#trouble but also the strength to back him up if a fight does break out

[bunnwich]

Uh just a heads up, did you read/saw the Leona and you meeting in the novel? I kinda wanna talk about it

Leona and Yuu Meeting in the Novel

ANON ANON. YOU REALLY BROUGHT MY ATTENTION TO SOMETHING W I L D BC I HAD NEVER ACTUALLY READ THE NOVEL VERSION OF THE MC MEETING LEONA???? Also, I was gonna see if the EN translation had been released but it doesn’t in my area until 8/27 so RAAAAAAAAAAAA. OKAY SO LET'S BREAK IT DOWN. (Using @/yuurei20’s wonderful translation) So as we know, in the game and manga Leona comes off as very… aggressive?

He threatens to “rip out our tooth” which, sir???? Like from the first time, I could tell that this was just a “flex” and he absolutely was saying it in a facetious manner. Though in the manga they further escalate it, even going as far to have him going to kick Yuuken.

BUT, HERE???? IMO this interaction is much more indicative of his character as a whole. There is so much more nuance to his intentions here. Protecting his dorm, deescalating, being smart. All the stuff that I’ve been saying from when I started playing twst about him just keeps being proven to me. Also that perhaps Leona, actually doesn't like fighting. These are my main takeaways.

1.) Leona is a well-respected and liked dorm leader who is looking out for his dorm's best interests.

And his dorm mates follow his word like gospel for the most part. I feel like ppl tend to gloss over this bc he is lazy or w/e but the Savanaclaw students mostly love Leona and would do anything for him. 

It’s just nice to see so much of the stuff you get reading between the lines at the forefront here. He’s so much more calm and menacing here than cranky and aggressive and that feels so much more him? Leona’s intimidation IMO doesn’t come from his physical strength per se, it comes from the authority he commands, his demeanor, as well as his magic I’m sure.

-- He is wrapped in a strange atmosphere that attracts the stares of everyone around. Even hidden under his school uniform it is clear he is well-muscled, with a scar over his left eye that lends all the more power to his chiseled face. The fists of the older students froze in mid-air at the command, completely throwing off their momentum. Now, like small animals under the watchful eye of a predator, they shrink away, murmuring, 'Leona-san'. Ignoring the confused Deuce entirely, Leona raises an eyebrow at the formerly brawling group. 'Move up a grade and the first thing you do is start a fight in the street--are you all stupid?' 'But that brat is the one who started it first.' 'Huh. And? Don't like what I have to say, then?' 'Impossible! It's not like that at all.' Leona is dressed down, wearing neither the jacket nor the tie to his school uniform, but he does wear the same yellow vest as the three students who had come so close to exchanging blows with Deuce. All three have become properly obedient in front of their fellow dorm member, Leona. --

2.) HE DID WHAT???

SO in my head I always imagined Leona stepped a bit close and sniffed the air around Yuu/MC but in this version HE SNIFFS THE NECK?? LIKE FULL ON PUTS HIS NOSE TO THE BACK OF YUU’S NECK?? WHAT THE HELL???? THATS SO WILD SIR?? I’M CALLING THE POLICE??? YUUYA ,ARE YOU OKAY??

-- ‘Hey. You.''Y-yes?' Yuuya's response leaves him in a sound that is almost a yelp, because Leona has suddenly drawn close enough to place his beautifully-sculpted nose near to the base of Yuuya's neck.Yuuya breaks out in a cold sweat. Having his neck so exposed is frightening in a way he cannot put into words: he is frozen in fear of Leona tearing out his throat at any moment. --

3.) In this Ruggie CALLED Leona over to help Yuu and Deuce fight off the Savanaclaw goons.

That just gives such a layer to Savanaclaw as a whole, that neither one wanted to see Yuu and Deuce get beat up. Leona continues to show he has a soft spot for his underclassmen perhaps. I do think it mostly was about him protecting his dorm mates and not wanting them to get in trouble bc he knew Yuu was taken in by Crowley, the headmaster.

-- 'My name is Ruggie Bucchi.' Ruggie responds, with a deliberate shake of his whole body. 'And this scary personage is Savanaclaw Dorm Housewarden, Leona Kingscholar-san. We already know you're dumb enough to pick fights with upperclassmen, but even you know you won't be winning against our Housewarden, yeah? Times like this, you gotta side with whoever will benefit you the most.' 'Benefit? They're the ones who started this fight, and now they're trying to run away!' 'My my, aren't you a hot-blooded kitten--and here you should be thanking me. I called Leona over because I saw you were in danger, y'know?'Leona looks to Ruggie. 'Tch. Patronizing bastard. You just wanted to give me more to deal with.' 'Shi-shi-shi. That's our housewarden! Settle brawls in an instant like that, and people will start relying on you.' The three students who had been scuffling with Deuce and Yuuya look down at their feet, snickering; they seem to have cooled off after being chided by Leona. As his position in the dorm would lead one to assume, Leona seems to be well-liked.) (!!!) --

4.) Perhaps, Leona’s Lazy demeanor is just a front to something more.

-- Though he has a languid stare, his narrow pupils send a shiver down Yuuya's spine. Yuuya knows, instinctively, that challenging Leona on their own would be disastrously reckless. --

Anyways its just so funny that I never read this bc I assumed (wrongly) that it was just similar to the other version of this meeting and like…whoa. 

I know it doesn't seem like much of a difference now but when twst was newer and we got less depth to Leona, andhe came off as very one-dimensional guy who was aggressive for aggressive sake and most of my HCs were really were speculation for the most part, and at that time as not many bothered to read between the lines about him.

Yes, he is scary (stop sniffing ppl) but also a bit teasing, but lowkey a caring and good leader. I do think his intimidating persona is two-fold. Like…half is so he can command respect from his dorm mates and it’s needed to be the Savanaclaw dorm leader in the first place. And the other half is a front to hide the softer parts of his personality that he denies at every turn, like being idealistic and a good mentor.

5.)  Leona sort of defends Yuu when the 3 goons make a comment implying that Yuu needs to watch who they tangle with.

-- 'Nothing wrong with having guts, but prepare well enough to know who your opponent is.' 'Hahaha! Yeah, just like the Housewarden says!' 'I'm talking to you three, too.' --

IMO He’s clearly looking out for his Savanclaw member’s well being here but I think he does some inkling of respect for Yuu, whether that bc they are strange or simply bc they are affiliated with Crowley and he doesn't want trouble, either or both is interesting to me. 

(TBH I’m still NOT over the neck sniffing thing.)

I will be interested to see the official EN translation of this scene, so I’ll update ya’ll on that once I see it! I NEED to know if they change any of it. Sorry for the ramble but YES please anon, feel free to talk about it with me! I love to yap, thank you for bringing it to my attention!!

(Thanks again to @/yuurei20 for all the translations for this scene!! Your work is so so appreciated!!)

[icyowl]

Bluelock Cuddling headcanons

ft. Isagi, Chigiri, and Kunigami

Request: none

A/N: one of my racehorses won a race today so here’s a little gift to celebrate my good mood!

—————

Yoichi Isagi

the respectful kind

his favorite is half-cuddle — him on his back, you curled up into his side, head on his chest. Does his arm fall asleep? Absolutely. Will he stop? Never.

make his heart wobble any time you look up and about how much you like this — spending time with him, being close like this, knowing he cares about your opinion enough to ask so frequently for it.

Isagi is the kind that likes to cuddle the nights before a stressful thing. He gets to talk out his troubles and generally feel better about whatever anxieties he's got. Also, he genuinely seeks your life advice. He talks through his problems, that's who he is, and with you like this it feels like such a private time of vulnerability.

You habitually play with one another's fingers and hands. Usually it's sweet, but sometimes it devolves into thumb wars, arm wrestling, and even all out tickle battles. Sometimes he even lets you win

If he's lucky he can get you to fall asleep before he does. Reason? He likes watching you doze on him. Something about you falling asleep to the dip and rise of his chest makes him all giddy and humble at the same time.

Inevitably someone walks in on you two only to be greeted with the terror-inducing glare he pins them down with. Wake you up and they are not long for this world.

Hyoma Chigiri

the timid kind

go-to is the traditional spoon. It means you don't have to look at him and whatever embarrassment he's gotta be showing while being this close to you.

As time goes on, he starts to get almost too comfortable with it. On the phone? Playing a game? Fuckin' doing laundry? Doesn't matter. When he's lying on any bed or couch, there is a distinct bubble of space, and if you invade the bubble, you're within striking distance. His arms are nearly as fast as his legs. Chigiri will latch onto you, will pull you in, and will interrupt whatever it is you wanted to do so he can spoon you.

Rub his hand or intertwine fingers while he's got an arm draped over you and he is GONE

There have been times when he's pushed you away, and though it makes sense — he's always been the kind to close himself off, turn vile and harsh when he's hurting — it breaks you. When you're both ready to reconcile, somehow it ends with your back to his chest, his legs mixed with yours, and his warm hand holding you snug to his body.

Also likes this position because it lets him nuzzle in right on the wispy hairs at the bottom of your neck or the big vein on the side.

Turn the tables on him by flipping over in his grip and facing him head-on. It's also a nice way to get even closer to him when you've had a bad day. A kind of haven can be found in nestling under his chin. He's alright with this — it means you can't see his face and the obvious love-sick tint to his eyes.

Rensuke Kunigami

the kind that doesn't know his own strength

best likes the space-saver, aka, one person laying on top of the other. Boy doesn't care which of you is on top. He likes supporting your body or you supporting his — something about being the other person's strength makes the back of his head tingle.

first time he lays on you, he doesn't check his weight at all, just flops down. Immediately thinks he's broken you when you squeak. After that he's almost too wary about hurting you. Am I too heavy? Can you breathe okay? Do I need to get up? You can get on top if you want. Relax Kunigami, just don't fall from orbit and you'll be fine.

Icing on the cake is when you play with his hair. Dude could be angry as an ox, ready to rip someone in half, and two minutes of your fingers in his hair has him fighting to stay awake and spend time with you. What was he angry about again?

One time you fell asleep on his chest, all blissed out and comfy, only to wake up in a shiny puddle of your own drool. You were, understandably, mortified, but the embarrassment turns to affection when he casually disregards the whole thing: it's just a shirt, it'll dry.

You figured you repaid the favor when several weeks later he was one on top of you, head burrowed unceremoniously into your stomach, arms underneath your back, refusing to look up or speak. The reason revealed itself when he finally met your eyes.

Tears. Tiny sniffs too. Four words: I failed my team. That was all he said before digging his face back into your skin. It took time, and a lot of encouragement, but he did eventually snap out of the funk and even apologized for messing up your clothes. It'll dry, you said, and you shared a little snicker.

[unordinary-diary]

Arlo’s Ability Potential

Arlo could actually be so fucking OP and I’m not kidding.

In my last entry, I mentioned that Arlo could do so much more with his ability: things ranging from very unlikely to happen in the story, to things that are foreshadowed enough that I genuinely think he’ll be getting a powerup soon.

I’m gonna start with the most reasonable stuff and then wander out into speculation.

First of all: Disks. Do y’all remember Lennon from episode 196-ish?

^ this fucker.

Currently, Arlo’s fighting style is to put up a strong barrier around himself, and watch his enemies hurt themselves with their own recoil damage. His only offensive technique is to put his enemy in a barrier and make it smaller. Now, this has changed in recent chapters, with him developing that softer kind of barrier that he hits people with like a shockwave, but ultimately, his offensive power isn’t very diverse.

However, Lennon up there^ uses his disks in many ways.

He throws them, they’re very sharp, he can use them to fly, and therefore attack from the air. Blyke had a LOT of trouble against this guy.

How is this relevant? Because Arlo can make these disks too.

When Sera, Leilah and Arlo are fighting Spectre agents under the dampener, Arlo conjures one of these disks as a substitute for his usual barrier.

Not only do we know that he can make these, we know that they are significantly easier for him to make and maintain. So, in theory, Arlo should be able to do all of the things Lennon can and more.

With him currently being able to make three regular barriers at once, how many disks could he make? And how many disks could he make while having a full barrier up? I imagine that the future holds lots of fights against large groups of people, so Arlo learning these techniques would be extremely convenient and very well-timed. Especially since being able to attack from the air is super effective against opponents who can’t fly (which is most of them let’s be real) since they usually can’t hit back.

But there’s more things that I think these disks can do.

Imagine him practicing with a ball—

Pick it up, bounce it up and down.

Add another disk, make it ping-pong.

but he could also just put the ball in a regular barrier and just... move it around. Move that sucker to a different location.

he could pick the ball up, carry it really high, then drop it.

Now imagine the ball is a person.

... yeah.

but there’s more that he could do.

say that someone is coming at him with enough strength to break his barrier

If aimed right, the opponent shouldn’t hit the third barrier head on, but rather at an angle. The angle should be enough to prevent the barrier breaking, but still cause significant recoil damage. In this particular scenario, the recoil damage will go straight to the head and neck, using all their force against them. Depending on how much force is coming at him, the third barrier could still break, but it isn’t his main line of defense at least. With practice, Arlo should be able to use disks to divert attacks, and control where his opponent aims. The only person this wouldn’t work against is probably Seraphina bc Arlo can’t react in time.

Another thing to consider is: how small can he make the disks? Could he make little shurikens? If so, would making them very small allow him to make more? Could he stand behind his full barrier, while sending out a flurry of tiny chakrams? And if so, wouldn’t that be dope as fuck? Especially against a large crowd.

And since, in theory, he should be able to fly, he should also be able to make other people fly. Imagine all of them flying on top of a disk with Blyke and Isen loudly singing I Can Show You the World. I see zero reasons why this can’t happen.

Moving away from disks, Arlo should start filling his barrier with stuff. Now, we rarely see characters weaponizing things that aren’t abilities or their bare hands, but it does happen. This is where the idea of water balloons comes in. Fill that sucker in the sink, throw it, then pop it whenever he wants to.

But it’s not just water, he could put anything in there. He could put a shit ton of glitter. He could put sewing needles, caltrops, a big rock, anything. He could probably even put a barrier over his stove, gather steam, compress that shit and make smoke bombs!

But enough with that bitch baby shit.

What about chemicals?

Make water balloons but instead of water it’s hydroflouric acid. Or fill that shit with liquid nitrogen. Make smoke bombs but instead of steam it’s mustard gas— he and his friends will be protected inside a full barrier. There is any number of chemical weapons he could use, and some gases could even be made at home by mixing the wrong cleaning materials.

But what about insects? Go to the woods, find a beehive and yoink that shit.

The main problem with the “putting things in barriers” idea is that he’d have to prepare ahead of time, and keep those barriers up and his ability active until he uses them. That means it isn’t useful unless he knows the fight is gonna happen, and has enough time to prepare before it, but not so much time that he loses energy keeping them up. It’s also not useful if he wants to be non threatening at first, because his ability will need to be active. And also, unlike other weapons, A lot of these can’t be stored. He has to use all of them before the end of the fight— especially since gases can’t be released without using them. So, not very convenient or practical most of the time, but it would be super cool and effective in certain circumstances.

The next unlikely technique for Arlo to develop is vacuums. Arlo could make a really tiny, spherical barrier. Airtight. EXPAND that sucker. Make it real big- a near vacuum inside. Then make a tiny hole in it. Depending the size, that could create some insane suction. Suction is something so versatile that it could actually be a whole ability in its own right. That’s a whole ass mid tier added to Arlo’s already dope skill set. Possibly more.

Seriously, just think about suction for a second. You could bring anything close to you— Arlo actually has an easier method of telekinesis as we’ve gone over, but still— you could probably break and bend things with enough force, divert an attack by sucking it, or your opponent’s body in a different direction, you could cause some severe damage by sucking directly on someone’s skin. (I’m trying so fucking hard not to make a sex joke oh my god)

Here’s where Arlo’s capabilities get… gruesome.

My brother suggested that he could suck someone’s brain out through their skull. I was incredulous, but with enough force and with the tiny suction hole placed on an eye or nose, he definitely could.

But there’s an easier method of killing right there: put the vacuum over someone’s head. It doesn’t have to be an intense enough vacuum to explode their head (it could be though), just enough to suffocate them. Even without killing, suffocation could be used for intimidation or to knock them out.

But if we ARE killing… Arlo could put someone’s whole body in a vacuum and have the same effect as throwing them into space. They explode, their blood boils, it’s fuckin freaky what happens when a person depressurizes.

Even without a vacuum, (or any of these, really) it’s a good thing Arlo isn’t willing to kill because there are about a million ways he easily could.

The question that inspired the whole idea of a vacuum to begin with is: could Arlo make a barrier inside of someone, then expand it? The answer? Probably yes.

This gruesome shit is the reason I imagine Arlo at his full potential to be like… a villain au. Also because having an OP villain doesn’t have the same narrative pitfalls as an OP protagonist.

What’s Arlo’s range like? Could he expand his range with practice? How far out could he shoot a disk? Could he puncture the hull of an empire class battle ship leaving thousands to drown at sea? You know, because it’s so sharp?

Seriously though, could he take down airplanes?

Making barriers bigger or smaller doesn’t seem to affect his energy at all, considering that he never has to shrink it to save energy even when it would make sense (like with the dampener— Arlo just warned that he couldn’t keep it up, then took it down and switched straight to a disk even though there was plenty room to shrink it). So if the size of it doesn’t matter, then how big could he make it? Could he make Atlantis? Pick up a city and put it underwater with a barrier as an air dome? Could he make a dome around the earth and block meteors? Could he crush the core of the earth and blow up the planet if he wanted to??

Sadly, the answer to all of those questions is “probably not”.

Arlo is already super OP, they don’t call it a god tier for nothing. But he could be so much more godlike. I know I got really crazy at the end there, but back up just a little bit and he could realistically be a god among gods with just a little creativity. Especially at the top where the images are. Most of this stuff would not be hard.

[thursdayinspace]

Y'know what? I was sitting in a funk, thinking thoughts, and I thought: y'know what'll get me outta this? Listening to a mutual talk about their passions, passionately.

So, tell me: top 3 Revival moments that aren't MSRy. I wanna know layers. I wanna know intrigue. I wanna be GRIPPED by your love for that series. >:DDDDDD

thank you for this dream assignment. okay. *cracks knuckles* let's begin. i don't know if these are my *top* 3, but they're the ones that come to mind immediately.

1.

I'll start with one that you may argue is still msr, but this very specific bit is not, so hear me out. I'm talking about Scully in "Plus One" coming to Mulder's room asking him to hold her. This is all about Scully and the lessons she has had to learn the hard way about using her words, and about taking that big risk of showing vulnerability. For me, we can go all the way back here to season 2, "Irresistible," where she is shaken up to the point of going for a counseling session where she talks about herself in the second person, and then admits she doesn't want Mulder to know how much the case is getting to her. That's not about Mulder specifically. That's about Scully wanting to prove herself to her brothers as a kid. That's about being a woman in a male-dominated field - both in science and the FBI. She knows her weakness can be used against her. So putting up a facade has become second nature to her. It is also important to note that she *does not* open up to Mulder at the end of "Irresistible." She has reached a breaking point. She still doesn't talk.

In "Plus One," she asks for help. Once again she is shaken up by a case to the point where she has trouble handling it. But she is able this time to admit it. And I'm sure that is a hard-earned skill. Yes, she can open up here and ask for help because it's Mulder. But that she's admitting *at all* that she is struggling, and not even that but *asking for support*? That's big. And that has something to do with their relationship, but also not. That's Scully having learned that being scared is okay. That's Scully being more settled in her own skin, more confident, knowing her own strength and therefore being able to drop her defenses occasionally.

2.

In "Ghouli," the scene where William is on that autopsy table and Scully, thinking he's dead, explains to him all about his adoption and how affected she was by it. It's an important moment because I always felt like they completely dropped the ball on that in season 9. She gave up her kid, after it had been her biggest wish to be a mom for so long, and then the next time we hear about it is when she talks about it with Mulder in his jail cell for one minute. In between, she seems completely unaffected by it. It comes up again in IWTB, which I really liked, but I always felt like they owed Scully a real *moment*. A real moment to live in that pain and acknowledge how that changed her life and how really fucking difficult it was. As heartbreaking as that moment is and as much as I tend to simply ignore the William storyline, I think it was important.

3.

This is not a moment per se, but you know I have to mention the sushi episode. "Rm9sbG93ZXJz." There, I even looked up the proper title. It's a lot of moments in that episode that make up the whole of it. I love the creepiness of it that's created through the complete absence of other people. It's isolation dialed up to maximum. That's obviously a social commentary, but to me it's also an X Files commentary, if you will. The whole show, it's been them against the world. Very little backup. Just the two crazies from the basement. And here, they're not just isolated from the rest of the world, but for all intents and purposes, the world seems actually *empty*. Even though this episode stands somehow outside of canon to an extent, to me it's a ~vibes~ summary of the entire og myth arc. They have no one. They can't trust anyone. Everything is against them and yet they keep fighting against an enemy that seems omnipresent and undefeatable. I will talk about this episode for days if I don't stop now, so I'll leave it at that.

oh man this was fun. thank you for the question!

[yandere-loveer]

✧ Yandere Raph 2012 Concept˚ ♡

English is not my first language, not at all. But I will make the effort. I will start accepting all kinds of requests, but obviously everything has limits.

(At this time it is located in the first seasons, before Spike became Slash)

TW : Obsession, kidnapping, forced relationship, forced affection, sensitive topics, anger issues.

The only thing is only about two words that are "anger issues".

This Raph is clear that he can't control his anger, even if he wanted to sometimes. But he always uses his anger to his advantage to beat up criminals or Krangs.

He imagined to me that long ago in the day that he was able to meet you. He was on the roof of one of the buildings in New York. It's just him and some bags lying near where he was, ("that's good. I just wanted to hit things".)

because of a fight with Leo, after he couldn't control his strength while they went out on patrol.

In his mind it only happened that he could talk to Spike, he was the only one who understood him.

But in a moment from above, he could see you in trouble with one of the purple dragons and how you tried to defend yourself. Until I just helped you, I couldn't stand it when those idiots got away with it. I can't even stand it when Leo forgave one of them.

Only over time could he feel that you were the solution to all of his anger issues, when he was with you every day. He felt that his anger did not exist and that only you two existed in this world. You bring him peace and that is one reason they need to be together.

If he kidnaps you, it could be for two reasons: you're in danger or he explodes to the point that he needed to be with you 24/7. Be careful, it is not nice to be by his side, if you contradict him.

Raph is a sadistic and aggressive yandere if you don't have a good relationship with him, don't be surprised if at one point you have bruises or bites somewhere on your body from his punishments for not meeting his expectation of loving him as much as he does. He can also have some broken bones if you do something more serious, It can also break some bones if you do something more serious. of course he can sometimes (very rarely) apologize if he admits that he went too far with putting you in your place. It all depends on how you behave with him.

So just sit back and love him, just be a good match for him.

"They don't understand me, I would like to be calm. But they always make me reach my limit. You understand me, right...?"

[orcasoul]

Am I too late to love you? Part 2

Summary: Reader and Joel are in an unestablished relationship. Joel breaks her heart when being asked to admit his feelings and she leaves their shared home. Reader gets into trouble while on patrol without Joel causing him to face his own truth and go in a desperate search for her.

Warnings: swearing, angst, Joel being well... Joel lol. clicker attack. Use of Y/N

Italics indicate inward thinking.

The water is brutal! The cold penetrated your body with such ferocity that for a moment all of your muscles sized up and you began to sink, being dragged away by the current at the same time. After what felt like an eternity you began to kick, breaking the surface and desperately gasping for air. You've never felt the cold like this in your whole life. It hurt, it hurt so fucking much! Trying to keep your head above the water you look to the bank and see Andy shoot the remaining clickers, his face a picture of horror as he helplessly watches you get pulled downriver.

Trying to fight the current was useless, nevertheless you try with all your strength to reach the river bank. The longer you are in the water the more you feel your body giving up, ready to succumb. But at the same time your mind is screaming at you to keep fighting. And so you do; You fought your way to the surface every time the current tried pulling you down into the icy abyss. It's terrifying to be in such a helpless situation, completely at nature's mercy. One moment you're looking for something, anything to grab onto at the raging surface and the next you're being pulled back down, the only sounds being the torrent rushing past you ears and your muffled screams. You brake the surface again for what you were sure would be the last time, taking one last gulp of air when your back slams into something hard, the current pinning you against it.

Struggling to turn against the weight of the water you realise it's a large rock. You cling to it, catching your breath. Looking around you notice you are closer to the river bank than you were a few minutes ago. You also notice that there are other rocks close by clogged up with broken branches, making a natural dam. If you were religious you would have thought that someone up there was looking out for you, giving you this opportunity to make a break for it. You gather your strength and you push yourself across the river grabbing onto the rocks, pulling your aching body against the water until finally your feet touched the bottom and you could walk against the current in the shallow water.

Crawling out of the water your body collapsed, finally spent. You just lay on the frozen ground for a while shivering and crying. Crying tears of joy that you survived against the odds. Laying still after the fight you just had to endure was a welcomed bliss, even if the wind chill was beginning to make your face and fingers hurt. You take a few more minutes to catch your breath, listening to the sound of the rushing water and watching the clouds roll by in the baby blue sky, a strange sense of calm enveloping you. A cold gust of wind brought you sharply out of your sense of serenity, making you shiver violently. "Okay, get up" you mumble to yourself. Your body has never felt as heavy as it does now while rolling over to get on your hands and knees. With a loud groan you force yourself up, standing slowly on shaky legs.

Taking in your surroundings it's evident that you haven't been dragged as far downstream as you'd thought. You must have only been in the river for several minutes, even though it felt a lot longer. Wrapping your arms tightly around your body, desperately trying to conserve any body heat you might have left, you walk back up the side of the river until you reach the patrol route. Andy had gone, leaving the dead clickers in his wake. It was going to be a hell of a long walk back to Jackson but after surviving clickers and the river you ain't giving up now!

*******

Joel had been repairing a damaged fence outside the school all the while mentally rehearsing what he would say to you when you returned from patrol. To say he was pissed when he learned late last night that he'd been taken off your patrol shifts and assigned to construction today would have been an understatement. He knew you must have asked to be given a new partner and honestly he couldn't blame you after what he did, but he always worried when you went on patrol without him. And he couldn't deny the pang of jealousy he felt when he learned that you'd been paired up with Andy. The guy may have been new but he'd already made a reputation for himself as a shameless flirt. Joel knew he had no right to feel this way after brutally dumping you but he couldn't help it, especially after having finally admitted his feelings for you.

A commotion at the gates caught Joel's attention. The gates opened and a lone rider came through, quickly dismounting his horse. A small crowd had gathered, worried voices carrying on the air. Putting his tools down Joel walked over to the crowd and his heart clenched in fear and anger when he saw Andy had returned without you. He stormed over to Andy, grabbing him by his shirt and slamming hard against one of the open gates. "Where is she?!" he roared, his face contorted with fury. It took a few men to pull Joel off of Andy, one of them being Tommy. Andy remained against the door with his hands still up in surrender. "I don't know. We were attacked by a group of clickers and got separated...." Andy began to explain in earnest but before he could say anymore Joel stalked towards him again only to be halted as Tommy stood between them. "And you left her out there alone?!" Joel was now shaking with rage. "No, no I tried to help her but my horse spooked and by the time I got back to her it was too late. She jumped in the river to escape them. They nearly got her!" Andy sighed and hung his head "I'm so sorry, I tried to help, I really did."

Joel felt the blood in his veins freeze and his heart felt like it had dropped to his stomach upon hearing you had jumped in the river. In that moment his world had turned upside down, knowing it was unlikely you had survived. The crushing grief he felt when Sarah had died returned with a vengeance. It became almost impossible to breath and think properly, but Tommy's hands on Joel's shoulders managed to bring him back to the present. "Joel, Andy and l will go look for her right now" Tommy tried to reassure his brother. "I'm going with you" Joel replied. "I don't think that's a good...." "I said i'm going with you!" Joel sharply cut him off with a tone that left no room for argument and Tommy knew there was no point trying to reason with Joel when he got like this.

*******

Every step is torture. The cold pierced every fibre of your being, slowly and agonisingly freezing your muscles, your skin, your very ability to think straight. All you knew is you had to get home ASAP. Knowing you won't survive for long in this temperature you push and push yourself forward. Your feet feel like numb stubs and every muscles is begging for relief but you know if you lay down now you'll never get up again. It's only 2 miles. You can do this, you keep telling yourself over and over. The sun beat down on you through the woodland but you got no warmth from it's weak winter rays. A beautiful day like would normally ignite the nature lover in you, calming your senses while you absorb the world around you; The smell of pine needles mixed with wet earth, the gentle rustle of windswept leaves, the sweet chirp of birds. It was those moments that refreshed your soul in this bleak, broken world.

But right now your focus is consumed by the violent shivers relentlessly wracking your body, causing your teeth to chatter so hard that you're afraid they'll shatter. Your soaked clothes cling to your body, absorbing the windchill and forcing it deep into your bones. Your hairline and eyelashes begin to form ice crystals causing you to rub your eyes every few minutes with fingers you can no longer feel! It is becoming increasingly difficult to walk but you push through the pain and exhaustion, knowing that every step brings you closer to home, closer to Ellie and even.... Joel. If you could see them just one last time it would be worth all this effort. So on you stagger, very slowly. A sense of relief washes over you when you realise you are half way to Jackson.

Not much further, keep going. Slowly dragging your legs, one at a time, you find yourself stumbling as you become increasingly drowsy. You shake your head to snap out of it but the movement only alerts your senses for few moments. You pinch your hands hoping the sudden pain will bring you out of this weary brain fog that is quickly consuming you, but your skin is so numb that you can't feel anything. After a few more minutes your breathing becomes increasingly shallow, forcing you to walk even slower. By focusing so much on your breathing you don't feel it at first; Warmth! You suddenly feel warmth spreading through your core and to your limbs and cheeks. H..How is th... this possible? you start to wonder but confusion is soon replaced by relief as your body continues to radiate much needed warmth to every part of your being. All of a sudden your vision blurs and you collapse to the ground. You open your eyes briefly, sucking in short breaths in panic. You can't move! Your last remaining ounce of strength has abandoned you completely and you feel the overwhelming need to sleep. "I'm s.. so ..sorry" you cry out to Ellie and Joel as you surrender to the dark peace of nothingness.

*******

Every passing minute pulls Joel deeper and deeper into despair. He's so consumed with fear and guilt that he didn't hear Tommy calling from behined. "Joel?" Tommy called again as his horse reached Joel's, followed closely by Andy. Joel turned to look at his brother in a haze "If she made it out of the river she'll head back along the trail, i'm sure of it. If anyone can survive this it's Y/N. That girl is tougher than she looks" Tommy said as reassuringly as he could. Joel knows Tommy is trying to stay positive for his sake but his anxious mind always jumps to the worst case scenario in tense situations. It's a mindset he can't shake. Twenty years of horrors and hardships were responsible for that. "Joel?" Andy sidled his horse next to Joel's. "I really am sorry. I tried to help her. If this stupid horse hadn't bolted or I was a better shot..." he trailed off uncomfortably, scratching the back of his kneck "She was just too far away, i'm so sorry."

Joel didn't answer him. He just tensed his jaw, keeping his steely gaze dead ahead. Andy sensed it was better to shut up, to not push Joel any further and risk being on the receiving end of his wrath for the second time. The three men continued to ride in silence, looking and listening for any sign of life nearby but were only met with silence, apart from the wind and birds. Joel's mind began to spiral the longer time went on. He thought about all the things he should have said to you and all the things he wishes he could take back. You'll never know how much he truly loves you, how much you really mean to him. He's startled out of his thoughts when his horse rears. A rabbit had run across it's path, causing the horses skittish reaction. "Shhh, shhh" Joel soothed while rubbing the horses neck to calm it down. His gaze followed in the rabbit's direction and what he saw made his breath catch in his chest. There you were, lying motionless, poking out from behind a low bush. The deep green of your coat a striking contrast against the pure white dusting of snow.

"Over there!" Joel bellowed to Tommy and Andy as he jumped off his horse and sprinted over to you. He dropped to his knees beside you, placing one hand on your back and the other on your shoulder to roll you over. He was horrified by the sight that met his eyes! Your skin was as pale as the snow, dark circles coated your under eyes, your eyelashes and hair had formed a thin layer of ice, your lips were blue and your clothes had began to freeze around you. You literally looked like death warmed up! "Baby? Baby can you hear me?" Joel pulled you into his chest. He wrapped his arms tightly around you, trying to give you some warmth. "If you can hear me squeeze my hand" he begged desperately while clutching your hand; Nothing. "Please, please, please...." he muttered as he ripped his gloves off pressing his fingers to your neck, searching for a pulse. He silently prayed, begged to any deity that might be there that he would find it. There! It was weak but it meant that you were still alive.

"Give me your coats now!" he ordered the other two men as he shucked his own off. He quickly took off your now crusty coat, wrapping his around you. Tommy ran over with two more coats as Andy stayed back, holding the horses reigns. "Jesus Christ!" he exclaimed when he saw your almost frozen body, quickly wrapping the other coats around you. "Is she alive?" "Barely. We have to get her to the infirmary now!" Joel was frantic. He could barely breath, while his hands wouldn't stop shaking. He ran with you to his horse, passing you to Tommy while he mounted. "Give her here" he demanded. Tommy lifted you up and Joel effortlessly pulled you onto his lap, resting your head on his shoulder, while supporting your back with his arm and gripping the reigns in both hands. "You go, we'll catch up" Tommy insisted. Joel didn't have to be told twice.

He pushed his horse to ride faster than ever before. It may have seemed cruel but all that mattered to him was getting you home alive. Looking down at your peaceful expression brought tears to Joel's eyes. Tucking your head into the crook of his neck he whispered "I'm so sorry baby girl. I love you." He hoped you could hear him. His panic eased slightly as Jackson came into view. "We're almost there darling, just hang on for me please." He gently kissed your forehead as tears rolled down his cheeks. He kicked the horse even harder in desperation. "Open the fucking gate!" Joel screamed at the guards as loud as he could. He didn't dismount as he should have at the gate; Instead he rode straight through, making a beeline for the infirmary. Luckily the residents had the sense to move out of the way.

The doctor and nurses on duty came rushing outside as Joel approached the building. "She's hypothermic! Please help her!" he cried while passing you to them so he could dismount. He quickly scooped you back into his arms as the medical team led the way inside. "We made it baby, we made it."

********

Darkness is slowly replaced by a bright light. You feel a delicious warmth engulfing your whole body and you realise you are lying on something warm and soft. Turning your head to the right you try to focus on the blurry form in front of you. After a moment your vision recovers and you are startled to see Joel looking down at you, his eyes red and puffy from crying. "Hey sweetheart" he whispered softly while stroking the top of your head. "You're gonna be okay. I'm gonna look after you." "Joel?" you quietly ask, unable to hide the surprised tone of your voice. "Shhh... I'm here" he gently takes you're right hand in his, smoothing small circles over your knuckles. "Is that really you?" You begin to sob. Even though he hurt you deeply you cry with relief at seeing him again. Joel slowly shifts on the side of the bed and pulls you into his arms, embracing you gently, as if he's afraid you will break. After a few moments of immersing yourself in his touch, his warmth, his scent you pull away to look into his eyes, those beautiful chestnut eyes you thought you'd never see again.

"Why are you here?" you ask sheepishly, not wanting to sound ungrateful for his presence but at the same time feeling confused as to why he would be here after what he told you only 2 days ago. "When I saw that kid had returned without you I...." Joel hung his head, staring at your fingers entwined with his. "I was terrified" his voice broke on the last sentence, blinking back tears. "When he told us what happened all I could think about was finding you." Joel looked up to meet your eyes and you were shocked to see his usual hardened expression had been replaced with fear and vulnerability. "But I thought you didn't care for me, Joel. You made that crystal clear the other night when you cruelly belittled me and broke my heart" you reply, your voice laced with hurt and confusion. "Look..." you exhaled slowly while looking down "I appreciate you coming to find me but you don't have to be here. You don't have any obligation to me so maybe...." "I love you" Joel cut you off.

Your head snapped up, looking Joel in the eyes. Your own eyes wide at what he'd just said, the sincerity of his voice matching the look of sincerity on his face. All you could do in this moment is stare at him in shock as he continued, "I'm sorry, i'm so sorry for everything. I didn't mean any of it." Then... why did you say it?" you responded in hurt and frustration. "Because you deserve someone better. I'm not a good man and i'm not as strong as I once was. You deserve someone younger who can protect you, someone..." "Stop!" you snap at him. Joel immediately stopped talking, looking at you with raised eyebrows. "I don't want anyone else. It's always been you, Joel. You've done things you're ashamed of but so have I, we all have. But you are a good man even if you can't see it. I've seen who you really are with your brother, with Ellie. That's the real Joel. Everything else is just a means to surviving and I don't judge you for it, I never have."

You place a hand on Joel's cheek and he slowly cups your hand, leaning into your touch. You continue "And I don't care about the age gap. It means nothing to me. You worry that you can't protect those closest to you but i'm here right now because of you. You literally saved my life today." Joel looked at you, realising that you're right. You were with a much younger man today and even he couldn't protect you. "I just couldn't bear the thought of losing you. That's why I couldn't admit to you... and to myself how I really feel. I thought it would be easier to ignore it but.... fuck..." Joel sighed and shook his head. You've never seen Joel express his feelings before and you knew this was difficult for him after shutting himself off for the last 20 years so you silently wait for him to finish, all the while gently squeezing his hand. "I almost lost you anyway" his voice trembled at saying that out loud.

"I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere" you reassure him. "I'm so sorry for everything Y/N. I fucked up and I know I don't deserve your forgiveness or a second chance. I just need you to know that I do love you." After a few moments of silence you take a shaky breath and reply "You really hurt me Joel, i'm not gonna lie." Joel closed his eyes and sighed, drowning in remorse for the pain he caused you. You tilt his chin up and he opens his eyes. "But I love you and I forgive you." The look of relief on Joel's face caused your heart to swell for him and a single tear rolled down your cheek. He wiped it away and swept you up into a tight hug. "I love you so much, baby girl" he whispered into your hair. You smile, knowing you could never hear that enough.

Pulling back slightly he cups your face while softly pressing a kiss to your lips. You instantly melt into it and you both deepen the kiss, gently swiping your tongues together. You kissed him many times before while he's fucked you senseless but those kisses were always fierce, lustful and animalistic. But this.... this was different. The way he kissed you now was tender, loving and meaningful. It was as if you two were the only people in the world right now and nothing else mattered.

An hour later the doctor gave you the all clear. After helping you to stand, Joel lovingly wrapped an arm around your shoulders "Let's get you home, baby" he whispered softly. "On one condition" you say as you stop in your tracks, causing Joel to turn to you with a questionable expression on his face. "Don't shut me out again. If something is wrong you have to talk to me. You have to let me help you, no matter what it is. Promise me, Joel." Joel looked into your eyes, his soft smile causing his eyes to crinkle in the corners. "I promise."

As you approach the house you see Ellie sitting on the front porch waiting for you. The moment she locks eyes with you she jumps up and runs over to you, slamming her body into yours in bone crushing hug, bringing a chuckle from you and you hug her back tightly. "Fuck, I was so worried about you Y/N." "I'm okay" you reply stroking her head. After pulling away she looks between you and Joel. "Are you guys okay now?" She asks worriedly, almost as if she's afraid of the answer. "We're okay" you reassure her while hugging into Joel's side as he kisses the top of your head. Ellie breathed a sigh of relief but then turned to Joel. "You'd better not fuck things up again, old man. You treat her right. I'll be watching you!" "Yes ma'am" Joel replies with a hint of teasing in his voice. "Right, well I'm gonna go tell Tommy and Maria you're home. They're coming to see you later. Then I'm gonna meet Dina and Jesse." "Be home by 11" Joel yelled after her. "Yeah, yeah" she called over her shoulder.

Joel opened the front door and led you inside with his hand gently placed on the small of your back causing your tummy to react with butterflies. You could get used to him being this attentive. He wraps his strong arms around your waist and leans into your neck placing a gentle kiss there. "Good to have you home sweetheart" he coos into your ear. You wrap your arms over his, lean back into his chest and sigh happily. You suddenly realise home isn't where you live. It's not four walls and a roof; For you home is right here in Joel's arms, safe wanted and loved.

[kitmoas]

Now, then, and Forever/

Summary: Sometimes you have to dig through the ashes

Word Count: about 10k

Warnings: ANGST (vague/brief mentions of Sexual Assault, Death, Suicide, and Self Harm), Fighting and Avenger work, and then verbal fights

*As always, let me know if I missed anything important*

A/N: This is the first part of the TGU6: Season 1 Finale! As you guys voted for, the finale is separated into two halves. Part 2 will be posted tomorrow around the same time!! ALSO there might be so many mistakes and I suck so I do be sorry my loves

***MINORS DNI*** PAY ATTENTION TO TAGS and hit the KEEP READING if you are 18+ and Open to Reading*** ***18+ ONLY***

Training Grounds Master List

“It isn’t something I’m used to, you know?” The sun shines brightly against the shiny skyscrapers all around the two, rays hitting cars’ mirrors far below them as they take a snack break in between civilian tasks. 

The boy nods, a barely there sigh as he waits for what comes next. He knows every line, and knows the troubles. It wasn’t something that made him happy, and sometimes he wishes that his best friend never met her girlfriend. He hates the thought, the two were basically perfect together but with the beloved princess came two people that he believed would be the archer’s downfall one way or another. 

“I love her…but I know I’m going to lose her one day. I’m not the person that people keep around and I get that, I’m tainted and not good.” Even though the brunette has said these words hundreds of times, it still gets stuck in her throat. 

Peter sighs, trying to gather the strength to not get angry. He’s not mad at anyone in particular, he hates being angry, but the frustration he feels by this entire situation is getting to be too much. The young boy doesn’t know too much about relationships, only really being with MJ, but he does know that the four of them need to figure out what is going on before it destroys them all. “Kate..you know I don’t believe that and neither does she.” 

The young brunette shakes her head, pulling her legs up so they no longer dangle over the edge. Wrapping her arms around her knees, leaning her forehead against her arms, making her look even younger than she is. 

Peter raises his hand, hesitant and hanging in the air near his best friend’s shoulder before he lets it fall back to his side. He can’t push too much, knowing the girl would immediately retract into herself and hide all of her emotions. 

“I’ve done everything, anything I could. I just wanted them to love me. I want them to look at me like the books, you know? I get it’s not up to them, it isn’t their job but sometimes I just want to be good enough just..being me.” The way she speaks is frantic, fast and almost out of it. It’s almost as if she’s not even there, just a mindless rattling of her thoughts. 

“I don’t want to say it again, but at this point I’m going to. It feels like that saying, don’t meet your heroes and that sucks but Kate you are not being treated correctly by them. Your girl shouldn’t be letting them treat you this way either, and no matter how amazing she is that doesn’t give her a pass to let others treat you like shit.” The young man isn’t sure why he decided to signal you out, but he did. Trying to shrug off the guilt, he stays head strong in his statement. 

“Clint turned out fine.” Kate’s voice is small, an attempt at her know-it-all mask. It’s a pitiful effort, they both know that but neither point it out. 

Closing his eyes, the grip on his soda tightens just a little and cracks the glass slightly before he takes a deep calming breath. “Well.. maybe that’s because you didn’t start dating his wife?” 

Kate’s head snaps up, wide eyes as she shakes her head adamantly. “I didn’t do anything wrong, Wanda and Natasha gave her permission to go out and be single while they were gone. It isn’t my fault really that they wanted to keep me around after. I didn’t…I-” Her voice dies out as she starts shaking, her head falling back to lean against her knees as she tries to reign in the beginnings of a panic attack. 

The boy sighs, trying to back track immediately. He didn’t want to make her panic or freak out, just point out a basic difference between the two. “Just because you didn’t mean for it to happen, and just because they kept you around, doesn’t mean that you get to be treated like this or that they expected everything to end up like this. Maybe something else happened and now they aren’t sure where the dynamic is?” Slowly speaking, trying to bring focus back to the normal way these conversations go, Peter lets himself watch a few kids play below them on the sidewalk as he waits for a response. 

Kate lifts her head slowly, a confused expression painted across her face as she turns to look at the boy. Her mouth falls open a few times, eyebrows furrowing as she tries to collect her thoughts. A noise of skepticism tumbles from her lips, making her flinch at herself and how pathetic she sounded. 

“You’re telling me that you haven’t noticed anything different? Things haven’t evolved in the year or so that you became part of this dynamic? Even if that evolution isn’t something that you want, it needs to be dealt with before it drags you all down.” He turns to her now, a gentle look on his face as he finally notices she’s calmed down and seemingly back to her fix-it mentality. 

Ocean eyes squint, a teasing look soaring across her face when a mischievous smirk pulls at her lips. “When did you become so smart? You’re a child.” 

He rolls his eyes, running his hand through his messy curls. “Being with MJ has pushed me to learn about things and how to read her emotions.” Trying to push off the real foundation he found, a mentor who has been helping him be a better man for his girlfriend. 

The archer sees right through it, snorting as she mocks her best friend. “You’ve been hanging out with Scott and Hope haven’t you?”

He’s laughing, nodding as he shoves Kate away from him. The two taunt and joke with each for a while, giggling and gossiping like normal teenagers as they watch birds and planes fly by. 

Ringing interrupts the moment, the two of them laughing even harder when the jarring noise almost makes Peter fall off the ledge. 

“If you two are done doing whatever it is that you happen to be doing, I have a mission for you.” The static filled Stark voice almost echoes at the height the two are, bouncing off the glass and muffling against the brick. 

Struggling to contain the giggles, the young boy straightens even though his mentor cannot see him. “Yes Mr. Stark sir, we are ready.” 

Scoffing, the billionaire’s sarcastic smirk can almost be heard as he attempts to hum professionally. “Good, don’t disappoint. The information has been sent to both of your HUDs. I’ll see you both soon.” 

The two of them chug back their drinks, smiles bright as they stand and quickly stretch their legs. Peter’s mask materializes around his head, eyes blinking as he readjusts to the ability to focus. He looks around as Kate’s new suit bleeds out from the shooting glove on her left hand, a mix of nanotech and Uru. The two still can’t believe the suit that was gifted to the CEO, something that must have taken not only a trip into space but months to build. Purple and black in color, shiny as it glows from the magic within its molecules, the suit practically melts against her skin before dark purple glasses slip around her head. 

Kate’s eyes blink frantically, working to quickly adjust to the blinking information that shows up about everything around her; a smirk spreads along her face before she jumps off the ledge. “Race you there!” 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Do you think it was a mistake?” The sentence made you freeze, alcohol blurring your vision and sugar rushing your veins. It wasn’t sudden, you knew that your brother and best friend had been walking on eggshells to not bring up the situation that you’re in but you weren’t ready for such a blunt question. A toe dipping into the endless abyss of water, just a touch to see the temperature, was expected even welcomed because you knew you needed to talk about it. You should have known better. You never seemed to get what you thought you needed—no, instead you were handed what the world believed you would benefit from. 

Unsure of where to even begin to answer, you slowly look away from the screen to where the other two sit huddled together. Taking a deep breath you try to settle the sinking feeling in your stomach, the sting of bile crawling its way up your throat at the thought of them asking if one of the three people you love were a blunder. “A mistake?” Your voice is shaky, cracking embarrassingly, bringing a vexed maroon across your face. Something you always hated about yourself was your inability to hide your emotions, your mask only lasting long enough for you to flee judgemental eyes before crumbling into pieces at your feet. 

With each movement, awkward and robotic, crinkling of candy wrappers and snaps of pretzel sticks fill the room. No one really knows where to go with the conversation now, the threat of a full blown fight just a few wrong words away. 

It’s the blonde who gains the courage to speak up first, hesitant with each word nonetheless. “It…we are not saying that you need to end but you do not think this is getting out of control?” 

You are instantly defensive, not wanting to admit to the state of your dynamic. It wasn’t something you were proud of, hiding in the good moments to distract yourself from the bad. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” 

“Oh now, we all know that is a lie. Do not lie to your best friend.” Yelena settles back into the couch, crossing her arms as she mockingly pouts up at you. She is no longer scared of your outburst, knowing that it’s just a way for you to redirect your own frustration. 

It surprises you when Carson’s voice rings out, strong and confident. Your younger brother is rarely open to confrontation, and it makes the situation you’re in even more serious to you if he is even ready to speak up about it. “Everyone sees it now, even mom and dad are questioning things. You lasted how many years without them even second guessing where you were going, and all that is going to crumble in a couple months.” 

“He isn’t our fucking dad!” Your voice cracks, anger clawing its way up your throat. Glaring at the floor in front of the coffee table, you try to sort through your thoughts quickly but you can’t even decide who you’re actually mad at. 

Carson nods, setting the control on the couch next to him as he sighs. He had thought you would be passively defensive, not outwardly offensive with him but he was wrong. The young boy should have known as soon as he brought up your step-father that things wouldn’t be as smooth for him as they were for the widow next to him. 

Yelena just raises her eyebrow, rolling her eyes as she watches you seethe. “Do not take it out on him, you know that your anger is not at us so take a moment to breathe.” She’s talking almost as if she would to a child, but for some reason it doesn’t make you angry. 

“I don’t know anymore. Okay? Is that what you guys want to hear? I don’t fucking know anymore. Everything is falling apart and everyone is so angry all the time. My life is crumbling, every single thing I thought I knew is breaking. Everything is so tense and I don’t know how to deal with it! I didn’t sign up to keep the entire world together! Okay? I didn’t want this! I am not the one in charge! I signed up to be able to give and do, and become a person that eases the tension in a relationship by just existing as I am. I didn’t sign up to be a smart issue fixer. I sound like a fucking idiot, I can’t fix anything! I couldn’t even save dad, how does anyone expect me to save them? How does anyone expect me to fix things? 

The two watch as you stand up, screaming into the room. It doesn’t scare them but the louder you get the more that your younger brother flinches. The blonde agent just sits there, legs crossed as she watches you break down. No matter how much either of them want to reach out to you, Yelena knows better. The moment you realize that you are still in a room with people you’ll dart, flight kicking in as the fight in you sizzles out. 

She knows you need this, a moment to feel the pain that you have been bottling up for months now. Everything in your body and mind mixes, memories being dragged into your current world to try and make sense of something that you feel like you lost control of. As much as it pains both of them to sit there and do nothing while you crumble in front of them, they know it’s the best thing for you. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“The world won’t understand who you are and what you want, but that isn’t something that should cause you to fight this.” The airy, echoey voice grates along the inside of the brunette’s head. Annoyance sinking into her body the moment the conversation diverts to the topic she had been avoiding. She didn’t want to hear another lecture about the future, instead she wanted to be trained like they had agreed upon. 

Wanda sighs, frustration seeping out of her body. She wants to reach out and strangle them but she knows that it would be futile. They aren’t there saying these things out of spite or ill intent, but as knowledge. “What if I want to fight it? What if this isn’t what I want?” 

It’s like they loved to mock the Avenger, snickering at her as she explained her feelings before shooting down every single thing she wanted. “You don’t really get to decide that Wanda, this isn’t something you can just get rid of. It’s your destiny.” The wide smile on their face boils the witch’s blood, wanting to simply speak it out of existence. 

“This doesn’t fit into my plans.” The witch could feel the steel stubborn bricks building in her stomach, something that her parents used to say she had when she was younger. It was always an issue of hers, anytime she wanted something and didn’t feel like she should budge she dug her feet in and built steel bricks. 

Wanda watches as they roll their eyes, taunting her as they lazily inspect their nails. “Losing Pietro and your parents didn’t fit into the plan. Losing your home didn’t fit into the plan. Being taken to this country and forced to fight for a side you never believed in that didn’t fit in the plan.” If the Sokovian could, she would strangle the arrogance out of them; absolutely fuming at the mention of everything she has lost in her life. “This..this fits into the plan more than you could ever believe and you need to trust the prophecy.” 

A sarcastic scoff tears through the brunette’s teeth before she can stop it, eyes twitching as she works to keep the connection between the two of them through her annoyance. Regardless of how much she despised what she was being told, she knew that she needed to hear it. Preparation was needed, and this was the way she would find it. “Until I once again lose everything that I love because of a foolish prophecy. I have finally built a life that I’m happy with, am surrounded by people who love me for who I am. Is that not the real plan? Is that not what I wanted forever?” 

The feeling of a cold finger tilting her head up makes Wanda’s skin crawl, the urge to break the digit off is strong but she resists. A feigned sympathetic look spreads across their face as they coo at the witch. It’s almost believable, but the younger brunette is smarter. She knows they don’t actually care about her, using her to make sure they are safe and able to mold her as needed. This is a strategic survival plan, but she has no other option than to play into it.  “Think bigger sweetheart, love is an Earthly thing. You were destined for more than just this planet.”

Wanda sighs, her face scrunching when she feels her magic surge; begging to break free.  “Maybe it’s you that was destined for more. I want to spend the rest of my time doing exactly what I’ve been doing. Nothing less and nothing more.” 

“If only you could have control over that, but no one can stop this–not even you.” The witch opens her mouth to counteract, complain that if she’s so powerful then why can’t she do something. “No, there’s things out there that even we cannot control and that’s something that we both need to learn to accept.” Their hand reaches up, petting her brunette hair completely disregarding the tense muscles. It’s entirely too much, almost comedical, as if they were baiting an angry bear. 

Wanda’s eyes snap open, glowing crimson as she loses control. She knows what they meant, a world that would know who she is destined to be will emerge inevitably and she has to be ready to lose it all. It’s knowledge she understands, grasps fully, but it’s something that she will fight until her last dying breath. The world can try to destroy the life she has created, but it will have to demolish her along with it. 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Watching him pace the floors of his old farm house was always weirdly relaxing to Natasha, knowing that being here meant safety. The two friends tried their hardest to never actually come here unless they knew no one would follow them. “You can’t keep acting like you don’t remember what you were told, it isn’t fair to anyone.” Just like that, it’s less of a safe place for the ginger.  

Pouting the assassin stares up at the archer, trying to guilt him into saying sorry for absolutely nothing. “Stop taking someone else’s side, just because she’s your mentee doesn’t denote the fact that I am supposed to be your best friend.” She sighs when she realizes that it didn’t work, the man immune to even her most basic attempts. 

The tired man rolls his eyes, rubbing at his face as he bends down to pick up some thrown clothes on the ground. “That wasn’t the reason, nor am I taking anyone’s side. I just simply think that this entire situation is getting incredibly out of con–” The rest of his lecture is thankfully cut off as his three children come rushing into the room, the youngest immediately running circles around his name sake. 

The young boy practically becomes a cheetah every time he sees the ginger, excitement making his body vibrate. “Auntie Nat, tell dad that we should get pizza tonight please!” Even as he zooms around his big puppy dog eyes are obvious, and it tugs at the widow’s heart strings knowing she can never say no to him. 

“C’mon Barton, don’t be boring! Give the little gremlins what they want!” The ginger drags the youngest boy back, smiling wide at his screeches. Pulling him to sit in her lap, Nat smiles as she hugs Nate as close as possible. She knows that she needs to come around more as she realizes how much heavier he’s gotten since she last saw him. Pushing away the emotion as the speed of his growth hits her, the Russian focuses on the present. 

The glare shot her way is ignored, subtly flipping off the older man. He stands up straighter, raising his eyebrow as he stares down his best friend. “Just because they’re here doesn’t mean you get out of talking, you know that right?” 

“Are you in trouble Aunt Nat?” Lila’s curious gaze meets the widow’s, and Natasha gulps as she silently curses the young girl’s maturity and sharp social skills. She's too young to be this good at it, but then again so was the widow.

Cooper’s ears perk up at that, the older boy starting to grow into his own and eager for a moment to show off his skills. Even if it is his sister that has picked up the family archery, he has officially started exploring different forms of protection. Taking after another Avenger, the boy has been learning how to fight with shields and weapons made for defense. It's something that his family pokes fun at him for, but he loves it.

The Russian smiles, softening her entire expression as she looks over at the young girl. She needs the conversation to end there, or at least the interest in it from the adolescents in the group. “No sweetie, I’m fine. Your dad just wants to try and get me to talk about things I don’t want to talk about.” 

Clint scoffs, rolling his eyes as he settles into the couch and pulls out a menu. “More like talking to someone about something that you need to talk about.” 

Cooper groans, flopping back onto the recliner. “Dad we aren’t little kids anymore, you can talk about grown up things around us. Well I guess Nate is a baby.” He snickers when he sees the younger boy gasp. 

Darting off of Natasha’s lap, Nate launches himself at his older brother. The two immediately begin to wrestle, tumbling over the back of the chair and rolling around on the wooden floor. Lila rolls her eyes, slipping on her headphones as she tries to ignore the annoyance of the boys. One to always try to act cool around her aunt. 

“Figuring out dinner is difficult Clint, and not everyone can just magically do that.” The ginger crosses her arms, slowly receding into herself as she feels the lecture coming back. 

The old archer chuckles, jotting down notes on what they would be ordering that night, barely paying attention to anything the other is saying. “You act like food is so difficult. It’s not. You look at the options, and you pick the best one. It’s that simple Nat.” He presents his list arrogantly to the woman, wiggling his eyebrow mockingly. 

Huffing, the assassin glares at a scuff on the floor. Refusing to the cocky expression on the other’s face, she denies him another time. “Not when it’s dinner for everyone in the house, not everyone is going to be happy with the same thing everytime.” 

Dropping the notepad down on the side table, Clint leans against his knees as he pushes into Natasha’s personal bubble just slightly. “Stop acting like you’re feeding toddlers, it truly isn’t that hard to feed four adults and make sure they all get at least something that will be good for them. I can easily cook dinner for Laura and our kids, you can cook for your group too.” 

“Why does it fall on us, huh? You and I should get the opportunity to just sit back and wait for dinner to be finished.” Not one to take a challenge lightly, the ginger drops her feet to the ground to level up with Barton. 

Smirking, the archer tilts his head and laughs at the woman. He knows exactly where he trapped her, and he knows that he can use it to his advantage now. “Sometimes you gotta step up Nat.” 

“Step up to what dad? It’s just dinner, stop acting like it’s a mission to cook.” Cooper’s crooked grin as he interrupts the competitive moment makes the Avengers chuckle, a split second of relief in the conversation. 

Standing, and obnoxiously stretching, Clint uses his body to force the ginger to lose balance and fall back into the chair. “Yeah, well your Aunt Nat isn’t really good when she’s the one in charge of dinner. She’s burned the food the past few times, keeps just trying to order food to replace it.” 

Nate's eyes brighten, excitement buzzing through his body as he hears one of his favorite dinner ideas. “Delivery is the best though!” 

Nodding along, the father picks up his phone to prepare to call the pizza shop. Pausing, he leans against the table as he takes the minute to look at four of his favorite people. “It’s amazing and fun, but it doesn’t replace a home cooked meal. Sometimes seeing that effort and love put into something so warm means more than something just bought, or picked out. Dinner, and food in general, is an act of love. It’s a way to show someone you care about them, and some days it’s okay to order something to be delivered. It still shows you care enough to get them food, but that extra effort to take time out of your day to plan and actually cook the food is so much better. The food also almost always tastes better. Love isn’t about the money kids, and neither is food. It’s something that your Aunt Nat needs to learn, and it’s a hard lesson to learn but it’s one that everyone has to go through at some point.” 

As he finally turns away, lifting the phone to his ear and the kids go back to playing, the ginger’s focus drifts out the window. Thoughts of you, Wanda, and lastly Kate bounce about through her mind as she debates her next move. 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Are.. you alright kid?” The sympathy in the older man’s voice tugged at your nerves, a tone you know not many hear. 

You take your time to answer, debating if you want to attempt to lie. The urge to brush off your feelings and insecurities is strong, especially when you logically know most of them are false, but you know the soldier next to you would never consciously fib to you. “Maybe everyone’s right.” 

The question is silent, a man of few words as per usual. His head is just barely tilting up towards you, waiting patiently but pushing you in the way he knows you need to. 

Tugging your shirt sleeve down, suddenly hyper aware of everything wrong with you, your stomach flips and gags you slightly. It’s almost like your body is trying to reject opening up, anxiety swarming your nerves and every inch of yourself. “It’s illogical for anything in my life, especially this, to work out. It’s the trend at this point, so why would it change? It doesn’t make sense, and one day I’m going to be forced to choose.” Your voice dies out slowly, your body following as you try to curl up in on yourself. 

Bucky’s rough voice cracks the foundation of the wall you had just begun to build, stopping you in your tracks. “Do those people matter? If you guys make it work then really that’s all that matters?” 

His question makes you think, the first person to not just point out the entire situation going on to you as if you weren’t experiencing it currently. It made you malfunction slightly since you had mentally prepared to defend your life, or maybe to get angry again. Instead you take a breath, letting the one thought that you shove down the most run free for a second. “Maybe, or maybe we’re just being naive. I don’t want to ever be put in a position where I have to choose. I know what my choice would be, at least in theory, but…it would destroy me. I’m not even sure who I would be after that.” 

You watch as he flexes his dark vibranium hand, rubbing at it as if he was cleaning up a smudge. Uncertainty rises in your throat, but he once again lays a heavy hand on your fear. “You’re a fighter, and you have plenty of people that would support you in any way you would need. I would support you in any way you would need.” 

You couldn’t help the small smile that pulls at your lips, the normally stoic man always had a soft side for you. It was something that you found pride in, keeping moments like this close to your heart. The relationship you had with the soldier was something that was incredibly important to you, and you knew that he treasured you.  

The happiness you feel is short lived as you let his statement sink into your mind, letting it get engulfed by the darkness that sits within you. Turning such a beautiful sentiment into another dagger to dig into the wound that you never let heal, only scabbing over for a brief time before you allow it to be ripped back apart by your mind. “I was never meant to make it this far, never meant to save myself. I’ve known that from the beginning. I’ve been playing in overtime, a dangerous game to play.” 

Flashes of nights spent alone, the weight of a loaded pistol in his hand, fill his mind momentarily. Blinking rapidly, the older man tries his hardest to ignore his own memories as his determination to keep you safe overpowers. “You know I disagree with that.” 

Rolling your eyes, you lightly shove him. “Just because you disagree doesn’t mean everyone in the world disagrees.” 

Stuttering, a moment of disbelief filters through the older man’s mind. He spent so many years under the influence of chemicals and other people, but for some reason he was able to make it through. Not necessarily the best mentally, Bucky survived and is now the happiest he has ever been. He wants to help you, wants to ease your tension and fears but how can he help someone whose brain is miraculously even darker than his. 

“Sometimes I feel like the world would end if I didn’t exist, which is really ironic for someone that wanted to die most of their life. I don’t understand living, or joy in the daily world. I never did. Even as a kid I romanticized death and ceasing to exist, it seemed peaceful and ideal. It wasn’t because I thought I couldn’t handle responsibilities or anything, at least that wasn’t why back then, but because I thought that was like my destiny. Ultimately death is everyone’s, in theory eventually, but for me it always felt like I was bound for an early untimely demise ” Chuckling, you can’t help but flourish your words at the idea that played in your head almost daily for most of your life. For you death was only scary when it wasn’t your own, instead you would greet it with open arms for yourself but it simply seemed to never want to welcome you back. 

You never thought it was dark, or sad, just the way your life went. The mindset you had didn’t please most people, and you try your hardest to ignore those thoughts as much as possible but it isn’t always easy. As of lately, with everything going on, the world around you no longer is loud enough to drown out your deepest dark romantic thoughts. Instead it sang its grim melody, luring you back into its grasp. “Keeping everything together, things are falling through the cracks and I don’t have all the information. I can’t be the glue anymore when I can’t even keep myself together.” 

Bucky eyes flicker around, trying to think of how to answer everything that he had just heard. He knows that you don’t want to hear anything about death, your mind has been made up for years now, so instead he focuses on something he may be able to help with. “Are you the glue because your dynamic falls solely on you and your involvement or because whatever is happening right now is forcing you to believe that you’re the only thing keeping everyone involved in the relationship?” 

Your mouth opens and closes, jaw tense as you stew on the words Bucky said. It wasn’t something you ever wanted to think about, a flaw within the dynamic that ultimately fulfilled all your dreams. While you know that most people believe that you saved Wanda and Natasha’s relationship, you don’t like to think that. They would have survived, and thrived on their own, but you do know that you brought a steadiness that they were not used to. Many say that you saved Kate, but in all reality you believe that the two of you saved yourselves to end up together. You didn’t like the idea of being the reason why Kate is thriving, the girl fought her whole life and she deserves the credit for where she is. Pride wells up inside you every time you think about the warrior that she is, and how she truly is a hero. She may never fully believe that, regardless of her god complex, but she is your hero. Everything she ever does is amazing, and leaves you breathless, but you see the anxiety and the hesitation with each movement and decision. 

Unbeknownst to you, the soldier next to you was watching you carefully. Analyzing you as you zoned out, a moment of silence between the two of you allowed him to gather his thoughts. He knew that you had a darker side, a part of you that most ignored for the cute loveable layer. It was a fact, but he wasn’t used to seeing it so much. You had been far less bubbly and adorable as of lately, the weight of everything dragging you down and allowing the gloomy side out.  

The mostly comfortable tranquility was shattered by your best friend slamming open the stairwell door, the two of you flinching as you turned to her. Her face is frantic, breaking all of her training as she looks around. “Grab your suit, kid, we must go now.” She shakes her head, cutting you off effectively when you go to question her. The look she shoots your way is all you needed to see, jumping over the couch. 

Thoughts distraught in your head, you can feel a slight burn along your left rib cage. Rubbing at it you are surprised when your suit starts melting across your skin, realizing that it’s been enchanted. The dark, almost black, suit quickly covers your body and a mask slips over your head. You blink when your vision glows red, purple writing explains everything around you and gives you information on anything that you may need. Looking down at your hands you realize that the mask shows you all the weapons that you have, magically concealed within the belt now around your waist. 

You can feel the power surging through you, and when you hear Wanda’s voice echoing through the mask you feel confident. With the witch’s magic protecting you, and her voices guiding you, there wasn’t anything you felt like you couldn’t conquer. “Let’s do this.” Laying your hand on Yelena’s shoulder, you will yourself to be where you need to be. Disappearing, the two of you leave a static filled smoke cloud behind. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The ginger barely blinks when she sees the remnants of scarlet mist floating in her peripheral vision. “You know, whenever you said you would show up wherever I needed you I never thought that you would really start showing up without my asking for it.” 

Wanda settles in the seat next to her girlfriend, sitting sideways so that she can look at her. Letting her legs hang over the armrest, the younger woman rolls her eyes and sarcastically tips an invisible hate towards the widow. “I’m at your service, night and day. Top notch, automatic. We’re all just living in your world, aren’t we?” The smirk pulls at her lips, her eyebrow raises cockily. 

It didn’t take the widow much brain power to pick up on the sarcasm dripping from the witch's lips, a bad habit that only grew after the two collared you. The young Sokoivian was never really a sardonic person, just had a mask of confidence, but your bratty side unlocked a part of her that no one could control. “Destined to rule the world and can’t even admit to it being yours, how humble of you.” 

“Don’t you own them? Isn’t that what you said? Bishop? Your Toy? Aren’t they our world? You say I’m destined to prevail, but we both know you are awaiting the destruction not the regime.” Wanda picks at her nails, an act that the other woman sees through easily. The younger of the two always had a harder time hiding her emotions, a detrimental issue for her powers. 

Natasha chuckles dryly, focusing on the panel of screens as she tries to act unaffected by the other woman’s attempt at baiting her. “Dramatic as usual, if only you left that in the past with the heavy eyeliner and tacky pleats.” 

Twirling one of her rings around her finger, the witch’s eyebrows scrunch mockingly together as she stares at her partner. “Are you sure you were trained to be an assassin, you spend more time critiquing my old fashion choices and pining over millionaires than you do actually going on missions nowadays.” 

Hitting the display board as she finishes inputting the last bit of information, hitting the button for Friday to take over. “Ah the root of all the problems in the world. Me liking someone that isn’t you. Don’t you think it’s a little ironic that you’re so possessive over me when you’re the one that wanted to open the relationship?” Spinning the chair to look at Wanda, the ginger struggles to keep her anger in check as she sees how nonchalantly the woman is talking about everything. 

A taunting laugh falls from her lips, the witch paying no attention to her seething girlfriend as she plays with a small ball of her magic. “Jealousy is a quaint little idea Romanoff, if only such things were of my nature.” Finally raising her gaze to meet the older Avenger’s eyes, Wanda's nose scrunches as she mocks her. 

Rolling her eyes, Natasha scoffs as she plants her feet firmly on the ground between the two of them. Leaning in she reaches up to shove the other girl’s feet to the ground, smirking as she stumbles a bit. “Right, you would never be envious of me. I’m not good enough for that, that’s reserved for cocky archers.” Gripping the witch’s chin, the spy forces her face to level with hers; a feeble attempt at gaining the upper hand. 

Wanda uses the position she’s in to her advantage, letting her mouth fall open just slightly and softening her gaze. She looks up at Natasha through her lashes, a face she knows the older woman can never say no to. “She’s more than that, but if you want to demote her to such a title; let’s talk about that.” Her voice is light, but the bite is evident as she practically whispers. “If she’s just an archer, why would you care so much about fixing your preposterous reaction? Why would a simple athlete’s feelings matter so deeply to you that you would stoop to the level of the Americans that are just so infantile to you for celebrating a fake holiday?” 

The silence is loud, a representation of the ginger’s confidence as it dies out. The witch’s innocent doe eyes hardened and spark up with mischief as she realizes her words were finally cutting deep. Competition was always a strong common ground for the two, even during an argument as both sides push and prod the other to try and outdo them. “Usually you would fill the dead air, Natalia. Most people wouldn’t allow someone to spread such lies about them. Unless they aren’t lies, unless the world was oh so wrong about the heartless Black Widow. Is that it? The idea of your beloved princess and her worthless stray being mad at you gnawing at your black heart strings. The thought tearing at your chest like a black hole. Isn’t it funny that you act so unaffected by everything but really you couldn’t handle the fact that someone put their hands on a moronic mongrel that you couldn’t muster up a single sympathetic word.” 

A defeated sigh falls from the spy’s lips, falling back into the captain’s chair as she lets go of the brunette’s chin. “Are you acting out Maximoff?” 

Wanda, thriving as she watches Natasha retreat, lets her ego get bigger. Sitting up straighter, posture becoming more regal as she arrogantly looks down on the spy; pride in what she believes is finally a win for her after months of back and forth. “Tell me I’m wrong and I’ll stop. Tell me that you aren’t fighting your own mind daily. Wishing you could slit the throats of those men, wishing you could destroy every single childhood memory of the mutt you fell for.” 

“Maybe you’re right, but don’t you think it’s funny that you gave them the reaction they wanted because you didn’t want them to be scared of you. You aren’t soft, and you aren’t loving. You’re cold and calculated. If anyone here is heartless it’s you Maximoff. You are filled with a darkness that even the most evil of men couldn’t fathom, a tenebrosity overwhelming even the blackest of nights.” Even though the words she speaks are harsh, Natasha curls into herself. Backing away from her girlfriend as she tries to reign in anything she might later regret. She knows her training is better than this, but something about Wanda has always made her lose control in every way no matter how good or bad. 

Clenching her jaw, the witch can feel the tension brewing inside her body. Her shoulders rigid as she tries to figure out what is about to happen. She doesn’t want to use her magic, instead relying on the fact that she knows the widow like the back of her hand. It doesn’t fail her often. “At least I had a reaction, fake or not. I didn't need to grovel at the feet of a spoiled rich kid. My dignity is still intact unlike yours.” 

“You can have dignity, all high and mighty but what will you be left with after that? A fake air of confidence and a mask that sinks so deep that even you forget who the real girl underneath it all is? The girl that Pietro left behind completely gone? Did she die with him?” A sad, almost sullen smile pulls at the corners of Natasha’s mouth as she looks up slowly. Her bright forest green eyes almost look wet with unshed tears, something that would fool most people but not Wanda. No matter how much the widow plays, she knows that she’ll never be able to actually trick the brunette into believing any of her tactics. She had to have known that this was the plan all along, a hit below the belt to get her to back off after she had cornered her. It was dirty, and unkind, but at this point in the game nothing was off the table anymore. 

It took a moment for what the assassin said to really sink in, almost lost in the bubbling anger but when it finally hit the world felt cold. Her brother was always left untouched, a memory that she cherished and tended to daily so she would never be without. A thing atop of pedestal where no one could reach, but the Russian had decided to get a ladder and step into a different playing field. “She may have died with him, left in a pile of rubble but at least she was real. Loved and cherished. Where’s the real Natalia? Did you ever know her? Did anyone ever know the real you or did your poor mother sell that off too? What was she worth? Has to be more than whatever we’re left with.” 

Bringing up specific things, like her brother or the ginger’s lineage, wasn’t something that Wanda took pride in. The business the two were forced into brought enough opportunities for low blows and deep cuts to hash open, memories of beloved people weren’t something that needed to be tainted. Only stooping low when others decided to, digging a basement for the rock bottom jabs. 

Deciding that was enough for the time being, Wanda takes the shocked silence as her chance to disappear. Her knowledge of the one person on this Earth that she truly thought she knew inside and out failed her. 

It’s almost entirely silent in the quinjet, even the wind rushing as the ginger flies through the air isn’t heard. The trace of crimson fog lingering in the air as Natasha sits there struggling to breathe, alone once more. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The world flashed before the two young heroes' eyes, a moment that drew slow for just the duo as they realized that this was no ordinary robbery. Frozen in their spot, an imaginary glue adhering them to the metallic floor, it’s almost like watching television. A deep rooted want to scream out, to heckle the characters on the screen for not moving, but reality slaps them across the face when a terrified scream rings in their ears.

The two young New York natives realize that they are the ones in the show, forcing themselves to move in the heat of the moment. Scattering in hopes to stay vigilante, one step ahead of the masked men who are patrolling the floor. Slipping into a trusty vent, the archer takes a page from her own mentor’s book as she just barely stows away before she’s seen. 

Kate’s eyes search out the young spider, something she would chastise herself for later. How could she lose sight of her partner? It was basically rule number one, always know where your allies were. Slumping against the vent wall, she takes a moment to try and control her nerves. The guys below her were familiar but mind bogglingly overpowered, she wasn’t sure where they got whatever weapons from but it wasn’t something in the information sent by Stark. A fact that she would have to remember to bring up to him. 

Crackling the young spider’s voice finally breaks through her ear piece, and she looks around trying to find where he is. Finally seeing him in a dark corner across the room, hanging on by his webs, the archer is relieved to hear his static filled voice. The two take a minute, breathing a sigh of relief when they realize they are both safe for the moment. 

When an energy beam goes flying by Peter’s face, miraculously not giving away his position, the young boy starts trying to figure out a plan. “We gotta go down before they do anything dangerous, I wonder why Mr. Stark didn’t tell us about whatever glowy stuff they have.” 

“I’m not sure he knew, but this bank looks familiar.” Ignoring how the boy starts pestering her, ocean blue eyes scan the area before it clicks. Her company helped service them, and she wiggles gleefully. Slipping a trick arrowhead from the new pack, she waits patiently for a louder noise before stabbing it into the metal near her. Quickly pulling up her watch, a projection allows her to use the B. Tech arrowhead to take over the entire building’s electrical system.

It only takes a few swipes before the entire building’s power shuts down, everything going deadly quiet before the emergency lights click on. The people below, recovering from shock, finally started to search for who was responsible. 

“Woah did you just do that?” Peter’s eyes are squinting at the archer as he tries to look at what she’s doing from across the bank. 

Kate just giggles, nodding as she swipes through surveillance and vault locks. “My company wired this entire building, I just took this fight back for us. We just gotta be quick.” The CEO rolls her shoulders, closing the blinking projection and motioning out to the spider where she would be going. 

Slipping out of the vent, her legs dangling, the archer scans the area quickly before throwing an arrowhead across the room. A forcefield expanding as the trick arrow bounces, blocking off an entire hallway. Immediately giving away their positions, but the element of surprise and night vision on their side. Though the two don’t fight side by side, back to back, the two keep track of one another at all times. 

It’s almost effortless as Peter webs up three guys approaching Kate’s back, and the archer takes out a man with a blaster aiming for the spider. It’s a rough fight, the young Avengers not quite prepared for a group of people that can handle the type of weapons that they wield.

The two spend more time protecting, acting on the defense rather than offense. They knew that it was going to be a tricky mission when they realized how many civilians were scattered through the group. Understanding that worrying for others safety is causing them to be on the losing end of the fight. 

“Oh spidey boy!!!” The deep voice sings out, mocking the young boy. 

Slipping as she hears the voice, Kate loses balance momentarily causing her to miss her target. Cursing herself, the archer quickly takes the target down at the last second and barely saves a young girl. She isn’t sure where her fellow hero is, but she hasn’t been alerted by the AI that there was an issue so she has to assume that nothing is wrong. 

“Get your head in the game, Kate.” The more she moves the more she berates herself to do more, swinging around to take down different masked men. Her new bow mindlessly switches between sword and bow as quickly as her own reflexes, arrowheads traveling up her arm and Uru spines extend instantaneously as the sharp point touches it’s rest. The fluid motion in which her new suit and equipment works with her body is mesmerizing, a new extension of her own mind.

She almost feels like a hero now, not just in bravery and attitude but look and technology as well. No longer needing to rely just on her own eyesight and guesstimating, the HUD in the glasses framing her face telling her all the information she would ever need. The pack along her torso was the most amazing part of her new set up, instant arrowheads all controlled by her thoughts allowed for a practically flawless display of her skills. 

Every opportunity that she’s had to put this new suit on was something that she could have only dreamed of. Fights have become something almost like a tournament to her, competitive to an even higher max than before as she finally settles into her laser focus. Nothing but her next movements, the next person to protect, on her mind; Kate feels at the top of her game.

A bone chilling scream rings throughout the bank, echoing off the large marble sculptures, making everyone turn to look at the source. There in the center of the room, clutching and clawing at his head, is Peter crumpled in a withering heap. A dissipating green smog floats in the air around his collapsed body, a subtle sizzling sound can be heard through the tense silence. It’s almost like even the masked men weren’t prepared for the reaction they got, frozen in their position. 

Scanning his body, the AI in Kate’s ears is practically screaming and rushing her forward to save the boy whose body is rejecting all functions. She’s moving before she can realize it, the edge of her sword sparking as she slides across the stone floor. Coming to a stop on her knees in front of her best friend’s balled up from, she takes out a few men sprinting towards them without taking her eyes off of the man holding a broken tube. Arrowhead and sword in hand, the young Avenger stands to her feet. 

Her face is painted with anger and vengeance, even though her suit covers most of her expression, and she barely flinches when the second man in charge comes to stand next to his friend. Tossing the trick arrow to the ground, a force field surrounds the four of them and Kate lets her mask down. “I wanted you to see the face of the girl who is about to destroy you.” 

“This is the infamous Hawkeye?” Their laughs bounce against the sizzling electricity, mocking as it echoes in the small makeshift arena. The two men clearly only paid attention to the boy behind the archer, not realizing how much damage that the archer could really do. 

“Is this our movie moment? Where we get on our knees and beg a little girl to spare our lives because you’re just oh so powerful.” The two men aren’t even phased as they cackle, joking as Kate holds two arrowheads between her fingers. 

Fanning them out, she focuses on how she is close enough to see the veins in their necks bulging as they howl. She wants to seethe, rage overtaking her actions, the need to protect her best friend strong but something feels wrong. The men don’t seem to even care that she’s there, holding deadly weapons, and while the young girl is used to people underestimating her this was different. 

Confusion floods her body, almost forcing the confidence that she was feeling out. She doesn’t understand this dreadful cloud that is hanging above her head. This wasn’t the moment to get insecure about her abilities, she had an important job to do which only got more needed when Peter was taken out. 

“At least we know what our Love Bug looks like all grown up.” Kate blinks, once and then again as her gaze lifts to scan the man’s covered face. The breath gets caught in her throat as her mind fights against the protective wall around forbidden memories. 

Everything is happening all too fast, cracks breaking the foundation of her entire heroic facade. She can’t break now, not here; not in front of them. The blood in her body pumps cold, a stark contrast to the vengeful hot temperature it was seconds ago. Kate wants to move, can hear the AI in her ear urging her to move now while the two were distracted but she can’t.  

The second man hits the other on the chest, pointing at the CEO’s body as his disgusting gaze travels downward. “Just as hot as she was back then, honestly I could take another go at her.” 

The sentence was muttered, almost under his breath but it was almost like he screamed it to the archer. Her entire body shakes, and her heart begins racing. She wanted to run, to hide under a blanket and pretend like the world no longer exists. 

It’s almost like her suit takes over for her, the archer’s knees weak and almost collapsing under her. Forcing Kate’s hand to move, readying to throw the arrowheads, but the two men reach up and slip their masks off. Even though she had realized who they were, their voices engraved into even the deepest of her memories, the second she could physically see their eyes and their cocky arrogant smirks everything crashed and burned. It’s almost like she could still feel the rough messy hair atop their heads, muscle memory trying to shove it away forces her to drop her weapons.  

Stepping towards her, even though she’s the same height as them now, they practically loom over her. It’s intimidating as they almost circle towards her, kicking away the fallen sword. Tugging off their gloves, one of them reaches up to cup her flinching face. Calloused thumb rubbing her cheek, so aggressively that it almost leaves a raw red mark, while the other man grabs at her waist. When Kate’s face lowers, sinking in on herself as she attempts to be smaller, the man’s hand leaves her body to tangle his fingers into her hair. 

Yanking her head back, the two chuckle at her pained expression. Almost tugging her head back and forth, inspecting her. For the first time in about eight years the young brunette finally raises her eyes to make direct eye contact with the two men who destroyed her life. Hating herself as she searches for the sparkle of the men she grew up with, a glimmer of the people who father trusted most. Mind racing as she figures out a way to win the game, to make sure that they are proud and happy of her at the end of play time. 

“Did you miss us, Bug?” 

[jackdaniel69nice]

since i am an angst connoisseur and starved of content i gotta ask, based on your timeline, what would your idea of "the incident" be?

my other question is, what happened that warranted the bandages?

Hi! When I posted about Tokoyami’s parents I made illusions to this incident but I can go into more detail!

There was a lot of drama that lead up to the incident, specifically the loss of Tokoyami’s grandparents who understood and took care of him and shadow the best and this loss devastated tokoyami. His other family members (aunts and uncle) also didn’t cope with the death well and weren’t able to support him, leaving him to his mother’s overbearing and strict lifestyle. He acts out more and gets in fight at school due to grief and it gets him in trouble. He is also trying to suppress this grief response because that is what he was taught so it is building up.

When his mother scolds (yells) at him after school for having a break down at school and “attacking the teacher” (the teachers was shining lights at shadow and they had enough and fought back). He is so frustrated and angry he purposefully releases dark shadow so they can attack her. He quickly loses control though and when his father defends Kohane (his mother) he gets terribly injured damaging organs and his spine so it’s hard to walk. As much as the incident itself is traumatic, the things that follow are much worse.

Tokoyami is arrested first of all and left in high containment nearly a week. His aunt who just recently had triplets finally comes to get him. during his time in jail he has a very wrong “realization” that everything wrong with life is actually dark shadows fault and blames them.

You see, his mother has been trying to instill this idea in him for a very long time. If he can just force dark shadow to behave, to control them, then everything will be fine and he can have a normal life. His grandfather though, always stressed the idea that dark shadow and him need to work together in cooperation, and harmony. Now that his grandfather is gone he is doubting his word and dark shadow injuring his father in their rage makes his mother’s words ring more true than ever. So tokoyami decided to finally lock down on dark shadow, no more leniency, no more free rein. Tokoyami is the warden and shadow is his prisoner, nothing more than a puppet. To keep the people he loves safe…right?

Welllll dark shadow is not happy about this. They are heart broken, worse than, completely betrayed, scared, Fumikage is supposed to be the one person they can trust, their other half, who would never turn on them, never blame them. All they ever tried to do was protect him, why are you doing this?? This isn’t fair. If they can’t trust Fumikage then they can’t trust anyone. The whole world is rotten. And everything is Fumikage’s fault.

So basically tokoyami starts a war for control with dark shadow that is taking place within his mind. Unfortunately Tokoyami’s aunt can’t have an unstable preteen near her newborns and reluctantly drops him off with his mother. Kohane needs to take care of her husband who is still in the hospital (not to mention her own injuries) and has no idea what to do with tokoyami…so she does nothing. She tells him to stay in his room with the lights on and not leave. She comes home, brings him a meal, leaves, locks the door, then returns to the hospital for a few hours to do it all over again. Meanwhile Tokoyami’s mind is slipping.

Tokoyami has had mental training his whole life to control dark shadow. It just upset shadow so much he never used it to its full extent. Now he has no care for “hurting” shadow, they’re just a beast after-all. So he sticks shadow in a cage doesn’t let them out. Dark Shadow fights so hard for their freedom at every chance they get, every scrap of darkness they find, they let it full their strength, their rage. They fight with everything they have until Tokoyami’s mind is in tatters, shredded by their claws from the inside. He paces the floor, he can’t eat, he can’t sleep, he pulls feathers and bites his nails. All for some semblance of clarity, to make his head stop hurting. He plays loud music to drown out shadows cries. He bangs head against the floor to match the migraine shadow is forcing from the inside. He feels like he is splitting, he thinks he is dying, maybe he is, maybe they will tear each other apart. He losing time, losing memory, he’s not sure where he ends and shadow begins. Drowning in darkness.

And one day it stops. One of them had to give, and for some reason it was Dark Shadow. They are quiet for a while much to Tokoyami’s confusion, did he win? Why does this victory feel so hollow? Why does it hurt. Regardless, it happens just in time for him to start his new middle school which is…special. For kids just like him.

Anyways dark shadow isn’t completely compliant obviously; they just let up the constant fighting. The “years they Endoor” (Dark Ages) are spent like distant roommates that despise each other. Stay on your side of the room and don’t look at each other. Unfortunately dark shadow’s only ability to converse while caged is with tokoyami telepathically so they end up bickering a lot still.

((Dark Shaodw has a reason for ending the fighting. Tokoyami just doesn’t remember it))

I’m really glad you asked about this anon because I have simply been dying to talk about it. To answer your question more simply. The incident refers to tokoyami losing control again but instead of protecting someone it was from pure built up malice. His hands are bandaged, his feathers unkempt, and him being visibly unwell is because of the mental break following the event and due to self harm.

Perhaps you are thinking Tokoyami should have gone to the mental hospital, and you would be right. Unfortunately he has been to hospitals before where he was horribly treated (part of the Trauma of his past) and has a fear of doctors and psychiatrist now. He wouldn’t take himself to the hospital ever. Kohane was also aware of how terrible Tokoyami’s mental state was, she was the one who would bandage his fingers and force him to eat when he couldn’t. She is also afraid of the hospitals mistreating him again (she feels responsible for him suffering through their abuse before) but there is also her stigma towards poor mental health in general. In Japan there is a wide spread stigma towards mental illness and the mentally disabled, such conversations are taboo. Kohane was raised very traditionally to suppress her emotions and never seek mental help, she wouldn’t have taken tokoyami anyway, even if it had killed him.

[fraudulent-cheese]

Ok i've figured out an elimination order for my TDWT rewrite au thingy! (if ur curious about the general gist + later elimination plots here's the og post here ya go)

putting this entirely under the cut because it's gonna get LONGGG

This covers episodes 1 to 13!

Sorry Ezekiel stans, he's still the first voted out. the first episode actually turns out in a similar-ish way, outside of the different teams and team amazons having trouble with their camel. Team Victory is still last, and Zeke still gets voted out.

However by episode 3, there's the first major elimination order change: Team Amazons looses the challenge, and Cody gets the boot. This is for two reasons: Leshawna's more of a leader on her team and is able to reel Harold back a little, and the Amazon's commercial ends up loosing because of Cody's addition. The votes end up being a tie between Heather and Cody (Gwen and Sierra voted Heather because of course, Heather and Courtney voted for Cody because he lost the challenge for them.) Sierra is absolutely heartbroken from Cody's elimination, but he's pretty happy to go so early.

Bridgette still gets played by Alejandro in this AU, but he has to be a little subtler about it due to Leshawna's higher suspicion of him. He still manages to get Bridgette stuck to a poll and stoke a bit of fire between Heather and Leshawna. That and Sierra's still depressed in the background so she's not performing as well in challenges.

episode 5's still a reward challenge, not much changes, i'd say same with the first Aftermath?

episode 7, Leshawna still gets eliminated after starting a fight with Heather (which is the point where Heather REALLY starts to hate Alejandro since he's messing with her friendships now). I think Alejandro's way of doing it is provoking one or the other, sorta-flirting with both of them which seriously annoys Heather and frustrates Leshawna (she's trying to figure out if he's actually interested or just playing her. I guess she got her answer.) This also makes Alejandro Harold's enemy, and does raise both Noah and Eva's suspicions of him (Noah's the one that noticed it and he talked about it a bit with Eva, who's more eager to get on the guy's case than Noah is)

episode 8's still a reward challenge, however notably Alejandro's attempted manipulation of Owen doesn't work because Team Escope's a unit and he's 100% fully convinced his friends wouldn't do that on purpose (or maliciously in the case of Izzy). I think this would be a sort of turning point with Alejandro's dynamic with the rest of his team - he fully realises he can't break these idiots appart, from any angle (especially since Ozzy's already split here and Eva + Izzy are pining for eachother). So what does he do? He'll play along. (and accidentally befriend multiple of them but shushhhh)

episode 9 is also further divergence and is where the Team Victory trio gets to shine more - they actually win the whole challenge! much to Alejandro's frustration, since Team Victory was supposed to be the easy team to take out, wasn't it? He's fully friends with Noah at this point, and on his way to befriending Izzy and lowering Eva's suspicions, even just slightly. Meanwhile, Heather's in a bit of a pickle: her team is last and both Gwen and Courtney are getting closer, and really don't like her. Sierra is being no help, as she knows Heather's a real snake and is fully willing to vote her off. However, there's one factor none of the girls have considered yet; sabotage. So Heather makes an alliance/deal with Harold. He'll change the votes, and she'll make sure his team gets some kind of advantage next challenge.

episode 10, this is a more lowkey episode focused mostly on the character's interpersonal drama and Alejandro's current relationship with his team - he's starting to actually consider their individual strengths instead of just trying to do it his way, courtesy of actually talking with Noah about it. Courtney and Gwen still look for the Duncan shaped rock, but Gwen's only doing it to be with Courtney (gay) meanwhile, Heather rams her boat into team Escope's boat and later on tries to get team Victory's boat ahead. Im choosing to explain Heather actually sticking to her deal with Harold as both friendship foreshadowing + her trying to keep a solid ally with her in the game.

episode 11. OK THIS ONE'S IMPORTANT FOR MULTIPLE REASONS: this is Team Escope's first member loss, being Owen getting disqualified due to injury. Alejandro's secretly glad he's gone, but he's trying to keep a sadned mask around the team who's pretty bummed, especially Noah and Izzy. He manages to motivate Izzy for the challenge, but Noah's not on his side; he sees through the mask and knew Alejandro disliked Owen for a reason he hasn't fully figured out yet and calls him out on it in private. That, and the DJ thing. i haven't explained it fully, but DJ still has the animal curse thing - support from Harold, Lindsay and occasionally Heather (she's doing it to win Harold's favor + DJ's the only contestant she's consistently nice with) has been reducing it over time, but Alejandro exacerbates it for him this episode. Noah begins to suspect quite seriously that Alejandro's only pretending to be friends with him, Izzy and to a lesser extent Eva (something that Alejandro would probably agree to be doing with Eva and Izzy, but not Noah. He's 100% actually friends with Izzy and hasn't realised it tho.) Officially, he's still acting friendly with him, but he's really not sure if it'll stick.

episode 13, and of course the turning point! on each team, the members captured are:

-Alejandro from the start -Heather after the stretching thing -Harold after he got distracted and started infodumping -Izzy just. dissapears mid challenge -DJ on the bus.

Eva and Noah still catch the Ripper, and Noah drops his "slippery eel" warning to Eva and Izzy (Izzy's on the stretcher.). Eva considers it and in an impressive act of restraint only promises to do something about it if it's confirmed, while Izzy half agrees half denies it. (she's denying it because she knows Noah thinks he's not friends with him. Izzy can tell it's genuine. Izzy is Izzy and would just be able to tell, she can see through people's masks pretty well, considering she calls out Mal in AS and i regularly HC her to be simply acting crazy for shits and giggles.) Either way, Alejandro does NOT take it well at all. That, and Duncan's back! Team Victory and Escope have the choice to get him but well. Harold's still here. So to team Escope the punk guy goes! And he immediatly tries to kiss Gwen in the confessional! He does end up kissing her, but she recoils quickly. Sadly not quickly enough for Izzy to not end up seeing them.

could you tell i started having fun writing this outline out the farther we got? Hope this was comprehensible!

[ty-bayonet-betteridge]

I've been voting for whatever voices ship you're excited about in the tags since i haven't thought about shipping the voices before, I'd love to hear you elaborate on your thoughts about them if you feel like it and have the time!

ok im gonna talk about just coldcont and stubsmit bc i feel most strongly about them sdklgjhd

The Voice of the Cold and the Voice of the Contrarian have the same outlook on the world - they're both there to see what there is to see! They're explorers, essentially just wanting to see every route they can. They both also get their kicks by tormenting The Narrator. In both of their routes, they form a somewhat uneasy alliance with The Hero over making The Narrator their mutual enemy - now picture if they had had a route together. They would've made each other so much worse. The Narrator's personal torment nexus. Picture the Voice of the Cold coming up with cutting remark after cutting remark for The Narrator and the Voice of the Contrarian laughing along and falling more and more in love.

The Voice of the Cold is aromantic to me but I think he would still be open to romantic relationships, just to try something new, especially with the other Voices as they're explicitly one of the only things he cares about. Meanwhile I think the Voice of Contrarian is alloromantic but would have trouble getting into romantic relationships due to his tendency to push against people's boundaries and try to intentionally irritate them, even when he does like them. But the Voice of the Cold wouldn't care - in fact he'd probably give back as good as he got, which I think the Voice of the Contrarian would be delighted by.

There's two ways I can see Stubborn/Smitten. The first is them bonding over their shared admiration for The Princess - they both want to spend their entire lives with her, albeit in very different ways, and they both express these sentiments regardless of which Princess they're talking to (they both fall head over heels for the final form of The Razor, which delights me to no end.) So I can see them as both dating The Princess and having a thing for each other on the side - It would be a weird little throuple but I would be so on board for it. They both wear their hearts on their sleeves, it's just that their hearts want such different things that they seem totally different - but with The Princess as a uniting force they'd get along perfectly.

On the other hand, if The Princess is out of the picture, both of them feel like their life is incomplete - who will the Voice of the Smitten love, and who can challenge the Voice of the Stubborn? I think this could lead to - if you'll allow me to be cringe for a moment - something resembling Smitten <3< Stubborn. Picture the Voice of the Stubborn constantly insulting The Princess to the Voice of the Smitten, trying to goad him over and over into a fight. Picture the Voice of the Smitten reaching his breaking point and, his strength redoubled by his rage, giving the Voice of the Stubborn the first real fight he's had in years. Picture in the middle of the fight the Voice of the Smitten grabbing the Voice of the Stubborn by his lapels and slamming him against the wall - picture the Voice of the Stubborn grinning because this is what he's been looking for all along - picture the Voice of the Smitten, heart pounding, adrenaline running through his veins, pushing his lips against the Voice of the Stubborn's, their tongues fighting for space-

sorry i got distracted what are we talking about

[mydemonsdrivealimo]

16 + 22 + 23 for Jensen and Bryce!

ah tysm!!!! going into more detail than i need to but idk how much u know ab them. so.

16. how does your OC feel about their parents?

jensen has a very complicated relationship w his mom. his dad wasn't really in the picture after he was 5 or so (when he moved to the states) so it was just him and his mom until he was 15-16 ish when she lost custody. while a lot of people see it as black and white, just accepting she was a "bad" mother, jensen has always defended her bc he knew she was trying her best. and maybe she wasn't all the time, but he had to believe it for his own sake. they struggled a lot bc she really had no plan when she moved them. for many years they bounced in and out of assisted housing programs, friends couches, shelters, and questionable apartments, and it led to a lot of tension and anger and abuse (mainly emotional/verbal). jensen got into some trouble, which blew up into huge issue that ended up w him in juvie for a month (dw, all resolved and his record was sealed bc the incident in no way warranted that amount of punishment) which is how she lost custody. they haven't talked since then (despite jensens efforts over the years) and jensen doesn't fully process or get over that relationship until he's in his mid 30s

as for bryce, canonically he has a terrible relationship w his parents. they fucked over a LOT of people where he grew up (property tycoons turned white collar criminals) which completely severed any relationship he had w his community and culture. the second he went to college he cut ties w them aside from a few calls here and there to talk to keiki (his younger sister by 12 years). he's been trying to get as far away from them as possible since then, going to cali for undergrad/med school and boston for residency. canonically he ends up talking to his mom when keiki unpromptedly comes to live w him bc he can't exactly afford to take on a child, and another time during book 3. in my hc, he never has a strong relationship w his mom or dad again. he talks to them when he needs to for keiki, and tries not to start shit, but he really has no desire to rekindle a relationship w them (but ESP his dad as he always put more pressure on him when he was younger, which meant A Lot of fights and arguments). he ends up being close w an aunt on his mom's side, but that's ab as close as he gets to ever having a relationship w any parental figures

22. what is holding your OC back to achieve their goals?

both bryce and jensen are very committed to achieving their goals (they are both generally regarded as cold and pushy by others in their field/year) but ofc they have obstacles

bryces is his confidence. he is so used to doing everything right and perfect that the second one small thing goes wrong he crumbles. it's seen a couple times in canon, and truly he freaks out if something goes wrong and it's his fault. jensen helps him work through it (in a very point-blank jensen way) but it's always hard for him to learn from mistakes bc he is completely in denial that he can make them

honestly jensen is in his own way a lot? he pushes himself hard. to the point where he needs to take a break but won't acknowledge it until he's going to die, or at least feels like it (but even then he's good at ignoring it). he locks in on one goal to the point of ignoring everything else he needs to focus on. he's just not great at balance. and at the same time, he has a lot of anxiety and depression and ocd and undiagnosed autism that has always felt like a hurdle he had to go over. he's always felt that things are 10 times more difficult for him than they are for everyone else, and he never knew why. but he's also never let himself acknowledge it or slow down to accommodate himself. there's just very few times in his life that he's slowed down enough to consider himself as a factor in reaching his goals

23. what are your OC’s biggest flaws and biggest strengths?

(vibrating in my seat ab this one. oh bryce the lies im ab to spill ab you) bryces biggest flaw is that he is so committed to the image he's made of himself. bryce was thrown into life w no idea what he was doing, so it was a lot of guesswork. to combat that, he has developed this perfectly carefree, confident, egotistical, and arrogant image of a person that has pushed him to the top of his class and his profession. he essential faked it till he made it. and in a way, that is his biggest strength, too. he pushed through so much bs just by pretending he was okay until he was that honestly, people believed it. but the second something happens that's out of his control? something that completely disrupts the front he has built and perfectly molded for years? he fucking loses it. lots of breakdowns, lots of depressive episodes, he just can't handle it. and it takes him a while to pick himself back up, and sure, he will, but it's the massively unpredictable stuff that makes him stagnant for days, weeks, months on end

jensens biggest strength is that he is resilient as fuck. it has a lot to do w him just growing up poor, but also bc again, he does not make space to accommodate himself. he will push and push through so much shit until he gets to a space where he can allow himself to be comfortable. but, his biggest flaw is that he is convinced he isn't resilient. he has been there for every fuck up, every rock bottom, and every point of no return. he feels that the bad has outweighed the good, as if theyre on a scale at all. again, this has a lot to do w the undiagnosed autism, but he has always felt like there's something different about him in a way that he had to "fix". that makes it difficult for him to do things "right". eventually he starts to learn and grow from this, and can acknowledge that actually, yeah, he HAS endured a lot of bs that he hasnt just unpacked yet. but it has just always been in the back of his head in a way that weighs him down a lot

[tarisilmarwen]

Rebels Rewatch: “Call To Action”

The first entry in our finale arc and the moment the gloves came off and Rebels went, “Oh you thought I was a nice safe little kids cartoon huh?  Hold my beer.”

Yet another gorgeous establishing shot.

This sequence is staged/blocked as a parallel to the Emperor arriving on the Death Star in Return of the Jedi, the looming Star Destroyer, the Lambda shuttle, troops lined up in neat formation and the Imperial March at full ominous strength.  Fitting given that we’re bringing in the big guns.

ANDTHENTHERE’STHISASSHOLE.jpeg

Tarkin was offhand mentioned as being the governor of the Outer Rim early in the series, and “Tarkintown” was a direct result of laws and policy he put into place that allowed the Empire to simply seize people’s properties to strip mine them for resources, so he’s kind of been a very background looming shadow for our Rebels from the beginning and wastes no time dressing everyone present down for making him have to come out to this stupid insignificant backwater planet personally.

The roasting is epic.

“Look I know you’re an airheaded ditz who only got this job because Pryce is too busy faffing around the Core Worlds but you could at least not look so incompetent at it.”

“ancient history“ BITCH THAT WAS WITHIN YOUR LIFETIME.  YOU WORKED WITH ANAKIN AND OBI-WAN.  YOU WERE THERE.

Tarkin seems awfully certain there’s no possible way Kanan can be a Jedi.  I wonder if it’s a matter of he truly doesn’t believe that any survived or he’s not very impressed with Kanan as compared to the Jedi he knew.

Note again: No fanfare.

We lighten things up a bit with a brief little action setpiece, calling back to the speeder chase in the pilot.  It’s the kind of safe peril you’d expect from the early part of the show, no mess, no trouble, just fun adventure set to exciting music cues and watching our heroes be cool.

You know... lulling us into a false sense of security.

Sabine once again participating in the banter with Ezra and even throwing in a sweet little shoulder pat as well.

(Ezra looks disappointed that Kanan didn’t say anything to compliment him, maybe Sabine thought to cheer him up?)

Ugh, Trayvis’s slimy, “Well of course I never advocated for violence, those Rebels are twisting my message!”

The Holonet does not have Twitter Community Notes alas.

“Readers added context they thought people might want to know: You’re a lying traitorous dick and you suck.”

And the plan to take control of the Imperial communications tower is hatched.

Watching the microexpressions on Ezra’s face this whole scene is a trip, because you can tell he has misgivings but also agrees that the best way to reach the people is to break through the state-controlled media propaganda machine and offer up the truth.

OH BOY IT’S THE TRAUMATIZING SCENE!

Comedic staples Aresko and Grint, who have been with us on the show from the beginning, are brought in for their own dressing down before being summarily and literally beheaded in the office.

Yeah no, the first time I watched this I was like, “OKAY WELL THAT JUST HAPPENED HOLY SHIT.“

Ngl, Grand just casually walking around the desk to go stand behind them is even worse after you know what’s coming.

“Your Rebel cell is more principled than others.”  Lol is that a dig at Saw and the Partisans?

No but hold me back from getting into my messy Rebellion Era Jedi feelings and wordspewing about how even with all the Empire’s propaganda, even with all the effort and energy they expend smearing them and erasing their legacy, they still represent Hope to the ordinary people and inspire them to stand up and fight.  And how that’s so so dangerous to the careful order and control Palpatine set up and so he can’t allow any of them to survive because their mere existence makes people stare in awe and take up their arms.

*sobbing forever*

Kallus and Tua’s slow dawning horror as they realize what’s about to happen. D:

HELLO NAUGHTY CHILDREN, THIS IMAGE IS NOW BURNED INTO YOUR NIGHTMARES.

YOU’RE WELCOME.

See, even these two are unnerved.  It takes Kallus a full second to blink himself back into composure when Tarkin addresses him.

This cue here in the aggressive low brass is part of the Inquisitor’s theme and gets used later in the big Seventh Sister and Fifth Brother introduction I’m pretty sure.

I always love the way Rebels does background sky, it looks almost like watercolor paintings.

“I said be optimistic.”

“Five minutes is optimistic!”

<3

They bring a bit of the fyrnock cue back here, I think to put us just a little bit on edge.

(Also apropos given what Ezra does moments later.)

Sabine being pouty all, “I could have done that.“

Please appreciate how Ezra beams at Kanan’s praise and Sabine get embarrassed at how heartwarming they are.

Too bad the probe wasn’t 100% dead.

LOLOL Kallus seems a little on edge as he leaves Tarkin’s office here.

“Lure them into a trap?  But... but I literally just tried that last episode!”

The plan is further hatched but Ezra gets solemn when Sabine brings up that things never seem to follow the plan and Kanan, sensing something up, doesn’t take Ezra’s deflection for an answer.

 Oof and watch how Ezra’s arms come up in his self-protective pose right there.

At first, Kanan thinks it’s just insecurity about taking on the role and by implication the legacy of his parents, nervousness about speaking.  And yes, Ezra confesses that that’s part of it.  (Once again with the self-esteem issues, “I’m not brave, I’m not special, I can’t do this without the rest of you.”)

But it runs deeper.  Ezra’s afraid of loss, of having something bad happen to his new family like it happened to his parents.  But for a Jedi, fear of loss, fear of potential loss, can cripple you.  Paralyze you from being able to think and take proper action.

So Kanan reminds Ezra that loss is going to happen to matter what.  You can’t cling to the things you have, you have to let them pass away, if that’s what’s going to happen.  You can’t be attached.  You have to let go.

“We will take more losses before this is over.”  “When the times comes, we’re going to have to be ready to sacrifice for something bigger.”

Don’t think about Season Four don’t think about Season Four don’t think about Season Four--

The Force theme plays out sweetly in the background as Kanan talks about how they’re “learning these things together”, ending on a modified major chord to leave on a brighter note resolution.

And this is such a pretty shot.

And this one too.  And this might be the first time we see Lothal’s twin moons?

This is such a smooth action sequence, the way Sabine hops off her bike and lets it Tokyo drift into the cannon to blow it up before rolling into view and popping off shots, the conservation of camera movement as it cuts to Zeb, quick inserts and then Ezra and Kanan are on site.

Hate to keep repeating myself but seriously, look at that cloud painting work.

The Imperial March, naturally, as the Empire’s vehicles close in.

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The way Ezra’s eyes dart from target to aerial target.

The camerawork this episode is really excellent, love this dolly in shot of Grand.

Nnnfhkhg Ezra flinched a bit when Kanan got in his face and ordered him to get Zeb.

Cripes, I think Kanan is already thinking ahead to what he’s going to have to do.

“But I like this gun!”  “We’ll get you another gun!”  Children, both of you.  Lol.

AND THE FIRST OFFICIAL TIME THOSE ETERNALLY CURSED WORDS, “I’LL BE RIGHT BEHIND YOU.” ARE UTTERED.

Seriously, it became an awful kind of running joke.

Right, so in spite of Kanan’s reassurances, said to get Ezra to keep going and not stall, Ezra still lingers long enough to watch Kanan shut the door behind them.

NO THAT’S FINE.  A HEART IS OVERRATED ANYWAY.

Grand drops down accompanied by his bass chorals and Kanan turns his saber on the door controls and about right here is when I think we all knew he wasn’t going to be right behind Ezra at all.

Again with the camerawork, this tilting pan up towards the top of the tower and then tracking dolly zoom in as the others spill out onto the balcony.

Nooooooooo bbyyyyyyyyyy. :((((((((

Subtle animation appreciation moment: The way Zeb shields Sabine right here.

Kanan’s matching the Inquisitor strike for strike now, and even repays the kick in the chest from “Gathering Forces”.  He’s calm, almost zen, having accepted what he has to do, and his cavalier attitude throws Grand, stalling for enough time to let Hera get there.

The “Shenanigans“ theme rolls in on somber trombones, stalling out after only the opening notes.

:((((((((

Capping this scene is an exercise in, “Whose expression looks more devastated?”

Hera’s tight-lipped tremble as she makes the call is especially hard.

My gosh look at the smoke effects though.

This episode really has no business being this pretty.

I hate you Tarkin, I hate you I hate you I wanna punch you in your stupid sneering face.

Kanan looks astonished to hear the others are still proceeding with the plan and making the transmission.  I guess he thought they might write the mission off as a loss what with his capture.

Aaaaaah Ezra I’m so proud of him!

This really is an excellent speech.

The woodwinds plink away in the background of some muted brass here, even the Main Titles theme (Luke’s theme, used to denote heroism in the Star Wars score) is quiet, fading out before a slow dooming Imperial March takes over.

“Ho shit, they’re firing on their own tower?”

Well uh... we already knew that Tarkin doesn’t believe in overkill.

<3

The show makes use of some very effective silence, only the faint static of the transmitter playing over the closing stinger.  Just to drive that last devastating blow in.

And cue cliffhanger.

Ha ha, another one I don’t rewatch that often, at least not without completing it out with the next two because seriously, that is a cruel cliffhanger.

Rebels does not really believe in a static Status Quo, which I appreciate.  Even in Season One it throws wrenches, shakes things up, unmoors our characters.  And by extension us the audience. XD

Even for those of us who believed in the show from the beginning I don’t think anyone expected it to axe our two staple recurring side antagonists and end an episode with Kanan captured.

So kudos to Rebels for taking that risk.  It has more freedom to do so, granted, than a show like TCW or Kenobi, given that it’s mostly original characters not protected by Plot Armor, but still.

Next episode takes us two steps forward and one great big Mustafar step back, I can’t wait!

[mamamittens]

NSFW Headcanons: Do they like it?

Ace

Hair pulling?

He's a noisy baby all the time, but a sharp pull on his hair is kind of like sitting on the TV remote with the volume button up for whatever he's currently 'expressing joy' about.

Try not to tease him with this cause it signals to him you'd like a bit more rough play. Using his hair to hold him in place is likewise asking for more rough treatment. So unless he's presently occupied you're basically begging for a response.

In the heat of the moment he might forget that not everyone grew wild on a mountain. And he's going to feel terrible if you actually get hurt--really kills the moment for him.

Pulling your hair on the other hand?

Only if he's in a mean bitch kinda mood. And it's strictly to hold you in place cause he's not playing nice at that point.

The moment he starts doing things that hurt by design you know your ass is in trouble (possibly quite literally).

Spanking?

Again with the physical violence! He can sure take the punishment but can you?

He's a bit more into... Softer kinds of sex play but boy howdy if you push him over the edge first--well he's going to get really loud for starters. And he's absolutely going to tease you to shit if you can't take it yourself.

Does get a little more whiny about it than feral if you rub the impact site. Like a mini apology and cuddle sort of effect? He'll still get a bit excited but isn't likely to get so rough as long as you're not too mean.

Likes using spanks as more of a startling motion than actual foreplay. Which just makes it worse if you can't take it as well as himself. He is conscious of his strength though, so I promise he won't be breaking at bones.

Gets really soft and mopey the next day if there's any bruises though he... Definitely seems to like the lingering reminder.

(On you or himself actually, he's not shy about his own 'sex prizes')

Temperature play?

He can't really uh... Nope out of this one with grace? If he gets riled up, the room gets warmer a lot faster than it would otherwise. If it involves touch he's all for it though. Really likes tactile kinds of temperature play and finds himself unusually reactive to cold things.

So those ice cubes are going to see a lot of use--though not long term use for sure. Especially if you use them to tease him. Fun way to find his sensitive spots though. Just find where the ice melts the fastest.

Using it though? Well, he's a little limited in what he can literally hold. Ice doesn't tend to stay frozen long in his hands even when he's holding back. But he can do hot easily!

Gets insufferably smug using his hands in the place of a hot 'item'. Just a fair warning. A damn menace with his fingers. Likes teasing you by lighting a fire with his bare hand and extinguishing it before he touches you just to hear your response when his hand is still incredibly hot.

Using oils is... A calculated risk. Like, he can control the fire so it isn't likely to burn you but he gets why if it makes you a tad too nervous to try. If you let him though he gets messy as hell. In a lot of different ways.

Might end up having to use burn cream for some light... Uh... 'sun burn' damage.

Marco

Hair pulling?

I feel like this one is a tad tricky cause of his haircut. Like, he doesn't have a lot to start with, ya know? But he also had a kinda... Fucky relationship with pain. It rarely stays for long so he tends to... Chase the sensation in the bedroom? A little?

What I'm saying is if you're willing to pull his hair, better be ready to pull hard and often. Really bully him about it and he'll gladly return the favor. Gets a bit more rough during sex but again, he makes sure you know how much he appreciates it.

As for him pulling your hair? Eh, he likes manhandling you with it. The sharp gasp and distraction is an excellent opening for sexy opportunities. But he's more likely to just... Hold you in place than pull.

He's aware that he tends to... Get a little excited if you 'fight him' in the bedroom. Kind of an impulse to show off how strong he is.

Spanking?

Spank his ass if you wanna see a very shocked response. He does get a little... Playfully offended though? He likes it but the odds that you're willing to hit him hard enough is slim. If fire doesn't pop up, you didn't pop his thigh hard enough.

So yeah, it's more of an attention grabber for him. Or an instant 'bitch' button depending on what you're slapping. Prepare to be folded and fucked the fuck out of if you choose wrong... Or right if that was your intention.

As for you? He likes popping your ass hard and then rubbing it with fire just to see you squirm. Won't do it a lot though, just if you're purposefully teasing him.

Likes doing a bit of marking but doesn't tend to indulge a lot cause injuries tend to heal faster after sex with him.

He absolutely flares up when he cums and he's given up on trying to leave bruises.

Temperature play?

Well consider him intrigued! Reactions to hot and cold isn't something he can heal unless it gets... Bad. So this is something his devil fruit doesn't ruin for him. Prefers heat to cold though cause of the numbing factor. That does mean you can really wind him up if you get creative though. And he really appreciates your creativity.

Tease him with cold and then switch to hot until he feels it if you want a show. He gets really whiny about wanting to feel your touch and it doesn't trigger his uh... 'fight' response unless you get really mean about it. Like finally deciding to slap him hard enough to hurt when he literally can't feel it. Oh boy, would that be a dick move he'll make you regret.

As for using it himself? Well, he likes winding you up with it. That's pretty fun in his opinion. Particularly if he's in you so he can really feel every reaction. You might even get the impression that he's a tad sadistic he'll tease you for so long. Switching from hot to cold to hot again until you can't tell if he's got an ice cube against your skin or hot wax.

In reality?

Well, he considers himself quite flexible.

@marco--the--phoenix @secretsnailor

[07-bilin]

swimmer au - haikyuu!

₊˚ପ⊹ summary: haikyuu boys as swimmers and their strokes cause your girl is a swimmer and i just see a lot of them as swimmers LMAO

₊˚ପ⊹ warnings: none

₊˚ପ⊹ a/n: ive been into haikyuu for years but im starting to get back into it due to edits on my fyp so have this lovely set of hc with my sport :) - p.s: let me know if you want more!

₊˚ପ⊹ w/c: 779

karasuno

hinata: he gives off breast-stroke vibes lowkey like that man can jump and sure as hell his legs can bend in that manner very fast-- he'd probably only do 100 breast and then during medly he would swim the 50 for their relay team. might also be in free every now and then to y'know compete against kageyama lmao.

adding on to this hinata would probably be very similar to how he is in the anime eating 24/7 and sleeping and slacking off tbh. seems like the guy who'd break his cap multiple times during regions or something costing the team a hefty sum. also the guy to write on his body with words like "eat my bubbles" and shit.

kageyama: its giving free sprinter. swims 50-100 free and occasionally the 200 in which he legitimately sprints the whole thing. hated being in relays with other people during his middle school club years, especially the 200 free cause its a "life or death" situation. eventually in his high school years he softened up a bit and gave tips to his relay members.

he makes sure to plan his carb intake days for meets. other people may think its funny but kageyama takes his yoga very seriously and it began to rub off on the other first years lowkey. is the victim to chicken fights on free days at practice resulting in him having to buy dinner for everyone.

tsukishima: for how long he is, he very much gives me a backstroke swimmer. the type of guy to say back is the best because you don't inhale as much water but every time you see a professional picture of him taken he's struggling to breathe. does 100 back and then back during medly.

in his earlier years of swimming he swam fly because he has a huge wingspan but later in his years he switched to back because he claimed that he didn't have enough strength for the stroke. (real)

nekoma

kuroo: my boy just reeks of fly swimmer. he's crazy. he does it from the 50 medly up to the 200 fly. during meets he likes to put on fake tattoos to seem "manly" but they end up washing away in the warm-up pool and the team gets in trouble for the mess.

the captain who makes sure there is a team dinner every single week. love's dryland days because he gets to show everyone how much he can lift in the weight room. is also a menace to society and will write shit to tick off other teams.

kenma: is also a breast swimmer because lowkey he likes the different feel to it. in reality its because it was called the 'froggy' stroke when he was younger. every time he comes to practice he thinks to himself why he chose a sport where he can't breathe.

that one swimmer on the team who constantly "forgets" his suit and can't swim. (kuroo carries and extra one in case this happens). has lost too many hair ties in the pool, more than he can count tbh.

fukurodani

bokuto: he is a fly/free sprinter. loves the feeling of fly when he swims it. does the 50-100 for both strokes. he's really goofy and has a whole collection of speedo's with different designs that he likes to wear on specific days of the week. do not let this man near the speaker in the weight room, he will be screaming lyrics at the top of his lungs.

he probably dq's a lot of the relays from excitement and falls in the pool sometimes. on free days he likes to go beneath the depths of the water and grab peoples legs and drag them down into the water. tries to dive off the diving boards but has always ended in belly flops or just a big splash of water. is not a morning practice type of guy.

akaashi: he gives me back/distance swimmer. he's just like yeah lemme zone out for a bit and then like 4 mins later he's done and he's like oh okay cool. for back he does the medly with bokuto as back and then for distance he does the 200 and 500 free. the type of guy to let out sighs after stretching, you for sure can hear his bones cracking as well.

during meets you can see akaashi on the bench with his sony headphones on top of his cap nodding to his music. (its probably rnb). the type to bring his own equipment to practice rather than using the faculties. bokuto and him have matching pj's they wear to every single meet.

[astarab1aze]

🩵 [ Loux and Maeve <3 ]

muse relationship headcanon game

who curses more?

lol loux. every other word out of his mouth is 'fuck' or shit'. he's got maeve beat on this one 100%, he's so vulgar. how she can deal with it is beyond me

who is more patient?

i'm going to say maeve. loux has a lot of patience, but she has even more if she can tolerate him. he's such an ass (who does horrible, horrible things), gets into trouble, mouths off and sounds like an idiot half the time- and yet. gotta be maeve.

who does the driving?

iirc maeve doesn't drive? it's all public transportation and walking, things like that, and loux is the exact same except he's also got his mirror. so between the two of them, no one's doing any driving, but how about maybe they take turns paying for public fair--

who is louder? who is quieter?

definitely loux, as the louder one. but i do imagine maeve getting giddy and excited about all the things and loux being on the quieter side on some occasions, since he sometimes plays an observer when on outings or dates just to get a feel for whether she's enjoying herself. hmmm. i'm gonna say 50/50 actually. all contextual.

who is more physically affectionate?

loux 100%. i don't know that i need to elaborate on this point, cos you already know he's a bit of a menace. he loves to touch, feel, kiss, and...well, hold hands, grope, dance, etcetc so he's probably always going to be touching maeve in some way. very handsy, and not always in a horny way.

who is more likely to tease the other?

maeve pulls one over on him all the time, i bet you. she's got a playful, mischievous streak in her. not to the same degree as loux, but it's there. and she gets him back for all his tricks

who is better with time management?

i'm going to say loux but only because he got lucky and has magic at his disposal. his days are always packed with all the things he's gotta do for 'work' right, but he always always makes time, schedules properly, the whole nine, and can make it work because of his little mirror and magic.

who wins the arm wrestling matches?

i'm gonna say 50/50 here. he wins some, she wins some, they both lose sometimes. loux's not a strength-oriented guy, shines best when it comes to magic and sleight of hand. arcane trickster type.

who controls the music in the car ride?

they walk everywhere or take ye olde pocket mirror, and i imagine they talk basically the whole time. at home? different story. but there's no car to play music in.

who covers dinner when they order in?

loux and he'll hear nothing about it.

who is more outgoing? who is more shy?

i think they're both pretty outgoing? or at the very least, maybe not very outwardly shy. shy in ways, but that's only a little part of it. they're both friendly and talkitive? final answer: they're both outgoing, social. maybe bashful? at times. but not retreat into the safety of my hovel shy. having a hard time articulating what i mean sksksk

who has the more outlandish fashion sense?

loux, 10000%, and i've got his wardrobe right here--

who starts the tickle fights? who ends them?

i feel like both of them would start them, but maybe loux would end them. as he does. with sloppy gross kisses like a puppy, which he kind of his now that i think about it...

who has the darker/more "edgy" sense of humor?

loux by an entire 30 miles. he's a total edgelord 99% of the time, just thinking about it makes me want to throttle him. nuke him from orbit. he's gotta tone himself down a bit cos edgy humor is OUT--

who is more competitive when it comes to games?

they're both at least somewhat competitive, so i can totally see them going ham, no holds barred, in carnival games, interactive street...events in salem's crossing or belle's hollow, at least until one of them wins the whole thing. they get to take home double prizes sometimes, i bet. in terms of video games, loux will just end up breaking the controller, not out of frustration but like. because he's genuinely that bad with technology.

who has the bigger appetite? the bigger sweet tooth?

i have no doubts they can both put away a lot of food, but loux's gonna have to take the cake here i think. he's a walking garbage disposal and will put just about anything in his mouth. relatively low appetite, but when he eats, he eats. a lot. burns through a lot of calories existing, just sitting there. sweets? i thiiiink...loux, still. the guy can put away 60 cupcakes in one sitting and will.

who is more likely to get in a confrontation in public?

loux. oh loux 100000%. if it isn't sorciers, it's some asshat who disrespected him or maeve in some way, and he is not afraid to speak his mind in any way, shape, or form. he can talk the talk and walk the walk, and there may be an occasion or two in which he proves that. he won't apologize either, it's an honor/principle thing for him.

who hosts the parties/hangouts? who organizes them?

i think they take turns setting things up but in the beginning, it's definitely loux, trying like hell to spend as much time with her as he can, and they sort of bounce ideas off of each other. like when they went out for coffee and then their trip to salem's crossing after. mhmm. it's like a game of pong and the ball they bounce between each other is date ideas sjdfksd

who is better at cooking? do they ever cook for each other?

they can both cook, but i'm going to say loux because of how nuts he is about it. homie's like, gordon ramsey the second he sets foot in a kitchen. a complete perfectionist, maybe not about methodology but certainly about the final product, so i imagine him doing a lot of cooking. but also enjoying when maeve does the same for him. 50/50 on who cooks and when, but it's definitely a both situation.

who is more likely to engage in dangerous and/or illegal behavior?

:I LOL loux.

who is more likely to notice when something is wrong with the other?

it depends, but i think they'd both be able to spot something amiss with each other relatively quickly. loux isn't as quick to solve anything that isn't physical, but he does try. i maintain that maeve is probably better at dealing with it all than he is.

who does the talking in public settings (i.e. to the waiter at a restaurant)?

50/50 on this one. i think it depends on the context. if they're in salem's crossing, or any of the nightfolk locations, then until she's sort of used to them, loux'll probably do most of the talking, for a few reasons. not to limit her or anything, but as a precautionary measure. everywhere else? i don't think it matters. they both talk and for themselves when ordering food, checking out, whatever.

who is more likely to extend a helping hand & provide emotional support?

gonna say maeve on this one. loux has his ways and yes, sometimes he does help other people with emotional things, but he's no good with his words, so it's much easier for him to physically fix a problem. maeve, on the other hand, is more sensitive to the emotional needs of others, more attuned to that in general. i think loux would be there for her 100%, but i think maeve would know best how to identify and navigate it. and be better at it.

who is the bigger prankster? do they get the last laugh or do they suffer for it?

maeve pulls one over on him all the time, i bet you. she's got a playful, mischievous streak in her. not to the same degree as loux, but it's there. and she gets him back for all his tricks. it's gotta be something of a vicious cycle between the two of them, but lots of good fun too. they get some laughs out of it, no suffering omg. unless suffering can be taken to mean something else, in which case yes maybe lots of that to everyone's chagrin--

[m34gs]

*skuttles into your line of sight wearing a paper boat for a hat*

Hello hello my dear! I am coming with thoughts of a barista/coffee shop grimmichi au!

Who all works there?

Is one of them a student or is this their full time gig? Do they both there, or is one a customer? Does one or both of them hate coffee period? Does one or both of them love coffee just a tad too much? What are some favorite drinks they make or like to drink themselves? Is it a meet cute or meet scalding hot as coffee splatters across someone?

❤️❤️❤️

I eagerly await your reply! *the wind blows just a little too hard and the boat hat, which was glued to my head, turns into a paper airplane and I fly away*

*swings my lasso Indiana-Jones-style* Hang on, friend! *catches you and drags you back down to earth. I dust you off and we sit on my patio*

A barista/coffeeshop au, huh? Well, let's just see then....

I think it would be fun for both of them to be shop employees. Ichigo is a part-time employee, full-time student working his way through university. Grimmjow is a full-time employee, with the most seniority of all of them despite only being a couple years older than Ichigo. See, Grimmjow goes way back with the owner of the coffeeshop (naturally, it's Kisuke), back to when he was a troubled teen couch-surfing to get away from a bad home situation. (you know I have to add a little angst) Kisuke was the one to give him a job and actually keep Grimmjow out of trouble...for the most part.

When he starts working with Kurosaki? Oh, Grimmjow is annoyed. Ichigo is everything he wanted to be and simultaneously everything he hates. Ichigo has siblings that love him, a father who treats him with love and respect, a plethora of friends, and also incredibly strong. This grates on Grimmjow. He hates it. Despises Ichigo. Grimmjow's biggest confidence came from his strength, which he believed was because of his harsh life. A way to counter his trauma; believe that he wouldn't have gotten his strength if he didn't go through that. And now, here's this orange-haired idiot who is almost as strong and fast and resilient as Grimmjow himself, and he didn't have to suffer for it? Oh he hates him.

Except over time he starts to realize he kind of enjoys their banter. And Ichigo is actually kind of nice. And caring. And Grimmjow kind of likes the way Ichigo organizes things behind the counter, because IT MAKES SENSE WHEN YOU DO IT THAT WAY, ULQUIORRA (hc that he hates opening after Ulquiorra closes). And he thinks, well damn, maybe this guy isn't that bad. And then...and then the feelings grow. And Grimmjow goes 'oh shit'. And all the ground they made to approach a tentative friendship is shattered as he freaks out. They go back to fighting and arguing and it becomes nearly unbearable to have them work together. Until one night, they are both closing. And it all comes to a head...leading to a fiery fight followed by a...spicy...make out session. mwahahahahaha.

I would think Grimmjow doesn't really like coffee all that much. He drinks it once in a while, but not that often. Ichigo? He can't get enough of it. He's working so hard at his job and school and trying to carve out time with friends. He's got a caffeine addiction, but he also never looks fully awake either. Boy is running on fumes. Grimmjow is gonna have to fix that.

Grimmjow hates making anything fancier than a simple iced coffee. Ichigo can make just about anything. In fact, he does. More than once, even, Grimmjow has had to remove the coffee cup from Ichigo's hands because Ichigo is on break and wanted a drink to "wake up"; and Grimmjow witnessed him dump an ungodly amount of sugar into 16 shots of espresso. (Grimm. Save your boy.)

Hmmm, that's what I can think of! What about you? Who would you assign what roles? Would you add any more angst? Do they get a super happy ending to make up for all the fighting? How many times does Kisuke have to kick them out of the back for getting hot and heavy in the breakroom? 😏😏😏