, she’s chained to her desk. Her obsession with heels in the lyrics of ‘Daddy’s Home’ she reckons may be a reflection of her nights performing ‘Masseduction’ in thigh highs. “I made sure that nothing I wore was comfortable,” she recalls. “Everything was about stricture and structure and latex. I had to train all the time to make sure I could handle it.” Is she taking the heels off when live shows return? “Absofuckinglutely not.”

Clark is interested in the new generation. She’s recently tweeted about Arlo Parks and has become a big fan of Russian singer-songwriter Kate NV. “I’m obsessed with Russia,” she says. In a recent LA Times profile, she professed to a pandemic intellectual fixation on Stalin. “Yeah! I mean right now my computer is propped up on stuff. You are sitting on The Gulag Archipelago, The Best Short Stories Of Dostoyevsky andThe Plays Of Chekhov. I’m kinda in it.” The pop world interests Clark, too. She was credited with a co-write on Swift’s 2019 album ‘Lover’. At last year’s Grammys she performed a duet with Dua Lipa. It was one of the queerest performances the Grammys has ever aired. Clark interrupts.

“What about it seemed queer?!”

You know… The lip bite, for one!

“Wait. Did she bite her lip?”

No, you bit your lip.

“I did?!”

Everyone was talking about it. Come on, Annie.

“Serious? I…”

You both waltzed around each other with matching hairdos, making eyes…

“I have no memory of it.”

Frustrating as it may be in a world of too much information, Clark’s lack of willingness to overanalyse every creative decision she makes or participates in is something to treasure. “I want to be a writer who can write great songs,” she says. “I’m so glad I can play guitar and fuck around in the studio to my heart’s desire but it’s about what you can say. What’s a great song? What lyric is gonna rip your guts open. Just make great shit! That’s where I was with this record. That’s all I wanna do with my life.”

More than a decade into St. Vincent, Clark doesn’t reflect. She looks strictly forward. “I’m like a horse with blinders,” she says. She did make an exception to take stock lately when the phone rang. “I saw a +44 and that gets me excited,” she says. “Who could this be?” Well, who was it? “Paul McCartney,” she says, in disbelief. “Anything I’ve done, any mistake I’ve made, somehow it’s forgiven, assuaged. I did something right in my life if a fucking Beatle called me.”

Now there’s a get out of jail free card if ever she needed one.

Daddy’s Home by St. Vincent is out May 14, 2021.

[muffledcries]

Jahmil French (July 29, 1991 – March 1, 2021)

We worked together on Soundtrack, and every single time you entered the room we all felt it get brighter. You were shiny, magnetic and so so kind. RIP and fly with the angels Jah. – JENNA DEWAN Really hate that this is real. @JahmilFrench you will be missed my friend. Thank you for your talents that pushed me, your energy that kept our little family on @soundtracknetflix glued together. I’m happy I was able to get to know you. Our work together def made an impact on me & You and your Mom felt like family back home. Today and everyday we will remember you and continue to be inspired to live and be great for you. Rest In Peace Jah. – CHRISTINA MILLIAN Honestly been at a loss for words since I heard the news. This doesn’t feel real. Jahmil, was one of the most talented actors I’ve ever worked with. One of the funniest kindest people I ever met. The life of the party, every room he would walk into he would always be dancing and making people laugh and smile. Too many good memories. Thank you Jahmil. Rest In Peace King. – AJ SAUDIN Heartbroken over the loss of our friend Jahmil French. We started on Degrassi the same year and I’ll never forget the day I met him. Jahmil was so full of energy and absolute joy to be around. The video on the last slide is how I always think of him, always dancing. He was such a special person and I’m so grateful for the memories we made. I still can’t believe it. Gone way too soon. He will be so missed by us all. – ANNIE CLARK My heart is so heavy.. Truly one of a kind. Rest In Peace. – CRISTINE PROSPERI I’m sick with the news of Jahmil’s passing. He performed Dave with such sensitivity and thoughtfulness and could make me laugh so easily. It was a pleasure to work with him and he will be missed. This is a real loss. Rest In Peace. – STEFAN BROGREN Jahmil had such talent and charisma that it would have been intimidating were he not also a real gentleman. He would show up to my house-parties with a crew of dancers and they would elevate the mood immediately. When life got messy he would handle himself with grace and levity. He was precocious. And his love for music (and dance) was contagious. He showed me Section 80 by Kendrick Lamar, made me appreciate Drake’s Houston sound… Wish I’d gotten the chance to catch up with him one more time, hear where his mind/dreams were at. – SAM EARLE Jahmil, your talents and energy will never be forgotten. One of the best smiles with the most beautiful soul. Jahmil, you will always be such a bright light in this world. – SARAH FISHER This one really hurts. Jahmil French was a truly kind soul and one of the most talented actors around. He inspired me with his confidence and support from the first day we met and will continue to do so forever. Thank you for everything you gave to this world through both your art and your humanity. Rest In Peace my friend. – CRAIG ARNOLD Much love to the entire Degrassi family on this difficult day. It was a complete honour to write for and work with Jahmil, an incredible actor and talent gone way too soon. – RAMONA BARCKERT An extraordinary talent and a bright light on and off screen. Rest in peace, Jahmil. – MICHAEL GRASSI So sad to hear about the passing of Degrassi cast-member Jahmil French. An endlessly talented & charming performer who was always fun to write for. Last time I saw him, he was nominated for a CSA for his work in the movie Boost and I was certain he was only getting started. RIP. – MATT HUETHER Jahmil was always such a kind person. My heart is heavy for him and his family. Thanks for all the good memories Jahmil, you really had an impact. I’ll cherish all the fun we had dancing at basement parties all those years ago. Still in shock. Jahmil will be missed. He was an integral part of the Degrassi family and certainly a huge part of my degrassi days. He always wanted to make people laugh and smile, a true joy to be around. Rest in Peace. – CHLOE ROSE Rest easy, my friend. Your talent, kindness and shining bright light will never be forgotten. – JESSICA TYLER Wanted to pay my respects to an incredibly kind, funny, and talented individual; Jahmil French. One of the first people I met on Degrassi, he immediately made me feel welcome. He disarmed you with a smile and his confidence and energy was infectious. You’ll be missed, brother. – DYLAN EVERETT Jahmil was one of the most gifted and effortless performers I’ve ever met. His vibrant personality lit up the room. Rest easy my friend. – MUNRO CHAMBERS I am heartbroken to hear about the loss of Jahmil. Jahmil was an extraordinary talent and a bright light on and off the screen. He was a joy to work with on Degrassi: The Next Generation. He brought an authenticity and burst of life to every scene he was in and infused his character ‘Dave’ with an airy lightness. Off screen Jahmil would always make me smile. He will be deeply missed. – LINDA SCHUYLER My heart goes out to the entire Degrassi community., but particularly of course to those who were closest with Jahmil. We have lost one of our own. Jahmil was kind, intelligent, extremely talented, and just a wonderful person. He was also of course an incredible dancer, and since I am the exact opposite we had a running joke that I had taught him all his dance moves. When I would completely ineptly do the Moonwalk, Jahmil would cheer me on, while everyone else would beg me to stop! RIP Jahmil French, your soul and presence are sorely missed. – STEPHEN STOHN A sad day for the Degrassi family. With a heavy heart I thank you for all the times you made me laugh, taught me dance moves, and gave me confidence as Adam. Thinking of all the memories we shared on and off of set. - JORDAN TODOSEY Thinking of Jahmil French & the entire Degrassi family today click here for the full post - LYLE LETTAU This one hurts me deeply. When I found out yesterday I refused to believe it! I wouldn’t except it and to be honest I still don’t quite believe it’s real. I love you and the energy between us was always genuine. Working with you was always a blast and you were always the coolest man in the room. Till we meet again my friend. – CORY LEE Terribly sad to hear about Jahmil’s passing. Whether I was his scene partner, or just a viewer, I was in awe of his sheer talent. A room was brighter because he was in it. A true performer, a great guy and a huge loss. #RestInPeace – JUSTIN KELLY I’m so shocked and saddened to hear this news about Jahmil. Jahmil was and is such a kind, fun loving, hilarious, full of life, hard working and professional person. He was my first real scene partner on a series I got to be a series regular on. I remember the day my agent sent me the casting for Degrassi. It said I would be playing Dave Turners love interest. So the first thing I did was pull up the good ol IMDB machine and find out who Jahmil French was. The same day as my audition a few mere hours later I got the call that the role was mine (pretty rare in this industry) I went in to do my fitting and thats when I met Jahmil, Spencer and AJ for the first time as they played an iconic trio on the show. They were all super friendly and nice to me and made me feel very welcomed to be joining the cast. I was nervous and 15 at the time. Jahmil was the integral glue that held the circle together and its would lead to an amazing friendship that I got to have with Spencer. I had only been slated to do 3 episodes on the show but I believe it was the on screen chemistry Jahmil and I had that lead me to stick around for longer. Jahmil always had a smile on his face. I would come in at 5am for our call to do prep and be so tired, but there he was hanging out in the green room dancing so full of energy and life. Jahmil LOVED dancing and he was really good at it too. And I’d ask him “How do you even have this much energy this early LOL” and he’d just laugh and smile. Any time we went down to block he’d be word perfect on his lines, hit every mark and bring such an amazing professionalism to the set it was mesmerizing to watch. He played every scene with a new beat that always kept it interesting and fresh. Jahmil was and still is such a kind hearted dedicated person who eventually really went on to flourish in his career and he will be deeply missed. Heaven really gained a new angel today, Rest In Peace and say hey to all the other pals up there. Spencer and I will pour one out for you - ALEXX BENOIT Rest in peace my guy. An amazingly talented actor who had such a presence on and off screen. – DEMETRIUS JOYETTE Jahmil was such a wonderful person to be around. so funny, so charismatic, so talented. and my god he loved his work. I’m devasted. Sending my love to his friends and family. In a year full of grief, it’s hard to comprehend how there can be room for more. And yet. Jahmil French was an incredible person, so full of talent and passion for his work. He lit up a room with his energy and dance moves. An easy smile and a natural charisma. He will be so missed. My heart is broken. I feel strange, announcing these things I wish I had told him more often. Reached out more often. The regret is acute. He deserved his flowers when he was here. I hope he knew how much love & admiration there was for him in this world. – AISLINN PAUL One of the most talented, kind hearted, funny spirits I’ve had the pleasure of building a friendship with. Jahmil is an icon. My love for him runs deep. Jahmil you will always hold such a special place in my heart. Thank you for being one of the most talented, compassionate, kindest, funniest friends I have. You were so loved. I’ll miss our dance offs. #Bhandurner forever. Jah literally won the title of most competitive goofball. What joy he brought to my life and to so many. So grateful for memories and deep convos with you, beautiful angel. Blessed that we got to be part of a big dysfunctional family together. Thank you for sharing your gift with the world. I just hope you knew how loved you were. I learnt so much working with this talented dedicated soul. Please send a prayer for his soul to go directly toward the light. – MELINDA SHANKAR Such a beautiful soul & a light to everyone around him. Rest in Paradise Jahmil. – JOELLE FARROW This moment will live in my mind forever. A beautiful soul, thank you for the years of memories and laughter. You’re a light my brother and I’m so happy we got to experience this crazy life together. I’ll always remember you dancing down the halls of the green room. Rest In Peace. – LUKE BILYK I’m devasted. My man, I swear I was just thinking about you not even a few days ago when I was making my new demo reel, watching all the old Degrassi episodes. So talented. So unbelievably wise beyond your years. You made one of the best times of my life even better. I’m so crushed. I should have called you. I dont deserve to miss you as much as I do now. I would always say my favourite actor on the show was Mr. Jahmil French. I would always watch his parts when going thru Degrassi material to either study my tech or to cut demos or whatever else. Not 4 days ago was I daydreaming about making some kind of new production with all of those talented people. My hearts broken. – DANIEL KELLY Jahmil was always the brightest light in the room. Smiling, dancing and making all of us laugh till we cried. Rest In Peace you beautiful soul. You will be missed… - ALICIA JOSIPOVIC This is absolutely heartbreaking. While I never worked directly with Jahmil on Degrassi, our paths did cross a few times. All you needed was 5 minutes with him to realize what a beautiful, talented, bright soul he was. My sincerest condolences to his family and loved onces. Rest In Peace Jahmil French. – ANA GOLJA Shocked & saddened to hear of Jahmil’s passing. Loss of such a talented and bright soul. Rest in Power cuz, I’ll pour one out for you, am so wishing this was a dream. – JAJUBE MANDIELA I join thousands of people around the world thinking about Jahmil today. A beautiful, joyful person to be on set with, truly intimidating on the dance floor, an all-around wonderful person to have known, gone just way, way too soon. Sending love to everyone who loved him. Jahmil, I hope you feel it too. – CHARLOTTE ARNOLD I didn’t know Jahmil very well, but in the few times we met, he was so explosively kind, charismatic and truly interested and invested in every interaction. I immediately felt accepted and got a sense of the deep compassion that so many others had expressed was within him. The impression I had always stuck with me and from all I have heard he was such a beautiful and loving person, the special kind that makes everything a little lighter. Thank you to everyone who has been sharing stories of their time with him. Sending love to Jahmil and all of you. – ERIC OSBORNE Jahmil was such a special human. A long-time acting student of mine, & my mentee. He was fearless and brilliant in his pursuit, and I’m so sad we won’t get to see more of his gift. I’m so grateful to have crossed paths with him, and I wish him eternal peace. – SALVATORE ANTONIO So sad to hear of Jahmil’s passing. He was so kind and so funny. I’m glad I had the chance to know him. You will be missed. Rest in Power Jahmil. Gone too soon. Will never be forgotten. – TAYSHA FULLER Even though I only worked with Jahmil for a little while he made a truly lasting impression. I remember when I first came back to set as Tori and I was incredibly nervous those first few weeks, but Jahmil was so welcoming and treated me and the other new cast members like we’d been a part of the cast the whole time. If he gave you a compliment or even said something as simple as “it’s so good to see you” you knew he genuinely meant it. It seems like a small thing but it’s hard to find that kind of authentic honesty in most people. He was an incredibly talented actor and always such a positive energy on set, and I’ll remember him for all those vibrant moments. Rest In Peace. – ALEXA STEELE This smile. This spark. This spirit. Jah I am missing you from this earthly plane we all love you. – MEGAN FERGUSON there never seems to be enough time… I don’t know if words can describe someone like Jah. He really was too special for this world. A true artist to his soul. I was lucky to call him my friend. Rest in Peace and Power Angel. you will be so dearly missed. – PAUL JAMES I guess I thought if I refrained from making a post, it would ease some of the pain.. but the more hours that pass, the more it sets in heavier. JAH. Mi familia. My brother. I am crushed. I have believed in you since the moment we met, and it makes me smile to know the feeling was 100% reciprocated. The purest soul. Always himself no matter WHERE he went. It takes courage to be that way you know? To have that strength. From Antigone to degrassi, to LA to NY you had EVERYTHING in you to shine. All the power, all the talent, all the intelligence the drive, the fearlessness. Your smile made me smile. Sweeterman jah, I miss you so much already. – SHANICE BANTON Dance on, old friend -through the clouds. I will see you on the other side. click here for the full post – SHANNON KOOK

[ilooklikeaburntchickenugget]

Summer Love: Chapter Two

A/N: So to begin, I have absolutely nothing against Lyn-Z. I have a whole post about this and why we as fans of Gerard shouldn’t hate her, because she makes him happy. That being said for the sake of this fic she is being put into a hated position. So I’m sorry about that, but that’s just how it’s going to roll. Once again, I have nothing against Lyn-Z but for the sake of this fic she’s going to be “bad”. Also I haven’t updated in a few weeks... sorry about that. Word count: 2368

Bright and early at 8 am your alarm clark went blaring. You rolled over on your bed, groaning and attempting to shut it off, keeping your eyes closed. Of course, it didn’t work. You ended up having to sit up and turn it off, resulting in the sun directly hitting your eyes. “Shit.” You muttered.

“Good morning, sunshine.” You heard Melanie already up working on something. She was a morning person. You growled. “Someone’s not happy.” “Oh, I’m thrilled to be up.” You sarcastically rolled your eyes. Your feet touched the freezing floor. You got up, grabbing a pair of jeans shorts, a large black belt, and a Green Day shirt from their concert you went to just a few months back. You went into the showers, preparing for the cold droplets to hit your skin which had yet to reel from the warm feeling of the bed.

“Remember, breakfast is in 25!” Mel called from the main area of the cabin. After turning on the shower, you let it sit for around a minute before getting in. The temperature of the water helped awake you even more. You ran your fingers which were soaked with shampoo through your hair, making sure to scrub deeply. Next you took your loofa and coconut scented soap, scrubbing all over your body. It didn’t take you longer than five minutes to get completely scrubbed off.

You changed quickly, using your towel to mess with your hair to let it air dry. You ran out, grabbing your pair of beaten Vans high tops and went out with Melanie, your hair hanging loose and wet.

The two of you walked in right as breakfast was starting, meeting the boys at the table. “Hey guys.” Mikey greeted you two, you both smiled.

“Y/N looks like a wet rat.” Frank snickered.

“Thanks,” You smirked, “That’s the look I was going for.”

“Did you just disrespect Green Day?” Ray asked Frank.

“No, Y/N did.” This time you punched Frank’s arm.

“Hey Y/N/N.” Gerard greeted you.

“Hey Gee.” You sat next to him and smiled. You all waited for your table to be called up, some of you grabbing the full selection of eggs, bacons, and pancakes. You just grabbed fruit, not being that hungry.

“So what’s everyone taking?” Melanie asked.

“I’m taking graffiti art.” Frank smirked.

“Who would let you sign up for that?” Ray asked.

“I don’t know,” He smiled, “I just signed up for it and they gave it to me.”

“I’m taking storytelling in writing.” Mikey said.

“A very Mikey class.” You added.

“I’m taking art history.” Ray said.

“That’s even more of a Ray class.” Melanie concluded.

“Photography.” You said.

“Does that mean you’re gonna take nudes?” You threw a piece of your apple at Frank.

“Absolutely not,” You rolled your eyes, “I’m a self respecting woman.” You looked over at Gerard who was blushing.

“Um, I’m taking cartooning.” He lightly smiled.

“I’m taking graphics.” Melanie ended the conversation. You all continued eating as fast as you could without chocking. Once finishing, all of you dispersed back to your cabins to grab your things before meeting at a small area on the lake to hang before the day officially began.

“What’s up losers.” She greeted the group, the two of you being last. “Can’t wait for this day to start.” “I’m dreading taking classes.” Frank said.

“Why?” You asked.

“Ever since they got rid of the music program this place has gone down hill.” “Music program?” Gerard asked from across the picnic table where he sat next to Ray.

“Yeah, there used to be a music program here but they dropped it due to budget cuts. And to get jet skies.” You explained. “Stupid fucking jet skies that nobody fucking uses because they’re dumb.” Frank added on.

“If you can’t tell, Frank has yet to get over it.” “Over it?” He snapped. “That was the whole reason I got in!”

“Yeah, I know.” You sighed. “But this place doesn’t suck.” “The only thing that doesn’t completely suck are you guys.” He said.

“Dude, we’re literally on a lake.” You pointed to the body of water ahead of you.

“And?” “Lakes are super fun.” He rolled his eyes.

“Whatever.”

“We need to reserve the bonfire for tonight.” Melanie spoke up. Everyone nodded. “Who’s gonna sign up at lunch?” “I will.” Ray spoke up, “My class is right next to the cafeteria.” You all nodded.

“How’re we all feeling about today?” Melanie moved on.

“Good.” Most of us answered.

“Nervous.” Gerard lightly smiled.

“You’ll be totally fine.” You smiled, “You’re a pretty good guy.” “That’s what I keep telling him.” Mikey said.

“Thanks.” He looked at you.

“Speaking of, it’s quite the walk to most of our classes. We should probably go.” Frank spoke up. You all nodded. You went up to Gerard once everyone began dispersing. “Ready?” You asked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” He said, walking next to you to a trail in the woods.

“It’s always so beautiful out here.” You looked up and around at the various forestry around you. There wasn’t a bare spot for as far as you could see, except for the slim dirt path ahead of you.

“It is beautiful.” He agreed, doing the same as you. You two walked the rest of the way in comfortable silence, just admiring the different areas of the forested area before reaching the small wooden building that held your sketching class.

You walked down a small hallway and into the room number 4. It was a small cozy area, classes had no more than eight students. There were small tables where two people could sit, you and Gerard taking one closest to the window. The walls were lined with various pieces and a small blackboard was up front.

You two grabbed some stuff from your bags as your professor came over to you two. “Ms. Y/L/N.” He said. Larry was an older man. He was 72, and still kicking it with the spirit of a 25 year old. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.” He smiled.

“You too, Mr. Breck.” You smiled. He looked over to Gerard.

“And who is this?” He looked.

“I’m Gerard, Gerard Way.” He lightly smiled, reaching his hand out to let him shake it. “Well, Mr. Way it’s a pleasure.” They both smiled. Mr. Breck went back to his oak desk, sitting behind it as Gerard and you began to occupy yourselves by sketching. You opened one of your pages that you had begun working on. It was of a girl, you weren’t sure the inspiration you just began drawing her.

“You drew that?” Gerard asked, lightly smiling. You nodded.

“Yeah.” You lightly smiled back.

“It’s incredible.” He looked at it further, his eyes scanning every centimeter.

“Thanks.” You told him. A few more people had come in, taking seats around the room as you and Gee continued drawing. Right before class began you heard some giggling behind you. You could identify that noise from anywhere.

Looking behind you, you saw the group of three girls laughing, the leader was easily seen. Her medium length black hair flowed well, she had a pale complexion that fit her perfectly. Her light red lipstick added a pop of color to her primarily black outfit (and personality). You sighed and turned forward again.

“Are you alright?” Gerard asked lightly.

“Yeah, I’m good.” You tightly smiled back, going back to sketching.

“Alright, now that every body is here,” Mr. Breck stood up in front of everyone, “I think we should begin.” The old man began walking around the class viewing everyone’s books filled with their work. He spent at least a few seconds looking at them before asking everyone to take them out, regardless of how complete they were.

“Now all of these,” He hung them on the board up front, “Will be your inspiration for the next six weeks.” He looked back to all of you, “This is the absolute worst piece you can do. This is the bare minimum I want from all of you.” He said, “You will be better when you leave this class. You will work on your technique until it is nearly perfect. Because we don’t want perfect in art, we want you. Now I want you all to draw whatever comes to mind. You have 15 minutes, your time starts now.”

You weren’t sure what to do, so you just decided on trees. Cliche, but quick and easy. You drew a forested area, making sure to incorporate shadows where necessary and a small trail. You focused on your work until a small timer ticked off. It slightly scared you, put you placed your pencil down, Mr. Breck already starting to collect pages.

“I’ll evaluate these tonight, and bring you all feedback tomorrow.” He stated, making a neat pile of the pages on his desk. He quickly transitioned into talking about techniques for various elements like shadowing. You and Gerard both followed along closely, adding some of the skills to your pre existing works.

“That should be all.” He sighed, looking at his watch. “Class dismissed.” You and Gerard began putting your things in your bags.

“What did you think?” You asked Gerard, who looked down at you as you two began walking out.

“It was nice.” He lightly smiled, “I like Mr. Breck a lot.” “I do too.” You replied. As the two of you exited the building you once again heard the laugh of Lindsey. You couldn’t help but lightly look over, only to find her and her posse, but she specifically was eyeing Gerard up and down, lightly smiling. You looked away and gritted your teeth through your closed mouth, knowing she would be the ultimate enemy this summer.

The two of you continued walking back to main campus, planning on meeting everyone else at your typical table. You walked into the bustling area, immediately seeing everyone else at your table, considering their classes were closer than yours. “Hey guys.” You sat down with them, placing your bag on the floor next to you. “How’s everyone’s days going?” Most of the table answered with a good, or alright. Except Frank, of course. “Terrible.” He sighed. You rolled your eyes.

“And why would that be?” “Bro the first class was soooo boring.” He said, “Some shit about coloring or something.”

“Maybe if you listened you would know.” Ray responded.

“Shut up fro-head.” Eventually you all got in line for the sad excuse of sandwiches for lunch, but you only grabbed some fruit and vegetables considering that was some of the only edible food.

“Y/NNNNNNN,” Frank whined, “When will your parents ship us food?” “Tomorrow.” You stated, taking a bit from your apple.

“But that’s far away.” He said. You rolled your eyes.

“Who’s that?” You heard Gerard from beside you. Everyone looked over to see he was of course looking at Lindsey. You lightly sighed, making sure not to draw attention.

“Lindsey Ballato.” Ray spoke up. Gerard nodded once, keeping his eyes fixated on her. Shit.

“I’m gonna go to the restroom.” You spoke up, breaking the awkward silence.

“You alright?” Mikey asked and you nodded. You quickly made your way out of the dining hall and down to your cabin. Stepping in the wooden box you managed to get your way to the bathroom, shutting the polished oak door and taking a deep breath, keeping your hand placed softly on the cold, metal handle.

Letting you breath regain it’s usual pattern, you sank to the white tile ground, leaning against the wall to the right of the door, a small crevice between the cheap wallpaper plastered on the frame and the ceramic sink.

Knowing Gerard for only a day you had already become attached, cursing yourself at the fact. He was way out of your league and you knew it. Your hands still trembled, trying to regain balance to no avail.

The sound of blood rushed through your ears, eventually slowing down, giving enough room for the essence of a knock from the door to sink in. You swallowed harshly. “Yes?” “Y/N/N?” Melanie asked, “Are you alright?” You didn’t respond, small pools of salty water trailing down your cheeks. You could hear the door creak open, Melanie’s visibly concerned face coming into light. “What happened?” She asked sinking to the ground, grabbing and holding you as you sobbed into the shoulder of her t-shirt.

“I’m so fucking dumb.” You mumbled.

“What?” She asked.

“I should’ve know.” You scratched out, “I’m no good for him. I’ve known him for a day and look at me, pathetically attached like he’s my fucking soul mate or some shit.”

“This is about Gerard, isn’t it?” You nodded. She sighed. “I wish I had a good answer for you, but I don’t.”

“I never knew someone could get attached this easily.” “Neither did I, to be honest with you.” You nodded, staring at your fingers. Then you heard some soft footsteps.

“Y/N?” You heard his voice, you and Melanie’s eyes both shooting open. She helped you up, grabbing some toilet paper and quickly washing the tears off your face. It didn’t help much with the swelling or redness which had also found it’s way to your appearance, and grabbing your hand hoisting you up to standing. “Hey,” He walked in, his face dropping from a light smile to a frown. “What’s wrong?” You looked at Melanie, who was too freaking out.

“Oh um, Y/N just started her period, yeah.” You aggressively nudged her, eyeing her, Gerard’s eyes going wide. That’s the best excuse? “Hormones, ya know.”

“Yeah, um,” Gerard stopped, nervously rubbing the back of his neck, “I-I should get going.” He tightly smiled, “If you need anything, just call me.” He looked to you and you nodded. He walked out with speed, closing the door behind him.

“What the fuck?” You turned to her. “My period?” “I was freaking out okay?” She defended, “You turned to me and I had no clue what to do!” You huffed.

“That may have made it worse. A lot worse.”

“It’s fine, he’ll forget about it soon.” “Mhm.” You rolled your eyes, “Sure. Sure he will.”

[we-want-mini-mini]

Because I fell in love with the previous prompt/oneshot I wrote about an OC falling into the DC universe (specifically Gotham) and wants to avoid the Vigilantes/Wayne and Co but fucking fails at it (or succeeds, who knows).

This one shot is about—

The Reluctant Executive Assistant To Lex Luthor, Who Also Is A Supervillian

Masterlist | Pervious Post Regarding This Oneshot

Warnings! Strong language, mentions of disassociation, mentions of body dysphoria, non-graphic description of violence, probably OOC Lex Luthor, shitty spelling and grammar oh my!

LIA WONDERED WHAT SHE DID TO ANGER THE UNIVERSE, what she did so heinous, so deplorable, so bastardly to be punished in this way. She reclined into her plush sofa, her eyed glazed over, as they seemingly stared beyond the cream colored walls of her small Metropolis apartment. On her coffee table, laid a stack of papers. Papers that were at least a couple inches thick, filled with long winded explanations, language that could confuse anyone, and an agreement to become Lex Luthors god damn Executive Assistant.

I’m basically going to be a glorified Secretary, for one of the most powerful men in the world... Whose also a raging fucking Supervillain too. Lia thought with a groan, rubbing her face. Her mind whirled with various thoughts, plans and so, oh so much more. The fact that she’s been offered such a prestigious job, at the tender age of 23 years old. A job as the right hand to a fucking Supervillain, Jesus Christ...

Ever since Lia woke up in her doppelgänger’s body, all those years ago, she made a decision that she would never involve herself with the various vigilantes of this world. But, considering she lived in Gotham before this, she had to cope with the fact that her city had various Vigilantes running around, doing whatever they were doing. But, Lia had the upper hand you see: the world she came from, all the Vigilantes and hero’s were fictional characters! Thus, she knew all their origin stories, secret identities and the like. In her pervious world, every kid knew that Superman was unassuming reporter Clark Kent of the Daily Planet. Who also happened to be Lia’s next door neighbor. You know what, I’m not even going to go down that rabbit hole. Nope. Nah. I’m good.

But, adjusting to life in her new body wasn’t a simple walk in the park. She had to adjust to a whole new city (perviously Lia lived in New York, which was the inspiration for Gotham but still). A whole new environment that became desensitized to the causal, practically fanatasical acts of violence ranging from man made super blizzards, the occasional alien invasion and etc. Not to mention, Lia had to cope with the fact she, in essence, lived in an entirely different body. The first two years of living in this world, Lia struggled with dissociation and body dyshoria at the fact that one: she now lived in a completely different world compared to her pervious world, and two: she inhabited a body that, yes is her, but, at the same time, wasn’t her.

Thank goodness mom realized what was happening and shipped my ass off to the few non-supervillain therapist in Gotham. Lia thought with a huff like laughter.

Her eyes then soon trailed too the stack of papers Lex Luthor gave, ones that detailed her contract of becoming his Executive Assistant. One, that would make her one of the most powerful women in the US by being the right hand of Lex Luthor. Who also is a fucking supervillain, god damn it.

Lia vowed to herself to never involve herself with the various superheroes, vigilantes, or villains of her new world. She wanted to live a normal as possible life, not wanting to have such a heavy responsibility of being a hero on her alreayd aching shoulders. She did not want to get involved in the drama that often plagued those who entered that life. She did not want to endanger her family (or herself) because she has connections with people who are vigilantes. Specifically, when she was a student at Gotham U, she avoided anything surrounding the Wayne’s (considering they are the infamous Bats and Birds that protect Gotham and her people). Likely, the only times she ever saw said infamous Vigilantes were the few unlucky times she was in a hostage situation and when she was about to be mugged those couple of times.

As far as interactions outside of their vigilante identities, she’s bumped into Bruce Wayne shopping with Damian, Stephanie, Cassandra and Tim. And oh boy, oh boy, did Lia pray to any deities out their to make sure this was the first and last time she ever met them. Her only words to Bruce Wayne (also fucking Batman) was a high pitched apology and the wish to be smited by God that very second. She’s also bumped in Dick Grayson the one time she visited some friends in Blüdhaven in a coffee shop. They struck up conversation, and it wasn’t till the end of the conversation did she realize who it was. After that, she always went out with headphones in her ears as they are the universal symbol of Don’t Talk To Me. And as for Jason, she’s seen Red Hood when she was out late at a 24/7 7/11, picking up some food. Frankly, Lia was to strung up on zero sleep and pure caffeine and spite to honestly give a single shit. Lia vaguely remembered wanting a specific thing, and Red Hood also reaching for it. She snatched said snack with a word, ignoring Red Hoods existence completely. The cashier looked like they saw a ghost but, as always, Lia was tired to give a single flying shit.

However, Lia’s paranoia didn’t simmer down. So much so, that she applied for an internship at LexCorp, her excuse being she wanted to have a change of scenery. While working at LexCorp, she gained considerable amount of knowledge and experience, but compromised with her mom that, after her internship finished up in LexCorp, she’s go to WE and work there. Lia had deep seeded concerns about working at WE, but after going back and forth in her head, she decided that, fuck it. It’s a gigantic ass company. There’s such a low percentage of me ever crossing paths with one of the Waynes and Co. Plus, mom drives a hard bargain. And damn, do I honestly miss Gotham. It’s so damn bright here. And it’s called fucking Metroplis of all things.

Before Lia could further brood about what her life had become, the sound of her doorbell flooded Lia’s ears. Lia’s eyebrows scrunched together, did I order something? But, she shrugged to herself, springing to her feet. Better find out then, I guess.

When Lia opened the door, she expected, say, a delivery person, or, a neighbor asking to borrow something. What she did not expect was her 5’3” mother, standing next to a 6-something, rather muscular, but familiar figure of—HOLY SHIT IT’S SUPERMAN, WHAT THE FUCK—

Next to her mothers petite figure, was the gargantuan stature of one Clark Kent, AKA, Superman. Lia could feel her blood pressure rise.

“Mom! Mr. Kent! What a nice surprise.” Lia said, through a tight lipped smile. Her mother simply smiled, laughing lightly.

“Habibi, it’s been such a long time—and, wait did you loose weight?” Her mother’s once smiling face turned sour, her eyebrows pinched together in worry. Her warm brown eyes trailing up and down Lia’s figure. Lia’s face immediately warmed up a few degrees, then her mother took hold of her face, examining it closer. Lia let out a indignant squawk, “Mom! Not infront of the neighbor please!”

Clark simply laughed, “No, it’s alright. I can understand a mother’s worry as my own Ma does the same thing whenever she visits.”

Her mother nodded, “See! He doesn’t mind, habibi. Now, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you. Mr. Kent, if you would be a dead, could help me set the food on the table?”

Clark smiles, his teeth a little too white and dazzling. “Of course! But please, call me Clark.”

Her mother laughed, while nodding. “Of course, Clark. Now, come in, come in.” Her mother said, inviting Lia’s neighbor into her apartment. She let out a sigh, moving out of the way.

Before long, Clark, Lia and her mother were setting up dinner. Somehow, someway, Lia’s mother convinced Clark to stay for dinner, while sending meaningful glances towards Lia. Lia wanted to jump out of her window. Knowing that her mother would always be her wingwomen, was, strangely nice, but this time? Trying to set her up with fucking Superman? Nope. Nah. No happening mom, no matter how hot Clark looks. Not. Happening.

Her mother, soon strikes up conversation with Clark about work. He talks about the Daily Planet, and being a reporter. Soon, the topic veers to Lia, whose honestly forgotten that Clark was Superman for a couple minutes.

“...on the topic of internships, my Lia currently interns at LexCorp, if I’m not wrong.” Her mother says, sending a pointed look to Lia.

“Uh. Yeah. I’m currently working at LexCorp as an intern.” Lia says, watching for Clark’s reaction at the fact that she works for his biggest nemesis. She can see it, the infantasmal flinch, before he relaxes again.

“Oh, is that so? From what your mother said, didn’t you live in Gotham before coming to Metropolis?” He inquires, setting down some plates on Lia’s dining table. Lia freezes up, since, she can’t just say: Well, you see, I know the identities of Gotham’s infamous vigilantes, who happen to also run and own WE.

“Well, I wanted a change of scenery really.” Lia added smoothly, taking out all the food and sorting them. She kept her face and tone neutral, watching Clark’s every move and reaction.

His face had a knowing look, as he gave a small nod. “I can understand that. Gotham and Metropolis are two very different cities and wanting a change of scenery is a fine reason for moving.”

Lia hums noncommittally, while her mother sighs. “I still wished you would���ve stayed in Gotham, you know. It’s closer and I worry for you, Habibi.”

Lia buffs through her nose. “Mom. I’m 24 and very much so capable of protecting myself, considering you were the one who taught me how to knock a man thrice my size out in a single punch since I was 7.”

Clark makes a sort strangled noise and covers it up with a cough. Lia’s mother simple sighs, her face showing her true age. “Of course your capable of defending yourself. Why would I let my daughter out and about in Gotham of all places with being able to defend herself? I just worry, ya habibi. This is a whole new city and you also live by yourself.”

“I’ve been living by myself since I was 18, mom.” Lia interjected but her mother gives her a look.

“Yes, you have been living by yourself since you were 18 but at least you were nearby. I worry, regardless of the fact.”

Lia sighs. They’ve had this talk numerous times, before Lia moved to Metropolis and before she even uttered her concerns about wanting to move. “I know.” She says softly.

The conversation dies out, as everything soon is set. However, before they could start eating, Lia’s mother spots the stack of papers.

“Lia, what with the stack of papers?” She inquired, her head gesturing to the coffee table.

“The stack of what?” Lia yelled out, as she was in the kitchen getting a jug of water. Her mother, whose curiosity guided her, got up from her seat and took ahold of the papers.

“The papers on your coffee table. What are they for?” She asked again, when she heard Lia set the jug of water down.

Lia, whose brain was preoccupied with a million other thoughts, carelessly said the phrase: “Oh, my contract to become Executive Assistant to Lex Luthor.”

Clark almost dropped what he was holding, before discreetly catching it with his super speed. Lia’s mother stilled, her eyes wide as saucers, her lips slightly parted.

“Your what to whom?” Her mother asked, her tone beyond incredulous.

Lia short circuited. She realized what she just said. In front of fucking Superman. In front of her mother. Fuck. Why does the universe hate me?

Before Clark could say anything else on the matter, his phone buzzed. The mother daughter pair snapped their gaze at Clark, whose face grew even more surprised.

“Oh. I’m sorry, I have to go. Something urgent just came up.” He said, shoving his phone back into his pant pocket. The mother-daughter pair simply nodded, as they watched a slightly frantic Clark Kent shuffle out of Lia’s small apartment.

When they heard Lia’s apartment door shut closed, her mother’s head whipped towards Lia’s. Her face went rigid, the past surprise at the new was scrubbed away, being replaced with a cold, calculative look. She gestured to Lia to sit down, at the dining table.

Lia, who simply stared at her for a while, sighed, before taking the opposite seat across from her mother. She knew this conversation will be a long one, thus, she started to pile on the food her mother brought.

“The contract in your hands, is a contract between me and Lex Luthor. It’s about me becoming his Executive Assistant.”

Her mother hummed, while also taking some food. “So, you’re going to be his right hand, essentially?”

Lia nodded. Well, sure. I’m technically a glorified secretary with a lot of power now. But sure, right hand is a lot more appealing. But she didn’t voice those thoughts, simply taking a bite of her food.

“Well, this took a turn I did not expect it too.” Her mother said with a sigh.

“You and me both, mom.”

Lia never would’ve imagined, not in a million Earths, would she become Lex-fucking-Luthors Executive Assistant. She honestly thought she would finish her internship without much fanfare and move back to Gotham to apply for a position at the WE.

“So,” her mother began, setting her fork down. “How the hell did you catch Luthors eye?”

“Well, it’s a bit of a long story but...”

A COUPLE DAYS AGO, the department in which Lia was interning suddenly lost a handful of employees who quit for whatever reason. Not to mention, an important meeting was scheduled and was now completely fucked due to these employees leaving. Plus, some other important event was also going on with some higher level execs and that was also in jeopardy. Lia, who was witnessing this utter shit storm in real time, realized, oh fuck. This is bad. Really bad. And decided to do something about it. Lia, at the time, was known in her department as someone who can manage a schedule like no ones business, convince people to do things her way like it was as easy as drinking water. She had a reputation and the department head was a chicken whose head was cut off, trying to put out the proverbial fires one by one, rather ineffectively. Lia, who made friends with various other interns in other departments (who worked with other high level employees), and who had various connections in Metropolis, was able to salvage most of the day (and subsequent week). She was able to fill in those positions rather quickly (the department head was more then happy to oblige), re-schedule the various important meetings and events that were scheduled that in under three hours after some (what Lia called) “aggressive persuasion”. Somehow, someway, the story of some intern with godly management abilities, persuasion skills made its way up to the big man himself: Lex Luthor.

When Lex Luthor heard of this, he became intrigued. Thus, he called Lia up, all the way to his office. Lia, who when was told that fucking Lex Luthor himself wanted to see her, was understandably shitting bricks. Her mind immediately went to the fact that somehow, someway, he figured out that Lia knew the identities of various vigilantes. Lia, who was reasonably terrified at the thought, began to draw up counter arguments and contingencies.

The entire way to Lex Luthor’s office Lia went through the seven stages of grief (the extra two are Denial 2 and astral projection). She thanked those she loved, and made her not peace with God. When Lia finally arrived to Luthors office, she immediately compartmentalized all her feelings, slapped on her most convincing cooperate smile, and knocked on his door, saying in the most polite and calm tone she could muster: “Mr. Luthor? You called for me, Lia al-Abadi?”

The moment she heard the muffled “come in.” Lia sent one more prayer to whatever deity out their, and strode into Luthors office.

Now, Lia has seen pictures and clips of Luthors office. But, it was one thing too see it and another to be in it. Lia, when entering the large office, with Luthor facing the window out looking Metropolis, felt her heart drop all the way to the earths core.

Her hands were discreetly balled up in her sides, her nails digging crescent shaped moons into the palm of her hand. The shirt underneath her blazer was definitely soaked through, but, thankfully, Lia wore a black blazer today, so it wasn’t that noticeable. Probably. Hopefully.

Lia took in a deep breath, trying to calm her hammering heart. “Mr. Luthor?” She called out, her voice surprisingly even. Her heart hammered against her chest, so hard, it seemed it would burst through any moment. God, what the fuck is my life anymore.

Luthor, being the dramatic ass Supervillian that he is, spun around, his hands clasped together as he faced Lia, sitting in a typical, large, black, swivel chair. The only thing he was missing was the white cat in his lap. 

Lia could feel herself die a little when she made direct eye contact with the man, the legend, the Asshole, himself: Lex god damn Luthor.

“Ah, Ms. al-Abadi, please, do sit down.” He said, his voice uncharacteristically bright and inviting. But, Lia knows better then to trust the fox when it was simling. She could see the calculative glint in his eyes. Carefully, she walked towards Luthor, who kept his picture prefect smile. The only thing that filled Lia in for the eternally long, yet short walk towards Luthor was the clicks of her heel, and her heart hammering against her eardrums.

Her hand, which she forced to keep steady, took ahold of the chair, dragging it away from the desk. The ugly screeches of the chair legs against the marble floor still reasonated through Lia’s ears. But, at least she saw the slightly—almost invisible—eye twitch that gave away his annoyance.

Lia, who kept her face devoid of any emotions, slowly sat down. Her eyes still focused on Luthors stupid smiling face.

When she sat down (finally, Jesus Christ that was a lot more anxiety inducing then I thought) she kept her back straight, shoulder squared and her hands on her lap. She could still feel her heart beating hard against her rib cage, and the million thoughts of Luthor somehow finding out about Lia and her knowledge of the identities of the various vigilantes. Her hands became clammy, her entire being screamed, I AM VERY UNCOMFORTABLE! but, Lia was stuck in between the proverbial rock and a hard place (rock: chair, hard place: Luthor’s office).

Her lips stretched into her patented cooperate smile, “You had called for me, Mr. Luthor, sir?”. Fuck my life. Lia thought, still smiling while she slowly died on the inside.

Luthor bared his teeth, lips stretched into a smile. “Please, call me Lex, Ms. al-Abadi.”

Lia, with ever cell in her very being, absolutely rebelled at the prospect of calling Lex Luthor just Lex. For one, he’s her boss, and Lia was raised to be polite. Second, Lia only ever referred to Lex Luthor either as Luthor or Lex Luthor, never just Lex. Third, Lex Luthor is a goddamn Supervillain, no fucking way am I calling him by his first name.

Lia’s fave stretched out into a tight lipped smile. “I’m afraid cannot do that, Mr. Luthor.” She said through gritted teeth, face still stretched out into a tight lipped smile.

Luthor cocked his eyebrow. “Oh? And why is that?”

For one, your Supervillain. Second, me saying your first name, and just your first name, tiggers my flight or fight response. Lia, of course, did not response to Lex Luthor’s question with that reply. Instead she said, “For one, Mr. Luthor, you are my boss and I am your employee. Employees don’t generally refer to their boss by their first names. Secondly, me referring to you by your first name implies that I am in some way, shape or form, close to you. Considering this is my first time ever meeting you personally, I can’t—” Won’t “—refer to you by your first name.”

A beat of silence. Lia, who continued to smile at Luthor as he stared at her for a good few moments, before lightly chuckling.

“Well, when you put it like that, Ms. al-Abadi, I cannot disagree. However, I do hope in the near future you would be more comfortable calling me Lex rather then Mr. Luthor.” He said, his face all smiles.

For a moment, Lia was confused. She was simply a temporary intern that would leave in about two months, how would she hypothetically warm up to Luthor enough so to call him Lex? Plus, what he said also implied that Lia would stay in LexCorp long enough to warm up to Luthor.

Then a thought crossed Lia’s mind. Wait, does he want to be my sugar daddy?? Which Lia immediately shot down, as, this is Lex Luthor, why the fuck would he be interested in being my sugar daddy? Even though I am fucking beautiful, thats for sure. But still. Lia shuddered at the thought before getting back on the topic at hand.

“Mr. Luthor, I am just a simple intern that will be leaving in about two months. I don’t understand how I would be able to get close to you enough so that I refer to you by your first name,” Lia said.

Then another thought crossed her mind, “Unless, you’re planning on making me a full time employee?” There was a slight tilt in Lia’s voice, her eyebrows slightly pinched together. Lia, however, racks her brain for any reason why Lex Luthor of all people would personally call her to his office just to say he’s going to hire her as a full time employee.

Luthor nodded, “Precisely, Ms. al-Abadi. But, I don’t just want to make you any full time employee, that would simply be a waste of your talent and potential.” He said, reaching for one of his drawers, pulling out a stack of papers.

A wave of confusion wash over Lia. Talent? Potential? The fuck did I do to catch Luthors attention of all people? “I’m not sure what you mean by my ‘talent and potential’, Mr. Luthor.” She said, while shaking her head. She honestly didn’t think of anything note worthy enough to catch a awfully busy man like Luthor.

A flash of confusion flickered through Luthors face before being plastered with another smile. “Ms. al-Abadi, I’m sure you know your reputation among the other interns, right?”

Lia’s eyes narrowed, as she hesitantly nodded. She was infamous for managing a clusterfuck of a schedule into an actual, mangable schedule. Lia was also known for her “aggressive persuasion” tactics and the like.

“Not to mention, the situation in which many employees from the department you interned in, quit. Resulting in many important events and meetings to be up in the air. Not to mention some other notable things that happened that day.” Luthor said, matter of factly.

And, he wasn’t wrong. But the fact that Luthor knew of that utter shitstorm raised more then a few alarms in Lia’s head. The situation that occurred that day was promptly swept under the rug and Lia only complained about the situation to a couple intern friends and her brother. Then, the face of Ana—an intern from the PR Department—flashed through Lia’s eyes. Lia wanted to strangle herself. Of course she told fucking loose lipped Ana about situation that never should’ve reached Luthor’s ears, god fucking damn it. No matter how much Lia wanted to groan and fight God, she kept her composure.

Lia gulped down, rubbing her hands as another smile made its way onto her lips. “Well, I simply did what had to.” I had pull so many fucking favors, and most of my god damn grey hairs are from that day, Jesus Christ. Whenever Lia remembered that day, her face (internally) soured, and the need for her to curse out God, the universe, whoever, was so great she had to bite her tongue (literally) to force herself not to go on a 20 minute rant about the entire situation. Still, even with her bubbling feelings of pure, unbridled rage, Lia kept her composure. This is a professional environment. I’m infront of my boss. Whose one of the most powerful man in the US. Whose also a raging Supervillain. I have to stay professional. Professional...

“Nonsense, Ms. al-Abadi. From what I heard, you had a situation presented to you, a situation that was falling at the seems no less—and somehow salavaged it. In under three hours, you were able to salvage the situation, reorder them schedule and was able to avert a scandal as well.”

Lia, for whatever reason, felt her face grow hot at the praise. She, of course, knew how shitty the situation became—did what she always did—complained a bit, and moved on. Planning, reorganizing, improvising plans on the go, and her “aggressive persuasion” is something Lia always did. She didn’t find such things awfully notable, as she’s been doing this sort of thing since the ninth grade.

“T-That’s—” Lia cleared her throat. “That’s quit a bit of praise, Mr. Luthor, considering I didn’t do much aside from reorganize and persuased a few people. Nothing that I consider rather notable, enough so to earn your attention.” Unnecessary attention, was left unsaid.

Luthor simply smiled, his teeth too white and straight for Lia’s eyes. “You might consider it unnotable, but I beg to differ.”

Then beg—Lia almost retorted, but she caught the phrase before it could ever leave. Fucking siblings.

Luthor pushes the stack on papers closer Lia. “Which is why—I want you, Ms. Lia al-Abadi, to become my Executive Assistant.”

Lia, when she heard the words Executive Assistant concluded that the universe hates her and that she will make preparations to fight God.

Safe to say, Lia was just offered a prestigious position, next to Lex Luthor, to be his Executive Assistant. The same Lex Luthor who is actively fighting against Superman—the Justice League at large—and it an overall Supervillain. One of Superman’s most noteworthy Supervillian. A Supervillian, who can potentially kill Superman because he has access to a grow, green rock. A Supervillian who made a clone of Superman—combing his and Superman’s DNA—to do so. The same Supervillain, who essentially was asking: “Do you want to be my right hand?”

“You want me to be your what?” Lia asked in an incredulous tone. She looked at the stack of papers and Luthor several times, while pointing to herself. “Me? A 23 year old, with barely any experience in the cooperate world, work as your Executive Assistant?”

Luthor, surprisingly, nodded, his face not showing a hint of annoyance. “Yes, I am. Of course, you should take your time to think over my offer. It is Friday, and I’ll be expecting your answer next Monday. Come to my office at 3 PM, next Monday, and we’ll talk some more, Ms. al-Abadi. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have another meeting to get too.”

Next thing Lia knew, she was holding onto a stack of papers, in an elevator, going down back to her original office. When she came back, several people commented on how dazed and pale she looked. One of her supervisors even asked if she wanted the rest of the day off (as there wasn’t much left to do, either way). Lia, who was still reeling from the events that had just transpired, graciously accepted.

Lia’s mother, who kept on listening to the entire ordeal, from start to finish simply commented. “Well, damn.”

Lia groaned, her hands rubbing her face. “‘Well, damn’? That’s all you have to say on the fact that one of the most powerful man in America offering me a position as his god damn Executive Assistant?”

“Hey! It’s a lot for me to take in, and, it must a lot for you to take in.” Her mother said, reaching out, taking a hold of Lia’s hand. She gave a comforting squeeze.

“Yeah, it was...” Lia mumbled. She sighed, her eyes on the stack of papers detailing what Lia’s responsibilities were, and some other key information. The stack of papers that could change her life with a single stroke of a pen.

“So, what are you going to do? Accept Luthors offer, or...?”

“It’d be dumb for me not to accept it.”

“Damn right it would be!”

Lia shoot her mother a look, before continuing, “It’s just... I’m only 23 and me getting this job is just... There’s a lot to consider. Sure, I’m good at managing schedules, persuading people and—” Her mother snorted, waving her hand.

“Hey! I am good at all those things, you know.” Lia exclaimed, crossing her arms.

Her mother raised both her hands, shaking her head. “Never said you were bad at them, Habibi. Your a damn genius when it comes to organizing events and persuading people. Not good, not great, but a god damn genius.” Her mother voice clearly showing how proud she was of Lia.

The tips of Lia’s ears were painted bright red, as her face spilt into a grin. “Yeah, yeah, I guess I am. But, the matter at hand is that, I don’t have much experience in the cooperate world. And, I just graduated a couple months ago. Not to mention, if I accept the position, there’s going to be a lot of talk on how, I, a 23 year old, rather attractive women, who just recently graduated from Gotham U, who was just a regular intern, managed to get the position of Executive Assistant to Lex Luthor.”

Her mother sighed. “True, there definitely will be rumors regarding how earned such a position without much prior experience.”

Lia sagged in her seat, her mind a tornado of thoughts. Should she accept? Should she decline? Should she msyteriously disappear off the face of the Earth, never to be seen again? Decisions, decision, so many decisions with so many consequences and variables at play that made Lia’s head ache. She had time, but not enough. It was late in the evening on Friday, and Luthor wanted an answer by Monday afternoon. Great. Just a couple dozen hours till D-Day. Fan-fucking-tastic.

“What about a trial basis?” Her mother blurted out. Lia cocked her eyebrow, gesturing for her to continue.

“Like, what if, you were his Executive Assistant for a couple of months, on a trial basis. Just to dip your toes in and get a feel for the job. That sort of thing.” She said with a shrug.

Lia’s eyes widen, as if a light bulb went off her head. “Oh my god. Why didn’t I think of that? That’s prefect! Not only would it allow me ample time to see if I’m ready for such a position, but also invaluable experience if I were too not take the position or Luthor deemed me unworthy of it.”

With a sort of plan set in mind, Lia continued to eat, all with a smile on her face. Even if after the trial basis, Luthor deems me unfit, I still get away with a couple months worth of pay that would pay off my student loans, not to mention invaluable experience. I win regardless of the fact if I get the job or I don’t!

With the sun setting, and Lia eating her fill, while catching up with her mother on other past events, Lia can’t seem to stop smiling. Even if she’s going to become the (Reculant) Executive Assistant to Lex Luthor, who also is a Supervillian.

That’s it folks! I had a lot of fun writing this in all honesty, even though it’s not that good. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

Till next time.

[myrandomfandomramblings]

Arrowverse Science Fair AU

~2004 National Highschool (Gr. 8-12) Science Fair

Projects:

Felicity Smoak (Gr. 9) – Computer software to detect card counters. She may or may not have hacked into online card games to test it (this wasn’t included in/on her project.)

Cisco Ramon (Gr. 8 or 9) – Piano playing robot. He thought it played better than Dante. His parents didn’t agree.

Caitlin Snow (Gr. 9) – Analysis of physiological response to various stimuli. She wanted to find stimuli that would help kids cope with traumatic experiences (say crashing their bike or losing their father.) If she was able to find something that made her mom show some/any emotion that would be a bonus.

Barry Allen (Gr. 9) – Growing crystals (lots of different and cool ones). His project started out as an attempt to make something special for Iris for her birthday but turned into an elaborate project. It ended up being a good choice because 1) it reminded Barry of his parents (the first science experiment they did together was grow Borax crystals on pipecleaner and 2) it followed Joe’s ‘your science fair project must make, not destroy things’ rule instated after Barry’s Gr. 6 project.

Alex (Gr. 9) and Kara (Gr. 8) Danvers – Birds in my Backyard. Eliza had insisted on Alex getting Kara involved in her science fair project this year. Alex was excited to show Kara the science fair experience she enjoyed but wanted to pick a topic she knew more about that Kara (her knowledge of math and science was intimidating enough without the superpowers). Seeing Kara’s interest in birds they decided to study birds in their backyard. With Alex’s design and Kara’s powers they built tall post’s and attached bird houses and feeders with differing properties. They then monitored which kinds of birds built nests and ate from where (with some help from Kara’s flight and X-ray vision). Alex also picked 5 nests from different species to chronicle the embryo and chick development. Kara enjoyed doing the project and learning about birds from Alex. The actual science fairs, not so much but those were Alex’s favourite part. Note: Streaky was locked in the house for the duration of the project so he wouldn’t eat any of the birds.

Winn Schott (Gr. 11) – Pop-up room/ room in a suitcase. Being in the foster system for the last couple years inspired Winn to design a room that collapsed to the size of a suitcase for easy transport but could expand in less than a minute into a nice-sized, fully-furnished, sound-proof room, so no matter how many times a foster kid was moved around they always had their own space and stuff. Also good for camping, travel and special short-term events (like waiting in line at conventions).

Lena Luthor (Gr. 5) – Oxygen absorbing/releasing crystal that could allow breathing underwater. After her Mum drown when Lena was four, she was determined to develop a simple way for people to breath under water. She was able to do just that by synthesizing a substance that absorbed and stored large amounts of oxygen then released it slowly (so if someone held in in their mouth, they could breathe underwater). She was happy and excited that her mom and older brother were interested in her project but a little frustrated and concerned that they were so focused on its ability to absorb all the oxygen from a room (in a big enough amount). Although she supposed it could be used in that capacity to control/extinguish fires. Note: although in elementary school, Lena got to compete against the high schoolers since her project was so advanced for her age.

Sara Lance (Gr. 11) – The Biomechanics of Dance and Martial Arts. As punishment for skipping classes, then sassing her teacher and principal when they tried to discipline her for skipping classes, Sara had to complete a science fair project. To make the best of it Sara chose something that interested her. In hindsight she wished she hadn’t. Her project was so good she was chosen to represent her school at the state and national science fair.

Ronnie Raymond (Gr. 9-12?)- Structural design to minimize Superman related damage in Metropolis. Ronnie was proud of his project and had enjoyed analyzing the powers of Metropolis’ hero, but he lost any chance he had at winning when he decided to leave his project to go flirt with Caitlin. At least Kara, whose project was next to his, seemed interested.

Hartley Rathaway – something to do with sound waves

Lily Stein (Gr. 11) – designing and comparing different miniaturized forms of renewable energy sources. She had some help from her dad.

Patty Spivot – Recreation of crime scene evidence using food models. A bunch of her friends (her whole cabin actually) from her summer camp for those interested in law enforcement came to support her.

-       Maggie Sawyer – seemed really interested in the bird project

-       Ralph Dibny – found every project that said it was OK to touch. His favourite was slime. To Patty’s surprise he didn’t break anything.

-       Dinah Drake – hung out with Patty most of the time. Talked to Hartley, beside her, about his project on sound waves for a bit (seemed kinda interested). Patty joined her when she got into a conversation with Sara, across the way, and Laurel about the implications of her biomechanics project in fighting and self-defence. The rest of the time they talked about that Vince guy from camp Dinah thought was cute.

-       Eddie Thawne – he hung out with Patty most of the time too but did do a lap of the fair with Iris, who was there supporting Barry, when she accepted his offer to buy her something at the concession.

Notable events:

- Clark came to see Alex and Kara’s project and brought James and Lois with him. Kara and Clark (very subtly) tested the models on the project beside them that had been abandoned and were said to be superman proof/resistant. They were very impressed to discover the models did indeed stand-up to heat vison, freeze breath and super-strength leading Clark to believe the student had a bright future. James spent most of his time talking to Winn about his pop-up room project because, “Don’t you think these would be way better than cubicles, the Daily Planet should definitely purchase some.”

- Cat Grant, a young reporter from the National City Tribune pushing a stroller, came around and interviewed all the contestants because, “What better place to find the next world changing innovator or innovation” as she put it when she stopped to talk to Clark (more like flirt Kara thought). Alex used Clark distracting Cat as an opportunity to play with the baby in the stroller. This was the only time during the entire science fair Alex was distracted, except maybe when Maggie had come, but they mainly talked about the project like Alex did with everyone, which left Alex wondering why it felt different. During their entire interview Cat called Kara Kira, much to her annoyance. At least the baby seemed to like her. This interview sparked a conversation between Kara, Lois and Clark about journalism which Iris overhead while she was visiting Barry and joined in.

- Graduate students Ray Palmer and Curtis Holt were volunteer judges and ticket takers. Curtis wore a varsity jacket over his shirt and tie which covered his name tag, but at every project he judged he would describe every aspect as terrific, so the contestants started calling him Mr. Terrific. While judging Barry’s project they began a discussion about their favourite elements/minerals/gems. Barry couldn’t decide so joked he liked Barium. Ray shared his love for dwarf star alloy with a ‘quick’ lecture about its rumoured properties and potential uses. Curtis listed at least 10 compounds essential for modern tech as he flip-flopped back and forth trying to decide a favourite and Lex Luthor who was visiting his sister’s project beside them interjected that he favoured kryptonite. While taking tickets Curtis witnessed the following interaction. He asked Damian Darhk, who was carrying baby Nora, what brought him to the science fair. He responded with “These are the brightest young minds in the country and being young means they are malleable. So, there is nowhere better to recruit future talent for my enterprise.” Malcolm Merlyn, who was behind, him added “I know exactly what you mean with what the world’s coming to we’re going to need a bright mind to save it.” This led Tommy, who was accompanying him, to say “I thought we were just here to support the Queen’s.” Then one of the other judges, Dr. Harrison Wells aka Eobard Thawne in disguise, added “No your Dad is right. This world’s next HERO could be in this very room. I’ve already made a list of students to keep my eye on.” He pulled out a small piece of paper from his pocket. On it Curtis saw four names: Hartley Rathaway, Cisco Ramon, Caitlin Snow and Ronnie Raymond. This led to a long conversation between the three men about numerous threats to society, the country and the world and the possible drastic solutions that would need to be employed to stop them. When they left Curtis turned to Ray and asked, “Was it just me or were those Doomsday Dudes really creepy?” “What” Ray replied his attention clearly being pulled from elsewhere. But before Curtis could answer a voice behind him said “Doomsday Dudes is a terrible nickname you should call them the Legion of Doom.” Curtis turned to find Cisco. “Just saying,” he continued, “anyway I heard there’s free Big Belly Burger for the contestants. When’s that coming?” Ray had missed the entire conversation Curtis was asking about because he had been making funny faces at baby Nora the whole time hoping to make her smile or laugh but she had just stared at him with her big blue eyes.

- Queen consolidated gave out a $1500 scholarship and a summer internship at the applied sciences division. This year Moira and Robert had made Oliver come and brought 9-year-old Thea. Oliver was tasked with watching Thea who ran around the entire science fair wanting to look at and touch all the projects even the ones with big ‘Do Not Touch’ signs on them. She spent at least an hour trying to get everybody around the robot pianist to sing and dance with her. Most people ignored her although she was able to get Cisco, Winn, Stein, Joe, Kara (who kept trying to get Alex to join) and to Oliver’s surprise Malcolm Merlyn all to sing with her and they were all surprisingly good. She also got many people to dance including the Lance girls. She even convinced Cisco to make the robot play some of her favourite songs from Disney movies. Barry was very happy that he was able to convince Iris to dance with him for a couple songs with just a little encouragement from Thea and despite Kara’s constant encouragement Alex only agreed to dance when Maggie asked. Oliver had to present his family’s award which went to Felicity. When her name was announced Donna yelled “Woohoo, that’s my daughter! Way to go sweetie!” which earned a whispered “Mom, ssshh” and accompanied eye roll from Felicity as she headed to the stage with her head down and cheeks flushed. When she got onstage Oliver presented her with her award and Felicity began to babble, “Thanks. This is so cool. I’m such a big fan of yours… well not yours… your company… your family’s company. But uh you seem cool too. I could be a fan of yours, but not like a creepy stalker fan just like a normal supportive fan, ya know. I’m sorry, I’m rambling, it’s just, I don’t know what to say. Your very handsome… and I just said that out loud. I’m so sorry.” She stops and whispers “come on Smoak, pull yourself together,” then takes a deep breath before addressing Oliver again, “Thank-you again for the award and I look forward to working with you, or for you. I’m just gonna go now.” Oliver couldn’t help smiling as she left and thinking that just maybe if she had been around when Thea was partnering everyone up to dance he may have just participated.

- Kara quickly got bored of standing by her project and started wandering around to talk to the other contestants. She spent a good chunk of time talking to Barry. Tried to join in on a heated debate between Felicity, Cisco and Winn about the best language to code in but quickly left when she had no idea what they were talking about. She ended up spending most of her time with Lena. They talked about their projects, their lives and interests and about dealing with new and scary situations especially when you feel different from everyone else and learnt that they were both adopted. However, the whole time they were talking Lena’s eyes kept scanning the room as if waiting for something to jump out and scare her. Kara learnt why when a woman Kara thought must be Lena’s mother showed up and menacingly questioned why she was distracting her daughter.

- J’onn came in disguise to check out the Danvers sister’s project

[thecomicsnexus]

Discouraged of Man

DOOMSDAY CLOCK #12 FEBRUARY 2020 BY GEOFF JOHNS, GARY FRANK AND BRAD ANDERSON

In the final showdown, not only of Superman versus Doctor Manhattan, but of many factions of heroes and villains, we will all find out whether everything ends or not.

SCORE: 9

This is a super-spoilery review, so I cannot even post pictures (but you are invited to the spoiler section... ONLY IF YOU READ THE BOOK!).

As a sequel to Watchmen, I don’t feel like Doomsday Clock did a great job. As the DCU version of Watchmen, it isn’t bad at all. As I said previously, I think the narrative style and the symbolism is the biggest similarity with Watchmen. But instead of having a whole new world to explore, we get the DCU. This didn’t give much space to explore (whereas, the world of Watchmen was created for the story).

But let’s reconcile the two by saying that there is no sequel to Watchmen (at least not in comics), and this is a spiritual sequel of Watchmen inspired by the mini-series. I wouldn’t be able to recommend this story to someone that loves Watchmen and doesn’t like the DCU.

But I do recommend reading this story. Especially with all the bombs it dropped in the end.

The art also has a different approach. Doomsday Clock has a more “super-hero” approach to it, while Watchmen was trying to subvert the genre.

If we not compare this to Watchmen, we get perhaps one of the finest DCU events. Because the inspiration of continuing Watchmen brought a level of quality to it, that events usually don’t have. And believe me, this is an event.

Spoilers after the break...

So one of the biggest selling points of this saga, was the idea that Doctor Manhattan couldn’t see anything past his confrontation with Superman.

When I started seeing everything fading to black, I wasn’t sure what I was looking at... until I saw the “S” fade away like Saturn Girl did.

And then the Metaverse is fixed by Manhattan and the Legion and the JSA are back. This is the new version of the Legion, but the JSA looks almost like it used to before Flashpoint.

But why is it that Jon couldn’t see past that? For a being that experiences all the moments seemingly at the same time, a reset shouldn’t be an issue. But I suppose it would be a similar impediment like the one he had at the end of Watchmen.

Also, this kind of implies Hypertime is really back. The Metaverse grows with each crisis. So the New 52 still exists somewhere.

Then it starts looking into the future. There seems to be another event next year, something about old gods. Then five years into the future, another “zero-hour” like event will possibly reboot the DCU or at least give it a soft-reboot. Well, after this crisis, 5G happens. As in fifth-generation. This could mean that all these rumors about Luke Fox becoming Batman and other similar legacy characters, could happen for a period of five years (???).

Then the whole point of this issue. The Kents are back, and Jon kind of met his God in Superman. He was the most powerful man, until he met Superman, and discovered he was the hope of the metaverse, always correcting the timeline, no matter what happens to him.

And this leads to him snatching a baby and repeating this “solution” of the metaverse into his own universe, by sending “Clark” to Laurie and Dan.

Now, is this outcome believable. Maybe. I am not sure exactly what inspired Manhattan that he couldn’t have seen in his many experiments before.

More interesting is the idea that Marionette and Mime will have a daughter that will be “Clark”’s anchor into that world. I am not sure what that means right now. My guess is... this character will be back for 5G.

There is a moment where Superman tells Manhattan there is a third option. This option is somehow of acceptance. At least for what we see through “Rorschach”.

I am sure many theories have started with this issue, so the Internet will figure all of it out.

The main reason Doomsday Clock has problems achieving the “10″ score is that it relies on you reading Watchmen for it to make sense. At least during the first episodes.

[whetstonefires]

While i was rifling thru your fic tag like a half-starved raccoon in a cake tin I found your clone Damian's fic & i'm in LOVE! And like, do u hav anymore meta on that verse? like how do the rest of the fam find out? how do they REACT?! how does Damian? does the heretic clone still exist? Just reading abt tim with a bunch of tiny dami's gave me heart palpitations. Thank you for this gift.

(In reference to this post.)

Why thank you!

It’s vaguely inspired by some meta @cerusee and @audreycritter did about what if Damian was one of several identical clones, but I’ve been fascinated by the character potential suggested by Damian having been cloned since Talia first revealed it, so.

Let’s see.

I don’t think the Heretic still exists, not in the form we saw. This story fragment sort of assumes Talia went less crazy than they made her for the whole Leviathan storyline; she doesn’t regard the clones as sons the way she does Damian (she totally relied on cloning to get him perfectly matched organ replacements, like that spine) but she’s not “sons are born to die in battle” “let’s grow him big inside a WHALE” levels of whacked out.

She hasn’t fully committed to having them compete to be selected as the official Damian #2, either, because she’s still attached to the original, though the growing prospect of that was a lot of the reason they ran for it. One of them might have wound up as the Heretic, in another timeline? But it was a timeline that diverged long before they fled the League.

So they make it to Tim’s emergency van without being intercepted, and get as far as his secure site on city limits, but they have to fight their way through the last leg of that trip and to make it inside the bunker, and it’s supplied for a siege but not really big enough for eight people, even if seven of them are small, and also staying there and being besieged would draw the attention of the Bats, which defeats the whole purpose of not making for the Cave/calling reinforcements.

So he calls his friends for extraction, and they all wind up in Kansas.

Tim puts off contacting the family until the clones have with his guidance sorted out exactly how they want to present themselves.

Unfortunately, the last stage of the ninja battle was showy enough not to be overlooked, so his absence was noticed much sooner than he expected, and regarded as more worrying. On the second day Dick calls Kon to see if he knows where Tim’s gotten to, and Kon fails to lie adequately.

Dick can’t pressure Kon as easily as he can most people because last time he asked Kon for a favor Kon came to the North Pole and died for him.

Which is the kind of thing even Nightwing isn’t veteran enough not to take seriously.

But he still calls his bluff and asks a bunch of questions, and winds up very suspicious and worried, so at this point Tim and the Damians have to hurry up and figure out how to announce the situation or go on the run from the Bats as well as the League, which would be. Not smart.

Tim explains the situation over videochat with the Cave before having the cloneboys join him on the feed; this spares them the worst of the yelling.

Bruce, Dick, and Damian all respond pretty badly. Bruce because he doesn’t like change and he’s reflexively suspicious, and having eight Damians to raise is a justly horrifying notion. Also anti-clone prejudice. It’s unfortunately an established trait of his, though not like. A strong one.

Dick because he’s really defensive of Damian, and perceives this first and foremost as an emotional threat to his bab’s fragile identity.

Damian because he knows exactly how he was raised to react to someone being in a place he wants, and he knows how many opportunities his father’s household policies gave him to take shots at Tim, and they may be six years old but there are seven of them. He is going to die.

All things considered, Damian’s being the most rational here.

He’s wrong though. The clones were raised as disposable ninjas, not princes; they’re perfectly well aware killing him would gain them nothing, and they have very little sense of entitlement.

Bruce and Dick do try to be nice to the kids once it’s finally settled they will be staying at the Manor at least for a bit, because they need to be somewhere safe and Bruce can’t leave them at Clark’s house forever. Even Ma Kent has her limits.

But Bruce blows bewilderingly hot and cold and Dick kind of makes a point of of not being too warm to them, because he’s loyal to his demon brat. Damian starts staying at his place a lot and consequently working with Nightwing instead of Batman.

Bruce has no idea what to do about this or if he even should do something. Damian’s thirteen, right? Teenagers are supposed to rebel??? This is a pretty harmless way to do that?

But he misses him.

This does lead to making more time for the Seven Identical Six-Year-Olds.

Their sense of morality revolves around having made the breakthrough to valuing on another’s lives; they aren’t as opposed to not-murder as Damian was but they’re also a lot harder to coax into seeing things his way because they don’t need as much from him, emotionally.

This makes them ironically less terrifying for Bruce, even if he’s still having trouble actually bonding with them the way he normally does with his kids.

Barbara meanwhile is cautious. She always takes a while to warm up to new people, and she doesn’t have Tim’s history with clones to get her over that speedbump. She tries very hard to be fair, but she’s not really welcoming. She’s Reserving Judgment.

Jason thinks this is the funniest thing ever and goes out of his way to tease Damian about it. Privately he’s super creeped out, but as that wears off he starts getting mad about Bruce and Dick making the kiddos feel unwelcome and at some point does a rant, and after that is vaguely protective in a useless sort of way.

He enjoys being a bad influence. The septuplets also enjoy this. They think he’s funny, too, and he’s easier to communicate with than most people around here. Achieves a fairly high tier on the Favorite Non-Clone Brother list they aren’t exactly keeping.

Cass is super about these kids. She can relate to them even more than to Damian, because they weren’t raised as heirs to anything and don’t have the sneering put-down form of pride going, and also she’s actually around to meet them at the crucial getting-to-know-you stage.

She thinks sparring one-on-seven is an excellent sibling bonding activity. There are assassin-child puppy piles once they’re all worn out. Many photos are taken.

She’s doing much better than Bruce at getting them to extend their nascent sense of empathy beyond one another, without actually making an effort. It’s not like they’re actually much behind their cohort when it comes to social development, they’ve just got murder conditioning flattening their affective empathy. (And are ahead of cohort intellectually, which contributes a lot to the dissonance.) Cass’ accidental therapy involves butterflies.

Tim continues to be around, a lot more than he has been for a while because he’s kind of obligated to see this through. The septuplets trust him, which is more than they do anybody else for a while, so he winds up with a lot of childcare duties.

Since this amounts to ‘showing them where to find soap’ and ‘being in their vicinity’ rather than i.e. brushing their teeth for them and making sure they don’t steal each others’ snacks, he’s fairly okay with this.

Sizdahum sticks especially close, which is fine because he’s not a big talker; he winds up getting a lot of absent lessons on detective work.

Tim gets yelled at for having murder scene photos open in front of him; both of them and Haftum, who happens to be there at the time, roll their eyes a lot throughout.

Tim’s friends also visit the Manor a few times specifically to visit the kids, since they already met them. At one point the Damian clones, Tim, Kon, Wonder Girl Cassie, and due to rumor mill Anita, Cissie, and Greta all have a picnic in a rare afternoon of sunshine on the Manor grounds.

Alfred packed the picnic so it has ludicrously expensive cheese, a fruit salad featuring freshly pitted cherries, and thermoses of milkshakes in the favorite flavors of everyone who got one, even the ones he’s never met before. In response to this bounty Anita threatens to come to visit every time she can get babysitters for her parents.

Then she considers introducing her parents to the clone kids. They’re turning out almost as weird, even if in theory they don’t remember their previous lives. We’ll see how that turns out.

Bruce got used to how all his sons’ friends know his secret identity over a decade ago, it’s…fine.

Steph thinks they’re creepy but she’s far enough from ground zero to laugh about it, especially about their occasional appearances as Tim’s row of ducklings, and also she trusts Cass’ judgment.

Everyone does, to a certain extent; it helps the septuplets’ cause incredibly over the course of the first few weeks. It wins Alfred off the fence about them after about three days, which is quite a coup; even before that he was fast catching up with Tim in the ‘learning the differences between the septuplets’ sweepstakes.

(Cass is the only one who can even semi-reliably tell them all apart if they’re not wearing their nametags, or catch them switching, but learning things like their individual preferences in weaponry or cake is arguably much more important.)

Speaking of names, it’s a difficult issue. Bruce would (with considerable angst and self-doubt) be willing to name them all if asked, and they’d probably be open to it if he offered, but they’re not quite comfortable naming themselves and he’s too insecure and weirded-out to suggest anything else.

The other members of the family are varying degrees of not okay with the numbering system. Steph’s main issue with it is she has trouble remembering them precisely, because she doesn’t speak Farsi and learning seven unfamiliar similar-sounding words at the same time doesn’t play to her strengths.

Damian has a tendency to call them by their numbers in English, which only some of the clones actually mind but it offends the hell out of Bruce.

The necessity of keeping them secret until they have actual public-ready names and a story has been settled on wears on everyone’s nerves a bit. The issue that there exists no story more believable than the actual extremely weird truth stands in the way.

Barbara actually crafts an entire cover about rescuing the products of an illegal cloning operation by people planning an overly complicated ransom scheme for Damian, and Bruce going ‘well dammit they’re my kids too,’ which doesn’t get deployed for a while because:

1) everyone’s still hunting for something a little less weird and

2) they have to review the entire body of legal precedent relating to clones to make sure this won’t put the kids in jeopardy down the line or undermine Bruce’s chances of getting custody somehow.

Meanwhile, Bruce absolutely forbids the clone squad from getting involved in vigilante fighting. Because they are six. They’re not quite on house arrest but they have strict supervision and a curfew. They mostly accept this; they’re used to discipline and they did come here for refuge.

He tries to take away all their live weapons. Because they are six. This fails to stick. It threatens to become a serious bone of contention.

Cass, Tim, and Damian (somewhat unwillingly) wind up having to broker the issue; explaining to Bruce that the kids think he suspects them of plotting murder, and to the kids that Bruce doesn’t think they can be trusted not to hurt themselves with sharp objects is. Fraught. On all sides.

Why does Bruce never get any kids for whom normal responsible parenting guidelines are fully applicable?

[huff-le-and-puff]

Template by: @hogwartsmysterystory

I saw this post done by other people and it inspired me to make my own.

☆

Hogwarts Mystery Character Profile- Alexa Clark

General Information

Name: Alexa Marie Clark

Age: 15 (start of 5th year)

Gender: Female

Nicknames: Pip (by Jacob), Lex (by close friends), My Bow(trickle) (by Barnaby)

Date of Birth: 26 August 1973

Astrological Sign: Virgo

Alignment: Chaotic Good

Ethnicity: Caucasian

Nationality: Irish

Species: Wizard, Animagus

Blood Status: Half-blood

Family

Father: Richard James Clark

Muggle

Owns his own restaurant

177 cm and of average weight, light brown hair with a reddish tint, his face is always slightly red

Despite marrying a witch and having magical children, he still refuses to believe the wizarding world exists (he believes he is sending his children to a very exclusive private school)

Makes the best Shepherd's Pie

Has family in America

Mother: Madeleine Marie Clark (nee Rosier)

Pureblood

Sorted into Gryffindor, despite coming from a line of Slytherins

When she married Richard, she was banished from her family (who thought highly of blood status).

Became a potioneer (Richard thought she was just a chemist) until Jacob's disappearance. She became so embarrassed from her son's actions that she quit her job and completely disappeared from the wizarding world and helped her husband run his restuarant.

Petite and forgetful (constantly left potion ingredients around the house for her children to accidentally get their hands onto)

Since Jacob's disappearance, she began to blame herself for not seeing Jacob resort to her blood family's ways and completely isolated herself from the wizarding world and her daughter.

Brother: Jacob Edward Clark

Born in 1964 (nine years older than Alexa)

Half-blood

Sorted into Hufflepuff due to his loyalty and patience towards his sister

After learning about the Cursed Vaults, he knew he had to get the treasure to support his family, and to give his sister some more excitement in her life. He was so determined that he forgot to take a step back to see the damage that he has done along the way.

Affiliation(s)/Organization(s):

Hogwarts

Hufflepuff

Magical Characteristics:

Boggart: A Snake (Alexa fears the unlikely, for snakes in Ireland? Highly unlikely. She fears that something that is highly unlikely is going to happen, such as running into already prevented danger. Plus she also has a giant phobia of snakes due to the rumors about the Chamber of Secrets.)

Mirror of Erised: Alexa surrounded by her family and Barnaby all smiling happily without the weight of war and curses on their shoulders.

First Wand:

Hornbeam

Dragon Heartstring

11 inches

Inflexible

Pets:

Remy (A rat she found her first year that has stuck with her since the very first day)

Franklin (Toad)

Jonas (Cat)

Patronus: Cheetah

Patronus Memory: Jacob coming home from his third year at Hogwarts with a stolen Confusion Concoction he made in class. They used the potion to confuse their father while at their cousin's birthday party the week after Jacob got back from school.

Animagus: Cat

Amortenia:

What she smells- Fresh laundry, sandalwood, cinnamon

What she smells to others- parchment, lavender, fire

Appearance:

Height: 158 cm

Weight: 62 kg

Complexion:

Tanned skin, just like her mother, with freckles sprinkled all over her face

Has eczema all down her right arm. She likes to tell others that it is a burn from fighting dragons when she was a small child. No one ever believes her.

Hair Color/Style:

Medium-length dark brown hair; tends to turn reddish when she spends too much time in the sun

Extremely frizzy so Alexa tends to constantly pull it back into a low ponytail to keep it under control and out of her face

Eye Color: Brown

Hogwarts Information:

Worse Class(es):

Flying: Although Alexa isnt the worst at flying, she prefers to be on the ground. She hates going too fast, causing her to fall a little behind during class.

History of Magic: No matter how hard she tries, Alexa can never remember years and what events happened at what time. Her concept of time goes over her head, never knowing what happened when.

Best Class(es):

Potions: Although Snape is super strict and is constantly putting Alexa down for her work, she is really good with potions due to her mother. She was always on top of her studies for potions came natural for her.

Charms: Alexa is one of the top in her year with Charms (running head and head with Ben Copper). During her free time, she tutors first-year students and is constantly practicing new charms in the Charms Classroom.

Least Favorite Teacher:

Rakepick: From the very beginning, Alexa refused to trust her. Alexa has always gotten an eerie vibe from her and refuses to get too close to her (both physically and mentally).

Favorite Teacher:

Professor McGonagall: Alexa looks up to Professor McGonagall as a mentor. Even though they are from different houses, McGonagall is always there to steer Alexa in the right direction and Alexa appreciates all of the extra help she does to keep her in the right path in life.

Closest HPHM Friends:

Rowan Khanna:

From the moment they met each other, they both knew they would be friends for the rest of their life. Together they would study for upcoming tests and prepare for the Cursed Vaults. However, as time went on they began to drift apart. But once a month they both stay up all night and catch each other up on the drama in their lives as they share Chocolate Frogs and other sweets with each other.

Penny Haywood:

The two girls bond over their enjoyment of potion making together. They constantly gives each other tips about various things without no explanation or reasoning at all. Penny is the girl that Alexa can go to whenever she has a problem. Penny always knows what to say and always calms down Alexa's nerves.

Bill Weasley:

Bill is like the replacement brother for Alexa. Ever since Jacob ran away, she has been lost without any guidance or protection. But when she met Bill, she knew she had someone to call family if she ever needs it. Bill is always there for Alexa, adopting her as his own sister. They have a close sibling relationship that has bonded them forever.

Barnaby Lee:

Alexa and Barnaby was an instant pair as soon as they laid eyes on each other. Although they did not recognize their feelings right away, the two bonded immediately. It wasn't until the Celestial Ball their 4th year that Alexa had the guts to ask Barnaby out. Even then, they were not officially dating until a week before the end of the year when they went on their first official date. Alexa has always been patient with Barnaby's slowness but it was always worth it when he would surprise her with cute sketches of bowtrickles (Alexa's favorite creature) in her textbooks and notes.

Favorite Spell(s):

Episkey- She is always injured or hurt

Accio- Lazy af

Alohomora- She is forgetful like her mother and always forgets to bring keys with her

Depulso- Alexa's go-to dueling spell

Trivia/Random Facts:

Despite having fun being a Curse Breaker, Alexa also enjoys helping and curing others. After Hogwarts she becomes a Healer at St Mungo's until right after the second wizarding war when she takes a 4 year break to help Bill Weasley with the surplus of cursed items from the war.

She marries Barnaby Lee 2 years after graduating from Hogwarts. They have a small wedding with all of their friends from Hogwarts.

Her favorite ways to pastimes include: visiting the magical creatures she has adopted, playing Wizard Chess, and going to Three Broomsticks to have a butterbeer with her friends.

Barnaby and Alexa snuck out of their houses during the summer before their 5th year (during the week of Alexas birthday) and camped out in the woods, enjoying nature and the creatures they found (both magical and non magical)

Alexa has a Weasley sweater that Molly knitted for her. Instead of the sweater having a giant A on the front, Bill told his mum (on purpose) to put a W on it (making Alexa an unofficial official Weasley)

Her favorite bands include: Weird Sisters, Journey, and Blondie

[geek-gem]

Brightburn

Basically made this on DeviantArt first and my friend @whovian45810 told me of the extras thing and it's on here. Pretty long post, just a warning and some what of a review and reaction whatever in a way.

Pasted it and adjusted it. My honest thoughts on the film.

Well after long while of anticipation I finally saw Brightburn.

I didn't make this immediately because walked over here to this McDonald that's near my theater or theatre whatever. Especially was texting some friends and the internet wasn't up or something.

I'll just get it over with but I thought it was excellent. I liked the film but I feel like my anticipation might of got me a bit. Yet not in a very negative way. Yet I feel my friend Whovian told me about when she saw the movie last night.

I don't wanna make this very long but I wanna say some stuff. Again I liked it, but I feel after watching the trailers a lot and I guess yeah theorising about the film might of actually got me to see how the movie goes.

Yet I was pleasantly surprised still. Mainly by some directions they took with the film. But I'll be honest while my legs felt weird(but also because of personal reasons) like out of fear. But I wasn't horrified a lot because I think because of watching the trailers I kind of guessed what happened.

But I appreciate what the film was doing. Especially the promotions using the word, "Bold" as a way to describe the film I agree.

While it is undeniably a horror film. Including there were moments I was shocked by(mostly of how they were played out and other things) some moments where I had my arms almost over my mouth.

I weirdly view this film as some sort of tragedy in a way. Because the way it's played out, it's literally a super villain origin film. But with a horror twist. Especially it being heavily inspired by Superman because it is using Superman as the basis and his origin in a way. But I do view even though I view it as some sort of tragedy. Our main antagonist and in a way protagonist Brandon Breyer what he does in the film is basically unjustified. I think it was the way the film with of how he became what he was that makes me feel sad of how everything went. Because it feels like what happens to Brandon could of been dealt with but like I read on Wikipedia even before the movie came out. It's the Superman origin story but it takes a terrible left turn or something. Someone said that somewhere but it's not quoted by someone.

Especially to me I think what made it work was the cast. I feel the standouts were I hoped were Elizabeth Banks, and David Denman as Tori and Kyle Breyer. They were the strongest of the cast to me. Everyone else did a nice job but I just loved Elizabeth and David with what they were given. Including throughout the movie as things get worse.

But also the other stand out is Jackson A Dunn who appeared in Avengers Endgame as well as Brandon Breyer or the title Brightburn. He does a good job of playing a pre teen kid especially as he turns into the monster the promotions keep seeing.

Again it's what I thought what the movie might be. While it's a horror film yes, but it's weirdly this tragic tale that to me is kind of sad.

In fact I felt like I wanted to cry a bit but it sounds ridiculous. Because again I don't defend what Brandon does in the film. Including I don't wanna compare this to something like Jason Voorhees because they are two completely different characters.

But it feels like the film to me was a horror film mixed with tragedy. I could be stupid or what the hell.

Including to me personally while I don't wanna spoil anything. While Brandon is menacing when he needs to be. It wasn't all Michael Myers as I heard some folks talked about or what I had thought. Again he was great in the role, more emotional than what I was expecting which is good in a weird way.

Let me tell you this. Especially I read from Twitter and a guy's review I retweeted I saw someone mention, "Mortal Kombat style fatalities" or something like that. Yeah their is some gore and the film does not hold back on it.

Including I'm not gonna spoil any deaths or any gruesome stuff. But during the PE school scene, and the trick scene. I heard a guy I think the same guy go, "UGH" or, "OH" I think most likely during those two moments. Because they are just shocking to see how they play out and I wondered as well. Including other scenes it's just shocking.

To me personally because while yes evil Superman has been dealt with in other media. Yes I know in Superman 3 from what I know their is a evil Superman. But I'm talking about a being with Superman like powers doing this stuff in a R rated fashion and it's brutal. So just a warning about that if you plan on seeing it. Because I even thought if I recall they didn't hold back. Especially even said that to the guy on his Twitter review.

Also it felt short I've read someone said that too. Yet the movie did it's job but it didn't reveal everything. Including I feel in some weird way the ending seemed rushed. But it didn't anger me but it was short. Mainly the last part of the last act or whatever.

Now the ending and this is what people were complaining about and hated. Especially I was spoiled in a way by a thumbnail. The ending of the movie before the very ending. In a weird way I expected that final scene to be something like shot by Zack Snyder like it's weirdly beautiful but tragic. Because it's like this moment where Brandon's arc as a antagonist and his transformation as Brightburn is complete in a way.

I think the best way to say the film ends well, grim might be the best word. I've remember the guy from that Twitter review even say it's not for everyone if they can't handle the doom or gloom stuff whatever he said.

But I don't know if I should say depressing. Because it really does leave the idea of, "What happens next" and fits into what I said, it's basically a super villain origin story, it's about Brandon and his arc to become what could be the most terrifying force on the planet. Unless they do more films in the universe of Brightburn because I'll talk about that.

Again basically what Bruce and Lex talked about in BVS. Including like I said the dark reflection of what Clark Kent could of been. Including I'm gonna mention this I'm a guy who loves Man Of Steel and Batman V Superman. It truly is the what Amanda Weller said in Suicide Squad if another Superman came around and wasn't like Clark. Yet I still haven't seen Suicide Squad.

Gonna say again I'm not spoiling anything. I had hoped for a scene where Kyle says shit like, "Stop expecting him to save the world, fighting super villains, or saving cats from trees!" As a call back to Superman in a way or what I thought Tori would think Brandon might become. But the film deals with Brandon's origin in a different way. Because again it still surprised me. Also it would probably make the transformation of Brandon into a super villain even more sad if something like that was said.

Now the well....Whovian told me this...theirs a mid credits scene yes. I stayed for the whole movie after the credits hoping for the scene or an extra one in case, because I'm weird like that.

It's a little spoiler but I don't wanna spoil anything major. The mid credits to me goes quick and if you weren't told about the mid credits scene you wouldn't think it was. I was expecting one after it but their wasn't any.

Yet it does set up some stuff if this franchise is continued. Because to me a little spoiler.

I swear I feel one of the pictures had a little Spider-Man reference to what could be the Brightburn version of what Spider-Man could be like. It was mainly the eyes but I'd rather have you guys see it.

Yet I didn't look fully at the others but it was that one picture that really got my interest. Because I'm wondering if we will get more films like this of, "What if this popular superhero but not the same character instead became a super villain or some killer" while I worry it might get lazy because I think of my ideas. Also the audience might get tired of it. Yet I do wanna see more films like this.

Anyway I should close this up. I wanna mention my theater/theatre wasn't really packed at all. Only a few people but seriously I was in seat G1 funny Transformers reference I thought when I got the seat. But really maybe 10 or 9 just I wasn't sure 8 or 7 or 9 I don't know and wanna be honest with myself

But I'm grateful no kids were in there during the showing. Because hearing stories of kids being taken to films like Deadpool weirdly bothers me. I feel the films promotions really got the message out that this isn't a horror film. But what it's called a super hero horror film. Especially I don't want any kids seeing this film holy shit.

Again I liked the film. It wasn't as amazing as I thought it was. But it was good and I hope to see more like it. I recommend it if you want something different instead of the MCU or other comic book related stuff. Despite the film is mainly it's own original work not really based upon anything but uses Superman as a basis. Or if your a DCEU fan you might like this.

But be warned it's brutal and it doesn't hold back on what it does. It can be scary and tense at times it depends. Just don't get over hyped maybe.

On a more sillier note to end on. If we get a sequel or have a cinematic universe for Brightburn and even before I saw the movie I'm concerned this movie might do well since not many people saw it when I was there. I mean Aladdin came out today too.

But again if we get a cinematic universe and well a sequel, bring on the Brightburn version of Lex Luthor. But most importantly bring the Brighburn version of Doomsday please! I want to see that immortal friendly giant that would take on Brandon aka Brightburn please. But also other Brightburn versions of popular comic book characters so they can fight to the death in a weird way similar to Freddy Vs Jason but with superpowers and other stuff.

[travllingbunny]

The 100 rewatch: 1x05 Twilight’s Last Gleaming

I’m a new fan of The 100, who first binged it last year, August to November. This is my first full rewatch of the show. I was planning to start it anyway and finish it before the season 6 premiere on April 30, and when I saw that Fox Serbia was airing a rerun (Monday to Friday, 40 min. after midnight, with repeats the next day), starting on 1st February, it was a great opportunity to start my rewatch in HDTV on my beautiful new TV. I decided to do write-ups and tag other fans on SpoilerTV website, as I did when I was first watching the show. But my posts turned into full blown essays. So, finally, after over a week, I’ve realized: Why don’t I post them on my Tumblr blog, too? I’ll copy my write-ups of the first 7 episodes, and then I’ll post my rewatch posts after I watch each episode. (The next one, 1x08, is on Monday’Tuesday.)

Spoilers below for all 5 seasons of the show. I go of on a tangents and make a lot of references to future events.

Rating: 8.5/10

This episode really shocked me and emotionally affected me back when I first watched, and it's when I first realized the show didn't pull punches.

Killing individual characters for shock value - that's nothing new, but killing a bunch of innocent people like that, having the audience expect throughout the episode for them to be saved at the last moment, and then instead they die anyway, when it could have been stopped... I really wasn't expecting that. Now it's far less shocking after you've seen The 100 use mass murder as a plot device multiple times. Well, this is not a murder, technically, since the people eventually volunteered for it to saved their loved ones. But before Abby decided to be seriously badass and show Jake's video to everyone and tell them the truth about the Ark dying, the 100 being sent to the ground, and the upcoming culling, the Council was planning to straight up murder 320 people and then lie about it, claiming it was an accident. And, as Clarke points out to Bellamy in this episode, it's certain that those would have been working class people rather than the Ark elite. The class issues the show keeps stressing is of those things that keep it from justifying the Ark leadership for their actions on the grounds of survival, tough choices, blah blah blah, and I'm glad for it. Jaha was here planning to be one of the people who died (but I bet a large part of the reason was because he thought his son was dead... which he was, just not for the reasons he thought), until Kane convinced him not to. They had a back and forth about who's the better leader, with Jaha arguing Kane had the strength to make tough choices, and Kane arguing later that Jaha was able to inspire people. And they were both kind of right, but not in the way they thought. Kane has changed a lot during the show, from pragmatist to idealist, from pessimist to optimist, but he's always been a guy who 100% believes in whatever course of action he's chosen, thinks it's right and throws himself into it, in a way that often comes off as a bit naive. But he does suck at winning the popular vote, going by the fact that he was never elected Chancellor and that he lost to Pike in S3. While Jaha somehow managed to get elected, bull&s.hits really well in a speech in episode 1x07, and in S4 we see him give speeches to the people for the benefit of Clarke and Bellamy that show how good he can be at swaying people, even when he's not in power. But S2-3 also showed the most awful version of his messianic complex and influence. Something else that has always bothered me about the culling is, we see people sacrifice themselves for their children (like Tor Lemkin for his daughter Reese) or their romantic partners (the guy who wants to do it for his wife), which is something we see multiple times in the show. But we don't see how their loved ones feel about it, whether they tried to stop them (Tor's daughter Reese didn't realize what was going on, but the adults did). How will Reese will about losing her father when she learns what he did, and that he did it for her? In the next episode, we see the husband of one of the victims in the culling in 1x07, and in S5 we learn Kara Cooper's father was one of the 320. I wonder how many of the people from the Ark that lost there loved ones are even alive by S6? This is also the episode that made me feel better about the Clarke/Finn/Raven love triangle, because it was dealt with much better than I expected. Another reason why this was a turning point when I was really on board with the show. Speaking of that love triangle - this show really loves the scenes where Clarke is shocked and hurt to find out someone has a girlfriend by seeing him reunite with her and kiss her. They did the exact same thing in S5. And both times the camera zooms on Clarke's face rather than on the couple, though in this case, they didn't go as far as to blur Finn and Raven out of focus. But these are two very different situations, of course. Among other things, because in S5, it was no one's fault, while this situation is fully Finn's fault. I've loved the way Clarke dealt with learning Finn had a girlfriend, absolutely not doing the "being catty and fighting over a guy" thing, but the exact opposite. She's heartbroken, but she immediately bottles it up. She clearly hates being the 'other woman' and her instinct when feeling unwanted is to completely withdraw. You know who definitely isn't dealing with it well? Finn. He's clearly uncomfortable as he wasn't expecting Raven to come, and then he goes to indicate to Clarke that he would like to continue a relationship with her, which she refuses... so he then goes back to Raven and acts like everything is fine, because if Clarke doesn't want him, why not stick with Raven, and has no intention of telling Raven that he slept with someone else, or that he's in love with Clarke or that he would like to be with Clarke. Just like he never thought it would be right to tell Clarke that he has a long-term girlfriend on the Ark. Speaking of relationships, but in this case, not very serious ones, one of Bellamy's friends with benefits we see him in bed with in this episode, Bree (the blonde one), is the same girl who came onto him and presumably had sex with him in season 4, while partying as one of Jasper's end-of-the-world suicide group, and who went on to be one of those who killed themselves. But I'd be lying if I said I would make that connection if I didn't see it on The 100 wiki. The other girl, Roma, ends up killed by the Grounders in 1x07. This was still the time when Bellamy was often acting in a very frustrating way - due to his narrow focus on just Octavia and himself and not yet the group as a whole or people in general - and massively screwing up things, and never more than in this episode, by stealing Raven's radio and throwing it in the water, so Jaha couldn't come down to execute him. Now, he did know about the Ark being on its last legs, but had no idea about the culling before Raven told everyone. I predicted at the time that we'll see Bellamy feeling super guilty later, since he doesn't outwardly show it much in this episode, and boy, did we see that in 1x08. (Much more than we ever did from Jaha, who was actually directly responsible for it, but that's what Jaha is like, always justifying his actions as necessary.). Here, Finn, Clarke and Raven confront Bellamy about the radio, and the former two learn about Bellamy shooting Jaha, while Bellamy learns Jaha survived, but with a massive difference between how Finn and Raven confront him and how Clarke does. The former two are basically like "You're the worst" and Finn calls him selfish, while Clarke - already at this point - seems to understand him better and have a much better opinion of him: "You're not a murderer. All you have done is to protect your sister", though she then gets angry at him a bit later, asking if he even cares that he caused the deaths of 320 people. It's so weird that the flares the 100 use to signal the Ark won't help at all (the Ark leaders, aside from Abby, will just dismiss them), but will end up burning a Grounder village and cause more conflict with the Grounders. Which is so consistent with Murphy's Law - not the episode or John Murphy, but actual Murphy's Law - whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. But just to be clear, the Grounders using that to justify their war was utter bullcrap. There's no way anyone intelligent could consider the 100 an invading force (LOL) after seeing what they were like (and we know they did: Lincoln was spying on them and making notes) and anyone who's not a small child knows that people can't be considered guilty for causing things by complete accident, which they never could have predicted happening. (I just had to have that mini-rant because people who try to portray both sides as equally responsible, or even demonize the Delinquents and/or excuse the Grounders, get on my nerves, a lot.) A minor-running theme in this episode: at the beginning of the episode, when Clarke and Finn are lying together in the afterglow, before their super-brief relationship came came to a crushing end after Raven came back, Finn - always the one saying romantic things - mentioned a falling star and making a wish, which Clarke was initially confused by, since she just thought of meteors in real world terms and didn't know about that old superstition, while Finn said he had read about it. At the end of episode (in a moment I've seen in a few Tumblr gifsets!), when everyone is watching the flares, Clarke and Bellamy are looking at them together and she asks "What would you wish on a falling star" and then assumes Bellamy wouldn't understand what she's talking about. But she obviously does (the guy has read a lot), since he says "I don't even know what I would wish for". Which is probably true, and sad - I imagine that he had never given any serious thought to what he actually wanted out of life, beyond "Protect Octavia - make sure she is not discovered." Of course, the scene was also an occasion to show Clarke looking sadly at Finn and Raven, so we'll know she's actually really heartbroken and pining. There's more pining from Clarke in the next couple of episodes, and after that, IIRC, fortunately barely any. BTW, let's just take in the fact that Clarke, in all 5 seasons, has never actually properly dated anyone, or specifically, she had one friend with benefit with no stronger feelings involved, and she had the two romantic relationships (with people she had known for a few weeks. and who both relentlessly pursued her romantically and made the first moves) which lasted a few hours each and consisted of having sex exactly once, but were portrayed as epic romances, where 95% of the overall relationship, in both cases, consisted of not dating, but a lot of angst, betrayal, and ended in death, and Clarke getting traumatized and feeling guilty (without actually it being her fault). It's amazing how similar overall her relationships with Finn and Lexa are, including in how much they lasted and how much focus they had on screen and for how long, but one is almost completely forgotten and ignored by the fandom now, while the other one is over-hyped.

[velvet-tread]

so revisiting octavia blake (especially after what we’ve seen of her in s5e06 tonight)... what’s your understanding of octavia blake, in relation to bloodreina and also as one of the most disliked characters in the fandom?

 TW – there follows some discussion of abuse so if that is one of your sensitivities, I wish you well and recommend caution with what follows. Are you asking if I still stan Octavia now she’s Blodreina? Because the answer to that is complicated but basically yes. For clarity: stanning, to me, doesn’t involve nailing my colours to the mast and then contorting myself into ever more unlikely shapes to justify every single thing my fave has ever done. It’s possible to love and emphathise with a character, while also acknowledging the terrible things they’ve done or are. Maybe I don’t need to tell you this, but maybe others need to hear it: don’t let ANYONE shame you for loving Octavia. And by that I mean if someone tries, just tune them tf out. They don’t get it, they never will. They aren’t worth your time and energy. Let that truth set you free. So yeah, I still love Octavia, with all her flaws and her sharp edges. I can’t love Blodreina, but while Blodreina is certainly Octavia, Octavia is not Blodreina. Blodreina is the very worst of Octavia. Spoiled, demanding, hard, judgemental, imperious, unyielding, cold, unempathetic and very, very violent. She is the culmination of the story of a non-person, disempowered and locked up under the floor, coming into being and being handed a sword. And power. So much power. She is a product of necessity. She is an amalgamation of Jaha’s lessons, Indra and Kane’s guidance, Kara’s support and Gaia’s teachings. She has a god complex which, imo, can only go the way of Mount Weather. By which I mean it will probably consume everything in its path before blowing to smithereens and taking at least one of our faves down with it. But while Blodreina is certainly real, let’s not get carried away with OCTAVIA IS REVEALED AS FOR THE MONSTER SHE’S BEEN ALL ALONG. Deep breaths everyone, and maybe a sip of water. Blodreina is a persona who enables Octavia to carry out the most monstrous of deeds (hi Jaha!) and live with it. Has Octavia drunk the Blodreina Koolaid? Most certainly. But Octavia embracing her worst is not the same has Octavia being the worst. Also see: Bellamy season 1 and season 3a. Would you look at that A PARALLEL WE LOVE PARALLELS. Blodreina serves a purpose for Octavia-of-the-butterflies too. Because this show is this show and we are never more than a few monologues away from “love is weakness”, Blodreina is also a protective casing that locks away Octavia’s grief, her pain and her misery, her loneliness and self-loathing, along with her vulnerability and empathy. It seems super obvious to me that Octavia’s personal journey this season, apart from trying and presumably failing to keep Wonkru intact, will be about disassociating herself from Blodreina. And that, probably, won’t come without falling spectacularly from grace and facing her pain, and reckoning with the things she’s done. Also see: Bellamy seasons 1-4. Huh. What happens when the exoskeleton crumbles? What’s underneath? What will Octavia-who-washed-Lincoln’s-wounds, come to think about Blodreina and the things she’s done in the name of her people? How will she confront the agony of being Octavia Blake, naked, piteous and vulnerable, the girl under the floor who was denied existence?

I want these things for Octavia. I want the narrative to subject her to the most abject moral scrutiny because that is what you should want for the characters you love. It’s what makes them interesting. It’s what makes them matter. ALSO SEE BELLAMY FOREVER. Now I’ve been in this fandom long enough not to expect many others to see it this way. We are balls deep in moral monochrome here in the Bellarke fandom, and while that gives me pause for a sip of tea and a short prayer to the patron saints of patience, it’s not a situation that anyone can change, least of all me. And why would I? People are free to engage with the show how they want, as long as they stay in their lane.

And look, I get why some people can’t see past some of her sins. I, too, have characters that I dislike with varying degrees of rationality. But objectively, Octavia’s level of moral turpitude is at about the same level as any of the main characters. That’s just a fact. People’s personal preferences, while as valid as any other preference, are just that: subjective opinions. Where I start to sip my tea and raise my eyes to the heavens is when people start presenting their subjective opinions as objective FUCK YOU AND YOUR INBOX truth and thanks but no. It seems to be fanon lore now that Octavia is unempathetic and…it just makes no sense. This is the girl who was filled with wonder at Earth, who refused to let Jasper die even when everyone in camp wanted him to. She saw the humanity in Lincoln when Bellamy, Clarke and Raven could not. She saw the humanity in humanity when all anyone wanted to do was kill each other until they burned in Praimfaya. Wonkru exists because Octavia inspired them with her faith in them. The only way it begins to make sense is when you consider Octavia’s actions through the prism of Bellamy’s experience – which 8/10 is how the BC fandom at least views the show. (Also valid btw. I also project onto my faves! Bellamy among them! But see above for subjective opinion vs objective fact.) With Bellamy, the lack of empathy is real. Octavia, or at least the Octavia of seasons 1-4 high key struggled to see Bellamy as a fully realised person with desires and feelings of his own. But, while this sucks for Bellamy, from Octavia’s perspective it is entirely understandable. No matter how young Bellamy seems to us, to Octavia he is her parent figure. How many of the people on here haven’t put their parents through hell from time to time? I shouldn’t have to point out the bleeding obvious here, which is that teenagers who care deeply about animal welfare, trans rights, LGBTQA+ rights, poverty and climate change can also go through phases of being absolutely fucking awful to their parents. Often, that’s because in our world, teens are subjected to an unholy amount of pressure with which they struggle to cope, and the overspill of that hurt lands on the people responsible for them. It doesn’t make them bad people. And, yes, that can, occasionally, tip over into emotional and, more rarely, physical abuse but we don’t usually call it that. We call that “teenagers being fucking awful” and I am 100% sure that this is the context the writers room is working from. Do I think it’s acceptable, or justified? Hell no. But it’s important to take these narrative threads in the context of the real-world understanding of the people who develop them. This show isn’t created in a vacuum. Now work the scenario I outlined above into a post-apocalyptic landscape with 2x traumatised victims of systemic injustice, one of whom was locked up by the other because of that injustice. Yeah. What is so interesting to me is that the blind spot Octavia has wrt Bellamy – the blind spot that denied him access to the empathy she showed everyone else - has come into play again now she’s Blodreina, but in a different way. After 6 years of having everyone kowtow to her, and after vowing not to love, suddenly Octavia is making concession after concession for her brother at huge personal risk to herself.  It might not seem like that to us, or to Bellamy (and legit! I get why, from Bellamy’s POV), but to Octavia it must seem like she’s trying SO HARD to give him what he wants within the framework of what she thinks is achievable. Consider love is weakness. Consider that she throws herself into his arms on sight, in full view of all of her people. Consider being the arbiter of life and death for 6 years. Now consider Bellamy asking her to trust him. She does and is rewarded with a sonic blast. Bellamy delivers her an ultimatum about Echo, and she concedes. She fucking concedes! When has she ever willingly conceded on anything and ESPECIALLY NOW SHE HOLDS THE POWER OF AN EMPEROR? It’s fairly obvious from the Blake siblings sparring session that Bellamy was the symbolic winner. He got through to her. Octavia NEVER forgives. But she offers Echo – the woman whose sins Octavia will never forget - a way out. When Echo and Bellamy refuse, does she banish Echo? She could do. She’s Blodreina. She’s used to doing whatever the fuck she wants. But, no. She accepts the alternative, and even helps Echo on her way. Yes, it’s brutal and Blodreina-y and serves a double purpose but still, she helps her. She’s not doing that for Echo.  She’s doing it for Bellamy. No, she’s not doing it with a winning smile and a cuddle, but that’s not Blodreina’s style. She tries to thank him for saving them, in the only way she knows how. She reaches out, and he lashes out with cold anger. And perhaps it’s deserved. No, it’s definitely deserved, but GODDAMMIT that was a “you’re dead to me” level of cruelty. Can I just roll back a second and talk about how co-dependent the Blake sibs are? Cool. A friend (I can’t remember who, sorry) once said that Bellamy and Octavia carried their cage back down to Earth with them. And for seasons 1-4 that is absolutely what happened. They are spectacularly co-dependent. Bellamy depends on her to give him purpose, and a direction and reason to live. Octavia depends on him to absorb the overspill of her hurt, to push against, to take the blame for all of the ills in her life. It sucks for them both, and they’re TRAPPED, so terribly trapped, and neither is the other’s jailer but neither can walk away either. And just, what strikes me about the interactions we saw in the sneak peek for 507 is that maybe, FINALLY, Bellamy has broken free of their co-dependent relationship.  He may not even realise it yet, but he has completely re-centred his world around Spacekru now. And I think, that if push comes to shove, he will prioritise Spacekru above Octavia, even if it hurts them both.  It doesn’t mean he loves Octavia any less, but after 6 years of love and support and peace and quiet, Bellamy has broken out of the cage. Bellamy is free. Excuse me while I cry tears of joy. But Octavia isn’t free. Octavia hasn’t had 6 years of peace and support and love. Octavia’s life has been marked by trauma from the moment of her birth, and the trauma hasn’t let up for a single goddamned second it just keeps coming and coming and coming until all she has is her walls and an alter-ego and the hope that she can keep Wonkru together and her brother by her side. Believe me when I say that Octavia is still very much trapped inside the cage which Bellamy has now vacated. IT IS ALL VERY HEARTBREAKING OKAY. IT HURTS. So yes, I still love Octavia and I am ready to see her again when Blodreina falls.

[wanhedawriter-blog]

Writing Those Glorious Ships | Part 2

Physical Contact

Any good part of writing a relationship is the physical contact parts. I’m not talking about having them have sex or anything. I’m talking about the build-up to them having a relationship. Those little brushes of hands, comforting each other, hugs. All those things make a reader go wild. 

Fact is, we as humans need physical contact. It makes us feel warm and fuzzy inside, and helps us get through the day. I think that’s why people love pets. Especially if they live on their own. We need that kind of affection, and these sorts of things make us feel important. Loved. 

Bellamy and Clarke are known for being great at hugging people. The one just here is their most famous. Up until this point, we know they care about each other as friends, but we never really saw that. This is the first time that we, as the audience, really get a feel that they truly care for each other. This isn’t just a normal hug. It feels earth shattering.

One of my favorite authors, Sarah J. Maas, loves The 100, and she’s put Bellarke scenes into her NYT Bestselling Series, Throne of Glass. Speaking of hugs, she used the above gif as inspiration!

(this image was taken from one of my sideblogs @wanhedacelaena)

It’s not an exact copy, of course, but the inspiration is there. Aelin flying to the male just as Clarke did, and the male grabbing her, wrapping his massive arms around her tightly. His head buried into her neck, as if he were breathing her in. All of these little nuggets are words to describe one of the best hugs to ever exist (I’m biased, okay?). But scenes like this really gives the reader something to hold on to. To love.

These scenes, though maybe deemed unnecessary, give readers a big smile and they are rooting for these characters. You can feel how much they mean to each other just by the emotions rippling through the scene. Same with Bellamy and Clarke. You can feel how much all these characters missed each other.

Hugs don’t always have to tell that they’re happy to see each other. It could also be comforting, and like coming home. Hugs are meant to make people feel safe, and every time I see these two hug on my screen, I get that overwhelming feeling that they need each other. Not specifically as romantic partners (though I would certainly love to see their relationship evolve that way), but they need each other emotionally. Clarke understands Bellamy in a way no one else does. She understands his relationship with his sister and why he does a lot of the things he does. Most importantly, she is the only person who is able to get through to him. 

Obviously, hugs aren’t all that define physical contact. Fans also love what we call soft™ moments. Basically, it’s like this and the very first gif I posted. Bellamy brushing Clarke’s hair out of her face. It’s something simple, but it’s comforting her. That little smile he also gives her. This wordless moment tells the viewer that God, he’s happy she is safe. These moments can convey so much meaning to the reader and these characters.

As a writer, I tend to turn a lot to my ships for inspiration. These moments make people think about these characters together. 

The moment above, you know what this also tells me? Bellamy is happiest when he knows Clarke is okay. He dressed up like a grounder to see if she was alive. He could have died trying to save her. His friend. I don’t know about you, but that’s soulmate stuff right there!

Now, physical contact doesn’t always have to be the soft™ kind. It can also be angsty material. It can be a tug of the arm, a shove, maybe a slap? There’s this one scene in season one where Bellamy grabs Clarke’s wrist and says, “Once you take off your wristband, then we can go.” He also went as far to say to someone else, “I’m getting that wristband. Even if I have to cut off her hand to do it.”

Obviously, this kind of physical contact can cross a line, so be super careful when using the not so soft™ kind. It can turn your readers off in a blink of an eye. However, I think you have to look at the genre and circumstances and justify what those characters did. I mostly write Science Fiction and Fantasy, and those kinds of characters do a lot of bad. They mostly live in a world where “there are no good guys.”

For example, in the latest season (Season 5), Clarke slaps Bellamy (aftermath pictured above). A lot of people disagreed with the writing decision, but I think there’s more to that gesture than anything. I don’t agree with physical violence, but we have to remember the world these characters are set in. There’s tons of actions we don’t agree with, but fact is...these things happen. 

Anyways, Bellamy and Clarke always went in this circle of they would do anything for one another, and would never hurt each other. After Clarke slaps Bellamy, the look on his face is pure shock. The Clarke he’s known for years would never do this, but she has. She’s changed. Things like this can invoke a shift in them. I would even label this as a “meaningful moment.” Clarke did this in the wake of a deep betrayal. Bellamy was basically thinking without factoring in others’ priorities. So that slap meant two things. The first being “You hurt me and my family, there will be consequences.” The second being, “You need to snap out of this.” So much is said in those three or so seconds of this scene.

Scenes like this can invoke a change. Something bad has to happen in order to put forward a new challenge for these characters. Usually these scenes come with revelations that Character A didn’t know about Character B. Usually by someone else. And these revelations can affect everything. 

Questions for this section:

 What is the reason behind that little touch? Was there more to it than what’s actually happening between these two characters?

How does the touch (hug, brush of hands, etc.) make the character(s) feel?

Is there a moment between them after it happens? Does it hang in the air like, was there more to it than they thought?

Do your characters panic over the touch? Or do they feel comforted and accept the touch with a warm feeling?

What will/did this do to their relationship?