#there is a difference between using someone else’s trauma as your fandom weapon

[maglors-anion-gap]

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[pale-silver-comb]

So I know absolutely nothing about Leverage except what I've been seeing you post lately and I have to admit you're making it look tempting to watch! Can I ask what are some of your favorite things about the show/reasons you would suggest people watch it? And is there really a poly relationship that is canon?

Okay. Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay. I am going to do my best not to just “asdfghkjl” at you and answer coherently.

In a nutshell, Leverage is about 5 people. 4 are criminals (Parker, Hardison, Eliot and Sophie) with different and unique skill-sets and 1 is an ex-insurance investigator (Nate) who, at one point or another in his career, has tracked down (or at least attempted to) the other 4. The whole show is essentially: man reluctantly reforms 4 criminals to use their criminal powers for good and 4 criminals move into man’s life and stubbornly refuse to leave because, goddammit, now they have morals. 

I’ve got a lot of favourite things about the show but the main ones are as follows:

1. Found family. And I’m not talking about loners who come together to fight crime and happen to co-exist to the point where they realise they happen to have found themselves a family. I mean, Nate and Sophie are the Drunk Uncle and Wine Aunt who somehow become Mom and Dad to 3 beautiful criminal children. Mom and Dad love their criminal babies and the kids love them (as well as each other, but we’ll come to that in a moment). You get amazing family moments such as: Mom and Dad packing the kids lunch before sending them out to kick corporate greed’s ass; Mom and Dad giving the kids ridiculously expensive and personal Christmas presents causing their most Grumpy Kid to go very very quiet and soft as he runs off to gleefully play with his new murder toy; the kids interrupting Mom and Dad’s big Movie Style Kiss to ask if they can please keep their new underground layer and huffing and puffing when Dad tells them no.

2. Found family: the OT3 edition. To answer your question, the OT3 is indeed canon, confirmed by the creator. Now, usually, “confirmed by the creator” infuriates me because most of the time it’s a way for a creator to be seen as “progressive” without doing anything to actually be progressive. That isn’t the case here. The OT3 are built up carefully and while it is obvious the creators didn’t originally intend for all 3 of them to become a relationship in the romantic sense, by mid-season 5 we are given a very clear picture of where Parker, Hardison and Eliot are heading in their relationship. There aren’t any kisses at the end to signal this but there are solid marriage vows in not only one but two episodes. (And by marriage vows I mean literal equivalents of marriage vows: “for better or worse” and “’til death do us part”. I’m not even exaggerating). The OT3 also doesn’t need explicit romantic narratives to convey how much they love each other. Their love is laced through the whole show, from the way they teach each other things to the way they respond to each other and work as a unit. The way they fiercely protect and admire each other. Like someone once said, if you need characters to kiss or say I love you to let the audience know they love each other, you are writing them wrong. 

Aside from that, each of the parings in the OT3 are just. Gah. They are so well done, with friendship being the solid basis for them all. The creators never expect the audience to assume anything about them or fill in the gaps. They give us their relationships on screen and reference many things off-screen to show us how these relationships continue to build in between episodes.

Hardison and Parker are a canon couple and date in the show: it’s approached slowly and they are so goddamned sweet. They are basically every fluffy slow-burn trope with a healthy dash of mutual pining in the mix. They are basically that quote “love is patient, love is kind”. (I would like to add their romance never becomes the focus of the show or overrides the importance of any other relationship they have with the other characters, especially Eliot.)

Hardison and Eliot are the Old Married Couple and from day one are already bickering and looking at each other/making comments that are found in every UST fic ever (not to mention Hardison has a very good knack for making Eliot grin like a little kid, when usually he’s basically an Angry Little Chef Man). They argue, they play, and love each other plain as day. 

Parker and Eliot are more subtle but every bit as wonderful. They have an unspoken connection and understand each other on a level no-one else can. Parker and Eliot are not good with giving themselves over to affection for different reasons (and Hardison plays a central role in helping them realise it’s okay to want it and have it- that boy has endless patience) but there is something so beautiful in the way the two of them come together on their own and develop their own special bond that works for them. Parker and Eliot are that trope where the characters don’t need to speak to understand each other perfectly. They just do. Their love language is a lot of the time non-verbal but speaks volumes. (Parker also likes to annoy the hell out of Eliot and Eliot....just.....lets...her. Because he’s soft. The softest, grumpiest boy.) 

I could go into so much depth for each pairing and their dynamics as a 3 but that's for another post.

3. Subverting stereotypes. There is the occasional hiccup in the show regarding stereotypes but ultimately, Leverage gets an A+ when it comes to writing characters and making them 3 dimensional people who are not defined by certain characteristics or events. Nate could so easily fall into the White Man Pain trope where he uses the trauma of losing his kid as a reason as to why he is entitled to act like a dick. Nate is a dick but he doesn’t use his pain to excuse it and I appreciate that. Hardison is a black man who is soft and nurturing. Easily the most empathetic and patient of the group. He’s nerdy, an actual genius, and has the biggest heart of all the characters. Nate is maybe the glue but Hardison is definitely the heart. Media’s usual aggressive, amongst other, racist stereotypes can fuck right off. Parker is canonically autistic (I am sure this was confirmed by one of the creators) and she is not defined by it. It’s not written as some kind of singular personality trait. It’s part of what makes up Parker but it’s only one facet of who she is and not once is her actions, thoughts or feelings treated like a joke. Sometimes people don’t understand why she does and says the things she does but it’s met with patience and fondness over the course of the show. Equally, it’s not met with over-caution. Parker is just Parker. No-one tries to change her. The other nice thing is Hardison, who always makes sure Parker knows she’s amazing because of who she is and not in spite of it. Finally, Sophie is in her 40s. She’s not treated like she’s past her prime. Ever. She’s sexy, smart and never is she pitted against or compared to Parker (who is younger) for anything. Sophie is amazing and there’s never even a conversation of “I may be older but I am still *insert adjective typically associated with younger women here*”. Sophie is possibly the first female character I’ve ever seen who isn’t just unapologetic about her age but has never had to apologise for her age. It’s a non-issue and that’s that. The women on the show are written so well, right down to secondary characters and it’s beyond refreshing.  

4.) It’s just fun. The show has a “monster of the week” type format. Except instead of a ghoul or a ghost, the monster is some corrupt wealthy and powerful individual or organisation. The show draws on real-life individuals to do this and therefore closely parallels real-life people and events. It addresses important political, economical, social and environmental issues while at the same time remaining fun and light-hearted. The characters constantly get the chance to play dress up and by GOD do they have fun with it. You get to watch Eliot beat up bad guys in the most delightful of ways, usually after a witty non-sequitur and with a weapon you’d never think could be a weapon. The dialogue and back and forth between the characters is everything. And finally - my favourite thing- the team can never resist striking a dramatic pose after they’ve taken down the bad guy, making sure the bad guy sees them. I mean, they COULD just walk away, satisfied they’ve taken the person down, but nope. They gotta be dramatic bitches 24/7 and pose like they are models for every single month of this year’s Criminal Calendar.  

5.) Competence Porn. So. Much. Competence Porn.  

Honestly, I could list a thousand reasons for why Leverage is amazing but to list them would to be spoiling so many amazing moments you’d get to discover for the first time on your own if you do choose to watch it. It’s the kind of show you can watch with an eagle-eye and sink your teeth into. But it’s also the kind of show if, you would prefer, put on in the background for something entertaining while you do something else. Each episode is about the job at hand but it’s made up of so many moments between the characters that show how much the creators and writers care about them. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll do whatever it is you do when something Soft and Wonderful happens that makes your heart melt. I am so beyond grateful for Leverage. It’s everything I always wanted in a show. Nearly every show I’ve watched in the past 10 years has disappointed me in some way, usually either because the writers run out of steam or characters who I love are treated poorly or given some kind of unnecessary “shock value” arc. Leverage doesn’t do that. Leverage is what it says on the bottle. Fandom isn’t something I joined because I needed canon fix-its. Fandom only enhances and celebrates an already excellent canon. 

[plan-d-to-i]

LJY and jc ship makes no sense because thinking about it jc would probably treat him like wwx 2.0 before the fall of LP, wwx had severe trauma with dogs still had to endure being the laughing end whenever jc chased them away. What about LJY and his fear of ghosts ?? WWX at that time didn't carry any condescending tone when he went sth along the line of “ur a cultivator why are u afraid of ghosts” and ljy was shown scared on screen, at least twice

First of all let me just quickly get this out of the way RE: jiang cheng/jingyi ship : GROSS. EW. BARF. 🤢🤮🤧😷. NO. ok back to the discussion.

I mean Lan Jingyi's fear of ghosts is not even amongst the top ten things that would make a relationship w jc impossible.

Lan Jingyi could never share his life with someone who doesn't share his number one hobby - talking about how amazing Hanguang-Jun is.

Jingyi :DNFUCKINGI if you don't stan Hanguang-Jun.

LJY already doesn't like jiang cheng. And no it's not a "sexy hate" scenario it's a dislike dislike scenario.

Impatiently, [jiang cheng] raised an eyebrow and said, “Hanguang Jun, you’re undoubtedly deserving of your fine reputation for ‘appearing where the chaos is,’ so how do you have the time to visit these old forests and mountains today?”

Elite cultivators like them normally disdained to take notice of low level prey, but Lan Wangji was an exception. He was never selective about what he hunted, and would never refuse to go after a monster or demon just because it wasn’t violent or fierce enough for killing it to improve his reputation. Ever since he was young, as long as someone requested help, he would come. Thus, “appearing where the chaos is” was the phrase everyone used to describe Hanguang Jun’s night-hunting habits, and a form of praise for his character.

Jiang Cheng’s tone was therefore remarkably rude. The flock of juniors who followed behind Lan Wangji, upon hearing the Clan Chief’s words, grew quite uncomfortable. Lan Jingyi, habitually blunt, said, “But isn’t Chief Jiang here too?”

Jiang Cheng replied coldly, “Tsk, when your seniors are talking, is it your place to interject? The Gusu Lan Clan boasts of having the utmost concern for etiquette, yet it teaches its disciples like this.”

ugh. Interesting juxtaposition of jiang cheng being rude af and then trying to scold someone else.

Jingyi being like : u don't even know how your own weapon works huh?

Jiang Cheng’s expression was surprised but suspicious, and the intention to whip Wei Wuxian again crossed his eyes.

But Lan Jingyi shouted, “Chief Jiang, isn’t once enough? This is Zidian!”

Like you want to tell me there's any chance THIS kid would deal w anyone who slanders Hanguang-Jun:

Wei Wuxian turned and shouted, “Hanguang Jun, I’ll leave Xue Yang up to you. We’re going to go a few steps onward!”

A note rang from the qin strings, which sounded like someone saying “mm.” Wei Wuxian let out a puff of laughter.

“That was all? You aren’t going to say anything else?” Lan Jingyi said.

“What else do you want? What else should I say?”

“Why not ‘I’m worried about you, I’m staying!’ ‘Go!’ ‘No! I’m not going! If I go, you have to come with me!’ That’s the kind of conversation you should have.”

THIS KID?!!!

But now, he couldn’t help but admire the man’s elegant skill.

“Of course Hanguang Jun is amazing,” Lan Jingyi said proudly. “He just never likes to show off. He’s very low-key, right?”

The “right?” was directed at Wei Wuxian. Baffled, he replied, “Are you asking me? Why?”

“Don’t tell me you don’t think Hanguang Jun is amazing?!” Lan Jingyi said anxiously.

Wei Wuxian rubbed his chin. “Mmmm, he’s amazing, of course, very amazing. He’s the most amazing of all.” As he spoke, he couldn’t help but smile.

What I find most ironic though is that for a fandom that has taken issue with the age difference between MXY's body!! and Lan Wangji!! 🌝 they're out there shipping a ~35 year old man w a ~16 year old .../js. Obviously poor Jingyi is just one of the many victims of the- no one will fuck w jc in canon so everyone is shipping fodder 🙃.

[bangchanswaistchain]

DISCLAIMER: This is my opinion and my opinion only. I don’t care if you agree or don’t agree. I will not argue with you about this. You won’t change my mind. If you feel compelled to comment and argue your point, do so respectfully or gtfo.

I have some thoughts...and I’m going to express those thoughts and then attempt to avoid anything else in reference to it. I’m also going to try and articulate these thoughts so they make sense but we’ll see how that goes.

So...let me preface this by saying that there is a reason I try not to pay too close attention to the authors when it comes to the book series I love. I’m perfectly happy to never hear their thoughts on what they’ve created, how it came to be, etc. I am a believer that art is not only subjective but also open to interpretation. So while a creator might have intended for their work to be interpreted one way, people won’t always interpret it the same way. They won’t always relate to the author’s work in the way the author does. People are different, have different ways of viewing things based on their own experiences. They view the world in their own spectrum of color, so to speak. In my humble opinion, an author should not tell their readers that they’re wrong for interpreting something different than intended. It only manages to isolate your fans and leave them feeling bitter. Personally, I feel there needs to be a degree of separation between authors and their readers. Authors need to remain professional and not personal when dealing with fans. 

With that out of the way...the rest is under the cut. 

Part of this whole rambling mess was prompted by a post I saw. I’m not going to name the blog or post screenshots of it, but I am going to talk about it. The OP made a post about how it must be extremely painful for Leigh to see people shipping Darklina when Leigh wrote the series at a time she was dealing with an abusive relationship. The OP then posted a screenshot from Goodreads of a comment Leigh left about writing S&B during this time. The OP then proceeds, again, to talk about how they cannot even imagine how painful and horrible it must be for Leigh to see people shipping Darklina because of what the Darkling was crafted after. Hmm. Okay.

Listen...people are 100% allowed to write for catharsis. They’re 100% allowed to write from their own personal experience, to craft stories for the purpose of healing. But if you don’t want people to interpret it as something other than what it is...think twice before publishing it for public consumption. 

I think it’s profoundly unfair to use Leigh’s past trauma as a weapon against fans. Not every fan pays attention to what the author has to say about their work because they don’t want their own visions shit on. Not every fan is going to interpret or relate to the art the way the author will. Hell, perception is something that differs from fan to fan. It is unfair to expect everyone to have the same perception as the author or as someone else. That is not how art works. The thing that makes fandom so great at times is how diversely people perceive things. No one has the right to bully another person for that. It is fiction. It is not real life. 

People like the OP should really take some time to remember that they’re not superior fans because they don’t ship the Villain™️ with the Hero™️ because they enjoy a trope. You are not a better person for it. Attacking people for what they personally enjoy just makes you a bully.  You don’t have the right to police a group of people based on a fictional story. 

I sympathize with Leigh. I really do. I imagine a lot of people sympathize with her because they’ve been in not so great relationships in the past. I’m happy that she got out of a toxic relationship and that she found a form of catharsis for her trauma. But that doesn’t give her or the fandom the right to police people. She doesn’t need people to be “woke” for her. The only person responsible for personal triggers is yourself. Everyone else is not responsible for what triggers people. If Leigh doesn’t want to see Darklina stuff then she needs to stay out of the fandom aspect of this work. Some may not agree with me but I don’t care. It’s how I feel. Fandom is for the fans, not the author/showrunner/etc.  I hate when the creators get involved because it only manages to ruin fandom experiences for a lot of people and that’s not cute.

I don’t understand the current obsession with purity culture. Art imitates life does it not? Life is messy, ergo, sometimes art will be messy. It’s the responsibility of the reader to learn what they can and can’t deal with. If you can’t deal with the subject matter in the media you consume, move on from it. Don’t read it. Don’t watch it. Just don’t. 

Does anyone remember the war on video games back in the day? Remember the argument that violent video games encouraged and created violent kids that would then become violent adults? Remember when it was discovered this to be COMPLETELY UNTRUE? The same concept applies to media. A person is not going to become a mass murderer because of a fictional story. A girl is not going to run into the arms of an abusive man intentionally because of a story. I promise. It such happens, it’s because there are underlying issues, be it psychological, emotional, or otherwise, that creates those situations. Not fictional novels. That’s just not how it works.

In conclusion, you can’t control what other people do, what they enjoy, how they perceive things. If you don’t like what someone has to say, move along. Ignore them and go about your life and the things you enjoy. Stop policing the fandom. Stop attacking people. Stop trying to weaponize the things Leigh has said against other fans. It’s not fair and it doesn’t make you a better person because you think you have a one up on morality. 

[makeste]

regarding Best Jeanist, Dabi, and all of that

@kaleswagdragon​ I hope you don’t mind me posting this comment and my response as its own post, seeing as it quickly got out of hand and sort of morphed into a whole entire essay.

anyway, so! you say that it’s a mischaracterization, but it’s really not, though. I mean, props for bringing up the cultural context of Japan, in which the honne-tatemae culture of covering up anything that might lead to any sort of conflict -- even if it means harming an innocent victim in the process -- is a very real issue. so given that, I understand why so many people are interpreting Jeanist’s statement in a “how dare you bring this family shame to light” sort of way. and Caleb’s “dirty laundry” translation doesn’t help, given the “we’re more embarrassed than actually concerned about this” feel of that particular phrase, which he apparently chose just because of the clothing pun without really giving much thought to any other implications.

but in the actual Japanese, the meaning/context is somewhat different. here’s a link to a twitter thread clarifying the original spoiler translation, and breaking down the actual Japanese dialogue.

I think the meaning here is very clearly “you waited until the public’s faith in heroes was already wavering to bring this down on them as a final blow.” if he was simply criticizing Dabi for publicizing the Todoroki family drama, he would have stopped with that first sentence. the two sentences afterward (“you waited until everyone’s faith in heroes was wavering, when the damage would be too great to handle”) make it clear that what he’s actually calling Dabi out for is the way that he basically weaponizes his story into the perfect political tool to finally take down the heroes. which is an observation that we as the readers can verify for ourselves as being true. look at how he so carefully edited the footage of Twice’s death. look at the contrast between the way he acts in the video, compared with the homicidal glee we see from the actual Dabi in real time.

Jeanist is notably the only one who is able to get the same perspective as the readers here, since he’s the only person who’s physically present in Jakku with the real Dabi, but is also able to hear the video being broadcast. meaning that he’s able to hear both video!Dabi’s calm, prerecorded “I’m just a concerned citizen trying to look out for a society being taken advantage of by the ones charged with protecting it” speech, and actual!Dabi’s “hahaha fuck you Endeavor I’m bringing the whole country down even as we speak, well anyway time to kill you all” reality. he alone can see that stark contrast between the concerned whistleblower act Dabi is putting onscreen, versus his true attitude of “I don’t actually give a fuck, I just want to eradicate the heroes and make my dad suffer.” basically, Jeanist is the only one who can see that juxtaposition, and see Dabi’s reveal for what it really is, seeing as Dabi literally spelled it out for Endeavor and the others. and so he’s calling him out on that.

and he’s not wrong to do so. it’s clear that a lot of fans vehemently disagree with this, but being an abuse survivor doesn’t excuse you from having the same obligation as every other human being on the planet to try your best to be a decent person, which at minimum means not going out of your way to hurt other people. I say this as someone who’s experienced abuse, which shouldn’t need to be a disclaimer honestly, but I guess that’s how it is these days. anyways, though, I have, and I know a lot of other people who have as well. it’s a terrible, awful, exceptionally shitty thing to experience, and it affects everyone in different ways. and every single person who goes through something like that deserves help and support and time to heal, and it’s a tragedy and an injustice that Dabi, from what we have seen, never got any of that.

but that doesn’t excuse him from still being held to the same basic standard of “hurting other people is shitty” as everyone else. it doesn’t mean he gets a free pass. it doesn’t mean that anyone who says “hey, Dabi using his trauma as an excuse to murder people is kind of fucked up” is an abuse apologist. and it doesn’t mean Horikoshi is an abuse apologist for writing him that way, for that matter, because guess what? sometimes people who are abused grow up to become abusers. that’s just a fucked-up thing that happens sometimes. and pretending like it doesn’t is ironically not all that different from that whole “sweeping things under the rug” concept you mentioned earlier. it does happen, and I think it’s important to acknowledge that, because acknowledging it is one of the necessary steps to take in fixing it.

this attitude of “if someone was abused they should be absolved of responsibility for their actions” that I’ve seen in some posts is taking the concept of “abuse often has a profound impact on people’s mental health, and that should be taken into consideration before judging them too harshly for behavior that they can’t always necessarily control”, and twisting it into this nice little loophole that people can use to duck accountability whenever it’s convenient. but being abused doesn’t give you the right to abuse other people, is my point. nothing gives somebody the right to do that.

and Dabi is hurting other people. he waited ten years to tell his story specifically because he wanted to use it to make others suffer. and, putting aside the part where he’s trying to engineer the downfall of society as a precursor to the mass destruction he and his pals have planned, he also broadcast the story nationwide without the consent of the other abused parties involved. which I’m not saying he didn’t have the right to do, mind you, because it’s his story as well as theirs, and he has the right to tell it. and the right to make his abuser’s crimes as public as he wants, if that’s what he decides. but it also ignores the question of what his mother and siblings might want, and the fact is that they’re also survivors, and so in theory should have the same right as Dabi to choose their own healing process, and decide exactly how they want their abuser, who like so many abusers is also a close family member, to be held accountable. anyway, but all of that is obviously very, very complicated and I don’t think there’s a clear right or wrong side as far as this part of it all. it’s not a situation where everyone can be happy, which unfortunately is often how it goes.

anyway, I’ve kind of meandered pretty far from my original point now, so my bad. my points are, basically,

(a) I think the linked explanation does show that Jeanist is chiding Dabi for using his trauma in this specifically scheming and destructive way, as opposed to saying “shame on you for not being a good little victim and staying quiet”, which would be a ridiculous thing for Horikoshi, who’s explored the topic of abuse more thoughtfully than any other mangaka I’ve read, to randomly have one of his protagonists say.

and (b) the people calling Dabi out on his shit aren’t all smug victim-blamers who have no sympathy for what he has been through. the latter point (and a lot of this post, actually) isn’t particularly directed at you btw; it’s more of just a general statement brought on by some of the discussion that’s been going on these past few days.

anyways, I actually like that the fandom is talking about all of this! I just think it’s a very complex subject, and an even more complex situation currently in the manga. and ideally, people would try to acknowledge that complexity when discussing it, rather than simply picking a side and doubling down on it no matter what, or shooting down the whole thing as problematic writing just because isn’t a neat and tidy situation where you can simply say “oh, person A is right and person B is wrong, that’s it, end of story.” it’s not, unfortunately. it’s a messy clusterfuck of a topic that’s only going to get messier as this plot continues, so hopefully we can all just sort of brace ourselves for that lol. this is really just the tip of the iceberg, I think.

[nancydfan]

I think that Mia gets too bad of a rap from a lot of people.

Like yes, was she an agent of a super shady organization responsible for making a bio weapon that destroyed a great deal of lives? Yes. However we don’t know her motivation for joining them yet.

They could have lied honestly. Like The Connections could have advertised themselves to be a great, loving work environment and maybe Mia was young and naive and joined them. Or maybe she was desperate for money, and it was the only job that would hire her. Or hell, maybe she fully knew what they were and joined anyway, either on account of her morals being twisted back then or thinking that even though the company was evil maybe she could do good. Who knows, honestly.

Either way, with The Connections being a shady organization there’s like a very high chance that you don’t get to walk away from them alive. I’m sure if you quit they’d see you as a liability and take you out with no mercy. And that’s why I think Mia didn’t leave, because she knew she would be killed if she did, and maybe that’s why she took the job with Eveline, because it was more of a “you will do this or else” than an option for her (whether it was implied by her boss or if they were upfront about what bad things would happen if she didn’t take the job).

And maybe if her morals were twisted before I fully think meeting and falling in love with Ethan changed her if that was the case, because the Mia we see in RE7 and RE8 is a good person. We see that in how when the Baker’s rescue her she thanks them but tries to leave immediately and tries to warn them about staying away from Eveline (as shown in the note she left in the dlc “Daughters”). She could have tried to get them to call the hospital or her company but she didn’t, because she knew that she was under Eveline’s control and the longer she stayed there the more danger the family was. If she was a shitty person she wouldn’t have done this, she would have done everything she could to save herself.

We also see that in how she leaves a final video note for Ethan, telling him to stay away no matter what, because she didn’t want him to get dragged down in her mess. She knows how much Ethan loves her and I’m sure she knows if she sent a video saying “Ethan pls help” he’d come running for her, but she didn’t because she loves him and wants him to live even if she can’t be there with him. We see it AGAIN when she saves Ethan from Eveline’s grasp, when she tears him from the mold thing he was in and pushes him out so Eveline couldn’t hurt him. Fully knowing she’d have to face Eveline’s wrath.

And for everyone saying “why didn’t she just tell him then” I mean think about it. I think if this super shady organization found out someone they didn’t hire knew what was going on they’d kill them because again they’d be a liability and a threat. And that’s why she doesn’t tell Ethan because she doesn’t want him to be targeted and killed by them. I think if she had the opportunity she would have left The Connections but knows that it would result in her death anyway, and telling Ethan the truth would just end in his death if they found out and it was too risky in her mind.

And I think it’s this same form of protection that prevents her from telling Ethan he’s infected. She says (or at least we can assume that this was her) in Donna’s section that she didn’t tell him because she was afraid she’d lose him. I don’t think he’d divorce her if he found out he was molded (that doesn’t really make sense for his character), I think she was genuinely afraid he’d die (again) or worse begin to transform into a monster the way the rest of the infected did. And that’s why she keeps it hidden because she was scared to death he’d die or suffer a worse fate. Am I saying she was right in hiding it? No, but I think that everyone saying she’s manipulative and gaslighting are wrong because she truly loves Ethan and Rose, and I know she’d give her life gladly if it meant they could live.

I saw other people get mad because Rose is essentially being used as a bio weapon and how could Mia let this happen and I’m like?? She probably doesn’t have a say?? I mean yes Blue Umbrella is supposed to be “the good guys” now but like they’re still a huge organization, I’m sure Mia did her best to prevent this from happening and keep Rose safe but like at the end of the day what can she really do against a huge company?? If anything get mad at Chris because I’m sure he’s got some clout or something in that company that could have allowed Rose to live a normal life without Umbrella or maybe not being used as a weapon but idk 🤷🏻‍♀️ a lot of people were like “Mia’s sO annoying at the beginning of the game” but fam that wasn’t even her?? That’s Miranda?? Besides even if it was Mia that blew up on Ethan in the hospital (as per Ethan’s diary) 1.) people deal with trauma differently, and I’m not saying it’s healthy but she’s scarred and doing her best and 2.) probably was afraid if they talked too much about Louisiana Ethan would realize he was infected and then BAM he’s either dead or a mutated monster. And in the cutscene of Mia saying “you matter!” Can you imagine the stress of knowing your husband is Mr Mold Man and not being able to do anything about it, out of fear of what could happen to him? Like of course she’s upset and going to blow when provoked (not that Ethan was aggressive or anything just that he was prying into a very high pressure soda that is Mia’s emotions lol) because she’s been bottling this up and has no one to talk to, and after a while anyone would explode. I think she would have told him if he hadn’t answered that call. Also marriage is not rainbows and butterflies, sometimes you get into messy fights with your partner and sometimes you or the other person say things you don’t mean but at the end of the day you love each other and try to be better. If anything Capcom was depicting a normal marriage tbh.

At the end of the day Mia is not the bad guy. She is only human who tried her best to keep her family safe against all the odds and idc what anyone says, Ethan and Mia love each other and have a healthy relationship and that’s that.

I hope I do this ask justice cause this is the kinda ask I’ve been like hoping for cause you are absolutely gosh damn right.

I’m a chill person & I’m never gonna probably get up into someone’s face about anything cause it’s fandom. I’m not here to cater your experience. That being said, when I see some of these frankly bad takes on Mia I’m like

We know Jack shit about why Mia joined the Connections. Literally nothing so people who have a whole solidified nasty opinion of Mia should probably just sit down. You don’t have to like her. But you also could like, idk, be absolutely dead wrong cause lol Capcom went, yeah we’re not gonna explain any of that.

I got the impression that in between re7 and re8 that they are hiding from the connections too but I may have misunderstood that In re8. I think it makes sense it’s the type of organization you do not leave. No matter how badly you want to and once Ethan came along, do people really think she’d risk him? Spoiler alert: no, no she wouldn’t.

Also, re7 started w Alan. He’s the one that let eveline get out of control so...I feel like people forget that.

I’ve been talking to a friend about people using the Miranda Mia against the real Mia and I don’t know how to kindly tell people that the game kinda absolutely explained that’s not Mia? I do think Mias got a temper which makes sense because Ethan is so even tempered that he can balance her out better. But Miranda Mia was a fuckin bitch. She was needling Ethan’s pain and mocking him. Do people think Ethan sat around for three years taking that? Ethan’s a big boy. He can take care of himself. He was even fighting back w Miranda Mia so manipulative and abusive takes belong in the toilet w the rest of the shit.

Mia blowing up at Ethan means nothing. My parents have proven to me marriage is not easy. You will lose it on people when emotions run high. It happens. There’s a world of difference between a moment of anger versus abuse. But you still love and forgive people for moments of anger because we all have them. And I’m sure Ethan can be just as much as a pain in the ass. I love him more than most and I’d be the first person to admit I’m sure he didn’t make it easy all the time either.

Mia held the truth from Ethan because she was scared not just for her but for him too. It’s a selfless kind of lie. We all do them so I don’t know why Mia is getting burned at the stake for it. I’m just not movable on this. That was a heavy thing to carry and she was doing her best.

As for Rose, I don’t even know what Capcom is doing. How can anyone else know? She’s special and powerful. Maybe she wanted that life? I think we can reserve judgement until re9.

Like I said above, no one has to like Mia. Maybe you don’t vibe w her or maybe you still just don’t care for her. That’s cool. But my gosh don’t lie about the kind of person she is. If you can’t acknowledge her world and heart belongs to Ethan and Rose, I’m just not sure what to tell you.

Sorry for ranting on your ask nonnie 😆 I really appreciate that you sent this in! It needed said imo

[itsclydebitches]

Another thing about how rwby views trauma survivors reacting to their abuse or unfortunate background is that it frames the solution to healing is by serving in armed forces. Weiss and Blake joined Beacon to escape their abuser. Ren and Nora joined Beacon after the loss of their families. Winter joined the military to escape Jacques and I'm assuming will become the new Atlas general after Ironwood's death. The Huntsmen Academies are all framed as these safe havens (literally with Mistral) for anyone who can carry a weapon, meanwhile anyone who can't or doesn't want to join, or joins a group outside of the institution is depicted as bad.

To say that this is all muddied would be a huge understatement because even if we put aside the complicated message of, "Overcome your abuse by learning to punch back," at this point the combined huntsmen-military is no longer presented as a means of escape. Rather, between the rewriting of Winter's history – she has apparently been manipulated by Ironwood this whole time rather than choosing the military as a means of escaping her abuser – as well as the military aligned huntsmen – FNKI aren't heroes like RWBYJNOR anymore, willingly protecting their home, they're children who have been forced into this conflict – there's now this major divide between fighters-on-their-own and fighters-as-part-of-the-institution. We could even read this as extending to the huntsmen academies themselves, given that one has fallen, one was destroyed, and the other lost its figurehead. They used to be presented as havens for struggling individuals... now, not so much. The plot's message is not that heroes win by banding together through established structures that were designed to help those coming from bad circumstances (note how aware Ozpin is of these backstories: Qrow's bandit tribe, Blake's White Fang history, looking into Ruby's defense of the store, etc.), but rather you win by rag-tag individuals making decisions based on friendship.

Yet simultaneously, that divide is by no means neat and tidy (since plenty of stories have that latter message). As we've discussed elsewhere, RWBYJNOR is ingrained in these structures despite the story rejecting them. They got their initial training at Beacon (how many fans have argued that they learned enough there? That they're basically full-fledged huntsmen already? So, that school was pretty important, yeah?). They worked with Ironwood for months. They're using the prestige of their licenses to get people to listen to them. They're hijacking military equipment to give the world orders to prepare for an attack. Ruby became a general in all but title in that moment, in the same way that Weiss became the Remnant equivalent of a cop when she tried to arrest her father. Volumes 6-8 suddenly wanted to send an anti-military message without considering the context of their story (what does a military mean in a world where unambiguously evil monsters attack, as opposed to a world where these "monsters" are minorities?) and they failed to separate the heroes from the structures they so passionately reject. You cannot have the group stand in opposition to Ironwood and everything he represents while also encouraging the audience to oohh and ahhh at Jaune whipping out his huntsmen license to lead a group of civilians to safety. The supposed cruelty of the former and supposed heroism of the latter are meant to exist simultaneously, despite the contradiction. We went from the message that huntsmen academies, including Atlas', are a haven from abuse, poverty, etc. but now, suddenly, certain types of escapes are no longer morally sound. So just ignore how many of the heroes took the "wrong" path.

And then on top of all of that we have Rhodes. RWBY is pushing the individualism message hard nowadays – that a group of friends is better than a general and his soldiers just ignore that Ruby is their leader and they all follow her orders – yet it's Rhodes' individuality that is criticized in Cinder's flashback. He, as a single person, tries to take on the complex situation of helping an abused child and he failed. The fandom's reaction to his efforts is pretty telling because most kept falling back on structural solutions: "Why didn't he just call CPS? Why didn't he get her admitted early like Ruby? Why didn't he approach some superior to fix all this?" Most fans seemed to grudgingly acknowledge that kidnapping Cinder and raising this traumatized kid on the road while hunting grimm was... not the best idea, so they turned to the very things they've rejected in Ruby's part of the story: laws that people have to follow, schools with an hierarchy that can serve as support, someone above you whose orders you follow and whose seniority can help you in a tough situation. In Cinder's flashback people wanted Remnant to have structural solutions because, clearly, leaving one flawed man to fix this situation on his own didn't turn out so well. They (and the writers) just don't want Ruby to have to obey those same structures because Ruby is the title hero they've grown to love over eight years. We feel like we know Ruby and we assume that if Ruby is in charge she'd totally make the best decision. But Rhodes? He's a stranger, someone we see for less than ten minutes, so his flaws are far easier to home in on. Few are willing to acknowledge that Ruby is Rhodes on a much larger scale, trying things because she wants to help, but ultimately doing far more harm because she's incredibly inexperienced and is just running on her own, individual ideas, not any of the structures in place that are meant to deal with such crises. Rhodes' "Idk what else to do, so I guess I'll teach a tortured kid how to defend herself and hope for the best" is Ruby's "Idk what else to do, so I guess I'll drop Atlas on Mantle, leave with the Relics, move everyone to Vacuo, and hope for the best." The primary difference is that while Rhodes is punished through his death and the narrative makes it clear that this was the wrong choice (Cinder murders everyone and becomes a villain), whereas Ruby's screwups are continually framed as heroic. And that's because the show can't make up its mind about this structural vs. individual approach. Do huntsmen need to be held responsible for their actions, or do they need complete freedom to do the right thing with the belief that anything that goes wrong was completely out of their hands (Yangs' take)? Well, that depends entirely on which huntsmen we're talking about. RWBY's idea that some people are intrinsically good and others intrinsically bad means that the writing – and the fandom – can demand rogue huntsmen be held accountable while simultaneously cheering the group running away from arrest; curse Clover for following orders while simultaneously gushing over how loyal the group is to Ruby; condemn lies that Ozpin gives while simultaneously justifying the ones Ruby gives, etc. RWBY has no clear message, just the insistence that whatever our heroes does is good. The path they've taken, learning to fight to escape horrific situation is a good thing. The path Rhodes laid out, teaching Cinder to fight to escape a horrific situation, is a bad thing. It comes down to the characters, not the situation.

Finally, yeah, there's a complete lack of acknowledgment that either option – structural or individual – alienates those who don't know how to fight. This is seen most clearly in Whitley who asks why he'd want to be a huntsmen when he can afford an army, yet when armies are painted as unquestionably bad, the story won't admit that this leaves Whitley stranded. He had no way to escape his abuse like Winter and Weiss did. He had no way to defend himself when Weiss shoved a weapon in his face. The story never had to grapple with where it's left characters who can't fight and who shouldn't make the evil choice of relying on soldiers because Whitley unexpectedly got on Weiss' good side and gained her protection. It doesn't matter anymore because Whitley is a Good Guy now who the group will take care of. But if he'd continued to disagree? Gone to his room instead of calling Klein? If, in the future, he does something that annoys his sisters and they decide to ignore him like they did before? Well, Whitley is screwed. In a world besieged by grimm – with attacks growing with each volume – he wanted to rely on an army to help solve these problems. But then that was said to be wrong, the general died, and the army, far as we can tell, was left behind to die as well. So what's left? Rely on the huntsmen. Just hope that there are enough (there aren't), that you get a good one (not a Lionheart, or a Raven, or a Cardin, or a Dudley, or...), and that the good ones care enough to bother protecting you. Even if the story hadn't gone out of its way to show how terribly flawed individual huntsmen are – from Lionheart's devastating betrayal to Qrow teaming up with Tyrian – from a practical perspective it's just not enough. Volume 8 showed without a doubt that in a war like this, one built on a witch's ability to summon endless grimm, an army is necessary. Salem would have been into Atlas in a second without those soldiers holding her forces back. Yang, Jaune, and Ren wouldn't have gotten to the whale without that army. Yet the story never acknowledges this, instead pretending like the few individuals we see – the limited numbers the characters keep admitting are horrendously limited – could have somehow saved the day without that assistance. Everything we're seeing nowadays – which characters can use these institutions to escape abuse, which can lie to help the war, which should rely on structures as opposed to their own ideas and physical power – is a mess of inconsistent, often contradictory messages.

[reyhospacebitch]

no one I know in the dousy fandom is saying daisy johnson is a damsel in distress... I genuinely have no idea where the fuck people are saying this????

Anyway its normal to want and need people for support especially when you have the weight of the world on your shoulders and the trauma to back it up. Friends are great but they often arent enough especially when those friends are in relationships of their own.

Daisy’s method of coping was shutting people out, relying on only herself and bottling everything up and internalizing it. Like yall by season 7 she has in no way processed most of her trauma lol but that makes sense! It’s OKAY. It’s not some personal failing nor does it make her a damsel in distress.

It’s just the reality of living as an adult with mountains of trauma and unhealthy coping mechanisms.

I can think of a ton of different male heros in marvel who are similiar. It doesn’t make you weak or lesser than nor does it change anything about the character’s hero status. It just makes you human.

It’s really not that hard yall lol

Anyway, I really want to make this clear because I’ve been writing dousy fics that focus on her trauma a decent amount. I in *no* way am writing her to be a damsel in distress. I need this to be perfectly fucking clear because this is something I think about a lot. There is a huge difference between a traumatized character having human moments amid chaos and destruction and then finding support in someone else. There is strength in that, there is hope in it. It is vastly different to a female character who is traumatized and cant function on her own, someone who is desperate for a man to come around and ~save~ her.

Daisy has never been that character. Even when Daniel carries her out of the barn, DAISY is the one who smuggled in a weapon WHILE BEING TORTURED for him to use. Like their dynamic even when it comes around to him once in a while, it’s always even at least. It doesn’t make her a damsel.

So in conclusion, Daisy doesn’t *need* Daniel to save the day. She’s the superhero, he’s the physical back up during a fight and the emotional support at the end of the day and that is GOOD and does not diminish her strength or heroics.

[ayamari-no-goshi]

Verboten 15 | (T)

ff.net | AO3

Fandom: Danny Phantom (DP)

Summary: AU. When Danny was five years old, he went missing for 2 weeks. In the years that follow, his family tried to make sense of what happened, only for the truth to be discovered years later.

Warnings: rated T for violence, mentions of death, language. Be prepared for some very weird things

Parings: Danny/Sam

Notes: originally uploaded to Ff.net. Cross-posted to AO3 and tumblr. This fic is very heavily inspired by folklore surrounding mysterious wilderness disappearances

Chapter 15

It took almost twenty minutes for Danny’s mom to finish her tirade against the police. Watching her flip out on the officers was almost therapeutic, and by the time she was done, he was more amused then terrified. It made the actual interview much easier.

The police were initially skeptical, especially since his dad took the lead on explaining what happened. His childish excitement at getting to chase something made it sound like some made up fantasy, but that changed when Vlad gave his account. With his reputation, they were forced to take it seriously.

The older of the two officers, O’Brian, took the statements as his partner, Kiziah, reviewed the scene for any clues or evidence of how the creature got in the house. Other police offers were on the way to do a proper investigation.

“You’re the one that reported that murder… That was just, I guess it’s two days ago now,” O’Brian mentioned as he glanced at Danny, who nodded. “We chalked up the weirdness of your original statement due to shock, but if you’re telling me this thing is the same perp, I have no idea what we have on our hands.”

“I… I don’t really know if it was the same thing or not, but it looked like it.”

The officer frowned as his partner returned. “No obvious sign of a break in,” Kiziah stated, “but I don’t want to touch anything without an evidence kit. There’s definitely a weird substance in the living room and near the front door that will need analyzed.”

“You didn’t hear anything?” O’Brian looked back towards Danny and his parents.

“To be honest, our family tends to be heavy sleepers,” his mother explained as she gave him a sheepish grin. “Jack can sleep through almost anything, and I tend to wear earplugs.”

“And I am of the opposite,” Vlad stated as he made himself a cup of tea. “However, it wasn’t until I heard Daniel sprint up the stairs and bang on his parents’ door that I awoke.”

“Sorry about that.” Danny winced at he glanced at the man. Vlad didn’t seem as creepy as he had the previous day, but something still seemed off about him.

The man gave him a dismissive wave. “No worries, my dear boy. I believe your actions were more than understandable given the circumstances.”

“Err… I guess you want me to say if I heard anything?” Danny shook his head as the officers stared at him. “I didn’t. It… it was just a feeling, you know? Like when you get a sudden chill.” That statement was true enough. He figured it probably wouldn’t be a good idea to state the more paranormal aspect of it. “I thought I was just being paranoid until I looked down the stairs and that… that thing stared back at me.”

An awkward silence fell as O’Brian took some more notes. It was only broken when Kiziah received some sort of notification and moved to let the investigation team in. They quickly went to work examining the scene and looking for anything out of the ordinary. While they worked, an older man with a scar down the right side of his face took O’Brian and Kiziah aside and spoke with them. Once they finished, the older officer approached Danny and his family.

“I’m Lieutenant Metzger, and I’ve recently been put in charge of the investigation of the recent murders in the city. You’ve probably heard the rumors this is a serial case. Well, that’s true.” A muscle moved in the man’s cheek as he seemed to debate with himself over how much he could tell them. “Due to some of the details, we were under the impression these were ritualistic in nature and called in the FBI for some help.” He sighed before asking, “Is it okay if I sit?”

“Sure,” Danny’s mother shared a confused look with her husband before she asked the officer if he needed some coffee.

When he agreed, he waited until there was a cup in front of him to continue. “Look, I don’t want this being leaked. We don’t need people thinking the police force is wasting money on chasing fairy tales.” Once the Fenton family agreed, he continued, “You aren’t the first one to report something not quite human around the time of the incidences. Due to shock and figuring it was some sort of disguise, we originally disregarded that. However,” he glanced around before he leaned in, “one of my own officers gave a report earlier this week of glancing something inhuman. It actually attacked his patrol car before it vanished. On top of that, I don’t think whatever that thing spilled on your carpet has any sort of mundane explanation behind it.” He sighed and rubbed his eyes, “Mr. and Mrs. Fenton, I’m going to be frank with you. I would like to contract you for some sort of weapon for this thing. From previous experiences, I’m fully aware your… experiments don’t tend to do harm to people, so if… by the off chance, this isn’t something normal, we’ll have a way to stop it.”

Danny’s father immediately lit up in excitement. After rambling some idea, he ran down to the lab to act upon it before anyone could stop him.

“Don’t mind him,” his mother fondly chuckled. “Jack is very enthusiastic about our work.”

“I… uh… take that you’re willing to help us?”

“Oh, absolutely. If this thing is what we think it might possibly be, we were going to do that anyways. But I do need to ask you something. You mentioned you thought the attacks were ritual in nature. I’m not really sure how to ask this, but for those poor people, was there a part of the body missing?”

Metzger’s shoulders tensed at her question as his eyes narrowed. “How did you know about that?”

“Wait… wait, you’re telling me… that thing… what it was holding in its hand…” Danny couldn’t say it. The memory of the blood dripping from that thing’s hand temporarily overwhelmed him. He must have swayed as his mother gently put a hand on his shoulder.

“You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to. If you decide to go help your father, I think he’d gladly welcome the help.”

Danny shook his head at the suggestion. He needed to stay put. It just felt safer with her and the officers around. She must have somehow understood as she gave his shoulder a motherly squeeze.

“You didn’t answer my question.” An irritated edge crept into Metzger’s voice.

His mother calmly turned back to him and returned his gaze. “I didn’t until just now. After Danny relayed his story, it struck a chord with me, and I did some digging. There is folklore in different parts of the US which tells of creatures who steal the life of humans and often a part of the body. If… if that’s what’s happening, then we’re in trouble.”

“What do you think this thing is doing?”

“Nothing good. Throughout history, humankind has offered up blood and other bodily sacrifices to gods, spirits, monsters, and everything in between. While usually the Aztecs come to mind, you can find evidence of this around the world. It’s believed those sacrifices would either strengthen or appease whichever entity was the focus.”

“Maddie, are you suggesting this thing is doing something similar?”

She nodded. “I… We aren’t sure if this thing is trying to strengthen itself or if it’s taking its gains to something else.”

A different memory surfaced in Danny’s mind. “That… when we were being rescued… the… the person that helped us get back… he said the A-listers got targeted for their blood,” he stammered before he could stop himself.

Everyone in the room stared at him. He and his friends really hadn’t talked about Frostbite. They mentioned to the police they thought someone helped them, but purposely left it vague. With how disoriented they were when they were found, the police were under the impression the trauma obscured some of their memories. Well, the cat was out of the bag.

Matzger stared at him. “Are you telling me what happened to your classmates may be related to… to this thing?”

“I don’t know. Maybe? Like I told my mom before you came, the person who grabbed me and my friends isn’t the same… whatever that thing is. But, I don’t know what Dash and them encountered after we got separated.”

“Hmm… what about the person who helped you?”

Danny shook his head. “Not the same person. He called himself Frostbite, and…” How could he even explain Frostbite? He was a ghostly yeti with an ice arm for God’s sake! “I didn’t think he was real,” he eventually stated as he glanced down at his hands. “He was so friendly and helpful. He was so much different than that thing.”

“Honey, you never really talked about this Frostbite person before.” His mother tried to reach out for his hand, but he pulled away.

“I… I thought he was a dream or hallucination or something for a while.” He hoped he sounded sincere. It was somewhat true after all. The fantastical nature of what happen still didn’t seem real to him, but he knew better. “I think he had helpers… there were other voices besides his.”

“That would line up with some of the evidence we have from your case,” Matzger stated as he rubbed his chin. “The injuries of you and your two friends were vastly different than the others who went missing which suggested multiple perpetrators. One of the other boys did mention that he thought they were rescued by a small group of people. I will have to take a closer look at the injuries of your classmates to determine whether or not they match up with our current victims. That should give us an idea if it’s the same thing or something different.”

“Sir,” officer Kiziah interrupted, “we’ve finished our initial sweep. We did have some trouble trying to keep Mr. Fenton out of the way in the basement area, but he’s promised to stay at the one table while we work. He’s apparently drafting some blueprints. Forensics is here and are working on collecting evidence. They’re hoping to talk to you.”

He sighed. “Thank you, Kiziah. Can you explain to them their options during our investigation progress?” After flashing them an apologetic smile which seemed out of place with his features, he told them he would be in touch and excused himself.

After shaking his head at his superior, Kiziah stated while the family could stay in the house during the investigation process, it had the possibility of accidentally contaminating evidence. He recommended for them to stay at a local hotel for a time.

Although his mother seemed hesitant to leave the house, she eventually agreed to head to a hotel after Vlad made a show of being concerned for the family’s safety. It took a bit of time to get his dad to leave the basement, but by the time seven am hit, Danny found himself in the best hotel in Amity Park, per Vlad’s firm recommendations.

After sending his friends a few texts to let them know what happened, that he was fine, and where he was, he told them he’d call them after he got some sleep. Although he wasn’t exactly happy he shared the room with Vlad, the pristine bed ended up being far more important to him than any worries.

…..

Several hours later, Danny woke up to one hundred and three texts, fifty-four missed calls, and eleven voicemails. Sam and Tucker had only one voicemail and call apiece and only a handful of texts. The rest were from his sister. Groaning, he sent Sam and Tucker messages to let them know he’d call them after he contacted his sister.

He really didn’t want to talk to Jazz at the moment. When she was scared, she became spastic, and a spastic Jazz was the last thing he wanted to deal with at the moment. Okay, the third to last think he wanted to deal with. The creepy thing and Plasmius took the top two places.

After taking several minutes to do everything other than call his sister, he finally buckled down and called her. As predicted, she spastically demanded to know if he was okay while berating him for not contacting her sooner. He just let her talk while making the occasional ‘uh huh’, ‘sorry,’ and ‘yeah.’ From experience, he knew it was better to let her get it out of her system.

He put Jazz on speaker while he attempted to find the hotel’s TV remote. Vlad didn’t seem to be in the room which really didn’t bother him. The man didn’t need to listen to Jazz flipping out after all. Eventually, he found the remote next to a message from Vlad stating he and his parents went to discuss something with the police and would be back with food.

“Danny, are you even listening to me?” Jazz demanded. He must have been quiet for too long.

“Uh? Yeah, I just happened to find a note Vlad left. You were saying something about how it was irresponsible for Dad to go running after the thing?”

“Wait, are you telling me you were left alone after everything that happened?”

“Jazz, I’m seventeen. I think I’m perfectly fine being alone for a few hours.”

“You were kidnapped by a crazy man and then were attacked in your own home! Do you really think it’s safe for you to be alone right now?” With that, she flew into a different tirade.

Knowing it would be a while, he decided the TV would be a preferable alternative to his upset sister. He turned it on only to have it immediately turn off. Thinking he accidentally doubled clicked the button, he tried again only to have the same result. Thinking the remote was damaged, he moved to try the button on the machine. Only, it turned on by itself. It and the lights began to dim and flicker, and his breath began to mist.

Glancing around, he watched as a girl emerged from the wall. At first, it seemed she didn’t notice him as she moved towards the opposite wall, but she stopped midway and faced him. She looked human but her entire body seemed insubstantial and almost wispy. Her skin, if it could be called that, was an unearthly white while her blue hair flickered like a flame.

She smirked at him while moving a little closer. “You shouldn’t be here, Baby Pop.” Her sultry and musical voice seemed far away, almost as if it was being broadcasted over an old radio. “Don’t know what you’re doing on this side of the veil, but you shouldn’t stay here.”

“What… what are you talking about? Who are you?” he stammered while vaguely registering Jazz asking him what was wrong.

“I like to slip to this side for some fun, but I might stick around a little longer this time. It’s already chaotic here, and a little more might do me some good. Besides, it seems I need to make a few people remember I still exist.” After appraising him, she gave another smile and headed back towards the wall. “You might want to get out while you can, Baby Pop. Things might get a little hot, and you new guys often aren’t strong enough to deal with the heat.”

“Hey, wait!” He tried to get her to stop, but she just vanished back into the wall. Unsure what to do, he stood in the center of the room dumbfounded until he realized his phone was still on speaker and his sister was calling for him.

“Hey, Jazz, I’m going to have to call you back,” he stated as he moved towards the door. “Something really weird just happened.” He hung up on her as he ran into the hallway looking for some evidence of the ghost.

He barely made it to the elevators when the fire alarm sounded. Not wanting to stick around, he quickly found the stairs and made his way to the lobby as the rest of the guests started to follow suit. By the time he reached the third floor, he began to smell smoke. There had to be a fire. Is that what that ghost meant? Did she somehow set it?

He really hoped that wasn’t the case. He really only needed on potentially supernatural thing causing problems in his life at a time.

[wendibird]

SPN 15X14 Observations

So, for whatever dumbass reason, when trying to use my actual television, the cable refuses to work properly 8 times out of 10. BUT I was able to stream tonight’s episode on my computer with my cable network’s app. So, there’s that. Because of that, and since it’s easier for me to type on my keyboard than on my phone, I actually took quick notes and observations during commercial breaks. Here are those, then some more of my thoughts following. (And I’m sorry if any of these seem a bit incoherent. They were more my observations to myself. *LOL*  

(everything else under the keep reading line since I got a bit rambly, and just in case anyone wants to avoid spoilers)

- Brothers being written a bit like characters of themselves rather than just themselves. (trying too hard?)

- Love Mrs. Butters. Actress really good. And the minor ret-con works with what we've seen.

- Sam more concerned about Jack. I think he understands him better, even though he hasn't seen much of him.

- "Ignoring your trauma doesn't make you healthy." (or something like that.) Good quote!

- Waiting for the catch.

- "Enjoy the world you're fighting for." (compare with Kevin's similar line: "I can't enjoy a world I need to save.")

- Mrs. Butters knows Jack isn't human.

- BOY did the shoe drop! But it was Sinclaire involved. Not surprised he took advantage of her natural protective nature.

- Wanted more plot for WHY exactly they still have Thor's Hammer. Have they had it this whole time? Last we saw Sam dropped it in 8X2. Or did Mrs. Butters conjure it up because they might need it? Was cool though that Sam was using it. Because we already know he can.

- Jack figured out on his own how to use the projector. (love that boy!)

- liked hearing him talk about what happened with Mary and how he feels.

- Mrs. Butters knows from experience about needing "second chances" I think.

- Why were they ALWAYS wearing the same clothes during the "We got one!" montages? Assuming it was supposed to have taken place over several days at least if not longer. (I highly doubt they went out on THAT many hunts in one day.)

- Yeeeah... So I get she's protective, but JACK IS BABY! She can clearly see his power levels but she has to have seen how he he actually IS? But she gave him the smoothies from the start, so she's been planning it from almost the start. Hrm.

- idk what anyone else says, I'm thrilled that Sam and Eileen had a date. Also, THIS is where that sweater-vest comes from. Bet we'll see him going for his gun too. (That clip was hotly debated in one of the discord servers I’m on)

- Dean is obviously still having some issues with Jack, but he also seems to know that they're his personal issues and he knows that Jack is good. (Expanding on this thought post episode, I was seeing this as Dean recognizing the difference between what he knows and what he’s feeling. So, yey! Personal growth!)

- DEAN JACK IS NOT A BATTERING RAM!!!

- Dean sees Jack as a weapon. He used him as a battering ram. He'll use him as a grenade to throw at Chuck. (More on this after the notes.)

- Sam sees him as a person. His argument was that Jack was someone he cared about. That killing him would HURT him.

- Also, did they HAVE to go for the fingernails again?!

- Poor Sam, getting tortured. And being the "favorite" of something bad.

- Also, SAM WAS RIGHT! To be cautious of her at first. Too many times he's had things/people seem good and turn out opposite.

- And because Dean had decided it was all okay, they both stopped looking up on her.

- Maybe Sam will realize that he doesn't always have to follow Dean's lead. He can pursue his own paths. (Not talking about them separating. Just, if he wants to look into something, he should do it. If he wants to follow a different lead, he should check it out.)

- I know he lost a lot of confidence last season but I hope he realizes that he doesn't by default make bad decisions.

- Okay, that was a good resolution. I'm glad she's going back to her people.

- Interdimensional geoscope: Dean saw nothing. Because ALL the other universes are gone. *sad-face*

- Love Sam and Jack. Wish we got a bit more. But it was something.

- Also love that Dean tried. That felt real to me. (the birthday cake)

More thoughts! 

So. Overall I liked this episode. It was lighthearted mostly, but touched on some serious topics and wasn’t completely disconnected with what is going on with everyone, despite the random holiday montage. *LOL* (Yes, I know she wasn’t bending time or anything, she was just choosing to celebrate some holidays with her boys regardless of when this is all taking place exactly.) It did feel a bit to me, at the start anyway, like the writing at least was trying too hard to “Sound like Sam and Dean” instead of just them being them. I mentioned that at the start but what I mean is, in this season especially (but not exclusively) I’ve noticed a lot of times where it feels to me like the writing/directing/whatever leads to the sum total of what we see is trying too hard to present this idea of who the characters are, like caricatures of them. The things associated with them get emphasized, sometimes out of proportion. Though in this episode, it only felt like that during the opening scene and maybe a few places elsewhere. Overall I thought the writing and especially the acting on the parts of the main 3 guys and the guest actor were well done and had a lot of nuance when needed. Like, as an example, when Sam and Dean sussed out that this being that they didn’t even know was a bit behind the times, they were actually pretty gentle with bringing her up to speed. And her reaction to realizing that everyone she knew before was dead felt very real. 

I liked what we saw of where each of the characters were emotionally this episode. It was the first one after Jack has been re-souled and it had definitely been weighing on my mind how everyone was doing. (Though I REALLY wish we could have actually seen Sam and Dean’s reactions to Jack tearfully begging their forgiveness last episode. But lacking any other input, I’m headcannoning that Sam gave him a very long, warm hug.)  

I also agree with Sam, I think there’s something more that Jack hasn’t told them yet, probably some details about Billy’s plan that he or her are sure the brothers won’t like. (Now, what exactly that could be is very much up in the air. I can think of quite a few options, but the details aren’t really important to me just now. Just the fact that something about it is weighing on Jack. More than just Mary’s death and the prospect of having to kill God. Which, in and of themselves would be more than enough.) 

Speaking of Sam, I liked that we saw all those little nods to how he feels about Jack, how he’s still worried about him, and seems to understand him. 

I also get where Dean’s coming from. And I thought it was well-portrayed. And let me just say, I am GLAD that he just outright told Jack where he was at. He didn’t sugarcoat it, but he also didn’t blow up at him, or reply with sarcasm or bring up other, unrelated stuff. Dean knows that Jack is trying, but he himself has some emotional stuff he needs to deal with. That he is dealing with. And it’s going to take him some time. 

I do however stand by my observation made during the episode that at least at that point in it, Dean considered Jack a weapon. An asset. He literally used him as a battering ram, and in a more meta way, he’s planning on using him as a grenade to throw at God. Even when arguing with Mrs. B about it, his response was in reference to Jack’s usefulness. Whereas Sam was arguing that Jack meant something to him, that he cared about him, and hurting Jack would hurt him. Now, I do think that Dean’s POV had shifted a bit by the very end. Dean’s love language has almost always been shown by doing things for people, and taking care of them. So him making that birthday cake for Jack really felt to me like him trying to tell him that he does actually care about him. And I think Jack got it. And true, the cake might not have been as neat and pretty as Mrs. B would have made it, but I thought it was beautiful because of all the thought that went into it. (Dean’s more of a cook than a baker too.) 

As a side note, something I thought about after the episode: when Mrs. B stepped in, she kind of took over that care-taker role. AND the research role. She made them lunches, cooked them dinners, decorated for holidays, and overall made them feel comfortable and safe. And she also pin-pointed where monsters were and made sure they were all stocked-up and ready to go. All they had to do was show up and get it done. And yeah, it must have been a nice break from the norm. But I also think about how much Dean finds his identity beyond hunting in taking care of people. And how much Sam finds his identity in researching and figuring things out. And with her doing that, they both took it easy on those ends. Dean didn’t have to make burgers for everyone since Mrs. B made a roast. Sam didn’t have to research since she could tell them where the monsters were and what kind. I almost wonder if both of them were starting to feel like those parts of themselves were all of a sudden unnecessary. (Which makes me a little sad, because it reminds me a bit of the “two cakes” concept in fandom. Who cares if someone else can “do it better”? If you do it, then there’ll be even more of the good thing!)  And as I observed above, Sam also stopped looking into HER. I mean, he didn’t even know what would kill a wood nymph. And I do think part of that also goes back to him having recently fallen back on letting Dean make the big decisions. Because last season so many of his blew up in his face. (Though I don’t think most of that was his fault. But Sam tends to blame himself for a lot.) And I do hope that maybe he’ll remember that he does have good instincts when he listens to them. And he can keep looking into something even if Dean thinks it’s fine. It’s not a betrayal to be prepared. 

ALSO! Being the absolute Saileen hoe that I am, even though we didn’t Eileen in this episode, I was thrilled that Sam went out on a date with her because she was in town! And true, we don’t know what all went down, but regardless, I see it as good that they’re at the very least still friends, and that hopefully Eileen is sorting out her own feelings vs whatever she might think could be Chuck’s manipulations. Even if Saileen isn’t Engame (and honestly, as much as I love it, I don’t think it will be) I would still like for them to be on good terms with each other. (And for her to NOT get fridged again!) 

Another thing I was pondering afterwards and a bit during: I wasn’t surprised that Sam held up to the torture fairly well. I mean, it still obviously hurt! (And again, WHY with the fingernails again?! As someone in one of my discord servers mentioned, we didn’t need THAT particular call-back to the Christmas Episode of Season 3!) But he was listening to what she was saying. And he understood the implications that she had been tortured into acting how they wanted her to act. And Sam understands torture, and how it can mess someone up. And despite what she had done to him, and was trying to still do, he validated what she had been through. He empathized with her. And that.... it’s just SO Sam! 

I will say that the resolution felt a little... abrupt. Like, her expression had changed a little during the fight/argument. Then back from the commercial break and she’s all packed-up and ready to leave and they’re all saying goodbye and wishing her well. I feel like there might have been some more scenes or parts of scenes that were originally there connecting things up more, but were cut for time.

I wouldn’t say this was a groundbreaking episode, but it WAS fun, and it did have some seriousness at it’s core, and I think it did what it needed to do. 

(And I apologize if this is just a big rambling mess. I’m not used to doing structured episode reviews. *LOL* Feedback and opinions are welcome though!) 

[inessencedevided]

The Untamed, episode 46 - watching notes

Full disclosure: I'm not in a particularly good mood today. Have you seen that "no productivity. Only guild." Meme flying around? That's me today :|

Hopefully this will distract me (though distraction was the problem in the first place 🙈)

I apologise for any typos you'll finde in this post 😅

To recap, the last thing I learned was that apparently, Jiggy married his own sister because Jin Guangshan was a scumbag who raped more women than he could possibly remember

I was told by several people that this episode is their favourite. No pressures or anything :D

The way someone is dragging up Jiggy's secrets has a lot of poetic justice to it. Everyone is outraged and gossiping. Consensus is reached quickly. Kinda makes me feel that that someone (who probably also wrote the letter to jgy) knows exactly how to use the sect world's worst qualities as a weapon

Yao what's-his-name, resident gossip queen, at it again

Don't look at me my memory is as bad as wwx when it comes to names :D

I was about to write who is Lianfang Zum again and then I remembered that it's jiggy's honorary title. See what I mean? ^^

What does it say about me that my heart makes a leap when I simply see wwx leaning close to lwj to whisper to him? 😅 I'll probably die reading the novel, that's what that says

Oh so it was the maid who sent the letter

Come on Wei Wuxian! That was cruel

Yeah Yao what's-his-name, why would you need to know the identity of who ever is behind this? It's not like you've ever been deceived before!

What's... with that bracelet?

I love it how everyone looks positively startled when Lan Wangji says something unprompted :D

Wait ... Zwei Jun is in his hands? Shit, i don't remeber what happened there. Where did Xichen go again? 😬

I'm so confused right now 🙈 I can't watch and read the subtitles and type

Okay, watched the whole conversation again, now I'm following

I reiterate my earlier statement that whoever is pulling the strings here knows exactly what strings to pull to get the clans to act

Great, another mob 🙄

Loooool

NOW you want his help? 😂

Sure, as soon as he can serve YOU with his "evil tricks", that's okay!

You can see how much wwx changed because he does not hold their hypocrisy to their faces. He mostly seemed tired of it

And Jiang Cheng just realised that wwx might indeed not be responsible for Jiang Yanli's death, didn't he? He's almost stunned 🥺

Or is BEAUTIFUL to see Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji move in such unity! 😭

Oh ... those are the graves of his foster parents, right? :(

And Yanli ... oh God I forgot about Yanli 🥺

I'm crying again. Nothing on this show will ever hit as hard to me as the Yunmeng siblings' fate

I couldn't help myself, I legitimately just stroked my laptop screen where Yanli's plate was 🥺

So many conflicting emotions

Thanks to a friendly anon, I know that these three bows together are marriage thing! 😭😭😭

So yeah, they're married now. I dont make the rules :')

Somehow, this feels like them asking wwx's foster family's blessing

And now I'm imagining Shijie smiling back at them gently and I'm crying 🥺

And by God, I love lwj's gentle teasing :')

This whole scene, he's so soft! 😭

And it think that Wei Wuxian probably thought that he'd never get to step into Lotus Pier again. But here, he can finally say his goodbyes to his Shijie properly. He can heal! 🖤

And again, I cannot stress enough how wonderful that is! And how rare and precious in a show like this. So often character's get put through unimaginable trauma, but they either brush it off no problem or the show/movie ends immediately after the main action and you are left to imagine the number it did on the character's psyche. There are so rarely fantasy shows that really dive into the emotional fallout the plot has on their characters and then give them time to heal. Thus show does both and I'm so goddamn overjoyed my it!

Come to think of it, it reminds me of a very good hurt/comfort fic 🤷‍♀️

Jiang Cheng pleae, fir once, try not to be angry immediately when you're hurting :(

He still takes special offence that lwj is there. Makes me wonder if he still feels like wwx chooses lwj over the Jiang sect and is still hurt by it 😔 (note that at the same time, he reminds wwx that he's very much not a member of the Jiang clan anymore. God, the man has not worked through his own feelings ...)

For once, as much as I love it when lwj defends wwx (especially when it's not against any physical harm, but because he doesn't want wwx to be hurt emotionally) I think him interfering with this particular conflict does not help

Okay sorry, but no! lotus pier was not destroyed because wwx saved lwj in that cave. That was just an excuse for the Wen sect. They would have come eventually anyway

Ohhh

So there's my answer

He's still hurt because he feels wwx chooses anyone else over his family, which is to say him

And he probably can't understand because their positions are so different. The (future) sect leader and the son of a (dead) servant and a rogue cultivator who never felt quite like he belonged 😔

It's so goddamn tragic how much between these two was destroyed simply because they have such a different status in society and could never quite understand each other's perspective

And again, wwx just takes it 💔

Until, that is, lwj's honour gets besmirched

Don't fight in front of Shijie 🥺

Jiang Cheng's every action screams that he still loves his brother and that amidst all that pain for his lost family, is also deep betrayal and grieve for the brother he thought he could always count on 🥺💔

Can we appreciate for a second how much this shot tells us? From Jiang Cheng's angry desperation, to Wei Wuxian's quite acceptance of his rage (which must be so confusing to Jiang Cheng and probably hurt him even more. Because fighting is always how these two resolved their issues!) to Lan Wangji who is in full on protective mode (which I find more than heartwarming,but still think probably isn't helpful rn)

He ... what?

I still don't quite understand when exactly wwx's lack of golden core shows. Why does he have a nosebleed here?

What?

Oh!

Wen Ning 😱

I get what he wants to do!

Have we ever seen him this calm and determined before?

Abd they understand 😱😱😱

The look on all of their faces! Shiiiiit

I'm crying again

Oh wangii is crying 🥺

Wen Quing 💔💔💔 I'm crying even harder just looking at her. I've MISSED her 🥺

Lan Zhan your FACE!! 😭

The way he's looking at wwx in his arms, as if he's seeing him fir the first time

And by god, I can only imagine what he must be thinking

He must be reevaluation every single interaction they had since wwx started down the path of demonic cultivation 😭

I'm a bit in awe of Wen Ning here and how much he must have been holding in. That's the steadiest and most confident he's ever been

Oh Jiang cheng 💔

That looks like a man whose entire world has just been shaken to its core

And Lan Wangji is crying so much 🥺

God I hope he doesn't blame himself even more 🥺

Aaaaaaahhhh, so that is why he wouldn't just carry the sword for appearance sake and why he just had a nosebleed!

Jiang Cheng probably needs about a month to process all that :/

And therapy ...

Aaaaaaahhhh! The boat scene! I've seen gifs! 😍😍😍

A penny for Lan Wangji's thoughts ...

Oh I'm so so so so glad that Wen Ning gets to say thank you to the man who raised his ... cousin (?) :')

Oh god we get to see!!!!

Oh little a Yuan 😭😭😭😭😭😭

I wonder now, did Lan Qiren know who the child was that his nephew suddenly brought back to cloud recess?

I'm glad that we all learned from this that keeping secrets from the people we love, especially secrets that concern them personally, will eventually come back to bide us in the ass. Than you for delivering that important lesson, wen Ning!

Which reminds me that I hope they eventually tell wwx that they know 😬

I swear to god, one of these days I will melt from the gentleness in lan Wangji's gaze :')

Shit. He had to be awake? 😳

You can pinpoint the moment Lan Wangji's heart breaks for all the suffering wwx endured and how close he came to loosing him even then 🥺

Waking like that in you lovers arms in the middle of a lotus pond - that's the dream *sighs* (minus the passing out bit)

It's weirdly cute that wwx thinks that it's Jiang Cheng's insults that have lwj so upset 😅

Oh GOOOOD ...

I can't

The moment Yanli's themes started to play and she appeared I started to bawl 😭😭😭

And he's sharing the lotus pods with them ... oh please, lwj, please understand what he's saying. That's his pove language! His sister's food was how he received love and right now he passes it on to you! Please, please understand it! 🥺

Oh lwj, don't 🙈

Awwwwww ....

He's breaking the rules for you!!! Just to make you smile!!! 😭😭

And holy shit look at their expressions 😭

By now you should know that he's willing to break the rules for you :')

And poor third wheel Wen Ning 😂

Now there are glittering butterflies???

Do they have some kind of romantic aesthetic bingo going on in this episode???

Oh okay, messenger butterflies

Please appreciate wwx almost climbing into lan Wangji's lab in excitement :D

Thay scene transition was pretty af!

Hey! Why do they bully wen Ning? 😤

*shakes wwx by the shoulders* DO YOU GET THAT HE LOVES YOU NOW???

Huh, this episode was a roller coaster. you guys did NOT exaggerate! I loved it to pieces. I'm floored once more by all the actor's performances. Wen Ning revealed a lot about his character, Jiang Cheng broke my heart, Lan Wangji made it melt and Shijie is still able to make me bawl in an instant. But ... I'm not left with a bitter feeling. Sure, jiang Cheng and wei Wuxian havebt reconciled, but the truth is the first step to even have that possibility. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji are both healing and whatever happens in the last 4 (4!!!😭) episodes, I'm not dreading it that much right now. I feel like we're climbing upwards :)

@sweetlittlevampire @fandom-glazed @elenirlachlagos @allhailthedramallama @luckymoony @kyrrahbird @i-love-him-on-purpose thank you guys for staying with me for this crazy ride 💙🖤💙

Also one last thing: please don't tell me what happens differently in the novel in any given scene. I am still reading it (about half way through rn) and I'd like to still be surprised by stuff like first kisses and love confessions 💙🖤

I should have put something like this at the end before, but I always forgot. That's on me 😅 so don't feel bad, if you've shared something before :)

[stardust-and-snickerdoodles]

I’m Sure They’ll Understand pt. 2

part 1

fandom: MCU

pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader

summary: It’s been a couple months since the party and you’re officially free of HYDRA’s hold on you. The memories still remain, along with the guilt, but at least there’s no chance of reverting back to a murderous super soldier. Steve wants you to try to meet the Avengers once more, and despite your fear, you agree.

warnings: angst

word count: 2017

a/n: i got a little carried away... oops.

“You want to bring her on a mission? Did those seventy years in the ice freeze your braincells, too?” Tony glares at Steve across the conference room. The whole team is assembled to discuss an upcoming mission and Steve has just announced his decision to bring you along. “The party was one thing, but this is serious business.”

Steve meets his glare steadily. “Shuri said she’s clear for action. She managed to override all the programming that HYDRA implemented. Plus, Y/N’s not going to be doing any fighting. I just want her to have a chance to bond with you guys.”

Natasha clears her throat and sits up a little straighter. “Look, Steve, I want you to know that I support you and Y/N. But frankly, it’s not the best idea for her to be exposed to HYDRA so soon after deprogramming.”

“Even I couldn’t go on missions for a few months after I came out of cryo again,” Bucky cuts in, tapping his fingers on the table. “It’s nothing against Y/N, it’s just…”

“It’s just you don’t trust her,” Steve says accusingly, sweeping his across the whole room. His team members can’t meet his eyes. He continues, “Y/N deserves your trust. She’s been working so hard for the last year to get better. All the things that she did with HYDRA weren’t her fault.” Steve turns to look at Bucky again. “Buck, I expected some understanding from you at least. None of us hold you responsible for anything you did in the past.” Bucky looks down at his hands guiltily. “So why is it so different for Y/N?”

“Steve,” Natasha says gently. “We’re not trying to attack you or Y/N here. We’re trying to do what’s best for the team. And teaming up with someone who willingly joined HYDRA, not to mention injured you, doesn’t seem smart.” Natasha holds her hand up when Steve begins to interrupt. “I know she had no other choice. But she’s still a liability.”

The fight has died from Steve’s voice. “Just give her a chance. I’ll even stay in the quinjet with her during the mission. I’ll make sure she’s safe.”

“Not a chance, capsicle,” Tony interjects. “Fury wants you taking point on this one. If anyone’s going to stay with her, it’s the Manchurian Candidate over there.” He nods his head toward Bucky.

Bucky’s face is a mixture of disappointment and anger. “Why me?”

“Because you’re the only one who’s been through the same sort of thing Y/N has,” Natasha explains. “You can empathize with her situation.”

Bucky crosses his arms but doesn’t say anything else. The logic is sound, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy about it.

“So, she can come?” Steve asks, trying to keep from sounding like a giddy child.

There’s silence as the rest of the team exchange glances. Steve can hear his heart pounding in his ears. All he wants is for the team to accept you. No matter your past or the horrible things you were forced to do. He wants them to see you like he sees you – beautiful, intelligent, and worthy of love and compassion.

Tony sighs and drags a hand across his face, sighing. “As long as she stays in the jet.”

…

“I didn’t think we’d be going on a whole-ass mission, Stevie,” you murmur as you pull on one of your boots. The rest of the Avengers have been giving you a wide berth while you all get ready. You eye them all nervously, watching them prepare. The only one who has even spoken to you is, of course, Steve. “You said you just wanted me to hang out with them.”

He offers you a small, reassuring smile. “It’ll be okay, Y/N. It’s a small base; nothing out of the ordinary anyway.”

You tug your other boot on and stand. Even though you’re not going to be doing any fighting, you’re still suited up in a black and forest green bodysuit, along with your signature black hood. You’re not allowed any guns, but your preferred weapon is a bow so you don’t need them anyway. You do, however, have one small knife sheathed at each hip; it’s the most the team would let you have. Your quiver feels empty without any arrows in it, but you understand that the team’s safety is priority. And although there’s no chance of you reverting back to your brainwashed ways, you can tell the Avengers still don’t trust you.

You pat Steve on the shoulder and move closer to the doors of the prep room, hopping from one foot to another as nerves surge through you. You have your back to the rest of the team so you don’t have to deal with their worried glances any longer.

Bucky moves to stand next to Steve, who is adjusting one of the straps on his suit. Bucky sighs as he looks at you. “I still don’t think this is a good idea, Steve,” he says.

“And frankly, I don’t care,” Steve shoots back before walking toward you without another word. Bucky shakes his head and continues to get ready.

Steve places a gentle hand on your arm and you stop your anxious movement. “Ready?” he asks.

You nod and look at the waiting quinjet outside. “I just wish we’d get a move on. I don’t know how much longer I can stand here without throwing something.”

Steve looks at you with worry in his eyes as the rest of the team glances around nervously.

You roll your eyes. “I’m kidding,” you say a little louder, trying to set everyone at ease.

A few moments later, Tony claps his hands together and announces that it’s time to leave. You mumble a quick “thank God” and head out the doors to the jet.

You sit close to the back, leaving a seat for Steve to join you if he wants to. Everyone else takes seats toward the front and you try not to be offended by the amount of space they leave between you and them. Steve sits down next to you though and you flash him a grateful smile.

The ride to the HYDRA base is nearly silent, the tension thick in the air. The team’s thoughts are preoccupied with both the mission and your possible actions. Meanwhile, you attempt to lighten your own mood by playing Sticks with Steve. He’s much better at it than you are but it’s a good distraction. Your soft giggles and words float up to the front of the jet where everyone else is sitting.

“Ten bucks says they’re making out by the end of the mission,” Sam whispers, his own attempt at an icebreaker.

Nat snorts. “I say by the time we get to the base.”

“Deal.” Sam smirks and they shake hands. A bit of the tension lifts and a conversation starts up between the rest of the team members.

You’re half-paying attention to their voices when you hear your name. It’s Nat, trying to get your attention. “Y/N! Clint wants to know what kind of arrows you prefer.”

You blink slowly, trying to register the words. Someone wants to know about you? Your Sticks game forgotten, you fidget nervously with the hilt of one of your knives. “Um,” you start, clearing your throat, “I use smoke bomb arrows a lot. Good for cover when you’re trying to get through a place that’s heavily crowded with hostiles. Sonic arrows are good for distractions.”

Clint nods and takes a few arrows from his quiver. He hands them to Nat, who passes them down the line of chairs to you. You take them hesitantly, noticing that they’re a mix of the two types of arrows you mentioned.

Tony frowns and says to Clint, “I thought we said no weapons.”

Clint rolls his eyes. “They’re barely weapons. They don’t do any damage besides stunning, at the most. Besides, I’m considering it a welcome gift.”

“A welcome gift? For what?” Tony asks, incredulous.

“The Avengers, obviously. It doesn’t look like she’s going anywhere anytime soon.”

The two guys look over at you and Steve. The two of you are now holding hands lightly. As they watch, Steve brushes a strand of hair out of your face and you blush.

Tony hums lightly but doesn’t say anything else.

You can’t help but notice that the rest of the team seems a little more at ease since Clint’s peace offering. A few times, some of the other members ask simple questions but it doesn’t often branch into a longer conversation. Still, you’re happy that they seem to be learning to accept you.

Once you arrive at the base, Steve stands and briefly explains the mission, reiterating once again that you will remain in the jet with Bucky. Things move quickly from there, with Steve handing you an earpiece and instructing you on how to use it before leading the rest of the team out of the jet. You watch them leave, sending up a quick prayer that everyone returns safely.

Once it’s just you and Bucky, you glance around the jet. Bucky hasn’t moved except to take a knife from its sheath and begin to flip it absentmindedly. The tension from before is back, even stronger now.

You can hear the team talking through the earpiece but you barely pay any attention. It’s mostly Tony making jokes and Steve instructing the others on where to go. Eventually, the silence inside the jet gets to you and you have to say something. You clear your throat and Bucky turns to look at you, his face unreadable. “So… is your specialty knives?” You immediately feel dumb for asking such a ridiculous question but can’t do anything about it now.

Bucky shrugs and flips his knife again. “Don’t really have much of a specialty. Used to be a sniper. HYDRA trained me in everything though.”

You nod and silence settles in the air again. Bucky seems to be closed off, which is why it surprises you when he speaks once more, “I remember you from… then. When we were with HYDRA.”

The way he says “when we” makes it sound like some sort of pact. Like some shared trauma that ties you together. You force your mouth to not smile and meet his eyes. “I remember you, too.”

“They called you Ranger, right?”

A tingle goes down your spine at the old name. “Yeah. I don’t use that anymore, though. Too many bad associations.”

Bucky nods, and you think you see a little empathy on his face. “It’s the same with me and the Winter Soldier.” He pauses and there’s hesitation in his voice when he says, “I don’t… I don’t hate you, you know.”

Your eyes widen a bit. “God, Bucky, I never thought that. I know how hard it must be to trust me, though.” You run the edge of your fingernail along your thumb unconsciously, one of those little tics that you do when you’re nervous. You laugh quickly, “Hell, sometimes I don’t even trust myself. So I get it. I don’t expect you to-”

Suddenly, you hear a flurry of gunshots through your earpiece. There are shouts and bangs, all assaulting you at once. You try to focus on one sound, one voice, but everyone is talking over each other. Bucky sits up a little straighter and presses a finger against his earpiece. “What’s going on?” he demands.

“Barnes!” Tony’s voice comes through finally, louder than the rest of the commotion. “We need backup in here; the base is larger than we thought.”

Bucky immediately stands and you start to follow suit, preparing to fight. But Bucky stops you with one hand held out. “What about Y/N?”

There’s no response for a little bit. Finally, Tony again, “Bring her in.”

As you gear up, Bucky shows you where Clint’s extra arrows are and you begin to load them into your quiver. The earpiece is once again only filled with the sounds of gunfire. That is, until Sam’s voice breaks through with three words that shatter your heart.

“Rogers is down!”

>>>

part 3

tags: @aspie-allie​ @ashwarren32​

[cami-chats]

The New Assistant

Fandom: Marvel, Jurassic World

Pairing: Claire Dearing/Tony Stark

Warnings: Mentions of kidnapping and attempted murder in keeping with Iron Man 1

Written for @periwinklepromise. Also on AO3

"This is Claire," Pepper said.

"What did you do, clone yourself?" Tony asked, looking at Claire. From the straightened and perfectly cut red hair, down to her low heels and pristine dress suit, she looked very similar to Pepper. Not to mention the no-nonsense look on her face. "Seriously Pep, she could be your sister. Wait, is she your sister? Please say yes; it would make me very happy."

Instead of asking why it would make him happy-- because Pepper was a spoilsport-- she said, "She's your new assistant. She has excellent management skills, and god knows she'll need it do deal with you." Pepper turned to Claire and handed her a tablet with a window already pulled up. "This is Tony's schedule for the day. I'll be in my office looking over paperwork, so I'll be available if you need me."

Claire dipped her head in acknowledgement, taking the tablet from her. Her eyes flitted over the screen as Pepper walked away, and a moment later, she looked up at Tony with a polite smile. "You have a meeting with Mr. Kenjiro Fujikawa in thirty minutes. Where would you like to be briefed for your meeting?"

So she wasn't fucking around. Tony's assistants before Pepper had always thought they were being serious, but there had been no getting around the fact that he was their boss, and as a personal assistant, they were supposed to do things the way he wanted. He should've known to expect more from a person that Pepper had hand-picked, but everyone made mistakes-- even Pepper. "Here's fine," he said, because they were already in his office, and there was no point in picking a fight with Claire now, when he did need to prepare for that meeting. He'd had a lot of assistants that didn't even know he had to prepare for big meetings, and it had always been a pain in the ass.

By the time Claire's first day of work was done, Tony was suitably impressed. He hadn't gone out of his way to make things difficult, but he also wasn't a kid anymore. It was more important for him to get his shit done than it was to see if she could handle him on his worst day; it's not like he'd been at his worst in quite a while, so hopefully she would never be put to the test. Claire had been able to keep up, and she was able to adjust to the way Tony wanted things.

"So," Pepper said, first thing when Tony answered his phone, "what do you think?"

"I'm keeping her."

Pepper's voice was expectedly smug as she replied, "Good to hear. Does that mean I don't have to check in on you tomorrow to make sure your entire schedule hasn't collapsed?"

"Don't go crazy, now," Tony said. "There's always the chance for things to collapse around here."

"Still, I think I'll take my chances. This is what you get for promoting me."

"Yes, and I'm sure I'll constantly regret it."

"Claire really is good at what she does," Pepper said.

"And what exactly is it that she does? I took a peek at her resume, and there was nothing about being an assistant on there."

"If you read her resume, surely you could figure it out."

"I skimmed it," Tony said. Mostly, he'd been looking to see who else she'd been an assistant for, and he'd found no one. He hadn't looked further than that.

"She used to do administrative work," Pepper said, since she knew that Tony was more likely to pester her for an answer than he was to go back to her resume and look for himself.

"Then what's she doing here?"

"The last charity she helped turned out to be less than kosher. She wants a break."

"Ah." Tony could understand that. He'd taken some time off from the company when he felt like everything he'd done had been a colossal failure. Granted it hadn't been what SI needed at the time, but he understood needing a break all the same. That being said, he hoped she stayed longer than just a 'break'. Good assistants were hard to come by. "I'm still not convinced you didn't clone her so you could be in two places at once."

"If I could clone myself, one of me would be resting at all times," Pepper said, which was a good point, but Tony couldn't relate. If he had two of himself, he'd be able to get so much more work done.

*

"Mister Stark, there’s a flight you have to be on in half an hour."

"It's my plane, isn't it? Can't it just leave whenever I show up?"

"Would you like to personally explain to flight control why your schedule is more important than the hundred other planes in the area?" Claire asked, reaching for her phone.

Tony knew that she wasn't bluffing. He'd thought she was bluffing the first half dozen times they'd done this, but he'd finally learned his lesson. "No, no, that's fine," he said, hurriedly saving the document that was up and tossing tools back in the closest box-- DUM-E would fix it if it was the wrong one. "Look at me, I'm closing everything down. I'm practically out the door."

Claire put her phone back in her pocket. "Your bag is already packed and on the plane," she said, pulling her tablet up and tapping at it. "Would you like to continue expanding your modern art collection?"

"The Pollock, right?"

"Yes."

"What do you think?"

"It's overpriced, and you already have some of his work. I think your collection would be perfectly fine without it."

Tony was tempted to say that he wanted it anyways. "Eh, pass on it, then."

"When you get back, you have a presentation you need to work on, and you're supposed to do a walkthrough of the R&D labs in Manhattan."

"Ugh, can't we do one miserable job at a time?"

"You like the walkthroughs," Claire said, her voice devoid of any frustration, but he knew her well enough by now to see the spark in her eyes.

"I meant the presentation, but sure, we can talk about the walkthroughs," Tony said with a shrug. He walked to the door, and Claire followed. "There's nothing good about New York. The weather's horrible; I think it's effected all of their brains. Seriously, you should see some of the designs they've come up with lately."

"I wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a good design and a bad one," she reminded him.

"I think you'd be able to tell the difference anyways," he muttered.

Claire didn't let him take a seperate car the way he wanted to, and he understood why when she continued briefing him on the upcoming weapon's demonstration and what he'd be doing when he got back.

When they stopped, she gave a friendly wave to Jim and told Tony, "Try to come back on time. I have a feeling we'll both be annoyed if I have to rework it if you miss your flight."

*

Funnily enough, it was one of the things Tony thought about when he woke up in the cave. Not the first time. The first time, he was in pain and trying to figure out where the hell he was and what the fuck had happened. The second or third day though, before he knew what he was going to do, he thought about Claire saying that, and he laughed.

Yinsen looked at him and raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"Something my assistant said before I left," he said, shaking his head.

*

When he got back to the States, Pepper and Claire were both waiting as he walked down the ramp. Pepper, he had expected. He was surprised to see Claire, though. He'd thought that she would've moved on to a different job, since being his assistant had been a temporary position for her.

He exchanged a few words with Pepper that amounted to 'I care about you and that scared me out of my wits'. Then he turned to Claire. Her eyes were similarly red-rimmed, as Pepper's had been, and she'd pulled her hair back instead of straightening it like she usually did.

"So, is my schedule in complete disarray?" he asked.

"You have no idea. I did um, clear any personal appearances for the next six months."

"I'm not that injured."

"There's a lot to catch up on after you're back to work. Personal appearances are not a priority."

Tony would be lying if he said he wasn't excited to get out of personal appearances-- they were easily his least favorite part of what he did for the company.

"I agree," Pepper said, coming back with Happy by her side. "The most important thing right now is to make sure you're okay. Happy's going to take us to the hospital."

"No."

"What?" Claire said, frowning at him-- and she wasn't the only one.

"Tony, you have to go to the hospital. Jim passed along your medical report from the military doctors, and he made it clear that you need another visit."

"Medical files are confidential, so you're both guessing that I need another visit," Tony said, even though he knew that Rhodey had looked at the details. He didn't want anyone poking around the arc reactor in his chest, and that included doctors.

Claire's frown deepened, like she knew he was hiding something.

Pepper and Happy started in on him about how he had to go to the hospital, and if he tried to refuse, they were going to drag him there. Tony knew that it was an empty threat, but he also knew that they would do their level best to force him. If it got bad enough, they'd probably hire someone to come to his house, which he was even less a fan of.

Claire being exactly who she was, put it in Tony's schedule, along with a visit to a therapist. It was someone who usually only worked with actors and musicians, but it meant that they were trustworthy to not spill any secrets.

Tony negotiated yes to the doctor, and no to the therapist. Claire nodded, and then scheduled a different therapist for two weeks later. When Tony got upset with her, she glared at him. Claire had never glared at him before, and then she said, "What part of 'kidnapped' has gone over your head? It's a little thing we like to call 'trauma'. Even if you go once and he says you're fine, you need to go."

"If I agree to go to that appointment, will you go with me to the benefit tomorrow?"

"Deal."

"Deal," Tony echoed with a grin. Pepper had said she'd go to the benefit on his behalf, but since she'd gotten her own invitation, he didn't think that would work. She wouldn't be there on his behalf; she'd just be there.

*

Claire dealt with the discovery of the armor pretty well-- a lot better than Pepper did, when she ended up finding out-- which surprised Tony. He'd thought that she'd freak out. What surprised Tony more was when she hauled off and punched Stane in the face. The man was in a massive metal suit, and Claire punched him. It didn't solve the situation and Tony still had to go repulsor to repulsor with him so that he was incapacitated when Shield got there to arrest him, but it was beautiful to behold.

"I can't believe you punched him," Tony said, trying to ignore all the feelings that wanted to send him into hiding. He'd known Stane his entire life, and... god, he didn't know what he was going to do. Claire had talked about investigations and lost inventory, and Tony was just trying to hold himself together.

"It didn't do much good," Claire said. She shifted the ice pack on her knuckles to a more comfortable position.

"Still, it was nice to see." Tony loved Pepper, but she didn't really do violence. Claire, on the other hand, hadn't hesitated. Tony had one hundred percent not expecting it. Claire had squared up like she was always ready for an eventuality like this. "You know, we never had that drink."

"I considered the attack on terrorists that night to be a good replacement for talking over drinks," she said, slanting a smile at him.

"You've got a weird idea about dates."

"Is that what you getting me a drink was supposed to be? A date?"

"Well technically, you going to the benefit with me was a date. The drink was to make it better."

"And since we left the drinks behind so you could give the armor a test drive, I think it counts as a continuation of the date," Claire said.

*

"You realize I have to quit now, right?" Claire said.

"What? No, absolutely not."

She rolled her eyes at him, but the fact that she was spending a lazy morning after in his bed took off the sting. "I am not going to be in a relationship with my boss."

"Aw, c'mon, you went on a date with your boss, and we both know that this isn't a matter of sexual favors and preferential treatment. What does it matter if you keep working for me?"

"I'm either going to date you or be your assistant. I'm not doing both."

"But you're so good at being my assistant," Tony whined.

Claire snorted. "In between your Iron Man duties and the company, you need two assistants. I'm not qualified to be two people. Besides, I found a charity I'm willing to work with, and I have an interview next week."

"When were you going to tell me that you were quitting?" Tony asked, failing to not sound offended.

"Last night. You distracted me."

"I think you have to give two weeks notice for this sort of thing." Having never been employed by someone other than his own company, he wasn't sure, but he'd heard about it enough times that he thought it was true.

"I told both Pepper and Human Resources, and they are looking for a new assistant fo you as we speak. Well, HR is. Pepper's probably busy with her own work, since it's not her job to find you an assistant."

Tony frowned. "She found you."

"We're friends, and I told her when I quit my last job. She didn't act as a head hunter and seek me out."

"Huh." He hadn't known about that, and he felt like he should have. "You're friends?"

"From college." She pushed herself up and stretched her arms.

Tony tugged her back down, grinning at the exasperated look she gave him. "Since I'm still your boss, I can say that our work day hasn't started yet."

"My day always starts before yours, otherwise you-" she tapped his chest pointedly "-wouldn't be anywhere on time."

"Fine, I won't get up until noon. That gives you until eleven or something, right? Right. So we can stay in bed until then, and-"

"You are ridiculous," Claire said, then she kissed him. "And I'm getting up, work or no work."

"I can't believe I signed up for this," Tony groaned. 

[reconditarmonia]

Dear Fandom 5K Author

Hi! Thank you for writing for me! I’m reconditarmonia here and on AO3. I have anon messaging off, but mods can contact me with any questions.

Dragon Age | Fullmetal Alchemist | The Locked Tomb | Motherland: Fort Salem | Where the Sky is Silver and the Earth is Brass

General likes:

– Relationships that aren’t built on romance or attraction. They can be romantic or sexual as well, but my favorite ships are all ones where it would still be interesting or compelling if the romantic component never materialized.

– Loyalty kink! Trust, affectionate or loving use of titles, gestures of loyalty, replacing one’s situational or ethical judgment with someone else’s, risking oneself (physically or otherwise) for someone else, not doing so on their orders. Can be commander-subordinate or comrades-in-arms.

– Heists, or other stories where there’s a lot of planning and then we see how the plan goes.

– Femslash, complicated or intense relationships between women, and female-centric gen. Women doing “male” stuff (possibly while crossdressing).

– Stories whose emotional climax or resolution isn’t the sex scene, if there is one.

– Uniforms/costumes/clothing.

– Stories, history, and performance. What gets told and how, what doesn’t get told or written down, behavior in a society where everyone’s consuming media and aware of its tropes, how people create their personas and script their own lines.

General DNW: rape/dubcon, torture, other creative gore; unrequested AUs, including “same setting, different rules” AUs such as soulmates/soulbonds; PWP; food sex; embarrassment; focus on pregnancy; Christmas/Christian themes; infidelity; unrequested polyamory; focus on unrequested canon or non-canon ships; unrequested trans versions of characters.

Smut Likes: clothing, uniforms, sexual tension, breasts, manual sex, cunnilingus, grinding, informal d/s elements, intensity.

—

Fandom: Dragon Age

Character(s):

Group: Cassandra Pentaghast/Female Lavellan

Female Lavellan

Group: Charter & Rector

Genre(s):

Canon-Style Plot - Freeform

Action/Adventure

Worldbuilding

Established Relationship

Mystery/Procedural

I'm playing this game for the first time and loving Cassandra and Lavellan together so much. (I'm playing with a mod where I can romance her with a female PC!) Lavellan starts off as this confused and small and non-Andrastian prisoner who disagrees with Cassandra on so many things, but Cassandra puts so much trust and faith in her and so much on the line for her - even with Lavellans who are adamant that they're not chosen, they're just doing their best and they happen to be the ones in the position to make this choice. Cassandra is so proud to know her, and backs her up even when she disagrees with Lavellan's choices! The romance scene is really cute between two characters who are adults and have a day-to-day working relationship that isn't going to change, but are still just having fun with how charming it is in a way that builds on their friendship. Not to mention their battling together, of course - the ways they can protect each other and fight for each other's goals (and give Cassandra all the elven swords and shields), how worried they sound if the other one gets hurt...whoops, I found myself another loyalty kink ship.

I also just like playing as Lavellan generally, with how much of an outsider she feels (the "Dawn Will Come" scene is so alienating! it really works!) and how much of the game is about visiting the sites of past elven trauma and/or glory days.

My Lavellan uses the (default lol) name of Ellana, is a rift mage, sports a lovely buzzcut and vallaslin, has a lot of feelings about elf history (and visiting the Plains/Graves especially), believes in elven gods and doesn't care to pretend she's Andrastian, and besides Cass is closest friends with Solas, but don't feel that you have to write my specific PC - I'm excited to read about yours too!

But! I also love all the little hints about the work that Leliana's agents are doing, and their friendship (walking in on their card game at Caer Bronach is kind of delightful), and the letter from Rector's mother asking why he uses a code name for work (why are you ashamed of your name, Wilbur??) is one of my favorite in-universe documents. Slice-of-life or slice-of-mission with Charter and Rector would also make me really happy. Here again, just the closeness and trust and faith that these people have in one another is my jam.

Fandom-Specific DNW: Canon-typical levels of Cassandra's association with the Chantry and belief in the Maker/Andraste/the Herald shouldn't be taken to contravene my DNW of Christian themes, but I wouldn't want Satinalia fic or something focused on the Andrastian faith. Please don't put F!Lavellan in a different romance, even if we didn't match on the Cassandra ship.

—

Fandom: Fullmetal Alchemist

Character(s):

Group: Olivier Mira Armstrong/Maria Ross

Genre(s):

Action/Adventure

Canon-Style Plot - Freeform

Getting Together

I'll admit: I am a shallow, shallow person who loves the heartwarming and id-satisfying Briggs loyalty-kink complex (The watch! Buccaneer handing Olivier a clean pair of gloves after she kills Raven! Constant and deeply sincere saluting! Olivier’s explanation of why she wants Miles around and her lack of patience for anyone’s shit) but would like an f/f manifestation of it for actual shipping. Post-canon or AU where Maria is assigned to Briggs, or works for Olivier in Central? Does Maria foil a plot against Olivier, or Olivier save Maria's life in battle? Does Olivier order Maria into a firefight? Hit me.

Fandom-Specific DNW: Olivier/men, even mentioned.

—

Fandom: The Locked Tomb

Character(s):

Matthias Nonius

Genre(s):

Action/Adventure

Canon-Style Plot - Freeform

Fantasy

Nonius was one of my favorite new characters in Harrow the Ninth. His whole impossible arrival via evocation-by-poetry, battle with the Sleeper, and epic departure to fight the Beast made me very, very happy on levels I have trouble explaining. It was so heartwarming?! Because it was impossible, and because poetry won, and because they went off to do the best they could...I don't know, exactly. (Iiiii also just love that he's named for the Redwall mouse.) I'd love to read more about his life - being unprepossessing and very human but also paladin-like and really fucking good at being a swordsman, representing the Ninth House in slightly less decrepit times, his mysterious past with Gideon the First (and Pyrrha, sort of), however it happened that he died far from home in an unknown place and couldn't be recovered for burial, "chickenshits don't get beer"? Or, er, his afterlife - going to fight with Marta, Ortus, and Pro, re-encountering G1deon as allies...

—

Fandom: Motherland: Fort Salem

Character(s):

Group: Abigail Bellweather/Raelle Collar

Original Historical Witch Character(s)

Group: Sarah Alder & First Bellweather Ancestor

Genre(s):

Action/Adventure

Canon-Style Plot - Freeform

Mystery/Procedural

Worldbuilding

I fell hard for this show and Abigail/Raelle is the ship I’m most excited about - they get off to a bad start for all kinds of personal history reasons and have problems with each other, but when it gets down to the wire Abigail would do anything for Raelle and is very gung-ho about having Raelle’s unconventional but extremely powerful magic under her leadership, regardless of Raelle being a loose cannon. She told her she loved her!! <3 And by the end, Raelle also clearly knows what Abigail's going through (like when she talks her down in "Citydrop"), respects her leadership, and cares deeply about her and wants to protect her in return. I love that loyalty dynamic, and their competence as fighters/witches.

Physical combat, strength in general, magical strength, ability to work magic together, knowledge of the magical canon vs. out-of-the-box techniques...what parts of their skills and their bond could be challenged in the weird dimension that the end of season 1 leaves them in? Or when they get back home and new challenges await? (In my head, the decision not to send them to War College is not revoked; the unit becomes some kind of special-forces secret strike team rather than cannon fodder.) Maybe something where Raelle goes/has gone into a fight as a berserker-type for Abigail and then comes back to her, or where Abigail protects/has protected her soldier (her girl!! I love her protectiveness of Raelle towards the other cadets, imagine it in a battle!)? Or an arranged marriage AU where it's usual for witch soldiers to marry to combine their magic power or something...If including smut in the story, I'd especially be up for something d/s-y where the loyalty-kinky dynamic of Raelle being Abigail's weapon, at her command, is echoed in sex!

OR. The alternate history that the show has created is so interesting and I'm craving expansion of that through fic! Tell me about the Bellweather ancestor who was a slave and ended up powerful and influential enough to begin a dynasty, and how she met and was recruited by Alder. Or other enslaved witches, witches in the American Revolution or the Civil War, or the founding of Fort Salem and standardization of American military magic with its various influences, or Chinese or Jewish or Mexican immigrant witches who maybe came from different magic traditions and might have had to make the choice of whether or not to reveal that they had magic (if the system knows you because of your descent in the country?), serving their country but also binding their daughters and granddaughters forever.

Fandom-Specific DNW: Abigail/Adil (at all; if he's mentioned, please make them just friends), focus on Raelle/Scylla (dwelling on Raelle still having feelings for Scylla or on her getting over Scylla for Abigail; you don't need to retcon their having been together), Scylla bashing.

—

Fandom: Where the Sky is Silver and the Earth is Brass

Character(s):

Chaye Roznatovsky

Demon

Genre(s):

Fantasy

Canon-Style Plot - Freeform

Worldbuilding

Anything expanding on this story would make me really happy. Chaye’s years with the partisans, the comrades-in-arms she had and loved then and who else’s memory she holds or makes into a weapon, her journey to America, going by the surname of “no one.” The demon’s mirror world, its loss of that world (what exactly happened on the other side?) and its need to be where Jews are, demon Judaism? Or the future of both of them now that they’ve found each other!

Fandom-Specific DNW/Opt-In: DNW Chaye/demon. The premise of the story being what it is, I'm explicitly okay with antisemitism being a prominent feature of the story if you write something that covers either or both characters' backstory, but would prefer post-war antisemitism not to be a focus.

[whumpster-fire]

More on Redemption Arcs

So, there’s something else I want to say about Enemies to Lovers / Enemies to Friends / in general redemption arcs, and in particular those where a character who’s previously been hurt by a villain or their associates is now in a caretaking role for that villain.

Obligatory no one is obligated to forgive someone who’s caused them trauma, or go through the emotional labor of supporting them, or ever interact with them again. But, IMO, it works better if you approach it from the perspective of: “Okay, so why would the traumatized character want to interact with the source of that trauma?” Think about something positive they’re getting from this relationship, from the character’s perspective, and/or think about it in terms of what would establish a bond between them that would cause character A to not want to say: “Okay I don’t care if they’re reformed / reformable, they’re someone else’s problem.”

And obviously there’s better and worse, or at least healthier and less healthy reasons for this. One good one is to have circumstances / the plot force them to grit their teeth and work together, causing bonding through alliance (I dunno the actual term), and at some point during or after this they go “Oh shit we’re actually friends now” (CoughZukoCough). Another of my favorites is to have characters bonding through a shared trauma. This could be a “we’re all in the same boat” situation like I mentioned above but instead of succeeding together they suffer together, or it could be through similar circumstances but not actually the same event, or it could be they’re both abused and traumatized by the same Even Worse Villain and the subordinate villain ends up standing up to their abuser and helping the hero. (E.g. @wildfaewhump’s Iesin and Talvos storyline here on Tumblr, go check it out).

Here’s a couple of case studies of this with redemption arcs I’ve written avoided writing like 90% of the actual recovery phase of, which I’m putting below a Keep Reading both because we’re several paragraphs in now and because one of them spoils the canon material, and also yeah I’m being obnoxious writing long-winded essays about my own fics even if it is my blog. Fics are linked to Ao3, check the tags and summaries on there for trigger warnings and read at your own risk.

Case One: Resurrection x And x Reconciliation

This is in the Hunter X Hunter fandom, and it’s a Gon & Neferpitou friendship, which if you’re familiar with the canon material sounds like the worst fucking idea ever for an enemies to friends arc. Long story short Pitou killed (and also reanimated as a corpse puppet) someone close to Gon, and the trauma of this utterly broke him, to the point of being so obsessed with revenge that he pushed away and hurt his closest friend, took an innocent person hostage for leverage, and basically snapped and went to utterly insane lengths to kill Pitou that it would have caused him a slow, horribly painful death if it weren’t for circumstances.

Okay, but long story short, the person whose death set this all off later turned out to have somehow reincarnated himself into another body, and Gon already processes stuff in really weird ways, so he was now left struggling to process the delayed realization of all the fuckups and reckless and harmful things he’d done, and the trauma of the actual “fight” against Pitou, and meanwhile Pitou got the fun experience of experiencing grief and loss and a near-death (technically actual death) experience for the first time and starting to process that she’d caused that kind of trauma for hundreds of thousands of fully sentient people. And also it turned out that they both sacrificed their lives to kill each other and accomplished absolutely nothing in the process, because the person Gon was trying to avenge turned out to be still alive, and the person Pitou was trying to protected turned out to already be fatally injured.

So this is kind of the exception that proves the rule because Gon and Pitou’s friendship is absolutely 100% born of shared trauma, it’s just that a major part of said trauma was mutually inflicted on each other, and supporting each other kind of helps them heal. This isn’t necessarily actually psychologically healthy or a good idea, but it’s pretty well established in canon that the only thing worse than every single adult in the setting’s track record at supporting people during mental health crises is their track record at stopping Gon from doing whatever the fuck he decides to do, and no one wants to deal with Pitou either.

Case Two: La Resistance / Fresh Ink

This is in, uhh, the Warner Bros Cartoon Universe fandom / Who Framed Roger Rabbit fandom, but by nature the canon material doesn’t have much of a plot for the former and the later is really just the setting. Lemme try and summarize this: in the final battle against the terrorist group that was creating Toons (living cartoon characters with reality warping powers) as living weapons in an attempted genocide against other Toons, the only two surviving toons on the villain’s side, Wendy Weasel and Riley Raccoon, were semi-adopted by some of the protagonists: Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, and Slappy Squirrel. At first mostly Wendy because in the immediate aftermath of the battle Riley was in the ICU.

Okay, why did they spend their time dealing with her? This one’s different because Wendy herself didn’t really cause that much in the way of direct trauma to the characters who ended up supporting her - the ones she really hurt didn’t have much to do with her - however she’s just a fucking chore to try to get along with because she’s passive-aggressive, aggressive-aggressive, destructive-aggressive, and her main defense mechanism is to intensify these traits even further so she was just a hostile brat most of the time.

Well, this starts as a “Forced together by external circumstances” plot, of a sort: Wendy ended up as a prisoner after the battle - she defected, but never actually surrendered because she knocked herself unconscious while killing the main villain. The FBI did not want to have to deal with a prisoner who could teleport through walls, pull weapons and tools out of thin air, Jedi Mind Trick guards, etc. etc. etc, and the Warner Siblings just happened to be in a possession of a tailor-made prison designed to hold creatures like her (originally meant to contain them, they broke out but refused to move out) and were among the like 5-10 people on the planet who could actually fight her, so the Feds basically went: “Your problem now,” or just as accurately, the Warners and Slappy were not letting what was obviously an indoctrinated child soldier who defected and helped them get deemed “Too dangerous to let live since we can’t keep her contained long enough to have a trial” as a matter of principle.

But reason B, especially as they interacted with Wendy, is that the Warners and to a lesser extent Slappy knew what it was like to be drawn into existence and surrounded by people who hated them, feared them, or at least didn’t respect them. Again there was an attempt to seal the Warners permanently in an inescapable prison, and this was before a method of actually killing Toons was invented so they’re pretty sure the humans would have preferred to straight-up murder them for being too powerful and out of control... which was also the exact same ideology held by Wendy’s creators. And they also really empathized with the strong “sibling” bond she had with Riley (not actually supposed to be siblings but drawn by the same animator so sort of siblings and they just kinda decided they were) because it reminded them of themselves as well. This is self-explanatory with the Warners, with Slappy, in the fic she and Screwy Squirrel were siblings, and “Gee wouldn’t it be terrifying if a character as chaotic and sadistic as Screwy Squirrel was a villain was literally the starting point for Wendy’s character concept.

Also reason C is “Obnoxious child using passive-aggressiveness to mask trauma, anger, and need for love and attention” fit right in in the WB Studio Water Tower.

Anyway tl;dr that’s another example of a potential motive behind the caretakers in a redemption arc: if the characters sort of identify with the villain due to similar backgrounds to the point where they sort of go: “That could’ve been me in different circumstances.”

[catgirlxox]

Ben Tennyson′s Best Traits

Just to preface, I think a lot of us in this fandom can agree that when a character acts or is written in a displeasing manner, we tend to dislike them. We may even go so far as to say that we hate these kinds of characters. We end up holding grudges against those who have done us wrong or caused harm to someone we love. Arguably, that is just human nature, even if these grudges can often be considered petty. I will be the first to admit that I am guilty of this. 

This is why I find it interesting that the character which has had these unfair circumstances be written into his story or has been bullied by the largely disliked characters in the series does not even do this himself. Quite the opposite, he seems to be much more cooperative, forgiving, and understanding in many cases where I, personally, know that I would not be same way. 

It is even credited by the writers that one of Ben’s best traits is his “good heart.” 

(Source: Ben 10 Alien Force: The Complete Guide by Tracey West and Katherine Noll) 

I’d like to take a moment to commemorate Ben’s best traits, because, as you may know, his “flaws” are a hot debate in this fandom. 

Perhaps this is because flaws are something each of us have and therefore we can relate to imperfections and shortcomings. 

However, if that is the case, what is the point of criminalizing someone for minor imperfections when the things he is praised for greatly outshine those subjective “flaws”?

These traits are actually argued by some to be inconsistent throughout the series run, typically by those who have a distaste for Omniverse, and interestingly even by some who actually enjoy Omniverse. However, going through the following examples taken from each series in order, it seems that these traits actually are consistent and allow for continuity and even visible character development. 

One of the most obvious examples where we can see these traits is Ben’s friendship with Kevin. From the beginning, in the original series episode “Kevin 11″, even after Kevin had betrayed him for the first time, Ben is still shown to be willing to give him another chance. 

Kevin : “I guess I went too wild with power. I don’t have anyone else like you to help me.” 

Ben: “We can still be partners. We’d just be kicking butts for good instead of for ourselves. You could hang with us.”

According to this episode, Kevin had been abandoned by his parents and he clearly had some untreated mental conditions which clouded his judgement. However, he was still capable of understanding other people’s intentions and, probably due to the life he was living at the time, had still chosen to turn to violence. He disregarded the safety of others as a cause of a petty grudge on those who had apparently done him wrong, or caused him harm, and this only dug him an even deeper grave. 

As Kevin said, at the time, there wasn't anyone besides Ben who was willing to try to look past his destructive and damaged way of being in the interest of helping him heal. In spite of this, some have argued that because the Tennysons allowed Kevin to just get away at the end, it makes them responsible for the way Kevin’s life had turned out throughout the next five years. 

However, if Ben was to be seen as responsible for getting them kicked out of the hotel for the stunt he pulled in the beginning of the episode, should Kevin not be seen as responsible for his own actions here as well? 

Ben had clearly stated that he was willing to help him, and Kevin did not take that chance. He chose to run away instead, perhaps because that was all he knew how to do at that point in his life.

The Omniverse flashbacks which took place between the original series and Alien Force revealed that Kevin was willing to trust others if they had some common ground, namely Proctor Servantis. 

The only difference is that Ben was genuine while Servantis was manipulative. 

Servantis made Kevin believe that the destruction he could cause would serve a greater purpose, making him part of something bigger than himself. He was no longer alone, and no longer fighting for just himself because he was made to believe that Ben was the problem, and he was the solution.

“Crazy?! I got friends in high places now, brat! I'm the hero, you’re the problem! And all this time you let me think I was the problem, when it’s you! All of you! You’re the problem! And I'm the solution!”  - Hybrid Kevin, Omniverse: “Weapon XI: Part 2″

In spite of all of this, come “Ben 10 returns”, Ben puts all of their past differences aside and offers another chance at redemption. Which, as we all know, Kevin takes for real this time. 

Prior to “Alone Together”, Ben and his team had been fighting the Highbreed and DNAliens, trying to put an end to their operation. 

The Highbreed were literally the cause of so much trauma that the team endured within the first two seasons. The Highbreed are the reason Max had “sacrificed” himself back in “Max Out”, and because “Alone Together” happens before “Voided”, where Max is revealed to still be alive, Ben is still under the impression that Max is gone and he is still grieving. 

In spite of this, “Alone Together” shows Ben trying to cooperate with a Highbreed, and even helping him survive, rather than being vengeful and holding a grudge against one of those who had arguably contributed to his own suffering. 

The following page (from the Ben 10 Alien Force: The Complete Guide book) credits him for this as well:

If Ben had not taken the initiative to try to find a common ground with Reiny so that they could survive their temporary stay on Turrawuste, and continued to attempt to persuade him to change his ideology, do you really think that Reiny would have done so on his own?

All of Ben’s efforts shown here are the reason the Highbreed war could be stopped in “War of the Worlds.”

Imagine what would have happened if the Omnitrix reconstructed the DNA of all Highbreeds, and Reiny didn’t show up to show them that they can still live, even without the “genetic consistency that had been a pillar of their cultural identity for so long.” They seemed to whole-heartedly believe that immediately committing mass suicide would be their only remaining “honorable” move. 

The War would have ended with mass suicide of an entire species had Ben’s kindness and cooperation not impacted Reiny’s world view. 

Reinrassig III: “No. There is another way. This human once cured an ailment of mine by changing my DNA. At first, I thought the impurity a curse, but I have since learned otherwise. Fellow Highbreed, we can live.”

The Highbreed were very stuck in their ways due to the beliefs that were deeply ingrained in their culture and mentality. As we know from the real world, societal values change over time as we progress and learn from our history. Because of Ben’s willingness to communicate and cooperate with Reiny in “Alone Together”, everyone was able to move forward in harmony with a new positive outlook on their place in the universe, promoting positive change in societies - something that fighting to the death in search of revenge would not achieve. 

Speaking of people who are stuck in their ways, “Reflected Glory” brings back Cash and JT, Ben’s childhood bullies. 

“Fame” seemed to attempt to redeem them somewhat, however, their actions in this episode take away from that significantly. 

If you take into account all the events that make up Ben’s life throughout Alien Force, and all the burdens he had to carry at the age of fifteen in secret, perhaps you’ll realize that having his identity revealed in Ultimate Alien culminating in what is seemingly a loss of trust by those who he was trying so hard to protect in the first place can be quite damaging. 

Where all his efforts for nothing? 

Had he risked his life all this time only for members of his own species to disown him?

It wasn't even only immature kids at school, it was grown adults like Will Harangue who publicly spoke ill of a teenage boy they didn't even know personally. And, as you may know, there are some people in this world who will blindly agree with everything they hear, so it wouldn't be surprising if there were other adult viewers of the Harangue Nation who agreed with Harangue’s views.

“Ben Tennyson: threat or menace? Call in with your vote.” 

And, if they agree with his hypocritical views, who’s to say they wouldn't also agree with his rather destructive, threatening, and menacing actions? 

Attempting to kill a teenager, for instance, as shown in Ultimate Alien’s “Video Games”, and, not taking into account the fact that, if Ben was really a threat, actual law enforcement would get involved rather than working alongside him.

The scene where Ben walks into the school hallway, with all these judging gazes turned his way is very powerful because, knowing Cash and JT, they absolutely could have taken the chance to humiliate him again since Ben had put them in their place in Alien Force’s “The Gauntlet.” 

Instead, he got a much deserved round of applause from everyone, including and initiated by Cash and JT.

The only thing that strikes me as problematic about this is the implication that all these immature teenagers have the power to criticise him and make him feel inadequate. They get to choose whether he deserves to be praised or vilified without truly knowing what he had just gone through. 

Why should the opinions of people like Cash, JT, or Harangue even matter?

Does Ben not deserve to feel proud of himself regardless of what they think of him?

Do they realize that they are all even still there to make him feel inadequate only because he had saved everyone from being destroyed by the Highbreed through all his work and dedication throughout the first two seasons of Alien Force?

Do they realize the severity of what could have happened?

The DNA aliens were actually innocent people who were abducted. It could have been any of the kids in that hallway. It may be less likely, but it could have even been Harangue himself.

Imagine the mass hysteria of so many missing persons cases across the US, and then realizing it had all been due to aliens that Ben had, not only stopped, but managed to make peace with in the end.

That is why, in “Reflected Glory”, Cash and JT taking advantage of Ben’s fame and wanting to be seen as equal to him, without doing any of the work or enduring practically none of what he has, is disgusting. 

It is disgusting because they don’t seem to realize why Ben is famous. 

The events that I have just outlined unfold in a sort of butterfly effect. Ben’s actions in the events of one episode have a significant impact on the outcome of a later part of the story. 

For example, Ben consistently giving Kevin another chance to redeem himself eventually leads into Kevin actually taking him up on the offer and developing a healthy, productive relationship with Ben and Gwen where he can heal. Or, Ben’s small acts of kindness impacting one Highbreed’s ideology so much that it literally saved the world and changed the values of the entire Highbreed population. 

Cash and JT’s excuse is that they feel like “nobodies” due to their own bad choices. I can understand wanting to do good due to being “inspired” by Ben’s heroic deeds, but that is another thing entirely that isn’t even at play in their thought process here. 

They thought that Ben owed them for their little round of applause. 

Can you really equate Cash and JT swallowing their pride to give Ben the credit he deserved, and Ben risking his life in secret for the majority of Alien Force in order to make sure the entire universe is saved, including people he might not like, such as Cash and JT? 

They have the audacity to want to be called heroes, and think that capitalizing on someone else’s past trauma will grant them that title. Cash even partially lied about the “real” reason he needed the money this production will bring in, claiming it was for mother’s operation, rather than just a nose job, knowingly taking advantage of Ben’s good heart and cooperative nature.

As Max put it, “being a hero isn’t about other people knowing you did something good, it’s about you knowing you did something good.” 

Because they didn't seem to gain anything from taking Ben’s side at school, it wasn't enough for them to just know they've done something good. Instead, they've chosen to pretend they've done something good by pretending to be the “brains behind Ben 10.” And that in itself would be considered doing something bad instead. 

Realistically, Ben didn't have any obligation to allow them to pull him into a gigantic lie for no one’s benefit but their own, but, as shown in the previous examples, Ben’s empathy for those who have taken the wrong path in life seems to be the reason for him allowing them to continue doing this.

However, Cash, JT, and their camera man sticking around, unarmed, while Ben, Gwen, and Kevin are dealing with dangerous criminals just goes to show how negligent Cash and JT are about the safety of others. It can make it harder for Ben to do his job properly if they get in the way, making them a liability. This is exactly what happens once the fight with Psyphon begins. Which, by the way, was actually caused by Psyphon having caught wind of them claiming be the “brains behind Ben 10″ anyway.

A similar thing occurs in Omniverse’s “Collect This”, where others, namely Professor Hokestar, Simian, and Deefus Veeblepister, are trying to capitalize on, what is not only Ben’s achievements, but his entire life at this point. 

Can you imagine being a sixteen year old superhero, technically, a full time space cop, your work comparable to that of a soldier, who we know serve their country and risk their life protecting others everyday...and without your knowledge, there are others out there who are just using the concept of your everyday wins and loses to make a profit off of?

Ben is practically dealing with a case of identity theft. 

He had every right to be bothered by the idea of someone else taking advantage of his name again. Not only because this has happened to him before, specifically in Ultimate Alien’s “Double or Nothing”, but because along with his name comes all that he has accomplished and endured in order to make that name so famous. To make a profit of it, and possibly make him look bad in the process, without his consent, is an issue. 

Instead of focusing on how much this probably aggravated him, he handled the situation in the episode in a reasonable, intelligent, and mature way, showing his character development and how reliable he is. The Earth was about to be “collected”, and Ben put aside all the things that bothered him personally about the situation to prioritize saving the world again, and on a time limit too!

Deefus Veeblepister: “Look kid, I know who you are. I didn’t make ‘Ben 10′ a household name just so your little ‘hero thing’ can steal my thunder.”

“I suggest you make a new name for yourself. It’s confusing!” 

Deefus had claimed to have made “Ben 10″ a household name. Meaning, the name is apparently only as famous as it is now due to the TV show produced by Hokestar. However, this is blatantly false, unfair, and offensive.

Just to reiterate what we should all know by now, “Ben 10″ technically became a household name after Ben made peace with the Highbreed in Alien Force’s “War of the Worlds”, news of this success spreading throughout the galaxy, and inspiring beings from other planets to contact Ben personally and award him a medal or ask for help with their own planetary crisis, such as in the Alien Force episodes “Vengeance of Vilgax” and “Simple”, respectively. And, it goes without saying that Ben’s fame spread to Earth come Ultimate Alien. 

But, let’s not forget this is all because of what he did. It is as a cause of all the battles he fought and all the pain, loss, fear, and criticism he suffered throughout Alien Force and Ultimate Alien that made him, and his name, so well known. That should not be undermined and reduced to just an insignificant “little hero thing.” 

Please realize that this isn’t even something Ben himself ever brings up in the actual episode either. I have no doubt that it bothers him to some extent, but he surprisingly lets them off the hook as long as they don’t cause any more real danger to real people during the process of making their show, and subsequently, stop giving him a bad name. 

The, so-called, “real” Ben 10 (Deefus) was supposedly based on the hero Ben 10 (the Ben we know), and that in and of itself implies that he is a representation of the hero Ben 10. But, aside from some similar catchphrases and a colour-scheme accurate costume...the most important part of Ben’s character, the parts that make him a hero, all the good traits I keep outlining, which are derived from his humanity, were lacking. In fact, while pretending to be a hero, this guy actually caused a traffic accident!

It goes without saying that Ben obviously fixed this mess as cleanly and quickly as he could. He absolutely could have taken this chance to be what the fandom deems “immature” and gloat about how he is a much better superhero because he’s the real hero here! Did you see how effortlessly he just saved that guy?!

But he doesn’t do that at all. His actions and words here should clearly point to where his priorities are. 

“You put real people in real danger. I’m putting a stop to it.”

Lastly, as shown in this popular Tumblr post, the fandom was very proud of him in the ending scene especially. First of all, he never got an apology for all the trouble they've caused him. Hardly anyone showed Ben the respect he deserved for literally giving them something to capitalize on. But, as soon as Deefus finds something “offensive”, Ben has enough decency to be the better person, apologize, correct himself, and use Deefus’ preferred terminology instead of continuing to be “offensive”, which is very telling considering Ben has probably been offended the entire episode up until now. 

Ben: “This guy’s just a Sludgepuppy who turns into pretend aliens.”

Deefus: “Hey! That term is derogatory!” 

Ben: “What’s the big deal with the word “Sludgepuppy”l? I’ve got cousins who are Sludgepuppies.”

Deefus: “I’ll have you know it’s a very offensive slur.”

Ben: “Really? Wow. Sorry. Okay, a few Lenopan cousins.” 

Even Deefus was taken aback by Ben’s maturity here. And where does that come from, might you ask? 

Character development and continuity. 

All of these circumstances showcase scenarios that are greatly unfair in Ben’s favour. In spite of this, he is continuously cooperative, understanding, forgiving, and reliable. 

Throughout all four series.