#you can tell who's death i care about the most

[idontcare4urmom]

wrong || matt sturniolo

stepbrother!matt x fem!reader

summary: where your dad found a new woman on his life after one year of your mom's death,so you are forced to live all together after a lot of pressure,but what you didn't know yet is that her son is a total temping being that will send you over the edge..in many ways.

warnings: smuttt,unprotected sex,not proofread,porn with plot,dirty talk,eating out,pet-names,suggestive,scratching,tits sucking,etc.

a/n: my first language is not English,this sure has some grammar or other errors so i am sorry<3

."🎀".

"what the fuck you mean we have to move in with her?" you were basically shouting on your dad,and you weren't sure if you were more annoyed at the fact that he had moved on so far already or cause he didn't even cared to ask you if you acknowledge with it.

"i told you too many times that this is a very big and important step to me honey,besides her place is absolutely flawless,you will love it" his words only made you angrier,but you decided not to push it anymore since you knew deep down it would be waste of time,he had made his decision.

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the days passed quickly,and you found yourself holding your suitcase in front of a captivating building that would change a part of your life for many years,at least your dad did not lie,it was trully more than luxurious,so with a deep sigh you walked until the doorway with him,your anxious levels on high.

after a few knocks the door opened to reveal a surprisingly tall,appealing woman standing there,with brunette silky highlights and a pretty good enough shaped body,the sight made you furrow although you could tell why your father had fallen for her.you were caught off guard when you were the one she even pulled into an embrace first and seemed in general eager to meet you.

"oh sweetie your dad has told me many things about you,i am Lana,come in,come in" you didn't had much time to process because she was pushing your hand gently inside,your eyes widening as you took in the house with your eyes,it was for sure bringing vibes of a cozy,modern place.

you didn't want to be in your normal pissy mood for the reason that she was treating you politely for now,so you made a small comment "wow,the decoration is really nice"

"oh thank you,i want you to be comfortable and feel welcomed here,you can go check the guest room that will be your own,is down the hall,if you need any help just call out my name" you nodded a little and began making your way towards the apparently new space you will probably spend most of the day at.

but,without realizing a sudden unrecognized human figure appeared in front of you while making it's way to another room,making you leave a small yelp from your lips "who are you?"

the blye eyed boy raised an eyebrow once he heard the question,letting a sarcastic laugh as he spoke "very ironic for someone to ask when they are the one in my house" oh? well he had sure attitude for the few seconds you had met him. you were about to say something in response even so he continued, a sheepish grin forming on his lips when he examined your presence through his dark eyelashes "wait..you must be my stepsister"

"huh?" was the only word you could express,you were incredibly confused--who was he? "i am Lana's son, Matt,no one informed you about me?" it was like he was able to read your thoughts,it only creeped you out more.

"no..my father must forgot to announce your existence to me" the words snarked out of your tongue as you were trying hard to act sassy,but for a disguise,cause shit the more you were observeting him the more perfect he got.

he had the necessary amount of beard to sense in case he ever trailed kisses down your body,his blue orbs seemed like they could stare deep into your soul yet in a enjoyable way,and hell those fingers were too distracting for no reason,especially with those silver rings that were practically begging for attention.just any of his facial features were ideal--however you weren't supposed to fall for him,it would be wrong.

you snapped out of your thoughts when there was a sound of a familiar voice snapping across the end of the hall,approaching the both of you excitedly,even though she was addresing specifically to you "i see you guys met,sorry darlin' i forgot to have a quick chat with you about that i have a kid..anyway he may be a pain sometimes but i am sure you will get along well with him"

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two weeks have passed,and she was completely wrong.every day the urge of smashing a bottle on top of his head is only increasing,he would suddenly barg into your bedroom searching for his own belongings,asserting that he often lost things by accident since he is being here from time to time--why? his set-up pc is on your area for years now.

despite that,his own bedroom is just a few steps away from yours,you have been struggling with sleeping peacefully cause he would blast music on his speaker at 2-3 am,you are almost confirmed that he must be doing it on purpose--and it doesn't end here,there is worse.

you are aware of a guy having 'needs' so the occasional echo of moaning could be heard to you from the thin paper walls,you swear that it's music to your ears and you feel like your mind is sabotaging you.he is annoying,that though didn't stopped you from having a weird desire rising in you for him,a pang on your chest with guilt for possessing the most unholy fantasizes whenever he would roam around in just a pair of sweatpants.

with all this being said,you produced a baffling bond with Matt,signs showing that he is on the same page as you,which leads you to today.laying down on your bed with your phone on your hands,stressfully ignoring his presence a few meters away.him entirely concentrated on his screen computer playing--God knows what--video games,with the controller on his hands.the silense more than unbearable.

you were determined to prove to yourself that maybe you can spend some time with him,you took advantage of him not wearing any headphones and lightly tapped his shoulder,pointing towards the black console afterwards "can i try?" you anticipated for his response,silently hoping that he doesn't mind.

Matt was kind of surpised by your request,nevertheless he had finished the round so he nodded "umh..sure" he slid off from the gaming chair while handing you the controller,your fingers barely brushing with his yet enough to make your head spinning.

you rested your body on the mesh fabric as he sat on the bed,and with a glance of the buttons you were clueless of the task in hand,not having any idea on how to participate in the online game.luckily,he noticed the confused look written on your face so he came next to you and started to make a fast learning lesson,

he taught you how to jump,how to run,how to kill,and other features you require to have in case of a proper match.as he did so,you caught him taking a few glimpses of your chest--it's not like he could help it,your crop top was exposing a certain amount of your cleavage,making it hard for him to focus.

a devilish smile curled to your face when you noticed,feeling bold enough to adjust down the shirt such as leaving only your breasts covered--matt could feel his heart beat raising,the temperature of the room turning thick once he stopped talking.

"can you show me how to jump again? i don't think i get it" you spoke,a hint of suggestiveness leaking from your tone--and he didn't want more than just to devour you right there, your father and his mother had left for shopping,so you were both totally alone which sent shivers down your back,

the tension bloomed into a insufferable feeling between the two of you,causing your breath to hitch around your throat,especially when you felt his fingers starting to touch yours fully in attempt to answer your previous 'request'.a hushed gasp breaking out from you when there was a unexpected hand gesture tracing your thigh in a agonizingly pace--screw this.

with a smooth shift of your face and waist you palmed his cheeks,bringing his lips to yours into a fiery dance.he didn't hesitate to shove his tongue in your mouth,impatiently exploring your taste before nipping down your bottom lip,eliciting a moan from you that get's shallowed against him,

the sound you made vibrated through matt's whole body,landing directly straight to his core and he could feel his jeans growing tight around his crotch,he didn't ever remembered himself getting hard from just a making out session--he craved more,he needed more,and so did you.

his hands started travelling their way to your stomach,crawling upwards until he squeezed your nipples over the fabric of your top and reaching to lift it up, "is this okay?" you nodded desperately at the question,he didn't wasted time by taking it off over your head,unclasping with one motion your bra afterwards to shower your bare chest with open-mouthed kisses,

your hums of approval soon turned into whimpers when he wrapped his mouth on the flesh of your left breast,swirling his tongue around it while his hand pinched the other between his free fingers,he repeated his actions by giving the same treatment to your right one after.

with a loud pop he pulled away,slowly reaching under the gaming chair so he is on his knees,his eye pupils half-lidded and fluttering over your face before he yanks off your shorts with panties,exposing your already wet dripping pussy to his hungry gaze,

"fuck you are soaked,how long have you been dreaming this? have you been waiting for me to finally pleasure you sweetheart?" you could him mutter cooing through gritted teeth,licking at your thighs in a intractable speed as he itches towards the arching spot in between your legs,lavishing his attention there as he made a long stripe up on your clit,making you buck your hips against his face shamelessly,

your nails found his hair,gripping and tugging on it for support,dragging a hiss from his mouth as he began to lap on your juices like you were his last meal,you started riding his face while whining pathetically,the obsence resounds filling the room as he continued to satisfy you.

his index finger rubbed your entrance,letting you shaking for more and barely hearing his gagged whispers "you taste so fucking amazing,such an intoxicating cunt",your lower abdomen started quivering into the familiar knot,reminding you of your approaching release,making you clench uncontrollably around his mouth,

"come on,finish all over face baby" matt sneered out when he sucked on robs of your pre-cum, your lips forming a perfect 'o' shape in the same time you swirled your digits on his roots so his head is forced to be still there,with a long pornographic moan you erupted,spurting thick,white jets that made your legs glistening.

after pulling away he swooped you into his arms,carrying you bridal-style on the mattress of the bed,him laying down firstly before grasping your sides stronly,helping you to be on top of him as he guided your hips so you can push against his clothed erection,the sensation maddening for the both of you.

your still sensitive heat grinded back and forth,feeling his cock poking under you so your hands progress to tug the zipper of his jeans down,sliding them down along with his boxers to his ankles in a way of exposing his throbbing tip,you usually didn't liked how dicks looked but matt's was different; a needy tenderness to have it deep inside you,he adjusted with ease the head down your folds,and with no doubt you sinked down on his length.

a unbidden squeal slipped from you as he grunted repeatedly,his grunts turned into loud groans of pure filthiness as soon as you started bouncing yourself,your tight walls squelching him, sending him closer to the edge even though it hadn't passed a minute of you riding him,his back arching forward which gave you the opportunity of scratching down the skin of his behind shoulders,

"such a good girl,fucking yourself on your stepbrother's cock, such a whore f'me" his words actually made you feel pitiful yet encouraging your movements to speed up their pace,his hips thrusting up to meet yours so he can pound into your hole frequently, "c-close" you panted out,your second orgasm increasing through you as your walls clinged around him,the actions driving matt insane "going to fill you up,do you want that? do you want me to cum inside you?"

you miserably sobbed in bliss and let a ''hphm'' of approval,before you knew it matt had busted,his climax exploding extremely hard into your pussy,following suit after him with your head throwed back and stopping after a minute so you can pull yourself out of him,both of you being a panting mess,

"that was incredible" "i am never letting you to even enter my room again"

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evelyn speaks!! thank you so much for 250 followers jixijcmjg,my last post with Matt got more than 800 notes likeee insane,thank you ALL for the support it means everything xoxo🤍🤍

tags! @writtensturn @pixiespax @verywonderlandpolice @itsnotmariahh @user9383738392 @monroesturnns @badussybumper @nwlluvsturnsstars17 @shadowthesim

[simplymarge1974]

Everyone should read this ❤️

The telephone rang. It was a call from his mother. He answered it and his mother told him, "Mr. Belser died last night. The funeral is Wednesday."

Memories flashed through his mind like an old newsreel as he sat quietly remembering his childhood days.

"Jack, did you hear me?"

"Oh, sorry, Mom. Yes, I heard you. It's been so long since I thought of him. I'm sorry, but I honestly thought he died years ago," Jack said.

"Well, he didn't forget you. Every time I saw him he'd ask how you were doing. He'd reminisce about the many days you spent over 'his side of the fence' as he put it," Mom told him.

"I loved that old house he lived in," Jack said.

"You know, Jack, after your father died, Mr. Belser stepped in to make sure you had a man's influence in your life," she said.

"He's the one who taught me carpentry," he said. "I wouldn't be in this business if it weren't for him. He spent a lot of time teaching me things he thought were important. Mom, I'll be there for the funeral," Jack said.

As busy as he was, he kept his word. Jack caught the next flight to his hometown. Mr. Belser's funeral was small and uneventful. He had no children of his own, and most of his relatives had passed away.

The night before he had to return home, Jack and his Mom stopped by to see the old house next door one more time. Standing in the doorway, Jack paused for a moment. It was like crossing over into another dimension, a leap through space and time. The house was exactly as he remembered.

Every step held memories. Every picture, every piece of furniture...Jack stopped suddenly...

"What'swrong, Jack?" his Mom asked.

"The box is gone," he said.

"What box?" Mom asked.

"There was a small gold box that he kept locked on top of his desk. I must have asked him a thousand times what was inside. All he'd ever tell me was 'the thing I value most,'" Jack said.

It was gone. Everything about the house was exactly how Jack remembered it, except for the box. He figured someone from the Belser family had taken it.

"Now I'll never know what was so valuable to him," Jack said.

"I better get some sleep. I have an early flight home, Mom."

It had been about two weeks since Mr. Belser died. Returning home from work one day Jack discovered a note in his mailbox. "Signature required on a package. No one at home. Please stop by the main post office within the next three days," the note read.

Early the next day Jack went to the post office and retrieved the package. The small box was old and looked like it had been mailed a hundred years ago. The handwriting was difficult to read, but the return address caught his attention.

"Mr. Harold Belser" it read.

Jack took the box out to his car and ripped open the package. There inside was the gold box and an envelope.

Jack's hands shook as he read the note inside.

"Upon my death, please forward this box and its contents to Jack Bennett. It's the thing I valued most in my life." A small key was taped to the letter. His heart racing, as tears filled his eyes, Jack carefully unlocked the box. There inside he found a beautiful gold pocket watch.

Running his fingers slowly over the finely etched casing, he unlatched the cover. Inside he found these words engraved: "Jack, Thanks for your time! -- Harold Belser."

"The thing he valued most was my time!"

Jack held the watch for a few minutes, then called his office and cleared his appointments for the next two days.*

"Why?" Janet, his assistant asked.

"I need some time to spend with the people I love and say I care for," he said. "Oh, by the way, Janet, thanks for your time!"

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away."

Think about this. You may not realize it, but it's 100 percent true.

1. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.

2. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if they don't like you.

3. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you before they go to sleep.

4. You mean the world to someone.

5. If not for you, someone may not be living.

6. You are special and unique.

7. Have trust sooner or later you will get what you wish for or something better.

8. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good can still come from it.

9. When you think the world has turned its back on you, take a hard look: you most likely turned your back on the world and the people who love and care for you.

10. Someone that you don't even know exists loves you.

11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget about the rude remarks.

12. Always tell someone how you feel about them; you will feel much better when they know and you'll both be happy.

13. If you have a great friend, take the time to let them know that they are great.

To everyone who is reading this just now....

*"Thanks for your time."

[iliveforyouilongforyouvesuvia]

Royal!MC x body guard!Muriel? Maybe some mini hcs thank you

The Arcana Drabbles: Bodyguard!Muriel and Royalty!MC

~ I'm embarrassed to say that this ran away with me and turned into a small fic XD ~

Muriel is always at your back.

He used to be terrifying to you. When your trusted advisor first brought him to your throne room, nearly seven feet tall and scowling out at the world from under a dark curtain of hair, you idly wondered if this was going to be the most obvious assassination attempt yet.

You quickly lost that impression when, later that night, you woke up to the sight of his large fist bleeding from the hand, wrist, and knife engulfed by it as it hovered several feet from your bed. While he was quick to prove his loyalty and prowess, it was weeks before you heard him speak.

He quickly become known as your shadow. Wherever you went, he was just behind you, adeptly concealing the aura of his presence as you went about your daily tasks, until you found yourself facing down another dangerous challenge and it blanketed you with the weight of a mountain. He refused to sleep in the room provided for him and instead dozed sitting down at your door.

The first time he speaks to you, it nearly makes you jump out of your skin. Up until that point, your many thanks after multiple rescues had been met with a nod of acknowledgement, which is why hearing his gravelly rumble of a voice as you walk through the castle's grounds is so unexpected. He has a favor to ask.

"Ask me anything," you tell him, "and if it's within my power, it will be yours."

"Thank you." He pauses, appearing flustered for the first time after weeks of steel composure through death threats and abduction attempts. "I'd like ... a room."

You look at him in confusion. "You have a room. I was told you refuse to use it and sleep on your cloak at my door instead."

"Not ... not for me."

"Oh." You pause and wrack your brain for any mentions of a family or friend, but when he first came to you it was as a prisoner of war who'd requested capture from the general commanding him. If he had anyone, he had cut ties with them when he changed sides. "Who would you like to use your room?"

His eyes widen. "She - she doesn't need a room that nice, she'll be fine in the stables - or on my cloak -"

Ah. He must have met a pretty maid, though you have no idea where he had the time to do that when he's never left your sight. "I'm sure your girlfriend would like a little more privacy than that -"

"N-not a girlfriend!"

"Oh." Is he a father? "Your daughter, then?"

"A wolf."

"A wolf?!"

"Yes." His usually stoic expression has come to life by the sheer power of what appears to be severe social anxiety. He shifts from one foot to the other, wringing his large hands, throat working as his eyes dart from your face to the grass as he tries to get his next sentence out. "She - she cared for me, while I was a prisoner, and she followed me even though I told her not to."

"Oh." You pause to mull it over. "Is she ... safe?"

"She won't bite anyone unless they deserve it."

Fair enough. "What's her name?"

"I call her Inanna."

"Very well." You have no idea what you've just agreed to, but it's the only thing he's ever asked of you and you owe him your life on multiple counts. "Can I meet her?"

"This way."

And his chatty, anxious mood disappears as he leads the way out of the castle grounds to the edge of the forest nearby. The large, shaggy wolf you meet there submits herself begrudgingly to the bath you require and soon develops the habit of sleeping on your feet at the foot of your bed, much to Muriel's chagrin.

"She's not supposed to bother you."

"I'm not bothered," you tell him, "if anything, I feel safer with her at my side."

It's only thanks to months of eating, walking, and living by his side that you're able to understand the flush that slowly spreads over his face as he looks at you, and Inanna, and your bed built for more than one person. You wonder how to approach this in a way that won't make him spontaneously combust.

"The floor must not be very comfortable ... is your bed not to your liking?"

He clears his throat and stares determinedly at the wall. "... s'comfortable. But not good for keeping watch."

"Would you be comfortable keeping watch from in here? I can have a second bed brought in."

He stares at you wide-eyed, before dropping his gaze and nodding slowly. "That ... that would be nice." He fumbles with the straps of his leather chest plate. "... Thank you."

There's a moment of silence while he looks around the room and you begin to realize that, while he's agreed to sleep in your room, you won't have a second bed ready in time for tonight. Inanna looks between the two of you with the closest thing you've ever seen to a smirk on her furry face.

"Since there isn't a second bed for you tonight, you're welcome to sleep in mine. There's plenty of space."

"I couldn't - I'm just - and you're -"

"It's fine." You send him what you hope is a reassuring smile. "But please, only do what you're comfortable with."

He studies your face, looks back at the floor outside the door, and then scowls at Inanna as she rolls onto her side and languidly stretches across the plush covers of your bed with a happy loll of her tongue. "I ... thank you. Excuse me. I should bathe."

The night is uneventful beyond the sparklers sizzling away in the back of your mind every time he shifts in his sleep. He dozes silently as close to the other edge of the bed as possible, his weight dipping the mattress so you have to fight not to roll down against his side. The steady heat of his body radiates across under the covers and the stretch of his sleep shirt as his shoulders rise and fall with even, deep breaths is mesmerizing.

Inanna watches you knowingly the whole way through that sleepless night.

The next afternoon, you watch as the castle carpenter carries and reassembles Muriel's bed into your room and silently lament the task needing less than a day.

You quickly grow closer after that. First, it's noticing the way he painstakingly mends the single dark-green embroidered shirt you first saw him arrive in, and quietly sending for a tailor to dress him in the castle's colors. Then, it's trying not to gawk as he faces away from you in the candlelight to change behind the screen in the corner (which is blessedly only tall enough to reach his abdomen). You glimpse the intricate web of scars across his shoulders and bite back your questions about them in favor of insisting he get a regular check up with the castle physician.

Some time later, you catch him frowning into one of your mirrors, and can't contain your curiosity any more.

"What's troubling you?"

"N-nothing."

He steps away from his reflection, Inanna watching him go with an unreadable expression. You've learned from experience that watching him quietly is the best way to hear the rest of his thoughts.

"... I haven't looked at my face in - a while."

"You're welcome to look more often," and then before you lose your courage, "it's a very nice face."

You favorite shade of red blooms across his nose and cheeks, practically sprinting down his neck as he frowns at a grinning Inanna. "How would you know? You can't see it past all this hair."

You hum. "I've just remembered that my hairdresser is scheduled to come today, but I'll be too busy reading the council's latest legislative initiatives. Would you be willing to let them practice on you?"

Now the scowl is directed at you specifically, his vivid green eyes meeting yours with a boldness and familiarity that have slowly grown as each day goes by. "... fine."

You swear you hear the wolf snicker.

It's no surprise to you when the gossip around him changes. First, he was your shadow, then, he was your undefeatable guard, and as it became a year of his station, he's become the cold-hearted but loyal commoner who keeps rejecting your increasingly obvious crush. He's not cold-hearted, you think to yourself, he's just convinced I can do better and too shy to let me tell him otherwise.

One night, in a fit of desperation, you send him out with the excuse that Inanna is in immediate need of an evening walk, and begin hacking away at the legs of your bed with the saw you borrowed from the carpenter's shed while his back was turned. Since sleeping in your own bed has become so restless, you think, maybe with a happy accident he'll let you sleep in his.

"What are you doing? You'll hurt yourself!"

Muriel's at your side in a matter of seconds, kneeling over you where you're crouched on the floor, and prying the saw out of your quickly blistering hands. You turn to look at him in shock.

"I thought you were outside!"

And clearly, he was. His cloak still smells like nighttime grass and dew and the fresh air clings to his braided back hair. You, meanwhile, are beginning to feel like a childish idiot as you shrink under him in your sleepshirt and slippers. He huffs a sigh that almost sounds fond.

"What were you doing?"

"I was -" God, how do you even explain this? "I was trying to saw the legs off my bed."

He stares at you in disbelief. "Why?"

You borrow his own stubborn, blushing attitude, snapping your mouth shut and hoping word of your behavior never reaches the court. Your protector sighs and reaches for your hands.

"Are you hurt?"

"N-no."

Your hands are cradled in his palms, one large thumb brushing over the blisters with the gentleness of a butterfly.

"Why do you want all the legs off of your bed?"

"Not all the legs," you grumble, "just two of them."

He blinks at you. "But then you couldn't use it."

The moment of silence stretches and fills until the whole room smothers you with the weight of your embarrassment. You watch with dread as the pieces click together in Muriel's mind, and then with the usual fondness as his blush reaches from his ears past the shirt lacings on his chest.

"You ... did you want ..."

"I -" You steel your resolve. Better to have it all out in the open, after all. It was never right for you as his royalty to play mind games like this in the first place. "I don't care to sleep alone, any more. I don't want to sleep with my guard, either. I just ... want to share a bed with you."

There's another pause as you both avoid eye contact with each other - and the smug wolf effectively barricading the door in case either of you tries to escape. Finally, Muriel gently brushes you to the side and picks up the saw with a practiced grip, setting the other square hand on your bedframe before practically rattling it apart with the force of his work.

"Muriel?"

He grunts as the leg goes clattering to the floor, stubbornly avoiding your questioning (and delighted) gaze as he moves to the second corner.

"I did some woodwork, before the general took me."

The second leg rapidly follows the first and your bed falls to one side with a loud thud. Muriel slowly stands and turns to you, his face a combination of blushing excitement and anxious resolve. "Are your feet hurt, too?"

You glance from your blistered hands to your undisturbed slippers to the pile of sawdust on the floor and back to your beloved. "And if I say they do?"

He steps closer. "Then you shouldn't be walking."

He leans down, reaching behind your knees and shoulders at the slowest possible pace so you have plenty of opportunity to back out. You don't, meeting his gaze with a quiet smile, and he picks you up and holds you to his chest as he cradles you the few long strides to his bed in the opposite corner.

You find yourself settled gently on his bed, the smell of myrrh rising around you as he draws his sheets over you. Instead of getting in next to you, though, he grabs his sleep shirt and begins to head towards the door. You sit back up in a moment of panicked worry.

"Where are you going?"

"To the showers," he pauses at the door, "and then ... wherever you want me."

[piratecaptainscaptainpirates]

I think one of the things I most appreciate about OFMD is how it invites us to engage with it on its own terms, and doesn't bother with the things it's just not concerned with.

There's much to be said about the Cinema Sins effect in how people engage with media, and in how creatives will obsess over resolving "plot holes" and subverting audience expectations at the expense of good storytelling. I'm thinking about this today because I recently finished the new season of Doctor Who, and as a lifelong Doctor Who fan, I had a lovely time. It was often very campy and earnest and a bit overly-contrived in the way good sci-fi often is, and it had a core of emotional poignancy that really carried it and made the finale feel satisfying and worthwhile. And when I came on here and checked the tags to see what people were saying, I just kept rolling my eyes over how much of the discussion centered around plot holes and sci-fi science and the like when I just don't think the show was very concerned about that. Of course, people are free to engage with television in whatever way they like, but I do think there's a trend of of over-analyzing small and relatively unimportant elements instead of considering how the story works as a cohesive whole.

And I've been thinking about how there are so many criticisms and snarky pieces about the ending of The Last of Us video game which hinge around how the medical contrivance that makes the dilemma at the end possible is not realistic, and it always frustrated me deeply because who cares? It's not there to be realistic, it's there to force the protagonist to make a difficult choice between saving one person and saving a world which we've seen through the game is very often cruel. It forces us to ask if this world we've been exploring is worth saving at all. And I've been thinking about the famous "why didn't the eagles take the ring" nitpick of The Lord of the Rings -

And the obvious answer, to all of these things - why didn't the Doctor think of this solution before now, why did the writers not care about medical realism, why did the eagles not take the ring to Mordor...it's because they just fucking didn't, because that would fuck up the story they were trying to tell. But we do live in a media landscape that often seems to value these kinds of nitpicky things over good storytelling.

To me, that's a huge part of what makes OFMD so refreshing. It's entirely uninterested with allowing realism to come at the expense of the story, because it knows it's there to tell us a good fucking story. How does everyone find each other on dinghies in the middle of the ocean? How did Stede find the crew at the start of s2? How is Ed up and walking after being beaten to death? How is it you can survive a stab wound to the left side? Because that's how things work in this story, move along.

At the core of OFMD, there's this strong beautiful story about how the things we're taught about being a man are wrong, about the saving power of queer love and queer community, and the writers are just very uninterested in allowing that story to become compromised by nitpicking realism. OFMD revels in being anachronistic and doesn't mind that it's not reaistic, because it cares so deeply about portraying human emotions and relationships realistically. That's part of how it works so well. This show is unflinching and earnest and always commits 100% to what it's trying to do, and I just really appreciate that.

[savagewildnerness]

OK, Here we go: S2E7 - I could not prevent it:

SPOILERS

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...

Random train-of-thought thoughts...

The thing that I find most difficult is that in the books you know nobody deserves death & you know when characters are justified or not justified in their actions or inactions.  But on the TV show I just feel increasingly all-at-sea, especially regarding Lestat seeing as we haven’t had any thing from his own perspective yet and it is just A Lot.

For example, in the books, Lestat does not deserve to die, but Claudia is 100% justified in murdering him… but Louis’ inaction is not entirely justifiable, though it’s understandable and Louis’ passivity and his regret at this is the hinge of the entire novel!  You can understand why Louis has anger towards Lestat and Lestat towards Louis and you understand that the love is more powerful and they always both loved each other.

And you know what characters want: Book-Armand wants Claudia dead from the first second he sees her; Armand & Lestat both want Louis alive more than any thing & Lestat doesn’t want Claudia to die, though if it were the only way to spare Louis he’d do any thing.  And book-Lestat is in an incredibly fragile place both mentally and physically even BEFORE he arrives in Paris.  Book-Lestat literally couldn’t have done the trial the way we saw in E7.

But in the show, all the stuff around memories mean it’s unclear exactly what anyone wants or deserves or is justified or not in in many cases. And sometimes it’s opposite.  Lestat truly does deserve death in the show to a degree he doesn’t in the book at all, which is SUCH a huge alteration.  If you haven’t read the books I can’t articulate the difference it makes.  The fact that Lestat has done absolutely nothing to deserve death in the book HANGS OVER all of the pages where Lestat is not present.  It hangs over Louis and obviously it hangs over the trial!  Louis isn’t thinking about Lestat all the time in the book because he knows he loves him anyway despite everything as Louis hasn’t realised that yet and is only starting to realise it.  He just knows he feels some thing and he knows Lestat was wronged and he misses him.

On the TV show I find it unclear whether Armand actively wants Claudia dead and if so, why?  Or to what degree he needs it?  I can see Lestat doesn’t want to be at the trial, but it isn’t clear whether he could not bear to see Louis die from this episode.  Santiago, confusingly seems to care more about killing Claudia than Louis which makes zero sense…. And I don’t understand the why of everyone.  The clearest character is Madeleine, who simply loves Claudia & that’s it. 

I hope it can all become clearer, but I don’t feel 1 episode is enough for that…?

More notes:

Anyone know what Santiago says to Madeleine?  Clearly hypnotising her, but what does he say?  And why is she hypnotised.  Just because she is irrelevant, so to keep her quiet?

Why would Santiago want to torture Claudia pre-trial more than Louis?  He absolutely despises Louis more!  So it doesn’t make sense to me why it’s Claudia who’d be put in the rat box?

“With additions made by The Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt” added to the play script.  How is this achieved?  Lestat’s telling?  Invading Lestat’s mind?

Incredible acting by everyone

Why did Santiago just go with the audience’s decision for banishment?  

Some kind of DreamStat in Dubai?  It felt that way…

Let’s talk Lestat:

I had expected something similar to Armand’s E3 story-Lestat: a very twisted version so was pleased this episode isn’t that.  Lestat sometimes seems very much his real-self… and at other times he seems like he does’t know what he’s doing… but the times he is his real-self, why doesn’t he scream about the fact that Louis is about to be condemned to death here!?!?!  I mean…. It is exquisite the way Lestat first looks at Louis, with no mercy… then turns away, a broken thing - the acting by Sam.... but like... is Armand in his head the entire time and we just don't know it yet? Some of it must be from Lestat's own volition or he would not be able to go off-script the way he does. The trial feels very different to the books.

It’s an odd mix of what seems very true and what seems total lies - there’s enough of real-Lestat that it feels real a lot of the time, but then it’s a weird mix of sincerity and insincerity crushed against each other and it’s hard to feel from when you can’t entirely tell the boundaries of this…

Lestat’s first speech is obviously scripted and it feels like Lestat is on autopilot almost.  When he says “It’s a story of love, not butchery” I already can’t tell if that’s scripted or if it’s Lestat going off-script?  BUT pointing out Armand’s influence on Nicolas’ death must surely be off-script?

After the “Come to me” bit, where Lestat displaces what he did onto Louis, which is clearly a (scripted) lie Lestat tells, we see Armand looking some way, then Lestat sits & looks exhausted/devastated… I wonder if Armand is mind controlling Lestat there to get him to say that? But it’s very confusing as at other times Lestat is clearly sincere & even goes off-script to be sincere, so it is quite confusing what we are/are not supposed to question…. I also noticed Sam mouths the words of Lestat’s Nicolas story along with Lestat speaking that, so he must have written that part of the script….

Obviously the take down of the homophobic soldier was incredibly satisfying…

I am reminded of when Claudia said the best lies contain truth, but it’s a lot.

At least Daniel knows Armand isn’t telling every thing truthfully…

So!  Let’s get to my least favourite thing - The Drop.  I believe the drop happened after this episode.  I do not see any way it didn’t.  The fight was pretty much as I expected inside.  Though Louis said crueller words than I expected, I guess.

But it seems to me the writers have decided to lessen Lestat’s responsibility in making Claudia, but to up his wronging of Louis - Louis who Lestat NEVER WRONGED!

While in themselves, these changes could be perceived as minor, the impact they have on the characters is massive.

As I say, I do believe the drop happened now.  That off-script apology - I do not see it being taken back or not being real.  That definitely wasn’t Armand making Lestat say that on stage, and in Paris Armand’s book-canon Lestat-drop wouldn’t have happened yet.  The whole feeling of it felt 100% real and a genuine apology.  It is what it is, but for me in terms of the writing it is 100% a mistake because it is a misunderstanding of the essence of Lestat.  Lestat would not do that to Louis.  Specifically, to Louis.  I cannot say it is in any way even in the spirit of Lestat.  And it seems very odd the show is including it because actually they’re emphasising the relationships more than the books so it matters even more in my opinion!  But, I accept that Lestat dropped Louis on the show.  I see no alternative scenario.  The implications of it will carry through Loustat’s entire relationship though and I do not like it.  The ending of Queen of the Damned, if they go with it as written will be SO different in feel as well, which even though that is so far away, makes me sad to even imagine how different it must feel already.

I get why there is an alteration with Claudia due to her being very different from in the books… but in the end I feel this episode should have been all about Claudia and I didn’t think that much about her or feel that much from her because there was so much else I was trying to work out, I suppose?  The biggest feeling was Madeleine choosing her, which was beautiful.  But not big enough.  Claudia deserved more.

Preview for next episode shows Louis seeing Lestat locked up AFTER the trial and with the fire gift, presumably going to kill him.  At first I was panicked that Lestat would *only* be seen locked up after the trial (and I am sure that’s what Armand will tell Louis), but we saw Lestat in that trailer in a different outfit, so we must see him pre-trial locked up too.

Yeah… my brain feels fried.  I did think Lestat would be painted more-the-villain than he was.  But the way things were it feels very confusing.  I couldn’t even guess what percentage of that trial was exactly as it happened and what percentage not…

But anyway, the episode was beautifully acted...

[faellain]

The Accidental Baby Trap Incident

Summary: About four years after the events of First Class, Erik arrives at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters with two little twins who he didn't know existed. Thinking he doesn't know what to do, he runs to Charles, not knowing the state his old friend is in.

Snippet 2

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they head to the study in stark silence. the mansion is eerie covered in cobwebs and without noise. sean's laughter wasn't echoing in the halls. there was no thudding of alex with a punching bag. no raven to whisper the secrets of this old house. no surprised yelps from hank as he dealt with some miscalculation or another in his lab. no moira fussing nearby. just creaks and the whistling wind keeps them company. he doubts even the kitchen feels the same.

the study is in even more disarray than the rest of the house. charles' precious books, always stacked precariously high ("i will get to them at some point, erik."), have been shoved off, laying in a heap on the floor. other books from the shelves have been left in messy piles around the room. little statuettes lay covered in dust.

charles goes straight to the cabinet he kept, taking out two wide glasses. he pours one for himself and downs it like a shot. it is nothing erik hasn't seen before. charles was always an impressive drinker— one night he and alex had gone toe to toe on tequila shots. yet now he only gets a terrible sinking feeling, like when he had tried to hold on to shaw's submarine the night they met.

after he smacks down the glass, he pours them both a drink. from the bottle, erik can tell it is a decadent bourbon. he sets the glass down for erik and plops himself down on the couch.

"you could have told me you were coming."

"and have you leave?" asks erik, picking up the glass, "in truth, i panicked. when i realized i had two twins with mutant abilities. i didn't know where else to go."

"you? panic?" charles asks with no small amount of skepticism.

erik sighs heavily, taking a sip from his glass, "believe it or not it can happen. i don't have the helmet. look into my mind. you'll see nothing but the truth."

"i can't."

erik pauses, looking up at the telepath from where he is tiredly leaning, "you can't?"

charles frowns, downs his drink, gets up and grabs the entire bottle of bourbon. he pours himself another glass before setting it down between them, the liquor sloshing around like liquid bronze. erik finds his heart pounding in his chest. charles made no move to explain himself.

"…did you lose your powers somehow?"

charles downs another half of his drink and erik wants to slap it from his hand.

"hank uses a serum to control his transformation. i use it to numb the pain in my spine, but it costs me most of my power," charles explains, "but in this state i have the ability solely to use telepathy on my own body."

"you gave up your powers so you could walk?"

charles chokes on a broken laugh, "i gave up my power so i could sleep." he tries to cut himself off on the last word, it becoming nothing more than a whisper.

downs the drink. pours another.

"the school is closed. i can't help your twins."

"charles. i don't know how to take care of children," erik insists.

"so you want me to take care of them for you?" he snaps, "i'm in no state to care for children."

"clearly," erik finally acknowledges it, "you aren't caring for yourself. why?"

as soon as he says it, he regrets it. betrayal and anger streak across charles' face. he tosses the drink at erik, soaking him in the thick bourbon until he smells as as bad as charles' breath.

"fuck off," charles hisses, "get out of my house."

he gets up fiercely, letting the glass roll along the carpet, forgotten. charles throws open the door to the study. erik only has moments to grab charles by the wrist to drag him back.

"let go of me!"

erik pulls him close, staring at the death of those crystalline eyes. they are drained of their life. he is staring at a phantom of his closest friend.

"what has happened to you?"

charles actually laughs, loud and broken, "you."

"i regret what happened to you. i would do anything to undo it," erik said, not trying to plead, just trying to be honest.

"this has nothing to do with that."

"i don't understand!" snaps erik, growing frustrated, "if you don't forgive me, fine, but—"

"you abandoned me!" charles practically roars, "you took her and you abandoned me!"

"and where have you been?!" erik grabs him by both shoulders, metal knick knacks flying, the house's metal shaking, "our people are being hunted and you abandoned us! to what? give up everything?"

how can he describe that riptide is missing? he is not someone that charles knew beyond a name. all he had been to charles was an enemy. erik had sent him on a mission to investigate any hidden mutants in the government when he'd disappeared overnight.

while he was the only member of erik's brotherhood that had gone missing, emma had found that he was hardly the only one that had gone MIA since their reveal on the beach.

and through it all charles was not at his side. a hole was left next to erik, one mystique could not fill in the way it needed to be. they both knew it. they were not the merging labyrinth he and charles made. mystique was an excellent right hand, but she was not charles.

"we were supposed to do this together," charles replies.

"you gave that up. you chose to side with them."

charles' nose wrinkles as he glares, cruel, mirthless smile breaking through his face, "you didn't leave me a choice."

"there is always a choice," erik huffs.

"not with you," charles replies, "you accept your way or nothing. which means i'll be strong armed into caring for your children while you run off elsewhere."

"i'm worried about my children's safety with me but i don't want to abandon them."

charles shoves him away, "but you will won't you?" his voice is tired and cruel, "just like everyone else who loves you."

erik stands stunned while charles storms off. never in his life had he heard such cruelty from charles. it was as bad as a knife to his heart. there was something broken in his charles. the brilliant man he knew was fading into a monster.

he goes to the kitchen where the kids are enjoying a feast of milk and chocolate chip cookies. briefly, erik wonders if magda had them eating kosher, realizing he doesn't know. they're old enough to tell him or hank. he can question them on it later.

hank looks up at erik, "didn't go well?"

"an understatement."

hank sighs as he pulls over a washrag and hands it to pietro who's fingers are a chocolate mess, "i'll set you guys up in some rooms."

"charles made it pretty clear i'm unwanted," erik replies ruefully.

"but your kids need this place," hank says and picks up a cookie, "these were snickerdoodle when i bought them."

"wanda," erik sighs. does his daughter have one power or many?

"i wanted chocolate chip!"

pietro and wanda are borderline conjoined at the hip so erik and hank set them up in the room next to the one erik plans to take. the one charles had given to him before. variously through the sleepless night, he hears shuffling around the house. part of him is tempted to get up and stop whatever charles is doing, but he can't bring himself to.

does he abandon all the people who ever loved him?

erik rolls over, hand clutching the pillow. part of him can't help but think of charles' study, trashed to high heaven. he knows he should sleep, but instead he gets up and traipses to the study.

the rest of his night is spent putting the books and knick knacks back into some semblance of order. he cleans the used glasses and puts the liquor away. part of him is tempted to crunch the handles to destroy any access to it, but he's already made himself unwelcome. the last thing he wants is to jeopardize his children's ability to stay here.

eventually, he crawls back into bed only for pietro to join him a few minutes later. he puts an arm around the boy, who is trying not to sniffle.

"nightmare?"

"you weren't here earlier. i thought you left us," pietro admits bitterly.

erik feels part of his heart break, "i will never leave you. i promise."

"don't make promises you can't keep."

"i don't."

pietro burrows his head into erik's chest, "the drunk guy said you left him."

erik sighs, "so you were running to eavesdrop every time hank's back was turned?"

"maybe," the little speedster mutters.

erik presses a kiss to his head. he is only guessing at what he's supposed to be doing. he is all these two darling children have in the world now. the only thing he can hope is to show them the same love his own parents had given to him. whether that love remained inside his jaded heart or just in the confines of his feeble memories remains to be seen.

"i'll let it slide this once, but it's impolite."

"you sound like mom."

"good," erik replies with no amount of amusement.

"…you left her too."

erik runs a hand over his son's head, letting the soft white hair muss beneath his fingers, "your mother and i parted…" amicably would be the wrong word, "understanding each other. charles and i— that was different. and you and wanda? you are my children. had i known you existed nothing would have kept me from you."

pietro snorts dismissively, "yeah, right."

erik sighs, "believe me or not, it's your choice." this boy is smart mouthed and too witty for his own good, but he is far more jaded than he lets on as well. life has already hurt him so he has clearly decided to hurt life back. such a young fighter… erik's heart aches.

[rebelumbrella46]

HOTD 2X02 "Rhaenyra The Cruel" Thoughts!

Green Side:

Aegon: Tom's performance as Aegon was exceptional, allowing me to sympathize with his character throughout the episode. I could deeply feel Aegon's pain and rage, especially in moments where he needed comfort and was denied. Alicent’s inability to provide motherly solace was striking; even Cersei, in all her madness, was a more nurturing mother. Aegon's inadequacies as a king are clear—he’s young and impulsive. One of the episode's standout scenes is Otto reprimanding him, realizing the monumental mistake he made in thinking Aegon could be controlled. Aegon will never be as pliable as Viserys. This parallels the frustration Daemon feels with Rhaenyra, who, ironically, exhibits the patience and indecision that mirror her father.

Otto: Otto is a character I love to hate, and the actor’s portrayal this episode was a highlight for me. His regret and frustration with Aegon’s choices were palpable, showing that karma is catching up to him. I also appreciated the subtle grief Otto displayed when speaking of Viserys, indicating a complex mix of respect and genuine care despite his actions. The scene where he dismisses Alicent’s attempt to seek solace was particularly telling—it highlighted a pattern where comfort is consistently denied, first to Alicent and then by her to Aegon.

Alicent: Alicent was insufferable this episode; I found it impossible to empathize with her. She continually makes the situation about herself, oblivious to her children’s suffering and unable to provide them with any comfort. As someone who has read the books and knows how her story ends, all i can say is that the Gods for more cruel that they are, wouldn't take it out on an innocent child for the crimes you have committed and in the end the punishment would be ten times worst.. a very fitting end if they decide to go for it.

Aemond: Aemond had a brief but significant moment where he confessed his feelings over the incident with Luke. This scene showed a level of remorse that sets him apart from Daemon, particularly in this episode. Aemond’s awareness of the pain his actions cause to others and the brewing rivalry between him and Daemon were well portrayed.

Helaena: Helaena, my poor sweet child, continues to be a character I deeply care for. She doesn’t seem to appreciate the public’s sympathy, as if she knows the whole situation is wrong. And knows these people could so easily turn on her, i'm pretty sure she saw it even. The citizens of King’s Landing have long been depicted as some of the most unsavory characters in the history of Westeros. Their actions and attitudes throughout the series often highlight their fickle and ruthless nature. This is why, every time I recall Daenerys burning the city, I find it difficult to muster any sympathy for them.

The brief encounter on the stairs, where Aegon denies her comfort, reinforces the pattern of emotional neglect seen throughout the episode.

Criston Cole: I have to give immense credit to the writers for their incredible work in depicting Criston Cole. With each episode, my hatred for this character grows exponentially. Kudos to the actor as well, who is doing a marvelous job. But honestly, every time Cole appears on screen, all I can think is: "How much longer until this guy meets his end? Hopefully, it's a very horrible one.". His manipulation of Arryk, sending him to his death, was disgusting.

What’s even more infuriating is Cole's blatant hypocrisy. He projects his own shame and regret onto others, acting as if he's on some moral high ground. His self-righteousness is maddening, especially given his own shady actions. I found myself wishing Otto would expose him in front of Aegon—reveal how, while Aegon's child was being murdered, Cole was with Alicent, another person whose hypocrisy drives me mad. (Like Aerys "the Mad King" kind of mad, wanting to see them both burn)

Despite showing guilt for his actions, he repeatedly makes the same mistakes. The only moment Alicent gained a bit of my appreciation was when she reminded Cole of his betrayal of Rhaenyra’s trust for his absolution last season.

i truly don't want to see anymore of Alicent and Cole intimate scenes.

The decision to name Cole as Hand of the King is a boon for Team Black, as he is likely to make poor decisions and counsel Aegon poorly, ultimately working in their favor.

Black Side:

Rhaenyra standing up to Daemon was a powerful moment. Their confrontation, though painful to watch, was necessary. Daemon’s actions have deeply wounded Rhaenyra, and his lack of remorse is entirely in character. His abrupt departure leaves Rhaenyra in a position where, despite knowing he loves her, she can no longer trust that he will remain by her side.

I'm interested to see what his reaction will be next episode when he finds out that Rhaenyra was almost killed on her bed right after he left her to deal with the consequences of his actions.

Rhaenyra’s concern and regret for Helaena were touching. I believe she would welcome Helaena if she ever chose to leave the Greens. However, I was uneasy about Rhaenyra sending Baela instead of Jace. While I understand her reluctance to risk her heir after losing a child, it felt dismissive of Baela's well-being, who we have to remember is still Rhaenyra's step-daughter.

Baela and Jace: The brief scene where Baela confesses her occasional hatred for Daemon was surprising but added depth to her character. Jace reminiscing about Harwin and Laenor was a nice touch, evoking memories of characters I miss, including Luke.

Rhaenys: As always, Rhaenys remains my favorite character on Team Black. Her knowing look at Daemon, recognizing that only he could have orchestrated such actions, was telling. The quiet moment between Rhaenys and Corlys, reflecting their mutual support despite not being Queen and King, contrasted sharply with the dysfunctional relationships of Viserys and Aemma, Viserys and Alicent, and even Rhaenyra and Daemon.

Mysaria: Mysaria was another highlight for me. Her decision to speak truth to Rhaenyra and return her kindness by saving her life suggests a budding alliance. Rhaenyra needs someone as cunning and insightful as Mysaria to advise her.

The Twins - Arryk and Erryk: The twins' final fight was heartbreaking. Although I wish we had seen more of them this season, their confrontation poignantly illustrated the perils of war and how it harms even those not directly involved in the conflict.

I’m looking forward to seeing Daeron, who was finally mentioned. I can’t help but think he might be the only salvageable son of Alicent, likely because he grew up away from her and Otto’s influence. I’d love to see more of Rhaena and am eager to meet characters like Hugh Hammer and Adam. The brief return of Seasmoke was a pleasant surprise—I missed seeing him too!

Overall, this episode was much stronger than the last.

Rest in peace little Jaehaerys.

P.S: Don't think i didn't see Visenya's and Vhagar's mention this episode, on the book Rhaenyra opens. My favorite Conqueror and targaryen woman. I cannot wait for The Conquest Prequel. So excited

[theredkennedys]

my au my rules. this au is literally called Chucker Spiderverse AU in the archived discord thread so be warned oooOoOOoooOo . gay men OoooooOo

writing out the backstory that me and my friend Donut have been working on for the better part of a year, most of it was inspired by the new itsv movie that was released then. and because I don't plan on writing anything huge for this I'd like my brainstorming to have a wider audience.

All art posted is most likely @franklindonuts , aka Donut the cocreator of this shit,,,hey buddy😆 go show him some love pleeeease

you can see my art of this au here

this will 100% be somewhat incomprehensive but hey I'm just a fag having fun and I was born yesterday🧚‍♀️

**

Tucker is the spiderman in his universe with Church as his "guy in the chair". (Putting it out there that this Church is Alpha, which is significant later on.)

They both share an apartment, I don't think I ever specified why but probably for school reasons. They're both young adults, I want to say around 19-21, similar to their Blood Gulch years.

Tucker loves being spiderman. He loves helping people, being almost an idol for people- a lot of jokes were thrown around about that:

Imagine Tucker after he got his sword. He has a genuine purpose now and he's going to be good at it.

but goddd Tucker is Tucker and is stupid and reckless. being spiderman doesn't make him invincible but he loves to think otherwise. he pushes himself too far too often because he knows if he doesn't he wouldn't be able to sleep at night if someone got hurt when he was taking it "easy". Church knows this but he's still pissed off when Tucker comes back bloodied and bruised from a Villain of the Week that he shouldn't have taken on :/

(Donut art)

mental illness

It's literally just the Spiderman Effect. No one will Ever be able to understand what it's like to be spiderman but other spiders, regardless of how much you tell them or show them, they won't get it. and Church doesn't Get it. He's not stupid, he understands WiTh GrEaT PoWeR y'know but there's a mental toll that can't be communicated in a way that makes sense :/

regardless, Church hates it but he also hates how much he cares about Tucker. Cocreator said that he figured they were both close and willing to become A Thing but the time was never right, and Tucker was scared of liking a dude, etc. Normal stuff between these two. But they're insanely close, I'd like to think even moreso after Tucker's whole spiderman thing and the fact that Church also has to realize that Tucker is not invincible.

(despite them not being A Thing, Donut art of The Spiderman kiss and other gay shit)

Now this is the kicker of why I said to take note of the fact this is Alpha Church specifically.

Now I'm aware of the clowning on the whole "canon event" thing and some people's opinion on it (mostly that it's dumb and cliche), but I find it a very unique and convenient way to give a character a significant plot boost.

That being said, Tucker's "canon event" is Church's death.

I don't ever think I solidified how/why he dies, moreso that it's just a wrong-place wrong-time type of thing. Some brainstorming from Donut about it:

but i never asked him for elaboration so I don't know what the fuck he's talking about. anyway

Tucker finds Church similar to how Miles found Peter in the first Spiderverse movie. He doesn't know what to do. He's frantic and scared and horrified that his best friend is coughing up blood with raspy breaths.

(Alpha s10 parallel with tex lalalala)

Obviously. Obbbviousllyy Tucker is distraught and inconsolable. Something something he has the Worst depression of his life. He doesn't know what to do with himself, the one person who knew about everything is gone, and I'm sorry (not) lol but it's not like in rvb where Church revives 8 times before dying like a normal person.

Church was always there for Tucker and he's at a loss of what to do now because, despite the threat of it, he should've never died. It wasn't even a concern in his head ever because it seemed so unlikely.

Tucker doesn't know what to do with himself, he wouldn't have gotten this far without Church. But really, it was All Tucker. All Church did was give him little tech bits to help him function better but it was All Tucker. But he isn't able to realize that through everything and it ruins him.

I will have to make a continuation post because I love adding images and Just hit the mobile limit🧚‍♀️

thanks for reading if you got this far

[minimoefoe]

Rewatch Thoughts: Empire of Death

Looking back at it now, that final shot of The Legend of Ruby Sunday was actually crap bc the resolution is just.. Mel obviously just pulls the Doctor away lmao idk. I love the hype of those final couple minutes but it shoulda ended on literally anything else going on in that moment. Like ending it just close on the Doctor rather than with Susan leaning in woulda been better I think

‘The greatest monster I have ever fought’ feels very generous liike I know by name he is like he’s literally God of Death or whatever tf but idk about greatest ever icl

The idea of Sutekh clinging onto the TARDIS since Pyramids of Mars is actually very cool to me I’m just not sure it logistically actually works bc the TARDIS has been through absolute SHIT. I’m supposed to believe Sutekh just waited through/survived all of that? I GUESS

Also am not sure if Susan being in every place the TARDIS has landed and killing ppl actually works bc like. Surely if that’s the case then the time the Doctor etc are in rn wouldn't even exist bc the Earth was destroyed in 1539 or something yknow. Timey-wimey bs is defo not my strong suit so maybe it DOES make sense idfk

I also wonder about the Doctor being alive bc 14 is on Earth and presumably dead now so then how has 15 not faded out of existence or something like that

I thought after the first ep that Sutekh doesn’t seem like the kind of guy to set up a tech company or care about anagrams but like. I guess he is, I have bigger things to worry about than if that makes sense tbh

I’m not sure I think it anymore but for a minute I was thinking it woulda been kinda cool if Susan wasn’t just Susan and instead was named after everyone the Doctor has loved through their life and it just happened that the final one we see is called Susan (bc they obvs gotta do the anagram for the Sutekh reveal). Like maybe she was called Clara in one ep and Rose in another and Amy in another etc

‘One thing keeps living despite me’ ‘The Time Lord’ ‘No, greater than him’ makes no sense sorry, we know that woman is just some random 15yo and there is, when you really think about, NO REASON why her face is hidden like sure she has a cloak (which RTD has said in the commentary isn’t even a cloak and is actually just time shrouding her which is such bullshit), but I think you could see her face when she has a cloak on like. I feel like it wouldn’t be that hard actually if you THAT desperate and were a literal GOD

Skipped the spoon woman scene. BORING AF sorry

Someone pointed out that 15 has metal on him (his belt?) which I didn’t notice but it’s funny he doesn’t, as far as I can tell, have the ring Rogue gave him on, at least not in the spoon scene and right after it. Why?

Him being shady about Four and Sarah Jane is weird

Mel with 6’s outfit and 7’s vest she’s so cute

I can kinda believe that a guy (dog) who knows it all would go a bit mad when there’s one thing in the universe that he doesn’t know I’m just not sure that it fully makes sense that he couldn’t know and also the reveal being that she’s just some woman is really boring 

It would defo be better if there was some mention of the DNA testing thing in 73 Yards, make it seem more connected  

Sutekh saying he’s ‘waited for so long’ when Ruby is showing him that screen… is he talking about Ruby’s mum’s identity specifically bc surely he’s been waiting like a year at most which considering he’s been sat on the TARDIS for like a thousand years doing fuck all, a year is probably like a weekend for him. Or am I stupid?

What the hell does ‘she’s too cold’ mean?

Death plus death equals life.. I’m not fully convinced that makes any sense. Or that any of that time vortex stuff made sense but OKAY

I have so many issues with this ep that I don’t really have it in me to think about how dragging Sutekh through the time vortex when we know he’s managed to survive in there before doesn’t really work. I guess you can say he latched onto the TARDIS fast back in the day and that kept him alive whereas now he’s just being dragged along and isn’t be sustained by the TARDIS at all. Works for me whatever

Mrs Flood calling the Doctor ‘clever boy’ makes me think she’s old af like even if she physically looked 25 she would be talking to/about the Doctor as if he is a child yknow. Like how the confession dial woman in S9 spoke to 12 like he was young af even tho he visually and Actually wasn’t at all

‘And now I must become a monster’ you put a Goblin on a church spike in your first ep lad. ALSO I don’t think this is monster behaviour, it was defo deserved

‘I think UNIT can use you’ is Kate’s fave thing to say

She was important bc we think she’s important… an interesting idea I guess? but in this context it’s a piss take I think like it just does not land for me at all. A season of building up that Ruby and/or her mum are mysterious in some way only for RTD to turn around and be like ‘Well the only reason she was seemingly important is bc of all of you projecting the importance onto her’ bore tf off actually

What kind of freak points at a lamp post like that in the middle of the night when no one can even see it shut the fuck up

15 tryna convince Ruby not to go see her mum is.. Interesting? It must be his jealousy bc that’s kinda insane

I think Ruby’s ‘ending’ makes me sad for the Doctor more than anything else like him being left AGAIN while she gets to go basically live what he dreams of living, finding her family. It doesn’t make me sad bc I’m gonna miss her (and we know she’s coming back anyways lmao). I’m just happy for her and sad for him

Ruby calling her birth mum her 'real' mum is certainly a choice. Oomf said it was on purpose so we'll see if it actually goes anywhere I guess. I won't get my hopes up

I think I love that he doesn’t say I love you back like yeah he’s been far more open than maybe any Doctor but he does have his limits, especially in a moment where he’s feeling like shit

Kate and Ibrahim holding hands and looking lovingly at each other makes me feel a bit ill. I think some ppl have been a lil dramatic in response to it bc like. ultimately Kate has never been canonically anything sexuality-wise, and BF doesn’t ACTUALLY count for anything when it comes to the show and neither does the actor saying she has a lesbian Kate headcanon, so RTD can do what he wants but also yeah I do think Kate has lesbian vibes or at the very least has no business getting with this random UNIT solider out of nowhere. Strange choice

Don’t wanna get my hopes up for who Mrs Flood is bc I don’t want to be burned again but I fear I am intrigued

Overall, some fun bits, some absolute waffle. 3.5 stars for now. 3 potential if I’m in a bad mood the next time I watch it

[ludinusdaleth]

i need to preface this meta with a million versions of "i do not think ludinus is or ever will be a good person who deserves forgiveness or will have a happy ending", and it will take me a second to get to my perhaps bad point, but here we go:

as many (and myself) have noted, ludinus is blinded by his trauma. he cannot in any way shape or form see around it, and even though he is very wise, intelligent, and able to mediate almost any conflict of interest, he becomes childishly closed in when anyone challenges his idea, says that his crusade of warfare against the gods has hurt thousands of mortals. he is an active danger in his position of power by refusing to show care for anyone but himself, while convinced hes doing it for exandria.

i think this stems out of the fact that no one has ever been able to reach him in a way he craves. he can get validation of trauma from the vanguard, but he made them thralls to his ideas; do they really mean it or did he manipulate them into it? he obviously cant be validated in his grief by vasselheim and their stranglehold on calamity history, who think any heretic outside of their worship of warlords deserved their fate. and he cant find comfort in fellow calamity survivors, either due to not knowing they were alive (presumably devexian, alyxian), or being angered and in disbelief they chose to pursue religion despite their torture (leylas). because no one starts with the goalpost of saying his people didnt deserve their fate and that his anger is valid, he has been losing his mind with the belief he needs to forcibly show everyone what he experienced and for the world to see him as correct, after an eon of being the only one in his mind with a semblance of a correct pov.

which brings me to my point, which people will react badly to initially, but god, i need to say it aloud: the most important line he has ever said, which has rung in my head like a bell since last episode, is:

"Speak your mind, and I will speak mine. But all I ask is a moment. To show you."

ludinus has refused to entertain anyone else's pov as long as we have known him. fearne mouthing off at him one too many times about the vanguard caused his calm demeanor to snap in favor of him snarling at her about what he had seen in the calamity. he made his speech at the key as everyone there was actively trying to kill him. he never asked a soul for their input on what he was doing. not one ounce of him wants another perspective. and that isnt because hes scared of being called a tyrant. he tells exandria to "make me your villain", and there are so many moments of self hatred in his interactions with others i think he knows damn well what he is. no, hes terrified that someone will invalidate what he went through.

and he has asked the bells to witness the calamity's trauma firsthand, and to judge it and him freely. that is.... a massive change.

before you react, no. ludinus cant be fixed. no persuasion check in the world could convince him to forgive the gods and no one would ever allow him to walk with no consequences and start anew - as if his body wouldnt fall apart before that anyway. but the bells are at the only moment in history where ludinus is completely stuck between reality and his hero complex. almost nothing has gone his way and the world is rallying against him and evontra'vir itself said the bells were destined to defeat him and that is more preordained than the gods deaths and he knows he must teach them the truth but what if his methods were truly for nothing? he needs someone, anyone, to tell him something, to ground him. he will do his best to convince the bells of what he thinks. but he knows he has to leave a decision up to them. the next generation.

he didnt consider what they thought until now. isnt that a sobering thought for him.

and while they dont owe it to him, if the bells actually start the conversation by acknowledging what he went through? i think for the only time in exandrian history, the only moment that it will ever be feasible.... that you could move his second goalpost by starting at his first. those abused & grieving due to him will finally be able to say that to him, by sating the need hes had for 1000 years. and i think he will absolutely accept whatever else is thrown at him if it means someone listened. he will never give up on killing the pantheon. but i think this is the moment that will define whether he dies by the bells hands, or at the bells side against another system. this is the only time that his fate is in flux. and this is the only time this old dog can learn a new trick: that the role of parent can be guidance, and defense for the children you hurt. and acceptance that has been the parent, who must step up, now, or never again.

[dr-spencer-reids-queen]

The Eyes Have It: Part Two

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Female!Reader

Word Count: ~2.1k

Summary: Hotch is stepping down, giving Derek the opportunity to rise in his place. Derek wants to fight for you but is forced to deal with the case at hand. You, on the other hand, are forced to deal with the ugly side of prison.

Warnings: canon violence, canon language, canon talk of death, methods of kill

Season Five Masterlist

Author’s Note: I just want to remind everyone that I know this isn't what prisons are like in real life (I think). For the sake of the story, it's how this prison works.

I do not own anything from Criminal Minds. All credit goes to their respective owners. If there are any warnings that exceed the normal death/kills from the show, I will list them.

x

It's been two weeks since you first arrived and the feeling of fear and being overwhelmed hasn't gone away. You're falling apart and you can't tell anyone. You don't want to make Ashley uncomfortable so you haven't told her that you're a psychic. That kind of thing will get you isolated in here. That will make you a target in most people's eyes. All she knows is that you are an FBI Agent who was framed for murders you didn't commit, and that's all she's going to know about you.

You walk into the courtyard and look at everyone here. Every woman has done unspeakable crimes that some aren't remorseful about while others are just trying to keep their heads down. Some women are playing either basketball or volleyball, some of them are in the weight yard, some are sitting on the benches playing cards and trading packs of cigarettes, and others are by themselves just enjoying their own company.

The only person missing from the courtyard is Ashley. She told you she'd meet you here when she got done with her job in the laundry room. She has met you in the same spot since day one so it's concerning you that she isn't here. There are guards posted everywhere, so you approach the one whom you feel more at ease with. Her energy is calming compared to some of the other guards whose energies are more aggressive.

"Hi, can I use the bathroom?" you ask. "I really have to go."

You've been especially kind to her, so you're hoping she will allow you to do so without issue. She looks you up and down before nodding slightly. You smile at her and thank her as you pass by her. The prison has cameras everywhere and guards posted at every corner, so if she doesn't escort you to the bathroom, there are guards who are watching your every move.

You try not to piss off the guards you pass by as you look for your friend. All you need to do is find her energy and she'll be right there. The closer you get to the bathroom, the more her energy is apparent. You turn the corner into the bathroom and see her on the floor cowering in fear in front of a much larger woman than her. They are arguing; well, the larger woman is doing all the yelling. Ashley is just trying not to piss her off even more than she already is.

"I don't care who the fuck you are. If you ever come near me again, I'll do more than fucking hit you."

"Hey!" you shout, causing both women to look at you. "Leave her alone."

"Yeah? What are you gonna do about it if I don't?" You look at Ashley who is scared out of her mind. "That's what I thought."

She turns back to Ashley but you're not done with her. You're not scared of her but Ashley's fear is rolling onto you which makes you fearful of the woman.

"Back the hell off her. I won't ask again," you narrow your eyes.

The woman turns to face you again and is swift with her movements. She rears her fist back and sends a sharp right hook into your jaw. You crumble to the ground in pain and she laughs at you.

"Bitch."

The woman spits on the ground near you before leaving the bathroom. You take a minute to yourself before getting up. Ashley is in tears that you had to suffer at her hand but you wave it off.

"I am so sorry," Ashley cries.

"No, don't do that. This isn't the first beating I've taken in my life. It'll be okay," you sigh and help her up.

"You should get checked out by the doctor here."

"There's no point. I'm not injured enough for them to care about me. I'm okay. I promise."

There is going to be a nasty bruise on your face later but there is nothing you can do about that. You just have to shake it off as you do with everything else in your life. You're more worried about what your team will think if they see you like this.

They want to think about you. They want to do everything they can to help you but not when there is an active murder case going on. Another person has fallen victim to the unsub, this time in a public park. He's clearly not afraid of getting caught otherwise he would choose secluded spots to kill his victims. Plus, his next kill spot is far from the other ones, so why go out of his way to kill someone?

He only killed one person this time but it could have been more since it was a crowded park. Phil found a car parked nearby that belonged to the victim, Tracy Copper who was thirty-two. Her husband said she was an avid jogger which is how she found herself in the secluded parts of the park. She died from a single knife wound to the neck, and like the others, her eyes are missing. They were cut out perfectly like the other two female victims.

The unsub must have picked the place and waited for someone to come by. Tracy must have been the first person he knew he could overcome. The method of killing is similar to the two girls in the parking lot except that he was much quieter than before. If he had hidden in the park's trees, he would have made a lot more noise because of the dry brush.

Tracy was an avid jogger so if she had heard him, she could have easily outrun him, he must have used a different method to catch her off guard, right? Right. Not far from where her body was found, there is a tripwire he must have set up before. He used the tripwire to get her off her feet knowing she could have outrun him. Once she's fallen, she's stunned and doesn't have a lot of time to get away.

This kind of behavior paired with the fact that he bleeds her at the neck suggests the unsub is a game hunter and the game happens to be humans.

Spencer and JJ are the only ones at the police station while the rest are out visiting crime scenes, dumpsites, and talking to the ME. JJ calls Penelope to discuss the case, and she looks at Spencer who is picking at the edge of the desk absentmindedly.

"Hey, Garcia, we have the list of local doctors but we need to back it up one step. Give me a list of all doctors who've had infractions like malpractice suits."

"Got it. Bouncing your way."

"Narrow it down to eye specialists."

"That's still a lot of names."

"We'll chip away when we know more."

"Hey, wait. Before you hang up, how's my Morgan doing?"

"Fine."

"I know the man is fine. How's he holding up as head honcho?" Penelope chuckles.

"Well, he's stressed but he's on top of it. Speaking of which, there is something you could do for him," JJ smiles.

"Name it."

"You know Anderson's office?"

"Yeah."

"I say we make that his new office. He's one month before retiring, and I'm sure if you work your magic, then you might get him to work from home."

"I will indeed work my magic," she chuckles. "How are you doing, Spencer?"

"Fine."

He continues to stare at the desk and JJ sighs sadly.

"I bet Y/N is making friends with everyone there. You know how she always connects with people. I'm sure she's making the best out of a bad situation."

"Look, I appreciate you looking out for me, but I'm trying really hard not to think about it okay? Can we move on?"

"Yeah. Sorry." The rest of the team comes strolling in, and JJ sits up straighter. "Gotta go, Pen. Let me know what you find."

"Penelope out."

"How did it go?" JJ asks.

"About as well as you think it did. Hunting is a big part of this city's culture normally but with animals. What triggered him to start hunting humans?" Rossi asks. "This guy is taking people's eyes, so he's definitely disturbed. What bugs me is that people like this usually unravel and get sloppy. This guy is only getting better."

"Morgan, I'm fielding calls left and right here," JJ says. "The case made national news. They're starting to call him the Eye-Snatcher."

"Alright," Derek sighs, "you're gonna hold a small but controlled press conference. Answer their questions but try to squash that name. I want the people to be aware but I do not want to make a bogeyman out of this guy. You understand?"

"Yeah."

JJ looks like she wants to say something else but decides against it.

"Is there something else?"

"You're not answering Strauss' calls."

"She's just trying to keep tabs. She can wait."

"Morgan, maybe you should take the time to field the call," Hotch advises.

"Hotch, we have to set up a tip line. We have to go over JJ's talking points. We haven't gotten the profile out yet. All of that takes priority over dealing with Strauss."

"I understand all that. Let us help you set up a strategy while you talk to her. We'll regroup with you before we proceed. We have enough battles. Believe me, you don't want to fight her, too."

Derek sighs knowing Hotch is right. This is Derek's first case as team leader when Hotch has been doing it for years.

"Let me get this profile out, and then I'll go talk to Strauss."

Everyone goes their separate ways, leaving Hotch and Rossi alone in the conference room.

"He's doing a good job," Rossi says.

"I wanted it to be Y/N."

"I know."

"She did so well on those other cases that I sent in a letter about her leadership skills. Don't get me wrong, Morgan is a good choice for the position but I wanted it to be her. I'm doing everything I can for her but it kills me knowing she's in there. I'm already in enough trouble. I can't go back against Strauss' order and look into her case."

"I know. I understand. It's not a good situation to be in. You've got a tough job, Aaron."

"Yeah," he sighs.

"Have you thought about how this is going to end?"

"What do you mean?"

"Morgan as our unit chief is a temporary thing. He's a natural leader. He'll excel. What happens when he's asked to step down?"

"I can't think about that right now."

After gathering the facts about the case, the profile is ready to be given out. Everyone gathers at the front while Phil and his officers sit, ready to listen.

"We believe that our unsub may have known his first victim but the rest were random. Most enucleators have a mental disorder and are frenzied and sloppy when they attack. This one has more control."

"We are not calling him by any nickname. He is simply a murderer that the FBI is trying to apprehend," JJ says.

"He lays in wait to kill his victims and knows how to cut them so they bleed out. This indicates he might have a hunting background. We're urging citizens to be hypervigilant at night. He is killing in different areas of the city in public places. His large kill zone could be related to some type of travel pattern in his life which indicates a comfort with these neighborhoods."

"Why, all of a sudden, is he killing people every day?" an officer asks.

"The escalation might be caused by a self-imposed timeline. He has to murder so many people, take this many eyes as he can, to accomplish a task."

"So, he's crazy but has a mission?"

"Actually, yes. He's acting on a delusion that's fueling this murder spree. For example, a man named Herbert Mullin had a fear of a catastrophic earthquake hitting California. Now, he believed that by killing people and offering their blood as a sacrifice to the earth, he could prevent an earthquake. He was a paranoid schizophrenic and his delusion led him to kill thirteen people."

"What should we look for when we're on the streets?"

"We believe he's a white male between twenty-seven and thirty-five. We believe he is driving a van or a pickup truck with a removable cab. You know, something utilitarian that can get bloody and washed out easily. He may also have applied for hunting licenses. He has some sort of medical or surgical training but fell short of making a career out of it."

"He may have been in a halfway house or have been granted leave from a treatment facility. Maybe his family moved him away and now he's back. Our unsub kills at night, employs hunting tactics, and is patient. He will wait until he can be alone with his victims," Derek finishes the briefing.

x

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[thefirstknife]

Helloooo sorry this will be a long ask. So i was thinking about the spooky memory rooms the Witness shows us in the campaign (eg. the Ghost room, my personal favorite) and my mind landed on the Starhorse one. Even if you ignore the giant horse statue right in the middle, the room is obviously about Xûr and the Nine. There's a lot of scales buried with the gold and they all have the symbol of The Nine, which is just one of many examples. So i was wondering, do you think the Witness showed us a room entirely dedicated to that just because it's one of our many memories, or because maybe there's something more going on? Why would the Witness specifically make a room about the Nine when it could've picked so many other memories? It's not like we're super involved with The Nine, and Trials of the Nine was part of the 30th anniversary pack which is pretty much just a huge easter egg, so why specifically that? I've always wondered about potential Witness/Nine connections or involvements of the latters with our story (i once saw a video, i think it might've been Byf's? anyways, it said that The Nine were the ones who somewhat orchestrated Uldren's escape from the prison and also Cayde's death, as in it wasn't just a casualty). I think it could also be foreshadowing, because if you take that and the codename "Frontiers" for the next storylines then it gives me the idea that we'll venture out of Sol, and maybe run into the Nine? Or at least be more involved with them. They also had their whole plan revolving around Gambit, which I don't think we ever got a proper explanation for. How did Gambit help them? Since that scene where Orin tells Drifter to keep playing the game is also mentioned in the False Idols lore tab it HAS to be relevant for the near future. For my own sanity. Anyways I'd love to know your thoughts! Sorry again for the super long ask.

We don't currently know much about it, nope!

I personally don't think it has much to do with some new secrets of the Nine or the Nine being connected to the Witness. In my interpretation, the room with treasures, especially when paired with the Witness' dialogue, shows that the Witness doesn't truly understand us or what we do. It saw us enjoying loot and rewards and treasures (the Nine stuff probably serves as the most direct visual link to it; we literally go to a game show to receive outrageous amounts of loot) and it thinks that if it recreates that, we will join it.

It basically tried to tempt us with the same thing that we receive from other factions, thinking that we are in it for that and nothing more. It's desperation. I think the treasure room was supposed to just be symbolic and mimicking the easiest thing the Witness could copy, which was dares stuff (also a little bit of meta thinking, but they made those models for Xur's new space so they also put it there).

The Nine shouldn't really be connected to the Witness, generally speaking. I'm not sure about Uldren's escape, but it IS confirmed that one of the Nine participated in helping Ghaul take the Tower in the Red War, and it was punished for doing so. The Nine appear to have two factions; one that helps us (they send Xur and the Emissary) and wants to understand the Light, and another that is kinda... not really against us, but they don't really care about us.

I'm not sure about frontiers because from the little we understand about the Nine, they are tied to our solar system. Literally. They are a sort of sentient consciousnesses formed from dark matter and gravity of our planets; in a way, they ARE our planets. They depend on life in the system to also live; this is why one of the factions wants to be free of their dependence on living matter. This is also why one of the Nine who helped Ghaul was punished because if the system was destroyed, so too would they have been. This also implies that they would not want to be aligned with the Witness, especially with the Witness taking planets.

With Gambit, from what we can understand, they were involved in seeing us prepare to fight to defend the system in the future. Same with Prophecy dungeon. In both places they helped us understand Light and Dark, and to learn using them both to get stronger. Gambit was one of the first places that had us utilising Darkness abilities (experimenting with Taken stuff) to show us that there is no difference between Light and Dark fundamentally or morally, it's just about how we use it. The same was repeated in Prophecy. From what we can tell, the Nine are invested in seeing us win to keep protecting the system, which means protecting them. Though again, some among them would rather seek a way to free themselves from being dependent on us and organic matter.

But honestly, the story could take the Nine in any direction and find a way to explain it either way. They're a really bizarre concept. I do wonder if they're planning something in the future because they did drop the stuff about the Emissary a few times last year (if I remember correctly, there were at least 2 mentions in Season of the Deep) and now again with False Idols. In False Idols, it feels like it's mostly about just Drifter reminiscing about Orin, but all other mentions also focused on Orin before. Maybe some hints about us saving her in the future? It's possible!

[roomy-ghosted]

"You're Dead. And you just want everyone else to be." -Bizly, joking about William Wisp.

But what if, William was a premonition of death. And that statement, from the moment he thought it, held true.

just a drabble, a word vomit story kinda beat 'm tired. I've been thinking about this phrase Bizly said ever since he SAID it. Major character death throughout. Be warned.

You had woken up in the snow, crimson stained your snow-angel below you, bones were cracked out of place and legs hung limp. It was a shock to your system and you tried to gasp for air that at the time you were thought would help. Though trying to do something you can't was never going to work, whatever comforted you at the time helped. You'd dragged yourself onto your stomach, dragged the mangled corpse through the snow, tracked blood with every sweeping movement and groan you made. Of course, you didn't think you were dead, so you just kept moving, you were desperate to survive.

"Make sure to hop in the shower before dinner, William!" Your mother yelled up the stairs.

Your mother meant well but you'd sighed, clicking your crutches across the landing to the bathroom.

"William," Your father had said, "You smell awful, get some axe."

You'd brushed off your father's remark. He wasn't around enough for you to care.

"You smell like death, Will, take a shower." Your brother sneered at you one day.

Your brother was never around. His words meant nothing.

You left deadwood a few weeks later, the uptick in monster attacks were clearly your fault, you decided.

When you'd reached the edge of town, you were panting, eyesight darkening and world spinning. You coughed up some more blood as snowflakes landed on your nose, sitting and gathering upon impact. Your hair was dusted white with heavy powdered snow and you lay there, staring dead ahead at the battered path into town from the forest. It was night and the streetlamps were on, flickering with moths flitting around it. A groan came from you as you lurched further into town. Desperate for someone- anyone to find you at the time.

Years later you'd gotten onto the train with some friends, dressed up in gaudy purple costumes as a joke. It was nothing else but a joke at the time. Then the train got highjacked and a bullet had came barreling towards you.

If you were alive, you'd of felt bile burn at the back of your throat, threatening to come out. You'd of felt it spill past your warm lips and tumble down your crust pants, pooling in chunks at his body. And the smell of it would have made more come from your lips until it was nothing but flem and tears. Well, if you were alive, he wouldn't have been shot, you would have. But that was besides the point.

Because you're not alive. And you'd simply stood there. Lips cracked, lips blue and parted, staring down at his body as it fell. As if you were tangible you'd reached out for him, as if you could grasp his body and cushion his fall. You'd skidded to your knees with this, probably ripping some stitches in your pants as you came to his side.

Not the shoulder -like you'd thought initially- but the heart.

It was one of your friends who'd found you after hours. She liked walking out at night like this, umbrella in hands and thick boots clunking tracks in the snow. She was like you in a way, a social outcast. Her umbrella fell to her side when she found you though, black tights digging into the snow and knees becoming red and angry quickly. She'd tugged you to your feet, heaving you up as you cried out in agony, foggy breath mixing with hers and fading out together. She'd screamed and yelled for help. Thankfully there was a diner nearby that was open still and people came out to help. Deadwood was a tightly knit-community after all.

His smile was beautiful.

You'd always loved the way he smiled; the way he snorted when he laughed; the way his ears perked up when you called his name; the way he leaned his head atop of your own when the two of you were in deep though - he was beautiful and you were nothing. Perhaps your feelings were no more than puppy love but it was a helpless feeling that was making you feel more alive than any moment you'd ever felt in your life. He made you feel feelings you did and didn't want to all at once.

"You're real. I see you!"

His smile was beautiful,

even when your tears were fading through his face as he lay on the broken concreate, skull cracked open on the floor. Even when your friend was cradling his head, brushing his purple hair out of his eyes, violently sobbing. He was beautiful dead or alive and still it stung. It stung so so bad to lose someone again. And even thinking that he looked pretty in death sent shivers down your spine as you'd buried the thoughts.

Never again. You'd decided. You weren't going to lose your last friend. He means too much to you. He's all you've got left now.

You woke up weeks later being lowered into a casket, eyes shooting open and body lurching forward as you made contact with the cushioned base. People screamed, you screamed. It was...eventful. A few weeks later you were hobbling around the house on crutches whilst you learnt how to control these weird powers manifesting within yourself. The stench of death clung to you like the plauge, no matter how much you washed it stuck. Nobody understood why your hands faded through them. Nobody understood why you were always ice cold to the touch, even in the heatwaves of summer. Nobody got why your teeth began to rot and fall out or why your skin was cracked and cheeks were bloated compared to your figure, they just laughed. you're only 16- this shouldn't be happening after all.

When Dakota offered you his heart? you were hesitant to agree to say the least. The doctor was unstable, he was mentally unstable and blinded with his metaphorical heart on his sleeve. But he wouldn't take no for an answer, and maybe, just maybe you thought being alive would make everything better. And you wouldn't hurt anyone else again. And naievely you agreed.

First he went under, then yourself. And when you came to...

The gentle blip of a lone heart moniter and a solem expression on the doctors face spoke a million words you didn't want to hear.

You're dead. And you just want everyone else to be. Maybe they'd get it then.

You were no longer dead. And you don't want your friends to be. But they are.

[zukkaoru]

the disparity in kudos between a skk fic and a fic for literally any other bsd characters/ship :/

[kurapikunt]

without you

[llycaons]

okay I thought about the similarities between jfm and jc's unrequited crushes who prefer their 'servant's' company to their own and it looped around from being tragic to being really funny again. jc pined after wq so clumsily and unsuccessfully with the stupid fucking comb she didn't care about because SHE AND HER FAMILY WERE POLITICAL TARGETS AT THE TIME and HE DIDN'T EVEN KNOW HER AT ALL and she 100% always preferred the company of wwx, who was genuinely fun to be around, as intelligent and selfless as she was, understood and respected the delicate political position she was in, treated her like an individual, knew what was important to her, helped her family, and sacrificed everything for her safety. wq literally would rather have lived a doomed life in a starving refugee camp with wwx and her family than accept a marriage proposal from jc, jc wq shippers how does it feel to be fucking clowns