#think we can all agree we want a rematch next season

[hagenwo43]

Off season Pt3

[bronx-bomber87]

Happy Monday Evening Fandom :) This will be my new schedule Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. So I can get all the remaining eps in before the premiere. Should finish the week before we get to squee over a new season. So you'll have one more extra a week till we reach S6.

Some fun UC stuff for them to do in this one and the ever famous scene in the van. The marriage moments in this one continue. Off we go.

4x07 Fire Fight

We start off with our couple bringing someone in to book. She ran a stop sign AND a red light. Then flipped them off and made them chase her. Then has the audacity to ask why they arrested her? LOL My god...She tells them she was late for her life coach session. Tim makes a crack that her coach is doing a terrible job haha The sass Timothy I'm here for it.

As she gets processed Lucy brings up the bet from the previous episode. Tim retorting ‘The bet I won?’ Lucy fires right back that she won it. Their banter is unrivaled I love it so much. Tim telling her he had the gold in his hand. Lucy defending only because she had to arrest an armed gunmen. Tim tries to take the glory for this as well. That he technically arrested him. You know with his arm.

Lucy scoffing saying all he did was extend his arm out. Flirt nation right off the bat in this one. You know she’s actually impressed by it but can’t let his ego know that fact. Tim is trying to impress her by saying this. My goodness these two. It is very impressive he did that and wants her to know it. They're entering into the bantery foreplay early in this one.

Poor Grey gets dragged into their work flirt I mean fight. Tim really shouldn’t have been shocked at all when Grey said he suspected in 5x12. Man has been front row to this flirt fest for years . When he said that I think he meant long before that moment. He knew for a VERY long time. Poor Wade he just wants to get his job done. He wandered into booking thinking he could get in and out. Then in come Tim and Lucy to drag him into their fight LMAO

They're trying to get him to settle their bet from 4x06. They’re so damn competitive neither can settle for a tie. Grey affirms he thought it was as such. This was not the answer either of them wanted. Tim wants a rematch because of course he does. Lucy is adorable and says they should do an escape room LOL She had to know that wasn’t going to fly. Tim says no to that naturally. His reaction is hilarious.

So off put by the idea of being stuck in one. Decides they need a neutral party to decide their next competition. I love how in-sync they are when they turn to Grey. Same brain and same body language. Look how they mirror each other it's crazy. Sure Wade is thinking my god just find a room already. Instead he catches onto what they want. The way they both nod is so well timed they’re ridiculous and I love it sfm. Chemistry is unreal. Hats off to Eric and Melissa.

Grey agrees to this if only to get them to leave him the hell alone heh. He assigns them random penal codes. Says whoever gets their arrest first wins. Lucy could not be cuter waiting for hers. Tim gets his and isn’t pleased with it. Lucy is shocked he even knows what his is. Since its obscure as hell. Tim is fresh af with her replying 'She didn’t?' Ha her reaction. My god the punches just don’t get pulled with these two.

Tim says it’s unfair. SMH Oh Timothy pouting isn’t gonna work with Grey. He tells him life isn’t fair. Lucy is beaming about this. I love these two ridiculous fools so much. The woman they brought in is done with booking. She clearly doesn’t want to go into a cell. Tells them she know’s about a real crime. Says if she tells them she can cut a deal? Tim replies ‘What’s the crime?’

We return to them heading into interrogation. Lucy hands him a list of places they should go when they’re back out. Tim hands it right back without looking. Knowing exactly why she wants to hit those places. So she can win their bet. Doesn't hesitate as he calls her out on it. Lucy fires right back saying she knows he went to Nell. These two are so amazingly absurd.

Doing whatever they can to win this bloody bet of theirs. Lucy doesn’t let him get away with it for more than two seconds. She has your number Timothy. Always has always will. Her wifey 'Mmm' is everything. So he admits to giving Nell Dodger tickets haha Lucy looks like she wants to smack him. Also she can’t fault him she’s trying to play dirty too. You two competitive dopes are meant to be. I can only imagine how they would be in S6 with a competition.

Even though they’re battling he still holds the door open for her to interrogation. My heart. Ever the gentleman. They’re following up on the tip they were given earlier. The woman they’ve pulled in for questioning is in regards to her new skin care line. She confuses Tim right off the bat. He can't even process what she is saying so he turns to Lucy to decipher it for him.

Classic husband move to turn right to Lucy for the answer. It's so cute. She’s like later haha That it’s not important right now. She will explain later. So married looking to his wife for answers. Gotta love it. They were given a jar of her skin care. They tested it based on their tip and it has endangered tiger blood in it.

She doesn’t even deny it. Like she is proud of the fact her stuff has it. Lucy tells her she could end up in jail for up to 5 years for this. The cockiness disappears. Then the cycle of giving one another up continues. She panics and tells them about someone named Sloan. That she’s selling psychedelics as vitamins. Tim sighs deeply and asks for this woman’s last name for them to follow up.

They have round 2 in interrogation. Tim was already annoyed going into this LMAO He asks Sloan to take her sunglasses off. She complains the fluorescent lights give her headaches. Tim informs her that is the least of her problems. That they’ve been informed about her “vitamins” Sloan poorly defends herself and says she’s just using her husband’s prescription pad. That it’s ok…Oh my lord. It so is not.

Tim goes off his patience wearing very thin. Tells her this makes her a drug dealer. A high level one at that. She could be facing 20 years in federal prison for it. Sloan starts to stutter and panic. Saying how this has gotten horribly out of hand. Then asks how ratted her out? They don’t say. Then she mentions someone named Aston. That she has to be the one ratting her out. So she turns on her continuing the blame game cycle.

She tells them Aston is trying to hire a hitman. That her husband is worth more dead than alive. She’s been on the dark web trying to get it done. The reactions above are the best part. Tim was so very done going into this. This just made it so much worse. I love the shared look. Lucy is trying not to laugh at this situation. Looking at Tim to ground her. The way they check in with each other gives me all the feels. They’re both flabbergasted by the ring of ridiculousness they’ve been dragged into.

Cue to the infamous van scene. Tim rolls up not expecting the flack he gets. Lucy is on him immediately. Seriously judging his choice in disguise. How he looks like himself and not the hitman she was picturing at all. Lucy is truly is the teacher in this moment and schools him so hard about his choice. You know she’s enjoying bossing him around. The way she tells him to get into the van is too funny. Waving his ass in. Ready to teach him a Lucy Lesson. Heh

It’s fun to watch her be the more knowledgeable of the two in an OP. Tim fights her the minute they sit down. Lucy sighs and presses on. Schooling her man on UC and what they're trying to accomplish today. He is biting back a smile at her logical teasing. Look him above. He WANTS to be annoyed but he isn't really. Once again impressed by her confidence and knowledge on this. So he acts annoyed because he has a fake bravado to protect and all that.

She continues on with more irrefutable logic. He's looking at this wrong. They're not there to dupe a seasoned criminal. That he’s fooling someone who gets her ideas from Lifetime movies. LMFAO Where is the lie? Tim can’t fault her logic even though he wishes she was wrong. Lucy shoves the jacket at Tim tells him to put it on. (Bosses his ass around I love it sfm. He kinda does too.) He begrudgingly snatches it from her to put on and she thanks him.

Let’s not skate past the fact she is checking him out long before she is putting that mic on him above. As he is putting on that jacket she is doing an elevator gaze of her own. She does a double take of him really. Swallows hard too like she's pushing down her desire in this moment. As subtle as a hammer Lucy. Tim commenting he looks like an idiot. That he would pull himself over. haha Lucy definitely does not agree. She begs to differ quite a bit. Lucy bounces back and says he looks exactly as he should. She is holding firm refusing to let his sass sway her or break her confidence. How far we've come.

Then comes the wonderful shameless eye sex. The brazen UST look that could ignite that van on fire. Lucy's reaction is how I would react. She can clearly see how fit he is. She knew but had never seen the glorious proof up close. You can tell she finds him so very attractive. I mean look at him. Gah beautifully toned chest and abs. Delicious pecs to go with that sculpted chest. Phew lord. Pass the ice water please.

She’s trying not to just stare at his toned chest but has to in order to mic him up. She’s touching him and doesn’t know how to handle it. Shoving his shirt up even higher than needed without realizing it. It's up to his neck. Tim broke her brain haha The awkward glances up crack me up. She’s trying not to make eye contact but also not just stare at his beautiful body either. Rock and a hard place Lucy. Gah we need more shirtless Tim in S6. You hear me writers? I need MORE LOL

Tim isn’t exactly helping with his matching intense gaze. He doesn’t break eye contact with her except to look down at where she is placing it. Tim is flirting right back with his own thirsty gaze. He can feel how electrically charged this moment is. Feeling very aware of her gaze and returning it in kind. They're feeding off each other 100% right now.

Tim is the first to come back to his senses just like in 4x01. So he chastises her for putting the mic too high. It breaks Lucy’s lusty gaze and fog she was in. Annoyed he’s done as such she is not kind in removing the tape. Like at all LOL Lucy tells him she knows what she’s doing right before she rips it off. His reaction is so damn funny I’m dying. Lucy is very pleased with herself. The raw UST is prominent throughout the entire season its so good. Just mounts a little more each ep.

Lucy apologizes for ripping it off and sends him off. You know she is going to enjoy being the voice in his ear. Watching him do UC from the van as she observes. Aston isn’t being explicit enough. Too busy checking Tim out and hitting on him. I mean can’t blame the woman. He looks fine as hell. Lucy is laughing in his ear floored by this women’s forwardness.

She is getting a kick out of this woman blatantly hitting on him. Asking if this woman is touching him? If she is then if she offers money for sex she’ll win the bet LOL Oh Lucy so one track minded I’m dying. It’s what prompts Tim’s response above and Lucy’s excitement bout it. Tim finally gets her to confess with details once she thinks she has a shot with him ha. Using his good looks to close this case. Fantastic.

Afterwards they come to visit Nolan in the hospital. He survived a mad man apparently. Sheer luck I think but survived nonetheless. This is their married moment of the ep. Also Tall/Smol shots that I enjoy so much. Tim gives her crap for buying out the entire gift store. Lucy says he’s been in hospital before. He knows how boring it can be. She then asks what he got for Nolan?

Hahah oh sweet Lucy. Did you really think Tim would spend money on Nolan of all people? He tells her no…but he’ll just put his name on her gift ahaha I can see in future when they’re giving out gifts as a couple they'd be the same. People will be thanking them and Tim will have no idea what she bought for them. Just go along with it.

Lucy is shocked but not shocked by his behavior. Saying 'Unbelievable' Like really she shouldn’t expect anything less. Also this is totally normal giving a shared gift like this. Nothing married at all about this behavior whatsoever....Super platonic.

Lucy brings up the bet one last time. Tim says her first name (be still my heart) saying he wants to call it a draw. That police work is too important to turn into a game. Lucy prods him saying he only wants to call it because he might lose. Tim says sure if that’s what she needs to hear. He will go with that. She asks him when he became the noble one? Tim just asks if that means they’re square on their bet? Lucy agrees no one wins but says he can’t have his name on her basket hahaha Tim rolls his eyes but follows after her anyway.

I think Tim was worried if they continued with the bet their next 'van moment' could escalate. Tim may not be aware of a lot with Lucy in terms of being in love with her yet. But he is VERY aware of his attraction to her. That hug in 4x01 was blatant proof of it. That their competitive nature is flirt fueled. So cutting this one off at the knees extinguishes that. It's why he was so quick to end it. Avoidance is the name of the game for him now. So he let Lucy have whatever terms of surrender she wanted. Including knocking his name off that basket and saying it was cause he didn't want to lose. He knows they are on thin ice and trying to keep them from falling in.

~~~

Side notes- Non Chenford.

Poor Wesley in Elijah’s tangled web. Grey trying to give him an out. A mistake that is going to haunt and follow them for a long time to come.

Nolan had a SL but I didn’t care till Chenford came to give him a gift lmao

Thank you thank you to all who like, comment and reblog these. You all make my day you have no idea. Shall see you Wednesday with 4x08 :)

[akariarda]

Return of the enemy(Ninjago Fan season between season4 and 5 with Sensei G.) EPISODE 1-The return

It's a month after Chen's attack and everything feels normal for the ninja and Ninjago City,but what when the enemy return?You can chech teaster for this on my account.

"I won!' Kai said.

Kai,Jay,Zane,Cole and Lloyd were playing video games on the Bounty.

"You cheated."Jay yelled.

"Actually, he followed all the rules of the game."Zane said.

"Oh, and is it according to the rules that he's taking advantage of us and lying to us?" Cole asked angrily. "I don't think that's fair."

"I want a rematch." Jay said.

"Just accept who's the winner here." Kai said and looked at Jay full confidence.

"Oh come on guys."Lloyd interrupted Kai with a furious reply "We can do better than fighting over games."

"I totally agree, thank you Lloyd."They were startled by Sensi wu who just appeared at the door.

"Today unfortunately I will not be able to give you the morning training." He continued after a while "I have work to do."

"Yea, baby" Kai said.

"Nya, please point the bounty towards Garmadon's monastery."

"Ay,ay sensei." Nya replied as she turned Bounty around.

"We are going to my parents?"Lloyd asked.Wu nodded"But why?"

"I have something to do."He said and looked thoughtfully into the distance"And I'm going to need Bounty for that."

" Come on Lloyd don't complain about a free morning" Kai told him.

"I'm free morning sounds good to me, too." Zane said.

"Yeah we have time for a rematch." Jay said and glared at Kai.

"I'm sorry but I think I have others plans."Sensei Wu said"I won't be able to hold it. But,I'm sure my brother will be willing to hold it instead of me."

The room was filled with disappointed sighs from all the ninja.

~~~~~~With Garmadon and Misako~~~~~

Tea?" Misako asked her husband who was sitting at the table.

"yes, thank you." He answered her and she poured tea into their cups and sat down next to him.

"I wanted to talk to you about something." Misako said after a long time.Garmadon raised an eyebrow curiously. "They offered me a new job. It's quite good and I could work at home for half a month."

"That's good," Garmadon muttered.

"But I would have to go away every couple of months for two weeks or more. I don't really like that, but still the job is much more convenient when I can spend half the working time at home. I don't know what to do, I have to answer them tomorrow."

Garmadon just shrugged and looked off into the distance."Take your time."

"Time? I don't have time, are you even listening to me, I have to tell them tomorrow!" she said in an angry tone.

"I'm lisening to you, of course I do," Garmadon told her and took her hand. "But leave your work, I also wanted to ask you something."

She looked at him. "Would you like to go somewhere with me today?" She thought for a moment.

"I think I would..." She started to answer but Garmadon already let go of her hand and looked into the yard.

"I think someone is coming," he said and went out into the yard. Misako didn't follow him. She just got up from her seat and looked hurt. looked into the distance.

~~~~~~~

"But, sensei Wu why don't you want to tell us where you are going?" Zane asked him as the ninjas got off the Boutny outside Garmadon's monastery.

"I'm going to the docks."

"But why, sensei?"Cole asked another question.

"I have some doubts, I need to see what's going on."

"Whats going where, and what doubts?" This time Kai asked a question.

Wu shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, I can't tell you that, yet." He looked at them with a sharp look. "Don't forget to tell Garmadon to give you a morning training. Lloyd, I'm counting on you."

"Alright, sensei." Lloyd nodded in return. Then Wu turned and disappeared with Bounty.

"Well, "Kai said and created an elemental dragon. "I'm going. I have an meeting"

"But what about the morning training?" Lloyd protested.

"Nah," Kai replied. "Just pretend that Sensei gave us a free morning, that's all." Lloyd skeptically looked at Kai.

"I don't think that's the smartest idea." Nya said. "If they find out, they'll kill us."

"Oh, relax." Jay said. "They won't find out. I like the idea of Cole, Zane, Lloyd, and I practicing a bit before the rematch with Kai, to show who the real gaming king is."

"I agree." Cole said. "I just want to eat something first. I'm really hungry."

"I suppose I agree ,too." Zane said.

"Do whatever you want, guys, just remember that it won't be me who will be in trouble if they find out, it'll be all of you. And it'll be bad." Nya said and started walkingtowards the monastery.

"I still don't like the idea." Lloyd said.

"Majority rules." Kai happily exclaimed. "See you later."

He disappeared from sight a second later.

"I wonder where he's going." Cole said.

"Who's going where?" They were startled by Sensei Garmadon's voice, who was now standing next to them. "And where is Wu?"

"He went to the docks." Cole said. "To check some doubts."

"What doubts?" Sensei Garmadon asked.

"We don't know." Jay said. "But he gave us a free morning." Sensei Garmadon looked at him suspiciously.

"Is that true?" He said, turning to the rest of the three ninjas. They all nodded, some more willingly than others.

"Alright then." Sensei Garmadon said. "Have fun. Although, unfortunately, I assume that Wu wouldn't want you to be alone when he already brought you here...So I'll have to postpone some plans. Where's Kai?" It was now the first time he noticed the absence of the fiery ninja.

"He went to meet someone." Zane replied."Probably Skylor."

"Alright then." Garmadon said. "You're free. Enjoy yourselves before the afternoon training."

"Afternoon training?!" Jay exclaimed.

"Well, yeah. My brother did tell you that you have a free morning, but not a free afternoon."

"Oh, come on, man." Cole muttered as he and the rest of the team headed towards the monastery.

Garmadon smiled, as if he didn't realize they had lied to him about the free morning. He went towards the monastery himself and found a small package on the entrance door.

"Who could've left this?" He asked himself. He went inside and opened it.

"What?" He said as he looked at the empty package. "Someone is definitely messing with me." Angrily, he huffed.

What he didn't notice was a small mechanical beetle with a camera that had come out of the box to spy on them.

~~With the Nya and Misako~~~~

The mechanical bug arrived in the kitchen just as Nya was entering.

"Hey, Misako. You're here?" Misako, who had been staring out the window a moment earlier, weakly smiled at her.

"Looks like I am. Come, sit." Nya sat at the table. "Would you like some tea?"

"No, thank you. I already had some," Nya replied, and Misako sat across from her.

"So," Misako said," What haooend thatyou came?"

"Sensei Wu said he needed to check something. He left us here, beacouse he want you an dGarmadon look over us." Nya explained.

"Did he give you a free morning?" Misako looked confused.

"Oh, no," Nya smiled. "He told us to tell Sensei Garmadon to give them a morning training, but they decided to keep it quiet and say they had a free morning.Lloyd wasn't happy."

Misako laughed softly."Oh,Lloyd.He is never going to learn that he needs to be bad sometimes."

"You're not going to tell Senseis, are you?"

"Of course not. But you know they'll have serious problems when they find out..."

"Yeah, I can imagine how that will look," they both started laughing. "Misako," Nya finally said, "I wanted to ask you something."

"Go ahead, ask."

"Well... It's about Jay," Nya started to get nervous. "Have you ever felt like Garmadon doesn't take you seriously?"

Misako nodded, looking serious. "We talk and everything is fine. But sometimes, there are just those days when it feels like he doesn't listen or take me seriously."

She took a deep breath. "When I tell him something important or ask for his opinion, he just shrugs and looks at something else. And then when he asks me something, he doesn't even wait for me to answer and just starts paying attention to something else!"

She lowered her voice, realizing she was almost yelling. She took another deep breath. "That hurts me, really, really hurts me. When I think he doesn't care, it hurts me like nothing." She continued in a quieter tone,

"With Jay, it's a bit different. He almost never takes me seriously, not because he doesn't care or doesn't listen, but because that's just how he is..."Nya said

"You said it yourself, that's how he is," Misako replied. "Don't worry, he will understand you, just let him develop his own way."

Nya smiled at her. "Maybe you're right. I just need to let him figure things out in his own way. And don't worry, if there's one thing I'm sure of, it's that Garmadon cares."

"I know," Misako weakly smiled. "I know, I just wish sometimes he would pay more attention when I'm talking."

~~~~With Kai and Skylor~~~~

"Thank you!" Kai said as he left the flower shop. He had a few options in mind, but in the end, he concluded that flowers were the safest choice.

He continued on his way to Mr.Chen's Noodle House, feeling excited. In the past month, he had seen Skylor, but she never invited him to come see her! He was so excited.

He reread the message he found on his bed when he returned from evening training. He fixed his hair. It clearly stated that she was asking him to come to her tomorrow (which would be today) at Mr.Chen's Noodle House where she worked.

He was really excited. He walked inside, but at first, he couldn't find her amidst the crowd. He continued looking, searching for her red hair that had to stand out in the crowd.

"Ha!" He finally found her serving guests. "Hey, Skylor!" he said and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Kai!" She looked surprised. "You came?!"

"Of course I did!" he said, wondering if she thought he wouldn't come. "I would never miss a meeting with such a beauty." She blushed, driving him crazy.

"Wait," she said and turned to a customer. "I'll be done in a minute, then we can go out." Some of her confidence returned to her voice. "If you want?" she teased.

"Of course," he said, watching her maneuver to serve a guest. After a while, she waved at him, and he followed her, enchanted by the sway of her slender hips and her beautiful red hair.

"Well, I'm glad you came," she said when they reached the back entrance, the same place where he and his friends received the message that Zane was still alive.

"Me too," he said. "I brought us here because this is the only place where we can have some peace." She spoke as if she could read his thoughts. "Not now, really. What made you decide to drop by? Especially during my shift. You know I'm short-staffed and I love serving people."

Now he felt confused. "But that message..."

"What message?"

No! Now he realized what was strange about that message, not that Skylor invited him, but that it wasn't her handwriting...

"STOP!" An irritating voice cut through the air. Before they could react, a large net fell on them, pinning them to the ground.

"Wait, I'll free us," Kai said as he struggled beneath the net.

"No, I will!" Skylor protested. "I have just the trick for this."

"Oh, I'm sorry," the voice said and put a bracelet for the leg on them. "No powers for you!"

"Chen!" They both looked surprised. Chen stood before them in his human form.

Someone must have brought him back from the Cursed Realm.

"You'll pay for this, father!" Skylor hissed as her father's warriors lifted her and Kai off the ground and put chains around their wrists.

"Don't worry, my daughter," he said. "You'll still be useful, and now, into my secret tunnels!"

Saying that, he tapped out a rhythm on the courtyard floor, and the doors opened.

"I didn't know about this!" Skylor gasped.

"There's still so much you and your friends need to learn from me, my daughter. People like me aren't born every day. NOW, TAKE THEM AWAY BEFORE SOMEONE FINDS YOU!"

The warriors dragged Skylor into the tunnel and began pulling Kai.

"But how?" Kai asked Chen, confused by the fact that Chen was there.

"That's not your concern, fiery ninja," Chen replied. "Everything in due time. I still need you. Soon, you and your friends will find yourselves in a trap."

"The Ninjas and Sensei Garmadon and Wu will take care of you!" Kai growled.

"Hahaha," Chen laughed. "This will be fun, very fun!"

~~~~With others~~~~

I'm hungry," Cole said while he, Jay, Zane, and Lloyd were playing games.

"Go get something to eat," Lloyd told him.

"You know, I could go too," Jay added. "The morning was really tiring." Everyone laughed.

"I'll join you guys," Zane said.

"Then I'll go stretch my legs a bit," Lloyd said.

Soon, all four of them left the room.

DING!

The doorbell rang.

"I'll get it," Garmadon said.

"Good morning," the mailman said at the door. "Are the ninjas here?"

"Yes," Lloyd replied. "Why?"

"I have a package for you," the mailman said and pulled out a box of fortune cookies.

"From whom?" Cole asked.

"Mr.Chen's Noodle House."

"What...?!" Garmadon asked as Lloyd took the package from the mailman.

"Maybe it's for Skylor?" Zane asked as Lloyd placed the box on the table.

"Four fortune cookies!" Cole exclaimed happily.

"Wait!" Garmadon told him and hit him on the head with his staff when he reached for the cookies. "Maybe it's something important."

"Yes," Jay said. "Remember when Chen sent us those cookies?"

"I don't remember," Zane said.

"You were on the island, Zane." Lloyd told him. "But let's see what's written in them. Cole, don't eat your message this time."

"Okay," Cole said. "Can I have your cookie later, Lloyd? I'm really hungry."

"Oh well!" Jay said. "Just let's see what's written in those messages."

"I'm back,"Lloyd read his message.

"I have your friends," Zane read his.

"If you ever want to see them again," Cole read.

"Come to the backyard of the Noodle House. ALONE!" Jay said. "It's signed with the letter C."

"C, like cake," Cole said. "I could eat a cake right now."

"It's not cake!" Jay said. "It's definitely not cake!"

"Cake is always the answer!"

"No, it's not!"

"Enough, you two!" Nya intervened. "C could mean Chen..." Everyone looked at her in astonishment.

"That makes sense," Misako said. "He probably captured Kai and now he's asking you to come to a specific place."

"But how could he return from the cursed realm?" Lloyd asked.

"It's not impossible," Garmadon said. "Someone must have brought him back."

"But what now? It's probably a trap," Misako said.

"I know, but we have to go," Lloyd said. Everyone nodded. "The four of us will go get Kai then."

"But what about Sensei Wu?" Zane asked. "He should have returned already. He went to check on some suspicions."

"He probably suspected this," Garmadon said and made eye contact with Misako, who nodded at him. "Me and Misako will go look for him."

"Alright. I'll try to contact the other elemental masters in the meantime," Nya said. "If we're going to fight Chen again, we'll need their help."

"Very smart, Nya," Zane said. "But now we have to hurry."

"Zane is right," Lloyd said. "Good luck, everyone. "

"Now,GO ,NINJA ,GO!"

The mechanical bug lit up again, transmitting images to its master.

MAKE ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK AND IF YOU SEE ANY ERROR!

TELL ME IF YOU HAVE SOME WISHES FOR THE NEXT EPISODE!

EPISODE 2-SURPRISES

[goldenwitherphoenix13]

Is this a hot take? I think it is.

THE NINJA REPLACEMENTS TEAM IS UNDERAPRECIATED!

There. I said it.

The team comprises of 7 characters, with Jay as the leader, and his team mates being Captain Soto, Skylor, Dareth, The Police Commissioner, Echo Zane and Ronin.

Now, let me tell you why this team is great.

First, redeemed Villains. Ronin and Captain Soto both posed against the ninja (the commissioner did too but he wasn't really a villain, more a nuisance (more on this later)). Seeing Ronin back was a great thing, but Captain Soto, who has just escaped Kryptaryum Prison, agreed to help. Sure it was because he wanted a rematch with Nadakhan, but it was great to see him get a chance to be a hero.

Ronin has had a rocky road to redemption too, but it's great that even after season 6 and the confusion, he's still gonna trust who's side is right. Yeah it's got gain for them both in ways that aren't heroic, but if they had not reversed the timeline, or maybe if they remembered the events, I think they would of gotten to develop I to decent vigilantes. Ronin especially wouldn't of been the villain in season 14... probably... so who knows what would of happened there.

Next, I wanna talk about the returning side characters, Skylor and Dareth. Dareth, for me, was and still is pretty laughable. But his effort, while not great, was atleast genuine. Its why I don't think he's completely awful. He may not be the most useful, but he's willing to help the ninja wherever and whenever he can.

And Skylor, after her absence after season 4, I loved seeing her back. She's a decent character and she's actually a competent fighter too, though we knew that from season 4. And she instantly knew what Jay was there for. She just knows, it's great.

And then we are on to the new characters formerly introduced this season. The Police Commissioner and Echo. The Police Commissioner finally coming to his senses back in misfortune rising. He wants to help redeem his past mistake even though he was only trying to do his job under an incorrect accusation. He could of been written off as just a character who was there to put problems in the way of the ninja, but no. He has been brought back multiple times to develop him. And his time to shine in season 6 was perfect.

And as for Echo, he was a fun and likeable character, very much an Echo of Zane. He got time to shine properly and was definitely a great addition to the team, just doing his job of protecting his allies. Even if he was a one series character, he will never be forgotten.

And of course, the star of the show, Jay. The one who's suffered under Nadakhans wrath the most. The one who's been alienated by most people, even if it was all forgiven. He's hardened his shell over this season, but he's still the same Jay we know and love. And he is ready to slay a djinn. He is ready to do what it takes to save his friends, his home and all the people he doesn't know. He even puts the ideas of Nadakhan betraying the sky pirates in the other pirates heads, and it benefits him. He's able to be tortured and broken, but he was still able to do what he did best. Gather up a team, save his friends and be proven as a valuable team member. Yeah this season boosted him to second favourite character. He used to be 5th out of the ninja, now he's 2nd. What a boost

Each character has a unique personality and motive and that's what I love in the team. Diversity in motive. Diversity in character. Diversity in a team is just so great. That's why I love the original ninja and the ninja replacements.

As for those motives,

Soto wants to rematch Nadakhan and knows exactly what to do.

Ronin is probably gonna get paid and he is a thief/mercenary by nature so money is gonna be a big motive for him

Dareth just wants to help out and prove himself as a decent fighter

Skylor who... we don't really know why she joined but it was either because she was bored or she just wanted to help out (andshewantedtosavekaireturningthefavourofhimsavingher)

The Police Commissioner wants to reestablish the trust with the ninja and this is the perfect way to fo it.

Echo just wants to do what he does best. Protect the ones he cares about, Just like Zane.

And then there's Jay. The one who has 3 goals. Save his friends from a magic sword, stop a wedding that will result in disaster, and take out a djinn. If this show was more aimed at adults, Jay would of stabbed Nadakhan. Tell me otherwise. I dare you.

The whole team work off eachother so well. They all are characters that rank from decent to fantastic. The motives each team mate has is believable.

But most importantly, this team is functional. They succeed in helping with Nadakhans defeat. While some made more efforts than others, they still helped with the result.

Soto with the knowledge of the Djinn blade and how to use it, Ronin with the equipment to sneak around Djinnjago, Echo calling Jay back to the team, Dareth calling the team in to catch the land up (and helping the old lady off the land), The commissioner arresting the sky pirate and letting Ronin go to help, Skylor there to help (she may not have contributed a whole lot, but she was there to help either way), and Jay there to lead them there.

In conclusion, this team is underated, underapreciated and underestimated. I love the dynamic. Its just great.

Also this.

These pirates are dumb lol

this season was just great.

[biggest-stupidhead]

Bad Timing (Levi x reader) Part 11

Summary: How do you tell your friends that you’re falling for your big brother’s best friend? 

Word Count: 8.2K (longest one yet) 

__

The next few days flew by in a snowy blur. Most of your time was spent wrapping gifts and packaging baked goods to deliver to family friends. You grunted as you leaned heavily on top of the Tupperware container as you shoved in more sugar cookies. This particular batch was going to Erwin's coach and his family. The sound of wrapping paper tearing made you cringe, turning around you saw Hange holding up the two uneven lengths of paper. She smiled sheepishly at you before shrugging and taping the pieces together once more. Your mom and Erwin were currently out shopping at the mall, which was a good hour away from the hick town you lived in.

You and Hange had already been out shopping the other day. It had been very stressful shopping for all your friends and family. You were glad to have gotten the ordeal over with. Although it was stressful, you had enjoyed picking out the perfect gift for your loved ones. Some highlights included: a camera lense for Armin, a set of chain necklaces for Mikasa, a turkey hat for Sasha, a safari hat for Connie, and your personal favorite was a set of fancy tea cups for Levi.

You really had outdone yourself this year, even going as far as buying Erwin supplies that he would need for College. For Hange you had purchased her a fresh set of glassware for her experiments, since she was majoring in Chemistry and enjoyed doing work outside of the classroom you thought it was a fitting gift. Hange held up her finished product proudly, judging by the size of the box you guessed it was a pair of shoes.

"I can't wait to give these to him!" she gushed as she set the box to the side and began folding a sweater that the two of you had purchased for your mom.

"Yeah I'm sure he'll love them." you agreed. You weren't the only one who had splurged this year. Hange had bought Erwin a fresh pair of cleats for his freshman season at college.

"I hope so!" she chuckled as she boxed the sweater and the pair of earrings for your mom.

"What did you ask for this year?" you asked as you set the stuffed container of cookies to the side.

"Oh nothing special." Hange waved her hand dismissively. You weren't surprised, she wasn't exactly interested in possessions. She valued knowledge above most things, so the closest you could get to filling that need was to give her books or items that helped her learn and shit. You had learned that the hard way, a few years ago you had given her a nice bracelet, which was currently collecting dust on her dresser.

"Well what about your parents, are they doing something special this year?" you inquired, you knew that she had learned to appreciate knowledge from them. They used to go on trips and spend Christmas soaking up the culture of wherever they went. One of their most notable trips was to South America, Hange's favorite trip to date. They hiked in the jungle and learned about the environment and shit.

"Aw sadly no, they wanted to take a break and focus on their research here." She shrugged as she wrapped the box in snowman wrapping paper.

"Really?" you mused, although Hange's family was unconventional you admired their free spirit.

"Yeah, I'm particularly interested in my mom's project, she's studying these penguins in South America right now-" she continued to ramble on about her mother's studies and her father's work. Both of her parents were very active in the zoology community. Hange's rant was cut short by the sound of her phone ringing, she apologized before answering the call, walking out of the room for some privacy. Which you thought was odd, she usually wasn't so private with her phone calls, which at times could be annoying. You brushed it off as most likely being a conversation about gifts. You picked up your phone, taking the opportunity to answer the text that Mikasa had sent you earlier that morning.

"We'll be over around 7." her text made you feel giddy with excitement. Although this year would be a bit different you were still excited to see all your friends.

"See you soon!" you responded, you realized that it was probably a good idea to start dinner for your mom. She should be home any minute but still you set about preheating the oven for the casserole and the ham. Thankfully the Jeagers brought dishes as well, Carla made a mean pumpkin pie. You weren't expecting Kenny to bring anything other than booze. You fell into an easy rhythm as you prepared the vegetable casserole. It couldn't have been more than an hour later that your mom and Erwin stumbled in the door and dropped the bags down by the card table where we had been wrapping gifts. Your mom was quick to wash her hands and start the mashed potatoes as you checked the ham. Hange had began to set the table with Erwin, a christmas playlist had been playing to set the mood.

The Jeagers arrived right at 7, just in time. Grisha's arms were full with gifts, Carla toted two pies, Eren held a board game, and Mikasa had two bottles of red wine with ribbons around the necks of the bottles. Hugs and formalities were exchanged as they entered and put their gifts under the tree. Carla joined your mom in the kitchen to finish carving the ham. You and the other teens finished setting the table as everyone trickled into the dining room.

Just as the ham was placed on the table and glasses of wine were poured, the doorbell rang once more. Kenny had arrived, surprisingly only thirty minutes late. He had a huge bottle of vodka and another sizable bottle of whiskey. Your mom greeted him, taking the liquor from him and pointing him to his seat. Now that all guests were accounted for you began to dish out food and recount the past holidays that your families spent together. It didn't go unnoticed that Kenny was a tad uncomfortable, but thanks to Grisha's easy going nature and Carla's friendliness, he slowly eased up. Of course you and the other teens had your own conversation separate from the adults.

"-Do you remember that one year that I creamed you guys in Just Dance?" Hange gloated as she waved a forkful of ham in Eren's face.

"Ugh yes, but only because that was the year that Mikasa's ankle was sprained." Eren deflected, lifting his own fork to push hers from his face. Mikasa blushed and shoved a spoonful of mashed potatoes into her mouth.

"Well I guess we'll just have to see if that was the real reason after a rematch!" Hange teased before biting into the hunk of meat.

"I guess we will." Eren narrowed his eyes as he watched Hange chew the meat.

"We should play Mario Kart first, I want to redeem myself." Armin was quick to change the subject. Always quick to avoid possible conflict.

"Yeah I totally creamed you last time!" you gloated a cocky smile on your lips.

"W-What! No I had the most wins!" Eren's eyes were alight with anger. He was too easy to piss off.

"Wrong!" you said in a sing song voice.

"Knock it off you two." Erwin scolded from across the table, Eren's cheeks flushed when Erwin scolded him but you simply rolled your eyes. In the last few months Erwin had taken to hovering over you and your friends. It was strange, he had never shown so much interest in your social life until recently. At first you had been eager to tell him what was going on in your friend group, but now it was becoming annoying.

"Lay off Erwin, it's all talk." you scoffed with a roll of your eyes. Erwin's eyes hardened at your snarky tone, your guests eyes flickered between the two of you as you glared at one another. Until finally you snorted and looked away with a shake of your head.

"Uh...so who wants pie!" Armin, ever true to his anti confrontation nature filled the thick silence between the teens. Meanwhile the adults had continued to yammer on about all the hot hospital gossip.

"I-I would." Eren played into Armin's excuse to change the subject.

"Yeah sounds good." you sighed, defeated. Armin scrambled out of his seat and ducked into the kitchen, returning a few moments later with the pies. He dished out three pieces onto you and Eren's plates before serving himself. By the time he had returned, Hange had already changed the topic to the party the following day. You sat in silence as she rambled about the logistics for the party at your house.

"I think that Nanaba is bringing mac and cheese, Mike is probably going to bring those snicker doodles that he always makes-" You tuned her out, not interested in her current rant. Tomorrow's party wasn't the party you were really excited for. So you instead turned to Mikasa, hoping to talk about your plans for the 26th.

"So what time are you going to Annie's? Would you like to ride together?" you asked as you angled yourself to face her to better tune out Hange.

"We are heading over around 9, and sure I'm driving." Mikasa responded as she stretched to serve herself a piece of pie.

"Perfect, are you spending the night there?" you quizzed, unsure if you also wanted to spend the night there.

"No, we were going to go back to Armin's but I can drop you off here if you want." Mikasa answered as she took a bite of pie.

"Alright that sounds good!" you agreed, knowing that Mikasa was always a reliable designated driver.

__

Dinner had gone relatively smooth, despite the tension that now hung in the atmosphere between you and Erwin. The rest of the evening was spent in the living room opening gifts with a Christmas movie marathon playing in the background. The Jeagers left around eleven, which was later than they usually stayed. Kenny took the guest bedroom in the basement, since he was spending Christmas day with your family anyway. You checked your phone with a heavy sigh, already it was twelve am. You contemplated texting Levi to tell him happy birthday, but you weren't sure he would be awake. It was already six in the morning in France, and usually he got his three hours of sleep between four and seven in the morning. But you decided that if he didn't answer you could leave him a voicemail or shoot him a text. So after you changed into your pajamas and had snuggled beneath your covers, you pulled up Levi's contact, your thumb hovering over the small phone icon. Finally you just said 'fuck it' and pressed the button, the phone rang three times before he answered.

"Hey." his voice was thick and gravely as he spoke, immediately you felt bad. You knew that you must have woken him up and you cringed internally.

"Hey happy birthday!" you greeted, making sure to keep your voice low so you wouldn't disturb Erwin and Hange.

"Tch thanks." Levi mumbled, you pictured him running a hand down his face as he tried to wake up.

"you're welcome birthday boy." you teased as you fell back onto your pillows.

"shut up." Levi scoffed, you could hear his footsteps as he walked through the apartment, presumably to get his morning cup of black tea.

"you know you love it." you sighed.

"keep telling yourself that." Levi's voice was becoming clearer now that he was more awake.

"I think that I will." you answered with a light laugh.

"you still going to that party tomorrow?" Levi interrogated, you groaned. You had almost forgotten how he liked to stick his nose in your business, even when he was across the fucking ocean.

"Yeah what about it?" you huffed, feeling a bit defensive.

"Shouldn't you stay with your family or some shit." Levi sounded frustrated.

"My mom said I could go." you pouted childishly.

"Whatever." Levi grunted, and you frowned, unsure of where his frustration was coming form.

"Aw come on no need to be jealous, I'm sure you can find some rager in Paris. Not like you'll be missing much here." you chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

"Hmph." Levi scoffed, you could hear the tinkling of his spoon as he stirred his tea.

"So....when are you due to be home?" you asked, deciding it was best to change the subject.

"Next week." Levi's tone was clipped.

"I'm so jealous." you sighed dreamily.

"Yeah Paris is way better than Shiganshina." Levi responded nonchalantly, you weren't sure if he was being serious or sarcastic. Either way he was telling the truth.

"No need to rub it in my face." you chuckled.

"Tch." He scoffed, you liked to imagine him smiling as he did so, even if he wasn't.

"Well I hope that this next week goes by fast, as much as I hate to admit it I've... missed you." you confessed, the tips of your ears scorching hot with embarrassment. The silence was deafening as you waited for him to say something, hell anything even if it was making fun of you.

"Whatever." he huffed, the butterflies in your stomach fluttered at the sound of his baritone voice.

"Just don't stay out late tomorrow." he quipped and you frowned, why did he care how late you stayed out?

"No need to worry about me, I'll probably just stay sober with Mikasa." You told him, only half honest.

"Never said I was worried about you." Levi sighed.

"Hmph fine be like that." you scoffed and rolled your eyes, not surprised with his response.

"Be like what?" He asked, genuinely curious what you meant.

"Like an ass." you quipped.

"Tch I'll quite being an ass when you stop being such a brat." Levi snapped, clearly you were approaching dangerous territory.

"Okay okay chill." you muttered, backing down before things got too heated.

"You're the one that brought it up.." Levi pointed out.

"Yeah and now I'm regretting that" you sighed, wishing he wouldn't be so stubborn for once. He sighed as well and you heard a small clatter on his end of the line, you figured he was starting the dishes.

"Look I've got some shit to do, I'll call you later okay?" Levi's voice was a tad strained and in the moment of silence you heard the sound of Isabel and Farlan bickering in hushed tones.

"Y-Yeah sure of course." you couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed.

"Happy birthday Levi." you wished him once more.

"Thanks, talk to you later brat." and with that he hung up, leaving you totally alone in your dark room. You plugged your phone in and rolled over onto your side, he could be so annoying. You inhaled sharply and decided that you would enjoy the party tomorrow to it's fullest. What he didn't know wouldn't kill him.

___

"Hey can I borrow your lip gloss?" you asked Mikasa as you leaned forward to apply another coat of mascara to your lashes.

"Sure which one?" she asked as she pulled her hair into high pigtails on top of her head.

"The cherry one." you answered after a moment of contemplation. She finished her hair before reaching into her makeup bag and pulled out the tube of clear gloss.

"Thanks." you said as you took the make up from her. You didn't usually put this much effort into your appearance when you went to parties but you figured since it was the first time you would be going to Annie's that this was a special occasion. Also you had a sneaking suspicion that two of your exes would be there and you at least wanted to look hot if you were going to get black out.

Plus Mikasa was also dressed up, she wore a tight fitting black top with long sleeves and a low cut neck line that showed off her pale collarbones and neck. She had chosen to wear a choker that had metallic studs surrounding the black leather along with some other layered necklaces. To match her top she had selected a red plaid skirt and some torn tights. You weren't dressed nearly as edgy as she was, but you too had gone for a grungier look. You'd opted to wear a tattered pair of mom jeans along with a black cropped tank and an oversized flannel to cover your shoulders.

You sighed as you finished applying the gloss and frowned, Eren and Armin were in the next room over blasting Post Malone. You assumed that Eren was on aux since Armin usually listened to Surfaces or Khalid.

"You ready?" Mikasa asked as she pulled on her Doc Martens and double checked her earrings.

"Yeah." you assured her as you stood up to grab your small backpack with an extra change of comfy clothes in case you ended up staying the night. The two of you left the room and knocked on Eren's door that was down the hall.

"Just a minute!" Armin's shrill voice sounded a bit panicked but Mikasa simply shrugged and headed towards the kitchen. The Jeager's house was a ranch style house with one main floor and a nice basement. The two of you waited patiently in the kitchen for the boys, it was already well past nine. You scrolled through your snapchat, most of the stories were the regular group picture of friends having a sleepover, the druggie kids showing off their weed, and of course Sasha and Connie posted a video showcasing the house party at Annie's. From what the short video showed, her house was dark except for some LED lights that flashed through multiple different colors. The music was deafening, and the kids that you could see seemed to be swaying to the pulsing music.Sasha spun the camera around as she knocked back a shot with her arm around Connie who blew a puff of vapor at the camera.

"Looks fun." Mikasa scoffed, you knew that she preferred more low-key parties.

"If you end up not liking it we can always dip." You shrugged, knowing that this wasn't exactly your speed either. Mikasa hummed in agreement and turned to look down the hallway as Eren's door opened. The boys emerged from Eren's room, Eren wore a pair of black jeans and a dark forrest green long sleeved shirt. Armin wore a baby blue knit sweater with a collared shirt underneath and black jeans as well.

"All set?" Mikasa asked as she turned to pull out a bottle of titos with a cute little sweater over it. You smiled at the cute accessory and nodded.

"Yep!" you said popping the p as the four of you all made your way out to Eren's car. You slid into the back seat next to Armin who was fiddling with the hem of his sweater nervously. Eren resumed his hype music as Mikasa backed out of the drive way. Eren pulled out his puff bar as soon as the car was out of the drive and took a long drag. Mikasa scoffed and cracked the window for him. He blew the billow of smoke out the window and reached to turn the music up. He reached back and dangled the puff for you to take, after a brief moment of hesitation you accepted it and cracked your window before taking a hit. Armin watched with wide eyes as you inhaled and blew the vapor out the crack.

"Since when did you vape?" Armin asked, his mouth agape in awe.

"I don't...at least not regularly." You admitted sheepishly.

"That's what they all say." Eren chuckled, smoke curling out from his lips as he smirked.

"Shut up I'm serious!" you snapped a playful smile on your face. Thankfully Annie's house wasn't far away, about a twenty minute drive. You pulled up to the house, it was huge. Standing at least three stories tall, with a long winding driveway. Mikasa pulled up behind one of the many cars in the drive way and parked the car. Mikasa led the way around to the side door, which was unlocked, piled of shoes littered the hallway. The sound of loud music greeted you as you walked into the kitchen on the main floor to set the alcohol you'd brought down. The real party was in the basement.

The lights were off, leaving the only source of light to be the flickering LED lights, you couldn't even tell who was who. The air was heavy with the mingling aromas of cologne, vapes, and weed. Armin practically clung to you as the four of you waded through the crowd to get to the seating area in the center of the room. As you got closer the overpowering scent of weed assaulted your nose. There on the large L shaped couch was Annie, she held a large bong to her lips as Bertolt held the lighter under the weed, she inhaled deeply and the bong bubbled. She pulled back and blew a puff of smoke right in Reiner's face, the blonde's face scrunched up in disgust as he turned away to cough.

"Yo." Annie greeted Mikasa who leaned down to dap her up. Once Annie had greeted Mikasa she turned her attention to Eren who was eyeing the bong.

"You want a drag?" Annie offered, patting the sofa next to her. Eren nodded and dropped down between her and Bertolt, who once again struck the lighter for Eren. Mikasa rolled her eyes and waited patiently for Eren to finish his drag. Once the bong was out of the way she lowered herself down onto his lap and pulled her puff bar out to take a long drag. Armin shifted awkwardly behind you and tugged on your sleeve.

"Want to go get something to drink?" he yelled over the booming music, you glanced at the bong longingly but decided that Armin needed you right now so you nodded in agreement.

"Sure." the two of you pushed through the crowd to the minibar where an impressive amount of liquor was waiting. You poured some Bacardi into a glass of and added some pineapple and orange concentrates before handing the cup to Armin. He thanked you and quickly got to work on finishing the mixed drink. You poured yourself a rum and coke and then two shots of Malibu for you and Armin to take. The two of you knocked back the shots before wandering back over towards the couch. The crowd had thinned out a bit, something about watching a movie in Annie's in home movie theater.

"-No that's bullshit, I know for a fact that you pissed your pants in the second grade Eren!" your eyebrows shot into your hairline at the words leaving Annie's mouth.

"Just because I'm quiet doesn't mean I don't notice shit." She huffed as she lifted the juul in her hand to her lips and took a long drag.

"I-"

"Just take the L Eren we all remember." Bertolt shook his head and chuckled at Eren's flushed cheeks. You glanced at Mikasa, usually she would defend Eren but she seemed content to let him struggle through this one on his own, still perched on his lap.

"We've all had accidents before." Armin said with an awkward chuckle as he sat down beside Annie, who looked at him with a blank expression.

"Like that time you tripped down the stairs and broke both your legs in fourth grade?" Annie quipped, a small smirk curling onto her lips. You choked on your drink at Annie's remark, she was an absolute savage.

"Exactly..." Armin flushed, lifting his own cup to his lips. Your phone buzzed in your pocket, but you were too invested in the conversation to be bothered to pick it up.

"Want a hit?" Annie offered the bong to you, you nodded. Although you'd never had weed before, you'd tried asking Levi for some of his but he always denied you. Annie held her hand out to Bertolt who placed the lighter in his open palm. She packed some more weed into the bowl before handing you the bong.

"You ever done this before?" She asked as she kneeled in front of you. You shook your head,

"Okay so I'll tell you when to inhale, and you've got to take a huge breath so you can get the smoke in your system. But then you'll have to take another breath to get it in your lungs." she instructed as she pressed the weed deeper into the bowl.

"Okay." you agreed, she nodded and struck the lighter, holding the flame over the weed in the bowl. You pressed your lips to the mouth piece and waited for her instructions.

"Inhale." she said once the weed was lit. You sucked in a big breath and the water in the bong bubbled. The smoke burned the insides of your throat as you inhaled it, you pulled the bong off your mouth and sucked in once more to get the smoke into your lungs. She nodded in approval as you coughed, smoke curling out of your mouth.

"Not bad for your first time." she commented as she took the bong from you and passed it to Mikasa who took a long drag before passing it to Bertolt.

"Thanks, that stuff burns." you coughed, Annie sat down next to you on the couch and draped her arm over the back. You felt the buzz from the weed and the shots you'd taken earlier, making your head spin a bit. Annie's thigh brushed against your own, you tried to focus on what she was wearing, a pair of grey sweats and a cute cropped peachy colored tank top with spaghetti straps.

"I like your top." you complimented, her hand fell from the back of the couch to your shoulders.

"Thanks." she said, turning to gauge your reaction to her touch. You swallowed a bit nervously, you'd known Annie since kindergarten, but you'd never really been friends before, she was always so quiet.

"I always thought you were a good kid." Annie smirked, her eyes a bit playful.

"What made you think that?" You giggled, shuffling closer to her.

"Your brother is like the school's golden boy, and you are always in all the honors classes." she shrugged, you frowned. You were used to people coming up with these assumptions. She was right though, you did take honor classes, but that didn't mean you couldn't party!

"I guess...But that doesn't mean that I don't enjoy partying." you countered.

"I suppose." she chuckled, taking a hit from her juul and blowing the smoke away from your face. Your phone rang in your pocket and you frowned, as you dug it out of your pocket. Your frown deepened at the sight of Hange's contact lighting up your screen.

"Hang on I should take this." you apologized, moving to stand up to find a quiet place to answer the phone. Annie snatched your wrist and pulled you back down on the sofa, the room spun as you fell back down and slumped against her shoulder.

"Slow down there sweetheart." Annie chuckled as you leaned against her.

"I got to go answer my-"

"Nah just stay here, enjoy yourself." Annie pulled you closer, but your head was too foggy to protest, thoughts of your phone already fading into the back of your mind as Annie held the bong to your lips once more.

__

"She's still not answering." Hange chewed on her knuckle as she glanced at Erwin who was gripping the steering wheel. His brows were knit tightly together with worry, Levi shifted in the back seat, tapping his fingers impatiently.

"This is stupid, she can wait until tomorrow to see me." Levi huffed, trying his best to sound indifferent.

"Oh don't say that Levi." Hange frowned as she looked back at Levi, her eyes deep with worry.

"Don't worry about it." Levi grunted, turning his attention back to his phone. He opened snapchat, and scrolled through the stories. His eyes widened slightly when he stopped on Sasha's story, the video of the party played, he found himself looking for your silhouette among the swaying bodies. He tapped on his screen, expecting to move on to the next story, only to find a new video, added to her story less than ten minutes ago. A video of you with a red solo cup in one hand, and a juul in the other. You were leaned up against a blonde girl who was pushing a bottle of Pink Whitney against you, the pink alcohol sloshing in the glass.

"Come on (Y/n) finish it off!" Sasha encouraged as the other kids on the couch picked up on her chant.

"Finish it, Finish it." the crowd cheered as you sat down the cup and took the bottle from the blonde. You looked at the camera as Sasha shuffled closer.

"No pa-paparazzi please." you giggled, hiccuping half way through your sentence. You lifted the bottle to your lips and tilted your head back, the liquid spilled down your front, making your skin glisten in the colorful lights as you chugged the alcohol you managed to get in your mouth.

"Fuck yeah!!!" Sasha jeered, spinning the camera around to her face. The video ended and Levi felt his blood boil. He'd never seen you so out of it before and he hated it. He hated how easily you had given into doing something so stupid, he hated the sight of the juul in your fist, he hated the way the girl's arm was tightly wrapped around your waist, but most of all he hated that he wasn't there.

"Wait, I think Sasha's snap map is on." Hange mumbled, her phone screen casting a pale glow over her glasses as she zoomed in on Sasha's bitmoji. Sure enough Sasha's bitmoji was on the map, surrounded by at least twenty other bitmojis gathered in one location.

"Okay let's head that way then." Erwin sighed as he started the car and backed out of his parking spot in the airport parking lot. Erwin pulled out of the small airport that was about thirty minutes away from your town and set off towards Annie's house. Thankfully Annie lived on the outskirts of town so it wasn't as far of a drive. It wasn't long before Erwin was pulling up a long winding drive that was full of cars. He parked at the back of the line of cars and got out of the car with a heavy slam of his door. Levi slammed the back door of the minivan as hard as he could, the two of them marched up the driveway silently with Hange following nervously.

"You guys please slow down it's icy out here." Hange begged as she slipped on one of the steps to the side door. The three of them piled into the house, Hange knew it was bad when Levi didn't bother to kick his shoes off before continuing towards the basement steps. Erwin stormed down the steps, the music getting louder as they descended. Erwin paused at the bottom of the steps to take in the scene, cups littered the floor, the room was hazy with smoke from juuls and the scent of weed clung to the air. A group of partygoers was crowded onto the couch, Levi's eyes narrowed onto the back of your head.

"Yoooo that's ice cold." Eren's loud voice could be heard over the music as the teens passed the bong between one another.

"No it's the truth." you slurred, the empty bottle of alcohol still in your fist.

"Well sorryyy that I forgot that I had gum in my mouth." Connie said, waving his hands in front of his face.

"You're an idiot." Sasha laughed boisterously as she shoved a handful of pretzels into her mouth.

"damn straight." Annie agreed, taking the empty bottle from you and setting it on the coffee table. Erwin stalked across the room and stood behind Bertolt, who was now on the floor. The conversation came to a halt at the sight of the uninvited guests.

"Woah I think I'm seeing things." you said, tilting your head downwards as you tried to understand why you were seeing your brother.

"Me too." Reiner agreed, his own distant gaze honing in on his team captain.

"Get up we're going home." Erwin's voice was cold and commanding as he glowered at you.

"I don't wanna leave." your eyes hardened with denial. Erwin stepped over Bertolt, once he had moved your eyes landed on Levi, who was glaring at you with those dark eyes.

"I'm definitely seeing things." you grunted as Erwin pulled you off the couch and away from Annie's warmth.

"Hey man she said she didn't want to go." Annie snarled, jumping to her feet, her icy blue eyes sharp.

"Yeah well she's drunk as shit and doesn't know what she's saying." Levi snapped back at Annie, who had a hand clamped down around your arm. Hange shifted nervously behind the couch as she watched the scene unfold.

"You need to leave." Annie growled, pointing a finger at the stairs.

"That's what we're trying to do dumb ass." Levi growled, taking a step closer to the circle of teens.

"Leave her alone she can make her own decisions." Reiner quipped, rising to his own feet.

"Stay out of this Braun." Erwin ordered, releasing you so he could turn and face Reiner.

"I'm just saying, she chose to come here on her own and she's enjoying herself so let her be." Reiner shrugged.

"She's had enough tonight." Erwin countered, shifting his gaze back to you as you swayed on your feet.

"No I haven't" you frowned up at Erwin.

"Yes you have. We're leaving end of discussion." he said with finality, once more reaching for your wrist.

"I'm not leaving Erwin." you protested, pulling yourself free from his grasp. He snatched your wrist once more and tugged you away from the circle. You gasped and stumbled after him, the protests of your friends echoing loudly in your head. Erwin hauled you up the stairs and out the side door, Levi and Hange close on your heels. He only slowed once you were walking down the driveway. You wrenched yourself free once more with a strangled cry.

"I said I don't want to leave!" you screamed, a few tears sliding down your cheeks.

"You always embarrass me in front of my friends just give me this one night!" you cried, the cold air making your face beet red.

"You'll thank me later." He said simply before turning to continue down the driveway.

"No I won't I'm going back inside." you turned on your heel and marched back towards the door, only for Levi to catch your wrist.

"You've had enough for one night." He scolded as you struggled against his hold. Hange chewed on her bottom lip with worry at the sight, this was not how she planned your reunion.

"Levi let me go." you said with finality as you met his eyes.

"No, you're going home." Levi's voice was tense.

"No I'm not."

"(Y/n) you're going home and that's final." Erwin sighed, running a hand down the side of his face. You spun around and glared at him.

"You're not my fucking dad Erwin so quit acting like it! Jesus it's so annoying I'm tired of it!" you screamed, your chest heaving with frustration, your breath coming out with puffs of vapor. Hange and Levi stood deathly still, knowing that the topic of your father was a sensitive one.

"Fine be that way." Erwin snarled and marched to the van and climbed in with a slam of his door. Hange rushed to get in the car without a second glance over her shoulder. Levi remained firmly rooted to the ground, his hand still wrapped firmly around your wrist as you cried.

"Get out of here Levi." you sobbed, shaking your arm to throw his hand off. He finally let you go, his head tilted down to the ground. You huffed, wrapping your arms around your chest before turning on your heel and stalking back towards the house. Levi stood there a moment longer just listening to the sound of your receding footsteps before he padded back to Erwin's car and slid into the backseat.

__

Your head was spinning as you pressed your back against the bathroom door, your lip quivering as you tried to contain your tears. You knew that you'd hurt both Erwin's and Levi's feelings, you also knew that they were only trying to help you. But there was only so much help you could except from them without them toeing the line between helpful and overbearing. You slid down the door with a whimper, you hugged you knees to your chest and rested your chin on top of them. A knock startled you out of your moping,

"(Y/n)? You in there?" You groaned when you recognize Jean's voice.

"Open the door please." He said softly and you felt more tears fall down your cheeks as you reached up for the knob to unlock the door. The lock clicked and you shuffled to lean agains the wall so he could open the door.

"Hey" he said as he stuck his head in, his amber eyes soft with worry.

"Hey" you sniffled, turning your head up to meet his gaze.

"What's wrong?" He asked, slipping into the small bathroom and closing the door behind him. He crouched down in front of you, his elbows propped on his own knees as he got onto your level.

"Well for starters, you kissed someone else when we were talking." you said a bit venomously. He cringed and plopped down to sit criss cross applesauce instead.

"I'm sorry I know that I shouldn't have done that but, I've been really confused....like sexually I guess." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly and your frowned.

"I know, but it still hurt my feelings." you mumbled, a few fresh tears falling from your watery eyes.

"I shouldn't have led you on like that, it was a real jerk move." Jean agreed, his eyes still soft and comforting. You'd missed being his friend you realized as you sat on the cold tile.

"I've missed talking to you." you spoke your mind, managing a small smile.

"Me too, let's be friends again?" he proposed, offering his hand to you. Your smile grew wider as you extended your own hand to grasp his. You shook hands briefly.

"So are you and Marco a couple now?" you asked.

"Sort of.." Jean chuckled.

"You want to go back to the party now?" He asked, jutting a thumb towards the door. You nodded, although now you were beginning to sober up. He stood and offered his hands to help you to your feet. You accepted his hands and he pulled you to your feet. The two of you walked slowly down the steps to rejoin the circle of teens in the living room. Jean stopped at the bottom of the stairs his hand held loosely in your own. He squeezed your hand, asking for your attention. You turned and faced him, a questioning look on your face.

"You've got some-" He chuckled, lifting his thumb to his mouth and licking it before wiping away some rogue mascara off your cheeks. You gasped in mock offense as he wiped away the makeup.

"You're not my mom." you teased, pulling your face free as you turned to head back into the fray, trusting that Jean got all the black marks off your face.

"Nobody could replace Angie." Jean agreed as he followed you into the basement. The group of previously rowdy teens was now subdued due to your brother and his meddling party crasher friends.

"Hey look who's back!" Reiner greeted, causing all the heads to turn back to you. You smiled sheepishly and dropped back into your seat next to Annie.

"You alright?" She asked, her eyes scanning you meticulously for any signs of injury.

"Yeah I'm- I'll be alright." you stumbled over your words as the group watched you carefully.

"You want a uh beer or something?" Connie asked, lifting up an unopened can.

"No she doesn't you idiot!" Sasha snapped, elbowing Connie harshly.

"Ow well I was just trying to make her feel better!" Connie cried, turning to tackle Sasha. The two began to tussle, rolling around on the floor grunting as they struggled. You smiled, the pair never failed to make you happy. Annie draped her arm over you again as the boys began to place bets on who would come out victorious.

"If Sasha wins you've got to drink one of Connie's mixed drinks!" Eren said, leaning over to Bertolt who scoffed, his boyish features contorting with disgust. Connie was known for making the worst mixed drinks.

"You're on Jeager." he reached over Reiner and the two shook in agreement before turning their attention to the scuffle.

"Come on Sasha!" Eren jeered as Sasha bit down hard on Connie's hand. The boy yelped and tried to desperately pry her locked jaws off his hand. He gave up quickly and resorted to hitting her head with his closed fist, his face wild with panic.

"Tickle her neck" Mikasa suggested as she lifted a red solo cup to her lips. Your eyes widened in surprise, Mikasa usually kept quiet during these scuffles, unless of course it was Eren being thrown around. Connie's free hand flew down to Sasha's armpit and immediately Sasha released his other hand to roll away from him. Connie regained the upper hand, pinning Sasha beneath him as he tickled her ruthlessly. Jean groaned and slapped a wad of bills into Reiner's open palm as Sasha slapped the ground in defeat. Connie threw his hands into the air and rolled off Sasha who was fighting for breath.

"Traitor" she moaned, her brown eyes glaring at Mikasa who shrugged indifferently. Eren groaned and frowned at Mikasa.

"Why'd you do that?" He asked as Bertolt looked relieved. Mikasa shrugged once more a sly smile on her face as Eren pushed her off his lap.

"So" Connie jumped to his feet and clapped his hands together.

"About that drink." he turned and strutted over to the mini bar, followed by a sulking Eren and a smug Bertolt. You turned to Sasha who was now straddling Mikasa her hands around Mikasa's shoulders as she jostled the girl.

"Come on Mikasa why'd you sell me out like that?" she whined as she shook the girl, Mikasa's drink sloshing in her cup. Mikasa smiled as her eyes drifted to the group of boys, Connie had a large bottle of Tito's and a two liter of Mt. Dew in his hands as he inspected the two, his face scrunched up with concentration.

"Come on Sasha it's not like you wouldn't do the same if it were me." Mikasa scoffed with a roll of her eyes. You snorted at Mikasa's response, knowing that she was indeed correct. Sasha gasped and shook Mikasa harder.

"I would never do that to you! Besides you would win in any fight you fought." Sasha objected, leaning back on Mikasa's lap her arms extended.

"Psh whatever." Annie scoffed, a playful smirk on her lips.

"Not all of us are masters at kickboxing." Sasha pouted as she climbed off Mikasa's lap and dropped onto the empty space next to her. You knew that Mikasa had participated in the sport for the past few years, but you were confused when Sasha looked between Annie and Mikasa.

"What you didn't know?" Annie asked with a smirk. You shook your head,

"No I guess I don't know." you laughed as Annie licked her lips and she threw her arm back over your shoulders.

"Mikasa and I are on the same kickboxing club." She shrugged as you settled back into her side. Your mouth opened into an 'o' shape in realization as Annie dug her juul out of her pocket and took a hit. Mikasa nodded in agreement, her eyes shifting back over to the boys, who were laughing loudly as Eren chugged a cup of mystery liquid.

"Really? I had no idea." you said as you followed Mikasa's gaze. Eren was now leaned over gagging as Armin patted his back with a worried expression.

"-You dodged a bullet there!" Reiner quipped as he patted Bertolt's back as the tall boy watched with a disgusted face.

"Hey where did Ymir and Krista run off to?" Sasha asked, whipping her head around to look for the pair.

"Probably making out in some corner." Reiner scoffed as he dropped back onto the sofa, the rest of the boys rejoining the group as well. You nodded in agreement, it was no secret that the pair had been seeing each other recently.

"Guess so." Sasha sighed, slumping back into the sofa, throwing a glare at Connie who was now seated next to her with an arm over the back of the couch. Eren and Armin were the only once unaccounted for, you assumed that they had fled to the bathroom given the state Eren had been in after drinking Connie's concoction. Jean had managed to slip away with all the commotion, probably to return to Marco. Annie sighed, glancing at her phone with a frown, it was well past three at this point and you were starting to feel the fatigue.

"Well I think that I'm heading off to bed." Annie yawned, the others seemed to be mellowing out as well.

"You guys can crash here or my brother's room is open as well as my sisters rooms." She said as she stood up. You immediately missed her warmth as she lingered by the couch.

"I call Eric's room!" Sasha perked up, also standing up to run towards Annie's younger brother's room.

"No fair!" Connie yelled, giving chase. Mikasa sighed and stood up as well.

"I'd better go check on Eren and Armin." She mumbled as she stalked off towards the bathroom.

"Are you staying the night then?" Annie asked you as you also stood up, not sure if you should go after Mikasa.

"I'm not sure, Mikasa was going to take me back to her place..."

"You can sleep in my room with me." She offered, tilting her head towards the stairs. You bit your lip as you weighed your options. Mikasa had been drinking and smoking and you knew that she wasn't stupid enough to drive so you figured that you weren't leaving any more.

"We'll sleep in Sarah's room." Reiner said as he and Bertolt began to retreat up the stairs. Leaving just you and Annie in the basement living room, she raised a brow as she waited for your answer.

"No pressure." She said as she began to walk towards the stairs.

"Yeah I'll sleep with you." you blurted as you jogged to catch up to Annie. She smirked at your wording and you flushed.

"Not like that!" you slapped her arm as she led the way up to the top floor which was a maze of closed doors. She slipped into one of the closed doors, into a large bedroom with a queen sized bed in the center of the room. She emptied her pockets before climbing into bed, pulling the covers back for the both of you. You slid into the open side and sat your phone on the bedside table. Annie sighed with relief as she nestled into the covers, scrolling through her phone as you closed your eyes in an attempt to sleep. After a few minutes Annie put her phone down and rolled over, now her front was facing your back.

"You awake?" She whispered, you rolled over to face her as well.

"Yeah" you answered, resting your head on your arm as you focused on her features as best as you could in the dim lighting.

"You wanna make out?" she asked, your eyes widened in shock. You weren't sure if she was being serious or not.

"For real?" you blinked rapidly as Annie shuffled closer and pushed a lock of hair out of your face.

"I mean yeah." she huffed a shy smile on her face. You pursed your lips in thought, you had never kissed a girl before, and it wasn't like the thought of doing so had never crossed your mind. You shrugged and leaned slightly into her touch.

"Yes or no." She said as she propped herself up on her elbow so she was looking down on you.

"Sure." you agreed, she leaned down as soon as the words left your lips. Her lips were so soft compared to the boys that you'd kissed in the past. Her hand that had been in your hair now traced over your cheek bones as she licked your bottom lip. You opened your mouth for her to slip her tongue in, the taste of weed and pink whitney mingling on her breath. You met her tongue a bit timidly as she licked your bottom teeth. She pulled back after a moment to readjust herself so that she was now laying down on top of you, caging you in her arms as she leaned down to kiss your chin.

"You're so cute." she mused, her lips pressed against the corner of your mouth.

"You're really pretty" you breathed as her lips hovered over your own once more before connecting her lips with yours once more.

[postwick-palace]

What could Hop’s arc in the Pokémon anime look like?

This is a question that I’ve been mulling over in the past couple of months, as I love the Journeys anime so far and I love Hop as a character and I’d love for his character to be given justice in the anime. The anime’s been pretty hit or miss as far as adapting game rivals goes, and the fact that Ash isn’t actually journeying through Galar makes it more difficult to establish Hop as a rival to Ash. But I still think it can be done, and with the Darkest Day arc kicking off in a few days, I think now’s a perfect time to share my thoughts on what a Hop arc done right might look like!

So, I basically plotted out a full seven-episode arc for Hop that would theoretically take place over the course of a season or so. Given how little time Journeys is spending even on its longer arcs, it’s highly unlikely that they’d actually give him this long of an arc, but hey. I’m proposing my ideal Hop arc, not necessarily the most plausible Hop arc. 

The focus of my proposed arc is his struggle with being “strong” that he goes through during the middle-third of the game, after losing to Bede. Hop will be another competitor in the World Coronation Series, but when Ash meets him, he’s in the middle of a slump. Ash eventually helps him get out of this slump, and then Hop gets the opportunity to rematch Bede - the challenger who started him on the slump - and prove to Bede that he’s become stronger. Because Hop feels like he’s weak when he first meets Ash and Goh, he initially hides the fact that he’s Leon’s little brother from them. But eventually, they learn about their relationship and even get to spend time with Hop and Leon together, showing a little bit of a different side to both Trainers.

The basic purpose of each episode is as follows:

Episode 1 - Introduction: Introduces Hop; on the surface he's just another friendly WCS competitor but there are some hints that there's something deeper going on with him, like the fact that he gets really pissed off when Team Rocket calls him weak.

Episode 2 - Context: It's revealed that he's on a losing streak and he's trying to catch stronger Pokémon to break it, but he's not very close with any of his Pokémon because he doesn't think that's necessary to get stronger.

Episode 3 - Breaking Point: Hop’s lost so much that he's fallen back down to Normal Rank, and he's pretty bummed about it. Spending time with Ash & Goh helps him realize that having a strong bond with your Pokémon is important to getting stronger and he decides to add some of his older Pokémon back to his team.

Episode 4 - Lesson Learned: Continuation of the previous episode; Hop battles Ash with a team of Pokémon that he has a strong bond with and he wins. It's also strongly hinted at that he's Leon's little brother.

Episode 5 - Bede: Bede's introduced as the challenger who started Hop on his losing streak, and Ash learns that Hop is Leon's little brother. 

Episode 6 - Hop vs Bede: Continuation of the previous episode; Hop rematches Bede and is able to defeat him this time, demonstrating how he's grown. Also, Goh finally learns that Hop is Leon’s little brother.

Episode 7 - Leon’s Day Off: Hop & Leon spend time together in an informal setting and Ash & Goh get to learn more about their personal life, as well as just seeing how different Leon is when he's not showing off to the public.

And because I got really into it, I wrote up essentially full synopses for each episode, going into detail about how those points I outlined up above would be demonstrated. Since this post is already pretty long as it is, the episode synopses are under the cut!

Note: Because I wrote most of this over a month ago, before we even had any clue what the Eternatus plot would look like in the anime, this proposal deliberately avoids any mention of Chairman Rose, Eternatus, the Darkest Day, or the legendary wolves. It also assumes that Ash’s Riolu and Goh’s Raboot have not evolved by the time the arc begins, but they will have evolved later on.

Episode 1: Introduction

The episode begins with Ash and Goh arriving in Turffield. They’ve heard about the hidden treasure of Turffield and that some new clues to its location have recently been discovered, so they’re gonna go on a treasure hunt to try to find it. They talk to a local who gives them the clues they need to get started, and they set out to get hunting.

Just then, Ash gets an alert on his Rotom Phone that someone’s challenging him to a World Coronation Series match. He accepts and looks around to see who the challenger is, and he discovers it’s an energetic kid with purple hair and yellow-gold eyes who introduces himself as Hop from Postwick. Ash introduces himself, and a WCS battle begins.

The match is Ash’s Riolu versus Hop’s Cramorant. At some point during the battle, there’s a gag where Cramorant uses Surf and it floods the whole area, and then Goh realizes that Ash’s Pikachu is missing – only to discover that it got gulped up by Cramorant. Ash and Goh ask Cramorant to spit Pikachu out, but Hop commands Cramorant to attack instead. Unfortunately for Hop, Cramorant has difficulty maneuvering with a Pikachu in its mouth, so none of the attacks it uses while holding Pikachu hit their target. He wonders if maybe he should just have Cramorant spit out Pikachu, but before he can make a decision Ash finally just has Riolu use Vacuum Wave on Cramorant. This causes it to spit out Pikachu right into Riolu, which deals damage and paralyzes it. Hop is relieved because that was what he was hoping for all along.

However, ever the flexible thinker, Ash is able to turn the battle around and claim victory. His rank rises while Hop’s rank falls, revealing that Hop is actually higher ranked than Ash. Hop thanks Ash for the battle – it taught him that relying on Cramorant’s Gulp Missile ability was clearly a bad strategy. He then says that Cramorant is a bust, but when Ash asks him what he means by that Hop doesn’t elaborate.

Rather, he asks Goh if Goh is a World Coronation Series competitor too. Goh introduces himself and says he isn’t, and Ash explains that they’re here looking for the treasure of Turffield. Hop gets excited because he’s looking for the treasure of Turffield, too. He challenges Ash and Goh to a competition to see who can find the treasure first.

The treasure hunt is a little more elaborate than it is in the games, with a series of clues that each tell the location of the next one. The last clue points them to the middle of a field which happens to be occupied by Wooloo. Ash reaches it first, but he can’t get the Wooloo to move. Goh joins him next and tries using the Pokédex to figure out how to move them, but it doesn’t help either. 

Finally Hop reaches them, and he’s disappointed that he fell behind but perks up when he realizes that they’re stuck because of the Wooloo. He claims to know everything there is to know about Wooloo and spouts off some Wooloo facts. According to Hop, Wooloo are useless in battle, but their wool makes really strong fabric. If you want to get them to trust you, you have to scratch them right behind the ears. They’re very stubborn and aren’t prone to moving, especially in large groups, but they can be startled by loud noises. Once they start rolling, that’s your chance to herd them in the direction you want.

Ash says that he tried startling them with a loud noise already, but after they rolled away they rolled back before he could reach the spot where the treasure was buried. Hop says you need to herd them away from it and says he’ll show them how it’s done. He sends out a Raboot, much to Goh’s surprise, and Raboot runs quietly to the other side of the flock. Hop yells to startle the Wooloo and Raboot fires an Ember up into the air, drawing the Wooloo’s attention so they all move away from Hop and towards Raboot. Then Raboot runs back to Hop’s side, blocking off the Wooloo from moving back to their old spot. Hop thanks the Wooloo for their cooperation and pets one of the Wooloo on the head, getting a wistful look in his eye.

Suddenly, a net flies out and grabs Raboot and all the Wooloo. Hop is bewildered, Ash and Goh rush to his side, and Team Rocket reveal themselves and do the motto. They grab Pikachu as well for good measure and attempt to make their escape. Hop sends out a Toxel and a Silicobra, but neither of them really know ranged attacks so they can’t do much. Team Rocket laugh at their ineffectiveness and say something along the lines of him being a “weak little twerp” which makes Hop really angry, but no matter how many attacks his Pokémon use they can’t reach Team Rocket.  

Goh, who still has all his Pokémon, sends out his own Raboot. Hop’s surprised that Goh also has a Raboot, and Goh’s Raboot uses Ember to break the net that Team Rocket is using to hold the Pokémon. Hop’s Raboot rescues Ash’s Pikachu, and Pikachu and the two Raboot send Team Rocket blasting off. Hop’s and Goh’s Raboot do something cute like fistbump or something to show that they’re buddies now.

Finally, they’re able to dig up the hidden treasure; it might be an Expert Belt like in the games or it could be something more useful. Hop expects Ash to take it since he was the first one to reach the Wooloo, but Ash says Hop should have it since they couldn’t have moved the Wooloo without him. Hop tries to downplay his contribution but Goh agrees with Ash, so Hop gets to take the treasure. He thanks Ash and Goh for their help rescuing Raboot and the Wooloo, and the episode ends with Hop saying goodbye to them and heading off on his own way.

Episode 2: Context

The episode begins with Goh deciding that he wants to catch more Pokémon from other regions. Ash makes some suggestions, but Goh just can’t pick a single region to go to. Professor Cerise suggests that they go to the Wild Area in Galar since it’s full of Pokémon from every region. Goh thinks that’s a great idea, and Ash is eager to join him because that means they might be able to find more wild Dynamax Pokémon. So, they set off for the Galar region once more.

They arrive at a different part of the Wild Area than the one they explored last time so they can hopefully find different Pokémon. Goh finds some Pokémon he hasn’t caught before and catches it. Ash looks around for a pillar of red light indicating the appearance of a Dynamax Pokémon, and he spots one that doesn’t look too far away. They head off to investigate it.

They’re able to see from a long way off that it’s a Dynamax Snorlax, and maybe one of them comments that it looks different from the one they encountered on their first visit. As they get closer they hear the sounds of Pokémon attacks and realize that someone is battling the Snorlax. Eventually, they’re close enough to realize that that someone is Hop. He’s battling Snorlax with Raboot, Boltund, Trevenant, and Heatmor all at the same time, and as they watch, Hop manages to weaken Snorlax enough to try to catch it. He takes out a Poke Ball and uses his Dynamax Band to supersize it before throwing it at Snorlax. It shakes three times before returning to normal size for the click.

As Hop jogs over to pick up his new catch, Ash and Goh call his name and congratulate him. Hop greets them, and Ash says he didn’t know that you could catch Dynamax Pokémon. Hop says that you can as long as you have a Dynamax Band, and wild Dynamax Pokémon are a little stronger than other Pokémon, so he’s been looking around the Wild Area for strong Dynamax Pokémon to add to his team. Goh says that they’re here to catch Pokémon too, so maybe they could catch Pokémon together. Hop points out that they can’t both catch a single Pokémon, but he thinks it’ll be fun to compete to see who can catch the Pokémon first.

A brief little montage follows in which Hop and Goh compete to catch a few Pokémon, each of them catching a couple. Eventually, Hop spots a Dreepy and is really eager to try to catch it. It runs away almost immediately, and Hop has some difficulty chasing after it, but eventually he’s able to catch up to the Dreepy and catch it. By that point, they’re all pretty tired from chasing after Dreepy, and Ash being Ash is absolutely starving. So, Hop suggests they set up camp and offers to treat them to proper Galarian curry.

They all send out their full teams and share the curry Pokémon Camp style. Ash is eager to see Hop’s Cramorant again, but to his surprise Hop doesn’t have it with him. Hop says that he sent it home to Postwick – he keeps all the Pokémon he catches that are no good in battle there. Goh observes that Hop’s Pokémon are all keeping to themselves and don’t seem very close to him, and Hop explains that they’re all recent catches so he hasn’t spent much time with them. Ash says that camping out with them like this will be a great way to bond with them, but Hop says that there’s not much point in bonding with his Pokémon if he can’t come up with good strategies to use with them. He needs to get stronger and becoming friends with his Pokémon isn’t necessary to do that. Hop then changes the subject before Ash or Goh can argue with him.

Naturally, the World Coronation Series eventually comes up in conversation. Ash shows off his ranking and asks Hop what his is. Hop doesn’t want to look at his rank though, and when pressed he explains that he was almost to Hyper Rank when he lost to another challenger and has been on a losing streak ever since. Ash encourages him not to give up and to keep training to become stronger, and Hop agrees, declaring that he’s going to become the next World Monarch.

Hop’s new Dreepy floats up to him, and Hop pets it and says Dreepy’s an integral part of his plan to get to World Monarch status. Goh is surprised because it’s such a timid-looking Pokémon, and Hop claims that it may be weak now but its final evolution, Dragapult, is one of the strongest Dragon-type Pokémon. He adds that the World Monarch himself has a Dragapult on his team that he only uses against his toughest opponents, so that’s why wanted to catch a Dreepy for himself.

However, because they can’t have nice things, Team Rocket shows up to steal all their Pokémon – a task made much easier by the fact that they’re all just sitting out in the open for them to steal. They nab all the Pokémon except Hop’s brand-new Snorlax because it’s too heavy to be sucked up by Team Rocket’s machine. Hop and Snorlax destroy Team Rocket’s machine and free all the Pokémon; Team Rocket summons the vending machine to get some Pokémon to battle with. Snorlax is able to defeat both Pokémon singlehandedly, much to Hop’s delight. He declares that Snorlax is also going to be an integral part of his championship team.

With everything packed up and put away, Hop and Ash and Goh prepare to once again go their separate ways. Hop says that with the new team members he’s acquired today, he feels like he’s finally gonna be able to break his losing streak and start climbing back up the ranks, and he promises to have a rematch with Ash the next time they meet. Ash wishes him luck, and Hop runs off.

Back at Cerise Park, Goh sets out food for his Pokémon and observes how all the new Pokémon he caught today are fitting in well. He thinks about how distant Hop’s Pokémon seemed by comparison and Hop’s words about it not being necessary to bond with his Pokémon. Ash walks up and asks Goh what he’s thinking about, and Goh says that Hop is a really strange Trainer. Ash cheerfully replies that they’re all a little strange, and Hop clearly loves Pokémon, so he doesn’t see anything wrong about him. The episode ends with Goh thinking that if Hop really loves Pokémon, he sure has a strange way of showing it.

Episode 3: Breaking Point

The episode opens with Hop walking alone through Circhester, shuffling his feet and staring at his WCS ranking on his phone – he’s back down to Normal Rank. He switches to another window on his phone that starts playing an interview with Leon. In the interview, Leon talks about his dream for the Trainers of Galar to become stronger. When the interviewer asks him about the World Coronation Series, Leon namedrops Ash as a competitor who he’s got his eye on. Hop shoves his phone back into his pocket and walks away dejectedly.

Meanwhile, Ash and Goh are visiting Circhester today because they’re investigating a wild Snom outbreak around there. They’ve barely just arrived when Ash is jumped by a bunch of WCS competitors who saw Leon’s interview and want to battle Ash because the Champion singled him out. At first, Ash is eager to fight, but he gets a bit overwhelmed by the number of people who want to battle him.

Suddenly, Hop appears and in a pretty authoritative voice tells everybody to leave Ash alone because they’re being rude and Ash isn’t here to battle. They disperse, and Ash and Goh thank Hop for the assist – they’re not used to dealing with big groups of people like that. Ash wonders why they got mobbed in the first place, and Hop’s surprised that they haven’t seen the interview yet. He describes it as an interview where “Mr. World Monarch himself said that you’re a promising Trainer that he’s got high hopes for in the World Coronation Series, Ash,” but his annoyance goes unnoticed by Ash and Goh. Hop recommends that they stay out of the city for a while until people calm down, and that works for Ash and Goh because the wild Snom they’re looking for don’t live in the city, anyways. Hop asks to go with them because Snom are really cute and who wouldn’t want to go see Snom, y’know?

While they’re looking for the Snom, however, Hop is notably more subdued than usual. When Ash asks him how the WCS is going for him, Hop avoids the question. They start to get really cold, so Hop sends out his Raboot and Goh his Cinderace to keep themselves warm. Raboot and Cinderace are buds as usual, and Hop says – kinda bitterly – that he thinks Raboot likes Cinderace more than him. Goh says that his Cinderace was the same way when it was a Raboot and that Raboot just shows how it cares in a different way.

A little later, they finally find the Snom and play around with them for a bit with their Pokémon, but the playing gets a little too rough and they accidentally cause an avalanche. Hop ends up trapped inside a cave with Raboot while Ash and Goh and their Pokémon are still outside. Hop calls out to Ash and Goh, but they can’t hear him. Next, he sends out all the rest of his Pokémon: Snorlax, Pincurchin, Drakloak, and Xatu. He tries to get them to destroy the rocks and ice from the inside, but they can’t. With the cave seemingly coming to a dead end a short way in and no way out, Hop decides that his only option is to return everyone except Raboot, for warmth, and hunker down to await rescue.

Meanwhile, Ash and Goh are trying to get to Hop from the outside. They’ve already realized that he can’t hear them, and Goh finally determines that they can’t move or destroy the avalanche without making things worse. They decide to go back to the city to get professional help – one of those Macro Cosmos subsidiaries probably specializes in stuff like this.

Back in the cave, Hop’s starting to shiver from the cold even with Raboot there; Raboot is visibly distressed despite Hop reassuring him that he’s fine. Raboot starts looking for another way out of the cave and eventually finds one by melting some ice. Hop and Raboot explore this other path, but it just leads to another exit blocked by the avalanche. Raboot doesn’t give up though and tries to destroy the ice and snow from the inside again. Through the power of determination and friendship, Raboot evolves into Cinderace and is able to melt everything with Pyro Ball.

Hop is amazed and overjoyed that Cinderace evolved, but he doesn’t understand why until Cinderace gives him a big hug to warm him up. He realizes that, like Goh said, it cares about him a lot and this is how it’s showing that. Flashing back to a battle of Ash’s and a battle of Leon’s, Hop realizes that the thing he was missing – the reason why all his strategies and picking the right Pokémon never worked – is that having a close bond with your Pokémon does help make them stronger, and maybe that’s even more important than using the “strongest” Pokémon.

Hop finds Ash and Goh to show them that he’s okay and make sure all the Snom are okay, but he doesn’t stick around for long – he sprints back to Circhester and calls home. His mom starts to ask him if he’s seen Leon’s interview, but Hop interrupts her to ask her to send over a couple of his Pokémon. After she’s sent them over, she says they missed him and Hop says, a little tearfully, that he missed them too.

Ash and Goh are back in Circhester near the Hero’s Bath, talking about their encounter with the Snom. Hop runs up to them with Cinderace, Corvisquire, and Wooloo all out of their Poké Balls and running alongside him. He introduces Ash and Goh to Wooloo, the first Pokémon he ever owned, and Corvisquire, the first Pokémon he ever caught. The episode ends with Hop challenging Ash to an official World Coronation Series match.

Episode 4: Lesson Learned

Hop and Ash battle, with Hop using Wooloo, Corvisquire, and Cinderace. Hop is noticeably more confident in making decisions and issuing commands to his Pokémon than he was in his first battle with Ash. It’s a close match, but Hop wins because he’s in sync with his Pokémon and believes in himself. [Wooloo or Corvisquire could evolve during the battle, but Cinderace just evolved last episode and I don’t want to overdo it on the evolutions.]

When Hop’s rankings update, the announcer states that the victory brings him back up to Super Rank. Ash and Goh are surprised because they didn’t even know that Hop had fallen down back to Normal Rank. Hop explains that he was feeling so bummed last episode because of that, and he was actually looking for Ash because he hoped spending time with Ash would help him figure out what he needed to do to get out of his slump – “you were endorsed by the World Monarch, after all”.

Hop is filled with new determination to become the next World Monarch and Ash is pumped to have a renewed rivalry with Hop. He promises to defeat Hop the next time they battle, but Hop says Ash won’t stand a chance because Hop’s about to start a new winning streak and reach Hyper Rank in no time. Hop says goodbye and races off to go challenge another WCS competitor.

Goh, meanwhile, is curious about the interview and calls Ash over so they can watch it together on Goh’s Rotom Phone. They watch the part that Hop saw, where Leon talks about Ash, but they don’t stop watching immediately like Hop did. And as it turns out, the next thing the interviewer asks is which Trainer from Galar Leon thinks has the most potential in the World Coronation Series. Leon’s answer is his little brother: “My little bro may only be Normal Rank now, but I’m certain that he’ll soon become a force to be reckoned with!”

Ash and Goh are surprised to learn that Leon has a little brother, and Ash wonders who the little brother is. Goh says that if he’s anything like his brother, then Ash will definitely meet Leon’s little brother in battle someday. The episode ends with them returning to Kanto to tell Professor Cerise about everything that happened in their visit to Galar.

Episode 5: Bede

Ash and Goh are in Galar again. This time, Ash is there for a battle competition in Hammerlocke, while Goh plans to explore the nearby Wild Area to catch more Pokémon. The Hammerlocke battle competition, which is simply named the Hammerlocke Challenger’s Cup, isn’t affiliated with the World Coronation Series, but Ash thinks it’ll be good practice for the competition. Plus, it’ll be a lot of fun because it’s held in Hammerlocke Stadium so the competitors can use Dynamax in the matches.

After Ash has signed up for the competition he runs into Hop, who’s chipper and enthusiastic as usual. Hop also signs up for the competition and asks where Goh is; Ash explains that he’s out catching Pokémon, but he’ll be back to watch the battles.

Just then, someone offscreen is like, “Well, well, well. If it isn’t the Champion’s pathetic little brother.” Cut to Bede, who’s looking smug and arrogant as always. Hop tells him to shut up and Bede asks Hop if he really can’t handle hearing the truth. Hop says that Bede’s too full of himself to notice the truth and Bede retorts that he’s perfectly capable of telling a strong Trainer from a weak one and Hop definitely falls in the latter category.

Ash finally interrupts to ask if Bede meant Champion as in Leon, and Bede condescendingly asks what other Champion he would be referring to. Hop points out that every region has a Champion, but there’s only one World Monarch – and that’s his big bro. Ash is shocked to learn that Hop is Leon’s little brother, but Hop’s surprised that Ash didn’t know or figure that out already. Bede takes the opportunity to get in another jab at Hop, saying that Ash didn’t realize he was the Champion’s brother because he’s so weak. Hop snaps at Bede that he’s been training and gotten stronger since last time, and he’ll prove it by beating Bede in the Challenger’s Cup. Bede says that he doesn’t stand a chance, and Ash gets fired up and says that he’s gonna win the whole thing.

Bede finally asks who Ash is and he introduces himself; Bede recognizes the name and tells him that he’s not a hotshot just because the Champion has an eye on him. Hop mutters “World Monarch” under his breath as Bede strolls away to go register for the tournament, leaving Ash to wonder what the heck Bede’s problem is.

Ash then asks Hop how he knows Bede and why he never told them that he’s Leon’s little brother. Hop explains that Bede’s the WCS competitor who he lost to that set him on his losing streak, and Bede totally flattened him in their battle. After Hop lost, Bede started saying stuff like what they just heard, about Hop being weak and dragging Leon’s good name through the mud and such. Hop didn’t want to tell people that he’s Leon’s little brother because he was afraid they’d see how weak he was and think worse of Leon for it.

Ash assures him that none of that’s true and Hop says he’s figured that out, so now he just has to prove it to Bede. Ash agrees, but also says that he’s not gonna go easy on Hop or Bede if he battles against them in the cup.

A montage of scenes follows: Goh catches some Pokémon; Ash, Hop, and Bede battle in the tournament. They all dominate in their matches and make it to the semifinals. Hop beats his rando opponent and makes it to the finals, while Ash and Bede battle each other in the semifinal round. Goh comes back in time to watch their battle; he and Hop spectate together, so Hop is able to fill Goh in on who Bede is.

To their dismay, Ash loses to Bede – probably because he was using a Pokémon he had only caught recently or one with a type disadvantage or something. Bede gloats, Hop gets even more determined to defeat him, and the episode ends with Hop preparing to battle Bede.

Episode 6: Hop vs Bede

It’s time for the final match of the Hammerlocke Challenger’s Cup. Bede starts with an all-out offensive strategy using Reuniclus but Hop’s Snorlax is able to take hits really well, so Hop seems to have the advantage at first. Then Reuniclus confuses Snorlax and it starts hurting itself, allowing Bede to defeat it.

Hop sends out Dubwool next and Reuniclus confuses Dubwool as well, but Dubwool is able to break through the confusion thanks to his bond with Hop. Together they’re able to defeat Reuniclus, and then Bede sends out his Hatterene. He Gigantamaxes Hatterene right away, forcing Hop to Dynamax Dubwool as well. Dubwool is then able to defeat Hatterene and win the tournament for Hop.

The prize for winning the Challenger’s Cup is a candy basket filled with Exp. Candies and Dynamax Candies, leading to a gag where Ash tries to eat one of the candies before Hop tells him that they’re meant for Pokémon. The prize also comes with a special bonus – the Leon ball used in Pokémon Camp. Hop finds this absolutely hilarious and decides to call his brother to show it to him.

He makes the call with Ash and Goh, but Goh doesn’t know who Hop’s brother is yet, so he’s shocked when Leon answers. Leon is surprised that Ash and Goh have met Hop – he hadn’t seen Ash participating in the tournament because he’d been too busy to watch it – but he’s proud to hear that his little brother won and laughs at the merch prize. He makes a joke about autographing the ball for Hop, but then he has to go take care of some Champion thing – he promises to call Hop again soon before hanging up.

Bede makes some snide comment behind them about the Champion not making time for his little brother, and Hop gets mad at Bede for eavesdropping. Bede says he shouldn’t make phone calls in a public place if he doesn’t want people to overhear. Hop tries to get Bede to admit that he’s not weak, but Bede only acknowledges that he’s less weak than before and asserts that he’s still a better Trainer than Hop – Hop’s victory was just a fluke. He adds that since he was able to beat Ash, the Champion’s eye will be on him now. Then he strides away with smug confidence. Hop tells Ash not to listen to anything Bede says, and the episode ends with Ash declaring that he’ll beat Bede next time.

Episode 7: Leon’s Day Off

The episode opens with Leon doing boring Champion stuff: meetings, interviews, paperwork, and the like. He makes a comment to Oleana about this being his least favorite part of the job, but she’s not terribly sympathetic and tells him to get to his next meeting. When he gets lost on the way to the meeting, he declares that he needs a break from all this. Then he asks a nearby office worker if they can escort him to the meeting room he’s supposed to be in.

Later, Ash, Goh, and Hop are doing some research task in the Wild Area; Ash and Goh were asked to do it by Professor Cerise and they happened to run into Hop, who volunteered to join them. They’re just finishing up with it when Hop gets a phone call from his mum, who says she misses him and wants him to come home for dinner. Hop awkwardly tells her that he’s with friends right now, and she invites them to come for dinner, too – she’s barbecuing and there will be plenty of food for everyone. Goh says that he wouldn’t mind seeing Hop’s hometown, while Ash was hooked the moment she brought up food. So, the three of them finish what they were doing and head to Postwick together.

Hop points out some landmarks along the way like the Wooloo fields and the Slumbering Weald. They meet Hop’s mum out front of their house and she makes some remark along the lines of being happy for Ash and Goh being friends with Hop because Hop was never as good at making friends as his brother, and Hop gets all embarrassed about it. When Mum finds out that Ash and Goh have traveled here all the way from Kanto, she insists that they spend the night and tells them to go inside and pick out places to sleep.

They head into the living room and Hop invites them to look around, make themselves at home. Ash and Goh take him up on the offer and start looking around at everything. Hop says that if they don’t want to sleep on the floor, then someone will have to sleep on the couch and the other can get the guest room. Then he remembers that someone could use Leon’s room, so he says that they won’t need the couch after all.

However, someone else says that room’s already claimed. They whirl around to see Leon and Charizard standing in the entrance to the living room. He’s wearing totally casual clothes – no cap, no cape, no uniform. Hop greets him with an enthusiastic hug, and Leon says it’s good to see him again. He notes that he wasn’t expecting to see Ash and Goh here, but it’s good to see them again, too.

Ash explains that Mum invited them, and Hop says that they weren’t expecting to see Leon – “Why didn’t Mum say anything?” Leon explains that he took the day off today and decided to come home, and he asked Mum to invite Hop here so that he could surprise his little bro. Hop says that he was definitely surprised. Then he jokes that he’s more surprised that Leon made it home by himself without getting lost, and Leon ruffles his hair and says that Charizard guided him.

Goh’s attention has returned to all the trophies on the wall, and he asks whose they are. Hop sheepishly replies that they’re all Leon’s – he hasn’t won any trophies. Leon asks him what happened to the trophy Hop won at the Hammerlocke Challenger’s Cup and Hop says it’s up in his bedroom; Leon comments that all the trophies he puts up in his bedroom mysteriously migrate to the living room by the time he next comes home. It’s starting to feel a little cramped in the living room, so they all agree to head out to the backyard.

In the backyard, there’s a battlefield and beyond that a pasture where all the Pokémon Hop and Leon have caught are roaming. When Ash sees the battlefield, he gets excited and tells Leon he wants to battle again; Leon’s seriously considering it, but then Mum interrupts to chide him for thinking about battling when he’s supposed to be on vacation. Leon protests that battling is fun, but Mum is insistent that there will be no battling while Leon’s here. She sets the “no-battles” rule for the other boys as well, so Leon won’t get tempted. Ash makes a comment that it feels like something his own mom would do.

They go out to the pasture to play with the Pokémon while Mum cooks. Ash and Goh get to meet Leon’s other Pokémon; Ash and Leon bond over the fact that they both have a Charizard. All of the Pokémon that Hop uses in his in-game battle teams are here, as well as Drakloak, Xatu, and any other miscellaneous Pokémon he might have caught in earlier episodes. Ash is particularly excited to see Cramorant again after not getting to see it back in Episode 2. It’s revealed that Hop’s Cinderace and Dynamax Band were both gifts from Leon, as well as the fact that Leon had told Hop long before he met Ash about the kid from Pallet Town with a Gigantamax Pikachu. Leon and Hop mess with each other a couple of times, and Leon generally demonstrates that he has about as much maturity as the younger three. Overall, everyone’s just having a good time.

When Mum’s finished barbecuing, everyone returns to the backyard for dinner; after dinner, they all start getting ready for bed. Ash opts to sleep on the floor of the guest room while Goh takes the guest bed. As they go to bed, Goh asks Ash if he noticed that the Champion acts differently when he’s at home, but Ash has no idea what he’s talking about. Goh’s not really sure how to put it into words – the best he can describe it is that Leon seems friendlier, but Ash doesn’t get it because Leon’s always friendly. Goh sighs and tells him to forget about it.

Over in Hop’s room, Hop and Dubwool are facing the dilemma that Dubwool is too big to fit in its bed now that it’s evolved. Leon shows up in the doorway and says that Dubwool should just sleep with Hop – half the time when it was a Wooloo, it ended up in Hop’s bed by morning anyways. Hop sticks his tongue out at Leon and pulls out an extra blanket and pillow for Dubwool to sleep on. He arranges it to be comfortable for Dubwool and gets back up, only to realize that Leon is still standing in his room.

Hop asks Lee what’s up and Leon explains that he has to leave early tomorrow morning to make it back to Wyndon in time, meaning he’ll be gone before Hop wakes up. So, he thought he would say goodbye to Hop before they go to bed so he actually gets the chance to do that. Hop is disappointed that Leon has to leave again so soon and he complains about Leon being so busy, but Leon says that that’s just a consequence of being Champion and World Monarch. Hop says that he’ll just have to become the new World Monarch to take some of that burden off Leon’s shoulders, and while he says it in a lighthearted way, Leon responds very seriously that he doesn’t want Hop to be burdening himself with anything and certainly not to try to make things easier on Leon. He’s an adult, he can handle it; Hop should enjoy being a kid while he still can.

Realizing that he just killed the mood, Leon teasingly asks Hop if he’d like Leon to tuck him in and read him a bedtime story. Hop hits Leon with a pillow in response. Leon grabs the pillow from Hop and hits him back, knocking him onto his bed. The two of them share a laugh. Leon says goodbye and goodnight to Hop and gives him a hug before he leaves the room, turning off the lights as he goes.

The episode ends with a shot of the trophy collection in the living room in the morning, to which Hop’s Hammerlocke Challenger’s Cup trophy has been added.

[kar3npage]

The 5 times one of the Foxes saw Andrew smile, and the one time all of them saw him smile

Because I love the 5+1 format, and because I just want Andrew and Neil to be happy. (Also I’ve decided that of course they would get married, because that just makes sense).

My apologies for any mistakes, this was written all in one go this afternoon and I was too excited to wait before posting. I’m also trying to sign up for ao3 so I can post it there, I’ll update when that happens:) 

Thanks for reading!

1.

The mood in the room was unusually somber before the Palmetto Foxes third game of the season. This was especially unusual because they weren’t expecting any sort of backlash, and the team that they were playing against was pretty tame. No one had any particular fear against the Terrapins and the two teams were mostly friendly.

Allison knew that the dark vibe was from the silence that came from the corner that Neil and Andrew sat in. 

Besides the cat fights with the new Foxes, everyone on the team has been working well together this year. The upperclassmen and Andrews group had an unbreakable bond from the events of last year, although they all pretended that they couldn’t care less about the other group (except for Matt. He couldn’t pretend to not care if his life depended on it, the sweet puppy).

Neil’s silence was accompanied by a far away gaze and sickly pale skin. Allison had already pulled him aside in the dorms to lecture him about playing while sick, but he insisted that he was fine. Allison had let him go, assuming that Andrew would take care of him. Now she was wondering if she should have pushed harder, since he looked absolutely determined to play today.

Renee’s soft nudge distracted Allison from their almost dead looking striker and she gave her an understanding look.

“I’m sure he’ll take care of himself,” Renee says quietly. Allison squeezes her hand, grateful to have her to lean against. She still wasn’t sure how Renee managed to understand exactly what everyone was thinking with such accuracy. 

“Okay people, we’ve gotten a strong start, let’s keep that up,” Wymack says gruffly, sending a concerned look toward Neil. “If any of you aren’t feeling up to it, tell me now so we can change the starting line-up.”

Everyone looks at Neil, who stares straight ahead like he hadn’t heard Coach. He turns his head to avoid Andrews dark look, then gets up stiffly.

“We done Coach? Dan and I would like to start drills soon,” Neil says. Allison snorts at his poor attempt at changing the subject, but Wymack just lets him go with a nod. 

As they make their way over to the court Allison sees Wymach snag Andrew. “You’ll keep an eye on him?” she hears him say. She doesn’t hear Andrew answer, but she knows that he will.

They’re up, 4-2, by the time the first half is done. Allison had kept her eye on Neil every time she was off, but he had looked fine while playing. Abby wasn’t able to check in with him during half-time though, too busy dealing with Jack’s minor injury that he had gotten from getting checked into the plexiglass. Allison had to admit that she had very little sympathy for the kid.

Everything was going fine until almost the end of the next half. Allison hadn’t been paying much attention to the health of her team while she was playing, focused more on actually playing, but no one could ignore the loud slam that came from near the other teams goal.

Allison instinctively looked toward the noise to find out who was down.

The game was still going, but slumped against the wall across from her was Neil. Allison didn’t hesitate to run over to him, abandoning the goal for Andrew to look after.

One of the Terrapins backliners stood beside him, helmet off and looking sweetly concerned. He starts babbling as soon as Allison makes it over to them.

“I swear, it wasn’t that hard of a hit,” he says frantically. Allison understood the panic-it had less to do with Neil and more to do with what might happen to the poor kid when Andrew got here.

Allison ignores him and tugs Neils helmet off to reveal his deathly pale face. His eyes start fluttering as he wakes up, and he’s able to put his hand up to stop the game. Allison hears a smack behind her, but she ignores it.

“Neil, where are you hurt?” she says. It comes out irritated, but she knows that Neil will get that it’s out of concern.

“‘M fine,” he mumbles, trying and failing to get up. Allison shoves him down and looks around for Abby.

The poor kid who hit Neil is being held against the plexiglass by a furious Andrew, Nicky and Aaron standing beside him and trying to talk him out of any blatant violence. Abby has fighting her way through the players with a mixture of anger and worry.

“Drew?” Neil says, eyes closed and head leaning against the wall. There’s another smack and a few seconds later Andrew shoves Allison out of the way to sit beside him. Abby shows up a few minutes later, but Allison stays where she is to use her body to give them a bit of a barrier.

“You idiot,” Andrew growls. “Next time, get up after you get hit.”

Neil gives him a feverish smile. “I’m sorry I worried you. I’m f-, I’m okay.” He just barely catches himself and Andrew shakes his head in irritation. Allison grins, a little relieved that he’s feeling good enough to catch his words. 

“Neil, do you know how high your fever is right now? You could kill yourself, playing like this. What were you thinking?” Abby lectures while she smooths back his hair. “Why didn’t you tell him to stop, Andrew?”

Neil grabs Andrews hand awkwardly, still wearing his armoured gloves. Andrew snorts. “You think I’m his keeper? He does what he wants. Junkie.”

Neil laughs weakly at that and lets Abby and Andrew support his weight as they get him up. Once he’s able to stand on his own two feet, the crowd lets out a supportive roar and Allison turns around to see Neil and Andrew. Andrew gives him a small, relieved smile, something that Allison never thought that she would see. No one had seen Andrew smile a single time since he’s been off of his meds. This smile is completely different. It softens his jaw, and even though it’s so small that it’s barely noticeable, Neil beams when he catches it.

She hears Andrew mutter a number under his breathe and they slowly walk off the court.

Allison could settle a few bets from this, but a part of her knows that she saw a private moment. Renee walks over to take over the goal and gives her a pleased smile, almost like she knew how selfless Allison was being by not telling anyone about this.

She grins back and relaxes, knowing that Neil is in good hands.

2.

Matt could cry, he was so happy to see his best friend after so many months apart. Dan squeezes his arm and lets him go give Neil a bear hug. All of them have graduated now, and Christmas is one of the only times that the original Foxes get to see each other, and even then it’s sometimes difficult to get everyone together. 

This year everyone is gathered at Abby’s, and it feels just like old times. Aaron and Katelyn are already helping Abby and Wymack in the kitchen and Nicky is regaling everyone with stories from Germany, Erik adding details every once in a while but mostly just looking at his fiance with heart eyes.

Allison and Renee are coming later, and Kevin is watching an Exy match on TV. His mouth is open slightly as he watches the rematch like he’s never seen it before. Andrew sits beside him with a bored expression while he scrolls through his phone, but Matt notices him glance up at them a few times while he chats with Neil.

Neil had mentioned how difficult it’s been to be playing on different teams than Andrew, and Matt can see how happy he is now that everyone’s together. He thinks that Neil’s been getting lonely.

The kitchen is a hive of activity and they all talk over each other as they catch up on the past year. Dan and Matt show everyone their engagement rings, way too excited to wait to tell everyone like they had planned. Matt swears that Wymack tears up a bit when Dan asks him to walk her down the aisle, and Abby just about breaks his back with how tightly she hugs him.

Andrew even offers them a nod and agrees to fly out with Neil for the wedding, even though they aren’t sure when it will be yet.

There’s more exclaiming when Allison and Renee get there and Allison shouts at them for not waiting to announce it until they got there. They look tired but happy after travelling all day, and Renee gives him one of her pleased, proud smiles. At some point Betsy had gotten there as well, and Matt sees her having a long conversation with Andrew in the living room.

Matt can’t believe how far they’ve all come. After such ruined childhoods and terrible experiences in University, they all managed to build themselves lives. Build themselves a family.

Matt feels so incredibly fond of them all that it feels like his chest is going to split, like it can’t hold all of the affection for these people.

Dinner is as hectic and happy as the rest of the day was, and they sit at the dining table for hours talking. Kevin and Neil have an in-depth conversation about their teams and their performance so far this season, which Andrew mocks and then turns to talk with Renee. 

Matt and Dan are talking over each other with the ease of people who are perfectly comfortable with each other as they tell Abby about their honeymoon plans, and Allison gives them tips. Or maybe they’re more like orders, but it’s all good ideas so they don’t mind.

It isn’t until after they’ve cleaned up the dishes and most of the Foxes have settled in the living room to rewatch some of their old matches that Matt gets the chance to talk with Neil on his own.

They skype as regularly as possible, and Neil calls him almost every week to get updates, but Matt has still missed him. 

When he notices Neil sneak out to the porch, he follows behind. 

“It’s hard to believe, but Kevin’s obsession hasn’t waned in the slightest,” Matt jokes as he plops down on the stairs beside Neil. The striker throws his head back to laugh and Matt revels in the warmth that comes with being able to make this once shy kid laugh his genuine, thrilled laugh.

“Andrew would say the same about me,” he says, eyes crinkling in amusement.

“He’s right. You’ve been playing well though, that goal in the last game where you hit it from half court was insane! I have the video saved to my phone so I can show people and tell them I know you,” Matt gushes, glad to finally be able to tell him how proud he is of him. Neil has a pleased blush on his cheeks.

“You still watch my games?”

“Of course I do! Dan and I’ve turned it into date night. We order pizza.”

Neils laughs again, more pleased than he would admit that Dan watches them too.

“How have you been Neil? For real?”

Neil fidgets with the bottom of his shirt. “It’s tough,” he finally admits. “Without Andrew. Our schedules are so different. There’s a chance that next year I might be able to switch though.”

Matt hums and bumps his shoulder against Neils. “I’m glad. I don’t want you to be lonely.”

Neil listens to Matt talk about Dan and what they’ve been up to for a while, and they sit in comfortable silence until Matt finally laughs. Neil gives him a questioning look.

“I have a ridiculous question for you that’s been plaguing me for years now.” Neil raises an eyebrow and waits for Matt to keep talking.

“So if you think that Andrews attractive, does that mean you think that about Aaron too?” Matts eyes are filled with mirth. He knows all too well the strained relationship that Neil and Aaron had through University, and also that they have just reached the point where they can talk about things other than Exy without killing each other.

Neil snorts, but then thinks through an answer much more seriously than Matt expected. “I’m not really attracted to people,” he says, then shakes his head and backtracks. “That’s not what I meant. Obviously I’m attracted to Andrew, and I think he’s beautiful, but it’s more because I know him so well and I trust him so much.”

Neil is blushing slightly at the admission and he looks to Matt to see if he understands what he means. 

“It’s hard to explain. I never was attracted to anyone before Andrew. I can see objectively that some people are nice looking, but it doesn’t really affect me. But I really care about Andrew, and I can talk to him for hours and I know what foods he likes and he knows what I like. And the longer we know each other and the more I know him, the more beautiful he gets. Does that make sense?”

Neil frowns and waits for Matt. Matt can’t help the soft smile that curves his lips. “Neil Josten, you are the sweetest person on this goddamned team, you know that? Yeah, that makes sense.”

Matt hears the door close behind them and turns around to see Andrew standing there with his usual blank expression, but his red ears indicate that he heard what Neil said. Neil beams up at him and Matt gets up to leave. He turns around to look at the two before he goes inside and is shocked to see the softest smile gracing Andrews lips before his sits down beside Neil. 

It’s no secret that most of the Foxes were worried about Neil choosing Andrew, of all people, to trust. But the longer they’re together, the more Matt realizes that Andrew is just as soft for Neil as Neil is for Andrew, he’s just better at hiding it.

Matt’s still grinning about that soft look hours later when him and Dan are getting ready to leave. 

“You two are good for each other,” he says quietly to Neil before they leave, and Neil rewards him with a thrilled smile and a nod.

3.

Playing professionally makes a lot of things very difficult to hide. Something about the sport has made it a fan favourite, and the interesting lives of the players mean that the general public is completely fascinated with hearing about their lives outside of the sport.

As much as Kevin hates how intrusive everyone can be because of this, he has to admit that it makes it much easier for him to keep his eye on the old Foxes. Articles about Neil and Andrew are ridiculously easy to find online, and Kevin has made a habit of checking on them regularly.

He’s doing just that when he finds an article about Andrew getting noticed after his flight to New York. The journalist muses about why on earth he would be going to New York, a place that holds none of his family, only his long time rival, Striker Neil Josten. 

What makes his trip even more interesting is the fact that the same long term rival picked him up from the airport.

What made Kevin look at this article with such interest was the picture that was attached to it. It’s obviously been taken with a good camera, since the photo is crisp and clear. In the center stands Neil and Andrew, standing only an inch apart. The crowd behind them is blurred out, making the photo look like a scene from a rom-com. Neil is beaming at Andrew and tugging his bag from him, eyes sparkling. What caught Kevins attention is the small quirk in Andrews lips, something that would be too small to call a smile on anyone but Andrew.

Kevin still has a protective streak for the two boys and wants them to have as easy of a life as possible, but he can’t deny the fact that they seem happier than they ever have been.

Kevin can’t remember the last time that he saw Andrew have a real smile that wasn’t violent or caused by medication.

He re-reads the article, then looks back up at the picture. Is this journalist stupid? He thinks. The whole article is about how Andrew must have come for something else, how their thrilled expressions must have been because they were mid-roast. Kevin can’t believe the journalist didn’t immediately realize that they were dating. He sighs and moves on to the next article, this one about Jeremy, but his mind keeps going back to the content smile on Andrews face. They’re going to be outed if they don’t stop making each other look so happy, he thinks. But he also thinks that maybe that’s not as bad of a thing as he’s made it out to be.

A few minutes later he goes back to the article and sends the link to Nicky without any explanation. He thought that might make Nicky happy.

4.

“I’m glad we still have the skype dates. I know Andrew and Neil are so busy right now,” Erik says, playing absentmindedly with Nicky’s hair as they wait for the boys to answer their skype call.

They’ve been having these weekly conversations with first Neil and Andrew, and later Aaron and Katelyn as well, for months. They had originally just called each other, but Nicky missed seeing his cousins more than he could say. He loves Germany, and he loves every single moment with Erik, but it’s still tough to have such a long distance relationship with his family. Especially after everything they’ve all gone through together.

It was harder to keep in contact with the other Foxes, but they all did their best to meet up for Christmas (everyone even came to Germany a few years ago. Nicky cried with joy, even though Andrew insisted it was just because everyone wanted to see Europe), plus he often got texts from Matt and Renee. And every once in a while he gets an Exy article from Kevin.

Nicky hummed in agreement and watched the screen with anticipation. They had missed last weeks skype call because Neil and Andrew were finally moving in together after signing for the same team in the fall. Nicky has been vibrating with excitement to see the apartment, and Erik has been waiting to ask for tips about taking care of a cat from Neil.

When the screen finally pops up, it’s obvious that Neil and Andrew haven’t noticed it yet. Neil is laughing about something, one of his rare laughs that is unforced and filled with true joy. And Andrew, Nicky’s beloved, terrifying cousin is beaming. It’s the biggest smile he’s seen on his cousins face for years, and it’s the first time he’s ever seen him smile with such true happiness. Nicky could cry, and when he turns to look at Erik, he can see that his eyes are shining as well.

Erik clears his throat and Andrew schools his expression as he turns to the screen. Neil is still looking at Andrew with pure love, but he waves to the screen.

A flash of silver derails Nicky’s thoughts even further.

“Neil. Neil, what is on your hand?” He asks, delight evident in his voice. Neil smirks and holds up the other hand, which has nothing on it. Andrews lips quirk.

“No, your other hand. Is that a ring?!” Nicky is almost bouncing, waiting for Neil to stop teasing him and show him the simple silver band that sits, unassuming, on his finger. 

Neil shows him his other hand without hesitating, and Nicky realizes that they’ve already talked about telling him. It makes his heart grow bigger than it already is.

“Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh, are you guys engaged? When did that happen?” Nicky practically shrieks while Erik gives them a heartfelt congratulations.

Andrew’s expression is as bored as ever, but Nicky doesn’t miss the fact that they’re holding hands under the laptop. 

“A few days ago,” Andrew says nonchalantly. The tips of his ears are pink though, and Neil can’t hold in the grin.

“Hows Germany?” Neil asks politely, and Erik laughs.

“There’s no way Nicky will let you change the subject that quickly,” Erik says, and Nicky nods effusively. 

“How did this happen? I need the entire story Andrew! Or Neil, whoever will actually give me the details. Who asked who? Did you cry?”

Neil laughs again. “We asked each other. We had a long conversation about it.”

Nicky wishes that he could tease them for that and call them boring, but he knows what a huge deal this is for his cousin. He’s thrilled that Neil understands that as well. 

“You guys are so good for each other,” Nicky says, sniffling a bit. Andrew rolls his eyes.

“I’m hanging up now,” he says.

“No! I need to hear what you’re doing for your wedding! Maybe I can help you plan it. And Allison can too! It’s gonna be so amazing.”

Neil laughs as Andrew reaches his hand out in slow motion to close the computer. Neil’s voice reaches them as the camera goes down.

“We’re going to have a party, we’ll figure out a time you guys can come out, okay?”

Erik confirms that because Nicky is too emotional over the fact that they’re planning the time around him. 

He leans his head against Erik’s shoulder and Erik smiles. 

“I guess we’ll have to wait until next week for an apartment tour,” he says, and Nicky can hear the smile in his words.

“I never thought that he would be happy. Isn’t that sad? I wasn’t even sure if Andrew would be talking to me for this long. Then this scrappy puppy comes along and puts us all in danger and makes us all love him, and here we are. No one ever would have guessed this in a million years.” Nicky says thoughtfully.

That night, Nicky falls asleep with the picture of a truly happy Andrew in his mind. 

5.

As much as he tries to convince his old Foxes that he’s a grouchy old man who doesn’t care, Wymack spends a lot of time checking up on his kids. 

He’s been to as many of Kevin’s games as he can possible fit in whenever they’re close enough and he doesn’t have a game on, he video calls Nicky as often as he can (keeping weird hours makes this easier, and Nicky and Abby both lecture him regularly about getting enough sleep), and Dan and Matt live close enough that they have dinner together regularly. Renee and Allison move around too often to make it easy to see them, but everyone ends up together at least once a year. They avoid doing it on Thanksgiving (Andrew and Neil prefer to keep that one quiet, and no one argues with that). Aaron and Katelyn have even come out to see them a few times when their schedules weren’t as hectic with the hospital.

The hardest ones to get to see are Andrew and Neil. They spent a few years doing long distance with both playing on different teams, so every time they had time off they spent it together. Wymack wishes that he could have lived closer to Neil, he knows that those years were particularly difficult on him.

Now that they are living together and on the same team, it’s been easier for them to get in contact with everyone, but they’re still moving around too often for it to be easy to visit. 

Last year they detoured to stay with Abby and Wymack for a few days during their annual summer road trip, and having Bee there meant that Andrew has come out a few extra times to stay when Neil was busy with press.

Wymack tries very hard to convince them that he couldn’t care less about how often they come out to visit him, but they all know that he misses them terribly.

To keep a closer eye on them, Wymack and Abby recorded all of their games, and Wymack secretly watches youtube videos with names like ‘Neil Josten’s Best 10 Roasts’ and ‘10 Minutes of the Josten Minyard Rivalry’. He does not miss dealing with the press after Neil’s been let loose, but he feels a bit of pride every time he rips into a deserving journalist after being asked about his scars. If Wymack could kick everyone’s ass who hurt his kids, he would. Since he can’t, watching them get demolished by a tiny redhead has to do.

For the first time in a few weeks, Abby and Wymack are finally watching a game live. It’s always a lot more stressful watching them live, but they make up for that by ordering Chinese and making an evening of it.

They barely talk through the game other than to insult the other team or praise a good save or goal. The second half as just started when an aggressive striker doesn’t stop at the goal lines. The entire court goes silent and Wymack watches with barely controlled terror as Neil sprints across the court just in time for Andrew to hit the wall. Neil shoves the striker away with more venom than Wymack has seen from him since Riko and turns his attention to the goalie currently lying on the ground.

“Come on Andrew, get up,” Wymack whispers as he watches Neil fling his helmet off and protect his prone form while the medical staff make their way over. The sports announcers are frantic as they explain what just happened and Abby groans in irritation as they show a slow motion recap of Andrew getting hit, then of Neil protecting him.

Wymack clutches his phone and enters the number of their coach before he’s even thought it through. He knows it isn’t likely that he’ll answer, but he’s disappointed when it goes to voicemail anyway. Beside him Abby is calling Neil.

It takes almost 30 long minutes before Abby gets through to Neil, and she immediately puts it on speaker phone so that they can both speak to him.

“Neil, is everything okay?” Abby says, concern leaking through her words.

“I’m… I’m not sure yet. I’m at the hospital? And I’m waiting for the doctor,” Neil sounds shocked, voice dull.

“Which hospital are you at? We’re flying there as soon as we can,” Wymack says, and Abby nods, grabbing his phone to book tickets.

“Umm, I’m not sure. One minute,” they can hear mumbling while Neil asks someone where they are and Wymacks heart aches for the poor kid. 

“Okay, we’re just at the New York Hospital.”

“I booked our tickets, we’re leaving in an hour okay?” Abby says as soothingly as she can. “We’ll call you when we get there.” Wymack says in lieu of a goodbye.

By the time they make it to New York they each have a few messages from Neil saying that Andrew’s going to be fine, he has a concussion and they’re keeping him for observation, but he’s okay. The relief is palpable after the tension through the flight, and Wymack is glad that Neil thought to tell them.

It’s early in the morning when they get there, so they sleep at a hotel for a few hours while waiting for visiting hours.

It’s far more complicated to get into the room than Wymack thought that it would be. They have to convince the staff that they aren’t journalists or well meaning fans before they’re brought up to the room, and Abby has to show them family photos from Christmas with Neil and Andrew before the nurses decide that they are allowed to see Andrew.

Wymack’s glad for the security but he curses at all the journalists for making it so difficult. They crowd them when they realize who they are visiting, and it takes a security guard and a lot of glaring to part the crowd so they can follow the nurse.

“Can you confirm the Josten Minyard relationship?” One journalist shouts as they walk past.

“Coach Wymack! Coach Wymack, is it true that Minyard’s injury is far worse than they are letting on? And what do you think that means for the team?” another journalist shouts, microphone shoved unceremoniously in his face. Abby pulls him behind her and gives him a warning look not to say anything.

The hallway where Andrews room is located is blissfully calm after the storm downstairs. The nurse indicates which room he’s in, then moves on.

Abby pauses in the doorway and motions for Wymack to step beside her, a look of contentment on her face.

In the room Neil is perched on the bed beside Andrew. He’s a bit pale but there are no visible cuts or bruises and he looks mostly alert. They’re hands are twined together, the silver engagement bands catching the light.

Neil is saying something in a low tone and Andrew squeezes his hand. His mouth tilts up at the corners and looks at Neil with something close to adoration. Wymack tugs Abby away from the door and takes a few steps back to give them their privacy. He texts Neil to tell him that they’ve made it in, and a few minutes later Neil peeks out the door to great them.

He looks exhausted, hair mussed and dark circles under his eyes, but his face brightens when he sees them.

Abby gives him a tight hug before going to sit in the chair beside Andrew who has his usual bored expression. Wymack stops beside Neil and squeezes his shoulder.

“I’m proud of you, kid,” he says, feeling a little choked up. Neil looks up in surprise.

“For what? I didn’t do anything.”

Wymack grins and pats his shoulder before going in to greet Andrew.

“Next time, get back up after you get hit,” he says gruffly to the tiny blond. Andrew raises a brow.

“Did I worry you, old man? You’re getting soft with age.”

Wymack grunts and sits down in the other chair near the foot of the bed. “Not worried, just annoyed. Kevin’s called me 3 times since I got up this morning to make sure you can still play.”

“He’ll be back in a few weeks,” Neil says while he takes back his post at Andrews side. Andrew rolls his eyes and mutters ‘junkie’ under his breath.

Wymack wishes he could be irritated at the long night and unnecessary panic, but he feels so content being in the same place as his kids that his gruffness is softened.

+1

Neil surveys the apartment from his spot in the kitchen. They’re 1 bedroom apartment is not nearly big enough to comfortably fit everyone in, but no one is complaining about the small space. Even Andrew isn’t feeling claustrophobic yet (Neil keeps checking on him, but he seems happy chatting with Aaron and Kevin on the sofa). True to promise, they did throw a wedding party at their apartment, and they made sure that it was at a time that Nicky and Erik could come out to see them. 

However, it took multiple arguments to convince Allison and Nicky that they didn’t need anyone to plan it and that they were just going to get married at the courthouse. Neil’s pretty sure that it was more Renee and Erik than his arguments who made them let it go. No matter what, Neil couldn’t be happier with how everything has turned out.

King winds himself around his ankles, meowing indignantly about the noise in the place and Neil smiles fondly at her.

Matt and Dan are swaying to the music near the balcony door, lost in their own little world. Beside them sway Renee and Allison, and Renee catches Neils eye to smile proudly at him. After Nicky, her and Allison were the next ones they told about the engagement. Andrew had mentioned that it was Renee who convinced him that marriage wasn’t always a bad idea, and Neil couldn’t help but feel a bit grateful for that.

Beside him stood Abby, Wymack, and Bee. Bee has been around long enough that Neil is able to accept her, and he’s glad that Andrew was able to find someone that he trusted so much. Neil has also been going to a therapist, but something about knowing Bee while he was going through everything made it too uncomfortable for him to talk to her. He found someone in New York instead, and Bee seemed so thrilled that he’s managed to open up to someone other than Andrew that Neil almost liked her a little bit. It’s tough to find someone who is genuinely happy about your healing.

Katelyn is laughing with Thea about something, and Erik and Nicky are in the corner cooing over Sir, who is soaking up the attention. 

Neil can’t help but think about all of the trials and tribulations it took to get to this point - the time in the Ravens Nest, the terror of Baltimore, all of the panic attacks and rough nights and foggy days. Neil never thought that he would live through his first year of University so every year after that has felt both like a gift and borrowed time. It took until the past year for Neil to wrap his head around the idea that he might be able to live until old age.

That thought was both a relief and terrifying, just because he wants it so badly. Andrew has helped him pull through multiple panic attacks just thinking about it.

Neil knows that there will be other challenges ahead of them (even though they really deserve a happy 20 years to make up for the bad ones), but he thinks that they’ll be much easier than the crap that’s gone on before this.

He catches Andrews eye across the room. They’re both wearing the suits they got for the occasion and Neils eyes have been tracking Andrew all night. He’s noticed that Andrews have done the same thing for him.

Aaron realizes that Andrews attention has strayed and he turns his conversation to Kevin. Neil and Aaron’s relationship isn’t exactly great, but they’ve managed to get to the point where they can go for coffee without hating each other by the time they get home. Neil knows that Andrew appreciates the effort both of them make, even though he’s never said anything about it.

Neil watches as Andrew gets up and makes his way through their friends, no, their family to get to him.

He watches the crowd impassively beside Neil while Neil watches the small twitch at his lips and the fond look in his eyes. 

“Staring.”

Neil grins. “I guess you’ll have to do something about that, won’t you?”

Andrew’s jaw tightens where he tries not to smile. Neil feels the glow of accomplishment. My husband thinks I’m funny. He tries to keep his expression calm, but he can see from Andrews pink ears that he’s watching him with as much love as he feels.

Abruptly Andrew holds out a hand. “Yes or no.”

Neil isn’t quite sure what he’s asking, but he puts his hand in Andrews without hesitation. “Of course.”

Andrew leads him over to a quiet spot near the hallway and places Neils hands on his shoulder. He grabs his waist and starts to sway to the music. 

“Don’t look at me like that.”

“Like what? Like I love you? Because I do,” Andrews ears go red and Neil smirks, feeling very proud of himself for making Andrew blush. 

“You’re a pest,” Andrew says.

“Yeah, but I’m your pest.”

And Andrew laughs. Neil almost trips in surprise. He can feel the eyes of the rest of the party on them, but he can’t tear his eyes off of Andrews smile. 

“Yes or no,” Neil says.

Andrew’s still smiling. “Yes, Junkie.”

Neil kisses Andrews forehead, not wanting to get rid of that beautiful, perfect smile. There’s a flash and Neil turns around to see Nicky holding a camera.

“This is going on the wall! I’m framing it,” he announces, and Andrews glare holds barely any heat.

A few weeks later, when the package from Germany comes, Neil can see how pleased Andrew is with the photo. It sits in a simple silver frame, and they hang it above the sofa.

Neil feels very much like he lives a charmed life.

[suf-lives-rent-free]

Fragments

Everything below is just my opinion; I am in no way trying to say that how I feel about this is the one correct take or whatever.

I know a lot of people like this episode and what happens in it, but I don’t.  I totally understand that some people just don’t want to see any negativity, period, but negativity is not inherently bad or wrong.

Negative opinions, even about something you enjoy, can be valid too - regardless of whether you happen to agree with them or not.

Also I get very salty near the end of this, and that might be entertaining to people who stan this episode?

I am aware that a lot of people – the majority, I’m pretty sure – think that the episode is a masterpiece. And on some level, I see where they’re coming from with that assessment.

The episode is boarded beautifully, the backgrounds – especially during the training montage – are stunning as always.  The music is fantastic, and the performances are great too.  In these respects, Fragments is a stand-out episode; I agree.

(Like look at this.  Gorgeous.)

However, something that’s bothered me since I saw the episode is the writers’ decision to write it into the story that Steven shatters Jasper.

Now, I know what you’re thinking: I just don’t get it.  I’m purposefully misinterpreting the story to say it’s bad.  Steven brings her back to life; and it’s not like he meant to do it in the first place.  I just don’t have the capacity to understand the sublime nature of the show’s storytelling.  I’m an SU crit and all I want to do is make the real fans feel about themselves for liking it.

Uhhhh... no.  Nah.  That ain’t it chief.

It’s true; I am not a writer.  I’m just a passive consumer of media.  However, I do not agree with the viewpoint that in order to properly understand or critique a thing you need to have the expertise and/or experience in order to make something similar.

For example, if I were to put something I drew when I was 10 years old next to something I drew yesterday, it shouldn’t take a person who has had an education in fine art to tell you that the latter drawing is better-looking than the former.

That’s how I approach media consumption and criticism; when I criticise a writing decision, I am doing so as a consumer.  I’m not saying I could write it better, or even that my opinion is objectively correct and the writer is wrong or bad.  I’m just saying that I didn’t like a thing.  Which, I would hope, is allowed?

Okay, defensive hedging over, back to the point; I don’t like that they had Steven shatter Jasper.

[I get markedly saltier from this point on, fyi]

Full admission of bias here: one of the things I really cherish about the original show is how they wrote Steven’s character; he’s a boy with interests that don’t rigidly conform to gender stereotypes.  He likes ‘boyish’ things and ‘girly’ things, and that’s okay; thats just him.  In cartoons when I was growing up, characters like Steven would be the butt of jokes about being ‘girly’ or thinly-veiled homophobia.  I find him very relatable, and I want to acknowledge that yes, that is probably a significant part of why I have such an issue with this episode’s twist.

I am not trying to say that he’s a perfect baby angel or whatever; Steven regularly gets frustrated and angry. He does some pretty manipulative and dickish things to people around him (stop trying to make Larsadie happen, Steven. It’s not going to happen).  He is a flawed character who fucks up sometimes. And he’s not 100% peaceful either; he acts violently when he defends himself against corrupted Gems and Homeworld Gems (and Crystal Gems on occasion *cough*Bismuth*cough*).  

However, he has a pacifistic temperament; whenever it’s possible, he prefers that problems be solved without needless violence or hurt.  And I like that; in most media, it’s rare to have a male protagonist who wants to solve their problems without jumping straight to punching things.

When he accidentally frees Centipeedle, he convinces the Gems to step off and allow him to try and rehabilitate her peacefully; he even notices that the Gems’ weapons are a trigger for her, and make them put them away.  He frees Lapis against the Gems’ wishes because he recognizes that keeping her prisoner is wrong, and when she steals the ocean, he talks it out and heals her so she can leave Earth peacefully.

He tries to aid Jasper when she starts corrupting, fixes Eyeball’s gemstone when she’s cracked and tries talking Bismuth down when she attacks him with the breaking point.  In all of these situations, his words and help are ignored or rejected; he’s forced to resort to violence.  And it traumatises him.  

We get an entire episode dedicated to the fact that he’s been struggling with processing these awful things that happened.

Even in Future, Steven shows hesitation about engaging in unncecessary violence; he gives into Jasper’s goading for a fight after what’s implied to be dozens of failed tries at making her come to Little Homeschool, and he spends an entire episode trying to keep Lapis from squashing the two rogue Lapis Lazulis. 

The only time he hops into a fight willingly is after Eyeball and Aquamarine hold Greg hostage, and even then they pose a clear threat to his and Greg’s safety and have made it clear that they want to hurt him emotionally and physically.  Even at that, he stops and switches tactics to talking them down as soon as they lose their focus and start bickering with each other.

(I mean, he fails.  But it’s the thought that counts.)

I personally find it really jarring that the writers found it appropriate to write it into the series that this same character – over the course of three (3) days – goes from disliking mindless violence for mindless violence’s sake to happily engaging in the destruction of plants and animals* and has done a total 180 on his willingness to spar with Jasper, to the point that he instigates their rematch.

*(You best believe plenty of small mammals and birds – y’know, like the nest Steven saved in the first episode – died as he and Jasper felled tree after tree, not to mention all of those displaced by the destruction of their habitats, and the potential loss of food sources from some of those trees.)

You’re telling me that it’s a reasonable character beat for this boy to gleefully laugh like an anime supervillain at his sudden new-found joy in fighting, then pin Jasper in place, taunt her for helping him get so strong, and hit her so hard that she breaks into pieces and dies?

You’re telling me that that’s an in-character thing for Steven Quartz Diamond Cutie-Pie DeMayo Universe do to another character?

(And yes I am purposefully dancing around talking about the mental health stuff because if I did that I’d have to go on a whole other tangent about Growing Pains and fuck I just don’t feel like it right now lmao)

Going back to Mindful Education, another big thing we see Steven struggle with is the idea that his mother shattered Pink Diamond.  This knowledge sits heavily with him; it makes him sympathetic to the Diamonds, even under the circumstances in which he sees them (escaping from the Human Zoo, and being on trial for said murder). 

He sees their grief, and he feels awful.  He questions who Rose Quartz even was.  He knows, based on what Garnet said, that Rose had to do it; there was no other way to free Earth.  But he still feels awful seeing the pain that Pink’s loss has caused Blue and Yellow Diamond.

In Steven Universe, shattering is clearly equated with execution/death multiple times.  When Pearl and Garnet fret over the crack in Amethyst’s gemstone worsening.  When Blue Diamond threatens to break Ruby.  When Bismuth introduces the breaking point, and Steven recoils at the sight of what it does.  If you want to take the fact that Gem shards are sentient and desperate to become whole again into account, you could even argue that it’s a fate worse than death. This particular act of violence is treated very, very seriously.

When we find out that Rose shattered Pink Diamond, there is a season and a half long arc unpacking the implications and consequences of this one action, and how this knowledge forever alters Steven’s mental image of his mother.  And she didn’t even kill anyone.  It was a lie!

In Steven Universe Future, Steven shatters Jasper 4 episodes before the end of the series.  And it’s only brought up twice; once for a big *gasp* moment during his breakdown in Everything’s Fine, and in I Am My Monster by Pearl, when she has to fill-in Bismuth, Lapis and Peridot.  Notably, it is never discussed around or by Jasper.  Y’know.  The person who actually died.

No indication of how (or even if) what Steven did is affecting his own self-image after his initial breakdown, how Jasper feels about what she went through beyond falling back into the Era 1 and 2 mindset.  No inkling of how the knowledge that Steven killed somebody has affected how anyone in his life thinks or feels about him; when Pearl brings it up in I Am My Monster, she seems to not even really believe it’s true.

If there are any consequences or talks about this incident, they’re skipped over between I Am My Monster and The Future, and we’re expected to assume that Steven and his therapist are dealing with it, I guess?

And yes.  It was an accident.  He did bring her back to life.  But it still happened.  If you hit someone over the head and they stop breathing, just because the paramedics are able to resusitate and stabilize them afterwards doesn’t mean you never hit them.

But here, it’s shoved aside because dwelling on it would take far too much time, and risks framing Steven in an unsympathetic way when he’s meant to be on the cusp of a breakdown.

It just feels like careless writing to me.  They really, really wanted their big action scene with Steven and Jasper, but didn’t think (or maybe weren’t interested in thinking) about the seriousness or consequences of what Steven shattering someone would entail.

In my opinion, Steven shattering Jasper is one of the cheapest, laziest things they could have ever done with his character (and hers, for that matter).  To me, the entire thing feels entirely out of character.  It’s pure shock value; nothing more.

So yeah.  That particular writing decision just does not work for me.  And if you disagree... well that’s fine?  It’s fine.  We can agree to disagree?  I’ve read a lot of defense/praise for this episode, and honestly even after processing all of those opinions and all the time my thoughts about this plotline have been stewing in my brain, I still feel the same way.

[misssophiachase]

A while back the lovely @megansarah11 asked for a Klaroline drabble prompt inspired by Sybil and Tom from Downton Abbey (modern-day version). Apologies I never got to it love but I’m so excited about the movie coming out tomorrow so thought I’d finally write something : ) Hope you like it. Lyrics by Tracy Chapman.

He’s an Uber driver she wants to hate, she’s the daughter of an influential person he wants to hate but a mutually beneficial arrangement might change all that. 

Fast Car

You got a fast car, I want a ticket to anywhere

“Five minutes late,” she muttered from the backseat, stabbing at the buttons on her cell phone. “And one less star for lack of decorum.”

He’d picked her up outside Columbia University but given it was peak hour and hundreds of students milling around campus he’d struggled to see her even if it was her responsibility to place his license plate first. 

Glancing at the impressive looking college in the distance while he waited, Klaus wished he could afford to study there. His GPA was impressive so too his SAT scores during high school but he couldn’t afford college and scholarships were few and far between. 

Klaus Mikaelson didn’t drive an Uber for fun, in fact, he only drove because he needed the money to support his family not rude commentary from passengers mid-trip. 

This type he’d seen before, the epitome of a spoiled princess, although Klaus had to admit she was easy on the eye; blonde waves, porcelain skin, pink lips and legs for days encased within that leather mini-skirt. Daddy’s little girl had obviously decided putting the Uber driver out of business would be a fun distraction on the way out with friends. 

“Five minutes late is reasonably good for New York traffic, although I’m sure you know that already, but what exactly is wrong with my decorum?” He asked, probably against his better judgment but Klaus was bored and needed some entertainment to pull him out of his Friday night funk. 

“Lack of decorum you mean and last time I checked that was none of your business.”

“Well, if you’re going to review my services aloud, it’s a little difficult to ignore,” Kaus offered, looking at her in his rearview mirror curiously, noting those expressive blue eyes widening in shock.

She didn’t respond immediately, obviously thrown off by his reply. Instead, she proceeded to punch at her cell with more vigor and Klaus knew he’d lost at least another star in the process. He wasn’t phased and decided he’d much prefer music than her thoughts anyway.  

“What the hell is this?” She growled, finally finding her voice as the music reverberated loudly through the speakers. 

“It’s called music, sweetheart.”

“I’m aware it’s music,” she growled, “and don’t call me that.”

“It’s the Clash.” 

“Well, the name seems fitting given the lack of musicality,” she shared. Before she could eviscerate him again via review Klaus replied. 

“I should have known I suppose.”

“Should have known what exactly?”

“That someone so uptight and privileged wouldn’t understand punk rock.”

“I understand it perfectly,” she huffed. “In fact, I admire the way the genre has pioneered political messaging over the decades.”

“Really? You do?” He inquired, not expecting that response from the princess in his backseat. He decided she must be taking a few political electives and thought she knew everything.

“Yes, and, while we’re at it, everyone knows the Clash. I didn’t think you’d be so easily fooled.”

“Well, excuse me if you don’t look the type.” 

“You got me,” she admitted, his crimson lips curved into a smile knowing he’d won the argument. “I’m actually more of a Ramones fan if I’m to be completely honest.”

“Figures, you’d pick the band with the conservative guitarist.”

“I was more of a Joey fan, not Johnny if you must know. I ought to really address your judgmental tendencies in my review.” Klaus had to admit she knew her punk rock and the fact brother Joey was far more liberal than his older brother Johnny. 

“Well, given that, my tardiness and lack of decorum at least I’m consistent, love.”  

“I’d be curious to know just what your other passengers think about typecasting their musical tastes and political beliefs. And, by the way, you’re down to one star, buddy.”

Klaus could tell by consulting the rearview mirror she hadn’t bothered to look down at her phone once and a sly smile was tugging at the corners of her mouth. 

She was enjoying this and Klaus had to admit he was too. It also didn’t hurt just how cute she looked twirling a blonde lock in her fingers and biting the right corner of her bottom lip either. 

“I’m amazed I still have one star,” he teased, realizing he had nothing to lose at this point. “Daddy must hate that his daughter is a Democrat.”

“You have no idea, not that I’m trying to entertain your stereotypes at all,” she mumbled, laying her head back, her blonde waves fanning out across the seat. “I think he’d disown me if I wasn’t his only child.”

“Well, then I’m sorry I judged you,” he offered, his eyes meeting hers briefly. “I definitely deserve that review.”

“Well, there’s still time to prove yourself,” she smiled deviously. “How about we make a detour and you can make it up to me?”

Maybe we make a deal

“You brought me to Central Park?” Klaus shivered, trying to ignore just how frozen his toes were and hoping it didn’t spread to other much-needed regions. 

Klaus had been unable to help himself, offering his jacket to his passenger who was less clothed and insisted they visit the Bethesda Fountain. It was empty given the season and this time of night.   

“If this is a frostbite competition, I give in,” he chuckled whilst trying to battle the chill. 

“This is my favorite place in the city,” she shared, looking upwards. The sky was clear tonight, the moon barely visible but multiple stars twinkling in the distance. “I like to come here when no one else is around.” 

“Well, you certainly chose the optimal time.” He agreed, hoping she’d get to the point sooner rather than later. As a driver, it wasn’t his role to get out of the car but for some reason, she’d enticed him into the cold. Klaus decided to blame it on his need for a good review, well in case anyone asked. “Don’t you want to meet your friends?”

“Maybe later,” she replied, taking a seat on the edge of the fountain and patting the spot next to her. Klaus wasn’t one to come on command but he’d long abandoned his usual routine when she’d jumped into his car. “I’ll pay extra and up your stars, promise.”

“It’s not about the money or the review,” Klaus admitted, probably too quickly. “I just like all my appendages working at full capacity.”

“Looks pretty good to me,” she shot back, a cheeky smile crossing her features as her eyes grazed his crotch. Klaus thought he’d pegged her when she jumped into his car but was finding it difficult to concentrate given just how unpredictable she’d proven.   

“You were not what I expected at all.”

“I have that effect on people,” she grinned. “My father doesn’t like it all that much, usually has one of his drivers take me around the city so as to avoid anything untoward.”

“And that’s not a nice, fatherly thing to do I assume?” 

“He does it to spy on me,” she growled. “It’s like I’m eight years old all over again and he’s chasing Liam O’Neil out of my treehouse.”

“What exactly were you doing in said treehouse?”

“We were playing doctors and nurses,” Klaus smirked knowingly, causing her to jab him in the ribs. “Get your head out of the gutter it was all above board. If anything it made me realise just what a bad nurse Liam made.”

“So, why no driver tonight then?”

“I snuck out before he arrived,” she admitted. “I wanted to spend my night my own way.”

“My curiosity is piqued, who exactly is your father?” 

“Republican Congressman for the 2nd District,” she murmured. “Talk about a total buzzkill. He has this tendency to put a dampener on my life in general and not just because of his choice of political party.”

“Wow, that was not who I was expecting at all when we started our discussion.”

“Oh, is that what you call it? From memory, it was all about you questioning my musical tastes and insulting my beliefs.”

“We haven’t even scratched the surface of a real political debate and you know it, Caroline.” For some reason that made Klaus smile in anticipation of a rematch.

“You said my name,” she smiled. “And here I thought I’d forever be known as love or sweetheart or whatever you call all the women you pick up.” Klaus didn’t miss her double meaning. 

“Assuming I pick up all these women, love,” he smirked flashing his dimples, noticing her creamy skin flush a cute shade of pink as he did. 

“So, any chance you’d consider driving me around?” His eyebrows shot up curiously wondering how they’d moved from pick-ups to fully-fledged driving.  “Urgh not in that way,” she groaned, jabbing him again. Klaus had to admit he was quite enjoying throwing around double entendres especially if it warded off the chill. 

“What? You mean like a chauffeur? It’s not really my thing and I’m not sure your father would approve,” he whistled. “We don’t exactly run in the same circles.”

“He doesn’t need to know that. I just need more space and this arrangement could be mutually beneficial.”

“And what do I get exactly?”

“You get money and I get freedom,” she shot back. “Seems like the perfect arrangement.”

“Except for the obvious,” he said, “Your father probably has the most stringent vetting process in place for the position of driving around his only daughter.”

“Just leave it to me.”

“Why does that worry me?”

“Because for the most part, and not that I want to prove your earlier assessment correct, my father does most things I ask. It’s either because he loves me or doesn’t want me to make a scene. Either scenario works I suppose.” Klaus could tell by the hurt in her voice that she cared about what he thought more than she liked to portray. “You’re English, surely we can sell you as some Margaret Thatcher-loving Tory who came to America to discover his dream.”

“Of being a chauffeur?”

“Of being a chauffeur who is saving for college to become a lawyer at a private equity practice in Washington DC and then the next Attorney-General in a Republican White House.”

“Sounds exactly like me,” he joked. “It seems like you’ve offered this position to others before me.”

“No, that’s just pretty much every guy my father has tried to set me up with since I was eighteen.”   

“I think that will be a tough sell, love.”

“But just think about all the money you could make, Uber driving would be peanuts in comparison.” 

Klaus wasn’t motivated by money but given his mother’s health problems he knew the extra cash would make a difference with her treatment. He’d be stupid to pass up an offer like that and if it meant more time to discuss politics with Caroline Klaus certainly wasn’t complaining. 

Maybe she needed more freedom and maybe he needed more money but for some reason, there seemed to be an underlying reason neither had verbalized. 

It was as if she wanted an escape just as much as he did.

Maybe together we can get somewhere, any place is better

[thesportssoundoff]

“Look there’s Holloway vs Edgar and you’re watching this so don’t even give me any of your shit” UFC 240 Preview

Joey

July 22nd, 2019

Every once in a while, about once a year or so, the UFC has a PPV that's utterly pointless. It's just a show on the schedule designed to make up for a cancelled show or just a PPV "make some money" cash grab. This card is a little bit column A, little bit column B and so there's really not much to say in the lead in. The UFC lost a show in January when they had a bunch of main events fall through and they needed to move Cejudo and Dillashaw to ESPN+. In response to that happening, the UFC wound up needing to fill a schedule slot and SO we get two July PPVs (we were originally going to get two October ones but they reconfigured the sched). To further complicate matters, they loaded up July (two title fights plus a crazy undercard) and loaded up August (DC/Stipe, Romero/Costa, Nate/Pettis, Heinisch/Brunson plus all sorts of goodies) so this PPV sandwiched in the middle got a whole bunch of nada. This is basically a three fight card and if we're being honest, it just might be a one fight card if you consider Neal/Price and Cyborg/Spencer pointless.  The next three cards after this are all going to be pretty special in their own ways (DC/Stipe, Khabib/Dustin and Israel/Whittaker) so we're just here to kill some time at an unfair price point.  This card is a collection of spent shell casings on the Old West that is MMA. The summer is basically the UFC's seasonal fuck up session; more people are willing to spend money in the summer but fighters don't like fighting and the schedule is so packed that you run the risk of just burning all your bullets. Barring something unforseen, this will be the worst PPV of the year but ya got Holloway/Edgar so I'll be there. OH and it's a Canadian card! Cursed!

Fights: 12

Debuts: Giacomo Lemos, Tanner Boser, Yoshinori Horie

Fight Changes/Injury Cancellations: 1 (Lauren Murphy vs Mara Romero CANCELLED)

Headliners (fighters who have either main evented or co-main evented shows in the UFC): 4 (Frankie Edgar, Max Holloway, Cyborg, Alexis Davis)

Fighters On Losing Streaks in the UFC: 2 (Alexis Davis,Erik Koch)

Fighters On Winning Streaks in the UFC: 3 (Geoff Neal, Hakeem Dawodu, Alejandre Pantoja)

Main Card Record Since Jan 1st 2017 (in the UFC): 22-12

Frankie Edgar- 2-1 Max Holloway- 3-1 Cyborg- 3-1 Felicia Spencer- 1-0 Geoff Neal- 3-0 Niko Price- 4-2 Olivier Aubin-Mercier- 2-2 Arman Tsarukyan- 0-1 Marc Andre Berriault- 0-1 Kryztsof Jokto- 1-3

Fights By Weight Class (yearly number here):

Featherweight-  3 (37) Welterweight- 2 (41) Women’s Flyweight- 2 (21) Middleweight- 1 (24) Flyweight- 1 (9) Women’s Featherweight- 1 (7) Heavyweight- 1 (22) Lightweight- 1 (45)

Bantamweight- (39) Light Heavyweight-  (29) Women’s Bantamweight- (13) Women’s Strawweight- (19)

2019 Number Tracker

Debuting Fighters (20-43)- Tanner Bosse, Yoshinori Horie, Giacomo Lemos

Short Notice Fighters (20-27)-

Second Fight (40-16)- Kyle Stewart, Sarah Frota,  Sueng Woo Choi, Viviane Araújo,  Marc-André Barriault, Arman Tsaryukan

Cage Corrosion (Fighters who have not fought within a year of the date of the fight) (14-27)- Gavin Tucker, Frankie Edgar

Undefeated Fighters (25-29)- Giacomo Lemos

Fighters with at least four fights in the UFC with 0 wins over competition still in the organization (9-8)-

Weight Class Jumpers (Fighters competing outside of the weight class of their last fight even if they’re returning BACK to their “normal weight class”) (20-17)-  Erik Koch, Sarah Frota, Max Holloway

Twelve Precarious Ponderings

1-  In no small part, I think it's fair to acknowledge that moving PPVs to ESPN+ has, at least for me, dampened the enthusiasm fans have for PPV. Maybe that'll ultimately be a good thing but on principle alone, these cards seem a tick below the old school "gather round and party" UFC PPV events. Beyond that though, are we not giving Edgar vs Holloway its just due as a title fight? Max Holloway is still in my opinion the greatest featherweight of all time and this fight would be yet another step towards solidifying a potential hall of fame resume. It's not wrong to suggest that a stoppage over Edgar would be yet another step towards solidifying Holloway's spot among the GOAT. On the other hand, we just saw him get beaten up by Dustin Poirier up a weight class. Going up and taking a risk didn't impact BJ Penn and Conor McGregor but those two had a different sort of legacy and a more dedicated fanbase to make sure those things didn't matter. Frankie Edgar earned a title shot with wins over Jeremy Stephens and Yair Rodriguez before risking it all in the pursuit of being the ultimate company man. A short notice loss to Brian Ortega seemed to put him further to the back of the line but Edgar returned a little over a month later to decision Cub Swanson and has laid low since. In many ways, Edgar getting put back into the title picture is a rare example of the UFC doing something nice and fair. Edgar should've gone to the back of the line but instead the UFC rewarded him for doing them a favor in taking the Ortega fight.

2- Is the UFC being overly presumptious/optimistic in believing that the winner of this fight can make a quick enough turnaround to fight Volkanovski in early October? As champion, I think the quickest turnaround Frankie Edgar ever made was early October to late February but he was also 7 years younger then. For Holloway, December to March WAS supposed to be his quickest turnaround but he got hurt and the fight got scrapped.

3- Does Holloway have to finish Frankie Edgar to get his buzz back or would a win suffice for most fans?

4- Has any other fighter lost five straight title fights in the UFC? If Edgar loses to Holloway, I think he'll officially break his own record (that he holds with Urijah Faber who lost to Cruz and Barao twice).

5- I wonder IF the UFC could do it over, would they still go through with trying a female featherweight division. It got them a few Cyborg fights (which at the very least gave them a salvaged PPV or two) but overall, you have to wonder if this is what they expected when they (lazily) fell into the division. Although Felicia Spencer is probably a far more reputable opponent for Cyborg than when Cyborg was trying to get the UFC to sign Pam Sorenson.

6- The entire UFC/Cyborg situation could be done over the course of a few days but allow me the opportunity to try and paint the numbers here briefly:

Cyborg was signed because the UFC still had designs of Ronda (now vanquished by Holly Holm) making the comeback, rising up and facing Cyborg once before she'd go on to do other things. It didn't QUITE work out that way and so the UFC had a fighter they had no interest in taking up space on their cards. At this point Brazilian MMA was on a serious slump and Cyborg represented someone who could headline a card or two there, give the UFC some depth on PPVs. Then the UFC wound up deciding to go full bore with a 145 lb division----without Cyborg in the opening fight. It seemed like they were trying to set up Cyborg for the winner but GDR/Holm was a PPV bust and GDR didn't want the fight so they scrapped THAT and tried again with Cyborg as the lead dog. From there, Cyborg turned into a pretty decent PPV draw even though it always felt like this was an arraigned marriage more or less. Her two headliners did well enough (210K-ish vs Yanit, 375K-ish with Holly Holm) but the UFC never seemed to like her much and the feeling was mutual seemingly. Cyborg supported Leslie Smith's Project Spearhead on multiple occasions and would accuse the UFC of bias against her on a number of occasions. The UFC would in turn tell her to stop worrying about things that don't matter and for her to stop trying to act as her own matchmaker. There was a borderline embarrassing moment where Cyborg had a member of the media during a press conference ask Dana White to unblock her on Instagram. Both sides were in a convenient set up where they needed to at least tolerate one another and they could barely pull that off.

Things came to a head when the UFC finally sacked up (at the demands of Amanda Nunes seemingly) and gave us the champ vs champ fight. If Nina Ansaroff deserves a ton of credit for being a liason between the UFC and Amanda Nunes, Cyborg deserves an equal amount of credit for giving them a reason to get over Nunes wiping Meisha Tate and Ronda Rousey while also being a pest about doing media. Nunes wiped Cyborg out and the entire narrative on her changed in an instant. With the changing narrative though emerged the challenge; Nunes wanted a rematch, Cyborg wanted a rematch while the UFC had no interest in Cyborg vs Nunes II with one fight remaining on her deal. Cyborg flirted openly with leaving the UFC, said pretty much as such recently and just when the UFC felt like they were out of the Cyborg business, Amanda Nunes stirred it back up by wanting to REMATCH Cyborg still although I'd suppose the UFC doing a Cyborg fight by and large was bound to make it an issue regardless. Now the only buzz to the co-main is whether Cyborg can win to set up a potential rematch that 90% of the people watching probably have no belief in actually happening.

I think if everybody was on truth serum, you'd probably get a breakdown where everybody agrees that this has no chance of panning out in a positive sense. The UFC on a truth serum would probably be fine with Cyborg not fighting for them after this unless it was on some sort of team friendly deal so to speak (although all MMA contracts are team friendly given the nature of the biz). Cyborg would probably be just fine with fighting in Bellator and being some kind of a novelty act for her remaining fans unless the UFC paid her greatly and made some concessions on their protocol for fighter relations. Amanda Nunes is fine with whatever happens but she probably knows a Cyborg rematch as a co-main trumps trying to convince fans that a GDR rematch or a fight with Macy Chiasson or a fight with Yanit Kunitskaya is must see programming. Cyborg makes the most money in the UFC in theory, the UFC makes the most money with Nunes-Cyborg 2 and Nunes' career resume becomes GOAT regardless of gender if she finishes Cyborg again. It just requires too many ifs, buts or unless' to feel like it has any probability of happening.

7- Which does the UFC want more; a Cyborg win so they can quietly do away with 145 lbs or a Felicia Spencer win where they can stick to Cyborg one last time and maybe give Amanda Nunes something to do?

8- Even if it's probably an ESPN PPV prelim headliner on a more complete card, I'm really excited about Niko Price vs Geoff Neal. Of all the DWTCS guys signed, it could be argued that Geoff Neal is the best so far. He's an insanely good striker with stout takedown defense and some of the best in the pocket combinations you'll see at 170 lbs. He's developing more and more into someone who should be remembered as 170 lbs continues to amass depth in the middle rankings. I have some concerns about his ability to rally in a tough fight and I do think he'll struggle with the bigger welterweights but so far so good. Conversely Niko Price has gone from ultra exciting prospect to a solid proven action fighter who looks set to make the mantle of violent finisher at 170 lbs from the likes of Tim Means and Matt Brown. He'll be a great test for Neal and at the very least, this should be an exciting fight.

9- Is the bloom off of the Hakeem Dawodu rose or are we still holding on? He's 2-1 in the UFC but none of those performances were really of the standout variety. The fact that he's facing a debuting guy and not a proven 145 lber after beating Kyle Bochniak suggests the UFC is looking to slow it down, reassess and see if they can rebuild him again.

10- Can a fighter who is 16-5-1 be a prospect? I suppose that'll have to be the case with 27 year old HW Tanner Boser. Canada needs SOMEBODY to emerge from the mess and Boser, who has been fighting out in Russia, is probably one of their better chances unless you're sold on Gavin Tucker or Hakeem Dawodu. He kicks off the show vs Giacomo Lemos on ESPN+.

11- Erik Koch has fought in the UFC since 2011. He was one of MMA's weirdest resumes with elite names like Dustin Poirier, Rafael Asssuncao, Clay Guida, Ricardo Lamas and Bobby Green on it. He was a former title contender for Jose Aldo's featherweight title. He's got 21 pro fights, fought in three different UFC weight classes and is just NOW 30. You want to ask "Why are they bothering?" but clearly there's something they like there. Maybe Koch just finally needed to get healthy or maybe the UFC just feels some sort of compulsion towards having a guy who WAS going to be a #1 contender get on the right track. Just feels weird at this point. Koch faces Kyle Stewart who made a short notice debut in January as the first ever fight on the first ever ESPN card.

12- Three fighters on their second fights to keep an eye on; 1) Arman Tsarukyan on short-ish notice gave Islam Makhachev some serious problems as a quick scrambler who had some power in his hands. He was outwrestled but kept going at a pretty hot clip and made a good enough account of himself that he's on the MAIN CARD here against Olivier Aubin-Mercier. 2) Viviane Araujo looked fantastic against Talita Bernardo in a short notice fight up two weight classes. After beating Bernardo up for two rounds, she finished her with a flying knee in the third round to pick up the upset short notice win. She gets one of those "Let's see what they can't do!" step ups against the insanely slow but insanely strong veteran Alexis Davis. That one has potential to be messy. Lastly Sarah Frota looked pretty impressive in her UFC debut which was hampered by her completely blowing the 115 lb weight limit at 123 lbs. She's got some Thiago Silva-esque vibes in terms of being a powerful slow stalker who wings power shots at will and bets on her chin being better than yours when things get tough. She'll be facing Gillian Robertson who will offer nothing on the feet but is a tremendously adept grappler who can snag subs at will. Remember Livia Souza almost subbed Frota with an armbar.

[rwbyconversations]

The weaknesses of Volume 6

As someone who had sub-zero expectations going in, Volume 6 was overall a really good season of RWBY- in fact I’d called it the best overall Volume since Volume 3, if not overall, the best season we’ve had so far. Everything seemed to come together for this season, and most of the fandom has agreed that the opening salvo of episodes was the best the show had, and that the season hadn’t had a dud episode until the group reached Argus. I know some parts of the fandom don’t love the Argus episodes but I found something good in nearly all of them so I can’t say it was a complete waste of time. 

But, every cloud has a silver lining, and while Volume 6 was unmistakably a huge improvement over the previous Maya seasons, especially Volume 5, there are still several areas the show can seek to improve on as the show moves to the chilly frozen north of Atlas. So in this essay, I’m going to highlight the (ultimately small but notable enough to warrant talking about them) weaknesses I found in Volume 6. 

1) The show needs to more efficiently handle its villains (and why Cinder and Neo’s plot was a drag)

Weird that I’m saying this in the season that gave its longest episode to exploring Salem’s origin story, but Volume 6 had a lot of difficulty managing the pacing of its villains, and the largest subject of its focus arguably didn’t need to be in this Volume. I’m talking of course about Cinder and Neo’s plot this volume.

Now on paper, giving Cinder more spotlight should be what I want. After all, I wrote an essay last year detailing why parts of the fanbase weren’t fond of Cinder, so giving her focus should ideally be able to remedy those problems, right? 

Well, that’s the problem. In that essay, I talked about how Cinder’s two biggest flaws as a character were that she was very boring, and how her lack of backstory made it difficult to really care about her as a character. Cinder has effectively been the same character for six volumes in a row and much like Volume 4, the show has a golden opportunity to finally change that and give her a new narrative arc only to waste it.

Volume 6 should have been a drastic wake-up call for Cinder. Unlike at Beacon, where she lost due to Ruby’s sudden intervention and the awakening of her Silver Eyes, Cinder lost at Haven entirely thanks to her own failings. Raven beat her handily in straight combat and goaded her into the entire train-wreck of an operation to begin with, which for a power-focused individual like Cinder, should have really been an igniting spark to get her to begin seeking some introspection on why she’s lost twice in a row in failing to burn down the Academies. But sadly, just like in Volume 4, right as Cinder appears to be getting an arc about her recovering from her loss at Haven, she just ignores it and goes right back on her murder-Ruby train, as if she’s stuck in a Groundhog Day loop. 

Cinder’s refusal to move on from a basic arc of “Plan to destroy an academy, enact the plan, get slaughtered, blame Ruby, rinse and repeat” has made her easily the least interesting villain in the entire show. At this point we’re six years in and barring a few contextual clues, Cinder has no backstory, no sympathetic traits, not even any character development to differentiate her from her Volume 1 self. And this after the season where she dominates the villain screen-time until the final third when Adam hijacks the plot.  

Cinder’s plot in Volume 6 is therefore largely just setup for Volume 7, in that it explains how Cinder survived Haven and how she reaches Atlas. Along the way, she encounters the in case of bad season break glass button Neo, whose out for revenge and gets a really cool fight scene that’s ultimately just there for fanservice. 

Let me repeat. Good fight, really liked it. Let me also repeat- just there for fan-service. This is not an inherently bad thing, but it does have weaknesses. 

Neo was always coming back to the show and part of me feels like she was always being held in reserve in the event of a really bad season, so that the next one could have her return and generate some hype since her fan-base are that loyal. And sure enough, Neo’s return did see a notable collection of fans who had dropped the show after 4 and 5 coming back to see their ice cream queen return in a non-Chibi format. I won’t fault the crew for using a plan that worked. Where I take umbrage is that this fight was not necessary. It was a good fight, but I’d have much rather taken a Cinder scene of her actually recovering from Haven and thinking about why she lost again. Instead, Cinder and Neo effectively hijack all the villain screen-time for the rest of the season. And as someone who doesn’t adore Neo like her fans, this made their arc very tiresome, especially when the hints we got of the other villains were far more intriguing. I could talk a lot about the symbolism and thematic choices of the Mercury/Emerald scene in Chapter 9 but I’d struggle to find a lot to say about Cinder’s plot that wasn’t just “Setup for Volume 7.” 

The other problem of course is that the rest of Team WTCH are sorely underdeveloped. Hazel at least is interesting again now that he’s several miles away from Ozpin, Tyrian came back and was a delight and I loved seeing him all-but-begging Merc and Em to run so he could hunt them, but Watts remains crucially underdeveloped. He really needs to step up in agency in Atlas because his sardonic wit can only carry him so far, and the man’s voiced by Christopher Sabat, what more reason do you have to give him more to do? The man made the virus that Cinder used to cause the Fall of Beacon, can he be given some agency now please? 

Ultimately, Cinder’s plot didn’t need to be the focus for the villains and yet again, the fragments of focus they got showed how much more interesting they were as antagonists. While ultimately Volume 6 did finally give Mercury and Emerald more screentime than Volumes 4 and 5 combined and reminded the audience why you should be paying more attention to them, the rest of Team WTCH desperately needs development, Watts in particular. Cinder remains the worst villain in the entire show in my opinion, and it’s a shame that she’s almost guaranteed to be the one that makes it to the end of the show. I can only hope in Atlas she finally gets time devoted to what makes her tick, but at this point I’m almost at the point of not caring. It’s been six years, I won’t start caring for Cinder now if the show finally remembers to tell us why she joined Salem.  

... also I just think Cinder’s new costume sucks and I’d rather Em and Merc get new ones over Cinder and Neo buying extensions for their wardrobes.

2) Cordovin was a joke and she really shouldn’t have been

Show of hands, who actually took Cordovin seriously? Yeah, me neither. 

Even during the fight scene, the heroes don’t take it seriously. Having a fight the characters aren’t taking seriously isn’t an inherent flaw but it does mean you can’t expect us to turn around and take it seriously five minutes later.

Cordovin was a wasted character, and one that the show shouldn’t have undershot in all of her scenes by making her the punchline of nearly every joke. Her long-winded rant at the gate scene in Dead End is a huge factor in why a lot of fans, myself included, consider it the weakest episode of Volume 6 despite picking up in the back half. It just drags on for so long that Cordovin outstays her welcome from her first scene. 

Additionally, the show not taking her seriously steals a lot of gravitas from the mech battle, and plays a large role in why I think the mech fight failed to really excite a lot of fans outside of key moments like Ruby’s missile run and canon shot. Being alongside Adam’s confrontation with Blake and Yang didn’t help but even on its own, the mech battle drags. Not quite to the same extent as Haven dragged, but on rewatches I was making liberal application of the skip button. That lack of gravitas itself goes on to hamper Cordovin’s serious moment in the season finale where she realizes that her ego allowed the Leviathan a straight shot on Argus and undergoes a soft redemption to let team RWBY leave the city. However, this moment of taking Caroline seriously comes after the plot has made it clear that the entire reason the Grimm attacked Argus was because of Caroline over-reacting to Maria and breaking out her mech instead of scrambling fighters as Qrow predicts they will. Caroline is solely at fault for the Leviathan getting as close to destroying Argus as it did, so it’s difficult to care when she pulls her head out of her ass to do her job. 

A lack of investment also means a lack of emotional dedication, which I think showed in the lack of fanart Caroline has generated since her reveal. Her design being very drab and militaristic doesn’t help matters but unlike say, the Yang/Adam rematch where the stakes were present on an emotional and thematic level, Caroline failed to excite the audience beyond a few funny memes. 

The additional problem with lacking in emotional dedication/investment is, again, we don’t have enough interest in Caroline to take her seriously, she goes in one episode from the Kooky Racist Grandma to someone we’re expected to sympathize with. And additionally, asking the fans to sympathize with a character whose opening scene includes a not-too-subtle dig at her Faunus traits was asking a lot of the fandom, especially after the previous years showed that the show’s handling of the Faunus racism plot was... varied in quality. 

In short, Cordovin basically took a shotgun to her own foot in her first scene. Establishing her as an over the top comic relief character before expecting the audience to care when she broke out a walking advertisement for gen;LOCK was an extensive reach for the writers to try and unfortunately they fell flat. Trying to make the audience care for the problem she herself created is a similar long-reach. Hopefully this extended comedy sequence depiction of the Atlas military will be left behind as Volume 7 heads into the heart of darkness itself. 

3) Oscar desperately needs limelight

Oscar’s been in the show now for three volumes. He spent much of Volume 4 on his own, much of Volume 5 as Ozpin’s meat-sack, and now in Volume 6 he finally gets to... get some clothes. I like them, but they’re not suitable compensation for the character development that he clearly had stolen from him.

Oscar is easily the most underdeveloped main hero right now, and it’s a problem that’s haunted the series since Volume 4. Oscar wants to be a hero much like Ruby herself did as a child, but this sole fragment of backstory is never used to make a connection to Ruby. Aaron Dismuke, bless his heart, is giving this show his all and his impression of Shannon McCormack’s tones must be applauded, but much like Cordovin he’s not given much to work with. In a way, he’s almost the hero’s version of Cinder- a character who keeps finding themselves in situations where they should realistically develop as a consequence... only for each time they do, it either gets shuffled into the next volume or relegated to offscreen happenings. 

Volume 6 really should have had Oscar undergoing some kind of arc, be it his fear at being persecuted by Team RWBY and Qrow due to harboring Ozpin, his fear as his days as himself become more and more numbered, his acceptance of the fight against Salem or, most glaringly, his running off while the team is in Argus. But every time, Oscar just powers through these circumstances and never gets to develop from them. He never holds it over Qrow that he attacked a child, that Yang indirectly called him a bastard, he never thanks Ruby for having his back after the train crash, and he brushes off Jaune’s apology for smashing him into a wall and alleging he’s Ozpin masquerading himself as Oscar. 

Argus is really where Oscar should have stepped into his own. I was looking forward to him going solo and having to fend for himself for a short while, maybe have a scene where he forces Ozpin to come out and talk or gets to chat with Ozma himself about his place in the war against Salem. Have him be scared of losing his personality and just becoming another body for Oz to inhibit, have him be angry that his dreams of being a hero have been cruelly dashed on the rocks for some agenda he never signed up to. Oscar should be an emotional hurricane and instead he’s just a gust of wind. 

Seriously show, you had a golden opportunity for an Ozma and Oscar scene since we know Oz can speak to his past selves, and you know Arron has enough range to do both roles at once, why do you spite my farmboi. 

But he got a coat now so I guess that’s technically development. Kerry admitted in the Rewind for Volume 6′s finale that some parts of the season got pushed to the next one as they usually do, and I can only hope that Oscar finally expressing emotion was one such scene because Christ alive, he needs it after all the times he just got over crap offscreen this year. I want to like Oscar, he could easily have one of the most tragic arcs of the entire show if they went with it, but the show really needs to give me something to like about him in the first place. Or else he really will become the heroic Cinder, trapped forever in a nightmarish world of never getting to properly develop in spite of countless opportunities being handed to them on a silver platter.

... I still think Oscar lifted Qrow’s wallet for that costume btw. 

4) The reaction to Jinn’s story felt lockstep

I don’t have as much to say on this point but I find it rather saddening that all of the characters have much the same reaction to the truth of Ozma’s past- “Salem can’t be killed, you were leading us on for nothing”- when the weeks around the Ozma reveal had the fandom reacting to the story in a far more diverse way. Even in the hiatus we still have arguments over whether Ozpin was truly in the right or if the story was painting Salem as the true innocent party, to say nothing of the takes that Salem and Ozma’s relationship could be seen as an early iteration of Arkos or even Taruadonna with Salem as the abuser. 

The fandom had such a diverse range of reactions to Jinn’s story, with everyone seeming to have their own take on the episode and the truth wherein. Some people even used this to ponder if Summer Rose had learned the truth during her time and tied it in with Red Like Roses 2, where she laments having made a necessary sacrifice, to ask if Summer had learned the truth and bitterly signed on to the war against Salem in the hopes that she’d be able to turn the tide thanks to her Silver Eyes. 

“Just because I have to give you this origin story doesn’t mean you’re gonna take the right lessons from it.” 

Some idiots even decided that this meant Oz was the main villain now, but I’ve learned to drown those people out. 

But the show itself has a very flat range of reactions, with nearly everyone in-universe only taking away from the story that Salem cannot be conventionally killed and that therefore their entire journey is pointless. Everyone had the same reaction, with the only levels of variance being how angry they were at Ozpin and Oscar, ranging from Ruby’s “ask first if they have a plan and then be angry at Oz specifically” to Qrow and Jaune’s “physically assaulting a fourteen year old child.”  

It almost makes me wonder, if the characters themselves didn’t take anything from the lesson barring Maria connecting the Silver Eyes to the God of Light and that “SALEM CAN’T BE KILLED,” why should the fans? No one took this and went “OK so we can’t stop Salem with force, maybe try talking her down?” Their minds all immediately went to not just being able to shoot her.

Jinn’s story was great, but the reaction to it in universe felt very lacking and I only worry that the more people are told about it, the more chances we’ll get to hear a variant of “Salem can’t be killed.” It’s a shame that such a morally gray out of universe debate has been stripped to its raw components in-universe. 

Conclusion

Volume 6 was really good, I really liked a lot of it and it still warms my heart that I can say that about a season of RWBY post Volume 5. But there’s still a lot of work that can be done behind the scenes to fix up the flaws remaining. I chose three big flaws here but there are a few more I could bring up for quick points (mostly: Weiss getting shafted entirely in V6 feels like an overly corrective backlash to her constantly getting slaughtered in V5, Ruby’s agency does not substitute for a character arc and she still needs one, the introduction of the Faunus in Ozma’s flashbacks felt very contrived, Ren and Nora continue to feel useless to the wider plot but at least this time Ren wasn’t getting bodied every fight, so on and so forth), but ultimately we got more good than bad, and you don’t throw out an entire batch of apples just because of one rotten one near the top. I can forgive a lot more when the overall product is good, and Volume 6 certainly was a good season. Hopefully with these smaller problems fixed, which mostly just extends to “Give Cinder and Oscar onscreen development,” Volume 7 and onwards can keep the show moving forward into a brighter future and a better tomorrow.

[notimetoblog]

Not Happening

Summary: An online dating site clearly makes a mistake when it matches you with the one person you cannot stand. 

A/N: I’ve been meaning to write another story yet I somehow always manage to become stuck. To get my mind off it, I started to rematch Parks and Rec and got the idea for this fic lol. I'm thinking of giving it a few chapters and making it a mini series. The inspiration came from the episode “Soulmates” from the third season of the show. I’ll just be using the basic premise of the episode, this story wont follow it exactly. I’m also picturing this as a modern au :).  I hope you guys like it!! Thanks for reading as always. 

MY STORIES

Meet us downstairs in 5

Panic raced through your body as you realized you only had 5 minutes to meet Nat and Wanda. They had texted you almost two hours ago hoping you’d join them for coffee and you had, of course, left getting ready until the end.

Running to your closet you picked up the closest clothing items and threw them on, hoping you didn’t look too much of a mess. You gave yourself a quick look in the mirror, knowing there wasn’t enough time to do much more, grabbed your purse, and raced down the stairs. 

Everybody knew Nat was a stickler for punctuality. It was her mission in life to be early to anything and everything she was ever invited to. Although she would never admit it, she always tried her best to rub off her punctuality to her friends, becoming easily annoyed when Tony or Sam claimed to be “fashionably late”. This was just a casual meeting with friends, but still, your survival instincts told you not to keep Nat waiting. 

Exciting your building you looked up and down the street, a smile spreading across your face when you spotted your friends.

“Hey guys,” you said as you approached them, giving them a small wave. 

“Hi,” they greeted in unison. Wanda was adjusting a cross body bag she wore as they began walking towards you.

You had known Nat and Wanda for several years now. Luck had placed all three of you in the same class in high school and you had become inseparable ever since. All three of your personalities complimented each other perfectly. Nat’s usual intense approach to life was balanced out by Wanda’s more easy-going attitude. You usually found yourself in between the two with a not so intense yet not so carefree attitude, finishing off the perfect mixture for a lasting friendship. 

--

“So, you’re saying he was a dud,” Nat said with a smirk from behind her coffee cup. She had been showing a lot of interest in your love life, well to state more accurately, your non-existent love life.

The three of you were sipping on your coffee, casually conversing about a series of topics that had ranged from the recent news, to World Cup, to the date you had been on a few nights ago. If you knew anything about Nat and Wanda was that if they had something they wanted to know about you, they would most likely be able to ease it out of you. So, you carefully listened to their questions hoping to see where they were steering the conversation.

“That’s not what I said,” you replied with a chuckle. 

A few nights ago, you had gone out to dinner with Jake, a new coworker. It had been a nice date. He had been a gentleman, opening doors and pulling out chairs, listening to you talk about your interests, had been very good at keeping the conversation going, yet after you had said goodbye you realized it felt more like you had hung out with Nat or Wanda. There had been no sparks, just a lovely beginning to a new friendship.

“He’s a great guy,” you continued, ignoring the sarcastic sounds of agreement both your friends were making. “He is! He’s kind, a great listener, but you know, he’s more of a guy that would make an excellent friend.”

“Fine,” Nat said, teasingly rolling her eyes. “If we’re getting technical, I guess you could say that even though he wasn’t a dud, the date was. Is that more accurate?”

“Yes!” you said, mockingly slamming your hands on the table. “That’s exactly it!”

“Well,” Wanda began and the way she drew out that word made you a tad nervous. “Maybe you can try looking somewhere else?”

“Come on, just spit it out Wanda,” you said knowing very well she must have been thinking something up with Nat if they seemed this interested in who you were or weren’t dating.

“Alright,” she said with a laugh. “Why don’t you look online? You know, on one of those dating sites. Maybe you can find someone there? Even if it’s just to have a little fun.”

“Yeah, I don’t think so,” you said shaking your head. “That’s kind of weird, no? Like I’m just supposed to feel a connection to someone simply by seeing their picture?”

“Well not exactly,” Nat jumped in. “See you write down your interests, so the site matches you with people who are into the same things.”

“Oh,” you said starting to consider making yourself a profile. It wouldn’t hurt to try, you thought.

“And I mean, maybe you don’t find your future husband, but maybe you find a few nice guys you get to hang out with,” Nat said. She leaned a bit forward on the table giving you a reassuring smile. “And you don’t have to accept to go out with anyone if you don’t want to. Just because you match with someone doesn’t mean you’ll have to meet.”

“Well,” you began. Your thoughts raced hoping this wouldn’t be as bad as you had originally thought. “I mean, I guess I could give it a try,” you smiled.

“Great!” Wanda said a bit too loud causing those around you to look your way. “Sorry,” she said, her hands up in an apologetic gesture. “We can build your profile right now!”

You were starting to question how they would be able to do that, but all your questions were answered as she pulled out a laptop from her bag. 

“You guys planned this, didn’t you?” you said. You stared at them, piercing your eyes to let them know you were clearly suspicious of them.

“We just hoped you’d agree,” Nat said with a shrug. “We didn’t just invite you out for coffee for this. We really did want to hang out.”

“Fine,” you said with mock anger. “I’ll choose to believe you ONLY because you paid for my coffee and because you have graciously accepted to also buy me lunch.

“I didn’t,” she replied. “That was not a par-“

“Ok!” Wanda cut her off. “The first question says to describe yourself.”

“Let’s see,” you said, surprised at how fast she had pulled up the page. Knowing her, though, she had probably already saved it on her laptop for easy access. “I love to read and die for candy, another treat Nat has offered to buy me.”

“Ok. Sexy, well read, and loves the sweeter things in life,” Wanda said as she typed the description onto your profile.

“Much better,” you said with a chuckle. 

“Favorite place?” Wanda asked.

“Um.. Oh! The small community garden that’s right by my place. It has this cute bench right by a patch of flowers.”

“Really?” Nat asked. “It can be anywhere in the world. Paris, Hawaii, the Grand Canyon?”

“Nope,” you said as you pictured the bench you were talking about, a smile appearing on your lips at the peace sitting there usually brought. It had a great view of this patch of colorful flowers. If your sat at the perfect spot, you could pretend it wasn’t only a patch, but a meadow that extended as far as your eye could see. “Just the little bench in that garden.”

“What do you think of dogs?” Wanda asked after having typed your response.

“Love,” you replied quickly.

“Cats?”

“Love.”

“Fish?”

“Love”

“Turtles?”

“No opinion,” a serious tone suddenly overtook your voice. Nat and Wanda both turned to you with a confused look. “They’re condescending,” you said nonchalantly. 

“Ok” Wanda said with amusement. “Describe your ideal man.”

“Oh gosh. I mean, mysterious.”

“Mhmm,” Nat nodded in agreement as she took another sip of her coffee.

“Funny, intelligent, kind, caring, great listener, not afraid to show emotion or of commitment, handsome, romantic, can build stuff, doesn’t mind getting caught in the rain, can row a boat.”

“You’re just describing Noah Calhoun from The Notebook,” Wanda snorted. 

“Mmm,” you said with a smile. “I mean if this thing,” you said pointing at the computer, “can find me a Noah Calhoun then I might just kiss it.”

“Who’s this poor Noah guy?” an intruding male voice caused you all to look behind you. “And can I just tell him how sorry I am that he might be stuck with you? It’s the least I can do for the guy.”

You rolled your eyes as you realized Bucky was the one speaking. The two of you had met thanks to your mutual friend Steve and had never gotten along. He was so full of himself, thinking he was high and mighty and could get whatever he wanted. His cocky attitude had instantly caused you to suppress voicing some of your strongest opinions on him for Steve’s sake. You were still unsure of how he and Steve could be friends. Steve was so kind and sweet, and Bucky was the embodiment of all your pet peeves and then some. 

Pulling up a chair from the table next to you, he took a seat next to Wanda, who thankfully immediately closed her laptop before Bucky could see what you had been working on. 

“Hi Nat,” Bucky flashed a smile to the red head who responded with a quick hello. “Wanda,” he said, playfully bumping his shoulder with hers. 

“Hi Buck,” Wanda responded. 

After being invited to a get together at Steve’s place, Bucky had met both Nat and Wanda. Neither of your friends had found Bucky as off putting as you had made him out to be. They accompanied you ready to hate Bucky’s guts as much as you did, but left chatting about how funny and interesting he was. You had rolled your eyes telling them once they saw him as many times as you had, they would be singing a different tune. Unfortunately for you, though, that had not happened just yet. On the contrary, Bucky seemed to charm them more every time.

“So why are you trying to ruin this guy’s day, Y/N?”

“Shut it Barnes,” you snapped back at him. “You’re rudely interrupting a conversation, by the way, so why don’t you just leave us alone.”

“Ouch,” he said, mockingly placing a hand over his heart. “And here I was thinking you’d be happy to see me, doll.”

“I doubt you’ll ever get that reaction from me. I’ve already had enough of you to last two lifetimes.”

“Did you get dressed in the dark?” he asked, pointing at your clothes, which you had hastily thrown on.

“Shut up,” you replied, an edge to your voice only he was able to bring out. “It’s not like you’re much of a fashion expert.”

“Maybe,” he chuckled as he raised an eyebrow, unbothered by your evident unhappiness with his presence. “But even I know those colors clash. Anyway,” he said directing his gaze to Nat. “What were you guys talking about?”

“Nothing much,” she replied with a slight smile. “Just planning our day.”

You looked over at her, hoping she could sense the waves of gratitude you were trying to telepathically send her way, for not letting Bucky know about your online profile. He would surely tease you about it until you pulled your hair out.

 “Well, if you guys are interested there’s this new photo gallery one of my buddies just opened up. He asked me to invite all the cool people I know, so sorry Y/N, but this invitation is just for Nat and Wanda,” a smirk you wish you could punch away spread across his lips. You stared back at him with a deathly glare mentally willing him to just disappear. He just had this way of getting under your skin with anything he said or did. He could be standing half a mile away from you, looking in the opposite direction, and he would still manage to piss you off. 

‘Whatever’, you mouthed as you rolled your eyes at him. 

“It opens tonight at 8,” he said as he (finally) began standing up and handed a small flyer to Wanda. “And you know what? I’ll be nice and also extend the invitation to you Y/N. Don’t say I’ve never done anything for you,” he said with a wink; a very stupid and irritating wink. 

“We’ll be there,” Nat said with a laugh. For some reason she always found Bucky’s attitude towards you humorous. You looked at her incredulously, taking back all the gratitude you had sent her way before. 

“Awesome,” he said. “Look forward to seeing two of you tonight.”

With that he turned and walked out the coffee place. 

“You did not just accept an invitation from that idiot!” You glared at Nat, who continued to laugh. 

“I did,” she finally said after managing to control her laughter. 

“Wanda!” you said looking for back up. “Surely you see the evil I’m trying to fight off.”

She chuckled, “Y/N, he’s a just an idiot around you and he did invite you too at the end.”

You crossed your arms across your chest. 

“You two can have fun at this lame photo exhibit because you can forget about me going. I don’t think I’ll be able to pretend to get along with him at a public function.”

“We’ll talk about that later,” Nat said, waving her hands as if that could easily dismiss your hatred towards Bucky. “Let’s finish up your profile.”

“Yes!” Wanda said, having seemingly forgotten about it thanks to Bucky. “I just have to upload your info and a picture.”

After taking out her phone, she and Nat helped you take a nice picture, helping you find your best angle and arranging your hair the most flattering way. You approved a picture, and Wanda uploaded it to your profile. 

“Now, you can start looking through a few profiles or you can wait until the system finds you someone they think might be a good match.”

“Lets just start looking,” you leaned forward to get a better look at the computer screen. 

“Wait!” Wanda yelled, startling  both Nat and you. 

“What is it?” Nat asked a bit worried at Wanda’s sudden exclamation. 

“You got a match!” Wanda said, all but bouncing up and down on her seat.��

“Really?!?” you said a bit too excitedly; something that did not go unnoticed by Nat who chuckled. 

“Oh my god,” Wanda continued reaching out for your hand. “It’s a 98% match! That’s a soulmate level match. I’ve never seen anything this high before.”

You squealed unable to hold back your excitement. What if this online dating site actually guided you to your perfect match. Maybe you really were about to find your own Noah Calhoun. 

“This computer might’ve actually just found the future Mr. Y/L/N,” Nat said.

“Who is he!?” you asked scanning the screen and not seeing any information on him. 

“Click right here,” Wanda said pointing to a small red box in the center of the screen. “That will take you to his profile.”

Nat gave you a drumroll by banging her hands on the table as you moved the cursor to the little red box. 

After a pause for dramatic effect, you gave the box a click.

“Ah!” you recoiled as Nat and Wanda double over besides you with laughter. 

Staring right back at you was a picture of a man, leaning on a motorcycle, wearing a black leather jacket. He looked off to one side, trying to make this clearly posed picture look like a candid shot. His eyes were too familiar, despite them looking to one side, his voice already nagging in your mind. 

His name was written across the top of the page, in bold black letters, mocking you.

JAMES BARNES. 

This HAD to be a joke. 

PART 2

---

 Bucky Tags!

@camillechan @just-add-butter @buckyisthepuresthuman @carry-on-my-fandom  @creideamhgradochas @sixweekcure4dreams @verycoolveryunique @dugan365 @jitterbuck @buckysmusculararm @headinthe-fridge @buckybarnesappreciationsociety @hedwigthelegend @sappybarnes @sold-my-soul-in-2016 @coal000 @the-soldiers @natcad @winters-beauty @dixonsbugaboo   @sawdustandsugar @silverbvcky  @whyugottabsorude @theoutlinez @killjoynotes  @agentpegcxrter @demonspawn2468 @mlehbleh @books-movies-eternal @buckysbeech @thefridgeismybestie @lionheo04 @pinkfairyfluff @imaginecrushes  @cauraphernelia                             

[the-lupine-sojourner]

Takara Yamada’s Hero Academia Season 1 Episode 8 [Eijiro Kirishima/OC] [Female!Aizawa/Hizashi]

Guys, we are super close to the point I’ve been wanting to write in this series practically since I started writing this series! Next chapter features the beginning of what I am talking about through a thin veil. 

Anyway, I know I’ve said it a lot, but if anyone wants to send me an Ask with predictions about how the next few episodes will go, I would literally love it so much! 

Taglist: @dailyojiromashirao, @elite-guard-hardygal (Dude I can’t wait to write these next chapters! You know why! XD), and @fandoms-fandoms-everywhere99! These are all lovely, lovely people and I adore them. 

Anyway, the Masterlist, as usual, and now we go to the story!!

I really hope you all like this chapter!!

God Bless and Good Day!

~The Lupine Sojourner

But now, with Izuku previously being Quirkless (thus, probably a weakling in Katsuki’s eyes), but ‘suddenly getting a Quirk’ and then winning against Katsuki, to boot, it probably whacked the guy real hard.

I had to talk to him after class. This kid definitely had issues. A lot of them.

And Lord knows those people are the ones I can’t resist at least attempting to help.Let’s just hope I make it out alive.

The tension in the room could be cut with a knife.

Toshin-Oji chose to cut it with words. “Well, despite the results,” All Might begins, “the MVP of this exercise is young Iida!” He proclaims, and I see why instantly.

Throughout the entire fifteen minutes, Iida had remained squarely on the training, playing the role he was assigned with as much seriousness and determination as he would approach class.

However, no one else seems to get it and shocked murmurs ring the group. I chuckle. These guys were idiots…

“Shouldn’t it be one of the heroes, instead, since they’re the winners?” The girl with dark green hair asks, brow raised in confusion.

“Hmm, valid question!” All Might replies. “Why didn’t I chose one of those two? Who has a guess?” In the following silence, I raise my hand, but Momo begins right away.

“Sir, I can tell you why.” She says, hand raised, but eyes closed in thought. “Iida embraced this challenge. He was the only one who truly adapted to his assigned role.” She says, hand still raised. I nod in agreement, but let her speak. After all, she was putting it far more eloquently into words than I could. “I’ll explain; Bakugo’s judgement was clouded by a personal grudge against Midoriya. As you pointed out earlier, launching a large-scale attack indoors was a foolish move. It could have been disastrous.”

“It was disastrous.” I mumble under my breath, arms crossed over my chest as Momo continued, not having heard me.

“Similarly, Midoriya’s attack was also poorly thought out, considering the amount of damage he received. He rendered himself helpless; not smart.” I initially grit my teeth and prepare to defend Izuku, but then take a second to think and find that, yeah, she was right. Izuku, unable to think of anything else, launched a desperate, last-ditch effort to win, but what if it hadn’t worked? It would have been a quick win for the villains if the fight had had to continue. So I deflate and listen. “As for Uraraka, she let her guard down mid-battle, and her final attack was far too reckless, given the hypothetical stakes.” Wow. Gotta hand it to Momo; she really pays attention. Everyone is looking at her in awe as she keeps speaking without opening her eyes. “If she’d treated the weapon as if it were real, she never would have used such an imprecise move.” She finally opens her eyes to look at Tenya, who still looks shell-shocked at the praise of being MVP. “Iida was fully prepared for his opponent’s arrival. He had a strategy and never lost sight of his mission to protect the dummy weapon, even if he was foiled in the end.” Tenya leans back a little hand over his heart and goofy, overwhelmed smile on his face. “Technically, the hero team won, yes, but they took advantage of the fact that this was training. They didn’t respect the spirit of the trial” I pick my jaw up off the floor and give her a thumbs up.

“Right on, Momo!” I praise. “I had a less eloquent and in-depth version of the points you made in mind.” All Might is stunned by Momo’s analysis, as is everyone else, but he recovers quickly.

“Yes, well, you overlooked a few things; young Iida could have relaxed a but during the exercise, but otherwise you nailed it!” I chuckle as he gives her a thumbs up, as well.

“One should always start with the basics and devote themselves wholeheartedly to learning. That’s the only real way to become a top hero.” I decide I like Momo a lot, grinning at her even though she can’t see it. She had a logical, sound head on her shoulders and the drive needed to accomplish her dreams. She wasn’t above helping others along the way, either, unlike Katsuki, who literally blasted everyone and everything out of his way to get to where he wanted to go. 

Speaking of Katsuki, he’d been uncharacteristically silent during the whole speech Momo gave. In fact, beyond telling me to back off, he hadn’t said a word since Izuku collapsed and the training ended. Despite what he’d done, despite knowing his personality and the way he’d react if I tried to help him, I can’t help feeling a small bit worried about him.

“Now then,” All Might calls, bringing me back to reality. “time to blow this joint! Let’s move on to the next match! Think about everything you saw and discussed as you tackle this training for yourself.” He instructs and we all agree. However, I take another look at Katsuki and see that his eyes are wide. He’s not trembling, but something’s eating him alive, I can tell. I really wanted to talk to him, but have to pay attention to the drawing of the lots to see who’d go next. Toshin-Oji draws two balls again and holds them up for us to see. “These two teams will be the next to fight!” He cries. It’s team B as the heroes and team I as the villains. I look over and see the boy half-covered in ice look at the tall boy with six arms. They were the heroes.

A little ways away, Mashirao walks over to a floating pair of gloves. I blink, then remember that there’d been a girl in a school uniform completely invisible. They formed the villain team for this round. I notice for the first time that Mashirao wears a white karate gi and no shoes. Interesting. All Might tells the teams where to go, having a different building for every team so it would be fair. He even told us their names. Ice-boy was Shoto Todoroki, and I can’t help but draw the instant connection to Endeavor. Denki voices this connection and Shoto growls, but doesn’t say anything. Weird. His partner, six-armed boy, is Mezo Shoji. The invisible girl was Toru Hagakare. The teams nod and head out. I wonder how this will turn out.

The five minutes pass quick and soon enough, Shoto and Shoji are given the signal to advance. “Look alive, kids! Show us you’re the embodiment of good- -or, evil- -let’s go!” All Might declares and the hero team enters the building.

Mezo’s six arms fan out and- -whoa! He can make ears on the ends of his arms! That’s so cool! One of the ears turns into a mouth when Shoto walks over. They briefly discuss whatever intel Mezo gathered, then Shoto walks over to the wall, ice quickly leaping out and encasing the hall, creeping over the entire building! I note the discarded shoes and grimace.

“Holy crap!” I exclaim. “That’s insane! The entire area is completely frozen! The villains can’t even move!” I add, shivering at the sudden drop in temperature. The dude was good! Crazy good!

“He incapacitated them without compromising the weapon or his teammate! Take close note of his technique, students.” All Might instructs.

“Soon as I thaw out, I will.” I reply, shivering.

“He’s so strong!” Eijiro murmurs. I nod.

“Yeah. I couldn’t submerge the entire building in water even if I wanted to.” I note under my breath to him. He is about to say something when All Might accidentally cuts him off.

“The hero team wins!” He exclaims, and I look to see that Shoto has his hand on the weapon and the ice suddenly melts before Shoto turns to Mashirao, saying something to his opponent before walking back outside. Huh?! Wait...that means...

“He has two Quirks like me!” I gush. For some reason, that fact made me super happy.

“Yeah, but that guy’s kinda intimidating.” Denki says, leaning toward me a little.

“We...well, this guy got in through recommendations, so he must be good.” I reply. And to think...I would have had to compete with him and Momo if I’d gone through with the recommendation. Eesh. I wouldn’t have stood a chance!

“Moving on, time to gather ‘round and review the second match! After that, we’ll jet on over to our next battle.”

“Yessir!” We chorused. All Might then snaps his fingers. 

“I have an idea!” He cheers, then points at me. “Seeing as the other member of the hero team and the villains hardly saw any action, why not have the next match be a kind-of rematch, with Yamada taking young Todoroki’s place on the hero team against Ojiro and Hagakure? They’d be the next matchup, then we’d draw lots for the next round afterwards.” No one argues and I gulp. At least Shoto wasn’t fighting this time...but now I’d have to fight, no holds barred.

Oh, boy…

“Now,” All Might begins and I am snapped from my thoughts. “Obviously, there wasn’t much fighting, but a quick resolution is often preferable to a drawn-out fight.” He says. “Once again, the MVP is not one of the winners. It is young Hagakure! Can anyone guess why?” I raise my hand before Momo can give another speech.

“Sir, I think it’s because Toru had, like Tenya, developed a viable strategy to help her teammate and win the round. Though her team weren’t the victors, Hagakure used her Quirk to their advantage and wasn’t afraid to do what it took to ensure victory.” I say. All Might gives me a thumbs up.

“Very good, Yamada! Precisely my reasoning!” Toru’s gloves are up in what I think would be a gesture to hide her face were it visible. I give her a thumbs up and she shyly gives me one back.

=#=#=#=#=

“So...I guess I don’t really have a strategy here.” Mezo confesses once our five minute planning session starts. I gulp and nod.

“Oh, don’t worry; I’ve barely any idea what I’m doing, either. Um...Not to be rude, but your Quirk is fairly obvious- -and really cool!- -so, ah, if it’s okay, let me briefly sum up my Quirks.” I feel a lot less flustered when Mezo nods encouragingly, “I got both my parents’ Quirks and can control Water and Earth, but am a lot better at Water.” Mezo nods.

“Interesting, but...I thought the Yamada Senseis were your parents.” I squirm a little and sigh. No use hiding it.

“Well, they’re my godparents.” I explain briefly. Mezo flinches, picking up the subtext easily.

“I’m sorry.” I smile and shrug. Really, it honestly...it honestly doesn’t hurt that much anymore. As sad as this is to say, I was so young when I lost my parents, I can hardly remember what they look like. It’s almost like the Yamadas are my biological parents.

“Don’t be. It happened a long time ago. Is it okay if I continue about my Quirks?” I ask politely. He nods.

“Of course.”

“There’s not much left. Mom- -Mrs. Yamada- -taught me a neat trick with my Earth Quirk; tracking. I can use the vibrations in the Earth to locate and track people when I concentrate, but not as well indoors. In other words, I’ll have to rely on you to get a clearer indication. Best I can do is general area and floor number.” Mezo nods.

“I can add to that, no problem.” I grin and stomp twice, sending out a wave of vibrations.

“I think they’re about two thirds of the way down the fourth floor away from us, so maybe we should go in on the third floor on this side to make sure we can surprise them.” I explain. Mezo nods again, but before he can reply verbally, All Might’s voice rings out for us to get moving, and an alarm sounds. I gulp. “Let’s go.” I mumble. I lead the way to the fire escape, a bit flustered and confused. How exactly had I ended up as team leader? Mezo is really nice, though, and I have a feeling he’d speak up if he didn’t like my ideas. As soon as we’re in, Mezo extends his arms and hones in on their location using his six ears. He then shifts them back to hands.

“Upper left end, and the invisible girl probably has her clothes off to sneak up on us.” I snort at the idea that Mashirao was paired with a naked girl he couldn’t see. I wonder how he’s taking it. I feel bad I didn’t watch their side of the match last time.

“Okay, so this will be simple. I have enough feedback from the vibration trick to at least tell where she is. As long as we know, we can react accordingly.” I pass a bathroom and gather water. Okay. Now I had a weapon. Good. I take a breath and keep moving. Every few steps, I’d check to see if I could get a better trace on Toru. So far, though, nothing. Then, I finally get a fairly clear sense of where she is. She was just around the corner. I grab my capture tape and grin. She didn’t know I knew where she was. Since she was so close, I could even tell her stance, leaning against the wall, waiting for us to pass her so she could do a sneak attack. I let us get level with her before grabbing her wrists suddenly, yanking them down and looping the capture tape around them.

“Hey, what?” She squeaks. “No fair! How’d you know?” I smile.

“Well, I have an Earth Quirk I can use to track you using vibrations. Sorry, Toru.” I explain. I hear a huff as I keep moving. We had to get past Mashirao next, then we could get to the weapon.

“I can handle Ojiro.” Mezo whispers, using his arm to form a mouth close to my ear. I barely refrain from flinching at the sudden voice in my ear and nod.

“Sounds good. I’ll focus on getting to the weapon and ending the round.”

“Right.” He agrees and we share a nod. Mashirao gets into a stance as I enter, quickly followed by Mezo. I grin and use the water to make a rod and prepare to vault over Mashirao.

“You two aren’t getting by me.” Mashirao says firmly. My grin turns into a smirk.

“We’ll see.” I then use the pole to launch at him, my feet connecting with his tail. I then extend the pole and push off it to apply more pressure to Mashirao’s tail, propelling myself over him and onto the ground inches from the weapon while Mezo seamlessly takes my place, restraining Mashirao easily in his six-armed embrace. I touch the weapon as I stand. “Sorry, Mashirao.” I murmur sheepishly. After all, he, once again, didn’t get to do much. He sighs.

“Don’t be sorry. We all did our best.” He says, but I can tell he’s upset.

“A resounding victory for the hero team!” All Might exclaims over the PA system.

“Maybe we can spare some time?” I propose. “I want to get a bit better at hand-to-hand combat and you seem to know your stuff.” Mashirao nods and I swear he’s blushing just a little.

“Oh, well, I guess. I’m not sure how much I can teach you, but I can try.” I grin.

“Great!” We exit the building and make our way back to the discussion room, lining up and facing the rest of our class. Eijiro gives me a thumbs up as All Might declares me the MVP and explains that I was the one to initiate planning and tells the class that my plan was solid, easily adaptable to the situation and worked well against the opponents’ Quirks. I blush and bite my lip. I had no idea what I was doing and just tried to think of a way to counter their abilities as best I could. Mezo was the one that restrained Mashirao and allowed me to grab the weapon. If Mashirao had been able to fight, I don’t know how it would have turned out.

Regardless, it was neat and the class seemed to agree so I let it slide. After all, in the months to come, we’d all have moments to shine.

The other battles seemed to go very quickly and soon enough we’re outside. All Might grins. “That’s a wrap!” He proclaims. “Super work! You really stepped up to the plate and we didn’t really have any major injuries except for Midoriya. You should be proud! Excellent first day of training all around!” All Might gives us a thumbs up. The green-haired girl raises her hand.

“It’s nice to hear some encouraging words after our homeroom class.” She says. Everyone shudders. I chuckle. They just had to get used to Mom’s ‘tough love’ personality. “Mrs. Yamada was kind of a buzz kill...no offense, Takara.” I laugh.

“It’s fine. You all just have to give her time to get used to you all. She’s really not that bad.” I reply, smiling. Denki raises a brow.

“You’ve also had your whole life with her.” He points out. I roll my eyes, but All Might continues before I can reply.

“I’m happy to bring such staggering positivity to my Alma Mater!” He cheers, then salutes. “That’s all for now, folks! I should go and check on young Midoriya’s progress! Now, watch how a pro exits; like he’s got somewhere to be!” He exclaims, sprinting down the exit tunnel and kicking up a fairly strong breeze in the process. I chuckle.

“That’s All Might for yah.” I muse.

“Yeah. That is a hero!” Denki murmurs in awe. Mashirao frowns.

“I’ll never be able to move that fast.” He moans. I shrug.

“All Might’s also been at this a long time. You’ll probably get way faster than you are now if you keep training.” He smiles.

“Yeah, You’re right!” I then walk towards the tunnel.

“I think I’ll join All Might after I get some food. I’m starving!” Eijiro jogs after me.

“Wait up! I’ll come, too!” I blink. I meant to go alone to talk to All Might about how he handled Izuku’s round of the exercise. Guess it’ll have to wait. I grin.

“Sure! I was gonna head to Lunch Rush then go to the infirmary after I change. Meet me outside the changing rooms, okay?” Eijiro nods.

“Okay!”

=#=#=#=#=

“This lesson was intense, huh?” Eijiro muses, frowning into his curry with extra beef. I sigh chewing a bite of beef oden thoughtfully.

“Yeah. I get why it’s important to learn fighting early on, but that was...something else.”

“I hope Midoriya’s okay.” Eijiro mumbles. “He was pretty burnt and his arm was definitely broken.” I nod.

“I trust Recovery Girl to help him.” I reply. “I think he’ll be okay in no time!”

“Do you think your Mom is gonna teach a little more, or are we done?”

“I heard from Dad that Mom has something going on at her agency today, so we’re done.”

“Oh.” Silence falls between us and we finish our food. “Wanna go see Midoriya?” I didn’t want to see just how bad he was right now, so I shake my head.

“No. I think I want to talk to Katsuki instead. That boy needs to get his head screwed straight.” I reply. I had also changed my mind because I couldn’t talk to All Might the way I wanted to in front of Eijiro without giving away that not only was I the daughter of a Pro Couple, but have also formed a Niece-Uncle relationship with the world’s top hero, All Might, on top of that. Eijiro already thought I was far above him just by who my parents were. I didn’t want to see what damage I could do by telling him about Toshin-Oji. Eijiro looks at me like I’m insane. “I can handle him. Be back to the classroom in a few minutes, okay?” He sighs, and I happened to catch the hothead stalking toward the exit. Eijiro gives me a nervous ‘good luck’ thumbs up and continues down to the classroom. “Hey, Katsuki. Can we talk?” I ask. He glares at me.

“Shove off.” He growls. I roll my eyes and tug him into a side room, closing the door. “What the hell?!” He spits, threatening me with those small explosions. I huff.

“Look, you’re talented and perhaps I overreacted just a smidge when I confronted you. For that I apologize. But I don’t take back the anger or what I said about you throwing a tantrum.” Katsuki glares at me.

“You better back up, Yamada. We aren’t friends and I couldn’t care less about what you have to say, so get out of my way.” I glare at him, rolling my eyes and continuing to block the door.

“But you do care about losing to Izuku. He’s a talented kid. You’ve just been throwing him down so much you missed a lot about him.” I surmise. “I can’t tell you about his Quirk, because I don’t know the details and it’s not my place, but I can tell you that he’s smart as a whip and can turn what he learns into strategies almost in an instant. You were great at combat, but failed to think ahead. That’s the only way Izuku beat you. You had him on the ropes in terms of raw power, since Izuku can’t use his without paying a steep price, but Izuku was a lot better at thinking ahead.” Katsuki grabs my tie and hauls me face-to-face with his livid red eyes.

“You shut your damn mouth!” He growls. I glare at him.

“You want to be a pro, right? You’re not a pro yet, not by a long shot. So, you should shut your damn mouth and learn everything you can at this school. If you do that, if you really take in everything and apply it, you’ll be what you want to be.” I reply. Katsuki looks stunned, so I take the moment to walk away. He had a lot to think about. Besides, I wanted to pop back into the classroom and say bye before I go find dad and go home. 

I don’t hear or see Katsuki leave the room I’d tugged him into, being too far away.

That, and I saw Izuku heading into the classroom, arm in a sling and looking nervous and tired. I chuckle and jog to catch up, hearing Eijiro call out in greeting. “Man, I don’t know what you were saying during your match, but you were all fired up, huh?” Eijiro’s saying as I enter.

“Yeah. It was pretty intense.” I add and Izuku is increasingly nervous at all this attention.

“But you held your own against Bakugo!” The boy I now know as Hanta Sero from the training, with tape in his elbows he can shoot out as his Quirk, says. “He’s super strong!”

“You did a great job dodging!” Mina exclaims, part of the now group of people surrounding Izuku.

“You really turned up in the first match so none of us held back in our rounds, either.” Everyone nods. The boy with the suit or armor, Yuga Aoyama, speaks up next, leaning out a little from his desk.

“You were far from elegant, but I suppose- -”

“Your dodging was like ‘whoa’!” Mina interjects happily, bouncing in excitement. I chuckle. What’s with her and dodging?

“Hey, I’m Eijiro Kirishima. We’ve been going over training results while you were in recovery.” Eijiro says. Hanta nods.

“Hi, I’m Hanta Sero.”

“More importantly, I’m Yuga- -”

“I’m Mina Ashido and I just gotta say your dodging was awesome!” Mina interrupts again. I snort and laugh. Seriously, what’s with her and this fixation on dodging? The green-haired girl, Tsuyu Asui, or Su as she likes to be called, is next to introduce herself. (Her Quirk makes her as close to a frog as a human can be, which I think is kinda cool!)

The big guy, Rikido Sato, leans in next. “Hey. Sato.” He says simply, pointing to his chest. Izuku looks flustered, but kinda happy.

“H-hey, guys.” He says. Suddenly, that purple-ball-haired creep, who was somehow paired with Momo and spent the entire time drooling over her outfit, Mineta, lunges up to Izuku’s eyeline.

“And my name’s Mineta!” He exclaims. I scoot away from him and laugh with the others.

“Where the heck did you pop out of?” Eijiro asks. I then move a little further into the classroom and spot Fumikage Tokoyami, the boy with the bird head. He had a really unique Quirk: a shadowy thing that came out of his body and helped him fight. I think he calls it Dark Shadow.

“Too noisy.” He muses, nodding to the group. I chuckle.

“Yeah, but they’re fun to hang around.” I reply and smile at Mashirao, who was standing next to the girl next to me, Kyoka Jiro, with the plugs of earbuds coming off her ears to let her eavesdrop and hear really quiet sounds, who scoffs.

“We’ll see.” I roll my eyes, but Tenya suddenly runs over.

“Tokoyami, stop using that desk as a chair! Get off of it this instant!” He exclaims, gesturing wildly with his arms. I laugh.

“Tenya, c’mon. He’s not doing anything wrong.” I point out.

“Yeah. You really need to chill, dude.” Kyoka adds.

“You’re carrying a lot of tension.” Mashirao points out. Tenya sighs.

“No one understands…” He groans, then stand straight and starts gesturing again. “I simply cannot condone actions that disrespect these desks! Not when great men and women, our upperclassmen, once used them!” I can’t help but burst out laughing.

“Tenya, dude, what makes you think they didn’t use these desks as chairs?” I counter. By now, we’ve drawn the attention of the rest of the class that’s in the room. Tenya groans, but pushes his glasses up and sighs in resignation.

“I...hadn’t considered that. Thank you, Yamada.” I wave it aside.

“Hey, don’t sweat it. Look, call me Takara, kay? Only fair, since I call everyone by their first name.” I reply. This was the second time I had reminded him, but it was okay. Tenya sticks his hand out for a handshake. Good Lord, was he serious?!

“Fair enough!” He says and I, restraining laughter, shake his hand to confirm we were on first name terms. Fumikage sighs.

“You two are also noisy.” He groans. Just then, Denki and Ochaco enter from the other door, Denki asking Ochaco where she likes to eat as they pass the doorway.

“Anything sweet.” She replies politely, then spots Izuku and jogs over. “Hey, Deku!” She calls, smiling. “Why didn’t you heal your injuries?” She asks. Izuku blushes and stammers.

“We-well, it has to do with how much stamina I’m using.” He explains. I wince.

“Yikes.”

“Stamina?” Ochacho asks. I nod.

“Yeah. Your body needs energy to heal, right? I bet that’s how Recovery Girl’s Quirk works; using your body’s stamina to kick-start the healing process.” Izuku nods.

“Yeah!” He then looks at Katsuki’s empty desk. Huh. Where’d he- -crap. He just went home? Seriously?

“Um, Uraraka?” Izuku asks, point to the desk. “Where’s Kacchan?” She raises a brow.

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him.” She replies with a shrug. I chuckle nervously.

“I talked to him a little. Just about tips for improving next time and how he should lay off and focus on learning everything he can. I didn’t mean to make him leave, but I guess- -hey! Izuku, wait! You shouldn’t be running with your arm!” I call as Izuku sprints down the hall. I take off after him. “Stop!” But he won’t. Realizing that it was probably best I didn’t talk to Katsuki yet again, I stay and just listen. If Izuku needs me, I’ll be right here.

“Kacchan! Wait up!” Izuku calls.

“What?!”

“I need to tell you something. Maybe then, you’ll understand what’s going on. I wasn’t hiding my Quirk from you. It was given to me by someone else recently.” I pale. Shit! What is Izuku doing?! “But I can’t tell you who I got it from, so don’t ask!” Izuku sighs. That was a very risky thing to say. Especially to someone who doesn’t like Katsuki. “Sounds crazy, I know; like something out of a comic book, only it’s real! The thing is, I don’t really have control over this power yet. I haven’t figured out how to make it my own, but I’m trying. That’s why I didn’t want to use it against you in the exercise, but in the end, it was the only way I had a chance of winning. I’ve still got a lot to learn, I know that. That’s why I’m here. You’ll see; I’ll work until I have full control of this borrowed Quirk, and I’ll finally beat you with my own power!” The silence lingers, filled with tension.

“How dumb do you think I am?!” Katsuki growls. “‘Borrowed power?! Don’t talk to me like I’m an idiot! I already got that lecture from that teacher’s brat!” I flinch. He didn’t take it the way I meant it! Crap! “You already made a fool outta me in that damn training exercise. So, did you come here to rub it in?! I lost, and to make matters worse it was to you! I came in first in the exam, but that’s not enough! When I was watching that ice guy, I realized I couldn’t beat him in a head-to-head fight!” The longer he’d talked, the angrier and more emotional Katsuki sounded. I might have to intervene if he gets violent. “Crap!” He screams. “I even agree with what those girls said, even that damn brat! My attack was so stupid and I wasn’t thinking! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!” I peek out to see Katsuki almost crying and Izuku standing there in shock. Katsuki then clenches his fist. “Enjoy that win, Deku! You won’t get another! I’m just getting started! Got that?! I’m gonna end up the number one hero, no matter what!” Katsuki then pivots and walks away, wiping his eyes. “You’ll never beat me again, you bastard. Don’t even try!” Izuku exhales and relaxes, but before I can leave my spot, All Might sprints past me, startling me.

“There you are!” He roars, running right for Katsuki. “Bakugo, I found you!” He then pants a little as he places his hands on Katsuki’s shoulders. “Just so you know, pride is an important attribute to have, but while you certainly have the ability to become a pro hero, there’s still plenty you have to learn!” I almost laugh. All Might was trying, but I doubt it’ll get through to Katsuki. After all, he took my advice as a lecture and didn’t take a single word to heart. Sure enough, Katsuki stiffens.

“Let go of me, All Might. Right now.” However, his voice was similar to the way he’d told me to ‘shove off’ when I barked at him in the monitoring room during the training exercise. He glares over his shoulder at All Might. “Save your speeches. I’ll be more famous than you and I’ll do it without your help.” All Might flinches, stunned. 

“Uh...right.” He murmurs, letting Bakugo walk away.

That kid wasn’t over what happened today. Not by a mile. But, I’d do what I could to help him out. Katsuki is one tough customer, but there’s a lot of potential there. He just has to stop wanting to blast and fight everything and getting pissed off at anything that goes wrong in his eyes. I guess I gotta add him to the list of people I’m trying to help. It seems like it gets longer every day, but that’s what comes with being a hero, right?

I readily accept the challenge!

[littlemisssquiggles]

RWBY Musings #49: The Bandit and the Assassin. A Squiggle Meister’s Views on Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black for the Future of RWBY.

@mojo72400​ asked “…Any emecury/jaded theories for vol. 6?” Anon-ninja asked “…Question: Thoughts on Merc and Emerald in the upcoming volume(s)? I just have this feeling that while they may get redeemed, it'd be at the cost of getting horribly injured/used by Salem in the process? I mean, with Cinder gone, Emerald is the Only maiden candidate team WTCH has. I imagine the walls are gonna start closing in on these two FAST. :/”

Squiggles Answers:

‘Sup up you two? It took me a while but at long last I’ve arrived at your respective musing. At first I had planned on keeping this nice and short (well...short for yours truly) because to be honest I didn’t have much theories on Merc and Emerald for the next season. However, in true squiggly fashion, as I started jotting down my points, it basically ended up delving deeper than expected.

Anyways I’ve kept you both waiting long enough. Y'know the drill, click forward and let's get into this, shall we?

An Unlikely Trio

I want Emerald and Mercury to stay with Hazel because I think together on their own without the influence of Salem, the three can form a strong family type of bond where they each will be able to compensate for relationships lost or never experienced in their respective pasts. For Mercury, he can possibly find a father figure in Hazel to make up for the lack of compassion and proper paternal guidance he never got from his own abusive drunk of a dad.

For Emerald, she can find compassion in others and learn to feel loved or cared for by another beyond Cinder Fall whose own influence on her was twisted. Emerald only turned to the dark side because of Cinder and was willing to do anything so long as Cinder approved.

According to RWBY Chibi, Emerald idealized Cinder as a proxy maternal figure. I guess to make up for an absence of a real family of her own since she has been surviving alone, starved on the streets of Mistral for many years using only her semblance as a means of perseverance until Cinder took her under her wing.

But I believe that Emerald will soon learn that she can find that kind of solace in Mercury; who will respect her as a close companion, possibly even a potential love interest later down the line if a romance is meant to spark between the two; and Hazel, as a big brother figure. I like the idea of Hazel coming to treat Emerald in the same nurturing and overprotective manner as he did for his deceased sister Gretchen. 

Perhaps Hazel will even begin to see a lot of his sister in Emerald or something along those lines. Speaking of Hazel and his eventual development. For the price of one, I think the Rainart man can gain two young adults that he can learn to treat as surrogate younger siblings for his sister.

A Squiggly Hunch about Hazel Rainart

I like the idea of Hazel eventually coming to his senses about his anger over Ozpin. If I’m being completely honest here, like a number of things about V5, I never quite bought Hazel’s whole revenge story about blaming Ozpin for what became of Gretchen.

Yes, Ozpin was the Headmaster at the time Gretchen was enrolled at Beacon however as Oscar rightfully justified, becoming a huntress was Gretchen’s choice. While it was unfortunate that she died on the battlefield, it doesn’t exclude the fact that it was a path she chose of her own accord and did it in spite of her brother’s disapproval.

This is why I’m hoping for a possible rematch between Oscar and Hazel in which Oscar performs some unexpected feat that reveals the truth to Hazel about the night Gretchen was killed. Either it’s a semblance unlock for Oscar where he gains the ability to probe Hazel’s mind and mentally share with him the memories of the night Ozpin spoke to Gretchen before her mission or perhaps something to do with the Oz-cane. Who knows?

All in all, I want the truth to soon come out to Hazel and once it’s done, I think he will switch sides or…y’know, be brutally killed off for his treason when Salem realizes that Hazel is no longer of use to her, like Lionheart. Though unlike Lionheart, Hazel would go down with a proper fight; dying strong with his corpse being donated for Watts to experiment on for Grimm-hybrid or Grimmoire research. Getting ahead of myself here but you get the idea.

For me, the satire with Hazel’s character is that he’s inspired by Hansel from Hansel and Gretel. As the fairy tale goes, Hansel and Gretel were a sibling pair who got lost in the woods and wandered into a gingerbread house owned by a wicked witch who tried fattening them up to eat them. But as we know, the siblings escape after tricking the witch and trapping her inside the very oven she’d planned to cook them in.

I find it ironic that Hazel is working with Salem, whose been classified as a wicked witch while his fairy-tale counterpart killed the evil witch in his story. Perhaps this is a sign to foreshadow Hazel’s redemption in a way.

Do you actually know what would make an interesting twist? What if… Salem had planned on recruiting Hazel from the start and had actually arranged for his sister’s death as a means of getting him to her side.

Suppose...Salem had sent a younger Tyrian Callows to recruit Hazel with the offer of granting him a much better lifestyle for him and his sister in exchange for his loyalty. Like let’s say, Hazel came from a poor family that had fallen on worse times. After his parents passed away, Hazel was made sole caretaker of his baby sister.

Despite the enticing proposal, Hazel refused since he couldn’t wholeheartedly trust the word of a stranger he had just met especially when he had more pressing matters to deal with, like his sister’ wellbeing.

Imagine…if it was revealed that Tyrian had murdered Gretchen at Salem’s behest. What if…during her training mission from Beacon Academy, Tyrian lured the naïve Gretchen into a trap where he murdered her like an animal cornered by its prey after separating her from her team.

The impression I got from Hazel’s side of the story was that he shared a deeper past with Ozpin. After all, Ozpin did comment to Oscar that he knew Hazel highlighting a history that possibly stemmed even before Gretchen’s involvement. I doubt Hazel’s sister becoming a student at Beacon and dying under Ozpin’s watch was the whole debacle.

Nah. Can’t be. Do you know what I think? What if…in his past, Hazel was a former professor at Beacon under Ozpin. It would make sense if that was the case, right? 

I think before Gretchen decided to become a huntsman, Hazel was a Beacon professor like Professor Port and Dr. Oobleck. He was probably given the position courtesy of Ozpin who decided to take a chance on him giving his harsh past and his strong ambition to care for his family.

Imagine…Hazel formally harbouring a strong respect and devotion to Ozpin, owing the old wizard a lot for helping him turn his life around. Perhaps, in their early years of Beacon Academy, Hazel and Ozpin were actually good friends and Hazel probably confided many secrets about his past in Ozpin because back then, Hazel trusted Ozpin like so many others. Ozpin was Hazel’s friend.

This would make Ozpin allowing Gretchen to attend Beacon while he was headmaster such a huge slap to the face for Hazel and would help clarify why he’d hold him fully responsible for her death.

Think about it. Picture yourself in Hazel’s shoes for a second. Imagine becoming a proxy parent at a tender age as you’re left to care for your baby sister, the only family left in your life after a period of hard times and it’s your responsibility to ensure her safety.

Picture struggling for many years to make a comfortable life for your sister to live in. Imagine meeting a man who literally changed your future---like a beacon shining a path towards a better tomorrow when you’ve been lost to the darkness for so long.

Because of this man, you were able to turn a new leaf. With a new job working under this man, you are provided with the resources to shape your life in a better direction and because of this change, suddenly things improved. You now have a better home. More food and your sister is able to grow up beautifully and safe.

Life is the brightest it’s ever been for you and your family and you owe it all to the man you met. A man named Ozpin. Ozpin had been your beacon in the night.

Imagine having great respect for Ozpin. Imagine even regarding him as an important friend because of his help and your comradery with him. As Hazel, you trust Oz.

Now imagine how you would feel if that same man you trusted so much then allowed your little sister---the same little sister you were trying to protect to enter a school that bred its students for a dangerous profession where she could likely die. Especially if you told said man time and time again that this is not the kind of lifestyle you envisioned for your sister to have.

Let’s say…Ruby Rose was not the first underage huntress Ozpin had allowed to attend Beacon ahead of time. Perhaps it was the same for Gretchen Rainart who probably met Oz when she was, I dunno, fourteen years old or something like that. Due to the strong potential she displayed when they first met, Oz asked Gretchen if she wanted to come to his school and of course, just like Ruby, she agreed. I think there is room for a potential parallel between Ruby Rose and Gretchen Rainart. 

But… here’s the thing too. Another hunch I have is that when Ozpin first met Gretchen, he had no clue that she was Hazel’s sister. Gretchen probably knew fully well who Ozpin was thanks to Hazel but Oz had never met Gretchen in the flesh before. My guess is that he had only seen her in an old photograph of her as a little girl with her family that Hazel would always keep with him. By the time Oz would finally encounter ‘Little Gretchen Rainart’, she would’ve grown into a rather rebellious but strong-willing teenager as opposed to the helpless child her older brother often proclaimed her to be.

It’d be interesting if Gretchen was like Jaune in the sense. While she didn’t fake her transcripts, she did however lie about her last name; going under a pseudo-surname because she didn’t want her brother knowing that she had enrolled at Beacon without his consent.

So I’m picturing a very awkward enrolment ceremony where Glynda Goodwitch is giving all the new first years a tour of the school grounds, introducing them to Professor Ozpin and all the other teachers.

This moment is then cut short when Hazel suddenly recognizes Gretchen in the crowd of students, expressing his disdain and shock at seeing his sister at Beacon in a booming roar that literally shook the compound while simultaneously scaring all the new students who were already intimidated on their first day to begin with.

While I’m not certain how old Gretchen Rainart was when she started Beacon, a part of me would like to believe that she started school around the time Team STQR was still present at the school just to keep things connected within the same timelines.

Perhaps Team STRQ were third years like Team CFVY were when Gretchen joined the school. But that’s just another hunch.

I’d imagine that Hazel furiously confronted Ozpin after embarrassing his sister in front of her fellow first years the way he did. However Ozpin is innocent in the matter because up until the first day of the Academy he didn’t know that the Gretchen he accepted into his school was the same little sister Gretchen related to Hazel. The same Gretchen Hazel had told him wanted to become a huntress but he strongly disapproved.

I’m picturing Hazel confronting Professor Ozpin and demanding that he expelled his sister from Beacon immediately. Ozpin, of course, would counter that while Gretchen did lie about her identity, it was only her last name and based on her brother’s reaction, the headmaster morally understood the girl’s decision to take action the way she did. Since her brother was behaving like a deranged lunatic, not that Oz would dare say that to Hazel’s face.

To make matters short, let’s say, Ozpin eventually convinced Hazel to give his blessing on allowing Gretchen to continue on as a student at Beacon. It was a difficult argument as Hazel was a stubborn mule of a man but Ozpin got him to turn around under the grounds that while Gretchen is at the school, Hazel could keep a watchful eye on her and Ozpin himself promised to ensure her utmost safety as he did with all the students in his care. This is a promise that Hazel took to heart as he told Ozpin, in a very grim tone that if anything were to happen to Gretchen under his leadership, he would hold him most responsible.

And…well…we all know how that turned out, right? I really feel like there is a deeper story involving Ozpin’s history with the Rainart Siblings. One that connects Hazel back to Beacon itself as one of its former professors. I mean it is plausible, at least in my opinion.

 Another theory I have, which is a big stretch is that Tyrian Callows also played a part in Gretchen’s death that Hazel wasn’t aware of. 

Here me out. Let’s say…when Ozpin permitted Hazel to watch over his sister at Beacon, the older Rainart took it to the extreme. Hazel would constantly intervene in Gretchen’s school affairs, from her education to her relationship with other students. This made Gretchen’s experience at Beacon very uncomfortable to say the least. As a result of her brother’s looming presence and him incessantly badgering Ozpin with his overprotectiveness, Gretchen didn’t have many friends. Either folks were too daunted by her relation to the fearsome Professor Rainart or were jealous of the occasional favouritism she received from the headmaster at her brother’s request.  Even her teammates didn’t like her which made cooperating with them very difficult on the training field.

All in all, Gretchen Rainart was alone---her dream of becoming a huntress at Beacon Academy to fight for her Kingdom of Vale being squandered away by her own blood and the very headmaster who claimed he chose her for her potential.

I’d like to think that the only friends Gretchen had at Beacon were third years at the school---Team STQR (mainly Tai and Summer) who were also favourites of Ozpin and another mysterious friend that Gretchen wouldn’t tell anyone about.

This mystery friend that Gretchen was associated with would then be a younger Tyrian Callows, who taking advantage of Gretchen’s loneliness, would become the instigator that would lead her to her eventual demise at his hands.

I really dig the idea of Tyrian being tied to Hazel’s sister because I dig the twist of Tyrian being the one who recruited Hazel to Salem’s side both before and after Gretchen’s death. I like that just as much as I like the twist of Hazel eventually learning that the very man he’d been fighting alongside all this time was his sister’s true killer. Just as much as I love the twist that Tyrian had only pursued Gretchen under his ‘goddess’ command meaning that Salem was also responsible for killing Gretchen.

I mean I had a feeling that Salem had something to do with Gretchen’s death already since my first assumption was that Gretchen got killed by a Grimm and the Grimm are connected to Salem. But as I pondered further, I came up with this better assumption of Salem moulding Hazel into the man he is now and that everything that has happened to him from the time of his sister’s death was all her doing.

She made Tyrian seduce his sister. She order Tyrian to murder his sister and she did it all to make him turn on Ozpin because Salem knew Hazel trusted Ozpin once before.

And as we know, Salem has a habit of making Ozpin’s former allies turn on him so…why not the same for Hazel too. This is only a theory but I quite like it because it gives a much broader correlation to Hazel’s backstory with Ozpin.  It’s what I think could make his eventual turn on Salem far greater than him just coming to terms with becoming a huntsmen being Gretchen’s choice and that no one was to blame for the outcome of said choice. Not even Ozpin.

So yeah, I think at some point Hazel will turn on Salem and when he does, Mercury might wish to join him too. Emerald on the other hand, may be conflicted in the matter.

As I mentioned earlier, I like the idea of Hazel learning to love Emerald the same way he did for Gretchen long ago, even calling her ‘little sister’. I think Emerald can find the family and loved ones she’s desired for so long in Mercury and Hazel. But what could thwart that is her reliance, somewhat Stockholm syndrome-like dependency of Cinder.

Some theorists have speculated Emerald becoming psychotic after the ‘loss’ of Cinder. I, on the other hand, don’t think it’d be that extreme. I think Emerald would become a more withdrawn person instead. I can just see Emerald being completely broken over Cinder to the point that she just turns into a vegetable---an empty shell of herself unable to comprehend what she was going to do with her life now that Cinder wasn’t there to guide her.

This is the reason why I would love to see Mercury step up and become a crutch for Emerald to lean on. For the life of me, I can’t gauge a plausible explanation as to why Mercury would want to follow Cinder. The closest excuse I could come up with is the possibility of Mercury previously having romantic feelings for Cinder in the past.

Sleeping with the Devil

 I mean, RWBY Chibi did hint at that last season. Weird. 

Perhaps once upon a time, Mercury was attracted to Cinder and his feelings for her were what motivated him to work for her. He was attracted to the way she would encourage him to be better and stronger and would stroke his ego if he was successful. But eventually Mercury fell out of love with Cinder when he found a quality in another woman he realized he liked even more than Cinder kissing his ass. When we first met Mercury, he wasn’t the character we now know him to be now. He was so much more serious---angrier.

Current Mercury actually cracks a smile and is prone to sarcastic jabs, mostly at Emerald. He also seems more carefree. I mean, he’s still got his wicked streak which has only been moulded by Cinder and the villain’s influence. However the part of Mercury’s personality that got my attention was his compassion towards Emerald. This was evidenced last volume in the finale episode.

Mercury could’ve easily left Emerald to be captured by the authorities. Not to sound heartless but he had every reason to since she was compromising his and Hazel’s escape after their mission during the Haven Battle was a failure.

If Mercury so desired, he and Hazel could have abandoned Emerald. But he didn’t. Instead Mercury spent a chunk of precious time urging Emerald for them to escape together. She was even the first person Mercury reached out to when captivity was imminent.

If Mercury was the type to truly value strength over signs of weakness then he could have abandoned Emerald to the mercy of the heroes. Instead he kept egging at her for them to go. Even when she fell unconscious he probably made sure that Hazel grabbed her before all three escaped. I think Emerald Sustrai is honestly the only character I’ve ever seen Mercury Black care about. I don’t even think he cares about Cinder that much. When the group learnt that Cinder was defeated, the only person who appeared affected by it the most was Emerald; naturally.

But Merc, he didn’t even bat an eyelash. He didn’t even accost the heroes, proclaiming revenge for taking down Cinder. Nope. Instead he looked to Emerald. His attention went straight to Emerald. His concern went straight to Emerald.

If you were to make the argument with me that Mercury only half cared about Cinder then I would’ve probably agreed with you on that matter especially following V5. I think the only thing that motivated Mercury towards Cinder was what she said to him in their backstory episode. In V3, C7, Cinder asked Mercury if he was anything like his father who was her original target in her recruiting strategy.

I think that’s the line that probably triggered Mercury to follow Cinder in her endeavours. I think all of his life, Mercury was trained to become the best assassin---pushed to be the strongest killer and brutally punished if he failed. The irony is I think Mercury did become the best assassin in the sense that he dethroned his own father by murdering him in cold blood. I think it was Cinder who pushed Mercury in the same manner that his dad did and it was for that reason why he followed her and was probably even interested in her at some point. They say that children who come from homes with ‘tough parents’ eventually pursue people who possess the same qualities that their parents did or something like that.

What if…Mercury did have the hots for Cinder and she used that to her advantage to get the young boy to dance to her whims; all the while using what little knowledge she knew of Mercury’s former relationship with his dad to motivate and even criticise him if he failed.

I mean Cinder once slapped Emerald when she became defiant, imagine how she punished Mercury when he joined the team.

 I know the prospect of sex is an adult theme that isn’t traditionally mentioned in RWBY. I mean I don’t expect RWBY to pull a Game of Thrones and suddenly start introducing characters doing the ole meet and greet between the sheets; even as the show’s cast and story matures with time. However…that being said, with Cinder being an attractive older woman whose been praised for her looks before and Mercury being a naïve teenage boy; lacking any affection from his past life---I’m just saying, I wouldn’t be surprised if Cinder ever used that as a ploy to manipulate Mercury in a sense.

I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if at some point in their relationship, Cinder would at times seduce Mercury to do her bidding by promising him sexual favours. That’s a more mature outlook on Mercury’s alliance to Cinder. The child-friendly version would be to say that Mercury was once in love with Cinder whereas the Rated R version would’ve been Mercury being involved in former sexual relationship with Cinder or…at least one where he would blindly follow the older woman for the promise of them being together romantically. 

Y’know like how Deathstroke manipulated the adolescent Terra using her love for him as a means of keeping her in line in Teen Titans Judas Contrast.

It could explain Emerald’s bit of highlighted jealously towards Mercury in previous seasons. Perhaps, there was a time when Emerald and Mercury would compete with each other for Cinder’s affections. I keep saying ‘at some point’ because we’ve never honestly gotten much signs of a rivalry between Mercury and Emerald over Cinder before.

It’s why I’m so confused on what his motivations for following her are. It’s why love is the one answer I can think of that made sense to me. I like it because it might sound ludicrous especially for a guy like Mercury but coincidentally it’s what fits given Mercury’s history especially with his dad. The impression I got from Mercury’s past is that his father was an abusive drunk who never cared about anyone, not even his own child so from the time he was born, Mercury was probably starved of any kind of emotional affection. And the lack of his mother not being in the picture either shows that he’s never had someone to care for him.

I wonder what happened to Mama Black anyways. Perhaps she died during childbirth which could justify Marcus Black’s abusive nature towards his son. Or… maybe Mama Black was previously Marcus’ original stepping stool and he would abuse her just as much as Mercury until one day she succumbed from her injuries and died.

Or perhaps Mama Black took off long after Mercury was born and didn’t even bother taking him with her. Those are three possibilities but my money’s on Mama Black being deceased with Marcus to blame for her death.

For all we know, Cinder Fall was probably the first woman to take an interest in Mercury and, it’s an interest he greatly appreciated and longed for. So I think Mercury could’ve been in love with Cinder. As I said, Chibi did hint at it.

I know the rule of thumb is to not associate things done in Chibi-verse with the canon. However…in regards to Mercury and Cinder, I actually found it kind of weird that Burning Steel (sorry, not sure what the name of the Mercury and Cinder ship is called) suddenly became Mercury’s gag for the latest season.

It came as a real surprise. Up until this point, in the main canon, it has never really been implied that Mercury shared feelings for Cinder. It was never even teased in the earlier seasons of Chibi. Yet, there it was in S3. Hmmm...

.Still, that’s one thing in Chibi I wouldn’t be surprised became canon next season. Perhaps Mercury was in love with Cinder at some point because firstly she gave him the feminine attention he never got as a boy raised by a single father. 

Secondly she encouraged him a way that was like his father while at the same time appealing to a side of him that desired to be better than his father.  Thirdly, she made Mercury feel powerful while his father probably made him feel powerless---powerless to stop his father’s drinking problems. 

Powerless to stop his father from forcing him into rigorous training regiments that stressed and destroyed his body. 

Powerless to stop his father when he would beat and punish him---sometimes for failing his training, other times just because he just wanted to use him as his personal punching bag to vent his anger on.I have this inkling of a hunch where Papa Black is the one responsible for Mercury losing his legs. Some fans have said Papa Black gave Mercury his trademark prosthetic legs. My hunch is the sadistic version of the story where Papa Black deliberately broke his son’s original legs to prove a point.

For the DC fans in the FNDM community, y’know how in the MCU, Thanos ‘experimented’ on Nebula every time she failed. Let’s say Mercury tried to run away from home once in his youth in the hopes of finding a better life somewhere but his ambitions were thwarted when his experienced assassin of a father tracked him down. 

And when he found him, Marcus Black basically broke both of Mercury’s legs so the poor kid couldn’t use them to escape a second time. I used to think that the prosthetic legs were a gift from Cinder or Salem to Merc as part of their alliance. Perhaps they still are in the case that they’re a better, more upgraded version of the legs (probably crafted by Watts). 

Now I’m thinking that Papa Black probably ‘operated’ on Mercury---taking away his real legs and replacing them with shitty prosthetics that he couldn’t use properly in the beginning as a clear sign of what he was willing to do to him if he dared defy him again.  

According to RWBY Wiki, it was mentioned by CRWBY Writer: Kerry Shawcross that Mercury has one of the darkest backstories in the series that has yet to be explored. So who knows, maybe I am right on the whole Papa Black hacking off his own child’s legs so he can’t escape his abuse. But…I’m probably getting ahead of myself I think right now Mercury is probably attracted to Emerald. 

Maybe…at some point previously she too showed him a kinder side to herself that made him actually like her a little bit more.  I think the reason why Mercury sticks close to Emerald other than the fact that they were assigned to be each other’s partners is because, in his own weird way, he likes her. 

Though Mercury’s presence has been show to annoy Emerald, I like the idea of Mercury preferring Emerald’s company over anyone else’s (including Cinder’s) because she made him feel, I dunno, like he wasn’t a heartless killing machine (literally). With Emerald in his life, I think she showed him that he was capable of caring for someone besides himself. 

Green Fall

I’m hoping that V6 will touch a bit on the aftermath of what happened to Emerald, Mercury and Hazel following the Triumph of Haven Academy. I still stand by my theory where I don’t think the three will return to Salem after their colossal failure. I think a reason why Mercury and Hazel might be unwilling to report back to Salem is due to Emerald. There is no way in shit Emerald is going to want to go back to Salem.

That hallucination from the V5 finale was Emerald’s perception of Salem. Emerald is frightened by Salem but what has kept her fears at bay and has prevented her from hightailing it out of there is her loyalty to Cinder and her cause. But with Cinder gone, I don’t believe Emerald will want to go back.

Even if Hazel were to sling her over his shoulder and try to force her to go back, kicking and screaming, I think Mercury would intervene on behalf of his partner. Though I don’t think Hazel is the type to force anyone to do anything they’re not comfortable with. Hazel’s wrath is solely directed at Ozpin and no one else.

Hazel has not dared to kill anyone else besides Ozpin and anyone associated with him who dared to get in his way. Take that away and what you have is a man with only one main motive driving him---Revenge against one man.

I think if Emerald told Hazel she didn’t want to go back, he’d willingly comply. He’d gruffly roll his eyes but he’d comply. Hazel is an odd character to me but at least I can fully understand his motives and hatred towards Ozpin as opposed to another character like…let’s say, Raven Branwen.

I hope we get episodes where we get to see Emerald, Mercury travelling together with Hazel or at least keeping a low profile to avoid being detected by the authorities because I’m sure following what happened in Haven, the police will be out looking for them.

A part of me thinks that there could even be a potential revenge plot to come with Emerald where she may desire to kill Yang. After all, Yang was the only one to return from the vault with the Relic in hand. As far as Emerald is concerned, Yang might’ve been the one who struck Cinder down.

Mercury might want to support Emerald in this just to be helpful while Hazel wouldn’t mind it either because it’d provide another opportunity for him to enact his vengeance on Ozpin and acquire the Relic of Knowledge.

So we could see Emerald, Mercury and Hazel laying low (for Emerald’s sake) until they get the bright idea to go after the travelling heroes by Emerald who is out for blood. It’s a side of Emerald we, as the audience, have never seen before so it’d be interesting to see done in the canon.

That being said, I’d also find it cool if Emerald was revealed as the new Fall Maiden. I want Emerald to become a Maiden, especially Fall because I think it could be an excellent learning experience for her to fully realize Cinder’s intentions.

It’d be seen almost as a rite of passage between our three main female villains. Salem was Cinder’s mentor as Cinder was Emerald’s.

“…I wish to take on an apprentice. Follow me and you’ll never be hungry again…” Cinder Fall to Emerald (RWBY Volume 3, Chapter 7)

I wouldn’t be surprised if this was the same line Salem used on Cinder to influence her into becoming her apprentice only appealing to her desires to become powerful.

“…I want to be strong. I want to be feared. I want to be powerful…”  Cinder Fall (RWBY Volume 3, Chapter 7)

It’d be interesting if in V6, Cinder returns as a Grimmoire---a half Grimm, half human hybrid resembling Salem. Apprentices eventually become masters themselves, correct? So if Cinder becomes more like her master, shouldn’t it be the same for Emerald if she inadvertently inherited the Fall Maiden power after Cinder technically died in the Vault of the Spring Maiden.

Despite taking her under her wing in the past, at the end of the day, Cinder is just a power-hungry woman who is willing to hurt anything and anyone to gain more power. Even when she already possessed the powers of a Maiden, her taste of the Maiden powers was so insatiable that she even went after the Spring Maiden’s power. This in hindsight seems like a rather nonsensical move on Cinder’s part since it has been indicated that there is no distinct differentiation in the Maiden abilities.

However this move does make sense given the kind of person Cinder is. She’s a  megalomaniac. Her lust for power is what drives her. It’s what drove her to become Salem’s apprentice. It’s what drove her to kill the previous Fall Maiden and confront Raven for her power.

I’m probably going out on a limb here but it seems to me that it doesn’t matter how powerful Cinder becomes, she will always want more. I’m just waiting for the moment when Cinder becomes so obsessed by her power that she even dares to think she can dethrone Salem.

Y’know live the part of the fairy-tale princess long enough til you rise to become the evil Queen. In the fairy tale of Cinderella, our main girl was formerly a peasant, treated poorly like a slave by her own family, until she eventually became a princess when she married the prince of the kingdom. Wouldn’t be surprised if Cinder came from a peasantry upbringing too, treated like dirt and told she was nothing and would probably never amount to anything.

In an odd way, Salem is almost like the Fairy Godmother in Cinder’s story. Just like in Cinderella, the Fairy Godmother gave Cinderella the means to attend the ball where she eventually met the man of her dreams. In Cinder’s case, Salem provided her with the means so that she could pursue what she desired most---power to become someone to not be underestimated.

In an odd way, Salem even sort of resembles the Fairy God Mother in her design but that’s mostly due them sharing similarities in the shape of their attire as well as their relationship to their respective Cinderella characters. But that’s just me.

Where’s that Cinder Fall backstory that’s going to humanize her as a person and make me feel totally conflicted about  disliking her as a villain based on her past actions?

Returning to Emerald, if Cinder becomes like Salem then it would make sense for Emerald to become the next Fall Maiden. When Cinder returns, I doubt she’ll be human anymore. As a matter of fact, I think a part of Cinder did die in the Vault---the part of her that was human and connected to the Fall Maiden powers.

Here me out again on this one. So…let’s say, technically Cinder did die but what returned is a being consisting of the Geist Grimm that took full control of Cinder’s original body. This is where Salem’s training sessions with Cinder back in V4 come into play. Throughout V4, Salem groomed Cinder to seize control of the Grimm attached to her body.

You can almost say that Cinder was almost fully fused with the Geist Grimm arm by the time she fought Raven in V5. But when Raven defeated her and sent her plummeting to her doom, I think what little bit of humanity she had left in her perished and what returned was Grimm. So basically, Cinder died a human but was reborn a Grimm possessing her human form yet still retaining Cinder’s old consciousness…like Salem?

Makes sense that the Geist would fully take over Cinder’s body in the end since its power is possession. Just as much as it makes sense that Cinder would ultimately fuse completely with the Geist Grimm since that was part of her training since V4. Learning to dominate this creature and become one with it.

So I’m banking on Cinder being another Grimm-hybrid or Grimmoire or whatever they’re canonically called exactly like her mentor before her---exactly like Salem.

After all, if you eyeball the V6 official volume poster and squint at the silhouette of Cinder, you can almost see an inkling of a white hand---not as veiny as Salem’s but close enough.

What I’ve also just noticed that’s interesting is that Cinder’s silhouette is opposite from Yang on the poster. This detail intrigues me since Raven Branwen, Yang’s mother was the one who technically killed Cinder. Not to mention that Ruby Rose, Yang’s sister, is the one whose power took Cinder’s eye and was the primary cause of her turmoil following V3.

Another coincidence is that Yang and Cinder were the two characters with amputated arms that had to learn to adapt to their new limbs during the course of V4. Hmmm…I’m starting to see a parallel here.

I guess the point I’m trying to imply here is that Raven and Ruby are two characters responsible for Cinder’s downfall so for all we know, this might inspire the Fallen Maiden to suddenly change tactics and possibly target someone close to both Ruby and Raven.

And who do we is someone clearly connected to both Ruby and Raven? From watching this poster alone, my first choice would obviously be Yang. She is the closest martyr with Ruby at the moment. However, I have a second choice that could make a more impactful victim. What if… Cinder targets Tai Yang. I know this may seem impossible now since Cinder has never met Tai and is unaware of his existence as well as his ties to Ruby and Raven. But while it may seem like a long reach right now, something about the V5 Finale After Credit teaser featuring Tai just gave me a strong vibe that he could show up in V6. My hunch was that Raven teleported him to rendezvous with the heroes using her connection to Yang (or Qrow).

Not sure if he’ll just be in one scene unrelated to the overarching plot for the next season or…perhaps Tai Yang might actually show up to help the heroes towards Argus and Atlas.

Who knows? While it’d be pretty great to finally see Papa Dragon join the long journey, reuniting with both his girls and fighting alongside Qrow again just like the old days of Team STRQ. However, at the same time, putting Tai in the mix also puts him on the radar for villains like Cinder to take advantage of his association to her main adversaries as part of her revenge scheme 101.

Speaking of Cinder scoping out Tai Yang, I just remembered another coincidence. Last season, RWBY Chibi hinted at Tai and Cinder meeting each other. Yes; I know it was part of a silly skit about online dating. Yet still; as I’m making my theory, I’m starting to wonder if this was another subtle sign of things to come in the main RWBY series as told by Chibi that you wouldn’t really consider important unless you really overthink it like…well, yours truly.

…Anyways, despite this being mostly just speculation, either way…I guess what I’m mostly trying to say is that both Xiao Long Dragons better watch their backs for Cinder Fall next volume.

As for what I was saying earlier about Emerald---I actually once made a theory way back in V3 about Emerald becoming the next Fall Maiden.

Ever since the time she first fought Amber, I felt like Emerald was destined to become a Fall Maiden. Plus, it would fit into the Aladdin character that I heard Emerald is influenced by. In Aladdin, he was a street rat who survived on petty thievery until one day; he was tricked into an opportunity that allowed him to acquire a magic lamp with a genie that granted him three wishes of anything he desired.

Emerald being a nobody coming from nothing to rise to become a Maiden---with power and a purpose sounds like something I can see the CRWBY Writers doing for her. Besides, like I said. I think Emerald unintentionally becoming a Maiden would be what makes her realize that Cinder is not the woman she thought she was.

Picture this…Cinder losing hold of her Maiden powers after being defeated by Raven. Those powers then go to Emerald. Despite being overwhelmed by her newfound powers, Emerald sees this as a sign of her being important to Cinder since Maiden powers only get passed on to the next female who was in the previous Maiden’s thoughts last. Emerald will foolishly see this as a testament that Cinder loved her; like a lonely child yearning for compassion and approval from a wayward parent.

However, the crushing reality is that Cinder, obviously, did not want to give away her Maiden powers. On the contrary, the only reason she thought of Emerald in her final thoughts was because she was screaming on the inside of how much she didn’t want to lose her Maiden power, especially not to a weakling, incompetent street rat like Emerald.

To Emerald’s horror, Grimmoire Cinder will then attempt to kill her so that the Fall Maiden powers may return to her. Mercury will intervene to stop Cinder from killing Emerald only to be struck down (not killed) in the process. It is in this moment where Cinder reveals her true colours---literally taking on the same, pale, red-eyed monstrous appearance that caused Emerald to fear Salem.

Now Cinder and Salem were one and the same with all semblance of the once human Cinder Fall gone.

Witnessing the sight of the woman she once saw as family turned monster as she harmed the one other person who cared about her enough to protect her from said woman is enough to finally snap Emerald to her senses.

Emerald will realize the truth and then turn on Cinder using the very powers she stole from the former Maiden against her.

Emerald becoming a Maiden would be a fine shift in her story arc because it gives her her own purpose outside being Cinder’s pawn. Emerald was never meant to be Cinder’s disciple. But perhaps a Maiden she can be.

It makes me wonder how much different the story would’ve been if Emerald was actually discovered and made an apprentice of Amber instead of Cinder. I mean, Amber was such a kind-hearted soul that she was willing to tend to a crying child on an empty path, providing her with food as a form of comfort through her pain.

I think with a little more development and some soul searching, Emerald could become a great Fall Maiden. May even be redeemed a little. But that’s only if that’s in the cards for her side of the story.

A Friend In Me

If there is one thing I want for V6 is for Emerald and Mercury to realize that their lives can go beyond Cinder and Salem. It doesn’t matter what horrid backgrounds they came from, they can write their own future and they can do it together if they wished it.

Do you know what would be really cute? If as a parallel to Aladdin, Mercury offers Emerald three favours that he would grant her without question. So she can bug him for three things and he’ll willingly do it with zero complaints. It’s a ploy mostly done as Mercury’s way to cheer Emerald up and for the most part it works.

I like the idea of Emerald coming down to her final favour and she asks Mercury to stay by her side and never betray her and it’s a promise he’s more than willing to oblige.

I like the idea of Emerald going at Yang for revenge for Cinder but when Cinder returns and betrays her, it becomes the final straw that finally causes her to seek her own redemption.

If I’m being completely honest, I don’t see Emerald and Mercury going forward for the Atlas Arc. Since RWBY V6 will be 14 episodes long with the primary focus on our heroes reaching Argus before Atlas, I’m not sure how much we’ll see of Emerald and Mercury. I wouldn’t be surprised if these two along with Hazel are missing in action for most of V6.

My stronger hunch is that Emerald and Mercury will disappear with Hazel for V6 and that the three will be missing until a later volume or arc where their roles as villains and stories can be properly dealt with. I’d rather Mercury and Emerald fall into obscurity until the Writers are ready to give them the spotlight for development rather than rush to tell their stories for V6.

With the fact that Adam Taurus has been set up as a returning big bad with a vendetta against the Faunus who betrayed him, including Blake, I don’t expect to see much of our Jaded Duo. V6 already feels like it has its plate full with a lot of other important plot points to cover that I’m not sure how our Jaded duo will fit.

Nevertheless, the return of Cinder does have me pondering if this spells Mercury and Emerald reuniting with her or…perhaps Cinder might just pair up with someone else. Someone who shares her lust for power and revenge. Y’know…someone who had his own character short recently.

For the sake of this musing, let’s toy with the idea that Mercury and Emerald do have a set story for next season. Personally I think the Mistral Arc would’ve been a perfect place to conclude Emerald and Mercury’s stories respectively since the two were originally discovered in that particular part of Remnant, right? Correct me if I’m wrong. The same could be said for Hazel unless he’s actually from Sanus near Vale since Gretchen went to Beacon; tying into my previously mentioned theory on him.

Though I love the idea of Papa Bear Hazel becoming Emerald and Mercury’s parental guardian and he and Mercury tag teaming to protect Emerald; truth is this squiggle meister is not quite sure about Hazel’s fate. I do, however, think that his problems can be easily resolved in like one season if given proper focus.

I don’t expect three more seasons of Hazel returning…at least, not as a villain under Salem anyways. I feel as if one rematch with Oscar where the truth is realized is enough to show Hazel the error of his ways.

And even if he does still harbour some resentment towards Ozpin, by that time he would’ve gained a newer purpose which would be to aid and protect the adolescent Emerald and Mercury in the next chapter of their dual development.

If the Jaded Duo are to appear for V6, then I think this season could spell the last time we see of Mercury and Emerald (and Hazel) for a while. If there is a story for them in V6 then I hope it’s one where the two make a decision to reassess their paths and change--- something that was actually hinted at during the start of V4 when we were introduced to the volume by their shared horrified expressions at the sight of the Grimm pools in Salem’s Domain.

I don’t think Emerald and Mercury will join the good guys either. At least; not yet.

Again, if they do have a story for V6 then my theory is that once it’s wrapped up, Emerald and Mercury might drop out of the story for a while and the next time we’ll learn of their return is probably when the gang head off for Vacuo or Vale.

After all, if Emerald does become the new Fall Maiden, the group will need her on their side to open the Vault, right? So once the Atlas and Vacuo Arcs are completed, the heroes will need to find Emerald since, as the new the Fall Maiden, they will need her help.

Oh! Do you know what would be a neat idea? What if…Emerald and Mercury drop out of the main series yet, their story gets continued in book format. Y’know how we’re getting that young adult novel RWBY series featuring Team CVFY following the Fall of Beacon, right?

Picture this. What if…we got another RWBY YA that deals with the adventures of Emerald and Mercury with Hazel following the aftermath of the Triumph of Haven and their story ultimately leads them to Vacuo where they cross paths with Team CFVY.

I love this idea since the last time CFVY saw Emerald and Mercury was when their leader Cinder implemented the attack during the Vytal Festival. 

Not to mention that Yatsuhashi and Coco may share some bad blood between Emerald and Mercury from their fight during the Vytal Festival. So it’d be awesome to have CFVY reunite with Emerald, Mercury and Hazel in Vacuo in the YA novel series. Wouldn’t that be cool?

I really dig the concept of Emerald and Mercury along with Hazel spending some time away from everything---starting life anew. Out in the deserts of Vacuo, I bet finding people won’t be easy, right? So I think at the end of V6 (or whenever the CRWBY Writers decide to tackle their stories), Mercury and Emerald may chose to venture towards the desert sands of Vacuo with Hazel accompanying them.

After all, according to World of Remnant, the law of Vacuo is that if you’re able to survive the harsh conditions of the kingdom then you’re more than welcome to live amongst its people regardless of your background.

So basically, Vacuo sounds like the perfect place for a fresh start, especially for a former street rat and thief turned Maiden, the son of an ex-assassin and an ex-avenger freed from his rage. Am I right? I want this because it’s a compelling way to redeem all three of these characters while giving them a bigger purpose that will make even greater sense in the long run when the heroes head off to Vacuo. But then again, this is only my hunch.

Jaded Thoughts

I’ll be real. This squiggle meister definitely ships Mercury and Emerald or Jaded as you guys call them. I’ve shipped them ever since their debut back in V2. But between Emerald’s devotion to Cinder and her moments of annoyance at Mercury’s childishness, I was never quite certain if making them a couple would be a direction the writers saw them going in, y’know?

I wouldn’t mind a romance forming between them though. But I’d imagine that Jaded is something that’ll move like a slow building fire. I think at the moment a little romance is the last thing on either teenager’s minds. But take away the tension and push these two in a scenario where they’re able to learn more about one another and understand the other, I think something beyond just their usual partnership due to circumstance can form.

I can see Emerald learning to trust in Mercury as someone she can rely on besides Cinder and Mercury can have someone to care about besides himself and show that he’s capable of something his father wasn’t---basic human compassion. I really hope they touch base on Mercury’s backstory for the next part of his growth. Now would be the right moment for the show to do it as the story is still in Mistral and Emerald and Mercury seem to be residents of the area.

Perhaps they’ll even revisit Mercury’s old home in the mountains. Perhaps we’ll get to hear more about Emerald’s background before she met Cinder. Same with Hazel. I wanna know more about his ties to Ozpin and their whole history involving Gretchen.

Anima is a big place. It’s a chance to learn more about each of these three villains. Giving us a nice little villain’s journey if they will. So I sincerely hope the writers did take a chance with this for Emerald and Mercury’s stories. If not for V6 then perchance later when the timing is right.  

Emerald and Mercury already work seamlessly together in combat. Now what needs to be taken care of is all the mushy stuff like sharing feelings and whatnot. Similar to my other RWOTP RoseGarden, I think Jaded could work if left to properly build up and grow into something meaningful to both partners in the pairing.

Fortunately Jaded already had a head start from V2 and as V3 implied, Emerald and Mercury have been together for some good time. So I’m hoping V6 or another volume will eventually bring it all home with both teens realizing that the one person they have left in the world now is each other (with Papa Bear Hazel to protect them too of course).

If a deep romance forged from a comforting and reliant relationship between two former villains is destined for the long haul of RWBY then that’s a love story that this squiggle meister is more than game for that. Bring it.

 So to conclude…

And…that’s all folks!

Nothing much left to be said beyond that. I believe I’ve more or less covered every theory I had on the Jaded Duo. Even tossed in a few bonus hunches on Cinder Fall and Hazel Rainart for you too.

Overall, I hope this helps answer your questions Mojo and anon-chan. Again, apologies that this took so long. But for the most part, I hope you both enjoyed the theories and points I shared in this musing. Let me know what you guys think.

That being said, this is the last of my backlog of musings from months ago. Thank you guys so much for your patience. Next up is my 50th musing post. Jeez, can you believe I made fifty of these already? Well…technically fifty; not counting the ones I made on Chibi, my remarks and quotes XD

Anywhozzits, @parrot-with-a-mohawk, the musing post with my response to your musing post is up next. So stay tune for that fam! See you guys in the next post.

More Squiggles’ RWBY Content

~LittleMissSquiggles (2018)

[sebeth]

Young Justice: Welcome To Happy Harbor, Drop-Zone, What’s The Story

Warning, Spoilers Ahead…

 Episode 3: “Welcome To Happy Harbor”

The episode begins with Speedy interrupting one of Brick’s shipments.  Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad soon join the party.

Brick gets cocky and pays for it.  I’d completely forgotten about Brick’s appearance in this episode.  We see Brick in the trailer for the third season.  I bet he appears in Arrowette’s origin/recruitment episode.  It would be a nice callback to the first season.

The boys attempt to recruit Speedy to the team but he’s a manly man who doesn’t need to be part of a team.

“Recognized Robin B-01, Kid Flash B-03”

You know Batman programmed the codes and was all “Robin will be the first”.  It’s also a nice nod to Robin’s status as the first sidekick.

“Mission assignments are the Batman’s responsibility.” – Yep, poor Red is the one who has to reign in their shenanigans.  This Red doesn’t know how easy he has it – there should be a crossover between the Red of the cartoon universe and the Red of the comic book universe.  Comic book-Red can terrify Cartoon-Red with tales of his Conner and Bart.

“This team is not a social club.” – Kaldur would be the one most adamant about assignments and not wasting time on socializing.  He entered the Atlantean military at 12 years old.  He’s had structure and duty drilled into him at a young age.

“I cannot read his mind.” – Ooh, foreshadowing of M’gann’s later abuse of her powers?  That is a pretty clear violation of privacy for no other reason than convenience.  On the one hand, I cut M’gann some slack because even at 45 years old she is still a teenager by her race’s standards.  Teenagers don’t always make the best decisions and she’s obviously attempting to impress her teammates.  On the other hand, J’onn is a very ethical telepath and I’m positive he would have coached M’gann on the proper uses of telepathy.

“We all know what you’re thinking right now.” – Wally the horn dog is taken straight out of his solo comic in the late 1980s.

Wally and Dick competing over M’gann’s attention is hilarious.  I don’t think Dick event wants M’gann’s attention as much as he wants to annoy Wally.  Meanwhile, Superboy is not amused by their shenanigans.  At all.

Kaldur continues to be the only “adult” in the room.

“Granny Jones’ recipe from episode 17” – Subtle foreshadowing of an element that wouldn’t become prominent until much later in the season.

Wally needs to learn subtleness in his flirtations.

“Here, your powers are an extreme invasion of privacy.” – Wouldn’t that have been one of the first things J’onn would have gone over with her?”  

Superboy would be highly sensitive to telepathic intrusions due to his experiences in Cadmus.  If your entire upbringing revolved around telepathic manipulation, you are sure not going to want anyone randomly popping into your head.

“Helo, Megan.” – What we thought was a catchphrase is more foreshadowing.

The Martian bio-ship is cool.

“Fast with his feet. Not so much with his mouth.”

“Dude!”

Yep, Dick is having too much fun giving Wally a bad time.

Kaldur takes the lead and reaches out to Superboy.  Even before it was made official, the writers did a great job laying the foundation for Aqualad to become the leader of the team.

“Mimicking boys is a lot harder.” – Would it be?  Do Martians even have gender?  Their natural forms – green or white – are basically androgynous.

“Are tornadoes common in New England?” – A pretty sensible question.  Kaldur lives underwater, Conner’s a newborn, Megan’s an alien, and Wally’s from the Midwest.  Dick is the only one who lives in New England area.

The team battles Mr. Twister and comes out on the losing end.  I’ve always felt Red Tornado was one of the most formidable heroes around. How do you fight a tornado?

“That was quite turbing.” – Dick’s mangling of the English language is thrown back into his face.

Megan deduces (wrongly) that Mr. Twister is the Red Tornado.  To be fair, it was an obvious guess.

“Stay out of our way.” – Is this Conner’s catchphrase?  This is the second time in three episodes he’s stated a variation of it.

The rematch with Mr. Twister is going as well as the first round.

“First thing Batman taught me.” – Yeah, I can see Bruce believing “never be without a weapon” is a valuable life lesson.  

Where did Dick hide the utility belt? It’s rather bulky.

Megan devises a plan and the team makes short work of Mr. Twister.

“Cool.  Souvenir.” – Wally begins his collection of trophies.

The scientist at the end is Dr. T.O. Morrow – his search for Red Tornado sets up a future episode.

“Sorry.  I’ll strive to be more accurate.”

“And more respectful.”

Yep, Dick and Conner could both use lessons in manners and tact.

Conner mutters an awkward “Sorry” to Megan.  Judging from his expression, it pained him in his soul to do so.

Episode 4: “Drop-Zone”

For those curious, the first three episodes of the cartoon, along with the first five issues of the comic, took place from July 4th through the 12th.

“Drop-Zone” begins on June 19th – Kobra has forcibly taken control of Bane’s Venom-production facilities on Santa Prisca.  Bane is not happy.

Bane battles Mammoth for control of the island and loses.

I like Kobra and his minions visual design.  Very nice. I’m not sold on Shimmer or Mammoth (pre-transformation.”

We flip ahead to June 22nd.  Two possibilities for why we are now in June – which is before July, not after.  One – the creators messed up and put June in the captions instead of July.  Two – we skipped a year between episodes 3 and 4.  I’m going with the first option as the team still hasn’t elected a leader. Pretty sure you can’t have a year’s worth of adventures without an established leader.

That said, I’m pausing “Drop-Zone” and switching to the comic as the fifth issue takes place on July 20th. I’m trying to keep this in chronological order.

Issue 5: “What’s The Story?”

Wally is at the HQ – bored and flirthing with Megan.  Wally suggest a camp fire.  Megan enthusiastically agrees but dashes Wally’s hopes by inviting the rest of the team.

Tents are set, fires lit, and smores made.

Dick tells Wally to tone down his flirting as it’s “kinda bordering on the creepy.” Yeah, Wally isnt’ exactly smooth.

Conner’s not impressed with camping: “Sleep in these flimsy things called tents and sit around the fire?”

Dick scolds Wally again: “You’re about as subtle as a train wreck.”

Megan wants to learn more about her teammates.

Aqualad begins.  Here are the highlights:

·         Grew up in Shayeris, a city of Atlantis

·         Atlantis has many people, many cultures

·         Completed his education at 12 and began mandatory service in the Atlantean military

·         At 14 years old - Transferred to the prestigious Conservatory of Science in Poseidonis

·         Queen Mera is the headmistress of the Conservatory

·         Met Garth and Tula at the Conservatory

·         Garth Kaldur saved Aquaman’s life during an attack by the Ocean Master

·         Aquaman offered the boys a chance to become his protégé and later carry on his “suface duties” while he focused on running the Kingdom

·         Kaldur leapt at the chance while Garth continued his magical studies

Nice origin recap for Kaldur.  I love the inclusion of Garth and Tula as it is a nice nod to Arthur’s original sidekicks.

Wally goes next. Highlights:

·         Jay Garrick is still the original Flash!  Yes!  I love the nods to the depth of the DC Universe. Modern creators don’t seem to care about characters and continuity but Greg Weisman and company flawlessly incorporate all aspects and elements of DC’s history.

·         Barry’s next.

·         Wally desperately wants to be Kid Flash but Barry is “No! No partners! I don’t want the responsibility!”

·         Wally’s all “Screw that.  I do what I want.” and recreates the chemical combination that caused Barry to turn into the Flash.

·         Wally as a science nerd is unique to the Young Justice universe but it’s a nice addition to the character.

·         After a few weeks, Wally gains super-speed.  He campaigns to be Barry’s new partner.  Barry’s not thrilled but agrees as long as Wally does “exactly as I say, when I say it.”

The writers did an excellent job of establishing exactly why the heroes allowed the teenagers to run around in costumes:

·         Aquaman is training a protégé to assume his role as surface world ambassador/protector.

·         Batman doesn’t want Dick to turn out like him.  Bruce doesn’t want Dick’s “inner light” to face out.

·         Barry had no choice as Wally was hell-bent on being a hero.  Better to have Wally by his side than face the danger alone.

Roy is too busy being a manly loner to discover Ollie’s reasons.  Traditionally, Ollie doesn’t make the best life choices so it could have been the more typical “well, letting a kid run around in a mask and punch criminals seemed like a good idea at the time.”

Robin passes on story-telling time.  At first, Wally ribs Dick about Batman not letting him say anything but realizes he’s rubbing salt in the wound and passes the story-telling baton to Conner.

Conner doesn’t say much. He mentions the G-Gnomes and the containment pod.  Conner states he never thought for himself until his rescue.

Conner states the one thing that’s always on his mind is “Destroying Superman.

And with that bombshell, I’m off to work.

Up next, we continue story time and resume “Drop-Zone”.

[writergamermaker]

Great Villains in Writing

I'm rewatching BNHA Season 2, and Stain's last scene gave me chills. I'd forgotten how intense it became, and it got me thinking on what makes some villains better than others. The show itself touches on this a little - that slightly meta aspect of it is one reason I love it so much.

Stain and Shigaraki are extremely different, almost opposites at first. They both want to destroy, but Stain has noble intent and hopes to make the world better by removing the negative influence of "false heroes," while Shigaraki is just indulging in self-centered impulses. Interestingly, their Quirks contrast well too, as Shigaraki's Decay is flat-out destructive, with no middle ground, but Stain's Bloodcurdle could actually be put to great use capturing foes instead of killing them. This shows more how their personalities and willpower differ; despite having the more destructive power, Shigaraki accomplished far less than Stain, even though he had a team and Stain was running solo.

The last notable difference between them is why they became villains. Specifically, Shigaraki was taken in at a young age and taught his whole life to become a villain. Stain wanted to become a hero, but was disillusioned by the world and could only see a destructive, murderous path to improvement. From the very beginning, Stain was self motivated, never needing anyone to tell him what to do or why to do it. Shigaraki was described, early on, as a man-child, who was being guided and groomed to be a villain. But until the end of season 2, he never found a deep seated personal reason to pursue that quest.

So beyond all that, what makes some villains so much more powerful than others? Let's try and break it down simply.

The kind of superpower they possess, if any, is irrelevant, as characters like the Joker prove you don't need anything more than ordinary human cunning to be a monstrous villain. So it's not what they can do, whether we're speaking super powers or real-world skills, but what goals they set. Your villain needs to aim for serious change. Darth Vader wanted to overthrow the Jedi Order. Loki wanted to become King of Asgard, and then of Earth. Shigaraki wants to show how frail society and its laws really are. Killmonger wanted to empower minorities to rise up against their oppressors. All these villains want to enact change on their world, to reshape it in their own image, sometimes even nobly because they think it's best for everyone.

But this desire for change doesn't make them villains. Princess Leia also wants to overthrow the regime, but she's the hero. Stain's desire to reform heroes and society could have been accomplished by exposing pros like Endeavor for the kinds of people they really were, instead of murdering them. The villainous status is determined by their willingness to harm others. Disregard for life and casual property destruction are quick and easy indicators of villainy.

The last sign of a villain is self-centeredness. These people really have only their own interests at heart, or at best they see everything through the lens of their own life; solution X worked for them, so it should work for everyone, and resisting makes you an enemy to eliminate, a la Thanos.

But there are characters with all three facets who simply don't pack much punch. Malekith from Thor: the Dark World wanted to eliminate light across the universe, he was casually destructive and cold-hearted, and he saw everyone who wasn't his own people as insects to be exterminated, ticking all three of our boxes. But he also is among the least-liked villains of the MCU. Similarly, Star Wars has Kylo Ren in Episode VII: The Force Awakens. While seeking to raise up the First Order, wrecking terrible destruction without a second thought, and actively burning the bridges to his past, he was poorly received and considered a Darth Vader knockoff.

There's no easy answer. Some villains are made more interesting by showing the audience their vulnerable side: Loki is known to be tormented by trying to live up to his parents' expectations while also trying to reconcile his true heritage, and this humanizing quality is one reason we like him despite his murderous methods. The Joker, ironically, is the opposite, showing no compassion and making up his tragic backstory on the spot, more than once, yet he is enthralling to watch.

We like to see them work for it. Any anime fans likely know of Bleach's long-running villain, Aizen. He played the heroes from day one, manipulating them like pieces on a chess board, and the ease with which he accomplished his goals made him stale and uninteresting, especially next to his more colorful subordinates. By showing setbacks, we make them briefly vulnerable, and then the audience can appreciate their drive to succeed, their ingenuity, and their resourcefulness in turning the tables back around. It draws the audience in, making them almost want the villain to win because now they've put in real effort. Just as no one sees themselves as a villain, everyone can find a little something to admire in a villain, even if just their sheer conviction and tenacity. To see them overcome tough odds makes them impressive, maybe even relatable.

If I were to pick one thing, that would be it: show the villain fail. Watch him be struck down, the last of his number, and barely escape with his life. Show us as he nurtures that rage and humiliation, channels it all into a desire to win, and comes back ready to challenge the heroes to round two. Whether we agree with his ideals or think he's the scum of the earth, that rematch will draw every eye. We want heroes and villains both to work hard and strive for victory. After all, if the villains have put their entire soul into this fight, the heroes who beat them will be even more amazing.