#who did they lost a game? against thems on a versus game-

[dorkousloris]

also spooky season is NEAR....

me vibrating to draw anita as luigi......is NEAR........

[greatcheshire]

So What are your Issues with Scott Pilgrim? Parts that have not aged well? Stuff you think are missing opportunities? or the Fact that Scott is a bad person, did you know that

I don’t have too many serious issues! When it comes to the comics, it’s primarily that it’s an indie comic from the mid 2000s about an average gamer dude and has some hang ups that come with that specific period of indie comics and gamer dude culture. The movie is where the issues get more complicated, since I like the movie a lot but I feel like it lost a lot of the character depth to (understandably) fit it all into a two hour movie, which in turn makes Scott and Ramona into way more flat characters, in a weird way turning them into the exact trope that the comic was trying to go against. This isn’t helped by the fact that the movie was being made before books 5 and 6 came out, so a lot of the weight of the ending just couldn’t be properly reflected or played with in the film. And because of this, at times it makes Scott Pilgrim feel like a precursor to Ready Player One, a story about how cool it would be if video games were real and you got a hot girl, versus what Scott Pilgrim actually is, a story about a bunch of young 20 somethings who frame their existence in the context of video games as a way to craft their own important narrative about their own life and portray a form of arrested development.

[pitchsidestories]

we'll always have Paris II Élisa de Almeida x GERWNT! Reader

masterlist I word count: 1292

a/n: hi, this oneshot was requested, to the one who sent it in, sorry that it took so long.

It was France versus Germany in the half final of the Women’s Nations League. In this match you were playing against a lot of your teammates but also your girlfriend from Paris Saint-Germany. Each team just had finished singing their national hymns, so it was time for you to shake the hands of your opponents.

“Ohh, your amour is starting to walk to us.”, Laura Freigang who was standing right before you in line, turned her face to comment with a huge smirk on her lips.  Much to your own annoyance Sydney Lohmann made kissing noises to highlight the Eintracht Frankfurt players observation.

“Shut it, Lau and Syd.”, you rolled your eyes at them before turning your attention to your girlfriend who was about to take your hands in hers.

“Salut, Élisa.”

“Salut.”, Élisa greeted you accompanied with a boyish wink.

“I’m going to puke!”, Laura who was bad at staying quiet for too long exclaimed jokingly.

“Don’t forget you play for our side because of that French charmer.”, Sydney reminded you grinning.

“I’ll never forget that.”, you replied sincerely.

“They think you’re that unprofessional?”, your girlfriend rose her eyebrows in surprise.

Clearing your throat, you told her:” Get to your position De Almeida. We’re here to play.”

“Whatever you say, mon amour. I’ll make sure to lift my shirt enough times to distract you with my abs.”, she smiled cheekily at you.

“That won’t work, ma chéri.”, you answered confidently.

“We’ll see about that.”

“Good, luck babe.”, you said before you both turned to your starting position on the pitch waiting for the referee to start the match.

During the game, it was still 0:0 at that time, Sara Doorsoun whispered amused into your ear:” Y/n, the abs of your girlfriend, she’s kind of hot.”

“Stop it, Sara and please stay focused.”, you replied laughing.

“I’m focused.”, the older defender stated.

“Good.”, you nodded satisfied.

“But not bad.”

“Sara!”, you yelled at her.

“Just saying.”, she responded sheepishly smiling.

Secretly, you knew that your teammate was right about your girlfriend, but this was an important game and you always wanted to win even if it was against Élisa. Unfortunately, the football match went in favour of the hosts and Germany lost 2:0.

Exhausted you fell onto your knees after the final whistle of the referee. “We lost.”, you muttered more to yourself than to anyone in particular.

“Shit. You still had a good game.”, Laura tried to cheer you up and padded your shoulder encouragingly.

“And don’t forget we’ve another game to qualify for the Olympics.”, Sydney added.

“Yeah, let’s beat the Netherlands.”, Lena Oberdorf sounded motivated.

“Against Jackies team.”, you remarked, the blonde Dutch was one of yours and your girlfriend closest friends in Paris.

Deep in your own thoughts you didn’t hear Élisa coming, only until she spoke directly to you:” You’ll win the next game.”

“Congrats to your win.”, you mumbled.

The French defender thanked you as she helped to lift you from the ground, so you both could look into each other’s eyes.

You swallowed hard, trying to hide your own disappointment: “You played really great.“

“So did you.“, Élisa replied. Her face was serious. Evidence that she actually meant it and wasn’t just trying to cheer you up.

“That’s what Laura said to.“, you told her.

A small smile appeared on your girlfriends face. With a wink, she reached out and tilted your head upwards with her fingers under your chin: “She didn’t lie to you. Now come on, chin up. You’ll win the next game and qualify for the Olympics.“

“Hopefully.“, you sighed. Your girlfriends optimism was lost on you.

“Also, remember, we’ll always have Paris.“, Élisa grinned, quoting the famous line from the movie Casablanca.

You involuntarily snorted about her dumb joke. “Okay, Humphrey Bogart, I’d like my girlfriend back who gives me a hug and a kiss to make up for this loss.“

Élisa looked at you with a smirk: “A hug and a kiss, huh?“

“Yes. You know, we still have a few days in camp left until we’re back in Paris.“, you said, blinking at her with big innocent eyes.

“And you can’t wait for that long.“, your girlfriend concluded.

“No but if you can, I have to join my team now.“ You pointed over your shoulder where Sydney impatiently bounced on her feet and Laura mimed looking at an invisible watch.

“Okay, come here. One quick kiss.“, Élisa smiled and pulled you close.

You quickly pressed your lips to hers while wrapping your arms around her waist.

“See you in Paris.“, you whispered as you pulled apart.

Lena passed the two of you and grimaced in disgust: “Okay, enough hugs and kisses from the wrong team.“

“Obi, you’re awful!“, you laughed.

Still, you gave your girlfriend one last hug goodbye before following your team mate to the rest of the team.

Sydney determinedly shook her head: “No, she did the right thing.“

You were used to their teasing by now so you only rolled your eyes fondly: “If you girls say so.“

“We do!“, Laura said with emphasis.

You smiled. This team was really something very different than Paris Saint-Germain.

Your second game was against the Netherlands. Whoever won this game would be qualified for the Olympics. The stakes were high and everyone knew it. But your team put on a brilliant performance, beating the Oranje Leeuwinnen with 2:0.

After extensive celebrations the night of the game, you arrived at your apartment in Paris on the next day.

“Hi, I’m home!“, you called, letting your suitcase drop right on the floor. You were still exhilarated from the win.

Élisa appeared from the kitchen: “Hi.“

You crossed the distance to her quickly and jumped right into her arms: “We’re going to the Olympics!“

Laughing, she tried to hold her balance: “I know, I’m so happy for you.“

“Poor Jackie though remind me to invite her to dinner soon.”, you sighed empathetically.

“She’ll be fine, trust me. That’s football. You win some, you lose some. No one should know that better than you.”, the defender reminded you while carrying you to the sofa to place you down on it.

“Yes, it was really a rollercoaster ride.”, you admitted as your girlfriend sat down next to you.

“But with a happy ending.”, Élisa grinned at you.

“Right.”, you nodded enthusiastically.

“Can’t wait to go to Paris with you.”, she muttered.

“Actually, that’s great, we’re already there.”, you joked laughing.

“I meant at the final of the Olympics and you know that.”, the French player corrected you.

Her mentioning the end game made your cheeks turn hot: “I know but I couldn’t resist.”

“The qualification clearly has gotten to your head.”, Élisa teased you.

Swiftly you changed the topic away from football: “So, what should we do now?”

“Oh, I have a few ideas.”, the dark-haired woman answered with a dirty smile on her lips.

“Does this involve the bedroom?”, you asked her cheekily.

“Absolutely.”

“I like that a lot.”, you confessed. The weeks away from each other due to national team duties always made you hungry for your lover’s touch, you could feel the sexual tension rise in air.

“Follow me then.”, Élisa said, holding her hand up for you to grasp it before leading you to your shared bedroom. Seeing the bottle of red wine on the nightstand and the rose petals on the bed send you thrills of excitement through your body.

You might have lost against her in the nations league game, but you knew you won her heart as you followed her to bed, awaiting the kisses and touches you both have missed. Knowing deep inside that Paris and the women you loved were always worth coming back to.

Pictures are from pinterest.

[kindestegg]

"Maybe if I ask her real nice, I won't have to turn her into a puppet!"

So... this line has been puzzling me for a WHILE because it feels like it goes against the idea Collector's go-to default is to just puppet-ify everything.

UNTIL someone in a server I was a part of pointed out that hey, doesn't it seem like Collector is also actively trying to nudge King to play something else? That they're tired of this game?

And I thought about the capture the flag game suggestion.

"What if we switch it up? We could play capture the flag! Us versus... everyone on the Isles!"

Okay, aside from the obvious commentary that Collector sees himself and King against the world (which is. another thing. I need to write up on *biting down on my arm*), it's interesting this implies the people would probably not be puppets anymore, since you'd probably need people who are conscious to actively play in the game, and the whole "people breathing on the moon" discussion doesn't seem like it would happen if they were considering the people as puppets.

It's also worth noting that Collector turning Lilith and Hooty into puppets happens immediately after King tells him The Owl House Game is like playing pretend...

And also, after Collector asks King what role he gets to play, and King presumably tells him, he uh, does this...

Which I'm guessing means he was pretty happy to hear he's going to be the main character. And then immediately after...

... Do you think there's a possibility Collector's go-to isn't in fact to just capture people as puppets, but interpreted this immediately from King's talk of the Owl House Game?

He also lashes out at King for criticizing him over turning Terra into a puppet, claiming he's just "playing pretend".

And considering how, from King's talk with Eda and Lilith, he's only losing his fear of making Collector mad NOW...

It's possible most of this was born out of a misunderstanding. Collector interpreted the game as having "lots of players" as puppets, the whole Isles as King put it, and King was too scared to tell him that wasn't it. No wonder Collector lashes out when told not to do so, to him it makes no sense because this is how the game is played in his view.

If he's getting tired of this game though, it also explains why he suggested not turning Eda into a puppet first, why he wanted to play something that would keep people free from such a spell, and even why he seemed slightly disappointed that he ended up turning Terra into a puppet too by the end, which is another sentient playmate lost, even if she made him angry.

So... if all of this could have been avoided if King had told Collector that this game shouldn't entail turning people into puppets, I think I have a hunch of the narrative purpose of all this.

It's telling the truth. King has to tell the truth. That there was no Owl House game, that he made it all up, that he was a scared kid desperate to save the people he loved and the Isles and that yes, he did use Collector.

King wasn't in the wrong for lying of course, because it was this or losing everything he loves. But things have been regardless severely more complicated because of this lie.

And I suspect he knows this, as he says he wants to talk to Collector to solve things. Maybe this talking is him telling the truth after all. He does say this directly after communicating that he's losing his fear of making Collector mad. Maybe he's finally gotten courage to confess the truth.

It's also worth noting again that Collector... doesn't care that King is lying about some things? He barely reacts with anger or shock at him talking to Eda and Lilith and seeing that they're keeping this as secret from him, he only cares when it sounds like King might want to hurt him.

It sounds silly when you put it this way, but the biggest obstacle keeping their relationship from fully realizing and them resolving things is just a misunderstanding. King wrongfully believing Collector might hurt him and Collector wrongfully believing King is happy playing pretend with him.

Once they actually talk this out, they can finally resolve things.

... the only problem is that I think if King approaches Collector saying he wants to tell him something now...

Collector might just think it has to do with King getting rid of him, and things might turn for the worst.

[handmade-witch]

Be Mine - Happy Valentine's Day 💝

Pairing: Lorenzo Berkshire × Reader

[[AN: Last but certainly not least!! 😇 Thank you to everyone who has shown their support for my blog and writings so far - words can't express how much I appreciate it. 😍🥰 Enjoy!! 💓💓]]

Read Mattheo's story here <3

Read Theo's story here <3

Read Blaise's story here <3

Read Draco's story here <3

When you opened the door to your room, your eyes landed on a bouquet of red roses resting on top of your sheets. A folded piece of pink paper sat propped against them. Your fingers brushed over the front of the card where your name was written in handwriting you immediately recognized as Enzo's. You folded open the paper to read what was written inside:

Roses are red, Violets are blue.

I can't wait for Valentine's day with you!

Follow the clues and you will see,

A perfect date for you and me!

The cute rhyme brought a smile to your face as giggled softly. Of course, you thought to yourself, shaking your head affectionately. A Valentine's day scavenger hunt summed up the nature of yours and Enzo's relationship perfectly. It was playful and fun but full of a passion and tenderness that made it so special. Your eyes flicked down to the bottom of the page, where Enzo had written a clue:

Clue 1: Smile! You're not going there to study. You'll find your next clue with a buddy!

You couldn't keep the cheesy grin off of your face as you left your room and headed to the library.

•••

"So how much did you get bribed to sit here and wait for me?" You teased as you approached Blaise who sat at the typical "Slytherin" study table.

He smirked at you, pushing a plate with a cupcake and another pink card towards you. "Are you assuming that I needed a bribe to do a good deed for my dear friend?"

You just gave him a look as you sat in the chair opposite him, unwrapping the cupcake.

"Fine." He rolled his eyes playfully. "I was paid in cupcakes- which are delicious by the way."

You took a bite. Blaise was right, it was incredible. You picked up the pink card. It read:

Clue 2: I didn't drink Amorentia when I fell for you, but go to the spot where we make its brew

The potions classroom. You smile again, bidding your friend goodbye as you head to the basement.

You peek into the classroom, finding it empty. Another pink card rests on the potion station where you and Enzo typically sit. With it is a small heart shaped box of candies. You were getting giddy with anticipation. The scavenger hunt was fun but you were also ready to spend time with your sweet boyfriend. You read the clue written on the card:

Clue 3: The next place is one you won't want to miss, go to where we had our first kiss.

You smiled softly at the memory. Everyone in the whole school had been anticipating the upcoming Slytherin versus Gryffindor quidditch match. Slytherin had lost the previous two contests. While you would never say it in front of Draco, it was no secret that Harry Potter was an excellent seeker, and it was the primary reason for the team's success. The Slytherin team had to approach this game with a whole new strategy to prevent another loss. In theory, it was simple: if they scored enough points offensively, it didn't matter whether Potter caught the snitch or not– they would win the game.

It had been an exhausting week for everyone, with practices running overtime every day. Drill after drill after drill to perfect their strategy. The day of the match had been so beautiful it was almost taunting. The hard work had paid off, though. And when the announcer called out, 'Slytherin Wins!' you met Enzo in the center of the pitch, where you threw your arms around him in a bone-crushing hug. He had grabbed your face and kissed you and it was like the entire school around you had disappeared. All that you could focus on in that moment was his lips on yours. It was only after you broke apart that the wolf whistling of your friends and teammates registered and had you blushing madly. But with the thrill of the victory and the way Enzo held you, you felt as if you could've faced anything in that moment. [[

The hike to the pitch had your legs feeling angry at you. Maybe you could convince Enzo to add a massage to your date to make up for having you hike around the entire castle. You walked across the grass to where you saw a box set in the middle of the field. You opened it up to reveal a dark green hoodie. The back read 'Berkshire' in large letters. The material was soft and you quickly swapped it with the sweater you were wearing to ward of the February chill. In the bottom of the box was another pink card. It read:

Clue 4: You've searched high, and you've searched low. Head to where you can touch the sky, it's the last place to go.

•••

You reached the top of the stairs to the astronomy tower with a huff, feeling slightly out of breath. If climbing the stairs wasn't enough to take your breath away the view at the top sure was.

Twinkling fairy lights wrapped around the edges of the room, casting it in a soft, warm glow. A variety of pillows and blankets (most looking like they had been stolen from the Slytherin common room) were laid out of the floor. And there was Enzo sitting on the floor in the middle of the room with the biggest grin on his face. When he saw you he bounded over to yoi, wrapping you in his arms and pressing a kiss to you cheek.

"Hi love, how was your day?" His soft brown eyes were full of love and affection as they looked into yours.

"Exhausting." You tease with a huff as you wrap your arms around his shoulders. "But fun."

Enzo breaks away from your hold for just a moment to gesture to what he's wearing. You notice that his sweatshirt is the same color you were wearing. "Check it out," he says, spinning around to show off your last name printed in big letters on the back of his hoodie. He grins, pulling you back into his arms. "Now everyone knows that I'm yours and you're mine." He hums, swaying you slightly as he rests his forehead against yours. "Do you like it?" His eyes sparkle as he asks.

"Yes." You press a soft kiss to his lips. "And the cupcake, and the candies, and the flowers, and the scavemger hunt." You giggle. "It was all perfect, just like you."

The tips of Enzo's ears burn red at your compliment of him and he kisses you again before turning your attention to the room. "I got a couple more suprises." He smile is contagious as he leads you to the cozy pile he's made on the floor of the tower. He produces a tray with two heart shaped pizzas on them: one topped with his favorites and the other topped with yours.

"Did you make these?" You gushed. "They smell delicious."

"Well I'll admit I had some assistance from our favorite Italian wizard, but yes, I take full credit so feel free to pay me in kisses." He smirks, leaning towards you and you kiss him. You feel your cheeks start to ache from smiling so much. Enzo tends to have that effect on you.

"I have one more gift." He produces a small box as you groan exasperatedly at him. "It's the last one I swear! I couldn't help myself."

Untying the ribbon, you open the box to reveal a dainty chain bracelet. In the center of the chain is a small metal heart with an "L" engraved into. Enzo takes the bracelet and your hand, fastening it around your wrist. He presses a kiss to the back of your hand, looking up at you with adoring eyes.

"Thank you Enzo."

"Thank you." He leans in once again, kissing you and whispering against your lips, "For being the best thing that has ever happened to me." He leans back, his signature smile on his face. "Pizza?" He asks.

"Yes please." You hum, settling in to enjoy the rest of your evening with your favorite boy.

[joyfulapostate]

hey! i love your work so much, i think you're doing amazing things and i always look forward seeing your posts on my dash.

i was wondering if you'd consider doing a post/sharing your thoughts on the concept of "being in the world but not of the world." it's something that's been on my mind lately, the kind of simultaneous victim/superiority complex that idea could potentially inspire. some verses related to that idea are 1 John 2:15-17 , John 15:19 , and Romans 12:2 .

in any case, i hope you have a fantastic day--you have no idea how important your work is, not only to me but countless others too.

Hello! I am so touched that you find my work meaningful. Thank you for sending this in! It's a fascinating subject and a lot to unpack (after all, it's the whole world we were asked to give up).

As a former fundie, the anti-world messages in these verses hit me pretty hard. They remind me of the years I lost to the faith and the paths I didn’t take. It's strange, because these verses felt so run-of-the-mill when I was a Christian. Of course I was not of the world, I was merely visiting this planet and I would return to my heavenly father once I passed his earthly test. 

I was told as a Christian that the secularization of society was a direct attack on our way of life, that “the world” wanted to replace all of the things that I valued with cheap knock-offs. Sex instead of holy matrimony, prideful independence instead of relying on my heavenly father. I had a very us-versus-them mentality where the "us" was guaranteed to win in the long game of eternity. I won't lie, I felt superior to secular people when I was a Christian. But the trick was, I didn't think that the superiority belonged to me, it belonged to the Christian god. It wasn't me who was better than other people, I was just letting my god protect me from the pitfalls of an earthly existence. If there was goodness or glory in that journey, it did not belong to me. It all belonged to him. It was a “get-out-of-pride free” card.

I had been sold this idea that the world was against “us.” I didn't notice that that hadn't been true for quite a long time. But most of the people around me were acting as if they were still in danger of being persecuted by some modern equivalent of the Romans. The persecution complex was strong, but entirely baseless. Because living in a multicultural society is not the same thing as persecution, even though they were treated as one and the same in my fundamentalist community.

I didn't want to notice that it wasn't loving to ask people to give up their whole lives. I had inherited this ancient contract that told me that I could gain an eternal life. All I had to do was give up everything. I was supposed to treat the world like a den of vipers, to regard everything earthly as garbage, and to live as if I was born in heaven's waiting room. There was no negotiation and the details that I did have were quite hazy as to what that eternal life would be like. And I was supposed to give up the only life I’d ever experienced for vague promises, sight unseen.

As a fundamentalist, I took the sacrificial mathematics of Christianity for granted. Our sacrifice mirrored Christ’s own– it's a compelling story. And I can see how it's attractive for people who crave the purpose, belonging, and freedom from suffering that Christianity promises. But I'm not ready to give up on this life and on this world for an incredibly shady deal. I don't believe that the only way we can be good people is by handing our lives over to someone who does not allow us to have informed consent in an eternal contract.

We deserve to have a connection with this world. We know that this life is real and ready for us to participate in. And if someone wants to separate us from the world, then they'd better be ready to tell us, in detail, the conditions of that contract.

Otherwise, I'm going to go ahead and love the world and the things in the world as long as I'm alive.

links, glorious links

[chzdavmpr]

Ok so I have read all of the manga Versus (The one by the author of One Punch Man) that is currently out, and this post will just be a collection of thoughts I have about it. Btw, if you haven't read it, I would definitely recommend reading it, or at least the first 2-3 chapters to see if it's your cup of tea. Go in completely blind tho. Trust me. Spoilers below for chapters up to 10a.

Firstly I gotta say, the concept is a very enjoyable one. One might say it's a little close to the multiverse concept, which many people are tired of at this point. But for me the idea is different enough here in execution that I feel it's still nice and fresh.

The worldbuilding is very fun. The way each of the 13 worlds (that we know of so far, I don't think they'll introduce more but who knows) look different visually, to where you can easily tell which one a character is from just by their clothes, or which world a location is from just based off looks, is just super satisfying.

I love how the concept is almost an inverse of One Punch Man and Mob Psycho. Where instead of the protagonists being overpowered beyond belief, it's every single enemy that's OP. It makes for a really fun dynamic, especially when written by One.

That being said, as of writing this, the most recent chapter is released is 10a, where Hallow is just about to fight Kiva, and I really really hope that they do not just have Hallow become strong enough to beat him. I feel that would defeat the point of the whole story. We saw a bit of that when Alio was able to somewhat hold his own against the giants and new humanity using a super ultra final technique, admittedly he still lost after like 20 seconds, but I think that for this story that's 20 seconds too long.

It takes a few chapters to just kinda introduce the premise, but once it got that out of the way I really liked the characters. They have very expressive designs, unique character traits, and work off each other very well even the nobodies just introduced in the giant mission to die have so much character (except the machine world ones, since they all have identical armor) it really makes you invested in them, and ups the stakes when the story shows that they do not have any plot armor and all of them can die.

Kayla is especially great. So far giving big neurodivergent vibes. Zaybi is another standout character.

The Natural Enemies are all pretty fun. Some of them seem pretty simple, like the giants, but others I want to know more about so much. Like what's the deal with Recreation Hell World? Couldn't they just go in there and start shooting the games? Do they like hypnotise you to force you to play? Or Misfortune World, do they just have kaiju or do they just have a lot of natural disasters? If it's the later how are they suppose to fight bad luck? Aren't the bandits of Lawless World definitely like the least of a threat since they are just humans? How is Mad God World going to fit into any of this, cause that one seems like a big deal? All of these questions and more are the kinds of things that keep me wanting to read more the most, it's such a fun setting.

Small note: WHERE ARE THE GAMERS? They literally appear in 2 panels (seen below). They are in the war room, they accidentally explain what their natural enemy is, and then they just aren't even in the background of any of the other panels of that room, or anywhere for that matter. Did they just walk home and no one stopped them?

I love the fashion of New Humanity.

I do not like PanePane.

[trackerkitsune]

The only Goncharov adaptation that matters is the video game adaptation Super Goncharov (1992) on the Super Nintendo. Followed by Super Goncharov 2 : The Return of Goncharov (1994) released two years later. Both adventure games with role playing elements allowing the players to go deeper into the plot of the original film and developing a more intricate, intriguing and complex storyline. A perfect addition to the saga. I must also give credit to the attempt made by Nintendo of creating something unique and new with Goncharov Kart (1995) on the Game Boy, who mostly was a success thanks to the use of the original themes and soundtrack from the first film (not to mention it was released at the same time as the VHS boxset of the original film with THX remastered audio). Now I know my opinion will divide among the true fans of the saga but personally I think Goncharov 64 (1997) on the Nintendo 64 was a terrible adaptation despite being a commercial success. The switch to a 3D plateform game was a poor decision and imo it lost itself trying to edulcorate the original storyline and atmosphere of the movies to try to touch a broader and younger audience. Proof of it being the catastrophic follow up to this game : the awful Goncharov Evolution (1998) developed in a hast to capitalize on the relative success of the previous opus. Some will disagree but I believe the poor sales of it compared to the astronomical budget invested into it was the main reason why sales of the Nintendo 64 also dropped significantly the same year and why in the end the console was discontinued by Nintendo. It only got worse for Nintendo when they announced their new Gamecube console only one day before it was confirmed they’d lost the rights for Goncharov video games adaptations against Sony after a legal battle that costed several hundreds millions of dollars to both companies. A shame because I was excited by the (then tragically cancelled) Gamecube adaptation : Goncharov versus Goncharov (2001/unreleased) and especially by the two immersive accessories it was meant to be played with. The GonchaPad(tm) an innovative gamepad allowing the player to shoot with a customizable rifle-like pad all the while controlling the character, and the GonchActive(tm) interactive headset allowing you to connect with your character and interact with them in real time. I know Sony’s acquisition of the commercial rights gave us amazing adaptations on the PS1 and PS2 but they were imo classic and basic games with no risks taken. We’ll see if the recently announced Goncharov-VR (2025) on the PS5 will be up to the standards of these classics. I fear trying to innovate only for the sake of it could give us another catastrophic modern interpretation of the saga like last year’s Goncha’Party (2023)… I mean turning the Grand Orchestra and Opera scenes into a karaoke may help the players being more involved, but you will never change my mind about the fact it’s a complete travesty of the author’s work! I guess we’ll see next year.

Oh yeah, god the N64 3D adaptations were pretty bad... the platforming was clunky as heck and I really don't understand why they did Katya so dirty with the altered plotline either! Honestly I liked the Sony games for the franchise, something about their polygonal aesthetic really vibes well with the original film's styling.

[redwolf17]

sorry to be a bother but do you think you could refresh my memory on who the ladies-in-waiting for arya, rhaenys, cersei, margaery were/are? the recent chapter where we got more info on sansas ladies got me thinking

Oh boy, this is going to get messy. For the sake of time, I'm just going to copy paste the notes that I have for each set of ladies.

Margaery's ladies at Winterfell

Alla Tyrell: likes to sing, shy, plays woodharp, fond of Ser Tallad the Tall, but unlikely he'll win her... still, her parents are giving him time to prove himself before arranging a betrothal to someone else; age is same as Sansa roughly

Meredyth Crane: always has a funny tale, likes hawking; a few years older than Margaery

Wynafryd and Wylla Manderly

Alys Karstark

Catelyn Bracken

Arya's Ladies up North (ages as of tourney of Winterfell August 301)

Catelyn Bracken- age 19, betrothed killed in WotFK???????? Rides horses and LOVES prayer

Wynafryd Manderly- 20 in 301, 23 in 304 (baby Wyman born mid March 303; got pregnant early January 303, due at end of September 304)

Wylla Manderly- age 13 (Davos guessed her age wrong in canon; thin high voice; likes poetry and sewing albeit with bright colors)

Cornel Umber (girl, age 16, named for mountain flower; betrothed to a Burley (clans); likes sewing and trad fem stuff? Hint that Hoarfrost will expect same when Arya flowers and puts away her wildling nonsense?)

Alys Karstark (16, a tall, skinny, coltish girl. She weaves her brown hair into a braid and has a small bosom. The pale girl has a long face, a pointy chin, blue-grey eyes, and small ears... stubborn, determined, pushy! But likes to sing and excited for marriage/kids/running a keep)

Rhea Royce- 20 in 301; lost her husband to a tourney accident not two years after they were wed (no kids)

Rhaenys's ladies

Obella Sand -> Uller, 16, betrothed to Bors Gargalen; will serve Rhaenys for a few years before she weds. loves poetry (also writes it), Reach chivalry = YES!!!! Catnip for her! She's middling at cyvasse, daydreams, prefers to sleep late, despite her betrothed, still crushing on every handsome youth her age in sight, but smart enough to only flirt, stay chaste

Elinor Tyrell: willowy, witty, likes to read, newly married to Alyn Ambrose, heir of his house; age 18; has Elinor read aloud often; she's good at it; used to serve Margaery

Megga Tyrell: fat, loud, enjoys kissing games, sewing, bad singing voice, betrothed to a Bulwer cousin; she's 17; used to serve Margaery

Cersei's ladies

I don't have notes for them, partially because they mostly came up earlier, partially because Cersei really doesn't give a crap about them as human beings versus as servants and pawns

But here's their introduction in the fic:

Jocelyn Swyft was meek as a mouse, and gullible besides. She'd told Sansa quite sincerely that the recent rains were the gods weeping for Lord Tywin. Cerissa Brax did needlework in a haze, when she wasn't reading from The Seven-Pointed Star. The War of Five Kings had taken her father and two of her brothers, and she was deep in mourning. Melesa Crakehall and Darlessa Marbrand were more shrewd, but if they saw the queen's odd behavior, they refused to acknowledge it.

Melesa was a brisk, big-boned woman, the wife of Ser Lyonel Frey. How on earth old Lord Walder Frey had managed to wed his son Emmon to Genna Lannister, Lord Tywin's only sister, Sansa did not know. However the marriage happened, Lady Genna had never left Casterly Rock, though she had given her Frey husband four sons, including Lyonel. Melesa had quite coldly told Sansa that she was lucky to serve the queen, considering her brother's treachery against the crown and her own disrespect.

"Madness is no excuse for such vile behavior," the lady told her, aggressively stabbing her needle through the brindled boar she was stitching. "The laws of the Seven do not apply to traitors."

Darlessa Marbrand was even more ill-tempered, with her constant jibes about the barbarity of northerners and their demon gods. Despite her hostility, Sansa pitied her. Lady Darlessa was the widow of Tygett Lannister, one of Lord Tywin's younger brothers. Her husband had died of a pox years ago, and she had lost her only son in the bread riots. Nor did she seem to enjoy serving Queen Cersei, who was demanding and gracious by turns. So Sansa let the cruel words pass over her, and focused on her stitches.

I think I gave her a couple of other ladies later on, Taena Merryweather after Meria left and a few others who came/went pretty quickly. 

[satoshi-mochida]

Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate launches February 13, 2025 - Gematsu

2D side-scrolling action game Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate will launch for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC via Steam and Epic Games Store on February 13, 2025 for $24.99, publisher and developer Rocket Panda Games announced.

The game will be available both physically and digitally worldwide, with physical editions available for PlayStation 5, Xbox, and Switch. Physical editions will be distributed by PM Studios and Crescent Marketing in North America, EBten and Kadokawa Game Linkage in Japan, Arc System Works Asia in Asia, and by an unannounced partner in Europe.

The standard physical edition will cost $39.99, and include a copy of the game, instruction manual, lenticular manual, random collectible card, and exclusive downloadable content. The Ultimate edition will cost $109.99, and include all the content from the standard edition, as well as a Mikoto figurine, soundtrack CD, art book, and limited edition box. Pre-orders are available now via Rocket Panda Games.

“Fragmented releases across platforms, countries, and languages have frustrated me as a gamer and as someone in the game industry,” said Rocket Panda Games executive panda and co-founder M. Panda in a press release. “Who doesn’t want to share an experience with their peers from around the world at the same moment in time? We did everything in our power to deliver a seamless online experience while partnering with physical publishers in every region we could. We may be small, but we will never stop trying to punch above our weight.”

Here is an overview of the game, via Rocket Panda Games:

About

Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Ultimate is a side-scrolling beat ’em up with the heart of a fighting game, supporting cross-platform pixel art anime action with up to eight players in online multiplayer and all the characters from Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Overdrive!

Story

Japan’s capital, Tokyo. The mysterious man, Phantom, has been operating in the shadows in order to regain his immense powers, which have been sealed. He granted a weapon called FA (Fu-mension Artifact) to young talented individuals, and enticed them into battle by promising them to grant their wish if they win in battle. This is because the clash between the FAs will generate a distortion in space and time, creating an opening that leads to an alternate world. This opening will eventually unseal his powers. Waka, the young daughter from the Kumon family belonging to a clan of exorcists rebelling against Phantom, and Mikoto, who offered cooperation, tried to stop this conspiracy, but lost him just before defeating him. In addition, Waka’s younger sister Nagi has been kidnapped by Phantom. Itsuki, who yearns to become the hero of Justice, and Yuzuha, a ninja who once managed to escape Phantom’s seduction, also joins the fight, and the 4 girls set out on a search mission to track down Phantom and save Nagi.

Key Features

Revamped Gameplay – Gameplay has been rebuilt from scratch in Unreal Engine 5, giving smoother gameplay and flashier special attacks.

Online Cooperative Play and Versus Modes – Team up with friends in local cooperative or challenge up to eight fighters from around the world with cross-platform online play.

Play as the Enemy – Take on the role of powerful adversaries from the Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds universe, each with their own distinct combat style and abilities in Arcade Mode.

Remastered Soundtrack – Players can choose an all-new soundtrack composed by all-girl J-rock band The Phantom Breakers or the classic versions from Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds or Phantom Breaker: Battle Grounds Overdrive.

Watch a new trailer below. View a new set of screenshots at the gallery.

Release Date Trailer

[blu193]

Mrs. Monitor Lives (SMG4 AU): A Concept

[aka: Hal Monitor wins squid game and sells the lifetime supplies of PS5s for money to pay for his wife's surgery]

(WARNING: I LOVE THINKING FAR TOO HARD ON SILLY SHOWS AND GAMES I ENJOY, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK)

What if Hal Monitor won in "SMG4: If Mario Was In.... SQUID GAME"? What if Hal got the prize and sold the PS5s for the money he needed? Well I'm gonna rewind and try to show you my take on if he did win, and how he did it.

PART 1: HOW.

The first question would be HOW does he win SQUID GAME? Well, we can deduce where he originally lost by checking the roster between games, as even if they are removed offscreen, they show who survived at the start of the next game.

To which we find he was eliminated during the marbles minigame, which leaves us with a couple of questions:

Who did he versus out of the winning group? We can immediately eliminate Mario and Wario, as we see them win against their opponents: Old Man and Waluigi respectfully. We can Also eliminate Squidward, Dipsy (Teletubbie), Colonel Sanders (KFC mascot), Donkey (SHREK ICON), Buff Carl, and Joker (Persona 5) as they weren't apart of the group shown for the marbles minigame and are included in the glass bridge minigame as a gag. Which leaves Meggy, Steve, or Luigi as our final suspects. Personally I'm more likely to believe it was Steve, as his capablities of throwing random stuff as a gag would fry Hal's system and thus, lose the match. So instead, Hal would possibly load all his marbles into a makeshift gun and shoot Steve, eliminating him on the spot.

How would he succeed the glass bridge minigame? As the glass bridge is one of the two minigames he must win at before being crowned the winner, he needs to pass this to contiune onto the next and final round. If he were replace Steve, and (for a super spy gag) had a way to differentiate the wrong or right way for glass pathing, we could still use the "Wario trips up Luigi and immediately faces the consequences of his actions" bit by Hal just chokeholding Wario and yeeting him into the pit saying that "Wasn't very legal" as he threw him.

Onto the Squid Game minigame and we run into the final obstacle: Would it still work to have Meggy and Mario both get past the glass bridge minigame to battle with Hal Monitor in the final frontier? Considering Meggy's skill with a splattershot, and both Mario and Meggy's training for the Splatfest, I doubt it. Mario did win with a gag so odds are he might've not stood a chance against someone like Hal, who is taking this FAR more seriously than himself if Meggy wasn't there. Say she is still there though, which can still play out well in a "Rock, Paper, Scissors" format: Mario defeats Meggy, and Hal quickly defeats Mario while he's distracted by beating Meggy.

PART 2: SO WHAT IF HE WON?

Finally the ending of the episode after getting the money:

Hal and Jr are waiting in the hospital hallway, sitting on a bench outside the room. Hal's leg is going a mile a minute as Jr just sits, resting his head (toaster face?) on his father's lap. Hal got the money just in time, but the wait during the surgery was unbearable. The father-son duo glanced at each other, practically seeing the same amount of fear, paranoia, and dread on the what ifs for their dear microwave. The hospital door creaks open by a smiling E. Gadd. "The procedure was a success. Aside from needing to ease back into walking again, she should be clear. You both can see her if you'd like." But E. Gadd was quickly interrupted as the duo shot towards the door only to halt in the room and slowly step towards the medical chair where their dear Mrs. Monitor sits, assessing her newly added arms, merely astonished by the movements and gestures she could now make with just her hands alone. But what E. Gadd was far more than just arms, no he gave her a whole cybernetic body; legs, body, neck, and even making the microwave door of her face into a whole face plate! As she looked up from her hands, she saw her loving husband and their sweet boy gaze at her with a relived and loving gaze. Their fears were finally over. Hal and Jr go in to give her a big hug, that she just as quickly accepts with her new arms, tears welling up in her new eyes. Their family was finally back together again, and all is finally well for them in the world.

END OF EPISODE.

As always would love your thoughts on this and hope you enjoyed!

[pandalandalopalis]

Devil May Cry Wolf - Matt Murdock x Mutant Reader [Chapter Thirteen]

Masterlist

Previous Chapter

Story Synopsis: The first time you jumped, it was 2014 and you were nine years old. You were in the back of your parents’ car — then you were in New York, standing on the street … and it was 1992.

The second time you jumped, it was 1998 and you were fifteen years old. You were heading back home to Saint Agnes after school had ended — and then you were knee-deep in snow, in Russia, in 1970. Outside a Red Room facility.

The third time you jumped, you were twenty-five and had spent ten years training as a Red Room agent. Ten years training your body to use your mutation. Jumping in space was easy — jumping in time was not. But you did it. After ten years, you did it. Now you have to live with the trauma.

Five years later, killing is still the only thing you know how to do, and the only thing you do best. In 2016, a vigilante named Daredevil stops you from killing a man who attacked you. He tells you that you can do better. You think maybe he’s right. But in 2017, Matt Murdock is in the darkest place in his life. When you show up to save him, he’s not exactly grateful. And when he finds out that you’re the best friend he grew up with in Saint Agnes that disappeared almost 20 years ago — things get even more complicated.

You’ll have to drag Matt out of the dark while being jaw-deep in it yourself. And you’ll have to try your best to do better — when Matt is trying his best to do worse.

Chapter Synopsis: Bucky asks you to spare with him; Matt asks you to spar with him. // You get kidnapped.

A/N: This is basically two chapters in one because for some reason I didn’t want to split it and also hey, it’s been a while since I updated so you guys deserve it.

Part 2 - Chapter Thirteen: Blind Trust // Heavy Lies the Head that Knows the Avengers

Blind Trust

When they weren’t going on missions, the Avengers were usually sparing.

It kept their bodies ready; their minds sharp. At the very least, it did for Bucky, Steve, Nat, and Barton. Stark and Banner had no need to keep their bodies in peak condition, so the two of them stuck to the lab. And Thor didn’t participate on principle. Wouldn’t be a fair fight.

Although that hadn’t stopped Bucky from challenging him in the past. He always lost, though.

But in a weird way, sometimes losing . . . felt good. Sometimes he felt like he won too easily. Like maybe if he had been weaker, maybe he wouldn’t have. . . .

Won too often. Against people who didn’t deserve it.

But. He was an Avenger now. And Steve and the others needed him to fight. This time, he got to protect people instead of hurt them.

Y/N was with them as well, although she was just observing (like Thor did sometimes when he wanted to tell them all the things they were doing wrong). At the moment, she was watching Steve spar with Nat.

A curious pair, the two of them. Steve had his supersoldier strength, but Nat had Red Room training. She knew how to take down opponents twice her size with twice her strength. Bucky had seen matches like this go either way. It was a strategy game, with the two of them. Whether Steve could overpower Nat before she could find a way to turn his strength against him.

Y/N was watching intensely. Bucky wondered briefly if she was worried about Steve. Nat’s whole Black Widow thing could be intimidating and he knew that Y/N was closest to Steve out of all of them. 

A Red Room agent versus a supersoldier. That’s what you were thinking. You had watched Steve and Natasha spar before, on a few different occasions. 

You didn’t like how random it seemed. How often they both won and lost against each other. How evenly matched they were.

You were hoping Natasha knew more. You were hoping your Red Room training would be more effective.

But who the fuck were you kidding.

The Winter Soldier had beaten you many times before.

It shouldn’t matter. You weren’t planning on killing him anymore.

But a part of you could not stop the thought,

Just in case. Just in case. Just in case.

Steve won this one. Bucky looked over to Y/N — who was still staring at the two of them with unblinking, analysing eyes. It wasn’t until Steve looked over to her that she blinked and smiled at him.

Bucky wondered if she was interested in the fighting itself. Maybe she was trying to learn by watching them. 

It did not escape Bucky’s notice that Steve seemed to really like this girl. Their medic had grown on him in a way that no one really had since Peggy. And Bucky knew that, if this were to continue and they were to start dating, he would need to start making friends with her.

It’s not that they were enemies or anything like that, he just noticed that he spent the least amount of time with her outside of her medic duties. She always seemed to have some kind of excuse on hand when he expressed interest in hanging out with her. Bucky supposed he couldn’t really blame her — he did recognize that out of all of them, he was the most intimidating.

Him and Nat were the ex-villains of the group, and that was the truth. It made sense that she was the most skittish around them. 

“Hey, Y/N, do you want me to teach you a bit of self-defense?” Bucky offered. Maybe if he taught her to defend herself, she’d feel a little less scared of him.

Her smile dropped almost imperceptibly for just a second before it returned. She paused in that way she did. Y/N was always the kind of person who thought through what she was going to say. And Bucky always kind of liked that about her. That she thought before she acted. He hoped she would rub some of that off on Steve.

“I don’t know,” she said with a bit of a laugh. “I’m not really the most coordinated. I don’t think I would be very good at it.”

“Bucky’s the best fighter we have,” Steve said.

“Not true,” Thor said, always the air of sculpted confidence.

“Out of our non-immortal members,” Steve corrected himself, “Bucky’s our best. You should let him teach you.”

She seemed unconvinced. She opened her mouth again, but Bucky beat her to it.

“Everyone should learn self-defence,” he said, and she looked at him. “It’s a good skill to have. You never know when you might need it.”

You were panicking.

It had been a little while since your last dose of Oxy or alcohol and your eidetic mind was bringing old memories to the forefront—

Memories of the last time the Winter Soldier had trained you—

Memories of what happened if you slipped up, stepped wrong, made a mistake—

Memories of metal making bruises into your flesh and rings around your neck and so much blood in your mouth it made you sick—

Memories of him pinning you down to the cold, hard floor, his weight on top of you so heavy you couldn’t breath— Couldn’t escape— Couldn’t— Couldn’t—

She was staring at him. It was only for a few seconds, but in those few seconds Bucky realized his mistake.

Of course offering to teach her to fight wasn’t going to make her like him. He was asking her to step in the ring with him. The ex- Winter Soldier. She already seemed a bit intimidated by him, but of course this was going to make it worse .

What the fuck were you thinking?

After those few seconds, her expression lifted into one of realization, like she had just remembered something.

“Shoot, you know what? I completely forgot, I have to go meet my friend, Matt.” She was backing up, her eyes flicking between Bucky and Steve, and her sentences were coming out quickly. 

You couldn’t stop the words from spilling out of your mouth. You were just trying to get out

out 

out

out

OUT

“We grew up in the orphanage together, y’know, and he’s a bit suicidal —and blind— so if he falls down the stairs, could be an accident, could be on purpose, but I can’t be late to meet him, just in case. So. I’ll see you guys later.” And Y/N gave a final nod and turned when she reached the door.

The room was silent.

Steve’s eyes were still on the door, trying to process the information he’d just heard.

“Did you guys know that Y/N grew up in an orphanage?” Steve asked the group after a moment. It was the piece of information that stuck closest with him. Months of knowing her and yet . . . he’d had no idea.

When Steve looked around the room, there was more silence.

“You know, Y/N’s a really private person,” Clint was the first to say.

Natasha was on the floor, dabbing her forehead with a towel. “People are allowed to keep their secrets.”

“Yeah, I know,” Clint said like it was obvious. “But I never really . . . realized that . . . I don’t really know anything about her.” He looked to Steve. “Do you?”

And Steve realized then what he hadn’t before.

That the answer was no.

Bucky sat on one of the benches and rested his elbows on his knees, hands clasped together. “I shouldn’t’ve asked to train her.”

Steve recognized that expression of his. “Buck.”

“Don’t ‘Buck’ me, Steve. C’mon. You know how people see me.”

“She’ll like you once she gets to know you,” Steve said.

His friend didn’t look convinced, but he didn’t say anything further.

“Who do you think this Matt guy is?” Clint asked the room, sitting down next to Natasha.

Natasha flicked her towel at him. “None of our business. And you,” she looked up at Steve, “don’t assume shit about her, okay? I’m sure there’s a reason Y/N is being quiet about her life.”

Steve knew Natasha was right, of course.

But it didn’t make the knowledge any easier.

That he didn’t really know her.

It was Matt’s day off today, so he made sure to do only a little bit of overtime before heading back to his apartment. 

He could already sense someone’s presence within his apartment as he walked in, along with the smell of reheated chow mein.

“Hey,” Y/N called.

“Are you eating my leftover Chinese food?”

She grinned. “I was going to say, ‘What does it look like I’m doing?’ but, y’know. What does it smell like I’m doing?”

Matt set down his briefcase and began pulling off his tie. “I was going to eat that, you know.”

“You snooze, you lose, Murdock.”

“This is my apartm—” He sighed and gave up. “What are you doing here? I thought you were hanging out with the Avengers today.”

She stirred the noodles around with her chopsticks. “Eh, I was. But they wanted to teach me to spar, so.”

Matt smiles, putting his hands on his hips. “What’s wrong? Hate losing so much you can’t pretend to be bad at fighting for just a little while?”

Y/N continued to push the food around in the carton. “It was the Winter Soldier who offered.”

His smile dropped.

Now he recognized her body language for what it was — fidgeting nervousness that she was trying to downplay but she had given up eating entirely now, as if she’d lost her appetite. 

“Didn’t feel like letting him put me on my ass,” she added.

She never talked about the Winter Soldier. She had given him a quick explanation of why she had planned on killing him, but nothing more than that since.

He was a Hydra assassin. He helped train girls in the Red Room. She hated him. That was it.

It must have been bad. If she was willing to go to the lengths she did to kill him. To infiltrate the Avengers and gain their trust. 

Not for the first time, the question of why is she still there crossed Matt’s mind. Why was she still with the Avengers if she hated being around him that much? Why was she still with the Avengers if she was no longer planning on killing him?

He didn’t have an answer. 

This time, Y/N began fidgeting out of discomfort rather than nervousness. “Oh, and I, uh, accidentally mentioned you in conversation today.”

Matt never really thought about whether she ever mentioned him to the Avengers. It’s not like she was portraying her real life to them. But the ‘accidentally’ stuck out to him. “. . .What did you say about me?”

“Oh, you know,” she began nonchalantly. “That we grew up in the orphanage together. That you’re blind. . . .And suicidal.”

Matt’s eyebrows raised and his mouth dropped open. “How did that come up in conversation?”

“Look, I know I fucked up, okay?” she said, and it was one of those rare times he got to hear her serious voice. “I was looking for any excuse to leave and go see you and that just sort of . . . came out. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

He’d seen Y/N work — he knew how careful she was with her words when it came to putting on a facade, playing pretend, fooling people into believing she was something else. More than once, she’d mentioned that this was something she learned in the Red Room. Matt didn’t know much about that place, but he figured it was not a place that let you make mistakes.

So as much as it bothered him, he knew that she didn’t mean to say it. And Y/N rarely apologised. He could tell she felt bad about it.

She was scared. 

And there was a very short list of things that scared her.

He took a breath and a pause. Then, “What are you doing right now?”

She paused as well, as if she wasn’t expecting the topic change. “Eating your food.”

Matt shook his head, barely suppressing his amusement.

“Nothing,” Y/N answered properly this time.

“Wanna spar with me?”

She grinned and put down the chow mein.

You let Matt change into more casual wear before teleporting the two of you to Fogwell's Gym. You were quick to crawl into the ring, watching Matt get in after you.

You hopped around on the balls of your feet. “Oh, you’re going down, Murdock.”

“I thought we could try something different today,” Matt said. He pulled a long strip of black fabric out of his pocket. It took you a second to realize it was a blindfold. “Do you know how to fight blind?”

“I think I was sick the day they taught that in the Red Room,” you quipped.

“It’s an important skill to learn,” Matt continued. “You never know when you might be in a situation where you could lose it. You can’t rely on your sight all the time.”

Some part of you knew he was probably right, but another part of you was concerned with the learning curve. Trying to fight without your sight would be like trying to learn to fight all over again. The vulnerability in that . . . made you uncomfortable.

Matt approached you, holding out the blindfold. “Do you trust me?”

Of course you did; you’d been over this already. But Matt wasn’t asking you just to ask — he was asking for your permission. He wanted your confirmation first before going ahead. And you knew that if you said ‘No’, he wouldn’t push it. 

But the fact was that you did trust him. And you trusted him with this.

You sighed. “Yes.”

Matt smiled. Instead of handing you the blindfold, he walked behind you and wrapped the blindfold around your eyes, tying it behind your head.

As soon as your sight was black, that vulnerability set in. You really couldn’t see anything, not even blurs and shapes through the fabric. 

You felt Matt’s hands slide over your arms to rest on your elbows. You gripped around his forearms.

“I’m going to lead you around the ring, first,” he said. “Give you a chance to orient yourself a bit without your sight.”

He was completely steady as he began leading you forward, slowly, so you could be careful of your steps. 

He took your hand, and put it on top of something. 

“This is the edge of the ring.” He continued to pull you forward with his hand still around your other arm. 

Matt led you around the whole ring, talking continuously as he did, always informing you of where you were and what he was going to do next. You tried your best to give yourself an idea of the ring — you counted steps to each corner, to the middle, and through some quick math you were able to figure roughly how big it was. 

It was a strange feeling. To have to completely rely on Matt’s touch and voice to lead you around the space. 

Not for the first time, you thought about the way that Matt experienced the world. You focused on his voice. The calmness of it. The almost whisper texture to his tone. The surety in it. You focused on the feel of his hands around your arms; the feel of your hands on his. His hands were calloused; his grip gentle but firm around your elbows to guide you. His arms under your hands were steady — if you were to trip, you had no doubt he would keep you from falling on your face.

Finally, Matt let go of you and took a step away. Any confidence that was built shattered instantly, and that feeling of vulnerability gripped you again. 

“We’re in the middle of the ring,” Matt informed you. “Let me know when you’re ready to start.”

Well. Fake it until you make it, I guess.

You attempted to steal your resolve. “Ready.”

Then he hit you.

“Fuck!” you shouted in surprise, completely unprepared. Your nose stung from the impact. You heard Matt chuckle. “Oh, you think hitting defenseless women is fun, do you?”

“You’re not defenseless,” came his voice. “Listen. Trust your body. Let it do the work.”

He got a few more hits in, all that you were unable to block.

“You have muscle memory,” he continued. “Use it.”

You swore at him under your breath.

“I can hear that.”

This went on for a while. Your strategy at the moment was getting close enough to grapple him — if his body was within reach, you could hit him back. 

But even when you managed to grab him, you weren’t getting anywhere with it. You were hitting him, for lack of a better term, blindly, and he was doing a good job at blocking it. The hits you did get in weren’t in places that you wanted.

“Stop fighting with your eyes and fight with your body.”

“Whatever the fuck that means.”

Matt was on you again, and this time, he knocked you to the floor of the ring. The wind got knocked out of you for a moment, and Matt pinned your wrists on either side of your body, his body a heavy weight on top of you.

(And yet, throughout all this, despite there being pain and annoyance and that uncomfortable vulnerable feeling — you never panicked. You knew Matt wouldn’t give you anything more than you could handle. You knew he wouldn’t do anything that crossed a line.

You trusted him with your body.

You trusted him blindly.)

“C’mon,” came Matt’s voice, his face was very close to yours, “I’m right where you want me.”

You couldn’t stop the reply from leaving your mouth, “Oh, you are, are you?”

You felt Matt’s hands tighten around your wrists, just a little bit painfully, and he moved them to pin them above your head.

He heard her breath hitch slightly.

“You don’t need your sight for this one,” Matt instructed her. Then he put his mouth next to her ear. Lowered his voice. “Take advantage of it before I flip you over.”

Shivers broke out over your skin, your body reacting to the combination of being without your sight, having Matt breathe a whisper into your ear — and the realization that you were completely at Matt’s mercy.

Well. Almost completely.

You stopped thinking about your sight and started thinking about your body — you let it move in the familiar way, getting your legs out from under him and wrapping them around his neck. 

You squeezed only lightly. If this had been a real fight, your enemy would be unconscious in ten seconds.

He released your wrists. You felt Matt pat your hip. “That’s it. Good.”

This continued for a while longer. And while you were getting better, you were nowhere near close to beating him. You barely got any successful hits in.

Finally, you got knocked on your ass again. And when your back was on the floor, you heard Matt say,

“Alright, we can stop now.”

Breathing heavy, you ripped the blindfold off your face and let your eyes adjust for a moment.

Matt walked over to where you were lying. “Not bad for your first time.”

“Oh, go fuck yourself.”

He grinned and held out his hand. You took it and let him pull you up.

“Wasn’t easy for me my first time, either,” Matt said.

“Yeah, but it’s different for you,” you replied, still breathing hard. “You have your extra senses. You’re not really fighting blind.”

“I still had to learn how to use it,” Matt explained. “You may not have senses like me, but like I said before, you have muscle memory. Let your body do the work instead of your eyes. You’ll get it. Same time next weekend?”

Fuck, you really did not want your ass kicked like this again. But you fucking hated losing.

With a sigh, you nodded.

Heavy Lies the Head that Knows the Avengers

Surprisingly, this was not the first time you’d been pulled off the street and into the back of a van.

You let the men take you — you were giddy to get the chance to beat the shit out of some low-lifes who picked the wrong fucking person to try and kidnap—

But the giddiness dissipated the moment one of the men asked the question.

“You’re Y/N L/N. The Avengers’ medic.”

Well, it was more of a statement than a question.

Fuck.

Well, now you really were hand-tied, and it had nothing to do with the zip-ties being slipped around your hands. If these guys were trying to get information out of you or ransom you or something to the Avengers — fighting your way out was out of the question. You had a cover to maintain.

Eh, well. Maybe this would be fun.

The pain was not fun. But it was funny to watch these men lose their patience as they got nothing out of you.

They had you in some kind of abandoned parking lot, in a chair, your feet bound to the legs and your hands tied behind your back.

It had been an hour of their sorry attempt at torture. Their tactics were obviously designed for someone with less . . . experience than you. You didn’t like thanking your Red Room training, but it did give you a high pain tolerance when it came to torture. And it didn’t hurt that you had taken a fresh dose of Oxy before leaving your apartment for a walk.

The leader of the kidnappers gave you another hard punch to the face. You’d been tasting blood in your mouth for a while now.

“Tell me what I want to know, or I’ll pull out all your teeth,” the man seethed.

You gave him a smile — a mouthful of blood staining your teeth. “Flirt~”

He backhanded you this time, and you could feel his frustration through the slap. He leaned in real close and opened his mouth to speak.

You spat blood in his face.

He roared and kicked your chair — then you were falling backwards—

Sharp pain in the back of your head had you reeling for a moment. Yep, that’d be a concussion. You could only hope the back of your head wasn’t bleeding.

You rolled on your side, still attached to the chair. The man stepped in front of you, and you only had a second to brace yourself before he began kicking you.

The kicks were sharp and well-placed — it wasn’t long before breathing suddenly became painful.

It stopped. You opened your eyes to see one of the other kidnappers pulling the leader off of you.

“Hey! One piece, remember? We’re also trying to ransom her back to them. They’ll want proof of life soon and she needs to be conscious when we film it.”

The leader shrugged off the other man, like he was pissed that he was right.

You grinned.

“Do you think they got the message?” the third man asked, sounding a bit more timid than the other two. “I mean, it’s been an hour and they haven’t asked for proof of life yet. Maybe we need to send it again?”

One of the lights went out in the parking lot.

Then another.

Then another.

And you couldn’t help but laugh, even though it pained you to do so. 

“What is that, what’s happening?” the third man asked.

The leader kneeled next to you and roughly pinched your cheeks with his hand. “Why the fuck are you laughing?”

Another light went out, and the leader was startled enough to let go of you and reach for his gun.

Your laughing continued. “You are so fucked.”

Then the parking lot was black.

You couldn’t see anything but you could hear the sounds of a scuffle and fighting — a couple gunshots went off but you weren’t too worried about that.

And then the lights were coming back on, and all three men were unconscious on the ground, with varying levels of injury. 

The pain was swimming through your body, particularly in your head and your chest, but you weren’t so out of it not to recognize Daredevil walking over to you.

“You’re late,” you said.

Matt lifted you to put the chair back on four legs, then began untying you from it.

“Well, actually,” you continued, “I guess so long as I’m still alive then you’re on time.”

As soon as you were free from your binds, Matt knelt in front of you. “Are you okay?” His voice didn’t match your joking tone.

“You know. Looks worse than it is,” you said, although you didn’t know if that was actually true.

Matt pulled his glove off with his teeth and you felt his hand gently touch your face. He was inspecting it, cataloguing injuries. His hand reached the back of your head, and you saw it come back unbloodied. Woo hoo.

He was running his thumb over your split lip when suddenly he stilled. His head tilted in that way it did when he was listening for something.

“Take a deep breath for me,” Matt said.

Breathing was already painful. “No,” you replied.

“Y/N.”

You complied — and it fucking hurt. You didn’t even know if you got to a deep breath. A medium breath, maybe. You knew what it was before he spoke.

“You have a broken rib.”

“Fun.” You could hear the pain in your voice despite your light tone.

“Can you stand?” Matt asked.

“We’ll see~”

Matt helped you up — and immediately it was like all the blood was rushing to your head (or was it from your head?) and you swayed on your feet. But Matt was there, quick to put an arm around you. You held onto him, and the two of you began walking.

“Can you teleport like this?”

“I could try but I’m not sure where I’d end up,” you told him truthfully. The pounding in your head was not great for concentration.

“That’s alright; we do this the old fashion way.”

You started trying to increase the pace, hurrying along. Not because you were scared, fuck no, you just wanted to get back to Matt’s apartment so you could fucking sleep.

“Slowly, slowly.” You felt Matt restrain you lightly, getting you to slow down. “Your rib is broken, you don’t want to puncture a lung.”

“How do I know it’s not already punctured?” you said in a half-joking tone. Although it did hurt to breathe enough that part of you was actually asking.

“I’d know,” Matt replied. “Don’t worry; I’m monitoring your breathing.”

You walked a few more paces, but then Matt stopped you.

“What?” you asked.

“I hear footsteps.”

Sure enough, up ahead, a man turned the corner to find them.

And suddenly the Winter Soldier was pointing a gun at you.

Natasha had tracked Y/N’s kidnappers to an abandoned parking lot in Hell’s Kitchen. Natasha said it wasn’t that hard — she just tracked the laptop that sent them the ransom note. They weren’t sure if they’d be stupid enough to keep Y/N in the same place as the laptop, but they had to try somewhere.

Steve had them split up to check all the levels. Bucky jogged quietly through his level, keeping his steps light.

He turned a corner. And suddenly he saw Y/N there — with someone else.

His first instinct was to point his gun up at the person next to her — of course he wasn’t going to shoot it until he could determine the danger, but that was just how he was trained to respond in situations where one needed to act fast. Gun up, finger off the trigger. Assess the situation.

All rational thought left you as soon as that gun pointed at Matt.

You threw yourself between them — between Matt and the Winter Soldier and his gun — holding Matt at your back as your first instinct was to scream, 

“NO ! NO!”

You were breathing hard, too hard, as the fear was filling you, and it fucking hurt but you were panicking—  Your hand held up as if it was the only thing that would stop the Winter Soldier from shooting the only person you really cared about— the only person you had— Visions of Matt bleeding out were swarming your head and you were seeing spots but you kept a hand on Matt behind you, kept your body in front of him, between him and him—

Matt had never observed Y/N react like this. Her fear was so immediate and intense — though she needed help to stand before, her bruised body didn’t hesitate to stand in front of him, her chest with the broken rib pulling out screaming words— She was shaking , her nails scraping the hard plane of the front of his suit, her breathing coming out in short gasps that he knew pained her.

She’d just spent he didn’t know how long being tortured, appearing completely unphased by it, still finding a way to joke with him— And yet a pointed gun was the breaking point?

The man with the gun lowered it, putting up his hands. “Y/N, it’s me,” he said. “It’s Bucky.”

Bucky.

Oh.

Even when the Winter Soldier lowered his gun, Y/N’s waves of fear didn’t stop. She still kept herself in front of Matt, still kept her hand up; her body still shook and she was still breathing too fast. 

She didn’t just hate the Winter Soldier. She was afraid of him. And afraid enough to forget that the Avengers (which included him) were coming to rescue her. Afraid enough to forget that they considered her their friend. 

Afraid enough that her first instinct was to put herself between Matt and the barrel of the Winter Soldier’s gun.

Matt put his right hand on Y/N’s waist and used his left hand to reach for her outstretched arm. Pressed into her back, he could feel her shaking reverberating into his own body. He put his mouth next to her ear and spoke quietly. “Y/N. It’s okay. He’s not going to hurt me.”

He managed to urge her outstretched arm to fall back to her side.

“You alright?” the Winter Soldier asked, his tone tentative, like he was all too aware of Y/N’s reaction to him.

“She has a broken rib,” Matt responded for her. 

“And who are you?”

“I’m Daredevil.”

“Right. And what is it that you’re doing here?” Matt supposed he couldn’t blame the Winter Soldier for being suspicious of him. The timing wasn’t great.

On the other hand, Matt could blame any one of the Avengers for the situation that Y/N was forced into.

“Your job, apparently.”

You could hear the rumble of Matt’s voice and see the Winter Soldier’s mouth moving but you couldn’t pay attention to what either of them were saying. Your focus was on every one of the Winter Soldier’s movements, as if he could twitch and that gun would be pointed up again.

You wouldn’t let him hurt Matt. You would not let him hurt Matt.

But soon the only thing holding you up were Matt’s hands on your waist, your focusing slipping, black crawling at the edges of your vision—

And the last thing you remembered was 

When Steve dug out Y/N’s emergency contact the next day, he didn’t know whether to feel surprised or unsurprised to see the name Matt Murdock with Relation: Friend underneath it. It wasn’t a parent or relative he’d have to face with this — it was her childhood best friend, the person she grew up in an orphanage with.

He didn’t know which one was worse. But Steve knew he deserved it either way. The Avengers’ inability to keep Y/N’s personal information safe was what got her into this mess. It was their fault, and Steve knew they needed to take responsibility.

So he called this Matt Murdock. Told him Y/N was recovering in their infirmary. Steve kept the details to himself for now, knowing it would be better to explain in person. Y/N’s friend told Steve he would be over right away.

Steve was with Y/N when the man he assumed to be Matt Murdock finally showed up.

He wore red glasses and walked with a white cane in his hands. That’s right, Y/N had mentioned he was blind.

“She hasn’t woken up yet,” Steve said, so the man would know that he was in the room.

Matt Murdock found the bed and the chair beside it, and sat on Y/N’s other side from Steve. He held her hand and touched her face, probably feeling for the damage there.

“What happened.” 

Steve told him as gently as he could. How Y/N’s information was stolen. How kidnappers came after her. How they … tortured her. He told him the state of her injuries, too. Concussion. Broken rib.

Matt’s mouth was set in a hard line as he listened. “Was her information public?” Steve was not fooled by the even tone of his voice — he was angry. 

“No. They managed to get past the encryption on our database.”

“Then it wasn’t a very good one.”

“No, I suppose it wasn’t.”

“She’s your medic.” Matt’s tone was becoming less even. “She has access to you, which means that anyone who wants to get to you has to get to her, first. Did you not consider that that might be a possibility? That people might try to use her to get to you?”

In all honesty, it hadn’t. And it was that naivete that was eating Steve up inside.

“You should have protected her better,” Matt continued. “You should have made sure she was protected better.”

Steve took it in. Let Y/N’s friend yell at him. And he knew he deserved it. 

Y/N got hurt and it was his fault. 

He didn’t even know if Y/N would forgive him. He honestly wouldn’t expect her to.

Steve watched Matt take Y/N’s hand in both of his and press his forehead against her fingers. He took that as his cue to leave. 

He hovered at the door, taking one last look at Y/N, bruised and battered, before leaving the room. 

The first thing you noticed was pain. The second thing you noticed was some weird beeping sound. And the third thing you noticed, when you opened your eyes, was that this was not Matt’s apartment.

You found yourself in a room that was just too white and bright instead of the comforting brick walls and natural light of Matt’s apartment and you began to panic. You started, immediately breathing in too quickly and pulling on your bruises— You hissed, frantically checking your surroundings while being unable to really take anything in—

There were hands on you then, and it took you a moment to realize it was Matt, Matt’s hands on you, gentle but firmly restraining your panic. “Easy, easy.”

“Is this a fucking hospital?” you hissed in a whisper you knew only he would hear.

“No, you’re in Avengers Tower,” he said in a low tone back to you.

You were finally able to take in your surroundings completely, and realized that you did in fact recognize it as the infirmary. “You called them?!” Again, in a low whisper.

“Of course not,” he said back. “The Avengers showed up looking for you and Daredevil had to pass you off to them. Do you remember?”

Oh. That’s right.

The Winter Soldier with his gun.

Your head was swimming but it was starting to come back to you now. But whatever, now you were just annoyed. You could have been sleeping in Matt’s apartment right now, unbothered, but the Avengers just had to be there to make sure they got you proper medical care. You couldn’t completely relax here. You knew that if Steve or any of the other Avengers came by, you’d have to play up the partly traumatized act and you really didn’t feel like it when you were injured like this.

You sighed. You knew it wasn’t Matt’s fault. He wouldn’t have had any other choice but to hand you over to them.

“So, how did Daredevil find me?” you asked.

“He got lucky,” Matt answered. His expression was serious, his mouth in a tight line.

He only found her because he happened to head that way during his patrol. If he had decided to go another way that night, if he had decided to go out for drinks with Foggy and Karen, if he had come across some crime before reaching her and went home to tend to his injuries, if if if—

He was angry with Captain America and the Avengers for not protecting her, but he should have been there, too. He should have known she was kidnapped right after it happened. He should have saved her earlier.

And all he could think about was the smell of blood in that abandoned parking lot and the sound of her breathing with a broken rib, ragged and uneven and full of pain. 

“Hey, c’mon,” you said, and you touched his arm that was still holding your hand. You could tell he was upset. And you felt a twist in your chest — you didn’t like seeing him like this. “If it had gone any further, I wouldn’t have let them kill me, you know that, right? I do value my survival more than committing to the bit, you know.” But his expression was unchanging so you continued, you tone light, “I’ve been through worse. I once went ten rounds with Genghis Khan, I can do anything.”

Matt finally smiled, if only just a little bit. “You know that I know when you’re lying, why do you even try?”

“Because one day I really do think I’m going to develop a way to get past your super senses,” you joked. “And because it makes you smile.” Your own words got a slight cringe out of you. “God, that sounded really cheesy, didn’t it?”

“Just a little,” Matt said.

“Seriously,” you said, and you dropped the joking tone for a moment. Squeezed his arm and stroked your thumb back and forth. “This isn’t a big deal. I’m okay. Okay?”

There was a knock at the door, then. You could see Steve through the glass and he opened it and walked it.

“Hey. How are you feeling?”

Fuck. Okay here we go, somebody better get me a fucking Oscar after this. Despite the exhaustion and pain in your body, you slipped into your façade. You deliberately gave a shaking inhale and paired it with a wince. “Okay, considering.”

What was that?

Matt noticed the switch in Y/N. How her demeanour changed. And something about it made him uncomfortable . She even made her voice sound different — soft and innocent and so unlike her, with a kind of forced sweetness that, to him who knew her so well, screamed fake fake fake . 

He could even hear her fluttering her eyelashes.

For the love of God.

“Do you mind if I speak to Y/N alone?” Steve was addressing him.

Matt didn’t move. He felt Y/N touch his arm again.

“It’s okay. Why don’t you go back to work? Try to get something done.”

She was using the voice on him. She was using the voice on him and he hated it. It made his skin crawl, how saccharine and simulated it was. 

Matt conceded to your words and stood — then leaned in and pressed his lips to your temple.

You tried not to let the confusion show on your face over this gesture that Matt had never done before. But the confusion didn’t last as you realized it was just a cover for Matt to dip his mouth next to your ear and whisper,

“Don’t use your fake voice on me.”

You stifled a smile as amusement bloomed in your chest. Matt leaned back and he gave your hand a final squeeze. You found yourself holding on until he was physically too far to keep his hand around yours, that half-smile staying on your face.

“I’ll be back, okay?”

You nodded and watched him leave.

It was interesting watching Y/N with her friend. She seemed different with him, almost — but he supposed that when you knew someone for as long as she knew him, things would be different than with everyone else.

He had come back to check on her earlier, but had held back when he saw her waking up. She had seemed to be startled and Matt tried to calm her down — but as Steve had watched, he could see that she wasn’t scared but angry. Angrier than he had ever seen her. And Steve had felt that guilt, like a pit in his stomach, because he had contributed to that.

But then . . . she smiled. She had looked like she was joking with him, with her friend. Matt didn’t smile. He had cracked a bit, but not really.

Steve knew how he felt. When they got that ransom note, when he knew Y/N was in danger, he couldn’t think. He just felt sick. He still felt sick about it.

Then there was a moment where neither of them spoke, and Steve figured he should try to talk with Y/N before she decided to get some more rest.

And he noticed. When he walked in, when Y/N looked up at him. There was a dampening on her demeanour. He couldn’t tell if her smile had been her trying to be brave for her friend, or. . . .

When Matt got up to leave, he pressed a kiss to the side of Y/N’s head and then whispered something in her ear. Something in Y/N’s eyes lit up at it and Steve could tell she was fighting back a smile.

She watched him leave, and that smile stayed with her, with him. There was something soft and uninhibited there. Steve didn’t know how to explain it, but it was different from any expression that he’d seen her make. He supposed that when you knew someone for that long, from that young, it was a connection like family. That was who Matt was to her. Her family.

Steve hoped that he could even reach a fraction of that expression on her face. And he knew he would have to make it right with her to do it. With her family, too, if he could.

Matt left the room and Y/N finally looked at Steve. That expression dropped, and her smile with it. She looked down.

Ah. Here we go. 

You knew what was coming. No doubt Steve felt responsible for what happened, even though it wasn’t really his fault. Shit got hacked, that happened. And if it was going to happen to anyone, it might as well happen to someone who was literally trained to withstand hours of torture.

But. He didn’t know that. And you understood his point of view. But you didn’t want him to feel guilty about it. Because it really wasn’t a big deal for you. You kind of felt bad that you had to continue to play the part, because you did care about how he was feeling. And you knew he must be feeling a massive amount of guilt when he really had no reason to.

He sat in the chair on the other side of your bed. He took a breath. “Y/N. I am so sorry.”

You made yourself breathe his name in a sigh. “Steve—”

“Your information getting out, that shouldn’t’ve happened,” he continued. “But it did. We should have been more prepared. We have a responsibility to protect you and . . . we didn’t do that.”

You were trying to find a way to toe the line between playing the part of someone who would be traumatized from being kidnapped and beaten — and trying to convince him it wasn’t their fault for what happened to you. It wasn’t an easy task. You needed to be reasonably shaken up and upset (How do people act when torture actually fucks them up, again?) while also trying to relieve him of his guilt.

You let your eyes water. That’s right, you could cry on command. Really fun party trick, super entertaining every time. You let yourself take a breath so you could wince from the pain of it, then closed your eyes to let the tears fall, and kept them closed to give yourself a minute to ‘collect yourself’. As if you were seeing the flashbacks behind your eyes.

You finally opened them. Looked at Steve. “I knew what I was signing up for.” You let your words break, to sell it. Then you reached for his hand. “I knew what could happen. I took the job knowing that.” You paused, letting the trauma settle a bit before continuing. You shook your head. “It’s not your fault, Steve .” And go on the quiet gasping sob. “I don’t want you to think that this is your fault.” Despite your fake reactions, what you were saying was actually true, and you wanted him to believe that. “Please. This horrible thing happened to me—” You made yourself stop, like the thought of it was unbearable. “. . .but I couldn’t bear it if you blamed yourself for this.”

His own eyes filled with tears and he couldn’t look at you.

Wow. That’s kind of attractive.

What, that someone cares? The bar is so low.

Whatever. He’s a man that shows emotion. It’s nice.

You squeezed his hand. Steve sniffed and a couple of tears fell.

“Please promise me you aren’t going to blame yourself.” And you really wanted him to.

He finally looked at you. His jaw worked, and he swallowed. But then he nodded.

Steve didn’t stay for much longer after that. He told you to get some more rest, and left. At some point, your stand-in medical representative (you couldn’t exactly give yourself medical attention) (well, you could, but not like this) came in and told you she was giving you some morphine to help with the pain. 

Thank God, honestly. Your last dose of Oxy and alcohol was starting to wear off and you were afraid you wouldn’t be able to get another hit being trapped in here like this. And with the incident, you could bet that the Avengers would be keeping a closer eye on you for now on. Fuck. Sneaking out was going to be harder.

Your replacement left the room — but on her way out the door, someone passed by her to come in.

Him.

“I just wanted to say . . . I’m sorry, if I scared you,” Bucky said. 

He felt fucking terrible. He felt so awful that he had frightened her like that. That she thought he was going to shoot her, or, or that Daredevil guy that had actually been the one to save her. He had seen himself reflected in her wide eyes.

A monster.

“No, I’m sorry,” you said. Every part of your fucking being was rejecting the apology — but the morphine was allowing you enough fuzziness that you could try to get this out in a sincere way. You didn’t want Bucky catching on to the fact that you hated him.

(Hate was not a strong enough word. There was not a word for how you felt about him.)

(Earlier, you couldn’t remember how traumatized people felt. 

This was how they felt.)

“I just saw the gun,” you continued, “and thought you were one of the guys that kidnapped me. I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“No, of course not.” Bucky shuffled on his feet, looking at the ground. Of course: she’d just been tortured. The gun was probably a trigger for her. Didn’t make him feel any better, though.

But he was also curious. “That Daredevil guy,” he said, looking up at her. “You know him?”

You worked to think of something quickly. “Not personally, but he saved my life a few weeks before I started working with you guys.”

“He seemed really reluctant to let us take you from him.” Bucky remembered how he reached for Y/N after she fell unconscious. How Daredevil wouldn’t let him take her, no matter how much he tried to explain. How he was only convinced when the other Avengers showed up. How he still wouldn’t let any of the others carry her — How he insisted on coming with them to Avengers Tower to make sure she was okay before leaving. 

You shrugged. And internally, you were kind of pleased to hear this. Matt didn’t give you up to the Winter Soldier without a fight. “I guess he feels a sort of responsibility for me. Don’t you feel a responsibility for the people you save?”

If the morphine hadn’t been running through you, maybe you would have screamed at him,

DON’T YOU FEEL A RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE PEOPLE YOU’VE HURT?

“Right,” Bucky said. “I guess I get that. Alright, I’ll, um, let you get some rest.”

You nodded, and he left.

You let out a breath, letting your body sink into the bed. And really wished it was Matt’s couch.

Next Chapter

A/N: As always, feedback is appreciated! :)

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[teamrocketmemes]

[ TOTAL DRAMA WORLD TOUR SONGS ] — PART 2

A lyric starter call from the songs heard in the third season of Total Drama. Feel free to change pronouns when necessary to fit your needs.

Changing Guard Mix

“It's creepy how they stand there, and don't even blink!”

“I don't wanna see his bum, all naked and pink!”

“Can we bribe you to strip yourself down?”

“And I’m allergic to uniforms.”

“Cause if we don't, we're hosed!”

Greek Mix

“I know what you're thinking, I'm thinking it too!”

“I don't know what happened, but I have no regrets.”

“But that locked door couldn't secure our privacy.”

“I can't make out the lyrics, speak up!”

“The pain, the pain! Too much to explain!”

Boyfriend Kisser

“I thought she was my friend, but now it's time to diss her!”

“Sure we had some fun times, but I'm not gonna miss her now!”

“You're not my new sister!”

“Boyfriend kisser!”

“You're gonna get what's coming to you!”

Shear the Sheep

“It's the only way we'll fly first, peeps.”

“Try to lose this and your face I'll maim!”

“Shear the sheep, then, with a smile.”

“You had your chance and you turned him down.”

“And I'll be here, until the bitter end!”

We Built Gwen’s Face

“We've got to build something to sail.”

“As long as it stays afloat!”

“Oh, why did we build [Name]'s face?”

“Just hammering in the final nail!”

“Soon we'll be back in first class!”

Her Real Name Isn’t Blaineley

“Here's an open letter to a treasure of a girl!”

“Without the help of her entourage, her job would be toast!”

“So when she wears the bigger ones, you'll ask if she's lost weight!”

“She's a phony, scheming, weasel-nose!”

“And her real name isn't [Name]!”

Blainerific

“This is so against the rules.”

“Rules? This ain't no Sunday School!”

“Get me a half fat, no foam latte steamed to a hundred-two, heat!”

“WHAT?! Who am I? Who am I?! Who are you?”

“She's not so famous, turns out she's not so famous!”

A Chinese Lesson

“Is it roasted eel?”

“It's still moving its feet!”

“I think I'm nearly done for.”

“We'd rather eat our shirts!”

“[Name]'s in first class with me.”

Wake Up

“Well, it's a beautiful day on the Serengeti.”

“Going alone just makes you look sad and pathetic.”

“I could see the zits right on his face.”

“"Almost" gets you nowhere around here.”

“"Loser" is what the lion called you, when you couldn't find your balls.”

Condor

“I've come here to bring back your wee ones…”

“I've got problems with condors…”

“I'm a mom now, so don't be giving me flak!”

“So, hush, my sweet!”

“And I wanna live to see my thirties.”

This Is How We Will End It

“Now, I'm going to leave you… Wedged up in a hole.”

“Help me out, and I'll be your human drill-rig.”

“Ain't a tea party… It's combat!”

“This is how we will end it.”

“If I'm goin' down, make a fair fight!”

“But there's a bill to be paid!”

Who You Gonna Root For?

“There's Heather, she's an ice queen.”

“Too bad, everybody hates her.”

“Who you gonna root for? Who's it gonna be?”

“The only one winning this is [N-A-M-E]!”

“Kickin' it Hawaiian style, gonna take home the cheddar!”

I’m Winning This

“Rockin' it Hawaii style!”

“One last chance to prove my might.”

“Why else would I volunteer, for something death-defyin'?”

“Go show them you're a winner!”

“Sorry, [Name], don't sue!”

I’m Gonna Make It

“You and I weren't meant to last.”

“Mr. Fair now, suddenly.”

“You can't stop me now, just you try.”

“Let's face it, I'm no TV star.”

“You are the worst, why must you torment me?”

“It's all a game to you, but not to me.”

Versus

“Find me some giant feet!”

“Grab logs to match his frame, all overbuilt and lame!”

“Now it's evil versus wicked.”

“She'll put [Nickname] here through the shredder!”

“Her butt is scrawny and flat, and she ain't all that!”

“Pineapple-head me now!”

[the-gayest-tree-you-ever-did-see]

What do you think happened at those Career Districts?

How do they volunteer being in the life/death competition?

Do you think this is parallel in real life?

Thank you,

@curiousnonny

i feel like im basic about this in the sense that i read it very literally as how war drafting/enlisting works. career districts are closer to the capitol, if not physically, politically and ideologically, and so they kind of.. believe in the hunger games more. obviously they are still distraught about sending kids to die, but its for a good cause, right? doing this now means avoiding a war in the future. its twenty three lives a year versus millions at once, and you know, president snow says it might wipe out the whole world given the weapons we have! i love my kids and i love my friends but its the choice between letting one die versus letting all of them die.

and so i think they almost equate the games to a war. you are either drafted (reaped) or enlist (volunteer). the career districts volunteer because it is, very literally, a career path. you train your whole life to win the games and bring home glory, enlist, and ideally, win, come home, spend a year recovering and being paraded around, and then you teach the other kids how to follow in your footsteps. every district has mentors for the chosen tributes, but i think since kids in career districts were training, those mentors made their services available to all the kids in the district, not just the chosen ones. (and yes, i do believe they think of themselves as the chosen ones.) its amazing how much you can justify when you believe in the cause. its like that one post about the older woman who was against unions because it meant that everything she'd done was for nothing. if the career districts are to realize that the hunger games and their entire governmental system is corrupt, then wasting their whole lives away to learn to kill and survive, to treat human lives as a means to an end, and to send kids off to the games willingly was all for... nothing. and if its all for nothing, look how much they lost already. how can you recover from that? how can you face yourself?

they have to continue volunteering and training and going along with the games because it would mean everything they thought was important is actually harming them and was never important at all. one must imagine sisyphus happy, right?

but yeah, this is very parallel to how people enlist for war in real life. we even see in the volunteers, katniss volunteers to save her family, because she'd rather fight a war than let it touch her sister, but no one volunteers for peeta because hes a decent option anyway. finnick has a head full of visions of glory and he volunteers too young, and letting go of that cockiness, no matter how false, would be admitting that he did it for all the "wrong" reasons. mags (an older veteran and mentor) volunteers for annie (a young woman already scarred) so that the younger generation is protected from the horrors of war. peeta volunteers for haymitch for the opposite reason, but also because he wants to die with his fellow soldiers if he must, even if we erase katniss entirely.

and even with being reaped (drafted), its going to be a majority of poorer people in minority groups who need get more tesserae and have their names in more times. so you see someone like gale, whose name is in more than probably any other kid in the district with forty two slips in order to get food for his family and save his younger siblings, is so geared to war. hes already fighting it in his head. and if he admits that war is not the answer, that principles do not have to be casualties in it, then it was all for nothing. his whole life, lived in fear of reaping but never volunteering, of always being prepared to fight but never willing to jump in... it was all useless. especially because we saw peeta volunteer in the 75th games to be with katniss, but it never occurs to gale to do the same in the 74th. we know how eager he is to fight, but he never chooses it.

i think suzanne collins did a fantastic job building up this system because it is very, very real and very, very poignant.

[sw33tsuccubus]

Death By Pining

frank iero x reader

desc: Frank has feelings for Y/n, but.. he would never confess.

genre: fluff

inspired/requested by: @anystalker707

word count: 1.1k

A/N: sorry i put this off for so long, i didn't know how to write it at first. it's pretty short, i apologize.

It wasn't fair, since Frank played guitar for a living, but Gerard still didn't step down. The latter had chosen the song; Iron Man by Black Sabbath. It wasn't incredibly hard to play, but Gerard was still struggling. He wasn't the best Guitar Hero player out there. It was quite embarrassing how well Frank was doing compared to him, but whatever. It wouldn't do anything to his dignity if he lost a game of Guitar Hero against a guitarist.

Frank, however, knew the others would never let him live it down if he lost to someone who could barely play a guitar. Luckily for him, he's good at what he does. If not, he obviously wouldn't have been there right then and there.

After being beaten very horribly, Gerard just sighed and handed the controller over to Ray. There was no point in challenging Frank to a rematch, as he would just lose again.

Frank, however, was busy giggling with you.

"What's so funny over there?"

Frank turned to his friends and gave them an innocent smile. You placed a hand over your mouth to stop anything from coming out.

"Nothing."

The two turned back to each other, giggling yet again. Frank had a huge grin spread across his face, while it seemed as if your whole face was smiling. After a few seconds, Frank handed the controller to you and let out a quiet 'good luck'.

Gerard mumbled a 'they'll need it' and Ray bit back a smile. Nothing made the older Way more aggravated than Frank making fun of him while he was in the room. Sure, he wasn't good at Guitar Hero, but they could have at least tried to hide the insults better.

While you and Ray went up against each other in Guitar Hero, Gerard took a good look at Frank. He was sitting next to you on the second couch, although he wasn't watching the screen. He was looking at you. Huh.

At the sound of the round finishing, both boys turned their attention to the screen. Not surprisingly, the guitarist had won.

"Good game, Y/n. You almost beat me!"

"Not even."

The two of you let out small laughs before Gerard took the controller and it was non-guitarist versus non-guitarist. Before they started the game, Gerard quietly told Ray to keep and eye on Frank. And so he did.

Yet again, Frank was keeping an eye on you, rather than the game. But there was a certain gleam in his eye that caught Ray's attention, although he didn't know how to explain it.

When you won, letting out a triumphant laugh, you turned and high-fived Frank. During that, Ray and Gerard looked at each other. They knew something was going on.

~~~

It was a movie Brian had suggested, saying he thought it was hilarious. Nobody believed him, 30 minutes into the movie. It was so cheesy; also incredibly bad. This led to the five talking about actually good horror movies, and after Frank made a specific comment, snagging your attention, he wouldn't shut up.

They were an hour into the movie now, and Frank had been droning on for so long that Mikey, Ray, and Gerard and sparked up their own conversation.

"So, how do you think Brian even found this movie?"

"Probably took a girl to see it in theatre. Maybe she left midway, but he stayed because he wasn't about to waste money."

"Maybe. Real question though."

"Hm?"

"What do you guys think is going on with Frank and Y/n?"

Ray and Mikey turned to look at Gerard. They knew what he was talking about, but they wanted to know what he had to say.

"It's obvious that there's something. You think they're dating behind our backs?"

"Or."

Ray and Gerard turned to the younger Way brother.

"Maybe this is like a bad high school romance movie. They're crushing on each other, but neither have the courage to confess."

"Ew, not high school romance."

"He's got a point, Gerard."

The three turned back to you and Frank, who were now on the topic of the 1960 classic, Psycho.

"It's inspired plenty, y'know. You ever seen Carrie? That movie has screechy violins too. And Scream; Billy's reveal line. 'We all go a little mad some times.' Billy used the same recipe in Carrie for fake blood too."

You nodded along to everything he said, a small smile present on your face.

The three spectators turned back to their little triangle.

"So, it's definitely a mutual feeling. Who do you think is going to confess first?"

"Neither. They'll mutually pine to their death."

Gerard grinned at his brothers words, while Ray shook his head.

"Give them a little faith. I'm sure Frank might accidentally confess."

~~~

You and Mikey sat atop the monkey bars, watching the other three roam. Gerard was climbing the rock wall, Ray was swinging on the swings, and Frank was running around the jungle gym.

When Gerard mounted the top of the wall, he grinned over at you and Mikey.

"Hah! I made it above you two."

"You're a child, y'know that?"

Mikey rolled his eyes before turning around to check on Ray. The latter had come to a stop, just sitting on the swing while he used his feet to play with mulch.

"How you doing over there, Idea Man?"

Ray looked up at Mikey and gave him a playfully annoyed smile.

"I'm fine. Kinda bored."

"Can't cure your boredom, sorry man. Maybe you could meet Gerard up there."

"Nope. I'm fine."

Mikey forgot about that; Ray had a small fear of heights. It wasn't that serious, but it was still enough to make him nervous.

"Suit yourself."

At the sound of you laughing next to him, Mikey turned to look at what was going on.

Frank was running around, doing cartwheels. When he got back onto the jungle gym, he climbed onto the tiny roof and attempted to walk on the bar. Once he realized he wouldn't be able to do that, he did a backflip off, barely sticking his landing. He leaned a massive amount, spiking worry in everyone, but he got right back up.

When he started running around again, you hopped off the monkey bars. You ran after the male, while the other three turned to each other to share a look.

Maybe the mutual pining would kill them. Literally.

They heard a thump, and turned to see Frank having tackled you. The forementioned took off while the latter took a moment to gather their breath before getting up to chase after him again.

~~~

"Alright, who wants to get picked up first?"

"Might as well be Mikey and I."

Ray scribbled down 'Way' on the paper, checking the next few categories and getting answers out of everyone.

Shortly after Ray finished getting all the answers he needed, the pizza arrived. The boys crowded around the Toro household table, dropping into a seat and grabbing a slice.

After Gerard finished his, he knew it was time to take action.

"Hey, Frank?"

"Yeah?"

"We've been meaning to talk to you about something."

Mikey swallowed the last bit of his slice and turned to look at Frank. Ray, still having a bite left, nodded. Frank however, got nervous.

"Are you guys still mad about when I slashed Ray with my guitar? I've apologized a bunch of times! Oh no.."

Ray finished his slice, about to object and say that it was fine, but now everyone was curious.

"Am I out of the band?"

Everyone's eyes widened and they all let out different ways of saying no.

"Oh.. then what is it?"

"Well.."

Mikey turned to Ray, knowing Gerard didn't know how to word it. Ray nodded, before turning to Frank.

"Okay Frank, admit it."

"Admit what?"

"You like Y/n."

Frank's eyes widened. The other three thought for a tiny moment that they could have been wrong, until...

"How'd you know?"

"You aren't the most subtle person, dude. You're always trying to get their attention."

"Damn. So what?"

"So, you need to confess."

Gerard and Ray leaned back in their chairs. They would happily let Mikey, the relationship virgin, take over. Let this be a disaster; free entertainment. They could pick up the pieces and fix things if they needed to.

"But what if they say no?"

"I'm sure they wouldn't. Have you noticed how they act around you?"

Frank furrowed his eyebrows, entering a moment of thought. Now that he though about it; Y/n gave him the patience the others didn't. That just made them patient. Maybe Y/n just wanted to be his best friend?

Noticing the look on his face, Gerard leaned forward again.

"Hey, Frank. Don't pull any of that best friend bullshit. Just confess. We'll be here for you if they say no."

Frank thought for another moment, giving the others enough time to finish another slice of pizza each.

"Alright. I hope you guys are right."

~~~

After agreeing on watching Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Frank and Y/n sat side-by-side on the couch. There was a bowl of popcorn between the two of them, and they both had their own can of soda.

They had powered through Child's Play and The Shining, and they had a few more movies to make it to morning.

Or so you thought.

While you were ready to watch all of the movies you had until morning, Frank had his own plan. Thanks to the help of the guys, he had constructed it.

Very romantically, he was going to pop the question after handing something to you. He could get up and get some more snacks, that'd do the trick.

"Frank, are you even paying attention?"

"I don't need to. I know the movie like the back of my hand."

You sighed and shot him a smile.

"Of course you do."

Once you turned back to the screen, Frank decided it was now or never. Until a certain dog lay on his feet. He cursed Sweet Pea in his mind before constructing a plan B.

Taking a deep breath, he just went for it.

"I like you."

"Pardon?"

You turned to look at him, confusion in your eyes. He gave you a shy smile.

"I like you. I never thought I would be able to tell you, but it's true. I like the way you laugh, the way your eyes crinkle just so when you smile, how you talk to people. Scratch that. I don't like you.. I think I love you."

You parted your mouth, trying to say something, but nothing came to mind. You sat there, staring at each other for a moment, before he closed his eyes and leaned back.

You then leaned forward, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek. When you leaned back, his eyes shot open and he took in you small smile.

"I like you too, Iero. We can try things out first, yeah?"

He felt as if all the air had rushed out of his lungs. He had actually done it.

"Yeah."

[horizon-verizon]

It is unfair that Rhaenyra lost her children while Daemon's all survived and inherited their place in the line from him.

...Do you mean that is unfair as if there's some sort of competition b/t Daemon and Rhaenyra for who's kids survive in the thematic, ideological, or metaphysical sense? That in the "game" of thrones, he "won" or he fared better and she didn't because all his kids survived, while Rhaenyra lost her first sons that weren't his?

If so, I think I get that you are trying to say that Rhaenyra's gender is used as a way for her to lose her kids since her society is a sexist, classist, hypocritical one.

Still, I think there's a problem with making Rhaenyra's kids w/Daemon and his kids with Laena versus her kids with Harwin into distinct, ideological or metaphysical camps pitted against each other. Because there's still too much emphasis on their parentage overriding or determining their values, when there has been no evidence or suggestion that these kids didn't feel the other were true "family" if not the popular or "familiar" image of "family". That Baela and Aegon III saw Lucerys, for example, as "other" and "not family". And that they'd ever hurt the other, fight them for resources they think the deserve over the other, or think less of them. And I do not think Daemon saw Rhaenyra's sons by Harwin as not his own emotionally, or that he did not care for them or that he didn't not accept the fact that they would be the ones to inherit after Rhaenyra dies.

Aegon III and Viserys II are both Rhaenyra and Daemon's sons. Alicent's line is wiped out (Alys's son is never seen again). The Targaryen dynasty descends, therefore, from both Rhaenyra and Daemon. So no, we cannot think that only Daemon's line are a part of the succession.

That Rhaenyra loses her first 3 sons is the material and ideological fault of the sexist and classist society in which they lived, so in that sense alone, yes it's unfair but it's unfair that they, the kids themselves, were victimized instead of a competition between Rhaenyra and Daemon's "blood".

At the same time, neither parent will ever have the assurance that their kids live and live well and Rhaenyra would rage/grieve and Daemon would rage/grieve over how her eldest with Daemon lived, was put into danger multiple times, and was taken advantage of. We also remember that it is after her death that the Targ dragons begin to disappear.

EDIT (from @dragonsfromthemoon below in the reblogs):

Daemon lost his kids by Laena, by Mysaria, and one by Rhaenyra: his son by Laena, the miscarried son, and Visenya. So he lost children, as well.

And before we say "fetuses are not really people" and accuse me of being pro life here, all parties wanted these fetuses/children, anticipated their arrival, and thought of them as their kids already, placing emotional attachment onto these fetuses/infants. Let us not diminish that and argue as if Rhaenyra, Mysaria, and Laena were not actively happy and wanted to have those kids at one point, also wanting Daemon's.