#worth posting i did kinda have to triple their word count

[stoppit-keepout]

hello... i would like to know about operation ps’s dreams

ps.... I knew this day would come..... i just wish i had an actual fic to hand over.

THE TITLE: it was aspirational, ok? this was gonna be your birthday fic from several years ago! i wanted it to check as many ps boxes as it could :)

THE FANDOM: Hikaru no Go (hey what if i reread/rewatched hikago again)

THE CONCEPT: i’m just gonna cut/paste from my doc here: “FUTURE MOBSTERS??? MOBSTERS IN SPACE. ok it is arranged marriage au where sai is like the godfather like u know, and hikaru is his reckless protege, and a marriage between touya and hikaru would be advantageous to both families.” also: “Touya Meijin is a corrupt police chief/politician who basically controls all smuggling on/off Earth” another bit of concept: “Touya wants to know if he'll ever meet his new father-in-law and Hikaru's like ‘someday…' // They get married on Earth and then honeymoon on the LITERAL MOON ahahah wow this is a great plan. anyway Shindou thinks it's temporary just so they have cover to move this priceless go board from the moon to [destination], but Touya knows it's supposed to be permanent (so tension because he thinks Shindou’s not taking it seriously)”

I sorta had two rival plots that I never chose between: Plot 1 where Sai had already been killed and Hikaru’s pretending that he’s still around behind the scenes/impersonating Sai to keep control of the org (but also somehow Sai still calls him? and gives advice? Hikaru doesn’t fucking know, ok) and Plot 2 where Sai is killed during the plot of the story, and Hikaru tries to go on a revenge rampage :)

THE EXCERPTS: (I didn’t write a lot of actual prose for this story, most of the wordcount is timeline/planning, but i did have a couple little snippets!)

Sai looked at the ceiling and exhaled a long, slow plume of smoke. Hikaru stayed kneeling where he was. He'd learned to wait out these silences.

This one was broken by an expression: Sai smiled. The anticipation in Hikaru's diaphragm calmed.

"This is going to be good for you," Sai instructed.

Of course Hikaru nodded.

// (one marriage later)

To his credit, Touya Akira didn’t flinch. Despite the weapon pointed at him, his gaze tried Hikaru’s locks with the same surety that his hands had had on his travel case a moment ago.

"Who do you think I am?"

"Sai's eyes and ears." Cool voice, quiet voice.

Hikaru laughed, he couldn’t help it. "He has enough of those." He twirled his light pistol with a twist of his wrist, but kept it trained on Touya Akira’s atrocious vest. "If anything, I guess you could say I'm his hands."

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

To be fair tho, any kind of line up woulda likely been mucked up by covid happening right in the middle of stuff, and some projects would likely be delayed farther than others; I'm still annoyed with hope atlus has been handling things, but figured to bring up the elephant in the room

Fair, but....the game came out in 2016. The muck up would've 1) not been till 2020, 2) parts of the muck up would've been overseas people rather than just JPN (aka what happened to Strikers). Regardless, it's 4 years before shit goes sideways and they didn't plan that well.

And....I ended up ranting (my frustrations with Atlus not you). Ok so like I agree with you, the C word that shall not be named did screw a lot of things up, but remember this was going on years before that. And if things got mucked up cause of C? That's fine, it's not Atlus' fault. But they failed to plan before that was a thing so I'mma say a few words about it:

We got P5 (2016), then we had to wait two whole freaking years for an anime (2018) and for....a crossover cash grab spinoff of another (2) game(s depending on if you got the triple pack or not) that current gen/new fans aren't able to play, along with the fact they forget the events by the end (ignoring the lack of any gd plot). Then it's followed by (later 2018)......ANOTHER crossover two the same two games new people probably don't know, with them forgetting the events at the end, on top of it ONLY being on a dying console. We're doing....fantastic so far, great job Altus. Was that shitty cash grab worth it? >.>

So we wasted two whole years post P5, and the first games outta the gate are........a waste. I'mma be honest, they are a waste. They're aren't unnecessary, I mean Atlus wasted them. Wasted their opportunity, their potential, timing. All wasted. It shows in the sales of these two(/three/four....depending on if you count P4D and if you group P3D with P5D) poor games.

Then 3 years after P5's release....we get a fucking remake. An....."enhanced re-release"....................are you shitting me? Three years. A rerelease. On the same....console. The SAME console. *inhales* Why? WHY???? No. Why? Why NOW Atlus? Tell me why, NOW.

"Oh Silly calm down-" No, no I'm very annoyed with Atlus I will not. Tell me Atlus, what was the point? What. Was. The. Point?

*rubs temples* No cause you see. Let's look at the P4 spinoffs. I know they aren't perfect! I'm not trying to say they are! But they have something that Post P5 releases are lacking. Spoiler: It's a brain and planning. But let's break that down! (gonna have a rough timeline, gonna try to be accurate in my short time)

P4 (July 2008) came out, Atlus wasn't in the best financial situation. P4 sold pretty well.

P1 PSP (April 2009), new port, Atlus still not in the best situation. (I think this sold decently)

P3P (Nov 2009), new port, still not in the best financial situation, P3P sold pretty well.

P2IS PSP (April 2010), still not in the best financial situation

P4 anime begins (Oct 2010), Atlus is bought by Index, anime starts it's run.

P4 Arena arcade ver (March 1, 2012), is doing well, coinciding with the anime as hype builds. It's helping to hype up the anime and P4G.

P4 anime ends (March 30, 2012), anime ends it's run, it's a big success. Between this and Index they are doing better. The anime helped hype up P4G and Arena.

P3 FES on US PSN for PS3 (April 2012)

P2 EP PSP (May 2012), new port, released only in Japan, not doing great (but we dunno how well the PS1 psn port did). Focus on new P4 remake and first sequel spinoff.

P4G (June 2012), new port, hype is building like crazy, sometime after this all Persona PSP games (plus PS1 P2 Ep for outside US) were release on vita as well.

P4 Arena console ver (July 2012), hype is building even more. New P4G girl isn't in game, fans are confused but between that and the initial Personas we kinda get what's going on (things clear up by Ultimax tho).

P stuido is formed (Oct 2012)

Ultimax arcade ver and First P3 movie air (Nov 2013): builds mystery left by Arena. Same month PQ1 and P5 (coming winter 2014! jksldfsaklaj *wheeze*) are announced. PQ1 announcement shows Marie and things start to make more sense (or less sense).

P4 PS2 ver on US PSN for PS4 (April 2014)

PQ1 and Second P3 movie air (June 2014), new game, sells really well.

P4G anime begins (July 2014), it was hyping people prior to the run. Around this time Marie has her own Ultimax commercial (so at least by this time we know she is gonna show up in Ultimax, maybe prior to this time we knew I didn't dig THAT deep, but we know the whole Arena thing she was just..."absent" and that mystery is figured out).

Ultimax console ver (Aug 2014)

P4G Anime ends (Sept 2014)

Third P3 movie air (April 2015)

P4D (June 2015)

Fourth/Final P3 movie air (Jan 2016)

P5 (Sept 2016)

Ok we got a rough timeline, these are all JPN original dates mind you (in the US Ultimax came out before PQ1 iirc but we are going off of the original releases). Obvie excluding the PSN ports, I dunno if/what dates the JPN ones for PSN were (if that was even the case). We are also ignoring the other Megaten games, I know Atlus was working on other stuff at the time, but there was a mini Persona team prior to P studio (they worked on other stuff at times but still), if anything it's more amazing hey could do a lot of stuff and better than after P studio was formed (at least.....*glares* Post P5).

So as you can see, after P4's release, Atlus focused on porting the older games. Which was a good move, P4 on PS2 did do pretty well so might as well introduce fans to the older games, no? And putting it on the PSP was a good move imo. PS1 games are backwards compatible on PS2 games, PSP was popular in Japan (so was the Vita if what I remember reading was correct, Japan....only...remember.... orz)....might as well spread to a larger audience no?

Soon after we have it’s first sequel game along with an anime. Both paired well, as they hyped each other up. With the anime having the most influence, as it caused P4MC’s name to be referred to as Yu (iirc, less so his personality in this since iirc the name they decided to go with came after writing). But it turned out that the previous port games would have an extra benefit. 1) It got fans refamiliarize with P3 chars for you know...the crossover game. 2) It reintroduced old P1/2 concepts (the one that always stands out to me are fake Shadow selves). Another great thing about the anime and Arena, is that it helped anime fans easily transition to the gaming side with Arena (so it easily served as a sequel to game only fans AND anime only fans).

Then we have the P3 movies, and now Atlus decides to take more of what they learned with Yu, and plan accordingly. They decided to try to adopt some more of the anime (well...movie) adaptation of P3 into PQ1 (specifically movie 2, esp since it was released close to PQ1). The movies made it easier for the anime only fans to get into PQ1 as well! 

So far everything is synergizing well! We have refreshers, we have anime and game fandoms crossing over and overlapping, we have games that’s easy to follow from either the games or the animes!

Oh and this isn’t even talking about how the games lead into each other and synergize!

First, P4G introduces Marie, while she is missing from Arena (development timing reasons), but hey she’s a new girl that appears in other games! For once..... *Silly said both sad and bitterly*..... *sobs* But then we get to the games. While it’s cool for DramaCD fans to notice Labby and Kikuno, what’s really cool is the continuity with the later games. Arena gives us a few mysteries. Who is the eerie voice? Who is the malevolent entity? Who is Labby’s mom? And maybe even “why do the P3/4 kids trust each other/get along so easily” (tbh I never question it but hey it makes sense to question it so 8U). These questions are answered with two later games, one of which we didn’t know was a sequel: PQ1 and Ultimax. PQ1 and Ultimax have a lot of call back/forward (depends on which order you played them in) references, and they for the most part answer everything. Who is Labby’s “mom?” It’s Rei most likely. Both died from an incurable (at the time) disease, the timing and the similarities are too hard to ignore. That, and along with “why do the P3/4 kids get along so easily” is because they already did interact before, which makes them striving so hard to save Labby make it so much more interesting. They saved the mom, and now it’s time to save the daughter...in a sense. Then we get to Ultimax, and the two new mysteries are new....original chars BUT! Narratively they are pretty interesting. 

Eerie voice, aka Sho, serves as a shadow archetype to Labby, Yu, and Adachi. Both him and Labby are mirrored color wise, and both have a similar background of rage and fighting (and issues with bonds, Sho wanting to reject while Labby.....it’s complicated). Adachi and him have a similarity of rejecting people. And with Yu it’s a reflection of what Yu could’ve been without a friend. 

Kagu takes some good notes outta Nyarly’s handbook. Yes it sucks it wasn’t Nyaly, but hey at least he’s not a freaking mess like Yaldy (who tries to copy both Nyarly and Izanami’s plans when....they contradict but now’s not the time). And hey, if you played the P2 ports (either on the PSP or Vita) you’d see the parallels! And that is really cool and it def gets people speculating! He does do a good job, I think most people are just salty on the fact it wasn’t Nyarly, which is fair, but hey he was a destructive boi.

But then these lead into P4D. Ultimax’s......foil. While Ultimax (and Arena) were all about fighting, P4D lacks fighting. Ultimax you were banned until you fought, P4D you are banned from fighting. Sho/Ultimax/Kagu is about rejecting bonds and want for solitude, P4D(/Yuko/Mikura) is craving a want for bonds even if it means forcing them. 

And....what does this all mean? It means Post P4 era releases had layers. They synergized, there was a reason to the madness. Either to get fans to crossover, to familiarize fans with the older entries because they were going to use something from it, and it utilized some spinoff/remake only characters for future spinoff releases (Labby/Theo/Marie....and later Hamu and Sho! with Motoko and her whole shtick being a reference). Nothing was wasted. Nothing felt like a waste. There was meaning.

What has P5 brought me? Nothing. 

Big mystery? The only thing is Jose and that’s just left to the way side.

Spinoff/port chars? Don’t make me laugh. Doubt we’ll see more of Hikari (I’d be happy if we did tho!). Sumi/Jose/Maruki and even Goro are nowhere to be found outside of PQ2 and P5/R. Lord help me if Ichinose and Sophia don’t return. 

Strong theme or connections? SNNNNNRRRK DLKJFSAKL;F *WHEEZE* FLKDJAFSFS AHAHAHAHAHAHA FKLDJSAL; *WHEEZE* HAHAHA HA....haha...haaaaaaaa.... Good one. Ok ok tbf, P5(/3)D, PQ2, and Royal all had one thing in common. The word “dream” came up one way or another. I don’t remember P5S saying that word tho. But each dream was different. P3/5D was a dream. PQ2 it was seen as a dream by Hamu (and Hikari?), I know Hamu was sleeping and “woke up” at the end of PQ2. Royal? uhhhh that whole “I stole their dream” blah, it was a connection I made prior to Royal coming out cause of that trailer (so my brain goes to that rather than if/where it appears elsewhere in the game). P5R and P5S (and anime?) do have the same gem things but.....whoop dee do? They don’t do anything with it. 

Structure? See above, making us wait for the first actual sequel, and has us deal with 2 crossover spinoffs that didn’t have proper ports of older games, and then we have to have an unnecessary enhanced rerelease. 

Post P5 games have nothing that made the P4 era work. And it really required a bare min of effort.

They release P5? Well guess what was around then. Devs ported their PS1/2 classics to PS4 under a digital only thing. They could’ve easily just ported P3/4 PS2 vers on there. Maybe even P1/2 PS1! Just do that and then the Dancing spinoffs (and maybe PQ2). “But what about the other consoles?” What about them? At this point P5 is only on PS3 and PS4. PS3 is easily covered, PS4 is where it needs covering. Worry about the other console/PC ports later. “Well what about remakes/remasters” Who says you can’t do both? Some fans want both, some fans will buy both even if they don’t want both (they’ll buy the old cause that’s all there is, but then will want the new one). FF7 did both, released the PS1 ver on PSN and then did a remake. That’s fine! I bought both! And I’m def not shy to rebuying Persona games multiple times! Regardless they needed to do this, not only would it cover PS4, but it also cover PS5 owners too (not that they’d know that but.... 8U)

It probs would’ve def helped P3/5D sales! ....I mean what really could’ve helped them is by being good games that deserved that price tag, but I have to work with what I got. 

I just....I dunno. The P4 era was a lot of fun, partially because we had a lot to speculate on! Not just in the game we were getting but how they could connect! And that includes the lead up to P5! It was so much fun speculating on the spinoffs and P5! 

But.......I think the only one that did that was PQ2 and Royal.....and that was mostly cause of Hamu (it’s the eye shape and eye lashes, that’s why Sumi reminds me of Hamu so much lskdjf;a). Sadly, speculation be damned, we get nothing in terms of a long and fleshy mystery like Arena gave us. We just have “who is Jose working for” and that’s it. Which is fine I like that  mystery but....WE HAVE NOTHING! They’ve given us nothing related to that. *sobs* 

My best theory atm is Labby and Sho are gonna play a role in some upcoming game. And the next game announced is grey/silver looking so it’s either P1 or P6 or a new spinoff/other game. Calling what Atlus has given me “crumbs” is far too generous of a word. ;w; 

(don’t get me wrong I do want ports, ports to all the systems! but Atlus needed to think a bit better. Port to PS4 first then worry about the other stuff later! I know I’m PS trophy biased, but I’d say the same thing about Xbox/PC/Nintendo.....tho sadly I know their hands are probs tied for PQ stuff orz)

God I tried typing this fast. I’mma head off to bed, yeah let’s just end it here. orz

[madmadmilk]

One After The One PART 2 | Tom Holland x Reader

Tinder BIO | soft TEASER | PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4 | >>

Pairing: Tom Holland x Reader

Summary: If a fool knows they’re a fool, are they really a fool? (The answer is yes.) You weigh the pros and cons of meeting T, Blurry Boy, Tom-Holland-Imposter, but curiosity tips the scales.

Warnings: Cursing, Suspicion, some Hard to Swallow Pills, and a million blurry pics

Word Count: 6K grains of sand in your boots

-

“... What?”

You throat ran dry, and you’d be lying if several things didn’t just suddenly click in your mind. The pictures, or lack of pictures. “T.” His bio. It makes all makes total sense, and then it totally doesn’t.

 None of that it made it any easier to believe the words coming out of her mouth.

“I… I think he’s using pictures of Tom Holland,” your friend exhales, repeating herself slowly.

…

This can’t be happening. You feel your brows furrow and face fall–– unsure of what to say or how to feel.

Tom Holland on Tinder? 

No fucking way.

“... Who..? How..?” you reach up to scratch your eyebrow, hoping to stir up something to deflect her suggestions.

“You know, Spider-Man? We just watched him in that movie?” Liza starts slowly, then pretends to shoot webs, nearly bumping into her drink. “Thwip-thwip, yeah?”

You begin frown and shake your head, you wave away her hands.

“Yeah, uhm, yeah I know who he is. But there’s no way that’s––“

She gives you a knowing and cautious looking, tilting her head towards you in question. Her lower lip juts out and she pulls out her phone. You can assume she’s looking up pictures of the actor, and soon enough she has some glamour shot of him in a maroon suit.

He had glasses on. The same ones in that goddamn picture he had sent the other day.

That’s not...

You hold your phone search through your chats, scrolling past conversations and laughs, looking for that one picture. Your heads rest together as you swipe up slowly to show her the picture of him that he had sent… the one with the glasses.

There’s no way––

 But you don’t say anything, solely waiting for her confirmation or denial.

“Friendly neighborhood romantic…” Liza mutters softly as she holds both phones closer to herself. “Friendly neighborhood Spider-Man…”

You take it from her and zoom in; sure enough, all those details fall into place.

Fuck.

You blink, comparing the smiles. They look identical.

But?

But Tom Holland is a A-list actor, smiley, pretty, bright and out of reach. You can’t even entertain the idea of meeting a ~celebrity~ through a shitty fucking dating app–– a hook-up one at that. It just doesn’t happen.

And the thought of him wanting to spend time with you?

“No… that’s not right,” you finally manage to say. “Uhm. It can’t be Tom.”

Upon saying that out loud, you catch yourself. You find yourself believing that it could have been him. So, it’s hard to say which part you were denying.

Liza does the critical thinking for you.

“I’m sorry, babe. This guy is lying to you.”

Liza looks at you with her big brown eyes, and you can see a little bit of pity. She nods slowly and turns away, leaving you with two phones in your hands and doubt in your heart. 

“He’s using Tom Holland’s pictures, he’s not telling you the truth, and he’s not… offering you anything else about himself. You know?”

What?

You had gotten so comfortable with the idea of him, of “T.” Of “Blurry Boy,” his own person... and not with the reality of who he could be and what he’s doing to you.

The reality that he’s still really fucking suspicious, a stranger whose life and intentions you don’t actually know.

He’s definitely not Tom Holland, regretfully, and he’s probably not like any of the pictures he’s posted–– blurry, edited, whatever. And the conversations? Maybe it’s all a persona.

You don’t know a single thing about him.

Oh…

It stings more than you thought it would, even when you knew this was already a shaky start.

Liza watches you press your tongue to the side of your cheek, processing this with no argument or fight left. She feels bad having told you outright, but you both know that it’s what you would have wanted. The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.

She hugs your shoulders, as you slide her phone back towards her.

You let her hold you as you try to let the shame and shock pass.

Your phone pings softly on the table.

You read the message as it glows on your screen. You scoff as soon as you check it, because who else could it be?

BB: I bet you forgot to watch the episode lol

No.

You forgot you shouldn’t trust him.

-

…

BB: ?

BB: Hello?

BB: Hey, sorry idk if you’re busy or something right now. Just wondering how you were

BB: 👀

BB: Sorry, did I do something to make you mad?

Yes–– no. Yeah, kinda.

You pull down your phone screen, musing over the fact that more messages might appear. He’s sent something new every few hours since your talk with Liza earlier that day.

God, you’re glad you don’t have your read receipts on.

You spend some time lazing around in bed, hair up and out of your face, your pants crumpled and kicked on the floor nearby. You suck in your cheeks as you pick up your phone.

You’ve been cycling through social media all day–– not looking at anything in particular, but definitely avoiding texts from You Know Who.

You know what the messages say, you know that he’s wondering where you are and what you’re doing, but how do you face him after your fatal revelation with Liza? How do you recover? Well, you start by sorting out your buzzing thoughts….

First, you feel fucking embarrassed. There’s a burning, nauseous heat on your face, all because you didn’t realize those pictures were SO obviously fake, and that you were kinda into Whoever He Is.

Second, you feel righteous anger, for being dragged around even though he promised. Ha ha ha. He’s one hundred percent a stranger on the internet, alright. And you’re a fool for letting yourself get strung along.

But him using pictures of a well-known, well-loved, heavily-adored celebrity?? Isn’t that, like, really fucking bold? Embarrassing even?

(Almost as embarrassing as you not noticing this, but you don’t let yourself dwell on that part for too long)

The angel on your shoulder reasons that, “maybe he’s still the same person underneath this facade–– he just looks nothing like what he has posted. You could still like him no matter what he looked like, right?”

While the devil swoops in with some hard facts, laughing in pity, “A guy or person who conceals themselves with lies is not worth keeping at all.”

And in this case, you have to agree with that flaming hot truth. You’re ready to fold those fleeting feelings, shove them in a box, and kick ‘em to the curb along with that inner monologue–– but as you said in the very beginning… if you knew you were being fooled from the start, are you really getting hurt?

The goblin of curiosity pulls at your sleeve and offers this funny sentiment, “Knowing this and talking to him should be fine if you establish the fact that you know that ‘this’ isn’t real.”

And that’s where you are now, staring at your phone, at the multitude of double, triple, quadruple texts that have accumulated through the day. You exhale, and draft up a frail response.

You: hey, sorry. I was busy

His answer comes almost too soon even while you were approaching the later hours of a long day.

BB: Hey!, no, no it’s okay. Sorry if i freaked out, I was just worried

You: what, you missed me?

BB: something like that. You’re definitely the best reason I’m checking my phone nowadays, besides work

You: how sweet

BB: actually, I took your advice. I turned on Do Not Disturb at like 9. It feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders

You: that’s great!

BB: well, I know there’s going to be a shit ton to read in the morning, and I’m still stressed about that. But I guess I’ll get used to it. Gotta save time for myself! 😤🙏(praying emoji)

You: definitely

…

BB: hey, are you okay? You seem distant

You: yeah, no. I’m fine. Just a little tired

…

BB: haha, you’re obviously not. Are you still out? Or back home now?

You: I’m back home, but it’s been a long day

BB: oh, okay! You should head to bed then. Talk to you later?

You: yeah, I guess I should

BB: good night! Sleep tight 😊 (blush smile emoji)

You: good night

-

The next day goes by with a few more one-sided text exchanges. “Blurry Boy” was really single-handedly carrying each of those conversations–– and while they’re interesting and you’re still replying, you find it hard to bring yourself to believe any of it. It has no real weight anymore, to your life or in application.

You can’t stop thinking about the fact that he’s LYING to you. Straight to your fucking face.

You watch the conversations in the third person and are almost impressed with the lengths that he goes to keep up with the same story. No loss of momentum, the perfect amount of enthusiasm.

But by now, he must suspect something. The way he asks leading questions in an effort to get you to speak more. 

Unfortunately for him, you can’t help but be cold in response.

What you don’t realize, is that you want him to ask you what was wrong, one more time. You don’t realize that you want an opportunity to be mad. You want him to give you the chance to be. 

So, stop being so fucking nice, blurry boy.

Because you’re not fucking nice at all.

You ignore him for the evening, going out to run some errands so that your hands were actually busy. You silenced your phone as you wound down again for the night, only sparing it a glance at the last second.

There are a few messages waiting for you.

BB: hey, are we okay?

You: we?

BB: yeah, sorry if i’m jumping to conclusions but I’ve felt a little special here. If not, I get it. I’d just like to know

You: you’re definitely something

BB: what’s wrong?

You take a sharp inhale, tucking your hair behind your ears, and sitting up in bed to fully type out your feelings. Your opportunity to be angry is HERE, you can go off and spit words and fight–– 

You: you’re lying to me, right to my face. It was fine at first, but I still can’t wrap my head around why you’re doing this to me. It feels like we’re playing pretend and just ignoring the fact that there is NO TRUST here at all. I don’t know WHO you are and you haven’t given me any idea of who you could be! You’re using fake pictures and a fake name, and while it’s been fun… there’s nothing here. There’s nowhere “we” could go from here. If you want to continue, I’m going to need SOMETHING from you, if you expect anything from me

You drop your phone in your lap with a satisfying thump. You turn away, stretching and rolling your shoulders back in triumph.

Take that, “T.”

You shut your eyes as you imagine this mystery dude opening his phone to read out an arrow you’re shooting straight at this heart. (And it’s not the good kind). You can’t ignore that it hurts your own feelings it’s a little, not in a way that’s personal but…it’s hollowing. You didn’t know him personally, no, not at all, but a shade of it must have been real. There’s a real person in there, somewhere.

You see the message sit alone, untouched. There’s no bouncing dots like usual, no rapid silly response or praise or affection. And that’s annoying. And that’s annoying that that’s annoying.

But you got the last word in, so, what else can you ask for.

You nudge your phone further away, trying not to expect more. Siting in silence for a beat, pinching your cheeks. God, you hate this self-absorbed, attention-seeking behavior–– but you can’t help it.

You let out an exasperated whine, shaking your body to let go of the lingering vibes. You pick up your phone and snuggle back down into bed, ready to sleep after some idle scrolling. 

You’re ready to not have to worry about this thrilling 5-day experience, sure to be embarrassed about it later but… maybe you can make a story out of it. Though, that would only come after a long wink and the accompaniment of alcohol. God, you don’t even want to think about how Liza has probably already told K… Ugh!

PING!

You scramble as you hear the shrill bell tone. Your phone is bouncing in your hands as you half sit-up again. 

A message. 

You want to ignore it–– but who are you kidding.

BB: can i call you?

…

You stare at it. 

Is this an olive branch? Is he reaching out to you to show you that he really wants this? That he cares enough to finally share a fucking piece of himself?

Regardless, the call can only prove that he’s not the guy in the pictures. It’ll only show you that he’s just a guy. If that.

You rake your mind to remember what Tom Holland’s speaking voice sounded like, and immediately kick yourself for even thinking it could actually fucking be him. There’s just no fucking way. 

But let’s see how far off this guy is.

You: only for a second.

Your heart thuds unevenly as you prepare yourself–– only you have no idea what to expect. There’s nothing to go off of.

And within the minute that you sent your message, your phone rings. A blank contact comes up, “Blurry Boy” in white letters. You listen to the shrill ringtone, only picking up before it ends.

“Hey.”

There it is, his voice for the first time. It’s sleepy and thick, croaky even. He doesn’t sound like the squeaky and lively Tom Holland you knew from the silver screen. Though, it’s a stretch to even compare the two at all.

“Hey,” you speak demurely. Cool, calm, collected. And you wait. You want him to bring it up himself.

“What, not excited about our first call?”

Your face warms at his straightforwardness–– briefly crumbling under the pressure. Over text you could easily sort yourself out, but here…. you couldn’t hesitate.

“Well, I’m just glad you don’t sound like a 16 year-old boy.”

He laughs breezily, slightly muffled through the phone.

“Hahaha, I told you. I’m 23.”

“Mhm, well the way your voice cracked there really proves it.”

“Hey, come on now.” He laughs again, and you can hear rustling sheets and the faint chatter of music.

His laugh is quite pleasant, raspy and boyish. Familiar even. You want to imagine that he’s wooed by your maturity and confidence, by the way that a lull settles. But it’s more likely that he’s gathering his thoughts, or collecting his courage.

“This…. doesn’t prove anything,” you start slowly. You purse your lips, nervous ticks coming alive even through the phone.

For the moment, you feel shy, but shove it when you remember that he’s lying.

“I still don’t know who you are––“

“I know. I know, and I’m sorry–– I can’t tell you yet, but I trust you.”

“Yeah, you’ve said something like that before.”

”Uhm, yeah–– I… I wanted to call you to show you that I’m real and I care about you.... and I wanted to hear your voice too.”

There was sincerity there, but you don’t let yourself fall for it.

“But how long will it be before I get to see your real face? –– Without meeting you in a dark alley all alone.”

“Hm?”

“My friends are convinced that … you’re lying to me. In more ways that one. With the profile, with the pictures, the name.”

“Oh–– you told you friends–– uhm... Do you think I’m lying?”

“Maybe not all of it, but It’s a big world out there. And–– I don’t know.”

“But seeing my face would clear it up for you?”

He breathes deeply, and you can hear him clear his throat. The sheets rustle again.

“It’d be a start.”

“Mhm.”

“Make or break it, actually,” you manage to chuckle, offering him that relief. You wonder if physical attraction would be a big factor— like obviously, it would be something but…. you’ve come to know him as a person. So, do you care?

(The answer is yes, you do care, but poetically, you could enjoy his company just like this.)

BUT he is lying; if it’s not about one thing, it’s the other.

“It would definitely make me feeling a little bit better. To know that you’re not a monster under the bed, or some creep–– arguable but still.”

“I told you, I’m hot. You’ve got nothing to worry about,” he laughs with a bit of edge, treading the line.

You laugh too, tension easing. He seems like an easygoing guy, willing to be the butt of a joke with confidence.

“That has a totally different effect, hearing you say that out loud. It’s still weird.”

“Well, what do you think I look like? Based off–– based off what you have.”

“Well, I hardly have anything so…. I don’t know. I want to say ‘tall, dark, and handsome,’ but I’m pretty sure you have… fair skin, brown hair and… nice shoulders? That’s all I got.”

“You’re 3 for 3 so far.”

“You’re just saying that.”

Pause.

“Sorry it’s taking so long.”

“Yeah, you’re weird.”

You’ve already flipped the a million possibilities of who he could be. Nothing would even surprise you anymore. But listening to his soothing voice has calmed you like the way his words always have. The conversation flows over you, and you slide deep into your bed.

You pull the covers up over your shoulders, swimming in your thoughts. It shouldn’t be that hard to reveal himself, should it? You’re both investing time into this–– reckless and blind as it may be. You would need to know eventually. You’re not being unreasonable.

Right?

“If…. If I show you my face, properly, will you keep it a secret?” There’s an anxious tone in his light voice. Every syllable ended with uncertainty, as if he didn’t believe what he was saying.

“If you want…? Why?”

“I just… you just need to. Please?”

“Yeah, uhm, I can do that.”

“Thank you,” and there he lets out an airy sigh of relief. You hear rustling again, as if he fell back on the bed. Ha?

You laugh in excitement at his small promise, you rub your eye with your knuckle as you tease,

“What, are you a celebrity or something?”

…

“How did you know?”

“Hahaha, shut uppp, T. I’m joking–– I just want to match a proper face to the person I’m talking to,” your laugh trails off. You swallow softly, “I have your voice now, so… help me piece it together now, please?”

He stays silent, making you second guess the sincerity that you just showed him. Before you can take it back he starts slow and quiet,

“If I do tell you who I am, would you go on a date with me?”

Your heart squeezes, and your clench your toes. This should be no surprise or celebration, to be honest, this is the point of it all. To find love, or at least the next lay.

“Well, that depends if you’re my type,” coy, coy, play it coy.

“I’m everybody’s type.” His voice rolls, deep, rough, ringing in your ears.

You blink, your cheek lifting in a half pointed smile. You return his tone,

“Ok, well, then I dare you. Show me.”

“I will. Are you free on Friday–– Tomorrow?”

“Already setting up a date? You’re getting waaaay ahead of yourself, dude.”

Pause.

“But yeah, sure, I might be free tomorrow.”

“Great,” he laughs at your switching moods. You feel that heat on your face again, shutting your eyes tight, and he offers a bit more, 

“Meet me by the beach? 9 PM?”

You scoff softly, he’s pushing it. It’s a public space, kind of not. It’ll be cool, breezy, dark… secluded.

But you could easily let someone know where you’re gonna be, and when to expect you back. Fair enough?

“Hmmm, send me a picture of yourself and I’ll let you know if I can make it.”

“Huh?”

“Think of it as insurance. Or a sneak peak,” you laugh softly, turning your cheek to rub you nose against your pillow.

He lets out a long, dry chuckle, taking a deep breath. You can hear him settle and stretch himself out too, “First thing in the morning. And text me back.”

“Sure!”

“Then... I’ll leave you to it. Good night, Y/N. So lovely speaking to you.” His voice is so heavy and warm, so close to your ear.

You’re almost disappointed that he cut the conversation short. A dark cloud of doubt looms over; maybe he needs time to fabricate a believable photo, maybe he’s nervous, maybe he’s getting cold feet.

You stumble on on what to say as you snap yourself back–– the worrying could be saved for tomorrow. For now, you’ll both savor this short, sweet moment. 

“Likewise. Good night, Blurry Boy.” 

You hear him exhale softly, and pull the phone away from your ear. You look at it in your hands, feeling your lips purse. Your face is flushed hot, and your stomach flips in anticipation.

Tomorrow.

-

“No FUCKING way,”

You open your phone first thing in the morning and... low and behold… he actually fucking sent you a picture of Tom Holland. Like he really had the guts to fucking do it. 

Come on, Blurry Boy.

This is not real. No way, no way, no fucking WAY.

You heart falls at the thought of losing this ~friendship~ or whatever it is. You put time into this and now its… kind of falling apart at the seams.

You hold your squished cheeks and spin on your heel, wondering if you should show it to Liza or Ry–– to share the incredulous feelings but… You remember The Promise.

It’s not that… big of a deal, especially since this scenario is fake as fuck, but you’d feel guilty. (damn.)

And also ashamed.

You straight up got fucking catfished.

Like he really had you in the snares.

There’s no way that he’s Tom Holland, and even if he “was” there’s no way that Tom would be in your city. And even though he’s a fucking liar–– keeping this a secret for another day or two… wouldn’t hurt anyone.

God.

You fall back onto your couch, legs hanging over the edge as you stare at the picture. Your thumbs hover over the keyboard, wondering what to say…

The words come quick.

You: what the fuck, are you joking?

Come on, he had to be pulling your leg. Or expecting you to reply like that. You dont’ know what to think, especially when it takes him an hour or two to reply. Uncharacteristic of him.

BB: I’m really not

You: dude. Shut up. You’re not Tom Holland

BB: I am. And I can prove it. Come see me tonight, please

You have to scoff, nearly throwing your phone across the room. UHM, this has sirens and red flags written all over it. Akskdfdjhfad, like??? There aren’t even words to describe this frustration and obvious deceit.

You: Uhm, no no no. Call me right now

You were more than peeved now, honestly. He promised you honesty and some vulnerability, and this is just fucking stupid.

BB: I’m sorry, I really can’t. I’m out for work right now. Meetings all day. But I PROMISE you that I’m not lying.

Ok, funny. That’s exactly what a liar would say.

You don’t bother replying back, not sure what to even say besides, “Fuck you.” But you figure that silence might be more of a sting than any words you could conjure up.

How many tricks would you fall for? This is stupid, this isn’t fair. There’s nothing to redeem here, it’s over.

He can’t just drop a tremendous bombshell, and act like it’s real??

Who the fuck does he think he is?

There’s no way he’s fucking Spider-Man, dude.

There’s just no fucking way.

-

FRIDAY NIGHT, AROUND 6 PM

BB: So… what do you think? Will I see you later? 🤞 (fingers crossed emoji)

You: I can’t believe you’re still messaging me and making jokes. This is cruel, dude

BB: I know it seems crazy, but I’m not lying. I can explain everything! But in person would be the easiest way. I’m still running around the city, but meet me at 9

You: bullshit

BB: My name is Tom Holland. I’m taking a break in this city, and I’m looking for someone to spend time with. But I HAVE to lie low. And trust you and I want to see you and I want to spend time with you

You: You know this is fucking insanity right ?? I can’t trust you. 

BB: I know, I’m sorry. But I’ll answer anything you want if you come see me

You: i don’t know

BB: well, will i see you later tonight?

…

BB: let me know if you can make it. I’ll be there regardless but…

…

BB: Hope you see you there, Y/N.

You put your phone down squinting. You’re down for taking risks and meeting new people and trying new things–– but this whole thing is just wrong. This is too unreal to even entertain. No matter how many times you say it… It won’t sink in.

He says he can’t call, he can’t send anymore pictures, he can’t facetime–– what’s with the grand reveal and security clearance? 

He’s probably gonna eat your fucking face off, that’s why.

You look back at your feet, covered in fuzzy socks. Would you even get out of this blanket burrito to meet A Guy?

(Much less, a guy who definitely wants to wear your skin.)

It’s after classes and work and your social life, you don’t have anything planned for today. Your friends are off on dates with one another doing god knows what, and you’re at home comfy in your holey sweatpants with nothing but the warmth of your laptop and chatter of a TV show you haven’t been paying attention to.

Sigh.

There’s nothing to lose–– you chant over and over. Sometimes, that mentality is what gets you to move forward and try new things. Or gets you into trouble.

Haha.

We all know you’re going to get off your ass and go, but not before checking in with a few people. ‘Cos, you’re not entirely stupid.

“Time for a Tea Party,” you mumble to yourself. You resign to text the more rational of your friends, Liza and Ry. 

Liza has the perfect amount of encouragement and honesty, while Ryan has the best common sense and gives expert.

Sorry, K, you’re too protective and sorry, Sam, you’re way to fucking chaotic.

GC: TEA PARTY

Liza: Ur actually going to MEET HIM??? 😱

Ry: you said you weren’t going to get into trouble

You: is he trouble?? Is this bad??

Ry: YES. he could be anyone. Do you even know what he looks like?

You: … not really. He hasn’t told me much about anything. But, this is like a chance to find out?

Liza: oh my god you should go. Just go and get it over with

Ry: I don’t know… this doesn’t sound like a great idea.

Liza: i guess, one of us could come with Y/N?

You: nah, I’ll be fine alone

Ry: you sure? We could hang out somewhere in the back or something

You: no, it’s okay. I’ll just let you now when I go and drop my location with you

Liza: Phew! This is going to be SO messy. I love it. Can’t wait to hear back from you.

Liza: If we hear back from you 👀 (side eye emoji)

You: Ha ha, this is my actual life you know??

Ry: you only live once

Liza: And pls live long enough to tell your friends what happens

You: so supportive

Liza: love you! Wear your cute undies just in case!

Ry: bring pepper spray

You: Got it

You’re thrown into a frenzy. It’s like 7:45 PM now, and you haven’t showered yet, you haven’t decided what you’re going to wear or how you’re going to get there–– and more importantly, you haven’t fucking texted him back yet. 

And he hasn’t sent you anything else.

Oh, the mind games.

The way he’s making himself sad and vulnerable, but mysterious and coy.

While you get to choose to be the sucker, or the loser.

Lose, lose with great odds.

You turn on the shower, stepping into the warm steam to clear your mind.

It was made after all, you were going to meet him.

-

Yeah, you were going. But you still haven’t said anything. 

You don’t want him to know–– so you could totally just walk the other way if you see something that you don’t like. 

I mean, he knew what you looked like though. Hell, he even compared you to his ex-girlfriend, so… might as well keep the upper-hand and peer from the shadows first.

Or give yourself a head start to run away.

Though, running through sand would definitely be a big fucking obstacle.

You reach the end of the beach, standing atop beaten wooden stairs. The breeze stings your cheek, and it’s a lot colder than you thought it would be.

You’re wearing some dark high-waisted jeans and a simple pair of slip-on sneakers. You didn’t exactly know what “this” was, a date or a revelation or a sacrifice, so, naturally, you didn’t know what to wear.

Haha.

You hug yourself, your thin white billowy top fluttering lightly in the wind. Your fingers clutch at the flowery-embroidered designs on the sleeves, looking a lot like a pure maiden in distress. (Cos you sure as hell are.) You wore light makeup, and your hair was still a bit damp. The salty air was turning it coarse and wavy–– no complaints about that.

You paired this all with the bravest face you could muster

T, Blurry Boy, Tom Holland Imposter dropped this location with you, and figures that it’s on a secluded section of the beach.

You follow well-trodden paths, softly listening to music as you make your way. One earbud in. You should be thinking about a million things right now, but your mind is totally blank.

No expectations, nothing to go off of. 

As you near your destination, you look out at the water. The ocean is dark and looming; you can hear her soft waves crash over your soft music. The moon casts a silvery glow, and you can’t see colors anymore. Just white, gray, and black. Shining and still. 

It feels calm, like you’re watching a silent movie. Like you’re alone.

Only you’re not.

You see “him.”

A lone shape kicking sand with hands in their pockets. Their hood was up and back facing you. 

Great.

You hang back in the distance, weighing your options. You could still leave–– fear fully settling in after you see an actual person where they said they would be. He seems… harmless enough, like a regular guy and–– ah, fuck.

He turns around.

You see him, seeing you.

He pauses, then leans forward to get a better look.

You freeze too, holding your breath.

There’s nowhere left to duck and hide. It’s just you and some piles of fucking sand.

And him.

Oh, god.

The figure raises their hand, fucking waving. Then they start moving towards you, picking their feet up high to trek over the sand.

Fucking hell, you could turn away now but you don’t. You let out a shrill, grating laugh and square up to meet him halfway.

Their shape isn’t getting any clearer–– especially now that they’re facing away from the moon. His face is shadowed and hard to see, but you get close enough to see him.

I––

“Hey!” he excited calls out, catching the shine of his smile…. And…. you’re speechless.

Jaw to the floor, eyes as wide as dinner plates, speechless.

He keeps talking, smiling with his eyes crinkled as he gets very very close to you. You could smell his musky cologne, mixed with ocean spray, and disbelief. His voice is low and coated with tired happiness,

“Oh my god, I’m so glad you came.”

His voice breaks at the end, broken in more ways that you can understand at this moment. You’re just so confused––??

He can’t stop grinning, eyebrows sloping downward as he lets out an airy sigh of relief. He looks up towards the sky for a moment, moonlight catching on his cheeks and nose. Glimmering.

Wait, wait, wait––

When he comes back, he does another thing you can barely wrap you head around–– he hugs you.

He reaches forward, giving you ample time to turn away (but you don’t), and hugs over your shoulders. You felt a human weight on you, the side of his hoodie smushing against your face. 

And… you slowly hug back around his waist. Your left hand awkwardly pats his back as he mumbles,

“Sorry, this is too much. Sorry, God. Thank you.” 

He doesn’t make any motion of moving away despite his words. You can feel his warmth, and slightly desperation in the embrace; something that feels a lot more intimate than you were prepared for.

“Thank you.”

“It… It’s okay,” you murmur back, doused in shock. And shock is better than terror, right?

You pull away, squinting your eyes and making a face. His hands fall off your shoulders, and quickly shove themselves into his pockets. He gives you a moment. A well needed moment. When you open yourself back up, your brain is able to process a few more things.

He’s standing there in some dark denim jeans, clad in converses, which seems like a horrible decision for the beach, a dark green hoodie pulled up over his head, another horrible decision when you’re meeting someone for the first time on a dark beach, and a denim jacket, enviable. His face is softened and friendly, lips pointed in a gracious smile, while his dark eyes twinkle even in the shade.

He senses your uncertainty as you eyes fan over his face. Your jaw was still hanging open too. He pulls his hood down, ruffling soft brown hair in an inadvertent dramatic reveal. Nice.

He scratches behind his ear, still wearing a gleeful expression,

“So… what do you think?”

What do you think???? What do you think about this situation?? His hair??? The entire man in front of you???

Or the fucking fact that he was who he SAID he was???

I can’t believe this is–– this is––

All manners and social cues and sense exit the building as you stammer brainlessly,

“You’re! You’re–– You’re Tom––”

He nods, confidently, you note. And tilts his head, locks falling over,

“I am.”

“You are.” You breath out, maybe smiling now, you’re not sure. You can’t exactly feel your face anymore. 

Your head tilts in the same direction as his, your hair falling over your collar. His eyes follow those fallen strands, before locking back with yours,

“I’m Tom Holland. ‘I told you so,’ and it’s nice to formally meet you.”

Tom Holland.

The brunette bites his lip before smiling neatly as he gets close to your again. No personal space with this guy. He sticks a hand out for you to shake.

You’re looking from the outside in as you take his hand, bobbing softly. You’re trained on the sight of his thumb holding the side of your hand, rubbing softly.

You find your way back to his face.

Exactly like the movies.

The wind blows and he turns to the side, showing you the sharp cut of his jaw, and his eye-shut-tight expression.

Better, actually.

“H… Hey, Tom. Nice to meet you too,” you finally fumble. You shake your head slightly, trying to regain that calm, collected, confidence you practiced so hard on the way here. You want to say more, but you can’t fathom what would come next, 

“Uhm, sorry, I’m… still processing.”

Tom nods, bobbing his whole body, as he takes a step forward. His smile points devilishly, way too easily. His eyebrows twitch before settling, as he lowers his head, hitting you with some sultry jaw-clenching and puppy dog eyes.

“Take your time.”

You laugh, tonguing your cheek. He does too, and you share a starry stare.

The waves crash in the distance, a white noise you were glad to have. A welcome distraction from your loudly beating heart. Something to close the gap of silence––

Only Tom couldn’t handle the lapse of quiet, after all, he gets paid $$$ by the minute. He starts conversationally, knowing exactly how to stir up your already swirling emotions.

Light, teasing, reeling you in, the brilliant boy flashes you a toothy grin and spares not a single ounce of chill,

“So… am I your type?”

Holy fucking fuck shit god damn.

You just got catfished by Tom Holland.

-

A/N: WELL, reader has been caught in the net. What do you think, is “Tom Holland” /our/ type? Adfasjdl, the whole concept of this is so funny lol. Can u imagine seeing the man you saw movies screens… waiting for you in person??? Unfathomable. Anyway, sorry the past two chapters have just been build up,, there’s gonna be a lot of mushy stuff coming up soon. Thanks for your patience!

It’s really hard to find time to write, but yeah taking smaller chunks like this makes it easier for me. Expect updates every 1-2 weeks, usually around Sat-Mon nights. Thanks so much for keeping up!

And you know what to do, please like and comment and reblog! It keeps me going :)

All my love,

Madmadmilk 🥰

** i do NOT keep up with a taglist. track #one after the one to keep up with the updates, or check out my masterlist! thanks!

[hazyheel]

Fastlane 2019 Review

As far as WWE pay per views go, this was a pretty good show. The undercard was weak, but the wrestling only got better as the night went on. It was an enjoyable, but ultimately uneventful, with about two exceptions.

I actually watch the pre-shows for WWE, given they have matches and such, so I’ll throw in some highlights from the actual talk show portion. The IIconics showed up and were bulling the desk guys, that was funny. Mandy Rose and Sonya Deville talked to EC3, who finally spoke his first words. All he did was hit on the both of them, and they rejected him. It was even written into the script that they make fun of all the false build up to an anticlimax. Christian popped by and talked to AJ Styles about how manipulative Randy Orton is, which I like because of the awesome feud the two had in 2011. Fun times, but it’s never worth watching.

The match of the pre-show was Big E and Xavier Woods vs. Rusev and Shinsuke Nakamura. Rusev hit an impressive wheelbarrow suplex on Woods for a near fall. Rusev hit a Matchka kick to Big E, but Woods broke it up. The was a very interesting submission sequence with Woods in the Acolade, but Nakamura pulled the bottom rope away from him to prevent the rope break. Big E then threw him into the barricade to take Nakamura out of the match. The New Day then hit the Midnight Hour for the win.

Grade: D-. I just didn’t care, and there were a bunch of botches. Generally boring, it didn’t need to happen. At least the right people won, but now Rusev and Nakamura lost the little momentum that they had. Luckily no one really watches the pre-show. 

Opening the main card was The Miz and Shane McMahon vs. The Usos for the Smackdown Tag Team Championships. Miz and McMahon started to incorporate actual tag team moves, although they were not particularly impressive. During the match, Shane was hurt on the ground as Miz hit the skull crushing finale, but the ref was too distracted to make the pin. At one point, as Shane went up for the Coast to Coast, but one of the Usos intercepted him. Miz’s dad then encouraged him up to the top rope, for a big splash, but it was countered into a role up for the win from the Usos. After the match, Shane was the one to turn heel. He beat up the Miz, and even got up in his Dad’s face.

Grade: C+. The match was surprisingly fun. I have enjoyed this storyline so far, and the match was have decent with some cool spots. The heel turn was done well, and I was actually surprised with Shane turning on Miz rather than the other way around. I’m looking forward to the promo on Tuesday about why he turned heel.

Elias appeared several times throughout the show. He didn’t really do anything of consequence. 

Then we had Asuka vs. Mandy Rose for the Smackdown Women’s Championship. The match was quite bland, but it came to an end when Sonya Deville attempted to introduce a Kendo stick into the match, but Asuka was able to hit the spin kick for the win.

Grade: D. Definitely boring. There were a bunch of botches, and it was generally pointless. It kinda furthered the breaking point between Deville and Rose, but that story has been on and off since Survivor Series, so I have lost faith in it.

Backstage, Big E and Xavier Woods found Kofi Kingston waiting to talk to Vince McMahon about the WWE Championship match. Vince promised that it would be a triple threat, starting now. Kofi went out, only to found out that Vince lied to him, and it was a handicap match against the Bar. They beat Kingston down, and when Big E and Woods came out to help, Nakamura and Rusev attacked them. 

Grade: B-. Even though it was squash match, it did its job. Lots of sympathy for Kingston, and it’s looking more and more like he will win the big one at Wrestlemania. As long as that is where this is going, I am into it.

Into the Raw Tag Team Championship matches, pitting the Revival against Bobby Roode and Chad Gable, as well as Ricochet and Aleister Black. Ricochet was playing the underdog throughout the match, while Black got the hot tags. At one point, Gable hit the O’Connor Role onto Black, only for Wilder to hit a frog splash, and then Ricochet hit a frog splash of his own for a near fall. Ricochet also hit a huge suicide dive over the corner of the ring, into Roode. The Revival then hit the shatter machine for the win. After the match, Roode with the Glorious DDT, Black hit the Black Mass, and then Ricochet hit a Michinoku Driver and then the 630 Senton.

Grade: B-. A bit disappointing, but I think that they could be saving it for Wrestlemania. Still a decent match, fun spots. Ricochet was definitely the MVP of the match, flipping and selling all over the place.

Now for the recently booked US Championship match, we had Samoa Joe, Rey Mysterio, Andrade and R-Truth. There was one point where Andrade caught Mysterio in a chokehold, and Truth clotheslined him, driving Mysterio’s head into the floor. Mysterio then reversed a powerslam from Joe into a tornado DDT. He even it a doomsday hurricanrana onto Andrade off the shoulders of R-Truth. Zelina Vega and Carmella attacked each other on the outside, and Joe used the distraction to get off a powerslam for a near fall. Rey hit the 619 on Joe, but he missed the splash, and Joe locked him in the Coquina Clutch for the win.

Grade: B+. The match was quick paced, with huge moves throughout and always something happening. Mysterio and Andrade did awesome work throughout the match, both selling and striking. R-Truth looked awesome too, and Joe got a strong win.

In the first defense of the Women’s Tag Team Championships, the Boss n’ Hug Connection took on Tamina and Nia Jax. They quickly established that Jax and Tamina were stronger. The match was quite boring, but there were a few cool double team moves from Bayley and Banks. Bayley picked up the win with a hurricanrana into a pin. The heels continued the match at the of the match, until Beth Phoenix stepped in and fought back. She too got beat up, eating a leg drop in the middle of the ring. Natalya came out to protect Phoenix, but ate a superkick for that.

Grade: C. I really wasn’t into the match itself, but the return of Beth Phoenix is so cool, that I am into it. Probably a Wrestlemania match springing from this. So the post match beatdown was super fun, but the match itself sucked.

Then we had the WWE Championship match, Daniel Bryan vs. Kevin Owens vs. a returning Mustafa Ali. Both faces teamed up on Bryan, but the alliance quickly devolved. At one point, Bryan hit a huge running dropkick to Ali, knocking him off the top rope and into the barricade. As the match progressed, Owens got more and more frustrated, acting more aggressive as the match went on. Ali then hit Owens with a reverse rana, and then hit Bryan with a Spanish Fly, but Bryan rolled out. Ali then went for the 054 on Owens, but Owens dodged and hit a stunner (apperently a new finisher), but Bryan broke it up. Even a pop up powerbomb to Bryan couldn’t seal the deal. Ali hit Bryan with an 054 on the apron, but when he went for the pin, Rowan pulled him out and joined the battle. Rowan was hit by two superkicks from both Owens and Ali, as well as a hurricanrana from Ali and a scary suicide dive from Owens. Ali then hit a huge tornado DDT from the top rope to the outside to Bryan. Owens hit Ali with a pop up powerbomb into the ring post, but Rowan threw Owens into the barricades, allowing Bryan a near fall, only for a two count. Ali and Bryan exchanged strikes in the middle of the ring, but when Ali went for a splash out of the corner, Bryan intercepted with the running knee for the win. After the match, Rowan hit his weird head slam thing on Ali.

Grade: A. An awesome triple threat that really saved a mostly mediocre card. Everyone played their roles in the match (even Rowan), and anyone of them could’ve won. Lots of awesome near falls, lots of huge spots. Scary stuff, and great work from all of them. I can’t even pick an MVP, because they were all essential to this match. Great stuff to everyone.

Now, a match that everyone wanted to see, we had Becky Lynch vs. Charlotte Flair. If Becky wins, then she gets inserted into the Raw Women’s Championship match at Wrestlemania. In the early part of the match, Flair was just toying with Lynch, and mocking her for her knee injury. Flair targeted the knee throughout the match, both in legal and illegal ways. Flair was in control, until Lynch pushed Flair off the top rope into the outside, barely making it back into the ring. When she made it into the ring, Lynch locked in the Disamher, but Charlotte reversed it into the the figure four. At that moment, Ronda Rousey stormed to the ring and attacked Lynch. Lynch then won by disqualification.

Grade: B+. Entertaining match. Lynch’s desperation really showed through, and so did Flair’s viciousness. I think that Rousey’s interfering makes sense for her character, as she said that she wanted Lynch at mania. Plus, she is that cocky that she thinks she can beat two people at Wrestlemania. Charlotte seemed pissed, because she is a smarmy heel. While Becky was thrilled, because she took relatively little punishment for a DQ win.

So, during another one of Elias’s concerts, Lacey Evans did a catwalk, and then Randy Orton hit an RKO out of nowhere, and then AJ Styles hit Orton with a Phenomenal Forearm. It was all as confusing as it sounds in writing.

Then, in a surprising main event, we had the reformed Shield up against Heel inc. (Corbin, McIntyre, and Lashley) Before the match started, the Shield cleared the heels out of the ring, but quickly organized into an actual match. The Shield hit all of their double and triple team moves. Dean had a cool spot where he hit an elbow drop off of the corner post to McIntyre on the outside. Rollins and Ambrose hit their stereo suicide dives. Roman went for his as well, but was intercepted with a deep six for a near fall. it got to the point where Rollins and Ambrose brawled with McIntyre and Lashley, while Roman and Corbin fought in the ring. Seth took out McIntyre and Lashley with a crossbody off of a balcony in the crowd. Corbin hit the End of Days on Roman, but Rollins and Ambrose broke it up at the very last second. The heels were gonna go for the triple powerbomb on through a table, but again Rollins and Ambrose saved them. The Shield then hit triple powerbombs to McIntyre through a table. In the ring, the Shield surrounded the ring, with Ambrose hitting the Dirty Deeds and then the Shield hit the triple powerbomb for the win. The show closed with the fist bump, for what commentary claimed was the last time.

Grade: B+. Exciting match for sure. Really picked up at the end there too. The final minutes were absolutely awesome. A fitting 6-man tag to end the Shield’s tenure in WWE. Part of me still thinks that Brock may get a triple powerbomb at Wrestlemania, but we will see.

Overall Grade: B-

Pros: Shane O’mac heel turn, US Fatal 4-way, Beth Phoenix returns, WWE Championship, Lynch vs. Flair, 6-man tag

Cons: Pre-show match, Smackdown Women’s Championship, Women’s tag team championship, disappointing Raw Tag Team Championship

[aphorisnt]

Padawan Ben Continuation Part 10 (End)

You read that right; this is indeed finally the end! Holy shit this has been a wild ride and I’m still kind of in shock that I managed to complete all this abd actually posted it and that so many of you folks actually read and liked it!!

So part 10 is actually 2 parts, what was the rest of part 9 (I split it because 3k is a lot to read in a tumblr post) and an epilogue. I’m not 100% sure I like the epilogue but I’ve looked at it for I don’t know how long and fixing it would entail doubling or tripling the length which would take another few days and I kinda want to get this out now (maybe I’ll rewrite it or make the long version in the future, I dunno).

Huge thank you and endless love and appreciation to @swpromptsandasks​, the one who started it all!! (I know I said most of this already in an ask I sent you but I’m gonna say it again.) Without you none of this would exist and I just can’t thank you enough for the opportunity to finish this fic. Also, without you spreading the word and reblogging, none of the people reading this now would’ve even found it in the first place, so in the end I owe every single like, reblog, reply, ask, and new follower I’ve gotten to you. That support just means so incredibly much to me and I wish I had better words than just “thank you” to express my gratitude.

Another huge thank you to anyone and everyone who has read along with me as I’ve posted this thing!! I can’t put into words how much your support means to me as a beginning fic writer and just in general. I always got so nervous right before posting, just wondering if what I was writing would be even remotely ok, but the overwhelming positive response made everything worth it and it’s thanks to you folks that I’m feeling a tiny bit more confident in my writing. And if any of you have any feedback you want to give or comments you want to make

Thank you everyone who has joined me on this adventure and I hope I do the ending justice!!

(Part 1/Part 2/Part 3/Part 4/Part 5/Part 6/Part 7/Part 8/Part 9)

It started with a small twitch of fingers, the movement barely perceptible and small enough that Anakin might have missed it completely if it weren’t for the accompanying soft nudge he felt through the Force. His eyes snapped open as he pulled himself out of his meditation.

Ben was starting to wake.

Fingers twitched in his hand again, this time stronger and Anakin felt hope begin to swell. He kept his eyes glued to that copper-framed face looking for the slightest flicker of eyelids and listened for any change in the man’s breathing.

“Ben?” he calls gently. “Ben, wake up, it’s me.”

Ben’s eyes stayed shut but this time his face twitched along with his fingers before stilling. Anakin called again, this time a bit louder.

“Ben, it’s me, Anakin, your husband. Can you hear me? Ben, if you can hear me I need you to open your eyes.”

He gently squeezed the other hand in his and reached out with his free hand to stroke his husband’s hair.

Ben’s breathing picked up a bit, his heart rate climbing ever so slightly. He was coming back, surfacing from his long sleep. Anakin could feel it.

“Yes, Ben, I’m here, I’m here. I just need you to come back to me, open your eyes and come back to me.” Reaching out to his husband through the Force, Anakin said, “I love you, Ben. I’m here for you, I’m waiting for you; come on, just open your eyes, even just a crack. Just come back to me.”

“Slowly, with near painful effort, Ben’s eyes blinked open.

“Anakin?” he tried to say, throat dry and voice rough from disuse.

“Ben!” Anakin yelled in sheer joy, nearly launching himself at the other man in his excitement but catching himself just in time. Instead he moved his chair that much closer and leaned over so he could look into Ben’s eyes.

“Oh, Ben,” he said as tears pricked his eyes. “You’re ok.”

He bent forward and pressed a gentle kiss to his husband’s forehead, then pulled back, a huge grin stretching across his face.

“What happened?” Ben asked.

“That’s a long story,” Anakin replied, wiping his eyes. “But it doesn’t matter, the important thing is you’re safe now.

“Water?” Ben asked, unable to say more than a few words at a time.

“Oh, yeah, of course, let me get you some to drink.”

He grabbed the cup of water off of the small bedside table, placing a straw through the lid and handing it to Ben.

“Here, let me help you sit up,” he offered.

He used his arm you pull Ben up to an almost sitting position, supporting Ben who gratefully drained the entire cup. Anakin took the cup back, replacing it on the table, then helped Ben to lie back down.

“Better?” he asked.

“A bit,” Ben answered, voice still rough.

Anakin regained his seat, taking Ben’s hand back in his and returned to carding fingers through Ben’s hair.

“I love you so much,” he whispered reverently.

“Love you,” Ben said back.

Master Che chose that moment to walk into the room.

“Ben!” she exclaimed. “Well aren’t you a sight for sore eyes. You look to be doing better. How are you feeling?”

“Tired,” Ben replied.

“After all you’ve been through I would imagine so. Well you can get back to sleep in a bit, but first I need to run some tests and do some labs. If you like, Skywalker here can keep you company,” she said with a grin.

Ben nodded, a smile stretching across his face, and gripped Anakin’s hand that much tighter.

While Che checked him over, Anakin took the opportunity to fill him in on the events of the past several months: Ben falling into a coma, getting kidnapped from the Halls, Palpatine revealing himself and the subsequent battle, the second shorter battle with Ventress in the Works, the chips, and everything else up to that moment. Throughout the whole retelling Anakin kept Ben’s hand in his, only releasing it when he needed to move out of Che’s way.

“But now you’re back and you’re safe and you’re ok,” he reiterated as much for Ben as for himself and squeezed his husband’s hand. Ben just smiled.

All right,” Che said. “I’m all finished. So far you seem to be healing quite nicely. The bacta is doing its job though there may still be a small scar at the incision site and your heart and lungs sound good. You did lose a significant amount of weight during your convalescence and we’ll work on putting that back on you as you recover. We’ll start slow, liquids only, and then we’ll steadily bump you up toward the high calorie diet you’ll need. You’re also pretty dehydrated right now, but between the IV drip and just drinking enough glasses we should be able to solve that quickly. You also spent a few days in a Force suppression collar while with Ventress, so if the Force feels a little hard to reach, that’s why, but your Force sense should return to normal in a few days.

“Now,” she said, voice turning stern. “You are going to be on strict bed rest for a while. That means no getting up or walking around except to use the refresher, and even then I want you to get someone to help you for at least today and tomorrow. I don’t care how good you think you’re feeling or how recovered you think you are, you are not to get out of this bed until I say so. Is that clear?”

Ben made a face, hating being stuck in the halls, but he acquiesced. “Fine. No moving.”

“Don’t worry, Master Che, I’ll make sure Ben follows your instructions to the letter.”

Ben narrowed his eyes at Anakin, unhappy at this betrayal, but Anakin just smiled back.

“That’s what I was counting on,” Che said.

“Well, that’s all I have for now until we process these labs. Remember: you,” she said pointing at Ben. “Bed rest. And you,” she turned to Anakin who grimaced. “You can visit a while longer but then you need sleep. Don’t make me hit you with a sedative. Now, if you’ll excuse me.”

With that she swept out of the room.

Ben turned to Anakin, narrowing his eyes again. “Sleep?”

Anakin smiled sheepishly. “I know, I know, I’m sorry, just I was too worried about you to sleep. I know I need to take care of myself, and I will, but later.”

“No, we’ll sleep now.”

“We?” Anakin asked.

Ben nodded and pulled Anakin’s hand, inviting him up into the bed. Anakin gently helped Ben shuffle over and climbed into the space on the bed before pulling Ben to lie against his chest.

“I love you so much,” Anakin said, pressing a kiss to the top of Ben’s head.

“Love you,” Ben said back, voice tired and eyes already drooping.

Anakin wrapped his arms tighter around Ben holding his husband close, and the two quickly drifted off to sleep.

Epilogue

“Sure, you are that want this, you do?”

Anakin and a fully recovered Ben stood hand in hand before the full Council, every one of the Masters present. It had been one year since Palpatine had died, the Sith dying with him. A full year since the end of the Clone Wars and peace was restored to the galaxy. A full year since saving Ben.

While his recovery had been long and arduous, Ben had since gained back most of the weight and muscle he had lost, was performing katas and sparring at near his former ability, and was one check-up with the healers away from being put back on active duty.

Or he would have been.

“We’re sure, Master,” Ben said, smiling at the diminutive green Jedi. We have thought long and hard on this, have spent much time meditating and discussing, and I believe we are following the will of the Force.”

He squeezed Anakin’s hand and Anakin shot him a quick smile before turning back to face the Masters.

“ We both agree that this is what’s right for us,” Anakin added. “It’s what we want and what we need. I talked it over with Master Jinn as well and he supports us in this. We’ve made our decision.”

The Council members looked at them with expressions ranging from gentle smiles of encouragement to outright sneering disgust. Not that it mattered to Anakin anymore; he was done caring about what the council thought.

Yoda just gazed at them both, face sad for a moment, before a tiny smile broke out.

“Understand and respect your choices, I do, and wish you well.”

“Thank you, Master Yoda,” they both said in unison.

“Well then,” Mace said. “Let it be recorded that on this day, Knight Anakin Skywalker and Padawa–“

“Wait a moment, you will,” Yoda interrupted, holding up one hand. “Other business we must attend to first. Ben,” he beckoned to his Padawan. “Step forward please.”

Ben looked confused for a moment but did as asked, walking closer to the front of the room and standing in front of his Master. Yoda stood up from his chair and walked to meet him.

“Kneel, you will,” Yoda said.

Ben again followed instructions and dropped to one knee.

“Ben, a wonderful Padawan you have been. Learned much you have; an accomplished Jedi and good man you have become. Proud I am to have been your Master. Many trials this year, you endured, and faced them all you did, mastered them. For that, upon you I bestow the title of Jedi Knight.”

Yoda stepped forward and, in one quick motion, ignited his lightsaber and severed Ben’s padawan braid. He then pressed the braided strands into his apprentice’s–now former apprentice’s–hand.

Ben just stared at him in shock. “Master?” he asked.

“Deserve this, you do,” Yoda said. “And forever acknowledged your skills and efforts will be.

A wide grin stretched across Ben’s face and he leaned forward, wrapping his arms around the Master in a tight hug.

“Thank you,” he whispered, tears pricking his eyes. “For everything.”

They broke the embrace but before Yoda could return to his seat Ben caught him by the arm.

“Wait, Master, I want you to have this.” He pressed the braid into Yoda’s hand and closed three clawed fingers around it.

“Thank you, Padawan,” he replied with a smile, and before Ben could interrupt he said, “because to me, my Padawan you will always be.”

Ben stood back up and returned to his place next to Anakin, who quickly pulled him into a tight hug.

“All right,” Mace said. “Then let it be recorded that on this day, Knight Anakin Skywalker and Knight Ben have chosen to step away from the Order and live their lives as private citizens. From this moment on they are no longer a part of the Jedi Order.”

Anakin grinned, the smile stretching wide across his face. It was over; they had done it. He and Ben were free to live their lives however they chose, together forever as husbands.

“Thank you,” Anakin said, bowing in once last show of Jedi decorum. He decided he could give the council that much.

Ben followed his lead, bowing as well, and the two walked forward to hand over their lightsabers but Mace just shook his head.

“Keep them,” he said. “You’ve earned them.”

With one final glance back, Ben and Anakin rejoined hands and turned to walk out of the council chambers for the last time. Anakin wasn’t sure how he felt. There was joy at finally leaving the order and escaping the council’s judgment, but also sadness and a little fear at leaving the life he’d spent so long building. One look at Ben, however, and everything but overwhelming love faded away.

“So,” he said, still smiling. “What would you like to do on our first day as not Jedi?”

“I don’t know,” Ben answered. “But I don’t really care as long as it’s with you.”

Anakin leaned over and kissed his husband’s cheek. The two of them continued on their way, walking out the main Temple entrance, down the stairs, and into their new lives.